According to one example, errors in a logical signal from a data slicer are detected and a power supply voltage is adjusted based on the detected errors.

An optical receiver is a device that receives an optical signal and converts it to an electrical signal. In the context of photonics, optical receivers may be used to convert a signal from an optical fiber into a logical electrical signal which may be processed by electronic circuitry. An optical receiver may include a photodetector and a transimpedance amplifier (TIA) to convert an electrical current from the photodetector into a corresponding voltage.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP


A TV video signal synchronization signal system enables a video device such as a digital special effects system to operate synchronously in response to an input video signal and still produce an output video signal synchronized to a television studio locking reference signal. The video device and the synchronization signal generating subsystem thereof operate in response to a pixel rate clock of approximately 70 ns and in response to a phase command to generate timing for the horizontal sync pulse, color burst signal and video data of the output video signal. The output color burst signal remains phase locked to the locking reference signal with output gating being responsive to the phase command. A ROM interpolator provides subpixel accuracy for the output horizontal sync pulse while output line buffering and interpolation permits the output video data to the phase matched to the reference master sync signal. The entire video system thus operates synchronously with the input video signal to avoid noise interference problems which result from multiple phase clock signals while generating a composite output video signal that is properly phase synchronized with a studio locking reference signal.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a video signal synchronization system for a television device and more particularly to a synchronization signal generator which permits timing and clock signals for a device to remain phase locked to an input video signal while providing a composite output video signal that is in proper phase relationship to a studio locking reference signal.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Commercial television studios typically have a switcher which is connected to receive up to 24 video input signals. These signals may be generated by a variety of sources including local cameras, video recorders, and remote cameras. A given video signal may be coupled to a first switcher input and simultaneously coupled through a special effects device to a second switcher input. The switcher may select, under operator control, any one of these input signals for output as the television broadcast signal.
The signal information for each horizontal line of a television video image contains three components which are particularly critical to proper operation of a television receiver. Each video line begins with a short horizontal sync pulse which operates to stabilize the phase and frequency of a horizontal oscillator in a television receiver. The horizontal sync pulse is followed closely by a color subcarrier or color burst signal. This signal component provides a color reference to help stabilize the color displayed by a receiver. This is a sine wave signal having a rather critical phase tolerance and a less critical tolerance as to the time window during which the signal component is generated. Finally the video data signal component itself is transmitted. Phase or time tolerances of plus or minus 70 nanoseconds for the start of the color burst component are tolerable. All of the above signal components and tolerances are defined by established standards.
If these three signal components are not within designated tolerances with respect to phase when the switcher changes from one input to another, television receivers will manifest undesirable characteristics such as rolling of the video image or color discontinuity. A significant effort is required to maintain all of the incoming signals to the switcher in tolerance. The studio generates a locking reference signal defining a reference horizontal sync pulse and color burst phase condition. This locking reference signal is presented to studio devices such as cameras and video recorders to permit these devices to operate in a common phase relationship. These devices further include manual phase adjustments for the horizontal sync pulse phase and the color subcarrier phase to account for varying factors such as different cable lengths so as to maintain the proper phase relationships at the switcher inputs. These manual adjustments must be frequently readjusted in order to maintain the many video signal components properly in phase at the inputs to the switcher.
A special problem is presented by a video signal manipulating device such as a video special effects system which must receive a signal from another source, transform or operate upon the signal in some way and then present the transformed signal to the switcher.
Typically a signal generator such as a camera is synchronized by the master sync signal and synchronously provides a generated video signal as one input to the video switcher. The video signal is then coupled in parallel through an auxiliary switcher to a transform device such as a digital special effects system. The output of the transform device is then coupled back as a second input to the switcher. The transform device may provide a nominal delay of one frame or some other integral number of frames so that the output is in phase with the input. However, delays through the auxiliary switcher and cable delays as the signal passes through connecting cables impose phase delays which preclude the transformed video signal and the original video signal from both being properly phased at the video switcher. Furthermore, phase variations at other inputs to the switcher further increase the phase variations among all of the video signal inputs.
In prior systems this problem was solved by providing separate input and output clocking systems at the transforming video device. The input portion of the device can then be phase synchronized to the input video signal while the output portion is synchronized to the master sync signal. However, the provision of separate clocking signals is expensive and for complicated systems wherein the two clocking signals must be distributed over large printed circuit board surface areas, the phase differences of the clock signals frequently provide cross talk noise problems which result in unsatisfactory operation of the device.
The present invention solves this problem by operating the video device totally under control of a single pixel rate clock signal in synchronization with the input video signal. At the output, a sync generator responds to a phase difference between the input video signal and the master sync signal to properly adjust the phase of the output video signal relative to the phase of the input video signal to provide a properly phased output video signal. This adjustment occurs under control of the system input signal phase synchronized clock signal to avoid interference between clock signals of different phases.


An electronic device having an integrated structure including central processing means for performing an access control to storage means, a calculation processing, etc., fixed storage means, input means for inputting correction information for correcting information of a specific part stored in the fixed storage means, correction information storage means for storing the correction information input from the input means, and change-over means for switching the access by the central processing means from an area in which a specific part of the information in the fixed storage means is stored, from the fixed storage means to the correction information storage means. The correction information includes at least batch correction data for correcting the information of the specific part and a parameter for calculating a storage position of the batch correction data in the correction information storage means.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an electronic device such as a one-chip microcomputer for controlling an electronic equipment, which is suitable installation in the electronic equipment.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an electronic equipment, such as a commercially-used video tape recorder (VTR) integral with a camera (hereinafter referred to as "camera-integrated VTR"), a compact video deck or the like, a one-chip microcomputer has an integrated structure including a central processing unit (CPU) for performing access control for a storage means and calculation processing. The one-chip microcomputer further includes a storage means, such as a read only memory (ROM), for fixedly storing information. The one-chip micro-computer further includes a random access memory (RAM) through which performing information write-in and read-out operations can be carried out. The one-chip microcomputer further includes a peripheral circuit such as an input/out port, etc. This one-chip microcomputer has been conventionally used in a state where it is installed in the main body of the electronic equipment as described above.
Such one-chip integrated electronic devices have the potential to be low in cost due to mass production thereof. In addition, the amount of programs which can be stored in a ROM have been remarkably increased, particularly owing to the recent development of a semiconductor integration technique, so that various kinds of complicated control contents can be performed in accordance with the programs stored in the ROM.
As described above, various kinds of complicated controls can be performed in recently-developed electronic equipment by storing a large amount of programs into a ROM. However, the increased amount of programs stored into the ROM increases the chances of inducing a bug in the ROM. Particularly in the case where a bug is found after products have been mass-produced, the following countermeasures have been conventionally adopted. That is, those microcomputers which are mass-produced so that the bug is corrected are exchanged for those microcomputers having the bug which have been installed in electronic equipments. Alternatively, external parts for correcting the bug are newly equipped to electronic equipments having the bug. However, such countermeasures have caused the cost of the products to be increased. Further, an electronic equipment such as a camera-integrated VTR which has high packaging density of parts has a problem that the countermeasure of newly equipping an external part is very difficult.

Electronic device for correction of ROM data with a parameter for calculation of position of correction data


In an embodiment, a method of conducting a multi-level transaction includes receiving a primary call for proposals, receiving one or more primary bids by a computing system with respect to the primary call for proposals, receiving one or more secondary calls for proposals for each primary bid, receiving one or more secondary bids by a computing system with respect to the one or more secondary calls for proposals, automatically determining an estimate of a trustworthiness rating for each primary bid, receiving the selection of a primary bid based on the estimates of the trustworthiness rating, and displaying the selection of the primary bid. Each secondary call for proposals includes a job request associated with the primary bid. The estimate of the trustworthiness rating is based on a trustworthiness rating associated with the primary bid and one or more secondary bid trustworthiness ratings.

1. Technical Field
This application relates to conducting multi-level transactions in a computing environment. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods of conducting a multi-level transaction and determining estimated costs of fulfillment for associated primary bids.
2. Description of Related Prior Art
In the world of auctions and transactions, buyers initiate the process with a call for proposals. These calls for proposals have traditionally led providers/contractors to submit bids in hopes of contracting for the work. Buyers will then select an optimal bid from those submitted. Prior to the use of online marketplaces, this process could be extremely tedious and time-consuming. Further, buyers could select a provider's bid where the provider still had to submit bids to sub-contractors to fully complete the provider's own work, a factor which could affect the overall estimate.
Buyers additionally were unable to identify which sub-contractors were selected, or to know how trustworthy these sub-contractors were reputed to be. Even as use of online marketplaces became more common, structured mechanisms still did not exist to assist buyers with these issues. In effect, the process was still slow and inefficient due to the unstructured nature of subcontracting communication in complex multi-party transactions.

Method and system for creative collaborative marketplaces


This invention relates to roll-type doors such as doors commonly used as garage doors may up of a plurality of horizontal panels hingedly connected together on horizontal axes equipped with a novel and improved guard strip to cover and shield the gap existing between certain of the hingedly connected panels when the door is closing and to yield by flexing when one or more fingers are placed between the upper portion of the guard strip and the adjacent outer face of the next above panel with the result that damaging contact with said finger or fingers is at all times avoided.

Doors of the type referred to are usually provided with rollers which cooperate with two tracks, one at each side, in order to permit such doors when closed to move from a vertical position to a horizontal over head open door position. The tracks at their upper ends are curved approximately 90.degree. and generally continue in a horizontal direction inside the upper part of the garage space. In order to accomodate the movement around the curved portions of the track, doors so mounted are usually made up of a plurality of horizontally disposed panels hingedly connected together at their adjacent inner corners so as to collectively constitute the complete door.
The hinges are horizontally disposed and are usually located on the inside surface of the respective door panels whereby the axes of the hinges lie in a plane closely adjacent the plane of the inner surface of the door. When door constructions of this type are moved from horizontal open position to vertical closed position, a v-shaped gap is created between adjacent edges of each pair of cooperating panels during the period when the panels move around the curved portions of the tracks. The gaps so created start respectively to close and continue to close as each pair of adjacent panels approach a common vertical position during the door closing movement.
Great danger exists to the operator during this period as he may inadvertently get one or more fingers in one of the gaps during the downward movement of the door with the result that his finger or fingers may be severely injured. Doors of this type are generally quite heavy and even though their downward movement is usually countered with springs or weights such doors when closing attain a substantial momentum which develops a destructive force especially at the location of the closing edges at the gaps referred to.
Protection to the operator when manipulating doors of this type is especially important when it is realized that after closing movement of the door has been initiated by the use of a handle usually provided on one of the lower panels, the operator is sometimes inclined to reach up, during the downward movement and in order to further enhance the closing movement to place the fingers of one or both hands on the upper edge of the then top most vertically disposed panel, made accessible by the created gap, and impart to the door a further downward pull. If the gap at the location of the operators fingers should close before they are removed, serious injury will result.


A coated optical fiber (30) includes optical glass fiber which has been drawn from a preform and provided with one or more layers of coating materials having defined properties. The layer (32) of coating material which is contiguous to the drawn glass fiber may be one which in a preferred embodiment is cationically cured coating material. Curing of the cationically cured coating material causes an acid to be generated. The acid which has a relatively long life is effective to reduce sufficientlythe pH of the environment in contact with the drawn glass to cause the coated optical fiber to have enhanced mechanical strength.

Optical fiber has taken off from its embroyonic stage as a communication medium about a dozen years ago to its present status as a world class medium for reliable communications. Typically, optical fiber includes a fused silica portion comprising a core and a cladding and one or more layers of coating material. The coating material protects the fiber which is drawn from a preform.
It has been conventional that the optical fiber coating materials be acrylate-based ultraviolet curable materials which include photoinitiators. These materials cure, i.e., are converted from a liquid to a solid, by what is referred to as free radical cure. In a free radical cure system, upon absorption of light, the photoinitiator component cleaves to form a pair of free radicals. This free radical pair diffuses first from each other and reacts with arcylate-terminated components to initiate a free radical chain polymerization process. Acrylate-based coating systems are known to be chemically neutral, that is neither acidic or basic by design.
Another group of coating materials are cationically curable. In cationic cure, a cation or a proton is both the initiating and the propagating species in the polymerization mechanism. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,198 and PCT application publication No. WO90/03988. In the latter, cationic cure, which may be used on fiber coatings is such that polymerization continues even after the exposure to curin energy has been discontinued, whereas in free radical cure, the polymerization reaction may be incomplete inasmuch as the reaction discontinues when exposure to curing energy is discontinued.
It has long been desired to increase the strength of the optical fiber from its present prooftest value of about 50,000 psi and to cause the strength to be uniform throughout a length of fiber. An optical fiber which has been provided with a hermetic coating has a prooftest value which may reach 200,000 psi. However, difficulties experienced in the manufacture and coloring of hermetic coated optical fiber have hindered its widespread acceptance.
It is known that fused silica optical fiber strength is higher after aging in acidic environments than it is after aging in neutral or passive environments. See, for example, H. C. Chandan and D. Kalish "Strength and Dynamic Fatigue of Optical Fibers Aged In Various pH Solutions" which appeared at pp. 12-14 of the Proceedings of the Topical Meeting on Optical Fiber Communication, Washington, D.C. 1979.
With the quest for uniform strengths, there is a desire to provide a mechanism for causing fiber strengths to be higher and more uniform. A long-felt need for optical fibers has been to increase their strength and resistance to stress cracking. Such properties would result in a more reliable communication system. The resultant optical fiber could be used in applications where higher strengths are required, such as in underwater cable or in tethered vehicles. Seemingly, the art has not yet provided a solution to the problem of increased fiber strengths which solution would not detract from cure speed and which solution would be relatively easy to implement.

Optical fiber including acidic coating system


A printer/perforator unit for connection to a conventional personal computer allows documents to be conveniently perforated, both printing and perforating functions being controllable in response to a single software program. The single program can be a pre-existing word-processing program modified by addition of software provided together with the printer and perforator unit, a unique word processing program integrally including the perforator control functionality, or another type of program or interacting with a printer, such as a graphics program.

This invention relates to computer-controlled printers incorporating perforators, such that documents bearing printed text and/or graphics can conveniently be perforated by the same printer/perforator unit. More specifically, the invention relates to a printer/perforator unit responsive to a personal computer; the perforator is controlled responsive to software provided as a subset of or supplemental to word-processing or graphic software used to control the printing functions of the printer, for similarly controlling the perforation function responsive to operator commands.
It is of course well-known to provide printed paper forms and the like with lines or patterns of perforations, so as to facilitate the division of the printed form into various portions. However, as far as known to the present inventor, equipment for thus printing and perforating plain paper stock has normally been relatively heavy-duty, commercial-grade equipment suitable for producing thousands of copies of a single form, all essentially identical (save perhaps for separately-printed serial numbers, on ballots, tickets or the like). Such equipment is far too costly for small-scale use, as might be desired by a small business for billing purposes, or in a school situation, where a single copy or up to tens or hundreds of copies of a given perforated document might be desired. Similarly, such known equipment is not amenable to convenient control of the perforating function, as would be required by relatively untrained users for convenient custom design of forms only a small number of which are needed.
Examples of useful printed and perforated documents that cannot be economically produced using the equipment shown by the prior art include the following:
small quantities of computer-printed bills, tax forms, mortgage payment books and like communications comprising one or more payment coupons to be returned with the debtor""s check;
communications from school to home requiring return of a signed form, such as field trip permission slips;
student homework or assignment sheets to be separated and returned as work is completed;
printing of multiple tickets for raffle drawings or performances on a single sheet of paper, the perforations allowing ready separation. Tickets could be further subdivided by perforations, allowing convenient separation after use;
notices for community billboards providing a number of tear-off stubs with a telephone number for responding to the notice; or
invitations for children""s parties, e.g., perforated to define the shape of a heart, animal, flower, balloon, clown face or the like, with the invitation data printed within the outline.
Many similar uses will be apparent.
Referring now to prior art showing printing and perforating devices that would not be satisfactory for inexpensive production of small numbers of items as described above, a number of U.S. patents show mechanical devices that simply combine essentially separate and independent printing and perforating functions in a single device, wherein the spatial relationship of the printing and perforating functions with respect to the object being printed is controlled by manual adjustment, if at all. This group of U.S. patents includes Bunch, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,644, Tailleux et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,411,195, Shimizu et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,211,498, Shimizu et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,597, Bell U.S. Pat. No. 3,068,788, and Overholser U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,214.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,812 to Murphy suggests combination of a label cutter with a low-cost electrostatic (i.e., laser) or thermal transfer printer. The Murphy device includes a detector for ascertaining the location of printed labels and providing an appropriate signal to a cutter. However, the spacing at which the cutting of the labels is effected appears to be fixed by the design of the cutting member provided. This system would not allow ready design of custom forms and the like.
Meschi U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,526,744 and 5,720,223 show equipment for transversely perforating a continuous sheet of paper during printing operations; the perforator is computer-controlled responsive to position signals indicative of the position of the paper, and allows documents of different lengths to be produced by varying the spacing of successive perforations. However, Meschi does not teach integration of the control of the printing and perforating functions in a single program suitable for use by nonprofessionals in a low-usage environment; the Meschi equipment is stated to be useful in producing bank statements and other high-volume applications.
The remaining patents are of more general interest. Knoll U.S. Pat. No. 4,283,975 shows an automated cutter for sheet goods. Craemer U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,394 shows a similar device for cutting out cardboard box blanks. Schnellenberg U.S. Pat. No. 4,596,546 shows a device for cutting and creasing paper and cardboard. Garber U.S. Pat. No. 3,593,987 shows apparatus for book making.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,454,651 to Tateyama, U.S. Pat. No. 4,525,806 to Barnes et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,293,466 to Bringmann address various aspects of computer control of printers, none of which incorporate perforators.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a printer/perforator unit, that is, a printer incorporating a controllable perforator, the perforator being controlled by software preferably provided as a subset of or supplemental to software operated on a pre-existing personal computer used to control the printing functions of the printer.
It is a more specific object of the invention to provide perforator-controlling software as a supplement to existing word-processing or graphics software operable by a pre-existing computer, the perforator-controlling software providing additional user interface functions to the existing software, so that a person skilled in using the existing software to produce a document can readily use the supplemented software to add supplemental commands for producing desired perforations into a set of print control commands provided to a printer/perforator unit according to the invention, whereby custom documents incorporating perforations can be economically produced in low volume by persons having only limited additional training in addition to that required to operate the existing software.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a printer responsive to print commands from one or more preexisting software programs that also incorporates a controllable perforator, in combination with software supplementing one or more of the preexisting software programs operable by existing computers.
In particular, it is an object of the invention to add perforator control options and commands to pre-existing software programs in a xe2x80x9cuser-friendlyxe2x80x9d manner easily understood by users familiar with the pre-existing software programs, such that entries on user menus, mouse-selectable icons, function keys, and the like, as conventionally provided to control various print functions, are provided corresponding to the perforator control functions of interest.
Other objects of the invention will appear as the discussion below proceeds.
According to the present invention, a novel printer/perforator unit is provided, both printing and perforating functions being controllable in response to a single user program. The single user program can be a pre-existing word-processing program modified by addition of software provided together with the printer/perforator unit, a unique word processing program integrally including the perforator control functionality, or another type of program for interacting with a printer, such as a graphics program, also including perforator control functions according to the invention.
Typically the printer/perforator unit according to the invention will be provided together with media storing software drivers for adapting each of a number of preexisting word-processing, graphics and other printer-controlling software programs to operate the perforator; in this way, the same printer/perforator unit can be supplied to users having a wide variety of exisiting programs controlling various printers in various ways, while identical media, that is, bearing copies of the same collection of software drivers, can be provided to each user, simplifying distribution and documentation of the software.
The perforator itself according to the invention is provided as a relatively straightforward addition to any of a number of known types of printer mechanisms. In one embodiment, the perforator may be configured as a row of individually actuable perforating devices, operated, for example, by individual solenoids. Typically a platen having a row of corresponding bores formed therein will be disposed opposite the line of perforating devices, to support the paper as it is punched, ensuring formation of clean perforations.
The row of perforating devices is typically arranged along a line transverse to the direction of motion of paper through the printer, that is, parallel to the direction in which lines of type are normally printed. Accordingly, if it is desired to form a line of perforations extending across the document parallel to the normal lines of printing, all of the perforating devices are actuated simultaneously; if it is desired to form a line of perforations perpendicular to the normal lines of printing, the same perforating device can be actuated repeatedly as the paper is passed below the row of perforating devices by the printer""s paper transport mechanism. Various other configurations of perforations can be formed by actuation of various combinations of the perforating devices as the paper travels thereby. These and other options are all controlled responsive to the operator""s desires, as communicated to the software program through a xe2x80x9cfriendlyxe2x80x9d user interface.
Depending on the specific interface between the computer and printer/perforator unit according to the invention, the user""s commands may be translated directly into specific perforator commands, that is, to pulses actuating the individual solenoids or other perforator actuating devices, by the software program also according to the invention. However, more preferably the specific perforator commands will be generated by a microprocessor comprised by the printer/perforator unit and responsive to more general commands provided by the program responsive to the user""s commands. The latter embodiment, wherein some of the xe2x80x9cintelligencexe2x80x9d required to operate the perforator is provided in the printer/perforator unit, is preferred because in this way fewer signals need to be passed between the computer and the printer/perforator unit, allowing use of existing computers; in the former embodiment, conventional computer-to-printer connections might not be adequate, meaning that conventional computers would not be adaptable to operate the printer/perforator unit according to the invention.


An apparatus for producing longitudinally folded products has a machine frame (17) which is arranged below a former arrangement which can be charged with web material. Transporting and processing units are arranged in tandem in the machine frame (17), and a superstructure wall (18) which carries web guiding members (19) associated with the former arrangement is mounted on the machine frame (17). At least one web ribbon (2a) is guided through the superstructure wall (18). The machine frame (17) has at least two modules (22, 23) arranged one above the other which are rotatable by 180° relative to one another and can be connected to one another. Each module (22, 23) has its own at least one drive motor, and every unit provided in the region of the dividing line (24) between modules (22, 23) which are rotatable relative to one another is constructed symmetrically with respect to a center working plane containing the axis of rotation.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to an apparatus for producing longitudinally folded products having a machine frame which is arranged below a former arrangement. Transporting and processing units are arranged in tandem in the machine frame, and a superstructure wall which carries web guiding members associated with the former arrangement is mounted on the machine frame, at least one web ribbon being guided through the superstructure wall.
2. Description of the Related Art
In arrangements of the type mentioned above, the web guiding members must be easily accessible. Therefore, depending on the side at which the web material arrives, the superstructure wall carrying the web guiding members must be offset relative to one side or the other with respect to a center plane of the former arrangement. Formerly, in commonly used arrangements of this type the machine frame was constructed as a structural unit. Accordingly, the construction was stationary from the outset and could no longer be changed subsequently. Therefore, if the side from which the web material arrived were changed, this could not be accommodated in a simple manner. It was also not possible for the side toward which the generated product was delivered to be adapted to subsequent changing conditions. Accordingly, known arrangements of this type proved to be insufficiently flexible.

Apparatus for producing longitudinally folded products


An airfoil tip vortex mitigation arrangement comprising one or more flow directors configured and positioned to re-direct freestream air over a low pressure surface of an airfoil in such a way as to displace and weaken a main tip vortex generated at a tip of the airfoil.

Field
Mitigation of wake turbulence through the weakening of wake vortices generated at outboard edges of aircraft wings, or outboard and/or inboard edges of ailerons, flaps, or other airfoils.
Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
The persistence of a vortex trailing behind a lifting airfoil such as a wing, is dependent not only upon vortex strength, but also upon how well a core of the vortex is defined. Vortex strength is governed by lift, which depends upon area and pressure differences between upper and lower airfoil surfaces. The core is well-defined if the airfoil is thin and if there is a high pressure difference between the upper and lower surfaces near a tip of the airfoil. This allows a streamline to roll around the outboard edge or tip of a wing or the inboard and/or outboard edges or tips of a flap, aileron, or other airfoil, from the high pressure region to the low pressure region along a very short distance. This results in a highly curved, fast moving streamline in a well-defined vortex core, which can persist for a long time downstream of the airfoil. The formation of a well-defined vortex core may be impeded by lengthening the distance traveled by the streamlines rolling from the high pressure region feature such as extra thickness, a non-lifting wing-tip extension, or a device such as a winglet. Such devices are designed to have lift characteristics that compensate for their own weight. They also tend to add drag, although they are designed to add as little as possible. The purpose of such features is to prevent the lifting vortex from forming a well-defined core, thereby allowing the vortex to dissipate quickly.

Minimally intrusive wingtip vortex wake mitigation using microvane arrays


A rebar clamp for clamping rebars to templates during the pouring of footings and the like is disclosed. The disclosed rebar clamp includes a body in the form of a helical coil and a screw member threadedly engaged with the helical coil and having a transverse handle at its outer end. A pair of arms are affixed to the opposite sides of the helical coil and are spread wide enough apart to embrace a template of well known type across its major dimension. The outer of each arm is provided with a hook which can tightly engage a rebar and firmly clamp it against one major face of the template when the screw member is rotated in such manner as to advance it against the opposite major face of the template.

1. Field of the Invention
My present invention relates to the construction of building foundation walls, retaining walls, and the like, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for erecting foundation reinforcing bars (rebars) and maintaining the same in position during the pouring of footings for such walls.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The term "prior art" as used herein or in any statement made by or on behalf of applicant means only that any document of thing referred to as prior art bears, directly or inferentially, a date which is earlier than the effective filing date hereof.
It is known in the prior art to incorporate reinforcing bars (rebars) in the footings for building foundation walls, retaining walls, etc., by suitably positioning such reinforcing bars within the form in which the footing is to be poured, pouring the concrete of the footing into the form, and after the setting of the concrete removing the supporting means by which the reinforcing bars were theretofore maintained in position.
Typically, such rebar supporting means are comprised of a plurality of round, solid metal stakes, sometimes called "form stakes", which are driven into the earth floor of the footing form, or into the earth closely adjacent to the footing form.
Horizontal wooden beam members, sometimes collectively called the "template", are then nailed to the form stakes by means of nails passing through suitable holes provided in the form stakes.
The template commonly consists of one or more lengths of that kind of lumber commonly referred to as "two-by-fours", and is most commonly located close to the top of the footing form, i.e., about one-half inch thereabove.
The footing rebars are then affixed to the template, each in such a position that after the pouring of the footing, and the setting of the poured concrete, a large portion of each rebar is captive within the concrete, and another portion of each rebar projects upwardly from the upper surface of the poured concrete, i.e., upward from the upper surface of the footing.
Conventionally, the footing rebars are affixed to the template either by toenailing or by bailing wire wrapped around each rebar and the adjacent portion of the template.
This prior art method of footing rebar erection and positioning, however, suffers from certain inherent deficiencies.
The affixation of the rebars to the template by bailing wire is both time-consuming and expensive. That is to say, the wrapping of bailing wire around the rebar (vertical) and template (horizontal) involves considerably manual labor, which is costly at current labor rates, and also involves delays in completing a typical foundation wall or retaining wall.
The affixation of the retaining bars to the template by toenailing, while perhaps less time-consuming than affixation by bailing wire, involves the risk of displacing the template or loosening the form stakes by repeated hammer blows, resulting in the deviation of the rebars from their optimum position. As is well known to those having ordinary skill in the art, however, mispositioning of the rebars can have a deleterious effect on wall strength, and can obtrude difficulties in pouring the upper reaches of a wall, since the rebars in the wall are attached and aligned with to the rebars which extend upward from the footing.
A reinforcing bar aligner and clamp is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,074,897, issued to Fredrick H. Behn on Feb. 24, 1978.
The device of the Behn patent, however, is adapted to hold a first reinforcing bar in fixed end-to-end relation to a second reinforcing bar while they are being spliced together, and its structure appears to be radically different from the structure of applicant's invention.
Various clamps for clamping vertically disposed members to horizontal members are shown in the prior art, e.g., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 884,772 and 4,369,945.
It is believed that the documents listed immediately below contain information which is or might be considered to be material to the examination of this patent application.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,105,954 PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,892,207 PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 3,345,061 PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,139,189 PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,662
No representation or admission is made that any of the above-listed documents is part of the prior art, or that a search has been made, or that no more pertinent information exists.
A copy of each of the above-listed United States patents is supplied to the Patent and Trademark Office herewith.

Apparatus for erecting foundation reinforcing bars and the like


Provided is an automatic wire threader for a wire electric discharge machining apparatus including a jet nozzle (20). The jet nozzle includes a first finger and a second finger (21, 22) that are movable between their open positions where a jet nozzle hole (28) is undefined and their closed positions where the jet nozzle hole is defined. The jet nozzle further includes a compression coil spring (60) for urging the first finger and the second finger to their open positions. A moving device moves the jet nozzle from the retracted position to the operational position, so as to bring the first finger and the second finger in contact with a flush nozzle, thereby moving the first finger and the second finger against the a compression coil spring toward their closed positions.

A typical wire electric discharge machining apparatus is equipped with an automatic wire threader. The automatic wire threader threads a wire electrode through an upper wire guide, a start hole, and a lower wire guide, in this order. The wire electrode threaded through the lower wire guide is delivered to a wind-up roller. The start hole has a diameter of approximately 1 mm, and is formed in the work before machining. The wire guide has a guide hole of 0.205 mm in diameter or 0.21 mm in diameter if the wire electrode to be used has a diameter of 0.20 mm. The upper and the lower wire guides are housed in their respective guide assemblies. Each guide assembly includes a flush nozzle for supplying work fluid to a work gap. The flush nozzle typically has an aperture of approximately 6 mm in diameter.
A current automatic wire threader includes a jet nozzle for generating a fluid jet (hereinafter referred to as a "jet") coaxially with a wire electrode. The jet urges the wire electrode to move to a lower wire guide under constraint. A typical jet nozzle has an aperture of 1.5 mm in diameter. The jet nozzle is usually disposed in an upper guide assembly for housing an upper wire guide.
The automatic wire threader described in Japan laid open publication No. H07-029246 includes a guide pipe movable vertically. A wire electrode can be threaded through the guide pipe and high pressure fluid is supplied to the guide pipe. A typical guide pipe has an outer diameter of 2 mm and an inner diameter of 1 mm. The guide pipe can easily approach a start hole, thereby enhancing the success rate of automatic wire threading. In most cases, a separable upper wire guide is used to thread a guide pipe therethrough. It is believed that such a separable wire guide has low durability and poor abrasion resistance.
The Japan laid open publication No. H05-021693 discloses a whirling arm whose one end is provided with a jet nozzle hole. The jet nozzle hole is movable between a retracted position and a lower portion of an upper guide assembly. The jet nozzle hole is located at the retracted position apart from the upper guide assembly during machining. One end of the whirling arm is fit in a lower portion of the upper guide assembly for the purpose of automatic wire threading. At this time, the jet nozzle hole is located immediately below a flush nozzle. The jet nozzle hole is separable so as to return to the retracted position. The jet nozzle hole is opened or closed by a pneumatic cylinder. Since the jet nozzle hole is provided outside the upper guide assembly, there is no limitation on designing of the upper guide assembly. In addition, no separable wire guide is necessary.
The Japan laid open publication No. 2010-005719 discloses an automatic wire threader having a jet nozzle hole provided outside an upper guide assembly, as similar to that of Japan laid open publication No. H05-021693. The jet nozzle set forth in the Japan laid open publication No. 2010-005719 is movable at higher speed between a retracted position and a lower portion of an upper guide assembly. The jet nozzle is separable on a plane including a central axis of the jet nozzle hole. The jet nozzle hole is opened or closed by a cylinder unit. The jet nozzle can be firmly coupled to a flush nozzle in a fluid-tight manner. The jet nozzle has a cylindrical portion perpendicularly extending downward. The cylindrical portion has a smaller outer diameter than that of the flush nozzle, so that the jet nozzle can approach a work more closely than the flush nozzle does.

Automatic wire threader for wire electric discharge machining apparatus


A method for quantifying the effects of a treatment of a subject, comprising: analyzing a sample of the subject, the sample comprising a material of interest and at least one adjacent material that is generally adjacent to the material of interest, the material of interest having a generally different density from the adjacent material. The analyzing comprises: (i) automatically defining a plurality of regions of interest within an image of the sample that includes a junction between the material of interest and the adjacent material, each of said regions of interest having a width of one or more pixels or voxels; (ii) determining respective profiles of density, intensity or attenuation within the regions of interest, each of the respective profiles crossing the junctions between the material of interest and the adjacent material; (iii) automatically identifying the material of interest in the profiles; (iv) analyzing said profiles by automatically defining, for each of said profiles, a series of sections of said respective profile, each of said sections comprising at least one S-like portion of the respective profile, the S-like portion containing the junction between the material of interest and the adjacent material; and (v) locating the junction in each of the S-like portions, including: (a) identifying the greatest difference in values of the respective profile between an adjacent peak and trough in a segment of the respective profile that includes at least some of the material of interest and at least some of the adjacent material; and (b) locating a point of inflexion in said segment. This method may also be employed in a method of treatment of a disease in a subject.

Currently, bone density is the commonly used tool to predict fracture risk and evaluate the effects of treatment on bone but it lacks sensitivity and specificity. More than half of all hip fractures occur in women determined to be without osteoporosis with dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) with a T-score≦−2.5. Furthermore, most women with osteoporosis as defined by DEXA BMD do not sustain fractures (Delmas P. D., Seeman E. Changes in bone mineral density explain little of the reduction in vertebral or nonvertebral fracture risk with anti-resorptive therapy, Bone 34(4) (2004) p. 599-604). During drug therapy, only a small proportion of the fracture risk reduction is explained by the increase in bone density (Ott S. M., When bone mass fails to predict bone failure, Calcif. Tissue Int. 53(Suppl1) pp. S7-S13). This lack of sensitivity and specificity partly is partly due to the fact that fracture risk is not only determined by bone density but also bone structure (Zebaze R. M. and Seeman S., Measuring Femoral Neck Strength: Lost in Translation?, IBMS BoneKEy 5 (2008) pp. 336-339).
Consequently, techniques such as quantitative computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are being used to produce images that are then analysed to predict fracture risk, quantify the effects of drugs and determine the effectiveness of various strategies (such as exercise or diet) for the prevention of bone loss. However, parameters derived from these imaging modalities have not proved to be significantly better than bone density measurement, and cannot presently be used as a substitute for bone density measurement.
The problem with these approaches lies not only in image acquisition but also, and more significantly, in image processing. One of the most important problems with existing techniques for assessing bone structure from such images is their reliance on fixed arbitrary thresholds to identify bone within a region of interest (ROI) and to segment (i.e. separate) bone into its various compartments (usually cortical and trabecular bone). Bone architecture differs from person to person and, for this reason, the use of fix thresholds has different and unpredictable consequences on bones from different individuals. Hence, the use of a fixed threshold can create apparent differences where none exist, or obscure differences when they exist.
Furthermore, current methods employ a simplistic model of bone structure. In particular, these methods treat bone as a structure made of two distinct compartments (cortical and trabecular bone). In fact, the so-called 'compact' bone and trabecular (spongy′) bone are extremes of a continuum of variation in porosity from the periosteum to the inner marrow cavity.
In addition, current methods employ so-called 'phantom calibration' to determine the density associated with each pixel within an image. This density is then used to identify bone and assess its structure (hence the term quantitative computed tomography (QCT)). Existing calibration procedures are specific to each scanner manufacturer, so bone structure analysis—performed by software embedded in the scanner—is manufacturer specific.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A magnetic resonance imaging system comprises a magnet (30) for generating a main magnetic field, a gradient coil (34) to superimpose a linearly varying magnetic field over the main magnetic field, and an RF coil (34) forming part of a transmit/receive system for signals which are used to construct an image. A shimset (32) is positioned between the magnet (30) and the gradient coil (34) to provide magnetic field correction and is constructed so as not to have axial and azimuthal symmetry. This is achieved by providing cutout portions (38) in the shimset (32) which are diametrically opposite each other, similar cutouts (40) being provided in the gradient coil (34) which are aligned with the cutout portions (38). The cutout portions (38, 40) accommodate the shoulders of larger patients, therefore reducing the need to extend the bore size of the magnetic resonance imaging system.

The present invention relates to improvements in or relating to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, and is more particularly concerned with the construction of shimming apparatus for use therewith.
A MRI system consists of a magnet which provides a main magnetic field, a gradient coil to superimpose a linearly varying field over the main field, and an RF coil transmit/receive system which is used to receive the signals that are used to construct the image. A good base homogeneity of the main magnetic field in the system is essential for producing good quality images, and hence the process of shimming has been developed in order to establish good base homogeneity.
Shimming is the process by which the field in an MRI magnet is corrected. It is an essential activity, without which the system cannot function. Correction of magnetic field deviations can be performed using any elements that produce a magnetic field. Thus, current carrying conductors, soft iron in the presence of a magnetic field, and permanent magnets have been known to be used. For MRI magnets, passive shimming is extensively used. Passive shimming is defined as the use of magnetic material elements, be they soft iron or permanent magnets, for the correction of magnetic fields. The use of passive shimming is extensive because it is simple, cheap and can achieve high levels of homogeneity.
Passive shimming requires the placing of magnetic material in one or more positions around the bore of a magnet in order to perform the field correction. Traditionally, the process takes the form of a field map of the region of interest, normally defined as a spherical volume. The field values are then decomposed into, as is well known in the art, spherical harmonics, which describe the field variation over the volume. Thus, two elements are required to effect passive shimming, namely, the software which is used to predict the positions of the pieces of magnetic material necessary to perform the field correction, and the hardware, called the shimset, comprising pieces of magnetic material which are appropriately positioned to effect the field correction.
For normal coil wound magnets (also known as solenoidal magnets), the shimset is no more than the hardware needed to locate the precise distribution of magnetic material used to correct inhomegeneities in the magnetic field. In practice, one or more trays are distributed azimuthally over the shimset, each tray having a series of pockets in which shim iron can be placed. The quantity of shim iron in each pocket depends on the inhomogeneity of the magnetic field. Axial and azimuthal symmetry have traditionally been used in the design of shimsets and there has been no need to deviate from that.


A continuous-time delta sigma modulator, having an integrator and a comparator clocked with a clock frequency that are connected in a feedback loop, having a voltage source that is connected to the comparator for applying a threshold voltage to the comparator, in which an integration time constant of the integrator has a first resistor and a first capacitor, in which the voltage source has a second resistor and a second capacitor for setting the threshold voltage, in which the first resistor and the second resistor are part of a resistor pairing structure, and in which the first capacitor and the second capacitor are part of a capacitor pairing structure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a continuous-time delta sigma modulator.
2. Description of the Background Art
A continuous-time delta sigma analog-to-digital converter is known from "A 20-mW 640-MHz CMOS Continuous-Time ΣΔ ADC with 20-MHz Signal Bandwidth, 80-dB Dynamic Range and 12-bit ENOB," Mitteregger et al., IEEE JOURNAL OF SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS, Vol. 41, No. 12, December 2006. To eliminate influences on the loop stability, the loop capacitors are trimmed, either statically or in operation. To this end, the appropriate discrete capacitor value must be ascertained. In contrast to a static trimming, only a dynamic trimming of a non-active modulator can eliminate temperature influences on resistors and clock frequency (fclk). A dynamic trimming of an active modulator can briefly result in converter errors.
In DE 10 2008 020 452 A1, which corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 7,893,518, assembled semiconductor components are produced in an array of identical (semiconductor) elements that are arranged on a wafer distributed about a common focus in order to compensate for possible gradients of inhomogeneities of process parameters (layer thicknesses, doping, etc.) that result from process tolerances along the surface. The individual elements are relatively large in size.


Provided is a personal cleansing composition for application to the skin which comprises a zinc X halide present in an amount to provide at least 0.36 weight % of the composition of zinc, and a surfactant, wherein X is an amino acid or trimethylglycine. Methods of making and using the compositions are also provided. The zinc X halide is can be used to deliver zinc salts to reduce or prevent sunburn, kill bacteria, or reduce perspiration.

It is extremely difficult to provide liquid personal wash compositions with sunscreen components or agents which sunscreen components may be readily deposited on the skin or other surface. One significant problem is that the sunscreen agents will generally be solubilized by the surfactant and, while they may be deposited during lathering, they will be removed by rinsing.
There is a need for additional cleansing compositions that provide delivery of sunscreen actives to the skin to provide enhanced sunscreen efficacy.

Personal cleansing compositions containing zinc amino acid/trimethylglycine halide


The present invention provides a hyper-scanning digital beam former, which includes a plurality of digitizing units (N) having respective inputs for receiving a respective signal from a plurality of elements of an antenna. The digitizing units are operably configured to digitally convert the element antenna signals at a first clock rate; a summing circuit having an input for receiving the digital signals from respective outputs of the digitizing units and operably configured to generate a plurality of output signals (M) by summing ones of the digital signals; and a channel processor having an input for receiving the M output signals and operably configured to process the M output signals at a second clock rate in which the second clock rate is at least M times faster than the first clock rate.

The present invention relates generally to the field radiated wave communications and, more particularly, to a beam forming antenna processing system.
A dish antenna directs a radar beam in a single fixed direction, and the antenna is mechanically repositioned to change the beam direction. The dish antenna is rotated to produce a 360 degree scanning beam. An electronic radar antenna produces directional beam control through phase control of individual antenna radiating elements, without requiring mechanically driven movement of the antenna.
Digital beam forming is a powerful technique for augmenting antenna performance. Typically, a digital beam former operates in conjunction with a phased-array antenna to enhance the overall quality of radiated data signals. Generally, the individual radiating elements are combined mathematically so that the collective radiation from the elements forms a beam which maximizes gain in the desired field of observation in accordance with electronic steering control.
In a receiver, a radiated wave front impinging on an array antenna causes signals received at various antenna elements to differ in phase due to the angle of the wave front relative to the array. The digital beam former compensates for this phase shift and sums together the different element signals such that an improved signal-to-noise ratio is obtained at its output. Electronic beam-steering antenna arrays can be used in various kinds of radar and communication systems. Thus, these arrays can be used in target acquisition systems, communication systems, pulsed radar systems, continuous wave radar systems, etc.
Many systems depend on apertures with relatively wide fields of view. In some cases the apertures are essentially omni-directional. As the field of view expands, this increases the susceptibility of the system to interference, multi-path reflections, and overlapping replies from non-synchronous, spatially diverse sources, introducing additional design constraints.
A common solution to these design challenges is to employ beam forming techniques such as fixed or electronically scanned phased arrays. The narrower beam allows the sensitivity to be focused in the direction of the desired signal while reducing sensitivity towards signals and interference from angles outside of the main-beam. Sensitivity for signals within the main-beam of the array is increased as the true or synthetic aperture gain is increased. For static circumstances such as point to point data links, this is an effective solution under most situations. For synchronous participants alternating time slots, the beam can be scanned or pointed towards each participant on a slot by slot basis.
As the participants become asynchronous, the data streams can overlap in time. Often it is necessary to be sensitive across a wider spatial field of view instantaneously. This in turn reduces the overall resistance to interference and the overall sensitivity in the direction of the signal or signals of interest. It also introduces a new problem; detection and separating signals that are coincident in time but spatially separated.
One way to address these problems is with digital beam-forming. Digital beam-forming allows beams to be defined and formed mathematically after the waveform has already been sampled by each individual element of an array. However, the throughput required to form and process many beams in each sample can be very large, often exceeding the capability of legacy systems. It also requires large amounts of information to be stored (memory) and processed though the detection algorithm, a large majority of which is not of interest.
The present invention achieves technical advantages as a method, system and apparatus for hyper-scanning digital beam forming, which includes a plurality of digitizing units (N) having respective inputs for receiving a respective signal from a plurality of elements of an antenna. The digitizing units are operably configured to digitally convert the element antenna signals at a first clock rate; a summing circuit having an input for receiving the digital signals from respective outputs of the digitizing units and operably configured to generate a plurality of output signals (M) by summing ones of the digital signals; and a channel processor having an input for receiving the M output signals and operably configured to process the M output signals at a second clock rate in which the second clock rate is at least M times aster than the first clock rate. Further, the beam former xe2x80x9cpipeline processorxe2x80x9d architecture enables retrofit for legacy systems.


A tool for positioning a tapered anchor bolt assembly with its part initially oriented in a hole in a concrete wall which has been undercut to provide a conical hole portion, and for setting the anchor bolt by rigidly holding its cone properly positioned opposite the conical portion of the hole while impact-driving its sleeve inwardly of the hole to expand it over the anchor cone and fill the conical undercut portion of the hole to set the anchor therein, the tool having mutually interfering parts which limit the distance that the sleeve can be driven inwardly with respect to the cone so as to limit the driving effect of impact applied to the tool.

This invention relates to a method and tool for setting a tapered anchor bolt in a hole drilled and conically undercut in a wall, especially a concrete wall, by properly positioning the stud bolt of the anchor assembly and causing its sleeve to expand into the conical undercut when the tool is subjected to impact, for instance by a hammer.
Tapered anchor bolts have long been secured in holes in masonry and other structures. In most instances the bolts are set either by screwing up a nut on a stud bolt so as to pull a cone into a sleeve surrounding the stud as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,339,217 to Patrick J. Lacey et al or, in some instances, by using impact to expand the sleeve over the cone as shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 3,139,730 to Williams et al, FIG. 13, wherein the stud and cone are bottomed on the blind end of a hole and the sleeve is driven over the cone by a cylindrical member struck by a hammer. The approach used in U.S. Pat. No. 4,165,946 to Andersson likewise bottoms the stud and cone in a blind bore and drives an expansion sleeve over the cone using a gun. In the case of both the Williams and the Andersson patents, the blind bore is necessary to prevent the cone from retreating further into the hole as the sleeve is driven onto it. Both holes shown in these patents have to have an end wall to axially locate the stud in the hole.
None of the known prior art patents includes the concept of providing a threaded stud bolt to which a cone is attached, positioning the bolt and cone in the drilled hole and rigidly supporting the cone in its final set position, while using impact to expand the sleeve by driving it over the cone.


The present indention provides a stringed musical instrument comprising; a substantially hollow body portion containing an audio system comprising an amplifier; at least one loudspeaker electrically connected to the audio amplifier; an audio interface for electrically connecting to a smart device and a power supply electrically connected to the audio system; a neck sub-assembly including: a neck; playing strings extending lengthwise along the neck; a bridge attached to the neck over which the strings are stretched, and tensioning means by which the strings are held tensioned; and a docking station whereby, in use, a smart device may be removably secured to the instrument and electrically connected to the audio system.

The sound from an electric stringed instrument starts with metallic strings vibrating near a pickup. Pickups are essentially magnetic coils, each consisting of a small magnet wrapped in fine copper wire. When a metallic object (such as an electric guitar string for example) is vibrated above the magnetic coil, the magnetic field is disturbed and an electrical current is produced. This current passes from the pickup to the instrument's output jack and then to an amplifier and speaker to produce the sound associated with the electric instrument.
Accordingly, a traditional electric guitar setup requires:                An electric guitar;        An amplifier and speakers;        Guitar cable from guitar to amplifier;        Mains power lead from amplifier to power outlet; and optionally        Effects pedals or board with power supply cables.
Since the introduction of smart devices, and in particular the Apple iPhone™, software developers began producing 'guitar apps' which are software programs able to process and record the output signal from an electric guitar. Guitar apps are used in conjunction with a guitar audio interface, which is an electronic hardware device that facilitates electrical connection of a guitar to smartphone. The output cable which normally couples the electric guitar to an amplifier is instead coupled to the guitar audio interface and the guitar audio interface has an output cable or dock connector which is coupled to the smart device. There is typically an audio out electrical connection on the guitar interface to electrically connect to either headphones or an audio amplifier.
One of the core functions of guitar apps is to process the signal from the guitar before it is sent to an amplifier or headphones. Signal processing can be used to accurately recreate the sound or tone (timbre) of classic amplifiers such as those produced by Fender or Marshall, or the sound or tone of guitar effect pedals to produce, for example echo/digital delay, revert, distortion, phaser etc.
Some of the functions provided by guitar apps include; amplifier simulation/modelling; guitar effects pedal simulation/modelling; speaker cabinet, simulation/modelling; multi-track recording and audio editing; song or backing track playback using songs stored on the smart device; and drum sequencing.
The advantage and appeal of the new guitar apps that all of this functionality is now contained on the user's smart device and is thus highly portable. When combined with an audio amplifier and speakers, guitar apps effectively turn a smartphone into a full electric guitar setup and recording studio. Before the introduction of guitar apps all of this functionality would have had to be provided by traditional guitar hardware such as guitar amplifiers, effects pedals, and the like, connected to a computer which is running audio editing software programs.
Although guitar apps allow the user to do away with a number of components from the electric guitar setup, thus making a more portable setup, it is still an inconveniently large amount of equipment to transport. The present invention seeks to provide an improved musical instrument which overcomes at least some of the remaining difficulties.


A camera includes a viewfinder, an objective and a manually operated focus adjuster. An optical system located in the path of incoming image light splits the incoming image light beam into two component beams projected into respective first and second focal planes. First and second planar arrays of photosensitive elements are located in respective first and second photodetector planes. When the objective is correctly focussed and then defocussed in a first direction, the sharpness of the image on the first array increases and that on the other decreases; if the objective is defocussed in the opposite direction, the opposite occurs. A comparator has two outputs, connected to the elements of the first and second arrays via respective first and second circuit branches. Each circuit branch includes at least one subtractor producing an absolute-value output signal independent of the polarity of the difference between the input signals applied thereto. The subtractor inputs are connected to the outputs of respective elements of the respective one of the two arrays. The comparator output signal controls an indication, visible in the camera viewfinder, informing the user of the direction in which he should manually move the focus adjuster to improve the state of focus.

The present invention concerns photographic cameras provided with a distance-measuring arrangement and a visual indication in the viewfinder of the state of focus of the exposure objective relative to the subject to be shot, such distance-measuring arrangement being of the type comprising means for splitting the incoming image light beam into two component beams, with a photosensitive detector arrangement provided with an electronic evaluating circuit operative for measuring the component beams with respect to symmetry relative to a plane equivalent to the film plane, and provided also with a manual adjuster for adjusting the state of focus of the camera.
Such cameras are found in widespread use for both still and motion-picture photography. The distance or state-of-focus indicating system in the camera viewfinder comprises a calibrated scale, a mixed-image rangefinder or in the case of reflex cameras a matte viewing screen provided with a microprism array, or may be of the split-image type which indicates state of fucus by the registration or non-registration of the edges of two halves of the viewfinder image, and so forth.
These indicating systems are in general coupled to the focussing system for the exposure objective in such a manner that when the user manually moves the focus adjuster, for example by turning an adjuster ring surrounding the exposure objective, this serves to both change the state of focus of the exposure objective and correspondingly alter the state-of-focus indication in the viewfinder.
With these known indicating systems, it is in general not possible for the user to know whether the focal point of the incoming image light beam is located ahead of or behind the exposure plane, or ahead of or behind a measuring plane optically equivalent to the exposure plane. Accordingly, when the objective is out of focus, the user, often as not, begins to correct this by turning the focussing ring in the wrong direction, followed by the correct direction when he sees no improvement; and then, wishing to improve the state of focus somewhat further, is again ignorant of the direction in which to turn the adjuster ring; and so forth, so that in the course of focussing the camera the user is repeatedly changing the direction in which he is moving the manual focus adjuster.

Photographic camera with means indicating the state of focus


An epitaxial growth system comprises a housing around an epitaxial growth chamber. A substrate support is located within the growth chamber. A gallium source introduces gallium into the growth chamber and directs the gallium towards the substrate. An activated nitrogen source introduces activated nitrogen into the growth chamber and directs the activated nitrogen towards the substrate. The activated nitrogen comprises ionic nitrogen species and atomic nitrogen species. An external magnet and/or an exit aperture control the amount of atomic nitrogen species and ionic nitrogen species reaching the substrate.

Efforts have been made to prepare monocrystalline GaN because of its potentially useful electrical and optical properties. GaN is a potential source of inexpensive and compact solid-state blue lasers. The band gap for GaN is approximately 3.4 eV, which means that it can emit light on the edge of the UV-visible region.
Despite the desirability of a monocrystalline GaN layer, its development has been hampered by the many problems encountered during the growth process. Previous attempts to prepare monocrystalline GaN films have resulted in n-type films with high carrier concentration. The n-type characteristic is attributed to nitrogen vacancies in the crystal structure which are incorporated into the lattice during growth of the film. Hence, the film is unintentionally doped with nitrogen vacancies during growth. Nitrogen vacancies affect the electrical and optical properties of the film. ECR-assisted metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy gave GaN films that were highly conductive and unintentionally doped n-type (S. Zembutsu and T. Sasaki J. Cryst. Growth 77, 25-26 (1986)). Carrier concentrations and mobilities were in the range of 1.times.10.sup.19 cm.sup.-3 and 50-100 cm.sup.2 V.sup.-1 s.sup.-1. Efforts to dope the film p-type were not successful. The carrier concentration was reduced by compensation, that is, the effect of a donor impurity is "neutralized" by the addition of an acceptor impurity.
Highly resistive films were prepared by sputtering using an ultra-pure gallium target in a nitrogen atmosphere. The films were characterized n-type and the high resistivity was attributed to the polycrystalline nature of the films (E. Lakshmi, et al. Thin Solid Films 74, 77 (1977)).
In reactive ion molecular beam epitaxy, gallium was supplied from a standard effusion cell and nitrogen was supplied by way of an ionized beam. Monocrystalline films were characterized n-type, but higher resistivities of 10.sup.6 .OMEGA.-cm and relatively low carrier concentrations and mobilities (10.sup.14 cm.sup.-3 1-10 cm.sup.2 V.sup.-1 s.sup.-1, respectively) were obtained (R. C. Powell, et al. in "Diamond, Silicon Carbide and Related Wide Bandgap Semiconductors" Vol. 162, edited by J. T. Glass, R. Messier and N. Fujimori (Material Research Society, Pittsburgh, 1990) pp.525-530).
The only reported p-type GaN was a Mg-doped GaN treated after growth with low energy electron beam irradiation (LEEBI). P-type conduction was accomplished by compensation of n-type GaN (H. Amano et al. Jap. J Appl. Phys. 28(12), L2112-L2114 (1989)).
Current methods of preparing GaN do not permit control of nitrogen vacancies within the lattice. Thus it has not been possible to prepare intrinsic GaN. Additionally, it is desirable to control the doping process in GaN films, thereby enabling the production of p-n junctions. The present invention presents a method to prepare near-intrinsic monocrystalline GaN films and to selectively dope these films n- or p-type.

Method for epitaxially growing gallium nitride layers


The manufacture is carried out in a continuous manner simultaneous to the filling of the shot holes, in a mixer, preferably a rotating mixer, wherein a water-based, non-explosive or low sensitivity matrix, an air bubble stabilizing agent, and optionally, an oxidant in granular form and a combustible material are mixed together. The nature of the water-based matrix, together with the use of an air bubble stabilizing agent, allows the incorporation of air during the mixing, regulating the density of the final product and acting on the variables of the process. On coming out of the mixer, the explosive is totally sensitized and has reached its final density, allowing for quality control before filling the shot hole. The process may be carried out on the explosives pumping truck, with compartments for the transportation of a water-based matrix, an oxidant in granular form, a combustible material and a gas bubble stabilizing agent.

The use of explosives in public and mining works is so common that today undertaking such activities without their use would be unthinkable. Given the nature of these products, the issue of safety as much in their handling as in their transportation to the place of use are very important and constitute the priority area in the research and development in this industry.
The market has evolved from the use of cartridge-packaged products, generally cap sensitive, to much less sensitive products that should be initiated with a booster. To facilitate transport the tendency is to manufacture or sensitize "in situ".
In reference to manufacturing "in situ", that is, in the truck used for the pumping of the explosives to the shot hole, the first patents are from IRECO (U.S. Pat. No. 3,303,738 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,338,033). These patents disclose the manufacturing inside the truck of a watergel type explosive through the dosage and mixture of a liquid solution of salts and oxidants with a solid material containing oxidizing and thickening salts. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,610,088 (IRECO) the same method is used as in the previous patents for the formation of watergel "in situ" and incorporates the simultaneous addition of air either by mechanical trapping or through the generation of a gas through a chemical reaction. The patent EP 0 203 230 (IRECO) describes a mixer composed of mobile and fixed blades that allow for "in situ" manufacturing of an water-in-oil emulsion-type explosive agent.
The principal drawback of these first generation "in situ" manufacturing techniques lies in the fact that they used oxidant salt solutions at a high temperature that had to be transported in perfectly heat-resistant tanks with a heat contribution. The complexity both of the factory truck and of the manufacturing operation required the presence of highly qualified personnel to guarantee the success of the operation.
With the advent of emulsions, the tendency moved towards transporting matrix emulsions classified as non-explosive and their sensitizing "in situ", by mixing with hollow microspheres or generating gas via a chemical reaction. One characteristic of the emulsions is that they cannot be handled once gasified, as this provokes the migration of the gas bubbles and, therefore, an increase in density. For this reason, the pumping and handling of the emulsion should be carried out before the gasification reaction occurs, just as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,108. The principal drawback of this is the time lapse between filling the shot holes and reaching the final density, thus having no manoeuvring ability if the obtained density is not correct, possibly producing sensitizing errors or an incorrect distribution of explosives in the column of the shot hole.
Another alternative is to transport the original product and sensitize it in the mine using the mixture of low density nitrate particles or a blend of ammonium nitrate with oil (ANFO). U.S. Pat. No. 4,555,278 and EP 0 194 775 describe explosives of this kind formed from emulsions and watergels respectively. In this type of explosive, known as "heavy ANFO", the sensitization is due to the porosity of the granules of porous ammonium nitrate and the air occluded between the gaps thereof. These types of blends are not pumpable, the shot holes are loaded with spindles and its water resistance is limited. The nitrate particle content is generally higher than 50%, given the fact that for lower contents the density of the resulting blend is greatly increased once the liquid product fills the gaps, leading the mixture to loose initiation sensitivity. For nitrate particle contents of less than 50% the resulting product may generally be pumped and sensitization is carried out either before filling the shot holes with hollow microspheres or instead by generating gas once the shot holes have been filled through a chemical reaction.
The solution of patent WO 99/00342 (Unión Española de Explosivos S.A.) discloses a process and installation for the "in situ" sensitization of water-based explosives before loading the shot holes using a non-explosive watergel type matrix. Sensitization is carried out by blending dosed quantities of the matrix product with a gas and a stabilizer of the gas bubbles. Likewise, the patent application WO 01/04073 (Unión Española de Explosivos, S.A.) discloses the process for the "in situ" manufacturing of water based explosives before loading the shot holes from a watergel-type oxidant matrix with an oxygen balance greater than 14%, a combustible material, a gas and a gas bubble stabilizer.
The object of the invention is an "in situ" manufacturing procedure of water-based, pumpable blends of explosives, with an (i) non-explosive watergel-type matrix, (ii) an air bubble stabilizing agent and optionally (iii) an oxidant or blend of an oxidant and a combustible material in granular form and/or (iv) a liquid combustible material. The density of the final product can be regulated according to the conditions of the process. This process allows for the density to be controlled and, therefore, the quality of the explosive product, before filling the shot holes, thus avoiding sensitivity errors due to inadequate density. It also allows the energy of the resulting explosive product to be varied acting on the proportions of the explosive matrix and the oxidant or the blend of oxidant and combustible material in granular form.

Process for the “in situ” manufacturing of explosive mixtures


A belt retractor for a vehicle occupant seat belt has a belt reel (14), a locking disc (16) and a force limiting element (22), the force limiting element (22) being provided with a thread (28) and the force limiting element (22) acting between the belt reel (14) and the locking disc (16) so that a translational movement is generated when a relative rotation between the belt reel (14) and the locking disc (16) takes place.

Belt retractors having force limiters are known from the prior art. The force limiter serves to limit the maximum forces acting in the seat belt in particular in case of an accident such that injuries of a restrained vehicle occupant are precluded. The limitation of the force is achieved by the fact that a rotation of the belt reel is permitted in order to unwind belt webbing when a certain belt webbing force is exceeded so that the force acting on the vehicle occupant is reduced.
A known structure of a force limiter uses a torsion bar which is connected at one end to a belt reel and is supported at the other end by a frame of the belt retractor. As soon as the torque acting on the belt reel due to the tensile forces acting in the belt webbing exceeds the resistance to torsion of the torsion bar, the torsion bar is twisted so that a rotation of the belt reel in the direction of belt webbing withdrawal takes place and thus the withdrawal of belt webbing is possible.
It is basically desirable to have a switchable force limiter. In this way, a strong belt webbing force can be used in a first condition, for example before a contact between a gas bag and the upper part of the body of the vehicle occupant, and a small belt webbing force can be permitted in a second condition, for example when the upper part of the body of the vehicle occupant is supported by the air bag.
The object of the invention is to provide a belt retractor for a vehicle occupant seat belt which is space-saving and permits different force limitation levels.

Belt retractor for a vehicle occupant seat belt


Method of fabricating attenuation sandwich panels having a central cellular core positioned between and bonded to an imperforate facing sheet on one surface thereof and a perforate facing sheet with an outer layer of porous fibrous material adhered to the other surface. The combined perforate sheet and porous fibrous material have a predetermined open surface area prior to attenuation panel fabrication. The perforation exposed surface of the combined perforate sheet and porous fibrous material is covered with a maskant material which covers the surface only. The porous fibrous surface is then saturated with a liquidous anti-wetting solution which coats substantially all of the fibers. The solution is allowed to dry and the maskant is then removed from the opposite surface. The components making up the panel are then assembled and bonded together to form the attenuation panel.

This invention relates to a method of manufacturing new and improved noise attenuating panels and more particularly to a sandwich panel having a central cellular core having endwise directed cells with an imperforate sheet bonded thereto on one surface and the perforation exposed surface of a perforate facing sheet with a layer of porous material bonded thereto bonded to the opposite core surface, wherein there is continuous communication between the core cells and the atmosphere adjacent to the noise to be attenuated. The product manufactured under the method of the invention is specifically suitable for use in a severe environment, such as, for example, lining the high velocity surfaces of an aircraft turbo fan engine.
In manufacturing sound attenuating metal honeycomb sandwich panels which are exposed to an extreme environment and are utilized to suppress a wide range of noise sound frequencies, it is common practice to provide a cellular structure utilizing the Helmholtz resonance principle, wherein a first imperforate sheet of material is bonded to one core surface of a sheet of cellular core material and a thin perforate sheet of like material is applied to the opposite core surface.
Panels having this general type of construction, although satisfactory for attenuating some specific sound frequencies, are found to be inefficient noise attenuators for a broad range of frequencies customarily encountered in and around modern aircraft jet engines. Additionally, it has been found that the perforations of the perforated sheet when exposed directly to a high speed gas flow across their surface create turbulence to that flow. Other known concepts have included interposing a sheet of fibrous material between the perforate sheet and the core surface. This has proven to be unsound structurally when used in severe environments for providing both attenuation and structural integrity or on exterior aircraft surfaces exposed to high speed inflight air flow.
Attempts to successfully manufacture various other sound attenuation materials of this general type have been unsuccessful in that the adhesive used for bonding the perforate sheet to the core will without exception ooze or wick into the perforations of the perforated sheet during assembly and at least fill some of the perforations. The blocking off of the perforations reduces the effective open area of the perforated sheet which in turn increases the desired flow resistance between the source of the sound to be attenuated and the cells of the core. When the number of perforations or the perforation size is increased to overcome the blocking of some of the perforations to maintain the desired flow resistance, the structural strength of the sandwiched structure is correspondingly reduced and the flow turbulence thereacross is increased. In those structures which include porous fibrous material positioned between the perforate sheet and the core structure, the adhesive wicks into the pores of the fibrous material in addition to the blocking of some perforations, thus further increasing the flow resistance and reducing the attenuation effectiveness of the structure.

Method of manufacturing of honeycomb noise attenuation structure and the structure resulting therefrom


The present invention relates to a simple immunochemical semi-quantitative assay method according to chromatography, which comprises trapping a certain amount of an analyte in a sample with a predetermined amount of a fixed antibody for the analyte before qualitative analysis of the analyte, the certain amount corresponding to the amount of the fixed antibody, and thereby decreasing a concentration of the analyte to be subjected to subsequent immunochemical qualitative determination, and an apparatus therefor.

As a method for the qualitative or quantitative determination of a trace amount of a substance contained in an in vivo sample such as blood or urine, immunochemical assay methods are generally used due to their high sensitivity. Of these methods, a so-called immunochromatographic method using chromatography is widely used in many fields, e.g., for clinical examination in a hospital and an assay test in a laboratory.
As a method of detecting an analyte by an immunochromatographic method, a variously labeled specific binding substance (antibody) is reacted with an analyte to be detected (antigen) on a chromatographic material to form a complex of the analyte and the labeled specific binding substance (antigen-antibody complex), and this complex is found (detected) by a variety of means. The label includes radioisotope, chromophore, fluorophore, enzyme, etc. The detecting means include a radiation detector, a spectrophoto meter etc. and visual detection.
JP-A-64-32169 discloses a qualitative assay method by immunochromatography using a colloidal-particles-labeled specific binding substance (antibody) which is chromatographically mobile and capable of generating visually detectable signal, and an apparatus therefor. This publication discloses one means which allows visual detection.
The method described in the above publication is a method for assaying the presence or absence of an analyte (antigen) in a sample or its amount, and comprises (a) bringing a sample containing an analyte (antigen) into contact with a chromatographic medium, (b) moving the above colloidal-particles-labeled substance (labeled antibody) on the chromatographic medium, to allow at least part of the colloidal-particle-labeled substance (labeled antibody) to move to a reactive site and cause a binding reaction, and (c) determining detectable response caused by the colloidal substance in the reaction site for denoting the presence or absence of the analyte (antigen) in the sample and its amount.
Japanese PCT Laid-open Publication No. 1-503174 discloses an apparatus provided with a labeled first antibody which is to specifically bind to an analyte to be detected (antigen) (to be referred to as "labeled first antibody" hereinafter),and is freely mobile on a chromatographic medium in a wet state, and an unlabeled second antibody which is to specifically bind to the analyte (antigen) (the second antibody having an antigen binding portion different from that of the first antibody) (to be referred to as "unlabeled second antibody" hereinafter), and fixed on the chromatographic medium, the apparatus being capable of detecting the presence of the analyte, in a detection area on the chromatographic medium by adding a liquid sample containing the analyte to one end of the chromatographic medium so that the liquid sample moves through the chromatographic medium, reacts with the labeled first antibody and then reacts with the unlabeled second antibody. The principle used in the above apparatus is a so-called (immunochemical) sandwich method.
For determining the amount of an analyte in a sample, conventionally, there is employed a method in which a sample containing an analyte is properly diluted and subjected to a qualitative reaction with a measuring reagent having a predetermined sensitivity and a maximum dilution ratio at which positivity is shown is multiplied by the sensitivity to determine a semi-quantitative assay value, or qualitative reactions are carried out with reagents having different sensitivity without diluting an analyte and the sensitivity of the reagent at which the analyte shows positivity is taken as a semi-quantitative assay value. The method of quantitative analysis includes a liquid-phase assay carried out in a container such as a microtiter well and a solid-phase assay carried out on a chromatographic medium. In the methods described in the above two publications, samples are diluted for carrying out the quantitative determination.
JP-A-4-351962, laid-open recently, discloses a specific-binding analysis method which permits semi-quantitative assay without diluting a sample and an apparatus therefor. In the method described in this publication, for the qualitative or quantitative determination of an analyte in a sample by a chromatographic method, a specific substance is allowed to be present in a measurement system and the amount of a labeled substance to be measured as an index for the analyte is decreased due to the presence of the specific substance, so that there can be consequently obtained a result similar to the result obtained by diluting a sample containing the analyte (to be referred to as "dilution effect" hereinafter).
In a typical method described in the above publication, an analyte (a) added to a sample addition portion contacts a predetermined amount (concentration) of a specific substance (b), which is present on a chromatographic material without being fixed, and a predetermined amount of a labeled specific-binding substance (e), which is present on the chromatographic material without being fixed, (in a site where the specific-binding substance is present). A certain amount of the analyte (a) bonds to the specific substance (b). When, however, an excess of the analyte (a) over the specific substance (b) is present, the excess of the analyte (a) moves to a portion (detection portion) where a specific-binding substance (specific substance (b) or a substance (g) capable of binding to that portion of the analyte (a) which the specific substance (b) bonds to) is present being fixed to the chromatographic material while the excess of the analyte (a) retains a portion capable of binding to the specific substance (b). The analyte (a) which has no portion capable of binding to the specific substance (b), or at least has bound to the specific substance (b), passes the detection portion. Only a complex (f) of the analyte (a)--the labeled specific-binding substance (e), which at least has a portion capable of binding to the specific substance (b), is fixed on the detection portion, and this fixed complex (f) is detected by various means.
It has been generally required to dilute a sample for semi-quantitative assaying an analyte in the sample. Further, the method using reagents having different sensitivity, which does not require the dilution of a sample, has a defect in that the determination is difficult since the intensity of one reaction in one measurement sensitivity is different from the intensity of another reaction in another measurement sensitivity, so that this method has been scarcely practically used.
In the field of medical treatment, clinical examination in particular, the operation of diluting a sample increases the possibility of an examiner being infected with pathogen from blood, urine, etc., as testing samples. Further, when a large number of samples are semi-quantitative assayed, the operation efficiency can be remarkably improved if the dilution operation is not necessary. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a simple immunochemical semi-quantitative assay method which does not require the dilution of a sample, and an apparatus therefor.
Like the present invention, the above-described JP-A-4-351962 discloses an invention which does not require the dilution of a sample. In the method of this publication, many factors are concerned with the adjustment of "dilution effect" of a sample, and it is difficult to adjust the dilution effect, so that no narrow semi-quantitative assay value width can be set and that the method has a problem in measurement accuracy. It is further an object of the present invention to provide an immunochemical semi-quantitative assay method in which the number of factors concerned with the adjustment of "dilution effect" is small so that the dilution effect can be easily adjusted and the sensitivity can be improved, i.e., a semi-quantitative assay value width can be narrowly set, and an apparatus therefor.

Simple immunochemical semi-quantitative assay method and apparatus