A semiconductor device is provided that includes an optical feedback structure that is monolithically integrated with a VCSEL device and which extends the speed of the VCSEL device beyond the speed to which it would otherwise be limited due to relaxation oscillation. The optical feedback structure does not rely on light emissions from the VCSEL substrate material to produce optical feedback. Consequently, extension of the bandwidth of the semiconductor device through the use of optical feedback is not limited by the absorption threshold wavelength of the substrate material. Furthermore, because the optical feedback structure does not include the substrate, the ability to use optical feedback to extend the bandwidth of the device is independent of the precision with which the substrate thickness can be controlled.

VCSEL devices are laser diode devices used in a variety of applications to generate optical signals. For example, in optical communications networks, VCSEL devices are often used to generate optical information signals that are transmitted over optical fibers of the network. The speed at which a VCSEL device can be driven, or modulated, ultimately is limited by the onset of relaxation oscillation inherent to the operation of the VCSEL device. In such devices, relaxation oscillation is a manifestation of the energy exchanged between the total photon and carrier populations when the laser is disturbed from a steady state condition. This energy exchange results in a damped optical output power oscillation at the relaxation oscillation frequency. The relaxation oscillation frequency is a function of the square root of the laser bias current. In general, the relaxation oscillation frequency, fR, for a given bias current, is relatable to the maximum modulation frequency bandwidth at which a laser diode can be driven, defined by the figure of merit f3dB, by the expression:f3dB˜1.55*fR.Thus, the 3-decibel (dB) modulation bandwidth of the laser diode is limited to a value of about 1.55 times the relaxation oscillation frequency.
Although the intrinsic speed, or bandwidth, of materials currently used in VCSEL devices can be as high as 40 gibabits per second (Gbps), many technological factors have thus far made it difficult to overcome the limitations imposed by relaxation oscillation and extend VCSEL speed beyond about 10 Gbps. One technique that has been employed in laser diodes to overcome limitations imposed by relaxation oscillation involves using optical feedback to extend bandwidth.
For example, one proposed optical feedback structure for a VCSEL device employs a curved mirror to produce optical feedback that results in enhancement of the bandwidth of the VCSEL device. The proposed implementation, however, has several drawbacks. First, the VCSEL device substrate makes up part of the optical feedback structure and has an effect on the optical feedback that is used to extend the bandwidth. Consequently, the operating wavelength of the VCSEL device is limited to wavelengths that are longer than the absorption band edge wavelength of the substrate material. For example, if a gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrate material is used, the device will need to operate at a wavelength that is longer than 870 nanometers (nm) (bandgap energy 1.424 eV for GaAs). This wavelength is longer than the 850 nm wavelength most commonly used in optical communications networks. Therefore, the proposed VCSEL device would not be suitable for use in most optical communications networks.
Second, the curved mirror must be formed to provide adequate optical feedback to a laser cavity located at a distance from the mirror that is more than ten times the size of the laser aperture. Fabricating such a mirror with the necessary precision would be very difficult, if not impossible, and would introduce additional complexity into the VCSEL device fabrication process.
Third, the proposed implementation for the VCSEL device requires controlling the thickness of the die used in the process with a precision of less than one wavelength in order to provide the necessary phase control of the optical feedback. For example, for a 900 nm wavelength, the die thickness would need to be controlled to a precision of less than 30 nm. Such precision is very difficult, if not impossible, to achieve with current state-of-the-art lapping and polishing methods used to thin semiconductor substrates.
The use of optical feedback to extend bandwidth has also been employed in edge emitting lasers. Such devices generally rely on mode coupling between the main laser mode and a side resonant mode, resulting in the formation of an additional resonance peak at a higher frequency in the radio frequency (RF) spectrum. Coupling between the modes, sometimes referred to as "push-pull", operates to generate additional resonance conditions in the higher frequency regime, thereby enhancing its overall modulation bandwidth.
The coupled cavity designs employed in edge emitting laser diodes have several disadvantages. The designs are typically realized by creating a coupled feedback cavity comprising either a long passive distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) structure or an external mirror configuration. The external cavities tend to be expensive, extremely sensitive to system setup stability and generally suitable only for laboratory use. The DBR comprises a grating structure that is manufactured using either electron beam (e-beam) lithography or holographic writing techniques, which are expensive to perform and have relatively low throughput. In addition, edge emitting lasers can only be tested after facet cleaving, which results in higher testing costs and lower yield.
Other edge emitting laser diode devices that use optical feedback to extend bandwidth do not rely on mode coupling, but instead rely on shifting of the Fabrey-Perot (FP) resonant mode wavelength of the device relative to the reflectivity maximum wavelength of the device. This shifting of the FP mode resonant wavelength (i.e., the lasing wavelength) is often referred to as "detuning". In these devices, the amplitude and phase of the optical feedback are controlled to cause the lasing wavelength to be detuned by a positive amount relative to the maximum reflectivity wavelength. This positive detuning results in the maximum modulation bandwidth of the device being extended.
One of the disadvantages of edge emitting laser diode devices that use detuning to enhance bandwidth is that the DBR is implemented as a relatively long grating structure that is relatively expensive to produce. Growing the grating structure requires the use of multiple epitaxial growth steps, which increases process complexity and costs. In addition, as stated above, edge emitting lasers can only be tested after facet cleaving, which results in higher testing costs and lower yield.
VCSEL devices are generally capable of being manufactured with higher yield and lower manufacturing costs than edge emitting lasers, due in part to the fact that they can be tested directly at the wafer level. Coupled active cavity resonance designs have also been proposed in VCSEL devices for extending bandwidth. Such designs, however, do not rely on principles of optical feedback, but rather, on interactions between the photon population and independent electron populations residing in multiple active multi-quantum well (MQW) cavities in the device to increase the relaxation oscillation frequency, fR, which indirectly results in an increase in f3dB in accordance with the above equation. One of the disadvantages of this type of design is that use of the multiple active cavities increases the complexity of the biasing circuitry, which increases manufacturing costs. Another disadvantage is that bandwidth enhancement is predictable only for a narrow set of parameters and is difficult to achieve experimentally.

Method and device for using optical feedback to overcome bandwidth limitations caused by relaxation oscillation in vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs)

Avago Technologies Fiber IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.


An optical module to enhance the heat dissipating function is disclosed. The optical module includes an optical assembly, a heat spreader, and a holder. The optical assembly emits light and dissipates heat in directions opposite to each other. The heat spreader is attached to the bottom of the optical assembly to conduct heat from the optical assembly effective to the outside. The holder securely holds the intermediate assembly of the optical assembly and the heat spreader.

Optical modules with a box shaped package and lead terminals laterally extending from the sides of the box shaped package have been well known as, what is called, the butterfly module. Such butterfly modules emit light in a direction substantially in parallel to the bottom thereof. Even when the butterfly module implements a thermo-electric cooler (hereafter denoted as TEC) to control a temperature of a light-emitting device, typically a semiconductor laser diode (hereafter denoted as LD), the TEC may be mounted on the bottom of the module, because the light is extracted from a side of the module.
The butterfly module, in particular, the box shape package thereof is generally less preferable from viewpoints of cost and size factor thereof. As one of substitutions of the butterfly module, a multi-layered ceramic package widely used in electronic devices has been attracted. The ceramic package has not only the superior size factor but an advantage to form interconnections for high frequency signals. However, the, multi-layered ceramic package inherently provides a disadvantage that light is necessary to be extracted from the ceiling thereof and the heat generated therein is necessary to be extracted from the bottom thereof, that is, a direction along which the heat is conducted to the outside of the package is substantially in parallel with the optical axis thereof. The present application is to provide one of solutions to dissipate heat from the ceramic package effectively.

Optical module with enhanced heat dissipating function

Sumitomo Electric Device Innovations, Inc.


An improved rotary confocal fluorescence scanner capable of detecting analytes separated on over a 1,000 capillaries simultaneously. This system uses a confocal microscope objective and mirror assembly that rotates inside a vertical ring of capillaries to provide rapid and efficient excitation and detection of fluorescently labeled fragments separated within a cylindrical capillary array. Use of automated procedures to load and run all capillaries permits one to read more than 350,000 base pairs of raw sequence data per hour.

The Human Genome Project is driving the development of instrumentation, reagents and methods to achieve the challenging goal of sequencing 3 billion base pairs of human DNA. One new and effective separation technique for nucleic acid analysis is capillary electrophoresis. The use of this technique for DNA sequencing was first demonstrated in 1990 with the separation of approximately 350 bases on cross-linked gels in just over an hour. Since then, a number of groups have improved this technique. Early improvements, for example, utilized in situ polymerized linear polyacrylamide gels and were successful in obtaining high resolution separations. Polymerization reproducibility was problematic with such methods, however, which has driven the development of replaceable gel matrices. One can now read sequences of approximately 1000 bases in 60–90 minutes using capillaries filled with replaceable linear polyacrylamide solutions.
Adapting capillary electrophoresis to high throughput applications requires that one perform separations on arrays of capillaries. The technique, called capillary array electrophoresis, may be performed in conjunction with confocal fluorescence scanning detection, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,091,652, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. An improved, four-color version of such detection is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,274,240, the entirety of which is also incorporated herein by reference.
In the development of capillary array electrophoresis systems, the goal has typically been to run and detect 96 capillaries in parallel. One such system has been commercially developed; it provides automated sample and gel loading of 96 capillaries and is used by high throughput genome centers and pharmaceutical companies. While such systems have proven valuable, it is still desirable to increase their processing power. While these systems may be able to read over 1000 bases per hour, this figure is not so impressive when one considers that the human genome comprises over 3 billion bases.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


A method of vector magnetic resonance measuring and imaging and associated apparatus provide for a specimen being placed in a main magnetic field, RF pulses being impinged thereon, and magnetic field gradients being superimposed thereupon, preferably with three input gradient pulses being impinged preferably simultaneously to construct a balanced system of four gradient vectors having equally strong moments Four cycles of such input gradient pulses are employed to create four magnetic gradient moments from which velocity or motion vectors are created. A receiver obtains signals from a specimen and converts them into information which is introduced into a computer. The computer converts the signals sensitized by the gradient vector moments into motional-type vector information which can be measured and imaged. Different approaches may be taken for low velocity and high velocity usages. In the latter case, as well as others, a null acquisition which does not substantially adversely affect the signal-to-noise ratio may be employed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for measurement of velocity-type vector information related imaging and, more specifically, it provides such a system which preferably employs substantially tetrahedrally-oriented velocity-encoding gradients.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The advantageous use of non-invasive and nondestructive test procedures has long been known in medical and industrial applications. In respect of medical uses, it has been known that limiting a patient's exposure to potentially damaging x-ray radiation may be accomplished by the use of non-invasive imaging procedures such as, for example, ultrasound energy and magnetic resonance imaging. As to the latter, see generally, The Fundamentals of Magnetic Resonance Imaging by Hinshaw, et al., Technicare Corporation 1984.
In a general sense, magnetic resonance imaging involves providing bursts of radio frequency energy on a specimen that is positioned in a main magnetic field in order to induce responsive emission of magnetic radiation from the hydrogen nuclei or other nuclei. The emitted signal may be detected in such a manner as to provide information as to the intensity and phase of the response and the spatial origin of the nuclei emitting the responsive magnetic signal. The imaging is generally performed in a slice or plane or multiple planes, or three-dimensional volume. The information corresponding to the responsively emitted magnetic radiation is received by a computer which stores the information in the form of numbers corresponding to the intensity of the signal. The pixel value is established in the computer by a Fourier Transformation which converts the in-phase and out-of-phase signal amplitudes as a function of time to complex signal amplitude as a function of frequency. The signals may then be stored in a computer and may be delivered with or without enhancement to a video screen display such as a cathode-ray tube, for example, wherein the image created by the computer output will be presented through either black and white presentations varying in intensity or color presentations varying in hue intensity and saturation. See generally Conturo U.S. Pat. No. 4,766,381.
It has been known to determine velocity by ascertaining the phase shift in the magnetic resonance signal that is induced by motion along magnetic field gradients. If a specific motion-encoding gradient is applied, the resulting phase shift provides a measure of the velocity component along the direction of a specific gradient. It has been known to use a pair of acquisitions for each velocity component, one with and one without the motion-encoding gradient to thereby require a total of six sequential acquisitions, three of which are for the baseline phase. See, e.g. Pelc et al, Optimized Encoding for Phase Contrast Flow Measurement, Soc. of Magn. Reson. in Med., p. 475, Abstracts, (1990). In the 4-point null method one acquisition is without a velocity encoding gradient and the three remaining acquisitions have velocity-encoding gradients of equal magnitude which are sequentially positioned on a different one of the x, y and z axes. See, e.g., Conturo et al, Accurate Quantitative Imaging of Velocity Magnitude and Direction Using Phase-Nulled Orthogonal Bipolar Gradients, Abstract, SMRM, p. 25 (1987). Some of the problems with this approach are that velocity images are electronically noisy as the gradients do not range from a negative to a positive full scale, the image noise is dependent on velocity direction, and data is inefficiently acquired as the null phase adds noise without contributing velocity sensitivity.
Another approach that corrects for baseline phase shifts is the 6-point octahedral technique which corrects without a direct null phase acquisition. See, e.g., Dumoulin et al, Magn. Reson. in Med., Vol. 5, p. 47 (1987). It involves a balanced system because it has gradient vectors all of the same magnitude, whose vectors sum to zero and gradient pairs are in opposing directions along each of the three x, y, z axes. While the 4-point null method may be preferred because of a fewer number of acquisitions, it is still lacking the ideal signal-to-noise ratio.
It has been known to attempt to improve efficiency by providing a method which requires only four acquisitions, three of which have gradients bisecting pairs of x, y or z axes and one which is a direct baseline acquisition. See N. J. Pelc, et al., Optimizing Encoding for Phase Contrast Flow Measurement, Soc. of Magn. Reson. in Med., Book of Abstracts, p. 475 (1990). See also, M. Bernstein, et al., General Electric Technical Report #81, Radiology, 176 (August 1990). This system can be considered to be a hexagonal null system which has a null acquisition and three gradient vectors mutually separated by 60 degrees. The three gradient vectors are a subset of a full three dimensional array of vectors as occurs in hexagonal closest packing of spheres. This gradient vector configuration can, therefore, be deemed a 4-point hexagonal null system. This hexagonal null system is not balanced, as the center of the gradient mass is nonzero.
In spite of the foregoing, there remains a very real and substantial need for improving the relative slowness of operation and the undesirable low signal to noise ratio in magnetic resonance imaging of velocity motion and flow vectors.

Method of vector magnetic resonance measurement and imaging and associated apparatus


The present invention provides a label having multiple information fields. The label includes two substantially parallel vertical columns. Each of the vertical columns is divided into at least two cells. The upper and lower cells of the first vertical column each have several blocks of optical character recognition alphanumeric characters to identify unique information in regard to the information to be stored in the media, the media, the label itself or the site in which the media is to be stored. The characters and/or the cell background can be color-coded to provide additional information. The lower cell of the second vertical column includes a single block having a string of alphanumeric characters with a color-coded background to correlate to the latter two characters of the string. This information is provided to identify the storage site of the media. The upper cell of the second vertical column includes a machine-readable indicia, such as a bar code. The information in the machine-readable indicia correlates to all or part of the information of the other three information fields.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of labels, and particularly to the field of labels having multiple information fields for machine and human readable indicia.
2. Statement of the Problem
Information of all types is frequently stored in storage media ranging from file folders to magnetic tape cartridges. One of the problems with information storage media is the identification and tracking of these media. This becomes a critical problem in large information processing sites. These sites range from central libraries for file folders to automated robotic computer library systems having multiple sites.
Labels are often used to identify information media whether these information media are in the form of file folders or magnetic tape cartridges. These labels include individually applied labels for each digit of the media identification, machine-readable coded labels, and labels containing combinations of machine readable codes, optical character recognition codes and human readable codes.
The former style of label are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,544,182, issued to Spring. This label includes a color-coding information field separate from an alphanumeric field. The label uses perforated sections for separating unwanted portions of the label.
Examples of the latter style of label are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,639, U.S. Pat. No. 4,844,508, U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,982 and U.S Pat. No. 5,083,816. These labels are intended for use in automated cartridge library systems. The labels include at least one information field which contains a machine readable code and one information field having an optical character recognition code which is also human readable.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,639, issued to Barber et al. discloses a label having a colored field with an alphanumeric character. A machine readable marking is included. Each digit must be individually applied to a file.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,982, issued to Young et al. also discloses a label for magnetic tape cartridges in similar library systems. This label further includes color coding the background of the alphanumeric characters of the optical character recognition code. This provides a third method of identifying the information on the label.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,939,674, issued to Price et al. discloses the process for producing labels discussed above.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,083,816, issued to Folga et al. prior to one year of the filing of this application and commonly-owned with this application, discloses a label for use in automated library systems. This label includes an information field having machine readable codes, and a color-coded alphanumeric information field separated into two separate columns having different sizes of characters.
The prior art labels are limited to providing a single piece of information in two different formats. Additional information is sometimes needed beyond the capacity of the prior art labels. For instance, additional identification fields, particularly human-readable informational fields, are useful to improve the accessibility of the data files.
An additional problem is the lack of ease in reading the information from the label. The format of prior labels does not readily provide distinguishing characteristics of the label, the media or the location site.
Another problem which is not addressed by the prior art labels is the ability to identify the storage site in which the data file is to be located. For instance, large information processing systems may use a number of different library sites. None of the prior art labels is able to uniquely identify the site in which a particular data file is destined.
Additional problems arise in the change in style of sites and labels. Some labels may be used for one style of storage site while other labels may be used for another style of site. None of the prior art labels readily identifies the type of label attached to a data file. These labels require the operator or operating system to identify the label by visually recognizing the style by the label format.
None of the prior art labels are able to provide sufficient information fields to enhance the efficiency of the data storage media library systems.
Thus, a problem exists in the inability of prior labels to provide additional information fields.


An electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection device includes a diode located in a substrate and an N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) device located in the substrate adjacent the diode, wherein both the diode and the NMOS are coupled to an input device, and at least a portion of the diode and at least a portion of the NMOS device collectively form an ESD protection device.

Many integrated circuits include electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection to prevent the serious damage that ESD can wreak. One application of ESD protection is to protect high voltage MOS devices from ESD events. High voltage MOS devices may use conventional ESD protection structure and mechanisms, such as a parasitic bipolar transistor or a silicon controlled rectifier (SCR). However, high voltage MOS devices may be damaged by an ESD zapping event even before the conventional ESD protection structure is turned on in high voltage MOS device applications.

ESD protection for high voltage applications

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.


A system and method for efficiently treating metal catalyst resident in a reactor vessel comprises a sulfiding module, a sulfur source, an ammonia source, and/or a coking source, a hydrogen sulfide detection module, a hydrogen gas detection module, a pH detection module, an ammonia gas detection module and a remote computer all arranged and configured to communicate wirelessly and to allow remote control and monitoring of the modules and process so that catalyst may be sulfided, passivated and/or soft-coked in situ.

1. Field of the Invention
The inventions disclosed and taught herein relate generally to methods and apparatuses for sulfiding, passivating and/or coking a hydrocarbon processing catalyst; and more specifically to methods and apparatuses for sulfiding, passivating and/or coking a hydrocarbon processing catalyst resident in a reactor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hydroprocessing units, such as, but not limited to, hydrotreaters, hydrodesulfurizers and hydrocrackers, found in hydrocarbon refineries utilize metal sulfide catalysts to aid the chemical reactions. For example, and in general, hydrotreating processes use catalysts built on a γ-alumina substrate, and hydrocracking processes use catalysts with an alumina silicate substrate, which exhibit an acid function to aid in cracking the heavy hydrocarbons. These catalysts require periodic sulfiding to reach maximum catalytic activity. For purposes of this disclosure, "sulfiding" means converting a metal oxide on a catalyst to its metal sulfide.
There are several ways to sulfide catalyst already packed in a reactor vessel, commonly referred to as in-situ sulfiding, such as by using the naturally occurring sulfur in the hydrocarbon feed stock (aka sour feed). While beneficially avoiding the cost of an independent source of sulfur, using feedstock sulfur can be time consuming and potentially harmful if the sulfur content is not carefully monitored or high enough. An alternative to using feedstock sulfur is to use an independent sulfur source, such as, but not limited to, mercaptans, sulphides, disulphides, polysulphides and sulfoxides, such as Dimethyl Disulfide (DMDS), Dimethyl Sulfide (DMS), Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO), di-tertiary-butyl polysulfide (TBPS), tertiary nonylpolysulfide (TNPS) and refinery acid gas. These sulfur sources can be used to perform in-situ liquid phase sulfiding or in-situ gas phase sulfiding.
In general, within the hydroprocessing unit, sulfur is reacted with hydrogen to form hydrogen sulfide (H2S). The metal oxide catalysts are reacted with hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and hydrogen (H2) at elevated temperatures to form the active metal sulfide, such as MoS2, Co9S8, WS2 or Ni3S2, in an exothermic reaction. Theoretically, only the stoichiometric amount of sulfur is needed to activate (i.e., sulfide) the catalyst. However, in the real world of commercial refineries, it is common to use more than the stoichiometric amount of sulfur to ensure complete activation. However, using excess sulfur creates excess hydrogen sulfide and other sulfiding products that must be disposed of or otherwise dealt with.
Liquid DMDS is often used as the sulfur source because of its high sulfur density by weight (compared to the other potential sulfur sources) and lack of solid or overly reactive decomposition products, which absence reduces coking. DMDS can be injected into the hydrocarbon feed stream as a liquid or into the hydrogen recycle loop as a gas. Under temperature and pressure, DMDS will decompose into H2S at several temperature ranges including about 350° F. to about 450° F.; about 390° F. to about 500° F. and about 450° F. to about 520° F.
Once the catalyst has been activated by converting the metal oxide to the metal sulfide form of the catalyst, the reactor usually must undergo a typically lengthy (e.g., several days) start-up procedure before the reactor can be returned to commercial or steady state operation. This start-up procedure is typically necessary because freshly sulfided catalysts may be overly reactive and using a reactive feed (e.g., cracked feed) at start up may cause fouling of the catalyst surface by formation of heavy cokes and gums. These fouling deposits may adversely limit the available active surface area and otherwise reduce the catalyst activity. Delaying the supply of cracked feeds to the unit during start-up by running first on a less reactive feed (primarily obtained through fractionation rather than cracking), usually referred to as "straight run" feed, allows these areas of high catalyst activity to moderate, thus minimizing adverse coke and gum formation when cracked feeds are introduced.
Typically, during start-up, straight run feed (in contrast to cracked feed) is supplied to the reactor. During this period, an amount of soft coke may form on the catalyst surface, which tempers or moderates the activity of the catalyst. Once catalyst activity has been passivated, cracked feeds can be fed to the reactor with reduced risk of adverse coke and gum formation.
The inventions disclosed and taught herein are directed to methods and apparatuses for efficiently sulfiding, sulfiding and passivating, sulfiding and coking, and/or sulfiding, passivating and coking catalysts packed in a reactor vessel.

In-situ catalyst sulfiding, passivating and coking systems and methods


An apparatus for supporting an aerial service wire includes a mast capable of attachment to an aerial service wire. The mast may be extendable between at least a first position and a second position and connected to a clamp capable of attachment to a support structure. A method for supporting an aerial service wire includes attaching an extendable aerial service wire mast to a support structure, attaching an aerial wire to the extendable aerial service wire mast, and adjusting the height of the extendable aerial service wire mast.

Service wires, such as electric supply lines and communication lines have long been used in aerial applications. Standards, such as the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC), have been adopted to ensure safety to operating personnel and the general public in the application of aerial service wires. For example, these standards subject the placement of aerial service wires to certain minimum clearances above ground in urban and rural areas.
Problems arise, however, where sufficient and safe clearance cannot be obtained by attaching aerial service wires directly to a building or structure. In the past, the problems of insufficient height or clearance for aerial service wires have been addressed in one of three ways. One way involved mounting a bracket on the power mast and attaching the aerial service wire to the bracket. NESC policies, however, have mandated that this option is no longer acceptable due to the possible dangers when using a power mast to attain sufficient height or clearance.
A second way to attain sufficient height or clearance involved attaching a "ramshorn" to a higher peak on the building or structure. In general, a ramshorn is an iron rod having one end inserted in an insulator (e.g., rubber, composition, or metal-clad glass) and the other end shaped like a ram's horn. The aerial service wire is secured to the insulator by threading it through the opposing "horns." Sometimes this peak is far away from the outside network interface, however, which results in extra work for the technician who must run the aerial service wire from the peak around the eaves to the location of the outside network interface. This solution also requires the use of more materials (e.g., wire, drive rings, clamps). For aesthetic reasons, this solution caused customer dissatisfaction because wires from the house were not uniform due to the power drop being attached at one place on the house and telephone and television cable being attached at another.
A third way to attain sufficient height involved setting a new telephone pole between the house and the serving terminal. This engineering job was and is very costly to the responsible company or customer.
Accordingly, there exits the need for equipment and methods to provide sufficient and safe clearance for aerial service wires while avoiding possible dangers and/or expenses.


An alternator tester is provided for testing an alternator of a vehicle while the alternator is coupled to the vehicle. A sensor is configured to couple to the vehicle and sense a signal related to operation of the alternator. A memory contains data related to operator instructions for performing an alternator tester of a function of vehicle type. A processor configured to provide an output indication of alternator condition based upon the sensed signal. An extra load or connection can be provided for coupling to the electrical system.

The present application is based on and claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/477,082, filed Jun. 9, 2003, the present application is a Continuation-In-Part of and claims priority of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/098,741, filed Mar. 14, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,885,195 which is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/575,629, filed May 22, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,445,158, which is a Continuation-In-Part of Ser. No. 09/293,020, filed Apr. 16, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,351,102; which is a Continuation-In-Part of Ser. No. 09/426,302, filed Oct. 25, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,245; which is a Divisional of Ser. No. 08/681,730, filed Jul. 29, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,976, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates to devices for testing an automotive vehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to a battery charging system tester for an automotive vehicle.
Automotive vehicles include a storage battery for operating electronics in the vehicle and using an electric starter to start the vehicle engine. A battery charging system is coupled to the engine and is powered by the engine when the vehicle is running. The charging system is used to charge the storage battery when the vehicle is operating.
Many attempts have been made to test the battery of the vehicle. One technique which has been pioneered by Dr. Keith S. Champlin and Midtronics, Inc. of Burr Ridge, Ill. relates to measuring the conductance of batteries to determine their condition. This technique and other inventions are described in a number of United States patents, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,911, issued Mar. 25, 1975, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE; U.S. Pat. No. 3,909,708, issued Sep. 30, 1975, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE; U.S. Pat. No. 4,816,768, issued Mar. 28, 1989, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE; U.S. Pat. No. 4,825,170, issued Apr. 25, 1989, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE WITH AUTOMATIC VOLTAGE SCALING; U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,038, issued Nov. 14, 1989, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE WITH AUTOMATIC VOLTAGE SCALING TO DETERMINE DYNAMIC CONDUCTANCE; U.S. Pat. No. 4,912,416, issued Mar. 27, 1990, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE WITH STATE-OF-CHARGE COMPENSATION; U.S. Pat. No. 5,140,269, issued Aug. 18, 1992, to Champlin, entitled ELECTRONIC TESTER FOR ASSESSING BATTERY/CELL CAPACITY; U.S. Pat. No. 5,343,380, issued Aug. 30, 1994, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SUPPRESSING TIME-VARYING SIGNALS IN BATTERIES UNDERGOING CHARGING OR DISCHARGING; U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,136, issued Nov. 5, 1996, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER DEVICE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,574,355, issued Nov. 12, 1996, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETECTION AND CONTROL OF THERMAL RUNAWAY IN A BATTERY UNDER CHARGE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,585,416, issued Dec. 10, 1996, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR STEP-CHARGING BATTERIES TO OPTIMIZE CHARGE ACCEPTANCE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,585,728, issued Dec. 17, 1996, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH AUTOMATIC COMPENSATION FOR LOW STATE-OF-CHARGE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,589,757, issued Dec. 31, 1996, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR STEP-CHARGING BATTERIES TO OPTIMIZE CHARGE ACCEPTANCE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,093, issued Jan. 7, 1997, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTING DEVICE LOOSE TERMINAL CONNECTION DETECTION VIA A COMPARISON CIRCUIT; U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,098, issued Jan. 28, 1997, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH VERY HIGH NOISE IMMUNITY; U.S. Pat. No. 5,656,920, issued Aug. 12, 1997, entitled METHOD FOR OPTIMIZING THE CHARGING LEAD-ACID BATTERIES AND AN INTERACTIVE CHARGER; U.S. Pat. No. 5,757,192, issued May 26, 1998, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETECTING A BAD CELL IN A STORAGE BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 5,821,756, issued Oct. 13, 1998, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH TAILORED COMPENSATION FOR LOW STATE-OF CHARGE; U.S. Pat. No. 5,831,435, issued Nov. 3, 1998, entitled BATTERY TESTER FOR JIS STANDARD; U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,858, issued February. 16, 1999, entitled ANTI-THEFT BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 5,914,605, issued Jun. 22, 1999, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,829, issued Aug. 31, 1999, entitled MIDPOINT BATTERY MONITORING; U.S. Pat. No. 6,002,238, issued Dec. 14, 1999, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING COMPLEX IMPEDANCE OF CELLS AND BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,037,751, issued Mar. 14, 2000, entitled APPARATUS FOR CHARGING BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,037,777, issued Mar. 14, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING BATTERY PROPERTIES FROM COMPLEX IMPEDANCE/ADMITTANCE; U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,976, issued Apr. 18, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUDITING A BATTERY TEST; U.S. Pat. No. 6,081,098, issued Jun. 27, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CHARGING A BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,245, issued Jul. 18, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUDITING A BATTERY TEST; U.S. Pat. No. 6,104,167, issued Aug. 15, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CHARGING A BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,137,269, issued Oct. 24, 2000, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ELECTRONICALLY EVALUATING THE INTERNAL TEMPERATURE OF AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL OR BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,163,156, issued Dec. 19, 2000, entitled ELECTRICAL CONNECTION FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,172,483, issued Jan. 9, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING COMPLEX IMPEDANCE OF CELLS AND BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,172,505, issued Jan. 9, 2001, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,222,369, issued Apr. 24, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING BATTERY PROPERTIES FROM COMPLEX IMPEDANCE/ADMITTANCE; U.S. Pat. No. 6,225,808, issued May 1, 2001, entitled TEST COUNTER FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,124, issued Jun. 19, 2001, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH INTERNAL BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,259,254, issued Jul. 10, 2001, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT DIAGNOSTIC TESTS ON BATTERIES AND FOR RAPIDLY CHARGING BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,262,563, issued Jul. 17, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING COMPLEX ADMITTANCE OF CELLS AND BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,896, issued Sep. 25, 2001; entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING COMPLEX SELF-IMMITANCE OF A GENERAL ELECTRICAL ELEMENT; U.S. Pat. No. 6,294,897, issued Sep. 25, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ELECTRONICALLY EVALUATING THE INTERNAL TEMPERATURE OF AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL OR BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,304,087, issued Oct. 16, 2001, entitled APPARATUS FOR CALIBRATING ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,310,481, issued Oct. 30, 2001, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,607, issued Nov. 6, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EVALUATING STORED CHARGE IN AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL OR BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,313,608, issued Nov. 6, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CHARGING A BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,316,914, issued Nov. 13, 2001, entitled TESTING PARALLEL STRINGS OF STORAGE BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,323,650, issued Nov. 27, 2001, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,329,793, issued Dec. 11, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CHARGING A BATTERY; U.S. Pat. No. 6,331,762, issued Dec. 18, 2001, entitled ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE; U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,113, issued Dec. 18, 2001, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,351,102, issued Feb. 26, 2002, entitled AUTOMOTIVE BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,359,441, issued Mar. 19, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,303, issued Mar. 26, 2002, entitled ALTERNATOR DIAGNOSTIC SYSTEM; U.S. Pat. No. 6,377,031, issued Apr. 23, 2002, entitled INTELLIGENT SWITCH FOR POWER MANAGEMENT; U.S. Pat. No. 6,392,414, issued May 21, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,417,669, issued Jul. 9, 2002, entitled SUPPRESSING INTERFERENCE IN AC MEASUREMENTS OF CELLS, BATTERIES AND OTHER ELECTRICAL ELEMENTS; U.S. Pat. No. 6,424,158, issued Jul. 23, 2002, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT DIAGNOSTIC TESTS ON BATTERIES AND FOR RAPIDLY CHARGING BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,441,585, issued Aug. 17, 2002, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR TESTING RECHARGEABLE ENERGY STORAGE BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,437,957, issued Aug. 20, 2002, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING SURGE, SHORT, AND REVERSE POLARITY CONNECTION PROTECTION; U.S. Pat. No. 6,445,158, issued Sep. 3, 2002, entitled VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM TESTER WITH ENCODED OUTPUT; U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,045, issued Sep. 24, 2002, entitled INTEGRATED CONDUCTANCE AND LOAD TEST BASED ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,025, issued Oct. 15, 2002, entitled ALTERNATOR TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,465,908, issued Oct. 15, 2002, entitled INTELLIGENT POWER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM; U.S. Pat. No. 6,466,026, issued Oct. 15, 2002, entitled PROGRAMMABLE CURRENT EXCITER FOR MEASURING AC IMMITTANCE OF CELLS AND BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,469,511, issued Nov. 22, 2002, entitled BATTERY CLAMP WITH EMBEDDED ENVIRONMENT SENSOR; U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,209, issued Dec. 24, 2002, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROTECTING A CRANKING SUBSYSTEM; U.S. Pat. No. 6,507,196, issued Jan. 14, 2003; entitled BATTERY HAVING DISCHARGE STATE INDICATION; U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,993, issued Mar. 18, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,544,078, issued Apr. 8, 2003, entitled BATTERY CLAMP WITH INTEGRATED CURRENT SENSOR; U.S. Pat. No. 6,556,019, issued Apr. 29, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,566,883, issued May 20, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,586,941, issued Jul. 1, 2003, entitled BATTERY TESTER WITH DATABUS; U.S. Pat. No. 6,597,150, issued Jul. 22, 2003, entitled METHOD OF DISTRIBUTING JUMP-START BOOSTER PACKS; U.S. Pat. No. 6,621,272, issued Sep. 16, 2003, entitled PROGRAMMABLE CURRENT EXCITER FOR MEASURING AC IMMITTANCE OF CELLS AND BATTERIES; U.S. Pat. No. 6,623,314, issued Sep. 23, 2003, entitled KELVIN CLAMP FOR ELECTRICALLY COUPLING TO A BATTERY CONTACT; U.S. Pat. No. 6,633,165, issued Oct. 14, 2003, entitled IN-VEHICLE BATTERY MONITOR; U.S. Pat. No. 6,635,974, issued Oct. 21, 2003, entitled SELF-LEARNING POWER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD; U.S. Pat. No. 6,707,303, issued Mar. 16, 2004, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Pat. No. 6,737,831, issued May 18, 2004, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS USING A CIRCUIT MODEL TO EVALUATE CELL/BATTERY PARAMETERS; U.S. Ser. No. 09/780,146, filed Feb. 9, 2001, entitled STORAGE BATTERY WITH INTEGRAL BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 09/756,638, filed Jan. 8, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING BATTERY PROPERTIES FROM COMPLEX IMPEDANCE/ADMITTANCE; U.S. Ser. No. 09/862,783, filed May 21, 2001, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TESTING CELLS AND BATTERIES EMBEDDED IN SERIES/PARALLEL SYSTEMS; U.S. Ser. No. 09/880,473, filed Jun. 13, 2001; entitled BATTERY TEST MODULE; U.S. Pat. No. 6,495,990, issued Dec. 17, 2002, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EVALUATING STORED CHARGE IN AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL OR BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 60/348,479, filed Oct. 29, 2001, entitled CONCEPT FOR TESTING HIGH POWER VRLA BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 10/046,659, filed Oct. 29, 2001, entitled ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 09/993,468, filed Nov. 14, 2001, entitled KELVIN CONNECTOR FOR A BATTERY POST; U.S. Ser. No. 10/042,451, filed Jan. 8, 2002, entitled BATTERY CHARGE CONTROL DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/093,853, filed Mar. 7, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH NETWORK COMMUNICATION; U.S. Ser. No. 10/098,741, filed Mar. 14, 2002, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUDITING A BATTERY TEST; U.S. Ser. No. 10/112,114, filed Mar. 28, 2002, entitled BOOSTER PACK WITH STORAGE CAPACITOR; U.S. Ser. No. 10/109,734, filed Mar. 28, 2002, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR COUNTERACTING SELF DISCHARGE IN A STORAGE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/112,105, filed Mar. 28, 2002, entitled CHARGE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/112,998, filed Mar. 29, 2002, entitled BATTERY TESTER WITH BATTERY REPLACEMENT OUTPUT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/119,297, filed Apr. 9, 2002, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TESTING CELLS AND BATTERIES EMBEDDED IN SERIES/PARALLEL SYSTEMS; U.S. Ser. No. 60/387,046, filed Jun. 7, 2002, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INCREASING THE LIFE OF A STORAGE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/177,635, filed Jun. 21, 2002, entitled BATTERY CHARGER WITH BOOSTER PACK; U.S. Ser. No. 10/200,041, filed Jul. 19, 2002, entitled AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/217,913, filed Aug. 13, 2002, entitled, BATTERY TEST MODULE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/246,439, filed Sep. 18, 2002, entitled BATTERY TESTER UPGRADE USING SOFTWARE KEY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/263,473, filed Oct. 2, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH RELATIVE TEST OUTPUT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/271,342, filed Oct. 15, 2002, entitled IN-VEHICLE BATTERY MONITOR; U.S. Ser. No. 10/310,515, filed Dec. 5, 2002, entitled BATTERY TEST MODULE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/310,490, filed Dec. 5, 2002, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/310,385, filed Dec. 5, 2002, entitled BATTERY TEST MODULE; U.S. Ser. No. 60/437,224, filed Dec. 31, 2002, entitled DISCHARGE VOLTAGE PREDICTIONS; U.S. Ser. No. 10/349,053, filed Jan. 22, 2003, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PROTECTING A BATTERY FROM OVERDISCHARGE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/388,855, filed Mar. 14, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH BATTERY FAILURE TEMPERATURE DETERMINATION; U.S. Ser. No. 10/396,550, filed Mar. 25, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 60/467,872, filed May 5, 2003, entitled METHOD FOR DETERMINING BATTERY STATE OF CHARGE; U.S. Ser. No. 60/477,082, filed Jun. 9, 2003, entitled ALTERNATOR TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/460,749, filed Jun. 12, 2003, entitled MODULAR BATTERY TESTER FOR SCAN TOOL; U.S. Ser. No. 10/462,323, filed Jun. 16, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER HAVING A USER INTERFACE TO CONFIGURE A PRINTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/601,608, filed Jun. 23, 2003, entitled CABLE FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/601,432, filed Jun. 23, 2003, entitled BATTERY TESTER CABLE WITH MEMORY; U.S. Ser. No. 60/490,153, filed Jul. 25, 2003, entitled SHUNT CONNECTION TO A PCB FOR AN ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM EMPLOYED IN AN AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/653,342, filed Sep. 2, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER CONFIGURED TO PREDICT A LOAD TEST RESULT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/654,098, filed Sep. 3, 2003, entitled BATTERY TEST OUTPUTS ADJUSTED BASED UPON BATTERY TEMPERATURE AND THE STATE OF DISCHARGE OF THE BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/656,526, filed Sep. 5, 2003, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING A PARAMETER OF A VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 10/656,538, filed Sep. 5, 2003, entitled ALTERNATOR TESTER WITH ENCODED OUTPUT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/675,933, filed Sep. 30, 2003, entitled QUERY BASED ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/678,629, filed Oct. 3, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER/CHARGER WITH INTEGRATED BATTERY CELL TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT DEVICE; U.S. Ser. No. 10/441,271, filed May 19, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 09/653,963, filed Sep. 1, 2000, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING POWER GENERATION AND STORAGE; U.S. Ser. No. 09/654,217, filed Sep. 1, 2000, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING STEP-DOWN POWER CONVERSION USING INTELLIGENT SWITCH; U.S. Ser. No. 10/174,110, filed Jun. 18, 2002, entitled DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT CONTROL USING AN INTELLIGENT POWER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM; U.S. Ser. No. 60/488,775, filed Jul. 21, 2003, entitled ULTRASONICALLY ASSISTED CHARGING; U.S. Ser. No. 10/258,441, filed Apr. 9, 2003, entitled CURRENT MEASURING CIRCUIT SUITED FOR BATTERIES; U.S. Ser. No. 10/705,020, filed Nov. 11, 2003, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SIMULATING A BATTERY TESTER WITH A FIXED RESISTANCE LOAD; U.S. Ser. No. 10/280,186, filed Oct. 25, 2002, entitled BATTERY TESTER CONFIGURED TO RECEIVE A REMOVABLE DIGITAL MODULE; and U.S. Ser. No. 10/681,666, filed Oct. 8, 2003, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER WITH PROBE LIGHT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/748,792, filed Dec. 30, 2003, entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PREDICTING THE REMAINING DISCHARGE TIME OF A BATTERY; U.S. Ser. No. 10/767,945, filed Jan. 29, 2004, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/767,945, filed Jan. 29, 2004, entitled ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 10/783,682, filed Feb. 20, 2004, entitled REPLACEABLE CLAMP FOR ELECTRONIC BATTERY TESTER; U.S. Ser. No. 60/548,513, filed Feb. 27, 2004, entitled WIRELESS BATTERY MONITOR; U.S. Ser. No. 10/791,141, filed Mar. 2, 2004, entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUDITING A BATTERY TEST; U.S. Ser. No. 60/557,366, filed Mar. 29, 2004, entitled BATTERY MONITORING SYSTEM WITHOUT CURRENT MEASUREMENT; U.S. Ser. No. 10/823,140, filed Apr. 13, 2004, entitled THEFT PREVENTION DEVICE FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE SERVICE CENTERS; which are incorporated herein in their entirety.
With the advent of accurate battery testing, it has become apparent that in some instances the battery in the vehicle may be good, and a problem related to the battery charging system is the cause of the perceived battery failure. A vehicle charging system generally includes the battery, an alternator, a regulator and an alternator drive belt. In most modern vehicles, the regulator is built into the alternator housing and is referred to as an internal regulator. The role of the charging system is two fold. First, the alternator provides charging current for the battery. This charging current ensures that the battery remains charged while the vehicle is being driven and therefore will have sufficient capacity to subsequently start the engine. Second, the alternator provides an output current for all of the vehicle electrical loads. In general, the alternator output, the battery capacity, the starter draw and the vehicle electrical load requirements are matched to each other for optimal performance. In a properly functioning charging system, the alternator will be capable of outputting enough current to drive the vehicle electrical loads while simultaneously charging the battery. Typically, alternators range in size from 60 to 120 amps.
A number of charging system testers have been used to evaluate the performance of the vehicle charging system. These testers generally use an inductive "amp clamp." The amp clamp is placed around a cable or wire and inductively couples to the cable or wire such that the current passing through the wire can be measured. This measurement can be made without having to disconnect the wire. In such a system, typically the operator determines the rated size of the alternator. Next, the operator connects the amp clamp to the output cable of the alternator and an electrical load such as a carbon pile load tester, is placed across the battery. This is a large resistive load capable of receiving several hundred amps which will force the alternator to provide its maximum output. The maximum output current can then be measured using the amp clamp connection. If the measured output is less than the rated output, the alternator is determined to be malfunctioning. Such a test is cumbersome as the equipment is large and difficult to handle. Further, it is difficult, particularly with compact engines, to reach the alternator output cable. Further, in some cases, the amp clamp may not fit around the output cable. It is also very easy to place the amp clamp around the wrong cable causing a false test.
Another testing technique is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,207,611, which issued Jun. 10, 1980 and is entitled APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CALIBRATED TESTING OF A VEHICLE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. The device described in this reference monitors voltage changes present at the cigarette lighter of an automotive vehicle in order to determine the condition of the alternator by applying internal loads such as head lamps and blowers, while the engine is running.


A press roll is employed in the press section, calender section, etc., of a papermaking machine. The press roll includes a first tapered surface (11a) and a first clamping surface (12a). The first tapered surface (11a) is formed in the outer peripheral surface of the supporting head (11) and diminishes in outside diameter toward its axially outer end. The first clamping surface (12a) is formed in the inner peripheral surface of the clamping member (12) and coincides with the first tapered surface (11a). With the first tapered surface (11a) and the first clamping surface (12a), a blanket (10) is clamped on the first tapered surface (11a) in a perpendicular direction. In this way, the blanket (10) can be exchanged easily and uniformly in a short time.

A press roll, which presses a web at a nipping portion formed between the roll and a counter roll, is employed, for example, in the press section of a paper making machine to dewater the web. As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the structure disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. HEI 3-41586 is known as a conventional press roll for a papermaking machine. FIG. 19 is a vertical sectional view of the principal part of the conventional press roll, and shows a view taken in the direction of arrow H in FIG. 20.
As shown in FIG. 19, the press roll includes a counter roll 44, a supporting body 42 disposed to face the counter roll 44, and a supporting disc 31 rotatably supported by the supporting body 42. The press roll further includes a flexible blanket 30 whose end portion is mounted on the supporting disc 31, a flange 32 for clamping the blanket 30 to the supporting disc 31 in the axially inward direction of the press roll, and a sliding mechanism 51 for sliding the supporting disc 31 in the axial direction.
The supporting body 42 is disposed under the counter roll 44 and extends in the same axial direction as the counter roll 44. The axially central portion of the supporting body 42 is provided with a groove 50 in which a piston (not shown) is fitted so that it is movable in the radial direction of the supporting body 42.
Furthermore, the tip end of the piston is provided with a press shoe 43. The exterior surface of the press shoe 43 has a concave shape. The radius of curvature of the press shoe 43 is set so that a small gap is formed between the press shoe 43 and the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter portion of the counter roll 44 facing the press shoe 43. If pressurized oil is supplied to the groove 50, the press shoe 43 is pressed through the piston against the outer peripheral surface of the counter roll 44 via the blanket 30.
Ring-shaped sleeves 46 are fitted on the axially opposite end portions (in FIG. 19, only one end is shown) of the supporting body 42 so that they are slidable in the axial direction. The blanket-supporting disc 31 is supported on the outer periphery of each sleeve 46 through a bearing 45 so that it is rotatable in the circumferential direction. A bearing pedestal 49 is mounted on one end of the supporting body 42. The sleeve 46 is slidable in the axially inward direction of the press roll by a screw 48 inserted into the bearing pedestal 49, and is also slidable in the axially outward direction by the reaction force of a spring interposed between the sleeve 46 and the supporting body 42.
The cylindrical flexible blanket 30 is mounted at its axial end portions on the blanket-supporting discs 31. The axially opposite end portions (in FIG. 19, only one end portion is shown) of the blanket 30 have tongue portions 36 of uniform length, required for mounting over the circumference of the supporting disc 31. The tip end of each tongue portion 36 is provided with a bore 37 of suitable size. The bottom portion of a cutout between two adjacent tongue portions 36 has a suitable radius of curvature. The end portion of the blanket 30 is bent at a right angle along the outer end surface of the blanket-supporting disc 31. The blanket 30 is positioned by bushes 41 and pins 33, 38 provided in the outer end surface of the blanket-supporting disc 31 and is clamped by a clamping flange 32 and mounting bolts 34 (details of the mounting method will be described later). Therefore, in combination with an O-ring 40 provided in the axially outer end surface of the blanket-supporting disc 31, lubricating oil between the concave area of the press shoe 43 and the inner surface of the blanket 30 is prevented from leaking to the outside. In the state in which the blanket 30 is rotatably supported by the supporting body 42, the blanket 30 is moved in the axially outward direction by applying a suitable force to the sleeve 46 with spring 47.
In this state, if the counter roll 44 is rotated by a drive unit (not shown), the blanket 30 rotates while being lubricated along the concave surface of the press shoe 43.
In the press roll for dewatering a web, if an endless rotating felt and a web are inserted between the blanket 30 and the counter roll 44, the web is pressed against the press shoe 43 and therefore moisture in the web is transferred to the felt. As a result, the web is dewatered. The dewatered web is separated from the felt and moved to the dryer section, the calender section and the reel section.
As described above, the blanket 30 is inserted between the press shoe 43 and the counter roll 44 during operation and repeatedly undergoes bending, stretching, and compression. Because of this, the blanket 30 is liable to be damaged, and must be frequently exchanged in a relatively short period.
However, when exchanging the blanket 30, the press roll has to be stopped. Therefore, in order to obtain a high rate of operation, it is necessary to reduce the number of exchanges of the blanket 30 and to exchange the blanket 30 in a short time.
Next, based on the aforementioned Japanese Patent Publication No. HEI 3-41586, a description will be given of how a new blanket 30 is mounted on the blanket-supporting disc 31 when the conventional blanket 30 is exchanged.
FIG. 20 is a diagram (taken in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 19) showing the state in which the conventional blanket 30 is mounted on the blanket-supporting disc 31. In the outer end surface of the supporting disc 31, the bushes 41 and pins 38 corresponding in number to the cutouts 35 are disposed at equal intervals on a concentric circle smaller than the outside diameter of the supporting disc 31. On an even smaller concentric circle, the pins 33, equal in number to the tongue portions 36, are disposed at equal intervals.
When a new blanket 30 is mounted on the supporting disc 31, the screw 48 is first tightened to move the sleeve 46 and the supporting disc 31 in the axially inward direction. Then, as shown in FIG. 19, the end portion of the blanket 30 is bent at a right angle to bring the bottom portions 35a of the cutouts 35 into contact with the bushes 41 and the pins 38. At the same time, the bores 37 of the tongue portions 36 are fitted on the pins 33 to perform positioning of the end portion of the blanket 30.
A sequence of these operations is performed on all of the tongue portions 36 of both ends of the blanket 30. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 19, the blanket 30 is fixed to the supporting disc 31 by clamping the clamping flange 32 with the mounting bolts 34. Finally, the screw 48 is loosened to move the supporting disc 31 in the axially outward direction. In this way, all operations are completed.
If the blanket 30 has a twist when it is mounted on the supporting disc 31, or the blanket 30 is eccentrically mounted on the supporting disc 31, good rotation cannot be obtained during operation and the quality of the web will degrade. Therefore, the blanket 30 must be stretched uniformly and mounted on the supporting disc 31 without eccentricity. Because of this, in the state in which phases in the direction of rotation coincide at both ends of the blanket 30 (a state in which there is no twist with respect to the axis of rotation), the blanket 30 needs to be mounted on the supporting disc 31 without eccentricity. Hence, the bores 37 of the tongue portions 36 of both ends of the blanket 30 need to be fitted on predetermined pins 33.
However, even if the bores 37 are fitted on the pins 33 at correct positions, a twist will occur partially in the blanket 30 if some of the tongue portions 36 of the blanket 30 are positioned in directions inclined from the radial direction of the supporting disc 31. In the partially twisted state, if the blanket 30 is fixed with the clamping flange 32 and is stretched in the axially outward direction, undulations will occur in the blanket 30. For this reason, the tongue portions 36 need to be positioned with respect to the supporting disc 31 without being inclined before the clamping flange 32 is clamped.
In this conventional method, the bottom portions 35a of the cutouts 35 are merely brought into contact with some of the bushes 41 and pins 38. Therefore, if the length from the bore 37 of the tip end of the tongue portion 36 to the center of curvature of the bottom portion 35a of the cutout 35 is longer than the distance between the pin 33 and the bush 41 (or the pin 38), there is a possibility that the bottom portion 35a of the cutout 35 cannot abut the bush and therefore the tongue portion 36 will incline. Because of this, the length from the bore 37 of the tip end of the tongue portion 36 to the center of curvature of the bottom portion 35a of the cutout 35 is made shorter than the distance between the pin 33 and the bush 41 (or the pin 38), and the tongue portions 36 are tensioned and attached to the supporting disc 31.
In a sequence of operations of tensioning the tongue portions 36 and fixing the blanket 30, as shown in FIG. 21, a tool 39 is first passed through the bore 37 of the tongue portion 36 and connected to the pin 33.
Then, the tool 39 is rotated toward the center axis of the supporting disc 31 to bring the bottom portion 35a of the cutouts 35 into contact with the bush 41 and the pin 38. The tongue portion 36 is further pulled toward the center axis, and at the same time, the bore 37 of the tongue portion 36 is fitted on the pin 33. Thus, the mounting of the blanket 30 requires much labor and time.
Furthermore, to form a clamping portion and a sealing portion in the radially outer portion of the end surface of the blanket-supporting disc 31, the blanket end portion devoid of cutouts is pulled up to the clamping and sealing portion, and in this state, the bores 37 of the tongue portions 36 are fitted on the pins 33. Therefore, that portion of the blanket where clamping and sealing are formed must be compressed in the circumferential direction. However, with the tongue portion 36 fixed by the pin 33, the blanket has an undulated portion between the root of the tongue portions 36. If the tongue portions 36 are fixed by the pins 33 over the blanket circumference, the pitch between the undulated portions becomes shorter. Therefore, the operation of forming undulated portions in the blanket end portion and also tensioning the tongue portions 36 and fixing the tensioned tongue portions 36 to the pins 33 requires much labor. This labor will be lessened if the roll diameter becomes greater. However, in the case where the roll diameter is small, the above-described operation is fairly difficult. The blanket is clamped and sealed when the undulated blanket end portion is forcibly deformed into a flat shape by clamping the clamping flange 32 to the supporting disc 31 with the mounting bolts. Because of this, residual stress occurs in the undulated portion and the blanket-mounting operation is not efficient.
The inner circumferential length of the blanket is made longer than the outer circumferential length of the supporting disk 31 to enhance the operation efficiency at the time of the blanket insertion. Because of this, even if the blanket is positioned at the tongue portions of the opposite end portions by employing the pins 33, bushes 41, and pins 38, the blanket hangs down below the blanket-supporting disc 31 by the flexibility and weight of the blanket itself. Therefore, even if the blanket is correctly positioned in the axial direction at the tongue portions, the blanket portion from the root of the tongue portion to the outer periphery of the supporting disk has already been twisted. That is, the centering of the blanket is insufficient. To avoid this problem, only an end portion of the blanket mounted on the outer periphery of the supporting disc without strain is loosely clamped at the uppermost portion of the roll. Thereafter, the blanket is rotated through about 180 degrees to move the lowermost portion to the uppermost portion. Next, only a blanket end portion correctly mounted on the outer periphery of the supporting disc is loosely clamped. After a sequence of these operations is repeated and temporal clamping is performed over the circumference, the blanket must be tightly clamped over the circumference. Furthermore, the clamping operation must be performed on both end portions of the blanket. Because of this, the clamping operation requires labor and time, and is not efficient.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a press roll that has a high rate of operation, being capable of easily exchanging a flexible blanket in a short time.


A pressure sensor has a sensing unit and a pressure transmitting rod housed in a case, and a pressure receiving diaphragm. The case has a sensing unit housing portion and a pipe portion that extends from the sensing unit housing portion in a form of a pipe. The pipe portion includes an inner pipe and an outer pipe. The inner pipe is arranged inside the outer pipe and fixed to the outer pipe. The pipe portion has the first end located adjacent to the sensing unit and the second end away from the sensing unit. The inner pipe is projected from the outer pipe at the second end of the pipe portion. The pressure receiving diaphragm is welded to the inner pipe at the second end of the pipe portion such that it covers an opening of the inner pipe. The pressure transmitting rod is arranged inside the case such that its first end and second end are located on the sensing unit side and the pressure receiving diaphragm side, respectively. Pressure received by the pressure sensing diaphragm is transmitted to the sensing unit via the pressure transmitting rod.

A pressure sensor having a sensing unit and a pressure transmitting rod both housed in a case is proposed in JP-A-5-34241. The sensing unit, such as a strain gage, outputs signals according to pressure levels. The case has a pipe portion that extends from a sensing unit housing portion and an opening at an end of the pipe portion. A pressure receiving diaphragm is fixed to the end of the pipe portion by welding such that it covers the opening. The pressure transmitting rod is arranged such that its first end and second end are located on the sensing unit side and the pressure receiving diaphragm side, respectively. Pressure applied to the pressure receiving diaphragm is transmitted to the sensing unit via the pressure transmitting rod.
The pressure sensor is fixed to a subject, such as an engine block, by inserting the pipe portion into a mounting hole provided in the subject until the end of the pipe portion touches an inner surface of the subject via the diaphragm. The opening of the pipe portion is sealed with the diaphragm. The contact between the pipe portion and the inner surface of the subject creates stress, namely, a force is applied to the pipe portion in its longitudinal direction and the pipe portion is pushed toward the sensing unit. The stress is also applied to the pressure transmitting rod. As a result, the pressure transmitting rod is pressed against the sensing unit and an abnormal signal is outputted from the pressure sensor.


An apparatus is provided to avoid linearity errors caused by switching at different frequencies. The apparatus includes an integrator whose signal input is supplied through an integrating resistor with an analog signal; a comparator having its comparator input connected to the integrator output and its reference input grounded; a pulse-width selector providing a narrow or wide pulse depending comparator output, whose signal is connected to the comparator output, and whose first clock and second inputs are supplied with a clock signal and an additional clock signal derived from said clock signal by frequency division (divisor n>3); series combined first and second electronic switches which are connected between a unipolar reference voltage and ground or between the two terminals for a bipolar, balanced-to-ground reference voltage, with the control inputs of the electronic switches connected to the noninverted and inverted outputs, respectively, of the pulse-width selector, and with the junction of the electronic switches connected to a further-processing arrangement and through a feedback resistor to the signal input of the integrator. The reference input is, in the case of the unipolar reference voltage, fed with that portion of this voltage which is equal to [Ri/(Ri+Rk)] Uu/2, or, in the case of the bipolar reference voltage, connected to ground. The width of the narrow pulse is equal to the period of the clock signal, while the width of the wide pulse is equal to (n-1) times the period of the clock signal.

The present invention relates to delta-sigma analog-to-digital converters.
The simplest circuit of a delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter comparable with the subject matter of the invention according to claim 1 is described in the journal "rme", 1978, page 024.
That basic circuit consists of: an integrator, namely a simple RC section; a comparator whose comparator input is supplied with an analog signal to be converted, and whose reference input is connected to the junction of the resistor and capacitor of the integrator; a D flip-flop having its D input connected to the output of the comparator, and whose clock input is supplied with a clock signal; a series combination of a first and a second electronic switch connected between the reference voltage and ground wherein the control inputs of the first and second electronic switches are connected to the non-inverted and inverted outputs, respectively, of the D flip-flop, and wherein the junction of the electronic switches is coupled to the signal input of the integrator through the resistor of the RC section; and a further-processing arrangement having its input connected to the noninverted output of the D flip-flop.
The simplest circuit of a delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter comparable with the subject matter of the invention according to claim 2 is described in U.S. Pat No. -A-3,955,191.
According to FIG. 5 of U.S. Pat. No. -A-3,955,191, this basic circuit comprises an RC section as an integrator to which an analog signal to be converted is applied through the integrating resistor, and a D flip-flop whose D input is connected to the junction of the resistor and capacitor of the integrator, and whose clock input is supplied with a clock signal, and whose inverted output is fed back to said junction through an additional resistor, which junction is also connected to a reference voltage.
If, as shown in FIG. 7 of U.S. Pat No. -A-3,955,191, an operational amplifier is inserted between the analog-signal input and the integrator such that its first input is supplied with the analog signal and its second input is grounded, the inverted output of the D flip-flop may be additionally fed back to that first input through a T-section consisting of two resistors and a capacitor.
An essential feature of the simple delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter described in the above journal "rme" is that the number of polarity reversals occurring at the output of the comparator per unit of time, i.e., their frequency, depends on the amplitude of the analog signal to be converted: This frequency is exactly one-half that of the clock signal if the amplitude of the analog signal is equal to one-half of the reference voltage, and decreases from this value toward both smaller and larger amplitudes proportionally to the amplitude, of the explanation of FIG. 5 below.
Particularly with high-frequency clock signals, the switching times of the electronic switches or of the output transistors of the D flip-flop, which are variable due to the variable frequency of the polarity reversals, cause considerable linearity errors, so that the attainable accuracy of the conventional delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter is quite limited. In addition, these switching times are strongly temperature-dependent, which contributes to the linearity error but is practically noncompensable.
The invention serves to solve this problem.


An iron comprising a water tank, a blast unit, a steam generating unit and a steam spraying unit. The blast unit has a first inlet and a first outlet, the first inlet is connected to the inlet-pipe of the inlet of the water tank, wherein the blast unit generates steam rapidly in a limited space. The steam generating unit has a second inlet and a second outlet, the second inlet being connected to the inlet-pipe of the inlet of the water tank, wherein the steam generating unit heats the water to generate steam. The steam spraying unit connects the first and second outlet, has plural steam apertures, and sprays steam. Because a blast unit is arranged for the rapid steam generation in a limited space, the iron of the present invention obviates the disadvantages in the existing irons and improves steam blast strength, intensity at a low cost.

Irons existing currently in the market usually comprise a water tank, a steam generating unit and a steam spraying unit. The steam generating unit has an inlet and an outlet, wherein the inlet connected to the inlet-pipe of the water tank, the outlet connected to the steam spraying unit, wherein the steam generating unit used for heating the water to generate steam. The steam spraying unit has plural apertures, and the steam spraying unit is used for spraying steam to iron. Because the steam generating unit has large space, the blast force from the outlet is often inadequate, and a big heating plate must be used to generate enough blast force, increasing cost.


Stitchable electrical components have flexible, conductive leads and are encased, at least partially, in sealed packages. Conductive threads, yarns, or fiber bundles are patterned onto a flexible substrate (e.g., a textile panel). To form a circuit, the component leads are conductively stitched, spot welded, or otherwise joined to a textile panel so as to form connections between at least some of the stitched leads so as to form an electrical circuit. Alternatively, leads stitched into or otherwise joined to a textile pattern may be welded or otherwise permanently joined to flexible or non-flexible component leads to form a circuit. Multiple panels of circuitry so formed may then be physically and electrically joined at various locations by a combination of stitching, welding, and/or other joining means, preferably with interposed insulating layers, to form a multilayer flexible circuit.

The present invention relates to fabrication of electronic devices and circuits, and in particular to their integration into wearable textiles.
Electrical circuits are typically assembled by soldering active and passive components onto solid boards. The components receive power and exchange signals by means of a network of conductive metal traces patterned, typically, in multiple layers on the board. This approach to circuit fabrication, while virtually universal, nonetheless limits the manner in which electronic devices are housed and used. Generally, rigid boards are contained within an equally rigid cabinet, which sits on, or serves as, a piece of the user""s furniture. Indeed, the notion of electronics being packaged in xe2x80x9cboxesxe2x80x9d is so ubiquitous that alternatives are difficult to imagine.
But as the miniaturization of circuits continues, and as the range of materials from which electronic components may be formed expands, alternatives to traditional housings will assume increasing importance. In particular, much current work involving user-interface design attempts to bring electronic sensing and display circuitry into more intimate contact with users; this allows the functioning of electronic devices to become a natural part of everyday action and routine, sparing users the need to deliberately xe2x80x9coperatexe2x80x9d an external system, and rendering interaction with digital articles as natural as interaction with their traditional counterparts.
Such an approach also increase the range of useful tasks amenable to digital mediation: environmental and location monitoring, information storage, processing, and mediation, and short- or long-range digital communication all may be effected without effort by the user or proximity to an external electronic device. Thus, by associating circuitry with the user rather than requiring the user to seek out the circuitry, the user is relieved of the need to interrupt or modify ordinary behavior to interact with electronics; instead, the electronics conforms to the behavior of the user.
Integrating electronic circuitry within textiles poses difficult engineering issues if the desirable characteristics of fabric are to be combined with presently available electronic components. For example, fabrics can assume a wide variety of textures and appearances, as well as shapes and volumes; they are flexible, accommodate stress and movement without damage, and can be laundered. It is just these characteristics that traditional modalities for mounting electronic components lack. Thus, directly integrating stiffly mounted electronic circuitry into traditional textiles would defeat their fundamental appeal.
Historically, solder and solder joints have been the method of choice for providing electrical and mechanical interconnections in electrical and electronic devices. This operation (well known to those skilled in the art) is typically accomplished at temperatures of 200xc2x0 mto 300xc2x0 C. with an alloy of tin, lead, and/or silver combined with a soldering flux. The solder cools to provide not only a semipermanent electrical pathway between metallic component leads and metallic printed circuit contacts, but also the sole mechanical attachment of components to the circuit substrate. This approach has several disadvantages in the context of wearable and textile applications, chief among which are the issues of lead toxicity, the high temperatures involved (which would damage most wearable fabrics), and the rigidity of metal-to-metal solder joints which form stress concentration points when the system is flexed, folded, or sheared.
Copending application Ser. no. 08/935,466, filed on Sep. 24, 1997, discloses a variety of approaches toward integrating electrical circuitry with traditional textiles. In general, conductive fibers are integrated within the weave of the textile, serving as a substrate for the attachment of electronic components and providing connections therebetween. In particular, leads from electronic components are soldered, adhered, or fastened to the conductive fibers, which serve as electrical conduits capable of carrying data signals and/or power. In an alternative approach, the electrical conduits are strips of conductive fabric attached to a non-conductive fabric substrate.
Conventional xe2x80x9cflexxe2x80x9d circuits are typically formed by laminating alternating layers of patterned copper and polyimide. These flex circuits typically have a minimum bending radius beyond which permanent deformation or delamination will occur, so their range of motion must be constrained by the encompassing system. Furthermore, components must be placed on conventional flex circuits to avoid areas where differential flexure will stress mechanical connections between circuitry and components.
Electrical interconnects patterned in fabric substrates must be mechanically compatible with the substrate in order to retain the desirable properties of flexibility and durability that fabric provides, which properties are superior to those provided by existing flexible circuitry. Clearly it would be desirable to provide an electrical and mechanical interconnection that solves the problem of lead toxicity, does not need to be assembled at high temperatures, and provides a good xe2x80x9cmechanical impedance matchxe2x80x9d between substrate, interconnect, and components.
In accordance with the present invention, electrical circuits are created on ordinary, non-conductive fabric using electronic components with flexible leads that are conductively stitched into the fabric, and conductive traces also formed by stitching. This approach not only permits integration of electronics with conventional fabrics, but also preserves the fabric character of the final article. Moreover, the operative electronic elements of the components are preferably contained within watertight packages, allowing the fabric and circuitry affixed thereto to be laundered in any conventional manner. The packages themselves may be round or polygonal (i.e., having three or more straight sides).
The present invention can also realize the benefits of multiple-layer circuit construction. In conventional circuitry, each board layer is printed or etched in copper on one side of a thin insulating substrate, and the substrates are then laminated together; holes are drilled where layers are to interconnect, and are plated to form electrically conductive xe2x80x9cvias.xe2x80x9d In accordance with the present invention, fabric layers having conductive traces thereon are separated from each other by nonconductive sheets, and the layers are conductively stitched where the traces of different layers are to make contact.
Accordingly, in a first aspect, the invention makes use of stitchable electrical components having flexible, conductive leads and encased, at least partially, in watertight packages. To form a circuit, the leads are conductively stitched to a textile panel so as to afford insulation space between the leads, and traces are stitched between at least some of the leads so as to form an electrical circuit.
In a second aspect, a multi-level circuit is created by stitching conductive traces on a second textile panel, bringing the panels into alignment, disposing a nonconductive sheet between the panels, and establishing electrical connections between the traces of the first panel and the traces of the second panel at selected points of overlap therebetween by conductively stitching the traces together at these points.
As used herein, the term xe2x80x9cstitchingxe2x80x9d refers broadly to any form of sewing on a textile (i.e., a pre-existing matrix of woven fibers), whether for purposes of attachment to the textile or creation of a path or xe2x80x9ctracexe2x80x9d along the textile. Accordingly, stitching includes, without limitation, sewing, embroidery, couching, weaving, knitting, braiding, and needlepunching.

Method of making flexible electronic circuitry


A connector is disclosed which draws static charges to ground. The connector comprises a male plug having a generally non-yielding terminal attached to a projection extending from its mating surface and a female receptacle having at least one terminal mounting cavity in a mating surface and a flexible female terminal in the cavity. The female receptacle has a metal cover on its outer surface which is connected to ground. The male terminal and projection is dimensioned so as to permit insertion through the aperture in the cover and into a slot in the female housing. The flexible female terminal remains contained within the slot of the female housing and below the cover prior to making contact with the male terminal.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a static charge removal connector to make an electric connection between two printed circuit boards or other electrical parts.
Board-to-Board electric connectors have been widely used, and some electric connectors have been equipped with static change removal means to prevent the flow of static electricity from a person handling the connector to its terminals. An example of such a static charge removal connector is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,495. The connector in this patent comprises a female receptacle which mates with a male plug. The male plug has a plurality of flat male terminals attached to its housing. The female receptacle has a plurality of terminals corresponding to the male terminals and springs on each end of the plurality of terminals with one end of the spring attached to a printed circuit board and the other end in contact with a hinged metal cover. The springs are designed to resiliently contact the inner surface of the metal cover and bias the cover in the open position. The metal cover has hinges on its opposite sides and slots made on its major surface to allow the female terminals to appear above the metal cover only when the cover is in the closed position. Before the male plug is inserted in the female receptacle, the metal cover is in its raised open position, thus protecting all the female terminals between the raised metal cover and the top surface of the housing of the female receptacle.
In use, a person cannot contact the female receptacle without touching the metal cover, thus permitting discharge of the static electricity from the person's body. This static charge removal connector, however, has a number of defects. First, providing a hinge to the metal cover on the receptacle housing requires manufacturing techniques too complicated to be performed by machine thereby requiring labor intensive manufacturing techniques. Second, the moving parts of the electric connector are liable to be worn by friction, thereby shortening the life of the device. Third, the electric connector in its open position permits the inadvertent touching to the sides of the female terminals by hard objects or dust under the cover, thus causing deformation or contamination of contact surfaces resulting in incomplete electric connections. Fourth, the electric connector does not allow for variations in dimensions in the printed circuit board and or the housings to which the connectors are mounted while still providing electrical contact.


A method for producing an acoustic attenuation panel from a composite material with a ceramic oxide matrix is provided that includes draping a plurality of plies having fibrous reinforcements including fibers of ceramic material in a mold to define a first skin, depositing blocks made of fugitive material on the first skin such that a space between two blocks is defined, and draping a second plurality of plies on a surface formed by the blocks such that a second skin is defined. Rounded corners of the blocks define radii for connecting the first and second skins with walls of a honeycomb core of the acoustic panel. The method further includes using a liquid medium to infiltrate the skins and spaces with a precursor of a ceramic phase, removing the liquid medium by evaporation or polymerization, and sintering to consolidate the ceramic oxide material and removal the fugitive material.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
As known per se, and shown in the attached FIG. 1, it is generally appropriate to provide for an ejection cone 1 at the rear of an aircraft turbojet engine in order to, on the one hand, optimize the flow of hot gases expelled by the turbojet engine and, on the second hand, absorb at least part of the noise generated by the rotation of the turbines of the turbojet engine and the flow of the expelled hot gases.
In this FIG. 1, the upstream and the downstream (relative to the flow direction of the exhaust gases of the turbojet engine) are respectively located on the left and on the right of the figure.
This cone is intended to be positioned downstream of the turbine of the turbojet engine, concentrically to a shroud, or "nozzle" 3, itself fastened on the downstream edge of the combustion chamber of the turbojet engine.
More precisely, the ejection cone 1 comprises, per se, a front cone portion 5 (often designated by "front plug"), of a substantially cylindrical shape, and a cone rear portion 7 (often designated by "rear plug"), of a conical shape.
The front portion 5 may be in particular acoustic or monolithic stiffened. In the case where the front portion 5 is acoustic, this means that it comprises at least one sandwich-type peripheral acoustic attenuation structure comprising at least one resonator operating according to the Helmholtz principle, formed with cavities (for example of the honeycomb type), covered with a perforated outer skin and a solid inner skin.
Moreover, the outer skin constitutes an aerodynamic guide surface of the flow of the ejected hot gases (sheet metal) of the front portion 5 of the ejection cone.
These two portions of the ejection cone may typically be formed by metal alloy sheets of an Inconel® 625 nickel alloy or a TIMETAL® 21S titanium alloy.
However, in order to reduce the mass of the cone, the use of acoustic attenuation panels made of ceramic-matrix composites (CMC) are often preferred to that of the metal acoustic attenuation panels.
The use of these composites also allows offering a better holding over time of panels which are durably exposed to high temperatures.
It is known in particular from the document WO 2014/118216 a method for manufacturing an acoustic attenuation panel made of a composite material, more particularly made of a ceramic-matrix composite (CMC) material, which material is in particular resistant to high temperatures which may exceed 600 degrees Celsius and reach in some cases the 1000 degrees Celsius, these temperatures meet in particular at the cone for ejecting the hot gases of the turbojet engine.

Method for manufacturing an acoustic attenuation panel made of an oxide ceramic-matrix composite material


In a hydraulic four-wheel drive vehicle, a rear transaxle incorporates a hydraulic motor for driving rear wheels, a front transaxle incorporates a hydraulic motor for driving front wheels, and hydraulic pressure fluid pipes interposed between the front and rear transaxles are extended along at least one of left and right side plates of a frame of the vehicle.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a hydraulically driven working vehicle, especially, a four-wheel drive working vehicle, equipped with front wheels and rear wheels driven by respective hydraulic motors, and relates to a hydraulic transaxle including the hydraulic motor applicable to the vehicle. An example of the hydraulically driven working vehicle according to the invention is a lawn tractor equipped at the middle body portion thereof with a mower unit. The transaxle according to the invention can supply fluid to hydraulic equipments equipped on the hydraulically driven vehicle, e.g., a hydraulic power steering system, in addition to the hydraulic motor for driving an axle.
2. Related Art
Conventionally, there are well-known hydraulic four-wheel drive working vehicles, each of which is equipped with front and rear hydraulic motors for driving front wheels and rear wheels. A hydraulic four-wheel drive working vehicle, as disclosed in International Publication No. 2004/062956, is provided with a rear transaxle including a hydraulic motor for driving left and right rear wheels, and with a front transaxle including a pair of left and right hydraulic motors for driving respective left and right front steerable wheels. This type hydraulic four-wheel drive working vehicle is equipped at a middle portion thereof between the front and rear transaxles with a traveling power transmission system for transmitting power from a prime mover to the rear transaxle, and with a working power transmission system for transmitting power from the prime mover to a working device. In this situation, the front and rear transaxles are fluidly connected to each other via pipes for driving the front and rear wheels (axles), and the axle-driving pipes have to be disposed at the middle portion without interfering with the traveling power transmission system and the working power transmission system.
To miniaturizing the hydraulic four-wheel drive working vehicle, the pipes are requested to be disposed within a space inside a vehicle body frame. However, the space is mainly occupied by the traveling power transmission system and the working power transmission system. Further, the vehicle may be equipped under the fore-and-aft middle portion of the vehicle body frame with a working device, such as a mower unit.
The axle-driving pipes have to be disposed in the space between the front and rear transaxles without interfering with the traveling power transmission system and the working power transmission system, and the working device at need. Further, to facilitate assembly works, the pipes are desirably disposed so as to require no device to be detached during the piping work of the pipes, and to require no pipe to be detached during attachment of other devices. On the other hand, in order to reduce internal pressure resistance in the pipes, the pipes are requested to have reduction of bent portions therein and to have rigid pipe portions as long as possible. Especially, the pipes have to be prevented at portions thereof adjacent to a center pivot of the front transaxle with being excessively twisted or bent, and prevented at portions thereof connected to ports from having oil leak or being damaged.
If the hydraulic four-wheel drive vehicle includes a hydraulic power steering system, hydraulic fluid pipes for the power steering system must be disposed so as to solve the same problems as the axle-driving pipes.
Further, if the vehicle is provided with a reservoir tank for supplying fluid to the hydraulic motors in the front and rear transaxles, it is requested that the reservoir tank is disposed so as to be prevented from interfering with the traveling power transmission system and the working power transmission system, to have easy oiling and maintenance, and to effectively supply fluid into the housings of the front and rear transaxles. Especially, when the front transaxle housing is swingably supported onto the vehicle body frame via a center pivot, the reservoir tank is requested to prevent fluid therein from being contaminated with air by tilt of the fluid level surface according to the swing of the front transaxle housing, and to prevent hydraulic pressure fluid pipes between the reservoir tank and the transaxles from being twisted by the swing of the front transaxle housing.

Hydraulically driven working vehicle and hydraulic transaxle