First to N-th circuit interface units 1041 to 104N corresponding to first to N-th circuits 1031 to 103N include an input traffic counter unit 1141, etc. and an output traffic counter unit 1151, etc. for counting the traffic of input and output. A traffic counter monitor block 123 in a control unit 105 specifies an input traffic counter unit 114 and an output traffic counter unit 115 of two circuits 103 through a switch unit 102 in a specific packet flow, and periodically obtains the count values, based on which the utilization rate, the discard rate, etc. of the corresponding circuit 103 are obtained to monitor the traffic. This makes it possible to monitor packet signal traffic when a plurality of circuits are to be switched without capturing each packet signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a traffic monitor system for monitoring traffic in a node of a core network of a communications network.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 21 shows an outline of a core network in a communications network. A core network 11 is a common carrier network and includes: a plurality of edge nodes 121, 122, . . . for connecting (joining or separating) a plurality of ISPs (Internet Service Providers) that are not shown in the attached drawings; and several core nodes 131, 132, . . . for connecting the plurality of edge nodes 121, 122, . . .
For example, assume that a first communications terminal 14 and a second communications terminal 15 communicate with each other through an Internet network. In this case, a packet signal transmitted from the first communications terminal 14 reaches the first edge node 121 through the ISP, reaches the second edge node 122 through the first core node 131, then reaches the second communications terminal 15 through another ISP. It is obvious that another path can be taken when a packet signal is transmitted from the first communications terminal 14 to the second communications terminal 15. For example, after reaching the first edge node 121, the packet signal can be transmitted through second core node 132.
In a communications network that uses packets, such as the Internet, it may be necessary to guarantee a predetermined communication speed by reserving a band for specific communications. To attain this, QOS (Quality Of Service) is utilized as a measurement tool. To guarantee the QOS for specific communications, it is necessary to monitor how a packet is transmitted through a switch or a node in a network.
For example, in a conventional system for monitoring a network, equipment for exchanging IP (Internet protocol) packets collects the data in the packets. Then, the flow of a specific IP packet is obtained by checking the destination IP address and the source IP address from among the collected packets.
In another conventional system for monitoring the network, the interface of the system captures IP packets. The extraction unit extracts a source address, a destination address, etc. from the IP header, transmits them to the analysis unit, and computes the total value of traffic for each path.
The number of packet signals passing through the core network 11 is very large, and the communication speed is as high as several gigabits/seconds or more. Therefore, when attempting to determine the QOS, it is impossible to individually capture the packet signals passing through the core network 11. That is, to designate the path of each packet signal in the edge nodes 121, 122, . . . and core nodes 131, 132, . . . in the core network 11, it is necessary to monitor each packet at a high speed, and individually store the count value of the packets for each route, which cannot be realized with the current resources.
Therefore, in the conventional technology, the guarantee of the QOS for each user or packet flow is omitted, or the size of the core network 11 is increased so that is not needed.
However, in the latter case, since the packet communications develop with a larger capacity at a higher speed, the corresponding facilities are to be extended with sufficient resources, thereby causing the problem of a difficult economic system configuration. Furthermore, the performance in each node of the core network 11 cannot be improved. If the guarantee of the QOS is to be offered, the extensibility of the nodes is correspondingly lowered.

Communications network traffic monitor system


A gastight woven fabric sheet for air bags having no risk of burning a person due to formation of gas-permeable perforations and gas flowing out when the air bag is inflated, a high burst strength due to a reinforcing effect by adhesion, and a satisfactory feel, comprising a woven fabric composed of a plurality of warps and wefts each comprising a polyester multifilament having a yarn thickness of 200 to 550 deniers and a twist multiplier of 3,000 or less, and having a smooth surface formed by a calendering and a non-smoothed opposite surface thereof, the woven fabric having a gas-permeability function (ml/cm.sup.2 /sec) of 7.874 p to 78.74 p (wherein p is a pressure between 0 to 0.03 kg/cm.sup.2 G); a radius R1 (mm) of curvature of a smoothed surface side half portion of a cross-sectional profile of a warp or weft yarn located in the smoothed surface portion of the fabric, larger than a radius R2 (mm) of curvature of an opposite side half portion of a cross-sectional profile of the above-mentioned warp or weft yarn and than a radius R3 (mm) of curvature of a non-smoothed surface side half portion of a cross-sectional profile of a warp or weft yarn located in the non-smoothed surface portion of the woven fabric, which R3 is in the range of from 0.5 to 3.5; a difference in average deviation of 0.0005 or more between surface frictional coefficients of the smoothed surface and the non-smoothed surface of the woven fabric; a difference in average deviation of 0.5 .mu.m or more between surface roughnesses of the above-mentioned surfaces; and a fiber packing of 70 to 85%.

As a typical example of conventional airtight woven fabric sheets for air bags, U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,016 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 4-2835) discloses a polyester woven fabric (which will be referred to as a noncoated woven fabric hereinafter) not coated with or not impregnated with a resin and having an air permeability of 0.5 ml/cm.sup.2 /sec/0.5 inch Aq or less. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,010,663 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 4-2835) discloses a noncoated polyester woven fabric with a permeability of 1.5 ml/cm.sup.2 /sec/0.5 inch Aq or less.
Those polyester woven fabrics are both surface-smoothed woven fabrics produced by applying a calendering operation to both the surfaces thereof. Those woven fabrics obtained by the both surface-calendering operation have a high air-permeability in comparison with that of a resin-coated woven fabric. In examples of the patent specifications, the air permeability is higher than 0.1 ml/cm.sup.2 /sec/0.5 inch Aq.
It has been known that when the above-mentioned conventional woven fabric sheets are practically employed to form an air bag, the above-mentioned value of air permeability causes easy formation of air-permeable perforations in the air bag, and thus the resultant air bag has such a fatal defect that an inflation gas flows out through the perforations and the face of an occupant in automobile or aircraft is burnt by the gas.
Specially, when a large amount of fine particles are generated upon inflating, or when the inflation is carried out using a powerful inflator, it is not too much to say that the above-mentioned noncoated woven fabric air bag has a serious defect. Since the calendering operation is applied to both the surfaces, the resultant woven fabric sheet is provided with both smoothed surfaces thereof and has a high stiffness and thus is disadvantageous in that the fabric is paper-like.
Since the polyester woven fabric has a lower burst strength at sewn portions thereof than that of nylon 66 woven fabric, it is necessary to enhance the burst strength of the sewn portions at, for example, portions surrounding the inflator and top cloth of the air bag, by applying an adhesive reinforcement which has a higher reinforcing effect than that of usual sewing, or by applying a sewing operation after the portions to be sewn are reinforced by the adhesive reinforcement to enhance the burst strength of the portions of the air bag. This is true not only for a beltless bag but also for a belt-attached bag. However, the above-mentioned both surface-calendered woven fabric has a poor bonding property due to the smooth surfaces thereof and thus it is very difficult to reinforce the woven fabric by laminate-adhering a reinforcing fabric, which may be the same as or different from the woven fabric, thereto.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,735 (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication) discloses a woven fabric having an air permeability of 0 to 0.53 ml/cm.sup.2 /sec/0.5 inch Aq and usable as a calendered airtight woven fabric for air bag. However, examples of the U.S. patent do not show any concrete values of the gas permeability. Also, the woven fabric of the U.S. patent has a warp density of 40.6 yarns/inch and a weft density of 86.4 yarns/inch. Since the warp density and the weft density are very different, the resultant woven fabric disadvantageously exhibits not only a significantly lower burst strength in one direction, but also a remarkably poor bonding strength in one direction. Further, as is same for the two afore-mentioned U.S. patents, U.S. Pat. No. 4,921,735 does not disclose a technical idea of smoothing only one surface of the woven fabric and a concept of improving a bonding property of the woven fabric.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of conventional non-resin-coated polyester woven fabric for air bags which remain unsolved, and to provide an airtight woven fabric sheet for air bags, having a low air permeability, a specific surface property which allows a surface of the fabric to be adhesive-reinforced, an enhanced burst strength, and an excellent feel, and capable of preventing the formation of gas-permeable perforations in the bag to prevent burns by the inflation gas flowing out through the perforations, and a process for producing the same.

Gastight woven fabric sheet for air bags and a process for producing same


A fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) for production of petrochemical feedstock fractions comprises a first reactor to receive a stream of desalinated crude oil and produce a first cracked product stream; a second reactor to receive a stream of light cracked naphtha (LCN) and produce a second cracked product stream; a third reactor to receive a bottom stream and produce a third cracked product stream; and a fractionating column and gas concentration section to separate components of the first cracked product stream, the second cracked product stream, and the third cracked product stream to produce, upon further fractionation, Ethylene, Propylene, Butylene, Benzene, Toluene and Xylene as the petrochemical feedstock fractions.

Different hydrocarbon products are obtained from crude oils by the process of refining. The existing refining process involves multiple steps and multiple units. Crude oil is heated using heat exchangers and furnace. It is then distilled in atmospheric distillation column to obtain naphtha, kerosene and diesel fractions, and remaining crude oil.
The Naphtha fraction is typically divided into two streams: Light Naphtha and Heavy Naphtha. Heavy Naphtha has little value and is typically blended with Diesel. Light Naphtha has low Research Octane Number (RON) value. Isomerization and catalytic reforming processes are employed in the refineries to increase the RON value of Light Naphtha. The treated Light Naphtha, known as isomerate and reformate respectively, is blended in the Motor Spirit (MS). On several occasions, Light Naphtha is in excess quantities and refineries sell it at cheaper price than Motor Spirit (MS). Similarly, while a fraction of Kerosene is treated in Mercaptan Oxidization (MerOx) units to produce Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), a high value product, the remaining fraction of kerosene is typically sold at relatively cheap price due to insufficient demand for ATF and/or government regulations.
The remaining crude oil, termed as Reduced Crude Oil (RCO) or Atmospheric Tower Bottoms (ATB), is typically heated in a furnace and distilled under vacuum. The fractions obtained are typically called Vacuum Gas Oil (VGO) and Short Residue (SR) or Vacuum Tower Bottoms (VTB). VGO streams are typically upgraded in Fluid Catalytic Cracking unit (FCCU) or Hydrocracking units. FCCU typically produces high octane gasoline and olefin rich LPG. Petrochemical precursors or feedstock, such as Ethylene, Propene and Butylene are obtained from the LPG from FCC unit.
In an existing refinery process as described above multiple units are required for production of final products from crude oil. Each unit requires different heat exchangers, furnaces and product coolers. The design of the units puts limits on the crudes processed in a refinery. A typical refinery has emphasis on production of fuels like MS, ATF and Diesel. Fuel Oil is also produced by refineries using the SR and FCCU bottoms. However, in the present scenario of high demand for petrochemical feedstock, its production from crude oil requires at least 2 distillation units, 1 FCC unit followed by at least 3 more distillation units. Further in the existing refinery process, undesirable low value fuel oil is produced while producing the petrochemical feedstock.


A method for overhead transmission line installation includes tension pulling a transmission line over a path between a first support structure having a first mounting location and a second support structure having a second mounting location extending from the first mounting location to a first transition location on the second support structure, to a second transition location on the first support structure, and to the second mounting location. The transmission line is mounted at the first mounting location and the second mounting location. The mounting provides a slack portion of the transmission line between the first mounting location and the second mounting location. A portion of the slack portion is mounted proximate to the first mounting location or the second mounting location to provide an overhead transmission line extending between the first mounting location and the second mounting location and a remainder of the slack portion.

The installation of overhead fiber optic cable transmission lines is often performed using tension pulling techniques. Full tension pulling is preferred over slack-stringing and semi-tension methods, particularly in situations where it is necessary to keep the fiber optic cable off of the ground or where there are energized lines beneath the fiber cable transmission line being installed. Full tension pulling provides sufficient pulling capabilities on one end of the fiber cable transmission line and sufficient tension on the other end to keep the fiber cable transmission line clear of any obstacles during movement of the fiber cable transmission line from the reel it is stored on to its final installed position.
However, installing the fiber cable transmission line under full tension provides a lack of excess cable due to the tension on the cable during the installation process. Excess cable, or slack, is often required to be stored in certain locations along long pulls of fiber for later repairs and/or splices. In order to obtain the necessary slack after a tension pull, thousands of feet of slack cable may need to be pulled back for storage. Pulling the cable back to generate the necessary slack is very labor intensive and inefficient. Further, pulling the cable back can be hazardous when it must be performed at road or other crossings accessible to the public.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Methods for the installation of overhead transmission lines and devices thereof


A tag information production apparatus is disclosed which can apply tag information to a main image through a realistic amount of work. A time information acquisition section acquires time information of a main image selected on a working screen, and a key region setting section sets a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator. An identification information application section applies, to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region. A key image production section produces a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for producing tag information to be applied to an arbitrary partial region of an arbitrary scene of a main image and also to a production method and a recording medium for producing such tag information.
2. Description of Related Art
Together with setup of the communication infrastructures and increase of the recording capacity in recent years, it is demanded to place various services proposed heretofore into practical use. One of such services is to apply tag information to a particular region in moving pictures and arbitrarily display related information in response to an operation of a viewer. The technique described is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 7-231308.

Tag information production apparatus, tag information production method and recording medium


The optical phase difference between reflected laser light from the crystalline and the amorphous part of a phase change recording layer is established as 180 degrees .+-.5 degrees. The ratio between the light absorption factor when the phase change recording film is in the crystalline condition to that when it is in the amorphous condition is set to within the range 0.9 to 1.1. With the wavelength of the laser light used as .lambda., the optical depth of a guide groove formed on the substrate is set to within the range .lambda./9 to .lambda./6. With the wavelength of the laser light used in the range 635 nm to 650 nm, the depth of the guide groove is in the range 40 to 70 nm. In an optical disk such as this, when seen from reflected light, the groove region of a groove during playback and land region of the groove during playback are optically equivalent. For this reason, it is substantially the same as the case in which the optical phase difference between the reflected laser light from the crystalline part of the recording film and the reflected laser light from the amorphous part of the recording film is zero, this making it possible to achieve consistency in the signal levels between land playback and groove playback. As a result, it is possible to perform double track density recording and mark edge recording.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical information storage medium which exhibits a structural change between crystalline and amorphous structure and a change in optical properties in accordance with the thermal history of temperature rise and cooling by being subjected to laser light, this being known as a phase change optical disk.
2. Description of Related Art
An optical disk recording method which uses a laser beam is capable of high-capacity recording and, because of the non-contact nature and high speed of this method, progress is being made in practical use of this method as large-capacity memory.
Optical disks can be classified into three types: read-only type disks such as those known as Compact Discs and laser discs, "write once" type disks which can be appended to by a user, and rewritable disks which can be recorded and erased repeatedly. Write many and rewritable optical disks are used as external memory for computers, and as storage for document or image files.
There are two types of rewritable disks: a phase change type optical disk which makes use of a phase change in a recording film, and a magneto-optical disk which makes use of a change in the direction of magnetization of perpendicular magnetization film.
Of these types, because the phase change optical disk not only does not require an external magnetic field, but also enables easy overwriting, as well as having the advantage of using the same playback method as a read-only disk, it is expected that this type of disk will become the main type used for such applications as overwritable digital video disks.
In the past, there has been a known type of so-called phase change optical disk, which enabled overwriting and which used a recording film which exhibited a phase changed between crystalline and amorphous phases in response to exposure to light.
In a phase change optical disk, a laser light spot from a high-power laser responsive to the information to be recorded on the recording film was shone thereonto, thereby causing a localized rise in temperature in the recording film, this bringing about a phase change between crystalline and amorphous phases to effect recording by means of changing an optical constant thereof, which can be read as differences in reflected light intensity using a low-power laser beam when performing playback.
For example, in a phase change disk which uses a recording film having a relatively slow crystallization time, the disk is turned and a laser beam is shone onto the recording film formed on the disk, the temperature of the recording film being raised to above the melting point thereof and, after the laser light is passed therethrough, quick cooling is done to record information as an amorphous condition in that part.
When erasing, the recording film temperature is held in a temperature range within which crystallization is possible, this being a range which is above the crystallization temperature and below the melting point, for a long enough time to cause crystallization to progress, thereby causing the crystallization of the recording film.
A known method for doing this that of shining an elliptical laser beam which is elongated in the direction of movement. In the case in which new information is recording as already recorded data is being erased, this being a pseudo-overwriting system using two beams, an elliptical laser beam for the purpose of erasing is positioned as to be shone ahead of the circular recording laser bean.
In a disk which uses an information recording film capable of high-speed crystallization, a single laser beam which is collimated into a circular shape is used.
A known method for doing this is that of changing the power of a laser beam between two levels, thereby causing either crystallization or a change to the amorphous phase.
That is, by shining a laser beam from a laser having sufficient power to raise the temperature of the recording film to above the melting point, the amorphous state is almost totally present when quick cooling is done.
In contrast to this, by shining a laser beam from a laser having power such that the temperature of the recording film is above the crystallization temperature and below the melting point, the part subjected to such light is crystallized.
The recording film of a phase change optical disk is formed as a grown film of a chalcogenide material such as GeSbTe, InSbTe, InSe, InTe, AsTeGe, TeOx-GeSn, TeSeSn, SbSeBi, and BiSeGe or the like, in all cases this film being formed by means of a resistive heating vacuum deposition method, electron beam vacuum deposition method, or by sputtering or the like.
The condition of the recording film immediately after formation of the film represents a type of amorphous state, and in order to form a recording amorphous part thereof by performing recording onto the recording film, it first necessary to perform initialization processing so as to change the overall recording film to the crystallized condition. Then recording is done by changing parts of this crystallized recording film to the amorphous state.
In a phase change optical disk in the past, there has been a method proposed for mark edge recording, in which information is recorded at a recording mark edge.
A disk configuration that is suitable for mark edge recording under the assumption of use at high linear speed was proposed as having a configuration which uses a transmission-type reflective film, and a silicon reflective film in particular, (for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (KOKAI) Nos. 4-102243, 8-77596, and 8-124218).
For use as an optical disk medium for use in low linear speed mark edge recording, an example has been proposed which uses a metallic reflective film (for example: Ishida et al, p. 70 of preprints of the Sixth Phase Change Recording Research Symposium, November, 1994).
There is also known a track and groove recording method by which recording is performed in both the depressed and protruding part or tracking guide groove form on the substrate. By using this method, it is in principle possible to achieve a two-fold increase in recording density in the track direction, this enabling the achievement of high-density recording (for example, Ohno et al, p. 114 of Fifth Phase Change Recording Research Symposium, November, 1993).
As described above, the combined use of mark edge recording and track and groove recording is effective as a method of high-density recording. In overwriting phase change recording, using the known type of recording in which an amorphous mark is recorded in a crystallized part having a high reflectivity, when performing mark edge recording of a reflectivity difference playback medium in which there is a large difference in reflectivity between a crystallized part and an amorphous part, because the medium does not have light passing through it, the absorption factor of the crystallized part is quite a bit lower than in the amorphous part, this causing the problem of not being able to suppress distortion of the recorded edge when overwriting.
To solve the above-noted problem, a method of making the difference in reflectivity between the crystalline part and the amorphous part small and setting the optical phase difference therebetween so as to be large has been proposed (for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-73537, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-113451, and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-93804).
When this method is used, it is possible to make the absorption factor of the crystalline part approximately the same as or larger than that of the amorphous part, thereby enabling suppression of the distortion of the recording mark to a small amount when overwriting.
However, in doubled track density recording, because of the necessary to achieve a uniform signal level when performing land and groove playback, and also it is required that the optical phase difference between the crystallized part and the amorphous part should be set at around zero, by merely establishing an optical phase difference and making the absorption factor of the crystalline part the same level as or greater than that of the absorption factor of the amorphous part, the level balance between land playback and groove playback is upset, so that it is not possible to obtain a medium suitable for good recording using a combination of mark edge recording and land and groove recording.
The present invention was made to solve the above-noted problems, and has as an object the provision of a phase change type optical disk that solves the problems of a medium which uses a combination of mark edge recording and land and groove recording, and which is capable of high-density recording while maintaining overwriting characteristics for the prescribed mark edge recording.

Phase change optical disk and a method for recording and playbacking optical information on or from an optical disk


A field emission device and a field emission display (FED) using the same and a method of making the field emission device. The FED includes a glass substrate, a layer of a material formed on the glass substrate and having a concave portion, a cathode electrode formed on the material layer and also having a concave portion, electron emitters formed on the concave portion of the cathode electrode, a gate insulating layer formed on the cathode electrode and having a cavity communicating with the concave portion, and a gate electrode formed on the gate insulating layer and having a gate aperture aligned with the cavity.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel design for a field emission device and a field emission display (FED) using the novel field emission device and a method of making the novel field emission device, the novel field emission device having improved focusing properties of an electron beam.
2. Description of the Related Art
Displays play an important role in information and media delivery and are widely used in personal computer monitors and television sets. Displays are usually either cathode ray tubes (CRTs), which use high speed thermal electron emission, and flat panel displays, which are rapidly developing. Types of flat panel displays include plasma display panels (PDPs), field emission displays (FEDs), liquid crystal displays (LCD) and others.
In FEDs, when a strong electric field is applied between a gate electrode and field emitters arranged at a predetermined distance on a cathode electrode, electrons are emitted from the field emitters and collide with fluorescent materials on the anode electrode, thus emitting visible light. FEDs are thin displays, at most several centimeters thick, having a wide viewing angle, low power consumption, and low production cost. Thus, FEDs together with PDPs attract attention as the next generation of displays.
FEDs have a similar physical operation principle to CRTs. That is, electrons are emitted from a cathode electrode and are accelerated toward and collide with an anode electrode. At the anode electrode, the electrons excite fluorescent material coated on the anode electrode to emit visible light. FEDs are different from CRTs in that the electron emitters are formed of cold cathode material. However, a problem with FEDs is limitations in the ability to focus the electron beam so that the each electron beam lands at a desired location on the fluorescent material to achieve good image quality.
To overcome this problem, U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,151 to Barton et al discloses a FED having an imbedded focusing structure. However, the focusing gate electrode in Barton ′151 is formed on an organic material called polyimide, which requires an outgassing process for discharging volatilized gas. Thus, such a FED cannot be applied to large displays. Therefore, what is needed is a design for an FED that provides improved electron focus and that can be applied to make large displays.

Field emission device and field emission display using the same


A method and a system for determining a discharging process of a battery are provided. The method includes the following steps. Measuring charging/discharging information of the battery. Calculating a charging/discharging characteristic of the battery according to the charging/discharging information. Aligning the charging/discharging characteristic of the battery according to a comparison characteristic point of a comparison characteristic to obtain an aligned charging/discharging characteristic. Determining whether the battery is normal according to the aligned charging/discharging characteristic or a coulombic efficiency of the battery. Calculating a safety probability of the battery according to the aligned charging/discharging characteristic and resistance of an internal short circuit of the battery when the battery is determined as abnormal. Determining a discharging process of the battery according to the safety probability of the battery.

With the ever-progressing technologies, more and more electronic devices, power storage systems and electric vehicles are equipped with batteries. An abnormality of a battery may cause the battery burning, putting a user into danger and making huge losses to manufacturers. Therefore, there is a need for a solution for determining whether a battery is abnormal and determining a discharging process of the battery.

Method and system for determining discharging process of battery

Industrial Technology Research Institute


Provided is a container (10) including a base material (1) including a plurality of concave portions (2); a recognition unit (3) disposed on the base material and configured to recognize the base material; and a storage unit (4) disposed in a position other than a measurement region of the base material and configured to store information on biomaterials contained in the plurality of concave portions, wherein the recognition unit and the storage unit are allowed to correspond to each other.

Hitherto, systems for storing, tracking, and searching data regarding biological materials and samples have been proposed for the purposes of using, organizing, storing, tracking, searching, and analyzing the biological materials and the samples, and automating these processes (see, for example, PTL 1).
Containers (e.g., Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) plates) configured to store or analyze the biological materials and readers configured to store, track, and search data regarding analyzed biological samples have also been proposed.
In blood packs which include storage units configured to store information for tracking contents of the blood packs, it is difficult for the storage units to be disposed in the blood packs upon forming blood pack containers and the blood pack containers need to be prevented from being heated. Therefore, methods for allowing the storage units to be attachable and detachable have also been proposed (see, for example, PTL 2).

Container and calibration standard plate


A cosmetic device includes a barrel for receiving liquid cosmetic material and an insertion tube is inserted in the barrel. The insertion tube includes a through hole which communicates with the interior of the barrel, and an activation tube is movably inserted into the insertion tube to open or seal the through hole when the insertion tube is moved. A mounting member is mounted to the barrel and the activation tube extends through the mounting member. A cosmetic piece is connected to the activation tube. The activation tube includes two wings which are connected to two plates which are movably located on outside of the mounting member. A cap is mounted to the mounting member and has ribs which are able to move the plates to pull the activation tube to open the through hole through which the liquid cosmetic material flows to the cosmetic piece via the activation tube.

A conventional cosmetic device generally includes a barrel with a space defined therein and liquid cosmetic material is received in the space. A cosmetic piece is connected to an end of the barrel such that when the user squeezes the barrel, the liquid cosmetic material flows to the cosmetic piece to be used. In order to avoid contamination to the cosmetic piece, a cap is threadedly mounted to the barrel and includes an elongate space in which the cosmetic piece is received. The cap has to be long enough to accommodate the cosmetic piece and therefore requires a certain space when the cosmetic device is received in the user's bag or pocket.
The present invention intends to provide a cosmetic device that includes an activation tube which is operated by operation of the cap so that when the cap is removed, the activation tube is pulled to a position where the liquid cosmetic material flows to the cosmetic piece connected to the activation tube, and when the cap is re-capped, the activation tube is pushed to a sealed position where the cosmetic material is sealed in the barrel.


A system for varying a wing camber of an aircraft wing may include a leading edge device coupled to the wing. The leading edge device may be configured to be actuated in an upward direction and a downward direction relative to a retracted position of the leading edge device.

Aircraft such as commercial airliners typically include control surfaces mounted on the wings, which may be used to improve the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft. Such control surfaces include wing leading edge devices and wing trailing edge devices and which may be extended and/or deflected during different phases of flight to alter the lift and/or drag characteristics of the wings. For example, commercial airliners typically include trailing edge flaps which may be extended during takeoff and landing to increase the camber of the wings such that the wings generate increased lift.
In conventional airliners, the trailing edge flaps are typically extendable by fixed increments corresponding to standard flap settings (e.g., flaps 5, 15, 20, 25, and 30). In conventional airliners, the trailing edge flaps are typically retracted when the airliner is at a cruising altitude, for example to avoid a drag penalty and/or avoid subjecting the wings to increased loading during certain flight maneuvers. Higher loads may require an increase in the strength of the wings, which may lead to a typically undesirable increase in the structural weight of the aircraft.

Leading edge variable camber system and method


A tape printing apparatus is provided. Document data including character data, line feed data and division break-inserting data is input. An editing document formed of the document data is displayed. A position within the editing document is designated. A selected one of registered documents stored is called and inserted into the editing document as document data forming a new division of the editing document, at a predetermined one of a forward position immediately before a desired division within the editing document and a backward position immediately after the desired division, the desired division containing the designated position.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tape printing apparatus for printing entered characters, such as letters and symbols, on a tape, so as to obtain printed labels or the like.
2. Prior Art
Conventionally, in word processors or the like, it is a well-known function to designate a desired position in a document being edited on a display screen and call a selected one of registered (stored) documents to insert the same at the designated position in the document being edited. Normally, in a document prepared by using a word processor or the like, portions of the document separately and sequentially set forth on contiguous pages, that is, pages adjacent to each other, are grasped (read) as consecutive portions of the document, and hence, even if a page break is inserted at an intermediate portion of the registered document called and inserted, it gives little sense of disorder or incongruity.
On the other hand, in tape printing apparatuses, a printed portion of a tape is cut off and the cut-off piece of the tape is affixed to a desired object or article. Therefore, it is more important to make the appearance of the printed image attractive than to allow the reader to follow a sequence of contents set forth in separate paragraphs (divisions) contiguous in the direction of length of the tape. It should be noted that the paragraphs (divisions) of a document processed by the tape printing apparatus for printing on the tape correspond to pages of a document processed by the word processor. The attractive appearance of the printed image can be realized by making each breakpoint of contents of the document correspondent to a break of each paragraph (division) on the tape to cause a whole continuous or serial portion of the contents to be contained in each division, even if the length of lines (i.e. length of each division) may vary from division to division.
To this end, a tape printing apparatus has been proposed e.g. by (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 6-15909) which incorporates the function of word processors described above and is improved in the above-mentioned respect in that when a registered document is called and inserted into a document being edited, division break-inserting data is inserted, for instance, immediately before or immediately after the inserted registered document to thereby insert the registered document as an independent or separate division.
In the proposed tape printing apparatus, however, attention is paid only to the registered document and hence, if the registered document is called when a cursor for designating an inserting position is located at an intermediate portion of a division of the document being edited i.e. document for editing (hereinafter referred to as "editing document"), the result is that the continuous or serial contents of the division of the editing document is separated by the inserted document.
FIG. 22 shows an editing document U91, which is being prepared for printing and provides a print image M91 when printed, and a registered document U97, which was prepared and registered to provide a print image M97 when printed. When the registered document is called and inserted into the editing document, if the cursor K for designating an inserting position is located at an intermediate portion of a division of the editing document U91 (screen T91), the series of document data of the division of the editing document are undesirably separated (screen T100), and provides a print image M100 when printed.
In the above process, if the user has carried out a call-and-insert operation without being conscious of the above inconvenience, he has to take the trouble of restoring the separated editing document at the cost of time and effort. Further, to prevent the above problem, it is required that the user finds out a breakpoint between divisions of an editing document where a called registered document should be inserted, by viewing the editing document on a display screen smaller in size than that of a word processor, and then accurately places the cursor at the breakpoint before a call-and-insert operation carried out for the registered document. In any case, the call-and-insert operation has been a troublesome time-consuming one.


A “smart” closure system, apparatus, and method are contemplated. The closure includes mechanical capture and release mechanisms, electromechanical and/or optical indicators, wireless technologies, and/or web-based or remote authentication, verification, and serialization via remotely located data servers. A mobile computing device may further augment certain functions. The resulting system allows for anti-counterfeiting, authentication, serialization, and other capabilities.

Generally speaking, both commodities and more sophisticated products are sometimes subject to tampering and/or counterfeiting. Although basic measures have been developed by manufacturers to address these concerns, recent improvements in printing and other technologies have made it easier for bad actors to copy or otherwise co-opt the packaging of well-known products and/or to improperly reuse that packaging.
A wide variety of product authentication and counterfeit deterrence features and constructions are disclosed in the prior art. An extensive discussion of these earlier features and constructions is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 9,280,696 which issued Mar. 8, 2016. The '696 patent is hereby expressly incorporated by reference for the entirety of its prior art discussion and for its summary of earlier patent references.
One previous approach was to use a physical barrier, such as breakable plastic wrap and/or foil seal. While these barriers provide a clear indication that the closure has been compromised, they do not and cannot provide any additional information or way to verify where the container has been or what was originally placed inside of it.
Separately, barcodes and other visual indicia have been used on packaging containers for identification purposes. These systems generally require dedicated scanners, as well as standardization and/or a third party intervention to establish and maintain rules (e.g., GS1 in Brussels, Belgium coordinates assignment of the twelve digit Universal Product Codes (UPC) that are prevalent in many countries, including the United States). Also, because the barcodes must be predetermined and affixed to individual containers during manufacture, any authentication scheme afforded by these codes is relatively static and passive (i.e., they cannot be easily altered or expanded once the container is filled and delivered by the manufacturer).
Separately, wireless communication tags are also becoming more common. These tags are affixed to a wide range of articles in commerce, thereby enabling wireless communication of information in a centralized database/authentication scheme similar to the aforementioned barcodes and/or by directly communicating with a dedicated device to decode and display information carried by the tag.
Near Field Communication (NFC) tags, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, and Bluetooth communication devices are commonly used for this purpose. NFC tags are small wireless tags that permit communication with an NFC reader device over distances of up to about 20 cm. RFID tags are small wireless tags that permit communication with an RFID reader device over larger distances, typically up to 15 m. Both types of wireless tag communicate via electromagnetic (EM) radiation.
In recent years, the increased functionality of portable electronics (i.e. mobile phones and tablet PCs) has enabled such devices to be used as readers for communicating with such wireless communication tags. As an example, NFC tags, RFID tags, and Bluetooth devices have been incorporated into various consumable products, thereby enabling consumers to interact with such products using mobile phones.
These more dynamic, wireless systems that are responsive to user needs, but they tend to overlook anti-counterfeiting and tampering protections provided by the more traditional methods. A system, method, and apparatus that combined these functions would be welcome. Specifically, structures to seamlessly accommodate the circuitry, power sources, visual identifiers, and other mechanisms for achieving improved anti-counterfeiting, anti-tampering, and verification systems in a single item are needed.

Closure for container with informational and/or anti-counterfeiting capabilities


A portable carrier includes a sleeve including a cavity, a dispensing port disposed along a length of the sleeve, and a loading port disposed on a first distal end of the sleeve. The loading port is configured to load a plurality of reusable bags into the cavity of the sleeve. The cavity of the sleeve is configured to store a plurality of reusable bags. The dispensing port is configured to provide access to one or more reusable bags from the cavity of the sleeve.

Single-use grocery-style bags are commonly used to transport various goods. Conventional single-use grocery-style bags include single-use paper bags and single-use plastic bags. Single-use paper bags are typically made of wood pulp sourced from trees or recycled materials. Wood pulp sourced from trees is typically preferred to wood pulp sourced from recycled materials because of its comparatively greater strength and ultimate carrying capacity. However, sourcing wood pulp from trees is time consuming because of the long drying period required. In addition, while source trees are a renewable resource that can be replenished, the demand for single-use grocery-style bags makes replenishment impracticable. As a consequence, single-use paper bags have largely given way to single-use plastic bags.
Single-use plastic bags are typically made of polyethylene sourced from petroleum or petroleum byproducts. While source petroleum is readily available today, it is a non-renewable resource that cannot be replenished. Yet, the demand for single-use plastic bags is nothing short of extraordinary. In the United States, approximately 100 billion single-use plastic bags are used and discarded every year. Worldwide, approximately 1 trillion single-use plastic bags are used and discarded every year.
From an environmental perspective, the accumulation of discarded single-use plastic bags presents a number of challenges. According to a United Nations Environment Programme study, approximately 10 percent of the single-use plastic bags made each year end up in the ocean. Approximately 70 percent of those single-use plastic bags that end up in the ocean make their way to the ocean floor, where conditions are such that they prevent the single-use plastic bags from biodegrading. Even if single-use plastic bags are discarded in conditions suitable for biodegrading, they can take up to 1000 years to fully degrade and the process can produce toxic chemicals that may enter and contaminate the food chain or water supply.

Portable carrier for reusable grocery-style bags


A hammer includes a handle having a head pivotally connected to one end of the handle. A positioning device is provided to position the head at an angle with respect to the handle.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a hammer, more particularly to a hammer having a head which can be rotated with respect to the handle of said hammer and positioned by a positioning means.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional hammer includes a handle 1 and a head 2 fixed to one end of the handle 1. The head 2 includes a bell portion (2a) and a claw portion (2b). Such a hammer may be inconvenient for a user to pull or strike a nail out of an object 90 when the handle 1 and/or head 2 are hindered by an obstacle 100 in the operation room because the head 2 is fixed to the handle 1 at a substantially vertical angle. FIGS. 2A to 2D show four conditions in which the handle 1 and the head 2 are hindered by an obstacle 100 in use.


A wiring block, in accordance with the present invention, comprises a base having at least one wiring strip snap lock mounted thereto and having a leg assembly snap lock mounted at each end of the base. The leg assemblies provide a space behind the wiring block (when mounted) for cables/wires that are to be terminated at the wiring block. The detachable leg assemblies are an important feature of the present invention as they provide for improved cable/wire management during installations, moves and changes, as compared to that of the prior art. The base has openings between selected wiring strips for allowing cables/wires to pass through also improving cable/wire management. Further, the wiring strip includes spaced notches to facilitate wiring thereto.

This invention relates generally to wiring blocks for use primarily in the communications industry. More specifically, this invention relates to a novel wiring block having removable legs and snap-in wiring strips.
Wire connecting systems of the type described herein are well known and commercially available from AT&T Technologies as the 110 connector system. The 110 type wiring systems are described in several prior patents including U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,611,264; 3,798,587 and 4,118,095. An AT&T Technologies 110A type wiring block comprises a base having integrally molded legs at each end thereof. The legs provide a space behind the wiring block (when mounted) for cables that are to be terminated on the wiring block. Further, each leg terminates at a respective foot, with each foot having a plurality of mounting holes therethrough. An upper surface of the base has a plurality of longitudinal slots with spaced mounting holes through the base. A wiring strip is secured in each of the slots by a plurality of posts extending from the lower surface of the strip through the mounting holes in the slots. The posts are heat staked to the base at its lower surface. The legs extend upwardly past the base and terminate at platforms. Opposing surfaces of each outer pair of the legs include a retaining edge for resiliently securing designation strips.
The 110A type wiring block suffers from several disadvantages and problems. The legs are permanently attached thereto and often obstruct wire/cable management during installations, moves and changes. Further, the heat staking of the wiring strips to the base is believed to increase assembly time and cost of the wiring block. The solid base of the 110A type wiring block restricts wire/cable layout by limiting access to the wiring strips to the sides and ends of the wiring block.
The AT&T Technologies 110T type wiring block employs wiring strips which are snap lock mounted onto the base of the wiring block. This snap lock mounting feature is provided by a pair of resiliently deflectable arms extending upwardly from the lower end of the post extending downwardly from the lower surface of the wiring strip. The arms from each post are retained within corresponding openings in the base by retaining edges therein which engage the arms. The 110T type wiring block does not include integrally molded legs. However, a bracket having legs may be attached at the lower surface of the base.
The 110T type wiring block suffers from many of the same disadvantages as the 110A type wiring block. The bracket of the 110T type wiring block must be attached prior to wiring the block. Accordingly, this bracket also obstructs wire/cable management during installation, moves and changes. Further, the base of the 110T wiring block as well as the attaching surface of the bracket are solid, thereby restricting access to the wiring strips to entry from the sides and ends of the wiring block.

Wiring block having detachable leg assemblies


Selective PDE4 inhibition is achieved by aryl and heteroaryl pyrazole compounds. The compounds exhibit improved PDE4 inhibition as compared to compounds such as rolipram and show selectivity with regard to inhibition of other classes of PDEs.

The cyclic nucleotide specific phosphodiesterases (PDEs) represent a family of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of various cyclic nucleoside monophosphates (including cAMP and cGMP). These cyclic nucleotides act as second messengers within cells, and as messengers, carry impulses from cell surface receptors having bound various hormones and neurotransmitters. PDEs act to regulate the level of cyclic nucleotides within cells and maintain cyclic nucleotide homeostasis by degrading such cyclic mononucleotides resulting in termination of their messenger role.
PDE enzymes can be grouped into eleven families according to their specificity toward hydrolysis of cAMP or cGMP, their sensitivity to regulation by calcium, calmodulin or cGMP, and their selective inhibition by various compounds. For example, PDE1 is stimulated by Ca2+/calmodulin. PDE2 is cGMP-dependent, and is found in the heart and adrenals. PDE3 is cGMP-inhibited, and inhibition of this enzyme creates positive inotropic activity. PDE4 is cAMP specific, and its inhibition causes airway relaxation, anti-inflammatory and antidepressant activity. PDE5 appears to be important in regulating cGMP content in vascular smooth muscle, and therefore PDE5 inhibitors may have cardiovascular activity. Since the PDEs possess distinct biochemical properties, it is likely that they are subject to a variety of different forms of regulation.
PDE4 is distinguished by various kinetic properties including low Michaelis constant for cAMP and sensitivity to certain drugs. The PDE4 enzyme family consists of four genes, which produce 4 isoforms of the PDE4 enzyme designated PDE4A, PDE4B, PDE4C, and PDE4D [Wang et al., Expression, Purification, and Characterization of Human cAMP-Specific Phosphodiesterase (PDE4) Subtypes A, B, C, and D, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm., 234, 320-324 (1997)]. In addition, various splice variants of each PDE4 isoform have been identified.
PDE4 isoenzymes are localized in the cytosol of cells and are unassociated with any known membranous structures. PDE4 isoenzymes specifically inactivate cAMP by catalyzing its hydrolysis to adenosine 5′-monophosphate (AMP). Regulation of cAMP activity is important in many biological processes, including inflammation and memory. Inhibitors of PDE4 isoenzymes such as rolipram, piclamilast, CDP-840 and ariflo are powerful anti-inflammatory agents and therefore may be useful in treating diseases where inflammation is problematic such as asthma or arthritis. Further, rolipram improves the cognitive performance of rats and mice in learning paradigms.

In addition to such compounds as rolipram, xanthine derivatives such as pentoxifylline, denbufylline, and theophylline inhibit PDE4 and have received attention of late for their cognition enhancing effects. cAMP and cGMP are second messengers that mediate cellular responses to many different hormones and neurotransmitters. Thus, therapeutically significant effects may result from PDE inhibition and the resulting increase in intracellular cAMP or cGMP in key cells, such as those located in the nervous system and elsewhere in the body.
Rolipram, previously in development as an antidepressant, selectively inhibits the PDE4 enzyme and has become a standard agent in the classification of PDE enzyme subtypes. Early work in the PDE4 field focused on depression and inflammation, and has subsequently been extended to include indications such as dementia. [see "The PDE IV Family Of Calcium-Phosphodiesterases Enzymes," John A. Lowe, III, et al., Drugs of the Future 1992, 17(9):799-807 for a general review]. Further clinical developments of rolipram and other first-generation PDE4 inhibitors were terminated due to the side effect profile of these compounds. The primary side effect in primates is emesis, while the primary side effects in rodents are testicular degranulation, weakening of vascular smooth muscle, psychotrophic effects, increased gastric acid secretion, and stomach erosion. In humans, the primary side effect is nausea and emesis. Thus, there is a continuing need to develop selective PDE4 inhibitors with improved side effect profiles (e.g., are relatively non-emetic) while retaining therapeutic utility.


Techniques for database and file management herein include a processor and a memory device storing instructions that cause the processor to perform operations comprising creating a request based on an extensible markup language (XML) or an interpreted scripting language object, wherein the request comprises unauthenticated data for validation. The operations can also include transmitting the request to a remote device), updating metadata corresponding to the request to indicate the successful validation by the remote device, validating a response file, and detecting a discrepancy between the unauthenticated data and the authenticated data accessible by the remote device. Additionally, the operations include obtaining correction data to resolve the discrepancy, and executing a transaction based on the request and the correction data.

Managing highly confidential digital data can require implementing any number of digital security techniques, as well as any number of data validation techniques. When validating or verifying digital data, the authenticity of the digital data must be ascertained. In some examples, authenticated data can be stored in a data repository, while unauthenticated data received from an unknown source or an untrusted source can be validated based on the authenticated data. However, the authenticated data and the unauthenticated data can have different data formats, different data fields, different data types, and the like.
Moreover, digital information can be subject to manipulation by various unauthorized users. For example, an unauthorized user may attempt to modify authenticated data or assert that malicious data or forged data is authenticated data. Therefore, verifying the authenticity of data can prevent unauthorized users from executing instructions based on malicious data or forged data.
Accordingly, it is desirable to develop improved systems, methods and techniques for verifying that unauthenticated data received from an untrusted source matches authenticated data.

Database and file management for data validation and authentication

FEDERAL HOME LOAN MORTGAGE CORPORATION (FREDDIE MAC)


A highly available multi-node computer system is operated by monitoring the aging and usage of a plurality of hardware components that are part of the system's networked nodes. While monitoring the components, a determination is made that one of the components has aged, worn, or both, to a level that is selected as being close enough to the component's predicted end of life in the system so as to prevent failure of the component in the system. A notification is sent to replace the component, in response to the determination. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.

In today's information intensive environment, there are many businesses and other institutions that need to store huge amounts of digital data. These include entities such as large corporations that store internal company information to be shared by thousands of networked employees; online merchants that store information on millions of products; and libraries and educational institutions with extensive literature collections. A more recent need for the use of large-scale data storage systems is in the broadcast television programming market. Such businesses are undergoing a transition, from the older analog techniques for creating, editing and transmitting television programs, to an all-digital approach. Not only is the content (such as a commercial) itself stored in the form of a digital video file, but editing and sequencing of programs and commercials, in preparation for transmission, are also digitally processed using powerful computer systems. Other types of digital content that can be stored in a data storage system include seismic data for earthquake prediction, and satellite imaging data for mapping.
A powerful data storage system referred to as a media server is offered by Omneon Video Networks of Sunnyvale, Calif. (the assignee of this patent application). The media server is composed of a number of software components that are running on a network of server machines. The server machines have mass storage devices such as rotating magnetic disk drives that store the data. The server accepts requests to create, write or read a file, and manages the process of transferring data into one or more disk drives, or delivering requested read data from them. The server keeps track of which file is stored in which drives. Requests to access a file, i.e. create, write, or read, are typically received from what is referred to as a client application program that may be running on a client machine connected to the server network. For example, the application program may be a video editing application running on a workstation of a television studio, that needs a particular video clip (stored as a digital video file in the system).
Video data is voluminous, even with compression in the form of, for example, Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG) formats. Accordingly, data storage systems for such environments are designed to provide a storage capacity of tens of terabytes or greater. Also, high-speed data communication links are used to connect the server machines of the network, and in some cases to connect with certain client machines as well, to provide a shared total bandwidth of one hundred Gb/second and greater, for accessing the system. The storage system is also able to service accesses by multiple clients simultaneously.
To help reduce the overall cost of the storage system, a distributed architecture is used. Hundreds of smaller, relatively low cost, high volume manufactured disk drives (currently each unit has a capacity of one hundred or more Gbytes) may be networked together, to reach the much larger total storage capacity. However, this distribution of storage capacity also increases the chances of a failure occurring in the system that will prevent a successful access. Such failures can happen in a variety of different places, including not just in the system hardware (e.g., a cable, a connector, a fan, a power supply, or a disk drive unit), but also in software such as a bug in a particular client application program. Storage systems have implemented redundancy in the form of a redundant array of inexpensive disks (RAID), so as to service a given access (e.g., make the requested data available), despite a disk failure that would have otherwise thwarted that access. The systems also allow for rebuilding the content of a failed disk drive, into a replacement drive.
A storage system should also be scalable, to easily expand to handle larger data storage requirements as well as an increasing client load, without having to make complicated hardware ands software replacements.

Multi-node computer system component proactive monitoring and proactive repair


The present invention provides a method of cementing in a subterranean formation that includes providing a cement composition that includes water, cement, and a fluid loss control additive that includes a water-soluble hydrophobically modified polymer or a hydrophilically modified water-soluble polymer; placing the cement composition into the subterranean formation; and allowing the cement composition to set therein. In certain embodiments, the water-soluble hydrophobically modified polymer or the hydrophilically modified water-soluble polymer may include a polymer backbone that comprises polar heteroatoms. In another embodiment, the water-soluble hydrophobically modified polymer may be a reaction product of a hydrophobic compound with a polyvinylamine, a poly(vinylamine/vinyl alcohol), or an alkyl acrylate polymer.

The present invention relates to cementing operations. More particularly, the present invention relates to cement compositions comprising improved fluid loss control additives, and methods of using such cement compositions.
Hydraulic cement compositions are commonly utilized in subterranean operations, particularly subterranean well completion and remedial operations. For example, hydraulic cement compositions are used in primary cementing operations whereby pipe strings such as casings and liners are cemented in well bores. In performing primary cementing, hydraulic cement compositions are pumped into the annular space between the walls of a well bore and the exterior surface of the pipe string disposed therein. The cement composition is permitted to set in the annular space, thereby forming an annular sheath of hardened substantially impermeable cement therein that substantially supports and positions the pipe string in the well bore and bonds the exterior surface of the pipe string to the walls of the well bore. Hydraulic cement compositions also are used in remedial cementing operations such as plugging highly permeable zones or fractures in well bores, plugging cracks and holes in pipe strings, and the like.
In some cases, subterranean formations may be unable to withstand the hydrostatic head pressure normally associated with fluids (e.g., cement compositions and the like) being injected into the formation. In such cases, the hydrostatic pressure may be sufficient to force such fluids into the permeable zones of the formation, which may result in a significant loss of fluid into the formation. This fluid loss into the formation is problematic for a number of reasons. For example, where the fluid loss occurs during a cementing operation, excessive fluid loss may cause a cement composition to be prematurely dehydrated, which may limit the amount of the cement composition that can be pumped and decrease the compressive strength of the cement composition. Excessive fluid loss into the formation also may prevent or reduce bond strength between the set cement composition and the subterranean zone, the walls of pipe, and/or the walls of the well bore.
In order to counteract these problems, fluid loss control additives may be added to cement compositions to reduce the loss of fluid from the cement compositions when they contact permeable zones of the subterranean formation. Fluid loss control additives also may be suitable for cement compositions used in surface cementing operations. Conventional synthetic fluid loss control additives may be high molecular weight, water-soluble polymers, such as copolymers and copolymer salts of N,N-dimethylacrylamide and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid. While these conventional fluid loss control additives have been used with some success, there is a continuing need for improved fluid loss control additives that achieve fluid loss control in well cement compositions.

Cement compositions with improved fluid loss characteristics and methods of cementing using such cement compositions


An indexable parting blade has opposite blade first and second sides, a blade peripheral edge, a central index axis, and at least first, second and third insert pockets located along the blade peripheral edge. The parting blade also has first, second and third coolant channels, each forming a coolant path from a corresponding inlet to a corresponding one of the insert pockets. Each coolant channel includes a rake outlet opening out to a rake side of its corresponding insert pocket and a relief outlet opening out to a relief side of that same insert pocket. The inlet corresponding to a given coolant channel is located further from that coolant channel's insert pocket than at least one of (a) the inlet corresponding to a different coolant channel, and (b) the central index axis.

As the name suggests, parting blades can be considered to have a 'blade' shape, meaning that they have a thin, knife or plate shape, for entering at a relatively large depth within a metal workpiece for parting operations. Stated differently, a blade thickness measured perpendicular to the first and second sides is by far the smallest dimension of the blade.
The most traditional, common, parting blades are elongated.
It will be understood that components configured for parting can be used for relatively smaller-depth grooving operations, however the converse may not be true in some cases.
Due to the difficulty in providing coolant to a cutting insert which is located within a thin slit (of a workpiece being parted), it has become common to provide a parting blade with internal coolant passages.
The present invention is an improvement of the Applicant's previous invention described in US 2019/0240741. While the invention is not limited to a four-way indexable parting blade shown in FIGS. 18B to 20B, and is certainly also applicable to, for example, at least the three-way indexable blade in FIG. 21A to 23D. The four-way indexable parting blade is mentioned because the coolant channel difficulty solved in the present application is mentioned with reference to the embodiment in FIGS. 18B to 20B.
With reference to that embodiment, there is described a rotatably symmetric parting blade and holder therefor. The blade comprises a single coolant channel per insert pocket. Each coolant channel comprising a blade inlet aperture and a blade outlet aperture.
The blade inlet aperture is preferably not located at a central index axis (or stated differently is spaced-apart from the central index axis) to allow a greater depth of cut for an indexable parting blade. It will be understood that while parting blades may appear visually similar to rotating slitting discs, the latter use all of their cutting inserts in a single operation and are not indexed in a holder to bring a new insert pocket into an active position for machining.
Notably, the blade outlet aperture is the only outlet aperture provided for the insert seat and is directed above the rake surface of a cutting insert held by the insert seat.
While it is known to provide two blade outlet apertures per insert seat in elongated parting blades, due to the four-way rotatable symmetry of the parting blade it was only found feasible to provide a single blade outlet aperture (and in some cases a single outlet aperture directed above the rake surface is the preferred embodiment as described in US 2013/0236253, assigned to the present applicant). It will be noted that more than one outlet aperture was not presented due to a number of difficulties which were overcome in the present invention.
One such difficulty, is that when there are several insert pockets and a blade inlet aperture associated with each pocket is located in a non-central location (or at least in a location which isn't in the same section of the blade as the blade outlet aperture, or adjacent thereto) the direct route of one channel from the blade inlet aperture to the blade outlet aperture is obstructed by another channel having a similar path.
Another difficulty is the lack of space required for additional coolant channels.
For the sake of good order, it will be noted that the present invention relates to coolant channels for an indexable parting blade, and features regarding other components and all non-coolant-related features disclosed in US 2019/0240741 are incorporated herein by reference.
It will be noted that various coolant channels are described in other publications.
U.S. Pat. No. 10,661,352 discloses a parting blade with three coolant channels for a single insert pocket.
Notably, U.S. Pat. No. 10,661,352 is an elongated parting blade (the most common shape parting blade nowadays) which does not have the same space constraints of the at least three-way or four-way indexable blades mentioned above in reference to US 2019/0240741 due to the larger structure and smaller number of insert pockets, and thus each insert pocket can easily be provided with two (or even three) blade outlet apertures associated with it.
It will be understood that the problems overcome by the present invention particularly occur in parting blades with a relatively high number of insert pockets for a given size blade. As can be seen, the parting blade disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,661,352 does not have significant space-restraints relative to the number of coolant channels and elongated shape of the parting blade (since there is no difficulty of channels intersecting others in a direct path as there is in US 2019/0240741).
Yet another aspect of the present invention relates to an advantageous cross-sectional shape developed for the coolant channels produced by additive manufacturing, the shape being specifically advantageous for indexable parting blades.
In U.S. Pat. No. 10,661,352, while circular cross-sectional channels producible by traditional manufacturing methods are described in connection with most embodiments, it is noted that with additive manufacturing processes other cross sections such as polygonal or oval are possible.
Similarly, in DE 20 2018 105 949, a design showing an oval cross section is shown.
It is also known in the art of additive manufacturing to produce coolant channels with a teardrop shape (i.e. comprising a circular bottom edge and an upper upside-down v-shaped top edge, the purpose of the top edge being to reduce the top side falling during manufacture).

Indexable parting blade with circuitous coolant channels


A battery pack holding apparatus is disclosed that includes a high-voltage battery pack for a vehicle that has a protrusion at the front end, and a battery pack holder that is installed within a vehicle body and has a front end opening into which the high-voltage battery pack slides into. In addition, a fixed rail is disposed at a front end of the battery pack holder and a moving portion which slides in a width direction of the battery pack holder and along the fixed rail and has a contact portion that comes into contact with the protrusion of the high-voltage battery pack when the high-voltage battery pack slides when the high-voltage battery pack is in the battery pack holder. Further, an elastic portion is disposed in the moving portion to press the contact portion toward the protrusion.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for holding a high-voltage battery pack, and more particularly to a battery pack holding apparatus that firmly holds a high-voltage battery pack with use of less force than a conventional apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Due to a global increase in fuel prices and global emission control, improvement in fuel efficiency and development of environment-friendly vehicles have been key issues in the automobile industry. To achieve these objectives, leading automobile companies have developed technologies for reduction of fuel consumption. A representative technology is electric vehicles, which run on electricity. Electric vehicles, such as hybrid vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, and electric cell vehicles are vehicles which store electricity in rechargeable battery packs and are propelled by an electric motor (or electric motors) powered by the rechargeable battery packs.
Generally such an electric vehicle includes a high-voltage battery to power the vehicle motors, and the high-voltage battery should remain electrically fully-charged to power the motors while the vehicle is being driven. Accordingly, the electric vehicle includes a plug for charging to charge the battery in the electric vehicle using an electrical outlet. However, quick charging may be difficult in electric vehicles when the battery is completely discharged during the use of a vehicle. Therefore, a method of replacing the fully-discharged battery with a fully-charged battery has been developed.
However, in the conventional battery replacement the battery may be difficult to be removed once mounted in an electric vehicle, thus increasing a battery replacement time. Accordingly, there is the demand for a battery holding apparatus which may firmly hold a battery mounted as well as allowing the mounted battery to be easily detached as necessary, for example, for replacement.
The foregoing is intended merely to aid in the understanding of the background of the present invention, and is not intended to mean that the present invention falls within the purview of the related art that is already known to those skilled in the art.


A semiconductor integrated circuit including a second electrode on a dielectric film opposite a first electrode and constituting a capacitor. Grounding wiring is connected to the first electrode and power supply wiring is connected to the second electrode so the capacitor can be directly connected to the power supply and the ground in a semiconductor integrated circuit, significantly attenuating noise.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor integrated circuit incorporating bypass capacitors connecting power supply wiring to grounding wiring and a semiconductor integrated circuit having a layout designed by the cell base system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 33 is a conceptual view showing the layout pattern of a conventional IC including digital portion and an analog portion, FIG. 34 is a sectional view showing an IC package mounted with a conventional IC chip, and FIG. 35 is a perspective view showing a conventional IC package. In respect of FIG. 33, numeral 1 designates an IC chip formed on a silicon substrate, numeral 2 designates a digital portion formed on the IC chip 1 and numeral 3 designates an analog portion formed on the IC chip 1. Numeral 4 designates power supply wiring for the digital portion, numeral 5 designates grounding wiring for the digital portion, numeral 6 designates power supply wiring for the analog portion and numeral 7 designates grounding wiring for the analog portion.
In respect of FIG. 34, numeral 8 designates a package, numeral 9 designates a lead of the IC chip and numeral 10 designates a wire for connecting the lead 9 and the IC chip 1.
An explanation will be given of the operation as follows.
Generally, a semiconductor integrated circuit (hereinafter, referred to as IC) is functionally classified as a digital IC or an analog IC. The digital IC is an IC carrying a logical circuit operating with values of "1" and "0", (logical circuit), a memory, a microcomputer or the like. Meanwhile, the analog IC is an IC dealing with not "1" and "0", but with continuously changing signals such as the intensity of sound or temperature which is often used in a circuit for amplifying current. In using the digital IC and the analog IC in combination, noise generated from the digital IC influences the operation of the analog IC. Normally such a problem is dealt with by attenuating the noise from the digital IC by attaching a capacitor between a power supply terminal and a grounding terminal of the digital IC. The capacitor is referred to as a bypass capacitor.
In recent years, use of an IC with a digital portion and an analog portion (hereinafter, referred to as a digital/analog mixed IC) where a digital IC and an analog IC are integrated, has been increasing, to reduce a number of parts mounted on a substrate with further downsizing of portable communication devices (portable telephone or the like). In a digital/analog mixed IC, even if the power supplies and the grounds of respective circuits of the digital portion and the analog portion are separately installed and a bypass capacitor is attached to the IC, an attenuating of noise similar to that where the digital IC and the analog IC are used in combination, may be difficult to achieve. An explanation will be given of the reason as follows.
Firstly, to separately install the power supply wirings and the grounding wirings of the digital portion 2 and the analog portion 3 as shown by FIG. 33, the power supply wirings 4 for the digital portion and the grounding wirings 5 for the digital portion are installed at the side of the digital portion 2 and the power supply wiring 6 for the analog portion and the grounding wiring 7 for the analog portion are installed at the side of the analog portion 3. Thereafter, bypass capacitors are installed between the leads 9 connected to the power supply wirings and the grounding wirings as illustrated by FIG. 34.
However, the grounding of the digital portion 2 and the analog portion 3 are common since they are formed on the IC chip 1 that is formed on the same silicon substrate whereby the effect of attenuating noise is reduced. Further, the effect of attenuating noise is reduced by resistances of the leads 9, resistances of the wires 10 and contact resistances of these in the IC.
Accordingly, a desired characteristic is difficult to achieve in a digital/analog mixed IC since noise generated at the digital portion 2 influences the analog portion 3.

Semiconductor integrated circuit and semiconductor integrated circuit having layout designed by cell base system


Circuits and methods are provided for aligning data read from a memory with an output clock signal when the memory is operated at very high clock frequencies. To align data and clock signals when needed, delay is added to the output clock signal during the read operation. This alignment allows various timing specifications to be met when they would otherwise be violated, therefore improving data integrity in the system.

This invention relates to integrated circuit memories. More particularly, this invention relates to the timing of data and clock signals of read operations in dynamic random access memories (DRAMs).
A DRAM is a form of semiconductor random access memory (RAM) commonly used as main memory in computers and other electronic systems. DRAMs store information in arrays of integrated circuits that include capacitors. High speed DRAMs, known as synchronous DRAMs (SDRAMs), use clocks to synchronize control and data signal transfers.
SDRAMs often transmit a clock signal along with the data produced from a read request. The clock signal is used by the receiving circuitry to determine when to sample the incoming data. In order to ensure accurate sampling, the data and output clock signals must satisfy certain timing specifications. Two important specifications are t_first and t_last.
The t_first specification defines the time between an output clock edge and the first bit transition on the data bus. This value is restricted to a range greater than a certain value, where the value depends on the size of the output clock period (t_clk). In a double data rate (DDR) system, where data transitions occur on both the rising and falling edges of the output clock, the optimal sampling time is the midpoint between two consecutive clock edges. Therefore, meeting the t_first specification ensures that a data transition occurs sufficiently after a first optimal sampling time.
In contrast, the t_last specification defines the time between an output clock edge and the last bit transition on the data bus. This value is usually restricted to a certain fixed range, e.g., less than 300 picoseconds. Meeting the t_last specification ensures that a data transition occurs sufficiently before a second optimal sampling time.
Assuming a DDR SDRAM system, the ideal timing scenario would have data transitions perfectly time-aligned with the output clock edges. In this ideal case, t_first would be t_clk/2 and t_last would be 0. If the data transitions occurred sufficiently after their corresponding clock edges, the t_first specification would be met, but the t_last specification might be violated. On the other hand, if the data transitions occurred sufficiently before their corresponding clock edges, the t_last specification would be met, but the t_first specification might be violated. Therefore, in a real-world system where some amount of skew is inevitable, meeting both specifications typically involves a tradeoff.
A problem arises when the output clock frequency is increased. As the clock period becomes shorter, meeting the t_first and t_last specifications becomes more difficult. In particular, the physical delay associated with outputting data from an array, referred to as t_delay, often becomes a limiting factor.
Normally, there is a certain latency, referred to as t_lat, involved in memory read operations. t_lat is defined as the amount of time between the start of a read instruction and the first valid edge of the output clock. Typically, t_lat is a certain multiple of the clock period, such as 2*t_clk.
Ideally, t_delay should be less than t_lat, so the outgoing data is latched until the first output clock edge. At that edge, the data is output onto the final data bus, resulting in substantially simultaneous signal transitions. However, if t_delay is greater than t_lat, as can happen when t_clk is very short, the data will be output as soon as it is ready, which can be skewed from the output clock edge by a significant amount. When that happens, it is quite possible to violate either the t_first or the t_last specification, or even both.
In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to align an output clock with associated data when t_delay is greater than t_lat in order to ensure more reliable compliance with timing specifications. This permits more robust data retrieval and contributes to overall system reliability.

Alignment of memory read data and clocking


A broadcast message indicating the utilization level associated with Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channels (SDCCH) within a mobile telecommunications network serving a particular geographic area is transmitted over a broadcast channel. A plurality of mobile stations located within that particular geographic area monitoring the broadcast channel then receives the transmitted message. Thereafter, a mobile service request with a lower priority level than the indicated status level is queued by the associated mobile station and delayed until the channel utilization level rescinds to a network acceptable level.

1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a telecommunications network and, in particular, to the efficient management of channel resources within a digital mobile communications network.
2. Description of Related Art
The general name of the connection between a particular mobile station traveling within a particular cell area and the base transceiver station (BTS) providing radio coverage for that particular cell area is the "radio interface" or "air interface". Historically, the communications of information across the air interface between a base transceiver station (BTS) and a mobile station has employed, so-called, analog modulation techniques. For example, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) technology has been widely utilized to assign each mobile station to one of a plurality of the frequency channels associated with the current cell area to communicate with the serving BTS. More recently, however, digital modulation techniques have been used in order to enhance the spectrum efficiency with which the bandwidth allotted to mobile communications is used. As an illustration, the two techniques of time division multiple access (TDMA) and code division multiple access (CDMA) have been utilized to allow communications to proceed between a BTS and a plurality of different mobile stations on a relatively limited amount of radio frequency bandwidth. The Global System for Mobile (GSM) communications system, for example, utilizes the TDMA concept with the allocation of one TDMA frame per carrier frequency channel to communicate between a mobile station and a BTS. Each frame is further subdivided into eight time-slots (TS). Each time-slot of a TDMA frame on a single frequency channel is referred to as a physical channel. Accordingly, there are eight physical channels per carrier in the GSM system. Each physical channel of the GSM system can be compared with one single channel in an FDMA-system, where every user is connected to the system via one of the associated frequencies.
The implementation of TDMA technology requires that a great quantity and variety of information must be transmitted between the serving BTS and the mobile station over the limited physical channels. For example, control data, service request data, actual traffic data, supplementary data, etc., have to be communicated over the physical channels. As a result, in order to distinguish one type of data from another, different logical channels have been named and mapped (assigned) on to the available physical channels. For example, actual speech is sent on the logical channel named "traffic channel (TCH)" occupying one or more physical channels. Paging of a called party mobile station is performed over the logical "paging channel (PCH)" while synchronization of a mobile station with a serving BTS is performed over the logical "synchronization channel (SCH)" which occupies one of the physical channels. Accordingly, depending on the type of information being transmitted, different logical channels are utilized. Needless to say, if more physical channels are assigned to a particular logical channel, a lesser number of physical channels are available for the rest of the logical channels.
Because of the limited physical channel resources, mobile service providers are often faced with channel resource management and dimensioning problems. One such problem includes effectively managing Stand-alone Dedicated Control Channels (SDCCH) within a serving mobile network. Because of the fact that congestion in SDCCH logical channels results in lost calls and unsuccessful call setups, the efficient management of SDCCH logical channels is critical for providing reliable mobile service to mobile stations traveling within the serving coverage area.
SDCCH logical channels are not only utilized for setting up call connections, but also for performing location updates for traveling mobile stations and for communicating packet messages containing text or graphic data between the serving mobile network and associated mobile stations. Conventionally, all of the above mentioned functionalities are provided the same priority and allowed equal access to available SDCCH channel resources. As a result, all of the available SDCCH channel resources could be occupied by Short Message Service (SMS) or Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) messages transporting text messages and could, as a result, prevent speech connections from being established between mobile stations and a serving mobile network. However, even though the support of all of the above mentioned functionalities is important for providing reliable and comprehensive mobile service to associated mobile stations, establishing call connections is by far the most important role performed by the mobile network.
Accordingly, there is a need for a mechanism to prioritize mobile services within a serving mobile network to better utilize available SDCCH logical channels.

Optimal use of logical channels within a mobile telecommunications network


A monitoring and control system for a seal gas supply system for a non-contacting gas seal. The supply includes several gas conditioning elements or units. The monitoring and control system includes an evanescent wave sensor to sense the presence of liquid in the seal gas. Multiple sensors to sense the temperature and pressure of the treated seal gas are disposed at the outlet of the conditioning elements. A programmable logic device is provided with information regarding the phase of the gas at various pressures and temperatures and compares the sensed data to the baseline data. Recognition of liquid concentrate results in an output signal.

This disclosure relates to gas conditioning systems for non-contacting gas seals. More particularly, it relates to a system for monitoring and control of seal buffer gas.
Non-contacting seals for gas compressors and other rotating equipment such as gas and steam turbines, turbo expanders, centrifugal pumps and the like, operate on a thin film of conditioned process gas; pre-treated to render it suitable for delivery to, and passage through, the seal mechanism. Commonly, the source of this seal gas, sometimes called buffer gas, is the machine discharge.
The principle of dry gas seal technology is that the sealing faces are non-contacting and a clean and dry gas is allowed to pass through the seal interface. It flows from the high pressure side of the seal to the low pressure seal and is routed to a flare line through the primary vent outlet module which comprises monitoring instruments and a safety trip to shut down the compressor in the event of high seal leakage. Typically abnormal seal gas leakage has represented the sole measure of seal performance.
Seal gas, that is the gas upon which the non-contacting seal operates, is process gas usually from the discharge line of the compressor unit, piped to the control system supply line. The control system then regulates and filters the buffer gas flow before it is injected to the primary seal chamber. The pressure and leakage flow rate are monitored and recorded to ensure that the seals function properly.
A known cause of seal failure is a lack of clean and dry seal or buffer gas being supplied to the compressor. Critical to gas seal longevity, seal gas must be free of liquid vapor or condensate. Liquid contamination has been found to be a leading cause of the failures. Particular applications prone to liquid contamination were mostly found on offshore platforms, Hydrogen Recycle, Gas Gathering, Ammonia, HP pipelines and similar seal applications. Initial gas composition information is often unreliable, and changes with time, resulting in failures due to liquid condensation.
Attention to reliability and damage prevention is particularly critical because of the requirements of high-pressure compressors used in exploration, such as gas reinjection and the complexity of gas compositions involved. Unexpected seal failures cause operational loss and delay in start-up.
Also, initial system selection often sabotages optimal reliability. Compressor manufacturers often do not review the make-up of the process fluid, including gas composition, operating pressure and temperature, liquid and contaminate level in the process gas, and the auxiliary buffer gas requirement. Additionally, current systems do not offer an advanced warning or initiate corrective action to prevent exposure to free liquid or condensate, which it is considered to be a major root cause of failures. The current method of seal health evaluation based on leakage volume is insufficient. And, failures are costly because of the delay in plant start-up and loss of production.
As compressor operating requirements push past current limits, there is a clear need for innovative and intelligent approaches to support the emerging compressor markets.
One way to improve the reliability of these new designs is to integrate such seals with imaginative control system technology. Achieving optimum reliability is assured by providing appropriate control system technology to ensure that clean and dry buffer gas is always available to the non-contacting faces of the seal.
Prior efforts to monitor seal gas have focused on recognition of conditions within the seal chamber containing the non-contacting seal devices. One example is disclosed in U.S. application for patent Ser. No. 12/469,045 filed May 20, 2009 (Publication US2009/0290971) the entire specification and drawings of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein as if fully set forth.