A sealing structure of a cell tube for a tubular type fuel cell has a sealed portion composed of a conductive lead film formed on a surface of a substrate tube, and an airtight film with high airtight properties formed on a surface of the lead film. The sealing structure also has an adhesion enhancing film provided on a surface of the airtight film, and a sealing member adhered to a surface of the adhesion enhancing film via an inorganic adhesive coated on the surface of the adhesion enhancing film. Thus, the sealability of the cell tube is increased, and the electrical characteristics of the fuel cell are improved.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sealing structure of a cell tube of tubular type fuel cell, which increases sealability of the cell tube to enhance the electrical characteristics of the fuel cell.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 3 outlines the structure of a tubular type solid electrolyte fuel cell module. FIG. 4 is a perspective schematic view of a cell tube portion of the module. FIG. 5 is a schematic structural view of a sealing structure at the end of the cell tube.
As shown in FIG. 3, a top plate 02, an upper tube sheet 03 and a lower tube sheet 04 are disposed in a module body 01 surrounded by a heat insulator. Below the lower tube sheet 04, a cell chamber 01a is formed. Between the top plate 02 and the upper tube sheet 03 of the module body 01, a fuel supply chamber 05 is formed. Between the upper tube sheet 03 and the lower tube sheet 04, a fuel discharge chamber 06 is formed. To the top plate 02 of the fuel supply chamber 05, an external pipe 07 for establishing communication between the fuel supply chamber 05 and the outside of the module body 01 is connected in such a manner as to pass through the module body 01. Inside of the external pipe 07, an internal pipe 08 passing through the upper tube sheet 03 is disposed for establishing communication between the fuel discharge chamber 06 and the outside of the module body 01.
Cell tubes 010, each comprising unit cell films (not shown) formed on an outer peripheral surface thereof, pass through and are supported by the lower tube sheet 04 such that the upper end of the cell tube 010 is positioned in the fuel discharge chamber 06, and that a lower portion of the cell tube 010 is positioned in the cell chamber 01a of the module body 01. Inside the cell tube 010, a fuel injection pipe 011 passing through the upper tube sheet 03 is disposed for establishing communication between the inner lower portion of the cell tube 010 and the interior of the fuel supply chamber 05. Inside the injection pipe 011, a current collecting rod 012 is disposed which has an upper end positioned in the fuel supply chamber 05 and a lower end positioned near the lower end of the cell tube 010. The lower end of the current collecting rod 012 is coupled to a current collecting member 013 which is electrically connected to the above-mentioned unit cell films and which closes the lower end of the cell tube 010. The upper end of the current collecting rod 012 is electrically connected to the outside of the module body 01 via a current collecting member 013 of nickel and a conductive rod 014.
To the upper end of the cell tube 010, a current collecting connector 015 electrically connected to the unit cell films is attached. The current collecting connector 015 is series connected to other cell tubes 01 via the same current collecting connectors 015.
In a lower portion of the cell chamber 01a of the module body 01, a partition plate 016 of a porous ceramic material is provided. Below the partition plate 016, an air preheating chamber 017 communicating with the cell chamber 01a via the partition plate 016 is provided. To the air preheating chamber 017, an air supply pipe 018 communicating with the outside of the module body 01 is connected. Inside the cell chamber 01a of the module body 01, an end of an air discharge pipe 019 is located. The air discharge pipe 019 has the other end located outside the module body 01, and its intermediate portion is disposed in such a manner as to pass through the interior of the air preheating chamber 017 for the purpose of heat exchange.
The cell tube 010 suspended from the lower tube sheet 04 of the module body 01, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, is formed by laminating a fuel electrode 032a, an electrolyte 032b, and an air electrode 032c in this order on a surface of a substrate tube 031, and further laminating a dense conductive connecting material (interconnector) 033 for connecting the fuel electrode and the air electrode. In this manner, a plurality of unit cell films 032 are formed in a lateral-striped pattern. That is, the unit cell film 032 is constituted by the fuel electrode 032a, the solid electrolyte 032b, and the air electrode 032c laminated on the substrate tube 031. The interconnectors 033 each seal the interface between the inside and the outside of the substrate tube 031 in the space between the unit cell films 032, thus connecting the unit cell films 032 in series.
The film configuration of a sealed portion of the foregoing cell tube 010 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a lead film (Nixe2x80x94Al) 034 connected via the interconnector 033 to the air electrode 032c and located on the outer surface of the substrate tube (15%CaOxe2x80x94ZrO2) 031 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of a lower end portion of the substrate tube 031. The lead film 034 is provided with a current collecting terminal member 013, from which current is collected by the current collecting rod 012. On the upper surface of the lead film 034, an airtight film (Al2O3) 035 with high airtight properties is formed. A cap-like sealing member 037 is bonded to the airtight film 035 via an inorganic adhesive 036. A similar sealing structure is provided for the outer peripheral surface near the upper end, beside the aforementioned tube sheet 04, of the substrate tube 031. The airtight film 035 is minimally porous as indicated by its porosity of about 5 to 10%, and thus prevents an escape of gas. Moreover, the airtight film 035 has a relatively large thickness of about 100 to 150 xcexcm to prevent oxidation of the lead film 034 located underneath.
The actions of the tubular type solid electrolyte fuel cell module with the foregoing structure will be described. The interior of the cell chamber 01a of the module body 01 is heated to an operating temperature (about 900 to 1,000xc2x0 C.). A fuel gas 020 such as hydrogen is supplied through the external pipe 07, while air 021 as an oxidant gas is supplied through the air supply pipe 018. The fuel gas 020 fed through the external pipe 07 flows from the fuel supply chamber 05 to the lower end of the cell tube 010 via the injection pipe 011. On the other hand, the air 021 that has passed through the partition plate 016 via the air preheating chamber 017 flows into the cell chamber 01a. The fuel gas 020 permeates through the porous substrate tube 031, and is fed to the fuel electrode 032a of the unit cell film 032. Whereas the air (oxygen) 021 contacts the air electrode 032c. At this time, the unit cell film 032 reacts the hydrogen and the air (oxygen) electrochemically to generate power. This power is transmitted to the outside via the current collecting member 013, current collecting rod 012, current collecting member 013, and conductive rod 014. A residual fuel gas 022 remaining after power generation flows into the fuel discharge chamber 06 from the upper end of the cell tube 010, and is discharged to the outside via the internal pipe 08 for reuse. Residual air 023 remaining after power generation is discharged to the outside via the air discharge pipe 019.
The above-described cell tube 010 has so far been laborious to produce, because the fuel electrode 032a, electrolyte 032b, and air electrode 032c are sequentially formed as films on the surface of the substrate tube 031 by means of a thermal spray gun 040 as shown in FIG. 7(A). Moreover, there has been a raw material loss 041 during film formation owing to the spraying of raw materials from the thermal spray gun 040, and the production cost has been high. Thus, a low cost for mass production has been desired.
Under these circumstances, a proposal has been made for a sintering process performed by forming films of raw materials for the fuel electrode, etc. sequentially on the surface of the substrate tube 031, followed by sintering films 042 thereon, as shown in FIG. 7(B). However, an airtight film of a cell tube obtained by the sintering process, as compared with that obtained by the thermal spraying process, has few asperities on the surface because of the sintering action. As a result, the airtight film is poorly sealable with the sealing member when sealed via an adhesive. The reason behind this phenomenon is as follows: As shown in FIG. 6, the airtight film 035 obtained by the conventional thermal spraying process comprises coarse particles, and has surface roughness of about 10 to 15 xcexcm, thus ensuring satisfactory sealability with the adhesive. By contrast, the airtight film obtained by the sintering process has very low surface roughness of about 2 to 5 xcexcm because of the sintering action. Consequently, adhesion to the adhesive is not satisfactory, and may result in a leak.
In light of the above-described problems, the present invention aims to provide a sealing structure of a sinter type cell tube for a tubular type fuel cell, the sealing structure designed to increase the sealability of the cell tube, thereby enhancing the electrical characteristics of the fuel cell.
A first aspect of the invention is a sealing structure of a cell tube for a fuel cell, the cell tube comprising a unit cell film prepared by forming a fuel electrode and an air electrode as films on a surface of a substrate tube for the fuel cell by a sintering process, with a solid electrolyte being interposed between the fuel electrode and the air electrode, wherein:
an adhesion enhancing film having a predetermined roughness characteristic is included in a sealed portion of the cell tube between an air tight film and a sealing member.
Thus, adhesion to the adhesive can be enhanced to decrease a gas leak. Furthermore, formation of the cell tube by the sintering process results in a marked increase in the utilization factor of the raw materials, as compared with the thermal spraying process. Besides, the production facilities are simpler with the sintering process. Thus, the equipment cost and the production cost can be reduced markedly.
In the first aspect of the invention, the sealed portion of the cell tube may be composed of a conductive lead film formed on the surface of the substrate tube, and an airtight film with high airtight properties formed on a surface of the lead film;
the adhesion enhancing film is located on a surface of the airtight film; and
a sealing member is formed on a surface of the adhesion enhancing film via an adhesive coated on the surface of the adhesion enhancing film.
Thus, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
In the first aspect of the invention, the adhesion enhancing film includes a rough surface with surface roughness characteristic of 10 xcexcm or more. Thus, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
In the first aspect of the invention, the adhesion enhancing film has a porosity of 5 to 30%. Thus, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
In the first aspect of the invention, the adhesion enhancing film comprising a film of, or a mixture of, CaTiO3, MgAl2O4, calcia-stabilized zirconia, and yttria-stabilized zirconia. Thus, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
In the first aspect of the invention, the adhesion enhancing film has a film thickness of 20 to 30 xcexcm. Thus, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
The airtight film has a porosity of 3% or less. Thus, the gas barrier properties of the film is improved. Moreover, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
The airtight film has a film thickness of 60 to 100 xcexcm. Thus, the gas barrier properties of the film is further improved. Moreover, adhesion to the adhesive is enhanced to decrease a gas leak.
A second aspect of the invention is a tubular type solid electrolyte fuel cell module which supplies an oxidant gas and a fuel gas to a cell tube comprising a unit cell film formed on an outer peripheral surface thereof in a cell chamber in an environment at an operating temperature, to react the oxidant gas and the fuel gas electrochemically, thereby obtaining a power, wherein:
the above-described sealing structure of a cell tube for a fuel cell is used.
This module adopts a fuel cell system with markedly increased sealability. Thus, there is an increase in the utilization factor of residual fuel in a bottoming cycle of a gas turbine or the like. Consequently, an improvement is achieved in the electrical efficiency of a fuel cell combined power generation system using a gasification furnace, etc.
A third aspect of the invention is a method for producing a cell tube for a fuel cell, comprising:
forming an adhesion enhancing film by a sintering process simultaneously with forming a fuel electrode and an electrolyte as films on a substrate tube by sintering; and
then forming an air electrode by sintering.
Thus, the adhesion enhancing film achieving a decrease in the gas leak is formed.
A fourth aspect of the invention is a method for producing a cell tube for a fuel cell, comprising:
forming a fuel electrode and an electrolyte as films on a substrate tube by sintering; and
then forming an adhesion enhancing film by sintering simultaneously with the forming of an air electrode as a film also by sintering.
Thus, a denser adhesion enhancing film achieving a decrease in the gas leak is formed.
A fifth aspect of the invention is a method for producing a cell tube for a fuel cell, comprising:
forming an adhesion enhancing film by sintering simultaneously with the forming of a fuel electrode, an electrolyte, and an air electrode as films on a substrate tube also by sintering.
Thus, the unit cell film and the adhesion enhancing film is formed simultaneously by a single sintering step. This is an efficient method.


The scanning unit which is movable along the scale member comprises signal-generating means, which are accommodated in one or more covering hoods. Each covering hood has an annular boundary surface facing the scale member and is provided at said boundary surface with an annular seal which consists of elastomeric material and is in sealing contact with the scale member under initial compressive stress throughout the peripheral extent of the boundary surface. The covering hood and the scale member thus define between them a measuring chamber in which the atmospheric conditions are favorable for an accurate measurement. As the scanning unit is moved along the scale member, the measuring chamber will always be disposed at a portion of the scale member in which the surface of the scale member has just been cleaned by the sliding contact between the annular seal and the scale member.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a length measuring instrument comprising a scale member, which is provided with a scale, and a scanning unit, which is movable along the scale and provided with signal-generating means, which are accommodated in at least one covering hood, which is open toward the scale member and together with the scale member defines at least one measuring chamber and is provided with elastomeric scraping means in contact with the scale member.
More particularly, the invention relates to incremental length measuring instruments for an optoelectronic, capacitive, inductive or magnetic scanning of a suitably designed scale member.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Length measuring instruments of the present kind are mounted, e.g., on machine tools and may be used for a normal measurement of lengths or may be included in control systems for machine tools or industrial robots.
A length measuring instrument of the kind described first hereinbefore has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,890 and comprises a scale member consisting of permanent magnets having a length of at least 2 mm each. Two spaced apart detecting heads are provided and generate signals in response to the movement of the scanning unit or detecting head body along the scale. The scale member is mounted on the bed of a machine tool and has an exposed top surface. The covering hood or case has the same width as the scale member and bears on the scale member with scrapers, which are attached to the ends of the hood and extend transversely to the scale. The scrapers serve to remove coarse impurities, particularly particles of low-reluctance material, from the scale member.
This known measuring instrument can be used only for coarse measurements and does not permit a measurement with high accuracy.
For more accurate measurements, incremental scales having much smaller increments are arranged to cooperate with suitable scanning units. Such length measuring instruments for an optoelectronic scanning have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,003 and European Pat. No. 2,0120 205. They comprise a scale having small increments and are provided with electronic circuitry including bridge or potentiometer circuits or interpolating computers for effecting an electronic subdivision of the scale increments by a processing of the phase-displaced signals generated in response to the scanning of the scale. The higher the resolution provided by the length measuring instrument, the more susceptible will the instrument be to errors due to a contamination of the scale, a condensation of droplets on the scale and a similar contamination on the scanning unit. For this reason such length measuring instruments usually comprise a tubular housing, in which the scale member, consisting in most cases of glass, and the scanning unit are encapsulated, and the scanning unit is connected to a sword, which extends between pairs of sealing lips through a slot formed in the housing and can be operated to move the scanning unit along the scale. If the scale is to be optically scanned, this can be effected with light transmitted through the scale member from light sources disposed on one side of the scale member and moved along the scale by the scanning unit, which comprises light receivers disposed on the other side of the scale member. Alternatively, scanning can be effected with reflected light if the light sources and receivers are disposed on the same side of the scale member, which may be provided with a reflecting coating on the opposite side.
In order to reduce the risk of contamination or a condensation of moisture, U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,003 to provide in the slot of the housing two pairs of sealing lips, which pairs are arranged one over the other and cooperate with the sword. But in that known arrangement the gaps formed between said sealing lips by the sword have vertically aligned end portions so that moisture and dust can enter the interior of the housing.
European Pat. No. 2,0120, 205 discloses for a scanning with transmitted light an instrument in which the light sources and the light receivers are encapsulated in separate chambers and discloses for a scanning with reflected light an instrument in which the light sources and the light receivers are accommodated in a common chamber, which is defined by a window of transparent material, which comprises a reticle for scanning the scale and is moved along the scale member in close proximity thereto. In either case, the guiding means are disposed in separate parts of the encapsulating housing. The gap between the window or the scanning reticle and the scale member should be so small that any droplets condensed on the scale member will be transformed into a liquid film between the window and the scale member. Although that arrangement is highly expensive, it does not reliably prevent a contamination of the scale member and an occurrence of measurement errors resulting from condensed droplets.

Length measuring instrument comprising a scale member and a signal-generating scanning unit which is movable along the scale member

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This invention relates to a novel surgical device scalable to small dimensions for thermally-mediated treatments or thermoplasties of targeted tissue volumes. An exemplary embodiment is adapted for fusing, sealing or welding tissue. The instruments and techniques utilize a thermal energy delivery means, for example an electrical energy source, to instantly elevate the temperature of a biocompatible fluid media within an electrically insulated instrument portion. The altered media which may then be a gas is characterized by a (i) a high heat content, and (ii) a high exit velocity from the working end, both of which characteristics are controlled to hydrate tissue and at the same time denature proteins to fuse, seal, weld or cause any other thermally-mediated treatment of an engaged tissue volume—while causing limited collateral thermal damage and while totally eliminating electrical current flow the engaged tissue volume. The system can further utilize a piezoelectric material that carried fluid channels to apply compressive forces to the fluid eject the fluid from the working end of make it require less electrical energy to convert it to a gas.

This invention relates to a novel surgical device scalable to small dimensions for thermally-mediated treatments or thermoplasties of targeted tissue volumes. An exemplary embodiment is adapted for fusing, sealing or welding tissue. The instrument and technique utilizes electrical energy to instantly convert a biocompatible fluid media to a superheated media, perhaps a gas media, within an electrically insulated instrument working end. The altered media is characterized by a (i) a high heat content, and (ii) a high exit velocity from the working end, both of which characteristics are controlled to hydrate tissue and at the same time denature proteins to fuse, seal, weld or cause any other thermally-mediated treatment of an engaged tissue volume—while causing limited collateral thermal damage and while totally eliminating electrical current flow the engaged tissue volume.
Laser and Rf energy applications cause thermal effects in tissue based on different principles. In general, the non-linear or non-uniform characteristics of tissue affect both laser and Rf energy distributions in tissue. For example, FIG. 1A shows a typical pattern of energy distribution and resultant thermal effects in a prior art laser irradiation of tissue. The cross-section of the energy emitter or emission is indicated at ee at the tissue interface wherein a fiber optic interfaces tissue of a light beam strikes the tissue. In the case of a suitable infrared laser emission, water in tissue comprises a chromophore to absorb photonic energy resulting in a thermal effect. The turbidity of tissue scatters photons, and the resulting thermal effect is indicated by arbitrary isotherms 100, 80 and 60 which for example indicate degrees in centigrade. FIG. 1A shows that tissue desiccation d at the surface will occur to prevent photon transmission after a certain interval of energy delivery. If the objective of the thermal therapy in FIG. 1A were to seal or weld tissue, which is assumed to require a threshold temperature of 80° C., it can be seen that deeper tissue indicated at b may not reach the threshold welding temperature before the tissue surface is desiccated. Further, it can be seen that collateral tissue indicated at c may be sealed or welded, even though such tissue is collateral to the cross-section of the energy emission ee.
FIG. 1B next shows a typical energy distribution pattern when using a prior art bi-polar Rf energy delivery. In this schematic illustration, the cross-section of the energy emitter is again indicated at ee which defines the interface between a tissue surface and the electrodes 4a and 4b. As the electrodes are energized from an electrical source, the current flows are in constant flux and flow through random paths of least resistant between the electrodes. The tissue is elevated in temperature by it resistance to current flow, resulting typically in tissue desiccation or charring d at the electrode-tissue interface. When tissue in contact with the electrode is entirely desiccated, the current flow between the electrodes terminates. As represented in FIG. 1B, thermal effects typically occur in regions of tissue (indicated at c) collateral to the targeted tissue between the electrodes. Further, the prior art Rf energy delivery of FIG. 1B causes stray Rf flow in collateral tissues that may be undesirable.
What is needed is an instrument and technique (i) that can controllably deliver thermal energy to non-uniform tissue volumes; (i) that can weld tissue without desiccation or charring of surface tissue layers; (iii) that can weld a targeted tissue volume while preventing collateral thermal damage; and (iv) that does not cause stray Rf current flow in tissue.
This invention additionally relates to the working end of a medical instrument that applies energy to tissue from a fluid within a microfluidic tissue-engaging surface fabricated by soft lithography means together with optional superlattice cooling means that allows for very precise control of energy application, for example in neurosurgery applications.
Various types of radiofrequency (Rf) and laser surgical instruments have been developed for delivering thermal energy to tissue, for example to cause hemostasis, to weld tissue or to cause a thermoplastic remodeling of tissue. While such prior art forms of energy delivery work well for some applications, Rf and laser energy typically cannot cause highly "controlled" and "localized" thermal effects that are desirable in microsurgeries or other precision surgeries. In general, the non-linear or non-uniform characteristics of tissue affect both laser and Rf energy distributions in tissue. The objective of sealing or welding tissue requires means for elevating the tissue temperature uniformly throughout a targeted site.
What is needed is an instrument and technique (i) that can controllably deliver thermal energy to non-uniform tissue volumes; (i) that can shrink, seal, weld or create lesions in selected tissue volumes without desiccation or charring of adjacent tissues; (iii); and (iv) that does not cause stray electrical current flow in tissue.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A self-aligning tool for inserting percussion caps on firing nipples comprising a central hub with radially spaced apart spokes that each form an integral arm that terminates in a distal hand for temporarily securing the percussion cap until insertion. Each elongated arm comprises at least one storage hole for storing additional percussion caps. Each distal hand comprises at least one holder for temporarily receiving and retaining the percussion cap. Each holder defines a circular hole into which the cap is inserted for retention. Each holder comprises a periphery defining arcuate outer and inner lips separated by an elongated lateral slot. During the insertion process, the user aligns the percussion cap with the nipple by inserting the arcuate holder lips into the exposed breech. When the lips abut the interior walls of the bore, the cap is also aligned with the nipple. The user then presses the percussion cap firmly against the nipple until it is seated. Once seated, the percussion cap may be removed from the tool holder by a simple twisting action about the central hub. The cap remains seated on the nipple as a result of the friction generated upon the cap sidewalls by the twisting action. The lateral slot permits the cap to easily slide from the holder during the twisting action.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to muzzleloading or black powder rifle accessories. In particular, the present invention relates to a tool for quickly aligning and inserting a percussion cap on the firing nipple of an in-line muzzleloader.
2. Known Art
As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, firearms have been well known for literally centuries. For example, prior to the introduction of today's modern firearms, guns known as "black powder" and "muzzleloaders" were commonplace. Such guns often employed ammunition loaded in two stages. In the first stage, the ammunition, including the gunpowder, patches and actual projectile, would be inserted through the muzzle of the firearm where it was packed appropriately. On flintlock weapons, powder would be placed in the "flash pan" struck by the hammer while percussion cap firearms used a cap placed on the firing "nipple". In both cases, the hammer would strike and ignite a powder charge to subsequently fire the projectile.
As can be readily appreciated, percussion cap firearms were a great improvement over flintlocks for a number of reasons, including convenience, dependability, simplicity of use, etc. However, inserting the percussion cap on the firing nipple was often a difficult task for the user.
Often the nipples on percussion cap firearms are very small and wholly contained within the gun breech. Such guns also employ correspondingly small percussion caps. Small percussion caps are often difficult to handle, especially in cold weather when the user's hands may be bundled in gloves or mittens. Consequently, several devices have been proposed to alleviate the problem of handling percussion caps and placing them on nipples.
For example, some prior art devices serve as elongated holders that permit the user to place a single percussion cap on the firing nipple. These devices typically require the user to refill the tool with another cap before subsequent use. This devices requires the user to closely monitor the insertion of the cap on the nipple. As such, it is inoperable for quick second shots because of the excited or nervous condition of the user during quick second shot situations.
A closely related device enables the user to insert multiple caps without refilling the tool. These devices comprise an elongated tube capable of storing multiple caps in the tube itself. They generally employ a push spring to force caps to the tool end. Another prior art device comprises a circular holder with multiple cap holders equidistantly spaced along its periphery. Both of these devices fail to provide an easily aligned capping tool or a capping tool that accommodates both popular sizes of percussion caps.
Thus, the known prior art fails to provide an efficient method for easily aligning and inserting percussion caps quickly and efficiently on a firing nipple. For example, the known prior art fails to provide a combination capping tool that permits the user to use the various types of percussion caps that are commonly available. The known prior art also fails to provide a method for easily aligning the cap with the nipple during insertion.
Furthermore, the known prior art fails to provide capping tools that are ambidextrous. The known prior art discussed hereinabove is only designed for right handed usage. That is, these tools fail to permit a user to utilize the cap with either their right or left hand.
A desirable improvement would be to provide a capping tool that would enable the user to easily align a percussion cap with a firing nipple. Another desirable improvement would be to provide a capping tool that could be employed with either the right or the left hand of the user. Yet another desirable contribution would be an improvement in which the capping tool would automatically align the cap with the nipple during insertion. Such an improvement would facilitate quick second shots regardless of the user's ability to see the firing nipple. Another improvement would be a capping tool that worked well with nipples of different sizes. A capping tool that held multiple caps to facilitate rapid reloading would also be desirable.

Self aligning tool for inserting percussion caps on firing nipples


A filter cartridge for a liquid-straining filter assembly designed for a radial flow-through, the cartridge having a coiled filter body which surrounds a perforated central sleeve and is axially confined between end discs, the coiled filter body consisting of overlying layers of two axially offset strips of creped filter paper, the protruding spiral edges of the two coiled strips being glued to the end discs, while the recessed opposite edges form bypass flow gaps interconnecting the axial channel portions between the creped paper layers to form a zigzag-shaped transverse flow channel for depth-filtering action, when the entry layers of the cartridge become clogged.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to filters, and, more particularly, to a filter cartridge for a liquid-straining filter of the type which is cylindrical in shape and designed for a radial flow direction of the liquid.
2. Description of the Prior Art
From the prior art it is known to produce filter cartridges which consist of a central perforated sleeve around which are wound a number of overlying layers of creped filter paper, confined in the axial sense between two non-permeable end discs.
Filter assemblies with cartridges of this type are known as depth filters, the primary purpose of the coiled, layered structure being to utilize successive layers over the radial depth of the cartridge for the retention of solid deposits, in order to prevent the premature clogging of the peripheral entry surface of the filter cartridge. On the other hand, the filter material is to have fine pores distributed evenly over its surface, in order to remove as much as possible of the fine solid matter from the passing liquid.
Some known depth filters utilize fiber layers in their filter cartridges. These fiber layers, however, are frequently subject to a non-uniform distribution of the fiber material, in addition to the possibility of packing together in certain areas, with the result that the capacity of the filter cartridge is impaired accordingly. It has therefore become more common to utilize filter cartridges which feature a spiral coil of one or two strips of filter paper. The use of filter paper greatly facilitates the control of the pore size and pore distribution and, consequently, of the resistance of the filter paper to the liquid medium which is to be filtered.
One such depth filter is disclosed in the German Published Application C 41 47, where the filtering surface in an annular paper cartridge is increased by using one or several sheets of creped filter paper with alternating longitudinal edges connected together, the paper being wound around a central sleeve to form a spiral coil. However, this type of filter cartridge allows only axial flow-through, and it is therefore suitable only for filter assemblies which are designed for such an axial flow. Special precautions have to be taken, in order to prevent the mounting of the filter cartridge in an axially reversed orientation.
Another filter cartridge is disclosed in the German Gebrauchsmuster (Utility Model) No. 77 08 832. This solution proposes the use of a continuous web of paper fleece which is wound around a perforated central sleeve in the form of a spiral coil, to form a radially permeable body. The superposed layers of this coil have aligned longitudinal edges which abut against two metal end discs of the cartridge. This structure has the shortcoming of forcing the entire liquid flow through the outermost layer of the filter coil, so that it tends to develop premature clogging on its outer surface and its radial depth is not utilized effectively.

Layered filter cartridge with internal bypass channels


A method and apparatus for sampling an analog signal permits the identification of those samples in which data was lost in the sampling process. A data reference element is generated for each sample element, the data reference element having a corresponding sample element. A user friendly display technique is provided to permit the user to controllably display the sampled signal, clearly showing those portions of the signal in which information was lost contrasted with those portions of the signal that were sampled intact.

When a band-limited analog signal is digitally sampled with a sampling rate that is less than the minimum required rate for the exact reconstruction of the analog signal from its digital samples (the Nyquist rate), information loss occurs. This results in a degradation of signal quality when the digital signal is converted back to analog form. A method is desired that will let the user of an analog signal sampling device view in which parts of the analog signal information loss occurs (when a signal is sampled at a rate below the minimum rate required for maximum fidelity - - - i.e. by the Nyquist rate).
Information loss occurs at those time intervals of the analog signal which contain frequency components higher than half the sampling rate used. The Nyquist theorem states that in order to exactly reconstruct an analog signal from its digital samples, the sampling rate used must be greater than, or equal to, two times the maximum frequency component present in the band-limited signal. For example, if the maximum frequency component present in an analog signal is 250 kHz, then the signal must be sampled at a minimum of 500 kHz in order to be able to recover the signal from its samples without any information loss.
An analog signal X(t) (see FIG. 5) can be broken up into a summation of many "time-sliced" signals X.sub.i (t). Each time-slice of the signal can be treated as an individual analog signal to be sampled at the given sampling rate. The frequency contents of the time-slice can be obtained through a spectrum analyzer. If the maximum frequency present in a particular sample is greater than half of the rate used to sample the signal, then information loss has occurred for that sample or time-slice. A table in which each entry corresponds to a time-slice can be dynamically built by an analog to digital sampling device to identify those time intervals in which information loss has occurred. Another process can read the table and then display, in a user-friendly manner, where in the signal information loss occurred.
An audio signal defines such an analog signal. An audio signal, divided in time into a series of time-slices, may be thought of as a discreet series of "snap-shots" of the audio signal. Similarly, a video signal may be thought of as sampled into a discreet series of frames of the total signal. For any audio or video signal, only certain portions will experience information loss when the frequency content of a snap-shot of frame exceeds the Nyquist rate. Thus, there remains a need for a simple, user-friendly means of displaying to a user which snap-shot or frame experienced data loss in the digital sampling procedure. Further, such a system should provide additional means of illustrating how much of the analog signal was lost in a particular snap-shot or frame so that a determination can be made as to the acceptability of the degree of information loss.

Method and apparatus for the display of digitized analog signal loss


A method is provided for providing a cache architecture for a database system having a given number of request streams and a given number of pages of random access memory available for use in one or more caches. The cache architecture includes (i) an allocation of memory pages over a number of caches, and (ii) an assignment of the request streams to the caches. Given that the number of caches is less than the number of streams, the method according to the invention allocates memory pages to the caches and assigns streams to the caches so as to optimize the memory access hit ratio for a given trace of memory requests from the streams. The method includes obtaining characterization information for the request streams (mean burst sizes and cache depth distributions based on the sequence of requests in the trace), and using the characterization information to predict the hit ratios for proposed superpositions of the request streams. An efficient algorithm allows request streams to be superposed, a pair at a time, optimizing the hit ratio for each superposition based on the characterization information.

In computer architectures using mass storage devices, such as disk drives, time delays in memory access are imposed by considerations such as disk revolution times. It has been a challenge for system designers to find ways to reduce these access delays. A commonly used technique has been to provide one or more regions of high speed random access memory, called caches. Portions of the contents of the mass storage are copied into the cache as required by the processor, modified, and written back to the mass storage. Caches continue to be one of the most pervasive structures found in computer systems. They are used at every layer of the memory hierarchy. Several levels are usually present in the processor. Primary memory management is traditionally based on a cache model, and files are cached in hierarchical storage management across secondary, tertiary, and networked storage.
While many variations have been developed over the years, the predominant principle in the management policies for these caches is a Least Recently Used replacement rule, typically applied uniformly across all pages of the cache. (For the purposes of the present invention, there are no limitations on the size of a page of a cache, or of the number of pages which can be in a cache.) If a memory request is directed to an address within a page of data which is not presently copied into the cache, then the page of data within the cache which was least recently used by the processor is copied back to the mass storage, and the page containing the newly requested address is copied from the mass storage into that portion of the cache. (Note that the least recently used page of data may be copied back to mass storage in advance of this new request, to improve performance by reducing access time.)
For the purpose of the discussion which follows, caches will be treated as fully associative. That is, for a given request to a given cache, the entire contents of the cache are searched for an exact match with the entire request. This is typical for database applications, in which the matching is done in software, and high speed is an important, but not critical, consideration.
By contrast, in a set associative cache arrangement, only a small region of the cache (the region is called a "set") is searched, for a match with the request (such as an address match). This latter arrangement is more commonly used in processor applications, involving hardware implementation and requiring greater access speed. See also Smith, "Cache Memories," Computing Surveys, vol. 14, no. 3, September 1982, pp. 473-530, ACM0010-4892/82/0900-0473, section 2.2, "Placement Algorithm."
Replacement algorithms are discussed in general in Smith, "Cache Memories," at section 2.4, "Replacement Algorithm". A formal definition of Least Recently Used is given in Coffman and Denning, "Operating Systems Theory," Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc. (1973), p. 245.
The operation of an LRU cache is as follows: Consider a finite size cache consisting of K page frames, buffers, or locations, with indexes denoted 1, 2, . . . K. If a request is made for page p, and the page p is found in position j, then the page p is moved to position 1 of the cache, the "most recently used position," and the pages formerly in positions 1, 2, . . . j-1 1 are pushed one position deeper into the cache. That is, the index of each of these pages is increased by 1. If the page p is not found in the cache, then it is brought from mass storage into the cache, and stored in position 1. All of the pages formerly in positions 1, 2, . . . K-1 are pushed one position deeper into the cache, to positions 2, 3, . . . K, respectively, and the page at position K is removed from the cache and returned to mass storage.
The event, in which the page p is requested and is found already to be in the cache, is called a hit. An event in which the page p is requested and not found in the cache, is called a miss. The ratio of page requests which are hits to total page requests is called the hit ratio. Similarly, the ratio of page requests which are misses to total page requests is called the miss ratio. Since the I/O rate to the level of storage below the cache in the hierarchy is directly proportional to the miss ratio, it is deskable to make the miss ratio as small as possible, or, conversely, to make the hit ratio as large as possible, in order to minimize the number of times that memory accesses are delayed because of the need to access mass storage.

Method for the assignment of request streams to cache memories

International Business Machines Corporation


The offset amount that a sacrificial rib road contact surface is recessed to the inner side of a tire with regards to a shoulder rib road contact surface is equal to 0, and a circumferential fine groove is provided such that the opening side thereof is located on the inner side when the tire is filled to a proper internal pressure. The dimension Ws in the tire width direction of the shoulder rib road contact surface and the dimension Wa in the tire width direction of the sacrificial rib road contact surface are set such that 0.10≦Wa/Ws≦0.2. The dimension Wb in the tire width direction of the sacrificial rib road contact surface when the groove depth of the circumferential main grooves has worn 20% is set in a range such that 0.25≦Wb/Ws≦0.30.

With pneumatic tires for heavy loads, uneven wear (such as step wearing) occurs in the shoulder region of the tread under conditions of use such as when the steering shaft is mainly turned while driving continuously at high speeds for a long period of time. Conventional pneumatic tires have sought to solve this problem by providing a circumferential fine groove that extends in the circumferential direction of the tire formed in the shoulder region of the tread for the purpose of preventing uneven wearing of the shoulder region of the tread. A rib that extends in the tire circumferential direction is formed on the outer side in the tire width direction by the circumferential fine groove. Furthermore, when the tire is in contact with the ground, this rib minimizes uneven wear in the shoulder region of the tread by proactively wearing as an abrasion sacrifice rib (for example, refer to Japanese Examined Patent No. H06-004364 and Japanese Patent No. 3902240).
Specifically, the pneumatic tire for heavy load shown in Japanese Examined Patent No. H06-004364 has a shoulder rib that is divided into an outer rib (sacrifice rib) and an inner rib by a single auxiliary groove. The auxiliary groove is set at an interval corresponding to between 25 and 40% of the width of the shoulder rib as measured from the end edge of the tread. Furthermore, the auxiliary groove is set to be angled toward the outside at an angle of 20 degrees or less with regards to the normal line of the tread surface.
Furthermore, the pneumatic tire for heavy load according to Japanese Patent No. 3902240 has a sacrifice rib surface that is offset and recessed to the inner side in the tire radial direction from the profile line in the tire width direction of the shoulder rib, and the amount of offset is between 0.5 and 2.0 mm for a new tire.
However, with the pneumatic tire for heavy load shown in Japanese Examined Patent No. H06-004364, the ratio of the width of the sacrifice rib to the width of the inner rib of a new tire will gradually increase when the new tire becomes worn and will exceed the specified level of between 25 and 40%, based on the location of the auxiliary rib on the shoulder rib and the angle thereof. Therefore, there is a concern that rigidity of the shoulder rib will drop when the new tire becomes worn, resulting in deterioration of uneven wear resistance.
Furthermore, with the pneumatic tire for heavy load shown in Japanese Patent No. 3902240, the surface of the sacrifice rib is formed to be offset and recessed to the inner side in the tire radial direction from the profile line in the tire width direction of the shoulder rib. Since a drop in road contact pressure at the outside edge part in the tire width direction of the shoulder rib is thus induced at the early stages of wearing, there is a concern that uneven wear will be accelerated.
In light of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a pneumatic tire for heavy load that can increase resistance to uneven wear.


Sinew is stripped from meat by the coaction of a rotatable rotor and a fixed pressure bar which are constructed so as to avoid severe pulverizing and emulsification of edible meat which remains after stripping of the sinew. The edible meat is forced through comparatively large and discrete holes in the rotor, such holes enabling the meat to retain a relatively coarse texture.

This invention relates generally to meat processing machinery and, more particularly, to a mechanical desinewing machine.
In meat products of the type adapted to be processed by the machine, sinew comprises connective tissue (e.g., tendons), gristle and residual bone. Sinew is tough and is hard or stringy and must be removed from meat such as deboned beef shanks and deboned turkey drumsticks if such meat is to be sold in ground form.
Paoli U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,794 discloses a desinewing machine which, with certain products, acceptably removes the sinew. In that machine, however, the sinew is stripped from the meat by means of helical cutting elements on a rotor interdigitating with a set of teeth on a breaker bar or pressure bar. Edible meat which remains after stripping of the sinew is forced through constricted helical slots in the rotor. While such a machine functions admirably to strip the sinew, the edible meat which is produced has a very fine texture and is somewhat in the form of an emulsion. The appearance of the meat tends to lower customer appeal.

Desinewing machine for producing coarse-textured meat

c/o Stephen Paoli International Corporation, 2531 11th St.


Polyphosphazene copolymers are prepared which are comprised of repeating units represented by the formulas: ##STR1## wherein X is represented by the formula: ##STR2## wherein R.sub.1, R.sub.2 and R.sub.3 are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, substituted and unsubstituted alkyl radicals containing from 1 to 15 carbon atoms, substituted and unsubstituted cycloalkyl, aryl, arylalkyl, and heterocyclic radicals; X' is selected from the group consisting of substituted and unsubstituted alkoxy, aryloxy, mercapto and amino radicals, and mixtures thereof; and 20.ltoreq.(w+y+z).ltoreq.50,000 per polymer unit.. The polyphosphazene polymers of the present invention are prepared by the reaction of the enol form of an aldehyde or a ketone and an additional reactant such as an alkanol, aryl alcohol, mercaptan, or amine with poly(dichlorophosphazene) in the presence of a tertiary amine. The polymers of this invention may be modified by crosslinking or curing.. The polymers of this invention can be utilized to form protective films and may also be utilized in applications such as molding, coatings, foams and the like.

Alkenoxy groups have been disclosed as substituents on polyphosphazene polymers in U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,833 to Rose et al. The Ross patent shows the preparation of these polyphosphazene copolymers through the reaction of at least two different alkali metal fluoroalkoxides and a small percentage of an alkali metal alkylene alkoxide with a soluble polymer of phosphonitrilic chloride in benzene. Disclosed substitution groups include ##STR3## which are substituted by the reaction of their alkali metal salts with polyphosphonitrilic chloride. While the polymers produced in U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,833 appear to be within the scope of the present invention the method of preparation of the alkylene alkoxy polyphosphazene as set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,833 using the alkali metal salt substitution procedure produces a polymer having characteristics substantially different than the polymer produced in the present invention. The substitution method used in U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,833 promotes the condensation of aldehydes and ketones and results in the production of a polymer in the form of an undefined tarry mass.
Polyphosphazene polymers containing repeating ##STR4## units in which various substituted and unsubstituted alkoxy, aryloxy, amino and mercapto groups are attached to the phosphorus atom and their method of preparation are described in the prior art as illustrated in the publication "Nitrogen-Phosphorus Compounds", Academic Press, New York, N.Y., 1972 by H. R. Allcock and "Poly(Organophosphazenes)", Chemtech, Sept. 19, 1975 by H. R. Allcock and in such U.S. Pat. Nos. as 3,515,688; 3,702,833, 3,856,712, 3,974,242, and 4,042,561 the disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference.

Polyphosphazene polymers containing substituents derived from aldehydes or ketones


In order to automate a microphone assembly process including a dust-proof treatment, an object of the present invention is to provide a dust-proof microphone having a configuration suitable for automated assembly.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic device that has a dust-proof section over an opening of a housing thereof. In particular, it relates to a microphone having a dust-proof section.
2. Description of the Related Art
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-328231, it is common practice to cover a sound aperture of a microphone with a cloth, such as a nonwoven fabric, to prevent entry of a foreign matter or dust from the sound aperture.
However, according to such a conventional dust-proof measure, a cloth has to be attached to a microphone with a double-sided tape or adhesive after fabrication of the microphone is completed. Thus, there exists an additional step of cloth attachment after assembly of the microphone. The cloth attachment step is difficult to automate, so that the entire fabrication process including the dust-proof treatment has not been able to be automated. In addition, the cloth cannot endure the heating during the soldering of the microphone in a reflow furnace. That is, the fabrication process including the cloth attachment step has not been able to be automated because of the poor heat resistance of the cloth or the like, too.
Another dust-proof measure is to cover a sound aperture of a microphone with a mesh member made of stainless steel. This measure also requires a step of covering the opening with the mesh member in addition to the microphone assembly step. Thus, this measure also has a problem with automation. In addition, a scrap of mesh member may be produced during processing of the mesh member, and the scrap may enter the microphone as a foreign matter or dust.

Abstract: According to the present invention, a microphone has a plate-like or film-like dust-proof section that is disposed in a conductive housing (capsule) having a sound aperture and covers the sound aperture. The dust-proof section has a plurality of pores at least in a region corresponding to the sound aperture, and the dust-proof section further has a nonporous region. In the case of an electret condenser microphone, from the viewpoint of performance of the microphone, the dust-proof section is conductive. In addition, taking into account a soldering in a reflow furnace, the dust-proof section is heat-resistant. Each pore is desirably designed taking into account the environment for the usage of the microphone. However, if it is supposed that the microphone is used near one's mouth, each pore has an area of 0.01 mm2 or less. In addition, to enhance the dust-proof effect, the pores may be subjected to a water-repellent treatment.


Absorbent structures are disclosed which contain specific, relatively, narrow, particle size distributions of superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials in relatively high concentrations. The absorbent structures of the present invention are useful in disposable absorbent articles such as diapers, adult incontinence pads, and the like. The absorbent articles of the present invention comprise a liquid pervious topsheet, a liquid impervious backsheet joined to the topsheet, and an absorbent core positioned between the topsheet and backsheet. At least a portion of the absorbent core comprises between about 25% and about 90% by weight particles of substantially water-insoluble, absorbent hydrogel-forming, polymer material formed by solution polymerization methods. The particles of the hydrogel-forming, polymer material are of such size that at least about 80% of the particles, by weight, will pass through a U.S. Standard 50 mesh sieve with 297 micron openings and be retained on a U.S. Standard 140 mesh sieve with 105 micron openings when the particles are tested according to the Sieving Test described herein.

The term "superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials", as used herein, refers to substantially water-insoluble, absorbent, polymeric compositions that are capable of absorbing large quantities of fluids such as water and body exudates in relation to their weight and forming hydrogels thereby. Such materials are usually also capable of retaining such absorbed fluids under moderate pressures. Superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials may also be referred to by other names such as "hydrocolloids", or "absorbent gelling materials".
The absorption characteristics of such superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials, and cost of such materials, makes them especially useful for incorporation into absorbent articles, particularly disposable absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers. Some examples of the use of particulate superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials in absorbent articles are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,103 issued to Harper et al. on Jun. 13, 1972 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,670,731 issued to Harmon on Jun. 20, 1972.
In the case of some disposable absorbent articles, it is desirable to produce a thinner product. Thinner products may provide user comfort and perception advantages. One way to produce thinner products while maintaining the overall fluid storage capacity of the product is to reduce the fiber weight content in the product's absorbent core while at the same time increasing the amount of particulate superabsorbent hydrogel-forming material in the core. This results in a product having a core with a higher weight concentration of particulate hydrogel-forming material.
However, in historical executions of absorbent articles containing high concentrations of superabsorbent materials (that is, greater than or equal to about 25% by weight), tradeoffs have been inevitable between providing such superabsorbent material concentrations and the fluid uptake and distribution rates of the absorbent articles. Disposable absorbent products containing high concentrations of standard bulk particle size distributions of particulate superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials have the limitation that their rate of fluid uptake may be much lower than those of conventional cellulosic fiber webs. The term "fluid uptake rate" refers to the rate at which fluids are taken into the core in a direction that is into the plane of the absorbent article (that is, in the "z-direction"). This is particularly true in the case of particulate superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials that have a relatively large average particle size.
The fluid uptake rate of such absorbent articles can be substantially increased by reducing the average size of the superabsorbent material particles in the product. However, when very small particles (or "fines") swell upon contact with liquids, the particles, when incorporated in a fiber web, tend to be easily forced into the interfiber capillaries of the web. The swollen or partially swollen fines may also form a mass of coagulated gel held together by fluid surface tension forces, thus forming a gel barrier. In either case, resistance to fluid flow through the structure is increased as fluid flow channels are blocked within the fiber web or by the gel mass, resulting in a marked decrease in permeability. These phenomena which interfere primarily with the transportation of fluids in the plane of the absorbent structure (in the "x-y" plane) are commonly referred to as "gel blocking." Further, because these absorbent articles are not able to process fluid (that is, to take in, distribute, and store fluids) rapidly or efficiently, there may be an increased probability of product failure.
There have been many efforts directed at solving the problems associated with incorporating superabsorbent materials into absorbent articles. For example, European Patent Application Publication number 0 339 461 published Nov. 10, 1985, in the name of Kellenberger, describes an effort directed to choosing a size of superabsorbent material that has a specific relationship to the pore size of an absorbent product. U.S. Pat. No. 4,699,823 issued Oct. 13, 1987, in the name of Kellenberger, et al. is directed to distribution of superabsorbent material in a positive concentration gradient through at least a portion of the thickness of an absorbent layer. Other efforts are directed at particle size e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,033, Chatterjee, et al. Many others mention particle sizes in various contexts, for instance U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,102,340, Mesek, et al.; 4,604,313, McFarland, et al.; and 4,666,975, Yamasaki, et al. However, none of the foregoing appear to have adequately understood and addressed the problems with the transport rate of fluids in both the x-y plane and in the z-direction.
The present invention seeks to resolve the above problems by providing improved absorbent structures and absorbent articles having high concentrations of particulate superabsorbent hydrogel-forming material, with improved fluid uptake and distribution rates.

Absorbent structures containing specific particle size distributions of superabsorbent hydrogel-forming materials in relatively high concentrations


A rider propelled vehicle includes a frame having a hub portion. Each of two cranks has a crank shaft extending into the hub portion and mounted on the hub portion for rotation relative thereto independent of the other crank shaft. Both of the cranks can be rotated through a top dead center position and a bottom dead center position in which the force applied by the rider to the crank for propulsion of the vehicle is at a minimum. An output shaft extending from within the hub portion is operatively connected to a drive wheel of the vehicle for driving rotation of the drive wheel to propel the vehicle. The output shaft is mounted on the hub portion for rotation relative to the frame and the cranks. A torque transmission assembly interconnecting the output shaft with the crank shafts for transmitting torque from the crank shafts to the output shaft is contained within the frame. The torque transmission assembly is constructed such that the cranks are accelerated and decelerated relative to each other whereby the cranks never simultaneously occupy their top and bottom dead center positions.

This invention relates generally to rider propelled vehicles and more particularly to a drive assembly for rider propelled vehicles.
Rider propelled vehicles (e.g., bicycles, tricycles and the like) are universally driven drive assemblies having a pair of cranks rotated about an axis by pedalling action of the rider's legs. Pedals may be mounted directly on the cranks, or indirectly connected to the cranks by of connector rods, such as when reciprocating pedalling action is employed. Typically, the cranks of the drive assembly are fixed on opposite ends of a shaft and permanently located 180.degree. apart. A well known drawback to the typical configuration is that the cranks will simultaneously occupy top and bottom "dead center positions" in which only a very low torque is applied to the crank shaft. More specifically, at the beginning of the power stroke of each of the rider's legs (that is, when the leg begins to be extended by the rider from a flexed position), force applied by the rider's leg to the crank tends to be directed through or very near the axis of rotation of the crank shaft. The other leg provides no assistance because it is fully or nearly fully extended and any force applied by that leg would also be directed along a line at or near the axis of rotation. As a result, a very low torque is generated by the drive assembly.
Low torque application is particularly troublesome when first initiating motion of the vehicle and when travelling up steep grades at low speeds. The rider may attempt to overcome this by pushing the vehicle until the cranks move out of their dead center positions, or by changing his body's position on the bicycle so that the force applied by his legs is directed along a line spaced further from the axis of rotation. Either of these solutions is inconvenient for any rider and nearly impossible for some riders who have sufficient leg strength to propel the bicycle but through age or handicap find it difficult to change the position of their bodies. In part to facilitate changing body position, bicycle seats have been located relatively high and almost directly above the pedals. Because of the location of the seat relative to the pedals and need to change body position, back rests are not employed. The absence of a reaction surface, such as could be provided by a back rest, limits the force the rider can apply to the cranks.
The problem of the top and bottom dead center positions is acute when reciprocating motion is employed to power the drive assembly. In that event, the cranks are connected by rods to pedals driven in reciprocating, rather than rotary fashion. The rods fix the direction by which forces may be applied to the cranks. Thus, the top dead center position cannot be overcome by the rider changing his body position.
Prior solutions to this problem are disclosed in my U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,779,099, 3,906,807, 4,029,334 and 4,159,652. Generally, the solution disclosed in these patents is to provide two cranks on each side of the vehicle, a drive crank fixedly connected to the sprocket and a pedal crank connected to the pedals (via connector rods in the case of reciprocating motion). These cranks are interconnected by a torque transmission assembly which causes the pedal crank to be accelerated and decelerated relative to the drive crank during each orbit of the drive crank about its axis of rotation. The pedal cranks on each side of the vehicle are also accelerating and decelerating with respect to each other such that they are no longer constantly maintained at 180.degree. separation. Thus, when one of the pedal cranks is at its bottom dead center position the other pedal crank is separated by less than 180.degree. (measured in the direction of rotation of the pedal cranks) so that the other pedal crank does not simultaneously occupy its top dead center position. Therefore, the rider is able to apply a substantial torque to the drive assembly throughout each rotation of the pedal cranks without changing his body position.
My prior inventions operate in a satisfactory manner to eliminate the problem of the top (and bottom) dead center position in the drive assemblies of rider propelled vehicles. However, I have found it desirable to improve upon certain aspects of these inventions. In each of my prior inventions, the torque transmission assembly is exposed to the environment which could result in the various cams and bearings of the assembly becoming fouled with dirt, grease and other debris, or could subject the assembly to damage by impact. Some of my prior inventions (e.g., those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,029,334 and 4,159,652) employ cam followers moving in a cam raceway. The sliding action of the cam follower in the cam raceway may result in wearing of the follower and raceway unless more expensive materials are used.
The exposed disposition of the torque transmission assembly causes a bicycle to have an unusual appearance which may frighten off the ordinary bicycle rider for whom the inventions may provide the greatest advantage. Further in some instances (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,652), the result is achieved by separating the axis of rotation of the pedal cranks from that of the drive cranks, which also gives the drive assembly a nonstandard appearance.


A power converter that can be used either as a start converter or as a variabe speed constant frequency converter is utilized within a stepped waveform VSCF system having engine start capability. Interfacing with the converter are a load bus, a contactor, a field excitation controller and a starter/generator having a main generator, an exciter generator and a permanent magnet generator. Magnetic components and semiconductor components perform multi-functions and minimal degradation of input power quality occurs.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power converter and, more particularly, to a stepped waveform VSCF converter which can be used either as an electrical power source that accepts variable frequency, variable voltage, AC power and provides constant voltage, constant frequency, AC power or as a start converter that starts main or auxiliary engines from an AC source with minimal disturbance to the input power quality.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are a wide variety of VSCF power converters that provide a constant frequency, constant voltage, from a variable frequency, variable voltage, obtained from an AC synchronous generator mounted on the prime mover (main or auxiliary engine). However, very few VSCF converters have start capability to start the AC synchronous generator and, in turn, the prime mover. If a VSCF converter has this capability, it has been found to either pollute the input source and degrade input power quality or an extensive reconfiguration of the power converter, with power contactors between generate and start operation mode, has been required. This is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,926 issued to Dhyan Chand. The use of such converters increases weight and decreases reliability.
It is an object of the present invention to incorporate, with minimal modification, generate and start features into a 24-stepped waveform VSCF converter. The present invention will provide improved power quality therefore taking advantage of common components such as transformers and semiconductors.

Stepped waveform VSCF system with engine start capability


An arcuate fiber composite plastic preform and a method for the production of curved profiles with any fiber layer structure are disclosed, which include a layered fiber structure with a base and an arcuate outer contour, an inner edge and an outer edge. The fiber layer structure is configured with a first inner area provided with elevations and depressions, a second adjacent central area with no elevations and depressions and a third outer area and provided with radially oriented open recesses. The method of producing curved profiles from fiber composite plastic preforms having any fiber layer structure includes a molding step, whereby the outer area of the preform with wedge-shaped recesses is being compressed while the inner relief-shaped area is being completely stretched thereby flattening the relief.

The present invention refers to a fiber composite plastic preform for the manufacture of curved profiles with any fiber layer structure. The invention further refers to a method for producing curved profiles from fiber composite plastic with any fiber layer structure.
The production of curved profiles from fiber composite plastic (FVK) with a profile-directed fiber coordinate system, such as a system including a 90° ordinate to the profile curve and a 0° abscissa tangential to the curved profile, represents a great production challenge. Due to increased requirements regarding the fiber content and the demand for high quality parts in the field of aircraft primary structures, the use of FVK-preforms that are provided in either so-called "prepregs" or as non-impregnated semi-finished fiber products, are considered standard. These fiber layered structures can be brought into the desired shape via a hot forming process. Prepregs are semi-finished textiles pre-impregnated with reaction resin, for manufacture of construction parts that are hardened under heat and pressure.
Upon forming the fiber layers, due to the changes of the radius of the molded arcuate segments, "stretching" or "compression" of the material inevitably happens, which requires a length compensation within the single fibers layers. In layers with a fiber angle of φ≠0°, this is carried out through a selective shift of the single fibers. Changes in the arch length are then balanced through "spreading apart" or "pushing together" of a portion perpendicular to the fiber direction. In the case of a pushing together, a correspondingly stretched deposit of angled layers must be taken into account. For fiber layers with φ=0°, this solution is not applicable, although these profile-directed fiber layers are oftentimes of considerable relevance for structural parts.
According to the prior art, the problem with forming fiber layers with φ≠0° can be avoided or can be solved in a variety of ways.
In a first variant, there is a substitution of the fiber layers φ=0° with fiber layers φ=0° while raising the number of layers for the desired firmness. Avoiding the fiber angle φ=0° however leads to disadvantageous limitations in the layered structure of the laminate. The desired firmness of the structural part thus can be realized only through a corresponding increase of the number of layers with a fiber angle of φ≠0°. This leads necessarily to an increase in weight which is especially disadvantageous in aircraft construction. The stretching of fiber layers transverse to the fiber direction can result in so-called "gaps" of an undue size between the fibers.
According to a second variant of the prior art, a deposit of single fiber layers with φ=0° directly in the profile cross section, that is, in a three-dimensional layer deposit, a subsequent forming for that layer is omitted. Depositing fiber layers with φ=0° directly in the profile cross section results in a complex production technique and expenditure requiring a large portion of manual steps for single layer deposits or, alternatively, requires a very costly mechanical process. Also, a manual lamination process is less reproducible and less cost effective. This approach runs counter to the goal of automatization and industrializing the production process.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,943,076 describes a method for the production of a curved composite material structural part which includes such steps as:
providing a multitude of composite material band segments;
connecting a group of, band segments into a layer which retains this group at the layer edges within a flexible frame;
positioning the connected groups of band segments against a first curved tool surface of a mold;
contacting the connected groups of band segments with a second, generally flat tool surface of the mold;
contacting the connected groups of band segments with a third curved tool surface of the mold; and
hardening the layer.
In the example, the group of band segments, starting from a smaller radius of the curvature, can be formed with a curvature of a larger radius. The method thus exploits a wavy mold surface of an additional transitional mold, in order to transition the group of band segments into an intermediate shape. For this purpose, the transitional mold includes different mold surfaces, of which some are provided with a wave pattern formed of alternating ribs and valleys. These wave patterns are utilized to preform the prepreg into an intermediate shape whereby this intermediate shape then can be easily formed by a mold using a molding machine. The area of the prepreg that is being preformed by a first mold surface of the transitional mold is being placed against the smaller inner radius of the mold, the first curved mold surface. An adjacent area which is being preformed by a second mold surface of the transitional mold tool, and an outer cap that is being preformed by a third mold surface of the transitional mold, are formed via the mold of the molding machine.
In the foregoing variant, the forming work is considerable, since depending on the specific profile shape, successive forming of more than one edge is required. Since a specific forming tool is required, the process is thus not cost effective. In addition, such a multistep forming process can result in unwanted shifts of the fiber layers which will also have a negative impact on the reproducibility and the quality of the structural part. Due to the high degree of forming, a wave shaped structure requires a production dependent unfavorably high degree of forming wave shapes. Upon positioning connected groups of band segments against the first curved surface of a mold, in particular, groups of great thickness and a tool surface with a small curve radius, unwanted fiber compression can hardly be avoided.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to provide an improved production method to obviate prior art shortcomings and to provide an efficient and reproducible production method for high quality curved fiber composite profiles and to realize all types of layer structures with the aid of simple standard production methods.
The present invention resolves prior art problems of multistep processes by providing a prefabricated preform that already includes the complete fiber layer structure of the later profile and by means of the defined relevant areas can be advantageously transitioned into the profile in a one-step process.

Arcuate fiber composite plastic preform and method for production of curved profiles


A method for removing a material from a surface includes passing a laser through a lens such that the laser impinges on the material. The surface from which the material is removed has an array of artifacts thereon with a spacing between the artifacts and a pitch between lines of the artifacts. At least the spacing between the artifacts is varied.

A laser ablation process generally includes selective removal of material at a surface of a workpiece by directing a laser beam at the workpiece. The laser beam is configured to deliver a controlled amount of energy at a laser spot defined where the beam impinges the desired surface. This controlled amount of energy is selected to liquefy, vaporize, or otherwise rapidly expand the surface material at the laser spot to cause it to separate from the workpiece for removal. Laser ablation can be used to remove at least a portion of one or more coatings from a coated substrate.
A conventional laser ablation process is typically performed at the focal height or distance of the objective (focusing) optics—i.e., with the focal plane of the laser beam at or near the surface from which material is to be removed. This gives the highest energy density and the smallest change in spot size with changes in the height of the surface. It has been found that with some conventional focused laser ablation processes, such as removing chromium (Cr) from glass with a picosecond green (532 nm) pulsed laser, the glass sustains surface damage to such an extent and with a regular periodicity that a diffraction grating is formed. Diffraction patterns that are produced by the diffraction grating can be an unwanted or unintended artifact of the ablation process.
The regular periodicity of the surface damage thought to be responsible for the diffraction grating is related to the laser pulse frequency and the scan speed. For example, at a 400 kHz pulse frequency and a 20 m/s scan speed, the spacing from pulse to pulse on the surface is 50 μm. A regular pattern of structures on a surface can generate diffraction according to the formula:d(sin θm+sin θi)=mλ, where d is the spacing of the pattern, θm and θi are the respective angles of the reflected and incident beams, m is the order of diffraction, and λ is the wavelength of light diffracted under those conditions. The diffraction observed for the laser ablated surface may require point light source illumination to be visible. The effect is pictographically shown in Figure A.
As depicted in Figure A, Ray A (center of grating surface) is reflected at an angle equal to its incident angle (specular reflection). An observer sees this as the reflection of the light source. Rays B and C are diffracted from the grating surface, and their incident and resultant angles are not equal. These rays may represent the first order diffraction for a particular wavelength. Because the observer is generally focusing on the image plane of the light source, the diffracted beams appear as spots or bars of color on both sides of the light source as depicted by D and E. For clarity, the example shown in Figure A demonstrates diffraction in one dimension, but actual diffraction artifacts may be multidimensional.
A microscope image of a laser ablated surface produced in an ablation process with a constant laser pulse frequency that may produce a diffraction pattern is shown in FIG. 2. Diffraction patterns produced by laser ablated surfaces may be objectionable to individuals observing the laser ablated surfaces.

Reducing diffraction effects on an ablated surface


A system characterizes tissue using fluorescence spectroscopy, such as light-induced fluorescence. Native fluorescence ("autofluorescence") from endogenous tissue without requiring fluorescence-enhancing agents is used to distinguish between normal tissue, hyperplastic tissue, adenomatous tissue, and adenocarcinomas. The system provides endoscopic image enhancement for easy location of a tissue site for optical biopsy tissue characterization. The system allows the use of an integrated endoscopic diagnosis and treatment device for immediate diagnosis and treatment without interchanging equipment and relocating the tissue site. The system is also integrated with existing endoscopy equipment for initiating and displaying the diagnosis. The system provides an adjunctive tool to histopathological tissue classification or, alternatively, further treatment is based on the optical biopsy system diagnosis itself.

Tissue diagnosis is important in many fields of medicine, including, but not limited to: gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, urological, pulmonary, reproductive, dermatology, surgery, and general medicine. For example, early detection of tissue malignancy is essential to avoid the spread of cancer and associated complications. In the gastrointestinal tract, for example, endoscopic and/or laparoscopic "minimally invasive" techniques can be used to obtain a biopsy that provides a physical sample of a tissue site. The tissue site can be either a flat surface or subsurface mucosal lesion or a raised mucosal lesion (e.g., a polyp). The biopsy can be analyzed in a pathology laboratory using histopathological techniques to determine whether it is cancerous. The tissue may be normal, hyperplastic, adenomatous, or malignant. For example, hyperplastic polyps consist of normal tissue, and are therefore benign. Adenomatous polyps, which are also referred to as dysplastic polyps, consist of abnormal tissue, and are a risk of future malignancy. Adenocarcinomas are malignant polyps that pose an immediate risk of spreading to other areas of the body.
Histopathology, while relatively accurate, requires the physical removal of a tissue sample and its time-consuming analysis in a pathology laboratory. Further treatment of the tissue site based on the results of the histopathological analysis may require a second medical procedure, separate from the original diagnostic procedure that obtained the biopsy. Along with an increased cost and patient discomfort, locating the original biopsy site may be extremely difficult. Moreover, gathering a physical biopsy sample is not without risk, since it typically involves cutting and removing a small portion of tissue. For this reason, taking unnecessary physical biopsy samples should be avoided. Sampled tissue sites that are subsequently found to be hyperplastic by histopathological analysis were, in retrospect, unnecessarily sampled.
Moreover, some patients undergoing endoscopic colonic examination, for example, will have an abundance of small (e.g., less than 5 millimeters in diameter) polyps that are either hyperplastic or adenomatous. Since sampling each site is difficult and increases the risk of other complications, physical samples are obtained from only a "representative" subpopulation of the sites. However, this leaves other possibly premalignant sites undiagnosed, even though such sites could become malignant and contribute to the spread of cancer in the patient. Thus, the risk of obtaining physical biopsy samples is compounded when only a subpopulation of the sites is sampled.
In deciding whether to remove a physical biopsy sample for histopathological analysis, an endoscopist typically subjectively determines visually whether a polyp is hyperplastic or adenomatous. The accuracy of existing biopsy methods depends upon the endoscopist's ability to subjectively determine healthy from suspicious tissue to biopsy. However, it is difficult, if not impossible, to visually differentiate between small hyperplastic and small adenomatous polyps, particularly when viewed through the viewing optics of an endoscope. Moreover, because conditions other than cancer can cause tissue discoloration, an accurate visual characterization is extremely difficult, and histopathological analysis of a physical tissue sample is often required. As a result, the subjective visual inspection may leave adenomatous polyps undiagnosed and therefore untreated.
Various tissue classification techniques have also been developed as alternatives or adjuncts to physical biopsy sampling and visual differentiation between tissue characteristics. One class of such techniques involves illuminating tissue with incident light, and allowing the incident light energy to interact with the tissue. The tissue is classified based on light that is returned from the tissue. A particularly interesting class of such techniques, referred to as fluorescence spectroscopy, is based on the observation that different tissue characteristics result in a different fluorescence in the returned light. More particularly, spectral characteristics of the fluorescence returned from premalignant or malignant tissue may be different from that returned from normal or benign tissue.
Many such fluorescence-based techniques depend on the use of extrinsic fluorescence-enhancing dyes, stains, or other image contrast agents. Contrast agents are typically substances that are ingested by the patient, delivered intravenously, or delivered locally to a tissue site to enhance its fluorescence. A contrast agent is known to substantially target only the particular type of tissue being detected, and to increase the fluorescence properties of that type of tissue for obtaining a better image. Contrast agents pose at least two problems. First, their selectivity is less than optimal. Tissue uptake and concentration levels may be significantly variable. The contrast agent attaches to other types of tissue as well as the targeted tissue. This hinders an accurate diagnosis based on observation of returned fluorescence. Second, certain contrast agents have undesirable side-effects, such as acute and/or chronic light-sensitivity of the patient. Thus, fluorescence techniques using extrinsic fluorescence-enhancing agents for diagnosis have limited usefulness.
Other techniques avoid the use of extrinsic fluorescence-enhancing agents, depending instead on native fluorescence (also referred to as autofluorescence) from endogenous tissue. Even without contrast agents, the spectral characteristics of the fluorescence returned from premalignant or malignant tissue may be different from that returned from normal or benign tissue. Such differences, however, are much less pronounced in the absence of extrinsic image contrast agents. Detecting small differences between spectral fluorescence characteristics of different tissue types is much more difficult without using extrinsic image contrast agents. As a result, such systems require complicated and expensive components, such as multiple optical fibers for illuminating or collecting returned fluorescence from the tissue, or image intensification or photomultiplication devices for obtaining an adequate signal from the returned fluorescence.
Other systems do not provide the physician with an actual diagnosis based on tissue classification using fluorescence data. For example, Palcic et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,287 entitled "ENDOSCOPIC IMAGING SYSTEM FOR DISEASED TISSUE," produces a pseudo-color image of the tissue based on the returned fluorescence from the tissue. However, the attending physician must still try to subjectively diagnose the tissue based on the pseudo-image provided on the display.
Even if tissue is accurately diagnosed, by the physician, or otherwise, using endoscopic techniques, treating tissue diagnosed as abnormal is still difficult. Many systems require an exchange of diagnostic and treatment devices. For example, in systems using multiple optical fibers extending through the working channel of an endoscope to diagnose the tissue, the diagnosing optics are removed from the working channel of an endoscope so that a forceps, snare, or ablation device can be extended through the working channel of an endoscope to treat the tissue. However, exchanging diagnostic and treatment devices poses problems. In the colon, for example, inherent colonic motility makes it difficult for the physician to accurately maintain the position of the endoscope during the exchange of diagnosing and treatment devices. As a result, the physician may not be able to locate the previously diagnosed polyp or may inadvertently treat the wrong polyp. Thus, exchanging diagnosing and treatment devices reduces the efficacy of the medical procedure.
In summary, there is a critical medical need for accurate and early diagnosis and treatment of premalignant and malignant tissue to prevent the spread of cancer. Risks and other disadvantages with obtaining physical biopsy samples for histopathological analysis indicate a need for improved techniques for classifying tissue. There is a need for providing accurate diagnosis and immediate treatment of premalignant and malignant tissue, without requiring multiple medical procedures, without using extrinsic agents for enhancing fluorescence, and without using complicated and expensive components in the absence of such contrast agents.

Optical biopsy system and methods for tissue diagnosis


A chair is provided having at least one arm rest which may be laterally adjusted in order to adjust the width between the opposing arm rests and accommodate different size users. The arm rest is attached to the chair arm for lateral movement inboard and outboard of the chair arm. The arm rest is also attached to the chair arm for pivotable movement between a locked position wherein a latch attached to one of the arm rest or the chair arm latchedly engages the other of the arm rest or the chair arm for selectively locking the arm rest in the desired lateral position and an unlocked position for permitting the arm rest to be laterally adjusted. In one embodiment, the arm rest has a latch mechanism which comprises a lower bracket rigidly attached to the chair arm and an upper bracket slidably and pivotably attached to the lower bracket so that the upper bracket pivots between the locked and unlocked positions and may move in the lateral direction relative to the lower bracket in the unlocked portion. The arm rest is attached to the upper bracket so that the arm rest may slide in the lateral direction or pivot between the locked and unlocked positions in cooperation with the upper bracket.

Chairs may have a pair of opposing chair arms and arm rests in order to provide increased comfort and to decrease fatigue by providing support for the user's arms and lateral support for the body. In some instances, it may be desirable to adjust the width between the arm rests to accommodate different sizes and/or positions of users. However, typical arm rests are rigidly attached to their respective chair arms so that the chair arms must also be adjusted in order to adjust the arm rests. Other arm rests which are adjustable relative to their chair arms use relatively complex mechanisms requiring tools to assemble and disassemble so that it is difficult for the typical user to adjust the width between the arm rests, and the assembly and manufacturing costs are increased.


A fixing structure of a flat cable connecting portion in a rotary connector, wherein the connecting portion is provided on each end of a flat cable which is comprised of a plurality of conductors arranged in parallel and insulator-covered and which is housed in the form of a coil in a circular space formed by a pair of cases which are installed so that they are allowed to rotate against each other, at least one connecting portion of said flat cable being attached to the connection housing provided on the case and the connecting portion being fixed to the connection housing by a fixing component mounted on the case. The connecting portion of the flat cable is provided with an engaging section which engages with the connection housing, and the fixing component consists of integral parts of a tongue piece, which is inserted in a gap provided in the case or connecting portion, locking hooks engaged with the case, and the reversion checking component which acts as a check on the flat cable's reversing in the vicinity of the connecting portion of the flat cable.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fixing structure of a flat cable connecting portion in a rotary connector.
2. Description of Related Art
A rotary connector has a flat cable, which is a flexible, belt-shaped electric wire and which is wound into a coil to be housed in a annular space formed by a rotary case and a fixed case. These cases are allowed to perform relative rotation between them, a connecting portion on one end of the flat cable being mounted on the fixed case, while a connecting portion on the other end being mounted on the rotary case. The relative rotation between the cases is made possible by the flat cable windable or unwindable as the foregoing rotary case rotates. In this case, the flat cable is a belt-shaped transmission line comprised of a plurality of electrical conductors (not shown) covered with an insulator.
In such a rotary connector, the connecting portions of the foregoing flat cable are fitted in connection housings provided in the respective cases, then fixed to the connection housings by fixing components attached to the respective cases. Here, the rotary connector allows the relative rotation between the cases by the coiled flat cable's tightening or loosening as described above. For this reason, various types of stress such as tension and compression cuts on the connecting portions as the coiling flat cable is wound or unwound in the rotary connector.
Therefore, it is necessary to securely fix the connecting portions of the flat cable to the cases. Conventionally, to fix the connecting portions of the cases by installing fixing components on the cases, the fixing components are fixed to the cases by, for example, a plurality of rivets, or by providing the fixing components with locking hooks whereby the fixing components are attached to the cases.
When the fixing components are riveted to the cases with rivets to mount the fixing components to the cases, the number of processes for assembling the rotary connector increases, raising a problem of poor work efficiency.
On the other hand, when the fixing components are installed to the cases by locking hooks, the installation can be completed readily; therefore, it is easy to install and also easy to check for proper engagement due to a click which is felt when the hooks engage with the case. However, the locking hooks may disengage from the cases during the use of the rotary connector, and the installation may not necessarily be secure.
In addition, the rotary connector is normally provided with components for preventing reversion in the vicinity of the connecting portions of the flat cable, which components are called end supports and have function to prevent buckling causable by the flat cable's reversing when the cases rotate near a limit of the winding or unwinding of the coiling flat cable. For this reason, the rotary connector required two types of components, i.e., the components for preventing reversion and the fixing components, adding to the number of parts with consequent inefficiency in the aspect of parts control.

Fixing structure of a flat cable connecting portion in a rotary connector