The present invention aims to facilitate the maintenance inspection for the communications terminal and the communications system. A fault detection unit 24 monitors the communication line and each terminal unit, and upon detecting a malfunction, the fault information is immediately output to a fault information recording unit 26. The fault information recording unit 26 stores and records fault information from the fault detection unit 24. It operates to only record the fault conditions on the fault information recording unit 26 in the case of the slight fault, or record the fault conditions on the fault information recording unit 26 and automatically call the preregistered service office to notify its fault conditions in the case of the heavy fault which may hinder the television conference in performance. The fault information recording unit 26 automatically calls the registered service office periodically, e.g., once a week, to notify the fault information recorded after the previous call. When making the television conference between three or more points, the multi-point connection control unit 60 is also provided with a fault detecting unit and a fault information recording unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communications terminal and a communications system.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, the digital communication line has been come into wide use, and the communications system making the use of the digital line network, for example, a television telephone and conference system, has attracted public attention. The standardization is presupposed for the wide spread of the communications system. Regarding the video and voice communications, five recommendations have been issued. H.221 defines the frame structure of 64 kbit/s to 1,920 kbit/s channel, H.230 defines the control signal and the notification signal of frame synchronization, and H.242 defines the mutual connection procedure up to 2 Mbit/s. Also, H.261 defines the video coding system of P.times.64 kbit/s (P=1 to 30), and H.320 defines the communications system configuration of voice and video.
Also, the television conference system between multi points currently used typically takes the connection form of connecting each station in star configuration around a connection control device between multi points as the center, as shown in FIG. 4. The methods for displaying the moving picture from the partner station may include switching multiple stations in time division, displaying the picture from the originating station, and setting a plurality of windows to which the moving picture from the partner station is fixedly allocated.
In the conventional communications system, for example, a television conference system, when some fault happens in the terminal device or communication line, such a procedure is taken that the user calls the maintenance department in charge such as a service center, and the maintenance inspector diagnoses the conditions of the terminal device via the communication line and repairs to the spot for the maintenance and inspection if required.
However, in the above-described maintenance inspection, the maintenance inspector had the fault generation conditions explained by the user, supposing the cause of fault within the scope to be understood by its explanation, and often could not correctly grasp the condition of each part when the fault happens, whereby it was time-consuming and inefficient to identify the cause of fault.
Also, depending on the user's knowledge regarding the television conference system, the user may call the service center upon a slight malfunction or accidental fault for which the maintenance inspection work is essentially unnecessary. This is not only troublesome for both the user and the maintenance inspector but also results in a waste of time.

Communications terminal and communications system


An adjustable mounting bracket includes two frames juxtaposed to slide on each other and attached by nuts and bolts. Each of the two frames is essentially U-shaped with an internal T-shaped opening. The T-shaped opening is formed by a shoe plate formed between the end plate and two side plates. Slots and holes in the shoe plate are used to connect the two frames together and adjust the central working space for use with either a circular saw or a router. Slots in the shoe plate in conjunction with locking pieces are used to attach the power hand tool to the mounting bracket. The length of the mounting bracket is adjustable to be suitable for power hand tools such as a circular saw or a router that have different sizes. Consequently, the user only needs to use a single mounting bracket so material and cost are saved. Furthermore, the two frames of the present invention are identical so that the frames are easy to be manufactured.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting bracket for a power hand tool, and more particularly to an adjustable mounting bracket to convert a power hand tool to a table mounted tool. The mounting bracket in accordance with the present invention has a frame that can be adjusted to accommodate various types and sizes of power hand tools such as circular saws or routers.
2. Description of Related Art
In woodworking, circular saws and routers are frequently mounted in a table configuration to make precise cuts. The conventional mounting bracket for a power hand tool is configured to support a specific type and size tool. Consequently, the user must prepare a separate mounting bracket to mount a circular saw and another to mount a router. Different brands of power hand tools have different sizes and mounting configuration from one another. Consequently, the mounting bracket must be replaced when a power hand tool breaks and must be replaced by a new tool. Replacing the mounting bracket takes a lot of time and wastes time and material.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the disadvantages of the conventional mounting bracket for a power hand tool.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, an adjustable mounting bracket for a power hand tool comprises two U-shaped frames juxtaposed to slide on and securely connected to each other by nuts and bolts. The length of the mounting bracket is adjusted to be suitable for various power hand tools such as a circular saw or a router of different sizes. The adjustable mounting bracket for a power hand tool includes multiple locking pieces for securely attaching the power hand tool to the mounting bracket. The mounting bracket and the attached power hand tool are attached to the bottom of a worktable so that the tool protrudes through the upper surface of the table.
Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after a careful reading of the detailed description with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.

Adjustable mounting bracket for a power hand tool


A system for enabling the insertion and removal of an embolic protection device, for capturing and retaining embolic debris which may be created during the performance of a therapeutic interventional procedure in a stenosed or occluded region of a blood vessel. The system, in an embodiment thereof, enables the device to be snap-fitted so as to engage the distal end of a guide wire, to provide a reference for positioning the device at a location distal to the interventional procedure site, and to enable an end of the device to be in tension, enabling a portion of the device to be in tension and another portion to be in compression, so as to assist in bending thereof in tortuous vasculature.

The present invention relates generally to improvements in embolic protection systems and methods. In particular, it relates to an improved system and method for enabling an embolic protection device to be efficiently and conveniently engaged with the distal end of a guide wire. The system also enables the device to effectively expand against the inner surface of a blood vessel wall, and to seal off the inner surface thereof upon deployment thereof at a location distal to an interventional procedure site. Such deployment enables the efficient capture of embolic material, which may be created and released into the bloodstream during the performance of the interventional procedure in a stenosed or occluded region of a blood vessel, and prevents embolic material from bypassing the embolic protection device. The system further enables the embolic protection device to provide a reference for the effective positioning thereof at the location distal to the interventional procedure site. It also is formed of expandable material for enabling efficient expansion thereof, and includes a portion thereof formed so as to be in tension, such that another portion thereof is in compression, to effectively assist in enabling the system to bend in tortuous vasculature.
The systems and methods of the present invention are particularly useful when performing balloon angioplasty, stenting procedures, laser angioplasty or atherectomy in critical vessels, such as the carotid, renal, and saphenous vein graft arteries, where the release of embolic debris into the bloodstream could possibly occlude the flow of oxygenated blood to the brain or other vital organs which can cause devastating consequences to the patient.
A variety of non-surgical interventional procedures have been developed over the years for opening stenosed or occluded blood vessels in a patient caused by the build up of plaque or other substances on the walls of the blood vessel. Such procedures usually involve the percutaneous introduction of the interventional device into the lumen of the artery, usually through a catheter. One widely known and medically accepted procedure is balloon angioplasty in which an inflatable balloon is introduced within the stenosed region of the blood vessel to dilate the occluded vessel. The balloon catheter is initially inserted into the patient's arterial system and is advanced and manipulated into the area of stenosis in the artery. The balloon is inflated to compress the plaque and press the vessel wall radially outward to increase the diameter of the blood vessel.
Another procedure is laser angioplasty which utilizes a laser to ablate the stenosis by super heating and vaporizing the deposited plaque. Atherectomy is yet another method of treating a stenosed blood vessel in which a cutting blade is rotated to shave the deposited plaque from the arterial wall. A vacuum catheter may be used to capture the shaved plaque or thrombus from the blood stream during this procedure.
In another widely practiced procedure, the stenosis can be treated by placing a device known as a stent into the stenosed region to hold open and sometimes expand the segment of the blood vessel or other arterial lumen. Stents are particularly useful in the treatment or repair of blood vessels after a stenosis has been compressed by percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) or removal by atherectomy or other means. Stents are usually delivered in a compressed condition to the target site, and then are deployed at the target location into an expanded condition to support the vessel and help maintain it in an open position.
In the past, stents typically have fallen into two general categories of construction. The first type of stent is expandable upon application of a controlled force, often through the inflation of the balloon portion of a dilatation catheter which, upon inflation of the balloon or other expansion means, expands the compressed stent to a larger diameter to be left in place within the artery at the target site. The second type of stent is a self-expanding stent formed from, for example, shape memory metals or super-elastic nickel-titanum (NiTi) alloys, which will automatically expand from a compressed state when the stent is advanced out of the distal end of the delivery catheter into the body lumen. Such stents manufactured from self-expandable materials allow for phase transformations of the material to occur, contributing to the expansion and contraction of the stent.
The above non-surgical interventional procedures, when successful, avoid the necessity of major surgical operations. However, there is one common problem associated with all of these non-surgical procedures, namely, the potential release of embolic debris into the bloodstream which can occlude distal vasculature and cause significant health problems to the patient. For example, during deployment of a stent, it is possible that the metal struts of the stent can cut into the stenosis and shear off pieces of plaque which become embolic debris that can travel downstream and lodge somewhere in the patient's vascular system. Pieces of plaque material can sometimes dislodge from the stenosis during a balloon angioplasty procedure and become released into the bloodstream. Additionally, while complete vaporization of plaque is the intended goal during a laser angioplasty procedure, particles are not always fully vaporized and may enter the bloodstream.
When any of the above-described procedures are performed for example in the carotid arteries, the release of emboli into the circulatory system can be extremely dangerous to the patient. Debris that is carried by the bloodstream to distal vessels of the brain may cause these cerebral vessels to occlude, resulting in a stroke, and in some cases, death. Therefore, although carotid percutaneous transluminal angioplasty has been performed in the past, the number of procedures performed has been limited due to the justifiable fear of causing an embolic stroke should embolic debris enter the bloodstream and block vital downstream blood passages.
Medical devices have been developed to attempt to deal with the problem created when debris or fragments enter the circulatory system following treatment utilizing any one of the above-identified procedures. One approach which has been attempted is the cutting of any debris into minute sizes which pose little chance of becoming occluded in major vessels within the patient's vasculature. However, it is often difficult to control the size of the fragments which are formed, and the potential risk of vessel occlusion still exists, making such procedures in the carotid arteries a high-risk proposition.
Other techniques which have been developed to address the problem of removing embolic debris include the use of catheters with a vacuum source which provides temporary suction to remove embolic debris from the bloodstream. However, as mentioned above, there have been complications with such systems since the vacuum catheter may not always remove all of the embolic material from the bloodstream, and a powerful suction could cause problems to the patient's vasculature.
Further techniques which have had some limited success include the placement of an embolic protection device such as a filter or trap downstream from the treatment site to capture embolic debris before it reaches the smaller blood vessels downstream. Such embolic protection devices enable the filtering of embolic debris which may be released into the bloodstream during the treatment to the vessel, and yet allow a sufficient amount of oxygenated blood to flow past the device to supply vital organs downstream from the treatment site.
However, there have been problems associated with embolic protection devices, particularly during the assembly, insertion, and deployment thereof. The device may be mounted on the guide wire in an inconvenient manner so as to be fixedly secured thereto. Also, the mounting of the device on the guide wire, such that the device is affixed to and rotatable with the guide wire, may result in the entangling of the device in a delivery sheath, upon the device being directed in the delivery sheath through the patient's anatomy to the position distal to the interventional procedure site. Further, the expansion and deployment of the embolic protection device may not result in full and complete expansion thereof, and consequently may not seal off the inner wall of the blood vessel about the entire circumference thereof, which can result in embolic material bypassing the device. The guiding, tracking, positioning and deployment of the embolic protection device in the patient's vasculature and at the location distal to the interventional procedure site for embolic protection can be difficult and formidable.
Therefore, the present invention provides improved systems and methods for treating stenosis in blood vessels which enable an embolic protection device to be efficiently assembled and to effectively navigate through a patient's vasculature for deployment at a location distal to an interventional procedure site. It also enables the device to expand so as to effectively seal off the inner surface of the blood vessel wall, to capture embolic material, and to prevent embolic material from bypassing the embolic protection device. The improved systems and methods of the present invention further enable the efficient positioning of the embolic protection device at the location distal to the interventional procedure site, to enable the effective capture of embolic material. Also, the invention is formed of expandable material in such a manner as to accommodate the effective bending, tracking, and deploying thereof. Moreover, the systems and methods are relatively easy for a physician to use, while enabling the effective delivery and recovery of a filtering system capable of removing embolic debris released into the bloodstream. The inventions disclosed herein satisfy these and other needs.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Filter device for embolic protection systems


A vehicle exhaust component includes an outer shell defining an internal cavity, at least one baffle located within the internal cavity, and at least one tube supported by the baffle. The baffle is fixed to the outer shell and includes at least one opening. The tube has first and second tube ends with one of the first and second tube ends being supported within the opening in the baffle. At least one slot is formed within the one of the first and second tube ends at the at least one opening. The slot facilitates noise reduction during cool down of the vehicle exhaust component.

Exhaust systems are widely known and used with combustion engines. Typically, an exhaust system includes exhaust tubes that convey hot exhaust gases from the engine to other exhaust system components, such as mufflers, resonators, etc. Mufflers and resonators include acoustic chambers that cancel out sound waves carried by the exhaust gases.
One common problem with exhaust system components, such as a muffler for example, is metallic noise that emanates from the muffler during cool down. The metallic noise is often referred to as a pinging or ticking sound. The muffler includes tubes that are supported by internal muffler structures. When the exhaust system heats up during vehicle operation, the tubes experience thermal expansion, which causes mating surfaces between the tubes and associated internal structures to fit more tightly against each other. When the vehicle is turned off, the exhaust system components cool down and the metallic noise is generated when the mating surfaces release. This release of strain energy caused by the differential thermal expansion of the tubes relative to the internal muffler structures is also referred to as a "stick and release" noise. The components become "stuck" together during thermal expansion, and then when the components are "released" from each other during cool down, the metallic noise is generated.
Therefore, there is a need to provide an exhaust component configuration that reduces noise generated during cool down. This invention addresses those needs while avoiding the shortcomings and drawbacks of the prior art.


The present invention relates, for example, to a semiconductor structure containing multiple parallel channels in which several parallel conductive channels are formed within the semiconductor structure. Electric contact or electrostatic control over all these channels is done by three-dimensional electrode structures. The multiple channel structure with three-dimensional electrodes can be applied to semiconductors devices such as field effect transistors, diodes, and other similar electronic or quantum-effect devices. This structure is practical for materials where multiple parallel conduction channels can be formed, such as in III-V semiconductors. Ill-Nitride semiconductors with such structures are described which can lead to increased power density, reduced on-resistance and improved device performance, in addition to reducing dynamic on-resistance, and improving the stability of their threshold voltage and reliability.

III-Nitride semiconductors offer inherent advantages for high-efficiency power and radio-frequency (RF) electronic devices. Their excellent electronic properties such as large breakdown field and high electron saturation velocity result in smaller on-resistance (Ron) with larger breakdown voltage (Vbk) than in SiC and Si power devices, as well as 3-5× higher microwave power density than GaAs- and Si-based RF technology. Additionally, GaN-based heterostructures are able to create conduction channels with high-density 2DEG and high electron mobility, enabling high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) or other lateral electronic devices, such as diodes, with simultaneously fast switching, high power density and high breakdown voltage, along with high efficiency, small device size, high frequency and temperature operation. These properties make this material system ideal material for future power and RF systems.
The challenge however is that the performance of current III-Nitride devices is very far from the fundamental materials limits. Their future adoption for efficient power/RF systems depends on solving the current main issues simultaneously, which includes increasing power density, reducing on-state resistance and enhancing blocking voltage.
This present disclosure describes device architectures based on several parallel conductive channels that leads to significantly reduced on-resistance and enhanced power density. The effective control and contact to these channels is achieved through three-dimensional electrodes through trenches on the semiconductor structure, which is applied for all contacts, such as ohmic, Schottky or gate contacts.
Technical Rationale and Approach
III-Nitride semiconductors offer clear advantages over Si, GaAs and SiC in terms of specific on-resistance Ron, power density and breakdown voltage Vbk, making them ideal for power and RF electronics. For a given breakdown voltage, GaN yields a much lower Ron and a higher power density which allow smaller devices with reduced capacitances and hence lower switching losses. This figure of merit is even more relevant when considering that GaN devices can operate at much higher frequencies than Si and SiC devices.
The breakdown voltage of GaN HEMTs has improved continuously over the years. The first 1 kV AlGaN/GaN HEMT grown on semi-insulating SiC substrate was reported in 2001 with Ron of only 3.4 mΩ·cm2. In 2006, 1.6 kV breakdown voltage was demonstrated in an AlGaN/GaN HEMT grown on sapphire substrate, later reaching up to 1.9 kV with Ron as low as 2.2 mΩ·cm2. Lateral power devices with breakdown voltages over 8000 V on sapphire substrates have been demonstrated for gate-to-drain distance of over a 120 μm. However, this large gate-to-drain distance leads to a high Ron of 186 mΩ·cm2. This illustrates one of the trade-offs with lateral power devices: large breakdown voltages require large gate-to-drain spacing, leading to large on-resistances.
To further push the progress of GaN electronic devices, Ron must be reduced and the power density of the devices needs to be enhanced. To achieve such goals, a highly conductive 2DEG channel is necessary. In commercially available AlGaN/GaN structures, the Al composition and thickness of the AlGaN barrier layer are about 23%-30% and ˜20 nm, respectively, corresponding to a sheet resistance (Rs) of 350-500 ohm/sq. Recently, high-Al-composition AlGaN, AlN, InAlN and InAlGaN barriers are being intensively investigated for reduction of Rs. Due to the strong polarization effect in such Al-rich barriers, the 2DEG density is increased and Rs as small as 182 ohm/sq has been achieved by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). However, the growth of these barriers is very challenging because of the poor surface immigration of Al and low incorporation efficiency of In atoms, which cause significant reliability issues and huge degradation in voltage blocking capability for HEMTs. More importantly, such structures have only one 2DEG channel, which is already approaching its limits in terms of conductivity or equivalently the Rs.
Here, a multiple channel (multi-channel) structure with a three-dimensional electrode (3D electrode) according to the present disclosure is disclosed to overcome these challenges. A multi-channel structure containing multiple 2DEG channels on a single wafer is aimed to reduce R, while a 3D electrode architecture including, for example, two sidewall gates as well as a planar top gate will provide simultaneous gate control over the stacked channels. The threshold voltage (VTH) of the multi-channel 3D electrode HEMTs can be controlled by the width of the nanowires for e-mode HEMTs with normally-off operation.
GaN multi-channel structures were first proposed in the year of 2001, in which 2DEG density increases with increasing number of barrier/channel stacks, resulting in better channel conductivity than single-channel structures. Table 2 of FIG. 10 compares the state-of-the-art channel conductivity of various III-nitride single-channel and multi-channel structures, which shows that multi-channel structures exhibit significantly smaller Rs with respect to the single-channel structure. Based on an AlN/GaN 9-channel structure, Rs down to 37 ohm/sq has been achieved with a sheet carrier density (Ns) of 1.08×1014/cm2 and an electron mobility of 1567 cm2/V·s. This leads to a reduction of about 10 times in Rs as compared to conventional AlGaN/GaN SC structures, which is extremely promising for high-end GaN HEMTs beyond the materials limit.
However, up to now the superior channel conductivity of the multi-channel structure could not be utilized for devices. The first obstacle is the insufficient gate control in multi-channel planar HEMTs over buried channels. This greatly reduces the transconductance, increases the leakage current, increases short-channel effects and degrades the Vbr of the HEMT, which are detrimental for electronic devices and power switches. Furthermore, although the large 2DEG density in the multi-channel structure can reduce the Rs, the fabrication of GaN E-mode HEMTs would be more challenging and traditional technologies such as shallow gate recess, F+ implantation and p-GaN cap will no longer be applicable.
Finally, the multi-channel structure grown by MOCVD is not as conductive as expected due to the difficulty in material growth. Although Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) is used as the alternative and it can provide highly conductive multi-channel structures, it is not suitable for mass production and its low growth temperature leads to increased defect density.
The 3D electrode (tri-gate) architecture is recently becoming interesting for GaN single-channel HEMTs for normally off applications and other advantages in superior gate control, current stability as well as thermal management. However, this structure has an essential drawback: 2DEG in gate region needs to be selectively removed by etching to achieve the tri-gate structure, and the remaining heterostructure will partially relax, leading to a largely degraded Ron for the HEMT. Such degradation in Ron reduces the current handling capability of the HEMT and makes the tri-gate structure less promising for power applications.
To unveil the potential of the tri-gate for multi-channel HEMTs, the degraded Ron must be resolved or mitigated, and the benefits from the tri-gate structure needs to be fully understood and explored.
The multi-channel structure offers superior channel conductivity which cannot be controlled by conventional planar gate, thus its excellent channel conductivity is much less meaningful. The 3D electrode provides superior gate control with other benefits, yet it degrades the Ron of the HEMTs.

Semiconductor devices with multiple channels and three-dimensional electrodes

ECOLE POLYTECHNIQUE FÉDÉRALE DE LAUSANNE (EPFL)


A method for writing text employing at least one hand of a user and manipulating a keyboard having a pair of keypads which are finger depressed and a press pad which is depressed by the palm region of the hand. The first and/or second keypads are pressed simultaneously with the press pad being depressed by the palm region of the hand to generate a signal representative of a recognizable language component. Combinations of keypad and press pad signals may be compiled into a spelling table for forming words in different languages.

The present invention relates to a novel and useful method for writing text using a keyboard.
Writing of human language has allowed the conveying of human thoughts and feelings, often expressed through speech, in a medium which is durable and transportable. That is to say, writings memorialize such thoughts and feelings.
Throughout history, writings have been used to keep accounts and record historical events. The earliest writings involve markings on physical objects, the tying of knots of various lengths and colors, stringing of beads, and the like.
Modern writing usually entails the use of a marking device on a surface such as a tablet or paper. Although modern writing techniques permit the rapid recording of speech, the speed of spoken language is normally much faster than the speed of conventional writing techniques.
Shorthand has been successfully used to record the spoken word, although special skills are required to transform spoken language into shorthand writing and to then transfer the shorthand writing into recognizable language equivalents. Also, stenographic methods using keyboards and word transcription systems have been used to record speech in courtrooms, governmental hearings, and the like. There still remains a problem of writing speech in various languages at a high transcription rate.
In the past, many devices and methods have been proposed which employ key strokes in order to record or memorialize speech. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,279 describes a typewriter which groups the vowel and consonant keys in a certain manner to increase speed of transcription. All key are pressed by the fingers of the user.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,858,170, RE. 33,337, and 6,041,292 describe stenographic transcribing methods using peculiar arrangements of vowels and consonants employing conventional keyboards to produce a document.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,835,368, 2,923,393, 3,225,883, and 4,765,764 show stenographic keyboards and machines which allow the simultaneous pressing of keys with the fingers of the user to generate consonant and vowel signals.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,465,865 shows a stenographic typewriter employing a mnemonic key in combination with conventional keys that are all pressed by the fingers of the users alone or in combination.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,108,660 illustrates a shorthand typewriting machine that employs keys, each of which represents multiple numbers and letters. All the keys are intended to be pressed by the fingers of the user.
A method for writing text using a transcription keyboard employing fingers and the frontal and/or side portions of the palm (palm regions) of the hand would be a notable advance in the field of word transcription.


A communications system for wireless transceiving of information, comprising an optical array subsystem for transceiving optical signals and a millimeter wave subsystem for transceiving millimeter wave signals, and a beam steering controller for controlling the direction of the optical and millimeter wave signals. The communication system may be on a flying platform, such as a satellite and may communicate with multiple remote terminals.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a system for transmitting and receiving data in a mobile communication system and in particular, to a system for transmitting and receiving data in a mobile communication system utilizing optical satellite technology.
2. Description of the Related Art
Mobile communications are rapidly replacing fixed communications systems as today's users are becoming more accustomed to enjoying the freedom of accessing voice and data information anyplace and at anytime. The growth is occurring at such a rapid pace that the present cellular communications systems are quickly reaching their capacities, resulting in communication companies scrambling for more bandwidth and general expansion of their existing systems. Increasing bandwidth and capacity of the current systems has become first priority for many communication companies. As quickly as the bandwidth and capacity is increased, just as quickly it is utilized by the ever-increasing demand of the users. Basic cellular networks also require numerous cell-sites that require cellular antenna towers to be erected every few miles to provide adequate coverage. The total number of cell sites in the U.S. alone numbers in the hundreds of thousands. In addition, even with the great number of cell sites, coverage is still not guaranteed to all areas, as costs associated with placing cell sites in remote locations is not commercially economical.
Another drawback with cellular systems is the requirement for multiple protocols required to route calls throughout the system. Extensive conversion algorithms are required to accomplish the protocol based routings.
A major breakthrough occurred in increasing the bandwidth by utilizing fiber optic technologies in communication systems. The fiber optic networks economically interconnect higher density urban areas. Although fiber optics was also found to be quite useful in crossing oceans, repair and replacement of damaged cables is a costly and constant concern. In addition, the fiber optic networks are not readily available in remote regions of the earth due to geographic and economic constraints. For example, it is not economically viable or geographically feasible to construct a fiber optic network to the middle of the Sahara Desert or to the top of Mount Everest. Also fiber optic technology has the inherent drawback of being a fixed system, unable to provide voice and data communication services to users in moving vehicles, whether land, sea or airborne.
In an attempt to provide voice and data communications to remote and inaccessible areas of the planet, satellite technologies have been introduced. Many of the satellite based communications systems are radio frequency (RF) based systems. These RF systems receive and transmit signals to and from mobile or stationary locations. The RF satellite systems require high power to transmit signals from the satellites and user equipment (UE). Additionally, by the nature of limited RF frequencies available to the communications systems, the RF systems are an expensive option to use as the number of users per satellite is not cost effective. Also, cloud cover or even high humidity can often interfere with and even prevent useful communications.
In an attempt to expand the capacity of the satellite systems, use of optical link transmissions to and from the satellites is currently being developed. Generally being utilized in these developments are laser link transmissions. Although this technology has been theorized since the introduction of the laser in the 1960s, a viable system has yet to be developed. Many individuals and groups are experimenting with various systems that include low earth orbit (LEO), medium earth orbit (MEO), and geosynchronous orbit (GEO) satellites for optical linkage with ground and airborne stations. In addition to the very high bit rates of an optical based system, the power requirements of an optical system are greatly reduced compared to that of the RF systems, thus increasing their theoretical consumer value.
The above-mentioned optical satellite systems also require extensive pointing, acquiring and tracking systems. An optical communication satellite must first be instructed to point its optical transmitter and receiver in the direction of a fixed or mobile target station. This is usually accomplished utilizing an RF control signal that is sent to the satellite. After the optics of the satellite is aligned in a proper direction, the satellite must acquire the target station signal. As a method of performing the acquisition, a laser in the satellite could perform a search similar to that of early radar conical scan searching, wherein the satellite defocuses a laser beam and begins to focus the beam making micro-radian mechanical gimbal adjustments to search for stronger portions of the signal as it tightens the pattern. After alignment and acquisition, the satellite needs to perform a continuous tracking procedure to maintain a proper communication link during the transfer of the voice and data information. A typical laser tracking system would require optics, electronics and mechanical hardware to continually monitor and adjust to the movements associated with the satellite and target station or user equipment. After a point-to-point link is established, sustained communication can occur. The electronic and mechanical systems to perform these procedures are costly, and increase greatly the size and weight of the satellite.
These current optical satellite systems are quite limited in their total user capabilities, and the tracking and switching in these point-to-point systems greatly increase their cost and size. Even with the theorized optical systems, the cost to utilize these optical satellite systems to the average user would be astronomical. Also, to achieve total coverage of a vast area, for example the U.S., the present satellite systems would require massive amounts of satellites.
As stated above with respect to the satellite systems, although the coverage area is increased, the cost per user is currently at a premium. In addition, the present satellite networks are again constrained by their bandwidth capacities. Attempts to expand the bandwidth of the existing satellite networks are proving quite expensive and not quite feasible. Although tracking of mobile UE by satellites is feasible and currently in use, the tracking capability of each satellite is limited to only a small number of mobile locations at any one time.
A further problem with existing laser based satellite systems is a degradation of the optical signal that occurs as a result of atmospheric diffusion. As a laser is projected through the atmosphere, the signal is constantly being diffused by particles in the air. These particles include water particles, smog, and cloud cover, to name a few. Ideally, a laser-based system can only operate at an optimum level in arid and clear locations, thus limiting its usefulness in more needed locations.
There is therefore a need to provide a voice and data communication system that has nearly unlimited bandwidth capabilities and can provide voice and data communications to nearly unlimited multiple mobile users, whether the user is on land, sea or in air.


A method that includes receiving, from a first entity having an input permission, a first data structure into a HSM, wherein the first data structure maps a first many-to-one mapping between a first and a second PIN numeral system. The method also includes determining whether the content of the first data structure is valid, storing the first data structure in the HSM if the first data structure is valid and marking the stored first data structure as inactive. The method further includes activating the first data structure if a second data structure is input into the HSM by a second entity having an activation permission, wherein the first entity is different from the second entity, the first data structure is identical to the second data structure. The method additionally includes converting from the first to the second PIN numeral system responsive to the activated first data structure.

The present invention relates to data processing, and more specifically, to enhancing security of personal identification numbers (PINs).
A PIN is a secret numeric password shared between a user and a system that can be used to authenticate the user to the system. Typically, a PIN is a quantity derived from a function of an account number and a PIN generating cryptographic key, and other inputs, such as a decimalization table. This derived quantity is used by an individual to identify himself/herself to the system. Generally, the user is required to provide a non-confidential user identifier (a user ID) and a confidential PIN to gain access to the system. Upon receiving the user ID and the PIN, the system looks up the PIN based upon the user ID and compares the looked-up PIN with the received PIN. The user is granted access only when the number entered matches with the number stored in the system.
Typically, PINs for payment cards are generated by encrypting the card number under a secret key held securely by a payment card issuing entity, such as a bank. The encryption produces a hexadecimal value with digits in the range 0 to 9 and A to F. A PIN decimalization table is then used to convert the hexadecimal value to a PIN with digits in the range 0 to 9, for instance mapping A to 0, B to 1. When a transaction is authorized, the PIN is verified when the entity's software sends the encrypted PIN to a hardware security module (HSM), which then indicates whether the PIN was correct or not. Some HSMs require the entity's software to send the PIN decimalization table to the HSM, which is often located at the entity. Thus, a PIN decimalization table attack is the technique where a corrupt entity insider, such as a computer programmer, with access to the entity's HSM, manipulates the PIN decimalization table in order to guess the PIN quicker than should otherwise be possible.
One approach to reducing an occurrence of the PIN decimalization table attack has been to cryptographically protect the PIN decimalization table input so that only authorized PIN decimalization table can be used i.e. specify an approved set of PIN decimalization tables for the HSM. However, using encryption to protect PIN decimalization tables prohibits revocation of decimalization tables, such as during a security breach. Further, encrypted PIN decimalization tables are not transparent to the software application because the software application must possess the encrypted version of the PIN decimalization table and the encryption key used to encrypt the PIN decimalization table generally cannot be changed without impact on the software application and its data. Also, application programming interface (API) calls to the HSM may need new or modified parameters upon use of a new or a modified encrypted PIN decimalization table.

Personal identification number security enhancement

International Business Machines Corporation


A logic circuit including at least one evaluate circuit coupled to a static output logic circuit. In one example, the evaluate circuit includes a dynamic node, a full keeper, an evaluate device, and a logic tree. In some examples, the output logic circuit is a sampled static output logic circuit and includes a sample device. In some examples, the logic circuit includes multiple evaluate circuits, each with a dynamic node coupled to a control gate of a transistor of the output logic circuit. Some examples may include a delay in a clock signal to increase the internal race margin.

1. Field
The present invention relates to electronic circuits, and more particularly, to logic circuits.
2. Description of the Related Art
Dynamic circuitry utilizes synchronous logic circuits that generate an output with dynamic signaling characteristics depending upon a predetermined combination of inputs. Such circuitry is typically characterized by two operational phases, a precharge phase and an evaluate phase. In the precharge phase, a node (e.g., a dynamic node) is precharged to a known or predetermined voltage level. In the evaluate phase, a logic array or logic "tree" of transistors is given the opportunity to discharge the node to a second known or predetermined voltage level or to allow the precharge to persist. In some examples, each input is coupled, typically, to a gate (control terminal) of one or more of the transistors in the logic tree. The final charge on the dynamic node may thereby be controlled by the particular values of the inputs and by the way the transistors are coupled within the tree. Conventionally, the final voltage of the dynamic node, high or low, provides the logical output of a dynamic logic gate after being suitably buffered, and perhaps inverted. Each of these two phases correspond to one of the two clock states of a clock signal cycle to which the dynamic circuitry is synchronized. Most examples of a dynamic circuit precharge the node when the clock is low and evaluate the node when the clock is high.
Two common uses for dynamic circuits are as decoders and as comparators. Decoders output a unique signal if and only if all of the bits of an input match a predetermined set of values. A decoder may thereby enable a particular write line in a matrix of memory cells if and only if an input memory address matches,the predetermined address of a line of memory cells. Similarly, a digital comparator will output a unique signal if and only if two sets of inputs, each containing multiple data bits, are identical. Other uses of dynamic circuits devices include tag arrays and select signals in CAM arrays, arithmetic functions, and other types of circuitry, e.g., in which computation of multi-bit NAND, AND, NOR, or OR functions are desirable, e.g., where time-critical wide-ANDing or ORing is desired.
The particular way the inputs are combined within the logic tree of a dynamic circuit device determines the particular operating characteristics, and hence, the particular name of the dynamic circuit device. Any Boolean function can be implemented as a dynamic circuit device by constructing the tree such that the tree causes the dynamic node to discharge when the Boolean function is either true or false, as needed by the designer. When driving static logic, it is not consequential whether a tree allows the charge on a dynamic node to persist when the Boolean function is true or to persist when the function is false, because an inverter can be used to obtain the desired polarity. However, when driving dynamic logic, the polarity is consequential.
A dynamic circuit device can be implemented in one of two logically equivalent ways. The two implementations correspond to a tree that discharges the charged node when the Boolean function is true and to a tree that discharges the charged node when the Boolean function is false. When the dynamic circuit device discharges the node if the Boolean function is true, it is said to "evaluate to the active state." When the dynamic circuit device discharges the node if the Boolean function is false, it is said to "evaluate to the inactive state." One of these implementations uses its inputs connected in a manner to describe a particular function. The second implementation uses the complements of the inputs and a second function. DeMorgan's law allows the designer to restructure the tree of the first function to produce a tree for the second function. The second function is the first function's complement.
Although logically equivalent, each of the two possible implementations of a dynamic circuit device has its own disadvantages. Specifically, the more transistors coupled in series within the tree, the slower the performance of the dynamic circuit device. This disadvantage is typically associated with a dynamic circuit device that implements an AND that discharges the charged node when its function is true. Conversely, a dynamic circuit device that evaluates to the inactive state may generate an output unacceptable to many types of circuits such as e.g. a dynamic circuit that discharges the charged node when its function is false.
There is a constant need to provide faster, smaller, and lower power implementations of comparators used in different circuit blocks (e.g., CAMs, cache tag arrays), various arithmetic functions, and selected address decode units. A more robust, larger fan-in, faster logical NAND/NOR and AND/OR circuit is desirable for use in wide comparators or wide zero detect circuits, especially for 32 bit and higher architectures.
Prior approaches have failed to provide a functional NAND output (e.g., a statically driven node with dynamic signaling characteristics without additional buffering), have inherent susceptibility to noise introduced from the output, have failed to handle multiple dynamic evaluation nodes properly and consistently, have failed to recover from miss-evaluations, have failed to provide sufficiently flexible control of the dynamically necessary internal race, and have failed to allow input signals from resetting early.
What is desired is an improved logic circuit.
The use of the same reference symbols in different drawings indicates identical items unless otherwise noted. The figures are not necessarily drawn to scale.


A fluid bypass method for controlling the temperature of a non-petroleum fuel, the fluid bypass method includes: providing a fuel at a pressure sufficient to effect a desired flow rate to a vehicle, the fuel being at a liquid or substantially supercritical thermodynamic state requiring further heat addition in a vaporizer; and diverting a bypass stream with partial or no vaporization to a heat exchanger as a cold fluid on a cold side of the heat exchanger. The method further includes providing a remainder stream of the fuel to the vaporizer; mixing the remainder stream outflowed from the vaporizer with the cold fluid outflowed from the cold side of the heat exchanger to form a combined fuel stream; and providing the combined fuel stream to the heat exchanger as a warm fluid on a warm side of the heat exchanger.

In the prior art technologies, a hydrogen refueling station (HRS) is provided that has storage tanks for storing liquid hydrogen as fuel. The tanks typically use an electrically-powered refrigeration system in combination with a thermal heat exchanger (HX) to maintain the temperature of the thermal storage below −40° C. for 24 hours per day in order for the fuel to be ready at the proper temperature when a vehicle needs re-filling. Such thermal storage and heat exchanger (HX) systems, however, are limited in the number of vehicles that are to be filled back-to-back due to the limited availability of thermal energy in the thermal storage and heat exchanger system for cooling the fuel, and must be tuned to a narrow range of ambient temperatures, vehicle types, and tank capacities in order to fill vehicles back-to-back. For example, the thermal heat exchangers (HXs) are physically large blocks of aluminum with high pressure hydrogen lines, where the refrigeration and cold hydrogen lines are cast into the aluminum. These "cold blocks" store cold temperatures to be available when a vehicle is filled up. Even when refrigeration is used constantly to maintain the cold block at −40° C. or lower, it is still impossible to maintain all the system piping at the desired target temperature, therefore, it takes time to cool down the pipe network before the nozzle temperature reaches the desired target temperature.
That is, in the methods in the prior art technologies, the methods and systems respond slowly and take up to 30 seconds to reach the desired temperature target and typically have a wide range of temperatures in which the cold block is maintained, e.g., from −20° C. to −39° C., that changes due to weather, time of year and number of back-to-back fill ups. The result is that customers generally receive less than a full tank of fuel due to the temperature fluctuations, thus less amounts of hydrogen are sold and shorter ranges for the fuel cell vehicles are provided.
Additionally, poor temperature control is also a significant contributor to station operation and maintenance cost. When the system is unable to maintain the correct temperature range, a technical team must go to the station and tune the thermal system based on data and use a test tank to verify that the tuning has improved the performance. Often this process can take multiple days and may result in the station being closed during this process, which leads to downtime and costs.
In order to overcome some of such deficiencies, the prior art uses various systems and methods for controlling the temperature of the fuel. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,619,336 B2 discloses a refrigeration system for cooling the gas exiting the pressurized gas source prior to the gas entering the receiving tank. The refrigeration system may use a mechanical refrigeration cycle, for example, a refrigeration system that uses a hydrofluorocarbon that is compressed and recirculated. Alternatively, the refrigeration system may include a liquid hydrogen source and a cold storage device, where the cold storage device is cooled by the liquid hydrogen from the liquid hydrogen source. The refrigeration system also includes a heat exchanger adapted to receive and cool the gas exiting the pressurized gas source prior to the gas flowing to the receiving tank. The cold storage device may also use a condensable refrigerant to store the thermal energy until cooling is needed when filling the receiving tank, where the refrigerant can again be a hydrofluorocarbon or use a compressed gas such as argon or nitrogen. The refrigeration system may include a refrigerated container that at least partially surrounds the pressurized gas source. However, the method for cooling hydrogen described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,619,336 B2 has several problems as follows:                (1) Fixed thermal storage systems only work for a fixed number of back-to-back (B2B) vehicles, then it can no longer continue to fill vehicles until the refrigeration system cools the system down again, where most thermal storage systems can fill 4 to 6 vehicles back to back.        (2) The cooling capacity of the refrigeration system is not robust enough, e.g., is lower than needed, for the continuous back-to-back filling of vehicles, so it is not possible to fill vehicles continuously.        (3) Refrigeration requires electrical usage 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to maintain thermal storage below −40° C., and is, therefore, costly.        (4) The thermal heat exchanger HX surface area is fixed, therefore, the thermal storage is fixed, and the refrigeration capability is relatively small compared to the load, so that it results in needing to tune the refrigeration setpoints based on ambient conditions and other site-specific changes such as length of pipes, which results in long commissioning time, high labor cost, and individualized HRS software/hardware configurations.        (5) Thermal storage is tuned to one small range of vehicle tank sizes and is not flexible for smaller or larger tank ranges. For example, a temperature control unit (TCU) designed for fueling a light duty vehicle is not compatible with fueling a bus and vice versa due the differing amounts of fuel required, which has different cooling requirements.        (6) The temperature control unit footprint is physically large and must be installed in a pit adjacent to the dispenser, where the land used at the station is typically at a premium since the TCU footprint limits how many and how close together dispensers can be.
In summary, the prior art temperature control unit creates a vehicle-specific dispenser that limits the commercialization and scale-up of hydrogen fuel applications.

Fluid bypass method and system for controlling the temperature of a non-petroleum fuel

China Energy Investment Corporation Limited

National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon Energy


A prismatic lens (10) having a plurality of integral prisms (60), wherein the prisms (60) surround a central non prism area (90) in an apex portion (68) in-base (62) out orientation. Each prism (60) is adjacent or contacting two other prisms (60) to encompass the non prism area (90). The present invention may include a conical, spherical or aspheric lens member (30). Further, the plurality of prisms (60) may be disposed on an object side (12) or an image side (14) of the lens (10), so that a corrective prescription curvature may be formed on the lens member (30) on either the object (12) or image (14) side of the lens (10).

U.S. Pat. No. Re: 28,921 discloses an automatic visual sensitivity and blind spot measuring apparatus for projecting a spot at different locations on a screen to be viewed by the person being tested along with means for the person to indicate perception of the spot for subsequent evaluation.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,990,107 relates to a reflectoscope used in the examination of an eye. The reflectoscope includes mirrors for reflecting an image so that the eye can be observed in the correct orientation to prescribe lenses for correcting refractive dysfunctions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,264,152 relates to an apparatus for moving an image of a target in certain preselected ways to stimulate predetermined types of eye movements.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,253 relates to an apparatus for presenting test images to a viewer at different distances without modifying the visual angle or acuity of the images.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,423,151 relates to auxiliary prismatic lenses mountable on an eye glass frame for use by persons having cataracts. The lenses extend the field of view of the person beyond that provided by ordinary lenses by focusing images beyond the range of the normal lenses onto the pupil of the eye.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,442,849 relates to a method for producing a pair of lenses for providing balanced binocular vision.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,113 relates to eyeglasses for improving the vision of people with macular degeneration, optic nerve damage or similar low vision problems, in which their central vision has deteriorated. The eye glasses include two lens assemblies, each having a magnifying lens with two convex surfaces and a reducing lens with two concave surfaces. The reducing lens incorporates a prism ring which shifts and focuses a highly intensified light image onto an undamaged peripheral portion of the retina. A disadvantage of these eye glasses is that the highly magnified and intensified light image would be focused on the bad or damaged peripheral portion of the retina. Another disadvantage of these glasses is that the lens do not have a central clear or non prism area for accommodating the person's good central vision. Also, in those instances where the highly magnified and intensified light image would strike the central functional area of the retina damage and/or overlapping would occur, resulting in a blind area or diplopia (double vision).
U.S. Pat. No. 4,673,263 relates to eyeglasses for enhancing the vision of people with macular degeneration, optic nerve damage, or similar low vision problems in which their central vision has deteriorated. The eyeglasses comprise of a single element prismatic lens with bifocal which unlike U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,113 which projects a strong magnified beam of light to the macula.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,508 relates to eyeglasses for enhancing the vision of people that have retinitis pigmentosa or glaucoma with constricted fields. The eyeglasses include three functional prisms and a non prism area spaced about a central portion. Two of the three prisms are oriented base out on the horizontal axis, the third prism is located on the lower vertical axis, base out, the non prism area is opposed to the third prism across the central portion.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,628,854 relates to a fresnel prism for special applications, such as diagnostic testing. The fresnel prisms are mounted to normal prescription corrected glasses by capillary action The capillary mounting is subject to air bubbling during temperature and humidity changes. The fresnel prisms have relatively poor light transmission and the multiple images transmitted or projected to the eye are blurred due to the many concentric prismlets that are pressed into the soft plastic. The fresnel prisms have a number of other disadvantages such as: projection of people in crowds when people move in all directions, this causes diplopia especially when the right eye looks to the right and the left eye is looking through the nasal edge of the left spectacle lens, this is also true when the eyes are looking to the left.
These multiple prismlets reduce light transmission, which reduces vision and causes night blindness and mobility problems. The multiple concentric prismlets cause many reflections of the same object, especially light bulbs, and hence, "one thousand points of light", which causes chromatic dispersion. Due to the number of multiple concentric prismlets, contrast is greatly reduced and patients are constantly looking through a fine grid. With fresnel prisms the patient must rotate their eye to look into the prism to see the expanded field.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,779,977 and 4,288,149 and The Optician, Volume 163, No. 4237, page 18, dated 1972 all relate to the concept of mounting or cementing small prismatic buttons or prisms to a patient's normal prescription corrected glasses. An exemplary reference of such small prisms are disclosed by Dr. Norman Weiss in the referenced The Optician. The primary disadvantages or difficulties associated with the use of such buttons and/or prisms is prism blur which is difficult to tolerate, creating confusion between frontal and peripheral images particularly in crowds where people are moving in all directions causing diplopia for the wearer.
An eye disease known as neovascular senile macular degeneration (N.S.M.D.) in which the central vision, (macula) is greatly impaired, often results in blindness by virtue of blood vessels growing and bursting in the macula of the eye.
A known eye glass modification intended to expand the central field of view for people having retinitis pigmentosa, glaucoma, hemianopia involves the amorphic telescope lens system, in which one or more telescopes are mounted on each eye glass. These telescopes minify the images so that more information can be seen at one time in the same field. Disadvantages of this form of field expansion is that multiple images are seen by each eye with the images approximately half size so that detail is lost. Also, the telescope(s) extend outwardly a significant distance from the eye glasses and are cosmetically very unappealing. These eye glasses with telescopes mounted are several times heavier than normal glasses making them uncomfortable to wear and constantly slipping from the wearer's ears and nose due to the generated torque.
Another known vision expanding lens in the prior art, involves the use of a see-through reflector or mirror, functioning as a beam splinter, mounted on the eye glass frame extending from the nose at a predetermined angle. The disadvantages of this type of vision expanding lens are that the eye glass wearer sees two separate images, front and rear which can be quite confusing. The mounting of the reflector or mirror to the eye glass frame is complicated, and results in the reflector or mirror mounted in an exposed position where it can be readily damaged and/or disoriented from the predetermined position.
Still another attempt to expand the field of persons with poor vision involves special high-powered magnifying glasses capable of magnifying an object up to six times, while allowing vision from the peripheral area to enter the eye. Disadvantages of this approach are that these glasses resemble goggles and protrude nearly three inches from the eye and nose. They must be worn with soft contact lenses, they are heavy and cumbersome, and cosmetically unappealing.
Therefore, a need exists for an image enhancing lens having a greater transmission of available light by reducing at least one of reflection, refraction and absorption of light by the lens. The need also exists for lenses for eyeglasses to enhance the field of view of persons suffering from retinitis pigmentosa, glaucoma with constricted fields, hemianopia, macular degeneration, myopia, nystagmus without the person suffering the problems and disadvantages of the prior known efforts to expand a person's field of view. A further need exists for inexpensive, light weight, single element prescription corrected eyeglasses with bifocal(s) that are cosmetically appealing. The need also exists for an image enhancing lens that can be readily employed in a variety of optical systems, wherein the energy transmission through the lens is enhanced without introducing significant aberrations.

Multi prism image enhancing lens system and method of making same


A phase lock loop comprising a plurality of voltage controlled oscillators is presented herein. The phase lock loop can provide a wide range of output frequencies with low jitter. Additionally, the phase lock loop can be incorporated into a clock multiplier unit and a clock and data recovery unit.

Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET) is a standard way to multiplex high-speed traffic from multiple vendors' multiplexers onto fiber optic cabling. SONET equipment and software enable network providers to carry traffic from many types of customer equipment in a uniform way on backbone fiber optic cabling.
SONET is slightly different in the long haul space compared to the metro space. The long haul space is [please fill in the blank with a brief description of the long haul space]. The metro space is [please fill in the blank with a brief description of the metro space]. SONET for the metro space provides additional functionality for other protocols, such as Gigabit Ethernet, ESCON, FIBERCON, Fiber Channel 2X, and HDTV, to name a few.
Service providers provide services to various customers by provisioning a line card for the customer. Line cards handle one of a several standard rates. TABLE 1 identifies a list of different rates. In order to provide customers with different data rates, service providers install different line cards, wherein each line card handles a different data rate. In cases where a service provider has many customers, it is likely that the service provider has many line cards to accommodate the different user requirements. However, in cases where a service provider has fewer customers, it is likely that the service provider will need to purchase a new line card to accommodate a new customer with different rate requirements.
TABLE 1OpticalElectricalLine RatePayloadOverheadLevelLevel(Mbps)Rate (Mbps)Rate (Mbps)OC-1 STS-1 51.84050.1121.728OC-3 STS-3 155.520150.3365.184OC-9 STS-9 466.560451.00815.552OC-12STS-12622.080601.34420.736OC-18STS-18933.120902.01631.104OC-24STS-241244.1601202.68841.472OC-36STS-361866.2401804.03262.208OC-48STS-482488.3202405.37682.944
In order to provide different data rates from the same infrastructure, reference clock signals with different frequencies are needed. One possible solution is to use a single voltage controlled oscillator with a wide range of possible frequencies.
Although the particular frequency can be provided by application of an appropriate control voltage to a voltage controlled oscillator with a wide range of possible frequencies, such oscillators are difficult to control. Voltage controlled oscillators with a wide range of possible frequencies are very sensitive to changes in the control voltage. Therefore, such oscillators tend to be less stable and more susceptible to jitter.
Further limitations and disadvantages of connection and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with embodiments of the present invention as set forth in the remainder of the present application.

Transceiver system and method supporting multiple selectable voltage controlled oscillators


The invention provides a hot water safety discharge nozzle and a water heater pressure/temperature relief discharge system having such a nozzle. The nozzle results in the decrease of both the pressure and temperature of the discharged water by spraying the water as small droplets. Generally, the nozzle includes a cap with a weep hole, wherein the cap substantially blocks the stream of discharge water, and a series of metered radial orifices which break the discharge stream up into small particles, and distribute those particles radially. The ambient air surrounding the nozzle cools the small droplets as they travel from the nozzle. Additionally, the perforate nozzle structure prevents insects and rodents from entering and nesting within the pipe, and also eliminates the danger of small objects, including human fingers, from blocking the discharge pipe.

The present invention relates generally to the safe discharge of high temperature fluids, and in particular, provides a safety discharge nozzle which expels a high temperature and/or high pressure stream of water as small droplets so as to promote cooling of the hot water and prevent the hot water from splashing, particularly when water is discharged to relieve over-pressure or over-temperature of a hot water heater.
Common residential and commercial water heaters generally include a tank in which the heated water is stored until required for use. The temperature and pressure of the water stored within the tank will typically vary within predetermined limits when the water heater operates normally. However, when a malfunction occurs, the temperature and/or pressure of the water stored within even a common residential water heater is capable of inflicting severe damage. If the tank itself should fail, for example, due to excessive pressure in the water supply, boiling of the water, or age, high temperature water may be spread explosively from the tank over a considerable distance. Even in the case of a failure which results in a slow leak of hot water, that water could potentially pool around the water heater, requiring expensive repairs of the surrounding articles and structure.
To avoid these catastrophic results, common residential and commercial water heaters generally include a relief valve which releases water when temperature and/or pressure of the water within the tank exceeds a predetermined value. The relief valve is often connected to a discharge pipe, which releases the heated water into a reservoir. The reservoir is typically provided with a drain to minimize water damage. A wide variety of relief valves and drain systems are commercially available.
While known relief valves are a significant and well known safety feature of common water heaters, the discharge and drainage of the water released by existing relief valves can still be problematic. Typically, the discharge pipe simply terminates with an open end which points down into the reservoir. While this arrangement may prove effective in many circumstances, persons and/or property near the drainage system may still be put at risk when the relief valve actuates.
For the above reasons, it would be desirable to provide an enhanced discharge apparatus for safely discharging the water from a water heater. It would be particularly desirable if that improved apparatus were adapted for use with existing water heaters and known water heater relief valves. Ideally, such an apparatus should be low in cost and readily retro-fittable on existing installations to enhance their reliability and safety.


An earpiece for insertion in an ear canal as a part of an earphone, an ear mounted microphone, an earphone/microphone combination or the like. The earpiece comprises a body part suitable for housing an earphone transducer and/or a solid vibration pickup, and a canal insert joined to the body part. Having a generally elongate shape, the canal insert has a rear portion joined directly to the body part, a front portion away from the body part, and a midportion through which the rear and the front portions are joined together. The front portion and midportion of the canal insert have their cross sectional dimensions determined in a predefined relationship to fit as closely as feasible in the ear canals of a majority of people. The earpiece may be provided with a stabilizer, as in the form of a contact piece or pieces projecting laterally therefrom, for greater stability against dislodgement from the ear canal or rotational displacement therein. There are also disclosed herein earphones, microphones, and earphone/microphone combinations including the earpiece.

This invention relates to an earpiece of novel design for insertion in an ear canal (external acoustic meatus) as a part of an earphone, an ear mounted microphone, an earphone/microphone combination or the like. The present invention is also directed to an earphone, an ear mounted microphone, and an earphone/microphone combination incorporating the earpiece as an essential component.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 57-76993 is hereby cited as teaching earpieces explicitly designed for insertion in an ear canal as a part of an earphone or the like. One of these prior art earpieces has a canal insert of approximately cylindrical shape. The earpiece of this known shape is objectionable because the part of the ear canal in the neighborhood of its outer end, which is to receive the earpiece, varies in shape and size from one person to another. The earpiece of simple cylindrical shape can therefore be hardly expected to fit closely in the outer opening of the ear against the possibility of accidental detachment therefrom or angular displacement therein.
The Japanese unexamined patent referred to above also suggests an earpiece shaped to fit in the outer ear opening by taking advantage of the tragus, antitragus and concha of the outer ear structure. There are, however, many people who have hardly any prominent antitragus, so that this second known earpiece hardly lends itself to use with such people.

Earpiece for insertion in an ear canal, and an earphone, microphone, and earphone/microphone combination comprising the same


A method for generating and controlling intelligent assertion tokens includes generating a first assertion token, during a first step of a supply chain process. The first assertion token is inspected to determine validity. If the first assertion token is not valid, the receipt of the first assertion token is rejected. If the first assertion token is determined to be valid, the use of the first assertion token in further transmissions and/or transactions is authorized. The first assertion token can be passed to a second step of the supply chain process, and a second assertion token may be generated based on the first assertion token. Upon receipt of the second assertion token, it is inspected to determine validity. If not valid, the transmission and/or transfer of the second assertion token is rejected. If valid, the transmission and/or transfer of the second assertion token to a further step of the supply chain process or to a customer is authorized.

In a distributed ledger context, transaction speed can be defined as the rate at which data is transferred from one account to another. Distributed ledger transaction speeds can depend on a variety of factors, such as block size, block time, traffic on the network, and transaction fees. In some known distributed ledger systems, as the number of transactions increases, the transaction speed can be negatively impacted due to transaction delays and the placement of transactions into a pending, or "queued," state. Moreover, fluctuations in transaction speed can result in poor consistency (and high variability/unpredictability) in the performance of the distributed ledger system. Such issues are slowing the widespread adoption of distributed ledger platforms. As such, methods for reducing network traffic, increasing transaction speeds, and improving the overall predictability of a distributed ledger system are desirable.

Intelligent assertion tokens for authenticating and controlling network communications using a distributed ledger


There is disclosed a separable toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions including a protection layer covering an exterior surface; an absorbent layer absorbing and storing urine; and a waterproof layer preventing the absorbed urine from leaking, wherein the waterproof layer includes a waterproof layer cut unit configured to divide or cut the waterproof layer into a plurality of areas, when an external force is applied, and the absorbent layer is arranged in a surface of the waterproof layer and includes a gap with both sides with respect to the waterproof layer cut unit and includes a gap having a distance from both sides of the waterproof cut unit, and a filling part is arranged in the gap and includes a filling part cut unit corresponding to the waterproof layer.

Recently, people who keep pets are increasing. When keeping a dog as a popular example of pets, an owner has to take it out or do housebreaking for a pet to urinate or defecate on an absorbent paper or pad such as newspapers. Even when the quantity of the pet's urine large in case of using newspapers or auxiliary absorbent paper, the urine happens to leak down out of the newspapers or absorbent paper and then an odor or sanitariness issue might still occur disadvantageously.
To solve such a disadvantage, housebreaking pads for pets that include auxiliary an absorbent layer or a waterproof layer are invented and used to make pets do urination or defecation.
In the drawing herewith, FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective diagram illustrating a conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions for a pet and FIG. 2 is a plane view of the conventional housekeeping pad for pets. As shown in the drawings, the conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions 10 includes an absorbent layer 12 arranged under the absorbent layer to prevent urine or defecation from leaking down, with being formed of a pulp or the like and a waterproof layer 13 formed of a waterproof material, and a protection layer 11 arranged on the absorbent layer 12, with being formed of non-woven fabric.
Even when the pet or animal companion urinates on the conventional housekeeping pad 10, the absorbent layer 12 absorbs the urine and the waterproof layer 13 prevents the urine from leaking down. Accordingly, the owner frequently changes the toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions 10 in a predetermined time period, which is wrapped in vinyl or packed in one box separately, such that the companion animal's excrement can be collected conveniently and indoor cleanness can be maintained.
However, dogs or puppies do not collect and make defecation on a specific spot of the toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions. Some dogs will not make defecation again on the urinated or defecated spot. Because of that, the conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions 10 has to be changed into a new one even though it has a large area not stained with urine or defecation and it costs a great deal.
Even at this time, the conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions partially stained with the urine or defecation could be used continuously. If the toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions stained with the urine or defecation is worn on a companion animal, the urine odor can be permeating the air in the house and it looks unpleasant. In case a dog stands on the pad for the next urine or defecation, one or more legs of the dog would be stained with the former urine or defecation disadvantageously.
Meanwhile, an absorbent product 20 applicable to other usage objects for oil, not the conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions, is disclosed. As shown in FIGS. and 4, such a conventional absorbent product 20 includes a plurality of absorbent layers separated from each other that are disposed between a protection layer 30 and a waterproof layer 50, and a cut portion 35 and 55 provided in a gap (A) between the separated absorbent layers,
However, the absorbent product 20 includes no absorbent material arranged in the gap (A) between the absorbent layers 40 and the urine might remain partially, failing to be absorbed. Moreover, the absorbent product 20 could be applied to a toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions according to the present invention. In this instance, if a dog or another companion animal makes urine near the gap (A), the gap (A) can be employed as a guide for the urine, in other words, a flow channel only to flow the urine out of the pad or to a neighboring absorbent layer distant from the absorbent layer. Even a small amount of urine might flow to wet the entire toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions or out of the pad disadvantageously.
In addition, some types of conventional toilet pads for housebreaking animal companions can be formed as roll types of toilet pads for housebreaking animal companions that consist of separable sheets and such a roll type of a toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions can be applied to the conventional toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions shown in FIG. 1. Even in this instance, a sheet of a toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions cannot be separated into plural pieces and there is the disadvantage of material waste.

Separable toilet pad for housebreaking animal companions


A controlled output voltage is provided for a switching mode power converter operating in the continuous conduction mode without requiring a feedback path coupled to monitor the output voltage. Instead, a voltage related to the input voltage is monitored. The monitored voltage is compared to a periodic waveform for forming a switch control signal. In the case of a buck converter operating as a voltage regulator, over each period of the periodic waveform, the periodic waveform is representative of the inverse function. In the case of a boost converter operating as a voltage regulator or buck converter operating as a bus terminator or power amplifier, over each period of the periodic waveform, the periodic waveform has a linear slope. The switch control signal controls a duty cycle of the power switches. Therefore, switching is controlled in an open loop, rather than in a closed loop. By monitoring a voltage related to the input voltage, rather than the output voltage, an integrated circuit for controlling the buck converter or boost converter requires few pins and can sink or source current.

In a typical voltage converter, the output voltage is regulated by monitoring a level of the output voltage, comparing that monitored level to a predetermined desired level and developing a response to that comparison to minimize the difference between the monitored level and the predetermined desired level of the output voltage. FIG. 1 illustrates a typical buck converter circuit for providing a regulated output voltage. Referring to FIG. 1, a supply voltage node Vs is coupled to a first terminal of a switch S1. A second terminal of the switch S1 is coupled to a first terminal of a switch S2 and to a first terminal of an inductor L1. A second terminal of the inductor L1 is coupled to a first terminal of a capacitor C1, forming an output node Vo, and to a first terminal of a resistor R1. A second terminal of the switch S2 and a second terminal of the capacitor C1 are coupled to a ground node. A load RL can be coupled across the capacitor C1.
A second terminal of the resistor R1 is coupled to a first terminal of a resistor R2 and to an inverting input of an amplifier U1. A second terminal of the resistor R2 is coupled to the ground node. A reference voltage VREF1 is coupled to a non-inverting input of the amplifier U1. An output of the amplifier U1 forms an error signal VEAO1 which is coupled to a non-inverting input of a comparator U2. An oscillator U3 generates a periodic ramp signal VRAMP1 having a fixed frequency which is coupled to an inverting input of the comparator U2. An output of the comparator U2 forms a signal VSC1 which is coupled to control the switch S1. The signal VSC1 is inverted by an inverter U4 for controlling the switch S2.
FIG. 2 illustrates a timing diagram for the signal VRAMP1 and the signal VEAO1. FIG. 3 illustrates a timing diagram for the signal VSC1. Referring to FIGS. 1-3, when the signal VSC1 is logical high voltage, the switch S1 is closed and the switch S2 is open. When the switches S1 and S2 are in this condition, a current from the supply node Vs charges the inductor L1 with energy. When the signal VSC1 is a logical low voltage, the switch S1 is open and the switch S2 is closed. Therefore, energy stored in the inductor L1 is transferred to the capacitor C1. By alternately closing and opening the switches S1 and S2 in this manner, an output voltage can be formed across the capacitor C1 which can be applied to the load RL. The amount of energy stored in the inductor L1 and transferred to the capacitor C1 can be controlled by adjusting the time period during which the switch S1 is closed.
A resistive divider comprising the resistors R1 and R2 forms a voltage that is proportional to the output voltage across the capacitor C1. A difference between the reference voltage VREF1 and the voltage formed by the resistive divider is amplified by the amplifier U1, forming the error signal VEAO1. The error signal VEAO1 is compared to the ramp signal VRAMP1 by the comparator U2, forming the signal VSC1. Accordingly, if the voltage across the capacitor C1 increases, the signal VEAO1 decreases. This reduces the duty cycle of the signal S1 such that the amount of energy transferred to the capacitor C1 is reduced, thereby reducing the voltage across the capacitor C1. If the voltage across the capacitor C1 decreases, the signal VEAO1 increases. This increases the duty cycle of the signal S1 such that the amount of energy transferred to the capacitor C1 is increased, thereby increasing the voltage across the capacitor C1. Therefore, the output voltage at the node Vo is regulated in a feedback loop to remain at a constant level. Because the circuit illustrated in FIG. 1 utilizes the topology of a buck converter, the output voltage Vo cannot be higher than the input voltage Vs.
Because the duty cycle of the signal VSC1 is controlled by monitoring the output voltage, a feedback path, such as through the resistive divider, is required to be coupled to the output node Vo. When such a circuit is implemented in an integrated circuit, this feedback path requires a dedicated pin of the integrated circuit package. The size and cost of an integrated circuit, however, increases as the number of pins increases. Further, the inductor L1 and capacitor C1 in the feedback loop can contribute to instability of the feedback loop. Additional components can be required to counteract this effect. It is therefore desired to provide a regulated output voltage without requiring a feedback path coupled to the output node Vo.
A boost converter having a prior art feedback loop for monitoring the output voltage is illustrated in FIG. 4. A supply node Vs2 is coupled to a first terminal of an inductor L2. A second terminal of the inductor L2 is coupled to a first terminal of a switch S3 and to a first terminal of a switch S4. A second terminal of the switch S3 is coupled to the ground node. A second terminal of the switch S4 is coupled to a first terminal of a capacitor C2 and to a first terminal of a resistive divider comprising resistors R3 and R4. A second terminal of the capacitor C2 and a second terminal of the resistive divider are coupled to the ground node.
An output voltage Vo2 is formed across the capacitor C2 by appropriately opening and closing the switches S3 and S4. When the switch S3 is closed and the switch S4 is open, the input voltage Vs2 charges the inductor L2 with a current. When the switch S3 is open and the switch S4 is closed, the inductor L2 discharges energy into the capacitor C2. A load RL2 is coupled across the capacitor C2 to receive the output voltage Vo2.
A voltage formed by the resistive divider is utilized as an input to a control circuit for controlling the duty cycle of the switches S3 and S4 to regulate the output voltage Vo2. An amplifier U5 forms an error signal VEAO2 that is representative of a difference between the output voltage Vo2 and a desired output voltage, represented by VREF2. A comparator U6 compares the error signal VEAO2 to a periodic ramp signal VRAMP2. An output of the comparator U6 forms a signal VSC2 which is coupled to control the switch S3. The signal VSC2 is inverted by an inverter U8 for controlling the switch S4.
If the error signal VEAO2 increases, the period of time during which the switch S3 is closed and the switch S4 is open is increased to charge the inductor L2 with more energy which is then discharged into the capacitor C2 when the switch S3 is opened and the switch S4 is closed. If the error signal VEAO2 decreases, the period of time during which the switch S3 is closed and the switch S4 is open is decreased. Therefore, the output voltage is regulated in a feedback loop. Because the circuit illustrated in FIG. 4 utilizes the topology of a boost converter, the output voltage Vo2 can be higher than the input voltage Vs2.
Because the duty cycle of the switches in the buck converter illustrated in FIG. 1 and in the boost converter illustrated in FIG. 4 are controlled by monitoring the output voltage Vo, a feedback path, such as through the resistive divider, is required to be coupled to the output node. When a circuit for controlling such a buck or boost voltage converter is implemented in an integrated circuit package, this feedback path requires a dedicated pin of the integrated circuit package. The size and cost of an integrated circuit, however, increases as the number of pins increases. It is desired, therefore, for a circuit for controlling a buck or boost converter to provide a regulated output voltage without the need for a feedback path for monitoring the output voltage.

Three-pin buck and four-pin boost converter having open loop output voltage control