A fiber optic flow sensor includes a fiber optic cable, a light emitter, an optical power meter, and a processing circuit. The fiber optic cable allows light to enter a first end of the fiber optic cable, reflect off a second end of the fiber optic cable and exit the fiber optic cable through the first end. The fiber optic cable is at least partially exposed to fluid flow at the second end. The light emitter emits light at an input power into the first end of the fiber optic cable. The optical power meter measures an output power of the light exiting the fiber optic cable at the first end. The processing circuit calculates a flow rate of the flow of fluid based on the input power of light entering the fiber optic cable and the output power of light exiting the first end of the fiber optic cable.

The present disclosure relates generally to building management systems and more particularly to building management systems that use measurements from flow rate sensors to operate building equipment.
A building management system (BMS) is, in general, a system of devices configured to control, monitor, and manage equipment in or around a building or building area. A BMS can include, for example, a HVAC system, a security system, a lighting system, a fire alerting system, any other system that is capable of managing building functions or devices, or any combination thereof.
Some BMSs require reliable and extensive flow knowledge to provide optimal control of building equipment. Many buildings do not have the necessary flow sensors required to obtain flow measurements at all of the desired locations. Flow sensors can be expensive upgrades as they often require placing the sensor as part of the pipe itself. It can be labor-intensive and costly to add flow sensors to a BMS.


A wet flue gas desulfurization system for removing sulfur dioxide present in flue gas by absorption into an absorbent slurry includes an absorption tower having at a bottom thereof a tank for holding an absorbent slurry; a circulating pump for feeding the absorbent slurry within the tank to a flue gas inlet section in an upper part of the absorption tower and bringing the absorbent slurry into contact with flue gas; and a slurry preparation compartment provided on one side of the tank of the absorption tower and separated from a flue gas passage section by a partition wall having its lower end submerged below a surface of the absorbent slurry, whereby an absorbent and water constituting the absorbent slurry are directly introduced into the slurry preparation compartment.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a wet flue gas desulfurization system wherein flue gas from thermal electric power plants and the like is brought into contact with an absorbent slurry whereby sulfur dioxide present therein is absorbed and removed. More particularly, it relates to a wet flue gas desulfurization system using an improved method for supplying an absorbent slurry to the absorption tower.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, wet flue gas desulfurization systems of the commonly referred to in-situ oxidation type have become popular. In these systems, the necessity of an oxidation tower is eliminated by supplying air to the tank of an absorption tower so that an absorbent slurry (usually containing a calcium compound such as limestone) having sulfur dioxide absorbed therein may be oxidized by contact with air to form gypsum as a by-product. FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating an example of a wet lime-gypsum desulfurization system of this type.
As illustrated in FIG. 4, this system is equipped with an air sparger 3 of the commonly referred to rotating arm type which blows oxidizing air in the form of fine bubbles while agitating the slurry in a tank 2. Thus, the absorbent slurry having sulfur dioxide absorbed therein is brought into efficient contact with the air within tank 2 to be oxidized completely and thereby form gypsum.
More specifically, in this system, untreated flue gas A is introduced into a flue gas inlet section 1a of an absorption tower 1 and brought into contact with an absorbent slurry injected from header pipes 5 by means of a circulating pump 4 whereby sulfur dioxide present in untreated flue gas A is absorbed and removed. The resulting flue gas is discharged as treated flue gas B from a flue gas outlet section 1b. The absorbent slurry injected from header pipes 5 flows downward through a layer of packing material 6 while absorbing sulfur dioxide, and enters tank 2 where it is oxidized by contact with a large number of air bubbles blown in and agitated by air sparger 3, and then undergoes a neutralization reaction to form gypsum. The predominant reactions occurring in the course of these treatments are represented by the following reaction formulas (1) to (3).
(Flue gas inlet section of absorption tower) EQU SO.sub.2 +H.sub.2 O.fwdarw.H.sup.+ +HSO.sub.3.sup.- ( 1)
(Tank) EQU H.sup.+ +HSO.sub.3.sup.- +1/2O.sub.2 .fwdarw.2H.sup.+ +SO.sub.4.sup.2-( 2) EQU 2H.sup.+ +SO.sub.4.sup.2- +CaCO.sub.3 +H.sub.2 O.fwdarw.CaSO.sub.4 .multidot.2H.sub.2 O+CO.sub.2 ( 3)
Thus, the slurry within tank 2 comes to have suspended therein gypsum and a small amount of limestone used as absorbent. In this case, the slurry is withdrawn through a pipe line branching off from the delivery pipe of circulating pump 4, and fed to a solid-liquid separator 7 where it is filtered and recovered as gypsum C having a low water content (usually of about 10%). On the other hand, the filtrate from solid-liquid separator 7 is conveyed to a filtrate tank 8, stored temporarily therein, and suitably supplied to a slurry preparation tank 10 as feed water for the preparation of an absorbent slurry by means of a pump 9.
Slurry preparation tank 10 has a stirrer 11, by which limestone (absorbent) introduced thereinto from a limestone silo 12 by means of a conveyor 13 and water supplied by means of the aforesaid pump 9 are mixed and stirred to form an absorbent slurry. The resulting absorbent slurry is suitably withdrawn by means of a slurry pump 14 and fed to the tank 2 of absorption tower 1.
During the operation of this slurry preparation tank 10, the amount of water introduced thereinto is regulated, for example, by means of a controller and a flow control valve (not shown). Moreover, limestone is supplied thereto in an appropriate amount corresponding to the amount of water introduced, by controlling the operation of the rotary valve 12a of limestone silo 12. Thus, slurry preparation tank 10 is maintained in such a state that an absorbent slurry having a predetermined concentration (for example, of about 20% by weight) is always stored on a level within certain limits.
In addition, make-up water (i.e., industrial water or the like) is suitably supplied, for example, to the aforesaid filtrate tank 8. Thus, the water gradually lost, for example, by evaporation in absorption tower 1 is made up for.
Moreover, in order to maintain a high degree of desulfurization and a high purity of gypsum during operation, the sulfur dioxide concentration in untreated flue gas A, and the pH and limestone concentration and like of the slurry within tank 2 are detected with sensors, and the feed rate of limestone and the feed rate of the absorbent slurry are suitably regulated by means of controllers (not shown).
Furthermore, during operation, the temperature of the slurry within the tank 2 of absorption tower 1 is steadily maintained at about 50.degree. C. owing to the heat of the flue gas and the heat of reaction evolved in the aforesaid reactions.
In the above-described conventional wet flue gas desulfurization system, a pit for the preparation of an absorbent slurry (i.e., slurry preparation tank 10) and components attached thereto (e.g., stirrer 11, slurry pump 14, and the pipe line extending from slurry pump 14 to tank 2) are required. Consequently, there has been a limit to the simplification of the equipment which tends to be more and more eagerly desired in recent years.
Accordingly, as a means for simplifying such systems, the present inventors have already proposed a dry feed mechanism in which limestone used as absorbent is conveyed from the silo to the absorption tower by pneumatic conveyance (as described, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56130/'90). This mechanism makes it possible to eliminate the pit for the preparation of an absorbent slurry.
However, even if this mechanism is employed, a compressor and a limestone conveying line for pneumatic conveyance are still required. Accordingly, there is a need for further simplification of the equipment.


A rotor (1) for use in a comminuting apparatus (100) is described and claimed. The rotor (1) includes a hub (2) rotatable about a first axis (A) and one or more disc members (4) for comminuting material. The disc members (4) are secured to the hub (2) and rotatable about a second axis (B), removed from the first axis (A). Drive means is provided to simultaneously rotate the hub (2) disc members (4) about their respective axes. Guides (11) may be provided below the disc members (4) to remove comminuted material after it has passed through a screen (10). The screen (10) may include base portion (10A) and side wall portion (10B), the side wall portion (10B) extending up to a level approximately level with the disc members (4). The guides (11) may include arms (11A) extending up beside the side wall portion (10B). A comminuting apparatus (100) including a rotor (1) is also claimed.

Apparatus for comminuting materials have application to a number of industries, which may involve shredding of wood, bales of hay or paper, comminuting bitumen, plastic, metal or other materials. An effective comminuting apparatus has a high throughput, does not jam often, is reliable, easy to maintain, is energy efficient and comminutes relatively uniformly
Tub grinders are well known devices for grinding various materials. Vertical feed tub grinders have the advantage of using gravity to force the material onto the rotor, reducing or eliminating the need for further conveying means for the material other than that required to feed the material into the tub. However, one problem with tub grinders is their tendency to jam.
Another problem with known tub grinders at present is apparent when they are used to comminute lighter material such as paper. The turbulence, vortices and movement of the rotor against the material tends to force the material upwards. Therefore, intervention may be required to force the material onto the rotor and through the screens.
A comminuting apparatus including a rotating tub is described in the specifications of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,379,951 and 5,927,624. Within the tub is mounted a toothed disc that preferably rotates in the opposite direction to the tub. The problem of potential jamming is stated to be overcome or reduced by reversing the direction of rotation of the toothed disc and/or by providing a reorienting attachment secured to the bottom of the chamber defined by the tub. However, such a comminuting apparatus may still be susceptible to jamming.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a comminuting apparatus that may be freed from jamming, optionally automatically and/or has improved operation for lighter materials.
It is a further or alternative object of the present invention to provide the public with a useful alternative.
Further objects of the present invention may become apparent from the following description.

Comminuting apparatus and rotor therefor


Apparatus and a corresponding method for the diagnosis and alleviation of symptoms of visually induced physiological defects and/or pathological conditions is provided. A plurality of narrow-band light sources are combined to constitute a color controllable lamp. A method for adjusting the settings of this lamp permits the optimum illumination for a particular subject to be found, whilst the latter carries out a task such as reading or writing. By use of the lamp to simulate the expected visual stimulus, to which the subject would be exposed if provided with viewing aids such as tinted spectacles and the like, an optimal selection from a database of such aids may be made or a new formulation defined. Inter alia, the symptoms of visual dyslexia, macular degeneration and visually induced migraine may be alleviated.

It is known that the response of the visual system is affected by the stimuli, which it receives. The threshold for such stimulation varies between individuals and, under adverse conditions, can significantly reduce performance. When the visual system is over stimulated, it reacts in a number of ways. Amongst a variety of undesirable effects, which can be caused, two examples include a drop in convergence sufficiency and a reduction in the ability to accommodate or fuse images. In addition, visual dyslexia may become apparent and migraines can be caused. Visual dyslexia is a condition of impaired reading and writing ability due to visual perception or visualisation problems. It is apparent therefore that for some it is necessary to modify the visual stimulus by changing the spectral distribution in a specific task e.g. reading and writing in school. In summary, it is well established that the colour of ambient lighting has a major influence on the effects of disorders such as dyslexia, epilepsy and migraine. In the case of dyslexia some sufferers can alleviate their reading problems by covering the page with a transparent coloured overlay in order to block out those wavelengths of light which give rise to an aspect of their problem. These overlays typically remove various amounts of simple primary colours, such as red, green or blue light and whilst they may assist with reading, they are of no value for writing.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,855,428 (Wilkins) apparatus is described in which the spectral distribution of light from a fluorescent lamp to illuminate a surface to support reading material is altered by the interposition of specifically selected broadband filters. By adjustment of the position of the selected filter or filters different colours and saturation thereof can be selected.
In U.S. Patent Application No 2001/0005319 A1 (Ohishi et al.) an illumination control system, for general use, is described, in which the coordinates in colour space of the controlled illumination are arranged to follow a predetermined locus of points by mixing specific amounts of light from a plurality of differently coloured light emitting diodes (LED's).
Neither of these documents identifies the benefit of using sources which are characterised by providing light with a spectral distribution which is relatively narrow for application to the alleviation of the symptoms of the physiological defects and/or pathological conditions identified herein. This would be the case for laser sources, super-luminescent LED's and conventional coloured LED's, which provide light with a typical spectral bandwidth of between 17 nm to around 50 nm. The provision of illumination using additive light sources, such as LED's for the quantitative diagnosis and alleviation of the symptoms identified is the subject of this invention.

Apparatus and method for alleviation of symptoms by application of tinted light


Disclosed herein are amide 7-carboxybenzo[1,2,3]thiadiazoles and derivatives thereof having a general Formula I, as described herein. Combinations and compositions of these compounds are also disclosed. The compounds and compositions can be used as a plant stimulant. For example, the compounds compositions can be used to regulate the plant's growth, regulate the plant's metabolic processes, regulate the plant's physiological processes, prevent against effects of biotic stress in the plant, or prevent against effects of abiotic stress in the plant. In some embodiments, the composition can provide multiple disease resistance to plants infected with a fungus, virus, or bacteria.

Plants resistance to environmental factors, that is, their defense mechanisms enabling the plants to survive under stress conditions, can be either constitutive or inducible. In the first case, the defense mechanisms are enabled for the whole life of the plant. Induced resistance arises from the action of stress factors, that is, stressors. Environmental stress factors include biotic and abiotic stressors. The abiotic stressors include temperature (high, cold, and frost), light radiation (high and low), drought, lack of oxygen, mechanical factors (wind, snow cover, and ice cover), and chemical compounds (salinity, toxins, and mineral deficiency). The biotic stressors include microorganisms (fungi and bacteria), viruses, plants (allelopathy, parasitism, and competition), and animals (bite, parasitism, and trampling). There is a constant search for methods/solutions to ensure the best conditions for plant growth and development, for example by protecting plants against the occurrence of various biotic and abiotic stressors and thus leading to increasing crop yields. By providing the plants optimum growing conditions by all known agro-technical methods (such as tillage, crop rotation, fertilization, irrigation, and protection against diseases, pests, and weeds), farmers strive to achieve even higher yields and better quality.
Plants stimulants have been used in the cultivation of plants in order to improve the growth and development processes. The impact of stimulants on plants is believed to be due to its effect on metabolism rather that the direct participation in the regulation of life processes. Plant stimulants can stimulate the synthesis of natural hormones, and sometimes increase their activity, can improve intake of minerals from the soil, and regulate the growth of roots. In addition, they can cause the increase of the resistance to adverse conditions including biotic and abiotic stresses. The use of stimulants in the cultivation of plants can increase their yields, often while increasing their quality at the same time. Stimulants can also enhance life processes occurring in plants without changing the plant's natural behavior.
Some compounds are known to act as inducers of plant natural defenses, for example, salicylic acid, isonicotinic acid, chitosans, and non-proteic β-aminobutyric aminoacid (BABA). However, the effectiveness of these compounds varies among plant species and among monocotyledon and dicotyledon species. For example, the ability of BABA to induce resistance depends on abscisic acid (ABA)-mediated signaling pathway and chalose accumulation. Early studies on the application of benzo[1,2,3]thiadiazole derivatives on plants have been discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,190,928 and 5,523,311. These studies illustrate the synthesis of benzo[1,2,3]thiadiazole derivatives but only their application in the protection (immunization process) of plants against attack by phytopathogenic microorganisms or viruses. However, the use of these compounds as plant stimulants, such as a plant growth regulator, is not known.
There is a need for compounds that can stimulate plants against various stress conditions. The compositions and methods described herein address these and other needs.

Application of 7-carboxybenzo[1,2,3]thiadiazole amides as plant stimulants


A master includes a unit configured to register, for each slave, an expected communication time needed to exchange control data; a unit configured to register a slave in which a communication error is detected during exchange of the control data in a communication period; and a unit configured to re-execute exchange of the control data with the registered slave in the same communication period as that in which the communication error is detected. The unit configured to re-execute exchange of control data calculates a remaining resending time that can be used to re-execute exchange of the control data and, when the remaining resending time is longer than the expected communication time of the registered slave, resends the control data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a master/slave communication system in which one master is connected to multiple slaves through a serial transmission line, and control data is exchanged between the master and the slaves in a predetermined communication period.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally in a manufacturing apparatus, a control device such as a programmable logic controller (PLC) or a personal computer functions as a master, and multiple slave devices such as a sensor, a relay, and a motor periodically exchange control data with the master. At a manufacturing site, control data may often be damaged on the transmission line due to, for example, noise generated from a machine or a relay device. Therefore, re-execution of exchange of control data is needed as means for enhancing the transmission reliability. Exchange of control data is used to mean both sending of command data from the master to a slave and receiving of response data from the slave.
In a scheme where exchange of control data is re-executed individually for each slave (hereinafter simply stated as resending), if the number of slaves for which resending is to be performed increases, the communication period is exceeded, and the communication period fluctuates. Thus, a communication period with sufficient margin for allowing resending to be performed for all the slaves is set in advance.
For example, it is proposed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 08-033070 for a master to have a resending counter for each slave and a resending total counter that counts the total number of times resending is performed. In this proposal, resending is performed when the count value of the resending counter is less than or equal to a limit value set in advance for each slave, and when the count value of the resending total counter is also less than or equal to a preset limit value.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Communication system with master and slave exchanging control data in predetermined communication period


A gas-enhanced electrosurgical method and apparatus for coagulating tissue. The apparatus includes a first tube with a proximal end and a distal end. The proximal end of the first tube is configured to receive pressurized ionizable gas. The distal end of the first tube is configured to deliver ionized gas towards a treatment area. The apparatus also includes at least one electrode positioned to selectively ionize the pressurized ionizable gas before the pressurized ionizable gas exits the distal end of the first tube. The electrode is adapted to operatively couple to an electrical energy source. The apparatus also includes a second tube with proximal and distal ends. The second tube is configured to selectively evacuate the ionized gas and dislodged tissue material from the treatment area.

Over the last several decades, more and more surgeons are abandoning traditional open methods of gaining access to vital organs and body cavities in favor of endoscopes and endoscopic instruments that access organs through small puncture-like incisions. Endoscopic instruments are inserted into the patient through a cannula, or a port that has been made with a trocar. Typical sizes for cannulas range from about three millimeters to about twelve millimeters. Smaller cannulas are usually preferred, and this presents a design challenge to instrument manufacturers who must find ways to make surgical instruments that fit through the cannulas and operate in a safe and effective manner.
Devices for arresting blood loss and coagulating tissue are well known in the art. For example, several prior art instruments employ thermic coagulation (heated probes) to arrest bleeding. However, due to space limitations, surgeons can have difficultly manipulating an instrument to coagulate, desiccate, fulgurate and/or cut tissue. Other instruments direct high frequency electric current through the tissue to stop the bleeding. Eschar adherence may also be a problem with these instruments. In both types of instruments, the depth of the coagulation is difficult to control.
Using these instruments to treat certain more sensitive tissue sites may be impractical since the constant and/or direct emission of ionized gas/plasma at the tissue may cause unintended results. Moreover, simply controlling the pressure of the gas from the source may not be effective or yield a desired result.

Tissue coagulation method and device using inert gas


A prescription medium which provides visual correlation between a bio-affecting agent being prescribed and the application of a bio-affecting agent being prescribed. The prescription medium includes an entry space for prescriber identification, an entry space for identification of a patient, an entry space for identification of the bio-affecting agent being prescribed, and a plurality of visual indicia which identify the application for a class of agents. In completing the prescription medium, a prescriber selects one of the plurality of the indicia which properly correlates the bio-affecting agent being prescribed to its associated application. At the point where the pharmaceutical is being dispensed, the pharmacist again correlates the bio-affecting agent identified as that being prescribed with the selected indicia to confirm that the pharmaceutical being dispensed is that which is prescribed.

The present invention relates generally to prescription media for prescribing bio-affecting agents, and more particularly, to a prescription medium having a plurality of visual indicia associated with the application of bio-affecting agents.
In the practice of medicine, certain bio-affecting agents, such as antibiotics, antihistamines, pain suppressing medicaments, anti-inflammatory medicaments and the like, are only available to a patient by prescription prepared by a medical professional, such as a doctor. In many, if not most cases, the prescribing professional makes the prescription via a prescription medium which is provided to a point of supply, such as a retail pharmacy, and the prescribed bio-affecting agent is dispensed in accordance with the prescription. Such bio-affecting agents will hereinafter be referred to as pharmaceuticals.
Typically, a doctor hand writes information into a prescription medium indicating the pharmaceutical name and required dosage. The most common prescription medium is a pad with preprinted prescriber information and entry spaces to identify the patient and the pharmaceutical being prescribed. Often, the indications are written in abbreviated format and are difficult to decipher due to the characteristics of the doctor's handwriting. These factors often make it difficult for a pharmacist, charged with dispensing the pharmaceutical, to determine the proper substance to dispense. In a worst case, the pharmacist confuses two pharmaceuticals which are of different classes of bio-affecting agents. This results in the dispensing of a pharmaceutical which is at best ineffective and at worst dangerous to the patient.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,918,604 to Baum discloses a method of graphically depicting a pharmaceutical to be dispensed. The Baum reference employs a computer system which controls a color graphic printer. The pharmacist, after receiving a completed prescription medium, enters information from the prescription medium into the computer which then directs the color printer to create a label for the pharmaceutical container. The printed label includes a color graphic illustrating the proper substance to be dispensed. While the Baum reference aids a pharmacist and patient in matching the substance dispense to the label, this reference does not alleviate the previously described risk associated with the pharmacist incorrectly interpreting the information entered on the prescription medium.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,877 to Lieberman discloses a system for conveying drug information to a consuming patient. The Lieberman reference employs a plurality of pre-printed cards which include information regarding specific pharmaceuticals. The cards include graphical icons to assist in the conveyance of information to the consumer about a selected pharmaceutical. However, the Lieberman reference is not directed to prescription media nor does it provide a method to alleviate the risk of a prescription being improperly interpreted resulting in the wrong pharmaceutical being dispensed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,362 to Lapsaker, U.S. Pat. No. 1,588,964 to Hutchkins and French Patent No. 1,122,133 to S.E.P.P. each describe printed prescription media for use by a medical professional in conveying prescription information to a pharmacist. However, none of these references provide means or a method for alleviating the risk of misconstruing the indications written on the prescription medium to prevent incorrect dispensing of the pharmaceutical.
The present invention overcomes the shortcomings found in the prior art by providing prescription media which includes a plurality of visual indicia to give positive correlation between a prescribed pharmaceutical and the application of that pharmaceutical.

Method of prescribing pharmaceuticals and article of commerce therefor


Disclosed is a compressor (12) for a refrigeration system (10) including a housing (30) and at least one compressor impeller (24, 26) located in the housing (30) capable of compressing a refrigerant flow (14) through the compressor (12). At least one refrigerant pathway (44, 62) is located inboard of an outer surface (48) of the housing (30) and extends from a first compressor impeller (24). Further disclosed is a refrigeration system (10) including a compressor (12) having at least one refrigerant pathway (44, 62) located inboard of an outer surface (48) of the housing (36) and extending from a first compressor impeller (24) of at least one compressor impeller (24, 26). Further disclosed is a method of flowing refrigerant through a compressor (12).

The subject matter disclosed herein relates to compressors. More specifically, the subject disclosure relates to fluid flow in a compressor.
Compressors are utilized in many different applications, for example, in vapor cycle refrigeration systems. In a typical vapor cycle refrigeration system, a circulating refrigerant flows through four components: a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator. The refrigerant, in a vapor state, is compressed and heated in the compressor, then is condensed into a liquid in the condenser by a heat sink. The liquid refrigerant then undergoes a rapid reduction in pressure when routed through the expansion valve. The rapid expansion causes an evaporation of at least a portion of the refrigerant resulting in a lowering of the temperature of the refrigerant. The liquid portion of the refrigerant is then evaporated in the evaporator and heat is absorbed from a fluid, typically air for example, flowing thru the evaporator. Compressor power is typically provided by an electric motor.
The compressor portion, powered by an electrical motor, typically includes one or more compressor impellers rotatably located about a rotor shaft in a compressor housing assembly. The refrigerant passes through the impellers in succession, increasing the pressure and the temperature of the refrigerant. In many compressors, impellers are located at opposing ends of the compressor to improve rotor dynamics conditions. To convey the refrigerant between the impellers, one or more conduits are provided external to the housing assembly and connected at one or more ports. The refrigerant passes through a first impeller and exits the housing through the one or more ports into a first end of the one or more conduits and reenters the housing via ports near a second impeller and passes through the second impeller. In some systems, during the flow along the one or more conduits, the refrigerant is passed through a heat exchanger to remove heat generated from the compression via the first impeller. Additionally, a motor stator portion is located between the first and second impeller and is subjected to the heat due to the inefficiency in converting electric power to mechanical power. To cool the stator, cooling jackets are often added around the exterior of the stator portion.
The porting and connections to external conduits introduce additional components to the system and add weight. Further, the connections introduce a potential source of leakage which negatively impacts the performance and efficiency of the compressor and the refrigeration system.


An XY platen positioning system includes a fixed base rigidly coupled to a essentially planar surface. An XY intermediate plate is slidably coupled to the fixed base, such that the XY intermediate plate is slidable in the X axis along the fixed base. An XY stage is slidably coupled to the XY intermediate plate, such that the XY stage is slidable in the Y axis along the XY intermediate plate. A platen is flexibly coupled to the XY stage, such that the platen, with respect to the XY stage, is essentially constrained in the X and Y axes and moveable in the Z axis.

The storage capacity of hard drives is continuously increasing due to advancements in the accuracy and sensitivity of the magnetic read-write head assemblies incorporated into these hard drives. Due to the ever increasing levels of accuracy and sensitivity, the read-write head assemblies are increasingly difficult to manufacture, resulting in a large portion of the read-write head assemblies being tested prior to being installed in hard disk drives.
When testing a read-write head assembly, it is typically placed onto a testing system, commonly referred to as a spinstand. The spinstand typically incorporates a slide brake assembly that duplicates the movement of the read-write head assembly as if it were installed in a hard disk drive. This slide brake assembly, which is typically positionable at a low level of resolution, includes a micropositioning stand that is typically positionable at a high level of resolution.
The data tracks in a hard disk drive are concentric tracks on the surfaces of the platters of the hard disk drive, and the density of these tracks is continuously increasing (i.e., currently hard disk drives have track densities as high as 50,000–100,000 tracks per inch (tpi)).
As these densities continue to increase, the positional resolution of the slide brake assembly must increase accordingly. For example, for a hard disk drive having a density of 50,000 tpi, in order to adequately test a read-write head assembly for use in such a hard disk drive, the positional resolution of the slide brake assembly (and, therefore, the read-write head assembly) should typically be 1/100th of the track width. Accordingly, the combination of the slide brake assembly and the micropositioning stand should have a positional resolution of 0.0000002 inches. This high level of positional resolution is typically achieved through the use of a micropositioning stand that includes a piezoelectric crystal that expands and contracts based on the voltage signal applied to the crystal. Accordingly, during typical testing, the slide brake assembly is used to generally position the read-write head assembly and then the micropositioning stand accurately locates the read-write head assembly above or below the appropriate hard disk drive track.
During a typical testing sequence, the read-write head assembly to be tested is mounted to the micropositioning stand . A spindle-mounted magnetic disk is then spun at the operating speed of the target hard drive (i.e., typically between 5,400 and 20,000 rpm). The slide brake assembly generally positions the read-write head assembly proximate the test position of the rotating magnetic disk and the micropositioning stand then accurately positions the read-write head assembly. Once accurately positioned, the read-write head assembly is commanded through a series of data read-write operations to verify accuracy and sensitivity of the read-write head assembly.
As would be expected, in addition to being able to accurately position the read-write head assembly, the rate at which the read-write head assembly is repositioned must also be quite high. For example, it is desirable to be able to move the read-write head assembly from a first test position to a second test position within one disk revolution. For a disk rotating at 20,000 rpm, that is equal to three milliseconds.
In order to facilitate such quick repositioning, current spinstand designs typically include slide brake assemblies that are coarsely positioned using rail assemblies and air bearings, finely positioned using piezoelectric crystals, and clamped down to a granite surface using vacuum-evacuated platens. Unfortunately, the use of multiple air bearings often reduce overall accuracy and complicates the manufacturing process.

X-Y spinstand platform with flexure-coupled platen


A flood sensor apparatus configured to send a signal to a computing device causing the computing device to turn off a utility at a site experiencing a flood. The flood sensor apparatus may include a housing and a back cover which, when coupled together, form gaps along a perimeter of the flood sensor apparatus such that fluid (e.g., water) may quickly fill and drain an interior of the housing. These gaps may be large enough such that the fluid may quickly fill and drain the interior of the housing but small enough that debris may not clog the gap or enter the interior of the housing. The back cover may include a rib extending from an inner face of the back cover and that that runs along a perimeter of the inner face. The rib may prevent tampering of a flood sensor located in the interior of the housing by blocking any object that may be inserted into the gaps.

Many residential and commercial buildings receive utilities from city, county, municipality, or other incoming utility pipes, also known as utility lines. These utility lines may lead to appliances located within the buildings. In cases of natural disaster, such as flooding, some appliances that are connected to a gas line may be disconnected from the gas line causing the gas to fill the building creating a hazardous situation. Thus, it is desirable to quickly detect the natural disaster and to turn off the utility being provided to the appliances before the appliance may float away.


Peptides for the treatment of inflammation, and therapeutic uses and methods of using the same are disclosed. Peptides including a transducing sequence are effective for inhibiting cytokine activity and TNF-α secretion through interaction with toll-like receptors. Experiments are described illustrating the efficacy of the compounds in treating otitis media.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) recognize and respond to conserved motifs termed pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs). TLRs are characterized by an extracellular leucine-rich repeat motif and an intracellular Toll/IL-1 receptor (TIR) domain. Triggering of TLRs by PAMPs initiates a series of intracellular signaling events resulting in an inflammatory immune response designed to contain and eliminate the pathogen. Viruses encode immunoregulatory proteins, such as A52R (produced by the vaccina virus), that can effectively inhibit intracellular TIR signaling resulting in a diminished inflammatory immune response.
Chronic otitis media (COM) affects both children and adults. The chronic inflammation seen in COM can impact the inner ear and can lead to sensorineural hearing loss. COM is a significant medical problem, and no current therapeutics, other than steroids, are available for treating COM. Many patients with COM require surgical placement of ear tubes. As with acute otitis media (AOM), patients with COM experience decreased hearing due to development of an intense inflammatory response within the middle ear, including the presence of residual fluid.

Immunoregulatory peptides and methods of use


Methods and apparatuses to perform soldering while the chip is held by a head under melted solder condition are disclosed. Solder bumps 3 are formed on the chip 1, and they are opposite to terminals 11 on a mounting board 10. Furthermore, a heating block 21 is located at the back of the chip, and it raises the temperature of the solder bumps 3 on the chip 1 to a melting point by heating the chip back by conduction. Preferably, another heating block 22 is located at the back of the mounting board 10. Soldering is performed by bringing the solder bumps 3 into contact with the terminals 11 while the solder is melted.

As a method for electrically connecting semiconductor chips to a mounting board, the chips are conventionally connected to bonding pads on the board using bonding wire (the wire-bonding method). This method is effective for connecting the terminals located around the chip edge to the board. Recent developments in LSI logic, such as gate array or microcomputer logic, have led to increased chip density and improved function and led to an increased number of terminals per board. As a result, it is necessary that input-output terminals be located at the center of the chip surface. The conventional wire-bonding method for electrically connecting semiconductor chips to a mounting board cannot be adopted.
Alternately, another method (so-called the flip-chip method) is noted, wherein semiconductor chips are connected to a mounting board through bump terminals, which are solder bumps formed on the chips. In this method, the bumps on a chip are connected to the board on the back of a chip. This method allows for increased chip density since it is possible to form the terminals not only on the periphery of the chips, but also on the inner surface.
The bonding process with the flip-chip method is shown in FIGS. 1 through 5. At first (FIG. 1), the solder bumps 3 are formed on the terminals 2 of a semiconductor chip 1. The methods for forming solder bumps include solder vapor deposition, solder plating, and paste printing. In addition to the flip-chip method, the BGA (Ball Grid Array) method is available as a similar bonding method. BGAs are usually formed using either the solder ball supplying method or solder paste printing method. In either method, the bonding surface 4 of the solder bump 3 is then flattened as required. Then, the solder bumps 3 formed on the chip 1 are aligned with terminals 11 on the mounting board 10, as shown in FIG. 2. Flux 12 is then applied on the surface of terminals 11 on the mounting board 10, as shown in FIG. 3. One of functions of flux 12 is to temporarily fix the chip with its high viscosity. Flux 12 may also be applied to the solder bumps 3. As shown in FIG. 4, the solder bumps 3 come in contact with the terminals 11 on the mounting board 10 through the flux 12. The arrangement is fixed to prevent movement and the temperature is slowly raised to reflow the solder. It is important that the temperature be raised slowly; if heated rapidly, the chip might move and misalignment might occur before solder melting due to flux vaporization during the heating. After reflowing the solder, the terminals 2 on the semiconductor 1 are electrically connected to the terminals 11 on the mounting board 10 via the solder 3, as shown in FIG. 5. Upon cooling, the flux shrinks and adheres to the solder, shown in 15 in FIG. 5. Preferably, the flux will be removed during the subsequent cleaning process.
A common method for solder reflowing is to put the object in a hot-air furnace or in an infrared heating reflow furnace. In contrast, as disclosed in the Japanese Published Patent Application 6-124980, for example, another method has been proposed to provide an air-heating mechanism on a nozzle that grasps the chip at the time of its alignment and melts the solder with hot air.
In this process, since the forming method of the solder bumps 3 has an effect on the process cost, a low-cost method should be adopted. Conventionally, the solder vapor deposition and the solder plating method have been adopted as the technique for forming bumps for high-density patterns on a ceramic substrate, but the facility cost is high and productivity is not sufficient when using these methods. Consequently, the screen printing method is recommended as a low-cost method. In this method, a mask that only has holes for solder paste at solder bump locations is set on the chip. The solder paste is applied by squeezing the solder paste through the holes of the mask. The bumps are thus formed by transferring bulks of solder paste only at the required positions on the chip. Frequently the height of the solder deviates in this kind of low-cost method, and a flattening of the contact surface of the solder bumps is required (see FIG. 1).
Further, in these methods, pressure should be applied to solder the chips to a mounting board. When 324 bumps are formed on the present chip product, for example, approximately 650 gf pressure should be required, assuming that 2 gf is required per bump. In the future, as the number of bumps approaches to 2000, it is anticipated that the required pressure will be as large as approximately 4 Kgf. But applying such a large pressure on the chip might cause harmful influences on the chip function or on other aspects. Optimization of the process parameters to prevent the anticipated harmful influences is very complicated.
In summary, the prior art identifies the following items as problems in forming solder bumps and mounting chips:
(1) Flattening the bumps is necessary to eliminate solder height variation. PA1 (2) Appropriate pressure is required for mounting chips. PA1 (1) to provide a method wherein the solder bumps on the chip are contacted to the terminals on the mounting board via molten solder; and PA1 (2) to provide a method wherein no misalignment occurs during the soldering.
To solve these problems, a method is proposed in the Japanese Published Patent Application 4-83353, wherein both the chip and the mounting board are preheated during a prior contact between the terminals on the chip and those on the mounting board. Then the soldering is performed by continuously heating the back of the chip with radiant heat. A certain distance is maintained between the heating block and the back of the chip. This method can heat solder bumps equally by preheating the mounting board, and it does not squeeze the solder bumps because of a weakly applied pressure during the solder melting. However, there is a possibility of misalignment of the chip due to vaporization of the flux-volatile ingredients, since the chip is not held by the heating block during the solder melting.
In view of productivity, it is desirable to eliminate the step of flattening the solder bumps. The solder bumps must be in contact with the terminals of the mounting board during solder melting, not when the solder is solid. If the solder bumps on the chip contact the terminals on the mounting board when the solder is melted, pressure is not required during the chip mounting. Further a method must be provided to prevent misalignment because of vaporization of flux-volatile ingredients during the solder melting.
The problems that should be solved by this invention are:

Soldering method and soldering apparatus

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