A solution of reconstructing the network topology according to the traffic related information of each cell is proposed in the present invention, so as to achieve self-optimization of network. The traffic related information of a cell includes the traffic related information applicable to network topology reconstruction, or load related information as is named, including but not limited to time-frequency resource related amount that is used by the traffic data in the cell, traffic throughout of each cell or the wireless channel quality of each cell for transmitting traffic data, etc. The solutions in the present invention realize the network topology reconstruction according to traffic related information of multiple cells, therefore the network capacity and service quality could be effectively improved and the wireless relay communication network is applicable to those areas with unpredictable traffic distribution. And the network topology reconstruction function in the present invention can simplify network planning and network management, so that network deployment cost and maintenance and management expenses could be saved.

Self-organization and multi-hop relays are two operational requirements in the requirements of IEEE802.16m advanced air interface. Here exists a new technical problem, i.e. how to support self-organization mechanisms in WiMAX multi-hop relay network. The self-organization includes two aspects: self-configuration and self-optimization.
So far, solutions for self-organization in non-relay wireless communication network have been proposed in some contributions. But it is not mentioned how to realize self-organization in wireless relay communication network.
It has been proposed in reference document 1 to realize self-optimization by handing over mobile station according to interference condition. It has been proposed in reference documents 2 and 3 to realize the network topology reconstruction by controlling intelligent handover of mobile station in the overlapping area of multiple base stations, so as to achieve self-optimization, i.e. load balance concepts, but specific solution is not proposed. Besides, this kind of method has the defects of dependence on overlapping size and the MS number in the overlap area, and incapability of obtaining good load balance effect.

Method and apparatus for reconstructing the network topology in wireless relay communication network


A method and system for monitoring and controlling an automated parking system using a graphical user interface is described. The described method includes the step of displaying a graphical representation of a floor of an automated parking garage. The method also includes the step of displaying a number of objects in relation to the floor. The method further includes the step of displaying a plurality of control objects. A system for implementing the steps of the method is also described.

The present invention is concerned with the field of automated parking systems. More specifically, the present invention is concerned with a method and apparatus for presenting and managing information in an automated parking structure.
Automated mechanical parking garage systems have been employed since the late 1950""s. Early automated parking garages utilized crane systems, conveyors, hydraulics and pneumatics to transport and store vehicles within a parking structure. Recently, more advanced systems have been developed which include computer-controlled, specialized equipment for carrying vehicles to assigned parking spaces in much the same way that computerized assembly lines or warehouses store and retrieve miscellaneous goods.
Examples of automated parking garage systems are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,467,561 of Takaoka, U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,246 of Broshi, U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,364 of Schneider, et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,669,753 of Schween.
Since the early 1980""s, many computer-based systems have employed a graphical user interface (xe2x80x9cGUIxe2x80x9d) to present and receive information from a user or operator. In many cases, such a graphical user interface is little more than an alternative expression of a traditional interface. For example, certain operating systems employing a graphical user interface collect and display substantially the same information as traditional text-based operating systems.
Although both automated parking technology and GUI technology have co-existed for the last twenty years, there are no known GUIs for applications which control the operation of an automated parking system. Moreover, there are no user interfaces, graphical or not, which present the status of the components in an automated parking system in an intuitive and unambiguous way suitable for a novice operator.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method and apparatus which address the shortcomings of the prior art. Specifically, there is a need for a method and apparatus which presents and manages information in an automated parking garage in an intuitive and unambiguous way, enabling even a novice operator to understand the status of the components of the automated parking system. Further, there is a need for a system which graphically provides alerts regarding the status of components of an automated parking system and enables an operator to take corrective action using the same display presenting the alert.
The present invention is a method and system for monitoring and controlling an automated parking system using a graphical user interface. The method of the present invention includes the step of displaying a graphical representation of a floor of an automated parking garage. The method also includes the step of displaying a number of objects in relation to the floor. In this way, the present invention represents the entire state of the automated parking garage.
The objects displayed in relation to the floor approximate the actual physical layout of the floor and may include an entry/exit station, a module for transporting a vehicle along an x-axis, a module for transporting a vehicle along a y-axis, a module for transporting a vehicle along a z-axis and vehicle storage racks. In some cases, duplicate elements may be displayed to accurately depict the floor layout. For example, three exit/entry station objects may be displayed to represent a floor having three entry/exit stations.
The method of the present invention further includes the step of displaying a plurality of control objects. Each control object is associated with controlling an aspect of the automated parking system. For example, a control object may be a graphical button used to start or stop a physical process. Of course, an object displayed in relation to the floor may also act as a control object. For example, a vertical lift conveyor object may be selected by an operator to monitor or control the operation of a physical vertical lift conveyor.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to reduce the training time required for an operator of an automated parking garage. An advantage of the present invention is that it enables a novice operator to monitor and control the operation of an automated parking garage, and a feature of the present invention is that it presents information and receives commands in an intuitive fashion. These objects, advantages and features improve the performance of the automated parking garage under the control of a novice operator.
For a better understanding of the present invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of the invention. The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the present invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or by modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure.
Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be obtained by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

Method and apparatus for presenting and managing information in an automated parking structure


A hardware display unit includes a front grid having a front matrix of openings, and a rear grid having a rear matrix of openings corresponding in position to the first matrix of openings. The front grid is positioned with respect to the rear grid such that corresponding pairs of openings in the front and rear matrices together define downward sloping bays for receiving hardware. The display unit further includes side brackets mounted to side edges of the front and rear grids, the side brackets extending behind the front and rear grids for attaching the display unit to a vertical supporting structure. The display unit further includes a cap mounted to the front and rear grids. The cap includes a substantially horizontal surface extending from the front and rear grids towards a vertical supporting structure to which the first and second side brackets are attached. An adapter unit allows smaller items to be loaded into the display unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improvements in the field of retailing, and more particularly to advantageous aspects of an improved display unit for bulky, heavy hardware, such as trailer hitches, trailer hitch accessories, and the like.
2. Description of Prior Art
Shelf management is an important part of the retail business. It is desirable for retail items to be shelved in a manner that allows customers to easily view and select among the shelved items. In addition, from the retailer's point of view, it is desirable for a retail shelf to hold as many items as possible in a stable configuration, and for goods in the shelf display to be easily replaced as they are sold. It is further desirable for a retailer to be able to easily count how many items of various types are in a given shelf display.
For a number of reasons, it has been problematic for a retail store to effectively display trailer hitch hardware on a shelf. Hitching a trailer to a motor vehicle typically requires a number of different pieces of hardware, including hitch balls, ball mounts, locking pins, and the like. Trailer hitch hardware typically is available in a number of different sizes and shapes, depending upon the particular trailer and motor vehicle to be hitched together. Further, certain pieces of trailer hitch hardware, such as ball mounts, may have shapes that make it difficult to stack or otherwise arrange the hardware on a shelf.

Display unit for trailer hitches and trailer hitch accessories


A compressor housing is sealed around the bolt head without the use of an intervening sealing washer. Instead, the bolt hole is machined through the compressor housing in such a way as to assure that the sharp circular edge of the bolt hole always has a degree of radial overlap with the rounded corner that makes the transition from the body of the bolt to the flat undersurface of the bolt. Then, when the bolt is tightened, it is assured that the sharp corner of the bolt hole will be hit and be rounded over by the rounded corner of the bolt head into a closely matching configuration. This assures good, close contact and a tight gas seal. It also allows for over tightening the bolt head, because the ideal sealing pressure will still be attained at some point moving radially inwardly along the interface between bolt head round corner and the deformed bolt hole edge.

Automotive air conditioning compressor housings are typically multi piece canisters which must maintain a gas tight, pressurized interior against leakage. A cylindrical body is closed by at least one end cap, and several elongated bolts hold the end cap in place. A closed or "blind" threaded hole receives the threaded end of the bolt, which need not be sealed. The head of the bolt covers an exterior opening through the housing, and must be sealed gas tight. The conventional sealing system is portrayed in the first four Figures of the drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a cross section of a compressor housing; PA1 FIG. 2 is an enlargement of the exterior opening of a bolt hole with the bolt head and a sealing washer pulled axially away from the sealed position; PA1 FIG. 3 is a view like FIG. 2, but showing the bolt head and sealing washer in place; PA1 FIG. 4 is an enlarged view looking down into the bolt hole after the bolt and washer have been removed.
Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a typical compressor housing, indicated generally at 10, consists of multiple parts closed by an end cap 12. The cap 12 and other parts are held together by several bolts, one of which is indicated generally at 14. The housing parts, including the end cap 12, are usually made of cast aluminum alloy, for weight reduction and ease of manufacture. The bolts 14 are steel, for strength. Each bolt passes through a coaxial bolt hole 16 (actually a series of aligned holes) with some radial clearance, to allow for ease of insertion, and is threaded at the end into a blind, closed hole 18 that needs no sealing. At the opposite end, however, the bolt hole 16 opens through a flat, annular sealing surface 20 that is machined down into the outer surface of cap 12, creating a sharp circular edge of equal diameter 22. Sealing surface 20 is machined just to assure a suitable flat surface, since the outer surface of cap 12 may be curved or pebbled. A gas tight seal must somehow be provided continuously around the bolt hole edge 22 to prevent pressure loss from housing 10. Traditionally, a seal has been provided, indirectly, between the sealing surface 20 and a flat, annular undersurface or "pad" 24 of a hexagonal bolt head 26. The bolt head pad 24 stands proud of the bolt head 26 in order to prevent interference with the bolt head 26 and the inset sealing surface 20. The bolt head pad 24 merges into the main cylindrical bolt body 28 across a small rounded "corner" 30, which comprises approximately a quarter circle in cross section. The corner 30 serves no purpose other than the typical avoidance of stress concentration at what would otherwise be a sharp corner, and has no role to play in sealing. Likewise, the bolt hole edge 22 plays no part in sealing. Sealing is entirely a function of the tight capture of an annular sealing washer 32 between the axially opposed bolt head pad 24 and the sealing surface 20, of an annular sealing washer 32.
Referring next to FIGS. 2 through 3, sealing washer 32 has an inner diameter that surrounds the bolt hole edge 22, but is large enough to clear the rounded corner 30, and thereby make contact only with the flat surface of the pad 24. The thickness of the washer 32 prevents the bolt corner 30 from contacting the bolt hole edge 22, or any other part of the sealing surface 20. Therefore, the upper and lower surfaces of the washer 32 make flat to flat contact only between the bolt head pad 24 and the sealing surface 20 respectively. Washer 32 is typically made up of material softer than bolt 12, such as copper or plated copper, and, ideally, also softer than the aluminum material of cap 12. Theoretically, washer 32, if compressed sufficiently, is supposed to yield and fill any voids or irregularities in the surfaces of bolt head pad 24 and end cap sealing surface 20, providing a gas tight seal. In actual practice, washers like 32 have been found to turn with the bolt head 26, rubbing, scratching and galling on the sealing surface 2D. The result of this action can be seen, once the bolt 14 and washer 32 have been removed, as an irregular, shiny circle on the sealing surface 20 surrounding edge 22. Now, so long as this circle covers 360 degree, it is evidence of a complete seal. And, in practice, satisfactory sealing is obtained, on a one time basis, at least, by a very careful control of the pressure with which the bolt 14 is torqued down against washer 32. However, because of the scraping action, and sometimes even deformation of the washer 32, it is difficult to make the seal repeatable. That is, it may be impossible to remove and replace the bolt 14 with the same washer 32. Also, it is always preferable that assembly operations of any sort be less dependent upon holding any parameter, such as torque or pressure, within very close limits.

Washerless bolt head seal for compressor housing


The present invention relates to a CD24 protein for treating immune-related adverse events (irAEs) associated with cancer immunotherapy. Provided herein is a method of treating, mitigating, minimizing, or preventing immunerelated adverse events (irAEs) associated with a cancer immunotherapy by administering a CD24 protein to a subject in need thereof. The irAE may be diarrhea or another gastrointestinal disorder, pure red cell aplasia, microcytic anemia, lupus, autoimmune nephritism, autoimmune hepatitis, pneumonitis, myocarditis, pericarditis, endocrinopathy, Addison's disease, hypogonadism, Sjogren's syndrome, or type I diabetes. The CCD24 protein may comprise a mature human CD24 or a variant thereof.

The immune system has the ability to recognize and eliminate cancers in experimental model systems and in patients. As a result, cancer immunotherapies are emerging as one of the most promising areas of cancer therapy. Active cancer immunotherapies involve agents that amplify natural immune responses (including antibodies against PD-1, PD-L1 or CTLA-4); small molecules that modulate tumor microenvironment; or, adoptive cell transfer (ACT) using ex vivo stimulated tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), activated natural killer (NK) cells, or genetically-engineered T cells (chimeric antigen receptors [CARS] and T cell receptor [TCR] modified T cells). Alternatively, other cancer immunotherapies that target the tumor directly can indirectly cause activation of the immune system (including cancer-targeting antibodies such as anti-Her-2 antibodies in cases of solid cancer, anti-CD20 antibodies in cases of B-cell malignancies, or anti-GM2 antibodies in cases of neuroblastoma). Antibodies against PD-1, PD-L1 and CTLA-4, as well as tumor targeting antibodies, have demonstrated substantial benefits for treating solid tumors and hematologic tumors. Adoptive cellular immunotherapies such as CAR T cells have demonstrated impressive effects against hematologic tumors such as leukemia, but only limited effects against solid tumors to date. Whereas CAR-T immunotherapies have been targeted more towards hematologic malignancies, T cell immunotherapies using gene-modified TCRs have been targeted more towards solid tumors.
Tumors evade immune elimination by generating highly tolerogenic and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments (TMEs). Therefore, an important goal of immuno-oncology is to understand the varied tolerance mechanisms employed by tumors in order to eliminate these mechanisms to allow tumor infiltration, activation, and destruction of tumor cells by the immune system. However, despite their therapeutic promise, systemic delivery of immunotherapies can also lead to breaches in self-tolerance. This in turn results in mild to severe inflammatory reactions across a variety of organ systems, and in some instances, life-threatening autoimmunity, generally referred to as immune-related adverse events (irAEs). As immunotherapy approaches are expanded to more cancer indications and in ever-more-effective combinations, controlling non-specific irAEs will be a critical goal for these next-generation cancer immunotherapies.
Treatment with antibodies against PD-1, PD-L1 and CTLA-4 has been shown to be a powerful tool for enhancing anti-tumor immunity in preclinical models. Monotherapy with an antibody against CTLA4 promoted rejection of transplantable tumors of various origins. Based on promising preclinical tumor model studies, the clinical potential of antibodies against CTLA4 has been explored in different human malignancies. Although anti-CTLA4 (Ipilimumab, marketed as Yervoy, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,984,720) has demonstrated efficacy in treating melanoma, treatment and targeting of CTLA4 is associated with autoimmune-like toxicities. Anti-PD-1 and anti-PD-L1 antibodies show significantly higher clinical response and significantly lower irAE. However, severe autoimmune adverse events still occur in approximately 15-20% of cancer patients. In addition, anti-CTLA4 mAbs such as Ipilimumab and Tremelimumab are used in combination therapy with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies with superior therapeutic effect. But the improved therapeutic effect is associated even higher rates of grade 3 and grade 4 organ toxicity. Instances of irAEs have been reported across multiple body sites, including gastrointestinal tract, skin, kidney, pancreas, liver, and central and peripheral nervous systems. The incidence and severity of irAEs correlates with overall patient response and survival to checkpoint blockade, suggesting that both anti-tumor and autoimmune responses are sensitive to anti-checkpoint immunotherapy. Such irAEs may be broadly categorized as "autoimmune toxicity," or so-called "on target, off-tumor toxicity," which results from antigen-specific attack on host tissues when the targeted tumor associated antigen is expressed on nonmalignant tissue. Autoimmune toxicity has resulted in fatal toxicities after infusion of genetically engineered T cells targeting MAGE-A3.
Genetically-engineered T cell therapies, such as CAR-T, are also associated with irAEs that limit their use, although here the adverse events are more commonly cytokine-associated toxicities. CAR-T cells lead to T-cell expansion in vivo, which can lead to the release of toxic levels of cytokines, a systemic inflammatory response referred to variously as cytokine storm or cytokine release syndrome (CRS). Infusion reactions are also common with antibody and Fc-fusion protein therapeutics, and are associated with symptoms ranging from mild nausea and fever, to life threatening multiple organ failure. Aggressive supportive care is necessary for all patients experiencing CAR T-cell toxicities, with early intervention for hypotension and treatment of concurrent infections being essential. However, pharmacologic management is complicated by the risk of immunosuppressive therapy abrogating the anti-malignancy activity of the CAR T cells and is the major reason why prophylactic immunosuppression is not used. Interleukin-6 receptor blockade with tocilizumab remains the mainstay pharmacologic therapy for CRS, though indications for administration vary among treating centers.
CRS has also occurred with other forms of cancer therapy associated with rapid lysis of malignant cells, resulting in acute anaphylaxis or a phenomenon called tumor lysis syndrome (TLS). Since cell lysis can cause the release of intracellular components called danger (damage)-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), it can cause inflammation and set the stages for autoimmune disease if not properly controlled. However, traditional immune suppressants may be problematic for adverse events in cancer therapy as all forms of cancer therapies are believed to require anti-cancer immune responses either directly or indirectly.
Accordingly, there is a large unmet medical need for treating irAEs while preserving cancer immunity.

Methods of use of soluble CD24 for treating immune related adverse events in cancer therapies


This invention relates to an improvement in a process for hydrogenating a nitroaromatic composition namely dinitrotoluene by contacting the dinitrotoluene with hydrogen in a reactor employing a monolith catalyst system. Broadly the improvement resides in the continuous, essentially solventless, adiabatic hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene to toluenediamine in a plug flow reactor system incorporating the monolith catalyst. The process generally comprises the steps:. introducing a feedstock comprised of dinitrotoluene and reaction product components continuously into the reactor and said feedstock having less that 30% by weight of a solvent,. carrying out the hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene to toluenediamine under adiabatic conditions; and,. continuously removing hydrogenated reaction product from the reactor.

The conventional industrial hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene, (dinitrotoluene), to toluenediamine, (toluenediamine), has been accomplished in a continuous three phase slurry stirred tank reactor. Dinitrotoluene is introduced in the stirred reactor along with a solvent such as methanol at a concentration of from 5 to 15 gram moles/m.sup.3. Finely divided powder catalysts, especially nickel and palladium based catalysts, are suspended in the liquid phase stirred tank reactor and used as the primary catalysts to effect hydrogenation of the dinitrotoluene. Unfortunately, the use of these types of catalytic processes in the hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene result in processing difficulties, safety concerns, hygiene issues and environmental problems.
An option to the use of finely divided powder catalysts in stirred reactors has been the use of pelleted catalysts in fixed bed reactors. While this reactor technology does eliminate much of the handling and waste problems, a number of engineering challenges has not permitted the application of fixed bed reactor technology to the hydrogenation of nitroaromatic compounds in general and dinitrotoluene hydrogenation in particular. Controlling the overall temperature rise and temperature gradients in the reaction process, particularly in a dinitrotoluene process, has been one problem. Nitroaromatic compounds release more that 500 kJ/mole per nitro-functional group during hydrogenation. A second problem is that in fixed bed packed reactors there is a significant pressure drop due to the high flow rates required for nitroaromatic hydrogenation. A third problem is that liquid-gas distribution is problematic thus often leading to poor conversion and localized concentration gradients. These problems are cumulative in the production process and contribute to the considerable safety issues present in dinitrotoluene hydrogenation.
High void volume reactors incorporating monolith catalysts have been used in laboratory scale chemical processes including hydrogenation of nitroaromatics such as nitrobenzoic acid and m-nitrotoluene. These reactors have been operated at low conversion per pass with continuous recycle, thus simulating a batch process.
The following articles and patents are representative of catalytic processes employing monolith catalysts and processes in chemical reactions including the hydrogenation of nitroaromatics and other organic compounds.
Hatziantoniou, et al. in "The Segmented Two-Phase Flow Monolithic Catalyst Reactor. An Alternative for Liquid-Phase Hydrogenations,", Ind. Eng. Chem. Fundam., Vol. 23, No.1, 82-88 (1984) discloses the liquid phase hydrogenation of nitrobenzoic acid (NBA) to aminobenzoic acid (ABA) in the presence of a solid palladium monolithic catalyst. The monolithic catalyst consisted of a number of parallel plates separated from each other by corrugated planes forming a system of parallel channels having a cross sectional area of 1 mm.sup.2 per channel. The composition of the monolith comprised a mixture of glass, silica, alumina, and minor amounts of other oxides reinforced by asbestos fibers with palladium metal incorporated into the monolith in an amount of 2.5% palladium by weight. The reactor system was operated as a simulated, isothermal batch process. Feed concentrations between 50 and 100 moles/m.sup.3 were cycled through the reactor with less than 10% conversion per pass until the final conversion was between 50% and 98%
Hatziantoniou, et al. in "Mass Transfer and Selectivity in Liquid-Phase Hydrogenation of Nitro Compounds in a Monolithic Catalyst Reactor with Segmented Gas-Liquid Flow", Ind. Eng. Chem. Process Des. Dev., Vol. 25, No.4, 964-970 (1986) discloses the isothermal hydrogenation of nitrobenzene and m-nitrotoluene in a monolithic catalyst impregnated with palladium. The authors report that the activity of the catalyst is high and therefore mass-transfer is rate determining. Hydrogenation was carried out at 590 and 980 kPa at temperatures of 73.degree. and 103.degree. C. Again, less than 10% conversion per pass was achieved.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,124 discloses a process for producing catalytic structures in the form of sheets or honeycombs for the gas phase reduction of nitrogen oxides. A porous honeycomb structure is impregnated with titanium dioxide as a carrier material. The structure then is immersed in a solution containing a catalytically active oxide of copper, iron, vanadium, tungsten or molybdenum and then calcined to form the catalyst. Gas phase reduction of nitrogen oxides was effected in the presence of ammonia as a reducing agent.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,743,577 discloses metallic catalysts which are extended as thin surface layers upon a porous, sintered metal substrate for use in hydrogenation and decarbonylation reactions. In forming a monolith, a first active catalytic material, such as palladium, is extended as a thin metallic layer upon a surface of a second metal present in the form of porous, sintered substrate and the resulting catalyst used for hydrogenation, deoxygenation and other chemical reactions. The monolithic metal catalyst incorporates such catalytic materials such as palladium, nickel and rhodium, as well as platinum, copper, ruthenium, cobalt and mixtures. Support metals include titanium, zirconium, tungsten, chromium, nickel and alloys.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,250,490 discloses a catalyst made by an electrolysis process for use in a variety of chemical reactions such as hydrogenation, deamination, amination and so forth. The catalyst is comprised of a noble metal deposited, or fixed in place, on a base metal, the base metal being in form of sheets, wire gauze, spiral windirigs and so forth. The preferred base metal is steel which has a low surface area, e.g., less than 1 square meter per gram of material. Catalytic metals which can be used to form the catalysts include platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, palladium, iridium and the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,538 discloses the fixed bed catalytic hydrogenation of mononitrobenzene and dinitrobenzene in a stirred autoclave. The catalyst is an activated noble metal, e.g., palladium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium or platinum and is in the form of a screen or coherent body such as perforated or fluted sheets, honeycomb structure, foils, wires, etc. Temperatures range from .about.130.degree. to 150.degree. C.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,356,728 discloses the catalytic hydrogenation of aromatic polynitro compounds to aromatic polyamines via a slurry-phase catalyst system. Finely defined Raney nickel is the preferred catalyst.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,976,320 discloses a process for producing toluenediamine by the catalytic hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene utilizing an aqueous suspension of a palladium or platinum as the catalyst. The dinitro compound is dissolved in methanol.

Use of a monolith catalyst for the hydrogenation of dinitrotoluene to toluenediamine


A lighting assembly comprising a socket member having a substantially tubular wall defining a cavity therein and a reflector having a first substantially tubular section telescopically received within the socket member side wall. The reflector includes first and second recesses in the first tubular section wherein the first recess is located at a first distance from an end of the first tubular section and the second recess is located at a second distance, greater than the first distance, from an end of the first tubular section. The lighting assembly includes a resilient or spring-biased member, such as a leaf spring, coupled to the socket member extending into the cavity wherein the socket member and reflector are adapted to be coupled together at first and second different positions with the first resilient member being receivable in the first recess in the first position and the first resilient member being receivable in the second recess in the second position.

Conventional lighting assemblies having a socket and a reflector require the use of tools or more than one hand to connect, disconnect, adjust axially, and adjust rotatably. Connecting, disconnecting, and adjusting the socket and reflector can also present some difficulty, particularly when installing at an elevation where the installer must stand on a ladder.
Also, conventional lighting assemblies having a reflector received in a socket are not adjustable axially because there is only one connecting assembly for the reflector and socket. Manufacturing and tooling costs are also expensive for producing multiple reflectors, each having different lengths for inserting into sockets.
Other systems used generally as lighting assemblies with adjustable and detachable reflectors or shades connected to sockets with various mechanisms are disclosed in the following: U.S. Pat. No. 793,195 to Hubbell; U.S. Pat. No. 1,602,222 to Godley, U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,234 to Winkelhake; U.S. Pat. No. 6,350,047 to Ng et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,536,926 to Bucher et al.
Accordingly, a need exists for a lighting assembly with an axially and rotatably adjustable reflector coupled to a socket with a simple connection mechanism.

Lighting fixture with adjustable reflector


A delamination apparatus that includes a stage to which a lower support, an acceptor substrate disposed on the lower support, and a donor film laminated with the lower support along the edge of the acceptor substrate, interposing the acceptor substrate therebetween are mounted. The delamination apparatus further includes a first gripper disposed in an end side of the stage to move an end of the donor film to a direction far away from the acceptor substrate by gripping the end of the donor film; and a first peeling roll disposed on the donor film to support the donor film disposed between the acceptor substrate and the first gripper, and rotating itself to a direction of the first gripper.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a delamination apparatus and an inline thermal imaging system including the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
An organic light emitting element is a flat display device. Such an organic light emitting element may include an anode, a cathode, and at least organic emission layer interleaved between the anode and the cathode. The organic light emitting element has merits of a wide viewing angle and a superior contract as well as a fast response speed. Due to the merits of the organic light emitting element, the organic light emitting element has been receiving attention as the next generation display element.
The above information disclosed in this Related Art section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Delamination apparatus and inline thermal imaging system

Samsung-ro, Giheng-Gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-Do


A brush apparatus capable of controlling a drive of a brush member with a simplified structure and a vacuum cleaner having the same. The vacuum cleaner includes a rotatable brush member, a driving unit to drive the brush member, and a blocking unit disposed between the brush member and the driving unit to selectively block a driving force transmitted between the brush member and the driving unit. The driving unit includes a suction motor to generate a suction force, and a single continuous connecting belt connecting the suction motor and the blocking unit.

Generally, a conventional vacuum cleaner has a brush member, which rotates while facing the surface to be cleaned. The brush member strikes or scratches that surface with a rotating force while the cleaner moves along the surface, thereby separating dust and dirt from the surface. The dust or dirt separated by the brush member is suctioned into a cleaner body by a suction force generated from the cleaner body, and collected therein.
If the brush member came into contact with a slick or smooth surface to be cleaned, such as a bare or hardwood floor, the slick surface may be damaged due to friction with the brush member.
To address that problem, some vacuum cleaners have a blocking means for selectively blocking the operation of the brush member. For example, the brush motor for driving the brush member may be provided separately from the suction motor for generating the suction force, allowing selective blocking of the drive of the brush member via an 'on' and 'off' switch operation.
Another example of a blocking means includes providing an idling bearing and two driving belts that are used to selectively block the drive of the brush member, which is rotated by the suction motor that generates the suction force.
However, both of the above, constructions are complicated, and increase fabrication costs due to multiple parts.


An automobile theft sensor has a piezo-electric element adhered at one side to a base member and which generates a voltage in response to vibration of the automobile body, a weight adhered to the opposite side of the piezo-electric element, a silicon rubber coating covering at least a portion of the surface of the piezo-electric element and weight, a low pass filter for receiving the output voltage of the piezo-electric element and for providing an ultra low frequency signal within the range of 1-5 Hz produced by the above mentioned piezo-electric element; and a band pass filter for receiving the output voltage of the piezo-electric element and for providing a low frequency bandpass signal centered on the 30-50 Hz produced by the above mentioned piezo-electric element in response to vibration of the above mentioned automobile body. When either of the filter outputs exceeds a predetermined level it is judged that theft or tampering is occurring.

Conventional automobile theft sensors are illustrated in FIG. 5 through FIG. 7. The sensor shown in FIG. 5 comprises a metal vibrating plate 2 supported on a base 1 at one end thereof, with a weight 3 attached to the other end of the metal vibrating plate 2. In accordance with shaking of the automobile body, the weight is caused to vertically oscillate along with the metal vibrating plate 2, which is made to come in contact with the fixed point of contact 4, forming a closed circuit. By detecting the closure of this circuit at the point of contact 4 a warning signal may be generated at the time of such contact.
The sensor illustrated in FIG. 6 comprises a metal ball 6 on a patterned base plate 5 having a fine electrical pattern etched thereon. When the automobile body rocks or tilts, the metal ball 6 rolls and generates intermittent signals while coming in contact with the etched electrical pattern. In this case, by detecting the intermittent signals, a warning signal may be generated at the time of theft of the automobile or moving of the automobile by a wrecker.
The prior art sensor illustrated in FIG. 7 has a piezo-electric element 8 adhered to a metal disc 7, which is a vibrating disc, and a weight 9 attached to the center of the piezo-electric element 8. By transforming the mechanical automobile body vibrations into an electrical output from the piezo-electric element 8, it is possible to detect theft, and the like, of the automobile.
Even in view of the prior art devices described above, there still exist problems in the art of automobile theft or tampering detection. For example, the problem of false theft detection (false alarms) has not been solved. Furthermore, various tamper related activities result in distinct automobile body vibration patterns. Prior art detectors are generally responsive to limited automobile body vibration patterns associated with a number of tampering activities, and are therefore not responsive to remaining activities.
The sensor illustrated in FIG. 5 has difficulty in responding to the vibration frequencies of various automobile bodies because its resonance frequency band is narrow and therefore the results of detection using this device vary widely among different automobiles. Consequently, the reliability of this device is very poor.
In the sensor illustrated by FIG. 6, the metal ball falls to one side of the base when the automobile is parked with the body tilted to one side, or when the automobile is parked on a hill. As a result, it becomes difficult for the metal ball to roll. Consequently, rocking or vibration of the automobile body, shock, or the insertion of a key into the keyhole cannot be sufficiently detected in these cases. Therefore, the reliability of this device is also poor.
Further, the sensor illustrated in FIG. 7 is wholly inadequate for theft detection purposes. Generally the piezo-electric element of FIG. 7 has a quiet resonance frequency of about 2 Khz. Thus, while the sensor responds easily to street noise, it is not responsive to rocking of the automobile body. Thus in use, this device is not suitable for detecting rocking and vibration of the automobile body associated with theft or tampering.
Other prior art sensors include those adapted to sense the lifting of the automobile by wreckers, jacks, and the like, with the use of rotary encoders and angle detection sensors. However, two or more of these rotary encoders or similar devices were required in order to detect vertical and lateral movement and shaking of the automobile body. Moreover, when the automobile is parked on an incline, the angle of incline must be recorded in a memory device, such that when a change in the angle of incline is detected, computation of the difference in tilt angle may be accurately computed. Thus requires the use of expensive microprocessors and special programming.

Automobile alarm circuit responsive to multi-frequency phenomena


An apparatus and associated method of monitoring power consumption of an electrical device, the method comprising identifying an electrical device using a power signature unique to that device, the power signature being derived from power consumption measurements, and location information; and monitoring power consumption of such an identified device.

As awareness of issues, such as dwindling natural resources and accelerating global warming, relating to unchecked consumer energy consumption grows, systems and methods to monitor energy being consumed have been developed. An example of such as system is a "smart meter", which is an advanced meter, for example an electrical meter, which is attached to a device or unit that uses electricity, such as a building. A smart meter may monitor and records energy consumption in more detailed manner than a conventional meter. Typically, such smart meters communicate the recorded information back, via a system such as a telecommunications network, to the energy supplier whose systems measure, collect and analyze recorded energy usage for monitoring and billing purposes. Smart meters can help consumers measure and manage energy consumption, working on the basis that if the consumer knows how much energy they are using and can see which actions reduce that energy consumption they can adopt those actions as habits.
Smart meters typically comprise real-time or near real-time sensors, power outage notification means, and means for power quality monitoring and the meter can monitor and record energy consumption such as gas, electricity or water. The gathered information can be transferred to the supplier through a suitable communication medium either on request or on a pre-defined schedule. The infrastructure to facilitate this includes the hardware of the actual meter, software such as data management software, communication means and customer associated systems.
The network between the smart meter and business system end of energy provision allows collection and distribution of information to customers, suppliers, utility companies and service providers. This enables these parties to participate in, provide, and/or demand response solutions, products and services. By providing information to customers, the system assists a change in energy usage from the normal user consumption patterns, either in response to changes in price or in direct response to incentives designed to encourage lower energy usage use at times of peak-demand periods or higher wholesale prices or during periods of low operational systems reliability.
An example of system involving smart meters being implemented is "AlertMe", an online energy management service working with Google™'s PowerMeter software. Using a type of smart meter which clips onto a pre-existing meter to record usage, information can be provided to the AlertMe service. This system then gives consumers the ability to monitor, via the internet, how they are using energy within their homes from any remote location. Based upon this information, consumers can make better decisions on how to use energy in order to help reduce their utility bills and the size of their carbon footprint.
Another such system which provides consumer feedback on energy usage and which can be retrofitted to existing installations is the eRunner Energy Monitor. This provides a graphical display of energy usage such as electricity, water or gas, provides an alert in the event of irregular usage or power failure and is compatible with smart meters. This system takes information from the smart meters and allows consumers to compare multiple building or sites on a real time basis; compare each day's data to a 'perfect day'; see energy usage instantaneously; retrieve stored data for historic viewing; monitor temperature and humidity; calculate which energy provider offers best value for the particular usage patterns; exception and error reporting on live updates via text or email if required and tailor reports of energy usage as is required.
By comparison, traditional meters only measure total consumption and as such, provide no information of when the energy was consumed and traditional reporting systems merely generate a final bill. Smart meters provide an economical way of measuring this information and the related reporting systems available can give feedback on the usage patterns recorded.
However, whilst use of a smart meter can provide a clearer picture of energy consumption patterns in terms of real time usage, for larger units, such as buildings, there is currently no way of identifying what is creating the energy usage beyond manually assessing all possible energy consuming devices operating within the unit. Whilst in a small environment, such as a home, such a manual assessment of energy consuming devices may be a relatively simple process, within a larger environment, such as a factory or office block, this becomes an unwieldy and impractical undertaking

Method and apparatus for monitoring power consumption


This invention, through an arrangement of basic elements, has resulted in a new device for landscape irrigation which has not been previously available. This implementation is an electromechanical device which can potentially revolutionalize the entire landscape irrigation industry. During operation it cyclically varies the amount of water ejected from a sprinkler device and thereby provides a more uniform coverage than is ordinarily available. This obviates the necessity to have additional sprinklers fill in the under-watered areas. The device accomplishes this by utilizing a synchronous alternating current motor to drive a rotor which, as it rotates, varies the flow rate of the water to the sprinklers. The motor is powered by the same source that powers the valves feeding water to the sprinklers. Its use will drastically reduce the amount of irrigation water required, helping to save a precious resource.

Irrigation specialists have struggled over the years on ways to apply a uniform layer of water to a particular area. A longtime irrigation industry goal has been to achieve a uniformity of ninety percent. That is, the depth of water deposited over an irrigated area would vary less than ten percent. In an attempt to achieve this goal, manufacturers have developed a dizzying array of products, literally hundreds of sprinkler heads, pop-up and fixed sprinkler bodies, various valves and controllers etc, etc, etc. As a result, in-ground sprinkler layouts have become quite complex, requiring many sprinklers, valves and a network of tubing. Nowadays a degree in Irrigationology is required just to install a few sprinklers in your front yard. It should not have to be akin to rocket science. As a recreational gardener I have been frustrated by the current state of affairs and as a result I have developed the Liquid Flow Rate Modulator. This device goes a long way toward simplifying sprinkler layouts. I have achieved uniformities greater than ninety percent in tests with a prototype. And perhaps, even more importantly, it saves water! Used on a large scale across the country it could save untold quantities of water, and particularly in the western states where drought conditions persist and appear to be worsening.


A superscalar microprocessor implements a microcode instruction unit that predicts the end of microcode loops. The microcode instruction unit detects a microcode loop and begins counting the number of iterations of the loop. The microcode sequence that implements the loop includes a microcode instruction that uses the string count as an operand and/or a result. The microcode instruction unit captures the string count when it is available on either an operand or address bus. The string count is compared to the number of iterations of the string loop to determine when to terminate the microcode loop. If the string count is not captured prior to the microcode instruction unit dispatching more microcode instructions than necessary, the microcode instruction unit notifies other components via a cancel bus. In this manner, the end of a loop is detected prior to the functional unit detecting a mispredicted branch instruction within the microcode loop.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of microprocessors and, more particularly, to microcode instruction mechanisms within microprocessors.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Superscalar microprocessors achieve high performance by executing multiple instructions per clock cycle and by choosing the shortest possible clock cycle consistent with the design. As used herein, the term "clock cycle" refers to an interval of time accorded to various stages of an instruction processing pipeline within the microprocessor. Storage devices (e.g. registers and arrays) capture their values according to the clock cycle. For example, a storage device may capture a value according to a rising or falling edge of a clock signal defining the clock cycle. The storage device then stores the value until the subsequent rising or falling edge of the clock signal, respectively. The term "instruction processing pipeline" is used herein to refer to the logic circuits employed to process instructions in a pipelined fashion. Although the pipeline may be divided into any number of stages at which portions of instruction processing are performed, instruction processing generally comprises fetching the instruction, decoding the instruction, executing the instruction, and storing the execution results in the destination identified by the instruction.
Microprocessor designers often design their products in accordance with the x86 microprocessor architecture in order to take advantage of its widespread acceptance in the computer industry. Because the x86 microprocessor architecture is pervasive, many computer programs are written in accordance with the architecture. X86 compatible microprocessors may execute these computer programs, thereby becoming more attractive to computer system designers who desire x86-capable computer systems. Such computer systems are often well received within the industry due to the wide range of available computer programs.
The x86 microprocessor architecture specifies a variable length instruction set (i.e. an instruction set in which various instructions employ differing numbers of bytes to specify that instruction). For example, the 80386 and later versions of x86 microprocessors employ between 1 and 15 bytes to specify a particular instruction. Instructions have an opcode, which may be 1-2 bytes, and additional bytes may be added to specify addressing modes, operands, and additional details regarding the instruction to be executed. Certain instructions within the x86 instruction set are quite complex, specifying multiple operations to be performed. For example, the PUSHA instruction specifies that each of the x86 registers be pushed onto a stack defined by the value in the ESP register. The corresponding operations are a store operation for each register, and decrements of the ESP register between each store operation to generate the address for the next store operation.
Often, complex instructions are classified as MROM instructions. MROM instructions are transmitted to a microcode instruction unit, or MROM unit, within the microprocessor, which decodes the complex MROM instruction and dispatches two or more simpler microcode instructions for execution by the microprocessor. The simpler microcode instructions corresponding to the MROM instruction are typically stored in a read-only memory (ROM) within the microcode instruction unit. The microcode instruction unit determines an address within the ROM at which the simpler microcode instructions are stored, and transfers the microcode instructions out of the ROM beginning at that address. Multiple clock cycles may be used to transfer the entire set of microcode instructions corresponding to the MROM instruction. The entire set of microcode instructions that effectuate the function of an MROM instruction is called a microcode sequence. Each MROM instruction may correspond to a particular number of microcode instructions dissimilar from the number of microcode instructions corresponding to other MROM instructions. Additionally, the number of microcode instructions corresponding to a particular MROM instruction may vary according to the addressing mode of the instruction, the operand values, and/or the options included with the instruction. The microcode unit issues the microcode instructions into the instruction processing pipeline of the microprocessor. The microcode instructions are thereafter executed in a similar fashion to other instructions. It is noted that the microcode instructions may be instructions defined within the instruction set, or may be custom instructions defined for the particular microprocessor.
Conversely, less complex instructions are decoded by hardware decode units within the microprocessor, without intervention by the microcode unit. The terms "directly-decoded instruction" and "fastpath instruction" will be used herein to refer to instructions which are decoded and executed by the microprocessor without the aid of a microcode unit. As opposed to microcode instructions which are reduced to simpler instructions which may be handled by the microprocessor, directly-decoded instructions are decoded and executed via hardware decode and functional units included within the microprocessor.
Microcode instructions that implement an MROM instruction may include branch microcode instructions. For example, a string instruction may include a loop of microcode instructions. A microcode loop is one or more microcode instructions that are repetitively executed a specific number of times. The specific number of iterations is called a loop count or string count. A microcode loop may include a branch instruction and a decrement instruction. Each iteration of the loop, the string count is decremented. If the string count is non-zero, the branch instruction branches to the top of the loop and the microcode instructions are dispatched again. Typically, microcode units implement static branch prediction. In other words, the branch prediction is determined during coding and does not change. In the case of a branch instruction of microcode loop, the branch instruction is typically predicted "taken". Therefore, the microcode unit will continually dispatch the loop microcode instructions until a functional unit detects a mispredicted branch. Because of the pipeline nature of the microprocessor, the branch misprediction is not detected by a functional unit for several clock cycles. In the interim between the end of the loop and detecting the branch misprediction, the microcode unit fills the instruction pipeline with microcode instructions that must be flushed. The overhead of issuing and flushing the unnecessary microcode instructions is considerable. The overhead is especially burdensome if the string count is relatively small.

Apparatus and method for predicting an end of loop for string instructions


The tool is provided comprising a first and second arm. The first arm having a first and second die slot on a side and a third die slot on an opposing side. The first arm further having a first gage slot on the side adjacent the second die slot and a second gage slot on the opposing side. The second arm being operably coupled to rotate relative to the first arm. The second arm having a fourth and a fifth die slot on a side arranged opposite the first die slot and the second die slot when the second arm is in a first position, the second arm also having a sixth die slot on an opposing side from the first die, the second arm further having a third gage slot on the side adjacent the fifth die slot and a fourth gage slot on the opposing side.

The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a crimping tool for nonmetallic tubing, and in particular to a crimping tool capable of crimping a plurality of different size rings.
Crimping tools are provided in a wide variety of configurations to accommodate various components, such as ring members to be clamped about plastic pipes or other fittings for sealing components together. Although substantial forces are required to crimp a ring member in the desired position, most crimping tools are constructed in a manner which provides adequate mechanical advantage to enable the tool jaws to impart the desired amount of force to the ring members.
Crimping tools may be used with a wide variety of pipes and fittings. In a typical application, such in a residential plumbing system for example, these pipes and fittings may come in two or three different sizes, such as ⅜″, ½″, or ¾″ for example. These types of applications resulted in the user needing to carry multiple tools to the job site to accommodate each of the different size ring members. Alternatively, some crimping tools include interchangeable dies that allow a single tool to crimp multiple size rings.
It should be appreciated that the crimped connection is typically checked by the user to ensure it has been properly formed. To do this, the user may carry a gage, such as go/no-go type gage for example, that allows the user to measure the crimped connection. Thus the user needs to carry additional tools and a gage to the job site.
Accordingly, while existing crimping tools are suitable for their intended purposes the need for improvement remains, particularly in providing a compact tool capable of crimping a variety of sizes of ring members and determining whether a proper crimp has been formed.


A training device, for mounting to a standard door having a cutout at middle height, the door mounted in a door frame having a strike plate at middle height. A sliding box is mounted in the cutout for slidable motion toward and away from the strike plate. At least one spring is mounted between the sliding box and the cutout for biasing the sliding box toward the strike plate. The spring is selected to resist compression and thus motion of the sliding box away from the strike plate. The amount of resistance that the spring provides is equivalent to the amount of resistance presented by a doorknob and locking assembly on standard doors. Thus, a crowbar-like tool may be used to pry the sliding box away from the strike plate to open the door and simulate the force and action necessary to pry open any standard door.

The invention relates to a firefighter training device. More particularly, the invention relates to a device specifically designed to demonstrate to a firefighter the proper technique for prying open a typical locked door.
In order to most effectively fight a fire in a burning building, a firefighter needs access to various points around the fire. In addition, one of the primary tasks of a firefighter to ensure that no occupants remain trapped, injured, or unconscious in the building. However, often locked doors stand in the way of properly fighting the fire, or fully inspecting a building to ensure that no one has remained inside.
Various firefighter training regiments are time honored, and are necessary to ensure that a firefighter is best equipped to deal with any situation that may be encountered in the field. Thus, firefighter training not only involves the teaching of rescue skills, but also involves teaching practical skills well known by any veteran firefighter--such as how to gain access to an otherwise locked building structure. Gaining access to a locked building involves a variety of techniques, from breaking a window with an ax, to prying open a door with a crowbar-like tool known as a "Haligan tool".
Training a fledgling firefighter to use a "Haligan tool" generally involves practicing the act of prying open a locked open. However, very often the door is ruined by this attempt, especially when the students try for the first time. Thus, many doors are ruined during the training exercises.
Various devices are available to enhance other aspects of firefighter training. While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose employed, or for general use, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as disclosed hereafter.


A shift register unit, a shift register circuit, an array substrate and a display device are provided. The present disclosure relates to the field of display device manufacture, and can prevent an OLED device from flickering while writing display data. A shift register comprises a first pull-up unit, connected with a high level end, a first clock signal end and a first control node (A); a first pull-down unit, connected with a low level end, a second clock signal end, an input signal end, the first pull-up unit, a first output end and the first control node (A); a pull-down switch unit, connected with the high level end, the low level end, the first clock signal end, the second clock signal end and a second control node (B); a second pull-down unit, connected with the low level end, the second control node (B) and a second output end; and a second pull-up unit, connected with the high level end, the first control node (A) and the second output end.

With the continuous development of display technology, development of a display in recent years gradually shows a development trend of high integration and low cost. A kind of very important technology therein is implementation of mass production of GOA (Gate Driver on Array) technology. By using the GOA technology, a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) gate switch circuit is integrated on an array substrates of a display panel to form a scanning driver for the display panel, thereby capable of omitting the IC part for a gate driver. This can not only lower product cost in both of material cost and manufacturing process, but also enable the display panel to have a beautiful design of two symmetrical sides and a narrow border. In the meantime, since a process for bonding in the direction of the Gate can be omitted, it is useful for increasing productivity and a yield rate. This kind of gate switch circuit being integrated on an array substrate by using the GOA technology is also referred to as a GOA circuit or a shift register circuit.
Since the GOA circuit has the above mentioned advantages, the current OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display has increasingly used the GOA circuit as a row gating control signal of the gate of a pixel circuit array TFT. For the OLED display, since an OLED is a current driving device, the light emission of the OLED device can be controlled by controlling a current channel into the OLED device. In order to perform accurate control on the driving current of the OLED device, a driving TFT is usually added on the basis of a pixel circuit to perform accurate control on the driving current of the OLED device.
The disadvantage of this kind of circuit consists in that when a driving current is inputted to the OLED device at the moment when the GOA circuit drives a pixel circuit, which results in that there occurs a flicker in the OLED display device while writing display data, thus affecting the quality of the product.

Shift register unit, shift register circuit, array substrate and display device


Transistor package leads form quarter-wave antenna elements that directly radiate RF energy into free space without the need for a separate antenna. The transistor operates at a fundamental frequency and radiates a harmonic, thereby allowing radiation at frequencies normally considered “beyond cutoff” for a packaged transistor. This technique enables an additional 20 GHz of spectrum for use by surface mount technology. The transistor may be mounted on 1.6 mm thick glass-epoxy circuit board that also forms a quarter-wave reflector at 26 GHz. An optional dielectric lens produces a narrow beam and an optional planar filter rejects spurious fundamental emissions. A 26 GHz ultra-wideband (UWB) pulse-echo radar rangefinder implementation provides a low-cost upgrade to ultrasound.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to microwave transceivers, and more particularly to microwave radar sensors, such as rangefinders and motion detectors.
2. Description of Related Art
Radio and radar transceivers operate at radio frequency (RF) wavelengths that are larger than the active devices used to generate the RF. Active devices, such as vacuum tubes and transistors, are considered to be "beyond cutoff" when subjected to frequencies having a wavelength approaching their physical dimensions or the dimensions of their connection leads. Operation at such short wavelengths is nearly impossible since a quarter-wavelength lead forms a transformer that inverts the impedance from low to high or vice-versa. In contrast, antennas need to be a significant fraction of a wavelength, such as a quarter-wavelength, for efficient radiation into free space.
Small inductors can radiate with limited effectiveness for applications such as automotive remote door-lock transmitters. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,307,465 to Geller describes an "inductance or coil" which "functions as the antenna." However, the coil is much smaller than the radiated wavelength and radiation efficiency is limited.
At microwave and millimeter-wave frequencies, small transmission line elements on a substrate or printed circuit board (PCB) function as quarter-wave radiating elements or as patch antennas. U.S. Pat. No. 6,366,245 to Schmidt and U.S. Pat. No. 6,107,955 to Wagner depict configurations for radiating from patch antennas coupled to dielectric lenses. These antennas are clearly separate from their active devices and their connecting leads.
As a drawback to these radiating devices, additional cost and complexity is incurred by utilizing antennas or coils to serve as the radiating devices. This also increases the size of the device and, due to inefficiencies or losses within such radiating devices or the conductive paths leading to such radiating devices, power consumption may be undesirably high.

RF transceiver having a directly radiating transistor


A sensor system and method for determining a relative direction to true north is provided. The system comprises at least one angular rate sensor, such as a MEMS sensor, which has an input axis and a rotation axis. The sensor comprises a motor drive structure, a motor signal output from the motor drive structure, a gyroscope, and a sensor rate output from the gyroscope for a sensor rate signal. A frequency divider is in operative communication with the motor signal output, and a spinning device is coupled to the angular rate sensor. A spinning device motor is coupled to the spinning device and is in operative communication with the frequency divider. The spinning device motor has an axis of rotation that is substantially perpendicular to the input axis of the sensor. The spinning device motor is configured to be driven by a periodic signal from the sensor. A position of the spinning device is synchronized to the periodic signal to generate a spinning device position signal. A phase detector is in operative communication with the spinning device motor and with the sensor rate output. The relative direction to true north is determined from a phase differential between the spinning device position signal and the sensor rate signal.

Many ground-based navigation applications require directional knowledge. Examples of such applications include aiming/targeting techniques (e.g., for mortar/artillery), navigation of autonomous ground vehicles, and surveying techniques. An important piece of information for use in ground-based navigation is knowledge of one's direction relative to the desired path of travel along the surface of the earth.
Conventional techniques for obtaining directional knowledge include using magnetic compasses, the Global Positioning System (GPS), gyroscopes, and radio signals. These techniques all present certain disadvantages. Magnetic compasses require local calibrations to obtain even marginal accuracy. The GPS requires supporting electronics and cannot be used underground. The GPS also requires the user to be moving, and is susceptible to local area jamming. Conventional gyroscopes are typically too large and expensive given accuracy needs.
North-seeking gyroscopes or gyrocompasses have been developed and are traditionally characterized by reference to a freely rotating gyroscope rotor having damped precession about its own axis of rotation which naturally aligns parallel to the earth's axis of rotation and perpendicular to the local centripetal acceleration vector due to the effective torque induced by the horizontal component of the coriolis force. However, because the rate of change of the gyroscope's angular momentum vector equals the applied torque, a gyroscope having a large angular momentum vector influenced by a comparatively small torque will require significant time to align the angular momentum vector with the axis of rotation producing the torque.
Miniature gyroscopes have been developed and fabricated using micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) technology. An exemplary MEMS sensor is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,349,855 to Bernstein et al. (hereafter the "Bernstein patent"). MEMS gyroscopes have been used in low cost and performance applications especially automobiles. MEMS gyroscopes have also been used for inertial guidance but typically in conjunction with a GPS to offset gyro inaccuracies. MEMS technology typically refers to small mechanical elements micro-machined into a silicon substrate, which may also contain microcircuitry.
An exemplary north-seeking gyroscope is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,272,922 to Watson (hereafter the "Watson patent"), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. This gyroscope uses an angular rate sensor system along with a separate drive signal generator for a motor, and a sensor output signal processing circuit. This approach, however, raises the difficulty of synchronizing the rotation of the motor with the signal processing circuit.

Gyroscope north seeker system and method


Methods and apparatus for populating a network cache are described. A router associated with the cache is enabled to compile flow data relating to object traffic. The flow data are analyzed to determine a first plurality of frequently requested objects. The network cache is populated with the first plurality of frequently requested objects. Subsequent to populating the network cache, the network cache is operated in conjunction with the router to cache a second plurality of requested objects.

The present invention relates generally to networking technology. More specifically, the present invention relates to the caching of data objects to accelerate access to, for example, the World Wide Web. Still more specifically, the present invention provides methods and apparatus by which a network cache may be populated when initially deployed.
Generally speaking, when a client platform communicates with some remote server, whether via the Internet or an intranet, it crafts a data packet which defines a TCP connection between the two hosts, i.e., the client platform and the destination server. More specifically, the data packet has headers which include the destination IP address, the destination port, the source IP address, the source port, and the protocol type. The destination IP address might be the address of a well known World Wide Web (WWW) search engine such as, for example, Yahoo, in which case, the protocol would be TCP and the destination port would be port 80, a well known port for http and the WWW. The source IP address would, of course, be the IP address for the client platform and the source port would be one of the TCP ports selected by the client. These five pieces of information define the TCP connection.
Given the increase of traffic on the World Wide Web and the growing bandwidth demands of ever more sophisticated multimedia content, there has been constant pressure to find more efficient ways to service data requests than opening direct TCP connections between a requesting client and the primary repository for the desired data. Interestingly, one technique for increasing the efficiency with which data requests are serviced came about as the result of the development of network firewalls in response to security concerns. In the early development of such security measures, proxy servers were employed as firewalls to protect networks and their client machines from corruption by undesirable content and unauthorized access from the outside world. Proxy servers were originally based on Unix machines because that was the prevalent technology at the time. This model was generalized with the advent of SOCKS which was essentially a daemon on a Unix machine. Software on a client platform on the network protected by the firewall was specially configured to communicate with the resident daemon which then made the connection to a destination platform at the client""s request. The daemon then passed information back and forth between the client and destination platforms acting as an intermediary or xe2x80x9cproxyxe2x80x9d.
Not only did this model provide the desired protection for the client""s network, it gave the entire network the IP address of the proxy server, therefore simplifying the problem of addressing of data packets to an increasing number of users. Moreover, because of the storage capability of the proxy server, information retrieved from remote servers could be stored rather than simply passed through to the requesting platform. This storage capability was quickly recognized as a means by which access to the World Wide Web could be accelerated. That is, by storing frequently requested data, subsequent requests for the same data could be serviced without having to retrieve the requested data from its original remote source. Currently, most Internet service providers (ISPs) accelerate access to their web sites using proxy servers.
A similar idea led to the development of network caching systems. Network caches are employed near the router of a network to accelerate access to the Internet for the client machines on the network. An example of such a system is described in commonly assigned, copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/946,867 for METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING NETWORK DATA TRANSMISSIONS filed on Oct. 8, 1997, the entire specification of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. Such a cache typically stores the data objects which are most frequently requested by the network users and which do not change too often. Network caches can provide a significant improvement in the time required to download objects to the individual machines, especially where the user group is relatively homogenous with regard to the type of content being requested. The efficiency of a particular caching system is represented by a metric called the xe2x80x9chit ratioxe2x80x9d which is a ratio of the number of requests for content satisfied by the cache to the total number of requests for content made by the users of the various client machines on the network. The hit ratio of a caching system is high if its xe2x80x9cworking setxe2x80x9d, i.e., the set of objects stored in the cache, closely resembles the content currently being requested by the user group.
Unfortunately, with currently available caching systems, the performance improvement promised by providers of such systems is not immediate due to the fact that when a cache is initially connected to a router it is unpopulated, i.e., empty. Given the size of the typical cache, e.g.,  greater than 20 gigabytes, and depending upon the frequency of Internet access of a given user group, it can take several days for a cache to be populated to a level at which an improvement in access time becomes apparent. In fact, while the cache is being populated additional latency is introduced due to the detour through the cache.
From the customer""s perspective, this apparent lack of results in the first few days after installing a caching system can be frustrating and often leads to the assumption that the technology is not operating correctly. To address this problem, providers of caching systems have attempted to populate the cache before bringing the system on line by using previous caching logs, i.e., xe2x80x9csquidxe2x80x9d logs, to develop the working set for the system. However, this presents the classic xe2x80x9cchicken and eggxe2x80x9d conundrum in that the first time a caching system is deployed for a particular network there are no previous caching logs for that network.
Another method of populating a caching system employs a web scavenging robot which polls the client machines on the network to determine what content has been previously requested. Unfortunately, this can be a relatively slow process which consumes network resources to an undesirable degree. This process also requires a good knowledge of what type of content the users of interest typically browse.
It is therefore apparent that there is a need for techniques by which caching systems may be quickly and transparently populated when they are initially deployed.
According to the present invention, methods and apparatus are provided by which a caching system may be populated quickly before its deployment. The techniques described herein employ a capability inherent in most routers to develop a working set of data objects which are then retrieved to populate the cache. The router to which the caching system is to be connected is configured to log information regarding the destinations from which network users are requesting information, i.e., net flow statistics. According to a specific embodiment, this information is then parsed to get a list of destinations corresponding to a specific port, e.g., port 80, or a group of IP addresses. These destinations are then sorted according to the frequency with which they are requested. The top N destinations are then selected for populating the cache. Cacheable objects from those destinations are then retrieved and stored in the cache. The process of retrieving and storing this data takes only a few hours. Moreover, a system administrator can configure the network router to collect the necessary traffic flow data in advance of purchasing the caching system so that, once the system is delivered, it can be populated and deployed immediately.
According to another embodiment, before beginning operation as a cache, the caching system automatically configures the router to log the traffic flow data after which it analyzes the data and retrieves the appropriate data objects. Once populated it enables itself to perform the caching function.
Thus, the present invention provides methods and apparatus for populating a network cache. A router associated with the cache is enabled to compile flow data relating to object traffic. The flow data are analyzed to determine a first plurality of frequently requested objects. The network cache is populated with the first plurality of frequently requested objects. Subsequent to populating the network cache, the network cache is operated in conjunction with the router to cache a second plurality of requested objects.
A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification and the drawings.


An impact absorption member comprises a sheet of crushable material having curvilinear projections having a width, height, length and spacing selected for different impact absorption characteristics. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the projections are sinusoidal. In a preferred embodiment also, the material comprises a mixture of recycled, reground thermo-formable material and reprocessed fibrous bats including polyester fibers, glass fibers and a thermo-setting resin. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the member constitutes an elongated arch-shaped base having integrally superimposed thereon the curvilinear projections.

The present invention relates to structure employed in vehicles for impact absorption in the event of an accident.
A wide variety of materials have been employed in vehicles for minimizing injuries in the event of an accident. Although air bags are now becoming commonplace, areas of the vehicle, such as the A-pillars and the headliner, need to meet or exceed the federally mandated head injury criterion (HIC(d)) performance which will be required for such areas in future vehicles. In the past, a variety of open and closed cell foam materials have been employed for areas such as the instrument panel. In order to provide head impact absorption in contemporary vehicles, padded visors are sometimes employed as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,958,878 for protecting the occupants in the front windshield area.
In recent years, headliners for vehicles have been integrally molded and have a variable thickness depending upon the area of the headliner. In some instances, efforts have been made to increase the thickness of headliners in areas where impact absorption may be important. With such increased thickness, however, the cost of manufacturing the headliner through a molding process increases as does the complexity of the size and shapes of the molds employed. Further, modern vehicles do not allow space for a significant additional conventional padding or cushioning materials in view of the more compact interior design and sharply slanting windshield.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/529,366 filed Sep. 18, 1995, and entitled HEADLINER WITH INTEGRAL IMPACT ABSORPTION PANELS represents one new solution to the problem in which corrugated material is employed in the headliner in critical areas where impact absorption is desirable.


The present invention relates to an antireflective coating composition comprising, (i) a thermal acid generator; (ii) a crosslinkable polymer comprising at least one aromatic group; and, (iii) a polymeric crosslinker comprising at least one unit of structure (6),

Photoresist compositions are used in microlithography processes for making miniaturized electronic components such as in the fabrication of computer chips and integrated circuits. Generally, in these processes, a thin coating of film of a photoresist composition is first applied to a substrate material, such as silicon wafers used for making integrated circuits. The coated substrate is then baked to evaporate any solvent in the photoresist composition and to fix the coating onto the substrate. The photoresist coated on the substrate is next subjected to an image-wise exposure to radiation.
The radiation exposure causes a chemical transformation in the exposed areas of the coated surface. Visible light, ultraviolet (UV) light, electron beam and X-ray radiant energy are radiation types commonly used today in microlithographic processes. After this image-wise exposure, the coated substrate is treated with a developer solution to dissolve and remove either the radiation exposed (positive photoresist) or the unexposed areas of the photoresist (negative photoresist).
Positive working photoresists when they are exposed image-wise to radiation have those areas of the photoresist composition exposed to the radiation become more soluble to the developer solution while those areas not exposed remain relatively insoluble to the developer solution. Thus, treatment of an exposed positive-working photoresist with the developer causes removal of the exposed areas of the coating and the formation of a positive image in the photoresist coating. Again, a desired portion of the underlying surface is uncovered.
Negative working photoresists when they are exposed image-wise to radiation, have those areas of the photoresist composition exposed to the radiation become insoluble to the developer solution while those areas not exposed remain relatively soluble to the developer solution. Thus, treatment of a non-exposed negative-working photoresist with the developer causes removal of the unexposed areas of the coating and the formation of a negative image in the photoresist coating. Again, a desired portion of the underlying surface is uncovered.
Photoresist resolution is defined as the smallest feature which the photoresist composition can transfer from the photomask to the substrate with a high degree of image edge acuity after exposure and development. In many leading edge manufacturing applications today, photoresist resolution on the order of less than 100 nm is necessary. In addition, it is almost always desirable that the developed photoresist wall profiles be near vertical relative to the substrate, photoresist images are free of residues, have good depth of focus and the photoresist have good long term and short term stability. Good lithographic properties are important for the photoresist. Such demarcations between developed and undeveloped areas of the photoresist coating translate into accurate pattern transfer of the mask image onto the substrate. This becomes even more critical as the push toward miniaturization reduces the critical dimensions on the devices.
The trend towards the miniaturization of semiconductor devices has led to the use of new photoresists that are sensitive at lower and lower wavelengths of radiation and has also led to the use of sophisticated multilevel systems, such as antireflective coatings, to overcome difficulties associated with such miniaturization.
Photoresists sensitive to short wavelengths, less than about 300 nm, are often used where subhalfmicron geometries are required. Particularly preferred are deep uv photoresists sensitive at below 200 nm, e.g. 193 nm and 157 nm, comprising non-aromatic polymers, a photoacid generator, optionally a dissolution inhibitor, and solvent.
The use of highly absorbing antireflective coatings in photolithography is a useful approach to diminish the problems that result from back reflection of radiation from highly reflective substrates. The bottom antireflective coating is applied on the substrate and then a layer of photoresist is applied on top of the antireflective coating. The photoresist is exposed imagewise and developed. The antireflective coating in the exposed area is then typically dry etched using various etching gases, and the photoresist pattern is thus transferred to the substrate. In cases where the photoresist does not provide sufficient dry etch resistance, underlayers or antireflective coatings for the photoresist that are highly etch resistant are preferred, and one approach has been to chemically vapor deposit layers with high content of carbon. Carbon is known to be highly etch resistant for gases used to etch the layers beneath the antireflective coating. However, the deposition of carbon typically requires a vapor deposition technique utilizing expensive vacuum equipment, and therefore is not highly desirable. An organic spin castable antireflective coating which incorporates as high content as possible of carbon into these underlayers is one preferred alternative. Antireflective coatings comprising a polymer and a crosslinking agent comprising a high concentration of carbon are highly desirable. Additionally, the antireflective coating composition which has a minimal concentration of oxygen, nitrogen, halogen, and other noncarbon constituents is desirable, and aromatic moieties, such as phenyl, are very desirable.
The present invention provides for a novel organic spin castable antireflective coating composition for a photoresist, where the composition comprises a crosslinkable polymer which is absorbing and a polymeric crosslinker capable of crosslinking with the crosslinkable polymer in the presence of an acid. The novel antireflective coating is spin castable on the substrate. The antireflective composition of the present invention provides for an underlayer or antireflective coating with high carbon content, and therefore a high degree of etch resistance, that is, a low etch rate relative to the substrate. Such antireflective coatings also function as hard masks for etching the substrate, where the hard mask prevents the substrate from being etched by the etching gases. An antireflective coating composition for high etch rate is disclosed in US 2001/0034427 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,033,729.
The invention also provides for a process for using the antireflective coating to form an image using the novel composition. The novel composition is useful for imaging photoresists which are coated directly over the novel antireflective coating composition or with intervening layers, and also for etching the substrate. The novel composition enables a good image transfer from the photoresist to the substrate, and also has good absorption characteristics to prevent reflective notching and line width variations or standing waves in the photoresist. Additionally, substantially no intermixing is present between the antireflective coating and the film coated over this coating. The antireflective coating also has good solution stability and forms films with good coating quality, the latter being particularly advantageous for lithography.

Abstract: where R11 to R13 is independently selected from H, (C1-C6) alkyl and aromatic group, R14 and R15 are independently (C1-C10) alkyl. The invention also relates to a process for imaging the antireflective coating composition of the present invention.


The present invention provides a Group III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device exhibiting improved emission performance. In a MQW structure light-emitting layer in which a plurality of layer units is repeatedly deposited, each layer unit comprising an InGaN well layer, a GaN protective layer, and an AlGaN barrier layer sequentially deposited, the protective layer is formed as follows. The protective layer is grown at the same temperature as employed for the well layer. The growth rate of the protective layer is larger than 0.5 times and not larger than 1.1 times the growth rate of the well layer. The protective layer is formed so as to have a thickness of 5 Å to 8 Å at the start of growth of the barrier layer being formed thereafter.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for producing a Group III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device characterized by the structure of light-emitting layer. More specifically, the light-emitting layer has a MQW structure in which a plurality of layer units are repeatedly deposited, each layer unit comprising a well layer, a protective layer, and a barrier layer sequentially deposited, and is characterized by the method for forming a protective layer.
Background Art
A MQW structure comprising an InGaN well layer and an AlGaN barrier layer alternately and repeatedly deposited, is widely used as a light-emitting layer of Group III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device. Since the barrier layer is formed of AlGaN, the growth temperature of the barrier layer must be higher than that of the well layer to grow with good crystallinity. Therefore, after the formation of the well layer, it is necessary to raise the temperature, and then grow the barrier layer. However, In is evaporated from the well layer due to heating, thereby causing reduction in emission performance or variation in emission wavelength. Therefore, a protective layer is provided between the well layer and the barrier layer, which is grown at the same temperature as the growth temperature of the well layer, thereby preventing the evaporation of In.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2010-80619 discloses that a protective layer formed of AlGaN having a thickness of 6 Å is used. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2012-216751 discloses that a protective layer formed of GaN having a thickness of 6 Å is used.
Moreover, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (kokai) No. 2001-332763 discloses that a protective layer is formed of InGaN, and the growth rate of the protective layer is 1.5 times to 5 times higher than that of the well layer. During heating for formation of the barrier layer after the formation of the protective layer, the protective layer is thermally decomposed so that the protective layer is almost evaporated at the start of growth of the barrier layer.
The thickness of the protective layer is an important issue. When the protective layer is too thin, the evaporation of In from the well layer is not prevented. When the protective layer is too thick, carriers are trapped or recombined in the protective layer, thereby reducing emission performance.
Therefore, when forming the protective layer, controllability of the thickness must be improved. Conventionally, the thickness was controlled by making the growth rate of the protective layer extremely lower than that of the well layer. However, this method cannot improve emission performance as expected, rather emission performance was reduced.
The inventors have found, as a result of intensive research to determine the cause, that the crystallinity of an interface between the well layer and the protective layer is deteriorated due to fluctuation of raw material gas flow caused by making the growth rate different between the well layer and the protective layer.

Method for producing group III nitride semiconductor light-emitting device