A modular compact push button pendant for a hoist or winch is assembled of modular component parts along common passageways selectively ported by gaskets, seal plates, and spool valve stems directly operated by push buttons assembled in a straight line path to permit ready change and selection of function options and orientation.

This invention relates generally to push button pendant stations and more particularly to a pneumatic push button pendant for remote control station for a hoist or winch.
Current push button stations are usually called pendants since they are designed for use on overhead hoists from which they are flexibly suspended within reach of the operator. Because it is suspended, the size and weight of the pendant was never considered to be a problem.
It is often desirable on a winch to have the ability to operate from a remote location, generally between six and thirty feet from the winch. To meet this requirement, a hoist pendant is often adapted for use on a winch by flexibly connecting the pendant to the winch control valve. A problem with this arrangement is that winches are usually mounted at operator level, so the pendant cannot be suspended and being typically bulky and heavy, it is uncomfortable to operate and sometimes requires two handed operation. A second problem is that no provision is made to `park` the pendant when not in use or when it is desired to operate the winch from a fixed location. A third problem is that air supply and pilot signal tubing connects to the top of the pendant which is convenient for a hoist but for a winch this tubing should exit from the bottom of the pendant towards ground level. A fourth problem is that a pendant on a winch is often temporarily placed on surfaces that are contaminated with dirt and oil and if the pendant is not easily cleaned it will also become contaminated.
The foregoing illustrates limitations known to exist in present devices and methods. Thus, it is apparent that it would be advantageous to provide an alternative directed to overcoming one or more of the limitations set forth above. Accordingly, a suitable alternative is provided including features more fully disclosed hereinafter.

Push Button Pendant for a hoist or winch


A multi-phase lubricant composition useful in a process for lubricating one or more operating components which are exposed to an operating condition change is described. Under a condition at which the lubricants are at least partially miscible, the phases combine to provide a lubricant having a physical property which is modified to be more appropriate for lubricating under the new condition, such as a higher viscosity. Typically the lubricants are at least partially miscible at an elevated temperature and at least partially immiscible at lower temperatures. A density difference between the phases is preferred for ease of separating the phases. The composition is preferably a combination of a hydrocarbon oil and a polyalkylene glycol such as polypropylene glycol.

Lubricants for industrial and automotive uses are, usually, single phase, constant composition materials made of basestocks to which various performance enhancing additives may be incorporated. Typically, a lubricant is selected to optimize the performance, function and protection of lubricated systems such as gears, cam-follower pairs, roller bearings, hydrodynamic bearings or pumps.
To optimize system performance, the lubricant is formulated by selecting one or more basestocks and additives which will meet system needs when combined. Viscosity properties are an important consideration when formulating a lubricant because the appropriate viscosity balances energy loss because of viscous drag with wear because of diminished oil film thickness. Antiwear and antiscuff additives can help protect surfaces when the oil film between them thins. Basestocks, depending on their composition, can have various beneficial properties such as antioxidancy, good viscosity index and low traction.
While it is possible to optimize lubricant selection for a single phase lubricant, optimum performance under the prevailing operating conditions (such as speed, load and temperature) can be compromised when the conditions change or when the same lubricant is used to lubricate several parts, each part having its own unique lubricant needs. Frequently, one lubricant is used to lubricate a wide variety of machines, for the sake of simplicity.
The use of a single phase lubricant requires a compromise between premature machine failure due to wear, fatigue or scuffing, because the lubricant is of insufficient viscosity under certain operating conditions, with excessive energy loss or overheating, because the lubricant viscosity is too high for other operating conditions. Since machine or plant operators prefer to minimize downtime, the compromise usually favors high viscosity lubricants which reduce equipment failure but cause excess energy loss. Additionally, where temperatures vary widely, the viscosity selected may be for the weakest link component at its highest operating temperature but because of the relationship between viscosity and temperature, much energy is wasted since the lubricant viscosity is too high under the normally lower operating temperatures.
A two-phase lubricant for improving the low temperature starting of an automobile engine is disclosed in French Patent No. 2,205,931. There, a process is disclosed in which a more dense lower viscosity phase and a less dense higher viscosity phase are combined such that a homogeneous phase, with lubricating properties characteristic of conventional engine lubricants, exists when the engine is at its operating temperature. When the engine is cool, the phases separate so that on starting the engine under low temperature conditions only the low viscosity more dense fluid is drawn into the oil pump. This improves engine cranking speeds because of reduced viscous drag and provides easier starting. The disclosed lubricants are hydrocarbons and esters, the heavier ester phase has the lower viscosity. The objective of the patent is to ease cold starting of an automobile engine. The patent describes the disadvantages associated with polymers as viscosity index enhancers because they degrade with use and cause the oil to lose viscosity. Thus, the patent suggests the use of the two-component system as an alternative to polymers because it provides good low temperature starting without viscosity degradation over time. The lubricant phases mix as the engine warms-up and the mixed lubricant behaves in the conventional manner, demonstrating large viscosity variations with temperature.
The moving parts of industrial machines are often actuated by liquid, usually oil, sometimes water-based emulsions, that is under pressure. The system used to apply the liquid is a hydraulic system, usually a contained system, which includes a reservoir, a motor driven pump, control valves, a fluid motor and piping which connects these components. Lubricating oil is often selected because it is useful for pressure transmission and controlled wear and it minimizes friction and wear of moving parts and inhibits corrosion. Hydraulic fluids with low pour points and high viscosity indexes (VI) are formulated for use in mobile and marine applications that are subject to temperature extremes during service. With these high VI fluids, the goal is to obtain effective and consistent hydraulic actuation under extremes of high and low temperatures. Although there are many high VI hydraulic fluids available which attempt to meet this objective, it is very difficult to do with one fluid phase that has fairly constant properties.


A node of a radio access network (RAN) receives, from a WLAN Termination (WT), an Extended Service Set Identifier (ESSID) and/or a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID) for one or more WLAN access points controlled by the WT. The node maintains a mapping between the ESSIDs and/or the BSSIDs and corresponding WLAN access points of the WT. Responsive to receiving a measurement report from a UE, the measurement report indicating an ESSID and/or a BSSID, the node associates the UE with a WLAN access point, based on said mapping. An interface may be established between the node and the WT.

The wireless local area network (WLAN) technology known as "Wi-Fi" has been standardized by IEEE in the 802.11 series of specifications (i.e., as "IEEE Standard for Information technology—Telecommunications and information exchange between systems. Local and metropolitan area networks—Specific requirements. Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications"). The IEEE 802.11 specifications regulate the functions and operations of the Wi-Fi access points (APs) or wireless terminals, collectively known as "stations" or "STA," in the IEEE 802.11 standards, including the physical layer protocols, Medium Access Control (MAC) layer protocols, and other aspects needed to secure compatibility and inter-operability between access points and portable terminals. Wi-Fi is commonly used as a wireless extension to fixed broadband access, e.g., in domestic environments and in so-called hotspots, like airports, train stations and restaurants. Most current Wi-Fi/WLAN deployments are totally separate from mobile radio networks, and can be seen as "non-integrated," from the perspective of the user terminal.
Recently, Wi-Fi has been subject to increased interest from cellular network operators, who are studying the possibility of using Wi-Fi for purposes beyond its conventional role as an extension to fixed broadband access. These operators are responding to the ever-increasing market demands for wireless bandwidth, and are interested in using Wi-Fi technology as an extension of, or alternative to, cellular radio access network technologies (RATs). Cellular operators that are currently serving mobile users with, for example, any of the technologies standardized by the 3rd-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including the radio-access technologies known as Long-Term Evolution (LTE), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)/Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), see Wi-Fi as a wireless technology that can provide good additional support for users of the operators' regular cellular networks.
In particular, 3GPP has studied ways to more tightly integrate LTE and WLAN, in particular for operator-deployed WLAN, so that traffic from WLAN-enabled user equipments (UEs—3GPP terminology for an access terminal) can be offloaded to WLAN from an eNodeB and vice versa. In early iterations of the standards for this integration, this tightened integration was achieved through semi-static policy setting, via Access Network Discovery and Selection Function (ANDSF) and/or offload thresholds broadcasted by the eNodeB (3GPP terminology for an evolved base station—also referred to as an "eNB").
A 3GPP Rel-13 study item entitled Multi-RAT Joint Coordination has been recently started in 3GPP TSG RAN3 [3GPP TR 37.870]. The scope and requirements for the Multi-RAT Joint Coordination SI have been further defined in 3GPP working group meetings. In particular, for the 3GPP-WLAN coordination part, it has been agreed to focus on non-integrated 3GPP/WLAN nodes (i.e., as so-called standalone eNodeB and standalone AP), since integrated nodes are a matter of implementation.
Among the requirements of the study item [3GPP TR 37.870] is the investigation of potential enhancements of RAN interfaces and procedures to support the joint operation among different RATs, including WLAN. It has also been agreed that i) coordination involving WLAN and 3GPP is the priority of the study item, and ii) the statements on 3GPP/WLAN must be complementary to RAN2 work [R3-141512]. This complement could be achieved by the specification of an interface between the E-UTRAN and WLAN, which may occur in future releases of the standards.
The main functionality so far envisioned for this interface, called so far the "Xw interface," is the support for traffic steering from LTE to WLAN via the reporting of different sets of information from WLAN to the eNodeB so that educated steering decisions can be taken. Also, 3GPP has recently approved a RAN2 work item on full network controlled 3GPP/WLAN traffic steering and aggregation [RP-150510, available at ftp://ftp.3gpp.org/tsg_ran/TSG_RAN/TSGR_67/Docs/RP-150510.zip], and thus new functionalities of the Xw interface can be envisioned.
As defined so far, the Xw interface is terminated in the eNodeB on the LTE network side, and in a logical node called WT (WLAN Termination) on the WLAN side. The WT can physically reside in an AP or in an AC and is assumed to have IP connectivity to the relevant WLAN nodes. Possible realization of the protocol and architectural of the Xw interface are depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. Note that in the figures, the AP/AC has been assigned the role of the WT for the sake of clarity, but the WT node can be another node in the WLAN.
It is recognized herein that there are inefficiencies involved with Xw interface setup. Accordingly, improved techniques are needed for setting up the Xw interface or other interface between a radio access network node and a WT.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Autonomous LTE-WLAN interface setup and information exchange


A belt driving control device that includes a belt, a driving roller transmitting drive force to the belt, a belt phase detecting section detecting a phase of the belt, a correction amount computing section computing a correction amount of a belt travelling velocity corresponding to the detected phase of the belt for cancelling out fluctuation in the belt travelling velocity corresponding to the detected phase of the belt, and a storage section storing the correction amount of the belt travelling velocity corresponding to the detected phase of the belt. The belt driving control device further includes a driving control section retrieving the correction amount of the belt travelling velocity corresponding to the phase of the belt and controlling drive of the driving roller to cancel out the fluctuation in the belt travelling velocity based on the retrieved correction amount of the belt travelling velocity corresponding to the detected phase of the belt.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a belt driving control device configured to control a belt looped over plural rollers, a belt device having the belt driving control device, a belt driving control method, and an image forming apparatus having the belt device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the related art, there is provided an image forming apparatus having such a belt, such as a photoreceptor belt, an intermediate transfer belt, and a sheet transfer conveyor belt. In this type of image forming apparatus, high degrees of accuracy in controlling the drive of the belt may be a prerequisite in order to insure high image quality. Specifically, in a tandem type image forming apparatus having a direct transfer system capable of exhibiting an excellent image forming speed and suitable for reduction in size, high degrees of accuracy may be required for controlling the drive of a conveyance belt that conveys a recording sheet (i.e., a sheet-type recording medium). In the image forming apparatus, the recording sheet is conveyed by the conveyance belt and sequentially passed through each of plural image forming units arranged along a conveyance direction such that mutually different homochromatic images are formed on the recording sheet. The different homochromatic images are individually superimposed on one over another to thus form the color images on the recording sheet.
FIG. 8 shows one example of the tandem type electrophotographic image forming apparatus having an intermediate transfer system. Reference numerals 22, 23, 24 respectively indicate a conveyance belt, a driving roller, and a driven roller. Further, reference numerals 21Y, 21M, 21C, 21K each indicate one of image forming units.
In the image forming apparatus, for example, the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K that form corresponding homochromatic images in colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K) are arranged in a travelling direction of conveyance of a recording sheet. Electrostatic latent images formed on surfaces of unshown photoconductor drums 12Y, 12M, 12C, and 12K are then developed by exposure of laser from a laser exposure unit 21 at the corresponding image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K to form corresponding homochromatic toner images (perceivable images). The homochromatic toner images are attached to the conveyance belt 22 by electrostatic force, and sequentially transferred from the conveyance belt 22 onto the recording sheet (not shown) such that the homochromatic toner images are sequentially superimposed on the recording sheet. Thereafter, toner of the superimposed images are fused and pressed by a fixation device 17, thereby forming color images fixated on the recording sheet.
The conveyance belt 22 is looped with adequate tension over a driving roller 23 and a driven roller 24 arranged in parallel with each other. The driving roller 23 is rotationally driven at a predetermined rotational velocity by unshown driving motor and the conveyance belt 22 endlessly travels at a predetermined velocity according to the rotation of the driving roller 23. The recording sheet is supplied by a paper-feeding mechanism on a portion of the conveyance belt 22 located at a side where the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K are arranged, and conveyed at the same velocity as the travelling velocity of the conveyance belt 22. Thus, the recording sheet is passed through each of the image forming units arranged in series.
In the image forming apparatus, failure to maintain the travelling velocity of the recording sheet or the travelling velocity of the conveyance belt 22 at a constant value results in color shifts. Such color shifts result from relative shifts in transferring positions of the homochromatic images that are alternately superimposed on the recording sheet. The color shifts may result in blurring fine line images formed by superimposing images of plural colors or white dot defects around profiles of black character images in the background image formed by superimposing images of plural colors.
FIG. 9 shows another example of the tandem type electrophotographic image forming apparatus having the intermediate transfer system. In the intermediate transfer system of the tandem type electrophotographic image forming apparatus, the homochromatic images individually formed on the corresponding surfaces of photoconductor drums 12Y, 12M, 12C, and 12K of the image forming units 21Y, 21M, 21C, and 21K are temporarily transferred on the intermediate transfer belt 16 such that the images are sequentially superimposed on one over another, and the superimposed images are transferred on the recording sheet at once.
In this tandem type electrophotographic image forming apparatus having the intermediate transfer system, the color shifts may also be generated if the intermediate transfer belt 16 does not travel at a constant velocity. In the image forming apparatus, including the aforementioned tandem type image forming apparatus, utilizing a belt as a conveyance member for conveying a recording material or as an image carrier including a photoconductor or an intermediate transfer member for carrying the images transferred on the recording material, failure to maintain the travelling velocity of the belt at a constant value may result in banding. The banding indicates image density heterogeneity that results from fluctuations in the travelling velocity of the belt while images are being transferred on the recording material. Specifically, a portion of the image transferred on the intermediate transfer belt 16 when the travelling velocity of the belt is relatively fast has a profile extended in a circumferential direction (i.e., travelling direction) of the belt whereas a portion of the image transferred on the intermediate transfer belt 16 when the travelling velocity of the belt is relatively slow has a profile shrunk in the circumferential direction of the belt, in comparison to the original profile of the image. The extended portion of the image has low density while the shrunk portion has high density. As a result, the image density heterogeneity in the circumferential direction of the belt or banding is observed. The banding is clearly perceived with the naked eye when pale homochromatic images are formed.
The travelling velocity of the belt varies with various factors including inconsistency of a belt thickness if the belt is formed of a single layer. The thickness inconsistency of the belt results from thickness variation of the belt in the circumferential direction which is manufactured with a cylindrical mold by a centrifugal baking system. In the belt having such a thickness variation in the circumferential direction of the belt, the travelling velocity of the belt increases when a thicker portion of the belt is looped over the driving roller whereas the velocity decreases when a thinner portion of the belt is looped over the driving roller. The thickness inconsistency or thickness variation results in fluctuation in the travelling velocity of the belt.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-264976 discloses an image forming apparatus having a belt driving control device capable of controlling such thickness inconsistency of the belt. In the disclosed image forming apparatus, a correcting amount for the driving roller to control is computed based on information on the rotational angular displacements or rotational angular velocities of the two rollers individually having different diameters. The rotational velocity of the driving roller is then controlled based on the computed correcting amount obtained in order to cancel out the fluctuation in the belt travelling velocity due to the thickness variation of the belt in the circumferential direction of the belt. The disclosed document also includes a method of synchronizing the correcting amount with the thickness fluctuation, in which a reference mark is provided on the belt as a home position, and the marked home position on the belt is scanned by an optical sensor or the like to detect the home position. In the disclosed document, there is a method of synchronizing the correcting amount with the thickness fluctuation without having the reference mark placed on the belt as the home position. In this method, the accumulated value of the rotational angular velocity of a roller obtained by an encoder mounted on the roller supporting the belt is computed. A virtual home position is then determined as a position at which the computed accumulated value has reached a prescribed value.
However, the belt driving control device in the image forming apparatus according to the related art cancels out the fluctuation in the belt travelling velocity resulting from the thickness variation of the belt only after the home position or the virtual home position of the belt has been detected. In this case, though depending on where the home position of the belt is, the belt control device may have to wait (i.e., waiting time) until the belt has been driven to travel one rotation to reach the home position again in order to cancel out the fluctuation in the belt travelling velocity. In the image forming apparatus such as a printer or a copier having the belt driving control device, it is desirable that duration of time (hereinafter called "first print time"), which indicates the time from the time at which the print starting command given by an operation unit or a superordinate apparatus is received to the time at which the printed matter is discharged onto a discharge tray of the image forming apparatus, is as short as possible. In order to provide uniform image quality, it is generally preferable that images be formed after fluctuation of the belt travelling velocity has been stabilized. Accordingly, in such an image forming apparatus, it is desirable that the aforementioned waiting time is made as short as possible because the waiting time is directly added to the first print time.

Belt driving control device, belt driving control method, and image forming apparatus


The present invention relates to methods for marking a coated substrate. In particular, the present invention relates to methods for marking a coated substantially cementitious substrate in the form of a cementitious building product. The method comprises the steps of treating at least a portion of an uncoated cementitious substrate to form indicia; and applying a surface coating on said cementitious substrate to at least partially cover said indicia such that a marking is formed.

The following discussion of the prior art is provided to place the invention in an appropriate technical context and enable the advantages of it to be more fully understood. It should be appreciated, however, that any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should not be considered as an express or implied admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
The prior art discloses various methods to mark substrates. For example, it is known to use ink-jet printing methods to apply visual indicia to, for example, a building product such as a sheet of fibre cement or a coated building product. The visual indicia can take many forms, such as to indicate the source of the product, or product specifications, or product barcodes, trademarks, or other descriptors, etc. It is also known to print other visual indicia for the convenience of the installer, such as measurement markings, measurement grids, nailing guides, etc. For example see U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,489, U.S. Pat. No. 5,842,280, U.S. Pat. No. 6,115,926 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,049,987 to Robell which disclose various printing methods for printing visual indicia on wallboards, including ink-jet printing, screen printing and pad printing. However, these printing processes are costly and difficult to use. For example the ink adds cost to the final product and, for example, the ink-jet printing heads require constant maintenance and can relatively easily break down during production. Further, it will be appreciated that the entire intended visual marking can be ruined if but one of the many ink-jet heads fails or becomes blocked during use, thereby causing the product to be "faulty", even if the substrate is fit for purpose. Also, re-working a sheet having an applied marking which is faulty is clearly inconvenient and costly.
What is needed is a way to mark a coated substrate which is substantially cementitious in composition without the need for relatively expensive inks, and without using relatively delicate printing equipment.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome or ameliorate at least one of the disadvantages of the above-mentioned prior art, or to provide a useful alternative.


A portable leaf grinding device (PLGD 10) that is used to grind a substance such as a plurality of compacted leaves into a multiplicity of leaf particles. The PLGD (10) consists of a circular cap (12), a cone-shaped hollow structure (84) that is releaseably attached to the cap (12), and a container (102) that is also attached to the cap (12). The circular cap (12) has attached an upper grinding disk (42) having a plurality of downward-extending leaf grinding blades (58). The upper grinding disk (42) interacts with a lower grinding disk (62) which is attached to the structure (84) and which also includes a plurality of upward-extending grinding blades (72) and a plurality of bores (74). When the circular cap (12) is rotated, the blades on the two grinding disks (46,62) interact with each other to produce the multiplicity leaf particles. The leaf particles can be either stored in the container (102) for later use or used immediately as they exit from the structure (84).

There are many types of leafy plants that can be ingested by humans. Many of these plants are eaten as seasonings for other foods, or in the case of tobacco, are ingested by smoking. Typically, when a leaf is utilized as a seasoning or is smoked, the leaf must first be dried and then ground to small sized particles.
There are many methods of grinding a dried leaf. Before the advent of mechanical devices a dried leaf was simply crushed in a person's hand. Though partially effective, the hand method was time consuming, unclean and was unable to provide consistency in the size of the ground leaf particles.
Mechanical devices, both powered and not powered, are effective for grinding a dried leaf. Unfortunately, most mechanical devices are dimensioned for use in a kitchen or other stationary environment. In order to use a mechanical grinding device, the dried leaves must be brought to where the device is located. For many applications this approach is impractical. For example, many smokers prefer to use fresh, recently-ground tobacco in their pipes or rolled into cigarettes.
Obviously, what is needed is a relatively small device, such as hand-held/pocket-sized, dried leaf grinder that can provide well-ground, consistency-sized leaf particles. A significant benefit would be to include a means of storing the ground particles in a container that is integral with the leaf grinding mechanism. In this manner, a person could grind dried leaves at anytime and any place, and then store and carry a quantity of the recently ground leaves for future use.
A search of the prior art did not disclose literature or patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention. However, the following U.S. patents are considered related.
U.S. Pat. No.INVENTORISSUED4,139,161Hupperich13 Feb. 19794,135,672Schlesser23 Jan. 19794,026,490Johansson31 May 1977
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,139,161 patent discloses a two-piece container and grinder combination. The container has an upward-projecting cylindrical post having outward-extending grinding teeth. The cap is adapted to fit rotatably to the container and has two sets of teeth which cooperate with the teeth on the cylindrical post to grind the ingredients from the container as the ingredients pass from the container between the teeth.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,672 patent discloses a grinding mill for coffee beans and the like including a receiver for the articles to be ground. The mill has at least one passageway for gravitationally passing the articles, a rotative discharge member beneath the receiver for discharging the ground material, and grinding means for communicating between the passageway and the discharge member.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,026,490 patent discloses a spice or pepper mill having a portion adapted to fit the opening of a commercial spice jar. The spice is kept in the jar and is dispensed by holding the jar upside down and rotating the housing relatively thereto.
For background purposes and as indicative of the art to which the invention relates, reference may be made to the following remaining patents found in the search:
U.S. Pat. No.INVENTORISSUED  197,982Seifert, et al11 Dec. 1877  210,837Chalas17 Dec. 18782,479,151Bostick16 Aug. 19492,688,448Lenz 7 Sep. 19542,763,440Johnson18 Sep. 19563,130,927Schmieding 28 Apr. 19643,136,491Posmanter 9 Jun. 19643,633,834Nissen11 Jan. 19723,827,641Andersson 6 Aug. 19743,991,947Schlessel16 Nov. 19764,304,363Atkielski 8 Dec. 1981


A method, which may be implemented by a program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for satisfying requests between a client and a server including the steps of providing a first entity with a directory of information about contents of a cache of a second entity, the first entity for receiving a request from a client, determining whether the directory of information indicates that the request is satisfied by the cache of the second entity by querying the directory of information on the first entity, sending the request to the second entity, if the directory indicates that the request is satisfied by the cache of the second entity, and otherwise, sending the request to be satisfied by another entity. A system is also included.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to caching information in computer systems, and more particularly to a method and system for accelerating cache memory in these computer systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer systems may include caches for retaining information in a more accessible location to reduce fetch time and forego the need for recalculation of objects. Caching is commonly used for improving performance on many computer systems. By caching an object, the cost for fetching or creating the object is only incurred once. Subsequent requests for a cached object can be satisfied from the cache, a process which incurs significantly less overhead than recalculating the object or fetching it from a remote location.
Proxy caching is a technique used in conventional systems for storing data remotely from a Web site where the data permanently reside (see xe2x80x9cCaching Proxies: Limitations and Potentialsxe2x80x9d by M. Abrams et al., xe2x80x9cFourth International World Wide Web Conference Proceedings,xe2x80x9d December 1996, pp. 119-133; and xe2x80x9cWorld Wide Web Proxiesxe2x80x9d by A. Luotonen and K. Altis in xe2x80x9cComputer Networks and ISDN Systems,xe2x80x9d vol. 27 (1994), pp. 147-154 , both incorporated herein by reference). Proxy caches for major Internet Service Providers (ISP""s) can receive huge volumes of requests. Consequently, performance is of critical importance for proxy caching.
One technique for improving performance of Web servers and proxy caches is to use a Web server accelerator (see, is e.g., xe2x80x9cDesign and Performance of a Web Server Accelerator,xe2x80x9d by E. Levy, A. Iyengar, J. Song, and D. Dias, Proceedings of INFOCOM""99, March 1999, incorporated herein by reference). For example, described therein is a Web server accelerator which runs under an embedded operating system optimized for communication. When used as a front end for one or more Web servers, the accelerator can dramatically increase the throughput of the Web site.
Another technique for improving proxy caching is to introduce large scale distributed caches, as described by R. Tewari, et al. in xe2x80x9cBeyond Hierarchies: Design Considerations for Distributed Caching on the Internetxe2x80x9d, Technical Report TR98-04, Department of Computer Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, February 1998. The techniques developed therein are for improving the performance of a set of distributed caches by sharing information among the caches. However, these techniques do not improve the performance of individual proxy cache nodes.
A Web server accelerator can also be placed in front of a proxy cache to improve the performance of the proxy cache. Using this approach, requests to the site would initially go to the accelerator. If the requested document were contained in the accelerator cache, it would be returned without contacting the proxy server on which the proxy cache runs. If the requested document were not contained in the accelerator cache, however, the request would then go to the proxy server.
The Web server accelerator will improve performance a moderate amount using this configuration. The improvement in throughput will likely be less than a factor of two, however, because most requests will result in misses at both the accelerator and proxy cache. One reason for this may be that various studies have shown that in general, less than 50% of documents on the Web can be cached at proxies (see xe2x80x9cWeb Proxy Caching: The Devil is in the Detailsxe2x80x9d by Caceres, Douglis, Feldman, Glass, and Rabinovich, Proceedings of WISP ""99). Requests for uncacheable documents will result in cache misses at both the accelerator and proxy caches.
Therefore, a need exists for a system and method for accelerating cache throughputs for computer systems. A further need exists for providing a method for significantly improving performance at proxy servers.
A method, which may be implemented by a program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for satisfying requests between a client and a server including the steps of providing a first entity with a directory of information about contents of a cache of a second entity, the first entity for receiving a request from a client, determining whether the directory of information indicates that the request is satisfied by the cache of the second entity by querying the directory of information on the first entity, sending the request to the second entity, if the directory indicates that the request is satisfied by the cache of the second entity, and otherwise, sending the request to be satisfied by another entity. In other methods, which may be implemented by a program storage device, the first entity is preferably an accelerator. The accelerator may include at least one cache and the method may include the step of attempting to satisfy requests from a client by employing the at least one cache. In response to the at least one cache on the accelerator including insufficient space, the step of storing data in the cache of the second entity may be included. The second entity may include a proxy server. The step of compressing information included in the directory of information for referencing data in the cache may be included. The step of compressing information may include compressing at least some of the information using a hash function. The directory of information may include hints of information included in the cache of the second entity.
In accordance with the present invention, a system for accelerating interactions between a client and a server includes an accelerator communicating directly with the at least one client for receiving requests. A proxy server is coupled to the accelerator and includes a first cache. The proxy server can satisfy client requests for objects. The accelerator includes a proxy directory for storing information about objects included in the first cache such that the accelerator has access to information about objects stored in the first cache thereby preventing the need to access the proxy server for objects not included in the first cache.
In alternate embodiments, the system may include a plurality of accelerators. The system may include a plurality of proxy servers. The proxy server may include a Web server. The accelerator may include a second cache, the accelerator being adapted for satisfying client requests for objects by employing the second cache. Remote servers may be included for providing requested objects unavailable from the first cache and second cache. The system may include additional caches on the proxy server for storing an object when insufficient space is available on the first cache and/or second cache. The proxy directory may include compressed information for referencing objects in the first cache. At least a portion of the compressed information may be compressed using a hash function. The proxy directory may include hints of information included in the first cache.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

System and method for cache acceleration

International Business Machines Corporation


An asymmetrical focus ring varies the flow-field, which aids in normalizing pressure gradients across the wafer being processed, thereby improving the process. Embodiments of the present invention utilize a focus ring that either (1) contains a pattern of through holes that enhances pumping, or (2) does not contain any such pattern.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a plasma processing apparatus and a method for using the apparatus to process substrates (e.g., semiconductor wafers or liquid crystal display panels), and in particular to the manufacture and use of an asymmetrical focus ring.
2. Discussion of the Background
As is known in the art, a fundamental step in the manufacture of semiconductor devices, such as integrated circuits (ICs), is the process of forming electrical interconnections. The formation of electrical circuits, such as semiconductor transistors, involves a series of steps starting with the formation of a blank silicon wafer. The blank silicon wafer is then processed using successive steps of depositing and etching away various materials to form the proper interconnections and therefore the electrical circuits.
One method of depositing and etching metal layers to and from a silicon wafer includes the use of a plasma reactor system. In semiconductor manufacturing, plasma reactor systems are used to remove material from or deposit material to a work-piece (e.g., semiconductor wafer) in the process of making integrated circuit (IC) devices. A key factor in obtaining the highest yield and overall quality of ICs is the uniformity of the etching and deposition processes.
In a narrow gap, high aspect ratio capacitively coupled plasma reactor, a multipurpose chuck assembly design is often employed that attempts to allow the chuck assembly (i.e. wafer work piece holder) to serve additional purposes other than supporting the wafer. The complexity of the mechanical design of the chuck assembly is such that a non-optimal vacuum system design is required. A vacuum pumping system is used to evacuate the reactor processing region to the low pressures necessary to create a clean environment, to which a specific gas chemistry is introduced, which provides an environment for the generation of plasma. Consequently, due to the complexity of the mechanical design of the chuck assembly, the symmetry of the vacuum system (relative to the wafer) is sacrificed such that the vacuum pump is usually positioned to access the reactor vacuum chamber from the side rather than from the chamber bottom or top.
This type of multi-purpose chuck assembly can become a very cumbersome component of the reactor. In a multi-purpose chuck assembly design, in addition to supporting the wafer, the chuck assembly is typically configured to provide vertical translation in order to reduce the electrode-to-wafer spacing. This spacing control is necessary in order to produce a narrow gap for process conditions and to enlarge the gap for wafer exchange. In addition to the aforementioned capabilities, the chuck typically sustains a radio frequency (RF) energy bias. Moreover, the chuck assembly design further includes components for chuck block cooling, electrostatic clamping, and backside gas flow to improve thermal conduction (between the wafer and the chuck). Consequently, the vacuum design is often a secondary consideration to other various mechanical and electrical component designs.
A reactor chamber that is equipped with a side mount vacuum port is considered an asymmetrical design in a nominally cylindrical system. An inherent drawback associated with an asymmetric design is that it often times produces an asymmetric process. One such asymmetry stemming from an asymmetric vacuum design is the observation of pressure field non-uniformity above the wafer when the chamber is evacuated from the side. That is, a pressure gradient with about 10-20% variation can occur across the wafer being processed. In general, for moderate to high pressures (e.g. P>20 mTorr), a region of low pressure is observed at an azimuthal location adjacent the pump entrance or pumping duct entrance (the pumping duct interfaces the inlet of the pump, e.g. turbo-molecular pump, with the vacuum chamber). In known capacitively-coupled plasma reactors, attempts to solve the problem of an asymmetric chamber flow field introduced by pumping from the side have included the insertion of an orifice plate adjacent to the chuck.
A processing chamber generally includes a single evacuated volume wherein a portion of that volume is proximate the wafer and is hereinafter referred to as the processing region. When an orifice plate is employed, the chamber volume is separated into two regions by the orifice plate. The first region is predominantly occupied by the wafer processing region and the second region, referred to as the pumping volume, is accessed by the vacuum pump. This solution tends to improve the flow-field uniformity in the upper chamber volume by providing sufficient flow resistance through the orifice plate. However, this improvement is achieved at the expense of flow conductance or pumping speed at the processing region. In addition to placing the orifice plate adjacent the chuck assembly, other known designs included locating the orifice plate adjacent other surfaces, e.g. any surface interfacing the processing chamber volume that allows the exhaust of chamber gases.
There are several inherent problems with the known methods that use an orifice plate to control pressure uniformity in a chamber. For example, known orifice plates typically distribute the small openings equally in the azimuthal direction about the orifice plate in the hope that the resultant flow conductance will be azimuthally symmetric through the plate. However, in order to achieve flow-field uniformity, it is necessary to restrict the flow through the orifice plate to the extent that the pressure difference across the orifice is significantly greater than any pressure gradient in the processing or pumping regions. This requires making the holes in the orifice plate small and, hence, paying a penalty in chamber pumping speed at the wafer. This penalty in pumping speed directly results in an adverse effect on throughput.
In addition to the problem of pressure field non-uniformity described above, an additional problem associated with plasma processing systems is the transport of plasma to the pumping duct and pump inlet. In general, the aforementioned orifice plate or a separate pumping duct screen is utilized to attenuate the plasma density prior to reaching the pump inlet. For example, in known systems a pump screen (with generally less than 50% solidity) is placed in the cross-section of the pumping duct. Unfortunately the pumping screen attenuates the plasma and also reduces the pumping speed delivered to the processing region by at least a factor of two. This approach results in at least 50% of the frontal area of the pumping duct cross-section being utilized for recombination surfaces. In conventional designs, there is a one-to-one relationship between the increase in recombination surface area and the decrease in the frontal (flow-through) area.


A lightweight snow groomer designed to be towed behind a snowmobile, ATV, or UTV with an adjustable v-plow. The snow groomer includes multiple links pivotably connected to its drawbar assembly and the plow that allow the plow to swing upwardly and rearwardly under the drawbars. The snow groomer preferably includes a front link adjacent to its coupler for leveling the plow/pan assembly and for vertical adjustment to accommodate different hitch heights. The snow groomer also ideally has a lift assembly with a threaded arm that screws up and down the lift assembly. The linkage may include a slotted link segment that pivotably connects to the plow and allows the plow to float on compacted snow or leave the desired amount of snow, depending on the adjustment, for compacting. The preferred v-plow can swing upwardly and rearwardly when striking obstacles during operation of the snow groomer.

Long before snowplows and snow blowers, man compacted snow on trails and on roads of towns and villages. Large sleds or rollers powered by a variety of means have been used for centuries. Compacting snow and letting it set still provides groomed access to many arctic areas. "Icing-in" a road is still a common practice at many logging and construction sites in remote areas during the winter months.
Often, snow sport enthusiasts want to level drifts and low spots or to compact snow providing beautifully groomed access for their sport. Such sports include alpine skiing, snowboarding, tubing, sledding, snow shoeing, snowmobiling, and more recently biking.
One goal of snow grooming is producing a smooth, uniformly compacted snow surface with a uniform high density with easy-to-use equipment. Sometimes it may be desirable to reduce the amount of snow on a groomed trail or road for safety considerations. Large operations use snow cats and tractors to groom snow on a massive scale. But a snowmobile, an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) or utility task vehicle (UTV) can pull a smaller grooming drag for less expensive operations. In some instances, the trails are not wide enough for a large tractor or snow cat to groom the trails. Smaller groomers allow grooming trails with a standard snowmobile, ATV or UTV as an affordable grooming solution for many neighborhood, golf course and parks and recreation trail systems.
When using a utility snowmobile, a tracked ATV, or UTV to groom trails, the snowmobile, ATV, or UTV typically pulls a small grooming drag (such as about four feet wide) to engage the snow, while being easy to pull. The snowmobile, ATV, UTV and associated groomers are also less expensive than larger equipment. This may allow for more frequent grooming operations and grooming where enthusiasts may be enjoying the snow and trails.
The focus of this disclosure is snow grooming implements that can be used with snowmobiles to economically groom for snow sports, as well as for walking and hiking trails. Such implements are usually light-weight and can be towed at higher speed behind a snowmobile, ATV or UTV, rather than a large snow cat or tractor.
Certain prior art snow grooming drags have multiple spring tripping blades. As the blades cut off moguls, they can often hit rocks, stumps, or other fixed objects buried in the snow. While not all drags have spring tripping blades (rather they are mounted solid so they do not "trip" when hitting a buried solid object), certain prior art has each individual cutting blade as spring-loaded so they can trip out of the way if they hit a buried object. This can help prevent damage to the drag, vehicle, and the operator.
In addition to flat and compacted snow, sometimes it is desirable to reduce the amount of snow on a road or a trail for safety considerations. Deep snow can be problematic for the growing trend of winter biking. One innovation making winter biking easier is the popularity of fat tire bicycles—specialized mountain bikes equipped to ride on snow-covered roads and trails. A useful implement to groom roads or trails for winter biking is a v-plow.
Prior known v-plow groomers are attached by a single link from the front, which does not allow for lifting or adjusting the height of the plow. A lightweight snow groomer is desirable with a means of adjusting a plow relative to the compaction pan of the snow groomer.

Snow groomer with linkage for adjustable component


A data acquisition system is used in an industrial environment in connection with the conveying of work pieces or the like usually through a number of processed steps such as in connection with a programmable conveying system which may be used in the field of electroplating, heat treating or an immersion coating. With the technique of this invention positive data feedback from the product member (work piece) is obtainable for the purpose of, for example, identity of work parts, choice selection, or critical parameter control. The technique utilizes two separate channels including a sync channel and a data channel for providing target information which is read serially as the work is hoisted by a two-channel photo electric receiver/transmitter preferably mounted to a stationary member of the hoist frame or leg. The data and synchronizing channel signals are used combinatorily to provide a system that is immune to the rate differential of carriers or stop-restart operation. In a preferred mode of operation at the time that the piece being conveyed is loaded at a load station, the operator introduces a coded card or the like carried by the hoist, which card may be subsequently read by the reader with the data on the card representative of certain information such as the identity of the parts.

The present invention relates in general to a data acquisition technique which is used in association with a conveying system or a hoist system such as one employing a hoist crane. The technique of this invention may be used in association with a programmable conveying or hoisting system. In accordance with the invention there is provided data associated with the product member (work piece) which is being transported in a process such as an electroplating process. The data that is read may be in many different forms in accordance with the invention for different usages. For example, the data may represent a carrier number which would identify the particular parts being processed. Secondly, the data could be representative of decision data to select the particular process station at which a choice in operation may exist. The data may then be read to make this selection. Finally, the data that is read in accordance with this technique may be representative of a critical processing parameter to be used as a form of control at a particular station upon delivery of the product member or pieces to that particular station.
Accordingly, the concepts of this invention have a wide application of usage for the particular data that is read. However, there are a number of restrictions associated with prior art systems which must be overcome. Some of these restrictions or drawbacks are hostile environments, broad positioning tolerances, load sway, physical clearances, and variations of equipment speed in particular with relationship to the interruption and resumption of processing.
One type of prior art arrangement is a parallel-type coded reader which has been used on hoist cranes and which is usually activated at the top of the hoist when the product member is in its transverse attitude. One of the disadvantages of this prior art arrangement is the requirement for a plurality of sensors or switches at a rate of one sensor or switch per bit of data. There is also a space constraint with regard to the mounting of all of these sensors or switches. Furthermore, there is a positioning tolerance with regard to the stopping of the target reliably after each hoist operation. With such systems there is usually a requirement of a settling delay time before reading occurs to insure stable alignment at the time that the data is injected into the controller.
Another prior art arrangement employs parallel sensors that require that signals be transmitted into these sensors. Such sensors also possess the disadvantage of the requirement of a plurality of sensors at a rate of one sensor per bit of information. Additionally, these arrangements have the disadvantage of requiring one group of sensors for each process station or process tank where this data is utilized. In addition to being inflexible relative to placement of the sensors, there is a practical problem which is at least partially environmental of having these sensors at the process tanks. This is an unreliable and hostile environment.
In accordance with another prior art technique product data has been transferred through a plurality of process stations by way of shift register loading. This technique normally includes the inputting of data when the parts are injected into the system, a shifting update as the machine progresses and a reading of data at various points as required by the process stations. Such a technique assumes that the product members are loaded in the same order as they are injected into the system which may not be the situation especially with the requirement of multi-process cycling on the same equipment or where there is frequent interaction with the process sequence as in clearing a fault or semi-reworking unacceptable products before allowing resumption. This technique whether implemented in hardware or in software possesses the same inflexible disadvantages listed previously. With this shift register technique the register must be constructed to the exact data field that is being considered and be shifted each time an index occurs. This thus requires that there be an absolute order of parts relative to the data reading per the process cycle. This design is further complicated when a second process is run on the same system wherein a different relationship between part injection and number of indexes before product data is required exists.
Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide an improved data acquisition system and, in particular, one that is usable in association with a conveying system or a hoist system employing a hoist crane.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a data acquisition system that is quite widely usable with a number of different types of control. For example, this system may be used in association with a system shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,803,561 which discloses a programmable hoist system. The data acquisition system of this invention may be used to identify the parts at a specific station, to make a process variable decision, or to input critical process control information at a specific process station.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved data acquisition system as described herein which operates accurately and is not affected by an interruption, or operation of a program not previously intended. In this regard the form of data acquisition of this invention permits a stop and start sequence to occur without loss of data.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved data acquisition system as described herein and which is not affected by such parameters as load sway or variations of equipment speed.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved data acquisition system that is relatively simple in construction having a relatively minimum number of sensors required by employing a serial-type of data sensing system.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improve data acquisition system for use with a conveying or hoisting system and which is not materially affected by any hostile environmental conditions or any broad positioning range tolerances.

Data acquisition technique for hoist and conveying systems


The invention relates to an apparatus for introducing an additive component (131) in the form of a liquid or granulated solid into a liquid (40) stored in a first container (150). The additive component (131) is stored separately from the liquid (40) in a dip tube or conduit (132). The container (150) has an opening closed by a releasable closure (152). A second container or tank (111) containing pressurized propellant fluid (116) is positioned in the neck or closure of the first container, adjacent to the opening. The dip tube or conduit (132) has a first end communicating with the tank and a second end extending down into the first liquid in the first container. The dip tube (132) contains an additive (131) which is expelled from the dip tube into the first liquid by the entry of the propellant fluid from the tank into the dip tube on release of the releasable closure. A valve (300) may be provided at the free end of the dip tube (132) to prevent mixing of the liquid and additive during transport and/or storage. The dose of additive may be accurately measured, and the action of the propellant ensures that all the additive is expelled into the liquid. The additive may be provided in liquid or pourable solid form.

The invention relates to apparatus for introducing an additive in the form of a liquid or granulated solid into a liquid and more particularly to a container which automatically adds the additive to the liquid on opening of the container.
In a wide number of applications, such as pharmaceuticals for both human and animal use, agrochemicals and other more general applications it may be necessary to release and mix a liquid catalyst or reagent into a liquid before the liquid may be used. Conventional methods involve a user measuring out the liquid catalyst or reagent and then adding it to the main liquid. This may cause problems in that it is prone to human error in the measuring of the amount of liquid catalyst or reagent and may also be hazardous if the catalyst or reagent is toxic.
International Patent Application No PCT/GB96/01803 discloses an apparatus for introducing a fluid into a first liquid comprising a first container (for example a bottle) which contains the first liquid, a bottle top and a second container attached to the underside of the bottle top to form a cap assembly. The second container contains a fluid under pressure. When the bottle top is placed on the bottle the fluid in the second container expands and drives a membrane onto a rupturing spike. The fluid is then released from the second container to the liquid in the bottle.
A disadvantage of the known apparatus is that if the fluid is a dye, for example, there remain residues of the dye on the underside of the cap assembly, since the propellant gas in the second container does not drive out every drop of fluid. Some fluid remains behind the ruptured foil. This means that care must be taken with the cap assembly so that dye is not transferred to clothing, table tops etc.
A further disadvantage of the known apparatus is that the dose of fluid delivered by the apparatus is inaccurate. The second container is filled with the fluid under pressure, and after release an unknown volume of fluid remains in the container and in the dip tube connector, as well as in the dip tube if a dip tube is used.
A further disadvantage of the known apparatus is that it can only be used with fluids and liquids which can be readily expelled through the small ruptured aperture.
A further disadvantage of the known apparatus is that it can only be used to add one component to the liquid.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which overcomes one or more of the above disadvantages.
According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus for introducing a component into a first liquid, the apparatus comprising:
a first container for holding the first liquid having an opening closed by a releasable closure, a second container located in the first container, and a conduit having a first end communicating with the second container and a second end communicating with the first container;
wherein the conduit contains an additive which is expelled from the conduit into the first liquid by the entry of the propellant fluid into the conduit on release of the releasable closure.
The conduit forms a dip tube, which serves the purpose of storing the additive product until it is fired by pressure of propellant from the tank or second container into the first liquid in the first container.
Preferably the second container comprises an outer housing and an inner container containing a propellant fluid, the inner container being movably mounted in the housing for movement between a closed position in which the inner container is sealed by the housing when the releasable closure closes the opening, and an open position in which the propellant fluid within the inner container is released from the inner container into the conduit on release of the releasable closure.
Preferably the second container is located adjacent to the opening in the first container.
Preferably the inner container includes a rupturable member and the housing includes a rupturing member to rupture the rupturable member on the inner container.
Preferably on closing of the first container by the closure, the inner container is moved to the closed position and the second container includes a sealing device and when the inner container is in the closed position, the rupturable member is ruptured by he rupturing member and the contents of the inner container prevented from being released from the inner container by the sealing member.
Preferably the sealing member is mounted on the inner container and seals against the rupturing member on the housing.
Preferably the rupturable member includes a fluid port is through which the fluid passes when the second container moves to the open position.
Preferably the conduit extends below the surface of the first liquid in the first container. Alternatively the conduit may extend to a position close to the wall of the first container above the surface of the first liquid, to avoid foaming of the liquid and the creation of pressure waves in the liquid. The first container may be a bottle having a neck, and the conduit may extend to a position adjacent to the wall of the neck.
The propellant fluid may comprise a gas or a gas/liquid mixture. Preferably the propellant fluid is pressurized, to aid expulsion of the fluid from the second container on release of the closure. Typically, where the second container comprises an outer housing and an inner container, pressurized gas is located in the inner container with the second liquid.
An advantage of the invention is that it is possible to introduce the additive into the first liquid without requiring direct handling of the propellant fluid or the additive by a user.
The conduit may contain a number of additives arranged at different positions along the length of the conduit. The additives may be liquid or solid in pourable form, such as powders or granules. The additives may be coloring agents, flavoring agents, fragrances, pharmaceutical components, chemicals, nutrients, liquids containing gases in solution etc.
The apparatus may comprise two or more conduits, each having a first end communicating with the second container and a second end communicating with the first container. Each conduit may contain a corresponding additive. The conduits may be of different lengths and/or cross-sectional areas. In this way a number of additives in different doses may be added to the liquid. If the dimensions of the conduit are accurately known, then the doses will be accurate.
The or each conduit may be provided with a one-way valve at the end of the conduit remote from the second container.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus for introducing a component into a first liquid, the apparatus comprising:
a first container for holding the first liquid having an opening closed by a releasable closure;
a releasable closure adapted to close said opening; and an insert located adjacent to said opening;
wherein said first chamber is provided with openings to allow the passage of said first liquid through said insert;
wherein the releasable closure comprises an integral closure container containing a propellant fluid;
wherein said insert comprises a first chamber for receiving said integral closure container and a hollow rupturing member extending into said first chamber and defining a second chamber inside said rupturing member;
wherein said closure container includes a rupturable member adapted to be ruptured by said rupturing member; and wherein
the apparatus further comprises a conduit having a first end communicating with the second chamber and a second end communicating with the first container, the conduit containing an additive which is expelled from the conduit into the first liquid by the entry of the propellant fluid into the conduit on release of the releasable closure.
The conduit or dip tube stores the additive product until it is fired by pressure of the propellant in the integral closure container or tank, and is forced out of the dip tube into the first liquid in the first container.
Preferably said closure container comprises a substantially tubular wall portion extending from said closure and a cap member sealingly fitted to said wall portion to form said closure container, wherein said cap member comprises said rupturable member.
Preferably on closing of the first container by the closure, the closure container is moved towards the rupturing member, such that when the closure container is in the closed position, the rupturable member is ruptured by the rupturing member and the contents of the closure container are prevented from being released from the closure container by the sealing action between the rupturing member and the cap member.
Preferably the cap member comprises a flange portion adapted to engage with the free end of the tubular portion of the closure member, by a rib and groove snap fit or similar. Preferably the cap member comprises a cylindrical bore portion adapted to receive and sealingly engage with a cylindrical portion of the rupturing member. Preferably the cylindrical bore portion is provided with upper and lower sealing ribs adapted to sealingly engage with the rupturing member.
Preferably the rupturing member includes one or more fluid ports through which the fluid passes when the closure container is moved away from the rupturing member on removal of the removable closure. Preferably said fluid ports are radial ports positioned such that in the closed portions the ports are located between the upper and lower sealing ribs of the cap member. Preferably the ports are positioned such that the distance between the ports and the upper end of the cylindrical portion of the rupturing member is less than the distance between the upper and lower sealing ribs, so that on removal of the removable closure the seal between the upper sealing rib and the cylindrical portion of the rupturing member is broken before the ports pass the lower sealing rib.
The preferred form of conduit or dip tube is a polypropylene tube of circular cross-section, typically having an internal diameter of 5.8 mm. Such a tube has an internal capacity of 0.26 ml for each 10 mm length, so an 80 mm long tube can hold approximately 2 ml of product. The tank typically has a capacity of 2 ml, and contains pressurized propellant gas.
When the tank is of an impermeable material such as metal, then the headspace required for the propellent gas is only a proportion of the total tank volume, leaving the remainder of the tank volume available for product.
However when the tank is of a material such as plastic which exhibits long term permeability, then the headspace required for the propellent gas must be maximised, and none of the tank volume is available for product. In such cases it can be necessary to use larger diameter dip tubes capable of holding more product, and there may then a need for a valve arrangement at the lower end of the dip tube so that product does not drip into the first liquid in the first container. The use of small diameter dip tubes such as capillary tubes avoids the need for valves, but such small diameter dip tubes can only hold a small amount of product.
The invention therefore also provides a simple, inexpensive valve arrangement which prevents the product in a dip tube from leaking or dripping into the first liquid in the first container when the dip tube and first container are at the same pressure, but which allows the passage of liquid or pourable solid product from the dip tube into the first liquid in the first container when the dip tube is pressurized by introduction of the propellant fluid. It should be emphasised that such a valve arrangement will not always be required.
Preferably the apparatus according to the first or second aspect of the invention is provided with a valve at the second end of the conduit member.
According to a first preferred embodiment the valve comprises an expandable tubular member and a sleeve member surrounding at least a portion of said expandable tubular member, wherein the expandable tube member has a closed end and at least one aperture therein adapted to permit the expulsion of fluid under pressure from the expandable tube member, and is expandable between a first unexpanded state in which the aperture is closed by contact with either the sleeve or a part of the expandable tubular member and a second expanded state in which the aperture is open.
Preferably the expandable tubular member is of plastic, most preferably of polypropylene. Preferably the sleeve is of plastic, most preferably of polypropylene. Preferably the tubular member and sleeve are both of circular cross-section.
Preferably the expandable tubular member comprises a corrugated portion adapted to concertina between said unexpanded and expanded states. Preferably said corrugated portion comprises a plurality of concertina-like ribs, each rib comprising a length of tube of increasing cross-sectional area and a length of tube of decreasing cross-sectional area. Preferably said sleeve comprises an inwardly directed flange at its upper end remote from the closed end of the expanded tubular member, adapted to engage with a corrugated portion of the expanded tubular member.
There may be provided more than one aperture, arranged circumferentially around the expandable tubular member.
According to a first aspect of the first preferred embodiment the aperture is provided in a concertina-like rib of said corrugated portion, most preferably in the lower rib adjacent to the closed end of the expandable tubular member. Preferably the lower rib is of larger external diameter than the upper ribs and is adapted to seal against the internal surface of the sleeve. Preferably the closed end of the expandable tubular member is formed by heat sealing.
According to a second aspect of the first preferred embodiment the aperture is provided in a uniform diameter portion of the expandable tubular member. Preferably the sleeve comprises an upper portion of larger diameter which fits around the corrugated portion of the expandable tubular member and a lower portion of smaller diameter which fits sealingly around the uniform diameter portion of the expandable tubular member. Preferably the closed end of the expandable tubular member is formed by an insert, preferably a concave insert, fixed inside the tubular member below the aperture.
According to a second preferred embodiment the valve comprises an expandable tubular member, as in the first preferred embodiment, but the sleeve member is omitted. In this case the resilience of the material of the expandable tubular member causes it to remain in the unexpanded state so that the aperture is closed by contact with a part of the expandable tubular member until internal pressure is applied to the expandable tubular member.
According to a third preferred embodiment the valve comprises a hollow tubular member having a flattened end portion of resilient plastics material, the flattened end portion comprising two opposing walls held in contact with each other by the resilience of the plastics material and adapted to move out of contact with each other when the hollow tubular member is subject to internal pressure.
Preferably the flattened end portion is formed by applying heat to the tubular member. Preferably the heat is sufficient to cause plastic deformation of the material, but not sufficient to cause melt bonding of the opposing walls.
The two opposing walls may be substantially planar. Alternatively the two opposing walls may be arcuate in transverse section, the outer surface of a first one of the opposing walls being in contact with the inner surface of the second one of the opposing walls.
The flattened end portion may comprise one or more transverse folds. Alternatively the flattened end portion may be curved or bent about a transverse axis. The flattened end portion may be rolled about a transverse axis.
Preferably the tubular member is of plastic, most preferably of polypropylene. Preferably the tubular member is of circular cross-section.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a method of introducing an additive in the form of a liquid or granulated solid into a liquid, comprising introducing a predetermined quantity of the additive into a conduit at least partially closed at one end, installing the conduit in a vessel containing a liquid, closing the vessel, and triggering a pressure release apparatus upon opening the vessel, thereby forcing propellant into the open end of said conduit and expelling the additive from the partially closed end of the conduit into the liquid.
Preferably the method uses the apparatus according to the first or second aspects of the invention.

Bottle closure having means for mixing a predetermined dose of an additive into a liquid


Systems and methods are provided for assessing risks and efficiencies based on enterprise communications information. A method for assessing risks and efficiencies based on enterprise communications information may include: collecting information from digital data tools over at least one computer network into a storage database in a computer memory; executing instructions on a computer processor to synthesize the employee communications data into structured data; mining the structured data to generate exploratory data; performing analytics on the structured data to generate confirmatory data; disambiguating the confirmatory data and exploratory data; determining a business impact based on the exploratory and confirmatory data; and implementing a business process based on a quantification of said business impact.

To meet the needs that many enterprises face today, enterprises typically have numerous departments, intricate hierarchies, and complex business process flows. Because the objectives, needs, and resources of a business may change over time, enterprises usually adopt review procedures for evaluating inefficiencies in their structure, hierarchy, and process flows. Traditionally, enterprises review these aspects of their businesses with basic tools and simple methodologies. For example, enterprises will typically circulate paper or electronic surveys to enterprise employees, or hold in-person interviews to gather information. This information is then usually reviewed manually. For large-scale enterprises that employ hundreds of employees, collecting and reviewing information in this manner is infeasible and overly time- and resource-intensive.
Instead of gathering information from employees using traditional methodologies and procedures (e.g., holding interviews or circulating surveys), information can be gathered and reviewed from an employee's digital data tools. Enterprises today often provide their employees with a plethora of digital data tools that enable employees to connect and communicate information with each other. Towards this end, employees generally use these digital data tools to share and exchange different types of information. Though these digital data tools are often intended to facilitate communication between employees, the information conveyed in these exchanges between employees may also be used for evaluating and improving different aspects of an enterprise. For example, the content of e-mail exchanges between employees may be used to understand the hierarchy or process flow between two employees. Additionally, the timing, frequency, direction, and metadata associated with these communications can provide additional insight. Because these digital communications are often generated throughout the course of daily business, the nature of these communications typically provides an unfiltered and unbiased view into the actual way that people work, i.e. how business processes are actually implemented, in comparison to how they are planned or expected to work.
While businesses typically retain records of these digital communications in accordance with their IT or security policies, businesses often fail to make use of the data contained in these records. One reason enterprises often neglect or underutilize the information in these digital data tools is because each employee typically uses a number of different data tools that store data in different formats or locations. For large enterprises employing hundreds of employees, the amount of data in differing formats and locations may seem too large for enterprises to aggregate and analyze in an efficient and meaningful way.
Accordingly, a solution is needed for facilitating collection and analysis of employee communications for the benefit of an organization. The solution should preferably reduce risk and enhance efficiency for the organization as a whole.

Communication data analysis and processing system and method


The present invention relates to antisense oligonucleotides that modulate the expression of and/or function of Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), in particular, by targeting natural antisense polynucleotides of Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). The invention also relates to the identification of these antisense oligonucleotides and their use in treating diseases and disorders associated with the expression of FGF21.

DNA-RNA and RNA-RNA hybridization are important to many aspects of nucleic acid function including DNA replication, transcription, and translation. Hybridization is also central to a variety of technologies that either detect a particular nucleic acid or alter its expression. Antisense nucleotides, for example, disrupt gene expression by hybridizing to target RNA, thereby interfering with RNA splicing, transcription, translation, and replication. Antisense DNA has the added feature that DNA-RNA hybrids serve as a substrate for digestion by ribonuclease H, an activity that is present in most cell types. Antisense molecules can be delivered into cells, as is the case for oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs), or they can be expressed from endogenous genes as RNA molecules. The FDA recently approved an antisense drug, VITRAVENE™ (for treatment of cytomegalovirus retinitis), reflecting that antisense has therapeutic utility.

Treatment of fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) related diseases by inhibition of natural antisense transcript to FGF21


A tensioning car for a flexible continuous tram comprises a center beam structure adapted to support a segment of the transport belt and a pair of side beam structures, one on each side of the center beam structure and each having coupling devices for coupling it to an adjacent car of the tram. Guide bars join the side beam structures for limited movement relative to each other lengthwise of the tram and also support the center beam structure. Chain guides on each of the beam structures guide the crawler chain of the tram. A pair of hydraulic piston/cylinders, one adjacent each end of the tensioning car, are coupled between the side beam structures. A constant pressure accumulator connected to each cylinder supplies a hydraulic fluid under a substantially constant pressure to the respective cylinder so that the cylinders urge the side beam structures resiliently away from each other and thereby maintain a generally constant tension in the crawler chain.

It is common in the mining field to transport material through the bore panel of a mine on a flexible continuous tram (FCT). FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a known FCT. The mined material is transported by a continuous transport belt that runs on rollers supported on column supports above transverse beam structures. The beam structures and column supports are components of cars that are coupled together to form a train, which may be as much as 550 feet long. Each car includes guides for an endless crawler chain that is driven by sprockets associated with drive cars of the tram and carries transverse crawler pads that enable the entire tram to be moved periodically as the mining progresses. Commonly, the tram is moved every three days or so.
The tram is assembled in sections of, say, 60 feet in length, each section consisting of numerous standard cars, a drive car at each end and a takeup car that enables the length of the section to be adjusted in order to maintain a desired tension in the chain. The takeup car consists of a center beam structure on which a segment of the transport belt is supported and a side beam structure on either side of the center beam structure that is connected to the center beam structure by large bolts. Adjustment of the takeup car is accomplished manually by loosening the bolts, setting the desired chain tension using portable hydraulic jacks inserted between the two side beam structures on each end of the car, inserting shims between one or both side beam structures and the center beam structure and tightening the nuts on the bolts that join the beam structures. Once the tension has been set by adjusting the take-up car, the actual tension in the chain can vary significantly due to changes in the relative positions of the cars, such as negotiating a turn in the mine panel.
The tension in the crawler chain is very critical. If the chain is allowed to run too loose, the rate of wear of the chain guides of the drive units (which are highly subject to wear in all events) is greatly increased. If the chain is too tight, the chain guides of the drive unit are very prone to braking. Each time that a chain guide of a drive unit has to be changed because of wear or breakage, the FCT to be taken out of operation to replace the guide, which requires three mechanics working for up to twelve hours to make the repair. Running the tram with the crawler chains too loose can also result in chain links becoming balled up in a guide somewhere and in breaking of the chain. Replacing a broken chain can take as much as 24 hours. The costs of running an FCT with improper tension in the while the repairs are made, is, obviously, considerable.

Tensioning car for flexible continuous tram


A hearth form is utilized for pour-forming a fireplace hearth in the absence of eventual removal thereof from an opening established by floor joists and a conventional concrete masonry unit. The hearth form is preferably constructed from two relatively slidable body portions which may be reinforced by inter-engaged parallel channels or grooves. The body portions collectively define a chamber or cavity into which concrete can be poured. A peripheral wall defined in part by side walls and front walls carry brackets for establishing a predetermined space between the hearth form and floor joists, not just for supporting the hearth form upon nails or fasteners and nail centering marks for establishing the location of fasteners to assemble the hearth form in an associated floor opening.

It is common practice to build fireplaces in homes and build concrete hearths in association with such fireplaces. A concrete masonry unit (CMU) is first constructed utilizing cinder blocks which are mortared into a desired peripheral configuration and the interior thereof is generally filled with brick trash, masonry fill, etc. The concrete masonry unit is built in a floor opening defined by double floor joists. Building codes require that the double floor joists be spaced from the exterior surfaces of the concrete masonry unit to prevent heat from a fire in the eventual completed fireplace from actually burning the floor joists, associated underflooring, debris, etc., and burning down the associated building. At this point in the construction of the fireplace hearth, the concrete masonry unit is spaced from the floor joists by whatever distance is prescribed by the local code, but a form must be built to allow the pouring of the concrete hearth. Conventionally the hearth form is built from wood, appropriately nailed and supported in an area between what will be the front of the fireplace between a front of the concrete masonry unit and the adjacent double floor joists. This wooden hearth form is not, of course, built with any degree of accuracy or reliability and basically serves as a temporary support for the eventually poured concrete. If the carpenter does not build the wooden hearth form correctly and accurately, the spacing eventually created upon the setting of the concrete and removal of the wooden hearth form might not meet the code which in turn would require the concrete hearth to be destroyed, reformed and rebuilt. If the wooden hearth form has gaps or spaces that are not filled by the poured concrete, these can conduct heat outwardly toward the double floor joists, the underfloor, and any scrap materials in the area creating a fire hazard. Likewise, the wooden hearth form must be removed because it is itself a fire danger because of its natural combustibility, and if all or part thereof is not removed, the danger of unintended fire-damage is increased. From the foregoing, such conventional on-site built wooden hearth forms are unreliable. unsafe and costly.

Hearth form for pour-forming a fireplace hearth


An electrical resistive device in which an element composed of a conductive polymer is positioned in contact with the surface layer of one or more metal electrodes. The metal electrode contains a base layer which includes a first metal, an intermediate metal layer which includes a metal that is different from the first metal, and a surface layer which (i) includes a second metal, (ii) has a center line average roughness {overscore (Ra)} of at least 1.3, and (iii) has a reflection density Rd of at least 0.60. The conductive polymer composition preferably exhibits PTC behavior density requirements, which may be, for example, circuit protection devices or heaters, have improved thermal and electrical performance over devices prepared with electrodes which do not meet the center line average roughness and reflection density requirements.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electrical devices comprising conductive polymer compositions and to circuits comprising such devices.
2. Introduction to the Invention
Electrical devices comprising conductive polymer compositions are well-known. Such devices comprise an element composed of a conductive polymer. The element is physically and electrically connected to at least one electrode suitable for attachment to a source of electrical power. Those factors determining the type of electrode used include the specific application, the configuration of the device, the surface to which the device is to be attached, and the nature of the conductive polymer. Among those types of electrodes which have been used are solid and stranded wires, metal foils, perforated and expanded metal sheets, and conductive inks and paints. When the conductive polymer element is in the form of a sheet or laminar element, metal foil electrodes which are directly attached to the surface of the conductive polymer, sandwiching the element, are particularly preferred. Examples of such devices are found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,426,633 (Taylor), U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,475 (Matthiesen), U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,253 (Kleiner et al), U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,880 (Au et al), U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,340 (Fang et al), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,074 (Fang et al), the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
As disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,475 (Matthiesen) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,253 (Kleiner et al), microrough metal foils having certain characteristics give excellent results when used as electrodes in contact with conductive polymers. Thus U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,475 discloses the use of metal foils which have surface irregularities, e.g. nodules, which protrude from the surface by 0.1 to 100 microns and have at least one dimension parallel to the surface which is at most 100 microns, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,253 discloses the use of metal foils with a microrough surface which comprises macronodules which themselves comprise micronodules. Other documents which disclose the use of metal foils having rough surfaces, but which do not disclose the characteristics of the foils disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,689,475 and 4,800,253, are Japanese Patent Kokai No. 62-113402 (Murata, 1987), Japanese Patent Kokoku H4-18681 (Idemitsu Kosan, 1992), and German Patent Application No. 3707494A (Nippon Mektron Ltd). The disclosure of each of these U.S., Japanese, and German documents is incorporated herein by reference.
We have found that still better results for electrodes which are in contact with a conductive polymer can be obtained by using rough-surfaces metal foils having one or both of two characteristics which are not found in the metal foils which have been used, or proposed for use, in the past. These characteristics are
(1) The protrusions from the surface of the foil should have a certain minimum average height (and preferably a certain maximum average height), as expressed by a value known as the xe2x80x9ccenter line average roughnessxe2x80x9d, whose measurement is described below. In addition, the protrusions from the surface of the foil have a certain minimum irregularity (or xe2x80x9cstructurexe2x80x9d), as expressed by a value known as the xe2x80x9creflection densityxe2x80x9d, whose measurement is also described below.
(2) The base of the foil comprises a first metal and the protrusions from the surface of the foil comprise a second metal. The first metal is selected to have high thermal and electrical conductivity, and is preferably easily manufactured at a relatively low cost. In addition, the first metal is often more likely to cause degradation of the conductive polymer than the second metal. Fracture of the protrusions, caused by thermal cycling of the device, and/or thermal diffusion of the metals at elevated temperature, exposes the second metal rather than the first metal.
Characteristic (1) is believed to be important because it ensures that the conductive polymer penetrates into the surface of the foil sufficiently to provide a good mechanical bond. However, if the height of the protrusions is too great, the polymer will not completely fill the crevices between the protrusions, leaving an air gap which will result in accelerated aging of the conductive polymer and/or more rapid corrosion of the polymer/metal interface surrounding the air gap. Characteristic (2) is based upon our discovery that thermal cycling of the device will cause fracture of some of the protrusions as a result of the different thermal expansion characteristics of the conductive polymer and the foil, so that it is important that such fracture does not expose the conductive polymer to a metal which will promote polymer degradation. In addition, it is important that a sufficient thickness of the second metal be in contact with the conductive polymer so that even if the first metal diffuses into the second metal at elevated temperature, there is little chance that the first metal will contact the conductive polymer.
In a first aspect, this invention discloses an electrical device which comprises
(A) an element composed of a conductive polymer; and
(B) at least one metal foil electrode which
(1) comprises
(a) a base layer which comprises a first metal,
(b) an intermediate metal layer which (i) is positioned between the base layer and a surface layer, and (ii) comprises a metal which is different from the first metal, and
(c) a surface layer which (i) comprises a second metal, (ii) has a center line average roughness {overscore (Ra)} of at least 1.3, and (iii) has a reflection density Rd of at least 0.60, and
(2) is positioned so that the surface layer is in direct physical contact with the conductive polymer element.
In a second aspect, this invention provides a circuit protection device which comprises
(A) an element composed of a conductive polymer which exhibits PTC behavior; and
(B) two metal foil electrodes positioned on opposite sides of the conductive polymer element, each of which electrodes comprises
(1) a base layer which comprises copper,
(2) an intermediate layer which (a) is adjacent to the base layer and (b) comprises nickel, and
(3) a surface layer which (a) comprises nickel, (b) has a center line average roughness {overscore (Ra)} of at least 1.3 and at most 2.5, (c) has a reflection density Rd of at least 0.60, and (d) is in direct physical contact with the conductive polymer element.
In a third aspect, this invention provides an electrical circuit which comprises
(A) a source of electrical power;
(B) a load; and
(C) an electrical device, e.g. a circuit protection device, of the first aspect of the invention.

Electrically resistive PTC devices containing conductive polymers


An execution-flow-creation aiding apparatus obtains a written operation procedure that represents an operation procedure of a series of tasks involved in operation work. The execution-flow-creation aiding apparatus refers to component information and based on a result of comparing the task name of a task included among the series of tasks involved in operation work and the component name of a component, associates the task and the component. The execution-flow-creation aiding apparatus selects among the series of tasks, a second task that is not associated with a component and that is immediately before or after a first task associated with a given component. The execution-flow-creation aiding apparatus refers to the component information and based on a result of comparing the task name of the selected second task and the variable name of a variable provided when the given component is executed, associates the second task with the given component.

In recent years, to improve the quality of system operation work and reduce the number of operator man-hours, operation work has become automated by automation tools. Further, there is demand for execution flows, which indicate execution sequences for automated execution components, to be created from a written operation procedure describing manual tasks performed by an operator, and for automated execution by automation tools.
For example, according to a related technique, a written operation procedure indicating data of an operation procedure that corresponds to an input instruction is analyzed and an operation procedure corresponding to the instruction is automatically executed. Further, according to another technique, design specified data corresponding to a screen transition diagram of a format in which screens and processes are described is interpreted and a user interface application program is generated. For examples, refer to Japanese Examined Patent Application Publication Nos. H8-289050, H7-146785, and 2005-196291.
Nonetheless, with the conventional techniques, when operator tasks in the written operation procedure are converted into automated execution components of the automation tool and an execution flow is created, associating the operator tasks and the automated execution components of the automation tool is difficult. For example, when task names and component names are compared to associate tasks and automated execution components, associations of many-to-one in the written operation procedure are not possible, such as executing by a single automated execution component, work that requires multiple tasks.

Creating execution flow by associating execution component information with task name