A mechanism for priority build execution in a continuous integration system is disclosed. A method includes executing, by a computing device in a continuous integration system, a low priority job of the continuous integrations system using a resource of the computing device. The method also includes receiving a high priority job to be executed by the computing device and identifying a conflict at the resource when the high priority job is assigned to execute using the same resource that is currently being used for executing the low priority job. When the conflict is identified, the method further includes suspending the execution of the low priority job, recording a state of the low priority job at a time of the suspension of the execution and executing the high priority job using the resource.

Continuous integration is a modern technology used in software engineering and software quality assurance. Continuous integration is a software development practice of frequently integrating new or changed code with an existing code repository, resulting in multiple integrations. There are various continuous integration systems that exist today. One such system is Jenkins. Jenkins provides a continuous integration system, making it easier for developers to integrate changes to a project and making it easier for users to obtain a fresh build.
However, Jenkins and other continuous integration systems face the problem of system congestion. System congestion occurs when there are several jobs waiting in a queue to be executed. One solution to system congestion is for the continuous integration system to prioritize incoming jobs to be executed, and then execute the high priority, infrequent jobs ahead of the low priority jobs. However, a problem with this prioritization solution is that the high priority jobs often have to wait until the currently-executed jobs are completed, which may take several hours, or even days. Thus, this prioritization solution frequently does not actually solve the above-mentioned system congestion problem in continuous integration systems.
Embodiments of the invention provide a mechanism for priority build execution in a continuous integration system.
According to one embodiment of the invention, the method includes executing, by a computing device in a continuous integration system, a low priority job of the continuous integration system using a resource of the computing device. The method also includes receiving a high priority job to be executed by the computing device and identifying a conflict at the resource when the high priority job is assigned to execute using the same resource that is currently being used for executing the low priority job. When the conflict is identified, the method further includes suspending the execution of the low priority job, recording a state of the low priority job at a time of the suspension of the execution and executing the high priority job using the resource.
According to another embodiment of the invention, the method includes managing, by a priority build execution component of a computing device in a continuous integration system, a low priority job in execution on a first virtual machine (VM) of the computing device and receiving, by the priority build execution module, a high priority job to be executed. The method also includes identifying a conflict such that the high priority job is assigned to be executed by the first VM and when the conflict is identified, suspending the execution of the low priority job on the first VM, and when the execution of the low priority job is suspended, recording a state of the first VM in a snapshot file stored in a hard drive of the computing device. The method further includes stopping execution of the first VM and, while the low priority job is suspended, managing, by the priority build execution component, execution of the high priority job on a second VM.
According to further embodiment of the invention, the method includes managing, by a priority build execution component of a computing device in a continuous integration system, a low priority job that is execution on a first virtual machine (VM) of the computing device and receiving, by the priority build execution component, a high priority job to be executed. The method also includes identifying a conflict such that the high priority job is assigned to be executed by the first VM and when the conflict is identified, suspending execution of the first VM and the low priority job. A state of the first VM and the low priority job at a time of the suspension is maintained in a virtual memory of the first VM. While the first VM and the low priority job are suspended, the method further includes managing, by the priority build execution component, execution of the high priority job on a second VM.
In the following description, numerous details are set forth. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, in order to avoid obscuring the present invention.
Some portions of the detailed descriptions which follow are presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of steps leading to a desired result. The steps are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, though not typically, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times, typically for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like.
It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as "sending", "receiving", "stopping", "suspending", "forwarding", "executing", "determining", "identifying", "recording", "resuming" "managing", "computing", "generating" "detecting", "transferring", "retrieving", "storing" or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.
The present invention also relates to an apparatus for performing the operations herein. This apparatus may be constructed for the specific purposes, or it may comprise a general purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a machine readable storage medium, such as, but not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magnetic-optical disks, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions, each coupled to a computer system bus.
The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general purpose systems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove convenient to construct an apparatus to perform the method steps. The structure for a variety of these systems will appear as set forth in the description below. In addition, the present invention is not described with reference to any particular programming language. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the invention as described herein.
The present invention may be provided as a computer program product, or software, that may include a machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions, which may be used to program a computer system (or other electronic devices) to perform a process according to the present invention. A machine-readable medium includes any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, a machine-readable (e.g., computer-readable) medium includes a machine (e.g., a computer) readable storage medium (e.g., read only memory ("ROM"), random access memory ("RAM"), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, etc.), etc.
Embodiments of the invention disclose systems and methods for providing a priority build execution in a continuous integration system. Continuous integration is a software development practice of frequently integrating new and/or changed code with an existing code repository, resulting in multiple integrations. In one embodiment, a priority build execution module is initialized on a host operation system (OS) to provide a priority build execution optimization for a continuous integration system of the priority build execution module.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a computer system 100 in which embodiments of the present invention may be implemented. In one embodiment, the computer system 100 may be a host machine such as, for example, a server computer, a gateway computer or any other suitable computer system that is configurable for operating as a host. The computer system 100 comprises a hardware platform 106, on top of which runs a host OS 104. The host OS 104 may include Microsoft Windows®, Unix®, Linux®, Solaris®, Mac® OS or any other suitable operating system for managing operations on the computer system 100.
The hardware platform 106 may include one or more central processing units (CPUs) 108 and data storage 118. In one embodiment, the data storage 118 comprises one or more hardware and software devices, which may be located internally and externally to the computer system 100. Examples of data storage 118 may include, but are not limited to, random-access memory (RAM), non-volatile storage memory (e.g., Flash, EEPROM, solid state drives (SSD), etc.), magnetic storage memory (e.g., one or more hard drives), and optical memory (e.g., CDs, DVD, BlueRay drives, etc.). In addition, hardware platform 106 may include additional hardware devices 117, such as network interface cards (NICs), sound or video adaptors, photo/video cameras, printer devices, keyboards, displays or any other suitable device intended to be coupled to a computer system.
The host OS 104 may include one or more software application programs 102 (i.e. applications). In one embodiment, the applications 102 executed by host OS 104 comprise multiple JAVA applications. In some embodiments, the multiple JAVA applications may be separate individual JAVA applications or multiple versions of the same JAVA applications, or a combination of both. The host OS 104 also includes one or more resources 110. A resource 110 is an application-specific or process-specific software construct serving as a communications endpoint. In one embodiment, the resources 110 are application-specific and are utilized to execute the applications 102 executed by the host OS 104. In one embodiment, the one or more resources 110 are network ports, each of which are identified by a port number that is based on an application address of the computer system 100 and a communication protocol used over the port. The host OS 104 also includes one or more memories 116a-116n located internally to the computer system 100. Examples of data storage memories 116a-116n may include, but are not limited to, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), and cache memory.
In some embodiments, the host OS 104 includes a continuation integration system 111. As discussed above, the continuous integration system 111 frequently integrates new or changed code with an existing code repository, resulting in multiple integrations. In some embodiments, the continuous integration system 111 is interfaced by continuous integration application programming interfaces (APIs) to access and retrieve the application codes 102. In other embodiments, the continuous integration system 111 continuously integrates new or changed application codes with existing application codes 102.
In some embodiments, a priority build execution module 112 is integrated in the continuation integration system 111 of the host OS 104. In one embodiment, host OS 104 receives a high priority job to be executed while a low priority job is being executed using a resource 110 by the priority build execution module 112 of the continuous integration system 111. A job is a task or a process to be performed by the computing system 100. Jobs may be performed by a single or multiple programs, commands or script. In one embodiment, a low priority job is a process that utilizes a large amount of memory space and/or takes a large amount of time to complete. Similarly, a high priority job may be a process that utilizes a small amount of memory space and/or takes a short amount of time to complete.
In one embodiment, when the high priority job is received, the priority build execution module 112 determines a resource 110 that the high priority job is assigned to be used for execution, and whether there is conflict on the resource 110. A conflict occurs when the high priority job is assigned to be executed using the same resource 110 that is currently being used for executing the low priority job. As such, both the high priority and the low priority jobs are assigned to use the same resource 110 that cannot be shared at the same time. In one embodiment, if a conflict is detected, then the priority build execution module 112 suspends the low-priority job currently using the resource 110 for execution and records a state of the low priority job at the time of the suspension of the execution. In one embodiment, the state is condition or a status of the job that changes with time. Once the low priority job is suspended, the resource 110 is available to be used for another job and the priority build execution module 112 executes the high priority job using the resource 110. Upon completion of execution of the high priority job, the priority build execution module 112 resumes execution of the low priority job from its recorded state at the suspension using the resource 110.
In some embodiments, virtualization is utilized to provide the priority build execution feature for continuous integration. The host OS 104 may be configured with one or more virtual machines (VMs) 120a-120n. VMs 120a-120n are portions of software that, when executed on appropriate hardware, create an environment that virtualizes a physical computer system. Each of the VMs 120a-120n includes a virtual memory (VMEM) 121a-121n, which is a virtualization of memory 116a-116n of host OS 104. Each of VMs 120a-120n may function as a self-contained platform, comprising one or more virtual devices 122a-122n and running a corresponding guest OS 124a-124n. The guest OS 124a-124n in each of the VMs 120a-120n may be the same or different OSs. Similar to the host OS 104, the guest OS 124a-124n may be Microsoft Windows®, Unix®, Linux®, Solaris®, Macintosh® OS, or any other suitable operating system for managing operations associated with a virtualization environment.
In one embodiment, a hypervisor 114, which emulates the underlying hardware platform 106 for VMs 120a-120n, is provided and may run on host OS 104 of the computer system 100. A hypervisor may also be known as a virtual machine monitor (VMM), a kernel-based hypervisor or a host operating system. The hypervisor 114 may support multiple VMs 120a-120n executing on the host OS 104 of computer system 100. Alternatively, more than one hypervisor (not shown) may be provided to support multiple VMs 120a-120n executing on the host OS 104.
In one embodiment, assume that VM 120a is executing a low priority job using a VMEM 121a. Concurrently, host OS 104 receives a high priority job to be executed by the VM 120a. The priority build execution module 112 determines that there is conflict between jobs on VM 120a because the high priority job is assigned to be executed by VM 120a, which is already executing the low priority job. Once a conflict is determined between a high priority job and a low priority job, the priority build execution module 112 may implement one of two options.
In the first option, when the conflict is detected, the priority build execution module 112 suspends the execution of the low priority job on the VM 120a. Then, a state of the low priority job at the time of the suspension is recorded by taking a snapshot of the VM at the time of the suspension of the low priority job. In one embodiment, the snapshot is a file-based representation of the state of the VM 120a at the time of the suspension. In one embodiment, the snapshot of the state of VM 120a is stored in a hard drive of the computer system 100, such as in the data storage 118. After the snapshot of VM 120a has been taken and stored, execution of VM 120a is stopped on the computing device 100.
The priority build execution module 112 then executes the high priority job at another VM, such as VM 120b using the VMEM 121b. Upon completion of the execution of the high priority job at VM 120b, the priority build execution module 112 retrieves the previously-recorded VM snapshot file from the hard drive (i.e., data storage 118), and resumes the execution of the low priority job from the recorded state of the low priority job at the time of the suspension. The execution of the low priority job is resumed at VM 120a.
In the second option, when the conflict is detected between the high priority job and the low priority job, the priority build execution module 112 suspends the execution of the VM 120a itself, which consequently results in the suspension of the low priority job at the same time. The state of the VM 120a, which includes the state of the low priority job, is maintained in memory, such as VMEM 121a, of the VM 120a while the VM 120a is in the suspended state. While VM 120a (and the low priority job) is in a suspended state, the priority build execution module 112 executes the high priority job in another VM, such as VM 120b using the VMEM 121b. Upon completion of the execution of the high priority job, the priority build execution module 112 resumes the execution both the VM (e.g. VM 12a) and the low priority job from the recorded state in the VM 120a-120n originally executing the low priority job (e.g., VM 120a) using the VMEM 121a-121n of that VM 120a-120n (e.g., 121a).
FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 200 for providing priority build execution for continuous integration according to an embodiment of the present invention. Method 200 may be performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (e.g., circuitry, dedicated logic, programmable logic, microcode, etc.), software (such as instructions run on a processing device), firmware, or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, method 200 is performed by the priority build execution module 112 in the continuous integration 111 of FIG. 1.
Method 200 begins at block 210 where a low priority job is executed in a continuous integration system 111 using a resource 110 and one of the memories such as memory 116a. As discussed above, a resource is an application-specific or process-specific software construct serving as a communications endpoint. At block 212, a high priority job is received. At block 214, the priority build execution module 112 determines that a conflict exists when a resource assigned to be used to execute the high priority job is same as the resource 110 that is currently being used for executing the low priority job. At block 216, the priority build execution module 112 suspends the execution of the low priority job using the resource 110. At block 218, the priority build execution module 112 records a state of the low priority job at the time of the suspension. As discussed above, the state is condition or a status of the job that changes with time. Once the low priority job is suspended, the resource 110 is available to be used for another job. At block 220, the high priority job is executed using the resource 110 and the memories such as 116b and 116c of the memories 116. Upon completion of the high priority job at block 222, execution of the low priority job is resumed from its recorded state at the time of the suspension using the resource 110 and the memory 116a.
FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 300 for providing priority build execution for continuous integration according to an embodiment of the present invention. Method 300 may be performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (e.g., circuitry, dedicated logic, programmable logic, microcode, etc.), software (such as instructions run on a processing device), firmware, or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, method 300 is performed by the priority build execution module 112 in the continuous integration 111 of FIG. 1.
Method 300 begins at block 310 where a low priority job is executed on a VM such as VM 120a using a VMEM such as VMEM 121a associated with the VM 120a. As discussed above, the execution of the low priority job is managed in the continuous integration system 111. At block 312, a high priority job to be executed is received by a host OS 104. At block 314, priority build execution module 112 determines that a conflict exists between the jobs when the high priority job is assigned to be executed by the VM 120a which is already executing the low priority job. At block 316, the low priority job being executed on the VM 120a is suspended by the priority build execution module 112. Then, at block 318, a state of the VM 120a at the time of the suspension is recorded by the priority build execution module 112 by taking a snapshot of the VM at the time of the suspension of the low priority job. In one embodiment, the snapshot is a file-based representation of the state of the VM 120a at the time of the suspension. At block 320, the snapshot of the state of VM 120a is stored in a hard drive of the computer system 100, such as in the data storage 118. After the snapshot of VM 120a has been taken and stored, the priority build execution module 112 stops the execution of VM 120a on the computing device 100 at block 322. The priority build execution module 112 then at block 324 executes the high priority job at another VM such as VM 120b using another VMEM such as VMEM 121b associated with the VMEM 120b. Upon completion of the execution of the high priority job, at block 324, the priority build execution module 112 at block 326 retrieves the previously-recorded VM snapshot file from the hard drive (i.e. data storage 118). At block 328, the priority build execution module 112 resumes the execution of both the VM 120a and the low priority job from the recorded state of the VM 120a and the low priority job at the time of the suspension.
FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 400 for providing priority build execution for continuous integration according to an embodiment of the present invention. Method 400 may be performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (e.g., circuitry, dedicated logic, programmable logic, microcode, etc.), software (such as instructions run on a processing device), firmware, or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, method 400 is performed by the priority build execution module 112 in the continuous integration 111 of FIG. 1.
Method 400 begins at block 410 where a low priority job is executed on VM such as VM 120a using a VMEM such as VMEM 121a associated with the VM 120a. As discussed above, the execution of the low priority job is managed in the continuous integration system 111. At block 412, a high priority job is received by a host OS 104. At block 414, priority build execution module 112 determines that a conflict exists between the jobs when the high priority job is assigned to be executed by the VM 120a which is already executing the low priority job. At block 416, the priority build execution module 112 suspends the execution of the VM 120a, which consequently, results in the suspension of the low priority job at the same time. At block 418, the state of VM 120a which includes the state of the low priority job is maintained in the memory VMEM 121a. While VM 120a (and the low priority job) is in a suspended state, at block 420, the priority build execution module 112 executes the high priority job in another VM, such as VM 120b using another VMEM such as the VMEM 121b associated with the VM 120b. Upon completion of the execution of the high priority job at block 418, the priority build execution module 112 at block 422 resumes the execution of both the VM 120a and the low priority job from the state maintained in the VMEM 121a in the VM 120a.
FIG. 5 illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the exemplary form of a computer system 500 within which a set of instructions, for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, may be executed. In alternative embodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines in a LAN, an intranet, an extranet, or the Internet. The machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a client-server network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a server, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.
The computer system 500 includes a processing device 502, a memory 504 (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) (such as synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) or Rambus DRAM (RDRAM), etc.), a static memory 506 (e.g., flash memory, static random access memory (SRAM), etc.), and a data storage device 518, which communicate with each other via a bus 530.
Processing device 502 represents one or more general-purpose processing devices such as a microprocessor, central processing unit, or the like. More particularly, the processing device may be complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, reduced instruction set computer (RISC) microprocessor, long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, or processor implementing other instruction sets, or processors implementing a combination of instruction sets. Processing device 502 may also be one or more special-purpose processing devices such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), network processor, or the like. The processing device 502 is configured to execute priority build execution logic 522 for performing the operations and steps discussed herein. In one embodiment, performance build execution module 112 described with respect to FIG. 1 performs the priority build execution logic 522.
The computer system 500 may further include a network interface device 408. The computer system 500 also may include a video display unit 510 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)), an alphanumeric input device 512 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 514 (e.g., a mouse), and a signal generation device 516 (e.g., a speaker).
The data storage device 518 may include a machine-accessible storage medium (or more specifically a computer-readable storage medium) 520 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g. priority build execution logic 522) embodying any one or more of the methodologies of functions described herein, such as methods 200, 300 and 400 for providing priority build execution in a continuous integration system described with respect to FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 respectively. The priority build execution module logic 522 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the memory 404 and/or within the processing device 502 during execution thereof by the computer system 500; the memory 504 and the processing device 502 also constituting machine-accessible storage media.
The machine-readable storage medium 520 may also be used to store the priority build execution module logic 522 persistently containing methods that call the above applications. While the machine-accessible storage medium 520 is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term "machine-accessible storage medium" should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term "machine-accessible storage medium" shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instruction for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. The term "machine-accessible storage medium" shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media.
It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading and understanding the above description. Although the present invention has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments, it will be recognized that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described, but can be practiced with modification and alteration within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Priority build execution in a continuous integration system


A jewelry safety clasp includes a female member and a male member. The female clasp member includes a hollow housing, and a locking member slidably connected to the housing. The locking member has a push button disposed at one end thereof that projects through an opening in the housing. The locking member slides between a first locked position and a second unlocked position. A spring biases the locking member into the locked position. The male clasp member includes a shaft having a first reduced diameter portion adjacent to its free end and a second reduced diameter portion spaced from the first reduced diameter portion. In the locked position, the shaft is received within the housing with the locking member disposed about the second reduced diameter portion, thereby preventing said shaft from moving axially with respect to the housing.

The present invention relates to jewelry safety clasps for use with jewelry items such as necklaces, bracelets, etc. More specifically, the present invention relates to a jewelry safety clasp that has a primary locked position and a safety locked position to prevent the inadvertent opening of the clasp.
Jewelry safety clasps for selectively securing the ends of a chain together are known. One type of clasp is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,001,923 and 4,286,360. In these patents there is described a clasp having a male and a female member which are adapted to be clasped together by releasable locking means engaging the male member to hold it within the female member. The locking means is disposed in the female member and includes an integral one piece member having a locking portion for engaging the male member, a resilient portion for biasing a locking portion against the male member, and an actuating portion for moving the locking portion relative to the pressure of the resilient portion for releasing the male member, to thereby permit retraction thereof from the female member. The female member also includes holding means to position the resilient portion relative to the female member.
In this clasp, should the actuating portion be inadvertently actuated, for example, by an undesired external force, the female member will retract from the male member, often without the person wearing the jewelry item being aware that the clasp has opened. Thus, the person runs the risk of losing the jewelry item.
Attempts have been made to provide a clasp with a safety catch. Among these attempts are the use of a separate chain that is fixedly attached to either the male or female member. The free end of the chain is attachable to the other member. Thus, should the clasp inadvertently open, the chain serves to keep the male and female members connected together. This type of safety chain requires the use of additional material, which can detract from the appearance of the clasp. In addition, the connection of the free end of the chain to the other member is usually an interference fit that deteriorates over time.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a jewelry safety clasp that prevents the inadvertent opening of the clasp.
The jewelry safety clasp in accordance with the present invention achieves the above and other objects in a currently preferred exemplary embodiment that includes a female member and a male member. The female clasp member includes a hollow housing, and a locking member slidably connected to the housing. The locking member has a push button disposed at one end thereof that projects through an opening in the housing. The locking member slides between a first locked position and a second unlocked position. A spring biases the locking member into the locked position. The male clasp member includes a shaft having a first reduced diameter portion adjacent to its free end and a second reduced diameter portion spaced from the first reduced diameter portion. In the locked position, the shaft is received within the housing with the locking member disposed about the second reduced diameter portion, thereby preventing said shaft from moving axially with respect to the housing.

100 United Nations Plaza, 327 E. 48th Street, Apt. 38A


The invention provides a method for tightening threaded fasteners in a flange joint or the like, which comprises initially tightening each fastener to a predetermined initial load or stress, measuring the final load, stress, strain or elongation of each fastener after all fasteners have been tightened, and calculating interaction coefficients from the experimental data thus obtained. The interaction coefficients are representative of elastic interactions occurring between each fastener in the system, and enable an initial fastener strain value or load to be predicted for each fastener in the system. Using the predicted initial strain, stress or load values and the interaction coefficients for each fastener and applying an initial stress to each bolt in a second test in accordance with these calculations, allows updating of the interaction coefficient values along with the predictions of initial loads so as to enable calculation of preloads on each bolt which will yield essentially uniform bolt stress. The method compensates for elastic interactions between fasteners in the system and is self-correcting to reduce effects of flange surface misalignment.

The problem of achieving a uniform stress in all the fasteners of a flange joint or connection has been known for some time. There have been a number of studies by different investigators, and numerous patents and publications have resulted.
Typical attempts at solving the problem of obtaining uniform stress in all fasteners such as bolts of a bolted joint, involved methods of torque control with multiple passes of a predetermined tightening sequence. A "pass" in the context of bolt tightening refers to tightening of all of the bolts in a joint once. Such attempts sometimes assume that the application of essentially uniform torque to each bolt during tightening will result in essentially uniform stresses in all of the bolts in the tightened joint. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,969,105 is representative of tightening methods involving torque control. The patent describes a method for tightening bolts in a gasketed joint and includes a method for compensating for gasket compression, which has been found to induce the undesirable effect of relaxation or loss of fastener tension due to continued compression of a gasket after torque upon a bolt is eliminated. This method includes monitoring and control of a drive system to continuously compare a torque related variable, such that the drive system will apply pulses of torque until the application of torque causes only insignificant increases in gasket compression.
Research has found that the bolt stress for a given applied torque varies greatly due to changes in the coefficient of friction. Research has further shown that interaction between bolts and other alignment problems contribute more to the variation and final bolt loads than do problems associated with torque control. Attention is called to J. H. Bickford, "The Bolting Technology Council and the Search for More Accurate PreLoad", Advances in Bolted Joint Technology, 1989, PVP Volume 158, Honolulu, Hi. U.S.A., Jul. 23-27, 1989.
Another alternative method involves control of the rotational angle through which a bolt or the like is turned. It has been found that the tightening force or axial tension of the fastener is closely related and increases according to the angle of rotation during tightening. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,413,396 and 4,685,050 furnish examples of methods for tightening threaded fasteners wherein the torque/rotational angle characteristics are compared and matched with theoretical values to achieve proper tightening of the fastener. Another bolt tightening procedure was described by D. H. Van Campen, "A Systematic Bolt-Tightening Procedure for Reactors Vessel Flanges", First International Conference on Pressure Vessel Technology, Sep. 29, 1969 to Oct. 2, 1969, pages 131-141, 1969. The author, working with bolted flange connections for a high pressure reactor vessel, developed a set of equations for such vessels that involved hydraulic jack pressures and bolt strain. The test reactor included a bolted flange having 36 bolts which were separated into four series, wherein the method assumed a single constant for all of the bolts in a series. Such an assumption has been found not to hold true, especially as the flange joint becomes more complex. It was further assumed that the flange was symmetrical which assumes either that the flange has no imperfections or that any such perfections are symmetrically located. A further assumption was made in that the elastic interaction between bolts of a system remain constant. The method obtained reasonable agreement between theoretical or calculated jack pressures and those actually required when tightening all bolts to a uniform low pressure, but had much greater discrepancies between theoretical and actual jack pressures when the bolts were tightened to higher pressures.
In spite of the considerable study of the problems of tightening bolts or other threaded fasteners in a joint so as to obtain substantially uniform stress on each bolt, no one heretofore has achieved a method in which all of the bolts in a joint can be tightened to essentially the same final stress after interaction in a single pass, or in a real time operation wherein the number of tightening passes is greatly reduced and joint reliability greatly increased.


The present invention is directed to a non-caffeine containing brewable coffee containing (a) white corn, (b) allspice pepper or cloves or mixture thereof and (c) cinnamon or vanilla or mixture thereof.

The present invention relates to a coffee-substitute and more particularly, to a coffee-substitute produced from white corn.
Hot coffee beverages are widely consumed throughout the world and are generally prepared from roasted coffee. Many consumers enjoy the taste and/or aroma of roasted coffee. In addition, many consumers believe that the consumption of coffee reduces stress during the workday.
The U.S. consumes about 70% of the world""s coffee crop or about 3 cups a day for each American. Coffee beverages contain about 100 mg caffeine per cup (per 8 ounces).
Unfortunately, caffeine has many adverse side effects. Caffeine stimulates the nervous system. Excessive amounts of caffeine can make people tense, irritable, and unable to sleep. It also increases diuresis and dilates the vascular system. In some cases, it elevates the heart rate to unsafe levels. Caffeine can also irritate the alimental canal. It is common for people diagnosed with sensitive stomachs, colons and the like to be required, as part of their medical treatment, to refrain from ingesting caffeine. Moreover, caffeine can penetrate the placenta and is possibly linked to birth defects.
As a result of the health problems associated with the ingestion of excessive caffeine, such as those enumerated hereinabove, in 1980, the Food and Drug Administration has removed caffeine from its Generally Recognized As SAFE (GRAS) list to an interim list. In view of the health concerns related to the ingestion of excessive amounts of caffeine, to avoid excessive consumption of caffeine, many consumers began drinking decaffeinated coffee or beverages prepared from coffee substitutes.
Coffee substitutes have been prepared from various starch materials. For example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,137,324 to Shirbroun, green soybeans are used to make coffee substitutes. More specifically, green soy beans are defatted, preferably by crushing, prior to grinding and roasting. In one embodiment, the green soybeans are presoaked prior to crushing and defatting. Thereafter, the crushed, defatted soybeans are dried at 250xc2x0 F. to 350xc2x0 F. to a moisture content of from 11 to 13 wt %. The dried soybeans are then ground and roasted. Shirbroun prefers slow roasting, preferably at 350xc2x0 F. to 325xc2x0 F. for up to 45 minutes, until the product has the appearance of ground coffee.
While consumers describe the brewed product prepared in accordance with the method of Shirbroun as having the appearance and taste of coffee, they also noted some soy aroma. To many coffee drinkers aroma is essential to the enjoyment of coffee. Accordingly, the coffee thus prepared is not entirely satisfactory to all coffee drinkers.
Moreover, consumers who enjoy the taste imparted by beverages prepared from caffeinated coffee found the taste of decaffeinated coffee or other coffee substitutes unsatisfactory. A great majority of consumers are unable to accept those products as a substitute for caffeinated regular coffee due to their somewhat inferior taste, aroma, and flavor. Many consumers thus avoid drinking non-caffeinated coffee or coffee substitutes for this reason and have continued to drink regular caffeinated coffee.
Nevertheless, a large number of consumers are desirous of obtaining a product containing significantly lower amounts of caffeine than in pure coffee products, provided the product could yield a brewed beverage closely resembling brewed coffee in taste, flavor and aroma. Unfortunately, to date, no such product has been satisfactory.
The present inventor has found such a product. It has the taste, aroma and appearance of caffeinated coffee, but it is not coffee. In fact, it does not contain any caffeine, and thus avoids the health problems associated with caffeinated coffee.
The present invention is directed to a coffee-like product, the composition of which contains white corn, a first component selected from the group consisting of whole allspice pepper and whole cloves or combination thereof, and a second component selected from the group consisting of cinnamon and vanilla or combination thereof, said first and second components and corn being roasted together and ground, said white corn being present as the major component, and the first and second components being present together in amounts sufficient to mask the corn flavor and to impart a coffee-like aroma thereto.
The present invention is directed to a coffee-substitute comprised of white corn, allspice pepper or cloves or combination thereof and cinnamon or vanilla or combination thereof.
The major component of the coffee-like composition of the present invention is white corn, which is usually the whole ground or stone-ground corn. Of all of the corn products, the present inventor has found that white corn is the most preferable. The white corn product used in the present composition is commercially available. The white corn should be a relatively dry solid. It should be removed from the stalk, which is effected by conventional methods. The whole kernel is used, which may be obtained commercially or from white corn on the cob and the kernel removed by conventional means. In addition, in lieu of the grain and whole kernel corn, a ground product may be utilized or a combination of any of the aforementioned forms. In fact, the present inventor has found that the white corn commercially available could be used as is to make the present coffee-like product by the present process, i.e., no further treatments are required.
The present inventor has found that a product prepared from the white corn itself, without any additional ingredients, is totally unsatisfactory. It had a very strong bitter taste. It did not possess the flavor, aroma or taste of coffee.
To mask the bitter taste and to impart the coffee flavor thereto, the present inventor added additional components thereto.
The first component added thereto is whole allspice pepper, or whole cloves or a combination thereof.
Allspice pepper is the dried, unripe berries of a shiny leafed evergreen tree indigenous to the western hemisphere. The berries are reddish brown, round and smooth and about 1 cm in diameter. The flavor thereof has been described as a combination of spices, viz., cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg. It is commercially available and is sold as a relatively dry solid. The commercial product can be used xe2x80x9cas isxe2x80x9d without further treatment.
Cloves are the dried unopened flower buds of an evergreen tree of the myrtle family. Cloves are 1-1.25 um long and resemble a rounded top nail. It has a strong and aromatic flavor. It is commercially available. It is commercially sold as a relatively dry product. Whole cloves can be used xe2x80x9cas isxe2x80x9d without further treatment.
The preferred first component is whole allspice pepper.
The second component is cinnamon, or vanilla or combination thereof.
Cinnamon, as used herein is either Cassia (species Cinnamomum cassia) or the species Cinnamomum zeylanicum. True cinnamon, from the latter species, has a pale color and has a very mild delicate flavor. Cassia, which is what is generally imported into the United States and which is generally sold in supermarkets, is darker red with a much stronger flavor. Both come from the bark of evergreen trees, which is peeled off and allowed to curl into cinnamon sticks. It is preferred that the cinnamon used in the process of the present invention is cassia. In addition, it is preferred that the cinnamon used in the present process is in the form of a stick. The cinnamon should be relatively dry. The cinnamon is commercially available in the United States and can be used as commercially sold, without further treatment.
Vanilla, as used herein, is the common term for the alcoholic extract of the vanilla bean, which is the fruit of a thick tropical vanilla orchid vine. The vanilla that is useful in the present invention is the extract that has been cured by techniques known in the art, which includes the following well known steps: (1) wetting or killing of the vanilla bean; (2) sweating the wetted beans; (3) drying the sweated beans; and (4) conditioning of the dried bean in closed containers, e.g., boxes, where they finish developing their fragrance. Vanilla extract is commercially available. The vanilla that is useful in the present invention is a solid and relatively dry. It is commercially available in the United States and can be used as is without further treatment.
It is preferred that the second component is cinnamon (especially cassia), especially in the form of a cinnamon stick.
All of the components used to make the coffee-like product of the present invention must be in solid form; liquids cannot be used in the present process, since it is critical that the components are ground to make the coffee-like product of the present invention. Moreover, they must be substantially dry. Preferably, the amount of moisture present in each of the individual ingredients is no greater than that which is commercially sold.
Of all of the components, the white corn is present in the coffee-like product of the present invention in the greatest amount. It is present in greater than 50% by weight of the coffee-like product of the present invention and more preferably greater than about 65% by weight of the product.
As indicated hereinabove, the first and second components are present in sufficient concentrations such that when roasted and ground with the white corn they mask the bitter flavor of the corn and impart the coffee aroma, taste and appearance thereto. Moreover, the second component is present by weight in amounts greater than the first component. More preferably, the second and first components are present in a weight ratio ranging from about 1:1 to about 5:1 and even more preferably from about 1.25:1 to about 3:1 and most preferably at about 15:1, respectively.
The weight ratio of the white corn to the first component preferably ranges from about 16:1 to about 75:1 and more preferably from about 18:1 to about 28:1 and most preferably at about 23.5:1. In addition, the weight ratio of the white corn to the second component preferably ranges from about 8:1 to about 60:1 and more preferably about 10:1 to about 25:1 and most preferably at about 16:1.
In a preferred embodiment, the white corn is present in an amount ranging from about 65% by weight to about 97% by weight, more preferably from about 75% to about 95% by weight and most preferably from about 85% to about 93% by weight of the composition of the coffee-like product of the present invention.
In a preferred embodiment, the first component is present in an amount ranging from about 1% to about 6% by weight and more preferably from about 3% to about 5% by weight of the composition of the coffee-like product of the present invention.
It is furthermore preferred that the second component is present in an amount ranging from about 1.0% to about 8% by weight and more preferably from about 1.5% to about 8% by weight and even more preferably from about 3.5% to about 7% by weight of the composition of the coffee-like product of the present invention, however the second component is present in greater amounts than the first component.
It is especially preferred that the white corn is present in the coffee like composition of the present invention in an amount ranging from about 75% to about 95%, the first component is present in an amount ranging from about 1% to about 6% and the second component is present from about 1% to about 8% by weight, with the second component being present in greater amounts than the first component. More preferably, the white corn is present in an amount ranging from about 85% to about 93% by weight, the first component in an amount ranging from about 3% to about 5% by weight and the second component in an amount ranging from about 3.5% to about 7% by weight of the composition of the coffee-like product of the present invention, with the second component being present in greater amounts than the first component. It is to be noted that the sum of all of the percentages cannot be greater than 100%.
In addition to the above three components, the coffee-like composition of the present invention may contain adjuvants normally added to make coffee like products. They also must be solid and be relatively dry. Examples include cocoa, rye and nuts, including cashews and almonds and the like or combination thereof. If a nut is utilized, the nut is preferably deshelled. These components are also commercially available and can be used as is without further treatment or purification. If adjuvants are present, they are present in an amount up to about 5% by weight of the coffee-like composition of the present invention.
The coffee-like product of the present invention is prepared from standard techniques known to one of ordinary skill in the art. For example, the white corn, the first component, and the second component and optionally the adjuvants are mixed together, roasted and ground using standard techniques in the art. The order of the steps is not important. In other words, the ingredients can be roasted first and then ground or vice versa. However, it is preferred that the ingredients are roasted and then ground.
The ingredients are roasted in much the same manner that coffee beans are roasted. As is well known to those skilled in the art of coffee roasting processes, the roasters employed may be batch roasters, continuous roasters, or a frying pan and the like. It is preferred that the ingredients are roasted on a frying pan. It is preferred that the roasting temperatures range from about 250xc2x0 F. to about 375xc2x0 F. and most preferably from about 300xc2x0 F. to about 350xc2x0 F. Of course, the length of time will vary, depending upon the size of the batch and the like. Moreover, the roasting endpoint is often achieved by color examination. In this case the ingredients are roasted until the product has the appearance of ground coffee. However, the roasting endpoint may also be achieved by color examination as defined by a Hunter Color Scale Value. The Hunter Scale is a well known means of defining the color of a given material. A complete technical description of the system can be found in an article by R. S. Hunter, xe2x80x9cPhotoelectric Color Difference Meterxe2x80x9d, Journal of the Optical Society of America, 48, 985-95, 1958, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Devices specifically designed for the measurement of color on the Hunter scales are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,003,388 to Hunter, et al., the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. In general, the Hunter color xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d scale values are units of light reflectance measurement, and the higher the value is, the lighter the color is since lighter colored material reflects more light. In particular, in the Hunter color system, the xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d scale contains 100 equal units of division; absolute black is at the bottom of the scale (L=0) and absolute white is at the top of the scale (L=100). Thus, in measuring Hunter Color value of the coffee-like product of the present invention, the lower the xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d scale value, the darker the product. The xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d scale value described herein are also an accurate means of defining the degree of roast necessary to produce a product which when roasted gives a product with the L scale values herein described. Determination of optimum roasting conditions is within the skill of one of knowledgeable in the field and can be determined after a few Hunter Color measurements of degrees of roast of the coffee-like product of the present invention and comparison of the roasted and ground color values associated with roasted ground and coffee color values. Of course, the Hunter Color Scales is just one means employed; many times roasting is to the point at which one of ordinary skill in the art knows the color to be correct based upon years of coffee roasting experience.
After roasting, the components are cooled to ambient temperatures.
The components are ground by conventional means known to one of ordinary skill in the art, for example, in a Grindmaster Mill or a conventional blender. The size of the grind may be determined by Tyler sieves to allow optimum extraction of flavor, aroma and color. The ingredients are ground to the conventional regular drip or find grind sizes as those terms used in the traditional sense in the coffee industry. As a guideline, the standards of the grinds as suggested in the 1940 simplified Practice Recommendation by the United States Department of Commerce are as follows: xe2x80x9cRegular grindxe2x80x9d, 33 percent is retained on a 14 mesh Tyler Standard sieve, 55 percent is retained on a 28 mesh Tyler Standard sieve and 12 percent passes through a 28 Mesh Tyler standard sieve xe2x80x9cdrip grindxe2x80x9d; 7 percent retained on a 14 Mesh Tyler Standard sieve and 27 percent passes through a 28 Mesh Tyler Standard sieve; and xe2x80x9cfine grindxe2x80x9d, 100 percent passes through a 14 mesh Tyler sieve and 30 percent passes through a 28 Tyler Standard sieve.
After the ground and roast product is prepared as described herein, it may be packaged in the same manner as roast and ground coffee in vacuum cans and shipped for sale. Alternatively it may be stored in an air tight containers. Once stored, it can be used indefinitely; its shelf life being a year or more. The coffee prepared in accordance with the present invention can also be stored in a refrigerator to preserve the delightful smell.
The novel product of the present invention can be brewed like conventional roast and ground coffee. It looks like roast and ground coffee. The particles flow like particles of roast and ground coffee. The product can be brewed for preparation of coffee-like beverages in the fashion of xe2x80x9cdrip coffeexe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cpercolated coffeexe2x80x9d, for coffee brewing machines employing a coffee packet and filter or placed in a coffee strainer or filter and steeped, or the like. For example, brewing of the beverage of this invention by conventional percolation means is just exactly the same as brewing conventional roast and ground coffee. The ground and roasted product of the present invention is placed, using typical measurements, in a conventional coffee percolator, and the brew is perked with the result being a clear brown beverage. The product thus produced has the typical coffee appearance, taste and smell.
The more coffee-like product of the present invention used in brewing, the stronger the coffee taste, while the less coffee like product used, the weaker the coffee taste, just like with regular coffee. The coffee product of the present invention can be drunk cold or hot. It may be drunk plain, sweetened and/or with milk or cream.
The present coffee-like product of the present invention has the advantages over regular coffee in that it lacks caffeine and thus consumers ingesting the same do not suffer from the health problems associated therewith. It has a nutritional profile better than that of regular coffee. Moreover, it has the color and appearance, taste and aroma of coffee. Thus, not only does the product of the present invention appeal to consumers interested in health foods and concerned about caffeine, but it also appeals to the regular coffee drinkers as well.
As used herein, unless indicated to the contrary, percentages are by dry weight.
Moreover, the plural signifies the singular and vice-versa.
The following non-limiting example further illustrates the present invention.


A position sensor assembly for sensing the rotary position of a rockshaft of a hitch mechanism includes a rotary potentiometer coupled to the rockshaft. The rockshaft is enclosed in a rockshaft housing and a sensor housing is attached to the rockshaft housing. The potentiometer is attached to an outside surface of the sensor housing and has a sensor shaft which extends through a portion of the sensor housing. The position sensor has a first set of gear teeth on the rockshaft meshing with a second set of gear teeth on the sensor shaft. The sensor housing at least partially encloses the second set of gear teeth. The first and second sets of gear teeth are preferably configured as gear segments. The sensor shaft is supported for rotation by the sensor housing. The potentiometer is preferably a spring-pre-loaded potentiometer. A second spring is mounted on the second set of gear teeth and is engagable with a wall of the sensor housing to define an assembly position.

The invention relates to a position sensor for sensing the rotational position of a shaft, in particular the rotational position of the rockshaft of the hitch mechanism of an agricultural tractor.
From U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,365, issued 10 August 1982 to Rajagopai et al., it is known to use a rotary potentiometer to sense the rotary position of the rockshaft of the hitch mechanism of an agricultural tractor. The output signal of such a position sensor may then be used as the actual position signal applied to an electronic controller. It would be desirable to provide such a position sensor which is reliable, simple to install and protected from dirt contamination.


Hot rolling is performed on a steel with a predetermined composition containing Ti: 0.0020 mass % to 0.010 mass % and/or Cu: 0.010 mass % to 0.50 mass % to obtain a hot-rolled steel sheet. Annealing is performed on the hot-rolled steel sheet to obtain an annealed steel sheet. Cold rolling is performed on the annealed steel sheet to obtain a cold-rolled steel sheet. Decarburization annealing and nitridation annealing are performed on the cold-rolled steel sheet to obtain a decarburized nitrided steel sheet. Then, finish annealing is performed on the decarburized nitrided steel sheet. When obtaining the decarburized nitrided steel sheet, heating on the cold-rolled steel sheet is started in a decarburizing and nitriding atmosphere, then first annealing is performed at a first temperature within a predetermined range, and then second annealing is performed at a second temperature within a predetermined range.

A grain-oriented electrical steel sheet is a steel sheet which contains Si and in which crystal grains are highly integrated in a {110}<001> orientation, and is used as a material of a wound core of a stationary induction apparatus such as a transformer. The control of the orientation of the crystal grains is conducted with catastrophic grain growth phenomenon called secondary recrystallization.
As a method of controlling the secondary recrystallization, the following two methods can be cited. In one method, heating is performed on a slab at a temperature of 1280° C. or higher to almost completely solid-solve fine precipitates called inhibitors, and thereafter hot rolling, cold rolling, annealing and so on are performed to cause the fine precipitates to precipitate during the hot rolling and the annealing. In the other method, heating is performed on a slab at a temperature of lower than 1280° C., and thereafter hot rolling, cold rolling, decarburization annealing, nitriding, finish annealing and so on are performed to cause AlN (Al, Si)N and the like to precipitate as inhibitors during the nitriding. The former method is sometimes called a high-temperature slab heating method, and the latter method is sometimes called a low-temperature slab heating method.
In the low-temperature slab heating method, nitridation annealing is normally performed after decarburization annealing also serving as primary recrystallization annealing is performed, and the decarburization annealing and the nitridation annealing are tried to be simultaneously performed in recent years. If it becomes possible to simultaneously perform the decarburization annealing and the nitridation annealing, it becomes possible to perform them in one furnace and use existing annealing facilities, and to reduce the total treatment time required for annealing and suppress the energy consumption.
However, simultaneously performing the decarburization annealing and the nitridation annealing causes a remarkable variation in magnetic property (magnetic property deviation) depending on site, after the finish annealing performed with the steel being coiled.

Method of manufacturing grain-oriented electrical steel sheet

NIPPON STEEL & SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION


Systems and methods for enhancing a headset user's own voice include at least two outside microphones, an inside microphone, audio input components operable to receive and process the microphone signals, a voice activity detector operable to detect speech presence and absence in the received and/or processed signals, and a cross-over module configured to generate an enhanced voice signal. The audio processing components includes a low frequency branch comprising low pass filter banks, a low frequency spatial filter, a low frequency spectral filter and an equalizer, and a high frequency branch comprising highpass filter banks, a high frequency spatial filter, and a high frequency spectral filter.

Personal listening devices (e.g., headphones, earbuds, etc.) commonly include one or more speakers allowing a user to listen to audio and one or more microphones for picking up the user's own voice. For example, a smartphone user wearing a Bluetooth headset may desire to participate in a phone conversation with a far-end user. In another application, a user may desire to use the headset to provide voice commands to a connected device. Today's headsets are generally reliable in noise-free environments. However, in noisy situations the performance of applications such as automatic speech recognizers can degrade significantly. In such cases the user may need to significantly raise their voice (with the undesirable effect of attracting attention to themselves), with no guarantee of optimal performance. Similarly, the listening experience of a far-end conversational partner is also undesirably impacted by the presence of background noise.
In view of the foregoing, there is a continued need for improved systems and methods for providing efficient and effective voice processing and noise cancellation in headsets.

Bone conduction headphone speech enhancement systems and methods


A cementitious panel with ballistic and blast resistant properties having a core layer of ultra-high compressive strength composite and at least one skin layer. The panels can also be used in walls, ceiling and flooring panels which require high compressive strength for resistance to earthquakes and surfaces resistant to surface abuse such as in prison and other institutions. The panel core layer has a continuous cementitious phase resulting from the curing of an aqueous mixture, in the absence of silica flour, of inorganic cement binder, inorganic mineral filler having a particle size of about 150-450 microns, a pozzolanic mineral filler, polycarboxylate based superplasticizer, alkanolamine and acid or alkali metal acid salt; and water. The mixture may be uniformly reinforced with fiber added before curing. The cementitious core layer is then reinforced with the skin, such as fiber reinforced polymer, attached to at least one panel surface.

Fiber reinforced cementitious compositions containing hydraulic cement, inorganic mineral fillers and pozzolans as well as chemical additives like plasticizers and water dispersants have been used in the construction industry to form the interior and exterior walls of residential and/or commercial structures. However, a drawback of such conventional panels is that they do not have sufficient compressive strength to provide a high degree of resistance to ballistic and blast loads.
Current practice for producing ultra-high strength cementitious compositions relies upon efficient particle packing and extremely low water dosage for achieving ultra-high material strength. As a consequence of the raw materials utilized to achieve dense particle packing and the extremely low water usage in these compositions, the cementitious mixtures have extremely stiff rheological behavior with dough like consistency in the freshly mixed state. The stiff consistency makes these mixtures highly unworkable and extremely difficult to process in conventional manufacturing processes for making thin cement-based products and composites.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,158,082 A to Belousofsky discloses a laminated cement based structure with a fiber glass skin that is impact resistant and may use Portland based cements.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,892 to Miller discloses an apparatus for manufacturing a concrete panel with cement core and fiber glass facing utilizing Portland cement.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,429 A to Arfaei discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, sand, fumed silica and a polyether.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,724,783 to Mandish disclose a building panel and assembly system composed of Portland cement panel layers attached to a panel framework with multiple layers.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,119,422 B1 to Clear discloses an impact resistant strong structural cementitious building panel with outer facing of fiberglass reinforcing mesh where the composite cementitious has an aggregate core with inner and outer faces of fiberglass mesh.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,920 to Murphy disclose a method of method for constructing a cementitious panel of multiple layers utilizing a smoothing head, shearer and screeding process.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,309,457 B1 Guerinet et al. discloses a self-leveling cement composition that includes Portland cement, silica sand of maximum 10 mm size or 0-5 mm size, or a blend of 0-0.4 mm and 0-5 mm size; fine mineral aggregates such as fly ash or silica flour having dimensions of less than 200 microns, preferably less than 100 microns; a first plasticizer which is a water-soluble or water-dispersible organic compound containing at least one aminodi(alkenephosphonic) group; and a second water-soluble or water-dispersible plasticizer which is of the polycarboxylic acid type and contains polyether chains. Example 1 indicates a compressive strength in 28 days of 32 MPa (about 4600 psi).
U.S. Pat. No. 6,437,027 to Isomura et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, silica sand of less than 5 mm size; and polycarboxylate polyether of 0.01-2.5 wt. %.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,620,487 to Tonyan et al., incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a reinforced, lightweight, dimensionally stable structural cement panel (SCP's or SCP panels) capable of resisting shear loads when fastened to framing equal to or exceeding shear loads provided by plywood or oriented strand board panels. The panels employ a core of a continuous phase resulting from the curing of an aqueous mixture of calcium sulfate alpha hemihydrate, hydraulic cement, an active pozzolan and lime, the continuous phase being reinforced with alkali-resistant glass fibers and containing ceramic microspheres, or a blend of ceramic and polymer microspheres, or being formed from an aqueous mixture having a weight ratio of water-to-reactive powder of 0.6/1 to 0.7/1 or a combination thereof. At least one outer surface of the panels may include a cured continuous phase reinforced with glass fibers and containing sufficient polymer spheres to improve nail ability or made with a water-to-reactive powders ratio to provide an effect similar to polymer spheres, or a combination thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,849,118 B2 to Kerkar et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing Portland cement, silica sand of 0 to 6 mm size; and polycarboxylate (ADVA® plasticizer).
U.S. Pat. No. 6,858,074 B2 to Anderson et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, silica sand, fumed silica, accelerator, retarder, and polycarboxylate high range water reducing dispersant.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,875,801 B2 to Shendy et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0-2 wt %.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,942,727 Daczko et al. discloses a high early strength cementitious member that includes Portland cement; fine aggregate such as silica sand, the fine aggregate are materials that almost entirely pass through a Number 4 sieve, coarse aggregate such as sand, the coarse aggregate are materials predominantly retained on a Number 4 sieve); silica fume pozzolan; 0.025-0.7% polycarboxylate dispersant which can be an polyether based on dry weight of cement; and structural synthetic fibers. The cementitious member can be used to make wall panels. The cementitious member can exhibit 24 hour compression strength greater than 10,000 psi; however these compositions do not contain a pozzolan.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2002/0004559 to Hirata et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, sands, fumed silica and polyethers of more than 0.5% wt. e.g. 2 wt. %.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2004/0149174 to Farrington et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0.01-0.2 wt %.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2004/0198873 to Bury et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, silica sand, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0.02-2 wt %
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2004/0211342 to Sprouts et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, silica sand, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0.1-2 wt %
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2004/0231567 to Dulzer et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, sand, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0.1-10 wt % of the total dry cementitious binder.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2005/0139308 to Aldea disclose a system and method using a FRP reinforced cementitious material or composite that may include Portland cement, fly ash, silica fume, resins, sand, glass fibers, resins, water, accelerators, fillers, setting retardants, dispersing agents; involves multiple layers and toweling to smooth between layers; and may be used to strengthen structures against earthquakes and explosions. In Aldea, the layers are applied in situ by toweling and are not applied to form a free standing panel which can be attached to a frame. The structure made in Aldea has two concrete layers bonded to a fiberglass mat.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2005/0239924 to Lettkeman et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, fine sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 0.05-2.5 wt %.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2005/0274294 to Brower et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, fine sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate of 1-4% wt.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2006/0174572 to Tonyan et al., incorporated herein by reference, discloses non-combustible reinforced cementitious lightweight panels and metal frame system for shear walls.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2006/0281836 to Kerns et al. discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, fine sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2007/0125273 to Pinto discloses a cementitious composition containing portland cement, fine sands, fumed silica and polycarboxylate such as 1-2 wt. %.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2007/0175126 to Tonyan et al, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses a structural cementitious panel.
US Pat. App. Pub. No. 2007/0228612 A to Durst et al, incorporated herein by reference discloses blast resistant concrete also suitable for limiting penetration of ballistic fragments.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


Provided are a method, device, and system for booting from a memory device having an array of blocks of cells. An initial memory map has a mapping of memory addresses to accessible blocks of cells in the memory device that are accessible following a boot sequence. There are secure blocks of cells in addition to the accessible blocks of cells that are not accessible through the memory addresses in the initial memory map. In response to detecting an initialization event, the secure blocks of cells are mapped to a range of memory addresses in the memory map to generate an altered memory map. Code is executed in the secure blocks using the range of memory addresses in the altered memory map. The range of memory addresses mapping to the secure blocks are remapped to map to the accessible blocks to which the range of memory addresses mapped in the initial memory map to restore the initial memory map from the altered memory map.

In many devices, such as cell phones and other programmable electronic devices, the operating system and application code may be stored in a flash memory device and loaded into memory to initialize the runtime environment. Alternatively, for certain flash memory devices, such as a NOR flash, the code may be executed directly from the flash memory. Malicious code, known as malware, which includes viruses, worms, adware, etc., may attack core components of the operating system to compromise key applications, including critical applications that operate in the operating system kernel. One concern is that malicious code may be loaded into blocks in the flash memory device and then executed during operations of the programmable device.
Certain flash memory devices, such as the Intel Corporation Sibley flash device, may support Extended Flash Array (EFA) blocks, which are blocks in the flash memory that are not accessible in the initialized flash memory map. To access code or data from these blocks, a program must issue a command to map memory addresses in the memory map to the EFA blocks. After using the code or data from the EFA blocks, the memory addresses mapped to the EFA blocks may be mapped back to the blocks addressed in the initial mapping. In this way, the EFA blocks may be swapped in and out of memory during operations.
To ensure the integrity of the data and code maintained in the flash memory, the boot process may scan the content of each block in the flash memory to calculate a hash or checksum value to compare against a stored valid value to determine whether code or data has been modified. If the code in the blocks of the non-volatile memory device do not validate during initialization, then the boot sequence will fail and the electronic device may not go into operational mode until valid code is reinstalled in the flash memory.


This marking system is provided with: a marking device which has a marking unit which gives a mark for managing the quality of a product, a housing part which houses one or more temperature indicating materials, and a providing unit which provides, to the marking unit, a temperature indicating material selected by the housing part; and a control device which has a storage unit that stores temperature-indicating material information on a developing temperature or/and a decoloring temperature of each of the temperature-indicating materials included in the housing part; and a processing unit that acquires, from a server or an input unit, an appropriate temperature of the product, selects, on the basis of the acquired appropriate temperature of the product and the temperature-indicating material information, a temperature-indicating material, and notifies the providing unit of details of providing the selected temperature-indicating material.

Some of products transported via various distribution channels from production sites or physical distribution complexes are necessary to be appropriately managed to maintain the qualities of the products. For example, some food becomes inappropriate for consumption due to decomposition or a change in shape occurring under high- or low-temperature environment.
To meet such a problem, when a product is transported or stored, management measures are performed, such as housing of the product in a thermal insulation container, and temperature management of a transportation container, a transportation track, a storage warehouse, or a storage facility using an air conditioner. However, an environmental state of the product may be deviated from a management range (preferable environmental condition) due to factors such as inadequate management including failure of a device or non-performance of an operating procedure, unsteady weather, and delay.
Hence, a quality control code is applied to the product, and a state of the code is read and analyzed to analyze quality or management of the product to know that the environmental state of the product is deviated from the management range.
Patent literature 1 discloses a system, in which a temperature-indicating mark including a temperature-indicating material is applied to a quality control code, temperature of the product and a relevant quality state are detected using a barcode reader in a distribution process, and such data are input and printed by a printer to allow management history of the product to be checked.


There is disclosed an dual use RF directed energy weapon and imager. A generator may provide a first beam of RF electromagnetic energy which may be directed to an object by a beam director. An imager may form an image of the object. The imager may share an aperture defined by the beam director.

1. Field
This disclosure relates to non-lethal weapon systems and to non-lethal weapons systems utilizing directed microwave energy in particular.
2. Description of the Related Art
Non-lethal weapons employing directed microwave energy are a known method to deter or discourage an intruder or other target individual from entering a controlled area or from continuing some undesired action. Example microwave directed energy weapons, also termed "active denial" systems, are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,126,477 B2 and US 2007/0040725 A1.

Dual use RF directed energy weapon and imager


A golf grip composed of multiple rubber compound layers producing properties within the golf grip to promote vibration transmission.

There are many different types of grips used today for a wide variety of items, including without limitation, golf clubs, tools (hammer handles, screwdrivers, etc.), racquets (racquet ball, squash, badminton, or tennis racquets), bats (baseball or softball), pool cues, umbrellas, fishing rods, etc. While particular reference for this disclosure is being made to the application of golf club grips, it should be immediately apparent that the present disclosure is applicable to other grips as well.
Slip-on golf club grips made of a molded rubber material or synthetic polymeric materials are well known and widely used in the golf industry. The term "slip-on" as employed herein refers to a grip that slides on to a shaft or handle and is secured by way of an adhesive, tape, or the like. Slip-on grips are available in many designs, shapes, and forms.
Golf club grips historically have been made of a wide variety of materials such as leather wrapped directly on the handle or leather wrapped on sleeves or underlistings that are slipped on to the handle, or more recently rubber, polyurethane or other synthetic materials are used. Efforts to date have largely focused on reducing the vibrations transmitted from the shaft to the golf grip. Such reduced vibration transmission also reduces the feel of a golf club and does not provide the golfer with sufficiently accurate tactile feedback, which is particularly true for a putter. The golfer may describe the lack of feedback as producing a hollow, muffled, or disconnected feeling.
Up until now, various construction methods have been used to produce a lower overall material density. Most commonly, an inner structure is formed using a light weight foam material, often EVA foam. Over this structure, a gripping layer is located and held in place through the use of either an adhesive or some other bonding method. Most commonly, this gripping layer is made from a felt material where the outside is coated in polyurethane to provide a smoother and more durable outer layer.
The limitations of this construction is that there is lower vibration transmission through a putter grip of this variety versus a standard sized grip of traditional construction, primarily due to the construction, materials utilized, and method of manufacture. There are a number of issues related to the lower vibration transmission, however an important one is associated with the amount of vibration which reaches the hands of the user (golfer) during the act of putting a golf ball. Putting is a relatively low energy event and any loss of vibration transmission will result in the feel of impact being deadened. This deadening of impact causes the user to have less indication of how well they impacted the ball and greatly reduces the "feel." Golfers use this "feel" as feedback to be able to improve the quality of their ball impact, thus the existing grips actually remove some of the golfers' ability to improve. Golfers describe this experience as being "isolated" or "detached" and this makes it very difficult to know if a certain action, or impact, has been repeated or not. Additionally, the "feel" of golf ball impact is, to some golfers, part of the enjoyment of playing golf and, by removing this "feel", the level of enjoyment may be reduced.
Another existing method of manufacturing a lightweight structure to form a grip is to use expanded foam/sponge material tubes (EVA, nitrile rubber, etc.) and grind them to shape. The material properties of these tubes are such that they are sold for their vibration reducing properties and therefore have the same issue as the aforementioned grips. These foam/sponges also have relatively low abrasion and UV resistance, and tend to wear out more quickly than traditional rubber grips.
Thus, there still exists a need for a hand grip that preferentially promotes transmission of vibration through the structure to the human hands holding the grip, particularly a grip that efficiently transmits vibrations in the frequency spectrum within which human hands are most sensitive.

Golf grip with enhanced vibration transmission


A regulator provides a control signal for controlling a generator which is providing an electrical output. The electrical output includes an output voltage and an output current applied to a load. The regulator comprises a microprocessor, voltage sensing inputs and current sensing inputs which cooperate with the microprocessor to sense a parameter of the electrical output applied to the load and a first memory for storing predetermined parameters. The microprocessor compares the sensed parameter to its corresponding predetermined parameter stored in the first memory and generates an output signal representative of the comparison. The regulator further comprises a second memory for storing instructions for controlling operation of the microprocessor and generates the control signal as a function of the output signal from the microprocessor.

This invention relates to a generator regulator having a microprocessor. This invention further relates to a generator regulator which generates a control signal as a function of the microprocessor comparison of various sensed parameters for controlling the electrical output from the generator.
It is widely known that the electrical outputs of generators, including alternators, are regulated to establish and maintain certain output parameters, such as voltage, frequency and/or current, generally constant notwithstanding fluctuations in the load, temperature, input voltage and the like.
The majority of present voltage regulating systems utilize analog circuitry. Such systems include transformer systems having a voltage sensing device to monitor the output and send a signal to a control circuit, an amplifying section which conditions the signal, and a circuit which responds to the signal by increasing or decreasing the control signal. These changes in the control signal are accomplished by electromechanical means or by an electronic power control circuit. Present regulators, even those with digital circuitry, are incapable of performing diverse functions such as controlling VAR levels, maintaining a constant power factor and maintaining a constant voltage through a single regulator.
Presently available single phase regulators may be connected in a three phase configuration yet are not capable of automatically compensating when switching between single phase and three phase electrical outputs.
Voltage regulators currently employ motorized variable resistors for adjustment. In a system having, e.g., a synchronizer, adjustments will be necessary to raise or lower the output voltage of the regulator and hence, raise or lower the output voltage of the generator. Such systems employ moving mechanical parts subject to wear, dirt, vibration and related malfunctions.
Some voltage regulating systems prevent the output current from surpassing a preselected maximum level by current limiting. The output current supplied to the load is sensed to detect excessive current conditions. If the regulator senses a low voltage condition, present regulators signal the alternator to demand increased excitation of the alternator in an attempt to increase the voltage output to the load. Additionally, some regulators will respond to effective short circuits, or zero voltage conditions, by shutting down the alternator to guard against abnormal current.
Current regulating systems, while able to increase or decrease excitation levels in the alternator, cannot limit excitation levels to a minimum and a maximum for a safe operating range to prevent damaging the alternator by overheating or creating a loss of synchronism.
Some presently available regulators detect faults in the sensor circuits. A break in a sensing lead or a loose terminal in the sensing circuit effectively opens the circuit causing the regulator to shut down the alternator. In such systems, there is no indication of the cause of a shutdown, e.g., a loss of sensing capability (open circuit) or an overtemperature condition.
In some situations, knowledge of the actual time of service of a regulator is beneficial. Present systems are incapable of making such a measurement.


A method of fabricating a polysilicon film includes: forming a seed layer on a surface of a substrate; forming a silicon layer over the surface of the seed layer; and performing a laser annealing process to transform the silicon layer into a polysilicon layer at a laser energy equal to or greater than that needed to cause complete melting of the silicon layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of fabricating polysilicon films.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Currently, liquid crystal displays (LCDs) are the most popular flat panel display technology. The applications for liquid crystal displays are extensive, such as mobile phones, digital cameras, video cameras, notebooks, and monitors. Due to high quality display requirements and the expansion of new application fields, the LCDs has developed toward a direction of high quality, high resolution, high brightness, and low price. Development of low temperature polysilicon thin film transistors (LTPS TFTs), to be used in active matrix LCD, is a break-through in achieving the above objectives.
With reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a perspective diagram showing the means of fabricating a low temperature polysilicon film according to the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1, a substrate 10 is provided, in which the substrate 10 is composed of transparent material such as glass. Next, a barrier layer 12 composed of silicon oxide (SiO2) or silicon nitride (SiN) is disposed on the substrate 10, in which the barrier layer 12 is amorphous in nature. Next, an amorphous silicon (a-Si) layer 14 is placed on the barrier layer 12, and a laser annealing process 16 is performed to utilize an excimer laser to irradiate the amorphous silicon layer 14 and cause a crystallization of the amorphous silicon layer 14.
During crystallization, the amorphous silicon layer 14 will undergo a melting and re-growth transition and transform into a polysilicon layer. The grain size of the resulting polysilicon is dependent upon the energy of the laser annealing process, such that the polysilicon grain size increases with laser energy density up to an energy level lower than that required to completely melt the silicon layer, an energy level referred to as "full-melt threshold". After the laser energy reaches the full-melt threshold or surpasses the full-melt threshold, the grain size of the polysilicon layer will become small again, resulting in microcrystalline forms. Essentially, this phenomenon is caused by the fact that no nuclei will survive at the full-melt threshold as the amorphous silicon layer 14 grows on the amorphous barrier layer 12, and during the cooling stage, many nuclei will be formed resulting into many small grains. Hence, in order to maximize the size and uniformity of the grains, the optimum laser energy value for the crystallization process should be maintained just below the full-melt threshold value. Typically, the optimum laser energy range, also referred to as the "process window", is of the order of 10 mJ/cm2. Ultimately, the small process window of the conventional method leads to non-uniformity and non-reproducibility of silicon crystal quality due to spatial and run-to-run variations of laser beam energy, which may eventually be larger than the process window.
Additionally, the full-melt threshold is dependent upon the thickness of the silicon layer. Hence, spatial and run-to-run variation in silicon thickness will also result in non-uniformity of the crystal quality. Another disadvantage of the prior art is that each region of the amorphous silicon layer must be irradiated with large number of pulses (often referred to as the number of shots) to obtain uniform grain size. In most cases, a region is irradiated 20 to 40 times before achieving satisfactory and uniform grain size and the frequent irradiation performed will ultimately reduces the throughput of the laser annealing process.


A rotary dobby which includes pivoting arms which are moveable with respect to a plate connected to an element for actuating a heddle frame in controlled response to a reading-in device and wherein the pivoting arms include catches which are engageable with respect to first and second spaced binding surfaces of the plate in such a manner that one of the arms is spaced from an actuator associated with the reading-in device when the pivoting arms are engaging the binding surfaces.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a rotary dobby for the operation of the heddle frames installed on a loom and a weaving loom and to a loom provided with such a dobby.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known that in rotary dobbies the vertical movement of the heddle frames is provided by oscillating components that can be constituted, depending on the case, by connecting rod-arm assemblies or by roller-bearing arms; these oscillating parts are driven by actuating elements in the form of an eccentric gear in the first case or of a cam in the second one. These actuating elements are mounted on a main shaft of the mechanism that is actuated by an intermittent rotary movement and, at the time of each stoppage, as a matter of fact at all the half turns of the above-mentioned shaft, the reading-in device must interlock the actuating element either with the shaft, in order to drive the oscillating part, or with a stationary point in order to effect the angular immobilization of the latter; this interlocking must be effected at each of the heddles of the dobby, that is to say of the actuating unit associated with each heddle frame and depending on the design or pattern to be obtained on the loom during the weaving process.
This selective interlocking is generally obtained by means of a cotter or catch-shaped movable coupling element subjected to the action of two pivoting arms arranged on one and the other sides of the shaft in order to actuate this moveable element at its two stop positions, being each pair of pivoting arms controlled by the reading-in device of the dobby.
In patent application FR-A-2 540 524 was disclosed a rotary dobby for looms in which a plate joined to each heddle frame is comprised of two diametrically opposed notches suitable to interact with the catch of two pivoting arms that are controlled by the reading-in device. These two notches are of different shape because one of them must be relatively deep in order to provide the plate with a perfectly precise angular position and then ensure an adequate holding for as long as necessary. On the other hand, the other notch is of reduced depth and is provided with lateral walls which are wide open and that run parallel to the chamfers of the extremities of the sides of the catch of each pivoting arm, so that the arm's catch can be automatically driven with the rotation of the plate, without the actuating of the reading-in device upon the arm. In this second case, one talks about a "passive" engaging of the catch in the notch.
Tests have shown that such an arrangement functions in a satisfactory manner. In this known device, however, when, depending on the pattern of the loom that is being woven, it is not necessary to exert on the coupling pawl a force causing it to actuate, the tappet of the reading-in device must be deflected towards the arm of which the catch is in passive engagement with the notch of the plate diametrically opposed to it, which allows the actuating of the pawl. Thus, in approximately 50% of the cases, the arm that is in a passive engagement with one of the notches of the plate is actuated although this is not necessary for a good operation of the dobby of the invention.
An excessive energy consumption of the dobby, a high noise level and repeated mechanical stresses on the components of the dobby are elements that are certainly not beneficial for the functioning of the mechanism. In view of these repeated stresses, the dimensioning of the drive shafts, of the flanges and of the reading-in device's tappet gave rise to their high cost and considerable size.

Actuator spacing for pivoting arms of a rotary dobby