A wireless transmission system capable of performing a multi-station simultaneous transmission of data, that is, simultaneously transmitting data by wireless to a plurality of stations. The wireless transmission system includes a plurality of wireless stations for transmitting/receiving data and it constitutes a system for path diversity by use of a wireless station at the transmitting end, a multipath transmission path, and a wireless station at the receiving end. At least one of the plurality of wireless stations decides, in accordance with a response packet responsive to a multi-station simultaneous transmission request packet transmitted by the wireless station or other stations, a plurality of delay amounts relative to a reference timing during the multi-station simultaneous transmission in the wireless transmission system. It is arranged that each difference between the plurality of delay amounts be greater than a predetermined delay resolution and that the difference between the maximum and minimum values in the plurality of delay amounts be smaller than a predetermined maximum delay.

Generally, in a wireless communication, transmitted signals arrive at a receiver at different propagation times via a plurality of propagation paths, thus causing multipath fading. In order to prevent deterioration of transmission characteristics due to the multipath fading, a modulation/demodulation scheme having an anti-multipath characteristic is used.
The modulation/demodulation scheme having the anti-multipath characteristic includes, for example, a spectrum spread scheme, an OFDM (OFDM; Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) scheme in which information is distributed into a large number of subcarriers arranged over a wide range of frequency to be transmitted, and a so-called anti-multipath modulation scheme in which an anti-multipath characteristic is provided by adding phase redundancy or amplitude redundancy in a transmission symbol.
The spectrum spread scheme includes, for example, a DSSS (DSSS; Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum) scheme in which an original signal is multiplied by a spread signal with a band wider than the original signal, an FHSS (FHSS; Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum) system in which a frequency is hopped over a wider band, and a THSS system (THSS; Time Hopping Spread Spectrum) in which a signal is spread by an impulse with a wide band.
The anti-multipath modulation scheme includes a PSK-VP (Phase Shift Keying with Varied Phase) scheme in which a convex phase redundancy is added (Non-patent Document 1), and a PSK-RZ (Return to Zero Phase Shift Keying) scheme in which the amplitude redundancy is added (Non-patent Document 2).
Additionally, even when a wireless communication is performed by use of a normal single carrier modulation scheme, the anti-multipath characteristic can be given by use of an equalizer at the receiving end. A modulation/demodulation scheme in which the wireless communication is performed by use of the single carrier modulation scheme, and the equalizer is used at the receiving end is also a modulation/demodulation scheme having the anti-multipath characteristic.
By using such a modulation/demodulation scheme with an anti-multipath property for communication, it is possible not only to prevent the deterioration of transmission characteristics due to a multipath waveform distortion, but also to actively improve the transmission characteristics with a plurality of delayed waves being received with diversity (path diversity) if there is an appropriate TDOA (time difference of arrival) between element waves forming the multipath (delayed waves) arriving at the receiver. Thus, with a path diversity, it is possible to obtain an effect of improving the transmission characteristics.
The appropriate minimum and maximum TDOAs with which a path diversity effect can be obtained will hereinafter be referred to as the "delay resolution" and the "maximum delay", respectively. The delay resolution and the maximum delay may be determined based on the principle of the modulation/demodulation scheme used, or based on the parameters and/or limitations on implementation of the modulation/demodulation scheme.
For example, with the DSSS scheme, it is possible, on the receiver side, to separate a receive signal into delayed wave components and combine them together (RAKE reception) to obtain a path diversity effect, with a delay resolution corresponding to the 1-chip length of the spread code and a maximum delay corresponding to a value that is less than the spread code length.
With the OFDM scheme, the delayed wave components are absorbed at the guard interval set for the signal, whereby the maximum delay corresponds to the guard period. Inter symbol interference does not occur if the TDOA between delayed waves is within the guard interval. Moreover, since an error correction operation is normally performed over a plurality of subcarriers, information can be reproduced even if some subcarriers have errors therein due to a multipath distortion. The delay resolution corresponds to a value around the inverse of the frequency bandwidth. Thus, with the OFDM scheme, it is possible to obtain a path diversity effect (where the delay resolution is around the inverse of the frequency bandwidth) based on the effect of the guard interval and on the frequency diversity effect provided by scattering pieces of information over a wide frequency band and collecting the pieces together.
Moreover, when the PSK-VP scheme or the PSK-RZ scheme is used, the delay resolution corresponds to about several times less than a symbol length, and the maximum delay corresponds to a time less than 1 symbol-length. Furthermore, when the single carrier scheme, such as a PSK scheme and a QAM scheme is used at the transmitting end, the receiving end demodulates the signal utilizing an equalizer that uses a delay line with a tap. In this case, the delay resolution corresponds to 1 symbol-length, and the maximum delay corresponds to a time determined by the number of taps.
By artificially delaying the signal in performing a multi-station simultaneous transmission of the same signal from antennas of a plurality of base stations to thereby obtain the effect due to the path diversity by use of the modulation/demodulation scheme having the above-mentioned anti-multipath characteristic, there has been proposed a wireless transmission system which aims at active improvement of transmission characteristics, expansion of a communication area, or the like in a field of a cellular system or a broadcast system. Even in such a multi-station system, however, the effect due to the path diversity cannot be obtained at a point where the TDOA between incoming waves from respective antennas deviate from a range which is equal to or more than the above-mentioned delay resolution and equal to or more than above-mentioned maximum delay.
On the contrary, for example, when the TDOA between the incoming waves from two stations is extremely short, since the signals cancel each other at a point where two delayed waves with equal power are simultaneously received with opposite phases, the transmission characteristics will deteriorate significantly. Meanwhile, even in a point where the TDOA between the incoming waves from two stations exceeds the maximum delay, not only the path diversity effect is not obtained, but also the transmission characteristics will deteriorate. For that reason, in the conventional multi-station system, in order not to cause the above-mentioned problem, a proper difference is provided in transmission timings between the plurality of antennas for performing the multi-station simultaneous transmission, allowing the effect due to the path diversity to be certainly provided (for example, Patent Document 1).
FIG. 75A is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the conventional multi-station simultaneous transmission system described in Patent Document 1. In FIG. 75A, abase station 50 communicates with a moving terminal by use of a CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) scheme. Remote antenna systems 52-1 through 52-n lie between the base station and the moving terminal which is not shown, and relay a signal transmitted between the base station and a mobile station. The remote antenna systems 52-1 through 52-n are arranged in a predetermined location far from the base station 50. The remote antenna systems 52-1 through 52-n include high gain antennas 54-1 through 54-n, delay elements 56-1 through 56-n, and remote antennas 58-1 through 58-n.
The signals transmitted from the base station 50 are received by the high gain antennas 54-1 through 54-n to then amplified, are subsequently delayed by predetermined times at the delay elements 56-1 through 56-n, respectively, and are transmitted from the remote antennas 58-1 through 58-n. In this system, the delay elements 56-1 through 56-n that generate delay times which are multiple of a time (τ) little larger time than one chip time of the spread code and are mutually different are provided in the remote antenna systems 52-1 through 52-n, respectively. As a result of this, for example, when areas that respective remote antennas 58-1 through 58-5 cover are formed as E58-1 through E58-5 shown in FIG. 75B, the TDOA between the incoming waves at an area overlap point having approximately equal distances from adjacent local antennas, to which the signals arrive from the adjacent local antennas at approximately equal power is set to a proper value (in this case, approximately τ through 3τ), and thus making it possible to certainly obtain the path diversity due to the multi-station simultaneous transmission.
Meanwhile, in recent years, a multihop system in which a plurality of wireless stations have performed wireless communications by mutually relaying data has been studied. FIG. 76 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the conventional wireless transmission system described in Patent Document 2. In FIG. 76, the wireless transmission system is provided with six wireless stations 17-1 through 17-6. FIG. 77 is a diagram schematically illustrating a transmission timing of a packet that each wireless station shown in FIG. 76 transmits.
First, the wireless station 17-1 transmits a packet for broadcasting. Only the wireless stations 17-2 and 17-3 that are located near the wireless station 17-1 can receive the packet that the wireless station 17-1 has transmitted. The wireless stations 17-2 and 17-3 wait for the transmission between a timing of completing reception of the packet and a predetermined transmission timing, and simultaneously transmit the packet.
Next, only the wireless stations 17-4 and 17-5 can receive the packets that the wireless stations 17-2 and 17-3 have transmitted. The wireless stations 17-4 and 17-5 also wait for the transmission from a timing of completing reception of the packets to a predetermined transmission timing, and simultaneously transmit the packets. The wireless station 17-6 then receives the packets that the wireless stations 17-4 and 17-5 have transmitted. As described above, according to Patent Document 2, an OFDM (OFDM; Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) scheme having the anti-multipath characteristic is used in the multihop system, and thus the interference is avoided even when the plurality of wireless stations simultaneously transmit the same packet. Moreover, since a time required for the packet transmission for broadcasting can be reduced as compared with a case where the multihop transmission is sequentially performed from the wireless stations 17-1, 17-2, 17-3, 17-4, 17-5, and 17-6, in this order, transmission efficiency can be improved.
As described above, according to the conventional wireless transmission system described in Patent Document 2, the plurality of wireless stations can efficiently perform the multihop transmission by use of the modulation/demodulation scheme having the anti-multipath characteristic.    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 3325890 specification    [Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2000-115181    [Non-patent Document 1] H. Takai, "BER Performance of Anti-multipath Modulation Scheme PSK-VP and its Optimum Phase-Waveform", IEEE, Trans. Veh. Technol., Vol. VT-42, 1993, November, p 625-639)    [Non-patent Document 2] S. Ariyavisitakul, S. Yoshida, F. Ikegami, K. Tanaka, T. Takeuchi, "A Power-efficient linear digital modulator and its application to an anti-multipath modulation PSK-RZ scheme", Proceedings of IEEE Vehicular Technology Conference 1987, 1987, June, p 66-71

Wireless transmission system, wireless station used therein and method used therefor


A cover for a service fluid tank arrangement having a first service fluid tank and a second service fluid tank includes a housing having a housing wall through which a first opening and a second opening extend. The first opening is configured to be connected to a service fluid inlet of the first service fluid tank and the second opening is configured to be connected to a service fluid inlet of the second service fluid tank. At least one of the first opening and the second opening has a filler neck that extends from the housing wall in at least one direction and is configured as a connector for a service fluid line.

Owing to rising requirements in terms of the environmental friendliness of motor vehicles, increasingly stringent restrictions apply to internal combustion engines when it comes to emission limit values. Particularly vehicles such as, for example, trucks, construction vehicles or agricultural vehicles have been subject to ever-stricter emission standards over the past years. The requirements stipulated in these standards can often no longer be met only with measures involving engine management but rather they additionally call for the after-treatment of exhaust gases. This exhaust-gas after-treatment, often also in combination with other methods, frequently involves the use of selective catalytic reduction (SCR). In this process, a chemical reducing agent is metered into the stream of exhaust gas. The stream of exhaust gas mixed with the reducing agent subsequently passes through suitable SCR catalytic converters, where the exhaust gases are cleaned by chemical reduction. A proven reducing agent is a 32.5% aqueous urea solution according to DIN 70070, which is referred to as ADBLUE® by the industry or as Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) in the United States.
For this purpose, the vehicles in question have to be equipped not only with the required devices and aggregates for exhaust-gas after-treatment, but also with an additional service fluid tank for the reducing agent, aside from the fuel tank. Particularly in the case of industrial and agricultural tractors as well as small and medium-sized construction equipment, the available space is generally quite limited. The fuel tank is often located on one side of the vehicle in a front section (as seen in the driving direction) and it is filled via the service fluid inlet or a filler neck by means of a nozzle. This section of the fuel tank often has an integrated step which, for safety reasons, is provided with anti-slip ribbing, or else it has a mounted step cover that the vehicle driver or maintenance personnel can use, for example, to clean the windshield or to replace the wiper blades. The arrangement of the fuel tank and of the reducing agent tank regularly poses design challenges since especially small and medium-sized vehicles only have limited installation space available and are subject to a number of additional requirements. For instance, the reducing agent tank has to be mounted securely. At the same time, the reducing agent tank should not be installed in an area where high temperatures prevail since this would accelerate the degradation of the urea solution.
Owing to the exhaust-gas after-treatment, as a rule, every time or every other time the fuel tank is filled, the reducing agent tank also has to be filled up. In order for the filling of the tanks not to be overly laborious, it is necessary for the filler necks of both tanks to be on the same side of the vehicle, preferably close to each other.
German patent application DE 10 2008 023 073 A1 describes a tank for service fluids of motor vehicles that consists of two service fluid tanks.
The first service fluid tank serves to hold a fuel such as, for example, diesel, while the second service fluid tank is provided for another service fluid component. The second service fluid tank is arranged at the side of the fuel tank and is combined with it to form a unit. On the side of the fuel tank opposite from the second service fluid tank, there is a step module with steps. Both tanks have a filler neck through which each individual tank can be filled with the service fluid or the service fluid component.
A similar service fluid tank arrangement is disclosed in German patent application DE 10 2009 045 500 A1, which describes a utility vehicle tank. On the outside, a bracket is welded onto an end wall of the fuel tank. An additional tank is joined to the bracket on the end face that faces away from the end wall. The additional tank has its own service fluid inlet or filling opening on the outside. A similar service fluid tank arrangement is also disclosed in European patent application EP 1 736 350 A2. Here, however, the service fluid inlets are relatively far from each other, which makes the filling procedure more difficult.
Moreover, it is a known procedure to adapt the two service fluid tanks to the shape of the available space as closely as possible, which results in asymmetrical and complex tank shapes. For instance, the service fluid tanks can be nested inside each other, whereby sections of the service fluid tank are shaped with the corresponding service fluid inlet in such a way that both tanks can be filled in an area that is easy for the user to access during the filling procedure. The service fluid tank arrangement described in European patent application EP 2 479 393 A1 comprises a fuel tank that is shaped like steps on one side and that forms an installation space for a reducing agent tank. The reducing agent tank is located underneath a cover that covers the filler neck of the reducing agent tank and that has to be opened in order to be filled. The cover has molded-on steps and it serves as a ladder via which the vehicle is accessible.
Restrictive package requirements and tight installation spaces often do not permit a solution involving nesting. Consequently, the reducing agent tank is also often accommodated in another place in the vehicle, for instance, on the other side of the vehicle. In order to prevent that the vehicle has to be filled from two sides, the reducing agent tank is then provided with a long pipe connector, a tube, a pipe or the like, whose end is configured as a filler neck that is situated in the vicinity of the filler neck of the fuel tank. However, such solutions fall short of the expectations of the operators or users and are often felt to be unattractive makeshift solutions.
From actual practice, a cover for a service fluid tank arrangement is known by means of which the service fluid inlets can be physically combined in a single component. The cover has two openings that are placed over filler necks of the fuel tank and of the reducing agent tank, which are configured as service fluid inlets, so that the filler necks project out of the openings of the cover and the remaining area of the filler necks is covered. Irrespective of the shape of the service fluid tank that is present, a visually attractive result can be achieved since the top of the cover can be designed in any desired manner, thereby covering an area of the vehicle that is unattractive because of technical circumstances. At the same time, however, for design-related reasons, the degree of freedom for the arrangement of the service fluid tanks is greatly restricted. Thus, the two service fluid tanks, especially their filler necks, have to be arranged adjacent to each other, and the filler necks have to be positioned very precisely for installation purposes, which is fairly laborious.


A lens barrel comprises an optical system provided within a main body of the barrel, an operation ring used for a photographer to operate the optical system, driving means, used for an electric drive, for generating a driving force transferred to the operation ring via a driving force transfer member, and a rotation restricting stopper for restricting a range of rotation of the operation ring. The rotation restricting stopper is movable between a position for restricting the range of the rotation of the operation ring and a position where the range of the rotation is not restricted, and substantially simultaneously restricts a range of rotation of the driving force transfer member in the position for restricting the range of the rotation of the operation ring.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-119818 which is hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lens barrel mounted to a camera etc, and more particularly to a lens barrel constructed to prevent a deformation of an operation ring when restricting a rotation.
2. Related Background Art
A single focus lens or a zoom lens is mounted in a lens interchange type camera. The lens barrel includes a plurality of lens units each composed of a single or a plurality of optical lenses. A photographer (or an actuator incorporated into the lens barrel or a camera) properly changes a distance between the lens units, whereby focusing is performed. A main trend of the cameras over the recent years is a type of having an auto focusing mode in which the focusing is executed by the camera itself in addition to a manual focus mode in which a photographer performs the focusing by rotating a manual focus ring provided on an outer peripheral surface of the barrel. A main body of this type of camera incorporates a focusing drive mechanism constructed of a microcomputer, a CCD sensor etc. This mechanism has a structure in which when a distance to an object is detected, an electric motor built in the main body of the camera or the lens barrel moves a focusing lens unit forward or backward. On the other hand, there exists a lens barrel which, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.57-66425, includes a focusing restriction mechanism capable of focusing up to a macro photographing region within a range of only a predetermined focal length.
The lens barrel shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is what the above focusing restriction mechanism is added to a lens barrel having the manual focus mode and the auto focus mode. A second lens unit holding frame 32 for holding a second lens unit 10 which is a focus lens unit, is slidably held within a fixed drum 1 in case of the lens barrel shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. A second pin 36 embedded into the second lens unit holding frame 32 engages with a clearance groove 42 formed in the fixed drum 1 and with a second cam groove 48 formed in a zoom cam ring 45. A drive lever 57 having a straight groove 55 extends on the side of an inner periphery of a manual focus ring 51, and the second pin 36 engages with a straight groove 55. On the other hand, a pinion 29 driven by the electric motor within the main body (unillustrated) of the camera is rotatably held at a rear side end of the fixed drum 1. This pinion 29 meshes with an internal gear ring 21 rotatably held by the fixed drum 1. A rear side end of the drive lever 57 engages with the internal gear ring 21, and the internal gear ring 21 and the drive lever 57 (i.e., the manual focus ring, 51) rotate integrally.
A rotation restricting stopper 61 movable back and forth is provided on an upper surface of the fixed drum 1. This rotation restricting stopper 61 fits in a focus ring sided engagement groove 63 when moving forward, and restricts a rotation of the manual focus ring 51 within a predetermined angular range (∞xcx9c1 m on a range marker in FIG. 4). The rotation restricting stopper 61 fits in a zoom ring sided engagement groove 65 when moving backward, and restricts a rotation of the zoom ring 53 within a predetermined angular range (50xcx9c85 mm on a focus range marker in FIG. 4). These rotational restrictions aim at meeting demands in terms of optical performance and preventing a collision between the optical systems. Note that the drive lever 57 engages with either of engagement ends 67, 69 formed on the fixed drum 1 and extending in a wide range in the direction of an optical axis, whereby the rotation of the manual focus ring 51 is, as shown in FIG. 5, restricted in the range of ∞xcx9c0.5 m on the range marker.
In the lens barrel described above, when the rotation restricting stopper 61 restricts the rotation of the manual focus ring 51, an unnecessary force might act on the manual focus ring 51 or on the drive lever 57.
The manual focus ring 51 is, when the rotation restricting stopper 61 fits in the focus ring sided engagement groove 63, restricted in its rotation within the range of ∞xcx9c1 m as described above. When auto-focusing, however, a drive control device within the main body of the camera, even after the manual focus ring 51 has rotated to a limit position of the rotational restriction, outputs a drive current to the electric motor in an extremely short period of time till it detects this and outputs a stop command. As a result, the internal gear ring 21 receives a driving force in a so-called overrun direction in spite of the manual focus ring 51 being restricted in its rotation.
On this occasion, a side end surface of the drive lever 57 engages with the engagement end 69 in the wide range on the infinity(∞)side. Therefore, the overrun of the internal gear ring 21 is hard to occur, and almost no deformation of the drive lever 57 occurs. On the 1 m side, however, if the driving force acts on the internal gear ring 21, the drive lever 57 kept in a state where one side end thereof is engaged with the rotation restricting stopper 61 through the manual focus ring 51, receives a comparatively large stress caused by a rotational moment of the internal gear ring 21 and gets flexural in an arrow direction in FIG. 6. As a consequence, the internal gear ring 21 overruns by a predetermined quantity, with the result that the drive lever 57 deforms with bending and a connecting portion between the manual focus ring 51 and the drive lever 57 is damaged. Then, for preventing these drawbacks, if a thickness of each of the manual focus ring 51 and the drive lever 57 is increased, or if a material is changed (for instance, a metal is used as a substitute for a synthetic resin used so far), it is difficult to reduce the lens barrel both in size and in weight, and, in addition, a manufacturing cost inevitably increases.
It is a primary object of the present invention, which was devised under such circumstances, to provide a lens barrel capable of preventing a deformation of an operation ring when restricting its rotation by taking a comparatively simple structure.
To accomplish the above object, according to the present invention, a lens barrel comprises an optical system provided within a main body of the barrel, an operation ring used for a photographer to operate the optical system, a driving unit, used for an electric drive, for generating a driving force transferred to the operation ring via a driving force transfer member, and a rotation restricting stopper for restricting a range of rotation of the operation ring, wherein the rotation restricting stopper is movable between a position for restricting the range of the rotation of the operation ring and a position where the range of the rotation is not restricted, and substantially simultaneously restricts a range of rotation of the driving force transfer member in the position for restricting the range of the rotation of the operation ring.
According to the present invention, the rotation restricting stopper substantially simultaneously restricts the ranges of the operation ring and of the driving force transfer member, and therefore an unnecessary force acts neither on the operation ring nor on the drive lever for connecting the operation ring to the driving force transfer member.
In lens barrel according to the present invention, it is preferable that the optical system is a focusing optical system, the operation ring is a manual focus ring, and the driving force transfer member is a ring gear. In this case, for example, the rotation restricting stopper is structured such that when its front side end fits in the focus ring sided engagement groove of the manual focus ring, its rear side end engages with an engagement protrusion formed on a ring gear to a limit of the rotational range.


In a device and a method for separating at least one sausage (3.1-3.4) from another sausage (3.2-3.4), from a strand of sausage (2) in the region of a setting region (4) formed between the sausage (3.1-3) with two setting points (7.1, 7.2).4) and the sausage strand (2), wherein the setting region (4) is at least partially wrapped by a cord (6) and this is continued from one sausage to the other for setting, at least one setting region (4) and the cord in this setting region should be assigned an automatically operating cutting device (11, 11.1) for simultaneously cutting the cord and setting region.

The invention concerns a device for separating at least one sausage from another sausage, in particular from a strand of sausage in the region of a binding region formed with two binding points between the sausage and the strand of sausage, wherein the binding region is at least partially wrapped by a cord and this cord is continued from one sausage to the other for binding.
In the production of sausages on a sausage string, a sausage meat is usually filled by a filling machine via a filling tube into a tubular packaging material closed on one side, usually a natural or artificial casing, and individual sausages are then formed from this sausage string by twisting it off. Individual sausages can be separated from such a sausage strand in the area of the twisting point by a beating knife. A very successful slicing machine for separating sausages from the sausage strand is described in DE 43 07 637 C. The sausage strand can be separated from the sausage strand by means of a beating knife.
Another machine for the production of sausages on a sausage string is the so-called clip machine. Here the sausage meat is displaced from a certain area between the two sausages, which are to be separated, by means of a displacer. Two displacers are provided for this purpose, one being static and the other dynamic. Both displacers firstly enclose/string the sausage. The static displacer holds the casing. The dynamic displacer displaces the sausage meat so that there is a distance between the two displacers. Then two clips are placed at once at both ends of this displaced area. Such clip machines are described for example in DE 20 2005 021 188 U1.
Today, on the other hand, the old traditional method of tying sausages with a string is increasingly demanded. A sausage tied with natural string combines product safety and traditional appearance. The product tied with natural string is safe because no metal or plastic is used to separate the portions. The natural binding thread gives the product a handcrafted appearance.
These types of tying machines must be distinguished from clip machines. These machines also work with displacer pairs, one static and one dynamic. Both displacers first enclose/string the sausage. Parallel to the filled casing there is a string or cord which is wound once or several times around the casing by the machine at previously defined, product-related points, thus forming a first setting point. The static displacers hold the casing/sausage. The dynamic displacer now displaces the sausage meat so that there is a distance between the two displacers. The setting cord runs axially with the sausage meat. Then the second setting is produced. The two setting points and the distance between them, if one is created, are referred to as the setting area. In this way, sausages can be tied with or without an intermediate distance. Suspension loops can also be integrated or entire strands of sausage can be formed. Such a tying machine is shown, for example, in EP 0 865 732 A1.
Separated and portioned in this way, the sausages are then fed to the next processing step, e.g. scalding, drying or smoking. This form of portioning or packaging is used wherever either no metal/plastic is used or a traditional handcrafted appearance is simply to be achieved. With this process almost all types of sausage with all natural, collagen or artificial casings are used. There are also many different types and types of twine used in this process.
The problem with the well-known tying machines is that the sausages cannot easily be separated from the sausage strand, since the tying area and especially the string, which preferably wraps around the tying area several times, is very elastic. Accordingly, it offers little or no resistance to a percussive knife, which is used, for example, in a machine conforming to DE 43 18 301 A. The knife is not suitable for use in the production of a wide range of products. For this reason, on every setting machine on the market, the sausages must be cut individually by hand using scissors if individual portions are required. This is very tedious and time-consuming and the industrial customer is used to the clip machine, where in the meantime the individual sausages are separated mechanically and fully automatically.

Inotec Gmbh Maschinenentwicklung Und Vertrieb


The invention provides a process for producing cement, the process comprising providing heat to a cement manufacturing process using a secondary fuel, wherein the secondary fuel comprises cellulose and plastic and is in the form of pellets of a size between about 3-25 mm thickness, having a calorific value of about 16 GJ/ton or more, and wherein said secondary fuel is supplied at a place between the kiln inlet and the first cyclone, wherein after formation of the cement clinker, the cement clinker is cooled and milled to cement powder. Preferably, the secondary fuel is supplied to the riser pipe or to a pre-kiln combustion chamber. Generally, the secondary fuel is provided at a place which allows the pellets to burn before coming in contact with the cement materials in the kiln, while it also does not rise into the cyclone, thereby preventing blocking of the cyclones.

There are basically two types of cement manufacturing processes: the wet process and the dry process. In the wet process, the raw material is blended with water to produce a slurry which is pumped directly into the cold end of the kiln. The slurrying process helps homogenize the material. The wet process is the most energy intensive, because the water must be evaporated out of the slurry mixture and the heat exchange equipment is less efficient.
In the dry kiln process, the raw material enters the kiln in a dry powdered form.
Several types of kilns utilize the dry process. The preheater kiln features a tower of heat-exchanging cyclones. The raw material enters the pre-heater in a dry powdered form where it is pre-heated by the hot exit gases from the kiln prior to entering the kiln chamber. The preheater kiln can be provided with a combustion chamber at the base of the preheater tower, which promotes further drying and calcination of the material before entering the kiln by accommodating a second flame in the clinker producing system. Another type of kiln is referred to as the long dry kiln and feeds dry raw material directly into the upper end of the kiln. This third type is rather outdated, and dry kiln processes using heat-exchanging cyclones are most common.
The pre-heater kilns that are provided with a combustion chamber can use in said combustion chamber, primary fuel, like coal, and/or secondary fuel like (shredded) tires, fluff of refuse derived fuel and the like. Because burning is confined to a specific combustion chamber, the combustion chamber can be adapted to the fuel intended to be used. In dry kiln processes without such additional combustion chamber, some secondary fuel can be added in the riser pipe, but this is largely limited to tires or shredded tires.
Cement kilns are basically tilted rotating cylinders lined with heat-resistant bricks. The raw feed material mixture is fed into the higher, elevated or "cool" end of the kiln also known as the kiln inlet. As the kiln slowly rotates, the raw meal tumbles down toward the hot lower, or "flame" end, gradually altering physically and chemically in the intense heat to form clinker.
The clinker, which are small balls of 10-15 mm diameter, are cooled on the grate cooler, and milled. The cement powder generally is diluted with gypsum, to regulate the hardening time.
The extraordinarily high temperatures involved in producing cement require large amounts of energy. The high temperatures in cement kilns (as high as 1500° C. or greater in the kiln materials; the primary combustion flame generally has a temperature up to 2000° C. while the molten cement clinker has a temperature between 1400 and 1500° C.) result in the formation of NOx, which is primarily a product of the thermal oxidation of nitrogen gas in the combustion air. Cement kilns use a variety of methods to minimize NOx production, including injection of ammonia.
Manufacturing one ton of cement requires an average of 4.4 million Btu-roughly equal to 100 kilograms of coal, or more. Typically, the energy of between 110 to 150 kgs of coal is used for the production of one ton of clinker. Cement kilns use so-called primary fuels, like coal, oil, petroleum coke, natural gas and often so-called secondary fuels, like waste derived fuel. Waste derived fuels may include waste oil, paints, solvents, and shredded tires. Most cement kilns burning hazardous waste use it to supplement—rather than replace—conventional (primary) fuel in particular in the kiln, because the consumption is limited by permit conditions which are guided by the EU Waste Incineration Directive
Burning in the combustion chamber in the pre-heater tower, or by the addition of tires in a riser pipe allows the supplementation of heat at temperatures below 1000° C., and hence lowering the NOx production. The temperature of the gas leaving the kiln generally is between 800 and 1000° C.
The air used for combustion is provided by a fan (generally called exhaust fan or final fan), which sucks the air from the kiln through the cyclones, while the to-be calcinated raw materials for the cement are provided in the top cyclones. The raw materials are dried and heated in the cyclones, while falling through the cyclones on its way to the kiln, and the final calcination takes place in the rotating kiln.
Cement plants use (powdered, pulverised) coal or cokes, oil or gas, all primary fuel, for firing the kiln. Also, certain amounts of alternative fuels are used. The alternative fuel may range from old tires, sewage sludge, refuse derived fuel and the like.
The use of secondary fuel has proven to be causing complications in the process. Preferably, the secondary fuel is used without the need of substantial investments. Further, clinker production should not be compromised. However, generally, the clinker production is complicated by the use of secondary fuel: Secondary fuel may cause fouling of cyclones, may cause sulphur dioxide formation in the cement materials and the like. Hence, several suggestions have been made for safely using secondary fuels.
DE19749183 suggests to provide an additional rotating pipe as a furnace for burning old tires and/or other secondary fuel, and to transport the heated air to the primary kiln.
US2005/066860 describes the use of organic waste material containing substantial amounts of minerals as a source of fuel and minerals for cement, to be provided into the rotating kiln.
WO1983/03601 provides a kiln with a primary combustion zone at the heart of the kiln, and a secondary combustion zone for slow burning fuel before the entrance of the kiln. The slow burning fuel enters the kiln, to burn in the presence of the to be calcinated materials.
US2012/009530 provides for an improvement over WO1983/03601 by keeping the burning secondary fuel separate from the cement raw materials in the rotary kiln.
Modelling of a cement manufacturing process is described by U. Kaantee, https:/www,researchgate.net/publication/228405258. The authors suggest that the changing fuel requires process changes, in particular the amount of air may need adaption.
It is an object of the invention to provide a process for cement manufacture that allows using secondary fuel for a process essentially precluding manufacturing complications, which can be easily implemented without large investments.

Process for producing cement using a secondary fuel


The present invention is related to a type of thienothiazine compounds having molecular structure of formula (1) and their pharmaceutically acceptable salts or solvates. The present invention is also related to the method of producing the formula (1) compound, an anti-inflammatory and analgesic pharmaceutical composition containing the formula (1) compound, and the method of using the formula (1) compound to prepare anti-inflammatory and analgesic medicine

As early as in 1971, Vane and his colleagues discovered that aspirin type nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NASID) have anti-inflammatory, analgesic and antifebrile functions by inhibiting Cyclooxygenase (CoX) and blocking prostaglandin synthesis from arachidonic acid. Vane et al also pointed out that the side effects caused by NSAID, such as irritation to stomach and intestines, and damages to kidney are also due to the elimination of the physiological prostaglandin which can protect stomach and kidney. Vane et al's views have been commonly accepted.
In the past twenty years, various researches have focused on the improvement of therapeutic effects of the NSAID and the reduction of the corresponding side effects through many methods, particularly on the improvement on the dosage forms of the medicines. For example, the medicines have been made into suppository, enteric-coated form and time-release form. There are also a substantial progress in the development of pharmaceuticals based on new chemicals and the development of the precursors.
In 1991, Herschman and Simmono using molecular cloning confirmed the second isoenzyme, named Cyclooxygenase-2 (CoX-2). Many subsequent literatures have demonstrated that CoX-2 is expressed in the inflammatory tissue and is controlled by glucocorticoid (GG). It is believed that CoX-2 can be the target of NSAID, which may provide a reasonable explanation for the side effects resulting from the inhibition of the CoX-1. Therefore, the discovery of CoX-2 has led the new trend of developing selective CoX-2 inhibitors.
It has been observed that many NSAID have a strong inhibiting effect on CoX-1 and a weak inhibiting effect on CoX-2. In other words, almost all the previously discovered NSAID can inhibit CoX-1. Furthermore, the stronger the inhibiting effect of a medicine has on CoX-1, the more side effects it has. While the stronger the inhibiting effect of a medicine exerts on CoX-2, the more effective the medicine is therapeutically. At present the ratio of CoX-1/Cox-2 is commonly used to express the effectiveness of inhibition of CoX-1 and CoX-2 by NSAID. The higher the ratio is, the stronger the inhibition of CoX-1 and in turn more side effects are. On the contrary, the lower the ratio is, the less the side effects.
At present, commercially available selective CoX-2 inhibitors are as follows:
(1) Meloxicam

This medicine is commercially available in many countries, and has been used to treat thousands of patients clinically. It is the representative of this type of medicine for treating osteoarthritis and rheumatic arthritis. (2) Celecoxib demonstrates the selective inhibition of CoX-2 by the animal arthritis and pain model. It also proves effectiveness in the similar treatment of human. The existing experimental results have demonstrated that in comparison with the previous NSAID, Celecoxib has an equavelent or better therapeutic effects and less side effects. (3) Vioxx has already been used clinically in the North America to treat osteoarthritis and release pain from tooth extraction. (4) Minesulide has already been used clinically in the United States and Europe.

Thienothiazine compound having anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties and method of making and using the same


A cache memory is arranged using write buffering circuitry. This cache memory arrangement comprises a Random Access Memory (RAM) array for memory storage operated under the control of a control circuit which receives input signals representing address information, write control signals, and write cancel signals. At least one address register buffer is coupled to the address input of the RAM, while at least one data register buffer is coupled to the data input of the RAM. Thus, in accordance with the present invention, addresses to be accessed in the RAM, as well as data to be written to the RAM, are buffered prior to being coupled to the RAM. As a result, systems utilizing the cache memory arrangement of the present invention need not stall or delay the output of information toward the RAM in order to check for a cache hit or miss. Such determinations can advantageously be made while the relevant address and data are in the register buffers en route to the RAM. Any write cancels necessitated by a cache miss then abort the write prior to the coupling of the write address and data to the RAM.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to computer systems and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus for reducing the access time for implementing store operations in a computer system.
2. History of the Prior Art
In computer systems, the access of main memory to retrieve information often takes a substantial portion of the operational time of the system. For this reason, the use of a cache memory to increase system speed has become prevalent in more advanced systems. A cache memory makes use of a relatively small amount of fast random access memory in which recently used instructions and data are stored as they are used by a processor. Such instructions and data are then available in the cache to be accessed by the associated processor more rapidly than they might be in main memory. The basic theory of caching is that, in general, information which has been recently used is more likely to be used sooner than is other information. The cache memory is often both physically faster than the random access memory used for main memory and is arranged so that it may be addressed more rapidly than may main memory. For example, in virtual memory systems, a cache does not need to go through the look-up operation of a memory management unit to determine the physical addresses necessary for accessing main memory. Such caching arrangements have operated to greatly increase the speed of operation of computer systems for certain types of information.
There are many forms of cache memory which may be provided for use with a particular processor. In most of these forms of cache memory, information from a number of different physical locations in main memory may map to the same location in cache memory. Consequently, after some finite period of time, information stored in a position in cache memory may have to be replaced by other information needed by the processor. Some cache memory systems (called write-back systems) do not transfer information written to the cache memory to main memory as soon as it is placed in the cache memory but retain that information until a later more convenient time. Such systems tend to make less use of the system bus and are thus faster.
In a write-back caching arrangement, valid information residing at a position in the cache in which new information is to be stored may not yet have been transferred to main memory so that the storage of the new information would cause the loss of the old information. Thus, data cannot be stored in the cache on a cache miss. For this reason, a store instruction typically requires a check for a cache miss; if there is not a miss, then the accessed information is in the cache, and a store may be accomplished. This check requires an extra clock cycle of operation and causes substantial delay in a pipelined computer system in which it is expected that a command will be executed on each clock cycle.

Cache memory arrangement with write buffer pipeline providing for concurrent cache determinations

200
MS
File;900
MS
File
FSS 400 MS File;425 MS File


A method to assemble a two sided colonial grid assembly for a closure and an assembly, such as but not limited to a glass pane door or window wherein the grid structure incorporates both real and false muntin bars as well as integral and false glazing beads. The assembly is structured to allow a snap-fit type of attachment of the glazing beads into the grid assembly and in engagement with the glass panes such that the entire assembly is structured to facilitate and reduce cost of assembling and manufacturing while providing an authenticate and aesthetically pleasing appearance.

1. Field of the Invention
A method of assembling components of a two sided colonial grid door which reduces cost while providing a door with an authentic colonial grid appearance.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Closures, in the form of both doors and windows incorporate a popular design commonly referred to as a colonial grid. Typically, such a structural configuration is defined by a plurality of panes of glass of substantially equal dimension and configuration surrounded by an outer peripheral frame and/or a plurality of muntin bars or members. While clearly such a structure is aesthetically pleasing, the production and/or assembly of a true colonial grid structure is time consuming and accordingly, very expensive.
Attempts of course have been made in the prior art to simplify construction or assembly techniques in the production of doors or like closures incorporating a colonial grid appearance. To date, there still appears to be a need for an improved assembly and production technique. This is especially true when modern day production facilities are available which are capable of producing a door with an aluminum or like material framing structure capable of resembling a number of contemporary and traditional designs, including but not limited to a colonial grid configuration.

Method of assembling components of a two sided colonial grid assembly into a door, window or like closure


An electrical circuit used for measuring times is disclosed. In one embodiment, the electrical circuit has a counter, a decoder and a multiplicity of time trap elements. At least the counter and the time trap elements are located together on an integrated semiconductor component. Each time trap element has a data input, a clock input, a delay output and a output port. The time trap element contains a delay element and a flip flop. The delay element outputs a signal change at the data input with a time delay at the delay output. The flip flop has a data input, a clock input and an output port, the data inputs, the clock inputs and the output ports of the flip flop and of the time trap element being connected to one another. The time trap elements are connected as ring oscillator.

In integrated components which have clock generators and clock distribution networks for high frequencies, it is becoming more and more important to measure the quality of the clock generators and clock distribution networks. The quality of the clock generators and clock distribution networks is an important measured variable for fluctuations in production technology. Since these fluctuations may reduce the production yield of the integrated components, they must be measured, and thus detected, early. Due to the early detection, the production technology can be adapted so that the production yield is already increased in the early stages of running up production.
For high volume products having a short life cycle, particularly for short-lived consumer products, the detection of all relevant statistical data at a very early stage is very important. These data also include the period jitter parameter which is needed for the precise characterization of clock generators. Such a clock generator is constructed, e.g. as PLL (phase-locked loop) or as CDR (clock data recovery).
In the case of components in CMOS technologies having minimal pattern widths above 90 nm, the period jitter was frequently measured with high-resolution external test instruments during the characterization at individual test chips. In production, in contrast, this measurement was only taken at a selection of components, at the most.
For some applications, however, the measurement must be performed for all components during the production test. This applies, for example, to components which are installed in motor cars and in which the quality requirements are very high. Moreover, the external test instruments are very expensive; a production test using such external test instruments which would be performed for many components would unacceptably increase the test costs.
In US 2004/0061488, the jitter parameters of a PLL are generated with the aid of a module located on the integrated component. This module contains a ring oscillator of delay elements, a counter, which counts the number of clock cycles, being connected to the output of a signal delay element. A decoder which measures the subunits of the clock cycles is connected to the outputs of all delay elements. In this arrangement, however, the special requirements for highly precise measurements are not considered in which a resolution of the measurement of less than 10 picoseconds is required.
For these and other reasons, there is a need for the present invention.

Electrical circuit for measuring times and method for measuring times


The present disclosure relates to antigen-binding moieties that specifically bind to MIF and D-DT and compositions and methods of use thereof.

The human macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF, also known as GIF, GLIF, Glycosylation-inhibiting factor, L-dopachrome isomerase or L-dopachrome tautomerase) is described in David, J. (1966) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 56: 72-77 and Bloom, B. R & Bennett, B. (1966) Science 153, 80-82 and was identified as a central regulator of innate immunity and inflammatory responses (Calandra, T. (2003) Nature Reviews Immunology Vol. 03; 791-800).
The MIF gene is located on chromosome 22 of the human genome and encodes a 115 amino acids long non-glycosylated protein of 12.5 kDa which forms a homotrimer (Sun, H. W., (1996) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 93: 5191-5196).
MIF is constitutively expressed in virtually all cell types. During inflammation macrophages, T cells and the pituitary gland are the predominant sources of MIF (Bernhagen, J. (1993) Nature 365:756-759; Calandra, T. (1994) J. Exp. Med. 179:1895-1902). Secreted MIF interacts with its receptors CD74, CXCR2 and CXCR4 which are expressed e.g. on macrophages and T-cells and induces release of pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g. TNFα, IL-1β, IL-6 IL-8, IFNγ, IL-2), cell invasion and cell migration (Leng L. (2003) J. Exp. Med. 197:1467-1476; Bernhagen, J. (2007) Nature Medicine 13: 587-596).
MIF as a pro-inflammatory mediator was identified to be involved and overexpressed in several inflammatory diseases and also polymorphisms of MIF were shown to correlate with the severity of autoinflammatory diseases (Hoi, A. J. (2007) Inflammation & Allergy—Drug Targets, 6: 183-190; Baugh, J. A. (2002) Genes Immun. 3: 170-176).
In addition, further studies describe that MIF negatively regulates p53-mediated apoptosis and cell arrest and thereby provide a link between MIF, cell growth and tumorigenesis (Calandra, T. (2003) Nature Reviews Immunology 03; 791-800; Hudson, J. D. (1999) J. Exp. Med. 190:1375-1382).
Upon identifying MIF as a key player not only in the pathogenesis of a range of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases but also in cancer and further indications, MIF became a promising therapeutic target to be antagonized with compounds like e.g. small molecules or monoclonal antibodies.
Antibodies specific for MIF are disclosed e.g. in WO1994/026307 (The Picower Institute For Medical Research), U.S. Ser. No. 08/471,705 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety; WO1998/017314 (The Picower Institute For Medical Research), WO2001/038566 (Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft Zur Förderung Der Angewandten Forschung E.V.), U.S. Ser. No. 12/234,407 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety; WO2002/036774 (Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft Zur Förderung Der Angewandten Forschung E.V.), WO2009/086920 (Baxter International Inc., Baxter Healthcare S.A., Dyax Corporation), U.S. Ser. Nos. 12/346,309 and 12/767,635 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety; WO2009/117710 (Carolus Therapeutics Inc.), WO2009/117706 (Carolus Therapeutics Inc.), U.S. Ser. No. 12/918,968 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety; WO2005/020919 (Cytokine Pharmasciences, Inc.), WO2005/094329 (Cytokine Pharmasciences, Inc.), U.S. Ser. No. 10/927,494 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety; WO2005/094338A2 (North Shore-Long Island Jewish Research Institute), U.S. Ser. No. 10/594,641 which are all incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Notably, based on the finding that MIF is enzymatically active as a tautomerase and converts D-Dopachrome into 5,6-dihydroxyindole-2-carboxylic acid a homolog of MIF was identified which shares the tautomerase activity producing a similar but not identical product, 5,6-dihydroxyindole. The MIF homolog, which is called D-dopachrome tautomerase (D-DT), shows low sequence homology of 47% to MIF (FIG. 1). In 2008 it was shown that D-DT and MIF share specific functionalities and promote both the expression and secretion of angiogenic growth factors, e.g. CXCL8 and VEGF, from lung adenocarcinoma cells (Coleman, A. M. (2008) J. of Immunology 118(4):2330-2337).
Accordingly, therapies that interfere with MIF and D-DT mediated signaling are needed.

Antibodies that are cross-reactive for macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) and D-dopachrome tautomerase (D-DT)


The invention facilitates the efficient administration of medical offices and patient records including visual coordination of room, patient, and task status indicators. The invention also enables improved document review and transcription management.

A routine visit by a patient to a doctor typically involves numerous medical office staff members and a range of procedures and documentation. Management of the myriad tasks and records involved in such visits has long been an involved and difficult process. Doctors have traditionally relied upon staff members to retrieve patient documentation and to obtain x-rays or other information from other offices or labs. Likewise, a doctor's request for lab work, surgery, or other procedures is typically coordinated by staff members with the doctor relying on verbal or written communication with staff throughout and following patient visits.
The delay and potential for error inherent in such conventional verbal and written communications often results in unnecessary delay for patients and care providers alike. Doctors typically review patient profile documentation before an examination. More timely notice of a patient's medical profile in preparation for a patient's visit could increase patient flow-through. Additionally, paper records inevitably become incomplete or missing as portions or all of a file is moved between the front desk, examination room, labs, and offsite provider offices. Paper systems are further deficient in that they require multiple copies for simultaneous viewing of records.
With a paper system or a closed office network, Physicians may not be able to access vital patient information when they are out of the office. Likewise, prior systems typically provided limited file export capabilities, often requiring accessing and printing from a number of separate software applications or databases. File export is necessary, for example, when a patient requests a copy of all or portions of her file or when a referral specialist requests a complete history for a patient's condition.
Paper systems are inherently prone to many types of errors. Omitted or inaccurate medication records could be potentially life threatening. For example, an omitted medication on a chart may lead to a harmful drug interaction. Additionally, omitted or inaccurate billing records may lead to lost charges for services. For example, a physician may perform a number of billable services and forget to record each service on a paper chart ticket.
There has, therefore, been a movement in the industry towards electronic records keeping and office management and real time interaction with staff and records databases. Most so called electronic management systems require proprietary client software installed on individual work stations making remote access from home or offsite labs difficult. Typically, efficient office management requires a number of separate proprietary systems, creating redundancy and incompatibility issues. There is, therefore, a need for an efficient, integrated, web-based office management product providing improved user communications and user friendly, secure access from any internet ready workstation.

System and method for managing medical facility procedures and records


The invention concerns a cooling plug for sizing the interior surface of thermoplastic extruded pipe. Vacuum and/or pneumatic pressure is applied at the surface of the plug. The pneumatic pressure may cause the inner wall to balloon outwardly to form bells within a mold or within an outer wall, to fit into corrugations of an outer corrugated tube, etc. The vacuum may be used to pull the inner wall back to the surface of the plug after application of pneumatic pressure.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to apparatus for molding thermoplastic tubing in which a sizing plug is used to define internal diameter of the tubing. The invention is especially useful in the production of ribbed or double walled tubing.
2. Description of prior art
The apparatus may be of the type in which tubing of thermoplastic material is continuously extruded into a travelling tubular mold tunnel about a mandrel and is confined to the shape of the pipe by a sizing plug downstream of the mandrel. Such a plug may, on some occasions, when extrudate does not easily flow fully into the mold, be heated to increase the fluidity of the extrudate so that it may more easily flow into recesses of the mold, for example under the influence of suction from the bases of the recesses. However, more usually the extrudate is provided in sufficiently molten condition to flow fully into the mold. In this case it is necessary to provide a sizing plug to define the inner wall of the pipe so as to confine the extrudate in an appropriate casting cavity.
A simple sizing plug defining the inner wall of a tube is described by Chaplain in U.S. Pat. No. 4,365,948 issued Dec. 28, 1982. Usually some temperature control is desirable in a sizing plug and Lupke in U.S. Pat. No. 4,545,751 issued Oct. 8, 1985 describes a more sophisticated arrangement. In that arrangement the sizing plug does not define an inner wall of the pipe but is used to distribute air into the inside of corrugated tubing. Pressurized air is delivered through a central core coaxial with an extrusion nozzle. Hot peripheral air is drawn off and central cool air is permitted to leave the plug to contact the inside of corrugated pipe, the plug being inwardly spaced from the inner pipe wall. Such arrangement is suitable for use where corrugated tubing is involved but the range of temperature in cooling may be limited. The arrangement is less suitable where ribbed tubing is to be produced since the plug, in that case, should be a plug contacting the inside wall of the pipe to confine it into a casting region. When this is the case, air cannot be released between the plug wall and the inner pipe wall for cooling. A cooling plug suitable for use in the formulation of ribbed pipe is disclosed by Lupke in his later U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,230 issued Nov. 26, 1985. In that patent Lupke does not attempt to use released cooling air but provides within and near the surface of a follower plug, a helical coil of tubing through which cooling fluid may be passed.
Apparatus for the production of plain single walled tube with no ribs or corrugations usually comprises means for extruding a parison into a mold the temperature of which may be adjusted by the use of a water jacket. No sizing plug is used to form the inner surface of the tube but gas pressure or the like may be used to press the tube against the outer mold. The inner wall of tube thus formed may not be totally even due to a variety of reasons such as uneven shrinkage during setting of the tube. Moreover, it would be advantageous to be able to produce such tube at greater speeds.
A sizing plug is provided to form a smooth inner wall to the formed tube but, when ribbed pipe is formed, some problems have occurred in obtaining a smooth inner wall. The reason is due to the variation in the requirement of plastic material due to the varying wall thickness for the ribs and troughs. Thus, more plastic material will be required to form the ribs than that part of the tube wall (trough) between ribs. Stresses are set up in the apparatus at the point of filling the mold blocks due to this varying demand for plastic material. Moreover, unevenness due to shrinkage is accentuated where thickness of the tube varies, as for example, where there are ribs and troughs.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,029 of the same inventor and issued Jun. 11, 1991, to Manfred A. A. Lupke, describes and claims the use of an accumulator chamber for plastic material at the point of mold filling. The accumulator chamber is intended to even out pressure variations and reduce stresses. The use of such an accumulator chamber is very useful in its intended purpose but there still may be some effects of pressure variations to be seen on the inside walls of the tube.
Thus, the inside wall of the tube may have a slight wave formation, tending to apparently bulge inwardly between the ribs where the pressure of extrudate is greater, and tending to actually recede to form an indentation opposite a rib where the pressure of extrudate is less. This effect is accentuated when an accumulator chamber is not used.
When double walled corrugated tubing is to be produced difficulties have been encountered due to pressure within the corrugations. If this pressure is too low, the inner wall may bow into the corrugation forming an undesirable concavity in the inner wall. If the pressure is too high, the inner wall may bow away from the corrugation forming an undesirable bulge in the inner wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,878 describes and claims method of applying vacuum applied at the surface of a cooling plug to mitigate rhythmic bulges and indentations in the inner tube wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,098 issued Feb. 28th, 1989 to Chan et al discloses a cooling plug having two annular distributing grooves, the grooves being independently connected to a vacuum source and one groove being axially remote and the other being axially close to the extrusion orifice, whereby the intensity of vacuum along the plug may be varied.
The present invention relates to an improvement in the method of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 860,269 whereby suction is alternated with pressure, when, for example, bells are required in the tube.

Methods for forming tubing utilizing suction and pneumatic pressure at the surface of the cooling plug


A hierarchical cache memory includes a high-speed primary cache memory and a lower speed secondary cache memory of greater storage capacity than the primary cache memory. To manage a huge number of data lines interconnecting the primary and secondary cache memories, the hierarchical cache memory is integrated on a plurality of integrated circuits which include all of the interconnecting data lines. Each integrated circuit includes a primary memory and a secondary memory for storing and retrieving data transferred over a first data input line and a first data output line that link the primary memory to a central processing unit. At any given time, a multi-bit word is addressed in the secondary memory, and a corresponding multi-bit word is addressed in the primary memory. The primary and secondary memories are interconnected by a first multi-line bus for transferring a multi-bit word read from the secondary memory to the primary memory, and by a second multi-line bus for transferring a multi-bit word read from the primary memory to the secondary memory. The secondary memory is linked to a main memory by a second data output line and a second data input line for sequential transmission of bits to exchange multi-bit words during a writeback and refill operation. In a preferred embodiment, data inputs of the primary memory and the secondary memory are wired in parallel to a serial-parallel shift register that is used as a common write buffer.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to cache memories, and more particularly to an integrated circuit memory especially adapted for performing cache memory functions. Specifically, the present invention relates to an integrated circuit including high speed memory, a lower-speed memory of greater capacity, and interconnecting data path circuits for constructing a hierarchical cache memory.
2. Description of the Background Art
In the field of high speed computing, processor speed is generally limited by memory performance. For example, a central processing unit (CPU) executes instructions at a predetermined rate. Similarly, main memory performs read and write operations at a second predetermined rate which is typically at least an order of magnitude slower than the CPU execution rate. If the CPU were to access the main memory directly during the execution of memory access instructions, the CPU performance would degrade to the memory access rate. In this case the CPU would have to stall while waiting for the main memory to complete its access cycle for each memory access instruction.
It is possible to construct a special purpose memory which has a cycle time approximately equal to that of the CPU's instruction cycle time. Unfortunately, such special-purpose memories use high-speed static random access memory (RAM) which is far more expensive than the typical dynamic RAM used in main memory. Accordingly, many computer systems compromise by constructing a relatively small cache of high-speed memory while retaining the slower semiconductor memory in the main memory.
The cache is managed under hardware control to maintain a copy of a portion of the main memory contents which is likely to be used by the CPU. Thus, as long as the CPU accesses only those memory locations maintained in the cache, the CPU will execute at full speed. Of course, it is inevitable that the CPU will occasionally attempt to read a memory location which is not contained in the cache. During these misses, the data are retrieved from main memory and stored in the cache. Therefore, CPU performance degrades to the main memory access rate during misses, but the misses are relatively infrequent so that the overall speed of the processor is enhanced by the use of the high-speed cache.
In recent times, processors have been introduced that have execution cycle times below the access times of typical static RAM memories. These processors, for example, have cycle times under 10 nanoseconds. Because such a fast execution speed is poorly matched to the access time of static RAM cache memories, these processors are designed with "on-chip" cache memories that provide an additional level of memory between the processor and the cache memory. The on-chip cache memories eliminate inter-chip data transmission delay, but they are necessarily limited in storage capacity to much less that the capacity of a single chip containing just high-speed memory. Therefore the relatively high miss rate of the on-chip cache tends to limit substantially processor performance, in view of the disparity between the execution speed of the CPU and the access time of the static RAM cache.
The speed disparity between the high-speed processor and static RAM cache memory has encouraged cache designers to place a "primary" cache of very high speed memory between the processor and the "secondary" static RAM cache. The construction of such a "hierarchical" cache memory, however, has been impractical due to the huge number of input/output lines and the associated buffers and multiplexing circuitry required for interfacing the secondary cache memory with the main memory and the primary cache memory, and the need for keeping the primary and secondary cache memories in close proximity to the processor to minimize signal transmission delay.

Integrated circuit chip having primary and secondary random access memories for a hierarchical cache


A concrete slab is arranged to be provided with threaded bores, or alternatively internally threaded anchor plugs directed into the concrete slab. A plurality of hanger members are arranged for reception within spaced bores, wherein each hanger member includes a first and second support rod threadedly directed into the bores, with a connecting rod slidably received through the second rod and threadedly received within the first rod orthogonally oriented relative to the first and second support rods.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to hanger structure, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved concrete hanger organization arranged in cooperation with a concrete slab or vault to direct conduit and pipe members between the hanger members and the slab.
2. Description of the Prior Art
While the prior art has addressed the use of hanger structure within a concrete structure, the instant invention attempts to provide for readily positionable hanger sensor members within a concrete vault or slab that are retrofitted thereto in a precast concrete slab for mounting the hanger sets thereto. The prior art has heretofore failed to provide for such retrofit hanger structure to accommodate various conduit and pipes directed into the concrete vault or through the concrete slab structure.
Accordingly, there remains a need for a new and improved concrete hanger organization as set forth by the instant invention which addresses both the problems of ease of use as well as effectiveness in construction and this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.


A toner composition comprising a binder resin having dispersed therein additives including a colorant and a charge control agent, wherein said additives are present as agglomerates having an average sectional area of from 1.4 to 1.7 .mu.m.sup.2 in a section of toner particles, the total sectional area of the agglomerates in the section of toner particles ranging from 1.5 to 1.8%, or wherein said colorant and charge control agent are present as agglomerates having an average sectional area of from 1.4 to 1.7 .mu.m.sup.2 in a section of toner particles, and said composition has such rheological characteristics that a dissipation factor (tan .delta.) is from 0.95 to 1.25 when a storage elastic modulus (G') is 10.sup.4 dyne/cm.sup.2.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a toner for use in electrophotography or electrostatic printing. More particularly, the invention provides a toner which overcomes various disadvantages of known toners, such as toner scatter, background fog, and contamination of a fixing roller, while maintaining a high image density and a toner which exhibits satisfactory developing properties, fixing properties and anti-offset properties as well as improved durability and improved image uniformity to provide a high quality image.
2. Description of Related Art
In electrophotography and electrostatic printing, a toner is used for development of an electrostatic latent image. A toner generally comprises ground particles of a prescribed size of a resin composition comprising a binder resin having incorporated therein a colorant, a charge control agent, etc.
Development of an electrostatic latent image is performed by a two-component system using a two-component developer composed of a toner and a magnetic carrier in which a photoreceptor having an electrostatic latent image thereon receives a stroke of a magnetic brush of the developer to form a toner image, or by a one-component system using a one-component developer solely comprising a toner in which a developing sleeve of a thin layer of charged toner particles is formed and the toner is adhered on a photoreceptor having a latent image thereon by flying or stroking under a development electric field to form a toner image on the photoreceptor. The thus formed toner image is then transferred from the photoreceptor surface to paper. The transferred toner image is usually fixed by contact with a fixing heat roller.
In either of the above-described developing systems, the toner must be charged to have a proper charge quantity and always maintain a constant charge quantity on repetition of image formation.
Charging of the toner is generally effected through frictional electrification, i.e., friction of a toner predominantly with a magnetic carrier in the case of the two-component developer or friction of a toner predominantly with a blade in the case of the one-component developer. In either case, friction among toner particles also serves as a great charging factor. Charging characteristics of toners depend to some extent on the binder resin used, but the charge quantity is not stable on repetition of image formation, easily getting too high or too low. This problem has been coped with by incorporating a charge control agent into the toner to stabilize the toner charge quantity. However, since a toner is very delicate in charging, if a resin composition has poor dispersion properties, charging properties greatly vary among individual toner particles even in the presence of a charge control agent. This being the case, toner particles of opposite polarity or toner particles of low charge are produced in an appreciable proportion, causing a scatter of a toner inside an image forming apparatus and background fog. Further, if the charge control agent is localized in the toner, the toner and the charge control agent are deposited and accumulated on a fixing roller, causing contamination of not only the fixing roller but also the transfer paper.
Moreover, the dispersion state of a colorant in the composition not only decides the coloring power but has great influence on charging characteristics of the toner. Poor dispersion of the colorant sometimes causes an abnormal increase in charge quantity or insufficient charging.
To meet demands for high image quality, developing conditions have become increasingly severe. Agglomeration of a toner as well as instability of charge quantity easily cause deterioration of image quality. The dispersion state of additives such as the charge control agent and the colorant influences agglomeration of a toner, sometimes causing apparent fog or white spots (where a toner is lacking in an image area).
In the field of commercial electrophotographic copy, there are applied systems which comprise forming an electrostatic image on a photoreceptor, developing this electrostatic latent image with charged toners, transferring the formed image of the toner onto a paper and the like, heat-fixing the transferred image.
The fixing of a toner image transferred to transfer paper is generally carried out by a thermal fixing process, preferably using a heat roller for greater ease and safety of operation. However, such thermal fixing can cause the off setting of a toner to the roller. Various means for preventing offset have hitherto been proposed. For example, an offset preventing liquid is applied to the fixing roller, or a parting agent is incorporated with the toner.
Another way which has been proposed to prevent offset is by controlling the molecular weight or viscoelasticity (rheological characteristics) of a binder resin of the toner. For example, JP-A-59-214960 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application") proposes to use a thermoplastic resin having a complex elastic modulus whose real part (storage of elastic modulus) ranges from 5.times.10.sup.4 to 5.times.10.sup.5 Pa and whose imaginary part (loss of elastic modulus) ranges from 5.times.10.sup.4 to 2.times.10.sup.6 Pa as a binder resin.
Although the '960 proposals are of interest for their effect on storage and loss of elastic modulus in a binder resin, no strict correlation was established between these rheological characteristics and the actual fixing and anti-offset properties. While the proposals are concerned with the binder resin to be used, in actual use the toner still shows a scattering in the range of fixing temperature, the occurrence of offset, depending on the dispersion state of a colorant or a charge control agent, even with a binder resin conforming to the standards of the '960 proposals. Thus, satisfactory results have not yet been obtained.
Even though a toner image may be fixed on transfer paper without the occurrence of offset, cases still occur not infrequently in which unevenness of the surface of the fixed image impairs uniformity of the image area. This results in a local difference in density or gloss, which further results in a nonuniform or unclear appearance. Besides deteriorating the image quality, the unevenness of the fixed image surface causes toner particles to fall off the image area when the copy contacts other objects, such as hands, paper, and desks. Thus hands, clothing, and other sheeting become stained as well as the copy itself .
Further, toner particles having poor impact resistance are apt to become pulverized or release dispersed, thus acting as substances which produce defective particles when the toner is agitated in a developing machine. Production of such defective particles leads to production of spent toner on the carrier or charge-imparting element (e.g., a blade or a sleeve). It can also lead to variation in the charging tendency of a developer, thereby greatly changing the charge quantity of the toner.