A method for removing radioactive cesium and/or iodine from a radioactive substance in liquid and/or a solid matter using a hydrophilic resin composition comprising a hydrophilic resin and a metal ferrocyanide compound, wherein the hydrophilic resin includes at least one hydrophilic resin selected from the group consisting of a hydrophilic polyurethane resin, a hydrophilic polyurea resin, and a hydrophilic polyurethane-polyurea resin each having at least a hydrophilic segment, and a metal ferrocyanide compound is dispersed in the hydrophilic resin composition in a ratio of at least 1 to 200 mass parts relative to 100 mass parts of the hydrophilic resin.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for removing radioactive cesium present in liquid and/or a solid matter generated from a nuclear power plant or a reprocessing facility of spent nuclear fuel and to a hydrophilic resin composition suitable for the method, the hydrophilic resin composition exhibiting a function immobilizing radioactive cesium. The present invention also relates to a method capable of applying removing processing to both of radioactive iodine and radioactive cesium present in liquid and/or a solid matter generated from a nuclear power plant or a reprocessing facility of spent nuclear fuel and to a hydrophilic resin composition suitable for the method, the hydrophilic resin composition exhibiting a function immobilizing both of radioactive iodine and radioactive cesium.
2. Description of Related Art
In currently widespread nuclear reactor power plants, nuclear fission in a nuclear reactor is accompanied by generation of a considerable amount of radioactive by-products. The main radioactive substances among the radioactive by-products are fission products and active elements including extremely dangerous radioactive isotopes such as radioactive iodine, radioactive cesium, radioactive strontium, and radioactive cerium. Since radioactive iodine among these radioactive substances turns into a gas at 184° C., there is a risk that the radioactive iodine is extremely liable to be discharged at the time of inspection or exchange of fuel and furthermore by an unforeseen event such as an accident during handling fuel or a reactor excursion accident. The major radioactive iodine isotopes to be taken into account at the time of discharge are iodine 129 having a long half-life (half-life: 1.57×107 years) and iodine 131 having a short half-life (half-life: 8.05 days). Here, ordinary iodine that does not have radioactivity is an essential trace element in the human body, is collected in the thyroid gland near the throat, and becomes a component of a growth hormone. Therefore, when a human takes in radioactive iodine through breathing or water/foods, the radioactive iodine is collected in the thyroid gland in the same way as in the case of ordinary iodine and increases internal exposure to radioactivity, and accordingly, a particularly strict measure for reducing the amount of radioactivity to be discharged must be implemented with regard to radioactive iodine.
Moreover, radioactive cesium has a melting point of 28.4° C., is one of metals that become liquid at around a normal temperature, and is a metal that is extremely liable to be discharged as well as radioactive iodine. The major radioactive cesium isotopes to be taken into account at the time of discharge are cesium 134 having a relatively short half-life (half-life: 2 years) and cesium 137 having a long half-life (half-life: 30 years). Among the major radioactive cesium isotopes, cesium 137 not only has a long half-life but also emits high-energy radiation, and has a property that water solubility is high because the radioactive cesium is an alkaline metal. Furthermore, radioactive cesium is easily absorbed in the human body through breathing and also through skin and is uniformly dispersed in the whole body, and therefore a health hazard to humans when the radioactive cesium is discharged becomes serious.
Thus, when radioactive cesium is accidentally discharged due to an unforeseen event or the like from nuclear reactors in operation all over the world, there are concerns that the radioactive cesium causes not only radioactive contamination to workers at nuclear reactors or neighborhood residents but also radioactive contamination over a wider range to humans and animals through foods or water contaminated by the radioactive cesium carried by air. The danger with regard to the radioactive contamination has already been proven undoubtedly by the accident in Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
To such a situation, a cleaning processing system, a physical/chemical processing system by solid adsorbent filling using fibrous activated carbon or the like (see Patent Literatures 1 and 2), processing by an ion exchange material (see Patent Literature 3), and so on have been studied as a method for processing radioactive iodine generated in a nuclear reactor.
However, any of the above methods has problems as described below, and the development of a method for removing radioactive iodine in which these problems are solved is desired. First of all, an alkaline cleaning method or the like exists as a cleaning processing system practically used, however there are lots of problems in terms of quantity and safety to apply processing by the cleaning processing system with a liquid adsorbent and store the processed liquid as it is for a long period of time. Moreover, in the physical/chemical processing system by solid adsorbent filling, captured radioactive iodine is always facing the possibility of being replaced with other gases, and moreover the processing system has a problem that an adsorbed matter is liable to be discharged when the temperature increases. Furthermore, in the processing system by an ion exchange material, the heat resistant temperature of the ion exchange material is up to about 100° C. and there is a problem that the ion exchange material cannot exhibit sufficient performance at a temperature higher than the heat resistant temperature.
On the other hand, as a method for applying removing processing to radioactive cesium generated by nuclear fission in a nuclear reactor, an adsorption method with an inorganic ion exchanger or a selective ion exchange resin, a coprecipitation method by using a heavy metal and a soluble ferrocyanide or ferrocyanide salt together, a chemical processing method with a cesium precipitation reagent, and so on are known (see, for example, Patent Literature 4).
However, in any of the above-described processing methods, large scale facilities such as a circulation pump, a cleaning tank, and furthermore a filling tank containing various adsorbents are necessary, and in addition, a large amount of energy is needed to operate these facilities. Moreover, when supply of the power source is suspended as in the accident occurred at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Japan on Mar. 11, 2011, these facilities cannot be operated and the degree of contamination risk by radioactive cesium in particular increases. Especially in the case where the supply of the power source is suspended, applying a method for removing radioactive cesium diffused into peripheral areas falls into an extremely difficult situation, and it is concerned that a situation in which radioactive contamination expands may occur. Accordingly, there is an urgent need to develop a method for removing radioactive cesium that is applicable even when the situation in which the supply of the power source is suspended occurs, and when such method for removing radioactive cesium is developed, the method is extremely useful.

Method for removing radioactive cesium, hydrophilic resin composition for removal of radioactive cesium, method for removing radioactive iodine and radioactive cesium, and hydrophilic resin composition for removal of radioactive iodine and radioactive cesium

Dainichiseika Color & Chemicals Mfg. Co., Ltd.


The torsional vibration damper acting between a drive and a housing of a hydrodynamic clutch arrangement includes a flywheel mass element, a drive-side damping element having a first side connected nonrotatably to the flywheel mass element, a takeoff-side damping element, the second side of the drive-side damping element being connected by elastic elements to the takeoff-side damping element for rotation in common, the elastic elements also allowing a small rotation of the drive-side damping element relative to the takeoff-side damping element, and an axially flexible drive plate. The takeoff-side damping element can be connected to the housing of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement nonrotatably but with a certain freedom of axial movement by means of the drive plate.

The invention pertains to a torsional vibration damper for a hydrodynamic clutch arrangement.
A torsional vibration damper is, for example, known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,478,127. The torsional vibration damper is installed axially between a flywheel mass element, which is attached to a drive such as the crankshaft of an internal combustion engine, and a housing of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement, which is realized as a torque converter. The torsional vibration damper is provided with a drive-side damping element, which is connected nonrotatably on one side to the flywheel mass element and connected for rotation in common on the other side by means of elastic elements to the takeoff-side damping element of the torsional vibration damper, the takeoff-side damping element being in functional connection by way of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement with a takeoff formed by a gearbox input shaft.
In the known torsional vibration damper, the drive-side damping element is fastened jointly with the flywheel mass element to the drive by means of fastening elements, namely, from the side of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement. Because the fastening elements are no longer accessible after the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement has been installed, it is necessary to provide a way to detach the drive-side damping element from the elastic elements remaining attached to the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement and from the takeoff-side damping element. Providing this separability, however, causes wear-related problems with the axial positioning of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement, because the free end of the drive-side damping element facing away from the drive and possibly the free end of a bearing journal provided in the radially inside area of the housing of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement act as axial support for the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement, and both axial supports are provided in positions of relative rotational movement of the components which enter into axial contact with each other. In addition, connecting the torsional vibration damper to the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement in this way permits no axial elasticity of the latter with respect to the drive, so that the axial vibrations which are generated by the drive and which induce wobbling movements in the flywheel mass element with respect to the axis of rotation of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement are transmitted with little if any damping to the housing of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement, where, as a result of the fluid filling of the latter, they are considered especially critical.
It is known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,965 that a drive can be connected by way of a drive plate which is flexible in the axial direction to a drive-side damping element of a torsional vibration damper and from this via elastic elements and a takeoff-side damping element to the housing of a hydrodynamic clutch arrangement. As a result of the flexible drive plate, referred to in brief below as a flexplate, axial vibrations of the drive can be effectively kept away from the housing of the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement. Because of its location effectively between the drive and the torsional vibration damper, however, this flexplate prevents the realization of a direct connection between the hydrodynamic clutch arrangement and the drive in the event that the torsional vibration damper is omitted. Thus, this solution is not very versatile with respect to applications in the automobile industry, where it is known that frequently changing requirements call for constant adaptation to specific demands.

Torsional vibration damper for a hydrodynamic clutch arrangement


A silicon oxide layer is formed on the wafer to act as a pad layer. A silicon nitride layer is then formed on the silicon oxide layer to have a thickness approximate 1500-2000 angstroms. At least one trench is then created in the wafer. Then, an ion implantation process is performed with at least one titled angle to dope ions into the surface of the trenches. A LPD-oxide is selectively deposited in the trench. Then, a polysilicon layer is formed on the LPD-oxide and on the surface of the silicon nitride layer. Next, the polysilicon layer is etched to generate polysilicon side-wall spacers. The LPD-oxide is etched using the polysilicon side-wall spacers and the silicon nitride layer as an etching mask. The polysilicon side-wall spacers are then removed. A first conductive layer is formed on the silicon nitride layer, and refilled into the first trenches. The first conductive layer is then etched to at least to expose the LPD-oxide. The LPD-oxide is removed. A dielectric layer is then conformally deposited along the surface of the first storage nodes. A second conductive layer is deposited on the dielectric layer and refilled into the trench.

In recent years. the development of semiconductor devices in which numerous elements are integrated on a chip. The development of a high density memory cell is being carried out. Particularly, a Dynamic Random Access Memories (DRAM) has been remarkably developed in terms of packing density. The DRAM is widely used in computer technology. Typically, the DRAM cells are applied to store data for a computer. These semiconductor memory devices have large capacitance for reading out and storing of information. Dynamic Random Access Memories are so named because their cells can retain information only temporarily, even with power continuously applied. The cells must therefore be read and refreshed at periodic intervals. An integrated circuit DRAM device typically has many memory cells. Indeed, a memory cell is provided for each bit stored by the DRAM device. Each memory cell typically consists of a storage capacitor and an access transistor. Either the source or drain of the access transistor is connected to one terminal of the capacitor. The other side of the transistor's channel and the transistor gate electrode are connected to external connection lines called a bit line and a word line, respectively. The other terminal of the capacitor is connected to a reference voltage. The formation of a DRAM memory cell includes the formation of a transistor, a capacitor and contacts to external circuits.
In order to achieve high density DRAM devices, the memory cells must be scaled down in size to the submicrometer range. This causes reduction in capacitor area, resulting in the reduction of cell capacitance. In this case, because the area of the charge storage capacitor is also decreased, the capacitance becomes relatively small. This decrease in storage capacitance leads to lower signal-to-noise ratios and increase errors due to alpha particle interference. Additionally, as the capacitance decreases, the charge held by storage capacitor must be refreshed often. A simple stacked planar capacitor generally cannot provide sufficient capacitance for good performance, even with high performance dielectric, such as Ta.sub.2 O.sub.5.
Prior art approaches to overcome these problems have resulted in the development of the trench capacitor. The process that made the trench capacitor is anisotropic etching of a silicon substrate. In the conventional trench capacitor cell the plate electrode of the storage capacitor is inside the trench, and the storage electrode is in the substrate. A dielectric film is formed over the surface of the electrode. The upper electrode of the capacitor is a polysilicon layer extending into the trench. Thus, the capacitor for the memory cell is formed.
One of the prior arts related to the trench capacitor can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,580. Further, other approach can also be seen, for example "Trench Storage Node Technology for Gigabit DRAM Generations, K. P. Muller at el, 1996 IEEE, IEDM 96-507". Please see "A 0.6 .mu.m.sup.2 256 Mb Trench DRAM Cell With Self-Aligned BuriEd STrap (BEST), L. Nesbit et al, 1993 IEEE, IEDM 93-627" and "SCALABILITY OF A TRENCH CAPACITOR CELL FOR 64 MBIT DRAM, B. W. Shen et al, 1989 IEEE, IEDM 89-27".
In addition, the silicon dioxide that is formed by using liquid phase deposition (LPD-oxide) exhibits good selective deposition and good flow characteristic. Thus, the LPD-oxide is an excellent trench-filling material. The basic reaction associated with the deposition of the LPD-oxide involves the action of the Si--OH. The dehydration reaction between the siloxane oligomers and Si--OH can be referenced to "A Selective SiO2 Film-Formation Technology Using Liquid-Phase Deposition for Fully Planarized Multilevel Interconnections, Tetsuya, Homma et al, J. Electrochem Soc., Vol. 140 No. 8, August 1993, The Electrochemical Society, Inc.". The chemical reactions for the LPD-oxide have been proposed by Nagayma as the following formulas: EQU H.sub.2 SiF.sub.6 +2H.sub.2 O=6HF+SiO.sub.2 .dwnarw. EQU H.sub.3 BO.sub.3 +4HF=BF.sub.4.sup.- +H.sub.3 O+2H.sub.2 O

Method for manufacturing a capacitor of a trench DRAM cell


Described is an interactive control device (1) for at least one service apparatus (2), comprising a control unit (3), a screen (4) operatively connected to the control unit (3) having touch selection means (5) for interacting with the user. The touch selection means (5) are configurable between an active condition wherein they receive the touch information of the user and an inactive condition wherein they do not receive the touch information of the user. More specifically, the interactive control device (1) comprises a presence and distance sensor (7) operatively connected to the control unit (3) and configured for generating a detection signal (8) representing the presence and the distance of a user relative to the sensor (7). The control unit (3) is configured for receiving the detection signal (8), for processing it and for generating a control signal of at least part of the service apparatus (2) as a function of the processing.

The term "service apparatuses" means the set of apparatuses present in a room designed to provide a service to the user of the room. In detail, the service apparatuses comprise the lighting system of the room, the heating/cooling system of the room, the movement of the window blind systems (for example, shutters), etc. . . . In other words, the control system is used to control the lights, the heating, etc. . . . of a room. Preferably, this invention is used for controlling the service apparatuses of a hotel room.
Advantageously, the interactive control device comprises a touchscreen which allows a user who enters a room to control, as required, the service apparatuses (for example, adjust the room temperature, switch ON the lights, etc. . . . ).
According to the prior art, the control device comprises a control unit connected to at least one service apparatus and a screen operatively connected to the control unit. As already mentioned, the screen comprises touch selection means for interacting with a user. In this way, the user can control the service apparatuses as required, using the screen.
Some examples of control devices are described in the prior documents US 2007/236360, US 2009/207122, US 2006/250745, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,396,443, 6,107,930. It should be noted that the touch selection means are defined by a capacitive layer of the screen and by a control unit operatively connected to the capacitive layer for translating the selection made on the capacitive layer into information relative to the position of the point selected by touch.
However, to save energy, the screen is configurable in the prior art between an active condition wherein it transmits the information collected from the touch selection to the control unit and an inactive condition wherein it interrupts the transmission of the information collected from the touch selection to the control unit. More specifically, according to the prior art, during the active condition the capacitive layer and the relative control unit are powered, whilst during the inactive condition the capacitive layer and the relative control unit are not powered. In this way, the capacitive layer and the relative control unit of the screen are only powered during the active configuration of the screen thus allowing an energy saving.
In this regard, the prior art device comprises means for enabling the screen operatively associated with the screen and which can be activated by a user for configuring the screen between the active configuration and the inactive configuration. This solution allows an energy saving as the capacitive layer and the relative control unit are only powered following activation of the screen by the user.
Normally, the enabling means comprise at least one mechanical key in such a way that, by pressing the key, the screen changes from the inactive configuration to the active configuration.
Practically, according to the prior art, the user must press the mechanical key to activate the screen and, then, interact with the control unit using the touchscreen system.
This prior art, however, is not free of drawbacks.
A first drawback is linked to the fact that, according to the prior art, the screen must be activated by a mechanical action. Consequently, the user must identify the touchscreen and activate it by pressing the mechanical key.
For this reason, to control the service apparatuses (switch ON the lights, activate the heating, etc. . . . ) it is necessary, as a first operation, to press the mechanical key.
A second drawback is linked to the fact that, having entered the room, the user is not always able to identify the screen at first sight. In effect, normally, the screen has the appearance of a dark colored panel which is difficult to identify.
Moreover, it should be noted that not all the rooms have this technology, but could have systems for controlling the lighting and the heating of the traditional type (push-button switches and thermostats). For this reason, when entering the room the user might not expect to find an interactive control device with a touchscreen. Consequently, having entered a hotel room, the user must place the luggage on the floor and search for the control device to press the key in such a way as to activate at least the lights.


A vapor control system includes a vapor receiver having an inlet through which vapor is received, an outlet through which vapor is discharged, and a control valve having a first inlet in communication with the outlet of the fuel receiver, a second inlet in communication with a pressure source and an outlet. The control valve also includes a valve having a closure moveable between a first position, preventing communication between the first inlet and the outlet, and a second position permitting communication between the first inlet and the outlet in response to a pressure signal over a threshold pressure provided from the pressure source through the second inlet. Movement of the closure to its second position permits routing of vapor from the vapor receiver, through the first inlet and out of the outlet of the control valve.

Increasingly strict environmental regulations are being promulgated by governmental agencies, including regulations restricting the emission to atmosphere of hazardous hydrocarbon fuel vapors. Such regulations are becoming increasingly common with respect to machines having small engines including both handheld and ground supported machines such as lawnmowers, leaf blowers, weed trimmers, power washers and the like.
To facilitate compliance with these regulations, various fuel vapor control systems and methodologies have been employed. For example, a carbon canister may be employed to receive fuel vapor from a fuel system, such as from a fuel tank, and to collect and hold the fuel vapor prior to it being purged to an intake manifold of the engine for combustion in the engine. During hot soak conditions, such as when a hot engine is shut off or a vehicle engine is exposed to hot ambient conditions for an extended period of time, fuel vapor generation may be sufficient to saturate or overload the fuel vapor canister. Once saturated or overloaded, the vapor canister is no longer effective. Passively purged vapor canisters may vent to the atmosphere excess fuel vapor which results in unacceptably high hydrocarbon fuel vapor emission to the atmosphere.


The invention consists of a method which comprises a plurality of steps for determining difference in distance from a reference point to at least two sensor modules 10, 20 that are located under water. The sensor modules 10, 20 comprise means for sending and receiving acoustic signals to each other and to a hydrophone 30 at the reference point. Connected to the hydrophone 30 is a calculating unit 40 that utilises arrival time of the received signals from the sensor modules to determine difference in distance from the sensor modules 10, 20 to the reference point.

Measurement of distances between sensor modules under water and a reference point, which, for example, is a vessel towing the sensor modules behind it, has been a well-known problem area which up to now has been solved by measuring the length of the line or wire between vessel and sensor modules. An alternative may be to send an acoustic signal from a reference point to a sensor module, and then measure the time it takes to receive a responding signal from the sensor module. This measuring alone will however make an uncertain measurement.
Accurate measurement of the line length has been found to be difficult in practice since the line may stretch, curve or twist. This is the case whether the length of line is measured manually as it leaves the vessel, or whether the number of rotations a winch has made in paying out and adjusting a certain length of line is measured. Furthermore, the last-mentioned is dependent on how the line is coiled, which may be different from one time to another. The problem is exacerbated when the distance between the sensor modules and the vessel becomes large, i.e., several hundred metres. A line or wire will then be able stretch quite considerably and become longer than when it is coiled up
Today there are different devices for measuring distances under water using a measuring principle comprising transmission and reception of sound waves. This comprises primarily the use of sonar or echo sounders.
The principle of these devices is to emit a sound wave and measure the time it takes before the same sound wave is reflected. To find the distance from, for example, a vessel to one or more sensor modules, the sonar principle can be used by emitting a sound wave from the vessel and receiving reflections or transmitted signals from sensor modules towed behind the vessel. The time the sound waves take to pass to or from the sensor modules will then be proportional to the distance between them and the vessel. The last-mentioned principle is also used to find the distance between two or more sensor modules under water.
WO-2010/090526 A1 describes a method for determining difference in distance from a reference point to at least two sensor modules where the reference point and the sensor modules are under water. The sensor modules comprises means for sending and receiving acoustic signals and the reference point comprises a hydrophone for receiving acoustic signals from the sensor modules. Said method describes the difference in distance and not the distance itself.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,214,617A shows an example of a standard technique and describes a system and a method for determining the distance between individual hydro acoustic transceivers placed on objects under water. The system uses synchronization of clocks in sensor modules comprised in the system.
It is desirable with a more accurate distance determination where several measured parameters are coordinated for determining distance.
Calculation of distance from one point to another can be performed in two ways. The first is to measure travel time of a signal by using clocks suck that the receiver of the sent signal knows when it was sent. It is the only necessary to send the signal only one way, e.g. from a sensor module to a reference point having a hydrophone for picking up the signals.
The other known method is to send a signal from one sensor to another and measure the time before the signal is returned.
By sending signals from two or more sensor modules with a known time difference, the signals that are received by a hydrophone will indicate difference in distance between the sensor modules. This may be useful information per se if, for example, it is desirable that two or more sensor modules at all times should have a constant difference in distance or the same distance to, for example, a vessel towing them behind it.
A well-known problem when using sound waves under water is furthermore that the sound propagation velocity is dependent on a number of factors such as water temperature, salt content, pressure, etc. These will vary according to location, season, current conditions etc. It is the water temperature that has the greatest impact for the measuring result.
Several suppliers of sensor modules for use under water use a fixed velocity of 1500 m/s for propagation of sound waves, or the velocity of sound in water "is set" manually by look up relevant values for the sound velocity in water at a given temperature.
Water temperature in the vertical direction changes with depth. Warm water rises and cold water sinks down. In addition, the sun will warm the surface water.
The water temperature in the horizontal direction may also vary depending on distances and where measurements are made. For example, water close to the shore will have a higher temperature than water that is further from the shore.
There are some devices which have a temperature sensor incorporated for measuring the temperature locally in the water where the device is located. The disadvantage of such systems is that a water temperature measured locally at the location of, for example, an echo sounder may be very different from the water temperature along the whole propagation path of the sound wave. This will be the case, in particular, across large distances. The sound velocity that is then used in calculations of distances under water will be incorrect and result in large deviations in calculated distance in relation to the real distance.
The present invention solves the last-mentioned problem by measuring temperatures at at least one or more points along the path the sound will propagate so as to collate them for a more accurate calculation of distances under water. This is done by transferring real measured temperature or calculated sound velocity from measured temperature to a unit connected to a hydrophone at the reference point for calculating distance under water. Greater accuracies will thus be obtained by a measurement of this kind.
Combining received signals regarding time of arrival and time of flight the emission of sound waves from at least two sensor modules and simultaneously adjusting the sound velocity in relation to measured water temperature will allow difference in distance to the sensor modules to be found with greater accuracy. This may, for example, be used for precise adjustment and positioning of a trawl.

Method for determining distance between underwater acoustic devices


A belt and buckle arrangement which includes a buckle unit having a frame and tongue unit and a mounting strip fastened to one end of the frame and tongue unit, a belt detachably connected to a coupling portion at one end of the mounting strip, a connecting device adapted to connect the belt to the mounting strip, the connecting device including a mounting frame fixedly fastened to the coupling portion of the mounting strip, and a locking lever pivoted to the mounting frame and adapted to hold down a lead end of the belt on the mounting frame, and a belt keeper detachably connected to the mounting frame and adapted to hold a tail end of the belt in place.

The present invention relates to a belt and buckle arrangement, and more particularly to such a belt and buckle arrangement which permits the belt to be replaceably and adjustably connected to the buckle and, which has a detachable keeper for holding the free end of the belt.
A belt is an important accessory of a suit. It is used not only as fastening means for securing pants/skirt to the waist, but also as decorative means for decorating the dress. In order to match with different dress, different belts may be used. Further, if one's waistline is changed, the belt may have to be made with additional punch holes. FIG. 1 shows a belt and buckle arrangement according to the prior art, in which the buckle comprises a frame and a tongue pivoted to the frame; the belt has a head end stitched into a loop coupled to the frame, and a loop fixedly secured thereto for holding its free end. The loop may be decorated with a logo, mark, or any special design. When the buckle and the belt are fastened together, the buckle cannot be detached from the belt for a replacement, i.e., the user cannot change the design of the belt or the buckle to fit one's dress. Further, because the loop is fixedly secured to the belt, it cannot be removed from the belt for a replacement, i.e., the user is not allowed to change the design of the loop.


A device for non destructive evaluation of defects in a metallic object (2) by eddy currents, comprises a field emitter (3) for emitting an alternating electromagnetic field at a first frequency fi in the neighborhood of the metallic object (2), and a magnetoresistive sensor (1) for detecting a response signal constituted by a return electromagnetic field which is re-emitted by eddy currents induced by the alternating electromagnetic field in the metallic object (2). The device further comprises: a driving circuit (230) for driving the magnetoresistive sensor (1) by a current at a second frequency fc which is different from the first frequency fi, so that the magnetoresistive sensor (1) acts as an in situ modulator; a detector for detecting a response signal between the terminals of the magnetoresistive sensor (1); a filter for filtering the response signal detected by the magnetoresistive sensor (1) to keep either the frequency sum (fi+fc) of the first and second frequencies or the frequency difference (fi−fc) of the first and second frequencies, and a processor for processing the filtered response signal and extract eddy current information on defects in the metallic object (2).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and a device for non destructive evaluation of defects in a metallic object by eddy currents.
The invention more specifically relates to a method for non destructive evaluation of defects in a metallic object by eddy currents, the method comprising the steps of emitting at least one alternating electromagnetic field at at least one first frequency fi in the neighbourhood of the metallic object and detecting through at least one magnetoresistive sensor a response signal constituted by a return electromagnetic field which is re-emitted by eddy currents induced by the alternating electromagnetic field in said metallic object.
2. Description of the Related Art
The technique of detection of defects in metallic objects by observation of the deformation of eddy currents lines has been well known and widely used for a long time.
The principle is to use an electromagnetic field emitter in the neighbourhood of the metallic object for creating eddy currents in this object. These eddy currents retransmit a radiofrequency field which can be detected by a receiver. In case of a presence of a defect, the current lines are perturbed and the electromagnetic field which is reemitted is modified in its amplitude and its phase distribution but its frequency remains unchanged.
Classical approaches use inductive coils as emitter of a radiofrequency field and as receiver of the re-emitted radiofrequency field.
More recently, the use of other kinds of sensors, like magneto-resistive sensors, has been proposed for the receiver part. Magneto-resistive elements (MREs) based on the so called "giant magnetoresistive effect" (GMR effect) have been demonstrated, for example in spin valves consisting of two adjacent magnetic layers, whose resistance R varies as a function of the applied magnetic field. In these GMR devices, variations of resistance ΔRmax have been observed with ΔRmax/R-values as large as 15%.
Some patents and publications show magneto-resistive sensors applied for eddy current (EC) testing.
For instance, in the document US2005/0140355 A1, a specific embodiment of the excitation coil on a printed circuit board (PCB) is used and a magnetoresistive (MR) sensor is located on the opposite side of the PCB to detect the magnetic field related to the eddy currents modified by a defect.
In the document US2005/0062470 A1, an eddy current probe having a non planar form allows the displacement of the probe in a close proximity to the object's surface avoiding an adsorption phenomenon due to static friction.
In these documents, the designs of the excitation loop and the sensor are addressed to improve the detection.
In the document U.S. Pat. No. 6,693,425 B2, the excitation current in the coil varies to obtain a varying field penetrating in the component under test. This invention allows scanning defects of varying depths.
In all these cases, even if the sensitivity is increased, the sensor which might be either a coil or a magnetoresistive element, detects the signal of the eddy current at a frequency equal to the excitation coil's frequency, and is therefore limited in term of signal-to-noise ratio.

Method and device for non destructive evaluation of defects in a metallic object

Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives


Method and system for displaying a medical image. For example, a computer-implemented method for displaying a medical image includes acquiring an original image of a target; obtaining a lesion region in the original image; selecting a region of interest in the original image based on at least the lesion region, the region of interest including the lesion region; obtaining a plurality of planar images of the region of interest from the original image of the target based on at least a predetermined setting; generating an animated display by grouping the plurality of planar images based on at least a predetermined order; and displaying the animated display related to the region of interest including the lesion region.

Certain embodiments of the present invention are directed to image processing. More particularly, some embodiments of the invention provide systems and methods for displaying a medical image. Merely by way of example, some embodiments of the invention have been applied to diagnosing a lesion in a medical image. But it would be recognized that the invention has a much broader range of applicability.
A medical imaging device refers to various instruments that use various media as an information carrier to reproduce a structure inside a human body as an image. Computerized tomography (CT) is a device that uses a precisely collimated X-ray beam, gamma ray, ultrasound, etc., together with a highly sensitive detector to scan a section of the human body one after another, and to generate a medical image. In order to obtain an image of a specific part of the patient, the patient can be scanned by a CT scanner to generate scan data. A sequence of images is generated from the scanned data. The sequence of images includes a plurality of slice images, each of which represents a cross-sectional image of the patient. A three-dimensional image of the patient is then generated from the sequence of images. The cross-sectional image can also be reconstructed by computer software to obtain a multi-planar cross-sectional image required for diagnosis, such as a coronal, sagittal, oblique, curved surface, etc. A doctor may then determine a lesion region (or area) of the patient by observing the sequence of images and/or the three-dimensional image.
Current conventional techniques, when radiologists detect and locate certain lesions, such as the detection and positioning of pulmonary nodules and rib fractures, it is common to observe tens to hundreds of layers of the patient's sequence of images. A doctor may manually scroll through the suspected lesion areas (or regions) in the tens to hundreds of layers of the sequence of images, and repeatedly observing and obtaining enough relevant contextual information to finally determine the diagnosis of the lesion. Such repeated scrolling of the images attributes to increased workload of the doctor. Thus, methods and systems for displaying a medical image that are more efficient are desired to reduce the workload and diagnosis time of a doctor.

Systems and methods for displaying a medical image

Shanghai United Imaging Intelligence Co., Ltd.


A hand tool is provided with a flexible arm containing a flexible gripping strap. The strap forms an adjustable closed loop positioned at one end, and extends through the arm at the other end. The loop is used for securing to a nut, bolt, or similar part that is positioned in a difficult to reach place. The flexible arm may be bent and formed to hold a specific shape, thus allowing it to fit into areas where most common hand tools cannot. Tension on the loop is increased by pulling the rubber strap. A lock secures the strap to retain the tension.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to hand tools and, more particularly, to a multipurpose grasping part holder.
2. Description of the Related Art
A basic problem that occurs during installation and removal of small hardware parts (e.g., screws, washers, nuts, bolts, spacers, etc) is the accidental, or unintentional, dropping of the small hardware parts, which may become lost. The problem of dropping small parts appears to occur more frequently when small parts are installed by hand. If small parts are dropped within or in close proximity to elements of flight hardware, the small parts may not be recoverable, thereby increasing the probability of damage to the flight hardware during processing or flight.
Anyone who has ever used a wrench can understand the frustration of trying to loosen and remove a bolt or nut that is in a difficult to reach location, particularly if it is an enclosed and out of sight location. These are locations such as behind on a starter, alternator, stereos, heater core, heater ducts, power supplies, refrigerator units and shocks.
Sometimes even using a long lever arm to turn the wrench is not enough. Very often the bolt or nut is located in a location where attempting to start or loosen it makes the task more difficult, even with other types of gripping tools.
Other conventional techniques for holding objects to an existing fastening member, such as a screw joint, exists. Temporary attachment via adhesive or tape is known, as is to clamp the holder between a screw head or, alternatively, between a nut and a fastening surface. Such a holder can be constructed as an angularly bent sheet-metal bracket which is provided with a hole, through which the screw extends. The screw member may, for example, form part of a vehicle beam construction for the purpose of keeping structural members together. In this regard, the holder must be mounted at the same time as the preparation of the screw joint, wherein there is a risk of the holder changing position to an incorrect position during tightening, due to the friction between the holder and parts in the screw joint. Furthermore, the holder is exposed to the same tightening forces as the screw joint itself, which demands a great deal of the physical properties of the holder material.
In all these cases there is a need to gasp a required part in an adjustable fashion, followed by being able to bend, twist or capable of flexing into a specific shape, thus allowing it to fit into areas where most common hand tools cannot.
The object of the present invention is to eliminate the above-mentioned problems and to provide a holder which is easy to mount and later exchange and which can be adjusted and kept in a fixed position.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention; however, the following references were considered related.
Consequently, a need has been felt for providing an apparatus and method of gasping a required part in an adjustable fashion and being able to bend, twist or capable of flexing into a specific shape, thus allowing it to fit into areas where most common hand tools cannot.


A running motor (100) used for vehicles is provided with a stator (200), a rotor (300) and a housing (400) for holding them, wherein the rotor has a support member (330) for preventing rotor magnets (320) from separating from a laminated steel sheet (310), the laminated steel sheet has a plurality of first steel sheets (311) each formed slots (311a) through which the rotor magnets are inserted respectively and a second steel sheet (312) to which the insertion ends of the rotor magnets are pressed, and the plurality of first steel sheets and the second steel sheet are configured to have mutually the same contour. The housing includes a control (500) for supplying a coil (210) of the motor with power and a sensor (600) for detecting a position of the rotor. Further, the housing includes a first housing member (410) for covering the stator and the rotor, a second housing member (420) for dividing the interior of the housing, and a third housing member (430) for covering the control. A bearing (401) for the rotor is fitted to the first housing member and the second housing member, respectively.

As the running motors used for vehicles such as electric vehicles and electric scooters, a DC motor, a DC brushless motor and the like are used extensively. Generally, such a type of motor is configured by assembling a stator, a rotor and a housing for holding them, and the housing has therein a control for supplying the coil of the motor with power and a sensor for detecting a position of the rotor.
It should be noted that the motors can now be available with higher revolutions and higher torque with advancement of a control technology and enhancement of the performance of permanent magnets. As a result, a delicate structure of individual parts of a motor, such as the coaxiality of the stator and the rotor and the heat radiation property of the control, has become more significant in order to secure its performance satisfactorily.
In recent years, importance is now attached to spreading of electric vehicles, electric scooters and the like as a series of environmental measure, and the running motor is also required to be superior in productivity, of higher performance and inexpensiveness.
The present invention has been made under the above-described circumstances and has an object to provide a rationally configured motor.


Disclosed herein are systems, methods and a computer readable storage medium that determine an individual's movement during sleep. In some embodiments, the identification is based on data from a motion sensor included in wearable device. In some embodiments, the individual wears the wearable device on his wrist during the individual's resting and/or sleep activities. In some embodiments, the system, methods and the computer readable storage medium automatically identify the various (stages) types of sleep during an individual's sleep periods that include periods of REM sleep, deep sleep, and light sleep and that are indicative of the individual's overall well-being and health.

The present disclosure generally relates to identifying nocturnal movements and sleep stages of a user who is wearing a device during sleep. Current wearable devices provide minimal information about a user's sleep. However, since an individual's sleep pattern directly correlates with his overall well-being and health, it would be useful to obtain additional sleep information and data. This includes, for example, the amount of an individual's rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, light sleep, and deep sleep. Additional sleep information includes an individual's movements and activities during sleep, the individual's turning and twisting or periodic movement of his limb as it relates to a person's periodic limb movement disorder.

Identifying and characterizing nocturnal motion and stages of sleep


A method and apparatus for reducing the difficulty of controlling the length of a section of optical waveguide wrapped around a mandrel separating Bragg gratings forming an interferometric sensor are provided. The section of optical waveguide may be wrapped on a mandrel having at least two different outer diameters. The mandrel may also include one or more bores for receiving and protecting the Bragg gratings.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate to optical waveguide interferometric-based hydrophones and, more specifically, to mandrels used in such hydrophones.
2. Description of the Related Art
A Bragg grating is an optical element that is reflective to light having wavelengths within a narrow bandwidth that is centered at a wavelength that is referred to as the Bragg wavelength. Bragg gratings are usually formed by photo-induced periodic modulation of the refractive index of an optical waveguide's core. A pair of Bragg gratings having a common Bragg wavelength and separated by a length of waveguide (e.g. a coiled fiber or coil) can form an interferometer that may be interrogated by sending light of the same Bragg wavelength through the interferometer. Reflections of light from the (partially-transmissive) Bragg gratings are sent back to optical detection equipment through the waveguide. By assessing the phase shift in light coincidently reflected from the two Bragg ratings, the length of the coil can be determined, as is well known.
Optical waveguide interferometers can be deployed in various ways to make the length of the coil (and hence, the phase shifts between coincidentally reflected pulses) dependent on physical parameters. For example, Bragg grating interferometers can be deployed in a number of different ways to make acoustic sensors. Reference, "A Fiber Laser Hydrophone Array," by D. J. Hill, et al., SPIE Vol. 3860. An optical waveguide hydrophone is typically made by winding a section of an optical waveguide (e.g., an optical fiber) separating a pair of Bragg gratings around a compliant cylindrical mandrel. When acoustic pressure impinges on the mandrel, the mandrel deforms slightly, changing the length of the waveguide separating the Bragg gratings. When forming such an acoustic sensor it is beneficial to tightly wind the optical waveguide (optical fiber) around the compliant cylindrical mandrel, which makes the fiber to follow the response of the mandrel that is designed to respond to acoustic pressure wave. The sensitivity of the sensor is proportional to the number of turns (or wraps), as described below.
One issue with mandrel-based optical waveguide, Bragg grating acoustic sensors is that the Bragg gratings themselves should be protected. Strain on the Bragg gratings can cause an excessive shift in the center frequency of the Bragg wavelength such that the Bragg gratings are no longer highly reflective at the correct wavelength. One way to isolate the Bragg gratings from excessive strain is to locate them within the mandrel itself. This can be accomplished by forming bores through the mandrel, locating a Bragg grating in one bore, wrapping the optical waveguide around the mandrel, and then bringing the optical waveguide through another bore such that the other Bragg grating is located in that bore. By placing the Bragg grating loosely inside the bore will isolate the grating from excessive strain and protect it from physical damages.
The length L of an optical waveguide wrapped on a cylindrical mandrel is about:L≈N·π·dwhere N is the number of turns and d is the outer diameter of the mandrel. In order to have optimum interferometer performances in a system utilizing multiple acoustic sensors (e.g., an array), the length between the two gratings should be nearly identical between devices. However, manufacturing tolerances may lead to significant variations in length between the gratings. For example, when a mandrel is turned on a CNC machine, its outside diameter can vary by about +/−0.001 inch. If the optical waveguide is wrapped around the mandrel 70 times, the wrapped length can vary by as much as 0.14 inch. Furthermore, the process used to produce the Bragg gratings can locate the gratings only within a tolerance of about +/−0.1 inch. Thus, it is difficult to tightly wrap an optical waveguide around a cylindrical mandrel while positioning the Bragg gratings inside the mandrel (which may require a precision of +/−0.040 inch to do).
Therefore, a mandrel that reduces the difficulty of accurately controlling the length of an optical waveguide wrapped around the mandrel and allowing Bragg gratings separated by the length of optical waveguide to be accurately positioned would be useful.

Hydrophone mandrel for precise placement of gratings


A body fluid testing apparatus, comprising a containing chamber having a first opening on the bottom wall thereof; a plunger chamber having a plunger contacting with the side wall thereof and having a second opening on the bottom wall thereof, wherein the plunger chamber is disposed below the bottom wall of the containing chamber and in communication with the containing chamber through the first opening; and a testing chamber having a testing card designed to contain test strips and perpendicular to the longitudinal axial of the plunger chamber, wherein the testing chamber is disposed next to the side wall of the containing chamber and in communication with the plunger chamber through the second opening. The device according to the present disclosure can carry out the test of the body fluid, even though it has no chamber on the plunger body.

Many metabolites in the body can be detected by testing body fluids, such as urine, which has become an important test in the physical examination. For example, the particular drugs taken by the drug addicts usually can be detected in their urine. Thus, urine collection containers for testing drugs are required by many medical institutions and police stations.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,576,193 discloses a urine collection container that comprises: a first compartment for receiving a fluid specimen to be tested; a rotatable valve having one or more wells formed on its surface; and a second compartment. Said wells are in fluid connection with the first compartment when the valve is at a first valve position and in fluid connection with the second compartment when the valve is at a second valve position. In order to achieve the technical solution thereof, this device should provide multiple wells formed on the surface of the valve.
U.S. Pat. App. No. 20030027359 discloses a specimen collection device that includes a reservoir chamber; a testing chamber; and a plunger chamber for separating the reservoir chamber and testing chamber. The valve plunger is capable of transferring at least a portion of the specimen from the reservoir chamber to the testing reservoir, and the reservoir chamber and the testing reservoir are not in direct fluid communication. When the valve plunger is at a first position, the plunger chamber is fluidly connected to the reservoir chamber and not connected to the testing chamber. When the valve plunger is at a second position, the plunger chamber is neither fluidly connected to the reservoir chamber nor to the testing chamber. In order to achieve the technical solution thereof, this device should provide a chamber capable of collecting fluid specimens inside the plunger.
CN Pat. No. 200820001694.0 discloses a device for collecting and testing fluid specimens that includes a collecting cup; a testing means with testing cards; a specimen holder with the collecting cup and the testing mean fixed thereon; and a cup cover. A collecting chamber is located at the lower part of the collecting cup, which has an opening on one end and has a collecting plug disposed therein with unitary structure. The collecting plug has at least one ring groove and at least one sealing ring. In order to achieve the technical solution thereof, this device also should provide a reservoir chamber inside the plunger.

W.H.P.M. BIORESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY CO. LTD.


A rocker arm assembly operable in an engine drive mode and at least one of a late intake valve closing (LIVC) mode and an internal exhaust gas recirculation (iEGR) mode, the rocker arm assembly selectively opening first and second engine valves. The rocker arm assembly includes a rocker arm configured to rotate about a rocker shaft, and a reverse reset capsule assembly movable between (i) a locked position configured to perform one of an LIVC operation and an iEGR operation, and (ii) an unlocked position that does not perform the LIVC operation or the iEGR operation. An actuator assembly is configured to selectively move the reverse reset capsule assembly between the locked and unlocked positions.

Combustion cycles on four-stroke internal combustion engines can be modified to achieve various desired results such as improved fuel economy. In one method, the expansion stroke is increased relative to the compression stroke. The effect is sometimes referred to as a Miller Cycle or as an Atkinson Cycle. The Miller and Atkinson Cycles can be achieved by either closing the intake valve earlier than a normal or Otto Cycle ("Base") with a shorter than normal intake valve lift duration ("EIVC"), or by closing the intake valve later by a longer than normal intake valve lift profile ("LIVC").
Various systems have been developed for altering the valve-lift characteristics for internal combustion engines. Such systems, commonly known as variable valve timing (VVT) or variable valve actuation (VVA), improve fuel economy, reduce emissions, and improve drive comfort over a range of speeds.
The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.

Castellation mechanism with reverse reset


A liquid crystal display device of the present invention includes a first substrate having a plurality of first electrodes formed thereon, a second substrate having at east one second electrode opposed to at least one of the plurality of first electrodes, an aligning film covering at least one of combinations, one combination of which being consisted of the surfaces of the first electrodes and at least one portion of a surface of the first substrate and the other combination of which being consisted of the surface of the second electrode and at least one portion of a surface of the second substrate, a sealing member for bonding the first and second substrates with a predetermined gap therebetween so that surfaces of the first and second substrates on which the first and second electrodes are formed respectively are opposed to each other, and a liquid crystal material sealed in a space area encircled by the first and second substrates disposed in an opposing fashion and the sealing member. The aligning film is formed of a polymer film having a surface energy value higher than 47 dyn/cm.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a liquid crystal display device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, liquid crystal display devices are widely used as display devices of a television set or other electrical and electronic appliances etc. These liquid crystal display devices are requested to have display characteristics in which a displayed picture is stable and reliability of operation is maintained highly over a long period of time. One of the factors to determine whether display characteristic is good or bad is resistivity .rho. of liquid crystal material. In a liquid crystal display device which uses a liquid crystal material having small resistivity .rho., a very small electric current flows between electrodes opposing to each other across a liquid crystal material layer, so that the liquid crystal material is considerably deteriorated, reliability of operation is very low and stability of displayed picture is poor.
Particularly, in a TFT liquid crystal display device in which a plurality of picture element electrodes corresponding to a plurality of picture elements are arranged on one of opposing surfaces of a pair of substrates opposing to each other across a liquid crystal layer in a matrix pattern, a TFT (thin film transistor) is connected to each of these picture element electrodes and a voltage for changing an optical transmission factor of each picture element is selectively supplied to each electrode by turning ON and OFF this TFT, the following disadvantages are unavoidable. That is, when a predetermined voltage as video image data is applied to one picture element electrode by turning the TFT ON to thereby accumulate charges, the accumulated charges leak out so that the potential of the picture element electrode is fluctuated, thus optical transmission factor of the fluctuated picture element corresponding to the picture element electrode being fluctuated. As a result, a flicker occurs in a picture displayed on the TFT liquid crystal display device and a stability of picture is poor.
In order to solve this problem, it is proposed that the conventional liquid crystal display device uses a liquid crystal material whose resistivity .rho. is large.
However, in order to obtain a liquid crystal material having large resistivity, impurities must be substantially prefectly removed from liquid crystal material by repeating a refine-process over and over, so that the liquid crystal material having large resistivity becomes very expensive. Accordingly, the conventional liquid crystal display device using the liquid crystal material having large resistivity is high in manufacturing cost. Further, impurities adhere to a cell container into which liquid crystal is sealed, and it is substantially impossible to remove such impurities. Consequently, even if the liquid crystal having large resistivity is sealed in the cell container, it is difficult to maintain the resistivity of the liquid crystal high.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display device which can substantially eliminate the aforenoted shortcomings and disadvantages encountered with the prior art. More specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display device in which display of high image quality can be stably performed even if a liquid crystal material having a relatively small resistivity .rho. is utilized, and reliability can be maintained over a long period of time.


A rocket engine propulsion system having improved engine performance is described herein. The rocket engine propulsion system includes an axial counterbalance to reduce or eliminate axial thrust exerted on components of a turbopump. The axial counterbalance can allow for a larger range of axial thrust forces while coupling this ability to a rotational speed (e.g., rotations per minute, or RPM) of a shaft. The axial counterbalance includes a rack and pinion system in which the rack can be teeth extending circumferentially around a shaft and the pinon can be teeth extending outwardly from a swing arm perpendicular to the shaft. The swing arm is rotatably attached to a bracket which is constrained by a static support. The swing arm can also include a weight on an end of the swing arm opposite the end of the swing arm including the pinion.

Propulsion systems are used in many, if not every, vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, rockets, and the like. Many vehicle propulsion systems use liquid propellants. In a rocket, for example, the liquid propellant is pumped into a combustion chamber via a turbopump driven by a gas turbine. The resulting exhaust is typically directed through a nozzle to produce thrust, which is the force that moves the vehicle through a medium, such as an airplane through the air or a rocket through air, space, or both.
The turbopump takes a low-pressure fluid and converts the low-pressure fluid to a high-pressure fluid that interacts with various axial components of the turbopump (e.g., turbines, impellers, etc.). The conversion of a low pressure to a high pressure generates a force on each of the axial components of the turbopump. A net force in either an impeller direction or a turbine direction is generated along the axis of the turbopump due to unequal forces exerted on the turbopump components. This net force results in axial thrust, such that a shaft and any components attached thereto translate along an axis.
Conventional turbopumps use a pressure-assisted design, which routes high-pressure fluid to a thrust piston to help reduce the axial thrust load. Other conventional turbopumps transfer or place the axial load to or on, respectively, the bearings, including hydrostatic thrust bearings.
Conventional systems for counteracting an axial force within a turbopump have limited capability or ranges of use, require consistent or constant maintenance, require reliable calculations or components, or the like.
The state of the art would benefit from an improved and more efficient turbopump.

Axial counterbalance for rotating components


A system and method are disclosed for producing a source of ions, and particularly, a focused ion beam. The system and method use a magneto-optical trap (MOT) to produce a population of neutral atoms. A laser is then utilized to ionize atoms and produce a population of ions. An extraction element is then used to transfer the ions so that they can be used in a wide array of applications.

For approximately 30 years, high resolution focused ion beams (FIBs) have proven useful for a variety of tasks such as microscopy, lithography, micromachining (ion milling and material deposition), and dopant implantation. Over the years, a number of ion sources have been developed for focused ion beam applications, including gas-phase, plasma, and liquid metals. Of all the sources developed to date, the liquid metal ion source (LMIS) has proven the most useful and is in the most widespread use today. The usefulness of the liquid metal ion source stems fundamentally from its very high brightness which allows the production of focused ion beams with spot sizes on the order of 10 nm while maintaining currents in the range of 1 pA to 10 pA. These characteristics give focused ion beams the necessary resolution and ion currents to perform a range of state of the art nanotechnology tasks.
Despite their widespread use, existing ion sources possess limitations that impede progress toward broader applications and higher resolution. Because of the need to wet a tungsten tip with a liquid metal, the number of different ionic species that can be implemented in a liquid metal ion source is somewhat limited. Ga is by far the predominant element used, though other species, including Ag, Al, Be, and Cs, have been demonstrated. The liquid metal ion source also suffers from an extremely large energy spread, more than several eV, which is generally considered attributable to space charge effects occurring in the very small emission area on the surface of the emitter. This energy broadening leads to chromatic aberration in the focusing optics that form the focused ion beam, thereby limiting the achievable resolution and forcing a trade off between beam current and resolution. Gas phase sources address some of these problems in that they can operate with light elements and have a narrower energy spread, on the order of 1 eV, but the current is significantly less, they do not work with heavy elements, and they are more complicated to operate. Plasma sources also overcome some of the problems of the liquid metal ion source, but their brightness is orders of magnitude less than the other two sources. A further practical issue relevant to liquid metal and gas phase sources is that the nanometer scale effective source size, required for the existing sources to have high brightness, translates into a very acute sensitivity to source positional stability, which becomes an issue in the construction of a focused ion beam system.
Accordingly, a need exists for an improved system and strategy for generating a source of ions, and particularly a focused ion beam that is suitable for a wide array of applications such as for example, site analyses, material deposition or implantation, ablation of materials, ion microscopy, secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), and ion diffraction.

United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Commerce, The National Institute of Standards and Technology


A force transducer is disclosed, which is arranged in such a way that, when a force is applied to the force transducer, two output signals from the force transducer are generated, which output signals are representative of the force components in a first plane and in a second plane perpendicular to the first plane, respectively, whereas force components in a third plane perpendicular to the first plane and the second plane do not affect the output signals from the force transducer. Furthermore, a measuring device is disclosed, comprising a handle comprising such a force transducer and a base unit, to which the handle is attached. Even further, a system for measuring muscle stiffness is disclosed, comprising a measuring unit and a processing unit, the measuring unit comprising such a measuring device.

In some applications, for instance when measuring the force applied to a human body part for obtaining a measure of the muscle stiffness, it is important to measure some direction components of a force relatively precisely, whereas other direction components of the force are not relevant.
Known force transducers, however, are not enable to distinguish sufficiently between the different direction components of the force applied, which means the force components in the irrelevant directions influence the measurements of the force components in the relevant directions. In other words, the irrelevant force components constitute noise signals, which disturb the measurement of the relevant force components.

Force transducer, a measuring device and a system for measuring muscle stiffness


A method for manufacturing an insulated duct segment includes the step of forming an inner duct that has an inner duct cross-sectional area and an inner duct length. An outer duct with an outer duct cross-sectional area and an outer duct length is also formed. The method further includes the step of placing the inner duct inside the outer duct such that an annular space is formed between the inner duct and the outer duct. Finally, fluidized insulating material is injected into the annular space.

HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) and climate control systems are used to control the humidity, temperature, pressure and air quality within a building. HVAC systems may include a number of components, including air filters, blowers, de-humidifiers, and heating and cooling elements. Ductwork is used to transfer air from the various components within the HVAC system. Over the years, ductwork has been constructed using a variety of methods and materials. In many cases, ductwork is fabricated from single-walled sheet metal formed into conduits having rectangular or circular cross-sections. In other applications, flexible, insulated ductwork is used to deliver air from central heating and cooling components. Insulated ductwork increases the overall efficiency of the HVAC system by limiting heat transfer between the treated air and the surrounding environment.
While generally effective, prior art ductwork suffers several deficiencies. The thermal insulation provided by the ductwork is often insufficient. Additionally, ductwork that exhibits an elevated measure of thermal resistance tends to be unwieldy, oversized, difficult to install and expensive. It is to this, and other deficiencies in the prior art, that the present invention is directed.

Thermally insulated ductwork and method of manufacture


An electronic device includes a base, a display, and a user-actable ejection mechanism. The base defines a recessed portion. The display is received in the recessed portion, and is pivotably connected to sidewalls of the recessed portion. The user-actuatable ejection mechanism is positioned in the base, and drives the display to rotate up relative to the base when actuated by a user.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to electronic devices, and particularly to an electronic device with an ejection mechanism for ejecting a display of the electronic device up to an inclined position.
2. Description of Related Art
Many electronic devices such as tablet computers do not come equipped with their own means to support the electronic device at different inclined angles. If a user wants to place the electronic device at a desired inclined angle, it is necessary to use an external mechanism or means. However, it is inconvenient for the user to always carry the external mechanism or means.
Therefore, what is needed is an electronic device with means to overcome the described limitations.

Electronic device with ejection mechanism

Fu Tai Hua Industry (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.


Techniques are provided to allow remote initialization of a Trusted Platform Module. The results may be trusted and confidential even if the target device has malicious operating system or other software running.

Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs) are hardware microcontrollers that store cryptographic keys, passwords, and digital certificates. TPMs also provide capabilities that allow authentication of devices, such as desktop computers, laptops, or cellular telephones. Once initialized, TPMs may be used to generate digital signing and encryption keys, allowing confirmation that messages are from the device that the message claims to be from. TPMs support commands including, for example, Init to initialize a TPM, TakeOwnership to set the owner value, and CreateEndorsementKeyPair to internally generate a key pair.
TPMs are often used in enterprise environments to allow systems to verify the source of information. TPMs must be securely and confidentially initialized before the keys and services provided by the device can be trusted.

Trusted and confidential remote TPM initialization


A recycling bin has a left and right sidewall, a base, and front wall; the front wall is lower than the other three walls, and when two bins are stacked in a 0° stacking configuration, the lower front wall of the lower bin and a sloped surface on the lower portion of the upper bin create a recyclable receiving chute that accepts recyclable materials freely. When in the stacked configuration, the upper bin is substantially securely held to the lower bin by a combination of a channel on the lower rear portion of the base that fits over a handle that rests upon on upper portion of the rear wall. Furthermore, a lower lip on the lower portion of the rear wall aligns with the handle and substantially prevents front-wards and backwards motion of the upper bin.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to plastic bins. More particularly, the invention relates to a home or residential recycling system and method for its use.
2. Background Art
With the increased concern and awareness for the environment throughout the world, recycling has become an accepted part of modern society. Many different common everyday items that can be recycled include: glass; metals; plastics; paper; and various other products. For example, in various localities within the United States, people are accustomed to recycling plastic, metals and glass certain days of the week with their garbage collection, and on other days, paper materials can be collected for recycling. These recycled products are then commonly bundled and sold to manufacturers or fabricators of various components that utilize these materials or sold in bulk for reuse in producing new items.
Accordingly, recycling bins are common in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. D515,313 relates to a stackable front entry storage tote. U.S. Pat. No. 5,881,901 (hereinafter the '901 patent), relates to a receptacle designed to hold recycled plastic bags as inner-liners. The refuse receptacle of the '901 patent is designed to hold in place a recycled plastic bag as an inner-liner via a molded plastic container that is specially dimensioned to securely fit a recycled plastic bag, and especially designed with side handles that have recessed ends which, when the handles of recycled plastic bag are hooked underneath, are meant to securely hold the recycled plastic bag in place as an inner-liner for the receptacle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,397 (hereinafter the '397 patent), relates to a stackable refuse container system that includes multiple stacks of containers, each of which may be designated for holding a particular recyclable material. The containers can be vertically stacked and a cart can be provided for transporting the stack assembly to and from a curb. Each container may include removable lid, the front portion of the lid being usably attached to provide access to the container and a second portion formed to engage and support a bottom of a complimentary container. Each container also has sockets for receiving the feet of another container when a lid is not used. Thus, containers can be stacked one upon another, with the lids on or off, and mounted on the cart if one is used. The containers can be provided for separating recyclable from non-recyclable materials at the point of origin without taking up substantial space.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,071,008 (hereinafter the '008 patent), relates to a nestable and stackable container capable of being stacked on or nested with a like container. The container includes a bottom, with a front wall, a rear wall and two side walls extending upwardly from the bottom to an upper rim, thereby forming the container with an open top. The side walls taper away from each other as they extend upwardly from the bottom to the rim, and are each provided with outer depressions forming inner projections. The top of each of the inner projections is formed as a ledge that includes an upper step and a lower step. A rib extends upwardly from each lower step. Sockets are formed in the bottom and the socket of the like container is lineable with and receives the ribs of the container so that the containers may be stacked. The outer depressions are spaced from each other to form inner depressions and outer projections in each side wall. The rim has a first sloping surface extending from the front wall along each side wall and a second sloping surface extending from the rear wall to the first sloping surface. The container may then be nested within the like container by positioning the container on the bottom or the like container on the sloping surface, and sliding the outer projections of the like container into the inner depression of the container while at the same time sliding the outer depressions of the like container over the inner projections of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,749 (hereinafter the '749 patent), relates to a nestable and stackable container for eggs packaged in cartons. The configuration of the container permits stacking when filled, nesting when empty, and is provided with main receiving and positioning packaging strapping material above the exterior of the container to facilitate assembly of multiple containers for prioritizing and shipping.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,252 (hereinafter the '252 patent), relates to a set of sorting, stacking bins that include a plurality of tapered containers, each having a upstanding, inclined walls, and an integral horizontal bottom, and wherein the container is shippable in nested conditions to reduce costs. Each container has a horizontally enlarged base with depending peripheral flanges that fit over the rim of the next lower container. Bases are shifted separately flat-wise against each other to reduce costs. Upon delivery, each container is snap-fitted on a large base to form an integral, permanent unit. Units are vertically stackable, one on the other, each having a large top opening for receiving a particular type of waste. U.S. Pat. No. 3,534,866 (hereinafter the '866 patent), relates to a stacking and nesting bin box of a generally rectangular configuration, including a flat bottom wall, an upstanding side and end walls, the front end wall being cut away at its upper center to provide a bin opening, and the side walls being convoluted inwardly at a point near to the rear end wall, which will provide a pair of stacking posts for stackably supporting a superimposed identical container.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,347,394 (hereinafter the '394 patent), relates to stacked storage bins, for small parts or articles. The bins are adapted to be stacked one upon the other, such that the bins results in a secure stacking and inter-locking of the bins. The stacking and/or interlocking of bins permits allegedly easier handling of the articles particularly in extracting them from a bin. U.S. Pat. No. 3,113,680 (hereinafter the '680 patent), relates to stacking and nesting containers which are adapted for stacking one upon the other when in use, and which can be nested one in the other when not in use. EP Patent No. 1760011 (hereinafter the '011 patent), relates to a container particularly for sorted waste collection, comprising a container body, which forms internally at least one collection receptacle provided with at least one access opening located in the upper part of the container body. The container has means for closing the access opening, which can move with respect to the container body in order to pass from a closed condition to an open condition of the access opening and vice-a-versa, the closure means comprising at least one first closure element and at least one second closure element, which is supported by the container body and designed to close respective portion of the access opening. The first closure element pivots with respect to the container body and the second closure element is pivots with respect to the first closure element.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,367 (hereinafter the '367 patent), relates to a waste basket and inner-liner retainer, which is adapted to receive an inner-liner that includes a container having an upper rim defining an open end, and a lid pivotally mounted on the container and adapted to cover the open end. A bezel is provided for retaining an inner-liner in the container. The bezel is pivotally mounted on the container at its open, and is pivotable between first position, when the bezel is disposed substantially co-planarly with the upper rim of the container, and the second position, where the bezel is raised at an angle above the rim of the container. The waste basket also includes structure from pivotally mounting the bezel to the container for retaining the bezel in the raised second position. U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,063 relates to a refuse receptacle, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,825,150 (hereinafter the '150 patent), relates to a waste receptacle having liner bag holders. The receptacle of the '150 patent illustrates a receptacle having integral resilient tabs formed on the side walls and adapted to be sprung inwardly by pressing on the exterior surface for engaging under and pinching the periphery of the liner bag between the tabs and the adjacent receptacle wall.
Thus, all of the cited prior art references have deficiencies that make known recycling bins substantially more difficult to use. Therefore, a need exists for an improved home or residential recycling bin to overcome the problems of the prior art.


Provided is a control information transmission/reception method and apparatus for providing a packet data service in an OFDM based mobile communication system. The method includes transmitting a first maximum number of control channel blocks transmissible by using a first modulation scheme and a second maximum number of control channel blocks transmissible by using a second modulation scheme, the first modulation scheme having a lower modulation order from among modulation orders of multiple modulation schemes usable for control information within a frame, the second modulation scheme having a modulation order higher than the modulation order of the first modulation scheme within the frame; and transmitting first control channel blocks determined based on the first maximum number through the first modulation scheme within the frame and transmitting second control channel blocks determined based on the second maximum number through the second modulation scheme within the frame.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for providing a packet data service in a mobile communication system, and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for transmitting/receiving control information for packet data in a mobile communication system using an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) scheme.
2. Description of the Related Art
Active research is being conducted for recent mobile communication systems, in order to use an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) scheme in high speed data transmission through wire/wireless channels.
The OFDM scheme, which transmits data using multiple carriers, is a special type of a Multiple Carrier Modulation (MCM) scheme in which a serial symbol sequence is converted into parallel symbol sequences and the parallel symbol sequences are modulated with a plurality of mutually orthogonal sub-carriers before being transmitted. That is, in a transmission according to the OFDM scheme in an OFDM system, signals of users are identified by allocating different sub-carriers to physical channels allocated to the users. In general, system resources of an OFDMA system include two dimensional resources including frequency domain resource and time domain resources. That is, when a minimum unit for transmission of packet data through one physical channel on the time axis is called a Transmission Time Interval (TTI), which is also called a frame or a packet transmission interval, the TTI usually includes a plurality of OFDM symbols, each of which includes a plurality of sub-carriers on a frequency axis. Therefore, resources defined in one TTI have a form of two-dimensional resources including a plurality of OFDM symbols on the time axis and a plurality of sub-carriers on the frequency axis.
In the two-dimensional resources, one minimum resource unit, that is, one sub-carrier in one OFDM symbol, is usually called a Time-Frequency bin (TF bin), which servers as a unit for transmission of one modulated symbol in packet data transmission through an actual physical channel.
In a typical OFDM system, a physical channel for packet data transmission is called a packet data channel, and a physical channel for transmission of control information necessary for demodulation of the packet data channel is called a packet data control channel (hereinafter, "control channel"). Usually, packet data and control information are transmitted through the packet data channel and the packet data control channel.
In the OFDM system, a Forward Data CHannel (F-DCH) may be used for transmission of the packet data, and a Forward Shared Control CHannel (F-SCCH) may be used for transmission of the control information.
Packet data control information (hereinafter, "control information") necessary for demodulation of a packet data channel is transmitted through the packet data control channel.
That is, a receiver receiving packet data through a packet data channel first demodulates the packet data control channel, thereby acquiring control information necessary for demodulation of the packet data channel. Then, the receiver demodulates the packet data channel by using the control information. The transmitted packet data control channel usually includes a user identifier (hereinafter, "Medium Access Control IDentifier (MAC ID)"), resource allocation information, Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) information, etc. As used herein, the MAC ID refers to an identifier of an Access Terminal (AT) promised in advance between the AT and an Access Network (AN). In a typical OFDM packet data transmission/reception system, resources are shared by a plurality of users. Further, during every TTI, an Access Network (AN) scheduler selects a user who will use the system resources and transmits packet data through a predetermined resource to the selected user.
When the AN transmits packet data through a packet data channel to a particular AT, a MAC ID is promised in advance between the AN and the AT, and is then transmitted through the packet data channel during every TTI, so as to notify the AT which user the packet data the packet data is forwarded to through the packet data channel. Therefore, every AT within the system continuously monitors the packet data control channel, and continues determining whether a MAC ID received through the packet data control channel is identical with the ATs' own MAC IDs. When a MAC ID received through the packet data channel during a particular TTI is equal to an AT's own MAC ID, the AT determines that a data channel allocated together with the packet data control channel has been allocated to itself, and performs demodulation of the packet data channel.
Next, the control information received through the packet data control channel includes resource allocation information, which refers to information on resources used for transmission of packet data. Since one modulation symbol is carried by one TF bin at the time of packet data transmission through a physical channel as described above, it is impossible to demodulate the packet data channel without information on the resource actually used for the packet data transmission from among the two-dimensional resources within the single TTI, i.e., without information on the TF bin from a receiver. As used herein, MCS information refers to a modulation scheme and a coding rate used for the packet data transmission. The control information includes other type of information according to a particular purpose as well as the above-mentioned information.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a structure of a transmitter for constructing a packet data control channel in a typical OFDM-based mobile communication system. Referring to FIG. 1, information bits 100 correspond to the control information as described above, which is assumed to have 34 or 36 bits. The number of bits, which is shown to be 34 or 36 in FIG. 1, is only a particular example and may change according to the communication system.
In the transmitter shown in FIG. 1, a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) bit inserter 102 adds 16 CRC bits for detection of transmission errors in the control information 100 transmitted through the packet data control channel. Further, an encoder tail bit inserter 104 adds encoder tail bits having a size of 8 bits for convolution encoding to the 50 or 52 bits of control information output from the CRC bit inserter 102, and then outputs the encoder tail-added control information to a convolution encoder 106. Then, the convolution encoder 106 performs convolution encoding of the input bits, and a rate matcher 108 then performs rate matching of the encoded output from the convolution encoder 106.
In performing rate matching, the number of output modulation symbols of the control channel is controlled in accordance with the number of total sub-carriers allocated to the packet data control channel and the quantity of the resources allocated to the packet data control channel. The rate matching usually includes steps of repetition and puncturing.
The output of the rate matcher 108 is input to a Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) modulator 110, and modulation symbols 112 are generated through a modulation process such as QPSK. Then, the modulated symbols 112 are transmitted through pre-allocated resources.
Meanwhile, packet data may be simultaneously transmitted through a plurality of data channels in a typical OFDMA system. That is, multiple control information elements may be simultaneously transmitted through the control channels as shown in FIG. 1. This implies that an AN may simultaneously transmit packet data to multiple ATs. Therefore, each AT demodulates control information elements through the multiple control channels simultaneously received from the AN, and determines, from the demodulated control information, the control channel through which the same MAC ID as its own MAC ID is received. In a conventional system, in order to support the operation as described above, a maximum number of control channels capable of transmitting the control information is pre-defined and is signaled to all ATs within the system.
For example, when the AN signals to all ATs within the system that "it is possible to transmit a maximum of four control channels," the ATs perform control channel demodulation based on a premise that each piece of control information can be transmitted through a maximum of four control channels, as long as there is no change in the signaled information. The resource for use in transmission of the control information is determined according to the determined maximum number of transmissible control channels.
FIG. 2 illustrates an example of resource allocation when each piece of control information is simultaneously transmitted through four control channels in a typical OFDM mobile communication system. Referring to FIG. 2, each rectangle indicates one Forward Shared Control CHannel (F-SCCH) block, which is transmitted through a predetermined allocated resource. In FIG. 2, the F-SCCH block size 200 corresponds to a block size for transmission of one control channel block and indicates the number of modulation symbols necessary for transmission of the control channel block.
Usually, the control channel block is transmitted through a plurality of sub-carriers over a plurality of OFDM symbols. FIG. 2 shows only the logical structure of the control channel blocks for convenience of description. However, the control channel blocks may be actually transmitted through physically separated sub-carriers, and the modulation symbols 112, which are the final output in FIG. 1, are transmitted through one control channel block from among the control channel blocks. In the system as described above, in which a predetermined quantity of resources are allocated for transmission of one control channel block and four control channels as an example can be transmitted during one TTI, four control channel blocks are used for transmission of the control information. In the above example, an AT receiving the control information performs demodulation of each of the four control channel blocks through a reverse process to that of the transmitter shown in FIG. 1, and then determines whether each demodulated control channel includes its own MAC ID. That is, in the above example, the AT performs an operation for receiving the control information transmitted through the four control channel blocks.
However, the fact that the maximum number of the transmitted control channels is four does not signify that the control information is always transmitted through four control channels during every TTI. Actually, the number of control channels transmitting control information during each TTI changes according to the scheduling result for the AT by the AN, that is, according to the resource allocation result. For example, if the AT determines to allocate all resources to one AT during a certain TTI, only one control channel is actually used for transmission of the control information during the TTI. However, since the AT does not know the number of control channels actually used for transmission of the control information, the AT attempts the demodulation the same number of times as the maximum number of control channels usable for transmission of the control information during one TTI.
Once the maximum number of control channels used for one-time transmission of the control information has been determined, resources for transmission of as much control information as the maximum number of control channels must be allocated. Further, the resources allocated for the control channel transmission cannot be used for another purpose, even when the number of control channels actually transmitting the control information is less than the maximum number of control channels. Therefore, it may be preferred to limit the maximum number of control channels to a small number. However, if the maximum number of control channels is limited to a small number, that small number may limit the data channel allocation by the AT. Therefore, it is not preferable to limit the maximum number of control channels to a small number. This is because the fact that the maximum number of control channels capable of transmitting control information during one TTI is four as in the above example implies that the maximum number of ATs simultaneously schedulable by the AN is only four.
Meanwhile, the conventional OFDMA system supports multiple layer transmission. The multiple layer transmission implies that a transmitter simultaneously transmits a plurality of packets either to multiple users or to a single user through the same time and frequency resources by using multiple transmission antennas. When the multiple layer transmission as described above is supported, the number of control channels necessary for the multiple layer transmission increases up to the number of the layers, because one control channel should be used whenever the packet data is transmitted through each layer. The increase in the number of control channels as described above results in increasing in the quantity of resources allocated to the control channels. Therefore, such an increase is a waste of resources in a TTI that does not use the resources, while a small maximum number of control channels imposes a limit on resource allocation.

Method and apparatus for transmitting/receiving control information in packet data communication system