A sensing device for remotely reading the position of the needles of a gas meter. The gas meter having a plurality of meter needles. The sensing device including directional magnetic field emitters each having a north and a south pole that are spaced from one another along a first pole axis and a second pole axis, respectively. The magnetic emitters being secured relative to respective needles such that the pole axes are perpendicular to the respective needle axes. The emitters producing directional magnetic fields that follows the position of the needles as they rotate. The device further including position sensors positioned over the emitters. The sensors reading the orientation of the respective magnetic fields sending this information to a processor for calculating the position of the first and second needles based on the orientation of the respective magnetic fields. The device includes a transmitter for transmitting the position of the needles to a remote location.

It is known in the art that magnetics can be used to determine the position of an object relative to a fixed point. In this respect, Hendrickson U.S. Pat. No. 4,728,950 discloses a remote monitoring device that utilizes magnetics to determine the position of the needles in a utility meter. Hendrickson determines the position of the meter by utilizing ten sensors circumferentially spaced about the needle axis and a magnetized needle. The position of the needle can be determined when the needle is positioned under one of the sensors. As can be appreciated, the magnetic on the needle must be spaced from the needle axis such that the magnetic passes by the sensor as the needle rotates. When the magnetic portion of the needle passes a sensor, the position of the needle is detected. However, when the needle is between sensors, the presence of the needle is not fully detected and assumptions must be made about the position of the needle. As a result, while Hendrickson is capable of determining the position of the needle, accuracy is suspect and assumptions must be made for the needles which are not positioned in range of one of the ten sensors. Hendrickson's device is also expensive in that it needs ten sensors for every needle. When a four needle meter needs to be monitored, 40 sensors are needed. In addition, as is shown, the sensors must be placed at a point space from the needle axis such that the monitoring device blocks the gauges thereby preventing the meter to be read except by the monitoring system. This can make trouble shooting the system difficult and costly and can prevent quick verification that the system is functioning properly.
Schenk, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 6,742,396 overcomes some of the accuracy and readability shortfalls of Hendrickson by utilizing a variable monitoring technique that has an external readable portion. In this respect, Schenk, Jr. discloses a dial indicator that utilizes magnets to couple the meter's dial needle to a rotating measuring device. This system is not a magnetic sensing system. Conversely, the magnets merely couple the moving parts of the sensing system to the meter's needle such that a sensing system follows the dial needle as it rotates. Thus, Schenk's device requires moving parts to monitor the meter. Further, the magnetic strength necessary to physically lock the moving parts of the sensor to the meter's needle is greater than that which is necessary for non-mechanical devices due to inevitable friction between the moving parts. Friction in the monitoring sensor can also cause the monitoring device to become disconnected with the meter's dial. If this takes place, the output of the remote monitoring device is worthless. As can be appreciated, the remote monitoring device is of little value unless it can be relied upon by the end user. The longevity of Schenk is also suspect in that the monitoring device is in constant motion and internal components can wear. Yet another problem with Schenk's device is that the moving parts of his sensor are not capable of continued rotation. Conversely, Schenk's device can not rotate more than 360 degrees which prevents it from being used on many meters.
Both Schenk and Hendrickson do not allow sufficient visual inspect of the actual dials or needles. In this respect, gas companies, and other utilities, are required to verify the accuracy of meter readings. This requirement necessitates a periodic visual inspection of the meter. Hendrickson prevents a visual inspection of the dials since his system completely covers the meter's dials. As a result, a visual inspection requires his system to be at least partially removed from the meter. As can be appreciated, periodic removal of the sensing system is expensive and can damage the unit. While Schenk provides a means for inspecting the position of the needle on site, the actual needle is still not visible whereby confirmation that the system is producing an accurate reading also requires removal of the system from the meter.

Remotely readable gas meter and method of using the same


A communication device includes a modem and circuitry. The modem communicates with a cellular network that is linked to a data network to which one or more target servers are coupled. The circuitry is configured to hold a token that identifies the communication device for assignment to a selected service plan in a management server of the cellular network, to trigger, based on the token, an onboarding request to the management server for assigning the selected service plan to the communication device, and, after the selected service plan has been assigned to the communication device in the management server, to communicate with a target server, via the cellular network and over the data network, in accordance with the selected service plan.

A connected device is typically assigned in a cellular network to a service plan that grants the connected device with access privileges to various services via the cellular network. Such privileges typically include the service level to which the device is entitled, such as bandwidth, amount of data, SMS and Voice services, and the like. A connected device that is linked to a service plan in the cellular network is regarded to as being "onboarded." The service plan is typically linked to a user account that includes a definition of the service plan, billing information and the like. A connected device may comprise, for example, an Internet of Things (IoT) device that connects to the Internet via the cellular network.

Automated activation and onboarding of connected devices


An authentication management platform that enables authentication systems from various vendors to be integrated into a single service offering. The disclosed arrangement can support multiple, distinct customers and multiple primary authentication servers on a single platform. The management platform provides access only to users that enter a valid passcode comprising both: (1) a personal identification number (PIN) and (2) the current code generated by a security token card assigned to that user. The authentication management platform may be configured to be controlled and maintained by the subscriber to the system, or may be serviced/maintained by a third party service provider.

It is commonplace today for computer users to connect their machines to other computers, and particularly, servers, throughout a network. The network may be a private network, such as a corporate intranet of networked computers that is accessible only to computer users within that corporation, or it may be a public network, such as the Internet. The Internet is well known as a vast collection of computing resources, interconnected as a network, from sites around the world.
A user may connect his computer to a server using a "wireline" connection or a "wireless" connection. Wireline connections are those that use physical media (such as cables, optical fibers or telephone lines) to provide a connection, whereas wireless connections use media such as satellite links, radio frequency waves, and infrared waves. Many connection techniques can be used with these various media, including: using the computer's modem to establish a connection over a telephone line; using a local area network (LAN) card such as Token Ring or Ethernet; using a cellular modem to establish a wireless connection, and the like. The user's computer may be any type of device having processing and communication capabilities. Traditionally, such devices include desktop, laptop and handheld computers.
Conventional user ID and password schemes for controlling user access to network resources are also well known. Recently, it has been proposed to provide client workstations in a network with so-called "alternative" authentication devices for access control purposes. Such devices include, for example, "token cards" and "biometric" (e.g., finger, eye or voice print) scanners. One problem with these current alternatives is that each authentication device vendor has a different way of encoding input information and validating the user's identity.
In a multiuser computer system, identification and authentication mechanisms are essential for identifying and authenticating each individual who requests any usage of system resources. The most common implementation of such mechanisms is a user identification (ID) along with a password. Thus, each multiuser computer system contains, as a minimum, a unique sign-on ID for each registered user to the system. This allows for accountability of system usage down to the individual user level.
However, when such user identification and authentication implementation methodology is extrapolated to more than one computer system within a distributed computing environment, a user must repeatedly provide a user ID along with an appropriate password in order to gain access to each computer system. For a user who wishes to gain access to several different services within a single session, each provided by a different computer system, this repetitious sign-on procedure tends to be very tedious (if not annoying). In most cases, in particular, the user ID and password must be transmitted to a remote computer system. Without a secure path between the user's computer system and the remote computer system, anyone who has access to the distributed computing environment could use a network analyzer to discover the user ID and password of the user. As such, the effectiveness of the sign-on procedure as a means of security measure may be undermined.
One solution for single sign-on and authentication in a distributed computing environment is known as "Kerberos". Kerberos is an authentication protocol developed as part of Project Athena at MIT and provides a platform for single sign-on and authentication in an open network environment. Unfortunately, Kerberos support is not transparent and requires various custom modifications to the required applications and system utilities in order to perform adequately in various circumstances.

Authentication management platform for managed security service providers


A valve position indicator for a valve includes a spline barrel, indicator flag, and follower. The spline barrel may be generally tubular and may be positionable about a tail stem protector of the valve. The spline barrel may have a helical slot formed therein. The spline barrel may be rotatably coupled to the tail stem protector of a valve. The indicator flag may be coupled to the spline barrel and may extend radially therefrom. The follower may be coupleable to a tail stem of the valve. The follower may extend in a direction perpendicular to the extent of the tail stem. The follower may extend through a slot in the tail stem protector and the helical slot of the spline barrel when the spline barrel is positioned about the tail stem protector.

Valves may be used to control the flow of fluids. Valves may be manually or automatically actuated such as by hydraulic or pneumatic actuators. However, the position of the valve, i.e. whether the valve is open or closed, may not be immediately recognizable by visual inspection due to the configuration of certain valves or distance separating personnel and the valve.


A computerized neural network training and testing environment trains and validates a neural network to produce outputs corresponding to a digital signal processing (DSP) algorithm. After validation and testing, the neural network is replicable in any processing environment, independent of device architecture. Such devices may also include a neural network having a reversed process flow to produce a digital signal corresponding to an inverse of the DSP algorithm.

Digital signal processing (DSP), such as in modems, requires identifying a processing algorithm, testing the processing algorithm, converting the algorithm to device specific instructions, and testing each device. The overhead of converting and testing the algorithm for each device is onerous.
It would be advantageous if a methodology existed for producing device independent DSP algorithms.

Digital signal processing with neural networks


An applicator for the topical application of liquid treatment fluids to plants provides for remote actuation of opposed grasping or pressure plates, thereby allowing even and symmetrical pressure to be applied to the plant as the treatment liquid is administered. The result precludes uneven pressure to the plant and possible subsequent bending of the plant and contact with another adjacent plant, thereby precluding secondary application of any treatment liquid to the adjacent plant and possible injury to that adjacent plant. The application operation is easily conducted remotely, by actuating a trigger to clamp the plant in the opposed members. One of the members includes a porous sponge or pad, which pad communicates with a treatment liquid container via a tube or conduit in order to provide a positive coating of plant treatment liquid to the plant interposed between the two plates adjacent the pad. The treatment pad is shielded from inadvertent contact with adjacent plants by the two plates. A liquid treatment flow control and shutoff valve may be included in the apparatus.

Many, if not most, homeowners are proud of their homes and surrounding landscaping, and are anxious to see that their property and any plantings thereon remain attractive. However, the natural state of things dictates that foreign plants or weeds will invariably take root in otherwise orderly planted areas or beds. Accordingly, many persons spend inordinate amounts of time laboriously removing such undesired plants and weeds from vegetable gardens, flower beds, and other cultivated areas. In addition, desirable plants frequently become contaminated with fungi, insects or other problems which require application of liquid treatment(s).
While the development of chemical herbicides and other treatments has made such work somewhat easier, the generally relatively isolated nature of such weeds or infected plants in an otherwise orderly area still results in the need for individual treatment or removal. Heretofore, this has required much bending and kneeling in order to treat infected plants and/or remove undesirable plants, which activity can be difficult even for the physically fit. For those who are physically handicapped, the necessary physical activities required for gardening and weeding may preclude the cultivation of planted areas by such persons.
The need arises for a hand held device capable of remotely applying topical liquid herbal treatments to plants, without requiring excessive bending or kneeling by the user. The device must be capable of applying treatment only to a specific plant or plants requiring such treatment, without risk of unneeded or potentially damaging treatment to surrounding plants. The device must be relatively light weight and relatively inexpensive, thus providing availability to the hobbyist or weekend gardener of average physical condition and means. Moreover, the device must preclude any excessive physical activity or dexterity on the part of the user.


The invention provides a surveying instrument (1) which has a measuring unit comprises an operation control panel (4) rotatably mounted on the measuring unit with vertical axis as the center with respect to the measuring unit, and a relative angle detecting means for detecting a relative angle of the operation control panel and the measuring unit, wherein the operation control panel is so arranged that a command is issued to relatively rotate the measuring unit based on the relative angle detected by the relative angle detecting means.

The present invention relates to a surveying instrument, in which an operation control panel is used for operating an instrument having a movable unit such as a surveying instrument.
For an operation control panel used as a man-machine interface, there are increasing demands to have higher operability of the device. Further, in the field of surveying instrument, there are now strong demands on an operation control panel, by which it is possible to improve operability of the surveying instrument.


In a earth station having a particular address and comprising a terminal and a transmitting section for transmitting a transmission data signal including an address signal representative of the particular address towards a satellite through a single communication channel, a receiving section receives a reception data signal comprising the transmission data signal which is sent from the satellite through the single communication channel. By detecting the particular address, a decision circuit decide whether or not the receiving section correctly receives the reception data signal within a predetermined time interval after the transmitting section starts transmission of the transmission data signal. When the receiving section does not correctly receive the reception data signal, the transmitting section stops the transmission of the transmission data signal and an alarm signal is supplied to the terminal. Alternatively, the transmission data signal may include another address signal representative of another address of another earth station.

This invention relates to an earth station for carrying out communication in a satellite communication system through a single satellite.
As a satellite communication system, a demand assigned multiple access system is well known in the art. The demand assigned multiple access system comprises a satellite, a control station, and first and second earth stations each of which includes first and second terminals. The first and the second earth stations are communicable with each other through a radio transmission path as first and second communication channels of first and second frequency bands which are assigned by the control station in the following manner. The first earth station transmits a connection demand signal to the control station through the satellite by using a common control channel of a common frequency band when the first terminal produces a transmission request signal in order to communicate with the second terminal of the second earth station. On reception of the connection demand signal, the control station transmits a first channel assignment signal representative of the first communication channel to the first earth station by using the common control channel. Responsive to the first channel assignment signal, the first earth station transmits a first transmission data signal through the first communication channel towards the satellite. On the other hand, the control station transmits a second channel assignment signal representative of the second communication channel to the second earth station by using the common control channel in order to prevent a collision of signals. Responsive to the second channel assignment signal, the second earth station transmits a second transmission data signal as a response transmission data signal through the second communication channel towards the satellite. Thus, the first and the second earth stations are communicable with one another.
In order to transmit the connection demand signal and to receive the first and the second channel assignment signals, each of the first and the second earth stations requires a transmitter and a receiver for the common control channel. It is to be noted that the demand assigned multiple access system becomes expensive and complex in structure because the control station should be included in the demand assigned multiple access system. Furthermore, the demand assigned multiple access system has a reduced availability of the radio transmission path because the common control channel should be used for the connection demand signal and the first and the second channel assignment signals. It should furthermore be noted that one of the first and the second earth stations can be called afresh as a first earth station without loss of generality.

Earth station capable of carrying out communication without a control station


The piezoelectric layers of a laminated piezoelectric transformer include outermost ceramic layers having first openings defined therein for connection to inner electrodes. The inner electrodes comprise full-face electrodes, each of the inner electrodes having a second opening defined in a corner thereof and filled with an electrically conductive electrode and a third opening defined in another corner thereof and filled with an electrically conductive electrode surrounded by an electrode-free gap. The piezoelectric layers are stacked such that the inner electrodes are alternately electrically interconnected through the second and third openings which are alternately superposed one on another. The electric generator comprises piezoelectric layers and web-shaped inner electrodes. Each of the web-shaped inner electrodes has a fourth opening defined in at least one end thereof and filled with an electrically conductive electrode.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a piezoelectric transformer for use in any of various power supply circuits for generating high voltages and a method of manufacturing such a piezoelectric transformer, and more particularly to a laminated piezoelectric transformer comprising an elongate piezoelectric transformer body including a pair of drive regions disposed at respective opposite ends thereof and each comprising a plurality of longitudinally polarized piezoelectric layers and inner electrodes which are alternately superposed, and a longitudinally polarized electric generator disposed longitudinally centrally between the drive regions, and a method of manufacturing such a laminated piezoelectric transformer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Heretofore, it has been customary to use coiled electromagnetic transformers for generating high voltages in high-voltage power supplies for electron beam deflection units in television sets, chargers in copying machines, and other devices which need high voltages. The coiled electromagnetic transformers are of such a structure that a conductive wire is wound around a magnetic core. To achieve a high transformation ratio, it is necessary to increase the number of turns of the wire. Accordingly, it has been difficult to manufacture small-size electromagnetic transformers with high transformation ratios.
There has been proposed a piezoelectric transformer which operates on the principles of the piezoelectric effect. The proposed piezoelectric transformer is called a third-order-Rosen type piezoelectric transformer.
The boosting ratio of the piezoelectric transformer depends on the thickness of a drive region between electrodes and the length of an electric generator. In order to increase the boosting ratio, it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the drive region and increase the length of the electric generator.
Since the conventional piezoelectric transformer has a single piezoelectric layer, there is a certain limitation on efforts to reduce the thickness of the drive region between the electrodes and also on efforts to increase the length of the electric generator in view of demands for reducing the size of the piezoelectric transformer. Practically, it has been impossible to reduce the thickness of the drive region less than 0.5 mm. Another problem encountered when the thickness of the drive region is reduced is that the transformation efficiency of the piezoelectric transformer is lowered as the thickness of the drive region is reduced.
Japanese laid-open patent publication No. 224484/94 discloses a laminated piezoelectric transformer designed to eliminate the above problems. The disclosed laminated piezoelectric transformer is shown in FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, the disclosed laminated piezoelectric transformer has a pair of low-impedance drive regions 91 each comprising piezoelectric layers 911 and inner electrodes 912, 913 which are alternately superposed, with outer electrodes 914, 915 disposed on respective upper and lower surfaces of each of the low-impedance drive regions 91. The outer electrodes 915 are mounted on the lower surface remotely from the outer electrodes 914 and omitted from illustration. The inner electrodes 912, 913 which are alternately exposed on opposite sides are electrically connected by outer electrodes 916, 917. The outer electrodes 917 are mounted on the side remotely from the outer electrodes 916 and omitted from illustration in FIG. 1. The outer electrodes 917 are electrically connected to an external terminal 919, and the outer electrodes 916 are electrically connected to an external terminal 920.
The low-impedance drive regions 91 between the outer electrodes are polarized transversely along their thickness. The disclosed laminated piezoelectric transformer also has a pair of high-impedance electric generators 92 with a web electrode 918 disposed therebetween. The web electrode 918 is connected to an external terminal 921. The electric generators 92 are polarized longitudinally along the length of the laminated piezoelectric transformer. When an AC voltage is applied between the external terminals 919, 920 to energize the piezoelectric transformer, a voltage is outputted between the external terminals 919, 921.
The piezoelectric transformer is produced by laminating and sintering green sheets of ceramics as the inner electrodes 912, 913 and then baking the outer electrodes 914, 915 thereon. Consequently, the thickness of the portion of the piezoelectric transformer between the outer electrodes 914, 915 may stably be reduced, and the boosting ratio thereof may be increased. Since the laminated piezoelectric structure may be increased in their overall thickness, the transformation efficiency is not unduly lowered.
Japanese laid-open patent publication No. 151677/95 reveals a laminated piezoelectric actuator wherein inner electrodes are connected through openings. FIGS. 3A through 3C of the accompanying drawings shows the revealed laminated piezoelectric actuator. The laminated piezoelectric actuator, denoted by 1100, is of a cylindrical shape and comprises ceramic piezoelectric layers each having an opening 1101 with an electrode extending to edges thereof and an opening 1102 with an electrode terminating short of edges thereof. The ceramic piezoelectric layers are stacked, and the openings 1101, 1102 are filled with an electrically conductive elastic material 1103 to electrically connect the electrodes. Each of the openings 1101, 1102 has a thickness ranging from 1 mm to 2 mm. To fill the openings 1101, 1102 with the electrically conductive elastic material 1103, the electrically conductive elastic material 1103 is pressed into the openings 1101, 1102 after the piezoelectric layers with the openings 1101, 1102 are stacked and sintered.
The conventional piezoelectric transformers described above suffer the following shortcomings:
(1) With the third-order-Rosen type piezoelectric transformer, if the boosting ratio is to be increased for producing a high output voltage from a low input voltage, then it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the drive region between the electrodes or increase the length of the electric generator. Inasmuch as the piezoelectric transformer employs a single piezoelectric layer, there is a certain limitation on efforts to reduce the thickness of the drive region between the electrodes and also on efforts to increase the length of the electric generator in view of demands for reducing the size of the piezoelectric transformer. Furthermore, as described above, when the thickness of the drive region is reduced, the transformation efficiency of the piezoelectric transformer is lowered as the thickness of the drive region is reduced.
(2) The laminated piezoelectric transformer can have its boosting ratio increased as the thickness of the drive region between the electrodes can be reduced. However, as shown in FIG. 1, the electric connection of the inner electrodes 912, 913 with the outer electrodes 916, 917 on the sides fails to provide a sufficiently high transformation efficiency. Specifically, when the piezoelectric transformer vibrates, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B of the accompanying drawings, it is oscillatingly displaced in directions 1003 along the thickness thereof, directions 1001 along the width thereof, and directions 1002 along the length thereof. The outer electrodes 916, 917 on the sides of the piezoelectric transformer as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2a, however, act to impede the displacement in the directions 1001, 1003, reducing the transformation efficiency.
(3) To produce the piezoelectric transformer, green sheets of ceramics are laminated and sintered as the inner electrodes 912, 913, and then the outer electrodes 914, 915 are baked thereon. As a result, the assembly is heated twice, tending to reduce the transformation efficiency of the resultant piezoelectric transformer. Furthermore, because the electrodes are formed twice, the number of fabrication steps for the piezoelectric transformer is relatively large. Since the outer electrodes are formed on the upper and lower surfaces and also on the sides of the piezoelectric transformer, the number of fabrication steps for the outer electrodes is also large.
(4) The openings in the laminated piezoelectric actuator have a relatively large diameter ranging from 1 mm to 2 mm. Therefore, the openings which are filled up with the electrically conductive elastic material are likely to impede vibrations of the piezoelectric actuator, depending on the position of the openings. Specifically, the electrically conductive elastic material that fills the openings serve as a weight load in the directions in which the piezoelectric actuator vibrates, and is liable to impede vibrations of the piezoelectric actuator. Moreover, the electrically conductive elastic material is pressed into the openings after the ceramic piezoelectric layers are stacked. If the ceramic piezoelectric layers are thinned and their number is increased for a higher boosting ratio, then the electrodes may possibly break off when the electrically conductive elastic material is pressed into the openings.

Laminated piezoelectric transformer and method of manufacturing same


A moisture-permeable waterproof fabric having a resin layer formed on at least one surface thereof, wherein the resin layer is composed of a mixture comprising a product obtained by reacting a urethane prepolymer having isocyanate terminals with an N-carboxyamino acid anhydride and an amine, and a polyurethane having a 100% modulus of at least 40 kg/cm.sup.2, the amount of the resin product contained in the resin layer is 12.9 to 85.3% by weight of total solid resin, and the amount of the urethane/amino acid copolymer contained in the resin layer is 0.9 to 9.0% by weight of total solid resin. The fabric has both an excellent moisture permeability and waterproofness, as well as an excellent abrasion resistance and washing fastness.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a moisture-permeable waterproof fabric, and a process for the production thereof. More particularly, the present invention relates to a moisture-permeable waterproof fabric having a high moisture permeability and a high waterproofness, and having an excellent abrasion resistance and an excellent washing fastness, and further, to a process for the production of this fabric.
(2) Description of the Related Art
As the conventional process for the production of a processed fabric having a moisture permeability and a waterproofness, for example, a process comprising coating a polyurethane on a fabric and forming cells in the resin layer by wet coagulation is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 58-144178. Furthermore, a process comprising laminating a fabric with a dry-coagulated polyurethane film is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 58-203172.
Nevertheless, since the moisture permeability and the waterproofness are functions contradictory to each other, according to the above-mentioned conventional techniques using a polyurethane as the material, it is difficult to enhance both properties simultaneously. For example, when the moisture permeability is maintained at 4,000 g/m.sup.2 .multidot.24 hours, it is impossible to obtain a processed fabric having a water pressure resistance higher than 2,000 mmH.sub.2 O.
As the means for overcoming this disadvantage, use of a film formed by wet-coagulating a polyaumino acid-modified urethane is proposed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 60-154054. According to this technique, a processed fabric having a moisture permeability of at least 7,000 g/m.sup.2 .multidot.24 hours and a water pressure resistance of a least 1,500 mmH.sub.2 O is obtained.
Nevertheless, the technique of using a resin layer composed of a polyamino acid-modified urethane is defective in that the abrasion resistance of the resin layer is poor and the washing fastness is extremely low. Namely, the waterproofness and the peel strength are immediately drastically degraded upon washing, and therefore, the processed fabric cannot be put to practical use.
Furthermore, there is known a technique of using a resin layer composed of a mixture of a polyamino acid-modified urethane and a polyurethane, but this technique is defective in that the abrasion resistance and washing fastness are poor. Namely, the waterproofness and peel strength are degraded, and the practical use of this processed fabric is difficult.

Moisture-permeable waterproof fabric and process for production thereof


A method of combatting, e.g., preventing as well as treating, a disease state such as cystic fibrosis, neonatal hypoxemia, pulmonary hypertension, adult respiratory distress syndrome, psoriasis, spondyloarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, inflammatory bowel disease, myocardial infarctions, and/or osteoporosis in an animal subject, by administering to the animal subject an amount of an organic boron compound which is effective thereagainst. The organic boron compounds usefully employed in the method of the invention include any suitable organic boron-containing compounds, such as Lewis base-boron adducts; a preferred class of organic boron compounds useful in such method includes boron analogs of .alpha.-amino acids, and the corresponding amides and esters of such amino acids. A method is also disclosed of inhibiting enzyme activity in in vitro or in vivo systems comprising administering to such system an enzyme-inhibiting amount of an organic boron compound. Further disclosed is a method of reducing hydroxyproline, calcium, and/or inorganic phosphorous in serum and/or urine of an animal subject, by administering to the animal subject an effective amount of an organic boron compound.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for preventing and/or treating osteoporosis and other disease states in animal subjects, utilizing organic boron compounds.
2. Description of the Related Art
The adult skeleton is composed of 80% cortical and 20% trabecular bone. Bone matrix is composed of 25% collagen, 65% inorganio material, and 10% non-cellular proteins (i.e., osteocalcin, silaoprotein, proteoglycans and osteonectin) and lipids. Osteoblasts synthesize and secrete Type 1 collagen and mucopolysaccharides to form the bone matrix which is laid down between the thin layers of osteoid. The layers are subsequently mineralized with 99% of the body's calcium found in the bone as a calcium phosphate complex with hydroxyapatite. Osteoblasts also synthesize and release Pg-E.sub.2, osteocalcin, osteonectin, and collagenase. These cells have membrane receptors for PTH, VitD, and glucocorticosteroids.
Osteoclasts are multi-nucleated cells which reabsorb calcium from bone and cartilage. These cells may be derived from hemopoietic stem cells, i.e., mono-nucleated phagocytic cells. These cells lie on the bone surface (Howship's lacunae) and the surface becomes ruffled (motile microvilli). This area is sealed off from the neighboring cells. In these pockets, acid is produced which activates acidic hydrolytic enzymes and neutral proteases are released. Calcium is chelated by organic anions, e.g., citrate.
Osteoblasts release collagenase which removes protein from the surface of the bone, thus allowing the osteoclasts to attach. Collagenase cleaves the native helical molecule of collagen. The other proteolytic enzymes, e.g. neutral and acidic cathepsins, digest the protein further with the release of hydroxyproline to the extracellular compartment, which is an index of bone resorption. Hydroxyapatite protects collagen from denaturation. Collagenase and stromelysin are extracellular calcium dependent, zinc endoproteinases which hydrolyze collagen. Proteoglycan is thought to be a substrate for stromelysin (matrixin, proteoglycanase, transin, and MMP-3). These enzymes exist as zymogens or proenzymes. The proenzymes are activated by organomercurials, serine proteinases, oxidants and surfactants. The amino acid sequences of the metalloproteinases are known from the corresponding cDNA. The activity of the enzyme is inhibited by endogenous tissue inhibitors (TIMP). In humans a collagenase inhibitor has been identified in the alpha-2 macroglobulin fraction of plasma. Previous studies have shown that hydroxamates, thiol analogs, phosphorous-based derivatives, eriochrome, black T and gold inhibit collagenase, HFC activity.
Osteoporosis is generally associated with a reduced trabecular bone volume leading to increased risk of bone fractures. This process is probably due to a metabolic imbalance between the rates of new bone formation and bone resorption. Osteoporosis can be divided into two classes: (1) type I or post-menopausal,which is related to reductions in estrogen content and affects primarily trabecular bone, and (2) type II or senile, which is related to reduced calcium absorption and affects primarily cortical bone.
Bone resorption can be divided into two processes which are probably being carried out concurrently. Phase I involves the inorganic metabolism conducted principally by osteoclasts, macrophages, monocytes, PMNs, and fibroblasts. This process is regulated by PTH, Pg-E.sub.2, and cAMP which activate lysosomal hydrolytic enzymes and causes solubilization of the minerals in the bone, releasing calcium to the blood. Phase II involves organic metabolism where there is proteolytic destruction of the bone matrix collagen, releasing hydroxyproline to the blood. This process is initiated by the release of collagenase and cathepsin D from osteoblasts at the bone surface. The cellula enzymes belong to the metalloproteinase group of proteolytic enzymes which usually function at neutral pH. PTH binds to membrane receptors on osteoblasts, pre-osteoblasts and osteocytes, which activates the release of calcium from the dense bone, probably due to the activation of lysosomal enzymes, e.g., cathepsins, cAMP, interleukin-1, or prostaglandins.
In the elderly population there is a decrease of estrogen, progesterone, testosterone and vitamin D3 levels with age. With advanced age there is a reduction of calcitonin which severely reduces calcium absorption from the gut. There is a positive correlation between the extracellular reduction of these physiological parameters and with osteoporosis. Other factors are: smoking, lack of exercise, sunlight, and disease states like myeloma, skeletal metastasis, gastric surgery, anti-convulsant therapy, male hypogonadism, thyrotoxicosis, amenorrhea, anorexia nervosa, hyperprolactinanemia, diabetes mellitus, immobilization, osteogenic imperfecta, and homocystinuria.
A number of agents have been noted to attenuate loss of bone mass in elderly humans or to accelerate bone growth in the young, such as estrogens, insulin, fluorides, anabolic steroids, calcitonin, growth hormone, fibroblast growth factor, transforming growth factor, epidermoid growth factor, bone morphogenic protein (osteogenin), diphosphates, and oral calcium supplements, with varying degrees of success. Most evidence today indicates that massive intakes of calcium (1500-2000 mg/day) orally does not prevent bone loss in post-menopausal women. It is not clear what the mechanism of action of estrogen is in blocking bone resorption. Estrogen therapy increases calcitonin in menopausal women which activates the metabolite of Vit-D3 for calcium absorption from the gut. There may be more receptors in the gut for the absorption of calcium in the presence of estrogen and there is an increase in calcium binding protein. Progesterone probably facilitates calcium flux into bone. Calcitonin acts directly on osteoclasts via cAMP to inhibit bone resorption.
Bone mass is decreased by treatment with the following drugs over a long period of time: glucocorticoids, thyroxine, heparin, cytotoxic drugs, retinoids [vit A], phorbol esters, Pg-E's, interleukin-1, endotoxins and parathyroid hormone (PTH). Apparently PTH stimulates production and relase of cAMP and prostaglandin synthesis which is coupled with the release of collagenase. This causes the osteoblasts to become flattened and fibroblastic in shape. They release chemical substances, Pg-E.sub.2, which attract osteoclasts to the surface of the bone. Pg-E.sub.2 triggers the release of osteoclasts activating factor. At the surface there is local production of acids and carbonic anhydrase II, an isoenzyme. Inhibition of these metabolic processes also slows the bone resorption process.
At this stage there is an influx of other types of cells, e.g., macrophages, fibroblasts and monocytes which can continue the resorption process. Certain mechanisms in the movement of calcium from blood to bone are known. The metabolite of vitamin D, 1,25(OH)2Vit-D3, induces calcium transport by binding to a specific cytosol/nuclear receptor and forming a complex. This complex binds to chromatin DNA increasing template activity and initiating the synthesis of the calcium binding protein. Corticosteroids are known to suppress prostaglandin synthesis and reduce the levels of osteocalcin (Gla protein, or BGP). This protein stimulates osteoblastic activity.
There are data which suggest that corticosteroids modulate the number of receptors on osteoblasts for 1,25(OH)2Vit-D3, as well as alkaline phosphatase and collagen synthesis. Sodium fluoride stimulates osteoblast function by recruiting an increased number of osteoblasts. There is evidence that fluorapatite crystals form which are more resistant to resorption. Bisphosphonates are inhibitors of crystallization and calciferication of bone. Heparin increases the production of collagenase and enhances its release and activity. Thus there are numerous sites within the regulation of calcium metabolism and proteolytic enzymes where therapeutic agents may function.
Bone resorption appears to be blocked by sulfanilamide, acetazolamide, methazolamide, benzolamide, ethoxzolamide, flurbiprofen and boron. No doubt a number of these agents are inhibiting the carbonic anhydrase enzyme so that hydrogen ions are not generated to produce an acidic medium. Other agents like thiazides inhibit calcium excretion in the urine. Boron depletion depresses growth in chicks when inadequate amounts of cholecalciferol is in the diet. Boron treatment (3.23 mg/day) of postmenopausal women has been shown to result in higher plasma levels of calcium and serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol and lower levels of calcitonin and osteocalcin. Recent work at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Grand Forks, N. Dak.) has shown that inorganic boron, e.g., boric acid or sodium borate, in the diet at 3 mg/day blocks the urinary excretion of calcium, magnesium and perhaps phosphorus. Boron supplements markedly elevate estrogen and testosterone levels and supposedly block the process of osteoporosis. Dietary boron is useful in cholecalciferol-deficient chicks to correct cartilage growth.
Unfortunately, the intake of boron in the form of boric acid, or boric acid salts, has a number of undesirable side effects. The intake of boric acid (at dosages of 250 mg/kg for 16 days) has been found to cause severe degeneration of the testes with giant cell formation, pyknosis and exfoliation. Further, such intake of boric acid causes an increase in alkaline phosphatases in tissues, hepatic glycogen content, and maintenance of body fat. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dermatitis, depressed growth, and lethargy occur in adults treated with boron as a trace element, in inorganic forms. Further, the metabolization of boron from such norganic boron compounds is relatively inefficient. Finally, the marked elevation in estrogen and testosterone levels is associated with undesirable side effects in some instances, including mood disorders, water retention, Na.sup.+ retention, thromboembolism, endometrial hyperplasma, cholestatic jaundice, headaches, gastrointestional distress, virilization, and carcinoma of the biliary tract.
Accordingly, it would be a significant advance in the art to provide a method of combatting osteoporosis, which is not subject to the aforementioned deficiencies associated with boric acid and boric acid salts.
It would be particularly desirable to provide a method of combatting osteoporosis, which is bioactive via a non-estrogenic mechanism.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of combatting osteoporosis, which is free of the aforementioned deficiencies.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of combatting osteoporosis utilizing boron in a form taken up by cells more effectively than boric acid or borate salts, and which combats osteoporosis by different mechanisms than the boric acid and boric acid salt compounds used for such purpose in the prior art.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more fully apparent from the ensuing disclosure and appended claims.

Method of combatting osteoporosis in mammalian subjects, utilizing organic boron compounds


A printing method and apparatus is disclosed for printing an image on a printing medium by means of a printing head having a first number n of marking elements, the method includes printing the image as a set of N sub-images, N being a number C of colours used for printing multiplied by a number I of interlacing steps and multiplied by a number P of mutually interstitial printing steps (N=C*I*P), where the number I of interlacing steps is greater than 1. Each interlacing step generates an interlaced sub-image, a swath of an interlaced sub-image being printed during a printing pass. There is at least one linear relative movement between the printing medium and the printing head over a uniform transport distance TD in a slow scan direction between the printing of two subsequently printed interlaced sub-images. The transport distance TD is uniform for all linear relative movements and printing is carried out with a subset of the n marking elements, the subset of marking elements being changed after I printing passes.

Printing is one of the most popular ways of conveying information to members of the general public. Digital printing using dot matrix printers allows rapid printing of text and graphics stored on computing devices such as personal computers. These printing methods allow rapid conversion of ideas and concepts to printed product at an economic price without time consuming and specialised production of intermediate printing plates such as lithographic plates. The development of digital printing methods has made printing an economic reality for the average person even in the home environment.
Conventional methods of dot matrix printing often involve the use of a printing head, e.g. an ink jet printing head, with a plurality of marking elements, e.g. ink jet nozzles. The marking elements transfer a marking material, e.g. ink or resin, from the printing head to a printing medium, e.g. paper or plastic. The printing may be monochrome, e.g. black, or multi-coloured, e.g. full colour printing using a CMY (cyan, magenta, yellow, black=a process black made up of a combination of C, M, Y), a CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black), or a specialised colour scheme, (e.g. CMYK plus one or more additional spot or specialised colours). To print a printing medium such as paper or plastic, the marking elements are used or "fired" in a specific order while the printing medium is moved relative to the printing head. Each time a marking element is fired, marking material, e.g. ink, is transferred to the printing medium by a method depending on the printing technology used. Typically, in one form of printer, the printing head will be moved relative to the printing medium to produce a so-called raster line which extends in a first direction, e.g. across a page. The first direction is sometimes called the "fast scan" direction. A raster line comprises a series of dots delivered onto the printing medium by the marking elements of the printing head. The printing medium is moved over a transport distance, usually intermittently, in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The second direction is often called the slow scan direction.
The combination of printing raster lines and moving the printing medium relative to the printing head results in a series of parallel raster lines which are usually closely spaced. Seen from a distance, the human eye perceives a complete image and does not resolve the image into individual dots provided these dots are close enough together. Closely spaced dots of different colours are not distinguishable individually but give the impression of colours determined by the amount or intensity of the three colours cyan, magenta and yellow which have been applied.
In order to improve the veracity of printing, e.g. of a straight line, it is preferred if the distance between dots of the dot matrix is small, that is the printing has a high resolution. Although it cannot be said that high resolution always means good printing, it is true that a minimum resolution is necessary for high quality printing. A small dot spacing in the slow scan direction means a small distance between marker elements on the printing head, whereas regularly spaced dots at a small distance in the fast scan direction places constraints on the quality of the drives used to move the printing head relative to the printing medium in the fast scan direction.
Generally, there is a mechanism for positioning a marker element in a proper location over the printing medium before it is fired. Usually, such a drive mechanism is controlled by a microprocessor, a programmable digital device such as a PAL, a PLA, a FPGA or similar although the skilled person will appreciate that anything controlled by software can also be controlled by dedicated hardware and that software is only one implementation strategy.
One general problem of dot matrix printing is the formation of artefacts caused by the digital nature of the image representation and the use of equally spaced dots. Certain artefacts such as Moiré patterns may be generated due to the fact that the printing attempts to portray a continuous image by a matrix or pattern of (almost) equally spaced dots. One source of artefacts can be errors in the placing of dots caused by a variety of manufacturing defects such as is the location of the marker elements in the printing head or systematic errors in the movement of the printing head relative to the printing medium. In particular, if one marking element is misplaced or its firing direction deviates from the intended direction, the resulting printing will show a defect which can run throughout the printing. A variation in drop velocity will also cause artefacts when the printing head is moving as time of flight of the drop will vary with variation in the velocity. Similarly, a systematic error in the way the printing medium is moved relative to the printing medium may result in defects which may be visible. For example, slip between the drive for the printing medium and the printing medium itself will introduce errors. In fact, any geometrical limitation of the printing system can be a source of errors, e.g. the length of the printing head, the spacing between marking elements, the indexing distance of the printing medium relative to the printing head in the slow scan direction. Such errors may result in "banding" that is the distinct impression that the printing has been applied in a series of bands. The errors involved can be very small—the colour discrimination, resolution and pattern recognition of the human eye are so well developed that it takes remarkably little for errors to become visible.
To alleviate some of these errors it is known to alternate or vary the use of marker elements so as to spread errors throughout the printing so that at least some systematic errors will then be disguised. For example, one method often called "shingling" is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,967,203 which describes an ink jet printer and method. Each printing location or "pixel" can be printed by four dots, one each for cyan, magenta, yellow and black. Adjacent pixels on a raster line are not printed by the same marking element in the printing head. Instead, every other pixel is printed using the same marking element. In the known system the pixels are printed in a checkerboard pattern, that is, as the printing head traverses in the fast scan direction a marking element is able to print at only every other pixel location. Thus, any marking element which prints consistently in error does not result in a line of pixels in the slow scan direction each of which has the same error. However the result is that only 50% of the marking elements in the printing head can print at any one time. In fact, in practice, each marking element prints at a location which deviates a certain amount from the correct position for this marking element. The use of shingling can distribute these errors through the printing. It is generally accepted that shingling is an inefficient method of printing as not all the marking elements are used continuously and several passes are necessary.
As said above, this kind of printing has been called "shingling". However, printing dictionaries refer to "shingling" as a method to compensate for creep in book-making. The inventors are not aware of any industrially accepted term for the printing method wherein no adjacent pixels on a raster line are printed by one and the same marking element. Therefore, from here on and in what follows, the terms "mutually interstitial printing" or "interstitial mutually interspersed printing" are used. It is meant by these terms that an image to be printed is split up in a set of sub-images, each sub-image comprising printed parts and spaces, and wherein at least a part of the spaces in one printed sub-image form a location for the printed parts of another sub-image, and vice versa.
Another method of printing is known as "interlacing", e.g. as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,198,642. The purpose of this type of printing is to increase the resolution of the printing device. That is, although the spacing between marking elements on the printing head along the slow scan direction is a certain distance x, the distance between printed dots in the slow scan direction is less than this distance. The relative movement between the printing medium and the printing head is indexed by a distance given by the distance x divided by an integer.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a first part of a printing head 10 (e.g. the first quarter) prints first every so many columns, e.g. every fourth column. Then the printing head 10 is transported by one pixel pitch+(k1*marking element pitch), it is to be noted that k1 is an integer which may be zero. Then in the next pass the printing head 10 prints again every so many columns, e.g. every fourth column beginning with the second one, then the printing head 10 is transported one pixel pitch+(k2*marking element pitch), (k2 is an integer which may be zero). This procedure is repeated a number of times, e.g. a third time and a fourth time, after which the printing head 10 can be displaced by the remainder of the head length. The value of k (generally, ki) can be chosen freely.
If an image is printed using different sub-images with interlacing, often at least two different transport distances are necessary. In FIG. 1, 4 times interlacing is illustrated, i.e. the pixel pitch is ¼th of the marking element pitch. It can be seen from FIG. 1 that, in the example given, the transport distances are as follows:TD1=1 pixel pitch+2 marking element pitchTD2=1 pixel pitch+2 marking element pitchTD3=1 pixel pitch+2 marking element pitchTD4=1 pixel pitch+1 marking element pitchTD5=1 pixel pitch+2 marking element pitchTD6=1 pixel pitch+2 marking element pitch
TD4 is smaller than TD1 to TD3 in order to be able to write at every single pixel position.
For stability reasons, it can be advantageous to use only one physical transport distance.
In EP 01 014 299 a method for performing interlaced printing is described, in which method equal transport distances are used. In the method described, a number of requirements need to be met:    1. The number of sub-scan feeds (printing passes) in one feed cycle (i.e. before one head length is printed) needs to be equal to the marking element pitch k (expressed in pixels) multiplied by the number of mutually interstitial printing steps.    2. The marking element offsets F after the respective subs-scan feeds in one feed cycle assume different values in the range of 0 to (k−1), as many times as there are mutually interstitial printing steps in one feed cycle.    3. The average sub-scan feed amount (ΣL/(k*P)) is equal to the number of effectively used marking elements Neff (Neff=N/P), N being the number of used marking elements of the printing head.
The above conditions can be understood as follows. Since (k−1) raster lines are present between adjoining marking elements in the printing head, the number of sub-scan feeds required in one feed cycle is equal to k so that the (k−1) raster lines are serviced during one feed cycle and that the marking element position returns to the reference position (the position of the offset F equal to zero) after one feed cycle. If the number of sub-scan feeds in one feed cycle is less than k, some raster lines will be skipped. If the number of sub-scan feeds in one feed cycle is greater than k, on the other hand, some raster lines will be overwritten. Therefore, the first condition is required.
If the number of sub-scan feeds in one feed cycle is equal to k, there will be no skipping or overwriting of raster lines to be recorded only when the marking element offsets F after the respective sub-scan feeds in one feed cycle take different values in the range of 0 to (k−1). Therefore, the second condition is required.
When the first and the second conditions are satisfied, each of the N marking elements records k raster lines in one feed cycle. Namely N*k raster lines can be recorded in one feed cycle. When the third condition is satisfied, the marking element position after one feed cycle, that is, after the k sub-scan feeds, is away from the initial position by the N*k raster lines.
Satisfying the above first through third conditions thus prevents skipping or overwriting of raster lines to be recorded in the range of N*k raster lines.

Method and device for printing with a uniform printing medium transport distance


A lock-up and slip lock-up type torque converter for an automotive transmission comprises a pump impeller associated with an input shaft of an automotive transmission, a turbine runner associated with an output shaft of the transmission and a lock-up clutch capable of directly connecting the input and output shafts, the lock-up clutch further has an orifice formed in the vicinity of a facing communicating with a fluid chamber of the lock-up clutch. A flow restricting bimetal portion is provided for operatively reducing a size of the orifice according to low fluid temperature detected at a facing portion of the lock-up clutch and increasing a size of the orifice according to high fluid temperature in the lock-up clutch.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a lock-type torque converter. Particularly, the invention relates to a lock-up type torque converter for an automotive transmission.
2 Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, a lock-up torque converter for use in automotive transmissions, etc., are well known. For example, Japanese Utility Model Application, first publication (unexamined) 63-37859 discloses a typical example of such a conventional lock-up type torque converter. According to the above-mentioned Japanese Utility Model application, in order to ensure durability of a facing of a lock-up clutch which is frequently subjected to heat generated during lock-up and slip lock-up operations, a fixed orifice is provided at a circumferential portion of the facing in order to allow flow of automatic transmission fluid (ATF), to contact the facing for cooling thereof.
However, since the fluid flows from the time of engine starting, the fluid takes longer to reach an optimal running temperature. In conventional lock-up type torque converters, the temperature rises to an optimal running temperature fairly slowly and, for this reason, slip lock-up control cannot be effectively implemented immediately after engine starting. If slip lock control is effected before the temperature is sufficiently high, shuddering of the lock-up clutch may occur causing a loss of vehicle traction.
SAE paper No. 900810 discusses the relationship between temperature and shudder in automatic transmissions. According to the SAE paper, severe shudder was found at starting temperatures while no shudder is evident at running temperatures.
Therefore, it has been required to provide a lock-up clutch in which ATF temperature may rise quickly for reducing a period of time in which shuddering may occur after engine starting while maintaining the cooling characteristics of conventional fixed orifice type arrangements.


According to a first aspect embodiments provide a transistor including at least one gate region between at least one drain region and at least one source region, wherein a ratio between a width of the gate region and a length of the gate region exceeds 300.

Radio Frequency (RF) circuits such as filters, resonators and RF matching networks usually require one or more inductances and one or more capacitances. Tunable RF circuits may furthermore be desired to address multi-band and/or multi-standard operation. For such scenarios it is desirable to have tunable inductances and/or capacitances. Until today, tunable capacitors with high Quality factors (Q factors) are available in some technologies and approaches as, for example, varactor diodes, MEMS, switched capacitors, Barium Strontium Titanate (BST) capacitors, etc. However for tunable inductances the approaches usually suffer from issues, such as nonlinear behavior, not suited for high RF voltage and power levels or too low Q factors.


A mistake proof cable assembly for promoting short time engine assembly and method of assembling same. The mistake proof cable assembly comprises a slotted member defining a slot having an open end, and a cable connected to the slotted member and extending longitudinally through the slot. First and second restrainers are mounted on the cable on opposite sides of the slotted member for limiting free movement of the cable in the longitudinal direction of the slotted member. A lock prevents removal of the cable from the slot through the open end thereof.

Profitability considerations call for short time assembly. As a result, it has been proposed to build gas turbine engines from pre-assembled units to expedite the manufacturing process. One problem that arises from having pre-assembled units is that not all components thereof are always accessible. This is problematic as time is wasted disassembling parts in order to reposition them. For instance, it has been proposed to manufacture a pre-assembled trailing engine case (TEC) comprising a fuel shut-off mechanism, a safety cable and an engine rear cone. In this particular case, the safety cable is not accessible once the rear cone has been installed to complete the pre-assembled TEC. Due to the fact that the TEC is transported and manipulated prior to and during engine assembly, it therefore becomes advantageous to ensure that the safety cable remains in the proper position.
As a result, mistake-proof assemblies are important to reduce wasted time in assembly.

Cable connection for a gas turbine engine safety fuel shut-off mechanism


A method of repairing a road surface includes providing a hopper mounted on a spreading vehicle and means to spread material carried in the hopper over depressed areas of the road surface to fill them with the material. At ambient temperature, a batch of patching slurry is mixed comprising aggregate, asphalt emulsion, water, Portland cement, and a retarding agent operative to increase a break time of the patching slurry, and the batch is deposited into the hopper. The spreading vehicle is maneuvered to spread the patching slurry successively over a plurality of depressed areas until the hopper is empty. The ingredients of the patching slurry are adjusted to provide a patching slurry having a break time sufficiently long to allow the hopper to be emptied before the patching slurry begins to set, and sufficiently short to allow traffic to pass over a filled depressed area within a desired time.

Road surfaces are subject to varied faults that develop due to traffic and weather. For example asphalt road surfaces can develop relatively narrow depressions or ruts in the direction of traffic flow caused by heavy trucks and the like. These ruts can be relatively short and localized, or often can continue for a considerable distance, often for miles, along the road.
Asphalt road surfaces are typically laid with two passes of a paving machine that abut each other at the centerline of the road. Cracks commonly develop along the centerline where the two passes meet. Again thermal expansion and contraction due to weather extremes can cause lateral cracks that extend from the centerline to the edge of the road. A characteristic of these cracks is that the edges are depressed causing increased impact forces on the edges from traffic, and leading to further deterioration of the road surface.
At typical ambient temperatures, most asphalts are highly viscous and too stiff to apply to a roadway. To get it into a form that can be applied requires the viscosity to be reduced. This can be done by heating the asphalt, by diluting the asphalt with gasoline, kerosene or the like to make a cutback asphalt, or by making an asphalt emulsion.
Cutback asphalts harden when the diluting fluid evaporates into the atmosphere. Environmental concerns have thus made the use of such diluted asphalt undesirable. Asphalt emulsions consist of water with fine particles of asphalt dispersed in it, and thus do not present a similar environmental risk. Chemical solutions called emulsifiers give the asphalt particles the ability to stay suspended in water, and such asphalt emulsions are well known and are formulated to have a desired viscosity suitable for applications at ambient temperature. Polymers are commonly added to the asphalt emulsion to increase cohesion of the asphalt to aggregate.
Conventional road surface maintenance procedures include using slurries in various applications. A slurry is a mixture of fine aggregate, asphalt emulsion, and fillers that is cold mixed at ambient temperature. The asphalt emulsion serves as a binder, holding the particles of the aggregate together and binding the slurry to the surface on which it is applied. The fillers are added to stabilize or modify the characteristics of the slurry. Once all the ingredients are mixed together, a break time begins to count down. The slurry "breaks" when the asphalt separates from the water in the asphalt emulsion, either by evaporation or with the aid of emulsifiers that react with the aggregate. Adding Portland cement as a filler also reduces the break time, and further gives the slurry a creamy consistency that aids in even spreading. After the slurry breaks, it cures or hardens to a satisfactory hardness to support traffic.
When slurries are first mixed, they are in liquid form of varying viscosities according to the ingredients and thus readily flow into cracks and depressions and leave a smooth surface. As time passes the slurry breaks and then cures. The slurry must therefore be placed in position on the road surface within that period of time after mixing where it is liquid and prior to breaking. Water and other materials are added to the slurry to provide the desired viscosity and break time.
Slurries are commonly used to spread in a relatively thin layer across the surface of a road to seal the road, and restore a skid resistant surface. Considerable care must be taken with the aggregate used in a slurry. The aggregate particles must be sourced from crushed rock in order to provide particles with jagged edges so that they bind to the asphalt emulsion in a satisfactory manner. Fine particles from a pit or like natural source typically have relatively smooth surfaces that have been polished by wind and water over considerable time, and thus are not generally satisfactory for use in a slurry.
Such sealing slurries are commonly mixed in batches and the ingredients chosen to provide a long break time, an hour or more, so that the operators will have time to spread the slurry on the area, or a number of different areas, where it is required. The long break time somewhat delays the resumption of traffic flow on the road, however sealing a whole lane surface is an operation that is not required on a regular basis and so the delay in traffic resumption is considered acceptable.
Slurries have also been developed that are suitable for filling long and relatively deep ruts in road surfaces, as well as re-surfacing whole road surfaces, using a process commonly referred to as microsurfacing. Microsurfacing slurries have a very short break time, typically minutes, so that the thicker layer of slurry will harden quickly and traffic delays will be minimized. In order to mix and apply microsurfacing slurries, a mobile vehicle with a continuous mixing apparatus is used that carries the ingredients and mixes and applies the slurry as the apparatus moves along the rut. The apparatus is also configured to load aggregate and other ingredients from transport vehicles as it moves along the road so that the slurry can be laid down in long continuous stretches to maintain a smooth, uninterrupted surface.
The International Slurry Surfacing Association provides two guideline publications on their web-site at www.slurry.org entitled Recommended Performance Guidelines for Emulsified Asphalt Slurry Seal Surfaces 2003, and Recommended Performance Guidelines for Polymer Modified Micro-Surfacing 2003.
Localized depressed areas such as lateral depressed cracks and localized ruts are typically present at fairly widely spaced intervals along a road. For repairing localized depressed areas, cold mixed slurries have not been used. In repairing such cracks it is desired to use a material that remains liquid for a time long enough for the crew to move from one crack to the next some distance down the road. Each of a plurality of depressed lateral cracks requires a relatively small amount of material to fill it, and so a hopper and spreader box mounted on a loader vehicle can generally hold enough material to fill several cracks. Once laid it is desired to have the material set or harden very quickly so that traffic flow can be resumed. Thus it is preferred to use a hot mix sulfur asphalt material. This hot mix is mixed with a heated mixer, and then typically placed in a heated hopper on a loader vehicle and carried to the cracks and applied as the repair material. When maintained at a high temperature in the heated loader hopper, the hot mix stays liquid and flows readily. When applied to the road surface in a relatively thin layer, the material rapidly cools and hardens so that it is ready for traffic almost immediately after it is laid. Such hot mixes are also commonly used to patch depressed centerline cracks, as well as localized depressed areas.
Application of the repair material to the road typically uses essentially the same process for sealing slurry, microsurfacing slurry, and hot mix. The material flows into a spreading box that lays the material on the road surface as the spreading box is moved forward. The spreading box maintains close contact with the road surface on each side of the rut or crack and provides a straight edge along the back from one side to the other to screed or level the material as the box moves forward. In a continuous process like microsurfacing, the spreader box is dragged along behind the mixing vehicle and fed directly from the mixer. When applying a sealing slurry the spreader box is generally the same width as a road lane and the box is dragged behind a vehicle carrying a batch of sealing slurry. In a hot mix batch process, the spreader box is typically mounted to the underside of a heated hopper or bucket mounted on a loader vehicle. The batch of hot mix is placed in the hopper where an agitator maintains the uniformity of the mix, and flow to the spreader box underneath is controlled with a gate. The operator moves from crack to crack, dragging the hopper and box along the crack and controlling the amount of material released into the box so that the box is substantially empty when it reaches the end of the crack, and the hot mix is feathered out to the end of the crack at the edge of the road.
The conventional hot mixes used to patch localized depressed areas comprise asphalt oil, sand, and sulfur. The asphalt oil is typically heated to about 325° C. and the sand is heated to about 350° C. Conveniently natural sand, suitably washed or screened, can be used instead of crushed sand since the asphalt oil adheres better when heated rather than being carried in an emulsion. Sulfur is added in order to hasten hardening. Without sulfur, it could take 20 minutes or more for the mix to cool and harden, while with added sulfur hardening is very quick, so that traffic may be resumed almost immediately in many cases. Where the depressed areas are deeper however, it is generally desirable to delay traffic somewhat to allow the thicker mix to harden prior to traffic resumption.
The presence of sulfur in the hot mix causes the mix to give off malodorous fumes, and health concerns arise concerning workers exposed to sulfur fumes. There are as well environmental concerns respecting the use of sulfur on roads where it can be washed into surrounding soil by rain. As well heating the mixer and hopper requires combustion of fuels like propane which are inherently hazardous. Equipment and fuel for heating the hot mix also adds considerably to the cost of patching lateral depressed cracks.

Her Majesty the Queen in right of the Province of Saskatchewan, as represented by the Minister of Highways and Transportation


The present invention relates to a hybrid promoter, in which a whole or a part of a CMV enhancer, a whole or a part of a β-actin promoter, a whole or a part of a CMV promoter, and a whole or a part of a β-actin intron are operably linked to each other, a recombinant vector comprising the same, a transformant transformed with the recombinant vector, a pharmaceutical composition comprising the recombinant vector or the transformant, and a method for preparing a target protein using the recombinant vector or the transformant. The hybrid promoter of the present invention is able to induce high expression of a target protein in a eukaryotic cell. Therefore, the hybrid promoter of the present invention can be effectively used for the development of an antibody or the production of a DNA vaccine.

In order to express a target gene in a host cell, an expression vector and a gene transfer technique for carrying a structural gene of interest and expressing the same within the cells are required. In this regard, the expression vector capable of expressing a DNA fragment inserted therein generally includes regulatory elements, such as a promoter or an enhancer. Such regulatory elements facilitate the expression of a target gene operably linked thereto. The expression vectors can be selected depending on host cell type, target gene expression level, type of expression desired and the like, and a variety of expression vectors have been developed to satisfy the desired purposes.

Hybrid promoter and recombinant vector comprising the same


An insulation displacement connector that includes a plurality of apertures disposed through a mating face and a ribbon-contacting face of the insulation displacement connector. The mating face is configured to mate with a complementary connector complementary in gender to the insulation displacement connector. The ribbon-contacting face is disposed opposite the mating face and configured for coupling with an interspersed ground conductor ribbon cable having a plurality of parallel insulated conductors. The insulation displacement connector includes a plurality of first conductor coupling structures. Each of the first conductor coupling structures is disposed in one of the plurality of apertures and is configured to couple to one of first designated conductors of the plurality of parallel insulated conductors and a contact on the complementary connector when the complementary connector is coupled to the insulation displacement connector at the mating face. The insulation displacement connector farther includes a second conductor coupling structure disposed at the ribbon-contacting face. The second conductor coupling structure is configured to couple with a second designated conductor of the plurality of parallel insulated conductors different from the first designated conductors. The second designated conductor is coupled to ground during use and represents a shielding ground conductor to reduce inductive crosstalk between first selected ones of the first designated conductors.

The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for facilitating data communication among computer subsystems. More particularly, the present invention relates to improved insulation displacement connectors that advantageously permit interspersed ground conductor ribbon cables to be employed for data communication among computer subsystems.
The use of ribbon cables and their connectors to facilitate data communication between computer subsystems is well known. To facilitate discussion, FIG. 1 illustrates a ribbon cable assembly 100, including five parallel insulated conductors 112, 114, 116, 118, and 120. Insulated conductors 112-120 are typically employed to carry data, control signals, and the like between subsystem 102 and subsystem 104. Although only five conductors are shown to simplify the illustration, ribbon cable assembly 100 may in practice include any number of parallel conductors required for data transmission.
The conductors of ribbon cable assembly 100 are coupled to female insulation displacement-type connectors (IDC) 122 and 124 at their ends. As shown, female IDC 122 includes five apertures 132, 134, 136, 138, and 140 at its mating face 141. The apertures are configured to mate with respective contacts (e.g., pins) 142, 144, 146, 148, and 150 of a complementary connector 152 disposed on subsystem 102. Since IDC 122 is a female connector, complementary connector 152:, which is complementary in gender, is a male connector. The female IDC is discussed in greater detail in FIGS. 2A-E herein. A similar arrangement exists between female IDC 124 and male connector 162 (disposed on subsystem 104 in FIG. 1). When female IDCs 122 and 124 are coupled to their respective male connectors, each contact (e.g., pin) on male connector 152 of subsystem 102 is in electrical communication, via ribbon cable assembly 100, with its counterpart contact on male connector 162 of subsystem 104 to permit data transfer to take place therebetween.
To facilitate further discussion of the female IDC connector that couples to the conductors of the ribbon cable assembly, FIGS. 2A-E illustrate in detail an exemplary 40-contact female IDC connector 200. Female IDC connector 200 may represent, for example, a female connector for use with the 40-conductor ribbon cable assemblies that are currently popular in coupling hard disks to their hard disk controllers in accordance with the well defined 40-contact ATA (Advanced Technology or "AT" Attachment) specification. Female IDC 200 may represent, for example, a 3417-7000 connector, available from 3M Corp. of St. Paul, Minn.
In FIG. 2A, a schematic- view of the ribbon-contacting side of female IDC 200, i.e., the side at which the conductors terminate, is illustrated. Female IDC 200 includes 40 apertures (labeled A1-A40 in FIG. 2A). A mating side view of female IDC 200, i.e., the side to which a male connector is coupled, is illustrated in FIG. 2B. In FIG. 2B, apertures A1-A40 of FIG. 2A are depicted as seen from the mating side. By conforming the location, dimension, and signal assignment of each aperture to a well-established specification, female IDC 200 may be interchangeably coupled to any male conductor conforming to the same specification.
Within each of apertures A1-A40, there is disposed a conductor coupling structure 202 (shown in greater detail in FIG. 2C), which includes an insulation displacement structure 250 and a contact engaging structure 252. When the ribbon-contacting side of female IDC 200 is placed against a ribbon cable, an insulated conductor of the ribbon cable is disposed between leaves 254(a) and 254(b) of insulation displacement structure 250. By pressing the ribbon cable to the ribbon-contacting side of female IDC 200, the multiple leaves 254(a) and 254(b) of conductor coupling structures 202 of the female IDC cut through the insulation surrounding the parallel conductors C1-C40 of the ribbon cable, allowing individual conductor coupling structures 202 to be in direct electrical contact with individual exposed conductors.
Contact engaging structure 252, which may be offset from the plane formed by conductor coupling structure 202, is designed to engage a male connector pin when the pin is inserted into the aperture from the mating side of the female IDC, thereby allowing the pin to be in electrical contact with a conductor of the ribbon cable (which is in direct electrical contact with conductor coupling structure 202 as described earlier). FIG. 2D shows, in one example, the manner in which contact engaging structure 252 of conductor coupling structure 202 engages a pin 256 of the male connector to make an electrical connection therewith.
To further facilitate ease of illustration and comprehension, FIG. 2E is an enlarged schematic view of aperture A1 of FIG. 2A as seen from the ribbon-contacting side, illustrating the general relationship between the aperture, the conductor coupling structure, the conductor, and the pin (which is associated with the male connector and is inserted into the aperture from the mating side). In FIG. 2E, a conductor 182 of the ribbon cable is shown disposed in between leaves 254(a) and 254(b) of insulation displacement structure 250 of conductor coupling structure 202 (discussed in connection with FIG. 2C earlier). Contact engaging structure 252 of FIG. 2C is also shown within pin receptacle area 260 of the aperture. When a pin (illustrated by the dashed outline) of the male conductor is inserted into pin receptacle area 260, the electrical contact is made between the pin and contact engaging structure 252 at point 262 as shown. As can be appreciated from the foregoing, the coupling of the numerous insulated conductors of a ribbon cable to its female connector can be performed in a single crimping step when insulation displacement-type connectors are employed, thereby saving labor and cost. For this reason, insulation displacement-type connectors are widely used to create ribbon cable assemblies.
For relatively slow ATA data transfer rates, standard ribbon cables (i.e., those having signal-bearing conductors disposed immediately adjacent to one another) work adequately. When the data transfer rates increase, e.g., to facilitate communication between high performance subsystems or during data bursts between even relatively slow subsystems, the inductive cross-talk between adjacent signal-bearing conductors of the ribbon cable degrades the signals thereon. If the inductive cross-talk is excessive, some of the data being transmitted via the ribbon cable assembly may be corrupted. Accordingly, inductive cross-talk limits the data transfer rates between subsystems that are interconnected by a standard ribbon cable.
It is generally known that the use of interspersed ground conductors in a ribbon cable reduces the inductive crosstalk between adjacent signal-bearing conductors. FIG. 3 illustrates an interspersed ground ribbon cable assembly 302, in which the five signal-bearing conductors 304 are shielded from one another by a plurality of ground conductors 306. By shielding the signal-bearing conductors from one another, inductive cross-talk is reduced, thereby permitting data communication to take place it a relatively high rate over interspersed ground ribbon cable assembly 302 and/or increasing the signal-to-noise ratio of the data transmitted over interspersed ground ribbon cable assembly 302.
It is a relatively simple matter to increase the number of conductors in a given ribbon cable such that every other conductor is non signal-bearing and grounded, thereby creating an interspersed ground ribbon cable. However, the coupling of conductors of the resultant interspersed ground ribbon cable with its female IDCs (e.g., female IDCs 122 and 124) has, up to now, presented manufacturers with many difficulties. This is because, as mentioned earlier, the number, location, dimension, and signal assignment of each aperture in the female IDC typically conform to already-established specification and preferably remain unchanged for compatibility reasons even as shielding ground conductors are added. In other words, the interspersed ground conductors of the interspersed ground ribbon cable, e.g., ground conductors 306 in FIG. 3, are preferably coupled to ground without requiring changes to the female IDC, at least as far as the mating side of the female IDC is concerned.
In the prior art, the fabrication of an interspersed ground ribbon cable assembly typically involves a significant amount of manual labor. In one case, after the female IDCs are pressed onto their signal bearing conductors, the remaining interspersed ground conductors are stripped off their insulation and then manually soldered together. The interconnected ground conductors are then coupled to ground, e.g., via the grounded chassis of the computer system. As can be appreciated from the foregoing, the labor intensive nature of the prior art technique defeats the very purpose of using insulation displacement connectors, i.e., to simplify fabrication and reduce manufacturing cost. Because of the additional manual labor required, interspersed ground ribbon cable assemblies manufactured in accordance with the prior art techniques tend to be costly.
In view of the foregoing, there are desired improved insulation displacement-type connector designs that simplify the coupling with interspersed ground conductor ribbon cables. Further, the improved insulation-displacement type connectors preferably require no changes to the existing complementary connector to which it is coupled in order to facilitate backward compatibility with existing subsystems.

Interspersed ground ribbon cable assemblies and methods therefor


The speech processing apparatus 100 includes an air microphone speech recognition unit 101 which recognizes speech from an air microphone 200 acquiring speech through air, a wearable microphone speech recognition unit 102 which recognizes speech from a wearable microphone 300, a sensing unit 103 which measures environmental conditions, a weight decision unit 104 which calculates the weights for recognition results of the air microphone speech recognition unit 101 and the wearable microphone speech recognition unit 102 on the basis of the environmental conditions, and a combination unit 105 which combines the recognition results outputted from the air microphone speech recognition unit 101 and the wearable microphone speech recognition unit 102, using the weights.

The use of a microphone is the most popular method used to acquire voice in speech processing. There are many types of microphones in accordance to different conduction methods, such as air microphones (air conduction microphones), throat microphones, bone microphones, skin microphones and so on. Among all of them, air microphones that acquire voice propagating through air are the most commonly used in the speech processing field. An air microphone picks up the full-band, 20 MHz for example, speech, by using which an appropriate speech processing system obtains good performance. However, it is less immune to environmental noise and far distance from the speech resource, referred to as speaker (refer to NPL1). How to improve the performance in such severe conditions is one of the most challenging topics among speech processing researchers. Especially now with the rapid spread of AI speakers such as Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Apple Siri, it has become a hotter and more urgent problem to solve (each of Google, Amazon, Alexa, Apple and Siri is a registered trademark).
A typical example of an air microphone is a sound collecting microphone which is used in a space such as a conference room, a hall or the like. However, usage of an air microphone is not limited to a conference, a convention and so on.
On the other hand, "wearable" devices have been increasing its popularity. Wearable devices are electronic devices for multiple purpose ranging from wireless transmission for communication objectives, music listening, fitness tracking, to biometric authentication. The hardware architecture of wearable devices typically comprises microphones. The microphone in a wearable device is referred to as "wearable microphone" in this specification. Generally, "wearable microphone" being less sensitive to surrounding noise and always on the speaker, i.e. close distance, may be used in noisy environments as mentioned above. However, since high-frequency components conducting through skin or bone attenuate significantly due to transmission loss, the quality of speech signals acquired by wearable microphone is relatively low. NPL 2 shows a wearable microphone performs worse than an air microphone in a speaker recognition application in the clean condition.

Speech processing apparatus, method, and program


In some aspects and embodiments, the invention provides methods for making hematopoietic stem cells, including for HSCT. The method comprises providing a cell population comprising hemogenic endothelial (HE) or endothelial cells, and increasing activity or expression of DNA (cytosine-5-)-methyltransferase 3 beta (Dnmt3b) and/or GTPase IMAP Family Member 6 (Gimap6) in the HE and/or endothelial cells under conditions sufficient for stimulating formation of HSCs.

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are derived during embryogenesis in distinct regions where specific inductive events convert mesoderm to blood stem cells and progenitors. HSCs can give rise to both the myeloid and lymphoid lineages of blood cells in a process called hematopoiesis.
HSC transplantation (HSCT) is widely used to treat patients with blood, bone marrow, metabolic, and immune diseases. Despite advances in umbilical cord and haplo-identical stem cell transplantation, the therapeutic use of HSC transplantation is often restricted due to the difficulty of finding suitable human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-matched donors in a timely manner, especially in countries with ethnic minorities and lack of national unrelated donor registries. Although mixed-race people account for 1.6 percent (9.7 million) of the U.S. population, multiracial volunteers make up only 3 percent (21,000) of the 7 million people on the registry, leaving 6,000 patients without a bone marrow match. Even if one finds a suitable match, immunologic complications such as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), donor rejection, and high treatment-related mortality could compromise patient survival. However, these complications are eliminated by autologous transplant. Although autologous HSCs would not replace allogeneic HSCs entirely, especially in the context of hematologic malignancy, they would overcome major hurdles in HSCT including, lack of donor availability and GVHD for patients with a broad span of malignant and non-malignant hematologic, immune, and metabolic disorders.
Thus, there is a need for generating HSCs, including autologous HSCs, for HSCT.

Methods for generating hematopoietic stem cells


An adhesion promoter composition containing a Zn, K, Al, Ti or Zr metal salt of an organic acid and at least one of a hydrous inorganic salt and an organic molybdenum compound. The adhesion promoter composition may be used to form an adherent rubber composition. The use of the adhesion promoter composition results in an adherent rubber composition which is stable and has a high adhesive force.

In order to improve performances of automobile tires, conveyor belts and the like, steel cords are generally used as a reinforcing member.
Such steel cords are subjected to a brass plating in order to increase their adhesion to rubber (hereinafter "adhesive force") which thereby enhances their reinforcing effect.
On the other hand, a cobalt salt of an organic acid may be compounded as an adhesion promoter in a rubber composition in order to increase the adhesive force between rubber and steel cord.
However, the use of cobalt is not desirable for safety concerns and due to its high cost. And also, in case of using a cobalt salt of an organic acid, the adhesion property just after vulcanization is excellent, but the adhesion property after thermal aging is poor.
When the other metal salts of organic acids are compounded instead of the cobalt salt of the organic acid, the adhesive force just after vulcanization is poor. Therefore, metal salts of organic acids have not yet been put into practical use as a replacement for cobalt salts.

Adhesion promoter composition and adherent rubber composition containing the same


A torque distribution system for a model racing car includes a front pair of wheels, a front axle, a front differential coupled to the front axle, a rear pair of wheels, a rear axle, a rear differential coupled to the rear axle, a center differential a front driveline coupling the center differential and the front differential, a rear driveline coupling the center differential and the rear differential, and a motor coupled to the center differential. The motor and center differential are mounted in the car at an angular orientation with respect to the centerline. The front and rear drivelines are angularly oriented at different angular orientations. The differing angular orientations of the front and rear drivelines are characterized by corresponding differing amounts of friction, resistance or efficiency of the front and rear drivelines to transmission of torque.

Field of the Technology
The disclosure relates to the field of remote controlled racing cars and in particular to a torque distribution in the drive trains of remote controlled racing cars.
Description of the Prior Art
The International Federation of Model Auto Racing (IFMAR) is the world governing body of professional radio controlled racing. The hobby of racing remote controlled model cars has attracted numerous builders, designers and suppliers of the vehicles and the accessories. The hobby has engendered sponsored racers participating in international and national racing events at many levels. Both professional and amateur hobbyists make substantial efforts and spend large sums of money to develop competitive vehicles and operators with the cars typically running at speeds in excess of 60 mph in racing events.
The performance and demands on the model racing cars is thus comparable to the level of competition and sophistication for full scale racing cars, although less costly due to the smaller scale. The racing cars are often provided with four-wheel drive for racing on rough surfaces. However, tire wear on the vehicles often is uneven between the front and rear wheels resulting in the need for frequent and costly tire changes. Moreover, uneven tire wear is an indicator of a certain degradation in stability of drive, roadability or control.
What is needed is some way in which power or torque can be delivered to the car's wheels to minimize uneven tire wear and to improve stability of drive, roadability and control.

Torque distribution system and method for torque distribution in model racing cars