A differential pressure type flowmeter comprises an orifice, a detector to detect a fluid pressure P1 on the upstream side of an orifice, a detector to detect a fluid pressure P2 on the downstream side of an orifice, a detector to detect a fluid temperature T on the upstream side of an orifice, and a control computation circuit to compute a fluid's flow rate Q passing through an orifice by using the pressure P1, where P2 and temperature T detected with the aforementioned detectors, and the aforementioned fluid's flow rate Q is computed with the equationQ=C1•P1/√T•((P2/P1)m−(P2/P1)m)1/2 (where C1 is a proportional constant, and m and n are constants).

Heretofore, for semiconductor manufacturing facilities and at chemical plants, a differential pressure flowmeter and the like such as a mass flow type flowmeter (a thermal type mass flow meter) and the like and a buildup type flowmeter and the like have been widely used to measure or control a flow rate of process gases, raw material gases and the like.
However, with a thermal type mass flowmeter and the like, there have been seen a number of difficulties such as a low responsivity, a poor measuring accuracy in a small flow quantity range, a large number of operational problems, a limited variety of gases subject to control, and being easily influenced by pressure changes and the like.
Similarly, with a buildup type flowmeter and the like, there have been seen some difficulties such as being difficult in measuring or controlling a flow rate in real time, not being able to use in a state of inline, an existence of restraints of a pressure of gases subject to control, a separate line required for measurements and the like.
On the other hand, a differential pressure type flowmeter and the like for which an orifice and a manometer are employed demonstrates excellent effects such as having nearly no restraints of the type of gases subject to control, being usable in a state of incline, and also measuring and controlling a flow rate being able to be performed in real time.
However, this type of a differential pressure type flowmeter and the like uses an equation for a flow rate computation derived from Bernoulli's theorem with the assumption that the fluid is non-compressible, and then the flow rate of the fluid is computed by giving some corrections to it. Therefore, if large pressure changes of the fluid arise (that is, when approximations that the fluid is non-compressible break), a substantial drop in accuracy of measuring and controlling a flow rate cannot be avoided, thus resulting in a failure of accurate flow rate measurements and controls.
To solve these difficulties with the aforementioned differential pressure type flowmeter and the like, a pressure type flowmeter and the like has been developed and disclosed (TOKU-KAI-HEI No. 10-55218 and others) wherewith critical conditions of a fluid passing through an orifice, that is, a pressure P1 on the upstream side of an orifice and a pressure P2 on the downstream side of an orifice being forcibly set to make the velocity of a fluid to be the velocity of sound, and the flow rate of a liquid Q is computed by the theoretical equation Q=KP1 under the critical conditions.
However, even with the pressure type flowmeter and the like, non-critical conditions occur when a fluid is in a small flow quantity range (that is, when a pressure P1 on the upstream side of an orifice and a pressure P2 on the downstream side to an orifice are in a state of being close), thus resulting in large errors in a flow rate measurement value Q or a flow rate control value Q.
Namely, with a conventional differential pressure flowmeter (or a pressure type flowmeter) and the like, it is so made that an equation for a flow rate computation derived from Bernoulli's theorem with the assumption that a fluid is non-compressible is used, and under non-critical conditions before a fluid reaches the velocity of sound (a non-sound velocity range), a flow rate on the downstream side is determined by the equationQc=SC(P2(P1−P2))1/2/T1/2,where under critical conditions after having reached the velocity of sound (a sound velocity range), a flow rate Q is computed by an equationQc=SCP1/T1/2(where T is an absolute temperature of a fluid passing through an orifice, S is a cross-sectional area of an orifice and C is a proportional factor).
Critical conditions for the velocity of a fluid to reach the velocity of sound is given by a critical value rc of a pressure ratio P2/P1. The critical value rc is determined by the equationP2/P1=rc=(2//(n+1))n/(n−1) using a specific heat ratio n of a gas.
Furthermore, a specific heat ratio n is given by the equationn=Cp/Cv where Cp is a constant pressure specific heat and Cv is a constant volume specific heat. With biatom-molecular gases, n isn=7/5=1.4,and rc is Rc=0.53, while with non-linear type triatom-molecular gases, n isn=8/6=1.33,and rc is Rc=0.54.
To solve problems with the aforementioned conventional differential pressure type flowmeter (or a pressure type flowmeter), a flow rate value computed with the previous theoretical flow rate equation derived from the assumption that a fluid to be used under non-critical conditions is non-compressible is compared with the actually measured flow rate value, to derive an empirical flow rate equation having a plurality of parametersQc′=SC/T1/2·P2m(P1−P2)n=KP2m(P1−P2)n from a previous theoretical flow rate equationQc=SC/T1/2(P2(P1−P2))1/2,and to determine the aforementioned parameters m and n to make a flow rate value computed by the empirical flow rate equation Qc′ equal to a measured value, thus an empirical flow rate equation Qc′ that suitably matches with the fluid of compressibility being introduced by inventors of the present invention, and disclosed in TOKU-GAN No. 2001-399433.
With the aforementioned empirical flow rate equation Qc′, a proportional constant K is given by SC/T1/2 and computed from conditions of substance and absolute temperature T. P1 designates a pressure on the upstream side of an orifice and P2 a pressure on the downstream side of an orifice. kPaA (kilo Pascal Absolute pressure) is the unit. Further, in the measured flow rate range of 10-30 sccm (a unit of a flow rate in a normal state), it has been found that parameters m and n are m=0.47152 and n=0.59492 respectively.
The values of the aforementioned 2 parameters m and n have a dependence on the range of a flow rate to be measured and the type of a gas. The aforementioned values m=0.4715 and n=0.59492 are values that hold true when the flow rate is in the range of 10-30 sccm. So, m and n don't hold true when the range of a flow rate is 10-100 sccm or 100-1000 sccm, and accordingly they deviate from these values.
FIG. 14 is a block diagram of an improved pressure flow controller for which the aforementioned empirical flow rate equation Qc′. This was previously disclosed by inventors of the present invention in the TOKU-GAN No. 2001-399433. The controller in the FIG. 14 is constituted as a flow controller. However, it is easily understood that it can be turned to be a differential pressure type flowmeter by eliminating a control valve 21, a valve driving part 22, and a flow rate comparison part 23e.
Referring to FIG. 14, 20 designates an orifice, 21 designates a control valve, 22 designates a valve driving part, 23 designates a control circuit, 23a designates a pressure ratio computation part, 23b designates a pressure ration computation part, 23c designates a flow rate computation part, 23d designates a flow rate computation part, 23e designates a flow rate comparison part, P1 designates a fluid pressure detector on the upstream side of an orifice, P2 designates a fluid pressure detector on the downstream side of an orifice, T designates a fluid temperature detector, Qs designates a flow rate setting value signal, ΔQ designates a flow rate difference signal, and Qc′ designates a flow rate computation value.
With the controller, firstly a pressure ratio P2/P1 is computed with the detected upstream side pressure P1 and downstream side pressure P2 (23a), a judgment is made continually to find if the fluid is under critical conditions or non-critical conditions (23b), and the flow rate is computed with a flow rate equation Qc=KP when under critical conditions (23c), while the flow rate is computed with an empirical flow rate equationQc′=KP2m(P1−P2)n when under non-critical conditions.
As stated above, the value of critically rc is given by an equation (2/(n+1))n/(n−1), (where n is the specific heat ratio of a gas). With bi-atom molecular gases, rc is rc=0.53 and with non-linear tri-atom molecular gases, rc is rc=0.54. Therefore, rc is written as rc=approx. 0.5.
A flow rate difference ΔQ between a set flow rate Qs and a computed flow rate Qc is computed with a flow rate comparison part 23e to operate a valve driving part 22 to control valve 21 so that the flow rate difference ΔQ reaches zero. However, when it is used as a flow meter, as stated above, a flow rate comparison part 23e, a control valve 21 and a valve driving part 22 can be eliminated.
Curve A in FIG. 15 shows flow rate measurements or flow rate control characteristics with an improved pressure type flowmeter and the like, while Curve B shows flow rate measurements or flow rate control characteristics with an conventional pressure type flowmeter and the like when an equation Qc=KP1 is used under non-critical conditions. As apparent from FIG. 15, with the improved pressure type flowmeter and the like, a flow rate equation Qc=KP1 is used when under critical conditions, while an empirical flow rate equationQc′=KP2m(P1−P2)n is used when under non-critical conditions, thus an accurate flow rate Q in proportion to the set flow rate being able to be computed, linearity to a set % of a flow rate being held as shown by Curve A in FIG. 15, and the comparatively accurate flow rate measurement and control being ensured even in the range of a small flow quantity.
Patent Literature 1: TOKU-KOU-SHO No. 59-19365 Public Bulletin
Patent Literature 2: TOKU-KOU-SHO No. 59-19366 Public Bulletin
Patent Literature 3: TOKU-KAI-HEI No. 10-55218 Public Bulletin

Differential pressure type flowmeter and differential pressure type flow controller


A line scan imager is used to determine the motion of a subject. Each line of image data from the line scan imager is compared with a reference image. The location of a matching line in the reference image reveals the displacement of the subject. The current subject displacement can be determined based on each line of image data. The resulting displacement information can be used to correctly place other optical beams on the subject. The method can be applied to tracking the human eye to facilitate measurement, imaging, or treatment with a beam of optical radiation.

Directed beams of light are used for both measurement and treatment of patients, and the patient presents a moving subject. In the field of ophthalmology, laser photocoagulation is an example of a treatment method, and optical coherence tomography an example of a measurement method, both of which are typically performed with the patient awake, and both of which require precise placement of the light beam on a portion of the eye.
A typical patient can comfortably hold his eye open for a few seconds. The eye moves considerably in one second, mainly through quick adjustments in fixation (small saccades) resulting in apparent motions of the retina on the order of one hundred microns. These motions cause noticeable errors in application of directed beams such as photocoagulation and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Tracking the motion of the eye to correct the placement of the beam has proven useful in photocoagulation [Naess, E., et al. (2002)] and in OCT [U.S. Pat. No. 6,736,508; Hammer, D. X., et al. (2005)].
Typically, a pair of rotating mirrors serves as a two-dimensional scanner to move the beam of light in two dimensions, x and y, across the subject. If motion of the subject is tracked, the positioning commands to the scanner can be adjusted so that the scan beam reaches at the desired positions on the subject.
Information on the motion of the subject must be provided with low latency so that the scanning beam is correctly positioned for each A-scan in OCT, or for each laser shot in photocoagulation. In a system that corrects the scan beam position, the latency is the time between eye motion and correction of the position of the scan beam.
Tracking methods that use two-dimensional image frames [U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,856,891; 5,729,008; 5,975,697; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/002458] have the advantage that the two-dimensional image can also be used for a real-time display to orient the operator during the measurement or treatment procedure. These methods typically incur latency approximately equal to the time between frames, which is typically 1/30 of one second. During one frame, the eye can move significantly [Hammer, D. X., et al. (2002)]. Faster frame rates are possible, but incur extra cost.
Tracking methods that use a dithered tracking beam are fast enough to follow the motion of a human eye [Hammer, D. X. et al. (2002); U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,943,115, 5,767,941]. Dithered-beam methods with update rates of 2-10 kHz have been successful in tracking the human eye. The dithered tracking beam requires a separate optical scanning system, in addition to the system used to scan the treatment or measurement beam.
A line-scan ophthalmoscope (LSO) produces an image of the eye one line at a time [U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,732,466; 4,768,874; and 6,758,564]. In an LSO using an electronic camera, each line can be acquired and made available to digital processing within less than one millisecond. The part of the eye image contained in each line can be compared to the same area in previous eye images in order to determine the eye motion. Individual lines from an electronic LSO are available at approximately 10 kHz.
Previously disclosed tracking methods typically use a landmark, such as the optic disk. The landmark is identified first, and its location is monitored as the measurement, or treatment, scan proceeds. However, good landmarks are not always found in diseased tissue.
We see a need for a system to track motion of the eye, or other human tissue, with low latency during an optical treatment or optical measurement procedure, where the tracking system shares apparatus with a system providing a real-time display to the operator, and using a method that is independent of any particular landmark in the tissue.

Method and apparatus for measuring motion of a subject using a series of partial images from an imaging system


An ink-jet recording sheet including a color material receiving layer on a substrate. The color material receiving layer contains a compound represented by the following general formula (I),

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a material to be recorded supplied for ink-jet recording, using a liquid ink such as a water based ink (one using a dye or a pigment as the coloring material) and an oil based ink, a solid ink in a solid state at an ordinary temperature, supplied for printing after melting and liquefying, or the like. More specifically, it relates to an ink-jet recording sheet having an excellent ink receptivity, with a light resistance and an ozone resistance of a recorded image improved.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, with the rapid development of the information technology (IT) industry, various information processing systems have been developed, and recording methods and apparatus suitable for the recording systems have been developed as well so as to be put into practical use.
Among these recording methods, the ink-jet recording method is used widely not only in the offices but also at home for the capability of recording on various kinds of recording materials, relative inexpensiveness of the hardware (apparatus), compactness, the excellent quietness, or the like.
Moreover, with the recent trend toward the high resolution in the ink-jet printer, the so-called photography-like high image quality recorded material can be obtained. Furthermore, according to the development of the hardware (apparatus), various kinds of recording sheets for ink-jet recording have been developed.
As the characteristics required for the above-mentioned recording sheets for ink-jet recording, in general, (1) quick drying property (large absorbing speed of the ink), (2) appropriate and even ink dot size (absence of blurring), (3) good granule property, (4) high dot roundness, (5) high color density, (6) high chroma (absence of darkness), (7) good water resistance, light resistance and ozone resistance in the printing part, (8) high whiteness in the recording sheet, (9) good recording sheet storage property (absence of yellowish coloring by the long term storage), (10) good size stability without deformation (sufficiently small curling), (11) good hardware running property, or the like can be presented.
Furthermore, as to the application of the photo glossy paper used for obtaining the so-called photography-like high image quality recorded material, in addition to the above-mentioned characteristics, the glossiness, the surface smoothness, the printing paper-like feeling similar to the silver salt photography, or the like are required as well.
For improvement of the above-mentioned various characteristics, recently, an ink-jet recording sheet having a porous structure in a color material accepting layer has been developed. Since the ink-jet recording sheet has the excellent ink receptivity (quick drying property) and a high glossiness.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) Nos. 10-119423 and 10-217601, or the like propose an ink-jet recording sheet comprising a color material accepting layer containing fine inorganic pigment particles and a water soluble resin, and a high void ratio provided on a substrate.
According to these recording sheets, in particular, an ink-jet recording sheet provided with a color material accepting layer using a silica as the inorganic pigment fine particles of a porous structure provides the excellent ink absorbing property, a high in acceptability capable of forming a high resolution image and a high glossiness according to the configuration.
However, a minute amount gas in the air, in particular, the ozone is the cause of fading with age of a recorded image. Since the above-mentioned recording material comprising a color material accepting layer with the porous structure has a large number of voids, the recorded image can easily be faded by the ozone gas in the air. Therefore, for a recording material having a color material accepting layer of the above-mentioned porous structure, the resistance to the ozone in the air (ozone resistance) is an extremely important characteristic.
In order to prevent the above-mentioned fading by the ozone, JP-A No. 2001-260519 proposes an ink-jet recording material containing a sulfinic acid compound, a thiosulfonic acid compound, and a thiosulfinic acid compound. Moreover, the EP 1,138,509 proposes an ink-jet recording material containing a thioether compound having a hydrophilic group. Although these are effective in terms of the ozone resistance, the effect does not last long, and thus a problem is involved in that a sufficient ozone resistance cannot be provided.
Moreover, JP-A No. 7-314882 discloses a recording sheet having a porous ink accepting layer containing at least one compound selected from the group consisting of a dithiocarbamate, a thiuram salt, ester thiocyanates, a thiocyanate, and a hindered amine compound. As specific examples of the above-mentioned hindered amine compound, those having a structure with all the hydrogen on the carbons at the second position and the sixth position of a piperidine substituted by a methyl group are presented. Although the recording sheet has a fading preventing effect for about 30 days in a room can be provided by containing at least one of the above-mentioned compounds a problem is involved in that a sufficiently long term ozone resistance cannot be provided.

Abstract: In the general formula (I), R1 and R2 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, a heterocyclic group, —COR3, —COOR4, —SO2—R5, or —N(R6)R7. R3 and R5 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, a heterocyclic group, or —N(R8)R9. R4 represents a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, or a heterocyclic group. R6 to R9 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, an acyl group, an alkoxy carbony group, an aryloxy carbonyl group, a carbamoyl group, an alkyl sulfonyl group, an aryl sulfonyl group, or a sulfamoyl group. R1 and R2 may link with each other so as to form a ring. R10 to R14 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, a heterocyclic group, —COR31, —COOR32, or —N(R33)R34. R31 represents a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, a heterocyclic group or —N(R8)R9. R32 represents a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, or a heterocyclic group. R33 and R34 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an aliphatic group, an aromatic group, an acyl group, an alkoxy carbonyl group, an aryloxy carbonyl group, a carbamoyl group, an alkyl sulfonyl group, an aryl sulfonyl group, or a sulfamoyl group.


A vehicle wheel lock which is adjustable to accommodate various sized wheels on a vehicle and/or the steering wheel of the vehicle, and includes a two-part base, one-part insertable into the other part, two arms extending in a U-shaped fashion from the base, the distal ends of the U-shaped arms curving inward toward each other, with a serrated locking bracket positioned internal to and attached to one of the insertable bases, and a cylinder-type lock positioned internal to and attached to the opposed base, wherein the width of the lock, that is the distance between the opposed arms, may be adjusted for placement of the lock around tires of various sizes and on to a wheel, and/or a steering wheel, and for placing the lock in a position whereby the lock may be locked, thereby immobilizing the vehicle wheel or steering wheel and preventing theft of the vehicle.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a vehicle wheel and/or steering lock.
B. Description of the Prior Art
Vehicle wheel locks are known. However, they are very large, cumbersome and typically can weigh up to about 25 pounds. They are used by law enforcement authorities to immobilize vehicles, are placed on vehicles by professional traffic enforcement personnel, and, although they secure the vehicle against movement, they are also too cumbersome and heavy to be of practical use to the general public as a means for theft prevention. These known wheel locks, often referred to as the "BOOT", also, typically require up to about ten minutes to install on the wheel of an automobile.


An image-pickup apparatus includes a synthesizer configured to synthesize a plurality of images, a detector configured to detect positional information, a first instructor configured to instruct a start of a photography preparing operation, a second instructor configured to instruct a start of a photographic operation, and a controller configured to determine first and second capturing conditions in accordance with an instruction from the first instructor and to hold reference position information based upon the positional information when the first instructor provides an instruction, the controller being configured to make an image-pickup unit start the consecutive shooting under the first capturing condition in accordance with an instruction from the second instructor, and to make the image-pickup unit capture an image under the second capturing condition when the detector detects that the positional information of the image-pickup apparatus corresponds to the reference position information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to consecutive shooting during panning using an image-pickup apparatus, and more particularly to a method for changing an image-pickup condition during consecutive shooting.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. ("JP") 2010-28764 proposes a method for consecutively capturing still images during panning and for generating a panoramic image by synthesizing the consecutively captured still images. This method will be referred to as panning panoramic synthesizing hereinafter.
However, the capturing method disclosed in JP 2010-28764 cannot properly capture an object and a background simultaneously when the object is dark and/or moving in a range of the panoramic image pickup.

Image-pickup apparatus, its control method, and storage medium


A scraper assembly for use with an associated coal pulverizer or as part of a coal pulverizer having a vertical axis with a central hub that rotates during normal operation of the pulverizer. The scraper assembly includes a bracket dimensioned and configured for attachment to the hub of the coal pulverizer that rotates in the normal operation of the coal pulverizer. The apparatus also includes a shaft extending from the bracket. The shaft is substantially horizontal and the apparatus also includes a scraping element pivotally mounted on the shaft. A torsion spring biases the scraping element with respect to the shaft. In some forms of the invention the scraping element comprises a first and second journals engaging the shaft at axially spaced points and the scraping element further includes first and second arms extending radially away from the shaft that are respectively fixed to the first and second journals. The apparatus may further include a first plate shaped member carried on the first and second arms and a second plate shaped member removably attached to the first plate shaped member.

The invention relates to pulverizers of the type that are used in pulverized coal fired steam generating systems. More particularly, the invention relates to apparatus that scrapes accumulated substances from the underbowl of a bowl mill.
Pulverized coal firing is favored over other methods of burning coal because pulverized coal burns like gas and, therefore, fires are easily lighted and controlled.
Pulverizers, also referred to as mills, are used to grind or comminute the fuel. The present invention has primary application to bowl pulverizers or mills. Although the present invention will be described with respect a bowl type ring roll pulverizer. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention may be used in other bowl type mills as well.
In the operation of a pulverizer coal enters the center of the pulverizer and through a center feed pipe. The coal is pulled onto a rotating bowl which has a replaceable wear surface. Centrifugal force causes the coal to move outward from the center and under three journal assemblies, where it is crushed by large rolls. The partially pulverized coal passes over the rim of the bowl and is it entrained by a rising hot air stream. Pyrites and tramp iron that enter the mill with the coal follow the same path as the coal until they pass over the rim of the bowl. Because these materials are more dense than coal, they are not carried any further upward by the air stream and fall into an underbowl. In addition to pyrites and tramp iron there may be other heavy foreign materials that may be found in the coal that will also fall into the underbowl.
These materials are both very abrasive and erosive. Removal of these materials from the underbowl requires the use of a scraper to mechanically push the materials toward an outlet chute. The abrasion and errosion caused by these materials is prejudicial to the service life of the scraper apparatus.
The hostile environment in which the scraper mechanism must operate will be more apparent by considering both the nature of the materials that pass through the pulverizer as well as the quality of material that flows through the pulverizer. A typical pulverizer has a capacity of up to 200,000 pounds of coal per hour.
Prior art scrapers have included a generally planar scraping element carried on a vertical axis. Centrifugal forces urge the scraping element to a generally radial position. A central body carries the vertical axes of the scraping elements. As the central body rotates the scraping elements are urged by centrifugal forces to generally radial positions about the underbowl. If a large object falls into the underbowl the scraping element can move from the radial position upon impact with the large object and then return to the radial position after passing the large object.
It is believed that the vertical axis of the prior art scraper inherently positions a part of the bearing surface in close proximity to severely hostile abrasive and erosive environment. More particularly, the lower extremity of the vertical axis inherently must be very close to a hostile environment that it is prejudicial to the bearing.
Another concern with the prior art scraper assembly is that it requires installation of a complete assembly to repair worn parts.
In some cases wear of the vertical axis and journal bearing cooperating with the axis may allow the generally planar scraper element to droop so that the radial extremity of scraper element contacts the surface of the bowl and causes wear. Such constructions have been satisfactory for many installations. However, in some installations the materials found within a particular coal may be more abrasive and more erosive than in other coals from other parts of the world.
Another concern is that heavy assemblies are more difficult to install.

Pulverizer apparatus with horizontal axis pivot scraper


A toner adder roll according to one example embodiment includes an electrically conductive shaft defining an axis of rotation of the toner adder roll. A foam member is cylindrically disposed about the shaft and forms an outer circumferential surface of the toner adder roll. The foam member is composed of a polymeric open-cell foam material. An abrasive agent is dispersed on the outer circumferential surface of the toner adder roll.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates generally to electrophotographic image forming devices and more particularly to a toner adder roll having an abrasive agent additive.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to reduce the premature replacement of components traditionally housed within a toner cartridge for an image forming device, toner cartridge manufacturers have begun to separate components having a longer life from those having a shorter life into separate replaceable units. Relatively longer life components such as a developer roll, a toner adder roll and a doctor blade are positioned in one replaceable unit referred to as a developer unit. The image forming device's main toner supply, which is consumed relatively quickly in comparison with the life of the components housed in the developer unit, is provided in a reservoir in a separate replaceable unit in the form of a toner cartridge. The toner cartridge periodically supplies toner from its relatively large toner reservoir to a smaller toner reservoir in the developer unit for use in print operations.
One potential limitation on the useful life of the developer unit is the unwanted filming of toner or toner elements on components of the developer unit, such as on the surface of the developer roll. In general, relatively small toner particles may tend to aggregate due to electrostatic charging and film on the outer circumferential surface of the developer roll. Further, mechanical forces on the toner in the developer unit may tend to dislodge one or more elements of the toner (e.g., release agents, colorants, surfactants, dispersants, charge control agents, emulsifiers, plasticizers, etc.) from the toner particles. These dislodged toner elements may be electrostatically attracted to and film on the surface of the developer roll. Developer roll filming may lead to print defects such as the appearance of dark spots, bands or streaks. If unaddressed, developer roll filming may limit the useful life of the developer unit. Accordingly, reduction of toner filming on the surface of the developer roll is desired.

Toner adder roll having an abrasive agent additive


Piston bore distortions in a sub-surface safety valve are reduced or eliminated when valve body is subjected to high working pressures. In one embodiment, a piston is disposed in a sleeve that is disposed in a piston bore. The bore can distort but the sleeve within will not distort to the point of losing sealing pressure around the piston. In another approach additional bore or bores are provided adjacent the piston bore to make the pin end of the connection for the valve housing more uniform in the region of the piston bore so that pressure loading does not result in sufficient distortion of the piston bore to lose the piston sealing relation in its bore.

Sub-surface safety valves (SSSV) are used in production tubing to control the well and to close it off to prevent a blowout. Typically, these valves have a disc shaped valve member that is known as a flapper. The flapper pivots over 90 degrees between an open and a closed position. A shiftable tube known as a flow tube is movable between two positions. When shifted down it engages the flapper to rotate it 90 degrees and keeps advancing as the flapper is moved into a position behind the flow tube. In this position the SSSV is open. A closure spring which was compressed as the flow tube opened the SSSV is used to return the flow tube to the original position. When the flow tube rises a pivot spring on the flapper urges it up against a seal surface to close off the production tubing.
Typically, a control line is run adjacent the production tubing from the surface to a piston bore in the SSSV. There are several types of pistons that can be used and they are generally linked to the flow tube such that applied and retained pressure in the control line acts on a piston that is linked to the flow tube to hold the flow tube down against a closure spring and keep the flapper in the open position. One common piston type is a rod piston called that because of its shape. Other piston types can have an annular shape. The rod piston sits in an elongated bore in a main housing component of the SSSV that usually terminates in a two step male thread also known as a pin. The pin is made up to a female thread called a box to fully assemble the SSSV.
More recently demand has been for SSSVs that have higher and higher internal working pressure ratings. These demanded working pressures have gone as high as 20,000-30,000 PSI. Testing of current designs under these conditions revealed that they could comfortably hold such working pressures but the presence of the piston bore in the pin part of the housing connection experienced dimensional distortion, generally becoming asymmetrical. The reason for this is that the pin is thinner than the box in the thread area. When the pressures get high enough, the pin deflects until a clearance comes out of the two step thread, at which time the pin and box move together. Thus, the problem that is addressed by the present invention is defined as how to keep the piston bore from distorting under high loads. Two approaches are presented. One involves a sleeve inserted into the piston bore so that bore distortions become irrelevant to the continuing ability of the piston to seal because the sleeve does not distort at all or to the point where a pressure seal around the piston is lost. Another approach is the creation of parallel bores to the piston bore so as to make the pin wall more uniform in strength in the vicinity of the piston bore to hold down or eliminate the distortion in the piston bore under loading to the point where the piston seal holds and the flow tube can continue to be powered down against a closure spring. These and other aspects of the present invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art from a review of the preferred embodiment that is described below along with its associated drawings, recognizing that the full scope of the invention is to be found in the appended claims.
Injection bores in SSSVs have been used to deliver chemicals behind the flow tube as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,920 and US published application US 2005/0098210. Also relevant to SSSV in general are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,042,023; 4,399,871; 4,562854; 4,565,215; 5,718,289 and 6,148,920 and US application 2004/0040718.

Distortion compensation for rod piston bore in subsurface safety valves


A memory card is provided with a transfer control circuit, a write control circuit and a judging circuit. The transfer control circuit outputs a transfer flag signal during the data transfer. The write control circuit outputs an internal busy signal during the data write operation. The judging circuit outputs a transfer interruption signal when a card selection signal of the host is negated during the input of the transfer flat signal and also outputs a suspension signal when the card selection signal is negated during the input of the internal busy signal. A CPU invalidates the data being transfer to interrupt the transfer process upon reception of the transfer interruption signal and completes, upon reception of the suspension signal, the process being executed and stays in the waiting condition. Consequently, even when the timing signal not conforming to the standards is transferred, the host can select the optimum processing operation from the internal processing conditions and thereby execute the selected operation.

The present invention relates to a nonvolatile memory card and particularly to a technique which may be effectively adapted to flexible application such as alteration and addition of standards of a multimedia card.
A multimedia card is widely known as one of external storage media of a personal computer and a multifunction terminal equipment or the like. This multimedia card is applicable to every kind of digital information pieces in the recording of a still video image of a digital video camera, data of a mobile phone and music data of mobile player.
This multimedia card can maintain its compatibility with the multimedia card standards specified by MMCA (MultiMedia Card Association) which is a standardization organization.
A multimedia card has been produced through expansion of the Internet and spread of mobile phones and therefore it is not a traditional product. Moreover, in some cases, the multimedia card standards do not specify the measure for operations such as unexpected violation for the standards by a host side.
The inventors of the present invention have discussed an event that a card selection signal (CS) is negated during execution of access based on a command issued from the host in the operation mode wherein the multimedia card selected with the card selection signal generated by the host accepts the command and then executes the process.
As the process in the multimedia card to be executed as explained above, it is thought that the data input and data output are masked and the processes within the multimedia card are continued so long as a clock signal is inputted.

Non-volatile memory card and transfer interruption means


A semiconductor chip is mounted on the central portion of a metal heat radiator. A pair of metal projecting members are provided on the heat radiator externally of the pair of opposed sides of the semiconductor chip to extend therealong beyond both ends of the semiconductor chip. A circuit board is mounted on the side of each of the pair of projecting members opposed to the semiconductor chip. The top surface of the semiconductor chip and the top surface of each of the projecting members are connected to each other by a third bonding wire for grounding.

The present invention relates to a package for carrying a semiconductor chip for high-power and high-frequency applications and to a semiconductor device composed of the semiconductor chip for high-power and high-frequency applications mounted on the package.
In recent years, there has been increasing demand for high-frequency semiconductor devices such as a MESFET composed of gallium arsenide (GaAs) that has been used more prevalently in consumer products with the development of mobile communication. In the field of the high-frequency semiconductor devices, the use of the microwave or milliwave band as a replacement for the VHF or UHF band has been desired for the achievement of higher-quality communication and effective use of frequencies. To implement a communication system using such a high-frequency band, it is important to develop, as an RF amplifier, a semiconductor device for high-power and high-frequency applications which is easy to mass produce.
However, the conventional high-frequency semiconductor devices using the high-frequency band, such as the GaAs transistor, have been developed exclusively for use in defense industry and other special-purpose application areas. Since mobile communication requires particularly high power, considerably advanced and complicated mounting technology is necessary to apply the high-frequency semiconductor devices to the field of mobile communication, which presents a serious problem associated with the mass-producibility of the semiconductor devices.
Referring to the drawings, a conventional semiconductor device composed of a semiconductor chip for high-power and high-frequency applications mounted on a package will be described.
FIGS. 4 illustrate the structure of the conventional semiconductor device composed of the semiconductor chip for high-power and high-frequency applications mounted on the package, of which FIG. 4(a) shows a plan structure and FIG. 4(b) shows a cross-sectional structure.
As shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), two semiconductor chips 11 including transistors for high-power and high-output applications, such as MESFETs formed on a GaAs substrate, are mounted on the central portion of a heat radiator 10 made of metal such as copper, which is to serve as a heat sink. On both sides of each of the semiconductor chips 11, two circuit boards 12 made of ceramic or the like are mounted on the heat radiator 10. On each of the circuit boards 12, there are formed a power distributing/synthesizing circuit, an I/O impedance matching circuit for the transistor, and surface wiring for providing connection between the power distributing/synthesizing circuit and the I/O impedance matching circuit.
On the left edge portion of the heat radiator 10, an input lead 13 and an input wiring pad 14 integrally formed with the input lead 13 are disposed via an insulator 15. On the right edge portion of the heat radiator 10, an output lead 16 and an output wiring pad 17 integrally formed with the output lead 16 are disposed via the insulator 15.
The semiconductor chips 11 and the circuit boards 12 are connected to each other by first bonding wires 18 for signal transmission. The circuit boards 12 and the input wiring pad 14 are connected to each other by second bonding wires 19 for signal transmission, while the circuit boards 12 and the output wiring pad 17 are also connected to each other by the second bonding wires 19 for signal transmission. A surrounding wall member 20 made of ceramic or the like and shaped like a square frame is formed on the input and output leads 13 and 16 overlying the insulators 15. It is to be noted that the input and output leads 13 and 16 extend through respective cut-away portions formed in the surrounding wall member 20.
FIG. 4(c) shows a cross-sectional structure of a portion different from the one shown in FIG. 4(b) of the semiconductor chip 11. A MESFET 23 made of GaAs is formed in the surface region of the semiconductor chip 11. The MESFET 23 has a drain connected to the first bonding wire 18 and a source connected to a gold plating layer 22 formed on the back face of the semiconductor chip 11 via a conductive material filled in a via hole 21 extending through the semiconductor chip 11. The purpose of connecting the source of the MESFET 23 to the gold plating layer 22 via the conductive material filled in the via hole 21 is to reduce a grounding line and thereby prevent the deterioration of the high-frequency gain of the MESFET 23.
In the case of forming a high-power transistor on the semiconductor chip 11, the thickness of the semiconductor chip 11 should be reduced to the order of several tens of micrometers so as to reduce thermal resistance in the semiconductor chip 11 in transmitting heat generated from the high-power transistor to the heat radiator 10. In short, the thickness of the semiconductor chip 11 formed with the high-power transistor should be reduced significantly.
This leads to the problems that an advanced manufacturing technique is required to form the via hole 21 in the semiconductor chip 11 and that the production yield lowers during the processing of the semiconductor chip 11.
In the case where numerous via holes 21 are formed in the semiconductor chip 11 with an extremely reduced thickness, the semiconductor chip 11 to be mounted on the heat radiator 10 should be handled with extreme caution and attentiveness because of its reduced mechanical strength, while the cracking of the semiconductor chip 11 lowers the production yield during the mounting of the semiconductor chip 11.
In the case where the semiconductor chip 11 is made of a fragile material such as GaAs, in particular, the lowering of the production yield during the processing and mounting of the semiconductor chip 11, as described above, presents an extremely serious problem.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


Methods and systems for controlling movement of detectors having multiple detector heads are provided. One system includes a gantry, a patient support structure supporting a patient table thereon, and a plurality of detector units. At least some of the detector units are rotatable to position the detector units at different angles relative to the patient table. The imaging system further includes a detector position controller configured to control the position of the rotatable detector units, wherein at least some of the rotatable detector units positioned adjacent to each other have an angle of rotation to allow movement of the rotatable detector units a distance greater than a gap between adjacent rotatable detector units The detector position controller is configured to calculate at least one of field of view avoidance information or collision avoidance information to determine an amount of movement for one or more of the rotatable detector units.

The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to systems and methods for diagnostic medical imaging, such as Nuclear Medicine (NM) imaging.
In NM imaging, systems with multiple detectors or detector heads may be used to image a subject, such as to scan a region of interest. For example, the detectors may be positioned adjacent the subject to acquire NM data. However, in some instances when the orientation and movement of the detector heads is changed, one or more detector heads may obstruct the view of other detector heads.
Additionally, in NM imaging systems, the resolution of the detector, such as a gamma detector, is determined by the resolution of the detector (based on the size of pixels of the detector) and the resolution of a collimator attached to the detector. The resolution degrades with distance of the detector, specifically the collimator, from the subject.
In Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) systems having moving detector heads, the detectors may be positioned to focus on a region of interest. However, because of the size and spacing of the detector heads, when imaging a smaller subject (e.g., pediatric scan), the detector heads may collide when moved in close proximity to the subject, thereby preventing placement of the detector heads close to the subject. Moreover, for larger subjects, gaps may exist between the detectors because the detectors have to be moved apart to allow for focusing on the field of view, which can result in reduced sensitivity. Additionally, for odd shaped subjects or positions, such as where hands are placed to the side of a torso, in order to avoid collisions of the detector heads, the distribution of heads may not be optimal.
Accordingly, because the detector heads cannot be moved in close proximity to the subject, or as a result of other detector head placement difficulties or gaps between the detector heads, image resolution or sensitivity is reduced.


A multiple-time electrical fuse programming circuit is described. The circuit includes a programming counter to record the number of programmings, a blowing reference voltage generator to generate a blowing voltage reference wherein the fuse resistance after programming is determined by the blowing voltage reference, at least one self-controlled programmable fuses which includes a programmable fuse and a control circuit. The multiple-time electrical fuse programming circuit also has a fuse detection reference generator and a high voltage power source.

In the semiconductor industry, fuse elements are a widely used feature in integrated circuits for a variety of purposes, such as improving manufacturing yield or customizing a generic integrated circuit. For example, by replacing defective circuits on a chip with duplicate or redundant circuits on the same chip, manufacturing yields can be significantly increased. A fuse disconnected by a laser beam is referred to as a laser fuse, while a fuse disconnected by passing an electrical current, or blowing, is referred to as an electrical fuse, or e-fuse. By selectively blowing fuses within an integrated circuit, which has multiple potential uses, a generic integrated circuit design may be economically manufactured and adapted to a variety of custom uses.
Typically, fuses are incorporated in the design of the integrated circuit, wherein the fuses are selectively blown, for example, by passing an electrical current of a sufficient magnitude to cause the electromigration or melting, thereby creating a more resistive path or an open circuit. Alternatively, a current that is weaker than the current required to entirely blow the fuse can be applied to the fuse in order to degrade the fuse, thus increasing a resistance through the fuse. The process of selectively blowing or degrading fuses is often referred to as "programming".
Conventional circuits for programming a fuse are shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b, in which the fuse is connected between the drain of a programming transistor and a power supply node 100 or 120. Initially, the resistance of the fuse is small (in the range of 100 ohms). The fuse is programmed by switching on the programming transistor 106 or 122 with a high voltage Vprog applied to the gate of the transistor 106 or a low voltage applied to the gate of the transistor 122. When the transistor is turned on, the transistor starts to conduct and current flows through the fuse 102 or 126. The current flow causes the fuse 102 or 126 to heat up, and if sufficient current continues to flows through it, it will get programmed, resulting in a much higher resistance. Blocks 110 and 130 are detection circuits to detect the fuse resistances.
The resistance of the electrical fuse always increases through programming. The fuse is programmed to a high resistance, either "open" or higher than a reference resistance. If state "0" is used to represent fuse's low resistance state and state "1" is used the represent the high resistance state, then the state of a programmable fuse can only change from "0" to "1" and the state can only be changed once. This limits the usage of programmable electrical fuse to a large extent. Therefore there is the need for a new fuse that can be programmed multiple times.

Multiple-time electrical fuse programming circuit

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


An organic light-emitting device adapted for coating and having good emission efficiency and luminance. The organic light-emitting device employs an anode, a cathode, and a layer including an organic compound sandwiched between the anode and cathode. The layer containing the organic compound includes a bisfluorene compound represented by General Formula [1] below.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an organic light-emitting device and a display apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Organic light-emitting displays are known as one application of organic light-emitting devices. In order to realize an excellent organic light-emitting display that has a low power consumption, a high luminance, and a long service life, it is necessary to further improve the performance of materials constituting the organic light-emitting devices. On the other hand, a manufacturing method based on a coating process using a polymer material or the like enables cost reduction of organic light-emitting displays. A manufacturing method based on such a coating process is presently the main method for manufacturing organic light-emitting displays.
However, a problem associated with organic light-emitting devices using polymer materials is that the element operation life is shorter than that of low-molecular weight organic light-emitting devices. Polymer materials are typically synthesized by polymerizing a monomer of one kind or monomers of several kinds and the polymer materials obtained tend to have a broad molecular weight distribution and are therefore very difficult to manufacture accurately. This is the main factor affecting the device operation life.
Yet another problem is that the flatness and electronic properties of thin films of polymer materials vary significantly depending on the particular method selected employed for forming the films and the specific treatment conditions.
An attempt to improve the device operation life by using a dendrimer with a medium molecular weight that is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 2003-231692 represents a method for overcoming the drawbacks inherent to the above-described polymer materials. Further, an increase in emission efficiency can be attained by using a polyfluorene of a medium molecular weight (oligofluorene) in which the 2-position and the 7-position serve as connection positions.
Concerning oligofluorenes, a review of optical excitation of oligofluorene compounds of a π-stacking type connected to each other in 9-positions has been reported in J. Am. Chem. Soc., 125, 15474 (2003). However, organic light-emitting devices using bisfluorene compounds connected to each other at 9-positions have not yet been reported.

Organic light-emitting device and display apparatus

Abstract: wherein in Formula [1], A is a substituted or unsubstituted alkylene group, a substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkylene group, a substituted silylene group, a substituted germylene group, an oxygen atom, and a sulfur atom.


A rearrangeable non-blocking three stage network and method for routing one or more requests between an input stage and an output stage, comprising between 3N and substantially the next largest integer of (41N-E.sub.N)/16 center stage interconnection units, where N is the greater of the inlet links to the input stage and outlet links from the output stage. Received requests are grouped by load size into a first group, a second group, and a third group with the second ground divided into a first half and a second half. The requests in the first group and first half of the second group are routed by a first set of center interconnection units, and the requests of the second half of the second group are routed by a second set of center interconnection units. The requests of the third group are routed through the first and second set of interconnection units so long as their load capacity is not exceeded, while any remaining small requests are routed through a third set of interconnection units.

The multistage interconnection network (MIN) is a popular topology for communication and computer networks. The most basic MIN is the three-stage Clos network which is often used as a component for larger networks. One important performance criterion for an interconnection network is its blocking probability. In particular, a zero blocking probability, or non-blockness, is a highly desirable property.
There are generally three types of non-blocking circuits: strictly non-blocking; wide sense non-blocking; and rearrangeable non-blocking. In a rearrangeable non-blocking network, connectivity is guaranteed as a result of the network's ability to rearrange prior connections as new incoming calls are received. A critical issue in designing a rearrangeable non-blocking network is to reduce the number of center stage interconnection units necessary to provide the rearrangeability function and thereby guarantee connectivity for each received request. The prior art has recognized that a rearrangeable non-blocking network can have as little as 3N center stage interconnection units, where N is the greater of the number of inlets per input switch or outlets per outlet switch, as described below.
Each request, which includes all types of communications such as a telephone call and a data communication, is associated with a weight or load which can be thought of as the bandwidth requirement of that request. In a multi-rate environment these loads differ for different requests. A link, whether inlet, outlet or internal, can carry any number of requests as long as the combined load of these requests does not exceed the load capacity of the link.
Each request can be represented mathematically with the three variables x, y, and w, where x is an inlet link, y an outlet link and w is its load. A request frame is a collection of requests such that the total load of all requests in the frame involving a fixed inlet or outlet does not exceed unity.
To discuss routing it is convenient to assume that all links are directed from left to right. Thus a path from an inlet to any outlet always consists of the sequence: an inlet link.fwdarw.an input switch.fwdarw.a first internal link.fwdarw.a center interconnection unit.fwdarw.a second internal link.fwdarw.an output switch.fwdarw.an outlet link. Since the switch is assumed to be nonblocking with fan-out properties i.e., one inlet can be simultaneously connected to any set of outlets, a request (x, y, w) is routable only if there exists at least one path of links from x to y, where every link on the path can carry the load of the request without exceeding its load capacity. In other words, every link on the path must have unused capacity of at least 1-w before carrying the request. A request frame is routable if there exists a set of paths, one for each request, such that for every link the sum of the loads of all requests being carried on that which does not exceed unity. A network is rearrangeable non-blocking if every request frame is routable.
A critical implementation issue in rearrangeable nonblocking networks is the number of center stage interconnection units necessary to provide the rearrangeable nonblocking function. It is desired to identify and thus construct a switching network having a reduced number of center stage interconnection units while achieving the property of being rearrangeable nonblocking.

Rearrangeable non-blocking switching network


A constant flow rate controller valve includes a piston spring biased towards the top of the valve. Fluid flowing into the valve increases the forces in the chamber above the piston, forcing the piston toward a valve seat. The piston is thus seated in the valve seat, blocking fluid flow to the outlet port. The forces on the piston in the chamber below the piston builds as flow goes through the piston until the forces in this chamber including the piston spring force is greater than the forces in the chamber above the piston. The piston then is lifted from the valve seat, and the pathway to the outlet orifice is opened. Fluid flows through the piston via the calibrated orifice. An equilibrium flow rate is reached by variation in the piston position based on the location of the movable seat which sets and maintains a constant differential pressure.

The present invention relates to constant fluid flow regulators and more particularly to a flow regulator having a spring biased piston and being capable of maintaining a constant fluid flow rate in both high pressure, low volume and low pressure, high volume environments with changes in inlet or outlet pressure. The present invention also accommodates high pressure, high volume and low pressure, low volume systems.
Constant fluid flow regulators capable of accommodating low pressure, high volume fluid flow often employ sliding sleeves for opening and closing parts of the regulators. Also, multiple poppet type valves may be used for low pressure, high volume fluid flow regulation. The above prior art, however generally cannot accommodate high pressure, low volume fluid flow. This invention, on the other hand, is able to provide constant fluid flow in high or low pressure and high or low volume ranges.
The present invention is also different from the above sliding sleeve and multiple poppet type valves in that the piston of the valves of the prior art move relative to the valve body to vary fluid flow as the pressure changes, while the piston of the present invention does not move substantially relative to the valve body after fluid flow has stabilized. Instead, constant spring force on the piston in the present invention allows constant flow with changing pressure. The present invention thus experiences less wear and tear from moving parts.
Constant fluid flow regulators taught in prior art regulate fluid flow by adjustment screws that directly vary spring tension by attachment to the piston spring itself. Other regulators change fluid flow by altering piston position via springs and ball bearings located over the piston. The system employing springs and ball bearings is subject to extreme torque due to the fluid pressure in the chamber.
Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,649 issued to Skoglund and U.S. Pat. No. 3,958,596 issued to Gerrard both disclose valves in which fluid flow variation is implemented by an adjustable valve seat. Adjustment of the valve seat adjusts the spring tension, which in turn alters the pressure differential across the piston. However, both of the above prior art patents employ threaded, screw-type mechanisms for adjusting the valve seat which are difficult to operate, have a narrow operating range, and are prone to breakage in high pressure environments.
Also, the screw-type valve seat adjustment mechanisms of the above prior art references both impede fluid flow through the valve. U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,649, discloses a valve in which the fluid outlet is oriented perpendicular to the fluid inlet in order to accommodate the valve seat adjustment mechanism. This angled fluid flow pathway results in a more complex valve design as well as increased fluid turbulence and higher pressure drops. U.S. Pat. No. 3,958,596 issued to Gerrard teaches a valve in which the fluid outlet passes axially through the valve seat adjustment screw. This valve seat adjustment mechanism configuration is difficult to use while the valve is in operation.
The valve of the present invention, on the other hand, employs a piston adjustment mechanism which does not require the valve outlet to be oriented at an angle from the valve inlet (the inlet and outlet instead may be axially aligned), which is not in the path of the outlet fluid flow, and which is hydraulically, as opposed to mechanically, operated.
Finally, other constant fluid flow regulators allow fluid flow around the piston periphery to constitute the principal channel of fluid passage through the regulator. In the high pressure, low flow embodiment of the present invention, the sole flow passage is a single orifice or group of orifices through the piston. This calibrated flow orifice, or orifices, allows precise measurement and calculation of prospective flow rates, unavailable in most of the prior art devices. The optional use of the sole flow path allows the valve to function at high pressure, unlike the prior art. Fluid flow around the piston periphery in the prior art prevents use in high pressure, low fluid flow environment.

Flow control valve having adjustable piston for varying flow rate


A device for controlling data transmission between a docking station and a portable computer includes signal control circuitry connected to the docking station for selectively enabling and disabling data transmission between the docking station and the portable computer to enable and disable expanded operating functions of the portable computer, respectively. The signal control circuitry enables and disables the data transmission between the docking station and the portable computer in dependence upon a first signal indicating a power supply state of the docking station, a second signal indicating a power supply state of the portable computer, and a third signal indicating a connection state between the docking station and the portable computer.

The present invention relates to a control device for a docking station, and more particularly, to a device for controlling the transmission of data between a docking station and a portable computer based on power supply states of the docking station and the portable computer, and a connection state between the docking station and the portable computer.
Generally, a portable computer can be operated in remote locations since it uses a battery as a source of operating power. Portable computers are typically compact and easy to carry, and provide a large data processing capacity. Changes in technology, however, have placed an increased demand on portable computers to process information quickly, thereby requiring the battery of the portable computer to provide greater power capacity. The power necessary to expand the functions of the portable computer is often provided through a docking station. That is, a docking station can be used to expand the functions of a portable computer to include those functions conventionally provided from a desk top computer.
A conventional docking station for expanding the functions of a portable computer is disclosed in U. S. Pat. No. 5,283,714 entitled Docking Apparatus For A Portable Computer issued to Tsai et al. on Feb. 1, 1994. Tsai et al. '714 discloses a docking apparatus having a release mechanism that can provide a uniform force for pushing the portable computer away from the docking station so as to disengage a connector of the portable computer from a connector of the docking apparatus. While this type of conventional art provides advantages in its own right, I note that it fails to adequately address how internal components of the portable computer and the docking station can be protected from leakage currents.

Control device for enabling and disabling the data transmission between a portable computer and a docking station


An antenna structure of few components and reduced size which functions by switching between components to achieve radiation in three different frequency bands includes two radiating portions, a feeding portion, a matching circuit, and a first switching circuit. With the first switching circuit closed, current flows along a first radiating portion to activate a first frequency band. A second radiating portion obtains the current from the first switching circuit by coupling with the first radiating portion, to activate a second frequency band. Current in the first radiating portion can activate a third frequency band. With the first switching circuit open, current in the first radiating portion activates radiation in the first frequency band. The second radiating portion can radiate in second frequency band by coupling current from the first radiating portion. Frequency multiplication of the first frequency band can activate the third frequency band.

Antennas in wireless communication devices are for receiving and transmitting wireless signals at different frequencies, such as signals in low, middle, high frequency bands, GPS frequency band, BT/Wi-Fi frequency band, and diversity frequency band. However, the antenna structure is complicated and occupies a large space in the wireless communication device, which is inconvenient for miniaturization of the wireless communication device.
Therefore, there is room for improvement within the art.

Antenna structure and wireless communication device using the same


Disclosed herein is a system designed to manage or slow the block travel speed down to safe speeds when the rig is operating in a light load/high speed condition. The system monitors and controls engine torque and horsepower, providing the minimum amount of each necessary to pull the light load out of the hold without providing sufficient excess torque to pull the load through a snag.

Throughout the history of drilling and servicing oil wells, accidents, some even involving fatalities, frequently occur when a rig is pulling tubulars and runs the tubulars into a wellhead, BOP, slips, or other stationary apparatus. Normally, when the rig is pulling shallow and has a light load, the block speed is fast and there is little time to react to unexpected occurrences. Compounding the speed problem, there is no forgiveness or stretch in tubing or drillpipe, and thus, when the pipe hangs up, damage and accidents frequently occur.
When a rig starts pulling tubulars out of a wellbore, the operator or driller will select the most efficient gear to pull the load based on the weight of the hookload and the desired speed of the pull. More often than not the operator pulls as fast as possible, however the block pulling speed is limited by both the prime mover (engine) horsepower and the gear train transferring the power from the engine to the hoist. Since hookloads coming off bottom of a hole can be high, the normal rig with the normal operator will start off bottom pulling slowly (engine maxed out but still slow block movement) and as the hookload decreases with less pipe in the hole, the pulling speed or block velocity will increase. This is primarily due to the reduced horsepower requirement to lift the lighter load.
Drillpipe, tubing, and rods all have a known modulus of elasticity and exhibit the ability to stretch. For example, if a rig has 10,000 feet of surface measured tubing that weighs 45,000 pounds, and the tubing is not moving, the weight indicators will sense 45,000 pounds provided the pipe is hanging free and is vertical. The bottom of the tubing will be at approximately 10,003 feet due to normal free hanging stretch.
When subjected to forces in excess of the free hanging weight, such as being getting stuck in the hole where the bottom of the tube is stationary and the top of the tube being pulled by the block is moving, the tubular string will elongate. The amount of additional stretch can be defined with the following equation:
            1      )                              Stretch                                (      in      )        =                    [                  Length                                                              of                                                              pipe                                                              in                                                              hole                ]            *              [                  Differential                                                              Pull                ]                    [              735        ,                  000          *                      [                          Weight                                                                                of                                                                                pipe                        ]
When a tubular gets stuck deep in a hole, the operator's reaction time is significantly longer than when a tubular gets stuck near the surface. For example, if a 2⅜″ tubular at 4.5 pounds per foot gets stuck at 10,000 feet, the free hanging weight is 45,000 pounds. The maximum desired pull would then be 65,000 pounds, which is based on a calculated value based on the 90% of yield point of new tubing. If the rig operator were to pull an additional 20,000 pounds over the free hanging weight (i.e. the 65,000 pound maximum), the total stretch in the tubing would be:S=[10,000 feet*20,000 pound over pull]/[735,000*4.5 #/ft]=60 inches  2)
Using this equation and applying it to the rig pulling out of the hole, a determination can be made as to what the operator sees when the pipe sticks while being pulled. Assuming the rig's pulling speed is, at that depth and weight, about 60 feet per minute or one foot per second, and knowing from equation 2 that a 20,000 pound over pull yields a 60 inch stretch, the time that is taken from sticking to a 20,000 pound over pull can be calculated as follows:T=D/V  3)Where D is the distance pulled, V=velocity and T is time. Knowing that at a 20,000 over pull the tubular stretches 60 inches, or 5 feet, and that the velocity at that depth is 1 foot per second, time can be calculated as follows:T=5/1 or five seconds  4)In other words, if the tubing sticks near the bottom of the hole, the operator has approximately five seconds to react and stop the blocks prior to reaching the maximum allowable pull of 65,000 pounds, i.e. a 20,000 pound overpull. Of course, the greater the speed, the less reaction time is afforded the operator, however overpull is normally quickly noticed by the operator, and therefore the operator usually has time to shut the rig down and take evasive action to avoid and overpull.
Comparing the deep hole sticking example to a shallow sticking example magnifies the problem facing the drilling and well servicing industry. Assume that the same tubular is at a depth of only 500 feet, the tubular has a hanging weight of 2,250 pounds, at the same 4.5 pounds per foot. Now the rig operator has more than enough horsepower to pull at almost any speed, but still does not want to pull more than 65,000 pounds, which in this case is a 62,750 pound overpull. Using equation 1, the tubular stretch in this example is calculated as follows:S=[500 feet*62,750 over pull]/[735,000*4.5 #/ft.]=9 inches  5)Assuming the pulling speed for a light load is fast at four feet per second, using equation 3 the time for this "almost out of the hole" example can be calculated as follows:T=0.75/4=0.1875 seconds to react.  6)As shown, the time to travel the 9 inches, i.e. to stretch from hanging weight to maximum pull (¾ of a foot), at 4 feet per second is 0.1875 seconds, significantly slower than when the tubular gets stuck deep in the hole. Even if the rig is operated at a much lower gear and the pulling speed is slowed to 1 foot per second, using equation 3 again to calculate time, it can be shown that there is still not enough time (¾ of a second) to properly react to a shallow sticking situation:T=0.75/1 =¾ second to react.  7)
As shown, when the rig has hole problems that cause sticking, if there is an ample length of tube in the hole, the operator has a sufficient amount of time to react. If, on the other hand, the length of the tube is short and the rig is being operated at its maximum capacity, there is little or no time to react and the chances of a catastrophic event greatly increase. It remains therefore incumbent to find a solution to this problem to provide the rig and crew an extra level of safety to prevent such catastrophes.

Safemode operating system for a drilling or service rig


A continuous environmental noise level recording and analysis system is provided. The system is capable of sampling, processing and storing Equivalent Sound Level values over a period of about two weeks. The recorded data is downloaded and analyzed to show graphs, and to automatically detect noise events of interest. The measurement system conforms to ANSI/IEC Type I or Type II standards for noise level monitoring

For airports and communities, it is useful to conduct medium-term (one to two week) continuous measurements of sound levels. At the present time, there are no sound level meters or systems that can do this type of monitoring at costs that are affordable for small regional airports and smaller communities. Existing monitors of this type cost in excess of $10,000, and are so complicated that only professional noise consultants can use them.


The present disclosure describes techniques for facilitating a collaborative work environment. The techniques comprise receiving a request from a first client computing device associated with a first user in the plurality of users to establish a communication with a second user in the plurality of users, the request specifying information associated with the communication; generating and transmitting data to a second client computing device associated with the second user for display of a user interface on the second client computing device, wherein the user interface indicates an invite of communication from the first user, and the user interface comprises information about the first user, the information associated with the communication, and selectable interface elements for accepting or declining the invite; and in response to receiving an indication of acceptance by the second user, establishing a communication channel between the first user and the second user.

Communication is increasingly being conducted using Internet-based tools. The Internet-based tools may be any software or platform. Existing communication platforms enable users to communicate with each other by sharing text, images, videos, and other information via app or web pages. People continue to desire new ways for communication via Internet-based tools.

Methods and systems for facilitating a collaborative work environment


A modular wound treatment system includes a central modular hub having a modular connection for one or more pneumatically-actuated, modular components, such as a pneumatically-actuated soft robotic gripper component configured to curve and at least partially encircle the wound when actuated and thereby apply direct pressure to the wound, and a pneumatically-actuated tourniquet component configured to apply pressure proximal to the wound to limit the flow of arterial blood to the wound. The system also includes a pressurized gas supply in pneumatic communication with the modular connection, sensors for measuring the amount of pressure being applied by the pneumatically-actuated, modular components, a display for providing system information, and a controller for controlling the system. Methods of treating a wounded subject using the system are also provided.

Unless stopped, blood loss from an injury can lead to death. A tourniquet around a bleeding arm or leg stops blood loss, but sometimes injures the limb. To minimize such injury, the tourniquet must evenly squeeze the limb at a pressure marginally high enough to stop blood flow.
Pneumatic tourniquet cuffs safely and effectively stop arterial blood flow. A pneumatic tourniquet cuff encircles a limb with an inflatable bladder. The inflated bladder expands and compresses the limb with an inward, radial force. The compression applied to the limb varies with the cuff inflation pressure.
Starving the limb of blood flow, also called arterial blood flow occlusion, leads to gangrene of the limb and other complications. Conventional techniques release the tourniquet pressure for five or ten minutes every two hours.

Modular system and apparatus for treating wounds

The Government of the United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of Homeland Security


An electron-beam system for curing plastic layers on workpieces has an irradiation chamber, an electron gun, a transport device for conveying workpieces into the irradiation chamber, and a shield as radiation protection. In order to achieve a high throughput of workpieces and effective shielding, provision is made of two or more blocking devices, which can be moved with reference to the transport device and which are arranged in each case as radiation protection on the transport device upstream and downstream of the irradiation chamber, specifically at a spacing in the conveying direction of the transport device in such a way that at least one workpiece fits between two blocking devices.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an electron-beam system for curing plastic layers on workpieces, having an irradiation chamber, an electron gun for generating at least one electron beam in the irradiation chamber, a transport device for conveying the workpieces into the irradiation chamber and out of the irradiation chamber, and a shield as radiation protection.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An electron-beam system disclosed in DE-A-20 04 050 includes vertically displaceable blocking devices provided directly upstream and downstream of the irradiation chamber and are used to shield against radiation emerging undesirably from the chamber openings in the irradiation chamber through which the workpieces are pushed into the irradiation chamber or guided out of it. In this device, the workpieces running horizontally through the irradiation chamber must be conveyed in the manner of "stop-and-go" traffic, that is to say it is necessary in each case to introduce one workpiece into the irradiation chamber, and it is then necessary to close the irradiation chamber at both ends. The transport device has to be briefly stopped in this process. After irradiation of the workpiece has been performed in the irradiation chamber, the two blocking devices are opened at the inlet end and the outlet end of the irradiation chamber, so that the finally irradiated workpiece can be removed from the irradiation chamber and a fresh workpiece can be transferred into the irradiation chamber. In order that, in this prior art, no scattered radiation (essentially, X-ray radiation generated by the high-energy electrons) can emerge from the irradiation chamber through the openings while the blocking device is being opened, it is necessary to provide complicated means so as to shield the electron beam during these times of opening the irradiation chamber.
In another known electron-beam system (DE 44 06 887 C1), provision is made of an irradiation chamber which, for the purpose of conveying plate-shaped workpieces in and away, cooperates with a transport device which forms a feed section and a discharge section, in addition to a shielding jacket above its transport section said transport device having in each case a conveying means with a plurality of shielding plates as a horizontal shield. In order to shield off the scattered radiation emerging in the region of a through opening from the irradiation chamber, the conveying means forming an orbit can be used for the purpose of continuously guiding said shielding plates into or out of their shielding position. In order to move these heavy shielding plates synchronously with the workpieces, the conveying means is provided with a technically complex design which is complicated to manipulate in the case of adaptation to changes in workpiece size. With the shielding jacket in the double-layered region of transport device and conveying means, the overall system is very large, and with the modules described above an inner cavity is formed below the shielding jacket and causes a disadvantageously high consumption of protective gas. Moreover, an expensive demounting of the shielding jackets causes difficulty in accessing the system in the region of the processing section, for example for the purposes of repair and maintenance.
A further known electron-beam system (DE-A-17 64 592) describes (FIG. 12) a conveying device for the workpieces to be irradiated, in the form of a rotary machine having separate chambers. The rotary machine is guided in a radiation-proof fashion in a spherical recess near the irradiation chamber, and the workpieces fall onto a belt conveyor after irradiation. This system is suitable only for relatively small workpieces which are suitable for being conveyed in a rotary machine.
It is the object of the invention to develop an electron-beam system of the type mentioned at the beginning in such a way that the system can achieve a high throughput of workpieces in conjunction with a low operating outlay, that the system can be adapted in a simple way to different workpiece dimensions, that reliable screening of the system against undesirable radiation is ensured, and that, in addition, it is also possible to save on the consumption of protective gas.


A method of sealing a high performance internal combustion engine with a head gasket having a fire ring comprising providing a groove in the head or block generally concentric with each said combustion opening, each groove having a land area and a generally vertical wall, and positioning the gasket on the block so that when the head is torqued down, each groove receives a fire ring and compresses the wire ring thereof to provide a primary seal therewith at the land area, the wall engages the armor of the fire ring to form a secondary seal, and the head and block clamping surfaces engage the armor to clamp the armor. The head gasket has a main body of a first thickness including a central core and facing layers laminated to the core, and defines a plurality of combustion openings. A fire ring is disposed and secured in each combustion opening, each fire ring comprising a generally U-shaped armor having a pair of legs overlying and underlying the main body adjacent a combustion opening and a central body connecting the legs and ensheathing a wire ring for providing a combustion seal. In use, the combustion seal provides a labyrinth seal against the spaced surfaces of the groove and against a corner defined by the groove.

The invention of this application relates to gasketing for high performance racing engines. High output, high performance automobile engines, such as those used for racing, present the gasket and sealing engineer with severe operating conditions that are exceedingly difficult with which to contend. Standard passenger car laminated gaskets, used in a conventional manner, do not stand up to such service conditions and result in blow-out and leakage when cylinder pressures overcome the clamping force of the head bolts or studs. When that happens, the head tends to lift away from the block, unloading the gasket, and providing leakage paths for liquids and gases. Further, if the lifting force is great enough, the combustion seal may be lifted out of position or may otherwise be forced out of position, resulting in engine failure.
A variety of mechanisms have been employed to seek to overcome such problems.
For example, high output racing engine builders for years have used a solid copper gasket and stainless steel wire rings placed in adjacent grooves in the cylinder head or in the block around the cylinders. This is very durable from a combustion seal standpoint, but the sealing of coolants is very difficult and requires multiple, separate auxiliary seals for that purpose.
Other engine builders have used an additional wire ring in a groove around the cylinder adjacent to the gasket body, adjacent to an associated armor having a wire ring. This design is undesirable because the clamping force intended for effecting the combustion seal is then divided between two wires instead of the one in the gasket as designed by the manufacturer.
Still other engine builders have used conventional passenger car gaskets and either installed a wire ring that contacts the gasket on a horizontal or upper surface of the armor, or adjacent to the armor. The problem with this is that when such a wire is positioned on the armor and is loaded, the armor tends to split due to high stress levels. When such a wire is positioned adjacent to the armor, it divides the clamping forces, or causes loading on the gasket body itself to be insufficient to seal effectively in the main body of the gasket, such as around the coolant and oil holes, or both.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved sealing mechanism for high performance engines and which includes an integrated gasket having an armor and wire which may be installed as a single unit, and without the need for utilizing separate or auxiliary sealing elements. The sealing assembly of the present invention provides effective sealing and resists both blow-out and pull-in of the wire ring in operation of the sealed engine assembly.

Method of sealing a high performance automotive engine and engine assembly


A head gimbal assembly (HGA) including a slider, a micro-actuator and a suspension to load the slider and the micro-actuator. The micro-actuator includes a support base and a piezoelectric unit used for both position displacement adjustment and flying height adjustment. The support base includes a base, a moving plate, and a leading beam to connect with the base and the moving plate. The invention also discloses a method of manufacturing such micro-actuator and HGA, and a structure of a disk drive having the micro-actuator and HGA.

A disk drive stores and retrieves data by positioning a magnetic read/write head over a rotating magnetic data storage disk. Referring to FIGS. 1a and 1b, a typical disk drive in prior art has a drive arm 104 with a slider 203 mounted thereon and a magnetic disk 101. The disk 101 is mounted on a spindle motor 102 which causes the disk 101 to spin and a voice-coil motor (VCM) 107 is provided for controlling the motion of the drive arm 104 with the slider 203 and thus controlling the slider 203 to move from track to track across the surface of the disk 101 to read data from or write data to the disk 101.
However, Because of the inherent tolerance (dynamic play) resulting from VCM that exists in the displacement of the slider 203, the slider 203 can not attain a fine position displacement adjustment.
To solve the above-mentioned problem, piezoelectric (PZT) micro-actuators are now utilized to modify the displacement of the slider. That is, the PZT micro-actuator corrects the displacement of the slider on a much smaller scale to compensate for the tolerance of VCM and the drive arm 104. It enables a smaller recording track width, increases the 'tracks per inch' (TPI) value by 50% of the disk drive unit (also increases the surface recording density).
Referring to FIG. 1d, a traditional PZT micro-actuator 205 comprises a ceramic U-shaped frame 297 which comprises two ceramic beams 207 with two PZT pieces (not shown) on each side thereof. With reference to FIGS. 1c and 1d, the PZT micro-actuator 205 is physically coupled to a suspension 213, and there are three electrical connection balls 209 (gold ball bonding or solder ball bonding, GBB or SBB) to couple the micro-actuator 205 to the suspension traces 210 in one side of the ceramic beam 207. In addition, there are four metal balls 208 (GBB or SBB) to couple the slider 203 to the suspension 213 for electrical connection. FIG. 2 shows a detailed process of inserting the slider 203 into the micro-actuator 205. The slider 203 is bonded with the two ceramic beams 207 at two points 206 by epoxy dots 212 so as to make the motion of the slider 203 independent of the drive arm 104 (See FIG. 1a).
When power supply is applied through the suspension traces 210, the PZT micro-actuator 205 will expand or contract to cause the U-shaped frame 297 to deform and then make the slider 203 move on the disk 101. Thus a fine position displacement adjustment can be attained.
However, the PZT micro-actuator 205 can only be used for the position displacement adjustment of a head gimbal assembly (HGA) 277 (see FIG. 1c), it cannot be used for flying height adjustment (FH adjustment) of the head gimbal assembly (HGA) 277. As is known to all, flying height is a very important parameter of disk drives. That is, if the flying height is too high, it will affect the ability of slider 203 to read data from or write data to the disk 101; on the contrary, if the flying height is too low, the slider 203 may scratch the disk 101 which will damage the slider 203 and/or the disk 101. In today's disk drive industry, with the rapid increase of disk drive capacity, the track pitch and the track width of disk drive become increasing narrow. Accordingly the flying height of the slider becomes lower, and a fine flying height adjustment for an HGA becomes ever more important.
Also, referring to FIG. 2, in the prior art, the HGA 277 with the micro-actuator 205 is very difficult to manufacture for the following reasons: first, inserting and bonding the slider 203 to the micro-actuator 205 is difficult. Secondly, the epoxy dot 212 is very difficult to control, if the length of the epoxy dot 212 is too long, it will affect the work performance of the micro-actuator 205, for example, the displacement is not enough; if the length of the epoxy dot 212 is too short, the bonding strength will not be enough and then the shock performance is poor. In addition, the epoxy dot 212 is also difficult to control. If the epoxy dot 212 is too high, the height of the epoxy dot 212 will stay on the front or back side of the slider 203. The epoxy dot 212 staying on the front side of the slider 203 will influence the slider 203 flying on the disk 101 and even damage the slider 203 or the disk 101; the epoxy dot 212 staying on the back side of the slider 203 will influence the GBB process of the slider 203.
Furthermore, the micro-actuator 205 has an additional mass which not only influences the static performance, but also the dynamic performance of the suspension 213, such as the resonance performance, so as to reduce resonance frequency and increase the gain of the suspension 213.
Also, the U-shaped frame 297 of the micro-actuator 205 are very brittle, resulting in poor shock performance. It is also a big problem that there is no effective solution to identifying potential micro crack(s) of the U-shaped frame 297. Furthermore, when a voltage is applied to the PZT micro-actuator during normal operation, the back and forth bending of the brittle micro-actuator 205 will generate particles, and influencing the work performance of the micro-actuator 205.
In the manufacture process of HGA 277, since the HGA 277 has a complex configuration, the slider 203 must be tilted when the slider 203 is bonded to the U-shaped frame 297, and the U-shaped frame 297 must be tilted when the U-shaped frame 297 with the slider 203 is bonded to the suspension 213. Both will influence the static attitude of the HGA 277 and accordingly increase the difficulty of manufacturing the HGA 277.
It is well known that polishing is an effective and widely used cleaning method for reducing the micro contamination in the air bearing surface (ABS) of the slider. However, this cleaning method cannot be used in the above-mentioned HGA 277 because it is easy to damage the U-shaped frame 297 of the micro-actuator 205.
Hence, it is desired to provide a micro-actuator, head gimbal assembly, disk drive and manufacturing method thereof which can attain both a fine flying height adjustment and a fine position displacement adjustment, and overcome the above-mentioned shortcomings.

Micro-actuator, head gimbal assembly, disk drive unit and manufacturing method thereof