The present invention relates to an advanced warning system operable to provide a more precise indicator to the operator of a following vehicle as to the changes in vehicle speed of the leading vehicle. The present invention utilizes an indicator signal and/or an acceleration signal. The indicator signal produces a slowing signal that indicates to the operator of the following vehicle that the leading vehicle is slowing down prior to the operator of the leading vehicle actually depressing the brake pedal. The acceleration signal provides a speeding up signal to the operator of the following vehicle.

Many motor vehicle accidents are from rear end collisions which could have been avoided if the driver of the following vehicle received an advanced warning as to the sudden slowing, stopping or acceleration of the vehicle in front. All modern vehicles are equipped with brake lights and blinking turning signals, both of which are intended to inform the drivers of vehicles following behind and/or the drivers of oncoming vehicles that the vehicle in front is either stopping or turning. Unfortunately, such limited information does not fully inform the following or oncoming drivers as to the status of the vehicle in front. For example, the brake light merely indicates to the operator of the following vehicle that the driver of the leading vehicle has depressed the brake pedal. No further information beyond sudden hard braking is provided as to the rate of decrease in speed of the leading vehicle. The result is that the driver of the following vehicle must utilize other external cues to assess the speed of the leading vehicle. Such external cues may include whether the cars in front of the leading vehicle have their brake lights on, and the rate of decrease in the gap between the leading vehicle and the following vehicle.
Accordingly, the leading vehicle's decreasing speed is difficult to judge by the operator of the following vehicle solely from the brake light. Furthermore, reliance and utilization of the external cues and the accuracy with which the driver of the following vehicles can interpret these cues is subject to external influencing factors such as weather conditions, the operator's driving experience, and other distractions in the surrounding environment.
Conventional vehicle warning systems are linked to the brake pedal and attempt to provide a warning light indicating a decrease in vehicle speed once the brake pedal is depressed. The disadvantage is that the time period between the time the user removes his or her foot from the acceleration pedal to the time the brake pedal is depressed is lost. As such, conventional systems do not provide an instantaneous indication of changes in vehicle speed but merely an indication that the operator of the leading vehicle is deploying the brake pedal. That is, conventional warning systems are only activated by a change in vehicle speed produced by deployment of the brake pedal and do not provide an advanced warning before braking. Conventional warning systems do not account for changes in vehicle speed that are produced other than by deployment of the brake pedal, as for example reduction in vehicle speed produced by removal of the user's foot from the acceleration pedal during coasting. Furthermore, conventional vehicle warning systems do not provide an indication of an increase in vehicle speed such as when the vehicle is accelerating, as for example driving against strong wind, up-hills, climbing, etc.
Conventional vehicle warning systems provide even more limited information to drivers of oncoming vehicles. The vehicle turning signal merely indicates that at some point the driver of the vehicle in front had an intention to turn but does not indicate if that intention is still present or if the driver of the vehicle in front has merely forgotten the turning light on. Accordingly, driver's of oncoming vehicles are often guessing at the intention of the approaching vehicle.

Signaling system for use in a vehicle to provide a signal indicative of a change in a vehicle speed


A method and apparatus for removing internal carbon deposits and related residue and contaminants from fuel injected and carbureted internal combustion engine systems by delivering fuel to the inlet of the engine fuel pump while the engine is cranked by battery power to start the engine and then delivering an engine conditioning fuel, which is a mixture of normal engine fuel and a carbon cleaning agent, to the fuel pump inlet so that the conditioning fuel passes through and removes carbon deposits from the engine fuel injectors or carburetor, as the case may be, and is then combusted in the engine cylinders to power the engine. The effectiveness of the carbon cleaning operation is determined by monitoring the flow rate of normal engine fuel to the engine.

1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to internal combustion engines, such as those of automotive vehicles, and more particularly to novel engine conditioning apparatus and conditioning method for priming and cleaning internal carbon deposits and related residue and contaminants from such engines.
2. PRIOR ART
This invention is concerned with certain well known operating problems associated with internal combustion engines including both carbureted engines and fuel injected engines. One of these problems resides in the fact that during engine operation, deposits of carbon and related residue and contaminants, hereafter referred to simply as carbon deposits, form on the internal surfaces of the fuel handling means of such engines including the internal carburetor surfaces of carbureted engines and the internal fuel pump and fuel injector surfaces of fuel injected engines. Unless removed at regular intervals, these carbon deposits can build up sufficiently to seriously degrade engine performance and possibly even totally clog the fuel system and especially relatively small fuel passages in fuel injectors and carburetors.
Various engine conditioning procedures and systems have been devised for removing such internal carbon deposits from internal combustion engines. One known engine conditioning procedure, for example, involves disassembly of an engine and individual cleaning of the engine parts. This engine cleaning procedure is obviously complex, time consuming, costly, and requires the services of highly skilled personnel. Never-the-less, the procedure has one inherent advantage. This advantage resides in the fact that disassembly permits direct inspection of the engine parts and thereby accurate visual determination of their cleanliness. U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,348 discloses an alternative engine conditioning procedure which involves the use of a carbon cleaning agent without disassembly of the engine or the services of highly skilled technicians. This procedure does not permit a determination of the effectiveness of the carbon cleaning operation.
Another problem to which internal combustion engines, particularly diesel engines and other fuel injected engines, are subject is absence or loss of prime, that is failure of the fuel system to deliver fuel to the engine cylinders due to the presence of air in the fuel passage. Such loss of prime occurs or is prone to occur under various circumstances, such as when an engine is initially put into service, if the fuel system runs out of fuel, if a fuel line is disconnected, or when a fuel line is disconnected to service a fuel filter or for some other reason.
Accordingly, there is a definite need for an improved engine conditioning method and apparatus for the purpose described which will clean carbon deposits from an engine fuel system including, especially, the fuel injectors of a fuel injected engine and the carburetor of a carbureted engine. Since use of the conditioning apparatus will require disconnection of a fuel line and thus result in loss of engine prime, the conditioning apparatus should also be capable of priming the engine at the start and after completion of the cleaning procedure.

Method and apparatus for cleaning deposits and residue from internal combustion engines


A combat vehicle with a rear hatch and a track powered by a diesel-electric drive mechanism in the rear. The drive mechanism includes separate motors that drive the track and several current-generating diesel-electric aggregates, each in the form of a generator powered by a diesel engine. The diesel-electric aggregates are positioned symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and above the track cover, leaving a passage between the inside of the vehicle and the hatch. The passage is either open or can be opened or expanded by moving the diesel-electric aggregates.

The present invention concerns a combat vehicle (armored troop carrier) with both a diesel-electric drive mechanism and a hatch for the riflemen in the rear.
Armored troop carriers usually have a rear hatchway to allow the troops to get in and out rapidly in a protected area. The drive mechanism is accordingly usually forward to keep the rear free for the troops and the hatchway.
Forward drive mechanisms for combat vehicles have, however, turned out to be detrimental for many reasons, and it is now considered desirable to install such mechanisms in the rear of new models, both armored troop carriers and military tanks. Since on the other hand a hatchway at the rear remains just as unavoidably necessary for significant tactical reasons as ever, conventional drive mechanisms can no longer be considered in that the lack of space at the rear to accommodate them along with the hatchway will be immediately evident.
The Israeli armaments industry has attempted to resolve this conflict with a special type of transmission for the rear drive mechanisms employed in new models. This transmission when installed leaves room for a narrow passage between it and the wall of the vehicle. Rising about 50 cm above the bottom of this passage is a transmission tunnel that leads to the right-side drive wheel. The 60 cm of space above the tunnel is of course much too shallow to allow the troops to get in and out rapidly. To deepen the space, the Israelis have had recourse to raising the roof above the passage at the rear of the vehicle. The result is a triangular "gable" that the troops can leave the troop carrier through.
This design has several drawbacks. There is little room in spite of the elevated roof. The vehicle presents an extensive silhouette at the critical moment the troops are getting out of it and particularly at the point that is specifically at hazard. The troops have to jump over the transmission tunnel when getting in and out.
The object of the present invention is accordingly an ergonomically satisfactory and space-saving design for a combat vehicle (armored troop carrier) that will allow the troops to get in and out rapidly and easily even though the drive mechanism is not forward.
This object is attained in accordance with the present invention wherein the drive mechanism includes separate motors that drive the tracks and several current-generating diesel-electric aggregates, each in the form of a generator powered by a diesel engine, whereby the diesel-electric aggregates are positioned symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and above the track cover, leaving a passage between the inside of the vehicle and the hatch that is either open or that can be opened or expanded by moving the diesel-electric aggregates.
Advantageous embodiments and advanced versions of the invention will be evident from the following disclosure.
The object of the present invention is accordingly a combat vehicle with a rear hatch and a track powered by a diesel-electric drive mechanism in the rear. It is characterized in that the drive mechanism includes separate motors that drive the tracks and several current-generating diesel-electric aggregates, each in the form of a generator powered by an automobile-type diesel engine, whereby the diesel-electric aggregates are positioned symmetrically to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and above the track cover, leaving a passage between the inside of the vehicle and the hatch that is either open or that can be opened or expanded by moving the diesel-electric aggregates.
Several diesel-electric aggregates can be distributed one after another along the vehicle in the form of a coherent train that is essentially as wide as a single aggregate and positioned immediately above the track cover on each side of the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. The diesel-electric aggregates on each side of the vehicle can all be accommodated in a housing that can be detached from the vehicle.
All the vehicle's diesel-electric aggregates in one embodiment of the present invention can be accommodated in a housing at the rear of the vehicle and extending essentially over its whole width. The passage can then be located below the housing and the housing can be lifted to a prescribed extent by a lifting mechanism.
One half of each diesel-electric aggregate in another embodiment can be accommodated in a housing at the rear. When this vehicle is ready to travel, the two housings symmetrical to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle communicate across the vehicle, the passage is below them, and each can be displaced horizontally outward to a prescribed extent by a displacement mechanism.
One half of each diesel-electric aggregate in still another embodiment can be accommodated in a housing at the rear. When the vehicle is ready to travel, the two housings symmetrical to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle communicate across the vehicle, the passage is below them, and each housing can be tilted outward to a prescribed extent around a horizontal axis at the lower outer edge of each housing by a tilting mechanism.
One half of each diesel-electric aggregate in still another embodiment, finally, can be accommodated in a housing at the rear of the vehicle. When the vehicle is ready to travel, the two housings symmetrical to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle communicate across the vehicle, the passage is below them, and each housing can be pivoted a prescribed angle around a vertical axis in the vicinity of the forward outer edge of the housing by a pivoting mechanism.
Many have for a long time thought about and attempted to redesign the drive mechanisms of combat vehicles on a diesel-electric basis. The point of departure has been an internal-combustion engine, preferably a diesel engine, to power a generator and distribute the resulting current over appropriate lines to motors that would drive a track. The major advantage of such a diesel-electric drive mechanism would be the possibility in accordance with the diesel-electric principle of installing separate and loose in the form of internal-combustion engines, generator, and motors the conventionally assembled components motor, transmission, and take-off that had always been integrated as a module into the vehicle and that accordingly generally dictated its dimensions, arriving at a more satisfactory utilization of the available space. The point of departure for previous approaches to diesel-electric vehicle had usually been one or no more than two engines accommodated in either the front or the rear (and sometimes at the middle). The size of these devices, however, still demanded considerable dimensions. Combat vehicles on the other hand always include a lot of corners and niches that could have provided potentially utilizable space except that they were not the right shape to accommodate large drive mechanisms. This situation suggested exploiting the space inside the vehicle better by dividing the internal-combustion engines into smaller components that could be distributed inside the vehicle where space was available.
A power of 1300 kW is obtained to drive a combat vehicle in accordance with the present invention not with a single engine but with for example ten small engines delivering 130 kW each. Such 130 kW engines are sold as automobile engines (turbodiesels) by various manufacturers. One example is the Daimler Benz OM 606 D 30 LA. These engines are small enough to be accommodated in areas inside combat vehicles that have previously been unavailable, and allow entirely new design concepts. The diesel-electric drive-mechanism theory behind the present invention also allows an electric generator to be flanged onto each engine, with their output being combined to supply motors for the tracks. In addition to the convenient spatial conditions ensured by such mechanisms there is an additional advantage of redundancy within the system. If one engine fails through either defect or damage in combat, the overall system will keep going although at decreased output. Furthermore, several small engines weigh less than a single large one and also cost less because they are manufactured in large numbers on an industrial scale.

Combat vehicle with diesel-electric drive mechanism and rear hatch


Packaging film having a surface providing improved release properties from cold seal cohesives. The improved cold seal release properties prevent roll blocking when the film is unspooled from roll stock. Web and laminate packaging films are disclosed which incorporate the improved release properties. The packaging film finds special utility in packaging of heat sensitive articles.

1. Field of the Invention
Cold seal cohesives are generally natural or synthetic rubber latex compounds, which, when applied to a flexible packaging substrate, allow the package to be cohesively sealed by pressure and dwell time at temperatures from ambient to a temperature of less than about 150.degree. F. Cold seal cohesives are particularly useful in wrapping products which are heat sensitive, such as confectioneries. Cold seal cohesives are usually applied in a pattern on to the inside (cold seal receptive surface) of a film lamination. Cold seal cohesives may also be applied to a single web film. In each case the outer film surface (facing away from the cold seal) must repel adhesion of the cold seal cohesive on the inner film surface in order that the typical manner of supplying film, i.e., in roll stock form, may be easily unwound when it is desired to use the film to wrap the product.
The present invention is directed to films of either the single web or lamination form which has improved properties for packaging with cold seal cohesives.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the case of the prior art single web films, the surface of the film opposing the cold seal receptive surface is typically coated with an overlacquer, e.g., a polyamide, in order to provide sufficient release of that surface from the cold seal cohesive, i.e., to prevent what is known in the art as "roll blocking".
In the case where laminated films are used for packaging, the outer web film is generally modified with migratory additives, which, when sufficiently bloomed to the surface, promote low coefficient of friction (C.O.F.) (for machinability) and cold seal release (CSR). It is known from experience that certain migratory additives, particularly amides, coming in intimate contact with the cold seal surface or cohesive, in sufficient quantities, will cause the cold seal cohesive strength to become significantly weakened. This phenomenon is known in the trade as cold seal deadening.
It is also known that biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film, by itself, does not give adequate cold seal release (CSR) or coefficient of friction (C.O.F.) and requires the addition of additives to accomplish these objectives. These additives, which are predominantly migratory, have two main problems:
(1) They must bloom to the film's surface and remain there in order to be consistently effective; and, PA1 (2) They have a tendency to retard the cold seal cohesive strength. PA1 conventional linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) PA1 ethylene-butene plastomer (formed by a metallocene catalyst) PA1 syndiotactic homopolymer of polypropylene (formed by a metallocene catalyst) PA1 homopolymer of high density polyethylene (HDPE)
The current industry standard (state of the art) film for packaging applications is a monolayer BOPP (homopolymer) amide modified film from AET (Applied Extrusion Technology, Inc.) designated B523 or B522. In the case of B523, the slip modified film is corona discharge treated to an equal level on both surfaces and as such can be used on either side. In the case of B522, the film is corona discharge treated on only one surface. The untreated surface is the preferred surface for cold seal release (CSR).
These films need to be aged for a period of time after production thereof, at a certain temperature, so that the CSR and C.O.F. additives sufficiently bloom to the surface for the film to be functional.
In my copending application Ser. No. 08/224,229, filed Apr. 7, 1994, I disclosed the discovery of good to excellent cold seal release in a film without the use of migratory additives or overlacquers. The preferred method disclosed therein was a coextruded skin layer of a polymer blend of ethylene-propylene random copolymer (RCP) and ethylene-butylene (EB) copolymer in the ratio of 60:40 wt %. The skin layer thereof contained crosslinked silicone and Kaolin clay as C.O.F. enhancers. The cold seal release surface was preferably a non-treated, i.e., no corona discharge or other conventional treatments, surface.
The key component of the polymeric blend release system in my previous application was an ethylene-butylene random copolymer in an amount of 20 to 50 wt % of the skin layer where the ethylene content in the ethylene-butylene random copolymer was at least 0.5 wt %.
The present invention concerns cold seal release surfaces which do not contain polybutylene, migratory additives, nor overlacquers.

Biaxially oriented polypropylene film with cold seal release surface


A method of forming a rhodium-containing layer on a substrate, such as a semiconductor wafer, using complexes of the formula LyRhYz is provided. Also provided is a chemical vapor co-deposited platinum-rhodium alloy barriers and electrodes for cell dielectrics for integrated circuits, particularly for DRAM cell capacitors. The alloy barriers protect surrounding materials from oxidation during oxidative recrystallization steps and protect cell dielectrics from loss of oxygen during high temperature processing steps. Also provided are methods for CVD co-deposition of platinum-rhodium alloy diffusion barriers.

Layers of metals and metal oxides, particularly the heavier elements of Group VIII, are becoming important for a variety of electronic and electrochemical applications. For example, high quality RuO2 thin films deposited on silicon wafers have recently gained interest for use in ferroelectric memories. Many of the Group VIII metal layers are generally unreactive toward silicon and metal oxides, resistant to diffusion of oxygen and silicon, and are good conductors. Oxides of certain of these metals also possess these properties, although perhaps to a different extent.
Thus, layers of Group VIII metals and metal oxides, particularly the second and third row metals (e.g., Ru, Os, Rh, Ir, Pd, and Pt) have suitable properties for a variety of uses in integrated circuits. For example, they can be used in integrated circuits for electrical contacts. They are particularly suitable for use as barrier layers between the dielectric material and the silicon substrate in memory devices, such as ferroelectric memories. Furthermore, they may even be suitable as the plate (i.e., electrode) itself in capacitors. Rhodium is of particular interest because it is one of a few elements having a resistivity of less than 5 μΩ-cm (resistivity at 20° C. 5=4.51 μΩ-cm).
Capacitors are used in a wide variety of integrated circuits. Capacitors are of special concern in DRAM (dynamic random access memory) circuits; therefore, the invention will be discussed in connection with DRAM memory circuits. However, the invention has broader applicability and is not limited to DRAM memory circuits. It may be used in other types of memory circuits, such as SRAMs, as well as any other circuit in which cell dielectrics are used.
There is continuous pressure in the industry to decrease the size of individual cells and increase memory cell density to allow more memory to be squeezed onto a single memory chip. However, it is necessary to maintain a sufficiently high storage capacitance to maintain a charge at the refresh rates currently in use even as cell size continues to shrink. This requirement has led DRAM manufacturers to turn to three dimensional capacitor designs, including trench and stacked capacitors. Stacked capacitors are capacitors which are formed over the access transistor in a semiconductor device. In contrast, trench capacitors are formed in the wafer substrate beneath the transistor. For reasons including ease of fabrication and increased capacitance, most manufacturers of DRAMs larger than 4 Megabits use stacked capacitors. Therefore, the present invention will be discussed in connection with stacked capacitors, but should not be understood to be limited thereto.
One widely used type of stacked capacitor is known as a container capacitor. Known container capacitors are in the shape of an upstanding tube (cylinder) with an oval or circular cross section. The wall of the tube consists of two electrodes, i.e., two plates of conductive material, such as doped polycrystalline silicon (referred to herein as polysilicon or poly), separated by a dielectric, such as tantalum pentoxide (Ta2O5). The bottom end of the tube is closed, with the outer wall in contact with either the drain of the access transistor or a plug which itself is in contact with the drain. The other end of the tube is open. The sidewall and closed end of the tube form a container; hence the name "container capacitor."
The electrodes in a DRAM cell capacitor must protect the dielectric layer from interaction with surrounding materials, including interlayer dielectrics (e.g., BPSG), and from the harsh thermal processing encountered in subsequent steps of DRAM process flow. In order to function well as a bottom electrode, the electrode layer or layer stack must act as an effective barrier to the diffusion of oxygen and silicon. Oxidation of the underlying Si will result in decreased series capacitance, thus degrading the cell capacitor. Platinum is one of the candidates for use as an electrode material for high dielectric capacitors. Platinum, alone, however, is relatively permeable to oxygen. One solution is to alloy the Pt with Rh to enhance the barrier properties of the layer. Physical vapor deposition (PVD) of a Pt—Rh alloy has been shown by H. D. Bhatt et. al., "Novel high temperature multi-layer electrode barrier structure for high-density ferroelectric memories," Applied Physics Letters, 71, pp. 719-21 (1997), to provide an improvement over pure Pt for electrode applications. However, PVD deposition does not deliver a layer which is sufficiently conformal for VLSI devices.
Thus, there is a continuing need for methods and materials for the deposition of metal-containing layers, such as rhodium-containing layers, which can function as barrier layers, for example, in integrated circuits. Furthermore, what is needed are capacitor electrodes, barrier layers, and fabrication methods that offer a combination of good conformality, high conductivity, and good barrier properties.

Methods and apparatus for forming rhodium-containing layers


A parking brake apparatus for use in a motor vehicle, mounted on a floor member which operatively connects a hand-operated brake actuator to a wheel brake is disclosed. The parking brake apparatus comprises a link member for reversing and transmitting an input force from the brake actuator to an output force on a cable linkage. The apparatus allows a hand operated parking brake actuator to be used in a vehicle with a cable linkage routed into the front of the actuator rather than into the rear of the actuator.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a parking brake system for a motor vehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to a force reversing and transmitting apparatus for use therein.
2. Disclosure Information
U.S. Pat. No. 4,212,211 discloses a conventional hand operated parking brake actuator. Typically, the actuator is mounted to a floor member within easy reach of the vehicle operator. The actuator transmits the operator's input force on the handle of the actuator to an output force at a cable attachment on the actuator, thus resulting in a tension force in a cable linkage. The cable linkage transmits the tension force to engage a set of rear wheel brakes. The cable linkage in a conventional parking brake actuator design runs directly rearward from the cable attachment at the actuator toward the wheel brakes.
In the design of an electrical vehicle, economical adaptation of a conventional parking brake actuator presents challenges previously not encountered. An electric vehicle carries a battery for a source of energy. The size, shape and mass of the monolithic battery requires a structurally unencroached mounting location within the vehicle structure. Typically, the most feasible location for the battery is under the cargo floor, immediately rearward of the operator seating area. This conflicts with use of a conventional hand operated parking brake actuator, since the conventional actuator requires routing the cable linkage directly to the rear of the brake actuator and therefore, the cable linkage would encroach the battery package space.
It would be desirable to provide an apparatus that would allow the use of a conventional parking brake actuator in battery powered electric vehicles.

Force reversing and transmitting apparatus for a parking brake system


An operation clock generation circuit performs calculation on the basis of the frequency errors of a fundamental clock and the clock pulses of the fundamental clock, and generates an operation clock obtained by correcting the frequency errors at first intervals. A correction clock generation circuit converts a lower-bit value that is a value represented by the bits lower than the predefined bit used for judging the change of the state of the operation clock into a count number of the clock pulses of a second clock whose frequency is higher than that of the operation clock, generates a correction clock obtained by correcting the operation clock on the basis of a time required for counting the count number of the clock pulses and the clock pulses of the operation clock.

The present invention relates to clock correction circuits and clock correction methods, and more particularly relates, for example, to a clock correction circuit and clock correction method used for a power meter and the like.
Recently, RTCs (Real Time Clocks) have been widely used in many information devices. One of examples on which an RTC is mounted is a power meter. The power meter calculates electricity charges and the like on the basis of the time period measured by the RTC. Generally, a tuning fork type crystal oscillator is used for generating the operation clock of the RTC, and the temperature characteristic of the frequency of the tuning fork type crystal oscillator is represented by a quadratic function that has a negative quadratic coefficient with about 25° C. as the center temperature. The temperature characteristic has, for example, a deviation about −150 ppm (parts per million) at the temperature −40° C. If the operation clock of the RTC has a deviation in its practical usage, the time period measured by the RTC has an error. Therefore, the correction of the frequency deviation of the operation clock is needed.
For example, in the power meter market, it is required that the accuracy of the clock generated by the RTC is within ±3 ppm or ±5 ppm. In the manufacturing process of power meters on which RTCs are mounted, it is inspected whether the clocks, the frequency errors of which have already been corrected, operate within desired accuracy or not. This inspection method is performed in a way that a clock (for example, 1 Hz) obtained by dividing a clock (for example, 32,768 kHz) generated by a crystal oscillator of an RTC is output from a terminal and that it is inspected whether the output clock satisfies the above-mentioned accuracy (±3 ppm, or ±5 ppm). Therefore, if 1 Hz clock is generated from the output clock of a crystal oscillator 32.768 kHz, the greatest accuracy of the generated clock is 30.5 ppm (1 Hz/32.768 kHz). The accuracy of this clock does not satisfy the accuracy required by the power meter market.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-315121 discloses an RTC circuit of a simple configuration that is capable of performing time correction with a high accuracy. The above RTC circuit includes an oscillator that generates a fundamental clock (for example, 32.768 kHz), and generates a frequency-divided signal obtained by dividing the fundamental clock. Further, the RTC circuit calculates the frequency errors of the fundamental clock generated by the oscillator with the use of a reference clock that is higher and more accurate than the fundamental clock. Successively, using the frequency-divided signal as a clock, an oscillator with a correction function in the RTC adds fixed values and the frequency errors, and outputs the MSB (Most Significant Bit, highest bit) of the addition result value as a correction clock. When the correction clock is generated, the frequency errors are accumulatively added, and when the accumulated value is reflected in the above MSB, the state of the correction clock is reversed, which corrects the frequency errors.

Clock correction circuit and clock correction method


Compounds having the formula (I),

Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAP) are a family of proline-directed serine/threonine kinases that activate their substrates by dual phosphorylation. The kinases are activated by a variety of signals, including nutritional and osmotic stress, UV light, growth factors, endotoxin, and inflammatory cytokines. One group of MAP kinases is the p38 kinase group which includes various isoforms (e.g., p38α, p39β, p38γ and p38δ). The p38 kinases are responsible for phosphorylating and activating transcription factors (as well as other kinases), and are themselves activated by physical and chemical stress, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and bacterial lipopolysaccharide.
More importantly, the products of the p38 phosphorylation have been shown to mediate the production of inflammatory cytokines, including TNF, IL-1, IL-6, and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Each of these cytokines has been implicated in numerous disease states and conditions. For example, TNF-α is a cytokine produced primarily by activated monocytes and macrophages. Excessive or unregulated production of TNF-α has been implicated as playing a causative role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis. More recently, inhibition of TNF production has been shown to have broad application in the treatment of inflammatory conditions, inflammatory bowel disease, Alzheimer's disease, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, and asthma.
Additionally, TNF has been implicated in viral infections, such as HIV, influenza virus, and herpes virus, including herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1), herpes simplex virus type-2 (HSV-2), cytomegalovirus (CMV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), Epstein-Barr virus, human herpes virus-6 (HHV-6), human herpes virus-7 (HHV-7), human herpes virus-8 (HHV-8), pseudorabies, and rhinotracheitis, among others.
Similarly, IL-1 is produced by activated monocytes and macrophages and plays a role in many pathophysiological responses including rheumatoid arthritis, fever and reduction of bone resorption.
The inhibition of these cytokines by inhibition of the p38 kinase would be beneficial in controlling, reducing and alleviating many of these disease states. p38 MAP kinase inhibitors have demonstrated efficacy in several disease models including arthritis and other joint diseases, sepsis, stroke, myocardial injury, respiratory inflammatory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, and a wide range of inflammatory conditions. The present invention provides certain 2-amino-6-phenoxy substituted quinazoline compounds useful in inhibiting p38 kinase. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/824,980, filed concomitantly herewith and assigned to the present assignee, discloses 2-amino-6-phenoxy substituted 7-aza-quinazoline compounds useful as p38 kinase inhibitors, and the entire contents of said application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

Substituted quinazoline compounds useful as p38 kinase inhibitors

Abstract: Compounds having the formula (I),

Abstract: are useful as p38 kinase inhibitors, wherein R4 and R5 are hydrogen, halogen, cyano, haloalkyl, or haloalkoxy, but are not both hydrogen; R6 and R7 are optional substituents, and Q is a non-aromatic moiety as defined in the specification.


In the backflush filter (10) according to the invention, in which the flushing back of the filter inserts (15) which are received in several filter chambers takes place by means of flushing filtrate loaded by compressed air, the flush valve (35) and the mud drain valve (39) are actuated by a common drive, whereas the valves or the valve bores (45, 46) are dimensioned in such a manner that the flush valve only releases the connection to the filtrate chamber (19′) of the filter inserts (15′) to be flushed back, when the mud drain valve has already at least partially released the connection between the mud chamber (24′) of the affected filter chamber (14′) with a mud outlet (40). By this, it is ensured in a particularly simple manner that at the backflush process the pressure level in the mud chamber has already dropped before the filtrate for the backflush is loaded with compressed air (see FIG. 2).

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a backflush filter with several filter chambers which receive filter inserts which can be flushed back by means of a flush filtrate loaded with compressed air, with a filter housing, a backflush device rotatably mounted in the housing around a rotary axis which backflush device comprises a filtrate pipe connection and a mud drain connecting piece, whereby, for the backflush, the filtrate pipe connection can be brought into fluid communication with a filtrate chamber of respectively one of the filter chambers which are arranged concentrically around the rotary axis and simultaneously the mud drain connecting piece can be brought into communication with a mud chamber of the respectively one filter chamber, further with a pressure chamber for flush gas and a flush valve closing this or releasing it to the filtrate pipe connection, and with a mud outlet and a mud drain valve closing this or releasing it to the mud drain connecting piece.
2. Description of Related Art
Such a backflush filter is for example known from EP 0361217 B1. This known backflush filter is comparatively complicated in its design, it has in particular a relatively large installation height, which can be ascribed amongst others to the fact that the mud drain valve and the drive actuating it is flanged to the actual filter housing at the bottom, while the flush valve with its associated drive projects upwards from the filter housing. The use of two separate drives for the mud drain valve and the flush valve makes it necessary to provide a sequence control unit for these two valves which ensures that the flush valve is only opened after the opening of the mud drain valve, so that, at the start of the backflushing, the fluid pressure on the mud side of the filter inserts is broken down before the backflush process is initiated. With a breakdown of this sequence control unit, an orderly cleaning of the filter inserts is not ensured, which can possibly go unnoticed for a longer operating time of the backflush filter.


A method and apparatus for effectively removing gas bubbles in systems fed to ink-jetting devices. The system removes both small and large-scale gas bubbles from systems that feed materials to ink jet print heads.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to a system and a method for effectively removing entrained gas bubbles from a feed material system for an ink-jet material dispensing system. The system and method is designed to completely remove entrained gas bubbles before the feed material is fed to an ink-jet print head.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, several new technologies have been developed for the rapid creation of models, prototypes, and parts for limited run manufacturing. These new technologies can generally be described as solid freeform fabrication, herein referred to as "SFF". Some SFF techniques include stereolithography, selective deposition modeling, three-dimensional printing, laminated object manufacturing, selective phase area deposition, multi-phase jet solidification, ballistic particle manufacturing, fused deposition modeling, particle deposition, laser sintering, and the like. In SFF, complex parts are produced from a modeling material in an additive fashion as opposed to conventional fabrication techniques, which are generally subtractive in nature. For example, in conventional fabrication techniques material is removed by machining operations or shaped in a die or mold to near net shape and then trimmed. In contrast, additive fabrication techniques incrementally add portions of a build material to targeted locations, typically layer by layer, in order to build a complex part.
SFF technologies typically utilize a computer graphic representation of a part and a supply of a build material to fabricate the part in successive layers. SFF technologies have many advantages over the prior conventional manufacturing methods. For instance, SFF technologies dramatically shorten the time to develop prototype parts and can quickly produce limited numbers of parts in rapid manufacturing processes. They also eliminate the need for complex tooling and machining associated with the prior conventional manufacturing methods, particularly when creating molds for casting operations. In addition, SFF technologies are advantageous because customized objects can be produced quickly by processing computer graphic data.
One category of SFF that has emerged is selective deposition modeling, herein referred to as "SDM". In SDM, a build material is physically deposited in a layerwise fashion while in a flowable state and is allowed to solidify to form an object. In one type of SDM technology the modeling material is extruded as a continuous filament through a resistively heated nozzle. In yet another type of SDM technology the modeling material is jetted or dropped in discrete droplets in order to build up a part. In one particular SDM apparatus, a thermoplastic material having a low-melting point is used as the solid modeling material, which is delivered through a jetting system such as those used in ink jet printers. One type of SDM process utilizing ink jet print heads is described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,176 to Menhennett, et al.
Because ink jet print heads are designed for use in two-dimensional printing, special modifications must be made in order to use them in building three-dimensional objects by SFF techniques. This is generally because there are substantial differences between the two processes requiring different solutions to different problems. For example, in two-dimensional printing a relatively small amount of ink is jetted and allowed to dry or solidify with a significant interest being given to print resolution. Because only a small amount of material is jetted in two-dimensional printing, the material reservoir for the liquid material can reside directly in the ink jet print head while providing the ability to print numerous pages before needing to be refilled or replaced. In contrast, in SDM utilizing an ink-jet print head, a normally solid material, such as a photo curable, thermoplastic, or wax material, is frequently employed and often must be heated to a flowable state in order to be jetted, and then allowed to solidify. Furthermore, in SDM dispensing resolution is not as critical as it is in two-dimensional printing. This is generally because, for each targeted pixel location, the amount of material to be jetted in SDM techniques is substantially greater than the amount to be jetted in two-dimensional printing techniques. For example, it may be required to deposit six droplets on a particular pixel location in SDM compared to just one or two droplets in two-dimensional printing. Although the targeting accuracy may be the same, the actual resolution achieved in SDM techniques is generally somewhat less than in two-dimensional printing because the six droplets dispensed may droop or slide towards adjacent pixel locations.
The differences mentioned above are significant and create a number of problems to be resolved. For instance, the amount of material deposited in inkjet based SDM techniques, both in volume and in mass, can be so substantial that it is generally considered impractical to mount a reservoir directly on the ink jet print head to hold all of the material. Thus, it is typical in most SDM systems to provide a large reservoir at a remote location from the print head that is in communication with the ink print head via a material delivery system having a flexible umbilical cord. However, the large container and umbilical cord must be heated to cause at least some of the build material to become or remain flowable so that the material can flow to the dispensing device. Undesirably, start up times are longer for SDM techniques using ink jet print heads than in two-dimensional printing with ink jet print heads due to the length of time necessary to initially heat the solidified material in the large remote reservoir to its flowable state. In addition, a significant amount of energy is required to maintain the large quantity of material in the flowable state in the reservoir and in the delivery system during the build process. This undesirably generates a significant amount of heat in the build environment.
Another problem that is unique to SDM techniques is that the layers being formed must be shaped or smoothed during the build process to establish a uniform layer. Normalizing the layers is commonly accomplished with a planarizer that removes a portion of the material dispensed in the layers. One such planarizer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,335 to Leyden et al. However, the planarizer produces waste material during the build process that must be handled. By-product waste handling systems for dealing with the aforementioned waste stream from an SDM process is described in U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 09/970,956, and 10/625,745, both from 3D Systems, Inc., and both incorporated herein by reference.
Whether the system is a SDM type system, the three dimensional printing type, or a more conventional two dimensional ink-jet system, an ongoing problem with these systems is the possibility of gas bubbles introduced in the feed material systems entering the print head of an ink-jet dispensing system. Once such gas bubbles reach the print head the performance of the jets is impaired and recovery is difficult. In an SDM type of system, where different build and support materials are employed, the problem is compounded. Often the filter screen in the ink-jet print head becomes blocked with gas bubbles preventing the flow of build or support material to the orifices or the orifices themselves become blocked with gas bubbles. This problem often requires a visit from an experienced field service engineer to carefully disassemble the system to remove gas bubbles, or replacement of the print head if purging of the trapped gas bubbles is not successful. A number of design approaches have been used to avoid this issue. They usually involve careful design of the feed containers to help eliminate initial incorporation of gas bubbles in the feed material or periodic vacuum purging of the print heads. But this problem continues to be an issue.
The problem of such gas bubbles is particularly difficult in some material systems because more than one type of gas bubble can be present in the system. Particularly it can often happen that both large, easily observable macro gas bubbles are seen in these systems and there can be innumerable small and almost invisible to the naked eye micro gas bubbles. These small-scale bubbles, which behave in a less buoyant manner are sometimes easily entrained in the liquid and will not readily rise to the top of any liquid flow or in any vessel. Yet these micro bubbles can accumulate in the filters of the ink-jet heads and eventually either plug the filters or breakthrough the filters and plug the individual jets of the ink-jet head.
These and other difficulties of the prior art are overcome according to the present invention by providing a new, simple gas bubble remover in an ink-jet dispensing system that ensures that gas bubbles in the system, whether introduced in the feed containers, or introduced by leakage, and whether macro or micro bubbles are effectively removed from the material feed stream immediately before it enters the ink-jet print head.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Gas bubble removal from ink-jet dispensing devices


In a VCR having an automatic time setting function, a receiving circuit receives a current time signal from a broadcasting station, and a wave-shaping circuit converts the current time signal from the receiving circuit to a digital signal. A decoder decodes the digital current time data from the wave-shaping circuit, and a memory stores the decoded current time data from the decoder in frame units. A frame detector detects a starting point of each frame of the current time data from the wave-shaping circuit and resets the current time data of a frame previously stored in the memory upon detecting the starting point. A tuner tunes audio and video signals from the broadcasting station to a reference frequency, and a control unit controls the operation of the VCR and converts the current time data to the current time. An on-screen display unit superimposes a timer signal or the current time on the video signal under the control of the control unit and outputs the resultant signal to an external display unit. A character display unit displays the current time from the control unit, and a key matrix unit applies either a summer time display function signal or a time siren function signal to the control unit according to a user's selection.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to video cassette recorders for receiving current time data transmitted from a broadcasting station and displaying the received data, and more particularly to a video cassette recorder (VCR) having an automatic time setting function, which is capable of displaying the current time data including the hours, minutes and seconds transmitted by the broadcasting station.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many studies of time display apparatus have been made by watch manufacturing companies. One example of them is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4860268, assigned to Junghance CO., Ltd., Germany, and is shown in FIG. 1, herein. In this patent, the time display apparatus contains a receiving circuit for receiving current time data which is placed on an amplitude modulation (AM) frequency and corrects the current time of a watch section by decoding the received current time data.
As shown in FIG. 1, the conventional time display apparatus comprises an amplifying and demodulating circuit 3 for receiving, through a receiving antenna 2, current time data which is AM-modulated in a broadcasting station and transmitted through a transmitting antenna 1. The circuit 3 amplifiers and demodulates the received current time data, and a time equalizing processor 4 compares the current time from the amplifying and demodulating circuit 3 with the current time displayed on a watch section 5 and corrects the current time on the watch section 5 in accordance with the compared result.
To correct the current time, broadcasting stations for transmitting the AM frequency of a low frequency band have been established in countries such as U.S.A., Germany. Also, watch products which contain the current time data receiving circuit and correct the current time of the watch section by decoding the received current time data are available from the watch manufacturing companies such as, for example, Junghance CO., Ltd., Germany.
However, the watch products available from Junghance CO., Ltd. and the time display apparatus in the above patent operate only to correct a faulty operation or a time error of the mechanical watch section. In particular, the time equalizing processor merely functions to decode the current time data, detect the current time of the watch section, and correct the current time of the watch section as a result of the comparison of the decoded current time data and the detected current time. Also, the current time data contains only hour and minute information without the second information. Further, the time equalization processor 4 continues to receive and process the current time data and subjected to an overload.

Video cassette recorder having automatic time setting function


A method includes detecting an identity change instruction. The method also includes identifying a target account associated with the identity change instruction. The method also includes determining whether the target account is checked out. The method also includes passing the identity change instruction to a kernel in response to determining that the target account is checked out. The method also includes blocking the identity change instruction in response to determining that the target account is not checked out.

The present disclosure relates to security and, more specifically, to a method and system for managing identity changes to shared accounts.
In information technology ("IT") systems, shared accounts are typically the most important accounts. Shared accounts may include privileged accounts such as administrator accounts, superuser accounts, and other accounts with rights and privileges that may be used for system administration. Shared accounts may be exclusive (i.e., only one user or a limited number of users can access the shared account at any given time) or not exclusive (i.e., an unlimited or large number of users can access the shared account at the same time). Existing systems may provide users with permission to access and use a shared account with a password for that shared account. To provide security for the shared account, this password may be modified periodically.
In certain existing systems, a server may manage and control access to shared accounts. A user may be required to log or sign into the server to view a list of shared accounts that the user has authorization to access. Upon viewing the list of shared accounts, the user may check out a particular shared account in the list by selecting that particular shared account. The server then may provide a password for the particular shared account to the user. The user then may use the provided password to access the particular shared account. Once the user is done using the particular shared account, the user may then check in the particular shared account on the server.
In sophisticated cases, when a user checks out a particular account from the server, the server may issue a one-time password for the particular shared account. The user then may use this one-time password to access the particular shared account. After the user checks in the particular shared account, the one-time password then is modified to a randomly generated password, not known to the user. If that same user or another user with authorization to access the account checks out the particular shared account, the server would issue a new one-time password to the user or other user. By issuing a new one-time password each time a shared account is checked out, the server may provide an added level of security to the shared account.
However, in existing systems, users may be able to access a shared account by first logging into another account (e.g., an individual account) and then using a command to switch to a shared account. Such commands may be referred to as "identity change instructions." When a user uses an identity change instruction to switch to a shared account, the user may be able to bypass the security measures of the server that manages and controls access to that shared account. In fact, that server may not even be aware that a user is using the shared account. Accordingly, such situations pose security issues for enterprises that want to prevent or block unauthorized access to a shared account.

Method and system for managing identity changes to shared accounts


Covered wires are overlapped with each other at an overlapping portion and pinched by a pair of resin chips. Cover portions are melted by ultrasonic vibration and conductive wire portions are conductively contacted with each other by pressing from outside of the resin chips. A pair of the resin chips are melt-fixed to seal the overlapping portion S. The resin chips have main melting portions which are melted with each other to pinch and seal the overlapping portion S, auxiliary melting portions which are melted with each other such that cover portions of covered wires introduced from the main melting portions are pinched and cover portion removing portions formed in the auxiliary melting portions to melt and extrude the cover portion. Thus, by this covered wire connection structure, it is possible to provide an excellent melting performance and achieve enhancement of melting force between the resin chips and improvement of covering performance for conductive wire portions.

This invention relates to a connection method and structure for connecting covered wires with each other or connecting a covered wire to another member.
As a conventional connection structure for this kind of covered wires, a design proposed by this inventor (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 7-320842) will be described.
For connecting two covered wires the outer periphery of which is coated with a cover portion made of resin, at their intermediate connection portions, a pair of resin chips which are of resin material, a horn for producing ultrasonic vibration, and an anvil for supporting the covered wires and resin chips at the time of connection are utilized. The anvil includes a base stand and a support portion projecting from the base stand. The support portion is designed in a substantially cylindrical shape. The support portion has a bore portion which is opened at the opposite side to the base stand side. Two-pairs of grooves are formed on the peripheral wall of the support portion so as to cross with each other substantially at the center of the bore portion. The four grooves are formed so as to open on the same side as the bore portion, extending along the projection direction of the support portion and intercommunicate with one another through the bore portion.
The pair of resin chips are designed in a disc shape having a slightly smaller outer diameter than the diameter of the bore portion of the anvil. Furthermore, an end face of a head portion of the horn is designed in a disc shape having an outer diameter which is substantially equal to or slightly smaller than that of the resin chips.
In order to connect the two covered wires to each other, both of the covered wires are overlapped with each other at the overlapping portions thereof and the overlapped connection portions are pinched by the pair of resin chips from the upper and lower sides of the connection portions. Specifically, one of the resin chips (the resin chip at the lower side) is inserted into the bore portion of the anvil such that the melting surface thereof is directed upward. Then, one covered wire is inserted into the pair of confronting grooves from the upper side of the inserted resin chip. Then, the other covered wire is inserted into the other pair of the confronting grooves. Finally, the other (upper side) resin chip is inserted such that the melting surface is directed downward. The covered wires are arranged in the bore portion so that the respective connection portions thereof cross each other at the center of the bore portion. Through this arrangement, the connection portions of the covered wires are pinched substantially at the center of the melting surfaces of the upper and lower resin chips respectively in the overlapping direction.
Subsequently, the cover portions at the connection portions of the covered wires are melted so as to be dispersed by ultrasonic vibration. Furthermore, the conductive wire portions (core) of the covered wires are conductively contacted with each other at the overlapping portions by pressing the covered wires from the outside of the resin chips. Thereafter, the pair of the resin chips are mutually melt-fixed at the melting surfaces to seal the overlapping portions.
Specifically, the head portion of the horn is inserted into the bore portion from the upper side of the finally-inserted upper (other) resin chip and placed on the upper resin chip to excite and press the connection portions of the covered wires from the outside of the upper and lower resin chips between the horn and the anvil. The cover portions are first melted and the conductive wire portions of the covered wires are exposed at the overlapping portions between the resin chips. At this time, the melted cover portions are extruded from the center side of the resin chips toward the outside thereof because the connection portions are pressed from the upper and lower sides, so that the conductive wire portions are more excellently exposed and surely conductively contacted with each other. Like the press direction, the direction of the excitation of the connection portions is set to be coincident with the overlapping direction of the covered wires, so that the action of extruding the melted cover portions from the center side of the resin chips to the outside thereof is promoted.
When the pressing and exciting operation on the connection portions is further continued after the melting of the cover portions, the resin chips are melted and the confronting melting surfaces of the resin chips are melt-fixed to each other. In addition, the outer peripheral surface portions of the cover portions which are adjacent to the conductively contacted conductive wire portions and the resin chips are melt-fixed. With this operation, the outer peripheral portions of the conductively-contacted conductive wire portions are kept to be coated with the resin chips.
However, in the connection structure described above, melted resin which flows out of a gap between the melting surfaces and when the resin chips are melted flows into groove portions so that it is hardened. At this time, downstream portions of the covered wires are near or in contact with bottoms of the groove portions. There are not sufficient spaces formed to allow melted resin to flow therein and this accompanied by increase of the amount of flow out, causes the melted resin to be deposited upstream of the covered wires (opening sides of the groove portions). Thus, if the cover portions are melted by high temperature melted resin, conductive wire portions are covered with the melted resin upstream of the covered wires where the melted resin is deposited, but not downstream where the melted resin is difficult to be deposited, the conductive wire portion remains exposed after the cover portions are melted. As a result, there may occur through holes which go through the cover portion or the conductive wire portion may remain exposed. If the conductive wire portions remain exposed, water or the like entering the connection portions in the resin chips may corrode the conductive wire portions, thereby inducing an increase in electric resistance. Further, due to a difference in pressure between the inside and outside of the covered wire, water or the like entering the inside of the covered wire 1 may reach a connector or the like provided on a side opposite to the overlapping portion S of the covered wire 1 thereby inducing a shortcircuit.
Thus, it is necessary to limit the pressing and excitation force by the horn in order to suppress the amount of flow out of the melted resin. However, it was difficult to achieve enhancement of the melting force between the resin chips and improvement of the covering performance of the conductive wire portion by the resin chips at the same time.


A container cap with tamper-evident band formed with a detent ring and a tearband, forming a tamper ring. When the cap is installed on the container neck, the detent ring engages an abutment shoulder on the neck to force latch tabs formed on the detent ring to engage a tamper band formed on the cap. Detent tabs formed on the detent ring engage a tamper projection shoulder on the container neck to prevent the detent ring from removal from the container neck when the cap is removed from the container.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to closures for re-sealable containers, and more particularly, to such closures or caps having a tamper-evident band or ring to indicate that such closures have been opened.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Tamper-evident caps commonly are provided for containers and incorporate a tamper band or ring to be engaged about the container proximate the month thereof and remain in position connected to the cap until the cap is removed from the container. When such removal is effected by a user, the tamper band or ring is permanently separated from another portion of the cap so as to provide a visual indication that the cap has been removed from the container with the possibility of unauthorized tampering with the contents thereof.
Many different constructions of caps with associated tamper-evident bands or rings are known, as shown in the prior art patents of record herein. The construction of the present invention provides such a tamper-evident ring as part of a cap which permits convenient initial installation of the cap on a container. Prior to such installation, the tamper-evident band is in an unset configuration which enables the cap to be readily so installed on the container. The tamper-evident feature of the structure of the invention is effected during installation of the cap on the container with resultant advantages during the manufacturing process of such caps.


In one embodiment, a scanning unit for inspecting cargo conveyances uses a partial radiation beam and a detector of reduced length. In another embodiment, a scanning unit for inspecting objects comprises a detector with gaps along its expanse. In both cases, the cost of the scanning system may be reduced. The object, the source, and or the detector may be moved to enable generation of computed tomographic images. Methods are disclosed, as well.

Radiation is commonly used in the non-invasive inspection of objects such as luggage, bags, briefcases and the like, to identify hidden contraband at airports and public buildings. The contraband may include hidden guns, knives, explosive devices and illegal drugs, for example.
To obtain additional information about the contents of the luggage and other objects, detectors may be provided to detect scattered radiation, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,394, for example. Systems may combine detection of scattered radiation with the detection of transmitted radiation.
Another technique to enhance the information that may be derived about the composition of the contents of an object is to scan the object with radiation beams having two different energy distributions. A ratio of the attenuation detected at two energy levels is indicative of the atomic numbers of the material through which the radiation beam passes. Dual energy systems enable better detection of plastic materials and illegal drugs, for example.
One disadvantage of radiographic imaging is that all items within the object in the path of the radiation beam are superimposed on the image. If there are many items in the object, it may be difficult to distinguish among them. The identification of dangerous items is thereby hampered. In addition, the orientation and shape of the items within the object could affect whether they can be identified on a radiograph. Thin sheets of explosive materials may also be difficult to identify on a radiograph, particularly if they are oriented perpendicular to the scanning beam.
Computed tomography ("CT") enables the reconstruction of the cross-sectional images of the contents of an object, facilitating the identification of the items in the luggage. CT images also provide higher resolution, greater image contrast and greater sensitivity to characteristics of the object being scanned, than radiographs. However, reconstruction of CT images of an object requires a large number of scans of the object at a plurality of angles. Conducting a sufficient number of scans for CT reconstruction is time consuming. Depending on the system used, CT imaging of an entire piece of luggage may be too slow for practical use in screening luggage in airports, for example.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,567,552 ("the '552 patent"), a source of X-ray radiation is provided on one side of an inner surface of a rotating module and a detector array is provided on the opposite side. Luggage is moved through the module incrementally. The module rotates to scan the luggage at a plurality of angles, at each incremental position. The inspection speed may be increased by pre-screening with a line-scan. Then, only suspicious regions identified by the prescreening step are subjected to CT imaging. U.S. Pat. No. 6,078,642 ("the '642 patent") discloses a CT scanning system for luggage similar to the '552 patent, where data processing techniques are used to speed the inspection rate to scan the entire piece of luggage, without requiring pre-scanning. The module rotates as a piece of luggage is continuously moved through the module, providing helical volumetric CT scanning.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,410,156 discloses an explosives detection system for scanning luggage in airports including a neutron radiation source on one side of an object and a two dimensional detector array on the opposite side of the object. The object is supported on a rotatable platform. Rotation of the platform during scanning enables optional tomographic imaging of an object on the platform, to create three dimensional distributions of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen per a cubic volume through the sample. The ratios of these elements are determined for small volume increments of the sample. Neural net methods are used to determine whether a volume increment contains an explosive.
While the smuggling of contraband, such as guns and explosives, onto planes in carry-on bags and in luggage has been a well known, ongoing concern, a less publicized but also serious threat is the smuggling of contraband across borders and by boat in large cargo containers. Only a small proportion of the cargo containers brought to the United States by boat are inspected, for example. "Checkpoint terror", U.S. News and World Report, Feb. 11, 2002, p. 52.
Standard cargo containers are typically 20-50 feet long (6.1-15.2 meters), 8 feet high (2.4 meters) and 6-9 feet wide (1.8-2.7 meters). Air cargo containers, which are used to contain a plurality of pieces of luggage or other cargo to be stored in the body of an airplane, may range in size (length, height, width) from about 35×21×21 inches (0.89×0.53×0.53 meters) up to about 240×118×96 inches (6.1×3.0×2.4 meters). Large collections of objects, such as many pieces of luggage, may also be supported on a pallet. Pallets, which may have supporting sidewalls, may be of comparable sizes as cargo containers, at least when supporting objects. The term "cargo conveyance" is used to refer to all types of cargo containers and comparably sized pallets (and other such platforms) supporting objects.
In contrast to the size ranges of cargo conveyances, typical airport scanning systems for carry-on bags have tunnel entrances up to about 0.40×0.60 meters. Scanning systems for checked luggage have travel openings that are only slightly larger. Since only bags that fit through the tunnel may be inspected, such systems cannot be used to inspect cargo containers. The low energies used in typical X-ray luggage and bag scanners, described above, are also too low to penetrate through the much larger cargo containers. In addition, many such systems are too slow to economically inspect larger objects, such as cargo containers.
It is known to inspect cargo containers supported by vehicles, such as trucks, by mobile systems. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,638,420, large containers are inspected by a system on a movable frame. A source of a fan beam, a cone beam or a pencil beam of X-ray radiation, such as a linear accelerator with an accelerating potential in the MeV range, is mounted on one side of the frame. A detector array is mounted on an opposing side of the frame. The frame may be self-propelled and advances across the length of the container. Radiographic images are generated for analysis by an operator. Other mobile systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,292,553 and 5,917,883, for example.
The high resolution, improved image contrast and the ability to distinguish small differences in characteristics of items within an object that are provided by CT scanning would be advantageous in the inspection of cargo conveyances. The CT scanning units used in airports for luggage and the like discussed above are not readily scaleable to the large sizes required to scan cargo containers. For example, to accommodate most cargo conveyances, the rotating modules of the '552 patent or the '642 patent would need to be greatly enlarged. Such large rotating units, carrying both the sources and the detectors, would be very expensive and would be difficult to operate and maintain.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,628,745 B1 discloses a CT system for cargo containers comprising a rotating and vertically displaceable platform to support the container. An electron beam is magnetically deflected along a linear target, as the container is rotated, to generate a radiation beam that moves along the target to scan a slice of the container. CT images may be generated from the detected radiation. An elevator then moves the platform vertically and the container is scanned again to form CT images of other slices.
FIG. 1 is a front view of an example of a detector module 1 known in the art. In this example, the detector module 1 comprises a housing 2, a detector element section 3 within the housing and an electronics section within the housing. The housing 2 defines an open window in front of the detector element section 3 for radiation to pass through. Behind the window are detector elements 4. The electronics sections 5, 6, 7 comprise digital drivers in sections 5, 6 and analog readouts in section 7. In some detector modules, the digital drivers may only be provided on one side of the module, in section 5, for example. In use, shielding material (not shown) is placed in front of the electronics sections 5, 6, 7 to protect the electronics from damage by radiation. However, the shielding in front of the electronics sections 5, 6, 7 may not be sufficient to protect the electronics at the high levels of radiation, such as at 6 MeV and above, necessary to penetrate through larger cargo conveyances.
Despite the various designs for the inspection of large objects such as cargo containers disclosed in the patents discussed above and in other references, much of the inspection of cargo conveyances is done manually, if at all. "Checkpoint terror", U.S. News and World Report, Feb. 11, 2002, p. 52. Practical, efficient, non-intrusive CT radiation scanners for the inspection of large objects, such as cargo conveyances, are still needed. Improved radiation scanners for the inspection of smaller objects, such as luggage, including improved CT imaging of smaller objects, are also needed.

Radiation scanning units with reduced detector requirements


A temperature controllable wrap assembly that includes a wrap portion configured to be worn around a user's body part, and at least a first temperature control module positioned on the wrap portion. The first temperature control module includes a housing, a controllable temperature element, a spreader member and at least a first finger spreader pivotably attached to the spreader member. The lower surface of the spreader member is positioned to contact the user's body part. The controllable temperature element is configured to transfer thermal energy to an upper surface of the spreader member, and the spreader member is configured to conduct thermal energy to the first finger spreader.

One issue with wraps, garments and straps used for cooling or icing body parts that have a curvature to them is maintaining contact with a user's skin. The undulations or curvature often cause issues. Accordingly, a need exists for a wrap that provide heat transfer to the user's body part while maintaining good contact with the user's skin.
The background description disclosed anywhere in this patent application includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

Temperature controlled and vibrating therapeutic garment


An article for protecting an automobile body is stored within the automobile body by electric power when the automobile body does not need to be protected. A device stores the article within the automobile body by electric power. The article for protecting the automobile body is mounted to a second article formed of the same material as the automobile body. The device operates the article into a state in which it protects the automobile body primarily when the automobile is parked. The device stores the article for protecting the automobile body when the automobile is running.

Hitherto, in order to protect an automobile body, rubber or metal is directly mounted and secured to the automobile body.
However, this method has the following problems:
(A) Since an article which protects an automobile body is secured in a protruding manner to the automobile body, it is not possible to choose between using the article when it is required and not using the article when it is not required.
(B) Since there are constraints to the design for mounting an article which protects the automobile body in relation to the design of the automobile, rubber or metal cannot be mounted to a portion requiring protection.
(C) Therefore, when a person gets in or out of an automobile in a parking lot of, for example, a supermarket, a collision accident occurs with a door of another automobile.
The present invention is achieved to overcome these problems.

Device for storing article for protecting automobile body


Various systems and methods for domain authentication are described herein. In an example, the method may include detecting a domain from a request of a tenant for access to a farm. The method may also include identifying a presence of a site ID from a database of the farm based on the domain. The method may also include sending an authentication request to a default site or a custom site, the authentication request managed through a site manager based on the identified presence of the site ID in the database of the farm. The method may also include routing traffic from the tenant to the farm in response to satisfaction of the authentication request.

Multiple resources can be pooled together and can be referred to collectively as a farm. A tenant can use a farm individually or groups of users can share use of a farm. As used herein, a tenant is representative of an organization or client with access to a content management system stored or hosted on a farm. A tenant can be a group of users who share a common access with specific privileges to the content management system. In some examples, content management systems can be implemented on shared hardware such as farms, where the shared hardware is to be separately used by a number of tenants that can have different configurations.


Embodiments of the invention relate to a process for producing a III-N bulk crystal, wherein III denotes at least one element selected from group III of the periodic system, selected from Al, Ga and In, wherein the III-N bulk crystal is grown by vapor phase epitaxy on a substrate, and wherein the growth rate is measured in real-time. By actively measuring and controlling the growth rate in situ, i.e. during the epitaxial growth, the actual growth rate can be maintained essentially constant. In this manner, III-N bulk crystals and individualized III-N single crystal substrates separated therefrom, which respectively have excellent crystal quality both in the growth direction and in the growth plane perpendicular thereto, can be obtained.

The present invention relates to processes for producing III-N bulk crystals from a gas or vapor phase, an well as to a process for producing free-standing III-N substrates which are obtained from the III-N bulk crystals. The term "III-N" denotes a III-N compound, where III denotes at least one element of group III of the periodic table of elements, selected from aluminum, gallium and indium (in the following sometimes abbreviated by (Al, Ga, In)), and N denotes nitrogen. The III-N bulk crystal and the free-standing III-N substrate comprise the III-N compound as the main material, and they are respectively preferably composed essentially of or completely of the III-N compound, optionally together with impurities. The invention further relates to III-N bulk crystals and freestanding III-N substrates as such, which are advantageously obtainable by such processes. The free-standing III-N substrates are particularly suitable as substrates for the manufacture of optoelectronic and electronic apparatuses.
In industrial applications, components or devices for (Al, Ga, In) N-based light-emitting diodes or laser diodes have conventionally been grown on or above foreign substrates, such as Al2O3 (sapphire) or SiC. The drawbacks relating to crystal quality and consequently lifetime and efficiency of the component or the device, which result from the use of foreign substrates, can be mitigated through growth on III-N substrates, such as e.g. (Al, Ga) N substrates. Until now, however, such substrates have not been available in sufficient quality. This is largely caused by difficulties in conventional bulk growth technologies due to the extremely high steady state vapor pressure of nitrogen over III-N compounds at typical growth temperatures. The growth of bulk material under high pressure was described by Porowski (MRS Internet J. Nitride Semiconduct. Res. 4S1, 1999, G1.3). This process provides qualitatively valuable GaN bulk material, but has the disadvantage that, up to now, only small GaN substrates with a surface area of maximally 100 mm2 can be produced thereby. Furthermore, the production process requires a long production time in comparison with other processes and is technologically laborious and cost-intensive due to the extremely high growth pressures.
A further method consists in the growth of III-N materials on a foreign substrate from the gas phase or vapor phase, followed by separation from the foreign substrate. For the production of thick free-standing layers of III-N, such as GaN, it is known e.g. from M. Kelly et al. (Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. Vol. 38, 1999, pp. L217-L219), "Large Free-Standing GaN Substrates by Hydride Vapor Phase Epitaxy and Laser Induced Lift-Off", to separate a thick GaN layer, which had been previously grown on a substrate made of sapphire (Al2O3) by means of hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE), from the sapphire substrate. For this purpose, the document describes irradiating the GaN-deposited sapphire substrate with a laser, with the result that the GaN layer is locally thermally decomposed at the interface with the sapphire substrate, and thereby lifting off from the sapphire substrate. Alternative separation methods include wet chemical etching (for example of GaAs; see K. Motoki et al. Jap. J. Appl. Phys. Vol. 40, 2001, pp. L140-L143), dry chemical etching (for example of SiC; Yu. Melnik et al., Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. Vol. 482, 1998, pp. 269-274) or mechanical lapping (for example of sapphire; see H.-M. Kim et al., Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. Vol. 639, 2001, pp. G6.51.1-G6.51.6) of the substrate. Drawbacks of the aforementioned methods lie on the one hand in the relatively high costs due to the complex technologies for substrate separation, and on the other hand in the fundamental difficulty to produce III-N materials having a homogenously low defect density.
The growth of thick III-N bulk crystals (boules) on a III-N substrate by vapor phase epitaxy and the subsequent separation of the bulk crystals to obtain single III-N substrates by a sawing process offer an alternative to the aforementioned processes. Such a process was described by Vaudo et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 6,596,079). HVPE was chosen as the preferred growth method; as preferred boule crystal lengths, values of >1 mm, 4 mm or 10 mm are indicated. Vaudo et al, further describe inter alia how III-N substrates are obtained from the bulk crystal by wire sawing or further treatment steps, such as chemical/mechanical polishing, reactive ion etching or photo-electrochemical etching. Furthermore, III-N bulk crystals and substrates produced by the aforementioned technique are also mentioned in an international patent application of Vaudo et al. (WO 01/68955 A1).
Melnik et al. describe a process for the growth of GaN- (U.S. Pat. No. 6,616,757) or AlGaN-bulk crystals (US 2005 0212001 A1) having crystal lengths greater than 1 cm. The process basically consists of the steps: growth or a single crystalline (Al)GaN layer on a substrate, removing the substrate and washing the (Al)GaN bulk crystal on the single crystal (Al)GaN layer. As a preferred method a HVPE process with a specific reactor configuration is mentioned. Further, Melnik et al. describe in a US application (US 2005-0164044 A1) and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,936,357 GaN- and AlGaN-bulk crystals having various characteristics, such as dimensions, dislocation densities or full widths at half maximum of X-ray rocking curves.

Process for producing a III-N bulk crystal and a free-standing III-N substrate, and III-N bulk crystal and free-standing III-N substrate


The present invention provides a process for making a diamond layer having a substantially smooth upper surface and a predetermined thickness on a substrate. The process includes depositing a patterned polish stopping layer on a substrate to a predetermined thickness while leaving predetermined portions of the substrate exposed. A diamond layer is than deposited on the polish stopping layer and on the predetermined portions of the substrate left exposed. The diamond layer is polished down to the polish stopping layer thereby forming a diamond layer on the substrate having a thickness substantially equal to the predetermined thickness of the polish stopping layer. The polish is conducted by a method that includes the mechanical and/or chemical consumption of the diamond layer. The polish stopping layer is capable of substantially stopping the consumption of the diamond layer.

Diamond is a preferred material for electronic devices because it has semiconductor properties that are better than traditionally used silicon (Si), germanium (Ge) or gallium arsenide (GaAs). Diamond provides a higher energy band gap, a higher breakdown voltage and a greater saturation velocity than these traditional semiconductor materials. These properties of diamond yield a substantial increase in projected cutoff frequency and maximum operating voltage compared to devices fabricated using Si, Ge, or GaAs. Si is typically not used at temperatures higher than about 200.degree. C. and GaAs is not typically used above 300.degree. C. These temperature limitations are caused, in part, because of the relatively small energy band gaps for Si (1.12 eV at ambient temperature) and GaAs (1.42 eV at ambient temperature). Diamond, in contrast, has a large band gap of 5.47 eV at ambient temperature, and is thermally stable up to about 1400.degree. C.
Diamond is also a preferred material for mechanical devices. Diamond is chemically inert and has high strength properties. Diamond has the highest thermal conductivity of any solid at room temperature and exhibits good thermal conductivity over a wide temperature range. The high thermal conductivity of diamond may be advantageously used to remove waste heat from an integrated circuit, particularly as integration densities increase. Diamond is also electrically insulating. In addition, diamond has a smaller neutron cross-section which reduces its degradation in radioactive environments, i.e., diamond is a "radiation-hard" material.
Because of the advantages of diamond as a material for electronic and mechanical devices, there is at present an interest in the processing of diamond. For example, diamond-based devices depending on the improved mechanical properties of diamond (e.g., detectors and sensors) have been proposed, in Applications of Diamond Films and Related Materials, Elsevier Science Publishers, 1991, pp. 311-319. Diamond-based devices depending on the improved electrical properties of diamond (e.g., transistors and thermistors) have been proposed, for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,806,900 to Fujimori et al., 5,099,296 to Mort et al. and 5,066,938 to Kobashi et al. Many of these mechanical and electrical devices, however, require that the diamond surface be substantially smooth, and are preferably polished. Any inherent surface roughness can result in difficulty in patterning, in controlling the thickness of specific layers, and in fabricating devices.
The various current methods for polishing diamond have limitations. For example, mechanical polishing such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,643,161 to Kim, is sometimes difficult to control, and the resulting polished diamond layers often do not have a controlled thickness. Polishing by reaction with oxygen ion or gas often results in pitting. Various other techniques such as diffusion removal of carbon onto foil, laser ablation, argon ion-beam irradiation, hot metal lapping and electrical discharge have been used. These techniques also are sometimes difficult to control and result in diamond layers not having a controlled thickness. See, for example, Massive Thinning of Diamond Films by a Diffusion Process, Jin et al., Appl. Physics Letters, Vol. 60, No. 16, 1948 (1992); Development and Performance of a Diamond Film Polishing Apparatus With Hot Metals, Yoshikawa, SPIE Diamond Optics III, Vol. 1325, 210 (1990); and The Polishing of Polycrystalline Diamond Films, Harker et al., SPIE Vol. 1325 Diamond Optics III, Vol. 1325, 222 (1990).

Process for making substantially smooth diamond


Provided are a method for determining a moving direction of a terminal and correcting a position thereof, and a positioning apparatus using the same. Relative direction information is estimated based on N pieces of position information of the terminal, and distortion information is removed from the relative direction information to acquire relative direction information without direction integrity. Further, the relative direction information is transmitted into absolute direction information to acquire a moving path direction of the terminal. Next, the position information of the terminal is corrected based on the moving path direction of the terminal.

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for determining a moving direction of a terminal and correcting a position thereof using a wireless local area network (WLAN), and a positioning apparatus using the same.
(b) Description of the Related Art
A positioning technology using wireless communication infrastructure is diverse according to a kind of infrastructure and a service range. A global navigation satellite system (GNSS) is a system which determines a position of a user using a signal of a satellite in an earth orbit, and a global positioning system (GPS) of America, a global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) of Russia, Galileo of Europe, and the like are being currently operated or are due to be operated. The GNSS is disposed to serve all over the globe, and is configured to include a satellite unit transmitting a signal including precise time information and satellite orbit information, a receiving unit receiving at least four satellite signals to calculate a position and a speed, and a terrestrial control unit monitoring and controlling a state and an orbit of the satellite.
The GNSS provides high position accuracy and availability within about 10 m in a plain or suburban districts in which a direct line of sight of the satellite unit and the receiving unit are secured; however, the GNSS has a problem in that a position error reaches 50 m due to a multipath error in a high density city area which is a non line of sight section, and particularly, received signal sensitivity deteriorates in the interior of a room to make it difficult to acquire a signal, such that a position and a speed may not be determined.
A cellular-based positioning technology is a technology of determining a position of a user using position information and a measurement signal of a mobile communication base station, and more specifically, is classified into cell-ID, enhanced-observed time difference (E-OTD), advanced-forward link trilateration (AFLT), and the like according to the number of base stations which may communicate with a terminal. Considering characteristics of mobile communication infrastructure having most of the downtown areas and the suburban districts as a service range, the cellular-based positioning technology may determine a position outdoors and indoors. However, the cellular-based positioning technology has different positioning accuracy depending on a disposition density of the base stations, and has relatively lower position accuracy of about 100 to 800 m on average and thus is hardly applied to interior and exterior navigation services and the like which require position accuracy of several meters.
An assisted GNSS (AGNSS) is a technology of acquiring ancillary information from a positioning server to improve the minimum received signal sensitivity of the GNSS receiver embedded in the terminal and shorten time to first fix. The AGNSS may quickly determine a position using the GNSS in the high density city area which is in weak signal environment, but may not obtain a large effect since the received signal is very weak in the interior area.
As a representative Wi-Fi-based positioning method for overcoming a difficulty in interior positioning as described above, there are a method for calculating a position of a terminal using a position and a measurement signal of a Wi-Fi access point (Wi-Fi AP), a fingerprinting method using a radio map of a Wi-Fi AP, and the like.
The Wi-Fi AP position-based positioning method estimates a collection position of a vehicle or a pedestrian and a position of the Wi-Fi AP using received signal intensities for each Wi-Fi AP, and calculates a position of a terminal based on positioning algorithms such as trilateration, weight centroid localization (WCL), Monte-Carlo, and the like, using the estimated position of the Wi-Fi AP. The fingerprinting-based positioning method processes the collection position of a vehicle and a pedestrian and the received signal intensities for each Wi-Fi AP to generate a wireless map of a reference position. Finally, the reference position having a minimum received signal intensity error is estimated as the position of the terminal by comparing Wi-Fi received signal intensity patterns for each AP which are measured by the wireless map and the terminal.
In connection with various positioning methods as described above, the Wi-Fi-based positioning technology may more precisely provide the position information of the terminal in the interior environment, as compared with the typical GNSS technology and the cellular-based positioning technology. However, the typical Wi-Fi-based positioning technology has a difficulty in calculating direction information (heading), which is other useful information, in addition to the position information.
In the typical Wi-Fi, the methods for calculating direction information are as follows.
First, when the position of the Wi-Fi AP is already known and the position of the terminal is calculated or when a fingerprinting DB including the direction and position of the terminal is already constructed even though the position of the Wi-Fi AP is unknown, the direction information between the AP and the terminal may be calculated using a beam antenna. However, since the method requires an expensive beam antenna and has considerable constraint conditions at the time of designing a terminal antenna, the method is inappropriate to apply to a commercial terminal.
Second, when the position of the Wi-Fi AP is known and the position of the terminal is calculated, the method may determine whether the terminal approaches or retreats from the AP using a change rate of the received signal intensity between the AP and the terminal. However, since noise of the received signal intensity is large in the general terminal environment, the direction of the terminal for the APs having a maximum cluster size is determined based on K-nearest neighbor clustering to remove an abnormal measurement value. The method may be applied to a commercial smart phone without an expensive beam antenna, but has reduced estimated direction accuracy due to instability of the Wi-Fi received signal intensity and therefore may not be applied to the fingerprinting method which does not know the position of the AP.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Method for determining moving direction of terminal and correcting position thereof, and positioning apparatus using the method

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