An absorbent article worn in the groin area, in which, when a compressive force is received from a lateral direction, a main absorbent region can oppose an excretion area of a wearer's body without twists or wrinkles occurring, and when the compressive force is relaxed, the article easily recovers to its original shape. An absorbent body provided in the absorbent article has a main absorbent region, reinforcing regions, and buffer regions. The bending stiffness of the reinforcing regions and the main absorbent region is larger than that of the buffer regions. When compressive force is received from a wearer's thigh areas in the lateral direction, the reinforcing regions that are positioned to the left and right deform in a curved shape, and the buffer regions that are to the left and right are compressed. The main absorbent region does not easily deform, and maintains a tight fit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to absorbent articles that are used as sanitary napkins for absorbing menstrual blood, panty liners for absorbing vaginal discharge, urine absorbing pads, or the like, and are worn in the groin area.
2. Related Art
Absorbent articles worn in a female's groin area are used as sanitary napkins for absorbing menstrual blood, panty liners for absorbing vaginal discharge, urine absorbing pads, or the like. When this type of absorbent article is worn in a female's groin area, force acts from the left and right thigh areas to compress the absorbent article in a lateral direction. By this force, the absorbent article easily bends along a centerline in a longitudinal direction, or a central region deforms into a convex shape towards a wearer's body, or the central region deforms into a concave shape tending to separate from the body. Furthermore, by the absorbent article being sandwiched by the left and right thigh areas, the width dimension of an absorbent body is reduced, the compressive force extends towards the front and the rear of the absorbent body, and the width of the overall absorbent body is narrowed. When the absorbent article deforms in this way, a gap is easily formed between the absorbent body and the excretion area of the wearer's body, and there is a risk that menstrual blood, urine, or the like may leak in a lateral direction or to the rear of the absorbent article.
Furthermore, in states in which the absorbent article is attached to underwear, and also when removed together with underwear after being used for a prescribed length of time, the absorbent article easily remains deformed in a convex or a concave shape, or the width dimension remains narrowed. As a result, the absorbent body cannot recover to its original shape, and a user can easily be made apprehensive as to whether menstrual blood or urine is leaking from the absorbent article.
For example, as described in Japanese Patent Application, Laid Open No. H11-33054, an absorbent article is known in which a compressed line, compressed in a concave shape, is formed in an absorbent body, and a central absorbent area is enclosed by this compressed line. When this absorbent article is worn in the groin area, pressure from the thigh areas is concentrated on and acts on the compressed line, the central absorbent area enclosed by the compressed line deforms into a convex shape towards a wearer's body and easily makes contact with the wearer's body, and when the compressive force is released, the compressed line exhibits an elastic restorative capability so that it can be anticipated that the absorbent area will recover to a wide state. However, when excreted fluid is absorbed, since the compressive force of the compressed line weakens and the elastic capability decreases, after the compressive force from the thigh areas is released, the central area cannot recover to a wide state, and a state with the width dimension narrowed is easily maintained. As a result, the absorbent article during use cannot widely cover the wearer's body, leakage of menstrual blood and the like can easily occur, and since the width dimension is narrowed after usage, the user can easily be made apprehensive as to whether menstrual blood or the like has leaked.
Furthermore, Japanese Patent Application, Laid Open No. 3455232 discloses a sanitary napkin in which a stabilizing member is arranged extending in a lateral direction, at the front end portion and the rear end portion. This stabilizing member can exhibit an elastic force in a lateral direction, and when the sanitary napkin receives a compressive force from the left and right, the stabilizing member that is positioned at the front portion and the rear portion can exhibit a resistance force against the compressive force.
However, although the sanitary napkin disclosed in Japanese Patent Application, Laid Open No. 3455232 can exhibit a resistance force against the compressive force from a lateral direction, at the front end portion and the rear end portion, it cannot exhibit a resistance force against the compressive force from the lateral direction in an intermediate region between the front and rear of the sanitary napkin, and when the sanitary napkin is worn, it is not possible to avoid a large contraction in the lateral direction of the absorbent body at the intermediate region.


A magnetic gear mechanism including a simplified assembly of a magnetic flux modulating section in the magnetic gear mechanism which improves the strength thereof. In the magnetic flux modulating section of the magnetic gear mechanism, the magnetic flux modulating section being formed of a magnetic member and a non-magnetic member, a piece of the magnetic member and a piece of the non-magnetic member are separately produced. The piece of the magnetic member is sandwiched between circumferential projections provided in pieces of the non-magnetic member, and the magnetic member and the non-magnetic member and bearing holding sections form a structure in which the magnetic member and the non-magnetic member are fitted into the bearing holding sections by using recessed portions provided in the bearing holding sections and axial projections provided in the pieces of the non-magnetic member. This structure simplifies production and improves strength.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to magnetic gear mechanisms.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, products to which a rotary machine is applied have various specifications for different purposes, such as specifications that require high torque or high-speed rotation. For example, since a wind generator has a wind turbine rotating at a few hundred r/min which is a very low speed, it is impossible to produce electricity even when the wind turbine is connected to a generator. The rotation speed has to be converted into a higher speed to produce electricity. In order to produce electricity, the wind turbine and the generator are connected by a gear to increase the rotation speed. Moreover, a transmission of an automobile is a system that converts the power produced by an engine into appropriate torque and number of revolutions arbitrarily or automatically depending on the travelling state of the automobile, and a gear is used also for this conversion. As described above, in applications to which the rotary machine is applied, the gear is widely used. In addition, most of currently used gears are mechanical gears. The mechanical gear has many practical problems such as the need for maintenance when the lubricant oil becomes insufficient or a tooth becomes chipped, high noise, and the like. It is against this background that a magnetic gear using non-contact magnetic attraction and repelling force has been studied, but an existing magnetic gear had not been put to practical use due to a small area of a portion in which magnets face each other and a low torque density. However, a magnetic flux modulated type magnetic gear has recently been proposed and a magnetic gear with a high torque density has been implemented (K. Atallah and D. Howe: A Novel High-Performance Magnetic Gear: IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, Vol. 37, No. 4, pp. 2844-2846 (hereinafter, Non-Patent Document 1)). Moreover, eddy current loss etc. in a magnetic gear has also been studied ("A Way to Improve Efficiency of Permanent-Magnet type Magnetic Gears", Journal of the Magnetics Society of Japan Vol. 33, No. 2, 2009 (hereinafter, Non-Patent Document 2) and "Consideration of Rotor Structure in Permanent-Magnet Magnetic Gears", Journal of the Magnetics Society of Japan Vol. 34, No. 3, 2010 (hereinafter, Non-Patent Document 3)). The technology related to positioning, a method of fixation, and improvement of strength of a group of pole pieces in a magnetic flux modulating section is described in WO 2009/087408 (hereinafter, Patent Document 1).
Non-Patent Document 1 described above introduces the principles and magnetic characteristics of a magnetic gear and does not study the mechanism and strength thereof. Moreover, in Non-Patent Documents 2 and 3 described above, eddy current loss etc. in a magnetic gear is studied, but the mechanism and strength of the magnetic gear are not studied.
On the other hand, in Patent Document 1 described above, a method by which the whole of a group of pole pieces is formed by molding, the pole pieces disposed at regular intervals in a circumferential direction, is disclosed. However, the strength is insufficient for forming the whole of a group of pole pieces by molding by using resin or the like, and consideration has to be given to cracks appearing after molding. Moreover, molding increases the number of working processes and requires longer working hours. For this reason, the above-described method has many problems from the point of view of putting this method to practical use. Likewise, in Patent Document 1 described above, a method by which an end ring is formed at an end of a group of pole pieces disposed at regular intervals in a circumferential direction and the group of pole pieces is fixed is disclosed. In this document, two methods are described. One of them is a technique of forming the end ring integrally with the group of pole pieces. The group of pole pieces is literally made of a soft magnetic material such as a magnetic steel sheet, a dust core, amorphous metal, and Permendur. Therefore, when the end ring is formed integrally with the group of pole pieces, the end ring is formed also of a magnetic substance, and a magnetic flux is likely to flow toward the end ring side. This greatly impairs the torque performance. Thus, the above-described method is undesirable. The other is a method by which an end ring is formed as a non-magnetic member and the end ring is welded to the group of pole pieces at an end thereof. In this case, only the welded area is used to maintain the strength, it is difficult to perform positioning at the time of production, and the working process becomes complicated, resulting in increased production costs.

Magnetic gear mechanism including a plurality of rotors or stators


A watercraft loading and launching apparatus for a pickup truck having a trailer hitch receiver. The apparatus has an elongated receiver bar with one end adapted to fit a trailer hitch receiver and a cross member support bar secured to the other end. The cross member support bar may be straight or angled for supporting watercraft having a V-bottom, a semi-V bottom, a flat bottom, or equipped with pontoons. There is disclosed a second embodiment wherein the cross member support bar has hinged extensions for allowing use with both V-bottomed and flat-bottomed watercraft. The apparatus may also include a cradle assembly for supporting the watercraft within the cargo bed of the pickup truck.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of watercraft loading and launching apparatus. Particularly, the present invention relates to a watercraft loading and launching apparatus that is adapted for attaching to a trailer hitch receiver. More particularly, the present invention relates to a watercraft loading and launching apparatus that is adapted for attaching to a trailer hitch receiver on a pickup truck. Even more particularly, the present invention relates to a watercraft loading and launching apparatus that includes a supporting device adapted for attaching to a trailer hitch receiver on a pickup truck and a cradle assembly placed within the bed of the pickup truck.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Boats and other watercraft are generally transported on trailers. Trailers usually fit at least one watercraft and attach to any type of vehicle. Many watercraft owners already have a pickup truck or truck which is able to transport goods in the cargo bed. Generally, these people prefer using the bed of the pickup truck for carrying and transporting their small watercraft. They do not feel that it is desirable to transport their small watercraft on trailers towed behind their pickup trucks. Using the cargo bed of a truck has the advantage of not requiring storage of a trailer. Also, there are the added advantages of no trailer registration, no trailer insurance and no trailer maintenance. Further, it also reduces the difficulty with which to handle the truck because of the maneuverability of the trailer behind the truck.
Most small watercraft are sufficiently heavy and cumbersome to make loading and unloading without two or more people difficult. Even so, while such small watercraft may be lifted by several men into the cargo bed of a pickup truck for transport, it is not easy. Particularly, one or two men are unable to perform such a loading operation with ease and with sufficient care to prevent damage to the boat being loaded. Consequently, recreational vehicles of this type are often loaded on and unloaded from a trailer which is backed into the water, typically on a ramp.
Several devices have been created for carrying boats, recreational vehicles, and other types of watercraft in the bed of a truck. There are other devices that have been created to support loads such as lumber beyond the end of the pickup truck bed thus allowing the truck to carry longer loads than would normally fit in the cargo bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,542,810 (1996, H. Cameron Florus) discloses an easily removable dual purpose apparatus for safely transporting personal watercraft in a truck bed. The rack includes a tubular frame with legs for supporting the rack within the truck bed. The personal watercraft is supported by two spaced parallel tubes of the frame. The apparatus further includes removable ramp pieces with expanded ends and a low friction covering for connecting to two larger pieces of tubing which are bent to a 45 degree angle. The two larger pieces are then connected to the end of the rack. The ramp pieces serve as a means for loading the personal watercraft onto the rack in the cargo bed of the truck.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,354,164 (1994, S. A. Goss et al.) discloses a boat launching apparatus for pickup trucks which includes a trailer framework unit pivotally attached on the rear bumper of the truck. The apparatus also has an automatic control for raising and lowering the trailer framework unit relative to the bed of the truck.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,960,356 (1990, B. E. Wrenn) discloses an apparatus for loading, unloading and storing a jet-propelled water vehicle. The apparatus comprise a first pair of tubes made of relatively smooth-surfaced plastic plumbing pipe or the like, a second pair of tubes of similar construction which telescopes within and extends from the first pair of tubes, and devices to adjustably support and space the first pair of tubes on a truck bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,212,580 (1980, R. O. Fluck) discloses a loading and support rack for support from the rear of a pickup truck load bed and with the rack overlying and extending forwardly of the tailgate of the pickup truck when the tailgate is in a horizontal position. A horizontal transverse winch mounting structure is provided for support from the upper marginal edge portion of the forward wall of the truck bed. An elongated support frame is also provided and includes a front and rear ends, slightly dependingly supported opposite side forward support wheels and a center rear roller as well as opposite side rollers spaced centrally intermediate the opposite ends of the frame. The winch cable is attached to the boat and the boat as well as the boat supporting frame is pulled up onto and in the load bed of the pickup truck.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,813 (1997, P. G. Ouellette) discloses a vehicle long-load stabilizer. The apparatus is attachable to a vehicle's standard tube type trailer hitch using a clevis pin. The apparatus consists of a horizontal member, a vertically angled member, and a horizontal stabilizing member. The apparatus allows longer loads to be carried and disassembles for convenient transport and storage within the vehicle when not in use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,088 (1995, R. L. Broad) discloses a combination frame-supported box receiver and self-stabilizing bed extension. The extension apparatus includes two pieces for providing a two-axis, cantilevered extension for a pickup truck. One piece is a longitudinal-running box beam welded at an upward cantilever angle to a short stub section. The second piece is T-shaped when viewed from above and it includes a single adjustment telescoping transition beam which serves as the transition from the longitudinal box beam to the load-supporting cross beam that is transversely oriented relative to the longitudinal beam.
Therefore what is needed is a watercraft loading and launching device that allows one person to easily load and unload a watercraft onto and from the cargo bed of a pickup truck. What is further needed is a watercraft loading and launching device that can be removably attached to the trailer hitch receiver on a pickup truck. What is still further needed is a watercraft loading and launching device that can be removed and easily stored within the cargo bed of the pickup truck. What is further needed is a watercraft loading and launching device that can be used with watercraft having various shaped bottoms such as V-bottom, semi V-bottom, flat bottom, pontoon-shaped bottom and the like. What is also needed is a watercraft loading and launching device that has a separate cradle assembly for supporting the watercraft within the cargo bed of a pickup truck that prevents damage to the watercraft and the truck during loading, unloading and transporting the watercraft.

Watercraft loading and launching apparatus


A low-cost and effective coating composition for cardboard allows use of thinner paper board with the same or higher strength relative to conventional water-resistant cardboard. The resulting cardboard can also be repulped and more easily recycled. The inventive coating composition, preferably applied to the fluted inner ply of the cardboard (as a waterproof barrier), is compatible with the utilization of low-cost starch-based adhesives for gluing the fluting to the liners. At least one side of the fluting cardboard is coated with a composition comprising: from about 10% to 70% by weight, and more preferably from about 40% to 60% by weight, of sodium silicate; from about 10% to 60% by weight, and more preferably from about 30% to about 50% by weight, of a synthetic resin emulsion; from about 10% to 50% of a paraffin-water emulsion; and from about 5% to about 25% by weight of added water.

Corrugated cardboard has a variety of applications as packing material for many products. Corrugated cardboard is multi-walled. The most common corrugated board has three paper board walls. The two outside walls are usually called liners and the inner corrugated wall is commonly called the corrugated or fluted medium or just fluting.
One of the problems currently found in the industry, particularly in the trade involving products where the packing boxes made of corrugated cardboard have to withstand humid conditions, is that upon contact with water, the cardboard tends to absorb sufficient water to lose or significantly reduce its rigidity, whereby the boxes become ineffective for this intended use due to deformation and even eventual destruction.
In order to provide the corrugated cardboard with a water-proof quality, the liners, and sometimes the fluting, are currently coated with a variety of materials, mainly waxes and paraffins, thereby seeking relatively inexpensively to form a film of impermeable material (which retards the water from coming into contact with the underlying cardboard). A significant disadvantage in the standard use of paraffins arises from many problems encountered when used cardboard is recycled. Paraffin tends to form masses in the repulping vat which cannot be easily handled and must be separated.
It is also known that in order to provide stacking strength to packing boxes made of corrugated board, the liners and fluting are made of cardboard having a predetermined weight basis to provide the necessary strength, and additionally the flutes of the corrugated medium board in the box side walls are oriented in a vertical direction. When utilizing higher weight basis for the component materials, the vertical stacking strength will, within limits, be higher, but the cost also will be greater. It is therefore desirable to enhance the strength of the cardboard without increasing its weight basis.
Documents cited in this text, and all documents cited or referenced in the documents cited in this text, are incorporated herein by reference. Documents incorporated by reference into this text or any teachings therein may be used in the practice of this invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,085,026 discloses a wax composition for coating corrugated cartons and sheets thus producing stronger corrugated cardboard containers. The cardboard is impregnated with a composition containing at least 60% by weight of a refined crystalline paraffin wax and from 1 to 15% by weight of a polymer resin selected from the group of petroleum polymer resins and styrene polymer resins; said composition constituting from 26 to 37% of the total weight of the impregnated cardboard.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,260,690 discloses coated paper containers, such as drinking cups, milk cartons and the like for receiving various foods and beverages.
The coating composition comprises (a) a water emulsified styrene-butadiene copolymer alone, or (b) a water emulsified styrene-butadiene copolymer in admixture with water emulsified polystyrene. Polyacrylic resins and polyvinyl acetate may be added to improve the coating's resistance to the presence of oils.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,006 teaches a coating for a corrugated medium (fluting) comprising a wax-copolymer blend of a wax containing from about 25 to about 60 wt % ethylene-ethyl acrylate copolymer, ethylene vinyl acetate, butyl rubber, polyisobutilene, butadiene-styrene, and others, wherein the wax is selected from the group consisting of paraffin wax, microcrystalline wax and mixtures thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,199 discloses a coated paper having a water-proof coating. The coating composition is an aqueous emulsion containing a synthetic rubber latex and a wax emulsion in an amount of the solid wax of 5 to 200 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the solid synthetic rubber.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,332,458 discloses a process for increasing the strength of corrugated cardboard applying a strength enhancing isocyanate resin to the fluted medium. This patent describes the general process of manufacturing a corrugated cardboard with an enhanced resistance.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,658,971 describes an aqueous coating composition comprising up to about 85% by weight of a latex of a styrene-butadiene copolymer, or a latex of a carboxylated styrene-butadiene copolymer, and a wax. The composition may also comprise sodium alginate and polyethylene.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,750,237 describes a double-faced liner board that is waterproof and which can be easily recyclable in contrast to cardboard waterproofed by wax. The top layer of the liner board is coated by a coating comprising an emulsion of a curable butadiene-styrene copolymer and TiO2, the fluted medium layer is coated with an aqueous composition containing an emulsion of wax particles and a binder, preferably sodium alginate; and the bottom layer has a coating formed from an aqueous composition comprising about 10 to 85 wt % of a liquid curable styrene-butadiene copolymer and a wax.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,869,192 teaches an aqueous curable composition comprising a pre-polymer of a styrene-butadiene copolymer and TiO2, forming a waterproof coating.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,635,279; 5,626,945 and 6,066,379 describe a water-repellant coating which includes a mixture of a polymer matrix and a pigment. The wax component may be paraffin or polyethylene wax. The polymer matrix may be polyethylene-butadiene polymer. The pigment is selected from the group consisting of aluminum trihydrate, barium sulfate, calcium carbonate, mica (potassium aluminum silicates), nepheline syenite (sodium potassium aluminosilicate), finely ground silica sand and other natural and synthetic types of silicates including talc (magnesium silicates), wollastonite (calcium metasilicates), bentonite (montmorillonite, smectite) and clay. A cardboard is described having a water repellant coating which includes a polymer matrix/wax mixture applied as an aqueous formulation. The coating composition consists essentially of a wax component selected from paraffin wax or polyethylene wax emulsions; a polymer matrix of polymer chains comprising a polystyrene-butadiene polymer copolymerized with a monomer having pendant carboxylic acid groups, which are cross-linked by a zinc ion.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,429,240 discloses a water-borne resin composition which can be readily applied to paper substrates and which provides enhanced strength and rigidity for the paper substrate. The coated paper is repulpable and recyclable. The coating composition comprising a water-borne resin selected from the group consisting of coal, tar, petroleum, turpentine feed stocks, and mixtures thereof; and a natural resin selected from the group consisting of resins, fossil resins, mined resins, secretion products from insects, and chemical derivatives and adducts of such natural resins.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,541,556 and 6,143,113 disclose a wax-free coating composition for corrugated cardboard comprising a styrene-acrylate copolymer and a C14-C18 fatty acid complex of a metal ion such as chromium.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,722,560 teaches a box of corrugated cardboard having a single moisture vapor barrier comprising a composition of polymers and ground-up mica.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,794,016 discloses a water-resistant corrugated fiberboard capable of being recycled after its use. A water-resistant layer is formed on at least one of the surfaces of the corrugated fiberboard by applying a coating containing a synthetic resin emulsion and a pigment. In a preferred embodiment of the invention of this publication, the synthetic resin emulsions are styrene/butadiene copolymer, styrene/acrylic copolymer and ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer. A pigment may be added from the group consisting of precipitated calcium carbonate, calcium carbonate, heavy calcium carbonate, silica, clay, kaolin, talc, mica, sericite and aluminum hydroxide.
From all these, it can be seen that there is a continuing long-felt need in the corrugated box industry to find a truly low-cost and effective coating composition which adds strength to the cardboard, while being repulpable, and therefore contributing to an ecological recycling of used cardboard packings.
The invention also has application as a paper strengthener whereby for a given stacking resistance of corrugated packing boxes, the coating of the present invention allows for manufacturing said boxes utilizing a thinner paper than otherwise would be required to have such compression resistance. This provides an important economic advantage to the manufacturer of the packing boxes.
It is thus desirable to increase the strength of the corrugated board using the minimum weight basis of cardboard by enhancing the strength of at least one layer (i.e. ply) of the corrugated board.

Coating composition and method for enhancing the strength of corrugated cardboard


A package for pourable food products and method for moulding a polymeric opening portion to a packaging sheet material is provided. The package can include an opening portion and a weakening feature. In some embodiments, the opening portion can be made of a polymer composition. In some embodiments, the weakening feature has a thickness below 200 micrometers and is thinner than parts of the opening portion directly adjacent to said weakening feature. The polymer composition can include sodium sulphite particles. In some embodiments, the sodium sulphite particles have the following size characteristics: (i) 0% having a size above 75 micrometers, and (ii) an average size below 25 micrometers.

Opening arrangements of different types provided on a packaging container, such as containers formed by packaging sheet material and adapted for containing substances such as foodstuffs, and in particular for containing liquid beverages such as juices, water, milk, wine, etc. are known.
One such opening arrangement includes a hole or attenuation on a wall part of the packaging container and a plastics material opening device attached to the wall part and covering the hole in a closed state. The opening device includes a circumferential base attached to the wall part, for example the lid part of the opening device may be attached to the base for example by a plastic hinge. When the lid element is opened, the hole may be engaged and forced open such that the contents inside the packaging container may be dispensed therefrom.
An aluminium foil, is commonly used as a barrier against oxygen within the field of packaged foods. By having a barrier against oxygen, oxidative degradation can be reduced, leading to higher food quality as well as extended shelf-life for the food product.
However, when moulding an opening onto a package for pourable foods tear-lines are in many cases required for easy opening of a moulded part, but keeping the package sealed until consumption. Such tear-lines are not protected by a barrier material against oxygen permeation and have thinner thickness than the surrounding package material and are therefore more susceptible to oxygen penetration. Thus, the relatively unprotected state of the tear-lines may cause several issues.
Usage of sodium and potassium sulphite particles as "oxygen eaters" in packaging materials is known for a person skilled in the art. However, the previously used oxygen eaters are not suitable for an opening portion with a tear line and is associated with drawbacks which will be further discussed in the detailed description.
Similar issues may arise with regards to an interface between an opening portion and a package container body.
Hence, there is a need to provide a package for pourable food which addresses the disadvantages and shortcomings of the prior art in general and to provide a package for pourable food which allows for a reduced oxygen permeability.

Package for pourable food products and method for moulding a polymeric opening portion


A multi-line Lidar is provided. The multi-line Lidar includes: a multi-line ranging laser emission module comprising one or more lasers; a multi-line ranging laser reception module comprising one or more photodetectors and adapted to detect a laser echo generated when a measurement laser emitted by the laser emission module is incident to an obstacle and is diffusedly reflected; a ranging information resolution module in electrical signal connection with the multi-line ranging laser emission module and the multi-line ranging laser reception module, and designed to calculate the distance, in each direction, to the obstacle by means of calculating the time difference between the emission of the measurement laser and the receiving of the laser echo; and a control circuit and an optical system correspondingly configured for the multi-line ranging laser emission module and the multi-line ranging laser reception module.

Laser ranging technologies based on Time of flight have been widely applied to various fields.
For a single-line Lidar, only one beam of scanning laser is generated along an axial direction, and a two-dimensional scenario is sensed by changing an angle of the one beam of the scanning laser in a horizontal plane. That is, the single-line Lidar may sense a scenario in a plane or a curved surface scanned by the one beam of scanning laser. In an actual application, in order to sense a three-dimensional scenario by the single-line Lidar, the single-line Lidar is required to be moved so that various frames of two-dimensional images may be combined to generate a three-dimensional effect.
In order to obtain three-dimensional information of the scanned region as much as possible, a multi-line Lidar which can cover a larger vertical field of view is generally adopted. For the multi-line Lidar in the current market, the angular separations of the laser beams are uniformly distributed in a certain angle range (that is, the vertical angular resolution has pre-determined values). For example, for the 16-line, 32-line and 64-lineLidar Lidars of Velodyne, the vertical angular resolutions are 2 degrees, 1.33 degrees and 0.43 degree respectively. For the 4-line and 8-line Lidars of Ibeo, the vertical angular resolution is 0.8 degree.
A vehicle-mounted Lidar is mainly configured to detect pedestrians and vehicles or the like on the ground. In this case, if the vertical field of view has been evenly assigned in an upper field of view and a lower field of view, a substantial amount of the beams pointing upward are not useful.
In addition, if the distribution pattern of the current products is followed and the vertical angular separations are distributed uniformly, more lines are required to realize a higher vertical angular resolution, resulting in a higher cost, a larger volume and a lower reliability and stability. Due to the limitation of a data capacity of the Ethernet and a processing speed of the vehicle-mounted CPU, a Lidar with a higher number of laser beams cannot satisfy the requirements of both a high level of vertical angular resolution and a high scanning frequency of the Lidar.
If the number of lines is decreased based on the cost, the angular separation will become very large, and thus the target in a short distance range (for example 40m) may not be detected. For example, if the vertical field of view is 32° and the angular separation is 2° (the vertical resolution), 16 lines are required to cover the vertical field of view. As a result, the gap among laser beams at a distance of 40 m will be about 1.4 meters. With such a large gap, it is easy for the Lidar to miss a pedestrian.
According to a determination whether an emission optical path overlaps with a receiving optical path, the Lidar may be classified into a coaxial system and a non-coaxial system. For any Lidar, in order to ensure that all the emitted laser pulses enter a receiving field of view of the Lidar after passing through a blind area and a transition area of the Lidar, the emitted laser pulses should be parallel with an optical axis of a receiving telescope. Once directivity of the emitted beam changes, the overlap factor correction curve of the Lidar cannot be determined, and a correct correction result cannot be provided for the overlap region. The laser beam may deviate from the receiving field of view when the directivity severely deviates, resulting in that the Lidar cannot detect the obstacle.
In the conventional Lidar system, due to offset of a reflector, an operation ambient temperature of a semiconductor laser device, platform vibration, wavelength change and a service life of the semiconductor laser device, it is difficult to ensure that the emitted beams maintain coaxial or parallel to the optical axis of the receiving telescope in the non-coaxial Lidar system. In addition, space is scanned through rotation of one-dimensional galvanometer in the conventional Lidar system, and the requirement for scanning field of view of the Lidar cannot be satisfied. In addition, the rotation of the galvanometer is controlled through a mechanical structure, resulting in increased maintenance difficulty and limited measurement accuracy.


A field-effect transistor including a first channel layer, formed in contacting relationship with a gate electrode, and a second channel layer, formed on one side or both sides of the first channel layer in non-contacting relationship with the gate electrode, the carrier concentration in the second channel layer being higher than that in the first channel layer but lower than that in high-impurity concentration active layers forming drain and source regions. The field-effect transistor employs an offset gate configuration in which the gate electrode is formed in contacting relationship with the first channel layer at a position nearer to the high-impurity concentration active layer forming the source region than to the high-impurity concentration active layer forming the drain region. A dummy gate is formed and ion implantation is performed from two different angles using the dummy gate as a mask, thereby efficiently forming the source region, drain region, and second channel layer in a sequence of successive processing steps. By combining the suitably patterned first and second ion shielding layers, the gate to source electrode spacing and the gate to drain electrode spacing are controlled by the accuracy to which the second ion shielding layer can be formed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a metal semiconductor field-effect transistor used for power amplification and a method of fabricating the same.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, metal semiconductor field-effect transistors (MESFET) for power amplifier use are required to have a large gate-drain breakdown voltage and a small drain conductance for operation under large signals. One previous approach to improving the gate-drain breakdown voltage capability is the so-called offset gate configuration in which the gate electrode is formed nearer to the source, or in other words, by spacing the gate farther away from the drain.
FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view cutting across the source, drain, and gate regions formed alternately in interlaced fashion in a prior art MES field-effect transistor employing the offset gate configuration. In the figure, the reference numeral 1 designates a semiconductive GaAs substrate. In the surface of the GaAs substrate 1, a drain region of n.sup.+ conductivity type (a high-impurity concentration active layer forming the drain) 5 and a source region of the same n.sup.+ conductivity type (a high-impurity concentration active layer forming the source) 6, separated from each other by a prescribed distance, are formed to a prescribed depth from the surface of the GaAs substrate 1, whereas between the drain region 5 and the source region 6, there is formed a channel layer 4 of n conductivity type to a depth shallower than the drain and source regions 5 and 6.
On the surface of the GaAs substrate, there are formed a drain electrode 9 and a source electrode 10 corresponding respectively to the drain region 5 and the source region 6, between which is formed a gate electrode 11 electrically isolated from adjacent areas by a SiN film 2 and a SiO.sub.2 film 8 and connected to the channel layer 4. The gate electrode 11 takes the so-called offset gate configuration so that the gate electrode 11 is formed nearer to the source region 6 than to the drain region 5.
However, in the prior art MES field-effect transistor, the enlarged gate-to-drain spacing inevitably leads to an increase in the drain resistance, which causes such problems as degradation in field-effect transistor characteristics such as mutual conductance and drain current and an inability to effectively reduce the drain conductance.
FIG. 2 is a graph showing the drain voltage (source-drain voltage) Vd-drain current (source-drain current) Id characteristic of the prior art MES field-effect transistor (gate length 0.9 .mu.m, gate width 100 .mu.m), the drain voltage Vd (V) being plotted along the abscissa and the drain current Id (mA) along the ordinate. It can be seen from the graph that, in the region where the drain voltage Vd exceeds 5.0 (V), the drain current Id abruptly increases, which means an increase in the drain conductance; therefore, the static characteristic of the transistor is not satisfactory.
FIG. 3 is a graph showing the gate voltage Vg-drain current Id-mutual conductance gm characteristic of the prior art MES field-effect transistor, the gate voltage Vg (V) being plotted along the abscissa and the drain current Id (mA) and mutual conductance gm (mS) along the ordinate. As is apparent from the graph, the mutual conductance gm is low for the positive region of the gate voltage.
FIG. 4 is a graph showing the gate-drain reverse current-voltage characteristic of the prior art MES field-effect transistor, the gate-drain reverse voltage Vrgd (V) being plotted along the abscissa and the gate-drain reverse current Irgd (A) along the ordinate. As the graph shows, for Vrgd at around 14 (V), the gate-drain reverse current already reaches 10.sup.-5 (A) which is generally considered as the gate-drain breakdown voltage limit.

High-breakdown voltage field-effect transistor


A multicore fiber includes six or more of core elements having a core, a first clad surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the core and a second clad surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the first clad, and includes a clad surrounding the core elements. All of expressions are satisfied: n1>n2>n3, n1>n4, n3<n4, wherein the refractive index of the core is n1, the refractive index of the first clad is n2, the refractive index of the second clad is n3, and the refractive index of the clad is n4. The core elements are disposed so that the inter-center pitch between the cores adjacent to each other is disposed at regular spacing and the centers of the cores are annularly disposed.

Currently, optical fibers used for optical fiber communication systems which are generally spreading adopt a structure in which an outer periphery of one core is surrounded by a clad, and information is transmitted when an optical signal propagates in this core. Further, as the optical fiber communication systems spread, the amount of information to be transmitted is dramatically increasing in recent years. Following an increase in the amount of information to be transmitted, the optical fiber communication systems use several tens or several hundreds of multiple optical fibers to perform long-distance optical communication of a large volume.
It is known that, to reduce the number of optical fibers in such an optical fiber communication system, a plurality of signals are transmitted by means of light propagating in respective cores using a multi-core fiber in which outer peripheries of a plurality of cores are surrounded by one clad.
Non-Patent Document 1 below describes such a multi-core fiber. However, as also pointed out in Non-Patent Document 1, in the multi-core fiber in some cases, crosstalk occurs between optical signals propagating through cores, and noise is superposed on the optical signals propagating through the cores. In order to reduce such crosstalk, Non-Patent Document 2 below describes a so-called trench type multi-core fiber. In the structure of the trench type multi-core fiber, cores are individually surrounded by a first clad having a refractive index equivalent to or slightly different from the refractive index of a clad, the first clad is surrounded by a second clad having a refractive index lower than the refractive indices of the first clad and the clad, and the second clads are individually surrounded by the clad. In the case where the core, the first clad, and the second clad are considered to be a core element and the core element is seen from the viewpoint of the refractive indices, the multi-core fiber is a trench type because the refractive index of the second clad is in a trench. According to such a trench type multi-core fiber, light propagating through the core is more properly confined in the cores. Thus, it is suppressed that light propagating through the cores leaks out of the core element, and the crosstalk between the cores can be reduced.
Moreover, Non-Patent Document 3 below describes that in the case of hexagonal close packing in which a single core is disposed in the center and six cores surround the single core, it is likely that the crosstalk characteristics of the core disposed in the center is degraded.

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY CORPORATION HOKKAIDO UNIVERSITY


A table or desk assembly (20) includes a base having a pair of legs (24), a worksurface (22) supported by and between the pair of legs, and a rapid, counterbalanced height adjustment mechanism interposed between the legs and the worksurface for providing adjustment in the elevation of the worksurface. The height adjustment mechanism includes a pair of high lead rotatable threaded rods (32) engaged with a mating stationary threaded member (33) associated with each leg. A handle (36) is engageable with one of the threaded rods for imparting rotation to the threaded rod, and a synchronizing arrangement, such as a sprocket (38) and chain system (40), is interconnected with the other of the threaded rods for rotating the threaded rods together. A lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism applies an upward bias, such as to the worksurface, to counteract the weight of the worksurface and any loads supported by the worksurface. The counterbalancing mechanism may be in the form of a cylinder assembly (54) having a biased retractable and extendible member, which is interconnected with each of the threaded rods via a cable (66) and pulley (68) arrangement. Alternatively, the lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism may be in the form of constant force spring arrangements (76), each of which has an extendible and retractable member. A retainer arrangement (90) is interposed between the crank or handle member (36) and the worksurface, for preventing inadvertent rotation of the threaded rod and thereby maintaining the elevation of the worksurface.

This invention relates to an article of furniture such as a desk, table or other structure having a worksurface, and more particularly to a system for providing rapid adjustment of the height of the worksurface relative to a supporting surface such as a floor.
It is known to provide a table or desk with a height adjustment feature for enabling the height of the worksurface to be adjusted relative to a supporting surface such as a floor. In a typical construction, an adjustable height table or desk includes a base having a pair of spaced apart supports or legs, which are configured to support a top or worksurface that extends between and is supported by the legs. Each leg includes a rotatably threaded rod, the upper end of which is interconnected with the worksurface. A handle or crank is interconnected with at least one of the threaded rods, such that manual rotation of the crank or handle imparts rotation to the threaded rod. A synchronizing drive arrangement, such as a chain and sprocket arrangement, is interconnected between the rods, such that rotation of one of the rods is operable to rotate the other.
In a prior art construction of this type, the table or desk must be designed to meet certain loading criteria, which is typically established either by customer requirements or by conventional testing criteria, and the height adjustment mechanism must be designed to accommodate the maximum amount of load to be supported by the worksurface. This requires the threads of the rods and the mating stationary threaded members to have a relatively high thread count, i.e. number of threads per unit length. By using a high density thread construction of this type, a relatively small amount of force is required to turn the crank or handle in order to adjust the height of the worksurface, even when the worksurface is loaded with the maximum amount of load. In this manner, the height of the worksurface can be adjusted by a wide range of users including those who are unable to apply a large amount of force to the handle, i.e. persons who do not have a great deal of arm or upper body strength.
While the above-described height adjustment mechanism provides a satisfactory arrangement for adjusting the height of a worksurface, it entails certain disadvantages in that the rate of adjustment is relatively slow and a large number of turns are required in order to accomplish even relatively small adjustment in the height of the worksurface, due to the required high density pitch of the threads of the threaded members.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a table, desk or other article of furniture having a worksurface, and including a height adjustment mechanism that is capable of providing rapid adjustment in the height of the worksurface. Yet another object of the invention is to provide such a table, desk or other article of furniture in which the height of the worksurface can be adjusted by imparting a relatively small number of revolutions to a crank or handle associated with the table, desk or other article of furniture. Yet another object of the invention is to provide a height adjustment mechanism for an article of furniture such as a table, desk or the like, which operates and is constructed in a manner generally similar to that of known worksurface height adjustment mechanisms. A still further object of the invention is to provide such a height adjustment mechanism that includes a feature for preventing inadvertent rotation of the crank or handle at all times other than when it is desired to adjust the height of the worksurface.
In accordance with the present invention, an article of furniture such as a table, desk or the like includes a base arrangement including a pair of spaced apart supports or legs and a top or other structure defining a worksurface, which extends between and is supported by the legs, in combination with a height adjustment mechanism for selectively altering the elevation of the worksurface and a lift assist or counterbalancing arrangement for loads carried by the worksurface during movement of the worksurface by operation of the height adjustment mechanism.
The height adjustment mechanism is in the form of a pair of rotatable threaded rods, each of which is interconnected at an upper end with the worksurface and is in threaded engagement with a stationary threaded member associated with one of the legs. The rods and the stationary threaded members have mating high lead threads, which provide a relatively high ratio of axial translation to angular rotation. That is, the threads of the rods and the stationary threaded members function to provide a high degree of axial adjustment, i.e. adjustment in the height of the worksurface, in response to rotation of the rods.
The lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism is configured to apply an upward bias on the worksurface. In combination with the high lead configuration of the threads on the rods and the mating threads of the stationary threaded members, the upward bias applied by the counterbalancing or lift assist mechanism functions to urge rotation of the threaded rods. In this manner, the upward bias on the worksurface provided by the lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism functions to counteract downward forces due to the weight of the worksurface as well as any loads carried by the worksurface, such that the threaded rods can be rotated relatively easily to adjust the height of the worksurface. The lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism is designed to provide a substantially constant biasing force throughout the entire range of movement of the worksurface relative to the legs.
In one embodiment, the lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism is in the form of a cylinder assembly having an extendible and retractable member that is biased in an outward direction. A pair of cables are interconnected with the extendible and retractable member. Each cable is engaged via a pulley arrangement with the extendible upper section of one of the legs, such as by engagement of the end of the cable with a cup member interconnected with the lower end of leg upper section. The extendible and retractable member is biased toward an extended position, and the cables and the pulley arrangements function to translate the outward bias of the extendible and retractable member into an upward force applied to the upper sections of the legs. The cylinder assembly is preferably mounted to a cross-member forming a part of the base of the table or desk, which extends between and interconnects the pair of spaced apart legs.
In another embodiment, the lift assist or counterbalancing mechanism is in the form of a constant force spring arrangement, in which an extendible and retractable spring strip member is biased toward a wound, retracted position. In one version, a separate spring arrangement is provided for each of the threaded rods. A cable is interconnected between each threaded rod and one of the extendible and retractable members, such as by means of a pulley arrangement. The spring arrangements are supported by a cross-member forming a part of the base and extending between the pair of spaced apart legs.
In accordance with another aspect of invention, a retainer arrangement is interposed between the worksurface and the crank or handle member, to prevent inadvertent rotation of the threaded rod. The retainer arrangement includes a hub member that is engaged with an upper end defined by one of the threaded rods, and the crank or handle member is engageable with the hub member so as to enable a user to selectively rotate the threaded rod through the crank or handle member and the hub member. The hub member and the worksurface include mating engagement structure, which is engaged so as to prevent rotation of the hub member when the hub member is in an engaged position, and is disengaged so as to enable rotation of the hub member when the hub member is in a disengaged position. The hub member is biased toward the engaged position, and is manually movable to the disengaged position by the user against the biasing force, so as to selectively enable rotation of the threaded rod through rotation of the crank or handle member. In one form, the hub member is movable along an axis coincident with the longitudinal axis of the threaded rod, for movement between the engaged and disengaged positions. In one embodiment, the worksurface includes a recess within which the upper end of the threaded rod is located, and the hub member includes a base or flange located within the recess and an outwardly extending sleeve which is configured for engagement with the crank or handle member. The worksurface includes a cover or locking member configured to enclose the recess and to overlie the base of the hub member, and to include an opening through which the sleeve extends. The engagement structure is interposed between the base of the hub member and a facing surface defined by the locking member or cover.
The invention contemplates a table, desk or other similar article of furniture having an adjustable top or worksurface, as summarized above, as well as an adjustment mechanism for a worksurface and a method of adjusting the elevation of a worksurface, substantially in accordance with the foregoing summary.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.


A compound or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof of the present invention is represented by the following general formula (I):

Kinases are enzymes which transfer (phosphorylates) a phosphate group from a molecule having a high energy phosphate bond such as ATP to a substrate or a target molecule. Among them, protein kinases which are enzymes capable of phosphorylating protein molecules function as regulatory factors in various signal transduction pathways or metabolic pathways in cells. Functional abnormality of kinases often causes diseases such as cancer, and it has been expected that an agent having a function to inhibit a specific kinase is developed and the developed agent is used for treatment or prevention of diseases.
A serine/threonine kinase Pim-1 is a serine/threonine kinase which was at first identified as a gene to be often activated by murine leukemia virus (MuLV) insertion in a T-cell lymphoma caused by the leukemia virus (Non-patent document 1). Further, it is reported that Pim-1 in cytoplasm functions as a factor for inhibiting apoptosis in various hematopoietic cells (Non-patent document 2).
It is known that Pim-1 is expressed not only in hematopoietic cells but also in the lymphatic system, prostate gland, testis, and oral epithelial cells. It is also known that the majority of the function of Pim-2 and Pim-3 which are serine/threonine kinases and have significant sequence homology to Pim-1 overlaps with that of Pim-1 (Non-patent document 3).
Further, it is known that Pim-3 is expressed in malignancies in the pancreatic and liver cells, but is not expressed in normal pancreatic tissues, and it is reported that Pim-3 functions as a factor for inhibiting apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer cells and of hepatocellular cancer cell lines (Non-patent documents 4 and 5).
Non-patent document 1: Cuypers, H. T., Selten, G., Quint, W., Zijlstra, M., Maandag, E. R., Boelens, W., van Wezenbeek, P., Melief, C., Berns, A. Murine leukemia virus-induced T-cell lymphomagenesis: integration of proviruses in a distinct chromosomal region. Cell, 37: 141-150, 1984
Non-patent document 2: Selten, G., Cuypers, H. T. & Berns, A. Proviral activation of the putative oncogene Pim-1 in MuLV induced T-cell lymphomas. EMBO J, 4: 1793-1798, 1985
Non-patent document 3: Malte Bachmann, Tarik Moroy, The serine/threonine kinase Pim-1, The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology 37 (2005) 726-730
Non-patent document 4: Chifumi Fujii, Yasunari Nakamoto, Peirong Lu, Koichi Tsuneyama, Boryana K. Popivanova, Shuichi Kaneko and Naofumi Mukaida, Aberrant expression of serine/threonine kinase Pim-3 in hepatocellular carcinoma development and its role in the proliferation of human hepatoma cell lines, Int. J. Cancer: 114, 209-218 (2005)
Non-patent document 5: Ying-Yi Li, Boryana K. Popivanova, Youichiro Nagai, Hiroshi Ishiokura, Chifumi Fujii, and Naofumi Mukaida, Pim-3, a Proto-Oncogene with Serine/Threonine Kinase Activity, Is Aberrantly Expressed in Human Pancreatic Cancer and Phosphorylates Bad to Block Bad-Mediated Apoptosis in Human Pancreatic Cancer Cell Line, Cancer Res 2006, 66: (13). Jul. 1, 2006; 6741-7

Abstract: [wherein, R1 to R8 may have a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a hydroxy group, a C1-C6 alkyl group, a C2-C8 alkenyl group, a C1-C6 alkylcarbonyl group or —COOR9 (wherein R9 represents a hydrogen atom, a C1-C6 alkyl group or a C2-C8 alkenyl group) as a substituent; and X represents a sulfur atom, an oxygen atom or NR10 (wherein R10 represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a hydroxy group, a C1-C6 alkyl group, a C2-C8 alkenyl group or a C1-C6 alkoxy group)].


To provide a fuel cell vehicle in which a fuel cylinder and a fuel cell stack are arranged so that the barycentric position is kept low and load is appropriately shared between the front and rear wheels. The fuel cylinder is mounted further forward than a seat, at a recumbent attitude inclined such that the shut-off valve side faces to the rear and the shut-off valve end is higher than the other end. The fuel cell box is positioned below the fuel cylinder between the pair of left and right lower frames and is fixed by being suspended from brackets provided at two places on the left and right upper frames, so as to overlap and run along a line connecting a rotational axis of the front wheel FW and the rotational axis of the rear wheel.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fuel cell vehicle driven with a fuel cell as a drive energy source, and particularly to a fuel cell vehicle in which drivability is improved by arranging heavy components at appropriate positions.
2. Description of Background Art
A fuel cell type two-wheeled vehicle is known that is driven by supplying electrical power generated by a fuel cell to a motor with the rear wheels being driven by the motor. With a fuel cell system, electricity is generated by a chemical reaction between hydrogen, as a fuel gas, and oxygen, as a reactant gas. However, methods for supplying hydrogen are roughly divided into two types for a vehicle fuel cell.
One method utilizes methanol as a fuel and extracting hydrogen from the methanol using a reformer. In another method hydrogen gas is filled into the fuel cylinder in advance. Of these two methods, it is more common to adopt the latter system that does not require a large mass reformer as a fuel cell system for a motorcycle, which has restricted deadweight.
With the latter fuel cell system, a fuel cylinder filled with fuel gas and a fuel cell stack (or cell stack) for converting the fuel gas to electrical energy, constitute the main structure. Because the fuel cylinder and the fuel cell stack are heavy, the barycentric position is made higher due to the arrangement of these components.
Japanese Patent 2001-130469 and Japanese Patent 2001-313056 disclose two-wheeled vehicles powered by fuel cells wherein the fuel cell stack is arranged above a step floor below a seat, and a fuel cylinder is mounted above a rear wheel to the rear of the seat.
In both of the above disclosed Japanese Patents, there is a problem wherein as the fuel cell stack are arranged below a seat and the fuel cylinder is arranged behind the seat, drivability is impaired due to the fact that heavy components are arranged in a dispersed manner on the vehicle. Also, with both of the above-described Japanese Patents, since a fuel cylinder is supported above the rear wheel, there is a technical problem in that the barycentric position of the vehicle body becomes high.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


Disclosed are techniques used in connection with determining a health indicator (HI) of a component, such as that of an aircraft component. The HI is determined using condition indicators (CIs) which parameterize characteristics about a component minimizing possibility of a false alarm. Different algorithms are disclosed which may be used in determining one or more CIs. The HI may be determined using a normalized CI value. Techniques are also described in connection with selecting particular CIs that provide for maximizing separation between HI classifications. Given a particular HI at a point in time for a component, techniques are described for predicting a future state or health of the component using the Kalmán filter. Techniques are described for estimating data values as an alternative to performing data acquisitions, as may be used when there is no pre-existing data.

1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to the field of vibration analysis and more particularly to performing vibration analysis for the purpose of device monitoring.
2. Description of Related Art
The transmission of power to rotors which propel helicopters and other shafts that propel devices within the aircraft induce vibrations in the supporting structure. The vibrations occur at frequencies that correspond to the shaft rotation rate, mesh rate, bearing passing frequency, and harmonics thereof. The vibration is associated with transmission error (TE). Increased levels of TE are associated with transmission failure. Similar types of vibrations are produced by transmissions in fixed installations as well.
Parts, such as those that may be included in a helicopter transmission, may be replaced in accordance with a predetermined maintenance and parts replacement schedule. These schedules provide for replacement of parts prior to failure. The replacement schedules may indicate replacement time intervals that are too aggressive resulting in needless replacement of working parts. This may result in incurring unnecessary costs as airplane parts are expensive. Additionally, new equipment may have installed faulty or defective parts that may fail prematurely.
Thus it may be desirable to provide for an efficient technique for detecting part and device degradation without unnecessarily replacing parts. It may be desirable that this technique also provide for problem determination and detection prior to failure.

Method and apparatus for estimating values for condition indicators


A data processing system including a buffer configured to temporarily maintain a portion of a plurality of compressed data streams and a switch. Each portion of the plurality of compressed data streams comprise one or more units of an encoded media signal. The switch is for providing selective connectivity between the buffer and one or more processors configured to change a property of the data stream. The switch directs one or more units from the buffer to the one or more processors.

Digital bit streams can be used for the transmission and distribution of media signals, such as video and audio. The media streams could be, for example, Moving Picture Experts Group streams (i.e. MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 part 2, MPEG-4 part 10 (i.e. H.264)), Windows® Media (VC-1) streams, RealAudio streams, or MPEG Audio Layer-3 (mp3) streams, among others that can be used for the transmission of audio and/or video signals in compressed digital streams. Accordingly, within the context of this disclosure, a multimedia stream (or simply a media stream) could comprise one or more of an audio stream, a video stream, or any other underlying media signals used to convey information (text, graphics, animation, charts, graphs, etc.).
Such multimedia streams may be transmitted over a variety of distribution channels such as computer networks, satellite links, cable television (CATV) lines, radio-frequency signals, and digital subscriber lines (DSL), among others. As a consequence, the multimedia streams can be adapted to a particular distribution channel over which they may be transmitted. For example, the streams could be encoded into a different format (i.e. MPEG-4 to MPEG-2), could be converted from one resolution to another (i.e. 1280×720 pixels to 720×480 pixels), or could be converted from one bit rate to another (i.e. 4 Mbps to 2 Mbps). Such conversions of the multimedia stream, among others, can be collectively referred to as transcoding.
In many cases, conventional transcoders used to process a single bit stream can be made cost effectively and with relatively low implementation issues. However, as the number of media streams being transcoded increase, implementation issues become problematic. This is especially true in terms of the potential memory consumption and sheer number of processors used to perform the decoding and subsequent re-encoding.
Accordingly, in light of these potential deficiencies, among others, it is desirable to provide a transcoder that is scalable to process a large number of multimedia streams while providing the capability to minimize the amount of processing hardware and/or memory.

Systems and methods for transcoding bit streams


The present invention relates to the use of dedifferentiated plant cells in cosmetic preparations for protecting of stem cells against intrinsic and extrinsic stress factors, in particular for promoting proliferation of stem cells and for protecting them against apoptosis. In particular, the invention relates to the use of dedifferentiated plant cells from fruits of Malus domestica (Apple) cultivar Uttwiler Spaetlauber. Further, the invention relates to a method for cultivating of dedifferentiated plant cells, as well as to the preparation of extracts of plant cell cultures which are suitable for such applications.

Stem cells (SC) are uniform undifferentiated cells having the property of constant regeneration and the unique ability of turning into any other cell type by cleavage and differentiation. By said potential, SC are a renewable source of human tissue. Thus, SC be-came an important object of medical research for various applications, such as gene therapy, organ transplantation, diabetes, and plastic surgery.
SC may be divided into two groups, i.e. embryonic and adult (EC). Embryonic stem cells play a key role in the first development phase of an organism. They are able to endlessly cleave and to develop every necessary type of tissue. Thus, they are able to form from a single cell a whole body, either the plant or the animal form which they originate. Due to this ability they are also called pluripotent cells. Unfortunately, for human beings this ability is restricted to the embryonal phase. In later phases of life of a subject EC are no longer present.
The second type of stem cells are adult stem cells. So far, these cells could be identified in many full-grown tissues and organs, such as bone marrow, pancreas, spine, brain, central nervous system, peripheral blood, dental pulp, blood vessel, skeletal muscles, cornea, retina, liver, cord blood, heart, epithelium of the intestinal tract, and dermis.
Compared with EC adult SC derived from such tissues have only a limited choice of differentiation. Some of them can only differentiate into one single tissue type mostly the one which is surrounding them. Thus, they are called unipotent SC. Other SC can differentiate into various tissue types and therefore are called multipotent.
Both types of adult SC are promising for medical applications since they are more easily accessible and their recovery is ethically less problematical than of ES. A survey on SC and their possibilities may be gleaned in Lemoni et al., 2005, Stem Cell Plasticity: Time for a Reappraisal, Hematologica/The Hematology Journal, 90 (3), 360 to 381.
The skin of mammals is a multilamina system which is continuously revolving. The part which is constantly in contact with the outside world is called epidermis. The major task of this specialized Tissue is to protect the body against dehydration, lesions and infections. It is composed four different laminas which are all formed by a single cell type, the so-called cerationocytes. Whereas this cell type is not much differentiated, is nevertheless has its origin in specialized skin stem cells. They are located in the lowermost lamina of the epidermis, the basal lamina.
In several papers successful isolation of such skin stem cells is reported. It even could be demonstrated that skin stem cells may be found in lower tissues of the skin, i.e. in the so-called hair follicle bulge. Contrary to the SC in the basal lamina these SC are multipotent, i.e. they are able to differentiate into every tissue type of the skin. A survey may be gleaned in: Roh et al., 2006, Cutaneous Stem Cells and Wound Healing, Pediatric Research, 59 (4), Pt 2, 100 to 103R; Morasso et al., 2005, Epidermal Stem Cells; The Cradle of Epidermal Determination, Differentiation and Wound Healing, Biol. Cell., 97, 173 to 183; and Alonso et al., 2003, Colloquium: Stem Cells of the Skin Epithelium, PNAS, 100, Suppl. 1, 11830 to 11835.
Skin stem cells are crucial in the wound healing and the regeneration of skin and hair. However, the capacity of these abilities may be disturbed by genetic problems, environmental influences and the aging process. Thus, protection of these SC is extremely important. Therefore, as will be explained below more in detail, it was an object of the present invention to develop a plant extract able to protect and stimulate these SC in cosmetic preparations.
Plant extracts and the use of parts of plants, such as leaves, fruits, flowers, stems, bark, inflorescences and roots for cosmetic and medical Applications are known since ancient times. Products derived therefrom may be, e.g., essential oils, fibers, starch, flavors, coloring matters, antibiotics, proteins, phenols, acids or fats. The use of plants or plant extracts in cosmetics is rampant. There are a great many of different uses, such as humidification, brighteners, tanning lotions, make-ups, sun filters, scavengers, antioxidants, immunity stimulation, detergents, preserving agents or thickening agents.
Examples of recently found uses are described in: KR20040091178, KR20040059007, US20062400129, WO2006099930, WO2006086707, US2006153792, JP2006151934, WO2006068777, WO2006053761, WO2006008418, LV13345, UA73556, CN1679498, and many others.
The spectrum of useful plants and plant component is wide and comprises e.g. algae, succulents, berries, carnivorous plants, herbs, cereals and trees. Usual well known examples of plants, however not limited to them, are: Spirulina algae, aloe vera, calendula, ginkgo, ginseng, iris, valerian, sage, lavender, thyme, peppermint, Saint-John's-wort, citrons, peach, guava, avocado, wheat, and oat.
However there are restrictions with respect to the use of plants or plant components. i.e.:                The availability may be restricted, e.g. by the seasons, limited storage capacities, protection of species, problems in cultivation, or bad harvests.        The quality is not unchanging, e.g. due to seasonal variations, different cultivation methods, geographic differences, different suppliers, clones, pollution of the environment, or physical status.
These facts often make the use of plants in cosmetic applications impossible.
Therefore, the utilization of methods of plant cell culture techniques may help to solve such problems. Said utilization comprises techniques which allow, when observing certain known process steps, to obtain uniform dedifferentiated cells, showing the following advantages as compared with cultivated whole plants:                Independency from seasons;        Continuous production:        Freedom from pollution of environment and other impurities;        With respect to quantity and quality manageable and reproducible production of metabolites;        Protection of rare or limited plant reserves;        No limitation of market availability.
Examples for the use of plant cell cultures of various species, their cultivation and their use in cosmetic preparations may e.g. be found in: EP1244464, FR2837385, US2006021084, WO2005108596, WO2005070066.
The basic principle of cultivation of such dedifferentiated plant cells utilizes the biological fact, that every plant cell has the ability to build up the whole plant which the cell stems from. This ability is called totipotency and is comparable with the pluripotency of animal ES. Therefore, it may be accepted that dedifferentiated plant cells do have a positive influence on protection and activation of skin stem cells.
In order to achieve this effect various dedifferentiated plant cells can be used. However, further supplemental useful effects can be achieved using these plant extract as well. An investigation within several plant groups showed that apples and fruits belonging to the subfamily Maloideae of the family of Rosaceae are much promising. A known exponent of this family is the cultivated apple tree (Malus domestica). Apples have a long tradition in cosmetic applications. Originally, they were applied in the form of masks of pressed pulp or peelings which provided moisture and tautness of the skin. Another application is the use of apple aromas and extracts in all kinds of cosmetic preparation, such as e.g. shampoos, lotions, soaps, bath essences or toothpastes.
The main ingredients of apples are various sugars, vitamins, acids, oils, waxes and polyphenols. Recently published studies could prove that especially the overall polyphenols in apple extracts or apple juices rich in polythenols can be useful in preventing and combating colon cancer (Eberhart et al., 2000, Antioxidant Activity of Fresh Apples, Nature, 405, 903 to 904; Liu et al., 2003, Antiproliferative Activity of Apples is not due to Phenolic-induced Hydrogen Peroxide Formation, J. Agric. Food Chem., 51, 1718 to 1723; Kern et al., 2005, Inhibitors of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor in Apple Juice Extract, Mol. Nutr. Food Res., 49, 317 to 328). Thereby, to a certain extent, the juices rich in polyphenols had an influence on the Wnt-pathway. This pathway is a cytobiological signaling cascade in which β-catenin is the main protein. Under normal circumstances, this protein is present in the cell on a constant level. If this level is disturbed, as in a cancer cell, the β-catenin level rises, and the β-catenin is transported into the cell nucleus, where it initiates the transcription of genes which causes an uncontrolled cleavage. Kern et al. (2006, Modulation of Key Elements of the Wnt-Pathway by Apple Polyphenols, J. Agric. Food. Chem., 54, 7041 to 7046) could show that the level of intracellular β-catenin in colon cancer cells cultivated in vitro was reduced by administration of apple juice.
Furthermore, it was found that apple show a large antioxidative activity and can increase the antioxidative capacity in blood (Rezk et al., 2002, The Antioxidant Activity of Phloretin: The Disclosure of a new Antioxidant Pharmacophore in Flavonoids, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 295, 9 to 13; Lee et al., 2003, Major Phenolics in Apple and their Contribution to the Total Antioxidant Capacity, J. Agric. Food Chem., 51, 6516 to 6520; Vrohovsek et al., 2004, Quantitation of Polyphenols in Different Apple Varieties, J. Agric. Food Chem., 52, 6532 to 6538; Lotito et al., 2004, Relevance of Apple Polyphenols as Antioxidants in Human Plasma: Contrasting in-vitro and in-vivo Effects, Free Rad. Biol. Med., 36, 201 to 211; Bitsch et al., 2000, Bioavailability of Antioxidative Compounds from Brettacher Apple Juice in Humans, Food Sci. Emerg. Technol., 1, 245 to 249). For this reason, apples are very interesting for establishing a dedifferentiated cell culture and its subsequent use in cosmetic preparations.
Dedifferentiated plant cells have a complex matrix of constituents of salts, acids, polyphenols, sugars, fats, proteins and other components. In addition to known components there is an unknown fraction of components which possibly is very valuable for cosmetic applications. It is known that raw plant extracts often show a better effect than identified and isolated individual components. Therefore, it is reasonable to use the entire cell lysate for application.
In order to obtain such total fraction of all ingredients special techniques are required since part of them are water-soluble whereas another part is fat-soluble. It was proposed to process plant cell culture preparations by means of lyophilization (e.g. WO2005072697, US20050265953). Thereafter, these lyophilized cells were pulverized and used in topic preparations.
Since transport of materials through the skin barrier is very limited, the technique of producing liposomes for many cosmetic applications was developed (e.g. KR20050091162, KR920005639B, GB2415375, WO2004067012, EP1498420, US2002160064, AU2388099). Application of this technique allows a better penetration of substances into the lower skin laminas. Also, a further advantage of liposomes is the encapsulation of fat-soluble ingredients in the membrane and thus their dispersion in aqueous phases.
There are various methods of liposome production. Main steps of their production comprise dissolving a phospholipid mixture in a suitable solvent (e.g. glycerol or alcohol), intermixing the dissolved lipids with an aqueous phase, applying energy (e.g. by stirring, shaking, pressure or heat) for forming the liposomes. As said above, the form of energy can by pressure. Formation of liposomes by means of high pressure homogenization is a known technique. Examples for pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparations may be found e.g. in WO9949716, NZ502840 or EP0782847. Interestingly the same technique can be used for solubilizing cells and obtaining their lysate (e.g. DE19918619). Therefore, it is possible to solubilize plant cells of suspension cultures and at the same time to extract the oil- and water-soluble agents into empty liposomes. Thereby, stability of the agents and their transportation into the skin can be improved.
From the above mentioned publication WO 2005/072697 A1 it is known to use lyophilizates of dedifferentiated plant cells for depigmenting the skin. This technique calls for the use of lyophilizates of dedifferentiated plant cells, in particular of cells of halophile plants. A use for stimulation and protection of skin stem cells is not envisaged.
From the publication EP 1,174,120 A1 it is known to use extracts, in particular of lyophilizates, of dedifferentiated cells of plants of the family Iridaceae (Iris-family) for stimulating immunity. Other plants or uses are not proposed.
The publication EP 1,064,932 A1 proposes the use of extracts of dedifferentiated plant cells in deodorants. Other uses are not disclosed.
The publication WO 03/077881 A discloses the use of lysates of metabolites of dedifferentiated cells of vine, which were obtained by means of a complicated method, for the preparation of cosmetics. This technique calls for the use of lyophilizates. A use for stimulation and protection of skin stem cells is not envisaged. Furthermore, other species of plants are not disclosed.
Furthermore, the publication WO 01/47538 A1 discloses the use of extracts of dedifferentiated cells of plants of the genus Leontopodium (Edelweiss) as UV filter. Other uses or other plants are not proposed.

Cosmetic preparation and method for preparing the same


An automotive seat with a seat cushion tilt device, wherein a seat cushion may be tilted forwardly or downwardly by the seat cushion tilt device in relation to a slide rail disposed under the seat cushion, and wherein a shield cover is secured on the slide rail to cover a spacing defined at the backward section of the seat cushion. The shield cover is provided with an auxiliary cover member which serves to cover a clearance which is to be created between the shield cover and the foregoing spacing when the seat cushion is tilted forwardly or backwardly by operation of the seat cushion tilt device, whereby a part of the slide rail and seat cushion tilt device are prevented against exposure through such spacing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an automotive seat with a seat cushion tilt device.
2. Description of Prior Art
Reference is made to FIGS. 1 to 4, in which is shown an example of conventional automotive seat (AS) with a seat cushion tilt device (50). The seat (AS) comprises a seat cushion (SC), a seat back (SB), the tilt device (50), a reclining device (RD), and a pair of shield covers (20).
As best shown in FIG. 2, the seat cushion tilt device (50) is normally comprised of a forward link mechanism (51, 52), a backward link mechanism (53, 54), a motor (M), and gear unit (G). Those forward and backward link mechanism (51, 52, 53, 54) as well as the gear unit (G) are interposed between a pair of spaced-apart upstanding brackets (13)(13). The two upstanding brackets (13)(13) are respectively provided on a pair of spaced-apart slide rails (10)(10). The motor (M) is mounted at one of the two upstanding brackets (13)(13) for operative connection with the gear unit (G). Each of the two slide rails (10)(10) comprises an upper rail (11) and a lower rail (12), such that the upper rail (11) is slidable forwardly and backwardly upon the lower rail (12).
Both forward and backward link mechanisms stated above are connected to the bottom surface of the seat cushion (SC), with the two upstanding brackets (13) (13) extending along the respective both lateral sides of seat cushion (SC). The seat back (SB) is rotatably connected to the backward end portion of seat cushion (SC) via the reclining device (RD) and backward upwardly projected area of the upstanding bracket (13).
With a particular reference to FIG. 1 , the illustrated mode of seat cushion (SC), which is found in most of conventional seat, is so formed to define therein a wider forward section (SC1) and a narrow backward section (SC3). As shown, the forward section (SC1) includes a pair of lateral portions (SC2)(SC2) to assume a greater width than that of the backward section (SC3). Thus, there are defined a pair of lateral recessed zones on the respective lateral opposite sides of the backward section (SC3). A pair of shield covers (20)(20) are attached over those lateral recessed zones at the backward section (SC3) of seat cushion (SC) to prevent exposure of the interior parts, i.e. a part of the slide rail (10), several parts of the tilt device (50), and reclining device (RD). Each of the covers (20) is fixed upon the upper rail (11) of slide rail (10) by means of securing screws (60). Designations (22)(22) denotes recessed areas formed in the cover (20) in which the securing screws (60) are inserted and fixed to the upper rail (11).
However, even with the above-described structure of seat cushion (SC), as can be seen from FIGS. 3 and 4, there is created a clearance (w) between the forward section (SC1) of seat cushion (SC) and the forward surface of shield cover (20), when causing the seat cushion (SC) to be tilted forwardly by operation of the tilt device (50), as indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 3. As result, such clearance (w) is created on both sides of the narrow backward section (SC3) of seat cushion (SC) as in FIG. 4, and through those clearances (w), the interior parts, such as a part of slide rail (10) and parts of tilt device (50), are exposed and come into view from the outside, regardless of the shield covers (20), which impairs the aesthetic appearance of the seat.

Automotive seat with seat cushion tilt device


Disclosed is a pre-equalizer, a vestigial sideband (VSB) transmission system using the pre-equalizer, and a VSB transmission method. A first transmit signal is stored in a first memory, and a pre-equalizer pre-equalizes the first transmit signal based on a set tap coefficient. A transmitter modulates the pre-equalized first transmit signal, and sends the modulated signal. The first transmit signal is fed back to a receiver, which demodulates the transmitted first transmit signal and stores the demodulated signal as the second transmit signal in a second memory. Subsequently, the pre-equalizer calculates a tap coefficient based on an error value as the difference between the first transmit signal and the second transmit signal, and updates the set tap coefficient based on the calculated tap coefficient.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmission system for digital signals. More specifically, the present invention relates to a pre-equalizer, a vestigial sideband (VSB) transmission system using the pre-equalizer, and a transmission method thereof.
(b) Description of the Related Art
In Korea, the ground wave digital broadcasting system adopted the American VSB system as the standard of the transmission system in 1997, and after experimental broadcasting in 1999, proceeded in earnest with it in the National Capital area in the second half of 2001. One of the most important pieces of equipment for the digital broadcasting transmission is the digital TV (DTV) transmitter and repeater. In the case of conventional analog broadcasting, sub-channels are provided adjacent to the broadcasting channels so as to reduce interference between adjacent channels, and they are not actually used. With the switchover of analog broadcasting to digital broadcasting, however, the channels adjacent to the broadcasting channels can be used to efficiently utilize limited frequency resources.
For this purpose, a channel filter must be provided at the final stage of the DTV transmitter. The reason for this is that the channel filter is used as a band-pass filter for eliminating an unnecessary frequency component from the out-of-band to reduce interference between adjacent channels.
For a channel filter of which the band has a constant magnitude, the filtering characteristics are excellent, but the group delay characteristic is extremely large at both ends of the band, which lowers the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the transmitted signal.
Thus the use of a pre-equalizer for compensating for the channel filter is essential in order to enhance the performance of the transmitter. Without the pre-equalizer used as a compensating means, the SNR of the transmit signal as the final output of the transmitter is lowered and the performance of the transmitter is deteriorated due to the spectrum energy of an undesired band.
The equalizer used for the receiver of the VSB transmission system is usually of a decision-feedback type. This is to solve problems caused by multiple paths between a transmitter and receiver and a distortion of channels. But the use of a linear equalizer rather than the decision-feedback type equalizer is adequate for the VSB transmitter, in which the multiple paths induced by the channel filter are not so long.
Having knowledge of the signal to be transmitted, the conventional pre-equalizer uses the least mean square (LMS) algorithm to calculate a tap coefficient for compensating for a group delay characteristic. However, the structural complexity of the equalizer increases because a means for extracting the transmit signal in real time is necessary in order to use the LMS algorithm.
Moreover, the tap coefficient is updated in real time for the transmit signal with a consequence of an increase in the probability of errors occurring during the signal transmission, so that the tap coefficient cannot be calculated accurately and the SNR of the transmit signal decreases.

Pre-equalizer, VSB transmission system using the same, and transmission method thereof

Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute


Earth boring tools with a plurality of fixed cutters have side rake or lateral rakes configured for improving chip removal and evacuation, drilling efficiency, and/or depth of cut management as compared with conventional arrangements.

Rotary drag bits, reamers, and similar downhole tools for boring or forming holes in subterranean rock formations when drilling oil and natural gas wells drag discrete cutting structures, which use cutting elements referred to as "cutters," mounted in fixed locations on body of the tool, against the formation by rotating the body of the tool. The rotation of the tool enables the cutters to fracture the formation through a shearing action, resulting in formation of small chips that are then evacuated hydraulically by drilling fluid pumped through carefully placed nozzles in the body of the tool.
One such fixed cutter, earth boring tool, generally referred to in the oil and gas exploration industry as a PDC bit, employs fixed cutters having a highly wear resistant cutting or wear surface comprised of a polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) or similar highly wear resistant material. PDC cutters are typically made by forming a layer of polycrystalline diamond (PCD), sometimes called a crown or diamond table, on an erosion resistant substrate. The PDC wear surface is comprised of sintered polycrystalline diamond (either natural or synthetic) exhibiting diamond-to-diamond bonding. Polycrystalline cubic boron nitride, wurtzite boron nitride, aggregated diamond nanotubes (ADN) or other hard, crystalline materials are known substitutes and may be useful in some drilling applications. A compact is made by mixing a diamond grit material in powder form with one or more powdered metal catalysts and other materials, forming the mixture into a compact, and then sintering it with, typically, a tungsten carbide substrate using high heat and pressure or microwave heating. Sintered compacts of polycrystalline cubic boron nitride, wurtzite boron nitride, ADN and similar materials are, for the purposes of description contained below, equivalents to polycrystalline diamond compacts and, therefore, a reference to "PDC" in the detailed description should be construed, unless otherwise explicitly indicated or context does not allow, as a reference to a sintered compacts of polycrystalline diamond, cubic boron nitride, wurtzite boron nitride and other highly wear resistant materials. References to "PDC" are also intended to encompass sintered compacts of these materials with other materials or structure elements that might be used to improve its properties and cutting characteristics. Furthermore, PDC encompasses thermally stable varieties in which a metal catalyst has been partially or entirely removed after sintering.
Substrates for supporting a PDC wear surface or layer are typically made, at least in part, from cemented metal carbide, with tungsten carbide being the most common. Cemented metal carbide substrates are formed by sintering powdered metal carbide with a metal alloy binder. The composite of the PDC and the substrate can be fabricated in a number of different ways. It may also, for example, include transitional layers in which the metal carbide and diamond are mixed with other elements for improving bonding and reducing stress between the PCD and substrate.
Each PDC cutter is fabricated as a discrete piece, separate from the drill bit. Because of the processes used for fabricating them, the PCD layer and substrate typically have a cylindrical shape, with a relatively thin disk of PCD bonded to a taller or longer cylinder of substrate material. The resulting composite can be machined or milled to change its shape. However, the PCD layer and substrate are typically used in the cylindrical form in which they are made.
Fixed cutters are mounted on an exterior of the body of an earth boring tool in a predetermined pattern or layout. Furthermore, depending on the particular application, the cutters are typically arrayed along each of several blades, which are comprised of raised ridges formed on the body of the earth boring tool. In a PDC bit, for example, blades are generally arrayed in a radial fashion around the center axis (axis of rotation) of the bit. They typically, but do not always, curve in a direction opposite to that of the direction of rotation of the bit.
As an earth boring tool with fixed cutters is rotated, the cutters collectively present one or more predetermined cutting profiles to the earth formation, shearing the formation. A cutting profile is defined by the position and orientation of each of the cutters associated with it as they rotate through a plane extending from the earth boring tool's axis of rotation outwardly. A cutter's position along the cutting profile is primarily a function of its lateral displacement from the axis of rotation and not the particular blade on which it lies. Cutters adjacent to each other in a cutting profile are typically not next to each other on the same blade.
In addition to position or location on the bit, each cutter has an orientation. Generally, this orientation will be defined with respect to one of two coordinate frames: a coordinate frame of the bit, defined in reference to its axis of rotation; or a coordinate frame generally based on the cutter itself. The orientation of a cutter is usually specified in terms of a side inclination or rotation of the cutter and forward/back inclination or rotation of the cutter. Side inclination is typically specified in terms lateral rake or side rake angle, depending on the frame of reference used. Back inclination is specified in terms of an axial rake or back rake angle, depending on frame of reference used.

Earth boring tool with improved arrangement of cutter side rakes


A mounting structure for fixing an electronic element on a heat dissipation unit is provided. The mounting structure includes a heat dissipation unit, a fixing member, electronic elements and elastic elements. The fixing member is fixed on the heat dissipation unit. The elastic elements are sandwiched between the electronic elements and the fixing member, wherein the fixing member and the elastic elements press the electronic elements to make the electronic elements tightly contact the heat dissipation unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting structure, and in particular relates to a mounting structure for fixing an electronic element to a heat dissipation unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows a conventional semiconductor element mount structure 1, which comprises a semiconductor element 10. The semiconductor element 10 comprises a body 11, a die 12 and a plurality of leads 13. The die 12 is embedded in the body 11. The leads 13 extend out from the body 11, and are electrically connected to a printed circuit board (not shown). The semiconductor element 10 is fixed on a mounting surface 21 of the heat dissipating unit 20 by a screw 30. The heat dissipating unit 20 comprises a heat sink 23 and an interface material 22. The heat sink (fins) 23 is made of a high heat conductive material, such as copper or aluminum. The interface material 22, such as a heat conductive grease material or a heat conductive sheet material, is sandwiched between the semiconductor element 10 and the heat sink 23.
Conventionally, the semiconductor element 10 is fixed on the heat dissipating unit 20 by the screw 30. The heat dissipation performance of the heat dissipation unit therefore is influenced by the material of the heat dissipating unit 20, the flatness of the mounting surface 21 of the heat dissipating unit 20, the screw torque of the screw 30 or the like. IGBT chip is operated under high temperature and low temperature rapidly, the plastic insulant of the IGBT chip is often deteriorated and embrittled thereby, and the IGBT chip cannot sufficiently contact the heat dissipating unit. The heat dissipation efficiency of the IGBT chips reduced, and the IGBT chips reduced is easily damaged. As well, the IGBT chips reduced is fixed by bolt passing therethrough, assembly error may cause short circuit under high voltage environment. Thus, it is difficult to achieve stable heat dissipation performance.
FIG. 2 shows another conventional semiconductor element mount structure 2. A plurality of semiconductor elements 10 are pressed against a heat dissipating unit 20 by a metal strip 30. The metal strip 30 is fixed on the heat dissipating unit 20 by a bolt 31, and the semiconductor elements 10 are sandwiched between the metal strip 30 and the heat dissipating unit 20. However, since the height of each semiconductor element 10 differs from each other, the metal strip 30 cannot sufficiently press all of the semiconductor elements 10, thereby resulting in inefficient heat dissipating performance.

Mounting structure for an electronic element