A lateral brace for a hanger suspended from a rod for pipes, electric cables or the like, the lateral brace having two, slotted interlocking pieces which interlock when slots open in opposite directions so that the two interlocked pieces can form a hole surrounding the rod and thereby brace it to a structure without removing a hanger from its supporting rod.

In many building structures, electrical conduit and mechanical piping systems for carrying wires and cables, such as electrical cables and communication wires, fluids, such as hot and cold water, steam, oil, compressed air and the like are suspended from the ceiling or from beams in the structure. The conduit or piping is usually maintained by conduit trapeze supports and hangers which are suspended from the ceiling by rods or threaded bolts. The trapeze supports and hangers generally are spaced about 8 to 12 feet apart depending on the material from which the conduit and piping is made, and the structural demands on the conduit or piping with regard to the cable requirements, such as the number of cables and their requisite gauge, and the fluid properties, such as density, pressure and temperature of the fluid in the pipe.
It follows from this suspended arrangement that the electrical and mechanical systems have a potential to oscillate in the longitudinal and transverse direction. It is desired that these systems be able to oscillate slightly to prevent damage to the ceiling or beam structure supporting the systems and to the system itself. For example, if the systems were rigorously braced against oscillation, the connection joints between each segment of conduit and piping and the trapeze and hanger assemblies could potentially be damaged producing undesirable and possible undetectable results. However, if the systems are not braced against most of the potential to oscillate to considerably dissipate the energy causing the oscillation, the system can possibly oscillate to a destructive frequency and even to the resonant frequency of the structure supporting the system and of the system itself, thereby, causing damage to the structure and the system. For this purpose, the systems are braced against unintentional external forces causing the system to oscillate; for example, the external forces may be caused by earthquakes, building sway and machinery. To address the safety demands, state legislation have set safety requirements under which suspended systems including bracing assemblies must meet.
It is found in practice that these systems are suspended from the ceiling or beam structure by a rod. At the free end of each rod is fastened the trapeze support or the hanger, such as a clevis hanger or J-hanger from which the conduit and piping is carried. As mentioned, the trapeze supports and hangers are maintained along their system at predetermined distances between 8 to 12 feet apart.
It is further found in practice that a brace is employed to prevent oscillation. The brace extends from the trapeze or the hanger at an angle upward to the overhead structure or ceiling. The brace includes a bracket to attach to the ceiling and a connector to attach to the suspended system wherein the two may be connected integrally with each other or by a channel or cable extending therebetween. The connector is provided with a hole through which the rod suspending the system must extend. It is obvious then that the trapeze or the hanger would at least have to be unsupported for a period to insert the rod through the hole of the connector. Commonly the trapeze would have to be disassembled or the hanger would have to be removed in order to extend the rod through a hole in the connecter.
This raises a problem when attaching the connector to an already installed suspended system. Here, the installer is required to disassemble each trapeze support and remove each hanger at the location where the brace is being installed. This requires unnecessary costs and increased safety risks to the installer. The installer must work at the brace installation location with the system unsupported or alternatively provide additional support either from the ceiling or from the ground to support the system when it is detached from the rod and support. Further, the installer is restricted in the number of braces which can be affixed to the system at one time because the entire system cannot be disconnected from the overhead structure. This additional labor increases installation time and cost. Thus, the post system installation bracing can become very dangerous and labor intensive resulting in an avoidable expensive installation.
Other prior connectors are either secured directly to the mechanical piping or electrical conduit member or welded directly to the rod suspending the system. Attaching the connector directly to the piping or conduit is undesirable because it can cause damage to the system by providing too much bracing along the piping or conduit. Additionally, this practice positions bracing at areas other than the hanger area which has already overhead structure area dedicated to suspend support members, and these other locations may not have overhead structure members to suspend these braces. Welding the connector also is an undesirable connector because is it labor intensive and unsafe.
Accordingly, it is the primary aim of this invention to provide a connecter which can be attached to the system without disassembling or removing the trapeze or hanger. A further object is to provide a connector which is safer and more efficient to install.
A resulting object is to provide a connector which reduces the labor and associated costs.
Finally, a related object is to provide a uniform connector which is convenient to use.


A pipeline leak detection device for detecting leaks in a pipe includes a sensor assembly guided into a pipe to detect evidence of a leak, and a position assessing device provides an indication of a location of the sensor assembly. The sensor assembly may be a hydrophone, and the position assessing device may be a guide wire with markings for measuring lengths of the guide wire, or a transmitter. An injector plug can be inserted in an access port of the pipe to create a liquid tight seal for insertion of the sensor assembly. A pressurizing device may also be connected to the access port to pressurize the pipe.

The present invention relates to a pipeline leak detection device, system, and method for detecting leaks in plumbing. An important part of repairing leaks in plumbing is locating damaged pipes. One common method of identifying a leak is by visually inspecting the plumbing line. A person looking for a leak may search for telltale signs of structural damage such as dripping liquid, cracks, dents, and the like.
However, plumbing is often a complicated maze that is hidden from view. In some cases, plumbing may be hidden within a wall, above a ceiling, under the floor, or underground. In some cases, a person may be able to identify the location of a damaged pipe from seeing discoloration of the surrounding area, pooling liquid, and/or dripping liquid.
Other times, these signs may not exist or may be deceptive. For example, a pool of liquid may form at a different location than the damaged plumbing due to an incline, or there may be multiple leaks causing a single liquid pool. In these cases, someone will have to remove all of the obstructions to locate and repair the damaged plumbing. In cases where the plumbing line is a gas line, leaks may be invisible, and the only evidence of a leak may be damage to the pipes.
There are several other ways that plumbers can locate leaks. In one example, plumbers may use dyes in different plumbing lines to determine which line has a leak; the dye for the leaky plumbing line will match the color of the leak. Another common method is to trace an obstructed pipeline with a stethoscope while listening for audible leak indicators. However, using a stethoscope is fairly inaccurate and may not work for quieter leaks or pipelines that are several feet underground. Sometimes a leak is at the top of a pipeline bend, and only leaks during certain events, such as a flush of a toilet. These types of leaks are difficult to listen for because they are not always leaking. Furthermore, these and other common methods of detecting leaks are extremely inexact. Having inaccurate methods of locating leaks will often require excavation and property destruction for identification of damaged pipes.
Thus, it would be preferable for there to be a more accurate and efficient way of locating leaks in malfunctioning pipes. The present invention meets these and other needs.

Pipeline leak detection device and method


In one example, a method of managing access to a network includes receiving a network access request including one or more credentials via an edge device. The one or more user credentials are authenticated, and a database record for a user associated with the one or more user credentials is identified. A re-authentication duration value is obtained from the database record for the user, wherein the re-authentication duration value is pre-assigned to the user or pre-assigned to a group associated with the user. A response comprising the re-authentication duration value is then sent to the edge device.

When a user desires to access network resources, the user is typically subjected to an authentication process to verify that the user is permitted to access the network. Upon successful authentication, the user is granted access to the network. Such access, however, may not be for an unlimited duration, as re-authentication may be periodically conducted to ensure that the user accessing the network is the same user authenticated at the beginning of the session.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


An enhanced communication connector assembly capable of meeting Category 6 performance levels with respect to near end crosstalk (NEXT), when the assembly is connected to a mating connector. The assembly includes a wire board, and a number of elongated terminal contact wires with base portions that are supported on the board. The contact wires have free end portions opposite the base portions for making electrical contact with a mating connector. A crosstalk compensating device on the wire board is constructed and arranged to cooperate with sections of selected terminal contact wires to provide capacitive compensation coupling between the selected terminal contact wires, when the contact wires are engaged by the mating connector.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to communication connectors, and particularly to a connector assembly that compensates for crosstalk among different signal paths conducted through the assembly.
2. Discussion of the Known Art
There is a need for a durable, high frequency communication connector assembly that compensates for (i.e., cancels or reduces) crosstalk among and between different signal paths within the assembly. As broadly defined herein, crosstalk occurs when signals conducted over a first signal path, e.g., a pair of terminal contact wires associated with a communication connector, are partly transferred by inductive or capacitive coupling into a second signal path, e.g., another pair of terminal contact wires in the same connector. The transferred signals define "crosstalk" in the second signal path, and such crosstalk degrades any signals that are routed over the second path.
For example, an industry type RJ-45 communication connector has four pairs of terminal wires defining four different signal paths. In typical RJ-45 plug and jack connectors, all four pairs of terminal wires extend closely parallel to one another over the lengths of the connector bodies. Thus, signal crosstalk may be induced between and among different pairs of terminal wires within the typical RJ-45 plug and jack connectors, particularly when the connectors are in a mated configuration. The amplitude of the crosstalk becomes stronger as the coupled signal frequencies or data rates increase.
Applicable industry standards for rating the degree to which communication connectors exhibit crosstalk, do so in terms of so-called near end crosstalk or "NEXT". Moreover, NEXT ratings are typically specified for mated connector configurations, e.g., a type RJ-45 plug and jack combination, wherein the input terminals of the plug connector are used as a reference plane. Communication links using unshielded twisted pairs (UTP) of copper wire are now expected to support data rates up to not only 100 MHz, or industry standard "Category 5" performance; but to meet "Category 6" performance levels which call for at least 46 dB crosstalk isolation at 250 MHz.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,647 to Denkmann et al. (Feb. 16, 1993), which is assigned to the assignee of the present invention and application, discloses an electrical connector for conducting high frequency signals. The connector has a pair of metallic lead frames mounted flush with a dielectric spring block, with connector terminals formed at opposite ends of the lead frames. The lead frames themselves include flat elongated conductors each of which includes a spring terminal contact wire at one end for contacting a corresponding terminal wire of a mating connector, and an insulation displacing connector terminal at the other end for connection with an outside insulated wire lead. The lead frames are placed over one another on the spring block, and three conductors of one lead frame have cross-over sections configured to overlap corresponding cross-over sections formed in three conductors of the other lead frame. All relevant portions of the mentioned '647 patent are incorporated by reference herein. U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,270 (Dec. 3, 1996) also discloses an electrical plug connector having crossed pairs of contact strips.
Crosstalk compensation circuitry may also be provided on or within layers of a printed wire board, to which spring terminal contact wires of a communication jack are connected within the jack housing. See U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/923,741 filed Sep. 29, 1997, and assigned to the assignee of the present application and invention. All relevant portions of the '741 application are incorporated by reference herein. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,299,956 (Apr. 5, 1994).
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/264,506 filed Mar. 8, 1999, and assigned to the assignee of the present application and invention, discloses a communications connector assembly having co-planar terminal contact wires, wherein certain pairs of the contact wires have opposed cross-over sections to provide inductive crosstalk compensation. All relevant portions of the '506 application are also incorporated by reference herein.
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,405 (Aug. 20, 1996) discloses an electrical connector having signal carrying contacts that are stamped as lead frames from a metal sheet. Certain contacts have integral lateral extensions that overlie enlarged adjacent portions of other contacts to provide capacitive coupling crosstalk compensation. A dielectric spacer is disposed between an extension of one contact and an enlarged adjacent portion of the other contact. Thus, the stamped lead frames for the connector of the '405 patent are complex, and are relatively difficult to manufacture and assemble precisely.
There remains a need for a communication jack connector assembly which, when mated with a typical RJ-45 plug, provides both inductive and capacitive crosstalk compensation such that the mated connectors will meet or surpass Category 6 performance.

Enhanced communication connector assembly with crosstalk compensation


Certain aspects of the present invention relate to a heating assembly for electronic cigarette vaporizer. In certain embodiments, heating assembly includes: a pair of vaporizer shields, certain heating elements, an e-liquid medium, a pair of vapor guides, and a vaporizing chamber side cover. Vaporizer shields are disposed on a heating element base. An e-liquid medium opening is defined between the vaporizer shields. Each of the heating elements has a first terminal and a second terminal. The e-liquid medium is vertically positioned in the e-liquid medium opening. The e-liquid medium has certain heating element grooves for installing the heating elements. The vapor guides are placed between vaporizer shields and the e-liquid medium. The vaporizing chamber side cover is configured to surround the first vaporizer shield and the second vaporizer shield, the e-liquid medium. The vaporizing chamber side cover defines two e-liquid conduit openings, one on each side of the e-liquid medium.

The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
It is well known that smoking cigarette is harmful to smoker's health. The active ingredient in a cigarette is mainly nicotine. During smoking, nicotine, along with tar aerosol droplets produced in the cigarette burning, are breathed into the alveolus and absorbed quickly by the smoker. Once nicotine is absorbed into the blood of the smoker, nicotine then produces its effect on the receptors of the smoker's central nervous system, causing the smoker relax and enjoy an inebriety similar to that produced by an exhilarant.
The electronic cigarette is sometimes referred as electronic vaporing device, personal vaporizer (PV), or electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS). It is a battery-powered device which simulates tobacco smoking. It generally uses a heating element that vaporizes a liquid solution (e-liquid). Some solutions contain a mixture of nicotine and a variety of flavorings, while others release a flavored vapor without nicotine. Many are designed to simulate smoking experience, such as cigarette smoking or cigar smoking Some of them are made with similar appearance, while others are made considerably different in appearance.
Conventional electronic cigarettes are made with a mouth piece assembly, a vaporizer assembly, an electric connecting assembly, and an e-liquid storage assembly. The mouth piece is installed on top of the e-liquid storage assembly, and the vaporizer assembly is installed inside of the e-liquid storage assembly, and electrically connected to a DC power source through the electric connecting assembly. The mouth piece assembly is connected to the vaporizer assembly and forms an air flow passage. The e-liquid is stored in the e-liquid storage assembly. The e-liquid flows through a vaporizing chamber of the heating assembly using fiber threads. The e-liquid in the fiber threads is then heated by a heating wire of the heating assembly and therefore vaporized. The vaporized e-liquid goes up to the mouth piece such that a smoker enjoys the vaporized e-liquid. However, the vapor flow and the quantity and speed of e-liquid vaporization are not controllable or adjustable to meet the different demands of various electronic cigarette smokers.
Therefore, an unaddressed need exists in the art to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.

Heating assembly for electronic cigarette vaporizer


Disclosed is the oxidation of uronic acids, such as galacturonic acid, to the corresponding aldaric acids, such as galactaric acid, under neutral or acidic conditions. Use is made of a supported gold catalyst. The oxidation occurs in good selectivity and yield, under unexpectedly mild conditions. A source of galacturonic acids is pectins, such as from sugar beet pulp.

Aldaric acids are a group of sugar acids, where the terminal hydroxyl or aldehyde groups of the sugars have been replaced by terminal carboxylic acids. These acids are characterized by the formula HOOC—(CHOH)n-COOH, with n being an integer of from 1 to 5. These dicarboxylic acids, on account of their combined functionalities, are interesting chemicals. E.g., as sequestering agents, corrosion inhibitors or monomers for making polymers made on the basis of dicarboxylic acids, such as polyesters or polyamides. Preferred aldaric acids are those wherein n is an integer of from 3 to 5. Aldaric acids of particular interest are those derived from C5 and C6 sugars, like xylaric acid, glucaric acid, mannaric acid, gularic acid and idaric acid. An aldaric acid of particular interest is galactaric acid, the aldaric acid corresponding to the sugar galactose. Applications for galactaric acid range from sequestering agents (Kohn et al. Collect. Czech. Chem. Commun. 1986, 1150) to building blocks for polymers (e.g. Moore & Bunting Polym. Sci. Technol., Adv. Polym. Synth., 51). Other aldaric acids of particular interest are glucaric acid, mannaric acid and gularic acid, aldaric acids that can be obtained from the carbohydrate fraction of biomass sources including pectins and a variety of different seaweeds.
In WO 2013/151428 a method is disclosed to produce aldaric acids by the oxidation of the corresponding uronic acid, wherein a starting material comprising the uronic acid is subjected to oxygen under the influence of a supported gold catalyst and in the presence of a base. An interesting aspect of this method, is that it makes it possible to unlock the chemical potential present in the form of uronic acids in hemicellulosic streams, which are typically obtainable from biorefineries.
Biorefineries serve to conduct the sustainable processing of biomass into a spectrum of marketable biobased products and bioenergy. A biorefinery is an installation that can process biomass into multiple products using an array of processing technologies. In general, biomass coming from plants, will result in streams based on lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose, respectively. Hemicelluloses can be removed from biomass, e.g. by treatment with hot pressurized water. This results in formation of water soluble oligomeric and monomeric sugars and their dehydration products such as furfural and hydroxymethyl furfural. Another source of hemicelluloses is in the agro-food industry. Whilst hemicelluloses, in theory, are a source of a wide variety of useful chemicals, it is desired to find methods to make better use of this potential, by providing economically attractive processes to harvest such chemicals therefrom. A particular interesting hemicellulosic feedstock from the agro-food industry comprises sugar beet pulp, a by-product of the sugar beet industry. Sugar beet pulp contains a high content of pectic substances, being composed of arabinose and galacturonic acid as the main monomers. Other sources of pectins are all kinds of different fruits, including e.g. apples, carrots, cherries and citrus fruits, especially citrus peels. Another potential source of uronic acids is being formed by alginates. A large variety of seaweeds including red and brown seaweeds like Laminaria digitata, Saccharina latissima and Ulva lactuca contain huge amounts of alginates being composed of mannuronic acid and guluronic acid as the composing monomers; after hydrolysis of the alginates such monomers can be used as feedstock for the production of aldaric acids.
Whilst the process disclosed in the aforementioned reference is highly suitable, it would be desired to be able to convert the uronic acids under acidic, rather than basic circumstances. This would bring about a substantial advantage in that the stream of raw materials by nature is neutral to acidic, so that the addition of large amounts of base can be dispensed with. Also, the desired end-products, viz. aldaric acids, can only be isolated as a free acid by ultimately adjusting the pH to acidic. Thus, a process in which the whole oxidative conversion would take place under acidic conditions, would avoid both the use of additional base and the generation of a relatively large amount of salts as a by-product of ultimately acidifying the reaction product, so as to isolate the free aldaric acid.

Oxidation of uronic acids to aldaric acids


Apparatus and method are provided to increase the capacity of spiral track data storage disks while improving the reliability of access to sectors on the disk by permitting previously unusable sectors immediately following a band boundary to be reliably accessed. In accordance with the present invention, an optical drive controller is provided having a clock for generating a clock signal with a frequency of f.sub.N and a cycle slipper for generating a slipped clock signal with a frequency of f.sub.N-1 from the clock signal. The controller also includes a device for enabling the slipper when an optical head is positioned opposite a sector in a band N-1 during a seek operation to a target sector in band N, and for disabling the slipper when the optical head is positioned opposite the end of the last sector in band N-1. Thus, identification information pertaining to sectors in band N-1 is processed at a data transfer rate of f.sub.N-1 and the data transfer rate is switched to f.sub.N with only an insignificant delay, permitting the first several sectors in band N to be used. Embodiments of the present invention include the use of full-cycle slipping and half-cycle slipping.

A rotating recording disk, such as an optical disk, can be formatted in concentric physical tracks (each corresponding to a single disk revolution) or in a single spiral around a central spindle hole/mounting hub. The spiral is divided into a series of logical tracks (not necessarily corresponding to a single revolution); each logical track (hereinafter referred to simply as a "track") is subdivided into sectors onto which blocks of data are recorded. Each sector has a header field followed by a data field, with an intra-sector gap between the two. An inter-sector gap separates the sector from a following sector. The header is generally embossed into the surface of the disk during the manufacturing process (although the disk can be soft formatted instead) and includes a sector mark, a series of identification (ID) fields with track and sector information, and other fields to aid a read/write controller in synchronizing to the sector. The data field includes user data, associated error detection and recovery information, and synchronization information. Under one proposed standard for read only, write once and rewritable optical disk cartridges (in which an optical disk is encased in a protective housing), the header is 52 bytes long (including a five-byte, five feature sector mark pattern) and the data field is 1274 or 665 bytes long (based on 17 or 31 sectors per track, respectively, and able to record user data of 1024 or 512 bytes, respectively).
During a read or write operation, a laser beam emitted from a read/write head must be directed onto the sector to be accessed. As is known, the head is moved radially inward or outward on a carriage under servo control for the laser beam to "land" on a sector near, but ahead of, the target sector. "Near" is between about five tracks before and three sectors before the target sector. The drive controller switches to a track following mode and, using asynchronous detection, attempts to detect the first sector mark encountered by detecting laser light reflected off of a surface of the disk. A sector mark is considered detectable if at least three of the five features in the sector mark pattern are recognized. The light reflections are converted into electrical signals representative of the data recorded on the disk. If at least three features cannot be satisfactorily detected, synchronization with the disk format is not achieved and the head scans for another sector mark. Once a sector mark is satisfactorily detected, the drive controller activates a phase locked loop to lock onto the incoming identification data stream of the rest of the header and to synchronize the drive controller to the data stream. Current disk formats employ a pulse position modulation (PPM) format although other formats have been proposed. The ID data is decoded into track and sector information, enabling the drive controller to determine the exact position on the disk of the laser beam.
If the sector on which the laser beam lands is not the target sector, a conventional controller reads subsequent sector marks and headers as the laser beam spirals toward the target sector. After detection of a first sector mark and ID, detection of subsequent ID's is commonly made more robust by disabling sector mark detection except during a small timing window (such as about .+-.0.5%) about the nominal location of subsequent sector marks to prevent false sector mark detection. Another commonly used technique forces a false (or "pseudo") sector mark detection event at the end of the timing window if no sector mark has been detected within the window. Such a technique allows the reading of an ID which has a defective or destroyed sector mark. By thus windowing in time from one sector mark to the next, a more robust ID reading system is obtained in which false sector marks are ignored and bad sector marks do not inhibit reading of the ID. In this manner, the controller counts down ID's until the target sector is reached. When the target sector is reached and properly identified, the user data is read from, erased from or written to the data field.
When the disk spins at a constant angular velocity (CAV), data recording and reading is highly stable and access time to a target sector is relatively fast. However, if a constant recording data rate is used, data recorded on tracks near the outer diameter of the disk will be at a lower linear density than data recorded near the inner diameter, although the amount of data recorded in a given angular rotation (angular recording density) will be the same. To increase the recording capacity of the disk, the linear density of the data should remain substantially constant by increasing the angular recording density as the radial distance from the spindle hole increases. Recording at a constant linear velocity (CLV) by decreasing the angular velocity (rotational speed) of the disk with increasing radial distance and maintaining a constant recording or data transfer rate can achieve increased angular recording density. But, random access time to a target sector is increased due to the time required to change the rotational speed of the disk.
A method which provides the advantages of both CAV and CLV, while reducing the disadvantages of each, is to record at a modified constant angular velocity (MCAV) by increasing the data transfer rate of the drive controller with increasing radial distance while holding the angular velocity constant. The transfer rate is a function of the frequency of the controller's clock and can be increased continually or can be increased incrementally by grouping tracks into bands and incrementing the clock frequency from band to band.
As an example of banded media, optical disks formatted according to the previously mentioned standard have 37,600 tracks in a user zone (located between inner and outer manufacturer and control zones near the inner and outer diameters of the disk) divided into sixteen annular bands of between 1600 and 3100 tracks each, the number of tracks per band increasing with increasing radial distance from the center spindle hole. Relative to a base frequency "f", the clock frequency is "16f" at band zero (the innermost band), while at band fifteen (the outermost band), the clock frequency is "31f". Thus, the angular recording density will increase band by band with increasing radial distance but the linear density at the inner diameter of each band is constant.
Spiral, banded recording is generally preferred for high performance optical applications. If during a seek operation the laser beam lands in the same band in which the target sector is located, sector marks, ID information and user data can be detected and read without a clock frequency change. However, if the laser beam lands in one band (band N-1) and the target sector is in the next band (band N), the clock frequency must be set to f.sub.N-1 for proper sector mark detection and to read the ID's in band N-1 and then changed to frequency f.sub.N at the boundary between bands N-1 and N for proper sector mark detection and to read the ID's and user data in band N. Because of code overhead, clock settling time and other delays, which can be approximately 50 microseconds, a certain delay is incurred after the clock frequency has changed. This clock switching delay prevents the use of windowing to the next sector mark and reduces the robustness afforded by the windowing technique. For example, if the first sector of the new band has a bad sector mark, it may be unrecoverable with no means to synchronize the controller to read the ID. Moreover, a sector near the inner diameter of a 512 byte/sector disk may pass in about 500 microseconds while a sector near the outer diameter may pass in only about 300 microseconds. Consequently, if the target is the first sector of band N and the clock frequency changes after detection of the last sector mark of the last track of band N-1, target sector detection will be unreliable and may, in fact, be impossible. On the other hand, if the frequency is changed from f.sub.N-1 to f.sub.N while the head is still in band N-1, the remaining sector marks and ID information in band N-1 cannot be reliably read and windowing of sector marks cannot be used because controller synchronization can be lost. Other combinations of target sector locations and locations of sectors on which the laser beam lands relative to band boundaries also result in reduced reliability with which sector marks can be detected and data written or read. Consequently, it has been preferred to remap, or otherwise designate as unusable or spare, certain sectors or even tracks at or near band boundaries thereby wasting valuable disk capacity and increasing access time.

Apparatus and method for accessing sectors of a rotating disk

International Business Machines Corporation


A refrigerator includes a fermentation compartment having a heater and a cooler. A food container is inserted into the compartment for fermenting food. The container includes a power source, a detector, and a radio transmitter. The detector detects fermentation conditions within the container. That detected information transmitted by the transmitter as radio signals which are received by a controller of the refrigerator which controls the temperature in the fermentation compartment in accordance with the received information. If the power source in the container becomes insufficiently charged, an indicator lamp on the refrigerator is energized.

This invention relates to a refrigerator including a fermenting compartment and a temperature control method therefore, particularly to a refrigerator which detects the temperature, the pH concentration, the CO.sub.2 concentration and the gas pressure of fermented foods inside the food container placed in the fermenting compartment, transmits this detected data to the refrigerator control portion which controls the conditions in the food container in the fermenting compartment according to the data and stores the fermenting foods container thereafter.
In general, as shown FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a refrigerator controls the temperature in the refrigerator by turning on and off a compressor depending on the setting of a thermostat 4. Because a temperature sensing tube 3 is mounted on an evaporator 1 or a refrigerating compartment 2, when the temperature of the evaporator 1 or the refrigerating compartment 2 reaches a predetermined temperature, the compressor stops and the refrigerator also stops.
Over a time period, when the temperature of the evaporator 1 and the refrigerating compartment 2 rises, the pressure in a diaphragm 5 also rises. Accordingly, when the compartment reaches the predetermined temperature, the contact point 6 is moved into contact with the other contact point and the compressor begins to operate. The time required to turn on and off the compressor varies based on strength of an adjustable spring 7. When an user rotates the cam 9 by adjusting the dial handle 8, the position of an adjusting lever 11 is changed. The elastic strength of the adjusting spring 7 varies according to changes in the lever's position, so that its strength is adjusted. The refrigerator described above merely stores foods which have been fermented in another apparatus and it does not include a food fermenting apparatus.
Thus, in order to ferment and store fermented foods such as kimchi (Korean pickled vegetables) in the refrigerator, the refrigerator as described above is provided with a fermenting compartment which includes a door and heaters at the top and the bottom surfaces of the compartment to maintain the proper fermenting temperature. Here, because an insulating wall is provided between the fermenting compartment and the other compartments, the warm air generated in the fermenting compartment does not affect the other compartments. Also, the fermenting compartment includes coolant pipes at the left, right and rear interior walls in order to store the fermented foods after the fermenting process is finished and thus the fermenting compartment is maintained at a storing temperature by circulating the coolant through the pipes.
The refrigerator of FIGS. 1 and 2 is operated at a predetermined temperature without regarding various temperature changes necessary for fermenting and storing foods. Because it takes some time for the thermal energy generated in the fermenting compartment to influence the fermented foods in the storage container, the temperature between the storage container and the fermenting compartment may be different. Therefore, even if the temperature in the fermenting compartment is proper to the fermenting condition, but the temperature in the storage container might not be proper. Due to the above mentioned reason, the fermentation process of the stored foods may not be accurately controlled.
In order to solve the problem, a prior art container including an apparatus detecting the various fermentation conditions is placed in the fermenting compartment of the refrigerator and controls the temperature in the container depending on the detected data.
When that prior art container is used to control the fermenting process and is put in the fermenting compartment after the fermenting process, various data communication lines (hereinafter "lines") between the container and the refrigerator are provided so that the fermentation and storage condition data, for example temperature, hydrogen ion concentration, CO.sub.2 concentration and gas pressure and the like, may be transmitted on the lines to the refrigerator control mechanism.
At this time, the above described prior art container and refrigerator has a disadvantage in that, when the container is moved so that the interior of the refrigerator can be cleaned as necessary, the electrical lines hinder the movement of the container and the cleaning of the refrigerator.
Accordingly, the present invention was invented in order to solve the problems.
One object of the present invention is to enable a refrigerator to detect the fermentation conditions and control accurately the temperature in the storage container according to the detected data.
Another object of the present invention is to supply the refrigerator with an apparatus for radio-communicating data between the container and refrigerator control portion.

Refrigerator including a fermenting compartment and temperature control method thereof


A pulse generating apparatus efficiently generates a pulse signal by receiving a control signal. A voltage level controller 20 receives a control signal and outputs a certain voltage through a node N0. A output level variation element C is placed between a node N0 and a node N1. A switching element 30 applies a high voltage Vcc to the node N1. A switching element 40 applies a low voltage Vss to the node N1. The pulse is generated by a logic operation of the control signal and a voltage on a node N0.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a pulse generating apparatus applied to semiconductor circuits, and more particularly to a pulse generating apparatus generating a pulse at an output terminal in response to conditions of a control signal and an input signal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A related art of a pulse generating apparatus typically includes a delay circuit having a plurality of inverters IV1 to IV3 which are connected in series to each other by using resistors R1 and R2 and capacitors C1 and C2, so that an output signal with an inphase or antiphase to an input signal is output as depicted in FIG. 1 (an antiphase signal is output in FIG. 1).
As depicted in FIG. 2, a related art of the pulse generating apparatus having the delay circuit includes a delay circuit 10 for delaying an external input signal A0 during a constant time, and a NAND gate 12 for performing a NAND operation by receiving both the external input signal A0 and an output A1 (delayed external signal) from the delay circuit 10.
According to the related art of the pulse generating apparatus, if the input signal A0 shown in FIG. 3a is inputted to one terminal of the NAND gate 12, and an opposite and delayed signal A1 through the delay circuit 10 as shown in FIG. 3b is inputted to the other terminal of the NAND gate 12, a logic low pulse is generated when the input signal A0 of a low level is changed to a high level as the result of a logical condition for the input signal combination in the NAND gate 12, as shown in FIG. 3c.
FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing the other related art of a pulse generating apparatus. As depicted in FIG. 4, the other related art of the pulse generating apparatus includes a delay circuit 10 for delaying an input signal B0 during a constant time, and a NOR gate 14 for performing a NOR gate operation upon receiving the input signal B0 and the output signal B1 from the delay circuit 10.
According to the other related art of the pulse generating apparatus, the input signal B0 as shown in FIG. 5a is inputted to a terminal of the NOR gate 14, and a delayed signal B1 with antiphase as shown in FIG. 5b is inputted to the other terminal of the NOR gate 14, thereby generating a logic high pulse when the input signal B0 of a high level is changed to a low level as the result of the logical condition for the input signal combination in the NOR gate 14 as shown in FIG. 5c.
As described above, there is a problem in that the related art of the pulse generating apparatus has been used for connecting additional capacitors having too large an area to extend the width of a required pulse signal, and other gates have been required to control the width of the pulse signal. Accordingly, the total area of the related art of the pulse generating apparatus may be increased as a result of the above reasons.

Hyundai Electronics Industries Co., Ltd.


A method for sharing media content, a terminal device, and a content sharing system are provided. A method for sharing media content may include: obtaining, by a first terminal device, M network addresses from the N second terminal devices; obtaining, based on the M network addresses, M pieces of media content from a content server, editing the M pieces of media content obtained from the content server to obtain first media content, and generating editing information according to an editing manner used when the first media content is obtained; sending the editing information to the content server; receiving a second network address sent by the content server; and publishing the second network address on a social networking server. The solutions of the embodiments of the present invention enhance flexibility of content sharing and user interactivity in a social networking service scenario.

Currently, various services based on social networking services (SNS) have already become major tools for a user to propagate content.
A user can publish media content such as a photo, a video, and music by using, for example, a microblog. The microblog publishes content besides texts, including content on a local terminal, or can publish a uniform/universal resource locator (URL) of a third party website, and other people can browse the published content by using this URL address. If the user publishes a video, the video basically cannot be published due to limitation of such conditions as an uploading bandwidth and a background service. Only some SNS accounts with a special right can publish video content.
Currently, there are many similar applications related to video-based or Over The Top (OTT) video (referring to a video service based on the open Internet)-based interactions on the Internet, though some interactions are an interaction manner different from an SNS interaction instead of interactions based on a real SNS service. For example, according to a piece of OTT video content or in an online OTT content live broadcasting room, a user can express an opinion based on content, and can communicate with other users who are watching the content simultaneously.
In some existing applications, for example, when a user watches a television program or a piece of OTT video content on a television, the user can discover, by using an SNS client installed on a terminal device or a personal computer, some persons who are watching the same program simultaneously, and can discuss and share program content. By using the client, the user may also search for some desired content or what content related persons are watching; or, the client may also interconnect with another SNS client, for example, a microblog; and the user may publish, by using the client, related program information or comments on the microblog.
However, in the prior art, the user only establishes a "community" based on existing content to achieve a purpose of communication and sharing, and the user has a relatively low participation in the content, which limits user interactivity and flexibility of content sharing to a certain degree.

Method for sharing media content, terminal device, and content sharing system


Non-volatile resistive-switching memories formed using anodization are described. A method for forming a resistive-switching memory element using anodization includes forming a metal containing layer, anodizing the metal containing layer at least partially to form a resistive switching metal oxide, and forming a first electrode over the resistive switching metal oxide. In some examples, an unanodized portion of the metal containing layer may be a second electrode of the memory element.

Nonvolatile memories are semiconductor type memories that retain their contents when unpowered. Nonvolatile memories are used for storage in electronic devices such as digital cameras, cellular telephones, and music players, as well as in general computer systems, embedded systems and other electronic devices that require persistent storage. Nonvolatile semiconductor memories can take the form of removable and easily transportable memory cards or other memory modules, can be integrated into other types of circuits or devices, or can take any other desired form. Nonvolatile semiconductor memories are becoming more prevalent because of their advantages of being small and persistent, having no moving parts, and requiring little power to operate.
Flash memory is a common type of nonvolatile memory used in a variety of devices. Flash memory is a transistor-based memory device that uses multiple gates per transistor and quantum tunneling to store the contents of a memory cell. Flash memory uses a block-access architecture that can result in long access, erase, and writing times.
The speeds of electronic devices and the storage demands of users are rapidly increasing. Flash memory is proving to be inadequate for nonvolatile memory needs. Additionally, volatile memories (such as random access memory (RAM)) can potentially be replaced by nonvolatile memories if the speeds of nonvolatile memories are increased to meet the requirements for RAM and other currently volatile memories.
Thus, what is needed is a new type of nonvolatile memory. Memories that include elements which exhibit changes in resistive states in response to the application of voltages have been described. These memories typically have operational and durability limitations. Therefore, a resistive-switching memory with improved operational and durability characteristics is desired.


A microphone which uses noise-adaptive automatic output level control in speech recording. An input amplifier cooperates with a voltage doubler to form an automatic gain control. A diode and capacitor circuit provides for envelope detection of the signal which is then differentiated, amplified and detected to result in a DC control signal. This control signal is applied to an output amplifier which functions as a three pole Chebyshev filter in which a reduction of gain dampens one pole of the filter causing the response to drop off, so that the signal appearing at the output of the microphone has a substantially high speech-to-noise ratio. The output signal appears at a constant level where it may then be acted upon by the automatic gain control of an associated tape recorder connected to the microphone.

In conventional audio tape recorders, particularly those intended for recording speech, automatic recording level control has been provided to assure adequate recording level even though the speech level may be low. Provision in such conventional audio tape recorders is also present to prevent overload if the speech level becomes too high.
The automatic conventional level controls, however, do not discriminate between the speech signals and undesirable sounds which may be gathered by the microphone. The conventional automatic level controls respond, instead, to the average total sound pressure applied to the microphone.
Thus, if the speech amplitude at a distance somewhat remote from the microphone is comparable to the noise amplitude as it impinges on the microphone, the automatic control will reduce the gain to a point where the recorded speech may be unintelligible.

Microphone assembly for speech recording using noise-adaptive output level control


A submicron channel length is achieved in cells having sharp corners, such as square cells, by blunting the corners of the cells. In this way, the three dimensional diffusion effect is minimized, and punch through is avoided. Techniques are discussed for minimizing defects in the shallow junctions used for forming the short channel, including the use of a thin dry oxide rather than a thicker steam thermal over the body contact area, a field shaping p+ diffusion to enhance breakdown voltage, and TCA gathering. Gate-source leakage is reduced with extrinsic gathering on the poly backside, and intrinsic gathering due to the choice of starting material. Five masking step and six masking step processes are also disclosed for manufacturing a power MOSFET structure. This power MOSFET structure has an active region with a plurality of active cells as well as a termination region with a field ring or a row of inactive cells and a polysilicon field plate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the fabrication of integrated circuit structures, and more particularly to the fabrication of low defect DMOSFETs and associated termination structures.
2. Description of Related Art
Power MOSFET devices enjoy widespread use in such applications as automobile electrical systems, power supplies, and power management applications. Many such devices are commercially available, but an illustrative device is product number SMP60N05, available from Siliconix incorporated, Santa Clara, Calif. This device is an N-channel enhancement mode transistor packaged in a TO-220AB case. The technology used to fabricate the SMP60N05 product is characterized by a specific on-resistance of 3.5 milliohms-cm.sup.2.
Many different processes have been used for the fabrication of power MOSFET devices over the years. These are generally deep diffusion processes. For example, in one early process disclosed in Great Britain Patent Application Publication No. 2 033 658 A, published May 21, 1980 and naming Lidow et al. as coinventors, a p+ tub region is about 4 microns deep and a p+ body region is about 3 microns deep. The cell configuration is hexagonal.
The technology used to fabricate the SMP60N05 product typically achieves junction depths rangeing from 2.5 to 5 microns for the body, from 5 to 6 microns for the p+ body contact, and from 0.5 to 1 micron for the n+ source regions. The cell configuration is square.


An apparatus and method provides for rotatably cutting and/or laminating layered structures or sheet material supported by webs. A rotary converting apparatus and method of the present invention converts a web comprising a cathode layered structure and a web comprising an anode layered structure into a series of layered electrochemical cell structures supported by a release liner. Employment of a rotary converting process of the present invention provides, among other benefits, for the creation of a product having a finished size, without need for downstream or subsequent cutting.

This invention relates generally to lamination apparatuses and methods and, more particularly, to rotary converting lamination apparatuses and methods.
Various lamination apparatuses and processes have been developed to produce products constructed from sheet material. Many conventional lamination approaches employ a cutting mechanism that cuts a sheet of material into small segments. The individual segments are then manually or mechanistically aligned and layered as part of a separate lamination process. The layered structure is then subjected to lamination forces by an appropriate force producing mechanism.
Notwithstanding the variety of conventional lamination and stacking approaches currently available, many of such approaches are not well suited for applications which require relatively high levels of productivity, automation, and flexibility. For example, many conventional lamination processes are unable to accommodate varying types of materials, sheet sizes, and sheet shapes. Many of such available lamination techniques are not well suited nor adaptable to autonomously and continuously laminate multiple webs of differing materials, as is typically necessary in the construction of thin-film electrochemical laminate structures, for example.
There exists a need for an improved apparatus and method for laminating films and sheet materials of varying types, colors, shapes, and sizes. There exists a particular need for an improved apparatus and method for laminating layers of electrochemical cell materials and for producing electrochemical unit cells for use in the construction of solid-state, thin-film batteries. The present invention fulfills these and other needs.
The present invention is generally directed to an apparatus and method for rotatably cutting and/or laminating layered structures or sheet material supported by webs. The present invention is also directed to an apparatus and method for rotatably cutting layered structures or sheet material supported by a web, and laminating cut layered structures/sheets to other web material such that a spacing is provided between adjacent cut layered structures/sheets. Additional structural and process features of the present invention further provide for cutting through the other web material, but not entirely through a liner of the other web, within the spacing between adjacent cut layered structures/sheets.
In the context of an electrochemical cell construction, a rotary converting apparatus and method of the present invention converts a web comprising a cathode layered structure and a web comprising an anode layered structure into a series of layered electrochemical cell structures supported by a release liner. Employment of a rotary converting process of the present invention provides, among other benefits, for the creation of a product having a finished size, without need for downstream or subsequent cutting.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus and method provide for the production of a series of thin-film electrochemical unit cells. A web (cathode web) comprising a cathode layered structure moving at a first speed is cut into a series of cathode sheets. Each of the cathode sheets is moved at a second speed equal to or greater than the first speed. Each of the cathode sheets moving at the second speed is laminated to a web (anode web) comprising an anode layered structure moving at the second speed to produce a laminated unit cell having a space between adjacent cathode sheets. The laminated anode web is cut within the space between adjacent cathode sheets to produce a series of unit cell sheets.
In one particular embodiment, cutting the cathode web involves cutting a portion of the cathode web and removing the excess cathode web. The space between adjacent cathode sheets, in this embodiment, is a function of a size and/or shape of the removed excess cathode web.
According to another embodiment, cutting the cathode web involves rotatably cutting the cathode web, and laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web involves rotatably moving each of the cathode sheets at the second. speed. Laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web may further involve rotatably moving the anode web at the second speed. The anode web may include a release liner, and cutting the laminated anode web may involve cutting through the anode layered structure to at least, or through a portion of, the release liner.
Each of the cathode sheets may be defined by a length (L). Cutting the cathode web may be accomplished using a rotary die. In this case, the length (L) of each cathode sheet is a function of the first speed (W1) of cathode web movement relative to the second speed (W2) of the rotary die.
The cathode web may be cut using at least one rotating die blade separated by a circumferential blade spacing (D). The length (L) of each cathode sheet, in this case, is a function of the first speed (W1) of cathode web movement relative to the circumferential die blade spacing (D) and the second speed (W2) of the rotary die. For example, the length (L) of each cathode sheets may be characterized by an equation L=D(W1/W2).
The space (S) between adjacent cathode sheets, according to one embodiment, is a function of the first speed (W1) of cathode web movement relative to the second speed (W2) of anode web movement. Cutting the cathode web may involve cutting the cathode web with at least one rotating die blade separated by a circumferential blade spacing (D), such that the space (S) between adjacent cathode sheets is a function of the first speed (W1) of cathode web movement relative to the circumferential die blade spacing (D) and the second speed (W2) of the rotary die. For example, the space (S) between adjacent cathode sheets may be characterized by an equation S=D((W2/W1)xe2x88x921).
In accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention, the cathode sheets may be defined by a length (L) of between about 0.25 inches and about 24 inches. The space (S) between adjacent cathode sheets may range between about 0.015 inches and about 0.4 inches. A ratio of the second speed with respect to the first speed may range between about 1.005 and about 1.05. The first speed may range between about 5 feet per minute and about 500 feet per minute, and the second speed may range between about 5.025 feet per minute and about 525 feet per minute.
Laminating the cathode sheets to the anode web may further involve laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web such that a portion of each cathode sheet extends beyond at least one edge of the anode layered structure of the anode web to provide a lamination offset therebetween. The lamination offset may, for example, range between about 0.04 inches and about 0.31 inches.
Laminating the cathode sheets to the anode web may also involve heating one or both of the cathode sheets or the anode web. Cutting the laminated anode web may further involve detecting the space between adjacent cathode sheets, such as by optical or mechanical techniques.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus and method of producing a series of thin-film electrochemical unit cells provides for moving a web (cathode web) comprising a cathode layered structure at a first speed. The cathode web is rotatably cut at a second speed to produce a series of cathode sheets. Each of the cathode sheets moving at the second speed is rotatably laminated to a web (anode web) comprising an anode layered structure moving at a third speed to produce a laminated unit cell having a space between adjacent cathode sheets.
In one configuration, the first, second, and third speeds are substantially equal. In another configuration, the second and third speeds are substantially equal, and the second and third speeds are greater than the first speed. In yet another configuration, the first and second speeds are substantially equal, and the third speed is greater than the first and second speeds. In a further configuration, the first, second, and third speeds are unequal, such that the third speed is greater than the second speed, and the third and second speeds are greater than the first speed.
According to another configuration, the first and second speeds are substantially equal, and cutting the cathode web involves cutting a portion of the cathode web and removing the excess cathode web to produce the space between adjacent cathode sheets. In this case, the space between adjacent cathode sheets is a function of a size and/or shape of the removed excess cathode web.
In another approach, the third speed is greater than the first and second speeds, and laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web further involves moving the anode web at the third speed to produce the space between adjacent cathode sheets. According to a further approach, the third speed is greater than the first and second speeds, and laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web further involves rotatably moving each of the cathode sheets at the second speed while rotatably moving the anode web at the third speed to produce the space between adjacent cathode sheets. Laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web may also involve laminating each of the cathode sheets to the anode web such that a portion of each cathode sheet extends beyond at least one edge of the anode layered structure of the anode web to provide a lamination offset therebetween.
In accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus and method of producing a series of thin-film electrochemical unit cells involves cutting a web comprising a cathode layered structure at a first speed into a series of cathode layered structures using a patterned rotary die. Each of the cathode layered structures is laminated to a web comprising an anode layered structure moving at a second speed equal to or greater than the first speed to produce a laminated unit cell having a space between adjacent cathode layered structures. Waste cathode web material resulting from patterned rotary die cutting is discarded or collected.
According to this embodiment, the space between adjacent cathode layered structures is a function of a size and/or shape of the patterned rotary die. The patterned rotary die may, for example, have a rectangular shape.
In accordance with another embodiment, an output of a rotary converting apparatus of the present invention may be coupled to an input to a stacking apparatus of the present invention. A combined rotary converting/stacking apparatus and methodology according to the present invention provides for the production of laminated stacks of similar or dissimilar layers of varying materials, in virtually any shape.
The above summary of the present invention is not intended to describe each embodiment or every implementation of the present invention. Advantages and attainments, together with a more complete understanding of the invention, will become apparent and appreciated by referring to the following detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Rotary converting apparatus and method for laminated products and packaging


In a lens plate (18) for an optical sensor device in a vehicle, in particular for a rain sensor, with a transmitter-side lens structure (26) and a receiver-side lens structure (32), the transmitter-side lens structure (26) partially is provided with anti-transmission features which in individual regions of the lens plate (18) partially or completely prevent the passage of the light emitted by a light transmitter (14).

This invention relates to a lens plate for an optical sensor device in a vehicle, in particular for a rain sensor, with a transmitter-side lens structure and a receiver-side lens structure.
Rain sensors in vehicles, which detect the wetting of a pane, include a light transmitter, a lens plate attached to the pane with a coupling layer, and a light receiver. The lens plate includes a transmitter-side and a receiver-side lens structure, which each consist of a light input and a light output structure.
The light emitted by the light transmitter is coupled into the lens plate by means of the transmitter-side light input structure and converted to substantially parallel light beams which vertically traverse the lens plate. The transmitter-side light output structure deflects the light bundle by about 45°, so that after traversing the coupling layer and the glass it reaches the outer surface thereof. There, the light bundle is totally reflected and again traverses glass and coupling layer. The receiver-side light input structure again directs the light bundle vertically through the lens plats, before it is focused onto the surface of the light receiver by the receiver-side light output structure.
During wetting of the surface of the pane, a part of the light is coupled out at the surface of the pane. Thus, only a part of the light is reflected. By means of the variation of the intensity of the reflected light which is reflected back onto the light receiver, the wetting of the pane thus can be detected.
In the lens plates known from the prior art, the light distribution on the windshield, however, is not uniform, but has a distinct peak in the middle and a strong decrease towards the edge. Wetting in the edge region, in which the light intensity is distinctly lower, thus leads to a lower loss of light than wetting in the middle of the measurement region. Wetting in the edge region thus is hard to detect due to the small light difference. The surface which can be utilized for defecting the wetting of the pane thus is substantially smaller than the actually illuminated surface.

TRW AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRONICS & COMPONENTS GmbH


A linear seat recliner for use in a motor vehicle having a seat with a seat back pivotally connected to a seat bottom. The seat is operable in a plurality of use positions ranging from an upright position to a fully reclined position. The linear seat recliner includes a housing adapted to be coupled to one of the seat back and the seat bottom, a latching mechanism coupled to the housing, and a recliner rod. The recliner rod includes a body having a first end and a second end. The body has a substantially planar top flat diametrically opposed and parallel to a substantially planar bottom flat. The top flat includes a plurality of teeth positioned at the first end of the body. The first end of the recliner rod is selectively engageable by the latching mechanism and the second end of the recliner rod is adapted to be coupled to the other of the seat back and the seat bottom.

1. Technical Field
The present invention generally pertains to a seat for a motor vehicle and, more particularly, to a linear seat recliner for a motor vehicle passenger seat.
2. Discussion
Most motor vehicles are equipped with seats having a seat bottom, a seat back pivotally secured to the seat bottom and a recliner mechanism for latching the seat back in a desired use position relative to the seat bottom. Generally, the recliner mechanism may be selectively actuated for adjusting the angularity of the seat back relative to the seat bottom through a range of use positions defined between an upright position and a fully reclined position. One type of recliner mechanism, referred to as a linear seat recliner, typically includes a housing and an elongated recliner rod having a first end supported by the housing. The housing is adapted to be mounted to the seat bottom frame and the second end of the recliner rod is pivotally secured to a lever arm extension of the seat back frame. A latch assembly normally functions to latch the first end of the recliner rod to the housing. Upon release of the latch assembly, linear movement of the recliner rod relative to the housing results in angular movement of the seat back relative to the seat bottom.
Conventionally, the recliner rod is constructed from a generally cylindrical smooth rod having a circular cross section. A portion of the rod is subsequently machined to include a plurality of teeth spaced along the recliner rod. Standard manufacturing techniques such as broaching require the recliner rod to be fixed while the teeth are machined. Unfortunately, the use of a generally cylindrical recliner rod make it difficult to properly form teeth on the rod. Specifically, the round rod has a tendency to rotate during machining making it difficult to properly align the teeth on the rod. Alternatively, the smooth cylindrical rod is commonly first machined to provide a planar segment and then broached in order to produce a suitable tooth width. Accordingly, it would be desirable to construct a linear seat recliner having a recliner rod with an economically manufactured, properly formed set of teeth.
In addition, many linear recliner mechanisms utilize a stop radially protruding from an end of the recliner rod in order to limit the travel of the rod in relation to the housing. While the stop is useful in limiting the travel of the seat back relative to the seat bottom, it is time consuming and therefore costly to manufacture and attach a separate stop to a recliner rod. Therefore, it would be advantageous to design a recliner rod that is capable of providing an integral stop for minimal cost.
Lastly, some recliner mechanisms do not function properly as a result of binding of the recliner rod with the mating components. These recliner rods are typically not well supported within the housing and may excessively bend due to input loading. Accordingly, a guided recliner rod with an increased resistance to bending would be a welcome improvement.

Linear seat recliner for structural seat


The electromagnetic machine (1) includes a tubular duct (3 ) intended to receive a conducting material which can circulate in the duct (3) around the core (4) and an inductor (2) arranged coaxially around the duct (3). The inductor (2) includes a magnetic circuit (15) formed by laminated sheet metal combs (18) and windings (14 ) arranged in annular notches (5 ) made in the magnetic circuit (15). The notches (5) are separated from each other by teeth. The teeth of the inductor have lengths in the axial direction which are smaller in the central part of the inductor (2) than in the end parts. The notches (5) are less deep at the ends than in the central part and enclose windings having a smaller number of turns. The windings (14) are each connected to one phase of a polyphase current source.

Electromagnetic machines, such as pumps intended to circulate a conducting liquid material, devices for braking the circulation of a conducting liquid in a duct, linear motors or alternatively magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) generators, which include a straight tubular duct intended to receive a conducting material which can circulate in the duct, and an inductor arranged coaxially around the duct, are known.
The inductor generally includes a magnetic circuit formed by magnetic sheet metal combs forming annular notches coaxial with the duct, in each of which notches an annular winding, coaxial with the duct, is arranged.
The notches of the combs of the inductor of the electromagnetic machines of known type, in which the windings are arranged, are separated by parts, called teeth, which project radially inward.
The windings, which are distributed along the axial direction of the electromagnetic machine, are each connected to one phase of a polyphase current source, so that the inductor creates a field sliding in the axial direction, along the tubular duct.
Induced currents are thus created in the conducting material inside the duct, so that the material is circulated in the axial sense, by the combined effect of the induced currents and the sliding magnetic field of the inductor. In order to facilitate closure of the field lines inside the tubular duct, in particular in the case when the electromagnetic machine is used as a pump, it is proposed to place a magnetic core in a concentric arrangement inside the duct.
Such a pump can be used in particular for circulating a liquid metal, such as sodium, used as a heat-exchange fluid in fast-neutron nuclear reactors.
In such pumps, and more generally in the case of electromagnetic machines, whatever their use, it is desired to increase the efficiency of the machine, i.e., for example, in the case of a pump, the ratio of the hydraulic power to the electrical power consumed by the pump.
In the case of linear-induction electromagnetic pumps which are known and used, this efficiency is always substantially less than 50%.
Electromagnetic machines are also known, such as pumps including a duct of flat shape, for example with a rectangular cross-section, and a flat inductor including straight and mutually parallel notches which are separated by straight teeth. The inductor is placed parallel and facing one of the large plane faces of the duct, so that the teeth point towards the duct.
In the linear-induction electromagnetic machines of known the, the teeth of the inductor are all the same length and are regularly distributed in the axial direction.
The distance between the successive windings of the inductor is therefore constant.
Furthermore, the successive windings of the inductor are generally identical and all produce the same number of amps/turn.
As indicated above, the efficiency of such an electromagnetic machine used as a pump is substantially less than 50%, and generally close to 40%.
In order to increase the efficiency of linear-induction electromagnetic pumps, such as pumps used for circulating liquid sodium in fast-neutron nuclear reactors, various solutions are proposed which make it possible to vary either the speed of circulation of the fluid in the axial direction, or alternatively the distribution of the magnetic flux.
It has for example been proposed to use a duct having conical parts so as to vary the passage cross-section and therefore the speed of the fluid in the axial direction of the inductor corresponding to the direction of circulation of the fluid.
Producing such conical parts on the fluid circulation duct raises difficulties in design and manufacture of the duct.
It has also been proposed to produce a linear-induction electromagnetic pump whose inductor has an additional pole at one of its ends, consisting of a longer additional tooth, or of an extension of the last tooth of an inductor of standard type.
Although such a pump makes it possible to achieve an efficiency of close to 50%, this solution cannot be adopted generally, insofar as it has the drawback of increasing the bulk and the mass of the pump. In the case of pumps intended for conveying the liquid sodium of fast-neutron nuclear reactors with a very high hourly throughput, for example of the order of 600 m.sup.3 /hour or even 11,000 m.sup.3 /hour, the axial size of the pump reaches a value of several meters, and it is generally undesirable to increase this size further.
It has also been proposed to place two windings of different pole pitches on top of each other in each of the notches of the combs of the inductor. This solution leads to a high investment cost which is due to the complexity of the electrical supply or of actually producing the winding itself.
In GB-A-2,064,229, it was proposed, with the aim of decreasing the reactive power of an electromagnetic machine, to use a stator including two successive parts, the first having regularly spaced pole pitches, and the second having regularly spaced pole pitches, but with shorter pitches than the first. Such an arrangement does not substantially improve the efficiency of the electromagnetic machine.
Linear-induction electromagnetic machine having both high efficiency and moderate size and cost, in particular those which could operate as a pump with high power and high throughput were known.

Linear-induction electromagnetic machine with optimized magnetic flux distribution and use


Title information on music composition data recorded on a reproduction CD is acquired from a title information providing site and recorded on a recording MD together with composition data. A recording/reproducing apparatus (100) transmits TOC information acquired from the reproduction CD to a title information providing server (500) through a communication device (200), a wireless public communication network (WNET), a communication exchange (400), and the Internet (INET). The title information providing server (500) creates an inquiry code corresponding to the received TOC information and transmits it to a title information database (600). The title information database (600) sends a response code corresponding to the inquiry code as a reply to the title information providing server (500). The title information providing server (500) creates title information corresponding to the response code and transmits the title information to the recording/reproducing apparatus (100) through the devices and networks in the reverse direction to the direction in which the TOC information is transmitted. In the communication paths, the communication methods are converted for the respective devices.

A recording/reproducing apparatus capable of recording music composition data (voice signal) acquired by reproducing a CD (Compact Disc), etc., on an MD (Mini Disc), etc., is known.
An MD is provided with a U-TOC (User's Table Of Contents) as an area for recording title information composed of track titles, etc., for each disc title and music composition data piece.
After recording music composition data on the MD, the recording/reproducing apparatus can register disc titles and track titles, etc. (title information) entered by the user in the U-TOC of the MD.
On the other hand, a service of providing information on commercially available music CDs for users who access over the Internet is becoming a common practice. A disc information database for providing such a service prestores detailed information (attribute information) on various kinds of commercially available music CDs in a database system and supplies the attribute information at the request from a requesting device.
The user can easily acquire information on music CD titles, music titles, artists, etc., (attribute information) using the disc information database through a music-related site. However, when the information acquired from the disc information database is registered in the U-TOC of an MD, the user needs to operate a predetermined operation section (operation keys and remote control, etc.) of the recording/reproducing apparatus to enter characters of information one by one. Such an operation is troublesome to the user.
Furthermore, after the user registers information such as an album title and music title in the U-TOC of the MD, the recording/reproducing apparatus can display the album title and music title, etc., on a display section during reproducing of the MD.
However, it is often the case that the user cannot easily grasp the image of the music or artist through the album title and music title, etc., displayed on the display section alone.
Thus, if an image related to the disc (e.g., picture on the jacket or artist image, etc.) can be displayed simultaneously with the reproduction of the disc such as MD, it is to be expected that this will allow the user to easily grasp the image of the music or artist and thereby enjoy the music in a more profound way.
When using the above-described disc information database, the requesting device sends TOC information for identifying a music CD to a music-related site, etc. In this case, generally, the requesting device only sends a minimum portion of the TOC information that can identify the music CD instead of sending the full TOC information acquired from the music CD.
This may cause a plurality of attribute information pieces to be searched from the disc information database. In such a case, the requesting device will be presented a message that a plurality of attribute information pieces has been searched or part of each attribute information piece (album title, etc.) sent from the music-related site, etc. on the display section and requested to select at least one attribute information piece. Then, the requesting device continues communicating with or remains connected to the Internet until the user selects the attribute information, which results in extra communication charges.
That is, until the requesting device finishes acquiring the attribute information, the user needs to stay and check the requesting device and if a plurality of attribute information pieces has been searched, the user needs to immediately instruct the requesting device to select some attribute information.
Especially when acquiring attribute information on a plurality of music CDs, the user needs to check the requesting device over a long time until the requesting device finishes acquiring the attribute information.
As stated above, to access the music-related site, the requesting device needs to get connected to the Internet using some communication apparatus. When this communication apparatus is a wireless communication apparatus (mobile wireless communication device) such as a portable phone, a strong electric field generated during a communication may cause some influence on the requesting device or the operation thereof.
For example, when the requesting device is a recording apparatus (recording/reproducing apparatus), it is affected by a strong electric field and the recording quality may deteriorate. That is, while the recording apparatus (recording/reproducing apparatus) is recording music composition data if the portable phone, etc., is used to communicate with the music-related site, etc., noise or a noise signal may be mixed in the data.
To avoid the influence of such a strong electric field, the recording apparatus (recording/reproducing apparatus) may be protected with an electromagnetic shield material, etc., but this is not quite realistic because it would involve a cost increase.
The present invention has been implemented taking into account the actual situations described above and it is an object of the present invention to make it possible to acquire attribute information of music composition recorded on a reproducing medium from an information providing site and easily record it in a recording medium, etc.
Furthermore, it is another object of the present invention to easily acquire attribute information of music composition and provide an available system and method.
Furthermore, it is a further object of the present invention to easily acquire attribute information of music composition and provide an available apparatus.
Furthermore, it is a still further object of the present invention to make it possible to appropriately provide attribute information on music composition recorded on a reproducing medium.
The present invention has been implemented taking into account the actual situations described above and it is a still further object of the present invention to provide a recording/reproducing apparatus capable of appropriately recording music composition data, etc., taking into account influences of communications by communication apparatuses.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

System for transferring information on attribute of, for example, CD


The present invention provides a system for correcting improperly printed or otherwise defective bar codes. The system scans a bar code and determines whether the scanned bar code data is correct. If the scanned bar code data is incorrect, the system uses the incorrect scanned bar code data to create a scan-based printhead model. The correct data is entered manually, and the manually entered data is used to construct an active printhead model. The scan-based and active printhead models are then compared in order to identify printhead defects, which are stored to correct future bar code scans.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improvements in systems for reading bar codes, and particularly to advantageous aspects of a system and methods for the detection and correction of errors in the reading of bar codes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Bar coding systems, such as the Uniform Product Code (UPC) system, are commonly used to identify items, such as products for sale in a retail store. In such systems, bar codes consisting of a series of bars and spaces of varying widths are printed onto labels that are affixed to the products for sale, or are printed directly onto the product packaging. Scanners at the checkout terminal are then used to read the bar codes. This approach allows more information to be entered in less time, as scanning requires significantly less time than manually entering pricing and product identification information. Further, the use of bar codes eliminates errors arising from keyboarding errors by checkout personnel.
Unfortunately, bar-coded labels are not always printed perfectly. Imperfections caused by the printing process frequently render the printed bar code unreadable to the bar code scanning equipment. Such cases require human intervention. Typically, the method of human intervention is to enter the bar code data manually into a keyboard, terminal, or other input device. The prevalence of this problem is one reason that the data on most bar-coded labels are printed in human-readable form adjacent to the bars and spaces comprising the bar code itself.
Each human intervention produces a delay in the scanning process. There is thus a need for a scanning system that minimizes the number of human interventions required.

System and methods for exemplar based bar code error detection and correction


A heat developable photosensitive material having two or more layers superimposed on a support and containing at least (a) an organic silver salt, (b) a photocatalyst and (c) a reducing agent in one or more such layers, at least one said layers containing (d) a polymer having a repeating unit of the formula: ##STR1## wherein R is a hydrogen atom or a lower alkyl group; and X is a hydrogen atom, or one to three groups selected from the group consisting of a halogen atom, a nitro group, a cyano group, an alkyl group, an alkoxy group, an alkoxycarbonyl group, an alkylsulfonyl group, an aryloxy group, an acyl group, an acyloxy group and an acylamido group.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a heat developable photosensitive material and more particularly to a heat developable photosensitive material having a laminated structure with improved contact between each layer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A heat developable photosensitive material is a photographic material that can be dry-processed without using any liquid. As illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,152,904 and 3,457,075, the essential components of the material are an organic silver salt such as silver behenate, a reducing agent for the organic silver salt, and a photocatalyst such as silver halide that releases, upon exposure to light, a substance which serves as a catalyst for the reaction between the organic silver salt and the reducing agent under heating. Such a photographic material is stable at ordinary temperatures but when it is heated to a temperature of at least 80.degree. C., preferably at least 100.degree. C., after imagewise exposure, the oxidation-reduction reaction between the organic silver salt (oxidizing agent) and the reducing agent in the photosensitive layer occurs as catalyzed by an exposed photocatalyst in proximity with the agents, and the resulting silver causes the exposed area of the photosensitive layer to rapidly darken to provide an image having contrast with the unexposed area (background).
The simplest construction of a heat developable photosensitive material comprises a support having coated thereon a single layer containing all the stated essential components. But in most practical applications, each component is incorporated in a separate layer to prevent it from entering into dark reaction with other essential components or other additives (e.g., toner). Alternatively, as taught in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 87721/78 (the term "OPI" as used herein refers to a "published unexamined Japanese patent application"), a subbing layer is disposed between the support and the single layer to prevent heat fogging, or as described in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 6917/74 (U.S. Pat. No. 3,933,508), a polymer overcoat is disposed to increase the transparency of the film or improve its keeping quality with time.
However, it was found that due to poor contact between each layer of the laminated structure, two adjacent layers easily peeled from each other, resulting in a defect called "delamination". The phenomenon of poor adhesion of laminated layers has been studied for many years in the art of common gelatin-silver halide photographic sensitive materials, but in the field of heat developable photosensitive materials, this is a new problem and few prior art references suggest a solution to it.
In some cases, delamination in a heat developable photosensitive material occurs during heat development due to a heat developing machine using a dirty developing rollers and, in other cases, it occurs when a pressure sensitive adhesive tape used to attach a heat developed photosensitive material to the wall is peeled from the wall. The defect is developed in the interface of any two layers of the heat developable photosensitive material, but the interface between the polymer overcoat and a layer beneath it is most susceptible to such defect. Delamination results in a broken copy image or the least legible image.

Heat developable photosensitive material


An apparatus, system, computer-readable medium, and method to facilitate quick transition of communications of a mobile station between network stations of a radio communication system, such as a WLAN operable to a variant of an IEEE 802 operating specification, is provided. Implementations of embodiments described herein reduce the transition duration by a pre-keying mechanism that performs authentication procedures prior to commencement of reassociation procedures. In other embodiments, a mobile station is allowed to select whether to perform pre-keying processes over an air interface with a target transition access point or whether to perform the pre-keying processes over a distribution system.

Advancements in communication technologies have resulted in the development, and subsequent deployment, of many varied types of communication systems. Communication systems are used to communicate data pursuant to any of many different types of communication services. A communication system is formed by a set of communication stations between which data is communicated. At least one of the communication stations of the set forms a sending station and at least another of the communication stations of the set forms a receiving station. The sending and receiving stations are interconnected by way of a communication channel, and the data communicated by the sending station is delivered to the receiving station by way of the communication channel.
A radio communication system is a type of communication system in which the communication channel that interconnects the communication stations and upon which data is communicated is formed of a radio channel. A radio channel is defined upon a radio link that comprises a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. When radio channels are used to communicate data between communication stations, the communication stations need not be interconnected by wireline, i.e., fixed, connections. As the positioning of the communication stations of a radio communication system does not depend upon the availability of wireline connections to interconnect the communication stations, the communication stations are positionable at locations, and in manners, that would not be possible in a wireline communication system. Communications are possible, therefore, through the use of a radio communication system at, and between, locations at which wireline communication stations could not be positioned and used. Additionally, a radio communication system is implementable as a mobile communication system in which one, or more, of the communication stations between which data is communicated is provided with communication mobility.
A cellular communication system is an exemplary type of mobile radio communication system. In a cellular communication system, a network infrastructure is installed throughout a geographical area throughout which communications are to be permitted. The network infrastructure includes, typically, a plurality of spaced-apart, fixed-site transceivers, each of which defines a cell. The positioning of the fixed-site transceivers is selected, generally, so that the cells partially overlap in manners so that, collectively, the cells encompass the entire geographical area. Radio transceivers, typically both portable and mobile, are used to communicate with the fixed-site transceivers. The portable transceivers generally communicate with the fixed-site transceiver in whose cell that the portable transceiver is positioned. As a portable transceiver travels between cells defined by different fixed-site transceivers, a communication handoff is performed to permit continued communications of, and with, the portable transceiver.
Other types of radio communication systems have been developed and deployed that exhibit some of the characteristics of cellular communication systems. Wireless local area networks (WLANs), for example, exhibit some of the characteristics of cellular communication systems. A wireless local area network includes a network part, also typically including a plurality of transceivers that each define cells, or coverage areas otherwise-defined. A transceiver, also referred to herein as a mobile station (STA) and mobile unit (MU), operable in a wireless local area network communicates with a network part transceiver in whose coverage area the STA is positioned. Hand-offs of communication between successive network part transceivers permits continued communications as the STA moves between coverage areas defined by different network part transceivers.
In a communication hand-off, herein also referred to as a communication transition, it is desirable that the hand-off, or transition, between network part transceivers is carried out quickly to minimize communication service interruptions during the communication hand-off. However, various signaling is required pursuant to the transition.
Intermittent connectivity losses occur due to transitioning of a STA between different network part transceivers. When a STA releases a connection with one network part transceiver and establishes another new connection with different network part transceiver, there is a loss of connectivity that occurs during the transition. The loss of connectivity may result in a communication loss, such as lost packets. In various service scenarios, the connectivity loss is highly undesirable and may adversely effect the communication services provided to the STA. For example, when the STA is engaged in real-time transmission of voice data, such as while running telephony or other voice streaming services, undesirable audible effects may result. In other cases, a voice connection may be lost.
Thus, a need exists to reduce the duration of a connectivity loss experienced during transition of mobile station communications when transitioning from one network part transceiver to another network part transceiver.

Apparatus, and an associated method, for facilitating fast transition in a network system