A material sorting system sorts materials, such as scrap pieces composed of unknown metal alloys, as a function of their detected x-ray fluorescence. The x-ray fluorescence may be converted into an elemental composition signature that is then compared to an elemental composition signature of a reference material in order to identify and/or classify each of the materials, which are then sorted into separate groups based on such an identification/classification. The material sorting system may include an in-line x-ray tube having a plurality of separate x-ray sources, each of which can irradiate a separate stream of materials to be sorted.

This section is intended to introduce various aspects of the art, which may be associated with exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. This discussion is believed to assist in providing a framework to facilitate a better understanding of particular aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that this section should be read in this light, and not necessarily as admissions of prior art.
Typically, the sorting of pieces of materials has involved determining a physical property or properties of each piece, and grouping together pieces sharing a common property or properties. Such properties may include color, hue, texture, weight, density, transmissivity to light, sound, or other signals, in reaction to stimuli such as various fields.
Scrap metals are often shredded, and thus require sorting to facilitate reuse of the metals. By sorting the scrap metals, metal is reused that may otherwise go to a landfill. Additionally, use of sorted scrap metal leads to reduced pollution and emissions in comparison to refining virgin feedstock from ore. Scrap metals may be used in place of virgin feedstock by manufacturers if the quality of the sorted metal meets certain standards. The scrap metals may include types of ferrous and nonferrous metals, heavy metals, high value metals such as nickel or titanium, cast or wrought metals, and other various alloys.
The recycling of nonferrous metals from shredded end-of-life equipment, such as cars or domestic appliances, is steadily increasing in importance, as many raw materials, such as copper or aluminum, can be recovered in this manner. However, for this to be possible, these fractions must be extracted to a high degree of purity. Therefore, an effective, efficient, and economical sorting process can add value because the market value of refined individual nonferrous fractions is significantly higher than that of unsorted ferrous mixtures.
The recycling of aluminum scrap is a very attractive proposition in that up to 95% of the energy costs can be saved when compared with the laborious extraction of the more costly primary aluminum. Primary aluminum is defined as aluminum originating from aluminum-enriched ore, such as bauxite. At the same time, the demand for aluminum is steadily increasing in markets, such as car manufacturing, because of its lightweight properties. Correspondingly, it is particularly desirable to efficiently separate aluminum scrap metals into alloy families, since mixed aluminum scrap of the same alloy family is worth much more than that of indiscriminately mixed alloys. For example, in the blending methods used to recycle aluminum, any quantity of scrap composed of similar, or the same, alloys and of consistent quality, has more value than scrap consisting of mixed aluminum alloys.
Wrought scrap contains a mixture of wrought alloys. The mixed wrought scrap has limited value because the mixture, due to its combined chemical composition, must be diluted if used to produce a new wrought alloy. The reason this is so is due to the more stringent compositional tolerances of wrought alloys, which are required to meet the performance requirements of wrought products. The high value scrap should have a high absorption back into the recycled product. High absorption means that a substantial portion of the final product is composed of scrap. To increase the value of the wrought scrap requires the separation of wrought product into alloy grades or similar constituted materials to maximize absorption. Mixed alloy scrap presents some difficult problems in separability due to its poor absorption into high quality wrought alloys. Mixed alloy scrap has poor absorption into high quality wrought alloys, and as a result, only limited amounts of mixed scrap can be used for recycling into wrought products. Absorption is defined as the percentage of an alloy or mixture that can be used to produce an ingot of another desired composition without exceeding the specified alloy composition limits. Within such aluminum alloys, aluminum will always be the bulk of the material. However, constituents such as copper, magnesium, silicon, iron, chromium, zinc, manganese, and other alloy elements provide a range of properties to alloyed aluminum and provide a means to distinguish one wrought alloy from the other.
The Aluminum Association is the authority which defines the allowable limits for aluminum alloy chemical composition. The data for the alloy chemical compositions is published by the Aluminum Association in "International Alloy Designations and Chemical Composition Limits for Wrought Aluminum and Wrought Aluminum Alloys," which was updated in January 2015, and which is incorporated by reference herein. The Aluminum Association also has a similar document for cast alloys. In general, according to the Aluminum Association, the 1000 series of aluminum alloys is composed essentially of pure aluminum with a minimum 99% aluminum content by weight; the 2000 series is aluminum principally alloyed with copper; the 3000 series is aluminum principally alloyed with manganese; the 4000 series is aluminum alloyed with silicon; the 5000 series is aluminum primarily alloyed with magnesium; the 6000 series is aluminum alloyed with magnesium and silicon; the 7000 series is aluminum primarily alloyed with zinc; and the 8000 series is a miscellaneous category.
While it would therefore be beneficial to be able to sort a mass or body of aluminum sheet scrap containing a heterogeneous mixture of pieces of different alloys, to separate the different alloy compositions or at least different alloy families before re-melting for recycling, scrap pieces of different aluminum alloy compositions are not ordinarily visually distinguishable from each other. Optically indistinguishable metals are difficult to sort and, therefore, might be lost. For example, it is not easy to manually separate and identify small pieces of cast from wrought aluminum or to spot zinc or steel attachments encapsulated in aluminum. There also is the problem that color sorting is nearly impossible for identically colored materials, such as the all-gray metals of aluminum alloys, zinc, and lead.
Furthermore, the presence of commingled pieces of different alloys in a body of scrap limits the ability of the scrap to be usefully recycled, unless the different alloys (or, at least, alloys belonging to different compositional families such as those designated by the Aluminum Association series 1000, 2000, 3000, etc.) can be separated prior to re-melting. This is because, when commingled scrap of plural different alloy compositions or composition families is re-melted, the resultant molten mixture contains proportions of the principle alloy and elements (or the different compositions) that are too high to satisfy the compositional limitations of any particular commercial alloy.
Moreover, as evidenced by the production and sale of the 2015 Ford F-150 pickup having a considerable increase in its body and frame parts consisting of aluminum instead of steel, it is additionally desirable to recycle sheet metal scrap, including that generated in the manufacture of automotive components from sheet aluminum. Recycling of the scrap involves re-melting the scrap to provide a body of molten metal that can be cast and/or rolled into useful aluminum parts for further production of such vehicles. However, automotive manufacturing scrap (and metal scrap from other sources such as airplanes and commercial and household appliances) often includes a mixture of scrap pieces of two or more aluminum alloys differing substantially from each other in composition. A specific example of mixed manufacturing scrap of aluminum sheet, generated in certain present-day automotive manufacturing operations, is a mixture of pieces of one or more alloys of the Aluminum Association 5000 series and pieces of one or more alloys of the Aluminum Association 6000 series. Thus, those skilled in the aluminum alloy art will appreciate the difficulties in this art of separating aluminum alloys, especially alloys that have been worked such as forged, extruded, rolled, and generally wrought alloys, into a reusable or recyclable worked product. These alloys for the most part are indistinguishable upon visual inspection or by other conventional scrap sorting techniques such as density and/or eddy-currents. Therefore, it is a difficult task to separate for example, 2000, 3000, 5000, 6000, and 7000 series alloys; moreover, the ability to sort between aluminum alloys within the same Aluminum Association series has not been accomplished in the prior art.
As a result, there are certain economies available to the aluminum industry by developing a well-planned yet simple recycling plan or system. The use of recycled material would be a less expensive metal resource than a primary source of aluminum. As the amount of aluminum sold to the automotive industry (and other industries) increases, it will become increasingly necessary to use recycled aluminum to supplement the availability of primary aluminum.


A progressive cavity pump system on a well includes a holdback apparatus. The holdback apparatus has a housing and a one-way bearing in the housing. The housing attaches to the drive head on the well. The one-way bearing allows the motor to drive the pump. The one-way bearing prevents reverse rotation, preventing the sucker rod from unwinding and fluid above the pump from draining, when the pump loses power.

Progressive cavity pump systems used for pumping liquids, such as crude oil, from wells generally have a drive head above ground with a motor that drives a polish rod. The polish rod extends downwardly through a stuffing box at the top of the well casing and connects with the top of a sucker rod that drives the progressive cavity pump at the bottom of the well.
The sucker rod can extend downwardly several thousand feet. During operation of the pump, the sucker rod twists in response to the torque applied by the motor. The sucker rod can have several hundred revolutions of twist. When the motor is shut down or loses power, the torsional energy in the sucker rod can backspin the polish rod and motor at a high speed, potentially causing damage to the drive head and motor, and injuring personnel.
Several prior known devices controlled the rate of backspin while releasing the torsional energy stored in the sucker rod. These devices include hydraulic or viscous brakes, and mechanical brakes actuated by hydraulic or centrifugal force. Generally these devices are relatively complex. These devices release the torsional energy and the twist in the sucker rod, so that when the motor is restarted, the motor rotates the polish rod several hundred revolutions before the pump starts to pump again, wasting time and energy.

Progressive cavity pump holdback apparatus and system


Devices and methods are provided using microfluidic devices for manipulating small volumes and determining a variety of chemical and physical events. The devices rely upon an opening to the atmosphere of a small volume in a zone, where a sample is placed in the zone where evaporation can occur. The zone is maintained in contact with a liquid medium that serves to replenish the liquid in the zone and maintain the composition of the mixture in the zone substantially constant. The diffusion of components in the zone is restricted during the course of the determination by the liquid flux into the zone.

1. Technical Field
The field of this invention is manipulation of small volumes comprising a volatile liquid.
2. Background
Microfluidic devices comprise small capillary channels in a solid substrate, where the channels are usually present as a network. Various orifices are provided for communicating with the channels. Because of the small volumes of the networks and the individual channels many benefits adhere. The small volumes require less reagent and sample, frequently being limited by the level of detection available. In addition, because of the small volumes, reactions are very rapid. The networks allow for efficient movement of the components from one site to the next and with little loss of the components. Also, various components may be brought together, separated by different operations and the individual fractions used for various purposes.
The microfluidic devices lend themselves for various assays involving candidate compounds, where binding events are measured, enzyme activity measured, or metabolic processes measured. In this way, the effect of the candidate compounds on the indicated events may be determined. Where one is interested in comparing the effect of different candidate compounds, it is necessary that the amount of the candidate compound and other components, which affect the measured outcome, be reasonably known. For the most part, solutions that will be used are aqueous. Unless one uses relatively drastic measures, the water will rapidly evaporate. Transfers of aqueous or other solutions involving manipulative steps where the solution is exposed to the atmosphere for any length of time will invariably result in some evaporation, particularly where there are sequential additions, and the solvent from the earlier additions is evaporating while adding the next addition and during the interim between additions. In addition, incubations can result in evaporation, even where the container is covered. The problem is exacerbated where one is interested in high throughput screening, which may involve many very small aliquots of different solutions to multiple sites on a microfluidic device. Using foreign substances to diminish the evaporation can lead to contamination, require repetitive cleaning and create other detrimental issues.
Various methods have been tried, such as cooling the liquids, so as to substantially reduce evaporation, adding a lower volatility liquid over the surface of the sample, ambient humidity, adding droplets of solvent to the sample after its deposition to maintain the volume, and the like. All of these approaches are not generally useful and have severe disadvantages for use with small volumes, which must be transferred to a reaction vessel. There is a need for improved methods for manipulating nanoliter volumes when dealing with microfluidic devices, particularly associated with high throughput screening of compounds, diagnostic assays or other investigative procedures.
3. Brief Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,576,197 and 5,282,543 disclose the use of wax and other flexible materials, respectively, to inhibit evaporation. Microfluidic devices are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,885,470; 5,858,195; 5,750,015; 5,599,432; and 5,126,022. Methods of evaporative control are disclosed in WO98/33052 and WO99/34920.
Methods and devices are provided for the manipulation of small volumes in association with determinations employing microfluidic devices, where a substantial portion of the liquid is subject to evaporation during the operation. The microfluidic devices compromise a partial enclosure for a zone for receiving a small amount of solute, usually as a solution, comprising a component of a reaction. The zone has a non-wettable border. During the transfer to the zone, the liquid in the zone is subject to evaporative loss of liquid, and the zone is in fluid exchange relationship with a channel housing a solution. The channel solution replenishes the liquid in the zone and may serve as a source of a second or more components of the reaction. Either substantially immediately upon entering the zone, the solute is in contact with the channel solution, so that any solvent lost by evaporation can be replenished or evaporation of any solvent occurs and the residue is dissolved in a solvent discharged from a capillary channel, where contact is maintained with the solution in the zone and the solution in the capillary channel. The reaction volume is substantially maintained in the zone defined by a major portion of the components of interest being present in the zone, usually involving the region between a meniscus and the region of fluid exchange between the zone and the channel.


An operation method of a nonvolatile memory system includes receiving a write command from an external device, determining continuity of the write command based on an idle time, and performing a write operation of the write command in one of a fast mode and a normal mode based on the determination result.

Embodiments of the disclosure described herein relate to a semiconductor memory, and more particularly, relate to an operation mode of a nonvolatile memory system.
A semiconductor memory device refers to a memory device that is implemented using a semiconductor such as silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs), or indium phosphide (InP). A semiconductor memory device is roughly divided into a volatile memory device and a nonvolatile memory device.
A volatile memory device refers to a memory device which loses data stored therein at power-off. The volatile memory device includes a static random access memory (SRAM), a dynamic RAM (DRAM), and a synchronous DRAM. A nonvolatile memory device refers to a memory device which retains data stored therein even at power-off. The nonvolatile memory device includes a read only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM), a flash memory device, a phase-change RAM (PRAM), a magnetic RAM (MRAM), a resistive RAM (ReRAM), and a ferroelectric RAM (FRAM).
A flash memory is widely used as mass storage media. Nowadays, as an interface technique is developed, a demand on the flash memory with improved performance is increasing. Moreover, when the flash memory repeats a program operation and an erase operation as many as a specific frequency, the validity of data stored therein is not guaranteed. That is, since a flash memory based storage device has a life of a specific level, various methods are being developed to improve the life of the flash memory.

Method of performing a write operation based on an idle time


A flexible closure support system comprising two end brackets secured to walls with a rail therebetween and supported thereon. A plurality of carriers are carried by the rail and are freely movable the length of the rail. The carriers have button assemblies hooked to one end and roller assemblies hooked to the other end of a symmetric shank. The flexible closure is fastened to the carriers by buttons on the button assemblies; the roller assemblies slide and roll in a roller channel in the rail. Pivoting, pendulum locks attached to the end brackets limit upward movement of the rails when engaging the upper surface of the rail but can be rotated out of the way with the thumb to remove the rail. Optional, resilient accent strips can be pressed into a channel running the length of the rail.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to support systems for flexible closures such as shower curtains and the like. More specifically, the present invention relates to rail, end bracket and carries for supporting a flexible closure.
2. Discussion of the Background
The most common type of support for a shower curtain consists of an overhead horizontal support bar on which shower curtain suspension hooks or rings are slidably mounted with the hooks or rings engaging through apertures formed in the shower curtain near its top edge. There is a tendency for the shower curtain to separate from the suspension hooks during usage which necessitates frequent re-attaching of the curtain to the hooks, which is inconvenient.
There are numerous other systems for supporting flexible closures. See for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,217,676 issued to Terrones, U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,001 issued to Pape, U.S. Pat. No. 3,175,243 issued to Weber, and U.S. Pat. No. 1,227,020 issued to Thompson. More recently, see my flexible closure carrier in U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,148 issued in March 1988.
The characteristics of a good flexible closure support system are that it be easily manufactured, easily assembled, easily installed, and certain in its hold on the supported closure. Additionally, the support system should allow the easy removal of the flexible closure for cleaning and should also have a decorative appearance.


A shield device installable on a telephone handset to overlie the pushbuttons, thereby preventing unauthorized persons from making outgoing calls. The shield device comprises a flexible strap that tightly encircles a mid area of the handset to maintain the shield in place. A keylock is incorporated into the shield device.

This invention relates to a shield device installable on the hand grip section of a telephone handset to temporarily prevent manual access to a bank of pushbuttons on an inner surface of the handset. The device is designed to prevent actuation of the pushbuttons for dial-out purpose while permitting otherwise normal use of the handset for receiving incoming calls.
Prior to my invention there have been disclosed at least three shield devices of a somewhat similar nature, e.g. devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,899,647 to Z. Nachsi, U.S. Pat. No. 4,028,508 to J. Hall, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,057,697 to M. Addoo. My invention is directed to an improvement on the devices shown in those patents.


A miniature onboard camera device for sport. A miniature onboard camera device for hands-free filming of the view seen by the user. The device consists of a curved casing, formed from two wings that can be inclined around a central module, the assembly thus making it possible to conform to the shape of the support operating as an attachment and with no overhang. The central module comprises a tiltable ball joint incorporating the lens of the camera, making it possible to obtain the desired viewing angle. The device according to the invention is intended, in particular, to be positioned on helmets, protection visors or caps in order to safely film as close as possible to the action.

The present invention relates to a miniature onboard camera device enabling the user to film mainly sports scenes while having his/her hands free.
Currently, such images and videos are traditionally shot using a "box" type camera attached, strapped, fixed by means of a suction pad, or stuck on the protective helmet. This type of camera entails many risks of injury for their users and for the other persons, such as: the camera coming off, the trajectory deviating during a fall, the camera catching a third party object, the helmet being impacted during a fall. Considering such potential danger, many sports federations and helmet manufacturers prohibit adding any protrusion on helmets and specifically this type of cameras.
Besides, the current systems, such as those disclosed in the documents US2004/008157, US2006/0072007, US2013/0004153, do not make it possible to truly render the user's point of view, since the attachment mode and the dimensions thereof require them to be positioned on the top or the side of the helmet. Additionally, the box-type cameras are large and highly visible, which makes them unaesthetic and incompatible with some sports for which special outfits are imposed.

Miniature onboard camera device for sport


A method for processing the signals from two or more microphones in a listening device, and a listening device for conducting the method which has a casing holding the microphones, a signal processing unit which provides an output signal corresponding to the microphone signals and suited to the user's hearing, and a receiver unit for delivering the output signal to the user whereby the signals from the microphones are analyzed in order to detect when the casing of the listening device is being touched, whereby further the signal processing of the signal processing unit changes whenever touching of the casing is detected.

In listening devices of this kind it is a problem that the microphones need to be closely matched in order for a possible directional computational algorithms to function optimally. In order that the microphones stay matched over a long period, an automatic matching process is introduced. Here the signals from the microphones are continually analysed to ensure that over time there is no big difference in the output level from the microphones. In such listening devices it is also a problem that when the casing is accidentally touched or touched when applied to the ear, very loud sound output levels may be produced as the microphones are very sensitive to noise propagated through the material of the casing walls.
If substantial differences in the input to the microphones should occur, this might corrupt the outcome of the automatic matching process. Further, it has been discovered that such large differences are most likely to coincide with the occurrence of large and unpleasant noises which the user would prefer not to hear, like the noise which is produced when the casing is touched by the user. In hearing aids a large gain or amplification of the audio signal is introduced to compensate for the hearing loss of the user. This amplification amplifies all signals, wanted as well as non-wanted. The wanted signals usually originates some distance from the hearing aid and arrives travelling through the air. Noise from touching the hearing aid is very unpleasant since it results in a loud output signal from the hearing aid because of the frictional resistance, the banging from the acceleration of fingers, etc. The noise increases as the origin of the noise moves closer to one of the microphones in a multi-microphone hearing aid.
To overcome the above problem the invention provides a method for processing the signals from two or more microphones in a listening device whereby the signals from the microphones are analyzed in order to detect when the casing is touched, whereby changes in the signal processing are effected whenever touching of the casing is detected.
According to the invention, the time dependent differences in short term energy in the signals from the microphones is determined. This time related change may in itself provide information as to possible touching of the hearing aid casing, and also it may be further analysed to detect the occurrence of something or somebody touching the hearing aid casing with a higher degree of certainty.
Preferably the time related change in difference in the short term energy content in the microphone signals is used to determine the rate of change in difference between the short term energy of the microphone signals. Here touching noise will change the difference in measured energy between the two microphones very fast compared to other signals received by the microphones. Noise generated by wind will also change the input, but since it originates from turbulence, the mean energy level from the two microphones will not change fast because of the uncorrelated nature of the wind noise. Other ways of detecting touching noise are possible, but the short term energy differences are easily detected and it is easy to determine a reliable threshold where the signal processing should react to compensate for the loud noise. The threshold my comprise both a threshold for the absolute value of the difference in short term energy and a threshold for the rate of change of the difference in short term energy.
In an embodiment of the invention, the changes in the signal processing which are effected whenever touching of the casing is detected comprises short term muting or attenuation of the output signal in order to protect the user from the annoyance of the loud sounds caused by the touching of the casing.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the changes in the signal processing which are effected whenever touching of the casing is detected comprises a time limit shut down of an automatic microphone process. In this way it is ensured that the matching process is not disturbed by the large short term differences in the energy.
In a further embodiment of the invention the changes in the signal processing which are effected whenever touching of the casing is detected comprising lasting changes in the processing of the audio signal presented to the user of the listening device. Such changes could be program shifts, volume up or down or permanent muting of the listening device according to the wishes of user.

Method for processing the signals from two or more microphones in a listening device and listening device with plural microphones


A game engine may generate video and audio content on a per-frame basis. Audio data corresponding to a current frame may be generated to comprise sound-field information independent of a speaker configuration or spatialization technology that may be used to play the associated audio. The sound-field may be generated based on monaural audio data corresponding to a sound produced by an in-game object at the object's position as of the current frame. The sound-field information may be transmitted to a remote computing device for reproduction using a selected, available speaker configuration and spatialization technology.

Typically, audio for videogames and other computer-generated content is generated to be compatible with an audio reproduction device that is in-use by the immediate consumer of the content. For example, if a videogame player has connected a pair of headphones to his computer in order to play a videogame, the audio will typically be generated in a format that is directly compatible with the headphones, such as two-channel audio.
Increasingly, generated content such as videogames is not only reproduced locally, but is also streamed to remote computing devices. Generated content may, for example, be presented to various consumers other than the player of the videogame. These consumers may utilize a diverse set of audio equipment, including equipment that supports three-dimensional audio spatialization. In some instances, the audio capabilities available to a consumer may exceed those available to the player.


Provided are an apparatus and a method for receiving content rights through a multimedia message in a mobile communication terminal. The apparatus includes a content server transmitting contents and a Right Object (RO) of the contents to a Multimedia Messaging System (MMS) server; the MMS server receiving the contents and the RO from the convent server, attaching the RO to a protection part of the multimedia message including the contents, and transmitting the RO along with the contents; and a mobile communication terminal receiving the multimedia message including the contents and the RO from the MMS server and decoding and executing the contents using the RO.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and a method for receiving content rights through a multimedia message in a mobile communication terminal, and in particular, to an apparatus and a method for receiving attached contents along with a protected right object (RO) through a multimedia message in a mobile communication terminal.
2. Description of the Related Art
Digital rights management (DRM) has been briskly studied, and commercial services adopting DRM have been introduced or are being introduced. DRM refers to technology for protecting digital contents, which can be easily counterfeited and distributed without permission.
In the prior art efforts have been made to protect digital contents but focus on the prevention of disapproved or unauthorized access to the digital contents. For example, access to digital contents is allowed to only users who have paid charges but disallowed to users who have not paid charges. However, digital contents can be easily reused, processed, counterfeited, and distributed in terms of characteristics of digital data. Therefore, if a user who has paid charges and accesses the digital contents the counterfeits or distributes the digital contents without permission, users who have not paid charges may use the digital contents.
In order to solve the above problem, DRM is employed to encrypt and distribute digital contents and provide a license called a Right Object (RO) necessary for using the encrypted digital contents.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional mobile communication system for providing digital contents. Referring to FIG. 1, terminals 122, 124, 126 desiring digital contents may obtain desired digital contents from content servers 112, 114, and 116. Here, since the digital contents provided by content servers 112, 114, and 116 are encrypted, terminals 122, 124, and 126 require ROs to use the encrypted digital contents (hereinafter, contents).
Terminals 122, 124, and 126 may pay fixed charges to obtain the ROs including rights to execute the contents from an RO issuing server 130. The rights included in the ROs may be content encryption keys necessary for decoding the contents. Here, RO issuing server 130 reports specifications of issuing of the ROs to content severs 112, 114, and 116. If necessary, RO issuing server 130 and content servers 112, 114, and 116 may be the same subject. Terminals 122, 124, and 126, which have obtained the ROs, use the contents using the ROs.
As described with reference to FIG. 1, an RO is generally not attached to a message but transmitted separately from contents attached to the message. Thus, a user must receive the contents and then request and receive the RO.
If contents and an RO are attached to a message and then transmitted, the RO may be easily open-ended by a user. Thus, the user may attach the RO to the message and then transmit the RO to another user without permission. As a result, a content server may not obtain a just right to the contents. Therefore, the RO must not be attached to the message along with the contents but transmitted separately from the contents.
A format of a message transmitted from a Multimedia Messaging System (MMS) will now be described with reference to FIG. 2, and the message is referred to as a multimedia message in the present invention.
FIG. 2 illustrates the format of a conventional multimedia message. Referring to FIG. 2, the conventional multimedia message includes a message header 210 and a message body 220.
The message header 210 includes presentation position information 212 designating a presentation part 222. Message body 220 includes presentation part 222 and a content part 224 including contents.
Presentation part 222 includes only information indicating that each of the contents is to be output on how many pages in what second in which position of a display, i.e., only information which is not to be output to a user. Presentation part 222 is not recognized as an attached part in the multimedia message.

Apparatus and method for receiving content rights through multimedia message in mobile communication terminal


The apparatus comprises a bulk container having a discharge opening in its base, and vibratory tray feeder for conveying material from the discharge opening of the container to a second discharge opening. The tray feeder has an inlet connected to the discharge opening of the container by a flexible portion. To assist the passage of the material from the container to the tray feeder, the tray feeder is vibrated in a manner which transmits vibrations through the flexible portion of the connecting means to the container. The container may be a fixed container or part of a mobile unit in which the container and the tray feeder are supported on the same frame.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for discharging material from bulk containers.
2. Prior Art
It is known from British Patent Specification No. 1,345,002 to provide a bulk container with a bottom opening and legs which support the container on a vibratory support frame for discharging material in the container through the opening into, for example, a chute disposed beneath the opening. The discharge opening is closable by a trap which opens downwardly into a casement connected by a flexible discharge duct to the chute. In use, the vibratory support frame has feet which rest on a fixed frame. The material is discharged from the container partly by gravity and partly by forced vibrations applied to the container by vibrating the support frame, the vibrations being transmitted to the container through the container's legs. When the container is empty, it is removed and another full container is placed on the vibratory support frame.
It is also known from British Patent Specification No. 1,465,065 to provide the same container and vibratory support frame with a hopper arranged to collect material discharged from the container, the hopper being connected to the discharge opening of the container by a duct including a flexible, bellows type portion. The hopper is also supported on a second vibratory frame having means for vibrating the second vibratory frame and the hopper relative to the first vibratory frame supporting the container. The second vibratory frame is suspended from the first vibratory frame by suspension means including means for isolating the second vibratory frame from the first vibratory frame whereby the transmission of vibrations between the frames is minimised. In use, a chute is located beneath the discharge opening of the hopper for directing the material into a second container or onto, for example, a conveyor belt. For some materials which are readily dischargeable, the effect of vibrating the second support frame may make it possible not to vibrate the first support frame for at least some of the time that the material is being discharged. However, in this known system it is intended that means should always be provided for vibrating the first support frame directly, and that such means are operated in association with the vibrating means on the second support frame.

Method and apparatus for discharging material from bulk containers


The present invention discloses a method of inhibiting an ethylene response in a plant, comprising step of applying to at least one portion of the plant an effective ethylene response-inhibiting amount of a H1-cyclopropene-1-propanoic acid salt (CPAS). A method of prolonging the life of a cut flower, comprising applying to the cut flower an effective life-prolonging amount of CPAS and a method for the production a CPAS, comprising steps of (i) preparing 4-bromo-4-pentenoic acid or derivatives thereof; (ii) producing 1-cyclopropene-1-propanoic acid; and (iii), converting this acid into its water soluble salt, especially its sodium salt are presented. Additionally, a new family of water soluble CPAS inhibitors for ethylene response in a plant is disclosed.

Ethylene is a natural plant growth regulator involved in numerous developmental processes, in particular fruit ripening, abscission (fruit and leaf drop), and senescence. Adverse effects of ethylene harm agricultural output.
Antagonists of ethylene action are considered very beneficial for agricultural use, since they protect the tissues from both endogenous and exogenous ethylene. Ethylene antagonists (EAs) inhibit the action of ethylene at the molecular level by blocking its receptor site. Thus, application of EAs may allow extending harvest season of crops, prolonging storability and shelf life of fruit, herbs and leafy vegetables, and extending the vase life of cut flowers. Use of some EAs has been protected by patents: phosphonic acid derivatives (U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,188), silver thiosulphate (U.S. Pat. No. 5,510,315), organohalogen compounds (U.S. Pat. No. 5,679,617), 2,5-norbornadiene (U.S. Pat. No. 5,834,403), 1-methylcyclopropene (U.S. Pat. No. 619,350, U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,549).
Notwithstanding the progress in methods of blocking ethylene response, there is still felt need for safe and convenient water soluble blocking agents.

Compositions and methods for blocking ethylene response in plants using 3-cyclopropyl-1-enyl-propanoic acid salt

Yissum Research Development Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Ltd.


The present invention is a multibit nonvolatile memory and its method of fabrication. According to the present invention a silicon channel body having a first and second channel surface is formed. A charge storage medium is formed adjacent to the first channel surface and a second charge storage medium is formed adjacent to the second channel surface. A first control gate is formed adjacent to the first charge storage medium adjacent to the first channel surface and a second control gate is formed adjacent to the second charge storage medium adjacent to the second surface.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of nonvolatile memories and more specifically to a multibit nonvolatile memory and its method of fabrication.
2. Discussion of Related Art
As integrated circuits and computers have become powerful, new applications have arisen that require the ability to store large amounts of data. Certain applications require a memory with the ability to write and erase data and the ability to store data in a nonvolatile manner. Presently, such memories are formed with electrically erasable nonvolatile memories such as flash devices and EEPROMS. Unfortunately, these devices that are formed in the same plane and therefore require input/outputs (I/Os) which also run in the same plane. Having a source and drain input/output conductors running in the same plane, significantly reduces the number of devices that can-be fabricated in a single plane and thereby significantly reduces the storage capability of the memory.
What is desired is a nonvolatile memory device which can be easily fabricated in a dense array, so that large amounts of data can be stored in a nonvolatile manner.
According to a first aspect of the present invention a silicon channel body having a first and second channel surface is formed. A charge storage medium is formed adjacent to the first channel surface and a second charge storage medium is formed adjacent to the second channel surface. A first control gate is formed adjacent to the first charge storage medium adjacent to the first channel surface and a second control gate is formed adjacent to the second charge storage medium adjacent to the second surface.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a transistor is provided that has a source, a channel, a drain, and a plurality of gates where the channel current flows vertically between the source and drain.
According to a third embodiment of the present invention, a memory element is formed using a transistor that has a read current that flows in a direction perpendicular to a substrate in or over which the transistor is formed. The transistor has a charge storage medium for storing its state. Multiple control gates address the transistor.

Multigate semiconductor device with vertical channel current and method of fabrication


A continuous process and apparatus for making bread and bread-like products using supercritical fluid extrusion are disclosed. The process is carried out in a dough mixer and extruder into which supercritical CO.sub.2 is injected to provide proofing of the product. Rising of the dough is produced by a combination of hydrodynamic expansion of air bubbles and diffusion of CO.sub.2 into said bubbles as the dough is extruded through an exit die, without the need for yeast. A filler material may be introduced into the core of the extruded product by a coextruder located within the extruder, to provide a continuous process for producing a coextruded filled product consisting of a fully cooked cereal-based outer core filled with a pumpable filling injected into the hollow center of the product. Also, controlled acid hydrolysis of the starches in the dough may be used to produce reducing sugars that add desirable flavor to the final product.

The present invention relates, in general to the continuous processing of food products such as bread by gas expansion and diffusion, and to a coextrusion process for producing a dual-textured, expanded and filled product.
The invention relates to, and is an improvement over, the apparatus and the process described and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,559, of Syed S. H. Rizvi and Steven Mulvaney, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety.
Extrusion cooking of foods is a well known process which is practiced on large commercial scales in countries throughout the world. Extrusion cooking generally involves the mixing of food products in an extruder under conditions of high temperature, high pressure and high shear, with the cooked product being extruded through an exit die. Often, the extruded food product is expanded, or puffed, by the release of steam as the product exits the die. However, in such prior procedures the degree of puffing is dependent on a severe cooking process which increases the barrel wear in the extruder, drastically increases the starch solubility of the extrudate, and limits the use of heat sensitive or shear sensitive ingredients, such as flavors or proteins, so that such ingredients must be added to the food product after the extrusion and cooking process, as by spraying these ingredients onto the surface of the extrudate. Generally, in such prior processes, the extrudate must have an appreciable moisture content to enable the product to flow through the extruder. This means that a significant part of the throughput of the extruder is water, and even though much of the water will flash off so as to expand the product at the outlet of the die, nevertheless the high moisture content requires a drying step for the extruded product in many cases. Furthermore, since the moisture content affects both the expansion of the product and its cell structure and texture, it is difficult to specify both expansion and texture independently in such conventional processes.
In prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,559, an improved process for producing a food product is described. In this patent, a supercritical fluid (SCF) is introduced into a cooking extruder under conditions which are effective to produce a product having an improved texture, appearance, and flavor. In accordance with the invention, a conventional cooking extruder is modified to extend beyond the cooking and cooling sections to provide a section for injection, mixing and selective removal of a supercritical fluid. Such a fluid may be, for example, carbon dioxide (CO.sub.2) at a pressure greater than about 72.9 atmospheres (1072 psi) and at a temperature greater than about 31.degree. C. At this temperature and pressure, CO.sub.2 is at its critical point, and has properties of both a liquid and a gas. If the pressure is further increased, the CO.sub.2 density increases and has numerous desirable qualities which result in an improved extrusion process.
The first section of the extruder functions as a typical cooker, whereby a food product (e.g. cereal flour) is heated as by the injection of steam, and, if necessary, is gelatinized. If the product temperature is too high, a vent is provided on the extruder to release some steam to lower the temperature. Following the cooking section is a cooling section, which may include a cooling jacket to bring the temperature of the product down to a desired level. Thereafter, the supercritical fluid (SCF) is injected into the product stream at a selected location along the extruder. This fluid preferably is loaded with soluble materials such as flavoring, coloring, nutrients, etc. which are to be added to the product. The product may have a temperature in the range of 85.degree. to 95.degree. C., for example, in the region of injection of the supercritical fluid, and since this temperature is higher than that of the SCF, it causes a reduction in the fluid density, with the result that the solute material carried by the fluid is released into the product in the extruder. The product is then carried through a mixing section in the extruder which thoroughly incorporates the solute material into the product.
Although the supercritical fluid density is reduced upon injection into the product, the solubility of the fluid in the aqueous phase of the in-barrel product is still significant due to high pressure in the extruder, and accordingly, the supercritical fluid which remains in the product after mixing can be used to control the final product density by expansion, or puffing, of the product as it exits the extruder die. The extent of puffing and the addition of solutes are controlled by the amount and conditions of the SCF introduced into the extruder. The supercritical fluid can be partially or fully vented before the product exits the extruder so that the expansion of the product leaving the extrusion die is controlled, or if desired is not expanded at all. In addition, the temperature and pressure dependence on solubility of the SCF is utilized to obtain controlled hydrolysis of starches in the extrudate to obtain different characteristics in the end product.
The process of U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,559 has several advantages over the traditional extrusion cooking process. For example, the use of a supercritical fluid such as CO.sub.2 permits simultaneous expansion, flavoring, and reduction of viscosity. Further, extruded foams with different textural and mechanical properties can be produced by independently varying the mechanical energy input to the food product and thus varying starch degradation and or protein denaturation in the cooking zone, by venting the extruder if necessary, and by controlling the density (or the degree of expansion) of the extruded product by varying the flow of supercritical fluids into the cooled extruder product. If the product in the extruder is less than about 100.degree. C., then puffing due to the conversion of water to steam is prevented, and all expansion of the product upon extrusion will be due to the presence of the supercritical fluid.
The expansion, or puffing process, provided by supercritical fluids such as CO.sub.2 is much less explosive than the puffing that results from the conversion of water into steam. Accordingly, the supercritical fluid expansion produces a product with a smooth outer surface and uniform, regularly-shaped, internal pores.
A further advantage to the method and apparatus of the patent is that flavoring, coloring, nutrients, and the like added by way of the supercritical fluids are dissolved directly into the dough within the extruder and thus are incorporated directly into the product before it reaches the extrusion die, so that post-extrusion flavoring operations and the like can be eliminated. The incorporation of heat sensitive and/or volatile flavoring materials just before the exit die by including them in the supercritical fluid minimizes the loss of such materials due to heat or steam stripping of volatiles, as happens in the water vapor puffed products. Also, a supercritical fluid such as CO.sub.2, when used for product expansion, reduces the viscosity of the product in the extruder so that the pressure at the exit die is significantly reduced. As a result, throughput can be increased at a lower moisture content, without exceeding the motor torque or die pressure limitations of the extruder. The reduction in product viscosity can also lead to a lower energy requirement for operation of the extruder.
A supercritical fluid such as CO.sub.2 can be used to adjust the pH of the product in the extruder, and therefore products with the characteristics of acid modified starches can be produced. This process also allows control of the color and the functional and rheological characteristics of the extrudate.

Supercritical fluid extrusion process and apparatus


A duct, presumably that of a utility boiler or the like, has a frame mounted on its internal walls. Parallel louver blades are mounted in the frame and linked for simultaneous actuation to move the louver-blades between a first position where they seal the frame opening against the flow of gaseous fluid and a second position where they permit the relatively free flow of gaseous fluid through the frame. Bearings for the louver shafts are mounted external the duct in which the frame is mounted and a truss is attached to the upstream and downstream edges of the frame to insure dimensional stability under the stress applied to the duct by the varying pressure and temperature of the gaseous fluid passing through the duct.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to moveable control elements mounted in ducts for the regulation of the rate of flow of gaseous fluid through the ducts. More particularly, the invention relates to control members in the form of louver-blades which are rotated from their ends in shutter-like configurations mounted in ducts to control the rate of flow of gaseous fluid through the ducts.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The utility boiler represents a class of industrial equipment which uses extremely large volumes of gaseous fluids. The term gaseous fluids includes both the combustion air flowed to the burners of utility boilers and the gaseous products of combustion flowing from the boilers. It is not necessary to refer to specific rates of flow to emphasize the large quantity of these gaseous fluids needing control as they flow to and from the multi-story utility boilers. It is sufficient to point out that the gaseous fluid through these ducts will range in pressure up to 60 w.g. at temperatures up to 800.degree. F. The ducts, in cross section, will convey these gaseous fluids with cross sectional areas up to about 700 sq. ft. Prior workers in the art have long attempted to solve the problem of control of gaseous fluids in ducts ranging up to the foregoing size. The thermal and pressure forces of gaseous fluids to and from the utility boilers cycle over ranges which place large stress upon the ducts with which these gaseous fluids are conveyed. Certainly the prior art has directed efforts to controlling the "ballooning" of the duct sides under the pressure and temperature stresses. The dimensions of the ducts may bounce up and down with thermal and pressure variation, but certainly elements placed in the ducts to control the gaseous fluid flowing in the ducts must have close tolerances to have any accuracy in regulating the gaseous fluids flowing through the ducts.
The prior art has developed within the concepts of frames mounted within the ducts and various forms of moveable control elements, such as dampers, to regulate the sizes of resulting openings through the frames to establish the amount of gaseous fluid flowing through the ducts. The prior art has not solved the problem of successfully resisting the stresses placed upon the frames and dampers which change their dimensions. As the demand for greater sizes of ducts has appeared, the crude arrangements of the prior art have fallen short in efficiently providing the dimensional stability required for accurate control of the gaseous fluid passing through the duct.
Not only has the prior art failed to produce a sufficiently sturdy frame, but the louvers mounted in the frame have been cumbersome devices which have been difficult to fabricate to various sizes and maintain dimensional stability relative to the frame. Additionally, the prior art has failed to solve the problem of arranging the frame and damper mating surfaces to eliminate obstructions upon which debris accumulates.

System for controlling the flow of gaseous fluids


An adhesive composition for adhering two substrates includes a mixture of acrylate and epoxy with a tri- or tetrafunctional ketimine as a curing agent. The adhesive composition provides a two-stage cure in which, in a first stage, the adhesive is moisture cured at ambient temperature to provide green strength. In a second stage, the adhesive is post-cured at elevated temperatures to provide a high strength bond. The ketimine is formed form the reaction of diisopropyl ketone and an amine.

This invention relates to adhesive compositions, and more specifically to moisture-curable adhesives useful for bonding substrates such as, inter alia, metal surfaces. In particular, the invention relates to adhesive combinations of acrylate and epoxy.
A long-standing problem in the field of moisture-curable adhesives is the inability to provide adequate initial adhesion of two substrates within a short time period. This problem is particularly serious in industrial applications which do not allow sufficient time for adequate adhesion to develop. A common example is in assembly lines, where an initial bond must be developed prior to performing the next assembly operation. In automotive assembly and other industrial activities in which relatively large pieces of metal are adhesively bonded, there is the added requirement that the newly-applied adhesive bond withstand the various stresses associated with manipulation and handling of heavy metal subassemblies.
Adhesives developing high strength after prolonged or high temperature cure usually provide inadequate initial adhesion in the relatively short time periods of assembly line operations. A particular application in which good initial adhesion is critical is the bonding of metal substrates prior to post-curing of the bond at elevated temperatures. Without high initial adhesion, the bond will not hold during the heat-up to the higher temperatures of the post-cure operation.
The ability to develop adhesion is tied to the rate of cure of the polymer in the adhesive. As the molecular weight of the polymer increases due to partial curing, the polymer develops tack, i.e., a degree of adhesion. The term "green strength" is used to characterize partial cure by polymerization which occurs at ambient temperatures. An adhesive with high green strength thus has high initial adhesion or tack and desirably can maintain adhesion even upon exposure to elevated temperatures.
Acrylic is one type of adhesive useful in bonding a metal substrate either to another metal substrate or to a non-metal substrate. Acrylic-based adhesives can be made to provide a level of green strength by admixture with latent amine curatives, thereby providing rapid moisture cure at ambient temperatures. However, the strength of bonds using only ambient temperature moisture cure is insufficient for anything other than initial adhesion, being useful as a temporary or initial bond but inadequate for permanent adhesion. Subsequent post-curing of acrylic adhesives generally does not significantly add strength beyond the initial adhesion level. Thus, while acrylic adhesives may have the green strength and initial adhesion needed for assembly line operations, by themselves they are insufficient to provide a permanent bond for end product use.
Epoxy resins, on the other hand, provide very good adhesion even for metal-to-metal bonding after curing at high temperatures. However, admixture with latent amine curatives and exposure to moisture requires objectionably long times before development of any green strength. Hence unmodified epoxies are unsuitable for many applications requiring green strength.
The use of epoxy and acrylate with ketimines is known, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,616,066. However, this patent relates to epoxy resins which are modified by vinyl or acrylic polymers, and in which no unpolymerized acrylic functions remain to participate in the subsequent curing reaction.
Epoxy blends with ketimines are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,832. Optional use of a multifunctional acrylate monomer is disclosed at Col. 2, line 37 to Col. 3, line 9. The acrylate monomer is combined with the epoxy resin to form a first component of a two-component epoxy resin composition, the second component being a hardener for curing the epoxy resin. The hardener is a mixture of a ketimine and an amine-terminated butadiene/acrylonitrile copolymer rubber. The use of this hardener is alleged to provide rapid cure of the epoxy. That patent does not teach that acrylate and epoxy blends can effect a two-stage cure. To the contrary, the goal of rapid epoxy cure suggests that the blends of U.S. Pat. No. 4,861,832 are cured in a single stage. Furthermore, the patent is restricted to two-component systems with limited pot life once mixed.
It is also known in the prior art to use ketimines as curing agents either alone or in combination with other amine-terminated curing agents. Ketimines function as moisture-actuated latent curing agents both for epoxy resins and for acrylate compositions. The typical commercial ketimines are difunctional.
In many applications such difunctional ketimines perform satisfactorily. When formulated with epoxy resins, however, commercial diketimines based upon methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK) are unstable because the ketimine readily isomerizes to the enamine form, which can react with the epoxy. The mechanism of conversion to enamine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,547,886. This patent discloses ketimines made from diisopropyl ketone (DIPK) as a solution to the problem.
Another problem with prior art ketimines is that, where a very rapid moisture cure at ambient temperatures is desired, the rate of cure using difunctional ketimines is generally inadequate.
Higher functional ketimines, i.e., those having a functionality of greater than 2, are also known. U.S. Pat. No. 3,993,708 discloses di- and trifunctional ketimines for moisture cure of epoxy. This patent does not disclose the use of acrylate/epoxy blends as adhesives. U.S. Pat. No. 4,096,105 discloses a tetrafunctional ketimine made by coupling diethylenetriamine bis(methylether ketimine) with a diepoxide. The ketimine is acidified, mixed with acrylate monomers, dispersed in water and applied as a coating. Acrylate/epoxy blends are not disclosed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,958 discloses triketimines used for curing urethane or epoxy systems, but acrylates are not included. The alleged advantages of using trifunctional ketimines over difunctional ketimines are improved stability of one component formulations and improved transparency of cured film.
The higher functional ketimines of these patents are not claimed to provide significant increases in rate of reaction compared to the more common diketimines. Moreover, these higher functional ketimines are susceptible to isomerization to the corresponding enamine form, thereby shortening shelf life.
The present invention solves the problem of providing adequate initial adhesion via green strength, while simultaneously providing a strong permanent adhesive bond for end product use. Furthermore, the invention solves the problem of stability associated with prior art curable adhesive compositions containing ketimines as a curing agent.

Moisture-curing acrylate/epoxy hybrid adhesives


A surge relief valve suitable for high pressure application, for example in a crude oil pumped pipeline. The valve has a plug movable to expose different areas of an energy-absorbing cage trim to fluid flow. The plug position is controlled by a control device proportionately responsive to changes in upstream fluid pressure. The valve requires no external power for its actuation.

This invention relates to a novel form of surge relief valve. Such valves are required in pipelines containing various fluids to control surging, but perhaps the most extreme requirements lie in the control of surging in high pressure crude oil pumped pipelines. Unless the surging is controlled in such lines the damage to the pipeline and its associated equipment can be environmentally catastrophic. Available anti-surge devices using line pressure to actuate them have characteristics which may under certain circumstances give rise on actuation to violent vibration and cavitation. Repeated actuation of such devices may result in damage to the devices themselves or to joints in the associated pipeline close to the device.


A computer-implemented system and method for tagged data and rectangular data conversions. The system and method receive tagged input data that is in a non-rectangular format and that uses a hierarchical arrangement of tags to indicate data relationships. The tagged input data is displayed in a graphical interface, and the graphical interface is used to create a mapping specification from the tagged input data.

Software applications exchange data in a variety of formats. Two of the more prevalent formats are the tagged hierarchical data format and the rectangular data format. Tagged hierarchical data formats, such as the eXtensible Markup Language (XML) format, are becoming increasingly popular as they provide a useful data exchange medium for Internet software applications. Rectangular data formats are also widely used as their tabular format is the cornerstone of most database systems.
Incompatibility difficulties arise when software systems using different formats seek to exchange data. The present invention overcomes such difficulties and others by providing a computer-implemented system and method for tagged data and rectangular data conversions. The system and method receive tagged input data that is in a non-rectangular format and that uses a hierarchical arrangement of tags to indicate data relationships. The tagged input data is displayed in a graphical interface, and the graphical interface is used to create a mapping specification from the tagged input data.

Computer-implemented system and method for tagged and rectangular data processing


A battery electrode composition is provided that comprises composite particles. Each composite particle may comprise, for example, active fluoride material and a nanoporous, electrically-conductive scaffolding matrix within which the active fluoride material is disposed. The active fluoride material is provided to store and release ions during battery operation. The storing and releasing of the ions may cause a substantial change in volume of the active material. The scaffolding matrix structurally supports the active material, electrically interconnects the active material, and accommodates the changes in volume of the active material.

Field
The present disclosure relates generally to energy storage devices, and more particularly to metal and metal-ion battery technology and the like.
Background
Owing in part to their relatively high energy densities, light weight, and potential for long lifetimes, advanced metal-ion batteries such as lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are desirable for a wide range of consumer electronics. However, despite their increasing commercial prevalence, further development of these batteries is needed, particularly for potential applications in low- or zero-emission, hybrid-electrical or fully-electrical vehicles, consumer electronics, energy-efficient cargo ships and locomotives, aerospace applications, and power grids.
Conversion-type electrodes, such as fluorides, sulfides, oxides, nitrides, phosphides, hydrides and others for Li-ion batteries offer high gravimetric and volumetric capacities.
Fluorides, in particular, offer a combination of relatively high average voltage and high capacities, but suffer from several limitations for various metal-ion (such as Li-ion) battery chemistries. For example, only selected metal fluoride particles have been reported to offer some reasonable cycle stability in Li-ion battery cells (specifically AgF2, FeF2, FeF3, CoF2, and NiF2). Many other metal fluorides are commonly believed not to be practical for applications in Li-ion batteries due to the irreversible changes that occur in such cathodes during battery operation. For example, during Li-ion insertion into some of the other fluorides (such as CuF2, for example) and the subsequent formation of LiF during the conversion reaction, the original fluoride-forming element (such as Cu in the case of CuF2) produces electrically isolated (Cu) nanoparticles. Being electrically isolated, such nanoparticles cannot electrochemically react with LiF to transform back into CuF2 during subsequent Li extraction, thereby preventing reversibility of the conversion reaction. As a result, after a discharge, the cell cannot be charged back to the initial capacity.
However, even the cathodes based on those metal fluorides that are believed to be most practical due to their relatively reversible operation and reasonably low cost (such as FeF2, FeF3, CoF2, and NiF2), suffer from multiple limitations including: (i) low electrical conductivity, which limits their utilization and both energy and power characteristics in batteries; (ii) low ionic conductivity, which limits their utilization and both energy and power characteristics in batteries; and (iii) volume changes during metal ion insertion/extraction, which may cause mechanical and electrical degradation in the electrodes during battery operation. As a result, despite the theoretical advantages of fluoride-based cathodes, for example, their practical applications in metal-ion batteries are difficult to achieve. The cells produced with fluoride-based cathodes currently suffer from poor stability, volume changes, slow charging, and high impedance.
Several approaches have been developed to overcome some of the above-described difficulties, but none have been fully successful in overcoming all of them.
For example, decreasing particle size decreases the ion diffusion distance, and offers one approach to addressing the low ionic conductivity limitation. However, nanopowders suffer from high electrical resistance caused by the multiple, highly resistive point contacts formed between the individual particles. In addition, small particle size increases the specific surface area available for undesirable electrochemical side reactions. Furthermore, simply decreasing the particle size does not address and may in some cases exacerbate other limitations of such materials, such as volume changes as well as weakening of the particle-binder interfaces. Finally, in contrast to using micron-scale particles for cathode formulations, handling nanoparticles and using them to prepare dense electrodes is technologically difficult. Nanoparticles are difficult to disperse uniformly within conductive carbon additives and binder of the cathode and the undesirable formation of agglomerates of nanoparticles tends to take place. Formation of such agglomerates reduces the electrode density (thus reducing volume-normalized capacity and energy density of the cells), reduces electrode stability (since binder and conductive additives do not connect individual particles within such agglomerates) and reduces capacity utilization (since some of the nanoparticles become electrically insulated and thus do not participate in Li-ion storage).
In another approach, selected metal fluoride particles which offer some reasonable cycle stability in Li-ion battery cells (specifically FeF2, FeF3, CoF2, and NiF2) may be mechanically mixed with (in some cases by using high energy milling, as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,625,671 B2) or deposited onto the surface of conductive substrates, such as carbon black, graphite, multi-walled carbon nanotubes, or carbon fibers. In this case, the high electrical conductivity of the carbon enhances electrical conductivity of the electrodes. However, the phase transformations during battery operation and the volume changes discussed above may induce the separation of the active material from the conductive additives, leading to resistance growth and battery degradation.
In yet another approach, selected metal fluoride particles (specifically FeF2 particles) may be coated with a solid multi-walled graphitic carbon shell layer. In this case, the electrical conductivity of a metal fluoride cathode may be improved. However, the above-described volume changes during metal ion insertion may break the graphitic carbon coating and induce irreversible capacity losses. Similarly, the phase transformation during subsequent charging and discharging cycles may induce a separation of the active material from the graphitic carbon shell, leading to resistance growth and battery degradation.
Accordingly, there remains a need for improved metal and metal-ion batteries, components, and other related materials and manufacturing processes.

Fluorides in nanoporous, electrically-conductive scaffolding matrix for metal and metal-ion batteries


In an embodiment, provided is an image combining apparatus coupled to a first terminal device through a network. The image combining apparatus includes: a delivery section that delivers screen data that is image data for a screen to the first terminal device; a receiving section that receives first handwriting position information indicating a position of first handwriting information input to a screen based on the screen data on the first terminal device; a generation section that produces first handwriting image data that is the image data of the first handwriting information using the first handwriting position information; and a combining section that produces combined screen data by combining the screen data with the first handwriting image data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image combining apparatus, a terminal device, and an image combining system including the image combining apparatus and the terminal device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Techniques have been known in which projectors deliver image data for projection to mobile terminals through networks; the mobile terminals input handwriting information to the delivered image data and transfer the resulting image data to the projectors through the networks; and the projectors combine the image data for projection with the image data including the handwriting information and project screens based on the combined image data.
As a similar technique, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2005-079913 discloses a technique in which image data of an image taken by a camera; image data of handwriting information input using a tablet are transmitted to an external server through a network; and the external server produces image data for display by combining the received image data.
The conventional techniques, however, have a problem of an increase in the load of the network because the image data of the handwriting information is transmitted through the network.
There is a need to provide an image combining apparatus, a terminal device, and an image combining system including the image combining apparatus and the terminal device.

Image combining apparatus, terminal device, and image combining system including the image combining apparatus and terminal device


A lap top desk includes a pair of stacked and spaced apart plate-like members which both provide respective work surfaces to a user of the desk, and which are both pivotally and translatably connected so that the user may refer to a portion of the lower member while also keeping all of the upper work surface in sight. Alternatively, the user may choose to pivot the upper member work surface out of sight in order to completely reveal the work surface of the lower member. A dual function strap is provided which when sat upon by the user keeps the desk on the lap, and which also secures the desk in a storage or transportation condition. A flexible arrangement of clamps, and open spaces on the work surfaces allows a user to arrange desk top contents in a variety of utilitarian ways. Provision is also made for variable spacing between the plate-like members so that the desk lower level may accommodate thick or bulky items, or so that the desk may be configured more thinly if only comparatively thin items are to be arranged on the lower level.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of clip boards, lap boards, pilot's knee or lap clip boards, and special purpose lap top work organizers or desks. More particularly, the present invention relates to a two-level lap top desk especially providing a combination, arrangement, and cooperation of features not heretofore available to pilots for their assistance in holding and presenting to a pilot in an aircraft cockpit selected ones of the various and multiple charts, maps, notes, timers, calculators, air traffic control instructions, instrument reading records, and other assistance items which pilots need to use and refer to in their flying.
2. Related Technology
From the early days of aviation, pilots have been known to use various knee or lap boards to hold maps, navigation charts, and various other necessary items in a more or less useable position of presentation for the pilot within the frequently-cramped confines of an aircraft cockpit. For comparatively slow and simple flying conditions in uncrowded skies, simple clip board structures merely adapted to secure to a pilot's leg were sufficient. For example, a pilot's clip board is known in accord with the U.S. Pat. Des. No. 164,269, issued in 1951 to W. L. Whittier. The Whittier clip board appears to include a curved lower support plate by which the clip board may rest upon a pilot's upper leg, there to be secured by a strap. Upon the curved support plate is disposed a clip board with clamps at both top and bottom for receiving maps and papers for note taking, etc. The clip board of Whittier also appears to perhaps offer a limited storage capacity for items like pencils, for example.
A more recent pilots lap board, which is still indicative of comparatively simplistic flying conditions with a minimum of assistance items needed by the pilot is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,314, issued in 1974 to P. L. Berretta. The Berretta lap board folds to open like a book and includes a retention device to hold the two sides of the lap board in alignment with one another. Each side of the lap board includes a clamp for retaining papers or maps, etc., placed thereon. However, the Berretta lap board relies upon simple friction strips on the underside to prevent the board slipping from a pilot's lap.
Along the same line is the document holder taught by U.S. Pat. No. 4,243,249, issued in 1981 to H. C. Goss. The document holder of the Goss patent appears to be a rather conventional clip board having a paper clamp at each of the top and side, and being mounted rotationally upon an arcuate leg-engaging support plate. A strap is provided to secure the support plate to a pilots leg.
Each of the above-identified, and other known pilot's lap desks is deficient in some respect, especially in view of today's very demanding flying conditions. Some lap desks provide insufficient working surface, while others are awkward or unwieldy to use. Still others are not sufficiently secured on the pilot's lap, or don't adequately secure papers, charts, maps, and other items so that the pilot need not be concerned about dropping one of these necessary items at a critical time in his flight. Still other lap desks don't present the materials on the desk to a pilot in a useable or easily viewed arrangement. Some desks may even obscure the pilot's view of some of the desk items or of aircraft controls or instruments, so that a necessary item is not readily available to be used or referred to by the pilot when it is needed, or so that the pilot's use of his lap desk compromises his attention to the aircraft and its flight.
With present high-speed general aviation aircraft, and crowded skies around many airports, a pilot's work load is so high that he simply can not afford to be hindered in any way by deficiencies of a pilot's-assistance appliance, such as his lap desk. This appliance should be so constructed and arranged that maximum utility and ease of use results without much attention on the pilot's part to the use of the desk itself. The times when a pilot most needs to use or refer to the assistance items such as charts for air traffic control areas and airport approach patterns, are the times when he can least afford to be hampered by an inefficient or cumbersome lap desk.
Finally, some lap desks are not convenient to carry or store when they are not in use. If a lap desk will not fit into the pilot's chart case or into an attache case, it presents yet another undesirable loose item which the pilot must carry by hand to and from the aircraft. In addition to all of the in-flight features desired for a pilot's lap top desk, it additionally should be compact and easily carried in a chart case or attache case, or by hand with no concerns for loose items falling out of the desk to be lost.


A projection apparatus, a power management apparatus, and a method for power management thereof are provided. The projection apparatus has a first power socket corresponding to a first power specification and a second power socket corresponding to a second power specification. The second power specification is different from the first power specification. A voltage detection unit is adapted to detect an input voltage received by a powered power socket, wherein the powered power socket is the first power socket or the second power socket. A control unit decides whether the input voltage detected by the voltage detection unit is matched up with the power specification of the corresponding powered power socket to determine an operation mode of the projection apparatus and to determine whether the projection apparatus provides an alarm message to ensure safety of use.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a display device, and relates particularly to a projection apparatus, a power management apparatus, and a method for power management thereof.
2. Description of Related Art
Typically, the power specification, power socket, power plug and such of an electronic device differs according to a user's country. The commonly used 110V voltage differs from the 220V voltage which is used in most countries in Europe. A problem arises, the household electrical wiring are configured mainly for the low voltage power in a country where a low voltage power is generally used, and only in a location with special need (for example, a location for installing air conditioning) is there accommodations for a high voltage power.
Along with advances in technology, a projection apparatus is widely used in different locations and occasions to satisfy various needs of businesses, education and even home entertainment. A high end projection apparatus requires an input voltage set at a high voltage input of 220-240V due to the major increase in machine power consumption stemming from developments of increased brightness and increasingly complex functions. However, the customer is required to additionally setup a power supply to provide the projection apparatus to use if the projection apparatus only uses high voltage power. In this case, the eagerness to purchase is reduced and the sales competitiveness of the product is lowered as well.
In addition, the projection apparatus needs to accommodate different shipping specifications of different sales regions, and therefore causes a complexity in a production line such that manufacturing costs are increased. Furthermore, mistakes in material arrangements are caused by the negligence of an operator such that dangers regarding the safety of the product arise.
The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the described technology and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art. Further, the information disclosed in the Background section does not mean that one or more problems to be resolved by one or more embodiments of the invention was acknowledged by a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Projection apparatus, power management apparatus, and method for power management thereof


Embodiments perform distributed management of an inventory of a shared, distributed storage device. Host computing devices accessing the storage device maintain, on the storage device, journaling files of the storage events performed by each of the host computing devices. A tidy file is maintained, on the storage device, by all of the host computing devices, reflecting the storage events performed by each of the host computing devices.

Some existing systems attempt to manage the inventory of storage devices accessed by virtual machines (VMs), containers, and other cloud-native applications. For instance, these systems name a disk on a storage device by its relationship to a reference such as a VM, instead of giving the storage device a unique identifier. This results in a storage device identity which is not persistent, but rather changes throughout the lifecycle of the storage device, and requires changes to paths as the reference (in this example, the VM) associated with the disk changes. As such, the existing systems for managing data storage devices through references such as VMs, containers, or other cloud-native applications are not as compatible with data-centric processing and applications, which concern the acquisition, processing, analysis, storage and query of large data sets.
Although some existing solutions exist for managing storage devices, these solutions are centralized, and often cumbersome and transitory. Some of the existing systems require networking management with their own concepts of clusters. Using such solutions creates requirements for the host administrators to also maintain configurations for them. This imposes a higher burden for the administrator, as well as a higher cost in resource use.


In accordance with an embodiment, a first light source configured to emit visible light; a second light source configured to emit invisible light; and a light guide section configured to reflect the light emitted by the first light source and the second light source in a longitudinal direction towards a direction of a reading area of an image.

Conventionally, there is an image reading device having both a function of reading an image with visible light and a function of reading an image with invisible light. It is necessary to include a function of emitting the visible light and a function of emitting the invisible light in such a device. Thus, there is a case in which the size of a light source unit becomes too large.

Light source unit, image processing apparatus, image processing system and image processing method


This invention provides a yarn feed and controlling device in which a resiliently mounted yarn controlling arm including a yarn guide eye is movable from a first position in which yarn can be continuously fed to a second position in which the yarn is restrained. The device includes a yarn restraining means associated with the yarn controlling arm which serves when the yarn is in the second position to restrain the yarn by applying a clamping force thereto.

This invention concerns a yarn feed controlling device and more particularly, though not exclusively, a device for feeding and controlling weft yarn in a narrow fabric needleloom.
In a narrow fabric needleloom (hereinafter simply referred to as a "needleloom") weft yarn is generally supplied from a package and inserted in looped form through a warp shed by means of a weft inserting needle. It is known that, for the needle to function correctly, it must insert weft at a pre-determined tension and that a correct tension must be maintained when the weft inserting needle is being withdrawn from the weft shed prior to the insertion of the next loop of weft. Thus the tension in the weft yarn is not constant during a single loom cycle. For instance at one part of the loom cycle the weft yarn must be pulled back from the needle and temporarily stored. To achieve the correct weft yarn tension cycle the loom is usually provided with a weft yarn feeding device which includes a positive feed unit adapted to feed the weft yarn at a pre-determined and constant rate from the package and in addition there is provided a weft yarn storage and tensioning device incorporating one or more spring loaded weft yarn guide eyes.
A disadvantage of this type of feeding and tensioning means lies in the fact that the feeding device must be set exactly to match the amount of weft yarn take-up in the fabric and in addition the device cannot easily be used when it is desired to produce a patterned fabric including a number of wefts of different colour, since in such a fabric only that weft yarn which is actually being inserted is to be fed, the other or others being held in readiness for insertion in accordance with the pattern requirements. Somewhat similar disadvantages exist in looms other than needlelooms.


The invention relates to a four-hinged wiper arm for a windshield wiper system, especially for an automobile wherein a connecting rod is pivotally connected to a driving arm in a first bearing point and to a control arm in a second bearing point. A hinged part is coupled to the connecting rod. A wiper blade that can be placed on the hinged part or on a wiper rod connected to the hinged part can be pressed against the windshield to be wiped by a spring element that is mounted on the four-hinged wiper arm. In order to ensure good wiping quality and low-noise operation over a long service period, the invention provides that the connecting rod or the driving arm or the control arm is fitted with an antifriction bearing at least one of the two locating points of the four hinged wiper arm. According to advantageous embodiments of the invention, the four-hinged wiper arm is fitted with an antifriction bearing on both bearing points, whereby the antifriction bearing is preferably a deep groove ball bearing.

The invention pertains to a four-hinged wiper arm for a windshield wiper system, especially for an automobile, wherein a connecting rod is connected to a driving arm at a first bearing point and to a control arm at a second bearing point so that it can pivot, a hinged part is coupled to the connecting rod, and a wiper blade that can be placed on the hinged part or on a wiper rod connected to the hinged part can be pressed against the windshield to be wiped by a spring element that is mounted on the four-hinged wiper arm.
A four-hinged wiper arm of this kind has already become known from DE 42 14 679 A1. In this wiper arm, the connecting rod is connected to a driving arm at a first bearing point by means of a cylinder bolt so that it can pivot, and it is connected to a control arm at a second bearing point by means of a cylinder bolt so that it can pivot, wherein the cylinder bolts are each mounted directly in a bearing hole of the connecting rod and/or a bearing hole of the driving arm and the control arm, respectively, so that they can rotate. Bearing points of this kind can be designed with a small structural height, however, they are not suitable for transferring with high efficiency, and without free play; the large radial and axial forces occurring during operation of the wiper arm over long operating times. Even after a short operating time, interfering bearing play may occur, which, on the one hand, greatly reduces the wiping quality and, on the other hand, can result in an interfering formation of noise.

Four-hinged wiper arm for a windshield wiper system

Valeo Auto-Electric Wischer und Motoren GmbH


The invention relates to a process of eliminating high chloride-containing incinerator ash and incinerator ash-residue mixtures, without generating excessive heavy metal-containing effluents during the actual vitrification of the ash. The process involves first pretreating the incinerator ash or ash-residue mixture, if needed, whereby the resultant ash contains less than about 3% halogen by weight and less than about 3% C.. Following the pretreatment, the ash is dried and then mixed with any additives needed to make up a vitrifiable batch mixture which will, when subsequently vitrified, form a glass possessing an excellent acid durability. A durability whereby such that the weight loss of the glass in 5% HCl solution at 95.degree. C. is 2.0 mg/cm.sup.2 or less in 24 hours. This durability results in minimal or non-detectable leaching of hazardous heavy metal or non-metallic specie and is sufficient enough durability such that the vitrified glass will easily pass the EPA's test for leachability. A suitable glass meeting the requirements is comprised of, expressed in terms of weight percent, about 47-76% SiO.sub.2 ; 8-29% Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, 3.4-33.0% CaO; and optionally 0-25% R.sub.2 O, wherein R.sub.2 O is selected from the group consisting of Na.sub.2, Li.sub.2 O, and K.sub.2 O; 0-5% Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 ; 0-18% B.sub.2 O.sub.3 ; 0-7% ZrO.sub.2 ; 0-7% TiO.sub.2 ; 0-10% MO, wherein MO is selected from the group consisting of MgO, BaO, ZnO or SrO; 0-8% of at least one member selected from the group consisting of PbO, CdO, Cr.sub.2 O.sub.3, CuO, and NiO; and 0-4% SO.sub.3 with 0-4% Cl+F as batched.

This invention relates to an environmentally safe method for the disposal of incinerator ash. Specifically, this invention discloses a vitrification process whereby municipal waste combustor incinerator ash, either with a high or low halogen content, containing heavy metal species is subjected to high temperatures and vitrified into a homogeneous, single-phase glass.
Municipal solid waste incinerators produce ash which contains small quantities of heavy metals, such as lead, zinc, mercury, cadmium and chromium; generally less than 0.5% of each. The immobilization of these metals is necessary to prevent air and groundwater contamination in disposal or recycling. Conventionally, incinerator ash which contains heavy metal contaminants has been used as aggregate with Portland cement to form stable concrete structures. The leaching characteristics of the cured concretes do not consistently satisfy the Environmental Protection Agency's Toxic Characteristic Leaching Procedure (EPA's TCLP test) requirements for hazardous waste, thus allowing it to be delisted. Ash which is used as aggregate is also classified as nonhazardous by the particular states in which it is used. Nevertheless, in many cases, the leachability data is questionable, and the acceptable results may be a result of the dilution of the toxic components by the large volume of the filled concrete.
It is also known to convert waste material into glass by means of melting after adding additives and after mixing into batch. Some of the material is dissolved in the melt, i.e., it is chemically decomposed, and the rest is firmly incorporated in the glass when the latter solidifies after withdrawal from the furnace. It is advantageous that the glass be difficult to leach out, so that release of components contained in the glass can occur only to a small amount, if at all. This permits a disposal without further manufacture of bodies made from the glass. Additionally, vitrification results in a 20-80% reduction in volume of the waste material. This allows the life of a landfill to be expanded significantly.
However, there are still problems which often occur when vitrifying waste materials, especially if these waste materials contain a high percentage of chloride, sulfur and/or carbon species; those problems resulting from the fact that these species are usually absorbed by the melt only to a limited extent. For example, typical incinerator ash containing low chloride is usually combined with the high Cl scrubber residue, which is generated in state-of-the-art incinerators utilizing CaO injection scrubbers; the resultant ash-residue mixture then containing chloride levels greater than 15%. In an open melt operation the presence of these species typically leads to the disadvantageous formation of large amounts of exhaust gas which can contain Cl.sub.2, HCl, SO.sub.x, CO and the like. Furthermore, the heavy metal and alkali metal species are volatilized and they too enter the exhaust gas from the glass melt. All of this excessive effluent generation requires purification and extensive exhaust gas collection systems which involve significant cost. Although a cold crown melting system would alleviate the heavy metal volatilization, the excess chlorine still would cause excessive gaseous evolution, i.e., HCl and volatile metal chlorides. These, in turn, lead to batch bridging, formation of gas pockets and occasional formation of molten salt layers (e.g., CaCl.sub.2) in the batch blanket. Furthermore, any resultant glass may contain in excess of 10% Cl which reduces the ultimate acid durability below acceptable levels. In other words, high chloride incinerator ash cannot be conventionally melted, or even continuously melted in a cold crown melting system, without the removal of an appreciable quantity of the Cl.


Disclosed is a resin composition including: a resin mixture (a) containing a polyphenylene ether resin and atactic homopolystyrene in an amount of above 50 mass % and below 94 mass %; a hydrogenated block copolymer (b) obtained by hydrogenating at least part of a block copolymer containing polymer blocks A and B in an amount of 1 to 20 mass %; a functional group-containing compound (c) having a specific functional group in an amount of 0.01 to 0.5 mass %; and a surface-treated inorganic filler (d) in an amount of 5 mass % or more and less than 30 mass %, in which the resin composition does not substantially contain a polymer having a hydrogenation ratio of less than 98% in a conjugated diene compound portion, the component (a-1) has a weight average molecular weight of less than 70,000, and the component (b) has a number average molecular weight of 150,000 to 300,000.

Polyphenylene ether resin has excellent electrical insulating properties and good heat resistance, flame retardancy, and hydrolysis resistance, and is thus conventionally used in various applications such as home electric appliances, office automation equipment, and automotive parts.
Recently, to manufacture resin parts for various uses, demands are increasingly being made for a resin composition that is excellent in electrical insulation properties, impact resistance, heat resistance, hydrolysis resistance, vibration fatigue characteristics, flame retardancy, surface appearance of molded products, and so on. On the other hand, due to miniaturization of resin parts and complications of their structure, such a resin composition is also required to have excellent melt flowability at the time of injection molding.
In particular, for applications in plumbing mechanical components (pump casings (pump housings), valves, etc.) used for water circulation, such a resin composition is required to have high toughness, vibration fatigue characteristics, melt flowability, and hydrolysis resistance.

Resin composition, molded product, and plumbing mechanical component