A valved plug to be fitted on a mouth piece at an inlet opening of an endoscopic biopsy channel. The plug as a whole is formed of a resilient material, and has, at the opposite ends of a foldable connecting strip or string, a generally tubular main body portion which is provided with a constricted portion in its axial passage, and a valved nesting piece which is adapted to be detachably coupled with the main body portion and provided with a normally closed slit valve axially in an aligned position relative to the constricted passage on the side of the main body portion. The main body portion is provided with an inward interlocking projection of a predetermined thickness at its outer end, for tight interlocking engagement with an interlocking groove which is provided on the side of the nesting piece in such a way as to grip the interlocking projection tightly in a compressed state.

1. Field of the Art
This invention relates to a valved plug for an endoscopic biopsy channel, and more particularly to a valved plug to be detachably fitted on a mouth piece at an entrance opening to a biopsy channel, which is provided on medical endoscopes for introduction of forceps or other biopsy and surgical instruments.
2. Prior Art
Generally, medical endoscopes which are introduced in a body cavity for examination or therapeutic purposes are largely constituted by a manipulating head assembly to be gripped in an operator's hand for manipulating of various control means, an insertion tube extended out on the front side of the manipulating head assembly, and a universal cable which is led out on the rear side of the manipulating head assembly for connection to a light source etc. Along with an endoscopic image pickup means, an illumination window or windows are provided in a casing of a tip end section at the fore distal end of the insertion tube to project illumination light toward an intracavitary site under examination.
For example, in case a diseased portion is spotted as a result of an endoscopic examination, it may become necessary to give a certain treatment to the diseased portion or to get tissue samples therefrom. Therefore, for this purpose, many endoscopes are provided with the so-called biopsy channel to permit introduction of forceps or other biopsy or surgical instruments therethrough. The biopsy channel is coextensively extended through the insertion tube of the endoscope toward an outlet opening which is provided on the casing of the distal tip end section along with the illumination and endoscopic image pickup means. A biopsy or surgical instrument is introduced into the biopsy channel through an inlet opening which is provided in the casing of the manipulating head assembly or at a joint portion of the insertion tube and the manipulating head assembly.
Partly because the pressure within a body cavity is higher than the atmospheric pressure and partly because the biopsy channel is also utilized as a suction passage, the inlet opening of the biopsy channel cannot be left in an open state. Therefore, it is the general practice to close the inlet opening of the biopsy channel with a plug, by fitting the plug on a mouth piece which is provided around the inlet opening. An instrument can be introduced into the biopsy channel without removing the plug from the mouth piece. Namely, the plug is provided with an on-off valve in its internal passage, which can be pushed open when an instrument is introduced into the biopsy channel. Nevertheless, since it is necessary to wash clean the interior of the biopsy channel each time after use, the plug is normally detachably fitted on the mouth piece of the biopsy channel.
Instrument to be introduced into a body cavity by way of the biopsy channel on an endoscope vary over a certain range in diameter, from forceps with relatively large outside diameters to narrow tubes with extremely small diameters. In other words, an endoscopic biopsy channel is used for introduction of instruments of diversified outside diameters. Ideally, the on-off valve to be provided in the plug should be capable of holding the circumference of an inserted instrument tightly in a sealed state. However, there have never been developed biopsy channel plugs which can maintain perfect air tightness around the circumference of various thick and narrow instruments which greatly differ in outside diameter, for example, perfect air tightness around a thick instrument which is almost as large as the diameter of the inlet opening of the biopsy channel as well as around a narrow instrument which is far smaller in diameter.
As for conventional biopsy channel plugs of the sort mentioned above, it has been widely known in the art to provide within a plug a constricted passage of a diameter smaller than the inlet opening of the biopsy channel and to provide a slit of a length equivalent with or larger than the diameter of the inlet opening in such a way that the slit is normally closed to maintain the inlet opening of the biopsy channel substantially in a hermetically closed state. The slit is pushed open upon introducing an instrument into the inlet opening of the biopsy channel. In the case of a narrow instrument, it is relatively easy to maintain air tightness because the slit is opened only in a small degree. On the contrary, when a thick instrument is introduced into the biopsy channel, the slit is opened wide to such a degree as to brake its air tightness. However, since the constricted passage is provided in addition to the slits, the thick instrument spreads the constricted passage radially outward as it is introduced into the biopsy channel, and walls of the constricted passage tightly fit around the inserted instrument to form a hermetical seal therearound. Therefore, while an instrument is introduced into a body cavity through the biopsy channel for a biopsy or surgical treatment, there is little possibility of body fluids flowing in a reverse direction and coming out through the inlet opening of the biopsy channel and depositing on the manipulating hand of the operator.
In this connection, there has been known in the art a plug construction which has the above-mentioned constricted passage and slit valve on one and same structure, for example, from Japanese Patent Publication H5-57848. More specifically, in the case of the Japanese Patent Publication just mentioned, the biopsy channel plug is composed of a tubular main body portion internally provided with a constricted passage and adapted to be fitted on a mouth piece at the entrance opening of a biopsy channel, and a lid member containing a slit as an on-off valve and connected with the main body portion through a flexibly foldable connecting strip. In use, firstly one end of the main body portion of the plug is fitted on the mouth piece of the biopsy channel entrance opening, and then the valved lid member is fitted in the other outer end of the main body portion.
The main body and the valved lid member of the plug are separably coupled with each other. In this regard, it is important for the main body portion and the valved lid member to be able to maintain hermetical tightness when coupled with each other. Therefore, in the case of the above-mentioned Japanese patent publication, an inwardly projecting annular brim is provided at the outer end of the main body portion. The annular brim is adapted to be trapped in an annular groove which is provided on the side of the valved lid member, when the valved lid member fitted into the main body portion of the plug. At this time, the inner periphery of the annular brim is abutted against the bottom of the annular groove to form a hermetical seal therebetween. The annular brim is formed in a thickness which is smaller than the width of the annular groove on the side of the lid member. Further, the lid member is formed with a flanged portion around its inner end to be fitted into the main body portion. On the other hand, an axially projecting annular ridge is provided on a partition wall around a constricted passage in such a way that the flange portion at the inner end of the lid member is gripped between the annular ridge and a lower surface of a wall portion which defines the annular trapping groove. Accordingly, the brim portion which is projected radially inward at the outer end of the main body portion is abutted against bottom surfaces and inner rising wall portions of the annular groove, but it is left out of contact with outer rising wall portions of the trapping groove.
By the way, among endoscopically inserting instruments of various sizes, an instrument of large diameter forcibly tends to spread the constricted passage radially outward upon introduction into the biopsy channel through the slit in the lid member of lid portion of the plug. At this time, the lid portion of the plug is pressed against the axially projecting ridge on the partition wall, and therefore it is retained in the coupled state without receiving adverse effects in this regard. However, when the thick instrument is extracted from the biopsy channel, the partition wall around the constricted passage is pulled and displaced in an upward direction. As a consequence, the lid portion of the plug is pushed by the axial ridge portion on the partition wall in a direction of separating same from the main body of the plug. The brim portion which is provided at the outer end of the main body portion is abutted against the inner rising wall portion of the annular groove on the side of the lid member, so that it acts to restrict movements of the lid portion. Namely, at the time an instrument is extracted from the biopsy channel, the force acting to separate the lid portion from the main body portion of the plug is sustained by the inwardly projecting brim portion which is provided at the outer end of the main body portion. Besides, since the top side of the brim portion in put in a free state and the axial ridge portion is located radially inward of the brim portion, the force acting to push up the lid portion through the brim portion is amplified by a degree which corresponds to a positional differential between the projected portion and the rim portion.
Therefore, the inwardly protruding brim portion at the outer end of the main body portion can be deformed into an outwardly bent form by repeated insertions and extractions of instruments, and as a result lid gripping force of the brim portion can be gradually deteriorated. In such a state, if an instrument is inserted into the biopsy channel through the plugged inlet opening and then abruptly extracted out of the plug, the lid portion of the plug can be unintentionally separated from the main body portion because the brim portion on the main body portion no longer has sufficient lid holding force. Further, as mentioned hereinbefore, the biopsy channel also serves for use as a suction passage. When a suction valve on the manipulating head assembly of the endoscope is operated for aspiration and then closed to end the aspiration, the flow of aspirate fluids within the biopsy channel is stopped and the pressure within the biopsy channel is elevated to a relatively high level. This elevated pressure acts on inner surfaces of the lid portion of the plug. Therefore, in case the lid holding force of the brim portion on the main body portion has deteriorated to a material degree, the lid portion of the plug can be pushed off the main body portion by the internal pressure of the biopsy channel. In such a case, a large amount of aspirate can flow out through the biopsy channel plug and scatter around the operator.

Valved plug for endoscopic biopsy channel


Systems and methods apply audible acoustic energy to cause vasodilation and/or to increase tissue perfusion.

Vasodilation is a term that describes the increase in the internal diameter of a blood vessel that results from relaxation of smooth muscle within the wall of the vessel. Vasodilation can cause an increase in blood flow, as well as a corresponding decrease in systemic vascular resistance (i.e., reduced blood pressure). Tissue perfusion is a term that generally describes blood flow into the tissues.
Vasodilation has been recognized to be beneficial in the treatment of myocardial infarction, strokes, and vascular diseases.
Maintaining adequate tissue perfusion is recognized to be beneficial during any hypoperfused event, during any coronary syndrome including myocardial infarction, before, during, or after medical intervention (e.g., angioplasty, plastic and reconstructive surgery, maxillofacial surgery, vascular surgery, transplant surgery, or cardiac surgery); or before, during, or after dental procedures, or dermatological test patches and other skin challenges, or before, during, or after an exercise regime; or during wound healing.
The effects of ultrasound energy upon enhanced vasodilation and/or blood perfusion have been observed. However, the conventional use of ultrasound energy in medicine for either diagnostic or therapeutic purposes typically has involved the application of ultrasound energy at frequency ranges—e.g., about 2 MHz to 40 MHz for diagnostic purposes (ultrasound imaging), and about 1 MHz to 3 MHz (physiotherapy or diathermy devices)—and/or with attendant exposure times, that can induce thermal effects due to tissue absorption of ultrasound energy. These thermal mechanisms caused by tissue absorption of ultrasound energy can lead to substantial deep heating of tissue. Often, in typically conventional ultrasound modalities, the thermal mechanisms due to absorption of ultrasound energy in tissue can be intended and beneficial, or at least not detrimental. However, when the principal purpose of the therapy is to create vasodilation and/or sustain adequate tissue perfusion in instances where the body is undergoing, or is about to undergo, or has undergone an event that is or has the potential for challenging patient well being, unintended substantial deep tissue heating effects or other unnecessary physiologic challenges to body tissue or organs should be avoided.

Systems and methods for applying audible acoustic energy to increase tissue perfusion and/or vasodilation


A constant voltage circuit is disclosed that includes an output control transistor and an overcurrent protection circuit. The overcurrent protection circuit includes a proportional current generation circuit part, a current division circuit part, a division ratio control circuit part, a current-voltage conversion circuit part, and an output current control circuit part. When the output voltage of the current-voltage conversion circuit part reaches a predetermined voltage, the output current control circuit part prevents an increase in the output current of the output control transistor so as to reduce a voltage output from an output terminal. When the voltage output from the output terminal is reduced to a predetermined limit voltage, the division ratio control circuit part changes the division ratio of the current division circuit part so that a current supplied to the current-voltage conversion circuit part increases so as to reduce the output current of the output control transistor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to constant voltage circuits with an overcurrent protection circuit, and more particularly to a constant voltage circuit with an overcurrent protection circuit having a foldback characteristic.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a conventional constant voltage circuit 100 having an overcurrent protection circuit with a foldback characteristic. In the following, a description of a constant voltage generation operation in the constant voltage circuit 100 is omitted, and a description is given of the overcurrent protection circuit with a foldback characteristic.
Referring to FIG. 1, the source and the gate of a p-channel MOS (PMOS) transistor M42 are connected to the source and the gate, respectively, of a PMOS transistor M41 forming a driver transistor controlling an output current iout. A drain current output from the drain of the PMOS transistor M42 is proportional to the drain current of the PMOS transistor M41.
The drain current of the PMOS transistor M42 is input to a current division circuit composed of PMOS transistors M44 and M45. The sources of the PMOS transistors M44 and M45 are connected, and the gates of the PMOS transistors M44 and M45 are connected. Accordingly, the drain current of the PMOS transistor M42 is divided into current values that are proportional to the transistor sizes of the PMOS transistors M44 and M45, and output from the PMOS transistors M44 and M45 as their respective drain currents.
The drain current of the PMOS transistor M44 flows through a resistor R53 to generate voltage across the resistor R53. When the voltage reaches the threshold voltage of an n-channel MOS (NMOS) transistor M49, the NMOS transistor M49 is turned on to switch on a PMOS transistor M43. The drain of the PMOS transistor M43 is connected to the gate of a PMOS transistor M41. Accordingly, the PMOS transistor M43 is turned on so as to raise the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M41, so that an increase in the current iout output from the PMOS transistor M41 is controlled. As a result, the output voltage Vout of the constant voltage circuit 100, which is the voltage of an output terminal from which the current iout is output, is reduced.
The connection of resistors R51 and R52 for detecting the output voltage Vout is connected to the gate of a PMOS transistor M54, which forms an input end of a differential amplifier circuit composed of PMOS transistors M53 and M55 through M57, the PMOS transistor M54, a resistor R54, and a capacitor C51. A resistor R55 is connected between the gate of the PMOS transistor M55, which forms the other input end of the differential amplifier circuit, and a negative side supply voltage Vss. A current is supplied to the resistor R55 from a positive side supply voltage Vdd via PMOS transistors M58 and M59. Accordingly, a predetermined voltage is applied to the gate of the PMOS transistor M55.
In the differential amplifier circuit, the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M54 is set to be higher than the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M55 when the output voltage Vout is a predetermined voltage. When the output current iout becomes an overcurrent and flows so that the output voltage Vout is reduced, the voltage at the connection of the resistors R51 and R52 detecting the output voltage Vout is also reduced so that the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M54 is reduced. When the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M54 becomes lower than the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M55, the drain current of the PMOS transistor M54 increases so that the drain voltage of the PMOS transistor M54 increases. Since the gate of an NMOS transistor M51 is connected to the drain of the PMOS transistor M54, the NMOS transistor M51 is turned on.
When the NMOS transistor M51 is turned on, a PMOS transistor M50, which is connected to the drain of the NMOS transistor M51, is turned on. The PMOS transistor M50 forms a current mirror circuit with a PMOS transistor M52, and the PMOS transistor M52 is also turned on. The drain of the PMOS transistor M52 is connected to the gate of the PMOS transistor M41. Accordingly, when the PMOS transistor M52 is turned on, the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor M41 increases so that the drain current of the PMOS transistor M41, that is, the output current iout, is reduced. The characteristic showing the relationship between the output voltage Vout and the output current iout is a foldback characteristic as shown in FIG. 2.
For instance, according to a technique disclosed in Japanese Examined Patent Publication No. 7-46291, in the case of a decrease in output voltage due to a load short circuit or a half short, the decrease is detected in a voltage detection circuit, and an operations signal is provided from a protection circuit to a current limit circuit based on a detection signal. As a result, the current limit circuit outputs a stop signal to a control unit, so that a switching element, supplying a load with current, is maintained in a non-conducting state.
In these years, there has been a demand for power-saving electronic apparatuses, and there has also been a strong demand for a power supply circuit forming a constant voltage circuit that consumes less current. Accordingly, there has been a demand for reduction in current consumption of a protection circuit provided in the constant voltage circuit.
However, as shown in FIG. 1, the conventional overcurrent protection circuit employs a differential amplifier circuit. Therefore, when a bias current set by the PMOS transistor M53 is reduced to decrease current consumption of the differential amplifier circuit, the speed of response of the differential amplifier circuit is reduced so that it is difficult to perform phase compensation.
Inappropriate phase compensation causes a problem in that the differential amplifier circuit operates unstably to oscillate in a region where the output current iout decreases as the output voltage Vout decreases in FIG. 2. The phase compensation of the differential amplifier circuit may be performed to some extent by changing the time constants of the resistor R54 and the capacitor C51. However, it is impossible to reduce the bias current to near zero.


A plant product extraction apparatus or extractor is provided for separating or grading fine particles from a larger portion of material, such as separating trichomes from a stalk or flower of a plant. The apparatus imparts a plurality modes or patterns of oscillations and vibrations to a particle separator or sieve that holds the plant matter. A motor drives a back and forth motion to a support platform supporting a sieve. The sieve is constrained by a retention tray that is supported by the support platform. Vibratory motors provide rapid shaking vibration through the retention tray to the sieve. Agitators may be placed inside of the sieve to facilitate the separation of the plant materials. The various motors and locomotion patterns facilitate the separation of finer plant materials from a larger portion of a plant.

Separating plant or herb particles from the entire plant or larger portion of a plant include manually or mechanically sifting the plant material to separate the finer portion of the plant matter, such as herbal extract. Manual devices used include sieves, tumblers, or bubble bags. Mechanical devices separate fine particles from plants with vibration. Separation of plant particles is a time consuming process often requiring extensive physical labor or expensive, large-scale equipment.


A method to make electrically conductative high strength and high modulus poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) fibers rendered electrically conductive with sulfonic acid insitu ring-substituted polyaniline.

Sulfonic acid ring-substituted polyaniline is a "self-doped" conducting polymer, reported by Yue, Epstein and MacDiarmid in Proc. Symposium on Electroresponsive Molecular and Polymeric Systems, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Oct. 1989, to have a conductivity of .about.0.03 S/cm. without external doping. Synthesis of the material is also described in J.A.C.S. 1991, V.113, N.7 pp. 2665-2671 which shows a conductivity of .about.0.1 S/cm measured on pressed pellets.
Fibers of a blend of polyaniline and poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) prepared from homogeneous solutions in 98% by weight sulfuric acid are described in Polymer Commun. 31,275 (1990). The externally doped fibers are said to have improved mechanical properties while retaining the conductivity of pure polyaniline. The concentration of poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) in the spinning solution employed by the experimenters was below the onset of formation of lyotropic phase, thus, the fibers were spun from isotropic solutions.
MacDiarmid et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,177,187 taught a process for preparation and spinning of amorphous, 100% by weight polyaniline fibers from solutions of the polymer in concentrated sulfuric acid or N-methyl pyrrolidinone, but the conductivity of the fibers taught by MacDiarmid was achieved by coagulating the fiber in solutions containing hydrochloric acid which served as the external dopant.
Blends of polyaniline and poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) have been taught by Jen et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,820 (melt spinning), Smith et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,196,144 (solution spinning from 96% sulfuric acid solutions) and Elsenbaumer in U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,457 (spinning from solutions and doping).
The inventors of the present invention wanted a method to prepare high strength, high modulus conductive fibers of consistent and permanent conductivity. In order to achieve such a fiber product they found that only certain sequences of spin dope preparation steps and the use of specific concentrations of sulfuric acid, that is those in excess of 98% by weight, in preparing the spinning solutions resulted in the insitu ring-sulfonation of the polyaniline and the desired mechanical and electrical properties of the fibers.

Method for preparing a high strength, high modulus electrically conductive fiber


The present disclosure provides a method, system, and apparatus for processing parking and a vehicle controller, and relates to the field of intelligent transportation technology, specifically to the field of automated parking technology. The method is executed by a parking system deployed on a vehicle controller, the parking system including a perception module and other modules except the perception module; the perception module being deployed on a first operating system in the vehicle controller; and the other modules being deployed on a second operating system in the vehicle controller; the method includes: processing an image collected by an image collector through the perception module to obtain perception result data; and controlling a vehicle based on the perception result data obtained from the perception module by the other modules.

With the development of communication technology, there are new possibilities for automatic parking and automated valet parking technologies.
At present, during the use of APA (Automatic Parking Assist) and AVP (Automated Valet Parking), the most common method is to connect a set of hardware to undertake the software system of APA and AVP. Using this method, although it can be decoupled from a vehicle's own system, the cost of newly added hardware accounts for more than 80% of the total selling price, therefore, the cost of the vehicle increases.
Therefore, there is a need for a method that can use the hardware carried by an in-vehicle system itself to use APA and AVP to reduce the use cost and maximize the use of existing vehicle resources.

Method, system, and apparatus for processing parking, and vehicle controller

Apollo Intelligent Driving Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd.


A driver device may comprise a housing and a hole located on the housing. The hole may comprise a sealing lip. The driver device may comprise a bit holder located within the housing, and a bit socket located on the bit holder. The bit socket may be aligned with the hole, such that inserting a bit into the bit socket also inserts the bit into the hole. The driver device may comprise a spring located within the bit socket. The spring may cause an inserted bit to partially exit the hole in the absence of an external force pushing the it against the spring. The driver device may comprise a vacuum component connected to the housing, and a vacuum chamber within the housing.

The present disclosure relates to driver devices, and more specifically, to powered screwdrivers with suction mechanisms.
Driver devices such as powered screwdrivers, drills, impact drivers, and others (sometimes collectively referred to herein as "driver devices" or "screwdrivers") operate by engaging a bit (e.g., a screwdriver bit) with an object that is intended to be driven into another object (e.g., a screw, bolt). A motor within the driver device causes a bit to rotate. When the bit is properly seated within, for example, the head of a screw, rotation of the bit causes the screw to rotate.

International Business Machines Corporation


A microwave power transmission apparatus converts electric energy into microwaves, and transmits the microwaves to a microwave power receiver between sea and land. A power transmission antenna to emit the microwaves is directed to a direction of the microwave power receiver by a driver. When a beacon receiver detects a beacon signal transmitted by the microwave power receiver, a transmission signal generator generates a transmission signal emitted as microwaves from the power transmission antenna. Radio waves are not emitted from the power transmission antenna when the beacon signal is not detected. Not detecting the beacon signal corresponds to a situation where a power reception antenna cannot receive the microwaves due to motion of the antenna being on the sea. The wireless electric power transmission apparatus and electric power transfer system can prevent occurrence of a situation where the emitted microwaves cannot be received.

Offshore power generation is expected to serve as an approach to satisfying future energy demand of Japan surrounded by the sea in every direction. Electric power generated by offshore wind power generation is transmitted to land through laid power supply cables, for example. A method using power supply cables, however, requires construction of laying the power supply cables, resulting in increased electric power costs. If the method of transmitting power to land can be replaced by microwave power transmission, the need for construction of laying the cables is eliminated.
In recent years, developments and tests have been conducted toward commercialization of microwave power transmission. Implementation of microwave power transmission from offshore power generation apparatus to land eliminates the need for construction of laying power cables and reduces electric power costs. Thus, offshore power generation becomes a more promising energy source to be promoted.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-88443 (Patent Document 1) discloses an electric power transfer system, in which the orientation direction of a power transmission antenna is controlled to prevent microwaves from moving out of a wave receiving surface, thereby implementing highly efficient electric power transfer. In this electric power transfer system, a plurality of regions are set on a wave receiving surface of a power reception antenna, and the magnitude of electric power transferred by microwaves in each region is detected, to control the orientation direction of a power transmission antenna based on magnitude distribution of the electric power detected in each region.

Wireless electric power transmission apparatus and electric power transfer system


In a method of manufacturing a planar optical waveguide based entirely on polymer materials an active polymer is deposited onto a semiconductor substrate between two layers of buffer polymers chosen so that the difference in refractive index on each side of the active polymer is between 0.005 and 0.5 and preferably between 0.01 and 0.4.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a method of manufacturing optical waveguides based on polymer materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Optical fibers are used not only to transmit data but also to process data in a very broad meaning of the term. Modulation, switching, multiplexing, repolarization, etc functions can therefore be implemented by associating an optical waveguide with integrated optical circuits.
Lateral confinement optical waveguides are conventionally implemented on the surface of monocrystalline lithium niobate by doping the crystal, usually with thermally diffused titanium. The refractive index of the doped region is increased so that this region can guide light in a certain range of wavelengths.
The guide structures previously used are mainly structures of the following types:
"photobleaching" structures based on lowering the refractive index of the active polymer after exposure to ultraviolet light;
"SPP" structures in which a metal strip is deposited onto the active layer; the active molecules in the material are oriented by applying an electric field between this strip and the substrate; the extraordinary index is increased under the metal strip whereas the ordinary index is reduced by the Pockels effect; the part of the active layer under the metal strip therefore becomes an optical waveguide for a TM wave (polarized in the plane of the layer);
"channel waveguide" structures in which the light is confined in the active polymer above the recessed part of the buffer layer by varying the effective index in this area.
The structures described above all have the same drawback: lateral confinement is poor because it is due to the relatively small refractive index difference (in the order of 5.times.10.sup.-3). The present invention concerns a new technique for fabricating optical waveguides producing very large refractive index differences to either side of the active strip guide and improving lateral confinement by reducing light losses; the refractive index difference (0.01<.DELTA.n<0.4) varies with the materials employed. The lateral confinement property is crucial in the case of more complex components. In components such as electro-optic X junctions, in which the waveguides intersect at angles in the order of 1.degree., poor confinement of the light wave causes light to be lost from one waveguide to the other, producing crosstalk between channels.

Method for manufacturing strip optical waveguides


A rectangular curb unit is installed on a sloping standing seam metal roof at an angle to the dip direction, so that water does not accumulate on the upslope side of the curb unit. The curb unit has four side walls, and inserts shaped to conform to the seam geometry are welded to the walls at the seam locations, typically at opposite corners.

This invention relates to metal roof construction.
Curbs are constructed on metal roofs around skylights and mechanical equipment such as heating or air condition units, to divert rain precipitation around the unit. The curbs are usually constructed as a rectangle whose side walls are parallel to corresponding sides of the roof. Where the roof has a slope, normally the upslope and downslope curbs are perpendicular to the dip of the roof. As a result, water tends to collect along the upslope curb, and may leak past the curb or cause premature corrosion. U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,450, Pat. No. 5,522,189 and Pat. No. 5,027,576 are representative of prior curbs, installed orthogonally on a roof so that the upslope curb is perpendicular to the dip of the roof.


A turbofan engine has a fan portion in fluid communication with a core stream and a bypass stream of air separated by splitters disposed both upstream and downstream of the fan portion. A blade splitter (shroud) on the fan partially spans the fan blade thus separating the core and bypass streams downstream while leaving a gap upstream for communication between the flows. The communication gap expands the operational range of the fan over fans without the communication gap.

Fluid propulsion devices achieve thrust by imparting momentum to a fluid called the propellant. An air-breathing engine, as the name implies, uses the atmosphere for most of its propellant. The gas turbine produces high-temperature gas which may be used either to generate power for a propeller, fan, generator or other mechanical apparatus or to develop thrust directly by expansion and acceleration of the hot gas in a nozzle. In any case, an air breathing engine continuously draws air from the atmosphere, compresses it, adds energy in the form of heat, and then expands it in order to convert the added energy to shaft work or jet kinetic energy. Thus, in addition to acting as propellant, the air acts as the working fluid in a thermodynamic process in which a fraction of the energy is made available for propulsive purposes or work.
Typically, turbofan engines include at least two air streams. All air utilized by the engine initially passes through a fan, and then it is split into the two air streams. The inner air stream is referred to as core air and passes into the compressor portion of the engine, where it is compressed. This air is fed to the combustor portion of the engine where it is mixed with fuel and the fuel is combusted. The combustion gases are then expanded through the turbine portion of the engine, which extracts energy from the hot combustion gases, the extracted energy being used to run the compressor, the fan and other accessory systems. The remaining hot gases then flow into the exhaust portion of the engine, which may be used to produce thrust for forward motion to the aircraft.
The outer air flow stream bypasses the engine core and is pressurized by the fan. Typically, no other work is done on the outer air flow stream which continues axially down the engine but outside the core. The bypass air flow stream also can be used to accomplish aircraft cooling by the introduction of heat exchangers in the fan stream. Downstream of the turbine, the outer air flow stream is used to cool engine hardware in the exhaust system. When additional thrust is required (demanded), some of the fans bypass air flow stream may be redirected to the augmenter (afterburner) where it is mixed with core flow and fuel to provide the additional thrust to move the aircraft.
Many current and most future aircrafts need efficient installed propulsion system performance capabilities at diverse flight conditions and over widely varying power settings for a variety of missions. Current turbofan engines are limited in their capabilities to supply this type of mission adaptive performance, in great part due to the fundamental operating characteristics of their core systems which have limited flexibility in load shifting between shaft and fan loading.
When defining a conventional engine cycle and configuration for a mixed mission application, compromises have to be made in the selection of fan pressure ratio, bypass ratio, and overall pressure ratio to allow a reasonably sized engine to operate effectively. In particular, the fan pressure ratio and related bypass ratio selection needed to obtain a reasonably sized engine capable of developing the thrusts needed for combat maneuvers are non-optimum for efficient low speed flight where a significant portion of the engine output is transmitted to the shaft. Engine performance may suffer due to the bypass/core pressure leakage that may occur at reduced fan power/load settings.
Referring to the drawings wherein identical reference numerals denote the same elements throughout the various views, FIG. 1a shows a general orientation of a turbofan engine in a cut away view. In the turbofan engine shown, the flow of the air is generally axial. The engine direction along the axis is generally defined using the terms "upstream" and "downstream" generally which refer to a position in a jet engine in relation to the ambient air inlet and the engine exhaust at the back of the engine. For example, the inlet fan is upstream of the combustion chamber. Likewise, the terms "fore" and "aft" generally refer to a position in relation to the ambient air inlet and the engine exhaust nozzle. Additionally, outward/outboard and inward/inboard refer to the radial direction. For example, the bypass duct is outboard the core duct. The ducts are generally circular and co-axial with each other.
As ambient inlet airflow 12 enters inlet fan duct 14 of turbofan engine 10, through the guide vanes 15, passes by fan spinner 16 and through fan rotor (fan blade) 42. The airflow 12 is split into primary (core) flow stream 28 and bypass flow stream 30 by upstream splitter 24 and downstream splitter 25. In FIG. 2, the bypass flow stream 30 along with the core/primary flow stream 28 is shown, the bypass stream 30 being outboard of the core stream 28. The inward portion of the bypass steam 30 and the outward portion of the core streams are partially defined by the splitters upstream of the compressor 26. The fan 42 has a plurality of fan blades.
As shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b the fan blade 42 shown is rotating about the engine axis into the page, therefor the low pressure side of the blade 42 is shown, the high pressure side being on the opposite side. The Primary flow stream 28 flows through compressor 26 that compresses the air to a higher pressure. The compressed air typically passes through an outlet guide vane to straighten the airflow and eliminate swirling motion or turbulence, a diffuser where air velocity decreases, and a compressor manifold to distribute the air in a smooth flow. The core flow stream 28 is then mixed with fuel in combustion chamber 36 and the mixture is ignited and burned. The resultant combustion products flow through turbines 38 that extract energy from the combustion gases to turn fan rotor 42, compressor 26 and any shaft work by way of turbine shaft 40. While FIGS. 1a and 1b only show one shaft for clarity, commonly turbine engines have multiple shafts or spools (e.g. high pressure spool, low pressure spool, etc.) The gases, passing exhaust cone, expand through an exhaust nozzle 43 to produce thrust. Primary flow stream 28 leaves the engine at a higher velocity than when it entered. Bypass flow stream 30 flows through fan rotor 42, flows by bypass duct outer wall 27, an annular duct concentric with the core engine flows through fan discharge outlet and is expanded through an exhaust nozzle to produce additional thrust. Turbofan engine 10 has a generally longitudinally extending centerline represented by engine axis 46.
Current conventionally bladed core engines cannot maintain constant or near constant operating pressure ratios as bypass flow is reduced. Current conventionally bladed fan rotors do not have the flexibility in efficiently reducing fan pressure ratio while maintaining core pressure.
With reduced or no flow in the Bypass stream 30, the core stream 28 relative pressure is greater than that in the Bypass stream 30. In the area of the fan shown as 50 in FIG. 1b, pressure differences between the core duct and the bypass duct can cause cross flow between the ducts in the area of the fan blade across the region 50 from the core stream 28 into the bypass stream 30 thus reducing the core pressure which has a deleterious effect on the operation of the core and un-necessarily loading the turbine to recover the lost pressure.
A partial blade splitter, similar to a partial span shroud or clapper, separating the core and bypass streams as described herein, can limit the pressure loss in the core and the subsequent degradation in output of the core engine while maintaining communication across the flows. The split flow path enables the fan to operate effectively in a turbofan mode and a turboshaft mode where the bypass flow, pressure and thrust are substantially reduced and power is available to the shaft.
These and many other advantages of the present subject matter will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains from a perusal of the claims, the appended drawings, and the following detailed description of preferred embodiments.

Adaptive vertical lift engine (AVLE) fan

ROLLS-ROYCE NORTH AMERICAN TECHNOLOGIES INC.


An image forming device includes a device main body, a process unit which is inserted into and removed from the device main body, and a lock mechanism which fixes a position of the process unit inserted in the device main body. The lock mechanism includes a slide member, an urging member and a receiving part. The slide member is provided on the process unit and is movable in a perpendicular direction with respect to an inserting and removing direction of the process unit. The urging member is provided between the process unit and the slide member and urges the slide member outward in the perpendicular direction. The receiving part is provided at a position in the device main body displaced from a passage where the process unit passes when being inserted and removed. The receiving part makes contact with the slide member urged outward in an inserting direction.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming device in which a process unit having devices related to an electrophotographic process can be inserted into or removed from a device main body. More specifically, the present invention relates to an image forming device having a lock mechanism for fixing a position of a process unit inserted in a device main body.
2. Description of Related Art
In an image forming device which forms a toner image on paper by an electrophotographic process, devices related to the electrophotographic process are unitized as a single unit or a plurality of collective units. The process unit is provided capable of being inserted into and removed from the device main body. As such a process unit, for example, there are a drum unit having a photoconductive drum, a toner unit accommodating toner and a fixing unit having a fixing device. By providing the process unit capable of being inserted into or removed from the device main body, each process device can be replaced easily. Therefore, even when a user is not a service person, the user can carry out a replacement operation of the process device. As a result, maintenance of the image forming device is improved.
In the above-described image forming device, the image quality is required to be maintained in a highly accurate manner. Therefore, when the process unit is inserted into the device main body, a position of the process unit is required to be fixed accurately in the device main body. A description will now be made of a conventional technique relating to the fixing of a position of the process unit. According to the conventional technique, the process unit is provided capable of being inserted into and removed from a device main body. When a cover of the device main body is closed, a gripper of the process unit makes contact with the cover and the position of the process unit is fixed. In particular, according to this conventional technique, since the gripper is formed with an elastic body, when fixing the position of the process unit with respect to the device main body, a high degree of accuracy is not required for a clearance between the process unit, which is to be replaced, and the device main body.
According to the above-described conventional technique, when the cover of the device main body is closed, the position of the process unit is fixed. Therefore, each time when the cover is opened, the fixing of the position of the process unit is released. In particular, the cover of the device main body is opened and closed not only when replacing a specific process unit but also when removing jammed paper or removing another process unit. If the fixing of the position of the process unit is released each time when the cover is opened, a mechanism for fixing the position of the process unit deteriorates unnecessarily.


A method and apparatus are described including receiving a first signal including first data in a first time slot of a first channel, receiving a second signal including second data in a second time slot of a second channel, determining a first pre-coding matrix, determining a second pre-coding matrix, applying the first pre-coding matrix to the first data to produce pre-coded first data, applying the second pre-coding matrix to the second data to produce pre-coded second data, generating a third signal by combining the pre-coded first data and the pre-coded second data and transmitting the third signal on the first channel and on the second channel. Also described are a method and apparatus including transmitting a first signal, receiving a second signal including a first training sequence and decoding the second signal by removing the first training sequence and removing the first signal.

In multicast and broadcast applications, data are transmitted from a server to multiple receivers over wired and/or wireless networks. A multicast system as used herein is a system in which a server transmits the same data to multiple receivers simultaneously, where the receivers form a subset of all the receivers up to and including all of the receivers. A broadcast system is a system in which a server transmits the same data to all of the receivers simultaneously. That is, a multicast system by definition can include a broadcast system.
Consider multicast (downlink) and multi-access (uplink) channels with one access point (AP) and several nodes. In the IEEE 802.11n draft standard, a reverse direction (RD) protocol is introduced for fast scheduling of bidirectional traffic flows within a transmission opportunity (TXOP). The reverse direction protocol permits (allows) the node, which has obtained the TXOP to grant reverse directional transmissions to another node while it is still in control of the TXOP. If the channel conditions between the nodes are inadequate (poor) then transmissions between the two nodes suffer. That suffering may be reduced data rate and/or throughput.
In the IEEE 802.11n draft standard, a reverse direction (RD) protocol has been proposed as in FIG. 1. The reverse direction protocol of the IEEE 802.11n draft standard only schedules bidirectional transmission between two nodes. Each node is both a source node and a destination node. There is no existing scheduling protocol for three-node bidirectional transmissions in IEEE 802.11 WLAN standards. FIG. 1 illustrates the conventional unidirectional cooperation using a half-duplex relay node (RN). FIG. 1a shows the first stage of communication, in which Node1 transmits (sends, communicate) data S1 to both Node2 and the RN. FIG. 1b shows stage 2 of communication, in which the RN transmits (communicates, sends) data Ŝ1 to Node2. That is, the RN transmits (communicates, forwards, sends) data S1 as Ŝ1 to Node2. Correspondingly (and not shown), in the third stage of communication, Node2 transmits (sends, communicate) data S2 to both Node1 and the RN. In the fourth stage of communication, the RN transmits (communicates, forwards, sends) data Ŝ2 to Node1. That is, the RN transmits (communicates, forwards, sends) data S2 as Ŝ2 to Node1. Thus, in the conventional approach, there are four stages (phases) to complete communications using the half-duplex RN to assist Node1 and Node2.
Network-coded three-node bidirectional cooperation with three stages (i.e., the reception of signals from nodes (source and destination) at the RN are orthogonal (separate)) has been studied, using Decode-and-Forward, Soft Decode-and-Forward, and Amplify-and-Forward in a single-antenna system, and a case when L1=L2=1 and LR=2 etc, respectively. Note that Li, i=1,2,R represents the number of antennas at Node1, Node2 and RN respectively. The present invention uses Amplify-and-Forward for the general MIMO case with an arbitrary number of antennas at the nodes. This has not been addressed in any publications known to the Applicants.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Multiple in multiple out network coded amplify and forward relaying scheme for three node bidirectional cooperation


A percussive rodent trap has an activation mechanism and a hammer for striking a percussive device when the activation mechanism is activated. A first safety moves the hammer mechanism to a cocked position and prevents it from being released from this cocked position. A second safety can be engaged after the first safety is engaged to prevent the activation mechanism from being activated when the first safety is removed. The second safety is easily removed after the trap is put in place without inadvertently activating the activation mechanism.

Moles, gophers and other burrowing rodents cause extensive damage to lawns, athletic fields, golf courses, and agricultural land by creating raised mounds. Over the years numerous devices have been developed to trap rodents. Because burrowing rodents are sensitive to shock waves, one of the most effective ways of exterminating them is by using traps in which a percussive device is fired when the trap is triggered.
However, the person setting a percussive rodent trap can easily be injured if the trap is triggered while it is being installed in the rodent's run. To overcome this, complex trigger mechanisms have been used in the prior art percussive traps. This complexity increases the cost and, in many cases, reduces the effectiveness of the trap.


An information processing apparatus having a rectangular body and which is used in any vertical or horizontal orientation includes a pair of short side portions and a pair of long side portions. A battery disposed at a short side portion of the body overlaps with the upper cover. A penholder is positioned at a long side portion of the body adjacent to the short side portion where the battery is positioned. The information processing apparatus also has an air outlet opening disposed at or near a corner portion of the body between the short side portion of the body opposed to the side portion where the battery is positioned and the long side portion of the body opposed to the long side portion where the pen is positioned. The information processing apparatus further includes a radio communication receiving element disposed at the long side portion where the penholder is positioned.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
A tablet PC is a flat plate-like rectangular personal computer to which data can be input with a pen. The present invention provides a tablet PC usable in any one of a horizontal position and a vertical position. Conventionally, a tablet PC usable in any one of a horizontal position and a vertical position is not known.
A tablet PC is required to be as thin and light as possible because it is used while being held with a hand. When a tablet PC is used in a horizontal position while being held with a hand, it is convenient that long side portions of the tablet PC are kept horizontally and the lower long side portion is held with a hand. On the other hand, when a tablet PC is used in a vertical position while being held with a hand, it is convenient that short side portions of the tablet PC are kept horizontally and the lower short side portion is held with a hand.
In addition, a tablet PC has an air outlet opening for discharging heat generated in it. In a recent PC, a cooling fan is disposed in the PC to discharge heat generated in the PC to the outside through the air outlet opening. Furthermore, a tablet PC has a receiving means for radio communication by which data sent from a keyboard or a mouse by radio can be received. The air outlet opening and the radio receiving means are required to be disposed so as to function effectively when the tablet PC is used in any of the horizontal position and the vertical position.

Information processing apparatus having battery and penholder


A timepiece component including a shaft-like portion including at least one pivot about a pivot axis, at least the material forming this shaft-like portion is a non-magnetic alloy containing at least silver and palladium and having a Vickers hardness of more than 450 HV.

It is not conventional to make non-magnetic timepiece wheel sets. However, there is a need in various types of movements which rely on the laws of magnetism, in particular, to reduce or remove friction, especially in oscillators where it is sought to obviate the conventional lever/type stop mechanisms, which are highly detrimental to the power reserve.

Timepiece component with a shaft-like portion made of non-magnetic alloy


A disposable protective shoecover for use by health care workers is formed by two pieces of fluid resistant, fluid proof, impermeable material sealed along the outer edges except at the back. The back of the shoecover is closed by two double coated adhesive closures spaced at two intervals along the back. The upper most closure is spaced two inches from the top of the shoecover. The closures can be easily released by inserting a finger in a top of the back of the shoecover and then removing the shoecover, whereby the finger only touches an interior of the shoe cover upon removal. This protects the wearer from touching any exterior portion of the shoecover which may be contaminated.

Disposable foot coverings have been in use in healthcare settings since 1950. The intent of such coverings was to provide a means of holding a non conductive strip to the shoe of healthcare workers to protect the worker from electric sparks produced by friction on the asphalt flooring in surgeries. These sparks caused high risk of fire and explosions of gases used in surgery. Non woven fiberous paper type material in the shape of a shoe cover, provided the way for the non conductive strip to hold to the shoe. These covers as cheap, one time use, protection were very porous to liquids and the fluids splashed or spattered about in healthcare procedures. These covers gave the impression of keeping the shoes clean, a secondary benefit of the cover. These covers did not protect the skin of the foot, ankle or leg from contact with potentially infectious fluids. In 1950, the asphalt flooring in surgeries was discontinued. Disposable shoe covers of the non woven paper construction, continued to be used by healthcare workers and technicians until the FINAL RULE: Blood Borne Pathogen regulation by the federal government came into effect on Dec. 6, 1991. At that time, the reason for the shoe cover changed from the protection of the shoe, to the protection of the skin of the health care worker. The nonwoven paper type cover did not prevent the soak through of splashed blood or body fluids on to the shoe. There was no protection for the skin of the foot, ankle, or leg as the paper covered only the shoe. Access to covers which did protect the skin have became an imperative.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,825,564, Joan P. Sorce, teaches of outdoor, cold weather protective cover for the foot, which does extend over the ankle and the lower leg. Disadvantages here is that it is for outdoor use, soley and is not disposable for one time use; it does not offer any means of removal which keeps the hands from contamination with the soiling on the outside of the cover.
U.S. Design Pat. No. 337,420; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,215, Robert T. Bayer, both teach of a disposable shoe cover for use in healthcare. Disadvantages here is that the skin is not protected with either of these covers. Neither model can be removed without soiling the hands by the touching contamination on the outside of the cover.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,713,895, Francois Filliers, of Quebec Canada, teaches of a spat type cover for the upper part of the shoe only, leaving the sole of the shoe vulnerable to contamination and soiling. This model does open at the back however extends the opening through to the sole of the shoe at the heel making seepage possible onto the shoe and thus to the skin of the user. Although there is a similar method of removal by opening the unsealed back seam of Villier's gaiter, there is the risk of contamination to the inside of the cover from the unsecured portions of the cover around the edge of the sole of the shoe of the wearer. This risk extends to the risk of skin contamination of the ankle, and lower leg as well as the foot. This model also precludes the necessity of having a special shoe with the attachments for the upper portion suggested by the inventor. This is a needless cost in healthcare. The release of the cover by Villier is similar to the invention of this application, however, the release poses risk of hand contamination.
It is the principle object of the present invention to provide a disposable, one time use, protective cover for the skin of the foot, ankle, and lower leg, from knee to foot, shaped as a boot, which goes easily over the entire shoe of healthcare workers.
It is a further object of this present invention to provide a disposable, one time use, protective cover for the skin of the foot, ankle and lower leg from knee to foot, shaped as a boot, going over the entire shoe constructed of a material which is fluid resistant, fluid proof, and impermeable to liquid soak through.
It is another object of this invention to provide a disposable, one time use, protective cover for the skin of the foot, ankle, and lower leg from knee to foot, shaped as a boot, going over the entire shoe which can be removed without soiling the hands of the wearer.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a disposable, one time use, protective cover for the skin of the foot, ankle and lower leg from the knee to the foot, shaped as a boot, going over the entire shoe, which has the feature of adjustability for comfort for the user.
Another object of this invention is to provide ventilation for relief of heat generating material which is fluid resistant, fluid proof, and impermeable to fluid soak through.
Another object of this invention is to provide a disposable, one time use, protective cover for the skin of the foot, ankle, and lower leg, from knee to foot, shaped as a boot, going over the shoe which is of a simple design to make and manufacture of the least cost possible.
The present invention, called THE HASTY BOOT is recognized to be subject to many changes and modifications, without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the present invention, as set forth in the appended claim.


A computer system is provided with a chassis at least partially defining an interior and an access opening. The computer system is also provided with an interface connector mounted within or adjacent to the chassis and oriented to face the interior of the chassis. A circuit board assembly is configured for insertion into and removal from the interior of the chassis through the access opening and along an insertion axis, wherein the circuit board assembly has a connector oriented for engagement with the interface connector. The computer system also includes a mounting assembly positioned to facilitate engagement of the connector of the circuit board assembly to the interface connector along a connection access angled with respect to the insertion axis. The mounting assembly has a tray mounted for cam-activated movement with respect to the chassis along the connection axis, wherein the tray is configured with channels to receive rails of the circuit board assembly along the insertion axis and to move the circuit board assembly relative to the chassis along the connection axis to join the circuit board and interface connectors.

In conventional computer systems, printed circuit boards such as processor circuit board assemblies and memory circuit board assemblies are installed in a computer system for engagement with one or more connectors of a mid plane or back plane. More specifically, such printed circuit boards may have a connector that is oriented along the axis of the insertion of the board, and that connector is mated to a connector of a mid plane or back plane that is also oriented along the axis of insertion.
In such conventional computer systems, the force required to bring about engagement of the connector of the printed circuit board and the connector of the computer is generated along the axis of insertion. This can be accomplished, for example, by manually pushing the printed circuit board in a direction along the axis of insertion as needed to bring about the connection of the respective connectors of the printed circuit board assembly and the back plane or mid plane. Though the insertion force required to make such a connection can be rather significant when connectors are selected that have a large number of pins, such force can generally be generated by manually pushing the printed circuit board into position.
A challenge arises, however, if a computer system were to be configured such that the printed circuit board could not be mated along the insertion axis. In such circumstances, the force generated along the axis of insertion could not be utilized to bring about the mating of connectors along an axis angled with respect to the axis of insertion.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method and apparatus for installing a printed circuit assembly within a chassis of a computer system, wherein that method and apparatus can be utilized for connections made along a connection axis that is angled with respect to the insertion axis.

Method and apparatus for installing a printed circuit assembly within a chassis of a computer system


A laser power control apparatus is for use in an optical disk apparatus for recording information on an optical disk having at least a first layer and a second layer. The laser power control apparatus includes a power control section for controlling a laser element such that a power of a laser beam approaches a control target level; a change detection section for detecting that a recording condition for the optical disk has been changed; and a power adjustment section for adjusting the power of the laser beam for a recording film of the first layer, in accordance with an output from the change detection section. The power adjustment section determines the power of the laser beam for a recording film of the second layer, based on the power of the laser beam which has been adjusted for the recording film of the first layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laser power control apparatus and method for use in an optical disk apparatus for recording information onto an optical disk having a plurality of layers, an optical disk apparatus for recording information onto the optical disk and a recording method for recording information onto the optical disk.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the conventional method for adjusting a power of a laser beam of an optical disk apparatus, a known method includes the steps of adjusting a power of the laser beam according to the temperature and the position along the radial direction of the optical disk, and generating a data table of the power of the laser beam.
For example, the Japanese laid-open publication No. 1-112551 describes a method for determining a power of the laser beam using the data table. This conventional technique will be described with reference to FIG. 12.
FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a conventional optical disk apparatus for recording information onto an optical disk 1.
The optical disk 1 includes a single layer 1a. A recording film is provided for the layer 1a.
The optical pickup 10 converges the laser beam onto the recording film of the layer 1a.
A part of the laser beam emitted from the laser element 12 is transmitted through the reflection plate 15 and is detected by the emitting light detector 13.
Further, the laser beam emitted from the laser element 12 is reflected by the reflection plate 15, is transmitted through the deflection hologram 16, and is converged onto the recording film of the optical disk 1 by the convergence lens 11.
The laser beam (the reflected light) reflected by the recording film of the optical disk 1 is transmitted through the convergence lens 11, is deflected by the deflection hologram 16, is transmitted through the reflection plate 15 and is detected by the reflected light detector 14.
The laser beam detected by the emitting light detector 13 is analog-to-digital converted by the AD converter 31 included in the DSP (Digital Signal Processor) 30. The output from the AD converter 31 is supplied to the power control section 32 included in the DSP 30.
The power control section 32 generates a laser driving value such that a power of the laser beam detected by the emitting light detector 13 approaches a control target level, and controls the laser element 12 in accordance with the laser driving value.
Such a control is achieved, for example, by the DA converter 33 included in the DSP 30, which digital-to-analog converts the laser driving value generated by the power control section 32, and supplies the output from the DA converter 33 to the driving circuit 2. The control target level is determined by the power adjustment section 43 and is set in the power control section 32.
The driving circuit 2 drives the laser element 12 in accordance with the output from the DA converter 33.
The laser beam detected by the reflected light detector 14 (i.e. reflected light) is analog-to-digital converted by the AD converter 41 included in the DSP 30. The output from the AD converter 41 is supplied to the asymmetry detection section 42 included in the DSP 30.
The asymmetry detection section 42 detects asymmetry of the reflected light (Ipk+Ibm−2Iavg)/(Ipk−Ibm) from the peak level Ipk, the bottom level Ibm and the average level Iavg, and outputs a signal indicating the asymmetry of the reflected light to the power adjustment section 43.
The power adjustment section 43 searches an optimal value of the power of the laser beam such that the asymmetry of the reflected light becomes a desired value (e.g. "0").
With reference to FIG. 13, it will be described below the steps of the method for adjusting the power of the laser beam.
The power adjustment is made for the recording film of the optical disk 1 (S1).
Such a power adjustment is made, for example, by the power, control section 32 controlling the laser element 12 such that the laser beam having the power according to a predetermined control target level is irradiated towards the optical disk 1 and by the power adjustment section 43 adjusting the control target level such that the asymmetry of the reflected light from the optical disk 1 becomes a desired value (e.g. "0"). The control target level which has been adjusted by the power adjustment section 43 is set in the power control section 32.
The power adjustment section 43 updates a table value for the current temperature with the control target level which has been adjusted by the power adjustment section 43 (S2).
It is determined whether the temperature has been changed (S3). The output of the temperature detector 17 is analog-to-digital converted by the AD converter 45 included in the DSP 30. The output of the AD converter 45 is supplied to the power adjustment section 43. The power adjustment section 43 determines whether the temperature has been changed by monitoring the output of the AD converter 45, for example.
If it is determined that the temperature has been changed, then it is determined whether the control target level has been adjusted for the current temperature (S4). The power adjustment section 43 determines whether the control target level has been adjusted by retrieving the contents of the RAM 44, for example.
If it is determined that the control target level has been adjusted, then the power adjustment section 43 reads the control target level corresponding to the current temperature from the table stored in the RAM 44 (S5), and sets the control target level in the power control section 32 (S6).
If it is determined that the control target level has not been adjusted, then the step to be processed is returned back to step S1.
According to the method for adjusting the power of the laser beam mentioned above, it is possible to adjust the power of the laser beam for recording so that a reproduced signal is obtained such that the asymmetry of the reflected light becomes a desired value (e.g. "0"), when the power of the laser beam emitted from the laser element is changed due to the changes in temperature which are caused by the temperature of the environment where the optical disk apparatus is used or the heat generated during the operation of the optical disk apparatus.
However, according to the conventional recording method, in the case where the optical disk has a plurality of layers (e.g. two layers) with information recording films, it is impossible to record information onto the recording film of any layer other than the reference layer of the optical disk at the optimal laser power, when the temperature of the environment where the optical disk apparatus is used has been changed.
Specifically, even if a data table for one layer (i.e. the reference layer) is generated and stored in response to the changes in temperature, it is impossible to generate a data table for any layer other than the reference layer.
In order to generate the data table for a layer other than the reference layer, it is necessary to make a power adjustment to the layer other than the reference layer, after making a power adjustment to the reference layer. It requires time for moving between two layers and time for making the power adjustment to the layer other than the reference layer by recording/reproducing data, resulting in taking twice, or more, of the time in making a power adjustment.
In order to continuously record moving pictures onto the optical disk, it is necessary to record them at a predetermined transfer rate. Accordingly, during a time period when a power adjustment is made while the recording operation is temporally stopped the data for the moving pictures must be stored in the DRAM. Taking twice, or more, of the time in making a power adjustment leads to taking twice, or more, of the capacity of the DRAM, which results in increasing the cost of the optical disk apparatus.

Laser power control apparatus and method, an optical disk apparatus and a recording method

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


An impact energy absorbing structure of a frame member of a vehicle, which includes: a first bead formed on the frame member, which promotes bending deformation of the frame member when an impact load is inputted in an axial direction thereof; a second bead formed on the frame member, which promotes axial deformation of the frame member when the impact load is inputted in the axial direction thereof; and a reinforcement panel attached to the frame member. The frame member is configured to accommodate the reinforcement panel both in a first position beside the first bead and on the side from which the impact load is inputted, and in a second position where the first bead is reinforced with the reinforcement panel.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an impact energy absorbing structure of a structural frame member of a vehicle, such as an automobile.
2. Description of Related Art
Due to the differences in body weight and in engine specifications, reaction forces, deformation modes, crushing characteristics and the like of vehicle structural frame members at frontal collision of the vehicle, are different from one vehicle to another, depending on a required collision performance of the vehicle.
In Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 10-244955, differences in required reaction force characteristics between vehicle models, are dealt with by changing plate thickness, material and the like of the frame member, or by adding a reinforcing member such as a reinforcement panel.

Impact energy absorbing structure of vehicle frame member


An electric forced circulation space heating system has a first heat exchanger provided with electric heating elements for heating a heat exchange fluid, such as antifreeze or oil, pumped through a closed loop including first flow passages of a second heat exchanger having second flow passages in heat exchange relationship with the first flow passages thereof. A blower forces room air through the second flow passages of the second heat exchanger to be heated by the heated liquid flowing through the first flow passages thereof. A third heat exchanger downstream of the second heat exchanger has first flow passages with an inlet receiving heated air from the second flow passes of the second heat exchanger and an outlet for discharge of the heated air into the space to be heated. The third heat exchanger has second flow passages having an inlet receiving room air to be heated and an outlet connected to the air inlet of the blower, to thereby allow the incoming room air to be preheated by the the heated air flow through the first flow passages of the third heat exchanger prior to discharge into the space to be heated.

1. Field
This invention relates generally to the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning apparatus and more specifically to an improved system for heating buildings and the like.
2. Prior Art
Many different ways are known in which buildings are heated to temperatures which make working, sleeping and general living conditions more comfortable. Among the furnace systems available for heating buildings and the like are those which utilize natural gas, heating oil, and electricity. Heretofore, electrical heating systems have been less widely used, this mainly due to the general characteristic that the electrical power required to heat a given space is more expensive than the amount of heating oil or natural gas needed to heat the same space. This economic concern is especially acute because of the desire all over the world to find more and better ways to conserve energy.
State of the art electrical heating systems typically include resistive heating elements which are heated directly by electrical current passing therethrough and over which air is blown by a fan or similar device to heat the air before circulation throughout the house or building. A characteristic associated with this type of system is that each time air is to be heated for circulation through the building, the electrical heating elements must first be heated to an appropriate temperature. Much energy is lost in continued reheating and cooling of the heating elements.
Perhaps the most common and most accessible form of power available in industrial countries is electrical power; thus, electrical power would be a preferred source of energy for a building heating system if not for the great expense involved in purchasing the thousands of kilowatt hours of power which must be purchased to heat even modest size buildings in some climates.
In the case of heating systems which consume either natural gas or heating oil, an open flame is often kept burning at all times in order to ignite a greater flame at any given time, which greater flame heats the air to be circulated. Two major problems are associated with a continuously burning flame, these being: first, a continuous flame, even when well insulated, constitutes a fire hazard not found in electrical systems; second, the continuous flame, often called a pilot, can be extinguished at inopportune times, thus requiring relighting. Inappropriate expungement of pilot flames is accomplished oftentimes by minor and seemingly insignificant occurrences such as minor clogging of a gas line or minor malfunctioning of a valve.
Therefore, there exists in the industry a legitimate need for an electrical heating system which is capable of heating a given volume of space in a house or other building wherein the costs associated with heating that space are comparable with, or less than, the use of natural gas or heating oil systems.

Forced air circulation electric convection space heating system utilizing heated air discharge to preheat air to be heated


An autosegmentation/autocontouring method that may be used for quickly and accurately contouring the regions and boundaries around regions for the development of cross-sections that may be linearly disposed for the three-dimensional reconstruction of an image is described and claimed. The autosegmentation/autocontouring method includes at least four steps. The first step is to digitize a CT, MRI, or other suitable image and display it on a display screen. The two-dimensional image on the display screen will include gray-scale representations of the internal organs and tissue masses of the anatomical site through which the cross-section was made. The second step is to select the interior of a ROI and draw a polygon within the boundaries of the cross-sectional view of this ROI. This polygon could also be drawn in the interior of a cancerous mass or other diseased tissue. The third step of the method of the present invention is to expand the polygon in a novel manner by iteratively testing pixels of the image on the display outside of, but adjacent to, the pixels that the polygon currently subtends. Pixels will be added to the polygon if the value of a decision rule function has a predetermined value. The expansion of the polygon is continued until none of the pixels at the perimeter of the polygon can satisfy the decision rule. Once it is found that none of the perimeter pixels satisfy the decision rule, the perimeter of the polygon is considered the boundary of the ROI. And the fourth step is that the boundary of the ROI is computed and a contour is developed based on this boundary. This same process is repeated for other ROIs that the user may select.

When it is discovered that an individual has a disease, such as cancer, generally, there may be a mass of infected tissue that is desired to be observed to determine the extent of the disease and how any proposed treatment may affect the diseased tissue. Moreover, an individual may have some type of abnormality in an internal organ that also is desired to be observed in order to determine the proper type of treatment that is needed.
There now exists a number of systems that may be used to observe cancerous masses or abnormal organs. For example, X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging ("MRI"), computed tomography ("CT"), or other similar types of systems non-invasively provide the needed observations and produce an image of an area to be observed. If an X-ray (plane radiograph) is used, the two-dimensional image that is produced is a two-dimensional view of a projection of a three-dimensional volume of tissue. On the other hand, if MRI or CT systems are used, each two-dimensional image that is produced is a cross-sectional slice of a three-dimensional volume.
To view the infected tissue mass or abnormal organ, a series of two-dimensional images of sections of the patient can be combined to produce a three-dimensional image, or reconstruction, of the patient's internal anatomy. The two-dimensional images must be aligned, so that the most accurate correspondences between anatomic units are maintained. Digital images obtained directly from a CT or MRI scanner are automatically in register (provided no patient motion occurred during the scan), and may be used directly to create three-dimensional reconstructions. If the images are digitized from hard copy film records of a CT or MRI scans, the resulting digital images must be aligned to produce the needed correspondences. There exist several known methods for accomplishing this alignment, either by computational or interactive means.
A resulting three-dimensional reconstruction is a representation of the patient anatomy which contains abnormal tissue in a subset of the reconstruction. This subset may be referred to as volume of interest. This volume may be viewed in several ways. The simplest way is to view the original CT or MRI section images, or two-dimensional images which are derived from the original section images which present views of the volume of interest in planes that are orthogonal or oblique to the original section images. Alternatively, two-dimensional image data from multiple sections can be combined to form three-dimensional representations in which the anatomic units are depicted as solid opaque or translucent objects that may be interactively rotated, translated, and scaled using conventional computer graphics viewing program.
The three-dimensional reconstruction of the volume of interest containing diseased tissues or abnormal organs is created so that the spatial shapes, locations, and arrangements of organs may be used to prepare a three-dimensional radiation therapy treatment plan ("RTTP"). To develop the RTTP, the organ shape and arrangement information may be obtained from the three-dimensional reconstruction. Specifically, organ and tumor boundaries may be recorded from the two-dimensional images comprising the three-dimensional reconstruction. The two-dimensional images may be viewed on a computer graphics display and the edges of the organs and other relevant objects in the images may be recorded by manually tracing the edges in the displayed graphic using graphic control devices, typically a mouse and screen cursor combination. Resolution within the original two-dimensional section images is related to the pixel-to-pixel distance determined by the scanner settings, and the resolution in the third dimension is related to the section-to-section distance.
Three-dimensional reconstructions may be displayed in several formats. One such format is shown in FIG. 1A. FIG. 1A shows head surface 112, which is constructed from traverse CT sections. After points or areas of interest, or anatomical boundaries, are selected in two-dimensional images, a three-dimensional reconstruction containing these boundaries may be formed for the volume of interest containing the site or sites of disease. An example of cancerous mass 104 in the head 112 is shown in FIG. 1B. The radiation treatment plan objective is to irradiate the volume of diseased tissue with the appropriate dose and, as much as possible, not affect surrounding healthy tissues.
Additional three-dimensional reconstructions of the cancerous mass created from CT or MRI scan during or after radiation therapy, can indicate whether the treatment is having the desired effect of reducing the size of the cancerous mass. Moreover, the additional three-dimensional reconstruction of the cancerous mass at its location on or in an organ also may be used to determine whether surgical techniques have been successful in removing the cancerous mass. If it has not been totally removed, the three-dimensional reconstruction will show what remains so that further treatment may be planned.
A RTTP is a collection of data that is used to calculate radiation dosages for a cancerous mass. RTTP includes anatomical data about the patient being treated and defines the volume, area, or point where radiation doses are to be calculated.
The anatomical data about the patient being treated may be derived from pixel images and contours. Pixel images, in this context, are data files corresponding to CT or MRI images that contain an array of numeric values which represent the image intensifies of the patient in a defined plane, i.e., transverse, sagittal, or coronal. These values may be used to reconstruct the image for display on a computer display. A pixel image is shown in FIG. 2, generally at 150.
Contours are connected line segments which define the outlines of individual anatomic or structural elements in a particular plane. These elements may include a patient outline, diseased tissue outline, and individual organ outlines, to name a few. A set of contours is shown in FIG. 3, generally at 175. Contours may be created using a manual digitizer to trace drawings from graph paper, a radiograph, or a hard copy of a CT or MRI image. Contours also may be created using a graphics control device such as a mouse to either trace a pixel image directly from a screen display or to define an area of the image for autocontouring.
Contours created by either of the methods just described are cross-sections of the boundaries of the anatomic units that may be used to create a three-dimensional reconstruction of the volume of interest displaying the spatial relationships among the anatomic units. It is necessary to make a series of these cross-sections that extend the length of the cancerous mass or target area, so that the entire tumor and all relevant neighboring anatomic units may be displayed.
The set of cross-sections associated with the cancerous mass or target volume may be referred to as data pools. Data pools may be further divided into study sets. The study sets are sets of cross-sections or information from specific cross-sections that are intended to be used with respect to a specific RTTP. A study set may be an entire data pool or just some elements of a data pool. The relationship between data pools and study sets is shown in FIG. 4, generally at 200.
Referring to FIG. 4, data pool 202 includes ten cross-sections. Shown below data pool 202 are three study sets. These are Study Set A 204, Study Set B 206, and Study Set C 208. Both Study Set A 204 and Study Set B 206 include cross-sections that are part of data pool 202. On the other hand, Study Set C 208 includes the entire data pool.
In the production of the cross-sections for the data pools and study sets, the body section of interest, such as head, neck, or prostate, define an anatomical site and the internal structures or areas of interest for which contours are constructed are anatomical structures. Anatomical structures include the heart, lungs (left and right), and the spinal cord, etc.
The calculation region is the region in the patient's anatomy where the radiation dose will be calculated under the RTTP, and is a subset of the volume of interest in the three-dimensional reconstruction. All of the points located in the region are used during dose calculation. Referring to FIG. 5, generally at 225, calculation volume 226 is indicated for head 228. The calculations will be made for volume 226. Conventional methods are used for making the actual dose calculations which will be applied in carrying out the RTTP.
Before the RTTP can be computed, the spatial locations and distributions of the diseased tissues and the neighboring normal anatomic structures must be defined using the traced contours. The treatment plan is designed so that the tumor and a surrounding volume are maximally and evenly irradiated while restricting, as much as possible, irradiation of neighboring sensitive tissues most likely to be damaged by radiation.
The development of accurate contours for the cross-sections of anatomic structures and diseased tissues is the most time-consuming aspect of the preparation of a RTTP. In most cases, the three-dimensional reconstruction is formed from a multi-planar CT or MRI study. Generally, the contours for each of the areas of interest must be traced from CT or MRI hard copy images or digital CT or MRI slice images. The contours that result define the volumes and shapes of the organs and diseased masses in the volume of interest. The time to perform this labor intensive task increases sharply with an increase in resolution corresponding to an increased number of cross-sections used to form the three-dimensional reconstruction. Contour preparation typically may take two to three hours and in some cases substantially more than this amount of time.
Segmentation is the subdividing of an image into discrete regions. In the present situation, it is subdividing an image into the anatomical units required to prepare a RTTP. Since an object can be equivalently described by its boundary or a map of its regional extent in the image, contouring, and segmentation may be complementary operations.
A number of autosegmentation methods have been proposed, and they can be divided into two main types: global and local. The global type seeks to contour all the organs/tumors/anatomical units in a CT or MRI image simultaneously in one computational operation. Such methods frequently use neural networks to implement clustering algorithms on the statistical feature space of an image. Two reviews of global segmentation methods in CT/MRI imaging are: Bezdek, J. C., Hall L. O., and Clarke L. P., "Review of MR image segmentation techniques using pattern recognition," Medical Physics, 20:1033-1048, 1993, and Vaidyanathan, M., Clarke, L. P., Velthuizen, R. P., et al., "Comparison of supervised MRI segmentation methods for tumor volume determination during therapy," Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 13:719-728, 1995. Applications of neural networks implementing fuzzy clustering algorithms in such applications has been reported in the following document: Bezdek, J. C. and Pal, S. K., Fuzzy Models for Pattern Recognition, IEEE Press, Piscataway, N.J., 1992. What is gleaned from these articles is that there is not a method that is capable of accurate segmentation of many image types. This is because different organs in many cases have similar gray-scale level property distributions, and high variances of these properties within organs. These particular problems pose very significant difficulties, and have prevented the wider use of automated image segmentation in medical imaging.
Now turning to the local type, local autosegmentation seeks to contour organs or lesions singly, based on some user-input information. Systems have been reported which purport to accurately segment the brain from the CT or MRI scans of the head. An example is reported in Cline, H. E., Lorensen, W. E., Kikinis, R., and Jolesz, F., "Three-dimensional segmentation of MR images of the head using probability and connectivity," Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography, 14:1037-1045, 1990. However, no local type has been reported that works successfully on a range of tissues from many different parts of the body.
It would be highly desirable to have an autosegmentation/autocontouring method that would significantly reduce the amount of time to accomplish accurate segmentation and not have the problems of prior autosegmentation/autocontouring systems and methods.

Autosegmentation/autocontouring system and method for use with three-dimensional radiation therapy treatment planning


A portable shippable automated calibration system for high torque power tools is disclosed. The system includes a self-contained highly durable and shippable container that may comprise a power source, central processor, visual user interface, mechanical interface for coupling with power tools to be calibrated, communications systems for communicating with a power tool being calibrated and/or with on-site or cloud based data systems. The system may be delivered to sites desiring on-site power tool calibration, tools are calibrated and updated calibration factors are automatically uploaded into the calibrated tool and a calibration certificate is published with the particulars of the calibration completion.

The use of high torque assembly tools is an important part of manufacturing and other fastening processes. The manufacture or assembly of many devices requires application of pre-determined and specifically engineered torque loads to the fasteners of the devices. Fastening at designed torque levels is essential not only for reliability of the fastening but also for safety in many devices. It is well known that high torque assembly tools used in such applications require regular calibration to ensure that the tools deliver the pre-determined torque loads to the fasteners on which they are used.
The process of calibrating assembly tools, particularly high torque assembly tools, is complicated. Many tool owners rely on a third-party calibration specialists to perform this service on their tools. Since high torque assembly tools require regular calibration, many tool owners must expend significant budgets to either pay third-party calibration specialists to perform the calibration service or to buy expensive calibration equipment and train themselves to calibrate their own high torque assembly tools. Cost effective and regular assembly tool calibration is further hindered by the fact that many high torque assembly tools are used at sites—such as on pipelines, windfarms, or remote construction sites—remote from third party calibration sites and in some instances remote from any substantial tool service sites.
Therefore, there is a need for a reliable, efficient, and cost-effective calibration system for high torque tools that can be used in remote sites without the need of third-party calibration services and also without the need of advanced training for self-calibrating tool owners.


A gas vent closing device that incorporates the use of a base member that is secured to a liner disposed over a collection pit. The base member includes a vented lower grate that allows for the passage of gaseous fumes therethrough. A cap member is slidably coupled with respect to the base member. The cap member can be seated within the base member after a desired amount of time in order to seal the pit and preclude the passage of the gaseous fumes.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to gas venting required during the construction and continuing maintenance of solid waste landfill closure projects and other synthetically lined facilities.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, no prior art exists that is comparable with the invention. The present method of field personnel cutting the liner to alleviate the "ballooning" effect caused by gas build-up under synthetic lined landfill closure projects has proven to be costly and at times even dangerous. The holes cut would require additional liner welded above the hole to reduce the chance of water infiltration. Eventually, the "doghouse" as it is known, must be repaired with a patch, a piece of liner welded over the gas opening. This is a major disadvantage because the liner subcontractor must remobilize to the site, thereby adding additional costs to the project. The remobilization costs can be exorbitant, depending on the liner subcontractors location at the time. The project completion schedule can also be severely delayed. This can result in additional costs due to potential fines imposed by governing regulatory agencies. Additionally, the potential for fire is eliminated during welding because the invention allows the methane gas to escape while welding the "skirt" of the invention to the liner material.