An apparatus and method primarily intended for repairing pipes and conduits, particularly high-pressure pipes and conduits, such as a watermain. To prevent the creation of a gap between a repair sleeve and the inside of a host pipe, when an epoxy or other curable sealant is used, due to the slight rebound that occurs during the locking of the edges of the sleeve, a bubble gasket or a quantity of loose bubbles is used. During such rebound and locking of the edges of the repair sleeve, the bubbles maintain a force against the sealant as the sealant cures. Although conduit repair is an intended specific application of the invention, the apparatus and method of the invention has broader applicability and are contemplated to encompass the securing of a curable sealant to a surface and the general bonding of two surfaces together.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates primarily to an apparatus and method for repairing pipes and conduits, particularly relatively high-pressure pipes and conduits, such as a watermain. More particularly, the invention is directed to an internal repair of a section of damaged, weakened, or leaking pipe or conduit, in which the section to be repaired is typically located in an inaccessible area, such as underground. Although conduit repair is an intended specific application of the invention, the apparatus and method disclosed has broader applicability and are contemplated to encompass the securing of a curable sealant to a surface and the general bonding of two surfaces together.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
Conduit systems for conveying water are typically located underground and, in general, are not easily accessible if repair or other maintenance is required after installation. Over a period of time, such conduit systems can become damaged, weakened, or can otherwise begin to leak, particularly at the joints between adjacent conduit sections, but also longitudinally along a conduit section.
Problems associated with such systems, and a number of previous repair methods and apparatuses are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,119,862 and 5,351,720. These patents, which disclose "No-Dig" or non-excavation repairs, utilize a sleeve or liner which is transported to the site of the weakened or damaged pipe in a coiled or partially coiled configuration. Once the repair liner is located in the necessary position at the site of the repair, internal pressure is applied to the sleeve by means of an inflatable bladder or other means, which causes the sleeve to begin to uncoil and expand in the direction of the "host" pipe to be repaired. The sleeve, which includes a gasket or sealing compound on its outer surface, reaches a slight over-expanded condition, whereby the liner compresses the gasket or sealing compound against the inner surface of the host pipe. The internal pressure is then reduced or removed and the sleeve is slightly recoiled, whereby overlapping edges of the sleeve become locked in place by virtue of complementary locking means.
The methods and apparatus disclosed in the aforementioned patents are intended primarily for the repair of conduits that carry wastewater and other fluids that are not in an over-pressure environment. However, a high-pressure pipe, such as a watermain, also requires periodic repair, particularly for sealing against ex-filtration, i.e., against a leak of liquid from the inside to the outside of the pipe. In addition, old leaded joints must be isolated to prevent the leaching of lead into drinking water.
The methods and apparatus disclosed in the aforementioned patents are useful for the repair of high-pressure pipes, although a particular problem, explained below, is posed. Reference will be made to FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C in explaining this problem. FIGS. 1A-1C are similar to FIGS. 3A-3C of U.S. Pat. No. 5,119,862, but illustrate the problem created when a sealant suitable for over-pressure pipe repair is used. The size of these pipes is typically between 4 inches and 36 inches in diameter or even greater.
Unlike an elastic compressible gasket or a polyurethane foam, e.g., which are usable for the repairs described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,351,720, high-pressure or over-pressure pipes and conduits require sealants that cure into a concrete-like hardness and which are not compressible. Such resins, unlike compressible or foam sealants, do not expand as they cure. Instead, they more or less retain their initial liquid volume. Although epoxy sealants are contemplated, polyester sealants, for example, are contemplated for conduits that convey potable water.
FIG. 1A schematically illustrates a portion of a coiled repair sleeve 10, which is coiled within a damaged or leaking host pipe 11 prior to or shortly after internal expansion or uncoiling of the repair sleeve has begun, by means of apparatus known in the art, such as an inflatable air bag. The outer surface of the sleeve carries a layer of curable resin 12, such as an epoxy or epoxy-like resin. One edge of the sleeve 10 constitutes a male locking member 13 which is to be inserted into the female member 14 formed at an opposite edge of the sleeve to thereby lock the sleeve in place to effect the necessary repair.
As the air bag or other internal expansion means continues to uncoil the sleeve 10, the sleeve exerts pressure against the inside of the host pipe 11 and squeezes the resin 12 between the sleeve and the host pipe, as shown in FIG. 1B. In addition, the male locking member 13 slides over the internal lower lip 15 of the female locking member 14 until the male locking member is forced beyond the end of the lower lip 15.
As the air bag is then deflated, or other internal expansion means is de-activated, the sleeve 10 coils, due to its spring-like property, or due to the use of a compressible gasket or due to the back pressure of limit straps placed around the coil prior to expansion thereof, so that the male locking member 13 forces itself into the female locking member 14, above the lower lip 15, so that the sleeve assumes its locked position. This locked position is shown in FIG. 1C.
After the layer of resin cures and hardens, however, a gap G is created since the layer of resin tends to retain its previous thickness conferred by the over-expanded condition in FIG. 1B.
Following the repair, when water or fluid pressure is then applied within the host pipe 11, the air gap G prevents resistance to expansion of the sleeve 10. Damage or unlocking of the sleeve can possibly result.

Apparatus and method for repairing pressure pipes and for securing other elements with a curable sealant


A miniature vertically polarized multi-frequency antenna 10 is embedded in a substrate 11 and suitable for use within a wireless device. The antenna 10 includes a first lateral member 14 and a second lateral member 16, which is spaced from and parallel to the first lateral member 14. The antenna 10 has a wide tuning range due to multiple resonances provided by the lateral members 14, 16. The antenna 10 is shortened by reactive loading and by embedding the antenna in material having a high dielectric constant. Tuning circuits 30, 32 are coupled to respective ends of one of the lateral members 14, 16. The tuning circuits are located on a common plane with the lateral member to which they are connected. The tuning circuits 30, 32 electronically add reactance to the antenna to alter the frequency at which it resonates. A method of providing the antenna 10 includes forming flat metal strips 14, 16 on layers of a laminated substrate 11 and forming the second lateral member 16 between adjacent layers 20, 22 of the substrate 11.

Wireless communication devices generally refer to communications terminals that provide a wireless communications link to one or more other communications terminals or equipment. Wireless communication devices may be used in a variety of different applications, including cellular telephone, land-mobile (e.g., police and fire departments), satellite communications systems, wireless Local Area Networks, and the like. Wireless communication devices typically include an antenna for transmitting and/or receiving wireless communications signals. In the current wireless communication environment, wireless communication devices require the ability to use broad or multiple frequency bands. Such devices may need to work in geographical areas with different local communications frequencies. In addition, the recent trend is to further miniaturize such devices and to make the antenna invisible. However, it is difficult to satisfy these requirements while maintaining high efficiency and a desired radiation pattern, and the manufacture of such antennas is relatively complicated and expensive.

Miniature vertically polarized multiple frequency band antenna and method of providing an antenna for a wireless device


A power tool with a dust collection function has a motor, a dust collection fan, and a cover member. The dust collection fan is driven by the motor for collecting a dust. The cover member covers the dust collection fan. The cover member provides an air passage surrounding the dust collection fan in a circumferential direction of the dust collection fan. The cover member is configured and arranged to provide a lower pressure section and another section in the air passage when the dust collection fan rotates. The lower pressure section provides a lower static pressure than the another section. Accordingly, the power tool ensures highly efficiency for collecting a dust particle.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a power tool with a dust collection function. In particular, the present invention relates to a sander or a cutter having a dust collection function.
2. Related Art
Various types of power tools with a dust collection function have been proposed, such as those described in Japanese patent application publications Nos. HEI-6-226709, HEI-9-254033, and 2003-053654.
Generally, a random orbital sander includes a housing, and a motor accommodated in the housing. The motor has an output shaft extending downward from the motor. A centrifugal fan is mounted on the lower end of the output shaft. The centrifugal fan is covered about its periphery by a fan cover formed continuously from the housing. A switch for turning a power supply to the motor on and off is accommodated in an upper section of the housing.
The centrifugal fan is integrally configured of a cooling fan disposed on the upper side, and a dust collection fan disposed on the lower side. An eccentric shaft is formed integrally with the centrifugal fan at a boss part thereof and is offset a prescribed amount from the axial center of the output shaft. A base pad is mounted on the eccentric shaft via a bearing and is attached to the centrifugal fan by a plurality of screws. The base pad is penetrated by a plurality of dust collection holes. Sandpaper is detachably mounted on the bottom surface of the base pad.
An air passage is formed between an inner periphery of the fan cover and an outer periphery of the dust collection fan. A dust exhaust duct is formed integrally with part of the fan cover. The dust exhaust duct includes a dust outlet in fluid communication with the air passage. A collection bag is attached to the dust exhaust duct.
When the switch is switched on to power the motor, the motor begins driving the output shaft to rotate. At this time, the centrifugal fan mounted on the output shaft is driven to rotate, while the base pad supported on the eccentric shaft of the centrifugal fan via the bearing begins to move in a random orbit. Hence, the sandpaper mounted on the base pad moving in a random orbit can be applied to sand a workpiece. Dust particles that are generated during the sanding process are drawn into the air passage formed in the fan cover through the plurality of dust collection holes formed in the base pad by an airflow generated by the rotating dust collection fan. The dust particles are carried along the air passage, discharged through the dust outlet of the dust exhaust duct, and collected in the collection bag. At the same time, the rotating cooling fan generates an airflow for cooling the motor in order to suppress heat generation.
It is desired that the above power tools provides improved efficiency to collect dust particles.
In view of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a power tool with a dust collection function improving efficiency of dust collection.

Power tool with dust collection function


A process for silanizing carbon nanotubes, wherein the carbon nanotubes are oxidized and subsequently exposed to a saturated gas phase including one or more organosilane derivatives which form covalent bonds to the carbon nanotubes with siloxane formation.

Nanotubes, in particular carbon nanotubes, are suitable as metallic conductors and as semiconductors in nanoelectronics. Furthermore, the carbon nanotubes are used, for example, as composite materials, sensors or semiconductor elements in transistors. However, physical and/or chemical modification of the surface of the nanotubes is in many cases a prerequisite for their use. Such modifications include, for example, modification by means of a dielectric for transistor applications. Here, the dielectric, for example a silane layer, is used as insulator between the active path (carbon nanotubes) of the transistor and a gate electrode.
Furthermore, dielectrics are required for applications as intermetal compound in order to screen the electrically conductive carbon nanotubes from the environment. In addition, alteration of the wettability of the surface of carbon nanotubes is important for their use in composites and for chemical modification in sensor applications.

Silanized carbon nanotubes and method for the production thereof


A method adapts a user interface of a vehicle navigation system. Based on an input vector representing a current state related to the vehicle, probabilities of actions are predicted to achieve a next state using a predictive model representing previous states. Then, a subset of the actions with highest probabilities that minimize a complexity of interacting with the vehicle navigation system are displayed in the vehicle.

Navigation systems can be embedded in cars, trucks, buses, and other vehicles. The navigation systems can advise the operator, and any other occupants of the vehicle, about an optimal route from a current location to a destination. The destination is usually specified before a trip starts. Voice prompts about required maneuvers, e.g., turns and lane changes, etc, are usually given at the correct times, and this can significantly reduce the cognitive load and distractions of the operator by minimizing the need to locate traffic signs, and remember the route. In this capacity, vehicle navigation systems also act as safety devices that can significantly reduce the risks of accidents.
Many vehicle navigation systems offer additional actions, such as requesting information about points of interest, adjusting thermal environments, operating entertainment devices, dialing telephone numbers, customizing graphical output such as maps in a variety of ways, e.g., zoom in and out, switching between 2D and 3D maps, align the map orientation with the direction of travel or with a compass directions, etc. It is also possible to change the intended destination. All of these additional actions typically require interaction with the vehicle navigation system while operating the vehicle. This interaction can increase the risk of accidents by orders of magnitude.
One lengthy interaction is setting a different destination. This requires specifying multiple components, e.g., country, state, city, street, number, etc., each of which needs multiple keystrokes on a keypad or multiple touches on the user interface. Typically, these interfaces are relatively small, and are located out of the dominant line of sight for the operator. As a result, such systems can be significant safety hazards, defeating one of their original purposes, to reduce distraction and risk of accidents while driving.
Manufacturers of vehicle navigation systems are addressing this problem by carefully organizing, the available actions using a sequence of menus, such that the most often used actions can be specified with a minimal number of interactions.
For example, some vehicle navigation systems have a dedicated HOME item on a top-level menu. The HOME item can be preset to, e.g., the address of the home or work place of the operator. Similarly, a preset CALL HOME item can dial the most frequently dialed telephone number.
While such careful design of the available menu sequences can significantly shorten the number of keystrokes needed to complete an interaction, those designs do not consider a significant variability between the relative frequency of use of individual actions for different operators, nor are the designs specific to the current context of the vehicle and operator, as described by, e.g., location, time of the day, state of the engine, and inside environmental conditions, etc. In many situations, a large number of the available actions are either not applicable or not likely, for example, it is not likely that the HOME item would be used when the vehicle is at its home location, and the top-level placement of this button could better be used for some other action. The personalization of the user interface of vehicle navigation systems is one possible approach to optimizing the user experience and minimizing the risk of accident.
Muzina et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 8,386,173, describe a method for automatic adjusting a level of map detail based on the vehicle speed, thus minimizing the number &times the operator zooms in or out of the map.
Liu et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,349,257, describe a system for personalizing the user interface of a vehicle navigation device in advance of a trip, for example at a vehicle rental agency. That personalization can be useful by eliminating interface elements that are not necessary for a particular trip. Pre-defined destination points are likely to eliminate distraction en route.
Evan et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 8,078,359, describe a method for the personalization of the user interface of a vehicle navigation and infotainment system by means of interacting with a touch screen. However, that general approach to personalization requires extra time and advance planning, and is only operator-specific, and not context-specific.

Method and system for dynamically adapting user interfaces in vehicle navigation systems to minimize interaction complexity

Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc.


An exemplary computer-implemented method for generating reputation ratings for URLs may include (1) identifying a URL that identifies the location of at least one web resource, (2) identifying the computing health of at least one member of a computing community that has accessed the URL, (3) generating, based at least in part on the computing health of the member(s) that accessed the URL, a reputation rating for the URL that indicates whether the URL represents a potential security risk, and then (4) providing the reputation rating for the URL to at least one additional computing device to enable the additional computing device to evaluate whether the URL represents a potential security risk. In addition, a client-side, computer-implemented method for determining whether a URL represents a potential security risk may be based at least in part on such a reputation rating. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Security researchers estimate that the majority of malicious software ("malware") generated today is deployed and/or proliferated via the Internet. In recent years, malware developers have attempted to avoid detection by hosting malware on websites that only remain active for a short period of time or by posting links to such sites on legitimate websites. Because many existing computing-security technologies detect malicious websites by (1) statically scanning the contents of a suspicious website, (2) determining that the content hosted by the website is malicious, and then (3) generating a unique digital signature or fingerprint for the website and/or content for use in later identifying the website and/or content (a technique known as blacklisting), conventional computing-security technologies have struggled to protect computing resources from such attacks due to their inability to quickly and correctly create digital signatures for each of the thousands or potentially millions of variations of new websites or content generated daily by malware developers.
Due to these limitations, some security-software vendors have turned to whitelisting technologies. In a whitelisting system, computing systems may only access websites identified on a preapproved whitelist. Security-software vendors may create whitelists either manually or automatically, such as through the use of web-spidering techniques. However, given the high number of new websites and files created and published on a daily basis, many security-software vendors have struggled with manually creating comprehensive website whitelists. Moreover, many automatic techniques for creating whitelists only identify a portion of known legitimate websites. Conventional automatic techniques are also prone to falsely identifying illegitimate websites as legitimate, and vice-versa, further limiting the viability of a whitelist generated using such a technique. As such, the instant disclosure identifies a need for improved systems and methods for identifying malicious websites.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Systems and methods for generating reputation-based ratings for uniform resource locators


A rollover protection system for vehicles with roll bars allocated to the vehicle seats, which roll bars are guided into a holder, which holder is fixed to the vehicle, and under normal conditions the roll bar is held by a holding device in a lower, stored position, is controlled by a sensor, and upon release of the holding device, is brought into an upright, protective position. In order to design a rollover protection system, allocated to the seat, with a roll bar body in the form of a folding roll bar, each roll bar comprises two frame pieces each spaced along the vehicular lateral axis having one pivotably connected end in mountings, which mountings are located in a bracket fixed to the vehicle, and with the free ends so connected that when folded, they slide against each other, and when deployed, they interlock against each other.

It is known in the art to provide a permanently installed roll bar that spans the entire width of the vehicle (EP 0 233 777), or to assign a permanently installed roll bar to each seat (DE 196 04 423). Both solutions rely upon a so-called fixed roll bar, that is, a roll bar that does not actively deploy when a rollover threatens, that is, a roll bar that does not deploy from a stored, rest position to an upright, support position. From the German patent DE 600 01 224 T2, it is known to equip a fixed roll bar, attached to the vehicle seat, with two support positions of differing heights: a somewhat lower position when the folding vehicle roof is closed and a raised position when the folding vehicle roof is open. This is achieved in each case by means of a folding roll bar having two frame supports, pin-jointed together, the free ends of the frame supports are each located on a horizontal threaded rod, are longitudinally slideable, and are connected with the vehicle roof adjustment.
In this known construction, there is no stored position for the roll bar as there is an active system; rather, it comprises a fixed, permanently deployed roll bar with two support positions of different heights. Spatial conditions do not allow for a stored position in this construction.
One finds ever increasing numbers of constructive designs for so-called active roll bars on the market. In the case of active roll bars, the roll bar is stored in the normal, stored position, and, in the case of danger, when threatened with a rollover, the sensor-controlled roll bar is quickly deployed into a protective position. This prevents the vehicle occupants from being crushed by the rolling vehicle.
These designs typically show, for each seat, a roll bar that is U-shaped or is formed by a structural section and is guided by a guide element that is permanently attached to the vehicle. The guide element is fixed in a cassette housing. The roll bar is held in a lower rest position against the pressure of an actuating coil spring by a holding device during normal operations. In the case of a rollover, upon release of the holding device, the sensor-controlled roll bar is brought into an upper, protective position by the spring tension, whereby a locking device is actively engaged that prevents the compression of the roll bar into the cassette housing.
The holding device in this type of design typically comprises a holding element mounted on the roll bar body. The holding element stands in a releasable, mechanical connection together with a tripping element in a sensor-controlled triggering system, which is typically formed by a release solenoid, the so-called crash solenoid, or by a pyrotechnical tripping element.
The locking device, also described as a retraction block, typically comprises a pivotably coupled, spring-biased locking pawl with tooth segments and fixed toothed bar, a locking pin or the like, whereby, according to the construction, a locking element is connected with the roll bar and the other elements fixed to the vehicle.
Such a cassette construction for a roll bar protection system with a linearly deploying roll bar and with a locking pawl in the locking device is disclosed, for example, in German Patent DE 100 40 642 C1.
Other constructions for deployable roll bars are known, for example, according to German Patent DE 39 25 513 A1, the so-called swing gate, which is attached to the seat and pivots along the vehicular longitudinal axis. Also, the pivoting bar, according to German Patent DE 37 32 562 C1, which spans the vehicle width, is stored flush with the upper edge of the vehicle body in the area behind the back seats, and in the case of danger, is highly pivotal around the vehicular lateral axis.
The German Patent DE 101 43 934 A1 discloses an actively folding or collapsible roll bar, comprised of a transverse yoke roll bar, which extends at least approximately cross-wise over the width of the vehicle, and two side elements. One end of each side element is attached to the transverse yoke and can be longitudinally displaced, and the other end, under tension from a coil spring, is pivotable and connected at the vehicle body.
When the transverse yoke roll bar is in the stored, normal position, the two side elements are housed, front to front axially one behind the other in the transverse yoke roll bar. During a crash, the two side elements are deployed by the two coil springs into the protective position by the unfolding or opening of the roll bar as a whole.
This known construction of a folding roll bar is not applicable for active roll bars that are attached to the vehicle seats. The pivoting side elements lie axially one behind the other in the stored position. Because their length determines the rollover direction, they have to have a predetermined length, whereby the length of both side elements together would exceed the width of a roll bar that is attached to a vehicle seat.
Further, the known construction of a folding roll bar using the three-part conception—two side elements and a transverse yoke—is relatively expensive.

Rollover protection system with a folding roll bar for vehicles


A navigation system includes a Global Positioning System (GPS) enabled wireless phone and a GPS navigation system. The GPS enabled wireless phone includes a GPS receiver, a communications interface, and processing circuitry coupled to the GPS receiver and to the communications interface. The GPS navigation system includes a GPS receiver, a communications interface operable to communicatively couple to the communications interface of the GPS enabled wireless phone, and processing circuitry coupled to the GPS receiver and to the communications interface. The processing circuitry of the GPS navigation system is operable to establish device pairing with the GPS enabled wireless phone and to exchange GPS information and other information with the GPS enabled wireless phone via the secure link.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electronic devices; and more particularly to Global Position System (GPS) navigation systems and wireless phones.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wireless communication systems and navigation systems are well known. A Global Positioning System (GPS) based navigation system includes a GPS receiver that receives information from satellites that are orbiting the earth and uses this information to determine a location of the GPS receiver a point on the surface of the earth or a point a particular altitude above the surface of the earth. Navigation systems may be installed in automobiles, aircraft, boats, and various other devices. Further navigation systems may be installed in hand-held units such as hand-held navigation systems and wireless phones.
Wireless communication systems include cellular wireless communication systems, Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs), Wireless Wide Area Network (WWANs), satellite communication systems, and various other types of wireless communication systems. Each of these types of wireless communication systems supports wireless communications according to one or more communication protocol standards. For example, cellular wireless communication systems may operates according to GSM, CDMA, WCDM, TDMA, and/or other communication protocol standards, WLANs may operate according to one or more versions of the IEEE802.11x standards, WPANs may operate according to the Bluetooth standard, and WWANs may operate according to the WiMAX standard.
When a navigation system is located within a vehicle, the navigation system is typically fixed to the vehicle or installed as part of the vehicle. Examples of vehicles within which a navigation system may be installed include automobiles, boats, airplanes, trucks, and trains, among other vehicles. Further, portable navigation systems may be semi-permanently mounted within such vehicles, for example with an antenna for the navigation system mounted to the vehicle and the portable navigation system being removable. The navigation system determines the location of the vehicle and also assists an operator of the vehicle in traveling to particular locations and/or a taking particular route to a destination location. Navigation systems assisting in the operation of a car or truck, for example, typically instruct routing along particular roads. Navigation systems assisting in the operation of a boat may direct the boat along predetermined paths having sufficient depth.
GPS enabled wireless phones are employed by users to determine their location. Location of handheld device may be relevant not only for determining a location with respect to a desired location but for helping a user reach a desired destination. GPS enabled wireless phones also include one or more wireless interfaces that are used to enable wireless communications between the user and a wireless infrastructure. For example, a GPS enabled wireless phone may include a cellular network interface, a WLAN interface, and/or a WPAN interface to support communications. These communications may be voice communications, data communications, and/or a combination of the two.
Shortcomings exist with regard to navigation systems and GPS enabled wireless phones. Such shortcomings relate to the manner in which navigation may be used in conjunction with these devices. For example, a user of a navigation system that is mounted within a vehicle may very well use the navigation system to get from point A to point B. Further, a user of a GPS enabled wireless phone may use the GPS receiver therein to go from one place to another. However, typically there is no communication between these devices. For example, a user of a GPS enabled wireless phone may take the phone with him or her to a shopping mall and shop therein. The GPS enabled wireless phone, while useful in locating the user with respect to a particular store is not useful in locating itself with respect to the vehicle. These and other shortcomings and others will be apparent when considered in conjunction with the teachings of the present invention.


A cabinet comprises a cabinet frame having a first side and a second side, a pair of doors coupled to the frame on the first side, wherein one of the pair of doors includes a locking rod positioned along a portion of the length of the door, a latch coupled to the frame on the first side and positioned to receive the locking rod, an actuator positioned on the second side of the cabinet frame and coupled to the latch, and an access door, positioned on the second side of the cabinet frame, the access door restricting access to the actuator. Opening the access door allows activation of the actuator to release the locking rod.

Electronic equipment cabinets are generally designed to receive a number of electronic components arranged vertically in the cabinet, mounted on shelves, and/or to front and rear mounting rails. The electronic equipment may include, for example, printed circuit boards, communications equipment, computers, including computer servers, or other electronic components.
Generally, the electronic equipment cabinets have a front door that allows access to the front side of the equipment. Such access allows the addition or removal of equipment from the cabinet, or adjustment to the electronic equipment, for example. Access to the equipment is also provided through the back of the cabinet, typically by way of a pair of doors. Often, it is desirable to secure the equipment cabinets and to restrict access to the cabinets to protect the equipment housed inside from accidental or purposeful damage.


The ejecting electrical outlet has magnets positioned within the electrical receptacle. Springs are positioned between the magnets and are compressed when the prongs of a plug are entered into the outlet. The strength of a magnetic field generated by an overload electric current is sufficient to defeat the attractive forces between the magnet and to permit decompression of the spring and ejection of the plug from the electrical outlet.

When there are electrical overloads in powerlines, there can be serious safety problems if electrical plugs are not removed from the electrical outlets. This is because there can be a surge of current through the plug and the electrical cord to the appliance. This can sometimes lead to fires and it may also lead to destruction or damage of the appliance itself.
Therefore, there is a need for an electrical outlet that will automatically eject an electric plug from an electrical outlet when there is an electrical overload. This is important to prevent fires, and also to prevent destruction or damage of electrical appliances.


An actuator device includes a support part, a first movable part, a second movable part, a first connecting part connecting the first movable part to the second movable part, a second connecting part connecting the second movable part to the support part, a spiral coil provided to the second movable part, a first external terminal provided to the support part, and a first wiring connected to an inner end portion of the coil and the first external terminal. The first wiring includes a lead wiring connected to the first external terminal, and a straddle wiring provided to the second movable part so as to straddle the coil and connected to the inner end of the coil and the lead wiring. The width of the straddle wiring is larger than the width of the coil, and the thickness of the straddle wiring is smaller than the thickness of the coil.

An actuator device is known as a MEMS device. The actuator device includes a support part, a first movable part, a frame-shaped second movable part that surrounds the first movable part, a first connecting part that connects the first movable part to the second movable part so that the first movable part can swing around a first axis, a second connecting part that connects the second movable part to the support part so that the second movable part can swing around a second axis orthogonal to the first axis, a coil provided in the second movable part, and a magnetic field generator that generates a magnetic field to act on the coil (see, for example, Patent Literature 1).


Systems and methods are disclosed for determining individual-specific blood flow characteristics. One method includes acquiring, for each of a plurality of individuals, individual-specific anatomic data and blood flow characteristics of at least part of the individual's vascular system; executing a machine learning algorithm on the individual-specific anatomic data and blood flow characteristics for each of the plurality of individuals; relating, based on the executed machine learning algorithm, each individual's individual-specific anatomic data to functional estimates of blood flow characteristics; acquiring, for an individual and individual-specific anatomic data of at least part of the individual's vascular system; and for at least one point in the individual's individual-specific anatomic data, determining a blood flow characteristic of the individual, using relations from the step of relating individual-specific anatomic data to functional estimates of blood flow characteristics.

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the industrialized world and contribute to roughly a third of global deaths. The predominant form of acquired cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, results from the chronic buildup of fatty material in the inner layer of the arteries supplying the heart, brain, kidneys, digestive system, and lower extremities. Progressive coronary artery disease restricts blood flow to the heart, presenting as chest pain during physical exertion, referred to as chronic stable angina, or when the patient is at rest, known as unstable angina. More severe manifestation of disease may lead to myocardial infarction, or heart attack. Patients presenting with chest pain are usually subject to a range of currently available noninvasive tests, including ECG, treadmill tests, SPECT, PET, and CT—none of which measure blood flow and provide only anatomic information or indirect indications of disease. Due to the lack of accurate functional information provided by current noninvasive tests, many patients require invasive catheter procedures to assess coronary blood flow. There is a pressing need for a noninvasive means to quantify blood flow in the human coronary arteries to assess the functional significance of diffuse and focal coronary artery disease. Additionally, there is a need to achieve rapid assessment of blood flow to enable use in emergency rooms, in-patient treatment, and onsite hospital use. In addition to non-invasive use, there is a need within invasive imaging, such as coronary angiography, to quickly estimate functional metrics without the need for pressure or flow wires or special medication. Such a technology is also applicable to preventing, diagnosing, managing and treating disease in other portions of the cardiovascular system including the arteries of the neck, e.g. the carotid arteries, the arteries in the head, e.g. the cerebral arteries, the arteries in the abdomen, e.g. the abdominal aorta and its branches, the arteries in legs, e.g. the femoral and popliteal arteries.
A functional assessment of arterial capacity is important for treatment planning to address patient needs. Recent studies have demonstrated that hemodynamic characteristics, such as Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR), are important indicators to determine the optimal treatment for a patient with arterial disease. Conventional assessments of these hemodynamic characteristics use invasive catheterizations to directly measure blood flow characteristics, such as pressure and flow velocity. However, despite the important clinical information that is gathered, these invasive measurement techniques present severe risks to the patient and significant costs to the healthcare system.
To address the risks and costs associated with invasive measurement, a new generation of noninvasive tests have been developed to assess blood flow characteristics. These noninvasive tests use patient imaging (such as computed tomography (CT)) to determine a patient-specific geometric model of the blood vessels and this model is used computationally to simulate the blood flow using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) with appropriate physiological boundary conditions and parameters. Examples of inputs to these patient-specific boundary conditions include the patient's blood pressure, blood viscosity and the expected demand of blood from the supplied tissue (derived from scaling laws and a mass estimation of the supplied tissue from the patient imaging). Although these simulation-based estimations of blood flow characteristics have demonstrated a level of fidelity comparable to direct (invasive) measurements of the same quantity of interest, physical simulations demand a substantial computational burden that can make these virtual, noninvasive tests difficult to execute in a real-time clinical environment. Consequently, the present disclosure describes new approaches for performing rapid, noninvasive estimations of blood flow characteristics that are computationally inexpensive.

Systems and methods for analyzing and processing digital images to estimate vessel characteristics


The present invention relates generally to a steel reinforcing structure 10 for concrete according to one embodiment of the invention. The steel reinforcing structure is in the form of a cage 10 comprising six (6) reinforcing bars arranged substantially parallel to one another including a pair of common reinforcing bars 12A and 126 located intermediate two (2) pairs of opposing reinforcing bars 14A/B and 16A/B. The reinforcing cage 10 also comprises a plurality of spiral ties including one pair of spiral ties 18A and 18B located on one side of the reinforcing cage 10, and another pair of spiral ties 20A and 20B located on an opposite side of the reinforcing cage 10. The pair of spiral ties 18A/18B on the left hand side of the reinforcing cage 10 are formed in a clockwise direction whereas the other pair of spiral ties 20A/20B on the right hand side of the reinforcing cage 10 are formed in an anticlockwise direction forming a set of the spiral ties. This opposing orientation of the spiral ties such as 18A and 20A is understood to balance loads and stresses in the reinforcing cage 10 which may otherwise twist or distort.

In a reinforced concrete structure, steel reinforcing is embedded in cast concrete. The steel reinforcing can be prefabricated or constructed in-situ in the form of a reinforcing cage. The steel reinforcing cage is located inside formwork within which concrete is poured. The formwork may be temporary and removed once the concrete has set or the formwork may remain as an integral part of the reinforced concrete structure. The steel reinforcing provides the concrete structure with tensile strength and complements the compressive strength of the concrete. However, the steel reinforcing cage can distort or twist causing unnecessary deflection of the resulting reinforced concrete structure.

Steel reinforcing structure for concrete


A snap-fit arrangement for joining component parts, such as tubular sections and fittings includes a male coupling and a female coupling. A portion of the male coupling extends from one component part and includes cantilever prongs with enlarged heads. The exposed portion of the male coupling and prong heads are structured and disposed for insertion into another component part and through the female coupling until the prong heads exit the inner end of the female coupling and snap outwardly into locked engagement, thereby releasably connecting the two component parts.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to snap fit attachment structures and, more particularly, to a snap fit arrangement using a male coupling and female coupling with interlocking cantilever prongs for joining component parts in the assembly of an article of manufacture.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Many products are packaged and shipped by the manufacturer to stores in a collapsed form in order to reduce shipping costs as well as warehouse storage and store shelf space. In many instances, the product remains collapsed in its original packaging until sold to a consumer. In particular, furniture items (e.g. tables, cabinets, bookcases, shelving, shoeracks, etc.) are typically shipped to stores in a box consisting of an array of individual parts packaged neatly in a compact package. Instructions and hardware for assembling the item are typically included in the box. To save shelf space and reduce costs, many stores sell items of this nature to the end consumer in the original manufacturer's box. This also allows the consumer to more easily transport the item in their automobile to their home or other destination where the item will be assembled and used. The cost saved by the manufacture and store by eliminating assembly is typically passed on to the consumer, along with the task of assembling the item. Depending upon the item and the manner of installation, the consumer may need tools, supplies, (e.g. glue, hardware, etc.) and various equipment to complete the assembly. This can make the task more difficult and frustrating, particularly if some or all of the needed tools and supplies are not provided by the manufacturer.
The ability to assemble articles of manufacture without use of tools, hardware, glue, etc. is extremely convenient and particularly attractive to the average consumer who typically possesses minimal skills, patience and the tools needed to assemble an article with the use of hardware such as screws, bolts, nuts, and the like.
Snap-in or snap fit connection of component parts is probably the most common method of easy, do-it-yourself assembly that avoids use of tools, hardware, glue, etc. However, the overall strength of the assembled structure is sometimes compromised when using a snap fit method of connection.
Accordingly, there remains a need for a snap fit arrangement and method for joining two or more components together in the assembly of an article of manufacture which is rigid, strong and avoids the need for special tools and hardware. Moreover, there is a need for a high strength snap fit arrangement which joins tubular sections to various fittings and which can be adapted for use in the assembly of a wide variety of items such as, but not limited to, shelf supports, tables, chairs, cabinets, shoe racks, merchandise stands in stores, sign supports, animal cages, barricades and the like without the need of any tools, hardware, glue or additional supplies.

Snap fitting for joining component parts of an article of assembly


Algorithms for detecting endotracheal intubation and/or misplacement of endotracheal tubes in child patients during anesthesia for use with anesthesia machines, mechanical ventilators, and/or respiratory function monitors. An algorithm uses end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2), and tidal volume (TV) or peak inspiratory pressure (PIP) to detect exact intubation time. Another algorithm uses respiratory parameters to identify and/or confirm the type of airway device used during mechanical ventilation, and to detect if and when an issue has arisen with use of a specific airway device to provide real-time decision support to attending medical care professionals.

Mechanical ventilation is commonly used in emergency rooms, intensive care units and operating rooms when there is a clinical need to assist or replace spontaneous breathing of the patient. In general, a mechanical ventilator is a machine that generates and regulates the flow of air to the patient's respiratory system. Using the mechanical ventilator, the clinician can control the flow of the air to the patient's airway by setting the different modes of ventilation.
Neonates, infants, and children undergoing major and complex surgeries in the United States undergo general anesthesia and hence are mechanically ventilated for the period of the surgery. Pediatric anesthesiologists must manage children's needs during surgery while documenting their physiologic state in the anesthesia record. Anesthesiologists have traditionally performed this documentation manually on a paper anesthesia record; these records have been shown to contain inaccuracies, particularly when retrospectively recording data such as blood pressure, heart rate, pulse oximetry and ventilation parameters. The cognitive load of monitoring patients while concurrently documenting the anesthesia record can be challenging. The electronic anesthesia record, or Anesthesia Information Management System (AIMS), automates various documentation tasks such as recording patient physiological data, enabling clinicians to focus on caring for the anesthetized patient.
A patient's airway may be supported using various devices that can be classified as noninvasive or invasive ventilation devices. Noninvasive techniques include spontaneous ventilation with a face mask, while invasive techniques include devices such as laryngeal mask airways (LMA) or endotracheal tubes (EU). The anesthesiologist may perform endotracheal (ET) intubation, defined as the placement of an EU in the trachea. Respiratory parameters of the patient, which are continually monitored during surgical procedures and anesthesia, have been shown to differ significantly depending on the type of airway support is used. The types of airway support used display different respiratory patterns. It has been surprisingly found that these patterned differences between the airway types can be used to develop algorithms for identifying and/or confirming the type of airway device used during mechanical ventilation, but also to detect if and when an issue has arisen with use of a specific airway device (e.g., one-lung ventilation during ET intubation, or a misplacement of the EU).
Though ET intubation is one of the fundamental techniques of mechanical ventilation, the EU is often misplaced during the intubation procedure, resulting in an unsuccessful ET intubation. The problem of EU misplacement detection can be divided into different steps: (i) detection of tube placement in the trachea (endotracheal intubation or EU), and (ii) detection of misplacement of the EU.
ET intubation error is an especially complex problem in neonates and younger children due to the very small size of their trachea. Neonates and infants have short airways and accurate positioning of the EU is crucial for adequate mechanical ventilation. Intubation is one of the most important aspects of any surgery since securing the airway is necessary to ensure the patient receives adequate oxygen. Failing to successfully intubate the patient would cause a drop in oxygen saturation, which, if not treated urgently, can result in the patient's death. Oxygen saturation measurements are often made at the patient's fingertip, but this is usually a delayed indicator of poor oxygenation. Such a delay could be very hazardous in neonates and children since their oxygen reserve is very small. Unfortunately, malpositioning of the EU and failure to insert the EU into the trachea is very common in operating rooms and intensive care units. In fact, studies have shown that junior clinicians such as residents and fellows fail to perform intubation correctly in more than 50% of the cases. Another study showed that the success rates for intubation are 37%-51% for residents, 70%-89% for fellows, and 72%-94% for attending physicians. Furthermore, head and neck movements by the patient can induce inadvertent EU movement. This movement can result in inadvertent extubation and endobronchial intubation especially in neonates and infants which in turn causes desaturation and consequently, patient death.
Rapid confirmation of correct ETT placement is clinically crucial because tube malposition is associated with serious adverse outcomes. In an effort to address this problem, various techniques have been applied to enable correct tube placement and optimal positioning of ETT in the trachea. These techniques include: (a) chest radiography, (b) clinical examination (auscultation and bilateral chest rise), (c) measurement of tube length using body parameters, (d) fiber optic techniques, (e) respiratory function monitors, (f) capnography, and (g) ultrasonography. There are also various devices which have been proposed for detection and identification of the endotracheal tube position.
Of all these approaches, the gold standard for ETT tube position detection is chest radiography, which unfortunately has a time delay as the patient needs to be prepared for radiography; it is also of course associated with cost as well as unnecessary radiation exposure to the child. The auscultation of equal and bilateral breath sounds suggests that the ETT is above the carina. However, auscultation as a sole method cannot rule out endobronchial intubation. The measurement of tube length in adults is a reliable method of ETT position detection but in neonates and infants it is not very dependable due to the small trachea size. There are several formulae that have been proposed to achieve correct tube placement. These formulae have a linear correlation with gestational age but have a nonlinear correlation with weight. Furthermore these rules do not apply to nasotracheal intubation. The fiber optic technique is very helpful for tube placement but needs specialized equipment, needs a physician adequately trained in in this technique and is associated with a time delay for the equipment setup. A respiratory function monitor can measure airway gas pressure and flow and also the tidal volume. However, neither gas flow nor airway pressure monitoring can distinguish tube placement in the trachea from one of the main bronchi. The ultrasonography technique needs personnel trained in this technique and specialized equipment, thereby making it a costly and time consuming technique.
There have been many studies on ET intubation. For instance, there are many studies that focus on airway management, correlation between post-surgery complications and difficult airways, detecting intubation through the use of imaging or auscultation techniques, and control of mechanical ventilation. However, despite the clinical importance of ET intubation, algorithmic modeling of ET intubation has not been carried out for either children or adults. Thus there is an urgent clinical need for a decision support system to automatically detect ETT position in the lung and trachea. The desired algorithm would ideally use the data that is already collected by the anesthesia machine such as respiratory rate (RR), tidal volume (TV), peak inspiratory pressure (PIP) and end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2) to detect the ETT position with high accuracy.

Automatic detection of airway device, endotracheal intubation, and tube misplacement in children during the anesthesia procedure


Object is to provide a semiconductor device having improved reliability or performance.

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, for example, a technology effective when applied to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a high-breakdown-voltage MISFET and a low-breakdown-voltage MISFET.
Japanese Patent No. 2632101 (Patent Document 1) and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 11 (1999)-177083 (Patent Document 3) disclose a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having, in source and drain regions of MOSFET thereof, a triple diffusion structure.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. Hei 9 (1997)-275149 (Patent Document 2) discloses a method of manufacturing a MOS transistor having an LDD structure using a double spacer or a thick spacer.

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device

Abstract: A high-breakdown-voltage n type transistor has source and drain regions having first, second, and third semiconductor regions, which are formed by ion implantation of a first impurity from the outside of a high-breakdown-voltage gate electrode, a second impurity from the outside of the high-breakdown-voltage gate electrode and a first sidewall insulating film, and a third impurity from the outside of the high-breakdown-voltage gate electrode and the first and second sidewall insulating films, respectively. The first and second impurities are implanted from a direction tilted by 45° relative to the main surface of the semiconductor substrate and the third impurity from a direction perpendicular thereto. The impurity concentration of the first semiconductor region is lower than that of the second one and the ion implantation energy of the first impurity is greater than that of the second impurity.


A stent delivery system comprises an inner member and an expandable balloon mounted in a collapsed state on the inner member, the expandable balloon having a first and a second end. A compressible stent having a first diameter is mounted in a compressed state around the expandable balloon between the first and second ends of the balloon. At least a first retainer pillow is formed in the expandable balloon at its first end and has an outer diameter which is at least substantially equal to the diameter of the compressed stent. A first pillow support member is mounted on the inner member and supports the first retainer pillow to maintain the pillow's outer diameter.

In a typical percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) procedure, a guiding catheter is percutaneously introduced into the cardiovascular system of a patient. The guide catheter is advanced through a vessel until the distal end thereof is at desired location in the vasculature. A guide wire and a dilatation catheter having a balloon on the distal end thereof are introduced into the guiding catheter with the guidewire sliding through the dilatation catheter. The guide wire is first advanced out of the guiding catheter into the patient's coronary vasculature, and the dilatation catheter is advanced over the previously advanced guide wire until the dilatation balloon is properly positioned across the lesion. Once in position, the flexible, expandable, preformed balloon is inflated to a predetermined size with a liquid or gas at relatively high pressures (e.g. about ten to twelve atmospheres) to radially compress the arthrosclerotic plaque in the lesion against the inside of the artery wall and thereby dilate the lumen of the artery. The balloon is then deflated to a small profile so that the dilatation catheter may be withdrawn from the patient's vasculature and blood flow resumed through the dilated artery.
In angioplasty procedures of the kind described above, there may occur a restenosis of the artery; i.e., a re-narrowing of the treated coronary artery which is related to the development of neo-intinmal hyperplasia that occurs within the artery after it has been treated as described above. In a sense, restenosis is scar tissue that forms in response to mechanical intervention within a vascular structure. To prevent restenosis and strengthen the area, an intravascular prosthesis generally referred to as a stent can be implanted for maintaining vascular patency inside the artery at the lesion. The stent is then expanded to a larger diameter for placement or implantation in the vasculature. This is often accomplished by the balloon portion of the catheter. The stent effectively overcomes the natural tendency of the vessel walls of some patients to close back down, thereby maintaining a normal flow of blood through the vessel that would not be possible if the stent was not in place.
A known expandable stent which is delivered on a balloon catheter may be considered to be a stainless steel cylinder having a number of openings in its circumference resulting in a scaffolding when expanded. The stainless steel cylinder is compressed onto the outside of a non-expanded balloon catheter which includes stent retainer rings at each end of the stent to help maintain the stent on the balloon. Unfortunately, the limited amount of securment between the stent and the balloon is not always adequate to insure that the stent will properly stay in place while advancing the stent to and through a target lesion. Additionally, the outer surface of the delivery device is uneven because the stent generally extends outwardly beyond the balloon. Thus, the stent may contact a narrow vessel wall and be displaced while the catheter negotiates a narrow vessel. Furthermore, during a coronary intervention, the physician may have difficulty crossing the target lesion. In such cases, it may be necessary to pull the stent delivery system back into the guide catheter. Such procedures can be risky because the stent may become caught on the edge of the guide catheter.
For example, the guide catheter is generally inserted through the abdominal aorta to a point just beyond the ostium, the location from which the right coronary artery and the left main artery diverge. Blockages or lesions are present in smaller coronary vessels, and medical practitioners may sometimes predilatate the target area as, for example, by balloon angioplasty. Sometimes, however, predilatation is not performed, and doctors proceed directly to a primary stenting procedure. In such cases, there are occasions when the balloon/stent catheter cannot be properly positioned within the target area due to the constriction of the vessel and must be retracted back into the guide catheter. Even when predilatation is performed, vascular spasms and/or a reclosure of the vessel may occur rendering it difficult to properly align the balloon/stent likewise requiring retraction into the guide catheter. It is during the retraction process that the stent can catch or impact the edge of the guide catheter causing it to be dislocated or otherwise damaged.
To migrate this problem, balloon pillow have been utilized to provide a smooth transition of the balloon/stent assembly back into the guide catheter. Such balloons may be produced through a process of heating and cooling in, for example, Teflon sheaths which are stacked in a way to produce a step in the collapsed balloon surface. One such system is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,965 issued Nov. 17, 1998 and entitled "Stent Delivery and Deployment Method." In this apparatus, pillows formed in the balloon at opposite ends of the stent assist and secure the stent to the balloon and create a smooth transition between the stent area and the distal and proximal surface of the delivery device. The balloon may be tapered or non-tapered. Additionally, conventional retainers may be attached over the balloon or placed within the balloons. Unfortunately, the balloon material is generally very pliable, and it has been found that when using such devices, the pillows may collapse under the pressure of insertion and/or retraction thus exposing the edge of the stent to the potential impact on the edge of the guide catheter.
It should therefore be appreciated that it would be desirable to provide a low profile stent delivery apparatus which may be configured to have a generally smooth outer surface so as to avoid collisions between the stent and other obstructions such as the edge of the guide catheter.


A power supply base for an alarm device contains at least one pair, comprising a first terminal for an incoming power supply line and a second terminal for an outgoing power supply line, and a switch element for initial electrical connection of the respective first terminal to the second terminal of the at least one pair. The switch element has an actuating device for switching the switch element into a nonconducting state in response to an insertion of an alarm device into the power supply base.

The present invention relates to a power supply base for an alarm device, in particular a fire alarm or smoke alarm.
The present invention also relates to a method for setting up the power supply base of the invention.
Below, fundamental problems that the invention is response to are described, based on power supply bases for fire alarms, but without limiting the subject to power supply bases of that kind.
A fire alarm is known from International Patent Disclosure WO 97/05586, among other sources. These fire alarms typically comprise two parts, namely a power supply base and a fire sensor. The power supply base can be mounted on the ceiling and is connected by power supply lines to a fire-detection-system control unit. The fire sensor is inserted into the power supply base by technicians.
Typically, many fire alarms, in a series circuit or serial topology, are connected to a fire-detection-system control unit 1 (FIG. 1). For safety reasons, it is necessary that the fire-detection-system control unit 1 be able to tell whether all the fire sensors 2 are functional and in particular have been inserted into the associated power supply bases 3. This requirement is met by providing that each power supply base 3 internally interrupts the power supply line 4. Not until a fire sensor 2 is inserted does it connect to internal terminals 5, 6 of the power supply base 3. The interruption in the power supply line is thus bridged by the fire sensors 2. If one or more fire sensors 2 is missing, the power supply line 4 is interrupted. This interruption can be detected, for instance by means of a resting current measurement in the central warning system 1. Typically, a termination resistor 7 connects the power supply line 4 to a return line 8.
The resting current measurements and perfect function of the alarms, however, function only with correct wiring of the power supply bases 3 beforehand. It is therefore desirable to be able to check the correctness of the wiring even before any alarms have been inserted. This reduces the effort and expense for looking for mistakes in the event of incorrect wiring in particular.


Spectral tilt controllers are provided for optical amplifiers and other optical network equipment used in fiber-optic communications links in fiber-optic networks. The tilt controllers may be used to adjust the gain or output power spectrum of an optical amplifier or to modify the optical data signal spectrum in other optical network equipment. Tilt controllers may use mechanical actuators to position a filter element substrate relative to an optical beam. Dielectric filters or other filter arrangements having various different spectral tilt characteristics may be implemented on the same substrate. Spectral tilt and average spectral attenuation values may be adjusted using the tilt controllers if desired.

The present invention relates to fiber-optic communications network equipment, and more particularly, to tilt controllers for optical amplifiers for use in fiber-optic communications links.
Fiber-optic networks are used to support voice and data communications. In optical networks that use wavelength division multiplexing, multiple wavelengths of light are used to support multiple communications channels on a single fiber.
Optical amplifiers are used in fiber-optic networks to amplify optical signals. For example, optical amplifiers may be used to amplify optical data signals that have been subject to attenuation over fiber-optic paths. A typical amplifier may include erbium-doped fiber coils that are pumped with diode lasers. Raman amplifiers have also been investigated. Discrete Raman amplifiers may use coils of dispersion-compensating fiber to provide Raman gain. Distributed Raman amplifiers provide gain in the transmission fiber spans that are used to carry optical data signals between network nodes.
It is an object of the present invention to provide spectral tilt controllers.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide optical network equipment such as optical amplifiers with spectral tilt controllers.
These and other objects of the invention are accomplished in accordance with the present invention by providing spectral tilt controllers for optical amplifiers and other optical network equipment for use in fiber-optic communications links in fiber-optic networks. The fiber-optic links may be used to carry optical data signals associated with wavelength-division-multiplexing channels.
The tilt controllers may be used to adjust the gain or output power spectrum of an optical amplifier or to modify the optical data signal spectrum in other optical network equipment. In an erbium-doped fiber amplifier, for example, a tilt controller may be used to adjust for the tilt created by changing inversion levels in the erbium-doped fiber or created by different signal loading conditions on a communications link.
Tilt controllers may use mechanical actuators to position a substrate relative to an optical beam. Dielectric filters or other spectral filter arrangements having various different tilt characteristics may be implemented on the same substrate. Spectral tilt and average spectral attenuation values may be adjusted using the tilt controllers if desired.
Further features of the invention and its nature and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.

Optical amplifier spectral tilt controllers


A system and method for correcting for “wavelength drift” in an RES system. One advantage provided by the invention includes the ability to correct for offset amounts of “wavelength drift” that are not divisible by an integer number of pixels (e.g., fraction pixel offset amounts) in an optical detector used in the RES system. Correction of fractional pixel offset amounts may enhance spectral matching, enable substantially continuous calibration of an RES system, and/or other benefits.

Remote emissions sensing systems (hereinafter "RES systems") for detecting the concentrations of one or more gases in an exhaust plume of a motor vehicle are known. Conventional systems are configured to direct electromagnetic radiation through an exhaust plume of a passing vehicle, and monitor the intensity of the electromagnetic radiation received at a detector after the electromagnetic radiation has passed through the plume. As the electromagnetic radiation passes through the plume, gases within the plume may absorb the radiation within specific wavelength absorption bands that correspond to the particular gases present. Based on the amount of light transmitted and/or absorbed by the exhaust plume within the specific wavelength absorption bands, the concentrations of one or more of the gases may be determined.
Typically, to monitor the amount of radiation transmitted and/or absorbed within specific wavelength absorption bands, a conventional RES system may spatially separate the electromagnetic radiation into a spectrum and direct the spectrum incident on a sensor array, such as a diode array or other sensor array. A wavelength scale may be used to associate signals from the pixels (e.g., the individual diodes) with predictions of the wavelengths of radiation that may be received by the pixels, thereby enabling the intensities of radiation within particular wavelength bands to be determined. However, one source of inaccuracy in conventional systems may include a phenomenon known as "wavelength drift." "Wavelength drift" is a phenomenon in which the spectrum of spatially arranged electromagnetic radiation incident on the sensor may wander such that the wavelength ranges of the electromagnetic radiation received by the sensor pixels vary over time. For example, ambient conditions (e.g., temperature, pressure, etc.), mechanical instability, and/or other factors may cause "wavelength drift" within the detector. As the portion of the spectrum incident on each of the pixels in the sensor array wanders, the association of the signals generated by the pixels with particular wavelengths, or wavelength ranges, by the wavelength scale may shift.
Current methods for correcting for "wavelength drift" in RES systems tend to be inefficient and/or inaccurate. For example, a typical approach for calibrating for "wavelength drift" may include inserting a mixture of gases with known concentrations into an optical path of electromagnetic radiation (e.g., using a sealed gas cell, or a "puff" of gas), and comparing the intensities of the received electromagnetic radiation across the electromagnetic wavelength spectrum with expected intensities based on the predetermined concentrations of the gases. If the expected intensities are shifted from the measured intensities along the wavelength spectrum, the wavelength scale may be shifted by an integer amount of pixels to correct for the shift. Such a method for calibrating for "wavelength drift" may be inefficient because the introduction of the mixture of gases of known concentrations into the optical path may require additional system capabilities (e.g., positioning a gas cell, providing a "puff" of gas, etc.). This method may also be inaccurate because it only enables calibration for "wavelength drift" that is at least as large as on pixel of the sensor array. In other words, current solutions for correcting for "wavelength drift" may not enable for corrections of "wavelength drift" smaller than a single pixel.
These and other drawbacks exist with known methods for correcting for "wavelength drift" in RES systems.

Remote emissions sensing system and method incorporating spectral matching by data interpolation

Environmental Systems Products Holdings Inc.


A system and method for enrolling patients in a medical study, includes: a database component operative to maintain a medical practice database component and their corresponding plurality of specialities and a clinical studies database component and their corresponding plurality of medical studies. The system further includes a communications component to alert the medical practices of the medical studies and observe changes to the database components. The system also includes a processor programmed to update the database components, periodically match compatible medical specialties with the medical studies, and generate reports of the matched medical practices in the medical practice database. The system also includes a fee database component which the processor uses to calculate a fee for conducting the study.

As the number of elderly people increase in the United States and their lifespans extend there is an ever increasing need for newer and safer pharmaceutical products. As such, there is a need for new drugs and medical devices to be approved more rapidly. With the mapping of the human genome it is estimated that drug targets and drugs will multiply tenfold, necessitating more clinical testing. In fact, The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) states that all drugs currently on the market are based on about 500 different targets. They expect this number to increase 600-2000%, to 3,000 to 10,000 drug targets in the coming years. However, such medical advances are outrageously expensive and have necessitated changes throughout the industry.
It is estimated to cost $880 million to bring one new drug to market. And it is estimated that the average pharmaceutical company has 70 new drugs in development. This has forced the pharmaceutical companies to consolidate for the purpose of underwriting the prohibitive expense of bringing a drug to market. The average drug takes 10 to 12 years to bring to market and must negotiate a series of 3 clinical trials before approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can even be granted, leaving 8 to 10 years on a drug patent to recoup costs and turn a profit. Factoring in the governmental and managed care cost containment pressures, the pharmaceutical companies must produce one blockbuster medicine every 18 months to survive.
In summary, the pharmaceutical companies are in a position where they are producing more new drug compounds than ever before; they are about to lose the patents on many of their highly profitable, blockbuster, drugs; and they are being squeezed by the managed care industry. It is therefore critical for the pharmaceutical companies to discover, test and market the maximum number of new drugs in the minimum amount of time.
In order to speed up this process, business efficiencies are being applied to the previously haphazard clinical trials process. According to a Tufts University study, each day a study is late a pharmaceutical company can lose $1.3 million in lost prescription drug sales and it can be as high as $10 million for a blockbuster drug. Clinical trials are for the most part paper-based; necessarily cumbersome; and slow to monitor, process and store. One of the key factors affecting the time it takes to complete a clinical trial or study is the time it takes to recruit, screen and refer patients to the study. Only when the study is completely populated with patients can testing begin. Currently, the haphazard methods to recruit patients can take up to a year and thus, it becomes no surprise that 75% of all clinical studies are completed late.
There are a number of web-based clinical trial management software programs which plan, administer, and process trials for pharmaceutical companies. Although less than 15% of drug trials are e-clinical trials, this number is expected to increase to 50% or more in the next few years. Such trials will allow realtime monitoring of trials for adverse drug reactions and quality control, as well as more efficiently, move and process the prodigious amount of data generated. However, one area which still has not been adequately addressed is recruitment.
Traditionally, patients for studies have been enrolled from an investigator's clinic or practice, via referrals or by advertising. The only known prior art publication that addresses this problem is entitled Recruiting A Patient Into A Clinical Trial, Pub. No. US 2002/0099570 A1 by Knight. Basically, Knight discloses how a patient with a particular disease may find a relevant study using a computer, a web browser and Internet connection. Otherwise, the need for recruiting patients is served by databases of patients available for drug trials, or by programs that flag key words on dictated summaries using a search engine for evaluation for eligibility in studies, or by web-based patient enrollment programs. There are a number of websites where patients may do a preliminary application for eligibility and thereby enroll by this means.
The known prior art does not systematically search all available places that patients may be found for drug trial enrollments. In particular, those websites that deal only with investigators comprise only 5% of all physicians, and a corresponding number of patients. Knight's method does not systematically search for and find patients. It is believed that none of the known systems have a way to tap into and motivate the 95% of non-research performing physicians to find and enroll their patients into studies. And the known systems depend on patients having a computer with internet access. The method that searches dictations and flags patients is basically used in the offices of physicians with large practices who do research. These physicians are then paid for each patient found and for administering the study on that patient. However, these physicians are usually specialists who depend on referrals and it may take months for newly diagnosed patients to see the specialist.
Therefore, based upon the foregoing, there is a need for a process that will tap a larger pool of patients more systematically, and that will identify prospective patients at an earlier stage of their ailment before they see the appropriate specialist. And there is also a need to accurately estimate the cost of doing the study and distribute payments to the participating physicians.

System and process for matching patients with clinical medical trials


Systems and methods for measuring the stress profile of ion-exchanged glass are disclosed, based on the TM and TE guided mode spectra of the optical waveguide formed in the ion-exchanged glass. The method includes digitally defining from the TM and TE guided mode spectra positions of intensity extrema, and calculating respective TM and TE effective refractive indices from these positions. The method also includes calculating TM and TE refractive index profiles nTM(z) and nTE(z) using either an inverse WKB calculation or a fitting process that employs assumed functions for nTM(z) and nTE(z). The method also includes calculating the stress profile S(z)=[nTM(z)−nTE(z)]/SOC, where SOC is a stress optic coefficient for the glass substrate. Systems for performing the method are also disclosed.

Ion exchange is used in the glass industry to change the properties of a bulk glass substrate to create, for example, optical waveguides or to increase the strength of the glass. For example, Corning's GORILLA® glass comprises an aluminosilicate bulk glass where potassium ions are exchanged for sodium ions in a surface layer using a diffusion process. The diffusion process is carried out using, for example, an aluminosilicate glass substrate immersed in a potassium salt bath that is maintained at an elevated temperature.
Because the potassium ions are larger than the sodium ions, a compressive stress arises in the ion-exchange region of the aluminosilicate substrate. This compressive stress serves to strengthen the glass, thereby making GORILLA® glass and related ion-exchanged glasses useful for a host of applications requiring a strong glass with scratch-resistant surface. Example applications include flat-panel cover glass for laptop computers, televisions and hand-held displays.
The strength of an ion-exchanged glass is largely defined by its stress profile, which is a measure of the induced stress as a function of distance into the glass from the glass surface. Unfortunately, present-day non-destructive and efficient stress measurement techniques only provide a surface stress measurement or a crude linear approximation for the stress profile, and such measurements have limited utility. When manufacturing an ion-exchanged glass, a non-destructive measurement of the full stress profile, or a more accurate representation of it than the linear approximation, can provide a more complete understanding of how process conditions lead to particular stress profile, and how the different stress profiles correlate with glass strength and frangibility. Such measurement capability could improve and accelerate the development of new and improved ion-exchanged glasses and ion exchange processing.


A motor control device controls a current of a motor based on a torque command, the current being separated into a d-axis current and a q-axis current orthogonal to the d-axis current, the torque command being a target value of a torque of the motor. The motor control device includes a current vector controller that receives input of a d-axis current command and a q-axis current command, and generates a d-axis voltage command and a q-axis voltage command, a difference between a value of the d-axis current and a value of the d-axis current command being zero, a difference between a value of the q-axis current and a value of the q-axis current command being zero, a q-axis current command generator that generates the q-axis current command based on the torque command, a magnetic-flux weakening controller that generates the d-axis current command based on a difference between a voltage command and a reference voltage, the voltage command being a vector with the d-axis voltage command output from the current vector controller as a d-axis component and the q-axis voltage command as a q-axis component, an amplitude of the voltage command not exceeding the reference voltage, a current limiter that limits a magnitude of the d-axis current command according to a magnitude of the q-axis current command, the d-axis current command being a d-axis component of a current command vector of the motor, the q-axis current command being a q-axis component of the current command vector of the motor, a magnitude of the current command vector of the motor not exceeding a current limit value, and a reference voltage correction unit that corrects the reference voltage based on a difference between a value of the d-axis current command before limitation and a value of the d-axis current command after the limitation.

Generally, as a method of controlling a winding current of a permanent magnet synchronous motor, vector control is used in which the winding current of the motor is separated into a d-axis component in a rotor magnetic flux direction and a q-axis component orthogonal to the d-axis component to perform control. A current controller that performs the vector control receives an external command and calculates the value of a voltage command for a motor drive unit that supplies power to the motor.
In a case such as where the value of the external command is large, the value of this voltage command may exceed a suppliable voltage of the motor drive unit. This phenomenon is called voltage saturation. The voltage saturation is more likely to occur as the drive speed of the motor increases. This is because an induced voltage generated during the drive of the motor increases in proportion to the drive speed, and a voltage between terminals of the motor also increases to compensate for the increase in the induced voltage with a supply voltage. Also in a case where a load of the motor is large or a power supply voltage is low, a supply voltage margin is small, and thus the voltage saturation is more likely to occur.
When the voltage saturation occurs in the motor during power running operation, the torque cannot be generated and the speed cannot be increased. In addition, as a secondary effect, an integral term of the current controller or a speed controller may wind up and a response may deteriorate.
As a means for suppressing the voltage saturation, magnetic-flux weakening control is used in which a negative d-axis current is passed to weaken a magnetic flux generated by a permanent magnet and suppress the increase in the induced voltage.
However, if the negative d-axis current is increased, a reaction magnetic field causes irreversible demagnetization of the permanent magnet to occur or the efficiency of the motor to deteriorate. Thus, the magnitude of the d-axis current may be limited.
Furthermore, since each of the motor and an inverter that drives the motor has an upper limit of the current that can be energized, the magnitude of a combined current, which is the sum of the d-axis current and a q-axis current, may also be limited.
Such magnetic-flux weakening control under the limitation of the d-axis current and the limitation of the combined current is described in, for example, PTL 1. In the method disclosed in PTL 1, a d-axis current command is generated based on a difference between the value of a voltage command and a predetermined reference value. An external target command value or a q-axis current command value is limited based on the amount by which the d-axis current command exceeds a negative limit value. Furthermore, PTL 1 shows a technique provided with a current limiter that limits the magnitude of the q-axis current command according to the magnitude of the d-axis current command so that the magnitude of a current command vector of the motor, which is the sum of the d-axis current command and the q-axis current command, does not exceed a predetermined value.
The technique of PTL 1 performs processing of reducing the value of the q-axis current command when the magnitude of the combined current, which is the sum of the value of the d-axis current command and the value of the q-axis current command, reaches the predetermined value. Therefore, the larger the value of an initial q-axis current command, the smaller the room for increasing the value of the d-axis current command, and it is difficult to obtain the effect of the magnetic-flux weakening control. Therefore, the larger torque an operating region requires, the more difficult it is to increase the speed with the torque maintained.

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.


Methods and apparatus are provided for adaptive determination of timing signals, such as on a high speed parallel bus. The invention adaptively determines a timing signal having a first edge with respect to an internal clock, wherein the timing signal includes a period in which the timing signal is undriven, followed by a period immediately before a first transition in which the timing signal is in a predefined state. The timing signal is evaluated using one or more comparators; and an output of the one or more comparators are latched based on a clock signal. The clock signal is adjusted until the one or more comparators indicate the timing signal is in the known and valid state. The clock signal is further adjusted until the one or more comparators indicate the first transition has been reached. Thereafter, a gating control signal is established based on a timing of the first transition.

As the performance and data throughput requirements for networking and computing applications increase, the performance and data throughput requirements for many of the required individual subsystems also increase. Transferring data between the main memory and the system processor, for example, is often a significant performance bottleneck in any computing system. Even the fastest standard Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) cannot keep up with the ever increasing bus speeds used on many computing systems.
Synchronous Dynamic RAM (SDRAM) is a type of DRAM that demonstrates improved performance and data throughput. While DRAM has an asynchronous interface (i.e., it immediately reacts to changes in its control inputs), SDRAM has a synchronous interface (i.e., it waits for a clock pulse before responding to its control inputs). Likewise, Double Data Rate (DDR) SDRAM is a further evolution of SDRAM that is used in many computing systems. As originally proposed, SDRAM acts on only the rising edge of the clock signal (i.e., each low-to-high transition). DDR SDRAM, on the other hand, acts on both the rising and falling edges, thereby potentially increasing the data rate by a factor of two. Further performance improvements are obtained in DDR-2 (2×) and QDR-2 (4×) by phase shifting the clock signal to obtain additional rising and falling edges.
SDRAM enjoys wide spread application in both low-end consumer computing applications, as well as in high end networking switches and routers. A DDR2 SDRAM interface protocol, for example, is used for communications between an integrated circuit (e.g., a memory controller) and an external memory. See, e.g., JEDEC Standard, DDR2 SDRAM Specification, JESD79-2A (January 2004), incorporated by reference herein. A parallel bus between the memory controller and the external memory typically carries parallel data that is being read from or written to the external memory. In addition, the memory controller provides a system clock CK to the external memory. In this manner, synchronization among the various signals on the parallel bus can be accomplished, for example, by a phase locked loop that generates the system clock CK. According to the DDR2 SDRAM Specification, the external memory will transmit a number of n+1 bit words DQ[0:n] and a data strobe signal, DQS, back to the controller in response to a read request, RD, from the controller.
The DQS signal and the data bits DQ[0:n] are ideally edge aligned. While the DQS signal is inactive, it is held in an undriven, high impedance (HI-Z) state. The controller should not utilize the DQS signal while it is in the HI-Z state, which would cause unpredictable results in the controller. Therefore, the DQS signal must be gated (e.g., AND or NAND gated) into the controller at the appropriate time (i.e., the time at which it is "safe" for the controller to use the DQS signal as an input). Read preamble and read postamble symbols bracket in time the usable portion of the DQS signal, in a known manner.
A number of techniques have been proposed or suggested for the controller to determine when to process the DQS signal during a read operation. Most techniques, especially for high data rates, rely on a priori design understandings to incorporate critical timing into the controller in a "hard-wired" fashion. It has been found, however, that hard-wiring a single timing relationship into the DDR2 controller reduces the noise margin. In addition, this hard-wired approach also results in the rejection of some system configurations as impossible to meet timing. Further, aging effects could result in erroneous operation of the controller. A need therefore exists for methods and apparatus for adaptive determination of one or more timing signals, such as DDR2 DQS timing, in such ASIC devices.

Method and apparatus for adaptive determination of timing signals on a high speed parallel bus


A dual cam lever hose clamp may comprise: first and second cam lever clamps and upper and lower clamp halves. The cam lever clamps may move between a retaining position and release position. The upper and lower clamp halves may form a collar when opposing ends of the clamp halves fasten together via the cam lever clamps. The first cam lever clamp may comprise a first linkage pivotally coupled to a first end of the lower clamp half and a first cam lever pivotally coupled to the first linkage. The second cam lever clamp may comprise a second linkage pivotally coupled to a second end of the lower clamp half and a second cam lever pivotally coupled to the second linkage. The first and second cam lever clamps may comprise cam levers that cammingly engage cam locking surfaces on the upper clamp half to fasten and tighten the collar.

In general, hoses having a large bore or diameter (e.g., 6″ to 12″) such as layflat or collapsible hoses are critical to the rapid repair and resiliency of military bases infrastructure. When assembling these large bore hoses, special tools are generally required. The hose generally must be payed out to a desired length, cut, and clamped at the desired hose end. Unfortunately, clamps used for these large bore hoses comprise four or more sections or segments and generally require one or more fasteners installed and tightened for each section or segment. Given that these hoses are rated as high pressure hoses, the clamp must be tightened to a specific torque. Thus, a substantial amount of time may be spent assembling the hose end. In this regard, there is a need for improvement in expediting the assembly of a layflat hose end in an efficient manner.

The United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


A battery charger (102) includes an input terminal (124) for receiving control signals from radio (104). The control signals are received by a charge controller (112) which provides a charge rate to radio battery pack (106) which is a function of the control signal. Radio (104) includes a controller (126) which can sense the state of the radio battery pack (106), as well as changes in the state of radio (104). Controller (126) can then modify the control signal sent to charger (102) and therefor the battery charge rate proved by charger (102) based on certain changes in the state of battery pack (106) or radio (104).

Battery chargers are commonly used for charging battery operated electronic devices such as battery operated pagers, cellular telephones and radios. Modern chargers used for charging such communication devices are typically capable of charging at different charge rates. For example, a typical battery charger can charge both at a rapid-charge rate and a trickle charge rate depending on the condition of the battery. A charger will usually first determine the capacity of the battery to be charged by sensing a code resistor in the battery which informs the charger of the capacity of the battery. The charger then begins to charge the battery using a predetermined charge rate based on the battery's capacity. While charging the battery, the charger senses the temperature of the battery by using a thermistor which is part of the battery. If the battery begins to heat up beyond predetermined limits, the battery charger lowers the rate the battery is being charged at in order to prevent the battery from being damaged.
One problem with present day chargers is that in order to be able to change charge rates and determine the temperature of the battery requires the charger to have a costly on-board controller such as a microprocessor, or costly discrete components to perform the control function. Another technique employed by prior art chargers such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,115,182, entitled "Battery Charging Controller For A Battery Powered Device And Method For Using The Same", by Ehmke et al., is for either the charger to provide several current outputs and have the battery powered device select the appropriate current source, or have the electronic device generate several current sources from a single charger output with the battery powered device again selecting the appropriate current source.
Another problem with prior art charging systems is that while an electronic device such as a radio is being charged, it can change state from a standby state to a state in which the unit is operational, such as the case of a cellular telephone that is being charged while the telephone user is operating the unit. The problem with the radio changing states while it is being charged is that more current is required by the unit in the operational state then when it is in the standby mode. If the battery charger can not compensate for this increase need for current immediately, the unit may begin to consume energy from its battery if the unit is requiring more current then the charger is providing. A need thus exists for a charging system which can automatically compensate for a units change in current requirements while being charged, and also for a charger which does not require the expense of an on-board control unit.

Method and apparatus for charging a battery powered electronic device