A hybrid display frame buffer for a display subsystem. An embodiment of an apparatus a first logic to split a video image into a first data portion and a second data portion; a display frame buffer including a first memory component having a first type of memory and a second memory component having a second type of memory, the first logic to write the first data portion to the first memory component and the second data portion to the second memory component; and a second logic to read the first data portion from the first memory component and the second data component from the second memory component, and to combine the first data portion and the second data portion to generate a combined video image.

A display subsystem for an electronic device such as a mobile device may consume a significant amount of power due to the large amount of data transfer between the image data generator, such as an application processor, to a display device, such as and LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) panel, via a display frame buffer that temporarily stores image data. For this reason, minimizing the power consumption of the data transfer is a key factor in the design of a low power mobile device.
For example, techniques exist for reduction in the amount of data transfer. Display Selective (or Partial) Update (DSU) reduces the amount data transfer by transferring only a partial frame that includes data that differs from the previous frame, with a display frame buffer being inserted to retain the data for a full frame. In this manner, the amount of data that is transferred between the image generator and the display device is reduced, which leads to a reduction in the overall power consumption for the display transfer.
However, techniques to reduce the amount of data transferred does not directly address the power that is consumed by the display frame buffer in display operation, which is a significant power cost in the operation of a mobile device that has a limited power source. The increasing resolution of displays in mobile devices requires additional data, and thus additional power is required for the reading and writing of such data in the display frame buffer.

Hybrid display frame buffer for display subsystem


A system for interlocking a plurality of modules, such as medical instrument modules (e.g., infusion pumps), in side-by-side relationship such that not more than one module can be mounted on each side of a center module. The modules are interchangeable in that any module of the system can be a center module or a side module. In the preferred embodiment, latching arms on a module are automatically moved as the module is mounted on a pole stand to allow other "side" modules to be mounted on that "center" module. The latching arms of the "side" modules prevent additional modules from being mounted on the side modules. Other embodiments are described as well.

The invention relates generally to a system for mounting modules on one another, and more particularly to a system for mounting modules, such as medical instrument modules, on a pole stand.
In modern medical practice a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic instruments are used, sometimes to such a degree that floor and shelf space near the patient's bedside is at a premium. One known solution to the problem of mounting instrument modules is the use of a pole stand, which allows equipment to be mounted vertically over a relatively small footprint on the floor. Often such pole stands have wheels for the convenience of the operator in moving them to where they are needed. It is a well known problem in the hospital setting that such wheeled stands are easily unbalanced upon, for example, crossing thresholds or exiting elevators.
A related concern is matter of rapidly mounting and demounting various instruments in a hospital setting. In a crisis situation, it can be important that the proper mounting of an instrument module be accomplished expeditiously. Even in routine operations, a convenient and reliable mounting system would increase efficiency while enhancing patient comfort. In particular, infusion therapy is performed on many patients in the hospital, and due to incompatibilities in drug chemistry or infusion regimen, this often requires several infusion lines. Over the course of a hospital stay, the number of infusion lines, and hence the number of infusion pumps managing the flow within them, is likely to vary. The cost of patient care is reduced if the infusion pumps can rapidly be redeployed where needed.
Examples of infusion pumps that have typically been mounted on pole stands are shown in co-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,017,192 and U.S. Pat. No. Des. 278,181. Typically, a single infusion pump has been mounted on the pole stand at one vertical location along the stand. If additional infusion pumps were needed, they would be mounted on separate pole stands, or at a different vertical location along the same pole stand, or on specially designed multi-pole adaptors or stands that provide a plurality of spaced apart vertical pole sections for mounting infusion pumps. Such infusion pumps have been available from Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn., under various trade designations, such as the "AVI 200", "AVI 400" and "AVI 480" model series.
Dual channel infusion pumps have also been available in which one pump housing contains two separately controllable infusion pumps. Dual channel infusion pumps have been available from Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn., under the trade designations "AVI 840" and "AVI MICRO 845". In the case of dual channel infusion pumps, space on the pole stands is economized by mounting one housing on the pole stand to provide two pumps and two flow channels. Another dual channel infusion pump is available from IMED Corporation, San Diego, Calif., under the trade designation "GEMINI PC2". Of course, one disadvantage of any dual channel infusion pump is that in effect two infusion pumps are provided even in situations where only one pump is needed.
Specially designed pole stands have been used to support a plurality of infusion pumps. One such pole stand has been sold by Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn., under the trade designation "Model 166 Multipump IV Pole". The "Model 166" pole stand has a lower single pole section supporting an upper multiple pole section, which comprises a plurality of spaced apart pole sections. The upper pole sections of that pole stand have been used to support more than one infusion pump at the same vertical level. Specially designed adaptors have also been available to provide more than one spaced apart vertical pole section on a single pole stand. An adaptor of that type has been available from Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company under the trade designation "Model 146 IV Pole Adaptor".
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,756,706 and 4,898,578 show a drug infusion system with calculator. That system includes a plurality of infusion pump modules arranged in a vertical stack along with a central management unit, all of which are supported on a single pole stand. The modules are electronically interlinked with the central management unit. U.S. Pat. No. 4,356,475 (Neumann et al.) shows a system containing a predetermined number of monitoring devices and at least one central station. That system includes equipment having a bay into which slide-in modules can be introduced in levels one above the other.


A pipe swivel joint for simultaneous transfer of a plurality of separated fluids between a plurality of inlet conduits and a plurality of corresponding outlet conduits. The swivel joint includes an annular inner element, an annular outer element surrounding at least a part of the inner element, and a plurality of annular fluid flow passages formed between the outer surface of the inner element and the inner surface of the outer element. Each of the inlet conduits is connected to the portion of a corresponding one of the flow passages that is defined by the outer surface of the inner element, and each of the outlet conduits is connected to the portion of a corresponding one of the flow passages that is defined by the inner surface of the outer element. The cross-sectional configuration of each of the fluid flow passages is preferably circular in order to allow passage of spherical or round cleaning elements through them, and an annular bearing race chamber, defined by the outer surface of the inner element and the inner surface of the outer element, contains a plurality of ball bearings to facilitate rotational movement of the outer element relative to the inner element.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to pipe swivel joints, and more particularly to such swivel joints with multiple flow passageways for the simultaneous transfer of a plurality of separate fluids.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The production of oil and gas from offshore wells has developed into a major endeavor of the petroleum industry, and this growth has led to the development of various means for transporting petroleum and its products from offshore locations to shore-based refineries or storage facilities. Many of these wells now are being drilled and completed in deep water where the use of marine tankers of very large capacity constitutes the most practical and efficient transportation method.
One of the more common facilities employed in such a tanker operation is an offshore floating terminal comprising an arrangement of hoses, pipes and/or other fluid conduits supported on a buoy to which the tanker is moored during loading/unloading. The tanker and the buoy move relative to each other in response to the influence of wind, tide, water currents and the loading or unloading of cargo or fuel, thus requiring a flexible hose or articulated pipe with swivel joints between the tanker and the buoy. As the loading/unloading operation frequently involves more than one type of fluid, for example, crude oil, kerosene, and bunker fuel, and sometimes large volumes of vapor generated during the transfer operation must be conducted to a storage or recovery facility, the several fluids are loaded or unloaded, either one at a time through a single conduit or simultaneously through a plurality of conduits all of which are connected to a single, multiple-conduit coaxial swivel joint on the buoy. This type of swivel joint has two or more interconnected chambers each communicating with an inlet and a corresponding outlet to provide two or more separate and distinct flow paths, and although such devices provide the desired function they are relatively complex and thus difficult and expensive both to manufacture and to service.
What is needed, therefore, is a coaxial swivel joint that has a plurality of separate and distinct fluid flow passages between a plurality of inlets and a plurality of outlets, that is relatively uncomplex in design and thus inexpensive to manufacture, and that is easy to clean and maintain.

Pipe swivel joint for a plurality of separate fluids


A system, method, and computer program product are provided for applying a rule to associated events. In use, a plurality of events is associated based on at least one identifier. Additionally, at least one rule is applied to the associated events. Further, a reaction is performed based on the application of the at least one rule.

Traditionally, rules have been applied to events for detecting unwanted activity. Sometimes, such unwanted activity has included data leakage, malware, etc. However, conventional techniques for applying rules to events have generally exhibited various limitations. Just by way of example, rules have traditionally only been applied to individual events, thus preventing detection of unwanted activity that spans multiple events. There is thus a need for overcoming these and/or other issues associated with the prior art.

System, method, and computer program product for applying a rule to associated events


A system for compensating RI while reading servo data from a rotating storage medium is provided and includes an equalizer, a Viterbi detector, and a servo control module. The equalizer receives a digital signal including a bit sequence of the servo data read from the rotating storage medium and equalizes the digital signal via filters. Some of the filters are to phase rotate the digital signal to generate phase rotated signals. The Viterbi detector operates based on a Viterbi state machine, which includes main branches having sub-branches, where: each of the main branches is to receive the phase rotated signals respectively at corresponding ones of the sub-branches; and the Viterbi detector is to determine branch metrics for each of the sub-branches, determine a minimum branch metric for each of the main branches, and process the minimum branch metric using an add-compare-select process to determine a most likely received bit sequence.

A disk drive includes a magnetic storage medium that is rotated by a spindle motor. Data is stored on the magnetic storage medium in concentric tracks, where each track includes multiple sectors. The sectors include data sectors and servo sectors. The servo sectors store servo information, such as a preamble, synchronization (synch) mark, gray code, etc. A servo controller is used to determine a location of a read/write head relative to the tracks and/or sectors based on the servo information.
A radial incoherence detector can be used to detect radial incoherence during reading of servo sectors. Radial incoherence refers to an offset in a circumferential direction between two radially adjacent servo sectors, which causes a timing offset between servo information read from the radially adjacent servo sectors. During writing of servo data, start and end locations of radially adjacent servo sectors can be misaligned. When the head is performing a seek operation including passing the head over adjacent sectors in a radial direction, this misalignment in the servo sectors is detected by the radial incoherence detector. Since each servo sector essentially includes the same servo information, radial incoherence would be 0 if the radially adjacent servo sectors were circumferentially aligned. In a typical magnetic recording medium however, this misalignment between radial adjacent servo sectors can consistently change in a random pattern.
Traditional radial incoherence detectors typically estimate an amount of radial incoherence based on an output of a filter and/or a past decision of a Viterbi detector. The estimated radial incoherence is then compensated for in future decisions of the Viterbi detector. There is a delay from when the radial incoherence is estimated to when the compensation occurs. This delay causes compensation values determined for first received servo information to be later used for second (or later received servo information). The later received servo information may have a different radial incoherence than the first received servo information. As a result, the radial incoherence compensation is inaccurate.

System and method for compensating for radial incoherence associated with reading servo sectors


Various technologies pertaining to exploratory suggestions are described herein. A computer-implemented graph is constructed, where the graph includes nodes that are representative of aspects and edges that are representative of associations between aspects. An aspect is representative of a sub-topic of a topic or a sub-task of a task. The computer-implemented graph is learned based upon content of search logs, and is used to output exploratory suggestions, where a user is exploring a topic or attempting to complete a multi-step task.

Search engines are a primary means by which people locate information on-line and complete search tasks. Conventionally, search engines are equipped with various technologies that are configured to assist users in locating information that matches their information retrieval (IR) intent. For example, search engines can be configured to provide query suggestions to users responsive to receipt of queries. These query suggestions are typically query disambiguations, where a search engine receives an ambiguous query and attempts to assist the user in refining the query. While query suggestions are often useful in connection with assisting the user in acquiring particular information, query suggestions are not particularly well-suited for assisting the user in completing a more complex search task.

Constructing a graph that facilitates provision of exploratory suggestions


A golf bag with a support stand including a weight member adapted to extend automatically the legs of the support stand in an upright or tilted position of the golf bag and automatically retract the legs upon transporting the golf bag. The golf bag also includes a holding member adapted to prevent the legs from being extended upon storing and carrying the golf bag and thereby obtain convenience in use. As the holding member is a hook and fabric type fastener.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to golf bags, and more particularly to golf bags with weighted support stands wherein a pair of legs are movable between an extended position and a retracted position.
2. Background Discussion
There have been proposed various golf bags which have legs movable between extended and retracted positions. In particular, there has been proposed a golf bag including a weight member adapted to move legs between extended and retracted positions. This golf bag is disclosed in the Korean Utility Model Application No. 92-14606 filed in the name of the inventor.


A customer network controller (CNC) including a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to use a virtual private network (VPN)-specific service model for a VPN service and map the VPN-specific service model to one or more traffic engineering (TE)-specific parameters. The memory is coupled to the processor and configured to store a mapping between a VPN identification (ID) of the VPN service corresponding to the VPN-specific service model and a tunnel ID of either an existing TE tunnel or newly-established TE tunnel for the VPN service. The existing TE tunnel or the newly established TE tunnel satisfies the one or more TE-specific parameters.

Software defined network (SDN) is a networking paradigm that decouples network control and forwarding functions. The decoupling of the control plane from the data plane allows for centralization of network control, enabling effective policy administration and flexible management. The centralization of network control facilitates various network functionalities, such as network measurements, traffic engineering, enhanced quality of services, and enhanced access control. With the growing availability of SDN-enabled nodes and protocols, many organizations have started deploying SDN networks.
A virtual private network (VPN) extends a private network across a public network, and enables users to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if their computing devices were directly connected to the private network. Users may request a VPN using a VPN-specific service model.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A ferrite core is suspended from the base of a borehole in a tunnel roof structure and is positioned within coil turns located at the roof surface such that movement of the roof structure causes displacement of the core with respect to the coil turns thus producing a change in inductance. The coil and core are incorporated as a frequency-determining element in an LR oscillator. Therefore, movement of the tunnel roof structure is reflected as a change in the frequency of the oscillator. This frequency is monitored and, if the change exceeds a predetermined threshold, an alarm is given. Several methods of suspending the core in the coil are disclosed, one of which allows for a non-verticle borehole.

In tunnel structures, such as exist in subsurface mining operations, there is a critical requirement for monitoring the condition of the roof structure in order to assure safety of the personnel operating in the mine. Various strain gauge and deflection monitoring devices are traditionally employed to detect movement or sagging in the roof structure to provide an advanced warning of potential collapse of the roof structure.

Tunnel roof monitor employing an induction coil extensometer


The preferred reforming and/or benzene production catalyst is an intermediate pore size zeolite which has a high degree of crystallinity and a small crystallite size. The reforming or benzene production process using the catalyst is preferably run without added hydrogen, and at low pressures and temperatures.

Catalytic reforming is well known in the petroleum industry and refers to the treatment of naphtha fractions to improve the octane rating by the production of aromatics. The more important hydrocarbon reactions occurring during reforming include dehydrogenation of cyclohexanes to aromatics, dehydroisomerization of alkylcyclopentanes to aromatics, and dehydrocyclization of acyclic hydrocarbons to aromatics. A number of other reactions also occur, including the following: dealkylation of alkylbenzenes, isomerization of paraffins, and hydrocracking reactions which produce light gaseous hydrocarbons, e.g., methane, ethane, propane and butane. Hydrocracking reactions are to be particularly minimized during reforming as they decrease the yield of gasoline boiling products and hydrogen.
Because of the demand for high octane gasoline for use as motor fuels, etc., and of the demand for benzene as a chemical reactant extensive research is being devoted to the development of improved reforming catalysts, improved catalysts for benzene production, catalytic reforming processes and benzene production processes. Catalysts for successful reforming processes must possess good selectivity. That is, they must be able to produce high yields of liquid products in the gasoline boiling range which contain large concentrations of high octane aromatic hydrocarbons and low concentrations of light gaseous hydrocarbons. Benzene production catalysts must also have good selectivity to produce high yields of benzene and low yields of light gaseous hydrocarbons. Also, the catalysts should possess good activity in order that the temperature required to produce a certain quality product need not be too high. It is also necessary that catalysts either possess good stability in order that the activity and selectivity characteristics can be retained during prolonged periods of operation, or be sufficiently regenerable to allow frequent regeneration without loss of performance.
Reforming catalysts and benzene production catalysts are usually composed of a highly dispersed transition metal(s) on a metal oxide support. Typically, the transition metal is a noble metal, most notably platinum. However, there are numerous metal oxide supports. Examples are: silica, alumina, and a plethora of natural and man-made zeolites. Intermediate pore size zeolites are one sub-class of the zeolites.
By "intermediate pore size", as used herein, is meant an effective pore aperture in the range of about 5 to 6.5 .ANG. when the molecular sieve is in the H-form. Molecular sieves having pore apertures in this range tend to have unique molecular sieving characteristics. Unlike small pore zeolites such as erionite and chabazite, they will allow hydrocarbons having some branching into the molecular sieve void spaces. Unlike larger pore zeolites such as the faujasites and mordenites, they can differentiate between n-alkanes and slightly branched alkanes on the one hand and larger branched alkanes having, for example, quaternary carbon atoms.
The effective pore size of the molecular sieves can be measured using standard adsorption techniques and hydrocarbonaceous compounds of known minimum kinetic diameters. See Breck, Zeolite Molecular Sieves, 1974 (especially Chapter 8) and Anderson, et al., J. Catalysis 58, 114 (1979), both of which are incorporated by reference.
Intermediate pore size molecular sieves in the H-form will typically admit molecules having kinetic diameters of 5.0 to 6.5 .ANG. with little hindrance. Examples of such compounds (and their kinetic diameters in .ANG.) are: n-hexane (4.3), 3-methylpentane (5.5), benzene (5.85), and toluene (5.8). Compounds having kinetic diameters of about 6 to 6.5 .ANG. can be admitted into the pores, depending on the particular sieve, but do not penetrate as quickly and in some cases are effectively excluded. Compounds having kinetic diameters in the range of 6 to 6.5 .ANG. include: cyclohexane (6.0), 2,3-dimethylbutane (6.1), 2,2-dimethylbutane (6.2), m-xylene (6.1) and 1,2,3,4-tetramethylbenzene (6.4). Generally, compounds having kinetic diameters of greater than about 6.5% do not penetrate the pore apertures and thus are not absorbed into the interior of the molecular sieve lattice. Examples of such larger compounds include: o-xylene (6.8), hexamethylbenzene (7.1), 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene (7.5), and tributylamine (8.1).
The preferred effective pore size range is from about 5.3 to about 6.2 .ANG.. Among the materials falling within this range are the crystalline silica polymorph, silicalite, RE 29,948 organosilicates, and the chromia silicate CZM.
In performing adsorption measurements to determine pore size, standard techniques are used. It is convenient to consider a particular molecule as excluded if it does not reach at least 95% of its equilibrium adsorption value on the zeolite in less than about 10 minutes (p/po=0.5; 25.degree. C.).
By "crystalline silica polymorphs", as used herein, is meant materials having very low aluminum contents (or high silica:alumina mole ratios). Aluminum contents of these materials are generally less than about 4000 ppm, preferably less than about 2000 ppm, more preferably less than about 1000 ppm.
Intermediate pore size crystalline silica polymorphs useful in the present invention include silicalite, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,061,724, and the "U.S. Pat. No. 29,948 organosilicates", disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 29,948, both of which are incorporated by reference. The essentially alumina-free chromia silicate, CZM, is disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 160,618, Miller, filed June 28, 1980, incorporated by reference.
Intermediate pore size zeolites include materials such as CZH-5 and members of the ZSM series, e.g., ZSM-5, ZSM-11, ZSM-12, ZSM-21, ZSM-22, ZSM-23, ZSM-35, and ZSM-38. ZSM-5 is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,702,886, 29,948 and 3,770,614; ZSM-11is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,709,979 (See also, Bibby, et al., Nature, 280, 664-665 (Aug. 23, 1980) which reports the preparation of a crystalline silicate called "silicalite-2"); ZSM-12 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,832,449; ZSM-21 and ZSM-38 are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,948,758; ZSM-22 is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,481,177 and 4,556,477; ZSM-23 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,076,842; ZSM-35 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,016,245; ZSM-38 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,046,859; ZSM-48 is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,827 and CZH-5 is disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 166,863, Hickson, filed Jul. 7, 1980. All of these patents, publications and specifications which have not previously already been incorporated herein by reference are hereby so incorporated. The intermediate pore size zeolites can include "crystalline admixtures" which are thought to be the result of faults occurring within the crystal or crystallite area during the synthesis of the zeolites. The "crystalline admixtures" are themselves zeolites but have characteristics in common, in a uniform or nonuniform manner, to what the literature reports as distinct zeolites. Examples of crystalline admixtures of ZSM-5 and ZSM-11 are disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,424, Kokotailo, Oct. 21, 1980 (incorporated by reference). The crystalline admixtures are themselves intermediate pore size zeolites and are not to be confused with physical admixtures of zeolites in which distinct crystals or crystallites of different zeolites are physically present in the same catalyst or hydrothermal reaction mixture.
Additionally, zeolites SSZ-20 and SSZ-23 are preferred catalysts. SSZ-20 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,483,835, and SSZ-23 is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,859,442, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The crystalline silicate may be in the form of a borosilicate, where boron replaces at least a portion of the aluminum of the more typical aluminosilicate form of the silicate. Borosilicates are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,268,420; 4,269,813; 4,327,236 to Klotz, the disclosures of which patents are incorporated herein, particularly that disclosures related to borosilicate preparation.
In the borosilicate, the preferred crystalline structure is that of ZSM-5, in terms of X-ray diffraction pattern. Boron in the ZSM-5 type borosilicates takes the place of aluminum that is present in the more typical ZSM-5 crystalline aluminosilicate structures. Borosilicates contain boron in place of aluminum, but generally there are some trace amounts of aluminum present in crystalline borosilicates.
Still further crystalline silicates which can be used in the present invention are iron silicates and gallium silicates.
Borosilicates and aluminosilicates are the more preferred silicates for use in the present invention. Aluminosilicates are the most preferred.
Silicalite is an intermediate pore zeolite and is generally considered to be a ZSM-5 zeolite which has a high silica:alumina (SiO.sub.2 :A12O.sub.3) ratio. Examples of its methods of manufacture can be shown in: Dwyer, et al, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,941,871, issued Mar. 2, 1976 and 4,441,991, issued Apr. 10, 1984; and Derouane, et al, EPO Application No. 186,479, published Feb. 7, 1986, all of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Dwyer, et al suggest that a platinum-loaded silicalite catalyst can be used in reforming hydrocarbons, as well as other types of reactions. The process conditions in Dwyer, et al are listed as: a temperature between 700.degree. F. and 1000.degree. F.; a pressure between 100 psig and 1000 psig (preferably 200-700 psig); a liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) between 0.1 and 10 (preferably between 0.5 and 4); and a hydrogen to hydrocarbon (H.sub.2 /HC) mole ratio between 1 and 20 (preferably 4 and 12). Detz, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,347,394, issued Aug. 31, 1982, disclose a process for selectively producing benzene using a catalyst having platinum on an intermediate pore zeolite which is substantially free of acidity (such as silicalite). The process conditions can be: temperatures greater than 480.degree. C. (more preferably at relatively high temperatures, such as between 510.degree. C. and 595.degree. C.; pressures of between atmospheric and 10 bar; an LHSV between 0.1to 15; and hydrogen may or may not be added. P. Jacobs, et al, "Comparison of Acid to Metal Catalyzed Conversion of N-decane and Cyclodecane on ZSM-5 and Faujasite-type Zeolites", J. Mol. Cat., 27, 11 (1984) show reacting a platinum silicalite catalyst with the test compounds n-decane and cyclodecane.
Reforming at low pressure in the absence of added hydrogen produces a relatively high liquid yield of relatively high octane reformate. Dehydrogenation and dehydrocyclization to produce benzene at low pressures produces a relatively high liquid yield of relatively high benzene content liquid product. Unfortunately, conventional catalysts foul quickly at these conditions which makes this operation impractical. Accordingly, the need has arisen for reforming and benzene production catalysts which have an acceptable run length under the conditions noted above.

Crystalline silicate catalyst and processes using the catalyst


A pumpless dispenser especially intended for dispensing viscous fluids. The dispenser includes a supple pouch having first and second ends, a sidewall that can be arranged to form first and second opposed surfaces, and an outlet. The pouch contains a viscous fluid food product therein. The dispenser also includes a housing configured and dimensioned for receiving the pouch; and a compression assembly for pressing the pouch so as to urge the viscous fluid food product content toward the outlet. This assembly includes a roller having a pressing surface disposed adjacent the first surface of the pouch and a planar surface disposed adjacent the second surface of the pouch. The dispenser further includes a closure member engaged with the outlet for closing the outlet. This member is capable of opening the outlet so as to cause the roller to move along the pouch surface toward the outlet by gravity for expelling the viscous fluid food product through the outlet. The dispenser is suitable for viscous food products with or without particles, such as sauces, gravies and the like.

In the food service industry, it is desirable to serve a wide variety of viscous fluids such as sauce, mustard, ketchup, condiments, and the like in hygienic conditions and as conveniently as possible. For that, there are several known types of dispensing devices which utilize both the gravity and the mechanical force to dispense viscous fluids throughout a tube connected to a bag. Such dispensing apparatuses generally do not require any additional pumps.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,120 to Evans, Sr. et al. discloses a cheese server being adapted to maintain inverted bags in a steam chamber while gravity influenced squeeze bars ride down the bag sides to express cheese toward the bag outlet fitment. Such an arrangement remains rather complicated and inconvenient when the bag has to be changed by a new one. In particular, the pair of rollers has to be detached from the empty bag, then fitted to a new bag while taking care the rollers are not biased with respect to the bag which would cause blocking problems. In addition, when the bag is loaded with fluid product, it may be difficult to properly engage the pair of rollers through the upper portion of the bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,613 to Taylor et al. relates to a dispenser for viscous fluid having a hanging assembly for suspending a collapsible bag with a dispenser outlet extending from an opening at the bottom of a housing, and a pair of rollers riding in parallel pairs of slots vertically extending in opposite sides of the housing. In this arrangement, the device also comprises a pair of rollers which can be separated when the housing is opened for engaging a new bag. However, the device is cumbersome as place for the two rollers must be saved accordingly. The rollers have to be joined by an elastic yoke provided on each external side of the housing making the arrangement complicated. Blocking problems are likely to occur, as the two rollers might not ride in a perfect parallel travel all along the length of the bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,297,699 to Barchus also relates to an internally-coupled dual roller tube squeezing device for fluid materials such as toothpaste, shampoo, adhesive, or similar.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,639,251 to Kirland relates to a flexible collapsible container containing medical liquids, a pair of rollers being arranged as a level indicator.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,578,001 to Sha is an infusion apparatus for IV bags comprising a squeezing arrangement of two parallel rollers.
None of the devices discussed above provides a satisfactory solution that can be applied as a recognized efficient standard in the food service industry. Accordingly, there remains a need for improved dispensing devices in this area.

Pumpless dispenser for viscous food products


Singulation system may utilize various features to singulate items, e.g., which may be different sizes from one another. For example, a conveyor may advance items along the length of the conveyor, and paddles arranged for protruding over respective portions of the conveyor may be selectively positionable based on conditions (such as a size or a jammed state) of items detected as present on a relevant part of the conveyor. Additionally or alternatively, a first conveyor may advance items at a first speed and in a first direction to sequentially drop the items onto a second conveyor positioned below the first conveyor, and the second conveyor may advance the received items at a second speed higher than the first speed and in a second direction different from the first direction, e.g., to increase space between items.

Modern inventory systems, such as those in mail order warehouses, supply chain distribution centers, airport luggage systems, and custom-order manufacturing facilities, face significant challenges in responding to requests for inventory items. As inventory systems grow, the challenges of simultaneously completing a large number of packing, storing, and other inventory-related tasks become non-trivial. In inventory systems tasked with responding to large numbers of diverse inventory requests, inefficient utilization of system resources, including space, equipment, and manpower, can result in lower throughput, unacceptably long response times, an ever-increasing backlog of unfinished tasks, and, in general, poor system performance. One area in particular in which utilization of system resources be made more efficient is the re-organization of items from within mixed groups into individually accessible units.


An embedded optical sensor has a plurality of layers 10-20 and an optical fiber 21 with a fiber grating 28, disposed between the layers 14,16. The layers 10-20 comprise filaments 22 and resin 24 which have different thermal expansion coefficients and the filaments 22 are oriented so as to create unequal transverse residual stresses that act through the geometry of a resin-rich region that surrounds on the grating 28 in the fiber 21. The unequal transverse residual stresses cause birefringence in the grating 28, thereby causing the grating 28 to reflect light 32 having two wavelengths with a predetermined separation, each along a different polarization axis. The wavelength separation and average wavelength between such separation have different sensitivities to temperature and strain, thereby allowing independent temperature and strain measurements using only a single grating. The birefringence is maximized when the filaments 22 of the adjacent layers 10,12 are oriented at 90 degrees with respect to the longitudinal (Z-axis) of the fiber 21.

It is known in the field of strain sensors to embed an optical fiber having reflective elements, such as Bragg gratings, within a structure, as is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,806,012, entitled "Distributed, Spatially Resolving Optical Fiber Strain Gauge" and No. 4,761,073, entitled "Distributed, Spatially Resolving Optical Fiber Strain Gauge" both to Meltz et al. The fiber containing gratings is also called a "fiber sensor." It is also known that optical fiber sensors can be embedded in composite materials or structures, thereby allowing strain and/or temperature measurement of the structure.
Typically, a broad wavelength band source light is launched into the fiber and the gratings reflect only a narrow wavelength band of the source light. The reflection wavelength of the gratings (i.e., the wavelength where a local maximum in reflection occurs), shifts as a function of both strain and temperature variation at the location of the gratings. Consequently, in order to determine strain independent of temperature variations, such a sensor requires a separate temperature measurement device (e.go, another grating). Thus, a single grating (or sensor) in such a configuration cannot provide temperature compensated strain measurement, nor strain compensated temperature measurement. Accordingly, the same inability to perform temperature and strain measurements from a single sensor exists for sensors embedded in structures.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide an embedded optical fiber sensor which provides optical signals from a single grating from which both temperature and strain can be determined.

Embedded optical sensor capable of strain and temperature measurement using a single diffraction grating


The present disclosure relates to gesture based control of an electronic device and in particular to a method and system for gaining control over the electronic device.

Gesture controlled systems are getting more and more common in today's society. For example, there are several companies developing software facilitating gesture control of Smartphones and other wearable electronics such as tablets. Such software often uses images captured by a camera for controlling the electronic devices. These implementations are for example advantageous for controlling a Smartphone when sitting in a car, e.g. increasing the volume of music played via the Smartphone. A camera has a limited range for capturing images, and these systems are often designed for applications where one person can and wants to control the electronic device.
One such system is described in US 2014/032573 (OBLONG INDUSTRIES INC.). The document relates to a system which identifies gesture of a user using only gesture data received by a sensor. A computer application translates the gesture to a gesture signal, and controls a connected display device in response to the gesture signal.
However, further development of systems for controlling devices via gestures is needed in order to broaden the range of application where such gesture based systems may be used.

Method and system for gesture based control device


A disc type chipper/mulcher having multi-blade flails in which two or more blades are attached to a sleeve, and the blade/sleeve combination pivots about a post as a single unit. The flails are sharpenable and reversible, and can be mounted on the same side of the disc as the knives. The chipper/mulcher may also include disc mounted fan blades and a screen for governing the size of the processed materials.

The present invention relates to the field of general maintenance.
Many industrial, commercial, and household applications require the breaking up of relatively large objects into smaller pieces. In landscaping, for example, it is often useful to reduce uprooted trees and shrubs or their trimmings to wood chips, which are then used as mulch or hauled off as waste. In the farming industry, it may be useful to shred or grind feed, manure or other materials. In the construction industry, it may be necessary to reduce waste lumber and gypsum board to relatively small chips for disposal. In other applications, roots, newspapers, aluminum, plastic, discarded house plants, general rubbish, and other materials may have to be similarly reduced to smaller pieces.
The reduction process is variously referred to as cutting, chipping, shredding, mulching or grinding, depending in part on the size of the end product. Cutting and chipping is historically accomplished by a relatively few knives mounted directly onto a rotating disc, and produces pieces ranging up to about 3/4 to 11/2 inches in size. Shredding, mulching and grinding are historically accomplished by a dozen or more hammers which rotate about shafts attached to the disc. Such hammers typically operate within a chamber, and continue to reduce the size of the material being worked upon until that material can escape the chamber through a screen. Shredding generates pieces ranging from about 1/4 to about 3/4" in size, while mulching or grinding produces pieces ranging from a fine powder to about 1/4". Because of the overlap in the common usage of these terms, "cutting" and "chipping" are used interchangeably herein, and "shredding", "mulching" and "grinding" are used interchangeably herein. Additionally, all devices which perform any such reduction of materials are referred to herein by the generic name, chipper/mulcher.
In previous devices, the chipping knives are usually placed on the opposite side of the disc from the hammers. Such a configuration allows a user to either chip a material by forcing it against one side of the disc, or to mulch the material by forcing it into the chamber on the other side of the disc. One drawback to such an arrangement is that a given material cannot be chipped and mulched at the same time.
Also in the previous devices, the hammers comprise either independently pivoting plates with a long axis parallel to the direction of motion, or a row of teeth arranged along an edge of a single flat plate, and positioned normal to the direction of motion. (see U.S. Pat. No. 1,759,905). The present inventor recognized that both such configurations have several drawbacks which adversely affect performance and/or maintenance costs.
First, the hammers of both prior configurations strike the materials fed into the device with dull, flat surfaces. This may be useful for mulching and grinding, but offers relatively little assistance in cutting, chipping and shredding.
Second, the prior devices exhibit a poor trade-off with respect to maintenance costs. Independently pivoting flat plates are relatively strong along their striking axis, but are relatively thin from side to side. Because of these characteristics, individually pivoting flat plates tend to wear out at the pivot, and also tend to bend and twist about the supporting shaft. Such plates can be extremely difficult to remove and replace, at times requiring a blowtorch for their removal. Similarly, such plates tend to bend to such a degree that they cannot realistically be sharpened or reversed after removal. Turning the plate 90.degree. and cutting a row of teeth into the plate minimizes the twisting and bending about the supporting shaft, but such teeth are necessarily thin and weak because their thickness is limited by the thickness of the plate.


A new and distinct cultivar of Dahlia plant named ‘Cocos’ characterized by its yellow ray floret color, RHS 2B; compact plant habit; and vigorous growth habit.

The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Dahlia plant, botanically known as Dahlia (hybrid), and hereinafter referred to by the name 'Cocos'. The new cultivar 'Cocos' is a product of a planned breeding program and was selected by the Inventor, Jan Skjold Knudsen, in Fyn, Denmark. The new cultivar 'Cocos' originated from a cross made by the Inventor between the Dahlia cultivar designated 'Malaysia' (unpatented) as the female parent and the Dahlia cultivar designated 'Tonga' (unpatented) as the male parent.
Asexual reproduction by cuttings of the new variety in Fyn, Denmark has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as described herein for 'Cocos' are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction. The new variety reproduces true to type.


A control moment gyroscope for providing directional control in a spacecraft. The control moment gyroscope has a rotor which is electrostatically or magnetically supported within a gimbal housing so as not to touch any of the interior surfaces of the housing. The housing is mounted on a gimbal support which in turn is mounted on the spacecraft. Connected to the gimbal housing is a torque motor which rotates the housing around a gimbal axis. In order to induce a direction changing torque on the spacecraft, the rotor is first spun about its rotor axis. A torque is then induced on the rotor about the output axis. This induced torque will cause the rotor to precess about the gimbal axis which the torque motor follow. The torque induced around the output axis is transferred directly to the spacecraft.

Control moment gyroscopes are well known means of providing directional control for a variety of vehicles, most notably spacecraft. Control moment gyroscopes normally comprise a rotor, a motor to spin the rotor about a rotor axis, a gimbal, a gimbal torque motor to rotate the gimbal about a gimbal axis, and a control system. The control moment gyroscope is mounted within the spacecraft along the axis in which it will in induce a torque. The rotor is mechanically supported in the gimbal and is rotated about the gimbal axis which is normal to the rotor axis.
During operation of the gyroscope, the rotor is spun by a motor about its rotor axis at a predetermined rate. In order to induce a torque on the spacecraft, the gimbal torque motor rotates the gimbal and spinning rotor about the gimbal axis. The rotor is of sufficient mass and is spinning at such a rate that any movement of the rotor out of its plane of rotation will induce a significant torque around an output axis which is both normal to both the rotor axis and the gimbal axis. Torque around the output axis is transferred directly to the spacecraft.
One requirement of a control moment gyroscope is that the torque to the spacecraft be delivered in as smooth a fashion as possible. In the prior art gyroscopes, anomalous torques can be caused by rate variations in the rotation of the gimbal. These anomalous torques, or ripple torques, can become significant in light of the fact that they are directly proportional to the angular momentum of the rotor. So the greater the mass and rate of rotation of the rotor, the greater the ripple torques can be.
The ripple torques are caused from a variety of sources. They may include gimbal rate sensor (tachometer) errors, motor ripple torque, motor cogging torque, motor gear train imperfections, electronic drive amplifier biases, electronic drive amplifier gain variations, motor commutation offsets, motor commutation gain variations, and gimbal bearing noise. The common thread running through all these potential problem sources is that they are all related to the operation of the gimbal torque motor.
Thus, there is need for a control moment gyroscope that delivers torque to the spacecraft in a smooth fashion and substantially eliminates ripple torques.


Printing systems and methods of operating printing systems are described. In but one embodiment, a printer comprises one or more processors, a print media tray for supporting a supply of print media, and a sensor operably associated with the print media tray. The sensor is configured to ascertain a measure associated with an amount of print media in the print media tray. The processor and the sensor are configured to ascertain, from the measure provided by the sensor, a number of remaining sheets of print media. In another embodiment, the sensor comprises a sonar sensor that is operably associated with a paper tray that holds a supply of paper.

This invention relates to printing devices and methods of operating printing devices.
Printing devices typically use consumable items that must be replaced. There are different types of consumable items. For example, toner is a consumable item that is typically used in printers to effect printing on a print media such as paper. Toner typically comes in a toner cartridge with a limited amount of toner. When the toner becomes depleted, it must be replaced if printing is to continue. Other subsystems within printers are typically xe2x80x9cconsumablesxe2x80x9d because of their limited lifetime and the fact that they must be replaced.
In recent years, a great deal of work has been done in the area of consumables management. Managing consumables effectively can greatly increase the efficiency with which both the consumable and its associated device are used. As an example of some consumables management solutions, the reader is referred to the following U.S. Patents, all of which are incorporated by reference herein: U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,154,619, 6,128,448, 6,102,508, 6,019,449, 5,930,553, 5,812,156, 5,758,224, 5,682,140, and 5,491,540.
Print media, such as paper, is also a consumable that regularly needs to be replaced. Many printers come equipped with a sensor that indicates when the print media is out. In many models, this sensor comprises a small biased mechanical arm that reaches down to physically engage the print media. When the print media is exhausted, the mechanical arm is biased in a manner that indicates that the supply of print media is gone. Accordingly, a xe2x80x9cmedia outxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9creplace mediaxe2x80x9d display is typically displayed on the printer for the user to see so that they can replace the print media.
While having this type of sensor is advantageous from the standpoint of notifying a user that they need to replace the print media all together, it stops short of providing a truly efficient consumables management solution. This sensor does not permit a user to ascertain whether there is enough print media for processing their print job. For example, how many times have you or someone you know sent a print job to a printer (for example, in an office setting), only to arrive at the printer to see a blinking xe2x80x9cadd print mediaxe2x80x9d display, with only half the print job having been processed? This is inefficient and wastes not only the print job owner""s time, but also the time of others who may have print jobs stacked up in the queue.
Accordingly, this invention arose out of concerns associated with providing improved printers and consumables management systems and methods for use in connection with printers.
Printing systems and methods of operating printing systems are described. In one embodiment, a printer comprises one or more processors, a print media tray for supporting a supply of print media, and a sensor operably associated with the print media tray. The sensor is configured to ascertain a measure associated with an amount of print media in the print media tray. The processor and the sensor are configured to ascertain, from the measure provided by the sensor, a number of remaining sheets of print media.
In another embodiment, a printer comprises one or more processors, a paper tray for supporting a supply of paper, and a sonar sensor operably associated with the paper tray. The sonar sensor is configured to ascertain a measure associated with an amount of paper in the paper tray. The processor and the sonar sensor are configured to ascertain, from the measure provided by the sensor, a number of remaining sheets of paper.
In another embodiment, a printing system comprises multiple printers each of which comprising a paper tray for supporting a supply of paper, and means operably associated with the paper tray for automatically ascertaining a number of remaining sheets of paper in the paper tray. At least one host computer is configured to send print jobs to one or more of the multiple printers. A network links the host computer(s) and the multiple printers and provides a medium over which the print jobs can be sent to the printers.
In yet a further embodiment, a method of operating a printer comprises determining a measure associated with an amount of paper remaining in the printer, and calculating a number of remaining pages of paper from the measure.
In another embodiment, a method of operating a printer comprises receiving a print job with a printer and determining how many pages of paper are going to be needed to print the print job at the printer. The method automatically determines whether the printer has enough pages of paper to complete the print job, given the number of pages of paper that are needed for the print job.

Systems and methods for automatically detecting a number of remaining sheets of print media

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


A method of welding using a high energy density radiation beam such as an electron beam or preferably a laser beam to weld a pair of sheets using an oblong focused beam spot for reducing the power density of the oblong beam spot to maximize welding speed while minimizing welding defects. The high energy density radiation beam source has a power of at least one kilowatt for achieving Keyhole welding, and a beam delivery system capable of focusing the beam into an oblong spot shape, such as a generally rectangular focused beam spot shape, and directing the beam spot onto at least one of the sheets to weld the sheets. During welding, the beam is focused into an oblong focused beam spot and trained on at least one of the sheets to weld them with the longitudinal axis of the beam spot preferably oriented generally tangent to the weld line, generally parallel to the weld direction, or acutely angled relative to the tangent to the welding direction. Preferably, if a laser is used, it is a laser emitting a continuous wave beam, a pulsed laser operating at a duty cycle of at least 50% such that it substantially performs as a laser emitting a continuous wave beam, or a laser in rippled or modulated mode having a continuous beam component with an average output power of at least 80% of the peak power of the laser so that it substantially performs as a continuous wave laser beam.

In commercial production laser and electron beam welding applications, the goal is to maximize welding speed and minimize welding defects while attempting to weld a wide variety of steels, steel alloys, aluminum, aluminum alloys and other alloys. In fact, in most instances, welding speed is the most important limiting factor in achieving higher productivity and lowering production costs. For example, when laser welding metal sheets, the suitable welding speeds that can be achieved are typically a direct function of the penetration depth required. Hence, as sheet thickness increases welding speed typically decreases.
A commonly used strategy to increase welding speed is to increase the power density of a focused laser beam having a circular beam spot at the point where the beam is irradiating or impinging against the workpiece. As is discussed in more detail in an article in the Proceedings of LAMP '92 entitled "CO.sub.2 Laser Welding of Aluminum Alloys", and in a June 1992, International Symposium on Automotive Technology and Automation Conference Proceedings (ISATA), article entitled "ADVANCES IN LASER WELDING OF AUTOMOTIVE PARTS" increased power density can be achieved by increasing laser power or decreasing the focused spot size of the laser. Increasing laser power can obviously be achieved by using a higher power laser.
Decreasing the focused spot diameter of the circular spot can be achieved by using lasers having higher beam quality or better mode. For a laser of a given kilowatt power output, the laser having a beam quality, K, as close to unity or one as possible is preferred for providing a focused beam spot having higher power density over another laser having poorer beam quality. In addition to beam quality, K, the focused beam spot size, w, of a laser is also dependent on the laser output wavelength, .lambda., the focal length, f, of the beam focusing optic and the diameter, D, of the unfocused beam from the laser source. This relationship is more clearly illustrated by the following equation for determining the focused beam diameter, w: ##EQU1## To decrease the focused beam spot diameter, w, for increasing the power density of the focused beam at the workpiece, a laser with a smaller wavelength, .lambda., can be chosen or focusing optics with a smaller focal length, f, can be chosen. Alternatively, a laser having a higher beam quality, with K=M.sup.2 =1/k as close to the value of 1 as possible can also be chosen or a combination of the aforementioned can be selected to optimize power density of the focused beam spot.
However, as power, power density and welding speed are increased, the frequency of welding defects, weld failures and scrap rate increase to a point where welding speed can no longer be economically increased. These welding defects range from pores, pinholes, undercuts, weld sputters and, in some instances, to undesirable increases in hardness in the heat affected zone of the resultant weld. In welding metals, and particularly steel, another welding speed related defect, called humping or slubbing, can occur. Humping is discussed in more detail in an article in the Journal of Physics, D: Applied Physics 25 (1992), entitled "Theoretical approach to the humping phenomenon in welding processes". As is demonstrated in another article in the Proceedings of LAMP '87 entitled "Deep Penetration Welding with High Power CO.sub.2 Laser", as the focused spot diameter of a relatively high power CO.sub.2 laser beam decreases, power density increases, and the speed at which humping defects occur is reduced, thereby limiting welding productivity. Many of these defects are caused because the high power densities used with circular focused beam spots introduce too much energy too quickly into the region being welded.
One study of laser welding is disclosed in an article in the June 1992, ISATA Proceedings entitled "MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF LASER WELDED ALUMINUM JOINTS", discusses attempts to reduce welding defects in certain specific aluminum alloys. This article describes training a CO.sub.2 laser beam having a power source of at least 2.5 kilowatts at an angle of incidence to the weld direction with the beam being tilted, first, in a direction perpendicular to the direction of welding and, second, along the direction of welding. When angled perpendicular to the direction of welding, the longitudinal axis of the beam spot is perpendicular to the welding direction and when the beam is angled along the direction of welding, such as by "trailing" or "leading" the beam, the beam spot has a longitudinal axis parallel to the welding direction. Unfortunately, deviations in the angle of incidence of the beam perpendicular to the weld direction up to 10.degree. to 15.degree. only slightly influence weld porosity while undesirable porosity in welded aluminum alloy increases dramatically as the angle of incidence is increased beyond about 15.degree.. In fact, porosity is minimized for both cases of angling the beam relative to the workpiece and welding direction as the beam angle of incidence approaches zero degrees and when the beam is generally perpendicular to the workpiece.
Angling the beam relative to the workpiece is also disclosed in a June 1992 ISATA Proceedings article entitled "LASER BEAM WELDING OF HSS-COMPONENTS FOR CAR BODIES". This reference discloses that in welding high strength steel (HSS), the laser beam axis can be rotated up to 45.degree. in or against the feed direction without a considerable loss in quality. Hence, beyond a 45.degree. beam angle there is a significant loss in weld quality and an undesirable increase in porosity in the weld.
It is also known that particularly for high power, typically more than one kilowatt, and high speed, typically more than 2 meters per minute, welding applications, if the angle of incidence of the axis of the beam relative to the workpiece is too small, welding defects such as porosity, pinholes, weld sputters, humping, and undercutting increase and weld quality decreases making it highly undesirable to angle the beam too close to the workpiece.
Another method of reducing welding defects for welding difficult to weld materials, such as aluminum alloys, is disclosed in the 1992 ICALEO Prooceedings in an article entitled "HIGH POWER PULSE YAG LASER WELDING OF THIN PLATE" and a corresponding publication of European Patent Appln. No. 0594210 A1, published Mar. 24, 1994, and entitled "Method and apparatus for welding material by laser beam". These references disclose using a pulsed laser and angling the beam obliquely relative to the workpiece it is irradiating to create what is referred to as an elliptically-shaped focused beam spot on the workpiece for suppressing weld cracks and pores in the weld joint of the difficult-to-weld material.
The pulsed YAG laser used in these references to weld difficult to weld aluminum alloys of thin sheet thickness has a relatively low average power of 800 watts and welds at a relatively low speed of 1.0 millimeters per second. This method is not suited for commercial laser welding applications, such as automotive sheet metal welding, tube welding, or continuous welding of roll-formed parts, which typically require a welding speed of greater than 30 millimeters per second or about 2 meters per minute to be economically viable. Additionally, low power pulse lasers of typically less than one kilowatt average power are not suited for sheet metal welding applications requiring adequate penetration, high speed and high productivity. For welding thicker sheet material, such as automotive deep drawing steel of 1 millimeters cross sectional thickness and thicker, a higher power laser is needed to meet the high industry production rates required to be economically competitive.
Additionally, these references disclose that the laser source be pulsed for initiating melt-solidification, remelt-resolidification cycles to reduce weld defects, namely pores, weld sputters and cracks. Unfortunately, pulsing requires sophisticated and expensive electronic hardware to generate and control the frequency, shape, and duration of the laser pulses. Furthermore, since the lasers disclosed are pulsed for providing a way of reducing and controlling average power density at the workpiece, the average power output of the laser is less than its peak power. Moreover, if pulsing at too high of a frequency is performed, the beam no longer initiates melt-solidification, remelt-resolidification cycles to reduce weld defects, namely pores, weld sputters and cracks.
Welding speeds that can be achieved using pulsed lasers are also limited because if the beam travels too fast along the workpiece it can leave portions of the workpiece along the weld line inadequately welded or unwelded during the periods when the beam is off or between pulses. For example, if f represents the number of pulses per second (pps) in Hertz and, d, represents cumulative or total the dwell time of a laser pulse in seconds, then, t=1/f-d, represents the time duration between pulses during which the workpiece is exposed only to a continuous component of laser power, if there is any continuous component. As a result, when welding at higher speeds with a pulsed laser having no continuous component, the workpiece is not exposed to any beam energy during the time period defined by: t=1/f-d, resulting in a section having length, l=V*t along the weld line of the workpiece that may not be adequately welded or not welded at all. If there is a continuous laser beam component and the continuous component is less than 80% of the peak power, if t is too great, sections along weld line may not be adequately welded or not welded at all. Accordingly, the larger the welding speed, V, the longer this potentially unwelded or poorly welded distance, l, between pulses becomes. If welding at high enough welding speeds, some portions of the weld joint might not be welded adequately, particularly if l>0.1 millimeter. Also, if pulsing is at a frequency such that t becomes too small, the beam no longer initiates melt-solidification, remelt-resolidification cycles to reduce weld defects. This is why duty cycles of pulsed lasers are generally lower than about 50%.
Other references disclosing the use of pulsed lasers for reducing welding defects include LAMP '87, "Welding Properties with High Powered Pulsed CO.sub.2 Laser"; LAMP '87 (May 1987), "Development and Implementation of High Speed Laser Welding in the Can Making Industry"; LAMP '92 (June 1992), "High Power Pulse YAG Laser Welding of Thin Plate"; and a 1991 ICALEO article entitled "Butt Welding of Thin Stainless Steel Sheets with `Rippled Mode` Nd-YAG Laser" and U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,528.
Linear or line focusing optics have been coupled with lasers to produce a linear or generally rectangular beam spot used for surface cladding, surface hardening and surface melting workpieces as part of final finishing of these workpieces. It is not believed that heretofore these linear and generally rectangular beam spot shapes have been used to weld workpieces and more particularly to butt-weld or lap weld sheets in a commercial welding setting.


A collapsible outdoor shower enclosure that folds up nearly flat to a wall surface when not in use is herein disclosed. The shower enclosure is intended for use in outdoor locations where a general floor drain or similar means exists for removal of waste water. The enclosure comprises a right wall assembly and a left wall assembly that have hinged connections allowing for the shower enclosure to fold up against the wall surface. The wall surface would also be the one containing a shower head and shower controls as well. When in a retracted orientation, the enclosure protrudes approximately thirteen (13) inches from the stationary wall surface. During use, each of the wall assemblies fold out ninety degrees (90°) from the wall surface and include a right door and a left door that form an entrance side for a user to enter the shower enclosure. The wall assemblies are provided with corner supports which pin to a ground surface, vertical anchor members which secure the enclosure to the wall surface, and horizontal anchor members which secure the enclosure to the ground surface. When in an extended orientation, the shower enclosure forms a chamber approximately thirty-six (36) inches square thereby allowing the user an area to shower privately therein. When the user is finished using the shower enclosure, it is simply rinsed off and stowed back against the wall surface until the next usage.

Camping, hunting and other outdoor activities are among today's most popular leisure activities. The people who enjoy these activities possess a variety of devices that are intended to provide many of the conveniences that they have become accustomed to at home. Portable stoves, inflatable mattresses, and even portable generators that make available a variety of appliances are among the devices commonly found at campsites across the nation. However, showering facilities are somewhat limited in quantity, especially during morning hours at busy shower houses, as the cost to build such dedicated facilities are somewhat high. These same cost factors exist at homes where one may desire an outside shower facility for use with a pool or to clean off after a dirty job before going in the house. Accordingly, there is a need for a means by which one can be provided the convenience of a shower facility at an outdoor location without the cost or dedicated space requirement of a fixed shower. The development of the present invention fulfills this need.
The present invention is a collapsible outdoor shower enclosure that folds up nearly flat to a wall surface when not in use. The shower enclosure is intended for use in outdoor locations where a general floor drain or similar means exists for removal of waste water. The present invention consists of a right wall assembly and a left wall assembly that fold up against the wall surface when in a retracted orientation. The right wall assembly comprises a first right wall, a second right wall, a right header support member, a right vertical anchor member, a right horizontal anchor member, and a right door. Similarly, the left wall assembly includes the same components. The right wall assembly and the left wall assembly have hinged connections allowing for the shower enclosure to fold up against the wall. When the shower enclosure is folded up in the retracted orientation, it protrudes approximately thirteen (13) inches from the stationary wall surface. During use, each of the wall assemblies fold out ninety degrees (90°) from the wall surface and include the right door and left door that form an entrance side for a user to enter the shower enclosure. Furthermore, the wall assemblies are provided with corner supports which pin to a ground surface, vertical anchor members which secure the enclosure to the wall surface, and horizontal anchor members which secure the enclosure to the ground surface. Also, a header is hingedly connected to the right header support member for further stabilizing the shower enclosure. When the shower enclosure is opened in an extended orientation, it forms a chamber area. When the user is finished using the shower enclosure, it is simply rinsed off and stowed back against the wall surface until the next usage. The use of the present invention provides users the ability to quickly and easily take a shower outdoors in a manner which is not only quick and easy but discrete as well. Furthermore, professional contractors frequently build outdoor enclosures such as a shower enclosure from scratch without reference to a set of plans or pre-measured lumber and hardware. The present invention would enable professional contractors to simply purchase one and construct it wherever one would be desired.
Several attempts have been made in the past to provide portable shower units. U.S. Pat. No. 6,389,617, issued to Hartline et al., discloses a portable shower apparatus that is collapsible by grasping a top member and pulling upwards in order to separate the top member from a bottom member thereby extending a shower curtain out to a fully extended position. However, unlike the present invention, the Hartline et al. device does not disclose a shower enclosure comprising wall assemblies hingedly attached to a wall surface thereby allowing the shower enclosure to fold up nearly flat to the wall surface when not in use. Furthermore, the shower curtain of the Harline et al. device fully encloses a user therein, whereas the present invention provides a three (3) sided wall assembly that attaches to the wall surface to provide a four (4) sided open walled enclosure for a user to shower outdoors.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,790,992, issued to Ray, discloses a portable shower comprising a pyramidal frame having four collapsible legs. The Ray shower involves providing a collapsible structure for showering which supports a water bottle adapted to absorb solar energy in a manner that allows for the receiving of sun rays and insulates the water bottle from the surrounding environment to minimize heat loss. However, unlike the present invention, the Ray device does not disclose wall assemblies hingedly connected. Also, as the Ray device concerns absorbing solar energy, it is not in the scope of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,315,721, issued to Okun, discloses a collapsible shower stall for creating a shower enclosure that allows alternate use of space when in a collapsed state for inside small bathrooms. However, unlike the present invention, the Okun shower stall is not for use outdoors and does not include hinged wall assemblies that are secured to a wall surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,216,763, issued to Grenier, discloses a portable shower apparatus comprising a curtain assembly having a plurality of spaced hollow hoops connected by one or more sets of manifolds. However, unlike the present invention, the Grenier apparatus is not comprised of wall assemblies but instead is comprised of a curtain assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,205,001, issued to O'Connell, discloses a portable shower for invalid use that comprises an expandable shower enclosure which extends vertically and a bottom which is sealingly connected with the shower enclosure to prevent water spillage while a user takes a shower. However, unlike the present invention, the O'Connell shower is to be used indoors and is a four (4) sided shower enclosure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,866,794, issued to Davies, discloses a portable shower unit constructed of a flexible material that can be suspended from an overhead support by a hook. However, unlike the present invention, the Davies shower has a flexible curtain assembly with a suspension for holding the flexible curtain assembly in a shower enclosure shape.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,363, issued to Troiano, discloses a portable shower system that can be disassembled from a position of use to be packed for transportation. However, unlike the present invention the Troiano shower has a plurality of shower ring connectors that connect a shower curtain to a mounting ring.
The prior art appears to disclose a variety of portable shower units. However, none of the prior art particularly describes a collapsible outdoor shower enclosure comprising a right wall assembly and a left wall assembly having a plurality of hinged connections that allow the shower enclosure to collapse to a nearly flat configuration when not in use. Accordingly, there exists a need for a means by which one can be provided the convenience of a shower facility at an outdoor location without the cost or dedicated space requirement of a fixed shower that operates without the disadvantages as described above.


A memory cell for storing data includes a first field effect transistor having a source receiving a first voltage, a floating gate, and a drain receiving data to be written into the memory cell and outputting the data, and a second field effect transistor having a source receiving a second voltage, a floating gate connected to the floating gate of the first field effect transistor, and a drain connected to the drain of the first field effect transistor. The second field effect transistor has a conduction type opposite to that of the first field effect transistor. The memory cell has a capacitor which has a first terminal receiving a select signal for identifying the memory cell, and a second terminal connected to the floating gates of the first and second field effect transistors. The data is stored in the floating gates of the first and second field effect transistors.

The present invention generally relates to a memory cell having a floating gate, such as the gate of a metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor. Further, the present invention is concerned with a semiconductor memory using a plurality of such memory cells, such as an electrically erasable programmable read only memory.
Various types of semiconductor memories are known. Erasable read only memories (ROMs) are widely used. It is possible to erase data from the erasable read only memory and then write data therein. As is known, erasable read only memories are classified into erasable programmable read only memories (EPROMs) and electrically erasable programmable read only memories (EEPROMs), in view of the respective data erasing methods. Currently, it is required to reduce the electrical power consumed in EPROMs and EEPROMs.
Referring to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a conventional semiconductor memory having a floating gate. The semiconductor memory shown in FIG. 1 is composed of a data input terminal 1, a write amplifier (WA) 2, a sense amplifier (SA) 3, a capacitor C01, an N-type field effect transistor Q01 such as a MIS (metal insulator semiconductor) or MOS (metal oxide semiconductor) transistor, and a data output terminal 5. The sense amplifier 3 is made up of an amplifier 4 and a resistor R01. A high-potential side power source (line) Vcc is coupled to an input terminal of the amplifier 4, and an output terminal thereof is connected to the data output terminal 5. A connection node at which the input terminal of the amplifier 4 is connected to the resistor R01 is connected to the drain of the transistor Q01 via a sense line SL. Similarly, an output terminal of the write amplifier 2 is connected to the drain of the transistor Q01 via the sense line SL. A word line WL is coupled to the gate of the transistor Q01 via the capacitor C01. The capacitor C01 and the transistor Q01 form a memory cell of the EPROM. Data is stored, in the form of a charge, in a floating node N01 at which the capacitor C01 is connected to the gate of the transistor Q01. The source of the transistor Q01 is grounded.
Generally, the memory cell shown in FIG. 1 has two polysilicon layers formed at different layer levels. Recently, there has been proposed a single polysilicon layer structure, as shown in FIG. 2. A semiconductor substrate 6 has an impurity diffused layer (region) 7 having a conduction type opposite to that of the semiconductor substrate 6. An oxide film 8 is formed on a surface of the semiconductor substrate 6, and a polysilicon layer 9 is formed on the oxide film 8. Drain and source regions of the transistor Q01 are formed in portions of the semiconductor substrate 6 which are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet and located on both sides of a portion 9a of the polysilicon layer 9. The MOS type field effect transistor Q01 shown in FIG.1 is made up of the source and drain regions and the portion 9a of the polysilicon layer 9, and the capacitor C01 is made up of the impurity diffused region 7 and the remaining portion of the polysilicon layer 9. The impurity diffused layer 7 functions as a control gate and the word line WL. The polysilicon film 9 is electrically insulated from the other parts by the oxide film 8, and functions as a floating gate or node N01.
When data "1" is written into the memory cell, a high-level data signal is applied to the data input terminal 1. This data signal is applied to the drain of the transistor Q01 via the write amplifier 2. On the other hand, the word line WL is set to a high level. Thereby, electrons having a large amount of energy are generated at a pinch-off point of the drain of the transistor Q01, and pass through the oxide film 8. Then, the electrons reach the polysilicon layer 9 which functions as the floating gate 9 (corresponding to the aforementioned floating node N01), and are accumulated therein. The electrons or charges accumulated in the polysilicon layer 9 cannot be discharged because the polysilicon layer 9 is electrically isolated from the other parts. Thus, a threshold voltage V.sub.TH of the transistor Q01 is increased. On the other hand, when data "0" is written into the memory cell, no operation is carried out, and no electrons are accumulated in the polysilicon layer 9.
The data readout operation is as follows. When data "1" is stored in the memory cell shown in FIG. 1, the transistor Q01 is OFF, and no voltage drop is developed across the resistor R01. Thus, the amplifier 4 outputs a high level to the output terminal 5. On the other hand, when data "0" is stored in the memory cell, the transistor Q01 is ON, and a current passes through the transistor Q01 via the resistor R01. Thus, a voltage drop is developed across the resistor R01, and a low level substantially equal to the ground level is applied to the amplifier 4, which outputs a low level to the output terminal 5.
When erasing data "1" in the memory cell, ultra-violet rays are projected onto the polysilicon layer 9, and energy thereof is applied to the charges stored therein. Thereby, a photo current passes from the polysilicon layer 9 to the semiconductor substrate 6 through the oxide film 8, so that the polysilicon layer 9 is discharged.
However, conventional memory cells as described above have a problem in that they consume a large amount of electrical power because it is necessary to allow a direct current to pass through the sense amplifier 3 and the sense line SL when data "0" is read out from the memory cell.

Memory cell having floating gate and semiconductor memory using the same


The present disclosure provides a backlight structure and a liquid crystal display device. The backlight structure comprises: an array substrate; a polarizer layer on a back face of the array substrate; and a light source at a light incident side of the array substrate. Specifically, the light source is configured such that light emitted thereby is emitted into the array substrate from the light incident side of the array substrate and incident on the polarizer layer. Moreover, the polarizer layer is configured for reflecting the light incident thereon while polarizing the reflected light and emitting it out from a front face of the array substrate, wherein the front face and the back face of the array substrate face each other and intersect the light incident side of the array substrate respectively.

At present, in the field of displays, liquid crystal display device is still one of the most popular display devices in great demand. Meanwhile, there has also been a demand for a lighter and thinner display from customers. However, restricted by the state of the art and conventional display structures (in which a light guide plate faces a lower polarizer layer, with the lower polarizer layer arranged on a glass substrate, an array substrate arranged on the glass substrate, a liquid crystal layer arranged on the array substrate, a display panel layer arranged on the liquid crystal layer, and an upper polarizer layer arranged on the display panel layer), it would be difficult for thinning liquid crystal display devices.

Backlight structure and liquid crystal display device

HEFEI BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.


A method for manufacturing a granular solid processing composition for a silver halide photographic light-sensitive material is disclosed, which comprises the steps of:. granulating a composition comprising at least one photographic processing agent with stirring in the presence of a liquid to obtain granules; and dressing the granules.

A silver halide photographic light-sensitive material is usually processed using a color developer, a bleach, a bleach-fixer, a fixer and a stabilizer to obtain an imagewise image. The components of the processing solutions used herein are packaged in plastic bottles for easy use in the form of one or more concentrated solutions and are supplied as a processing solution kit to consumers. The consumers dilute the component solutions of the kit with water to prepare the processing solutions (as starter solutions or replenisher solutions) and use them.
Recently, in the photographic processing industry small-scaled developing store, so-called mini-labs, which process a photographic material using a small automatic processor, rapidly increased and the amount of the processing kits used also increased. The processing kit in concentrated solution form still requires much storage space. Further, the cost for transport is not low. The discarded plastic bottles increase year by year and should be recovered, however the recovering is difficult and therefore, development of a processing system in which waste plastics are reduced is demanded.
Powder photographic processing agents are considered in order to reduce storage space, transport cost and the amount of the plastic waste. However, the powder agents produce loose powder when it is dissolved in water, and operators breathe in loose powder particles, resulting in health hazard. Further, the present inventor has found that other photographic solutions may be contaminated with the components of the loose powder and there occurs the possibility of other trouble in developing process.
Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication Nos. 5-119454/1993, 5-119450/1991 and 5-142708/1993 discloses granulated solid processing composition.
However, these are tablets obtained by compression molding granules in which the moisture content and average particle size are controlled in a fluid bed granulating dryer. These tablets are effective in view of the content of a developing agent or prevention of insoluble matter occurrence, however, strength of granules are not sufficient and has a defect that fine powder occurs during transport. It has been found that fine powder occurs during storage at not less than 50.degree. C. in a ship and due to vibration in a car after storage.
Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication No. 5-224361/1993 discloses granules obtained in a dry granulator and tablets obtained by compression molding. The solid processing agent produced by this method is effective for a uniform mixture of components in small amounts, however, the granule strength is not sufficient, since water or an aqueous solution is not used as a binder and has a defect that fine powder occurs due to vibration after storage.
Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication No. 5-197090/1993 discloses tablets having a of 25 to 50% produced by compression molding granules obtained in a stirring granulator. The solid processing agent produced by this method is effective for prevention of insoluble matter occurrence and shortage of dissolving time and its strength is sufficient, however, the control of the grain size is difficult. It has been found that the granules have a defect that there occurs fluctuation of a supplying amount, since the granule size is not sieved and small or large granules are present in admixture.
Japanese Patent O.P.I. Publication Nos. 2-109042/1990 and 4-221951/1992 disclose a solid processing agent obtained in a fluid bed granulating dryer which reduces dust occurrence. The solid processing agent produced by this method is effective for prevention of fine powder immediately after the manufacture and has a predetermined particle size, however, it has been fount that the granules have a defect that fine powder occurs due to vibration after storage, since the strength is not sufficient.

Method for manufacturing solid processing composition for silver halide photographic light-sensitive materials


In a camera using a film with a magnetic recording portion, two film guide members restrict displacement of the film in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the film, and a magnetic head magnetizes the magnetic recording portion of the film. A magnetic recording current is output to the magnetic head at a predetermined magnetic recording density D. The magnetic recording density D satisfies EQU D.ltoreq.K.l/(.DELTA./W). where l is the length of each of the film guides, .DELTA. is the difference between the width of the film the distance between the two guide members, W is the width of a recording medium of the magnetic recording portion, and K is a constant.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a camera and, more particularly, to a magnetic recording apparatus for a camera, in which a film feed mechanism for feeding a film is improved.
2. Description of the Related Art
Cameras using films with magnetic recording media have recently been known. In a conventional camera, a technique of optically recording data, typically date data, on a film has a drawback of a small recording capacity. In contrast to this, the recording capacity of a magnetic recording medium is very large. Therefore, in a camera using a film with a magnetic recording medium, various data for photography, data for designating print conditions, and the like, which cannot be optically recorded, can be recorded.
In addition, if such a camera is designed to receive external data to be recorded from, e.g., a personal computer, the camera will have a wider range of applications.
However, the recording capacity of the magnetic recording medium of the film described above is determined by the shape of a magnetic head used, a modulation scheme, the magnetic properties of the medium, and the like. Especially in a camera, since it is difficult to position the recording medium of a film, which is caused to travel by a wind-up operation or the like, and a magnetic head with high precision, the maximum amount of data which can be recorded is limited by this positioning precision.
In order to set the position of a film with high precision with respect to the magnetic head, the camera requires a mechanism which follows variations in the state of the film. For example, such a mechanism is disclosed in International Publication No. WO90/06536. If the mechanism disclosed in this official gazette is realized and is arranged in a camera, the size and cost of the camera inevitably increase. Hence, the use of such a mechanism is not practical. It is, however, apparent that if the positional precision of a film with respect to the magnetic head is higher than a predetermined value, a practically sufficient amount of data can be recorded without arranging the mechanism disclosed in the gazette.
In conventional cameras, however, no methods of achieving such high precision of a film with respect to the magnetic head have been clarified.

Camera with magnetic recording apparatus wherein relative positions of a magnetic and a recording head are set with precision


Systems, methods, and apparatus are provided for operating a cluster tool including receiving recipe time data; receiving transfer time data; receiving process programs and associated substrate lots wherein the process programs include a plurality of sequences; determining cluster tool chambers associated with sequences that are bottleneck sequences; setting equipment constant values for components of the cluster tool to implement transfer priorities wherein the chambers associated with bottleneck sequences are given highest priority; executing a next sequence based on the transfer priorities; and repeating the determining, setting and executing for each remaining sequence. Numerous additional aspects are disclosed.

The chambers in a cluster tool are expensive resources that are wasted if allowed to sit idle. Thus, whenever possible, an operator will attempt to optimize the use of the tool in terms of minimizing the amount of time it takes for a substrate lot to be processed. However, it may be difficult and time consuming to manually optimize operation of a cluster tool to process a substrate lot even when all substrates in the lot are to follow similar paths through the tool and undergo the same processing. The amount of time saved by optimizing may not always exceed the amount of time employed to optimize a tool for processing the lot. Typically, a fairly large number of substrates must be processed to realize the benefit. And, even worse, in the case where each substrate in a lot is to undergo different process steps from the other substrates, the time employed to optimize a conventional cluster tool for each set of different process steps would likely exceed the amount of time saved by optimizing. This may be true no matter how many substrates are processed since the tool may need to be reconfigured for each substrate. Therefore, what is needed are methods and systems to optimize a cluster tool such that time saved by operating while optimized is not lost by the time it takes to optimize operation of the cluster tool.

Dynamic routing control methods and systems for a cluster tool