A method and a system are disclosed for selecting the final drive gear ratio in a harvester. The method comprises the steps of selecting the desired ratio by manually depressing a button on a control panel, automatically activating a brake to bring the harvester to a standstill in response to the depression of the button on the control panel, and activating a gear selection mechanism to select the desired gear ratio only after the harvester has come to a complete stop.

1. Field of Art
The present invention relates to a system for selecting the drive ratio of a multiple ratio mechanical gearbox in a harvester having an engine connected to drive the harvester through a transmission line that includes the said mechanical multiple ratio gearbox and having a brake for preventing movement of the harvester.
2. Description of Prior Art
The multiple ratio gearbox comprises a first shaft, a first gear mounted fast in rotation with the first shaft, a second shaft having a second gear rotatably mounted thereon, the first and second gears being in permanent meshing engagement, and a gear selector for selectively coupling the second gear for rotation with the second shaft to permit torque to be transmitted between the first and second shafts, wherein the gear selector comprises a cog fast in rotation with the second gear, a carrier fast in rotation with the second shaft, and a synchronizer surrounding the carrier and having internal teeth permanently engaging between external teeth of the carrier, the synchronizer being slidable relative to the carrier into engagement with external teeth of the cog fast in rotation with the second gear.
An important difference between a transmission used in a harvester and one used in a road vehicle is that in a road vehicle gear changes can be carried out while the vehicle is in motion, whereas in a harvester final drive gear selection is carried out with the vehicle at a standstill. Thus, while synchromesh is used in road vehicles to bring the speed of one gearbox shaft gradually up to the speed of another shaft to effect smooth gear changes, in a harvester a synchronizer is used not for speed matching but for position or phase matching to ensure that the teeth of the carrier are correctly aligned with the teeth of the cog that is driven by the first shaft.
Because of the construction of the gearbox of a harvester, it is essential to ensure that the harvester is at a complete standstill before making any attempt at gear changing. With a combine harvester in which the transmission line comprises a hydraulic transmission in addition to the mechanical gearbox, the driver conventionally moves the hydrostatic handle into a neutral position to bring the vehicle to a stop before selecting a change of gear. In most cases however, and most certainly when on a slope, it was also expected of the driver to also operate a foot brake to ensure that the vehicle was brought and maintained at a perfect standstill before selecting a change of gear. However, experience taught that because of the extra effort required of the driver to operate the foot pedal, this would sometimes not be carried out correctly impeding a proper change of gear and obliging the driver to make another attempt before the required gear selection could be effected.
The present invention seeks to provide a method and system for gear selection in a harvester that place fewer demands on the driver and ensure a smooth gear change.
In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of selecting a final drive gear ratio in a harvester that comprises selecting the desired ratio by manually depressing a button on a control panel, automatically activating a brake to bring and/or maintain the harvester at a standstill in response to the depression of the button on the control panel, and activating a gear selection mechanism to select the desired gear ratio only after the harvester has come to a complete stop.

Final drive gear ratio selection system for a harvester


A flap device for an internal combustion engine which includes a flow housing with a housing wall which delimits a flow-through duct. The flap device includes a shaft mounted in the flow housing, a flap body rotatably mounted on the shaft, an actuator for the shaft, and a pressure measurement point. The pressure measurement point is arranged in a duct section of the flow housing so that the flap body traverses the pressure measurement point when rotating, and in a region of the flow housing remote from the shaft when viewed in a circumferential direction of the housing wall. A flap surface of the flap body is directed towards the pressure measurement point and is curved so that, in each rotary position, a tangent arranged at the position of the curved flap surface having a shortest distance to an opposite wall surface of the flow housing is parallel thereto.

The swivel section traversed by the flap body is the axial section of the duct whose cross sections relative to the duct axis are contacted by a flap section in any position of the flap. The area remote from the shaft in a circumferential direction of the housing wall is the area of the housing wall that, in the case of a centrally mounted flap, is offset by 90° in relation to the shaft axis.
Such flap devices are in particular used in internal combustion engines of vehicles, for example, to control a fresh air flow supply to the cylinders or an exhaust gas flow recirculation to the intake manifold in order to reduce pollutants.
Various control strategies have been developed since known applications require a control of the flaps depending on a volumetric flow or a mass flow of the gas. It is known, for example, to use a position sensor to control the flaps, which is then calibrated so that a gas flow is assigned to each position of the flap body or the shaft under the same ambient conditions, which, however, leads to inaccurate control during operation since not all ambient conditions can be taken into account. For exhaust gas recirculation, it is also known to carry out the control depending on other measured engine characteristics and to then readjust the exhaust gas recirculation flap.
Particularly in the intake area of the engine, it is also known to use airflow meters which operate according to the principle of hot-film anemometry, or to determine the gas flow with a differential pressure measurement.
Such a differential pressure measurement in the exhaust gas area is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,320,22 B1 where a Venturi nozzle is used to determine an exhaust gas mass flow by using a pressure difference sensor which measures before the constriction and in the narrowest cross section of the nozzle, and where the determined values are used to control an exhaust gas recirculation flap that is arranged downstream of the Venturi nozzle. The reaction time is thereby reduced, and sufficient measurement and control values are achieved in most operating conditions. Such a measurement can, however, be problematic for a small desired quantity of exhaust gases or for small opening cross sections of the exhaust gas recirculation valve. The speeds in the area of the Venturi nozzle in these operating conditions are so low that measurement errors significantly increase in percentage to the actual exhaust gas quantity.
A volumetric flow measurement in the area of a throttle flap arranged in an air duct is also described in DE 10 2006 001 032 A1 where a differential pressure is measured between a pressure measurement point upstream of the flap body and a pressure measurement point arranged in an axial section of the duct, which is traversed when the flap body rotates. It has been shown, however, that in the case of smaller opening angles of the flap body point turbulences can occur in the area of the downstream pressure measurement, which point turbulences lead to pressure variations and thus prevent accurate measurements.

Flap device for an internal combustion engine


The present disclosure relates to an induction heating device. A loaded-object sensor according to the present disclosure is arranged concentrically and centrally in the working coil. Thus, the sensing coil and the working coil are adjacent to each other. When a current for the heating operation is applied to the working coil, an induction voltage is generated in the sensing coil by magnetic force generated by the current applied to the working coil. According to the present disclosure, a limiting circuit is used to reduce the induction voltage generated in the sensing coil when the heating operation of the working coil is performed.

1. Field
The present disclosure relates to an induction heating device.
2. Background
In homes and restaurants, cooking appliances may use various heating methods to heat a cooking vessel, such as a pot. Gas ranges, stoves, or other cookers may use synthetic gas (syngas), natural gas, propane, butane, liquefied petroleum gas or other flammable gas as a fuel source. Other types of cooking devices may heat a cooking vessel using electricity.
Cooking devices using electricity-based heating may be generally categorized as resistive-type heating devices or inductive-type heating devices. In the electrical resistive heating devices, heat may be generated when current flows through a metal resistance wire or a non-metallic heating element, such as silicon carbide, and this heat from the heated element may be transmitted to an object through radiation or conduction to heat the object. As described in greater detail below, the inductive heating devices may apply a high-frequency power of a predetermined magnitude to a working coil, such as a copper coil, to generate a magnetic field around the working coil, and magnetic induction from the magnetic field may cause an eddy current to be generated in an adjacent pot made of a certain metals so that the pot itself is heated due to electrical resistance from the eddy current.
In greater detail, the principles of the induction heating scheme includes applying a high-frequency voltage (e.g., an alternating current) of a predetermined magnitude to the working coil. Accordingly, an inductive magnetic field is generated around the working coil. When a pot containing metal is positioned on or near the working coil to receive the flux of the generated inductive magnetic field, an eddy current is generated inside the bottom of the pot. As the resulting eddy current flows within the bottom of the pot, the pot itself is heated while the induction heating device remains relatively cool.
In this way, activation of the inductively-heated device causes the pot and not the loading plate of the inductively-heated device to be heated. When the pot is lifted from the loading plate of the induction heating device and away from the inductive magnetic field around the coil, the pot immediately ceases to be additionally heated since the eddy current is no longer being generated. Since the working coil in the induction heating device is not heated, the temperature of the loading plate remains at a relatively low temperature even during cooking, and the loading plate remains relatively safe to contact by a user. Also, by remaining relatively cool, the loading plate is easy to clean since spilled food items will not burn on the cool loading plate.
Furthermore, since the induction heating device heats only the pot itself by inductive heating and does not heat the loading plate or other component of the induction heating device, the induction heating device is advantageously more energy-efficient in comparison to the gas-range or the resistance heating electrical device. Another advantage of an inductively-heated device is that it heats pots relatively faster than other types of heating devices, and the pot may be heated on the induction heating device at a speed that directly varies based on the applied magnitude of the induction heating device, such that the amount and speed of the induction heating may be carefully controlled through control of the applied magnitude.
However, there is a limitation that only pots including certain types of materials, such as ferric metals, may be used on the induction heating device. As previously described, only a pot or other object in which the eddy current is generated when positioned near the magnetic field from the working coil may be used on the induction heating device. Because of this constraint, it may be helpful to consumers for the induction heater to accurately determine whether a pot or other object placed on the induction heating device may be heated via the magnetic induction.
In certain induction heating devices, a predetermined amount of power may be supplied to the working coil for a predetermined time, to determine whether the eddy current occurs in the pot. The induction heating devices may then determine, based on whether the eddy current occurs in the pot, whether the pot is suitable for induction heating. However, according to this method, relatively high levels of power (for example, 200 W or more) may be used to determine the suitability of the pot for induction heating. Accordingly, an improved induction heating device could accurately and quickly determine whether a pot is compatible with induction heating while consuming less power.


A disturbance signal removing device is provided. The device includes an antenna for transmitting a modulated pulse signal and a non-modulated pulse signal, and a transmission frequency setter for selectively setting as a transmission frequency band of the modulated pulse signal any one of a plurality of mutually different frequency bands of the modulated pulse signal that are different from a transmission frequency band set to the non-modulated pulse signal. The transmission frequency setter switches between the plurality of transmission frequency bands of the modulated pulse signal.

Typically, radar apparatuses, e.g., mounted on a ship, are configured so as to transmit a pulse-shaped transmission signal from a rotating antenna and receive an echo signal from a target object, such as another ship. With this configuration, a distance to the target object can be detected by measuring a time length after transmitting the transmission signal until receiving the echo signal. Since the antenna performs the transmission of the transmission signal and the reception of the echo signal while rotating, the radar apparatus can detect target objects in arbitrary directions.
Such a radar apparatus may receive transmission signals from other radar apparatuses (typically, mounted on other ships) and, thus, those transmission signals may interfere with echo signals, degrading performance of the radar apparatus. Therefore, for such a type of radar apparatus, various techniques to remove the transmission signals from other radar apparatuses (i.e., interference signals) have been proposed.
Example processing of the radar apparatus for removing the interference signals is described with reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B. FIGS. 9A and 9B are graphs showing conventional interference removing processes. In FIGS. 9A and 9B, a vertical axis shows a distance from the radar apparatus, and a horizontal axis shows an azimuth when transmitting a transmission signal. The azimuth is indicated using a horizontal angle with respect to a predetermined bearing. Dashed lines parallel to the vertical axis indicate reception data for one sweep, each corresponds to the azimuth (i.e., an angle θn), and a bar with a hatched area which overlaps with the corresponding dashed line indicates an interference signal, respectively.
The radar apparatus performs, as processing for removing the interference signals, processing for changing a time interval for transmitting the transmission signal (i.e., a transmission cycle) each time it transmits the transmission signal. Thus, the radar apparatus receives the echo signals at timings corresponding to the transmission time intervals which are individually set to the radar apparatus. Contrary, the radar apparatus receives the interference signals from other radar apparatuses at different timings which correspond to transmission time intervals individually set to the other radar apparatuses. For this reason, the receiving timings of the necessary echo signals and the unnecessary interference signals will never have a fixed relation therebetween, and, therefore, the interference signals which the radar apparatus receives appear at random locations in the distance direction, as shown in FIG. 9A.
Note that, since the echo signals are reflection waves, their signal intensities are comparatively low; however, since the interference signals are received directly from other radar apparatuses, their signal intensities are comparatively high. Using this tendency, the interference signals can be removed by comparing reception data of one sweep with reception data of a previous or later sweep at the same distance, and using reception data with a lower signal intensity as an output value of the sweep of interest. For example, in FIG. 9A, when a total of three sweeps at angles θ1, θ2 and θ3 are observed, signal intensities of the reception data of the sweeps at the angles θ1 and θ3 are low near a distance r1, as compared with the reception data at the angle θ2. Therefore, as for the range near the distance r1, the interference signals can be removed by using the reception data of the sweep at the angle θ1 or the angle θ3 as an output value of the sweep at the angle θ2.
In recent years, the pulse compression radar apparatuses which transmit a modulated pulse signal using a semiconductor amplifier alternatively or additionally to a magnetron has just begun to be put in practical use for ship radars (see JP2008-96337A). The pulse compression radar apparatus transmits a transmission signal having a considerably long time width (i.e., a long pulse width) compared to the radar apparatus just using the magnetron. Then, by filtering the echo signals in accordance with the transmission signals, the pulse widths of the echo signals can be compressed and a signal-to-noise power ratio (i.e., S/N ratio) can be improved.
However, when filtering interference signals from other pulse compression radar apparatuses (i.e., signals with long pulse widths), pulse widths of the interference signals will not be compressed if modulation modes of the interference signals of other radar apparatuses differ from a modulation mode of the transmission signals of the radar apparatus of interest. Moreover, when filtering interference signals from other radar apparatuses using the magnetron (i.e., signals with short pulse widths), pulse widths of the interference signals will be large. In other words, when the pulse compression radar apparatus receives the interference signals, the interference signals appear to be elongated in the distance direction, as shown in FIG. 9B.
Therefore, it may be said that, regardless of changing the transmission time interval of the transmission signal such that the interference signals differ from each other in the distance direction, when the reception data are compared at the same distance, as described above, the interference signals continue over many sweeps in the azimuth direction (e.g., five sweeps from the angle θ1 to the angle θ5 near at a distance r2, as shown in FIG. 9B). As for this case, the interference signals cannot be properly removed by using the method of extracting about three adjacent sweeps and simply measuring the intensities of the signals. Thus, in the conventional pulse compression radar apparatus, it is difficult to remove the interference signals by a simple comparison of the signal intensities between sweeps.

Disturbance signal removing device, radar apparatus and method of removing disturbance signal


A semiconductor device may be provided. The semiconductor device may include a first switching control signal generation circuit configured to generate a first switching control signal which is enabled in synchronization with a time when a first delay period has passed from a time when a power-down mode is entered. The semiconductor device may include a second switching control signal generation circuit configured to generate a second switching control signal which is enabled during a period from a time when a read operation mode or a write operation mode is entered to a time when a second delay period has passed.

1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to a semiconductor device, and more particularly, a semiconductor device capable of controlling a bulk voltage.
2. Related Art
An internal circuit included in a semiconductor device includes a plurality of PMOS transistors and a plurality of NMOS transistors. Bulks of the PMOS transistors and the NMOS transistors included in the semiconductor device are designed to be applied with bulk voltages. Bulk voltages are applied to prevent a latch-up phenomenon from occurring and threshold voltages of MOS transistors from unstably varying due to a body effect.
In general, levels of bulk voltages to be applied to PMOS transistors and NMOS transistors exert influences on leakage currents of the PMOS transistors and the NMOS transistors in turned-off states and on operation speeds of the PMOS transistors and the NMOS transistors in turned-on states. That is to say, in the case of an NMOS transistor, an amount of leakage current is decreased and an operation speed is increased as a bulk voltage of a level lower than a voltage of a source terminal is applied. Also, in the case of a PMOS transistor, an amount of leakage current is decreased and an operation speed is increased as a bulk voltage of a level higher than a voltage of a source terminal is applied.
A power-down mode is one of the standby modes of a semiconductor device. The power-down mode is an operation mode in which power is applied but generation of an internal clock is interrupted to reduce power consumption. In order to reduce power consumption in the power-down mode, it is important to limit an amount of leakage current to a minimum. Therefore, in order to reduce power consumption in the power-down mode, it is advantageous to set a bulk voltage of an NMOS transistor to be low and set a bulk voltage of a PMOS transistor to be high.

Substate bias voltage generation circuits and methods to control leakage in semiconductor memory device


A stake assembly includes a spike having a first end and a second end defining a longitudinal axis of the stake. A flange is connected at the second end of the spike and extends laterally therefrom, the upper surface of the flange forming the axially and extremity of the second end of the spike. A receptacle is recessed axially into the flange and second end of the spike. A resilient fastening member, such as a coiled spring, has a first end connected in the receptacle between the flange and the first end of the spike and a second end extending out of the receptacle beyond the upper surface of the flange. A tether or leash may be fastened to the second end of the resilient fastening member.

This invention relates to stake assemblies and devices, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a stake assembly which has no rigid structure extending obstructively above ground level.
The use of various types of stakes and tethering devices to restrain animals, tents, boundary wires and lines, and the like, are known. Generally, such devices have included a rigid post which is driven or screwed into the ground, or otherwise attached to the ground, with a rigid end thereof protruding above the ground. The animal or object to be restrained is tethered to the protruding end of the post. The protruding end of the rigid post creates a safety hazard in that it may be stepped on, tripped over, or fallen onto, thereby causing injury; and also causes operational problems, particularly when used to restrain an animal, such as a dog, in that the tether connecting the animal to the protruding end wraps around the protruding end as the animal circumnavigates the post until the freedom of the animal is unnecessarily and perhaps dangerously restrained.
There is a need for a stake assembly which may be used to restrain animal or object and which does not obstructively protrude above ground level; which resiliently restrains animal or object; and which may be easily and quickly installed and removed from the ground.


Various embodiments of a system and method for the treatment of brain cancer using a subdurally-implanted alternating electric field generation apparatus are disclosed herein.

Alternating electric field (AEF) therapy, is a type of electromagnetic field therapy which uses low-intensity electrical fields to treat brain cancer tumors; glioblastoma in particular. Conventional cancer treatments include chemotherapy and radiation, which are associated with treatment-related toxicity and high rates of tumor recurrence. AEF uses an alternating electric field to disrupt cell division in cancer cells, thereby inhibiting cellular replication and initiating apoptosis (cell death). However, some topical AEF treatment methodologies are associated with skin irritation and rashes, as well as a requirement of the patient to maintain a shaved head and restrict physical activity.
It is with these observations in mind, among others, that various aspects of the present disclosure were conceived and developed.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding elements among the view of the drawings. The headings used in the figures do not limit the scope of the claims.

Systems and methods for treatment of cancer using alternating electric field generation


A method for authenticating a network entity to access restricted information. The method includes receiving a request to generate a visual voicemail message based on an analysis of network entity profile data and contextual information relating to the network entity. The method includes generating the visual voicemail message based on the network entity profile data and the contextual information, sending the visual voicemail message to the network entity and requesting authentication information included with the visual voicemail message. In response to receiving the requested authentication information, the network entity is authenticated to access to the restricted information.

In telecommunications, 5G is the fifth generation technology standard for cellular networks, the successor to 4G networks, which provide connectivity to most current mobile phones. Like its predecessors, 5G networks are cellular networks, in which the service area is divided into geographical areas called cells. The wireless devices in a cell are connected to internet and telephone networks by radio waves through a local antenna in the cell. A main advantage of the 5G networks is greater bandwidth, yielding higher download speeds, eventually up to 10 gigabits per second (Gbit/s). Due to the increased bandwidth, the 5G networks can also serve as general internet service providers (ISPs), competing with existing ISPs such as cable internet, and will make possible new applications in internet-of-things (IoT) and machine-to-machine (M2M) areas.
5G introduces a new era of security threats because, among other things, it enables movement and access of vastly higher volumes and types of data, and thus broadens the possibility of cyberattacks. Accordingly, the risk of data breaches or leaks of personal data can increase. For example, credentials (e.g., user IDs and passwords) readily communicated on communications networks can be stolen and used to gain access to private information available through applications and services. Victims can have their personal or private information like social security numbers, addresses, date of births, driver license numbers, and other personal data compromised.
Multi-factor authentication is a rudimentary solution in which a user is authenticated and granted access only after successfully presenting two or more factors (e.g. pieces of evidence) to an authentication mechanism. For example, in response to inputting correct credentials (first factor) for an application or service, a passcode (second factor) can be texted to the user's wireless device. The passcode can be input to the application to authenticate the user. Thus, the additional factor mitigates the risk of a breach but nevertheless lacks robustness and flexibility, which is desirable for security and authentication techniques in 5G networks.
Various features of the technologies described herein will become more apparent to those skilled in the art from a study of the Detailed Description in conjunction with the drawings. Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements. While the drawings depict various embodiments for the purpose of illustration, those skilled in the art will recognize that alternative embodiments may be employed without departing from the principles of the technologies. Accordingly, while specific embodiments are shown in the drawings, the technology is amenable to various modifications.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Visual voicemail centralized authentication system for wireless networks


A process for the hydrogenation of a selected aromatic, such as benzene contained in a naphtha stream to cyclohexane wherein the distillation column reactor is operated such that the portion of the naphtha containing the benzene is maintained in the catalyst bed such that essentially only benzene is hydrogenated. The reactor is operated at a pressure wherein the reaction mixture is boiling under low hydrogen partial pressure in the range of about 0.1 psi to less than 70 psia at 0 to 350 psig. The catalyst is provided as a catalytic distillation structure such that the reaction is concurrently occurring with a distillation. A portion of the overheads is returned as reflux to provide cooling within the catalyst bed and concurrent condensation of some of the gaseous material within the bed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the selective hydrogenation of benzene in a stream, such as naphtha to make cyclohexane and reduce the benzene content. More particularly the invention relates to a process wherein the hydrogenation of the benzene and separation of the cyclohexane product by distillation is carried out simultaneously in a distillation column reactor. More particularly the invention relates to a process wherein the benzene is contained in a light naphtha stream from a cracking process or from a catalytic reformer wherein the stream also contains toluene. Most particularly the invention relates to a process for the hydrogenation of the benzene contained in a light naphtha stream with very little hydrogenation of the toluene or other aromatics.
2. Related Information
The reduction in the lead content of gasolines and the ban on use of lead anti-knock compounds have lead to a search for other ways to improve the octane number of blending components for gasoline. The alternatives to uses of lead anti-knock compounds are chemical processing and the use of other additives.
One common process long used by the refinery industry to upgrade raw naphtha to high octane gasoline is catalytic reforming. In catalytic reforming the raw naphtha having a boiling range of circa 115.degree.-350.degree. F. is passed over an alumina supported noble metal catalyst at elevated temperatures (circa 920.degree.-950.degree. F.) and moderate pressure (circa 200-550 psig). The catalyst "reforms" the molecular structures of the hydrocarbons contained in the raw naphtha by removing hydrogen and rearranging the structure of the molecules so as to improve the octane number of the naphtha. However, the increase in octane number also reduces the liquid volume of the naphtha as the specific gravity is increased.
Because of the multiplicity of the compounds in the raw naphtha, the actual reactions which occur in catalytic reforming are numerous. However, some of the many resulting products are aryl or aromatic compounds, all of which exhibit high octane numbers. The aryl compounds produced depend upon the starting materials which in a refinery are controlled by the boiling range of the naphtha used and the crude oil source. The "reformed" product from a catalytic reforming process is commonly called reformate and is often separated into two fractions by conventional distillations--a light reformate having a boiling range of circa 115.degree.-250.degree. F. and a heavy reformate having a boiling range of circa 250.degree.-350.degree. F. The aryl compounds in each fraction are thus dependent upon their boiling points. The lower boiling or lighter aryl compounds, e.g., benzene, toluene and xylenes, are contained in the light reformate and higher boiling aryl compounds are contained in the heavy reformate.
The light reformate is that portion formulated into gasoline. Until the EPA mandate requiring an elimination of most benzene from gasoline (general requirements for reformulated gasoline specify a maximum of 1.0 vol. % benzene) this was a solution to the elimination of lead. Now benzene must be removed or converted to more benign components, while maintaining the octane of the gasoline. One effective means to achieve this is to alkylate the benzene, however the olefin streams for this purpose may be expensive or otherwise employed.
Hydrogenation of the benzene is an alternative for removing that aromatic compound from gasoline streams. One example of this process is disclosed by Hsieh, et al in U.S. Pat. No. 5,210,348 wherein hydrogenation of the benzene fraction is used alone or in combination with alkylation.
Peterson in U.S. Pat. No. 2,373,501 discloses a liquid phase process for the hydrogenation of benzene to cyclohexane wherein a temperature differential is maintained between the top of the catalyst bed where benzene is fed and the outlet where substantially pure cyclohexane is withdrawn. The temperature differential is due to the change in the exothermic heat of reaction released as less and less benzene is converted as the concentration of benzene decreases. Hydrogen is supplied counter current to the benzene/cyclohexane flow. Temperature control coils are disposed within the reactor to maintain the temperature differential if the exothermic heat of reaction is not sufficient or to cool the bed if too much heat is released. Peterson recognizes that although the bulk of his reaction takes place in the liquid phase a portion of the benzene and cyclohexane will be vaporized, especially near the top of the reactor where the benzene concentration is highest and conversion is highest. A reflux condenser is provided to condense the condensible material and return it to the reactor. Thus a substantial portion of the heat of reaction is removed by condensation of the reactants vaporized throughout the reaction.
Larkin, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,233 disclose another liquid phase process for the hydrogenation of benzene to cyclohexane. However, Larkin, et al utilize high pressure (2500 psig) to maintain the reactants in the liquid state. In addition Larkin, et al disclose the use of progressively more active catalyst as the concentration of benzene decreases to control the temperature and unwanted side reactions.
Hui, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,731,496 disclose a gas phase process for the hydrogenation of benzene to cyclohexane over a specific catalyst. The catalyst reported therein is nickel supported on a mixture of titanium dioxide and zirconium dioxide.
The plug flow or single pass reactor for the hydrogenation of benzene in a naphtha stream has as a drawback the problem of indiscriminate hydrogenation of all the aromatic compounds which can contribute to the improved octane.

Selective hydrogenation of aromatics contained in hydrocarbon streams


A method and apparatus takes into account the Doppler shift of the information in a received burst, a frequency offset value is calculated for each received burst. For each burst, a signal quality value is calculated, which is compared with a predetermined signal quality threshold level. The absolute value of each of the frequency offset values whose signal quality value meets or exceeds the predetermined signal quality threshold is obtained. The frequency offset values whose signal quality values do not meet the threshold level are disregarded. The total mean of all of the absolute frequency offset values is then calculated. The total mean value is used to accurately estimate the speed of the mobile station. Consequently, the speed of faster and slower mobile stations can be readily distinguished, and a hierarchical cell structure can be effectively used to increase capacity and reduce handovers in a cellular communications system.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the mobile radio communications field and, in particular, to a method for estimating the speed of a mobile station in a cellular communications system.
2. Description of Related Art
In order to increase the capacity of cellular communications systems, relatively small cells referred to as "microcells" are being used. In order to handle much higher traffic requirements, the size of these cells has been decreased to a significant extent. Unfortunately, as the cell sizes are decreased, mobile stations operating in these systems cross the cell borders more frequently, which results in an increase in the number of handovers between cells. This handover problem is compounded by faster moving mobile stations, which cause an exceedingly high number of handovers as the cell sizes become very small.
An approach to solving this handover problem is to overlay the smaller cells with larger cells in a hierarchical manner. Consequently, the faster moving mobile stations can be assigned to a layer having larger cells, and the slower moving mobile stations can be assigned to a small cell layer.
In this regard, if the speed of the mobile stations could be accurately estimated, then the faster and slower moving mobile stations could be readily distinguished and placed in the appropriate cell layers. Notably, such a hierarchical cell structure would increase the overall system capacity significantly, all the while keeping the handover rate at a reasonable level.
Nevertheless, a problem with using such a layered cell approach with existing digital cellular communications systems is that there has been no method for accurately estimating the speed of a mobile station. For example, the European Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a digital cellular communications system, which uses Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) techniques to divide the carrier signals into time slots. The information transmitted or received during these time slots occurs in "bursts". For added diversity and secure communications, the GSM carrier bursts are frequency hopped. Consequently, there is no continuous signal available to be received in a GSM system. Therefore, the conventional methods that utilize a constant carrier envelope to estimate a mobile station's speed (e.g., "level crossing rate" method) cannot be used for systems like the GSM. Since the GSM and many other cellular systems use TDMA combined with frequency hopping, any technique used to estimate the speed of a mobile station in such a system would have to be able to utilize the information received during one burst, in order to provide an accurate estimation.
In typical urban environments (e.g., cities) where relatively high system capacities are needed, much smaller cells are being used. However, as mentioned earlier, the use of such smaller cells has produced a significant increase in handovers. Therefore, in order to alleviate the small cell/handover problem, a method is needed for accurately estimating the speed of a mobile station in a GSM or similar type of cellular system.

Method and apparatus for estimating speed of a mobile station in a cellular communications system


A polyimide precursor composition that exhibits excellent tensile strength and breaking elongation, and that provides a film containing an alicyclic polyimide resin; a method for producing a polyimide film using the polyimide precursor composition; and a permanent film that contains an alicyclic polyimide resin and that exhibits excellent tensile strength and breaking elongation. The polyimide precursor composition is a mixture of a resin precursor component which is a polyamic acid including an alicyclic backbone having a predetermined structure, a monomer component that includes an aromatic diamine compound having a predetermined structure or an alicyclic tetracarboxylic acid di-anhydride having a predetermined structure; an imidazole compound having a predetermined structure; and a solvent.

Polyimide resins have properties such as excellent heat resistance, mechanical strength, insulation properties, and low dielectric constant. Therefore, polyimide resins have widely been used as insulating materials and protective materials in electric/electronic components, for example, various elements and electronic boards such as multilayer wiring boards.
Because of having excellent mechanical properties and heat resistance, a wholly aromatic polyimide (e.g., trade name "Kapton") has conventionally been used in high-tech industry such as aerospace applications. Such wholly aromatic polyimide is synthesized by a reaction of an aromatic tetracarboxylic dianhydride with an aromatic diamine. For example, there has been known that the above-mentioned Kapton has heat resistance (glass transition temperature (Tg): 410° C.) of the highest level among heat-resistant polymers (see Non-Patent Document 1).
However, such wholly aromatic polyimide exhibits a brown color due to charge transfer (CT) between a tetracarboxylic dianhydride unit of an aromatic ring system and a diamine unit of an aromatic ring system. Therefore, it was difficult to apply the wholly aromatic polyimide to optical applications that require transparency.
Therefore, to produce polyimides usable in optical applications, a study on an alicyclic polyimide having high light transmittance free from CT has proceeded. Examples of such alicyclic polyimide include three types of resins, such as a resin obtained by a reaction of an alicyclic tetracarboxylic dianhydride with an alicyclic diamine, a resin obtained by a reaction of an alicyclic tetracarboxylic dianhydride with an aromatic diamine, and a resin obtained by a reaction of an aromatic tetracarboxylic dianhydride with an alicyclic diamine.
However, it was difficult for a polyimide obtained by using an alicyclic diamine among these alicyclic polyimides to perform increasing the molecular weight. The alicyclic diamine has basicity which is at least 100 times higher than that of an aromatic diamine. Therefore, the polymerization behavior of the alicyclic diamine is completely different from that of the aromatic diamine. As a result, when using the aliphatic diamine, a salt is precipitated during the polymerization, so that increasing the molecular weight does not easily proceed.
Meanwhile, the alicyclic polyimide obtained by using an alicyclic tetracarboxylic dianhydride in combination with an aromatic diamine can be produced with direct application of usual synthetic procedures for the wholly aromatic polyimide, so that it is easy to perform increasing the molecular weight. Among the alicyclic polyimides, the alicyclic polyimide obtained by using an alicyclic tetracarboxylic dianhydride in combination with an aromatic diamine have attracted attention in recent years. A study has been made on the alicyclic polyimide using a monocyclic, bicyclo cyclic, tricyclo cyclic, tetracyclo cyclic, or spirocyclic alicyclic tetracarboxylic dianhydride.                Non-Patent Document 1: Engineering Plastic, published in 1987 by Kyoritu Shuppan Co., Ltd., p 88        Non-Patent Document 2: Macromolecules, Vol. 27, published in 1994, p 1117


Integrated circuits must fulfill published timing specifications that have been given to customers. To fulfill published timing specifications, such as minimum valid time and maximum valid time, a circuit for adjusting the output signals from an integrated circuit is introduced. The circuit comprises in part a speed detector circuit that determines the speed of a clock signal. The speed detector circuit outputs a speed signal that defines how fast the integrated circuit is operating. The speed signal is passed to a speed adjustment circuit. The speed adjustment circuit delays, as appropriate, output signals from the integrated circuit. The output signals are delayed such that output signals fulfill the timing, specifications published in the data book for this integrated circuit. The speed adjustment circuit delays output signals by adding buffers along the data path which add propagation delay to the output data path. A similar circuit is disclosed wherein input data is delayed such that set-up time and hold time specifications are met.

When an integrated circuit is marketed, a data sheet for the integrated circuit is usually produced for distribution to electrical engineers that may incorporate the integrated circuit into products that they are designing. Several data sheets are gathered together to form a data book that is published by the integrated circuit company. These data books describe the integrated circuits produced by the integrated circuit producer.
The data sheet about the integrated circuit contains a large number of specifications that define the exact behavior of the integrated circuit. For example, operating temperature, operating voltages, and several timing specifications are provided on the data sheet. Two of the timing specifications that are often provided the minimum valid time for an output signal and the maximum valid time for an output signal. A minimum valid time defines the minimum amount of time that the output signal must be available on the output line after a clock cycle has started. The output signal must not change before this minimum valid time has expired. The maximum valid time defines a maximum amount of time that may pass after a clock cycle has started before which the output data signal must be stable. Thus, the output signal must be stable before the maximum valid time ends.
During the market lifetime for an integrated circuit, the process technology used to build the integrated circuit may change several times. Furthermore, the integrated circuit may be redesigned in the inside to make it more efficient, adapt to new process technologies, and to use less power. These design changes may change the speed at which the integrated circuit operates. However, unless the integrated circuit device is introduced as a new modified integrated circuit, the integrated circuit must still fulfill the timing requirements of the original integrated circuit as published in the data page in a data book. Therefore, it would be desirable to have a method and apparatus for adjusting the output signals of a modified integrated circuit such that it fulfills the timing requirements of the original integrated circuit that are published in the data book.

Method and apparatus for adjusting output signals from a semiconductor device to fulfill a timing specification


An arrangement for starting an engine includes a torque coupler provided between a starter motor and the engine crankshaft. The torque coupler includes a gear mechanism arranged to allow a starter motor to rotate for a period of time prior to transferring rotational torque to the crankshaft to turn the engine over.

Conventional engine systems commonly include a starter motor, a flywheel, and a vehicle engine. Responsive to operation of an ignition switch, the starter motor is operable to deliver a force directly to the flywheel of the engine to rotate the flywheel and start the engine.
While such systems adequately start a vehicle engine, they do not facilitate continual starting and stopping of the vehicle engine because the torque required by the starter motor to rotate the flywheel and start the engine cannot be rapidly generated. In this manner, conventional systems require vehicles to remain running when temporarily stopped such as at traffic lights and railroad crossings.
Further, while use of a larger starter motor may provide sufficient torque to rapidly and start a vehicle engine on demand, and may significantly reduce disparity in gear ration between the starter motor and flywheel, a larger starter motor typically creates packaging issues within an engine compartment of a vehicle. In addition, implementing a larger starter motor likely requires replacing a standard 12-volt vehicle battery/electrical system with a larger and more expensive 42-volt vehicle battery/electrical system to handle the electrical requirements of the larger starter motor.
Therefore, a need exists for a starter system arrangement that facilitates rapid and repeated starting (on-demand) of a vehicle engine when a vehicle is temporarily stopped. Additionally, such a starter system capable of operating with a conventional 12-volt vehicle battery is also desirable.


A bending machine has an upper table and a lower table. An input part is provided for inputting product information. A bending order determiner is provided for determining a bending order of the workpiece. A mold determiner is provided for determining the mold necessary for bending the workpiece. A layout determiner is provided for determining layout of the mold. A positioning information calculator is provided for calculating a position of the workpiece with respect to the mold determined by the layout determiner as work position information. A navigation member is provided for navigating a position of the workpiece to the operator by movement in the horizontal direction on the basis of the work position information calculated by the positioning information calculator.

A prior art of conventional bending machines is disclosed in the below-mentioned patent document 1 and this prior art will be described briefly as follows.
That is, the bending machine of the prior art performs bending with respect to a plate-like work by cooperating the upper bending mold and the lower bending mold and uses a pair of side frames that is opposed to each other in right and left sides and connected integrally as bases. The bending machine has an upper table provided on upper parts of the pair of side frames, a lower table provided on lower parts of the pair of side frames so as to be vertically opposed to the upper table and an NC device for controlling bending and the like.
Here, the upper table extends in the horizontal direction and an upper mold attachment part for attaching the upper bending mold thereto is provided on the bottom side of the upper table. The lower table extends in the horizontal direction and can move vertically with respect to the upper table, and a lower mold attachment part for attaching the lower bending mold thereto is provided on the top side of the upper table. The NC device controls various actuators, determines bending molds used for bending (the upper bending mold and the lower bending mold) and bending order (the order of bending when bending of one piece of work is performed plural times) on the basis of product information representing shape of the product and the like, and determines a layout mode of the bending molds in the horizontal direction.
A navigating tape for guiding the operator is stuck to a front face of the lower table or the upper table and the layout mode is represented on the navigating tape. Accordingly, the operator can attach the bending molds to the mold attachment parts (the upper mold attachment part and the lower mold attachment part) of the mold tables (the upper table and the lower table) according to the layout mode while being guided by the navigating tape.
On the other hand, another prior art of conventional bending machines is disclosed in the below-mentioned patent document 2. In this prior art, a back gauge for positioning the workpiece in the longitudinal direction can be moved in the longitudinal direction and in the horizontal direction. Generally, when bending position is determined, the back gauge is moved in the longitudinal direction. However, by transferring the back gauge in the horizontal direction, the back gauge is diverted to a device for positioning the molds in the horizontal direction.
Examples of the conventional arts include Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-221630 (hereinafter referred to as "patent document 1") and U.S. Pat. No. 5,969,973 (hereinafter referred to as "patent document 2". Japanese Patent Application National Publication (Laid-Open) No. 9-509618 exists as a corresponding patent application. Priority Ser. No. 08/338,113, Nov. 9, 1994, United States, and Priority Ser. No. 08/386,369, Feb. 9, 1995, United States).
However, since the navigating tape in the patent document 1 is stuck to the front face of either of the tables, every time the layout mode changes, it is necessary to stick another navigating table representing the changed layout mode. For this reason, when plural types of bending is performed while changing the layout mode, a complicated operation (re-sticking of the navigating tape) is added, leading to a problem that operating time for a series of bending becomes longer, thereby to lower operating efficiency.
On the other hand, in the device in the patent document 2, even when positioning of the molds in the horizontal direction is possible, subsequent complicated positioning of the workpiece in the horizontal direction relies on the operator's experience. Accordingly, when the inexperienced operator performs bending, an error in bending is likely to occur.
Especially, when a window (aperture) is formed at an inner side of the workpiece so as to be surrounded and a small protrusion in the window is bent upwards (cut-raising), the position of the workpiece in the horizontal direction with respect to the molds needs to be determined accurately. In the event that this positioning is inaccurate, although the small protrusion in the window (aperture) needs to be bent, the part surrounding the window (aperture) is also bent, leading to an error in bending.
To solve the above-mentioned problem, a first object of the present invention is provide a bending machine capable of positioning the workpiece and the molds in the horizontal direction accurately even by the inexperienced operator.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a bending machine capable of avoiding interference of a work positioning means with the workpiece.


Embodiments of the disclosure include methods, systems and computer program products for performing a data manipulation function. The method includes receiving, by a processor, a request from an application to perform the data manipulation function and based on determining that a specialized hardware device configured to perform the data manipulation function is available, the method includes determining if executing the request on the specialized hardware device is viable. Based on determining that the request is viable to execute on the specialized hardware device, the method includes executing the request on the specialized hardware device.

The present invention relates to interfaces for hardware devices, and more specifically, to methods and systems for matching a software interface to a specialized hardware device.
Recently, the use of specialized hardware devices for performing processor intensive functions has been increasing. These specialized hardware devices may be used for data manipulation operations, such as data compression, encoding, or the like. These specialized hardware devices, such as data manipulation devices, often have different performance attributes, such as speed and latency, than a general processor performing similar operations in pure software. For example, an increased overhead may be incurred in communicating with a specialized hardware device as compared with a general processor.
In general, in order for the specialized hardware devices to be used by a processor a software interface is required. The software interface allows the processor and applications to utilize the specialized hardware devices to perform processor intensive functions.

Software interface for a specialized hardware device

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


An oil pump for an engine of an outboard motor of the type including a block with an output shaft extending therefrom is disclosed. The oil pump includes an oil pan comprising an outer housing defining an oil chamber and a pumping chamber therein. The oil pump includes a pumping mechanism for pumping oil from the oil chamber to the engine. The pumping mechanism is positioned within the pumping chamber, with the outer housing defining the pumping chamber acting as a pump housing therefor. The pumping mechanism is positioned on and driven by the output shaft of the engine which extends through the oil and pumping chambers of the oil pan. A recess in the pumping chamber accomodates a flywheel, which is also positioned on and driven by the output shaft of the engine.

Outboard motors are powered by engines which are positioned within a cowling. The engine includes an output shaft which extends therefrom. The engine is oriented such that the output shaft extends downwardly to a lower drive section of the outboard motor for driving a propeller.
These engines include a lubricating system for delivering lubricating oil throughout the engine. Typical engine lubrication systems include a pump for delivering oil through oil delivery lines to various parts of the engine. Oil returns by gravity to an oil sump, from which it is drawn by the pump and returned to the engine.
In situations where the engine is oriented such that its output shaft extends horizontally, as compared to vertically, the oil sump is conveniently positioned below the engine block in a plane generally parallel to the output shaft. Oil flows downwardly through the engine to the sump, and the pump pumps the oil back up into the engine.
Orientation of the engines in outboard motors such that their output shafts extend vertically downward complicates the positioning of the oil sump. If the oil sump is connected to the engine block as described above, when the engine is rotated such that its output shaft extends vertically, the oil sump becomes oriented along the side of the engine in a vertical plane. This orientation is generally impermissible, since the oil will not drain back into the sump from the engine via gravity. In addition, it is generally desirable to limit the size of the outboard motor, especially in the horizontal direction. When the oil sump is positioned along the side of the engine, the engine's size in the horizontal direction is increased.
So that the oil will drain from the engine back to the oil sump by gravity, and to limit the engine's outward dimension, the oil sumps of engines powering outboard motors generally comprise chambers positioned below the end of the engine within the lower drive portion of the motor cowling. As the output shaft extends vertically downward in the same area in which it is desirable to position the oil sump, the oil sump often comprises a relatively narrow, but elongate chamber positioned alongside the output shaft. Because the oil pump inlet is positioned at the bottom of the sump, sump designs which have their ends far below the engine have the disadvantage that the oil pump must pump the oil a great distance upwardly into the engine, drawing greater engine power and/or generally lowering the oil pressure within the engine.
Another problem generally associated with these oil pumps is that the pumping or working elements thereof are positioned in a pump housing. The entire pump is then normally positioned within another portion of the engine, such as within the oil sump itself. This makes it difficult to service the oil pump, as the oil pump must first be located and then the outer housing thereof must be removed.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved oil pump. It is a further object of the invention to provide an oil pump for the engine of an outboard motor wherein the oil pump is positioned close to the engine. It is yet a further object of the invention to provide an oil pump which is readily serviceable.

Oil pump arrangement for four-cycle outboard motor


Disclosed are salts of N-nitrosophenylhydroxylamine and their use as polymerization inhibitors.

The ammonium salt of N-nitrosophenylhydroxyamine (cupferron) is a known polymerization inhibitor but has several drawbacks including its limited solubility which makes it difficult to add to some process streams.
Other derivatives of N-nitrosophenylhydroxyamine are also known (Gros, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,426,063 and Varwig U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,740). Solvents must be employed to prepare usable solutions. These solvents often cause problems during use. Cupferron has limited solubility in solvents such as water and lower alcohols. Cupferron has the following limits of solubility at 25.degree. C. in the indicated solvents: water (12%), methanol (5.5%) and isopropanol (0.38%), while it is essentially insoluble in hydrophobic solvent i.e., solvents which are immiscible with water. As a result of the limited solubilities of cupferron in the foregoing solvents, objectionably large amounts of these solvents are required in many applications where cupferron would otherwise be a desirable inhibitor.
Solutions of cupferron undergo degradation in the presence of air, as manifested by discoloration and formation of a black precipitate. Minimizing the extent and rate of degradation requires storing such solutions under an inert atmosphere such as nitrogen.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,740 discloses that the above-mentioned deficiencies of cupferron solutions are not overcome by the salts of N-nitrosophenylhydroxylamine disclosed in the above-cited Gros patent. On the contrary, these salts of N-nitrosophenylhydroxylamine (NPHA) are unsatisfactory for use in inhibiting polymer formation in acrylic acids and acrylate esters. In the presence of such monomers, the amine salts decompose with formation of the organic aliphatic amines (e.g. ethylamine, etc.). The lower boiling amines (e.g. the C.sub.1 to C.sub.7 aliphatic amines) formed by decomposition of the corresponding amine salts create a substantial risk of co-distillation thereof with the acrylic acid or acrylate ester monomers being purified by distillation and resulting discoloration of polymers prepared from the monomers, such as, for example, poly(acrylic acid), poly(methyl methacrylate and poly(ethyl acrylate). The higher boiling amines (e.g. the C.sub.8 -C.sub.20 aliphatic amines) formed upon decomposition of the corresponding amine salts are so immiscible with water that such salts are not entirely satisfactory for addition to water-containing acrylic acid systems.
Accordingly there is a need for a salt of NPHA which can be added to acrylic acid and acrylate ester systems and is effective for inhibiting undesired formation of polymer in such systems.


Golf balls having a very high positive gradient multilayer core are provided. The multilayer core includes an outer core layer and a very soft, low compression inner core layer. The inner core layer is formed from an unfoamed composition and has a center hardness that is at least 40 Shore C points less than the outer surface hardness of the outer core layer.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,182,368 to Kamino et al. discloses a golf ball wherein the difference between the JIS-C hardness H4 of the core at its surface and the JIS-C hardness H3 of the core outer layer at its innermost portion is equal to or greater than 10.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,007,376 to Sullivan et al. discloses a golf ball having an inner core layer with a negative hardness gradient and an outer core layer with a positive hardness gradient.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,410,429 to Bulpett et al. discloses a golf ball wherein the hardness of the inner core outer surface is the same as or lower than the hardness of the geometric center and the hardness of the outer core layer outer surface is greater than the hardness of the inner surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,718 to Nesbitt discloses a golf ball including a center core component preferably formed from a sulfur-cured polybutadiene and a core layer component preferably formed from a peroxide-cured polybutadiene and a metal salt of a fatty acid.
Despite these, and additional disclosures of golf balls having various hardness gradient properties, there remains a need for a very high positive gradient core, including a very soft, low compression inner core layer formed from an unfoamed composition. Such core would provide good durability while also contributing to spin reduction.


An apparatus comprising a substrate, one or more nanowire pillars, each having a base portion and a tip portion, a first electrode connected to the tip portions of the one or more nanowire pillars, an internal hollow cavity positioned between the substrate and the first electrode, such that at least a portion of each of the one or more nanowire pillars extend through the internal hollow cavity, and a second electrode proximate the first side of the substrate. High-performance broadband photodetectors and other optoelectronics for converting light to electricity with enhanced absorption and carrier collection.

Silicon photonics has been revolutionizing many application areas vital for modern society, including communication systems, computing, biomedical diagnostics, imaging, and sensing. Silicon does, however, have a number of shortcomings as a photonic material. Its indirect energy band and highly reflective surface limit the absorption of light, especially the near-infrared light (NIR) above 900 nm. When the incident optical power increases, the silicon photonic devices will reach a saturation limit and the responsivity falls significantly due to various optical loss mechanisms (such as reflection, heat, incomplete absorption, and indirect bandgap) and recombination of photoinduced carriers. In current photodiodes, doping at high temperature to form a p-n junction is popular, but this process is costly, consumes energy, and requires extra care of cleanliness; furthermore, in highly doped regions, doping-induced crystal damage and/or Auger recombination limit further improvement of light response in these photodiodes. To reduce the front surface reflectance of a planar surface, conventional antireflection coatings with different thicknesses and refractive indices can be effective. Developing nanostructures in the devices can improve the light response by providing longer optical paths, wider acceptance angles, and low surface reflection, but its large effective surface area significantly increases recombination at the device surface. Offering low power consumption while significantly improving responsivity and saturation performance of silicon photonics is critical but challenging.
Responsivity and sensitivity of photonic systems are difficult to improve. Efforts have been made to create devices with longer optical paths, wider acceptance angles, and low surface reflection, but many devices experience increased recombination at the device surface. What is needed, therefore, is high-performance broadband photodetectors and other optoelectronics for converting light to electricity with enhanced sensitivity, responsivity, absorption and carrier collection operating over a wide wavelength range of light from near-ultraviolet to near-infrared at low power consumption. Embodiments of the present disclosure address this need as well as other needs that will become apparent upon reading the description below in conjunction with the drawings.

Systems and methods for piezoelectric, electronic, and photonic devices with dual inversion layers


A system and method is provided for exchanging a first sub-hierarchy of at least two sub-hierarchies of a hierarchical file system (HFS) with a second sub-hierarchy of the at least two sub-hierarchies, the HFS being accessible by at least one processor and having a root directory that is a parentless directory. The method includes the steps of providing for the first sub-hierarchy to include a first root directory stored in a first location occupied by the root directory of the HFS and a first plurality of files configured to branch therefrom; providing for the second sub-hierarchy to include a second root directory stored in a second location of the HFS that is not occupied by the root directory of the HFS and a second plurality of files configured to branch therefrom; and providing for relocation of the second root directory to the first location. In preferred embodiments the method further includes the steps of providing for configuration of the second plurality of files to branch from the second root directory while the second root directory is located in the first location; providing for relocation of the first root directory to the second location; and providing for configuration of the first plurality of files to branch from the first root directory while the first root directory is located in the second location.

A computer system is capable of storing large amounts of information, particularly on large capacity permanent storage media known as hard drives. File systems, particularly hierarchical file systems (HFSs), are currently widely used for providing organization of stored information so that desired information can be easily and quickly located and retrieved. In an HFS, user data is organized into variably sized units known as files. Files are then organized into groups known as directories. Directories may contain files and may also contain other directories, known as subdirectories. This structure forms a branching tree, or hierarchy. The topmost node of this tree is a special directory known as the root directory. The hard drive is divided into physical sections known as sectors. The hard drive can also be divided into one or more logical groups of sectors known as partitions. The HFS provides a mapping between disk sectors and user data, and maintains internal housekeeping information for storing the structural relationship between directories, sector usage tables, etc.
The file systems are typically stored on non-archival rotating storage media which are subject to mechanical failures of the media and/or drive thereof, endangering the viability of the data stored therein. In addition, inadvertent or malicious failures may occur in software within the file system itself (e.g., corruption) and/or data stored therein.
The operating system of the computer is typically provided with one or more file system drivers for enabling the operating system to interpret the file system's mapping for accessing and/or processing data stored within the file system. When a file system fails or becomes corrupted, the operating system may be unable, partially or completely, to interpret the file system. Furthermore, the operating system's data and executable code is typically stored in files of the file system, such that viability of the operating system is endangered when the file system fails or is corrupted.
A popular method for protection of stored data is copying (i.e., backing up) the file system to other media (i.e., backup) and recovering from a corruption occurrence by restoring the corrupted file system from the backup data. In both of these cases, the user is typically inconvenienced either during the backup process or the recovery process, since the computer system may not be useable during that time. Furthermore, the backup media may not be available when a recovery process is necessary. In addition, once the recovery process has been initiated, it is usually not possible to cancel or reverse the recovery.
In another popular method for protection against corruption within a file system, operating systems typically provide repair tools for checking the file system and performing repairs. If the operating system is itself stored on the corrupted file system, a situation may develop in which the operating system cannot be started because of the corruption, preventing use of the repair tool to repair the corruption.
Typically the repair tool returns the file system to a default condition, often overwriting or deleting files which are desirable to be kept, or making these files inaccessible by deleting the applications needed to access them. Furthermore, the standard repair tool typically checks and repairs a file system which resides in one partition. Backup data outside of the file system, such as backup data stored on another partition or medium, are not typically checked for corruption or repaired by the repair tool.
In order to increase speed and transparency for the backup or recovery processes, it is desirable to store one or more sets of backup data on the same disk that stores the original file system. Recently, such backup systems have been developed. However, a recovery process typically includes replacing the corrupted file system, in which the current version of the operating system resides, with a backed up file system having a backed up version of the operating system, without the ability to replace selected portions of the file system. Accordingly, uncorrupted portions of the operating system, application programs and user data which resided in the corrupted file system are replaced by corresponding backup data obtained at a previous point in time, causing a loss of updated information.
Another disadvantage to such existing backup systems is the requirement for a special device driver(s) for the backup medium, limiting compatibility between available different storage devices and the operating system.
Furthermore, one class of solution of existing backup systems copies the backup file system onto the same medium as the original file system, however the original and backup file systems are each stored in different respective partitions, causing the waste of unused disk space in each partition as well as lack of continuous monitoring and maintenance of the backup data by the repair tool.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for maintaining multiple copies of a file system's data within the file system, and for replacing selectable portions of data from a copy currently being used as a working file system with corresponding data from a different copy by manipulating the file system's internal housekeeping information.
It is another object of this invention to provide a method of using an individual copy of the file system's data without affecting corresponding portions in another copy.
It is another object of the present invention to store the multiple copies of the file system in a single partition of a single physical or virtual storage medium.
It is still another object of the present invention to exchange an individual copy of the multiple copies of the file system's data that is being used as a working file system with another copy.
Finally, it is an object of the present invention to exchange an individual copy of the multiple copies of the file system's data with another copy, where the replacement is reversible.

Method and apparatus for exchanging sub-hierarchical structures within a hierarchical file system


The present invention provides coating compositions that include an epoxy-modified fatty acid ester resin, an oxirane-functional resin different from the epoxy-modified fatty acid ester resin, a carboxyl functional polyester resin, and an alkyl acid phosphate.

Various known coating compositions suffer from inferior performance in one or more areas such as durability, gloss retention, drying, hardness, solvent and humidity resistance, and the like. For example, two-component polyester epoxy resins systems have been developed and sold that include epoxy-modified fatty acid ester resins and carboxyl terminated polyesters. However, such combinations often suffer from several disadvantages including lack of durability, limited flexibility with increased hardness, and limited corrosion and chemical resistance.
Thus, there is a significant need for compositions in the coatings industry that have improved durability, flexibility, and chemical resistance.


A particulate material delivery system is provided that allows for variable rate sectional control while delivering particulate material to an agricultural field. The system may include an air cart and a drill that are towable behind a tractor and that includes a metering system receiving product from the air cart and delivering the product to the drill for distribution to the ground, such as an agricultural field. The metering system includes multiple metering units that receive separate portions of the product from the air cart. Multiple prime movers drive the multiple metering units. A controller is connected to and individually controls the multiple prime movers such that distribution rates of the multiple metering units can be varied independently of each other.

Modern large acreage seeding implements pneumatically deliver seed, fertilizer, and/or other product to fields. An example is an air cart and an air drill that are pulled together behind a tractor to deliver product. Different seeding styles can be implemented by using different openers on the air drills. Knife, ribbon band, ribbon band sweep, double-shoot, and disk openers can be used for different seeding styles that can open correspondingly different styles of furrows to receive the seed. The air cart pneumatically conveys seed to the air drill for delivery into the furrow(s). Air carts include one or more storage compartments that hold product(s), each of which has an associated metering box. The metering box divides product(s) from the associated storage compartment(s) into equal sections for delivery of equal product volumes. The equally divided product(s) is entrained in an airflow established by a fan and delivered through manifolds and distribution lines that direct the product from the air cart, to the air drill, and to the field being planted with seed.

Particulate material delivery system for variable rate sectional control


Mattresses conventionally are covered by bed sheets having a size to extend beyond the borders of a mattress on which it is to be placed so that its projecting edges may be tucked under the mattress. It is often difficult to apply a sheet smoothly and, in particular when a person is resting or sleeping on the mattress, the sheet may be pulled out from under the mattress and be displaced. The invention suggests a mattress cover in the form of a sleeve, which includes a top sheet; two opposite end walls and two opposite elongated side walls joined to the top sheet. It has flaps extending from the end walls and side walls and a bottom sheet joined to the flaps. An elongated open section is provided between adjacent edges of the bottom sheet and a flap of one of the side walls and a flap of at least one of the end walls, defining an opening through which a mattress can be inserted into the sleeve. Detachable fastening means are provided for fastening the adjoining edges of the bottom sheet and side wall and end wall along the opening together.

Mattresses conventionally are covered by bed sheets. Such a bed sheet normally has a size to extend beyond the borders of a mattress on which it is to be placed so that its projecting edges may be tucked under the mattress.
It is often difficult to apply a sheet smoothly and, in particular when a person is resting or sleeping on the mattress, the sheet may be pulled out from under the mattress and be displaced.
It is an object of the invention to suggest a mattress cover which will assist in overcoming this problem.


One embodiment provides a method, comprising: capturing, using a sensor, data with an ambient brightness; comparing, using a processor, the data with a rule set; determining, using a processor, an amount of tinting of glasses needs adjusted based upon the comparison of the data to the rule set; and adjusting, using a processor, the amount of tinting of glasses. Other aspects are described and claimed.

Many people wear glasses to correct a variety of optical issues (e.g., near-sightedness, far-sightedness, astigmatism, etc.). Wearers of glasses tend to have few options when selecting a type of sunglass. Some choose to buy prescription sunglasses, clip-on sunglasses, or may choose to wear standard sunglasses rather than their prescription glasses. Others may choose to wear photochromatic glasses such as transitional lenses. These may allow a person to wear a single pair of glasses in both light and dark places, without the need to switch to sunglasses. The typical transitional lens works through a chemical reaction to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. In some cases, transitional lenses may work when exposed to visible light, which may work when a person is in a location where UV light may be blocked such as a vehicle.


A self righting container having a hollow and generally spherical shape and an eccentrically weighted ballast and a method of using the container. Upon rotation or other movement of the container, the weighted ballast urges the container to return to a predetermined orientation, typically determiner such that a container opening would be positioned at a desired location. The weighted ballast may further comprise a magnet such that metallic objects may be contained within the interior of the container and may even be retained in a particular orientation as determined by the magnetic forces. As the container is a highly desirable device, especially for office locations, graphical or advertising material may be imprinted on at least one portion of its outer surface for the purpose of providing advertising or promotion.

The present invention is directed to the design and configuration of a container for the retention of small articles. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a container, which would commonly be used for storage of small articles, such as paper clips, on the desk of an office worker, and a method of using such a container for advertising.
Containers for small articles have been known for some time. In a hectic office situation, however, containers for clips and other small articles are often susceptible of being knocked about and even falling off the desk or table surface. When this event would occur, the individual is left with at the least, a mess, and at worst, further damage or breakage may result from the container hitting the floor.
Self righting devices have been designed in the past but each is either too limited to accomplish the desired intent of the present invention or unduly complex. For example, European Patent Application No. 0661010A1, applied by Hannoosh, describes a self righting mechanism for use as the base of a walking cane. This cane incorporates a weighted hemispherical base to accomplish the swaying capability for self righting. While the spherical portion is somewhat similar to the present invention, the Hannoosh device is not a container and is not spherical. It simply illustrates the principal that a weighted round base will tend to maintain a particular orientation. U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,686 to Smith further illustrates a complex self eccentrically weighted device, which is intended to roll uphill. While this device includes weighted component and is specifically designed to function as a limited travel rolling device.
Spherical containers have been designed in many configurations and some incorporate a self righting capability. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,732,387 to Elinski discloses a spherical ball container for the dispensing of small balls such as those used in a lottery number selection. While spherical, this container has no self righting capability. U.S. Pat. No. 5,860,552, to Culhane, et al., is an eccentric shaped lid for a liquid container, which serves to orient the container in a particular configuration in the event it tips over. This device, however, would only orient the device if it were to fall on its side and it has no capability to reorient the container through a rotation of any angle about any axis, such as if the container were to fall on its lid.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 2003/0213706, to Huang, describes a magnetic container in which two magnets mounted at opposite chordal ends of a container invoke a magnetic field in order to orient steel objects therein, such as paper clips, in a vertical orientation. While this device is spherical and weighted, it is incapable of reorienting the device in a particular desired orientation regardless of the degree of rotation or axis thereof. The Huang device is limited by its duality of weighted magnets as well as its large opening.
What is lacking in the prior art is a self righting container for the retention of small articles which will independently reorient itself when dropped, rolled or otherwise handled, regardless of the extent of movement, rotation or axis about which it is rotated. What would be desirable would be a small container with self-righting capability that could also orient and retain metallic pieces with a very simple magnetic action. Another desirable feature of a small self-righting container would be a lid, which could be slid over, snapped or placed upon an opening of the container to seal its contents.