The present invention relates to a laundry machine for treating laundry. One embodiment of the laundry machine may include a water supply valve, a drum (30) in which laundry is placed, a tub (20) in which the drum (30) is rotatably placed, the tub (20) having an extended portion (23a) which extends forward and have an opening at a front portion thereof for laundry entrance, and a tub water supply portion (140), and a water supply line to guide water from the water supply valve to the tub water supply portion (140).

The drum type washing machine is provided with a tub arranged in a horizontal direction, with a drum mounted therein horizontally.
The drum type washing machine is provided with a water supply valve connected to a water supply system for water supply, and a detergent box for holding detergent. Between the water supply valve and the detergent box and between the detergent box and the tub, a water supply hose is connected.
Therefore, the water from the water supply valve is supplied to the tub through the detergent box.
In order to have the water supplied thereto, the tub has the water supply hose connected to middle thereof.
In order to circulate the water in the tub, the drum type washing machine may be provided with a circulating pump. For the circulation of the water, a circulating flow passage is formed from an underside to a upper side of the tub. Accordingly, as the circulating pump is put into operation, the water is pumped up from the underside of the tub to the upper side of the tub.
In the meantime, of related art drum type washing machines, there is one that is provided with a heater in the tub. By heating the water by using the heater and using the heated water, a washing capability is improved. However, the requirement for heating a large amount of water in the tub requires much energy. The heating of the water in the tub to elevate a temperature of the laundry or the environment thereof to a desired temperature is not efficient in view of energy.
Recently, a washing machine provided with a steam generator is come into market. In the washing machine, steam is supplied to the tub or the drum, for improving the washing capability as well as energy efficiency.
One of important factor related to the washing capability is the temperature of the laundry or an environment thereof. Accordingly, of methods for elevating the temperature of the laundry or the environment thereof, using efficient one of the methods is desirable.
In this point of view, supply of the steam to the tub or the drum is more energy efficient than heating an entire water. The energy will be saved signifimaytly if a small amount of the water is turned to steam, rather than heating an entire water, and the steam is sprayed to the laundry directly.
Moreover, since the steam has a high temperature, the temperature of the laundry or an environment of the laundry may be elevated higher, thereby improving the washing capability more.


Sheets can be manipulated for punching, perforating and/or folding. The systems and methods according to this invention allow sheets to be punched and/or perforated in various configurations. The systems and methods according to this invention allow sheets to be folded in various forms and/or configurations. Sheets can be inverted to ensure proper orientation. The systems and methods according to this invention allow the number and/and or locations of punches and/or perforations and the type and/or length of folds to be controlled on a sheet-by-sheet basis. The systems and methods according to this invention allow the sheet preparation module to be optionally configured within the photocopying system depending on the needs and flexibility of the finishing requirements of the operator. The modularity of the sheet preparation module design as a “plug and play” unit enables greater functionality for the manipulation of sheets.

1. Field of Invention
This invention is directed to systems and methods for punching, perforating and folding of sheets in a printing system.
2. Description of Related Art
Photocopiers have become standard equipment in today's offices, enabling businesses to increase productivity and efficiency. Today's photocopying systems provide high-speed reproduction with ease of use. Additionally, current photocopying systems offer end-to-end capability from feeding to finishing that includes features such as sorting, collating and binding. Many systems combine several features to further increase productivity and ease of use by the operator.
Sheet folding systems are in use in many photocopying systems using various folding techniques, such as folding rollers and knife-edge folding assistance devices. Further, hole punchers, sheet perforators, and sheet inverters are used to enhance photocopying and document publication.
An important element of a photocopying system is the ability to handle large complicated print jobs with minimal user input. Systems exist that automate document handling, copying and finishing, such as hole punching, sheet perforation, and/or folding, with minimal user input. This reliability and ease of use further enables increases in user productivity. Such systems are needed that provide capabilities to photocopying systems.

Sheet preparation module architecture and control methods


This invention is related to the link adaptation for the downlink transmission in type-II relay network. An method in an eNodeB for adapting link for downlink transmission in type-II relay network, said type-II relay network comprises the eNodeB, one or more relay nodes and a plurality of User Equipments (UE), the method comprises the steps of: classifying the plurality of UEs into two groups: macro-UEs which are served directly by the eNodeB without the help of the one or more relay nodes, and relay-UEs which are served by the eNodeB and the one or more relay nodes; and adapting link for the macro-UEs and the relay-UEs separately.

In LTE-Advanced systems, relaying will be used to enhance coverage and increase data rate at cell borders without increasing the number of base stations.
Type-II relay, also named L2 relay, is considered to be one of the potential technology components of LTE-Advanced. A type-II relay node is an in-band relaying node characterized by the following [1]:                It does not have a separate Physical Cell ID and thus would not create any new cells.        It is transparent to Rel-8 UEs (User Equipments); a Rel-8 UE is not aware of the presence of a type-II relay node.        It can transmit PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel).        It does not transmit CRS (Common Reference Signal) and PDCCH (physical downlink control channel).
As type-II relay does not have PDCCH, the downlink control coverage can not be extended. The major advantage of type-II relays is transmission rate improvement. However, the system design should be revisited carefully considering the new additional node and its specific characteristics. One of the most important aspects is link adaptation which is crucial to the system throughput as well as user experience and quality of services.
Type-II Relay Operation
Due to the transparency of type-II relay, the UE is not aware of the presence of the relay although it is receiving help on the data channel. In this invention, synchronous non-adaptive HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest) is assumed in order to simplify the design. More complex schemes can be considered as well. However, the potential benefits have to be traded off against flexibility and overhead of HARQ timelines. A relay-assisted downlink transmission consists of two phases as shown in FIG. 1:                First transmission: In the first phase, the eNodeB will transmit data to the UE and the relay will sniff the data at the same time. Both the UE and the relay will try to decode the data. However, in order to exploit gain of the relay-assisted transmission, there is a high probability that the UE can not decode the packet in this first transmission attempt so that re-transmission happens in the second phase.        Re-transmission: In the second phase, the eNodeB and the helping relay will transmit the data to the UE. As a result, the UE receives boosted signal strength by means of over-the-air combining of the direct link which is from the eNodeB to the UE (eNodeB→UE) and the access link which is from the RN (Relay Node) to the UE (RN→UE). In addition, the soft bit information from the first transmission can also be exploited via chase combining or incremental redundancy. This is a further improvement at the cost of additional memories and computation complexity.
It should be noted that for synchronous non-adaptive HARQ transmission, a common modulation and coding scheme (MCS) is selected for the first transmission and re-transmissions. Moreover, this MCS scheme is selected to fit for the quality of the combined channel of the direct link and the access link. The behind reason is that relay-assisted transmission is expected to improve the overall performance than direct transmission. The combined channel can be a sum of the channel gain of direct link and access link (or even better if the first the transmission is also exploited). In typical deployment of type-II relays, the channel quality of the access link is much better than the direct link. As a result, the combined link is much better than the direct link.
Outer-Loop Link Adaptation
Link adaptation is adopted in most of the modern wireless communication systems. Crucial to the working of fast link adaptation is the timely reporting of channel conditions that is fed back from the receiver to the transmitter. A generic term "channel quality indicator" (CQI) is often used to refer to any of such feedback, comprising SNR (Signal to Noise Ratio) and SINR (Signal to Interference Plus Noise Ratio), etc. In a LTE system, common reference signals (CRS) is used to do CQI measurement and different kinds of channel quality indicator can be reported to support flexible scheduling methods.
However, the delays of CQI reporting (including the propagation delay and the processing delay) as well as the time varying channel conditions and interference conditions pose big challenges to link adaptation. The selected MCS based on reported CQI may not be proper for the data transmission. Aggressive MCS selection will cause high block error rate (BLER) while conservative MCS selection will result in low spectrum utilization.
An outer-loop link adaptation can be used to dynamically control the average BLER for the first transmissions based on the acknowledgement feedback (ACK/NACK) from the UE [2]. It follows the same principle as the traditional outer loop power control algorithm for dedicated channels in IS-95 and WCDMA and for HSDPA. Here we define an offset factor A. If an ACK is received for a first transmission, the offset factor A is increased by one preset step Aup, while it is decreased by one preset step Adown if a NACK is received. The modified offset factor A then provides a modified CQI which is used as a basis for selecting MCS. The ratio between Aup and Adown determines the average BLER that the OLLA converges to, i.e.BLER=1/(1+Adown/Aup)  (1)
For example, if the BLER target is 10%, the ratio of Adown and Aup should be 9. The configuration for the adjustment steps will have significant impact on the convergence and the stableness of the algorithm. A separate outer-loop link adaptation algorithm is maintained for each user, as users may have different CQI measurement errors and performance.

Link adaptation in type-II relay network


A length measuring system comprises an elongate scale member adapted to be scanned for generating measured-length signals, a tubular scale member carrier defining an internal cavity housing the scale member and including a mounting wall, a connection of the scale member to the scale member carrier, the connection permitting a longitudinal movement of the scale member relative to the scale member carrier, and end blocks rigidly connected to the scale member carrier at both ends thereof, the end blocks defining recesses and having opposite sides. Devices are provided in the recesses of the end blocks for fastening the scale member carrier to an object and for compensating for length differences resulting from a differential thermal expansion of the scale member carrier and the object, the devices including an intermediate part having two ends and defining a through hole between the ends for receiving a fastening element for fastening the end blocks to the object, and webs having one end connected to the ends of the intermediate part and extending transversely to the longitudinal direction, the webs defining at least along a major portion of their length a clearance with the fastening element and adjacent surfaces of the recess, and an opposite end of the webs connected to the end blocks, the webs having a relatively small flexural stiffness in the longitudinal direction and a relatively high flexural stiffness in a direction extending transversely to the longitudinal direction.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a length measuring system comprising a scale member and a scanning unit, which is movable along said scale member, wherein the scale member is accommodated in a scale carrier, which constitutes a tubular protective housing for the scale member and the scanning unit, and is connected to said scale carrier by means which permit a relative longitudinal movement. The scale carrier is provided with fasteners, such as screws, for connection to an object, such as a bed of a machine, at least at locations adjacent to end blocks of the scale carrier and, optionally, at a plurality of locations spaced along the scale carrier, and compensating means adjacent to these locations serve to effect a compensation of length differences resulting from a differential thermal expansion of the object and the scale carrier.
Such design features are embodied in length measuring systems to ensure that the scale member will not be acted upon by undesired forces and/or deformations caused by thermal expansion and that a displacement of a reference point of the scale, which is provided at one end or at the center of the scale and in incremental measuring systems may be defined, e.g., by a reference mark with reference to an associated reference point on the object, e.g., a zero measurement location of a machine tool, should be avoided as far as possible.
2. Prior Art
From DE-A 17 37 403 it is known that the scale carrier can be secured to the machine bed by screws, which are inserted through larger-diameter bores in the scale carrier, and the clearance between the diameters is occupied by bushings, which are made of rubber-elastic material and extend in the bores and surround the screws. But in that design the scale carrier and the measuring system can be displaced transversely to its longitudinal direction and for this reason different compensating means are preferred. According to U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,002 at least one end of the scale carrier is formed with a slot for receiving a screw fastener, which in the slot is enlarged to form a locating pin and by means of a coil spring or a series of disk springs the head of said screw applies pressure to the longitudinal edges of the slot so that the scale carrier can expand and contract along the slot under the action of heat. From De-A 26 43 304 it is known that the scale member, which in most cases is made of glass, can be secured to the scale carrier by means of a highly elastic adhesive in such a manner that a flat surface of the scale member lies on the thin adhesive coating and can be fixed adjacent to a reference point by means of an adhesive having a low elasticity. It is known from DE-A 28 53 771 that a tubular scale carrier may be provided with end blocks, which are formed with through holes for screw fasteners and which are not rigidly connected directly to the respective ends of the scale carrier and that each of said end blocks at its end facing the scale carrier may be formed with meandering slots extending from the top and bottom, respectively, so that weak portions are provided, which permit a longitudinal displacement of the scale carrier relative to the mounting blocks, which are rigidly mounted. That design has the disadvantage that the weak portions require additional space in the longitudinal direction of the scale member, a satisfactory guidance of the scale carrier only in its longitudinal direction is not ensured, and the end blocks cannot be provided with plugs, which extend into and are sealed in the interior of the tubular scale carrier so that said interior is hermetically sealed at both ends. Means for a length compensation provided at end-mounting elements may alternatively consist of additional spring elements, spring hinges, resiliently interconnected angle members, and hinges, which pivotally connect the carrier to each mounting block on an axis which is at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the scale carrier. In all said cases there is a risk that the overall arrangement may be unstable or that the longitudinal guidance of the scale member relative to the object is not sufficiently precise or, in many cases, that the length of the overall arrangement is highly undesirably increased by the additional compensating means provided adjacent to the ends, or in that a temperature rise and temperature drop will result in undesired motions. Particularly if the scale member is long the known continuous fixation by means of a thin and yieldable adhesive layer will not ensure a sufficient compensation of length differences between the scale member and the scale carrier so that the forces which are due to thermal expansion will result in an undesired deformation and/or stressing of the scale member if its length exceeds a certain limit and in any case if its length exceeds an order of 1 meter.


Amide-containing polymers characterized by the presence of piperazine amide and/or substituted piperazine amide in the polymer chain are used as adsorbents to remove polyphenolic compounds from liquids. The compositions are especially useful in combination with protein removal agents such as silica gel or tannin. The amide-containing polymer compositions (alone or in combination with protein removal agents) are especially useful in the stabilization and/or chillproofing of plant derived liquids or beverages such as beer, wine, fruit juice and vegetable juice.

It is well known that many liquids such as beverages derived from grains/fruits/vegetables may contain certain polyphenols and proteins which create problems when beverages are mass produced. Specifically, these compounds may cause degradation of flavor and/or appearance for such beverages where they are stored for prolonged periods of time, subjected to variations in temperature, etc. The problem of removing adverse components is made more difficult by the fact that the adverse components are chemically similar to components which are desired in the beverage.
The removal of these adverse components from beverages prior to packaging for sale has been addressed by treating the beverages with various materials designed to adsorb one or more of the adverse components from the beverage. Due to the diverse nature of these adverse components, most treatments have involved contacting of the beverage with a combination of adsorbents, either simultaneously or sequentially. For removal of polyphenolics, certain polyamides have been used such as nylons and polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP). By far, PVPP has been the most widely used adsorbent for removal of polyphenolics and is considered to be significantly more effective than nylons. For removal of adverse proteins, the adsorbents such as silica gels and tannins have been used.
While PVPP is an effective polyphenol adsorbent, PVPP is an expensive material in the context of treating liquids on a commercial scale. This is especially true for the commercial production of beer and fruit juices. Due to its expense, most users of PVPP regenerate it after use by treatment with basic and acidic solutions. The regenerability of PVPP is limited. Also, the use of regenerated PVPP may result in the introduction of unwanted acid or base into the liquid to be treated. PVPP has further disadvantages in that it is affected by the presence of yeast. Thus, PVPP can be added to the processing of a beverage only after the yeast has been substantially removed. Thus, there is a need for alternative polyphenol adsorbents which provide the adsorption performance of PVPP without its disadvantages.

Polyamide compositions for removal of polyphenols from liquids


A method and apparatus for determining which condition in a fuel processor has initiated a shutdown of the fuel processor are disclosed. In general, the apparatus generates a plurality of shutdown initiator signals, each corresponding to one of a plurality of shutdown conditions and indicating whether such condition is present. The shutdown initiator signals are read within a predetermined window. At least one of the read shutdown initiator signals indicates that a corresponding first shutdown condition has occurred and identifies the corresponding first shutdown condition as the firstout.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the operation of a fuel processor and, more particularly, to the identification of a firstout shutdown condition in a fuel processor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Fuel cell technology is an alternative energy source for more conventional energy sources employing the combustion of fossil fuels. A fuel cell typically produces electricity, water, and heat from a fuel and oxygen. More particularly, fuel cells provide electricity from chemical oxidation-reduction reactions and possess significant advantages over other forms of power generation in terms of cleanliness and efficiency. Typically, fuel cells employ hydrogen as the fuel and oxygen as the oxidizing agent. The power generation is proportional to the consumption rate of the reactants.
A significant disadvantage which inhibits the wider use of fuel cells is the lack of a widespread hydrogen infrastructure. Hydrogen has a relatively low volumetric energy density and is more difficult to store and transport than the hydrocarbon fuels currently used in most power generation systems. One way to overcome this difficulty is the use of "fuel processors" or "reformers" to convert the hydrocarbons to a hydrogen rich gas stream which can be used as a feed for fuel cells. Hydrocarbon-based fuels, such as natural gas, LPG, gasoline, and diesel, require conversion processes to be used as fuel sources for most fuel cells. Current art uses multi-step processes combining an initial conversion process with several clean-up processes. The initial process is most often steam reforming ("SR"), autothermal reforming ("ATR"), catalytic partial oxidation ("CPOX"), or non-catalytic partial oxidation ("POX"). The clean-up processes are usually comprised of a combination of desulfurization, high temperature water-gas shift, low temperature water-gas shift, selective CO oxidation, or selective CO methanation. Alternative processes include hydrogen selective membrane reactors and filters.
Thus, many types of fuels can be used, some of them hybrids with fossil fuels, but the ideal fuel is hydrogen. If the fuel is, for instance, hydrogen, then the combustion is very clean and, as a practical matter, only the water is left after the dissipation and/or consumption of the heat and the consumption of the electricity. Most readily available fuels (e.g., natural gas, propane and gasoline) and even the less common ones (e.g., methanol and ethanol) include hydrogen in their molecular structure. Some fuel cell implementations therefore employ a "fuel processor" that processes a particular fuel to produce a relatively pure hydrogen stream used to fuel the fuel cell.
Fuel processor designs are typically highly involved. Typically, a substantial number of subsystems interact in a complicated manner to produce the hydrogen for the fuel cell. For instance, a fuel processor might mix water, air, and a fuel, and reform the mixture. Thus, the fuel processor may have a separate subsystems directed to delivering the water, air, and fuel to a mixing subsystem to produce the process feed gas. Quantities, pressures, and temperatures of the water, air, fuel, and process feed gas are controlled during the mixing process to achieve a desired composition for the process feed gas and prepare it for reforming. The mixing subsystem then delivers the process feed gas to a reforming subsystem in a controlled manner. The reforming process itself constitutes several smaller processes, each of which may occur at a different temperature and pressure.
Any one of these quantities, pressures, temperatures, etc. may generate an error condition in the operation of the fuel processor for a host of reasons. Some of these error conditions may warrant shutting down the fuel processor until it can be corrected, i.e., a "shutdown." A fuel processor typically includes a control system that monitors these types of parameters for error conditions and shuts down the fuel processor. Upon shutdown, an operator or a maintenance technician ascertains the cause of the shutdown, corrects the problem, and then the fuel processor is brought back into operation.
The involved design of the fuel processor frequently spawns a difficult problem in this context. A shutdown is usually initiated by a single shutdown error condition. This condition is referred to as the "firstout." However, the effects of the firstout typically propagate through the fuel processor very quickly, triggering other shutdown error conditions. Consequently, by the time the fuel processor is shut down, there may be very many shutdown error conditions present. The operator or maintenance technician must then wade through all these error to determine which was the firstout in order to correct the problem. The process of the determining which of the shutdown error conditions was the first out can be long and costly.
The present invention is directed to resolving, or at least reducing, at least one of the problems mentioned above.

Firstout shutdown tracing for fuel processor control system


A method of designing a spectacle lens having a front surface and a back surface is provided. At least one of the front and back surfaces is formed as a rotationally asymmetrical aspherical surface. The method includes the steps of selecting a plurality of cross-sections of the spectacle lens respectively defined in a plurality of planes each of which includes a reference axis passing through the front and back surfaces at a point substantially equal to a center of an outer diameter of the spectacle lens, each of the plurality of cross-sections having one side coinciding with the reference axis, designing each of shapes of the plurality of cross-sections so that predetermined optical performance is optimized for each of the shapes of the plurality of cross-sections, and interpolating a characteristic amount regarding intermediate points on the rotationally asymmetrical aspherical surface between the shapes of the plurality of cross-sections using a characteristic amount of each of the shapes of the plurality of cross-sections.

The present invention relates to a method of designing a corrective lens, particularly to an aspherical spectacle lens provided with a rotationally asymmetrical optical property, such as, a cylindrical power or a prismatic power.
Design methods for designing an aspherical spectacle lens provided with a cylindrical power have been proposed. Examples of such a design method are disclosed in International publication No. WO93/07525 and Japanese Patent publication NO. 3236263. As shown in the above mentioned publications, the conventional design method requires the use of very complicated equations regarding an aspherical surface to be designed and the use of a number of parameters. Therefore, it is very difficult for a designer to estimate an effect on optical performance resulting from changes of values of the parameters. For this reason, generally a computer-based automated design method by use of an optimization program is used for design of an aspherical spectacle lens.
However, such an optimization program requires matrix calculation having at least the size defined by (the number of parameters)×(the number of aberrations to be evaluated). Therefore, the processing time and the program size of the optimization program increase with the increase of the number of parameters. The term "aberrations to be evaluated" means aberrations to be corrected in the process of the automated design program in which target values of the aberrations are established and the evaluated values approach the target values. In addition, the larger the number of parameters becomes, the larger a possibility that the optimization program tends to be brought to a state of a local minimum becomes. There is a possibility that the optimization program can not reach true optimum values.
Furthermore, the use of the optimization program requires a designer to establish target values of the aberrations in accordance with specifications of a lens to be designed. Therefore, whether or not the target values reach true optimum values depends on the judgment of the designer. In particular, if the lens to be designed is a rotationally asymmetrical lens, a designer is required to be considerably careful about the judgment.
Furthermore, there is a possibility that a result of automated design varies among designers who address the automated design for lenses having the same optical performance.
Furthermore, a design method suitable for designing an aspherical spectacle lens having a prismatic power has not been proposed. Conventionally, such a lens is designed in such a manner that a first surface and a second surface of an aspherical lens, which was designed not to have a cylindrical power, are inclined with respect to each other so as to provide a prismatic power for the aspherical spectacle lens. If such a design manner is used, the occurrence of aberrations is unavoidable.

Method of designing aspherical spectacle lens


An electronically controlled power steering system for motor vehicles is disclosed for steering dirigible wheels in response to an input torque applied to a steering wheel. The power steering system includes a mechanical steering gear mechanism coupled to the steering wheel for generating a mechanically derived steering force in response to the input torque. A power cylinder is coupled to the mechanical steering gear mechanism for producing a hydraulically derived steering force which augments the mechanically derived steering force. A control valve is provided which is in fluid communication with the power cylinder for generating differential pressure applied to the power cylinder. A first signal is generated which is indicative of the input torque applied to the steering wheel. A signal processing unit generates an output signal in response to the first signal. The signal processing unit is operable to selectively actuate the control valve in response to the output signal for selectively regulating the hydraulically derived steering force generated by the power cylinder.

The invention relates generally to power steering systems and, in particular, to methods and apparatuses for electronically controlled power steering systems.
Power steering systems are used in motor vehicle applications to augment the steering effort provided by the driver of a vehicle. Many conventional systems employ a four-way open-center "rotary" control valve having "follow along" position feedback in which road feel is artificially induced by deflection of a torsion bar. Other power steering systems typically employ a four-way open-center "reaction" control valve also having "follow along" position feedback wherein road feel is induced directly via hydraulic reaction forces.
Conventionally, the control valves of the power steering systems are mechanically coupled to the vehicle's steering shaft and are typically located just ahead of the vehicles's steering gear assembly. Unfortunately, this placement often results in significantly compromising the static and dynamic performance of the host power steering systems. For example, such power steering systems may generate poor response during lower steering wheel torque inputs and/or generate excessive response to small changes in the steering wheel torque input at higher levels thereof. Dynamically, some conventional power steering systems are also subject to sluggish behavior which produces a response that is delayed beyond normally anticipated human perception times. In addition, some power steering systems are subject to undesirably rapid steering wheel motion without a concomitant increase in required steering wheel torque. In other words, the steering force output of such systems cannot be said to be rate stable.
Further, power steering systems have been recently modified to include "speed sensitive" steering. In general, most "speed sensitive" systems increase steering forces at high vehicular speeds by reducing hydraulic fluid flow through the control valves in order to reduce valve gain. An alternative power steering system, known as a "Variable-Assist" Power Steering System is described in SAE Technical Paper No. 880707 entitled 1988 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL VARIABLE-ASSIST POWER STEERING SYSTEM by J. J. Duffy.
In order to comprehend system performance characteristics required for an "ideal" power steering system, it is first necessary to understand the nature of a vehicle's overall information (i.e., feedback) inputs are visual and tactile. The driver senses the vehicle's overall position and dynamic attitude. The driver then compares the vehicle's actual lateral position and yaw, as well as any lateral acceleration and roll motion, with those he desires and mentally formulates error signals representative of the differences there between. The driver's response is to continuously modify his input to the vehicle's steering wheel. Typically, a driver completes the derived response by applying a predetermined level of torque to the steering wheel in anticipation of it executing a predetermined degree of rotational motion. If both the steering wheel and the vehicle behave precisely as anticipated, the steering system can be said to be "ideal".
Typical "rotary valve" equipped power steering systems have substantially nonlinear static performance characteristics. Unexpectedly small changes in the output force are concomitant with given changes in steering wheel torque at low output force levels while unexpectedly large changes of output force are concomitant with given changes in steering wheel torque at high output force levels. Both conditions can result in excessive steering wheel motion with respect to the predetermined amount of rotational motion anticipated by the driver. In the low output force condition, rotational compliance inherent in the rotary valve results in relatively large steering wheel motions before the required output force levels are obtained. And, in the high output force condition, lack of any apparent tactile input torque modulation often results in over-correction of the steering wheel's position.
In many cases, rotary valve equipped power steering systems also produce relatively slow response at low output force levels. This is indirectly the result of the method employed for achieving overall closed-loop stability of the system. All power steering systems are closed-loop servo systems which must achieve unity gain cross-over in a satisfactory manner for system stability. (A thorough discussion of servo system stability is contained in a book entitled FEEDBACK AND CONTROL SYSTEMS by Di Stefano III, Stubberud and Williams, and published by the McGraw-Hill Book Company as one of Schaum's Outline Series.)
Most rotary valve equipped power steering systems manufactured today utilize an O-ring "brake" to disrupt normal system roll-off characteristics and to preclude system oscillation Such an O-ring can be seen quite clearly in FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,452,274 (Haga et al). The O-ring is located in a groove in the steering shaft which is typically ported to incoming hydraulic fluid pressure such that the O-ring acts as a brake between the steering shaft and the valve sleeve whenever the incoming hydraulic fluid pressure is elevated.
The result of poor response at low steering forces is that the driver of a vehicle having rotary valve power steering is unable to exert "fine" direction control over the vehicle under transient conditions such as ruts in the road or side wind gusts. Vehicles having the slow response time noted above typically have a wide range of lateral position uncertainty under the most severe transient conditions which is generally greater than the range of lateral position uncertainty for vehicles equipped with backlash free manual steering systems.
To most modern vehicle owners, manual steering systems are deemed undesirable because they provide no steering assist. However, exclusive of their performance superiority over rotary valve systems, both manual and "reaction valve" equipped power steering systems have shortcomings when measured against the "ideal" standards outlined above. This is because the driver tactilely expects higher input torque requirements when entering a turn at a higher vehicular speed. Exclusive of exciting tire slip angles and the like, this is simply not the case with any known steering system unless it is supplemented with a shock absorber-type damper linked to the vehicle's dirigible wheels. In fact, under certain nonlinear conditions involving tire slip angles or other transient conditions, rapid movements of the steering wheel can even result in lower input torques. The reason for this unstable behavior is that known steering systems, which do not feature the above noted shock absorber-type damper, have minimal rate stabilization, or feedback, inherent in their operation.
In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the concept of utilizing "rate" feedback to enhance steering stability can be extended to form the basis for an improved type of speed sensitive steering known herein as "rate derived-speed sensitive" steering. As detailed hereinbefore, conventional "speed sensitive" steering systems merely increase steering force (i.e., magnitude derived speed sensitive steering systems). To promote superior stability, it is preferable to implement a "rate derived-speed sensitive" steering system wherein rate feedback is increased as a function of vehicular speed. Therefore, tactile resistance is felt by the driver in direct proportion to the applied steering wheel rotational velocity. In addition, the tactile resistance would increase as a selected function of vehicular speed.
Accordingly, the present invention includes various structural embodiments and methods for an electronically controlled power steering system wherein the advantages associated with the "ideal" steering system, explained above, are substantially realized. In a first embodiment, a torque transducer associated with the steering shaft is used to provide a signal indicative of steering wheel torque. This applied torque derived, signal (hereinafter "torque signal") is suitably frequency compensated or manipulated and amplified The compensated and amplified torque signal is then utilized to provide an "output signal" which drives a torque motor which, in turn, actuates a rotary control valve. The rotary valve then provides differential fluid flow to a power cylinder to provide steering assist. If desired, the signal amplification can be varied as a function of vehicular speed to implement "magnitude derived-speed sensitive" steering.
The torque motor driven rotary valve can be located remotely from the steering shaft. Preferably, it is located within a pump assembly utilized to provide hydraulic fluid to the power steering system. Fluid passage to-and-from the rotary valve is accomplished via direct porting with hydraulic lines used for transmitting fluid to either end of the power cylinder.
Functionally, nonlinear amplification of the torque signal is used to increase system gain at low input torque levels and reduce system gain at high input torque levels. Thus, the static performance characteristic of the overall power steering system is modified such that it is much more nearly ideal. The frequency compensation is utilized to ensure stable system operation together with an acceptable unity gain cross-over frequency. Thus, the system response is tactilely acceptable in both magnitude and response time under virtually all normal and transient conditions.
The nonlinear amplification of the torque signal can be accomplished in a continuous manner through zero values of applied torque. Alternatively, the torque signal can be initialized at selected left and right values of applied torque. This provides a "dead zone" near the zero values of applied torque wherein no steering assist is provided. If this is done, the effect is to emulate power steering systems wherein components of the control valve assembly are physically locked or "intermeshed" together at low values of applied torque. In this manner, unassisted manual steering is present at low values of steering load.
According to a second embodiment, a tachometer is located within the steering unit. The tachometer is used to provide an additional signal indicative of steering rate (hereinafter "rate signal"). The "rate signal" is suitably frequency compensated and amplified. The amplification can be accomplished linearly or it can be accomplished nonlinearly as a function of its own magnitude and/or the magnitude of the torque signal. The compensated and amplified rate signal is then utilized to selectively modify the "output" signal applied to the torque motor in order to provide the "rate feedback" mentioned hereinbefore. Also, the amplification can be varied as a function of vehicular speed to implement the "rate derived-speed sensitive" steering of the present invention.
In a third preferred embodiment, pressure transducers are utilized to measure differential pressure applied to the power cylinder. Output signals from the pressure transducers are utilized to provide a "pressure" signal which, in turn, is feedback and selectively compared with the "torque" signal. Such feedback ensures that the differential pressure applied to the power cylinder is actually the desired function of the torque applied to the steering wheel. Thus, while the power steering system described in the third embodiment includes application of a rotary valve, it emulates the superior operational characteristics of power steering systems utilizing reaction valves.
In a fourth embodiment, a reaction valve is substituted for the rotary valve. An exemplary reaction valve suitable for this purpose is one that was first described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,803, entitled FOUR-WAY VALVE issued May 8, 1990 to Edward H. Phillips, and as modified in U.S. Ser. No. 485,637, entitled VARIABLE RATIO REACTION VALVE by Edward H. Phillips, filed Feb. 23, 1990, both of which are assigned to the common assignee of the present application and both of which are incorporated by reference herein. These control valves are known as "variable ratio" reaction valves and have the advantage that their static performance characteristics are selectively chosen in a manner that substantially emulates the ideal static performance characteristics described above. Thus, the torque signal can be linearly amplified rather than nonlinearly amplified in forming the "output" signal used to drive the torque motor.
The control valve of the fourth embodiment is superior over conventional systems in that it is a reaction valve such that the torque imposed on the torque motor is a more accurate model of the actual steering load. Since the torque delivered by the torque motor is substantially a linear function of the output signal and the torque signal and applied torque are also linearly related thereto, the applied torque is likewise a more accurate model of the actual steering load. As will be explained hereinafter, this characteristic aids in centering the steering wheel after a turn. In addition, since reverse differential pressure generated by the mechanical backup steering can exert reverse torque on the reaction valve. This tends to open the reaction valve so that mechanical backup steering can be accomplished with reduced effort. Thus, the fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention substantially emulates the superior "ideal" power steering system as outlined hereinbefore.
Because the fourth embodiment includes "rate" feedback, it is possible to eliminate a pair of controlled orifice flow restrictors commonly utilized with reaction valves as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,803 (See FIGS. 22-26C). This is possible because the hydraulically-derived rate stabilization provided by the controlled orifice flow restrictors of U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,803 is electronically implemented in the present invention by the rate feedback function. This has the further advantage of eliminating hydraulic power loss associated with the controlled orifice flow restrictors. Thus less hydraulic power is required whenever the steering system is in motion.
As in all power steering systems, a fail-safe operation is required for all of the various embodiments of the present invention. In the case of the first, second and fourth preferred embodiments of the present invention, current passing through the torque motor is measured and compared with calculated current values. In the case of the third preferred embodiment of the present invention, the output signals from the pressure transducers are compared with calculated differential values thereof. In either case, excessive variation thereby causes current to stop flowing through the torque motor.
Various other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent to one skilled in the art from reading the following specification taken in conjunction with the appended claims and the following drawings.

Electronically controlled power steering system


A device for counting micro particles is presented. The device comprises a light source; a chip containing micro particles; an object lens; a CCD camera; a counting part; and a shifter for shifting the position of the chip. It is easy to count the number of micro particles, such as red blood cells or somatic cells, by using the device. The shifter shifts the position of the chip by a predetermined distance at every predetermined time interval in order that a certain area adjacent to the area photographed just before is shifted to the point where the light is incident. Therefore, sub-areas on the chip are photographed successively. The counting part counts the number of micro particles in each sub-area, and adds them together to calculate the total number of micro particles in the samples.

For the patients suffer from AIDS, leukemia, or anemia, it is necessary to count the number of particles of leukocyte or erythrocyte related to such disease in the blood of the patients in order to diagnose the diseases, to monitor the progress of the diseases, and to verify the effect of treatment.
Particularly, the blood test is conducted not only for diagnosing the diseases, but also for monitoring the patients proved to suffer from the diseases.
The analysis devices developed for blood analysis, for example, Neucleocounter™ of Chemometec, Denmark, are too expensive, and the operating method is so difficult that it is not easy to use the device for not only the ordinary person, but also the analysis expert. Also, as the sample chip for the analysis device is fabricated separately and is too expensive, it is a burden to use such device.
Under the such circumstance, medical technologists count the number of leukocyte or erythrocyte cells in blood by hand in almost all the hospitals. Since medical technologists count them by hand, the errors in the inspection occur frequently, and it takes much time to inspect.
Therefore, the necessity is high for the device which can count the number of leukocyte or erythrocyte cells in blood promptly and accurately, and can be used in convenience with low cost.
Particularly, in case of collecting and examining patient's urine, cerebrospinal fluid, gastric juice, or ascites, etc., the examination should be done in an hour because of the characteristic of the sample. Thus, the device for counting specific cells in the sample promptly is needed.
Further, in case of using the previously-developed device or counting the cells by hand, there is a problem that a person is likely to expose to a harmful dying reagent in the process of experiment.


A miniature transfer relay has a base mounting a contact assembly and an electromagnet. The contact assembly includes a normally-open (NO) fixed contact, a normally-closed (NC) fixed contact, a common conductor, and a movable spring extending from the common conductor and carrying first and second movable contacts engageable respectively with the NO and NC contacts. The electromagnet block includes an armature which is movable between set and reset positions and is connected to the movable spring for making and breaking the NO and NC contacts simultaneously in response to the armature movement. The NO fixed contact and the common conductor are molded in an upper surface of the base, while the NC fixed contacts has a portion molded in the base. The movable spring is an elongated self-biased resilient member which is formed at one longitudinal end thereof with the first movable contact and which is secured at the other longitudinal end to the common conductor such that the movable spring can resiliently flex in a cantilever fashion to move the first movable contact into and out of contact with the NO fixed contact. The relay is characterized in that the movable spring carries the second movable contact at a portion intermediate its longitudinal ends and on a surface opposite of the first movable contact, and that the NC fixed contact extends upwardly from the base and is bent over the movable spring to be kept in normally closed relation to the second movable contact.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a miniature transfer relay having normally-closed and normally-open contacts.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a prior miniature transfer relay, it is common to mount a contact assembly on a relay base, for example, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,933,654. The contact assembly includes a set of normally-open (NO) and normally-closed (NC) contacts, and associated contacts carried on a movable spring which are all disposed to project on the base. With this mounting structure, the relay is required to have an increased height for accommodating the contact assembly, which is a hindrance to miniaturization of the relay. In order to reduce the height dimension of the contact assembly, another prior transfer relay has been proposed to mold the NO and NC contacts in the surface of the base, while disposing only the movable spring to project on the base, for example, as disclosed in the European Patent Publication EP 0 100 165 B1. However, the transfer relay of this type requires the movable spring to have a rather complicated configuration having first and second movable contacts corresponding respectively to the NO and NC fixed contacts. In order to obtain transfer operation, the movable spring is made as an elongated member which is pivotally supported intermediate its longitudinal ends and is provided on the opposed longitudinal ends with the first and second movable contacts in correspondence to the NO and NC fixed contacts. It is this pivot structure that adds the complexity to the configuration of the movable spring and also requires the movable spring to have an increased length, which makes the prior art transfer relay still insufficient for achieving further miniaturization with a simple contact assembly structure.


A countertop griddle and related methods of cooking food with a countertop griddle including a warming tray. The warming tray can be rotatably attached to the countertop griddle such that the warming tray can be rotatably pivoted from a covering disposition to an intermediary disposition to an open disposition. When in the covering disposition, the warming tray can serve to protect a user from exposure to grease spatter and to receive heat conducted from a cooking surface. During cooking, the warming tray can be rotated to the intermediary disposition such that the user can manipulated the food item being prepared. Finally, the warming tray can be rotated to an open disposition defining a serving tray for receiving a cooked food item. The warming tray can be detached from the countertop griddle when the warming tray is positioned in any of the covering, intermediate or open dispositions.

Countertop griddles are a well known consumer appliance and provide users with a convenient easy to clean cooking surface. Countertop griddles are frequently used when preparing breakfast items such as, for example, pancakes, French toast, bacon, sausage and various preparations of eggs. Oftentimes, more than one type of food is being prepared simultaneously. In addition, items such as, for example, bacon may splatter during preparation, thus causing a user to contact hot grease. As such, it would be advantageous if conventional countertop griddles were improved to deal with situations in which multiple food items are being simultaneously prepared or to prevent exposure to splattered grease.


There is provided an anode for an electrothermal arcjet thruster. A conduit running through the anode body has a converging upstream portion and a diverging downstream portion connected by a constrictor portion having a greater diameter at the interface with the upstream portion than at the interface with the downstream portion. As the result, the cross-sectional area available to a propellant gas passing through the constrictor constantly decreases and the propellent gas velocity continually increases. This constrictor geometry allows the arcjet thruster to be operated at a lower mass flow rate increasing the obtainable specific energy.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to small propulsion systems for maneuvering spacecraft and, more particularly to an electrothermal arcjet thruster having an anode with a centrally positioned constrictor. This constrictor converges from an upstream end to a downstream end. As the result, both the tangential and axial velocity of a propellant gas increase as the gas flows through the converging constrictor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An electrothermal arcjet thruster converts electrical energy to thermal energy by heat transfer from an arc discharge to a flowing propellant. The thermal energy is converted to directed kinetic energy by expansion of the heated propellant through a nozzle.
Most electrothermal arcjet thrusters have as common features an anode in the form of a nozzle body and a cathode in the form of a cylindrical rod with a conical tip. The nozzle body has an arc chamber defined by a constrictor in a rearward portion of the body and a nozzle in a forward portion thereof. The cathode rod is aligned on the longitudinal axis of the nozzle body with its conical tip extending into the upstream end of the arc chamber in spaced relation to the constrictor so as to define a gap therebetween.
When a sufficiently high current is applied between the anode and the cathode, an electric arc is initiated. When the arc is initially struck, the electric current travels the path of smallest inductance (path of least resistance) between the cathode body (this portion of the arc is referred to as the "arc root") and the anode (this portion of the arc is referred to as the "arc foot").
In a typical arcjet configuration, the arc is believed to originate on the cathode shoulder, upstream of the cathode tip. Gas dynamic forces in concert with thermal effects, cause the arc root to move toward the cathode tip. At the same time, the arc foot is swept along the anode towards the anode portion of minimum cross-sectional area, the constrictor. Stable arcjet operation is achieved when the arc foot passes through the constrictor and is distributed diffusely, with a low energy density, along the diverging walls of the anode.
When in a stable operation mode, the propellant gas is heated in the regions of the constrictor and of arc diffusion at the mouth of the nozzle downstream from the constrictor. The super-heated propellant gas is exhausted out from the nozzle to achieve thrust.
Historically, propellants, such as ammonia or hydrogen, have been used in electrothermal arcjet thrusters. More recently, hydrazine (N.sub.2 H.sub.4) has been used. Propellants such as ammonia and hydrazine are preferred because these propellants are storable as a liquid without refrigeration while cryogenic propellants such as hydrogen and helium are not. The liquid storable fuels are converted to a gaseous propellent by passing the fuel through a gas generator.
The specific impulse (I.sub.sp) determines the propellant mass required to complete a flight. I.sub.sp is denoted in pounds of force-second per pound of mass. The generation of a high I.sub.sp in an arcjet thruster requires operation of the thruster at a high specific energy (as denoted in watts/kg). The cryogenic propellants have a typical I.sub.sp value of up to 1,500 lbf-sec/lbm. The liquid storable propellants have a much lower specific impulse, on the order of 800-1000 lbf-sec/lbm.
One way to increase I.sub.sp is to increase the thrust efficiency of the arcjet thruster. U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,656 to Simon et al. discloses increasing the specific impulse of a propellant by a unique nozzle configuration. The exhaust portion of the nozzle has a divergent recombination portion in tandem with a divergent expansion portion. The divergence of the recombination portion is less than that of the expansion portion, causing a temporary delay in the pressure reduction of the propellant gas. This delay creates a relatively high pressure region in the recombination portion of the nozzle permitting a partial recombination of the ionized and neutral species of the propellant gas and a partial recovery of frozen flow losses back into the gas.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,656 is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. The biangle nozzle disclosed in that patent increases the efficiency of the electrothermal arcjet thruster at low power levels by reducing frozen flow losses. However, the nozzle also generates more heat at the anode surface and, as the energy level (power/mass flow rate) of the thruster increases, the advantage over a single angle nozzle decreases. At relatively high specific energy levels, the efficiency of a biangle nozzle is inferior to that of a single angle nozzle.
One method to limit the transfer of heat from the electric arc to the anode is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,716 to Smith et al. The Smith et al patent discloses forming a portion of the constrictor from an electrically insulating material such as boron nitride, alumina or berylia. However, the typical anode body is formed from tungsten or a tungsten alloy. Incorporating ceramic inserts into the metallic anode body increases both the complexity and the cost of manufacturing the anode. In addition, due to the high operating temperatures of the arcjet thruster, typically on the order of 1500K, coefficients of thermal expansion must be closely matched.
A different way to increase I.sub.sp is to reduce the mass flow rate while maintaining the power level. However, as the mass flow rate is reduced, the stabilizing gas dynamic forces diminish. Eventually, stable operation of the arcjet thruster ceases and the arc foot attachment moves upstream back through the constrictor to the point of smallest inductance along the converging upstream portion. Upstream arc attachment produces an unstable current/voltage condition, typically characterized by low voltage and high current requirements. Under these conditions, destructive energy densities are concentrated at the arc foot leading to erosion of the surface of the anode.
There exists, therefore, a need for an anode geometry permitting a reduction in the mass flow rate while inhibiting the upstream movement of the arc foot. Such an anode configuration would provide an arcjet thruster having a higher specific impulse with increased cathode and anode lifetimes.

Converging constrictor for an electrothermal arcjet thruster


This invention provides an optical sensing system for detecting displacements of a slidable frame along an elongated plate of the system and generating corresponding position or displacement signals. The optical sensing system comprises a housing, an elongated plate horizontally installed in the housing having a plurality of positioning holes and a plurality of parallel conductors installed in it, a slidable frame having a sliding hole in its middle for slidably engaging the elongated plate, an optical sensor installed in the frame and slidably wired to the parallel conductors of the elongated plate for detecting the positioning holes of the elongated plate and generating corresponding sensing signals, and a control circuit wired to the parallel conductors of the elongated plate for converting the sensing signals into corresponding position signals or displacement signals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical sensing system, and more particularly, to an optical sensing system for detecting displacements of a slidable frame along an elongated plate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Linear variable resistors are widely used as input devices in electronic systems. A slidable button is usually provided to engage with a fixed resistor so as to change its resistance. The contacting portions of such a variable resistor may easily get damaged after frequent use which will cause inaccuracy in measuring the resistance of the variable resistor.

Optical sensing system for detecting displacements of a slidable frame along an elongated plate


A prior art butane lighter fits into a hole in a hand sized case. The user can flip open a cap on the case and advance a thumbwheel which drives a wax coated hemp wick over the flame of the lighter. The user lights the lighter to ignite the hemp wick, and he then lights any object such as a pipe. The user can reverse the thumbwheel to snuff the hemp wick flame in a chute. A reel of hemp wick is encased in a lower recess of the case. A large lighter case may have a storage container for a pipe, a small lighter case for two and a quarter inch lighters would be minimized in size to eliminate a storage compartment. One embodiment provides a simple thumb advance slot to move the rope forward and backward.

Known in the art are crude devices which attach to a butane lighter such as a BIC® lighter. These devices slide over the lighter like a sleeve, and the sleeve holds a winding of hemp wick and a built in wick extinguisher. See the I-Tal™ Hempwick Lighter Sleeve distributed by Inity Distributors, Sacramento, Calif. Relevant prior art is the Clipwick™ eBay item no. 140365162893. A clip attaches to a lighter. The clip holds a winding of hemp wick. The uses for these devices include lighting BBQs, fireplaces, lanterns, candles, pilot lights, heaters, cigarettes and pipes. Using the wick to light a pipe prevents a butane taste from contaminating the tobacco. The desired hemp flame also reduces the wasted tobacco used up during lighting. A decrease in butane fuel use is also accomplished. What is needed in the art is a single case sized to contain a disposable butane lighter. The case should contain a reel of hemp wick and a flip top cover to block the wind.
The present invention provides a pocket sized case made of aluminum and/or plastic with a hole for a lighter. The side of the case is removed to install a reel of hemp wick. A thumb wheel advances the hemp wick for lighting. When the thumb reel is reversed, it snuffs the burning hemp wick.


Methods and apparatus for injecting reagent, such as an aqueous urea solution, into an exhaust stream in order to reduce emissions from an engine exhaust. The present teachings can use a whirl plate having a plurality of whirl slots surrounding an exit orifice of an injector, which produce a high velocity rotating flow in the whirl chamber. When the rotating flow of reagent is passed through the exit orifice into an exhaust stream, atomization occurs from a combination of centrifugal force and shearing of the reagent by air as it jets into the exhaust stream.

The present invention relates generally to the reduction of emissions produced by lean burn engines. In particular, the present invention provides methods and apparatus for injecting reagent, such as an aqueous urea solution, into an exhaust stream in order to reduce oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions from diesel engine exhaust. Alternately, the present invention can be adapted for injecting a hydrocarbon reagent into a diesel exhaust for the purposes of particulate reduction.
Lean burn engines provide improved fuel efficiency by operating with an excess of oxygen over the amount necessary for complete combustion of the fuel. Such engines are said to run "lean" or on a "lean mixture." However, this increase in fuel economy is offset by undesired pollution emissions, specifically in the form of oxides of nitrogen (NOx).
One method used to reduce NOx emissions from lean burn internal combustion engines is known as selective catalytic reduction (SCR). SCR, when used, for example, to reduce NOx emissions from a diesel engine, involves injecting an atomized reagent into the exhaust stream of the engine in relation to one or more selected engine operational parameters, such as exhaust gas temperature, engine rpm or engine load as measured by engine fuel flow, turbo boost pressure or exhaust NOx mass flow. The reagent/exhaust gas mixture is passed through a reactor containing a catalyst, such as, for example, activated carbon, or metals, such as platinum, vanadium or tungsten, which are capable of reducing the NOx concentration in the presence of the reagent. An SCR system of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,976,475.
An aqueous urea solution is known to be an effective reagent in SCR systems for diesel engines. However, use of such an aqueous urea solution involves many disadvantages. Urea is highly corrosive and attacks mechanical components of the SCR system, such as the injectors used to inject the urea mixture into the exhaust gas stream. Urea also tends to solidify upon prolonged exposure to high temperatures, such as encountered in diesel exhaust systems. Solidified urea will accumulate in the narrow passageways and exit orifice openings typically found in injectors. Solidified urea may foul moving parts of the injector and clog any openings, rendering the injector unusable.
In addition, if the urea mixture is not finely atomized, urea deposits will form in the catalytic reactor, inhibiting the action of the catalyst and thereby reducing the SCR system effectiveness. High injection pressures are one way of minimizing the problem of insufficient atomization of the urea mixture. However, high injection pressures often result in over-penetration of the injector spray plume into the exhaust stream, causing the plume to impinge on the inner surface of the exhaust pipe opposite the injector. Over-penetration leads to inefficient use of the urea mixture and reduces the range over which the vehicle can operate with reduced NOx emissions. Only a finite amount of aqueous urea can be carried on a vehicle, and what is carried should be used efficiently to maximize vehicle range and reduce the need for frequent fill ups of the reagent.
Further, aqueous urea is a poor lubricant. This characteristic adversely affects moving parts within the injector and requires that special fits, clearances and tolerances be employed between relatively moving parts within an injector. Aqueous urea also has a high propensity for leakage. This characteristic adversely affects mating surfaces requiring enhanced sealing resources in many locations.
An example of a prior art injector for injecting aqueous urea into the exhaust stream of a lean burn diesel engine is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,279,603. This prior art injector uses an atomizing hook external to the injector to cause dispersion of the urea solution expelled from the injector. The urea solution is circulated in the area of the exit orifice of the injector body to provide cooling.
It would be advantageous to provide methods and apparatus for injecting an aqueous urea solution into the exhaust stream of a lean burn engine where atomizing of the urea solution occurs internally to the injector prior to being injected into the exhaust stream. It would be further advantageous to provide for cooling of the injector to prevent the urea from solidifying and to prolong the life of the injector components. It would be advantageous to minimize heat transfer to the injector from the exhaust pipe for minimal deposit formation internal to the injector. It would also be advantageous to minimize heat transfer from the hot gas to the exit orifice to prevent soot and urea from being attracted to the relatively cool injector exit orifice, creating deposits external to the injector. It would also be advantageous to provide an injector that does not leak for economical and environmental purposes.
The methods and apparatus of the present invention provide the foregoing and other advantages.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and apparatus for injecting atomized fluids

Tenneco Automotive Operating Company Inc.


A fusible link unit is provided with a first alternator terminal including a screw hole configured to be connected with an opposite terminal with a screw, a second alternator terminal including a connector configured to be connected with an opposite connector, a battery terminal one or more load terminals respectively including one or more fuse links, wherein the first alternator terminal, the second alternator terminal, the battery terminal, the load terminals and the fuse links are mutually connected and unitized in a fuse unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fusible link unit having a plurality of fuse units respectively having fuse links.
2. Description of the Related Art
Vehicles are equipped with various electric devices and, for protection thereof from over-current, provided with fusible link units. The fusible link unit is ordinarily provided with a plurality of fuse units and an insulator case partially covering the fuse units. Each of the fuse units is provided with a fuse link, a busbar, terminals respectively connected with a load and a battery. Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2000-182506 discloses a related art.
Some types of the fusible link units are further provided with input portions for input from the alternators. In certain cases, the input portion is required to permit high-current and is hence provided with a terminal to which a terminal fitting is screwed. In other cases, it is enough that the input portion is provided with a male connector for mating with a female connector of the alternator. They are different from each other in view of the whole constitutions thereof.


A valve for a gas-driven motor and a valve assembly and reciprocating pump incorporating the valve are provided. The valve includes a shiftable valve for alternatively supplying a motive gas through first and second supply ports to opposed first and second power pistons in opposed motive gas chambers, respectively, and for effecting alternating exhaust of said chambers. The shiftable valve has a front face with a valve projection located thereon and a rear face with a valve projection located thereon.

This invention relates generally to air valves and more particularly to air valves designed to minimize icing and improve efficiency for a reciprocating pump or the like. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved fluid operated, double diaphragm pump, and, more particularly, to the valve construction for such a pump.
The use of a double diaphragm pump to transfer materials is known. Typically such a pump comprises a pair of pumping chambers with a pressure chamber arranged in parallel with each pumping chamber in a housing. Each pressure chamber is separated from its associated pumping chamber by a flexible diaphragm. As one pressure chamber is pressurized, it forces the diaphragm to compress fluid in the associate pumping chamber. The fluid is thus forced from the pumping chamber. Simultaneously, the diaphragm associated with the second pumping chamber is flexed so as to draw fluid material into the second pumping chamber. The diaphragms are reciprocated in unison in order to alternately fill and evacuate the pumping chambers. In practice, the chambers are all aligned so that the diaphragms can reciprocate axially in unison. In this manner the diaphragms may also be mechanically interconnected to ensure uniform operation and performance by the double acting diaphragm pump. Exemplary pumps in this regard are shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,854,832 and 5,584,666 (hereafter, "the '832 and '666 patents"), the specifications of which are incorporated herein by reference.
In designing air motor valving used to control the feed air to and exhaust air from the diaphragm chambers of such pumps, however, it is desirable to exhaust the diaphragm chambers as quickly as possible in order to obtain a fast switch over and high average output pressures. Large temperature drops are generated with such rapid exhausting of the diaphragm chambers, however, which cause the valve to become extremely cold and can cause ice formation from moisture in the exhaust air.
The foregoing illustrates limitations known to exist in present devices and methods. Thus, it is apparent that it would be advantageous to provide an alternative directed to overcoming one or more of the limitations set forth above. Accordingly, a suitable alternative is provided including features more fully disclosed hereinafter.

Reduced icing valves and gas-driven motor and reciprocating pump incorporating same


A disposable single-use animal attractant dispensing device has a pouch formed by front and back panels joined along peripheral edges, which includes a pouch section for retaining an animal attractant and a single-use absorbent lure for absorbing the attractant. A first opening formed by un-joined portions of the panels is sealed together along with a portion of the lure to form a sealing section, forming a substantially impervious seal. A notch is provided to assist the user in rupturing the seal to separate the pouch and sealing sections and to expose the lure. A securement is provided for securing the pouch to a user, and may include a pouch connection member and a user connection member. An aperture disposed in the sealing section of the pouch receives a portion of the securement. A pocket on an outer surface of the pouch holds a portion of the securement.

In watching, hunting and trapping animals, it is often useful to disperse a scent into the air or onto the surrounding areas. This may be done for a number of reasons. One reason is to conceal the hunter's own scent so as to avoid alerting animals to the hunter's presence. Another reason is that certain scents may, in fact, lure the animal to a particular location. Additionally, mobility is often desirable and required in order to track and trap animals. However, this may leave a scent trail so stationary scents are often inadequate. It is often preferred to avoid contact with the scent and that the scent not contact the hunter's person, clothing, equipment, etc. It is also preferable that the device be simple and quick to use, easy replenished and easily disposed of without requiring long-term storage after opening. Finally, it is also desired that the scent-dispersing device be able to disperse the scent automatically with little or no effort by the user.
Therefore, what is needed is a single-use animal attractant-dispensing device that is simple and easy to use, may be mobile, disperses the scent automatically, and is easily disposed of and replaced.

Disposable single-use animal attractant dispensing device


A developer container includes a cap controlling a flow of developer with a hole, the cap detachably engaged with a nozzle connecting to an image forming apparatus, and a developer case containing the developer with an outlet be connected to the hole. The developer case allows the developer to flow through the outlet in a direction different from the flow of developer through the hole.

1. Field of the Invention
The following disclosure relates to a developer container used for image forming, an image forming apparatus including the developer container and a method of forming a reinforcing member adhering to the developer container.
2. Description of the Background Art
The use of replaceable developer containers has widely been known to replenish developer consumed in a developing process of electrophotographic image forming. Such replaceable developer containers are replaced with a new or fully packed developer container whenever developer contained therein becomes short or is exhausted. Additionally, for environmental conservation, recycling of developer containers is highly desired.
In one technique, a developer container includes a flexible material so that the developer container can be compactly folded when developer in the developer container is fully consumed. This reduces a volume of the developer container, thereby reducing transportation cost in recycling. The developer container in the above-described technique is connected to a nozzle of an image forming apparatus with an opening of the developer container facing down to form a developer conveying mechanism. When the developer container and the nozzle are connected so as to not change a direction of a flow of developer, a total length of the developer conveying mechanism may be rather high. When the nozzle is designed to change the flow of developer so that, for example, developer can flow vertically in the developer container and horizontally in the nozzle, the developer conveying mechanism may still need a certain height. In this case, the image forming apparatus also needs a space that can accommodate the height of the developer container and the nozzle. Therefore, the above-described developer container creates size limitations for itself and the image forming apparatus.
In another technique, a developer container includes a guide member partly with fold parts so that the developer container can be compactly folded when developer in the developer container is exhausted. Further, the developer container having the guide member can promote the deformation of the developer container. Since the guide member is formed of material whose rigidity is higher than the developer container, when the developer container is deformed because of the reduction of the volume, the fold part of the guide member pushes the fold of the container. Also, the inner wall surface of the guide member uniformly pushes the plane part of the developer container. This reduces a volume of the developer container, thereby reducing transportation cost in recycling, as in the aforementioned technique.
However, the above-described techniques may still cause developer suction failure.
Referring to FIG. 1, a schematic structure of a background developer container 500 is described.
The background developer container 500 generally includes a bag-like developer case 501 packed with developer, a cap 502 connected to the bag-like developer case 501, and reinforcing members 503 attached to flat surfaces oppositely disposed to face to each other. The reinforcing members 503 provide higher rigidity to the flat surfaces than the other surfaces having folds F of the bag-like developer case 501. The cap 502 includes a nozzle-receiving hole 504 into which a cylindrical shutter member 505 is inserted.
Referring to FIG. 2A, a schematic structure of a developer conveying mechanism including the background developer container 500 is described.
The developer conveying mechanism includes the background developer container 500, a pump unit 600, and a developing unit 700.
In FIG. 2A, the background developer container 500 of FIG. 1 is connected to a nozzle 507 at the cap 502. Developer from developer container 500 is communicated to the developing unit 700 via a developer conveying tube 508. The developer conveying tube 508 is connected to the nozzle 507 at one end and to the pump unit 600 at the other end.
The pump unit 600 delivers developer stored in the developer container 500 to the developing unit 700 by creating suction through the developer conveying tube 508.
The developing unit 700 develops a toner image formed on an image bearing member provided in an image forming apparatus.
As previously described, developer contained in the developer container 500 is supplied to the developing unit 700 by suction created by the pump unit 600 according to consumption of developer. In a case in which the reinforcing members 503 are formed to have a flat shape or a concave shape with respect to the respective flat surfaces of the background developer container 500, as the developer is constantly consumed, the developer container 500 may be deformed as shown in FIG. 2A. FIG. 2B shows a deformed shape of the background developer container 500, viewed from A. That is, when most of the developer is already conveyed out from the developer container 500, the developer container 500 may have portions indicated by B and C. The flat surfaces with the respective reinforcing members 503 attached thereon are in close contact with each other or are hermetically closed at the portion B, while developer remains at the portion C. This could cause a developer suction failure, followed by a developer conveying failure. That is, if the pump unit 600 mostly sucks air, an amount of developer to be conveyed per unit of time may intermittently fall below a desired amount of developer to be conveyed, which may eventually stop a flow of developer to be discharged out from the developer container 500 and leave some developer unused.

Apparatuses for image forming capable of effectively conveying developer therefrom and a method of effectively forming a reinforcing member adhering to the apparatuses


The invention is a method and system conducting a completion test on a communications line. The system includes a testing device coupled to a remote device by a network. Line-test results are received from the testing device and made available to various client devices via the same or another network. Test data is automatically archived for analysis.

Telecommunications companies (telcos) offer services via communications lines. Common communications lines include Plain Old Telephone lines (POTs), Integrated Service Device Network (ISDN) lines, and Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL). One method for resolving technical issues is to dispatch a technician who will diagnose and attempt to resolve the problem. A prudent technician will conduct a close-out test to make sure that the reported problem is eliminated; and more importantly, to ensure that the line is free from nonreported errors.
Traditionally, a close-out test is carried out as an isolated event. That is, a technician—alone in the field—conducts the close-out test, observes the results, and subjectively makes a decision on the best course of action. Afterwards, the test results are lost. This method can present problems when the technician may be relatively inexperienced, unmotivated to actually perform the test, or when the technician does not know the best course of action to take. The technician bears the burden of tracking acceptable tolerances. Further, a supervisor must physically accompany a technician to observe test results and recommended action. Such a practice is inefficient and costly.
There is a need for a method and system of conducting a completion test whereby the results are stored; benchmark values are automatically provided and easily distributed; and supervisors (or other remote viewers) can observe the results in near real-time from an off-site location.


An automobile car seat which connects to a child safety seat includes armrests which are pivoted and extended from recessed positions within the back of the seat and a headrest. When extended, the armrests prevent lateral movement of a child on the seat. When pivoted into a substantially upright position, the headrest may then be detached from the back of the seat and be releasably mounted to the seating portion. Straps attached to the headrest and the back of the seat are pulled forward from the interior of the back, such that the straps restrain forward movement of the child. The seat may be a bucket seat and may be deployed as the passenger seat of the vehicle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns passenger seats in an automobile. More particularly, the present invention concerns an adult passenger seat which can be easily adjusted to safely accommodate a child thereon.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Child car seats are well known. The efficacy and necessity of these devices is such that many states require their mandatory usage for children under a certain age, usually three years.
One type of child car seat is the removable car seat. These devices are raised seat secured to a passenger seat in the rear portion of the passenger compartment of a car. The child is placed upon the seat and secured thereon by restraining straps, bars or other similar means. The seat is normally secured using the safety belts, thus anchoring the childseat.
Although effective, these seats suffer some notable drawbacks. Firstly, the seat may not be properly secured by the parent or other adult. This can result in the failure of the car seat to protect the child. Secondly, the seat, when not needed, must be removed and stored elsewhere. Apart from being an inconvenience, this situation leads to the temptation not to use the child seat. Also, the seat can be lost or otherwise unlocatable, and thus inaccessible, when needed. Thus, the child would be either prevented from traveling in the car or placed in a situation risking his or her safety.
A second type of car seat concerns those built into or otherwise formed as a part of the existing automobile seat. This type of seat is built such that a child can be seated safely in the automobile by folding downwardly or otherwise moving, a cross member associated with the seat over the child. Quite often this cross member serves a dual purpose, such as a head rest or the like.
One example of such built-in seat restraints is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,230,366 issued Oct. 28, 1980 to Ruda. Ruda teaches a passive child restraint which is built into the rear bench seat of an automobile. The U-shaped member is variously disposed around the child so that the child has both his/her lateral and forward movement restricted. The U-shaped restraint member may be rotated, lifted or pulled out into position around the child.
Another seat of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,422 issued Jul. 27, 1982 to Cunningham, and is entitled "RESTRAINT DEVICE". Cunningham teaches a child restraint device that alternatively serves as a headrest for an adult. The restraint device comprises a lastingly deformable rigid foam member having a convexo-concavo surface. The foam member is secured to the top portion of a seat back. When an infant is seated on the carseat, the foam member may be removed from the top of the seat and placed on the lap of the child. The foam member is then secured thereto by the car seat belt. The foam member is lowered into position via webs wound around and extendable from retractor wheels. When mounted atop the carseat, the foam member encompasses and hides the webs and retractor wheels.
Another known seat is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,644,443 issued May 12, 1987 to Casale for an "AUTOMOBILE CONVERTIBLE SEAT". The seat of Casale is built on the opposite side of an adult carseat deployed in the rearward part of the passenger compartment. The adult seat is rotated downwardly, by which action the infant is secured on the seat. Additionally, straps may be utilized to firmly secure the infant within the seat.
Still another seat is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,112 issued Jul. 24, 1990 to Law for a "CHILD'S COLLAPSIBLE CARSEAT". Law teaches a child's carseat which is built into an adult carseat. The seatback is pulled down and rested horizontally upon the lower portion of the seat. The seatback then forms the lower portion of the child seat. The headrest is then rotated forwardly and downwardly, securing the child therein. The back of the child carseat is defined by the newly exposed area which previously the lower portion had been secured.
It is to be appreciated from the preceding that none of the prior art built in seats is adaptable for a "bucket" seat. Likewise, each of the prior art "built-in" seat is difficult to re-assemble into its normal adult seat. Thus, there exists a need in the art for a carseat for that accommodates a child that is easily reassembled when the seat is needed by an adult. Further, these is a need for an adult/child built-in bucket carseat. It is to these needs that the present invention is directed.


A variable magnification optical system including at least: a first lens group having a negative optical power, a second lens group having a positive optical power, a third lens group having a negative optical power, and a fourth lens group having a positive optical power moves the second lens group in an—in-surface direction vertical to the optical axis direction in zooming to thereby correct shake resulting from imaging on the image surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a variable magnification optical system which guides light from a photographing target (on the object side) to an image sensor, and an image-taking apparatus provided with such a variable magnification optical system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a variable magnification optical system provided with vibration-proof function and an image-taking apparatus provided with such a variable magnification optical system.
2. Description of the Related Arts
Conventionally, a variable magnification optical system having power arrangement, from the object side to the image side, "negative, positive, negative, and positive" is said to be suitable for achieving a wider angle and higher magnification. Thus, various variable magnification optical systems having such power arrangement have been disclosed (patent documents 1 to 4).
For example, patents documents 1 to 3 disclose variable magnification optical systems adopted for interchangeable lenses for a single-reflex camera or the like. In particular, these variable magnification optical systems achieve vibration-proof function (so called camera-shake correction function) by moving a lens group located at some position from the object side to the image side in the in-surface direction vertical to the optical axis direction.
Specifically, the camera-shake correction is performed by part of a second lens group of the variable magnification optical system of patent document 1, a third lens group of the variable magnification optical system of patent document 2, a latter half portion of the divided fourth lens group of the variable magnification optical system of patent document 3.
On the other hand, the variable magnification optical system of patent document 4 bends the optical axis by having an optical prism included in a most object side lens group. Thus, such a variable magnification optical system does not extend in one direction, and thus is easily loaded in a small-size image-taking apparatus (compact camera or the like).                [Patent document 1] JP-A-2004-61910        [Patent document 2] JP-A-11-174329        [Patent document 3] JP-A-2004-61679        [Patent document 3] JP-A-2004-205796
The variable magnification optical systems disclosed in patent documents 1 to 3 are assumed to be used for an interchangeable lens for a single-reflex camera or the like. However, these variable magnification optical systems cannot provide sufficient aberration performance in compact digital cameras of a six-million-pixel class which have been recently distributed. Moreover, in zooming performed in a variable magnification optical system having "negative, positive, negative, and positive" optical powers for use in a single-lens reflex, a first lens group moves by utilizing a cam ring or the like. However, in a compact digital camera, the first lens group is moved directly by a driving force such as provided by an actuator or the like. Thus, it is preferable that the first lens group relatively heavy in weight be not moved.
What is important in a variable magnification optical system having a lens group which moves for camera-shake correction (vibration-proof lens group) is the degree of sensitivity to decentering, i.e., the ratio of the amount of movement of the vibration-proof lens group with respect to the amount of movement of an imaging point on the image surface. That is, the degree of sensitivity to decentering needs to be set appropriately. However, the variable magnification optical systems of patent documents 2 and 3 perform camera-shake correction by moving the lens group located relatively close to the image side (third or fourth lens group).
Such a case may bring about situation in which the degree of sensitivity to decentering is insufficient, but these variable magnification optical systems set the degree of sensitivity to decentering in just proportion by providing long back focus. Consequently, in a case of a small-size image-taking apparatus which inevitably has relatively short back focus, the variable magnification optical systems of patent documents 2 and 3 have difficulty in appropriately setting the degree of sensitivity to decentering. Therefore, the variable magnification optical systems of patent documents 2 and 3 are not suitable for being loaded in a small-size image-taking apparatus.
On the other hand, the variable magnification optical system of patent document 1 moves a partial portion in the single lens group in the in-surface direction vertical to the optical axis direction, thus permitting camera-shake correction by using a motor or the like which provides a relatively small thrust force. Thus, such a variable magnification optical system is preferably suitable for being loaded in a small-size image-taking apparatus. However, the lens groups of the variable magnification optical system are so designed as to be capable of correcting various aberration. Thus, in a case where camera-shake correction is performed by moving part of the single lens group, it is difficult to sufficiently correct the various aberration. Therefore, such a variable magnification optical system is capable of performing camera-shake correction but fails to provide a high-grade image (fail to sufficiently suppress various aberration in camera-shake correction).
The variable magnification optical system of patent document 4 is easy to be loaded in a small-size image-taking apparatus, but has no camera-shake correction function. Thus, the variable magnification optical system of patent document 4 is susceptible to camera-shake.

Variable magnification optical system and image-taking apparatus