A system and method to coordinate the changing of identifiers, i.e., primary keys and foreign keys, of new records generated by a first system by revision of these new records with alternate primary keys and foreign keys as generated and/or established by a second database system. The invention is an improvement over prior art transactional methods that maintain relationships among records when updating records of a first data base with replacement of primary and foreign keys provided by another database management system, and an improvement over prior art approaches to non-indexed schemas. Thus, the new method teaches how to batch update relationship fields in the first database with fewer database updates. The invention provides large savings for columnar databases, which are generally not indexed, and speeds up record key maintenance and harmonizing across two or more row-oriented databases.

The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may also be inventions.
Databases are ubiquitous and crucial in consumer, business, and government operations. One common organizational structure often used entails having a central 'system of record' database available over a network and containing all of the stored records that are kept within that particular database, and for this database to be accessed by multiple terminals such as computers connected to the same network. One example of this might be a customer database for a business, wherein employees working at a local branch office update customer information or add new customers, then load their new information to be added to the master copy. Another example might be a business that provides a remote database service, such as Salesforce.
Many databases rely on primary keys, such as but not limited to serialized ID numbers or a Globally Unique Identifier (GUID), to organize their large sets of records. When one has multiple branch terminals adding new records to a central database, as described above, it is generally imperative that the branch terminals not originate their own primary keys, but let the central database assign these instead, in order to prevent duplicates. For at least this reason, branch office terminals operating within this model are generally kept connected to the central database system at all times, despite the additional resources burned by being 'always on', with organizational difficulties discouraging adoption of any more incremental timetable for updating or loading of records. Additionally, if a branch office experiences an internet problem and is disconnected from the network, they may be simply unable to enter any new records into the system until the problem is fixed, lacking an adequate solution for mediating between any local-only creation of records and creation of 'real' records in the central database.
There is therefore a long-felt need to provide a method and system that optimally handle organization and consistent inclusion of new records originated independently of the central database.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System and method for revising record keys to coordinate record key changes within at least two databases


The present invention relates to pants capable of lifting sagging buttocks when a user wears them, thereby giving a sense of comfort as well as a good appearance to the user. The pants include elastic first wings, wherein each one side of the first wings is seamed with both outer edges of the upper portion of a rear fabric panel in a longitudinal direction and the other side of each of the first wings is seamed with a front fabric panel along zipper seam lines, respectively, and second wings wherein each one side of the second wings is seamed, independent from the first wings, to the portions seamed with the first wings in a longitudinal direction and the other side of each of the second wings is seamed with each end of band stitched to both upper end portions of the front fabric panel.

Pants are an item of clothing that cover the lower limbs of a body movable in a variety of poses and having a large amount of mobility, so that technologies on improving their structure, together with the structure of shirt sleeves, are paid close attention.
Particularly, nowadays, pants having a variety of functions and structures are commercially produced. Further, pants which are stylish and give a sense of comfort to a user when they are worn are being introduced to a market in a variety of structures.


An apparatus for controlling an operation of a reciprocating motor compressor includes a current integrator for integrating an alternating current applied to a motor of the compressor during each one cycle thereof; and a controller for differently controlling a firing angle of a triac during the positive phase and the firing angle of the triac during the negative phase of the AC voltage applied to the motor based on the integrated value of the current. A loss in the motor can be reduced by avoiding presence of a DC component in the current applied to the motor of the compressor.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a reciprocating (linear) motor compressor and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for controlling an operation of a reciprocating motor compressor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, a reciprocating motor compressor (hereinafter, for simplicity, referred to as "reciprocating motor compressor") which is operated by a linearly reciprocating electric motor without a crank shaft for converting a rotational motion to a linear motion, a reciprocating compressor has less friction loss, and thus, can provide a higher compression efficiency than other compressors.
When the reciprocating motor compressor is used for a refrigerator or an air-conditioner, a compression ratio of the compressor can be varied to control the cooling capacity by varying a stroke voltage applied to the reciprocating motor of the compressor.
The conventional controlling of a reciprocating motor compressor will now be described with reference to FIG. 1.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the construction of an apparatus for controlling an operation of a reciprocating motor compressor in accordance with the prior art.
As shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus for controlling an operation of a reciprocating motor compressor includes a current detector 4 detecting a current applied to the reciprocating motor (not shown) of the compressor 6, a voltage detector 3 detecting a voltage applied to the motor, a stroke calculator 5 calculating a stroke estimation value based on the detected current and voltage values and a certain operational parameter of the motor, a comparator 1 comparing the calculated stroke estimation value with a pre-set stroke reference value, and outputting a difference vale according to the compared result, and a stroke controller 2 controlling an operation (stroke) of the compressor 6 by varying the voltage applied to the motor by controlling a turn-on period of a triac (not shown) connected in series with the motor according to the difference value. Herein, when the stroke controller 2 controls the turn-on period of the triac applying power to the motor, it controls a firing angle (α1) of the triac during of a positive (+) phase and a firing angle (α2) of the triac during of a negative (−) phase of the current flowing at the triac to be the same, i.e., α1=α2.
The operation of the apparatus for controlling the operation of the reciprocating motor compressor will now be described with reference to FIG. 1.
First, the current detector 4 detects the current being applied to the motor (not shown) of the compressor 6 and outputs the value of the detected current to the stroke calculator 5. At this time, the voltage detector 3 detects the voltage being applied to the motor and outputs the value of the detected voltage to the stroke calculator 5.
The stroke calculator 5 calculates the stroke estimation value (X) of the compressor based on the detected current and voltage values and the operational parameter of the motor according to equation (1) shown below, and then applies the calculated stroke estimation value (X) to the comparator 1:
                    X        =                              1            α                                          ∫                                          (                                                      V                    M                                    -                  Ri                  -                                      L                                                              i                      _                                                                      )                                                          ⅆ                t                                                                        (        1        )            wherein 'R' is the motor resistance value, 'L' is the motor inductance value, 'α' is a motor constant, Vm is the value of the voltage applied to the motor, 'I' is the value of the current applied to the motor, and ī is the differentiated value (di/dt) of 'i'.
Thereafter, the comparator 1 compares the stroke estimation value and the stroke reference value, and applies a difference value according to the compared result to the stroke controller 2.
The stroke controller 2 controls the stroke of the compressor 6 by varying the voltage being applied to the motor of the compressor 6 based on the difference value. This will be described with reference to FIG. 2 as follows.
FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a method for controlling an operation of the reciprocating motor compressor in accordance with the prior art.
First, when the stroke estimation value is applied to the comparator 1 by the stroke calculator 5 (step S1), the comparator 1 compares the stroke estimation value with the pre-set stroke reference value (step S2) and outputs the difference value according to the compared result to the stroke controller 2.
If the stroke estimation value is smaller than the stroke reference value, the stroke controller 2 increases a voltage applied to the motor in order to control the stroke of the compressor (step S3). If, however, the stroke estimation value is greater than the reference value, the stroke controller 2 reduces the voltage applied to the motor (step S4). In this case, in order to increase or reduce the voltage applied to the motor, the turn-on period of the triac (not shown) electrically connected with the motor is controlled to apply the voltage to the motor.
Meanwhile, when the motor is controlled through the triac, a loss in the motor increases. The reason for this will now be described with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B.
FIGS. 3A and 3B are waveform diagrams showing waveforms of the voltage and current applied to the motor of the reciprocating motor compressor in accordance with the prior art.
As shown in FIG. 3A, in the apparatus for controlling an operation of the reciprocating motor compressor, when the turn-on period of the triac applying power to the motor is controlled, the firing angle (α1) of the triac during the positive (+) half cycle phase of the voltage flowing at the triac and the firing angle (α2) of the triac during the negative (−) half cycle phase are controlled to be the same. Consequently, the positive phase and the negative phase of the current applied to the motor become relatively asymmetrical.
With reference to FIG. 3B, the asymmetrical current can be divided into symmetrical AC component current and a DC component current, and the DC component current increases a loss in the motor. Namely, the loss in the motor increases according to equation (2) shown below:Motorloss=i2(RAC+RDC)   (2)wherein 'i' is the current applied to the motor, 'RAC' is an iron loss and a copper loss arising due to the AC component current applied to the motor, and 'RDC' is a copper loss arising due to the DC component current applied to the motor. It is noted that the AC component contributes to both the iron loss and the copper loss, while the DC component contributes only to the copper loss.
As stated above, the conventional apparatus for controlling an operation of the reciprocating motor compressor has the problem that since the DC component current is applied, the loss in the motor increases.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,779,982 issued on Aug. 24, 2004 also discloses a conventional reciprocating motor compressor.

Apparatus and method for controlling operation of reciprocating motor compressor


The present invention is related to a positioning structure of the upper cover of a telephone receiver, wherein the main design thereof is that the assembling portion of the receiver body is installed with a radial elastic piece, an axial elastic piece and a guiding rib; while a stopping portion is formed on the side of the free end of the radial elastic piece, while a positioning rib, a nose portion, and a screw rib are installed on the upper cover with respective to the radial elastic piece, axial elastic piece and guiding rib. According to said structure, the positioning rib may enter into the range of the stopping portion, and the nose portion is positioned that the stopping portion on one side of the axial elastic piece and the screw rib is entered into the range of the guiding rib. Therefore, the upper cover may be assembled on the predetermined position of the receiver body, and it may be open again by applying a force which is larger than a rated force.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a positioning structure of the upper cover of telephone receiver, especially, to a receiver of a public telephone so that the upper cover thereof may be assembled on the receiver body quickly, and it may be pulled out with a force which is larger than a rated force.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior telephone receiver, the two sides thereof are generally installed with microphone and trumpet, and an upper cover is screwedly engaged on the assembling portion of the receiver body, and an upper cover is screwedly engaged on the receiver body, wherein the upper cover will cause that the microphone and the trumpet is included within the receiver body in order to protect the microphone and the trumpet.
In order to avoid that the upper cover is destroyed manually so that the microphone and the trumpet therewithin are also destroyed. Therefore, when the upper cover is screwedly fixed on a predetermined position of the receiver body, conventionally, the screwed portion is fixed by adhersive or other high frequency method.
Although the adhersive or high frequency method may make sure that the upper cover will not been opened by an external force. However, if said microphone or trumpet are destroyed by accident, then it is needed to destroy the upper cover or the receiver body for repairing or updating the microphone and the trumpet.

Positioning structure of the upper cover of a telephone receiver


A novel process for the free radical polymerization of fluoromonomers in which perfluoroalkyl sulfide solvents are used is disclosed. The solvents have little effect on atmospheric temperature and ozone concentrations. The polymers produced are useful as thermoplastics and elastomers.

Fluoroolefins are often polymerized in the presence of either fluorocarbon or chlorofluorocarbon solvents. Use of these solvents may be less desirable in the near future because of their potential for environmental damage as greenhouse gases and ozone depleters. New solvents are needed that do not contain chlorine and are reactive enough to degrade rapidly in the atmosphere, yet stable enough not to interfere with radical fluoroolefin polymerization. The perfluoroalkyl sulfides disclosed herein appear to meet the reactivity criterion in that they degrade in UV light and air yet can usefully survive the peroxide initiators commonly used in fluorolefin polymerization.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,931,803 at column 6, lines 39-42 describes octafluoro-1,4-dithiane and octafluorothiolane as used for aerosol solvents. That disclosure does not mention the use of these solvents in fluoromonomer polymerization or initiator activation.

Perfluoroalkyl sulfide polymer solvents for fluoromonomer polymerization


A surgical clip is provided, having two clip arms and a resiliently flexible element pivotally connecting the two clip arms together. The two clip arms each have a first free end, which are held in parallel to and in contact with each other with a predetermined closing force by the flexible element in a rest position. At a second end opposite the free end, the clip arms are held connected to a wall section of the flexible element that is arranged substantially transverse to the longitudinal direction of the clip arms, extends between the second ends of the clip arms and has a first wall portion facing towards the clip arms and a second wall portion facing away from the clip arms. The flexible element is made from a plastics material by injection molding. The first wall portion is produced with a greater shrinkage than the second wall portion.

The invention relates to a surgical clip, in particular for use as an implant, wherein use as a cerebral aneurysm clip has outstanding importance here.
Surgical clips are known that have two clip arms and a resiliently flexible element which connects the two clip arms to each other at one of their ends.
The two clip arms each have a first free end, these first free ends being held parallel to and in contact with each other with a predetermined closing force by the resiliently flexible element when the clip is in a rest position, while a second end opposite the respective free end is held on the resiliently flexible element.
An essential parameter of the surgical clips of the kind mentioned at the outset is their closing force: it must be precisely set and also, in particular if the surgical clip is used as an implant, be maintained on a permanent basis.
The production of the surgical clips of the kind mentioned at the outset is therefore an elaborate process.
It is an object of the invention to provide a surgical clip that can be produced more easily and in particular also more cost-effectively.


Seat selection for prospective spectators at a performance venue is facilitated by displaying virtual views of the performance space from any selected seat. The virtual seat views can be photorealistic renderings based on a three dimensional digital model of the performance venue. The virtual seat views can also reflect the seat locations as well as estimated spectator heights of eye.

Many performance venues, such as theaters and sports arenas, allow prospective spectators to reserve seats in advance. Oftentimes, the advance reservation of seats is a practical necessity, as the performance venue will be quickly sell out of available seats. Increasingly, the reservation of seats in advance (most typically in the form of advance ticket purchases) is accomplished remotely from the performance venue. For instance, many reservations are made over the Internet. Additionally, electronic ticket kiosks are also frequently used. Even if seats are reserved in advance at a performance venue box office, it may not be possible to physically view the venue at the time reservations are made.
In an attempt to facilitate seat selection, many reservation systems will display a seating chart of the performance venue. A typical seating chart shows block representations of the seats and may generally indicate the location of the performance space, such as a stage, court or field. These seating charts are often not to scale, and even when they are, they ordinarily fail to represent more than the general location of the seats.

System and method for facilitating performance venue seat selection


A generation unit general monitor-control system for generally monitoring and controlling electric power generation units (A-3 etc.), the general monitor-control system allocating relations between the electric power generation units and interface devices (11) for monitoring and controlling the generation units. The monitor-control system includes: a unit database (13) storing process data and operation signals; process input-output means (14) for reading out the data from this unit database and outputting the data to the generation units; unit database input-output portion (12) for receiving demands from the interface devices, detecting addresses of the generation units allotted to the interface devices, and referring to data corresponding to the addresses; interface device designating means (22) for designating interface devices; and an interface-device-unit-relation rewriting device (18) for rewriting the allocation relation between the generation unit and the interface devices based upon command from the interface device designating means.

In conventional power generation systems, each generation unit in power generation plants is controlled separately. For example, each of the generation units has teams of five or six operators, and the teams take turns in duty, so as to quickly cope with abnormal incidents. Since operation automation in the power generation stations has advanced, the number of operators required for each generation unit has decreased.
However, the operation management system for each generation unit still remains persistently, which results in increase required number of operators proportionately to the scale of the power generation stations (or the number of the generation units.
In order to improve such a s situation, a general monitor-control system has been proposed as disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Publication 11-356094. By this system, a plurality of generation units of a plurality of power generation plants are monitored and controlled with fewer operators more efficiently and safely.
However, there is fear that the operators may take wrong subjects to be monitored and controlled by mistake, because a same monitor-control system can monitor and control a plurality of generation units. To prevent operation mistakes, a a single man-machine interface might be allocated for each generation unit so as to monitor and control the generation unit in one-to-one basis. However, such a system would require many display devices for all generation units, which would require wide area for arranging the display devices and would cost much.
The operators and the general monitor-control system might be divided into groups of the similar operation states of the generation units and the grouping might be changed depending on the change in operation states. However, such grouping would cause mistakes in operation and recognition, because the disclosed general monitor-control system does not have functions adapted for such grouping.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide general monitor-control system, which can monitor and control a plurality of electric power generation units with smaller number of operators efficiently and safely.

Power generating unit general monitor/control apparatus


A paper feeding device includes paper feed rollers in a paper hand feed path and a paper feed detection switch in front of the paper feed rollers. A drive section is provided for driving the paper feed rollers. A controller is provided such that the paper feed rollers pinch and hold the leading edge of a hand feed sheet of paper when the paper feed detection switch turns on.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a paper feeding device used in an image forming mechanism of a laser printer, a copier or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a prior paper feeding device, FIGS. 6A to 6C are schematic diagrams for explaining its paper feeding operation, and FIG. 7 is its control flowchart.
As shown in FIG. 5, the prior paper feeding device comprises paper feed rollers 2 and 3, paper hand feed rollers 4 and 5 disposed in a paper hand feed path 1, and a drive section 6 for driving the paper feed rollers 2 to 5, the drive section including a motor 7, a gear mechanism 8, and a clutch 9. A paper feed detect switch 10 is provided for the paper feed rollers 2 and 3. A hand feed detect switch 11 is provided close to the paper hand feed rollers 4 and 5.
In the above arrangement, while the paper feeding device is in wait state, when paper 12 is sent to the hand feed path 1, the hand feed detect switch 11 is turned on as shown in FIG. 6A. When this occurs, the motor 7 is turned on and the paper 12 is fed by the hand feed rollers 4 and 5 (FIG. 6B). When the paper 12 comes to the paper feed detect switch 10, the clutch 9 is disengaged to prevent the paper 12 from being sent beyond the paper feed rollers 2 and 3. At this time, the leading edge of the paper 12 is located at the paper feed rollers 2 and 3 held by the clutch 9. Then, the motor 7 is turned off, the clutch is engaged, and the paper feeding device waits for a request to print (See FIG. 6C). After this, when a request to print is given, the motor 7 is turned on to drive the paper feed rollers 2 and 3 to send the paper to a printing section. When the paper is extracted, the hand feed detect switch 11 is turned off, and the process returns to the initial wait state. In FIG. 7, the process "FEED PAPER TO CASSETTE" indicates a case in which an automatic paper feed mechanism is operated.
However, in the above-mentioned prior art, the paper hand feed mechanism necessitates the switch 11 for detecting a hand feed, paper hand feed rollers 4 and 5, and a special holding mechanism. For this reason, the number of parts used is large, and their control is complicated.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a paper feeding device having the reduced number of parts required.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the paper feeding device according to the present invention comprises paper feed rollers 24 and 25 disposed in the paper hand feed path 23, a drive section 26 for driving the paper feed rollers 24 and 25, a paper feed detect switch 27 arranged in front of and close to the paper feed rollers 24 and 25, and a controller 29 for outputting control signals to the above-mentioned drive section 26 to drive the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 in response to ON action of the paper feed detect switch 27 to pinch and hold the leading edge of the hand-fed paper 28 between them.
In the above-mentioned paper feeding device, in the case of paper hand feed, while it is in a wait state, when the paper 28 is supplied through the paper hand feed path 23 as shown in FIG. 3A, the paper feed detect switch 27 is turned on. Then, the controller 29 sends a signal to the drive section 26, whereby the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 are halted. Therefore, the paper 28 is not fed. While this state is maintained for a fixed period of time, the leading edge of the paper 28 is aligned at the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 (See FIG. 3B). After this, the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 are driven to feed the paper 28 by a fixed amount, whereby the paper 28 is pinched and held between the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 (See FIG. 3C). Then, the drive section 26 is turned off and waits for a request to print.
When a request to print is given, the controller 29 causes the paper feed rollers 24 and 25 to rotate, thereby supplying the paper 28 to the photosensitive body 35. At this time, when the paper 28 is extracted, the paper feed detect switch 27 is turned off, the paper feeding device returns to the initial wait condition.
According to the present invention, in the case of paper hand feed, the leading edge of the hand-fed paper is pinched and held by the paper feed rollers, and therefore, the paper can be held without a provision of a switch for detecting hand feed and an additional paper holding mechanism, so that the number of parts required can be reduced, and the reliability of paper feeding operation can be improved.
Further, there is no need to connect an additional paper holding mechanism to the motor of the drive section, therefore, it is possible to reduce the motor load.
Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Paper feeding device having paper hand feed path


A system that includes an account management module configured to maintain protected accounts. For instance, a particular protected account includes a protected data set that is not readable outside of the system, and perhaps not even readable outside of the account. The particular data set corresponds to a particular entity assigned to the particular account and that includes keys corresponding to the particular entity. A security processor uses at least some of the plurality of keys to perform cryptographic processes in response to one or more trusted execution environment commands received from the particular entity.

Trusted Platform Modules (or "TPMs") are trusted execution environments that are isolated from the regular operating environment of computing devices. Typically, TPMs are implemented in the form of a chip that is physically bound to a computing device. The regular computing environment may communicate with the TPM through an interface, an example of which being TPM Based Services (or "TBS").
TPMs provide a range of functions, most commonly used of which are cryptographic key generation, policy-driven key use, sealed storage, and attestation. TPMs have a region of memory called a "protected area" that contains data that cannot be read, but nevertheless operations may be performed using and/or on such data. Some of the data is immutable and thus is read (but not changed) by the operation that is being performed, and some of the data is mutable and can be changed through such operations. Note that it is the operation that is being performed internal to the TPM that is reading the data. The protected data is not readable outside the TPM.
Thus, the TPM has an operational component that performs operations, and a memory component which retains protected data that cannot be read outside of the TPM. The operational speed of the TPM is limited to the capabilities of the hardware within the TPM. Also, the size of the protected area is limited to the space within the TPM.

Network based management of protected data sets


Portable computing devices automatically interface with other computing devices to interact in a collaborative effort toward providing a single, seamless computing experience for a user. As a user walks into a room with a cellular telephone certain functionality and data can be automatically unloaded to a desktop computer or other device based on a user or device identification or state. For example, a conversation on a cellular telephone can be automatically migrated to a desktop telephone as a user sits down. As a user is about to leave a room for a meeting, the desktop computer can update the telephone with latest versions of certain files. Thus, devices can automatically aggregate and/or decouple to provide a user with a single computing experience. These portable devices can broadcast an extensible set of services to other devices as well as to a host computer or server.

Both enterprises and individuals are increasingly interested in using handheld devices. Most modern handheld devices are equipped with multiple sensors (e.g., microphone, wireless transmitter, global positioning system (GPS) engine, camera, stylus, etc.). However, there are no applications available that make full use of multiple sensors. In other words, multi-sensory technologies that make handheld devices a multi-modal multi-lingual mobile assistant are not available.
Today, portable devices such as cellular telephones and personal data assistants (PDAs) employ state-of-the-art operating systems. As such, these devices have increased computing power in hardware and increased features in software in relation to earlier technologies. Oftentimes, cellular telephones are equipped with built-in digital image capture devices (e.g., cameras) and microphones together with computing functionalities of personal digital assistants (PDAs). Since these devices combine the functionality of cellular telephones with the functionality of PDAs, they are commonly referred to as "smartphones." The hardware and software features available in these smartphones and similar technologically capable devices provide developers the capability and flexibility to build applications through a versatile platform. The increasing market penetration of these portable devices (e.g., PDAs) inspires programmers to build applications, games, etc. for these smartphones.
As described above, many smartphones have built-in digital image capture devices (e.g., cameras) capable of generating video graphics array (VGA) quality pictures having 640×480 pixel resolution. Several higher-end smartphones, especially those developed in the European and Asian markets, are capable of taking pictures of 1 Mega-pixel resolution and higher. As well, many of these image capture devices that are integrated into portable devices are capable of capturing motion pictures. With the technological advances in handheld and portable devices, there is an ongoing and increasing need to maximize the benefit of these continually emerging technologies.
However, today, these portable devices (e.g., smartphones, PDAs) do not integrate well with a desktop computer. For example, although smartphones and PDAs are frequently equipped with image capture devices, this functionality is not currently integrated into a computer or disparate device thereby enabling a collaborated and/or aggregated use of this functionality.
Electronic organizers are widely used to manage and organize a variety of PIM (personal information manager) data. An electronic organizer (e.g., PIM) enables a user to electronically retain personal data for any purpose and to retrieve the data as desired. Today, PIMs can vary widely, but common to all of them is to provide methods for managing and organizing personal information and to make the information readily available to the user.
Today, PIMs have become increasingly more common. For instance, personal data assistants (PDAs) are probably the most common example of a PIM. Additionally, emerging mobile devices such as mobile telephones, smartphones, and handheld pocket computers frequently incorporate PIM functionality. Oftentimes, a user has multiple devices for which synchronization of data (e.g., PIM data, files) is desired. By way of example, it is not uncommon for a user to have a PDA, a mobile telephone, a home personal computer (PC) and an office PC whereby synchronization of data is desired.
Systems do not currently exist that provide for automatic collaboration, synchronization and/or aggregation of data and services between multiple devices. Furthermore, conventional systems and devices do not leverage the increased computing power of portable devices and PCs by automatically facilitating data and service synchronization and/or collaboration. In other words, devices that enable wireless synchronization and collaboration of data and services between disparate devices are not currently available.

Seamless integration of portable computing devices and desktop computers


Grinding media, including shaped media such as spheres or rods ranging in size from about 0.5 micron to 100 mm in diameter, are formed from a multi-carbide material consisting essentially of two or more carbide-forming elements and carbon, with or without carbide-forming elements in their free elemental state. The media have extremely high mass density, extreme hardness, and extreme mechanical toughness.

Carbide materials are well known in the art of material science. They include a range of compounds composed of carbon and one or more carbide-forming elements such as chromium, hafnium, molybdenum, niobium, rhenium, tantalum, thallium, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, zirconium, and others. Carbides are known for their extreme hardness with high temperature tolerance, properties rendering them well-suited for applications as cutting tools, drilling bits, and similar uses. Multi-element carbides are known for their improved toughness and hardness relative to single element carbides. Single element carbides are typically used with a metal binder to impart toughness.
Multi-carbides are formed by combining two or more carbide-forming elements with carbon. Some multi-carbides have other non-carbide forming elements in the composition, such as nitrogen, but are here referred to simply as multi-carbides since the dominant components are carbide-forming elements. For example, a combination of tungsten and titanium with carbon and nitrogen would be such a multi-carbide material. Some multi-carbide compositions are formed with a deficiency of carbon resulting in some small percentage of carbide-forming element not being converted to a carbide and instead remaining as uncombined elemental metal. These combinations can enhance certain of the favorable qualities of carbides, with some combinations increasing hardness, others increasing toughness, and so forth. Very small variations in composition can greatly affect the material's properties. Many of these variations are well understood by practitioners of the art and are amply published.
Spheres and solid bodies of other specific shapes, whether of carbide or multi-carbide, are difficult to manufacture due to the very properties that make them useful. Their high melting point necessitates a powerful energy source with difficulty in temperature regulation and effect, and their hardness makes them costly to machine.
For example, a primary manufacturing method used to manufacture carbides is to place the elements to be fused on the recessed surface of a large electrode. A very high current is passed from that electrode through the material and into another electrode in proximity, subjecting the material to the heat of an electric arc. This process is effective in fusing the materials, but causes inconsistent mixing of the elements in the compound and some uncontrolled loss of material due to vaporization, phenomena that can greatly compromise the properties of the resulting compound in uncontrolled and unpredictable ways. Hardness is also a challenge, as the manufacturing process results in an irregularly-shaped lump of resulting compound that is generally a few inches in diameter, colorfully known as a "cow chip". The "chip" is very hard, and is worked into smaller shapes only by percussive shocking or other crushing method that cleaves the chip into useful sizes. These processes leave small cracks in the finished product that greatly reduce both its hardness and its mechanical toughness. Re-melting of the material after crushing imposes high cost, and cannot efficiently achieve regular particle sizes or shapes. Consequently, although carbide is available in small spheres and other preferred shapes, those spheres are not optimally composed, they are irregularly sized, they are expensive, and they are lacking in effectiveness.
The known art currently does not have a process whereby multi-carbide materials can be formed into small and regular shapes without loss of optimized properties due to process variation in manufacture or degradation of material during shaping.
Reducing of particles, also known as comminution, is a very old art, practiced for example by the ancients to produce flour from grain by stone wheel grinding. Later practices required smaller and more regular powders for a variety of industrial applications, and more refined techniques were developed to produce those products, such as media milling. Modern technologies and practices now demand ever-finer particles, measured in microns, thousandths of microns, and even angstroms; and with greater regularity of particle size and purity at these reduced dimensions.
Just as stone wheel grinding could not reliably provide the powders needed for earlier industrial processes, current media mills and similar technologies cannot reliably provide the ultra-fine and ultra-regular particles now required for certain applications.
Various methods for reducing the size of particles have been employed. Many use materials such as spheres, rods or more irregular objects ("grinding media") to crush or beat the material to be reduced ("product material") to smaller dimensions by processes known as grinding, milling, comminution, or dispersion. Grinding media range greatly in size, from ore crushers that are several inches in diameter, down to micron-sized particles that are themselves used to mill much smaller particles. Grinding media also vary greatly in shape, including spherical, semi-spherical, oblate spherical, cylindrical, diagonal, rods, and other shapes (hereinafter "shaped media"), and irregular natural shapes such as grains of sand.
Grinding media are used in various devices such ball mills, rod mills, attritor mills, stirred media mills, pebble mills, etc. Regardless of their differences in design, all mills operate by distributing product material around the grinding media and by causing collisions to occur between grinding media units such that product material particles are positioned between the colliding grinding media units. These collisions cause fracturing of product material particles into to smaller dimensions, an effect known descriptively as "size reduction" or "comminution."
The materials used as grinding media also are frequently used as applied abrasives. For example, such materials are aggregated in molds and held together by a binder such as molten metal that is poured into the mold and cooled, rendering a "hard body" that is impregnated by the binder material. Hard body materials (also known as "hard bodies") of this kind are used in deep-well drilling and other applications. Similar processes are used to impregnate the materials in grinding discs and wheels. Various adhesives are used to bind the materials to textiles, papers and other strata for use as sandpapers, sanding belts, and similar products.
Different grinding and milling techniques produce different mean product material particle sizes and uniformity. Gross differences in result are obtained primarily as a function of the size and shape of the grinding media. Large grinding media produce relatively large and irregular product material particles that are suitable for coarse processes or for further refinement by finer processes. Small grinding media can be used to produce finer and more regular materials as an end in itself, or to alter crystallite aggregates, or to cause mechanochemical alloying, or some combination thereof. Small grinding media are also used for polishing, burnishing, and deburring. Mills are sometimes used in series, with progressively smaller grinding media employed to further reduce product material particle size in stages. Variation of the shape of the grinding media generally affects the regularity of particle size, the efficiency of the milling process, the total cost to achieve a given size reduction, and other factors. These effects generally are well known in the art.
Extremely small particle sizes are proving to be useful for many new applications. however, the size reduction and regularity necessary for standardized, acceptable results cannot be achieved by any current milling methods. Production now requires alternate particle fabrication methods such as chemical precipitation, either at a fast rate with unacceptable process variation, or at very slow rates, with unacceptable time and expense.
Other important effects are obtained by varying the composition of the grinding media itself. Three material properties dominantly affect grinding media performance: hardness, mass density, and mechanical toughness. Hardness of the grinding medium determines milling effectiveness, mass density determines milling efficiency, while mechanical toughness determines product purity and overall process efficiency. Hard materials transfer energy efficiently in collisions with product material for effective milling, high-density materials increase the energy transfer per collision with product material and thus increase milling efficiency, especially for small-dimension grinding media, and tough materials can be used for longer periods before they fail and contaminate the product material or otherwise require replacement. An ideal milling material is thus very hard, of very high mass density, and very tough. Preferably, those qualities will hold as the size of the grinding media is reduced, and regardless of the chosen shape of the grinding media.
The history of engineering materials for grinding media is a history of accepting tradeoffs among these material properties, as improvement in one of these factors has previously produced an offsetting reduction in one or more of the others. For example, yttria-stabilized zirconia shows good mechanical toughness, but with low mass density. Various metal media have relatively high mass density, but low mechanical toughness. Carbides showed extreme hardness and mass density, even in small dimensions, but with unavoidable media failures that cause unacceptable product contamination and more general process failures that are incompatible with many applications.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,464 (Kaliski) is illustrative. Kaliski discloses a range of high mass density, single-element carbides selected from tungsten, thallium, niobium, and vanadium in sizes ranging between 10 and 100 microns with a requirement of high theoretical density. As Kaliski explains, high theoretical density, nonporous materials are needed. These materials showed impressive results in producing fine and regular product material in small quantities under controlled laboratory conditions. Duplication of his example showed his invention to cause contamination of the milled product, as longer-term and higher-volume production attempts failed due to lack of mechanical toughness that caused metallic and other contamination of product material. High density ceramics without metal binders, such as tungsten carbide combined with tungsten di-carbide, also are disclosed by Kaliski as a means to obtain high milling efficiency but with contamination of product material from the grinding media. Kaliski specifically recommends choosing among his claimed materials to select those whose contaminants provide the most good, or at least do the least damage, to the milled product. These materials changed the nature of but did not resolve the product material contaminant issue, and did not solve the mechanical toughness problem. Rather, these materials tended to fail by degradation into hard, fine and irregular shards that acted as abrasives in the media mill, contaminating the product and on one occasion seriously damaging the mill itself.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,704,556 (McLaughlin) discloses ceramic grinding media without metal binders in dimensions of less than 100 microns diameter. While these materials are acceptably hard, and show greater mechanical toughness than those disclosed in Kaliski, they lack adequate density for many applications or for optimum efficiency in others.
The inventor of the present invention made an effort to make suitable grinding media from available spherical carbides, of which only single element carbides are known in the art. Tungsten carbide/tungsten di-carbide spheres were purchased in conformance to Kaliski's specification and used in a shaker mill, but comminution to the degree cited by Kaliski was not evident. Plasma-processed spherical tungsten carbide/tungsten di-carbide was also purchased from another source, in conformance to Kaliski's specification, in sufficient quantity to test on a production scale. This grinding media fractured due to insufficient mechanical toughness, contaminating the product and extensively damaging the media mill. Tungsten carbide failed due to the lack of mechanical toughness despite experimental variation of media velocity, flow rate, material volume, and other milling variables. Grinding media material in conformance to Kaliski's specification was obtained from several difference sources worldwide, but differences in sourcing produced no significant difference in results. In all attempts with all materials supplied to the Kaliski specification, the level of product contamination was a limitation on usefulness.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,581,414 (Hochberg), U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,705 (Czekai), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,518,187 (Bruno) disclose polymer grinding media which show high mechanical toughness and cause relatively benign product material contamination upon grinding media failure. However, they show low hardness and density relative to ceramics. Polymer grinding media thus can be useful in milling relatively soft product materials that are sensitive to product contamination, and in industries that are relatively insensitive to processing cost, such as in drug processing or in dispersing biological cells for analysis, but they are not appropriate for the majority of industrial applications.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,690,962, 3,737,289, 3,779,745, and 4,066,451 (all to Rudy) disclose certain multi-carbides for use as cutting tools. Although the multi-carbides disclosed showed a combination of hardness, density and mechanical toughness that promised to be useful for milling, the known geometries for available multi-carbide materials rendered them incompatible with such use. Difficulties included the large size of multi-carbide material that is produced by current manufacturing methods, and difficulty in machining or otherwise manipulating the material into sizes and shapes useful for milling due in part to its hardness and mechanical toughness.
V. N. Eremenko, et al, "Investigations of alloys or the ternary systems W—HfC—C and W—ZrC—C at subsolidus temperatures," Dokl.Akad. Nauk. Ukr. SSSR, Ser. A No. 1, 83–88 (1976); L. V. Artyukh, et al, "Physicochemical reactions of tungsten carbide with hafnium carbide," Izv. Akad. Nauk SSSR, Neorg. Mater., No. 4, 634–637 (1976); and T. Ya. Velikanova, et al, "Effect of alloying on the structure and properties of cast WC1-x Materials," Poroshkovaya Metallurgiya, No. 2 (218), 53–58, (1981) teach how sensitive the properties of single element carbides can be to small additions of other carbide forming elements. This fact has greatly inhibited research into multi-carbide elements.
As summarized above, the grinding media of the prior art all suffer some technical disadvantage resulting in a proliferation of grinding media materials creating a significant economic burden and also resulting in technically inferior milled products due to contamination.

Multi-carbide material manufacture and use as grinding media


The embodiments provide a backplane for a storage device that is readily extensible to accommodate a range storage media. In some embodiments, the controller is provided on a motherboard. In order to support a different numbers of bays, various management riser cards are provided on the motherboard to expand the capacity of the backplane while still using the same controller. The backplane supports a serial addressing scheme and shift registers to identify ports connected to the storage device controller to allow for different numbers of storage media to be connected to the motherboard. This allows the storage device controller to use the same addressing protocol and software for any number of drive bays.

Network attached storage (NAS) devices may comprise a wide variety of bays for their storage devices. However, as the number of drives increases, the NAS device typically requires more powerful processors and a different motherboard, redundant array of independent disks (RAID), and power and enclosure management architectures to support the different number of drives. This makes the hardware and software development and cost of the different NAS products difficult to manage.
NAS systems typically use I2C port expanders, which have limited addressing capabilities, to detect/control a fixed numbers of drives. Such I2C port expanders are only extensible by adding another port expander at another I2C address. These enclosure management topologies, however, use all of the limited I2C addressing space and can only control a limited number of drives. Unfortunately, when using a port expander, the software and control system must be modified or configured differently to address the devices. This makes both hardware and software design more complicated and costly.

I/O card architecture based on a common controller


Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method and a system for realizing PON reach extension, and a relay apparatus for realizing this method. The method includes: extracting an overhead in an upstream data stream that is sent by an ONU to an OLT, obtaining a payload in the upstream data stream through de-mapping, and storing it into a buffer; extracting bandwidth authorization information in an downstream data stream that is sent by the OLT to the ONU; and reorganizing a stored payload according to the bandwidth authorization information and inserting a corresponding overhead to generate a new upstream data stream and send it to the OLT.

A passive optical network (Passive Optical Network, PON) technology is currently one of the most widely applied fiber to the home (Fiber To The Home, FTTH) technologies. Existing PONs include a broadband passive optical network (Broadband Passive Optical Network, BPON), a gigabit-capable passive optical network (Gigabit-capable Passive Optical Network, GPON), and an Ethernet passive optical network (Ethernet Passive Optical Network, EPON).
What is shown in FIG. 1 is a diagram of a networking architecture of using a traditional PON system for access. The PON is used to connect a user terminal to a transport network, and then connect it through the transport network to a core network, that is, a digital video (Video) network, an Internet (Internet), and a public switched telephone network (Public Switched Telephone Network, PSTN).
The most basic components of a PON system include: an optical line terminal (Optical Line Terminal, OLT), an optical network unit (Optical Network Unit, ONU), and an optical distribution network (Optical Distribution Network, ODN), and so on. The OLT and a passive optical splitter are connected by a trunk fiber. The optical splitter realizes point-to-multi-point optical power distribution, and is connected to multiple ONUs through multiple branch fibers. The trunk fiber, the passive optical splitter, and the branch fibers are between the OLT and the ONU and are collectively called the ODN. A direction from the OLT to the ONU is called a downstream direction, and a direction from the ONU to the OLT is called an upstream direction.
A time division multiple address (Time Division Multiple Address, TDMA) multiplexing manner is adopted in the upstream direction, and each ONU sends an upstream data stream only at a timeslot that is specified by the OLT. In the downstream direction, a time division multiplexing (Time Division Multiplexing, TDM) broadcasting manner is adopted. The OLT sends a downstream data stream to each ONU, and uses a specific identity to indicate that which ONU each timeslot belongs to. Optical signals that carry downstream data streams of all ONUs are divided into several parts at the optical splitter of the ODN, and arrive at each ONU through each branch fiber. Each ONU collects the data that belongs to itself according to a corresponding identity, and discards data of other timeslots.
In the traditional PON system, the coverage of the OLT over the ONU does not exceed 20 km, and the quantity of ONUs that are connected through the optical splitter is relatively small. As a result, the quantity of OLTs in a traditional PON networking architecture is relatively large, location areas are scattered and remote, management and maintenance is very inconvenient, and device investment and maintenance cost are relatively high.
With the emergence of the next-generation optical access network, carriers demand extending the coverage of the PON, and therefore, a long reach PON (long reach PON, LR-PON) reach extension technology is brought forward. A reach extension solution of the PON system, where the reach extension solution is based on an optical transport network (Optical Transport Network, OTN) technology and a wavelength division multiplexing (Wavelength Division Multiplexing, WDM) technology, has advantages such as reducing fibers, easy to maintain and manage, and high reliability, thereby drawing wide attention and motivation from the industry. Especially, a reach extension solution of an OTN-based GPON system (GPON over OTN) is successfully brought into standards, and is adopted by multiple carriers.
What is shown in FIG. 2 is a schematic architecture diagram of an OTN-based GPON reach extension system. An OTN device is added between the OLT and the optical splitter of the ODN, and the wavelength division multiplexing (Wavelength Division Multiplexing, WDM) technology is used to realize bidirectional data transmission. The OTN device transparently maps (bit mapping) upstream and downstream data frames of the GPON to OTU-k frames, transmits them through an OTN network to a remote device, and then obtains original GPON upstream and downstream data frames through de-mapping, thereby realizing reach extension of the GPON system.
It is supposed that the waiting time from the time when the OLT starts to send the downstream data stream to the time when the upstream data stream that is sent by the ONUs is received is T. Then, a maximum value of the waiting time T that can be tolerated by the OLT is converted into the kilometers of the fiber, that is, a maximum logical distance which is of the OLT and which is defined by a protocol. For example, the maximum logical distance which is of the OLT and which is defined by a current GPON standard is 60 km. In an existing PON reach extension solution, an extension distance is limited by the maximum logical distance which is of the OLT and which is defined by the protocol. If the PON system is extended to exceed the maximum logical distance that is specified by the protocol, the OLT cannot receive the upstream data stream that is sent by the ONUs in the foregoing specified time T, thereby causing that the OLT cannot receive the upstream data stream normally.

Method, system, and relay apparatus for realizing passive optical network reach extension


An integral radio pager within each remote switch of a switching system with all pagers in the remote switches sharing the same paging service number with respect to a public paging service. When a central processor that is controlling the operation of all remote switches performs a maintenance restart operation with respect to one of the remote switches, the central processor requests that the public paging service page the common service number. The central processor also provides the paging service a paging message that defines which remote switch is to respond to the page. Each integral pager is responsive to the page to interrupt an associated remote processor. In turn, each remote processor is responsive to the pager to examine the paging message and only responds if the remote processor finds its own identification number in the paging message. In addition, the remote switches can each have an integral cellular telephone circuit that share a common telephone number thereby reducing the cost of providing the cellular telephone service. When the central processor wants to establish a data communication link with the remote switch via a cellular telephone call, the central processor requests that the public paging service page the common service number and provides a paging message to the public paging service. The paging message defines the identification number of the remote switch that is to respond to the page. A remote processor is responsive to the paging message to set up a data call via the integral cellular circuit to the central processor.

In personal communication systems, PCS, there are a number of base stations each having the capacity to handle the telephone conversations from two to four PCS wireless handsets at a time. These base stations are connected to local and remote switches which are controlled by a central processor. The remote switches may be co-located with the central processor or may be interconnected to the central processor via the public network. The central processor directly controls the local switch. Each remote switch is controlled by a remote processor. In general, all maintenance and administration information is communicated to the remote processors via primary rate interface, PRI, links either directly or indirectly through the public network connected to the local switch and central processor. However, maintenance problems can occur in the remote switch that cannot be resolved by control information transmitted via the PRI links. In present PCS systems, there are only two options for resolving such maintenance problems. The first is to send a service technician to the site of the remote switch to manually perform the necessary restart operations. Another alternative is to have an independent telephone link to each remote switch from the central processor; whereby, the central processor can perform the restart operations via the independent telephone link.
The first solution suffers from the problems of high cost and inconvenience to users of the PCS wireless handsets while the remote switch is not functioning properly. The problem with the second solution is that in many countries it is difficult to get installation of telephone links. In addition, these telephone links are quite expensive. The expense becomes an important factor, since each remote switch may only handle a small number of base stations, and an individual base station can only provide service to two or four PCS handsets at any time.
This problem has not risen in cellular mobile telecommunications systems, since a base station in a cellular mobile telecommunications systems handles a large number of wireless handsets. The cost of providing an independent telephone link to a cellular mobile base station is insignificant in light of the high equipment costs of such a base station.
What is lacking in the prior art is a cost effective method for providing administration maintenance of remote systems.

Maintenance and administration of remote systems via radio pager


An article support divider system includes a base for supporting articles thereon. The base includes a matrix of openings. Supporting members include a lower portion sized for being press fit into selected respective ones of the openings. A receiving slot is also provided on the receiving members to receive at least one divider plate in a substantially vertical orientation on the surface of the base for dividing the base into different storage regions. In a more specific aspect, a divider system is provided for use within a refrigerator, including at least one of the freezer compartment or refrigerator compartment thereof. The divider system also can be utilized in walls or the ceiling of the compartment with a plurality of openings formed therein.

In appliances for circulated air cooling, the cooling air cooled by a central evaporator and conveyed by a fan is conducted by a so-called multi-flow system into a storage chamber, be it the refrigerator or the freezer chamber, to be cooled in order to even up the temperature distribution in the storage chamber and to ensure adequate cooling even when there is a high degree of occupancy of articles to be cooled in the storage chamber.
It is often the case in such systems that a series of shelves are arranged both in the refrigerator as well as in the freezer compartment. Such shelves are typically made of glass or like solid material. The shelves are also of flat configuration and generally require that a user of the refrigerator be very organized in keeping the articles in a specifically arranged configuration for ease of access thereto.
A significant and often overlooked problem with such an arrangement of shelves is that because of the solid and non-permeable nature of the shelves, they generally impede the flow of cooling air throughout the compartment such that oftentimes, the flow is non-uniform leading to uneven cooling and possibly spoilage of articles therein. This is further complicated by the fact that it is often desirable to have the shelves occupy substantially an entire plane of the cooling compartment in which the shelf is supported to maximize storage space.
A further shortcoming of such shelves is that because they are generally formed as a flat supporting panel, it is often very easy to store articles thereon in a completely disorganized manner, often overfilling the shelf and complicating access to articles stored thereon.


Methods are provided for the treatment of allergic and other immune disorders associated with overproduction of Th2 type cytokines by antigen specific T cells. Immunotherapy with adjuvants, as provided in the present invention, greatly inhibits the development of airway hyperreactivity and airway inflammation. Such immunotherapy is shown to reverse ongoing airway disease, and convert allergic inflammatory responses into protective immune responses. Conditions of particular interest include allergic conditions associated with production of Th2 cytokines and/or IgE antibodies, asthma, allergic rhinitis, and anaphylactic reactions. The addition of adjuvant induces a Th1-type immune response and can redirect an established Th2-type response to a Th1-type response for the selected antigen. Preferably, antigen-specific IgE production is reduced without altering the intensity of the antigen-specific proliferative response. One particularly preferred adjuvant for use in accordance with the present invention is a Listeria adjuvant.

Allergy or hypersensitivity of the immune system in its different forms affects more than 20% of the human population. Furthermore, man is a highly susceptible species to anaphylaxis. After sensitization with an allergen, a second exposure elicits constriction of the bronchioles, in some cases resulting in death from asphyxia. This allergic reaction is mediated by allergen-specific antibodies, mostly of the IgE class. The antibodies can be directed against a variety of antigens, such as molecules from pollen, fungi, food, house dust mite, hymenoptera venoms or animal danders. The aggregation of mast cell and basophil high-affinity IgE receptors by IgE and antigen causes the release of mediators and cytokines, including heparin, eosinophil and neutrophil chemotactic factors, leukotrienes and thromboxanes.
While our understanding of the inflammatory process in allergic reactions and asthma has improved remarkably over the past decade, our ability to control them remains modest. The prevalence of asthma in industrialized countries has increased by almost 80% since 1980. The specific causes for this increase in prevalence are not clear, but the rise in prevalence may be due in part to the absence of effective therapies that reverse the progression of, or cure, this disease. Currently available therapies, such as inhaled corticosteroids, antileukotrienes or 2-agonists, focus rather on symptom relief, reduction or neutralization of effector molecules and inflammatory mediators. This approach, while effective for acute disease and for relieving symptoms, however, has limited long term salutary effects, since the environmental factors that cause and precipitate asthma are not eliminated, and patients redevelop symptoms of asthma when these medications are discontinued.
The profile of cytokines produced by CD4+ T cells during an immune response determines the nature of effector functions which develop and regulates the outcome of an immune response. Production of IL-2 and IFN— during Th1-dominated responses is associated with vigorous cell-mediated immunity, the induction of IgG2a and inhibition of IgE synthesis, and with resistance to intracellular pathogens. In contrast, the production of IL-4, IL-5 and IL-10 during Th2-dominated responses is associated with humoral immunity and protection from autoimmune pathology. Overproduction of Th2-cytokines by allergen-specific CD4+ T cells can result in the development of allergic disease and asthma.
One approach to allergic diseases is immunotherapy. Immunotherapy has proven to be effective when used properly, and it is hoped that advances in immunologic intervention will further improve the efficacy. Modification of allergens, and the use of cytokines, may succeed in shutting down production of specific IgE and thus cure symptomatic allergies. Alternative approaches have attempted to use cytokines to shift the immune response. IL-12, a heterodimeric cytokine produced by macrophages and dendritic cells, is potent in driving the development of Th1 cytokine synthesis in naive and memory CD4+ T cells. However, several in vivo studies have demonstrated that rIL-12 as an adjuvant, while enhancing IFN— synthesis, in some cases paradoxically also increases IL-4 and IL-10 synthesis in antigen primed CD4+ T cells.
In contrast with drug therapy, immunotherapy could result in long-term, favorable alteration of the patient's immunologic status. Immunological changes that have been described after immunotherapy include an initial rise in specific serum IgE, followed by a fall, and a rise in specific IgG ("blocking antibody"). Immunotherapy leads to a reduction in mediator release from mast cells in vitro, alterations in lymphocyte subsets, and a downregulation of IL-4 production from T cells (Secrist et al. (1993) J. Exp. Med. 178: 2123–2130). Several studies have shown a reduction in inflammation and a decrease in bronchial hyper-responsiveness after immunotherapy.
This immunotherapy strategy, however, which might cure asthma and reduce its prevalence, is feasible only if potent therapies are developed that reverse ongoing airway hyperreactivity and reverse the ongoing allergic inflammatory process, which plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of asthma (Martinez et al. (1995) New Eng. J. Med. 332:133–8). Conventional allergen immunotherapy, while capable of reducing specific IL-4 production, requires multiple injections over several years time and is associated with frequent failure (Creticos (1992) JAMA 268:2834–9). Experimental methods described up to now, for example using IL-12 as adjuvant (Kim et al. (1997) J. Immunol. 158:4137–44), or immunization with plasmids containing the cDNA for allergens (Hsu et al. (1996) Nature Medicine 2:540–544), while effective in preventing the development of Th2-dominated immune response, have not been shown to reverse ongoing airway hyperreactivity.
Current therapy for asthma aims to suppress inflammation with inhaled corticosteroids, sodium cromoglycate, or nedocromil sodium, all of which interfere with the cellular and cytokine interactions by diverse mechanisms, but do not address the initiating event in allergic asthma. By altering the immune response to allergen, it may be possible to control the trigger of asthma, and of other allergic disorders.
Relevant Literature
Listeria monocytogenes, a gram positive, intracellular, facultative bacterium, elicits a strong classical cell-mediated immune response, characterized by the presence of potent antigen-specific CD8 killer cells. Listeria rapidly activates innate immunity and induces high levels of IL-12. This results in high IFN— production in NK cells and stimulates the induction of strongly polarized Th1 CD4 T cells, as discussed in Hsieh et al. (1993). Science 260:547–549. The immune response against Listeria is discussed in Fauve, U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,563; in DeKruyff et al. (1997) J. Immunol. 158:359–366; Miller et al. (1996) Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 797:207–227; and others.
IL-12 and its biological activity is characterized in Okamura et al. (1995) Nature 378:88–91. The role of IL-12 in suppressing IgE synthesis is discussed in Kiniwa et al. (1992) J. Clin. Invest. 90:262–266. IL-12 inhibition of the production of IL-4 and IL-10 is disclosed in Marshall et al., (1995) J. Immunol. 155:111–117. The combined activity of IL-12 and IL-18 on IgE synthesis is disclosed by Yoshimoto et al. (1997) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 94:3948–3953.
Weber (1997) JAMA 278(22):1881–1887 reviews immunotherapy with allergens. Bousquet et al. (1991) J. Aller. Clin. Immunol. 99:43–53 provide evidence for immunotherapy efficacy. Soderlund et al. (1997) Immunol Lett 57:(1–3):177–181 discuss allergen induced cytokine profiles in type I allergic individuals before and after immunotherapy. Nelson (1997). Allergy Asthma Proc 18(3):157–162; and Creticos et al. (1996) N Engl J Med 334(8):501–506, review the efficacy of immunotherapy for asthma exacerbated by seasonal ragweed exposure. Gavett et al. (1995) J. Exp. Med. 182:1527–1536 disclose a role for IL-12 in asthma immunotherapy.

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


A lamp device for a vehicle is configured by a reflecting mirror, a lens in which lens steps for diffusing light are formed, and a light source positioned between the reflecting mirror and the lens. The reflecting mirror is divided into two portions by the vertical plane including the main optical axis of the reflecting mirror. A reflecting face is formed in the following manner. Reflected light from a portion which is positioned in one side with respect to the vertical plane propagates in a direction which is inclined with respect to the main optical axis and without intersecting the vertical plane including the main optical axis, and is then emitted through the lens steps formed in one portion of the lens. Reflected light from a portion which is positioned in the other side with respect to the vertical plane including the main optical axis propagates in a direction which is inclined with respect to the main optical axis and without intersecting the vertical plane including the main optical axis, and is then emitted through the lens steps formed in the other portion of the lens.

The invention relates to a lamp device for a vehicle in which a local high temperature portion is not produced in a lens and lens steps can be easily designed.
FIG. 11 schematically shows the configuration of a prior art lamp device. The lamp device a comprises a reflecting mirror b, a light source c, and a lens d which is disposed in front of these components (it is assumed that the irradiation direction of the lamp device a is directed to the front).
In the figure, "L--L" indicates the main optical axis of the reflecting mirror b. The light emission center of the light source c is positioned on the main optical axis L--L. In light emitted from the light source c, light directed to the reflecting mirror b is reflected from the reflecting face of the reflecting mirror b and then forward emitted while being diffused mainly in horizontal directions by lens steps e formed on the lens d.
In the case where a screen SCN is disposed in front of the lamp device a so as to be separated by a sufficient distance from the lamp device and a line where the vertical plane including the main optical axis L--L intersects the screen SCN (in the figure, the line is indicated by a point N) is set, reflected light from a portion b1 of the reflecting mirror b which is positioned in the left side of the figure with respect to the vertical plane including the main optical axis L--L propagates as indicated by light rays f so as to impinge on a range (indicated by "AR" in the figure) of the screen SCN which is positioned on the right side of the point N. By contrast, reflected light from a portion br of the reflecting mirror b which is positioned in the right side of the figure with respect to the vertical plane including the main optical axis L--L propagates as indicated by light rays g so as to impinge on a range (indicated by "AL" in the figure) of the screen SCN which is positioned on the left side of the point N.
In the above-described lamp device a, the correlations between the reflecting face of the reflecting mirror b and the irradiation ranges on the screen SCN are inverted with respect to the vertical plane including the main optical axis of the reflecting mirror b. Therefore, such a lamp device has a problem in that reflected light tends to be concentrated to the center portion of the lens d.
This will be described more specifically. Reflected light from the portion b1 of the reflecting mirror b, and that from the portion br propagate so as to intersect the main optical axis L--L, and impinge on the ranges AR and Al which are oppositely positioned with respect to the point N, respectively. Consequently, light is concentrated to a region h of the lens d which is near the main optical axis L--L, with the result that the temperature of the area is locally raised. In the case where the lens d is made of a resin material, therefore, this local temperature rise causes the lens d to be thermally deformed or partially melt. In the case where the lens d is made of a glass material, when a hand erroneously contacts the surface of the lens, the hand may burn because of the high temperature of the lens d.
The lens steps formed in the region h of the lens d must be designed so that they can control the reflected light rays f and g from both the portions b1 and br of the reflecting mirror b. Therefore, the control of directing both the irradiation light rays so as to satisfy the light distribution standard causes the design of the lens to be difficult to do.


A three-dimensional memory device includes an alternating stack of source layers and drain layers located over a substrate, gate electrodes vertically extending through each of the source layers and the drain layers of the alternating stack, memory films laterally surrounding a respective one of the gate electrodes, and semiconductor channels laterally surrounding a respective one of the memory films and connected to a respective vertically neighboring pair of a source layer and a drain layer. An array of memory openings can vertically extend through the alternating stack, and each of the gate electrodes can be located within a respective one of the memory openings.

A typical three-dimensional NAND memory device includes an alternating stack of word lines and insulating layers located over a substrate. Vertical semiconductor channels surrounded by memory films containing a charge storage layer located between blocking and tunneling dielectric layers extend vertically in memory openings through the alternating stack. Bit lines are electrically connected to drain regions located at the top of the semiconductor channels, while a source line or interconnect is electrically connected to source regions located at a bottom part of the vertical semiconductor channels.

Three-dimensional memory device containing alternating stack of source layers and drain layers and vertical gate electrodes


A safety network system is constructed by connecting a safety PLC to a safety slave through a safety network. The safety slave obtains safety input informations from a plurality of safety devices connected thereto and transmits information based on the plurality of safety input informations in response to a request from the safety PLC. At this time, the safety slave determines whether or not a safety condition is satisfied based on the plurality of safety input informations, includes two notification modes, that is, a result notification mode in which a result of determination of safety determined by the above determination is transmitted and a detailed information mode in which the plurality of safety input informations are transmitted as they are as aggregated data, and returns a safety response in any of the modes according to a command from the safety PLC. In the result notification mode, the response can be returned at a high speed because an amount of data is small, and, in the detailed information mode, detailed information can be secured.

A programmable controller (hereinafter, referred to as "PLC") used in factory automation (hereinafter, referred to as "FA") executes control in such a manner that it is supplied with ON/OFF information from input devices such as switches, sensors, and the like, executes a logical operation using a sequence program (also referred to as user's program) written in a ladder language and the like, and outputs the signals of ON/OFF information to output devices such as relays, valves, actuators, and the like according to a result of the arithmetic operation.
Incidentally, as a connection mode between the PLC and the input and output devices, the input and output devices may be directly connected to the PLC or may be connected to the PLC through a network. When a network system, in which the input and output devices are connected to the PLC through the network, is constructed, the ON/OFF information is transmitted and received through the network. At this time, the information is ordinarily transmitted using a master/slave system in which the PLC acts as a master and the input and output devices act as slaves.
In contrast, recently, a failsafe (safety) system is being introduced also in the control executed by the PLC. That is, a safety function is built in not only the PLC and the respective devices but also in the network. The safety function is a function for executing an output after a safe state is confirmed. In a safety system, failsafe function is executed when the network system is placed in a dangerous state by that an emergency stop switch is depressed, sensors such as a light curtain and the like detect an incoming person (a part of a body), and the like so that the safety system is set to a safe side and the operation thereof is stopped. In other words, the safety system is a system that issues an output only when the safe state is confirmed by the safety function and operates a machine. Therefore, when the safe state cannot be confirmed, the machine is stopped.
When a slave receives a request from, for example, the PLC (master), the slave can return its state as a response, thereby the PLC can obtain the state of the slave connected to the network.
Incidentally, when a dangerous state occurs in the safety network system, it is preferable to switch the system to a safe side as soon as possible and to stop the system. However, an increase in the number of safety devices connected to the safety network inevitably increases a communication cycle time because safety informations as many as the safety devices are transmitted in one communication cycle. Accordingly, even if safety information (danger information) can be transmitted at the beginning of a communication cycle, there passes a period of time corresponding to a communication cycle from previous transmission to present transmission. Thus, the failsafe function cannot be executed by promptly notifying the occurrence of the dangerous state. When the safety information (danger information) is transmitted at the end of the communication cycle, the execution of the failsafe function is more delayed.
Further, although the safety information (danger information) can be transmitted when the safety devices and the safety slaves operate normally, there is a case that the safety information cannot be transmitted to the safety PLC because an apparatus itself fails or the network is in an abnormal state. In this case, the failsafe function must be also executed determining that the abnormal state occurs.
In this case, when there is a safety slave (safety device) that sends no response even if a preset receiving time has passed after a request is transmitted thereto by, for example, a simultaneous transmissive communication (timeout), it is possible to determine that the safety slave is abnormal. Accordingly, a receiving time from which the timeout occurs must be set at least longer than a communication cycle time in a normal state, and thus when the communication cycle time increases as described above, a period of time necessary to determine whether or not the network is abnormal also increases, which prevents the prompt execution of a processing when the abnormal state occurs.
Note that when a plurality of safety devices are connected to one safety slave (terminal), since the safety slave collects safety informations from the plurality of safety devices and transmits the safety informations of all the safety devices connected thereto at a time, from the problem described above arises.
An object of the present invention is to provide a safety network system, a safety slave, and a safety controller that can promptly transmit whether or not safety devices (safety device) are safe to a master (safety controller) and other devices, promptly execute the failsafe function when an abnormal (dangerous) state occurs, and further confirm the detailed information of an overall system and promptly specify a malfunction when a dangerous portion is specified or the system is debagged.

Safety network system, safety slave, and safety controller


The hinge assembly of the present invention is a novel configuration that utilizes multiple arcuate shaped clevis elements. The configuration produces a compact, stable, and efficient means for transmitting an actuation force to retract or deploy one or more sections of a folding chute assembly utilized on transit concrete mixing vehicles.

It is common for transportable mixing units, like those employed on concrete trucks, to use a plurality of hinged chute sections, for movement between a retracted transport position and an extended discharge position, and for the transfer and discharge of concrete mix from a transport vehicle. It is well known in the art that a variety of hydraulically, pneumatically, or electrically driven assemblies are available to actuate the chute deployment and retraction process. Devices representative of the prior art are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,458,800; 5,056,641;and 6,918,481 assigned to the same assignee as the present application.
The vehicles themselves may be of a front or rear discharge type. In rear discharge vehicles the mechanism for discharging and delivering concrete from a mixing drum is positioned at the rear of the vehicle. And in a front discharge type, the mechanism for discharging and delivering concrete from a mixing drum is located above the vehicle's cab enclosure at the front of the vehicle.
It is well known in the art that folding chute sections utilized for the discharge and delivery of concrete from the mixing drum are typically heavy and produce large stresses on the chute joints and actuator assemblies, particularly when loaded with concrete. The operation actuator and hinge assemblies experience significant resistive and torsional forces that result in rapid damaging wear and tear upon the parts. Additionally, designs commonly employed within the industry, while successful, are inefficient as to the delivery of functional forces from the actuator system to the point of deployment because of limitations in the hinge mechanisms. U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,741 (hereafter "the '741 patent") exemplifies this design. The embodiment depicted in FIGS. 1-7 of the '741 patent shows a traditional single eyelet hinge design. Two chute segments are rotatably linked by a pair of hinges. The hinges comprise a pair of hinge eyelets, one eyelet on each side of each chute segment. These hinges utilize a single pivot bolt to rotatably fasten the chute segments. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,498,568 and 4,458,800 also utilize this single eyelet hinge system. U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,567 exemplifies a slight modification to the single eyelet design where extended joint arms are employed.
One common limitation with existing single eyelet hinge configurations occurs because a strong twisting force and motion results when the actuator operates as the actuator force is delivered through the joint to deploy or retract the chute segment. When actuator force is applied, inertial, gravitational, and frictional forces resist the desired rotational movement about the pivot. Delivery of the actuator force results in twisting forces at the weakest point, the rotational axis, within the system. The force will dissipate in all possible directions until the resistive forces are maximized and the movement about the hinges is the least resistive outlet for energy dissipation. The twisting forces place unwanted stress on the hinge components resulting in undue wear and tear on the components. This wear and tear on the chute joints results in excessive maintenance costs and inconvenient down time to repair the vehicle.


In one aspect of the present invention, a method to reduce noise in a noisy speech signal is disclosed The method comprises: applying at least two versions of the noisy speech signal to a first filter, whereby that first filter outputs a speech reference signal and at least one noise reference signal, applying a filtering operation to each of the at least one noise reference signals, and subtracting from the speech reference signal each of the filtered noise reference signals, wherein the filtering operation is performed with filters having filter coefficients determined by taking into account speech leakage contributions in the at least one noise reference signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a method and device for adaptively reducing the noise in speech communication applications.
2. Related Art
There are a variety of medical implants which deliver electrical stimulation to a patient or recipient ("recipient" herein) for a variety of therapeutic benefits. For example, the hair cells of the cochlea of a normal healthy ear convert acoustic signals into nerve impulses. People who are profoundly deaf due to the absence of destruction of cochlea hair cells are unable to derive suitable benefit from conventional hearing aid systems. Prosthetic hearing implant systems have been developed to provide such persons with the ability to perceive sound. Prosthetic hearing implant systems bypass the hair cells in the cochlea to directly deliver electrical stimulation to auditory nerve fibers, thereby allowing the brain to perceive a hearing sensation resembling the natural hearing sensation.
The electrodes implemented in stimulating medical implants vary according to the device and tissue which is to be stimulated. For example, the cochlea is tonotopically mapped and partitioned into regions, with each region being responsive to stimulate signals in a particular frequency range. To accommodate this property of the cochlea, prosthetic hearing implant systems typically include an array of electrodes each constructed and arranged to deliver an appropriate stimulating signal to a particular region of the cochlea.
To achieve an optimal electrode position close to the inside wall of the cochlea, the electrode assembly should assume this desired position upon or immediately following implantation into the cochlea. It is also desirable that the electrode assembly be shaped such that the insertion process causes minimal trauma to the sensitive structures of the cochlea. Usually the electrode assembly is held in a straight configuration at least during the initial stages of the insertion procedure, conforming to the natural shape of the cochlear once implantation is complete.
Prosthetic hearing implant systems typically have two primary components: an external component commonly referred to as a speech processor, and an implanted component commonly referred to as a receiver/stimulator unit. Traditionally, both of these components cooperate with each other to provide sound sensations to a recipient.
The external component traditionally includes a microphone that detects sounds, such as speech and environmental sounds, a speech processor that selects and converts certain detected sounds, particularly speech, into a coded signal, a power source such as a battery, and an external transmitter antenna.
The coded signal output by the speech processor is transmitted transcutaneously to the implanted receiver/stimulator unit, commonly located within a recess of the temporal bone of the recipient. This transcutaneous transmission occurs via the external transmitter antenna which is positioned to communicate with an implanted receiver antenna disposed within the receiver/stimulator unit. This communication transmits the coded sound signal while also providing power to the implanted receiver/stimulator unit. Conventionally, this link has been in the form of a radio frequency (RF) link, but other communication and power links have been proposed and implemented with varying degrees of success.
The implanted receiver/stimulator unit traditionally includes the noted receiver antenna that receives the coded signal and power from the external component. The implanted unit also includes a stimulator that processes the coded signal and outputs an electrical stimulation signal to an intra-cochlea electrode assembly mounted to a carrier member. The electrode assembly typically has a plurality of electrodes that apply the electrical stimulation directly to the auditory nerve to produce a hearing sensation corresponding to the original detected sound.


A light source apparatus and a lighting device are provided. The light source apparatus includes a light source assembly, a power source assembly, a first end cap, and a second end cap. The light source assembly includes a light source part and a light diffuser. An interior of the light diffuser includes a first receiving space which extends along a lengthwise direction of the light diffuser and penetrates the light diffuser. The light source part is mounted in the first receiving space along a lengthwise direction of the light diffuser. The power source assembly includes a power source part and a power source cover. An interior of the power source cover includes a second receiving space which extends along a lengthwise direction of the power source cover and penetrates the power source cover. The power source part is mounted in the second receiving space.

Lighting lamps in the current market mostly adopt a specialized light source assembly. A lighting lamp adopting a specialized light source assembly usually cannot use a conventional light source assembly. Therefore, if the specialized light source assembly fails or is damaged, it would be faced with the problem that the entire lighting lamp has to be abandoned, which results in an unnecessary waste of lamps.
Moreover, part of existing light source assemblies still involves considerable security risks, and a light source plate and a lamp holder are usually fixed by using a screw fastening manner, which is not convenient for mounting and maintenance and leads to a poor universality upon being applied in a lighting lamp. Therefore, the current market has an urgent need of a light source apparatus with high security, convenient mounting process and good applicability, which can not only meet demands for home usage but also satisfy demands for application in shopping malls and outdoor advertising boxes.

Light source apparatus and lighting device


A scent lure for hunting is produced from collected animal urine which is freeze dried so as to yield a powdered urine product. The freeze dried scent lure may be used by hunters with or without rehydration. The freeze dried product is free from preservatives and maintains the natural chemical composition of the urine. Handling of the freeze dried scent lure is greatly simplified, as compared to liquid urine lures. Glands and glandular secretions may be blended with the urine prior to freeze drying. The freeze dried scent lure maintains its freshness and has an indefinite shelf life.

Scents and lures have been used by hunters and trappers to aid them in attracting their quarry for thousands of years. In the past century, the manufacture and sale of lures, including scented lures, has become a commercial enterprise. More specifically, scented lures have become popular with hunters to attract deer or other game animals to a hunting site. Particularly, doe urine with estrus will attract a buck looking to mate. Since bucks are territorial, urine from another buck will attract a buck to protect its territory. There are many applications for the lures. For example, the scented lure is sprinkled on the ground.
Scented lures are generally urine based, and thus are in a liquid form. These conventional fresh liquid urine lures have a limited refrigerator life of approximately three months. Some manufacturers add preservatives to increase the shelf life of the product. However, then the product is no longer a natural product. Also, since the deer hunting season is normally limited to the fall, collection of the fresh deer urine is seasonal, due to the limited refrigerator life of the lure product. Collection of estrus urine and buck rut urine is limited to the breeding cycle of the deer. Thus, production of a scented lure using these special urines is even more limited in time. These liquid lures also present handling problems, both at the retail location and in the field. Another disadvantage of fresh liquid urine scent lures is the need to refrigerate the product, so as to retard bacterial growth, and thereby maintain product freshness. Freeze drying has been used in the medical industry for the preservation of drugs and serums.
Accordingly, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of freeze dried scent lures for hunting or trapping.
Another object of the present invention is a method of making scent lures using a freeze drying process.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved scent lure which is freeze dried so as to produce a powdered product having a substantially unlimited shelf life.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a freeze dried scent lure which is economical to manufacture and effective in use.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.