An electric power steering apparatus is composed of a wheel gear connected with a steering wheel, a worm shaft tooth-engaged with the wheel gear, and an electric motor rotatably driving the worm shaft in which a worm tooth portion of the worm shaft is formed with a compound lead. Further, the worm shaft is fixed in an axial direction by at least one locknut provided at a portion of a separate side of the electric motor. Further, one end of the worm shaft is rotatably supported through a ball bearing and is fixed by the locknut in the axial direction of the worm shaft, and the other end thereof is rotatably supported through another ball bearing or is fixed by a circlip through a disc-shaped spring in the axial direction. Furthermore, only respective outer rings of the ball bearings are further secured to a housing in which the worm shaft and the wheel gear are disposed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electric power steering apparatus, more particularly, to a shape of a worm tooth portion in a worm wheel mechanism constructing a power assist section used in such an electric power steering apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, in an electric power steering apparatus having a power assist section driven by an electric motor, there is used a worm wheel mechanism as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 9-221045 (published on Aug. 26, 1997). With the adoption of such a worm wheel mechanism, an amplified assist power from the electric motor by the worm wheel mechanism is transmitted to a power steering apparatus. On the other hand, a load reaction force (kickback force) is not transmissively returned to a steering wheel through the worm wheel mechanism.
In the worm wheel mechanism of such an electric power steering apparatus thus-constructed above, it is required such that a backlash between a worm shaft and a wheel gear is restrained to be under a predetermined value, in order to obtain a predetermined feeling of a steering operation during a power assist operation in such an electric power steering apparatus. To reduce this backlash, it however is necessary to machine in high accuracy each of tooth portions and to maintain an axial distance between the worm shaft and the wheel gear accurately. As a result, this causes to increase a manufacturing cost.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention, to solve the above mentioned problem, is to provide an electric power steering apparatus that is capable of smoothly transmitting a torque through a worm wheel mechanism in which a compound lead is adopted on a worm tooth portion to reduce a backlash therein during a rotational operation of a worm wheel.
Briefly, an electric power steering apparatus according to the present invention is composed of a wheel gear connected with a steering wheel, a worm shaft tooth-engaged with the wheel gear, and an electric motor rotatably driving the worm shaft in which a worm tooth portion of the worm shaft is formed with a compound lead. Further, the worm shaft is fixed in an axial direction by at least one locknut provided at a portion of a separate side of the electric motor.
With this configuration, before the worm shaft is fixed in the axial direction by the locknut, the worm shaft is moved in the axial direction by an extremely small distance so as to optimize a backlash between the worm tooth portion of the worm shaft and the wheel gear. Thus, the worm shaft is moved only in the axial direction, so that an amount of the backlash can be adjusted to an optimized value without changing of an axial distance between the worm shaft and the wheel gear. Thereafter, the worm shaft is fixed in the axial direction by the locknut under condition that the backlash is maintained in the optimized value. Besides, such a tooth-engagement of the worm shaft with the wheel gear can be established on an entire tooth portion of the wheel gear, so that a torque transmission can be smoothly performed from the electric motor through the worm shaft to the wheel gear.
Further, one end of the worm shaft is rotatably supported through a ball bearing and is fixed by the locknut in the axial direction of the worm shaft, and the other end thereof is rotatably supported through another ball bearing and is fixed by a circlip through a disc-shaped spring in the axial direction.
According to this configuration, the worm shaft is positioned in the axial direction thereof under condition that the backlash is maintained in the optimized value. In such a situation, the worm shaft is urged by the disc-shaped spring and therefore, it is fixed under a condition that an axial force of the worm shaft is balanced. As a result, a position of the worm shaft can be maintained to be an optimized value of the backlash close to zero.
In the configuration described above, only respective outer rings of the ball bearings are further secured to a housing in which the worm shaft and the wheel gear are disposed. With this configuration, an attachment span between the both ball bearings can be diminished to be a distance close to a length of the worm tooth portion.
Further, a gear tooth portion of the wheel gear is formed with an ordinary lead that is not the compound lead. In the configuration described above, the machining on the gear tooth of the wheel gear can be facilitated.


Embodiments described include systems and methods for generating and displaying live objects for network applications. Live objects may be created from applications (apps) that are served from and/or hosted on one or more servers, such as web applications and software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications, and shared with one or more recipients. The objects may be loaded or accessed as if they were normal network applications, and the recipients may see the latest or “live” version of content as shown to the live object creator, including user- or device-specific data of the creator, under full access policy control, without requiring access to credentials of the live object creator.

Information in static documents can be shared easily between users and devices, as the information is fixed and unchanging. However, in dynamic documents or those provided by network applications or software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications, the information may be dynamically updated or "live". Sharing these dynamic documents by printing copies or sending the document to recipients in a fixed format, such as a portable document format (PDF) document, results in the recipient receiving data that may become out of date or obsolete.

Systems and methods for live SaaS objects


A pad conditioner for a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus which is adapted to remove a glazing phenomenon occurring on a polishing pad when wafers are machined using the CMP apparatus. The pad conditioner includes a swing arm pivotally mounted at one end thereof to a desired portion of the upper surface of the chemical mechanical polishing apparatus by a pivot shaft, a rotating oscillator coupled to the other end of the swing arm and adapted to horizontally rotate a conditioning tool mounted thereto while vertically oscillating the conditioning tool, the rotating oscillator including a rotating unit for horizontally rotating the conditioning tool and an oscillation generating unit for vertically oscillating the conditioning tool, and a vertical carrier unit coupled to the other end of the swing arm and adapted to vertically move the rotating oscillator. The pad conditioner finely removes particles of a slurry glazed in voids formed in the surface of a pad by high-frequency oscillations, thereby achieving an extension of the pad life and an improvement in polishing efficiency.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for polishing wafers such as semiconductor wafers by use of a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus, and more particularly to a pad conditioner for a CMP apparatus capable of performing a high-frequency oscillation along with a rotation to remove particles of a polishing material, supplied in the form of a slurry in a wafer polishing process, glazed in voids formed in the surface of a pad, thereby achieving an improvement in polishing efficiency.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A CMP method, which has recently been developed, is being highlighted as a next-generation semiconductor wafer machining method. In accordance with the CMP method, a slurry is interposed between a wafer to be machined and a polishing pad so as to achieve chemical and mechanical removal of protruded surface portions of the wafer. Such a CMP method will now be described in detail in conjunction with a general CMP apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, the CMP apparatus includes a turntable 1 provided with a smooth upper surface having a substantially circular shape. A polishing pad 2 is attached to the upper surface of the turntable 1. A wafer carrier 4, to which a wafer 3 to be machined is mounted, is arranged above the polishing pad 2. In the process of polishing the wafer 3 using the CMP apparatus having the above-mentioned configuration, the wafer carrier 4 carried with the wafer 3 is depressed by pressure P against the upper surface of the polishing pad 2 while a slurry 5 is continuously supplied to the central portion of the upper surface of the polishing pad 2. Under this condition, both the wafer carrier 4 and turntable 1 rotate, thereby polishing the wafer 3.
In order to effectively supply the slurry 5 between the wafer 3 and polishing pad 2, the wafer carrier 4 oscillates horizontally, along with the simple rotation of both the turntable 1 and wafer carrier 4.
The slurry 5, which is supplied between the surface of the wafer 3 to be machined and the upper surface of the polishing pad 2, has a composition consisting of fumed silica grains, having a grain size of tens of millimeters to several hundred millimeters, suspended in an alkali aqueous solution, such as KOH, exhibiting a superior etchability to the wafer 3. As the wafer 3 is depressed, the slurry having the above-mentioned composition is changed into a colloidal silica gel. During relative motions of the turntable 1 and wafer carrier 4, SiO.sub.2 grains of the colloidal silica gel are fused on the surface of the wafer 3 and then peeled off along with protruded surface portions of the wafer 3, thereby chemically and mechanically removing those protruded surface portions of the wafer 3.
The polishing pad 2 comprises a urethane pad consisting of, for example, a flexible non-woven fabric impregnated with foamed urethane. Such a urethane pad has a plurality of fine voids at the surface thereof. The slurry is received in the voids of the pad so that the pad functions to chemically and mechanically polish the wafer.
In the process of polishing the wafer using the CMP apparatus having the above-mentioned configuration, upright sharp points on the surface of the pad may be worn or laid low by the pressure applied from the wafer to the pad and the oscillation of the wafer. The voids of the pad may also be chocked with the mixture of the slurry and the wafer material separated from the wafer due to the wear of the wafer. That is, a glazing phenomenon occurs.
Where the wear of sharp points on the surface of the pad or the glazing phenomenon occurs, it is difficult for the pad to hold the slurry, thereby degrading the wafer polishing efficiency and the uniformity of the polished wafer surface.
In order to solve such a problem, a method has been proposed, in which the pad is ground at its surface using an electro-deposited diamond disc after being used for several wafers or tens of wafers to remove a surface layer laminated on the pad, thereby removing a glazing phenomenon or other undesirable phenomenons occurring at the pad. That is, a new pad surface is periodically formed in accordance with this method. Thus, a continuous wafer machining is carried out.
However, diamond grains separate from the diamond disc during the conditioning of the pad. Such separated diamond grains form scratches on the surface of a wafer being polished. Furthermore, the pad and wafers may be contaminated by metal grains separated from the disc or a bonding material (SUS or Ni) interposed between the disc and diamond. In some cases, the contaminated pad should be replaced by a new one. However, this results in an increase in costs because the pad is expensive.
Furthermore, when the pad is ground by the diamond disc, a large amount of the pad material is removed. That is, the pad is severely worn. As a result, the life of the pad is shortened. In addition, a lot of time is taken for the conditioning of the pad. This results in a degradation in yield.

Pad conditioner for chemical mechanical polishing apparatus


A composition and method for reducing the incidence of Poult Enteritis Mortality Syndrome in young turkeys, flushing in mature turkeys, and scours in swine. The composition of the present invention comprises, in combination, a simple copper (II) salt, a hydroxycarboxylic acid, and a buffering agent solubilized within the drinking water of turkeys and/or swine in an antidiarrheal effective dosage as preventative maintenance in avoiding the diarrheal conditions associated with PEMS, flushing, and scours. In a preferred embodiment, the simple copper (II) salt comprises copper sulfate pentahydrate, the hydroxycarboxylic acid comprises anhydrous citric acid, and the buffering, agent comprises ammonium carbonate.

I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a composition and method for reducing diarrhea in poultry and swine. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a composition and method for reducing the incidence of Poult Enteritis Mortality Syndrome (PEMS) in young turkeys, flushing in mature turkeys, and scours in swine. The composition comprises, in combination, a simple copper (II) salt, a hydroxycarboxylic acid, and a buffering agent solubilized within the drinking water of turkeys and/or swine in an antidiarrheal effective dosage as preventative maintenance in avoiding the diarrheal conditions associated with PEMS, flushing, and scours. In a preferred embodiment, the simple copper (II) salt comprises a copper sulfate pentahydrate, the hydroxycarboxylic acid comprises anhydrous citric acid, and the buffering agent comprises ammonium carbonate.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
In recent times, diarrhea and related disorders have become an increasingly large threat to various populations of poultry and swine throughout the United States and abroad. Of heightened concern to veterinary scientists is the recent proliferation of Poult Enteritis Mortality Syndrome (PEMS). PEMS is an infectious, transmittable disease that typically affects young turkeys between 7 and 28 days of age and which is characterized by diarrhea, dehydration, weight-loss, anorexia, immunosuppression, growth depression (stunting) of greater than or equal to forty percent (40%), and mortality of greater than two percent (2%). Two clinical forms of PEMS exist. The first and most devastating form of PEMS is Spiking Mortality of Turkeys (SMT), which is characterized by a mortality rate greater than or equal to nine percent (9%) of the turkey population between 7 and 28 days of age, including at least three consecutive days with mortality greater than or equal to one percent (1%) of the turkey population. The second and more mild form of PEMS is Excess Mortality of Turkeys (EMT), which is characterized by a mortality rate greater than two percent (2%) of the turkey population between 7 and 28 days of age which does not equal or exceed one percent (1%) for three consecutive days.
PEMS was first reported in North Carolina in 1991 and has drawn considerable attention due to its ability to quickly decimate flocks and render surviving birds stunted such that they rarely reach market weight. The impact of PEMS on the North Carolina turkey industry has been estimated to have totaled approximately $34 million in losses in 1995 alone due to the concomitant high mortality rates and growth depression. The disease has subsequently appeared in additional states and threatens to wreak similar havoc on both the national and international turkey markets. PEMS is believed to be caused by a variety of infectious agents, including but not necessarily limited to enteropathogenic viruses, bacteria, and protozoa. The enteropathogenic viruses may include coronaviruses, birnaviruses, entero-like viruses, rotaviruses, and adenoviruses. The bacteria may include Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Bacteroides, and clostridia. The protozoa may include both cryptosporidia and Chochlosoma. The mode of transmission is fecal-oral and, alarmingly, the transmission to other poults can occur within 24-48 hours of exposure to the infectious agents. Following exposure, the rate of growth of the turkeys decreases and eventually ceases. After the growth rate stagnates, the body weight of the affected turkeys begins to decline and eventually plummets 4-8 days after exposure. It is this precipitous drop in body weight which is the main cause of PEM-induced turkey mortality. Turkeys which do survive PEMS, in addition to having less-than-normal body size, suffer an impaired immune system and an impaired ability to remove E. coli from the bloodstream.
Although the above-identified infectious agents are either known or suspected of being involved in PEMS, there is currently no validated diagnostic test for PEMS and therefore no ability to identify the particular infectious agents which are consistently involved with PEM outbreaks. Notwithstanding this lack of a diagnostic test, various control measures have been undertaken to prevent and/or mitigate the savagery of PEMS. One control measure designed to prevent the onslaught of PEMS involves decreasing the amount of moisture within the litter of the turkeys in an effort to minimize the degree to which the various infectious agents are able to culture within the litter. However, this litter dehydration technique typically requires the use of supplemental heat in addition to increased power ventilation, both of which can be prohibitively expensive to install and operate. Another preventative control measure entails sterilizing the physical environment where affected turkeys were previously maintained, including cleaning and disinfecting the actual pens between flocks. However, such activity has been only mildly effective in preventing the recurrence of high mortality of subsequent flocks and has had a negligible effect on the repeated incidence of growth depression or stunting. Various other preventative control programs which have been implemented and deemed not to be useful include the addition of oxygenated-chlorine disinfectants to the drinking water, increasing the temperature within the pens between broods, acidification of the drinking water, and the use of inactivated autogenous products or live vaccines approved for other species aimed at providing cross protection.
Other control efforts are designed to mitigate the damage after a particular turkey population has become infected with PEMS. The main thrust of these efforts is to keep the turkeys ingesting enough sustenance to carry them through the most devastating period of disease. One mitigating control method aims at supplementing the normal turkey feed with a variety of sweetening agents to entice the turkeys into eating. However, the addition of such sweetening agents, which may include molasses, whole rolled oats, powdered milk, and/or confectionary sprinkles, is disadvantageous in that it adds substantially to the difficulty and overall cost of feeding the turkeys. Related efforts entail replacing fine or mash feed with firm pellets of increased size so as to reduce the infectious agents' ability to grow and thrive within the food supply. Another mitigating control method involves periodically dumping the feed pans and/or cycling the feed lines to force the turkeys to get up and move about frequently. While this is believed to improve feeding activity among turkeys, it still requires a substantial amount of additional time and energy to effectuate and, thus, is disadvantageous from the standpoint of adding to the cost of feeding the turkeys. More importantly, the above-enumerated mitigating control measures have not been successful in adequately reducing the degree to which mortality and growth depression ravage flocks infected with PEMS.
Other diseases of heightened concern and great financial impact include flushing in older turkeys and scours in swine. Flushing is defined as any acute diarrheal disease affecting older turkeys, while scours is defined as any acute diarrheal disease affecting swine. The diarrheal conditions associated with both flushing and scours are particularly damaging to the turkey and swine industries, respectively, due to the attendant mortality and morbidity which accompanies each disease. Increased mortality rates are experienced within the affected turkey and swine populations due to the severe dehydration which typically accompanies diarrhea. The rate of incidence of the disease (morbidity) increases due to the profuise and watery defecation associated with diarrhea which creates exorbitantly wet litter conditions. The wet litter conditions, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, presents a suitable breeding ground for the infectious agents that cause flushing and scours, in addition to triggering other diseases and causing a host of other management problems.
Collectively, flushing and scours have afflicted the turkey and swine industry for years and, due to the aforementioned high mortality and morbidity, have consequently resulted in extremely large financial losses through time.
A need therefore a exists for a composition and method for preventing and/or mitigating the onslaught of Poult Enteritis Mortality Syndrome in young turkeys, flushing in older turkeys, and scours in swine. More particularly, the composition and method should be able to prevent and/or reduce the incidence of diarrhea, dehydration, weight-loss, anorexia, immunosuppression, growth depression, and mortality in turkeys and swine. The composition and method should also be inexpensive to implement and maintain and be capable of reducing the significant financial losses currently being incurred within the turkey and swine industry due to PEMS, flushing, and scours. In addition, the composition and method should be able to prevent and/or mitigate PEMS, flushing, and scours without the need for supplemental heating and ventilation systems. Furthermore, the composition and method should be equally effective in preventing the recurrence of high mortality and reducing the repeated incidence of growth depression in subsequent populations of turkeys and swine. The composition and method should also be capable of preventing and/or mitigating PEMS, flushing, and scours without the need for supplementing the food with sweetening agents, thereby reducing the difficulty and overall cost of feeding the turkeys. In similar fashion, the composition and method should not require periodically dumping the feed pans and/or cycling the feed lines to force the turkeys to get up and move about frequently, thereby minimizing the amount of time and energy required to feed the animals.

Composition and method for reducing diarrhea in poultry and swine


An imaging planning apparatus according to one embodiment includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry obtains a first value of a first index that is related to an X-ray dose and a second value of a second index that is related to an image quality, based on an X-ray imaging condition of a subject set in a predetermined examination. The processing circuitry displays an association chart indicating an association between the first index and the second index on a display unit, displays an acceptable range of the first index and the second index, the acceptable range being based on information related to a diagnostic reference level corresponding to the predetermined examination, in a manner distinguished from a range other than the acceptable range in the association chart, and also displays a mark at a position corresponding to the first value and the second value in the association chart.

In the field of medical device, when an X-ray CT (computed tomography) apparatus or the like scans a subject (patient) using radiation such as X-ray, the scan is usually performed in accordance with a predetermined scan protocol. The so called scan protocol refers to a set of scan parameters used when a scan apparatus such as a CT scanner performs scanning and includes, for example, scan parameters such as the dose of radiation irradiation, the scanning time and the number of uses or the like. In practice, it is very important to select a suitable scan protocol for the CT scan apparatus.
In the prior art, a generally employed method is: a set of scan protocols is pre-set and a plurality of scan protocols are compared utilizing the histogram for selection by the viewer.
In addition, the international standard DRL (Diagnostic Reference Levels) can be used to adjust the scan protocol. DRL is used to identify patient dose levels or the condition of abnormally high dosing activity. If it is found that the DRL is always exceeded when performing a scan protocol or prediction procedure, the procedure and device should be locally checked and the scan protocol should be adjusted to ensure that it has been fully optimized.
A technique of evaluating a scan parameter of a selected scan protocol and generating a signal indicating whether the scan parameters satisfy a scan parameter strategy based on the scan parameters is disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1 (US 2012/0213326 A1).
However, the existing scan protocol selection methods are not intuitive and it is necessary to check each chart of each scan protocol to obtain detailed information, such that at least three steps are required and the abnormal protocol cannot be intuitively found.
Moreover, the above prior art does not make a suggestion as to how to adjust an abnormal scan protocol and it needs to be performed with the experience of a viewer.

Imaging planning apparatus and imaging planning method


A closure system for a container reduces the needed torque for assembly by minimizing frictional resistance to rotation of the closure into its desired alignment with the container before the closure is driven home onto the container neck. The reduction in the torque resistance during the application of the closure allows the rotary filling machinery to work within its torque limits and minimizes damage to the parts during the filling and sealing operation in a bottle filling line.

High speed filling lines are commonly used to fill a variety of containers of various shapes and sizes. The machinery typically positions the receiving container for the product in alignment with a fill nozzle or outlet. After the product is delivered, a closure is put on to seal the bottle. The capping machinery has controls built in that are used in placement of the closure. In order to assure rapid and secure placement of the closure, the equipment needs to be able to deliver certain forces and torques to secure the closure. For closures that secure by snap or interference fit, there is a balance that needs to be drawn between getting a secure slip free contact between the container and the closure and the limits of the machinery to deliver the desired force and keep the filling line moving at the desired speed. If the clearances are too tight the resulting required forces can get too high for the capping equipment. This can result in an incomplete placement of the closure on the container and potential product leakage along the distribution chain.
FIGS. 1-6 illustrate this problem in a prior art bottle that uses a snap fit closure onto the neck of an elongated bottle. Referring to FIG. 1, the bottle 10 has a neck generally indicated at 12 at its top end. A support ring 14 defines the beginning of the neck 12 and features an upwardly oriented shoulder 16. A ring 18 located above support ring 14 defines an undercut radial surface 20. Above ring 18 and working up to the top of the neck 12 are a pair of transition surfaces 22 and 24 that ultimately lead to the top 26 of the neck 12. The closure 28 is shown above the bottle 10 in the position that the capping machinery would hold it before driving it home onto the neck 12. Closure 28 has an outer surface 30 and an inner surface 32. Inner surface 32 has a series of circumferentially spaced inwardly oriented projections 34 that each features a radial surface 36 adjacent a tapered and downwardly extending surface 38. Inner surface 32 also features a longitudinally extending and generally rectangular shaped key 40 having a taper 42 at its lower end. A ring 44 is disposed concentrically to inner surface 32 and has a gradual exterior outward taper 46. Neck 12 further comprises a longitudinally oriented gap 48 which is wider than key 40, for reasons that will be explained below. Closure 28 has an outlet 50 which can be any known design for getting the product out of the bottle 10 when it is placed in use.
With the components now having been described, the process of assembling the closure 28 to the bottle 10 will now be described and in the process, its limitations will be more readily understood. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the machinery that is not shown receives a closure 28 in a random orientation with regard to the location of key 40. Stated differently, key 40 may or may not be axially aligned with gap 48 when the closure 28 is brought down on the neck 12. Comparing FIGS. 1 and 2, it can be seen that the closure 28 has been brought closer to the neck 12 and that closure 28 has been rotated about its vertical axis to change the orientation of the key 40 with respect to the gap 48. In FIG. 2, they are in further misalignment than they were in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 compared to FIG. 2 shows further downward movement of closure 28 as well as a further rotation of about 90° about its vertical axis as compared to the FIG. 2 position. In FIG. 3, tapered surface 38 has landed on transition surface 22 of neck 12. Taper 42 at the lower end of key 40 has landed on tapered surface 25 just below the top 26 of the neck 12. It is apparent that key 40 is still misaligned with gap 48 in this position. Tapered surface 46 of ring 44 is inside the top end 26 and on the verge of contact with the inside wall of the neck 12. Now comparing FIG. 4 to FIG. 3, the closure 28 has been pushed further down but not rotated by much. At this point radial surface 36 has been snapped to below radial surface 20. Tapered surface 46 of ring 44 is now in contact with the inside surface of the neck 12 just below end 26. Key 40 is now straddling ring 18. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that subsequent effort to rotate the closure 28 after being forced down to the FIG. 4 position will engender significant resistance from several contact points with neck 12. The key 40 extending over ring 18 will resist rotation as will the rubbing of ring 44 inside the upper end 26 of the neck 12. Finally, there is an upward force that forces radial surface 36 of closure 28 up against radial surface 20 of ring 18 on the neck 12. This residual force results from the dimensions of the components and the driving of the closure 28 down over ring 18. The problem in the past with this design is that the equipment is either torque limited or has settings that limit applied torque to the closure 28 to avoid component damage by forcing a fit in situations where the components may not be totally in axial alignment. The compound effect of these interference fits that are desirable in assuring the securing of the closure 28 to the bottle 10 become a disadvantage during the filling process. Comparing now FIG. 5 to FIG. 4, it can be seen that the closure is rotated about its longitudinal axis to bring key 40 closer to gap 48. The assembly is finished when key 40 snaps off ring 18 and settles into gap 48 to rotationally lock the closure 28 to the neck 12.
The present invention improves the configuration of the components to greatly reduce the required torque to assemble them while, in the end, allowing them to be securely connected to each other as in the past. One way this is accomplished is an emphasis on getting the components into their final alignment positions at a time when less interference contact exists, thus greatly reducing the required torque for rotating the closure into its final position. In the end the closure is just as secure as in the prior art design but the assembly process has been optimized in view of the low applied torque required to reach the final made up position of the components. These and other advantages of the present invention will more readily be understood by those skilled in the art from a review of the remaining drawings and the associated description of the preferred embodiment as well as the claims for the invention that appear below.

Bottle closure with low torque assembly feature


A discharge valve for a bottle or other container associated with a fluid dispensing system that substantially prevents spillage of fluid composition from the container when it is withdrawn from the dispensing system is provided according to the invention. A valve body contained within the discharge valve is engaged by a hollow probe extending from the dispensing system when the container is operatively connected to the discharge system to automatically open the valve. When the container is withdrawn from the fluid dispensing system for, e.g., replacement or servicing, the probe of the dispensing system disengages the valve body, and a biasing means such as a compression spring within the valve assembly closes the valve very quickly. The valve body and valve seat of the valve assembly are designed in such a fashion that proper alignment and closure of the valve body with respect to the valve seat is achieved to provide a fluid-tight seal without use of a gasket or other elastomeric seal disposed between the valve body and valve seat to facilitate the fluid-tight seal.

Liquid chemicals are indispensable components for the food processing, industrial, commercial, and institutional markets. Sanitary chemicals are used in manufacturing plants and institutional buildings to ensure safe and healthy environments. ° Detergents are essential for laundry facilities servicing the hospitality, hospital, college, and commercial laundry markets. Kitchens and dishes in restaurants and food service operations must be kept clean. Medicines must be dispensed to hospital patients in a precise manner. Water treatment programs are important for improving the quality of hard waters. Many food processing and other manufacturing operations admix chemicals in a precise manner.
Traditionally, many such chemicals have been mixed and dispensed manually. Moreover, many chemicals are produced and sold in concentrate form, meaning that they must be diluted by employees in order to reach their appropriate concentrations. Such mixing and dilution processes have often caused toxic spills and workplace contamination problems.
A further challenge is caused by the need to admix or dilute these chemicals within very precise dosage requirements. Addition of too much chemical causes waste and lost operating profits. However, too little chemical can prevent the desired chemical reaction for a manufacturing process from taking place.
Yet, many of these liquid chemicals and medical liquid products can be corrosive or otherwise dangerous if they are breathed or come into contact with skin. If spilled, they can damage equipment and property. Thus, liquid dispensing systems have been developed for safe handling and mixing of these chemicals.
The chemicals typically are packaged in a bottle, tote, drum, or other container, and are usually dispensed from the upright container to a mixing machine. A cap with a downwardly extending dip tube is placed on the container to draw the liquid from the bottle. A dispensing tube extends from the cap to a mixing machine or other piece of equipment, which creates the necessary suction to draw the liquid from the container interior. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,988,456 and 6,142,345 issued to Laible disclose designs for a cap containing a valve that opens when the cap is screwed onto the container, and includes a separate umbrella valve for preventing backflow from the dispensing tube to the container and for permitting liquid flow from the container to the dispensing tube in response to suction applied to the dispensing tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,669,062 issued to Laible provides a dual outlet port cap for connection by means of dispensing tubes to two different mixing machines or other pieces of equipment. The cap contains two thin, flexible valve seats that are pulled to their open position by means of the suction provided by a downstream mixing machine. The fluid dispensing device of U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,124 issued to Groves et al. constitutes a flexible bottle that is squeezed by hand to produce a positive pressure condition therein for forcing the liquid up through a dip tube to a measuring container. A manually adjustable outlet port positioned at the top of the dip tube in the measuring container permits a predetermined volume of the liquid to be transported from the storage bottle to the measuring container. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,578 issued to Laible teaches a vented closure cap for a container that allows gases to vent into or out of the container to provide positive pressure for encouraging liquid in the container to leave through the dispensing tube, and to thwart any vacuum condition that might otherwise produce backflow.
It is popular, however, to operatively connect the container to the dispensing machine in an inverted position. Such inversion allows gravitational forces to draw the liquid out of the container, and eliminates the need for the mixing machine or other recipient device to produce the vacuum necessary to suck the liquid out of the container.
In such an inverted dispensing system application, the bottle containing the liquid usually includes an induction seal across the opening of the throat of the bottle, which is pierced by a sharp cutting edge of an upwardly extending probe located on the dispensing system. Once the seal is pierced, the liquid is free to flow by means of gravity from the container down into the dispensing system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,764 issued to Levinrad discloses a water bottle dispenser utilizing this simple principle. Other examples of this type of piercing spout are disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,325,995 issued to Harrison et al., and 5,303,732 issued to Jonsson. U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,922 issued to Salkeld et al. teaches a water dispenser with a diaphragm positioned above a water feed tube. Once the water bottle is installed in an inverted position in engagement with the dispenser system, the diaphragm is pushed down so that the feed tube punctures it to enable water to pass through the hole. The purpose of this diaphragm, however, is to keep the end of the feed tube clean and sanitary when a water bottle is not installed on top of the dispensing system.
While this type of piercing spout provides a simple method for enabling water or another liquid to be released from a bottle, bag, or other container, there is nothing to control or stop the flow of the liquid once the container is punctured. Thus, it is known within the prior art to add a valve or other mechanical means to regulate the flow of the liquid from the end of the puncture spout. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,169,691 issued to St. Elmo (pipe coupling for a water faucet); 3,343,724 issued to Malpas (tap for a flexible bag contained in a box); 4,322,018 issued to Rutter (fluid dispenser that pierces a sealable flexible plastic bag within a rigid outer box); 4,574,985 (dispensing valve for an ink bottle); and 5,022,558 issued to Faerber et al. (electromagnetically-operated valve within a beverage dispensing system).
A problem can arise, however, with such inverted bottles due to spillage. If the entire contents of the bottle is drained into the dispensing system before it is removed from the dispensing system, then no such spillage will occur. However, bottles associated with dispensing systems frequently need to be changed or serviced (e.g., a different chemical is needed), which entails uninstalling the bottle from the dispensing system. Because the bottle has been pierced and no other closure means is present, some of the liquid will drain out of the bottle while it is removed from the dispensing system and turned once again to its upright position. If the liquid is water which needs to be mopped up, such spillage is a nuisance. However, if the liquid is a corrosive or other hazardous chemical or medicinal product that should not be touched or breathed, then this spillage can pose a serious environmental or worker safety problem.
Efforts have therefore been made within the liquid dispensing industry to provide the bottle or other container with a sealing plug that can be readily pierced by a nozzle or spout associated with the dispensing system, but will close itself when the bottle and its plug are withdrawn from the nozzle or spout. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,241,352 issued to Doering, Jr. et al. (water cooler), 3,558,022 issued to Zytko (medicine bottle and dropper); 4,060,184 issued to O'Neill, Sr. (butterfly valve for a container opened by a reciprocated rod); 5,031,675 issued to Lindgren (resealable stopper for an ink bottle installed to a printer); 5,465,833 issued to Tarter (slit valve in a bag engaged by a syringe); and 6,328,543 issued to Benecke (slit valve on a fluid container engaged by an upwardly extending probe on a gear pump).
These types of sealing plugs are usually made from rubber or another type of elastomeric material. The resiliency of this material is relied upon to return the plug from its pierced state to its sealed state once the plug is removed from the dispenser system nozzle or probe. In some cases, the pressure of the liquid contained within the container assists with the closure of the sealing plug. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 1,241,352 issued to Doering, Jr. et al.
It is therefore necessary in some dispensing system applications to provide a more positive closure mechanism for an inverted bottle or container in order to ensure that the bottle outlet is sealed quickly and affirmatively after the bottle is withdrawn from the dispensing system. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 5,653,270 issued to Burrows discloses a bottle cap and valve assembly for a bottled water station. The cap includes a "valve member" constituting a movable plate that is disposed within the throat of the bottle. A probe extending upwardly from the top of the water station pushes the plate further into the throat when the inverted bottle is installed onto the water station to open the valve. An annular groove near the end of the probe engages an inward lip on the plate to secure the plate to the end of the probe. The water contained within the bottle flows through apertures in the side wall of the hollow probe and down through the interior of the probe into the water station. When the bottle is uninstalled, the probe pulls the plate back into abutment with the cap to close the valve and disengages from the plate so that the bottle can be withdrawn. In this manner, the bottle cap valve is opened and closed by means of physical counter forces exerted by the probe in response to the installation or removal of the valve.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,246,879 issued to Chadwick shows a valve for a liquid dispensing system. The fluid is contained inside an upper compartment, and flows through an aperture into a bottom compartment whereupon it can be discharged through a drain tube. Disposed within the discharge aperture of the upper container is a spring-biased valve having a frustoconical head that engages a torus valve seat portion of the upper compartment. While the patent disclosure is unclear regarding what means is used to open this valve, it is believed that it is manually operated. The difference in the radial section shape of the valve seat and the portion of the valve that cooperates with it produces only line contact to assure a positive seating of the valve.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,635 issued to Earle teaches a valve coupling associated with a container holding photo processing chemicals. The valve constitutes a reciprocating hollow plunger with a flat plate that is biased by a spring against the lower valve housing. A rubber seal surrounding the plunger shaft prevents leakage. A separate probe is manually inserted into a channel in the lower portion of the valve housing to positively push the plate portion of the valve up to expose discharge ports within the plunger that allows the chemicals to flow out of the container. Upon removal of the manually inserted probe, the spring returns the valve to its closed position.
Dispensing systems are also known in the prior art containing spring-biased valves of one sort or another that are automatically opened by installing the bottle or container containing the liquid into engagement with the dispensing system. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 3,174,519 issued to Pizzurro et al. discloses a cigarette lighter containing butane fuel. The valve contained within the housing of the lighter consists of a ball that is pushed by a spring against an O-ring positioned around the refueling inlet port. A separate refueler storing the butane gas includes a discharge nozzle. When the nozzle is inserted into the housing, it pushes the ball valve away from the O-ring, thereby creating an opening to permit the butane gas from the refueler to flow into the lighter. When the nozzle of the refueler is removed, the spring pushes the ball against the O-ring to close the valve once again. In this manner, the cigarette lighter can be refueled.
U.S. Pat. No. 488,473 issued to Fruen in 1892 provides a water cooler constituting an outer housing and a receptacle holding the water and ice for insertion into the housing. A hollow plug connected to a discharge valve extends into the lower portion of the housing and has a hole in its upper end. Meanwhile, a cap secured to a hollow bushing surrounding the discharge outlet of the receptacle contains a spring-biased valve plate that engages a valve seat along the perimeter of the hollow bushing. A rubber disk secured to the bottom surface of the valve plate prevents the valve from leaking. When the receptacle containing the ice water is inserted into the water cooler housing, the hollow plug of the housing pushes the valve plate away form the valve seat to open the valve, and permit water to flow through the hole in the valve plug to the discharge valve. When the receptacle is taken out of the housing, the spring pushes the valve plate and associated rubber disk against the valve seat to close the valve again.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,205 issued to Gebhard teaches yet another water bottle dispensing system containing a slide valve for opening and closing the water bottle. A tubular valve body extends into the throat of the bottle. A sealing ring prevents leakage between the valve body and the bottle neck. A cup-shaped valve member is contained within the tubular valve body in inner telescoping relation. The side wall of the cup-shaped valve member is biased by a spring to physically block holes located along the side wall of the tubular valve member in order to prevent water from passing through the holes. When the bottle is inserted in its inverted condition onto the top of the water dispenser, a probe extending upwardly from the dispenser pushes the cup-shaped valve member up so that it no longer blocks the holes in the tubular valve body. In this opened position, the water contained within the bottle can flow through the holes into the interior of the tubular valve member and into the dispenser. When the bottle is removed from the dispenser, the spring returns the sliding valve to its closed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,325,115 issued to Cowland et al. discloses a valve assembly that is connected to the top of a bottle containing granular fertilizer. The valve consists of a ball-shaped member that is pulled by a spring against the interior end of the cap wall to close the valve. When the bottle is inverted and its cap portion is inserted into a coupling unit in the top of a receiving container, a peg on the exterior of the ball-shaped valve member engages an angled slot in the central tube of the coupling member. When the fertilizer bottle is rotated with respect to the receiving container, the peg slides along the angled slot to pull the valve member down or push it up to open or close a gap that forms between the valve member and the cap side wall. By controlling the rotational position of the fertilizer bottle with respect to the receiving container, the size of the gap can be regulated. Hence, the valve of Cowland permits a predetermined flow rate of fertilizer to be delivered to the receiving container. Because this valve regulates the flow of solid fertilizer instead of a liquid, a rubber gasket is not needed to provide a tight seal.
Other fluid dispensing devices known within the prior art include two cooperating valve members for better preventing leakage of the fluid from the storage container when it is disengaged from a lower receiving container. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 497,896 issued to Ruppel in 1893 (gas tank); 2,401,674 issued to Vizay (gas tank); 2,989,091 issued to Lowenthal (cigarette lighter refilling apparatus); 4,874,023 issued to Ulm (water bottle dispenser); 5,694,991 issued to Harris et al. (photochemical container); 5,878,798 issued to Harris et al. (photochemical containers); and 6,539,985 issued to Shanada et al. (ink cartridge refilling apparatus). While one of the valve members is opened by means of a probe or neck of the bottle, depending upon whether the valve is positioned within the storage container or the receiving container, these devices are complicated in design and seem to require a second valve to reduce leakage. Moreover, in many cases an elastomeric seal is provided to further prevent leakage.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a simplified valve closure mechanism consisting of a single valve members for a bottle or other container associated with a fluid dispensing system, wherein the valve is automatically opened when the bottle is installed into the dispensing system, and quickly closed when the bottle is withdrawn from the dispensing system in order to substantially prevent spillage. Moreover, the valve should provide a fluid-tight seal without use of an elastomeric gasket in order to accommodate chemicals discharged by the dispensing system that are incompatible with rubber or other elastomeric materials.


 A vertical batch furnace assembly for processing wafers comprising a cassette handling space, a wafer handling space, and a first wall separating the cassette handling space from the wafer handling space. The wall having a wafer transfer opening. The wafer transfer opening is associated with a cassette carrousel comprising a carrousel stage having a plurality of cassette support surfaces each configured for supporting a wafer cassette. The carrousel stage is rotatable by an actuator around a substantially vertical axis to transfer each cassette support surface to a wafer transfer position in front of the wafer transfer opening and to at least one cassette load/retrieve position, wherein the vertical batch furnace assembly is configured to load or retrieve a wafer cassette on or from a cassette support surface of the carrousel stage which is in the at least one load/retrieve position.

Vertical batch furnace assemblies for processing wafers comprise a cassette handling space, a wafer handling space, and a wall separating these two spaces. The wall has a wafer transfer opening provided with a cassette door opener device in front of which a wafer transfer position for a wafer cassette is provided. The cassette handling space is provided with cassette handling mechanism which may transport wafer cassettes between the wafer transfer position and a cassette storage in which the wafer cassettes may be stored. The cassette handling space may also be provided with a transfer mechanism to move a wafer cassette from the wafer transfer position towards the cassette door opener device, so that the cassette door opener device may engage the wafer cassette and open the cassette lid of the wafer cassette. The wafer handling space of the vertical batch furnace assembly may also be provided with a wafer handler which may remove wafers from a wafer cassette which is engaged to the cassette door opener device, and transfer those wafers through the transfer opening to a wafer boat for applying a treatment in a process chamber. After treatment of said wafers the wafer handler may also put the wafers back into the wafer cassette which is engaged to the cassette door opener device. The cassette door opener device may release the engaged wafer cassette and the transfer mechanism may move the wafer cassette back to the wafer transfer position. Subsequently the cassette handling mechanism may transfer the wafer cassette to the cassette storage and replace it with another wafer cassette from the cassette storage.


There is provided a coaxial connector having a good radio-frequency characteristic includes a main body having a hole, or opening for allowing a probe to be inserted, a fixed terminal is fixed to the main body, a movable terminal including a fixed portion fixed to the main body and a plate spring portion extending from the fixed portion toward the fixed terminal. The plate spring portion is in contact with the fixed terminal and in contact with the main body at its tips. The plate spring portion can be displaced by the probe in a direction away from the fixed terminal.

1. Technical Field
The invention relates to coaxial connectors that switch a signal path, such as a connector embedded in a mobile communication device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-42991 ("the '991 application") describes a traditional coaxial connector. That coaxial connector is described below with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11 of the drawings. FIG. 10 shows a cross-sectional structure of a coaxial connector 110 described in the '991 application. FIG. 11 is an external perspective view that shows a casing 118, a movable terminal 120, and a fixed terminal 122 of the coaxial connector 110. In FIGS. 10 and 11, the z-direction is a direction in which an external terminal 114, a casing 116, and the casing 118 are placed. The x-direction is a direction in which the movable terminal 120 and the fixed terminal 122 are arranged. The y-direction is a direction perpendicular to the x-direction and the z-direction.
As shown in FIG. 10A, the coaxial connector 110 includes a main body 112, the movable terminal 120, and the fixed terminal 122. The main body 112 is made up of the external terminal 114 and the casings 116 and 118.
As shown in FIG. 11, the movable terminal 120 and the fixed terminal 122 are attached on the casing 118. The fixed terminal 122 is attached in the positive x-direction and includes a fixing portion 148 and a contact portion 150. As shown in FIG. 10A, the fixing portion 148 is disposed between the casing 116 and the casing 118 and fixes the fixed terminal 122 to the main body 112. The contact portion 150 protrudes from the fixing portion 148 in the negative x-direction.
The movable terminal 120 is attached in the negative x-direction and includes a fixing portion 142, a plate spring portion 144, and a contact portion 146. As shown in FIG. 10A, the fixing portion 142 is positioned between the casing 116 and the casing 118 and fixes the movable terminal 120 to the main body 112. The plate spring portion 144 extends in the y-direction and is in contact with the casing 118 at its both ends. In addition, the plate spring portion 144 has a shape that is curved so as to protrude in the positive z-direction. The contact portion 146 protrudes from the central part of the plate spring portion 144 in the y-direction to the positive x-direction and is pressed in contact with the contact portion 150 by an urging force of the plate spring portion 144.
The coaxial connector 110 having the above-described structure is provided, for example, between an antenna and a transmitter-receiver circuit of a cellular phone. Specifically, the fixed terminal 122 is connected to the antenna, and the movable terminal 120 is connected to the transmitter-receiver circuit. Typically, the movable terminal 120 and the fixed terminal 122 are in contact with each other, so the antenna and the transmitter-receiver circuit are connected to each other. Meanwhile, to measure electric characteristics of a transmitter-receiver circuit of a cellular phone by a cellar phone manufacturer, as shown in FIG. 10B, a probe 130 connected to a measuring device is inserted into the main body 112 from the positive to negative z-direction. Then, the probe 130 presses the plate spring portion 144 down, and this separates the contact portion 146 and the contact portion 150 from each other. As a result, the probe 130 and the movable terminal 120 become connected to each other, and the transmitter-receiver circuit and the measuring device become connected to each other.
Incidentally, for the coaxial connector 110, as shown in FIG. 11, the plate spring portion 144 extends in the y-direction. In order to exhibit an appropriate elastic force, the plate spring portion 144 needs to have a sufficient length in the y-direction. Because of this, in a signal path formed by the movable terminal 120 and the fixed terminal 122, the plate spring portion 144 is wider than other sections (e.g., the fixing portions 142 and 148). As such, when the plate spring portion 144 is wider than other sections, impedance matching in the plate spring portion 144 is undone. As a result, a radio-frequency characteristic of the coaxial connector 110 deteriorates.


A multi-plane bone distraction system including a saw guide, a drill guide, a rigid plate and a distraction assembly for use as a distraction device in cutting and lengthening the bone or as a compression device in cutting and shortening the bone in conjunction with repositioning the other end of the bone in three planes relative to the one end of the bone.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a bone distraction system and, more particularly, to a multi-plane bone distraction system for providing the ability to distract and reposition bone ends relative to three planes.
2. Description of the Background Art
Presently, there exists numerous types of bone compression devices in which the ends of a fractured or cut bone are forced together by an adjustment assembly where, after operation of the adjustment assembly, a permanent or temporary rigid plate is affixed to securely retain the ends of the cut bone together. Of the numerous types of distraction devices available today throughout the industry, some allow for the lengthening of the bone by distracting the ends of the bones apart by a desired distance and securing the ends of the bone at the desired distance while inserting a bone segment in the gap between the ends of the bone to facilitate the growth of the bone across the gap. Additionally, some of the current designs are to be used both as a compression and a distraction device. Representative compression/distraction devices for use in osteotomy procedures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,147,358, 5,364,396, 3,244,170, 3,604,414, 4,475,546, 4,187,841, 3,709,219, 2,333,033, and 4,929,247. Additionally, the following foreign patents disclose various embodiments of distraction devices such as EU No. 747,876, DL No. 206,074 and FR. No. 1,507,627. Further, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,219,349, 5,192,321, 5,176,685, 5,129,909 and 5,042,983 disclose various embodiments of relevant fixators and bone cutting devices. The disclosures of the above-listed patents are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
Of the patents listed above, the East German Patent Number 206,074, the French Patent Number 1,507,627 and the U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,170 disclose similar bone compression devices that are to be used in combination with a slotted plate. However, disadvantages are noted in the above-referenced bone compression and distraction devices. First, many of the patents disclose devices utilizing bone screws that engage only through one cortex of the bone. Further, the means for adjustment in the above-referenced patents are generally positioned substantially off-axis from the longitudinal axis of the bone that is being compressed or distracted thereby increasing the potential for bending or toggling of the bone screw to occur during the use of excessive force in the adjustment means. This would further result in the weakening of the adjustment assembly's connection to the bone. Further, the adjustment assembly's use of a pin (French Patent) or a claw (Germany Patent) may result in scoring of the slotted plate should the pin or claw slip during use. The scoring of the plate could then result in crevice corrosion.
As to many of the devices disclosed in the above-referenced patents, some do not provide for both compression and distraction of a bone. When both compression and distraction capabilities are not present in the device, the inserting of a bone segment in order to lengthen the bone becomes difficult since the ends of the bone cannot be compressed to retain the bone segment therebetween. As well, recutting or reshaping of the ends of the bones is difficult to accomplish without having both distraction and compression capabilities.
Furthermore, and most importantly, none of the above-referenced patents have the ability to distract, compress and reposition in multi-planes, (three distinct planes). Thus, all of the above-referenced devices provide for only linear distraction and compression of the ends of the bones. None of the above-referenced patents disclose devices that provide for angular adjustment or repositioning of one end of the bone relative to the other end of the bone. Thus, the correction of malunions and abnormal curvatures in bones occurring due to abnormal bone growth is not provided for in the prior art.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide an improvement which overcomes the aforementioned inadequacies of the prior art devices and provides an improvement which is a significant contribution to the advancement of the bone distraction and compression art.
Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved multi-plane bone distraction system that provides for compression, distraction and repositioning in three distinct planes, the multi-plane repositioning capability thereby allowing for angular adjustments to be made.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system that allows for the removal of a bone segment from a malunion of a bone whereby the other end of the bone can be realigned in a proper position.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system that allows for the separating of the other end of the bone from the proximal end for bone grafting to be initiated therein.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system that utilizes a rigid plate to be left on the bone after operation of the distraction device, the rigid plate having a three-point attachment at the other end so to secure the other end of the bone in any rotated linear or non-linear position.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system that utilizes a saw guide for controlling the angle of sawing and sawing location on the bone, the saw guide thereby assuring a consistent cut at a safe and advantageous position away from the other end of the bone.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system that utilizes a drill guide for controlling the angle of drilling and the exact location to drill on the other end of the bone.
Another object of this invention is to provide a multi-plane bone distraction system for use in distracting ends of a bone and controlling the alignment thereof in three planes, the multi-plane bone distraction system comprising in combination: a saw guide means for controlling the angle of sawing and sawing location on the bone, the saw guide means being releasably secured in position on the one end of the bone; a drill guide means for controlling the location and angle of drilling to apply to the other end of the bone, the drill guide means being coupled to the second end of the saw guide means and thereby extending outward from the saw guide means over the other end of the bone; a multi-plane distraction means for distracting and repositioning the other end of the bone in three planes from the one end of the bone to facilitate repairing of the bone, the multi-plane distraction means being coupled to the one end and the other end of the bone after the saw guide means and the drill guide means are removed from releasably secured positioning on the one end of the bone, whereby the saw guide means and the drill guide means may be positioned on the bone to facilitate the sawing and drilling of the bone and thereafter be removed and the multi-plane distraction means may be correspondingly positioned on the bone and operated allowing the other end of the bone to be distracted and repositioned in three planes relative to the one end of the bone.
The foregoing has outlined some of the pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a more comprehensive understanding of the invention may be obtained by referring to the summary of the invention, and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


Speech telephones are incorporated in a LAN, and, for example, when a voice telephone 5 communicates with another voice telephone 8, call control is performed through exchange of information between a PC 1 and a. PC 4, juxtaposed with the voice telephones, respectively, via a LAN hub 10, a LAN switching unit 50, and a LAN hub 20. Speech data of the respective telephones 5, and 8 are packetized in the data block of a MAC frame by concentrators 30, and 40 for voice telephones, respectively, and relayed to LAN-SW interfaces 30a, and 40a. Frames having a function of absorbing fluctuation are applied to the data block of the interfaces 30a and 40a. Respective voice data packetized according to the MAC address of the MAC frame are delivered to the voice telephones 5, and 8, respectively, via the LAN switching unit 50, and the concentrators 30, and 40 for voice telephones.

In a conventional method of internal communication within a business compound, voice communications have been provided by a PBX (private branch exchange) accommodating voice telephones, and data communications have been provided by a LAN, independently from each other. Along with a decline in prices of personal computers (referred to as PCs hereinafter) and higher performance thereof, the PCs have become popularized as much as ordinary voice telephones, particularly, in recent times. Consequently, an environment wherein voice telephones are integrated into a LAN has come to be desired for internal communication within a business compound.
The conventional method of internal communication within a business compound has however had the following problem.
In spite of an attempt to integrate an infrastructure for internal communications within a business compound by incorporating voice telephones into a LAN, it has been difficult to implement such integration because of the peculiarity of 'voice', such as periodicity, and the need for real time response contradicts characteristics of data communications, such as burst and high reliability. As a result, facilities for both a PBX and a LAN have been required, accompanied by installation of two wiring systems.
It is therefore an object of the invention to integrate the infrastructure for the internal communication within a business compound into a LAN so that the voice telephones can be incorporated therein without need for the PBX.

Line concentrator for telephone set and communication method of LAN


A device for dispensing pre-measured volumes of both liquid and granular fluids attaches to a standard container (44) and is provided with an internal measuring chamber (56). The volume of a measuring chamber (56) is adjusted when its floor (32) is moved vertically by turning a volume selection knob (72). Fluid fills the measuring chamber (56) and is measured as the device is tilted back and then returned to the vertical orientation. The measured fluid is dispensed out a chute (60) as the device is subsequently tilted forward.

1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to dispensers for fluids, specifically to a dispenser that measures and dispenses a pre-selectable volume of fluid from a standard reservoir by means of tilting.
2. Background Discussion of Prior Art
There is often a need to measure and dispense a pre-selectable quantity of fluid from a standard storage container such as a jar made of glass or plastic. The fluid might be either a liquid such as vinegar, detergent, or medicine, or a flowable granular material such as sugar, spice, grain, or soap.
The prior art describes a variety of devices that store, measure and dispense fluid. Each device generally is constructed to have a container with a storage reservoir area, a measuring chamber, a conduit connecting the reservoir area to the measuring chamber, and a spout that guides measured fluid out from the measuring chamber to a desired location. The fluid is measured by manipulating the device either by tilting the container, opening a valve, squeezing the flexible container walls, or a combination thereof so that some volume of fluid is moved from the storage reservoir area to the measuring chamber. The fluid in the measuring chamber is then dispensed out the spout by squeezing or tilting the container and/or opening a cap or a valve. These devices of prior art are inconvenient in that they either dispense only a single fixed volume of fluid, they require visual attention and dexterity to manipulate the device, they measure the volume inaccurately, or they are intended for use only with liquid or with granular fluids but not both.
The dispensing container device in U.S. Pat. No. 3,235,143 to Goodrich, Feb. 15, 1966 has an internal measuring chamber (26) which is open at its top. The measuring chamber (26) is filled with fluid when the device is tilted back. An internal shelf (18) directs fluid from the measuring chamber (26) out through a spout (16) when the device is subsequently tilted forward. Although this device is adequate for repeatedly measuring and dispensing a certain fixed volume of fluid, it is inconvenient in that it can not dispense an adjustable or selectable volume of fluid.
Two devices in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,800,257 to Nixon, Jul. 23, 1957 and 3,029,002 to Gregoire, Apr. 10, 1962 provide measuring chambers of adjustable volumes and thereby the improvement of selectability of a desired volume of fluid to be dispensed. However, they are intended to be used only to dispense granular fluids and are not intended for use with liquids.
Nixon's dispenser, incorporated by reference herein, has a vertical cylindrical measuring chamber (2) that attaches by a friction fit to the top of a standard can in which coffee is purchased. The dispensed volume is preselected by adjusting the elevation of the ceiling (3) of the measuring chamber (2). When the device is inverted, coffee flows by gravity from the can into the measuring chamber (2). As the device is then returned to a vertical orientation, it is intended that the measured fluid residing in the measuring chamber (2) falls out a notch (12) on the side of the measuring chamber (2). The utility of this device is diminished because the volume of fluid that is dispensed is unpredictable. Excess fluid can spill from the measuring chamber (2) out the notch (12) as the device is tilted forward into the measuring position and more excess fluid can spill from the coffee can into the measuring chamber (2) and out the notch (12) as the device is tilted back from the measuring position to the dispensing position.
Gregoire's dispenser improves on Nixon's by measuring an accurate volume of fluid but is not intended to dispense liquids. Gregoire's dispenser is also awkward to use because it requires considerable dexterity and attention to operate. The dispenser attaches by threaded connection to the mouth of a standard jar. It has a horizontal cylindrical measuring chamber (20) whose volume can be pre-adjusted by moving a stick (19) to partially fill the measuring chamber (20). The dispenser is operated by inverting the device and holding it thus while rotating the measuring chamber (20) about its axis. When the measuring chamber (20) is positioned so that its opening communicates with the interior of the jar, fluid fills and covers the measuring chamber. The fluid residing in the measuring chamber is then dispensed by maintaining the device in the inverted position and rotating the measuring chamber (20) so that it communicates with the exterior of the container, at which time fluid residing in the measuring chamber (20) falls out and is dispensed. This device is inconvenient because two hands must be used to operate the device, one hand for inverting and holding the container while the other hand adjusts the measured volume and then twists the measuring chamber (20) to measure and dispense.


Methods and apparatus to deploy unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by kites are disclosed. An example apparatus to deploy a UAV includes a tether line to support the UAV, a tensioner operatively coupled to the tether line, and a kite operatively coupled to the tether line to support the tether line for deployment of the UAV.

In recent years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones have been used to fly significant distances to transport payloads (e.g., packages, supplies, equipment, etc.) or gather information. Some UAVs take off from runways while others are launched by UAV deployment systems. Deploying UAVs without the use of a runway enables greater flexibility in launch locations. In particular, a UAV can be launched from an unprepared or relatively small area.


A method for adapting the boost factor of a steering system of a motor vehicle during tire pressure loss, in which the occurrence of a tire pressure loss is ascertained, the intensity of the pressure loss exceeding a specified threshold value, and in the presence of a pressure loss exceeding the threshold value, the boost factor of the steering system is reduced.

Active steering systems are known from the related art, in which an additional steering angle is impressed upon the driver's steering angle, using an electric motor and a planetary gear. This system may be used to control the steering transmission depending on the situation and to undertake driving stabilization interventions via the control of the wheels. This active steering is also used as power steering, in order to set a boosting of the steering motion as a function of speed. Furthermore, various systems are known for monitoring tire air pressure. These are able to work directly with a pressure sensor in the tire or be based on an evaluation of the rotational speed of the wheels. In this context, air pressure that is too low is indicated to the driver using a warning light.

Method and device for adapting the boost rate of a steering system of a motor vehicle during tire pressure loss


A toy trailer including a hopper, with the hopper including bottom wall doors pivotally mounted and arranged for closing and opening relative to cables directed to a winding axle is provided. Trailer wheels are mounted below the trailer floor, that in turn is positioned rearwardly of the trailer hopper for simulation of a bottom dump trailer organization.. A framework is provided and arranged for mounting onto and extending over the hopper. The framework includes a canopy reciprocatably mounted in the framework. Further, the trailer wheels have a support deck to optionally include lock plates slidable and selectively latched relative to the trailer floor.

1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to toy apparatus, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved toy dump trailer apparatus wherein the same is directed to simulating an earth moving trailer structure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Toy dump structure of various types have been indicated in the prior art for the amusement and entertainment of individuals, such as exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,879 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,429,888.
The instant invention attempts to overcome deficiencies of the prior art by providing for a trailer structure per se directed to the simulation of a bottom dump trailer as employed in earth moving equipment and in this respect, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.


A positioning sleeve assembly adapted for engaging with drill bit holder or screwdriver bit is provided with a sleeve and an engaging device. The engaging device includes a drive shaft at one end and an inserting hole at another end. The engaging device is inserted in the sleeve with the drive shaft located one end of the sleeve, and the inserting hole at the other end of the sleeve. The inserting hole at one end of the engaging device is suitable for both engaging with a drill bit holder and a screwdriver bit, so that a single positioning sleeve assembly of the present invention is capable of selectively connecting drill bit and screwdriver bit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tool part used in an electric tool, and more particularly to a positioning sleeve assembly adapted for engaging with different tool parts.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electric drill is commonly used in machine industry and in construction and decoration field as a tool for drilling, screwing and unscrewing. At a working end of the electric drill is connected different sized or types of drill bit or screwdriver bit to perform different jobs.
Nowadays, some drill bits or screwdriver bits with depth restricting design has been designed and developed to effectively control working depth, and some drill or screwdriver bits are capable of idly rotating in case of excessive load.
Most of the drill or screwdriver bits with working depth control or idle rotation design are integrally formed with a connecting sleeve which is to be connected to and rotated by an electric tool. Since the drill or screwdriver bit is unitary with the connecting sleeve, the drill bit and the screwdriver bit must be manufactured with different moulds, and therefore manufacturing cost is relatively high.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages.

Positioning sleeve assembly adapted for engaging with different tool parts


An optical recording material containing a compound of formula (I):

Optical recording media have spread widely generally because of their superiority, such as high recording capacity and non-contact write/read system. Recordable optical disks, such as WORMs, CD-Rs, and DVD±Rs, record information by irradiating a very small area of the optical recording layer with a focused laser beam to change the properties of the irradiated area and reproduce the recorded information making use of the difference in reflected light quantity between the recorded and non-recorded areas.
Wavelengths of semiconductor lasers used in writing and reading information on the currently available optical disks of the type described are in the ranges of 750 to 830 nm for CD-Rs and of 620 to 690 nm for DVD-Rs. In pursuit of a further increased capacity, optical disks using shorter wavelength lasers have been under study. For example, those using a write wavelength of 380 to 420 nm have been studied.
Various kinds of compounds are used to form an optical recording layer of optical recording media for short wavelength lasers. For example, Patent Document 1 reports an optical recording medium containing a metallocene derivative having an indolenine skeleton as a light stabilizer or pit controlling agent; and Patent Document 2, Patent Document 3, and Patent Document 4 disclose optical recording media containing a cyanine compound having a specific structure. These compounds, however, are not always good for use as an optical recording material forming an optical recording layer in view of their absorption wavelength characteristics or solubility in a solvent used to form an optical recording layer.    Patent Document 1: JP 2001-47740A    Patent Document 2: JP 2001-301333A    Patent Document 3: JP 2004-98542A    Patent Document 4: JP 2006-150841A

Abstract: wherein R1 and R2 each represent hydrogen, hydroxyl, halogen, nitro, cyano, a C1-C30 organic group, or a group of formulae (II), (II′) or (III); or R1 and R2 are connected to form a ring; X1 is —CR3R4— or —NH—; Y1 is a C1-C30 organic group or a substituent of formulae (II), (II′) or (III); R3 and R4 each represent hydrogen, a C1-C30 organic group, or a group of formulae (II), (II′) or (III), provided that, when Y1 is a group of formula (III), R3 is hydrogen, a C1-C30 organic group, or a group of formulae (II), (II′) or (III), and when Y1 is a C1-C30 organic group or a group of formulae (II) or (II′), R3 is a group of formulae (II), (II′) or (III); M is Fe, Co, Ni, Ti, Cu, Zn, Zr, Cr, Mo, Os, Mn, Ru, Sn, Pd, Rh, Pt, or Ir; Anq− is a q-valent anion, p is a number necessary to neutralize an electric charge; and q is 1 or 2.


Processing systems and methods receive events, such as a transaction to an account, and converts the events into messages. Each message then invokes one or more rules which are executed by a rules engine. The execution of these rules may invoke the execution of additional rules. After all rules have executed, the account associated with the event is updated, such as by projecting the account. The rules have their parameters defined in a repository so that the parameters can be easily changed without any need to recompile. The processing systems receive authorizations and other transactions and runs in real-time as transactions arrive. As a result, balances are updated continuously and accounts are read and updated only when there is activity. Hierarchy is user configurable, including multiple hierarchy to any depth. System operations are controlled by rules and their parameters and most modifications can be accomplished without access to source code.

Practically no individual can escape from being associated with an account of some type. More likely than not, an individual does not have a single account but has accumulated a great number of accounts with various companies. An individual, for instance, may have accounts with a local exchange carrier, a long distance provider, an Internet service provider, a wireless phone carrier, an electric company, a natural gas provider, a financial aid company, one or more credit card companies, retailer credit cards, automobile financiers, and a mortgage company. Of course, individuals are not the only entity to have accounts since companies also have accounts with other companies and also must maintain accounts with individuals and/or other companies. Financial accounts are therefore ubiquitous.
Managing accounts held by a company can be a complex task and require sophisticated processing systems. These processing systems are essential and track all debits and credits associated with each account. At periodic intervals, for instance monthly, the processing systems generate billing statements which are then provided to each account holder. The processing systems update balances as payments are received and also monitor new charges to the accounts. Some of the more demanding processing systems are perhaps those associated with credit card accounts. In addition to payment information, these systems often require minimum payments, calculate average daily balances, add interest charges, and impose late penalties. Further, to provide incentives to make a purchase, the credit card accounts may offer a period of time when no payments are due or when no interest accrues. Moreover, the processing systems also manage charges to the accounts, such as by receiving authorizations for charges from retailers and posting cleared charges to the accounts.
Conventional approaches to implementing processing systems involve use of mainframe computers programmed typically in COBOL. Most essential functions are performed in batch mode and the data is stored using indexed files. Also, as is typical with mainframe systems, the screens are in 3270 mode whereby data is output to and read from specific locations on the screen.
These conventional processing systems have several limitations. For one, as discussed above, most of the essential functions are performed in batch mode. Batch processing involves reading every single account and updating each account with new transactions. Batch processing is considered efficient since all updates are performed at a time when the demand for processing power is low, such as during the night.
Traditional posting algorithms involve sorting by account number all transactions that have arrived since the last run of the batch program and then all of the master records are sorted into account number order. The posting algorithm next performs a "sequential sweep" in which the account master records are read, processed, and updated in order. For each account master, the relevant control records are read and then each transaction on the account is read and processed. For example, if the transaction is a payment, relevant counters and balances are updated. After processing, all of the transactions are archived. If relevant, transactions such as interest and fees are generated, applied to the account, and archived. Next, actions based on the passage of time are executed, for example, accrued interest is calculated and applied and, if the account cycles, statement information is calculated and generated. A wide variety of operational reports may also be generated during this sequential sweep.
The batch operation was implemented in order to address concerns for efficiency. The batch mode of operation necessarily requires that data be stored for a period of time before the accounts are updated. As a result, the account information that may be available from a company is likely out-dated. On-line businesses and consumers, on the other hand, are placing demands on companies to have up-to-the-minute information on their accounts. Companies that have global operations are confronted with additional delays and are faced with increased demands for more up-to-date information.
Another limitation of conventional processing systems is that control hierarchies are inextricably built into the code. In today's system, for example, each account has a number of credit plans each of which may have one or more transactions posted to it. While this is reasonable for consumer credit, in the commercial credit market each transaction is an invoice and on the invoice are many line items, each of which may have different credit terms. In addition to the control hierarchies, many other aspects of the conventional processing systems are hard coded. For instance, many of the rules regarding the imposition of late charges, interest, and minimum payments are rigid rules coded into the system.
Because much of the functionality of conventional processing systems is built into the code, it is rather difficult to make any change to the system. A change to the processing system typically involves making a change to the source code, which is an extremely complex, time-consuming, and error-prone process. In addition to revising the code, any change to the program also entails re-compiling the code as well as testing and de-bugging the code. It is therefore difficult, laborious, and expensive to make changes to the conventional processing system.
Another limitation of the conventional processing system is that it is rather complex. Whenever additional functionality is desired in the processing system, additional code is added to the program to implement this desire to functionality. Over time, many processing systems have accumulated numerous layers of code with each layer representing another version. In fact, some processing systems have over 6 million lines of code. As a result, the logic in the code has an arcane set of rules and conditions that together produce the desired functionality. The core posting logic, for instance, is famously difficult to understand with successive changes only multiplying the complexity. A consequence of this complex logic is that only those who have intimate knowledge of the system are capable of performing the required changes to the system. Thus, a great deal of effort and institutional knowledge is necessary in order to modify the code of conventional processing systems.
Unfortunately, there is considerable pressure to make modifications to processing systems. This pressure is especially prevalent with retailers who offer convenient financing terms in order to entice a purchase of their goods. Retailers, for instance, commonly provide initial periods during which customers need not make any payments and/or no interest accrues. Other incentives that may be offered include a discount of the purchase price for those customers that opens an account. These special financing terms are examples of ways in which processing systems need to evolve and be modified in order to allow its users to remain competitive. This continual need to offer special terms translates into a desire to have processing systems that can be easily and quickly modified or updated. A need therefore exists for processing systems that can be quickly and easily modified in response to competitive pressures.

Methods and systems for managing financial accounts


A method and system for resource management is provided. The method includes generating a physical server pool. Resources of the physical server pool and additional resources of additional physical server are monitored and monitored data is retrieved during the monitoring. A utilization rate of the additional physical server pools is determined to be less than a threshold value. In response a group of physical servers is migrated to a free server pool. The physical server pool is determined to need an additional server and each physical server pool is rated based on a calculated chance for required usage. A first physical server is allocated to the physical server pool.

Performing system management includes an inaccurate process with little flexibility. Maintaining elements of a system includes a complicated process that may be time consuming and require a large amount of resources. Accordingly, there exists a need in the art to overcome at least some of the deficiencies and limitations described herein above.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

International Business Machines Corporation


The disclosure allows for creation of special web-page repositories within subsystems of the present PSTN (public switched telephone network) that conform to present architectures for advanced intelligent network (AIN) constructs in telephony. Such repositories would be formed to receive facsimile (fax) telephone transmissions, convert them to HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) web page format, store the converted results and render the latter available for viewing simultaneously--under control of PSTN call management intelligence--to multiple users of the Internet and World Wide Web subject to authorization of would be viewers by the sending party. A typical application of this capability allows for a PSTN user setting up a voice conference to controllably distribute expository charts to other conference participants, via the Internet, thereby adding a video dimension to the voice conference without imposing a bandwidth strain on the PSTN voice networks currently handling the conference, and also allowing for the transmissions to be sent in an orderly manner coordinated with a given participant's voice presentation so that the conference participants can not merely compete in a random and potentially chaotic manner for making such graphic presentations to each other. Such repositories also would be useful to receive graphic information in forms other than that associated with present-day facsimile transmission; e.g. text generated by word processor and/or e-mail applications, or images generated by ordinary computer-graphic applications, all of which could be sent from computers to respective repositories/servers within the PSTN, via the Internet, after conversion by appropriately configured applets (e.g. mini-applications written in a language consistent with web browsers presently used on computers).

As in the above cross-referenced application, the PSTN is defined presently as the aggregate world-wide of all equipment (both land-based and radio equipment) operating to interconnect telephones used by members of the public at large, but excluding equipment restricted to specific users (e.g. networks formed by PBX's, Centrexes, etc.) as well as public data networks such as the Internet. Although connections to the Internet are formed through the PSTN, for this application the Internet itself is viewed as external to the PSTN.
Today, the PSTN supports both voice telephone and facsimile (fax) type transmissions between its customers/users. Fax transmissions are conducted between special purpose fax machines, between computers using so-called "fax modems", and between special purpose fax machines and computers equipped with fax modems. However, present handling of fax transmissions is inadequate for many PSTN users.
For example, a user preparing for a voice conference with other users, and having a number of charts to present, can not simply broadcast facsimile copies of the charts to all prospective conference attendees, and transmitting such copies sequentially to prospective attendees requires that an operating fax machine or the equivalent be closely accessible to each prospective attendee, and also pre-supposes that all of the fax machines so deployed will operate satisfactorily (not fail) during the transmissions.
Also, there are times when it would be desirable to be able to concurrently transmit voice and graphic or text images through the PSTN--e.g. during conference calls between PSTN users having suitable viewing equipment--and present PSTN facilities do not allow for this to be accomplished in a manner that would be both cost effective to PSTN users and add minimal bandwidth stresses to the existing PSTN transmission infrastructure.
The present invention is directed to offering an effective solution to these problems within the PSTN which requires virtually no change to existing transmission infrastructures of the PSTN, and minimal software changes to intelligent peripheral entities presently contemplated for AIN facilities of the PSTN.

Multimedia web page applications for AIN telephony

International Business Machines Corporation


In a combustion cylinder, an outer-side region of a cooling part on an outer side with regard to a reference line orthogonal to a radial direction and an axial direction of a gas turbine and passing through a center of a combustor basket, and an inner-side region of the cooling part on an inner side with regard to the reference line are set. A connection angle at an intersection between an extension line of an outer surface of the combustor basket along the axial direction and an inner surface of a combustor transition piece is set. First regions are set at positions near the reference line, and second regions, with a larger connection angle than the first regions, are set at positions farther from the reference line than the first regions. The second regions are set to have a higher flow rate of a cooling medium than the first regions.

A typical gas turbine is configured from a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. Air taken in through an air intake port is compressed by the compressor to obtain high-temperature and high-pressure compressed air, and fuel is supplied to the compressed air and combusted by the combustor to obtain high-temperature and high-pressure combustion gas (working fluid). The turbine is driven by the combustion gas, and a generator connected to the turbine is driven.
The combustor configured in this manner includes a combustor basket where the compressed air is introduced from the compressor and combustion gas is generated, and a transition piece that guides the generated combustion gas to the turbine. Furthermore, for the combustor basket and the transition piece, an end portion of the combustor basket on a downstream side is inserted on an inner side of an end portion of the transition piece on an upstream side, and a spring member is interposed in a compressed condition in a gap therebetween. Therefore, the combustor basket and the transition piece are connected by an elastic force of the spring member so as to prevent the former from falling.
An example of such a gas turbine combustor is disclosed in JP 2006-312903 A.

Combustion cylinder, gas turbine combustor, and gas turbine