A computer-controlled, automated checkout store outlet comprises at least one bay. A normally locked door is associated with each bay, and provides access to items within the bay by customers approved by a computer of the automated store outlet. At least one tray is disposed within at least one bay, and adapted to hold items to be stocked by the bay. A sensor system is configured to detect the removal of an item from the bay and identify the removed item, such as when a customer is removing the item for purchase.

The present invention generally relates to an unattended, automated checkout store outlet, and its related method. This automated store outlet system can be used as an unattended automated checkout kiosk or micro-market, as well as any other unattended automated checkout mini-market or neighborhood store, where consumer goods are displayed behind closed glass doors and are a sold "off the shelf".
Typically, kiosks or micro-markets as well as mini-markets or neighborhood convenience stores require the presence of clerks and other employees and may be limited to specific hours of operation. Such requirements and limitations increase the cost of operation and the limited hours of operation affect the actual revenue.
Some recent unattended micro-markets are operated within a company's break-room and are offering food and beverages "off-the-shelf" using the honor system. In such micro-markets, consumers can pick up items off the open and unsecured shelves and then the consumers are required to scan the barcodes of each item at the barcode scanner located on the local automated computer kiosk. Such open shelf micro-markets are limited to only highly secured locations and are subject to losses due to theft. Therefore, such micro-markets must be located only within the company's break-room or in such areas where the identity of the customers are known and the potential theft is mitigated.
Additionally, this invention can also be an alternative to common vending machines that are currently used to vend products which are stored within the machine. Typically, vending machines are coin-operated, although many vending machines accept varying denominations of paper currency (such as a one-dollar or a five-dollar bill), and some vending machines now accept credit or debit cards. Vending machines are often placed where people gather, pass by, or wait, such as public buildings and transportation hubs including subways and airports, hospitals, schools, etc.
In the common vending machine, after the appropriate number of coins or bill payment is made, and the good selected, the good is typically dropped or delivered into a built-in bin which is accessible to the customer for retrieving the product. Such vending machines are very limited to a low number of products and to a very small selection. Vending machines are typically associated with selling high-sugar, low-nutrient snacks and drinks, such as candy bars, potato chips and soft drinks. Furthermore, the ordinary metal square vending machine, in most cases, is not appealing and does not have an attractive appearance. Nowadays the bad reputation and the negative social stigma of vending machines are counted as some of the main reason that a large percentage of consumers are avoiding the use of conventional vending machines. Furthermore, vending machines are not allowing consumers to examine or return the items into the machine and reverse the sale. The sale process is unfriendly and upon vending the product each sale becomes final.
Traditional vending machines also do not have many security measures, other than tamper-proofing. Thus, pranksters and thieves can damage the vending machine, and in some cases remove the money deposited within the vending machine. There is no live twenty-four hour surveillance of such vending machines.
Yet another drawback of company micro-markets and traditional vending machines is that there is no real time communication between the consumer and the operator of the micro-market or the vending machine, should problems or questions arise. The customer can attempt to call the operator of the micro-market or the vending machine, if the contact information of the operator is even posted. Otherwise, more typically, the customer is unable to contact such operators during such visits to the micro-market or the use of the vending machine.
Therefore, under the current situation and in most cases, if an individual desires to have something to eat or drink which is more substantial or healthier than a candy bar, soda, etc., or desires to buy any personal, toiletries or conventional items, that individual must either find and purchase such products at a grocery store, a restaurant or other type of convenience stores. In other cases, there are gift shops, coffee shops or the like which may be placed in the lobby of hotels or buildings or within the waiting area of an airport which will offer such products. However, these are typically only open during limited hours of each day and require one or more people to be present to handle the purchases from the consuming public.
Accordingly, there is a continuing need for automated checkout store outlets which feature an automated "off the shelf" selling method and system which is appealing and attractive in appearance and offers a wide selection of products. What is also needed is an unattended automated checkout store outlet which has security measures so as to prevent theft, tampering and vandalism. What is also needed is such an automated system which can offer better and more nutritious food than most vending machines without restriction to location or hours of operation. The present invention fulfills these needs, and provides other related advantages.

Computer-controlled, unattended, automated checkout store outlet and related method


Methods and apparatus relating to a current change mitigation policy for limiting voltage droop in graphics logic are described. In an embodiment, logic inserts one or more bubbles in one or more Execution Unit (EU) logic pipelines or one or more sampler logic pipelines of a processor. The bubbles at least temporarily reduce execution of operations in one or more subsystems of the processor based at least partially on a comparison of a first value and one or more clamping threshold values. The first value is determined based at least partially on a summation of products of one or more event counts and dynamic capacitance weights for one or more subsystems of the processor. Other embodiments are also disclosed and claimed.

To control power consumption, some processors are capable of operating at several different frequencies. For example, if a system is to reduce its power consumption (e.g., during idle times), a processor may be operated at a lower frequency. Alternatively, to improve performance (e.g., during complex computations), the processor may be operated at a higher frequency. Some processors may be used to perform graphics computations (also referred to as graphics processors). Graphics processors may however have a more complex design and may require performance of various additional operations whenever there is a change in their operating frequency. Hence, changing the operating frequency of graphics circuitry may result in additional delay, increased power consumption, and/or performance reduction.

Current change mitigation policy for limiting voltage droop in graphics logic


The present invention provides a hollow, solid golf ball having improved shot feel at the time of hitting by improving the impact absorption, while maintaining excellent flight performance. The present invention relates to a hollow, solid golf ball comprising a hollow core and a cover formed on the core, wherein the hollow core is composed of a hollow portion having a diameter of 5 to 23 mm and a hollow core outer layer, and the hollow core outer layer has an elastic modulus of 265 to 985 kgf/cm.sup.2.

Hitherto, there have been mainly produced two types of golf balls. The one is a solid golf ball, such as a two-piece golf ball, which is composed of a core formed from integrally molded rubber material and a thermoplastic resin cover (e.g. ionomer resin cover) formed on the core. The other is a thread wound golf ball which is composed of a solid or liquid center, a thread rubber wound layer formed on the center and a cover of ionomer resin or balata etc. having a thickness of 1 to 2 mm covering on the thread rubber wound layer. The solid golf ball, when compared with the thread wound golf ball, has better durability and better flight performance because of larger initial velocity at the time of hitting and longer flight distance. Therefore, the solid golf ball is generally approved or employed by many golfers, mainly amateur golfers. On the other hand, the two-piece solid golf ball exhibits a hard shot feel at the time of hitting.
In order to improve the shot feel of the two-piece solid golf ball, it has been attempted to soften the cover or the core of the solid golf ball. However, the softening of the cover or core adversely sacrifices flight distance inherent in the two-piece solid golf ball. It has also been proposed that the core or cover is made of a plurality layered to improve shot feel. However, there is the drawback that production efficiency is poor, because the method of making the plural layered core or cover is complicated.
The present inventors have proposed a solid golf ball having a hollow at its center (Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 308709/1997). The hollow solid golf ball has a hollow portion having a diameter of 5 to 30 mm and the hollow portion is surrounded by rubber which is formed from a rubber composition which has been conventionally used for cores of solid golf balls. Because of the presence of the hollow portion, the weight of the golf ball is reduced. This reduction in the ball weight is compensated for by the addition of a high specific gravity metal powder to the rubber composition.
In the hollow golf ball, impact absorption is improved by making the core hollow, and thus shot feel is improved. The hollow golf ball also has excellent flight performance and maintains a long flight distance because the weight is distributed around the outer portion of the golf ball and the moment of inertia of the golf ball is increased, thus increasing the launch angle and reducing the spin amount immediately after hitting, but reducing spin attenuation. The hollow golf ball has excellent physical properties as described above, but the present inventors further try to improve the properties even more.
For example, impact absorption, which is one of important technical effects of the hollow golf ball, can be improved by enlarging the hollow portion. However, the enlargement of the hollow portion degrades the rebound characteristics and reduces flight distance. Also, it increases deformation of the cover or core outer layer at the time of hitting, thus reducing ball durability and degrading cut resistance.


In an information retrieval method and apparatus, a specific user model is formed for a specific user based at least upon the specific user's own selection data. A plurality of specific user models formed for respective users are registered, and a group user model is formed on the basis of the plurality of specific user models. Information is subsequently retrieved based on the group user model. The group user model may be formed by selecting a maximum, minimum or average value of the plurality of specific user models.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an information retrieval method and apparatus, and more particularly, in applicable to a program retrieval method and apparatus for retrieving a program desired to be watched by an audience among from a large number of television programs which are transmitted via a broadcasting satellite.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a satellite broadcasting system in which television programs are transmitted to an audience via a broadcasting satellite, a television signal is digitized and a large number of programs are transmitted at the same time. Such a system increases the number of programs from which an audience may select.
Moreover, in a system for providing various information from a host computer to computer terminals through the telephone line or an exclusive line, a user at a terminal side selects desired information from among a large amount of information. The information is requested from the host computer side.
When an audience or a user tries to select a television program or the information on a computer, there is a problem that the retrieval operation of the audience or user becomes complicated. That is, since a desired program or information must be retrieved from among a large number of programs or information it is difficult to select a desired program or information easily.

Information retrieval method and apparatus


Mediating between host and display where a mediator enforces security policy over bidirectional protocols of a Display Data Channel (DDC) of video communication protocols between host and display, where AD-EDID display emulators are coupled to DDCs of the host's video port, AD-EDID host emulators are coupled to DDCs of display's video port and security enforcing communication units couple between pairs of AD-EDID display emulator and AD-EDID host emulator, where AD-EDID display emulators emulate display operation and behavior over the DDC, AD-EDID host emulators emulate host operation and behavior over the DDC and security enforcing communication units enforce security policy such as unidirectional communication between the pairs of AD-EDID host emulators and AD-EDID display emulators.

The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to a video mediator between a host and a display and, more particularly, but not exclusively, to a secure video mediator between a host and an advanced display.
A video mediator is a device that coupled between a host and a display. The host may be a computer, a workstation, a set-top-box, etc. The display may be a computer monitor, a television, a projector, etc. Host and display are typically connected using video communication protocols, such as, VGA, DVI, HDMI or DisplayPort. The video communication protocol may include, in addition to the video stream, plug and play data as well as other data. The plug and play data and some of the other data are referred as Display Data Channel (DDC). Video mediators are used for applications like video standards conversion, extending the distance between host and display, switching the video stream between sources (hosts) and sinks (displays) etc. In some cases, the mediator comprises some security functions to protect the overall system from cyber threats. Such a mediator is referred as secure mediator. Examples of secure functions of mediators can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,769,172, 9,411,766, 9,767,049, 10,515,234 and 9,501,157 titled "Secure KVM Device Ensuring Isolation of Host Computers", "Single Optical Fiber KVM Extender", "Isolated KVM Combiner for Multi-Network Computer System having a Video Processor", "Method and Apparatus for Securing KVM Matrix" and "Secure KVM System having Multiple Emulated EDID Functions", respectively. An objective of this invention is to provide secure video mediators that enhance the security over Display Data Channel (DDC) that couple between hosts and displays with advanced display features, i.e., advanced display that are characterized by supporting features that requires bidirectional communication between host and display over Display Data Channel (DDC).

Method and system of secure mediator for advanced displays


The Stirling-Electric Hybrid automobile herein disclosed utilizes an electric drive motor which is powered by electric storage device. The electric storage device is kept at suitable charge by electric generator mechanically driven by external combustion of Stirling engine type, by thermoelectric generator thermally coupled to the exhaust of the Stirling engine and to kinetic energy recovery system which during deceleration of the automobile utilizes the electric drive motor as a generator and recovering the electrical energy generated by deceleration to the electric storage device. Almost any clean combusting liquid or gaseous fuel may be utilized by the Stirling engine with greater fuel economy and less atmospheric pollution than internal combustion engines presently used. The utilization of thermoelectric generator to recover heat from exhaust of the Stirling engine and utilization of kinetic energy recovery system provides even better fuel efficiency and reduced pollution.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to field of self-propelled, land vehicles primarily used for transportation of people and cargo on improved road surfaces (commonly referred to as the automotive field, but including trucks, buses and specialty vehicles). More particularly the present invention relates to what are frequently called hybrid vehicles, namely those which use two or more distinct power sources to propel the vehicle. As one of the power sources of the vehicle of the invention is electric it relates to the field of hybrid-electric vehicles. As one of the power sources of the invention is a Stirling Cycle Engine, which said engine may be operated on a wide variety of liquid fuels the invention also relates to the field of flexible fuel hybrid-electric vehicles. As the invention also includes a Thermoelectric Generator and Regenerative Braking it also relates to those field.
2. Description of Related Art
Early in the field of automotive design engines which run on the Stirling Cycle (hereinafter called "Stirling Engines") were tried and did demonstrate some utility. However use of such engines for automobiles was subsequently abandoned in favor of internal combustion engines, despite the fact that Stirling Engines pose the potential for the greatest fuel efficiency of any of the real heat engine designs, have few noxious emissions and can be run on a variety of fuels. It appears that this abandonment resulted from the fact that Stirling Engines could not generate useful amounts of power immediately after cold start (but must be heated to operating temperature, in contrast with internal combustion engines which can generally be used immediately after starting) and the fact that Stirling Engines are not very responsive to varying power demands (accelerate and decelerate at significantly slower rate than internal combustion engines).
While significantly more "responsive" than Stirling Engines, internal combustion engines possess certain undesirable characteristics, including considerably worse fuel economy, greater emission of noxious exhaust gases (including oxides of nitrogen and carbon) and each are designed to operate on a very narrow range of fuel. As long as all forms of fuel for internal combustion engines was cheap and plentiful, and the consequences of noxious exhaust gases was not well appreciated, the use of the internal combustion engine was the preferred automotive engine. Now that fuel is becoming increasingly scarce and very expensive and the consequences of atmospheric pollution becoming increasingly appreciated, decreased use of the internal combustion engine would appear to be highly desirable. Yet the undesirable characteristics of using a Stirling Engine to drive automobiles remained to be over-come. The invention described and claimed herein employs use of a Stirling Engine in the automobile but uses it in a way that over-comes the undesirable characteristics of the Stirling Engine previously encountered in such use.
Similarly there has been some, but not widespread, use of electric motors to drive automobiles. In general electric drive motors have been used in "all electric" cars and in "hybrid-electric" vehicles that employ the internal combustion engine either to drive the driven wheels of the vehicle, to charge the battery of the vehicle or some combination of both.
"All electric" vehicles, which are driven by electric motor which draws electricity from a non-board battery suffer certain disadvantages which limit their utility. Principally these limitations relate to the limited range that may be obtained from on-board battery which is of reasonable size, weight and expense, coupled with the long time required to recharge an exhausted battery (or the impracticalities involved in changing replacing exhausted battery with a charged battery).
"Hybrid-electric" vehicles which employ the use of an electric motor to drive the vehicle and an internal combustion engines (to charge the battery of the vehicle or when extra power is needed) have had some success, mainly derived from their use of a smaller internal combustion engine, shutting same down when the vehicle is at idle and use the use of regenerative braking (whereby upon braking the automobile is used as a generator to charge the battery of the vehicle), but suffer at least some degree of the disadvantages of internal combustion engines mentioned above (poor fuel efficiency, higher undesirable emissions and largely inflexible fuel requirements).
In the last two decades there appears to have some experimentation with development of a hybrid-electric vehicle that employs use of a Stirling Engine to generate electricity which charges the battery of the vehicle, delivers electric power to the automobile of the vehicle but it appears that such experimentation was unsuccessful because of a variety of problems including lower-than-expected thermal efficiency, high heat rejection requirements, poor specific power, and excessive hydrogen leakage.
At the same time improvements in thermoelectric generating devices have improved the cost, efficiency and size of such devices, making it possible that waste heat can now be practically employed to generate useful quantities of electrical power.
It does not appear that all of the advances in technology which have recently taken place, including reducing the size, weight and electrical storage capacity of batteries; improvements in the design of automobiles, including reduction of their size, weight and efficiency; improvements in solid state switching of heavy electrical currents; improvement in Stirling Engines; use regenerative braking technology; and, improvements in thermoelectric generators have been brought together to create a hybrid-electric automobile drive system which is operable on a wide variety of liquid fuels, provides for substantial increases in fuel economy and is less polluting of the atmosphere.


A drop test device includes a suspension frame, a delay roller which is placed and mounted on the suspension frame, and at least one suspension cable, a first end of which is connected in a stationary manner to an attachment point on the outer surface of the delay roller and a second end of which includes a mounting which can be releasably or fixedly connected to a drop object.

Drop tests are usually carried out to determine the effects of an impact on the structure and integrity of objects to be analysed. A drop object is left to fall freely under predetermined constraints until it strikes an impact surface. The impact and the results thereof on the structure of the drop object can subsequently be analysed by way of sensor-based evaluations during the fall and analysis of the drop object after the fall.
In conventional drop tests, in particular aircraft components such as fuselage structural elements are lifted to a predetermined height from where they are left to fall freely. As a result of the mass distribution and the aerodynamic properties of the aircraft components, it may occur that the relative position of the aircraft component varies substantially by comparison with the release position until the actual impact. This sometimes detracts from the reproducibility and predictive power of the drop tests. In particular in fuselage structural elements, variation between the actual and intended impact position can significantly influence the impact properties.
Previous solutions, such as those known from document U.S. Pat. No. 6,374,661 B1, comprise drop test devices in which the relative position of drop objects in space can be controlled using holding devices until shortly before the impact. Only shortly before or during the impact itself are the holding devices released so as to create the conditions for freefall. Solutions of this type require active supervision and control mechanisms, which increase the complexity and fault susceptibility.

Drop test device and method for carrying out a drop test


The dispersant of the present invention comprises at least one component unit derived from kraft lignin and/or its salt and at least one component unit derived from at least one water-soluble monomer. The novel lignin derivative of the present invention comprises at least one component unit derived from kraft lignin and/or its salt, at least one polyoxyalkylene chain, and at least one anionic functional group.

Lignin, one of the main components of wood, has been used in many applications in the form of lignin derivatives by providing various modifications so far. For example, lignin sulfonic acid has widely been used as a cement dispersant. Also, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 1-145358 discloses making lignin sulfonic acid in the form of acrylic or vinyl monomer-modified derivatives for use of lignin sulfonic acid as a cement dispersant. On the other hand, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0065400 discloses a resin composition mainly for binders, which is obtained by grafting kraft lignin with acrylic acid and crosslinking the obtained polymer with aldehydes. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 4,891,415 discloses a resin composition particularly suitable as dispersants and scale preventing agents, which is obtained by grafting lignin, for example, lignin sulfonic acid, with vinyl monomers.
However, in the case where the above-described conventional lignin derivatives, e.g., lignin sulfonic acid, are used as dispersants, there has been a problem that they do not have so sufficient cement dispersing performance. Therefore, it has been required to effectively improve the dispersing performance, which is intrinsic to the lignin skeleton, by chemical modification and efficiently utilize the resulting lignin derivatives as dispersants having high dispersing performance. Further, it has also been required to develop a novel lignin derivative from kraft lignin which has been used only as fuel in pulp plants.

Dispersant using kraft lignin and novel lignin derivative


A thermoelectric conversion module having a large capacity and a curved surface is manufactured by immersing a honeycomb structural body having a number of through holes, openings of every other through holes being closed by clogging members, into a semiconductor material melt of one conductivity type to suck the semiconductor material melt into through holes whose openings are not closed, cooling the thus sucked semiconductor material melt to form semiconductor elements of one conductivity type, immersing again the honeycomb structural body after removing the clogging members into a semiconductor material melt of the other conductivity type to suck the semiconductor material melt into the through holes, cooling the thus sucked semiconductor material melt to form semiconductor elements of the other conductivity type, cutting the honeycomb structural body into a plurality of thermoelectric conversion module main bodies, and providing metal electrodes of both surfaces of a thermoelectric conversion module main body such that alternate semiconductor elements of one and the other conductivity types are connected in series.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thermoelectric conversion module for use in an apparatus utilizing a thermoelectric effect such as an electronic cooling apparatus and an electric power generating apparatus, and more particularly to a thermoelectric conversion module having N type semiconductor elements and P type semiconductor elements connected in series by means of metal electrodes. The present invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a thermoelectric conversion module.
2. Related Art Statement
There have been proposed various kinds of thermoelectric conversion modules utilizing the Seebeck effect, Peltier effect and Thomson effect. Among these thermoelectric conversion modules, there have been realized a Seebeck effect element and Peltier effect element, in which a thermoelectric element is formed by joining different kinds of metals. In the Seebeck effect element, different kinds of metals are joined to constitute a closed loop, and thermoelectricity is generated by making junctions at different temperatures. Such a Seebeck effect element may be utilized a thermoelectric element. In the Peltier effect element, different kinds of metals are joined to form a closed loop and an electric current is passed through the loop in a given direction to cause heat absorption at one junction point and heat generation at the other junction point. Such a thermoelectric element may be utilized as a thermoelectric heating element or thermoelectric cooling element. In order to improve the efficiency of these elements, a junction between a semiconductor and a metal has been widely used.
FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a principal structure of a known thermoelectric conversion module constructed as the above mentioned thermoelectric element. The thermoelectric conversion module comprises a number of N type semiconductor elements 1 and a number of P type semiconductor elements 2, said N and P type semiconductor elements being arranged alternately. Adjacent N type and P type semiconductor elements 1 and 2 are connected in series by means of electrodes 3 made by metal segments. The left side N type semiconductor element 1 and the right side P type semiconductor element 2 of the series connection semiconductor element array are connected to opposite ends of a load 4. One side of the semiconductor array is placed in a higher temperature environment and the other side is placed in a lower temperature environment. Then, in each of the N type semiconductor elements 1, electrons flow from the high temperature side to the low temperature side as shown by solid lines. In each of the P type semiconductor elements 2, holes flow from the high temperature side to the low temperature side as depicted by broken lines. Therefore, a voltage is applied across the load 4 with a polarity depicted in FIG. 1. The semiconductor elements 1 and 2 may be made of Bi--Te semiconductor (for instance Bi.sub.2 Te.sub.3), Bi--Sb semiconductor (for example Bi.sub.0.88 Sb.sub.0.12) or Si--Ge (for instance Si.sub.0.8 Ge.sub.0.2).
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a known method of manufacturing the above mentioned known thermoelectric conversion module. On a surface of an insulating substrate 5 are secured electrode metal strips 6 by brazing in accordance with a given pattern. Then, N type semiconductor elements 1 and P type semiconductor elements 2 are secured to the metal segments 6 by brazing or soldering. The semiconductor elements 1 and 2 may be formed by a single crystal melting method or a sintered semiconductor material cutting method. On upper surfaces of the N type and P type semiconductor elements 1 and 2 there are secured metal segments 7 by means of brazing or soldering. In this manner, the N type semiconductor elements 1 and P type semiconductor elements 2 are arranged alternately and are connected in series by means of the metal segments 6 and 7. In this case, it has been proposed to secure the metal segments 7 simultaneously to the semiconductor elements 1 and 2 by using an insulating plate on which a metal electrode pattern is previously formed.
In Japanese Patent Publication No. 6-9260 (JP 6-9260), there is disclosed a known method of manufacturing a thermoelectric conversion module, in which a molten or fused semiconductor material is sucked into a thin quartz or glass tube having a size of 7.PHI..times.5.PHI..times.600 mm by means of a sucking tool, and after cooling the semiconductor material melt, the tube is cut into pieces having a given length. Then, these tubes are arranged side by side.
In Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication Kokai Hei 5-315656 (JP 5-315656), there is proposed another known method of manufacturing a thermoelectric conversion module, in which a molten thermoelectric material is poured into holes formed in an electrically insulating substrate made of a heat resistant material. In this method, the mechanical strength of the module is reinforced by the substrate, while a superior property of one direction solidified material is maintained.
If a large capacity thermoelectric conversion module including a large number of thermoelectric elements is to be manufactured by the first mentioned known method, extremely high working precision and high assembling faculty are required, and thus a manufacturing cost will be increased very much. Moreover, it is impossible to manufacture a thermoelectric conversion module having a curved surface. Such a curved surface is required when a thermoelectric conversion module is secured to a base member having a curved surface. In this manner, the module made by this known method could not be used in various applications. For instance, when the thermoelectric conversion module is applied to a system in which electric power is generated by using waste heat of an internal combustion engine, a space for providing the thermoelectric conversion module is limited and in many cases it is desired to provide the thermoelectric conversion module on a curved surface. However, the module made by the above mentioned known method could not have a curved surface, and therefore could not be applied to such a thermoelectric power system.
In the known method described in JP 6-9260, the sucking tool has various problems in reliability, durability and cost. Moreover, this known method requires a rather complicated process. Also in this method it is impossible or at least very difficult to manufacture a thermoelectric conversion module having a curved surface.
In the known method disclosed in JP 5-315656, a molten thermoelectric material could be uniformly introduced into holes formed in the insulating substrate only with difficulty. This method is not also suitable for obtaining a thermoelectric conversion module having a curved surface.

Thermoelectric conversion module and method of manufacturing the same


In one embodiment, a network device may detect a data plane critical fault condition, while a corresponding control plane is not experiencing a critical fault condition. In response to a network device based critical fault condition, the network device may activate and advertise an increased and expensive usable metric for each network interface of the network device. On the other hand, in response to an interface based critical fault condition, the network device may activate and advertise an increased and expensive usable metric for one or more particular network interfaces of the interface based critical fault, and signals, over the control plane to a corresponding network device at an opposing end of each particular network interface of the interface based critical fault, a request to activate and advertise an increased and expensive usable metric at the opposing end of each particular network interface.

When a critical fault impacts both the data plane and control plane of a network device, routing protocols generally detect the faults and successfully divert away the traffic if there is sufficient redundancy. However, when only the data plane fails, leaving the control plane functional, traffic may be "blackholed," such that the control plane assumes that the connection is functioning, but the data plane is physically unable to forward the traffic.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Graceful handling of critical traffic blackholing faults


In an audio system, cyanoacrylate adhesive can reliably hold neodymium magnets to a stator for a planar magnetic transducer when the transducer generates high output. In one implementation, the planar magnetic transducer can include multiple neodymium magnets aligned in rows on top of a stator. Each neodymium magnet may be aligned with another neodymium magnet, and each pair of neodymium magnets can be separated by a gap. The transducer can have spacers to fill each gap and separate each pair of neodymium magnets. Cyanoacrylate adhesive can bond the neodymium magnets to the stator and bond each spacer between each pair of neodymium magnets.

In audio speaker design, transducers can be used to change electrical energy into acoustical energy. One type of transducer design may include planar magnetic transducers. Planar magnetic transducers can have an array of magnets located on a substantially planar surface to generate sound at loud volumes (e.g., 90˜117 dB sound pressure level) with clear, undistorted sound, even at hundreds of feet away from the transducer. Planar magnetic drivers can be specially designed for professional sound applications. In other implementations, planar magnetic transducers can be used in areas of consumer electronics, such as planar magnetic speakers for the multimedia or home market.

Securing magnets in high-efficiency planar magnetic transducers


A rotary actuator includes a stator on which a sensor surface is arranged and a rotor configured to rotate about the stator. The rotor forms an actuating surface for the sensor surface. An interval fixing device such as a rotationally fixed sliding disk is arranged between the actuating surface and the sensor surface. A spring is configured to press the sensor surface towards the actuating surface.

Some rotary actuators have an integrated capacitive sensor system. For example, DE 10 2004 010 406 B3 describes an information and entertainment system having a rotary actuator with an integrated touch sensitive surface. The touch sensitive surface implements a touch screen as an input device for handwriting recognition.
In order to design a touch sensitive surface on a rotary actuator, it is advantageous to arrange the electrical components of the sensor surface on the stator such that the electrical connectors of the components do not restrict the rotational capability of the rotor. The actuating surface itself can be actualized by the outer top surface of the rotor. Tactile contact of the actuating surface of the rotor affects the components of the sensor surface on the stator.
A spacing or interval is necessary between the inner surface of the rotor and the sensor surface on the outer surface of the stator. The spacing minimizes detrimental frictional effects for the stationary sensor surface under the rotatable actuating surface of the rotor.
The properties of touch sensitive capacitive sensors are dependent on the material arrangement between the actuating surface of the rotor, on which a human finger or the like can act, and the sensor surface on the stator. The specific relative permittivity εr and thickness of the material is of importance for a precise evaluation of the signal. A large difference exists between the relative permittivity of air (εr=1.0) and thermoplastic materials (εr=2.5-3.5) from which the components of the rotational actuator, such as the rotor, are typically made. Due to this property, the thickness of an air gap between the rotor and the sensor surface on the stator disproportionately affects the measured capacitance values.
A difficulty arises in that the relative position and spacing between the actuating surface of the rotor and the sensor surface on the stator cannot be maintained precisely during rotation of the rotor about the stator. Depending on the precision of the pivot bearing of the rotor, different portions of the actuating surface can have different distances to the sensor surface, which also change during rotation of the rotor. The electrical properties of the capacitive sensor are thus dependent on the actuating position and are not constant when the rotary actuator is rotationally activated.


A general and modular mechanophore platform that efficiently releases a cargo molecule via a mechanically triggered cascade reaction is described, along with methods of synthesis and use thereof. The mechanophore platform comprises a stable Diels-Alder adduct mechanophore comprising a 2-furylcarbinol derivative as its diene component, wherein the 2-furylcarbinol derivative is, in turn, pre-loaded with a covalently attached cargo molecule, and wherein the Diels-Alder adduct mechanophore is embedded into a polymer chain or polymer network, such that the mechanophore platform undergoes the retro [4+2] cycloaddition reaction under mechanical force to reveal the unstable 2-furylcarbinol derivative, which, in turn, easily decomposes under mild conditions to release its molecule cargo.

Mechanical to chemical transduction is a powerful strategy for achieving materials with stimuli-responsive properties. The emerging field of polymer mechanochemistry aims to harness mechanical forces in polymers to promote productive chemical transformations in stress-responsive molecules known as mechanophores (see, for example: Beyer, M. K.; et al. Mechanochemistry: The Mechanical Activation of Covalent Bonds. Chem. Rev. 2005, 105, 2921-2948; Caruso, M. M.; et al. Mechanically-Induced Chemical Changes in Polymeric Materials. Chem. Rev. 2009, 109, 5755-5798; and Li, J.; et al. Polymer Mechanochemistry: From Destructive to Productive. Acc. Chem. Res. 2015, 48, 2181-2190; the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference). In such molecular systems, mechanical force is delivered to the mechanophores through covalently attached polymer chains using a variety of techniques, including solution-phase ultrasonication (see, for example: Berkowski, K. L.; et al. Ultrasound-Induced Site-Specific Cleavage of Azo-Functionalized Poly(ethylene glycol). Macromolecules 2005, 38, 8975-8978, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference), tension or compression in solid materials (for example: Gossweiler, G. R.; et al. Mechanochemical Activation of Cova-lent Bonds in Polymers with Full and Repeatable Macroscopic Shape Recovery. ACS Macro Lett. 2014, 3, 216-219, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference), atomic force microscopy (for example: Wu, D.; et al. Molecular Stress Relief through a Force-Induced Irreversible Extension in Polymer Contour Length. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 15936-15938; and Sulkanen, A. R.; et al. Spatially Selective and Density-Controlled Activation of Interfacial Mechanophores. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, 141, 4080-4085, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), laser-induced stress waves (for example: Grady, M. E.; et al. Shockwave Loading of Mechanochemically Active Polymer Coatings. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2014, 6, 5350-5355; and Sung, J.; et al. Interfacial Mechanophore Activation Using Laser-Induced Stress Waves. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2018, 140, 5000-5003, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), and high intensity focused ultrasound (for example: Kim, G.; et al. High-intensity focused ultrasound-induced mechanochemical transduction in synthetic elastomers. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 2019, 116, 10214, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference). Mechanically coupled chemical activation has been demonstrated for a variety of covalent bond transformations to engender a wide range of functional responses, including changes in color or fluorescence (see, for example: Davis, D. A.; et al. Force-induced activation of covalent bonds in mechanoresponsive polymeric materials. Nature 2009, 459, 68-72; Imato, K.; et al. Mechanophores with a Reversible Radical System and Freezing-Induced Mechanochemistry in Polymer Solutions and Gels. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 54, 6168-6172; Wang, Z.; et al. A Novel Mechanochromic and Photochromic Polymer Film: When Rhodamine Joins Polyurethane. Adv. Mater. 2015, 27, 6469-6474; Göstl, R.; Sijbesma, R. P. π-extended anthracenes as sensitive probes for mechanical stress. Chem Sci 2016, 7, 370-375; Robb, M. J.; et al. Regioisomer-Specific Mechanochromism of Naphthopyran in Polymeric Materials. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2016, 138, 12328-12331; and McFadden, M. E.; Robb, M. J. Force-Dependent Multicolor Mechanochromism from a Single Mechanophore. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, 141, 11388-11392, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), chemiluminescence (for example: Chen, Y.; et al. Mechanically induced chemiluminescence from polymers incorporating a 1,2-dioxetane unit in the main chain. Nat. Chem. 2012, 4, 559, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference), switching of electrical conductivity (for example: Chen, Z.; et al. Mechano-chemical unzipping of insulating polyladderene to semiconducting polyacetylene. Science 2017, 357, 475; and Yang, J.; et al. Benzoladderene Mechanophores: Synthesis, Polymerization, and Mechanochemical Transformation. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, 141, 6479-6483, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), activation of catalysts (for example: Piermattei, A.; et al. Activating catalysts with mechanical force. Nat. Chem. 2009, 1, 133; and Michael, P.; Binder, W. H. A Mechanochemically Triggered "Click" Catalyst. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 13918-13922, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference), and generation of reactive functional groups (for example: Hickenboth, C. R.; et al. Biasing reaction pathways with mechanical force. Nature 2007, 446, 423-427; Ramirez, A. L. B.; et al. Mechanochemical strengthening of a synthetic polymer in response to typically destructive shear forces. Nat. Chem. 2013, 5, 757-761; Robb, M. J.; Moore, J. S. A Retro-Staudinger Cycloaddition: Mechanochemical Cycloelimination of a β-Lactam Mechanophore. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2015, 137, 10946-10949; Wang, J.; et al. Mechanochemical Strengthening of a Multimechanophore Benzocyclobutene Polymer. ACS Macro Lett. 2015, 4, 834-837; and Zhang, H.; et al. Mechanochromism and Mechanical-Force-Triggered Cross-Linking from a Single Reactive Moiety Incorporated into Polymer Chains. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2016, 55, 3040-3044, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference). Accordingly, continued advancement of this field is highly desirable, as new mechanophore discoveries and development will further expand the repertoire of mechanochemical function and will enable novel applications in organic materials.

Method for controlled release using mechanical force


A device and method for aligning a media sheet moving along a media path. An amount of skew that will occur as the media sheet moves along the media path is determined based on one or more physical characteristics. Previous testing of the device indicates that media sheets having particular physical characteristics will have a known amount of skew by the time they reach a predetermined location along the media path. The media sheet is moved the known amount so the media sheet is aligned. Test data is used to determine the amount of expected misalignment of the media sheet and the amount necessary to move the media sheet back into alignment.

Image forming devices move media sheets throughout a media path. The media sheets are moved along the media path past one or more imaging stations where an image is transferred to the sheet. The media path may further include a duplexer. A duplexer is a device that receives a media sheet from the forming device, inverts the sheet, and then conveys the sheet back to the imaging stations for an image to be formed on the second side. The sheet may or may not have an image formed on the first side when the sheet is received by the duplexer.
Correct positioning and alignment is necessary for the image to be accurately transferred to the media sheets. Misalignment of the media sheets when moving past one or more of the imaging stations may cause the image formed on the media sheet to be misaligned resulting in a print defect. Further, an excessive amount of skew within the media sheet may cause a media jam. Clearing a media jam requires the operator to manually remove the jammed media sheets from the media path and reset the image forming device.
Image forming devices are capable of forming images of various types on various types of media sheets. Each of the media sheets has different physical characteristics that affect the way the media sheets move along the media path. The media path may be calibrated to accurately move one type of media sheet, but cause skew when moving a second type of media sheet.
Determining the amount of skew on a media sheet moving through a media path may be difficult. It may be necessary to position one or more sensors along the media path to detect the amount of skew. However, sensors may incorrectly determine the amount of skew on the media sheet. Additionally, sensors are expensive. Many purchasers of image forming devices make their purchasing decisions based mainly on cost. Therefore, any unnecessary costs are preferably removed to make the device more attractive to the purchaser.

Method and device to control the alignment of a media sheet in an image forming device


The input impedance of a laser subsystem is matched to the output impedance of its driver by means of a current/series or voltage/series-connected negative feedback loop which generates an electronic feedback signal from the laser output. A combiner combines the feedback signal and the drive signal and applies a difference signal to the laser. In another embodiment, a transformer is disposed between the driver and the combiner to decrease the apparent output impedance of the driver, thereby facilitating the impedance matching function of the feedback loop.

In general, solid state light sources (e.g., semiconductor laser or LED modules) are known to have an impedance which is different from that of the driver circuits (hereinafter drivers) to which they are electronically coupled. This impedance mismatch means that some of the power delivered by the driver is wasted. In many systems applications, such as analog systems for wireless communications, the power budget does not tolerate wasting any significant amount of power. For example, semiconductor laser modules for use in wireless PCS or cellular systems typically have an impedance of about 7 .OMEGA., whereas their drivers typically have a much higher impedance in the range of about 25-75 .OMEGA.. Furthermore, specifications are often placed on the RF input impedance of a laser module, either in terms of the impedance itself or in terms of the return loss associated with the characteristic impedance of measurement systems used to test the module. Required RF impedance levels are also typically in the range of about 25-75 .OMEGA..
In the prior art, this problem is sometimes addressed by adding a resistor in series with the laser. Although this approach is simple, low cost and broadband, most of the driver power is dissipated in the series matching resistor, rather than being used for its intended function--to generate higher optical output power from the laser. Wasting power in this fashion is of concern in any system where efficiency is important, especially in wide bandwidth applications. Another prior art design uses an electrical transformer between the laser and the driver. Although this approach is also simple and low cost, it may suffer disadvantages associated with the limited bandwidth and lack of parasitic control in the transformer.
Thus, there is a need remaining in the art for an impedance matching scheme which addresses these shortcomings.

Increasing the impedance of solid state light source subsystems


An input circuit of a semiconductor memory apparatus includes a first frequency control unit which receives a first signal and a second frequency control unit which receives a second signal. The first frequency control unit outputs the first signal to the second frequency control unit in response to a test mode signal and generates a third signal which has a frequency higher than the frequencies of the first and second signals by using the first and second signals. Also, the second frequency control unit outputs the second signal to the first frequency control unit in response to the test mode signal and generates a fourth signal which has a frequency higher than the frequencies of the first and second signals by using the first and second signals.

The embodiments described herein relate to a semiconductor memory apparatus and, more particularly, to an input circuit of a semiconductor memory apparatus and a method of controlling the input circuit.
As shown in FIG. 1, testing equipment 1 for testing semiconductor memory apparatus operates with a channel region 2, which is divided into a high frequency channel capable of supporting high frequency, and a low frequency channel.
Often there are fewer high frequency channels than low frequency channels in the testing equipment 1. However, the high frequency channels are needed to test most conventional high speed semiconductor memory apparatus. The distinction between the high frequency channel and the low frequency channel is not absolute but relative. Thus, the actual frequency can be different according to the testing equipment. For example, if the period of an output of a signal, which can be supported in the high frequency channel, is 1 ns, it can be 2 ns in the low frequency channel.
As shown in FIG. 2, a conventional semiconductor memory apparatus 10 includes an input circuit 11 for receiving various signals, which are necessary for the operation of the semiconductor memory apparatus, through a buffer included therein. The signals necessary for the operation of the semiconductor memory apparatus can include data strobe signals 'WDQS01' and 'WDQS23' and clock signals 'CLK' and 'CLKb'.
In order to operate the semiconductor memory apparatus 10 at a high speed of more than 1 Ghz, the data strobe signals 'WDQS01' and 'WDQS23' should have a period of less than 1 ns, as shown in FIG. 3. Thus, the data strobe signals 'WDQS01' and 'WDQS23' and the clock signals 'CLK' and 'CLKb' are often input to input circuit 11 through the high frequency channels of the testing equipment 1. Thus, for example, if the number of the high frequency channels of the testing equipment 1 is 128 and four signals are required per semiconductor memory apparatus being tested, then the maximum number of semiconductor memory apparatus that can be tested at one time is limited to 32.
Therefore, the number of semiconductor memory apparatus which can be tested at one time is limited in accordance with the number of the high frequency channels included in the testing equipment 1, thereby lowering testing efficiency.

Input circuit of semiconductor memory apparatus and control method of the same


A control system for regulating the flow of liquid metal in a device for casting a metal. A detector measures a process variable. A control unit evaluates data from the detector. At least one process parameter is automatically varied in order to optimize casting conditions. The detector measures a characteristic of the meniscus at at least two points on the meniscus instantaneously throughout the casting process.

In the continuous casting process molten metal is poured from a ladle into a reservoir (tundish) at the top of the casting device. It then passes through a submerged or a free tapping nozzle at a controlled rate into a water-cooled mould where the outer shell of the metal becomes solidified, producing a metal strand with a solid outer shell and a liquid core. Once the shell has a sufficient thickness the partially solidified strand is drawn down into a series of rolls and water sprays to further extract heat from the strand surface, which ensures that the strand is both rolled into shape and fully solidified at the same time. As the strand is withdrawn (at the casting speed) liquid metal pours into the mould to replenish the withdrawn metal at an equal rate.
Once the strand is fully solidified it is straightened and cut to the required length for example into slabs (long, thick, flat pieces of metal with a rectangular cross section), blooms (a long piece of metal with a square cross section) or billets (similar to blooms but with a smaller cross section) depending on the design of the continuous casting device.
Slag is used to remove impurities from the metal, to protect the metal from atmospheric oxidation and to thermally insulate the metal. The slag also provides lubrication between the mould walls and the solidified shell. The mould is usually also oscillated to minimize friction and sticking of the solidifying shell to the mould walls and to avoid shell tearing.
Inside the mould the flow circulates within the sides of the walls of solidifying metal. When a submerged entry nozzle is used a primary flow is generated that flows downwards in the casting direction as well as a secondary flow that flows upwards along the walls of the mould towards the meniscus i.e. the surface layer of the liquid metal in the mould.
The molten metal entering the mould carries impurities such as oxides of aluminum, calcium and iron so a noble gas such as argon is usually injected into the nozzle to prevent it from clogging with such deposits. These impurities can either float to the top of the mould in the secondary flow where they become entrained harmlessly onto the slag layer at the meniscus, often after circulating within the mould, or they can be carried down into the lower parts of the mould in the primary flow and become trapped in the solidifying front leading to defects in the cast metal products.
The metal flow into the mould must be controlled to enhance the flotation of the impurities and to prevent turbulence from drawing impurities back down into the mould where they can be incorporated into the cast products. This is usually done by applying one or more magnetic fields to act on the liquid metal entering the mould as well as on the liquid metal inside the mould. An electromagnetic brake (EMBR) can be used to slow down the liquid metal entering the mould to prevent the molten metal from penetrating deep into the cast strand. This prevents non-metallic particles and/or gas being drawn into and entrapped in the solidified strand and also prevents hot metal from disturbing the thermal and mass transport conditions during solidification causing the solidified skin to melt.
Electromagnetic stirring means can also be used to ensure a sufficient heat transport to the meniscus to avoid freezing as well as to control the flow velocity at the meniscus so that the removal of gas bubbles and inclusions from the melt is not put at risk.
If the metal flow velocity at the surface of the meniscus is too great it may shear off some of the slag layer and thereby form another source of harmful inclusions if they become entrapped in the cast products. However if the surface flow is too slow the mould powder at the meniscus may cool to a too low temperature and solidify thus decreasing its effectiveness.
Periodic velocity variations of the metal flow in the mould occur due to the oscillation of the mould, changes in the flow rate of liquid metal leaving the nozzle and variations of the casting speed. These velocity variations give rise to pressure and height variations at the meniscus which can result in slag being drawn into the lower part of the mould, an uneven slag thickness and a risk of crack formation. The velocity of the flow at the meniscus is therefore critical for both removal of impurities and trapping of slag powder and thereby related to the quality of the cast products. EP 0707909 discloses that the flow velocity at the meniscus, vm, should be maintained within the range of 0.2-0.4 ms−1 for a continuous casting process. However vm is difficult to measure directly.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,249 discloses a method for continuous or semi-continuous casting of a metal wherein the secondary flow velocity is monitored so that upon detection of a change in the secondary flow, information on the detected change is fed to a control unit where the change is evaluated and the magnetic flux density of the electromagnetic brake of a casting device is regulated to maintain or adjust the flow velocity. This method is based on the assumption that the flow at the meniscus, vm, is a function of the upwardly directed secondary flow.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,249 describes that the upwardly directed secondary flow velocity at one of the mould's sides can be monitored by monitoring the height, location and/or shape of a standing wave, that is generated on the meniscus by the upwardly directed secondary flow at one of the mould's sides. Upon detection of a change, the change is evaluated and the magnetic flux density is regulated based on this evaluation.
A disadvantage with this method is that the standing wave has to be monitored over a period of time in order to detect a change before information indicating that a change has occurred can be fed to the control unit. Oscillation of the mould during the monitoring period can affect the height, shape and location of the standing wave and thus adversely affect the accuracy of the monitoring.
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 6,494,249 describes the use of electromagnetic induction sensors to monitor the standing wave. Electromagnetic induction sensors operate by detecting changes in sensor coil impedance (active or reactive), which varies as a result of changing distance between the sensor coil and the surface of a conductive material. A coil driven by a time-varying current generates a magnetic field around the sensor coil. When a ferromagnetic material is introduced into this field the coil's inductive reactance is usually increased due to the high permeability of the ferromagnetic material. A problem with using sensors that are based on electromagnetic induction is that they can experience interference from electromagnetic means such as the EMBR or stirring apparatus that are usually used in casting devices, which affects the accuracy of such sensors.

Control system, computer program product, device and method


A wireless linear motor comprising: a stationary stator having permanent magnets; a movable stage having coils and a controller with a transceiver for wirelessly communicating with an external data processing system, the controller adapted to energize the coils to position the stage over the stator in response to control signals from the external system; and, a frame having first and second electrically conductive linear guides for slideably mounting the stage over the stator, wherein each linear guide has a stage portion attached to the stage through a first electrical insulator, a frame portion attached to the frame through a second electrical insulator, a plurality of ball bearings disposed between and electrically coupling the stage and frame portions, and a conductor coupling the stage portion to the controller for providing electrical power from an external power supply to the controller through the frame portion of each guide.

Linear motors having stationary armatures containing coils and movable stages containing magnets are well known in the art. Also known are linear motors having stationary magnets and moving coils. One type of such linear motors is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,749,921 to Chitayat. The linear motor disclosed in this patent has a series of armature windings mounted to a base plate and a stage having a series of magnets that is free to move on the base plate. The stage is urged in the desired direction by applying AC or DC excitation to the coils. When such a linear motor is used in a positioning system, the relationship between the location of the stage and locations of the coils must be accounted for. In another linear motor, commutator contacts are pendant from the stage. The contacts contact one or more power rails, and one or more coil contacts. As the stage moves along the armature, the location of the stage, relative to the armature is automatically accounted for by applying power to the stationary armature windings through the commutator contacts. In yet other linear motors, it is conventional to employ a service loop of wires between the moving stage and the stationary elements.
Typically, the location of the stage is updated using a magnetic or optical position encoder on the stage which senses markings on an encoder tape stationary alongside the path of the stage. The location is transferred by the service loop to a stationary motor controller. Generally, the important location information is the phase of the stage relative to the phase of the armature. For example, in a three-phase armature, the windings are disposed in repeating sets of three for phases U, V and W. If the center of the U phase winding is arbitrarily defined as 0 degrees, then the centers of the V and W windings are defined as 120 and 240 degrees. There may be two, three or more sets of windings as required for the travel distance of the stage. Normally, all U phase windings are connected in parallel. The same is true of all V and W phase windings. Thus, when the location of the stage requires a certain voltage configuration on the particular windings within the influence of the magnets on the stage, besides powering these windings, all of the other windings in the armature are also powered. The maximum force obtainable from a linear motor is limited by the allowable temperature rise in the armature windings. When all windings are powered, whether they contribute to motor force or not, more armature heating occurs than is strictly necessary for performing the motor functions. Some linear motors in the prior art have responded to this heating problem using switches that are closed only to the armature windings actually within the influence of the magnets.
For reference, FIG. 1 is a side view of a linear motor 100 in accordance with the prior art. The linear motor 100 includes a stage (or mover) 110 and a stator 120. The stage (here, the armature) 110 includes coils 130 and the stator (here, the field) 120 includes magnets 140. The linear motor 100 is controlled by an external driver/controller 150 that is connected to the linear motor 100 by umbilical wires 190. The umbilical wires 190 include: three wires for U, V, and W signals 160 from the stage 110; five wires for power, ground, and U, V and W signals from the Hall Effect sensor 170; and, five wires for power, ground, and A, B and Z signals from the position sensor 180 on the stage 110. The Hall Effect sensor 170 is used for detecting magnetic poles for commutation purposes.
Now, linear motors are increasingly being employed in manufacturing equipment. In such equipment, nominal increases in the speed of operation translate into significant savings in the cost of production. It is particularly desirable to produce as much force and acceleration as possible in a given linear motor. An increase in force generated requires either an increase in magnetic field intensity or an increase in current applied to coils of the armature. In a permanent magnet linear motor, the available magnetic field intensity is limited by the field strength of available motor magnets. Power dissipated in the coils increases at a rate equal the square of the current. Attendant heat generation limits the force that may be achieved without exceeding the maximum armature temperature. Therefore, improvements in the power dissipation capacity of linear motors provide for increases in their utility.
In typical manufacturing equipment, a linear motor may be employed for driving a positioning table along an axis. For example, positioning tables are commonly used for moving a work object such as an electronic device in a precise path for performing an operation or inspection on the work object. Desirable characteristics of such positioning tables include precision, compactness, the maximum speed at which the table can be driven and the accuracy with which the table may be positioned. U.S. Pat. No. 4,151,447 to von der Heide, et al., discloses a linear DC motor having rows of pairs of vertically standing permanent magnets between which flat coils are arranged to travel. The polarity of DC power to the flat coils is switched by a magnetic field or electro-optical sensor at predetermined points in the travel of the flat coils. The apparatus in this patent employs trailing cables for feeding power to the coils.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,761,573 to Chitayat discloses a linear DC motor suitable for driving a positioning table. This linear DC motor includes a linear toothed structure including coils wound around the individual teeth to form a repeating line pattern of electrically produced magnetic poles facing a corresponding parallel array of magnets arranged with alternating magnetic polarity having their broad faces closest to the toothed assembly. A brush assembly is provided on the movable element for contacting a linear slip ring assembly on the stationary element for switching the polarity of voltage applied to energizing coils of the motor. Linear power pickup rails are used in conjunction with brushes and linear slip rings for feeding and controlling power to energizing coils. Furthermore, a brush and power pickup brush assembly is disclosed for feeding first and second electrical polarities to energizing coils which employs two identical comb-like structures for both picking up power from linear power pickup rails and for feeding power to the coils through a linear slip ring.
Another brush and rail power pick-up arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,789,815 to Kobayashi, et al. This patent discloses a movable stage having control and driver means for supplying electric power to coils in the movable stage. The electric power is delivered to the control and driver means through brushes which make contact with rails mounted on the frame. The direction and position of the movable stage are controlled through the supply of power to the rails (i.e. on, off, and polarity). The linear motor thus disclosed is directed toward the control of curtains in vehicles.
Thus, there is a growing commercial use of high performance, linear motors in various manufacturing and other applications. One recognized disadvantage of prior art linear motors is the cumbersome umbilical wires that connect the moving armature or stage to the controller and power source. For example, the umbilical for a prior art three-phase, brushless motor may have three power lines, five signal lines for the armature commutating signals, and eight signal lines for armature position signals. The need for a cable loop connecting moving and stationary elements is inconvenient and limits the flexibility with which a system can be designed. The wiring harness requires additional clearance from the linear motor to prevent entanglement between the motor and any equipment or items that may be adjacent to the linear motor path. In addition, the wiring harness adds additional weight to the moving element of the linear motor. Furthermore, manufacturing of a linear motor employing a wiring harness incurs additional cost of material and assembly labour. Therefore, it would be desirable to eliminate the use of a wiring harness in a linear motor to decrease the cost of assembly, decrease the overall weight of the moving element, and to eliminate the clearance restrictions on the linear motor's utility. Another recognized disadvantage is the need to remove heat from the moving stage (i.e. armature). Where a coolant is used, the umbilical includes, in addition to the wires, a tube to carry the coolant to a coolant coil embedded in the armature and a tube to carry the coolant from the coil. The result is a heavy, cumbersome, umbilical of wires and tubes, festooned along the path over which the stage moves.
To overcome some of these disadvantages, wireless or semi-wireless linear motors have been developed and have been disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,936,319 to Chitayat and 6,005,310 to Mosciatti, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,936,319 discloses a communications device on a movable stage which wirelessly informs a motor controller about the position and/or incremental motion of the movable stage. The movable stage includes a position encoder and any wireless transmission system may be used including radio and infrared. However, the movable stage includes permanent magnets while the fixed path includes armature coils. U.S. Pat. No. 6,005,310 discloses a movable stage with a wireless transmitter (e.g. radio frequency or infrared) for transmitting commutating and position signals to an external motor controller. However, while the movable stage includes coils, the motor controller is connected to the movable stage by an umbilical cord.
A need therefore exists for an improved wireless linear motor which overcomes at least some of the drawbacks of the prior art. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide such a linear motor.


A resistive memory cell is connected in circuitry which has a first input terminal for applying neuron input signals including a read portion and a write portion. The circuitry includes a read circuit producing a read signal dependent on resistance of the memory cell, and an output terminal providing a neuron output signal, dependent on the read signal in a first state of the memory cell. The circuitry also includes a storage circuit storing a measurement signal dependent on the read signal, and a switch set operable to supply the read signal to the storage circuit during application of the read portion of each neuron input signal to the memory cell, and, after application of the read portion, to apply the measurement signal in the apparatus to enable resetting of the memory cell to a second state.

The present invention relates generally to an artificial neuron apparatus, and more particularly to artificial neurons based on resistive memory cells.
Neuromorphic technology relates to computing systems which are inspired by biological architectures of the nervous system. The conventional computing paradigm based on CMOS logic and von Neumann architecture is becoming increasingly inadequate to meet the expanding processing demands placed on modern computer systems. Compared to biological systems, it is also highly inefficient in terms of power consumption and space requirements. For example, the IBM Watson supercomputer, which recently won the Jeopardy contest against two human contestants, has 2880 computing cores (the size of 10 refrigerators) and requires about 80 kW of power and 20 tonnes of air-conditioned cooling capacity. The human brain occupies less than 2 liters and consumes around 20 W of power. Simulating 5 seconds of brain activity using state-of-the-art supercomputers takes around 500 seconds and needs 1.4 MW of power. These issues have prompted a significant research effort to understand the highly efficient computational paradigm of the human brain and to create artificial cognitive systems with unprecedented computing power.
Neurons and synapses are two basic computational units in the brain. A neuron can integrate input signals coming from other neurons, in some cases with further inputs, for example from sensory receptors. At some point the neuron will "fire", generating an output signal known as an "action potential" or "spike", and then revert to its initial state. The spikes are conveyed to other neurons via synapses which change their connection strength as a result of neuronal activity. FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings shows a schematic representation of two neurons N1, N2 interconnected via a synapse 1. Neuron N1 integrates inputs from other neurons, sensory receptors, etc., which it receives via dendrites 2. When neuron N1 fires, it generates a spike which is conveyed to other neurons via an axon 3 of N1. The synapse 1 interconnecting pre-synaptic neuron N1 and post-synaptic neuron N2 receives spikes generated by neuron N1 and provides output signals to neuron N2. The resulting synaptic output signal is conveyed to neuron N2 via a dendrite 4 of N2. This synaptic output signal is a graded synaptic potential which depends on conductance (also known as "synaptic weight" or "strength") of the synapse 1. Synaptic weight can be enhanced or reduced by neuronal activity, and this "plasticity" of synapses is crucial to memory and other brain functions. This effect is indicated in FIG. 1 by back-propagation of a spike generated by N2 to the synapse 1 via a dendrite 5 of neuron N2. The spike generated by N2 is conveyed to other neurons via an axon 6 of N2.
Most current artificial neuron realizations are based on hybrid analog/digital VLSI circuits. These so-called silicon neurons require several transistors to be realized and are not particularly suitable for integration with emerging nanoscale devices such as resistive memory cells (memristors). Resistive memory cells such as phase change memory (PCM) cells have been recognized as suitable candidates for the realization of neural hardware (see e.g., "The Ovonic Cognitive Computer—A New Paradigm", Ovshinsky, Proc. E/PCOS, 2004, and "Novel Applications Possibilities for Phase-Change Materials and Devices", Wright et al., Proc. E/PCOS, 2013). Resistive memory cells are programmable-resistance devices which rely on the variable resistance characteristics of a volume of resistive material disposed between a pair of electrodes. Cell resistance can be programmed by application of control signals ("programming" or "write" signals) to the electrodes. These cells exhibit a threshold-switching effect whereby the cell can be switched between high and low resistance states by applying a control signal above a threshold level. By appropriate adjustment of the control signals, cells may be programmed to a range of intermediate resistance values, whereby application of successive signals can progressively modify cell-resistance. The cell-resistance can be measured (or "read") by applying a low-voltage control signal to the electrodes and measuring the resulting current flow through the cell. The control signal level for the read operation is low enough that the read operation does not disturb the programmed cell-state.
Prior proposals for neuromorphic neurons based on resistive memory cells were only aimed at capturing some characteristics of biological neurons such as the integrate-and-fire functionality. There have also been attempts at using such memory elements to emulate the generation of action potentials in biological neurons. There has been no concrete proposal for realizing a ready-to-integrate artificial neuron for neuromorphic hardware that can capture most of the essential attributes of a biological neuron.


A hybrid apparatus for delivery of fluid in connection with endoscopic irrigation and lens cleaning including a connector which is adaptable to a flexible or rigid container, a connector arranged at the end thereof and connected via a tubing supply to a fluid, air and or gas source and to an endoscope during a procedure.

Embodiments herein generally relate to endoscopic irrigation systems and procedures. More specifically, the embodiments relate to the supply of fluid in conjunction with an endoscope to enable both endoscopic lens cleaning and endoscopic lavage (irrigation) from a single fluid source.
The desire to visualize inside the "living" human body via a light guiding tube instrument dates back to the early 1800's. The next several decades yielded advancements in light guiding tube instruments with the first successful visualization of the inside of a living human stomach by Dr. Rudolph Kussmaul (Germany) in 1868, followed by continued advancements with flexible fiberscopes in the 1960's. Today, many structures once considered beyond the realm of diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic intervention can now be visualized and treated by the endoscopist. For example, without the use of an "open" surgical technique, the endoscopist can provide a diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic intervention of the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, biliary and pancreatic system. The diagnosis and treatment of many gastrointestinal (GI) disorders such as foreign body removal, gallstone removal, polyp removal, tissue biopsy, structure dilatation, stent placement (for patency and drainage), bleeding and haemostasis, require visual inspection, access to the inner parts of the gastrointestinal tract, endoscopic lavage (irrigation) and lens cleaning.
Due to the lower morbidity and mortality associated with endoscopic procedures and the increased utility associated with "higher" risk patient populations, endoscopic diagnostic and therapeutic interventions, specifically a colonoscopy, is one of the most widely performed medical procedures in the United States. Tens of millions of colonoscopy procedures are performed annually and are expected to increase in the coming years, resulting in an exponential explosion in operating expenses to an already fragile medical system.
During a routine diagnostic colonoscopy or a more complicated treatment of acute lower gastrointestinal bleeding, it is not uncommon to encounter mucus secretions, stool, and or bleeding which limits the endoscopist's visualization and therapeutic capabilities. To maintain a clear operative field and also acceptable visualization, a typical endoscopic system (e.g., Fujinon, Olympus, or Pentax) provides a way of delivering sterile water at a high flow rate for endoscopic lavage (irrigation) and a way of delivering sterile water at a comparatively low flow rate for optical lens cleaning. To deliver the sterile water at the higher flow rate needed for endoscopic lavage, a mechanical peristaltic pump is typically used to deliver the sterile water from a vented fluid supply, while the sterile water for the lower flow rate lens cleaning function is supplied from a separate pressurized (non-vented) fluid supply.
Traditionally, since the lavage and lens cleaning functions utilize different mechanisms to deliver the sterile water, separate fluid supplies (1,000 ml and 500 ml respectively) are used. The fluid supplies can be reusable bottles that are re-sterilized once every 24 hours. Due to stringent infection control procedures, however, some facilities have decided to use separate disposable fluid systems for both the lavage (irrigation) and lens cleaning functions. While this practice addresses some of the infection control recommendations, the increased financial burden on medical facilities across the country continues to go unaddressed at the precipice of an exponential explosion in the annual number of procedures.
Thus, the need exists for the supply of fluid in conjunction with an endoscope to enable both endoscopic lens cleaning and endoscopic lavage (irrigation) from a single fluid source.

Hybrid apparatus for fluid supply for endoscopic irrigation and lens cleaning


A radio apparatus (10) includes an estimation unit (2) configured to calculate an estimated value of a channel response for each of a plurality of antennas, a padding unit (3) configured to generate a first antenna-space channel vector having dimensions larger than the number of the antennas by combining the estimated value with a padding value, a spatial transformation unit (4) configured to calculate a first beam-space channel vector by spatial transforming the first antenna-space channel vector, a noise suppression unit (5) configured to generate a second beam-space channel vector by suppressing at least one element of the first beam-space channel vector, an inverse spatial transformation unit (6) configured to calculate a second antenna-space channel vector by inversely and spatial transforming the second beam-space channel vector, and an extraction unit (7) configured to determine an estimated value of each channel based on the second antenna-space channel vector.

Recent radio apparatuses such as base stations for mobile phones and access points for wireless LANs (Local Area Networks) are often equipped with a plurality of antennas in order to perform high-speed communication. In order to detect a desired signal from signals received through the plurality of antennas and/or transmit a signal in a desired direction by using the plurality of antennas, information about a radio propagation path (hereinafter referred to as a channel) is required.
Regarding the technique for acquiring information about a channel, Patent Literature 1 discloses a method for estimating a frequency response of a channel as a method for acquiring information about a channel. Specifically, firstly, a signal including a reference signal (or a pilot signal) transmitted by another radio apparatus is received and, for each subcarrier, a temporary frequency response is estimated by dividing the received signal by the reference signal. Next, an impulse response is calculated by performing an inverse Fourier transform on the estimated temporary frequency response. Then, for a delay tap of which the magnitude of the impulse response is smaller than a threshold, the value of the impulse response is replaced by zero. Lastly, a frequency response is estimated by performing a Fourier transform on the impulse response of which the value has been replaced by zero. In the method disclosed in Patent Literature 1, noise components are removed by replacing the values of impulse responses of taps in which noise components seem to be dominant by zero, so that the estimation accuracy of the frequency response of the channel is improved.
Further, a technique for estimating a frequency response of a channel by using a spatial transformation process between an antenna space and a beam space has also been studied (e.g., Non-patent Literature 1).
Non-patent Literature 1 discloses a method for estimating a frequency response of a channel by using a spatial transformation process between an antenna space and a beam space. Specifically, firstly, a signal including a reference signal transmitted by another radio apparatus is received and, for each antenna, a temporary frequency response is estimated by dividing the received signal by the reference signal. Next, a frequency response in a beam space is calculated by spatial transforming the temporary frequency responses for the plurality of antennas. Then, for a beam for which the magnitude of the frequency response is smaller than a threshold, the value of the frequency response is replaced by zero. Lastly, a frequency response for each antenna is estimated by inversely and spatial transforming the frequency response in the beam space of which the value has been replaced by zero. In the method disclosed in Non-patent Literature 1, noise components are removed by replacing the values of frequency responses of beams in which noise components seem to be dominant by zero, so that the estimation accuracy of the frequency response of the channel is improved. Note that in the method disclosed in Non-patent Literature 1, the closer the direction of the beam is to the direction of the dominant path, the smaller number of beams the components of the dominant path concentrate on. Therefore, the noise components that can be removed increase and hence the level of improvement in the estimation accuracy of the frequency response rises.

Radio apparatus, channel estimation method, non-transitory computer readable medium, and radio communication system


The present invention relates to a compound represented by the formula

As alkanoic acid derivatives, the compounds described in the following references are known.    (1) WO 00/64876 describes, as a PPAR ligand-receptor binder, a compound represented by the formula:
wherein
are each independently an aryl and the like; A is —O— and the like; B is —O— and the like; D is —O— and the like; E is a bond or an ethylene group; a, b, c and e are each 0–4; d is 0–5; f is 0–6; R1, R3, R5, R7, R9 and R11, are each independently a hydrogen and the like; R2, R4, R6, R8, R10 and R12 are each independently —(CH)q—X; q is 0–3; X is hydrogen and the like; Z is R21O2C— and the like; R21 is hydrogen and the like.    (2) WO 92/20350 describes, as a substance capable of mimicking the action of physiologically active natural polymer, a compound represented by the formula: Mi—(Mn)n—Mt wherein n is the number of 2 to about 50; Mi, Mn and Mt are
respectively;wherein
are each independently an aromatic carbocycle or an aromatic heterocycle; Ai, Bi, An, Bn, At, Bt, Ti and Tt are each independently hydrogen or a substituent; and Xi and Xn are each independently a bond and the like.    (3) JP-A-4-217668 describes, as an antibacterial agent for agriculture and horticulture and an intermediate therefor, compounds respectively represented by the formula:
and the formula:
wherein R1 and R2 are each independently a hydrogen atom or a C1–C5 alkyl group, A is
wherein X is a C1–C10 alkyl group optionally having one or more substituents selected from a C1–C5 alkoxy group, a halogen atom, a nitro group, a cyano group and a trifluoromethyl group and the like and B is a methoxycarbonyl group or a cyano group.
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ), a member of the intranuclear hormone receptor superfamily, which is typically exemplified by steroid hormone receptors and thyroid hormone receptors, plays an important role as a master regulator in the differentiation of adipocytes with its expression induced in the very early stage of adipocyte differentiation. PPARγ forms a dimer with the retinoid X receptor (RXR) by binding to a ligand, and binds to a responsive site of the target gene in the nucleus to directly control (activate) transcription efficiency. In recent years, the possibility that 15-deoxy-Δ12.14 prostaglandin J2, which is a metabolite of prostaglandin D2, serves as an endogenous ligand for PPARγ, has been suggested, and it has been shown that a class of insulin resistance enhancers, typically exemplified by thiazolidinedione derivatives, possess ligand activity for PPARγ, and that its potency is proportional to its hypoglycemic action or adipocyte differentiation-promoting action [Cell, vol. 83, p. 803 (1995): The Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 270, p. 12953 (1995); Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, vol. 39, p. 655 (1996)]. Furthermore, in recent years, it has been shown that 1) PPARγ is expressed in cultured cells of human liposarcoma origin, whose proliferation is ceased by the addition of a PPARγ ligand [Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 94, p. 237 (1997)], 2) nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, typically exemplified by indomethacin and fenoprofen, have PPARγ ligand activity [The Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 272, p. 3406 (1997)], 3) PPARγ is expressed at high levels in activated macrophages, with the transcription of a gene involved in inflammation inhibited by the addition of a ligand therefor [Nature, vol. 391, p. 79 (1998)], and 4) PPARγ ligands suppress the production of inflammatory cytokines (TNFα, IL-1β, IL-6) by monocytes [Nature, vol. 391, p. 82 (1998)].

Five-membered heterocyclic alkanoic acid derivative

Abstract: wherein R1 is an optionally substituted 5-membered heterocyclic group; X is a bond etc.; Q is a divalent hydrocarbon group having 1 to 20 carbon atoms; Y is a bond etc.; ring A is an aromatic ring optionally further having 1 to 3 substituents; Z is —(CH2)n—Z1— (n is an integer of 0 to 8 and Z1 is a bond etc.) and the like; ring B is a 5-membered heterocycle optionally further having 1 to 3 substituents; W is a divalent saturated hydrocarbon group having 1 to 20 carbon atoms; R2 is —OH etc., or a salt thereof. A pharmaceutical composition containing this compound is useful as a prophylactic or therapeutic agent of diseases such as diabetes mellitus and the like.


A method of tracking the sun is disclosed. A measurement of a gravity vector is obtained in a frame of reference of a solar collector rotatable with respect to an earth center of reference. A measurement of a magnetic direction vector is obtained in the frame of reference of the solar collector. The orientation of the solar collector is determined from the obtained measurement of the gravity vector and the obtained measurement of the magnetic direction. The orientation of the solar collector is altered in order to track the sun.

The present disclosure relates to solar energy, and more specifically, to a method of tracking the sun with a solar collector.
A solar tracking system typically includes a moving planar structure on which photovoltaic modules are mounted, a drive system to move the structure, a control system, and a base structure for mounting the tracking system to the ground or suitable support structure. The tracking system is designed to point or direct the photovoltaic modules on the moving planar structure towards the sun. Optical sensors, for example, are often used to track the sun when the sun is visible. Though accurate, these sensors are not effective in tracking the sun's location during periods in which the sun is obscured (e.g. by cloud cover). Once the sun reappears, time is then generally lost while the sensor slews the photovoltaic modules back towards the location of the sun's reappearance. In concentrating photovoltaic systems, this lost time amounts to power loss.

International Business Machines Corporation


Systems and techniques are provided for an interchangeable back system for programmable switches. A programmable switch, remote interchangeable back, and toggle switch interchangeable back may be included. The remote interchangeable back may include a casing and a back plate, where the back plate of the remote interchangeable back may not have an opening. The toggle switch interchangeable back may include a casing and a back plate, where the back plate of the toggle switch interchangeable back may include an opening of sufficient size to accommodate a toggle light switch in the on position. The remote interchangeable back and the toggle switch interchangeable back may be interchangeably attachable to and removable from the programmable switch.

Programmable light switches used in home automation systems often need to be installed permanently in the wall in the place of an existing light switch. Permanent installation of a programmable light switch may require an electrician, as the existing light switch may need to be disconnected from building's wiring, and the programmable light switch wired into the wall. This may make replacing existing light switches with programmable light switches as part of a home automation system costly and time consuming.
Programmable light switches may also function as remotes, without being connected directly to a building's wiring system in place of the existing light switch. However, in this case the existing light switch may still control the flow of electricity to home automation equipped lighting fixtures. If the existing light switch is switched off, the remote programmable light switch may no longer be able to control the home automation equipped lighting fixture, as the light switch will cut off electricity to the light fixture, and to any home automation hardware within the light fixture.

Interchangeable back system for programmable switches