A technique capable of improving a packet catch rate when applied to a communication device, for example. An SNR improvement circuit for improving an SNR of an input signal includes a delay unit for delaying the input signal to generate one or more delay signals, and an adder for adding the one or more delay signals and the input signal before being delayed. The input signal contains a periodic signal in which the same signal is repeated a predetermined number of times with a predetermined period. The delay unit generates the one or more delay signals with delay time which is α times (α is a natural number, and is set at different values with respect to two or more delay signals) longer than the predetermined period.

Generally, in packet-type communication, a receiving-side device does not grasp when a transmitting-side device will transmit a packet, namely when a packet will arrive at the receiving-side device. Hence the receiving-side device needs to stand by for a packet to come, and detect a packet out of signals received during the standby. Further, in order to appropriately perform a variety of processing on the received packet, it is necessary to perform a variety of processing in synchronization with a configuration of the packet. Such synchronization is performed with respect to each received packet, namely every time a packet is detected.
For example, Patent Document 1 describes a symbol timing detection circuit for an OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) demodulator.

Snr improvement circuit, synchronization information detection circuit, communication device, snr improvement method, and synchronization information detection method


A gas sampling system utilizing a pair of parallel sonic orifices. One of the orifices is connected to a source of filtered, heated samples. The second, larger orifice is connected to a source of dilution gas. A vacuum pump maintains a substantial vacuum behind the orifices, thus assuring critical flow therethrough. The sample and diffusion gas are mixed behind the orifices and transported under partial vacuum for analysis. The dew point of the sample is affected by both the ratio of the diameter of orifices and the degree of vacuum transporting the gas mixture. As such, the dew point can be varied indefinitely by any reasonable combination of orifice ratio and vacuum pump strength.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to extractive gas sampling systems such as are used for analysis of process gases or fossil fuel combustive gases being vented through a stack.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An important category of extractive gas sampling relates to the compliance monitoring requirements enforced by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Many sources of air pollution, such as fossil-fueled power plants, incinerators, metal smelters, and cement kilns, are required to monitor levels of certain gaseous species that are released into the atmosphere. These species include sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The EPA standards for compliance monitoring systems are delineated in Volume 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
The gas streams to be monitored typically have certain intrinsic characteristics which complicate testing. For example, they generally contain 6% to 20% by volume of evaporated moisture, which results in a sample dew point well above that of normal ambient temperatures. Also, the gas streams often contain significant amounts of condensed moisture in the form of entrained water droplets and fog. Acid gases, such as sulfur dioxide are also generally present. Additionally, the gas streams invariably contain large quantities of particulate debris such as soot, fly-ash from fossil fuels and process material.
In order to analyze a sample for its gaseous constituents, it is necessary to remove the particulates and transport the sample to a remote location suitable for the operation of gas analysis instrumentation. For accurate measurements and for reliability of the test equipment, it is necessary to ensure that moisture and gases will not condense either in the sample probe, the sample lines, or the analyzers. However, the methods used to accomplish these goals must not themselves alter the samples in a way that negatively impacts testing accuracy. In the past, two basic types of sampling systems have been developed for analysis of gaseous mixtures.
The first type, the traditional extractive system, is shown in FIG. 1. Many vendors have supplied similar systems over the years. This system, however, has proved to have many undesirable drawbacks as described below.
The second type, illustrated in FIG. 2, is a venturi dilution probe system. This type of system was developed in the 1980s primarily in response to perceived inadequacies with the traditional system. As discussed more fully below, however, the venturi probe system is also not without disadvantages.

Vacuum dilution extraction gas sampling method


The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a composite yarn of paper, e.g., traditional Korean paper, and a composite yarn manufactured thereby, a method for manufacturing a fabric using the same and an automotive interior material manufactured thereby. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a composite yarn of traditional Korean paper by using a traditional Korean paper yarn and a synthetic yarn, in which the composite yarn can be used in weaving and knitting, and a method for manufacturing a fabric as an automotive interior material using the same. Accordingly, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a composite yarn of paper, comprising twisting a tape-type paper yarn, and covering the twisted paper yarn as a ground yarn at least two strands of synthetic yarn as an effect yarn to manufacture a composite yarn of paper of 160˜700 denier.

(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a composite yarn of paper, e.g., traditional Korean paper, and also a fabric made using the same and an automotive interior material manufactured thereby.
(b) Background Art
A traditional Korean paper, called 'hanji', a natural fiber made from the bark of pine tree, dak (mulberry) tree, or the like, has excellent properties such as texture, dyeing property, air permeability, moisture absorbing ability, or wear sensation, and is thus generally used in clothing or other interior fabrics. It is also expected to be used in a wide variety of applications.
To weave or knit the traditional Korean paper yarn into a woven or knitted fabric, the yarn should have a uniform thickness due to its smoothness and have minimal tension, durability, and elasticity required for a weaving/knitting process. Therefore, a processing of twisting the yarn is needed.
Conventionally, the traditional Korean paper yarn is manufactured by slitting a sheet of Korean paper at a predetermined width and then twisting the slit paper. However, the twisting process of the slit paper is problematic in that the manufactured yarn has an uneven thickness due to its rough surface and yarn breakage frequently occurs due to low tensile strength and elongation upon weaving/knitting, and thus the manufactured fabric has an uneven texture.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Composite yarn, fabric, and automotive interior material made from paper


The present invention is directed to a divided bulk bin container and blank. In accordance with the present invention, a single sheet of foldable material is cut and scored to define container blank. The blank includes a pair of opposed first side panels and a pair of a opposed second side panels coupled with the first side panels. An outer bottom panel is connected with said first side panel and an inner bottom panel is connected with said second side panel. Also, a first divider panel is connected with said outer bottom panel and a second divider panel is connected with said inner bottom panel. Further, a divider slot is formed in said inner bottom panel and said second divider panel. The nature of the divider slot is such that the width of said divider slot is at least twice the thickness of the first divider panel.

Bulk containers are known in the art. They are often used to ship large quantities of related materials. For example, in the food industry, large fruits such as melons, or grains such as wheat may be shipped in a bulk container. At the store, often the entire larger bulk container is placed on the market floor for customer access.
There are problems that arise from the standard bulk container. One fundamental problem results from the overall weight of the packaged material. For example, when shipping melons, the weight of the melons may damage melons located toward the bottom of the container. To alleviate the problem, the bulk containers often include a divider panel that is configured to divide the interior of the container into smaller storage regions. However, current bulk bin designs do not allow for the container and the divider panels to be formed from a single sheet of foldable material. As such, additional forming processes are required to make the container. This causes additional time and expense to those using the containers.

Single piece bulk bin blank and container


A system for determining the sources of delay of a transportation mean includes a wayside sub-system, a locomotive sub-system, a railcar sub-system, a a yard sub-system, a schedule sub-system, a monitoring and diagnostic sub-system and a management sub-system. Real-time collected data from the sub-systems are compared to a standard data set to identify problem areas without human intervention. Utilizing a list of top problem areas, transportation means managers are able to identify corrective actions to eliminate or minimize the sources of problem areas. In addition, customers or users of specific transportation means are able to properly select the appropriate transportation means.

This invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for managing a transportation system, and more specifically to methods and apparatus for generating and exchanging data to manage the transportation system.
Many means of transportation exist today to deliver goods from a point of origination to a destination point. Such transportation means of vehicles include barges, trucks, planes and railroads. A shipper may use one or more transportation means to deliver a product from a factory to the actual customer. In order to answer questions from the customer as to a status of the delivery, owners of these transportation means have developed methods for estimating the location of the means used to deliver the goods. Using this system, a company may use this information to estimate a time of delivery.
Unfortunately, as a result of many unknown factors, the accuracy of the estimate may vary widely and the transportation means owners are usable to learn from the data. It would therefore be desirable to provide a method and apparatus that generates and collects data from a plurality of sensors or devices to effectively manage the transportation system. In addition, by properly analyzing the data, trouble sources are identified. By eliminating or reducing these trouble sources or impact, the efficiency of the transportation system is improved.


A low power reduced size serial device protocol translator including a slave controller and detection circuit for detecting start and stop conditions on serial data (SDA) and serial clock (SCL) lines in a serial communication system is described. The start and stop condition detector includes two flip-flops; one for providing a signal that indicates when a start condition has occurred on the SDA and SCL lines and another for indicating when a stop condition has occurred. Each of the flip-flops have their data inputs coupled to a high logic level and their enable input coupled to the serial clock line. The first flip-flop for indicating the start condition has its clock input coupled to the inverse of the serial data signal and the second flip-flop for indicating the stop condition has its clock input directly coupled to the serial data signal. As a result, the first and second flip-flops are only enabled and clocked when either a start or stop condition is occurring, resulting in an extremely low power slave controller detection system. The translator of the present invention translates serial signals between slave and master devices having different protocol types. The translator utilizes sub-protocol signals including length information corresponding to the number of data bits being transmitted to the slave device. The translator uses the length information to gate the serial data from the master device to the slave device. The translator allows for reduction of physical interconnections in a master/slave system in which a master devices resides on a first printed circuit board (PCB) and communicates with slave devices on a second PCB having more than one type of serial communication protocol. In this case, the translator resides on the same PCB as the slave devices thus requiring that only the serial buses corresponding to the master device protocol type be physically coupled across the two PCB's interconnection interface.

In a system having multiple electronic devices, such as an electronic system including many devices assembled on a printed circuit board, it is necessary to select the manner in which communication is to be performed between the devices. In general, there are two techniques of communication: serial or parallel. In one type of serial communication system all devices are coupled to a serial data (SDA) line and a serial clock (SCL) line. Each of the SDA and SCL are single bit lines, hence data is transferred one bit at a time (i.e. serially) on the SDA at a rate determined by the clock being transmitted on the SCL line.
In one such prior art serial communication system (developed by Philips Semiconductor), the SDA and SCL lines are referred to as the I.sup.2 C bus. The I.sup.2 C bus has an associated set of rules, or protocol, that characterize how communication and arbitration between devices is performed on the I.sup.2 C bus. The protocol of the I.sup.2 C bus eliminates or reduces the possibility of confusion of data transfer origin/destination, of information blockage, or data loss. For instance, if two devices initiate data transfers, the I.sup.2 C protocol determines which device is able to perform the data transfer depending on the particular SDA and SCL line conditions that have occurred or are occurring. Furthermore, in this type of system, only one device at a time (referred to as the master) can control the transfer of information on the SDA and SCL lines to any other device (referred to as a slave) coupled to the SDA and SCL lines. The master device provides the clock signal on the SCL line and data is transferred on the SDA line from the master device to the slave device, or vice versa.
One manner in which the I.sup.2 C bus protocol is implemented is by defining the conditions on the SDA and SCL lines that indicate the start and stop of a data transfer operation. Detection and identification of the start and stop conditions alerts the devices coupled to the I.sup.2 C bus as to whether they can or cannot initiate a data transfer on the SDA. The start and stop conditions must be unique conditions occurring only when the particular designated event occurs (i.e. start or stop of transmission).
It is typical in prior art serial data transfer systems to employ a slave controller which generally resides within each slave device. The slave controller communicates with the master device when performing data transfers on the SDA line. For instance slave controllers often identify the start and stop of data transmissions, which slave device is being accessed or transmitted to, acknowledgment signals, and other conditions relating to the transfer of data.
The slave controller requires detection circuitry to identify the start and stop conditions of data transfers on the SDA and SCL lines so it can perform its many functions. Currently, the detection of the start and stop conditions within a slave controller (and in other slave devices) is performed by a first stage that samples the SDA and SCL lines and an interpretation stage that interprets the sampled states provided by the first stage. The first stage samples the lines at a high frequency clock rate (typically greater than 1.0 MHz) which is greater than the clock rate of the SCL line which typically transitions at a rate of up to 100 kHz. The sample circuitry generally includes two flip-flop devices each one having its data input coupled to one of the SDA and SCL lines and its clock input coupled to the high frequency sampling clock signal. The sampling clock signal can be generated internal to the slave controller, on a separate clock chip, or may be provided by some other external source. The output of each flip-flop is the logic state sampled on the SDA and SCL lines. The sample circuit provides the sampled states (or conditions) of the SDA and SCL lines to the interpretation stage which interprets these states and determines whether a start or stop condition has occurred.
The start and stop conditions on an I.sup.2 C bus are defined as follows: 1) a start condition occurs when the SDA line is transitioning high-to-low while the SCL line is high, 2) a stop condition occurs when the SDA line is transitioning low-to-high while the clock is in a high state. Hence, when the prior art sample flip-flop coupled to the SDA line outputs a low state and the sample flip-flop coupled to the SCL line outputs a high state during the same sample clock phase and these output states are coupled to the interpretation stage, a start condition is detected by the interpretation logic. Furthermore, when the flip-flop sampling the SDA line outputs a high state and the flip-flop sampling the SCL line outputs a high state during the same sample clock phase and these output states are coupled to the interpretation stage, a stop condition is detected. Typically, the interpretation logic is clocked by the sampling clock signal so as to be synchronized with the sampling circuitry.
There are several drawbacks to the prior art slave controller detection system. First, it requires the additional sample clock signal which is generated either external or internal to the slave controller. This additional high frequency clock presents several disadvantages within the prior art slave controller such as added noise, additional integrated circuit or printed circuit board space, and added power dissipation to generate the sample clock signal. Secondly, the sampling flip-flops are constantly sampling the SDA and SCL lines and hence, are constantly dissipating power. Third, this type of detection circuitry requires two stages: the flip-flop stage to sample the SDA and SCL lines and an interpretation stage to interpret the states of the sampled SDA and SCL lines. Hence, additional circuit space is consumed by the interpretation logic. Furthermore, since the interpretation logic stage is typically synchronized with the sample clock, additional circuit space is consumed by the interconnection of the sample clock signal to the interpretation logic. Finally, it is often common practice to implement each individual flip-flop in the sampling stage of the prior art slave controller detection system with multiple series connected flip-flops. Specifically, instead of using two flip-flops to sample the SDA and SCL lines, four flip-flops are employed. The four flip-flop sample stage is implemented in the following manner: the first flip-flop has its input coupled to the SDA line and its output coupled to the input of the second flip-flop. The output of the second flip-flop is the sampled state of the SDA signal. Similarly, the third flip-flop has its input coupled to the SCL line and its output coupled to the input of the fourth flip-flop. The output of the fourth flip-flop is the sampled state of the SCL signal. Each of the first through fourth flip-flops are clocked by the sample clock signal. This multiple flip-flop implementation takes into account slow transitioning signals on the SDA and SCL lines that may result in the false interpretation of start or stop conditions. However, this implementation consumes even more space and power within the slave controller than the two flip-flop sample stage implementation.
Another aspect of a master/slave serial communication system is that the master device often interfaces with multiple slave devices having different serial communication protocols. For instance, one type of serial communication device uses a serial communication protocol referred to as SPI (developed by Motorola). The SPI protocol uses four bi-directional pins: MISO (Master In/Slave Out), MOSI (Master Out/Slave In), SCK (Serial Clock), SS (Slave Select). Furthermore, data is clocked out of the SPI slave device with the falling edge and clocked into the slave device with the rising edge of the SCK. SPI serial communication defines a hardware interface (i.e. the four bi-directional pins) and partially, a software protocol. Another type of serial communication interface is referred to as MicroWIRE (developed by National Semiconductor). The MicroWIRE interface differs from SPI in that it does not specifically define any protocol. Instead, it only defines a basic set of signal lines to interconnect two or more devices. A MicroWIRE interface has four signal lines: CS (Chip Select), SK (Serial clock), DI (Data In), DO (Data Out). These are analogous to SS, SCK, MISO, and MOSI of the SPI interface. The main difference between the physical portion of the MicroWIRE and SPI interfaces is that a MicroWIRE slave device clocks both input and output data on the rising edge only and the falling edge has no effect on the devices. This means a MicroWIRE device must be read differently than a SPI compatible device due to the different clocking requirements.
As a result of the differing protocol and interconnection characteristics of the various serial communication slave devices, an I.sup.2 C master device is often designed with multiple ports for interconnecting between each of these varying protocol type slave devices. Specifically, an I.sup.2 C master device is often designed to include SDA and SCL ports for interfacing with other I.sup.2 C slave devices in addition to separate serial input, output, clock, and chip select ports for interfacing with the other protocol type slave devices such as SPI or MicroWIRE devices (i.e. a total of six interconnection ports). Furthermore, it is often common to implement a communication system in which the master and slave devices reside on separate printed circuit boards (PCBs) thus requiring multiple physical interconnections between the boards. In other words, in the above case, a total of six physical interconnects would be required in order to couple the master device on a first PCB with the slave devices on a second PCB to accommodate the different types of serial communication slave device protocols. These physical interconnections between the PCBs represent a potentially large amount of undesirable EMI in a communication system.
What is needed is a more space and power efficient implementation of a SDA and SCL state detector in a slave controller and thus an overall reduced power and smaller slave controller. In addition, what is needed is a manner in which to implement a multiple board serial communication system having slave devices using more than one serial communication protocol which is other than the master device protocol.

Low power serial protocol translator for use in multi-circuit board electronic systems


A magnetic field sensor comprises a transducer element, which:

The invention relates to a magnetic field sensor comprising a transducer element. Such sensors may be employed inter alia:
as magnetic heads, which can be used to decrypt the magnetic flux emanating from a recording medium in the form of a magnetic tape, disc or card;
in compasses, for detecting the terrestrial magnetic field, e.g. in automotive, aviation, maritime or personal navigation systems;
in apparatus for detecting position, angle, velocity or acceleration, e.g. in automotive applications;
as field sensors in medical scanners, and as replacements for Hall probes in various other applications;
as current detectors, whereby the magnetic field produced by such a current is detected.
Sensors as specified in the opening paragraph are well known in the prior art. The transducer element in such sensors typically comprises a magneto-resistance element, which translates magnetic flux variations into a correspondingly fluctuating electrical resistance R; a measure of the performance of the element is then expressed in the so-called magneto-resistance (MR) ratio, which quantifies the maximum change in R as a function of applied magnetic field. Sensors of this type may be based on one of the following effects:
The Anisotropic Magneto-Resistance effect (AMR), whereby R in a magnetic body is dependent on the orientation of the body""s magnetization with respect to the direction of electrical current flow through the body; or
The Giant Magneto-Resistance effect (GMR), whereby R is determined by the relative orientation of the magnetization vectors in two distinct magnetic bodies, for example:
two layers which are sandwiched about an interposed metallic layer (interlayer), thus forming a so-called spin-valve trilayer (see, for example, the elucidation given by B. Dieny et al in U.S. Pat. No. 5,206,590 and J. Magn. Magn. Mater. 136 (1994), pp 335-359);
a multilayer comprising a plurality of stacked F/M bilayers, in which F is a ferromagnetic layer and M is a metallic layer, neighboring F-layers being antiferromagnetically coupled across intervening M-layers.
A disadvantage of known sensors based on AMR and GMR is that they demonstrate a relatively small MR ratio. Typically, the room-temperature MR values for AMR sensors are of the order of about 2%, whereas those for practical GMR sensors are generally of the order of about 5-10% at best. Consequently, such conventional sensors are relatively insensitive.
It is an object of the invention to provide a more sensitive magnetic field sensor. In particular, it is an object of the invention to provide a sensor which exploits a magneto-resistance effect with a room-temperature MR ratio of the order of 15% or more. Moreover, it is an object of the invention that such a sensor should be relatively compact, entailing an efficient use of materials and space.
These and other objects are achieved according to the invention in a magnetic field sensor comprising a transducer element, characterized in that:
I. the transducer element is a Spin Tunnel Junction, comprising a first and second magnetic layer which are sandwiched about an interposed electrical insulator layer (interlayer);
II. the sensor comprises a yoke having two arms;
III. the first magnetic layer is in direct contact with a first portion of a first arm of the yoke.
The principles of Spin Tunnel Junctions (STJs) are discussed in detail in an article by J. C. Slonczewski in Phys. Rev. B 39 (1989), pp 6995-7002, and a study of the properties of a particular STJ is presented in an article by S. S. P. Parkin et al. in J. Appl. Phys. 81 (1997), 5521. Because the STJ contains electrically insulating material (its interlayer) instead of purely metallic material, the principle of operation of an STJ is radically different to that of conventional AMR or GMR elements. For example, in a GMR element, the electrical resistance is metallic, and is mediated by spin-dependent scattering effects; on the other hand, in an STJ, the electrical resistance is mediated by spin-dependent tunneling effects. Another difference is that, in a (practical) AMR or GMR element, the measurement current is directed parallel to the plane of the element; on the other hand, in an STJ, the measurement current must be directed (tunneled) across the interlayer, and so is directed perpendicular to the plane of the element. These differences help account for the most dramatic advantages of an STJ: because of the STJ""s high tunnel resistance, the measurement current can afford to be very small (of the order of 1 about xcexcA, or less), and the room-temperature, low-field MR-ratio of an STJ is routinely of the order of at least 15%.
The term xe2x80x9cmagnetic layerxe2x80x9d as used with reference to an STJ should be broadly interpreted. Such a magnetic layer may, for example, be comprised of one of the following:
a single layer of ferromagnetic material;
a ferromagnetic film which is accompanied by a thin, metallic, non-magnetic film on the side adjacent to the nearest yoke-arm;
two ferromagnetic films which are exchange-coupled across an interposed electrically conducting film;
a ferromagnetic film which is arranged in a stack with a pinning structure (examples of which are given herebelow in Embodiment 1), the pinning structure serving to directionally fix the magnetization in the adjacent ferromagnetic film.
In all cases, it is important to realize that the magnetic layer does not contain any electrically insulating films; the only electrically insulating structure in the STJ is the tunnel barrier (interlayer) between the first and second magnetic layers.
When a AMR or GMR transducer element is employed in a yoke-type magnetic field sensor, the element is electrically insulated from the yoke, e.g. by the use of a so-called separation-oxide layer between the element and the yoke; this is to prevent the yoke-arm from acting as an electrical shunt around the transducer element (in which, as has already been explained, the measurement current is parallel to the plane of the element and also to the top surface of the yoke-arm). However, the presence of an insulating layer between the yoke and the transducer element reduces the magnetic contact between the two, which accordingly reduces the efficiency of the sensor. This acts as a deterrent to the use of a yoke in conjunction with conventional sensors. In contrast, the inventors have realized that, when an STJ is employed instead of a conventional magneto-resistance transducer element, the use of a yoke becomes a more viable possibility. This is because the measurement current through the STJ is directed perpendicular to its plane, so that a yoke-arm in electrical contact with one of the magnetic layers of the STJ does not act as an electrical shunt around the transducer; the presence of a special separation-oxide layer between the STJ and the yoke is thus unnecessary. For this reason, the invention stipulates that the STJ be in direct contact with the yoke, thereby guaranteeing good magnetic contact and optimal efficiency. Moreover, the yoke-arm which is in contact with the magnetic layer of the STJ also serves as an electrical contact to that magnetic layer, which alleviates the need to provide electrical contact via a separate lead. In addition, the absence of a separation-oxide layer reduces the quantity of materials required in the sensor, simplifies its manufacturing procedure, and allows it to be more compact.
The yoke-type magnetic field sensor according to the invention is particularly advantageous when employed as a contact magnetic head, e.g. when reading magnetic tape or a hard disc. This is because it is then the relatively durable yoke which makes contact with the recording medium, instead of the relatively fragile transducer element. Apart from an advantage in terms of mechanical wear, this configuration additionally leads to reduced thermal noise.
In an advantageous embodiment of the sensor according to the invention, the said first portion of the first arm of the yoke constitutes the first magnetic layer of the STJ, i.e. the first yoke-arm plays the role of first magnetic layer in the STJ. In such an embodiment, the first yoke-arm does not contain a magnetic gap underneath the STJ, but is instead continuous. This embodiment therefore has the advantage that:
it is even more compact and economic, since a distinct first magnetic layer is not required in addition to the yoke;.
it is easier to manufacture, since a magnetic gap does not have to be created in the employed yoke.
In an embodiment suitable for use in extremely small sensors (i.e. sensors for which the so-called characteristic length is very small), a second portion of the second arm of the yoke constitutes the second magnetic layer. Such an embodiment is even more compact, since the different arms of the yoke now play the role of both the first and second magnetic layers. In this latter embodiment, it is important that the two yoke-arms be electrically insulated from one another, so as to prevent the formation of a short circuit across the STJ.
A further refinement of the first embodiment in the previous paragraph is characterized in that the thickness t1 of the first portion of the first arm of the yoke is less than the thickness of the rest of the first arm immediately adjacent thereto. By locally thinning the first arm in this manner, magnetic flux in the first portion becomes more concentrated, thus serving to increase the sensitivity of the sensor. This effect is increased even further if the thickness t2 of the second portion of the second arm of the yoke is also less than the thickness of the rest of the second arm immediately adjacent thereto; in that case, magnetic flux also becomes more concentrated in the second portion, causing a further increase in sensitivity of the sensor.
The skilled artisan will immediately appreciate that, if the STJ is to be useful as a sensor, the respective magnetizations M1 and M2 in the first and second magnetic layers must change their relative orientation as a function of applied magnetic field. This can, for example, be achieved by employing different magnetic materials in the two layers, or by ensuring that M1 and M2 are mutually perpendicular in the quiescent state (e.g. using exchange biasing). As an alternative, a particular rendition of the embodiments described in the previous paragraph is characterized in that t2 greater than t1. In such an embodiment, the discrepant values of t1 and t2 result in different flux concentrations in the first and second yoke-arms, respectively, so that, when a given external magnetic field is offered to the yoke, M1 and M2 will rotate to different extents. Good results are achieved for sensors in which the value of t2/t1 lies in the range 2-30, with particularly good results at t2/t1≈10.
In addition to the transducer and the yoke, the sensor according to the invention may comprise various other structures. For example:
in the case whereby only one of the magnetic layers of the STJ is in contact with the yoke, the other magnetic layer of the STJ will have to be provided with an electrical contact lead;
a test/biasing conductor may be provided (e.g. as illustrated in FIG. 4).

Magnetic field sensor comprising a spin-tunnel junction

Abstract: transducer element is a Spin Tunnel Junction, comprising a first and second magnetic layer which are sandwiched about an interposed electrical insulator layer; the sensor comprises a yoke having two arms; and the first magnetic layer is in direct contact with a first portion of a first arm of the yoke.


A security device includes a cable securing member defining a slot between an open first end and a closed second end. A channel is provided in the slot and a rib adjacent the channel protrudes into the slot. The open first end includes a tab receiver and a lock receiver. The tab receiver engages a tab attached to a chassis. A cable extending through the channel is not removable due to a lock inserted into the lock receiver and blocking the open first end.

The present disclosure relates generally to information handling systems, and more particularly to a security device for such systems and peripherals attached thereto.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option is an information handling system (IHS). An IHS generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements may vary between different applications, IHSs may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSs allow for IHSs to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, IHSs may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
The protection of peripheral devices, such as mouses and keyboards, is very important. Theft of such items wastes valuable down time and is also costly. Educational labs and kiosks as well as work stations in offices require a security solution which is low-cost, easy to deploy and not overly complex or costly.
Current solutions typically rely on adhesive anchors and steel cables. Specific to peripherals, the prior solutions focus on securing the actual device.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved low-cost, easy to deploy security solution for theft prone environments which secures the peripheral cable rather than the peripheral device, absent the disadvantages discussed above.

Compact security device for systems and peripherals


A jack capable of handling both Category 6 and Category 7 speed communications. The jack includes a shield, a housing disposed in the shield and a contact block disposed in the housing. The contact block includes a base member and a plurality of contacts carried by the base member. Each contact includes a contact portion effective to touch a corresponding contact of a plug when the plug is inserted into the jack, a first end portion effective to be inserted into a circuit board, and a second end portion. A flexible substrate is connected to the second end portion, the substrate including a compensation circuit for the jack.

The invention relates to a modular jack and, more particularly, to a modular jack which may be compliant with multiple communication standards and/or which includes improved noise compensation abilities.
The use of modular plugs and jacks for data transmission is known. Basically, in order to establish electrical communication and a data path between a first and second device, the first device may send information in the form of electrical signals out into a cable that terminates in a plug. The second device may include a jack. The plug and jack are designed so as to be easily mechanically mate-able in a male-female configuration. Once the plug and jack are mated, electrical members in the plug and connector engage and are electrically mated so that electrical information signals may travel from the first device to the second device.
This plug and jack design is limited by the physical configuration of the modular plug and jack. As data transmission speeds have increased, electrical performance relating to the transfer of electrical signals from plug to connector, has been affected. Each plug and jack frequently includes multiple pairs of contacts used to communicate information. Cross talk between these pairs (where electrical signals in one pair affect electrical signals in another pair) and interference from sources external to the plug-jack configuration, become more of a factor at higher speeds. In order to carry the higher speed data without signal degradation, the plug and connector design changed to include compensation circuitry such as that used to balanced impedance in transmission lines.
Standards organizations such as the Telecommunication Industry Association and the International Organization for Standardization publish standards regarding performance specifications and equipment configurations for plugs and connectors. Different levels or "categories" have been defined for use in twisted-pair cabling such as where a single insulated sheath includes two twisted wires. For example, "Category 6" jacks should be able to handle data communications with a frequency up to 250 MHz. More recent requirements, e.g. Category 7, require jacks which can communicate as high as 600 MHz.
Prior art Category 6 jacks typically employ the compensation circuit near terminals in the jack. That is, a plug having contacts mates with a jack having contacts so that the contacts in the plug physically touch and electrically engage with the contacts in the jack. The electrical signals sent from the contacts of the plug to the contacts of the jack travel through the contact portions of the contacts of the jack to terminals portion of the contacts of the jack and then those terminal portions are connected to a circuit board. The compensation circuit in these prior art Category 6 jacks is typically disposed near the terminal portions. For example, information signals may travel through the terminal portions through the compensation circuit and then to the circuit board. The inventors of the present invention have performed research and learned of the surprising discovery that movement of the compensation circuit to a different location yields significantly better electrical characteristics as is discussed in more detail below.
An example of a prior art jack which may be used for both Category 6 and Category 7 communications is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,739,892 and is reproduced in part, in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 1, a prior art connector 50 consists of a shield 52, a dielectric housing 54, a switch insert 56 and a circuit board sub-assembly 58. When assembled, sub-assembly 58 is inserted into switch insert 56, switch insert 56 is inserted into housing 54, and housing 54 is inserted into shield 52. When a Category 6 plug is inserted into jack 50, terminals on sub-assembly 58 engage corresponding terminals of the plug for data communication. If a Category 7 plug is inserted into jack 50, a protrusion on the plug (not shown) engages a switch 60 on switch insert 56. Switch 60 causes some of the terminals in connector 50 to be lifted away from electrical connection and moved into contact with a grounding member (not shown).
There are problems with the prior art connector shown in FIG. 1. Requiring a switch to disengage or ground some of the terminals increases the complexity of the device. Moreover, there is the possibility of an open circuit especially if there is a failure in the switch. Finally, any compensation circuitry is disposed from terminal portions of the contacts.

High speed modular jack with flexible compensation circuit


A flexible shaft of nonrigid components for use in pushing an eddy current probe through small diameter pipe bends includes a thin-walled flexible outer sleeve enclosing a data cable helically coiled around a central inner core, typically of braided wire. The inner core is functionally incompressible and inextensible to sustain compressive forces derived from pushing the shaft through a pipe. The outer sleeve supported from within by the data cable and the inner core for sustaining lateral forces of pusher rollers is longitudinally even and smooth to advance the shaft without damage to it.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to shafts for moving an eddy current probe through a pipe and, specifically, to a flexible shaft with an even, protective outer sleeve supported by a data cable helically wound around a solid inner core.
2. Prior Art
It is known to have an eddy current probe for remotely obtaining nondestructive measurements of the integrity of tubes in nuclear steam generators and heat exchangers. The eddy current probe is pushed through a tube or pipe by a flexible shaft to which it is attached on the shaft lead, or distal end, the shaft extending from the probe to a data recorder with data cables running along the shaft. As the shaft impels the probe into the pipe, the probe measures the pipe along the pipe length, transmitting probe measurement data through the data cables.
Because the nuclear industry heat exchanger pipes have a small bend radius, typically less than 2 inches, it has been difficult to inspect them because of the inflexibility of conventional shaft materials. Without the capability of negotiating small-radii bends, it becomes impossible to perform a full examination of the pipes from one pipe end to another, requiring multiple passes through the pipe from different pipe access locations. Completing a full pipe measurement then results in increased inspection time, increased radiological exposure to personnel setting up the measurement equipment and increased damage to measurement equipment.
Flexible shafts designed to protect data cables and sustain compressive forces of pushing have been tried with less than satisfactory results. The shafts typically have a structure that allows them to bend within a curved pipe and provide for data cables running with the shaft. The cables are often expensive to produce and cumbersome to use. Typically, the shaft outer structure also is incompatible with a probe pusher/puller device commonly used to insert the probe in a pipe. The probe pusher comprises a reel and one or more sets of opposing rollers between which the shaft passes. The motor-driven rollers engage the shaft and rotate to urge the shaft forward, unwrapping the shaft from around the reel. As the rollers engage the shaft with sufficient force to impel the shaft the rollers often damage the shaft structure.
There exist eddy current probes that are designed to rotate within a pipe causing drive and pickup coils to rotate with the rotating probe. Shafts are designed that can rotate the probe as the shaft pushes the probe along the pipe. A spinning motor rotates the shaft as probe pusher rollers drive the shaft into a pipe. These uneven shafts are that able to simultaneously rotate and push the probe typically comprise an uneven outer surface that do not smoothly engage the pusher rollers and are often destroyed as the rollers engage the uneven shaft.
It is a first object of the invention to provide a shaft for an eddy current probe that is not damaged by a probe pusher as the shaft is driven into a pipe. It is a second object that the shaft be rotatable by a spin motor as the probe pusher drives the shaft into the pipe without damage to the shaft. It is a third object that the shaft be sufficiently flexible to negotiate tight bends in pipes yet able to sustain compressive forces without buckling as it is pushed through the pipe.

Flexible shaft with a helically wound data cable supporting a smooth outer sleeve for eddy current probe


One embodiment of the present invention provides a memory system that allows more than one cycle of memory latency for accesses to a synchronously accessed memory. In this embodiment, the memory system includes a memory with a clocked interface and a corresponding clock input. It also includes an output register for storing data outputted from the memory during a read operation. The output register and the memory are coupled together by a data path, for transferring data between the memory and the output register. In this embodiment, the memory system further includes a clock signal coupled to the clocked interface of the memory. The clock signal feeds through a delay element into a clock input of the output register. This causes the output register to receive a delayed clock signal, thereby providing more than one clock cycle of time for data to be read from the memory and latched in the output register. In another embodiment, the present invention provides an input register, for inputting data during write operations. This input register similarly receives a delayed clock signal, which functions as an advanced clock signal from the preceding clock cycle to provide more than one clock cycle of latency for write accesses to memory.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to memory systems for computers, and more particularly to the design of a memory system that provides variable memory latency for read and/or write accesses to a synchronously accessed memory.
2. Related Art
New memory system designs have been developed to keep pace with rapid increases in processor clock speeds. As processors get faster, memory systems are under increasing pressure to provide data at faster rates to keep up with the processors. This has recently led to the development of new memory system designs. Latencies for memory accesses have been dramatically decreased by using page mode and extended data out (EDO) memory designs, which achieve a high burst rate and low latencies within a single page of memory. Another recent innovation is to incorporate a synchronous clocked interface into a memory chip, thereby allowing data from within the same page of memory to be clocked out of the memory in a continuous stream using the processor clock. Such memory chips, with clocked interfaces are known as synchronous random access memories.
Recently, standards such as Rambus and SyncLink have been developed to govern the transfer of data between memory and processor using such clocked interfaces. SyncLink, which will be known as IEEE Standard 1596.7, specifies an architecture that supports a 64M-bit memory with a data transfer rate of 1.6 gigabytes per second. SyncLink packetizes and pipelines the address, commands, and timing, and adds features that significantly increase the data bus speed, thereby providing fast memory access without losing the ability to move quickly from row to row or to obtain bursts of data. In the IEEE standard, a 10-bit upper bus is used for command and address transmission, and an 18-bit lower bus is used for data signals.
As processor clock speeds continue to increase, it is becoming increasing harder for memories with clocked interfaces to keep pace with processor clock speeds. More than one clock cycle of time may be required to read from or write to a synchronous memory. Furthermore, the amount of time required access a memory may depend upon the latency of a particular memory chip, and this latency can vary as different memory chips are included in a memory system. This makes it hard to design a memory architecture that can flexibly accommodate different memory chips.
What is needed is a memory system including a synchronous interface between processor and memory that provides more than one clock cycle of time for read and/or write accesses to the memory.
Additionally, what is needed is a memory system that provides a configurable latency for read and write accesses to a synchronously accessed memory in order to allow the memory system to operate with different memory devices and/or different processor clock speeds.

Apparatus for providing additional latency for synchronously accessed memory


A torque converter includes a turbine, a lockup clutch including a piston, and a damper having at least one cover plate, the cover plate being attached directly to piston. A method for assembling the torque converter includes passing a section of the piston through a hole in the cover plate and attaching the piston to the cover plate at the hole.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,693,348, 6,325,191, and 6,615,962, hereby incorporated by reference herein, describe hydraulic torque converters with lockup clutches.
FIG. 1 shows an example prior art hydraulic torque converter 10 including a housing 12 non-rotatably connected to a crankshaft 14 to receive torque from an engine. Housing 12 has coaxial shells 16 and 18 secured and sealed together, for example welded. Attached to housing 12 is a pump 20 coaxial with and sharing the angular velocity of housing 12.
Enclosed in housing 12 are a turbine 22 rotatable with respect to housing 12 and a stator 24 installed between pump 20 and turbine 22. Turbine 22 is non-rotatably connected to a turbine hub 26, and turbine hub 26 is non-rotatably connected to input shaft 28 of a transmission, by splines 30. Stator 24 is mounted on a one-way clutch 32 connected by splines 34 to a hollow, non-rotating stator shaft 36.
Prior art torque converter 10 may further include a lockup clutch 38 capable of being engaged to transmit torque directly between housing 12 and turbine hub 26. This is accomplished by positioning a friction surface 40 of a piston 42 in contact with a friction surface 44 of housing 12. Piston 42 is moveable in both the circumferential and axial directions around turbine hub 26. Axial movement of piston 42 relative to turbine hub 26 may be accomplished by introducing a pressure difference between hydraulic fluid regions 45 and 46 on either axial side of piston 42.
Lockup clutch 38 may also have a torsional vibration damper 48 including a drive plate 50, cover plates 52, 54, a group of coil springs or other elastic energy storing devices 56, and rivets or spacer bolts 58. Drive plate 50 may be connected to piston 42 with splines or crenellations 60. Cover plates 52, 54 retain springs 56 and are held together with rivets or spacer bolts 58. Cover plates 52, 54 may be rigidly connected to turbine 22 and turbine hub 26. Relative circumferential motion between cover plates 52, 54 and drive plate 50 compresses or decompresses springs 56. Torsional damper 48 thereby isolates turbine hub 26 from torsional vibrations coming from, for example, crankshaft 14 or engine.

Torque converter with cover plate directly attached to piston

LuK Lamellen und Kupplungsbau Beteiligungs KG


A system for mounting a secondary panel within a window frame of an existing window. The system includes a rigid panel, an elongated deformable bulb, and an elongated carrier. The bulb has a resilient, rounded portion, a base section, an extension extending from the base section, and a crosspiece coupled to a distal end of the extension. The crosspiece includes a pair of shoulders at opposite ends of the crosspiece. Each shoulder extends laterally away from a centerline of the bulb and protrudes laterally beyond the extension. The elongated carrier has a receiving slot opposite a panel gap configured to receive an edge of the panel. The receiving slot has a neck laterally narrower than an interior cavity of the receiving slot. The receiving slot is configured to securely receive the crosspiece of the bulb and to confine the shoulders of the crosspiece.

Storm windows are generally mounted on the outside or inside of main windows of a home or business. They are oftentimes used in cold climates to reduce energy leakage from the windows, for instance, cold air leaking into a house through the main windows. Storm windows may be mounted externally or internally, and are generally made from glass, plastic, or other transparent material. In some instances storm windows may be translucent or opaque.
A method of measuring efficiency of thermal insulation, which is the opposite of a rate of heat transfer, is R-Value. An R-value number indicates the relative resistance to heat flow, where a higher R-value has greater thermal efficiency. The R-value generally depends on the type and size of the insulation system being rated, for example the material selected, its size, thickness, and density. R-values of multi-layer systems equal the total of the individual layered systems.
Many present-day storm window systems are difficult to install and remove. Generally present-day storm window systems are mechanically attached with mounting hardware to either the inside or outside of the main window. The windows may be heavy and difficult to manipulate. Other, less expensive systems use see-through plastic sheets that are taped or attached to window casings. Sometimes the plastic sheets may be "shrunk" using a heat gun which, when directed at the plastic sheet, causes the sheet to contract, making the sheet taught, and easier to see through. Such prior art systems are, similar to the mechanical systems as described above, difficult and time-consuming to install.
Embodiments of the invention address these and other problems in the prior art.


A method of converting a routing mode of a network is provided, wherein a plurality of first routes connected a central controller to a plurality of nodes are established in the network through a spanning tree protocol and a plurality of second routes between the nodes in the network through the spanning tree protocol. The method includes enabling a firewall of each of the nodes to block the second routes; disabling a spanning tree protocol function of each of the nodes; populating a forwarding table of each of the nodes with a plurality of predetermined routing paths; and flushing the firewall of each of the nodes, wherein a plurality of third routes between the central controller and the plurality of nodes are established according to the predetermined routing paths without the spanning tree protocol, after the firewall of each of the nodes is flushed.

In a layer two (L2) network, the spanning tree protocol (STP) is applied to avoid the loops that result in broadcast storm and break down the entire layer two network. The STP prevents the loops by detecting the redundant links that could form loops and blocking these links in the layer two network. The STP is an IEEE standard, 802.1D, and has been implemented in all the layer two switches.
The waste of the bandwidth of the blocked links is a drawback of the STP. In the highly mesh or fabric network topology, which is more and more popular in the data center network, there exist a lot of redundant links and therefore STP causes a huge amount of waste of the bandwidth. The Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (MSTP) allows a separate spanning tree for each VLAN group. The MSTP could improve the bandwidth utilization rate if there are a lot of VLAN groups and each of them selects different alternative path. However, the MSTP requires more complex configuration than the STP and the bandwidth utilization could still be poor if there is only a few number of VLAN groups or the STP instances of these VLAN groups select common paths among all the possible alternatives.

Method and network system of converting a layer two network from a spanning tree protocol mode to a routed mesh mode without a spanning tree protocol

Industrial Technology Research Institute


Provided are a computer program product, system, and method for correcting overlapping data sets in a volume. A determination is made of overlapping data sets in a first volume that are assigned a same data unit. The data sets in the first volume that are not assigned a same data unit are copied to a second volume. The same data unit is processed to determine one of the overlapping data sets for which the same data unit is intended and copied to the determined overlapping data set in the second volume.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a computer program product, system, and method for correcting overlapping data sets in a volume.
2. Description of the Related Art
In certain computing environments, multiple host systems may configure data sets in volumes configured in a storage system, such as interconnected storage devices, e.g., a Direct Access Storage Device (DASD), Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID), Just a Bunch of Disks (JBOD), etc. Data sets are comprised of extents, which may comprise any grouping of tracks and data storage units. The Z/OS® operating system from International Business Machines Corporation ("IBM") has a Volume Table of Contents (VTOC) to provide information on data sets of extents configured in the volume, where the VTOC indicates the location of tracks, extents, and data sets for a volume in storage.
Data corruption is one of the most costly types of errors that can occur on computing systems today. Data corruption may be the result of program bugs, user errors, or Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) interactions. One of the more common types of data corruption that can occur with data sets is data being overlaid onto two different data sets, so that multiple data sets believe they both own the same region in storage. This can occur when the volume table of contents becomes corrupted. This corruption often goes undetected until applications encounter errors due to incorrect or missing data. This type of corruption can expand throughout the volume the longer this error remains undetected, leading to system outages and lengthy recovery times. Also, this type of corruption may be propagated by mirroring technology to both the primary volume and recovery sites.

Correcting overlapping data sets in a volume

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION


An electronic device (104) comprising: a housing (203) for attachment to an injection device (102); a first sensor assembly (304) comprising a first coil (406a) and two magnets (402a, 404a) of opposite polarity, wherein the first coil (406a) is configured to provide a first voltage pulse as a first Wiegand wire (224) of the injection device (102) moves from a first position proximate to one of the magnets (402a) of the first sensor assembly (304) to a second position proximate to the other magnet (404a) of the first sensor assembly (304); and one or more processors (308) configured to enter an enabled state from a sleep state after receiving the first voltage pulse from the first coil (406a).

A variety of diseases can be treated by injection of a medicament. Such injection can be performed using injection devices, which are applied either by medical personnel or by patients themselves. As an example, type-1 and type-2 diabetes can be treated by patients themselves by injection of insulin doses, for example once or several times per day. For instance, a pre-filled disposable insulin pen or autoinjector can be used as an injection device. Alternatively, a re-usable pen or autoinjector may be used. A disposable or re-usable pen or autoinjector allows replacement of an empty medicament cartridge by a new one. Either type of pen or autoinjector may come with a set of one-way needles that are replaced before each use.


A cell arrangement for the electrolysis of water to liberate hydrogen and oxygen gases is described. A cell unit (125) has a stacked arrangement of segmentation disks (114), a first type of (anode) cell plates (90), a second type of (cathode) cell plates (98) and separation membranes (116). Interconnecting conductive shafts (126-131) pass through holes (100,102) of the cell plates (90,98) to have selective electrical interconnection therewith. Water and electrolyte is supplied by inlet ports (108,110) to immerse the cell plates (90,98). The membranes (116) normally isolate adjacent cathode and anode plates (90,98) from the mixing of liberated oxygen and hydrogen gases whilst allowing ionic current flow. By selective adjustment of the water/electrolyte pressure differential on respective sides of the separation membranes (116), admixture of the liberated gases can be produced. The liberated gases discharge by outlet ports (104,106).

The technique of electrolysing water in the presence of an electrolyte such as sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH) to liberate hydrogen and oxygen gas (H.sub.2, O.sub.2) is well known. The process involves applying a DC potential difference between two or more anode/cathode electrode pairs and delivering the minimum energy required to break the H--O bonds (i.e. 68.3 kcal per mole @ STP). The gases are produced in the stoichiometric proportions for O.sub.2 :H.sub.2 of 1:2 liberated respectively from the anode (+) and cathode (-).
Reference can be made to the following texts: "Modern Electrochemistry, Volume 2, John O'M. Bockris and Amulya K. N. Reddy, Plenum Publishing Corporation", "Electro-Chemical Science, J. O'M. Bockris and D. M. Drazic, Taylor and Francis Limited" and "Fuel Cells, Their Electrochemistry, J. O'M. Bockris and S. Srinivasan, McGraw-Hill Book Company".
A discussion of experimental work in relation to electrolysis processes can be obtained from "Hydrogen Energy, Part A, Hydrogen Economy Miami Energy Conference, Miami Beach, Fla., 1974, edited by T. Nejat Veziroglu, Plenum Press". The papers presented by J. O'M. Bockris on pages 371 to 379, by F. C. Jensen and F. H. Schubert on pages 425 to 439 and by John B. Pangborn and John C. Sharer on pages 499 to 508 are of particular relevance.
On a macro-scale, the amount of gas produced depends upon a number of variables, including the type and concentration of the electrolytic solution used, the anode/cathode electrode pair surface area, the electrolytic resistance (equating to ionic conductivity, which is a function of temperature), achievable current density and anode/cathode potential difference. The total energy delivered must be sufficient to disassociate the water ions to generate hydrogen and oxygen gases, yet avoid plating (oxidation/reduction) of the metallic or conductive non-metallic materials from which the electrodes are constructed.
Reference also is made to prior art Australian Patent No.487062 now U.S Pat. No. 4,014,797 filed herein on Mar. 5, 1996 in the name of Yull Brown, that discloses an electrolysis cell arrangement to produce hydrogen and oxygen on demand, together with a safety device preventing the generation of excess pressure of the liberated gases. FIG. 2 of the Brown patent shows a number of electrodes (20a,20b) in a series electrical arrangement between two terminals (22), across which a voltage is applied. The cell (20) produces a gas volumetric flow rate output, and if that output is insufficient for a particular application, then a larger number of individual cell units must be provided, all electrically connected in series. The end result is a large structure to be supported.
It is also not possible to produce high gas flow rates (of the order of 10,000 liters per hour) on demand from the prior art apparatus without the use of expensive and complicated equipment, and even then the equipment suffers from low efficiencies in the conversion of electrical energy to generate the hydrogen and oxygen gases. Thus the large scale commercial implementation of such apparatus is not economically viable.
Admixed hydrogen and oxygen gases (or hydroxy gas) are used as a thermal source when burnt in a stream, for example, in furnaces. Hydrogen alone is used for atomic cutting and often for atomic welding, although the device described in the Brown patent performed atomic welding with admixed hydrogen and oxygen. Recent industry practice clearly exemplifies that the presence of oxygen in a plasma arc causes severe oxidation of the tungsten electrodes.
One of the problems experienced in implementing these applications is the need to incorporate electrical switchgear to transform mains supply voltages to a level suitable for a bank of electrolysis cells (i.e. by step-down transformers). The resulting completed arrangement is inefficient electrically and cumbersome, and also can be expensive if precise voltage and current regulation (hence gas flow regulation) is required.
Combusted hydrogen and oxygen gases mixed into a single stream burn at a very high temperature, typically of the order of 6000.degree. C. Hydrogen/oxygen welding sets are generally known to comprise of a welding tip or hand piece connected by a dual gas hose to separate supplies of oxygen and hydrogen.
There are four other common types of welding apparatus and techniques in use; these are oxy-acetylene welding, electric arc welding, MIG (metal-inert-gas)/TIG (tungsten-inert-gas) systems and plasma cutting.
It is estimated that more than 100,000 oxy-acetylene sets are used in Australia. Of those, approximately 70% are used primarily for the cutting of metals, with the remainder being used as a heat source, for fusion welding of sheet metal, brazing, silver soldering and the like. Typically oxy-acetylene sets can weld thicknesses of metal between 0.5 mm to 2 mm. Further, thicknesses up to 140 mm can be cut, but only where the steel contains a high percentage of iron. The reason for this is that the iron and the oxygen are required to support the oxidation process which induces the cutting effect. The acetylene gas provides the initial temperature to start the oxidation reaction, being typically 850.degree. C. Oxy-acetylene sets require a bottled supply of both acetylene and oxygen gas, hence the bottles must be bought or hired, then continually maintained and refilled with use.
Electric arc welding is a method used for welding metals of greater than 1.5 mm thickness. The principle of operation is that a hand piece is supplied with a consumable electrode, and the work piece forms the other electrode. An AC or DC potential difference is created between the electrodes, thus causing an arc to be struck when the hand piece is brought into proximity of the work piece. The arc can be used to fuse or weld metal pieces together.
MIG systems are based around a continuous wire feed system. In one known arrangement, the consumable wire is shrouded by argon gas (or a plasma), which typically is sourced from a bottled supply. TIG systems, on the other hand, require the filler wire to be hand-fed into the weld pool. MIG/TIG systems can weld from between 1 mm to 20 mm thicknesses of metals, and typically stainless steel, aluminium, mild steel and the like. Reference can be made to a text "The Science and Practice of Welding, Volume 2, A. C. Davies, Cambridge University Press" in respect of plasma MIG processes.
Plasma cutting is a method of cutting by introducing compressed air (comprising predominantly nitrogen) to a DC electric arc, thereby producing very high temperatures (about 15,000.degree. C.) and so stripping electrons from the nitrogen nucleus to form a high temperature plasma. This plasma can be utilised to cut ferrous and non-ferrous materials such as mild steel, stainless steel, copper, brass and aluminium. Available plasma cutters can cut up to a 25 mm thickness and have the advantage of not requiring bottled gas but rather utilise free air. Reference can be made to the text "Gas Shielded Arc Welding, N. J. Henthorne and R. W. Chadwick, Newnes Technical Books" in respect of plasma cutting.
As follows from the discussion of the prior art, no one unit or system has the capability of performing all welding and cutting functions, and typically, one of the systems already described would be chosen over another for any particular job. This then requires that metal workers or other metal trades industry manufacturers must purchase and maintain a number of different types of welding units in order to have the capability to handle any job on demand. The costs associated with the purchase of replacement bottled gas also are very high.


Provided is a reproducing apparatus including: an optical system that obtains a signal light by radiating light emitted from a light source and generates a reference light from the light emitted from the light source, with respect to a recording medium, and that generates first to fourth groups of the signal light beams and the reference light beams, with respect to the superposed light in which the signal light and the reference light are superposed onto each other; a light receiving unit that receives light beams of the first to fourth groups of the signal light beams and the reference light beams respectively through first to fourth light receiving elements; and a reproduction signal generation circuit that calculates a first differential signal and a second differential signal, and that generates a reproduction signal by performing an arithmetic operation using the first and second differential signals.

The present disclosure relates to a reproducing apparatus applied to reproduce an optical medium such as an optical disk, and a reproducing method.
For example, when reproducing a multilayer optical disk, there are high possibilities that a signal light amount reduces and an error occurs while reading a signal. There is a homodyne detection system that amplifies a detection signal using light interference (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-269680 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-65961).
In Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-269680 or Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-65961, it is designed to detect four groups, the phase differences of which differ by 90°, of signal light beams and reference light beams, as a homodyne system of detecting light, in which the signal light interferes with the reference light. Specifically, the groups, the phase differences of which are respectively set as 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°, of the signal light beams and the reference light beams are respectively detected. Each detecting is performed by detecting light intensity in regard to the light in which the signal light interferes with the reference light.
Furthermore, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2013-54801 discloses a reproducing apparatus by which it is possible to improve SNR of a reproduction signal compared to the apparatus using the homodyne detection method in the related art.

Reproducing apparatus and reproducing method


A camera module includes an imaging function section, a connector forming section, and a connecting section combined in a laminated body. The connecting section is thinner than the imaging function section and is bendable. The imaging function section includes a cavity and a through hole. An image sensor IC is disposed within the cavity. A lens unit is mounted in the imaging function section to be optically coupled to the image sensor IC via the through hole. A light shielding member covers a boundary between the connecting section and the imaging function section that define a height difference.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera module including an imaging function section, and a cable section and a connector section that couple the imaging function section to an external circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
At present, most portable devices, such as mobile phones and PDAs, have a photographing function. A camera module that realizes such a photographing function typically has a structure described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-128072.
A camera module described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-128072 is structured such that an imaging function section including a lens unit and an image sensor IC is provided on a substrate that couples the imaging function section to an external circuit. Specifically, the substrate has an aperture. The lens unit is disposed on one principal surface side of the aperture, and the image sensor IC is provided on the other principal surface side of the aperture. A light shielding film is provided on the other principal surface of the substrate, on which the image sensor IC is mounted, to cover the image sensor IC.
However, the imaging function section of the camera module in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-128072 has high strength because it has a structure in which multiple electronic components are mounted on both surfaces thereof. On the other hand, the imaging function section is coupled to the external circuit by the substrate, and a part having a function of coupling to the external circuit (an external wiring part) is formed only by the substrate. Hence, the strength of this part is lower than that of the imaging function section.
Therefore, when bending stress is imposed on the substrate, great stress is applied to a boundary position between the external wiring part and the imaging function section in the substrate. For this reason, the substrate may break from the boundary position. If such breakage occurs, outside light enters the imaging function section via a broken surface, and unnecessary light that does not pass through the lens unit is received by the image sensor IC.
Further, when a flexible substrate, such as a resin multilayer board, is adopted as the above-described external wiring part, the imaging function section and the external wiring part are combined by the flexible substrate while thickening the imaging function section and thinning the external wiring part.
In this case, if the external wiring part is curved by external force applied thereto, stress concentrates at the boundary between the imaging function section and the external wiring part, that is, at the boundary between portions having different thicknesses, and breakage is more apt to occur. If breakage occurs, outside light enters the imaging function section via a broken surface, and unnecessary light is received by the image sensor IC.
When a flexible substrate is used, a flexible substrate in which an imaging function section and an external wiring part are combined is formed by bonding a plurality of flexible material sheets (resin sheets) by heat and pressure. However, since the imaging function section and the external wiring part are different in thickness, bonding is sometimes not sufficient at the boundary position. Hence, the degree of adhesion between the material sheets, that is, between dielectric layers may decrease. If the degree of adhesion between the dielectric layers is low in this way, unnecessary light may pass through interfaces between the dielectric layers, and the unnecessary light may be received by the image sensor IC.


A compact and highly accurate A/D converter includes series-connected computation cells, the number of which is equal to the number for bits in an output signal. The first computation cell includes a first comparison unit for subtracting a reference current from a first input current to generate a first current, and a second comparison unit for subtracting a second input current from the reference current to generate a second current. The second computation cell includes first and second comparison units having the same configurations as those in the first computation cell. The computation cells of latter stages have the same configurations as the second computation cell. Current mirror circuits included in the first and second comparison units of each computation cell generate the first and second currents. Each computation cell outputs a current having an absolute value in accordance with one of the first and second currents.

The present invention relates to an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter for converting an analog input current into a digital value.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 8-79080 describes a current mode A/D converter for converting an analog input signal current into a digital value. The A/D converter has a hierarchical tree configuration that is formed by a plurality of current mirror circuits. An input signal current is distributed to a plurality of branched current paths in the A/D converter. As the input signal current propagates through the current paths, the input signal current is subjected to hierarchical computation including subtraction and addition using a reference current. The resulting current is finally compared with the reference current. As a result, the A/D converter outputs a digital value.


The invention provides a fluid controller for controlling a machine, e.g. for steering a vehicle. The controller comprises a housing defining an inlet port connected to the source and an outlet port connected to the pressure operated device. The flow rate is controlled by movement of a valve member within the housing, and a processor provides a reference which is indicative of a desired position of the valve member relative to the housing. The fluid controller comprises a fault detection system based on an observer. The observer calculates a theoretically correct position of the valve member relative to the housing for a given reference, and compares this position to an obtained position of the valve member relative to the housing. The difference between the positions is compared with a threshold value. In order to dynamically change the sensitivity of the system, the threshold value is scaled based on a gradient of the reference.

Machines such as vehicles or ships, and in particular off-highway machinery such as wheel loaders, excavators, dozers, tractors, harvesters and similar heavy duty machines often operate with hydraulic steering systems. In fluid controllers for steering a vehicle or a ship, the valve member, e.g. in the form of a spool, often forms a neutral configuration and two operating configurations on opposite sides of neutral, corresponding to a left-turn and a right turn of the vehicle. Similar fluid controllers are, however, also applied in machines of a completely different kind, e.g. for controlling lifting in a crane, movement of robots, or in general for controlling a machine.
Typically, the steering system receives a steering input from an operator of the machine who thereby indicates a desired activity of the machine, e.g. a desired angular movement of a steering wheel of a vehicle. The steering input could be provided by an operator via a handle such as a steering wheel, a joystick, a push button etc. In a fluid controller, the steering input is converted into a hydraulic flow to a pressure operated device, e.g. a hydraulic actuator or cylinder which moves the steering wheels of a vehicle. A fluid controller of the above mentioned kind is disclosed e.g. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,458 and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,638,864 wherein the controller is disclosed in combination with an unequal area steering cylinder. Typically, the fluid controllers comprise a housing with a valve member which is movable in the housing and which cooperates with the housing to open and close various passages between the source and ports of the pressure operated device and possibly between other ports of the pressure operated device and a receptacle for the fluid.
Typically, the steering input which is provided on the handle is converted into a reference which is indicative of a desired position of the valve member relative to the housing. Based on the reference, the valve member is moved in the housing, e.g. by use of an electrically or hydraulically operated actuator. Some of the existing fluid controllers comprise a sensor which provides an output indicative of an actual position of the valve member relative to the housing.
To detect faults in the system, an integrated observer may determine a theoretical model output which is indicative of a theoretically correct position of the valve member relative to the housing based on a specific reference. The observer may thereby provide a residual value which indicates a possible difference between the output as provided by the sensor and the model output determined from the reference and a model of the system.
By comparing the residual value with a threshold value, an alert can be provided when a specific reference does not lead to a desired position of the valve member relative to the housing. This situation may occur e.g. if movement of the valve member in the housing is restricted.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,766,230, U.S. Pat. No. 6,470,300 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,687,585 all disclose various fault detection systems and methods for vehicles, engines etc.
In the existing fluid controllers, a discrepancy exist between on the one hand to set the threshold value relatively close to zero thereby to detect a majority of the situations in which the valve member does not move in an intended way, and on the other hand, not to be alert unless there is an error which is significant.

Fluid controller and a method of detecting an error in a fluid controller


A shoe with replaceable shoe cartridges includes a shoe frame having a forefoot portion, a middle portion extending from the forefoot portion and a heel portion extending from the middle portion; a sole provided on the shoe frame; a forefoot sole cartridge removably engaging the sole at the forefoot portion of the shoe frame; and a heel sole cartridge removably engaging the sole at the heel portion of the shoe frame.

Over time, athletic shoes have evolved to forms which are specific to particular running or playing surfaces on which the shoe is intended to be used as well as to particular foot types. A person may possess various types of athletic shoes depending on particular sports the person plays or particular type or types of running surface on which the person runs. Many athletic shoes, particularly running shoes, are often discarded after a few months of use since the midsole and outer sole materials of such shoes have a tendency to break down early with continuous use. This leads to early failure of the shoe's ability to provide stability and shock absorption.
Therefore, a shoe with replaceable forefoot and heel sole cartridges is needed which prolongs the durability and usability of the shoe and which can be customized to a particular shoe type depending on the needs and desires of the wearer. Furthermore, one athletic shoe can be customized to a sport, foot type, or surface type.


A cutter for enlarging an incision made during laparoscopic surgery comprising an outer tube having an open end, a closed end, and two longitudinally extending opposing slots therein and an inner tube slidably disposed within the outer tube and having two handles extending through the slots in the outer tube. An elongated hollow blade sheath is connected to the inner tube and extends out of the opening of the outer tube. One longitudinal edge of the sheath is open and there is a cutout along the open side edge near the end of the sheath. There is an elongated blade connected to the outer tube and disposed within the blade sheath. The blade is shorter than the blade sheath and has a cutting edge along its short end. There is a compression spring connecting the inner tube to the blade, so that pulling the handles toward the closed end of the outer tube causes the blade sheath to retract and expose the blade in the cutout of the blade sheath. Releasing the handles causes the blade sheath to extend and cover the blade. The cutter allows for controlled and defined enlargement of a laparoscopic incision for removal of a gall bladder without rupturing the gall bladder.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a surgical cutter for use in laparoscopic surgery. In particular, the invention relates to a device for enlarging the incision made during laparoscopic surgery to allow for the removal of items larger than the incision, such as a gall bladder.
2. The Prior Art
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy, or gall bladder removal, is initiated by making a 10-12 mm incision just beneath the umbilicus. A video camera is then placed through this incision during the surgery. Upon completion of the operation, the gall bladder is removed through this 10-12 mm incision. When the gall bladder is very large or is swollen from inflammation, it cannot be removed from this incision and becomes lodged. This requires the placement of retractors for exposure, a clamp beneath the fascia and an incision over the clamp with a scalpel to enlarge the fascia. However, use of an ordinary surgeon's knife or scalpel to enlarge an endoscopic incision is not acceptable because of the hazard of making an incision of uncontrolled length and of the hazard of damaging the gall bladder.
A second technique used for an entrapped gall bladder is to open the gall bladder at the top portion protruding from the incision and empty the gall bladder until its contents are reduced to the point where the gall bladder is small enough to be withdrawn from the incision. However, this technique is undesirable because the gall bladder contents, including stones and bile, are at times spilled on the abdominal wall of the patient.
One type of device used to enlarge the incision to allow for passage of the entire gall bladder is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,667,519 to Ramsey. This device comprises a handle having a blade resting on a guide with a semicircular cross section. The guide fits along the cannula and guides the blade downward in a controlled manner.


A percussion detecting apparatus and an electronic percussion instrument, which are capable of not only providing excellent percussion feeling, but also visually indicating a percussion pattern of a beat applied to a percussion surface, so as to serve for percussion practice as well as to increase interest in the percussion practice. A head of the percussion detecting apparatus is formed of an air-permeable material and has a light transmitting property. The head includes a percussion surface. A drum shell supports the head. A head sensor detects a beat applied to the percussion surface of the head and outputs a beat signal indicative of the sensed beat. A light radiating part is disposed on an opposite side from the percussion surface of the head so as to perform visual indication corresponding to a percussion pattern of the beat applied to the percussion surface, at least through the percussion surface, based on the beat signal output from the head sensor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a percussion detecting apparatus that detects a beat signal for causing a drum device or the like to electronically generate a musical tone, according to a beat applied to a percussion surface, and an electronic percussion instrument.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an electronic percussion instrument, such as an electronic drum, generally has a percussion surface part formed by a rubber pad (see e.g. Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666). However, percussion feeling provided by the electronic percussion instrument is quite different from that provided by an acoustic percussion instrument.
On the other hand, there have also been proposed percussion detecting apparatuses having a percussion surface part formed of a mesh material (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354). These percussion detecting apparatuses provide percussion feeling closer to that obtained from an acoustic percussion instrument than the apparatus having a percussion surface part formed by a rubber pad. Further, the percussion detecting apparatuses are capable of reducing the tone volume of a percussion tone directly generated therefrom.
There is also known a percussion instrument using a percussion detecting apparatus and provided with a percussion pattern indicating function for informing a player of a percussion pattern including a beat position on a pad and beat intensity. For example, in the above-mentioned percussion instrument disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666, a plurality of LEDs are arranged in a fixed part below the percussion surface part, and a light transmitter is disposed on the rubber pad at a location above the LEDs (see FIGS. 6 and 7 in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-47666). When the rubber pad is beaten, the distance between a portion of the light transmitter close to the beat position and an LED corresponding to the portion of the light transmitter changes, which causes a change in the amount of light that can be visually recognized via the light transmitter. Thus, a percussion pattern is indicated.
This enables the player to recognize beat positions on the pad and beat intensities, which serves for practice for percussion performance, thereby helping the player to make rapid progress in performance. In addition, since musical performance is visually recognized, interest in the musical performance is increased, which makes the performance enjoyable.
If this percussion pattern indicating function could be provided in the above-mentioned percussion detecting apparatus whose percussion surface part is formed of a mesh material, it would be ideal from the viewpoint of percussion feeling and percussion sound.
However, in the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354, since the percussion surface part is formed of a mesh material, it is not easy to attach the light transmitter to the percussion surface part. Even if the light transmitter could be successfully attached to the mesh material, durability of the portion of the percussion surface part where the light transmitter was attached would be low, and there is a fear that percussion feeling and sensing might be adversely affected by changes in the pattern of vibration of the mesh material during application of percussion. For this reason, in actuality, it has been impossible even to think of proving the percussion pattern indicating function in the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354 which have the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material.
Further, even the percussion detecting apparatuses having the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material do not provide percussion feeling which perfectly matches that obtained from an acoustic percussion instrument, but tend to provide percussion feeling with slightly excessive resilience. Therefore, when the player having practiced at one of the percussion detecting apparatuses plays the acoustic percussion instrument, he/she inevitably feels a sense of incongruity, and hence the percussion detecting apparatuses disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications (Kokai) No. H10-20854 and No. H10-198354 leave room for improvement. Furthermore, these percussion detecting apparatuses having the percussion surface part formed of the mesh material must be formed into a drum shape, and are low in the degree of freedom of design.
Further, it can be envisaged that pleasure will be further increased if the percussion pattern indicating function can be utilized for controlling musical tone generation in accordance with percussion.

Percussion detecting apparatus and electronic percussion instrument


A shield for a ring metal is provided having arcuate band sections at the locations of the rings and intermediate sections therebetween, the intermediate sections having a straight segmental cross section having a lower overhead clearance between the shield and the hinged leaves than the band sections. The hinged leaves abut the intermediate section before tab members formed on said hinged leaves can abut an underside of the band sections, thus upward dents are prevented on the shield. Additionally, the straight segmental configuration of the intermediate sections provides increased resiliency for opening and holding closed the rings of the ring metal.

The present invention relates to a ring carrier or "ring metal" for holding pages to a spine of a ring binder. In particular, the invention relates to a ring metal having a flexible cover sheet with diversely shaped regions along its length.
In a conventional ring binder a plurality of openable circular rings are arranged along a length of a ring metal which itself is secured to a spine or side panel of the cover of the ring binder. The rings are attached at their base ends to a respective one of a pair of hinged leaves which conform to a cross sectional "V" shape. At a central intersection between the two hinged leaves the hinge leaves provide interlacing tabs which prevent the leaves from becoming separated. Syrrounding the hinged leaves and extending the length of the ring metal is a resilient arcuate cover portion or "shield" having hooked lateral edge portion which clamp the hinged leaves into either an upright V configuration when the rings are open or a downward V configuration when the rings are closed. The resilient clasping of the shield provides for a "snapping" between the ring open and ring closed positions. Additionally, this resiliency holds the rings in a closed condition during usage.
It is a problem in designing ring binders that the interlacing tabs associated with the V-shaped leaves can overextend upwardly and foul or dent the shield from beneath, especially if the rings are forcibly spread apart.
It is known in the prior art to provide on the shield, between the rings along the length of the shield, a dimple or a downward indentation which creates an upward displacement stop for the hinged leaves. This stop is sized to limit the upward movement of the V-shaped hinged leaves to that position which prevents contact of the tabs with the underside of the shield. Such a design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,552,478.
A re-enforced cover member having longitudinally arranged arcuate sections connected to, overlapping or blended into polygonal cross sections is not shown.