Provided are a resource allocation method and device in a multi-node system comprising a plurality of nodes and a base station which is connected to each of the plurality of nodes and controls same. The method comprises: partitioning wireless resources which the base station can use; and allocating the partitioned wireless resources to the plurality of nodes, respectively, wherein the wireless resources allocated to the plurality of nodes, respectively, have different frequency bands or frame structures between the nodes which may cause interference.

Recently, the data transfer rate over a wireless communication network is rapidly increasing. This results from the appearance and spread of a variety of devices, such as smart phones and tablet PCs which require Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication and a high data transfer rate. Carrier Aggregation (CA) technology in which more frequency bands are efficiently used in order to meet a higher data transfer rate, Cognitive Radio (CR) technology, multiple antenna technology in which a data capacity is increased within a limited frequency, multiple base station cooperation technology, etc. are recently highlighted.
Furthermore, a wireless communication network is evolving into an increase in the density of accessible nodes around a user. Here, the nodes mean antennas or a group of antennas which are spaced apart from one another at specific intervals. However, the node is not limited to this sense, but can be used as a broader sense. That is, the node can become a pico eNB (PeNB), a home eNB (HeNB), a Remote Radio Head (RRH), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a relay, or distributed antennas (or group). A wireless communication system including nodes having a high density can have higher system performance through cooperation between the nodes. That is, if the transmission and reception of nodes are managed by one control station and thus the nodes operates like antennas or a group of antennas for one cell, the nodes can have more excellent system performance as compared with a case where the nodes operate as independent base stations. A wireless communication system including a plurality of nodes is hereinafter referred to as a multi-node system. If each node forming a multi-node system is an antenna, this is called a Distributed Antenna System (DAS).
In a multi-node system, each node may use its own cell identifier (ID) different from an eNB or may use the same cell ID as an eNB. If each node has its own cell ID and performs scheduling and handover, this multi-node system can be considered as a multi-cell system. In a multi-cell system, if cells (i.e., the coverages of nodes) are overlaid with each other, this multi-cell system is referred to as a multi-tier network.
In an existing wireless communication system, antennas are concentrically deployed in a base station that provides service to a specific geographical area. This wireless communication system is a called a Centralized Antenna System (CAS). If a multi-node system is introduced in such a way as to add nodes to an existing wireless communication system, how resources will be allocated to each node according to what method is problematic.

Resource allocation method and device in multi-node system


A low carbon resulfurized free-machining steel having a high machinability is provided. This steel comprises 0.02 to 0.15% by mass of C, up to 0.004% by mass (more than 0% by mass) of Si, 0.6 to 3% by mass of Mn, 0.02 to 0.2% by mass of P, 0.2 to 1% by mass of S, up to 0.005% by mass (more than 0%) of Al, 0.008 to 0.04% by mass of O, and 0.002 to 0.03% by mass of N; and the average oxygen concentration in the MnS in the steel is at least 0.4% by mass.

A low carbon resulfurized free-machining steel is a versatile steel material which is widely used for hydraulic components in automobile transmission and other small parts such as screws and printer shafts which do not require particularly high strength. When an improved roughness of the finished surface after machining and ease of chip disposability are required, a lead sulfur free-machining steel produced by adding lead (Pb) to the low carbon resulfurized free-machining steel is used.
Pb in the free-machining steel is quite effective in improving machinability of the steel. This Pb, however, has been pointed out to be an element which is toxic to the human body, and Pb is also associated with various other problems including lead fumes in steelmaking and chip disposability. In view of such situations, there is a strong demand for a free-machining steel which has realized a practical machinability without adding Pb.
With regard to such low carbon resulfurized free-machining steel, various techniques have been proposed for realizing a Pb-free steel having an improved machinability. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a technique in which the machinability (roughness of the finished surface and easiness in disposing of the chips) has been improved by controlling size of the sulfide inclusion. Patent Document 2 discloses importance of controlling oxygen content in the steel for controlling the size of the sulfide inclusion. Also proposed are techniques of improving machinability by controlling oxide inclusion in the steel (see, for example, Patent Documents 3 to 5).
In the meanwhile, also proposed are techniques of improving the machinability by adequately controlling the chemical composition of the steel material (See for example, Patent Documents 6 to 9).
The techniques that have been proposed are useful in view of improving the machinability of the free-machining steel. The steel produced by these techniques, however, did not have the favorable machinability of the level comparable to the Pb-containing steel, in particular, in the roughness of the finished surface after the forming process.
In addition to the machinability as described above, it is also important that the Pb-free steel also has a good productivity. In this view, the steel should also be capable of being produced by continuous casting with no occurrence of surface defects and the steel also needs to be capable of rolling. However, such continuous casting process has been said to be disadvantageous in producing a steel having a good machinability. Therefore, it is also important to provide a free-machining steel with a good machinability which can be produced by the continuous casting.    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-253390    [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1997-31522    [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1995-173574    [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1997-71838    [Patent Document 5] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1999-158781    [Patent Document 6] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-319753    [Patent Document 7] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-152281    [Patent Document 8] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-152282    [Patent Document 9] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-152283

Low carbon resulfurized free-machining steel having high machinability


An insulating motorcycle seat accessory is disclosed for use by a rider when the motorcycle will be at a standstill for a relatively long period. The accessory protects the rider's legs from becoming overheated when the motorcycle engine is not being cooled adequately.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for use on a motorcycle, and more particularly, relates to a device that protects the motorcycle rider's legs from heat produced by the motorcycle.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In ordinary use, the heat produced by a motorcycle is not noticeable to the rider of the motorcycle. This is because in ordinary use, i.e. driving on highways and most streets, the rider's legs are not in close proximity with the heat producing portions of the motorcycle. In addition, during ordinary use, the heated portions of the bike are cooled by air passing thereover.
However, in some situations, this is not the case. Specifically, in parades, rallies, and heavy traffic, where the rider is stopped for periods of time with the engine on, the rider's feet are touching the ground. As a result, during those time periods, the rider's legs may be adjacent a heat producing portion of the motorcycle not being cooled by air flow, and may become uncomfortably hot. Naturally, the degree of heat produced near the rider's legs is dependent on the design of the motorcycle. Nevertheless, it is known that some cycles are designed such that stop-and-go riding can overheat the inside of the rider's thighs during the stopped periods.


A method and device for producing a rigid container, having two end walls and a lateral wall, from a flat blank having two flat first portions, each of which has a relative panel defining a relative end wall of the container, and a drawn rim integral with the panel, extending along at least one portion of an outer edge of the panel, and square with respect to the panel; and three flat second portions alternating with the two panels; each panel being folded squarely with respect to the flat second portions adjacent to it; the second portions being wrapped about and onto the rims to form the lateral wall; and each panel being stiffened by means of an external stiffening member, at least when forming the lateral wall.

More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and device for producing a rigid container, comprising two end walls and a lateral wall, from a flat blank comprising two flat first portions, each of which comprises a panel defining a relative said end wall of the container, and a drawn rim integral with the panel and extending, squarely with respect to the panel, along at least one portion of an outer edge of the panel; and three flat second portions alternating with said two panels; each said panel being folded squarely with respect to the flat second portions adjacent to it, and said second portions being wrapped about and onto said rims to form said lateral wall.
Though suitable for producing any type of container, the present invention is particularly advantageous for use in the tobacco industry, for producing, on a packing machine, containers defined by hinged-lid cigarette packets, and particularly hinged-lid packets having a substantially oval cross section, as described and illustrated in the Applicant's International Patent Application N. WO-A-03/080474, to which the following description refers purely by way of example.
Particularly when working with high-speed packing machines operating at an output speed in the region of 7–10 packets a second, producing packets of the above type poses various difficulties, due to possible inward flexing of the rims when said second portions are wrapped about and onto the rims of said first portions, thus resulting, in view of the relatively small transverse dimensions of the rims, in failure to close the packets.

Method and device for producing a container


Embodiments detect fraud of risk targets that include both customer accounts and cashiers. Embodiments receive historical point of sale (“POS”) data and divide the POS data into store groupings. Embodiments create a first aggregation of the POS data corresponding to the customer accounts and a second aggregation of the POS data corresponding to the cashiers. Embodiments calculate first features corresponding to the customer accounts and second features corresponding to the cashiers. Embodiments filter the risk targets based on rules and separate the filtered risk targets into a plurality of data ranges. For each combination of store groupings and data ranges, embodiments train an unsupervised machine learning model. Embodiments then apply the unsupervised machine learning models after the training to generate first anomaly scores for each of the customer accounts and cashiers.

Known software-based solutions to fraud detection in many domains, including retail, generally use rule-based filters to flag suspicious activity which can then be later examined by human experts. However, this approach has several drawbacks. For one, it can flag a large amount of activity as fraud, frequently giving users too many risk targets to investigate and no way to decide which to investigate first. Detecting actual fraud will likely always require human intelligence for investigation, and so the role of the software is to identify risk targets requiring investigation. But such software becomes useless if the number of risk targets identified is too large.
Further, known solutions can miss new types of suspicious activity that are very different from what the rules are looking for. The rules describe known types of suspicious activity, but the cleverness of thieves is inexhaustible, and the ideal fraud detection system must have a way to adapt to their inventiveness without human aid. Further, the rules may require manual re-tuning when the business changes or when the environment changes. Therefore, an ideal fraud detection system would adapt without human aid.

Artificial intelligence based fraud detection system


A sheet manufacturing apparatus includes a screening unit configured to allow a material having fibers to pass through from openings and screen the material, and a forming unit configured to form a sheet by using a passed material that has been screened. The screening unit has a cylindrical unit with openings on a curved surface which is configured to rotate, two side units that are located at two end parts of the cylindrical unit which are spaced apart in a direction of extension of a rotation center axis thereof and that is configured not to rotate, an introduction unit provided to one of the side units and configured to introduce the material to the cylindrical unit, and a discharge unit provided to the other of the side units, located downward from the introduction unit, and configured to discharge a residual material that does not pass through the openings.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a sheet manufacturing apparatus.
2. Related Art
Conventionally known is a paper recycling apparatus having a dry-type defibrating unit for breaking up and defibrating paper, a first transferring unit for transferring a defibrated material that has been defibrated at the dry-type defibrating unit, a classifier unit for classifying by air flow and de-inking the defibrated material that has been transferred at the first transferring unit, a second transferring unit for transferring the defibrated material that has been de-inked at the classifier unit, and a paper forming unit for forming paper with the defibrated material that has been transferred at the second transferring unit. Then, a forming drum is arranged in the paper forming unit, and a small hole screen for allowing fibers to pass through is provided to this forming drum. Arranged in the interior of the forming drum is a rotatable needle roll (for example, see Japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2012-144819).
In such an apparatus as is described above, however, a problem has emerged in that when the material that is unable to pass through the small hole screen of the forming drum is allowed to remain inside the forming drum, the material that was unable to pass through ends up accumulating there, filling the inside of the forming drum with residual material and decreasing the sieving function.
A problem has also emerged in the above-described apparatus in that the efficiency of the sieving function is also decreased because material comprising fibers and the like attaches to the rotating needle roll or becomes entangled.


A method and apparatus for stimulating the right or left vagus nerve with continuous and/or phasic electrical pulses, the latter in a specific relationship with the R-wave of the patient's electrogram. The automatic detection of the need for vagal stimulation is responsive to increases in the heart rate greater than a predetermined threshold, the occurrence of frequent or complex ventricular arrhythmias, and/or a change in the ST segment elevation greater than a predetermined or programmed threshold. The system is described with a microprocessor driven, brady therapy device with programming and telemetry capabilities for recording in memory the aforementioned stimulation triggering indicia, including electrogram segments for periods of time preceding and following each instance of vagal stimulation for telemetry out on command.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for electrically stimulating the vagal nerves for the prevention of life threatening arrhythmias, either automatically or upon external command by the patient or physician.
2. Description of the Prior Art
vagal stimulation for the treatment of supraventricular arrhythmias, angina pectoris, and heart failure with an automatic, permanently implantable, medical device has been reported in the literature at least as far back as the early 1960's. The paper "Vagal Tuning" by Bilgutay et al. in the Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Vol. 56, No. 1, July 1968, pp 71-82 described the concepts of vagal stimulation in the treatment of supraventricular arrhythmias, angina pectoris, and heart failure employing an implantable vagal stimulator. Vagal stimulation was effected through the application of electrical stimulation to the vagus nerve by silastic coated, bipolar electrodes (of the type disclosed in Medtronic U.S. Pat. No. 3,421,511) surgically placed around the intact nerve or nerves. Bilgutay et al. designed and employed three different models of vagal stimulators, the first one having a magnetic switch by which it could be turned on or off from outside the body to study the effects of long term stimulation, the second type also implantable but powered from outside by induction using rf frequency, and the third, external type triggered by the R-wave of the subject's electrocardiogram to provide stimulation only upon an achievement of a certain heart rate. Bilgutay et al. found that when a pulsatile current with a frequency of ten pulses per second and 0.2 milliseconds pulse duration was applied to the vagus nerve, long term effective stimulation could be achieved, and also found that by increasing only the voltage amplitude and current, more predictable changes on the electrocardiogram could be obtained. The heart rate could be decreased down to half the resting rate while still preserving sinus rhythm up to 9 volts applied voltage. Atrial-Ventricular (AV) conduction dissociation and third degree heart block resulted at amplitudes exceeding 9 volts, and complete asystole with vagal escape resulted when the applied voltage exceeded 20 volts. Low amplitude vagal stimulation was successfully employed to control induced tachycardias and ectopic beats, and the authors noted other advantages of vagal stimulation in alleviating adverse effects of available drug therapies.
Other investigators reported treatment of angina pectoris and paroxysmal atrial ventricular junctional or supraventricular tachycardias through application of carotid sinus nerve stimulation employing the Medtronic Angistat carotid sinus nerve stimulator (csns) then available from Medtronic, Inc. in papers such as "Carotid Sinus Nerve Stimulation in the Treatment of Angina Pectoris and Supraventricular Tachycardia", California Medicine, 112:41-50, March, 1970, and in papers referenced therein. These papers describe the system for effecting carotid sinus nerve stimulation by a radio frequency responsive stimulator activated by the patient at will in response to the patient's awareness of the onset of angina and/or supraventricular tachycardia.
While these investigators focused upon the control of angina pectoris by regulation of the patient's blood pressure through stimulation of the carotid sinus nerve, they observed that the effect of the application of carotid sinus nerve stimulation provided a safe means for initiating reflex vagal activity which in turn effected a slowing in a patient's supraventricular tachycardia.
Thus, it is well known that the application of stimulation to the right or left vagus nerve, either directly or indirectly, has the effect of slowing tachycardias with the attendant possibility that a bradyarrhythmia may be induced in the process.
However, the difficulty in determining the proper amplitudes, frequencies and durations of the electrical stimulation indicated by Bilgutay et all coupled with continuing difficulty in the chronic vagal stimulation and other nerves has effectively led to the near abandonment of this therapy in recent years.

Implantable electrical vagal stimulation for prevention or interruption of life threatening arrhythmias


A front panel assembly is capable of being used with an electronic equipment rack configured to support electronic circuitry having multiple LEDs (e.g., a rack mount data storage system having a row of disk drives). The front panel assembly includes a cover portion configured to separate an external space in front of the electronic equipment rack and an internal space within the electronic equipment rack. The front panel assembly further includes an attachment portion configured to attach to the electronic equipment rack, and a reflective member configured to reflect light from the multiple LEDs simultaneously in a direction toward the external space.

A typical rack mount data storage system includes a cabinet frame (or rack), a set of housings, a set of front panels, disk drives and related circuitry. The housings and the front panels mount to the cabinet frame. The disk drives and the related circuitry reside (i) within the housings and (ii) behind the front panels.
One conventional front panel has a two-tier design, i.e., a lower tier and an upper tier, and is configured to cover a horizontal row of disk drives adjacent a front opening of a respective housing which is mounted to the cabinet frame. The lower tier sits substantially adjacent the front opening and defines a horizontal row of holes which aligns with a horizontal row of light emitting diodes (LEDs) of the row of disk drives. The upper tier extends outwardly from the front opening by roughly one or two inches in a bowed manner, and defines a space which conceals a locking and releasing mechanism. A front panel which is similar to that described above is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,826,057, entitled "ELECTRONIC CABINET PANEL WITH IMPROVED LATCHING MECHANISM", the entire teachings of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
During operation of the rack mount data storage system, air passes through ducts of the front panels to provide cooling to the disk drives and the related circuitry. Additionally, light from rows of disk drive LEDs passes through the front panels for direct visual viewing by a user. In particular, an average height user standing approximately two feet away from the front of the system is capable of directly viewing disk drive LEDs through front panels at the top of the system with little or no head movement. The user is further capable of directly viewing disk drive LEDs through front panels at the bottom of the system by either (i) crouching (e.g., bending over or squatting) while standing approximately two feet away from the front of the system, or (ii) stepping further back from the system (e.g., to a location that is six feet away or more) to prevent the upper tiers of these front panels from obscuring respective rows of disk drive LEDs.

Electronic system having front panel assembly with reflective capability


According to the present disclosure, a laptop may be provided with a smaller z-height using a motherboard assembly, including a motherboard having a plurality of components coupled thereon, a thermal transfer unit coupled to one or more component on the motherboard and attachment members for holding the motherboard in a lower compartment of a laptop clamshell casing at an inclining position.

For high-end, premium laptop computers, the clamshell profile and the weight are of paramount importance. Typically, a lower compartment for a premium clamshell system may have a thickness in the range of 6 to 8 mm, with an overall thickness for the clamshell in the range of 9 to 12 mm. The present limitation in the thickness, i.e., z-direction, may be due to the laptop's motherboard overlapping with the keyboard. Many laptop users prefer to have a standard size keyboard that includes all keys that are normally found on a desktop computer, and as a result, the clamshell profile may be thicker.
Also, many laptops have adopted a "fanless" system for heat dissipation. Removing a mechanical fan from a system can save significant space, reduce the noise level, and make a laptop even lighter and more compact. A quieter environment can also improve productivity, and this is one of the reasons why many people prefer fanless laptops to those with fans. Accordingly, a premium laptop's clamshell must also provide space for a heat transfer unit.


A shoe having an insole with a forepart of leather having the characteristics of upper leather and a back part of fiberboard. A sheet layer of foam material, such as microcellular polyurethane, is cemented to the lower surface of the forepart and a foam cushion, preferably molded of microcellular polyurethane, overlies the back part. The back part of the insole has an opening through it and the foam cushion has a central portion that projects downwardly through the opening thereby providing a thickened foam at the central portion to maximize cushioning at the area of the heel strike. The invention is incorporated in shoes of both the welt-type construction and the cement-type construction.

The shoe construction of this invention is related to the incorporation of certain materials in layers at the forepart and back part of an insole to substantially improve the cushioning and therefore the comfort of a shoe.
Improving the comfort characteristics of a shoe is a constant and continuing objective of shoe designers and shoe manufacturers. Among efforts to improve comfort include the incorporation of cushioning in many forms. Some shoes that have cushioning are suitable for informal wear and it is acceptable that the cushioning be visible such as when provided in the construction of the outsole of the shoe. However, if the shoe is intended for dress or formal wear, visible cushioning is not acceptable and it is important that a dress shoe construction be susceptible to any desired design and appearance.
Other efforts to improve comfort have included the incorporation of cushioning in localized areas such as in a central area of the forepart of a shoe. However, such localized cushioning is inadequate to cushion all pressure areas of the front of a wearer's foot.
Still other efforts to improve comfort involve inserts that can be purchased separate from and inserted into a shoe. These inserts are not entirely satisfactory in that they alter the internal size of the shoe by adding height to the inner floor, they shift positions during wearing, they do not accurately fit the shoe, they are difficult to manipulate inside a shoe, they fall out of a shoe, and they do not provide optimum cushioning in the proper areas of the shoe.
The present invention creates cushioning that is built into the shoe and that avoids the disadvantages of the prior efforts.


A cigarette holder completely encloses the lit end of a cigarette providing purification for both sidestream smoke and mainstream smoke. It has two concentric tubes with the lit cigarette placed in the inner tube and purifying agent placed in the volume between the inner tube and the outer tube. A chimney effect is produced wherein air flows through an air port past the lit cigarette to keep it burning. The sidestream smoke passes through the purifying agent and is discharged into the environment. The filter tip of the lit cigarette extends through a mouthpiece and the smoker exhales smoke through openings in the same mouthpiece. The mainstream smoke passes through the same purifying agent, in a direction opposite to the flow of the sidestream smoke, and is then discharged into the environment.

The invention relates generally to cigarette holders and more specifically to a cigarette holder which filters and purifies both sidestream smoke (from the burning tip of a cigarette) and mainstream smoke (smoke exhaled by the smoker).
Scientific studies have shown that the largest single cause of preventable disease and death in the United States is due to cigarette smoking. The evidence indicates that the chances of a smoker getting lung cancer is approximately 11 times greater than that of the non-smoker, and the chances of a smoker dying from heart disease is approximately 3 times greater than that of a non-smoker. Smoking is therefore the leading cause of premature death in the United States.
In recent years, health authorities have become increasingly concerned with the effects of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) on non-smokers. Environmental tobacco smoke consists of the smoke exhaled by the smoker (the mainstream smoke) as well as the smoke generated by the burning tip of the cigarette (sidestream smoke). Non-smokers find that environmental tobacco smoke has an unpleasant odor and often causes nasal and throat irritation. In addition, scientific studies have shown that non-smokers exposed to ETS have twice the chance of getting lung cancer as non-smokers not exposed to ETS. Furthermore, studies have shown that second-hand smoke is a cause of atherosclerotic disease. The overall public health impact of ETS is considerable. Of the estimated 280,000 smoking-related deaths that occur each year in the United States, 53,000 have been attributed to ETS making passive smoke the third leading preventable cause of death after active smoking and alcohol use. In addition, the relative risk of cardiovascular disease is considered to be 1.2 to 1.3 for individuals exposed to ETS. Of the deaths caused by ETS, the number of deaths from heart disease is about 3 times the number of non-cardiac deaths.
In addition to health hazards, there are many other unpleasant effects of smoking. The unpleasant odor of tobacco permeates the homes of smokers, imparting unpleasant odors to drapes, furnishings, carpets and the like. Also, the hot ashes from cigarettes cause burns in furniture, rugs, bedding, car upholstery, carpets and clothing. Furthermore, the teeth and the fingers of smokers are often discolored with a brown stain from the tobacco smoke. Tragedies often occur, wherein a smoker falls asleep with a lit cigarette and causes a fire.
Many devices have been disclosed which are intended to combat deleterious health and other effects of cigarette smoking. U.S. Pat. No. 5,495,859 (Bowen, et al.) discloses a device having two sections. The first section has a cigarette holder for holding a lit cigarette with a first filter. The second section has a second filter and a mouthpiece for exhaling smoke. A third central section has a battery and exhaust fan for directing the sidestream out of the device and for supplying sufficient air to keeping the cigarette lit and the device cool. A third filter of activated carbon may be used to remove gaseous elements. The use of an exhaust fan makes the device impractical.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,477 (Valdez) discloses a device that has two concentric tubes held apart by two end pieces, with filter material between the tubes to filter sidestream smoke. No provisions are made for the filtration or purification of mainstream smoke. The cigarette is placed inside the inner tube. In this device, holes at the end of the inner tube provide for air intake. It appears that ashes inside the tube will block the air into air-intake holes extinguishing the lit cigarette. It also appears that as the cigarette burns it no longer will be supported by the end piece at the lit end of the cigarette.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,332 (Wallace) discloses a pack-sized cigarette holder with two mouthpieces, one for inhaling and the other for exhaling smoke. It comprises a dual filter, one of HEPA for removing particulate matter and the other a polyurethane for removing odor from the smoke. On exhaling through the second mouthpiece, the first mouthpiece is closed by a ball. Exhaling pushes a disc which allows smoke into the body of the device. This device is cumbersome. Furthermore, HEPA requires a considerable pressure to cause a gas to flow through it. This renders the device impractical for exhaling smoke from a cigarette.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,899,766 (Ross, Jr.) discloses a device which encloses a cigarette. A long tube is used with an external filter to filter both the sidestream and mainstream smoke. An exhaust fan is used to direct smoke out of the device. This device is cumbersome and not portable.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,798 (Jackson) discloses a cigarette holder body with a mouthpiece. The filter end of the cigarette fits into the body. Exhaled smoke is blown into the mouthpiece and filtered by a filter cartridge. This device does nothing to filter or purify sidestream smoke.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,396,907 (Roja Henao, et al.) discloses a device which includes an ignitor which lights a cigarette when it is placed in a device. A spring-loaded fresh air intake valve allows the air to go to the lighted cigarette. A bellows is used to trap exhausted smoke or a detachable filter can be used, It is not clear how the bellows performs this function or how the entrapped gases are disposed of.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,407 (Bonanno, et al.) discloses a device which uses a power source to maintain an air flow to the lit portion of the cigarette and to drive the exhaled smoke through a filter. The motor driven air impeller can be stopped to extinguish the cigarette. This device does not filter mainstream (exhaled smoke) at all.
There is a need for a small, light, convenient to use cigarette holder which effectively filters and purifies both mainstream and sidestream smoke without the use of a power sources, as described below.


Apparatus and method for routing a transaction to a server. The apparatus may be embodied in computer readable program code stored on computer readable storage media. Preferred embodiments may comprise identifying at least one attribute-based category for the transaction, identifying at least one of a plurality of servers to process the transaction based at least in part on the identified attribute-based category of the transaction, and routing the transaction to one of the at least one identified servers.

Multiple servers are often provided on networks, including the Internet, to handle large volumes of transactions. These servers may be arranged as "front-end" servers and "back-end" to enhance network performance. That is, front-end servers may be provided with the basic program code for performing simple or routine operations (e.g., basic database functions), while the back-end servers may be provided with program code for performing more complex operations (e.g., complex database functions) and/or for centrally maintaining information that is accessed by a plurality of users (e.g., an organization's database records).
By way of illustration, a simple transaction, such as sorting "gross sales" by "product", may be processed entirely at the front-end server. However, the front-end server may require additional resources from a back-end server to process a more complex transaction, such as a statistical comparison of "current sales" and "past sales". For example, the front-end server may request the "past sales" data and/or the program code for performing the statistical analysis thereof from the back-end server. Accordingly, the front-end server only accesses the "past sales" data and/or the statistical analysis program code on an as-needed basis.
As more than one server is available, it is desirable to route transactions to the various servers, and not to simply route all of the transactions to one server. Basic load balancers have been provided to balance a load on a plurality of front-end servers (i.e., route transactions to the various front-end servers). The problem with such basic load balancers, however, is that the characteristics of the particular transactions are not factored into the load balancing "decision".
More sophisticated load balancers (i.e., "workload managers") do factor in the needs of particular transactions, as well as the processing power of particular front-end servers, the available bandwidth for various front-end servers, the priorities associated with various transactions, etc. However, none of the available workload managers take into account the interplay between the front-end and back-end servers. Rather, these workload managers only manage workloads as if only the front-end servers exist.
By ignoring the interplay between the front-end and back-end servers, similar transactions are commonly routed to different front-end servers (e.g., the fastest front-end servers available when the transaction arrives at the workload manager). When the transactions can be processed entirely at the front-end server, the turn-around time is enhanced because the separate servers are used to process the transactions simultaneously. However, when the front-end servers require resources from one or more back-end servers, the performance of both the back-end and front-end servers declines. That is, the back-end server(s) can only respond to a request from one front-end server at a time, thus slowing the response to at least one of the front-end servers. In addition, when data is requested from the back-end server(s), the data may be stored in cache memory at each of the front-end servers that requested it. When these front-end servers need the cache to store other information (i.e., to process a different transaction), the cache is typically overwritten with the new information. Therefore, the front-end server must again request the prior information from the back-end server when it is needed again to process another transaction.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


For the purpose of making it possible to estimate the spring back angle and/or final driving position of the driving die with good accuracy even if there are some variations from lot to lot in the material characteristics values, and thereby achieve bending with extremely high angle accuracy, the actual bending angle is directed at no less than two provisional driving positions of the driving die during the bending of a workpiece. Based on the relationship of the amount of change in the driving amount to the amount of change in the actual bending angle relating to those provisional driving positions, a determination is made of the relationship of the spring back angle to the target bending angle of the workpiece for the respective working conditions of the bending concerned which are stored in advance. From this relationship, a determination is made for the final driving position of the driving die, and the driving die is driven to that determined final driving position.

It is generally known that, when bending in V shape a sheet-like workpiece by using a bending machine such as press brake, etc., the behaviour relating the plastic deformation of the workpiece changes according to the characteristic values of the material and, for that reason, the bending angle greatly varies from lot to lot even with one same material depending on the variations of characteristic values of that material. From this fact, it is extremely difficult to control the driving amount of the driving die and, in actual bending, it was normally the case that this control is made by a sixth sense of a skilled operator.
To cope with such problems, a variety of press brakes are proposed which are designed to detect the bending angle of the workpiece during the bending, and control the final driving amount of the driving die based on that detected bending angle, and put to practical use.
For example, the type proposed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-328136 (1994) is realized in such a way as to once unload by moving and separating the upper and lower dies half way during the bending process, determine the spring back angle of the workpiece by measuring the bending angle of the workpiece before and after this unloading, and then calculate the final driving amount from the spring back angle determined this way and the bending angle of the workpiece before moving and separation of the die. Moreover, the type proposed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 7-265957 (1995), for example, is realized in a way to measure the bending angle of the workpiece in the state in which the die pressurizes the workpiece during the bending, and calculate the final driving amount of the driving die based on the result of this measurement. In that case, it is so arranged that the data of spring back angle is stored in advance in layers prepared for respective kinds of material and thicknesses of workpiece, and the relation of driving amount to the bending angle of the workpiece is corrected by using this stored data.
However, a problem with the method disclosed in said former publication (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 6-328136 (1994)) is that, because the upper and lower dies are once relatively moved for separation on the way of the bending process, the workpiece may possibly fall down at the time of unloading causing displacement of the contact point between the die and the workpiece, in the case of a workpiece of asymmetric shape, and it becomes necessary to prevent falling of the workpiece by some means or another.
On the other hand, the method disclosed in said latter publication (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 7-265957 (1995)) can solve said problem of falling of workpiece, because the bending angle of the workpiece is measured in pressurized state. However, since the spring back angle .theta.s has some slight variations due to variations material characteristic values, as shown in FIG. 12, it becomes necessary to either estimate or detect this spring back angle with good accuracy, to achieve bending of higher accuracy. This FIG. 12, showing the spring back angle at various bending angles in cold rolled steel sheet of different lots of same kind for 6 different kinds, indicates that the spring back angle deviates by approximately .+-.0.3.degree. because of variations from lot to lot in the material characteristic.
Moreover, with the method described on this latter publication, there are cases where the accuracy of estimation of final driving amount becomes poor, because it simply corrects the relation of the driving amount to the bending angle of the workpiece stored in advance. Namely, as shown in FIG. 13, the relation of the driving amount of the driving die to the bending angle is a substitute characteristic of mechanical properties of the workpiece material submitted to bending, and the bending accuracy is largely influenced by a change of this workpiece material. Therefore, although the bending can be made with good accuracy even with this method in the case of bending of a material having characteristics close to the mechanical properties of the material stored in advance, there is a risk of poor bending angle accuracy due to a large difference between the driving amount and the bending angle in the case of materials with much different mechanical properties.


The present invention provides a scanning apparatus, which scans a plurality of diffracted beams, obtained by diffracting and modulating light emitted from a single light source, on a scanning object, such as the drum of a printer or sheet.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to scanning apparatuses using a plurality of diffracted beams and, more particularly, to a scanning apparatus, which can scan a plurality of diffracted beams formed by diffracting and modulating light generated by a single light source onto a scanning object, such as the drum of a printer and a sheet.
2. Description of the Related Art
Light beam scanning apparatuses are devices for scanning light beams and forming the spots of the light beams on a photosensitive medium to form an image in an image formation device, for example, a laser printer, a display device, a Light Emitting Diode (LED) printer, an electronic photocopier or a word processor.
As image formation devices have been developed toward the requirements of miniaturization, high speed and high resolution, such a light beam scanning apparatus has been gradually researched and developed to obtain the characteristics of miniaturization, high speed and high resolution so as to meet the requirements.
The light beam scanning apparatuses of an image formation device can be classified into a laser scanning scheme using an f·θ lens and an image head printing scheme according to a light beam scanning scheme and the construction thereof.
FIG. 1 is a view showing a conventional laser scanning apparatus using an f·θ lens.
As shown in FIG. 1, the conventional laser scanning apparatus includes a Laser Diode (LD) 100 for emitting a light beam in response to a video signal, a collimator lens 101 for converting the light beam emitted from the LD 100 into collimated light, a cylindrical lens 102 for converting the collimated light output from the collimator lens 101 into linear light parallel to a scanning direction, a polygon mirror 103 for moving and scanning the parallel linear light from the cylindrical lens 102 at a constant linear velocity, a polygon mirror driving motor 104 for rotating the polygon mirror 103 at a uniform velocity, an f·θ lens having a certain refractive index relative to an optical axis to deflect light, reflected from the polygon mirror 103 and moved at a constant angular velocity, in a main scanning direction, correct aberration and focus the light onto a scanning surface, a reflective mirror 106 for image formation for reflecting laser beams output from the f·θ lens 105 in a predetermined direction and forming an image using the reflected laser beams on the surface of a photosensitive drum 107, which is an image formation surface, in the form of spots, a horizontal synchronizing mirror 108 for reflecting the laser beams from the f·θ lens 105 in a horizontal direction, and an optical sensor 109 for receiving laser beams reflected from the horizontal synchronizing mirror 108 and synchronizing the laser beams.
In the conventional laser scanning apparatus having the above construction, the light beam output from the LD 100 is converted into collimated light by the collimator lens 101, focused in the direction of the rotation shaft of the polygon mirror 103 by the cylindrical lens 102, and reflected by the polygon mirror 103 rotating at a constant angular velocity. Light beams, reflected by the polygon mirror 103, pass through the f·θ lens 105, and the passed light beams are formed as spots, each with a certain diameter, on the photosensitive drum 107. In this case, since the resolution of a printer is determined with the diameter of the spots formed on the photosensitive drum 107, the machinability of the f·θ lens must be excellent.
However, a light beam scanning apparatus must be generally considered from the aspect of miniaturization and cost. Therefore, in order to reduce the number of lenses in the f·θ lens, the f·θ lens includes a Y-toric surface, an anamorphic surface, a freeform surface, etc. Therefore, since it is difficult to form the surface of the f·θ lens, the machinability thereof is deteriorated. Consequently, there is a disadvantage in that the performance and resolution of the light beam scanning apparatus are deteriorated.
Further, the above-described conventional scanning apparatus is problematic in that, since printing speed is proportional to the rotation speed of a polygon mirror, and one line is printed with respect to each side of the polygon mirror, the rotation speed of the polygon mirror must be further increased in the case where high speed printing is performed, so that a time for which a laser beam is radiated is reduced, and a laser diode having high power must be used to obtain the same light scanning effect.
If the conventional scanning apparatus having the above problem is used in a printer, there are problems in that, since an expensive high speed polygon mirror must be used, the cost is greatly increased, and printing speed cannot be increased to a certain level or higher.

Scanning apparatus using a plurality of diffracted beams


A device is disclosed that pneumatically propels a fishing lure or bait/weight combination a great distance. Pneumatic pressure is provided in combination with a conventional ice chest. A pneumatic tube is releasably provided from the ice chest. The pneumatic tube also operates as a handle to pull the ice chest on wheels when the pneumatic tube is in storage position. A power piston located within the pneumatic tube propels the fishing lure or bait/weight combination with pneumatic pressure is released with a valve mechanism.

Devices that propel a fishing lure or a weighted bait have been the subject of numerous patents. U.S. Pat. No. 3,828,459 to Easom shows a pneumatic rifle cast fishing rod. The pneumatic means is integral with the fishing rod.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,419,991 shows a pneumatic device located within the handle portion of a fishing rod, that propels the lure.
Unlike the present invention, none of the prior art pneumatic casting devices utilizes a conventional fishing rod. Nor do they incorporate an ice chest. An ice chest is especially useful when surf fishing, often in the hot sun. The hot beach climate both spoils fish caught very quickly, and makes fishermen thirsty quickly. Therefore, the ice chest is very useful in itself, and provides a convenient location for pneumatic pressure means. The ice chest also offers an excellent location for a rod holder, to hold the rod when casting or waiting for a fish to bite.
The instant invention is particularly adapted to allow a handicapped individual to fully enjoy the sport of fishing.


An electronic device includes a flexible touch screen including a display unit configured to display an image and a bending unit configured to sense a user bending input and a body part disposed below the flexible touch screen and including a controller configured to control a transition from a lock state to an unlock state of the flexible touch screen based on the user bending input and a memory configured to store a predefined bending action used to transition from the lock state to the unlock state of the flexible touch screen.

(1) Field
Exemplary embodiments of the invention relate to electronic devices, unlocking methods thereof and zooming and toggling control methods thereof. More particularly, exemplary embodiments of the invention are directed to an electronic device capable of performing an unlocking, zooming and toggling operation using a bending action.
(2) Description of the Related Art
In recent, electronic devices such as a handheld terminal have become daily necessities of modern people. Such an electronic device generally includes a touch screen that displays graphics and text while sensing touches.
In a typical electronic device employing a touch screen, locking and unlocking functions are implemented to effectively prevent a touch error. As an exemplary embodiment of locking and unlocking functions, a touch screen displays a guide image for transition from a lock state to an unlock state and, after touching a handler included in the guide image, a user performs a moving operation in the guided direction to unlock the electronic device.
Flexible touch screens, which are bendable due to use of a flexible substrate, are under development. Since flexible touch screens are advantageous in easy deformation, various studies have been conducted to employ the flexible touch screens for next-generation electronic devices.

Electronic device, unlocking method thereof, and zooming and toggling control method thereof


A scanning apparatus comprises a laser source adapted to emit a beam along an axis and illuminate a target, a detector adapted to receive light of varying intensities scattered from the target and convert the light into a signal, and a controller operatively associated with the detector for receiving the signal from the detector and decoding the signal. A focusing apparatus comprising a deformable lens element in optical communication with the laser source has a deformable surface, at least part of which transmits the beam. The deformable lens element defines an index of refraction difference with an index of refraction of an adjacently disposed substance. In one embodiment the index of refraction difference is greater than 0.30.

Various optical scanning apparatuses have been developed to read and decode optical indicia, such as bar code symbols on a target such as a label. While early bar code scanners were designed to read symbols at a relatively close distance, there exists a need to read symbols at greater and greater distances, for example in warehousing environments. Conventional optical scanning systems, such as hand-held bar code laser scanners, typically have a limited working range due to the constraints imposed on the optical assembly. Motorized systems with additional lenses or mirrors have been developed to reposition the fixed lens assembly along the optical path, thereby moving the laser beam waist and increasing the working range of the scanning apparatus. However, such improvements are complicated and add cost.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,916,318 discloses a polygon mirror mounted to a rotating shaft that deflects a laser beam emitted from a laser source to the target to be scanned. In the scanning apparatus there is a fixed projecting lens disposed between the laser source and the polygon mirror. An optical member, such as a plane parallel plate, is moved in and out of the beam of the laser source to change the beam waist of the laser beam. Several drawbacks to this system exist. The mechanical components required to move the plane parallel plate in and out of the beam are complex, having many moving parts connected by pulleys, belts and the like. Another drawback is that the working range is limited to the thickness of the plane parallel plate. Also, the system is not compact, and is therefore ill-suited for use in a hand-held apparatus.
In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,302,812 discloses a scanning apparatus that varies the range of a laser beam waist by moving the fixed convex lens assembly. The fixed lens is moved longitudinally along the optical axis by activation of magnetic coil. The scanning apparatus includes a lens support member supported on a pair of leaf springs so that it can oscillate longitudinally along the optical axis. Permanent magnets are also supported by the leaf springs. Movement of the fixed lens is achieved by varying the strength of the field generated by the magnetic coil. Like the scanning apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,916,318, this system is complex and adds cost to the scanning apparatus.


A package for housing a device (e.g., an integrated circuit chip or die) includes a Faraday cage. The Faraday cage is at least partially formed in the integrated circuit die. The die includes conductive vias and solder balls surrounding a circuit. The package can be a ball grid array (BGA) package or flip chip package. The package substrate can include a ground plane.

The present specification relates generally to integrated circuits (ICs) and packages for integrated circuits. More specifically, the present specification relates to integrated circuits having improved electromagnetic shielding properties.
Integrated circuit packages generally contain integrated circuit chips or die-containing densely packed circuits. Large numbers of electronic circuits placed in close proximity on an integrated circuit die can cause electromagnetic interference. It is desirous to prevent circuits within an integrated circuit from dispersing energy into adjacent cells or circuits.
One system or circuit can radiate energy into another system or circuit and disrupt the functionality or operation of the other circuit. Radiation or other energy can be disbursed by substrate coupling, through common ground, or through common power supplies. The energy can induce spurious signals in neighboring circuits or even prevent the operation of other circuit components.
The interference problem is a particular problem at high frequencies (HF) and radio frequencies (RF). Electromagnetic interference between circuits on an integrated circuit can also be a problem at lower frequencies.
Heretofore, electromagnetic interference between circuitry has been prevented by limiting the number of systems or circuits on a chip. Each chip is generally associated with a single circuit that is a source or is sensitive to electromagnetic radiation. Each chip is packaged and that package can be externally shielded, such as, in a Faraday cage.
Limiting the number of circuits on the chip increases costs of the entire system because the system must employ more chips. In addition, the use of individual Faraday cages for each package increases the cost of the system. Shielding the chip also increases manufacturing and assembly costs. Further, the entire size of the system is increased by the increased number of packaged chips and the external Faraday shielding.
An example of conventional electromagnetic shielding techniques is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,986,340 which describes a ball grid array (BGA) package. The package includes an external Faraday cage formed around the integrated circuit die. The external Faraday cage is comprised of a heat sink surrounding the integrated circuit die and a metal plate on an upper peripheral surface of the heat sink.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,986,340 is similar to U.S. Pat. No. 5,955,789 and discloses a plastic ball grid array (BGA) electronic package in a cavity down configuration. The package includes an active element mounted on a package substrate and is for use in HF applications. An external Faraday cage is realized to protect the active element from external HF interferences. A row of solder balls connected in a zig-zag fashion on a bottom of the package substrate and platedthrough holes through the package substrate form lateral sides of the external Faraday cage. The top side of the external Faraday cage is formed of a metal cap and the bottom side of the external Faraday cage is formed by a ground plane of the main board. The package in U.S. Pat. No. 5,955,789 does not provide shielding within the integrated circuit (IC) die.
Accordingly, there is a need for a package system that includes an integrated Faraday cage. Further, there is a need for a Faraday cage which utilizes internal chip structures. Further still, there is a need for a die for use with a flip chip package that includes a low-cost electromagnetic shield. Yet further, there is a need for a chip with electromagnetic interference protection that is conducive to advanced packaging systems, such as, BGA and flip chip packages.
An exemplary embodiment relates to an integrated circuit package. The integrated circuit package includes an integrated circuit and a package substrate. The integrated circuit includes a first circuit and at least one second circuit. The first circuit is surrounded on lateral sides by a plurality of conductive vias. The package substrate has a ground plane. The conductive vias and the ground plane protect the second circuit from electromagnetic interference.
Another exemplary embodiment relates to an integrated circuit for mounting onto a flip chip package. The integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate, a plurality of metal layers, and a plurality of conductive vias. A first circuit is within a perimeter defined by the conductive vias and a second circuit is disposed outside the perimeter. The conductive vias provide electromagnetic shielding.
Still another embodiment relates to a method of providing a Faraday cage for an integrated circuit die contained in a package. The method includes providing conductive vias about a periphery of a circuit in the integrated circuit die, and mounting the integrated circuit die on a package substrate. The conductive vias are electrically coupled to a conductive plane of the package substrate.

Integrated circuit die having an interference shield


A method for establishing a secure connection between a station and an access point includes transmitting a communications system management message to the station, the communications system management message including an access point nonce. The method also includes receiving a station nonce from the station, and determining a first security key according to the access point nonce and the station nonce. The method further includes securing a connection between the station and the access point using the first security key.

Wireless communications systems have enabled users the freedom to move around with the coverage area of the wireless communications system and retain access to services to which they are subscribed. As the user moves, it may be necessary for the user to break an existing connection with an existing communications controller and establish a new connection with a new communications controller. Users may also be commonly referred to as stations, mobile devices, terminals, subscribers, wireless nodes, mobiles, and the like, while communications controllers may also be referred to as access points, base stations, controllers, and the like.
Generally, the establishment of a new connection requires an exchange of a number of messages between the user and the communications controller (and potentially other entities in the communications system). The exchange of the messages may incur a significant delay as a result of, for example, traversing several nodes before reaching the intended entities, which may interrupt service for the user. Furthermore, establishing a secure connection typically involves the exchange of additional messages that are used to perform authentication and session key agreement and to secure the connection, which may further delay the establishment of the connection. Therefore, there is a desire to speed up the establishment of the new connection and reduce interruption to the service of the user.

System and method for establishing a secure connection in communications systems


The airbag of the vehicle according to the present invention can suppress initial deployment of a cushion and minimize injury of an occupant caused by a pressure upon deployment of the cushion since outer tethers covering the outer side of the cushion are sewn and coupled to the cushion at a plurality of positions and a plurality of sewing portions are adapted to be sequentially broken according a deployment pressure of the cushion. Therefore, injury of an occupant in an OOP (Out-of-Position) condition can be prevented. Furthermore, the airbag can optimally cope with various collision modes because the outer tethers are formed in plural number and the sewing strength of the plurality of outer tethers can be adjusted. Furthermore, deviation in the performance of the outer tethers can be decreased compared to a tear line because the outer tethers are sewn to the cushion and the sewing portions are broken by a deployment pressure of the cushion. Furthermore, deviation in the performance of the outer tethers can be decreased since the outer tethers are sewn and fixed to the cushion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an airbag of a vehicle, and more particularly, to an airbag of a vehicle which can reduce injury of an occupant by sequentially supporting the deployment of the cushion, rather than controlling the deployment of the cushion once at a given instant, by improving the shape and coupling structure of outer tethers.
2. Description of the Background Art
Generally, an airbag is installed to protect the face, chest, etc. of an occupant in the event of a vehicle collision. Usually, such an airbag is designed and mounted with reference to a standard size of an adult male.
Thus, an occupant whose body size is different from a normal one cannot be afforded full optimal protection from the air bag, and in some cases may be injured by the airbag.
Especially, a condition in which the occupant will be most injured upon deployment of the airbag, among various conditions that may occur in addition to the condition of a standard body size, is referred to as "Out-Of-Position (OOP)" condition.
Further, to suit the OOP condition, a dual bag or an outer tether having a special function are under improvement to attain an optimal condition. The outer tether is also used to improve the OOP condition, and generally referred to as an "Occupant Protection Flap (OPF)". The outer tether functions to weaken the initial deployment force of the cushion by being covered and supported on the outer side of the cushion in order to avoid a given part of the cushion from being aggressively deployed toward the occupant when deployed upon receipt of a deployment gas injected from an inflator, that is, in order to protect the occupant from getting injured by preventing an out-of-force phenomenon, then reduces injury of the occupant by directing the deployment of the cushion to both sides, and then is normally deployed as the tear line is torn to provide a normal airbag function for an occupant.
FIG. 1 is a view showing a deployment state of an airbag of a vehicle according to the conventional art. FIG. 2 is an elevation view showing an outer tether of the airbag of the vehicle according to the conventional art.
As shown in FIG. 1, the airbag comprises a cushion 1 deployed by gas injection and an outer tether 3 whose both sides are fixed to a retainer 2 and which delays deployment while covering and supporting the outside of the cushion 1.
As shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, the airbag comprises a tear line 5 formed at a center side of the outer tether 3 and torn upon inflation of the cushion 1 and fixing holes 4 formed on both sides of the outer tether 3 to be coupled with the retainer 2, so that the tear line 5 is torn sequentially in spite of a deviation caused by the deployment of the cushion 1 by pulling some part of the outer tether 3 and fixing it to the retainer 2.
The cushion 1 is accommodated folded multiple times in a main panel (not shown), and disposed to communicate with a gas ejection port (not shown) of an inflator (not shown).
The outer tether 3 comprises a rectangular fabric, and is provided on both sides with a fixing portion having fixing holes 4 whose ends are coupled and fixed to the retainer 2. The outer tether 3 is assembled by fitting and fixing the fixing holes 4 to stud bolts (not shown) at both sides of the outer tether 3 that are secured to the retainer 2.
Moreover, the outer tether 3 is disposed so as to temporarily delay inflation of some part of the deployment surface upon deployment of the cushion 1 and direct the deployment of the cushion 1 to both sides of the front surface.
However, the airbag of the vehicle according to the conventional art is configured such that in case of an outer tether applied to a conventional passenger airbag, force is exerted to the entire part of the cushion upon deployment of the cushion owing to the shape and coupling structure of the outer tether. In this case, initial injury of an occupant may be reduced by blocking a portion deployed to the occupant for a certain amount of time by deployment of the cushion. However, a child sitting on a child seat may be seriously injured since the neck is pressed with a force pressing down on the child as the cushion is deployed after the function of the outer tether is over and the restraining is released. Besides, the outer tether is not fixed to a given region, and this causes the cushion to be deployed toward one side or in an unintended direction upon deployment of the cushion.


The present invention relates to an electrode comprising multi-layered electrode active material layer and a secondary battery comprising the same. According to the embodiments of the present invention comprises electrode having multi-layered electrode active material layer, wherein the content of the active materials which forms the electrode active material layers is equally maintained and the loading amounts at each layer are either the same or different from each other, thereby solving the problem of performance deterioration caused by an increase in battery resistance due to non-uniform dispersion of a binder or the like.

Recently, as electronic devices are miniaturized and lightened and the portable electronic devices are generally used, researches on lithium secondary batteries having a high energy density are actively conducted.
A lithium secondary battery uses a material possibly conducting an intercalation and a deintercalation of lithium ions, in a negative electrode and a positive electrode, and is manufactured by filling up an organic electrolyte or a polymer electrolyte between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. Through the oxidation and reduction conducted during the intercalation and the deintercalation of the lithium ions into and from the positive electrode and the negative electrode, an electric energy may be generated.
The negative electrode and the positive electrode may include an electrode active material layer on a collector of each electrode. For example, the electrode may be manufactured by preparing slurry by mixing an electrode active material, a binder and a solvent optionally along with a conductive material and a dispersing agent and stirring, coating the thus obtained slurry on a collector made of metal, pressurizing and drying.
The binder may include, for example, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVdF), etc., and the conductive material may commonly use carbon black.
Generally, the negative electrode and the positive electrode may be obtained by coating once electrode slurry on the collector of each electrode. In this case, the binder included in the electrode slurry may not be dispersed uniformly on the coated electrode active material layer, but may be dispersed at the surface of the electrode active material layer. In this case, binder may increase the resistance of the battery to deteriorate the performance of the battery.
This problem may be intensified as the loading amount of the electrode active material increases. Therefore, a method for solving this defect is required in order to develop a high capacity lithium secondary battery.

Electrode including multi-layered electrode active material layer and secondary battery including the same


The present invention provides a potentiometric titration method of calculating a content of each acid in a mixed acid solution. The potentiometric titration method includes steps as follows. Step 1, an alkali-alcohol solution of a concentration in 0.1˜0.2 mol/L is prepared and titrated with a basis reagent. Step 2, a first solvent and a second solvent are added into and stirred with a mixed acid solution consisted of nitric acid, phosphoric acid and acetic acid to form a mixed system, and the mixed system is titrated with the alkali-alcohol solution to obtain three equivalence points of the nitric acid, phosphoric acid and acetic acid in the mixed system. Step 3, a concentration of each acid in the mixed system is measured with the three equivalence points obtained in Step 2. According to the present invention, the content of each acid in the mixed acid solution can be rapidly and precisely measured.

The wet etching process is a core art of fabricating gate, source-drain and pixel electrode of a semiconductor device by using an acid etchant to pattern metal layers. In general, aluminum and molybdenum are often used as the metal layers to form the gate pattern, a wet etching process of the aluminum and molybdenum layers can use a variety of acids; however, a mixed acid such as a composition of phosphoric acid, nitric acid and acetic acid is the most popular etchant for use in the wet etching process to dissolve and redox the aluminum and molybdenum layers, so that the gate pattern can be obtained.
A mixed acid of an aluminum etchant is consisted of phosphoric acid (about 70˜72%), nitric acid (about 1.8˜2.0%) and acetic acid (about 9.5˜10.5%), a reaction formula of each acid in the mixed acid is illustrated as follows:
                                        +                        H          2                        O              →                                    O          +                    +              NO        3        -                                2                                                  Al            +              6                          H          +                      →                  2                                                  A                    +              3                                        2                                                  Mo            +              6                                                            H          +                      →                  2                                                  M                    +              3                                                P                    +              2                                                            H          2                        O              →                                            O          +                    +              HP                                        2                                                                        A                        l                                3            +                              +                              3                                      H                        P                        O                    4                      2            -                                        →                  Al        2            (                                                            →                                            2                                                                                AlP                                      +                                        P                                                                                2                                                                                M                                      +                          3                                                                                HP                                              →                                    Mo              2                        (                                          HP                                                            →                                                2                                                                                MoPO                    4                                                  +                                                                        PO                    4
In the above reaction formulas, the nitric acid is as a role of providing H3O+ and etching alumina, the phosphoric acid provides phosphate to form a dissolvable complex with metal oxides, and the acetic acid can adhere on a surface of the reactant to reduce viscosity of the aluminum etchant so as to enhance wettability and adjust the etching rate. In the etching process, adjusting concentration of the nitric acid and the acetic acid is a key point of etching rate and pattern integrity.
Based on the acid-base theory, acidity of an acid or alkalinity of an alkali in solution is not only pertaining to the acid-base properties of themselves, but also related to a solvent of the solution. In aqueous solution, a difference of the ionization constant (pKa value) of the respective solutes therein is up to 5 so that the respective solutes can be measured by titration. For example, in a mixed acid solution consisted of nitric acid, phosphoric acid and acetic acid, the pKa of the nitric acid is −1.32, the first degree ionization constant (pKa1) of the phosphoric acid is 1.96, concentrations of the nitric acid and phosphoric acid cannot be respectively measured by titration due to the leveling effect formed between the nitric acid and the phosphoric acid; similarly, and the pKa of the acetic acid is 4.73, the second degree ionization constant (pKa2) of the phosphoric acid is 7.12, concentrations of the acetic acid and phosphoric acid cannot be respectively measured by titration. In an appropriated non-aqueous solution, a difference of the ionization constant (pKa value) of the respective solutes therein is up about to 2˜3 so that the respective solutes can be measured by titration. Therefore, an appropriated non-aqueous solvent is needed for use in titration of a mixed acid solution.
Due to high sensitivity, high accuracy, automation and continuous measurement, a potentiometric titration that determines a titration end point with a potential jump occurring in titration has been widely used. However, a conventional potentiometric titration of a mixed acid is mostly based on a two-steps method which is performed with a non-aqueous solvent. The conventional potentiometric titration includes: step 1, a content of a nitric acid in a mixed acid is titrated with tetrabutylammonium bromide as a titrant dissolved in ethanol solution and ethanol as a solvent, or KOH as a titrant dissolved in isopropanol solution and methanol as a solvent; step 2, contents of phosphoric acid and acetic acid are titrated with NaOH solution as a titrant and a saturated sodium chloride solution as a solvent. Two titration end points are sequentially occurred in the two-steps method, wherein the first titration end point is related to the nitric acid and the first hydrogen ion of the phosphoric acid, the second titration end point is related to the second hydrogen ion of the phosphoric acid and acetic acid, and then contents of the three acids in the mixed acid are obtained with automatic measurement. The conventional potentiometric titration which is performed with the two-steps method such as the above description has cumbersome and time-consuming process and a variety of titrants with solvents, so that the titration results are come with increased uncertain, reduced accuracy and worse reproducibility.

Potentiometric titration method of a mixed acid solution

Shenzhen China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd


There is provided an image forming apparatus including a case having a first door and a second door. An image forming unit is arranged inside the case and a switch which supplies or suspends electricity to the image forming unit. The first door includes a pusher to press the switch. When the first door and the second door are closed, the second door presses the pusher, which in turn presses the switch to supply electricity to the image forming unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a switch to supply or suspend electricity to an image forming unit in accordance with the opening or closing of a door.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, an image forming apparatus such as a printer or copier includes a case used as an outer covering. An image forming unit is disposed inside the case for printing an image on a sheet of paper. The case has one or more doors for replacing or repairing components such as a light scanner or a developer that are included in the image forming unit. Additionally paper jams may be removed.
The image forming apparatus does not operate while the door is open. Therefore, the image forming apparatus comprises means for suspending electricity supply when the door is open. The means generally includes a microswitch.
However, conventionally, one microswitch is needed for each door, so that an image forming apparatus with a plurality of doors such as a color printer requires many microswitches. This adds to the complexity and cost of the image forming apparatus.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved image forming apparatus for managing the supply of electricity to the unit.

Door status switch operation mechanism for image forming apparatus


Information such as financial information related to one or more accounts of one or more business units is compiled. The compiled information is converted into a predefined format and is uploaded on a database. One or more views of the information included in the database are generated based on user privileges. Customized views of the information are used by one or more users to monitor the performance of business units.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to information management systems. More particularly, the invention relates to management of information related to one or more business units of an organization.
2. Related Art
With the growth of business, a large amount of information is generated by different business units in an organization. To monitor the performance of the business units and to establish compliance with several regulatory standards, the information related to the business units needs to be managed in an efficient manner. The information usually includes balance sheet accounts including information related to the financial matters and processes of the business units. The performance of a business unit is monitored and analyzed by authorities responsible for the finances of the business units. Examples of the authorities may include account owners, process owners, or the like.
In an existing solution, an information management team compiles the information related to the business units and sends it to the corresponding account owners via electronic mail. The account owners review the information and communicate with the information management team if any modification needs to be made. Therefore, in this existing solution, a large number of emails are exchanged between the information management team and the authorities responsible for the business units. Moreover, the size of the emails may be large due to the amount of information that needs to be sent to the account owners. Also, the information needs to be converted to different formats for different account owners. This requires considerable effort from the information management team. Further, the account owners are dependent on the information management team for the updates on the information related to the business units. The existing solutions also require a considerable amount of time and do not ensure the security of the information.
Given the foregoing, what is needed is a system, method and computer program product for managing information related to one or more business units of an organization, which will overcome the deficiencies of existing systems.

System and method for managing information of accounts

American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.


A vehicle communication system may retrieve “in case of emergency” (ICE) information from a wireless device. The ICE information may include contact information, medical information, etc., and may be transferred to an emergency provider, if the vehicle communication system places an emergency call. The information may also be retrieved at some point before an emergency call is placed and stored in a memory circuit of the vehicle communication system.

Many emergency service providers and other organizations are encouraging people to add In Case of Emergency (ICE) information to cell phones and other portable, wireless devices. For many cell phones, adding this information consists of adding a new contact entry called "ICE" (or "ICE1", "ICE2", etc. for multiple contacts). With this entry are included one or more phone numbers that can be called in an emergency situation.
Certain devices may also have the capability to store additional notes with a contact. This notes area could be used to add any relevant comments, such as critical medical conditions or allergies, a home address, and email address, etc.
Additionally, phones may be provided with ICE information as a standard feature. While not an industry standard yet, this feature could include storage of any or all of the above listed information, as well as additional information such as next-of-kin, etc. For example, if an emergency arose, a person may want a doctor notified, but if that person were killed, they may want a different party notified.

System and method for automatic storage and retrieval of emergency information


Fluid flow influencer devices capable of affecting fluid flow for fluid selection are described. Fluid flow influencer devices may affect fluid flowing into a turbulence, such as a vortex, having a structure that is usable to restrict fluid flow in a flow path of a chamber by different amounts based on at least one property of the fluid. The fluid flow control device may be in an autonomous fluid selector, such as a diverter, a vortex-causing device, or a whisker. Fluid properties based on which the flow influencer device can select fluid can include fluid density, fluid velocity, fluid viscosity, and Reynolds number of the fluid flow.

Various devices can be installed in a well traversing a hydrocarbon-bearing subterranean formation. Some devices control the flow rate of fluid between the formation and tubing, such as production or injection tubing. An example of these devices is an autonomous fluid selector that can select fluid, or otherwise control the flow rate of various fluids into the tubing.
An autonomous fluid selector can select between desired and undesired fluids based on relative viscosity of the fluids. For example, fluid having a higher concentration of undesired fluids (e.g. water and natural gas) may have a certain viscosity in response to which the autonomous fluid selector directs the undesired fluid in a direction to restrict the flow rate of the undesired fluid into tubing. The autonomous fluid selector includes a flow ratio control assembly and a vortex assembly usable to select fluid based on viscosity. The flow ratio control assembly includes two passageways. Each passageway includes narrowed tubes that are configured to restrict fluid flow based on viscosity of the fluid. For example, one tube in the first passageway may be narrower than the second tube in the second passageway, and configured to restrict fluid having a certain relative viscosity more than fluid having a different relative viscosity. The second tube may offer relatively constant resistance to fluid, regardless of the viscosity of the fluid.
Although this autonomous fluid selector is very effective in meeting desired fluid selection downhole, additional types of autonomous fluid selectors are desirable that can select fluid based on relative viscosity, or select fluid based on one more other fluid properties, such as fluid density, or fluid velocity.


A locking mechanism for securing communication port on electronic apparatus includes a lock carrier; a control element mounted on the lock carrier; more than one controlled arm movably connected to the control element; and a lock piece detachably connected to front ends of the controlled arms. The lock piece alone is inserted into a port on an electronic apparatus through operating the control element to release the controlled arms from the lock piece while allowing a rear end of the lock piece to flush with or locate a small distance inside an open end of the port.

Currently, there are many storing devices using a communication port on an electronic apparatus, such as a universal serial bus (USB), as a transmission interface. Such communication ports are constantly improved to have upgraded functions and capacity. However, valuable data stored in the storing devices are also frequently stolen via the conveniently available communication ports on the electronic apparatus.
It is therefore tried by the inventor to develop a locking mechanism for securing communication port on electronic apparatus.

Locking mechanism for securing communication port on electronic apparatus


The present disclosure involves a device. The device includes a rectifier coupled to receive energy from an alternating current (AC) voltage source. A capacitor is coupled to the rectifier. A plurality of LEDs and a current limiter are coupled in series. The current limiter is configured to limit a current through the LEDs. The plurality of LEDs and the current limiter are collectively coupled to the capacitor in parallel. A current controller is coupled to both the capacitor and the current limiter in series. The current controller is configured to control at least a charging current of the capacitor. The device has a first current path during a first period of operation and a second current path during a second period of operation. The capacitor charges during the first period of operation and discharges during the second period of operation.

An LED device or an LED, as used herein, is a semiconductor light source for generating a light at a specified wavelength or a range of wavelengths. LEDs have increasingly gained popularity due to favorable characteristics such as small device size, long lifetime, efficient energy consumption, and good durability and reliability. In recent years, LEDs have been deployed in various applications, including indicators, light sensors, traffic lights, broadband data transmission, and illumination devices. LEDs emit light when a voltage is applied.
LED linear regulators may be used to perform various LED driving methodologies. The LED linear regulator may contain a plurality of LEDs that may be driven by an alternating current (AC) source. However, traditional LED linear regulators typically have drawbacks relating to insufficient total light output, flicker noise, and/or low power factor. These drawbacks lead to inefficiencies and degraded performance of the traditional LED linear regulators.
Therefore, while existing LED linear regulators have been generally adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been entirely satisfactory in every aspect. An improved LED linear regulator with improved power factor and increased total light output continues to be sought.

LED linear regulator circuit with improved power factor

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


A technique that is usable with a well includes changing the temperature of a local environment of a distributed temperature sensor, which is deployed in a region of the well and using the sensor to acquire measurements of a temperature versus depth profile. The region contains at least two different well fluid layers, and the technique includes determining the depth of a boundary of at least one of the well fluid layers based at least in part on a response of the temperature versus depth profile to the changing of the temperature.

The invention generally relates to a fluid level indication system and technique.
In oil fields it is typically important to know the levels of the fluids in the reservoir and around wells, and in particular, it may be important to know the depths of the interfaces between the gas, oil and water layers. Such knowledge is particularly important in secondary and tertiary recovery systems, for example, in steam flooding applications in heavy oil reservoirs.
Traditionally, the depths of the interfaces between the fluid levels are determined using pressure measurements. For example, one approach involves using a single pressure sensor, which makes a series of pressure measurements at multiple depths. The measured pressure is plotted against the depth. In each of the gas, oil and water layers, the pressure gradient is constant and proportional to the density of the fluid. The depths of the fluid layer interfaces, or boundaries, are identified by the intersections of the pressure gradient lines. The above-described technique of identifying the interface depths using a pressure sensor typically works well when carried out in an intervention in the well using, for example, a wireline-deployed tool.
For purposes of permanently monitoring the depths of the fluid interfaces, an array of pressure sensors may be placed across the gas, oil and water layers. In this regard, the pressure gradients may be plotted and the analysis that is set forth above may be applied. If the depths of the interfaces change over time, a large number of pressure sensors may be required to accurately assess the interface depths. A large number of pressure sensors may also be required if the initial positions of the interfaces are unknown or uncertain. However, several challenges may arise with the use of a large number of pressure sensors, such as challenges related to compensating the pressure readings for sensor offset and drift. Furthermore, the cost of an array of pressure sensors can be high and prohibitive.
Downhole distributed temperature sensing (DTS) involves the use of a sensor that indicates a temperature versus depth distribution in the downhole environment. DTS typically is used to identify and quantify production from different injection/production zones of a well.
For example, in a technique called "hot slug tracking," DTS may be used to identify the permeable zones in a water injector well where injected fluid enters the formation. The permeable zones typically cannot be identified by DTS during normal injection. However, by shutting off injection and allowing the water in the tubing or casing above the injection zone to be heated up towards the geothermal gradient, a heated "slug" may be created. When the injection is re-started, the hot slug may be tracked versus time using the DTS measurements to identify the permeable zones.

Fluid level indication system and technique


A venting device for venting a cavity of an injection mold via a venting opening of the injection mold which cavity can be filled with an injection molding material is provided. The venting device comprising a housing which has a through-opening and is designed and intended for an arrangement on an injection mold in such a way that air which is present in the cavity and which escapes from a venting opening of the injection mold when injection molding material is introduced into the cavity can exhaust through the through-opening of the housing into an exterior space surrounding the injection mold. A valve pin extending longitudinally along a direction of extent and being mounted in the housing movably along its direction of extent. The valve pin is designed for being moved from a venting position, in the direction of the cavity into a first cleaning position.

The invention relates to a venting device for an injection mold, in particular for foam molds for steering wheels as well as a method for venting such an injection mold.
If an injection molding material is introduced into the cavity of an injection mold in order to manufacture a formed part, the air being present in the cavity and being replaced by the injection molding material has to be released from the cavity through at least one venting opening of the injection mold via which the cavity communicates with an exterior space surrounding the injection mold. In this connection, there exists the problem that injection molding material escapes out of the venting opening together with the air to be released. This burr has to be removed after the solidification of the injection molding material.
FR 2 857 898 discloses a venting device in which in one venting opening or in several venting openings of the cavity a piston is guided in a venting opening with slackness in each case. Air can exhaust along the piston out of the cavity in a venting position of the piston. To subsequently remove material gotten into the venting opening out of the venting opening, the piston can be moved from the venting position in the direction of the cavity. In this manner, the piston pushes material being present in the venting opening back into the cavity. Possibly, material can stick to the piston itself which material gets then again into the venting opening during an anew movement of the piston into the venting position.
DE 101 53 159 A1 discloses a venting device in which a valve pin is movably guided between two end positions in an opening. In the first end position of the valve pin, air can exhaust from an injection mold to atmosphere through ducts provided in the valve pin. To remove injection molding material possibly being present in the ducts of the valve pin before a further injection molding process, the valve pin can be transferred into a second end position. When the valve pin is moved from its first into its second end position, it is guided past an area of the venting device at which injection molding material being present in the ducts of the valve pin is wiped off. Subsequently, the valve pin is again moved into its first end position for venting the injection mold.