A signal encoding system A1 includes a bark spectrum calculating device 2 for calculating a bark spectrum as a parameter based on an auditory model, a bark spectrum encoding device 3 for encoding the bark spectrum, a sound source calculating device 4 and a sound source encoding device 5. The bark spectrum calculating device 2 includes a power spectrum calculating device 6, a critical band integrating device 7, an equal loudness compensating device 8 and a loudness converting device 9. These devices are formed by engineering the functions and effects which are similar to those of the auditory model. The decoding process perform the conversion in the opposite direction. As a result, the signals can be encoded and decoded through less calculation in a manner well matching the human auditory characteristics. When speech signals are to be encoded, it can be realized through less calculation and memory while suppressing noise components other than the speech signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signal encoding system for encoding digital signals such as voice or sound signals with a high efficiency and a signal decoding system for decoding these encoded signals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In signal encoding for compressing voice or sound signals into smaller information containing units, it is normal practice to select codes so that a preset distortion will be minimized. It is desirable that the measure of such a distortion matches the auditory sense of a human being. When a voice signal is to be encoded and if such a voice signal is superimposed by a noise signal, it is desirable to use a system capable of suppressing the noise component.
It is known that the human auditory system has a non-linear frequency response and a higher discrimination at lower frequencies and lower discrimination at higher frequencies. Such a discrimination is called the critical band width, and the frequency response is called the bark scale.
It is also known that the human auditory system has a certain sensitivity relating to the level of sound, that is, a loudness, which is not linearly proportional to the signal power. Signal powers providing an equal loudness are slightly different from one another, depending on the frequency. If a signal power is relatively large, a loudness is approximately calculated from the exponential function of the signal power multiplied by one of a number of coefficients that are slightly different from one another for every frequency.
It is further known that one of the characteristics of the human auditory system is a masking effect. The masking effect is where, if there is a disturbing sound, it will increase the minimum audible level at which the other signals can be perceived. The magnitude of the masking effect increases as a frequency to be used approaches the frequency of the disturbing sound, and varies depending on the width of differential frequency along the bark scale.
The details of such characteristics and their modeling in the human auditory system are described in Eberhard Zwicker, "Psychologic Acoustics", pp161-174, which was translated by YAMADA Yukiko and published by HISHIMURA SHOTEN, 1992.
Some signal encoding systems using a distortion scale well matching these auditory characteristics are described, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. Hei 4-55899, Hei 5-268098 and Hei 5-15849.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 4-55899 introduces a distortion which is well matched to these auditory characteristics when the spectrum parameters of voice signals are encoded. The spectral envelope of the voice signals is first approximated to an all pole model, and certain parameters are then extracted as spectral parameters. The spectral parameters are subjected to a non-linear transform such as conversion into mel-scale and then encoded using a square-law distance as a distortion scale. The non-linearity of the frequency response in the human auditory system is thus introduced by the conversion to the mel-scale.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-268098 introduces a bark scale when the spectral forms of voice signals are substantially removed through short- and long-term forecasts, the residual signals then being encoded. The residual signals are converted into frequency domains. All the frequency components thus obtained are brought into a plurality of groups, each of which is represented only by grouped amplitudes spaced apart from one another with regular intervals on the bark scale. These grouped amplitudes are finally encoded. The introduction of grouped amplitudes provides an advantage in that the frequency axis is approximate conversion into a bark scale to improve the matching of the distortion in the encoding step or grouped amplitude to the auditory characteristics.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-158495 is to execute a plurality of voice encodings through auditory weighting filters having different characteristics so that an auditory weighting filter providing the minimum sense of noise will be selected. One method of evaluating the sense of noise is described, which calculates an error between an input voice signal and a synthesized signal and determines a loudness of such a error relative to the input voice signal, that is, noise loudness. The calculation of loudness also uses the critical band width and masking effect.
Another method of using a distortion scale well matched to the auditory characteristics is disclosed in S. Wang, A. Sekey and A. Gersho, "Auditory Distortion Measure for Speech Coding" (Proc. IC ASSP'91, pp.493-496, May 1991).
The S. Wang et al. method uses a parameter called a bark spectrum which is obtained by performing integration of the amplitude in the critical band of the frequency spectrum, pre-emphasis for equal loudness compensation and sone conversion into loudness. The bark spectra of the input voice and synthesized signals are then calculated to provide a simple square-law error between these two bark spectra, which is in turn used to evaluate a distortion between the input voice and synthesized signals. The integration of critical band models the non-linearity of the frequency axis in the auditory characteristics as well as the masking effect. The pre-emphasis and sone conversion model the characteristics relating to the loudness in the auditory characteristics.
A method of suppressing noise superimposed on voice signals is also known by S. F. Boll, "Suppression of Acoustic Noise in Speech Using Spectral Subtraction" (IEEE Trans. on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing, Vol. ASSP-27, No.2, pp.113-120, April 1979).
The S. F. Boll method presumes the spectral form of noise from non-speech sections and subtracts it from the spectra of all sections for suppressing the noise components in the following manner.
First of all, input signals are cut by hanning window for regular time intervals and converted into frequency spectra through the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The power of each of the frequency spectral components is then calculated to determine a power spectrum. The power spectra determined through a section judged to be a non-speech section are averaged to presume an average power spectrum of noise. The power spectrum of noise multiplied by a given gain is then subtracted from the power spectra throughout all the sections. Thus, variable noise components may instead be realized through the subtraction of noise to increase the sense of noise. Therefore, components made to be very small values through the subtraction are leveled to equal to the values in the previous and next sections after the subtraction. It is then returned to an original signal by applying inverse FFT onto a frequency spectrum which has a phase spectrum equal to that of the frequency spectrum of the input signal and a power spectrum equal to the power spectrum after the leveling step. Finally, the resulting signal is reconstructed by maintaining it for a given time period.
However, the methods of the prior art have the following problems:
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 4-55899, the spectral envelop of voice signals approximates to the all pole model which is based on a voice signal generating mechanism. The optimum parameter order of the all pole model depends on vowel, consonant and/or speaker. Therefore, good approximation is not necessarily performed. To improve this problem, a system of presuming and determining the optimum parameter order has been proposed, but is rarely used because of its complicated analysis and synthesis. Voice signals superimposed by background or other noises raise another problem in that the all pole model will not be approximated. This method cannot overcome the above problem since only the non-linear conversion is executed for the parameter based on the all pole model to convert the frequency into a frequency well matching the auditory characteristics. Since the factors, such as loudness, masking effect and others, of the auditory characteristics are not contained therein, the resulting parameters will not be sufficiently matched to the auditory characteristics. The all pole model cannot be applied to the method of the prior art to encode sound signals well matching the auditory characteristics since the all pole model does not conform to general audio signals other than voice signals.
In place of the conversion into mel-scale, the parameter based on the all pole model may be temporarily converted into a frequency spectrum which is in turn converted into a bark spectrum. Therefore, the distortion scale used to encode the parameter based on the all pole model may be a bark spectrum distortion. Since such a conversion requires a very large amount of data to be processed, however, it can be used only in performing a vector quantization in which the conversion of all the codes has previously be made. The all pole model has further problems which are not expected to be improved in the near future.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-268098 uses the bark scale in encoding the residual signals. The bark scale only relates to the non-linearity of the frequency axis among the auditory characteristics and does not contain the other factors, such as loudness and/or masking effect, of the auditory characteristics. Therefore, the bark scale does not sufficiently match the auditory characteristics. An auditory model becomes significant only when it is applied to signals inputted into a person's ears. When the auditory model is applied to the residual signals as in the prior art, it cannot introduce the factors of the auditory characteristics other than the non-linearity of the frequency axis.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-158495 uses the noise loudness as a distortion scale for selecting the auditory weighting filter. This can only be used to select the auditory weighting filter, and cannot be used to provide a distortion scale in encoding voice signals. Such a distortion scale uses a signal distortion after the auditory weighting filter which weights a distortion created by the encoding in the axis of frequency so as to be hardly audible, based on the all pole model. Thus, the auditory weighting filter is empirically determined, but does not fully use the bark scale, loudness and masking in the auditory characteristics. In addition, the auditory weighting filter does not adapt to general audio signals other than voice signals since it is introduced from the parameters of the all pole model.
To improve such a method of the prior art, it may be proposed to introduce the concept of noise loudness as a distortion scale used on encoding. However, it must generate decoded signals for all the different codes of B powers of two (B: the number of bits of codes) and calculate noise loudness for all the decoded signals. This requires a huge amount of data to be processed, and cannot actually be realized.
The method of S. Wang et al. calculates a bark spectrum as a parameter based on an auditory model. However, its object is to evaluate various encoding systems through evaluation of bark spectrum distortions in decoded signals, but does not consider to use it as a distortion scale on encoding. If decoded signals can be generated for all the codes of B powers of two (B: the number of bits of codes) and bark spectra can be calculated for all the decoded signals, one may determine a codeword having the minimum bark spectrum distortion. However, this must also process a huge amount of data, and cannot actually be realized.
The method of S. F. Boll cuts input voices through a hanning window for regular time intervals for suppressing noise. The length of the hanning window and time interval become powers of two depending on the FFT. Although a voice encoding system also cuts input voices for regular time intervals, the time interval is not necessarily equal to that of the noise processing. Thus, the voices will be independently encoded after the noise suppression has been completed. This requires a large amount of data to be processed as well as a large amount of memory, with a complicated backfiling of signals. If these time intervals are coincident with each other, there are required more calculation and memory which are at least proportional to the number of points (256, 512, 1024, etc.) in the FFT.
Although the method of S. F. Boll actually reduces noise components through the subtraction of noise, the variations actually increase the auditory sense of noise. To improve such a problem, the S. F. Boll method simply levels the spectra. This is insufficient to improve the above problem relating to a certain form of noise.

Signal encoding and decoding system using auditory parameters and bark spectrum


Microservices are predictively deployed on edge devices in a network. An application is run on a client device, the application comprising a set of microservices runnable on any edge device in a set of two or more edge devices. A state of the client device at a first time is determined, the state including one or more microservices currently being run for the client device, and for each microservice currently being run, an edge device running the microservice. One or more microservices that are likely to be run at a second time subsequent to the first time and a location of the client device at the second time are predicted. Based on the predicted location, a next edge device in the set of edge devices is determined for running the one or more microservices predicted to be run at the second time.

Embodiments relate generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to methods for predictively deploying software microservices to edge nodes (or edge devices) to enable rapid communication handoffs in a wireless network.
Wireless networking systems have become a prevalent means to communicate with others worldwide and engage with content. Wireless communication devices, such as cellular telephones, tablet computers, and the like have become smaller and more powerful in order to meet consumer needs and to improve portability and convenience. Consumers have become dependent upon these devices, demanding reliable service, expanded areas of coverage, additional services (e.g., web browsing capabilities), and continued reduction in size and cost of such devices.
One of the most challenging requirements for a wireless network to be ubiquitous is the ability to permit mobility, whenever and wherever, without loss of quality of service and connectivity. Such mobility support allows users, with different mobility profiles, to traverse different geographical areas while continuing to access a variety of mobile applications. A central component of supporting mobility management are handover mechanisms. In cellular telecommunications, the terms handover or handoff refer to the process of transferring an ongoing call or data session from one channel connected to the core network to another channel. In satellite communications, it is the process of transferring satellite control responsibility from one earth station to another without loss or interruption of service. Handover mechanisms allow a user to change the physical point of attachment within the mobile network when certain preprogrammed conditions are satisfied. For example, if the received signal power from the current base station serving the user goes below a particular threshold and, simultaneously, the received signal power for another base station nearby goes above a certain threshold, then a decision to change the point of attachment, i.e., the base station, can be made by the devices in the network infrastructure in concert with the user device.
The worldwide mobile network infrastructure is in the midst of a transition to what is known as 5G, or fifth generation, technology. As compared to the current network scenario, the future 5G network scenarios will be much more complex. Contributing towards this increased network complexity will be the burgeoning demand for high quality data by users and devices, which are also expected to increase in numbers exponentially. There will also be technologically diverse applications, e.g., Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), gaming, messaging, video playback, that go well beyond the traditional "voice and data" application commonly used today. There will be a variety of radio access technologies, i.e., 5G New Radio, LTE, 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi, and a wide range of mobility profiles, including for example users on high speed trains, airplanes, cars or walking. The complexity of the 5G network is further exacerbated by all of these factors, not to mention the addition of new spectrum bands, e.g., millimeter wave frequencies, that will be utilized and behave much differently than the traditional spectrum bands of earlier mobile network generations.
In such an environment, existing static techniques for communication handoff may struggle with workload variances, resulting in loss of continuity of computing and connectivity—and ultimately resulting in poor user experience. For instance, in the current mobile network scenario, the network has significant time to trigger, prepare, execute and complete a handover. However, the same is not true for the future network, where the density of access points will be high, i.e., access points with smaller coverage areas and higher bandwidths will be packed more closely in a given area. In addition, macro-cells with significantly large coverage areas will be present to assist the small cells. If current handover mechanisms as described above were used, the time to complete the handover could be much greater than the time the user may be present at the desired base station while the conditions are still favorable to establish a link. If the time available to perform the resource allocation and negotiation process is shorter, loss of connectivity is a higher risk with the established handover mechanisms, and this could result in poor network performance. The handover signaling overhead will also be of critical importance in the context of network performance because of the failures caused by cell densification and also the presence of diverse radio access technologies, i.e., potentially many handoffs between 4G LTE and older technologies such as Wi-Fi. Therefore, optimizing the handover process, where the latency and signaling overhead are reduced, will be an extremely vital component of future handover management strategies.
For example, consider the scenario of an AR gaming application that requires players to move from one location to another over a large physical area equipped with AR markers while engaging in combat virtually within the game. As players move quickly from one physical location to another, their communication with the gaming servers, whether the servers are in a central location (also known as the "cloud") or closer to the user at the network edge, will need to be enabled via quick handoff from one network repeater to another. As described above, existing handover mechanisms may be too slow to handle the dynamic nature of player movements and the corresponding need for high bandwidth and high computing resources.
The 5G wireless network also lends itself to what is known as an edge computing model. Edge computing is a distributed computing framework in which information processing is located close to the network edge, which is where things and people produce or consume that information. Edge computing brings computation and data storage closer to the devices where it's being gathered, rather than relying on a central location that can be thousands of miles away, resulting in a more decentralized environment, just as described above for 5G wireless networks.
Edge computing was developed because of the exponential growth of internet-enabled devices such as autonomous vehicles or everyday devices within the home such as security cameras or thermostats or, in a commercial setting, automated devices in a manufacturing line. These devices now use the network for either receiving information from the cloud or delivering data back to the cloud. Many of these "edge devices" generate enormous amounts of data during the course of their operations. As examples, consider devices that monitor manufacturing equipment on a factory floor, or an Internet-connected video camera that sends live footage from a remote office. While a single device producing data can transmit it across a network quite easily, problems arise when the number of devices transmitting data at the same time grows. Instead of one video camera transmitting live footage, hundreds or thousands of devices may be sending or receiving data, resulting in a potential loss of quality due to latency and tremendous bandwidth costs.
Edge computing hardware and services help solve this problem by being a local source of processing and storage for many of these systems. An edge server, for example, may process data from an edge device, and then send only the relevant data back through the cloud, reducing bandwidth needs, or it may send data back to the edge device in the case of real-time application needs. These edge devices may include many different things, such as a smart thermostat, an employee's notebook computer, their latest smartphone, the security camera or even the internet-connected microwave oven in the office break room. Edge servers themselves and even the network repeaters that are installed in 5G networks, e.g., cell towers, microcells, and Wi-Fi access points, may be considered edge devices within the edge computing infrastructure.
In tandem with the 5G wireless infrastructure and the edge computing model, a method of software development known as "microservice architecture" that has become popular in recent years also lends itself to this decentralized environment. "Microservice architecture" refers to a particular way of designing software applications as suites of independently deployable microservices. These microservices run in their own process and communicate with each other over a network to collectively fulfill a goal using technology-agnostic and lightweight protocols such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) with a bare minimum of centralized management. Microservices may be implemented using different programming languages, databases, or hardware and software environments, depending on what fits best for the specific microservice. Microservices may be small in size, messaging-enabled, autonomously developed, independently deployable, and built and released with automated processes. Because of these characteristics, it is common for microservices architectures to be adopted for cloud-native applications, serverless computing, and applications using lightweight container deployment, the very conditions that are prevalent in the 5G wireless and edge computing environment.

Intelligent dynamic communication handoff for mobile applications

International Business Machines Corporation


A graphical user interface for a computer-assisted motion video editing system directs a user through the process of editing a video program. The graphical user interface may also enables a user to plan a video program. Alternatively selectable interfaces within a single window interface, each of which provide a group of planning, capturing, editing, and recording functions can provide such an interface for producing a video program. Other simplifications to the user interface can be provided to assist in editing, such as by maintaining a video display window for displaying the edited video program at a fixed position for all available editing operations. Additionally, video information can be captured directly into a timeline representation of a video program, rather than a bin. Using a storyboard tied to the capturing process, a user is directed through the process of collecting and capturing the video clips to be used in the video program.

Computer systems with motion video editing tools have been used to produce major motion picture films, television shows, news broadcasts and in corporate settings to edit motion video. Unlike word processing tools, however, such motion video editing tools are not yet common for home use, primarily due to the cost of motion video editing tools, including hardware and software, and the complexity of the architecture and graphical user interface.
The high cost of motion video editing tools for computers is due, in part, to specialized hardware used to capture, digitize, compress, decompress and display motion video information on a computer screen with sufficient detail and resolution. The complexity of the graphical user interface of these motion video editing tools is due, in part, to the variety of possible operations which can be performed on motion video and also to a design for professionals familiar with motion video editing, and terms and concepts of that trade, with which the average person is unfamiliar. For example, many systems use a representation of a motion video composition as two tracks, A and B, between which "rolling" occurs. The concept of A/B rolling is unduly complex and has been simplified in other systems by using a "timeline." such as in the AVID/1 Media Composer from Avid Technology, Inc., of Tewksbury, Mass. Another complexity is the use of multiple windows for controlling the various parameters of the motion video, displaying the motion video itself, sound track controls and other features.
Another drawback of many motion video editing tools for computers is that most people have not been taught how to communicate ideas using motion video or how to efficiently produce a motion video program. Schools commonly teach written and oral expression and expression through still graphics but not motion video. While most motion video editing tools for computers are suitable for creating motion video programs, few tools assist in the creative design, planning and production of motion video programs.
Accordingly, a general aim of this invention is to provide a motion video editing system for a computer with reduced cost and complexity. Another aim of this invention is to provide a motion video editing system for a computer with tools for assisting creative design and planning of a motion video composition.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Graphical user interface for a motion video planning and editing system for a computer


Methods and systems useful for obtaining a representative sample of solid particles from a pneumatically conveyed stream of solid particles. One preferred method and system includes establishing a pneumatic flow of solid particles in a gas stream through a sampling conduit and diverting the steam through a second conduit; isolating an inlet of the sampling conduit from the second conduit substantially simultaneously with the step of diverting the entire stream through the second conduit and emptying material from the isolated sampling conduit, wherein the representative sample comprises the material emptied from the sampling conduit. The outlet end of the sampling conduit may be vented into the second conduit or the atmosphere. The system for accomplishing the method may include a controller for controlling, inter alia, a position of the means for diverting the stream through a second conduit, the means for isolating an inlet sampling conduit, or combinations thereof.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of solids handling and more particularly, to methods and apparatus useful for procuring a representative sample of pneumatically conveyed solid particles.
2. Description of the Related Art
Oil and natural gas are produced from wells having porous and permeable subterranean formations. The porosity of the formation permits the formation to store oil and gas, and the permeability of the formation permits the oil or gas fluid to move through the formation. Sometimes the permeability of the formation holding the gas or oil is insufficient for economic recovery of oil and gas. In other cases, during operation of the well, the permeability of the formation drops to such an extent that further recovery becomes uneconomical. In such circumstances, it is common to fracture the formation and prop the fracture in an open condition by means of a proppant material or propping agent. Fracturing is usually accomplished by hydraulic pressure using a gel-like fluid. The pressure is increased until cracks form in the underground rock. The proppants, which are suspended in this pressurized fluid, are forced into the cracks or fissures. When the hydraulic pressure is reduced, the proppant material functions to prevent the formed fractures from closing again by "propping" the fractures open.
A wide variety of proppant materials are used, depending on the geological conditions. Typically, proppants are particulate materials, such as sand, glass beads, or ceramic pellets, which create a porous structure. Often, the proppants are coated with a resin to improve vital physical characteristics of the proppants. The oil or gas is able to flow through the interstices between the particles to collection regions, from which it is pumped to the surface. Over time, the pressure of the surrounding rock tends to crush the proppants. The resulting fines from this disintegration tend to migrate and plug the interstitial flow passages in the propped structure. These migratory fines drastically reduce the permeability, lowering the conductivity of the oil or gas. Conductivity is a measure of the deliverability or the ease with which oil or gas can flow through the proppant structure and is important to the productivity of a well. When the conductivity drops below a certain level, the fracturing process is repeated or the well is abandoned.
There are many physical characteristics of proppants that are important. Particle size of the proppant has a significant impact on the permeability, and resulting ability for hydrocarbon flow through the fracture, of the proppant pack. Crush strength of the proppant is another vital physical characteristic of the proppant because the proppant is subjected to high pressure levels as they prop open the fracture. Early proppants were formed of materials such as sand, glass beads, walnut shells, and aluminum pellets. However, where closure pressures of the fracture exceed a few thousand pounds per square inch these materials are crushed resulting in a closure of the fracture. In response, proppants having high compressive strength have been designed to resist crushing under the high pressure levels experienced in use. The crush strength of the proppants is related to the composition and density of the proppant material. Another important physical characteristic of the proppant is the shape of the individual particle, wherein roundness and a high level of sphericity are important characteristics.
The importance of the physical characteristics of proppants is well recognized in the industry. The American Petroleum Institute (API) has issued Recommended Practices for proppant testing. For example, API Recommended Practices RP-56 covers testing procedures for sand used in hydraulic fracturing operations. RP-58 provides testing procedure for sand used in gravel packing operations. RP-60 provides testing procedures for high-strength proppants used in hydraulic fracturing operations. These Recommended Practices include testing procedures for determination of properties that include, inter alia, particle size, crush resistance and sphericity and roundness.
Correct sampling technique of the proppants while gathering representative samples for testing is critical. If an improper sampling technique is used, a sample of the proppant gathered for laboratory analysis may not be representative of the entire proppant population being tested and the laboratory results will not provide the true physical characteristics of the proppant. The API Recommended Practices RP-56, RP-58 and RP-60 all include instructions for sampling proppants from the source of supply that include obtaining the samples by sweeping a collection device across the entire delivery stream as the proppants fall from a conveyer belt into a blender or other destination. Grabbing a sampling from a loaded silo or hopper does not provide a representative sample of the proppant.
Typically, proppants are delivered in bulk to the drilling site by trucks or railcar and unloaded pneumatically from the transport to a silo or hopper for storage until needed for injection during the fracturing procedure. When needed, the proppants flow by gravity from the silo to a mixer or blender to produce the fracturing liquid for injection into the reservoir. Unfortunately, the representative samples of the proppant that are tested are collected by using the sweeping collection device just as the proppant falls into the blender on its way to be injected as part of a well fracturing analysis. By the time the laboratory analyses are run on these representative samples of proppants at the drilling site, the proppants have already been injected into the reservoir. While the laboratory results of the proppant sample caught just before the proppant was mixed into the fracturing liquid document that a problem with the proppant existed, the results are too late to correct the problem by replacing the poor quality proppant with new proppant having the required physical characteristics.
What is needed is a method and apparatus for collecting a representative sample of the bulk proppant before the proppant is needed for injection. It would be beneficial if the representative sample of the proppant could be collected as it was being delivered off the transport truck or railcar.


An aspect of the present invention relates to a magnetic recording medium, which comprises a magnetic layer comprising ferromagnetic powder and binder on a nonmagnetic support, wherein the magnetic layer further comprises a compound which has a weight average molecular weight of equal to or more than 1,000 but less than 20,000 and is denoted by formula (1):

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic recording medium and a magnetic coating composition for a magnetic recording medium.
Discussion of the Background
Particulate magnetic recording media (also referred to as simply "magnetic recording media" hereinafter) are normally fabricated by coating a magnetic coating composition comprising ferromagnetic powder and binder on a nonmagnetic support, either directly or indirectly via another layer such as a nonmagnetic layer, and conducting a curing treatment such as heating or irradiation with light as needed to form a magnetic layer.
Conventionally, binders have played an important role in enhancing the dispersion of ferromagnetic powder and the durability of the magnetic layer in particulate magnetic recording media. As a result, various research has been conducted on binders (for an example, see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety).
As stated in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941, polar groups such as sulfonate groups have been incorporated into binder to enhance the dispersion of ferromagnetic powder. The introduction of polar groups into binder has been conducted to increase dispersion by causing the binder to effectively adsorb to the surface of ferromagnetic powder. However, as is described in paragraph 0026 of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941, the introduction of an excessive quantity of polar groups tends to decrease the dispersion of ferromagnetic powder. Accordingly, it has proven difficult to achieve an adequate improvement in the dispersion of ferromagnetic powder by introducing polar groups into binder.
The use of resins with good mechanical properties as binder in the magnetic layer has been examined to enhance the durability of the magnetic layer. In this regard, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941 proposes using a prescribed copolymerization component such as an aromatic polyisocyanate to increase the concentration of urethane groups in order to enhance the mechanical properties of the polyurethane resin that is used as binder in the magnetic layer. As stated in paragraph 0025 of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941, the higher the concentration of urethane groups of the resin that is used as binder, the better the mechanical properties that can be achieved in the resin. However, solubility decreases. As a result, dispersion of the ferromagnetic powder tends to decrease. Thus, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) No. 2004-67941 states in paragraph 0025 that the concentration of urethane groups is to be in a range that permits good dispersion of ferromagnetic powder.
Even greater durability has been required of the magnetic layer in recent years. Reasons for this include the fact that the market has demanded ever higher properties and the size of ferromagnetic powder has been decreasing. For example, properties required by the market in recent years have included high durability in continuous running over longer periods with higher reliability than in the past. Since the magnetic force per bit has weakened accompanying the reduction in particle size of ferromagnetic powder, the distance between the reproduction head and the surface of the magnetic recording medium (magnetic layer) has tended to decrease in order to read information from such bits. Thus, the frequency of contact between the reproduction head and the surface of the magnetic recording medium (magnetic layer) has increased in recent years. Accordingly, magnetic recording media have come to be used in states where the surface of the magnetic layer is more prone to being scratched than in the past.
Accordingly, it is conceivable to enhance the mechanical properties of the resin that is employed as binder in the magnetic layer, as has been examined in the past, to increase the durability of the magnetic layer. However, as set forth above, the better the mechanical properties of the binder are rendered to enhance the durability of the magnetic layer, the poorer the dispersion property of the ferromagnetic powder tends to be. That is, achieving both the greater durability of the magnetic layer that has been demanded in recent years along with better dispersion of ferromagnetic powder will be difficult with binders such as those that have been conventionally employed.

Magnetic recording medium and magnetic coating composition for magnetic recording medium

Abstract: wherein, in formula (1), A denotes a monovalent substituent, R1 denotes a single bond or a divalent connecting group, and m denotes an integer ranging from 2 to 4, multiple instances of A and R1 that are present can be identical or different, at least one of the multiple instances of A that are present denotes a monovalent polymer group and X denotes a heterocyclic group of valence m.


A new and distinct cultivar of Helleborus plant named ‘HGP01’, characterized by its compact, upright and mounded plant habit; strong and vigorous growth habit; leaflets with distinctive venation and red-colored petioles; freely flowering habit; single white-colored flowers; and good garden performance

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Helleborus plant, botanically known as Helleborus niger×Helleborus sternii, and hereinafter referred to by the name 'HGP01'.
The new Helleborus is a product of a planned breeding program in Suffolk, United Kingdom. The objective of the breeding program was to create new frost-tolerant Helleborus cultivars with unique and attractive flower coloration.
The new Helleborus plant originated from a cross-pollination in Suffolk, United Kingdom in 2001, of a proprietary selection of Helleborus niger, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with a proprietary selection of Helleborus sternii, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Helleborus plant was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant from within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination grown in a controlled environment in Suffolk, United Kingdom in 2002.
Asexual reproduction of the new Helleborus plant by tissue culture in a controlled environment in The Netherlands since 2002, has shown that the unique features of this new Helleborus plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.


A method and a system for influencing possible structure-borne sound conductions and possible noise radiations of objects which have at least two at least indirectly mutually adjoining and mutually connected components. A spacer body is arranged in the area of the at least indirect mutual adjoining xe2x80x9ccontact areaxe2x80x9d. As the result of the spacer body, which can be controllably influenced in its geometry, one of the two mutually connected components and the components which, with respect to the conduction of the structure-borne sound have different acoustic impedances can be excited in a simple manner to carry out vibrations.

This application claims the priority of 198 26 175.6, filed Jun. 13, 1998, the disclosures of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a method and a system for influencing possible structure-borne sound conductions and possible noise radiations of objects which have at least two at least indirectly mutually adjoining and mutually connected components, a spacer body being arranged in the area of the at least indirect mutual adjoiningxe2x80x94in the following, simplified as xe2x80x9ccontact areaxe2x80x9d.
Examples of such objects are bodies of motor vehicles, such as passenger cars and trucks, airplanes or train cars and the like, casings of machines, internal-combustion engines, machine or engine parts, or machine or motor components, but also framed glass, such as window panes arranged in window frames.
A method for suppressing vibrations introduced into the vehicle body and a corresponding vehicle are known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,332,061. The concerned introduced vibrations originate from the engine and are transmitted to the connection points of the engine with the vehicle body. For damping these vibrations, the vehicle has xe2x80x9cshakersxe2x80x9d, thus mechanical vibration exciting devices which are arranged in the area of at least some connection points of the engine with the vehicle body. When the engine is operated, the shakers are excited as a function of the rotational engine speed at the resonance frequencies in the opposite phase to the vibrations coming from the engine, whereby the transmission of the introduced vibrations is at least partially damped. The corresponding frequencies and their amplitudes for the secondary vibrations are taken from a previously filed data field.
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,434,783, a vehicle is known in the case of which the sound effects audible within a passenger compartment are influenced by sound waves. In addition to normal loudspeakers, a piezoelement is also used here which excites the vehicle body at least in an area to carry out vibrations and thereby influences it to emit sound waves; that is, the piezoelement acts like the coil of a loudspeaker, while the vehicle body represents the vibrating membrane. By means of the known method and the known system, an improvement of the subjective sensation is achieved within the occupant compartment.
A further development of the above approach for influencing the subjectively perceived driving sensation is known from German Patent Document DE 195 31 402 A1. According to this document, as a function of a parameter and in this case particularly of the rotational engine speed and/or of the velocity, not only the airborne sound but also the structure-borne sound perceived by means of the body and vibrations are influenced. For this purpose, depending on the extent of the parameter, certain data are read out of a data field and are converted by means of vibration exciting devices, in secondary vibrations which among other things are also perceived on the structure. By means of this measure, in conjunction with the influencing of the acoustically perceived airborne sound, positive as well as negative interferences of the artificial secondary vibrations can be generated with the primary vibrations which form on the vehicle side when the vehicle is operated. As desired, the interferences can reduce the perceived impression or simulate a certain impression, for example, a shifting in the case of a vehicle equipped with an infinitely variable speed transmission.
However, the above-mentioned measures require considerable expenditures. Furthermore, they still require the use of weight-increasing sound-absorbing mats made of a sound-absorbing material.
It is an object of the invention to develop a method and a system by means of which an influencing of noises can be carried out in a novel manner, which noises come from objects which have at least two at least indirectly mutually adjoining and mutually connected components.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by providing a method for influencing at least one of structure-borne sound conductions and noise radiations of objects which have at least two at least indirectly mutually adjoining and mutually connected components, a spacer body being arranged proximate an at least indirectly mutually adjoining area, wherein said spacer body has a controllably influenceable geometry, and wherein the components connected with one another by way of the spacer body are dimensioned with different acoustic impedances with respect to the conduction of the structure-borne sound.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by providing a system for influencing at least one of structure-borne sound conductions and noise radiations of objects which have at least two at least indirectly mutually adjoining and mutually connected components, a spacer body being arranged proximate an at least indirectly mutually adjoining area, wherein the spacer body has a controllably influenceable geometry, and wherein the components which are mutually connected by way of the spacer body have a different acoustic impedance with respect to the conduction of the structure-borne sound.
As the result of the arrangement of spacer bodies, preferably piezoelements arranged in active seals which, at least in areas, can be influenced in a controlled manner in their geometry, the transmission function for vibrations between the individual components of the object can be changed in a simple manner. This is a special advantage particularly in the claimed inventive context by means of the different acoustic impedances of the concerned components. In this combination, the one, acoustically hard component acts as a supporting body for the second, acoustically softer component; that is, the hard component virtually forms a fixing point for the acoustically softer component which can therefore easily and at low-energy be excited to carry out vibrations.
This becomes particularly favorable starting at an impedance ratio of the two components with respect to one another which is lower than 1:2, preferably lower than 1:5 and particularly preferably lower than 1:10.
Expediently, these spacer bodies are additionally also arranged in the area of a high and/or of the maximum mode density of the structure-borne sound, particularly in a joint or in a flange or a partition line between the two components.
In particular, the invention can be used for reducing noise inside an enclosed space. In the same manner, it is possible to influence in a preferably minimizing manner the sounds transmitted to the outside.
The invention is particularly advantageous in the construction and/or of the, in particular, wheel-side fastening of panels, of casing plates, of window panes, of covering parts, particularly of metal body sheets of a vehicle or of an airplane. Furthermore, this also applies to the construction and fastening of, for example, an oil pan on a crankcase, a cylinder block of an engine, an engine mount of an engine or of an engine bearing of an engine mount since, as the result of the invention, a complicated ribbing-out of components which increases the acoustic impedance and thus mass can at least partially be eliminated.
On the whole, this, among other things, reduces costs, which is the result of a simplification of the demands on construction, of a simplified component geometry, which saves casting expenses, etc., as well as of a possible reduction of sound-absorbing measures, by means of, for example, sound-absorbing mats, and the like.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Method and system for influencing possible structure-borne sound conductions and possible noise radiations of objects


A four-cycle, four-cylinder, premixed charge compression ignition internal combustion reciprocating free piston engine with a variable piston stroke and a compression ratio that varies as needed to provide charge ignition, to offer the potential of higher efficiency, lower emissions, and multi-fuel operation. The engine does not have a crankshaft, and therefore does not provide direct rotary output. Instead its free pistons oscillate, in a manner similar to a two cycle free piston engine. For many applications, such as piston pumps and compressors, the engine provides an output directly driven by the oscillating pistons. In other applications, such as but not limited to use as a gas generator for a power turbine, the engine provides an indirect means of producing rotary power. When the engine is used with high-speed power turbines, the power turbine may be directly coupled to a high-speed alternator for electrical power output.

This invention relates to the field of engines, specifically to a four-cycle, four cylinder, free-piston, premixed charge compression ignition, internal combustion reciprocating piston engine with a variable piston stroke that offers the potential of enhanced efficiency, lower emissions, and multi-fuel operation. Applications include but are not limited to, use with automotive vehicles, engine driven pumps, engine driven compressors, small aircraft, marine vehicles, and power tools.
Development of the Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (PCCI) engine, and related Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) internal combustion reciprocating engine has been ongoing for a number of years at Companies, Universities and U.S. National Laboratories—as well as numerous foreign institutions. Among these are:
Companies:
    Caterpillar Inc.    Cummins Inc.    General Motors Corporation    Waukesha EngineUniversities:    Helsinki University of Technology, Helsinki Finland    Hokkaido University, Sapporo Japan    Lund Institute of Technology, Lund Sweden    Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston Mass.    Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim Norway    University of California, Berkley Calif.    University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Mich.    University of Minnesota, Minneapolis Minn.    University of Wisconsin, Madison Wis.Laboratories:    Argonne National Laboratory    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory    National Energy Technology Laboratory    Oak Ridge National Laboratory    Sandia National Laboratory
The PCCI/HCCI engine offers the potential of higher efficiency, lower emissions and multi-fuel operation. The technology is scalable from watts to megawatts. Development has progressed on both two and four-cycle versions of PCCI/HCCI engines. Notable work in this field includes that of: Cummins Inc. on four-cycle PCCI engines, resulting in U.S. patent application 2004/00103860; Van Blarigan at Sandia National Laboratories, on the two-cycle, free piston, HCCI "Thermodynamic Fuel Cell" with U.S. Pat. No. 6,199,519 B1; and Caterpillar Inc. with a two-cycle free piston engine with hydraulic output as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,463,895 B2. However, these efforts have not yet produced a truly viable PCCI/HCCI engine. In four-cycle PCCI/HCCI engines, derived from conventional engines, e.g. Cummins, the fixed stroke of the pistons results in a fixed compression ratio that is a constraint on charge ignition. Thus, this PCCI/HCCI four-cycle engine work, to-date, is based primarily on modification of existing four-cycle engines, with emphasis on control of the charge parameters. These modifications have focused on the very complex control of the individual cylinder charge composition and temperature required to properly time the charge ignition, so as to attain acceptable combustion uniformity between cylinders. The resulting four-cycle engines are highly complex and are very sensitive to ambient conditions and fuel properties. Sensitivity is such that the previously mentioned Cummins published U.S. patent application focuses on the use of duel fuels to modify the auto-ignition properties of the charge. Despite these current difficulties, a study by TIAX, a product and technology development firm, and Global Insight, an industry forecasting firm, titled "The Future of Heavy-Duty Powertrains", predicts "HCCI engines will power nearly 40% of heavy-duty vehicles by 2020.—Initially HCCI will only be able to power light loads at low speeds so early versions of the engine will also incorporate conventional diesel combustion to supply more power when greater demand is placed on the engine." The study also predicts "—a full mode HCCI engine will eventually supersede the initial mixed mode HCCI/diesel technology."
To avoid the complexities of modified conventional engines noted in the foregoing, researchers have investigated other engine configurations for PCCI/HCCI. Free piston engines inherently have a variable stroke and thus avoid the constraint encountered in conventional crankshaft engines. Considerable work has been done, over many decades, in an attempt to develop a practical free piston engine. However, success to date has been limited. Most of this prior effort focused on the two-cycle Diesel variant, with less work on spark ignited engines. The recent work by INNAS Free Piston B.V. to produce a free piston single cylinder engine with hydraulic power output is an example of efforts to produce a practical two-cycle Diesel, free piston engine, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,279,517 B1. Also, Sunpower, Inc., as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,775,273 and 6,035,637, proposes a spark ignited free piston engine design with variable valve actuation and in which the expansion stroke is greater than the compression stroke (for increased efficiency). Pembek Systems Pty Ltd., Australia, advocates "The Free Piston Power Pack" for hybrid electric vehicles utilizes multiple units of two opposed linear piston, two-cycle, free piston engines (Diesel or spark ignited) that have integral linear generators and are self scavenging, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,599 B2. However, to date, none of the foregoing has demonstrated a substantive improvement in two-cycle free piston engine performance that would provide a PCCI/HCCI modification to that technology offering improvement over the PCCI/HCCI modified conventional engine. Recent analytical efforts, such as that of Van Blarigan at Sandia, have utilized the PCCI/HCCI cycle in a free piston engine and confirm that conclusion. The two-cycle PCCI/HCCI engine under development at Sandia is more limited in speed range and throttling, produces higher emissions, has lower energy density (primarily due to the linear alternator) and greater fuel consumption (primarily due to charge scavenging limitations inherent in two-cycle engines) compared to a like four-cycle PCCI/HCCI engine. Lotus Engineering Ltd. in conjunction with the University of Sheffield and the University of Loughborough in the U.K. are researching a two cylinder four-cycle free piston linear engine with a integral linear alternator (similar in geometry to the Sandia two-cycle unit) in which the alternator output would be stored as electrical energy (in an external storage device) during the power/exhaust strokes and then used to run the alternator as a motor to drive the piston(s) during the intake/compression and exhaust strokes. (See presentation, "Four Stroke Free Piston Energy Converter" made at the Fuel Cell and Battery Vehicle Industry Academic Network (FABIAN), April 2005 MIRA conference at the University of Sheffield, U.K. available at http://www.shef.ac.uk/fabian/stewart_ws5.ppt) Their preliminary work indicates that this engine offers many improvements over the two-cycle free piston engine, including the use of PCCI/HCCI combustion. However, the proposed engine is complex, requiring a linear alternator/motor with sophisticated and costly energy conversion circuitry and external energy storage. Further, the energy density of the engine and combined supporting devices will be low.
Of further noteworthiness is the recent effort by Kvaerner ASA to develop a Diesel two-cycle free piston gas generator with a power turbine output. (See "Dynamics and Control of a Free piston Diesel Engine" by Johansen et all, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Department of Engineering Cybernetics, Trondheim, Norway and Kvaerner ASA Technology Development, Lysaker, Norway available at http://citeseer.csail.mit.edu/601185.html.) This effort utilizes technology originally by Pescara and disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,657,641, 2,162,967 and 2,581,600, in 1925, 1935 and 1941 respectively, and then furthered by GM, Ford, Junkers and others from the 1930's through the 1960's. It is also related to the subject matter disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,873,822 to Benaroya (1989), entitled "Energy Producing Installation with Internal Combustion Engine and Turbine". The objective of the Kvaerner effort is to produce an engine with a rating of 8 MW having the low weight and compactness of the gas turbine and the low fuel consumption (50% efficiency) of the Diesel engine for Marine propulsion applications. Initial results from a single cylinder test bed engine are promising.
The complexities and limitations of the previously cited engines can be overcome by a four cylinder, four-cycle, free piston, PCCI/HCCI engine disclosed herein, which provides a four cylinder, four-cycle, Free Piston Floating Stroke (FPFS), PCCI/HCCI internal combustion, reciprocating piston engine. Hereinafter, the present invention will be identified by one or more of the following terms, the FPFS engine, the present invention, and the present FPFS engine.
The FPFS engine disclosed herein also includes a gas generator/power turbine configuration, as shown in FIGS. 16-22,—which would retain the advantages of the foregoing mentioned Kvaerner power turbine two-cycle free piston engine but have the lower emissions and lower fuel consumption of a four-cycle PCCI/HCCI engine.
The free piston engine, while solving the charge combustion timing problem associated with crankshaft PCCI/HCCI engines, does not provide a means of directly producing rotary power output. The FPFS engine disclosed herein addresses the foregoing issue by employing a variety of mechanisms to directly utilize the linear motion of the free piston engine or to indirectly convert it to rotary motion.
A four-cycle configuration of a FPFS PCCI/HCCI engine benefits greatly from variable valve actuation (VVA)—to the degree that VVA becomes a practical necessity. Several variable valve geometries are currently under development by others, notable among these are: Sturman Industries, Inc., U.S. Pat. No. 6,820,856 to Grill (2004); Massachusetts Institute of Technology Laboratory for Electronics and Electromagnetic Systems electromagnetic valve drive system, (see the MIT article "Design and Experimental Evaluation of An Electromechanical Engine Valve Drive" published for the 2004 35th Annual IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference and available at:
http://www.mit.edu/˜djperrea/Publications/Conference%20Papers/cpPESC04p4838.pdf); and Johnson Controls (see presentation "Electromechanical Valve Actuation" at the MIRA conference at the University of Sheffield, Sheffield England Oct. 13, 2004 available at: http://www.shef.ac.uk/fabian/mareky_ws4pdf.pdf.) Nonetheless, disclosed herein is a VVA mechanism, as shown in FIGS. 11A, B, C, & D, that offers similar performance to those being developed by the foregoing, with the prospect of a lower cost of implementation than from those sources.
There are numerous efforts to improve existing engine technology to lower emissions and improve efficiency e.g. ARES, ARICE, Freedom Car, Advanced Heavy Hybrid, 21st Century Truck Program, etc. Further, there are long term efforts to increase Diesel engine efficiency by Increasing peak pressure. In a study by TEKES ProMOTOR, at the Helsinki University of Finland, extreme engine operating parameters were investigated, including very high operating pressures. (See "Extreme values of the piston engine—Final Report", Sep. 30, 2003 by TEKES ProMOTOR, Academy of Finland, TUKEVA, available at http://www.icel.tkk.fi/eve/ICEL_Final_report.pdf.) It is well understood that the efficiency of gas power cycles in engines is primarily related to the engine mean effective pressure (higher pressure yields higher efficiency), which in turn is limited by engine component design and the materials then available, key among them being the crankshaft. They cite in the foregoing study, as one of the limiting factors to further engine development at these extreme conditions, the inability of the crankshaft to carry the increased loads from such high pressure operation. The crankshaft size required by such loads increases significantly, and the crankshaft size ultimately remains a limiting factor to further increasing engine operating pressure. By using an engine design, such as that being developed by Kaeverner, or as disclosed herein, which utilizes an indirect power extraction method such as the power turbine, the limitations of the crankshaft are circumvented. Note: In the design herein disclosed, as shown in FIGS. 16-22, the piston connecting elements, 1, 24, 25, 26, 45 & 46, do not carry the output load, but instead carry the much lower load required by the pressure of the cylinder then in the compression stroke (and pumping load of the exhaust stroke). This represents a significant advantage toward improving engine efficiency as higher operating pressures may be more readily attainable.

Four-cylinder, four-cycle, free piston, premixed charge compression ignition, internal combustion reciprocating piston engine with a variable piston stroke


A data processing device maintains register map information that maps accesses to architectural registers, as identified by instructions being executed, to physical registers of the data processing device. In response to determining that an instruction, such as a speculatively-executing conditional branch, indicates a checkpoint, the data processing device stores the register map information for subsequent retrieval depending on the resolution of the instruction. In addition, in response to the checkpoint indication the data processing device generates new register map information such that accesses to the architectural registers are mapped to different physical registers. The data processing device maintains a list, referred to as a free register list, of physical registers available to be mapped to an architectural registers.

Generally, a data processing device operates to execute program instructions to perform various data processing tasks. In order to execute program instructions more efficiently, some data processing devices employ techniques, such as out-of-order execution and speculative execution, that require preservation of processor state data at designated checkpoints. In some data processing devices, the processor state is preserved by copying, at a checkpoint, a device register file to memory. However, this can require an undesirably large amount of memory.

Register renaming scheme with checkpoint repair in a processing device


The present invention relates to a radome which has excellent transmission loss of radio waves and structural strength, which can be easily produced, and which has favorable workability, and a method of producing the same. The radome includes an olefin woven material and a glass cloth, in which the olefin woven material and the glass cloth are impregnated with a matrix resin to be integrated with each other, and the glass cloth is disposed closer to an inner side of the radome than the olefin woven material. As the olefin woven material, a woven material formed of an ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene fiber can be used. As the matrix resin, an epoxy resin, a vinyl ester resin, an unsaturated polyester resin, or a silicone resin can be used.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a radome for protecting a radio wave device from the outside environment, and a method of producing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a radome for use in aircraft, vehicles, etc., and a method of producing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radomes must not block the radio waves to be received, transmitted, or received/transmitted by a radio wave device and must have the structural strength required to protect the radio wave device from the outside environment. Mentioned as a conventional radome having such properties there are radomes using a composite material having reinforced fiber in a matrix resin, i.e., a single layer panel formed of a fiber reinforced plastic. Moreover, there are also radomes using sandwich structure panels in which a core formed of a low density dielectric such as a foamed body is sandwiched between a first composite material facing having a reinforced fiber in a matrix resin and a second composite material facing opposite to the first composite material facing (e.g., see JP 2007-519298 T). Such sandwich structure panels can reduce the dielectric constant as a whole while maintaining the structural strength by sandwiching a low density dielectric therein. Therefore, the sandwich structure panels can improve the transmission loss of radio waves to thereby improve the properties of a radome as compared with a single layer panel formed of a fiber reinforced plastic.
Here, as the reinforced fiber, a glass fiber is generally used. From the viewpoint of further reducing the dielectric constant, it is also known to use a fiber such as polyester-polyarylate fibers and ultrahigh molecular weight olefin fibers in which the dielectric constant of the fiber itself is low (e.g., JP 2007-519298 T and JP 06-10233 A).
However, in the case of using a fiber reinforced plastic in which a glass fiber is used as a reinforced fiber, a large amount of glass fiber needs to be added to a matrix resin so as to achieve the rigidity required in a radome. Since the dielectric constant of generally-used glass is about 4 to about 7 (e.g., the dielectric constant of E-Glass which is a glass fiber generally used for electrical applications is 6.6), such a fiber reinforced plastic cannot reduce the dielectric constant. Thus, a radome using such a material has increased transmission loss of radio waves.
In contrast, in the case of using, as a reinforced fiber, an organic fiber having a low dielectric constant such as polyester-polyarylate fibers and ultrahigh molecular weight olefins, the dielectric constant can be reduced. However, since organic fibers having a low dielectric constant generally have a weak adhesion force with a matrix resin, the interface between the organic fiber and the matrix becomes slippery. As a result, a radome using such a material is likely to suffer from plastic deformation when distortion in the bending direction is applied by a load such as wind.
Moreover, by the use of a glass cloth as a reinforced fiber for the composite material facing of the sandwich structure panels of JP 2007-519298 A, plastic deformation can be prevented. However, since the dielectric constant of the core is considerably different from the dielectric constant of the composite material facing, reflection is likely to occur when a radio wave transmits between the composite material facing and the core and, moreover, the number of side lobes increases remarkably, resulting in increased transmission loss of radio waves.
Further, a method of producing a radome using sandwich structure panels has problems with workability. More specifically, although it is possible to form a radome having a curved surface shape, it is difficult to form a radome having an angled portion. Specifically, when the core material of the sandwich structure panels is folded or two or more of the core materials are connected in producing the sandwich structure panels, the density becomes coarse due to the formation of cracks and compression parts in the core material, which become a singular point of the dielectric constant, resulting in increased transmission loss of radio waves. Moreover, in the method of producing a radome using sandwich structure panels, the first composite material facing, the second composite material facing, and the core are produced separately, and then the composite material facings and the core need to be laminated with each other, giving rise to problem that the production process is complicated.
The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. An object of the present invention is to provide a radome which has excellent transmission loss of radio waves and structural strength, which can be easily produced, and which has favorable workability, and a method of producing the same.


An apparatus for plasma processing is configured to generate plasma in a chamber and periodically apply a pulsed negative DC voltage to an upper electrode from a DC power supply in the plasma processing on a substrate and in plasma cleaning. A duty ratio of the pulsed negative DC voltage used for the plasma processing is smaller than a duty ratio of the pulsed negative DC voltage used for the plasma cleaning. An absolute value of an average value of an output voltage of the DC power supply used for the plasma processing is smaller than an absolute value of an average value of the output voltage of the DC power supply used for the plasma cleaning.

In manufacturing electronic devices, a plasma processing apparatus is used. An example of a plasma processing apparatus is a capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus. The capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus includes a chamber, an upper electrode, and a lower electrode. The lower electrode forms a part of a mounting table and is disposed in the chamber. The upper electrode is disposed above the lower electrode. In the capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus, a gas in the chamber is excited by supplying a radio frequency power to the upper electrode or the lower electrode, and plasma is generated. A substrate on the mounting table is processed by chemical species from the generated plasma.
The capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus may include a DC power supply and may be configured to apply a negative DC voltage from the DC power supply to the upper electrode during the plasma generation in the chamber. A plasma processing apparatus including such a DC power supply is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2006-270019.
During plasma processing for the substrate, it is required to suppress damage to an inner wall surface of the chamber and to efficiently remove deposits adhered to the inner wall surface by plasma cleaning.

Apparatus and method for plasma processing


Improved titanium nitride barrier layers are formed by depositing a first titanium layer; treating this layer with an oxygen plasma to form an oxygen-containing titanium layer thereover; depositing a titanium nitride layer over the oxygen-containing titanium layer; and treating the titanium nitride layer with an oxygen-containing plasma. Robust titanium nitride barrier layers are formed that can prevent spiking by an overlying aluminum contact layer even after heat treatment up to 550.degree. C.

Titanium nitride is a known barrier material used to prevent spiking of metal contacts, such as aluminum, into a silicon substrate. When aluminum is used as a contact material over a silicon substrate, subsequent heat treatment results in interdiffusion between the aluminum and the silicon, forming a conductive path between them that can short out devices. Titanium nitride is used as a barrier between aluminum and silicon.
Titanium nitride can be deposited into contact openings into which aluminum will be subsequently deposited by sputtering a titanium target in the presence of nitrogen and generally an inert gas. It is also known that treatment of a deposited titanium layer with oxygen improves the barrier properties of the titanium nitride layer. Sputtered titanium nitride forms a crystalline material, and spiking can still occur between the interstices of the crystals. Oxygen is adsorbed and fills these interstices, which is known as "stuffing" the titanium nitride. This stuffing has been done traditionally by using a furnace anneal, or heat treatment in a rapid thermal anneal (RTA) chamber with an oxygen-containing atmosphere, While this treatment reduces the spiking problem, both a sputtering chamber and an RTA chamber must be provided.
The adhesion of titanium nitride to silicon has also been improved by sputter depositing a first thin layer of titanium alone in the contact opening. This titanium layer can react with a silicon substrate to form titanium silicide, reducing the resistance of the contact.
A final thin layer of titanium can also be deposited as a wetting layer over the titanium nitride to improve adhesion of an overlying aluminum contact layer.
The deposition of these titanium-containing layers and the oxygen stuffing of the titanium nitride layer can all be carried out in a single sputtering chamber. A titanium target and an inert gas, such as argon, is used to sputter deposit the first layer of titanium; nitrogen gas is added to the chamber and sputtering is continued to form a titanium nitride layer. The oxygen stuffing treatment can be performed in the same chamber by flowing a mixture of oxygen and an inert gas and applying DC power to the target after the titanium nitride deposition.
The titanium nitride can be deposited in two modes; 1) the so-called poisoned mode, in which the titanium target is nitrided and titanium nitride is sputtered from the target; or 2) the metallic mode, in which the target is maintained as metallic titanium, and the titanium is sputtered from the target and reacts with nitrogen on the substrate surface, forming a titanium nitride film on the substrate. The poison mode titanium nitride is not as dense as the metallic mode titanium nitride.
Oxygen stuffing of the titanium layer of a Ti/TiN stack can be used as a barrier layer when titanium nitride is sputter deposited in the metallic mode sputtering method. However, when the titanium nitride is deposited in the poison mode method, the results are less than satisfactory and spiking of an overlying aluminum layer still occurs.
Thus the search for an improved process and improved contacts has continued.


A method of multi-stage combustion of sulfur and nitrogen-bearing coal which provides high combustion efficiency while preventing formation of sulfur- and nitrogen-bearing air pollutants. In the first stage, a major fraction of the hydrocarbons is burned out of the fuel [stage (1a)] at high temperature and the sulfur bound in the coal is freed therefrom and is then captured by reaction with a solid basic compound such as limestone [stage (1b)] at relatively low temperature. In stage 2 the remaining hydrocarbons in the fuel are burned out, and the residual mixture of coal ash and calcium-sulfur compounds is melted, encapsulating the sulfur in the molten slag, and a major portion of the molten compounds is removed from the gas stream. In stage 3, oxidation of CO and H.sub.2 is almost entirely completed and combustion gases are substantially cooled by heat transfer to the working medium. In stage 4, combustion is finally completed in excess air. The entire combustion process is carried out under conditions to prevent formation of oxides of sulfur and nitrogen. In a preferred embodiment oxygen-rich air for combustion is introduced in stages 1a, 2 and 4, and nitrogen-rich air is introduced in stages 1b and 3.

The present invention relates to a method of multi-stage combustion of sulfur- and nitrogen-bearing coal which provides high combustion efficiency and at the same time prevents formation of the air pollutants SO.sub.x and NO.sub.x (oxides of sulfur and nitrogen.)
It is known that during conventional combustion of fossil fuels, the nitrogen and sulfur chemically bound in those fuels can be oxidized to NO.sub.x and SO.sub.x, respectively. In addition, NO.sub.x can be formed by high temperature oxidation of nitrogen in the combustion air. If these acid gases, NO.sub.x and SO.sub.x, are released to the atmosphere, they can be absorbed in atmospheric moisture and thereafter precipitate to earth as acid rain.
The prior art discloses various processes under which nitrogen-bearing fuels and fuels bearing both nitrogen and sulfur can be burned, generally under fuel-rich conditions, to limit emissions of NO.sub.x and SO.sub.x. Examples of prior art patents are:
______________________________________ Blair et al 4,343,606 Carver et al 4,381,718 Ashworth et al 4,395,975 Ashworth et al 4,423,702 Dykema 4,427,362 Adrain et al 4,475,472 Moriarty 4,517,165 Moriarty et al 4,523,532 Brown et al 4,542,704 Brown 4,582.005 Breen et al 4,779,545 Dykema 4,807,542 Bell 4,951,579 Dykema 5,085,156 ______________________________________
None of the prior art teaches the need for an initial very high temperature combustion regime to free sulfur from its bound form in the coal. Neither does the prior art teach the need for both very high and low temperature regimes, together, to first free the sulfur from the coal and then to capture it with alkali materials, to optimize sulfur release and capture. In addition, none of the prior art teaches separation of all or part of the oxygen and nitrogen in the combustion air to provide both oxygen-rich and oxygen-lean combustion air, to sequentially raise and lower combustion temperatures, respectively, as required for optimum control of both SO.sub.x and NO.sub.x.
It is an object of the present invention to efficiently and effectively control emissions of the oxides of both nitrogen (NO.sub.x) and sulfur (SO.sub.x) to atmosphere from processes involving combustion of coal with air.
Another object is the provision of a coal combustion process of the above type which not only controls the above pollutants but results in highly efficient fuel combustion and environmentally benign solid wastes as well.
A still further object is to provide a process as noted above which achieves clean coal combustion, wherein coal is burned to release heat for useful work and particularly to generate steam and electricity.

Coal combustion process for SO.sub.x and NO.sub.x control


A novel method and apparatus for face authentication is disclosed. The disclosed method comprises detecting a motion by a subject within a predetermined area of view, assigning a unique session identification number to the subject detected within a predetermined area of view, detecting a facial area of the subject detected within a predetermined area of view, generating an image of the facial area of the subject, assessing a quality of the image of the facial area of the subject, conducing an incremental training of the image of the facial area of the subject, determining an identity of the subject based on the image of the facial area of the subject, identifying an intent of the subject, and authorizing access to a point of entry based on the determined identity of the subject and based on the intent of the subject.

There are various places in day to day life, where access to assets and resources must be restricted to predefined users to ensure Safety & Security. There has been technology application like RFID Cards, Biometrics to ensure that the authorized person is entering the premises.
Initially, RFID Cards were used as an add-on to photo identity cards, but these cards need to be carried physically by the user at entry & exit. RFID cards require physical touch between the card and scanner & there is a possibility of card being carried by unauthorized person. Due to these challenges, Biometric based inventions are being developed.
IRIS signature is one of the biometric methods used for authentication, in this method individual IRIS structure signature is used to identify the user. IRIS technology needs the user to expose their eyes to the scanner hence it is sequential and time consuming. IRIS signature record needs the user to expose their eyes to scanner for a significant time, leading to strain in the eyes.
A second method of biometrics, which has become popular in recent times is face recognition. In this technology an individual's facial features are extracted from digital image and compared with the stored set of images. Traditionally, face recognition needed to capture an image of the subject person positioned in a certain way that tracks the image that is stored in a database for accurate face recognition. Computational algorithms analyse the relative position, size and shape of the eyes, nose, mouth, jaw, ears, etc. The extracted features are then used to identify the human face. In the prior art of the face recognition systems, the recognition of individuals is done for every individual frame received from the imaging device which is a fragmented method. There is still need for systems which can efficiently conduct face recognition with video input. Even though there are several known video-based face recognition systems, they are mainly used for surveillance needs, so their application as access control system is limited.
Prior art of the face recognition system suggests that there is a need for storing additional or new image of the same user as per the changes in the facial features in addition to the pre-trained face images. In few scenarios, access control system needs to cater to the multiple person entry and exit at same time, in such scenario a session-based tracking of the users is needed. Many of the access control systems cannot identify the person's intentions at the recognition point and require an interactive interface to guide the user, instructing the subject person to clear the sight of the camera to give way for others.
One of the key requirements for an efficient face recognition system is the ability to distinguish between spoof image against a real or live image. There is a possibility for an unauthorized entry of individuals if the face recognition system is not designed for spoof detection. There are few inventions that use hardware augmentation like microphone onto video camera to decide the liveliness of the individual being captured in the camera. A video with microphone might capture environmental noise and can lead to erroneous detection.
A majority of the face recognition systems store the acquired images on the cloud-based storage, this will lead to longer response time along with scope for data security breach. Keeping in view of the data & privacy protection of the individuals, the image and video data of the user's needs to be on-premise through a single network. The local storage mechanism along with local processor is needed for quick response.
In prior art, there are significant methods suggested for registering a new user for face authentication. In these systems user needs to cooperate with the system admin for complete registration. These systems need an external human involvement to register the user. With the advent of mobile technology, a user friendly Do It Yourself (DIY) interface needed for parallel registration of users in bulk numbers. A mobile based administration interface for usage statistics is needed. Typically, the access control privileges are dynamic in nature to enable the users to switch authentication from one door to other and for one door to many.
In majority of the access control systems the face recognition happens sequentially i.e. a single user gets recognized for each authentication session. This kind of system cannot efficiently handle the piggybacking and tailgating. Based on above review of prior art, there is a need for a smart Access control System employing an accurate and dependable face authentication system.

Face authentication based smart access control system


Provided is a Schottky barrier diode which is configured from a Ga2O3-based semiconductor, and has a lower rising voltage than a conventional one. In one embodiment, the Schottky barrier diode 1 is provided which has: a semiconductor layer 10 configured from a Ga2O3-based single crystal; an anode electrode 11 which forms a Schottky junction with the semiconductor layer 10, and has a portion which contacts the semiconductor layer 10 and is composed of Fe or Cu; and a cathode electrode 12.

A Schottky barrier diode, in which a Schottky electrode formed of Pt is connected to a Ga2O3 single crystal, is known (see, e.g., Non-Patent Literature 1). The turn-on voltage (forward voltage) of the Schottky barrier diode described in Non-Patent Literature 1 is 1.23 V.
Also, a Schottky barrier diode, in which a Schottky electrode having a Ni/Au laminated structure is connected onto a Ga2O3 single crystal, is known (see, e.g., Non-Patent Literature 2).
Also, a trench MOS Schottky barrier diode using Si as a semiconductor layer and a trench MOS Schottky barrier diode using SiC as a semiconductor layer are known (e.g., Non-Patent Literatures 3 and 4).


A method separates a multi-component signal by first estimating parameters of the signal. Then, using periodicity-based algebraic separation and energy-based demodulation, the signal is separated into components according to the parameters and constraints. Last, a Teager-Kaiser energy detector is applied to each component to provide a direct current signal for each component, and the constraint for each component used by the separating.

FIG. 1 shows a conventional method for separating a multi-component signal. A mixture of amplitude-frequency modulated signals (AM-FM) and sinusoidal signals occurs frequently in acoustics applications, biological systems, and as signals received by vehicular collision avoidance radars that transmit continuous wave frequency modulation (CWFM) signals.
A single component AM-FM sinusoidal signal is represented asx(t)=A(t)cos(2πft+φ(t)),  (1)where A(t) indicates a time-varying amplitude envelope and φ is the phase angle. A K multi-component signal 110 is given byy(t)=Σi=1KAi(t)cos(2πfit+φi(t)),0<t<T  (2)where T is a signal duration.
Gianfelici et. al., in "Multicomponent AM-FM Representations: An Asymptotically Exact Approach," IEEE Trans. Audio, Speech and Language Processing, vol. 15, no. 3, March 2007, describe a method called an Iterated Hilbert Transform (IHT). Generally, the Hilbert transform is a linear operator that takes a function, u(t), and produces a function, H(u)(t) in the same domain. The IHT can be used to estimate instantaneous frequencies of the components 150 of the signal in equation (2). The performance of IHT is suboptimal when the amplitude of a component is within a close range, e.g., A2/A1=2, in a two component case. The IHT is followed by a Teager-Kaiser energy detector (TKED) based frequency estimator 160, which outputs 170 direct current (DC) component signals.
Santhanam et al., in "Multicomponent AM-FM Demodulation via Periodicity-based Algebraic Separation and Energy-based Demodulation," IEEE Trans. Commun., vol. 48. no. 3, March 2000, describe a method called PASED 150, which is a non-linear method that can separate mixed periodic signals with similar strengths.
PASED works well even when the signals have a small spectral separation. However, PASED needs to know both the period of each signal component and the number of components in the mixture.
Therefore, PASED is generally prefaced by a Double Differencing Function (DDF) 120 to estimate the parameters of the input signal. The parameters include the number of components and their periods. With noisy signals, DDE is also suboptimal.
Therefore, the conventional PASED 130 may not output an optimal separation in low signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) cases. The PASED also uses a zero DC constraint 140 for each sinusoid expected to be in the multi-component signal. If the signal is not integrated over the correct period of a sinusoid, then the DC-constraint is violated, because the integration does not result in a zero value.

Method for separating multi-component signals

Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc.


Equipment for deinking paper pulp, wherein the batch of pulp to be deinked is made to circulate to move from top to bottom whereas the air bubbles are introduced at least in the lower part and move from bottom to top, characterized in that the pulp descends from top to bottom while being recycled in several consecutive and superposed stages.

When recycling old paper, it is first pulped by machinery commonly called pulpers and this pulp then is rid of its diverse foreign bodies called contaminants by being sifted. However, following contaminant elimination, the pulp still contains ink particles which must be eliminated if the pulp is used to manufacture high-grade paper.
It is already known to eliminate ink particles by blowing air into the pulp using bubble-generating injectors: thereupon a foam composed of thousands of bubbles appears above the pulp, the ink particles clinging to the walls of said bubbles.
Much air-injection machinery with which to carry out such deinking already has been described, illustratively in the European patent application EP 0,305,251 filed by applicant and in the German patent DE 35 24 071.
The European patent EP 0,122,747 describes deinking machinery wherein air is injected into a duct through which flows a pulp and which issues into the bottom of a receptacle whereby the bubbles rise through the pulp to form a foam carpet at the pulp surface; the foam is then sucked away.
The German patent DE 35 24 071 describes deinking machinery consisting of an enclosure where the pulp to be deinked is introduced at the said enclosure upper level, said pulp circulating along a spiral from top to bottom through the enclosure, part of this pulp being removed from the enclosure to be aerated and reinjected at the base and at the center of the enclosure.
Research by applicant has discovered that pulp deinking efficiency using air bubbling will be significantly improved by increasing the likelihood the bubbles will collide with the ink particles as said bubbles pass through the pulp.
Now the above described machinery are inadequate in this respect because being designed in such manner that the collision probability of the bubbles and the ink particles and the bubble transit times through the pulp are inadequate.

Paper-pulp deinking method and equipment to implement this method


A shock absorbing cushioning mat designed to protect the compartment liner of a liquid or oil carrying sea going vessel from tear or puncture by steel from the vessel's structure being forced inward by the external pressure created by grounding or collision of a bulk liquid carrying sea going vessel, while providing a firm yet flexible foundation for the compartment liner to eliminate or greatly reduce the potential for spillage of the cargo. The present invention also addresses the problem of compartment liner fasteners coming apart due to the continued motion of a sea going bulk liquid carrying vessel graveling across a body of water.

The compartment liner conception of use with liquid bulk carrying vessels as expressed in the prior art is well known. Compartment liners and buffer zones have been incorporated into modern tanker vessels in an effort to avert the tremendous damage that floating oil spills cause. However, the bulk liquid carrying vessel industry has come under increasing pressure to create safer methods to transport bulk liquids across open seas.
Compartment liners and buffer zones are vulnerable to puncture and tear in the event of grounding or collision wherein steel is forced inward by external pressure. Double hulled vessels have been suggested as a way to avert these inboard steel hazards in the event of grounding or collision. However, the ten to twelve foot void between hulls is wasted space and renders the double hull concept inefficient. Even double hulled vessels are still vulnerable to spills.
Bulk liquid carrying tankers stand thirty to forty feet below the water's surface when loaded. Steel being forced in ward from a severe grounding would likely puncture or fracture the inner hull as there is nothing to absorb the shock of grounding of collision except empty space.
As previously stated, the compartment liner concept is well known in the oil tanker industry. However, the liners in most cases are composed of epoxy based filament reinforced coatings sprayed directly onto the walls of the vessel.
These spray-on coating are intended primarily to guard against leakage of oil or other pollutants through cracks or fractures in the welds of the vessel's steel plating, but would do little in preventing spillage in the event of grounding or collision.
The releasable fixed bag type liner of McLaughlin U.S. Pat. No. 3,844,239 which attached to the wall of the compartment would absorb the full impact or grounding or collision without the benefits of the present invention.
There is not protection provided against ruptures and tearing by steel beams in the event of a collision. The vessel's plating is forced inward in the event of a collision as no counterforce or cushioning effect is offered in the prior art. In the present invention the cargo is contained in the hermetically sealed vinyl bag or liner of a predetermined thickness and spaced apart from the hull of the tanker.
The vinyl liner is fastened in the compartment with enough play in the bag to allow unrestricted movement of the liquid cargo such as oil. The cargo contained within the liner is supported in most part by the vessel's superstructure by shock absorbing coil springs and heavy steel cables encased in thick rubber matting. This arrangement relieves much of the stress from the vessel's steel plating and welded seams.

Oil containment system for protecting the hull of an oil tanker from leaking in the event of grounding or collision


A sprinkler with sprinkling figures changeable with single hand, including a main body, a sprinkling head and a driving unit. One end of the main body is formed with a water inlet, while the other end of the main body is formed with a water outlet. The sprinkling head is formed with multiple annularly arranged subchannels for discharging water. The sprinkling head is rotatably connected with front end of the main body corresponding to the water outlet.

The present invention is related to a sprinkler with variable sprinkling figures, and more particularly to a sprinkler with sprinkling figures changeable with single hand.
FIGS. 1 and 2 show a conventional sprinkling gun capable of varying sprinkling figures. The sprinkling gun includes a main body 91 and a sprinkling head 92. One end of the main body 91 is formed with a water inlet 93, while the other end of the main body 91 is formed with a water outlet 94. The sprinkling head 92 is formed with multiple annularly arranged sprinkling openings and water ducts designed with various sprinkling figures. The ducts communicate with both faces of the sprinkling head 92. The sprinkling head 92 is rotatably connected with front end of the main body 91 corresponding to the water outlet 94. One end of each duct can be aligned with the water outlet 94 for receiving a water flow coming from the water outlet 94. When changing the sprinkling figure, a user must hold the handle of the sprinkling gun with one hand and turn the sprinkling head 92 with the other hand (as shown in FIG. 2). In other words, the user must use both hands to change the sprinkling figure. This is quite inconvenient and the hands of the user will be wetted. Furthermore, when it is desired to change the sprinkling figure, in the case that the user holds the sprinkling gun with one hand and holds a sponge or a brush with the other hand for washing an article, it is necessary for the user to drop the sponge or the brush and vacate one hand for turning the sprinkling head 92. This is also quite inconvenient.

Sprinkler with sprinkling figures changeable with single hand