A method and apparatus for enhancing detection of a ferromagnetic threat object by magnetizing the threat object with a separate magnetic field, prior to scanning of the subject by a ferromagnetic-detecting sensor system.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of screening devices for preventing ferromagnetic or magnetic metal objects from being in the vicinity of an operating magnetic resonance imaging apparatus.
2. Background Art
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been called "the most important development in medical diagnosis since the discovery of the x-ray" 100 years ago. Magnetic resonance imaging has significant risks, however, and these are becoming more apparent as the number of MRI procedures increases dramatically. In particular, ferromagnetic objects are drawn toward the magnetic resonance imaging magnet by the strong magnetic field of the magnet, sometimes with catastrophic results. This attraction of ferromagnetic objects to the MRI magnet is termed the "missile threat." Not only have there been numerous injuries to patients, including one tragic death, but damage to the MRI magnet itself is also a significant problem.
In an effort to provide safety, MRI centers have attempted to utilize conventional metal detectors, such as those used for airport and other security applications. Conventional metal detectors alarm not only on ferromagnetic threat objects, but also on non-threat, non-ferromagnetic, metallic objects. The huge number of false positive alarms generated by conventional metal detectors has caused such consternation for MRI staff technicians that conventional metal detectors have been abandoned for this application. Indeed, conventional metal detectors may have no current usefulness as a practical solution for MRI safety.
A ferromagnetic object, such as a small pipe wrench, can be drawn in instantaneous missile-like fashion toward the MRI magnet. The force of the magnetic attraction between the pipe wrench and the MRI magnet causes the wrench to fly toward the magnet as if propelled by a rocket. A tragic death has occurred from the missile threat, and many "near misses" have occurred. One MRI disaster involved a bobby pin being impaled in the nasal passages of a patient, requiring surgical extirpation.
Magnifying the threat potential for serious harm is the next generation of MRI magnets, which are even more powerful than current generations, generating magnetic fields of 3.0 Tesla, or 30,000 Gauss, as opposed to today's "standard" of 1.5 Tesla, or 15,000 Gauss.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanners utilize extremely high magnetic fields. It is well known that very serious accidents can occur if ferromagnetic objects are carried into the vicinity of an MRI scanner. To minimize this danger, ferromagnetic-detecting portal inventions and ferromagnetic-detecting wand inventions have been developed to detect ferromagnetic threat objects in the magnetic resonance imaging environment, and so minimize the chance of dangerous accidents.
Ordinary ferromagnetic objects are only magnetic if a magnetic field is applied. A portal can create such a magnetic field by using current flowing in coils or by using permanent magnets. This applied field magnetizes the ferromagnetic threat, which can then be detected by the sensor system of the portal. The fringe field of the MRI magnet can also be used as the applied field.
Another type of portal is "passive," meaning that it has no independent applied magnetic field source, but rather depends upon the 0.5 Oersted (Oe) field of the earth for magnetization of a ferromagnetic threat object. This small field is generally adequate for ordinary "soft" iron or steel objects, like a carpenter's nail, which are easily magnetized.
However, some common ferromagnetic objects are made of tempered spring steel. The ordinary "bobby pin" used in women's hair is a good example. The magnetic properties of such materials make them hard to magnetize and they are, therefore, called "magnetically hard." FIG. 1 below shows the initial magnetization curve of a typical bobby pin.
As can be seen from FIG. 1, an applied field higher than 100 Oe is required to achieve a magnetization of 98%, and a field higher than 50 Oe is needed to achieve a magnetization of 80%. The applied field in a 1.5 Tesla MRI apparatus is 15,000 Oe, which is sufficient to create a missile threat with even a magnetically hard object. So, tempered steel or other magnetically hard objects like bobby pins are just as dangerous as ordinary soft steel items, from the missile threat point of view, and it is important that these be detected.
Some types of magnetic fields are insufficient to magnetize certain ferromagnetic threat objects, including bobby pins and the like, for detection by a ferromagnetic-detecting portal or a ferromagnetic-detecting wand. For example, in the very small 0.5 Oe magnetic field of the earth, the magnetization of the bobby pin is virtually zero, as shown by the arrow in FIG. 1. In addition, the earth's magnetic field for a particular location on the planet is in only one axis, and detection can be missed when the major axis of a ferromagnetic threat is perpendicular to the earth's magnetic field. This means that a bobby pin would be very poorly detected, if at all, by a passive portal that depended on the earth's field to magnetize the objects being detected.
As a further example, the magnetic fringing field of the MRI magnet is generally only 1 to 5 Oe outside the MRI magnet room itself. In addition, the MRI fringing field does not apply magnetization in all three axes, and, if the threat object is perpendicular to the fringing magnetic field, detection is often compromised because of insufficient magnetization.
As a final example, the permanent magnets or coil arrangements of a strength typically found on an "active" portal or wand may be insufficient to magnetize certain difficult-to-magnetize ferromagnetic objects, such as bobby pins. Also, the excitation magnetic field associated with a portal with its own applied magnetic field system is often applied in less than all three (x, y, and z) axes, since it is impossible to apply a magnetic field in all three axes when the field source and the detection point are stationary. This can result in insufficient magnetization, especially of difficult-to-magnetize ferromagnetic threat objects. For instance, if an applied field is only applied to provide detection of a threat for the x axis, it is possible that a threat may escape detection because of insufficient magnetization for the y axis and the z axis. The inability to apply the magnetic field in all three axes can be partially overcome, however, if the applied magnetic field strength in one axis is sufficiently great to induce magnetization sufficient to allow detection. Further, the chance of detecting a threat object in such a portal is increased if the subject is asked to rotate or tilt within the portal pass-through aperture.
There may be additional reasons for insufficient magnetization to support detection of a threat object. The object may be tiny, or the configuration of the object may make magnetization, and hence, detection, difficult. For instance, a round object is more difficult to magnetize and detect than an elongated one. Further, the ferromagnetic threat object may be located toward the midline of the portal's pass-through aperture, such as in the middle of a 32 inch portal aperture, or 16 inches away from the sides of the portal. Or, the threat object may be located at too great a distance from a ferromagnetic-detecting wand, such as when the wand is waved at too great a distance from the threat object to achieve the required magnetization.
In any of the above instances, as well as others, the result is insufficient magnetization to allow the sensing system of the portal or wand apparatus to detect the threat, resulting in a false negative (missed) response. Then, when the patient enters the magnetic resonance magnet room, disaster can strike, as the ferromagnetic threat now becomes completely magnetized by the considerably more powerful MRI magnet and, when the critical point is reached in relation to the distance to the MRI magnet, the threat object is propelled toward the magnet as if propelled by a rocket.

Enhancement magnetizer for magnetic resonance imaging screening


An optical signal is transmitted via a transponder 13, an all-optical node 1, and a WDM device 4 including an optical filter 38. A control means which includes a route and wavelength selecting functional part 32, transmits a request band information and a wavelength information based on a requested band information, link information of a network, and band limitation information with respect to each filter wavelength of the optical filter 38. A multi-rate functional part 36 sends a bit rate varying request to set a band to be requested to the network side according to the requested band information. A wavelength varying functional part 37 sends a wavelength varying request to set a wavelength of the optical signal according to the wavelength information. The optical filter 38 includes a bit rate (band) dependent wavelength multiplexing and demultiplexing functional part 39.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wavelength service providing apparatus in wavelength multiplexing transmission, more specifically, to a wavelength service providing apparatus in an all-optical network constructed by all-optical nodes that include no OEO (optical-electrical converting) part.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional optical networks are constructed by connecting optical nodes including optical cross connects (OXC) by transmitting devices such as WDM devices (hereinafter, referred to as WDM devices) and transmission lines (hereinafter, referred to as WDM lines). In the WDM device, an OEO part and a wavelength multiplexing and demultiplexing optical filter which wavelength-multiplexes or wavelength-demultiplexes an optical signal are included. To an optical node, a transponder including an OEO part is connected, and services for a user are provided via this transponder.
It has been proposed that an all-optical network is constructed by eliminating conversion into electrical signals by deleting the OEO part from the WDM device. According to the all-optical network, the network can be constructed at low cost, and signal delays in the network can be reduced.
In the all-optical network, wavelengths are limited in wavelength path setting, however, the factor to limit the band is only the wavelength multiplexing and demultiplexing optical filter, so that the band is not limited as long as the wavelength multiplexing and demultiplexing optical filter has a characteristic (bandwidth) to transmit a requested band (bit rate) without deterioration. Therefore, a user can freely request a band at the time of wavelength path setting request.
Patent Document 1 proposes an optical network in which means for autonomously advertising and collecting available wavelengths in a transmission line is provided in an optical network transmission device (node) and route computation of a wavelength path is performed based on the available wavelengths collected by the means.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 2004-297230
When a service is provided to a user via a transponder, the band of the wavelength path is limited by the band of this transponder. To make it possible for a user to freely request a band, many transponders must be prepared according to the bands requested by the user, and this is not realistic. Under a condition that the number of transponders to be prepared is limited, wavelength service flexible provision is difficult.
In the optical network proposed in Patent Document 1, computation of a wavelength path is performed based on available wavelengths at each node, and this prevents a path setting failure that is caused by wavelength limitation. However, this does not include a wavelength variable function and a band variable function for a user, so that flexible wavelength service provision is difficult.

Wavelength service providing apparatus in all-optical network


A combined propulsion and lift unit for an air-cushion vehicle is provided comprising an elongate shaft mounted for rotation about its central longitudinal axis, bearings for rotatably supporting the shaft, an axial wheel with two or more blades mounted on the shaft for rotation therewith, a first housing extending peripherally about the shaft, the housing provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, a drive device connected to the shaft for rotating same at a selected speed, a centrifugal fan wheel mounted on the shaft for rotation therewith, the fan wheel provided with an air inlet, the fan wheel located inside the first housing, and a second housing extending about the perimeter of the axial wheel and the first housing, the second housing having a larger diameter than the first housing thereby defining an air passageway therebetween, the second housing provided with an air inlet and an air outlet.

Air-cushion vehicles, also known as hovercraft, have been known for quite some time. These vehicles have a hull that has a skirt extending about its perimeter. Motorized fan units ar used to produce a cushion of high pressure air under the vehicle so as to lift it off the ground. The vehicle is then usually driven or propelled over the ground by means of an axial wheel or propeller or more than one propeller.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,662,852 which issued May 16, 1972, to R.V. Taylor describes an air-cushion vehicle wherein the hull has a peripheral bag skirt extending downwardly therefrom. Near the centre of the vehicle is a single engine which provides power to a centrifugal cushion fan for supplying cushion air. Mounted at the rear of the vehicle is an air screw or propeller for supplying thrust to the vehicle. Power is provided to the air screw by means of the same engine acting through a drive shaft, pulleys and one or more drive belts extending about these pulleys.
More recent U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,084 issued Jan. 14, 1975 to Vosper Thornycroft Limited describes an air cushion vehicle which has a propulsion fan or propeller in a fan duct mounted at the rear of a vehicle and inclined at an angle to the horizontal. A long drive shaft extends forwardly from the propeller at the aforementioned angle to the horizontal to a gear box. Power is provided to this gear box through an output shaft connected to a power plant. By means to a suitable gear arrangement, the same power plant is used to drive two sets of centrifugal lift fans mounted forwardly of the gear box.

Compact, coupled propulsion and lift unit for hovercraft


A semiconductor device may include a cooling unit, the cooling unit including a circuit unit, a first flow path member comprised of an insulating material, and a second flow path member comprised of an insulating material. The circuit unit may include a heat sink layer, a wiring layer, and a semiconductor element that is disposed between the heat sink layer and the wiring layer. The circuit unit is disposed between the first flow path member and the second flow path member. The wiring layer may face the first flow path member or the second flow path member.

A semiconductor device for high power is widely used as a power conversion device for railway vehicles, etc. Examples of such a semiconductor device include an inverter using semiconductor elements such as an IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) and an FWD (Free Wheeling Diode). In the case of a semiconductor device for high power, heating value due to switching loss or conduction loss becomes enormous, and thus it is necessary to take measures for cooling.
For example, in the semiconductor device disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2008-103623 (Patent Literature 1), a semiconductor element is sandwiched between two lead frames, and a ceramic tube having a coolant flow path for flowing a coolant is provided on the outside of each lead frame. The semiconductor element and a signal line are connected by wire bonding.


Reproducing apparatus with an A/D (analog-to-digital) converter, which realizes high-accuracy data sampling, high-speed data transfer, low dissipation power and low cost. PR (partial response) processing is performed by receiving encoded signals, delaying the received signals on the basis of a reference clock, and adding the delayed signals and the received signals in analog signal form. The added signals are converted into digital values on the basis of the reference clock by the A/D converter, and Viterbi decoding is performed on the basis of the converted digital values. Owing to the PR processing which is performed at a stage preceding the A/D converter, a frequency band for the A/D conversion can be lowered, and hence, the high-accuracy data sampling is permitted.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to decoder circuitry and a reproducing apparatus. More particularly, it relates to decoder circuitry with an A/D (analog-to-digital) converter as is well suited to a recording/reproducing apparatus, e.g., a magnetic disk drive. It also relates to such a reproducing apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
In a magnetic recording/reproducing apparatus typified by a magnetic disk drive, high-density recording has advanced year by year to realize larger storage capacities. Besides, user needs and higher-density recording have made the transfer rate of data higher and the size of the apparatus smaller.
For realizing the higher performance and smaller size of the apparatus, it is indispensable to implement electronic circuits in the form of an LSI (large-scale integrated circuit). The LSI implementation is very useful for reducing the number of components and the packaging area of the apparatus and for enhancing the performance and the functions thereof. In a recent magnetic disk drive, an analog/digital hybrid LSI, in which a plurality of functional parts for handling analog signals and a plurality of functional parts for handling digital signals are put into a single chip together, is utilized owing to the progress of semiconductor technology. Typical is a read/write signal processing LSI.
Read/write signal processing systems contribute greatly to the higher-density recording. Recently, data reproduction processing systems which utilize partial response based on maximum likelihood detection (PRML: Partial Response Maximum Likelihood) are being put into practical use. An example of a circuit arrangement conforming to the PRML system is disclosed in FIG. 3 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,482 entitled "THERMAL ASPERITY COMPENSATION FOR PRML DATA DETECTION". Other examples are techniques stated in the official gazettes of Japanese Patent Applications Laid-Open (Kokai) Nos. 1-143447 and No. 61-129913.
FIG. 15 of the accompanying drawings illustrates the schematic construction of a prior-art magnetic disk drive which employs PRML. The magnetic disk drive shown in FIG. includes a magnetic head 2 which records signal information on a magnetic recording medium 1 in the form of a magnetic signal and which converts a magnetic signal on the magnetic recording medium 1 into an electric signal, an actuator 3 which moves the magnetic head 2 in cases of a tracking control and access control, and a preamplifier 4 which sends a write data signal to the magnetic head 2 and which amplifies an electric signal reproduced by the magnetic head 2. The magnetic disk drive also includes a readout module 5 consisting of a voltage-controlled type variable-gain amplifier (VGA) 6 which controls the signal amplified by the preamplifier 4, to an appropriate amplitude at all times, and then delivers the controlled signal, and a filter 7 which eliminates noise from within the reproduced signal controlled to the predetermined amplitude by the VGA 6. An A/D (analog-to-digital) converter 8 is included in order to convert the output 102 of the filter 7 into a digital signal. Also included is an equalization module 9 consisting of an equalizer 10 which is constructed of a digital transversal filter for performing Nyquist equalization of the digital signal converted by the A/D converter 8, and a PR processor (constructed of a 1+D! circuit) 11 which subjects the output of the equalizer 10 to "PR4" (Partial Response Class-4) processing. Further included is a decoding module 17 consisting of a Viterbi detector 18 which subjects the output of the PR processor 11 to Viterbi detection, and a decoder 19 which decodes the output data of the Viterbi detector 18. The magnetic disk drive also includes a disk controller 24 which transfers data between this disk drive and a host computer (not shown) being a host apparatus, and which controls the various blocks of this disk drive. It also includes a servo positioning detector 25 which serves to position the magnetic head 2 on the basis of the filter output 102, an actuator controller 26 which receives the output of the servo positioning detector 25 and then delivers an actuator control signal, and an actuator driver 27 which receives the actuator control signal and then drives the actuator 3. A PLL (phase-locked loop) controller 16 is included in order to generate a sampling clock 101 which is used when the filter output 102 is converted into the digital signal by the A/D converter 8. Also included is an AGC (automatic gain control) module 12 consisting of an AGC circuit 13 which controls the amplitude of the reproduced signal to an appropriate value, a switching circuit 14 which switches the outputs of the AGC circuit 13, and an integrator 15 which integrates the output current of the switching circuit 14 and then delivers a control current for the gain adjustment of the VGA 6. Further included is a recording module 20 consisting of an encoder 23 which encodes data delivered from the disk controller 24, a precoder 22 which affords interference characteristics reverse to the PR equalization on the reproduction side, and a write pre-compensator 21 which compensates for a magnetizing interference. A microprocessor 28 is included in order to control the whole disk drive.
Referring to FIG. 15, when data is to be reproduced, the electrical signal reproduced by the magnetic head 2 is passed through the preamplifier 4, VGA 6 and filter 7 and is converted into the digital signal by the A/D converter 8. The timing at which the filter output 102 is converted into the digital signal by the A/D converter 8, is controlled into an appropriate phase by the PLL controller 16. The output of the A/D converter 8 thus produced is passed through the equalizer 10 and PR processor 11. Thereafter, the resulting signal is detected by the Viterbi detector 18 and is decoded by the decoder 19. Subsequently, the decoded signal is delivered to the disk controller 24. The AGC module 12 controls the gain of the VGA 6 to an appropriate value.
Generally, in a magnetic disk drive, an A/D converter is necessitated for adopting the PRML signal processing system. The A/D converter of high speed and high accuracy, however, dissipates a lot of power. Moreover, the data transfer rate of the magnetic disk drive heightens abruptly, and the frequencies of signals to be handled by this disk drive increase. That is, the magnetic disk drive requires analog circuits of wide bands and high accuracies and digital circuits capable of fast operations. Accordingly, the dissipation power of the magnetic disk drive increases inevitably, and the read/write signal processing LSI thereof becomes difficult to implement as a single chip. Therefore, the PRML signal processing has heretofore been coped with by externally mounting the A/D converter or by employing a multichip layout.
As shown in FIG. 16, the read/write signal processing LSI of the prior-art magnetic disk drive has a two-chip layout configured of an analog-group LSI in which the A/D converter etc. for handling analog signals are integrated, and a digital-group LSI in which the equalizer etc. for handling digital signals are integrated.
Problems to be stated below are involved in the signal processing semiconductor IC (integrated circuit) including the A/D converter in the prior art.
With conventional semiconductor technology, the signal processing semiconductor IC is configured of the plurality of LSIs for a data transfer rate of, at least, about 80 (Mbits/second). This poses the problem that I/O (input/output) buffers for I/O signals to be exchanged between the LSI's dissipate a lot of power. The configuration of the plurality of LSIs also poses the problem that losses arise in the signals of data which are exchanged between inputs and outputs, so the transfers of the data are difficult to speed up. That is, the sampling performance of the A/D converter degrades with the data transfer rate. In the signal processing semiconductor IC in the prior art, the number of bits of the A/D converter is set at 6 or larger for the data transfer rate of, at least, about 80 (Mbits/second). Therefore, the single-chip implementation of the signal processing semiconductor IC is very difficult from the viewpoint of power dissipation.

Decoder circuitry with PRML signal processing for reproducing apparatus


An apparatus with a metal member used as at least one of an antenna and a sensor element in a portable terminal is disclosed. The apparatus includes the metal member, responsive to a sensed body, and for transmitting and receiving a signal in at least one or more communication service bands, and a main board having a communication module for processing a signal transmitted and received by the metal member and a sensor module for obtaining information in response to the approach of a sensed body.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable wireless terminal and particularly, to a combined antenna and sensor element used in a portable terminal
2. Description of the Related Art
With the development of electronics communication industries in recent years, electronic devices, such as a mobile communication terminal, a cellular phone), an electronics organizer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), etc., have become a necessity of modern life. In response to the demand for portable terminals or mobile communication devices, portable terminals have become lighter in weight and smaller in size while the number of functions or operations that the devices and terminals performs have increased dramatically.
However, with the reduced sized of the portable terminals, it becomes more difficult to mount several necessary elements in the limited space of the portable terminal. For example, as the portable terminals become increasing slimmer, the space for installing necessary components, without causing interference between the components (or elements), has become a significant factor in the performance of the portable terminals.
FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary arrangement of elements of a conventional portable wireless terminal 100. Referring to FIG. 1, the portable wireless terminal 100 includes a case frame 110 for forming an external appearance and having elements as described below. The portable wireless terminal 100 can include a sensor element 140 and at least one or more antennas 130 and 150 mounted on a main board 120. The sensor element 140 may for example represent a proximity sensor that senses the presence of an object (e.g., a user's body) close to the portable terminal. The sensor element 140 typically includes a metal plate whose electrostatic capacitance varies depending on a distance between the metal plate and the sensed object (or body).
Generally, the size of the antennas 130 and 150 determines the performance of the antenna. The larger the size of the antenna is, the better the performance of the antenna, and the portable terminal.
Further, the greater the size of the metal plate used as a sensor element the better the performance and/or sensitivity of the sensor element.
However, in a situation where several elements are mounted together in a limited space, it is difficult to ensure performance while avoiding interference between the elements.

Integrated antenna and sensor element apparatus for a portable wireless terminal


A method and a device for runway localization on the basis of a feature analysis of at least one image of the runway surroundings taken by a landing aircraft is characterized in that, in order to determine the central axis of the runway, feature matching between image features of the image and mirrored image features of the image is carried out, wherein features of the one runway side are made to be congruent with features of the other runway side.

The invention concerns a method and a device for runway localization on the basis of a feature analysis of at least one image of the runway surroundings taken by a landing aircraft.
For the localization of runways in images, one usually uses feature-based methods or template-based methods of image processing, see X. Gong, A.L. Abbott, "A Survey of Techniques for Detection and Tracking of Airport Runways", 44th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, 9-12 January 2006, Reno, Nev. In these methods, features and templates of the specific visual components of the runways and possibly their surroundings such as boundary features, boundary markings, center lines, thresholds, runway identifiers, runway beacons or target markings are entered as model knowledge in feature and template databases. Through feature matching or template matching of the features or templates contained in the camera image with the model knowledge entered into the database, a resulting general situation of the runway can be determined in the image.
For example, in the domain of the feature-based methods, the dominant line features of the runway markings are often extracted and utilized by using so-called Hough transforms. The extracted line features are then compared with the model knowledge saved in the database as to the situation of runway boundaries, center lines or edges of thresholds and a general situation of the runway is determined in the image. The known feature and template-based methods which rely on the recognition and localization of specific visual components of the runway have various technical drawbacks, however.
On the one hand, the described feature and template matching involves a large computing expense in the aircraft. The high computing expense should be viewed especially against the background of the high demands on aviation-suitable computing hardware. These demands greatly restrict the available computing power in the aircraft—as compared to the computing power of commercial computing hardware. Furthermore, other disadvantages result from the need to use specific model knowledge. The recognition of specific visual components of the runway demands model knowledge available in the aircraft, for example stored in databases, on the visual components to be anticipated on different runways under different conditions. This model knowledge encompasses the specific appearances of the components, such as shapes and colors and their relative situations to each other. The model knowledge has to be checked continually for its validity and possibly adapted. This is necessary even without active structural changes to the runways. For example, over the course of time the center lines are increasingly covered over by tire abrasion in the area of the touchdown points of runways. The present visibility of individual components must therefore be current when included in the model knowledge. Since, furthermore, the model knowledge to be used is dependent on the time of day and the weather, a selection must be made of the presently used model knowledge in every landing approach. For example, models should be used at night or at twilight which allow for the visual features of the runway beacons. But these should also be used during the day if, for example, white markings can no longer be reliably recognized due to snowfall.
Even despite a selection of the model knowledge depending on the surroundings, additional hard to detect variations may occur in the appearances of the visual components, for example due to rain, fog, or cloud shadows. These visual variations can greatly affect the accuracy and reliability of the methods.
Therefore, traditional methods based on the recognition and localization of specific visual components of the runways require a time-consuming and costly creation, maintenance, availability and selection of model knowledge in the aircraft. Landing approaches to runways for which no model knowledge is available cannot be done in an image-assisted manner. Unavoidable variations in the appearances of the visual components can have great negative impact on the accuracy and reliability of the methods. Furthermore, the known methods involve a high demand for computing power, which requires an increased technical expense, especially in the airplane.

Method and device for image-assisted runway localization


A microelectromechanical device includes: a supporting structure; two sensing masses, movable with respect to the supporting structure according to a first axis and a respective second axis; a driving device for maintaining the sensing masses in oscillation along the first axis in phase opposition; sensing units for supplying sensing signals indicative of displacements respectively of the sensing masses according to the respective second axis; processing components for combining the sensing signals so as to: in a first sensing mode, amplify effects on the sensing signals of concordant displacements and attenuate effects of discordant displacements of the sensing masses; and in a second sensing mode, amplify effects on the sensing signals of discordant displacements and attenuate effects of concordant displacements of the sensing masses.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a microelectromechanical device integrating a gyroscope and an accelerometer.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is known, the use of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) has continued to spread to various sectors of technology and has yielded encouraging results especially in the production of inertial sensors, microintegrated gyroscopes, and electromechanical oscillators for a wide range of applications.
MEMS of this sort are usually based upon microelectromechanical structures comprising at least one mass connected to a supporting body (stator) through springs and movable with respect to the stator according to pre-set degrees of freedom. The movable mass and the stator are capacitively coupled through a plurality of respective comb-fingered and mutually facing electrodes, so as to form capacitors. The movement of the movable mass with respect to the stator, for example on account of an external stress, modifies the capacitance of the capacitors, whence it is possible to trace back to the relative displacement of the movable mass with respect to the fixed body and hence to the force applied. Conversely, by supplying appropriate biasing voltages, it is possible to apply an electrostatic force to the movable mass to set it in motion. Moreover, to obtain electromechanical oscillators, the frequency response of the inertial MEMS structures is exploited, which is typically of a second-order low-pass type, with a resonance frequency.
In particular, MEMS accelerometers exploit the fact that the displacements of the movable mass along the sensing axis or axes are correlated to the amplitude of the components of acceleration along the same axes to which the stator is subjected. These displacements are countered by the elastic action of the springs and can be sensed through the variations of the capacitive coupling, as mentioned above.
MEMS gyroscopes have a more complex electromechanical structure, which typically comprises two masses that are movable with respect to the stator and coupled together so as to have a relative degree of freedom. The two movable masses are both capacitively coupled to the stator. One of the masses is dedicated to driving and is kept in oscillation at the resonance frequency with controlled amplitude. The other mass is driven in oscillatory (translational or rotational) motion and, in the case of rotation of the microstructure with respect to a pre-set gyroscopic axis at an angular velocity, is subject to a Coriolis force proportional to the angular velocity itself. In practice, the driven mass, which is capacitively coupled to the fixed body through electrodes, like the driving mass, operates as an accelerometer that enables sensing of the Coriolis force and acceleration and hence makes it possible to trace back to the angular velocity. In some cases, a single mass is constrained to the stator so as to be movable with respect to the stator itself with two independent degrees of freedom. A driving device maintains the movable mass in controlled oscillation according to one of the degrees of freedom. The movable mass can then move according to the other degree of freedom in response to a rotation of the stator about a sensing axis, as a result of the Coriolis force.
In several applications, correct sensing of the translational and rotational movement of a device or of a part of a system is assuming increasing importance, and increasingly sophisticated solutions are required. For this reason, manufacturers have been pushed to equip the devices in question with sensors of various types, accelerometers and gyroscopes, so as to supply simultaneously measurements of acceleration and of angular velocity.
Currently, distinct devices are provided, possibly packaged in one and the same package. The solution presents, however, limitations, both in terms of overall dimensions, and in terms of levels of consumption, i.e., as regards aspects that are perceived as critical in modern microelectronics.

Microelectromechanical device incorporating a gyroscope and an accelerometer


De-airing of PVB/glass laminates can be improved, while haze in the pre-press is minimized and sleep time reduced as a result using a PVB sheet having a roughened surface with directionality. A roughened surface with a washboard pattern that is useful in this regard can be obtained by varying certain conditions of a melt-fracture extrusion process.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to glass laminates. The present invention particularly relates to laminates of glass and polyvinylbutyral, and a process of preparing same.
2. Description of Related Art
Glass laminates that include plasticized polyvinyl butyral (PVB) interlayers can be used in various applications, including use in automotive safety glass applications such as windshields and side glass; in architectural applications such as windows, doors and/or building panels; and in various other applications such as in display cases, as shelving, and the like.
Glass/PVB laminates can be prepared by conventional methods. Typically, a laminate can be prepared by first positioning a sheet of PVB between two pieces of glass to obtain an assembly, and trimming the excess PVB interlayer. A "pre-press" is obtained from the assembly by removing air trapped between the glass and the interlayer, and then sealing the edges. A conventional method for edge sealing requires placing the assembly inside of a rubber bag and removing the air from the bag by applying vacuum. The rubber bag and contents can then be passed through a furnace wherein the temperature is increased to about 135° C. in order to obtain the pre-press. A pre-press so obtained can be heated in an autoclave wherein heat and pressure are applied, residual air is dissolved in the PVB interlayer, and bonding occurs between the interlayer and the surface being laminated.
An interlayer having a smooth surface can present problems during the assembly and de-airing steps of a lamination process if a vacuum bag system is used to make the pre-press. In the assembly step, the smooth pattern allows the interlayer to tack too easily to the glass, making placement of the interlayer difficult. In the de-airing step, a smooth pattern can lead to a laminate having trapped air, and flaws in the laminate can result therefrom. It is known that interlayers having a rough surface can facilitate de-airing. Rough surface patterns can be generated by conventional methods, including use of an embossing tool to impart a reproducible pattern on the surface of the interlayer material. It is also conventional to generate a randomly irregular surface pattern by a melt-fracture process, which can provide channels by which air can escape during the lamination process.
In a typical windshield laminating process, the PVB interlayer is first subjected to a shaping step wherein the PVB interlayer is differentially stretched such that the shaped interlayer better conforms to the curvature of the vehicle for which the windshield is designed. In the shaping step, the PVB roll is unwound, and the interlayer is heated to approximately 100° C. and then passed over one or more cones which are smooth, and then chilled to approximately 10° C. for storage, and then cut into blanks slightly larger than the size of the windshield. Stresses incurred in the shaping process are partially relaxed as the blanks are conditioned at 10° C. During the shaping step, some of the pattern roughness is pressed out temporarily, but will recover according to stress relaxation kinetics well known in the art of polymer rheology.
For interlayers with surface patterns generated in a melt-fracture process, haze in a pre-press can be a problem, especially if the interlayer material is used within twelve hours of being shaped for lamination in a vacuum bag pre-pressing system. Pre-presses with less than 15% light transmission are typically rejected. Use of an embossing tool can be effective in resolving the de-airing and pre-press clarity concerns, but is more costly and more work intensive than use of a melt fracture process. An embossing process is inflexible relative to the melt fracture process, with respect to producing different patterns on the same equipment.
While use of rough patterns obtained by a melt-fracture process could improve the effectiveness of de-airing by vacuum, rough patterns generated by melt fracture require more energy to melt down in the heating step. This could render the pre-press hazier than if it had been made from a smoother interlayer. In a conventional process for making flat laminates, a glass/PVB/glass assembly is typically heated to the point where the PVB attains a temperature of abut 50-90° C. At this temperature, the entire assembly is passed through a set of nip rolls, and the nip rolls exert pressure that squeezes out the interstitial air and also seals the edges of the pre-press. Pre-presses that use conventional PVB with a roughened surface obtained by a melt fracture process tend to be hazy if Rz is above 30 micrometers.
It is desirable to obtain an interlayer material with a surface rough enough to minimize haze in a pre-press, yet maintain a desirable balance of physical properties of the interlayer, without requiring the capital investment, loss of yield, loss of flexibility, or possible contamination that can result from use of an embossing tool. Therefore it can be desirable to obtain such a rough surface without use of an embossing tool.

Glass/polyvinylbutyral laminates having directional surface patterns and a process for preparing same


An optical interconnection for a stacked integrated circuit, is provided. The optical interconnection includes: an optical transmission unit disposed in a first layer and an optical receiving unit disposed in a second layer, different from the first layer, and spaced apart from the optical transmission unit by a predetermined gap. The optical transmission unit includes a first optical antenna that outputs light; the optical receiving unit includes a second optical antenna which receives light transmitted from the optical transmission unit. At least one of the first and second optical antennas includes a plurality of nanostructures configured to transmit or receive an optical signal.

1. Field
Apparatuses consistent with exemplary embodiments relate to optical interconnection, and more particularly, to optical interconnection for stacked integrated circuits, whereby integrated circuits can be simplified and three-dimensional integration caused thereby can be easily performed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Semiconductor devices have been drastically improved in terms of processing speed, large-capacity data transmission and integration capacity. As the miniaturization of semiconductor devices reaches its limit, a three-dimensional stacked structure has been adopted so as to improve a degree of integration of chips. One problem that may occur when the three-dimensional stacked structure is adopted, is the difficulty in establishing a communication path between vertically-stacked layers. A path in an in plane direction may be easily formed through a top-down process using general lithography; however, it is not easy to form a path in a vertical direction.
For example, in the case of electronic devices, via holes that penetrate layers are formed and filled with metals, thereby obtaining a communication path. However, it is difficult to perform a process of obtaining the communication path by forming via holes, costs increase, and the flow of the entire process becomes complicated.

Optical interconnection for stacked integrated circuit


A heat generating member cooling structure in which a coolant space is formed between a heat releasing surface that is thermally connected to a heat generating member and an opposing surface that is positioned opposite the heat releasing surface, includes a plurality of heat releasing fins that are provided within the coolant space so as to be parallel to one another and stand from the heat releasing surface toward the opposing surface, and an inter-fin passage, through which a coolant flows, formed between every two of the plurality of heat releasing fins that are positioned adjacent to each other.

The present invention relates to a heat generating member cooling structure and a drive unit.
When an electric motor is used as a driving power source of a vehicle, the electric motor requires an inverter for controlling the electric motor and an ECU or the like for controlling the inverter. The inverter and the like are each connected to the electric motor via a power cable. Thus, it is possible to position these elements in appropriate places away from the electric motor. However, for the sake of convenience during the installation of theses elements into the vehicle, these elements may be arranged to be integrated with a drive unit that has the electric motor built therein.
The heat resistance temperature of the inverter and the like is currently lower than the heat resistance temperature of the electric motor. Thus, when the inverter and the like are positioned so as to be integrated with the drive unit that has the electric motor built therein, it is necessary to have an arrangement for blocking the heat that is directly transferred from the electric motor to the inverter and the like in order to thermally protect the inverter and the like. In addition, because the temperature of the inverter and the like increases due to their own heat generation, it is necessary to cool down the inverter and the like so that they are kept below their heat resistance temperatures.
To cope with this circumstance, a drive unit that has a cooling structure for cooling down an inverter as well as an electric motor has been proposed (for example, see International Publication No. WO 2004/025807). In the cooling structure included in the drive unit disclosed in International Publication No. WO 2004/025807, a coolant space is formed between a heat releasing surface that is thermally connected to an inverter and an opposing surface that is positioned opposite the heat releasing surface and is thermally connected to the drive unit case. A plurality of heat releasing fins are provided within the coolant space such that they are positioned parallel to one another and stand so as to protrude from the heat releasing surface on the inverter case side toward the case surface on the drive unit case side. An inter-fin passage through which the coolant flows is formed between every two of the plurality of heat releasing fins that are positioned adjacent to each other. In this type of cooling structure, the coolant that is supplied by a coolant pump into the coolant space flows through the plurality of inter-fin passages that are positioned parallel to one another. With this arrangement, it is possible to cool down the inverter via the heat releasing surface and also to cool down the electric motor via the opposing surface.
In conventional heat generating member cooling structures that are used for cooling down a heat generating member such as an inverter like the one described above, a configuration has been proposed in which heat releasing fins are formed to stand from a heat releasing surface by cutting and raising the heat releasing surface that is thermally connected to the heat generating member with the use of a cutting tool (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Publications No. JP-A-2005-142247 and No. JP-A-2005-254417).
In the conventional heat generating member cooling structures disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publications No. JP-A-2005-142247 and No. JP-A-2005-254417, the plurality of heat releasing fins are formed so as to be positioned parallel to one another by cutting and raising, a number of times in succession, the heat releasing surface so that there is a small distance between the heat releasing fins. Thus, inter-fin passages, each of which has a small width, are formed so as to have a small distance there between. In this configuration, it is considered that the heat transfer area of the heat releasing fins is enlarged, and the level of heat releasing performance is improved.
Another heat generating member cooling structure has been proposed in which a plurality of heat releasing fins that stand from the heat releasing surface are positioned parallel to one another. An inter-fin passage through which coolant flows is formed between every two of the plurality of heat releasing fins that are positioned adjacent to each other. Further, each of the heat releasing fins is formed so as to have a meandering shape that has a plurality of bent portions along the direction in which the coolant flows (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. JP-A-2006-100293).
In the heat generating member cooling structure disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. JP-A-2006-100293, by arranging the plurality of meandering-shaped heat releasing fins so as to be positioned parallel to one another, a meandering-shaped inter-fin passage having inflection portions that inflects the flowing direction of the coolant is formed between every two of the plurality of heat releasing fins that are positioned adjacent to each other. In this configuration, it is considered that the heat transfer area of the heat releasing fins is enlarged, and also the level of heat releasing performance is improved by inflecting the flowing direction of the coolant at the inflection portions of the inter-fin passages so that turbulence is promoted in the flow.

Heat generating member cooling structure and drive unit


Methods for screening for altered focal proliferation states in non-pregnant patients, which include detecting levels of pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) are described. Methods for identifying agents that alter the protease activity of PAPP-A, and pharmaceutical compositions and medical devices that include such agents are also described.

Proteolytic cleavage of the six known insulin-like growth factor binding proteins (IGFBPs) is a powerful means of rapid structure and function modification of these important growth-regulatory proteins. Intact IGFBP-4 is a potent inhibitor of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) action in vitro, and cleavage of IGFBP-4 has been shown to abolish its ability to inhibit IGF stimulatory effects in a variety of systems, suggesting that IGFBP-4 proteolysis acts as a positive regulator of IGF bioavailability.

Method for detecting IGFBP-4 protease without detecting IGFBP-4 protease/proMBP Complex

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research


An electrical connector contact comprises an upper and lower contact pins and a spring device disposed between the upper and lower contact pins. The upper contact pin includes a main portion, two pair of stopping portions respectively projecting from two sides of the main portion, and two guiding slots each formed between two stopping portions located at a same side of the main portion. The lower contact pin has a pair of elastic arms directly made from lacerating and bending a metallic plate and received in the guiding slots, a pair of clamping portions clamping the main portion, and two hooks abutting against the stopping portions to prevent the upper and lower contact pins separating from each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a contact terminal, and more particularly to a contact terminal for test socket in which the contact terminal is configured with upper and lower contact pins biased from each other with a coil spring arranged therebetween. The lower contact pin is featured with a pair of offset arms slidably moves along opposite surfaces of the upper contact pin.
2. Description of Related Art
A contact terminal for test socket disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,602 issued to Hwang on Apr. 11, 2006 includes an upper and a lower contact pins having same structure and electrically connecting with each other, and a spring arranged between the upper and the lower contact pins and providing a repellent force for two contact pins to move away from each other along a vertical direction. The upper and lower contact pins both comprise a base portion, a pair of elastic arms extending downwardly from bottom sides of the base portion, two hooks with inclined guiding surfaces and respectively disposed at a free end of each elastic arm, and two openings defined on two opposite sides of the base portion. The upper and the lower contact pins are assembled together through the hooks of the upper contact pin matching with the openings of the lower contact pin and the hooks of the lower contact pin matching with the openings of the upper contact pin.
The contact terminal described above has following disadvantages. Firstly, the upper and the lower contact pins each has a complex structure, and are not easy to be manufactured. Secondly, the contact terminal has an unstable contacting between the upper and the lower contact pins because contacting surfaces between the upper and the lower contact pins are the inclined guiding surfaces of the hooks which are rough and the surfaces of the openings which are rough, so as to effect electrical connection of an electrical connector.
Hence, it is desirable to provide an improved contact terminal to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages.


There is provided mechanisms for message handling in a terminal device. A method is performed by the terminal device. The method comprises receiving a message comprising user content from a network controller. The method comprises providing a notification of the message to a user interface of the terminal device. The method comprises receiving feedback from the user interface. The feedback indicates which amount of the user content that has been played out at the user interface. The method comprises performing an action on the message according to the amount of the user content that has been played out.

In general terms, haptic communication aims at recreating the sense of touch by applying forces, vibrations, or motions to the user. Such stimulation can be used to assist in the creation of virtual objects in a computer simulation, to control such virtual objects, to create more intuitive user interfaces, to improve media consumption experience, and to enhance the remote control of machines and devices.
Systems that combine haptic and visual information using haptic user interface devices (such as joysticks held by the user, haptic touchscreens, or gloves worn by the user) and visual user interface devices (such as screens viewed by the user or head mounted displays worn by the user) have been proposed.
Further, systems that could combine haptic information with visual information as well as audio information and text information could be integrated in user devices, such as terminal devices. Each type of user content (haptic information, visual information, audio information, and text information) will hereinafter be referred to a modality of user content (or just modality for short).
Several mechanisms for providing haptic feedback to terminal devices exist and consider the interaction of the user with the user interface or by providing haptic feedback according to audio or video content being displayed by the terminal device. In other scenarios, two users, each using a respective terminal device with a haptic device, may transmit the sense of touch to each other by interacting with the display of the terminal device in real-time. Each user receives haptic feedback with respect to the haptic properties (e.g. texture, friction, stiffness) of the user interface, image, object or the other user's finger on a specific location if the terminal device is capable of tracking the user's finger position.
Despite the advancement of capabilities of terminal devices to play out user content, it could still be so that a particular terminal device only is capable of playing out user content of less than all its modalities. It could thus be cumbersome to handle user content of different modalities, which might be necessary in order to know what type of user content (in terms of modality) to deliver to a particular terminal device, and to know whether or not the user content has been properly played out at the terminal device.
Hence, there is still a need for enabling improved handling of messages in terminal devices.


Embodiments disclose a secondary, supplemental, extra, etc. support system to help a parent secure an infant to the parent, wherein the supplemental support system is designed for comfort and flexibility. While a plurality of potential hazardous situations may arise while a parent is holding an infant, such as dropping, choking, circulation impairment etc., embodiments may limit, reduce, or eliminate the hazards and injuries to the infant and/or parent.

1. Field of the Disclosure
Examples of the present disclosure are related to systems and methods to secure an infant to a parent. More particularly, embodiments relate to coupling an article of clothing configured to be worn by the parent with a basinet.
2. Background
Studies in obstetrics and pediatrics have raised initiatives to maximize time spent between parents and their newborn infants. The initiatives desire that the parents spend time with their infant immediately following birth to facilitate maternal, breast feeding, and other activities. Particularly, the initiatives advocate the rapid bonding of mothers and their infant, which will minimize a timing window for introducing the infant to antibodies and nutritional benefits derived from maternal, breast feeding.
Health care facilities, such as hospitals, generally demonstrate support for such initiatives by rapidly pairing infants with their mothers following delivery, and by allowing infants to stay with their parents in their hospital room for prolonged periods after birth. Conventionally, the pairing occurs by co-locating an infant and mother in the mother's hospital room, which includes a bed or comparable device, such as a chair.
However, parental fatigue following a child birth is prevalent for the parents. Parental fatigue may occur due to the parents of an infant having to stay awake for long, consecutive time periods during child birth. Additionally, parental fatigue may occur due to the stressful nature of child birth.
Combining the health initiatives with parental fatigue may lead to circumstances where a parent needs secondary support mechanisms to ensure infants are not dropped, released, etc. while the parent is holding the infant. For example, during maternal, breast feeding, a mother may need a secondary support system immediately following a long and stressful birth of the infant. Furthermore, secondary support mechanisms may be desired during any activity that may require the parent to hold the infant, such as holding the infant while walking, feeding the infant, etc.
Accordingly, needs exist for more effective and efficient methods and systems for secondary, supplemental support systems to secure an infant to a parent.

Systems and methods for infant stabilization


The present invention relates to a process developed for production of a dry powder medicament used in respiratory tract diseases such as asthma and COPD.

Intake of drugs by the inhalation route has an important role to obtain rapid effects in the treatment of respiratory diseases such as asthma and COPD because the drugs delivered by the inhalation route instantly start their activity there when administered directly to the respiratory tract. Compared with the oral and the parenteral route, administration of the drug by the oral route provides the desired effect in a shorter time and at lower doses of the drugs. In addition, possibility of occurrence of side effects is decreased and/or severity of the side effects is alleviated owing to administration of the drug directly to the target area and its use at lower doses. As the active agents taken by the inhalation route in the treatment of respiratory tract diseases are very potent, use of very low doses of these drugs is sufficient in order to obtain the required effect. The active agent is diluted with various excipients in course of production so as to eliminate the problems that would be encountered in production and use as a result of use of the active agent at very low doses. Furthermore, the excipients in the formulation enable to carry the active agents to the respiratory tract of the patient since they adsorb the active agents to their surfaces. Since amount of excipient used in the production of the formulation is quite higher than the amount of active agent, characteristics of the formulation are influenced by the selection and features of the excipient chosen.
Dry powder formulations are generally inhaled from blisters and capsule packs. The most significant factor which negatively affects the pharmaceutical quality of the dry powder formulations developed in order to be inhaled from capsules is moisture. Due to the material they are made of, capsules absorb moisture and the moisture diffuses into the capsule. The medicament exposed to moisture in the capsule is disintegrated in a short time; adheres to the inner surface of the capsule and the medicament is agglomerated. This results in administration of a lower amount of the active agent than the required amount for an effective treatment during the inhalation. Moreover, the capsules exposed to moisture are deformed in time. Therefore, problems occur while the capsules are pierced and/or the capsules cannot be pierced completely. In order to eliminate all these problems; many formulations, new production methods for these formulations and capsules have been developed in the prior art. These methods and capsules developed are generally high priced. In the patent application numbered US20060115432 (A1), a process applied to improve the features of lactose used in the formulation is disclosed. However, no solution is suggested so as to eliminate the problems resulting from the capsule moisture mentioned above. In the patent numbered EP1379220 (B1), a capsule made of a material with reduced moisture content which contains dry powder formulations comprising tiotropium as mixed with a physiologically acceptable excipient is disclosed. However, production of the capsule of materials with reduced moisture content does not bring long term solutions to problems resulting from moisture content of the capsule material. The capsule disclosed in this patent remains incapable in entirely eliminating the possibility of moisture absorption of the capsule due to the humidity of air and the conditions in course of production.
The inventors have developed a process enabling to eliminate or minimize the abovementioned problems for production of formulations comprising active agents effective in the treatment of respiratory tract diseases such as asthma and COPD.

Sima Patent ve Lisanslama Hizmetleri Ltd. Sti.


A container sealing system and a container feature are disclosed. The container sealing system includes one or more seals encompassing a container opening, wherein the one or more seals are interlockable or otherwise engageable to seal the container when activated; a first slider head including a male fitting coupled to the one or more seals; and a second slider head coupled to the one or more seals and opposing the first slider head, and including a female fitting for receiving and coupling the male fitting. Actuation of at least one of the slider heads such that the male fitting contacts the female fitting couples the one or more seals encompassing the container opening, sealing the container. The container sealing system may be child-resistant, may be resealable, and/or may include a tamper-indicating feature. The container including the container sealing system may be used for containing, storing, or transporting materials that are not suitable for handling or consumption by a child.

The present application relates generally to sealing systems for containers, and resealable containers comprising sealing systems. The sealing systems and resealable containers may further comprise a tamper-indicating feature. In certain embodiments, these sealing systems and resealable containers may be child-resistant and/or may be used to hold contents not suitable for consumption or handling by children.
A variety of products exist for containing, storing, or transporting items, materials, and substances. Flexible, e.g., plastic, bags, especially those with sealable and resealable openings, are particularly useful products that are widely available. Sealing systems for resealable plastic bags often include interlocking structures on opposing sides of a plastic bag opening, which can be coupled together by pressing them together, or using a slider coupled to the interlocking structures as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,029,178. These systems, however, are easily opened and therefore not child resistant. Moreover, these systems do not indicate if the system has been tampered with (opened previously). Accordingly, these systems limit the usefulness of bags using such systems.
A need exists therefore for resealable bags that are tamper-indicating and/or are child-resistant. Such a container would be especially desirable in cases where items, materials, or substances not suitable for consumption or handling by children, such as medications, are to be stored, transported, or otherwise contained in a container.

Child-resistant resealable plastic bag slider system


A method of bringing a gear member and a pinion member into mesh with one another without causing damage to either or both members. Each of the members of the gear pair has an axis of rotation and a plurality of teeth with respective topland surfaces with at least one of the members having teeth, and thus toplands, extending lengthwise at an angle with respect to the axis of rotation of said member. The method comprises moving one member of the gear pair from a pre-mesh position relatively toward the other member of the gear pair along a meshing path which includes relative movement along (1) a sliding path oriented in the direction of the angle of the toplands and (2) along an axial path in the direction of the gear member axis whereby upon contact between any topland surfaces of the members, rotation of at least one of the members will result thus enabling the teeth to be relatively positioned so that meshing occurs. The method further contemplates rotating at least one of the members simultaneously with the relative movement along the meshing path.

On testing and/or lapping machines for gears, such as bevel or hypoid gears, the pinion and gear members are moved together to bring the pair into mesh, i.e. the pinion teeth engage the tooth slots of the ring gear/or vice versa. Once they are engaged, the pinion and gear can be moved together to the proper position and can then be rolled together in a desired testing or lapping procedure. Computer controlled multi-axis lapping and testing machines are well known and are readily available. Such machines are shown and described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,058 to Gnadt et al. and in Stadtfeld, Hermann J., "Single Flank Test, 3-D Vibration Analysis and Digital Imaging of Tooth Contact with PHOENIX.RTM. 500 HCT", The Gleason Works, Rochester, N.Y., June 1995.
In moving the gear members relative to one another to bring them into mesh, collisions between the toplands of the meshing may cause damage to machine components especially if a direct topland-to-topland collision occurs. If the collision is such that the toplands are offset from one another, chipping of the topland edges may occur especially if the gear is hardened. This situation can lead to chips staying between the teeth during subsequent rolling of the gear pair. In this instance, the chips are rolled into the surface of the teeth and scoring the gear set thus results. If the gears are not hardened and an offset topland-to-topland collision occurs, plastic deformation of the topland edges may result in which subsequent rolling may damage the gear set or at least it is necessary to remove the deformation (nick) by hand.
Methods have been proposed in an effort to properly bring mating gear members into mesh in machining or testing operations. Manual feeding of one member relative to another to bring mating members into mesh is well known. In this method, one member is incrementally fed toward the other member and as contact nears, rotational adjustments of one member are made such that the teeth of one member may engage the tooth slots of the mating member. While this method is reliable, it is extremely slow.
In the method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,150,313 to Bauer, a lever having an attached pin and dog is swung toward a pinion member and a ring gear-shaped shaving tool to which is mounted a backing plate having notches which are aligned with the tooth spaces of the shaving tool. The dog has a wedge-shaped nose portion and the notches have wide openings which converge rearwardly toward the back of the backing plate. The pin is inserted into a tooth space of the pinion which may require a manual rotational adjustment to align the pin with a pinion tooth slot. If the tool and pinion are positioned properly for meshing, the dog will simultaneously enter a notch of the backing plate. If the dog does not align directly with a notch in the backing plate, one of the sides of the nose portion of the dog will engage an inclined surface of a notch resulting in a small rotation of the tool as the dog becomes fully engaged with the notch. Once full engagement is achieved, the pinion and tool will be properly aligned. This method is also quite time consuming.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,579,803 to Lautenschlager, a bevel gear pair to be lapped are brought into mesh by feeding one gear relatively toward the other. However, if contact of the tooth toplands occurs, the members of the gear pair are separated, the rotational position of one member is incrementally adjusted and the members of the gear pair are again brought into contact. The process is repeated if necessary. Also disclosed in this patent is a method of meshing wherein instead of separating members of a pair upon collision, one of the members is rotated to bring about proper alignment. While it is disclosed that a pressure relief valve is included to prevent build-up of heavy forces, either of these methods presents a risk of damage to the machine and/or gear members since a collision is permitted to occur before the inventive method is utilized.
Known from U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,717,958 to Ellwanger et al. and 3,795,143 to Deprez et al. are respective lapping and testing machines wherein during initial meshing, one member of the gear pair is rotated to facilitate the meshing process. However, this method is somewhat random as there is no control of the rotational positioning of either of the gear pair members to attain a proper meshing alignment. Thus, collisions may still be expected.
In some automatic CNC machines, another attempt to avoid damage due to collisions between tooth toplands during meshing is to include a spring-loaded device on a machine wherein movement of the spring is indicative of a topland collision. Although the gear members have collided, the machine components continue their programmed movement until movement of the spring alerts the machine controller to activate a particular slide to free the pinion and gear and rotate the ring gear a fraction of a pitch after which the machine will attempt to mesh the gear pair again. Although this procedure reduces many instances of damage, the procedure still permits forces to build in the machine due to a collision and as such, still presents the possibility of machine, or tooth, damage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method by which machine or tooth damage due to direct or offset topland collisions are reduced or eliminated by the avoidance of force build-up even in the event of such collisions.


A label-equipped form having a release liner on the back of which is provided CB chemical and with CF chemical being provided in alignment on the top of the next adjacent ply.

This invention relates to a label-equipped business form and method and, more particularly, to a form employing carbonless chemical pairs.
The invention provides a label die-cut from label stock and equipped with a pressure sensitive adhesive-equipped release liner on the back of the label stock. Such a form is known in the art as seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,379,573 and 5,011,559.
Prior to the instant invention, if the label was on the first ply of the form, no image could be transferred to the ply directly below it in the area covered by the liner--unless a carbon paper ply is inserted between the two plies so as to produce an image. Such ply insertion complicates the production and handling of forms.
Alternatively the ply below the first ply could be made of self-contained carbonless paper which would produce an image but such self-contained paper is expensive and such paper is always sensitive to smudging since it is always "live" to the touch. Such self contained paper is disclosed in conjunction with a multi-sheet assembly in co-owned U.S. Pat. No. 4,425,386.
If the label were put on one of the lower plies or the last ply, the images would be transferred to all plies but the image on the label would be carbonless--not an original. And the image would be weak and could fade with time. Also, it is inconvenient to pull a label off a lower ply rather than the top ply.
According to the invention, the first ply has all or part of the back surface coated with a carbonless chemical CB coating. The form also has a second ply of paper that has at least a portion thereof coated with a carbonless CF chemical. Further, any number of any intermediate plies of paper with CF coatings on the faces thereof and CB coatings on the back surfaces thereof can be employed. The adjacent coatings match in order to give carbonless images when the form is imprinted through an impact printer.
More particularly, the first ply has a silicone-coated patch of release liner paper that is adhered to its back surface through the use of pressure-sensitive coating on the silicone coated side. This liner paper has a coating of CB carbonless chemical on its back surface and a similar patch could be adhered to one or more intermediate plies in a similar manner. The paper ply or plies that have the liner stock adhered to the back are die-cut through the front within the periphery of the adhesive coated area to form a removable label.
Since the back of the liner is coated with CB chemical, any impact on the label made by an impact printer creates an image in the CF coating in the ply below the ply with the label. The CB chemical on the label mates and reacts with the CF chemical on the lower ply.
If the information that is printed on the label must remain on the top paper ply after the label is removed, the liner can be used with a self contained carbonless coating below the silicone coating. Such liner stock is readily available commercially. The same information that is in the label can also be on the liner and would show when the label is removed.
Exemplary of multi-ply forms making use of CB/CF coatings is a mailer seen in co-owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,489.


A printhead structure for direct electrostatic printing having a back electrode and a particle supplying unit. The particle supplying unit conveys charged particles to a particle source positioned adjacent to the back electrode. A flexible control unit interposed between the back electrode and the particle supplying unit converts a stream of electronic signals, defining image information, into a pattern of electrostatic fields that within a predetermined print area of the print head structure selectively permit or restrict the transport of said charged particles from the particle source toward the back electrode. The flexible control unit is positioned and maintained in a spaced relation to the particle source. The flexible control unit is aligned with the particle source and the distance between a surface of the flexible control unit and the particle source is adjustable. Alignment edges are individually adjustable in a direction perpendicular to a surface of the flexible control unit, to increase or decrease the relative distance between the surface of the flexible control unit and the particle source.

The most well known and widely utilized electrostatic printing technique is that of xerography wherein latent electrostatic images formed on a charge-retentive surface, such as a roller, are developed by the use of a suitable toner material to render the images visible, the images being subsequently transferred to an information carrier.
This process is called an indirect process because it first creates a visible image on an intermediate surface and then transfers that image to an information carrier.
Another method of electrostatic printing is one that has come to be known as direct electrostatic printing. This method differs from the aforementioned xerographic method in that charged pigment particles (toner) are deposited directly onto an information carrier to form a visible image. In general, this method includes the use of electrostatic fields controlled by addressable electrodes for allowing passage of toner particles through selected apertures in a printhead structure. A separate electrostatic field is provided to attract the toner particles to an information carrier in an image configuration.
The distinguishing feature of direct electrostatic printing is its simplicity of simultaneous field imaging and particle transport to produce a visible image on the information carrier directly from computer generated signals, without the need for those signals to be intermediately converted to another form of energy such as light energy, as is required in electrophotographic printers, e.g. laser printers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,341, granted to Larson, discloses a direct printing device and a method to produce text and pictures on an image receiving substrate directly from computer generated signals. According to that method, a control electrode array, formed of a latticework of individually controlled wires, is positioned between a back electrode and a rotating particle carrier. An image-receiving substrate, such as paper, is then positioned between the back electrode and the control electrode array.
A uniform electric field is generated between a high potential on the back electrode and a low potential on the particle carrier thereby to attract the toner particles from the surface of the particle carrier and to create a particle stream toward the back electrode. The particle stream is modulated by a series of voltage sources which apply an electric potential to selected individual wires of the control electrode array to produce electrostatic fields which permit or restrict particle transport from the particle carrier. In effect, these electric fields "open" or "close" selected apertures in the control electrode array to the passage of toner particles by influencing the attractive force from the back electrode. The modulated stream of charged particles allowed to pass through selected apertures impinge upon a print-receiving medium interposed in the particle stream to provide line-by-line scan printing to form a visible image.
The control electrode array described in the above mentioned patent is in the form of a lattice of individual wires arranged in rows and columns. A control electrode array operating according to the described principle may, however, have any one of several other designs. Generally, the array is a thin sheet-like element, referred to as a Flexible Printed Circuit or FPC, comprising a plurality of addressable control electrodes and corresponding voltage signal sources connected thereto for attracting charged toner particles from the surface of a particle carrier to an information carrier. A sequence of electronic signals, defining the image information, is converted into a pattern of electrostatic fields which locally modify the uniform field from a back electrode, thereby selectively permitting or restricting the transport of charged particles from the particle carrier and producing an image pattern corresponding to the electrostatic field pattern onto the information carrier.
A flexible control array or FPC as disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,144, also granted to Larson, is made of a flexible, electrically insulating, non-rigid material, such as polyimide or the like, which is provided with a multitude of apertures and is overlaid with a printed circuitry whereby the apertures in the material are arranged in rows and columns and are surrounded by ring-shaped electrodes. A uniform electrostatic field generated by a back electrode attracts toner particles from a particle source to create a particle stream through the FPC toward the back electrode. All control electrodes are initially at a white potential, V.sub.w which means that toner transport from the particle carrier toward the back electrode is inhibited. As image locations on an information carrier pass beneath the apertures, selected control electrodes are set to a black potential V.sub.b to produce an electrostatic field drawing the toner particles from the particle source. The charged toner particles pass through the apertures in the FPC and are subsequently deposited on the information carrier in the configuration of the desired image pattern. The toner particle image is then made permanent by using heat and pressure to fuse the toner particles to the surface of the information carrier.
The variable electric forces applied to the individual control electrodes act either attracting or repelling on the toner particles positioned on the surface of the particle carrier. The electric forces must be carefully regulated to be above or below a predetermined transport threshold value corresponding to a print mode and a no print mode respectively. The threshold value is strongly dependent on the gap distance between the FPC and the surface of the particle carrier. The gap distance is generally in the order of about 50 microns and may vary within .+-.5 microns without severely affecting the print quality. Therefore, it is essential to provide a constant and uniform gap distance to maintain high print quality.
Further, when a control electrode is in the print mode, the attractive force must not be changed until the toner particles have gained sufficient momentum to pass through the corresponding aperture in the FPC. The time required for particles to be transported through an aperture must also be accurately controlled as a function of the gap distance between the FPC and the surface of the particle carrier.
Accordingly, even very minor variations in the gap distance between the FPC surface and the particle carrier surface may significantly and adversely affect the accuracy of the print control function, resulting in undesired size variation or density variation of the printed dots and degradation of the print readability.
It is desirable to arrange the FPC as closely to the toner carrier as possible without contacting the toner layer. Since the gap distance, as mentioned, typically is in the order of about 50 microns, even the slightest mechanical imperfections may cause a drastic degradation of the print quality.
A frequently used type of particle carrier is in the form a smooth cylindrical sleeve. However, in reality such a sleeve is never either perfectly cylindrical or perfectly smooth. In addition to the defects that may be found in the cylindrical sleeve, the layer of toner particles coating the sleeve may have a thickness which is slightly non-uniform. Further, the diameter of the particles themselves may vary and their shape may show deviations from an ideal spherical shape. These examples illustrate only a few of the numerous irregularities which may cause variations in the actual gap distance found between the FPC and the particle carrier.
A further source of variations in the gap distance is the mounting of the FPC in the print head structure. During the positioning of the FPC in alignment with the particle carrier, the FPC material may be deformed into a slight wave-shape due to non-uniform tension being applied to the material. Likewise, forces arising from the printing process itself may cause deformation which will affect the gap distance. Accordingly, to achieve a minimal and constant gap distance between the FPC and the particle carrier, while at the same time producing a uniform tension over the whole FPC surface and further to maintain these conditions during the whole print procedure, has proven to be one of the most critical steps of a direct printing method.
The positioning step is particularly important in order to achieve an improved print quality by enhancing the grey scale capability of the print head. The image configuration is formed by dots having variable form and/or darkness to create different shades in the range between white and maximal darkness. The control signals can be modulated with high precision to allow a desired amount of toner particles to be transported through each aperture in the FPC, the amount of toner particles transported through each aperture thereby corresponding to a specific grey level or shade. To obtain a satisfying grey scale capability when using a direct printing method, it is thus highly desirable to eliminate or at least considerably reduce the problems associated with irregularities occurring in the gap distance between the FPC and the particle carrier.
Therefore, to ensure a uniform print quality and enhance the grey scale capability of a direct electrostatic printing process, the need has been identified for an improved print head structure offering the required surface evenness, alignment and tension uniformity to the FPC material used in the process.

Printhead structure for direct electrostatic printing


An electric motor used especially for driving windshield wipers of motor vehicles which includes a gear pot and a metal cover with an outside and an inside and a plastic component which is injection-molded substantially at the outside of the cover and into which at least one conductive strip punched out from a metal blank and positioned substantially at the outside is embedded. In order to achieve an exact position of the conductive strip, the conductive strip is supported by a holding device from the inside of the cover through an aperture in the cover during the injection molding process. The plastic component includes at least one recess within the aperture in the cover which is open towards the inside of the cover and extends up to the conductive strip, unless the recess is filled with material afterwards.

The invention relates to an electric motor, especially to an electric small-power motor for driving windshield wipers of motor vehicles and more particularly relates to a method of manufacturing such an electric motor.
An electric motor of this type is disclosed in German patent document DE-OS 38 38 285 discloses an electric motor in which a gear pot is closed by a metal cover having an outside and an inside. A plastic component is injection-molded on the cover into which plastic component a conductive strip punched from a metal blank is embedded. In the cover, there is an aperture which is completely closed and an aperture which is open at the edge. The conductive strip runs from the outside of the cover to the inside through these apertures. The plastic component engages the cover at the inside through another aperture.

Conductor embedded in an injection molded component for the cover of an electric motor


A single crystal silicon substrate (1) is bonded through an SiO2 film (9) to a single crystal silicon substrate (8), and the single crystal silicon substrate (1) is made into a thin film. A cantilever (13) is formed on the single crystal silicon substrate (1), and the thickness of the cantilever (13) in a direction parallel to the surface of the single crystal silicon substrate (1) is made smaller than the thickness of the cantilever in the direction of the depth of the single crystal silicon substrate (1), and movable in a direction parallel to the substrate surface. In addition, the surface of the cantilever (13) and the part of the single crystal silicon substrate (1), opposing the cantilever (13), are respectively, coated with an SiO2 film (5), so that an electrode short circuit is prevented in a capacity-type sensor. In addition, a signal-processing circuit (10) is formed on the single crystal silicon substrate (1), so that signal processing is performed as the cantilever (13) moves.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an acceleration sensor, and more specifically, a semiconductor type acceleration sensor suitable for a air-bag system, a suspension control system, or the like, for automobiles.
2. Description of the Related Art
In producing a semiconductor type acceleration sensor, the movable part thereof has hitherto been prepared in such a way that it penetrates a single crystal silicon wafer. Accordingly, the movable part must be sized so as to penetrate through the thickness of a wafer, and therefore, it has been difficult to miniaturize the acceleration sensor. In addition, in order to incorporate this sensor into a package, a relaxation part, have been required such as a pedestal, in order to release the stress caused by the difference in coefficients of thermal expansion or the like.
However, in Nikkei Electronics, Nov. 11, 1991 (No. 540), pp 223 to 231, there is illustrated an acceleration sensor produced by use of a surface micro-machining technique. According to this technique, a thin polysilicon film is laminated on a silicon substrate, and this polysilicon film is etched, whereby a beam movable parallel to the surface of the substrate is formed, so as to form a differential capacity type acceleration sensor. However, when a beam structure is formed by use of polysilicon, if a signal processing circuit is formed around the formed beam structure, the sensor characteristics become unstable. This is because the beam structure is formed of a polycrystalline and amorphous material, resulting in noticeable variation for every production lot. Accordingly, it is still desirable to form an acceleration sensor by surface micro-machining single crystal silicon.
Under such circumstances, the purpose of the present invention is to provide an acceleration sensor having a novel structure, by which high precision and high reliability can be realized.
In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to produce this acceleration sensor with a good yield rate during the production process thereof.

Acceleration sensor and process for the production thereof


A method and apparatus for voice message editing, particularly a method and apparatus for splicing voicemails sections together. A system, method and computer program product are described for forming a voice message on an interactive voice response system (IVR) spoken by a user including recording a first voice message where the user speaks the first voice message but makes an error in a last portion of the first voice message. A second voice message is recorded where the user speaks the last portion again without the error. Splice points are determined in the first and second voice messages. The first and second voice messages are spliced at the splice points such that the spliced first and second voice message is a continuous voice message including the last portion but not including the error.

An interactive voice response system (IVR) is a computer connected to a telephony network and providing integration between the two. The telephony network can be a plain old telephony system such as a line switched telephony network or a packet switched telephony network like a voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) network. An IVR typically runs a telephony application that controls the interaction of a user and the IVR. Such a voice application is a voicemail application controlling the interaction between a user and the computer, on its own or part of another voice interaction.
A voicemail telephony application requires the recording of audio messages directly into an IVR system over the telephone. This method of recording can be cumbersome when working with lengthy passages of speech, especially if a mistake is made while reading a passage. Often mispronouncing a word or coughing during a lengthy passage creates undesired audio data in the segment. Such undesired audio data (called artefacts below) can result in having to re-record the entire message which costs both time and money.
It would be useful to have a voice message system which did not require a complete re-record of the voice message.

Method and apparatus for voice message editing

International Business Machines Corporation