Provided are techniques for detecting a presentation of media content on a first display device; synchronizing contextual data corresponding to the media content with the media content; transmitting the contextual metadata corresponding to the media content to a second display device in response to the detecting, wherein the second display device is a different device than the first display device; and presenting the contextual metadata, in synchronization with the media content, on the second display device in conjunction with the presentation of the media content on the first display device.

Despite many advances in the presentation of entertainment, for the most part the television viewing experience has remained static. Two improvements that have become available are on-line streaming media, such as NETFLIX® and HULU®, which may be played through mobile devices and conventional televisions, and time-shifting of programming through the use of digital video recorders (DVRs).
Currently, some users may watch movies or shows with digital devices in hand. Sometimes, this type of viewing may involve multitasking, e.g., watching a show while performing unrelated activities such as game playing and communicating with other parties via text or email. Other typical types of multitasking may involve using the digital device to research the movie of show being watched. For example, a user may simultaneously view a movie with a particular actor while searching for information on the actor and their other credits. Other examples include using mobile application to identify a song played or location at which a film was shot or to investigate, and possibly purchase, a viewed item such as art, fashion, clothing, furniture, electronics, an automobile and so on.

Synchronizing two or more display devices to augment user experience

International Business Machines Corporation


A tubular sheath is disclosed which is slidably disposed over a tubular medical device which tubular medical device is positioned at a body tissue access site. The sheath is deposited within a patient to assist in sealing the incision caused by the tubular medical device and inhibit internal and external bleeding. The sheath includes a generally rigid outer coating and an absorbable and expandable inner core, which when positioned, in situ, at the accessed opening of the patient's body part can function as a vascular plug.

There are numerous medical procedures and devices in use today in which a medical device, generally tubular, such as a laparoscope, trocar, electrode, probe, introducer, or the like is inserted into the abdomen, chest, or body parts of a patient for performing some procedure or inspection after which the device is withdrawn. When the device is inserted, a wound results and hemorrhagic complications arise during the insertion and/or removal of the device. Until my invention, there was no known device which addressed the hemorrhagic complications arising from the wound. If complications arose, the wound was treated in accordance with sound medical practice employing conventional techniques.
Within the prior art, the use of gelatin as a substance for making medication capsules for internal use and adapted to be absorbed by enzyme action or other physiological processes within the body is well known. Also, the use of gelatin material for various surgical techniques has been well documented. In particular, the use of a gelatin material in a "sponge" form or as a foam is commercially available from the Upjohn Company under the trademark "Gelfoam". Gelfoam with and without thrombin, a protein which is active at the last stage of clot formation and functions to change fibrinogen to fibrin, has been used in surgery in virtually all organ systems including prostrate, brain, musculoskeletal, vascular graphs and other areas without adverse complications. The use of gelatin as a coating for a fabric, blood-vessel graft is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,106,483 to Kline et al. dated Oct. 8, 1963, incorporated herein by reference.
The use of hardened gelatin as forming a part of a surgical instrument is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,358,684 to Marshall dated Dec. 19, 1967, incorporated by reference herein. In Marshall, the distal cutting edge of a cannula which is used as a parenteral injection device is formed from a thiolated gelatin material. Specifically, the gelatin distal tip punctures a vein, and eventually dissolves, leaving the proximal portion of the cannula within the vein for administrating parenteral solutions. The cannula can be thus left in situ without vein damage which would otherwise arise from the presence of a sharp needle or the removal of the sharp needle from the vein. In this sense, the prior art recognizes that it is known to use gelatin as a surgical instrument which can be dissolved at the insertion site.

Sheath for wound closure caused by a medical tubular device


The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for delivering tungsten into a fuel combustion system or to the exhaust therefrom. By the present invention, tungsten from the lubricant or the fuel will interact with combustion products and, in particular, phosphorus, sulfur, and/or lead from the combustion products. In this manner, the tungsten scavenges or inactivates harmful materials which have migrated into the fuel or combustion products, and which can otherwise poison catalytic converters, sensors and/or automotive on-board diagnostic devices The present invention can also lead to improved durability of exhaust after treatment systems. A lubricant in accordance with the present invention is also disclosed.

A problem exists in fuel combustion systems in which the fuel contains, or acquires, or produces upon combustion, one or more metal (e.g. lead), sulfur, and/or phosphorus contaminants that can poison or degrade catalytic converters, sensors, or on-board diagnostic devices.
An additional problem is created by such contaminants in the form of undesirably increased levels of certain combustion products or by-products in the exhaust.
Yet another problem from such contaminants is a detrimental effect on after treatment systems. These contaminants can include elemental phosphorus, lead and sulfur, or compounds thereof in the fuel, or in the air. The contaminants can also get into the fuel, or the combustion chamber, or the combustion exhaust stream from the engine lubricants which often contain phosphorus-containing and sulfur-containing additives, and lead compounds associated with combustion system wear.
It is a well-known phenomenon that vehicles and other combustion systems consume, that is the engine burns, oil used as a lubricant for the engine or moving parts of a combustion system. Various pathways exist for lubricating oil to enter the combustion system, and/or its exhaust stream. Clearly the various components or additives in the lubricating oil also are consumed or burned and these components or additives can have deleterious effects on the combustion system's catalysts, after treatment system, and emissions.
It is therefore desirable to inhibit, reduce or prevent the deleterious interaction of components (such as phosphorus, lead and/or sulfur arising from the lubricant source, air or fuel or otherwise entering the combustion process) with the combustion exhaust stream to thereby prevent catalyst poisoning, after treatment system malfunction, and increased emissions.

Scavenging phosphorus, sulfur, and lead from combustion exhaust using tungsten compounds and lubricant


Some embodiments comprise methods, systems, and compositions to produce and/or administer modified exosomes or other vesicles containing one or more selected microRNAs, including but not limited to, miR-146b. Some embodiments also comprise the therapeutic administration and use of such modified exosomes and/or producer cells to treat mammalian injuries and diseases, including in human beings.

Despite advances in diagnostics, chemotherapeutics, and surgical techniques, the prognosis for certain types of cancers, including but not limited to, brain cancers like glioblastoma multiforme ("GBM"), remains poor.
MicroRNAs ("miRNAs" or "miRs") can regulate gene expression in cells and might be used for therapeutic benefit. As nonlimiting examples, miRNAs can be used to inhibit tumor progression, or to promote tissue healing. Epidermal growth factor receptor ("EGFR") and miR-146b expression have been shown to be inversely correlated in GBMs. However, many EGFR inhibitors have largely failed to induce GBM regression clinically, even where the relationship between genotype and drug response is observed in other cancers. Moreover, GBMs display a variety of genetic aberrations. Thus, a need remains for therapeutic treatments for many cancers, including but not limited to, GBM.
One difficulty that must be overcome for effective miRNA therapy is efficient delivery of the therapeutic miRNAs into the targeted cells, tissues, or organs. A predominant technical challenge in developing a miRNA-based therapy is getting target cells to efficiently absorb and incorporate significant amounts of miRNA.

Methods, systems, and compositions for cell-derived/vesicle-based microrna delivery


A cartridge type bearing seal facilitates the prevention of contaminant ingress between a spindle rotor and a spindle housing, particularly in situations where a circumferentially uniform fluid pressure is generated within the annular volume of the spindle housing. The cartridge includes ringlike rotor and stator sections which can be compressed axially to snap fit together, in a manner which enables relative rotation about a common axis. When interconnected, the sections define an inside surface and an outside surface, and a fluid flow path which extends radially outwardly therebetween, and which traverses a collar and tangs construction which enables the snap fit connection. The tangs are arcuate in shape and spaced equidistantly around the axis. The total arcuate space occupied by the tangs is relatively small, compared to the total arcuate space residing between the tangs, and bounded by the two sections adjacent the collar. This structure allows the pressurized purge fluid to flow outwardly from the cartridge during use, to prevent contaminant ingress during operation of the spindle. This construction may be readily adapted to accommodate a spindle of virtually any size or shape, at relatively low cost, and is particularly suitable for retrofitting an existing spindle which has experienced a failed seal.

The assignee of the present invention, Setco Sales Company, owns U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,727,095, 5,980,115 and 6,217,219 B1, all of which are entitled "Bearing Seal With Uniform Fluid Purge," and directed to a unique bearing seal which has proved tremendously successful in increasing the reliability of spindles. Setco sells this patented bearing seal under the trademark AIRSHIELD®. These Setco patents are incorporated herein by reference, in their entireties.
According to one aspect of the prior invention, the bearing seal includes an annular cap located at a first end of a bearing housing, where a shaft exits therefrom. The cap has an internal surface which defines an annular internal volume, and a passage formed therethrough which tangentially intersects the annular volume. This structure allows pressurized purge fluid to be supplied to the annular volume via the passage, to create a circumferentially uniform fluid pressure within the annular volume. This circumferentially uniform pressure prevents ingress of contaminant materials within the bearing.
This prior invention has significantly increased spindle reliability, by reducing downtime caused by failed bearing seals. Such downtime can have critical adverse effects on overall spindle efficiency and throughput.
These prior patents disclose four specific embodiments for achieving the critical benefits of this prior invention. Moreover, these prior patents expressly suggest that the benefits of that prior invention can be obtained in retrofit situations, where an in-place spindle with a failed bearing seal requires the retrofitting of a new bearing seal. These prior patents suggested some general details of how such a retrofitted bearing seal could be achieved. However, those prior patents did not disclose or suggest a specific structure for achieving the benefits of the prior invention with a wide variety of spindles of various size and shape.
It is an object of the present invention to more easily and effectively retrofit bearing seals on in-place spindles.
It is another object of the present invention to more readily accommodate existing spindles of various size and shape with a new and improved bearing seal.
It is still another object of the invention to improve, in a relatively simple and cost-effective manner, the sealing efffectiveness of existing spindles.

Cartridge-type bearing seal for machine tool spindle


A hanger includes one or more tubes, a stub extended axially outwards from each end of the tubes, a sleeve threadedly engaging with each of the stubs, and a head having an extension threadedly engaged to each of the sleeves. The extensions and the heads are adjustable relative to the tube such that the heads are movable either axially outwards or inwards of the hanger.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hanger, and more particularly to a hanger assembly.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typical hangers include a rod having a predetermined length and having both ends each supported on a support, the length of the rods can not be adjusted such that two supports should be fixed on a pair of oppositely facing walls and the rod should be cut to suitable length before the hanger can be fixed between the walls.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional hangers.

No. 28, Alley 55, Lane 208, Sec. 3, Hsi Tun Rd.


Provided is a compression apparatus for cooling multiple devices using a single fan with a small amount of electric power. An upper limit temperature, a first gain applied in a case in which a suction adjustment valve is opened, and a second gain applied in a case in which the suction adjustment valve is closed are set in advance for each of multiple temperature detectors provided at different locations of the compression apparatus; and, for each of the multiple temperature detectors, a difference between a detected value and the upper limit temperature is calculated, and a rotation speed of the fan is determined based on the smallest value in the differences, and the first gain or the second gain set for the temperature detector having the smallest difference.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a compression apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
A compression apparatus which compresses a gas, is configured to store a compressor and incidental devices such as an aftercooler in a package (housing), and includes a fan for cooling the respective devices is widely used. In this compression apparatus, a single fan cools not only the compressor but also an intercooler and the aftercooler (refer to Japanese Patent Nos. 3773443 and 4418321).
In a compression apparatus for cooling multiple devices by using a single fan, a fan having a large capacity is often provided in order to sufficiently cool all the devices even under the worst condition. Moreover, if the fan having a large capacity is operated at the maximum capacity in order to sufficiently cool all the devices, there poses a problem that power consumption increases. Further, the operation of the fan having a large capacity increases noise.


One method disclosed includes forming a replacement gate structure for a device. The method includes forming a gate cavity above a semiconductor substrate. The method further includes forming a first bulk metal layer in the gate cavity above a work function metal layer. The method further includes forming a conductive etch stop layer in the gate cavity above the first bulk metal layer. The method further includes forming a second bulk metal layer in the gate cavity above the conductive etch stop layer. The method further includes performing at least one etching process to recess the first and second bulk metal layers selectively relative to the conductive etch stop layer. The method further includes performing at least one etching process to recess at least the conductive etch stop layer.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure generally relates to the formation of semiconductor devices, and, more specifically, to various methods of forming gate structures of semiconductor devices and the resulting devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
The fabrication of advanced integrated circuits, such as CPUs, storage devices, ASICs (application specific integrated circuits) and the like, requires the formation of a large number of circuit elements in a given chip area according to a specified circuit layout, wherein so-called metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs or FETs) represent one important type of circuit element that substantially determines performance of the integrated circuits. The transistors are typically either NMOS (NFET) or PMOS (PFET) type devices wherein the "N" and "P" designation is based upon the type of dopants used to create the source/drain regions of the devices. So-called CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) technology or products refers to integrated circuit products that are manufactured using both NMOS and PMOS transistor devices.
Field effect transistors, whether an NMOS or a PMOS device, typically include a source region, a drain region, a channel region that is positioned between the source region and the drain region, and a gate electrode positioned above the channel region. Current flow through the FET is controlled by controlling the voltage applied to the gate electrode. For an NMOS device, if there is no voltage (or a logically low voltage) applied to the gate electrode, then there is no current flow through the device (ignoring undesirable leakage currents, which are relatively small). However, when an appropriate positive voltage (or logically high voltage) is applied to the gate electrode, the channel region of the NMOS device becomes conductive, and electrical current is permitted to flow between the source region and the drain region through the conductive channel region. For a PMOS device, the control voltages are reversed. Field effect transistors may come in a variety of different physical shapes, e.g., so-called planar FET devices or so-called 3D or FinFET devices.
For many early device technology generations, the gate structures of most transistor elements have included a plurality of silicon-based materials, such as a silicon dioxide and/or silicon oxynitride gate insulation layer, in combination with a polysilicon gate electrode. However, as the channel length of aggressively scaled transistor elements has become increasingly small, many newer generation devices employ gate structures that contain alternative materials in an effort to avoid the short channel effects which may be associated with the use of traditional silicon-based materials in reduced channel length transistors. For example, in some aggressively scaled transistor elements, which may have channel lengths on the order of approximately 10-32 nm or less, gate structures that include a so-called high-k dielectric gate insulation layer and one or metal layers that function as the gate electrode (HK/MG) have been implemented. Such alternative gate structures have been shown to provide significantly enhanced operational characteristics over the heretofore more traditional silicon dioxide/polysilicon gate structure configurations.
Depending on the specific overall device requirements, several different high-k materials—i.e., materials having a dielectric constant, or k-value, of approximately 10 or greater—have been used with varying degrees of success for the gate insulation layer in an HK/MG gate structure. For example, in some transistor element designs, a high-k gate insulation layer may include tantalum oxide (Ta2O5), hafnium oxide (HfO2), zirconium oxide (ZrO2), titanium oxide (TiO2), aluminum oxide (Al2O3), hafnium silicates (HfSiOx) and the like. Furthermore, one or more non-polysilicon metal gate electrode materials—i.e., a metal gate stack—may be used in HK/MG configurations to control the work function of the transistor. These metal gate electrode materials may include, for example, one or more layers of titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), titanium-aluminum (TiAl), titanium-aluminum-carbon (TiALC), aluminum (Al), aluminum nitride (AlN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), tantalum carbide (TaC), tantalum carbonitride (TaCN), tantalum silicon nitride (TaSiN), tantalum silicide (TaSi) and the like.
In many cases, the metal-containing gate structures are formed by performing well-known replacement gate processing techniques. In general, the replacement gate technique involves forming a sacrificial gate structure (e.g., a silicon dioxide gate insulating layer and a polysilicon gate electrode) and a gate cap layer, followed by forming a protective sidewall spacer adjacent the gate structure. The sacrificial gate structure is eventually removed to define a replacement gate cavity between the spacer. Thereafter, the high-k gate insulating layer and the various layers of metal that will comprise the gate electrode are sequentially deposited in the gate cavity. Excess materials positioned outside of the gate cavity are removed by performing one or more CMP process operations. Next, one or more recess etching processing operations are performed to remove some of the materials within the gate cavity to create a space for the formation of a protective gate cap layer. The gate cap layer is formed by overfilling the recessed cavity with a material, such as silicon nitride, and thereafter performing a CMP process to remove the excess gate cap materials.
In modern device fabrication, transistors having relative short channel lengths and transistors having relatively long channel lengths are formed on the same substrate. Unfortunately, some of the metal materials employed in such metal gate structures, such as tungsten, have different etch characteristics depending upon the channel length of the transistor device, due to differences in grain sizes. Accordingly, during the recess etching process that is performed to make room for the gate cap layer above the replacement metal-containing gate structure, some of the gate structure materials may be inadvertently removed or etched, leading to poor device performance or lower yield. More specifically, etching the gate structures of devices having different channel lengths may result in uneven and inadvertent etching of at least the metal gate materials, such as tungsten or the like, due to the larger grain size and surface area of the metal material in the longer channel devices.
The present disclosure is directed to various methods of forming gate structures of semiconductor devices and the resulting devices that may solve or reduce one or more of the problems identified above.

Methods of forming gate structure of semiconductor devices and the resulting devices


This invention discloses a service scheduling unit and the method thereof, which performs scheduling for the packet service that comes from the line unit and the data service access processing unit in the digital communication system, and the service scheduling unit includes: a mapping module, a de-mapping module, an encapsulating module, a decapsulating module and a packet scheduling module. After entering the service scheduling unit, the services needing to be scheduled go through the mapping/de-mapping module and the encapsulating/decapsulating module, arrive at the scheduling module for final scheduling This method of scheduling the services can achieve the 1+1 or 1:1 protect function of the service scheduling module. The usage of this method can achieve different granularities of the mapping/de-mapping, different protocol encapsulating and can efficiently decrease the total cost of the system.

As data services gradually increase, the conventional Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) transmission technology has gained a progress correspondingly. The Next Generation SDH (NG SDH) technology, represented by the Virtual Concatenation, the Link Capacity Adjustment Scheme (LCAS) and the Generic Framing Procedure (GFP), has boosted the evolvement of a conventional SDH unit, which mainly provides Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) services, into a Multi-Service Transfer Platform (MSTP).
Meanwhile, in the field of data communication, requirements for operability and manageability are increasingly prominent. The Virtual Private Network (VPN) technology, particularly Layer 2 VPN (L2 VPN), has become the basic on which the data communication becomes operable. Accordingly, common L2 VPN technology includes Q-Tag (embedded)-in-Q-Tag (q-in-q), Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) L2 VPN, etc.
Here, the q-in-q is used for achieving the purpose of a separation between data streams of different users through using a tag in addition to the tag of Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) as defined in the 802.1q.
In short, the MPLS L2 VPN differentiates between different data streams through encapsulating a user data packet and using a so-called label in the encapsulation so that a separation between the data streams of different users can be performed.
The above two technologies will be commonly referred to as L2 VPN label technology hereafter, unless indicated otherwise.
There are various implementation technologies to apply an L2 VPN service scheduling on the MSTP, dependent upon different system configurations.
FIG. 1 shows an L2 VPN-service scheduling method of prior art, in which services from between different line units and local Ethernet data services are scheduled on the same board by a cross-connecting unit.
FIG. 2 shows another L2 VPN-service scheduling method of prior art, which, in comparison with the method shown in FIG. 1, further includes a data exchanging plane to perform a data exchange between data service access processing units, however, the units connected with the cross-connecting unit are still the data service access processing units.
It is obvious from above that there exist the following disadvantages in the prior art.
1. The function of service access and the function of service scheduling are not separated from each other, and there is an absence of an independent service scheduling unit. In case data service access is not needed for a node, i.e., only the service scheduling is needed, the cost of the board for the data service access will be a waste.
2. In case there is a data service access at a data service interface, it is difficult for a data service access processing unit to achieve a "1+1" protection due to the limitation of the data service interface. Since the function of scheduling plays a very important role in a network, and a redundant protection is almost compulsively required, and such drawback is rather serious.

Service scheduling unit and a method thereof


A musical drumhead having a top surface and bottom surface and a means attached to the drumhead for discharging an aromatic vapor. The musical drumhead is comprised of a membrane having means to vent the aromatic vapors through the top surface of the drumhead and disperse the vapors into the surrounding environment. Vent means comprises a plurality of vent holes in the drumhead membrane through which the vapors are discharged. The primary source of the vapors is a pad of porous material impregnated with an aroma producing liquid with a pleasing fragrance. The pad of porous material is attached in some conventional manner to the bottom surface of the drumhead immediately beneath the vent holes. The striking of the drumhead produces a vibration in the drumhead membrane which, in turn, excites the molecules in the air beneath and above the membrane. The aromatic oil vapors gathered around the impregnated pad are initially forced in all directions by the excited air and then dispersed through the vent holes into the surrounding areas.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the area of musical drumhead construction and, more particularly, to a musical drumhead having a means to discharge a pleasing aromatic vapor when struck and made to vibrate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Musical drumheads of all sizes and shapes and constructed of a variety of materials, including natural skins and synthetics, are well-known in the prior art. Also well-known in the prior art are musical drumheads that are combined with a variety of articles in order to vary the tone or sounds emanating from the instrument, or other kinds of materials that, when combined with the drumhead, produce a pleasing appearance, such as, for example, designs containing a variety of colors and geometric shapes. Musical drumheads also come in various thicknesses and, in certain instances, may even contain an opening for air to pass through to alter the sound of the drum.
Unknown in the prior art, though, is the use of any type of means for discharging an aromatic vapor in combination with the play of a musical drumhead. Specifically, conspicuously absent in the prior art are musical drumheads that contain some sort of device which, when attached to either the top or the bottom surface of a drumhead, serves to discharge an aromatic vapor when the drumhead is struck by any type of hard object, such as, for example, a drumstick. More specifically, the vibrations in the membrane caused by the striking of the head with a hard object first excites the air above and below the drumhead membrane and around the device itself. Then, the excited air forces the aromatic vapors in all directions An example of this device is a felt pad impregnated with an aromatic liquid and surrounded by aromatic vapors produced by the liquid in the pad.
The present invention is a improvement over the prior art in that it employs a means attached to a musical drumhead for discharging a pleasing aromatic vapor including, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a musical drumhead with a plurality of vent holes through which the aromatic vapors are discharged into the air forced there by excited air produced by the vibrations that result when the drumhead membrane is struck.


A system and method of detecting tampering at an automatic teller machine includes detecting start and end indicators of a transaction. A representation of a scene at the teller machine, prior to the start of the transaction can be compared to a representation of the scene after the end of the transaction. Variations therebetween can indicate tampering at the machine.

One serious problem faced by the banking industry is loss of funds due to fraudulent ATM transactions. One known technique used by the criminal is to install a fake card reader to steal magnetic swipe information of the ATM card, which is sometimes combined with attaching a small wireless camera to the surface of the ATM to steal the matching PIN code. The banking industry suffers tremendous loss due to such fraudulent transactions as often times the lost funds cannot be recovered.
Systems that try to detect general changes in the scene associated with an ATM are known. However, existing video systems that detect changes in the scene at an ATM and generate alerts in response to such changes do not detect specific domain-meaningful markers that annotate human actions. Nor do existing systems use such markers to select the reference scene model for detecting the type of changes required.

System and method to detect tampering at ATM machines


A molded case multi-pole circuit breaker having an electronic trip unit to determine overcurrent conditions connects with a corresponding current transformer within each pole to sample circuit current. Upon the occurrence of an overcurrent condition, a trip actuator is energized to interrupt the circuit current. A current transformer adapter unit supports the trip actuator wire conductors and pin connectors while at the same time shielding the current transformers from the circuit breaker exhaust gases.

Industrial-rated circuit breakers are available having operating components that are designed for automatic assembly to provide cost improvement as well as improved operating efficiency. The precision alignment performed by the automated assembly equipment allows the operating components within the circuit breaker operation mechanism to be installed within very close operating tolerances. The operating mechanism assembly includes a pair of powerful operating springs that are overcentered for rapidly driving the movable contact arm and the attached movable contact away from the stationary fixed contact to interrupt the circuit current. The operating mechanism includes a cradle operator which engages a latch assembly to prevent the movable contact arm from being driven to its open position under the urgence of the charged operating springs. The compact latch assembly includes a primary and secondary latch operating within a common support structure.
An overcurrent condition is determined within the electronic trip unit such as described within U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,323 and a trip signal is outputted to the trip actuator to articulate the circuit breaker operating mechanism to interrupt the circuit current. The circuit current is sampled continuously through three current transformers one for each of the three current phases. The trip actuator is described within U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,019 and the current transformers are described within U.S. Pat. 4,884,048. To protect the current transformers from the debris resulting from the arc gases generated under intense overcurrent interruption, the three current transformers within the three-pole circuit breakers are encapsulated together in a plastic composition and are inserted within the circuit breaker case as a single unit. This requires a different-sized current transformer unit for each circuit breaker frame size since the circuit breaker enclosures increase in size according to the ampere rating requirements with each frame.
Since the individual current transformers are capable of use within the various frame sizes without modification, it has been determined that a substantial cost savings can be realized if the current transformer arrangement described within the aforementioned U.S. patent could be simplified.
Accordingly, one purpose of this invention is to describe an arrangement wherein the current transformers used within circuit breakers employing electronic trip units can be individually mounted within the circuit breaker enclosures of various ampere ratings without encapsulating the current transformers as a single unit.

Molded case circuit breaker current transformer adapter unit


The disclosure relates to a threaded shaft for a roller screw drive, for example for an electromechanical brake booster or an electromechanical power steering system. According to the disclosure, a helical coil with a flat, square-threaded annular cross-section is arranged on a thin-walled pipe, the pipe being formed onto a root region of the helical coil by the application of high pressure from the inside of the pipe.

Spindle drives are known. They belong to the helical gear mechanisms and convert a rotary drive movement into a translatory drive output movement, occasionally also vice versa, where in the latter case the spindle drive does not have to be of self-locking design. A spindle nut can be driven in rotation and a spindle can be displaced axially, or vice versa. In this case, the spindle nut is to be defined on the basis of its function, which is that of converting a rotary movement into a translatory movement, or vice versa, together with the spindle; the appearance of said spindle nut does not necessarily have to be reminiscent of a nut. A distinction is made between lead screw drives and roller screw drives, with the latter including inter alia ball-screw drives, in many cases with ball circulation, i.e. ball return in the spindle nut. The spindle produced according to the disclosure is intended in particular for a roller screw drive, although this is not compulsory; it can also be used in a lead screw drive.
The spindle is normally produced by cutting by turning, thread whirling or grinding or by deforming by rolling. To increase the resistance to wear, the thread can then be hardened and/or ground to increase the accuracy.

Method for producing a spindle for a spindle drive, a roller screw drive comprising such a spindle and use of said roller screw drive


An apparatus for tethering an animal is disclosed. The apparatus has a leash housing, a retractor assembly contained within the leash housing, a tether with a first end connected to the retractor assembly and a second end extensible through a leash connector cavity opening disposed in the leash housing and connected to a leash connector, and at least one leash connector release that is capable of being depressed by a leash connector cavity wall when the leash connector is retracted into the leash connector cavity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to field of animal tethers, more specifically, the present invention relates to a retractable device for securing an animal to a tether.
2. Background Art
Millions of pets, many of these dogs, are walked at least once each day. Most of these pets are not sufficiently trustworthy to be walked without some type of constraint, such as a leash. The use of leashes causes many conflicts between a pet and its master. A leash must be connected to and disconnected from an animal each time the animal is walked. Many animals may be excited or agitated by this task and often jump, struggle, or otherwise move while the owner is attempting to connect or disconnect the leash. Consequently, it is desirable to minimize or eliminate the need for the human to participate in the act of connecting to and disconnecting from the collar of the animal.
Another problem related to the conventional retractable leash is so serious that it often causes injury to the pet or human holding the leash. On frequent occasions, animals have been agitated or excited and break away from their owner. It is not uncommon for the owner to have a loose hold on the leash and for an animal's unexpected movement to rip the leash from the hand of the handler resulting in the animal dragging its leash behind it. In such a situation with a traditional retractable leash the housing into which the leash retracts would advance toward the animal as it retracts, serving to further agitate or frighten the animal.
The prior art has not satisfactorily devised a solution to these problems. Prior art devices require a human to locate the portion of the leash that connects to the animal's collar and manually attach and remove it. Also, prior art devices bias the leash to retract if not actively maintained in an extended configuration. It is, therefore, desirable to have a retractable leash that is easily connected to and disconnected from an animal and maintained in an extended position until the owner takes action to retract the leash.


A folding game table having a collapsible construction is disclosed. The folding game table has a plurality of table top portions connected with at least one hinge and movable between an extended position and a folded position. At least one retention coupler is configured to be removably secured to the plurality of table top portions and configured to removably attach at least one table inlay to the plurality of table top portions.

The present invention relates generally to game tables and, more particularly, to a multi-game collapsible game table.
Poker tables generally consist of a relatively flat surface with a felt or comparable material positioned thereover. In order to maintain the quality and condition of the cover material of the table as well as reduce any obstructions to game play, players often prefer some additional space away from the play surface for food and drink as well as poker chips or other win/loss indicators. Additionally, ancillaries associated with game play such as cards, dice, poker chips, and the like, should preferably be kept with the table in order to keep these related game-playing elements from being misplaced.
Another consideration of game table design is the collapsibility of the table system. These tables are often only used periodically and are frequently set up for game time and collapsed and stored shortly thereafter. It is often desirable to store the table in a minimum of space compared to the amount of space occupied by the table when it is set up.
Another consideration of game table design is game format. The game format is the table inlay or indicia provided on the game playing surface to aid in game flow. Several game formats that can be provided on the game playing surface include a roulette, craps, poker, cricket, dog track, and blackjack to name but a few. A variety of table inlays, each including distinct game indicia, positionable on the play surface provide for a multi-use game table.
It would therefore be desirable to have a game table and method of altering a game format that is quickly and simply collapsible and provides a plurality of interchangeable game formats.


A composite synthesis method and apparatus, a vaporizer for the composite synthesis apparatus, a vaporizer heater and a composite. In the composite synthesis apparatus using simultaneous vaporization, two or more vaporizers are heated by heaters such that samples vaporized by the vaporizers are supplied into a reactor to synthesize a composite. The apparatus and method may prepare multiple-metal or metal-carbon heterogeneous composites, and may be applied to various metal- and carbon-based adsorbents, absorbents, gas/liquid separation membranes and various catalyst processes. Further, the composite may be applied to various industrial fields through change in metal components or carbon structures.

1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the invention relate to a composite synthesis method and apparatus, a vaporizer for the composite synthesis apparatus, a vaporizer heater and a composite. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a composite synthesis method and apparatus for synthesizing two or more different samples, a vaporizer for the composite synthesis apparatus, a vaporizer heater, and a composite.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a technology for effectively decorating metal catalyst particles for effective preparation of multiple-metal catalysts or a technology for effectively alloying multiple-metal catalysts for improvement in reaction activity or durability has attracted attention. In addition, a technology for preparing a carbon-based nano metal catalyst structure to improve reaction activity or durability, and incinerating carbon to recover or recycle metal components after reaction has also attracted attention.
Korean Patent Publication 10-2011-0139994A discloses a method of preparing a lithium manganese oxide-carbon nano composite through mixing in an ionic solution (entitled "Lithium manganese oxide-carbon nano composite and method of producing the same"). In this patent, the preparation of the composite requires several stages including solution reaction, crystal growth, strong acid/strong alkali treatment for removal of template components, heat treatment for alloying, and the like.

Method and apparatus for synthetizing composite using simultaneous vaporization, vaporizer for composite synthesis apparatus, vaporizer heater, and composite


A process for the construction of an edition layout comprised by at least one sheet in which is displayed at least one visual element, information relating to the layout being stored in a database in the identified fields interconnected by connections, a visual representation according to the reality of at least one portion of the edition layout being adapted to be displayed by at least one visualization device. At least one display of a visual representation is provided in the form of a dynamic and interactive display permitting a modification by an intervener or user of the visual representation of the layout or a portion of the layout, and an automatic control between the visualization device (9, 10) and the database (8) is provided.

The present invention relates to a process for the construction of a layout of an edition comprised by at least one sheet of which there is at least one element, as well as a system for practicing this process.
This invention relates to the field of editing and finds particular application in ensuring the production of a layout on the basis of which is produced the printing of a document, particularly a catalog, an advertising tract or the like.
There are already known processes permitting the production of such a layout and using, for its practice, powerful and sophisticated computer means using specific software such as, for example, that known under the designation "X-Press".
Such means do indeed permit a certain flexibility in the process of production of a layout, but their use however has numerous drawbacks.
Thus, when it is desired to modify the layout, it is often necessary to go back to the start of the design of this layout. Moreover, such a modification is usually made by applying a copy and paste type method which has the drawback of multiplying the risk of errors.
It will also be noted that the sheet of a layout usually comprises elements which, for better understanding, are arranged hierarchically and to which is given a number permitting, for example a user, to refer to commentaries or to supplemental indications concerning this element and relating, particularly in this sheet, for example to another element.
In a similar case, when proceeding to the deletion of an element, it is indispensable to modify correspondingly the hierarchy, the numbering of the other elements as well as if desired the commentaries/indications relative to this element. Such a modification must be carried out manually and is tedious and a source of error, because of the multiplication of the modifications to be carried out, essentially because of the absence of connections between the different elements.
Such an absence of connections between two elements (for example the reproduction of an object, on the one hand, and its price on the other hand) results in that a modification of the size and/or arrangement of an element (particularly its reproduction) systematically requires a supplemental intervention consisting of modifying the other element.
Moreover, there could be noted that when a sheet is produced, it is indispensable to provide sufficient space to ensure the visualization of an element, particularly constituted by a photograph. Also, and so as to ensure visualization of this element under conditions satisfactory for an observer, it is necessary to adapt the size of this element relative to the space provided, which consists in a first manipulation. Moreover, and when it is desired to modify the size of the element and/or the space, it is indispensable to proceed to at least one new manipulation consisting of modifying this element or this space.
According to another drawback, the prior art does not visualize a modification given to an element on a sheet, which generates uncertainty and can be the origin of prejudicial misunderstandings as to the good progress of the design of the layout. Moreover, this absence of visualization of a modification leads, for a person making a decision, to difficulties whether to validate a modification.
Moreover, the modifications caused by an operator on a sheet are accessible after a more or less great delay but never in real time, such that the response time to the other interveners to such a modification as well as the duration of design of a layout will be substantially extended.
The present invention has for its object to overcome at least certain of the drawbacks mentioned above, by providing a new process for the construction of the layout of an edition, as well as a system for its practice.

Method and system for composing an edition model or layout


Embodiments are described for dynamically adapting video encoding to maintain a nearly stable frame rate based on processor capabilities and bandwidth, for example, by varying a quantization parameter. The quality of the encoded video can be varied to maintain the nearly constant frame rate, which may be measured from the number of encoded video frames being transmitted over a network interface.

Universal availability of digital video cameras and storage products has enabled new uses of digital video. In contrast to the traditional network delivery of video (e.g., digital satellite or cable television), an increasing amount of video is being captured by users using their cameras and smartphones and shared over the Internet with others.
Although the availability of Internet-connected video capturing devices (e.g., mobile computing devices) has soared, the ability of these devices to encode, or compress, and upload the captured audio/video content remains limited. Furthermore, these devices, such as Internet-connected cameras, tablets and smartphones, may frequently be offline and thus rely on a service provider to make content captured from the devices available to others at the time and place others want to view the content. As an example, users may employ a social networking service to share their videos.
These videos can be encoded by mobile computing devices, for example, prior to an upload process to a server computing device, or by a server computing device of the social networking service, for example, prior to a download process to mobile computing devices.
Video coders and decoders ("codecs") commonly use constant bitrate and/or variable bitrate compression schemes. Constant bitrate ("CBR") means that a constant number of bits is available per frame. This can result in wasted bits when the scene between frames does not change very much. Variable bitrate ("VBR") means that a variable number of bits is available per frame. Although this can be beneficial when the scene between frames does not change very much, it may require too many bits when the scene changes rapidly between frames. Neither the CBR nor the VBR encoding or compression schemes, however, accounts for processor speeds or fluctuations in data communications bandwidth. Data compression and encoding can require significant processing and, if data communications bandwidth varies over time, the time required to communicate an average number of bits can fluctuate. These changes can cause the communicated frame rate to vary. When frame rates vary, the resulting video can appear to be choppy or pose other problems for viewers.
Although the flow and sequence diagrams presented herein show an organization designed to make them more comprehensible by a human reader, those skilled in the art will appreciate that actual data structures used to store this information may differ from what is shown in that they, for example, may be organized in a different manner, may contain more or less information than shown, may be compressed and/or encrypted, etc.
The headings provided herein are for convenience only and do not necessarily affect the scope or meaning of the claimed embodiments. Further, the drawings have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be expanded or reduced to help improve the understanding of the embodiments. Similarly, some components and/or operations may be separated into different blocks or combined into a single block for the purposes of discussion of some of the embodiments. Moreover, while the various embodiments are amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are described in detail below. The intention, however, is not to limit the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the embodiments are intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the disclosed embodiments as defined by the appended claims.


There is provided a computer implemented method for secure management of data generated in an Electronic Health Record (EHR) during an episode of care, for a user, wherein the EHR is being maintained in a medical database (140) comprised within a Healthcare Service Provider (HSP) server (130), the computer implemented method comprising the steps of sending an identification hash corresponding to the user to an Application Program Interface (API) server (150) from a first client device (110a); extracting the data from the HSP server (130) and de-identifying the data to obtain de-identified data at the API server (150); generating a record hash at the API server (150); transmitting the identification hash, the record hash and the de-identified data from the API server (150) to a core server (160); receiving the identification hash, the record hash and the de-identified data at the core server (160) and transmitting the identification hash, the record hash and the de-identified data from the core server (160) to a repository database (170) to generate a record identification; transmitting the de-identified data, the record hash and the record identification from the repository database (170) to the first client device (110a), via the core server (160); generating a data hash by hashing the de-identified data and a plurality of attributes corresponding to the de-identified data; generating at the core server (160) a register package based on the data hash, the identification hash and the record hash; storing the register package, from the core server (160), on to a blockchain (180) to generate a transaction identification; transmitting the data hash and the transaction identification from the core server (160) to the repository database (170); and transmitting the transaction identification and the data hash from the repository database (170) to the first client device (110a), via the core server (160).

An Electronic Health Record (EHR) is a digitized form of a user's medical history. The EHR may contain information such as physical characteristics of the user, history of diseases, immunization history and radiological reports etc. Additionally, the EHR may contain other important data such as duration of an illness, geographical location and time of an episode of care. The EHR may be created in a medical database provided with a Healthcare Service Provider (HSP) in a multitude of different formats. Some of the commonly accepted formats currently available in the domain include FHIR and HL7.
However, where EHRs are being increasingly accepted by HSPs including individual clinicians and hospitals as an effective way of managing user related data, there is a lack of a single universally accepted standard for creating such records. Different HSPs may opt for maintaining EHRs in different formats. This makes it difficult for the user seeking services from more than one HSP, as it would be difficult to combine medical records generated during individual episodes of care, because of a lack of compatibility between individual EHR formats. Even, in a case where the individual EHR formats are compatible, it adds an additional workflow for the HSP to upload the data to a central database. Significant advances have been made, for example through the adoption of LOINC codes and the SNOMED system, but regional variations are still a significant problem.
There have been a number of solutions offered to the above mentioned problems, some of which have been discussed below:
US20160110505A1 provides a system for storage and management of EHRs in a plurality of formats. Each EHR from the plurality of EHRs is created with a corresponding ontology and stored in a database along with details of the ontology. When an EHR from the plurality of EHRs, is requested by an HSP, the EHR may be provided to the HSP directly or may be translated to have a different ontology before providing the EHR to the HSP.
US20120078663A1 discloses a system for accepting a patient's record in one format and convert it into a second desirable format. The patient's record may include practice management data, electronic health records and personal health records etc.
While the aforementioned documents and other solutions in the art strive to provide methods and systems for secure management of data generated during an episode of care in an EHR, they still suffer from a plurality of discrepancies. First, the existing systems, also store identification details of the user. The identification details are either stored directly in association with the data, in a database, or stored at a different location and combined with the data while transmittal of the data to a user device. The storing of identification details creates a serious security risk in an event of a system being hacked. Further, the data is also at risk during transmittal of the data from the database to the user device, or during the transmittal of data from the HSP to the database. So in case where the database may adopt stringent security measures to prevent theft of the identification details during hacking attacks, the identification details of the user may be stolen during transmission through attacks such as Man in the Middle (MITM) attacks.
Moreover, the existing systems do not provide enough safeguards for preventing the data from being tampered with, by the user. The user may alter specific details in the data for making false insurance claims or for other malicious purposes. Recent trends have depicted insurance services providers suffering serious losses due to false insurance claims.
Therefore there remains, in the art, a need for improved systems and methods for secure management of data generated in an EHR during an episode of care which prevents the identification details of the user from being stolen and also provides sufficient safeguards for preventing the data from being tampered with.
Any discussion of the background art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such background art is prior art, nor that such background art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field in Australia or any other country.

Computer implemented method for secure management of data generated in an EHR during an episode of care and a system therefor


Information signal processing apparatus and method characterized in that an input information signal is converted into a transmission signal in a predetermined form and the converted transmission signal is transmitted by a selected one of a wire transmission and a radio transmission are provided. Information signal processing apparatus and method characterized in that either a wire reception to receive an information signal in a predetermined form through a transmission line or a radio reception to receive an information signal in which the information signal in the predetermined form was modulated and transmitted in a radio manner is selected and the received information signal in the predetermined form is reproduced are provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to information signal processing apparatus and method for transmitting and receiving an information signal.
2. Related Background Art
Hitherto, when a plurality of digital information equipment are connected and digital data is serially transmitted, a system according to a wire transmission based on, for example, the SMPTE 125M standard or IEEE 1394 standard is proposed.
In the SMPTE 125M, however, when a plurality of equipment are connected, it is necessary to provide a distributor for one equipment. Since a bidirectional communication is not performed, an individual transmission and reception line needs to be provided for each equipment. Although a connection of (1:1) of the equipment can be easily realized, a hardware increases, its treatment is inconvenient, and costs rise.
In the IEEE 1394, each equipment cannot be connected to a position 4.5 m or more away from another equipment. When a communication at a remote distance is executed, it is necessary to connect a number of equipment each having a repeater function. According to the connection by wire as mentioned above, a wiring process of a large quantity of wire material is needed and a degree of freedom in a system construction is restricted.


The present invention provides an image processor for outputting image data to an image forming device forming an image with use of a recording material having a plurality of color components. The processor comprises a component determining a region having higher brightness than predetermined brightness and a region having lower brightness than the predetermined brightness in the image data based on the image data and a component adjusting saturation so as to reduce density values of color components other than a color component having a maximum density value among the plurality of color components of the recording material to increase saturation in a region having brightness determined to be high and reduce density values of color components other than a color component having a minimum density value among the plurality of color components of the recording material to decrease saturation in a region having brightness determined to be low.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for processing an image to be printed on a recording medium such as paper with use of a recording material such as ink or toner.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, companies have been making proactive efforts in environmental issues and cost reduction. In such a context, a printing industry has been required to reduce a use amount of a recording material such as ink or toner. In particular, because digital still cameras and color printers have been rapidly spread, color printing has become more convenient and closer to consumers, so that it is expected to further expand the use of such equipment. Accordingly, in the printing industry, reducing the use amount of the recording material is one of the important problems to be promptly addressed to take measures against the environmental issues and accomplish the cost reduction.
Approaches for reducing the use amount of the recording material include, for example, the following five approaches:
(1) To change a printing method from four-color printing to two-color printing to thereby reduce the number of types of recording materials. (2) To reduce a limit value of a recording material density per unit area of printing paper. (3) To reduce a density of a recording material to be used. (4) To thin pixels necessary to form an image. (5) To replace mixed color of cyan, magenta, and yellow by black.
In the color printing, colors are expressed by combinations of three color inks of cyan, magenta, and yellow, or the like. All colors can be expressed by the three colors of cyan, magenta, and yellow in theory; however, in practice, deep and bright black color cannot be expressed. For this reason, in full-color printing, the deep and bright black color is expressed by adding black ink. In the above approach (1), such four color inks of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are reduced in number to two color inks to thereby reduce the use amount of the recording material. However, this approach cannot express many of colors perceivable by human beings, so that image quality of a printed material becomes very poor.
In the approaches (2) to (4), the density of the recording material is simply reduced to thereby suppress the use amount of the recording material. For example, pieces of pixel data are thinned to thereby reduce the number of pixels necessary to form an image, resulting in the suppression of the use amount of ink (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H11-112789. However, in these approaches, the recording material density per unit area of printing paper is only equally reduced, so that clearness and contrast of a printed material are reduced.
The approach (5) is referred to as UCR (Under Color Removal). The UCR utilizes a characteristic feature that even if an under color among cyan, magenta, and yellow, which is the color having the lowest density value among the three colors, is replaced by a black color having the same density value as the lowest density value, color tone (hue) is not much different. The use of the UCR enables the consumption amount of the recording material to be reduced without deteriorating the image quality too much. On the other hand, the density of the recording material applicable onto the printing paper has a limit (limit value). Accordingly, in a printing area in which dark color should be expressed, the UCR is typically used to reduce the consumption amount of the recording material.
The use of the UCR enables the consumption amount of the recording material to be reduced without deteriorating the image quality too much; however, in recent years, an approach for reducing the consumption amount of the recording material with use of a color space compression technology along with the UCR is also considered (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-68982). The color space compression is a technology for compressing color into a narrow color reproduction range from a wide color reproduction range, and used when an image displayed on a device having the wide color reproduction range is output with use of a printer having the narrow color reproduction range. For example, when an image displayed on a liquid crystal display is output with the printer, the color space compression is applied. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-68982, by using the color space compression to convert high saturation color into low saturation and high brightness color, a black replacement ratio in the UCR is increased. This enables the consumption amount of the recording material to be reduced while suppressing the change in color tone of the image.
However, the reduction in consumption amount of the recording material only by the UCR has a limit. Also, the approach disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-68982 described above has a problem that saturation and brightness of the image are respectively decreased and increased at the time of the color conversion, and therefore clearness of the image is spoiled and also contrast is reduced, resulting in unclearness of the printed image.

Image processor and image processing method for reducing consumption amount of recording material


Provided herein is a sheet processing apparatus including a processing apparatus and a saddle unit. The saddle unit moves from a position inside the processing apparatus, along a direction orthogonal to a sheet transport direction, to a position outside the sheet processing apparatus. When the saddle unit is in the position outside the processing apparatus, a first transport guide is open to expose the outside of a first sheet transport path, and a second transport guide is open to expose the inside of the first sheet transport path. The saddle unit also includes a stapler, a folding blade and a pair of folding rollers, the first sheet transport path, and a second sheet transport path.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet processing technique to perform a specific process to a sheet.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, there is known a sheet processing apparatus for performing a staple process and a folding process to sheets loaded on a stacker.
In a conventional sheet processing apparatus for performing a staple process and a folding process, there is known a structure including a stapler to perform the staple process to a sheet, a pair of folding rollers and a folding blade to perform the folding process to the sheet, and a switchback transport unit to transport the sheet to the stapler or the pair of folding rollers.
In the conventional sheet processing apparatus as stated above, for sheet removal in the case where a sheet jam (sheet jamming) occurs and for maintenance, there is known a structure in which only the portion of a transport guide constituting a sheet transport path to hold a sheet at the time when a specified process is performed by the stapler or the pair of folding rollers can be pulled out to the outside of the sheet processing apparatus, or a structure in which only the vicinity of the pair of folding rollers can be pulled out to the outside of the sheet processing apparatus. In the conventional sheet processing apparatus having the structure as stated above, it is general that for example, a transport guide constituting a transport path to perform switchback transport is opened in a state where it remains in the sheet processing apparatus and a jammed sheet is removed.
However, even if the transport guide is opened in the sheet processing apparatus, it can not be said that a sufficient space for sheet removal is obtained only by that, and there are many cases where the sheet removal is difficult.


A wheeled work machine in which the center of gravity of a machine body is positioned low and the stability of the machine in a working position is secured without regard to the movement of the center of gravity caused by the rotation of a rotation table during work. An operation body (111) integrally rocking with a front axle case (96) is provided at the center in the left-right direction of the front axle case (96), and a rocking lock mechanism (112) for limiting the rocking of the operation body (111) is provided at a machine body frame (6). The rocking lock mechanism (112) has a lock cylinder (115) in which a piston rod (120) is horizontally fixed to the machine frame (6) and a switchover valve (118) for switching two oil chambers (124A, 124B) of the lock cylinder (115) between a communicated state and a closed state. A cylinder tube (116) of the lock cylinder (115) is operably connected to the operation body (111).

Conventional wheeled work machines include those in which a rotation table is provided via a rotation bearing on a traveling body that has left and right front wheels and rear wheels as well as an engine and a power transmission mechanism, and in which a driver seat and a ground implement having an attachment tool capable of raising and lowering are provided on the rotation table (see Patent Document 1).
This wheeled work machine may be configured so that travel during raising and lowering is enabled even in stairs and other locations having severe surface irregularity, a front axle case for supporting the pair of left and right front wheels is pivotably supported by the machine frame so as to be able to rock, and a rocking lock mechanism is provided for restricting rocking of the front axle case that accompanies movement of the center of gravity during work.
A rocking lock mechanism is known in which a cylinder tube of a cylinder capable of allowing and blocking the supply of pressure oil to two oil chambers is used, and in which the rocking lock mechanism is provided so that the longitudinal direction of the cylinder tube coincides with the vertical direction of the machine body (see Patent Document 2).
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2005-61050
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Application Publication No. 06-52405


A writing aid for both left- and right-handed persons, and especially intended for young children, includes a central section having a first side and a second opposite side and means which receives and holds an elongated writing instrument between the first and second sides. A first sleeve is attached to the first side of the central section defining a finger-receiving first pocket and a second sleeve is attached to the second side of the central section defining a finger-receiving second pocket. The sleeves and associated pockets are configured and dimensioned and angularly offset with respect to one another in such a manner that the user's thumb may be inserted into one of the finger-receiving pockets and the user's index finger may be inserted into the other of the finger-receiving pockets so that they are oriented for holding a writing instrument received and held in the central section in proper writing position.

The present invention relates to a writing aid to assist persons in holding writing instruments. More particularly, it relates to such a writing aid which teaches young persons the correct way to hold a writing instrument and which also helps disabled or arthritic people in gripping a writing tool.
Children who are first learning how to draw and write with crayons and pencils tend to grip and hold the selected writing instrument in an improper fashion which may impede their progress in learning how to write and draw. Various writing aids have been proposed to teach youngsters how to properly grip a writing instrument (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,783,657; 2,709,419; and 4,738,556).
More particularly, Rusk, U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,547 discloses a writing aid which consists of a body having an internal bore through which a writing instrument is inserted and three gripping surfaces positioned for the user's three fingers to ensure proper position. Both left-handed and right-handed models are provided for left-handed and right-handed writers.
In addition, Campbell, U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,710, discloses a writing aid which includes a first sleeve dimensioned and configured for engaging the forefinger and a second sleeve attached to the first sleeve for holding a writing instrument; see, also, Murray et al., U.S. Pat. No. 1,607,775, which disclosed a somewhat similar design. Mockel, U.S. Pat. No. 1,702,660, also discloses a writing aid which includes a central sleeve designed to be pushed over the index or forefinger and an S-shaped clamp which is designed to place the thumb and middle finger in proper position relative to the index finger for writing; but in this case, no provision is made for the writing aid to hold the writing instrument.
In addition, several writing aids have been proposed to held handicapped and arthritic persons grip writing and other instruments (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,501,552; 4,602,885 and 4,606,484).
By and large, the writing aids are complicated in construction, difficult to use or not easily adaptable to both right- and left-handed users. Indeed, so far as is known, there is no presently available writing aid which facilitates the proper holding of writing instruments by both young children and handicapped persons whether left- or right-handed in a simple and yet highly effective manner as herein proposed.


A method and system for performing measurements on a test sample with a metrology or inspection tool are disclosed. At least one of the test sample and the tool is moved with respect to the other from a first position to a second position. At the second position, the tool is aligned for measurement of a measurement target on the sample. A focus of the tool on the test sample is adjusted while moving from that first position to the second position.

As integrated circuit device geometries continue to shrink, manufactures have increasingly turned to optical techniques to perform non-destructive inspection and analysis of semiconductor wafers. Techniques of this type, known generally as optical metrology and inspection, operate by focusing an optical beam from a tool on a portion of a sample and then analyzing the reflected or scattered energy. A higher level of throughput optical system is required in semiconductor manufacture.
The existing optical metrology and inspection methods require about 150 milliseconds for focusing after positioning the tool over a target. Throughput improvement of the existing methods with single head tools puts high demands on different system components. Methods for throughput improvement in an optical inspection system with a single head include shorter move time, shorter target acquisition time and quicker target measurement time. In addition, wafer inspection strategies for design rules smaller than 45 nanometers require a significant increase in the number of measurements per die and per wafer. However, the existing methods cannot provide the desired step function improvement.
It is within this context that the embodiments of the present invention arise.

Method and apparatus for increasing metrology or inspection tool throughput


A computer system includes a computer having an event detecting interface for detecting when an event occurs. Based on the occurrence of the event, a keyboard assignment scheme is dynamically reconfigured to an appropriate configuration. The computer also includes a user interface for sensing when a key combination of at least one standard key and a non-standard key of a keyboard is depressed and a look-up table for storing a plurality of key combinations and one or more applications corresponding to each key combination of the active configuration. A non-standard key application control in the computer determines the application corresponding to the depressed key combination according to the active configuration. If the depressed key combination corresponds to one application, the non-standard key application control launches the application via an application program interface. If the depressed key combination corresponds to a plurality of separate applications, the user is presented with a pop-up list to select an application for launching. In addition, the user can define the available configurations by communicating with the non-standard key application control via user dialogs to add or edit configurations thereby selecting the applications launched when a key combination in the defined configuration is depressed.

Conventional computers have dedicated function keys or combinations of keys for invoking actions without requiring the entry of one or more lengthy commands. For example, a particular function key may change hardware settings or launch an application, but not both. Thus, the user can invoke an action by a so-called "shortcut" method. The Windows.TM. Program Manager (PM) from Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash., provides a shortcut key facility that allows the user to specify a unique key combination that, when pressed, launches an application of the user's choice. These function keys are intended to allow users to more efficiently operate their computers.
The PM shortcut key facility suffers from the drawback that it is only operative when the PM is the active application. Accordingly, if another application is active, the user may be confused when the shortcut key combination will not work or, worse yet, may accidently invoke a different action that destroys important information.
Thus, a shortcut key facility was created that is operative regardless of the application active at the time. In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/262,517, filed Jun. 20, 1994, now abandoned, by the inventor of the instant invention, and entitled "System and Method For Launching Applications Using Dynamically Assignable Keyboard Bindings" and herein incorporated by reference, the user can define which application is launched when a particular key combination is pressed. The user can thus select applications that are used most frequently and associate such applications with function keys of his or her own choice. Thus, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/262,517 describes a procedure wherein a user can manually change the assignment of a key combination to invoke a different action. However, according to this procedure, the user is limited to a single configuration of keys or key combinations for assigning application launching capability thereto.
This approach limits mobile users who may use a different set of application/utilities specific to the demands of their work when situated in different locales. For example, a certain key combination may be used to invoke a user EMAIL application. However, when the user uses a portable computer, the key combination for the EMAIL application may vary depending on whether the user is locally connected to a network, e.g., in an office, or remotely connected via modem, e.g., on the road. When a user is in the office and directly attached to a network, the EMAIL program may run directly from the network. Alternatively, when the user is traveling, a different EMAIL program to batch process the mail may be required. To launch the EMAIL application, the user would have to assign two different key combinations. That is, one key combination for the local EMAIL application and one key combination for the remote EMAIL application, would be necessary.
This system requires a user to think and consciously remember which actions are invoked when the various functions keys are pressed depending on an event status. The problem is compounded by the fact that different actions may be invoked by the same function key or key combination when different applications are active. The user may thus conclude that using the function keys leads to unpredictable results. Further, the multiple key combinations required reduces the number of assignable key combinations for other functions and applications.
The user could assign the EMAIL application to the same key combination. However, each time the user changes between local and remote locations, the assignment to the desired key combination would have to be manually changed. Consequently, there remains a need to provide a system for easily reassigning key combinations for similar applications to the same key combination.

System for reconfiguring a keyboard configuration in response to an event status information related to a computer's location determined by using triangulation technique

Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.


An image forming apparatus includes a reversing unit which reverses and feeds recording material fed from a fixing device, and a guiding device including first and second guide members facing each other to form a part of a first conveying path in which a recording material with a toner image fixed thereto is conveyed to the reversing unit from the fixing device. The second guide member forms, in cooperation with a third guide member, a part of a second conveying path in which the recording material is conveyed to an outside of the main body of the image forming apparatus. The first and second guide members are movable between a sheet guide position in which the first and second guide members guide the recording material along the first and second conveying paths, and a sheet jam removing position in which each of the first and second conveying paths is opened for removal of a jammed sheet. A feeding device feeds the recording material fed from the fixing device through the first and second conveying paths, respectively, and a displacement device displaces the first and second guide members to the sheet guide position or the sheet jam removing position in cooperation with the reversing unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, such as a photocopier, a printer, a facsimile machine, and the like, and in particular, to an image forming apparatus having a plurality of parallel mounted sheet conveying paths formed by a plurality of movable sheet guide members.
2. Discussion of the Background
In an image forming apparatus such as a photocopier, a printer, a facsimile machine, and the like, the apparatus is increasingly requested to be provided with multiple functions, reduced in size, and operated at high speeds. In order to satisfy these requests, constructions of conveying paths for conveying recording materials with an image fixed thereto become particularly complicated. To achieve high speed operation, a feeding interval of recording materials (sheet interval) is reduced, or a feeding speed (linear velocity) is increased. The image forming apparatus is also variously devised in consideration of an occurrence of sheet jamming so that a user can easily remove a jammed recording material or sheet in each conveying path of the apparatus. However, depending on an installation place or configuration of the apparatus, jam removing may not be able to be performed from the outside of the apparatus.
Generally, a pair of feeding rollers, a drive roller, and a driven roller for feeding the recording materials are arranged facing a conveying path such that the drive roller and the driven roller abut on or press against each other. In an image forming apparatus in which stacked documents are taken in, in one mode the documents are stacked with surfaces to be read facing downward, and are taken in from a lowermost or uppermost document. In another mode, the documents are stacked with surfaces to be read facing upward, and are taken in from the lowermost or uppermost document. In these modes, when the uppermost stacked document with its surface to be read facing upward or the lowermost stacked document with its surface to be read facing downward is first taken in or when duplicate photocopying is performed, a reversing unit is provided. In order to achieve high speed operation of an image forming apparatus provided with a reversing unit, the interval between the recording materials (sheet interval) is reduced by the constructions in which a conveying path connecting a fixing device and the reversing unit and a conveying path connecting the reversing unit and a sheet discharging section are arranged in parallel, and a feeding path and a discharging path of the recording materials relative to the reversing unit are independently provided.
In an image forming apparatus provided with a reversing unit, the reversing unit is movably mounted on a main body of the image forming apparatus for removing a jammed sheet, but the conveying paths are not released with the movement of the reversing unit. Therefore, when the reversing unit is pulled out with the sheet jammed therein, the sheet after fixing is torn and left in the conveying paths or the reversing unit. Accordingly, a user has difficulties in removing the jammed sheet completely.
To solve the above-mentioned problem, the present applicant proposed an image forming apparatus in which conveying paths are arranged in parallel and are opened/shut inside the apparatus because a part of the conveying paths are formed by guide members disposed movably between a sheet guide position in which recording materials are guided along the conveying paths and a sheet jam removing position in which the conveying paths are opened for removal of a jammed sheet. Further, in the image forming apparatus, it is constructed that the guide members are movable by a pressing protrusion provided on the inner surface of an exterior cover, so that a plurality of conveying paths arranged in parallel are opened when the exterior cover is opened.
The pressing protrusion fixed to the inner surface of the exterior cover is formed to be long and large enough to have sufficient size and strength to be inserted inside the main body of the image forming apparatus. Therefore, when the exterior cover is opened, the pressing protrusion gets in the way of jam removing operations. Moreover, when the guide members are in the sheet jam removing position, each conveying path is opened. In this case, however, when drive and driven rollers are not separated from each other, the jammed recording material is held between the rollers, and cannot be securely removed.

Image forming apparatus having sheet guide members openable for removing a jammed sheet


A cleaning device for cleaning a printing head of an ink jet cartridge of an ink jet printer comprises a box having a base closed by a lid. A resilient support pad laminated to the base supports a cleaning member for cleaning the printing head. The cleaning member comprises a backing sheet laminated to the support pad, and a plurality of upstanding fibres woven into and extending upwardly from the backing sheet. The maximum dimension of the fibres is less than the minimum dimension of the ink jet orifices of the printing head for enabling the fibres to project into the ink jet orifices for cleaning thereof. The fibres are of hydrophobic material but are packed sufficiently tightly together for retaining a cleaning liquid by a capillary type action therebetween.

In general, ink jet cartridges are provided complete with a charge of ink, and when the ink runs out, the cartridge is replaced with a fresh cartridge. The cartridge is provided with a printing head which is provided with an orifice plate having a plurality of jet orifices through which respective jets of ink are directed at a page to form print or other characters. In normal use, and in particular, during periods of non-use, the jet orifices may become blocked or partially blocked with dried and congealed ink. Known methods for cleaning the printing head of an ink jet cartridge, in general, comprise wiping the printing head with a cloth or tissue which may or may not have a cleaning liquid or cleaning solvent absorbed therein. However, by virtue of the fact that the blockages, tend to occur well in the jet orifices, known methods have been found unsatisfactory for completely unblocking a blocked or partially blocked jet orifice. Accordingly, because of this once any of the jet orifices of a printing head of an ink jet cartridge become blocked or partly blocked, in general, it is necessary to dispose of the cartridge and replace it with a fresh cartridge. This is relatively wasteful, since in many cases the cartridge being disposed of may have been little used and may be virtually fully charged with ink.
There is therefore a need for a cleaning device for cleaning the printing head of an ink jet cartridge, and indeed, for cleaning other printing heads which are of the type which comprise one or more jet orifices for directing one or more ink jets for printing.

Cleaning device and a method for cleaning an ink jet printing head


Whether a digital camera body (1) is in a horizontal shooting attitude (a) or in either of vertical shooting attitudes (b), (c) is detected by using drive means of an image blurring compensation device. In the case where a focus drive means detects that the digital camera body (1) is either in an upward attitude (d) or in a downward attitude (e), a shooting attitude thereof can be inputted. The inputted shooting attitude is recorded together with an image, whereby the image can be displayed in the same orientation as the image at the time of shooting thereof, even if the image is shot either in the upward attitude (e) or in the downward attitude (e).

Recently, an imaging sensor such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) and a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor), and a signal processing circuit are increasingly improved in terms of integration density and come to be available inexpensively. Accordingly, a digital still camera and a digital video camera (hereinafter referred to as a "digital camera"), which are capable of converting an optical image of an object into an electrical image signal and outputting the signal, are rapidly growing popular.
With regard to a shooting attitude of a digital camera, in the case where a horizontally long object such as a landscape is to be shot, a photographer holds the digital camera so as to be in a horizontal attitude. In the case where a vertically long object such as a person or a building is to be shot, the object is shot while the digital camera is being held in a vertical attitude.
Note that an attitude of the digital camera, in the case where the direction of a stroke of a shutter button is in parallel with the gravity direction, is referred to as a horizontal shooting attitude. On the other hand, an attitude of the digital camera, in the case where the direction of the stroke of the shutter button is orthogonal to the gravity direction, is referred to as a vertical shooting attitude.
Further, images, which are shot in the respective attitudes as above described, are referred to as a horizontally shot image and a vertically shot image, respectively. In the case where images shot in these two shooting attitudes are to be reproduced and displayed, an attitude detection means is provided to the imaging device so as to match an orientation at the time of shooting and that at the time of reproduction. At the time of shooting, attitude information of the imaging device is written into a shot image, and when the shot image is displayed, the attitude information is read concurrently with the shot image, whereby the image is displayed such that an orientation thereof corresponds to the orientation at the time of shooting.
When the digital camera is in a downward attitude, the digital camera cannot determine whether it is in the horizontal shooting attitude or in the vertical shooting attitude. Therefore, a system is suggested in which, when the digital camera is detected to be in the downward attitude, a photographer inputs either the horizontal shooting attitude or the vertical shooting attitude into the digital camera, whereby a shot image is displayed such that the orientation thereof corresponds to the orientation at the time of shooting (Patent Document 1).    Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-88439