Disclosed is a process for performance monitoring and feedback for facial recognition systems. A first image for image matching from a camera capture device at a first location is received for purposes of image matching. A highest match confidence score of the first image to a particular stored enrollment image is determined. One or more image or user characteristics associated with the first image or first user is identified. The identified image or user characteristics and highest match confidence score are added to a facial recognition monitoring and feedback model. Subsequently, a particular one of the stored image or user characteristics consistently associated with a below-threshold highest match confidence score is identified, and a notification is displayed or transmitted including an indication of an identified facial recognition low match pattern and identifying the particular one of the stored image characteristics or user characteristics.

Facial recognition systems are being deployed more frequently across private, commercial, and governmental installations as a means to authenticate persons, match persons against known persons of interest, and other use cases that take advantage of technology that continues to improve beyond human capabilities.
For example, at controlled-access points, passage barrier mechanisms may be maintained in a closed and locked state, and a user must positively authenticate via a facial recognition system (perhaps in combination with a card swipe or other dual factor mechanism) in order to access a controlled space.
As another example, governmental or private enterprise security agencies may leverage databases of known persons of interest in order to trigger notifications when a person of interest is either detected as being located more generally, or perhaps located in an area that they are not authorized to be in (perhaps absent any passage barrier mechanisms).
However, the accuracy (and thus usefulness and/or acceptance rate by users) of such facial recognition mechanisms may be heavily dependent upon the type of camera being used, the environment it is being used in, and/or the quality of installation of the camera, amongst other electronically measurable parameters. Errors or oversight in selection of types of cameras, environments, and/or installations may result in facial recognition systems that do not operate correctly, misidentify users, and/or become unintentionally biased against certain demographics and/or may result in varying quality of image captures across different installation locations.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Device, system, and method for performance monitoring and feedback for facial recognition systems


An improved system and method for composite record keys ordered in a flat key space for a distributed database is provided. A data schema may be created that defines a composite record key for data records in a canonical form. Composite record keys may then be constructed in canonical form defined by the data schema for each data record in data tables of a distributed database. An ordered index of composite record keys may then be built by inserting the composite record keys in canonical form into the index in sorted order. The index of composite record keys ordered in a flat key space for a distributed database may then be used for efficiently comparing or sorting distributed data records in the distributed database. The composite record keys ordered in a flat key space may be compared or sorted without referencing the data schema of the composite record keys.

Today many commercial distributed database systems may deploy an unordered hierarchical key space for composite database record keys. Database records may be distributed among a hierarchy of database servers and processing a user query for retrieving database records with multiple record keys may involve a different database server for each of the multiple record keys in order to retrieve the requested database records. The data schema information may be present on all servers or it may be distributed consistent with the distribution of database records. For each of the multiple record keys, a lookup may be made based on the data type of the key to find a server in a hierarchy of servers storing a range of records that include the next record key. A lookup based on the data type of the next key may occur on the next server and so on until the location of the data record is found. The multiple record keys of the composite database record key may be in a distributed index. The comparisons of the multiple lookup for each key of the composite record key are performed sequentially and may also be distributed, resulting in inefficient lookup of composite record keys to retrieve a record.
In other distributed databases, hashing of composite record keys may be used where ranges of records are randomly distributed among database servers. Unfortunately, these composite keys are also unordered and distributed among the servers so that it is inefficient to sort composite record keys.
What is needed is a way to provide composite record keys that may be efficiently sorted and compared for a large distributed database. Such a system and method should support maintenance of the metadata on one or few machines and not be distributed with the data records. Furthermore, a high throughput should be achieved for composite key sorting with minimal state transfer between servers.

System and method for composite record keys ordered in a flat key space for a distributed database


An apparatus configured to be employed within an evolved Node B (eNodeB) or within a User Equipment (UE) is disclosed. The apparatus includes control circuitry. The control circuitry is configured to configure a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) configuration that accommodates short subframes. The short subframes have a transmit time interval (TTI) of less than duration of 1 legacy subframe (e.g., 1 ms). The SPS configuration is provided within a radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

Mobile communications, including cellular communications, involve the transfer of data. Generally, a sender or transmitting device transmits a signal over a wide area. The signal is intended for a receiver or receiving device, which receives the transmitted signal. The transmitted signal can include data or other information and thus, the sender and the receiver establish communications.
Transmissions typically include communications between a mobile device and a base station. Communications from the mobile device to the base station are referred to as uplink communications. Communications from the base station to the mobile device are referred to as downlink communications.
The communications between the base station and the mobile device typically utilize a selected frequency or band for communication. As a result, uplink and downlink communications can interfere with each other and degrade communications. Scheduling techniques are needed to avoid uplink and downlink communications from interfering with each other. Semi persistent scheduling (SPS) is an example of such a scheduling technique.
Downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions are based on time durations of transmission on the radio link known as transmission time interval (TTI). To increase the data rate and to decrease end-to-end delay, techniques are required to enable communication with various TTIs and to support SPS for various TTIs.

Supporting semi-persistent scheduling for varied transmission time intervals


A capacitance measuring circuit having a sensor electrode and a reference electrode that are spaced apart so that a material can be positioned between the two electrodes. A first polarity and a second polarity voltage source are used to charge the sensor electrode and a switch controller controls the charging and discharging of a capacitor by the sensor electrode. The charge on the capacitor after being charged and at least partially discharged by the sensor electrode represents the capacitance between the sensor electrode and the reference electrode. The charge on the capacitor is used to measure the position of the material relative to the sensor and reference electrode. The measuring circuit also has a system parasitic controller to measure and adjust for system parasitic capacitance in the measuring circuit.

The present invention relates to a device for measuring capacitance, and more particularly to a device to detect the edge of materials, and even more particularly, to a device for the contactless detection of a moving web of material.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,394,095 and 5,767,686 describe and illustrate devices that detect the edge of conductive materials and control the position of the conductive materials relative to the detector of the type to which the present invention is directed. These patents are incorporated by reference herein as background information to explain certain prior edge detection and web position control arrangements of which the present invention is a specific improvement. Consequently, the details of the conductive material and the positioning of the conductive material to which the present invention is directed need not be explained in detail.
The present invention pertains to a device to detect the capacitance between two or more electrodes as a material is positioned between the electrodes, and more particularly to an edge detector for contactless detection of the position of a moving web of conductive material and will be described with particular reference thereto; however, the invention has broader applications and can be used in any type of application which requires the accurate detection of capacitance between two or more electrodes.
Edge detectors are commonly used in conjunction with apparatus that process moving webs of material. The edge detector is used to properly align the moving web of material in the apparatus. Several types of mechanical and electronic devices have been used to detect and/or control the position of the web of material. Some of these devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,394,095 and 5,767,686. In these prior art devices, the lateral position of the web of conductive material is detected by positioning two or more detector electrodes in the area of each lateral edge of the conductive material. The capacitance between the electrodes at each lateral edge of the conductive material is measured and then used to control the lateral position of the conductive material. The lateral movement of the conductive material between the electrodes causes changes in the coupling fields between the electrodes, thereby increasing or decreasing the capacitance between the electrodes. The measured capacitance is used to determine the position of the edge of the conductive material relative to the electrodes, and such determined position is used to control the lateral position of the conductive material. The electrodes are typically shielded to isolate the electrodes from external electrical interference so as to improve the accuracy of the measured capacitance.
Although these devices satisfactorily measure the capacitance between the electrodes to determine the position of the edge of the conductive material relative to the electrodes, these devices are expensive and complex to manufacture, are very sensitive to external electrical interferences, and are unable to account for parasitic charges in the measuring circuit, which parasitic charges can adversely affect the accuracy of the edge measurement and cause undesired drift in the position control of the conductive material.
In view of the present art of capacitance measuring devices for the detection and the position control of the edge of a conductive material, there is a need for a device that accurately measures the capacitance between two or more electrodes, is less sensitive to external electrical interference, and reduces or overcomes the drift in the device.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a capacitance measuring circuit which is designed to measure the capacitance between a sensor electrode and a reference electrode. The capacitance measuring circuit can be used in many different types of applications where it is desired to accurately measure capacitance between two or more electrodes. The capacitance measuring circuit has particular applicability for use in detecting an edge of a conductive material, and will be particularly described with reference thereto; however, the capacitance measuring circuit can be used to measure the edge of a non-conductive material. The sensor electrode and the reference electrode of the capacitance measuring circuit are spaced apart from one another a sufficient distance so that an edge of a material can pass there between. Typically, the sensor electrode and the reference electrode are symmetrically oriented about a central axis that runs between the electrodes; however, it is not necessary that the electrode be symmetrically oriented with respect to one another. The capacitance measuring circuit includes or is designed to be connected to a first polarity voltage source and a second polarity voltage source. The first and second polarity voltage sources are used to electrically charge the sensor electrode and/or reference electrode. The capacitance measuring circuit also includes a capacitor which is used to fully or partially store a charge that is fully or partially representative of the capacitance between the sensor electrode and the reference electrode. The capacitance measuring circuit further includes a switch controller to electrically connect and/or disconnect the reference electrode, the sensor electrode, the first and second polarity voltage sources and/or the capacitor to or from one another. This sequence of operations by the switch controller to measure the capacitance between the reference electrode and sensor electrode is termed the capacitance measuring sequence. The term xe2x80x9celectrically connectedxe2x80x9d as used in this application refers to an electrical connection that allows current and/or voltage to pass between two or more components in an electrical circuit. The term is not to be interpreted as requiring two or more components to be directly connected, thus two or more xe2x80x9celectrically connectedxe2x80x9d components can be directly electrically connected or indirectly electrically connected. Two or more components that are indirectly electrically connected include one or more electrical elements connected between the two or more components. These electrical elements include, but are not limited to, resistors, inductors, capacitors, amplifiers, microprocessors, diodes and the like.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the first polarity voltage source is a positive voltage source and the second polarity voltage source is a negative voltage source. The first polarity voltage source and the second polarity voltage source can be provided by one or more voltage sources. In one embodiment, the voltage source is a D.C. voltage source. In another embodiment, the voltage source is a rectified A.C. source. In yet another embodiment, the magnitude of the first polarity voltage source and the second polarity voltage source are generally equal. When the magnitude of the voltage sources are equal, the resulting charge on the capacitor during each measurement sequence actually or nearly represents the actual capacitance between the sensor electrode and the reference electrode. However, different magnitude voltage sources can be used. When different magnitude voltage sources are used, the charge on the capacitor during each measurement cycle will represent a relative capacitance. This relative capacitance can be used to control the position of the material or be converted to an actual capacitance prior to being used to control the positioning of the material.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the conductive material is a web of material having a generally constant width and two lateral edges. At least one of the lateral edges of the material is oriented to be at least partially positioned between the sensor electrode and reference electrode. The material is made of a material to cause an interference in the electrical field between the sensor electrode and the reference electrode when a voltage is applied to the sensor and/or reference electrode. This interference in the electrical field alters the capacitance between the sensor electrode and reference electrode. As a result, the measured capacitance between the sensor electrode and reference electrode is representative of the position of the edge of the material relative to the sensor and/or reference electrode. Therefore, the position of the material can be controlled by the detected capacitance. The type of material used is not critical. The material may be a conductive or non-conductive material. The material needs only to alter the capacitance between the reference and the sensor electrode.
In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention, the switch controller causes the capacitor in the capacitance measuring circuit to be charged and at least partially discharged during a capacitance measuring sequence so that the remaining charge on the capacitor represents the capacitance between the sensor electrode and the reference electrode. The switch controller causes a special sequence of electrical connections and disconnections to occur in the circuit thereby causing the charge on the capacitor to represent the capacitance between the reference and sensor electrode. In one embodiment, the switch controller causes the capacitor to be charged by a first polarity voltage on the sensor electrode which voltage constitutes a voltage between the universe and the sensor electrode, and to be discharged by a second polarity voltage that is similar on the sensor and reference electrode. In accordance with one aspect of this embodiment, the switch controller resets the capacitance measuring circuit after one or more capacitance measuring sequences. Typically, the capacitance measuring circuit is reset by grounding and/or draining the charge from the capacitor so the capacitor""s charge is substantially zero. In another aspect of this embodiment, the switch controller, at the beginning of the capacitance measuring sequence, electrically isolates the capacitor from the sensor electrode and reference electrode. The switch controller, simultaneously or subsequently isolates the sensor electrode from the reference electrode and grounds the reference electrode. As a result, the capacitor, the reference electrode and the sensor electrode are isolated from one another. Once these components have been isolated, the switch controller electrically connects the sensor electrode to the first polarity voltage source. The first polarity source charges the sensor electrode to substantially the same voltage or potential as the first polarity voltage source. During this charging sequence, the reference electrode is grounded and the capacitor is maintained in electrical isolation from the reference and sensor electrode. After the sensor electrode is charged, the switch controller electrically disconnects the sensor electrode from the first polarity voltage source. At this point of the capacitance measuring sequence, the reference electrode and the material are grounded and the sensor electrode is charged to substantially the same voltage or potential as the first polarity voltage source. The capacitance measuring sequence is continued by the switch controller electrically connecting the sensor electrode to the capacitor so that the charge on the sensor electrode is transferred to the capacitor. Once the charge from the sensor electrode is transferred to the capacitor, the switch controller electrically disconnects the sensor electrode from the capacitor. The switch controller then causes the reference electrode to have a potential or voltage that is at least substantially equal to the potential or voltage on the sensor electrode and disconnects the reference electrode from the grounded state. The connection formed at the reference electrode causes the potential on the reference electrode to follow the potential on the sensor electrode. The switch controller then connects the opposite polarity voltage source to the sensor electrode. The sensor electrode is then charged to the voltage or potential of the opposite polarity voltage source. The potential on the reference electrode follows the potential on the sensor electrode. Once the sensor electrode has been charged by the opposite polarity voltage source, the switch controller disconnects the opposite polarity voltage source from the sensor electrode. The capacitance measuring sequence is continued by the switch controller electrically connecting the sensor electrode to the capacitor. The charge on the sensor electrode is then transferred to the capacitor. Since the polarity of the voltage on the sensor electrode is opposite the polarity of the voltage previously supplied by the sensor electrode, the capacitor is fully or partially discharged as the charge on the sensor electrode is transferred to the capacitor. The remaining charge on the capacitor after a single capacitance measuring sequence represents the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode. As can be appreciated, if the material is completely obscuring the reference electrode and the sensor electrode, the resulting charge on the capacitor after a single capacitance measuring sequence is substantially zero. Furthermore, the resulting charge on the capacitor will be smallest when the material is fully positioned between the reference electrode and sensor electrode. Consequently, the further the edge of the material moves between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode, the smaller the resulting charge on the capacitor after each capacitance measuring sequence. This charging and discharging of the capacitor has been found to accurately measure the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode when a material is at least partially positioned there between. In another embodiment, each capacitance measuring sequence is less than about one second. Typically, the faster the capacitance measuring sequence, the better the position control of the material. In one aspect of this embodiment, each capacitance measuring sequence is much less than one second, and preferably about 10 xcexcs (10xe2x88x925 second).
In accordance with still yet another aspect of the present invention, the charge on the capacitor is integrated over a series of capacitance measuring sequences so as to obtain an average charge on the capacitor over a series of capacitance measuring sequences. In one embodiment, the capacitor is included in an integrator circuit wherein the charge on the capacitor is accumulated over a series of capacitance measuring sequences prior to being drained or discharged. In one aspect of this embodiment, a charge detector detects the charge on the capacitor and monitors the number of capacitance measuring sequences which have transpired. The charge detector measures the accumulated charge on the capacitor and divides the detected charge by the number of capacitance measuring sequences to obtain the average capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode. After the charge on the capacitor has been integrated over a number of capacitance measuring sequences, the capacitor is drained or discharged so as to reset the charge of the capacitor to zero to begin the recharging of the capacitor by one or more capacitance measurement sequences. In another aspect of this embodiment, the charge detected by the charge detector is converted from an analog signal to a digital signal. The conversion of the signal from analog to digital facilitates in the subsequent mathematical manipulation of the signal. For instance, the digital signal can be used in a microprocessor and/or other digital circuit to control the lateral position of the conductive material, used for calibration purposes, used to zero-out the values in the circuit, etc. As can be appreciated, the conversion of the signal from an analog to a digital signal is not required for the operation of the circuit. In still another aspect of this embodiment, the capacitor has a rated capacitance which is greater than the measured capacitance between the sensor electrode and reference electrode. Typically, the capacitance rating of the capacitor is at least about five times greater than the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode, preferably at least about ten times greater than the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode, and more preferably about 50-300 times the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode. The large capacitance rating on the capacitor relative to the measured capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode ensures that an accurate capacitance reading is obtained. Furthermore, the large capacitor rating allows the charge on the capacitor to be integrated over a number of capacitance measuring sequences without fully charging the capacitor.
In a further aspect of the present invention, the sensor electrode and/or the reference electrode are shielded so as to reduce external electrical interferences on the electrodes when measuring the capacitance between the reference electrode and the sensor electrode. In one embodiment, the sensor electrode is shielded. Shielding of the reference electrode is not required to obtain accurate capacitance readings. In one aspect of this embodiment, the shielding arrangement for the sensor electrode is similar to that disclosed in Kespohl U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,68. In another embodiment, the reference electrode and the sensor electrode are shielded. When large voltages are applied to the sensor electrode and the reference electrode and/or when very accurate capacitance readings are required, the reference electrode and the sensor electrode are typically shielded. In one aspect of this embodiment, the shielding arrangement for the reference electrode and sensor electrode is similar to that disclosed in Kespohl U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,686.
In accordance with yet a further aspect of the present invention, the capacitance measuring circuit includes a system parasitic controller to compensate for the parasitic charge which develops in the capacitance measuring circuit. During the operation of the capacitance measuring circuit, a residual or parasitic charge can develop from one or more components of the capacitance measuring circuit. This residual or parasitic charge can exist even after one or more of the components of the capacitance measuring circuit have been reset and/or grounded. However, this residual or parasitic charge is most prevalent when the charge on the capacitor is being integrated over multiple capacitance measuring sequences. This residual or parasitic charge can result in variances in the measured charged during one or more capacitance measuring sequences. As a result, the parasitic charge can result in drift in the position control mechanism for the material and/or cause an unstable position control system for the material. The parasitic charge also can cause inaccurate position information of the material relative to the reference electrode and sensor electrode. The system parasitic controller is designed to periodically measure the parasitic charge in the capacitance measuring circuit. In one embodiment, the system parasitic controller measures the parasitic charge after each capacitance measuring sequence. In another embodiment, the system parasitic controller measures the parasitic charge after a plurality of capacitance measuring sequences. In one aspect of this embodiment, the system parasitic controller measures the parasitic charge at least once every minute, and preferably at least once every 30 seconds, and more preferably at least once every 10 seconds. In yet another embodiment, the system parasitic controller integrates the measured parasitic charge over a plurality of system parasitic controller measuring sequences. In still another embodiment, the system parasitic controller adjusts the measured charges on the capacitor with the measured parasitic charge so as to reduce or eliminate the effects of the parasitic charge from the measured charges on the capacitor. In one aspect of this embodiment, the measured parasitic charge is subtracted from the measured charge on the capacitor. In still yet another embodiment, the measured parasitic charge is converted from an analog signal to a digital signal so that the measured parasitic charge can be accounted for by a microprocessor or other type of digitally based circuit. As can be appreciated, the analog signal can be used without conversion to a digital signal. In a further embodiment, the system parasitic controller causes the switch controller to alter the electrical connection and disconnection sequence during the capacitance measuring sequence so as to detect the parasitic charge in the capacitance measuring circuit. In one aspect of this embodiment, the system parasitic controller causes the switch controller to disconnect the reference electrode from the ground and to cause the reference electrode to at least substantially follow the potential on the sensor electrode throughout the capacitance measuring sequence. Since the voltage or potential on the reference electrode is at least substantially identical to the voltage or potential on the sensor electrode, the potential on the reference electrode always follows the potential on the sensor electrode during the capacitance measuring sequence. As a result, any charge on the capacitor after the capacitance measuring sequence is completed represents the parasitic charge in the capacitance measuring circuit. In another aspect of this embodiment, the system parasitic controller causes the switch controller to ground the reference electrode throughout the capacitance measurement sequence. Since the reference electrode is always in a grounded state throughout the capacitance measuring sequence, the charge on the capacitor after the capacitance measurement sequence is completed represents the parasitic charge in the capacitance measuring circuit.
In still yet a further aspect of the present invention, a capacitance measuring circuit is positioned at each lateral edge of the material so as to measure the capacitance at each edge of the material. The measured capacitance from the two capacitance measuring circuits is used by a position controller to properly control the lateral position of the material. In one embodiment, the position controller is a comparison circuit or microprocessor which compares the two capacitances from the capacitance measuring circuit to adjust the lateral position of the material. In another embodiment, the electrodes of each capacitance measuring circuit are symmetrically positioned relative to the material so that the measured capacitance of each capacitance measuring circuit is generally the same when the material is in the proper lateral position. In one aspect of this embodiment, the position controller compares the measured capacitance of each capacitance measuring circuit and sends a signal to a lateral material positioner to cause the material to move laterally so as to cause the measured capacitance of each capacitance measuring circuit to be equal.
It is the primary object of the present invention to accurately measure the capacitance between a reference electrode and a sensor electrode when a material is at least partially positioned there between.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which is simple and easy to operate.
It is yet another aspect of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which charges and partially discharges a capacitor to obtain the capacitance between a reference electrode and a sensor electrode.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which includes an integrator circuit to integrate the charge on a capacitor over a series of capacitance measurement sequences.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which is used to detect the position of a material relative to a sensor electrode and a reference electrode.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which is used in conjunction with another capacitance measuring circuit to detect the position of a material.
It is still yet a further object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which is used in conjunction with another capacitance measuring circuit to generate signals which control the position of the material.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which detects the parasitic charge in one or more components of the capacitance measuring circuit.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which compensates for the parasitic charge in the capacitance measuring circuit when measuring the capacitance between a reference electrode and a sensor electrode.
It is still yet another object of the present invention to provide a capacitance measuring circuit which shields a sensor electrode and/or a reference electrode from external electrical interference when measuring the capacitance between the electrodes.
These and other objects and advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and following this description taken together with the accompanied drawings.

The North American Manufacturing Company


A method of storing water by restraining at least one flexible storage reservoir in a submerged position within a body of salt water; establishing a terrestrial intake in fluid communication with the flexible storage reservoir; and establishing a terrestrial outlet in fluid communication with the flexible storage reservoir for the release of stored water.

The storage of water can be a particular problem in urban environments. Many urban environments have developed in coastal areas where there is a relatively high rainfall. If the run-off from these urban areas in the form of urban stormwater could be captured and reused, the need to build more dams could be delayed or removed altogether.
It is common for water catchments to be in the form of a dam across a river valley. These dams are very expensive to construct and often consume large amounts of valuable agricultural land. Such dams also destroy all pre-existing life in the river valley and the plant material captured within the artificial lake can result in the generation of significant amounts of greenhouse gases from decomposing plan material. Although in some cases this greenhouse gas production can be offset by the production of hydroelectricity, generally speaking it is not desirable to build dams.
In many geographic locations it is common for a source of fresh water to be located relatively close to an urban environment but this source of fresh water may not be suitable for capture by a conventional means such as a dam. For example, it is common for a fresh water source to be located within 100 km of a denser urban area.
It would be advantageous if there was a manner in which these currently unutilised sources of water in or near urban areas could be captured and utilised for the provision of water to these urban areas.


A method for generating a multi-modal video dataset with pixel-wise hand segmentation is disclosed. To address the challenges of conventional dataset creation, the method advantageously utilizes multi-modal image data that includes thermal images of the hands, which enables efficient pixel-wise hand segmentation of the image data. By using the thermal images, the method is not affected by fingertip and joint occlusions and does not require hand pose ground truth. Accordingly, the method can produce more accurate pixel-wise hand segmentation in an automated manner, with less human effort. The method can thus be utilized to generate a large multi-modal hand activity video dataset having hand segmentation labels, which is useful for training machine learning models, such as deep neural networks.

Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not admitted to be the prior art by inclusion in this section.
Hands are crucial in many industrial computer vision applications, such as augmented reality, virtual reality, or human-computer interaction. Recognizing hands with vision systems is necessary to enable interactions between people and digital devices. Therefore, understanding hands with computer vision systems has been deeply explored through hand tracking, hand pose estimation, grasp detection, hand gesture recognition, multi-view prediction, and hand-action classification.
Many of these applications require first-person-view images of hands in actions with tools or objects, which include annotations segmenting the hands from the environment to increase the accuracy of performance. However, creating a dataset with pixel-wise segmentation of hands that are interacting with tools or objects is challenging because (a) fingertips are often occluded by the hand dorsum and tools or objects in the first-person view, (b) the tools or objects are held with various grasps, (c) the shapes of the tools or objects are infinite, and (d) hand movements can be complex.
Current methods for generating such a dataset often rely on manual processes, which are inefficient and costly. Particularly, a traditional approach to create a RGB hand segmentation video dataset is through manual polygon drawing. However, polygon drawing does not enable the annotation of smooth curves or holes. Moreover, the time and cost of person-in-the-loop segmentation grows linearly as the number of frames increases, which reduces the scalability. Therefore, what is need is an segmentation method for creating a segmented hand video dataset that enables the annotation of smooth curves and minimizes the amount of human effort in the loop.

Pixel-wise hand segmentation of multi-modal hand activity video dataset


Methods and systems for routing information to a destination through a plurality of networks, wherein at least one of the networks is a packet network. The system comprises a routing processor for receiving a routing query signal, which specifies the destination to which the information will be routed and a memory for storing at least one characteristic of the destination. The processor determines a route for the transmission of the information based on the routing query and on the characteristics stored in the memory.

Traditional telephone service providers have been planning the transition to packet switched networks. In planning this transition, consideration must be given to providing POTS users, who only have analog equipment, access to such networks. Such a transition should also facilitate communication between fixed wireless subscribers and POTs subscribers. Additionally, consideration must be given to providing local subscribers with direct access to their packet network.
Therefore, there remains a need to provide POTs and wireless service subscribers with improved direct access to packet networks, and particularly, a need for improving communication between such subscribers.

Methods and systems for managing the routing of packets over a hybrid communication network


A working machine, such as an industrial truck, having a spring-loaded brake having a braking position and a release position and controlled by a brake valve producing a brake-release pressure. The brake valve is operatively connected to a service brake input device, such as a brake pedal, and can be acted upon in the direction of a reduction in the brake-release pressure arising at the spring-loaded brake when the service brake input device is actuated. It being possible, on actuation, for the service brake input device to be operatively connected to a pre-stressed spring device, which is operatively connected to the brake valve and can be acted upon in the direction of an increase in the spring force on increasing actuation of the service brake input device.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a working machine, such as an industrial truck, having a spring-loaded brake. The brake has a braking position and a release position, and can be controlled by means of a brake valve producing a brake-release pressure.
2. Technical Considerations
In the case of mobile working machines in the form of industrial trucks, a spring-loaded brake is provided, which is used as a parking brake. Using the spring-loaded brake, which is acted upon in the braking position, the industrial truck can be kept at a standstill on slopes or in the case of a traction drive which is not being driven. During driving of the industrial truck, the spring-loaded brake is acted upon so as to be brought into the release position. The spring-loaded brake is, in this case, acted upon by means of a spring so as to be brought into the braking position and can be acted upon by means of a brake-release pressure produced by a pressure medium source, counter to the force of the spring, so as to be brought into the release position.
A generic working machine in the form of an industrial truck and having a spring-loaded brake used as a parking brake is shown in DE 197 52 022 A1, herein incorporated by reference.
With such working machines, a service brake is also necessary, with which metered braking of the industrial truck can be achieved by an operator when actuating a service brake input device. In known working machines, in addition to the spring-loaded brake, a separate service brake, for example a mechanical or hydraulic service brake, is provided for this purpose, which results in a high degree of complexity in terms of design for the service brake.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a working machine of the generic type mentioned initially but which can be provided with a service brake with less complexity in terms of design, which service brake has good metering capability.


The present invention relates to a conjugated diene polymer end-modified with an alkoxysilane derivative. More particularly, the present invention relates to an end-modified conjugated diene polymer, wherein an alkoxysilane derivative having an ether group and a dialkylamino group is bonded as end modifier to an end of a conjugated diene polymer, which is useful as a rubber material for a tire tread owing to improved compatibility with an inorganic reinforcing agent and improves dynamic mechanical properties such as wet traction, rolling resistance, Mooney viscosity, processability, etc.

(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a conjugated diene polymer end-modified with an alkoxysilane derivative. More particularly, the present invention relates to an end-modified conjugated diene polymer, wherein an alkoxysilane derivative having an ether group and a dialkylamino group is bonded as end modifier to an end of a conjugated diene polymer, which is useful as a rubber material for a tire tread owing to improved compatibility with an inorganic reinforcing agent.
(b) Background Art
Recently, researches are carried out diversely to develop high-performance rubber for environment-friendly and energy-saving high-performance tires. For development of a high-performance tire, development of a rubber satisfying the dynamic properties of low rolling resistance and high wet traction, which can have a direct effect on fuel efficiency, is essential.
In general, styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) or butadiene rubber (BR) is used as tire rubber. They are prepared by solution polymerization or emulsion polymerization. Solution styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR), which is prepared by solution polymerization, is prepared in an organic solvent using an organolithium initiator. Emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESBR), which is prepared by emulsion polymerization, is prepared by solidifying latex which is obtained using a radical polymerization initiator. The solution polymerization method is advantageous in that not only the control of a micromolecular structure such as the vinyl structure of a conjugated diene, the block ratio styrene, etc. but also the control of the ratio and number of coupling, which can have a great effect on the physical properties of the polymer, is possible as desired. Since the polymer prepared by the solution polymerization method is relatively superior to the polymer prepared by the emulsion polymerization method in dynamic properties such as rolling resistance and wet traction, it is widely used to prepare a tire rubber. In addition, the solution polymerization method allows control of cold flow at room temperature by modifying the polymer using an organolithium initiator and an end modifier and introducing a functional group as well as improvement of dispersibility of a reinforcing agent by improving processability and binding ability during mixing with the reinforcing agent. In particular, by improving compatibility with carbon black or silica used as a reinforcing agent in a tire, the method can provide improved (tread) wear resistance, reduced rolling resistance and improved wet traction.
The existing solution polymerization methods using functional initiators or end modifiers are as follows.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,508,333 discloses a method for obtaining dynamic and mechanical properties superior to those of the existing rubber materials by modifying the end of a polymer molecule with an alkoxysilane-based compound having an epoxy group. Although the alkoxysilane-based end modifier allows introduction of a hydroxyl group to the end of the polymer, it is not easy to control the physical properties of the polymer because control of coupling ratio is impossible.
US Patent Application Publication No. 2011-0207879 discloses a method for improving processability and reducing rolling resistance by improving compatibility with carbon black using a diphenylethylene-based polymerization initiator. However, the diphenylethylene-based polymerization initiator is not suitable for preparation of an environment-friendly tire.
US Patent Application Publication No. 2010-0152369 discloses a modified rubber prepared using an alkoxysilane compound having a primary amine group with a hydrolysable group protected as an end modifier and application of a mixture of the modified rubber with silica to a tire tread. Although the rubber having the alkoxysilane end modifier introduced can improve the physical properties of a tire tread by improving hysteresis loss, control of coupling ratio is not easy and long-term storage is problematic because of high cold flow.
As described above, in spite of the consistent efforts to improve compatibility with carbon black or silica used as an inorganic reinforcing agent and dispersibility by varying initiators or end modifiers, development of a rubber for a tire with improved mechanical and dynamic properties still remains a problem.

Conjugated diene polymer end-modified with alkoxysilane derivative


The present invention generally relates to self healing polymer materials comprising thermoset and thermoplastic polymers. The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing self healing polymer materials, methods of post-curing and healing the self healing polymer materials, composite materials comprising self healing polymer materials and methods of preparing the composite materials. In an attempt to develop improved structural materials, polymers and polymer materials have been identified that can be used in materials to act as self healing agents to repair structural damage occurring in the materials. The self healing polymer materials that have been identified are capable of being healed under post-curing or healing conditions.

Epoxy resins are widely used as thermoset polymers for manufacturing fibre reinforced composites in structural applications. The highly crosslinked structure of these materials makes them inherently brittle and susceptible to microcrack formation deep within the structure where detection and intervention are difficult or impossible.
The development of self healing or mendable epoxy resins has been proposed in recent years to restore strength to damaged components and make these materials safer to use, more reliable, and easier to maintain. The mendable epoxy resins have typically contained a dispersion of brittle vessels containing liquid healing agents that are capable of fracturing to release healing agents which subsequently rejoin contiguous damaged areas. These known technologies possess a number of limitations such as high raw materials cost, limited stability of the healing agents, extra processing steps required for encapsulating or infiltration of the healing agents into the delivery vessels, and limited ability to heal multiple incidents of damage.
An alternative approach has involved using thermoplastic healing agents. Thermoplastic healing agents have been included as additives or directly blended with the matrix to form smart epoxy-carbon fibre laminate structures exhibiting structural health monitoring and self-healing functions whereby the carbon fibres act as sensing elements to detect potential damages, by monitoring change in resistance, and as local heating elements to trigger the healing process.
Presently known thermoplastic based mendable polymers are limited by the need for high temperatures and pressures during healing, or achieving healing at the expense of reduced strength.
A need exists for new and alternative polymers and polymer materials that can provide improved self healing characteristics.

COMMONWEALTH SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH ORGANISATION


A control panel includes a cover plate and at least one cap-shaped control key or button. The key includes a cap-shaped plastic substrate the side wall of which includes a light-block cylindrical portion for preventing light from leaking out through the side wall, even if the light-block coating formed on the outer surface of the side wall is not sufficient.

Generally, the elements of such a control panel, i.e., a cover plate and keys, each include a plastic substrate and a light-blocking coating formed on the outer surfaces thereof. The coating on the key is treated by, for example, laser beam so as to form an operation indicating sign for indicating the operation effected by operation of the key. In order to make the color tone of the entire outer surface of the control panel uniform, the coatings formed on the surfaces of the cover plate and keys are formed from the same material. It often occurs, however, that since these elements are generally formed separately and then assembled together, the color tone of the coatings of these elements slightly differs from each other.
Further, when a control panel is assembled in such a manner, the keys are prone to being set in incorrect positions in the cover plate.
Furthermore, if it is attempted to first assemble the plastic substrates of the elements and then to form coatings on the surfaces of the substrates, it is difficult to uniformly form the coatings on all of the surfaces, because, for example, the keys generally have a front surface parallel to the surface of the cover plate and side surfaces generally normal to the front surface, thereby causing slight leakage from the side surfaces, on which the coating is not sufficiently formed, when the key is actuated and the light behind the cover plate is turned on.


A gripper assembly including at least one gripper jaw and an actuator head linked with the at least one gripper jaw. An actuator selectively operates to move the actuator head between a plurality of positions. A support is fixed relative to the actuator and includes a guide slot that guides the actuator head. One of the actuator head or the guide slot includes a channel and the other of the actuator head or the guide slot includes a guide member extending there from at least partially into the channel.

This invention generally relates to automated handling equipment. More particularly, this invention relates to an actuated gripper device having a central support that guides movement of the actuator and supports at least one gripper jaw.
Automated handling equipment is typically employed in industrial settings for transferring work pieces between work stations. Typically, the equipment includes an actuated gripper that clamps the work pieces while moving them between the stations.
One type of conventional gripper includes an actuator that linearly reciprocates a piston. The piston is coupled to a cam pin that extends outward in opposite directions from the end of the piston. The respective opposing ends of the cam pin are received through cam slots of two opposed gripper jaws, which are received between two sidewalls that extend from the actuator. Each sidewall includes a pivot pin that extends between the sidewalls and through the gripper jaws to pivotally support the jaws from the sidewalls. A cover is usually secured to the outside of each sidewall with multiple fasteners to prevent the pivot pin from sliding out from between the side walls during use. Typically, the sidewalls also include guide slots that guide the ends of the cam pin as the cam pin slides along the cam slots of the jaws to pivot the jaws about the pivot pins between open and closed jaw positions.
The jaws of typical grippers are removable and replaceable with different jaws to accommodate work pieces of varying shapes and sizes. For example, jaws having different cam slot lengths and shapes (i.e., slot angles) may be substituted to change the size of the opening between the jaws. One drawback of conventional grippers is that removing the jaws is rather complex and time consuming. For example, in the conventional gripper described above, the multiple fasteners and the pivot pin must be removed. Each jaw must then be disassembled from the cam pin, which may be tedious because of the confined space between the side walls. Thus, the conventional gripper construction requires assembly and disassembly of a relatively large number of components within a tight space to replace the jaws. Accordingly, there is a need for a gripper construction that provides more convenient jaw replacement.


A particular protocol layer of the transmitting side (transmitter) initially receives service data units (SDUs) having the same priority through a single stream from an upper layer, processes these SDUs to generate protocol data units (PDUs) having different priorities, and uses respectively different transmission methods to transmit the generated PDUs over a radio interface in order to guarantee their respectively different quality of service (QoS) requirements.

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for transmitting data blocks based on priority from a transmitter in a UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) type IMT-2000 system, and in particular, to an apparatus and method for transmission whereby a particular protocol layer determines the priority of each data block among the data blocks received from an upper layer through a single data stream, transfers the determined priorities together with the data blocks to a lower layer through a single data stream, and the lower layer receiving the data blocks with their priorities guarantees the respective quality of service (QoS) according to each respective priority for each data block for transmission over the radio interface, to thus guarantee a respectively different QoS for each data block within a single data stream having the same QoS being guaranteed.
A universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS) is a third generation mobile communications system that has evolved from the European Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) that aims to provide an improved mobile communications service based upon a GSM core network and wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA) wireless connection technology.
FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary basic architecture of a UMTS network. As shown in FIG. 1, the UMTS is roughly divided into a terminal 100 (mobile station, user equipment (UE), etc.), a UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN) 120, and a core network (CN) 130. The UTRAN 120 includes one or more radio network sub-systems (RNS) 125. Each RNS 125 includes a radio network controller (RNC) 123, and a plurality of base stations (Node-Bs) 121 managed by the RNC 123. One or more cells exist for each Node B 121.
The RNC 123 handles the assigning and managing of radio resources, and operates as an access point with respect to the core network 130. The Node-Bs 121 receive information sent by the physical layer of the terminal 100 through an uplink, and transmit data to the terminal through a downlink. The Node-Bs 121, thus, operate as access points of the UTRAN 120 for the terminal 100. Also, the RNC 123 allocates and manages radio resources and operates as an access point with the core network 130. Between various network structure elements, there exists an interface that allows data to be exchanged for communication therebetween.
FIG. 2 illustrates a radio interface protocol architecture that exists in the mobile terminal and in the UTRAN as one pair, for handling data transmissions via the radio interface. Regarding each radio protocol layer, the first layer (Layer 1) is a physical layer (PHY) that serves the purpose of transmitting data over the radio interface by using various radio transmission techniques. The PHY layer is connected with an upper layer, the MAC layer via transport channels, which include a dedicated transport channel and a common transport channel depending upon whether that channel is shared or not.
In the second layer (Layer 2), a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer and a broadcast/multicast control (BMC) layer exist. The MAC layer serves the purpose of mapping various logical channels to various transport channels, as well as performing logical channel multiplexing for mapping a plurality of logical channels to a single transport channel. The MAC layer is connected to a higher layer (e.g., the RLC layer) via logical channels, and these logical channels are divided into control channels that transmit control plane information and traffic channels that transmit user plane information.
The RLC layer handles the guaranteeing of the quality of service (QoS) of each radio bearer (RB) and the transmission of the corresponding data thereof. To guarantee the unique QoS of a radio bearer, the RLC layer has therein one or two independent RLC entities for each radio bearer, and provides three types of RLC modes; a transparent mode (TM), an unacknowledged mode (UM), and an acknowledged mode (AM), in order to support the various QoS. Also, the RLC layer adjusts the data size accordingly such that a lower layer may transmit data over the radio interface, by performing segmentation and concatenation on the data received from an upper layer.
The PDCP layer is located above the RLC layer and allows data that is transmitted by using Internet Protocol (IP) packets, such as IPv4 or IPv6, to be effectively transmitted over a radio interface having a relatively smaller bandwidth. For this purpose, the PDCP layer performs a header compression function, whereby only the absolutely necessary data in the header portion of the data are transmitted, in order to increase transmission efficiency over the radio interface. Because header compression is its basic function, the PDCP layer only exists in the PS (packet switched) domain, and a single PDCP entity exists per each radio bearer (RB) for providing effective header compression function with respect to each PS service.
Additionally, in the second layer (L2), a BMC (Broadcast/Multicast Control) layer exists above the RLC layer for performing the functions of scheduling cell broadcast messages and broadcasting to terminals located in a particular cell.
The radio resource control (RRC) layer located at the lowest portion of the third layer (L3) is only defined in the control plane, for controlling the parameters of the first and second layers and for controlling the transport channels and the physical channels in relation to the establishment, the re-configuration, and the releasing of the radio bearers (RBs). Here, the RB refers to a logical path provided by the first and second layers of the radio protocol for data transfer between the terminal and the UTRAN. And in general, the establishment of a radio bearer (RB) refers to regulating the protocol layers and the channel characteristics of the channels required for providing a specific service, as well as setting their respective specific parameters and operation methods.
Hereafter, the establishment of a radio bearer according to a quality of service (QoS) will be explained. QoS refers to the quality of service that the end-user notices upon being provided with a particular service. Various factors affect the QoS, such as delay time, error ratio, bit rate, and the like. In UMTS, an appropriate QoS is determined according to the type of service that is to be provided to the end-user. Here, the appropriate QoS refers to a minimum QoS that allows the end-user to be provided with the service, and the reason for setting a minimum QoS is to allow the service to be provided to a plurality of users. Namely, because radio resources are limited, providing a service using a high QoS to a particular user means that a large amount of radio resources are allocated to that particular user, and thus the total number of users to which service can be provided by the UMTS is decreased when considering the overall cell in which service is being provided.
In UMTS, as the entity that determines the QoS for a certain type of service, a MSC (Mobile Switching Center) is used for CS (circuit switched) services, while a SGSN (Serving GPRS Supporting Node) or a GGSN (Gateway GPRS Supporting Node) is used for PS (packet switched) services, and these entities exist within the core network (CN). When the QoS determining entities receive a request for a particular service from a terminal or an entity outside of the UMTS, an overall QoS is determined between the terminal and the QoS determining entity.
FIG. 3 depicts how the QoS between the terminal (UE) the Node B/RNC and the MSC (SGSN/GGSN) are defined. In FIG. 3, the QoS is separately established by sections, which can be broadly divided into a "lu section" that is a wired (wireline) interface between the MSC (or the SGSN/GGSN) to the Node B/RNC, and a "Uu section" that is a wireless (radio) interface between the Node B/RNC and the terminal. Also, the lu section has a lu Bearer and the Uu section has a radio bearer (RB) established, respectively, for providing services having an appropriate QoS. The overall QoS between the terminal and the MSC (or the SGSN/GGSN) is determined by the sum of the quality of service for the lu interface ("QoS-lu") and the quality of service for the Uu interface ("QoS-Uu"). As the wireless interface has a more disadvantageous environment when compared to that of the wired interface, the overall QoS mostly depends upon the QoS-Uu.
The details of the QoS and bearer configuration procedures will be explained with respect to a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service as being a representative example of a PS service. First, assuming that the SGSN received a request for VoIP service from a terminal, the SGSN determines an appropriate QoS for providing the requested VoIP service by considering the priority and/or capabilities of the terminal and/or considering various types of available resources. Also, it is assumed that the SGSN determined the overall QoS with the following parameters: Delay=200 ms; Error Ratio=10−2; Bit Rate=36 kbps. Based upon this overall QoS, the SGSN then determines the QoS for each section. Here, because the wired interface generally has a more advantageous environment compared to that of the wireless interface, it does not greatly affect the overall QoS. Namely, the wired interface has a delay of less than a few milliseconds (ms), an error ratio of less than 10−6 and a bit rate of several to several hundred megabits per second (Mbps), thus most of the values for the overall QoS are directly applicable to the QoS-Uu. Generally, the error rate and bit rate of the overall QoS are directly applied to the QoS-Uu, and a delay value that excludes a few milliseconds (ms) needed for the core network protocol to process data is applied. Thus, for this situation, it is assumed that the SGSN determined the QoS-Uu to have the following parameters: Delay=180 ms; Error Ratio=10−2; Bit Rate=36 kbps. Then, the SGSN informs this determined QoS-Uu to the RNC, and the RNC configures an appropriate radio bearer (RB) in accordance thereto.
The RNC configures the RB based upon the QoS-Uu informed by the SGSN. More accurately, the RRC layer, which is a radio protocol layer within the RNC, configures the RB. As explained previously, the RB refers to a logical path provided by the first and second layers of the radio protocol, and the data transmitted through the RB are basically guaranteed the quality corresponding to the QoS-Uu. In order to configure an RB that satisfies the QoS-Uu, the RRC layer of the RNC configures the first and second layers of the radio protocol, and various characteristics, operation procedures, parameters, and the like for each of the channels. For example, with respect to the PDCP layer, the type of header compression method to be used, etc. are determined. With respect to the RLC layer, the type of operation mode to be used, the maximum data storage time to be used, the size of the RLC PDU (protocol data unit) to be used, various timer values and protocol parameter values to be used, etc. are determined. With respect to the MAC layer, the type of channel mapping to be used, the method of channel multiplexing to be used, the method of priority processing to be used, how to perform transmission format combinations, etc. are determined. With respect to the PHY (physical) layer, the method of modulation to be used, the coding methods to be used, the type of CRC (cyclic redundancy check) to be used, the transmission power level to be used, the types of physical channels to be used, etc. are determined.
After the RRC of the RNC determines all of the aspects of the RB, the first and second layers of the RNC are established according to the determined aspects, and simultaneously informs these aspects to the RRC of the terminal to allow the first and second layers of the terminal to be established according to these aspects. When the RB is established in this manner, a logical path between the terminal and the RNC is formed, and thereafter, data is transmitted according to the determined path. Here, as explained before, because a single RB guarantees a single QoS-Uu, the data transmitted through the same RB are all guaranteed the same QoS-Uu.
In the related art, because a single RB guarantees a single QoS (QoS-Uu), the data transmitted through the same RB is guaranteed the same QoS. However, there are certain situations where the data transmitted via a single RB will have respectively different priorities according to the processing techniques of the radio protocol layers, thus requiring respectively different QoS to be guaranteed. The header compression performed at the PDCP layer is an example of one such situation.
The header compression technique utilizes the fact that many portions of the IP headers of IP packets that are part of the same packet stream do not change at all or do not change very often. The fields that do not change are stored in the format of context within a compressor of the transmitting side (i.e., transmitter) and within the decompressor of the receiving side (i.e., receiver), and the overhead of an IP header can be reduced by only transmitting those fields that have changed after the context has been formed. During the initial stages of header compression, because the compressor transmits full header packets to the decompressor in order to form the context with respect to the corresponding packet stream, there is no gain (advantage) of using header compression. But after the context is formed in the decompressor, the compressor only transmits compressed header packets, and thus the gain (advantage) is drastic.
For a particular packet stream, determining whether to transmit a certain packet with a full header or with a compressed header can be entirely dependent upon the compressor. However, in general, when context is to be initially formed for a particular packet stream, one or more full header packets should be transmitted. As compressed header packets are transmitted thereafter, upon the lapse of a certain time period, one or more full header packets are transmitted intermittently such that the context of the decompressor is maintained in synchronization with the context of the compressor.
FIG. 4 depicts an example of how full header packets and compressed header packets are transmitted when using a header compression technique. When the compressor of the PDCP in the transmitter receives an IP packet from an upper layer, the corresponding packet is transmitted to the receiver as a full header packet or a compressed header packet according to the pattern of the header. If it is determined that there is a need to form a new context or a need to update the context, the compressor transmits the packet as a full header packet. If it is determined that the context with respect to the header pattern of the corresponding packet is already formed in the decompressor, then the compressor transmits the packet as a compressed header packet.
The decompressor of PDCP in the receiver forms a context by first receiving a full header packet for a certain packet stream. This is because the context will be the basis from which the compressed headers to be received will be decompressed. If the decompressor receives compressed header packets in a state where the context has not been formed, the decompressor cannot decompress the original header of the corresponding packet and thus will discard that received packet.
As such, when a header compression technique is used in a radio interface for a certain PS service, the PDCP in the transmitter transmits the IP packets that were received from an upper layer in a single stream having the same QoS, in either a "packet for forming or updating context" format or a "a packet for not forming or updating context" format. However, if a "packet for forming or updating context" is not successfully transmitted to the receiver, all subsequently transmitted "packets for forming or updating context" cannot be decompressed at the receiver and are thus discarded. Thus, a "packet for forming or updating context" is relatively much more important (i.e., has higher priority) than a "packet for not forming or updating context".
However, in the related art, all the data transmitted via a single RB has the same QoS, and relatively more important data cannot be transmitted with a higher QoS when compared to relatively less important data. Thus, there is a need for allowing data to be transmitted with different QoS according to its importance (i.e., priority), even though the data is transmitted via a single RB.
Thus, the inventors of the present invention recognized such drawbacks of the related art and provided a solution by providing a particular protocol layer of the transmitting side (transmitter) that initially receives service data units (SDUs) having the same priority through a single stream from an upper layer, processes these SDUs to generate protocol data units (PDUs) having different priorities, and uses respectively different transmission methods to transmit the generated PDUs over a radio interface in order to guarantee their respectively different quality of service (QoS) requirements.

Apparatus and method for transmitting data blocks based on priority


Provided is a preparation process of diglycerides which comprises reacting a fatty acid or lower alkyl ester thereof with glycerin in the presence of an immobilized partial glyceride lipase while removing water, which is generated upon reaction, out of the system. The reaction is preferably terminated when the acid value (AV) of the reaction mixture satisfies the following range: 50R-60>AV>70R-150 (with the proviso that AV>0). The present process makes it possible to efficiently prepare a high purity of diglycerides without impairing lipase activity even under reduced pressure. The present process is effective without being influenced by variations in reaction conditions such as fatty acid/glycerin ratio, reaction temperature or enzyme concentration. Particularly, even when the fatty acid/glycerin ratio is high, a high purity of diglycerides can be produced at a high reaction yield.

Diglycerides are used as an additive for improving plasticity of oils or fats or in the fields of foods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc. Foods utilizing the excellent physiological activity of diglycerides have recently drawn attentions.
As a typical production process of diglycerides, esterification or ester exchange reaction can be given. For example, a process of obtaining diglycerides by reacting a fatty acid or a lower alkyl ester thereof with glycerin in the presence of immobilized 1,3-specific lipase and taking the resulting water or lower alcohol, which is generated upon the reaction, out of the system by pressure reduction is known (Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 6-65311).
Since not only diglycerides but also triglycerides are prepared by the esterification reaction using 1,3-specific lipase, a rise in the reaction yield decreases the purity of diglycerides. Decreasing in the reaction yield, on the other hand, increases the purity of diglycerides, but a large amount of glycerin or fatty acid remains unreacted. In order to increase the purity of diglycerides, a purification step such as stripping is therefore inevitable after esterification reaction.
As a method for overcoming the above-described problem, proposed is a process for preparing triglyceride-free glycerides by using partial glyceride lipase which does not act on triglycerides (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 61-181390). This method is however not suited for the production of a high purity of diglycerides, because monoglycerides are main products of this method.
In the conventional esterification reaction which has been employed industrially, it is necessary to remove, out of the system, water generated with the progress of the reaction, and shift the reaction equilibrium, thereby increasing the reaction yield. The esterification reaction using a partial glyceride lipase while removing water out of the system under reduced pressure involves problems such as termination of the esterification reaction before termination. Also proposed is a process (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 1-137989), in the synthesis of triglycerides by acting a partial glyceride lipase on an oil or fat containing partial glycerides and fatty acids, of carrying out the esterification reaction under a low water content while using an immobilized enzyme. This process is for the synthesis of triglycerides while suppressing the yields of mono- and diglycerides, and is essentially different from the process for preparing a high purity of diglycerides.
When diglycerides are synthesized by the esterification reaction, the optimum terminal point of the reaction for attaining a high diglyceride purity at a high reaction yield, depending on the substrate ratio, as raw materials, of a fatty acid or ester thereof to glycerin, reaction temperature, enzyme concentration or the like. Particularly when a ratio of the fatty acid or ester thereof to glycerin is raised for improving a reaction rate, an increase in a reaction yield by prolonging the reaction leads to a problem such as decreasing in a diglycerides purity due to the formation of triglycerides.

Process for the production of diglycerides


In a power steering system employing a power cylinder for steering assistance, hydraulic pressure is supplied through a pair of fluid lines to respective hydraulic chambers of the power cylinder. Check valves are provided to charge a hydraulic pressure in a communicating circuit intercommunicating the two fluid lines. Also provided is a solenoid-actuated directional control valve for relieving the hydraulic pressure charged in presence of a power steering system failure. An opening of the directional control valve varies depending on a solenoid attracting force and a pressure differential between the hydraulic pressure in the communicating circuit and hydraulic pressure in a reservoir. A relatively low exciting current is applied to the solenoid when the hydraulic pressure charged exceeds a predetermined pressure value. A relatively high exciting current is applied to the solenoid when the hydraulic pressure charged is less than or equal to the predetermined pressure value.

In recent years, there have been proposed and developed various electronically-controlled power steering systems each employing a reversible pump and a hydraulic power cylinder to provide steering assistance. One such hydraulic power steering system has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. 2002-145087 (hereinafter is referred to as "JP2002-145087"), assigned to the assignee of the present invention. In the hydraulic power steering system disclosed in JP2002-145087, downstream ends of a pair of hydraulic-pressure lines are respectively connected to left and right pressure chambers defined on both sides of a piston slidably accommodated in a hydraulic power cylinder. On the other hand, the upstream ends of the two hydraulic-pressure lines are connected to respective discharge ports of a reversible pump. The resulting pressure differential applied to the two sides of the piston, produces a steering assistance force. The magnitude and sense of the steering assistance force are determined based on the magnitude and sense of the steering torque applied to a steering wheel by the driver. Also provided is a communication passage or a bypass passage through which the two hydraulic-pressure lines, that is, the left and right pressure chambers, are intercommunicated with each other, when at least one of the reversible pump and the motor both incorporated in the power steering system is failed. A directional control valve (a shut-off valve), such as a two-position, spring-offset, two-way spool valve, is disposed in the communication passage, to block fluid communication between the two hydraulic-pressure lines via the communication passage during normal steering operation. On the contrary, in presence of a power steering system failure, such as a reversible pump failure or a motor failure, the directional control valve is shifted to its open position for fail-safe purposes, so as to permit full fluid-communication between the two hydraulic-pressure lines via the communication passage so that the power cylinder is held in the free state and does not produce an assisting force, and that a manual steering mode is ensured.
However, the power steering system disclosed in JP2002-145087 uses a normally-open, solenoid-actuated two-port two-position spring-offset spool valve as a directional control valve. Thus, in the system of JP2002-145087, an exciting current must be continuously applied to the solenoid of the directional control valve during a normal power steering mode (or a normal power-assist control mode) where the power steering system is normally operating with no power steering system failure. Continuously energizing the solenoid of the directional control valve during the normal power-assist control mode results in increased electric power consumption and increased calorific value of heat generated. From the viewpoint of improved fuel economy of a power-steering-system equipped vehicle, during the normal power-assist control mode the more reduced electric power consumption (more reduced calorific value of heat generated from the solenoid) would be desirable.


The present invention relates to naphthalene diimides, NDIs, and methods of synthesising them. The NDIs have DNA-quadruplex binding and stabilising activity, and potential in treatment of pancreatic, prostate, and other human cancers. The NDIs are a compound of Formula I.

In WO2009/068916 we described tri- and tetra-substituted naphthalene diimides and processes for producing them. None of the exemplified products that were tri-substituted had different amino-functional ligands at equational and polar positions on the core ligand. The method said to be suited for producing tri-substituted compounds was based on the following schematic:

where R1 is optionally substituted alkyl or aryl and n is 0 or 1. In practice a mixture of the tetra- (n=1) and tri-substituted (n=0) compounds was produced. All substituents, i.e. R1 groups, are the same.
The specification describes methods for producing tetra-substituted compounds starting from the dichlorosubstituted analogue of the dibromo compound used above. The processes proceeded in one step, in which case the same H2NR1 reagent reacted at both anhydride groups and both —chlorine-substituted carbon to give 4 identical R1 substituents on the product, or in two steps where in the first step a first reagent H2NR2 is reacted at both the anhydride groups and in a second step a second reagent H2NR3 is reacted at both chlorine-substituted carbon atoms. Compounds with basic substituents on the imide substituent and/or on the aromatic rings have strong DNA quadruplex binding properties.
In WO2017/103587 we described tri-substituted naphthalene diimides and processes for producing them. The method said to be suited for producing tri-substituted compounds was based on the following schematic:

where Y is H or Br, the group R12 are the same and are selected from the group consisting of straight and branched chain C1-6 alkenediyl, R13 is selected from the group consisting of H and C1-6 alkyl, R14 is selected from the group consisting of straight and branched chain C1-6 alkanediyl and C7-12 aralkanediyl, X2 is selected from the group consisting of halo, R11, NR152, CONR162, COOR17, SH and COR18, R11 is selected from the group consisting of H, optionally substituted C1-6 alkyl, optionally substituted C5-7 cycloalkyl, C5-7 heterocycloalkyl and aryl, each R15 is selected from the group consisting of H, C1-6 alkyl, aryl and C7-12 aralkyl, N the groups R15 together with the N-atom to which they are attached form a saturated heterocyclic ring of 5-7 atoms, each R16 is selected from the group consisting of H and C1-6 alkyl groups or the groups R16 together with the N atom to which they are attached form a 5-7 membered heterocyclic ring, R17 is selected from the group consisting of optionally substituted C1-6 alkyl, C7-12 aralkyl and aryl, R18 is selected from the group consisting of optionally substituted C1-6 alkyl, C7-12 aralkyl and aryl, and whereby the Br atom or one of the or each Br atom is substituted by the nucleophilic amine nitrogen of the amine reagent to form the substituted NDI compound.
The tetra-substituted products, including products with groups R2 different to groups R3, have been tested in WO2009/068916, US2014-0275065A and in Hampel S. M. et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. (2010) 20, 6459-6463, Micco. M., et al., J. Med. Chem. (2013) 56, 2959-2974, Collie, G. W., et al., J.A.C.S. (2012) 134, 2723-2731, Gunaratnam, M. et al., J. Med. Chem. (2009) 52, 3774-3783, Gunaratnam, M. et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem. (2011) 19, 7151-7157 and Mitchell, T. et al., Biochemistry (2013) 52, 1429-1436 for their binding properties to quadruplexes of telomeres and also those found in the promoter region of some genes. The data show the effective down-regulation of several proteins, the promoters of whose genes are targeted by the diimides, and hence result in growth inhibition of several cell-lines from a panel of cancer cell-lines. We have proposed in these publications to investigate further the impact of changing the nature of the substituent groups and the basicity of the tertiary amine groups in the cationic-substituents, on binding specificity and strength, and to investigate the potential of the compounds in cancer treatment, by testing models of cancers including pancreatic cancer.
In Scientific Reports (2015) 5:11385, Ohnmacht, S. A., et al., disclose the activity of 4,9-bis((3-(4-methylpiperazine-I-yl)-propyl)amino)-2,7-bis(3-morpholinopropyl)benzo[lmn][3,8]phenanthroline-1,3,6,8(2H,7H)-tetraone, also known as MM41, in vivo in a mouse model of human pancreatic cancer.
Nadai, M., et al., in Int. J. Oncol. (2015) 46, 369-380, disclose a tri-substituted naphthalene diimide compound, having 2-dimethylamino ethyl groups substituted at each imido nitrogen atom and having, as the third substituent a 2-(4-hydroxy-3-dimethyl amino methyl phenyl)ethyl amino group substituted at the 4-position on the NDI core. It has activity stabilising the telomeric G-quadruplex (GQ), causing telomere dysfunction and telomerase down regulation. Global gene expression on a panel of cell lines showed modulation of genes implicated in telomere function and mechanisms of cancer. However the authors conclude that direct evidence for the biological relevance of G-4s in the cell context is still lacking (Marchetti et al, J Med Chem, 2018, 61(6), pp. 2500-2517).
The synthesis of the tri-substituted compound reported by Nadai et al. is disclosed in Doria et al, Org Biomol. Chem, (2012) 10, 2798-2806.

Substituted naphthalene diimides and their use


Disclosed is a visceral fat estimation apparatus, comprising: an input device: an estimation device; a target calorie intake determination device; a calorie consumption determination device; an allowable calorie intake update device; and a calorie consumption device. According to the present invention the input device enters at least height, body weight and body fat rate of a person to be measured, and the estimation device estimates a visceral fat area based in the input value entered by the input device. Furthermore, the target calorie intake determination device determines a target calorie intake for a day, and the calorie consumption determination device determines a calorie to be consumed due to an exercise for a day. The allowable calorie intake update device updates an allowable calorie intake for a day, and the calorie consumption update device updates a calorie to be consumed due to an exercise for a day.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a visceral fat estimation apparatus for estimating a visceral fat of a person to be measured.
2. Prior Art
Various types of apparatus for measuring a body fat of a person that is considered as the cause of adiposity have been known in the art. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-49050 discloses a body fat weight meter in which a personal data such as sex, height and age is entered and measurement of body weight and impedance between extreme parts of the body is performed for estimating the weight of fat tissue in a whole body. Also known in the art is an MRI apparatus or an X-ray CT apparatus in which a tomogram of an abdomen (or a navel region) of the body is taken and an analysis of the picture is performed to derive a subcutaneous fat area or a visceral fat area.
Furthermore, several types of calorie calculators for promptly calculating calorie intake and calorie consumption due to an exercise have been proposed for the purpose of curing any adiposity.
In this connection the adiposity is divided into two types: subcutaneous fat type and visceral fat type. Recently it becomes more important to know the amount of visceral fat due to the fact that it greatly contributes to onset of adult noncomminicable disease. Therefore, it is necessary to determine whether the adiposity is of subcutaneous fat type or of visceral fat type.
Unfortunately the prior art apparatus as described above are defective in the following point of view: The body fat weight meter provides the body fat mass and body fat rate only in a whole body. The MRI and X-ray CT apparatus are expensive in cost. In addition, an expert person is necessary for positioning a person to be measured so that he lies facing upward and keeps such posture during the period of measurement. Accordingly, the person to be measured can't operate the apparatus by himself, which means that the apparatus is not suitable for home use. Furthermore, the apparatus is bulky and cumbersome in handling. It takes longer period of time for measurement. In particular, during the measurement using the X-ray CT apparatus, the person to be measured may be subjected to exposure of radiation that is lower in dose, not substantially affected to the health. Therefore, the person is not mentally willing to have the measurement using the X-ray. Moreover, any repetition of several times of such measurement is not allowable because of accumulation in dose of exposure of radiation.
On the other hand, the calorie calculator in the prior art has capability of simply calculating the calorie value, but has nothing associated with the body fat meter. In order to cure any adiposity it is highly desire to have some function of associating the calorie control with the visceral fat meter in such manner that the current value of visceral fat area or body fat rate can be measured; if it falls within the region of adiposity then the target value of visceral fat area or body fat rate can be set; and the further target value of calorie intake and calorie consumption to attain said target value can be set. There are some apparatus available in the market having capability of setting the target value of body fat rate and calorie consumption, but none of them provide function of additionally setting the target value of calorie intake and visceral fat area.
In view of the above an object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved apparatus for estimating visceral fat in which measurement of visceral fat can easily be made; if it falls within the region of adiposity then the target value of visceral fat area can be set; and the calorie intake and the calorie consumption can be controlled to attain said target value.


An atomizer for slurry fuel which provides improved assembly thereof and improves the atomization of fuel and provides improved wear resistance. The atomizer for slurry fuel comprises an intermediate member, a slurry fuel passage and a gas passage respectively integrally formed of ceramic, and a mixing chamber being provided at the upstream side of a fuel jet port for mixing slurry fuel with gas, the intermediate member being fixed to a fuel supply body by a cap together with a steam cap and a fixed ring formed of ceramic, respectively and a set bolt fixing a target formed of ceramic to the intermediate member by penetrating a target support member and being retained to a strut wall by a lock nut.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an atomizer for atomizing and burning a slurry fuel represented by the mixture of coal and water (hereinafter referred to as CWM).
2. Prior Art
A conventional atomizer for slurry fuel is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-41891 wherein an atomizer body is detachably attached to a tip end of a fuel supply body having a first passage serving as a CWM introduction passage and a second passage which is provided outside the first passage and serves as an atomizing gas introduction passage.
In the conventional atomizer for slurry fuel, there are such problems that firstly it is difficult to attach the atomizer body to the fuel supply body since a steam guide is provided separately from an annular intermediate member to which a target is fixed and the CWM is jetted from a ring-shaped fuel jet port forming an annular liquid film being insufficiently mixed with gas. Furthermore, there is another problem that the intermediate member and a steam cap contact the CWM so that they are liable to wear.


A method for visualizing plays in a sporting event may include receiving a video stream of the sporting event and a measurement stream, asynchronous to the video stream, associated with objects in the sporting event. The method may further include displaying a synchronized presentation of the video stream and the measurement stream. The synchronization may be performed near the time of the displaying. Another method for visualizing plays in a sporting event may include receiving measurement information related to actions from one or more sporting events. The method may also include identifying plays from the actions using the measurement information and displaying a representation of the identified plays. A system for visualizing plays in a sporting event may include an integrated server and a synchronization mechanism. Another method for visualizing plays in a sporting event may include displaying a video of a play selected from a representation.

Coaching staff, television announcers, analysts and fans have a great interest in understanding the nuances of a sporting event. Statistical records of manually enumerated data have been the longest standing approach for recording "what happened" during a sporting event, and have been the prevalent means for recording the capabilities of athletes. Performance is often measured by enumerated specific actions: baseball batter at bats (hits vs. outs), basketball player shots (made vs. misses), hockey goalie defense (goals vs. saves), and football running back (yards gains vs. carries). These actions may be annotated by observers who detect occurrences of the events and determine the results of the actions. These statistics only give a partial picture of the results of a game.
The use of low cost video solutions has become the standard for coaches and analysts to augment official data. Coaches and broadcast analysts may learn a lot from observing nuances of play surrounding specific actions. For example, these nuances may include a baseball batter swinging, a basketball player planting his or her feet during a shot, a goalie reacting during a shot and a running back identifying holes in the offensive line. Coaches often refer to footage of the games to get answers about what went right or wrong at particular parts of a game. It may be a laborious process to manually edit and analyze hours of footage in preparation for an upcoming game. For instance, assistant coaches of smaller collegiate programs may spend most of their time reviewing game footage of their own and opposing teams.
More recently, systems have become available to record the position, motion and pose of athletes participating in sporting events. The use of such systems has been growing in popularity among coaching staff in select sports. However, other sports have been slow to accept these systems because it may be not clear how the information benefits such organizations. Many coaches have difficulty relating the statistical information received with their analysis gathered from video. What is needed is a more coherent approach to integrate manual statistics, video and automated statistics.

Play sequence visualization and analysis


An exhaust manifold with several inlet ports and a combination of diffuser and nozzle portions associated with each inlet port for producing a high flow rate and a low pressure drop from entry to exit. The diffuser and nozzle portions are in series and designed into the manifold at each inlet port and slightly upstream of the next downstream positioned inlet port. The diffuser portion decreases the velocity of exhaust gasses as they enter the manifold and are then turned substantially ninety degrees into a longitudinal direction of the manifold. This diffuser action slows the velocity and reduces pressure losses as the turn of exhaust flow is accomplished. The next in series nozzle portion increases the velocity of exhaust gases to cause the flowstream to jump past a neighboring downstream engine exhaust port. Resultantly, the flow through the manifold is improved and the pressure drop decreased which enhances engine performance. Also, the heat rejection and thermal inertia of the manifold is decreased which enhances the earlier heating and light-off of a downstream catalyst of a gas treatment unit.

Prior to the present invention, various exhaust manifolds and methods of controlling exhaust gases have been disclosed in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 2,230,666 which issued Feb. 4, 1941 and is entitled "EXHAUST GAS COLLECTOR" discloses a plurality of laterally spaced exhaust pipes fluidly connected to the cylinders of an associated internal combustion engine open to a diverging funnel-like main exhaust tube providing reduced back pressure and thereby increasing the power of the engine. U.S. Pat. No. 4,288,988 which issued Sep. 15, 1981 and is entitled "METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING THE GAS FLOW IN AN INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE EXHAUST MANIFOLD" discloses a method and apparatus for damping pressure oscillations in the exhaust manifold of an associated engine by throttling the exhaust gas near the outlet of the cylinders and then accelerating the gas flow in the manifold by providing a uniform flow section therein which is substantially smaller than the cylinder bore.
While these and other prior manifold constructions control flow of engine exhaust gas as disclosed, they do not meet the very high performance standards required for compact manifolds and effective manifold operation characterized by low thermal inertia necessary for early light-off of a downstream catalytic converter as now utilized in exhaust treatment in present automotive vehicles. Furthermore, with the advent of crowded engine compartments as found in practically all modern vehicles, these prior designs are generally not suitable because of their bulky configurations.

Apparatus and method for providing a compact low pressure drop exhaust manifold