A sonic monitor system for a tank is disclosed in which the system comprises a remote tank sensor device for installation in a bung opening of a storage tank for determining a level of fluid within the storage tank and for generating a signal indicative of the level of fluid within the storage tank, and a receiver device for receiving the signal indicative of the level of fluid within the storage tank, the receiver device having a display and a siren with the receiver device actuating the siren when the receiver device determines that the level of fluid within the tank is at a predetermined level.

Storage tanks are used to store various fluids such as oil, waste oil, diesel fuel, antifreeze, and other fluids having a low flash point. These fluids are stored to be used at automotive repair facilities for various purposes. For example, motor oil is used during an engine oil change and antifreeze is used to refill a radiator. It is also possible that waste oil may be collected and used to provide fuel to a generator or a heater. The storage tank may have various threaded openings in the top of the tank. One of the openings may be a 2 inch diameter bung hole opening that is used to fill or empty the tank. Another one of the openings may be a ¾ inch diameter bung hole opening used for ventilation of the contents of the tank. Over time, the contents of the storage tank are emptied and it is important to know when the storage tank has reached a low level condition to refill the tank. It is also desirable to know when the tank has been filled to an upper level condition to shutoff a pump device that is pumping fluid into the tank. It is extremely important to avoid an overflow condition where fluid could exit out of the tank and contaminant any surrounding area. Cleaning up spilled fluid such as waste oil can be expensive and should be avoided.
In order to determine the level of the contents within the storage tank, various gauges or devices have been used. For example, a float device may be inserted into the tank to determine the level of liquid contents. A stick gauge may also be inserted into the tank to determine the level of the contents within the tank. However, such gauges do not provide any warning or indication as to when the contents of the tank reach a critical low or high level. Further, these devices do not assist in avoiding an overflow condition.
The present disclosure is designed to obviate and overcome many of the disadvantages and shortcomings experienced with prior devices for determining a level of liquid in a fluid or liquid storage tank. Moreover, the present disclosure is related to a sonic monitor system for a tank that can determine when the tank will be empty, full, or at an overflow condition.
Various prior patents have been published showing storage tank monitoring devices, even those that may be of sonic operation.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,171,786 to Burres shows a fuel inventory monitoring system. It is an ultrasonic based or radar-based apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,374,187, which discloses an underground storage tank monitoring system and method. It operates off of a special micropower impulse radar probe.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,525, shows a sonic tank inventory control system and method.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,453, shows another tank sonic gauging system and method.
U.S. published application No. 2011/0301884, discloses another storage tank monitoring apparatus. It converts a compositive measurement into a signal that can detect both the storage substance in the tank, in addition to a second substance that may have entered into the same storage tank.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,005, discloses a guarded capacitance probe in related measurement circuit for determine a liquid level within a system.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,553,479, shows another threshold level of calibration method and apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,274, discloses a method and apparatus for acoustically measuring the level of liquid in a tank.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,895,848, discloses an apparatus and method for level sensing in a container. It utilizes a tuning fork and various circuitry for providing a liquid level sensing apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,098,669, shows another depth determining system.
A series of U.S. design patents, U.S. Pat. Nos. DES. 350,295, DES. 352,010, and DES. 367,915, show various types of liquid level sensors and adapters for use in conjunction there with.
These are examples of known prior art relating to the technology of this current disclosure.


An automatic wire feed adjuster, including a feeding mechanism including a pair of rollers that feeds a wire therebetween, a tension controller that adjusts a tension between the pair of rollers, a wire speed sensor that measures a fed speed of the wire after exiting the feeding mechanism, and a control circuit that compares a driven speed of the wire with the fed speed of the wire, and that decides whether to instruct the tension controller to adjust the tension between the pair of rollers.

1. Field of the Invention
Devices, systems, and methods consistent with the invention relate to an automatic feed adjuster.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the related art, there are various types of welding processes, including processes which utilize a continuous wire feed as a welding electrode.
A diagrammatical representation of such a related art continuous wire feed welding process is illustrated in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1, a welding system 1 includes a control circuit 10, a power source 20, a motor 12, and spool 30. Spool 30 contains wire 35 spooled thereon. Motor 12 drives opposing rollers 14 to take up wire 35 from spool 30 and send it to gun 22. The operator utilizes gun 22 to form a weld on workpiece 40. As the weld is formed on workpiece 40, wire 35 is consumed at gun 22, and is replaced by feeding more wire 35 to gun 22 by action of motor 12 and rollers 14 at a constant rate.
Different types of wires 35 are available for different welding applications. The selection of a particular type of wire depends on several factors, including, e.g., the type of material being welded, the weld design, material surface conditions, quality concerns, and process variation concerns. Due to these considerations, the different types of wires have widely varying diameters.
As mentioned above, in the system illustrated in FIG. 1, wire 35 is fed to gun 22 at a constant rate during a welding operation. This rate is set by the operator via a variable knob on control circuit 10 before the welding operation begins. Different rates are appropriate for different welding applications. For example, a thicker material to be welded may require a faster feed, while a thinner material may require a slower speed to avoid burn-through.
In order to provide the desired feed rate, an amount of tension between rollers 14 is also adjustable by the operator, before the welding operation begins. The term tension is broadly utilized in this context to represent both a "tension" force acting on each roller 14 in a direction toward the other (e.g., as created by a spring member connecting the two rollers 14) and as a "pressure" forcing the rollers 14 toward each other (e.g., as created by spring members on opposite sides of the two rollers 14). This tension between rollers 14 acts to draw wire 35 off of spool 30, and feed wire 35 toward gun 22. The adjustment is typically provided by a small thumb-wheel or other adjustment mechanism.
The tension between rollers 14 is set in view of the diameter of the wire 35, and remains constant during the welding operation. Unfortunately, if the tension between rollers 14 is set too high, the rollers 14 will deform the wire 35 as it passes therethrough. Such a deformed wire 35 can jam gun 22. On the other hand, if the pressure between rollers 14 is set too low, wire 35 will be fed to gun 22 at an erratic rate, which results in an erratic welding arc and poor weld quality.
Further, even if the tension is set properly on a first section of wire 35, there is inherent variability in the diameter of wire 35 due to such factors as manufacturing process variation and/or damage during shipment or storage. In other words, wire 35 may not have a constant diameter along its length. Thus, as wire 35 is fed to gun 22 through rollers 14, the tension set before the welding operation (in view of a beginning diameter of wire 35) might become inappropriate, and wire 35 might begin to deform or be erratically fed, as described above.
The above problems demand an improvement in the related art system.


In some implementations, a data cleaning platform may determine a respective entity key for each data record in a cleansed dataset based on a combination of fields, in each data record, that contain information that uniquely identifies an entity associated with a respective data record. The data cleaning platform may generate a delta dataset based on a set of uncleansed data records related to transactions that occurred after a time when the cleansed dataset was first generated. For example, in some implementations, each uncleansed data record in the delta dataset may be associated with a corresponding entity key based on the combination of fields. The data cleaning platform may perform a data join to update the cleansed dataset to include data records related to the transactions that occurred after the time when the cleansed dataset was first generated.

Data cleansing (or data cleaning) generally refers to techniques to prepare a dataset for analysis by removing and/or modifying incorrect, incomplete, irrelevant, duplicated, corrupted, and/or improperly formatted data. The data that is removed and/or modified is typically not necessary or useful when performing data analytics because the data may hinder (e.g., slow down) data analytics processes and/or provide inaccurate results. Data cleansing techniques tend to focus on maximizing the validity, accuracy, completeness, consistency, and/or uniformity in a dataset without deleting relevant information. For example, in addition to removing data that may hinder data analytics and/or cause results to be inaccurate, data cleansing may involve fixing spelling and syntax errors, standardizing datasets, identifying duplicate data points, and/or correcting mistakes such as empty fields and/or missing codes. Accordingly, data cleansing typically has an overarching goal to create a dataset that is standardized and uniform such that data analytics tools can easily access, query, analyze, or otherwise interact with the dataset.

Maintaining a dataset based on periodic cleansing of raw source data


A highly-compactable camera crane enables a load platform to be kept level as the boom is raised and lowered. A main boom is comprised of a number of crossed links which pivot at their crossings to allow extension and retraction of the boom and an auxiliary boom of similar crossed link construction couples the load platform to a reference pivot point of the main boom, enabling the load platform to be kept level as the booms are moved up and down relative to the pivot point.

Many lifting and positioning devices use a boom structure to lift and position a load. In some applications, the load platform needs to be kept level as the boom is raised and lowered. Some examples are a boom where the load is a person, or booms used to smoothly move and position an operating motion picture camera.
With a boom of fixed length, a common technique of maintaining a level load platform is through the use of an auxiliary fixed-length boom or arm, above or below the load-carrying boom, and parallel to the boom. This arrangement forms a parallelogram. If the attachment points for the boom and the second arm are collinear and perpendicular to the ground, and the boom and arm are equal lengths, then the attachment points at the other ends of the boom and arm will also remain collinear and perpendicular to the ground as the boom is raised and lowered. Any platform then attached at the end of the boom, perpendicular to the line formed by the attachment points of the boom and the arm, will thus be parallel to, and therefore level with, the ground at any height of the boom.
A shortcoming of these devices in the current art is their mechanical complexity, requiring time-consuming assembly and disassembly each time they are used. Another shortcoming is that, due to the nature of the boom designs in the current art, they often have a relatively long minimum fixed length dimension even when disassembled, making them difficult to transport. Still another shortcoming is that most if not all assembly methods entail the use of peripheral fasteners, clips, pins and other hardware that are easily lost over the courses of assembly, disassembly and transit.
In view of this, it would be desirable to develop a method or methods of constructing or fabricating a highly compactable camera crane.


A compound archery bow includes a pair of power limbs, each extending from a reflexed end of a riser portion. Outer bow limbs having a flexibility greater than the power limbs are hingably attached via a hinge assembly to the end of each power limb. A power/reflex cable interconnects each side of the riser and extends through spaced openings provided in the outer bow limb on either side of the hinge assembly such that the outer bow limbs are caused to bend when a bowstring is pulled. The power/reflex cable preferably extends through openings provided on either side of each outer bow limb relative to the hinge assembly to allow the pull weight to be reduced prior to the maximum draw of the bowstring and to provide synchronization of the power limbs upon draw and release of the bowstring. Adjustable weight bolt connecting the power limbs to the riser may be adjusted to increase or decrease the pull weight of the bow. Likewise, the length of the bowstring may be adjusted by twisting or otherwise to adjust the pull weight of the bow.

A number of compound archery bows are known which include programming means that are incorporated to regulate the draw weight of the bow such that a maximum pull weight is attained at an intermediate draw position and a reduced weight is attained at full draw.
A number of these bows, such as sold by Bear/Jennings, include cam assemblies, each having a plurality of intermediate cams in order to interconnect and synchronize the bow limbs. These bows, due to their overall complexity, require precision in assembly and manufacture and are costly.
In another known design, described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,564 to Islas, a compound archery bow includes a bow riser having spring power limbs cantilevered at each end. Cam pulleys are mounted on the outboard ends of each power limb and rigid limb members are affixed to the cam pulleys. The bowstring extends between the extending ends of the two rigid limb members. Endless power and reflex cables are run from the end of the riser, each cable extending along a path which passes over a cam groove of each cam pulley. An end of the cable is reeved in the cam pulley. A link member is coupled at one end to an outer point fixed with respect to the cam pulley and outer limb, and is coupled at its other end to a synchronizing pulley or wheel.
When the bowstring is drawn, the outboard ends of the outer bow limbs are pulled inwardly causing the cam pulleys to rotate due to the presence of an existing power cable. The cam pulleys wind the cable and rotate the synchronizing wheel. A rigid bar extending from the synchronizing wheel pulls the reflex cable downward and pulls the cam pulleys downwards towards the riser, in order to flex the power limbs. The power limbs then supply the energy for the flight of the arrow, and pulls the rigid limbs back to the upright position when the bowstring is released.
All current compound bows utilize some form of cam assembly to coordinate the interaction between the power limbs and the outer limbs.
Although each type of design is useful for powering arrows for flight, a need exists for a compound bow with fewer parts, lighter weight and excellent draw characteristics. Each of the above bow designs also require a considerable pull weight for use. Neither are suitable for children who do not have sufficient strength for their use. There is a further need for a bow suitable for children who want to attempt archery but are unable to do so because of size and draw weight considerations. Current art for short length draw bows for children and youth do not provide sufficient kinetic energy to satisfy the need for target penetration of flat trajectory.


An attachment is mounted on an adjustable focus lens camera which attachment incorporates a second lens system to operate in combination with the camera lens system to allow close-up photography. The attachment further incorporates a ranging system to insure that the subject of the photograph is in proper focus by using converging light beams from said attachment as a focus indicator.

Cameras having the capacity to take close-up photographs are not new. An example is the Acmel Macro Auto V6 camera manufactured by Acmel Corporation of Tokyo, Japan. This particular Acmel camera utilizes a plurality of detachable lens assemblies. Each such lens assembly includes a fixed focus lens that, in conjunction with a fixed focus lens located on the camera body, is capable of focusing an image of a relatively close subject at the camera's film plane, with each detachable lens being designed for single subject distance. Each detachable lens assembly also includes a pair of focusing lights employed in the same manner as in the present invention for the purpose of aiding a camera operator to focus a subject image at the camera's film plane. The resulting camera serves its purpose but is altogether too expensive for consumer-type photography and too complicated for easy use by the non-professional. It is both bulky and heavy, weighing about 41/2 pounds.
The use of converging light beams from a camera to determine a proper focal length for the exposure lens is old art as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,416,426. The theory disclosed therein and in other literature provides a light source reflected from spaced apart mirrors through a lens board to converge at the subject of the photograph. This technique is useful where several parameters remain constant, in particular, one of the constants is flash photography. With flash photography the duration of exposure is set and the only variable is the exposure aperture except of course for the focus of the lens.
The adjustable focus lens Spectra camera sold by Polaroid Corporation of Cambridge, Mass. is an example of where the invention disclosed herein may be incorporated. The Polaroid Corporation presently markets its Spectra camera and a separate attachment for the front thereof, which attachment includes a cover to fit over the subject distance sensing transducer portion of the camera's ultrasonic ranging system. When the ranging system is covered the camera automatically adjusts its focus to a minimum focal position which, in the case of the Spectra camera, is two feet. Focusing the Spectra camera to two feet by this method is one of the features of that particular attachment. Another feature of that attachment is a close-up lens which enables the camera to focus an image of subjects located at a distance of ten (10) inches from the camera. A spring loaded string (ten (10) inches in length) may be pulled from the attachment along a line generally parallel with the axis of the lens system which, in theory, will place the subject in focus. The problem is that the operator must use two hands for the string, attachment and camera in combination and then make sure the camera is not moved after the string is released, before an exposure cycle is initiated. A small deviation of the camera position from the subject as measured by the string will result in a slightly out of focus subject. An appearance design of the adjustable focus lens Spectra camera is shown in U.S. Pat No. De. 279,574 and a focus control system of the type employed in this camera is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,965.

Detachable close-up lens assembly for an adjustable focus lens camera incorporating a photoranging system


An apparatus and method for accurately detecting and monitoring leakage currents on porcelain and glass insulator disc strings is disclosed. The sensor apparatus includes a sensor unit configured to attach to a cap of an insulator disc string. The sensor unit includes a sensor disc configured to surround the cap and a housing connected to the sensor disc. The sensor disc includes a conducting lower disc set, a conducting upper disc set, an insulating disc set sandwiched between the upper and lower conducting disc sets, and a conducting mesh connected to a bottom of the lower disc set. The housing including electronics configured to measure and communicate leakage currents on an insulator disc. Leakage currents on a surface of the insulator disc are intercepted by the sensor disc and transferred to the housing for processing and communication by the electronics.

This application relates generally to the monitoring of leakage currents in a transmission system and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for accurately detecting and monitoring leakage currents on porcelain and glass insulator disc strings.
In many countries, including the US, wood is utilized as part of the line insulation to improve the basic insulation level (BIL) of the line, as it has been recognized that the lighting performance of transmission lines can be improved by utilizing the wood support or pole. This has, however, not been without problems as there were, and still are, many instances of fires of the wood poles and cross arms caused by low frequency leakage current and sparking on the wood from sources such as leakage current due to insulator contamination despite mitigation measures being taken.
Porcelain and Glass Disc Type Insulators installed on Transmission and Distribution Systems are exposed to contamination, for example from marine salt, road salt and industrial pollutants. This contamination can result in flashover of the insulator, usually under light wetting conditions, e.g. condensation, when the salts and water mix to become a conductive electrolyte. Flashover is a problem in that it results in an outage which interrupts power to utilities customers.
When the salts on the surfaces of an insulator become wet they form an electrolyte which is conductive. Since the one end of the insulator is energized, and the other end is grounded, currents flow along the insulator surfaces. If these currents are large enough arcing will occur (called dry band arcing), this arcing will either extinguish or grow to result in a flashover. The magnitude of the leakage currents that occur under the dry band arcing conditions provide an indication of the risk of the insulator flashing over. If insulators are at risk of flashover due to contamination build-up utilities can wash the insulators or take other measures such as redirect power to other transmission and distribution assets.
Some commonly used mitigation measures are listed below; however, none of these mitigation measures provide a means for monitoring and pinpointing potential leakage current problems so that a utility company can take preventative measures.
1. Wrapping metal bands around the wood pole and connecting it to the insulator hardware. This method has the advantage that the reduction in the "insulated" wood path lengths (used as improvement for the BIL) is limited. The conductor material used for this purpose should be compatible with other hardware not to cause corrosion.
2. A small guard electrode, in the form of a coach screw or a multi-spiked plate (e.g. gang-nail), is fastened to the wood outside the rain shadow area and bonded to the insulator hardware. This method has a minimal effect on the BIL of the structure.
3. Application of conducting paint to cover the high resistance zones around metal to wood interfaces. This method has a minimal effect on the BIL of the structure.
4. Bonding of the insulator hardware together with a conductor. The intension with this bond wire is to "balance" the leakage current so that only a small residual current will flow in the pole. There are two variants to this scheme:                (a) The insulator bases are connected together but not grounded. The ground lead terminates some distance away to realize the required BIL phase-to-ground for induced lightning surges.        (b) The insulator bases can be bonded together and connected to ground. In this case the wood is not utilized anymore as part of the line insulation against lightning. Also here it is important that the material of the bond wire is selected to be compatible with the other hardware used to prevent corrosion.
5. An extension of the previous method is to use steel cross-arms to bond the insulator bases together. The steel cross-arm can either be grounded or be left floating depending on whether or not the utility wants wood as part of the line insulation for lightning performance.
6. Finally the insulators used can be upgraded to those with an improved contamination performance. Other options include regular insulator cleaning or the application of silicone grease to insulators.

Apparatus and method for measuring leakage currents on porcelain and glass insulator disc strings


A communications interface system includes a housing and one or more removable components. The removable components can include one or more removable communications module configured to facilitate communication between the interface system and one or more other communications or control systems. A facepack can be removably coupled with the housing. The facepack can include one or more displays and/or user input structures.

Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to communications systems for landscape control systems. Landscape control systems can be used as part of irrigation systems and/or lighting systems, among other applications.
Description of the Related Art
Many parts of the world lack sufficient rainfall at different times of the year to maintain the health of turf and landscaping. Further, many venues utilize indoor and/or outdoor lighting systems requiring control systems. Some typical landscape control systems comprise programmable controllers that turn irrigation valves and/or light fixtures ON and OFF.

Communications interface system for landscape control systems


A seasoning composition is prepared by preparing a koji and in the absence of added salt, hydrolyzing the koji in the presence of a culture of lactic acid bacteria at a temperature between 15.degree. C. and 60.degree. C. and at a pH of from 4.5 to 10 for a period of from 6 hours to 28 days, and the seasoning composition is obtained without preparing a moromi. Inoculation with the lactic acid bacteria culture is carried out either in the hydrolysis stage or in the koji preparation stage, and the hydrolysis may be carried out in two stages with the culture present during the first stage and so that the temperature of the first stage hydrolysis is between 20.degree. C. and 60.degree. C. and particularly between 25.degree. C. and 50.degree. C. and so that the second stage temperature is from 2.degree. C. up to 20.degree. C., and the second stage hydrolysis is carried out for at from 12 hours to 25 days and the first and second stage hydrolysis are carried out for a combined time of from 18 hours to 28 days.

The present invention relates to a process for the production of a seasoning, more particularly to the production of seasoning by the biological hydrolysis of protein-containing material.
Hydrolysed proteins have been known for use as seasonings in food systems for centuries in the Far East in the form of soya sauce which traditionally has been prepared by enzymatic hydrolysis requiring a long period of time, usually several months, for preparation. In producing soya sauce, plant protein-containing materials such as cooked soya beans or defatted soya flour together with carbohydrates are inoculated with Aspergilli and the solid culture is fermented for 2 days to make fermented koji during which time enzymes are produced which are able to hydrolyse protein and carbohydrates in the moromi treatment stage. The fermented koji is mixed with a solution of common salt to give moromi which is fermented for 4 to 8 months by the activity of micro-organisms such as soya lactic acid bacteria and soya yeasts from which the soya sauce is obtained by removing the solids portion from the fermented moromi.
About 100 years ago, a more rapid method of hydrolysing proteins for producing seasonings was developed using hydrochloric acid in which the time required is only a few hours. However, in recent years, the use of acid hydrolysed plant protein (HPP) in culinary applications has been under criticism due to the presence of some chloro-compounds which arise from the acid process. Therefore, attempts have been made to develop HPP replacements which can be used as body-givers in culinary applications. Soya sauce is one such suitable replacement. However, owing to the differences in the raw materials and the processing methods involved, the two products, HPP and soya sauce, have some differences in terms of chemical composition and flavour profile. Dosage of soya sauce which can be used as an HPP replacement is limited due to its "fermented" note. The different processing procedures also result in a significant variation in the degree of hydrolysis of the protein containing material to the amino acids. Soya sauce has a lower amino acid content than HPP and this leads to a significantly weaker body in soya sauce than in HPP. European Patent Application No. 93113388.8 (and see counterpart U.S. Pat. No. 5,523,100) describes a process for the production of a seasoning based on modified standard soya sauce technology in which the fermented koji is treated, before forming the moromi, by a low temperature hydrolysis whereby the resultant seasoning has a stronger body than a standard soya sauce. In this process, a fermented protein koji, prepared from a protein containing material and a carbohydrate, is treated by hydrolysing the fermented protein koji at a temperature of from 2.degree. to 25.degree. C. and a pH of from 4.5 to 10 for a period of from 6 hours to 28 days. In order to improve the organoleptic and colour stability of the seasoning product, salt and yeast are conveniently added to the hydrolysed fermented koji to form a moromi and the moromi is preferably fermented under aerobic or anaerobic conditions for a period of from 1 to 6 weeks, more preferably from 2 to 4 weeks.

Hydrolyzate seasoning preparation in the presence of lactic acid bacteria


The present embodiments relate to a method and an apparatus for acquiring location information of a terminal by using a wireless communication system. An embodiment provides an apparatus for measuring location information of a terminal, the apparatus comprising: at least one downlink signal receiver; at least one uplink signal receiver; and a controller for controlling the downlink signal receiver and the uplink signal receiver, wherein the controller configures uplink resource allocation information on the basis of control information received by the downlink signal receiver, and determines, on the basis of the uplink resource allocation information, whether to receive an uplink signal.

A structure of a User Equipment (UE) in a mobile communication system is illustrated in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 1, the UE generally includes an antenna 130, a downlink (DL) signal receiver 110, and an uplink (UL) signal transmitter 120.
FIG. 2 illustrates a structure of a Base Station (BS) in a mobile communication system. Referring to FIG. 2, the BS includes an antenna 230, an uplink signal receiver 210, and a downlink signal transmitter 220.
The use of a communication device having the structure illustrated in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 has a problem in that it is difficult to acquire traffic information including an intersection or a location of another UE in a particular area. For example, the communication device having the structure illustrated in FIG. 1 has a problem in that information on a signal transmitted by another UE, that is, information on an uplink signal cannot be acquired at all.
The communication device having the structure illustrated in FIG. 2 can acquire some of the data transmitted by another UE but has a problem in that it is difficult to acquire information transmitted by the BS.
As a method of acquiring locations and movement information of other UEs through the communication device having the structure illustrated in FIG. 2, there may be a method of installing a plurality of relays or small cells and acquiring information on a UE located within a service radius of the relays or the small cells.
However, relays or small cells can be installed only by communication service providers, and thus if communication service providers do not want to install them or determine that the installation is not viable, the installation is not realistically feasible.
Meanwhile, recently there have been attempts of third parties, which are not communication service providers, to acquire a location or movement information of a UE existing in a particular area for public services. For example, the Expressway Corporation or a public organization of the National Police Agency has attempted to acquire information on the number or speeds of UEs passing by a particular area.
In such a situation, the truth is that a third party, which is not a communication service provider, has no method of acquiring locations of UEs existing in a particular area and traffic information for the purpose of public services. Particularly, a method of acquiring the information has restrictions in that the method should be performed without influence on conventionally installed communication devices and communication networks.

Method and apparatus for acquiring location information of terminal through wireless communication system

INDUSTRY-UNIVERSITY COOPERATION FOUNDATION HANYANG UNIVERSITY


According to one embodiment, a forgetting to turn off power detection apparatus includes an outgoing determination unit that creates a power usage pattern based on electric energy that is calculated from past electric energy data in a consumer equipment, and determines whether or not a consumer has gone outside based on the power usage pattern. The forgetting to turn off power detection apparatus of the embodiments includes a forgetting to turn off power detection unit that receives current electric energy data in the consumer equipment, and detects forgetting to turn off power of an electric equipment of the consumer equipment based on the received electric energy data when the outgoing determination unit determines that the consumer has gone outside.

In order to prevent forgetting to turn off power of an electrical household appliance during staying out, a consumer uses a timer off function installed in an electrical household appliance itself, a timer off function separately provided for a power supply outlet, for example, of an electrical household appliance, and the like. A consumer provides a controller such as a home server in a consumer's house and monitors operation states of electrical household appliances by the controller.

Forgetting to turn off power detection apparatus, forgetting to turn off power detection program, forgetting to turn off power detection method and detection system


Provided is an alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) power supply device in which normal power and power of a solar cell is used to supply not only AC power but also DC power, particularly, power of a solar cell is first supplied as DC power or is charged in a battery, and after battery charging, residual power is converted to AC power via an inverter so as to replace normal AC power or to transmit AC power to the outside. Accordingly, an SMPS power supply method in which AC and DC power are supplied at the same time may be provided, and moreover, power of a solar cell may be effectively used.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) power supply device, and more particularly, to an AC-DC switching mode power supply (SMPS) device, in which a normal power source applied from the outside is converted to an AC voltage or a DC voltage having a predetermined voltage level and is transmitted to a load without an additional wiring, and in which not only AC but also DC is supplied to the load by using normal power and power of a solar cell; particularly, the power of the solar cell is first supplied as DC power or residual power remaining after charging a battery is converted to AC via an inverter to replace the AC power of the normal power source or to allow the power to be transmitted to the outside. Accordingly, AC and DC power may be supplied simultaneously, and moreover, power of the solar cell may be efficiently used.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the energy and environment crisis has recently increased, power production by using alternative energy sources such as power produced by solar cells and the efficient use of power are emphasized, and the use of solar cells in homes is a trend on the increase. Moreover, techniques for manufacturing power supply devices that are capable of using energy effectively and efficiently by total power management are also increasingly being developed.
In general, a normal power supply consists of a HOT wire (+) via which a high voltage-level AC power is supplied, a neutral wire (−) via which a relatively low voltage-level power is supplied compared to the HOT wire (+), and a ground wire GND provided to prevent harm to humans due to an electric shock or an electric leakage. However, it is difficult to use DC power directly from the normal power supply without a power converter that is suitable for various loading capacities.
Some electric appliances, such as an air conditioner, a washing machine, or a refrigerator, require AC power, but there are also products which use DC power by converting AC power. Most DC power produced by solar cells is converted to AC power for use.
Due to switching loss in converters or inverters for converting AC power to DC power or DC power to AC power, however, loss in power conversion is caused.
However, an AC-DC power supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention may be useful as follows.
For example, since the time range of power consumption is highly concentrated depending on the types of use, homes may conclude a certain contract with a power supply company to transmit a predetermined amount of power that is generated by using solar cells during the daytime to the power supply company via, for example, a grid line connection, and the power may be supplied to industrial or commercial facilities during the time range when a high power consumption is required, and at night when a large amount of power is used temporarily, a portion of the power produced by the solar cells at homes and charged thereby may be used. Consequently, the AC-DC power supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention may function like a huge battery.
KR 2012-0089039, filed by the inventors prior to the present application, discloses an AC-DC power supply device in which a normal power source and a battery are used to simultaneously supply AC and DC power. However, as described above, a system allowing efficient use of an alternative power source generated by a solar cell is additionally required.

AC-DC power supply device and switching mode power supply device


Provided is a discrete filter capable of increasing degree of freedom of design including a DC gain. A sampling mixer (100) includes: a control signal generation unit (104) which generates a control signal including an SO signal; a Ch (6) which successively integrates reception signals sampled by an LO signal frequency as discrete signals; a plurality of Cr (7, 8) which successively integrate discrete signals at a timing based on the control signal; Cb (15) which alternately integrates the discrete signals successively integrated by the respective Cr (7, 8); and a gain control capacitance unit (110) which has gain control capacitors (44, 45, 46) connected in parallel to the respective Cr (7, 8) and integrating the discrete signal and a reset switch (47) for resetting the discrete signal of the gain control capacitors (44, 45, 46) integrated in the past, upon connection between one end of Cr (7) and Cb (15).

In a conventional sampling mixer, a filter effect is obtained in a switched capacitor built in a sampling circuit by sampling a signal which is subjected to digital conversion in the sampling circuit (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The sampling mixer disclosed in Patent Document 1 will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram of sampling mixer 900 disclosed in Patent Document 1.
In FIG. 9, sampling mixer 900 has: TA (transconductance amplifier) 1 that converts the received radio frequency (RF) signal into RF current iRF; in-phase sampling mixer (hereinafter "in-phase mixer") 2 that samples RF current iRF converted by TA 1; reverse phase sampling mixer (hereinafter "reverse phase mixer") 3 that is connected in parallel with in-phase sampling mixer 2; and DCU (digital control unit) 4 that generates control signals for in-phase mixer 2 and reverse phase mixer 3.
In-phase mixer 2 has sampling switch 5 composed of an FET, and Ch (history capacitor) 6 that continues integrating in the time domain the signal sampled based on an LO signal (i.e. local oscillation signal) by this sampling switch 5. Further, in-phase mixer 2 has a plurality of Cr (rotate capacitor) 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 that repeat integration and release of the signal sampled in sampling switch 5 and Cb (buffer capacitor) 15 that buffers signals released from rotate capacitors 7 to 14.
Further, in-phase mixer 2 has dump switch 16 for releasing the signals held in Cr 7 to 14 to Cb 15, reset switch 17 for resetting signals held in Cr 7 to 14 after signal release and a plurality of integration switches 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 for sequentially connecting Ch 6 with Cr 7 to 14. Furthermore, in-phase mixer 2 has a plurality of release switches 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32 and 33 for sequentially connecting Cr 7 to 14 to Cb 15 and feedback switch 34 that controls an input of a feedback signal from a DA (digital-to-analogue) converter to sampling mixer 900.
Dump switch 16, reset switch 17, integration switches 18 to 25, release switches 26 to 33 and feedback switch 34 are each composed of an n-type FET. The n-type FET is turned on when the gate voltage shows the high level and is turned off when the gate voltage shows the low level. Further, reverse phase mixer 3 is composed in the same way as in-phase mixer 2.
DCU 4 is connected to the gates of integration switches 18 to 25, release switches 26 to 33, dump switch 16, reset switch 17 and feedback switch 34. DCU 4 outputs various control signals to the gates of these switches 16 to 34.
Types of control signals include the SV0 signal to SV7 signal, SAZ signal, SBZ signal, D signal, R signal and F signal. The SV0 signal to SV7signal operate as the gate signals for applicable integration switches 18 to 25. The SAZ signal operates as the gate signal for release switches 30 to 33 and the SBZ signal operates as the gate signal for release switches 26 to 29.
The D signal operates as the gate signal for dump switch 16 and the R signal operates as the gate signal for reset switch 17. The F signal operates as the gate signal for feedback switch 34.
FIG. 10 shows a timing chart of the control signals generated in DCU 4.
As shown in FIG. 10, the LO signal is a periodic rectangular pulse, and, when the LO signal rises after a predetermined cycle, the SV0 signal to SV7 signal repeat rising and falling alternately.
Then, when the SV0 signal and the SV4 signal rise, the states of the SAZ signal and the SBZ signal are inverted.
The D signal rises when the SV0 signal and SV4 signal rise. On the other hand, the D signal falls when the SV1 signal and SV5 signal fall.
The R signal rises when the D signal falls. Further, the F signal rises when the R signal falls.
Next, referring to the timings of the above control signals, the operation of sampling mixer 900 will be described. The operation of in-phase mixer 2 will be described in detail as an example.
First, TA 1 converts the RF signal into RF current iRF and supplies this RF current iRF to in-phase sampling mixer 2. Then, in-phase mixer 2 samples supplied RF current iRF using the LO signal. The LO signal has virtually the same frequency as RF current iRF. As a result, RF current iRF is discretized in the time domain, and produces discrete signals.
Then, the discrete signals are integrated in Ch and Cr 7 to 14 and filtered and decimated (i.e. decimation). To be more specific, first, the SV0 signal is inputted to the gate of integration switch 18, integration switch 18 is turned on while the SV0 signal shows the high level and Ch 6 is connected to Cr 7. Then, discrete signals are held in Ch 6 and Cr 7. In this case, Cr 7 integrates the discrete signal while the SV0 signal shows the high level (for example, during eight cycles of the LO signal).
Next, when the SV0 signal showing the high level falls, the SV1 signal rises at the same time. Then, integration switch 18 is turned off and integration switch 19 is turned on. As a result, Cr 7 is disconnected from Ch 6 and Cr 8 is connected to Ch 6. Then, Ch 6 and Cr 8 hold discrete signals, and Cr 8 integrates the discrete signal while the SV1 signal shows the high level (for example, during eight cycles of the LO signal).
When the SV2 signal to SV7 signal are sequentially inputted to the gates of integration switches 20 to 25, integration switches 20 to 25 are turned on while the SV2 signal to SV7 signal show the high level (for example, during eight cycles of the LO signal). Then, Cr 9 to 14 are sequentially connected to Ch 6, and Cr 9 to 14 integrate discrete signals during, for example, eight cycles of the LO signal.
By so doing, it is possible to produce an effect of an eight-tap FIR (Finite Impulse Response) filter. The sampling rate in this case is decimated to a one-eighth, because signals matching eight cycles of the LO signal are moved, held in eight integration switches 18 to 25 and averaged. A filter configured this way will be referred to as "first step FIR filter." The Z transform of the transfer function of the first step FIR filter is represented by the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          1                    )                                                                                H                      FIR                                                                          1                          =                              1            -                          z                              -                8                                                          1            -                          z                              -                1                                                                        [        1        ]
Further, Ch 6 sequentially connected with Cr 7 to 14 holds the output potential, so that it is possible to produce an effect of an IIR (Infinite Impulse Response) filter. A filter configured this way will be referred to as "first step IIR filter." The Z transform of the transfer function of the first step IIR filter is represented by the following equation. However, the capacity of Ch 6 is Ch and the capacities of Cr 7 to 14 are Cr.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          2                    )                                                                                H                      IIR                                                                          1                          =                  1                      Ch            +            Cr            -                          Chz                              -                1                                                                        [        2        ]
Further, assuming that the LO signal frequency is fc and Ch is significantly greater than Cr, the cutoff frequency in the first step IIR filter can be determined by the approximation to the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          3                    )                                                                                fc                      IIR                                                                          1                          =                                            f              LO                                      16                            π                                                      Cr                          Ch              +              Cr                                                          [        3        ]
According to this equation 3, the cutoff frequency can be determined if the ratio of the capacity of Ch 6 to the capacities of Cr 7 to 14 is given. Further, to decrease the cutoff frequency, only Ch needs to be made greater than Cr.
Further, when the above-described SBZ signal is inputted to gates of release switches 26 to 29, all release switches 26 to 29 are turned on while the SBZ signal shows the high level. Then, the discrete signals integrated in Cr 7 to 10 are released to Cb 15 at the same time through release switches 26 to 39 that are turned on.
After this release, next, the D signal shows the low level, dump switch 16 is turned off and Cb 15 is disconnected from Cr 7 to 10.
Next, the R signal shows the high level, reset switch 17 is turned on and signals held in Cr 7 to 10 are reset.
By so doing, signals integrated in Cr 7 to 10 are released to Cb 15 at the same time, so that it is possible to produce an effect of a four-tap FIR filter. The sampling rate in this case is decimated to a one-fourth, because signals integrated by four Cr 7 to 10 is moved and averaged by Cb 15.
Further, signals integrated by Cr 11 to 14 function similar to the case of Cr 7 to 10 and are released to Cb 15 at the same time while the SAZ signal shows the high level. Consequently, it is possible to produce an effect of a four-tap FIR filter. Further, the sampling rate is decimated to a one-fourth. A filter configured this way will be referred to as "second step filter." The Z transform of the transform function of the second step FIR filter is represented by the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          4                    )                                                                                H                      FIR                                                                          2                          =                              1            4                                                        1              -                              z                4                                                    1              -                              z                                  -                  1                                                                                [        4        ]
Further, when the SBZ signal shows the high level and the SAZ signal shows the low level, if the R signal is inputted to the gate of reset switch 17 and reset switch 17 is turned on, signals held in four Cr 7 to 10 are released to the ground terminal of Cr 7 to 10 and reset. On the other hand, when the SAZ signal shows the high level and the SBZ signal shows the low level, if the R signal is inputted to the gate of reset switch 17 and reset switch 17 is turned on, signals held in four Cr 11 to 14 are released to the ground terminal of Cr 11 to 14 and are reset.
Then, when the F signal is inputted to the gate of feedback switch 34 and feedback switch 34 is turned on, a feedback signal is inputted to sampling mixer 900 from a signal processor through a DA converter (not shown). The feedback signal refers to a signal for compensating for the DC offset or differential offset, and is generated in the signal processor (not shown). To be more specific, the signal processor receives as input the output signal of sampling mixer 900 through the AD converter. Then, the signal processor generates the above-described feedback signal based on this output signal. By this means, the DC offset and differential offset are compensated for. Thanks to the feedback signal in this case, the DC offset and differential offset are compensated for upon the operation of the first step IIR filter.
Further, four Cr are connected to Cb 15 in the above-described unit of a group of four Cr 7 to 10 or a group of four Cr 11 to 14. By this means, it is possible to produce an effect of an IIR filter. A filter configured this way will be referred to as "second step IIR filter." The Z transform of the transfer function of the second step IIR filter can be represented by the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          5                    )                                                                                H                      IIR                                                                          2                          =                  Cr                      Cb            +            Cr            -                          Cbz                              -                1                                                                        [        5        ]
Further, if Cb is significantly greater than Cr, the cutoff frequency in the second IIR filter can be determined by the approximation to the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          6                    )                                                                                fc                      IIR                                                                          2                          =                                            f              LO                                      16                                                                                π                                                                    4                            Cr                                      Cb              +                              4                                Cr                                                                        [        6        ]
According to equation 6, the cutoff frequency can be determined if the ratio of the capacity of Cb 15 to the capacities of Cr 7 to 14 is given.
Further, the Z transform of the transfer function of the filters of entire in-phase sampling mixer 2 from equation 1, equation 2, equation 4 and equation 5, is represented by the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          7                    )                                                                                H              =                                                                            H                                      FIR                                                                                1                                                                                H                                      IIR                                                                                1                                                                                H                                      FIR                                                                                2                                                                                H                                      IIR                                                                                2                                                                                =                                                                                1                    -                                          z                                              -                        8                                                                                1                    -                                          z                                              -                        1                                                                                1                                                            (                                                                        C                          H                                                +                                                  C                          R                                                                    )                                        -                                                                  C                        H                                                                                z                                                  -                          8                                                                                1                  4                                                                                1                    -                                          z                                              -                        32                                                                                1                    -                                          z                                              -                        8                                                                                4                                                        C                    R                                                                                (                                                                  4                                                                          C                          R                                                                    +                                              C                        B                                                              )                                    -                                                            C                      B                                                                                z                                              -                        32                                                                                [        7        ]
The DC gain after frequency conversion of this H can be determined by the following equation.
                              (                      Equation                                                                          8                    )                                                                                G          DC                =                  8          Cr                                    [        8        ]
According to equation 8, the DC gain can be determined if the number of decimations in the first FIR filter, eight, and the capacities of Cr 7 to 14 are given.
Further, reverse phase mixer 3 operates in virtually the same way as in-phase mixer 2 except the following.
That is, the LOB signal operating as the gate signal for sampling switch 35 of reverse phase mixer 3 has 180 degrees of a phase delay from the LO signal, and the sampling timing in reverse phase mixer 3 delays by half of the cycle, from the timing in in-phase mixer 2.
If sampling mixer 900 is configured this way, the output signal of sampling mixer 900 becomes a signal that has passed through the first step FIR filter, first step IIR filter, second step FIR filter and second step IIR filter.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-289793 (page 6 to 9, FIG. 3a, FIG. 3b and FIG. 4)

Discrete filter, sampling mixer, and radio device


A die member forming a component of cross-head die apparatus is configured to facilitate removal of the die member from the axial bore of the body of the apparatus following assembly of a die member at room temperature with a body at elevated temperature. The external, frustoconical surface of prior art die members is provided with recessed portions which do not contact the opposing surface of the axial bore in the body. Also, the angle of taper of the conical plane of the mating die member and body bore surfaces is increased to 7.degree. from the prior art standard of 5.degree..

The present invention relates to die apparatus of the cross-head type and, more specifically to improved configurations of tapered die members used in cross-head apparatus.
Reference is made to applicant's U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,031,568 and 5,316,583 which disclose cross-head die apparatus incorporating a die member (also termed a flow guide member) having a frustoconical external surface. In the former patent the die/flow guide is positioned in a die holder with its entire external surface in mating engagement with a like-tapered, frustoconical internal surface of the die holder which, in turn, is positioned in a frustoconical cavity or bore in the body of the apparatus. In the latter patent, the entire external surface of the die member is in mating engagement with the forward portion of the axial bore in the body.
Molten plastic or other flowable coating material is injected through a radial bore into the die body and distributed about a filamentary member which is moved axially through guide elements within the body axial bore, exiting through an orifice in the front end of the die member with a uniform coating of the plastic. It is necessary to maintain the coating material at elevated temperatures in order to provide the proper viscosity. For this purpose, electric heating jackets are usually mounted on the body of the die apparatus. Thus, when in operation, all components of the cross-head die apparatus are heated to elevated temperatures.
It is necessary to disassemble the component parts of the apparatus from time to time for repair, cleaning, maintenance, etc. It has been found that the die member is sometimes difficult to dislodge from the body, a condition which most commonly occurs after a die member at room temperature has been assembled with a heated body. After the apparatus has been operated for some time and the temperature of the components then reduced prior to disassembly, the amount of force required to dislodge the die member may cause extensive damage to the parts. Heating the die member to at or near the temperature of the body prior to assembly may alleviate the problem, but operators frequently neglect to ensure that the die member has been heated to the necessary temperature prior to assembly.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a frustoconical die member for use in cross-head die apparatus which may be disassembled by application of less force than is necessary with typical prior art equipment.
A further object is to provide a frustoconical die element which may be disassembled from cross-head die apparatus without damage to the parts after having been assembled with the die member at room temperature and the body at an elevated temperature.
Another object is to provide, in cross-head die apparatus, the combination of a body with an internal cavity defined by a frustoconical surface and a die element having an external configuration for mating engagement with such surface which nevertheless may be disassembled without excessive force.
Other objects will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

Cross-head die apparatus and improved die member therefor


A method for managing traffic in a computerized system that may include routers and at least one edge device, the method may include performing traffic management operations for controlling traffic related to the routers while executing a first traffic management operations by the at least one edge device, and executing second traffic management operations by the routers.

Over time, as the network services evolved routers of a network had to manage multiple tasks that forces them to allocate multiple resources for added networking features.
These multiple tasks were aims to respond to the following requirements (but not limited to):                a. An increased network scale called for the introduction of routing protocols        b. Security issues.        c. Quality of service support.        d. Administrative domain crossing        e. Traffic load balancing.
The increased network scale called for the introduction of routing protocols (e.g. BGP, RIP, OSPF). These protocols solved two problems: (1) calculation of the "best" path between any two endpoints is the network, and (2) controlling the size of the switching node (aka "router" or "bridge") forwarding table. The price of supporting routing was the introduction of a control-plane to routers. The control-plane is responsible for running the routing protocol. Namely, learn the network topology in a distributed manner, calculate the "best" path to every endpoint and configure the forwarding tables located in the router data-plane. A router, thus, includes two main components: (1) control-plane, implemented on a CPU running the routing protocol software, and (2) data-plane, implemented by a dedicated ASIC, responsible for packet-by-packet processing, e.g. taking a forwarding decision for each received packet.
Security—the need to control how network-users access and use the network resources called for implementing packet filters (aka ACL—Access Control List) capable of identifying specific sessions. For example, a filter could be configured to grant a specific user to access resource/service A, but deny access resource/service B. The filters process each packet and therefore are typically implemented in TCAM (Ternary Content Addressable Memory).
Quality of Service (QoS) Enforcement—originally the network provided best effort service. That is the throughput, task completion time and delay were functions of the instantaneous load on the network and there was no way to guarantee predictable performance. The need to guarantee performance brought the introduction of QoS Identification and Enforcement engines. That is, the bridge is now capable to apply a QoS profile by examining the packet header, for each packet. The QoS profile may include complex operations like rate control (policing), congestion avoidance that control the drop rate and congestion management that control when the packet is scheduled for transmission from the bridge.
Administrative domain crossing—when packets are routed among endpoints connected to different administrative domains, for example, among networks operated by different providers such as between an Enterprise network and a Network Service Provider, they must adapt to different policies. The most obvious differences would be different addressing policy and the use of different routing protocol. The common way to address these differences is to ask the edge routers to perform tunnel encapsulation/decapsulation. That is, at the domain boundary a packet would be encapsulated in a header that conform to the policies of the target domain—an operation called tunnel encapsulation. When the packet crosses back to the original domain the tunnel header is decapsulated.
Traffic Load balancing—traffic load balancing distributes the traffic load over multiple paths to improve the overall network performance. This operation requires the bridge to select a path for each packet while preserving packet order. Dynamic (or load aware) traffic load balancing required the bridge to (1) notify congestion events, (2) store received congestion event notification and (3) perform adaptive load balancing according to the dynamics of the congestion.


A liquid level controller for a device having a liquid reservoir includes a control board and a reservoir assembly. The reservoir assembly is disposed within the reservoir and includes a liquid level sensor, which is electrically connected to the control circuit. The control board includes a control circuit and a pump. The control circuit has a control circuit and a resistive power supply to power the control circuit. The control circuit controls the pump in response to signals from the level sensor and includes a CMOS logic gate and a MOSFET transistor to switch the pump. The control circuit further includes a second resistive power supply connected to a relay which controls an alarm. The second power supply is activated by a transistor responsive to an alarm signal from the level sensor, and powers the relay only when the alarm signal is present.

1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates generally to a control circuit for a pump motor, and more particularly to a liquid level control circuit which automatically maintains the liquid level in a reservoir within a predetermined range.
2. Description of the Related Art.
Previous liquid level controlling devices typically include three separate assemblies: a reservoir assembly, a pump assembly, and a main control board. The reservoir assembly uses a magnet float/magnetic reed switch configuration to sense the level of liquid in the reservoir. Three magnetic reed switches situated within the reservoir at different levels provide signals to the main control board when the liquid level brings the magnetic float into proximity with the switches. These signals activate and deactivate a separately packaged, thermally protected, electrically isolated pump to adjust the liquid level. The main control board uses a power transformer to derive power for its electronics and an electromechanical relay to activate and deactivate the pump. An additional electromechanical relay is used to activate an alarm circuit when the liquid level reaches a predetermined level. This transformer/multiple relay configuration results in substantial power consumption, even in a standby condition when the pump is not active.
The present invention provides a liquid level controller having a reservoir assembly and a control board/pump assembly. The reservoir assembly includes sensors which sense the liquid level in the reservoir and provide signals to the control board/pump assembly indicating the liquid level. The control board/pump assembly includes a control circuit having a line voltage rectifier and two separate resistive power supplies. One supply powers the pump control circuit. The other supply is used to activate an alarm through an alarm relay, but only consumes power when the alarm is activated. A solid-state MOSFET transistor and a CMOS logic gate activate and deactivate the pump and provide the necessary pump hysteresis. This solid-state circuit is reliable in operation and consumes low power during pumping and when in the standby condition.
The present invention provides a circuit for maintaining the level of liquid in a reservoir by controlling the operation of a pump for removing liquid from the reservoir in response to a start signal from a liquid level sensor indicating that the liquid level is outside a desired range. The circuit includes a resistive power supply to power the circuit, a logic gate for outputting a pump signal in response to receipt of the level signal, and a transistor coupled between the logic gate and the pump. The transistor enables the pump in response to receipt of the pump signal.
The present invention further provides a controller for a liquid reservoir having a sensor disposed within the reservoir. The sensor outputs a start signal indicating a level of the liquid in the reservoir. The controller includes a control circuit coupled to the sensor for receiving the start signal, and a non-isolated pump connected to the control circuit. The pump adjusts the liquid level when activated. The control circuit activates the pump in response to receipt of the start signal.
The present invention further provides a controller for a device having a liquid reservoir and an alarm, including a first resistive power supply for converting an AC power input to a first DC voltage, a logic circuit powered by the first DC voltage, a non-isolated pump coupled to the logic circuit, a second resistive power supply for converting the AC power input to a second DC voltage, and an alarm circuit using the second DC voltage to activate the alarm.

Solid state liquid level sensor and pump controller


A method and apparatus are provided in conjunction with a graphical user interface (GUI) for producing drag-and-drop objects (317b) from one or more choice-items (317a) presented in a choice-listing menu of a source application program (314). The so-produced drag-and-drop object is dropped onto a receiving area (312c) and acquires new functionality based on the source of the choice-item and on the nature of the receiving area. A filename presented as a choice-item in a history portion of a FILE menu for example may be converted into a drag-and-drop object and dropped on an open desktop area. The dropped object (319) may be then activated to automatically launch the source application program and to automatically open the file identified by the original choice-item.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is generally directed to graphical user interfaces (GUI's) on computer systems. The invention is more specifically directed to a subclassing method that enables users to convert an on-screen listed item of a popup menu into a drag-and-drop object.
2. Description of the Related Art
Graphical user interfaces (GUI's) have found wide spread acceptance among computer users. Instead of having to remember a list of arcane command names, users can now intuitively click on (e.g., with the aid of a mouse button), or otherwise activate, graphical areas on the screen and thereby open previously-hidden lists of next-action choices. A further click or other activation on a selected one of the choice-items initiates a pre-programmed function associated with the chosen item.
Such menu-driven choice-making usually takes the form of the well-known popup menu, or scrolldown menu, or context menu. Any one or more of these choice-supplying mechanisms or their like is referred to herein as a `choice-listing menu`.
To invoke a choice-listing menu (e.g., a scrolldown menu), the user typically moves an on-screen cursor or another pointing indicia over part of a menu-dropping bar or over another such menu producing area. The user then clicks on a mouse button to initiate the unscrolling or other presentation and/or activation of the choice-listing menu (e.g., a scroll-down menu). Of course, means other than mouse clicking may be used for initiating the presentation and/or activation of a choice-listing menu. For example the user may instead press a predefined combination of `hot` keys on the keyboard to cause a desired menu to emerge onto the screen.
As its name implies, the choice-listing menu displays a set of choice-items to the user. The user is expected to select one of these choice-items. The represented function, if selected and activated, is thereafter executed.
One or more of the displayed choice-items in a first choice-listing menu can be a source area that unfurls yet another choice-listing menu from the first menu. The unfurled second menu can itself have further submenus.
Most users of the Microsoft Windows 3.1.TM. or Microsoft Windows95.TM. operating systems are familiar with the common menu-dropping bar that appears at the top of an active window that is opened under the Win16 or Win32 system kernel. The window's top bar (menu bar) typically contains areas marked as, FILE, EDIT, VIEW, HELP and so forth. If the user clicks on the FILE area, a scrolldown menu comes down from that area to present FILE-related choice-items such as OPEN, SAVE, SAVE AS, RENAME, CLOSE, EXIT. Selecting the OPEN choice-item implies that an OPEN FILE function will be performed and a to-be-designated file will be opened. Selecting the SAVE choice-item implies that a SAVE FILE function will be performed and a designated file (usually the currently open file) will be saved. Selecting the SAVE AS choice-item implies that a SAVE FILE AS.sub.-- new.sub.-- name function will be performed and a designated file (usually the currently open file) will be saved under a new name. The remaining FILE-related choice-items provided further file-related functions in accordance with their respective names.
If the user clicks on the EDIT area, a different scrolldown menu comes down from that area to present EDIT-related choice-items such as UNDO, COPY, CUT, PASTE, and so forth. The COPY function for example copies selected data to a clipboard area that is shared by application programs.
Once one of the presented choice-items is selected and invoked from an activated choice-listing menu, a corresponding, pre-programmed function is executed (such as OPEN FILE, SAVE FILE, COPY, etc.). A menu-invoked function can include the unfurling of a further menu that has further choice-items.
For each of the presented choice-items in a given menu, the user is given only the following choices: either select one of the choice-items in the displayed menu or do not select any item and instead close (rescroll) the choice-listing menu.
It may be advantageous to enable users to perform additional functions with the choice-items of choice-listing menus other than to either select one of the presented choice-items or not select any choice-item.

System and method for producing a drag-and-drop object from a popup menu item


A computer system supports a touch command which may be used to open a page in the main memory. Microprocessors within the computer system may determine an appropriate time at which to perform the touch command, and then transmit the touch command to the memory controller within the computer system. In response to the touch command, the memory controller opens the selected page but may not return data from the page. Subsequent memory operations may experience a page hit memory latency instead of a page miss memory latency due to the occurrence of the touch command. Data bus bandwidth is not consumed by the touch command. The touch command may be used even if actually prefetching data is not desirable. The microprocessors in the computer system may monitor which pages are experiencing cache hits within the microprocessors. If a page is experiencing cache hits, a cache miss within the page may be more probable. The touch command may be used to prepare the main memory system for a potential cache miss.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related to the field of computer systems and microprocessors, and, more particularly, to memory latency solutions within computer systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Superscalar microprocessors achieve high performance by executing multiple instructions per clock cycle and by choosing the shortest possible clock cycle consistent with the design. On the other hand, superpipelined microprocessor designs divide instruction execution into a large number of subtasks which can be performed quickly, and assign pipeline stages to each subtask. By overlapping the execution of many instructions within the pipeline, superpipelined microprocessors attempt to achieve high performance.
Superscalar microprocessors demand low memory latency due to the number of instructions attempting concurrent execution and due to the increasing clock frequency (i.e. shortening clock cycle) employed by the superscalar microprocessors. Many of the instructions include memory operations to fetch (read) and update (write) memory operands. The memory operands must be fetched from or conveyed to memory, and each instruction must originally be fetched from memory as well. Similarly, superpipelined microprocessors demand low memory latency because of the high clock frequency employed by these microprocessors and the attempt to begin execution of a new instruction each clock cycle. It is noted that a given microprocessor design may employ both superscalar and superpipelined techniques in an attempt to achieve the highest possible performance characteristics.
Microprocessors are often configured into computer systems which have a relatively large, relatively slow main memory. Typically, multiple dynamic random access memory (DRAM) modules comprise the main memory system. The large main memory provides storage for a large number of instructions and/or a large amount of data for use by the microprocessor, providing faster access to the instructions and/or data than may be achieved from a disk storage, for example. However, the access times of modern DRAMs are significantly longer than the clock cycle length of modem microprocessors. The memory access time for each set of bytes being transferred to the microprocessor is therefore long. Accordingly, the main memory system is not a low latency system. Microprocessor performance may suffer due to high memory latency.
In order to allow low latency memory access (thereby increasing the instruction execution efficiency and ultimately microprocessor performance), computer systems typically employ one or more caches to store the most recently accessed data and instructions. Additionally, the microprocessor may employ caches internally. A relatively small number of clock cycles may be required to access data stored in a cache, as opposed to a relatively larger number of clock cycles required to access the main memory.
Low memory latency may be achieved in a computer system if the cache hit rates of the caches employed therein are high. An access is a hit in a cache if the requested data is present within the cache when the access is attempted. On the other hand, an access is a miss in a cache if the requested data is absent from the cache when the access is attempted. Cache hits are provided to the microprocessor in a small number of clock cycles, allowing subsequent accesses to occur more quickly as well and thereby decreasing the effective memory latency. Cache misses require the access to receive data from the main memory, thereby increasing the effective memory latency.
Many types of DRAMs employ a "page mode" which allows for memory latency to be decreased for transfers within the same "page". Generally, DRAMs comprise memory arranged into rows and columns of storage. A first portion of the address identifying the desired data/instructions is used to select one of the rows (the "row address"), and a second portion of the address is used to select one of the columns (the "column address"). One or more bits residing at the selected row and column is provided as output of the DRAM. Multiple DRAMs may be accessed concurrently (a "bank") to provide more output bits per access. Typically, the row address is provided to the DRAM first, and the selected row is placed into a temporary buffer within the DRAM. Subsequently, the column address is provided and the selected data is output from the DRAM. If the next address to access the DRAM is within the same row (i.e. the row address is the same as the current row address) then that next access may be performed by providing the column portion of the address only, omitting the row address transmission. The next access may therefore be performed with lower latency, saving the time required for transmitting the row address. Addresses having the same row address are said to be in the same page. The size of the page may therefore be dependent upon the number of columns within the row and the number of DRAMs included within the bank. The row, or page, stored in the temporary buffer within the DRAM is referred to as the "open page", since accesses within the open page can be performed in page mode (i.e. by transmitting the column portion of the address only)
Unfortunately, the first access to a given page generally must occur in non-page mode, thereby incurring a higher memory latency. Even further, the access may experience a page mode miss (where the DRAMs still have a particular page open, and the particular page must first be closed before opening the page containing the current access). Often, this first access is critical to maintaining performance in the microprocessors within the computer system, as the data/instructions are immediately needed to satisfy a cache miss. Instruction execution may stall while the memory responds in non-page mode. A method for increasing the number of memory accesses performed in page mode is therefore desired.


A hydromechanical transmission having a self actuating clutch assembly. The self-actuating clutch assembly comprises a first and second gear clutching elements and a shaft clutching element that engages a shaft. The shaft clutching element is a cone clutch that is actuated by a ball element that is biased towards the shaft clutching element by a spring element that is disposed through the shaft.

This invention relates to a hydrostatic transmission. More specifically, this invention relates to a self-actuating clutch assembly within a hydrostatic transmission that improves clutching efficiency.
There are a number of vehicles that have automatic transmissions for ease of driving in increased utility. These include ATVs, tractors and utility work vehicles. These vehicles have common requirements for low cost, high efficiency, good control ability, and continuous ratio change throughout the entire speed range. Hydromechanical transmissions have utility in these vehicles because they meet these needs and can be designed with compact size.
Hydromechanical transmissions are characterized by a hydrostatic transmission power path in parallel with a mechanical power path that is arranged in a manner to decrease the average power flow from the hydrostatic portion and thereby increase operating efficiency. The existence of the parallel power path creates the possibility of reducing the output speed range or torque ratio in order to further reduce transmitted hydrostatic power. This requires multiple ranges or "modes" to achieve the full torque and speed range of the transmission.
Multi mode hydromechanical transmissions (HMTs) are usually accomplished by reusing the hydrostatic components and clutching to a different mechanical component. Usually the gearing is arranged so that there is no ratio change during the mode change, or clutching process, in order to have continuous speed and torque delivery. During a mode change, one clutch is exchanged for another at a near synchronous speed. The clutch differential speed is ideally pre-synchronous in order to have the fastest and smoothest shifts.
Previously, two or three mode hydromechanical transmissions have been provided that use mechanical dog clutches having mating slots and tangs. These dog clutches are low cost and compact and are actuated with a simple, low force mechanical system. However, there are some operating conditions where engaging the clutches under dynamic conditions is a problem as dog clutches will not allow any slipping during engagement. Other solutions provide two or three mode hydromechanical transmissions with several coaxial clutches which are in a multiple disc configuration. Multiple disc clutches are usually designed to allow some slippage during engagement thereby easing the synchronizing process but adding cost and size to the transmission. Multiple disk clutches require a high actuating force, a complex actuating system and normally require oil flow to cool the discs and reduce disc flutter.
Thus, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a hydromechanical transmission that provides a cost effective clutching mechanism.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a hydromechanical transmission that provides a more efficient clutching mechanism.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a clutch mechanism that allows slippage during engagement to improve the operation of a hydromechanical transmission.
These and other objects, features, or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and claims.


A communication module includes a variable gain amplifier, a mixer stage responsive to the variable gain amplifier, a post-mixer amplifier stage responsive to the mixer stage, and an off-channel signal detector responsive to the post-mixer amplifier stage. The post-mixer amplifier stage is to produce a first differential signal and a second differential signal. The off-channel signal detector has a first input to receive the first differential signal and has a second input to receive the second differential signal. The off-channel signal detector includes a programmable hysteresis comparator module, and the off-channel signal detector has an output to produce an output signal that indicates whether an off-channel signal condition is detected.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure is generally related to a communication module including an off-channel signal detector with a programmable hysteresis comparator.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radio frequency receivers that are used in wireless devices, such as cellular telephones, typically receive a variety of signals and noise in addition to receiving and detecting the desired signal carrying communication information. The desired signal is often referred to as the channel and the other signals are referred to as off-channel signals. Strong off-channel signals produce spurious products within the channel due to non-linearity in the receiver, often impairing normal reception. With the presence of strong off-channel signals, an off-channel signal detector within the receiver may trigger a flag to indicate a strong off-channel signal condition so that adjustments may be made within the receiver to adapt to the strong off-channel condition, and preserve overall receiver linearity. One method of detecting the off-channel signal condition is to compare a detected energy level of off-channel signals against a threshold. When the detected energy level exceeds the threshold, the off-channel signal condition is indicated. A problem with this off-channel signal detection method is that due to integrated circuit process mismatches, a significant ripple in the output of the threshold detection element often causes an unstable condition (chattering) of a resulting off-channel condition detection circuit and can lead to a breakdown in operation of the receiver.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved off-channel signal detector for use in communication receivers.
The use of the same reference symbols in different drawings indicates similar or identical items.

Off-channel signal detector with programmable hysteresis


A method of programming a bionic ear cochlear implant provides access to the full functionality of the implant, while still providing a simple-to-administer, more reliable, and faster fitting experience for the patient and clinician. The method includes (a) conducting a pre-evaluation stage focused on sorting and identifying bad electrode contacts, reducing fitting time and improving patient performance; (b) conducting a programming stage wherein T and M levels are adjusted based on information derived during the pre-evaluation stage; and (c) conducting a post-evaluation stage wherein wired speech understanding tests are automatically run in order to provide an objective programming choice. The pre-evaluation stage automatically runs a set of objective tests, and then, based on the result of such tests, generates a template for the clinician to use during the programming stage. The objective tests, inter alia, identify and remove bad electrode contacts from the template. The post-evaluation stage quickly runs some unattended wired speech understanding tests that allow objective rather than subjective programming choices to be made.

The present invention relates to cochlear implants, and more particularly to a bionic ear programming system that may be used with the more sophisticated and complex cochlear implants that are now available.
Electrical stimulation of predetermined locations within the cochlea of the human ear through an intra-cochlear electrode array is described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,400,590. The electrode array shown in the '590 patent comprises a plurality of exposed electrode pairs spaced along and imbedded in a resilient curved base for implantation in accordance with a method of surgical implantation, e.g., as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,615. The system described in the '590 patent receives audio signals, i.e., sound waves, at a signal processor (or speech processor) located outside the body of a hearing impaired patient. The speech processor converts the received audio signals into modulated RF data signals that are transmitted by a cable connection through the patient's skin to an implanted multi-channel intracochlear electrode array. The modulated RF signals are demodulated into analog signals and are applied to selected ones of the plurality of exposed electrode pairs in the intra-cochlear electrode so as to electrically stimulate predetermined locations of the auditory nerve within the cochlea.
A new, more sophisticated, class of cochlear implant, referred to as a bionic ear, is now available to provide patients with enhanced hearing performance. For example, Advanced Bionics Corporation, of Sylmar Calif., currently offers a cochlear implant which it refers to as the CII Bionic Ear™ cochlear implant. Many features associated with the CII Bionic Ear implant are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,219,580, incorporated herein by reference. Advantageously, with the CII Bionic Ear™ cochlear implant, more than twice as much sound can be captured, and 10 times more processing power is available to process such sound. Further, the CII Bionic Ear implant contains internal memory banks that enable it to send very detailed, high resolution sound signals to the auditory nerve. Such signals are delivered to the auditory nerve using a special electrode adapted to be inserted into the cochlea. A representative electrode usable with the CII Bionic ear is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,753, also incorporated herein by reference.
Other improved features of cochlear implant systems are taught, e.g., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,626,629; 6,067,474; 6,157,861; 6,219,580; 6,249,704; and 6,289,247, each of which patents is incorporated herein by reference.
Advantageously, the implantable cochlear stimulators described in the '629, '474, '861, '580 and '704 patents are able to selectively control the pulse width of stimulating pulses that are applied through the electrode array to the cochlea, and the frequency at which the stimulating pulses are applied.
As the art of cochlear stimulation has advanced, the implanted portion of the cochlear stimulation system, and the externally wearable processor (or speech processor), if used (much of the circuitry previously employed in the externally wearable processor has been moved to the implanted portion, thereby reducing the amount of information that must be transmitted from the external wearable processor to the implanted portion), have become increasingly complicated and sophisticated. The amount of control and discretion exercisable by an audiologist in selecting the modes and methods of operation of the cochlear stimulation system have increased dramatically and it is no longer possible to fully control and customize the operation of the cochlear stimulation system through the use of, for example, switches located on the speech processor. As a result, it has become necessary to utilize an implantable cochlear stimulator fitting system to establish the operating modes and methods of the cochlear stimulation system and then to download such programming into the speech processor. One such fitting system is described in the '629 patent. An improved fitting system is described in the '247 patent. The present invention is directed to a still further improved fitting system that may be used with a bionic ear cochlear implant.
The '247 patent further highlights representative stimulation strategies that may be employed by a multichannel stimulation system. Such strategies represent the manner or technique in which the stimulation current is applied to the electrodes of an electrode array used with the stimulation system. Such stimulation strategies, all of which apply current pulses to selected electrodes, may be broadly classified as: (1) sequential or non-simultaneous (where only one electrode receives a current pulse at the same time); (2) simultaneous (where substantially all of the electrodes receive current stimuli at the same time, thereby approximating an analog signal); or (3) partially simultaneous pulsitile stimulation (where only a select grouping of the electrodes receive stimuli at the same time in accordance with a predefined pattern).
Typically, when the fitting systems described in the '629 or '247 patents are employed for multichannel stimulation systems, or when equivalent or similar fitting systems are employed, it is necessary to use directly measured threshold values and/or thresholds derived from the measurement of phsycophysically-determined psuedo-comfort levels. That is, for each channel of the multichannel system, a minimum threshold level is measured, typically referred to as a "T" level, which represents the minium stimulation current which when applied to a given electrode associated with the channel produces a sensed perception of sound at least 50% of the time. In a similar manner, an "M" level is determined for each channel, which represents a stimulation current which when applied to the given electrode produces a sensed perception of sound that is moderately loud, or comfortably loud, but not so loud that the perceived sound is uncomfortable. These "T" and "M" levels are then used by the fitting software in order to properly map sensed sound to stimulation current levels that can be perceived by the patient as sound.
Disadvantageously, determining the "T" and/or "M" levels (or other required thresholds) associated with each channel of a multichannel stimulation system is an extremely laborious and time-intensive task. Such determinations require significant time commitments on the part of the clinician, as well as the patient. Moreover, once determined one channel at a time, such levels may not be representative of actual threshold levels that are present during real speech.