A translation lookaside buffer for caching virtual addresses from a plurality of sources along with the associated physical addresses which physical addresses must be rapidly accessable and in which virtual addresses may appear simultaneously from two of the sources requiring translation into physical addresses, including a primary cache for storing a plurality of individual virtual addresses and associated physical addresses from all of the plurality of sources, apparatus for storing a single virtual address and its associated physical address from one of the plurality of sources which occurs most often each time a virtual address and an associated physical address from that one of the plurality of sources is referenced in the primary cache, and apparatus for ascertaining whether the virtual address held in the apparatus for storing a single virtual address and an associated physical address is a virtual address sought when an attempt is made to access the primary cache for a virtual address from the one of the plurality of sources and for another of the plurality of sources simultaneously.

1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates to computer memory management units and, more particularly, to apparatus for increasing the number of hits which occur in a translation lookaside buffer portion of a memory management unit.
2. History Of The Prior Art
A virtual memory system is one which allows addressing of very large amounts of memory as though all of that memory were the main memory of the computer system even though actual main memory may consist of some substantially lesser amount of storage space. For example, main memory may consist of one megabyte of random access memory while sixty-four megabytes of memory are addressable using the virtual memory addressing system.
Virtual memory systems accomplish this feat by providing memory management units which translate virtual memory addresses into physical memory addresses. A particular physical address may be in main memory or in long term storage. If the physical address of information sought is in main memory, the information is accessed and utilized by the computer. If the physical address is in long term storage, the information is transferred to main memory where it may be used.
The basic memory management unit uses lookup tables which are stored in main memory. Any virtual address presented to the memory management unit is compared to the values stored in these tables to determine the physical address to access. There are often several levels of tables, and the comparison takes a great deal of system clock time.
To overcome this delay, virtual memory systems often include cache memories which use very fast components to store recently used data and instructions. These cache memories are usually connected so that they are rapidly accessible to the processors. These caches are first looked to by a processor before going to main memory for any information. The theory of these caches is that information most recently used is more likely to be needed again before other information is needed. This theory is valid, and many systems using cache memories have hit rates of over ninety percent.
These cache memories must also be addressed to obtain the information they contain. If these caches are addressed using physical addresses, then address translation is required before they may be accessed. To accomplish this without going through the page lookup tables, a typical memory management unit uses a translation lookaside buffer (TLB) to cache virtual page addresses which have been recently accessed along with their related physical page addresses. Such an address cache works on the same principle as do caches holding data and instructions, the most recently used addresses are more likely to be used than are other addresses. When provided a virtual address which it holds, the translation lookaside buffer furnishes a physical address for the information. If that physical address is in the related cache, then the information is immediately available to the processor without the necessity of going through the time consuming process of referring to the page lookup tables in main memory.
If when the processor sends a virtual address to the translation lookaside buffer, the address is not included in the translation lookaside buffer, then the memory management unit must retrieve the physical address using the lookup tables in main memory. When the physical address is recovered, it is stored along with the virtual address in the translation lookaside buffer so that the next time it is needed it is immediately available. When the information is recovered, it is stored in the cache under the physical address. This saves a great deal of time on the next use of the information because a typical lookup in the page tables may take from ten to fifteen clock cycles at each level of the search, while accessing the information using the translation lookaside buffer and the caches may require only one or two clock cycles.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/631,966, entitled TRANSLATION LOOKASIDE BUFFER, filed Dec. 21, 1990, and assigned to the assignee of this invention, describes a translation lookaside buffer for a very fast RISC computer system which provides separate caches for data and for instructions. In a typical prior art computer system these different virtual addresses would be translated by separate hardware resources. The translation lookaside buffer described, however, stores virtual and physical addresses for data, instructions, and input/output operations. Such a translation lookaside buffer allows the very rapid translation of all virtual addresses which might be used by a system with a very minimum amount of hardware. Such a system is well adapted to be used in a system in which most of the hardware is resident on a single chip.
One problem which occurs in a system which uses physical addressing for instruction and data caches and which processes data, instruction, and input/output addresses through a single translation lookaside buffer is occasioned by the fact that addresses for data, instructions, and input/output operations may all contest for the translation lookaside buffer at the same time. When this occurs, the system must somehow provide for translating all of the addresses. If the translations are done serially, significant delays occurs. The provision of a separate translation lookaside buffer to handle the overflow adds a great deal of hardware which the aforementioned invention was designed to eliminate. Other possibilities such as prefetching instructions or speeding the operation of the translation lookaside buffer offer other undesirable levels of complication.

Apparatus for increasing the number of hits in a translation lookaside buffer including instruction address lookaside register


A digital information/imaging system comprising: a first display for selectively displaying images and information; a second display for selectively displaying system information; and a control for controlling the first and second displays in one or more modes in which the content displayed by each of the displays mutually support each other; wherein the control includes a user interface including at least a first switch and a second navigation switch; wherein when the first switch is not activated the second switch is operable to select items displayed on the first display and the second display displays information in support of items selected on the first display; and wherein when the first switch is activated the second switch is operable to select items displayed on the second display and the first display displays information in support of items selected on the second display.

Handheld digital information/imaging systems, such as digital cameras, cell phones, personal digital assistants, etc. have become widespread in use in recent years. In order to present images and systems information to a system user, the system is usually provided with at least one display for displaying images and/or information useful to the user. User interface switches are also usually provided to navigate among items displayed on the display. In digital cameras, it is typical to have a large LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) display for displaying an image or images captured by the digital camera. The display can also display image capture related functions and menus of camera features that are user selectable (See: U.S. Patent Application Publication U.S. 2002/0030754 A1, published Mar. 14, 2002, inventor Sugimoto; U.S. Patent Application Publication US 2002/0024604 A1, published Feb. 28, 2002, inventors Fjima et al.; U.S. Patent Application Publication U.S. 2002/0057351 A1, published May 16, 2002, inventors Suzuki et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,877 B1, issued Nov. 6, 2001, inventor Anderson). Because a large LCD display used for images consumes much battery power, digital cameras can be provided with a smaller LCD display that uses less power. Such a display typically displays various camera status data to the camera user. The displayed data is spatially fixed and the LCD display is not capable of presenting programmed information in such as text support of the content in the main LCD display. (See: U.S. Patent Application Publication U.S. 2001/0015760 A1, published Aug. 23, 2001, inventors Fellegara et al.). U.S. Pat. No. 6,118,480, issued Sep. 12, 2002, inventors Anderson et al., is of interest in disclosing a digital camera having a large image LCD display and a smaller status LCD. A single 4-way switch can be used to navigate between items displayed on either LCD. However, the status LCD has spatially fixed status icons and cannot be programmed to display other information in support of the image LCD content.

Mutual display support for a digital information/imaging system


Methods, systems, and devices for modifying default display configurations for objects in a user interface are described. A system may support automatically drawing objects in a user interface such that the objects do not overlap and are legible to a user. To draw the objects with no overlaps, the system may determine when objects overlap based on a sweep procedure that identifies locations of default positions for each object to be displayed in the user interface. If two objects are identified to overlap in both a first and a second dimension during the sweep procedure, the system may modify one of the objects to prevent the overlap. For example, the system may hide the object or may find a next best location to draw the object such that the objects no longer overlap. Performing the sweep procedure may reduce latency and processing resources needed to identify any overlapping objects.

A cloud platform (i.e., a computing platform for cloud computing) may be employed by many users to store, manage, and process data using a shared network of remote servers. Users may develop applications on the cloud platform to handle the storage, management, and processing of data. In some cases, the cloud platform may utilize a multi-tenant database system. Users may access the cloud platform using various user devices (e.g., desktop computers, laptops, smartphones, tablets, or other computing systems, etc.).
In one example, the cloud platform may support customer relationship management (CRM) solutions. This may include support for sales, service, marketing, community, analytics, applications, and the Internet of Things. A user may utilize the cloud platform to help manage contacts of the user. For example, managing contacts of the user may include analyzing data, storing and preparing communications, and tracking opportunities and sales.
When a user requests data from the cloud platform, the data may be displayed to the user via a chart (e.g., a line chart with associated data points, a pie chart, a bar chart, etc.). The chart may include multiple data points within the chart. For example, the chart may include total sales amounts per quarter for a company and/or total sales per region for the company. A default display configuration for the chart may include labels for these data points displayed in a user interface, where some of the displayed labels overlap in the user interface. This may result in the user having difficulties reading the overlapping labels for the chart. If the user manually repositions the labels in the chart for improved readability, modifying the size of the user interface may once again result in overlapping of the labels despite the manual repositioning (e.g., viewing the chart on a different user device with a different screen size, shrinking or expanding the chart in the user interface, etc.). Additionally or alternatively, if the data dynamically updates (e.g., for daily sales information updating periodically each day), the shape of the chart may dynamically change, re-positioning labels and once again resulting in label overlap. Accordingly, efficient techniques are desired for dynamically determining placement of data labels in a corresponding chart.

Modifying default display configurations for objects in a user interface


Methods and apparatus for use in a wireless communication device for communications with a wireless communication network are described. In one illustrative technique, the wireless device sends a message to the wireless network which causes data connection parameters of a previous data connection to be reset. Preferably, the message is a disconnect frame. After the message is sent, the wireless device sends a request for a new data connection to the wireless network. Thereafter, the wireless device communicates data over the new data connection with use of new data connection parameters. The data connection parameters may include an encryption parameter. The actions may be performed in response to a communication failure, such as a device reset that occurs while being out-of-coverage.

1. Field of the Technology
The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communication devices and associated networks, and more particularly to mobile stations communicating data within wireless communication networks such as General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) networks.
2. Description of the Related Art
A wireless communication device, such as a mobile station, establishes a packet data protocol (PDP) context with a General Packet Radio service (GPRS) wireless network through a GPRS attach. The GPRS attach makes the wireless device known to the network by sending identification and routing area information. The wireless device goes from an idle state to a ready state if the GPRS attach is successful. During a GPRS attach procedure, encryption parameters are established between the wireless device and the GPRS network. When the data connection is reset correctly, both the wireless device and the GPRS network reset their respective encryption parameters.
During an out-of-coverage condition with the network, however, the wireless device may be powered off or reset. This will cause the wireless device to reset its data connection parameters (e.g. its encryption parameter), but the wireless network will fail to disconnect since the wireless device is out-of-coverage. When the wireless device re-enters network coverage and sends a GPRS attach in attempt to re-establish a PDP context, the encryption parameter of the wireless device is out-of-sync with the encryption parameter of the GPRS network. Thus, no encrypted data can be transmitted between the device and the network successfully, including PDP context requests.
Accordingly, there is a resulting need for methods and apparatus for reestablishing a data connection that overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods and apparatus for reestablishing a data connection with a wireless communication network


A printing apparatus comprises an ink ribbon conveyance section; a recording medium conveyance section; a thermal head which comprises, in the printing section, heat generating elements for thermally transferring the ink of the ink ribbon onto the recording medium; a platen member; a thermal head moving section; a temperature measurement section configured to measure ambient temperature; and a control section configured to drive the thermal head moving section to move the thermal head to the second position when the recording medium is conveyed in a conveyance direction reverse to a conveyance direction for printing and when the ambient temperature measured by the temperature measurement section is above a specific head-up temperature.

Generally, as a printing apparatus which prints words, numbers, barcodes and the like on a recording medium such as a label or a paper wound in a roll shape (hereinafter referred to as a paper roll) with an ink ribbon, there is known a thermal printer which is called as a label printer or a barcode printer.
With a ribbon roll wound in the rolled shape being set on a delivering shaft, the ink ribbon is wound on a winding reel mounted on a ribbon winding shaft through a certain ink ribbon conveyance path. A platen roller and a thermal head are arranged opposite to each other and across the ink ribbon in the ink ribbon conveyance path. Further, the paper roll mounts a delivering reel on a holder, and the front end of the paper roll is guided from the conveyance roller section to pass through the space between the platen roller and the thermal head to discharge to the outside from a paper discharging opening. The paper roll is overlapped with the ink ribbon between the platen roller and the thermal head, and a printing is carried out through a thermal transfer which is realized by heating the ink ribbon using the thermal head and transferring the melted ink to a paper.
However, in a case of printing with an ink ribbon, an ink ribbon may be cut off or a white blank occurs during a printing. It is considered that one of the reasons for the occurrence of this phenomenon generally lies in the adhesion of a paper roll to the ink ribbon, which sometimes occurs when the ambient temperature of a printing apparatus is high. Especially, the quality of an ink ribbon cannot be guaranteed if ambient temperature is high, and it tends to an adhesion when the paper roll is returned for a given length during a reverse feeding. At this time, the adhesion caused by the contact of the paper roll to the ink ribbon based on the thermal head can be found here and there.


A magnetic sensor device includes a first magnet and a second magnet that are disposed on mutually opposing sides of a conveyance path, and one of poles of the first magnet faces an opposite pole of the second magnet. The first magnet and the second magnet generate a cross magnetic field whose strength in a spacing direction, which is orthogonal to a conveying direction, is within a predetermined range. An AMR element is located in a magnetic field in which the strength of the cross magnetic field in the spacing direction is within a predetermined range, and detects, as change in a resistance value, change in the cross magnetic field caused by an object to be detected. A multilayer board outputs the change in the resistance value detected by the AMR element to a processing circuit.

A magnetic sensor device is a sensor device that uses a magnetoresistance effect element having a characteristic whereby its resistance value changes corresponding to a magnetic field strength. The magnetization amount of the magnetic pattern of a paper medium such as paper money is subtle. In order to improve sensitivity to detect the magnetic pattern of an object to be detected whose magnetization amount is subtle, the magnetic sensor device needs to be configured in such a way that the magnetic sensor device uses an anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element, which has a higher detection sensitivity than a semiconductor magnetoresistance effect element, and the anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element is disposed under a magnetic field strength in which sensitivity is the highest, and the object to be detected passes through a ferromagnetic field.
However, in a magnetic sensor device using an anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element, the anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element is saturated at a magnetic field strength of about 10 mT. Therefore, there is a problem in that it is difficult to dispose the anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element in a magnetic field strength environment in which the anisotropic magnetoresistance effect element is not saturated and the detection sensitivity is the highest.
In addition, in a non-contact magnetic sensor device, the object to be detected such as a paper sheet medium and a magnetoresistance effect element are apart from each other by a predetermined distance, making smaller an output of change in the resistance value of the magnetoresistance effect element which, in turn, causes deterioration of detection sensitivity.
In order to solve such a problem, Patent Literature 1 discloses a magnetic sensor in which the position of a permanent magnet is adjusted so that the bias magnetic field strength in the magnetic sensing direction of the ferromagnetic thin-film magnetoresistance element applied by a detecting magnetic field by the permanent magnet has a magnetic flux amount of a saturated magnetic field or lower.


A muzzle brake mounts to the barrel of a gun and reduces the recoil when the gun is fired. The muzzle brake comprises a supersonic nozzle including an expansion chamber configured to accelerate the propellant gases exiting the barrel of the gun and a reverser plate to at least partially reverse the flow of the propellant gases to reduce or mitigate recoil.

Muzzle brakes are devices that redirect combustion gases exiting the barrel of a gun in order to reduce the recoil and unwanted rising of the barrel. When a gun is fired, rapidly expanding gases caused by burning powder propel the bullet forwardly. According to Newton's Third Law, an equal force is exerted in the rearward direction and it is felt as recoil by the gun user. The amount of the recoil is a function of the total mass and velocity of the bullet and propellant gases. Muzzle brakes operate by redirecting the propellant gases exiting the gun barrel to minimize or eliminate the contribution of the propellant gases to the recoil. Reducing the recoil makes the gun more controllable and is particularly useful in automatic or rapid fire weapons.
Muzzle brakes have been used on guns for decades, but there is a limit to their effectiveness. The total mass of the propellant gases exiting the gun barrel is much less than the mass of the bullet. Even assuming that 100% of the propellant gases could be redirected in a reverse direction, the recoil forces would not be eliminated. Of course, complete redirection of the propellant gases is not possible and the best designs reduce recoil by only about 35%.
Accordingly, there is a need for improvements in muzzle brakes that can achieve reduction in recoil by more than 35%.


Fracturing headers and connected conduits are fit with one or more fluid screening and wear minimizing inserts. Tubular screen inserts are provided to screen a flow of fracturing fluid through manifolds prior to, or at, the fracturing header. Each tubular screen insert has a tubular wall having an insert bore, an endwall and an open inlet. A plurality of openings, about the tubular wall, provide fluid communication between the bore and an annular area outside the wall. Oriented in a flow conduit with the closed endwall upstream, the insert excludes and sheds debris therefrom. Oriented with the closed endwall downstream, the insert receives and stores debris. Pairs of inserts, retained in opposing inlet ports, serve to screen fluid and deflect erosive flow from tools such as coil tubing extending therethrough. A fracturing block fit with opposing inlet ports can also be fit with an outlet port for flowback operations.

It is known to conduct fracturing or other stimulation procedures in a wellbore by isolating zones of interest, (or intervals within a zone), in the wellbore, using packers and the like, and subjecting the isolated zone to treatment fluids, including liquids and gases, at treatment pressures. In a typical fracturing procedure for a cased wellbore, for example, the casing of the well is perforated to admit oil and/or gas into the wellbore and fracturing fluid is then pumped into the wellbore and through the perforations into the formation. Such treatment opens and/or enlarges drainage channels in the formation, enhancing the producing ability of the well. For open holes that are not cased, stimulation is carried out directly in the zones or zone intervals.
The fracturing operations include a variety of downhole tools that include relatively fine tolerances for operation including shifting sleeves, ports and ball seats. The fluid arriving downhole should be free of solids or debris which could interfere with the tools.
Normally the fluids are solids free or intentionally contain specific and acceptable solid particulates such as frac sand and proppent. Unfortunately, reality is such that debris can also enter the system at the supply side including equipment breakdown or introduced during assembly. Equipment can include pumps and blenders with moving components subject to component wear and castoffs which can enter the fluid stream. Examples of some of the components that can enter the fluid stream include parts of turbine wheels, seals, seat retainers, check valve flappers, and union seals. Further, in the on-site coupling of frac fluid supply lines, debris such as mud and gravel, can be inadvertently introduced.

Fracturing fluid deflecting and screening insert


A projector makes the light modulation device form the first image while keeping the second wheel adapted to separate the light into a plurality of colored lights corresponding to the second and third images in a state in which the second transmission region adapted to transmit the light including the plurality of colored lights is located on the light path, and rotating the first wheel adapted to separate the light into a plurality of colored lights corresponding to the first image when projecting the first image, and the light modulation device form the second and third images while keeping the first wheel in a state in which the first transmission region adapted to transmit the light including the plurality of colored lights is located on the light path, and rotating the second wheel when projecting the second image and the third image.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a projector and an image display system.
2. Related Art
In the past, there has been known a projector having a light source, a light modulation device for modulating the light emitted from the light source, and a projection optical device for projecting the light thus modulated on a target projection surface such as a screen. As the light modulation device used for such a projector, a transmissive or reflective liquid crystal panel or a digital micromirror device (DMD; a registered trademark of Texas Instruments in the United States) is adopted in some cases.
Incidentally, in recent years, there has been proposed an image display device forming a right-eye image and a left-eye image as parallax images, and individually inputting these images respectively to the right eye and the left eye of the observer to thereby display an image (hereinafter abbreviated as a "three-dimensional image" in some cases), which can be viewed stereoscopically due to the parallax (e.g., JP-A-2011-48071 (Document 1)).
In the projector described in Document 1, the DMD described above is adopted as the light modulation device, and a polarization plate wheel and a color wheel are disposed on the light path of the light from the light source to the DMD.
The polarization plate wheel is provided with a first polarization area, a second polarization area, and a non-polarization area. Among these areas, the first polarization area transmits a first polarization component perpendicular to the radial direction of the wheel, and blocks another polarization component (e.g., a second polarization component). Further, the second polarization area transmits the second polarization component parallel to the radial direction of the wheel, and blocks another polarization component (e.g., the first polarization component). It should be noted that the non-polarization area transmits all polarization components of the incident light.
The color wheel is provided with an R area transmitting a red component among the incident light, a G area transmitting a green component, a B area transmitting a blue component, and a W area transmitting all of the color components.
Further, in the case of displaying a two-dimensional image in the projector, the polarization plate wheel is stopped in the state in which the non-polarization area is located on the light path, the color wheel is rotated, and thus the DMD forms a color image corresponding to the colored light transmitted through the non-polarization area and the color wheel to thereby form and then project the two-dimensional image.
On the other hand, in the case of displaying a three-dimensional image, the polarization plate wheel and the color wheel are rotated in sync with each other, and thus a color image corresponding to the colored light transmitted through the polarization plate wheel and the color wheel is formed by the DMD. Thus, the red image, the green image, and the blue image constituted by the first polarization component and the red image, the green image, and the blue image constituted by the second polarization component are formed and then projected. Then, by observing the images via a pair of glasses having a filter similar to the first polarization area described above disposed at the position corresponding to either one of the right eye and the left eye, and a filter similar to the second polarization area described above disposed at the position corresponding to the other eye, the observer observes the three-dimensional image.
However, in the projector described in Document 1 mentioned above, it is required to rotate the polarization plate wheel and the color wheel in sync with each other in the case of displaying the three-dimensional image. Therefore, if the rotational phases of the wheels are shifted from each other, or the rotational speed of each of the wheel is varied, for example, there arises a problem that the three-dimensional image fails to be appropriately displayed.


A lithographic projection apparatus is disclosed. The apparatus includes a radiation system that includes a radiation source and an illumination system that supplies a beam of radiation, and a support structure that supports a patterning structure. The patterning structure is configured to pattern the beam of radiation according to a desired pattern. The apparatus also includes a substrate support that supports a substrate, a projection system that projects the patterned beam onto a target portion of the substrate, an electrode, and a voltage source that applies an electric field between the radiation source and the electrode to generate a discharge between the radiation source and the electrode.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of lithography. More specifically, the present invention relates to removal of debris from a lithographic apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
In a lithographic apparatus, the size of features that can be imaged onto the substrate is limited by the wavelength of the projection radiation. To produce integrated circuits with a higher density of devices, and, hence, higher operating speeds, it is desirable to be able to image smaller features. While most current lithographic projection apparatus employ ultraviolet light generated by mercury lamps or excimer lasers, it has been proposed to use shorter wavelength radiation, e.g., about 13 nm. Such radiation is termed extreme ultraviolet (EUV) or soft x-ray, and possible sources include, for example, laser-produced plasma sources, discharge plasma sources, or synchrotron radiation from electron storage rings.
Some extreme ultraviolet sources, especially plasma sources, emit substantial amounts of contaminant molecules, ions, and other (fast) particles. If such particles are allowed to reach the illumination system, which is downstream of the radiation source, or further downstream in the apparatus, they can damage the delicate reflectors and/or other elements, and cause build-up of absorbing layers on the surfaces of optical elements. Such damage and built-up layers cause an undesirable loss of beam intensity, which necessitates increasing exposure times and, hence, reducing machine through-put. The built-up layers and damage can be difficult to remove or repair. To prevent contaminant particles from reaching the illumination system, it has been proposed to provide a physical barrier or window in the exit from the radiation system or the entrance to the illumination system. However, such a window is itself prone to damage from the contaminant particles and build-up of absorbing layers. Also, since most materials absorb extreme ultraviolet radiation at the wavelengths proposed for use in lithography, the window, even when new and clean, will absorb a significant proportion of the beam energy, thereby reducing throughput. This absorption can cause thermal stress in the window even leading to breakage of the window.
EP-A-0 957 402 discloses a contamination barrier which uses a hollow tube, positioned between the last solid surface of the projection system and the substrate, that is flushed with gas flowing towards the substrate to prevent contaminants emitted from the resist being deposited on the projection lens.
EP-A-1 223 468 describes a lithographic projection apparatus and device manufacturing method in which a contaminant barrier comprising an ionization device is introduced. Such an ionization device may, for example, be an electron source or a plasma generated by capacitive or inductive RF discharge or AC discharge. This is a relatively complicated solution to remove undesirable contaminants.

Lithographic apparatus with debris suppression, and device manufacturing method


An estimate of a pitch of a signal may be computed by using correlations of frequency portions of a frequency representation of the signal. An initial pitch estimate may be obtained and frequency portions of the frequency representation may be identified using multiples of the initial pitch estimate. Correlations of the frequency portions may be computed, and a score for the initial pitch estimate may be determined using the correlations. A second pitch estimate may be determined using the first score, and the process may be repeated.

A harmonic signal may have a fundamental frequency and one or more overtones. Harmonic signals include, for example, speech and music. A harmonic signal may have a fundamental frequency, which may be referred to as the first harmonic. A harmonic signal may include other harmonics that may occur at multiples of the first harmonic. For example, if the fundamental frequency is f at a certain time, then the other harmonics may have frequencies of 2f, 3f, and so forth.
The fundamental frequency of a harmonic signal may change over time. For example, when a person is speaking, the fundamental frequency of the speech may increase at the end of a question. A change in the frequency of a signal may be referred to as a chirp rate. The chirp rate of a harmonic signal may be different for different harmonics. For example, if the first harmonic has a chirp rate of c, then other the harmonics may have chirp rates of 2c, 3c, and so forth.
In applications, such as speech recognition, signal reconstruction, and speaker recognition, it may be desirable to determine properties of a harmonic signal over time. For example, it may be desirable to determine a pitch of the signal, a rate of change of the pitch over time, or the frequency, chirp rate, or amplitude of different harmonics.

Estimating pitch using symmetry characteristics


Apparatuses and methods for supporting operation of narrow bandwidth devices within a broadband network are described herein. A user equipment (UE) may retrieve control channels within a narrow bandwidth device region of a downlink subframe. The control channels may be received in a subcarrier of a new carrier type (NCT) implemented in accordance with a standard of the 3GPP family of standards. Cell-specific reference signals may be excluded on the NCT subcarrier.

Current 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) specifications define a scalable set of signal bandwidths, ranging from relatively low bandwidths (e.g., 1.4 MHz and 3 MHz) to relatively high bandwidths (e.g., 20 MHz). A user equipment (UE) operating in a wireless network often supports the full set of bandwidths. Moreover, there is an underlying assumption that evolved Node Bs (eNodeBs) and UEs attached to eNodeBs use the same operating bandwidth.
UEs operating in a typical wireless network can include terminals for use by a human user as well as machine-type communication (MTC) devices and machine-to-machine devices (M2M) that often operate with little or no regular human interaction. Many MTC and M2M devices do not require high throughput and low latency performance characteristics and thus can successfully operate in narrow signal bandwidths, for example 1.4 MHz and 3 MHz signal bandwidths. Recent trends have shown an increased interest in providing support for narrow bandwidth MTC and M2M devices operating in a cell using a wider bandwidth. Mobile network operators may wish to introduce support of narrow bandwidth devices because of demands from the low end MTC market to substantially decrease the cost of LTE terminal. However, due to PHY layer constraints legacy systems do not support operation of narrow bandwidth devices. For example, LTE legacy systems use wide bandwidth transmission of LTE control channels on the downlink and MTC and M2M devices are thereby required to support wide bandwidth signals in order to reliably operate on the broadband network.
Thus, there exists a general need to provide methods and apparatuses to enable or optimize operation of narrow bandwidth devices in wideband LTE deployments by providing narrow bandwidth transmission of control channels.

Evolved node B, user equipment, and method for operation of narrow bandwidth user equipment in wide bandwidth broadband networks


A work accelerator is connected to a gateway. The gateway enables the transfer of data to the work accelerator from an external storage at pre-compiled data synchronisation points attained by the work accelerator. The work accelerator is configured to send to a register of the gateway an indication of a sync group comprising the gateway. The work accelerator then sends to the gateway, a synchronisation request for a synchronisation to be performed at an upcoming pre-compiled data exchange synchronisation point. The sync propagation circuits are each configured to receive at least one synchronisation request and propagate or acknowledge the synchronisation request in dependence upon the indication of the sync group received from the work accelerator.

In the context of processing data for complex or high volume applications, a work accelerator may be a subsystem to which processing of certain data is offloaded from a host system. Such a work accelerator may have a specialised hardware for performing specific types of processing.
As an example, one area of computing in which such a specialised accelerator subsystem may be of use is found in machine intelligence. As will be familiar to those skilled in the art of machine intelligence, a machine intelligence algorithm is based around performing iterative updates to a "knowledge model", which can be represented by a graph of multiple interconnected nodes. The implementation of each node involves the processing of data, and the interconnections of the graph correspond to data to be exchanged between the nodes. Typically, at least some of the processing of each node can be carried out independently of some or all others of the nodes in the graph, and therefore large graphs expose great opportunities for multi-threading. Therefore, a work accelerator specialised for machine intelligence applications may comprise a large degree of multi-threading. One form of parallelism can be achieved by means of a processor comprising an arrangement of multiple tiles on the same chip (i.e. same die), each tile comprising its own separate respective processing unit and memory (including program memory and data memory). Thus separate portions of program code can be run in parallel on different ones of the tiles. The tiles are connected together via an on-chip interconnect which enables data to be exchanged between them. Such an accelerator may function as a subsystem for a host system to perform parallel processing of data sets provided to it.
In general, there may exist dependencies between the portions of a program running on different tiles. A technique is, therefore required to prevent a piece of code on one tile running ahead of data upon which it is dependent being made available by another piece of code on another tile. There are a number of possible schemes for achieving this, one of which is described here by way of example, 'BSP', bulk synchronous parallel. According to BSP, each tile performs a compute phase and an exchange phase in an alternating cycle. During the compute phase each tile performs one or more computation tasks locally on tile, but does not communicate any results of its computations with any others of the tiles. In the exchange phase each tile is allowed to exchange one or more results of the computations from the preceding compute phase to and/or from one or more others of the tiles in the group, but does not yet proceed to the next compute phase. Further, according to the BSP principle, a barrier synchronization is placed at the juncture transitioning from the compute phase into the exchange phase, or transitioning from the exchange phase into the compute phase, or both. That is to say, either: (a) all tiles are required to complete their respective compute phases before any in the group is allowed to proceed to the next exchange phase, or (b) all tiles in the group are required to complete their respective exchange phases before any tile in the group is allowed to proceed to the next compute phase, or (c) both. In some scenarios a tile performing computation may be allowed to communicate with other system resources such as a network card or storage disk, as long as no communication with other tiles in the group is involved.
During an exchange phase, data exchange may not only be required to take place internally (i.e. between tiles) within an accelerator, but in some circumstances may be required to take place between multiple accelerators. Some of these accelerators may be coupled to different gateways.
When scaling subsystems by connecting them together—directly or indirectly—a problem may occur, which is how to control how an accelerator in the system will synchronise at an upcoming exchange point. As noted, at sometimes data exchange should take place only between tiles within an accelerator, whereas at other times, data exchange should take place between the accelerator and gateway or between multiple accelerators.


A distributed storage system includes a first data center including a first host and a first storage subsystem that are coupled to each other via a network. The first host includes a first check module configured to handle a heartbeat signal of first type. The first storage subsystem includes a first storage controller and a first monitoring module. The first monitoring module is configured to handle a heartbeat signal of second type. A second data center includes a second host and a second storage subsystem that are coupled to each other via a network. The second host includes a second check module configured to handle the heartbeat signal of first type. The second storage subsystem includes a second storage controller and a second monitoring module. The second monitoring module is configured to handle the heartbeat signal of second type. A third data center includes a third storage subsystem that are coupled to each other via a network. The third host includes a third check module configured to handle the heartbeat signal of first type. The third storage subsystem including a third storage controller and a third monitoring module. The third monitoring module is configured to handle the heartbeat signal of second type. A first communication network couples the first and second third hosts, wherein the hosts use the first communication network to transmit or receive the heartbeat signal of first type. A second communication network couples the first, second, and third storage subsystems, wherein the subsystems use the second communication network to transmit or receive the heartbeat signal of second type.

The present invention relates to a storage system, more particularly, to a storage system distributed in multiple sites.
Data is the underlying resources on which all computing processes are based. With the recent explosive growth of the Internet and e-business, the demand on data storage systems has increased tremendously. Types of storage systems include a network-attached storage (NAS) or storage area network (SAN). A NAS uses IP over Ethernet to transports data in file formats between storage servers and their clients. In NAS, an integrated storage system, such as a disk array or tape device, connects directly to a messaging network through a local area network (LAN) interface, such as Ethernet, using messaging communications protocols like TCP/IP. The storage system functions as a server in a client-server system.
Generally, a SAN is a dedicated high performance network to move data between heterogeneous servers and storage resources. Unlike NAS, a separate dedicated network is provided to avoid any traffic conflicts between client and servers on the traditional messaging network. A SAN permits establishment of direct connections between storage resources and processors or servers. A SAN can be shared between servers or dedicated to a particular server. It can be concentrated in a single locality or extended over geographical distances. SAN interfaces can be various different protocols, such as Fibre Channel (FC), Enterprise Systems Connection (ESCON), Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI), Serial Storage Architecture (SSA), High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI), or other protocols as they emerge in the future. For example, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is developing a new protocol or standard iSCSI that would enable block storage over TCP/IP, while some companies are working to offload the iSCSI-TCP/IP protocol stack from the host processor to make iSCSI a dominant standard for SANs.
A SAN is commonly used with distributed storage systems having storage sites distributed in a plurality of locations. These sites or data centers may be provided in relatively close proximity, e.g., within 10 miles, or far apart, e.g., 100 miles or more apart. The distributed storage system may be used to store redundant data for data security or to place the data centers in close proximity to the distributed business centers of an enterprise. The distributed or clustered systems are also used provide high speed data access to users of online services.
Currently, two operational modes are commonly used by storage systems to transfer data from one storage system (primary system) to another storage system (secondary system): synchronous mode and asynchronous mode. In synchronous mode, a write request from a host to the primary storage system completes only after write data are copied to the secondary storage system and acknowledge thereof has been made. Accordingly, this mode guarantees no loss of data at the secondary system since the write data from the host is stored in the cache of the primary system until the acknowledgement has be received from the secondary system. In addition, the primary volume (PVOL) in the primary storage system and the secondary volume (SVOL) in the secondary storage system are identically maintained, so that the SVOL can be used promptly used to replace the PVOL if the PVOL experiences failure. However, the primary and secondary storage systems cannot be placed too far apart, e.g., over 100 miles, under this mode. Otherwise, the storage system may not efficiently execute write requests from the host.
In asynchronous mode, a write request from a host to the primary storage system completes upon storing write data only to the primary system. The write data is then copied to the secondary storage system. That is, the data write to the primary storage system is an independent process from the data copy to the secondary storage system. Accordingly, the primary and secondary systems may be placed far apart from each other, e.g., 100 miles or greater. However, data may be lost if the primary system does down since the PVOL and SVOL identically maintained. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a data storage system or remote copy system that provides the benefits of the synchronous and asynchronous modes, i.e., enables the primary and secondary systems to be placed far apart while guaranteeing no data loss. An exemplary asynchronous remote copy method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,408,370, to Yamamoto et. al, which is incorporated by reference.
In order to manage the distributed system above, it is important to know whether or not the sites are functioning properly or experiencing problem. This information is obtained using heartbeat signals. Accordingly, the reliable transmission of heartbeat signals is needed. However, the heartbeat signals are communicated using TCP/IP links by most storage units at this time. TCP/IP links, although widely used for its scalability and flexibility, are considered to be less reliable than other types of communication links, e.g., FibreChannel or ESCON. The heartbeat signals or information preferably should detailed, so that appropriate actions may be taken with minimal delay.

Apparatus and method of heartbeat mechanism using remote mirroring link for multiple storage system


An improved process for lapping a surface according to the present invention comprises:. a) providing a work piece with two surfaces to be lapped, PA1 b) providing two rotatable platens, each having i) a back surface and ii) a front surface, PA1 c) providing a sheet of abrasive material having an abrasive face and a back side, the back side being on the front surface of each of the two rotatable platens with the abrasive faces of each sheet facing the other sheet, PA1 d) placing the work piece with two surfaces to be lapped between the two rotatable platens, so that each abrasive face faces only one of the two surfaces to be lapped, PA1 e) rotating the two platens at a rotational speed of at least 500 revolutions per minute, PA1 f) contacting each of the abrasive faces with the only one of the two surfaces to be lapped, and PA1 g) lapping said two surfaces of said work piece simultaneously.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to lapping, polishing, finishing or smoothing of surfaces with apparatus and processes which use abrasive sheeting. The invention particularly relates to lapping apparatus and processes which can lap two faces of a work piece simultaneously. Optionally with the lapping of two surfaces on a single work piece at one time, the present invention relates to such processes and apparatus which use removable or replaceable abrasive sheeting which operates at high surface speeds, secures said abrasive sheeting to a support in an annular distribution of abrasive material on a face of the abrading platen, and which may optionaly move the sheeting at those high speeds without the use of adhesive layers between the sheeting and the support, and/or which provides a high degree of control over the contact point or contact plane of the abrasive sheeting and the article which is to be lapped, polished, finished or smoothed.
2. Background of the Art
The field of lapping or polishing traces it roots far back into time, even before substantial technical developments. Early jewelry and decorations were provided by minerals or materials (shells or wood) which had been smoothed by natural elements. Stones smoothed by water currents or sand storms gave a much more pleasant look and feel than unpolished stones or stones which had been roughly smoothed by available means such as rubbing two stones together.
Early efforts at sharpening blades for plows or swords were amongst the first technical advances in lapping and smoothing of materials, and these technical means are still used in much the same way today. Swords and plow shears were sharpened by moving the blade against a stone surface. The abrasive action of the stone against the blade removes metal and thins the blade at its edge. Grinding wheels, kitchen knife sharpeners, and the like are not significantly different in function than the stone sharpening tools, such as the grinding wheel which has been used to sharpen blades for thousands of years.
In the 17.sup.th and 18.sup.th century the combination of die casting and abrasive polishing enabled the manufacture of interchangeable generic parts for equipment (especially the rifle and hand gun) as opposed to the standard method of fitting individually made parts into a unique piece of equipment with uniquely fitting parts. Each succeeding advance in the ability of materials and processes to create smoother and more uniform surfaces advanced the quality and capability of the resultant articles to perform whatever tasks for which they were designed. Lenses with greater smoothness and uniformity advanced the degree to which observation could be extended downward into microscopy and outward into space. Better fitting parts extended the longevity of equipment and increased efficiency by reducing internal friction. The need for increasing efficiency, precision, consistency and smoothness in lapping is as important today as ever, and each incremental increase in the quality of lapping materials and processes advances many fields of technology and industry, while at the same time offering the possibility of reducing the cost of manufacture of goods.
Lapping and polishing are performed in many fields and industries. Metal and parts polishing is the most obvious field, but smoothing of surfaces is extensively used in lens manufacture, semiconductive wafer manufacture, gem polishing, preparation of supports for optical elements, and the like. The smoothness and reproducibility of the processes and apparatus used to create the needed levels of smoothness are critical to the success of products. U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,746 (Tanaka) describes a method of polishing semiconductor wafers and apparatus therefor. The import of Tanaka is the physical control placed over the wafer as it is being polished. The wafer is secured by a vacuum system on a wafer mounting plate. The relative flexibility of the wafer is discussed as a method of controlling uniformity of the wafer surface as is the uniformity of the vacuum applied through the wafer support. The polishing of the wafer surface is accomplished by typical means including a polishing pad which is mounted on a polishing surface (turntable). It is suggested that the pad should not be subject to plastic deformation and may be preferably selected from a group comprising close cell foam (e.g., polyurethane), polyurethane impregnated polyester non-woven fabric and the like, which are known materials in the art. No specific means of securing the polishing pad to the support surface is described in Tanaka. No specific speeds of rotation for the operation of the process are shown in the examples.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,317,836 (Hasegawa) describes an apparatus for polishing chamfers of a wafer. Hasegawa describes that in the manufacture of wafer materials from single crystal ingots such as silicon, the wafer is produced by a combination or selection of processes including slicing, chamfering, lapping, etching, buffing, annealing and polishing. It is noted that chipping and/or incomplete surface polishing are a problem in such ingot conversion to wafers. Hasegawa describes the use of a rotary cylindrical buff formed with at least one annular groove in its side describing a circle normal to the axis of the cylindrical buff and a wafer holder capable of holding and turning the wafer about an axis. The improvement is described as including at least the ability of the cylindrical buff being adapted to freely shift axially, that the annular groove has a width substantially greater than the thickness of the wafer, and that the apparatus further comprises a means for axially biasing the cylindrical buff. No specific speeds of rotation for the operation of the process are shown in the examples.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,007,209 (Saito) describes an optical fiber connector polishing apparatus and method. Saito describes a method and apparatus for polishing optical fiber connectors with high accuracy. Saito indicates that the polishing is accomplished by using an elastic polishing board rotating at high speed, but no specific speed of rotation or method of attachment of the polishing board is described. Positioning pins and other controls are provided in the system to accurately align the swing fulcrum arm carrying the polishing material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,085,549 (Hodges) describes a lens polishing machine comprising a lap tool holder and lens blank holder including independent means to provide linear and rotary movement between a lens blank and lap tool. The machine is described as useful for high speed grinding and polishing. The polishing element is gimbal mounted on its lower extreme in a spherical bearing to allow a lens blank holder to follow the contour of the lens during the polishing process. The movement between the rotary drive and linear drive mechanisms independent of each other provides a balanced and low vibration operation. No specific speeds of rotation are recited and the abrasion is provided by a slurry.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,733 (Lee) describes a very high speed lap with a positive lift effect. The apparatus and method comprises a rotary lapping system which uses a liquid slurry of abrasive particles. The diameters of the particles are shown to be from about 1.5 to 5 micrometers, but may be outside this range. The system is described as producing positive lift by presenting leading edge surfaces with a positive angle of attack in the liquid abrasive slurry, the leading edge surfaces generating a positive lift through hydrodynamic interaction with the slurry. Each of the positive lift tools presents a grinding surface to said workpiece when it is rotated in the slurry. There is again no specific rotational speed provided in the description, and the use of liquid slurries would cause higher lapping/abrasive areas on the exterior of the grinding/lapping face as the slurry would be at higher levels at the outside of the rotating grinding area work surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,709,508 (Junker) describes a method and apparatus for high speed profile grinding of rotatably clamped rotation symmetrical workpieces. Rather than the grinding element contacting the surface to be ground with a grinding surface which is rotating within a plane, the edge of the grinding element (e.g., at the circumference of a disk rather than on its face) is brought against the surface to be ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,228 describes methods and apparatus for grinding metal parts, especially with devices having a cooperative workpiece holder and a tool holder which form a grinding station. The grinder table is reciprocally moveable along an axis which is at right angle to the axis of travel of the workpiece. The grinder table may also be equipped for controlled simultaneous movement along two axes. A microprocessor is designed to send and receive signals to or from all of the moving parts of the grinding machine for moving the workpiece table towards or away from the grinding bit.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,324 describes a carrier for semiconductive wafers during polishing steps in their manufacture. An annular flange is present to receive pressure loading from the polishing machine during the wafer polishing operation. The holder of the polishing machine includes the ability to apply a vacuum to the carrier to maintain the carrier selectively on the polishing machine. The arrangement on the equipment allows release of the vacuum during polishing and enables simple intentional removal of the carrier. Cam follower-slot arrangements permit tilting of the mounting head.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,576,754 describes a sheet holding device for an arcuate surface with vacuum retention. The sheet and device are described as useful for internal drum plotters in imaging equipment. Vacuum pressure is applied to imaging film to keep it securely positioned within the arcuate focal plane of the imaging equipment.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,563,683 describes a substrate holder for vacuum mounting a substrate. The holder is provided with two kinds of grooves or clearances in the supporting surface. Circular support faces with multiple grooves and/or a plurality of pins to support the work are shown. The device is generally described to be useful as a holder, with such particular uses as in the manufacture of semiconductors and the support of photosensitive substrate being shown. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,148 describes a silicon wafer holder with at least one access port providing access to the underside of the wafer with vacuum pressure. U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,012 also describes a method of applying vacuum holding forces to a semiconductor wafer during manufacture in an improved manner. U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,738 shows the use of a vacuum pickup system for semiconductor wafers. The wafers are placed into or removed from holders by the vacuum pickup.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,491 describes a vacuum holder for sheet materials comprising a plurality of arrays of vacuum channels including a plurality of vacuum plenums. Flow sensors are provided so that the system can indicate the presence and/or size of the sheets being held. Specifically described are common types of imaging materials using sheets of plain paper, photographic paper and photographic film.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,021 describes a vacuum holding system which is particularly useful as a vacuum table for holding articles. The holding table is particularly described with respect to the manufacture of printed circuit boards. Controlled passageways are provided which are supposed to control the application of reduced pressure and to reduce the application of the vacuum when vacuum support is not required.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,012 describes a holding apparatus for holding an article such as a semiconductor wafer. At least a portion of the holder contacting the wafer comprises a sintered ceramic containing certain conductive materials. The use of conductive materials and fewer pores reduces the occurrence and deposition of fine particles during use. The benefits of the materials are said to be in contributions to the cleanability of the surface, insurance of mechanical strength, reduction of weight and increased dimensional stability.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,555 describes a holding apparatus and method for supporting wafers during a vacuum deposition process. The apparatus is an improved system for the angled exposure of at least one surface portion of a substrate supported on a surface holder to an emission of a source impinging obliquely on the surface portion. The device moves the surface holder to improve the uniformity of the emission received on the surface portion. Wheel mechanisms are coupled together to provide maintenance capability for predetermined positions of the surface. The substrate holder is moved while its orientation to the source is carefully controlled.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,483,703 and 4,511,387 describe vacuum holders used to shape glass. Frames are shown with slidable members moving a deformable vacuum holder between a shaping station and a mold retraction station. Pistons drive movable elements, such as the vacuum holder, on a supporting frame.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,851,749 describes a motor driven mechanical positioner capable of moving an arm to any one of about 840 discrete angular positions. An infrared light emitting device acts with a phototransistor to control the appropriate angular position. Sensing devices also act on interdependent speed controls so as to increase the accuracy of the positioning of the arm.
U.S. Pat. No. 5.180,955 describes a positioning apparatus comprising an electromechanical system which provides controlled X-Y motion with high acceleration, high maximum speeds, and high accuracy, particularly for positioning an end-effector at predetermined locations. A high speed mini-positioner is provided comprising a positioning linkage having a changeable parallelogram structure and a base structure. A main benefit of the system is the fact that the bars and bearings of the positioner are symmetrical about the X-Y plane passing through the linkage height. The symmetry means that all actuator forces and all inertial reaction forces act in vectors lying in the plane of symmetry.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,330 describes an ergonomic three axis positioner. The positioner is intended to move an article along three mutually perpendicular axes through system of interconnected slides and slide joints. Rack and pinions are also used to independently move the slides. The device is suggested for use in the visual inspection of work, particularly in the semiconductor industry.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,972 describes a control apparatus for a grinding machine. A revolution speeds changing means is provided which can selectively effect changes at high speeds when grinding and changes at low speeds when dressing the article. The relationship and control of the timing of the speed changes and the operations detection circuits and timers.
U.S. Pat. No. Re. 30,601 describes an apparatus and method particularly effective in the positioning of a semiconductor wafer in a preferred plane with respect to a photomask. Sensors regularly monitor the position of the wafer and a reference plane. A photoalignment system is provided in which a wafer is not physically touched by any portion of the photoalignment tool, thereby avoiding any contamination.
These systems have been described as providing benefits to particular technical and commercial fields, but they have not been shown to provide any particular benefits to truly high speed lapping/polishing systems and materials.

Lapping apparatus and process with two opposed lapping platens


A snap fastener for securing shoe laces comprises two openings disposed diametrically to each other through which the shoe laces are passed. The openings extend longitudinally through the snap fastener when the latter is opened. An inner sleeve is in a larger outer sleeve such that it is longitudinally movable relative thereto. The inner sleeve accommodates an inner ring. When the pressure is exerted on the outer sleeve, the ring is made to rotate as the longitudinal movement is converted into a horizontal circular movement so that the shoe laces are immovably clamped by the snap fastener.

The present invention relates to a snap fastener for securing shoe laces.
Especially for kindergarten children who are not yet able to tie shoe laces on their own, a device eliminating the need for tying shoe laces is very useful. Proposals for such a device have been made in EP 0 314 628 A2, FR 1.518.038 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,500,508, 3,345,707 and 948,071. The present invention is based on the object of providing an improved device of this kind which is even easier to handle.


An inkjet printer comprising: a printhead with a plurality of printhead IC's, each having an array of nozzles for ejecting drops of printing fluid, and drive circuitry for driving the array of nozzles; a print engine controller for sending print data to the printhead IC's; an interface for electrical communication between the print engine controller and the printhead IC's; wherein, all the printhead IC's have a common initial address except one printhead IC at the end of the printhead, the exception having a different address such that the print engine controller sends a first broadcast instruction to any printhead IC's having the different address, the first broadcast instruction instructing the printhead IC having the different address to change its address to a first unique address, the printhead IC's being interconnected such that when the exception has undated its address, the address of the adjacent printhead IC changes to the different address so that a second broadcast command changes the write address to a second unique address and so on until all the printhead IC's have unique addresses provided by the PEC.

Inkjet printers eject drops of ink through an array of nozzles to effect printing on a media substrate. The nozzles are typically formed on a silicon wafer substrate using semiconductor fabrication techniques. Each nozzle is a MEMS (micro electro-mechanical systems) device driven by associated drive circuitry formed on the same silicon wafer substrate. The MEMS nozzle devices and associated drive circuitry formed on a single nozzle is commonly referred to as a printhead integrated circuit (IC).
Some inkjet printheads have a single printhead IC. These are scanning type printheads that traverse back and forth across the width of a page as the printer indexes the length of the page past the printhead. The Applicant has developed a range of pagewidth printheads that have a nozzle array as long as the printing width of the page. These printheads remain stationary in the printer as the page is fed past. This allows much higher print speeds but is more complicated in terms of controlling the operation of a much larger array of nozzles.
The pagewidth array of nozzles is made up of a series of separate printhead IC's placed end to end. Skilled workers in this field will appreciate that more printhead IC's can be fabricated on the unprocessed circular silicon wafers if each IC is short rather than long. Furthermore, localized fabrication defects can render an entire printhead IC defective. Hence there is less chance that each individual IC will be defective if they are shorter.
The print data for each printhead IC in the pagewidth array of nozzles, is generated by another microprocessor in the printer, often referred to as a print engine controller (PEC). The PEC needs to be able to uniquely identify each of the printhead IC's so that it can send the correct print data to each nozzle. Therefore, each printhead IC has a unique address, called its write address that the PEC uses when it wants to send data to the drive circuitry on that particular IC.
The Applicant has found that it is beneficial to provide the pagewidth printhead in the form of a replaceable cartridge. If nozzle clogging or actuator burn out reduce the print quality to an unacceptable level, the user simply replaces the printhead instead of the entire printer. However, user expectation demands that the printhead replacement process be as simple and failsafe as possible. Therefore, the number of interconnections between the PEC and the printhead should be minimized.
When a replacement printhead is first installed, the PEC needs to interrogate the printhead IC's to determine their unique addresses so it can properly distribute the print data. This requires an electrical connection that is subsequently not used during normal operation of the printhead.

Externally applied write addresses for printhead integrated circuits


One object of the invention is to achieve a phase change type optical recording medium having high degree of modulation and recording sensitivity, and another object of the invention is to achieve a phase change type optical recording medium having already stable write/read characteristics at the time of the first overwriting. The optical recording medium comprises a recording layer made up of an optical recording material containing given amounts of In, Ag, Te and Sb. In one Raman spectrum embodiment of the optical recording there are a scattering peak I-1 having a Raman shift in a range of 113 to 117 cm.sup.-1 and a scattering peak I-2 having a Raman shift in a range of 123 to 127 cm.sup.-1, said scattering peak I-2 being larger in half-width than said scattering peak I-1. In another Raman spectrum embodiment, there are a scattering peak II-1 having a Raman shift in a range of 105 to 125 cm.sup.-1 and a scattering peak II-2 having a Raman shift in a range of 140 to 160 cm.sup.-1, said scattering peak II-1 being higher in intensity than said scattering peak II-2.

The present invention relates to a phase change type optical recording material, and an optical recording medium using such a recording material.
Highlight is recently focused on optical recording media capable of recording information at a high density and erasing the recorded information for overwriting. One typical rewritable optical recording medium is of the phase change type wherein a laser beam is directed to the recording layer to change its crystallographic state whereupon a change of reflectance by the crystallographic change is detected for reading. Optical recording media of the phase change type are of great interest since they can be overwritten by modulating the intensity of a single light beam and the optical system of the drive unit used for their operation is simple as compared with magneto-optical recording media.
Most optical recording media of the phase change type use Ge-Te base materials which provide a substantial difference in reflectance between crystalline and amorphous states and have a relatively stable amorphous state. In recent years, it has been proposed to use compounds known as chalcopyrites.
Chalcopyrite compounds are extensively investigated as compound semiconductor materials, and applied to solar batteries and the like. The chalcopyrite compounds are composed of Ib-IIIb-VIb.sub.2 or IIb-IVb-Vb.sub.2 as expressed in terms of the Groups of the Periodic Table and have two stacked diamond structures. The structure of chalcopyrite compounds can be readily determined by X-ray structural analysis and their basic characteristics are described in Physics, Vol. 8, No. 8 (1987), page 441, Denki Kagaku (Electrochemistry), Vol. 56, No. 4 (1988), page 228, and other literature.
Among the chalcopyrite compounds, AgInTe.sub.2 is known to be applicable as a recording material by diluting it with antimony or Sb or bismuth or Bi. The resulting optical recording media are generally operated at a linear velocity of about 7 m/s. See JP-A's 3-240590, 3-99884, 3-82593, 3-73384 and 4-151286.
In addition to these phase change type optical recording media using chalcopyrite compounds, JP-A's 4-267192, 4-232779 and 6-166268 disclose phase change type optical recording media wherein an AgSbTe.sub.2 phase forms upon the crystallization of a recording layer.
For the phase change type optical recording medium, a recording layer is usually formed using vacuum deposition equipment or the like, and so is in an amorphous state just after formation. The recording layer must be crystallized by an operation generally known as initialization before the recording media can be utilized as rewritable media. In the initialization operation the recording layer is crystallized by heating, and slow cooling. After initialization, the recording layer is irradiated with rewriting or overwriting laser beam, whereupon the recording layer melts at a spot with recording power applied thereon. Then, the temperature of the region drops quickly so that the region becomes substantially amorphous or microcrystalline to form a recorded mark having a lowered reflectance. On the other hand, no change is found in a region with erasing power applied thereon, so that the reflectance of the region can be on much the same level as obtained upon initialization. When it is desired to rewrite the recorded information, recording power is applied on another region of the recording layer which is to become a new recorded mark while erasing power is applied on the remaining regions. Whether the recording material is crystalline or amorphous (microcrystalline) before irradiation, all regions with recording power applied thereon provide recorded marks of amorphous or microcrystalline nature while all regions with erasing power applied thereon become crystalline, so that overwrite recording can be done.
Among basic characteristics the phase change type optical recording medium should have, there are the degree of modulation, recording sensitivity, etc. Insofar as the change phase type optical recording medium forming an AgSbTe.sub.2 phase is concerned, however, nothing is known about what crystallographic structure of a recording layer makes these basic properties satisfactory; it is still difficult to make sure of an optical recording medium well improved in terms of such properties.
Prior art phase change type recording media require to repeat rewriting several times after initialization until a constant rate of erasure is reached. In most cases, rewriting is generally repeated about ten times before performance rating is carried out. The reason why the rate of erasure of the phase change type optical recording medium with the formation of an AgSbTe.sub.2 phase remains unstable upon rewriting immediately after initialization appears to be that the formation of an AgSbTe.sub.2 or In-Te crystalline phase is incomplete, although details of the mechanism involved have yet to be clarified.
One object of the present invention is to achieve a phase change type optical recording medium having high degree of modulation and recording sensitivity. Another object of the present invention is to achieve a phase change type optical recording medium having already stable write/read characteristics at the time of the first rewriting.

Optical recording material, and optical recording medium


A vehicle steering apparatus (10) includes a first gear (16) which is rotatable about an axis (21), and a second gear (14) having gear teeth (18) in meshing engagement with gear teeth (20) on the first gear (16). The apparatus further comprises an adjustment mechanism (22) for moving the first gear (16) in one direction along the axis (21) to reduce clearance between the meshing gear teeth (18, 20). The adjustment mechanism (22) includes a first threaded member (64), a second threaded member (90) and a ratchet drive (98). The first threaded member (64) is movable along the axis (21) in the one direction to move the first gear (16) along the axis in that direction. The second threaded member (90) is screwed together with the first threaded member (64) such that rotation of the second threaded member (90) causes axial movement of the first threaded member (64). The ratchet drive (98) is interposed between the first gear (16) and the second threaded member (90), and rotates the second threaded member (90) selectively when lash between the meshing gear teeth (18, 20) provides the clearance.

The present invention relates to a lash adjustment assembly which is effective to reduce clearance between teeth of gears in a vehicle steering apparatus.
A known lash adjustment assembly is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,884,091. U.S. Pat. No. 3,884,091 discloses an adjustment assembly for moving a first gear along a first axis to reduce clearance between teeth of the first gear and a second gear. A shaft extension of the first gear rotatably supports a pair of cams. The cams are fixed together to provide cam slots. The cam slots are engaged by cam elements of a support cam non-rotatably fixed to a housing. The cams are rotatably biased in an up ramp direction relative to the support cam by a spring to effect axial adjustment of the first gear. A cam locking device is connected to the cams to permit axial adjustment only when the steering gear is centered and to prevent axial adjustment during turning of the steering gear in either direction from the centered position.


A pig launching system comprising a first pipe portion connected to a second pipe portion at a pipe intersection; a pig carrier located at the pie intersection; and the pig carrier comprising a plurality of pigs in a cylinder, an opening in the carrier aligned with the first pipe portion, and an indexing system adapted to move one of the pigs to the opening.

1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a subsea pig handler system.
2. Background Art
PCT Patent Publication WO 2009/133027 discloses an apparatus and method of producing gaseous and liquid component streams from at least two multi-phase streams in at least two pipelines, the method comprising at least the steps of: (a) passing a first multi-phase stream along a first pipeline and through a first slugcatcher system; (b) passing a second multi-phase stream through a second pipeline and a second slugcatcher system, (c) passing a first pig down the first pipeline to create a first pig-slug mass in the first pipeline; and (d) passing at least a fraction of the first multi-phase stream upstream of the first pig-slug mass to the second pipeline along a crossover line. WO 2009/133027 is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,530,398 discloses a system for assuring subsea hydrocarbon production flow in pipelines by chilling the hydrocarbon production flow in a heat exchanger and causing solids to form, periodically removing deposits and placing them in a slurry utilizing a closed loop pig launching and receiving systems. U.S. Pat. No. 7,530,398 is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.


Disclosed are systems, methods, and computer program products for simplifying the use of an online service by linking different devices into a single profile when making online purchases. An example method comprises determining that the user has begun working with the online service; determining the device that the user is employing to work with the online service; determining whether the device is new or not by checking a user profile; when the device was not determined as being known in the user profile, adding the device to a user profile associated with the user; and downloading all necessary data from the user profile to the online service.

Online purchases have become very common due to a number of benefits as compared to ordinary purchases—the buyer does not have to drive to the store, while the store itself can save on rent, which has a favorable impact on the end price.
The growth in popularity of online purchases has resulted in services for Internet purchases appearing also on mobile platforms, such as iOS and Android. At present, it is not very difficult to purchase a desired item from a notebook, a smartphone or a tablet.
It should be noted that different devices have different suitability for making online purchases. For example, with a notebook or stationary computer it is possible to familiarize oneself more fully with the future purchase, since the larger screen dimensions and the use of a windows interface as in the Windows or Mac OS operating systems), as well as the high operating speed let one do so without problem. At the same time, with a tablet one can do practically the same thing, while still remaining quite mobile, for example, while in transit or while taking a stroll. And with a smartphone one can make use of cellular communications to discuss possible pluses and minuses of a future purchase with a consultant.
Another problem has arisen at present, and it is related to the fact that the user may have more than one device. For example, the user has seen a new type of product from advertising on his smartphone, that same evening he uses his notebook to study the product in detail, and on the next day he makes the purchase using a tablet while on the way to work. But in this case the user is forced each time to go through the procedure of selecting the product again prior to its subsequent purchase. From the standpoint of the online service, it remains unclear which criteria the customer has used to find the product (reviews, functions supported, price, and so on), what other products he has looked at, what kind of technical reviews he has read, or which criteria he used to select the store (quality, speed of delivery, price).
Thus, there exists an unmet need in the art for a system to link all the user's devices into a single profile to keep current all the information requests of the user, including those involving online purchases.

System and method for linking multiple devices into a single profile when making online purchases


A shrink wrapping apparatus, and associated process, includes a housing (turbine) having a wall forming a passage dimensioned to receive the associated container assembly and associated sleeve. The passage has an inlet and an outlet spaced therefrom, and the inlet is located vertically above the outlet such that the associated container assembly and associated sleeve move from the inlet toward the outlet. A steam path communicates with the passage to provide steam from an associated steam source to at least a portion of the passage in order to shrink wrap the associated sleeve on the associated container assembly as the container assembly and sleeve move downwardly through the passage and the steam naturally rises upwardly through the passage.

This invention relates to container assemblies, and sealing container assemblies, and particularly a container assembly of the type having a container or container body with an opening therein that provides access to a cavity formed in the container, and a cap or closure member that is preferably hingedly connected to the container, or may be a separate component that is received on or over the opening, to close or open the container and preclude/permit, respectively, selective access to the cavity.
The container and cap are preferably a polymer or plastic construction, e.g., typically a molded container assembly construction, where the container and cap are molded in the same machine when hingedly connected together, or the container and cap may be molded in separate machines when the container and cap are separate components. Once a container is filled with a desired product, and the cap closed over the container opening, it is common to also heat shrink a thin, flexible plastic sleeve over the capped container, where at least a portion of the heat shrunk sleeve extends over each of the cap and container, i.e., the sleeve shrink seals over the interface region of the cap and container. In this manner, the heat shrink sleeve serves to retain the cap in a closed condition with the container, and also the sleeve advantageously acts as a tamper evident feature for the container assembly.
Typical shrink sleeve machines are built with horizontal conveyors to feed the sleeve and tubes through the sealing process. Shrink sleeve steamer machines are bulky, expensive, hard to operate, require extensive time to set up, use large amounts of water, and are not easily adaptable to various size tubes or containers. Moreover, operation of a plastic shrink sleeve machine requires a skilled employee which adds an additional burden and cost to the employer. Careful control of the shrink sleeve operation is also required, particularly where the content or product stored in the container is sensitive to elevated temperatures. For example, elevated temperatures may cause certain types of product/content to stick to an interior surface of the container that forms the cavity.
Horizontal conveyors are commonly used and numerous steam nozzles and long process tunnels are required to process the plastic shrink sleeves, e.g., numerous seconds are required to process the containers and shrink sleeves (time that can compromise packaged products). Therefore, a careful balance is required between sufficient heat/elevated temperatures to ensure proper shrink sleeve application to the container assembly versus an extensive resident time in the shrink sleeve machine that potentially adversely impacts product stored in the container assembly.
Another problem relates to printing used on the shrink wrap sleeves applied to the container. Printing on the sleeve prior to shrink wrapping the sleeve has the potential to distort the print. Further, in some instances, the print information may not be learned until just prior to installing the sleeve to the container, e.g., a batch number is required on the sleeve, and yet the batch number is not available until just prior to application on the container. This causes the sleeve and/or container supplier to incur additional expense or handling in an effort to accommodate the last minute inclusion of this information into the print on the sleeve. One solution would be to create the sleeve with a desired design, and/or with some of the printed material that can be included on the sleeve and will not be subject to the distortion issues, or is not part of the last minute information that is required on the packaged container, i.e., the closed container sealed within the shrink wrap sleeve. Application of a label would be desirable where the last-minute information can be added just prior to packaging (i.e., shrink wrapping the sleeve to the container). The industry does not use this solution because the printed label does not work well in the high temperature steam environment of the shrink wrap sleeve applied to the container.
A need exists for an improved arrangement that provides at least one or more of the above-described features, as well as still other features and benefits.

Steam shrink wrap sleeve with printed label for container and associated method


A power distribution system, in particular a power strip, includes one or more modules. The module housing typically approximates the shape of a rectangular or triangular block. In a preferred embodiment, the module approximates a cube and provides six major surfaces, each approximately at right angle to its neighboring major surfaces. Preferably, one major surface provides a male plug, while each remaining major surface provides a single female electrical socket. Such a module is spatially compact, aesthetically and visually appealing, and relieves the excessive bulk of oversized plugs that would otherwise block access to one or more sockets. A single module offers a stand-alone socket adapter, while a plurality of compatible modules can be joined together to form an adjustable power strip. Modules can be distinguished, such as by color, to specify function or use, and compatible modules can be conveniently provided in a kit.

Power distribution systems, such as power strips, are commonly used to distribute a power input to multiple outlets, e.g., female connectors, sockets, jacks. A common example of such a system is a power strip, or variant thereof, which has one end that is fitted with an electrical plug, i.e., a male connector, and another end that is connected to a fixed housing that has multiple outlets.
Power strips are found in numerous settings, including household and work environments, where there are not enough built-in outlets to supply power to the desired electrical devices. Common devices that frequently rely on power strips include televisions, home entertainment systems, videocassette recorders, DVD players, cable boxes, speakers, stereos, compact disk players, lights, lamps, etc, Likewise, many kitchens today rely on such systems to distribute power to multiple appliances, such as coffer makers, can-openers, food processors, juicers, microwaves, blenders, and toaster ovens, etc. More generally, the advent of the electronic age has increased the need for such power distribution systems. Computer systems, for example, typically depend on power strips to distribute electricity to printers, scanners, digital cameras, back up drives, multiple monitors, external speakers, etc.
Despite their widespread use and increasing prevalence, known power strips have significant shortcomings. First, electrical outlets in such systems are spaced tightly together, typically in the same orientation. But this can lead to several problems. Because plugs vary greatly in size, shape, and orientation, a large plug can block one or more adjacent outlets, precluding access. And even if adjacent outlets are not blocked, their close proximity often makes it difficult to insert or remove one or more plugs. Fueling this frustration is the increasing need for bulky plugs, such as AC/DC adapter plugs with transformers, resulting from the growing demand for electronic and computer devices.
A second limitation is that known power strips often have a bulky, static housing with a fixed number of outlets. But this renders such systems cumbersome and inconvenient to transport, especially when a user requires only a subset of outlets. More generally, the bulky shape contributes to an unsightly appearance and can result in a safety hazard if the system is placed near foot traffic etc. Consequently, known power strips are usually placed in hidden, hard-to-reach locations, further impeding access and use.
Thus, there is a need in the art for power distribution systems that improve access to bulky electrical plugs, provide a spatially compact design, and can adjust in conformance with a user's needs and preferences. The present invention addresses these and other needs in the art by providing a power distribution system based on one or more modules.


The present disclosure may provide a detector module of an imaging apparatus. The detector module may include a detector assembly configured to detect a signal associated with an object; a cover assembly configured to accommodate the detector assembly; and at least one cooling assembly operably coupled to the cover assembly. The at least one cooling assembly may be configured to cool the detector assembly by providing a cooling medium to the cover assembly.

In the medical imaging field, an imaging system, e.g., a positron emission tomography (PET) system, a tomography-computed tomography (CT) system, is used to acquire imaging data and reconstruct one or more images showing the anatomy and/or a physiological process of an object in either health or disease state. For illustration purposes, the CT system includes an X-ray tube and a detector module. The X-ray tube emits X rays towards the object. The detector module receives attenuated X rays passing through the object and detects and/or processes signal(s) (e.g., electrical signal(s)) thereof. Further, the signal(s) are further used to reconstruct the image(s). Usually, the detector module generates a large amount of heat, e.g., during receiving the attenuated X rays, detecting and/or processing the signal(s) thereof. If the heat is accumulated to a certain extent, the detector module fails to function properly and the signal(s) are inaccurate, thereby affecting the accuracy of the image(s) reconstructed based on the inaccurate signal(s).
Besides, the detector module usually includes a plurality of detector components arranged in rows and/or columns, so that the detector module has a certain width and/or length to efficiently receive the X rays passing through the object. One or more detector components located at a central region of the detector module generate more heat than one or more detector components close to the end(s) of the detector module. Additionally, heat dissipation in the detector module is relatively slow because of a limited heat exchange coefficient of the material of the detector module. Therefore, in comparison with the detector components close to the end(s) of the detector module, the heat generated at the central region of the detector module slowly or merely dissipates, thereby causing overheating and/or a temperature gradient in different positions of the detector module. For illustration purposes, the detector components at the central region of the detector module may have higher temperatures than those close to the end(s) of the detector module. Accordingly, the responses of the plurality of detector components are inconsistent and the signal(s) are inaccurate, thereby affecting the accuracy of the reconstructed image(s). Besides, the heat also affects the service life, the stability and/or work efficiency of the detector module.
To solve the problems, current ways include cooling the detector module by providing a cooling medium (e.g., a cooling gas). For illustration purposes, the detector module may include one or more fans located at one or more sides of the detector module, which allows the cooling gas to flow between different sides of the detector module and cool the detector module. However, the cooling efficiency of the fan(s) is limited because of a limited size of the fan(s), so that only using the fan(s) to allow the cooling gas to flow between different sides of the detector module is insufficiently to efficiently solve the problem of overheating and/or the temperature gradient. Besides, in some cases, the gas inside the detector module is in fluid communication with the gas outside the detector module, thus it is also time-consuming to cool the detector module. Thus, it is desirable to provide a detector module that can be evenly and quickly cooled, thereby ensuring the accuracy of signal(s) associated with an object detected and/or processed by the detector module and the quality of image(s) reconstructed based on the signal(s).

SHANGHAI UNITED IMAGING HEALTHCARE CO., LTD.