A fuel oil provision-vaporization-pressure regulation-full premixed combustion system includes an air pump, a fuel tank, a vaporizing chamber, a preheater, a premix nozzle, an ignition device, a full premixed combustor and an intake guiding device. The air pump communicates with an air inlet of the fuel tank through a first conduit. The fuel tank is provided with a fuel inlet and a fuel outlet pipe. The fuel outlet pipe communicates with a fuel inlet of the vaporizing chamber through a second conduit. The vaporizing chamber is provided with the preheater. A fuel outlet of the vaporizing chamber is in communication with an air inlet of the premix nozzle through a third conduit. An air outlet of the premix nozzle opens to the intake guiding device. An outlet of the intake guiding device communicates with the full premixed combustor. The full premixed combustor is provided with the ignition device.

The electric power we used in daily production and life is mainly from the power supply grid. However, in area far away from the power supply grid, people have to rely on fuel oil generator to obtain constantly stabilized power. While fuel oil such as diesel or gasoline driven, combustion-based generators bring great convenience to the work, study and life to people in areas without power supply.
However, such fuel oil generator has serious shortcomings. An fuel oil generator is a device that converts the energy of fuel into heat, then converts heat into mechanical energy, and finally converts mechanical energy into electric power. Because there is a series of energy conversions in such electricity generation process, devices that implement such mechanism have very complicated structure. A typical fuel internal combustion generator consists of piston, linkage, cam, intake and exhaust valves, variable speed gear, and generator, all of which involve high speed moving parts. Those moving parts will inevitably result in unpleasant noise during the entire generation process of the device. Besides, the complicated structure also results in high failure rate and high maintenance cost.
Fuel oil generator also suffers from another serious shortcoming: in use cases of small output power, its fuel consumption does not decrease in proportion to the decrease of output power. At present, the minimal amount of power output for commercial fuel combustion generators is no less than 300 watts. For such device, minimal fuel consumption rate is about 300 grams per hour, even in idle state where no load is connected. For use cases where load consumption rate is merely tens of watts, such device undoubtedly leads to great amount of waste.
In summary, fuel oil generators have the following shortcomings:
1) high noise level (typically more than 80 dB);
2) complicated structure; high failure rate;
3) high maintenance cost;
4) high fuel consumption rate in the case of small output power.
One of the objects of the present invention is to illustrate a device that can efficiently convert the heat energy released by fuel combustion process directly into electric energy without the involvement of any mechanical moving parts. At present, existing fuel combustors all rely on the process of atmospheric combustion. For example, it is without exception that the combustion of gasoline blast burners and gasoline furnaces is as follows: fuel, upon delivered, combusts with the oxygen from the atmosphere drawn from the outlet. Experiments show that the optimum ratio between the fuel gas and the combustion supporting oxygen is about 1:15. Only at such ratio fuel can be efficiently combusted. During such combustion process, liquid fuel vaporizes at high temperature and expands hundreds of times in volume. As fuel vaporizes and combusts instantly, the atmosphere can not provide sufficient oxygen to support its combustion in a fixed time period. Because such fuel combustion process exposed in atmosphere is generally uncontrollable, it is inevitable that part of the fuel gas will not be fully combusted and will exhaust to the atmosphere as black smoke.

Fuel oil provision-vaporization-pressure regulation-full premixed combustion system, thermoelectric power generating device comprising such system and method


A method of introducing expressible heterologous DNA into Prevotella ruminicola is provided. The method involves conjugal transfer of a shuttle vector comprising the heterologous DNA operatively linked to a promoter functional in P. ruminicola. The invention also provides shuttle vectors for use in the method and P. ruminicola produced by the method. The invention further provides a tetracycline resistance gene of the TetQ class, or fragments thereof that confer tetracycline resistance, and a protein of the TetQ class that provides resistance to tetracycline by protecting ribosomes from tetracycline, or active fragments thereof. Finally, the invention provides a promoter functional in P. ruminicola and an engineered P. ruminicola comprising expressible foreign DNA.

A. Bacteroides and Prevotella
Bacteroides is a genus of Gram negative, obligately anaerobic bacteria found in the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and animals. These bacteria function in metabolizing a wide range of carbohydrates. In humans, Bacteroides account for approximately 25% of the bacteria in the colon.
Prevotella ruminicola is a species of Gram negative, obligately anaerobic bacteria found in the rumen of cattle. P. ruminicola ferment carbohydrates such as hemicellulose, cellobiose, and starch and aid digestion and degradation of polysaccharides. P. ruminicola was previously classified as a member of the genus Bacteroides (Bacteroides ruminicola) because it has some characteristics associated with human colonic Bacteroides However, recent investigations showed that P. ruminicola shared less than 5% DNA-DNA homology with the colonic Bacteroides species. More detailed biochemical analyses also suggested that it belonged in a separate genus, Prevotella [See Shah, et al., Intl. J. Syst. Bacteriol., 40:205-208 (1990)].
Some progress has been made in connection with genetic manipulation of obligately anaerobic Bacteroides from the human colon. For example, shuttle vectors have been developed for use with some colonic Bacteroides which contain DNA from cryptic Bacteroides plasmids which are able to replicate in a number of different Bacteroides species [See Odelson, et al., Plasmid, 17:87-109 (1987); Salyers, et al., Crit. Rev. Microbiol., 14:49-71 (1987); Valentine, et al., J. Bacteriol.. 170:1319-1324 (1988)]. These vectors also contain sequences which allow them to replicate in E. coli and be mobilized out of E. coli by IncP plasmids. The IncP plasmids R751 and RP4 have been shown to mobilize DNA from E. coli to a variety of other species, including colonic Bacteroides species [See Salyers, et al., Crit. Rev. Microbiol., 14:49-71 (1987); Shoemaker, et al., J. Bacteriol., 166:959-965 (1986)]. One such E. coli-Bacteroides shuttle vector is pVAL-1 which contains cryptic Bacteroides plasmid pB8 -51 [Valentine, et al., J. Bacteriol., 170:1319-1324 (1988)].
Certain colonic Bacteroides strains have been found to harbor large self-transmissible elements carrying a tetracycline resistance ("Tc.sup.4 ") gene which are referred to as "conjugal elements" or "Tc.sup.r elements." Some of these Tc.sup.r elements also carry a clindamycin-erythromycin resistance ("Em.sup.r ") gene and are referred to as "Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r elements." These elements are not plasmids, but are integrated into the host chromosome.
The Tc.sup.r and Em.sup.r genes from a conjugal Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r strain of Bacteroides, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron DOT, have been cloned, along with regions of the element that include transfer genes [Shoemaker, et al., J. Bacteriol., 171:1294-1302 (1989)]. The Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r element from B. thetaiotaomicron DOT has been designated "Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r -DOT."
These conjugal elements are able to transfer themselves from one colonic Bacteroides strain to another and to mobilize co-resident plasmids, not only from Bacteroides to Bacteroides, but also from Bacteroides to E. coli [See Odelson, et al., Plasmid, 17:87-109 (1987); Salyers, et al., Crit. Rev. Microbiol., 14:49-71 (1987); Thomson, et al., FEMS Microbiol. Letters, 61:101-104 (1989); Stevens, et al., J. Bacteriol. 172:4271-4279 (1990)]. Thus, the Tc.sup.r and Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r conjugal elements found in the colonic Bacteroides strains appear to be able to mediate mating pair formation between diverse genera of bacteria.
The conjugal element, Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r 12256, has been found to mobilize co-resident plasmids at high frequencies [See Valentine, et al., J. Bacteriol., 170:1319-1324 (1988)]. Furthermore, the Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r 12256 element appears to exhibit constitutive transfer, as opposed to other Tc.sup.r and Tc.sup.r Em.sup.r elements which require pre exposure to tetracycline to obtain maximum transfer frequencies.
Plasmid DNA has been introduced into some colonic Bacteroides using transformation techniques [See Salyers, et al., CRC Clinical Reviews in Microbiology, 14:49-71 (1987); Odelson, et al., Plasmid 17:87-109 (1987); Smith, J. Bacteriol., 164:294-301 (1985)]. For instance, one colonic Bacteroides species has been transformed by electroporation [Thomson, et al., FEMS Microbiol. Letters. 61:101-104 (1989)]. An E coli-colonic Bacteroides shuttle vector, pDP1, was isolated from Bacteroides uniformis and electroporated into B. uniformis at a frequency of 10.sup.6 transporants per microgram of DNA. However, the same plasmid, when isolated from E. coli EM24, gave only 10.sup.3 transporants per microgram of DNA.
Standard methods, however, appear to be inadequate in several respects for the transformation of the colonic Bacteroides. For example, large plasmids are difficult to introduce into these species by transformation techniques. Best results are obtained when the plasmid DNA is less that 5 kbp in size. Also, to obtain good rates of transformation, the donor plasmid must be isolated from the same strain used as the recipient. The difficulties encountered in crossing species lines are believed to be due to the presence of restriction barriers. Also, successful transformation of many species of colonic Bacteroides has been sporadic [See Odelson, et al., Plasmid, 17:102 (1987)]. Clearly, much improvement is needed in transformation methods for colonic Bacteroides.
Despite progress in understanding the genetics of colonic Bacteroides, P. ruminicola is not well understood genetically. There have been some biochemical studies of polysaccharide utilization by P. ruminicola, and a xylanase gene from P. ruminicola has been cloned and expressed in E. coli [See Whitehead, et al., Appl. Eviron. Microbiol., 55:893-896 (1989)].
Recently, a naturally-occurring plasmid carrying a gene coding for tetracycline resistance has been identified ("pRRI4") in P. ruminicola 223/M2/7. The pRRI4 plasmid was shown to transfer from P. ruminicola 223/M2/7 into P. ruminicola F101, but not into P. ruminicola 23, by conjugation [Flint, et al., Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 54:855-860 (1988)].
It has also been reported that the pRRI4 plasmid can be introduced into P. ruminicola F101 by electroporation, but not into P. ruminicola 118B, M384, GA33 by this method [Thomson and Flint, FEMS Microbiol. Letters, 61:101-104 (1989)]. This article also reports that pRRI4 isolated from P. ruminicola could not be introduced into B. uniformis, a colonic Bacteroides, by electroporation. Thomson and Flint also discloses that the E. coli-colonic Bacteroides shuttle vector pDPI could not be introduced into P. ruminicola by electroporation. This was true whether pDPI was extracted from B. uniformis or E. coli.
From the above discussion, it is clear that, prior to the present invention, the genetic manipulation of P. ruminicola was not possible. Little was known about the genetics of P. ruminicola, making the use of vectors that could be manipulated and amplified in a known host, such as E. coli, highly desirable However, no shuttle vectors were known that could be used in P. ruminicola. Transformation and conjugal transfer of pRRI4 was possible, but pRRI4 cannot be used as a shuttle vector due to its relatively large size (19.5 kbp) and its inability to replicate in E. coli.

Method and materials for introducing DNA into Prevotella ruminicola

The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Illinois

Biotechnology Research and Development Corporation


Embodiments of the invention can include methods and systems for controlling clearances in a turbine. In one embodiment, a method can include applying at least one operating parameter as an input to at least one neural network model, modeling via the neural network model a thermal expansion of at least one turbine component, and taking a control action based at least in part on the modeled thermal expansion of the one or more turbine components. An example system can include a controller operable to determine and apply the operating parameters as inputs to the neural network model, model thermal expansion via the neural network model, and generate a control action based at least in part on the modeled thermal expansion.

Industrial and power generation turbines have control systems that monitor and control their operation. These control systems include control algorithms that can govern some or all operational aspects of the turbine.
Current control algorithms attempt to load (or unload) turbines, generators and various other components as may be applicable during load set point changes as fast as possible without violating the limits that facilitate a safe operation. However in such traditional systems and methods, the loading rates are typically limited by the structural constraints such as the highest stresses allowed in the rotor of a steam turbine to regulate life expenditure and other operational constraints such as clearance between rotating and non-rotating parts in the turbine. If the loading rates for various turbines are very high, large thermal gradients may develop in the turbines leading to high stresses and uneven thermal expansion that may result in contact or rubs between stationary and rotating parts. On the other hand, slow loading rates facilitate a safe operation but increase fuel costs and reduce plant availability. Because of an inability to accurately predict conditions within a plant, typical control methods use an unduly slow standard profile to facilitate safe operation. For instance, according to the measured metal temperatures at the beginning of the startup, the current controls may categorize the start-ups as hot, warm, or cold. Each of these start-up states uses loading rates slow enough to facilitate a safe operation for any startup in the same category. Consequently, such controlling methods may result in sub-optimal performance and higher operating costs.
One factor in the efficiency of a turbine such as, for example, a heavy-duty gas turbine, is the turbine clearance between the blade tips and the casing of the turbine. If the turbine clearance is maintained at a minimum level, the turbine will operate more efficiently because a minimum amount of air/exhaust gas will escape between the blade tips and the casing. Accordingly, a greater percentage of the air and gas entering the turbine will be used to drive the turbine blades and create work.
Due to the different thermal and mechanical growth characteristics of turbine rotor assemblies and the turbine casing, the turbine clearance may significantly change as the turbine transitions between different stages of operation such as from initial start-up to a base load steady-state condition. A clearance control system may be implemented in the turbine to address the turbine clearance conditions during the operation of the turbine. However, it may be advantageous to provide a control system that is able to dynamically monitor and predict turbine clearance conditions and component expansion, so as to allow for operating the turbine in its most efficient ranges.
Thus, there is a desire for systems and methods that provide for neural network based models to predict clearances in a turbine and for implementation in a control system to regulate clearances during its transient operation.
There is a further need for systems and methods for neural network modeling of turbine components.

Methods and systems for neural network modeling of turbine components


The present invention provides a method for selecting genomic DNA fragments which are useful for providing a plant with an agriculturally advantageous improvement. The method of the present invention comprises the steps of: 1) preparing genomic DNA from a plant, which is then cloned into a cloning vector to form a genomic DNA library; 2) introducing a genomic fragment from each of the genomic clones constituting the genomic DNA library separately into a plant to produce transgenic plants; 3) cultivating the transgenic plants or progeny thereof to select a plant exhibiting an agriculturally advantageous phenotypic variation; and 4) selecting the genomic DNA fragment, which was introduced in step (2) into the plant selected in step (3), as a purposed genomic DNA fragment.

With a view to breeding agriculturally advantageous new plant varieties, cross breeding in which two plants are crossed and progeny is selected, mutation breeding in which mutation is induced in a plant, and other methods have conventionally been practiced. Recently, with the progress of biotechnology, genetically modified plants have been bred by introducing a useful gene and causing its function to be expressed.
Breeding a New Variety by Introducing an Individual Gene
In order to breed a new variety by genetic engineering, it is usually required at a first step to isolate a gene and analyze its function. Recent years have seen a dramatic increase in molecular biological findings about plant genes and the genomic DNA sequences of many species have been determined with many partial—as well as full-length cDNA clones being isolated and determined for their sequences. However, many of the heretofore cloned putative gene functions are simply based on the information that the nucleotide sequences of genetic coding regions or the amino acid sequences deduced therefrom of the proteins are similar to the sequences of already discovered enzyme genes and the like and in order to verify the function of a particular gene, one must make sure that the expression of the gene and its phenotype agree in a transformant. As a result, considerable time and labor is required to unravel the functions of individual genes and little progress has been made in this aspect. An attempt is being made to verify the functions of a gene by isolating a full-length cDNA clone, linking it to a suitable promoter and terminator and transforming it. As an improved version of this attempt, a technique has been developed that comprises introducing a library of full-length cDNAs into a plant and making an exhaustive analysis of functions of the genes (WO 03/018808A). However, in those approaches, the promoter is not what is inherently associated with the gene and introns as well as other gene expression regulating functions have been removed, so it is not expected for the genes to be expressed to exhibit the inherent functions. As a further problem, splicing of some genes is shown to be alternative (Jordan et al. Trends in Plant Sciences 7:392-398, 2002), so the cDNA clones obtained may have lost their inherent functions. As a matter of fact, the phenotypic variations observed in such transgenic plants do not have much utility for the purpose of breeding a new variety.
In recent years, techniques in bioinformatics are employed to deduce coding region that is translated into the protein, and promoter, intron and other regions of a gene. Modes of gene expression are investigated by the microarray technology using DNA fragments. A number of function-deficient variants have been prepared by the gene knockout technique and are used in function analysis of genes. In addition, transformants having enhanced gene expression are prepared by activation tagging and used in function analysis of genes. To unravel the interrelationship between proteins encoded by genes, two-hybrid system is employed.
In the deduction of gene function by bioinformatics, the finding obtained from the relation between the function and structure of a known protein and the sequence of the gene encoding it are often employed to search for the yet to be known function of a gene. However, recent studies have shown that there are many cDNAs that are not translated into proteins, or which permit transcription of a mRNA-like RNA but not produce a protein. There are also many genes that function as low-molecular weight RNAs after transcription. Therefore, in the bioinformatics techniques proposed to date, there are many genes on genomic DNA that present difficulty in unraveling their functions. Therefore, deducing gene functions is not easy even if such latest techniques are fully exploited.
As noted above, analysis of gene functions is not easy even today. And even if a gene function is specified, it is difficult for the above-mentioned methods involving the transformation of individual genes to breed a new variety that is improved in traits whose expression will be improved in so-called heterosis or in quantitative traits.
In order to capture a gene in a certain organism that brings about a known phenotype possessed by said organism, an attempt is being widely made that comprises constructing genomic libraries from said organism, introducing the libraries with a plasmid into a microorganism such as yeast or bacterium to prepare transformed cells, selecting a particular transformed cell on the basis of the information known for said known phenotype, for example, information such as the transcript of said gene, and employing the selected transformant to clone the desired-gene (shotgun cloning) (Dairi et al. Mol Gen Genet 262:957-964, 2000).
In one application of shotgun cloning, a plant genomic library was transformed by introducing it into a plant, rather than a microorganism (Klee et al. Mol Gen Genet 210:282-287, 1987). In this experiment, a genomic library was constructed from an Arabidopsis transformant prepared by introducing a kanamycin resistance gene from a microorganism. Petunia leaf discs were infected with mixed strains of Agrobacterium containing the genomic clones in order to select kanamycin resistant petunia cells, namely, petunia cells harboring the kanamycin resistance gene derived from the Arabidopsis transformant. As a result, it was shown that the microorganism derived kanamycin resistance gene in the Arabidopsis genome could be captured after introduction into petunia by transformation.
Further disclosed in connection with Arabidopsis was a case in which a genomic library was constructed from a mutant showing chlorosulfuron resistance due to mutation in the acetohydroxy acid synthase (AHAS) gene and three genomic clones harboring the mutant AHAS gene were isolated and introduced into tobacco, producing chlorosulfuron resistant transformants (Olszewski et al. Nucleic Acid Res. 16:10765-10782, 1988).
These studies disclose techniques in which genomic libraries are used to transform plant cells and the gene cloning is performed. However, they have not succeeded in capturing any unknown gene of the donor plants of the genomic libraries, nor in improving the plants by the introduction of the unknown genes. Given those techniques, it is still difficult to breed a new variety that is improved in agriculturally useful traits, particularly in traits whose expression will be improved in so-called heterosis or in quantitative traits.
Heterosis
Heterosis is a phenomenon in which the F1 generation of a cross between inbred lines is superior to the parental lines. In heterosis, various trait improvements are recognized, such as higher vigor of the entire plant, larger plant and organs, higher yield, rapid growth, greater resistance to diseases and pests, greater resistance to various environmental stresses including drought, high temperature and cold temperature, increase or decrease in a specified component, and increase or decrease in a specified enzyme activity, and many of these traits are extremely advantageous in agriculture. A heterosis based breeding method that has been employed from old times in order to improve cultivated plants is F1 hybrid breeding in which different parents are crossed to create a new variety and this has made great contribution to breeding superior varieties of many crops including maize. However, F1 hybrid breeding requires a large number of steps such as development and improvement of the breeding population, the development of inbred lines, examination of general combining ability, examination of specific combining ability, and the selection of F1 variety. In addition, each of these steps requires a lot of time and labor. What is more, while heterosis often produces great efficacy in the crossing of genetically distant parents, in the case where the relation between the parents is remote, crossing often does not produce fertility, thus limiting the range of species that can be crossed.
The molecular mechanism for heterosis is yet to be unraveled. Even the latest textbook on thremmatology states as follows: "the causal factors (in heterosis) at the physiological, biochemical, and molecular levels are today almost as obscure as they were at the time of the conference on heterosis held in 1952" (Genetics and Exploitation of Heterosis in Crops, p. 173, ed. Coors and Pandey, 1999, American Society of Agronomy, Inc. and Crop Science Society of America, Inc., Madison, Wis., U.S.A.)
Interesting reports on heterosis in maize were recently made. They are Fu and Dooner, Proc. Natl. Acad Sci USA 99:9573-9578, 2002 and Song and Messing, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 100:9055-9060, 2003. In both reports, the authors investigated intervarietal differences in nucleotide sequence noting specific loci in maize, and consequently showed that the intervarietal differences were considerably greater than in self-fertilizing crops such as rice.
These findings are interesting because they show that in cross-fertilizing crops such as maize which tend to develop heterosis, the sequences of genomic DNA have greater intervarietal differences than in self-fertilizing crops; yet, it cannot be said they have reasonably unraveled the molecular mechanism for heterosis.
Thus, no insight has yet been gained into the mechanism for heterosis at the molecular level. However, at the level of classical genetics, it has been suggested that the following various genetic interactions are involved in heterosis.
A) Dominance Effect
Traits for which heterosis is observed are governed by a large number of loci in various linkage groups, and in each locus, an allele advantageous for survival and productivity is often considered to be dominant whereas a disadvantageous allele is recessive. Since there are many loci in linkage, it is almost impossible to obtain a plant line in which advantageous alleles are homozygous for all of such loci. However, F1 plants can possess all the advantageous alleles from the parents so that heterosis is induced.
B) Over-Dominance Effect
In a large number of loci, the case where two alleles are heterozygous is sometimes more advantageous in survival and productivity than the case where the locus is homozygous, and the sum of such effects brings about heterosis.
If over-dominance effect exists in a locus having particularly great effect, one can observe heterosis due to the over-dominance effect of that single locus. This phenomenon is called single-gene heterosis or single-locus heterosis. Although not contributing to any particular phenotype in the original plant, this is a gene or locus that brings about a useful phenotypic variation by the interaction between genes in another plant. Known examples of genes or loci that exhibit such property are the alcohol dehydrogenase gene in maize (Schwartz, Theor Appl Genet 43:117-120, 1973) and the purple plant locus in maize (Hollick and Chandler, Genetics 150:891-897, 1998).
C) Interaction of Non-Allelic Genes
Traits advantageous for survival and productivity are sometimes brought about in F1 hybrids as synergism between different genes. The sum of the effects of a large number of genes exhibiting such property brings about heterosis. The interaction between non-alleles is also called epistasis.
D) Interaction Between Nuclear Genes and Cytoplasmic Genes
Through the interaction between nuclear genes and cytoplasmic genes, traits advantageous for survival and productivity are sometimes expressed in F1 hybrids.
The various types of interaction between multiple genes is considered to induce heterosis. Stuber (Plant Breeding Reviews 12:227-251, 1994) reviews a large number of references that show examples of the involvement of those types of interaction of genes and emphasizes that heterosis is governed by a large number of genetic factors. Li and Yuan (Plant Breeding Reviews 17:15-158, 2000) also consider that heterosis is caused by the combination of the above-mentioned various effects.
Thus, heterosis is governed by a large number of genetic factors, so it has been difficult for the prior art technology to breed a new variety that is further improved in traits whose expression is known to be higher in heterosis.
Quantitative Traits
Traits that can be improved in expression by heterosis are often "quantitative traits", and it is not easy to genetically analyze quantitative trait loci (QTL) which govern heterosis. Nevertheless, with the recent advances in molecular biological techniques, it has become possible to perform genetic analysis of QTL using DNA markers. As a matter of fact, there are cases for successful identification of chromosomal sites containing QTL that govern certain quantitative traits. In addition, studies are being made to clone agriculturally useful genes by molecular biological techniques using genetic maps.
In some organisms, many molecular markers have been identified on chromosomes to help construct genetic maps based on the linkage analysis of the markers. Their physical relative positions have also become clear by linking long cloned genomic DNAs.
In organisms for which genetic maps have been constructed, attempts to unravel the physical positions of genes that govern those traits and isolate such genes have been made by linkage analysis of traits that exhibit specified phenotypes and their markers, and subsequent chromosome walking. As a matter of fact, several genes have been isolated by this technique (map-based cloning).
However, in standard QTL analysis, a QTL-containing site can only be identified in an approximate manner and only DNA fragments theoretically harboring a large number of genes can be identified as QTL-containing DNA fragments. It is not easy to identify such fragments as those capable of being cloned or as those that can be introduced into a plant by transformation. In addition, the task of constructing a detailed genetic map, specifying a gene of interest on the basis of the map information and cloning the gene requires a considerable amount of time and labor. In fact, there are only few cases in which DNA fragments that could increase quantitative traits were cloned on the basis of QTL analysis.
Constructing Genomic DNA Libraries and the Technology of Transformation with Genomic Fragments
The technology of constructing libraries of plant genomic fragments is known. Using transformation vectors that can be used to transform plants in the process is also known. For example, vectors are known that can be used for cloning large (40-80 kb) DNA fragments and which permit gene transfer into plants (Liu et al. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96:6535-6540, 1999). Experimental attempts have also been made to introduce plant genomic fragments as individual clones into higher plants. However, no one has ever made an attempt in such a way that a large number of genomic fragments that constitute a genomic DNA library are individually introduced into plants when the functions of these fragments are unknown.
It is also known that the use of a genomic clone sometimes results in a higher gene expression than when the corresponding cDNA clone is used. As a matter of fact, when a genomic fragment harboring a certain gene (maize phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase) was introduced into a plant (rice), an extremely high-level expression of the foreign gene was observed (Ku et al. Nature Biotechnol. 17:76-80, 1999). Other reports relate to experiments in which three 40-80 kb genomic clones from Arabidopsis were individually transferred back into Arabidopsis (Liu et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci US 96:6535-6540, 1999; Shibata and Liu Trends in Plant Sci 5:354-357, 2000). Two of the clones were introduced into an Arabidopsis line that had lost gravitropism due to mutation at the locus contained in those clones and the recovery of the normal gravitropic response was confirmed.
The above findings suggest that genes in organisms, in particular, genes in multi-cell organisms are controlled with regard to their expression level in a complex way by temporal and spatial distributions of the genes in the organisms and environmental conditions such as external stimuli; in other words, the importance of a particular gene is determined by the time and extent of its expression as well as by the tissue and cell in which it is expressed, and the timing of its expression. Thus, in order to unravel gene functions including these sophisticated gene regulations, the promoter, intron, enhancer, structural gene, splicing site and all other extensive gene expression regulating factors that are contained in the genomic fragment of the particular gene must be clarified. However, this task requires a considerable amount of labor and time, making it difficult to unravel the interaction between many genetic factors
Patent Document
                1: WO 03/018808 ANon-Patent Document            1: Jordan et al. Trends in Plant Sciences 17:392-398, 2002    2: Dairi et al. Mol Gen Genet 262: 957-964, 2000    3: Klee et al. Mol Gen Genet 210:282-287, 1987    4: Olszewski et al. Nucleic Acid Res. 16:10765-10782, 1988    5: Genetics and Exploitation of Heterosis in Crops, p. 173, ed. Coors and Pandey, 1999, American Society of Agronomy, Inc. and Crop Science Society of America, Inc., Madison, Wis., U.S.A.    6: Fu and Dooner, Proc. Natl. Acad Sci USA 99:9573-9578, 2002    7: Song and Messing, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 100:9055-9060, 2003    8: Schwartz, Theor Appl Genet. 43:117-120, 1973    9: Hollick and Chandler, Genetics 150:891-897, 1998    10: Stuber, Plant Breeding Reviews 12:227-251, 1994    11: Li and Yuan, Plant Breeding Reviews 17:15-158, 2000    12: Liu et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 96:6535-6540, 1999    13: Ku et al. Nature Biotechnol. 17:76-80, 1999    14: Shibata and Liu Trends in Plant Sci 5:354-357, 2000

Method for screening genomic DNA fragments


A seeding machine having a plurality of row units and a processing circuit. Each of the row units have a seed metering device, a seed placement device and a sensor suitable to detect a parameter related to seed placement. The seed metering device includes a metering member providing a metering action to a plurality of seeds. The seed placement device receives the seeds from the seed metering device. A seed meter drive controller receives an index signal from the sensor on the row unit as well as a reference pulse signal. The processing signal of the drive controllers compares the index signal to the reference signal. Each drive controller is selectively programmable to control an associated motor of the meter drive to produce a desired relationship between the row unit index signal and the reference signal thereby synchronizing the seed placement among two or more rows. block diagram illustrating an alternative arrangement of the meter drive and control system components.

An agricultural seeding machine, such as a row crop planter or grain drill, places the seed at a desired depth within a plurality of parallel seed furrows formed in soil. In the case of a row crop planter, a plurality of row units are typically ground driven using wheels, shafts, sprockets, transfer cases, chains and the like. Each row unit has a frame, which is movably coupled with a tool bar. The frame may carry a main seed hopper, herbicide hopper and insecticide hopper. If the granular herbicide and insecticide are used, the metering mechanisms associated therewith for the dispensing of the granular product into the seed furrow are relatively simple. On the other hand, mechanisms necessary to properly meter seeds at a predetermined rate and to place the seeds at a predetermined relative location and depth within the seed furrow are relatively complicated.
The mechanisms associated with metering and placing of the seeds generally can be divided into a seed metering system and a seed placement system, which are in communication with each other. The seed metering system receives the seeds in a bulk manner from a seed hopper carried by the frame. Different types of seed metering systems can be used such as seed plates, finger plates, seed disks and belts. In the case of a seed disk metering system, a seed disk is formed with a plurality of seed cells spaced about the periphery thereof. Seeds are moved into the seed cells with one or more seeds in each seed cell depending upon the size and configuration of the seed cell. A vacuum or positive pressure airflow may be used in conjunction with the seed disk to assist in movement and retention of the seeds in the seed cells. The seeds are singulated and discharged sequentially at a predetermined rate to the seed placement system.
The seed placement system may be categorized as a gravity drop system or a power drop system. In the case of a gravity drop system, a seed tube has an inlet end, which is positioned below the seed metering system. The singulated seeds from the seed metering system merely drop into the seed tube and fall by way of gravitational force from a discharge end thereof into the seed furrow. The seed tube may be curved in a rearward manner to assist in directing the seed into the seed furrow
A seed placement system of the power drop variety generally can be classified as a seed conveyor belt drop, rotary valve drop, chain drop or air drop. These types of seed placement systems provide somewhat consistent placement of the seeds along a predetermined path at a desired spacing.
Planting of certain crops, such as corn, in what is called "twin-rows" is becoming increasingly popular. With twin-rows, two rows are closely spaced, for example, spaced apart 7.5 inches (19 cm). The centers of the twin rows are spaced 30 inches (76 cm) apart from the next set of twin rows. Within the twin rows, to maximize the yield, it is necessary to alternate the seeds in the twin rows to avoid crowding of the plants. What is needed in the art is an agricultural seeding machine having an automated system to synchronize or to assist the operator in synchronizing the seed placement between rows of seeds.

Agricultural seeding apparatus and method for seed placement synchronization between multiple rows


A method, program product, and system for controlling a print device which helps minimizing effects which a failure of a plug-in module for adding a function of a printer driver may cause to the printer driver body and other plug-in modules The print device control system includes a data processing device and a plug-in server. The data processing device has a printer driver embedded thereon. The plug-in server has plug-in modules for executing an add-function of the printer driver, and executes, according to a request from the printer driver, the plug-in module corresponding to the request, and returns processed data to the printer driver. The plug-in server is configured as a process different from the printer driver. The printer driver returns the processed data to the data processing device through a memory with the data processing system.

For a PC (Personal Computer) and the like, print data is created with application software after converting the data into data which can be interpreted by a print device at a printer driver.
The printer driver includes many additional functions such as minimizing multiple pages of data to fit in one single page and providing a binding space for book biding. As a part of such additional functions, the printer driver can also add a new function as needed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-326601 discloses a method of adding a new function. According to the patent application document, a configuration of embedding a plug-in module which provides a new function in a printer driver enables executing a desired printing job by adding a necessary printer driver as needed.
More specifically, a print control device disclosed in the patent application document can add, update, and/or delete a function by using the plug-in module connected to a driver module itself.
Accordingly, the print control device acquires function data which covers a search range written in a search data list in a search data list UI control module which operates with a host PC and write the acquired data in a function data list. The print control device, then, displays a part of the function data written in the list in a display area on a function configuration screen and receives an instruction of adding, updating, and deleting a function corresponding to the displayed function data. According to the received instruction, the print control device executes add, update, and deletion of the function.
However, the print control device disclosed in the patent application document and other conventional technologies complicate a design and enlarges a scale of the printer driver thereby increase memory use by embodying a plug-in module in the printer diver to add functions therein. Additionally, since the plug-in modules operate as a part of the printer driver or as a single process, a crush of the plug-in module, if happens, halts operation of the whole driver.
Furthermore, since the plug-in module uses the same memory area as the printer driver does, a buffer overrun, if happens, may destroy the memory area the printer driver and/or another plug-in module use(s). The risk of the problem becomes higher with a less reliable program, such as of a plug-in module created by the user to add a function as needed.

System and method for controlling print device


A signal generating circuit includes an input stage delay circuit which can switch a state of outputting a reference clock and a state of outputting a signal delaying the reference clock by a first time which is shorter than one cycle of the reference clock, a control section including a gate circuit holding the output of the input stage delay circuit for a second time which is shorter than one cycle of the reference clock from a point at which the output of the input stage delay circuit is changed to output a signal corresponding to the output of the gate circuit, and an output stage delay circuit outputting a signal delaying the output signal of the control section by the second time, in which the input stage delay circuit switches an output state in response to change of the output signal of the control section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signal generating circuit controlling an L level period and an H level period of an output signal.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, as electronic devices perform high-speed operation, it has become more and more important to control the timing at which the pulse transits more finely. Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-269816 (Kudo et al.) discloses a PWM control circuit delaying a rising edge using a delay circuit. The PWM control circuit delays the rising edge to output a signal whose duty ratio is changed. However, in the PWM control circuit disclosed in Kudo et al., the cycle of the signal which is output is not at all considered. On the other hand, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 5-167404 (Shinpo) discloses an oscillation control device outputting a signal whose cycle is extended. The oscillation control device disclosed by Shinpo delays a reference clock generated by an oscillator using a plurality of delay circuits, selects any output from outputs of a plurality of delay circuits based on a counter value, and extends the pulse width of the clock.


An electric wire includes a metal conductor, a first insulation layer, wherein the first layer is a non-ceramifiable silicone compound, and a second insulation layer, wherein the second layer is a ceramifiable silicone compound, wherein the second layer is on the outside of the first layer.

A. Field
This invention generally relates to methods and apparatuses for electrical wire, and more particularly to insulated wire for fire safety cable.
B. Description of the Related Art
Fire safety cable [critical circuit-integrity cable)] finds application in providing electrical power to equipment and systems that are required to function during a fire. These systems may include fire alarm controllers, fire suppression equipment, sprinkler pumps in high rise buildings or other environments. This equipment needs to operate for a sufficient period of time to allow the safe evacuation of people the location of the fire.
Fire performance cables are required to continue to operate and provide circuit integrity when they are subjected to fire. To meet some of the standards, cables must typically maintain electrical circuit integrity when heated to a specified temperature (e.g. 650, 750, 950, 1050° C.) in a prescribed way for a specified time (e.g. 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 60 minutes, 2 hours). In some cases the cables are subjected to regular mechanical shocks, before, during and after the heating stage. Often they are also subjected to water jet or spray, either in the latter stages of the heating cycle or after the heating stage in order to gage their performance against other factors likely to be experienced during a fire.
These requirements for fire performance cables have been met previously by wrapping the conductor of the cable with tape made with glass fibers and treated with mica. Such tapes are wrapped around the conductor during production and then at least one insulative layer is subsequently applied. Upon being exposed to increasing temperatures, the outer insulative layers are degraded and fall away, but the glass fibers hold the mica in place. These tapes have been found to be effective for maintaining circuit integrity in fires, but because of the additional manufacturing steps they are quite expensive to produce. Further the process of wrapping the tape around the cable is relatively slow compared to other cable production steps and thus, wrapping the tape slows overall production of the cable further adding to the costs. Attempts have been made to reduce the costs by avoiding the use of tape and extruding a cable coating consisting of a flexible polymeric composition which forms an insulating ceramic when exposed to fire to provide the continuing circuit integrity.
In the past the electrical power was provided through the use of mineral insulated cable. This cable required a very complex installation and retrofitting the existing structure was difficult and cost prohibitive. More recently, new and improved wire insulation material has been introduced for the safety cable (critical circuit) application. Today the material of choice for wire insulation is a silicone rubber that has been specially formulated to form a ceramic-like layer when heated to the temperatures that are present in a fire.
The wire construction for safety cable (CI—"circuit integrity") is typically a copper conductor. Over the copper conductor is applied the ceramifiable silicon rubber insulation. A jacket material is applied over the silicone insulation to provide mechanical protection during installation. While the ceramifiable insulation performs adequately in a fire, this material is marginal for other electrical requirements for the cable. One safety cable (CI) requirement for this family of cables is a fire test where the cables are installed in a manufacturer's specified system, and then tested for functionality in a furnace that models petroleum-fueled fire. In one test protocol the furnace is programmed to subject the test samples to a temperature rise on ambient to 1010° C. over a period of 2 hours. During this test the cables are energized to the voltage appropriate to the cables specified application. One test used is UL 2196 for 2 hours. To meet the requirements of the UL2196 test, electrical functionality must be maintained throughout the 2 hours and the following simulated fire hose water spray test.
The UL2196 test method described in these requirements is intended to evaluate the fire resistive performance of electrical cables as measured by functionality during a period of fire exposure, and following exposure to a hose stream. To maintain the functionality of electrical cables during a fire exposure the cables are tested using a fire resistive barrier. The fire resistive barrier is the cable jacketing if the jacketing is designed to provide fire resistance. If the cable jacketing is not designed to provide fire resistance, the electrical cables are either placed within a fire resistive barrier or installed within an hourly rated fire resistive assembly. Fire resistive cables intended to be installed with a non-fire resistive barrier (such as conduit) are tested with the non-fire resistive barrier included as part of the test specimen. Otherwise fire resistive cables incorporating a fire resistive jacket are tested without any barrier. To demonstrate each cable's ability to function during the test, voltage and current are applied to the cable during the fire exposure portion of the test, and the electrical and visual performance of the cable is monitored. The cable is not energized during the hose spray, but it is visually inspected and electrically tested after the hose spray. The functionality during a fire exposure of non-fire resistive electrical cables which are intended for installation within fire barriers or for installation within hourly rated fire resistive assemblies is determined by tests conducted in accordance with the UL Outline of Investigation for Fire Tests for Electrical Circuit Protective Systems, Subject 1724. Two fire exposures are defined: a normal temperature rise fire and a rapid temperature rise fire. The normal temperature rise fire is intended to represent a fully developed interior building fire. The rapid temperature rise fire is intended to represent a hydrocarbon pool fire. Two hose stream exposures are defined: a normal impact hose stream and a low impact hose stream. The low impact hose stream is applied only to cable intended to contain the identifying suffix "CI" to identify it as CI cable in accordance with the Standard for Cables for Power-Limited Fire-Alarm Circuits, UL 1424, and in accordance with the Standard for Cables for Non-Power-Limited Fire-Alarm Circuits, UL 1425. In addition to fire alarm cables referenced in UL 1424 and UL1425, power cables can also be approved for CI (critical circuit) applications. These power cables must meet the performance requirements listed in UL 44. Type RHH, RHW2, RHW and others of this standard if able to pass UL2196 can be qualified for CI applications.
In addition to the UL 2196 test, the safety cable (CI) must also meet the electrical requirements for non-CI rated cable. One of the requirements for this family of cables is long term insulation resistance. For this test, a copper conductor, with only the silicone rubber used as insulation, is tested at the specified voltage while the cable is immersed in 90° C. water. The insulation resistance is monitored periodically. The decrease in resistance must level out at a value above the minimum required. One of the requirements is specified in UL 44. The ceramifiable silicone rubber used in this application is a compound supplied by Wacker. They are a major supplier for insulation compounds for safety cable (CI). This compound can pass the requirements of UL 2196, but is marginal to unable to meet the requirements of UL 44 for insulation resistance long term in 90° C. water at rated voltage.
This UL44 test specifies the requirements for single-conductor and multiple-conductor thermoset-insulated wires and cables rated 600 V, 1000 V, 2000 V, and 5000 V, for use in accordance with the rules of the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC), Part 1, CSA C22.1, in Canada, Standard for Electrical Installations, NOM-001-SEDE, in Mexico, and the National Electrical Code (NEC), NFPA-70, in the United States of America.
Uncured silicone rubber contains polymers of different chain lengths. It comprises a principal silicon-oxygen chain (the siloxane backbone) and an organic moiety bound to the silicon. A silicon atom has four valence electrons, which is why silicon rubber is often abbreviated with a Q for "quaternary group." The properties of silicone rubber vary greatly depending on the organic groups and the chemical structure. The organic groups may be methyl, vinyl, phenyl, or other groups. Depending on which organic groups are present, silicone polymers in common use are classified as follows: MQ, or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), denotes a polymer in which two methyl groups are bound to the siloxane backbone; VMQ stands for polydimethylsiloxane in which a small number of methyl groups have been replaced by vinyl groups; PVMQ stands for a VMQ in which a small number of methyl groups have been replaced by phenyl groups; and FVMQ stands for a VMQ in which a small number of methyl groups have been replaced by trifluoropropyl substituents.

Ceramifying polymer materials have been developed by incorporating ceramic forming pre-cursors into thermoplastics. These compounds can be processed on conventional plastic extrusion equipment to form sheets, profiles or coatings. In a fire situation, the polymer component is quickly pyrolized. However, a porous, coherent ceramic begins to form at sufficiently low temperatures to maintain the structural integrity of the material through to temperatures of over 1000° C. The ceramic forming systems can be adjusted to minimize dimensional changes, or to provide a degree of intumescence through entrapment of volatile gases from the polymer. This can produce a cellular structure with increased thermal resistance. Ceramifying polymer technology has already been commercialized for fire resistant cable coatings and shows promise for many other fire protection coating applications.
Ceramifying polymers generally consist of a polymer matrix with refractory silicate minerals which form the ceramic framework in combination with a flux system. This can allow a coherent ceramic structure to form at a relatively low temperature. Other functional additives may be added including stabilizers and flame retardants. Although the total ceramifying additive level must be quite high, the materials can still be processed like conventional plastics. A wide range of ceramifying polymers can be produced, including thermoplastics and emulsions suitable for coatings. Ceramification can be combined with intumescence through a mechanism which traps volatiles from the polymer decomposition as the ceramic structure is formed. This can produce a strong, cellular coating layer with good thermal resistance for fire protection applications.
Ceramifying polymers are not inherently flame retardant. However, they can be modified with organic or inorganic flame retardant systems to achieve low flammability ratings. Ceramification can also assist fire performance by producing a stable surface layer which insulates the underlying layers and may inhibit volatile emissions. This can delay ignition and reduce heat release rates.
Most polymers begin to decompose through oxidative reactions at temperatures of around 200° C. Higher performance polymers such as silicones persist to over 300° C. But typical fire tests require exposure to a temperature profile based on the combustion of a cellulose fuel load in a representative room. This reaches 700° C. in about 10 minutes at which all polymers, including silicones, rapidly decompose. The temperature continues to increase to 1000° C. after 1 hour. Hence, conventional polymers are generally unable to provide a barrier to fire, or thermal insulation, in systems which require a rating of 60 minutes or longer in these tests. These fire ratings are usually achieved by using intumescent materials, which produce an inorganic char with limited cohesive strength, or thick protective structures made from gypsum board or similar materials.
A characteristic of ceramifying polymers is their ability to form a self-supporting structure throughout the temperature range from ambient service temperature to over 1000° C. Reactions in the inorganic ceramic forming systems can commence from temperatures as low as 350° C. and continue to 800° C. or higher. This is achieved with fluxes which produce a controlled, low level of liquid phase at these temperatures. Ceramification in these materials is not simply the bonding or fusing of the silicate particles by a viscous liquid phase, such as with relatively high levels of low melting point glasses. Such materials tend to collapse at high temperatures and are not self-supporting. Ceramification involves reaction sintering assisted by the controlled level of liquid phase.
Solid silicone rubber contains polymers with a high molecular weight and relatively long polymer chains. Silicones are characterized by a fully saturated backbone of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms. The Si—O links in the chain have an exceptionally high bond energy of 451 kJ/mol. C—C links, by comparison, have a bond energy of 352 kJ/mol. The Si—O chain mobility is very high. The organic side groups shield the backbone, so surface energy is low.
Crosslinkers are typically utilized to convert the raw rubber into a mechanically stable cured product. Use is made of peroxide or platinum catalyst systems. Fillers are also used to reinforce the elastic silicone network. Peroxide curing involves the use of organic peroxides. At elevated temperatures, they decompose to form highly reactive radicals which chemically crosslink the polymer chains. The result is a highly elastic, three-dimensional network. During platinum-catalyzed addition curing, the crosslinker's Si—H groups react with the vinyl groups of the polymer to form a three-dimensional network.

Insulated wire construction for fire safety cable


A motor control device includes an inverter configured by a plurality of arms, a smoothing unit supplying a direct-current voltage to the inverter, a shunt resistor inserted between a lower-arm switching element for each phase of the inverter and a negative-electrode side of the smoothing unit, a master motor current sensor outputting a voltage according to a current flowing in a first motor connected in parallel to the inverter, and a computing unit generating driving signals for a plurality of switching elements based on an output of the master motor current sensor and an output corresponding to a voltage drop on the shunt resistor.

Generally, an inverter is used for controlling the rotation speed and the position of a permanent magnet synchronous motor (hereinafter, abbreviated as "PM (Permanent Magnet) motor"). This is because it is necessary to apply an alternating-current voltage synchronized with a permanent magnet of a rotor to the motor. Therefore, a basic configuration for controlling a PM motor uses one inverter for one PM motor. With this configuration, when a plurality of motors are provided in an air conditioner, the same number of inverters as the number of the motors are required, which results in a cause of increasing the size and cost of the air conditioner.
In such a technical background described above, although the problem to be solved is different, Patent Literature 1 listed below discloses an electric device and a motor driving method in which one induction motor (hereinafter, abbreviated as "IM" (Induction Motor)) and one PM motor are driven by one inverter.

Motor control device and air conditioner


A method and apparatus for three-dimensional beamforming, which include an estimation of a channel spatial coherence for a beam space of a device based on a plurality of non-precoded reference signals such that the beam space includes a plurality of beam subspaces based on the estimated channel spatial coherence and each of the plurality of beam subspaces include a beam direction representative of a respective beam subspace of the plurality of beam subspaces. Furthermore, a selection a beam subspace of the plurality of beam subspaces based on a channel quality metric of the beam direction that is representative of the beam subspace is included.

In newer generations of three-dimensional beamforming systems with finer beam resolution, the size of the codebook can pose receiver implementation challenges. Three-dimensional beamforming systems with non-precoded reference signals include the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) Full Dimensional Multiple Input Multiple Output (FD-MIMO) Class A configurations, where a codebook size for a given rank can reach up to 2,048 beam directions in Release-13 and even larger in later Releases. Therefore, the computational burden on a receiver can be sufficiently large enough to make an exhaustive search in determining a preferred beam direction impractical.

Efficient beam search methods for three-dimensional beamforming with non-precoded reference signals


A surface equalization apparatus designed to be compatible with a wide variety of part technologies, composite materials and part geometries. The apparatus works with software, chemistry, abrasives and media and includes an oblong, elongated input tank for holding media and a part. The input tank is connected to a motor mount, which is connected to an eccentric motor. When the motor is activated, the input tank begins to move in a vibrational, sinusoidal manner. The motion of the tank on attached springs generates a rotational flow of media in the tank. This creates a low amplitude/high frequency movement of the part through the tank. Surface structures divert media to prevent the part from contacting the side of the tank. Spray nozzles are positioned above the input tank. Acoustic damping foam is positioned around the central components. A cooling fan allows airflow through the apparatus.

3D printing often results in a printed part having an uneven surface. For example, fused deposition modeling (FDM) is a 3D printing technology commonly used for modeling, prototyping, and production applications. FDM works on an "additive" principle by laying down material in layers; a plastic filament or metal wire is unwound from a coil and supplies material to produce a part. This process may result in a "layered" surface, where individual steps associated with each layer progress in an overall direction. Such a surface may not be suitable for some application areas where a more sophisticated finish is desired. Additive manufacturing and 3D printing methods are not limited to those disclosed herein.
Due to the layered appearance and/or porosity of the body of a part produced by 3D printing, it may be desirable to equalize the surface of the part both internally and externally to give it a more finished appearance and improve function. Although the field is relatively new, methods of producing a finished appearance in a 3D printed part are known in the art. These include the use of adhesive film that is applied to the surface of the 3D printed part that bonds to the part and gives the appearance of an enhanced surface. Other methods include the use of solvents that erode the surface of the part to provide a smooth finish.
The drawbacks of the known systems are numerous, including limitations caused by incompatibility with a variety of materials and shapes. In existing systems, much experimentation may be required to discover the appropriate abrasive, adhesive, and/or solvent for each part.
Effective and efficient surface finishing for a wide variety of 3D printed materials and part shapes and sizes requires a system that is universally applicable. Therefore, a need exists for a surface equalization apparatus that can accommodate the wide and expanding variety of part types encountered in the fast-growing field of 3D printing and additive manufacturing.


A method of forming a surface coating on a composite article may include applying a thermal spray to a tool surface of a tool in such a manner as to form a surface coating having a releasable bond with the tool surface. The method may further include applying composite material over the surface coating, curing the composite material to form a cured composite article, and removing the cured composite article from the tool in a manner that releases the surface coating from the tool surface and retains the surface coating with the cured composite article.

Composite structures are used in a wide variety of applications. In aircraft construction, composites are used in increasing quantities to form the fuselage, wings, and other components of an aircraft. During the operational life of an aircraft, the wings are exposed to a variety of environmental effects. For example, during flight when the aircraft is moving forward at high speed, the leading edge of the wings may be subjected to impingement by rain and other forms of moisture. In addition, the aircraft including the wings may be subjected to lightning strikes.
Conventional methods for protecting a composite leading edge from rain impingement include fastening a protective metallic strip over the leading edge. Unfortunately, the attachment of a metallic strip to a composite wing is a time-consuming and labor-intensive process requiring a large quantity of mechanical fasteners. The large quantity of fasteners may add to the overall weight of the aircraft. In addition, specialized tooling may be required for maintaining the position of the metallic strip during installation. Furthermore, fasteners that are installed through the outer mold line (OML) surface of the leading edge may disrupt the airflow passing over the OML surface. The disruption in airflow may cause the airflow over the wing to become turbulent with a resulting increase in aerodynamic drag and a corresponding reduction in aircraft fuel efficiency.
In addition, metallic material such as metallic sheet is generally formable into a single-curvature shape by bending the metallic sheet using relatively low-cost tooling. However, the leading edge of a wing may have one or more regions of compound curvature along the length of the leading edge. The process of forming a metallic erosion strip to match the compound curvature of a wing leading edge may require complex metal-forming equipment that may add to the overall cost and complexity of wing assembly.
Regarding protection from lightning strikes, composite materials generally have low electrical conductivity with limited ability to dissipate electrical energy from a lightning strike. Metallic sheeting mounted to the surface of a composite structure may provide some protection in the event of a lightning strike by dissipating electrical energy. Unfortunately, the mounting of metallic sheeting over the surface of a composite wing for lightning protection may involve the same drawbacks associated with mounting a metallic strip over the wing leading edge for erosion protection.
As can be seen, there exists a need in the art for a method of providing a metallic layer over a composite surface without the need to mechanically fasten a separate metallic sheet to the composite article. In addition, there exists a need in the art for a method of providing a metallic layer over a compound curvature surface that avoids the need for complex metal-forming equipment. Furthermore, there exists a need in the art for a method of providing a metallic layer that may protect a composite structure against the effects of erosion, lightning, and other effects.

In-mold metallization of composite structures


A semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor chip, and a lead frame. The semiconductor chip is mounted over a die pad. Four suspension leads are connected with the die pad and at least one of them is provided between first and second lead groups and is deformed to protrude toward the first lead group. At least one of the leads of the second lead group which is nearer to the deformed suspension lead is deformed to be apart from remaining leads of the second lead group.

In case of designing a lead frame for a semiconductor device so as to decrease kinds of lead frames, the structure of a semiconductor chip is basically adjusted in the design of the semiconductor chip so that the chip can be mounted on an existing lead frame. However, there is a case that the chip cannot be mounted on the existing lead frame, when one chip is applied to a few packages or when there is a product constraint.
When the chip is mounted above the existing lead frame and a wire bonding step is carried out, there is a risk that a wire interval becomes very narrow in a specific portion so that adjacent wires contact each other to form a short circuit, if the mount position of the chip is shifted or the wires are eccentrically-located. For this reason, the structure of the lead frame needs to be deformed.
As related techniques, Patent Literature 1 (JP H04-80931A) discloses a semiconductor device in which a tab suspension lead is deformed into an arrangement direction of inner leads.


The present invention provides a power-supply device, which can continuously supply a voltage from a power supply to a load even if a breakdown of a circuit is generated. The power-supply device includes a booster circuit, a normally-closed bypass relay, a CPU, and a switching circuit. A first switch of the switching circuit is turned on by a switching signal from the CPU, and a second switch is turned on by a boosting request signal from a boosting request signal generator. In the case that one of or both the switching signal and the boosting request signal are not input to the switching circuit 14, because a coil of a bypass relay is not energized, a contact turns on, and a voltage is supplied from a DC power supply to the load through the contact. When both the switching signal and the boosting request signal are input to the switching circuit, the coil is energized to turn off the contact, and a voltage supply path to the load is switched from the side of the bypass relay to the side of the booster circuit.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a power-supply device that supplies a voltage at a DC power supply to a load while boosting the voltage.
2. Related Art
Conventionally, various power-supply devices are well known in order to supply a DC voltage to various instruments and circuits, which are mounted on an automobile. For example, each of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. 2005-112250, 2010-183755, 2011-162065, and 2005-160284 discloses a power-supply device including a DC-DC converter. The DC-DC converter includes a booster circuit, the booster circuit includes a switching element, a coil, and a capacitor, and the boosted DC voltage is output by switching the voltage at the DC power supply at high speed.
Some automobiles include what is called an idling stop function, in which the automobile automatically tentatively stops an engine when waiting at a stoplight and automatically restarts the engine during starting. In the automobile including the idling stop function, because a large current is passed through a starter motor during the engine restart, a battery voltage drops largely to generate such an abnormal state that the instrument or the circuit is reset. Therefore, it is necessary to boost the battery voltage in order to compensate the voltage drop.
In the power-supply devices disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. 2005-112250, 2010-183755, and 2011-162065, the DC-DC converter is provided between the battery and the load, and a bypass relay constituting a bypass path is provided with respect to the DC-DC converter. The DC voltage is supplied from the battery to the load through the bypass relay during a normal run, and the boosted DC voltage is supplied from the battery to the load through the DC-DC converter during the engine restart. Therefore, the drop of the power supply voltage can be compensated during the engine restart to normally operate the instrument or the circuit, which is of the load.
The power-supply device disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2005-160284 is mounted on an electric automobile, and the DC-DC converter is provided between the battery and an inverter in order to compensate the battery voltage drop due to a back electromotive force generated by the motor during the high-speed rotation of the motor. The bypass relay constituting the bypass path is provided with respect to the DC-DC converter. Whether the DC voltage at the battery is supplied to the load through the bypass relay or the DC-DC converter is switched based on an instruction from a feedback means.
FIG. 17 illustrates an example of the conventional power-supply device including the DC-DC converter. A power-supply device 300 is provided between a battery 1 and a load 2, and includes a DC-DC converter 3 and a bypass relay 20. For example, the load 2 is a vehicle audio instrument or a vehicle interior light. The DC-DC converter 3 includes a main relay 10, a booster circuit 11, an input interface 12, a CPU 13, and a transistor Q. The main relay 10 includes a coil Xa and a contact Ya. The contact Ya is in a normally-opened state. The bypass relay 20 includes a coil Xb and a contact Yb. The contact Yb is in a normally-closed state. An ignition signal from an ignition switch SW and a boosting request signal from a boosting request signal generator 4 are input to the CPU 13 through the input interface 12. For example, the boosting request signal generator 4 is an idling stop Electronic Control Unit (ECU).
While the vehicle runs, the ignition switch SW becomes ON (a closed state), and the H (High)-level ignition signal is input to the CPU 13. When receiving the H-level ignition signal, the CPU 13 controls the transistor Q in an off state. Therefore, the coil Xb of the bypass relay 20 is not energized, but the contact Yb of the bypass relay 20 is ON (the closed state). Accordingly, the DC voltage is supplied from the battery 1 to the load 2 through the contact Yb of the bypass relay 20. On the other hand, because the boosting request signal is not input to the CPU 13 from the boosting request signal generator 4, the CPU 13 does not drive the main relay 10, but the contact Ya of the main relay 10 is OFF (an opened state). Because the CPU 13 does not drive the booster circuit 11, the DC-DC converter 3 does not perform a boosting operation.
When the engine restarts after the vehicle stops to become the idling stop state, the L (Low)-level boosting request signal is input to the CPU 13 from the boosting request signal generator 4. When receiving the L-level boosting request signal, the CPU 13 turns on the transistor Q, energizes the coil Xa of the main relay 10, and drives the booster circuit 11. Because the coil Xb of the bypass relay 20 is energized from the battery 1 by turning on the transistor Q, the contact Yb of the bypass relay 20 becomes OFF. On the other hand, because the coil Xa of the main relay 10 is energized from the battery 1, the contact Ya of the main relay 10 becomes ON. Accordingly, the boosted DC voltage is supplied from the battery 1 to the load 2 through the contact Ya and the booster circuit 11.
The contact of the relay is roughly divided into a normally-opened contact and a normally-closed contact. The normally-opened contact is opened when the coil is not energized, and the normally-opened contact is closed when the coil is energized. On the other hand, the normally-closed contact is closed when the coil is not energized, and the normally-closed contact is opened when the coil is energized. In the power-supply device 300 in FIG. 17, the contact Yb of the bypass relay 20 is the normally-closed contact. This is because, in the case that the load 2 is the audio instrument or the vehicle interior light, it is necessary to drive the load 2 even if the ignition signal is not output while the vehicle is in the stopped state.
However, in the case that the contact Yb of the bypass relay 20 is the normally-closed contact, the coil Xb of the bypass relay 20 is energized to open the contact Yb when the transistor Q is turned on due to the breakdown of the CPU 13 or the transistor Q. Therefore, unfortunately the voltage is not supplied from the battery 1 to the load 2, and the load 2 cannot be driven.


In at least one embodiment described herein, an apparatus is provided that can include means for communicating a latency tolerance value for a device connected to a platform from a software latency register if a software latency tolerance register mode is active. The apparatus may also include means for communicating the latency tolerance value from a hardware latency register if a host controller is active. The latency tolerance value can be sent to a power management controller. More specific examples can include means for communicating a latency tolerance value from the software latency register if the software latency tolerance register mode is not active and the host controller is not active. The apparatus can also include means for mapping a resource space in the software latency register for the device using a BIOS/platform driver. The mapping can be achieved using an advanced configuration and power interface device description.

As electronic devices become more complex and more ubiquitous in the everyday lives of users, more and more diverse requirements are placed upon them. For example, many electronic devices can operate on battery power, thus allowing users to operate these devices in many different circumstances. In addition, as capabilities of electronic devices become more extensive, many users may become reliant on the enhanced performance such capabilities provide. As these aspects of electronic devices have evolved, there has become an increasing need for power optimization so that users may enjoy longer battery life. However, under many circumstances, power optimization may sacrifice performance. Therefore, it will be highly beneficial for a user to be able to have the desired performance when it matters the most to them, and to have power optimization during circumstances where performance may be less important to them.
The FIGURES of the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale or proportion, as their dimensions, arrangements, and specifications can be varied considerably without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

System and method for conveying service latency requirements for devices connected to low power input/output sub-systems


A gas concentration detector for detecting a concentration of pollutant gas such as NOx or SOx contained in ambient air is composed of an oxide-semiconductor gas sensor heated by a heater and a controller for determining the gas concentration by comparing a concentration level detected by the gas sensor with a calculated comparison level. The comparison level is calculated so that it follows the detected level with a certain delay. The degree of the delay is set shorter in an unstable region- of the gas sensor than in a stable region, thereby to effectively determine the gas concentration even in the unstable region.

This application is based upon and claims benefit of priority of Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-8737 filed on Jan. 18, 2000, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a detector for detecting a concentration of pollutant gas such as NOx using an oxide-semiconductor.
2. Description of Related Art
A gas concentration detector of this kind is disclosed in JP-A-11-240323. In this detector, a detected concentration level is compared with a calculated comparison level, and it is determined that a gas concentration is high when the ratio of the detected level to the comparison level is higher than a predetermined ratio. The comparison level is calculated to follows the detected level with a certain delay time when the detected concentration level increases at a rate exceeding a predetermined rate, so that the ratio of the detected level to the comparison level becomes sufficiently high. When it is determined that the gas concentration is high, operation of an automobile air conditioner is switched from an outside air mode to an inside air mode.
It is known that there are two regions in detecting the gas concentration, one is a stable region where the detected concentration level changes according to an actual concentration and the other is an unstable region where the detected level abruptly changes independently from the actual concentration. In the aforementioned detector, however, the gas concentration is detected without differentiating two regions. Accordingly, the detector cannot accurately detect the gas concentration in the, unstable region for the reason described below.
The detector includes a gas sensor composed of an oxide-semiconductor as a gas-sensitive element and a heater for heating the oxide-semiconductor. When the oxide-semiconductor is not heated, moisture and oxygen are chemically absorbed on its surface. When it is heated, moisture and oxygen are removed from the surface, thereby bringing the surface to a state where excessive electrons present on the surface. Oxygen adjacent to the surface is attracted by the electrons and absorbed to the surface (referred to as negative charge absorption), making a potential barrier between semiconductor molecules high and thereby increasing an electrical resistance of the oxide-semiconductor. Since the gas concentration is detected based on the resistance, the detected level increases. This creates the unstable region where the detected level rapidly increases independently from an actual concentration level. After the detected level reaches a certain level, the stable region appears, where the detected level changes according to the actual concentration level.
If the comparison level is set based on the operation in the stable region, commonly to the stable region and the unstable region, as is in the aforementioned conventional detector, the actual concentration level cannot be detected by comparing the detected level with the comparison level. That is, the ratio of the detected level to the comparison level exceeds a predetermined ratio, even when the actual concentration level is not high.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an improved gas concentration detector which is able to detect the actual gas concentration even in the unstable region.
The gas concentration detector of the present invention detects a concentration of pollutant gas such as NOx or SOx contained in ambient air. The detector is composed of an oxide-semiconductor gas sensor heated by an electric heater and a controller for determining the gas concentration based on a detected concentration level and a calculated comparison level. The controller includes a microcomputer, a timer and other components. The oxide-semiconductor gas sensor absorbs moisture when it is not heated. Until the gas sensor is sufficiently heated to remove the absorbed moisture and the oxygen attraction by negative charges is saturated, there is an unstable region where the gas concentration is not correctly detected. After that, the gas sensor enters a stable region where the gas concentration is correctly detected.
The controller calculates a comparison level with which the detected level is compared to determine the gas concentration. The comparison level is calculated so that it follows the detected level with a certain delay. When a ratio of the detected level to the comparison level becomes higher than a certain value, or when a difference between the two levels exceeds a predetermined value, the detector determines that the gas concentration is high. Though the gas concentration is correctly determined in this manner in the stable region, it cannot be determined in the unstable region. To make it possible to determine the gas concentration in the unstable region, the delay of the comparison level to the detected level is made smaller than the delay in the stable region, thereby making the comparison level quickly follows the detected level.
The gas sensor periodically outputs the detected level with a certain interval, and the controller calculates the comparison level with the same interval. A present comparison level Bgs(n) is calculated according to the following formula: Bgs(n)=Bgs(nxe2x88x921)+[Vgs(n)xe2x88x92Bgs(nxe2x88x921)]/m, where Bgs(nxe2x88x921) is a previous comparison level, Vgs(n) is a present detected level and m is a time constant larger than one. Accordingly, the delay in the unstable region can be made smaller by making time constant m smaller compared with that in the stable region.
The gas concentration detector may be used in an automobile air conditioner operated under an inside air mode or an outside air mode. When the detector determines that the pollutant gas concentration in the outside air is high, the air conditioner operation is switched from the outside air mode to the inside air mode.
To determine the duration of the unstable region, a heater-operated time for supplying heat to the oxide-semiconductor gas sensor is measured by the timer in the controller. Further, to estimate an amount of moisture absorbed to the oxide-semiconductor gas sensor while the sensor is not energized, the non-energized time may be measured by the timer. The time constant m is set according to the non-energized time, so that the comparison level follows the detected level more quickly when a higher amount of moisture is estimated to be absorbed.
According to the present invention, the gas concentration in ambient air is effectively determined even in the unstable region of the oxide-semiconductor gas sensor.

Gas concentration detector using oxide-semiconductor


A hybrid RF-acoustic relay is provided where some but not all of the incident RF power is rectified to power the relay and, optionally, to provide power for further link features. The remaining fraction of the incident RF power is used to directly drive an acoustic transceiver array in communication with one or more acoustically powered nodes. In this manner, power, control and communication can be efficiently provided to acoustically powered nodes even in situations where an RF link or an acoustic link would perform poorly.

Acoustically powered devices are under consideration for various applications, including medical implants. One challenge for such implants is providing power to them, because it is often challenging to acoustically transmit power to an acoustically powered implant. Achieving a good acoustic contact with skin of a user can be a burden on the user, and the acoustic power may need to pass through body parts having high acoustic attenuation to reach the implant. For example, an acoustically powered retinal implant would face significant design difficulties because of high acoustic attenuation from bone in the skull through which the acoustic energy would need to travel when powering is done from the side of the head.
Such considerations have motivated the investigation of hybrid RF-acoustic links, where part of the link is electromagnetic (i.e. RF) and the other part of the link is acoustic. For example, a hybrid RF-acoustic link to acoustic nodes in the brain of a patient could use a relay positioned under the skull of the patient. Such a relay would be in acoustic communication with the implants in the brain, and also be in RF communication with an external unit. In this approach, transmission through the skull is RF, not acoustic, thereby avoiding the problem of high acoustic attenuation in the skull.
Conventional implementations of communication link relays generally fall into two categories. The first and most conventional approach is to rectify all incoming RF power and use the resulting on-relay DC voltage as a main power source for all communication and control functions of the relay, including driving the acoustic transducers of the array. This approach provides maximum design flexibility (e.g., the RF frequency and the acoustic frequency of the transducers can be the same or they can be different).
The second conventional approach is a more recent approach where the acoustic transducers in the relay are directly driven by the incident RF power, without any intermediate rectification. This approach sacrifices design flexibility for increased efficiency. For example, the RF frequency and acoustic frequencies need to be the same with this approach, but power losses associated with the rectification of the first approach are avoided.
Since this design trade-off can be a difficult one in practice, it would be an advance in the art to provide improved hybrid RF-acoustic relays.

RF-ultrasound relay for efficient power and data transfer across interfaces

The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University


An image forming apparatus includes: a casing including a base portion, an access assembly, and a cover; first and second engaging portions; and an operating member. The access assembly is pivotally movable between an open position and a closed position. The cover has a recessed portion recessed from an edge thereof in a direction away from the access assembly in the closed position. The first engaging portion overlaps the cover as viewed from above. The second engaging portion is movable between an engaged position engageable with the first engaging portion and a disengaged position disengaged from the first engaging portion. The operating member is in the recessed portion when the access assembly is in the closed position, and movable between a lock position to lock the second engaging portion into the engaged position and an unlock position to unlock the second engaging portion into the disengaged position.

An electrophotographic image forming apparatus known in the art includes a casing, and an image forming unit mounted in the casing for forming images on a recording medium.
One such image forming apparatus that has been proposed includes a casing having an opening, a drawer that can be pulled out through the opening and supports a plurality of process cartridges for different colors used by the image forming apparatus, and a cover that opens and closes the opening.
In this conventional image forming apparatus, the cover has a hook that operates in association with a push-button, and the casing has a hook receiver that receives the hook provided at the cover.
With this configuration, in order to pivotally move the cover from its closed position to its open position, an operator presses the push-button, releasing the hook provided at the cover from the hook receiver provided at the casing and allowing the cover to move into the open position.

Image forming apparatus provided with engaging portion configured to lock access assembly


A gasket is capable of providing an excellent slidabiity and holding its sealability without applying lubricant and a gasket that can prevent a resin film from being peeled off of a gasket body and prevent the generation of a molding defect such as pinholes. The gasket can be installed slidably in a outer tube of a syringe, including a gasket body and a resin film formed of a material lower in coefficient of friction than a material of the gasket body, which covers at least an outer periphery of the gasket body, in which when a surface roughness of the resin film on the outer tube side is defined as Ra1 and a surface roughness of the resin film on the gasket body side is defined as Ra2, a relationship of 1.5 Ra1≦Ra2 is satisfied.

In general, a syringe is composed of an outer tube, a gasket slidable in the outer tube, and a plunger for moving the gasket.
Conventionally, furthermore, for example, a gasket made of an elastic material such as vulcanized rubber or thermoplastic elastomer has been widely used.
Such a gasket has a large sliding resistance between the gasket and the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube, so that lubricant has been applied on the surface of the gasket or the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube to decrease the sliding resistance between the gasket and the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube.
However, such a syringe has the following problems, for example, when a drug solution or the like is contained in the outer tube.
(1) There is a possibility that in the drug solution contained in the outer tube, the lubricant applied on the surface of the gasket or the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube is mixed, which may affect the medicinal ingredients of the drug solution.
(2) There is a possibility that the medicinal ingredients of the drug solution contained in the outer tube are adsorbed (bonded) to the lubricant applied onto the surface of the gasket or the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube.
For solving the conventional problems described above, it is conceivable that a gasket is composed of a gasket body and a film covering at least the outer periphery of the gasket body in which the film is formed of a material having a friction resistance smaller than the material of the gasket body to omit the application of lubricant on the surface of the gasket.
In this kind of the gasket, however, depending on the surface qualities (conditions) of the film or the material of the film, there is a possibility that the film is peeled off of the gasket body or sealability and slidability with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube of the syringe decrease. Furthermore, depending on the thickness of the film, there is a possibility of causing a molding defect such as pinholes.
The inventors of the present invention have found out that these disadvantages could be solved by properly selecting the surface qualities of both surfaces of the resin film for covering the gasket body, and material and thickness of the resin film, and thus the gasket of the present invention has been finally completed.
Furthermore, in the gasket described above, there is a possibility that a step of preparing a film or a step of coating a gasket body with the film is complicated. In these steps, there is a possibility of causing a molding defect such as pinholes.
The inventors of the present invention have found out that these disadvantages could be solved by properly selecting the method of preparing a resin film and the method of coating the gasket body with the resin film, and thus the method of manufacturing the gasket of the present invention has been finally completed.

Gasket and method of manufacturing the gasket