A valve having a housing, a flap rotatably arranged in the housing and connected to a drive shaft mounted in the housing, an electric motor for driving the drive shaft, having a gearing which has at least one toothed segment and which is arranged between the electric motor and the drive shaft, and a sensor, which has a magnet, for determining the angle of rotation of the flap. The toothed segment has at least two detent hooks that engage around the magnet. Furthermore, at least one spring element is provided which preloads the magnet against the detent hooks.

1. Field of the Invention
The object of the invention is a valve with a housing, a flap arranged rotatably in the housing and connected with a drive shaft mounted in the housing, an electric motor for driving the drive shaft, a gearing which has at least one toothed segment arranged between the electric motor and the drive shaft, and a sensor that has a magnet for determining the angle of rotation of the flap.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Such valves are used as throttle valves in motor vehicles and are well known. To determine an opening angle of the flap, it is necessary to determine an angle of rotation of the flap. For this, position sensors are used that work with magnets. For the arrangement of the magnets it is known to arrange them on the drive shaft for the flap or on a toothed segment of the gearing. In order to guarantee a play-free fixing of the magnet, even at high temperatures and with the vibrations present in the engine bay, it is known to attach the magnet by molding plastic onto a shaft or toothed segment around the magnet. For this, the magnet is laid in the injection mold for the shaft or toothed segment and then molded around with plastic to form the finished component. Such injection molds with the magnet as insert are particularly difficult to configure and are therefore cost-intensive.

Valve having a sensor to determine an angle of rotation of a valve flap


A floatable aeration apparatus having a flotation system, a work deck and an aerator. The aerator and the work deck are supported by the flotation system. The work deck is configured to support an operator for improved safety during maintenance procedures. In the preferred embodiment, the floatable aeration apparatus further includes a receptacle for supporting a portable crane.

The present invention relates to an improved floatable aeration apparatus. More particularly, it relates to a float mounted aerator having a work deck for providing increased maintenance worker safety.
Aeration is a widely used technique for treating, oxidizing and/or mixing a variety of fluids. For example, municipal water treatment plants, paper mills and drainage ponds all utilize aeration to continuously oxygenate and treat waste water. These facilities normally maintain extremely large volumes of waste water, which often contains sludge or other odor producing materials. Aeration has proven to be highly successful at these and other applications in eliminating odors, maintaining fluid content disbursement and providing aerobic sludge.
Aeration or fluid mixing can be accomplished with different devices. These include forced air pumps and independent mixers. With waste water applications, however, the fluid to be aerated is maintained within one or more basins having large volume capacities, ranging from thousands to millions of gallons. Due to this large size, an aerator which can easily be moved to various locations within the basin is optimal. Float mounted aerators are designed to meet the aerating needs presented by large scale waste water holding basins.
A float mounted aerator basically includes a flotation system, including a pair of floats or pontoons, which supports an aerator. The aerator itself includes a motor coupled to a shaft which rotates a propeller which has an open hub. During use, the flotation system maintains the motor and a top end of the shaft above the waste water surface while a lower end, including the propeller, is below the waste water surface. An off site power supply powers the motor that in turn rotates the shaft and the propeller. As the propeller rotates, air is drawn into an air intake in the shaft and forced into the waste water from the open propeller hub. Alternatively, recent improvements to float mounted aerators include a directional tube surrounding a solid shaft. Rotation of the propeller draws air into an air intake in the directional tube and injects it through the open hub of the propeller, which is in communication with the directional tube, and into the waste water. With either approach, rotation of the propeller imparts a mixing action into the waste water. Because the aerator is float mounted, it can easily be maneuvered to different locations within the basin.
Float mounted aerators have proven to be quite successful in maintaining and/or restoring the sludge dispersion and overall quality of waste water. However, maintenance of the float mounted aerator, which most often takes place while the device is floating in the waste water, presents significant safety concerns. Normally, the aerator is mounted between two cylindrical pontoons in a pivoting fashion. With this design, the propeller and the lower end of the shaft are serviced by pivoting the aerator such that the propeller is lifted out of the waste water. To accomplish this, a maintenance worker is forced to either lean out of a boat to service the aerator, or attempt to balance on one of the rounded, slippery pontoons. Either approach is dangerous. For example, the maintenance worker may lean too far from the boat and consequently fall. Alternatively, because the pontoons are normally quite slippery, a maintenance worker faces the distinct possibility of slipping off.
Float mounted aerators are highly useful devices. However, maintenance of the float mounted aerator presents prominent safety concerns. Therefore, a need exists for a floatable aeration apparatus having a work deck for improved maintenance worker safety.

Float mounted aerator having a work deck


A current controller includes a first MOSFET of P type connected at a drain to a first node, at a gate to the input terminal and at a source to a power supply, a second MOSFET of N type connected at a drain to the first node via a first resistor, at a gate to the input terminal and at a source to ground, a third MOSFET of N type connected at a drain to the output terminal, at a gate to the first node via a second resistor and at a source to ground, and a capacitor connected between the gate of the third MOSFET and the power supply. The first and second resistors and the capacitor are set so that the maximum changing rates of rising and falling currents supplied from the output terminal through the third MOSFET are equalized. Therefore, levels of low level data are equalized between the positive and negative sides.

A tape recorder includes a magnetic head, a switch connected to a power supply for applying a predetermined voltage to the magnetic head, and a current control circuit for controlling the amount of current flowing through the magnetic head.
The current control circuit includes a p-MOSFET connected at a drain to a first node, at a gate to an input terminal and at a source to a power supply, an n-MOSFET connected at a drain to the first node, at a gate to the input terminal and at a source to ground, an n-MOSFET connected at a drain to an output terminal, at a gate to a second node and at a source to ground, a resistor connected between the first node and the second node, and a capacitor connected between the second node and ground.
In operation, when the switch is turned on or off, current flowing through the magnetic head is rapidly changed to be increased or decreased between zero level and the maximum level, so that the magnetic field change occurs in the magnetic head to record the change into a magnetic tape. On the other hand, the current is gradually changed to be increased or decreased between the maximum level and zero level by controlling of the current controller, so that magnetic data is recorded from the magnetic head into the magnetic tape. That is, digital data having a level corresponding to a changing rate of the current flowing through the magnetic head is recorded on the magnetic tape.
In a reproducing mode, a reproducing circuit has positive and negative threshold levels for detecting a recorded data. The positive and negative threshold levels are set to be intermediate values between high level data and low level data on the positive and negative sides, respectively. The magnetic head detects the magnetic data of the magnetic tape which is then compared with the threshold levels in the reproducing circuit.
According to the conventional current control circuit, however there are disadvantages in that the threshold levels of the magnetic data reproduction are different between the positive and negative sides, because the absolute values of the low level data are different between the positive and negative sides because the changing rates of currents flowing through the magnetic head are different between the positive and negative sides due to a circuit structure of the current controller. This will be explained in more detail later. Therefore, noise margins become different between the positive and negative sides, so that operation of the magnetic data reproduction is unstable. Further, the reproducing circuit must be provided with two different detectors each having a different threshold level for detecting a corresponding side of positive and negative levels, so that the structure of the reproducing circuit including the magnetic head becomes complicated.
Otherwise, it is possible that the threshold levels of the magnetic head are set to be the same level, if a resistance of a resistor and a capacitance of a capacitor are set to be sufficiently high in the current controller to equalize the current changing rates on the positive and negative sides. However, a large space is necessary for the large resistor and the large capacitor, so that the current control circuit is difficult to be fabricated compactly.


Apparatus and Method for an intelligent, optimizing, pro-active process controller for use in all types of product processing systems are disclosed. The disclosed controller and its associated apparatus uniquely develop and dynamically optimize their process control capabilities through measuring, monitoring and analyzing product and product container attributes and performance while quantifying variability and can thus pro-actively track, trace and control overall processing performance down to an individual unit of production thereby optimizing product processing times, increasing capacity, improving product quality and reducing variability while enhancing treatment flexibility and food treatment safety in all types of food and drink processing systems, with particular reference to continuous food and drink processing systems.

There are three main processes for the large-scale processing of food. Aseptic processing heats essentially fluid food and drink products to a suitable pasteurization temperature and then deposits them into suitably sterilized containers within an essentially aseptic environment.
Retorting uses the combination of heat and pressure to pasteurize or sterilize a food product essentially sealed within its container. The most common form of retorting is batch retorting where fixed quantities (by weight, size or volume) of product are processed under essentially identical process conditions within a static, usually single, processing vessel. A more recent variant, continuous retorting, moves batches of product through a series of vessels or chambers, each having as a series of set processing parameters.
Hydrostatic sterilizers undertake a similar process to continuous retorting but the product is passively moved through a static processing system comprised of several towers or chambers, each having a specific set of processing parameters which in combination achieve the necessary sterilization of the product and its container. Unlike retorting, the product moves individually and continuously through the chambers, not in batches.
There are many variants of these general processes such as the different methods of moving the product through the system, e.g. using product carriers attached to chain drives as in the Stork™ Hydrostat® or a helical rotation of the product through a processing vessel as in the FMC continuous Rotary® system.
While such processing systems are generally applied to larger-volume product requiring sterilization or pasteurization, many other products only require to be stabilized for improved shelf-life. Such treatment usually requires the inactivation of product components such as enzymes, oxidants or spoilage micro-organisms, which, if left untreated, would eventually lead to product spoilage. Typical examples are fresh fruits and vegetables to be converted to a form suitable for frozen or refrigerated storage, or processed products, such as ready meals, for chilled storage.
However, no matter which process is used or which products the process treats, to achieve the necessary processing state, i.e. sterilized, pasteurized or stabilized, the product must be subjected to a defined time-temperature-pressure treatment sufficient to ensure that every part of the product receives, at least, the minimum amount of energy to achieve a necessary minimum level of total micro-organism and/or enzyme lethality. Total lethality targets are usually defined by the appropriate regulatory bodies such as USDA and FDA in the USA and Food Standards Authorities in the European Union.
During any processing operation, there is almost always one location within the food container that for physical, and/or chemical and/or biochemical reasons is the last to reach the required temperature and therefore the last to be effectively processed. This is usually defined as the product 'cold spot'. The Lethality target is directed at this location as it is assumed that this location is, from a product safety perspective, the least safe within the product. However, there are several obvious problems with such an assumption.
Firstly, it assumes that the product within the container displays minimal variation with regard to process performance. It is well-known, not only to those skilled in the art, but also anyone who has been involved with almost any aspect of food and drink product manufacture that there is tremendous variation in the composition and physical properties of the same item, even when produced ostensively from identical raw materials under similar conditions. The greater the complexity of the product, the greater the potential for such variation. Liquid-only products show the smallest variation, multiple component solid/liquid products show the greatest.
Such variation is acknowledged by food regulatory authorities and flexibility within labeling regulations reflect this. Products labels have to show a total composition, with its total composition broken down to a % content of major components such as protein, fat, carbohydrate, etc. In many instances, while major components such as meat in meat products and sugar content in jams, etc., have to show a % content, the figures quoted only need to be 'typical averages'. Additionally, the regulations allow 20%-25% overstatement of protein content and a similar understatement in fat, sugar and moisture content. While this variability has a significant effect on nutritional quality, it can have a major influence on heat transfer properties, and thus product processing requirements.
A further basic labeling requirement is the statement of 'net weight', i.e. the weight of product after the product container is accounted for. Manufacturers generally overcome variations in weight by adopting a 'minimum weight' or a deliberate 'giveaway' approach, whereby only underweight product/container combinations are ejected. A recent study by Conway et al (2004) showed that more than 60% of a large sample of food items were out of compliance with their stated label contents and more than 15% were significantly out of compliance with their stated total weights. Both sources of variation can have a significant effect on processing performance, particularly the minimum lethal heat requirement and thus the safety of the processed food.
Secondly, in designing a processing methodology, it is also assumed that all parts of the process perform with equal and reproducible performance. It also known by those skilled in the art that few if any food processing systems have homogeneity of performance either within or between batches of product or between or within process segments.
Between batches variation can be due to a range of conditions including, but not limited to, product storage temperature and/or length of storage time prior to processing, product processing conditions, especially temperature range and variation, raw material compositional variation, raw material physical and chemical property variation, product weights, container weights, variation in dead-space volume, container compositional variation, especially liquid to solid ratio, stacking and packing configuration variation between batches, product temperature entering the processing system, product temperature leaving the processing system, storage time-temperature conditions following processing, etc. Additional variability in external, environmental and within process conditions will also contribute to between batch variability.
Variations within batch variation can be due to a range of conditions including, but not limited to all those previously described for between batch variation but also variation in processing conditions within the process system. Because few, if any of these variations will show up in conventional process monitoring, providing the input energy availability meets minimum requirements, there is often little indication that anything is wrong with the finished product as the process appears to be functioning as predicted and anticipated.
Thirdly, in addition to the variability of system performance, product composition and homogeneity, there is the rate of energy transfer and the variability of that energy transfer rate. We have shown (U.S. Patent Application 61/488,220, hereinafter incorporated by reference) that many physical factors affect the rate at which thermal energy is transferred from an outside energy source into the container while different factors affect the rate at which this thermal energy is transferred through the foodstuff and between the individual components comprising the foodstuff. We have also shown that various actions can be taken before, during and after processing which will both enhance the rate of transfer and improve the uniformity of its distribution.
Similarly, we have also shown (U.S. Patent Application 61/478,190, hereinafter incorporated by reference) that applying a range of physical actions to the container before, during and after processing can also enhance the efficiency of thermal transfer and its uniformity of distribution.
A typical example of how a process controller for a continuous Hydrostatic system measures, monitors and controls the process is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,440,361 to Weng who also details many of the advances and variants of finite element analysis models that are used to produce predictive processing algorithms.
In summary, this and virtually all such similar programs rely on sensor measurement of water temperatures at various locations within the processing system, water levels, conveyor speeds, etc. Weng also states that the predictive process temperature profile is based on a measurement of the initial product temperature. Unfortunately, he does not disclose how that can be achieved, especially if the product is already in a sealed container such as a can, jar or bottle. Nor does he mention how variations of initial product temperature within a batch can be identified or measured or can be accommodated within a continuous processing program. In all process controllers based on predictive processing algorithms, actual measurements are compared with the predictive program measurements and deviations identified.
Within a continuous sterilization system, there is very little opportunity to modify any of the processing parameters with the exception of dwell time. In practice, any under-processed containers can only be assured sufficient processing if the faulty product is identified before or within the sterilization chamber/tower as this is the only part of the process that actually reaches sterilization temperatures. If not identified in time then all product prior to and up to the point of identification has to considered suspect and either ejected or reprocessed which significantly enhances the likelihood of excessive over-processing and thus poorer quality. It also adds considerable additional cost.
Similarly, if under-processed product is identified in time and the conveyor speeds adjusted to ensure sufficient dwell time then because of the volumes of product these continuous systems process (often 400-600 units per minute), a very significant volume of 'normally processed' product will also become significantly over-processed.
All of the foregoing clearly show that current process controllers rely almost exclusively on the measurement and control of the processing parameters of the system and identify only when processing conditions actually or are likely to fail to meet minimum processing requirements. None measure any product variation in individual containers nor variations in energy transfer and none are able to modify processing conditions without over-processing 'normal' product. While such predictive process control algorithms ensure all product meets minimal sterilization requirements, it can only be done at the expense of significantly over-processing the majority of product.
We have found that it is impossible to both control product quality and achieve the most time-, quality- and cost-effective product processing without measuring and monitoring physical and chemical product variation on an individual container basis.
The technology and methods detailed in this patent application provide a unique and novel approach to resolving most, if not all such issues and problems and we will now detail the individual embodiments that comprise the solutions.

Apparatus and method for optimizing and controlling food processing system performance

Abstract: REFERENCES CITEDUS patents4,067,691January 1978McGady et al4,739,699April 1988Nelson et al4,816,269March 1989Nelson et al5,696,686December 1997Sanka et al5,872,359February 1999Stewart et al6,025,189February 2000Bolea et al6,148,249July 1996Newman6,416,711July 2002Weng6,440,361August 2002Weng6,472,008October 2002Wengpatent application 11/620,238July 2007Sandspatent application 11/883,740November 2007Mackay et alpatent application 12/231,211August 2008Olsen et alpatent application 61/079,185March 2009Newmanpatent application 61/182,696May 2009Newmanpatent application 61/478,190April 2011Newmanpatent application 61/488,220May 2011NewmanForeign PatentsEP0362975A2October 1989AckermannEP0808631A1November 1997HuckerGB 2285126December 1993NewmanWO0221928A1March 2002Tottenham et atWO0237975A2May 2002NilesWO9807452A1February 1998Walker


A loudspeaker comprises a diaphragm, an edge operable to support, on a frame, the diaphragm in such a manner that enables vibration thereof, and a voice coil operable to generate a driving force. The voice coil is of an approximate rectangular shape, and a length of a long axis direction of the voice coil is no less than 60% of a length of a long axis direction of the diaphragm. Positions of long sides of the voice coil to be fixed on the diaphragm are positions corresponding to nodes of a primary resonance mode in a short axis direction of the diaphragm, or in the respective vicinities thereof. Accordingly, it is possible to realize a high sound quality loudspeaker having a narrow width (elongated structure), but not easily causing resonance, thereby obtaining a flat frequency characteristic.

In recent years, a horizontally long television screen is becoming popular due to spread of so-called high definition and wide vision televisions. On the other hand, in consideration of Japanese housing circumstances, a television set which is narrow in width and thin in depth on the whole is desired.
A loudspeaker device (hereinafter referred to as loudspeaker) for the television set is usually mounted on both sides of a CRT display, which results in an increase in width of the TV set. Therefore, the loudspeaker having an elongated structure such as a square type, an elliptic type and the like has traditionally been used for the television set. Further, since the CRT display is lengthened horizontally, the width of the loudspeaker requires to be further narrowed down. Further, high quality in sound comparable to a high-quality screen is required to the loudspeaker. Furthermore, since a thin-screen television using a plasma display or an LCD display is becoming popular, thinning of the loudspeaker is further required.
Here, a conventional elongated (slim type) loudspeaker will be described with reference to a diagram. FIG. 21 is a diagram showing a structure of the conventional slim type loudspeaker. FIG. 21(a) is a plan view of the conventional slim type loudspeaker, FIG. 21(b) is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal direction (c-c′) of the conventional slim type loudspeaker, and FIG. 21(c) is the cross-sectional view of a short axis direction (o-o′) thereof. The slim type loudspeaker shown in FIG. 21 comprises a magnet 101, a plate 102, a yoke 103, a frame 104, a voice coil bobbin 105, a voice coil 106, a suspension 107, a diaphragm 109, a dust cap 110, and an edge 111.
The voice coil 106 is a winding of a conductor such as copper and aluminum, and is firmly fixed to the voice coil bobbin 105 having a tubular shape. The voice coil bobbin 105 is connected to the frame 104 via the suspension 107. The voice coil bobbin 105 supports the voice coil 106 such that the voice coil bobbin 105 hangs the voice coil 106 in a magnetic gap 108 comprised of the magnet 101, the plate 102, and the yoke 103. The voice coil bobbin 105 is fixed to the diaphragm 109, having an ellipse or an approximate ellipse shape, on a side opposite to a side which the voice coil 106 is firmly fixed to. The dust cap 110, having an approximate semicircle shape cross-sectional surface, is firmly fixed on a central portion of the diaphragm 109. The edge 111 is of a ring shape, and has a semicircle shape cross-sectional surface, and an inner circumference of the edge 111 is firmly fixed to an outer circumference of the diaphragm 109. An outer circumference of the edge 111 is fixed to the frame 104.
In the case where the loudspeaker shown in FIG. 21 is driven, an electric current is applied to the voice coil 106. With a driving current applied to the voice coil and a magnetic field around the voice coil 106, the voice coil bobbin 105 performs a piston motion, the diaphragm 109 vibrates in a direction of the piston motion. As a result, a sound wave is radiated from the diaphragm 109. Note that the loudspeaker shown in FIG. 21 is described in, for example, Patent Document 1. FIG. 22 is a diagram showing a frequency characteristic with respect to a reproduced sound pressure level of the loudspeaker described in Patent Document 1. In FIG. 22, a vertical axis indicates the reproduced sound pressure level when 1 W of electric power is inputted to the loudspeaker, and a horizontal axis indicates a driving frequency. Note that a microphone to measure the reproduced sound pressure level is on a central axis of the loudspeaker and is located at a position 1 [m] away from the loudspeaker toward the front side thereof.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. H7-298389


An aerodynamic lens, comprises a cylindrical body having an inlet and an outlet; and a convergence-divergence lens portion inside the cylindrical body, having a lens hole formed at the center of the convergence-divergence lens portion, through which a carrier gas and particles pass, a convergence slant surface at a convergence angle (α) with a central axis of the aerodynamic lens at the front of the lens hole, and a divergence slant surface at a divergence angle (β) with the central axis of the aerodynamic lens at the rear of the lens hole.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an aerodynamic lens, and more particularly to an improved aerodynamic lens capable of effectively focusing fine nano particles having a size of 5˜50 nm in air.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, an aerodynamic lens focuses particles floating in the atmosphere so as to make a particle beam, and it is adopted as an inlet of a device such as a single-particle mass spectrometer (SPMS).
As well known, the single-particle mass spectrometer analyzes chemical composition and size of a single aerosol particle.
The aerodynamic lens is used in an in-situ particle monitor (ISPM) which is able to measure particles in a vacuum in real time using light scattering of particles in order to control the pollutant in a workplace so as to enhance a production efficiency of semiconductors.
Also, the aerodynamic lens is used to project a particle beam to a target so as to deposit an article of micro-nano scale.
The conventional aerodynamic lens, as shown in FIG. 1, includes a plurality of orifices 1 arranged in a row to thereby focus aerosol particles into a beam.
However, the conventional aerodynamic lens is limited to focus particles only having a size of more than 50 nm and hundreds of nano meters.
In order to solve the above problem, Wang and his colleagues have suggested a method of focusing particles having a size of 3˜30 nm using gases of low density such as helium (He). [Wang, X., Kruis, F. E. and McMury, P. H., 2005a, "Aerodynamic Focusing of Nanoparticles: I. Guidelines for designing Aerodynamic Lenses for Nanoparticles," Aerosol Sci. Techno., Vol. 39, pp. 611-623]
However, since the aerodynamic lens seeks for analysis of aerosol particles in atmosphere, introduction of helium to the system is not preferable. In addition, the size of the focused beam is more than 2 mm which is not suitable for analysis of particles. Also, the single-particle mass spectrometer should have a very complicated configuration to handle helium.
Another problem of the conventional aerodynamic lens is that it involves serious vortex. In FIG. 2, (a) illustrates a simulation of flow in case that the flow rate of He is 100 sccm and the inner diameter of the orifice (see 1 of FIG. 1) is 1.3 mm. As shown in the drawing, a vortex is generated behind the orifice, which prevents uniform focusing of particles.
In FIG. 2, (b) shows the stream of gas flow wherein helium is replaced with air as a carrier gas. In this case, the vortex behind the orifice is severer

Pusan National University Industry-University Cooperation Foundation


A wafer testing process of a semiconductor device provided with a redundancy circuit. The process comprises a step of removing a passivation film above a pad and link portion, pre-laser testing, laser-repairing, and final quality marking using an off-line inking method. Therefore, fabrication-test processes are simplified to one step by adopting the off-line inking method, thereby achieving productivity improvement, quality enhancement, and reduction of throughput time.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of a semiconductor memory device, and more particularly to a simplified wafer quality testing and repairing process of a semiconductor memory device achieving higher productivity of memory devices such as DRAMs, SRAMs, etc., which have a redundancy circuit.
2. Description of the Related Art
The current increasing integration trend of memory devices allows shortening of the distance between lines, so defects tend to increase throughout the manufacturing process, which seriously reduces yields. Therefore, semiconductor manufacturers have adopted a redundancy technique for achieving higher productivity by restraining the yield decrease which may result from processing deficiencies. The redundancy technique replaces a slightly defective circuit resulting from poor processing with a reserve circuit in repairable chips.
For example, in a semiconductor memory circuit, quality enhancement is achieved by integrating into chips reserve blocks of reserve rows and columns, and replacing the row or column of a block containing a faulty bit of a regular cell array with a reserve row/column block. This redundancy technique is very effective in DRAMs and SRAMs in which cells of identical function are arranged. To replace a faulty row or column of a memory device having a faulty bit with a fully functional row or column, a program device and method for deactivating the faulty row/column and activating the reserve one is required. The best-known redundancy program device and method therefor is a fuse composed of polysilicon resistors, and the like, and an electrical fuse method for electrically blowing the fuse. Another redundancy device and method therefor is a link of polysilicon, polycide, etc., and a laser beam method for cutting off this link by applying the laser beam.
The electrical fuse method requires a transistor for high current driving, control circuits and a special pad for supplying current, etc., for cutting off the fuse, to be integrated onto the chips. The required inclusion of the circuits needed to cut the fuse is disadvantageous because they occupy too much chip area, and significantly delay program access time. However, the electrical fuse method is advantageous because testing and repairing equipment are inexpensive and high reliability is achievable by protecting the fuse portion with a protective film.
The laser beam method is very expensive because the initial cost of the testing and repairing equipment is very high, and high throughput is required to stabilize the laser beam and to determine the exact position of the laser beam. However, the laser beam method is advantageous, for the redundancy circuit design is easy and a plurality of links can be arranged in a very small area in the chip economically utilizing the chip area. Accordingly, due to the current ultra-minimization and high integration trends of semiconductor memory devices, the laser beam method is becoming more prevalent.
The wafer testing process of the laser beam method comprises a pre-laser testing step, a laser repairing step, and a final quality classifying step. To shorten the test time while maintaining the device's characteristics and quality, a method has been adopted by which a circuit with enough flexibility for designing and processing is to be searched and the test item with no defect is to be skipped. However, defective chips can be include in the skipped items which can be caused by process variables shifting frequently thereby inevitably reducing the yield in the subsequent package testing process.
Consequently, a new method is desired to enable the final quality classifying step to be skipped, while increasing the package yield in the wafer testing process of a redundancy memory product.

Wafer testing process of a semiconductor device comprising a redundancy circuit


A device 10 for positioning a bumper post 12 adjacent to a structure 14 to guard against a moving vehicle engaging the structure 14. The device 10 includes joined wall 16 and wall angle members 36 and 38 for engaging the structure 14, joined post channels and post angle members 78 and 86 for engaging the bumper post 12, and adjustably joining the wall member 16 and post channels 78 to predetermined settings corresponding to a predetermined distance that the bumper post 12 is positioned from the structure 14.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices used to position posts and, more particularly, to a device for positioning bumper posts adjacent to a structure thereby protecting the structure from being "bumped" by moving vehicles.
2. Background of the Prior Art
Bumper posts used to protect structures from being hit by moving vehicle are well known. Generally, those posts are positioned by first measuring a distance from a structure to be protected, digging a hole to receive a concrete footing in which a bottom portion of the post is secured, and at the same time, vertically aligning the post so as to make the post plumb. The problem with this method of installing bumper posts is that it requires several persons plus bracing to maintain a vertical position and prevent movement when concrete is poured about the bottom of post for anchoring thereby making the method slow and expensive. Further, even with the bracing and personnel, the bumper post may move enough to require the post to be realigned which would be much more difficult once the concrete has been poured around the post's base making the installation process even more expensive and time consuming.
The problem with the above installation method is that it does not utilize adjacent structures to secure and align the bumper post which would reduce the time and manpower required to position the bumper guard. A need exists in the art for an inexpensive, quick set-up device for installing bumper posts positioned adjacent to fixed structures.


A polymer matrix composite comprises a matrix of a cured methylsilsesquioxane resin and a reinforcing material. The composite has low heat release rate, smoke yield, and carbon monoxide yield when burned. After burning, the composite has high char yield and retains much of its initial tensile strength. The method for making the composite comprises applying a silanol-functional methylsilsesquioxane resin comprising 70 to 90 mol % ((CH.sub.3)SiO.sub.3/2) units and 10 to 25 mol % (CH.sub.3 Si(OH)0.sub.2/2) units to a reinforcing material and curing the resin.

Polymer matrix composites containing organic resins and reinforcing materials are known in the art for fire resistance applications. For example, Kim et al. Thermal and Flammability Properties ofPoly(p-phenylene-benzobisoxazole), Journal of Fire Sciences, vol. 11, pp. 296-307, 1993 disclose a composite of poly(p-phenylene-benzobisoxazole) (PBO) and carbon fibers. The composite had peak heat release rates of 0 under a heat flux of 50 kW/sq. m; 100 under a heat flux of 75 kW/sq. m; and 153 under a heat flux of 100 kW/sq. m. However, PBO begins to thermally decompose at 660.degree. C.
Sastri et al. Flammability Characteristics ofPhthalonitrile Composites, 42.sup.42 nd International SAMPE Symposium pp. 1032-1038, 1997 disclose a composite comprising phthalonitrile polymer reinforced with glass fabric. The composite has a peak heat release rate of 106 kW/sq. m when exposed to 100 kW/sq. m heat flux. However, char yield of the phthalonitrile resins was 65 to 70 wt % upon pyrolysis to 1000.degree. C.
When composites with silicone resins burn, they typically have a lower heat release rate and lower yields of carbon monoxide, and smoke than composites made with organic polymers.
For example, in Development of Silicone Resins for use in Fabricating Low Flammability Composite Materials, Proc. 42 Int. SAMPE, vol. 42, page 1355, 1997; Chao et al. disclose silicone resins comprised of the units PhSiO.sub.3/2 and ViMe.sub.2 SiO.sub.1/2 or MeSiO.sub.1/2 and ViMe.sub.2 SiO.sub.1/2 (where Ph represents a phenyl group, Vi represents a vinyl group, and Me represents a methyl group). Composites made from these resins and various fillers had lower smoke and carbon monoxide yields as compared to composites made with organic resins. However, these composites still had unacceptably high peak heat release rates (up to 150 kW/sq. m) when exposed to an incident heat flux of 50 kW/sq. m.
Russian Patent SU1941629 assigned to Vargina R A discloses a carbon fiber reinforced press molding obtained from a polymethylsilsesquioxane, polydimethyl methyl phenyl siloxane, and a hydride catalyst. The molding resists thermal oxidation and has good physico-mechanical properties.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,552,466 issued on Sep. 3, 1996, to Beckley et al. discloses a silicone composite with high temperature resistance. The composite is made from a blend of at least one silsesquioxane polymer with a viscosity of at least 500,000 mPa s at 25.degree. C. and at least one polydiorganosiloxane component with a viscosity of 10 to 1,000 mPa s at 25.degree. C. However, no composites are known in the art using the unblended methylsilsesquioxane resin as the matrix.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a polymer matrix composite with a methylsilsesquioxane resin that has high char yield and retains much of its mechanical strength after burning. Another object of this invention is to provide a method for fabricating the composite.

Silicone resin composites for fire resistance applications and method for fabricating same


A half region of an end face of an optical fiber is cut at an angle of 45° to form a reflecting surface. A light-emitting element is arranged so as to face the end face of the optical fiber. A photoreceptor element is arranged beside the optical fiber with the element facing the reflecting surface. Transmitting light that has been emitted from the light-emitting element enters the end face of the optical fiber and passes through this optical fiber. Further, received light, which has been passed through the optical fiber is reflected by the reflecting surface and emitted from the side of the optical fiber, and then it enters the photoreceptor element. This allows the transmitting light and the received light to be separated from each other without using any optical component.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical communication module and a connector equipped with this optical communication module. More specifically, it relates to an optical communication module for single-core bi-directional communication and the like.
2. Description of Related Art
FIG. 1 is an explanatory illustration of an outlined configuration of an optical communication system for performing single-core bi-directional optical-fiber communication. This optical communication system 100 has such a configuration that optical communication modules 101 wherein each module is equipped with a light-emitting element and a photoreceptor element, are connected to each other by one optical fiber 102. When data is transmitted from one of the optical communication modules 101A to the other optical communication module 101B, the light-emitting element of the optical communication module 101A emits transmitting light. The transmitting light emitted from the light-emitting element of the optical communication module 101A is transferred through the optical fiber 102 and then, the photoreceptor element of the other optical module 101B receives it.
When data is transmitted from the other optical communication module 101B to the one optical communication module 101A, the light-emitting element of the optical communication module 101B emits transmitting light. The transmitting light emitted from the light-emitting element of the optical communication module 101B is transferred through the optical fiber 102, which is also used to transmit data from the optical communication module 101A, and then, the photoreceptor element of the other optical module 101A receives it.
Such a technology is referred to as "single-core bi-directional communication" as to thus use the same optical fiber 102 both in a case where data is transmitted from the one optical communication module 101A and received by the other optical communication module 101B and in a case where data is transmitted from the other optical communication module 101B and received by the one optical communication module 101A. In particular, a technology for performing transmission and reception simultaneously is referred to as "single-core bi-directional full-duplex communication".
It is to be noted that the optical communication module 101 for performing the single-core bi-directional communication needs to have a configuration to separate the transmitting light and the received light from each other. Conventionally, such a system is mainly used as to separate a polarized light peculiar to reflected light of the transmitting light using a beam splitter in order to separate the transmitting light and the received light from each other.
However, since the beam splitter is an expensive optical component, it is difficult to reduce costs of the communication module. Therefore, such a configuration has been suggested as to separate the transmitting light and the received light from each other using a reflecting mirror (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-242354).
FIG. 2 is an outlined side view for showing a configuration of such a conventional optical communication module. A light-emitting element 103 is arranged along an optical axis of the optical fiber 102. Between this light-emitting element 103 and an end face of the optical fiber 102, a reflecting mirror 104 is arranged which has a transmission factor of about 50% and a reflection coefficient of about 50%. A photoreceptor element 105 is provided along a path of light reflected by the reflecting mirror 104.
In this configuration, transmitting light from the light-emitting element 103 passes through the reflecting mirror 104 and is made incident upon the optical fiber 102. Received light that has been emitted from the optical fiber 102, on the other hand, is reflected by the reflecting mirror 104 and made incident upon the photoreceptor element 105.
However, even if the configuration utilizes a reflecting mirror, it is difficult to miniaturize the optical communication module. In a case where use of an optical communication module for domestic appliances is premised, the module is required not only to be low in costs but also to be small in size. However, it is difficult to reduce costs and sizes of such a configuration as to use an optical component in order to separate optical paths, which has been a problem.

Optical communication module and connector


In order to adhesively bond two ferrite pieces to one another and obtain an adhesive film with a thickness of less than 100 .mu.m, use is made of an anaerobic adhesive based on a methacrylate monomer. The quality of the adhesive bonding is greatly improved if, according to the invention, a metal deposit, for example of copper, is produced on one of the faces to be adhesively bonded. In the preferred embodiment, the deposit is obtained by rubbing the face to be adhesively bonded onto a copper block.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of processes for assembling porous materials by adhesive bonding using adhesives. It is in particular applicable to cores for coils or transformers, for example for electrical power supplies of equipment installed onboard an aircraft or satellite, the cores of which are made of ferrite. As is known, these cores are intended to increase the local magnetic permeability in the vicinity of the windings, typically of coils or transformers.
2. Discussion of the Background
One example of a ferrite former used for such embodiments is represented by way of indication in FIG. 1. This figure represents a perspective half-view.
The ferrite piece 1 represented in FIG. 1 includes, around an axis XX' of revolution, a central core 2 of cylindrical shape and a peripheral ring 3, concentric with the central core. The peripheral ring includes two openings 4, 5, intended to make it possible for the wires constituting a winding (not shown) to be passed through. The central core 2 and the peripheral ring 3 are joined by a base 6. A hollow space 7, between the central core and the peripheral ring, allows the winding to be inserted. When the winding is in place, a second ferrite piece, which is symmetrical with the piece represented in FIG. 1, with respect to a plane perpendicular to XX', is placed against this piece represented. The magnetic circuit of the winding is then complete and closed.
One currently known process for joining the two ferrites, and thus assembling what is referred to as the "pot", is a process by adhesive bonding using an epoxy resin, for example araldite (registered trade mark of CIBA GEIGY).
A bead of adhesive is deposited between the two pieces, at the external periphery of the peripheral ring.
Such a process is generally satisfactory both from the electrical point of view, since the air gap is fairly small, and from the mechanical point of view, since assembly is solid and reliably produced.
Such assembly does, however, have two major drawbacks. On the one hand, it requires the use of a resin and a hardener, which implies prior preparation, and on the other hand it results in the presence of a peripheral assembly bead. This bead constitutes a protuberance which increases the overall diameter of the pot. This increases the size required for the pot insertion, which overall increases the volume and therefore the weight of the circuits into which the pots are then incorporated.
In order to reduce the size of these pots, the Applicant Company has envisaged replacing the external epoxy resin bonding bead by adhesively bonding the faces of the two parts of the pot to be assembled.
It was not possible to use epoxy resins, for example, for this adhesive bonding because the films deposited are too thick and produce air gaps which are too large, in excess of 150 .mu.m, which impairs the electrical properties of the circuit.

Process for the adhesive bonding of ferrite pieces


An adjustable camshaft system for an automotive engine includes a camshaft having machined and fabricated axially-directed control passages combined with an oil-activated camshaft phaser. The fabricated oil control passages are formed within a portion of the camshaft having an outside diameter which is substantially equal to the outside diameter of other portions of the camshaft fitted within bearings carried within the engine's cylinder head.

Oil-controlled camshaft phasers are known in the art. Such devices allow camshaft timing to be continuously adjusted by a closed loop control system. Usually, actuation is controlled by engine oil, which is ported to the phaser at a control pressure. The actual phase angle of the camshaft with respect to the crankshaft is determined by means of sensors which monitor both crankshaft and camshaft position in real time. Oil is caused to be directed by a control valve to either a retard port or an advance port of the phaser to achieve the necessary adjustment in camshaft position. It is known to run oil through camshaft itself to achieve adjustment. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,138,985 and 6,026,772 disclose systems in which oil is run about the camshaft itself. Each of the systems of the '985 and '772 patents are characterized by very large camshaft diameters in the area in which the oil is furnished to the camshaft phaser. Also, these designs rely on passages which are machined into the interior of the camshaft, and this presents problems because axial drillings are difficult both to machine and to clean after the machining process. Unfortunately, the presence of foreign material may cause a camshaft phaser to fail.
The present system uses a sleeve and axially directed grooves machined through the surface and into a subdiametral portion of the camshaft. The grooves and sleeve, taken together make up axially directed oil control passages.

Camshaft and oil-controlled camshaft phaser for automotive engine


A backup power control system includes a main power supply unit, a first negative feedback circuit unit, a standby power supply unit, a second negative feedback circuit unit, and a control unit. The main power supply unit is suitable for outputting a main power. The standby power supply unit is suitable for outputting a standby power. The control unit switches the first negative feedback circuit unit and the second negative feedback circuit unit to be turned on or not to be turned on in response to whether a normal power supply signal of the main power is received. When the normal power supply signal is received, the control unit enables the first negative feedback circuit unit to be turned on and enables the second negative feedback circuit unit not to be turned on.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a power control technology, and particularly to a backup power control system.
2. Related Art
For a conventional backup power architecture, reference may be made to the Republic of China Patent Publication No. I331714 named "BACKUP POWER SUPPLY SYSTEM". It can be seen from the content disclosed in the foregoing application that a traditional diode is used for switching and turning on the power backup, so that the power consumption of the diode is too high, resulting in overheating and low electricity conversion efficiency, and an element damage rate of the system may be increased due to the difficulty in heat dissipation.
For another conventional backup power architecture, reference may be made to the Republic of China Patent Publication No. I271910 named "ACTIVE OR GATE PROCESSING CONTROLLER FOR REDUNDANT POWER SYSTEM". It can be seen from the content disclosed in the application that isolation protection cannot be provided. That is to say, in the foregoing application, in order meet the safety requirements, voltage-proof elements with enough insulation strength must be used. For the design of a system of a reduced size, the design is difficult and the cost is high.


The invention relates to a method for controlling the emission power of an especially mobile emission station (MT). The aim of the invention is to keep the emission power to a minimum. To this end, a reception station (AP) which receives the emitted data (c1) as reception data (c1*) determines the measuring values of the same, and sends them to the emission station (MT) via a secure connection (DL) which is not, or is only slightly, affected by disturbances. The measuring values (c1*) depend on the data (c1) transferred by the signal.

In communications systems, especially those operating in accordance with the GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) or UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) standards, data or information is transmitted between a subscriber-side station and a network-side base station over radio interfaces. To set the required emission power in such cases what is known as the Shannon capacity is to be taken into account in each case. The Shannon capacity specifies the maximum volume of data or information that can be sent over a channel when the channel is affected by normal disturbance factors, including noise. The Shannon capacity thus specifies a relationship between emission power and signal-to-noise ratio which may not be exceeded if the receive quality is to be sufficient.
Noting the fact that the subscriber-side stations are mostly mobile stations with a portable energy source, research has long been directed towards minimizing the required signal-to-noise ratio for data transmission in wireless radio communications systems. In addition to the radio communications systems already mentioned, this typically also involves data networks, e.g. in accordance with the HiperLAN2 standard. To allow sending with the lowest possible emission power various methods of error correction have been developed, for example the method known as Forward Error Correction (FEC) referred to as Block FEC, Convolutional FEC, Turbo FEC or Coding FEC. Further error correction methods are what are known as ARQ (ARQ: Automatic Repeat Request) schemes, in which redundant data is transmitted, adaptive modulation methods and so on.
With these type of error correction methods there are especially methods in which a downlink channel is used from the receiver to the original sender, for example to retroactively request a retransmission of incorrect data symbols or, in the case of incremental redundancy, to request more redundancy to be transmitted, as with the ARQ method for example.

Method and devices for controlling the emission power of a communication system


A method for implementing communication includes: determining an operating system corresponding to a current time slice, the determined operating system supporting a communication network standard; determining a memory partition; running the determined operating system based on the determined memory partition and driving a Digital Signal Processor, a signal processing module supporting the communication network standard and a Radio Frequency signal transceiver based on a hardware driving program included in a system program of the determined operating system; controlling the signal processing module to read authentication information of the terminal and controlling the Digital Signal Processor to encapsulate, based on a communication protocol, the authentication information of the terminal to generate a communication network signal; and controlling the Radio Frequency signal transceiver to convert the communication network signal into a Radio Frequency signal and send the Radio Frequency signal to a communication network.

With continuous development of communication technologies, users put forward higher requirements for data bandwidth and signal quality of a mobile communication network. In an era developing from 2G network to 3G network and LTE network, mobile communication operators should study on convergence and multiplexing of different communication networks to offer the users reliable and high quality services.
In order to flexibly achieve the convergence and multiplexing of different communication networks in a user terminal, a common solution is to integrate in the user terminal several signal processing modules respectively supporting different communication network standards; hence, the user terminal may be connected to a communication network based on an actual situation. As shown in FIG. 1, two signal processing modules are integrated in a Modem supporting multiple standards in the user terminal, one is a signal processing module supporting a communication network standard of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), while the other is a signal processing module supporting a communication network standard of Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA). In addition, the Modem shown in FIG. 1 further includes a Central Processing Unit (CPU) and a Digital Signal Processor (DSP).
With the user terminal shown in FIG. 1, when it is required to run a Real Time Operating System (RTOS) supporting any communication network standard in the user terminal so as to establish connection between the user terminal and the communication network, since the user terminal merely includes one set of hardware resources (the CPU and the DSP shown in FIG. 1 and other hardware resources such as a memory, etc., which are not shown in FIG. 1) for running one RTOS, only one RTOS may be run in the user terminal and accordingly the user terminal may merely be connected to one communication network.

Communication implementation method, virtual machine program product, modem and terminal


A process for producing an absorbent article is provided. The process comprises placing an absorbent layer between a body-side, cover layer and a fluid-impermeable, garment-side backing layer wherein the cover layer and the absorbent layer are each comprised of thermoplastic fibers. The cover layer, absorbent layer, and backing layer are subjected to pressure and heat sufficient to melt only one of the thermoplastic fibers in each of the cover and absorbent layers.

The present invention relates to an absorbent article particularly suited for everyday feminine hygiene and for protecting an undergarment against staining from light, daily secretions and discharges. It comprises a very thin, lightweight, highly absorbent pad which is soft, supple and easily conformable to the body and the garment to which it is adhesively attached.
The prior art is replete with patents relating to protective pads and shields since the protection of undergarments from staining, especially for the many women who are troubled with frequent, light bodily discharges, has been a long standing problem. These patents generally describe layered structures having a porous body contacting layer overlying, a liquid impermeable garment side barrier layer, and a layer of absorbent material between the body contacting layer and the barrier layer. An adhesive is attached to the garment side or the fluid barrier to secure the assembled shield to the crotch portion of an undergarment. And, a release layer is removable affixed to the adhesive layer to keep the adhesive from making contact to anything until it is placed in the undergarment.
While such prior art pads undoubtedly function to protect the undergarments to which they are applied, they are deficient in one primary area of performance. They tend to draw fluid toward the lateral and longitudinal edges of the pad, increasing the likelihood of failure by allowing leakage off the pad onto the wearer's clothes.
Some body-contacting layers of the prior art which are absorbent, porous, dry-laid, nonwoven webs or scrim type materials such as those described by I. S. Ness in U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,419 and by Campau in U.S. Pat. No. 3,044,467, Hendricks in U.S. Pat. No. 3,463,154 and Sneider in U.S. Pat. No. 3,570,491. Such materials are often coarse textured and harsh to the touch and, because of their absorbency, wet from the top surface down during use resulting in a constantly moist surface against the skin.
There are also some body-contacting layers of the prior art such as those described by T. J. Luceri in U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,455, by S. Cadieux in E.P. Pat. No. 354,502, by A. T. Mays in E.P. Pat. No. 70,163, and by R. P. James in U.S. Pat. No. 4,368,323 which are nonwovens made from hydrophobic fibers which have been coated with an adhesive or have been subjected to heat and/or pressure to fuse the individual fibers to each other. Such materials tend to have only limited absorption but serve to allow passage to lower layers for absorption and retention. As a result, the fluid is wicked away from the body, leaving the surface of the body-contacting layer feeling dryer to the touch.
The use of hydrophobic fibers for the body contacting layer allows fluid to pass through to the absorbent layer beneath yet will not retain moisture on the surface layer, thus providing greater comfort to the wearer by feeling dry for a longer period of time. The desirability of such a feature has been recognized by Levesque U.S. Pat. No. 3,838,692 who describes a chemical method of providing porosity to hydrophobic materials.
The absorbent layers taught by the prior art usually consists of pulp fluff as described by S. L. Kopolow in U.S. Pat. No. 4,552,618 and 4,555,192, by D. C. Holtman in U.S. Pat. No. 4,544,596 and 4,536,432, by P. K. Chatterjee in U.S. Pat. No. 4,474,949.
Alternatively, the absorbent layer of the prior art may consist of blends of pulp fluff and synthetic fibers as described by Malaney in U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,786 and in 4,684,570. Or, the absorbent layer may be thermoplastic fibers co-formed with pulp fibers.
It is also possible to disperse into the absorbent layer a super absorbent polymer such as those taught by S. Dabi in U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,963, by I. S. Ness in U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,419 and by J. Roller in U.S. Pat. No. 4,443,492.
The liquid impermeable barrier layer, located between the absorbent layer and the garment, is commonly made of polyethylene, polypropylene, or a like material. Such layers are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,731,066 by R. Korpman.
Generally, the earlier prior art teaches absorbent pads made of wood pulp fluff that, when properly manufactured to absorb large quantities of fluid, are thick and bulky. Recent developments in the art teach the use of materials such as sphagnum peat moss (such as that taught by Y. Levesque in U.S. Pat. No. 4,507,122) and super absorbent polymers which, pound for pound, absorb much greater quantities of fluid than pulp allowing for the manufacture of much thinner absorbent pads.
The prior art also teaches the application of heat and/or pressure to bind the fibers of the absorbent layer together into densified areas. As fluid makes contact with such densified areas, the fluid tends to wick across the layer, away from the point of fluid introduction. This action helps to inhibit local saturation of the pad which is one cause of pad failure. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,059,114 to Richards and U.S. Pat. No. 4,886,697 to Perdelwitz et al.
Once fluid has been introduced to the body contacting surface, pad construction is designed to cause the fluid to flow into the absorbent layer and remain there until disposal of the pad. However, the garment side of the structure is usually made with a liquid impermeable barrier layer which, in the event fluid continues to flow through the pad to the garment side, prevents leakage onto the wearer's garments.
Viewing this prior art, however, it is readily apparent that little thought has been given toward keeping the fluid from migrating to the lateral and longitudinal edges of the absorbent pad. While transverse wicking takes place, the design of the densified areas is such that the fluid is not prevented, in fact it may be encouraged, to flow away from the point of fluid introduction in the center of the pad to the edges of the pad increasing the chances of failure. While perimeter barriers have been taught by the prior art, there exists a need to wick fluid from the point of introduction on the pad yet still keep it compartmentalized so that it is prohibited, or at least hindered, from flowing toward the edge of the pad. The present invention meets this and other objectives which will become apparent.


The present application addresses the problem of providing an Fc-binding protein having an improved antibody separation ability. The present application also addresses the problem of providing a high-accuracy antibody separation method using an insoluble carrier having the protein immobilized thereon. The problems can be solved by: an Fc-binding protein in which at least an amino acid substitution at a specific position therein occurs and which has reduced affinity for an antibody; and an antibody separation method including allowing an equilibration buffer solution to pass through a column in which an insoluble carrier having the protein immobilized thereon is filled to equilibrate the column, adding a solution containing an antibody to cause the adsorption of the antibody onto the carrier, and eluting the antibody adsorbed on the carrier using an elution solution.

The sugar chain structure of an antibody drug plays a major role in drug efficacy and stability. It is therefore extremely important to control the sugar chain structure when producing an antibody drug. Among Fc-binding proteins, FcγRIIIa is known to recognize the sugar chain structure of an antibody (immunoglobulin). The antibody can be separated based on the sugar chain structure by using an adsorbent obtained by immobilizing FcγRIIIa on an insoluble carrier (PTL 1). Accordingly, the adsorbent is useful for step analysis and isolation upon antibody drug production.
Meanwhile, it is known that FcγRIIIa has lower antibody-binding ability as compared to another Fc-binding protein, namely, FcγRI (NPL 1), and the affinity to an antibody is improved by introducing a mutation into a protein having antibody-binding ability (PTL 2). However, the degree of separation of an antibody has not been improved. Meanwhile, the site of interaction between the Fc-binding protein and the antibody has been clarified (NPL 2), and amino acid residues involved in binding between the Fc-binding protein and the antibody have been revealed. However, such findings are not enough to improve the degree of separation in relation to antibody analysis and adsorption. Therefore, in the industrial production of antibody drugs, it was difficult to apply an FcγRIIIa-immobilized carrier to step analysis and product analysis.

Fc-binding protein having improved antibody separation ability, and method for separating antibody using same


An off-road vehicle has a frame with a floorboard extending laterally over a middle region of the frame. The floorboard has a upward projection that defines a tunnel. At least a portion of an air intake system of an engine of the vehicle is positioned within the tunnel. A foot pedal is disposed in front of a seat such that a driver of the vehicle can operate the pedal by foot. The tunnel has a surface that is laterally adjacent the foot pedal such that the foot of a driver can simultaneously contact the surface and the foot pedal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a floor arrangement for an off-road vehicle, and more particularly to an improved floor arrangement for an off-road vehicle that has a control member on or adjacent to the floor.
2. Description of Related Art
Off-road vehicles are designed to be operated over rugged terrain. These vehicles are often operated off-road over terrain such as, for example, steep inclines and declines, rough roads, and areas covered in mud and water.
Off-road vehicles typically include a frame that is supported by wheels. In one common arrangement, the vehicle has four wheels, i.e., a pair of front wheels and a pair of rear wheels. An internal combustion engine is employed to power at least the rear or front wheels, and most commonly, all of the wheels. Typically, the engine is combined with a transmission to form an engine unit. The transmission transfers power to an output shaft from a crankshaft of the engine. The output shaft drives the wheels.
In one arrangement, one or more seats are supported by the frame such that at least the driver of the vehicle can be seated in an upright position. A floorboard extends in front of the seats to support at least the feet of the driver. For example, Japanese Utility Model Publication JP-Y2-H6-34213 discloses such an arrangement.


A programmable interface-based validation and debug system includes, for example, a test connector that is arranged to communicatively couple a design under test to the test fixture. A programmable logic interface is communicatively coupled to the test connector and is arranged to receive a downloadable test bench, where the downloadable test bench is arranged to apply test vectors from a first set of test vectors to a first test control bus. A multiplexer is arranged to selectively couple one of the first test control bus and a second test control bus to a shared test bus that is coupled to the test connector, where the second test control bus is arranged to apply test vectors from a second set of test vectors provided by, for example, a debugger that is operated by a human.

Automatic Test Equipment (ATE) is used for validation and debugging of many electronic designs, and especially the electronic designs implemented using integrated circuits. Because of the relative complexity of the integrated circuits, debugging and device validation is typically time consuming and involves much iteration of test vectors using the ATE. Because of the complexity of the ATE, the cost for using the ATE for debugging of the designs-under-test is commensurately expensive. The difficulty of debugging is further compounded by input/output limitations of the interface used to exercise the design-under-test.

Programmable interface-based validation and debug


A wind turbine is provided. The wind turbine includes a stationary main shaft arranged within a nacelle of the wind turbine, a rotor hub including a hollow shell defining an interior and a plurality of rotor blades extending radially outwards from the rotor hub, wherein the rotor hub is rotatably mounted to the stationary main shaft via at least one bearing, wherein the at least one bearing is arranged within the interior of the rotor hub and connected to a section of the main shaft protruding into the interior of the rotor hub.

Wind turbines typically comprise a nacelle arranged on top of a tower of the wind turbine. A main shaft is stationary arranged within the nacelle that rotatably mounts a rotor hub with a plurality of rotor blades via a main bearing. The main bearing may be arranged as a tapered bearing capable of supporting axial and radial loads. Typically, the main bearing is arranged between an end of the main shaft facing the rotor hub and mounting means arranged on an outer surface of the rotor hub, in particular flanges.
Arrangements for rotatably mounting the rotor hub to the main shaft utilising more than one bearing are also known. WO 2011/071378 A2 describes a wind turbine with a rotor hub firmly connected to a tube member that has two tapered roller bearings for rotatably mounting the rotor hub to the main shaft. The two tapered roller bearings are located relatively close to each other, so that both bearings carry a part of the total weight of rotating parts of the wind turbine.
WO 2011/076795 A2 describes a rotor hub for a wind turbine that is made from two or more moulded hub parts that form, when assembled, a hollow shell. Each hub part comprises at least a section of the blade bearing flange adapted to be connected to one of the rotor blades of the wind turbines. Furthermore, each hub part comprises at least a connecting portion that is either adapted to be connected to a corresponding connecting portion of another hub part or to be attached to a stiffening element that provides the hub part with additional stability. In the latter case, the stiffening element extends radial inwards into an interior defined by the hollow shell when assembled. The rotor hub is rotably mounted to the main shaft via a bearing that is attached to a main shaft flange arranged on an outer surface of the hollow shell.
Wind turbines may be directly or indirectly driven. Directly driven wind turbines transfer the torque generated by wind passing over the rotor blades directly to a rotor of a generator that is rotatably arranged with respect to a stator of a wind turbine. Electric power is generated by magnetic induction. Generators capable of converting mechanical energy into electrical power are well established in the state of art. Indirectly driven wind turbines comprise a gear box or a transmission arranged between the rotating rotor hub and the rotor of the generator allowing for an adjustment of the angular velocity of the rotor with respect to the stator.
With the recent development of constructing larger wind turbines capable of generating electrical power of more than 6 MW, rotor hubs and rotor blades have significantly increased in size. Consequently, the bearing rotatably mounting the rotor hub has to support bigger loads. Even today, the bearing is a major cost driver when constructing wind turbines.


A system for management of networked collaboration comprising a process server communicatively coupled to a content server and a collaborative workspace server. The process server hosts a process configured to invoke a first collaborative workspace method that invokes a first class on the content server. The first class is configured to send, to the collaborative workspace server, a request to create a new collaborative object. The collaborative workspace server hosts a collaborative workspace accessible by a plurality of users. The collaborative workspace server creates the new collaboration object responsive to the request to create the new collaborative object. The process server creates first proxy object that points to the new collaboration object. The content server creates a first reference object that links to the new collaborative object. The collaborative workspace server receives, processes and responds to actions on the first proxy object.

Documentum™, E-Room™, and EMC™, are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Documentum Inc., and/or EMC Inc.
Today, most organizations of even moderate size use business process management (BPM) systems to guide and manage business activities. Although current BPM systems may be well-suited to helping with a series of preplanned, standalone business activities, organizations often perform unstructured, unplanned activities in conjunction with a business process, such as various employees collaborating to discuss or resolve an issue related to a business process. Currently available BPM systems and software does not provide for a mechanism to allow unstructured, collaborative activity to be integrated into the highly structured business process management environment.
It is desirable, especially in an increasingly distributed and collaborative business environments, to provide mechanisms that allow collaborative activities in the BPM context. It is desirable to provide a BPM system that can automatically invoke and configure team collaboration workspace for a specific task, and use collaborative objects as process data within the BPM system. It is desirable to have a BPM system that provides application-agnostic innate support for collaboration and collaboration objects. It is also desirable to associate a collaborative item with a BPM item or process, making the collaborative item accessible through the BPM system. It is also desirable to have a set of collaborative object types integrated into a BPM system. It is also desirable to audit collaborative objects as part of a business process and have a collaboration object become a saved part of the business process. Further, it is desirable to provide an organization with visibility into collaborative events and processes that occur external to the organization's BPM system.

Systems and methods for management of networked collaboration


A light-sensitive silver halide photographic material and a method for preparing said material is provided, wherein said material comprises a support and on one or both sides thereof at least one silver halide emulsion layer and a protective antistress layer as an outermost layer, characterized in that said silver halide emulsion layer(s) and/or said protective antistress layer comprise(s) at least one zeolite loaded with a photographically useful group. Said photographically useful group is a soluble salt, an organic compound releasing chloride, bromide or iodide, a sulfur salt, a selenium salt, a tellurium salt and/or a metal salt of group VIII.. Further a method of preparing said light-sensitive silver halide photographic material as described hereinbefore is provided, said method comprising the steps of precipitating silver halide crystals in a colloidally stable aqueous medium by mixing an aqueous silver salt solution and at least one halide solution thereby forming an emulsion; flocculating, followed by decanting, washing and redispersing said emulsion or washing said emulsion by dialysis or ultrafiltration followed by adding one or more colloidally stable solution(s); chemically ripening said silver halide crystals in said emulsion, adding thereto solutions comprising chemical ripening agents; adding coating solutions comprising coating additives, followed by coating and drying, wherein in at least one of said steps at least one zeolite is added to the said medium, solution or emulsion.

As is well known in the field of radiography, there is a general trend to enhance the speed of processing. Therefore interest has been directed to rapid access of radiographs, being vital in diagnosis. By the manufacturing of films suitable for rapid processing applications an ideal balance should be sought between the thickness of the coated hydrophilic layers and the obtained sensitivity within a short processing time. Sufficiently thin hardened coatings are required in order to limit the water absorption and in order to reduce the drying time. Rapid processing conditions that can alternatively be applied are development processing at higher pH and higher temperatures of e.g. 30 to 40.degree. C., in order to accelerate the said processing.
However thin coated layers as well as high temperature processing or processing in a developer medium having a higher pH bring about deterioration of the photographic images obtained in that it frequently occurs that fogging of the photographic materials occurs, not only for the freshly prepared materials but to a still larger extent for preserved materials, the more the preservation temperature and/or preservation humidity is higher.

Light-sensitive silver halide photographic materials comprising zeolites


A connector including seal bodies having an excellent sealing characteristic. The seal body puts an electric wire between the seal body and the other seal body so as to maintain a watertight characteristic between the electric wire and the seal bodies. The seal body includes: an abutting surface of the seal body, which abuts against a mating abutting surface of the other seal body when the seal bodies overlap each other; a groove which positions the electric wire inside the seal bodies; a lip part which projects from an inner surface of the groove and from the abutting surface.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector for use in connection of electric wires and so on, in particular, a connector including: a housing for receiving a terminal fitting attached to an end of an electric wire; and a seal body to maintain a watertight characteristic between an inner surface of the housing and the electric wire.
(2) Description of the Related Art
Various electronic instruments are mounted on a motor vehicle as a mobile unit. The motor vehicle mounts a wiring harness for transmitting electric power and control signals to the electronic instruments. The wiring harness includes a plurality of electric wires and connectors.
As shown in FIG. 9, a connector 100 including: a connector housing 103 for receiving terminal fittings 102, attached to ends of electric wires 101; and a seal member 104 to maintain a watertight characteristic between an inner surface of the connector housing 103 and outer surfaces of the electric wires 101 is known (see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-323229).
The seal member 104 is made of resilient material such as rubber and constructed with a pair of seal bodies 105 and 106, which puts the electric wire 101 therebetween. One end of the seal body 105 and one end of the seal body 106 are connected by a hinge 107. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, each seal body 105, 106 has a plurality of grooves 108 each formed in a semi-circle-shape in cross section. The grooves 108 are lined up in parallel to each other. The electric wire 101 is positioned within the grooves 108.
Each seal body 105, 106 is provided with a lip part 110 which projects from an inner surface of the groove 108 toward the inside of the groove 108 in a diameter direction thereof. Because the lip part 110 resiliently comes in contact with an outer periphery of the electric wire 101, therefore the watertight characteristic between the electric wires 101 and inner surfaces of the pair of the seal bodies 105, 106 is maintained. The seal member 104 is press-fit into the connector housing 103 on a condition that the electric wires 101 are placed between the pair of the seal bodies 105 and 106.
As for the seal member 104 of the connector 100, the thickness of the lip part 110 is formed identical throughout the entire region of the lip part 110. That is, the thickness S1 of the lip part 110 in the proximity of an abutting surface 111 between the seal bodies 105 and 106 is formed identical to the thickness 32 of the lip part 110 at a bottom part 112 of the groove 108 being farthest away from the abutting surface 111. In such a construction, because a portion of the lip part 110 near the abutting surface 111 is less resilient than a portion of the lip part 110 at the bottom part 112 of the groove 108, there is a problem in that contact pressure, that is, a sealing characteristic of the lip part 110 against the electric wire 101 in the proximity of the abutting surface 111 becomes small and ineffective.
Moreover, as for the seal member 104, depending on its attaching condition to the connector 100 and size dispersion of the seal member 104, as shown in FIG. 11, there is a problem that a working pitch of the grooves 108 between the seal bodies 105 and 106 might be undesirably displaced. In this case, because the abutting surface 111 positioned in between the grooves 108 adjacent to each other has a small width and low mechanical strength, the abutting surface 111 of the seal body 105, 106 does not abut against an abutting surface 111 of the mating seal body 105, 106 and as shown in FIG. 12, the abutting surface 111 might be undesirably turned up, causing a problem that the sealing characteristic between the abutting surfaces 111 becomes inferior.

Seal body and connector including the same


Disclosed is eyewear that may have a half-jacket frame and a removable dust shield for preventing direct impingement of dust upon a wearer's eye. The eyewear may have a titanium frame and removable lenses free of any attachment structure. The frame may have a lens-retaining ridge with a thin cross section. A nosepad on the frame may carry a shield retainer for releasably affixing a shield to the frame. The nosepad and the half-jacket frame front may be cast together in one piece out of titanium or titanium alloy. An anti-slip nosepad cover may partially cover the nosepad and leave the shield retainer exposed. A removable shield may have a lower lens groove that circumferentially mates with an upper lens groove of an orbital of a half-jacket frame, thereby circumferentially completing the lens groove when the shield is in place. A rigid temple may carry a slip resistor for contacting the wearer's skin. The eyewear may have a vent to reduce fogging of the lenses and the shield may be air-permeable.

Eyewear typically has a frame for holding lenses in place. A frame that extends only part of the way around a lens is known as a half-jacket frame. The inventors herein have identified various considerations in the design of half-jacket and other eyewear.
For example, when a person wears half-jacket eyewear, there may be more space around the lens than with full jacket eyewear, permitting dust or wind to impinge upon the wearer's eye, especially when the wearer is a participant in high speed sports such as motorcycle riding.
As another example, when eyewear is provided with a detachable shield, a suitable attachment means is needed. The eyewear needs to be functional and aesthetic both with and without the shield.
As a still further example, half-jacket frames lack fully circumferential orbitals around the lenses and may have less strength or dimensional stability than similar full-jacket frames. Such half-jacket frames may thus require special design considerations.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Half-jacket eyewear with removable dust shield


A method for estimating the tenderness of a meat product is provided. The method includes determining the stress relaxation coefficient of a meat sample. One or more physical parameters of the meat sample are then determined from the stress relaxation coefficient. Diagnostic sensory characterization data, such as a numerical estimation of the meat's overall tenderness, is then determined for the meat sample. The physical parameters are then correlated to the diagnostic sensory characterization data, to allow the diagnostic sensory characterization data to be estimated solely from the measured physical parameters.

Processing of meat for human consumption includes the characterization of meat tenderness, which is performed for the purpose of grading the meat. Tenderness may be characterized by assessing parameters that affect sensory properties, such as toughness, juiciness, firmness, mealiness, stringiness, chewiness, hardness, softness. These parameters are typically assessed subjectively, such as by having a panel of human subjects taste the meat and perform a diagnostic sensory analysis of the meat.
While diagnostic sensory characterization is acceptable, it is nevertheless problematic because the meat samples must be prepared and human subjects must test a large number of samples. Mechanized methods of estimating meat tenderness may be used instead of diagnostic sensory characterization.
One mechanized method of meat characterization is the Warner-Bratzler shear press, which measures the shear force required to cut a meat sample. Although this method is more convenient than diagnostic sensory characterization, the correlation between diagnostic sensory characterization and the Warner-Bratzler shear force measurements is typically low, ranging from 40 percent to 60 percent.
Because of the difficulty and cost associated with diagnostic sensory characterization, and the low correlation between known mechanized methods of estimating and diagnostic sensory characterization, these methods are not used. Instead, the predominant standard method for grading meat is the United States Department of Agriculture beef quality grading system, which is a subjective evaluation that ranks beef according to the amount of marbling and the maturity of the animal. Other methods are not used because of the prohibitive costs of such methods or the low accuracy of such methods.

Method and system for estimating the tenderness of a meat product


A 3D micro flow cell is fabricated by forming a first spacer on a substrate to define the flow channel of the cell extending between inlet and outlet openings. A second spacer, comprising a pasty adhesive is applied outside the first spacer or in a groove on the first spacer to seal the cell when the first substrate is joined to a second substrate.

The invention relates to a method for producing a 3D micro flow cell, consisting of a lower and an upper substrate between which is located a flow channel that is penetrated by an electrode structure connected to external contacts, wherein at least one of the substrates is equipped initially with a conductive trace and electrode structure and is provided at the ends of the flow channel with feedthroughs for connecting a fluid inlet and outlet. The invention further relates to a 3D micro flow cell produced using the method.
3D micro flow cells of this nature are used, for example, as cell manipulators for the handling and optical analysis of dielectric biological particles, in particular of cells and/or bacteria or viruses. To this end, the micro flow cells are equipped with a flow channel at the ends of which are provided one or more fluid inlets and outlets. Said fluid inlets and outlets are made by feedthroughs extending perpendicular to the flow channel, for example. The height of the fluid channel is generally in the range of a few micrometers, while the flow channel is delimited at the top and bottom by glass substrates and/or silicon substrates and at the sides by suitable channel walls. In order to be able to hold individual cells "freely suspended" at a predetermined location within the fluid channel, electrodes that generate an electrical field when a voltage is applied are located in the fluid channel. The electrostatically held cell can then be illuminated by suitable illumination and observed by means of a microscope.
A variety of technologies are generally known to make it possible to implement such three-dimensional structures. Thus, for example, a glass substrate can be wet chemical etched on one side in order to produce a flow channel therein and subsequently be joined by diffusion welding to a second glass substrate as the cover element. The requisite electrodes for handling cells or biological particles are previously applied to the first and/or second glass substrate by known photolithographic methods, and the second glass substrate is subsequently mounted face down on the bottom glass substrate.
However, the technology of diffusion welding is relatively expensive and the capabilities of generally isotropic glass structuring are limited. It can be considered a further disadvantage that only relatively coarse electrode structures can be applied to the structured glass surfaces. However, in order to be able to implement exact handling of individual cells or biological particles, an extremely precise geometric structure of the electrodes is necessary to be able to electrostatically manipulate these particles and hold them in place at the desired location in a noncontacting manner.
Another technology is described by Müller/Gradl/Howitz/Shirley/Schnelle/Fuhr in the journal "BIOSENSORS & ELECTRONICS," No. 14 (1999), pp. 247–256. Described here is the application of the purely manual epoxy resin gluing technique, wherein first a polymer spacer is processed on a glass surface that has previously been equipped with platinum electrodes and electrically conductive traces. Then the glass substrate is coated outside the polymer structure with a synthetic resin, such as epoxy resin, as an adhesive and after that a second piece of glass, which likewise has been equipped with electrodes, is positioned thereupon and the bond is subsequently compressed. This assembly step is usually performed with a so-called die bonder (chip bonder).
There are difficulties here in that it is problematic to manufacture micro flow cells that always have exactly identical geometric dimensions and in which it is certain that no adhesive penetrates into the flow channel during the assembly process, something which would partially narrow the channel. The efficiency of this step is thus extremely poor and unsuitable for mass production.
Moreover, a so-called underfill technique has become known in which a first polymer (thick lacquer) is spun onto the glass substrate that is equipped with electrodes, wherein the thickness of the spun-on polymer is predetermined by the height of the channel provided. The positive channel system is then structured from this polymer, i.e. the excess thick lacquer is completely removed during this photostructuring. The second glass substrate is then aligned with and pressed onto the first glass substrate. The 3D arrangement obtained in this manner is held by lateral penetration of a creepable adhesive (underfiller), a second polymer, after which the channel system in the first polymer is washed out again with a solvent. The solvent must not attack the second polymer here. A particular disadvantage here is that no inner flow elements can be manufactured in the channel in this way because they cannot be reached by the second polymer. Moreover, this technique is extremely time-consuming and limited with respect to structural resolution.
The object of the invention is to disclose a method for producing a 3D micro flow cell that can be implemented economically and with which especially uniform geometric parameters can be achieved. The invention further has the object of creating a 3D micro flow cell that can be produced economically with the method according to the invention.

Method for producing a 3-D micro flow cell and a 3-D micro flow cell

Gesim Gesselschaft fur Silizium-Mikrosysteme mbH


A process for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide wherein aqueous streams containing 1 to 500,000 ppm H.sub.2 O.sub.2 are contacted with a Mn/Cu catalyst component on a monolith carrier to eliminate the H.sub.2 O.sub.2 by decomposition to water and oxygen.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the use of base metal catalyst for the decomposition of excess hydrogen peroxide used in chemical processes, disinfecting, or bleaching. The catalyst is copper oxide and manganese dioxide on alumina which is coated onto a substrate. The majority of the peroxide is removed by the catalyst and polishing can be achieved by the addition of small quantities of reagents such as SO.sub.2.
2. Related Art
In some chemical processes, hydrogen peroxide (H.sub.2 O.sub.2) is added to oxidize a chemical intermediate. It is also used as a bleaching agent for products from the textile and paper industries. Hydrogen peroxide is an environmentally friendly chemical for tertiary water treatment since its products of decomposition are water and oxygen. It is expected that hydrogen peroxide will be used more frequently in the future as costs decrease and environmental pressures for clean water increase.
Hydrogen peroxide is sometimes added in excess to a process to accelerate the reaction rate. The excess must be removed before the next stage of processing or before discharging an effluent. In some cases where reverse osmosis is used to recover and/or recycle the waste water, the hydrogen peroxide must be removed in order to protect the osmosis membrane.
Currently, excess hydrogen peroxide is destroyed by adding reducing chemicals such as SO.sub.2 to the stream. While this is an effective method of destruction, the cost can be high, especially if H.sub.2 O.sub.2 concentrations are high.
The present invention is a cost effective method of hydrogen peroxide removal wherein catalyst is placed in the process line. The catalyst can be used in solutions containing from 1 to 500,000 ppm H.sub.2 O.sub.2.

Process for removing H.sub.2 o.sub.2 from aqueous streams