An Optical Transport Network (OTN) method, an OTN switching node method, and an OTN node utilize a “double wrapper” configuration to eliminate clock transients in OTN networks. That is, the systems and methods bury an ODU beneath another overclocked ODU thereby eliminating any interruptions due to clock transients, framing events or other disruptions. For example, an ODU2 can be mapped into an ODU2e, an ODU3 can be mapped into an ODU3e2, an ODU4 can be mapped into an ODUG or some other overclocked variant of ODU4, and the like. Specifically, ODU2e, ODU3e2, ODUG, etc. are overclocked variants of ODU2, ODU3, ODU4, etc. The systems and methods propose to use these overclocked signals to carry standard ODU signals to eliminate clock transient problems.

Optical Transport Network (OTN) includes a set of Optical Network Elements (ONE) connected by optical fiber links, able to provide functionality of transport, multiplexing, switching, management, supervision and survivability of optical channels carrying client signals. OTN is defined, inter alia, in ITU-T Recommendations G.709 (December/2012) "Interfaces for the Optical Transport Network (OTN)," G.798 (October/2010) "Characteristics of optical transport network hierarchy equipment functional blocks," G.805 (March/2000) "Generic functional architecture of transport networks," G.872 (October/2012) "Architecture of optical transport networks," G.798.1 (April/2011) "Types and characteristics of OTN equipment," G.7710 (February/2012) "Common equipment management function requirements," G.7714.1 (April/2003) "Protocol for automatic discovery in SDH and OTN networks," G.873.1 (July/2011) "OTN Linear Protection," and G.873.2 (April/2012) "ODUk Shared Ring Protection," the contents of each are incorporated by reference herein.
Optical (i.e., transport) networks and the like (e.g., wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), Synchronous Optical Network (SONET), Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH), Optical Transport Network (OTN), Ethernet, and the like) at various layers are deploying control plane systems and methods. Control plane systems and methods provide automatic allocation of network resources in an end-to-end manner. Exemplary control planes may include Automatically Switched Optical Network (ASON) as defined in G.8080/Y.1304, Architecture for the automatically switched optical network (ASON) (February/2005), the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference; Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) Architecture as defined in Request for Comments (RFC): 3945 (October/2004) and the like, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference; Optical Signaling and Routing Protocol (OSRP) from Ciena Corporation which is an optical signaling and routing protocol similar to PNNI (Private Network-to-Network Interface) and MPLS; or any other type control plane for controlling network elements at multiple layers, and establishing connections there between. It is essential for the operation of control planes to have control plane signaling and Operations, Administration, Maintenance, and Provisioning (OAM&P) connectivity between nodes.
Clock adjustments in an OTN context can be problematic. For example, when switching from Optical channel Data Unit j (ODUj) to another synchronous or asynchronous source (or vise-versa), a clock transient and frame slip are experienced and alarms are raised unless suppressed by alarm hold-off and conditioning. During this time, OAM&P and control plane signaling is unavailable until recovery is possible. If nothing is done, then user experience spurious alarms when the ODUj service is affected. It has also been determined that these transients can cause cascading glitches in the OTN network. This has been explored in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/476,589 filed May 21, 2012 and entitled "OPTICAL TRANSPORT NETWORK TRANSIENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND METHODS," the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein. However, conventional solutions only seek to mitigate problems, not eliminate them.

Optical transport network clock transient suppression systems and methods


A wire harness includes a relay box having an external shape that is defined by a frame to which one of a mechanical relay cassette and a communication-function-provided relay cassette is replaceably attached, a junction connector having a space in which a communication module is installable, and a junction box having a microcomputer which works a communication function optionally.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wire harness, and particularly, to a wire harness capable of easily adding a communication function.
2. Description of Related Art
Cable harnesses for vehicles have been developed in various types from those with less functions for lower-grade vehicles to those with many functions for higher-grade vehicles, to meet a wide variety of requirements. Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. H08-148037 discloses a higher-grade wire harness provided with a communication function, which is not usually provided for a lower-grade wire harness.
When developing a wire harness, functions must be added or removed depending on requirements. FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating an example of a wire harness according to a related art. In FIG. 1, the wire harness 71 installed in a vehicle includes a relay box 72, junction connectors 73 and 74, and a junction box 75. To add a new function to the wire harness 71, the related art must add, for example, a junction box 76 having the required new function to the wire harness 71.


A method for optimizing a data model is used in a device. The device acquires data information and selecting at least two data models according to the data information, and utilizes the data information to train the at least two data models. The device acquires each accuracy of the at least two data models, determines a target data model which has greatest accuracy between the at least two data models, and optimizes the target data model.

Convolution Neural Network (CNN) model is usually used as a tool in the field of analyzing images. However, selecting and adjusting the CNN model requires a professional background, and a selection of the CNN model has a great impact on the output of data, so a quick and accurate method for selecting the data model is required.

Method for optimizing a data model and device using the same


An unmanned aerial vehicle includes a propulsion system having at least one propulsion module comprised of at least one propeller and at least two motors/engines, one or more of the motors/engines providing mechanical energy to drive the propeller, wherein the difference between the angular velocities of the motors/engines provides energy input to a mechanical or magneto-mechanical linkage system to change the blade pitch angle of the propeller, in cyclic and/or collective manner.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard. Its flight is controlled either autonomously by onboard computers or by the remote control of a pilot on the ground or in another vehicle. UAVs are commonly used in military and special operations applications, and are increasingly finding uses in civil, commercial and recreational applications, such as policing and surveillance, aerial filming, and the delivering of packages to end consumers.
Existing UAVs may be of the single rotor or dual coaxial rotor type, which provide a number of distinctive advantages over other UAV designs. For example these types of UAVs typically have a compact footprint, a small rotor disc surface area, and a small circumference, which makes them particularly suitable for a number of applications where close interaction with people and reliable operation even with environment disturbances is essential.
In a propeller-based propulsion system, such as that often employed with UAVs, thrust is produced along the axis of rotation (referred to herein as the "z-axis") of the propeller and can be controlled by changing the rotational velocity of the propeller and/or the blade pitch. In case the blade pitch of the propeller remains predominantly unchanged throughout a particular propeller revolution, the resultant (average) produced thrust (lift) force will be acting purely along the z-axis. The propeller rotation will thereby produce no torque with respect to suspension points lying on z-axis, except in the plane of rotation of the propeller.
By varying the blade pitch of all blades of a propeller simultaneously, it is possible to change the magnitude of the thrust force produced. In helicopters, this type of control is referred to as collective pitch control. By extension, the term "collective pitch control" is used herein to refer to changing the blade pitch of all blades of a propeller simultaneously, unrelated to whether or not this is a part of the propulsion system of a helicopter.
By cyclically varying the blade pitch of every blade of a propeller, in a way that the pitch of a blade has a certain value depending on the position of the blade in the particular revolution, one can offset the axis around which the average thrust force is generated to no longer coincide with the z-axis. As a result, the propeller will generate net torque with respect to suspension points lying on the z-axis, both in the plane of rotation, but also in other planes.
For simplicity, consider a spherical coordinate system centered at the intersection point of the plane of rotation (the horizontal plane) and the axis of rotation of the propeller. The azimuth angle determines the position of a blade during the revolution. The blade pitch is usually (for vibrations and balance of forces reasons) changed in a sinusoidal manner, such that the pitch of a blade is maximal at a certain azimuth angle and minimal at the directly opposite angle (+/−180 degrees away). The transitions between the maximal and minimal blade pitch are gradual throughout the revolution and follow a sine wave pattern.
In helicopters, this type of control is referred to as cyclic pitch control and may directly or indirectly be used for controlling the orientation (attitude) and/or position of the vehicle in space. By extension, as used herein, the term "cyclic pitch control" refers to changing the blade pitch of the blades of a propeller individually, depending on the azimuth position of the blade in a certain revolution, unrelated to whether or not this is a part of the propulsion system of a helicopter. Similarly, "sinusoidal cyclic pitch control" refers to systems where the blade pitch follows sinusoidal pattern.
Cyclic and collective pitch control can be combined, integrating the individual properties of both to achieve a more sophisticated control of the vector of thrust. For example, in case the cyclic pitch control is sinusoidal, the phase of the blade pitch sine wave defines the azimuth angle of the direction in which the axis of the average thrust is shifted from the axis of rotation. The amplitude of the sine wave defines how far is the axis of the average thrust shifted from the z-axis, which is also directly related to the magnitude of the torque vector (other than the torque around the z-axis). The average value of the sinusoid (offset from the zero blade pitch) defines the collective pitch component.
One notable problem in UAVs with a helicopter-style propulsion system, such as those discussed above, is the mechanical complexity of the swashplate and related mechanics, and the large distance required between the motor and the propeller to accommodate these components. The coaxial helicopter configuration, which recently gained a lot of popularity especially in UAV designs, further increases the spacing requirements and mechanical complexity of the traditional design involving a mechanical swashplate. These spacing requirements often limit the minimum height of the aircraft and render the configuration inappropriate for small to medium sized vehicles.
In view of the above, there is a need for a UAV "virtual swashplate" system, where the pitch of the propeller can be controlled by changing the relative position of the rotors of two motors/engines.

Unmanned aerial vehicle and propulsion system for an unmanned aerial vehicle


To make a metal torsion bar having an elongate central body connected to two hexagonal end heads via shoulders, the ends of a torsion bar blank are initially upset while hot so as to form the shoulders of the torsion bar together with cylindrical head blanks, after which each head blank is machined by removing material until the corresponding hexagonal head has been obtained.

An example of a torsion bar having hexagonal heads is disclosed in document U.S. Pat. No. 4,231,555.
The ends of torsion bars of that type are generally formed in a single step by forging in a die which imparts their outside shapes to the hexagonal heads and to the shoulders, which die is constituted by a plurality of moving parts to enable the torsion bar to be removed after the hexagonal heads have been formed.
That method of making hexagonal heads can achieve only low dimensional precision for the heads.
In particular:
forging flash is generally present on the hexagonal heads and the shoulders in the join planes between the various moving parts of the die used for forging said heads; PA1 even ignoring the flash, the dimensions of the various portions of the hexagonal heads are not very precise; and PA1 the angular orientation of the hexagonal heads relative to each other about the central axis of the torsion bar is likewise not very precise. PA1 taking a torsion bar blank which includes said central body extending between said two ends; PA1 at each end of the torsion bar blank, forming the above-mentioned shoulder corresponding to said end together with a head blank by axially upsetting said end of the torsion bar blank while it is hot towards the central body in a hollow cylindrical die, said die not coming into contact with the shoulder and giving the head blank a cylindrical shape which contains more material than the hexagonal head that is to be formed; and PA1 machining each head blank by removing material until the corresponding hexagonal head has been obtained. PA1 during the upsetting of each end of the torsion bar blank, said end of the blank is heated by passing an electric current therethrough; PA1 the die is in the form of a single piece; PA1 the machining of the head blank by removing material is performed by milling; PA1 the hot upsetting of each end of the torsion bar blank is performed in a circularly cylindrical die giving the corresponding head blank a shape that is likewise circularly cylindrical; PA1 the torsion bar is a suspension torsion bar for a vehicle; PA1 the torsion bar is made of a carbon steel belonging to the 10xy category of the SAE J402 standard where x and y are two integers lying in the range 0 to 9; and PA1 the method also includes a step of surface quenching by induction.
Because of this poor dimensional precision, it can sometimes be difficult to incorporate torsion bars in the mechanical assemblies of which they are to form a part.
In particular, when torsion bars are to be fitted to vehicle suspensions, the poor precision concerning the relative orientation of the hexagonal heads makes it complicated and sometimes even impossible to perform initial adjustment of the various suspensions of any given vehicle so as to guarantee that the rest position of the vehicle is accurately horizontal. Said relative orientation of the hexagonal heads contributes to determining the rest height of the vehicle over each wheel.
In addition, forming the ends of the torsion bar by forging gives rise to structural defects (in particular concerning fiber orientation) that reduce the mechanical performance of the torsion bar in terms of the stresses that can be accepted, and that also reduce its lifetime.
To obtain satisfactory mechanical performance, it is therefore generally necessary to make torsion bars having hexagonal heads out of materials that are expensive, such as chromium steels or micro-alloyed steels.

Method of forming a torsion bar with hexagonal heads


An access system and system for enabling a package to be delivered to a house are disclosed. The access unit includes a keypad, a light, and an activatable open button. The access unit opens a door to the structure when the button is pressed while active. The access unit also includes an authentication module configured to communicate via Bluetooth with a package delivery unit when the package delivery unit reaches a predetermined delivery distance near the structure and to authenticate the package delivery unit. The access unit also includes an execution module configured to store one or more rules pertaining to delivery of a package by the package delivery unit and to execute the one or more rules in response to the access unit successfully communicating with the package delivery unit, wherein one of the rules is to activate the activatable open button if the authentication is successful.

Every day more commerce is conducted online and goods are shipped to buyers' homes. Frequently, the buyer is not home when the packages arrive and the packages end up sitting on a porch for long periods of time. So-called "porch pirates" see this as an opportunity to steal valuable property that is lying unsecured in broad daylight for hours at a time. There is a need for increased security for delivered goods. There is also a need for increased security in garage doors.


Signals generated electronically at a variety of frequencies are broadcast under water in the presence of various species of aquatic animals and any reaction of the aquatic animals in response to the broadcast signals is noted. A frequency synthesizer is used with an underwater transducer to generate and broadcast signals at a variety of frequencies and frequency synthesizer control words associated with observed behavior are recorded. Subsequently, the recorded control words are applied to a frequency synthesizer connected to an underwater transducer to influence behavior of identified species of underwater animals in a desired manner. Indices representative of various recorded signals may be embodied in a submersible device, such as a lure or the like, from which a reproduced signal may be broadcast to attract, repel, or otherwise influence the behavior of identified species of aquatic animals.

1. Cross-Reference to Related Application
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/013,370, filed on Mar. 15, 1996.
2. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method and apparatus for creating and broadcasting predefined signals designed to selectively modulate the behaviors of species of fish, marine mammals, crustaceans, etc.
3. Background Art
It has long been known that acoustical signals are both generated and detected by aquatic animals and are an important communications medium. Furthermore, certain species of aquatic animals appear to transmit an acoustical signal unique to the species and equivalent to a "signature." The signature can be detected and may be recognized as indicative of available prey or indicative of the presence of a predator. Sound corresponding to such a signature may be reproduced and broadcast underwater and the behavior of fish and other aquatic animals may be influenced or controlled. Many aquatic animals produce "calls" indicative of social behavior or distress, or the like, and the corresponding underwater sounds influence the behavior of both predator and prey. The behavior of aquatic animals is also known to be influenced by weather disturbances which create sound transmitted from the surface of the water.
As described in my prior patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,177,891, issued Jan. 12, 1993, and entitled "Game Fish Attracting Device," methods for recording underwater acoustical signals are known. Recording acoustical signals produced by particular species of aquatic animals involves isolating members of that species and detecting signals by means of an underwater acoustical transducer. However, isolating different species in an area where underwater sounds can be recorded is often difficult and at least inconvenient. Furthermore, in such a setting it is likely that the species of aquatic animals will only generate certain types of signals and not, for example, the kind of signals that would be generated in the presence of a predator or the kind of signals that would be produced by a predator in pursuit of prey, or those that might be associated with certain social behaviors.
The concept of influencing or controlling the behavior of aquatic animals, which term is understood to include fish, marine mammals, crustaceans, and any other animals who make water their habitat, has wide application. Such control or manipulation may be used in many applications, including sport fishing, commercial fishing, scuba diving, marine research, selective commercial netting, etc. An example of the latter application would be repulsion of dolphins from commercial tuna nets. The same principles may be applied in repelling sharks or other predators.
One prior art approach to attracting fish to a particular location is to retain a number of fish in a tank, or the like, and to record their sounds for rebroadcast at a later time. One problem with that approach is that the sound that is being recorded may include ambient noise or may be distorted by echoes, or the like, occurring in the tank, which do generally not occur in the natural habitat. As a result, the broadcast sounds do not correspond directly to the sounds that would normally be produced by a particular species of aquatic animals in a natural habitat.

Method and apparatus for influencing behavior of aquatic animals by broadcasting predefined signals under water


The present invention provides compositions and a novel high-yielding process for preparing high purity Group III nitrides. The process involves heating a Group III metal and a catalytic amount of a metal wetting agent in the presence of a nitrogen source. Group III metals can be stoichiometrically converted into high purity Group III nitride powders in a short period of time. The process can provide multi-gram quantities of high purity Group III nitrides in relatively short reaction times. Detailed characterizations of GaN powder were preformed and are reported herein, including morphology and structure by SEM and XRD, optical properties by cathodoluminescence (CL), and Raman spectra to determine the quality of the GaN particles. The purity of GaN powder was found to be greater than 99.9% pure, as analyzed by Glow Discharge Mass Spectrometry (GDMS). Green, yellow, and red light emission can be obtained from doped GaN powders.

Commercial gallium nitride (GaN) is typically synthesized through the reaction of gallium oxide (Ga2O3) with ammonia (NH3), which results in GaN with a high concentration of residual oxygen. High impurity concentrations increases the density of dislocations in GaN single crystals and inhibits continuous growth. Commercial powders made from metal gallium (Ga) are extremely expensive and the quantity available is limited because the yield of current processes is low.
Gallium nitride in the wurtzite form has a large direct band gap of 3.45 eV at room temperature. GaN also forms a continuous range of solid solutions with aluminum nitride (AlN) (6.28 eV) and indium nitride (InN) (1.95 eV). Thus, Group III-nitrides, and gallium nitride in particular, are very attractive for use in opto-electronic devices because any band gap with energy in this range, from the visible to the deep UV, is theoretically achievable with these materials. Opto-electronic devices are currently fabricated by growing GaN on hetero-substrates such as sapphire, SiC, ZnO, Al2O3, LiGaO2, and LiAlO2. The mismatches in lattice parameters and thermal expansion coefficients result in high dislocation densities in these films.
Group III nitrides are widely known to emit light ranging from UV to the visible spectra. Many group III nitrides therefore show potential as opto-electronic light sources (S. Nakamura, et al., Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 1996, 35, L217) and high frequency power devices (M. A. Kahn, et al. Appl. Phys. Lett. 1993, 63, 1214). For example, gallium nitride powder can be used to make optical displays by utilizing the fluorescent properties of GaN crystals (see K. Hara, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0226497 A1). Group III nitrides can be valuable in combination with ceramics, particularly the aluminum nitrides (see "A study of the physical properties and electrochemical behavior of AlN films", F. Vacandio, Y. Massiani, P. Gravier, Surf. Coat. Tech. 1997, 92, 221).
In order to continue and speed the development of this technology, bulk substrates are greatly desired. Bulk substrates will allow the realization of high device efficiencies, lower leakage currents, and longer device lifetimes. GaN bulk single crystals and wafers are thus greatly desired for homoepitaxial film growth. Crystal growth processes for GaN bulk growth, e.g., sublimation and high-pressure methods, demand the availability of a high purity, single-phase GaN powder.
Johnson et al. first presented the synthesis of GaN powder by flowing NH3 over molten gallium at temperatures of 900-1000° C. (W. C. Johnson, J. B. Parsons, M. C. Crew, J. Phys. Chem. 1932, 36, 2651). Later, Lorenz developed a synthetic method of preparing GaN using Ga2O3 and NH3 (M. R. Lorenz, B. B. Binkowski, J. Electrochem. Soc. 1962, 109, 24). In 1972, Pichugin and Yas'kov (I. G. Pichugin, D. A. Yaskov, Inorg. Mat. 1972, 6, 1732) showed that GaN powder could be synthesized via the reaction: Ga(l)+NH3(g)=GaN(s)+3/2H2(g) where ΔGr=−51 kJ/mol at 800° C. Compared to the conversion from Ga2O3, the key advantage of this procedure is that GaN powder of higher purity can be obtained. GaN powder has also been synthesized by injecting NH3 into molten Ga under atmospheric pressure in the temperature range of 900-980° C. (M. Shibata, T. Furuya, H. Sakaguchi, S. Kuma, J. Crystal Growth 1999, 196, 47). There is only one report of the efficient conversion of Ga to GaN with flowing NH3 in a horizontal furnace (C. H. Balkas, R. F. Davis, J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 1996, 79, 2309).
Several research groups have demonstrated the growth of GaN powders through various other synthetic methods. Ga2O (C. M. Balkas, R. F. Davis, J. Am. Ceramic Soc. 1996, 79, 2309), and GaP or GaAs (A. Addamino, J. Electrochem. Soc. 1961, 108, 1072) have been used as precursors and reacted with NH3 to make GaN powder. Other methods have also been explored recently, such as the decomposition of organometallic compounds containing Ga and N (K. H. Kim, C. H. Ho, H. Doerr, C. Deshpandey, R. F. Bunshah, J. Mater. Sci. 1992, 27, 2580), plasma synthesis (K. Baba, N. Shokata, M. Yonezawa, Appl. Phys. Lett. 1989, 54, 2309), and microwave-assisted combustion methods (B. Vaidhyanathan, D. K. Agrawal, R. Roy, J. Mater. Res. 2000, 15, 974). Junko disclosed a method of obtaining GaN powders by dropping an ammonia solution into gallium nitric hydrate solution to form gallium hydroxide, followed by dehydration to form gallium oxide, which was then heated under an ammonia atmosphere (Junko et al., Japanese Patent Application No. 10-373540). These processes, however, do not disclose the advantages of using a wetting agent, and more efficient and suitable processes are required by industry. Additionally, most of these methods experience either very low yields or high impurity concentrations.
Cahn first introduced the idea of interfacial wetting in 1977 (J. W. Cahn, J. Chem. Phys. 1977, 66, 3677). Cahn suggested that one component in a binary liquid mixture might segregate to the liquid surface. Recently, interfacial wetting has been observed in fluid alkali metal-alkali halide and liquid gallium-based binary alloys, such as Ga—Bi (E. B. Flom, M. Li, A. Acero, N. Maskil, S. A. Rice, Science 1993, 260, 332; H. Tostmann, E. DiMasi, O. G. Shpyrko, P. S. Pershan, B. M. Ocko, M. Deutsch, Phys. Rev. Lett. 2000, 84, 4385) and Ga—Pb (D. Chatain, P. Wynblatt, Surf. Sci. 1996, 345, 85). Bismuth has been used as surfactant in growing GaN thin films by a Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) technique disclosed by Kisielowski in U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,472. Nickel-mesh has been used as a catalyst to help decrease the kinetic barrier to forming GaN (K. S. Nahm, S. H. Ahn, S. H. Lee, IPAP Conf. Series 1, 2000, 30). None of these studies, however, disclose the use of bismuth, germanium, tin, or lead as a wetting agent for the preparation of Group III nitrides.
Currently, there is a need for bulk supplies of Group III nitrides, particularly high purity Group III nitrides. Few companies in the US manufacture commercial gallium nitride (GaN) powder, and the commercial powders typically contain relatively high levels of impurities. Because of the lack of highly efficient methods for the synthesis of Group III nitrides, novel preparations are highly desirable.
Additionally, recent demonstrations of visible (blue, green, red) and infrared (1.54 μm) electroluminescence from rare earth (RE) doped gallium nitride produced significant interest in Group III nitrides for potential applications in optical communications and full color displays (A. J. Steckl and J. M. Zavada, Mater. Res. Bull. 1999, 24, 33; A. J. Steckl, et al. Compound Semicond. 2000, 6, 48). The properties of erbium-doped GaN and other III-V semiconductors have been reviewed by Zavada and Steckl (J. M. Zavada and D. Zhang, Solid-State Electronics, 1995, 38, 1285; A. J. Steck, et al. IEEE J. Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics, 2002, 8, 749) The GaN-based semiconductor structures are of great interest because they appear to be optically robust, and chemically and thermally stable. Favennec et al. reported a strong dependence of the emission intensity of the Er3+ ions on the band gap of the host semiconductor and on the material temperature (P. N. Favennec, et al. Electron. Lett. 1989, 25, 718). The wide band-gap of GaN leads to a reduced RE emission quenching effect and the observation of strong RE emission at room temperature (ibid). Accordingly, novel preparations of rare earth metal-doped Group III nitride compositions are needed.


A tool or tool insert is formed of a silicon nitride sintered body which contains silicon nitride as well as a sintering aid and is sintered under a pressurized atmosphere. Freely grown .beta.-Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 including .beta.'-SIALON is removed from its sintering surface by steps other than grinding. A tool of a surface-coated silicon nitride sintered body is formed by coating the surface of a base material, which is formed in a manner similar to the above, with a layer of carbide of Ti or the like having a thickness of 0.1 to 10 .mu.m and/or a layer of Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 having a thickness of 0.4 to 10 .mu.m. Tools or inserts formed by a silicon nitride sintered body and the same tools provided with a surface coating have an excellent wear resistance as well as toughness and can be manufactured at a low cost since grinding is avoided.

In the field of cutting tool inserts and wear-resistant tools, collectively referred to as "tools" herein, an attempt has generally been made to substitute a ceramic tool or insert for a high-speed steel tool. A cemented carbide tool or a coated tool, and an Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 -based tool were first developed in the 1950s. However, these early tools were not brought into practice at the outset since their toughness was too small. Thereafter an improvement was made in order to increase the toughness of the tool by adding TiC, ZrO.sub.2 (Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-6274 (1984)), SiC whiskers (Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 61-274803 (1986)), whereby the tool could be practically applied to finish cutting of cast iron or the like. However, it was impossible to use the tool for rough cutting and intermittent cutting since its toughness was still insufficient resulting in an inferior reliability. On the other hand, a silicon nitride sintered body can be widely applied to rough and/or finish cutting, wet cutting etc. of cast iron with high reliability since a silicon nitride sintered body has a higher toughness compared with an Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 sintered body and a high thermal shock resistance with a small thermal expansion coefficient. Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 6-19367 (1986) and 62-13430 (1987) have proposed tools which are obtained by coating the surfaces of silicon nitride sintered bodies with a Ti compound or Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 thereby improving the wear resistance of the silicon nitride sintered body and provide it with excellent characteristics.
As to such a silicon nitride sintered body, extensive studies have been made in relation to a sintering assistant, for the purpose of improving the strength, since silicon nitride is a highly covalent compound which has a large ratio of grain boundary energy to surface energy as compared to ionic and metallic crystals which large ratio causes an extremely slow self-diffusion, whereby silicon nitride is hardly sintered at a high temperature due to decomposition and evaporation. Thus, there has been developed a technique of forming a glass phase having a low melting point with a sintering assistant such as MgO, Y.sub.2 O.sub.3, Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, ZrO.sub.2, AlN, CaO, CeO.sub.2, SiO.sub.2 or the like for obtaining a dense sintered body by liquid phase sintering. In the history of the development of such sintering assistants, the development of Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 as a sintering assistant was extremely important because not only the sintered body was densified but also silicon nitride crystal grains were developed in columnar shapes to improve the strength of the silicon nitride sintered body by a theory of fiber reinforcement (see Japanese Patent Publication No. 48-7486 (1973)). In this sintering mechanism, .alpha.-Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 is dissolved in a molten glass phase which has been formed at a high temperature, deposited as .beta.-Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 (or .beta.'-SIALON) by a dissolution and/or redeposition phenomenon, and grown in a C-axis direction of a hexagonal system in the presence of Y.sub.2 O.sub.3, to form columnar silicon nitride particles.
Due to such technical development, it has been made possible to improve the strength of silicon nitride, which is now practically applied to make ceramic tools including tool inserts capable of carrying out rough cutting, intermittent cutting and rough milling of cast iron.
Such development of the sintering assistant and employment of gaseous nitrogen pressure sintering have also enabled sintering of silicon nitride in a pressurized nitrogen atmosphere. Previously, the sintering generally took place only by a hot pressing method. Further, it has been made possible to form a sintered body having a complicated configuration, in a near "net" shape, i.e., in a shape substantially close to that of the final product.
However, although it has been made possible to work a sintered body into a near final shape by the aforementioned technical development, there has not yet been developed a product of a silicon nitride tool or insert which is directly formed with a sintered surface capable of functioning as a cutting edge similarly to a cemented carbide or cermet tool formed with a directly coated sintered surface. Rather, a silicon nitride tool or insert requires grinding to obtain its finished shape under the present circumstances. Thus, the strength of the sintered body is reduced by cracks resulting from flaws which are caused during grinding, and the manufacturing cost is increased since silicon nitride is extremely hard to work making the grinding operation difficult. FIGS. 1A and 1B are microphotographs taken by a scanning electron microscope (hereinafter referred to as "SEM"), showing the state of a ground surface of a base material.
Although an attempt has been made to mold silicon nitride into a desired shape and finish the same without any grinding or through an after treatment with a low-cost method other than grinding, the so formed product deteriorated in strength and had a reduced wear resistance due to the presence of abnormal phases formed on the surface of the sintered body. Such abnormal phases appearing on the surface of the sintered body may be formed by sublimation and/or decomposition of Si.sub.3 N.sub.4, scattering of grain boundary glass phases and the like. It has been proposed to solve this problem by oxidizing the surface of a silicon nitride sintered body and forming a film which is mainly composed of silicon dioxide for covering abnormal phases appearing on the surface of the sintered body, thereby drawing out characteristics present in the silicon nitride sintered body itself (Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2-164773 (1990)). When such a sintered body is used as a tool or tool insert in practice, however, depositions are easily caused between the tool and a workpiece due to silicate glass phases having a low melting point which are formed on the surface of the sintered body, whereby the wear resistance is reduced. There has also been proposed a method of sintering a vessel of a specific material containing a pressed body of silicon nitride made of silicon nitride group powder held within a graphite crucible in a state buried in the silicon nitride group powder thereby obtaining a sintered material which can be applied to practical use in the sintered state (Japanese Patent Publication No. 62-30152 (1987)). On the surface of the so formed sintered body, however, freely grown columnar crystal grains of silicon nitride are formed as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, similarly to the case of an ordinary normal pressure sintering method. The columnar silicon nitride crystal grains, which are of Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 (or .beta.'-SIALON), are intertwined in the sintered body to improve its strength by the mechanism of fiber reinforcement as described above, thereby enabling the tool or the insert to perform cutting work, such as rough milling or intermittent cutting of cast iron. This phenomenon is specific to a silicon nitride sintered body which is improved in strength, and it is not observed in a sintered surface of a cermet or cemented carbide tool.
The crystal grains of .beta.-Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 or .beta.'-SIALON freely grown on the surface of the sintered body are instable due to the free or random growth, and merely fixed in place by glass phases mainly composed of a sintering aid located at end portions of the columnar crystal grains. Therefore, the crystal grains easily drop out when external stress is applied to the sintered body, whereby the surface roughness of the sintered body is increased due to clearances defined between the columnar particles. When a sintered body having such a surface is used as a tool or insert, therefore, its wear resistance is reduced and its strength is deteriorated by the columnar crystal grains falling out of the body surface.
In the case of a surface-coated silicon nitride sintered body which is used as a tool or insert, external stress is applied to a film covering the surface of its base material, to easily cause the above mentioned dropping phenomenon, while its surface roughness is increased due to clearance defined between columnar particles, and portions of the coating film become irregular to cause local grain growth, leading to the formation of a massive coating film as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B.
When a sintered body having such surface phases is used as a tool, therefore, the cutting resistance is disadvantageously decreased and the coating film easily peels off to damage the effect of the coating. Such a problem is specific to a tool of a surface-coated silicon nitride sintered body which is improved in strength by columnar .beta.-Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 (or .beta.'-SIALON), and is not observed in a film coated on a cemented carbide tool. Further, in a silicon nitride sintered body, this problem has not been caused since a ground sintered body has been coated in general.

Method for manufacturing a cutting tool insert made of a silicon nitride body


A system for displaying and dispensing has a plurality of dispensers each having a hollow body formed with at least one wall of flexible material, and a dispensing opening through a wall of the body, the body providing a default internal volume, such that deforming the hollow body reduces the internal volume, increasing pressure within the internal volume, and a support structure to which the plurality of dispensers is joined, the support structure presenting the plurality of dispensers in a specific three-dimensional pattern.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of display and dispenser products including aroma-based material dispensers and pertains particularly to methods and apparatus for displaying dispensers and dispensing a material.
2. Discussion of the State of the Art
In the field of dispenser products, there are many examples of material dispensers in the art such as spray bottles like perfume samplers and the like or apparatus such as sponges containing reservoirs for dispensing perfumed soap, etc. Typically these sampler apparatuses are loosely associated with a display area or marketing area selling the materials such as perfume and the like that may be sampled. Persons may walk away with such products or they may be lost while being moved or stored.
It has occurred to the inventor that if a plurality of material dispensers could be provided more economically with fewer moving parts and displayed in a fashion that is not only visually satisfying, but convenient for sampling, materials might be sampled more often, which might lead to better sales and better retention of the dispensers associated with the display.
Therefore, what is clearly needed is a material dispensing apparatus that displays a plurality of material dispensers as an accessible but secured group of economical dispensers made available for use by patrons.

Dispenser display having a plurality of independent dispensing bodies


A method for low temperature bumping is disclosed. A resin capable of being cross-linked by free-radical or cationic polymerization at low temperature is provided. Electrically conductive particles are then added to the resin to form a mixture. The mixture is then activated by heat or exposure to light to polymerize the mixture. In an alternative embodiment, a vinyl ether resin is used, to which electrically conductive particles are added. The mixture is polymerized by exposure to light.

The thermal conditions to which most electronic devices are subjected may adversely affect those components made out of alternative materials. For example, polymeric ferroelectric random access memory (PFRAM) devices exposed to temperatures of approximately 140 degrees Celsius (° C.) have significantly decreased performance. For example, a process that exposed a PFRAM to 100° C. for 2 hours followed by a ramp up to 125° C. for 7 minutes caused a thirty percent reduction of cells in the device that retained their contents.
Typically, packaging of electronic components such as microprocessors and other integrated circuits involves high temperatures, especially at the formation of the first level of interconnection. The first level of interconnection is where the integrated circuit is mounted onto the printed circuit board (PCB) so as to allow the integrated circuit to be electrically coupled to the PCB. Some examples of current approaches to the first level of interconnects include wire bonding, which has a typical temperature range of about 140° C. to >200° C., and anisotropic conductive films, which have a typical temperature of 180° C.


A turbine vane is provided. The turbine vane may include an inner shroud having an upper surface and a lower surface, a seal unit disposed in the lower surface of the inner shroud and defining a first region and a second region in the lower surface of the inner shroud, a first impingement unit arranged in the first region and comprising a first impingement plate facing the inner shroud defining a first impingement chamber therebetween, wherein the first impingement plate is configured to receive cooling air and form impingement jet directed to the first impingement chamber, a second impingement unit arranged in the second region and comprising a second impingement plate facing the inner shroud defining a second impingement chamber therebetween, and at least one connector flow channel configured to direct cooling air from the first impingement chamber to the second region, wherein the second impingement plate is configured to receive cooling air from the at least one connector flow channel and form impingement jet directed to the second impingement chamber.

A gas turbine is a power engine that mixes air compressed by a compressor with fuel for combustion and rotates a turbine with high-temperature gas produced by the combustion. The gas turbine is used to drive a generator, an aircraft, a ship, a train, and so forth.
A gas turbine vane, also referred to as a nozzle, includes an airfoil extending radially between an inner shroud and an outer shroud, also referred to as inner platform and outer platform. The inner shroud and the outer shroud define parts of hot gas flow path through the turbine section and are immersed in hot gas during turbine operation. Thus, cooling of the shrouds is necessary.
FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a related art cooling scheme for an inner shroud 100 of a turbine vane 44. The turbine vane 44 is positioned downstream of a transition duct 17 extending from a combustor of the gas turbine in an annular hot gas path 55 defined in part by the inner shroud 100 and an outer shroud 90 of the turbine vane 44. An airfoil 60 of the turbine vane 44 extending between the outer and inner shrouds 90, 100 is disposed in the hot gas path 55. The outer shroud 90 is disposed towards an outer casing of a stator 42 and defines a radially outer surface 52 of the hot gas path 55, while the inner shroud 100 is disposed radially inward towards a central axis, i.e., a rotational axis of the gas turbine, and defines a radially inner surface 54 of the hot gas path 55.
Hot gas, also referred to as combustion product 34, flows from the combustor into the hot gas path 55 via the transition duct 17, and the airfoil 60 and surfaces of the outer and inner shrouds 90, 100, e.g., an upper surface 100a of the inner shroud 100, are immersed in hot gas34. Cooling air 5 is supplied from the compressor into the turbine vane 44 to cool the turbine vane 44.
Referring to FIG. 2, a portion 5a of cooling air 5 is delivered through a first flow channel 9a to the inner shroud 100, e.g., a lower surface 100b of the inner shroud 100. A seal unit 70, also referred to as axial seal 70, is disposed at the lower surface 100b of the inner shroud 100 to maintain an appropriate pressure of the cooling air 5 in a first region R1 located axially upstream of a second region R2 at the lower surface 100b of the inner shroud 100. The seal unit 70 may be formed as an annular plate extending around the central axis of the gas turbine and sealing the flow of cooling air 5a towards the second region R2. The seal unit 70 is referred to as axial seal since it is configured to block flow of cooling air 5 in the axial direction. The seal unit 70 is required to maintain appropriate pressure in the first region R1 so that adequate cooling air flow may be maintained to different parts of the turbine vane 44.
In addition, a portion 5b of cooling air 5 is transmitted through a second flow channel 9b to a turbine blade 38 located downstream of the turbine vane 44 via a cooling air channel 36c formed through a blade carrying disk 36. An interstage seal 80, also referred to as a radial seal such as a labyrinth seal 80, is disposed between the turbine vane 44 and the blade carrying disk 36, and is configured to block flow of cooling air 5 in a radial direction between a vane stage comprising the turbine vane 44 and a blade stage comprising the turbine blade 38 and the blade carrying disk 36.
However, a part of the inner shroud 100 in the second region R2 is not appropriately cooled. Therefore, there is a need to provide a mechanism or technique for effectively cooling the inner shroud of the gas turbine vane.

Technique for cooling inner shroud of a gas turbine vane


A Geodesic Hazardous Waste Containment Building provides a means for the long term isolation of toxic waste from the environment. The invention comprises a primary containment sphere, a surrounding secondary containment sphere and a means for protecting the contents of the building from natural disaster, specifically earthquake. The invention includes all of the advantages of geodesic construction providing the opportunity for cost-effective, modular construction with inexpensive building materials such as concrete. The invention further provides a double barrier of protection from environmental contamination. The invention also makes possible easy inspection for leaks and a means of controlling and containing leaks should they occur.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to geodesic structures specifically the use of these structures for the long term containment and isolation of hazardous waste material from the environment.
2. Cross Reference and Related Applications
This invention introduces a new use for geodesic structures and those structural means which can most broadly be referred to as tension structures. The basis of this invention is drawn from the inspiration and work of Dr. R. Buckminster Fuller. Embodiments of my invention are related but not limited to the following Patents and references. Geodesic Dome, U.S. Pat. No. 2,682,235, Jun. 29, 1954, Monohex (Geodestic Structure) U.S. Pat. No. 3,197,927, Aug. 3, 1965, Aspension (Geodesic Structure) U.S. Pat. No. 3,139,957, Jul. 7, 1964, Octet Truss U.S. Pat. No. 2,986,241, May 30, 1961, Earthquake Protective Column Support U.S. Pat. No. 4,644,714, Feb. 24, 1987.
3. Discussion of the Prior Art
Heretofore the containment and isolation from the environment of hazardous waste material has been undertaken primarily by the means of depositing toxic waste material in landfills. Recently, legislation has stimulated advances in the technology of the treatment of hazardous waste. Regardless of the advances in treating hazardous wastes, material residues will continue to require containment and isolation from the environment. The nature of the stategies and the artifacts previously used for toxic waste containment leaves them subject to leaking into the environment or subject to having the environment leak into deposits of waste. Furthermore, deposits of hazardous waste have been subject to damage resulting from natural cycles and disasters, i.e. rainwater, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods. In addition, the long term maintenance, inspection and repair of toxic waste deposits has been difficult. Many times the detection of damage or leakage has not been possible until an invasion of the biosphere by toxic residues has occurred. The degree of protection provided by the vessels and the landfills containing toxic waste is related in part to the surface area of the vessel or the landfill through which toxic waste might be diffused. Until now, very little consideration has been given to the potential of utilizing the most efficient, hence environmentally safest, ratio of surface area to enclosed volume.
Geodesic building enclosures have been used to meet a wide variety of requirements for enclosing a volume of space for the protection of humans, animals and artifacts from the environment. All geodesic structures have a spectrum of features which make them particularly unique. Without limiting the unique features of this class of structure, several features which are specifically appropriate are 1. the aspect of tension, which provides a particularly favorable weight to strength ratio, 2. the adaptablity to any size, 3. the advantageous relationship of enclosed volume to surface area that exists in spherical and hemispherical geodesic structures, 4. the unique ability of geodesic and tension structures to withstand earth tremors and other natural disasters. My invention is a new use for geodesic spheres and domes utilizing these structures as a uniquely efficient and safe means for the long term protection of biosphere from hazardous waste.

Geodesic hazardous waste containment building


A reference voltage generating circuit and a standby down-converting circuit or a tuning circuit are located in the periphery of the region where a semiconductor device is formed on a semiconductor chip, and a region including an active down-converting circuit which operates during an active cycle or a drive circuit is located adjacent to a circuit actually consuming a current. According to the semiconductor device, increase in area can be suppressed compared to the structure in which both a standby down-converting circuit or drive circuit and the tuning circuit and an active down-converting circuit are located in the vicinity of each current consuming circuit, thereby achieving efficient arrangement of the internal power supply circuitry. As a result, a semiconductor device having efficiently arranged internal power supply circuitry is provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor devices internally including voltage converting circuitry for converting an externally applied power supply voltage to produce an internal operating power supply voltage, and more particularly to a semiconductor memory device having on-chip internal down-converting circuitry for down-converting an external power supply voltage to produce an internal power supply voltage.
2. Description of the Background Art
With higher integration degree of semiconductor devices, transistor elements as the components thereof have been increasingly miniaturized. In order to ensure the reliability of such miniaturized transistor devices and to reduce charge/discharge current on signal lines with a signal amplitude being reduced and thus reduce current consumption, an on-chip voltage converting circuit for lowering an external power supply voltage is sometimes provided to drive internal circuitry with a voltage lower than the external power supply voltage produced by this voltage converting circuit.
The semiconductor devices having such a voltage converting circuit typically include a dynamic random access memory (DRAM). In the case of the DRAM, it is desirable to reduce an operating power supply voltage as much as possible in terms of high-speed operation thereof, device reliability and lower current consumption. However, since a logic gates of a processor for determining a system power supply voltage or the like are lower in integration degree than the DRAM, a power supply voltage of the logic cannot be reduced so low as the operating power supply voltage of the DRAM. In addition, the DRAM must maintain compatibility with the previous generations. Therefore, a higher system power supply voltage is down-converted within the DRAM to produce an internal operating power supply voltage lower than the system power supply voltage, thereby driving internal circuitry of the DRAM.
FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of a conventional internal down-converting circuit generally used in the DRAM. In FIG. 11, internal down-converting circuit VDC includes a reference voltage generating circuit RVG receiving an external power supply voltage VCE applied to an external power supply node EX and a ground voltage for generating a reference voltage Vref at a prescribed voltage level, a comparator CMP for comparing an internal power supply voltage VCI on an internal power supply line IVL with reference voltage Vref, and a current drive transistor DT constituted by a p channel MOS transistor connected between external power supply node EX and internal power supply line IVL and receiving an output signal of comparator CMP at its gate. A load circuit LC operates with the internal power supply voltage VCI on internal power supply line IVL as one operating power supply voltage. An operation of internal down-converting circuit VDC shown in FIG. 11 will now be described.
When internal power supply voltage VCI on internal power supply line IVL is higher than reference voltage Vref, the output signal of comparator CMP attains an H level and therefore conductance of current drive transistor DT is reduced, whereby current supply from external power supply node EX onto internal power supply line IVL is reduced or stopped.
Meanwhile, when internal power supply voltage VCI is lower than reference voltage Vref, the output signal of comparator CMP goes toward an L level and therefore the conductance of current drive transistor DT is increased, whereby current is supplied from external power supply node EX onto internal power supply line IVL, increasing a voltage level of internal power supply voltage VCI. This comparator CMP is normally constituted by a differential amplifier for differentially amplifying the difference between internal power supply voltage VCI and reference voltage Vref. Therefore, this current drive transistor DT supplies a current from external power supply node EX onto internal power supply line IVL in accordance with the difference between internal power supply voltage VCI and reference voltage Vref, whereby internal power supply voltage VCI is held approximately at a reference voltage Vref level.
When load circuit LC operates consuming a current on internal power supply line IVL and internal power supply voltage VCI is reduced, the output signal of comparator CMP is reduced in voltage level and current drive transistor DT supplies large current from external power supply node EX onto external power supply line IVL, restoring this internal power supply voltage VCI to the original level.
With the use of the feedback loop of current drive transistor DT and comparator CMP, internal power supply voltage VCI lower in voltage level than external power supply voltage VCE can be stably produced to operate the internal circuitry (load circuit LC).
Current drive transistor DT serves as resistance component between external power supply node EX and internal power supply line IVL. Accordingly, when load circuit LC operates consuming current on internal power supply line IVL, current drive transistor DT needs to supply a current equal to or higher than consumed current during operation of load circuit LC in order to quickly compensate for reduction in internal power supply voltage VCI resulting from the current consumption of load circuit LC to restore the internal power supply voltage to the original voltage level. Thus, the gate width W (or the ratio W/L of gate width to gate length) of current drive transistor DT is enlarged and current driving capability thereof is sufficiently increased. Therefore, the current drive transistor occupies a relatively large area.
Furthermore, when load circuit LC operates faster and consumes a larger amount of current, a current flowing in internal power supply line IVL is increased. Current consumption I is given by the expression I=f.multidot.Ce.multidot.V, wherein f indicates an operating frequency, Ce a load capacitance to be driven and V a voltage amplitude at an electrode of load capacitance Ce. Accordingly, an average current flowing in internal power supply line IVL is increased with increase in operating frequency.
In this state, if the distance between internal down-converting circuit VDC and load circuit LC is increased and the length of internal power supply line IVL therebetween is thus increased, voltage drop resulting from interconnection line resistance of internal power supply line IVL could not be ignored. This load circuit LC would operate with a voltage lower on the average than internal power supply voltage VCI as one operating power supply voltage and therefore the operational characteristic of load circuit LC cannot be assured, resulting in instability of the circuit operation.
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing another structure of a conventional internal down-converting circuit. This internal down-converting circuit VDC shown in FIG. 12 includes a level shifting circuit LS for shifting in level an internal power supply voltage VCI on an internal power supply line IVL by resistance division. An output voltage LV of level shifting circuit LS is applied to a positive input of a comparator CMP for driving a current drive transistor DT. A reference voltage Vref is applied to a negative input of comparator CMP. Current drive transistor DT and a load circuit LC have the same structure as that shown in FIG. 11.
Level shifting circuit LS includes resistive elements R1, r1, r2 and R2 connected in series between internal power supply line IVL and a ground node, and link elements F1 and F2 respectively connected in parallel with resistive elements r1 and r2 and capable of being blown off. Resistive elements R1 and R2 have a relatively large resistance value in order to reduce current consumption in this level shifting circuit LS.
When link elements F1 and F2 are in a conductive state, resistive elements r1 and r2 are short-circuited, and level shifting circuit LS serves as a resistance dividing circuit formed of resistive elements R1 and R2. At this time, a shift voltage LC given by the following expression is applied to comparator CMP. EQU LV=VCI.multidot.R2/(R1+R2)
If link element F1 is now blown off, resistive element r1 is connected in series with resistive element Rl. Accordingly, in this state, shift voltage LV is given by the following expression. EQU LV=VCI.multidot.R2/(R1+R2+rl)
More specifically, when link element F1 is blown off, shift voltage LV is reduced in level. Meanwhile, if link element F2 is blown off, resistive element r2 is connected in series with resistive element R2. In this case, shift voltage LV given by the following expression is obtained. EQU LV=VCI.multidot.(R2+r2)/(R1+R2)
In other words, when link element F2 is blown off, shift voltage LV can be increased in level. Comparator CMP compares this shift voltage LV with reference voltage Vref. Therefore, according to the structure of internal down-converting circuit VDC shown in FIG. 12, feedback control is carried out such that reference voltage Vref and shift voltage LV are at the same voltage level (through operation of comparator CMP and current drive transistor DT).
The voltage level of internal power supply voltage VCI can be adjusted by selectively blowing link elements F1 and F2 off. With the use of this level shifting circuit LS, comparator CMP can operate in the most sensitive region, the feedback loop of comparator CMP and current drive transistor DT can be improved in response characteristic, and internal power supply voltage VCI can be stably held at a prescribed voltage level.
According to the structure of internal down-converting circuit VDC, however, level shifting circuit LS includes link elements F1 and F2. Link elements Fl and F2 occupy a relatively large area (in order to prevent other elements from being short-circuited at the time of blowing off and to prevent other portions from being blown off by mistake at the time of blowing). Therefore, this level shifting circuit LS occupies a large area.
Recently, the operation speed and integration degree of the DRAM have been increasingly improved and therefore such an internal down-converting circuit need be efficiently located so as to prevent both increase in area and voltage drop.
In addition, semiconductor devices including a voltage converting circuit with a function similar to that of such an internal down-converting circuit also have similar problems with improvement in integration degree.

Semiconductor memory device having optimally arranged internal down-converting circuitry


In one embodiment, a display panel includes a substrate and a gate driver disposed on the substrate. The gate driver comprises a wiring unit which receives signals and a circuit unit which outputs driving signals in response to the signals received from the wiring unit. The circuit unit comprises a shift register and a shift register wiring connected to the shift register. The wiring unit comprises first through n-th signal lines (n is a natural number greater than two) arranged sequentially adjacent to the shift register. The first line is located farthest from the shift register and the n-th signal line is closest from the shift register. Further, the first signal line is electrically connected to the shift register by a first connection line that comprises a first contact portion connected to the first signal line and a second contact portion connected to the shift resistor wiring.

1. Field of Disclosure
The present disclosure of invention relates to a gate driver structured such that its elements are better protected against being burned by static electricity and a liquid crystal display (LCD) including the gate driver.
2. Description of Related Technology
Generally, a liquid crystal display (LCD) includes a display panel having a plurality of gate lines and a plurality of data lines, a gate driver transmitting a plurality of gate signals to the gate lines, and a data driver transmitting a plurality of data signals to the data lines.
In a conventional LCD, each of the gate driver and data driver is mounted on a display panel in the form of one or more respective IC chips. However, attempts are being made to monolithically integrate at least one of the gate driver and the data driver on a same substrate having the thin-film transistors (TFTs) of the LCD in order to reduce the total size of the display device and to improve productivity and reliability. That is, a gate driver circuit which generates the gate signals of a TFTs-containing substrate is integrally formed on that substrate using an amorphous silicon TFT technology that directly mounts the gate driver circuit on the same glass substrate where the pixels and their respective TFT switching transistors are formed.
However, when a plurality of amorphous silicon TFTs are disposed on a glass or alike substrate to thus integrally form such a gate driver, static electricity generated in manufacturing facilities may flow to a gate driving circuit through an edge of the substrate and undesirably burn out elements of the gate driving circuit. Since the generation of static electricity in the manufacturing facilities cannot be prevented completely, it is desirable to develop a gate driver structured such that its elements are protected against being burned out by static electricity flowing thereto.
It is to be understood that this background of the technology section is intended to provide useful background for understanding the here disclosed technology and as such, the technology background section may include ideas, concepts or recognitions that were not part of what was known or appreciated by those skilled in the pertinent art prior to corresponding invention dates of subject matter disclosed herein.

Display panel having static electricity protection


An in-vivo method and apparatus is disclosed that comprises at least one sensor for determining changes in a human's an animal's body and reporting said changes outside the body. The sensor may be embedded in a sheath. The apparatus may be used to monitor chemical or physical changes in the body fluids. Alternatively, the apparatus may be used to monitor and regulate chemical or physical levels in humans and animals.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for forming devices on substrates and using these devices to provide in-vivo treatment of certain disease conditions in animals and humans. Specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for nanodevices, microdevices, and sensors on in-vivo structures.
2. Background Art
Typically diagnosis of animal and human diseases or body disfunctions involves testing a person's physical parameters such as blood pressure, temperature and pulse. Additionally, diagnosis commonly requires removing samples of blood and other body fluids and subjecting them to diagnostic tests to determine levels of enzymes, metabolites, toxins or other chemicals essential to life. Medical imaging instruments based on inter alia x-ray, ultrasound or magnetic resonance provide additional information used by the medical profession to diagnose causes of animal and human illness. Once diagnosed, the ailment may commonly be treated inter alia using drugs administered transdermally, orally or by injection.
Diagnosis and treatment by these common techniques may be difficult because physical and chemical testing is not sufficiently specific to the diseased or disfunctional part of the body. Also, drug effectiveness may be reduced because traditional methods of introduction are not specifically directed to the diseased or disfunctional part of the body.

Nanodevices, microdevices and sensors on in-vivo structures and method for the same


A plurality of telescoping tube members, each arranged for inter-locking relative to one another, are provided to include a threaded support rod threadedly directed within an uppermost of the tubes to position a pipe during a welding procedure. A modification of the invention includes support head structure arranged for mounting to the tube to accommodate various configurations of pipes.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to pipe welding support structure, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved pipe welding support structure wherein the same is directed for the positioning of at least one pipe member during a welding procedure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The support of pipes during welding is required inasmuch as the pipes must be positioned in a stable and aligned relationship relative to a welder, wherein the instant invention attempts to overcome deficiencies of the prior art by providing for a readily transportable and convenient structure permitting the support and accommodation of pipes at various heights and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.


An exit warning system is provided for a motor vehicle having a sliding door. That exit warning system includes a sliding door status sensor, a projector and a warning signal. The warning signal is projected by the projector onto pavement laterally adjacent a motor vehicle when the sliding door is opened in order to warn oncoming drivers that someone could potentially be leaving the vehicle through the open sliding door.

Sliding doors are becoming increasingly popular on motor vehicles. Sliding doors have a number of benefits over doors mounted on hinges. First they provide a large opening that is unobstructed by the door. Second, the sliding door may be fully opened even when there is an obstacle near the vehicle that would limit the opening of a hinged door.
As sliding doors have become more popular, more and more motor vehicles are being provided with sliding doors on the driver's side of the vehicle. When a vehicle is parked at night and an individual is getting out of the vehicle through a sliding door on the driver's side, that individual will be getting out in the path of moving traffic. This document describes a new and effective exit warning system that provides a signal to an approaching driver that warns of the potential of an individual leaving the parked vehicle through a sliding door.

Exit warning system for a motor vehicle having a sliding door


A method of machining a plurality of intersecting bores in an object, the method comprising steps of machining a first bore, plugging the first bore, machining a second bore so as to intersect the first bore, and unplugging the first bore.

The compressor section of a gas turbine engine includes a diffuser downstream of the compressor. The function of the diffuser is to reduce the velocity of the compressed air and simultaneously increase the static pressure, thereby preparing the air for entry into the combustor at a lower velocity. Presenting high-pressure and low-velocity air to the combustor section is essential for proper fuel mixing and efficient combustion.
A centrifugal compressor impeller draws air axially, and rotation of the impeller increases the velocity of the air flow as the input air is directed over impeller vanes to flow in a radially outward direction under centrifugal forces. In order to redirect the radial flow of air exiting the impeller to an annular axial flow for presentation to the combustor, a diffuser assembly is provided which redirects the flow as it also reduces the velocity and increases static pressure of the air flow.
A conventional diffuser assembly of this type, sometimes known as a fishtail diffuser, generally comprises a machined ring which surrounds the periphery of the impeller for capturing the radial flow of air and redirecting it through generally tangential orifices into an array of diffuser tubes. The orifices in the diffuser ring are circumferentially spaced apart, each one being intersected by two adjacent bores in an asymmetrical configuration. The diffuser tubes are generally brazed or mechanically connected to the ring and have an expanding cross-section rearwardly.
In general, the design of diffusers requires a compromise between the desired aerodynamic properties and the practical limits of manufacturing procedures. For example, the orifices in the impeller surrounding ring are typically cylindrical bores or conical bores due to the limitations of economical drilling procedures. To provide elliptical holes for example, would involve prohibitively high costs in preparation and quality control.
Engine performance is directly affected by the quality of the tangential diffuser bores. For good performance, a very accurate diameter and true position of these bores, a sharp edge of the bore intersection area and a very good surface finish of these bores are all required. This makes the diffuser one of the most costly and difficult parts of the gas turbine engine to manufacture.
The manufacturing process for the diffuser typically includes both roughing and finishing operations on its various surfaces. It is common practice to complete the roughing operation for all surfaces before beginning the finishing operation. This is done for convenience of changing tools, etc., and more importantly to prevent damage to the finished surfaces by completing the roughing first. Conventionally, diffuser bores in a diffuser ring are machined with a gun drilling machine which performs the roughing process for all bores in the diffuser ring, and then the finishing process is performed with a cylindrical and/or taper reamer.
Because of the configuration of the intersecting bores in a roughed-out diffuser, the finishing tool is always between the two intersections of the adjacent bores when finishing the bores. The two intersections of adjacent bores are not symmetrical, and therefore, the radial cutting force on the finishing tool is unbalanced, creating undesirable tool deflection, which results in poor quality of both position and diameter.
Furthermore, the unbalanced radial cutting force and the tool deflection inhibit the use of carbide tools which are adapted for high speed cutting but are too brittle to handle tool deflections normal in this type of operation. Thus, productivity of the diffuser bore machining process is limited. The conventional process also cannot provide a superior quality of surface finishing of the diffuser bores because the asymmetrical intersections of each diffuser bore limits the use of super-finishing tools such as burnishing tools.
Therefore, an improved process for machining the bores in the diffuser ring with better quality control and better productivity is desired.

Method of making a gas turbine engine diffuser


An interface that allows the host CPU and the keyboard controller in a PC to share a common BIOS ROM includes a logic circuit that receives a set of input signals and produces a set of signals that emulates a jump instruction op-code that causes the host CPU to vector to a specified address location in the system memory map normally reserved for the system ROM BIOS code, whenever both the host CPU and keyboard controller are contending for access to the BIOS ROM.

The standard personal computer, whether of the desktop, laptop or notebook type, includes a central processor (CPU), typically a microprocessor, such as the Intel Pentium or 486, and a keyboard controller. The computer's basic, or lowest-level, instruction set, is commonly known as the Basic Input Output System (BIOS). The BIOS, which normally comprises the basic input and output routines needed for communicating between software and hardware, is typically stored in read-only memory (ROM).
A microcontroller embedded in the keyboard is responsible to scan, debounce, interpret keystrokes and communicate with a keyboard controller mounted on the PC's main circuit board or motherboard. The keyboard controller has its own ROM from which it executes its code, commonly referred to as the keyboard BIOS. The conventional IBM-compatible PC employs two separate BIOS ROMs; one, the system BIOS ROM, contains the system BIOS instruction code and the other, the keyboard BIOS ROM, contains the keyboard BIOS instruction code.
In recent years, there has been an increased integration of additional features, capabilities and functionality on a single integrated circuit. This trend toward greater integration, which has resulted in increased power at lower cost in commercial PCs, has created an interest and a desire among PC designers to integrate both the system and keyboard BIOS in a single, unified ROM on a single chip. There has thus been an ongoing effort among PC designers to develop an interface that would allow the use of a shared BIOS ROM for access by both the host CPU and keyboard controller. Previous attempts to implement such an interface have, however, been only of limited success at least in part because of the inability of prior interface designs to make the BIOS ROM always available for the device (keyboard or host CPU) that needs to execute out of the BIOS ROM at any given time.
This problem arises from the fact that in the conventional PC, once the System Reset or CPU Reset signal has transitioned from an asserted state to a deasserted state, the host CPU will effectively begin fetching code located in BIOS ROM from its initialization address. The assertion of the CPU Reset signal may therefore occur without first informing the device that controls the shared ROM interface. If the CPU Reset signal is asserted at any time that the host CPU does not have ownership of, or access to, the ROM interface, then, following deassertion of the CPU Reset signal, the host CPU in attempting to read code from its initialization vector (mapped to the ROM space), will read incorrect data ("garbage") resulting in system misoperation and a likely system crash.
The most common and straightforward way to solve this problem would be to include dual-ported interface circuitry to arbitrate simultaneous accesses to the BIOS ROM between the host CPU and the keyboard controller. This approach, however, has several disadvantages. For example, any time the host CPU accesses the ROM it steals cycles from the keyboard controller. This is undesirable, particularly if the keyboard controller is at the time executing code that is time-dependent or critical. In addition, intersplicing the host CPU access with keyboard controller access to the BIOS ROM requires careful attention to the current state of the keyboard controller's bus cycle so that it is interrupted only on instruction boundaries, i.e., not in the middle of a Read strobe. This requires that the appropriate control signal be deasserted and held until the keyboard controller can be stopped, which typically results in an approximately two to three microseconds additional delay per access by the host CPU. A dual-ported interface that would perform this function would add a significant level of complexity and require additional cost to implement. It also may result in performance degradation for both the host CPU and the keyboard controller.


A camera is provided that can be connected to a processing system via an external connector outside of the housing of the processing system. The camera includes a camera housing. An imaging device is provided inside the camera housing that converts moving pictures to a video signal. A bit rate reduction circuit is also provided inside the camera housing and connected to the imaging device. The bit-rate reduction circuit reduces a bit rate of the moving picture signal so as to produce a bit-rate reduced video signal having a lower bandwidth than the video signal prior to bit rate reduction.

FIG. 1 depicts a conventional video conferencing system 10. A camera 12 of the video conferencing system 10 has a charge-coupled device or CCD 13 on which an image is incident. Cameras of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 called ColorCam are available from Connectix.TM. a company located in Mountain View, Calif. The CCD 13 outputs a still or moving picture video signal representing the image or images incident thereon to an analog to digital converter (ADC) 15. The ADC 15 illustratively outputs an RGB format digital video signal. The digital video signal is conveyed by a cable 16 to a parallel printer port 18 of a computer system 20. The picture data received from the parallel printer port 18 is provided to a frame capture I/O expansion card 19 via a proprietary internal cable 23. The I/O expansion card 19 has a buffer for receiving frames of the digital video signals for communication via I/O expansion bus 22 to an I/O bridge 24. The I/O bridge 24 retransmits the video data thus received via a system bus 26 to a processor 28. Once at the processor 28, the bit rate of the video signal may be adjusted in a number of ways. For instance, the resolution or frame rate may be decreased. Alternatively, the video may be encoded according to one of a number of encoding standards including ITU's (International Telecommunications Union) H.261, H.262, or H.263, ISO/IEC's MPEG-1, MPEG-2, JPEG, or motion JPEG, etc. After reducing the bit rate of the video signal sufficiently, the bit rate reduced video signal may be outputted from the processor 28, via system bus 26, I/O bridge 24 and I/O expansion bus 22 to a modem 30. The modem 30 transmits the bit reduced video signal to a remote video conferencing system 10' via a network 32, such as a public telephone network, local area network (LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), wide area network (WAN), etc. The bit rate reduced video signal is received at a like modem 30 and communicated to a like processor 28 where it is restored (decompressed, spatially and/or temporally interpolated, etc). The restored video signal is then outputted to a graphics adapter 33 and displayed on a display monitor 34. Alternatively, the restoration can be performed on the graphics adapter 33 using specialized hardware.
A conventional personal computer system 20 generally only has two standard ports, namely, a parallel port and a serial port. The parallel port is typically used for outputting data to a printer and can output data at a maximum 100 Kbyte/sec burst transfer rate using a handshake protocol. The serial port, on the other hand, is typically connected to an input device, such as a mouse, or a modem and can typically only sustain a 115.2 Kbit/sec transfer rate (e.g., using a 16550 UART). As noted above, the camera 12 can connect to a standardized connector at the printer port 18. This enables the camera 12 to be used with different platforms (e.g., different computer systems). However, to do so, the printer must be disconnected from the parallel port 18 as the parallel port 18 can only support data transfers between the computer system 20 and one other peripheral device (pursuant to its handshake protocol). This is disadvantageous. Another disadvantage of the computer system 20 is that the computer system housing (represented by 21) must be opened to install the frame capture I/O expansion card 19 and to manually connected the proprietary connector 23 between the parallel port 18 and the frame capture I/O expansion card 19. Thus, a novice user may find it difficult to install and to configure the camera 12. Moreover, for many systems 20, the warranty on the computer is voided if the computer housing 21 is opened by the user.
The camera 12 is well suited for non-real-time still picture capture. In capturing a still image, there is no requirement to transfer the data of the still picture from the camera 12 to the computer system 20 (or to, for example, another video conferencing system 10') in real time. A raw RGB signal for a 600.times.800 pixel display screen contains (800.times.600 pixels).multidot.24 bits/pixel=11,520,000 bits. At the maximum 100 Kbyte/sec burst transfer rate of the parallel port 18, the transfer of one still image from the camera 12 to the computer system 20 takes over 14 seconds (without adding in the overhead of the printer port 18 handshake protocol or any other bus arbitration of transfer latency of the computer system 20). Moreover, to transfer such information via modem 30 connected to an ordinary telephone network (which can have up to a 28.8 Kbit/sec transfer rate) would require 400 sec. This presents a problem for real time video communication, such as, video conferencing, in which moving pictures must be captured, transferred, and displayed in real time.
It is possible to program processor 128 to perform a limited amount of real time video capture for transfer via the network 32 using the video conferencing system 10. The problem is that only a limited amount of data can be transferred from the camera 12 via the printer port 18 to the frame capture I/O expansion card 19 due to the limited bandwidth of the printer port 18. As such, the resolution of the image must be drastically reduced to no larger than 128.times.96 pixels (for a black and white image) which results in approximately a 2".times.2" picture on a normal display monitor 34. The frame rate is reduced to approximately 7 frames per second (using a frame dropping technique). (Note that (128.times.96).multidot.(8 bits/pixel).multidot.(7 frames/second)=688,128 bits/sec which is slightly less than the 100 kbyte sec maximum bust transfer rate of the parallel port 18.) Moreover, the image quality is severely deteriorated; ghost shadows are perceptibly present in the restored image, and the image breaks up whenever there is a large degree of motion in the picture.
FIG. 2 shows a modified video conferencing system 50. In this system 50, the camera 12 produces either an analog signal or a digital RGB signal carried by cable 16. The signal is received at a video processing I/O expansion card 52 that is inserted into an available slot 54 on the I/O expansion bus 22. The I/O expansion card 52 can have a frame capture circuit 55, an ADC 56 and a bit rate reduction circuit 58 (e.g., a video compressor or frame rate/resolution reduction circuit). Examples of such circuits include the Vision Controller Processor (VCP.TM.) available from 8.times.8.TM., a company located in Santa Clara, Calif., and APV-3.TM. available from Lucent.TM., a company located in Murray Hill, N.J. The video signal is received at the video bit rate reduction circuit 58 on the video card 52 and is bit rate reduced thereat. The bit rate reduced video signal is then transmitted on the I/O expansion bus 22 to the processor 28 and/or to the modem 30.
The video conferencing system 50 can provide an adequate frame rate and resolution video signal at a bit rate which can be transmitted via the modem 30. The problem with the system 50 is that the computer housing 60 must still be opened to install the video processing I/O expansion card 52. Second, the cable 16 connects to a non-standardized connector 62 on the video processing I/O expansion card 52. This reduces the interchange-ability of video cameras 12 from platform to platform.
FIG. 3 shows an IEEE 1394 compliant camcorder 90 soon to be available from Sony.TM. a company located in Tokyo, Japan. The IEEE 1394 standard is a new standard for compression, storage and transfer of consumer and professional use digital video signals. The camcorder 90 includes a CCD 91, an ADC 92, a motion JPEG compressor 93 and an IEEE 1394 interface 94. A video signal outputted from the CCD 91 is converted to digital form in ADC 92 and then compressed in JPEG compressor 93. The compressed video signal is then formatted according to the IEEE 1394 standard and outputted to a bus using interface 94. The IEEE 1394 bus is a 400 Mbit/sec bus for which no computer interface is yet available. Moreover, the IEEE 1394 bus is designed for transfer of video signals only--no specific provisions are provided for supporting non-video "bursty" data transfers.
Another problem specific to both the video conferencing system 10 and video conferencing system 50 pertains to properly setting up the system on each end of the communication. For instance, there is no guarantee that both the video conferencing system 10 and the video conferencing system 10' will use the same camera, the same frame captured board or technique, or have the same coding/decoding capabilities. Even when both video conferencing systems on each end of the communication are identical, a skilled operator is necessary to properly install the hardware and software and also to configure the software and hardware each session. In particular, the operator must select the correct software drivers, select compatible bit rate reduction methodologies, i.e., the correct encoding and decoding technique, options and parameters, the correct resolution, the correct frame rate, etc. In the case where each end of the communication need not have an identical video conferencing system 10 or 10' each operator must be provided with preliminary information on the capabilities of the system at the other end and must somehow agree to select the correct frame rate, resolution, encoding/decoding technique parameters and options. This makes it difficult for a novice user to establish an interactive video teleconference with an arbitrary user.
It is object of the present invention to overcome the disadvantages of the conventional cameras. In particular, it is object to provide a video conferencing system in which the camera can be connected to a standard computer port without opening the computer housing, yet have sufficient resolution and fidelity to enable interactive communication of moving pictures. It is also an object to provide other kinds of video peripherals which can output and receive video signals in a simple "plug and play" fashion. It is furthermore an object to provide a video conferencing system that can arbitrate with a like far end video conferencing system and automatically configure itself on a session by session basis.

Moving picture camera with universal serial bus interface


A control panel configuration for a motor vehicle has a cross member that extends transversely to the vehicle longitudinal direction and is retained on fixed lateral construction structures. A control panel provides coverage toward the vehicle interior, and a knee retainer has a section for fastening the knee retainer to the cross member. A force absorption section extends essentially in the direction of the knee of an occupant. To reduce an intrusion of the control panel bottom parts, the knee retainer can be a rod-shaped support element that is loaded essentially longitudinally to its axis.

The invention relates to a control panel configuration for a motor vehicle having a cross member, which extends transversely to the vehicle longitudinal direction and is retained on fixed lateral construction structures, a control panel for coverage toward the vehicle interior and a knee retainer which has a fastening section, the knee retainer being fastened to the cross member, and which has a force adsorption section which extends essentially in the direction of the knee of a vehicle occupant.
Situating knee receivers behind the control panel, which are provided with deformation apparatus and are thus capable of energy absorption, is known from mass produced vehicles.
Thus, DE 101 46 495 B4 discloses a control panel configuration for a motor vehicle having a cross member and having four knee receivers that are fastened using a fastening section to the cross member and have an upstream deformation section. The deformation section is designed so as to be capable of targeted energy absorption together with a support wall whereby the knee of a vehicle occupant is extensively protected during a defined collision.
For other load cases, for example, upon incidence of an occupant not wearing a seatbelt, it is necessary that the control panel not yield too strongly to prevent misalignment of the knee airbag system.
An object of the invention, is therefore, to reduce in a control panel configuration for a motor vehicle an intrusion of the control panel for the load case of an occupant not wearing a seatbelt while maintaining the advantageous effect of the control panel.
This object has been achieved according to the invention by configuring a force absorption section of a knee retainer as a rod-shaped element that is loaded substantially longitudinally to its axis.
A control panel configuration according to the present invention includes a cross member, that extends transversely to the vehicle longitudinal direction and is retained on fixed, lateral construction structures. The control panel configuration is covered toward the vehicle interior with a control panel, one or more knee retainers being located behind the control panel. Each of the knee retainers is fastened using a fastening section to the cross member and has a force absorption section that extends essentially in the direction of the vehicle occupant's knee. According to the invention, as above noted, the knee retainer is a rod-shaped support element that is essentially only loaded longitudinally to its axis. Essentially thereby no transverse forces are transmitted by this simple component and a force absorption and/or relay occurs from the beginning. The rigid configuration of the knee retainer prevents control panel bottom parts from intruding through the knee of an occupant enough that the knee airbag system is misaligned.
For an initially soft behavior of the control panel configuration, the knee retainer may end at a distance to a support wall which is assigned to the control panel.
Easy mounting results if the fastening section of the knee retainer is configured as tubular, the internal contour of the fastening section being implemented corresponding to an attachment part of the cross member. It is also advantageous if the knee retainer is configured to be plugged on or not, depending on the equipment variant or vehicle market. Clipping or plugging the knee retainer onto the attachment part may be implemented easily using catch lugs that are provided on the fastening section and engage behind recesses provided for this purpose on the attachment part. To ensure during its mounting that the knee retainer assumes the correct position, guide grooves may be provided on the internal contour.
An especially rigid implementation of the knee retainer may preferably be achieved by a cross-section with a double T-profile.
In a currently preferred embodiment of the invention, the force absorption section terminates toward the support section with a circular front wall. The adjoining support section may be formed by intersecting ribs. An elastic support of the control panel may be achieved if a rubber element is put onto the support section, with this rubber element bridging the distance to the support wall.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Control panel configuration for a motor vehicle

Dr. Ing. h.c.F. Porsche Aktiengesellschaft


The present invention relates to a control circuit for a whirlpool bath or pool. The control circuit is used to deliver water and/or air to outlet jets in a water-filled pool such as is typically used for hydrotherapy massage. The control circuit includes a pool with a water compartment, a plurality of air jets and water jets in the pool and in communication with the compartment. A water pump connects to the water jets. A rotary valve is interposed between the water pump and the water jets. The rotary valve can be rotationally operated to sequentially provide water to the water jets. Thus, a pattern or a wave can be established from the water jets. An air pump is also provided and connected to the air jets by a manifold and a three-way valve. The manifold is connected to the water jets by a plurality of conduits. Check valves are provided to prevent water from getting into the air system. The three-way valve allows air to be supplied and drawn into the water jets by venturi action.

The present invention relates to the field of whirlpool baths, pools, or spas filled with water. More particularly, this invention relates to a control circuit for delivering water and air to outlet jets in such structures.
Various whirlpool bath designs and control circuits are known in the art. Some of these devices pump water through jets directed toward the occupant or the water inside the tub. Other devices include separate auxiliary jets which allow air to be pumped into the water already in the tub to enhance the churning, bubbling sensation experienced by the user. However, greater agitation and therapeutic affect are possible if water and air could be pumped through the same jets. Furthermore, pulsation or wave effects are more soothing and beneficial to the user. Conventional devices have been unable to successfully meet these needs.
Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved control circuit for delivering water and air to outlet jets of a water-filled pool.
A further object of this invention is the provision of a spa control circuit that has few components, is simple, as well as easy and flexible, to operate.
A further object of this invention is the provision of a spa control circuit which is economical to produce, reliable and durable in use.
These and other objects will be apparent from the drawings, as well as from the description and claims which follow.

Control circuit for delivering water and air to outlet jets in a water-filled pool