The tire driving optimization system may include a first tire that is disposed at one side of a vehicle to transmit driving torque from an engine to a road surface, a second tire that is disposed at the other side of the vehicle to transmit driving torque from the engine to a road surface, an accelerator pedal that is operated by a driver so as to control a fuel injection amount that is injected into the engine, and a control portion configured to determine a first consumption energy value that is consumed through the first tire and a second consumption energy value that is consumed through the second tire, and to adjust engine output based on the first consumption energy value and the second consumption energy value if the vehicle is unstable.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a tire driving optimization system and control method, and more particularly to a tire driving optimization system for adjusting an engine output to optimize driving of a vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
Generally, a tire for a vehicle is mounted on a wheel that is fixed to an axle, absorbs impacts that are transmitted from a road surface, and has a structure to minimize slip amount with the road surface.
However, when the road state is poor, that is, when it rains or snows, the friction coefficient of the tire and the road is lowered, and therefore the drive tire slips on the road.
Particularly, when the driver manipulates a steering wheel, an under-steer or over-steer phenomenon can be generated, and so a high degree of skill is demanded for driving.
Accordingly, snow-tires or chains are used so as to prevent the slip between the tire and the road, and particularly to prevent a slide on a snow-covered road in winter.
However, the snow tire or the chain needs to be present in the vehicle and it is also troublesome to use.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

Tire driving optimization system and control method thereof


A reusable gift wrap assembly includes two discrete sleeves that are together configured to conceal exterior surfaces of a gift box upon covering the gift box with the sleeves. Each sleeve includes two material layers that are connected together along a portion of their perimeter so as to define an interior pocket and an open end through which the gift box is inserted. One of the sleeves includes a free open end that is positioned to at least partially overlap a free open end of other sleeve so as to conceal the free open end of the other sleeve when the sleeves are assembled onto a gift box. Each sleeve is formed from a resilient fabric material such that the sleeves can conform to gift boxes of varying shape and size.

As described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,983, packages can be gift wrapped using a number of separate steps and a variety of wrapping materials. The gift wrapping is normally cut to size before being folded around the package, then held in place while transparent adhesive tape is applied across the overlapping edges to secure the wrapping. The conventional wrapping process can be time consuming, cumbersome and wasteful. Disclosed herein is a practical, reusable gift wrap which fits a variety of box sizes and shapes.


A resistance welder controller controls a welding current flowing through an inverter transformer, detects the welding current flowing through the inverter transformer, measures an energizing time and a point time interval of the detected welding current, calculates a usage rate of the inverter transformer using the energizing time and the point time interval, stores an equivalent current curve indicating a relationship between a current value of the welding current and the usage rate of the inverter transformer when the inverter transformer is operated at a rated capacity, and determines whether a relationship between the current value and the calculated usage rate of the inverter transformer exceeds the rated capacity of the inverter transformer based on the equivalent current curve, continues an operation when the relationship does not exceed the rated capacity of the inverter transformer, and stops the operation when the relationship exceeds the rated capacity of the inverter transformer.

In recent years, high tensile steel plates having higher tensile strength than conventional steel plates have been used for automobile bodies in order to secure strength and reduce weight. When high tensile steel plates are spot-welded, it is necessary to energize a larger welding current for a longer time than when the conventional steel plates are spot-welded. Consequently, an inverter-type resistance welder that can set a wide range of welding conditions and perform high-quality welding is used to spot-weld the high tensile steel plates. In general, the inverter-type resistance welder is not used being continuously energized. Thus, as shown in JP H8-141747 A, the resistance welder is operated in consideration of a usage rate that is a ratio of time when the resistance welder can be energized within a fixed period of time.


A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) telemetry arrangement and process for a cochlear implant system are described. Electrode current is measured that is induced in a cochlear implant electrode lead during an MRI process performed on an implanted patient. An MRI telemetry signal for an external telemetry sensor is then output based on the measured electrode current.

A normal ear transmits sounds as shown in FIG. 1 through the outer ear 101 to the tympanic membrane (eardrum) 102, which moves the bones of the middle ear 103, which in turn vibrate the oval window and round window openings of the cochlea 104. The cochlea 104 is a long narrow duct wound spirally about its axis for approximately two and a half turns. The cochlea 104 includes an upper channel known as the scala vestibuli and a lower channel known as the scala tympani, which are connected by the cochlear duct. The scala tympani forms an upright spiraling cone with a center called the modiolar where the spiral ganglion cells of the auditory nerve 113 reside. In response to received sounds transmitted by the middle ear 103, the fluid filled cochlea 104 functions as a transducer to generate electric pulses that are transmitted to the auditory nerve 113, and ultimately to the brain. Hearing is impaired when there are problems in the ability to transduce external sounds into meaningful action potentials along the neural substrate of the cochlea 104.
In some cases, hearing impairment can be addressed by an auditory prosthesis system such as a cochlear implant that electrically stimulates auditory nerve tissue with small currents delivered by multiple stimulation contacts distributed along an implant electrode. FIG. 1 shows some components of a typical cochlear implant system where an external microphone provides an audio signal input to an external signal processing stage 111 which implements one of various known signal processing schemes. The processed signal is converted by the external signal processing stage 111 into a digital data format, such as a sequence of data frames, for transmission into a receiver processor in an implant housing 108. Besides extracting the audio information, the receiver processor in the implant housing 108 may perform additional signal processing such as error correction, pulse formation, etc., and produces a stimulation pattern (based on the extracted audio information) that is sent through an electrode lead 109 to an implanted electrode array 110 which penetrates into the cochlea 104 through a surgical opening in the outer surface of the cochlea 104. Typically, this electrode array 110 includes multiple stimulation contacts 112 on its surface that deliver the stimulation signals to adjacent neural tissue of the cochlea 104 which the brain of the patient interprets as sound. The individual stimulation contacts 112 may be activated sequentially, or simultaneously in one or more contact groups.
The widely used technique of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can pose various risks for patients with implantable electronic devices such as for example cochlear or vestibular implant systems. For example, in implants with elongated electrode leads containing at least one electrode wire having a terminal end forming an electrode contact, interactions with the induced RF pulses can lead to MRI-induced tissue heating near the elongated electrode leads and in particular adjacent the electrode contacts. At best, this may be just uncomfortable for the patient. At worst, such unintentional MRI-induced electrode lead currents may be dissipated within the tissue adjacent to the electrode contacts and thereby may overheat and damage this tissue. MRI-induced currents also can result in unintentional stimulation of the target neural tissue. This is particularly the case for cochlear and vestibular implants, because device design makes non-linear elements coupled to the at least one wire contained within the elongated electrode lead at the implant housing side necessary. Such non-linear elements may rectify the MRI-induced current that subsequently may unintentionally stimulate target neural tissue (e.g. with cochlear implants there may be unintentional auditory sensations during MRI).
Currently, MRI-related tissue heating caused by MRI-induced electrode lead currents, and in general within electrically conductive elongated implant structures, is avoided by having a prohibition against the use of MRI on patients having such implants. This may be either a complete prohibition against MRI, or a partial limit that permits only low-field MRI and/or low Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) values. Alternatively or in addition, electrode wire coiling may be used to improve safety with MRI. Such alternative solutions have proven to be less effective and/or may consume considerable space.
The strength of MRI-induced current effects depends on multiple factors such as electrode lead length, electrode contact size, MRI equipment/scanner, and MRI sequences used. Even MRI scanners using the same magnetic field strength may generate widely different local RF fields. The impedance, inductance and capacitance of the electrode circuit and the stimulator housing also have a significant influence on the strength of these effects. Due to the many different factors that are involved, no generally valid relationship can be established between SAR values, the RF-magnetic field, and the RF-electric field that is responsible for the induction of the MRI-induced current in the at least one wire contained in the elongated electrode lead.
In some cases additional temperature sensors can be incorporated into implantable electrode leads that can directly measure tissue or electrode contact or lead temperatures. But for implantable medical devices with thin implantable electrode leads that are placed close to heat sensitive target neural tissue, it is not feasible to add or embed such temperature sensors within or close to the electrode lead, because of the overriding requirements of flexibility and size and required temperature measurement accuracy. Such medical devices are for example cochlear and vestibular implants where the elongate electrode lead is inserted into the delicate structures of the scala tympani of the cochlear or vestibule of the vestibular system, respectively.

Telemetry of implanted electrode contacts during MRI


A solution is provided for associating network traffic traversing a networked environment according to a selected category item, such as a user name or other network entity identity-related information. The solution includes a collector and a monitor. The collector extracts a user name and a network address from an event log maintained on the networked environment. The monitor receives the network traffic and identifies at least one packet having a network address that matches the extracted network address. After at least one of the packets is identified, the collector associates the identified packet(s) with the extracted user name.

The term "computer network" generally refers to a system for enabling communication between or among computers or equivalent computing devices. When configured to include a server providing a directory service, the computer network becomes an integrated distributed computing environment, hereinafter "networked environment", where authenticated computing devices and users of these devices can utilize network resources, such as by using or sharing data or attached peripherals, or communicate with each other. Communication on a networked environment is commonly achieved by using a "network packet," or sometimes simply referred to as a "packet." The term "network traffic" is commonly used to refer to either a single packet or collective group of packets that are traversing on the networked environment at a given moment.
Access to these network resources are typically governed by an authentication process. In the context of network security, authentication is a process of verifying the identity claimed by a network entity, such as a user, sometimes referred to as a real user, seeking access to the networked environment. Authentication typically includes requiring the real user to engage in a logon process by entering a user name and password on a computing device or equivalent network entity. The device will request credentials from an authentication service provided by the networked environment. If the authentication service successfully authenticates the submitted user name, it returns a session key which permits the real user to obtain access to network resources, including data, limited typically only by the security policy defined for that authenticated user name. This session key has a limited lifetime and usually remains valid until the authenticated user name is logged off by the real user employing the user name. In addition, network event logging may also be used to record information pertaining to certain events that occur on the networked environment, including for example, logon attempts, whether successful or not, made during the authentication of a user name, and logoff events.
However, the above approach for limiting and governing access to network resources to a networked environment has its limitations. Network logon authentication relies on a trusted computing concept. Once a user name is authenticated, that user name becomes a trusted network entity on the networked environment and has access to network resources, such as data, on the networked environment usually limited by only the security policy defined for that authenticated user name and the lifetime of the session key granted. Monitoring of the real user's activities on the networked environment after authentication is thus limited to network authentication event log information, which provides a limited amount of information that renders difficult any attempt to ascertain the real user's activities on the networked environment. Consequently, a need exists for monitoring network traffic, and more particularly, for associating certain packets according to a selected category, such as identity information, including user name, group id, organization unit, user object, host name or other category, by using event log information maintained on the networked environment.

Monitoring network traffic by using event log information


A steel mother pipe obtained by a solid phase butt-welding pipe-making process or a welding pipe-making process is reduced by heating the pipe prior to the reduction at a temperature exceeding 100.degree. C. and lower than 800.degree. C. wherein the temperature of the steel pipe being reduced is controlled within a defined range. The temperature difference along the circumferential direction of the mother pipe at the inlet side of a reducer is within a defined range, and the temperature of the steel pipe at interstand positions of the reducer is also controlled. By virtue of this control, the reduction becomes possible at low load while suppressing work hardening without degrading surface properties. The resultant product pipe has a dimensional accuracy maintained at a high level.

As a method for preparing a steel pipe with a relatively small diameter from a steel strip, two processes are known including a solid phase welding pipe-making process (i.e. a solid phase pressure-welding pipe-making process) such as a butt-welding process wherein an open pipe formed by continuously forming a steel strip in the form of a pipe is entirely heated to high temperatures and is pressure-welded at both edges thereof, and a welding pipe-making process wherein an open pipe is welded at both edges thereof such as by electric resistance welding, laser welding or the like.
The solid phase welding process is usually adapted for mass production of small diameter pipes with an outer diameter of 115 mm or below. However, this process is disadvantageous in that since the open pipe is heated to high temperatures from the outer peripheries thereof, a scale loss becomes so great that the resultant product becomes poor in surface texture. On the other hand, with the welding process, only both edges of the open pipe are heated to temperatures higher than the melting point at the time of the welding. The portions other than the edges are in a cold condition of 100.degree. C. or below. Thus, the problem of the surface roughening as experienced in the solid phase welding process does not arise. However, this process is a cold process, so that it is necessary to prevent the occurrence of slip defects as will be caused between pipe-making tools, such as a caliber roll, and the open pipe, and to take a measure for suppressing a forming load. Thus, the production efficiency becomes poor. In addition, because the use of caliber rolls which are in conformity with the dimension of a product steel pipe is essential, the welding process is not suited for the small lot and multikind manufacture of steel pipes.
In order to overcome the disadvantages involved in the steel pipe-making method using the solid phase butt-welding process or the welding process, methods of the cold reducing of a steel pipe by welding processes have been proposed as disclosed such as in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication Nos. 63-33105 and 2-187214.
When, however, a steel pipe obtained by a welding process is subjected to the cold reduction, a great rolling load is required. This, in turn, inevitably requires the installation of a lubricating rolling device for preventing galling or seizing defects with the roll, or the installation of a large-scale mill which can stand use under the great rolling load. Moreover, when a steel strip is formed into a stock pipe (i.e. an open pipe), the strain of the forming is established, to which the work strain caused during the course of the cold reduction is added. Hence, the steel suffers a considerable degree of the work strain, with the attendant problem that after the making of the pipe, a thermal treatment step has to be added.
Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. 2-24606 and Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 60-15082, there have been proposed methods where a steel pipe obtained by a welding process is hot reduced.
However, after the steel pipe formed by this welding process has been hot reduced, the mother pipe is again heated to 800.degree. C. or above in a reheating furnace. The brings about a fresh scale loss, coupled with another problem that when reduced, scale inclusion is induced.
An object of the invention is to solve the problems of the prior art and to provide a method and apparatus for reducing a steel pipe wherein a steel mother pipe prepared according to a solid phase joint or welding process or a welding process is reducible at low load and while suppressing work hardening without worsening the surface properties and wherein the dimensional accuracy of a product steel pipe can be maintained at a high level.

Method of preparing a steel pipe, an apparatus thereof and a steel pipe


A semiconductor memory device includes a semiconductor substrate, a first transistor formed on the semiconductor substrate and including a first gate electrode and first and second diffusion layers, a first contact connected to the first diffusion layer, a first conductive oxygen barrier film electrically connected to the first contact and covering at least the upper surface of the first contact, a first ferroelectric capacitor including a first electrode, a second electrode, and a first ferroelectric film interposed between the first and second electrodes, and a first connecting member connected to the first electrode and to the first conductive oxygen barrier film.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor memory device having a ferroelectric capacitor and a method of manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a nonvolatile memory using a ferroelectric capacitor (FeRAM), as disclosed in, for example, Jpn. Pat. KOKAI Publication No. 10-255483, attracts attentions as one of semiconductor memory devices.
The memory cell of the FeRAM is constructed, for example, as follows. Specifically, a gate electrode is formed on a semiconductor substrate and a pair of source/drain diffusion layers is formed in surface region of the semiconductor substrate in a manner to have the gate electrode sandwiched therebetween, thereby forming a transistor. An interlayer insulating layer is formed on the transistor, and a first contact connected to one of the source/drain diffusion layers of the transistor is formed in the interlayer insulating layer. A second contact is formed on the first contact, and a ferroelectric capacitor including a lower electrode, a ferroelectric film and an upper electrode is connected to the second contact.
In the conventional structure described above, the ferroelectric capacitor is formed first, followed by forming the second contact connected to the first contact. Therefore, it is known to the art that, if an opening for the second contact is formed on the first contact, damage is done to the ferroelectric capacitor. In order to overcome the damage done to the ferroelectric capacitor, it is necessary to carry out a heat treatment under a high temperature after formation of the opening for the second contact.
However, the first contact is formed of a material that is easily oxidized such as W (tungsten). Therefore, if an oxygen annealing is carried out under a high temperature in order to overcome the damage done to the ferroelectric capacitor, the first contact is oxidized, with the result that it was impossible to carry out an oxygen annealing under a high temperature. Such being the situation, it was impossible to overcome completely the damage done to the ferroelectric capacitor, leading to reduction of the yield.

Semiconductor memory device having ferroelectric capacitor and method of manufacturing the same


A method of inserting repeaters into a network to improve timing characteristics of the network. Extraction and timing tools provide an RC network description and a slack report describing electrical and timing characteristics of a network. The timing characteristics include required arrival times of a signal generated at a source to each of the sinks of the network. A maximum slew rate is also defined at each of the sinks. Initial candidate locations for insertion of repeaters is determined. For a given set of legal repeater sizes, one or more sets of midvalue repeater sizes are determined which are used in successive approximation to identify actual repeater sizes to be considered at each of the candidate locations. At each candidate location, capacitance, required arrival time, and slew rate value (c, q, s) are determined in a bottom-up procedure. Suboptimal and invalid (c, q, s) choices at each candidate location are eliminated during successive iterations of the bottom-up procedure until the source node is reached. Further, one or more of the candidate locations are also eliminated. When the source device is reached, the (c, q, s) values are determined at the source for the given size of the source. The particular combination of (c, q, s) values at the descendant nodes relative to the source that provide a maximum q value at the source are selected, and this procedure is repeated in a top-down traversal to identify the best solution for the net for the particular repeater sizes being used.

The present invention relates to integrated circuit design and more particularly to inserting repeaters in a single source, multi destination distributed RC network for reducing delay.
Repeater insertion has become an important tool for present day design of integrated circuits (IC). Delays in a long interconnect in an IC can be reduced only to a certain extent by having a large driver. As the signal propagates through the resistive interconnect, signal attenuation causes the delay per unit length to increase. Insertion of the repeaters along the interconnect restore strength of the signal at the output of the repeater to the power rail level, thus reducing delay. Repeater insertion also restores signal strength in nets with a large fan-out in which a single source attempts to drive a large number of destinations, otherwise referred to as sinks. Interconnect delay cannot be reduced indefinitely by inserting a large number of repeaters. This is because the signal experiences an intrinsic delay of the repeater while propagating through the repeater. Thus, there is an optimum number of repeaters which achieves the minimum delay.
As used throughout this disclosure, a repeater is a buffer that can be either inverting or non-inverting. Usually, a pre-designed repeater library is used comprising any number of available buffers with corresponding sizes. Thus, repeater sizes are discrete in the library and are not continuous. Different size repeaters offer different intrinsic delays, input loading and drive capabilities. In a general situation, the most delay reduction is obtained by placing different size repeaters at different places in a net.
A large category of interconnects comprises a single driver that connects to multiple sinks. The topology of the interconnections between a single driver, otherwise referred to as a root or source, and the sinks to which the root is connected is usually referred to as a tree. Repeater insertion into a tree structure may be achieved by solving two sub problems. The first problem is locating places along the tree where repeaters will be placed. The second problem is determining the sizes of the repeaters to be placed at the selected locations.
One researcher has proposed a dynamic programming methodology for inserting repeaters in a tree structure. A bottom-up approach is utilized to select a subset of given locations on the tree to place repeaters. During the bottom-up traversal, candidate locations are visited one by one. At each candidate location, all possibilities are considered such as not placing a repeater or placing a repeater from all of the available sizes. These choices give rise to a partial solution set. A technique is further identified to identify the partial solutions which are sub optimal for the complete solution. The sub optimal solutions are pruned or otherwise rejected. The rest of the solutions are propagated up the tree. The bottom-up traversal is followed up by a top-down traversal which provides the optimal solution.
The technique just described attempts to reduce Elmore delay. Elmore delay is known to be an upper bound for the actual delay in RC networks. The above described technique however fails to adequately account for controlling the signal slew rate or the rise/fall times of the signal. Although minimizing critical delays are important, other factors such as controlling slew rate have become equally critical in today""s sub-micron IC technologies. Repeater insertion helps to maintain good signal slew rate because the inserted repeaters restore signal strength. However, in certain situations, repeater insertion minimizes the delay in a critical path by isolating a non-critical path with a small-sized repeater placed in the non-critical path. As a result, repeater insertion may aggravate signal slew rate. It is important to explicitly consider the signal slew rate while inserting repeaters for minimizing critical delays.
Incorporating slew rate to obtain an accurate delay model is not straight forward. Slew must be propagated from the input of the driver to the sinks. But since repeaters along the RC tree have not yet been placed and sized, an input slew cannot be propagated.
Extension to the above described method have been proposed to include slew rate. In one technique, repeater sizes and wire widths are considered simultaneously to optimize the Elmore day. The basic algorithm is extended to include slew rate and to optimize power. Although the slew rate is not computed explicitly, the contribution of non-zero slew in the delay model is incorporated. The slew rate at the input of a given stage is assumed to be proportional to the delay in the previous stage. The slew rate is incorporated by adding an additional delay component that is a function of the delay in the previous stage and the repeater size in the current stage. The slew model, however, introduces additional complication in the basic algorithm. The delay in the previous stage is not known during a bottom-up traversal of the tree. Thus identifying and eliminating sub optimal solutions must be deferred thereby increasing the memory and run time complexity.
Other approaches to include slew rate have been proposed. In one solution, a moment based accurate delay model is used to allow for slew. However, since the slew is not known at the input of a repeater being inserted at a candidate location, it is assumed that the input slew is a given constant. This technique is determined to be inadequate since it is known that slew is variable and not constant. Another more rigorous approach was also proposed. Moment based computations are utilized to obtain transfer functions and loading effects for accurate RC modeling. Transfer functions are computed in a bottom-up traversal for different segments of the RC tree. Since the delay due to these accurate transfer functions are not additive, unlike the Elmore delay, convolution of transfer functions are needed to obtain a delay in a path containing more than a single segment. Furthermore, since slew rate at the input of a repeater is not known, the delay is computed for an array of slew rate values. Thus, pruning sub optimal solutions must be deferred. This technique, therefore, is not desirable since it is computation intensive requiring substantial computer resources for circuits of any significant size.
It is desired to provide a technique to place repeaters in a network to reduce delay and properly account for slew rate. It is desired to provide an approach that is not computationally intensive. Further, it is desired to reduce the number of inserted repeaters to a practical level, since repeaters consume valuable power and real estate on the IC.

Method and apparatus for placing repeaters in a network of an integrated circuit


Bus master for use in computer system includes logic for determining the number of words remaining to be transferred in a DMA operation to supply signals to permit arbitration to start for the next DMA request, thereby avoiding an idle cycle. A timeout state machine is also included to prevent the bus master state machine from hanging in a state with no exit. Errors can be masked to permit analysis of system problems.

This invention relates to system resource controllers and particularly to bus masters accessing system resources via a bus.
Large data processing systems include many resources and many demands on the resources. The number and diversity of the resources and the devices that access the resources are so great that the system processor cannot efficiently control the interaction among all the resources and devices. Direct memory access was developed to permit memory accesses by devices without requiring processor intervention. DMA controllers are commercially available and are programmable so that their operation can be tailored to a particular system.
When several devices contend for access to the system resources, usually the buses connecting devices and resources, the access is granted one of the contenders on the basis of arbitration. Devices are assigned priorities so that the faster devices can transfer the data that accumulates at a high rate.
When one device attains control of the resource, it may make several data transfers. When finished, it relinquishes control of the resource. Then arbitration for access by another device can be initiated.
The time for making data transfers is now measured in nanoseconds so the systems can operate at fast rates. Even at high speeds, it is desirable to make the system operation as efficient as possible.
When a device releases a resource, the arbitration for the next access takes a cycle during which the resource is idle.
Sometimes a device will hang up because of a malfunction such as addressing a nonexistent location or resource which results in a lack of response so that the device does not continue its operation.
Another problem that arises in large, complicated systems is that after a system has been constructed, it does not operate as designed. Errors occur and the system is halted.
These problems are solved by the present invention by determining when one or two more transfers remain in an access by a device and supplies signals that permit the arbitration to be made during the last transfer so that the next device access can commence in the cycle following the last transfer by the preceding device.
The device is reset by a timer that measures the elapsed time between steps in the sequence of transferring data. Too much time between steps indicates that the device is hung up.
By selectively masking the errors from stopping the device, the system problems can be analyzed and corrected.
A device is usually controlled by a bus master that assumes control of a bus when access is granted and supplies the signals necessary to make the data transfers. In the broadest sense, the bus master is a system resource master because access to resources other than buses may be required.
Page printers are so named because they operate by composing an entire page before printing as contrasted to line printers which print a line at a time. The advantage of page printers is that graphics, images, and data can be easily composed on a single page very quickly. Page printers are usually laser types and print one hundred or more pages per minute. Page printers can also print text and images in varying orientations, i.e., in any of the four 90-degree rotations on the page to support landscape and portrait orientations as well as duplex and tumble duplex.
Storing all the text font and image data for each of the four possible orientations would require an inordinate amount of memory so logic circuits used to rotate fonts and images to the desired orientation during data transfer using the image data arranged in quads, i.e., four-by-four arrays of pels, each pel being represented by a bit.
To compose an entire page requires a large amount of memory. At 240 pels per inch resolution, an 81/2-by-11 inch (A-size) page contains 5,385,600 pels. To compose one page while another is printing would require twice as much memory, viz., 10,771,200 bits at one bit per pel. To reduce memory requirements, printer control units are designed with only enough raster buffer memory to contain a small width or swath of pels to be printed on each page. As a page is printed, the swath is filled with pels for each successive portion of the page.
The swath is composed in a raster buffer, so named because the laser printhead causes the page to be printed in raster fashion. Whenever an image is larger than the swath width, the image must be subdivided into rectangular tiles that will fit in the swath buffer. (This subdivision is called tessellation.)
In accordance with the invention, a system resource master, which can be a bus master, for transferring data via a system resource such as a bus, the access to the bus being arbitrated on the basis of request signals from a plurality of bus masters, includes supplying signals to continue access to the bus by holding off arbitration of access to the bus by other bus masters. Determination that a given number of transfers remain inhibits the supplied signals so that arbitration for access to the bus can be initiated while the remaining transfers are made.
The bus master sequencer for controlling the steps involved in communicating with the bus has a timeout device for timing delays between steps controlled by the sequencer. The timeout device resets the sequencer when a predetermined time has elapsed between consecutive steps.
The sequencer is responsive to error signals for inhibiting the sequencer when an error occurs but the errors can be selectively prevented from inhibiting the sequencer.

Bus master with antilockup and no idle bus cycles

International Business Machines Corporation


The invention relates to a method and a device for determining and monitoring the degree of narcosis in a subject. The determination proceeds as follows. Auditory stimuli are generated by means of a stimulus generator (1). Response signals which signalize the response of the auditory chain to said stimuli are picked up by means of electrodes (4) on the patient's head (3). The response signals are converted by a digitizer into digital response signals. For each digital response signal, an implementation is generated by selecting a portion of the digital response signal. A signal processing means (7) is arranged, by means of which a first and a second mean signal of implementations is formed and by means of which the second mean signal is adapted to the first mean signal for forming an adapted mean signal. Finally, a waveform estimate of the adapted mean signal is formed with the aid of the signal processing means. For monitoring the degree of narcosis, it is possible either to study the actual waveform estimate or to determine and study some suitable parameter, which is dependent on the degree of narcosis, in the waveform estimate.

In connection with a surgical operation, it is often necessary to lower the patient's degree of consciousness to make it possible to carry out the operation. Therefore, the patient is put under anaesthetic. Anaesthesia in connection with surgical operations, however, is always combined with serious risks for the patient. Thus, the following serious, undesirable states may arise:
1. In spite of anaesthesia, the patient mentally experiences what is going on in the operating theatre. This can be experiences to be very unpleasant and can make the patient suffer mentally. PA1 2. The patient experiences pain but is not able to communicate with those around him. This state is very unpleasant and can make the patient suffer mentally. PA1 3. The patient dies owing to too high a degree of narcosis.
The states 1 and 2 occur owing to too low a degree of narcosis, whereas the state 3 is the result of over-dosing. Apart from the wish to prevent the above-mentioned serious consequences of incorrect dosing, there is a general wish to use as low a degree of narcosis as possible in order to shorten the time of awakening. This yields in a minimum effect on the patient and besides reduces the public nursing expense. Therefore there is a strong wish to be able to accurately determine the degree of narcosis, which is also called anaesthetic depth.
The monitoring of narcosis during surgical operation, however, is still a clinical problem. Modern surgery and the development of new anaesthetics have, if anything, accentuated this problem. Certainly the technical progress in the monitoring of narcosis has made it possible to follow vital parameters such as oxygen saturation, blood pressure, and the concentration of anaesthetic in the exhalation air. These possibilities, however, do not give a direct measure of the patient's anaesthetic depth, but they merely result in a rough picture of the patient's state. Moreover, there is a strong dependence on the type of anaesthetic used and the other drugs used in connection with the operation.
Progress in neurophysiological measuring methods has caused expectations of being able to continuously follow the patient's anaesthetic depth. In recent years, much research has been directed to the measuring of cerebral electric activities during anaesthesia and similar states with a reduced level of consciousness. A general example is the measuring of conventional EEG (electroencephalogram), which has not given any results. However, there have recently been reports on a so-called auditory evoked potential, i.e. an electric stimulus response to auditory stimulation, containing the necessary information. For comparison, it can be mentioned that EEG reflects the system at rest. Auditory evoked potential reflects the level of cerebral activities and is today used routinely for diagnosing hearing disorders by means of a brainstorm audiometer.
A brainstem audiometer registers the variation in voltage that occurs between two electrodes placed on the head when the brainstem and the auditory nerve are activated in acoustic stimulation. The response that is registered by the brainstem audiometer is part of an auditory electric response, AER, which is generated in the auditory chain, i.e. the auditory nerve and different parts of the brain, in acoustic stimulation.
The auditory electric response is usually divided in time as follows. Early responses (0-2 ms), quick responses (2-10 ms), medium-late responses (10-50 ms) and late or slow responses (50-300 ms).
In the range of early responses there is the summed-up action potential from the auditory nerve which is derived from the inner ear and the auditory nerve and which is registered by means of a technique called electrocochleography (EcoG). In the range of quick responses, there is the brainstem response that is generated in the auditory nerve and the brainstem and which consequently is registered by means of a technique called brainstem audiometry. In the range of slow responses, there is the auditory cortical response, which is substantially derived from the auditory part of the cerebral cortex and which is registered by means of a technique called cerebral cortex audiometry. The range of medium-late responses and the earlier part of the range of late or slow responses constitute the part of the auditory electric response that has been found to be the most interesting one to be studied for the purpose of determining the anaesthetic depth. In fact, this part of the auditory electric response is of different appearance at different anaesthetic depths. Besides, the changes are the same no matter what anaesthetic has been used.
For comparison, it can be mentioned that the early and quick responses, i.e. between 0 and 10 ms, change insignificantly during anaesthesia, and that the slow response changes, but its later part is also highly dependent on factors such as attention, sleep and sedatives, and therefore these responses are unreliable.
There is today a known method of measuring the anaesthetic depth by studying responses that are, above all, medium-late, but that can also be included in the range of late responses. The method is carried out by means of a modified brainstem audiometer. This brainstem audiometer is basically made up of three units, a registration unit comprising electrodes, amplifiers, filters and A/D converters; a stimulating unit comprising a signal generator, an amplifier and a sound generator; and a control unit/computer, to which the registration unit and the stimulating unit are connected. The control unit/computer coordinates the generation of sound and the collecting of data and processes the data values collected by means of the electrodes, and then finally presents the results.
The signals that one wants to measure are of the magnitude microvolt, while physiological noise signals from the rest of the brain, from the heart and the muscles can be of the magnitude hundreds of microvolt. Moreover, external noise signals may be present, in the form of electric or magnetic fields from the surrounding electric equipment or in the form of noise in the actual measuring equipment. The external noise signals can either be shielded or filtered off. The physiological noise signals are more difficult to handle. Thanks to the frequency band for the signals that one wants to measure being substantially known, the major part of the noise signals can be filtered off by means of said filters in the registration unit. However, there is a sufficient amount of noise signals in the frequency band for the signal that one wants to measure to make this disappear completely in the noise in the measured signal.
This problem is solved by means of averaging, which means that the signal one wants to measure is estimated by addition and means value calculation of a large number of individual, measured signals. These calculations take place in the control unit/computer. The addition of about one thousand measured signals is in many cases necessary in order to obtain an acceptable curve. By acceptable is meant that the above-mentioned change of the curve depending on the narcosis can be observed.
As mentioned above, the medium-late and late responses are taken into consideration. They are in the range of about 20-80 ms after the generation of the auditory stimulation. By applying the prior-art method for determining the narcosis, it thus takes, theoretically seen, at least 80 s to merely produce an acceptable curve, i.e. 1000 implementations each amounting to 80 ms. However, in practice the time is more than 2 min owing to the fact that the response must die away to a sufficient degree so as to prevent standing-wave ratios and interference phenomena from arising owing to overlapping responses. Certain circuit delays will also arise.
In continuous monitoring of narcosis in real time, quick responses are required. For this reason, one cannot rely on information that is several minutes of age. The above-described prior-art method and device for determining the anaesthetic depth therefore are not applicable in practice.

Method and device for determining and monitoring the degree of narcosis in humans


A bladder for containing a cushioning medium. The bladder includes open compartments which are created by welding or otherwise fastening a first bladder wall against a second bladder wall. The periphery of the bladder walls are welded or otherwise sealed together so that the bladder will contain a cushioning medium without leaking. The bladder is partially filled with cushioning medium so that it will be able to conform to the shape of a cushioned object and create a desired hammocking effect. The bladder is otherwise permanently attached to a base that is smaller than the bladder in at least one direction, resulting in a bladder which has loose skin and which has numerous random folds and creases on its skin. The base is a substantially non-stretchable fabric or other attachable non-stretch material. The cushioning medium is preferred to be lightly lubricated microspheres.

A. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of bladders for cushions which contain flowable cushioning medium. More particularly, this invention relates to a bladder for a cushion, the bladder containing flowable cushioning medium, and the bladder having spot welds which are through-sewn to a base which is smaller in surface area than the bladder itself.
B. The Background Art
There are many types of cushions in the prior art which contain flowable cushioning media. Such cushions, if designed correctly, have the excellent properties of overall pressure reduction and pressure equalization across the cushion. This is achieved because the flowable medium, which is always contained in one or more bladders, flows under the cushioning pressure to reshape itself to the object being cushioned. This creates a greater total surface area being cushioned (to reduce overall pressure) and equalizes pressure across the cushioned object's surface (reducing or eliminating pressure peaks at protruding portions of the cushioned object).
In all effective prior art cushions which contain flowable media, the bladder which contains the media is oversized such that it is only filled to a portion of its capacity. This results in loose bladder skin, allowing the pliable bladder to move with the flowing media in conforming to the cushioned object. Bladders that do not have loose skin prevent the media from freely reshaping, thus harming the cushioning capability of the cushion.
The typical prior art means of achieving loose skin is as follows. A flat bladder is created by welding plastic films together around the edge of the bladder (edge weld) and at certain locations within the interior of the flat bladder (spot welds). The bladder is filled to partial capacity with a fluid material and the fill port is sealed. The bladder is then "scrunched up" (i.e. compacted by creating random folds and creases on the bladder surface) by (1) adhering portions of it via hook and loop to a base which is smaller than the fully extended partially filled bladder; (2) stuffing the bladder into an open-faced cavity which is smaller than the fully extended partially filled bladder; or (3) a combination of 1 and 2. By constraining the bladder into an area which is smaller than the fully extended size, the bladder skin becomes wrinkled and loose. The problem with (1) is that hook and loop can too easily separate, or the hook or loop side can loose its adherence to the plastic film, and is thus not secure. Further, hook and loop is expensive both to procure and to apply. Even further, the user of the cushion may become confused when reassembling the cushion, and assemble it with the wrong hook areas attached to certain loop areas, etc., or may not center the hook areas on the loop areas properly, resulting in a cushion which is sloppy in appearance or has lost some of its functionality. The problem with (2) above is that the tray adds to the expense of the cushion. Further, any cavity rigid enough to contain the bladder under the cushioning pressure creates the risk of contacting the object being cushioned and creating pressure peaks. To prevent this contact, the cushioned object (e.g., a person) must be located in a precise location, and is not free to move or be moved around. This reduces the desirability of a cushion, particularly to a person that desires to move around on the cushion. Further, the cavity adds weight to the cushion. Still further, it is difficult to control the location of various parts of the bladder relative to various parts of the cavity, and a cushion with sloppy appearance is created.
Another method for obtaining loose skin is described and claimed in my co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/149,224, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,706, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. In brief, this includes the use of an elastomeric bladder which may be filled about 33% full with a flowable cushioning medium, although the bladder could be filled 10% to 95% of its volumetric capacity with flowable cushioning medium. A flowable cushioning medium used with that invention consists of lightly lubricated microspheres. This method of obtaining a loose bladder skin has the problems mentioned above related to hook and loop, or in the case of our current design, which puts individual bladders into a complex multi-cell fabric enclosure, adds substantial cost due to the sewing of the complex fabric. In any event, the use of many small bladders as opposed to one large bladder adds a great deal of cost because each bladder must be welded, trimmed, filled, and sealed.
Another prior art method for obtaining loose skin is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,201,780 and 5,255,404, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. This method includes a large flat bladder segmented by welds, each segment being filled to partial capacity with a fluid. The bladder is stuffed into crevices in a piece of foam that is smaller than the fully-extended but partially filled bladder, which results in desirable wrinkles and loose skin (i.e. random folding and creasing of the bladder skin). The problem with this method is that the fluid is constrained to stay in each segment and cannot freely flow throughout the cushion, thus limiting the degree of shaping of the cushion to conform to the shape of the cushioned object, and of the opportunity for the cushioned object to sinking into the cushion. The problem with this method is solved with the invention disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/149,224, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,706, by using cells of various sizes to pre-shape the cushion. The users of the method of the '780 and '404 patents try to compensate for its deficiencies by placing each segment atop a piece of foam, which allows more deformation than would be permitted without the foam. However, this is labor-intensive and does not result in a reliable product because the adhesive or hook and loop means used to locate each segment could separate. Another problem with this method is that the foam will break down over time, reducing the effectiveness of the cushion and making the cushion appear sloppier.
Another method of obtaining loose skin in fluid-filled cushion bladders is to mold the bladders in three dimensions instead of using flat bladders. For examples of this, the reader is directed to U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,163,196, 5,052,068, 4,698,864, 5,111,544, 5,369,828, 4,713,854, and 3,605,145, each of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. Such molding, vacuum forming, or pressure forming, however, is significantly more expensive than welding of flat films as in the other methods described above.
Accordingly, due to the various deficiencies in the prior art there is a need for a cushion bladder which has any combination of the following features listed below.
Other art which the reader should be aware of includes U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,485,505, 4,572,174, 4,498,205, 4,483,029, 4,247,963, 4,255,404, 3,893,198, 3,605,145, 2,814,053, 1,261,475, 5,163,196, 5,052,068, 4,698,864, 5,111,544, 5,369,828, 5,190,504, 5,335,907, 4,952,190, 3,748,779, 4,744,564, 3,518,786, 4,256,304, 5,204,154, 5,201,780, 5,147,685, 5,100,712, 5,093,138, 5,079,787, 5,079,786, 5,074,620, 5,058,291, 5,018,790, 5,015,313, 4,953,313, 4,952,439, 4,842,330, 4,761,843, 4,728,551, 4,726,624, 4,709,431, 4,467,053, 4,660,238, 4,588,229, 4,255,202, 4,243,754, 4,252,910, 4,229,546, 4,144,658, 4,083,127, 4,038,762, 3,986,213, 3,968,530, 3,748,669, 3,552,044, 3,529,368, 3,407,406, 5,103,518, 5,020,176, 5,010,608, 4,945,588, 4,292,701, 4,472,847, 3,462,778, 4,628,557, 2,672,183, 1,228,783, 5,421,874, 3,459,179, 4,163,297, 4,737,998, 2,491,557, 2,655,369, 4,713,854, 5,255,404, and 4,959,059, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. This art relates generally to the field of cushions, cushioning medium or seats and may be helpful to the reader in understanding the status of the art before the invention was made.

Puff-quilted bladders for containing flowable cushioning medium


Resource allocation logic for a computer system including a plurality of processors which share access to, and control of, a plurality of resources, such as disk drive units or busses. The resource allocation logic coordinates the execution of requests received from the processors to avoid resource sharing inefficiencies and deadlock situations. The allocation logic maintains a "request" queue for each processor, seeking to satisfy all requests quickly and fairly. The queues contain an entry corresponding to each request received from its corresponding processor and an identification of resources that are required by the entry's corresponding request. The allocation logic also maintains a "resources available" status array of resources which are not currently in use by any processors, or are not reserved for future use by any processors. The logic repeatedly compares each entry in the request queues with the entries in the resources available status array to detect an entry in the request queue identifying resources all of which are contained in the resources available status array. Once the allocation logic can satisfy a particular request, it signals a grant to the requesting processor for the resources requested. The requested resources are removed from the resources available status array. Upon conclusion of execution of the granted request, the resources are again released to the resource allocation logic for utilization by other resource requests. Additionally, each request queue contains a list age indicating the relative age of each request queue with respect to the other request queues, and each entry in the request queues includes a request age indicating the relative age of each entry in a request queue with respect to other entries in the request queue. In examining the request queues to identify I/O requests for execution, priority is awarded to entries based on the relative ages of the request queues and request queue entries.

Disk array storage devices comprising a multiplicity of small inexpensive disk drives, such as the 51/4 or 31/2 inch disk drives currently used in personal computers and workstations, connected in parallel are finding increased usage for non-volatile storage of information within computer systems. The disk array appears as a single large fast disk to the host system but offers improvements in performance, reliability, power consumption and scalability over a single large magnetic disk.
Most popular RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) disk array storage systems include several drives for the storage of data and an additional disk drive for the storage of parity information. Thus, should one of the data or parity drives fail, the lost data or parity can be reconstructed. In order to coordinate the operation of the multitude of drives to perform read and write functions, parity generation and checking, and data restoration and reconstruction, many RAID disk array storage systems include a dedicated hardware controller, thereby relieving the host system from the burdens of managing array operations. An additional or redundant disk array controller (RDAC) can be provided to reduce the possibility of loss of access to data due to a controller failure.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram representation of a disk array storage system including dual disk array controllers 11 and 13. Array controller is connected through a SCSI host bus 15 to host system 17. Array controller 13 is likewise connected through a SCSI host bus 19 to a host system 21. Host systems 17 and 21 may be different processors in a multiple processor computer system. Each array controller 11 has access to ten disk drives, identified by reference numerals 31 through 35 and 41 through 45, via five SCSI busses 51 through 55. Two disk drives reside on each one of busses 51 through 55. Disk array controllers 11 and 13 may operate in one of the following arrangements:
(1) Active/Passive RDAC
All array operations are controlled by one array controller, designated the active controller. The second, or passive, controller is provided as a hot spare, assuming array operations upon a failure of the first controller.
(2) Active/Active RDAC--Non Concurrent Access of Array Drives
One controller has primary responsibility for a first group of shared resources (disk drives, shared busses), and stand-by responsibility for a second group of resources. The second controller has primary responsibility for the second group of resources and stand-by responsibility for the first group of resources. For example, disk array controller 11 may have primary responsibility for disk drives 31 through 35, while disk array controller has primary responsibility for disk drives 41 through 45. PA1 Array controller 11 acquires bus 5 1 and disk drive 3 1 and is blocked from acquiring bus 53 and disk drive 33. PA1 Array controller 13 acquires bus 53 and disk drive 43 and continues arbitrating for bus 5 1 and disk drive 41. PA1 Array controller 11 acquires the single Host SCSI bus, identified by reference numeral 27 and is blocked from acquiring SCSI bus 51 and disk drive 31. PA1 Array controller 13 acquires SCSI bus 51 and disk drive 41, and is blocked from acquiring the host SCSI bus 15.
(3) Active/Active RDAC--Concurrent Access of Array Drives
Each array controller has equal access to and control over all resources within the array.
Providing each array controller with equal access to and control over shared resources may lead to resource sharing inefficiencies or deadlock scenarios. For example, certain modes of operation require that subgroups of the channel resources be owned by one of the array controllers. Failure to possess all required resources concurrently leads to blockage of the controller until all resources have been acquired. In a multiple controller environment obtaining some but not all the required resources for a given transaction may lead to resource inefficiencies or deadlock in shared resource acquisition.
Likewise, an array controller that provides hardware assist in generating data redundancy requires simultaneous data transfer from more than one drive at a time. As data is received from the drives or the host, it is passed through a RAID striping ASIC to generate data redundancy information that is either stored in controller buffers or passed immediately to a drive for storage. So that the data may be passed through the RAID striping ASIC from the multiple data sources concurrently, each controller must have access to multiple selected drive channels concurrently. Deadlock can occur if no means to coordinate access to the drive channels exists.
Two examples are given below to illustrate the deadlock situation in a two disk array controller environment.
Deadlock Condition 1:
Referring to FIG. 1, disk array controllers 11 and 13 are seen to share five SCSI buses 51 through 55 and the ten drives that are connected to the SCSI buses. Disk array controller 11 is requested to perform an I/O operation to transfer data from drives disk drive 31 and 33. Simultaneously, disk array controller 13 is requested to perform an I/O operation to transfer data from disk drives 41 and 43. Both disk controllers attempt to access the drives they need concurrently as follows:
Controller 1 now has SCSI bus 51 in use, and is waiting for disk drive 33 on SCSI bus 53 (owned by Controller 13). Controller 13 now has SCSI bus 53 in use, and is waiting for disk drive 41 on SCSI bus 51 (owned by Controller 11).
Deadlock Condition 2:
Deadlock can occur when multiple controllers are attached to the same host bus. This may occur when host SCSI bus 15 and host SCSI bus 19 are the same physical SCSI bus, identified as bus 27 in FIG. 2. Controller 11 is requested to perform an I/O operation requiring a transfer of data from disk drive 31 on SCSI bus 51 to host 17. Simultaneously, controller 13 is requested to perform an I/O operation requiring a transfer of data from disk drive 41 on SCSI bus 51 to host 21. Both controllers attempt access of the resources they need concurrently as follows:
Controller 11 now has the host SCSI bus 27 in use, and is waiting for access to SCSI bus 51 (owned by Controller 13.) so that it can connect to disk drive 31. Controller 13 now has SCSI bus 51 in use, and is waiting for access to the host SCSI bus 27 (owned by Controller 1.).
A method and structure for coordinating the operation of multiple controllers which share access to and control over common resources is required to eliminate resource sharing inefficiencies and deadlock situations.

Centralized management of resources shared by multiple processing units


An operating device for a motor vehicle lock having a door lock actuator includes a grip plate and a grip with one bearing arm that extends through the grip plate and is swivellably linked to a rear side of the grip plate via a bearing block by way of a plug-type shaft. A securing element for the plug-type shaft secures the latter against sliding-out. A protective covering, which at least partially covers the rear side of the grip plate, has at least one extension that serves as a securing element and is situated next to an end of the plug-type shaft.

This application claims the priority of German patent document 10 2004 015 136.9, filed Mar. 27, 2004, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention is directed to an operating device for a motor vehicle door lock.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,165 discloses an operating device of the above-mentioned type for a motor vehicle door lock on a vehicle tailgate. The operating device includes a grip plate which can be connected with the skin of the door. On the rear side of the grip plate, at least one bearing block is provided in which at least one bearing arm of a grip is swivellably linked via a plug-type shaft. The bearing arm penetrates the grip plate. Furthermore, the operating device has a securing element for the plug-type shaft which is formed by a deformed plug-type shaft head on the plug-type shaft itself.
German Patent Document DE 37 32 674 A1 discloses an operating device for a door lock in which a grip is disposed on the rear side of a grip plate. For this purpose, a plug-type shaft is provided which has a notch on its lateral surface. An elastically constructed claw that originates from the grip plate engages with the notch.
In addition, German Patent Document DE 198 09 449 A1 also relates to an operating device for a door lock, which has a grip plate with a slide-in shaft arranged on its rear side. A grip reaches through the grip plate and is disposed swivellably about a plug-type shaft in a bearing block. The bearing block, the grip and the plug-type shaft accommodated in the bearing block are inserted as a prefabricated unit into the slide-in shaft. By means of the wall of the slide-in shaft, the plug-type shaft is protected against a sliding-out.
One object of the invention is to provide an operating device of the initially mentioned type whose mounting is simplified.
Another object of the invention is to provide such an operating device which also affords optimized operational reliability.
These and other objects and advantages are achieved by the operating device according to the invention, in which the protective covering is mounted on the rear side, so that the plug-type shaft is secured against sliding-out. As a result, specially machined plug-type shafts with a widened head or the like are not necessary. In addition to securing the plug-type shaft, the protective covering has a safety function, because objects detaching inside the vehicle door (for example, in the event of a collision) are kept away from the rear side of the grip plate, and operational reliability of the operating device is optimized. For example, in the event of a collision, a glass pane arranged in the vehicle door may break, but the protective covering prevents pieces of glass from blocking the (particularly mechanical) door lock actuator. The operating device is preferably used as an exterior door grip operating device.
In one embodiment of the invention, the plug-type shaft is secured in two directions against sliding out of the bearing block. Moreover, in a preferred embodiment, the securing element has a roof-shaped construction which prevents penetration of foreign bodies in the area of the plug-type shaft.
According to still another embodiment of the invention, the grip-through opening for the door lock actuator is formed in the approximately vertically extending shell bottom, reducing the danger of a penetration of a foreign body.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Operating device for a motor vehicle door lock

Dr. Ing. h.c.F. Porsche Aktiengesellschaft


A high-temperature piping product is configured from a plurality of primary pipe members and a welding material. The primary pipe members are each made from an Ni-based forged alloy containing: Ni, Al, and at least one of Mo and W. The total content of the Mo and the W being 3-8 mass %. The Ni-based forged alloy exhibiting a γ′-phase dissolution temperature of from 920 to 970° C., and the γ′ phase being precipitated in 30 volume % or more in a temperature range of from 700 to 800° C. The welding material is made from an Ni-based cast alloy having a cast structure formed by welding. The Ni-based cast alloy containing: Ni, Al, and at least one of Mo and W, the total content of the Mo and the W being 9-15 mass %, the Ni-based cast alloy exhibiting a γ′-phase dissolution temperature of from 850 to 900° C.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to high-temperature piping products for power plants, particularly to high-temperature piping products used in coal-fired power plants and gas turbine power plants, and methods for producing such piping products.
2. Description of Related Art
In order to improve the power generating efficiency of power plants such as coal-fired power plants and gas turbine power plants, it is effective to increase the main steam temperature of a boiler and the combustion temperature of a gas turbine. In this connection, piping products with higher tolerable temperature are needed to further increase the main steam temperature or the combustion temperature.
For example, coal-fired power plants using a steam turbine include large scale high-temperature piping products for the boiler. Such large scale high-temperature piping products are assembled usually by welding short pipe members. In the power plants which produce a main steam of a temperature of around 700° C., an Ni-based alloy precipitation-strengthened with γ′ phase (Ni3Al phase) is used as a material of the high-temperature piping products.
In an Ni-based alloy, it is indispensable that the γ′ phase is evenly dispersed and precipitated in a matrix phase by heat treatment to attain high mechanical strength at a high-temperature. On the other hand, precipitation of the γ′ phase is detrimental to weldability, and makes the welding difficult. It is accordingly desirable to perform the heat treatment after the welding. A problem, however, is that, because the welded and assembled high-temperature piping product is a large structure, it is very difficult after assembling to conduct a heat treatment precipitating the γ′ phase (an aging heat treatment, so called) to the whole piping product.
As a countermeasure, WO2009/028671 reports a technique whereby boiler components are welded and assembled without precipitating the γ′ phase, and the γ′ phase is evenly dispersed and precipitated in the matrix phase of the boiler component by heat generated through a power plant operation. More specifically, the publication describes a low-thermal-expansion Ni-based super-heat-resistant alloy preferred for use as a boiler component material. The alloy contains, in mass %, C of 0.2% or less, Si of 0.5% or less, Mn of 0.5% or less, Cr of 10 to 24%, one of or both of Mo and W in amounts specified by the equation of "Mo+0.5 W=5 to 17%", Al of 0.5 to 2.0%, Ti of 1.0 to 3.0%, Fe of 10% or less, and one of or both of B (0.02% or less; excluding 0%) and Zr (0.2% or less; excluding 0%), with the remainder being Ni and unavoidable impurities. The alloy has a Vickers hardness of 240 or less.
The assumed operating temperature of the Ni-based alloy (or the boiler component) described in WO2009/028671 ranges from 700 to 750° C. (700° C. class), and the precipitation amount of the γ′ phase is about 20%. In response to the recent strong demand for further improvement of the power generating efficiency of power plants, there have been studies directed to increasing the main steam temperature or combustion temperature to above 750° C. and as high as about 800° C. (800° C. class). In order to increase the tolerable temperature of the high-temperature piping product in the power plant to temperatures of the 800° C. class, there is required a γ′-phase precipitation amount of 30% or more in the material Ni-based alloy.
In one known method of attaining a γ′-phase precipitation amount of 30% or more to obtain an effective high-temperature strength for the Ni-based alloy, for example, a heat treatment is performed at 900° C. or more to precipitate about 10% of the γ′ phase, followed by an aging heat treatment at 700 to 800° C. However, as described above, it is difficult to perform such a series of heat treatments for the welded and assembled high-temperature piping product. Furthermore, it is revealed through studies conducted by the present inventors that it is difficult to ensure the required high-temperature strength characteristics by the direct application of the Ni-based alloy described in WO2009/028671. (This will be described later in greater detail.)

High-temperature piping product and method for producing same


An improved solid state drive (SSD). The SSD comprising a plurality of non-volatile memory dies, each configured to store at least one block of data associated with one of a plurality of superblocks each containing a plurality of blocks; a volatile memory; and a memory controller. The memory controller configured to store a bit map associated with a first superblock of the plurality of superblocks in the volatile memory, wherein the bit map is configured to indicate whether each of the plurality of blocks is a replacement block, store a block address list in the volatile memory, the block address list is configured to store an address of one or more replacement blocks, and store a replacement block index in the volatile memory associated with the first superblock of the plurality of superblocks, the replacement block index corresponding to the location of an address of a first replacement block of the first superblock in the block address list.

SSDs are surpassing traditional spinning disk hard drives due to the performance benefits of SSDs. However, traditionally, SSDs have been substantially more expensive than spinning disk hard drives. Further, as with most memory, the larger the capacity of the SSD, the higher the cost of the SSD. As result, only recently have large SSDs (SSDs with capacities in the terabytes) begun entering the market.
These large capacity SSDs have begun introducing a number of disadvantages that counteract some of traditional advantages associated with SSDs. One set of disadvantages stems from the fact that as the capacity of SSDs increases so does the amount of data required to store the logical to physical mapping information for the SSD. As a result, many large capacity SSDs can no longer store the mapping information in internal SRAM. Rather, large capacity SSDs turn to external DRAM. External DRAM is slower, thereby introducing increased latency. Further, external DRAM introduces an additional cost factor in the production of large capacity SSDs. In addition, external DRAM also consumes more power than internal SRAM.
Moreover, larger amounts of physical to logical mapping information increases the amount of data that must be transferred to non-volatile memory during a power loss event. This not only increases the risk that not all of the data will be transferred during a power loss event, but also increases the requirements and costs of power loss protection components, such as the power loss protection capacitor, which further increases the cost of large capacity SSDs.
Accordingly, there is a long felt need for large capacity SSDs that reduce the amount of data required to translate logical to physical addresses.

SSD with compressed superblock mapping table


Label holders adapted to be mounted on a supporting surface formed of a grid of wire rods, such as a wire basket, a wire rack, a wire shelf or the like. The label holder includes a planar backing element supporting the label holder portion for viewing at a preselected angle, with a trapezoidal connector formed in the backing element to snappingly engage over a horizontally extending wire rod of the grid. The trapezoidal connector may include a plurality of flexible bumps or ridges for enhanced gripping of the wire rods of the grid. The remainder of the backing element rests against the vertically extending wire rods of the grid.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to label holders and relates more particularly to label holders adapted to be mounted on a supporting surface formed of wire, such as a wire basket, a wire rack, a wire shelf, or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumer-oriented product information labels are commonly found in supermarkets, drug stores, and other such stores and provide purchasers with the unit price, promotional and nutritional information, and the like and, also, commonly include bar codes or other inventory control information for the use of the store personnel. Such information may be carried on paper or plastic labels secured directly to the side of a shelf unit or the front edge of a merchandise shelf, but the use of adhesively-backed labels has obvious disadvantages in the constantly changing commercial environment found in today's marketplace. Oftentimes, the front edge of the merchandise shelf is provided with an integral C-channel or the like that can either carry the labels directly or, alternatively, carry plastic holders which are adapted to removably receive and display the labels in a well known manner. Label holders adapted for use in various environments will be seen in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,625,441, 4,716,669, 5,458,307, 5,488,793, 5,515,632, 5,678,699, 5,682,698, 5,899,011 and 6,163,996, the subject matters of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference ("the label holder patents"). These patents are cited merely as exemplary to illustrate the many and varied forms such devices can take.
Combination label/sign holder have been developed wherein labels can be selectively inserted and removed from the label holder pocket without removing any of the sign holders associated with related products on a merchandising shelf. Such a construction is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 6,568,112 (the '112 patent), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. The sign holder portion of the combination label/sign holder of the '112 patent is carried by, and moves with, the cover member of the label holder, avoiding interfering with access to the label holder pocket. This is accomplished by providing the front surface of the cover member of the label holder with a pair of sign holder-receiving lip members which can snappingly receive edge portions of a resilient plastic or metal sign holder such as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,632 (the '632 patent) or U.S. Pat. No. 5,488,793 (the '793 patent), or the engaging portions of a depending sign holder of the type seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,682,698 and 6,163,996 (the '698 and '996 patents, respectively), the subject matters of all of which are incorporated herein by reference, or other such commercially available sign holders.
More recently, in place of, or in addition to, such paper or plastic information containing labels, electronic information carriers have been employed. Electronic shelf labels (ESLs) are generally integrated with the in-store processor (ISP) or a free-standing controller that communicates with file information supporting the store's point-of-sale system. The ESL system may include low-voltage communication electronics or communication base stations (CBS) located in store ceilings away from the store operations. The ESLs are positioned throughout the store to identify an item's retail price and other information of interest to the consumer or for use by the store's inventory system.
Price changes may be initiated through the store's controller which updates item price files. This information, which has an association to a particular product identified by item number or UPC code, is communicated to the CBS in the ceiling and transmitted via a high frequency radio signal to the corresponding ESL.
The ESLs are programmed with differing addresses that are also associated with the item number or UPC code of the product they represent. Once the addressed device is found, the label display changes and reflects an acknowledgment back to the CBS to confirm that the transmission was received and enacted. This acknowledgment is then communicated back to the ISP to complete the transaction.
These systems, such as produced by NCR under its DecisioNet™ trademark, allow the ESLs to be independent of wires and cables below the ceiling, which reduces installation time and cost. Since there are no wires or cables required from the ceiling down, the label is free to be positioned anywhere. When store shelf resets occur, ESLs move easily with the shelves.
These ESL units, however, much like paper labels, require a carrier device to facilitate supporting them at selected locations. One such carrier is described in commonly-assigned pending patent application Ser. No. 10/448,049 entitled "Label Holder for Electronic Labeling Devices", incorporated by reference herein.
When price channels are used as above for labeling merchandise on a shelf, no significant problems arise for shelves which are at a convenient viewing height for a customer. For shelves near floor level, and shelves above eye level, however, customers have trouble in reading price channel labels because the labels extend generally vertically in use.
For the most part, such label holders, whether they be designed for paper labels, plastic labels, a combination of labels and signs or flags, or even ESLs, have been designed for attachment to a C-channel or, perhaps, a merchandise display shelf devoid of a C-channel, or even the flat side of a shelf unit or the like. Specialized problems exist when the label holder is to be attached to a wire rod-type structure such as found in a wire basket, a wire rack, a wire shelf, or another merchandise display supporting surface formed of wire rod material or the like. One form of label holder adapted for use with such structures is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,660 (the '660 patent), the subject matter of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. The label holder of the '660 patent is somewhat complicated to use and can only be secured over the top wire of a rod-type structure. Tabs which loop around generally horizontally extending wire rods forming part of a wire basket, wire rack, wire shelf or the like, are seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,761,904 and 4,869,007 (the '904 and '007 patents, respectively), the subject matters of which are also incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. The designs of the '904 and '007 patents are somewhat fragile, relying on relatively thin portions of the label holder for support. Moreover, such label holders themselves can move or swing relative to the wire rod support making it difficult to read a bar code or the like and impossible to adjust the viewing angle of the labels carried thereby in the event the supporting rod is relatively high or relatively low relative to the eye of a passerby.


A flexible, fabric-based circuit comprises a non-conductive flexible layer of fabric and a conductive flexible layer of fabric adjacent thereto. A non-conductive thread, an adhesive, and/or other means may be used for attaching the conductive layer to the non-conductive layer. In some embodiments, the layers are attached by a computer-driven embroidery machine at pre-determined portions or locations in accordance with a pre-determined attachment layout before automated cutting. In some other embodiments, an automated milling machine or a computer-driven laser using a pre-designed circuit trace as a template cuts the conductive layer so as to separate an undesired portion of the conductive layer from a desired portion of the conductive layer. Additional layers of conductive fabric may be attached in some embodiments to form a multi-layer construct.

The term "electronic textiles", also known as "e-textiles," generally refers to fabrics that have electronics and electrical interconnections woven into them, with physical flexibility and size that cannot typically be achieved by other existing techniques for electronics manufacturing. As wireless technology becomes more integrated with commercial activities, interest in wearable antennas and flexible circuits incorporating e-textiles continues to grow. Researchers have created a variety of wearable antennas, with the most popular being wearable microstrip patches and a Planar Inverted F-type Antenna (PIFA). A wearable antenna has also been constructed by using woven conductive fabrics or by bonding copper conductors directly to a fabric substrate.
Flexible circuits or circuits integrated into clothing or textile apparel are also often referred to as "wearable computer" technology. Examples of specific applications for such embodiments include clothing-embedded electronic systems for wireless system networking, for mobile telecommunications, for digital applications at a battlefield, and for advanced electronics and antennas in spacesuits. Fabric-based flexible circuits for high-speed digital and radio frequency (RF) applications commonly require additional considerations, including Ohmic losses, impedance control, and unintentional radiation.
A list of published patents and patent applications describing related methods and articles of manufacture known in the art, which are each individually incorporated herein by reference, is given below:                U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,702,785; 5,906,004; 6,210,771; 6,395,121; 6,447,886; 6,727,197; 6,729,025; 6,856,715; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0211797 A1; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0057176; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0224138.

Fabric circuits and method of manufacturing fabric circuits

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration


A projector includes a light source that emits light containing first wavelength light and second wavelength light of which light intensity is lower than that of the first wavelength light when the light source is driven at predetermined electric power, a light separation unit that separates the light from the light source into the first and the second wavelength light, an image formation unit that modulates the first wavelength light in accordance with a first image and modulates the second wavelength light in accordance with a second image, a control unit that supplies the light source with first electric power when the first image is formed, whereas supplying the light source with second electric power that is higher than the first electric power when the second image is formed, and a projection unit that projects the first image and the second image.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a projector and an image display system.
2. Related Art
There has been a known image display system that stereoscopically expresses displayed images (see JP-A-2011-82615, for example). According to the image display system, a user who looks at two images shifted from each other by the amount of parallax between the right and left eyes (image for right eye and image for left eye), what are called parallax images, selectively with the right and left eyes respectively, can visually recognize the displayed images as a stereoscopic image.
As a display method that allows stereoscopic visual recognition of images, a wavelength separation method (anaglyph method) has been known. In the wavelength separation method, two parallax images formed by using wavelengths different from each other are formed on a display screen, separated from each other based on the difference in wavelength, and directed toward the right and left eyes. The display method is carried out by projecting an image for the right eye and an image for the left eye by using a display apparatus, such as the one described in JP-A-2003-102030, and separating the projected images for the right and left eyes with color separation glasses, which then directs the separated images to the right and left eyes. The color separation glasses have a configuration in which a bandpass filter for the left eye blocks the image for the right eye and a bandpass filter for the right eye blocks the image for the left eye.
In the wavelength separation method, it is conceivable that images are naturally displayed, for example, by reducing a difference in tint perceived by the user between an image for the right eye and an image for the left eye. To achieve naturally displayed images, the bandpass filters in the color separation glasses are required to have performance that allows separation of two types of color light fluxes having wavelength different from but close to each other, which imposes a strict restriction on the design of the bandpass filters. It is therefore sometimes difficult to allow the user to perceive that the image for the left eye and the image for the right eye have the same brightness, resulting in a decrease in image display quality.


An antenna structure includes a substrate, a signal transmission unit and at least one fixing unit. The substrate is made of a dielectric material and has at least a through hole. The signal transmission unit has a transmission path and goes through the through hole. The fixing unit is made of a flexible or deformable material, and is in contact with the signal transmission unit and the inner surface of the through hole to fix the signal transmission unit on the substrate.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an antenna structure, and more particularly, to an antenna structure comprising a fixing unit. The fixing unit is in contact with a signal transmission unit and a hole of a substrate to fix the signal transmission unit on the substrate.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Please refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a typical patch antenna 100. As shown in FIG. 1, the patch antenna 100 includes a substrate 110 and a metal stick 120. The substrate 110 is made of a dielectric material, such as ceramic. The top surface and the bottom surface of the substrate 110 are both coated with metal to act as a radiation electrode 112 and a ground electrode 114 respectively. In addition, the substrate 110 also has a through hole 116. The metal stick 120 is disposed in the through hole 116 to connect the radiation electrode 112 with a signal processing device (not shown in FIG. 1).
However, a slight difference in the relative position of the metal stick on the substrate may result in variations in antenna characteristics, such as resistance, frequency, and the degree of circular polarization. Therefore, in the mass production of patch antenna, the manufacturing variations of the inner diameters of the through holes and the outer diameters of the metal sticks, as well as the relative shifting of the metal position during assembly would result in a wide distribution in their characteristics.


A stepless speed change gear that is small in size, light in weight, simple in construction, secure in operation, long in service life and capable of high-output speed changes. An input shaft crank (3) and an input side member (4) are mounted on an input shaft (1) and an output shaft (2) via a one-way clutch mechanism (100), respectively, and the respective members are coupled to each other by means of an input connecting rod (5) and an output connecting rod (6). Also, a speed-change link (7) is coupled to a junction point (B) of these links at one end thereof, and the other end thereof (Q) is allowed to move to any position within a certain range and to be fixed at that point. Also, the one-way clutch is a rolling bearing clutch. Variable speed change can securely be obtained with a simple mechanism. In a case where the rolling bearing clutch is used, high-output speed change is possible with the stepless speed change gear that is small in size and light in weight.

The present invention relates to a stepless speed change gear using one or more one-way clutches.
There have been many kinds of stepless speed change gears according to the prior art such as a chain drive type, a traction drive type, a slide coupling type and so on including a one-way clutch type as illustrated in FIG. 17.
In the stepless speed change gear shown in FIG. 17, a speed change link 7' having a movable support point Q' is connected to a transmission link 5' which is connected to an input shaft 3' and an input side member 4' which rotates about a center p' of an output shaft of a one-way clutch. However, such a stepless speed change gear is insufficient in link mechanism and can be used only for transmission of small power.
There are problems in the other type of stepless speed change gears such as the traction drive type, etc. that not only they have large transmission loss but also they have large size, heavy weight and complicated construction.


An animal halter comprising a muzzle. The animal halter comprises a nose band having two ends, a muzzle which is attached to or integral with the nose band, and a lead attachment loop slidably attached to each of the ends of the nose band, wherein in use, tension on the lead attachment loop causes the two ends of the nose band to come together and constrict around the nose of an animal.

When training animals to walk on the lead or rope, it is desirable that the animals are trained not to pull in reaction to being held by the handler. Pulling can put the handler off balance and mean that the animal is out of control. Various types of constricting halters have been designed which have a lead attachment position under the chin or around the head to counteract this. It is consequently much harder for the animal to pull against the lead as the force is transmitted through the head rather than directly through the neck or legs, as in conventional neck collars/harnesses. Examples of such halters include those described in GB2489200 and WO2004054355. These devices all have a nose band which extends around the nose and mouth of the animal. In use a lead or rope is attached to a ring and/or loop under the chin. The lead or rope is held by the handler. The nose band is adapted to constrict and when the animal pulls away from the handler, the nose band is tightened around the nose of the animal. This not only stops the halter from rotating around the head of the animal, but gives the handler greater control. In trying to pull away from the handler the head is drawn towards the handler and the animal is prevented from pulling.
In some circumstances however, animals are required to be muzzled whilst being handled, perhaps for safety reasons, but also because of legal requirements in some countries. Existing muzzles which fit around the nose of the animal are unsuitable for use with the halters that have a lead attachment point under the jaw of the animal because the muzzle along with its head and neck straps interfere with this connection point. Furthermore, with constriction halters, the application of a muzzle interferes with the tightening of the nose loop around the nose of the animal. Furthermore, the constriction halters noted above have no facility to prevent the halter from riding up the side or twisting around the dog's head as the dog pulls. This further makes these halters unsuitable for use with muzzles.
There has now been developed an animal halter which overcomes or substantially mitigates the above-mentioned and/or other disadvantages associated with the prior art.