A motion estimation method using adaptive mode decision is disclosed. The method includes a motion vector difference value calculation step of calculating a motion vector difference value using an input motion vector estimation value x component for a current block and an input x offset corresponding to a current SAD. At the MVD Variable Length Coding (VLC) step, the length of a bit string, which is obtained by performing variable-length coding on an MVDx, is calculated. At a motion vector difference value calculation step, a motion vector difference value is calculated using an input motion vector estimation value y component for a current block and an input y offset corresponding to the current SAD. At an MVD VLC step, the length of a bit string, which is obtained by performing variable-length coding on an MVDy, is calculated. Thereafter, the amount of motion vector coding is produced by adding the MVDx and the MVDy. The amount of texture coding of a current block or a macro block is estimated using SAD values and quantization coefficients of previous macro blocks. A SAD correction coefficient is produced using the amount of motion vector coding and the texture vector coding amount. Finally, the SAD values are multiplied by the SAD correction coefficient, thus correcting the SAD values.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a motion estimation method using adaptive mode decision and, more particularly, to a method of estimating motion by considering quantization coefficients, the amount of motion vector coding and the amount of texture coding as well as Sum of Absolute Difference values when deciding between inter 1 motion vector mode and inter 4 motion vector mode.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional motion estimation method, when deciding between inter 1 Motion Vector (1MV) mode and inter 4 Motion Vector (4MV) mode, only a Sum of Absolute Difference (SAD) value corresponding to a difference value between a current frame block and a previous frame block is considered with a fixed weight being assigned to the inter 1MV mode. As a result, if there is a relatively large amount of motion at a low bit rate, the inter 4MV mode is decided on. In this case, there occurs a counter result in which the total amount of coding increases because the increase in the amount of motion vector coding is significantly greater than the decrease in the amount of texture coding. In the inter 4MV mode, a relatively large number of motion vectors are generated compared to the inter 1MV mode, so that the decrease in the amount of texture coding is large at a high bit rate. Thus, although the amount of motion vector coding increases, the amount of coding is expected to decrease as a whole. If a quantization coefficient is large (i.e., the decrease in the amount of texture coding is small) or there is a large amount of motion (i.e., the increase in the motion vector is large), there is a problem in that the inter 4MV mode causes a larger amount of coding than the inter 1MV mode.
For example, although Korean Unexamined Pat. Publication No. 2001-0082934 considers the amount of motion vector coding, the consideration is not direct, unlike the present invention. Further, this patent publication attempts to reduce the length of a motion vector difference value in such a way as to select zero vector median predictors when they are smaller than a predetermined threshold. Furthermore, Korean Unexamined Pat. Publication No. 2004-0008360 considers the coding of a motion vector. However, this patent publication considers only the coding length of a motion vector, but does not deal with the amount of texture coding.
The construction and effect of the prior art are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 illustrates a process of coding a macro block image (an image processing unit having a 16×16 size) in the conventional Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)-4 standard.
Motion Estimation (ME) 10 is the step of finding a motion by comparing the luminous component of a previous frame and the luminous component of a current frame. In this step, the value of a motion vector, indicating the degree of movement from the previous frame, is obtained on a macro block or block (an image processing unit having an 8×8 size) basis. The following steps 11 to 16 are performed on a block basis, and are referred to as texture coding. Texture coding is performed on each of four luminance blocks and two chrominance blocks that are included in one macro block. Motion Compensation minus (MC(−)) 11 is the step of subtracting the pixel value of a previous frame from the pixel value of a current block using the motion vector obtained at the step of ME 10. With this step, only the pixel difference between the previous and current frames remains, and the amount of information to be coded is reduced accordingly. At the step of Discrete Cosine Transform/Quantization (DCT/Q) 12, spatial domain data, having undergone MC(−) 11, are transformed into frequency domain data, and quantization is performed to reduce the amount of information. Alternating Current/Direct Current (AC/DC) Prediction (ADP) 13 is performed only in an intra macro block, and obtains the difference value between the AC/DC coefficients of neighboring blocks. This step has the effect of reducing the amount of coding by reducing spatial redundancy. Variable Length Coding (VLC) 14 is the step of performing variable-length coding on data and generating a final bit stream. Inverse Q/Inverse DCT (IQ/IDCT) 15 and Motion Compensation plus (MC(+)) 16 are the steps of restoring a block image by performing the processes 12 and 11 in an inverse manner, in which case data to be used in a decoder are output as a result of the IQ/IDCT 15 and the MC(+) 16. Since the data are used in the ME 10 of the next frame, the decoder and the encoder can estimate and compensate for motion using the same screen.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the steps of a conventional motion estimation method. Macro block-based ME 20 is the step of calculating the SAD values of motion vectors x,y within a motion search range and finding a motion vector having a minimal SAD value. The SAD is defined as the following Equation 1:
                              SAD                                (                          x              ,              y                        )                          =                              ∑                          i              =              0                        15                                                                                ∑                              j                =                0                            15                                                                                                                                C                                      i                    ,                    j                                                  -                                  P                                                            i                      +                      x                                        ,                                          j                      +                      y                                                                                                                                          (        1        )            where Ci,j is the pixel value of a current frame, and Pi,j is the pixel value of a previous frame. It is assumed that the minimal of SAD values output from the macro block-based ME 20 is SADi16. Block-based ME 21 is performed within a range of −2 to +2 around the motion vector that is obtained in macro block-based ME 20 on a block basis. In this case, the SAD is defined as the following Equation 2:
                                                        SAD                                            (                                  x                  ,                  y                                )                                      =                                          ∑                                  i                  =                  0                                7                                                                                ∑                                      j                    =                    0                                    7                                                                                                                                            C                                              i                        ,                        j                                                              -                                          P                                                                        i                          +                          x                                                ,                                                  j                          +                          y                                                                                                                                              ,          or                                                                                mrSAD                                      (                              x                ,                y                            )                                =                                    ∑                              i                =                0                            7                                                                                ∑                                  j                  =                  0                                7                                                                                                                                      (                                                                  C                                                  i                          ,                          j                                                                    -                                              m                        c                                                              )                                    -                                      (                                                                  P                                                                              i                            +                            x                                                    ,                                                      j                            +                            y                                                                                -                                              m                        p                                                              )                                                                                                                                  m              c                        =                                          1                64                                                                            ∑                                      i                    =                    0                                    7                                                                                ∑                                          j                      =                      0                                        7                                                                                C                                          i                      ,                      j                                                                                ,                                    m              p                        =                                          1                64                                                                            ∑                                      i                    =                    0                                    7                                                                                ∑                                          j                      =                      0                                        7                                                                                P                                                                  i                        +                        x                                            ,                                              j                        +                        y                                                                                (        2        )
Block-based ME 21 is performed on each of four luminance blocks within a macro block. It is assumed that the minimal of SAD values for respective blocks is SADi8—k (k=0, 1, 2, 3). In intra parameter calculation 22, a parameter for determining whether a current macro block will be coded into an intra macro block or an inter macro block is calculated using the following Equations 3 and 4:
                    MB_mean        =                              (                                          ∑                                                      i                    =                    0                                    ,                                      j                    =                    0                                                                    15                  ,                  15                                                                                C                                  i                  ,                  j                                                      )                    /          256                                    (        3        )                                A        =                              ∑                                          i                =                0                            ,                              j                =                0                                                    15              ,              15                                                                                                                          C                                  i                  ,                  j                                            -              MB_mean                                                                      (        4        )
At step 23, it is determined whether the current macro block will be coded into an intra macro block or an inter macro block using the parameter, and SADi16 and SADi8—k obtained at the steps of the macro block unit ME 20 and the block unit ME 21. When the Equation 5 is true, a condition in which the current macro block will be coded into the intra macro block is fulfilled. The reason why 512 is subtracted from the right side of Equation 5 is that the inter mode, requiring a smaller amount of coding than the intra mode, is generally preferred. The SADinter of Equation 5 is defined by Equation 6. In Equation 6, Min( ) refers to the smaller of the two numbers in parentheses.
                    A        <                  (                                    SAD              inter                        -            512                    )                                    (        5        )                                          SAD          inter                =                  Min                                (                                          SAD                                  i                                                                                16                                            ,                                                ∑                                      k                    =                    0                                    3                                                                                SAD                                      i                                                                                8                                        _k                                                                        )                                              (        6        )
If the current macro block will be coded into the intra macro block, the motion vector is set to 0 and the step of ME is terminated at step 27. In the case of the inter macro block, the process proceeds to the step of macro block-based semi-pixel ME. Macro block-based semi-pixel ME 24 is the step of calculating the SAD values of the eight semi-pixel motion vectors, including upper, lower, right, left and diagonal semi-pixel motion vectors, of the motion vector obtained from the macro block-based ME 20, and finding a motion vector that has a minimal SAD value. A pixel value at the position of a semi-pixel is replaced with the average value of surrounding integer pixel values. It is assumed that the minimal of the SAD values obtained in the macro block-based semi-pixel ME 24 is SADh16. Block-based semi-pixel ME 25 is the step of calculating SAD values for the eight semi-pixel motion vectors, including upper, lower, right, left and diagonal semi-pixel motion vectors, of the motion vector obtained from the block-based ME 21, and finding a motion vector that has a minimal SAD value. A pixel value at the position of a semi-pixel is replaced with the average value of surrounding integer pixel values. The semi-pixel ME 25 of the block unit is performed on each of four luminance blocks within the macro block. It is assumed that the minimal of SAD values for respective blocks is SADh8—k (k=0, 1, 2, 3). At the step of motion vector decision 26, whether a macro block-based motion vector, an inter 1MV mode block-based motion vector, or an inter 4MV mode block-based motion vector is used is determined using Equation 7. If Equation 7 is true, the block-based motion vector is used. If Equation 7 is false, the macro block-based motion vector is used. The reason why 128 is subtracted from the right side of Equation 7 is that the use of the macro block-based motion vector is preferred (because the amount of motion vector coding is generally smaller). In Equation 7, SAD16 and SAD8—k are defined by Equations 8 and 9, respectively. In Equations 8 and 9, Min( ) refers to the smaller of the two numbers in parentheses.
                                          ∑                          k              =              0                        3                                                                                SAD                          8                            _k                                      <                              SAD            16                    -          128                                    (        7        )                                          SAD          16                =                  Min                                (                                          SAD                                  i                                                                                16                                            ,                              SAD                                  k                                                                                16                                                      )                                              (        8        )                                          SAD                      8                        _k                          =                  Min                                (                                          SAD                i8_k                            ,                              SAD                k8_k                                      )                                              (        9        )

Motion estimation method using adaptive mode decision


A work piece according to the invention has caulking tabs that are connected to each other by means of a bridge piece. As a result, the caulking tabs are lengthened, thus permitting better control of the caulking process because the caulking tabs overlap a component better.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to a work piece of plastically deformable material and having caulking tabs.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the manufacture of sheet metal parts, e.g. for pole housings of electric machines, particularly of small-power electric motors, when the sheet metal is punched, two opposing caulking tabs are produced, which in the final assembly of the pole housing, produce a connection between the pole housing and a component, e.g. a transmission housing, by being radially caulked against the transmission housing.
A minimal punching width between the caulking tabs, which among other things, limits a length of the caulking tabs, depends on the sheet metal thickness. The thicker the sheet metal, the greater the minimum producible punching width. The shorter the caulking tab to be bent, the smaller the overlap between the caulking tab and the component.
The smaller a radial caulking stroke required to caulk the caulking tabs, the greater the sensitivity to component tolerances of the pole housing or the component, which makes the caulking process difficult to control.


An electric switching device for an electric circuit, including at least one electric phase having at least one circuit breaking unit associated with a disconnector unit. The circuit breaker unit including a circuit breaker movable contact configured to be actuated between a closed position and an open position with respect to a corresponding circuit breaker fixed contact. The disconnector unit includes at least one disconnector movable contact configured to be actuated between a connection position and a disconnection position with respect to a corresponding disconnector fixed contact. A casing that includes an insulating shell coupled to a metal shell. The casing houses at least the circuit breaker unit and the associated disconnector unit of said at least one electric phase.

Known switching devices are designed to allow the correct operation of specific parts of the electric circuits in which they are installed, and of the operators of such electric circuits.
Circuit breakers are known switching devices which perform a protective function against failures occurring in the associated electric circuit. For example, a circuit breaker can be actuated, during its operation, between a closed position, where it allows a current flowing between two parts of the associated electric circuit, and an open position where it interrupts such current flow. Thus, the circuit breakers can be suitable for interrupting fault currents, e.g. an overload or short-circuit current.
Disconnectors are known switching devices which perform a disconnecting function between two parts of the associated electric circuit, to ensure the safety of the operators working on one of the two disconnected parts. A disconnector can be actuated, during its operation, between a connection position, where an electrical connection between the two parts is realized by the disconnector itself, and a disconnection position, where the two parts are physically separated by the disconnector itself in order to interrupt their electrical connection.
As the circuit breaker, the disconnector in the connection position can withstand the flowing therethrough of fault currents but, contrary to the circuit breaker, it cannot be actuated to interrupt such fault currents. Hence, a circuit breaker and a disconnector can be associated in each phase of an electric circuit, and can be connected in series to perform the current interruption functionality between two parts of the electric circuit and the disconnection functionality between such two parts, respectively.
Under normal operation conditions, a current flows between the two parts of the electric circuit through the current path realized by the circuit breaker in the closed position and the disconnector in the connection position. The disconnector can be actuated from the connection to the disconnection position only after that the circuit breaker has been actuated from the closed to the open position.
The circuit breakers and the associated disconnectors are installed in an electric unit, such as a switchgear. The electric unit includes a distribution compartment containing power distribution means, e.g. distribution bars, and a load compartment containing cables (or other connection means) connected to one or more electric loads.
The distribution means and the corresponding one or more electric loads are operatively electrically connected through the circuit breakers and the associated disconnectors. For example, the circuit breakers and the disconnectors are located into the electric unit between the distribution and load compartments.
In some applications a metal earthed segregation between the distribution and load compartments is specified.
The circuit breakers and the associated disconnectors are conceived as separated devices, e.g., each having an own casing occupying a dedicated space, or comportment, into the electric unit. In this case, further internal space of the electric unit has to be occupied by connection means provided for electrically connecting the associated circuit breakers and disconnectors (placed at difference locations into the electric unit).
In this example the above mentioned metal earthed segregation can be fulfilled by making the casing of the disconnectors entirely of metal material.
European patent application EP1928065 discloses a disconnector unit having a casing defined by coupling a first insulating shell and a second metal shell, wherein the metal earthed segregation is fulfilled by the metal shell.
In other known solutions, the associated circuit breakers and disconnectors are housed into the same casing, or tank, which is entirely made of metal material in order to provide the metal earthed segregation.
At the current state of the art, although known solutions perform in a rather satisfying way, there is still reason and desire for further improvements.
Exemplary embodiments described herein provide an electric switching device for an electric circuit, having at least an electric phase that includes at least a circuit breaking unit associated with a disconnector unit, wherein the circuit breaker unit has at least a circuit breaker movable contact which can be actuated, during the operation of the circuit breaker unit, between a closed position where it is electrically coupled to a corresponding circuit breaker fixed contact and an open position where it is electrically separated from the corresponding circuit breaker fixed contact, and wherein the disconnector unit includes at least a disconnector movable contact which can be actuated, during the operation of the disconnector unit, between a connection position where it is connected to a corresponding disconnector fixed contact and at least a disconnection position where it is disconnected from the corresponding disconnector fixed contact, a casing including a first shell made of insulating material coupled to a second shell made of metal material, said casing housing at least the circuit breaker unit and the associated disconnector unit of said at least an electric phase.
In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure an electric apparatus including a switching device such as the switching device defined by the annexed claims and disclosed in the following description, a first operating mechanism operatively connected to and adapted to drive the first actuating means of the switching device to cause the actuation of said at least circuit breaker movable contact of the circuit breaker unit, a second operating mechanism operatively connected to and adapted to drive the second actuating means of the switching device to cause the actuation of said at least a disconnector movable contact of the disconnector unit, interlocking means operatively connected to the first and second operating mechanisms and adapted to avoid (e.g., prevent) the driving of said second actuating means by the second operating mechanism, when said at least a circuit breaker movable contact is in the closed position.
Another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure provides a switchgear including at least a switching device and/or at least an electric apparatus such as the switching device and the electrical apparatus defined by the annexed claims and disclosed in the following description.
In the following description reference will be made for example to an exemplary electrical switching device, an exemplary electric apparatus and an exemplary switchgear suitable for being used in medium voltage applications, wherein for the purpose of the present disclosure the term "medium voltage" is referred to applications with operating voltages in the range from 1 kV to some tens of kV, e.g., 30 kV or 40 kV.
It is to be set forth that the switching device, the electric apparatus and the switchgear according to the present disclosure can be used in applications having a greater voltage, e.g. in an applications having a voltage greater than 40 kV.

Electric switching device and related electric apparatus


An antifuse fabrication process includes the steps of forming a lower antifuse electrode, forming an insulating layer over the lower antifuse electrode, forming an antifuse aperture in the insulating layer, forming a dielectric antifuse material including a first layer comprising silicon dioxide and a second layer comprising silicon nitride over the antifuse insulating layer, etching the silicon nitride layer to form a small layer of silicon nitride in a region centered over the antifuse aperture, optionally forming a third dielectric antifuse layer comprising silicon dioxide, and forming an upper antifuse electrode. Alternatively, the first, second, and third layers of dielectric antifuse material may be formed and then etched to form a small composite sandwich structure of silicon nitride and silicon dioxide over the first silicon dioxide layer in a region centered over the antifuse aperture prior to forming an upper antifuse electrode.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to semiconductor fabrication processes. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods for fabricating antifuse devices as a part of a CMOS integrated circuit fabrication process.
2. The Prior Art
Numerous processes for fabrication of antifuses are known in the prior art. Some of these processes may be easily integrated into already existing integrated circuit fabrication processes. Some antifuse elements incorporate a dielectric antifuse material which contains a nitride such as silicon nitride, either as a single layer, or as a part of a multilayer dielectric such as that described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,823,181 and 4,899,205. Such structures exhibit excellent leakage and reliability characteristics, and are thus preferred for certain applications.
Major thermal cycles associated with an antifuse fabrication process include oxidation of silicon nitride, drive in of arsenic dopant into polysilicon and oxidation of the polysilicon. While these thermal cycles are necessary for antifuse fabrication, they adversely impact the performance of transistors which are fabricated on the same integrated circuit as the antifuse. Such transistors include CMOS low voltage and high voltage active transistors, and in particular, field isolation transistors which separate the antifuses from each other.
The problem with the field transistor next to the antifuse is that when the thermal cycle is too long, this field transistor will become leaky. The degradation is introduced during antifuse processing, when an oxide-nitride-oxide antifuse material layer is formed not just in the antifuse region but also on top of the field oxide. After deposition and etching of polysilicon gate oxide, this nitride layer remains in the field oxide region under the polysilicon and becomes part of the field isolation transistor. Thermal cycle processes after nitride is formed will move nitrogen from the ONO nitride layer on top of the field oxide to the oxide/silicon interface. This creates positive traps, lowers the field transistor threshold, increases field transistor leakage, and eventually leads to poor isolation performance. As a result, during antifuse programming, this leakage will cause the antifuse adjacent to the desired antifuse to become programmed thus creating accidentally programmed antifuses. During normal operation, this leakage will contribute to the increase in standby leakage current.
In advanced CMOS or sub micron CMOS processes where the thermal budget after CMOS transistors are formed is very small, the long thermal budget associated with fabrication of the antifuses makes it unattractive for the antifuses to be processed after the CMOS transistors. One way to solve this problem from process viewpoint is to place the antifuse fabrication process before the transistor fabrication process. This eliminates exposing the transistors to the antifuse fabrication thermal cycles. However, the field isolation transistors which separate the antifuses from each other still suffer from the long thermal cycles and the added degradation associated with the thermal cycles. This happens because the top electrode of the antifuse forms the gate of the field transistors.
Circuits which help to alleviate this field isolation transistor problem are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,130,777. These circuits require additional layout area on the integrated circuit die. Sometimes the addition of these circuits adversely affects the flexibility of the antifuse programming algorithm and limits the optimization of the antifuse performance. Each thermal cycle is important. Therefore, the field transistor leakage should be reduced with processing step considerations. While it is necessary to reduce thermal cycles, it has to be kept in mind that oxide thickness on top of the nitride layer is very important in preventing antifuse leakage and improving antifuse manufacturing margin, especially in a plasma processing environment. In addition, the drive-in cycle for the arsenic dopant into the polysilicon is also important to ensure that arsenic is present close to the ONO interface to create a low resistance programmed antifuse.
The present invention is intended to solve this field isolation transistor problem from a process viewpoint. In addition, considerations are made to assure manufacturability and reliability of the antifuse. The present invention provides methods for forming antifuses which can maintain antifuse reliability while minimizing effects of antifuse process on field transistor performance.


A retrofit HID lamp assembly, for use in a non-HID lighting receptacle, to provide HID illumination. The lamp assembly includes (i) a housing of a non-HID lamp assembly, (ii) a base terminal structure coupled with the housing, and compatible with such non-HID lighting receptacle, (iii) a ballast unit in the interior of the housing, (iv) a reflector overlying the ballast unit in the interior of the housing, (v) an HID lamp mounted in the interior of the housing so that light generated by the HID lamp is reflected by the reflector, with the HID lamp being electrically coupled with the ballast unit, and (vi) a lens coupled with the housing. A corresponding fabrication methodology is described. The retrofit HID lamp assembly may be used to retrofit existing lighting installations, such as PAR receptacles in exterior aircraft lighting systems, to cost-efficiently improve the illumination provided by such systems.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention generally relates to high intensity discharge (HID) lamps and more specifically to a drop-in HID lamp assembly and retrofit method of deploying same, e.g., in aircraft lighting applications.
2. Brief Description of the Related Art
In the field of aircraft lighting, a wide variety of lighting elements and fixtures has been employed for interior (cabin) as well as exterior lighting applications.
Among the lights employed in exterior aircraft lighting systems, landing lights and taxi lights are particularly critical for safety and operability of the aircraft.
Conventional commercial passenger aircraft such as the Boeing 737, 747 and 777 (The Boeing Company, Chicago, Ill.) and many Airbus jetliners (Airbus S.A.S., Toulouse, France) use a common 28 volt 600 watt halogen. Parabolic Aluminized Reflector (PAR) 64 lamp (Part No. Q4559X or Part No. Q4559XX) for landing and taxi lights. In PAR lamps, the bulb and reflector are encased in a glass housing, with size of the lamp ranging from M16 to PAR 64, and bulb sizes ranging from Aircraft Landing (ACL) to very wide. Typical output of PAR lamps for such aircraft lighting applications is in the vicinity of 700,000 candelas (cd) with a 10×12 (spot) angle. A significant deficiency of such PAR 64 lamps is their short service life, which in typical aircraft exterior lighting applications is on the order of 10-20 hours. The failure mode of such lamps is almost invariably associated to cracked lenses or filament failure.
Change-out of failed PAR 64 lamps, as a result of their short operating life, represents a major maintenance issue, since such lighting is intended for continuous functioning during night or low visibility conditions.
There is therefore a need in the art for aircraft taxi and landing lights that provide long service life and are readily deployed and efficient in use, and that, ideally, could be retrofitted to existing PAR 64 lighting assemblies, thereby avoiding the necessity of out-of-service periods for rewiring and fitting of new lighting systems.

Drop-in high intensity discharge lamp assembly, and retrofit method of deploying same


An onboard display device includes multiple screen data that define plural types of screen designs including a character string display frame with equal size; plural types of font data; and multiple character string tables which record character strings to be displayed on a screen with one of the screen designs defined by the plural types of screen data, are each provided for one of the plural types of font data, and include character strings whose written forms are altered according to character size defined by the font data so that the character strings can be contained in the display frame, wherein the decision unit 12 decides a display type to be used for screen display on a display unit, and the display unit 6 displays the screen using the screen data, font data and character string corresponding to the display type decided by the decision unit 12.

Onboard equipment such as a car navigation system and car audio system is usually designed in such a manner that a single type of onboard equipment is mountable in plural types of vehicles. In this case, it is desirable for both an onboard equipment maker and carmaker to be able to apply a single type of onboard equipment to as many types of vehicles as possible.
A reason for this is that from a standpoint of an onboard equipment maker, it is feared that an increased number of types of the onboard equipment can complicate manufacturing management and increase management costs. In addition, from a standpoint of a carmaker, it is feared that mounting dedicated onboard equipment in a specific model individually is apt to bring about an excess or shortage of stock of the onboard equipment in the process of manufacturing vehicles, which will impair production efficiency.
In order that a single type of onboard equipment (navigation system) can implement navigation suitable for models of vehicles or for an environment where the vehicles are used, Patent Document 1 discloses a navigation system that switches, in accordance with vehicle information, setup information to be set in a processing program for executing the navigation.
On the other hand, as for display contents of the onboard equipment, it is desirable to have unity of design with the interior design of a vehicle. In particular, popular cars or luxuary cars have a greater demand for that.
In addition, as for font design of characters to be displayed on the display frame of the dashboard, since it varies depending on the type of a vehicle, it is convenient for a font of character strings to be displayed on the onboard equipment to be switched in conjunction with the switching of the screen design in order that a single type of onboard equipment can cope with plural types of vehicles.
The onboard equipment, however, has a small display in general. Accordingly, when changing the font of the character strings without altering a screen layout, there are some cases where the character strings are not contained in a display frame on the screen. Since such a condition deteriorates the visibility of a user, that font cannot be employed.
Thus, when using only a font contained in display frames, the font has a possibility of impairing the unity of design with the interior design. Accordingly, when emphasizing the unity of design with the interior design of the vehicle, a problem arises of restricting the types of vehicles capable of mounting the single type of onboard equipment.
Incidentally, Patent Document 1 does not disclose means for solving the problems about the screen design and character display described above.
The present invention is implemented to solve the foregoing problems. Therefore it is an object of the present invention to provide an onboard display device capable of providing screen design and character display matching a plurality of models of vehicles.


A data multiplexer that accommodates both industry standard CCSDS data packets and bits streams and standard IEEE 1394 data is described. The multiplexer provides a statistical allotment of bandwidth to the channels in turn, preferably four, but expandable in increments of four up to sixteen. A microcontroller determines bandwidth requested by the plurality of channels, as well as the bandwidth available, and meters out the available bandwidth on a statistical basis employing flow control to the input channels.

The multiplexing of a plurality of signals for transmission via a single transmission medium is common practice in the art. In particular for digital systems, a number of digital signals are multiplexed by assigning a predetermined proportion of the total bit rate available in the transmission medium to each of the signals that it is desired to transmit. The proportion of the available bit rate assigned to each signal is typically fixed in each system.
However, in multi-channel systems, often the bit rate required by different channels varies substantially from the bit rate required of other channels.
For example, Schmitz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,301,250, describes combining a time division multiplexed (TDM) signal into one or more "transmission capacity assigned" ATM channel(s). The input channels are assigned a fixed rate, so that if the bit stream from one channel far exceeds that of another, the system does not accommodate the difference. Further, no flow control for the different channels is provided.
Budge et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,219,359, describes a device that adjusts the distribution of the bit rate allocation in response to differences between the indicated picture quality. However, the system described does not control the flow of data of different data types, such as for example bit streams and digital camcorders or video tape recorders, and does not provide flow control to reallocate bandwidth to throttle various channels up and down to fill up an existing transmission link.
Thus, there remains a need for a data transmission system which statistically controls the allocation of bandwidth to various transmission channels to most efficiently utilize the transmission link. Further, there remains a need for such a digital data transmission system which can accommodate a plurality of data types, such as for example bit stream and data packets and digital video data. Further, there remains a need for a system which controls the flow of data in a plurality of data channels by reducing the data flow in one channel while permitting increased data flow from another channel in response to the quantity of data to be transmitted. The present invention is directed to filling these and other needs in the art.

The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration


A method for calculating a trajectory of a satellite following a maneuver includes determining a first estimated trajectory of a satellite using a first sequential mode of operation; performing a thruster burn as a correction maneuver for the satellite; and providing a real-time assessment of the correction maneuver by utilizing a second sequential mode of operation. The second sequential mode of operation includes receiving a data point from an uplink/downlink facility, determining a second estimated trajectory and an estimated thruster performance of the satellite based upon the received data point, and determining a trajectory error of the satellite based upon the received data point. The method further includes repeating the second sequential mode of operation if the trajectory error is above a specified threshold level, and repeating the first sequential mode of operation if the trajectory error is below the specified threshold level.

The exploration of space has provided for many useful technological innovations. The implementation of satellites depict one type of technological innovation that has been particularly beneficial. Satellites are a type of device that orbit around the Earth in regular intervals, and may provide various useful functions, such as communication transponders, or gatherers of information, such as weather related information. One particular type of satellite is a geosynchronous satellite that is disposed at a particular altitude necessary to have an angular velocity similar to the angular velocity of Earth. In this manner, stations on Earth wishing to communicate with the satellite may orient antennas to one generally direction in the sky in order to communicate with the satellite.

Trajectory estimation system for an orbiting satellite


The present disclosure provides systems and methods that improve job posting structure and presentation by, for example, classifying portions of job postings into informative sections. As an example, given a job posting, a computing system implementing aspects of the present disclosure can separate the job posting into multiple portions. After separation into portions, the computing system can classify each portion into the most plausible job-posting-specific section. For example, the computing system can include and implement a machine-learned classification model to classify the portions into the sections. Following classification, the computing system can modify the job posting based on the classification of the portions. In particular, the structure and/or presentation of the job posting can be improved based on the classification of the portions into the sections.

An employer can post or otherwise submit a job posting to a company career site, a job board, an employment website, an applicant tracking system, or other job posting and search platforms. Job postings can include a number of sections that include information that describes various facets of the corresponding job that the employer is seeking to fill. Example sections that a job posting can include are "requirements," "responsibility and description," "company," "benefits," "other," or other sections (e.g., "environment"). A search engine can search available job postings (e.g., on the basis of a search query) to identify postings that may be applicable to an applicant.
However, a number of problems and challenges are associated with job postings. First, there is no defined standard when it comes to the format of job postings. As such, some job postings are ill structured. For example, some job postings wholly lack a breakdown into sections like requirements, responsibilities, etc. For example, some job postings may include only large chunks of plain text. Job postings of this nature are difficult to read. Therefore, job seekers are required to spend a significant amount of time going through lengthy job postings to find useful information or realize that the job is missing information important to them.
Other job postings may have information categorized into certain sections, but such information may be miscategorized or disjointed. For example, due to a lack of experience or skill by the job posting creator, information that should be placed within the benefits section may instead be incorrectly placed within the requirements section. Similarly, a job posting can describe benefits in a first paragraph, requirements in the next paragraph, and then return to discuss benefits in a third paragraph. Instead, it would be more user-friendly to have a defined structure in which all benefits are discussed in one section while all requirements are discussed in a separate section.
In another challenge raised by job postings, even assuming that all job postings are well structured, job seekers may value each section very differently. For example, some job seekers might care most about the job requirements, while other job seekers place more value on the benefits that the job has to offer. However, currently existing job posting platforms do not display job postings or generate snippets of job search results according to job seekers' preferences. Instead, job postings are snipped and displayed in the same way to all job seekers, which is not flexible and makes job hunting less user-friendly and a more time consuming process.

Systems and methods to improve job posting structure and presentation


The present invention eliminates a valve holder and accommodates a valve guide in a small space provided between a valve seat and a peripheral surface part of a pressure chamber to reduce the size of a pump. The valve guide guides a stroke of the valve and is provided inside the valve seat. The valve includes an annular abutting surface that abuts a valve seat formed in a valve housing to shut off a fuel intake passage and a bottomed cylindrical part is provided at an inner peripheral part of the annular abutting surface. The bottomed cylindrical part is inserted into a fuel introduction hole formed in the valve housing inside the valve seat. A member having a cylindrical surface part that supports a reciprocating motion of the valve, is fixed to the valve housing, face-to-face with an inner peripheral part of the bottomed cylindrical part.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high-pressure fuel supply pump having an electromagnetically-driven intake valve. The invention more particularly relates to a pump constructed in such a way that an electromagnetically-driven intake valve is constituted by a so-called outward open type valve provided with a valve on the side of a pressurizing chamber with respect to a valve seat.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally this type of high-pressure fuel supply pump is constituted, as described in JP-2009-203987-A, for example, in such a way that a valve is formed of a cylindrical member and an outer peripheral surface of the valve is guided with an inner peripheral part of a cylindrical valve holder located on the pressurizing chamber side (on the downstream side of a valve seat) as viewed from the valve seat.

High-pressure fuel supply pump having electromagnetically-driven intake valve


A method of monitoring the end-to-end quality of a service in a telecommunications network includes: a step (F10) of negotiating with the provider of the service a contract including at least one quality parameter of said service; a step (F22) of determining functions that must be provided by the network to comply with said contract; a step (F30) of receiving a request from a terminal to access said service; a step (F40) of selecting, on reception of the request, at least one equipment of the network able to provide said functions; and a step (F50) of setting up a path in the network between the terminal and the service provider via said at least one equipment.

The invention relates to the general field of monitoring quality of service in a telecommunications network.
It is preferably applied, although this is not limiting on the invention, in heterogeneous networks in which terminals of different types access multimedia services via access networks of different types.
In the current state of the art, the parameters of the quality of service offered to a user are managed by the service provider, the role of the network operator consisting essentially in transporting the multimedia data stream between the service provider and the terminal of the user.
Of course, in this patent application, the expression "service provider" refers to the information technology equipment of the service provider and not the commercial enterprise that offers the service.
FIG. 1 shows this mechanism. This figure shows a terminal 10 in a telecommunications network 1 seeking to download a multimedia stream from a content server 50 of a service provider.
In this example as described here, the terminal 10 accesses the network 1 via a home gateway 11 to which it is connected by a WiFi connection.
The home gateway 11 communicates with routers 13 of the network 1 via a DSLAM 12.
The DSLAM 12 is a known device adapted to recover data streams in transit on telephone lines to which it is connected and to multiplex this data to redirect it to the network of the operator.
It is assumed that on the service provider side the content server 50 is behind a transcoder 52 that adapts the format of the multimedia stream as a function of the characteristics of the terminal 10 and its access network.
In the example described here, the multimedia stream is secured by a firewall 51.
In the current state of the art, the equipment chain shown in FIG. 1 is set up statically by the operator when the user of the terminal 10 subscribes to the service concerned.
For example, if the user subscribes to a video on-demand Internet service, the operator sets up statically a chain in which:                the connection between the home gateway 11 and the DSLAM 12 includes virtual channels VC;        the routers 13 are statically predefined in a routing table of the operator; and        the firewall 51 and the transcoder 52 are chosen to make the multimedia stream secure and to code it as a function of the characteristics of the user terminal (set-top box) 10 and the access network (WiFi, ADSL).
From the point of view of the operator this configuration is very costly and it is not possible to optimize it as a function of the real demand from users.
Moreover, in practice it obliges the service provider to provide a content dedicated to each type of user equipment and each type of wireless access network (GPRS, UMTS, WiFi, etc.) or cable access network (ADSL, FTTH, etc.).

Method and device for monitoring service quality in a network


The present disclosure features a strain-promoted [2+2+2] reaction that can be carried out under physiological conditions. In general, the reaction involves reacting a pi-electrophile with a low lying LUMO with a quadricyclane on a biomolecule, generating a covalently modified biomolecule. The selectivity of the reaction and its compatibility with aqueous environments provides for its application in vivo and in vitro. The reaction is compatible with modification of living cells. In certain embodiments, the pi-electrophile can comprise a molecule of interest that is desired for delivery to a quadricyclane-containing biomolecule via [2+2+2] reaction.

Bioorthogonal transformations include four broad reaction types: 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions, Diels-Alder reactions, metal-catalyzed couplings, and nucleophilic additions. Outside of this space lies the [2+2+2] cycloaddition reaction, a choice for the rapid assembly of functionalized ring systems. In practice, such reactions are typically metal catalyzed as a means to overcome an otherwise significant entropic barrier. However, the highly strained hydrocarbon quadricyclane directly undergoes [2+2+2] cycloaddition with specific types of pi systems.
Literature
U.S. Pat. No. 7,808,619; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009/0068738; U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,040

Compositions and methods for quadricyclane modification of biomolecules

THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA


A tube includes a corrugated metal tubular member; and a first covering part that covers the outside of the tubular member, and forms a braided structure using a resin string member of which at least a part is covered by a metal having lower electrical resistance than that of a metal forming the tubular member. The tube can also include a third covering part made of an insulating resin arranged between the tubular member and the first covering part, and covers the tubular member, wherein the first covering part covers the third covering part.

A tube including a corrugated metal tubular member is sometimes used as a tube through which fluid such as gas or water used in a home flows. Such a tube arranged in a home may be damaged due to spark discharge generated by induced lightning that intrudes to the home through a wire or the like.
JP 2005-308210 A discloses a tube including a metal layer formed of a metal foil of a copper, an aluminum or the like, and has thickness continuing uniformly, in the outside of a resin layer covering a corrugated tubular member, or in between the tubular member and the resin layer. In the use of that tube, the metal layer is connected to a tube joint included in a piping system connected to a ground electrode, and is grounded via the tube joint. Accordingly, when a spark discharge occurs for the tube from a steel frame or the like due to induced lightning, the spark discharge occurs not toward the tubular member, but toward the metal layer. A current generated by the spark discharge flows not through the tubular member but through the metal layer to be released to the ground. However, in such a tube, when the metal layer is thin, a large part of the metal layer may be burned out by the spark discharge due to a single induced lightning occurrence, and a function of releasing a large current due to induced lightning thereafter to the ground not through the tubular member may be lost. When the metal layer is made thick so that the function of releasing a large current to the ground not through the tubular member is maintained for spark discharge due to multiple induced lightning occurrences, flexibility of the tube may be lost. To solve such a problem, a solution of both maintaining of a function of releasing a large current to the ground not through the tubular member for spark discharge due to multiple induced lightning occurrences, and maintaining flexibility in the tube has been desired.


A fuel vapor adsorption filter includes a fuel vapor adsorption agent; a filter body containing the fuel vapor adsorption agent therein, and a frame formed to surround the filter body. The frame is adapted to be mounted within an intake air channel connected to an engine, so that the filter body is operable to adsorb a fuel vapor within the intake air channel when the engine has been stopped. Non-woven fabrics form the filter body. The non-woven fabrics have peripheral edge portions. Heat-pressing the peripheral edge portions of the non-woven fabrics forms the frame.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fuel vapor adsorption filters, and in particular to fuel vapor adsorption filters that have a filter body and a frame surrounding the circumference of the filter body. The filter may be mounted within an intake air channel connected to an engine, e.g., an internal combustion engine, via the frame. The filter body may adsorb a fuel vapor within the intake air channel when the engine has stopped.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-42017 teaches a known fuel vapor adsorption filter. As shown in FIGS. 10(A), 10(B), and 10(C), a fuel vapor adsorption filter of this publication has a filter body 92 and a frame 94 surrounding the filter body 92. During the operation of an engine, the filter body 92 may permit intake air to pass through the filter body 92. When the engine has stopped, the filter body 92 may adsorb a fuel vapor within the intake air channel. The filter body includes an adsorption agent 92b made of activated carbon granules, a non-woven fabric 92c encasing and holding the adsorption agent 92b, and a net 92m made of resin and serving to protect the non-woven fabric 92c from any backfire flames produced by the engine. As shown in FIG. 10(A), injecting a resin into a mold 96, while an edge portion 92f of the filter body 92 is inserted into the mold 96, may produce the frame 94. In this way, the frame 94 is integrated with the filter body 92 at the same time that the frame 94 is molded. As shown in FIG. 10(C), a plurality of mounting holes 94h are formed in the frame 94 and are arranged in a circumferential direction. Pins 98p of an air cleaner housing 98 may be respectively inserted into the mounting holes 94h. The head portions of the pins 98p may then be heat-crimped, mounting the fuel vapor adsorption filter to the air cleaner housing 98.
However, in the case of the fuel vapor adsorption filter of the above publication, in order to mold the frame via an injection molding process, the edge portion 92f must be positioned between mating surfaces 96a and 96b of the mold 96. Therefore, the adsorption agent 92b made of activated carbon granules cannot be positioned at the edge portion 92f. This means that a range exists where no adsorption agent 92b is provided for a certain width inside of the frame 94 (i.e., the edge portion 92f of the filter body). As noted previously, the filter body 92 is primarily made of non-woven fabric 92c in order to permit the passage of intake air. Therefore, the edge portion 92f of the filter body 92 may permit the passage of air. However, this may result in the potential leakage of fuel vapor through the edge portion 92f.
In addition, because the frame 94 of the known filter is molded by an injection molding process, a different material than the material used for the filter body 92 is required for the frame 94. This may result in a problem of increased manufacturing costs.


Joint assemblies are useful for connecting one structure to another structure. When the various components deflect or bend edge loading occurs between the various components. The subject joint assembly includes a bushing positioned in one structure and a pin positioned in a second structure. An insert has an inner diameter positioned around the pin and an outer surface diameter positioned to interact with the bushing. The outer surface being a crowned surface. The joint assembly having the crowned insert directs forces to the center of the insert to reduce edge loading and deflection of the pin will be followed by the insert.

This invention relates to a joint assembly for connecting a rotating structure together, and more particularly to an arrangement having a sleeve positioned between rotating members to resist galling.
Joint assemblies such as a track joint are customarily held together by an interference fit between the ends of the pin and their respective bores of the track link or structure. During use the joint assembly between the track links will receive unequal loading and have a tendency to deflect and bend. The deflection and bending of the track pin relative to the track bushing could result in edge loading on the various components. The edge loading could put stress into the various components so that when the components move relative to each other the components will wear or have a tendency to make grooves or gall the various components.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.
In one aspect of the present invention a joint assembly is adapted to connect a first structure to a second structure. The joint assembly includes a sleeve positioned in the first structure. The sleeve includes a first end portion, a second end portion and an intermediate portion. A bore extends therethrough. An insert is positioned within the bore of the sleeve. The insert has a inner diameter and an outer diameter. A pin is positioned in the second structure and being disposed within the intermediate portion of the sleeve and the insert.
The present invention provides a joint assembly having an insert positioned between a sleeve and a pin to reduce edge loading of the pin and sleeve to reduce wear and galling of the rotating components.


The present invention provides novel polynucleotides encoding HGPRBMY74 polypeptides, fragments and homologues thereof. Also provided are vectors, host cells, antibodies, and recombinant and synthetic methods for producing said polypeptides. The invention further relates to diagnostic and therapeutic methods for applying these novel HGPRBMY74 polypeptides to the diagnosis, treatment, and/or prevention of various diseases and/or disorders related to these polypeptides. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying agonists and antagonists of the polynucleotides and polypeptides of the present invention.

Regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation, and migration is important for the formation and function of tissues. Regulatory proteins such as growth factors control these cellular processes and act as mediators in cell-cell signaling pathways. Growth factors are secreted proteins that bind to specific cell surface receptors on target cells. The bound receptors trigger intracellular signal transduction pathways which activate various downstream effectors that regulate gene expression, cell division, cell differentiation, cell motility, and other cellular processes. Some of the receptors involved in signal transduction by growth factors belong to the large superfamily of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) which represent one of the largest receptor superfamilies known.
GPCRs are biologically important as their malfunction has been implicated in contributing to the onset of many diseases, which include, but are not limited to, Alzheimer's, Parkinson, diabetes, dwarfism, color blindness, retinal pigmentosa and asthma. Also, GPCRs have also been implicated in depression, schizophrenia, sleeplessness, hypertension, anxiety, stress, renal failure and in several cardiovascular, metabolic, neuro, oncology and immune disorders (F Horn, G Vriend, J. Mol. Med. 76: 464–468, 1998.). They have also been shown to play a role in HIV infection (Y Feng, C C Broder, P E Kennedy, E A Berger, Science 272:872–877, 1996).
GPCRs are integral membrane proteins characterized by the presence of seven hydrophobic transmembrane domains which together form a bundle of antiparallel alpha (a) helices. The 7 transmembrane regions are designated as TM1, TM2, TM3, TM4, TM5, TM6, and TM7. These proteins range in size from under 400 to over 1000 amino acids (Strosberg, A. D. (1991) Eur. J. Biochem. 196: 110; Coughlin, S. R. (1994) Curr. Opin. Cell Biol. 6: 191–197). The amino-terminus of a GPCR is extracellular, is of variable length, and is often glycosylated. The carboxy-terminus is cytoplasmic and generally phosphorylated. Extracellular loops of GPCRs alternate with intracellular loops and link the transmembrane domains. Cysteine disulfide bridges linking the second and third extracellular loops may interact with agonists and antagonists. The most conserved domains of GPCRs are the transmembrane domains and the first two cytoplasmic loops. The transmembrane domains account for structural and functional features of the receptor. In most G-protein coupled receptors, the bundle of a helices forms a ligand-binding pocket formed by several G-protein coupled receptor transmembrane domains.
The TM3 transmembrane domain has been implicated in signal transduction in a number of G-protein coupled receptors. Phosphorylation and lipidation (palmitylation or farnesylation) of cysteine residues can influence signal transduction of some G-protein coupled receptors. Most G-protein coupled receptors contain potential phosphorylation sites within the third cytoplasmic loop and/or the carboxy terminus. For several G-protein coupled receptors, such as the b adrenoreceptor, phosphorylation by protein kinase A and/or specific receptor kinases mediates receptor desensitization. In fact, phosphorylation of an activated G-protein coupled receptor is a common mechanism for desensitizing signaling to a G-protein.
The extracellular N-terminal segment, or one or more of the three hydrophilic extracellular loops, have been postulated to face inward and form polar ligand binding sites which may participate in ligand binding. Ligand binding activates the receptor by inducing a conformational change in intracellular portions of the receptor. In turn, the large, third intracellular loop of the activated receptor interacts with an intracellular heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide binding (G) protein complex which mediates further intracellular signaling activities, including the activation of second messengers such as cyclic AMP (cAMP), phospholipase C, inositol triphosphate, or ion channel proteins. TM3 has been implicated in several G-protein coupled receptors as having a ligand binding site, such as the TM3 aspartate residue. TM5 serines, a TM6 asparagine and TM6 or TM7 phenylalanines or tyrosines have also been implicated in ligand binding (See, e. g., Watson, S. and S. Arkinstall (1994) The G-protein Linked Receptor Facts Book, Academic Press, San Diego Calif., pp. 2–6; Bolander, F. F. (1994) Molecular Endocrinology, Academic Press, San Diego Calif., pp. 162–176; Baldwin, J. M. (1994) Curr. Opin. Cell Biol. 6: 180–190; F Horn, R Bywater, G Krause, W Kuipers, L Oliveira, ACM Paiva, C Sander, G Vriend, Receptors and Channels, 5:305–314, 1998).
Recently, the function of many GPCRs has been shown to be enhanced upon dimerization and/or oligomerization of the activated receptor. In addition, sequestration of the activated GPCR appears to be altered upon the formation of multimeric complexes (AbdAlla, S., et al., Nature, 407:94–98 (2000)).
Structural biology has provided significant insight into the function of the various conserved residues found amongst numerous GPCRs. For example, the tripeptide Asp(Glu)-Arg-Tyr motif is important in maintaining the inactive confirmation of G-protein coupled receptors. The residues within this motif participate in the formation of several hydrogen bonds with surrounding amino acid residues that are important for maintaining the inactive state (Kim, J. M., et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 94:14273–14278 (1997)). Another example relates to the conservation of two Leu (Leu76 and Leu79) residues found within helix II and two Leu residues (Leu 128 and Leu131) found within helix III of GPCRs. Mutation of the Leu128 results in a constitutively active receptor—emphasizing the importance of this residue in maintaining the ground state (Tao, Y. X., et al., Mol. Endocrinol., 14:1272–1282 (2000); and Lu. Z. L., and Hulme, E. C., J. Biol. Chem., 274:7309–7315 (1999). Additional information relative to the functional relevance of several conserved residues within GPCRs may be found by reference to Okada et al in Trends Biochem. Sci., 25:318–324 (2001).
GPCRs include receptors for sensory signal mediators (e. g., light and olfactory stimulatory molecules); adenosine, bombesin, bradykinin, endothelin, y-aminobutyric acid (GABA), hepatocyte growth factor, melanocortins, neuropeptide Y, opioid peptides, opsins, somatostatin, tachykinins, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide family, and vasopressin; biogenic amines (e. g., dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine, histamine, glutamate (metabotropic effect), acetylcholine (muscarinic effect), and serotonin); chemokines; lipid mediators of inflammation (e. g., prostaglandins and prostanoids, platelet activating factor, and leukotrienes); and peptide hormones (e. g., calcitonin, C5a anaphylatoxin, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), gonadotropic-releasing hormone (GnRH), neurokinin, and thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH), and oxytocin). GPCRs which act as receptors for stimuli that have yet to be identified are known as orphan receptors.
GPCRs are implicated in inflammation and the immune response, and include the EGF module containing, mucin-like hormone receptor (Emrl) and CD97p receptor proteins. These receptors contain between three and seven potential calcium-binding EGF-like motifs (Baud, V. et al. (1995) Genomics 26: 334–344; Gray, J. X. et al. (1996) J. Immunol. 157: 5438–5447). These GPCRs are members of the recently characterized EGF-TM7 receptors family. In addition, post-translational modification of aspartic acid or asparagine to form erythro-p-hydroxyaspartic acid or erythro-p-hydroxyasparagine has been identified in a number of proteins with domains homologous to EGF. The consensus pattern is located in the N-terminus of the EGF-like domain. Examples of such proteins are blood coagulation factors VII, IX, and X; proteins C, S, and Z; the LDL receptor; and thrombomodulin.
GPCR mutations, which may cause loss of function or constitutive activation, have been associated with numerous human diseases (Coughlin, supra). For instance, retinitis pigmentosa may arise from mutations in the rhodopsin gene. Rhodopsin is the retinal photoreceptor which is located within the discs of the eye rod cell. Parma, J. et al. (1993, Nature 365: 649–651) reported that somatic activating mutations in the thyrotropin receptor cause hyperfunctioning thyroid adenomas and suggested that certain GPCRs susceptible to constitutive activation may behave as protooncogenes.
One large subfamily of GPCRs are the olfactory receptors. These receptors share the seven hydrophobic transmembrane domains of other GPCRs and function by registering G protein-mediated transduction of odorant signals. Numerous distinct olfactory receptors are required to distinguish different odors. Each olfactory sensory neuron expresses only one type of olfactory receptor, and distinct spatial zones of neurons expressing distinct receptors are found in nasal pasages. One olfactory receptor, the RAlc receptor which was isolated from a rat brain library, has been shown to be limited in expression to very distinct regions of the brain and a defined zone of the olfactory epithelium (Raming, K. et al., (1998) Receptors Channels 6: 141–151). In another example, three rat genes encoding olfactory-like receptors having typical GPCR characteristics showed expression patterns exclusively in taste, olfactory, and male reproductive tissue (Thomas, M. B. et al. (1996) Gene 178: 1–5).
Although olfactory receptors are typically associated with olfactory function and tend to localize to the olfactory bulb, there is increasing evidence that olfactory receptors and olfactory-like receptors may play more diverse roles in varying tissues (Yuan, T, T., Toy, P., McClary, J. A., Lin, R, J., Miyamoto, N, G., Kretschmer, P, J. Gene., 278(1–2):41–51, (2001); Blache, P., Gros, L., Salazar, G., Bataille, D, Biochem, Biophys, Res, Commun., 242(3):669–72, (1998); and Matsuoka, I., Mori, T., Aoki, J., Sato, T., Kurihara, K, Biochem, Biophys, Res, Commun., 194(1):504–11, (1993)).
HM74 is a G-protein coupled receptor that was originally isolated from a human monocyte cDNA library using degenerate oligonucleotide primers devised from conserved sequences among the cDNAs encoding the human receptors for IL-8, FP and C5a (Int. Immunol. 5 (10), 1239–1249 (1993)). Although several other receptors were also isolated that appeared to represent IL-8 related cytokines and chemokines, including HM63, HM89, and HM145, HM74 appeared to share the least homology to IL-8 and was thought to be a receptor for a different type of ligand.
HM74 is also referred to as EX20 (International Publication No. WO 02/13845, filed Aug. 16, 2001). EX20 was identified as an inflammation associated protein based upon its differential expression in various leukocyte subsets upon stimulation of cytokines which are critical for regulating inflammatory processes by GM-CSF. Specifically, EX20 expression was most pronounced in macrophages and neutrophils in respiratory inflammations in COPD, emphysema, ARDS and asthma, in synovial histiomonocytes in rheumatoid arthritis, and in neutrophils and epithelioid histiocytes in Crohn's disease. A subset of lyphocytes also showed intensive signals in the airways in asthma and COPD As a result, EX20 was attributed a critical role for regulating inflammatory processes in a number of inflammatory diseases.
A splice variant of HM74 was identified and referred to as HM74A (International Publication No. WO 98/56820, filed Jun. 12, 1998).
Recently, the endogenous ligand for HM74A and HM74 was identified as nicotinic acid (International Publication No. WO 02/84298, filed Apr. 10, 2002). Nicotinic acid was identified as a ligand for both HM74A and HM74 based upon the observation that cells transfected to express HM74A and/or HM74 gain the ability to elicit Gi G protein mediated responses following exposure to nicotinic acid.
In adipose tissue a reduction of cAMP levels results in an inhibition of hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) activity, an enzyme which regulates the process of lipolysis (i.e. the hydrolysis of triglycerides (TG) to glycerol and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA)). Inhibition of adipocyte lipolysis resulting in a reduction of plasma NEFA levels is thought to reduce hepatic triglyceride synthesis resulting in a decreased output of TG-rich lipoproteins (VLDL). A reduction in VLDL synthesis would then produce a functional inhibition of cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP) activity resulting in an elevation in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels. This alteration in lipoprotein levels, decreased TG and increased HDL, would be suitable for the treatment of dyslipidemic patients and should result in a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Furthermore, inhibition of adipocyte lipolysis via the activation of a Gi-coupled receptor is thought to be an important mechanism of action of nicotinic acid (Niacin). HM74 and HM74A are believed to be such a receptor. Nicotinic acid has been used clinically for over 40 years in patients with various forms of hyperlipoproteinaemia. Nicotinic acid produces a very desirable alteration in lipoprotein profiles; reducing levels of VLDL, LDL and Lp(a) while increasing HDL. Nicotinic acid has also been demonstrated to have disease modifying benefits, reducing the progression and increasing the regression of atherosclerotic lesions and reducing the number of cardiovascular events in several trials.
HM74 and HM74A was determined to be expressed in adipose, omentum and spleen. Modulators of both receptors are believed to be useful for treating primarily cardiovascular and metabolic disorders based upon the adipose expression, in conjunction with the fact that nicotinic acid is the ligand for both receptors.
Using the above examples, it is clear the availability of a novel cloned G-protein coupled receptor provides an opportunity for adjunct or replacement therapy, and are useful for the identification of G-protein coupled receptor agonists, or stimulators (which might stimulate and/or bias GPCR action), as well as, in the identification of G-protein coupled receptor inhibitors. All of which might be therapeutically useful under different circumstances.
The present invention also relates to recombinant vectors, which include the isolated nucleic acid molecules of the present invention, and to host cells containing the recombinant vectors, as well as to methods of making such vectors and host cells, in addition to their use in the production of HGPRBMY74 polypeptides or peptides using recombinant techniques. Synthetic methods for producing the polypeptides and polynucleotides of the present invention are provided. Also provided are diagnostic methods for detecting diseases, disorders, and/or conditions related to the HGPRBMY74 polypeptides and polynucleotides, and therapeutic methods for treating such diseases, disorders, and/or conditions. The invention further relates to screening methods for identifying binding partners of the polypeptides.

Polynucleotide encoding a novel human G-protein coupled receptor variant of HM74, HGPRBMY74


An electricity storage control device that transmits a charging rate of at least one of electricity storage devices to a management device that manages electric power interchange between the electricity storage devices, the electricity storage control device including: a charge information acquisition unit that acquires the charging rate of the at least one electricity storage device as a first charging rate; a communication unit that transmits the first charging rate to the management device; and a control unit that causes the communication unit to transmit, instead of the first charging rate, a second charging rate that charge and discharge determining information defines as the charging rate at which the charge and discharge are prohibited, when the charge and discharge determining information defines the first charging rate as the charging rate at which the charge and discharge are permitted.

In recent years, together with an electricity generation device such a photovoltaic generation device, an electricity storage device has been increasingly placed for each consumer. The electricity storage device charges when an amount of consumed electricity is smaller than an amount of generated electricity, and discharges when the amount of consumed electricity is larger than the amount of generated electricity, thereby enabling the consumer to efficiently use electricity generated by the electricity generation device.
It is assumed that a storage battery such as a lithium-ion battery is used as such an electricity storage device. The storage battery such as the lithium-ion battery has characteristics of deteriorating when charging or discharging excessively. Thus, for instance, the charge or discharge of the storage battery is managed so that a charging rate fails within a certain range (e.g., 20% to 80%).
In view of the above, to keep the charging rate of the storage battery in the certain range, a technique of performing electric power interchange between consumers has been proposed (e.g., refer to Patent Literature (PTL) 1). In the technique disclosed in PTL 1, the electric power interchange is performed according to an amount of electricity stored in the storage battery.

Electricity storage device, electricity storage control method, management device, management method, and electricity storage system

PANASONIC INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.


A device for controlling fuel pressure and delivery as necessary for the operation of the servovalves of an aircraft engine is disposed downstream of a fuel injector feed unit of the engine. The device comprises a chamber maintained at the servovalve feed pressure by the movement of a closure member to vary the opening of a port of the chamber. The closure member moves under the action of opposing forces comprising inter alia a force in the opening direction proportional to the servovalve feed pressure. An equilibrium position of the closure member is a function of pressure resulting from the engine speed. An injector delivery control loop is therefore isolated from a servovalve pressure and delivery control loop.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to hydromechanical devices for metering the delivery and pressure of a fuel feed to a hydraulic servovalve unit which is driven by the fuel. The invention also relates to a fuel supply circuit comprising said device and to a process for controlling the pressure and delivery of the fuel to a servovalve unit.
2. Technological Background
In an aircraft engine the fuel is supplied to fuel injectors at which the fuel is burned to provide the propulsive power and the power for feeding engine auxiliaries. The fuel is also used as a cooling liquid in heat exchangers, and also to operate a plurality of hydraulic servovalves. For example, nozzles and other variable-geometry elements are operated by hydraulic rams which are driven by a supply of the fuel under pressure.
The servovalves are usually supplied from a central servovalve feed unit whose pressure must remain constant and whose delivery must be capable of being varied in accordance with servovalve requirements.
The supply circuit for the injectors, exchangers and central servovalve feed unit comprises a low pressure pump which raises fuel coming from the aircraft tanks at an initial pressure Pca to a pressure Pb, a high pressure pump which further raises the fuel to a pressure higher than that required for the injectors and the servovalve feed unit.
Unused fuel is recycled. The proportion of recycled fuel relative to consumed fuel must not be excessive since the fuel is heated by its passage through the high pressure pump and is therefore less suitable as a cooling liquid. The high pressure pump may be a pump whose delivery is determined solely by its speed of rotation. This speed is in turn a function of engine speed. The pump may also be a pump whose delivery is a function not only of its speed but also of another parameter which can be so controlled that a pump running at a given speed can provide different delivery rates.
As explained in U.S. Pat. No. 5,715,674 to Reuter, variable delivery pumps have the advantage over fixed pumps of being able to deliver a fuel flow rate theoretically adapted to the instantaneous delivery required for engine operation.
The term xe2x80x9ctheoreticallyxe2x80x9d is used because, as explained in the said Reuter patent, the pump response time is not negligible. More particularly, the servovalves introduce erratic delivery variations requiring a control bandwidth at frequencies incompatible with pump control capacities whether the pump is of the variable geometry kind or of the fixed delivery kind. Excessive response times may lead to decrease in deliveries to the engine fuel injectors and/or malfunction of the servomechanisms operated by the pressurised fuel.
To overcome this problem the Reuter patent provides a pump control valve having an outlet connected to an element for controlling the delivery of the pump. The operation of the valve is not explained and, in particular, it is not clear how the pump can provide a better transient response time as stated in the last two lines of column 6 and the first line of column 7 of Reuter. It is clear, however, that the valve is an essential element of a control loop aimed at reducing as much as possible the delivery of the pump. This delivery is theoretically maintained at a level slightly above the level necessary to cover the delivery demanded by the engine fuel injectors and the delivery demanded at any instant by the servovalves.
Although such a device is an improvement over the prior art it does not provide a response time short enough to meet the requirements of the servovalves controlling various elements of the engine.
The inventors have realised that the response time of variable delivery pumps is short enough for a control loop comprising such a pump to control the fuel delivery to the engine fuel injectors without major problems. The latter delivery varies in accordance with known laws in dependence upon engine speed and other parameters such as temperature and the external pressure, which it is possible to monitor continuously so that they are known at any instant. Since the engine is a high inertia device its speed of rotation varies slowly. Similar considerations apply to the other parameters affecting the delivery consumed by the injectors.
The invention is therefore based on isolating the injector delivery control loop from the servovalve feed control loop.
To this end, the delivery required from the high pressure pump at any instant needs to be the sum of the delivery required by the engine fuel injectors at that instant plus the maximum delivery which may be required by the servovalves.
The maximum servovalve delivery is the delivery which would be necessary if all the servovalves were simultaneously each to demand the maximum delivery consumable by that servovalve. The sum of the maximum deliveries to all the servovalves for a given engine speed is therefore a known constant, so that the delivery variations of the pump are solely the variations of the fuel injector consumption. Delivery to the fuel injectors is therefore readily controllable.
When the required portion of the pump delivery has been delivered to the fuel injectors, the remainder of the delivery is sufficient to meet all servovalve requirements in all circumstances.
The invention therefore provides a pressure and delivery control loop for fuel directed to a servovalve feed unit downstream of a fuel injector feed unit, comprising a fuel intake at a first pressure and at a constant controlled delivery and a control device for keeping the pressure of the feed unit constant whatever the consumption of said unit and the variations of the various fuel pressures in dependence upon the engine speed and upon the other parameters affecting the pressures.
In an embodiment of the invention the pressure control device comprises a chamber for providing this constant pressure. The chamber communicates with the feed unit and, by way of a variable cross-section outlet port, with a portion of the fuel circuit between the high pressure pump and the low pressure pump.
The cross-section of the outlet port is varied in dependence upon the position of a first shutter which moves around a variable equilibrium position. This position is a function of the pressure difference between a first pressure downstream of the low pressure pump and upstream of the high pressure pump and a second pressure upstream of the low pressure pump. The movements of the first shutter around the variable equilibrium position are a function of the fuel consumed by the servovalve feed unit.
The variation of the port cross-section around the variable equilibrium position is effected, as explained above, by means of a first shutter movable in response to two opposing forces. One of these forces is provided by the combined action of the second pressure and of resilient means, such as a spring, and the other force is provided by the action of the first pressure on the shutter.
Variation of the port cross-section around the equilibrium position in dependence upon feed unit consumption is effected by the movement of a second movable shutter which is movable in response to two opposing forces. One of these forces is provided by the pressure forces exerted by the fuel combined with resilient forces created, for example, by a spring. The other force is created by fuel pressure forces. One of these other forces is created by fuel at the pressure of the servovalve feed. Consequently, a decrease in the latter pressure reduces the latter force and therefore leads to a closing movement of the second shutter.
For the sake of simplicity and improved reliability, the two shutters of the chamber are merged to form a single element formed by part of a movable spool which variably masks the opening of the outlet port. The spool has two ends and an intermediate part forming a piston.
The spool piston divides a compartment into two half-chambers, namely a first half-chamber and a second half-chamber, the latter being at the controlled servovalve feed pressure. The first half-chamber communicates with the upstream side of a diaphragm, and the second half-chamber communicates with the downstream side of the diaphragm. The upstream side of the diaphragm receives fuel originating from the high pressure pump, preferably through a filter. A spring applies a pressure to the spool in a direction towards the second half-chamber.
The first end of the spool is subjected to the pressure Pca and its opposite end is subjected to the pressure Pb.
The forces acting on the spool and tending to reduce the opening of the outlet port are:
the force exerted by the pressure Pca acting on the first end of the spool;
the force of the spring; and
the force exerted by the pressure upstream of the diaphragm and acting on the
spool piston.
The opposing forces acting on the spool and tending to increase the opening of the outlet port are:
the force exerted by the pressure Pb acting on the second end of the spool; and
the force exerted by the pressure downstream of the diaphragm and acting on the spool piston.
The parameters on which a direct action is possible by design and which must be considered in order to obtain a constant controlled pressure in dependence upon servovalve delivery are:
the cross-sectional areas of the first and second ends of the spool;
the diaphragm cross-section;
the elastic coefficient of the spring; and
the area of the spool piston.
In summary, according to the invention, in a fuel supply circuit of an aircraft engine including fuel injectors and a plurality of servovalves, a low pressure pump for raising the pressure of fuel from a tank from a pressure Pca to a pressure Pb, and a high pressure pump and filter for further raising the pressure of the fuel to a pressure Psf at the outlet of said filter, there is provided a device for controlling the pressure and delivery of fuel to said plurality of servovalves comprising:
a compartment divided in a sealed manner to define a first end chamber, an intermediate chamber, and a second end chamber;
a spool movable in said compartment and having first and second end portions and an intermediate portion;
said first end portion being engaged in a sealed manner in said first end chamber;
said intermediate portion including a piston dividing said intermediate chamber in a fluid tight manner into first and second half-chambers;
means for communicating said first end chamber with fuel at the pressure Pca;
means for communicating said second end chamber with fuel at the pressure Pb;
a first outlet port in said intermediate chamber in communication with fuel at said pressure Pb;
resilient means disposed in said first half-chamber and acting to urge said spool in the direction of said second end chamber;
diaphragm means having an inlet and an outlet;
said inlet being connected to receive fuel at the pressure Psf and also being connected to said first half-chamber;
said outlet being connected to a fuel feed line to said servovalves and also being connected to said second half-chamber;
said spool being movable in said compartment in response to forces exerted on said spool by said resilient means and the fuel pressures applied to said first and second end chambers and to said first and second half-chambers to cause said piston to vary the opening of said first outlet port.
Preferably, the cross-sectional areas of the first and second ends of the spool are identical. Consequently, the force tending to increase the outlet port opening is proportional to the pressure difference Pb-Pca. This pressure difference is in turn proportional to the square of the engine speed. The delivery through the diaphragm is proportional to the pressure upstream thereof.
Consequently, the delivery passing through the control device and consisting of the sum of the delivery to the servovalves and the return delivery from the exit of the variable outlet port of the second half-chamber is proportional to engine speed, at least within a certain range. This characteristic is well adapted to the delivery necessary for the servovalves, whose requirements increase with engine speed.
The invention also provides a process for controlling the pressure and delivery of fuel to said plurality of servovalves of an aircraft engine, comprising the steps of:
controlling the high pressure pump delivery so that, whatever the engine speed, the delivery from said high pressure pump corresponds to the sum of the delivery required by said fuel injectors at said engine speed and the prevailing flight conditions and the delivery which would be required by said plurality of servovalves if all of said servovalves operate simultaneously using the maximum delivery usable at said engine speed;
placing a servovalve feed unit downstream of a fuel injector feed unit and in communication with a compartment having an opening which is variable in dependence upon the position of a movable closure member; and,
causing said closure member to move to vary said opening in response to opposing first and second groups of forces, said first group of forces acting in the closing direction and comprising a resilient force, a force proportional to the pressure Pca, and a force proportional to a first pressure, and said second group of forces acting in the opening direction and comprising a force proportional to the pressure Pb, and a force proportional to a second pressure less than the first pressure and at a substantially constant difference therefrom.

Device for controlling the pressure and delivery of a fuel feed to a servovalve unit