An ultrasonic surgical instrument that has a disposable piezoelectric driver. The surgical instrument includes an ultrasonic horn that is attached to an outer handle. A surgical tip or blade is attached to the proximal end of the horn. The piezoelectric driver is attached to the distal end of the horn. The driver contains at least one piezoelectric transducer which creates a vibratory movement of the horn and the surgical tip. The piezoelectric driver and ultrasonic horn are attached by corresponding threaded members or other means for mechanically coupling the devices so that the driver can be detached from the horn. The piezoelectric driver is disconnected from the horn after use in a surgical procedure. The horn and handle are then sterilized. A new piezoelectric driver is then attached to the horn for use in another procedure.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ultrasonic surgical instrument which has a disposable piezoelectric driver that is detachably connected to an ultrasonic horn.
2. Description of Related Art
Ultrasonic surgical devices are used to perform a variety of different surgical procedures. For example, ultrasonic instruments are used to break and remove a cataracteous lens from a cornea. The ultrasonic instrument typically includes a number of piezoelectric transducers that are mounted to an ultrasonic horn in a single horn assembly. The horn is attached to an outer handle that can be held by a surgeon. A tip or blade is typically attached to the proximal end of the horn. The piezoelectric elements are connected to a number of wires that provide electrical power to the instrument. The piezoelectric transducers convert the electrical energy into a mechanical vibratory movement of the horn and the tip. The vibratory movement of the horn induces a cutting action of the tip.
Ultrasonic instruments must be sterilized after each surgical procedure. Sterilization is typically accomplished by placing the handle, horn and piezoelectric transducers in an autoclave and subjecting the instrument to steam at high pressures and temperatures. It has been found that the high pressures and temperatures within the autoclave will degrade the performance characteristics of the piezoelectric transducers. For example it has been found that after no fewer than one autoclave cycle the electrical to mechanical energy conversion efficiency of the piezoelectric transducers will drop 50%. Because the ultrasonic horn and piezoelectric transducers are provided as one assembled component, both the horn and the transducers must be replaced by a new horn assembly, even though the horn is still functional.
The ultrasonic horns are typically precision devices that are constructed from a relatively expensive material such as titanium. The disposal of the transducers and horn results in an undesirable waste of the horn, which adds to the cost of performing a surgical procedure. Additionally, the output of the instrument during a surgical procedure is unpredictable because of the unknown degradation of the transducers. Some instruments incorporate elaborate monitor and feedback devices that sense the output of the piezoelectric transducers. These devices add to the cost and complexity of the instrument. It would be desirable to provide an ultrasonic surgical instrument that was immune to any degradation of performance because of exposure to autoclave sterilization.

Disposable surgical ultrasonic transducer


An input device includes a small footprint keyboard with touch pad functionality. By disposing the touchpad and the mouse keys in the lower part and surrounded by the first and the second groups, one achieves a substantial ergonomic advantage in that the frequently used QWERTY keys are accessible, while at the same time the touch pad is within reach of any finger.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates generally to an input device, more specifically a small footprint keyboard with embedded touch pad functionality.
2. Background Information
The proliferation of mobile devices has increased focus on convenient, compact and feature rich keyboards. The traditional PC-compatible keyboard, known as "QWERTY", from the standard array of letters required for the habitual recognition in the touch-type-method, is too large and bulky for portable devices. A number of solutions exist, but most of them compromise with either the QWERTY, or other sides to the keys and commands needed for full compatibility. The limit to the anatomical acceptance of the size of a single normal dynamic (not tactile) key, seems to bottom out at approximately 12.5 mm in width. It should be noted that by "QWERTY" a wide range of keyboard layouts should be understood though there are certain national variations that changes the order of the keys. It should also be noted that the mechanical properties of keys can differ significantly. For fast touch type work keyboard with keys with noticeable travel depth before closing a switch is found to be efficient, herein referred to as touch method keyboard, TMK. An alternative type is here referred to as tactile type where a metal dome acts as a spring that gives a distinct sensory feedback on closing the key over a short distance that can be less than 0.5 mm.
From the known art the traditional laptop keyboard should be noted where a feature rich keyboard is placed at the upper part of a working surface with a touch pad below, partly inside a larger area used for hand rests and stabilisation when typing. This keyboard is large as it is, and is hard to reduce in size any further, without rethinking the strict rectangular arrangement, by which all traditional solutions are recognized. Adding a touch pad mouse to this array in any reasonable combination with the QWERTY work position, inevitably expands the rectangular depth of the working surface of the device to a wasteful degree, and contradicts the possibilities of compressing it along with any reduction of form factor.
The keyboard or keypad can be a restriction on the degree of miniaturisation and from the known art the cell phone keyboard should be noted where each key is overloaded with functionality while other functions are completely reworked such as touch pad transferred to functionality within a touch sensitive screen, removed such as mouse keys.
Along with the various keyboards a number of optional pointing devices may be attached or related to said keyboards. Mechanical pointing means known as mouse are common with stationary computers and frequently used with laptops. A mouse usually requires a large flat surface for proper operations, a constraint that can be too limiting in mobile use.
Laptops are frequently equipped with a touchpad as a pointing device, a large area disposed below the keys of the keyboard. This extends the depth of the laptop surface significantly and becomes a limiting factor regarding miniaturisation.
As a further alternative laptops are frequently equipped with a small control stick type pointing device in the middle of the keyboard. The latter has remained largely out of favour due to unsatisfactory precision and stability.
Finally there are other alternatives that have had limited success such as pointing directly at a touch sensitive screen, optionally using a stylus, trackballs disposed near the keyboard, typically to the right, and inverted optical mouse systems as a non-mechanical alternative to a trackball.
The inventor of the present invention has identified this traditional thinking as a limiting factor and thus a problem, and found a need in the art for a keyboard that retains most of the functionality of a full sized PC keyboard yet operates well in a small form factor, allowing compression of the input surface area.


A semiconductor device is provided. The semiconductor device includes a dielectric layer over a substrate and a contact structure embedded in the dielectric layer. The contact structure includes a diffusion barrier contacting the dielectric layer, the diffusion barrier including a titanium (Ti)-containing alloy. The contact structure further includes a liner on the diffusion barrier, the liner including a noble metal. The contact structure further includes a conductive plug on the liner.

Integrated circuits (ICs) contain numerous devices such as transistors, diodes, capacitors and resistors that are fabricated on and/or in a semiconductor substrate. These devices are initially isolated from one another and are later interconnected to form functional circuits. As device densities in integrated circuits increase, multiple wiring levels are required to achieve interconnections of these devices. Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is commonly used in the formation of multilevel interconnect structures.

Titanium-containing diffusion barrier for CMP removal rate enhancement and contamination reduction

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd.


Disclosed is a flash memory device and a program verification method thereof which can prevent a misjudgment as to whether flash memory cells are programmed or not. The flash memory device includes: a program verification voltage generator for variably generating program verification voltages used to verify whether the flash memory cells are programmed or not and a word line level selector for transferring the program verification voltages to word lines connected to control gates of the flash memory cells. The flash memory cells that are verified as uncertain as to whether the flash memory cells are programmed or not can be completely programmed since the program verification operation is carried out with program verification voltage levels that are changed according to the selective activations of the program verification control signals.

A flash memory device is a nonvolatile high-density data storage device that can write and erase data on-board. A flash memory cell includes a field effect transistor (FET) having a selection gate, a floating gate, a source and a drain. Data is stored in the flash memory cell by variations in the amount of charge stored in the floating gate, which causes a variation in a threshold voltage (Vt) of the flash memory cell. The data stored in the flash memory cell is read out by applying a selection voltage to a word line connected to the selection gate. The amount of current, which flows when the flash memory cell is selected, is determined by the threshold voltage (Vt) of the flash memory cell.
A flash memory cell generally has two states, i.e., "programmed" and "erased." If the flash memory cell is programmed, excess electrons are trapped on the floating gate and the threshold voltage (Vt) rises, so that only a small amount of drain-source current flows across the flash memory cell when the cell is selected to be read. The programmed state of the flash memory cell is called a logic "0". If the flash memory cell is erased, there are few or no excess electrons on the floating gate, causing a large amount of source-drain current to flow across the flash memory cell when the cell is selected to be read. The erased state of the flash memory cell is called a logic "1".
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional flash memory device. Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional flash memory cell 100 includes a memory cell array block 110, a row decoder 120, a word line level selection block 130, a driver block 140, and a page buffer 150. The memory cell array block 110 includes i number of strings 200, 202, 204, and 206, each of which has flash memory cells connected in series with each other. The first string 200 includes flash memory cells 112, 113, and 114 connected in series with each other, whose gates are connected from the first to the sixteenth word lines WLj (j=0, 1, . . . , 15), respectively. The flash memory cell 112, connected to the first word line WL0, has a drain connected to a first selection transistor 111, whose gate is connected to a string selection line SSL. The flash memory cell 114, connected to the sixteenth word line WL15, has a source connected to a second selection transistor 115, whose gate is connected to a ground selection line GSL. The first selection transistor 111 has a drain connected to a first bit line BL0, and the second selection transistor 115 has a source connected to a common source line CSL.
The strings 200, 202, 204, and 206 are connected with the string selection line SSL, the first to sixteenth word lines WLj (j=0, 1, . . . , 15), and the ground selection line GSL. Additionally, each of the strings 200, 202, 204, and 206 is connected to the page buffer 150 through the bit lines BL0, BL1, BLi−1 and BLi to form one page unit. Although FIG. 1 shows only one page unit contained in the memory cell array block 110 for convenience, the memory cell array block 110 can actually include a number of page units. The page units are addressed by the row decoder 120. Transistors contained in the driver block 140 are turned on in response to addressing signals of the row decoder 120, so that one page unit is selected.
The word line level selection block 130 selects a programming voltage VPGM, a read voltage VREAD, a program verification voltage VRDV, or a pass voltage VPASS according to a corresponding mode, and transfers the selected voltage to the driver block 140. The programming voltage VPGM and the read voltage VREAD are applied during the programming operation and the read operation of the selected flash memory cells, respectively. The program verification voltage VRDV is applied to verify whether the flash memory cell is programmed or not. The pass voltage VPASS is applied to make non-selected flash memory cells electrically "turned on" and thus cause a cell current to flow therethrough. The driver block 140 applies the corresponding mode voltage to the word lines WLj (j=0, 1, . . . , 15) of one selected page unit in response to an addressing signal of the row decoder 120. The page buffer 150 senses the cell current flowing through the bit lines BL0, BL1, . . . , BLi−1 and BLi, and interprets data from the selected flash memory cells.
After the programming operation, the flash memory device 100 repeatedly performs a cycle ("program unit loop") that carries out the program verification operation. As a result of the program verification operation, if it is verified that the flash memory cells are programmed, the programming operation is ended, and if not, the programming operation is carried out once more and the program verification operation is repeated. For example, if a large number of flash memory cells are connected to a single word line, predetermined cycles are required to program all of the flash memory cells and to verify their programs. Once verified that the flash memory cells connected to the selected word line are completely programmed, flash memory cells connected to another word line are programmed and their programs are verified.
If the program operation and the program verification operation are repeatedly performed to one selected word line, a problem may be caused where the programming operation is prematurely ended by misjudging underprogrammed flash memory cells as programmed. The reason is, as shown in FIG. 2, that as the programming voltage VPGM increases and the program verification voltage VRDV is constantly applied during the repeated program unit loops, the cell current increases due to the flash memory cells that are underprogrammed during the first several program unit loops, thereby causing an increase of the level of the common source line CSL. Here, if the program verification voltage VRDV is constantly applied throughout the program unit loops, the cell current decreases due to an increase in the level of the common source line CSL. Accordingly, the flash memory cells that are actually underprogrammed may be misjudged as programmed.
FIG. 3 is a graph of example threshold voltage distributions of flash memory cells during the program verification operation of FIG. 2. Referring to FIG. 3, in an initial state, when the erase operation is performed to all flash memory cells, the threshold voltage (Vt) of the flash memory cells has a negative voltage level. The program unit loops are then sequentially performed and the flash memory cells are programmed by the high programming voltage VPGM at the last loop. As a result, the threshold voltage (Vt) is distributed non-uniformly at the high end. This non-uniform distribution of the high threshold voltage (Vt) causes a problem of overprogramming the flash memory cells of the page unit. Additionally, the flash memory cells having a low threshold voltage (Vt), similar to the program verification voltage VRDV, may remain in an underprogrammed state because it is uncertain whether the flash memory cells are programmed or not.
Embodiments of the invention address these and other limitations in the prior art.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Flash memory device and program verification method thereof


The present invention provides a DNA sequencing method comprising: (1) a step of fragmentation of a sample DNA and amplifying each fragment to obtain a first DNA fragment; (2) a step of obtaining from the first DNA fragment a second DNA fragment substantially complementary to the sample DNA at least at the 3' terminus thereof; and (3) a step of performing an extension reaction of complementary strand, using the sample DNA as a template to produce a third DNA fragment containing a base sequence complementary to the second DNA fragment and having a size longer than that of the second DNA fragment, and using the third DNA fragment as a template for sequencing of the sample DNA. DNA sequencing can be proceeded efficiently with extremely low redundancy.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for sample preparation efficiently provided for a DNA sequencing process, which basic technology utilizes an enzymatic extension reaction of complementary strand. The present invention also relates to a reagents kit for use in the DNA sequencing process.
2. Description of the Related Art
Focusing on human genome analyses, a high throughput and highly efficient DNA sequencing technology is required. DNA sequencing starts from the preparation of DNA library which covers all DNAs, by making clones having a length of 10 Kbp to 100 Kbp from the DNAs present in a gene. DNA sequencing of clones thus produced has been conventionally relied upon and roughly classified into three techniques, i.e., shotgun, primer-walking and nested-deletion techniques.
The shotgun technique involves digesting a sample DNA at random by sonication, preparing DNA fragments by subcloning and sequencing each fragment, whereby overlaps of the sequenced fragments are used to determine the full-length base sequence. Details of the shotgun technique are described in, e.g., T. Maniatis et al.: Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 13, 21-33 (1989).
According to the primer-walking technique, sequences of DNA fragments to be sequenced are sequentially determined one by one from the terminus thereof. That is, in the primer-walking technique, one end of a sample DNA is first sequenced. Next, sequences for a primer contiguous to the following region are selected from the thus determined base sequences. DNA sequencing again starts from the selected sequences. Technical details on the primer walking technique are described in, e.g., T. Maniatis et al.: Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 13, 14-20 (1989).
In the nested-deletion technique, fragments from a sample DNA are subjected to enzymatic digestion to prepare fragments with slightly different sizes. After one end of these fragments is trued up, the fragments are sequenced from another end in the order of a longer length. Details of the nested-deletion technique are found in, e.g., T. Maniatis et al.: Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 13, 34-41 (1989).
In the shotgun method described above, what portion of the sample DNA corresponds to DNA extracted by subclone is unknown until the full-length base sequence is determined. For this reason, it is necessary to analyze the DNA length longer by 10 to 20 times than the length of a DNA strand to be actually sequenced. Therefore, intensive time and labors are required, resulting in serious obstacles. Turning to the primer walking technique mentioned above, this technique provides more efficient DNA sequencing but involves disadvantages, since successive operations for sequencing is time-consuming and a primer must be prepared every time when sequencing is done.
According to the nested-deletion technique mentioned above, new information on a sequence corresponding to the difference in length between fragments is always obtained. The nested-deletion technique is thus efficient, because DNA sequencing is performed sequentially from one end, as in the primer-walking method. Furthermore, the thus prepared DNA fragment is inserted into a plasmid for subcloning and the subclone is then sequenced. Accordingly, a priming site is obtained from the base sequence of plasmid, meaning that there is no need to prepare a primer for DNA sequencing every time. In view of these characteristics of the nested-deletion method, it appears that this method may overcome the problems encountered in the shotgun and primer walking techniques. From a practical viewpoint, however, time-consuming operations for selecting and arranging samples convenient for DNA sequencing are required after all. This is a key how to meet the requirement. In addition, purification by subcloning that is commonly performed in the shotgun and nested-deletion methods is such a complicated operation that is a serious problem to be solved.
In order to solve the problems of complicated operations required for DNA sequencing as recognized in the three techniques hitherto applied, various attempts have been made. In particular, direct sequencing of DNA fragments in a mixture obtained from a sample DNA digested with a restriction enzyme is a promising method. This technique is called a fragment-walking method, which is briefly explained below and a more detailed explanation is found in, e.g., K. Okano et al., Gene, 176: 231-235 (1996), "Fragment walking for large DNA sequencing by using a library as small as 16 primers". A sample DNA is digested with a restriction enzyme. Thereafter an oligomer having a known sequence is ligated with the DNA fragment at the terminus thereof through a ligation reaction to recognize each DNA fragment in the fragments mixture. Sequencing reaction is then conducted using a set of primers which can discriminate a complementary base sequence to at least a part of the ligated oligomer and the restriction enzyme recognition sequence, and an unknown one-base to four-bases sequence adjacent to the recognition sequence. The primer set includes, for example, 16 combinations of all possible bases in the case of an unknown base sequence having variable two base sequence. Where a small number of DNA fragments are contained in a DNA fragment mixture and one DNA fragment forms a complete base pairing with one primer, the base sequence of each DNA fragment can be determined from the mixture, respectively, using the set of primers described above. Where one primer hybridizes to at least two DNA fragments, the above procedure is performed, e.g., after separation of DNA fragments depending upon size. After the base sequence of each DNA fragment has been determined, the base sequences of the respective DNA fragments are reconstructed to obtain the overall base sequence. In order to obtain the overall base sequence, there is employed a method in which fragments are walked over to determine the DNA sequence of the overlapping portion, using as a template for sequencing each fragment and a full-length intact sample DNA before a digestion reaction with any restriction enzyme. Alternatively, there is employed another method in the number of restriction enzymes used initially is increased and the overall DNA sequence is determined by making use of the overlapping base sequence between the fragments.
As explained above, those conventional techniques are all somehow disadvantageous. That is, the shotgun technique requires repeated reading of the same base sequence and is thus inefficient due to high redundancy. For reducing redundancy, the primer-walking technique and the nested-deletion technique have been proposed. However, the primer-walking technique involves disadvantages that prior to DNA sequencing, primers must be synthesized every time or it is necessary to prepare a library including a huge number of primers and it takes much time for DNA sequencing in a series. Turning to the nested-deletion technique, this method is disadvantageous in that a sample convenient for DNA sequencing is prepared only with difficulty. Additional problems encountered with the shotgun and nested-deletion techniques are seen in much time and labors required for cloning using a culture step that is automated also only with difficulty. Contrary to the two techniques above, the fragment-walking method is advantageous in that this technique does not require such cloning and provides low redundancy but is reduced but where the digested fragments have long DNA sequences, difficulties occur in their connection.


The valve series includes a plurality of valve types (A, B, C) with valves of different size and type, wherein a plurality of valve types, preferably all valves types (A, B, C) of the valve series (11) have uniform valve actuators (21), wherein the valve closure members (19) of the valves (10, 12, 13) perform the same opening stroke, wherein they can be formed differently, however, and in particular can have different diameters. The closing springs (20) of the different valve types (A, B, C) can also have different characteristic curves and can be of different thicknesses.

Valve component sets and valve series are known in principle. Reference is made by way of example to DE 20 2010 003 659 U1, which describes a valve component set with a device for recognising the end position. There, all valves of the valve series with different sizes are equipped with identical printed circuit boards.
Document DE 10 2005 058 846 A1 additionally discloses a modular valve system with electromagnetically actuated valve. It is provided there to use a uniform coil system for different valves.
In addition, self-closing motorised control valves are known, as can be inferred for example from DE 10 2009 012 405 A12. The motorised actuator comprises a servomotor, which acts on the valve closure member via a reduction gearing and a flexible tension means. A closing spring tensions the valve closure member in the closing direction, wherein the closing spring has to apply a sufficient force to overcome all friction moments of the reduction gearing and the rolling moment or cogging torque of the servomotor so that the valve closure member in the currentless state of the actuator moves reliably into the closed position. This requirement exists in particular in the case of gas valves, which by all means have to close reliably. The strength of the closing spring is dependent, however, on the valve size and the valve stroke. Thus, within a valve series, valve actuators of different thickness or different size are normally provided for valves of different size, which constitutes a significant technical outlay.
The object of the invention is to specify a concept with which valves of a valve series can be provided with reduced technical outlay.

Valve series having different flow capacities and uniform valve actuators


A mounting device comprises a base for placement on a vehicle dashboard or other surface; an attachment mechanism positioned on the base for removably coupling with the electronic device; a battery system including a rechargeable battery positioned within the base or the attachment mechanism for providing power to the electronic device when it is coupled to the attachment mechanism; and at least one solar cell positioned on or incorporated into the base or the attachment mechanism for charging the rechargeable battery.

It is often desirable to removably mount portable electronic devices within vehicles so the devices can be used inside or outside the vehicles. For example, many people prefer to use portable navigation devices in their vehicles rather than buying vehicles equipped with permanent dash-mounted navigation devices. Many different mounting devices have been created to securely, but removably, position portable navigation devices in vehicles.
Unfortunately, portable electronic devices cannot be easily wired to a vehicle's battery and electrical system and therefore must either be frequently removed for recharging or charged with potentially cumbersome cigarette lighter adapters or other charging cables. Attempts have been made to incorporate a solar cell into an electronic device or into a suction cup mount for the electronic device. Because suction cup mounts can only be attached to relatively hard, smooth surfaces such as glass windshields, they have only a limited surface area for solar cell attachment, can only orient their attached solar cells in limited directions, and cannot be easily moved. This reduces their solar collecting capabilities. Incorporating solar cells into electronic devices is generally undesirable due to cost, complexity, and size concerns.


A ceramic fiber block includes a welding stud disposed between two ceramic fiber layers centrally positioned in the ceramic fiber block. The welding stud includes a base stud which at its one end to be welded to a furnace wall and having a ceramic ferrule and at the other end formed with screw threads, an electrode rod having screw threads at its one end in the ceramic fiber block, and first and second nuts connecting the screw threaded ends of the base stud and electrode rod. The ceramic fiber block further includes an anchor bar between the centrally positioned ceramic fiber layers so as to perpendicularly intersect the welding stud, a pair of piercing rods piercing the whole ceramic fiber layers, a ferrule temporarily fixing agent such as an adhesive for temporarily fixing the ferrule to the end of the base stud, and a pair of platforms associated with the piercing rods for enabling hanger mounting studs to be provided at a predetermined interval, the hanger mounting studs provided with hangers for electric furnace heating elements. After the distal end of the base stud is melted and urged against the furnace wall through an electrode rod by means of a welding machine, so that the pair of piercing rods are urged toward the furnace wall through the anchor rod engaging the welding stud, thereby firmly fixing the ceramic fiber block in a prestressed condition to the furnace wall.

This invention relates to a ceramic fiber block for lining a high temperature furnace, which is composed of a plurality of rectangularly contoured laminated ceramic fiber layers successively bonded or bound together and includes a welding stud which is made of a metal to be welded to a furnace wall by electrical welding and disposed between two ceramic fiber layers centrally positioned in the ceramic fiber layers in the proximity of the rear end surfaces of the rectangularly contoured layers on the side of the relevant furnace wall and perpendicularly to the rear end surfaces, and a pair of piercing rods connected through an anchor bar to the welding stud and piercing the whole ceramic fiber layers.
With such a ceramic fiber block for lining a high temperature furnace, in general, as shown in FIG. 1 after the ceramic fiber block 1 has abutted against a furnace wall 2 made of a metal, an electrode rod 5 is extended from a guide sleeve 4 so as to contact a welding stud 6 by means of a stud welding machine 3 so that the welding stud 6 is connected to the furnace wall 2 by electrical welding. During such a welding operation the welding stud 6 is urged with its melted distal end against the furnace wall 2 so as to be welded to the furnace wall 2 and at the same time piercing rods 8 piercing a plurality of ceramic fiber layers are pulled toward the furnace wall 2 through curved anchor bars 7 wound about the piercing rods 8 to cause prestresses in the ceramic fiber block. As a result, the ceramic fiber block 1 is firmly fixed to the furnace wall 2. Thereafter, the electrode rod 5 is removed together with the guide sleeve 4 from the ceramic fiber block 1.
With the conventional ceramic fiber block for lining a high temperature furnace, in the case of an electric (resistance heating) furnace, after the ceramic fiber block has been fixed to a furnace wall, a pair of upper and lower ceramic rods 9 are embedded in the ceramic fiber block 1 in the vicinity of its front surface on the opposite side of the furnace wall so as to extend in parallel with piercing rods and then a plurality of S-shaped ceramic hangers 10 are forced into the ceramic fiber block 1 so as to be hanged on the ceramic rods 9 at a required predetermined interval in separate and troublesome operations as shown in FIG. 2. After these operations, corners of meandering or zigzag-shaped heating elements 12 are hanged on the exposed hook ends 10A of the S-shaped hangers 10 through ceramic washers 11, respectively.
In another conventional example of the ceramic fiber block, after base studs have been previously fixed to a furnace wall by welding, a ceramic fiber block is mounted on these base studs. Then, ceramic insulators are connected to the ceramic fiber block for finally arranging heating elements by hanging them on the ceramic insulators.
With such hitherto used ceramic fiber blocks for lining high temperature furnaces, however, in case of electric furnaces, the operation for mounting hangers for supporting heating elements is carried out in a separate step after the ceramic fiber blocks have been fixed to the furnace walls, with resulting low working efficiency.

Ceramic fiber block for lining high temperature furnace


A method and apparatus for managing data, voice, application, and video services allows anticipation of poor quality of service from a remote management station, in order to allow correction of the cause before the end user perceives service quality degradation. Specific system phenomena are identified that coincide with user-perceived service degradation in a particular network. The network is then monitored for the occurrence of those phenomena. Incipient or existing user-perceived quality of service degradation is inferred from the occurrence of one or more of those phenomena and action is taken to avoid and/or correct the degraded service quality condition. In a preferred embodiment, as many of the steps as possible are performed automatically by a network management system. In one embodiment, a close correlation is assumed between application data buffer over-extension and poor quality of service from a user's point of view. In this embodiment, a monitor is placed on the application data buffer that raises an alarm for a network management system whenever the buffer is close to over-extension or an algorithm identifies a trend towards over-extension.

Typically, managers of communications networks exist far away from network services as experienced by end users. It is therefore difficult for these remotely situated managers to know when the quality of service, as perceived by the users, is unacceptable. Currently, a user usually must call a help desk if the quality of service becomes unacceptable. Consequently, user work is interrupted and the achievement of the purpose of the service may be degraded or even halted for lengthy periods of time.

Method and apparatus for monitoring and maintaining user-perceived quality of service in a communications network


An LC filter including a substrate having a magnetic and dielectric material. The LC filter includes inductors having two spiral structures arranged so that magnetic fluxes generated at the insides of the spiral structures are parallel and in mutually reverse directions. Also included are plane plate capacitors between the two spiral structures.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an LC composite part constituted by forming inductors and capacitors at an inside of a substrate including both a magnetic material and a dielectric material.
2. Discussion of the Background
Background EMI (Electro Magnetic Interference) filters have been used as a countermeasure for high frequency noise in an electronic device. Generally, an EMI filter is constituted by combining individual capacitor and inductor elements. Many types of these EMI filters have been proposed, such as L-type EMI filters constituted by combining one capacitor and one inductor and .pi.-type filters constituted by combining two capacitors and one inductor.
When an EMI filter is constituted by combining capacitor and inductor elements in this way, a total size of the EMI filter is magnified, a wide area is needed in attaching the EMI filter to a circuit board or the like, and a greater number of steps are required to combine the individual elements.
In recent years, there have been proposed filters which resolve the aforementioned problems. These filters include incorporating capacitors and inductors in a single chip (please see Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. JP-A-8-65080 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. JP-A-8-148381).
According to these publications, there is proposed a filter part having a chip-like shape where conductive films operating as inductors and capacitors are formed on a plurality of layers. Each of the layers include a mixture of a dielectric material and a magnetic material. In addition, the plurality of layers are laminated and sintered, thereby forming an LC filter of an L-type or a .pi.-type at an inside portion of the filter part.
All of the inductors formed at the inside of the filter part described in the publications have linear conductive films sandwiched by mixtures including a dielectric material and a magnetic material. Therefore, it is difficult to provide a large inductance in limited dimensions.
A large inductance may be formed with an inductor having a spiral structure extending over a plurality of layers. This can be accomplished by forming half-round or full-round conductive films on a single layer including a mixture of a dielectric and magnetic material. The conductive films are extended to a next layer via conductors in through holes. However, when such a spiral inductor structure is formed in the mixture substrate, the magnetic forces of the inductors adversely effect an influence on a capacitor contiguous to the inductor at the inside of the substrate. Therefore, the characteristic of the filter is significantly deteriorated.
Further, a multi-stage LC filter is preferably to create an LC filter circuit with excellent filter characteristic. However, when a multi-stage type LC filter using the L-type and .pi.-type filter proposed in the above-mentioned publications, the dimensions of the filter are excessively enlarged to provide a large inductance.
Further, when the mixture of the dielectric and magnetic material is used, the inductor has a considerably large residual capacitor that is equivalently connected to the inductor in parallel, because the dielectric material is included. Accordingly, an LC filter circuit with excellent characteristics is difficult to obtain.

LC composite part with no adverse magnetic field in the capacitor


Provided is a wellbore scraper assembly for use with a wireline. The wellbore scraper assembly, in one example, includes a tubular housing, a plurality of hydraulically deployable scraper features associated with the tubular housing, the plurality of hydraulically deployable scraper features configured to move from a first retracted state to a second radially extended state, and a hydraulic deployment system coupled to the plurality of hydraulically deployable scraper features, the hydraulic deployment system configured to move the plurality of hydraulically deployable scraper features from the first state to the second state.

It is well known in the oil and gas drilling industry to run a scraper assembly down a wellbore so as to clean the inner surface of the wellbore casing wall. This operation is typically undertaken when there is a need to grip the inner surface of the wellbore casing with a wellbore tool, such as a plug, inflatable packer, or the like. Naturally, the effectiveness of the wellbore tool gripping the casing is improved if the portion of wellbore casing being gripped is substantially clean and free of loose fragments.
Current technologies that are used to clean the inner surface of the wellbore casing wall include rigid tubing based scraper assemblies and wireline based scraper assemblies. Rigid tubing based scraper assemblies require a rigid work string, as well as an oil derrick for deploying the same. Accordingly, such rigid tubing based scraper assemblies are time consuming and expensive.
Wireline based scraper assemblies, on the other hand, do not require an oil derrick, and thus are less time consuming and expensive. Unfortunately, the wireline based scraper assemblies are found on the very bottom of the wireline, which means that no other wellbore tools can be placed there below. Accordingly, multiple trips are needed to first scrape and clean a target location, and then subsequently set the wellbore tool. Additionally, it is not guaranteed that the operator will be able to find the cleaned location of the wellbore casing, and thus be able to set the wellbore tool in the correct location. Moreover, it is quite possible that new debris may be introduced between the multiple trips. Given the foregoing, what is needed in the art is a wireline based wellbore scraper assembly that does not experience the drawbacks of exiting systems.


Systems and methods for fire and smoke containment and extinguishing are described. Systems may include a fire and smoke containment and extinguishing apparatus including an open recess with one or more walls. The open recess may substantially prevent passage of fire, smoke and fumes. The apparatus may also include one or more seals for closing the open recess, and a fire extinguishing system. Methods for fire and smoke containment and extinguishment may include providing a fire and smoke containment and extinguishing system; inserting an item into the recess of the apparatus; closing the recess; and deploying the fire extinguishing system.

In the past, the Federal Aviation Administration supported the use of a thermal type blanket or bag to contain a personal electronic device (PED) fires. After further investigation, however, the FAA discouraged their use due to the inability of this type of system to extinguish and cool the cells of the batteries that power the (PED) and are the main cause of fires experienced with these types of devices. The use of currently available thermal blankets or bags has limited effects on reducing the amount smoke and toxic fumes experienced during a PED=type battery fire. There is an extreme danger that exists for fires which occur in confined spaces, especially those present in aviation environments. The lack of effective and rapid containment and extinguishing methods in these types of environments is a critical issue.
Needs exist for improved systems and methods for improved containment and extinguishing of fire and smoke. Needs also exist for a shipping container that can provide a method for safely transporting any item which may pose a potential fire risk.

Fire and smoke containment and extinguishing apparatus


The present invention relates to correlating requests between a client and a server to a particular transaction. In one embodiment, transactions in a system of clients and servers are monitored and traced. From this information, a context comprising sets or groupings of transaction call sequences are determined. For example, a sequence of method calls on a client process is traced to a socket carrying data for transmission of a request message to a server. In response to this request message, the server then executes a set of method calls that can be correlated to the request message and the socket. This set of actions is considered part of a causally related grouping, and thus, associated together. In one embodiment, HTTP requests from a client may be comprise a unique custom header that is readily identified and traced. For other protocols, a client socket is associated with a corresponding server socket or to data received over a socket receive call.

Application performance management relates to technologies and systems for monitoring and managing the performance of applications. For example, application performance management is commonly used to monitor and manage transactions performed by an application running on a server to a client.
Today, many applications can be accessed over a network, such as the Internet or intranet. For example, due to the ubiquity of web browsers on most client devices, web applications have become particularly popular. Web applications typically employ a browser-supported infrastructure, such as Java or a .NET framework. However, the performance of these types of applications is difficult to monitor and manage because of the complexity of the software and hardware and numerous components that may be involved.
A transaction typically comprises a sequence of method calls in a program that represent a complete set of operations necessary to perform a self-contained unit of work, such as a web request or a database query. Transactions can be traced to monitor and manage their performance. For example, a trace can be performed in an application server to obtain detailed information about the execution of an application within that server.
Unfortunately, the tracing of a transaction through a typical network system is difficult. For example, even when several network-connected interoperating components of a multi-tier application are all instrumented, the known application monitoring systems and methods are unable to correlate transaction call sequences from those components that are causally related. These communications are difficult to correlate because they are independently running on the client and server. In addition, the common use of network address translation makes tracing these communications difficult.
In some known systems, for hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) based requests, it is possible to insert a unique custom header on the client side into an outgoing HTTP request message, and to intercept this custom header on the server side. If each side of the transaction (i.e., the client and server) is tracing calls, the custom header associated with the HTTP request can be recorded to the trace files on each side of each request and response. The associated calls can later be correlated based on this custom information.
Unfortunately, for cross-tier communications that are not encapsulated as HTTP requests and responses, it is generally not possible to insert such additional context into the messages.
Furthermore, in a traditional transaction trace for web applications, Java or .NET instrumentation components are running (on the application server, the client, etc.) and write records of all of the method calls of a transaction to a transaction trace file. Such tracing must be predominantly initiated manually or triggered by a program condition and for only a limited period of time. It is necessary to limit trace duration and detail in the conventional systems because the act of tracing is relatively expensive and could negatively system performance and disk space of the server, the client, etc.
Accordingly, this also means that in many circumstances the execution of an application within a system cannot be diagnosed or monitored regardless of whether the communications are HTTP based or not.
Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals indicate similar or corresponding features or functions. The drawings are included for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

Correlating input and output requests between client and server components in a multi-tier application


The present invention is a topical film-forming composition comprising; (a) a non-toxic volatile solvent, (b) a cellulosic material having at least one hydroxyl group on a side chain of a cellulose backbone, (c) an esterification agent capable of reacting with said hydroxyl group on the side chain of said cellulosic material to form an ester, and (d) a glycerol monolaurate crosslinking agent. Various medicinal, antibiotic, anitfungal, anesthetic, analgesic and virucidal agents may be included within the composition.

Topical film-forming compositions are commonly used in the treatment of various tissues aliments including cold sores, canker sores, chapped lips, bums, cuts, abrasions, etc. Such compositions are designed to form a protective film over the tissue area of application. Furthermore, these compositions may serve as carriers for various medicinal, antibiotic, antifungal, anesthetic, analgesic and virucidal agents as well as related components such as penetration enhancers (e.g. AZONE). Examples of such film-forming compositions include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,381,296 and 4,285,934 both to Tinnell, Re. 33,093 to Schiraldi et al., and 5,081,157 to Pomerantz.
The effectiveness of topical film-forming compositions is highly dependent upon the mechanical properties of the film ultimately formed upon the tissue site. That is, to be effective, film-forming compositions must be capable of adhering to tissues, including moist mucosal tissue, e.g. as in oral applications. Furthermore, the resultant film must resist abrasion and irrigation by body fluids. Perhaps most importantly, such films must be flexible, as the tissues to which they are adhered to, stretch and flex.
One class of known film-forming compositions use ethyl cellulose film-formers with esterification agents. These compositions tend to produce brittle films which are likely to separate from their sites of application. While not wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that the brittle nature of these films is a result of the use of ethyl cellulose, which only undergoes esterification at sites on the cellulose backbone.
Another class of known film-forming compositions utilize hydroxypropyl cellulose with esterifications agents. These compositions do not exhibit the same degree of brittleness, as with ethyl cellulose. This is believed to be due to the presence of hydroxyl groups on side chains from the cellulose backbone, which are capable of esterification. One drawback to these compositions, however, is that they tend to be relatively weak and often do not maintain their integrity. As such, films formed from such compositions are commonly displaced shortly after their application. The addition of crosslinking agents to these compositions can increase the strength of films formed thereby, but such crosslinking can render the film quite brittle.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,081,157 to Pomerantz discloses a topical film-forming composition which includes: 1) hydroxypropyl cellulose, 2) a non-toxic volatile solvent, e.g. an alcohol, 3) an esterification agent, e.g. a carboxylic acid, 4) a boric acid crosslinking agent, and 5) medicinal compounds, e.g. hydrocortisone, lidocaine hydroclholoride, benzocaine, etc. As described in the reference, the carboxyl groups of the esterification agent (e.g. tannic acid and salicyclic acid) undergo esterification with the hydroxypropyl cellulose. Following and/or during esterification, boric acid crosslinks parts of the ester. This crosslinking adds strength to the resulting film; however, since boric acid has three hydroxyl groups, it is capable of crosslinking the ester at three locations. These three locations are only separated by an interstitial boron atom. Although not wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that the crosslinked portions of the ester(s) are drawn too close together due to the close proximity of the three hydroxyl groups of boric acid, thus forming a rigid opaque film. As a result, the film formed tends to be thick and brittle, causing it to frequently crack and dislodge from its point of application. Furthermore, compositions including boric acid are known to cause skin irritation for many individuals.
Thus, strong, yet flexible, non-irritating film-forming compositions are sought which readily adhere to moist tissues.


A door mirror which includes a camera for checking the side of a vehicle which is in a blind spot of a driver, has a door mirror body having a through hole formed for lens side part of the camera to be inserted therein, and a camera cover having an opening part for exposing the lens part formed, and the camera cover has the first abutting surface which abuts on the outer surface of the door mirror body with elasticity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a door mirror, which includes a camera for checking the side of a vehicle which is in a blind spot from a driver.
2. Related Background of the Invention
As a technical art in this field heretofore, there has been Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-137286. The door mirror described in the patent document comprises a resin door mirror body which is bowl-shaped, and a mirror disposed in an opening part of the door mirror body. The door mirror includes a metallic camera base stand which is attached on an outer surface of the door mirror body and has a sphere-shaped convex part protruding downward, and a camera having a substantially spherically concave part so as to be rotatably installed on the base stand through fitting the concave part together with the base stand convex part. Accordingly, as the camera is installed on the base stand in rotation-free manner, angle change of the camera to the door mirror body becomes possible and thus the convenience of the camera is enhanced.


A hole opener including a tool body having upper and lower ends. The upper and lower ends may be coupled to adjacent drilling tools. At least two blades are formed on the tool body and are arranged so that the hole opener is positioned concentric with a wellbore, and cutting elements are located on the blades. The at least two blades and the cutting elements are arranged to increase a diameter of a previously drilled wellbore.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to downhole tools used to enlarge wellbores drilled in earth formations. More specifically, the invention relates to a fixed blade fixed cutter hole opener having an advanced cutting structure and gage configuration.
2. Background Art
Polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) cutters have been used in industrial applications including wellbore drilling and metal machining for many years. In these applications, a compact of polycrystalline diamond (or other superhard material such as cubic boron nitride) is bonded to a substrate material, which is typically a sintered metal-carbide, to form a cutting structure. A compact is a polycrystalline mass of diamonds (typically synthetic) that are bonded together to form an integral, tough, high-strength mass.
An example of a use of PDC cutters is in a drill bit for earth formation drilling is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,268. FIG. 1 in the '268 patent shows a cross-section of a rotary drill bit having a bit body 10. A lower face of the bit body 10 is formed to include a plurality of blades (blade 22 is shown in FIG. 1) that extend generally outwardly away from a rotational axis 15 of the drill bit. A plurality of PDC cutters 26 are disposed side by side along the length of each blade. The number of PDC cutters 26 carried by each blade may vary. The PDC cutters 26 are brazed to a stud-like carrier, which may also be formed from tungsten carbide, and is received and secured within a corresponding socket in the respective blade.
When drilling a wellbore, a PDC bit is attached to the end of a bottom hole assembly (BHA) and is rotated to cut the formations. The PDC bit thus drills a wellbore or borehole having a diameter generally equal to the PDC bit's effective diameter. During drilling operations, it may be desirable to increase the diameter of the drilled wellbore to a selected larger diameter. Further, increasing the diameter of the wellbore may be necessary if, for example, the formation being drilled is unstable such that the wellbore diameter changes after being drilled by the drill bit. Accordingly, tools known in the art such as "hole openers" and "underreamers" have been used to enlarge diameters of drilled wellbores.
In some drilling environments, it may be advantageous, from an ease of drilling standpoint, to drill a smaller diameter borehole (e.g., an 8½ inch diameter hole) before opening or underreaming the borehole to a larger diameter (e.g., to a 17½ inch diameter hole). Other circumstances in which first drilling smaller hole and then underreaming or opening the hole include directionally drilled boreholes. It is difficult to directionally drill a wellbore with a large diameter bit because, for example, larger diameter bits have an increased tendency to "torque-up" (or stick) in the wellbore. When a larger diameter bit "torques-up", the bit tends to drill a tortuous trajectory because it periodically sticks and then frees up and unloads torque. Therefore it is often advantageous to directionally drill a smaller diameter hole before running a hole opener in the wellbore to increase the wellbore to a desired larger diameter.
A typical prior art hole opener is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,694 issued to Walton et al. The hole opener disclosed in the '694 patent includes a bull nose, a pilot section, and an elongated body adapted to be connected to a drillstring used to drill a wellbore. The hole opener also includes a triangularly arranged, hardfaced blade structure adapted to increase a diameter of the wellbore.
Another prior art hole opener is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,035,293 issued to Rives. The hole opener disclosed in the '293 patent may be used either as a sub in a drill string, or may be coupled to the bottom end of a drill string in a manner similar to a drill bit. This particular hole opener includes radially spaced blades with cutting elements and shock absorbers disposed thereon.
Other prior art hole openers include, for example, rotatable cutters affixed to a tool body in a cantilever fashion. Such a hole opener is shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,542 issued to Rives. The hole opener disclosed in the '542 patent includes hardfaced cutter shells that are similar to roller cones used with roller cone drill bits.
There is a need, however, for a hole opener that makes use of recent advances in PDC cutter and blade technology. While PDC cutters have been used with, for example, prior art near-bit reamers, the PDC cutters on such reamers are generally arranged in a relatively simplistic fashion. This arrangement, among other factors, forms a relatively unreliable mechanical structure that is not durable, especially when drilling tough formations. Moreover, some prior art hole openers generate high levels of vibration and noise, and tend to cause the well trajectory deviate from the existing well trajectory. Therefore, it would be advantageous to produce hole openers with improved cutting structures.

Abstract: A hole opener including a tool body having upper and lower ends. The upper and lower ends may be coupled to adjacent drilling tools. At least two blades are formed on the tool body and are arranged so that the hole opener is positioned concentric with a wellbore, and cutting elements are located on the blades. The hole opener includes a pilot hole conditioning section. The pilot hole conditioning section includes at least two pilot blades formed on the tool body in a position axially ahead of the blades. The pilot blades include a taper at a downhole end and gage pads positioned at selected diameters. At least one cutting element is disposed on the pilot blades.


Arrangement for introducing a liquid medium into exhaust gases from a combustion engine, comprising a mixing duct, a first flow guide for creating a first exhaust vortex in the mixing duct such that the exhaust gases in this first exhaust vortex rotate in a first direction of rotation during their movement downstream in the mixing duct, an injector for injecting the liquid medium in the form of a finely divided spray into exhaust gases which are led into the liquid medium in an exhaust flow at the center of the first vortex, and a second flow guide for creating a second exhaust vortex in the mixing duct concentrically with and externally about the first vortex, such that the exhaust gases in this second vortex rotate in a second direction of rotation, which is opposite to said first direction of rotation, during their movement downstream in the mixing duct.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an arrangement for introducing a liquid medium, e.g. urea, into exhaust gases from a combustion engine.
2. Related Art
To meet prevailing exhaust cleaning requirements, today's motor vehicles are usually provided with a catalyst in the exhaust line to effect catalytic conversion of environmentally hazardous constituents of the exhaust gases to environmentally less hazardous substances. A method which has been employed for achieving effective catalytic conversion is based on injecting a reducing agent into the exhaust gases upstream of the catalyst. A reductive substance which forms part of, or is formed by, the reducing agent is carried by the exhaust gases into the catalyst and is adsorbed on active seats in the catalyst, resulting in accumulation of the reductive substance in the catalyst. The accumulated reductive substance may then react with and thereby convert an exhaust substance to a substance with less environmental impact.
Such a reduction catalyst may for example be of the SCR (selective catalytic reduction) type. This type of catalyst is hereinafter called an SCR catalyst. An SCR catalyst reduces NOx in the exhaust gases.
In the case of an SCR catalyst, a reducing agent in the form of urea solution is usually injected into the exhaust gases upstream of the catalyst. The injection of urea into the exhaust gases results in the formation of ammonia which then serves as the reductive substance which assists the catalytic conversion in the SCR catalyst. The ammonia accumulates in the catalyst by being adsorbed on active seats in the catalyst, and NOx present in the exhaust gases is converted to nitrogen gas and water when it is brought into contact in the catalyst with accumulated ammonia on the active seats in the catalyst.
When urea is used as the reducing agent, it is injected into the exhaust line in the form of a liquid urea solution via an injector. The injector comprises a nozzle via which the urea solution is injected under pressure into the exhaust line in the form of a finely divided spray. In many operating conditions of a diesel engine, the exhaust gases will be at a high enough temperature to be able to vaporise the urea solution so that ammonia is formed.
It is difficult, however, to avoid part of the urea solution supplied coming into contact with and becoming attached to the internal wall surface of the exhaust line in an unvaporised state. The exhaust line, which is often in contact with and cooled by surrounding air, will be at a lower temperature than the exhaust gases within the exhaust line. When a combustion engine is run in a uniform way for a period of time, i.e. during steady-state operating conditions, no appreciable variations in the exhaust flow occur and the urea solution injected into the exhaust gases will therefore be focused on substantially the same region of the exhaust line throughout said period of time. The relatively cool urea solution may cause local lowering of the temperature in that region of the exhaust line, which may lead to the formation in that region of a film of urea solution which is then entrained by the exhaust flow. When this film has moved a certain distance in the exhaust line, the water in the urea solution will boil away under the influence of the hot exhaust gases. Solid urea will remain and be slowly vaporised by the heat in the exhaust line. If the supply of solid urea is greater than the amount vaporised, solid urea will accumulate in the exhaust line. If the resulting layer of urea becomes thick enough, the urea and its decomposition products will react with one another to form urea-based primitive polymers known as urea lumps. Such urea lumps may over time block an exhaust line.
It is therefore desirable that the injected urea solution be widely spread out in the exhaust gases so that it is prevented from concentrating in substantially the same region of the exhaust line. A good spread of the urea solution in the exhaust gases also facilitates its vaporisation. It is also desirable that the injected urea solution be broken up into as small drops as possible, since the vaporisation rate increases with decreasing drop size.
An arrangement of this type is already known from WO 2007/115748 A1. In that known arrangement a first exhaust flow is led into a mixing duct in such a way that the exhaust gases in this first exhaust flow are caused to rotate about the centreline of the mixing duct, resulting in an exhaust vortex in the mixing duct. An injection means is provided to inject a liquid medium into a tubular injection chamber, thereby bringing the injected medium into contact with a second exhaust flow which passes through the injection chamber. The mixture of exhaust gases and injected medium formed within the injection chamber is then led into the mixing duct at the centre of said exhaust vortex in order to achieve good distribution of the liquid medium in the exhaust gases.


A license plate cover is provided with laser absorptive features. As a laser beam, having a predetermined wavelength which matches the absorptive properties of the plate cover, impinges on the plate cover the laser beam energy is absorbed on a molecular level and converted to heat thereby decreasing or eliminating the reflection of the transmitted laser beam.

The present invention relates to the art of laser light absorption. It finds particular application in conjunction with absorbing a laser beam directed at a moving vehicle, thereby decreasing the distance at which a speed detection device using a laser beam is effective. It is to be appreciated, however, that the invention may find application in other areas.
Numerous devices for detecting the speed of a traveling vehicle have been presented. Included among these is a system known as VASCAR, which is an acronym for Visual Average Speed Computer and Recorder. In its simplest form VASCAR is a calculator that determines a target car's speed from two factors, time and distance. With VASCAR a user implements two toggle switches to "clock" a car, one to start and stop a distance measurement and the other begins and ends the time measurement. The time basis is internal, while a sensor connected to the user's speedometer cable supplies distance information. A user will simply measure the length of the area over which the test will be done, which may be a span of roadway. Then, by flipping the switch twice, the user determines how long it takes a target car to cover the predetermined length. An internal calculator does the mathematical calculations and the average speed is displayed on a LED readout.
Another detection method uses radar (radio detection and ranging). A radar gun antenna transmits a microwave signal at the target vehicle, which reflects a portion of the wave back to the "gun". If both cars are moving at the same speed, the reflected wave will be the same frequency as this transmitted signal.
But if the target car is moving relative to the user's car, it will bounce waves back at a slightly different frequency, higher if the target is approaching, lower if the car is receding. The car's speed can be accurately determined by comparing the transmitted frequency of the outgoing beam with its echo. A microwave beam used in radar detection can be more than 200 feet wide at a distance of 2,000 feet, enough to cover several highway lanes, therefore, bringing into question which vehicle of a group of vehicles is being targeted.
A recent advancement in the detection of vehicle speeds is the use of a laser beam. Laser is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A laser beam will form only a 51/2 foot spot at a distance of 2,000 feet and can, therefore, be aimed directly at a car being targeted. A commonly used type of arrangement for a laser beam to detect moving automobiles is in the form of a "gun" which uses a gun site to target its beam of light on a specific car. Approximately every three milliseconds some laser "guns" can calculate how far away the car is based on the time it takes the beam of light to make a round trip. Speed is then determined by dividing the change in distance by the elapsed time between readings.
In the article "How To Beat Laser and Radar Guns" Car and Driver, November 1993, Vol. 39, page 124 (4), by Don Schroeder, operation of two commonly used laser or lidar guns are discussed. These include the Kustom Signals ProLaser and the LTI 20-20. Both use pulses of infrared laser light at approximately a 904-nanometer wavelength in order to measure speed. The gun fires each pulse at the target and will wait for its reflection to return. With these products the laser beam created by the pulses is very narrow, about four (4) feet wide at a thousand (1,000) feet. The pulses are also very short approximately thirty-five billionths of a second long and are fired very rapidly, as many three hundred and eighty-five (385) times a second for the ProLaser.
The above article notes that the LTI 20-20 can clock a car a half a mile away in about a one-third (1/2) of a second. Another related article "Do Laser Detectors Work?", Car and Driver, December 1992, pages 133-135, by Don Schroeder states tests done with the same devices were able to a clock a highly reflective car from a mile away.
Various methods and devices are discussed in these articles to detect or limit the effectiveness of laser guns. A commonly used device is a laser detector, an electronic device for detecting the presence of a laser beam. This is a highly complex piece of equipment which is mounted on the dash or grill of a car and attempts to warn a driver as to the use of a laser gun. In addition to laser detectors, the article "How To Beat Laser and Radar Guns" suggests that by turning on the lights of a vehicle, the effectiveness of a laser gun is diminished. This occurs since certain car lights emit not only visible light on the electromagnetic spectrum but also infrared light.
"How To Beat Laser and Radar Guns" also explained that removal of the license plates decreases the laser guns capabilities. As more and more cars are using plastic in their construction the license plate has become a prime reflective surface for the laser beam. In fact, literature regarding operation of the LTI 20-20 specifically instructs a user to measure the velocity of a vehicle by aiming the laser gun at the license plate area of the target vehicle. This operation is described in Laser Speed Detection System Operator's Manual LTI 20-20 from Laser Technology, Inc. 7399 South Tucson Way, Level B Englewood, Colo. 80112.
As previously discussed, "How To Beat Laser and Radar Guns" has found that emissions from car lights, especially high beams, was effective in lowering the useful range of laser guns. This article further noted, however, that by using additional lighting, interference with other drivers would likely occur. One way which was shown to eliminate this interference is to use a filter that absorbs the bright visible light but passes the invisible infrared light. The article concluded that by using a laser detector with the headlights and driving lights on, chances are significantly decreased that either laser gun described in the article, will receive an accurate first reading. Thus, a laser detector would then have time to sound an alarm prior to a useable reading, allowing the driver time to decelerate.
It should be noted that one of the most effective manners described in the above articles to decrease the useful range of a laser gun is removal of the license plate. However, since in all states both front and rear license plates or at least a rear license plate is required, this is not a practical solution.
The use of high-beams or powerful driving lights also has drawbacks including interference with other drivers. A suggestion to overcome this drawback is the use a filter that absorbs the bright visible light but passes the invisible infrared. Unfortunately, as also noted in the article, using such a filter would mean the light does not allow visible light to pass through. This would then require a user to remove the filters whenever visible light is desired, such as night driving. Another drawback with this solution is that the car lights would be used continuously, this would result in the lights burning out at a faster rate than would otherwise occur. Further, such constant use of the lights could put an undesirable drain on the vehicle's battery.
The present invention provides a new and improved license cover plate which will absorb laser light thereby decreasing the working range of a laser gun while overcoming the problems of other attempts to decrease the working range of a laser gun.


In a pneumatic tire, a belt layer includes an inner-side cross belt and an outer-side cross belt each having an absolute value of a belt angle with respect to the tire circumferential direction of not less than 46 degrees and not more than 80 degrees and having the belt angles with signs that are opposite to each other. The circumferential reinforcing layer has a belt angle with respect to the tire circumferential direction within the range ±5 degrees and disposed between the inner-side cross belt and outer-side cross belt. The supplemental belt has an absolute value of a belt angle with respect to the tire circumferential direction of not less than 10 degrees and not more than 45 degrees, and is disposed on the inner side in the tire radial direction of the inner-side cross belt. The supplemental belt and the inner-side cross belt have belt angles with opposite signs.

Heavy duty tires with low aspect ratios mounted on trucks, buses and the like demonstrate reduction of tire radial growth in the center region, and demonstrate uniformity of contact pressure distribution in the tire width direction, due to the disposition of a circumferential reinforcing layer in the belt layer. Conventional pneumatic tires that are configured in this manner are disclosed in Japanese Patent Nos. 4642760B, 4663638B and 4663639B, as well as Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication Nos. 2009-1092A, 2006-111217A and 2006-183211A.
However, there is a problem in that groove cracking resistance of the pneumatic tires needs to be improved.


A cost-effective, currency dispense and control system (CDCS) securely dispenses paper money in one of the following modes: (1) an ATM system and (2) a currency control system that allows a merchant or merchant-approved employee to withdraw cash from the CDCS independent of a standard ATM electronic fund transfer (EFT) network. The CDCS may also include the following functionalities: a duress dispensation system that allows the CDCS to activate an alarm and/or otherwise communicate with local police or security services during a robbery, a time-release system that effects a time-delayed dispensation functionality, and a user identification and authentication system for authenticating a user identity and determining eligibility of the user to access the currency control system.

Controlled-Access Dispensing Safes
In the 1970s, when convenience stores began extending their hours, the incidence of armed robberies increased at an alarming rate. Specifically, from 1968 to 1973, robberies of chain stores increased by 167%, compared to an overall increase in robberies of 39% during the same period. The Western Behavioral Sciences Institute, under a grant from the National Institute of Justice and in cooperation with Southland Corporation, conducted research, including social studies of convicted armed robbers, to look at the stores from the robbers' perspective and then devise countermeasures to deter theft. The studies determined that two of the most important factors to a criminal in selecting a store to rob were (1) "the availability of cash" and (2) "the ability to get it quickly." Tidel Engineering, L.P. "Cash Control: Pioneering Retail Security," available at http://www.tidel.com/about_industry_retailcash.asp (last visited Dec. 11, 2002).
In about 1977, Tidel Engineering, L.P. (Tidel), a division of Southland Corporation, was formed to develop and produce controlled-access, time-release safes into which money is deposited and from which money is dispensed in a controlled, and preferably recorded, manner. Because these safes limited the amount of money stolen during a robbery, they consequently reduced the incidence of robbery in those establishments having a time-release safe. Specifically, the use of a time-release safe to store an establishment's change fund and excess cash made a commercial establishment less attractive to a potential robber because, other than the minimal required amount in the cash register, there was little readily available cash in the store. Because a time-release safe is programmed to dispense a specified amount of cash on a time-delay basis as a merchant or merchant-approved employee requires funds, (e.g., not more than once every five minutes), a store's excess cash is not available quickly and the robber is forced to go elsewhere. Id. Further, the fact that the safe is programmed to dispense a specific amount of cash no more than once during a certain time period (which period can range from one to 99 minutes) means that, when confronted with a robbery, a merchant or merchant's employee cannot be forced to dispense more than the maximum amount of money the safe has been programmed to dispense, unless the robber is willing to wait until the time delay has expired. Thus, in most instances, a robber will take only the cash in the cash register and the maximum amount dispensed by the time-release safe, limiting the merchant's monetary loss to a few hundred dollars.
During the period from 1975 to 1986 (the 12-year period after Tidel began implementing its first theft-protection time-release safes), convenience stores having these safes experienced a 65% decrease in robberies nationwide. Ten years later, that figure was unchanged despite an increase in robberies elsewhere during the decade. FBI statistics reflect a remarkable nationwide decrease in the incidence of armed robbery in convenience stores from Tidel's inception through 1992. According to the convenience store industry, robberies declined by another 45% from 1992 to 1998. Id.
These time-release safes typically include eight columns of tubes, each column including 12 plastic dispensing tubes approximately 4 inches long and 1¼ inches in diameter. Each column dispenses from its tubes a specified amount and form of money, such as a roll of coins (e.g., $2 worth of nickels or $5 worth of dimes) or a paper bill (e.g., denominations of one, five, ten, or twenty dollars). Each column has an opening at the top that is formed such that it accepts tubes of money one at a time. When a merchant needs cash, the safe's money is accessed by keying into an electronic numerical keypad the appropriate personal pin identification number (PIN) and the amount of money needed. An electronic control system determines from which columns and tubes money is dispensed in order to provide the requested amount of money. Depending on the sophistication of the safe, the merchant, owner, or manager often has the ability to generate reports listing all transactions (deposits and withdrawals) made during a certain time period. The report often includes the following information for each listed transaction: the unique ID number of the individual who made the transaction, the time the transaction was made, and the transaction amount. The ability to generate these reports further facilitates management control of on-site cash, which has historically been a problem for merchants, who are often plagued by "shrinkage." Shrinkage is the term sometimes used in the retail industry for inventory (cigarettes, candy, beer/soft drinks, etc.) and money/cash that "disappears" from a merchant's location and that cannot be accounted for. Typically an employee is suspected of taking the money but without any proof the merchant cannot prosecute anyone.
Cash-dispensing safes now include sophisticated electronics and software that enable them to perform various services and functions. The current vendors producing these cash-control dispensing safes are Armor Safe Technologies in Vista, California; Tidel in Carrollton, Tex.; FireKing® International in New Albany, Indiana; AT Systems in Indianapolis, Ind.; and McGunn Safe Co. in Des Plaines, Ill. The cost of these safes ranges from $2,500 to $5,000 each, depending on their capacity and features.
Automated Teller Machines
ATMs dispense cash directly from a user's bank account. The primary vendors are Docutel, Inc. of Dallas, Tex.; Diebold, Inc. (Diebold) of North Canton, Ohio; IBM of New York; and NCR Corporation (NCR) of Dayton, Ohio. Foreign vendors include Fujitsu in Japan, Siemens in Europe, and Nixdorf in Europe. ATMs, costing $20,000 to $40,000 each and requiring dedicated, and thereby expensive, leased telephone lines, are typically purchased by banks and are generally installed at a bank or at a location having a business relationship with a bank. In about 1992, Tidel produced a dial-up ATM, which was based on a combination of the company's tube dispensing, cash-control safe (see above) and an off-the-shelf Verifone credit/debit card point-of-sale terminal. Although the resulting ATM had limited capabilities in comparison with the Diebold and IBM ATMs, it cost only approximately $8,000 to $10,000 and did not require the use of a dedicated leased telephone line. Consequently, it was very successful at convenience stores and similar merchant locations.
A few years later, Triton Systems (Triton) of Long Beach, Mississippi started marketing the 9500 series of ATMS, which were a combination of the Triton terminal that trained customers to use ATMs, which Triton had been selling to banks, and a currency dispenser (or bill dispenser) similar to one sold by De La Rue, plc. of Basingstoke, Hampshire, England. The resulting product was much closer in operation and ease of use to the products of Diebold and NCR. Specifically, it eliminated the need to load cash into individual tubes and was thus very successful. Since then, many vendors, including Tidel and Tranax out of Korea, have introduced similar systems into the market. These three companies are now the most successful vendors in the United States ATM market. The newest ATM products, whose sales number in the hundreds of thousands, are not true ATMs, but rather are cash dispensers that do not accept deposits or include the full repertoire of functions provided by the more expensive ATMs. These merchant or off-site ATMs, as they are now called, sell for approximately $4,000 to $8,000 each.
More Recent Concerns in Light of Technological Advances
As stated above, convenience stores, quick-service restaurants, and similar merchant sites are continually attempting to formulate a method by which they can limit the incidence of robbery and the amount of money stolen during a robbery of their establishments. While recent technological advances in time-release safe design have aided in effecting a decrease in robberies, the increasing popularity of electronic gaming stations (e.g., video poker) in many establishments, in combination with the market and consumer pressure to immediately distribute winnings in cash, has resulted in an increase in robberies of commercial establishments having electronic gaming stations. The high cost of purchasing both an ATM and a time-release safe limits many merchants from purchasing both machines. Further, both machines occupy a significant amount of space that merchants are often unable or unwilling to provide. Lastly, some establishments having electronic gaming stations are required by state law to have sufficient cash available to pay up to a certain dollar amount in winnings. In other states, such as Oregon, an establishment that has video poker can pay winnings by cash, check, or a combination thereof, regardless of the amount of the winnings. However, video poker players (customers) prefer to be paid in cash, not by check. Because merchants do not want to discourage players from using the gaming stations or otherwise cause them to leave the establishment, merchants prefer to give their customers the instant gratification of receiving cash. The time-release safes including tube machines are inconvenient for this purpose because they were designed for use in convenience stores, where coins and small bills were the most commonly used currency. However, in establishments having electronic gaming stations, merchants need large-denomination bills rather than coins and small-denomination bills, so that they can pay out large amounts of money to electronic gaming station winners.
Thus the present inventors recognized a need for a CDCS including an ATM system and a controlled-access dispensing safe. Tidel invented a cash dispensing system that "emulates an ATM to access and perform transactions through the EFT system and activates a printer to issue scrip representative of authorized cash disbursements" (abstract of U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,157). However, the present inventors recognized that the Tidel system has two drawbacks. First, all transactions are dependent on an EFT network host. Maintaining an EFT host is expensive, and when the connection with the EFT host becomes unavailable due to power disruption, inclement weather, a busy phone line, or inoperational hardware, the system cannot be used. Second, all transactions result in the dispensation of scrip rather than cash. Customers have to take the scrip, wait in line, and exchange their scrip for cash. This time-consuming process inconveniences the customer and requires the establishment to have sufficient people working at each shift to perform this duty in addition to their other responsibilities.
Consequently, the inventors of the present invention recognized a need for a cost-effective CDCS including an ATM system and a controlled-access dispensing safe that operates independent of an EFT network and that dispenses cash.

Currency dispense and control system with anti-theft features


The security mailbox assembly functions to prevent identity and mail theft. The security mailbox assembly comprises a lockable mailbox having an internal alarm system including a receiver and transmitter unit (1), functioning in cooperation with a home base device including an outgoing mail holder for placement of outgoing mail therein, the outgoing mail holder being located remote from the mailbox and including a second receiver and transmitter unit (2) for receiving radio wave signals from the first antenna transmitter and receiver, and to transmit the mailbox data information to a receiver and transmitter unit (3), or a remote security mailbox monitoring center in response to triggering of an activation input from the mailbox device, also including a remote control receiver and transmitter unit (3) adapted to be carried by an individual or the owner of the mailbox.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mailbox assembly and more particularly pertains to a new Security Mailbox Assembly for providing a user with a modified security mailbox, which will truly protect and secure your mail, The Security Mailbox Assembly functions to prevent identity and mail theft, The Security Mailbox Assembly comprises a lockable mailbox having an internal alarm system including a transmitter/receiver unit, functioning in cooperation with an outgoing mail holder including an additional receiver/transmitter unit, and a remote control receiver/transmitter unit adapted to be carried an individual.
In one embodiment the outgoing mail holder device would have the capability to be connected or plugged into a telephone jack to fully activate a Security Mailbox monitoring service using a telephone line, a security mailbox monitoring company could provide the monitoring service 24 hours a day 7 days a week to the subscriber for a monthly fee.
2. Prior Art References
The use of mailbox assemblies is known in the prior art (a) U.S. Pat. No. 5,917,411 by Baggarly, James H., (b) U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,628 by Pangburn, Daniel Wesley (c) U.S. Pat. No. 6,831,558 by Andrew, Robert B. (d) U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,919 by Adams, Melvin (e) U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,592 by DiMenichi, Dante S. (f) U.S. Pat. No. 3,611,333 by Conigliaro, Thomas S. While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the need remains for a device that includes that has certain improved features.

Security mailbox assembly, system methods and monitoring service


A gas laser oscillator according to the present invention comprises a resonator unit, a heat exchanger through which a fluid exchanging heat with a laser gas flows, a chiller for cooling the fluid in the heat exchanger and supplying the fluid to the heat exchanger, and a heat transfer device for transferring heat of the fluid to the resonator unit. The gas laser oscillator further comprises a first flow path for supplying the fluid used for cooling the laser gas in the heat exchanger to the heat transfer device, a second flow path for supplying the fluid cooled by the chiller to the heat transfer device prior to supplying the fluid to the heat exchanger, and a switching valve for switching either one of a first flow path and a second flow path.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gas laser oscillator adopting a method for cooling a laser gas by a heat exchanger, in particular, a gas laser oscillator capable of controlling a temperature of a resonator unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Laser processing machines have been known which perform machining, such as cutting and punching, by irradiating metal and resin materials with laser beams. Such laser processing machines are often equipped with carbon dioxide laser oscillators which can generate large output.
A carbon dioxide laser oscillator comprises a resonator unit which excites a gas mixture (hereinafter, referred to as a laser gas) mainly consisting of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and helium and resonates a beam generated from the excited laser gas to amplify the beam. The resonator unit includes a discharge tube for storing the laser gas and a total reflection mirror and a partial reflection mirror (an output coupler) disposed on both ends in a long axis direction of the discharge tube. When the laser gas in the discharge tube is excited by a discharge, a beam is generated in the long axis direction of the discharge tube. The generated beam is amplified by being repeatedly reflected between the total reflection mirror and the partial reflection mirror (the output coupler) and output to the outside of the resonator unit by transmitting through the output coupler.
When the laser gas in the discharge tube is excited by a discharge to generate a laser beam, 10% or more of a discharge energy applied to the laser gas is converted to the beam. Remaining discharge energy generates heat and increases a temperature of the laser gas. Accordingly, a temperature of the resonator unit is increased which may deform components constituting the resonator unit. Thus, in the gas laser oscillator, the laser gas of which temperature becomes high is drained out from the discharge tube, cooled by a heat exchanger, and returned into the discharge tube. In addition, cooling water is circulated through the heat exchanger and controlled at a constant temperature by a cooling device, such as a chiller, on the outside of the laser oscillator. Temperature increase of the laser gas is thus suppressed, so that the components constituting the resonator unit are less likely to be deformed, and a laser output can be stable.
In particular, the output coupler and the total reflection mirror which are the components constituting the resonator unit are positioned with high accuracy, and the temperature control of the resonator unit is an important technique for stabilizing the laser output. Thus, many techniques have been discussed for controlling temperatures of resonator units.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-57452 discloses a gas laser oscillator which comprises a flow path for circulating a cooling medium in an optical bench holding reflection mirrors of a resonator and an electromagnetic valve for opening and closing the flow path. The gas laser oscillator measures a temperature of the cooling medium flowing through the optical bench by a temperature sensor and opens and closes the electromagnetic valve depending on a measured value. Accordingly, temperature increase of the cooling medium is suppressed, and a temperature of the resonator unit is maintained within a predetermined temperature range.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. H01-232779 discloses a gas laser oscillator including a mirror cooling system for circulating cooling water around mirrors of a resonator unit, a heat exchanger for cooling a laser medium, and a laser medium cooling system for circulating the cooling water through the heat exchanger. The gas laser oscillator further comprises piping connecting the laser medium cooling system and the mirror cooling system and an electromagnetic valve for opening and closing the piping. When the temperature of the cooling water in the mirror cooling system is lower than a predetermined temperature, the electromagnetic valve is closed. When the temperature of the cooling water in the mirror cooling system is higher than the predetermined temperature, the electromagnetic valve is opened, and a part of the cooling water circulating through the heat exchanger of the laser medium cooling system is supplied to the mirror cooling system.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-24257 discloses a method for equalizing temperature distribution of a resonator unit by circulating water controlled at a constant temperature spirally around the resonator unit.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2009-117700 discloses a gas laser oscillator including a gas flow path for sealing a laser gas in the gas laser oscillator and a heat exchanger for cooling the laser gas in the gas flow path. The gas laser oscillator further comprises, in the gas flow path, a gas detour for detouring around the heat exchanger and a gas flow rate regulating valve for regulating a flow rate of the laser gas flowing through the gas detour. The gas flow rate regulating valve regulates the flow rate of the laser gas passing through the heat exchanger, and thus the temperature of the laser gas is controlled.
The above-described resonator unit resonates the laser beam by positioning the respective reflection mirrors to be disposed on the both ends of the discharge tube with high accuracy. Therefore, if a position of each reflection mirror is shifted, an operation of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator may become unstable, such as occurrence of reduction of a laser output.
In a positioning operation of each reflection mirror, the carbon dioxide laser oscillator is operated while adjusting the position of each reflection mirror, and each reflection mirror is fixed at a position at which a predetermined output is stably oscillated, namely a position at which a steady state is obtained. In other words, each reflection mirror is placed on a position at which the resonator unit obtains a temperature distribution of the steady state. Thus, immediately after a start-up of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator, the temperature distribution of the resonator unit is different from the temperature distribution in the steady state in some cases. In this case, the position of each reflection mirror may be shifted from the position in the steady state, and the operation of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator may be unstable. In particular, when the carbon dioxide laser oscillator is used in a cold region or in a winter season, a problem notably occurs that an operation of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator immediately after a start-up becomes unstable.
As a countermeasure against the above-described problem, the temperature of the resonator unit is increased by starting up the carbon dioxide laser oscillator and performing a gas discharge in the discharge tube for a certain period of time. When the temperature distribution of the resonator unit becomes that in the steady state, it is regarded that preparation for laser oscillation is complete, and laser oscillation from the resonator unit is permitted. However, such a countermeasure has a problem that it takes a time from the start-up of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator to the completion of the laser oscillation preparation.
In addition, the carbon dioxide laser oscillator is designed to radiate heat generated by the resonator unit to the outside. Specifically, when the carbon dioxide laser oscillator is started up, cooling water controlled at a constant temperature by the chiller is circulated through the heat exchanger so as to cool the laser gas by the heat exchanger. Therefore, when the carbon dioxide laser oscillator is started up from a cold state, the laser gas is cooled, and it hinders the temperature increase of the resonator unit by contrast. Accordingly, there is also a problem that a period from the start-up of the carbon dioxide laser oscillator to when an oscillation operation can be stably performed becomes longer.
Any of Japanese Laid-open Patent Publications No. 2001-57452, No. H01-232779, No. 2001-24257 and No. 2009-117700 disclose only techniques for cooling the resonator units including the laser gas and the reflection mirrors so that temperatures of the resonator units do not exceed predetermined temperatures. In other words, the gas laser oscillators described in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publications No. 2001-57452, No. H01-232779, No. 2001-24257, and No. 2009-117700 only perform control to suppress temperature increase of the resonator units after start-up of the gas laser oscillators. Therefore, these techniques have problem that they take times from the start-up of the gas laser oscillators to when oscillation operations can be stably performed when the gas laser oscillators are used in cold regions or in winter seasons.

Temperature controllable gas laser oscillator