An image forming apparatus includes: a photoreceptor; a charger that electrically charges the photoreceptor; an exposing unit having an LED printing head that forms a latent image on the photoreceptor; a developing unit that develops a toner image corresponding to the latent image on the photoreceptor; a blower unit that sends air to a space between the photoreceptor and the LED printing head; a first shielding member provided on the charger, which intercepts the air coming from the blower unit to enter inside the charger; and a second shielding member provided on the developing unit, which intercepts the air coming from the blower unit to enter inside the developing unit.

The present invention relates to image forming apparatuses including a copying machine of an electrophotographic system, a printer and a facsimile machine, each being equipped with an LED (Light Emitting Diode) printing head.
In the image forming apparatuses such as a copying machine, a printer and a facsimile machine, each being of a digital form employing an electrophotographic technology, a laser beam and an LED array are commonly used as an exposing unit for a photoreceptor.
In the case of exposure by means of a laser beam, an exposure method used normally is one wherein a laser beam prepared by a semiconductor laser, a plurality of lenses and by a polygon mirror (rotary polygonal mirror) is oscillated in the direction perpendicular to the direction of rotation of the photoreceptor for conducting exposure.
On the other hand, with respect to exposure by means of an LED array, in the exposure method used commonly, an LED printing head that houses a base plate having therein a plurality of LEDs arranged linearly (LED array) and IC that drives the LEDs and housing a columnar lens array provided on the front side of the LED array in one outer package is arranged in the direction perpendicular to the direction of rotation of the photoreceptor to be close to the photoreceptor surface, and lighting of the LED at a prescribed position is controlled for exposure.
An exposing unit employing the LED printing head is advantageous in terms of low noise and compactness, because no component operating mechanically like a polygon mirror is in existence therein, in comparison with an exposing unit employing a laser beam. However, in the exposing unit, there is a risk of deterioration of the tip of the columnar lens array representing the tip of the LED printing head caused by ozone generated from a charging electrode of a charger, and there is also a fear that toner scattering from a developer representing a developing unit may adhere to the tip of the columnar lens array.
For eliminating these problems of the LED printing head, there are proposals including one to provide a mechanism to create an air flow on the tip of the LED printing head (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 05-177864 (FIG. 1 on the first page)) and the other for providing a dustproof shutter (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-191477 (first page-third page)).
However, a complicated mechanism of the LED printing head often complicates maintenance work for removing dust when dust such as toner adheres to the LED printing head, which may result in a fear of a cost increase of the LED printing head itself.

Image forming apparatus equipped with LED printing head

Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.


A fire/smoke damper control system is provided for use in monitoring and controlling operation of one or more fire/smoke dampers in a building. The system includes a local damper controller associated with each fire/smoke damper for controlling the opening and closing of each fire/smoke damper, a remote router for controlling the operation of one or more local damper controllers, and circuit communication between the remote router and each local damper controller. The control system allows for localized power supply for damper actuation, eliminating the pulling of wire from each damper back to a central power panel.

Fire/smoke dampers are used to protect people and property from destruction in buildings in the case of an emergency. A fire/smoke damper is used with a building air handling system as a prevention device for the spread of fire and smoke. Fire/smoke dampers may be designed to meet or exceed Underwriters Laboratories UL555, UL555C, UL555S, National Fire Protection Association, and California State Fire Marshal requirements in walls, ceilings, and floors. In general, these codes require dampers that are able to stop the passage of flames for a period of 1½ or 3 hours and the leakage of smoke for up to 177° C. (350° F.) in smoke-laden air.
Fire/smoke dampers differ from HVAC dampers in their overall design and materials of construction, including use of materials that are able to withstand high temperature. Fire/smoke dampers are also subject to different testing than HVAC dampers. HVAC dampers are tested by temperature feedback within the overall system (i.e., if the air within a room is not reaching a preset temperature, the HVAC system, including dampers, must be checked). Fire/smoke dampers must be checked for positional certainty. Fire/smoke dampers, unlike HVAC dampers, function either in a fully open or fully closed position and, thus, extreme blade positions must be reachable and are regularly tested.
Published U.S. patent application 2002/0152298 A1 to Kitka et al. discloses a control system for operating and integrating building applications such as HVAC, lighting, access control, and security. Kitka discloses modulating HVAC dampers, but not fire control dampers. Published application 2002/0144537 A1 to Sharp et al. discloses an air monitoring system customized for a specific structure. The system includes remotely distributed sensor units which communicate with a central unit through a digital network or other communication links, such as a power line, or by wireless communication. Specific testing and monitoring of damper positions in a fire/smoke control system are not disclosed.
There is a need for a control, testing, and monitoring system that addresses the specific requirements of fire/smoke dampers. Such a system should be capable of easy integration into existing testing and monitoring systems that are part of a building and are used for security, lighting, or heating/air conditioning.


A device for authenticating and verifying the originator of an electronic document transmission. A card reader is disposed at a transmitting station and an originator verifier is disposed at a receiving station. The originator verifier produces original markings on the document produced at the receiving station in response to a signal generated by the card reader at the transmitting station.

The present invention generally relates to electronic data interchange and electronic document transmission apparatus such as computers and facsimile machines. More specifically, this invention relates to a device and method for authenticating and verifying the originator of an electronic document transmission. "Document" as used in the present disclosure includes both hard-copy productions of information on paper and electronic productions of information on a computer screen.
Electronic data interchange is emerging as a standard part of business operations. Since an electronic transmission of a document is a reproduction of the original document, authentic markings, for example a signature, cannot be transmitted. Thus, the veracity of a transmitted document may be questioned. The inability to authenticate a signature limits the usefulness of facsimile machines had the like for numerous business transactions. Therefore, there is a need in the art of electronic data interchange for means to authenticate and verify the origin and veracity of electronic document transmissions.
To the Applicants' knowledge no device or apparatus is disclosed in the prior art for authenticating electronic data transmissions. Presently, verification of an electronic document transmission is generally limited to an acknowledgment of a completed transmission by production of a separate record. However, the prior art does not disclose means to associate the acknowledged transmission with a particular originator. Additionally, the prior art does not disclose means to verify the text of a transmitted document.

Device and method for authenticating electronic document transmissions


The present disclosure provides systems and methods for dynamically signaling encoder capabilities of vocoders of corresponding communication nodes. In one embodiment, during a call between a first communication node and a second communication node, a control node (e.g., base station controller or mobile switching center) for the first communication node sends capability information for a voice encoder of a vocoder of the first communication node to a control node for the second communication node. As a result, the second communication node is enabled to select and request a preferred encoder mode for the voice encoder of the vocoder of the first communication node based on the capabilities of the voice encoder of the vocoder of the first communication node.

Wideband speech encoders have been introduced over the last few years in order to allow a vast improvement in the quality and intelligibility of voice, or speech, communicated between wired or wireless communication devices. Typically, the wideband speech vocoders include voice encoders that are operable in a number of different encoder modes, and selection of an encoder mode for a given call is subject to a set of rules that, in part, depend on the standards relevant to the particular communication technology. In general, the encoder mode for a given call may be selected such that the encoder mode is either a wideband encoder mode or a narrowband encoder mode, where the selection is based on signaling protocols exercised at the time that the call is set-up or, alternatively, based on in-band signaling exchanged via bearer signal packets. As an example, the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) Enhanced Variable Rate Codec—Narrowband-Wideband (EVRC-NW) vocoder includes a wideband encoder mode and multiple narrowband encoder modes. Currently, the encoder mode of the EVRC-NW vocoder is determined based on the transmission of a request for a preferred encoder mode.
More specifically, when a call is established between two mobile terminals (mobile terminal A and mobile terminal B) equipped with EVRC-NW vocoders, a bearer path is established between corresponding control nodes (e.g., base stations or mobile switching centers) in the cellular communication system over a core network. This bearer path is used to carry encoded speech between the control nodes of the mobile terminals. For Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) cellular communication systems and the EVRC family of vocoders, the bearer path over a core network is provided via Real Time Protocol (RTP) packets. As illustrated in FIG. 1, encoder mode requests are included in a dedicated field, referred to as an MMM field, in the payload headers of the RTP packets transmitted over the core network to carry encoded speech, as specified in, for example, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Request for Comment (RFC) 4788.
Notably, an RTP packet has a header and a payload. The RTP packet header carries information such as time stamp, sequence number, etc. The RTP packet header information is generic and typically independent of the payload. The payload of the RTP packet can be any media payload such as video, audio, text, etc. Here, the payload of the RTP packet is used to carry encoded speech over the core network. Specifically, the payload carries the EVRC-NW encoded speech. The EVRC-NW payload has its own header defined, which is different from the RTP packet header. The EVRC-NW payload header includes the MMM field as illustrated in FIG. 1.
One issue with the current encoder selection scheme for EVRC-NW vocoders is that the request for the preferred encoder mode is sent with no awareness of the current capability of the voice encoder of the far-end vocoder to accommodate the request. More specifically, for the call between mobile terminal A and mobile terminal B, the control node for mobile terminal A selects and requests a preferred encoder mode for the voice encoder of mobile terminal B with no awareness of the current capability of the voice encoder of mobile terminal B or limitations that may be imposed due to the call configuration. Likewise, the control node for mobile terminal B selects and requests a preferred encoder mode for the voice encoder of mobile terminal A with no awareness of the current capability of the voice encoder of mobile terminal A. As such, if for example mobile terminal A is capable of receiving and decoding wideband speech, the control node of mobile terminal A will continually request the wideband encoder mode regardless of whether the voice encoder of mobile terminal B or the call configuration can support operation in the wideband encoder mode. If the voice encoder of mobile terminal B is incapable of wideband encoding (e.g., because the communication node does not support the wideband mode, because the communication node supports the wideband encoder mode but is currently not capable of wideband encoding because the communication node is operating in a sector that does not support wideband operation, because wideband encoding is not permitted by local operator policy, or the like), the voice encoder of mobile terminal B will use some default narrowband encoder mode which may not be a preferred narrowband encoder mode of mobile terminal A. In other words, mobile terminal A will receive speech encoded according to one of the narrowband encoder modes without being aware that the voice encoder of mobile terminal B is incapable of wideband encoding and, consequently, without being able to signal a preference for a preferred narrowband encoder mode.
This problem is made worse if the wireless network operator's service policy is to proffer the highest priority to wideband operation (e.g., to gain maximum customer satisfaction especially during an introductory phase of wideband speech). In this case, there is no choice other than to keep requesting the wideband encoder mode since the reception of narrowband speech does not preclude events such as handover to a territory that supports wideband speech, which might suddenly make it possible for the voice encoder of mobile terminal B to commence transmission of wideband speech. In light of the discussion above, there is a need for an improved encoder mode selection scheme for wideband vocoders and, in particular, EVRC-NW vocoders.

Mechanism for dynamic signaling of encoder capabilities


Disclosed a switching power source apparatus including: a transformer including a primary winding and a secondary winding; a switching element to intermittently apply a voltage to the primary winding by an on-off operation; and a synchronous rectifying element to rectify a current in the secondary winding, wherein the switching power source apparatus is a flyback system switching power source apparatus to receive input of electric power from a primary winding side to perform voltage output to a secondary wiring side, and the switching power source apparatus further comprises a load detection circuit to compare an output voltage to be output onto the secondary winding side with a voltage at a node between the synchronous rectifying element and the transformer by adding predetermined weighting to the voltages to be compared so as to generate a signal indicating a magnitude of an output load.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a flyback system switching power source apparatus including a synchronous rectifying element.
2. Description of Related Art
As shown in FIG. 5, there is a flyback system switching power source apparatus 50 equipped with a synchronous rectifying element SW52 on the secondary side of a transformer T51. In such a power source apparatus 50, if the synchronous rectifying element SW52 on the secondary side is turned on in an on-period of a switching element SW51 on the primary side of the transformer T51, then the output terminals of the power source apparatus 50 are short-circuited through the secondary winding N52 of the transformer T51 and the synchronous rectifying element SW52. Accordingly, it is needed to control the synchronous rectifying element SW52 lest the switching element SW51 on the primary side and the synchronous rectifying element SW52 should be simultaneously turned on. Moreover, there is also the situation such that it is impossible to supply the control signals to be used in a primary side control circuit 51 directly to a secondary side control circuit 52 in order to insulate the primary side of the transformer T51 from the secondary side thereof. As a conventional control method of a synchronous rectifying element SW52, there is, for example, the method of detecting the polarity of the current flowing on the secondary side by a current transformer to switch the turning on and off of the synchronous rectifying element SW52 on the basis of the detected current polarity. Moreover, the following method was also proposed (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 10-74936). The method inserted an inductor in series with the synchronous rectifying element, detected the polarity of the current flowing on the secondary side based on the voltage between both the ends of the synchronous rectifying element and the inductor, and turned off the synchronous rectifying element when the characteristic of a forward direction current was detected and turned on the synchronous rectifying element when the characteristic of a reverse direction current was detected.
The inventors of the present invention examined the possibility of realizing the detection of the off timing of the synchronous rectifying element SW52 in the flyback system switching power source apparatus 50 without adding any parts such as the current transformer and the inductor.
As the result of the examination, the method of measuring the drain-to-source voltage Vds52 of the synchronous rectifying element SW52 to detect a state Q1 in which the voltage Vds52 exceeded a predetermined threshold value Vth, as shown in FIG. 6 (Vds52), as the off timing was considered as the detection method of the off timing of the synchronous rectifying element SW52. Since a secondary side current I2 flowing through the synchronous rectifying element SW52 gradually decreased in an on-period of the synchronous rectifying element SW52, it was possible to detect the state Q1 in which the secondary side current I2 was less than the predetermined value as the off timing by detecting a voltage drop caused by the on-resistance of the synchronous rectifying element SW52.
On the other hand, in the case of adopting the detection method of the off timing mentioned above, there was the following case: ringing was generated in the drain voltage Vds52 of the synchronous rectifying element SW52 at the moment of the turning-on of the switching element SW51 on the primary side as shown in FIG. 6 (I2 and Vds52), and the drain voltage Vds temporarily exceeded the threshold voltage Vth owing to the ringing as shown at a time point Q2 in FIG. 6 (Vds52). Consequently, if any efforts were not made, the problem in which the synchronous rectifying element SW52 was erroneously turned off at the time point Q2 at which the drain voltage Vds exceeded the threshold voltage Vth owing to the ringing, after the synchronous rectifying element SW52 had been turned on was caused.
Generally, in order to settle such a problem, it is conceivable to set a minimum on-time To1 during which the synchronous rectifying element SW52 is forcibly being turned on in a period of from the timing at which the synchronous rectifying element SW52 has been turned on to the time when the ringing disappears as shown in a hatched part of FIG. 6 (Vgs52).
However, if the minimum on-time To1 mentioned above was set, it was found that the following disadvantageous case was sometimes caused. That is, as shown in a state Q3 in FIG. 6 (I2), if the output load of the switching power source apparatus 50 became light and the secondary side current I2 became less than a zero current in a period of the minimum on-time To1, then notwithstanding the drain voltage Vds52 of the synchronous rectifying element SW52 exceeded the threshold voltage Vth not by the influence of ringing but in a reflection of the secondary side current I2 at a time point Q1a in FIG. 6 (Vds52), the synchronous rectifying element SW52 was not turned off until the time point Q1b at which the minimum on-time To1 had elapsed. Consequently, a reverse flow was caused in the secondary side current I2 as shown in the state Q3 of FIG. 6 (I2) in that period.
Consequently, it was considered that it was needed to avoid the disadvantage mentioned above by detecting the magnitude of the output load of the switching power source apparatus 50 on the secondary side of the transformer T51.
Moreover, it was also considered that if it was able to surely judge the magnitude of the output load of the switching power source apparatus 50 on the secondary side of the transformer T51, other effective processing, such as changing the detection method of the on-off timing of the synchronous rectifying element SW52, was also able to be realized.
Although the magnitude of the output load can be judged by providing a current detecting resistance into the current pathway of the secondary side current I2 to measure the voltage between both the ends of the resistance, the method has the following problem. That is, if the resistance value of the current detecting resistance is made to be small, then accurate detection becomes hard, and if the resistance value is made to be large, then the loss by the resistance becomes large.

Flyback switching power apparatus with synchronous rectification and load detection


There is provided an optical laminate that can achieve a liquid crystal display apparatus in which the occurrence of moire is suppressed, and which is excellent in brightness and viewing angle characteristic. An optical laminate of the present invention includes in the stated order: a polarizer; a light-diffusing pressure-sensitive adhesive layer; a matte layer; and a louver layer. The louver layer has light-transmitting portions each having a trapezoidal section arrayed along a film plane, and light-absorbing portions each having a trapezoidal section arrayed between the light-transmitting portions. A haze value H of the light-diffusing pressure-sensitive adhesive layer and a bias angle B of the louver layer satisfy relationships represented by the following expressions (1) to (3):2≤B≤6  (1)20≤H≤60  (2)B×H≥40  (3)where the bias angle means a tilt angle of each of the trapezoidal sections with respect to a normal direction.

Liquid crystal display apparatus have been used in a wide range of applications including a television, a smartphone, a personal computer monitor, and a digital camera, and the applications thereof have been further expanding. Examples of the applications include on-board applications. Specifically, the liquid crystal display apparatus may be used for display portions of, for example, various meters and a navigation system arranged in an instrument panel, and a console of an automobile. In such on-board applications, there is a problem in that a display image is reflected in a windshield. In order to solve such problem, it has been proposed to use a louver film to be installed in the liquid crystal display apparatus (for example, Patent Literature 1). However, the use of the louver film in the liquid crystal display apparatus involves a problem in that image quality is significantly degraded by occurrence of moire, an insufficient viewing angle characteristic, or the like.

Optical layered body and liquid crystal display device using optical layered body


An integrated circuit including a degradation monitoring circuit. The degradation monitoring circuit includes a comparison circuit having a delay element including an input coupled to a data node of a timing path and having an output to provide a delayed signal of a data signal of the data node. The comparison circuit includes a logic comparator that provides a logic comparison between a data signal of the data node and the output of the delay element. The monitoring circuit includes a sampling circuit that provides a sampled signal of the output of the logic comparator that is a sampled with respect to a clock signal of the clock signal line. The monitoring circuit includes a hold circuit that provides a signal indicative of a data signal of the data node transitioning within a predetermined time of an edge transition of a clock signal of the clock signal line.

1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to integrated circuits, and more specifically, to degradation monitoring within an integrated circuit.
2. Related Art
As an integrated circuit ages, the integration circuit experiences circuit degradation which causes delay margins of the digital circuits to decrease over time. Circuit degradation may occur due to various physical phenomena which may result in slowing down transistors and interconnects over time, such as, for example, negative bias temperature instability (NBTI), positive bias temperature instability (PBTI), hot carrier injection, and electromigration. As the integrated circuit continues to age, the delay margins can continue decreasing to the point at which delay faults occur. These delay faults result in catastrophic failure of the integrated circuit without warning.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Integrated circuit with degradation monitoring


An end cap assembly for a filter canister includes outer and inner metal caps each having an opening therein for general axial alignment with each other when secured to the ends of the canister. An inner metal plate or layer made of a wire mesh material and a second inner plate or layer of an air permeable cloth material is provided such that the inner plates or layers are disposed between the outer and inner metal caps and secured together to form a unitary end cap assembly.

In providing desiccant inserts for air drying equipment, as explained in a companion case entitled "Telescoping Canister For Filter Materials" filed on even date herewith by the same inventors, the desiccant insert includes a flexible manipulative bag for containing the desiccant. The bag per se has certain disadvantages as discussed in the companion application. The flexible bag is employed in a cavity of an air drying container connected in a conduit or pipe of an air brake system, for example, to remove moisture from the brake system.


An injection molding machine that distinctively displays operation parameters attributed to molds, which are set by designating a mold to be used, and the other operation parameters, to thereby prevent setting errors. The machine has storage means for storing and saving the operation parameters attributed to molds, which are determined by molds, with respect to each mold, and storage means for operation parameters to be applied for operating the injection molding machine. In the storage means for operation parameters to be applied, the stored operation parameters attributed to molds are read out to be set, and the other operation parameters are each stored. When the operation parameters stored in the storage means for operation parameters to be applied are set and displayed, the display appearances of the operation parameters attributed to molds and that of the other operation parameters are differentiated from each other. In the drawings, parameters provided with ★ are operation parameters attributed to molds, and those not provided with ★ are the other parameters. The other operation parameters that need to be set and the operation parameters attributed to molds, which hardly need to be altered, are displayed distinctively, resulting in a reduction in setting errors.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an injection molding machine, and more specifically to display and setting in which categorization of operation parameters for operating an injection molding machine is apparent.
2. Description of Related Art
In order to operate an injection molding machine, it is necessary to set a large number of operation parameters, such as molding parameters.
As to these operation parameters, a display device is used to display the operation parameters on the screen, to thereby set the selection, setting values, and the like, of the operation parameters. It is well-known that, among the operation parameters, three kinds of operation parameters, including an automatic operation parameter, a semiautomatic operation parameter, and an operation parameter common to the automatic operation parameter, the semiautomatic operation parameter and a manual operation parameter, are displayed in different colors, to thereby distinctively display the categorization of operations (JP 7-290545A).
There is another well-known invention in which operation errors are reduced by allotting different figures and/or colors to the factors including speed, position, pressure, and time that are displayed on the screen (JP 7-156237A).
In further another well-known invention, among the molding information data that is set with respect to molded parts and the setting data concerning the control system of the machine, the machine characteristic value data accessible to the user, to which the user makes a setting alteration by him/herself, and the machine characteristic value data inaccessible to the user, which is set by the manufacturing corporation and does not allow the user to make a setting alteration, are stored in their respective areas separately from each other so that the data may be selectively initialized by using the storage areas individually or in arbitrary combination. This facilitates the data initialization and the setting after the initialization, which are carried out by the user. In favor of the manufacturing corporation, the manpower for initialization control at the stage of factory shipment is reduced (JP 9-239799A).
At the same time, as a large number of operation parameters need to be set, an injection molding machine that facilitates the work of setting the operation parameters is generally used. Operation parameters attributed to molds, which are automatically determined by the molds to be used, are stored with respect to each mold. When the mold to be used is determined, operation parameters stored correspondingly to the mold are called up and stored in a storage area for storing the operation parameters to be applied. The other operation parameters are each set and stored in the storage area for the operation parameters to be applied. Based on the operation parameters stored in the storage area for the operation parameters to be applied, the operation of the injection molding machine is controlled.
In early molding machines, operation parameters were not digital data. Therefore, the operation parameters could not be saved, so that it was necessary to set all the operation parameters every time molds were exchanged.
Since the control of molding machines had gradually been digitalized, the operation parameters had been replaced with digital data accordingly. Taking advantage of the fact that digital data can be stored in a nonvolatile memory, means for collectively storing and reading the operation parameters attributed to molds began to be widely used. Because of the above means, the operator's work for setting the operation parameters was drastically reduced. All the operator has to do is then to check the read-out operation parameters (those attributed to a mold) and to set the other operation parameters (those not attributed to the mold).
In general, the differentiation between the operation parameters attributed to molds and those not attributed molds is made on the basis of design produced by the manufacturing corporation of the injection molding machine. This differentiation, however, does not always agree with the differentiation recognized by the operator. This arouses a situation in which an operation parameter considered by the operator as one attributed to a mold is not the operation parameter attributed to the mold, or a situation in which an operation parameter that is not considered by the operator as one attributed to a mold is the operation parameter attributed to the mold.
An "ON/OFF" switch for start-up parameter will be described below as an example. This operation parameter is not attributed to a mold, so that it is not subjected to the setting when the operation parameters attributed to the mold are collectively read out. Therefore, the operator has to carry out the proper setting (switch ON) before operation. If the operator makes the mistake of taking the above parameter as one attributed to a mold, however, the operator does not perform the proper setting (switch ON). As a result, it is impossible to make the efficient transition from an unstable molding environment at the initial stage of the molding to a stable molding environment.
The forcible number of defective products will be described below as another example. This operation parameter is the number (shot) of molded parts that are forcibly discarded at the start of the molding. Usually, the number (shot) in which the molded parts are changed from defectives into non-defectives is set. The forcible number of defective products is an operation parameter attributed to a mold, so that it is set when the operation parameters attributed to the mold are collectively read out. If the operator makes the mistake of considering that the forcible number of defective products is not an operation parameter attributed to a mold, and after changing the forcible number of defective products, makes the forcible number of defective products stored collectively as an operation parameter attributed to a mold without setting the number back to the original value, there arises a problem later. For example, suppose that the operator changes the forcible number of defective products from 15 to 0, for the molded parts are non-defective, and makes the forcible number of defective products stored as an operation parameter attributed to a mold without setting the forcible number of defective products back to the original. Later, for the purpose of using the same mold, another operator reads out the operation parameters attributed to the mold collectively to find that the forcible number of defective products is 0. However, if the operator makes the right decision that the forcible number of defective products is an operation parameter attributed to the mold, he/she starts the molding without setting the forcible number of defective products back to the original value (15). As a result, defectives at the initial stage of the molding are not discarded and mixed with non-defectives, which obstructs the quality control.
Furthermore, the injection molding machine is provided with peripheral equipment of various types, including a molded part-retrieving device, a temperature controller, etc. In some cases, operation parameters are displayed and set with respect to these pieces of the peripheral equipment together with the operation parameters for the injection molding machine. When these operation parameters are displayed among those for the injection molding machine, it is sometimes hard for the operator to differentiate between the operation parameters for the injection molding machine and those for the peripheral equipment among the operation parameters displayed.


A method for producing a borate compound represented by formula (1) is disclosed, comprising a first step of reacting lithium or magnesium or a compound containing lithium or magnesium, a halide represented by formula (2) and a compound represented by formula (3) in a solvent to produce a boronate compound precursor, a second step of reacting lithium or magnesium or a compound containing lithium or magnesium, a halide represented by formula (4) and the boronate compound precursor obtained in the first step in a solvent to produce a borate metal salt, and a third step of adding an onium halide represented by formula (5) to the borate metal salt obtained in the second step to effect ion-exchange reaction (the formulae are as described in the specification).

With respect to the production method of tetramethylammonium methyltriphenylborate as one of borate compounds represented by formula (1) shown later, a method of ion-exchanging lithium methyltriphenylborate obtained from triphenylborane and methyllithium by tetramethylammonium bromide is commonly known [see, for example, Journal of American Chemical Society, Vol. 107, pp. 6710-6711 (1985)].
With respect to the production method of triphenylborane, a method of reacting metallic magnesium, boron trifluoride diethyl etherate and phenyl bromide in diethyl ether is commonly known [see, for example, Journal of Organic Chemistry, Vol. 51, pp. 427-432 (1986)].
More specifically, in the case of the tetramethylammonium methyltriphenylborate, phenyl bromide is reacted with metallic magnesium in diethyl ether to prepare a Grignard reagent, the reagent is added dropwise to a solution containing boron trifluoride diethyl etherate dissolved in diethyl ether, the mixed solution is stirred for several hours to obtain triphenylborane, the triphenylborane obtained is added to methyllithium without passing through isolation to form lithium methyltriphenylborate, and tetramethylammonium bromide is added thereto to effect ion exchanging, as a result, tetramethylammonium methyltriphenylborate is obtained.
With respect to the production method of alkyldiaryl boronate (or aryldialkyl boronate), a method of reacting a boric acid ester with a Grignard reagent or organic lithium in diethyl ether is commonly known [see, for example, Organometallics, pp. 1058-1067 (1993)].
In these conventional production methods, the solvent used for the Grignard reaction or reaction of triarylborane or trialkylborane is restricted to diethyl ether in view of the problem of side reaction [see, for example, Journal of Organic Chemistry, Vol. 51, pp. 427-432 (1986)].
The Grignard reaction in general is, however, easy to occur in tetrahydrofuran rather than in diethyl ether [see, for example, Teruaki Mukaiyama (compiler), Kiso Yuki Kagaku (Basic Organic Chemistry), Maruzen, page 79] and in the case of halides difficult to cause the Grignard reaction in diethyl ether, the final yield of the borate compound disadvantageously decreases.


In a chassis including a plurality of nodes, a network switch, and a programmable device configured to manage a shared resource of the chassis, a method includes establishing, using the network switch, a dedicated network among baseboard management controllers of respective nodes in the plurality of nodes; and using the dedicated network, automatically selecting a given node from the plurality of nodes to function as a master node to program the programmable device on behalf of all nodes in the plurality of nodes to manage the shared resource of the chassis on behalf of all the nodes in the plurality of nodes.

As industry moves to a hybrid-cloud infrastructure model of a data-center architecture, there is increasing demand for high performance fault-tolerant compute systems forming a low-latency on-premises cloud that allows linear scaling of infrastructure. Among such systems, one popular implementation is a cluster having four nodes, e.g., blade servers, in one 2U rack chassis. Such an implementation allows three nodes to form a minimal cluster with one node operating as an active standby to take the load in case of any other single node failure. Each cluster includes a well-balanced amount of storage, compute and network hardware, and operates as a single unit over a high-speed local bus interconnect, such as Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe), to achieve maximum performance out of a given hardware configuration. Such a configuration may be referred to as a "hyper-converged infrastructure." Each node in the cluster also includes a baseboard management controller (BMC), which manages its respective motherboard. Unlike traditional server chassis systems, in a hyper-converged infrastructure there are no separate input/output (IO) hardware plugin modules that perform IO aggregation and that send data out of the chassis to storage enclosures connected through external top of the rack switches. This architectural shift makes chassis management "lighter" compared to traditional architectures by enabling chassis-level resource sharing including, e.g., cooling-fans and power supply units (PSUs), among other shared resources. In conventional approaches, a separate Chassis Management Controller (CMC) and its identical active standby twin are used to manage such shared resources.

Multi-node discovery and master election process for chassis management


A portable article carrier apparatus includes a floor and a plurality of walls extending upward from the floor. The floor and the walls define an interior storage space, Each of the walls includes a bottom wall portion, a top wall portion, and an intermediate wall portion between the bottom wall portion and the top wall portion. Partition-support brackets are connected to intermediate wall portions of the walls and project into the interior storage space. A removable and replaceable partition is supported by the partition-support brackets. A lid is supported by the top wall portions of the walls. The walls are connected to the floor at an obtuse slant angle. The obtuse slant angle flares the walls outward, whereby the partition is permitted to be easily placed in and removed from the interior storage space. As a result of the outwardly flaring walls, the length and width of the floor are smaller than the corresponding dimensions of the partition; and the length and width of the partition are smaller than the corresponding dimensions of the lid. The lid includes a lid handle, and the partition includes a partition handle. The partition handle is comprised of a pair of grab apertures located in the partition.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to article carriers and, more particularly, to article carriers that are portable and that have a removable lid.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When a person is to carry a plurality of small articles, the person often employs a portable article carrier. There are articles, however, which require special handling in order not to damage them when being carried in the portable article carrier. For example, cupcakes generally have two major portions, a bottom cake portion and a top icing portion. When a plurality of cupcakes are carried in a portable article carrier, care must be taken so that the relatively delicate icing portions of the cupcakes are not damaged during transport. In this regard, throughout the years, a number of innovations have been developed relating to carriers for cupcakes, and the following U.S. Pat. Nos. are representative of some of those innovations: 4,052,034, 4,446,982, 4,583,955, 4,694,961, and 4,844,243. All of the prior art cited above have a common feature. They disclose cupcake carriers that carry a plurality of cupcakes in a single layer.
When a large number of cupcakes are to be carried, if only a single layer of cupcakes are carried, the carrier may have to be quite large. To provide an efficient carrier, it would be desirable if a portable carrier for cupcakes could carry a plurality of cupcakes in a plurality of layers.
However, great care must be exercised in carrying cupcakes in plural layers because the delicate icing portions of cupcakes in a lower layer may be damaged by overlying bottom cake portions of cupcakes in an overlying layer of cupcakes. In this respect, it would be desirable if a portable carrier for cupcakes were provided which prevents the delicate icing portions of cupcakes in a lower layer from being damaged by overlying bottom cake portions of cupcakes in an overlying layer of cupcakes.
Still other features would be desirable in a portable article carrier that is especially useful for carrying food items such as cupcakes. For example, to keep out pests, it would be desirable if the portable article carrier could be fully enclosed when not being accessed. In this respect, it would be desirable if a portable article carrier had a lid which includes a handle which permits easy removal and replacement of the lid.
To protect a layer of underlying articles from being damaged by a overlying layer of articles, it would be desirable if a portable article carrier were provided which provides a protective cover for underlying articles. To provide a device which optimizes the functional utility of component parts, it would be desirable if a protective cover for a lower layer of articles could also serve as a carrying floor for an upper layer of articles. To facilitate removal of a combined cover/floor from an article carrier, it would be desirable if the cover/floor were provided with a handle which permits easy lifting and lowering of the combined cover/floor.
To provide a portable article carrier that is lightweight and easy to clean, it would be desirable if the portable article carrier were made from lightweight and washable plastic materials.
Thus, while the foregoing body of prior art indicates it to be well known to use portable article carriers, the prior art described above does not teach or suggest a portable article carrier apparatus which has the following combination of desirable features: (1) can carry a plurality of articles, such as cupcakes, in a plurality of layers; (2) prevents the delicate icing portions of cupcakes in a lower layer from being damaged by overlying bottom cake portions of cupcakes in an overlying layer of cupcakes; (3) can be fully enclosed when not being accessed; (4) has a lid which includes a handle which permits easy removal and replacement of the lid; (5) provides a protective cover for underlying articles; (6) provides a protective cover for a lower layer of articles which can also serve as a carrying floor for an upper layer of articles; (7) provides a cover/floor with a handle which permits easy lifting and lowering of the combined cover/floor; and (8) is made from lightweight and washable plastic materials. The foregoing desired characteristics are provided by the unique portable article carrier apparatus of the present invention as will be made apparent from the following description thereof. Other advantages of the present invention over the prior art also will be rendered evident.


Partial webs are separated in a slitter-winder. The partial webs (WP) are separated by spreading in a spreading device having at least a first, bowed spreader roll (14) fitted at one side of the partial webs (WP) and a second, bowed spreader roll (15) fitted at the opposite side of the partial webs. The partial webs (WP) are guided over the bowed spreader rolls (14, 15) so that the wrap angles (B 14, B15) over the spreader rolls (14, 15) are substantially unequal. The partial webs (WP) are guided to the first spreader roll (14) in a lead-in direction (Dinxy) in the XY-direction and the partial webs are guided from the second spreader roll (15) in a lead-out direction (Doutxy) in the XY-direction such that the lead-in direction (Dinxy) and the lead-out direction are substantially divergent.

The invention relates to a method for separating partial webs in a slitter winder. In particular the invention relates to a method for separating partial webs in a slitter-winder, in which method the partial webs are separated by spreading in a spreading device having at least a first, bowed spreader roll fitted at one side of the partial webs and a second, bowed spreader roll fitted at the opposite side of the partial webs.
It is known that a fiber web, e.g. paper, is manufactured in machines which together constitute a paper-manufacturing line which can be hundreds of meters long. Modern paper machines can produce over 450,000 tons of paper per year. The speed of the paper machine can exceed 2,000 m/min and the width of the paper web can be more than 11 meters.
In paper-manufacturing lines, the manufacture of paper takes place as a continuous process. A paper web completing in the paper machine is reeled by a reel-up around a reeling shaft i.e. a reel spool into a parent roll the diameter of which can be more than 5 meters and the weight more than 160 tons. The purpose of reeling is to modify the paper web manufactured as planar to a more easily processable form. On the reel-up located in the main machine line, the continuous process of the paper machine breaks for the first time and shifts into periodic operation.
The web of the parent roll produced in paper manufacture is full-width and even more than 100 km long so it must be slit into partial webs with suitable width and length for the customers of the paper mill and wound around cores into so-called customer rolls before delivering them from the paper mill. This slitting and winding up of the web takes place as known in an appropriate separate machine i.e. a slitter-winder.
On the slitter-winder, the parent roll is unwound, the wide web is slit in longitudinal direction on the slitting section into several narrower partial webs which are wound up on the winding section around winding cores, such as spools, into customer rolls. When the customer rolls are completed, the slitter-winder is stopped and the wound rolls i.e. the so-called set is removed from the machine. Then, the process is continued with the winding of a new set. These steps are repeated periodically until paper runs out of the parent roll, whereby a parent roll change is performed and the operation starts again as the unwinding of a new parent roll.
Slitter-winders employ winding devices of different types, for example multistation winders and carrier roll winders, also called two drum winders. In the carrier roll winders the partial webs are wound around winding cores supported by two carrier rolls to partial web rolls via a nip between the carrier rolls and the partial fiber web roll being formed. In the carrier roll winders also a belt arrangement i.e. a so-called set of belt rolls located around two guide rolls can be used as the carrier roll. On slitter-winders of the multistation winder type, the web is guided from the unwinding via guide rolls to the slitting section where the web is slit into partial webs which are further guided to the winding roll/rolls on the winding stations into customer rolls to be wound up onto cores. Adjacent partial webs are wound up on different sides of the winding roll or on different winding rolls. Multistation winders have one to three winding rolls and in them each partial web is wound to a partial web roll in winding stations. During winding a winding nip is formed between the winding roll and the partial web roll to be wound.
In the following description and claims, the term carrier roll is used for simplicity when referring to a support roll or set of rolls of a windup of carrier roll type i.e. including both a carrier roll and a set of belt rolls. Additionally in this description, the term core means also other types of winding tubes used and suitable for use in windups of carrier roll type. Furthermore in this description, partial webs being wound on the winder and partial web rolls being formed are referred to, according to context, either in singular or plural referring to partial webs and web rolls handled in the winder.
In the slitter-winders after the slitting of the fiber web into the partial fiber webs the partial fiber webs are guided via a separating device to the winding device, which separating device separates apart the partial fiber webs in lateral direction in order to avoid the overlap of partial webs and to set the path of partial webs to correct position for winding and in carrier roll winders, so that the partial web rolls to be wound do not adhere to each other at their ends. Typically the length of each winding core corresponds to the width of the partial web to be wound. The separation of the partial fiber webs is usually performed by means of spreading of the partial webs in the lateral direction such that the partial webs will be after the spreading a distance apart from each other. In the spreading of the partial webs, the objective is to perform the lateral shifting of the partial web such that lateral gliding of the partial web on the spreader member is avoided. This is accomplished by guiding the web by means of a first spreader member which deflects the partial webs outwardly toward the sides of the first spreader member, and by means of a second spreader member which restores the partial webs to the original direction. In prior art as spreader members for example rods, beams, rolls or revolving roll mantles mounted on an axis bent into curved form are employed. A revolving roll mantle may be composed of rigid mantle units or continuous and elastic mantle units. The mantle units may also be separate.
As described above there are many types of spreading system in common use. Some have a single element, while others have two or more elements. A dual bowed roller spreader uses two conventional fixed bow spreaders to produce some very powerful spreading effects and its primary use is after slitting. The dual spreader arrangement allows a folding type of web separation and the dual spreader assembly maintains an equal path length from unwind to windup and thus does not affect the web tension profile. The dual spreader is the most powerful device to separate the cut webs and to create desired narrow gaps between the wound rolls.
As is well known from the prior art the extent of the separation distance between the partial webs is adjusted by altering the curve radius or by altering the distance between the spreader members or by altering the wrap angle of the partial web. If the adjustment is made by altering the curve radius of the spreader member used in spreading the partial webs, high precision is needed, since even a little change in the curve radius has a strong effect on the distance between the partial webs. The most common way of adjusting the separation distance between the partial webs is to adjust the angle of wrap of the web across the spreader members or the rolls. Thus the web makes a steeper or less steep angle when it passes over the spreader members or the rolls, whereby the separation distance between the partial webs is changed. When the angles of wrap of the web at the spreader members or rolls are changed, the directional angles of the arcs relative to the web are also altered. An error in the directional angle of the arc causes a lateral component of rolling in the partial web, which causes problems, because this creates friction force, which tend to move the partial web sideways off from the paths of the partial webs, when rotating rolls are used as spreader members.
The prior art discloses different arrangements and methods for separating partial webs by spreading devices. For example in EP patent publication 0431275 is disclosed a device for spreading of partial webs comprising a first, bowed, revolving roll fitted at one side of the web and a second, bowed, revolving roll fitted at the opposite side of the web, as well as a swing mechanism, which is fitted to act upon said rolls so as to alter the wrap, i.e. deflection angles, of the component webs and thereby to produce the desired spreading of the component webs. The device is provided with a regulation mechanism, which is fitted to correct the directional angles between said rolls and the web to the desired values with all values of the deflection angle.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,765,616 is disclosed an apparatus to laterally space a plurality of strips which have been slit from a relatively wide web to enable individual rewinding of the strips. The apparatus comprises lead-in and lead-out rollers with a pair of guides disposed between said rollers, said guides being arcuate transversely of the plurality of strips. The arcuate guides serve to twist the strips from a coplanar relationship and to deviate their paths from each other and then twist them back into coplanar but spaced relationship. The guides are angularly adjustable to arrange the arcs in predetermined relationship with respect to each other and to the lead-in and lead-out rollers respectively and also are supported by pivotably mounted arms or frames to adjust the degree of arc to which the strips are subject.
In CA patent publication 2,066,450 is disclosed an apparatus for spreading (broad-drawing) of webs with two curved spreading elements that are rolled shaped in the wrap-around area and coupled to each other and supported pivotably in a frame. The spreading elements are each secured to the coupling element of a four-bar linkage, the two driving levers of the two four-bar linkage being coupled with each other through a gearing system so as to be pivotable in the same direction.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,463,377 is disclosed a mechanism for separating strips of a traveling web comprising first and second supporting means having support areas positioned to form an arc. The mechanism comprises also first arc changing means connected to the first supporting means for changing the curvature of the arc thereof and second arc changing means connected to the second supporting means for changing the arc thereof, whereby the separating effect of said supporting means can be adjustably controlled.
In F1 patent publication 121306 is disclosed a device for separating partial webs comprising at least a first, bowed roll fitted at one side of the web and a second, bowed roll fitted at the opposite side of the web, as well as a mechanism, which is fitted to act upon said rolls so as to alter the wrap angles of the component webs and thereby to produce the desired spreading of the component webs. The device is provided with a regulation mechanism, which is fitted to change the distance between the first and the second roll dependent of the effecting deflection angle of the partial webs and thus creating the desired separation of the partial webs. The mechanism is a swing mechanism and it is adapted to increase the distance between the first and second rolls simultaneously when the deflection angles of the partial webs is increased.
In prior art methods using a deflection spreading method for separation of partial webs the deflection spreaders for partial web separation the arcs of the spreader rolls are of fixed form, for example of circular arc form, also the direction of the arcs relative to the web is parallel and the arcs of each of the spreader rolls are substantially the same as well as the deflection over each of the arcs of the spreader rolls is equal and the structure of the adjustment mechanism is such that the web entering the deflection spreading device and the web leaving the deflection spreading device are substantially parallel at all wrap angles.
The prior art deflection spreading devices are functional as such but in some cases due to the layout of the slitter-winder and the path geometry of the web the above types of deflection spreading devices are not applicable in all slitter-winders. In particular problems are caused by the parallel entering and leaving direction of the partial webs to and from the deflection spreading device and position of spreader rolls and adjustment devices influencing the entering and leaving direction, which in practice require a lot of space and thus limit the path geometry of the webs.

Method for separating partial webs in a slitter winder


Generally this disclosure describes methods and systems for controlling device operation in a processing system. A method may include receiving information comprising at least one packet, identifying the information as associated with a device based on a header in the at least one packet and transmitting a signal to the device, the signal being configured to provide advance notice to the device that the information is being scheduled for transmission to the device. Another method may include receiving a signal configured to provide advance notice of information that will be received, transitioning from a first operational state to a second operational state and receiving the information.

A processing system (e.g., storage server, desktop computer, laptop computer, notebook computer, ultrabook, netbook, tablet computer, smartphone, mobile handset or other processor-based system) may include functionality configured to help the system conserve power, avoid heat buildup, reduce communication congestion, etc. As an example, power may be conserved by altering the operational state of devices that are not being used by the system. System devices that become inactive may enter a low power state wherein some or all of the device features are shut down. An inactive device may then reactivate when it recognizes that tasks are waiting to be performed. However, device reactivation necessarily includes a certain amount of latency (e.g., devices cannot reactivate instantaneously, and thus, there is some delay before the device is ready to perform its function). Latency may be problematic when the tasks to be performed are time-sensitive, which can negatively impact the overall performance of the processing system.
Although the following Detailed Description will proceed with reference being made to illustrative embodiments, many alternatives, modifications and variations thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Controlling devices via advance notice signaling


Contact lenses comprising an ionic component are packaged with a beneficial cationic agent in a temperature-sensitive packaging solution and/or a low ionic strength packaging solution.

The field of the disclosure is the manufacture of contact lenses for administering beneficial agents.
Methods of making contact lenses for administering ophthalmic drugs and other beneficial agents to the ocular tissue of a patient have been described. Some problems associated with prior art methods include inefficient use of the beneficial agent in that significantly more drug is required to make the lens than is actually delivered by the lens to the patient. Another problem is that the dimensions or physical properties of the lens may significantly change upon release of the agent from the drug. Yet another problem of prior art methods for manufacturing such lenses is that the methods are complex and not amenable to high volume manufacturing operations. We have discovered improved methods of manufacturing beneficial agent-releasing contact lenses that overcome the foregoing problems.
Contact lens packages including a sealed receptacle that contains a contact lens made of a silicone hydrogel copolymer in a sterile solution which comprises a stabilizing agent which can form an ionic complex or hydrogen bond with the hydrogel copolymer, have been described in U.S. Pat. Publ. No. 2007/0149428. A packaging system and method for the storage of an ionic hydrogel lens that uses an aqueous packing solution which includes a phosphorylcholine polymer, and which further can include a buffering agent, have been described in U.S. Pat. Publ. No. 2009/0100801. Other background publications include U.S. Pat. No. 7,811,601, U.S. Publ. No. 2008/0085922, U.S. Publ. No. 2010/0249356, U.S. Publ. No. 2008/0124376, U.S. Publ. No. 2008/0023345, U.S. Publ. No. 2009/0324691, U.S. Publ. No. 2007/0265247, Karlgard et al, Int J Pharm (2003) 257:141-51, and Soluri et al., Optom Vis Sci (2012) 89:1140-1149.

Methods of manufacturing contact lenses for delivery of beneficial agents

CooperVision International Holding Company, LP


The trap includes an enclosure from which it is possible to draw air therefrom thereby reducing pressure therein. An opening is provided in the enclosure which enables outside air to be drawn therein as a result of the reduced pressure, and through which mosquitoes or night flying insects can be sucked inside the enclosure. A container which is associated with the enclosure and is separate from the device that draws air therefrom receives mosquitoes or night flying insects which have been sucked into the enclosure. The insects should be directed toward the container without contacting the air drawing device. By operating the device in an environment loaded with mosquitoes or night flying insects, most if not all of them are collected inside the enclosure.

(a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a trap and a method for catching mosquitoes or night flying insects. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a device and a method operating under suction to draw in night flying insects, more specifically mosquitoes, into an enclosure, to dispose of them.
(b) Description of Prior Art
Although the insects play an important part in the equilibrium of nature, it remains that some of them may be very harmful to humans in being responsible for the transmission of serious diseases. Furthermore, in residential areas and in the country they may become very annoying to the extent that it is sometimes impossible to stay outside even when the temperature is ideal. Natural and chemical insecticides and repellents are known, but it has been found that they do not give full satisfaction. It is particularly hard to get rid of night flying insects, especially mosquitoes, which are extremely annoying at sunset. Insecticides and known traps do not give good results, so that during the nicest evenings of the year it is practically impossible to stay outside for relaxation or to practice a sporting activity.
A number of devices have been disclosed which use suction to collect flying insects. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 783,752 discloses combination of a blower and a light which acts as an attractant for drawing in insects and sending them into a receptacle. It will be noted that the insects have to go through the blower before being sent to the receptacle.
U.S. Pat. No. 959,155 is a modification of U.S. Pat. No. 783,752 which includes a trap having a trap door operated by a spring at the discharge end of the tube connected to the blower.
U.S. Pat. No. 993,644 describes placing a tank of liquid between the blower and the inlet into the tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,478,424 is somewhat similar to U.S. Pat. No. 783,752 except that an insect collecting bell is provided which has a specific parabolic shape.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,807,550 is another system of the same type where a special type of reflector is provided in the trapping compartment.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,384,930 describes an insect trap which also includes a light attractant, a fan and receiving means for the insects propelled by the fan. U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,673 discloses a device of the same type and including a parabolic reflector.
It will be noted that all the above devices provide for the insects to travel through the blades of a fan as they are propelled toward a collector. This is of course a serious disadvantage as the trap cannot be operated for any appreciable length of time before it needs to be cleaned.

Trap for catching mosquitoes or all night flying insects and method therefor


A removable pad to be placed on the thigh support or ischeal ring of a leg splint such as a Thomas splint or other similar type of splint. The pad is formed of a soft absorbent material sized to completely cover the entire thigh support ring thereby eliminating patient contact therewith, and sized to fit a variety of sizes of thigh support rings. In addition, the pad is readily removable from the ring with minimal disturbance of the traction set-up and may be disposable in order to adequately ensure sanitary conditions.

A typical traction arrangement employing a leg splint such as a Thomas or other similar type of splint is shown in FIG. 1. These splints generally consist of an elongated U-shaped portion to which traction cords are secured, attached to a thigh support ring on which a patient's thigh rests. The splint and thigh ring are most often formed of a metallic or rigid plastic material capable of causing irritation of the patient's skin upon prolonged contact or other injury due to prolonged pressure to the surrounding thigh tissue. Since the size of the splint employed in a given traction arrangement is usually based on the length and not width of the leg, these problems are prevalent in cases involving obese or other large patients whose thigh may fit fairly tightly within the support ring.
Various pad means have thus been employed to protect a patient's thigh from such contact. One of the most common ways orthopedic personnel pad a thigh ring is by wrapping it with a soft absorbent material prior to placing it under the patient's thigh. However, upon soiling such wrapping can be difficult to remove and replace without disturbing or disassembling the traction arrangement. Since it is imperative that such disturbance be minimized, orthopedic personnel often place absorbent towels between the wrapped ring and the patient's thigh, removing and replacing the towels when soiled. This method, however, is inadequate in that any soiling of the original wrap still remains, and the wrap and towels may not sufficiently pad the ring or may bunch or unevenly pad the ring, leading to points of uneven pressure. While there have been pads manufactured especially for these rings, the pads employed to date have often been inadequate in size or design to cover and pad the entire ring, leading to some skin contact or pressure points. These pads have also been difficult to remove for laundering or replacement while in use, causing unwanted disturbance in the traction set-up.
There is, therefore, a need for a splint pad which covers and pads the entire thigh support ring to reduce patient skin contact with the device as well as points of uneven pressure. Also, it is desirable that such a pad be readily removable in order to minimize disturbance to the traction set-up, especially important in cases of skeletal traction wherein traction forces are directly applied to a pin placed through the fractured bone. Finally, a pad being totally removable from the support ring for disposal or cleaning upon soiling is critical to maintaining sanitary conditions.

Detroit Receiving Hospital & University Health Center


A method for operating a motor vehicle drivetrain having a transmission connected between a drive aggregate and a drive output, a Power Take-Off (PTO) that can be coupled to the drive aggregate on drive aggregate side to take up drive torque from the drive aggregate. In order to determine the torque taken up by the PTO, the transmission is first shifted to interrupt torque to the transmission output. Thereafter, a defined torque is delivered by the drive aggregate, at least with the PTO coupled to the drive aggregate, and, during this at defined time-points, rotational speeds of a shaft driven by the drive aggregate are determined and from this an angular acceleration of the shaft is determined. A first torque of the shaft is determined from the shaft angular acceleration while the PTO is coupled. Based on the first torque, the torque taken up by the PTO is determined.

A drivetrain of a motor vehicle comprises a drive aggregate and a transmission connected between the drive aggregate and a drive output. The transmission is preferably an automatic or automated transmission, in which gear changes and thus shifts are carried out automatically or in an automated manner. Between the drive aggregate and the transmission, a hydrodynamic starting element can be connected, which then comprises a converter and a converter lock-up clutch connected parallel to the converter.
From WO 2007/030070 A1 a drivetrain of a motor vehicle is known, which comprises an auxiliary drive. Such an auxiliary drive is also known as a PTO (Power Take-Off). When the power take-off is coupled, the power take-off draws or takes up torque from the drive aggregate so that then less torque is available at the transmission and hence at the drive output. If shifts are to be carried out reliably in the transmission, then when the power take-off is coupled it is important to know how much torque is taken up by the power take-off. Until now it has been difficult to determine in a simple and reliable manner the torque taken up by a power take-off that can be coupled on the drive aggregate side.

Method and control unit for operating a drivetrain of a motor vehicle comprising a power take-off


A tooling system, such as an additive manufacturing system, includes a tool displacement mechanism mounted on a fixed structure and carrying a system tool such as a printhead. The tool displacement mechanism displaces the system tool along a curvilinear closed path about a system axis and located within a working plane intersecting the system axis. A bed, connecting to the fixed structure, is substantially positioned within the working plane, locally adjacent the closed path and along at least a portion of the closed path.

Additive manufacturing is the process of building objects layer by layer. There are different technologies of layer deposition and layer forming ranging from Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), to Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), and Stereo Lithography Apparatus (SLA), to only name a few. These additive methods employ different processes to fuse and add two dimensional layers together to form 3D (3-dimensional) objects. Sometimes multiple materials can be used on the same machine, such as to make a removable support, or to simply add different properties to the objects such as stiffness, color, conductivity, etc. Deposited materials range from plastics to metals and concrete, and even materials of biological nature. Sizes of the printed models or objects can vary, and resolution can vary as well. Additive manufacturing brings huge potential for innovation as well as changing the way products are manufactured. More recently, the technology has advanced to a point where it is considered mature enough for prototyping and validation of designs and is starting to be used in more demanding manufacturing applications. There are many challenges in making this manufacturing method widespread and it is due to multiple factors such as materials, speed, quality, and cost.
A 3D printer works in three dimensions and all depositions work around the interaction of each dimension with one another. Here is a look at the most known Cartesian FDM 3D printers. One can see the approach of depositing material as a 1-dimensional (1D) operation. A 1D line of plastic is deposited on a 2-dimensional (2D) plane of a certain layer height. Once the 2D plane has been completed, the next 2D plane can be deposited, again using a 1D line at a time and so on. The work of this 3D printer is therefore to go from one dimension to two dimensions and then the third. Each 1D step of this process is time being wasted on movement and one can easily see why FDM Cartesian printers are so slow. This also introduces a lot of movements to the head that is painstakingly depositing every feature, one line at a time. Even if the head moves fast, it will always be limited by the back-and-forth movements required in the 2D plane. Similarly, in SLA and SLS 3D printing, a focused laser point is moved on a plane with the control of the angle of mirrors. The advantage of this method compared to FDM is that the point light has no mass, the source does not need to move, and only the angular inertia of the mirror assembly is the limiting factor. Nevertheless, it remains an optimized 1D problem, same as in the Cartesian type FDM. The fact that this requires sometimes specially developed and pre-processed materials in the shape of filament, or specially synthesized resins is also bothersome. This optimization is difficult to achieve with the more readily available and diverse plastic filaments.
More recent advancement in SLA methods have finally brought the method to another level by using LCDs or projectors to control all the points of a surface at almost the same time. This method has the right idea as it is solving the 1D constraint explained above, by making the points available at any instant. The limiting factor at this point becomes the refresh rate of the 2D projection and the material's ability to become ready to be deposited for the next layer. Some SLA printers need to use a wiping mechanism to lift the part and create the space for the next layer. Sometimes this creates unwanted suction which can result in part deformation or a failed print. Other companies, like Carbon, Inc.™, developed special methods and chemical processes to get rid of the back-and-forth motion of the wiper and the bed by having a chemically inactive zone above the projection window. This greatly reduces time and even allowed for higher quality as the refresh rate of the 2D projection became the limiting factor to layer height, making it an almost layer-less process. In short, the layer height had become coupled to the ability of the projection to change each point or pixel fast enough. There are other limitations such as in the chemical process and heat generation, but the principle of operation allowed to take advantage of the shortcut on going directly from 1D to 2D. Unfortunately, this method only works for the SLA type 3D printers with a very limited range of materials.
Nevertheless, there is still viable options to try as seen in the literature. One particular idea with potential is the one of transforming alternate movements into continuous ones. For example, by modifying the Cartesian FDM printers (See PCT patent application publication No. WO 2019/071099 A1), people switched to polar coordinates to allow for more continuous deposition which allows for fewer unidirectional accelerations. This was an interesting idea because one could imagine building a vase continuously without moving the head much. The useful applications are limited, and essentially remains with revolving geometries, such as a vase, a rocket engine nozzle, and the like. But the problem of 1D deposition is still the aspect slowing it down because only one point or line could be deposited at a time.
A particularly interesting method of deposition was disclosed more recently in use with electrophotography or Xerox™-like toner deposition. U.S. patent publication No. US 2015/0017272 A1 to Xerox Corporation and U.S. patent publication No. US 2019/0022937 A1 to Evolve Additive Solutions, Inc. described a method of depositing 2D planes on a rotary device using a fixed deposition head that deposits the material plane by plane, or line by line since only one line at a time is in contact with the cylinder. Although this solution answers to the 1-D printing limitations, as well as the continuous deposition method since a cylinder comes back to its start once it has made a full turn, it remains quite complex. First, the well-known 2D and square and flat layers cannot be used on such a device the same way we are used to. Second, the resolution of the first layer is smaller than the last layer per unit area, this means scaling must be performed or alternatively the cylinder rotational speed must be adjusted at each layer to preserve the correct aspect ratio. This solution is great but with some downsides in efficiency. As the cylinder grows, its rotational speed (RPM) must be limited because it will get unbalanced, especially the further it gets from the center of rotation.
There is more interesting work done by General Electric (see U.S. patent Ser. No. 10/821,514 B2) on to increase the speed and efficiency. A single tool is able to move radially on a plane and deposit/fuse the material in place on different platforms parallel to this plane. This enables a few advantages such as in manufacturing scenario where multiple parts and designs can come out of the same machine. This concept is interesting as it offers a glimpse into mass production using additive manufacturing. Even though this method is applied on the SLS type of additive manufacturing, the concept can be adapted and played with. To finish on this point, there are some limitations in terms of resolution with respect to the radial position. One is constrained around the platform and the space closer to the center becomes inefficient.
One more step, close but not quite, no rotating (circumferentially fixed) printhead, and rotating no separate platforms as shown in US patent publication No. US 2020/0307084 A1.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved tooling system having a system tool being displaceable along a closed path.

Tooling system with a system tool displaceable along a closed path


A main steam isolation valve of a reactor power plant comprises a valve body provided with inlet and outlet portions through which a steam flows, a cylindrical valve disk accommodated in the valve body to be reciprocatingly movable therein along an inner peripheral surface of the valve body for opening and closing the steam flow inlet portion and a driving mechanism secured to the valve body and operatively connected to the valve disk for reciprocatingly moving the valve disk in the valve body. A coupling member is applied to an end opening of the valve body for holding the valve disk when the valve disk is shifted to a position fully opening the inlet portion. A tubular wall member is integrally formed with the valve body so as to surround the valve disk with a gap therebetween when the valve disk is fully opened. A guide rib is further disposed to the valve body for causing asymmetric steam flow in the inlet portion of the steam flow of the valve body.

The present invention relates to a main steam isolation valve particularly of a boiling water reactor (BWR) plant for suppressing oscillation of a valve disk of the steam isolation valve.
Generally, in a BWR plant, a reactor pressure vessel is directly connected to a steam turbine through a plurality of main steam pipes, and first and second main steam isolation valves are incorporated to each of the main steam pipes inside and outside of the reactor container. The reactor pressure vessel is isolated as occasion demands by closing these main steam isolation valves.
The steam used in the steam turbine is condensed into condensate in a condenser and the condensate is then returned to the reactor pressure vessel.
In a conventional main steam isolation valve, inlet and outlet end portions of a valve body are connected to each of the main steam pipes and a valve disk is accommodated in the valve body in an axially reciprocal manner. The valve disk is provided with a valve shaft which is inclined inwardly, in an installed state, by about 45.degree. with respect to the flow direction of the mainsteam thereby to reduce flow resistance. The valve shaft is connected at one end to a driving means to reciprocatingly move the valve disk thereby to open or close the fluid, i.e. steam, passage.
The reciprocating motion of the valve disk is guided with a central guide rib and a bilateral pair of side guide ribs inwardly projecting at rear side portions of the valve body circumferentially apart from the central guide rib with a separation angle of about 120.degree. with each other.
In such a structure, when the valve disk is rested on a valve seat, the valve disk is fully closed and the valve disk is upwardly lifted thereby to fully open a valve port.
In the conventional structure of the main steam isolation valve, since the bottom portion of the valve disk is held, at its fully opened state, with substantially the half portion thereof being projected into the fluid passage, the projected bottom portion is exposed to the steam flow, thus being subjected to fluid pressure in the main steam flowing direction and a direction normal thereto. Because the fluid pressure is in proportion to two squares of the fluid velocity, the valve disk may be oscillated in case of high fluid velocity. When the valve disk is oscillated, the central guide rib is rubbed with the valve disk with each other, resulting in the wear thereof and hence causing the leakage of the steam even in the case of the fully closed state of the valve.
Furthermore, since the steam flow is prevented by the paired side guide ribs and the valve disk, the pressure is locally increased at the upstream side of the steam flow, and since a force for pressing the valve disk against the side guide rib sides, friction force between the guide ribs and the valve disk is increased, thus the degree of wear therebetween being also increased, resulting in the increased possibility of causing the leakage of the steam.