An ultra high temperature hermetically protected transducer includes a sensor chip having an active area upon which is deposited piezoresistive sensing elements. The elements are located on the top surface of the silicon wafer chip and have leads and terminals extending from the active area of the chip. The active area is surrounded with an extending rim or frame. The active area is coated with an oxide layer which passivates the piezoresistive sensing network. The chip is then attached to a glass pedestal, which is larger in size than the sensor chip. The glass pedestal has a through hole or aperture at each corner. The entire composite structure is then mounted onto a high temperature header with the metallized regions of the header being exposed to the holes in the glass pedestal; a high temperature lead is then bonded directly to the metallized contact area of the sensor chip at one end. The leads are of sufficient length to extend into the through holes in the glass pedestal. A sealing cover is then attached to the entire composite sensor to hermetically seal all of the interconnections. The sealing cover is a glass structure, has a central aperture which corresponds to the aperture formed by the frame, allowing the active area of the sensor to be exposed to the pressure medium. The sealing cover is bonded to the periphery of the rim and to the glass supporting pedestal.

There is a great desire to utilize pressure transducers in harsh environments. In such environments, apart from deleterious substances which may destroy the transducer, there are others factors which are involved. Such factors include high temperatures, such as those temperatures which are found in various engines such as automobile engines, jet engines and so on. In other applications such as the use of pressure transducers in injection molding and for other environments, extremely high temperatures are found. In regard to such operations transducers have been fabricated which operate in excess of 600° C. As one can readily ascertain it would be desirable to provide a transducer capable of operation at even higher temperatures while further being protected from deleterious environments, such as those environments containing noxious gases as well as various harsh chemicals. The prior art cognizant to those problems utilized transducers which involved the use of silicon. On the silicon wafer an oxide layer was formed. This oxide layer produced a silicon on oxide sensor. This sensor had appropriate high temperature platinum based metallization and was bonded to a glass wafer, such as a low expansion borosilicate glass. The borosilicate glass wafer had apertures which extended to the platinum based contact regions on the silicon wafer. Contact was made to the platinum region of the silicon wafer by means of a metallic frit and contact was made to the metallic frit by very short pins. This work was performed by Kulite Semiconductor Products, the assignee herein. For examples of such prior art device reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 5,955,771, entitled "Sensor for Use in High Vibrational Applications and Methods for Fabricating the Same". The patent issued to Anthony D. Kurtz et al. on Sep. 21, 1999 and is assigned to the assignee herein. Other examples of such sensors can be had by referring to U.S. Pat. No. 5,973,590 entitled "Ultra Thin Surface Mount Wafer Sensor Structures and Methods for Fabricating the Same" issued to Kurtz on Oct. 26, 1999. A further patent of interest is U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,989, also entitled "Ultra Thin Surface Mount Wafer Sensor Structures and Methods for Fabrication", issued to Kurtz et al. on Apr. 3, 2001. In the prior designs, there are described extremely high temperature operation transducers, which serve to operate in very harsh environments. The upper limit of the bond which is the interconnection between the platinum metallization on the silicon sensor wafer and the conductive glass metallic frit was, in the prior designs, approximately 600° C. By bonding appropriate small diameter wires, such as platinum wires to the platinum metallization on the contacts, the upper temperature ranges could be extended to over 700° C. These sensors are state of the art sensors which exhibit extremely high temperature operation.
It is desirable to obtain an improved transducer which is capable of operating at temperatures in excess of 700° C., which transducer further provides hermetic sealing in regard to the operating environment.

Ultra high temperature hermetically protected wirebonded piezoresistive transducer


An image-forming apparatus includes a developing cartridge, a photosensitive drum, a drawer and a driving portion. The developing cartridge includes: a developing roller rotatable about an axis extending in a first direction; a casing; a first cam positioned at one end of the casing in the first direction; and a pressing surface pivotable in accordance with pivotal movement of the first cam. The drawer includes: a drawer frame to which the developing cartridge is detachably attachable; and a depressed surface with which the pressing surface is contactable. The driving portion is configured to pivotally move the first cam about an axis extending in the first direction. The pressing surface is configured to contact the depressed surface to move the developing roller from a contacting position in contact with the photosensitive drum to a separated position in separation from the photosensitive drum by the pivotal movement of the first cam.

There have been conventionally known electro-photographic type image-forming apparatuses such as laser printers and LED printers. Such an image-forming apparatus includes a developing cartridge which includes a developing roller for supplying toner. Such conventional image-forming apparatuses are disclosed in prior arts.
An image-forming apparatus disclosed in a prior art includes a drum unit provided with a photosensitive drum. A developing cartridge is attachable to and detachable from the drum unit. A developing roller of the developing cartridge is in contact with the photosensitive drum upon attachment of the developing cartridge to the drum unit.
In an image-forming apparatus disclosed in another prior art, a developing cartridge is attachable to a drum cartridge including a photosensitive drum. A developing roller and a photosensitive drum are in contact with each other upon attachment of the developing cartridge to the drum cartridge. The drum cartridge to which the developing cartridge is attached is mounted in a main body of the image-forming apparatus.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Image-forming apparatus including driving portion provided at only one side of developing cartridge for moving developing roller toward and away from photosensitive drum


A flexible sign post for use along roadsides which allows a sign to be deflected when hit by a passing object. The sign post consists of a number of mounting brackets which are spaced apart and secured to a substantially rigid vertical sign post. Each mounting bracket has a mandrel over which an elastomeric sleeve is fitted.. A number of substantially rigid braces are connected to the mounting brackets by the elastomeric sleeves. The sign can then be attached to the ends of the braces in a vertical position.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sign mounted to a post by a flexible element so that when a vehicle or other moving object hits the sign, the sign is deflected, thereby minimizing damage to the sign and returning the sign to its original position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Sign posts used along roadways usually consist of some type of rigid post with a metal sign bolted directly to the post. These signs are vulnerable to damage from passing vehicles when objects, such as side mirrors, strike the sign. Since the whole sign is rigidly constructed, there is no point at which the sign or sign post can bend or flex without being damaged.
Prior patents have shown yielding roadway signs attached to sign posts by some type of hinge. This allows the sign to pivot. A metal spring is then utilized to provide a restoring force to return the sign to its original position after it has been impacted. These signs can only rotate in directions perpendicular to the axis of the hinge. Hinges are also more prone to failure and may tend to freeze or lock up.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,862,823, 4,893,455 and 5,040,478 show a means for supporting a marker to a shaft in the ground using a elastomeric sleeve-type element. The elastomeric element allows the marker to be bend and then restores the marker to its original position. Whereas a hinge only allows rotation in one direction, the elastomeric element allows the marker to bend in various directions.


An interface module comprises a serial signal transceiver to be connected to an external transmission path and an interface processing unit connected to the transceiver. The interface processing unit comprises a serializer/deserializer circuit, an encoder/decoder, a protocol processing unit having at least two kinds of selectable protocol processing functions, and a communicate mode switch circuit for changing reference clock to be supplied to the serializer/deserializer circuit in conjunction with switching of the protocol processing function from one to another.

The present invention relates to a storage system, computer system and interface module and, more particularly, to a storage system, computer system, and interface module enabling switching across communication protocols for communicating with external devices.
FC-SAN using Fibre Channel (FC) nowadays prevails as a data transmission protocol for realizing Storage Area Networks (SANs). The Fibre Channel has performance of gigabits class to enable high-speed data transfer, and can be used for long-range connection by using optical fibers. Further, the Fibre Channel enables consolidating the management of storage systems associated with servers, making use of its feature that it can construct a network by employing interconnect devices such as switches.
Recently, a new storage networking technology based on an Internet Protocol (IP) has come out. Ethernet (a registered trademark), which has lagged behind the Fibre Channel in transfer performance, has succeeded in realizing Gigabit Ethernet with a data transfer rate that is made higher by applying the Fibre Channel's physical layer and data encoding mechanism that enable data transfer of gigabits class. Consequently, Ethernet now has a position competitive with the Fibre Channel in the storage networking field. The IP based storage networking technology is called an IP-SAN in distinction from the FC-SAN based on the Fibre Channel.
Turning to storage systems, on the other hand, lately, competitive vendors have keenly competed with each other in developing storage management solutions with higher functionality in addition to competing in terms of higher performance, larger capacity, and lower cost. Moreover, a variety of interfaces for connecting a storage system with computers (hereinafter referred to as hosts or servers) have been used. As the interfaces for connection with hosts, there exists ESCON and FICON which are main frame channel interfaces and Fibre Channel and Ethernet which are the above-mentioned open systems. For the storage systems, connectivity with servers is an important factor and plural kinds of module boards corresponding to the kinds of interfaces are prepared so that the storage systems can adapt to the above variety of interfaces.
The Fibre Channel and the Gigabit Ethernet operate at different data transmission rates in bits per second; Fibre Channel operates at 1.0625 Gbps, and Gigabit Ethernet operates at 1.25 Gbps. Now, the Fibre Channel has achieved a transmission rate of 2 Gbps. Bus adapters of switch and host are made to automatically correspond to a 1-Gbps (exactly, 1.0625 Gbps) Fibre Channel and a 2-Gbps Fibre Channel by detecting the transmission rate. This function of automatically detecting the channel transmission rate is generally called an auto-negotiation.
Although the data transmission rates of the Fibre Channel and the Gigabit Ethernet differ as described above, both the Fibre Channel and the Gigabit Ethernet use the same frequency of 106.25 MHz as a basic frequency of clocks for data acquisition timing. Moreover, the Fibre Channel adopts a method called a double data rate which acquires data at the rising and falling edges of each clock for 1 Gbps.
As one of prior art documents relevant to these technologies, for example, there is a JP-A No. 2002-318782.

Storage system, computer system and interface module


The invention is a record and play medicine bracelet that includes a pre-recorded audio file that is accessed via a coded key. The record and play medicine bracelet may be adapted for a single use or multiple uses wherein the pre-recorded audio file may be recorded over. The pre-recorded audio file is accessed via the insertion of a coded key into a key input slot that is located on the bracelet. The bracelet is also capable of maintaining a log of times and persons who have accessed said information, which can be retrieved by a port located on the bracelet that can connect to a computer.

A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of medical bracelets, more specifically, a medical bracelet that upon insertion of a coded key, an audio playback of the patient's medical information is played.
B. Discussion of the Prior Art
As a preliminary note, it should be stated that there is an ample amount of prior art that deals with medical bracelets. As will be discussed immediately below, no prior art discloses a medical bracelet that uses a coded key to playback an audio recording of the patient's medical information, and of which a port is provided to plug into a computer in order to retrieve a log of accessing such information and by whom said information was accessed.
The Walker et al. Patent Application Publication (U.S. Pub. No. 2006/0218011) discloses a system and method for improved health care compliance system that includes a medical information bracelet with digital means to record and track events and in which that data may be compared to verify accuracy and identify errors, also having a speaker for playback of pre-recorded audio messages pertaining to patient compliance. However, the medical information bracelet does not have an accompanying coded key that when inserted into the bracelet will reveal the patient's information. Also, the bracelet does not keep a log of the times and persons who retrieved the stored information, and of which said log can be accessed via a port that connects to a computer.
The Martucci et al. Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 6,985,870) discloses a medication delivery system that includes a tag containing patient data, in the form of a bracelet adapted to be worn by the patient. However, the bracelet does not have an audio playback function that is accessed via a coded key that also maintains a log of persons and times from which said audio playback is accessed.
The Reeves Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 6,747,561) discloses a bracelet for digital storage and retrieval of medical records and personal identification. Again, the bracelet does not have a coded key for accessing the medical records stored in the bracelet.
The Radley-Smith (U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,490) discloses an electronic information display bracelet, to be used in hospitals to store details of a patient's identity and their relevant medicine. However, the bracelet does not include a coded key that is required to access such information. Also, the information is retrieved via a pre-recorded audio file.
The Tahan Patent Application Publication (U.S. Pub. No. 2002/0111830) discloses a device for providing and storing a patient's medical history on a wrist-worn bracelet. Again, the bracelet does not have a coded key for accessing the medical records stored in the bracelet.
The Mendes Patent Application Publication (U.S. Pub. No. 2006/0042139) discloses a medical information bracelet in which the medical information is affixed to the bracelet via a digital storage medium. However, the medical information does not require a coded key to unlock and access such information. Also, the bracelet does not involve a speaker for playback of a pre-recorded audio file detailing the patient's medical information.
The Epstein Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 3,805,427) discloses a medical alarm bracelet having specific medical information imprinted inside of the bracelet. However, the medical alarm bracelet is not capable of playing a pre-recorded audio file.
The Laugherty et al. Patent (U.S. Pat. No. 3,800,450) discloses a permanently-attached identification band, which identifies the person wearing said band. However, the band does not have a speaker and memory unit for playing back a pre-recorded audio file that contains medical information.
While the above-described devices fulfill their respective and particular objects and requirements, they do not describe a medical bracelet that plays back a pre-recorded audio file that contains medical information, and from which such information is only accessed upon insertion of a coded key; and wherein said bracelet maintains a log of times and persons who have retrieved such medical information. In this regard, the record and play medicine bracelet departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art.


A display control apparatus includes a display control section that controls to display an image showing an operation of an equipment on a display portion provided in a vehicle and illuminate the display portion with a first brightness, and a counting section that counts a time which elapses after the equipment is activated. The display control section changes the brightness of the display portion from the first brightness to a second brightness which is lower in brightness than the first brightness in a case that an ignition switch of the vehicle is not turned on until the time counted by the counting section exceeds a predetermined period of time.

The present invention relates to a display control apparatus and a display control method for controlling the brightnesses of a screen to be displayed on a display that is installed on a vehicle and backlight.
In general, when the driver inserts an ignition key into a key cylinder and turns it to start a vehicle, a battery switch, an accessory switch and an ignition switch become on sequentially, and with a starter motor operated an engine is activated. In vehicles equipped with an air suspension system, there are some vehicles in which the air suspension system is activated after a certain period of time has elapsed since the accessory switch is turned on. In this case, an image showing an operating state of the air suspension system is displayed on the display portion, whereby the driver is informed of the current operating state of the air suspension system.
Hereinafter, a conventional operation procedure of activating a vehicle will be described by reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. 5.
Firstly, when the driver inserts the ignition key into the key cylinder and turns the key, the battery switch is placed in an ON position, whereby a battery installed in the vehicle is connected to ECUs or various types of measuring instruments or gauges (step S101). Then, a CPU starts to operate (step S102).
The ignition key is turned to an accessory position, and it is determined that whether or not the accessory switch is turned on (step S103). If the accessory switch is not turned on (NO in step S103), the CPU is shifted to a low power consumption mode, so as to reduce the consumed power (step S104).
On the other hand, if it is determined that the accessory switch is turned on (YES in step S103), a standby mode of the CPU is canceled (step S105), whereby the operation of the air suspension system is started (step S106).
A power supply of a display is switched on (step S107), and further, the operation of the display is started, whereby a backlight of the display portion is illuminated (step S108).
It is determined that whether or not the ignition switch is turned on (step S109), and if it is determined that the ignition switch is not turned on, the flow of the operation procedure is returned to the operation in step S108.
On the other hand, if the ignition switch is determined to have been put on, an operation or operations relevant to the ignition switch being on are executed (step S110), and further, the vehicle starts to operate normally (step S111).
Here, as described above, since the air suspension system is activated after the accessory switch is turned on, in a case that the ignition switch is still not turned on even after a long period of time has elapsed since the air suspension system started to operate, with the engine started to operate, an operating state of the air suspension system is kept displayed on the display. As this occurs, the consumed power by the display portion which keeps displaying the operation state of the air suspension system is increased, which causes a problem that large load of the battery occurs.
In addition, JP-A-2007-121408 (Patent Document 1) describes a liquid crystal display apparatus which realizes a backlight which can save electric power to be consumed. However, nothing is described therein on means or method for reducing the consumed power before the ignition switch is turned on.
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-2007-121408
As described above, with the conventional display control apparatus, there exists the drawback that when displaying on the display an image such as one showing the operating state of the air suspension system before the ignition switch is turned on to start the engine, large electric power is required and large load of the battery occurs. Thus, there have been increasing demands on reduction of the consumed power by displaying the image before the ignition switch is turned on.

Display control apparatus which controls the brightness of the display and a related display control method


A user interface apparatus and method in a user terminal that uses a capacitive touch input scheme are provided. The method includes monitoring an input signal that is generated by a touch on a touch panel; and in response to detecting an input signal generated by the touch, determining an area of the touch based on the input signal, and differently processing a selected command depending on the determined area.

Field
Apparatuses and methods consistent with exemplary embodiments relate to a user interface apparatus and method in a user terminal, and more particularly, to a user interface apparatus and method in a user terminal that uses a capacitive touch input scheme.
Description of the Related Art
Portable electronic devices increasingly require intuitive input/output User Interfaces (UIs). UIs have evolved from the UIs that allow a user to enter information using, for example, a keyboard, a keypad, a mouse and the like, into intuitive UIs that allow a user to enter information by directly touching a screen with his/her fingertip, a stylus pen and the like, or by using voice.
UI technology has been developed to offer the human-centered user friendliness and intuitiveness. A typical example of the UI technology is to allow a user to communicate with a portable electronic device through the use of voice, making it possible for the user to enter or obtain his/her desired information.
A typical example of a portable electronic device may include a smart phone. The smart phone may provide many new functions by a variety of applications which are installed therein by the user.
The existing user terminal supporting touch panel-based note functions has not provided any way to link the note contents to other applications, as the touch panel-based note functions are mainly used to allow the user to simply make a note of the information using input means such as a fingertip, a stylus pen and the like.
The user terminal of the related art has failed to meet the user's needs to easily and intuitively manipulate more commands using a variety of input tools, as the user terminal of the related art uses the uniform command system even though it supports a variety of input tools.
To meet these needs, there is a growing demand for emotional UIs which provide the user with the feeling of actually writing a note on the paper, due to the prevalence of user terminals that use a stylus pen together with a capacitive touch input scheme.
The above information is presented as background information only in order to assist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determination has been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the above might be applicable as prior art with regard to the exemplary embodiments.

User interface apparatus and method in user terminal with a capacitive touch input scheme


Systems and methods of managing announcement messages provide for receiving a first announcement message, where the first announcement message is compatible with a first platform protocol of a first messaging server. The first announcement message is translated into a second announcement message, where the second announcement message is compatible with a second platform of a second messaging server. By enabling announcement messages such as voice mail greetings and email “out-of-office” messages to be created and updated with a single interface, more efficient messaging is achieved.

Messaging systems such as voice mail and email systems enable subscribers to send and receive messages, and are widely popular among consumers. Most of these systems provide the subscriber with the ability to store one or more announcement messages, where the announcement messages are used to notify others that the subscriber is unavailable. For example, a typical voice mail system gives a subscriber the opportunity to record a "greeting", where the greeting is reproduced for callers when the subscriber does not answer the phone after a predetermined number of rings. The greeting is typically stored on a voice mail server that corresponds to a platform having a particular protocol. The protocol can be designed for use in a wireless environment in which the called number is associated with a device such as a mobile station, or in a more traditional "wireline" environment in which the called number is associated with a fixed location. In another example, the messaging system could be an email messaging system in which the announcement message is an "out-of-office" message associated with an email protocol. Thus, the programmable out-of-office message enables a subscriber to notify senders of email as to the subscriber's schedule and/or availability.
While the ability to use a device such as a mobile phone or networked computer as an interface to program a customized announcement message into a given messaging system is highly desirable and commercially available, a number of difficulties remain. One difficulty concerns the fact that it is not uncommon for an individual subscriber to have multiple messaging accounts, where each account operates on a unique platform.
Under conventional approaches, the subscriber must update each messaging server individually whenever a change is desired. For example, when the subscriber travels out of town, the subscriber could need to manually access many different devices in order to update all of his or her messaging accounts accordingly. It has been determined that such an approach can be time consuming and inefficient. This is particularly true for subscribers that travel frequently. There is therefore a need for an approach to manage and update announcement messages across multiple messaging accounts that is efficient and less time consuming than requiring subscribers to use multiple interfaces.
While some approaches have been made at combining different types of servers onto a common platform in order to address these inefficiencies, the practical reality is that multiple platform environments will continue to exist. There is therefore also a need for an approach to manage and update announcement messages in a manner that accounts for the practical limitations of unified platforms.


The present invention relates to a flange that includes a base region, a raised region, and a sloped region there between. The sloped region includes concave and convex curved regions positioned in a plane parallel to an elongate axis of the flange, and concave and convex curved regions positioned in a plane perpendicular to the elongate axis of the flange so as to reduce stress within and fatigue failures of the flange.

The present invention is particularly intended for use on commercial vehicles, which may include multiple components secured to or in a fuel tank. Prior art fuel tanks may include multiple components secured to a flat flange wherein the flat flange includes an area within the plane of the flange that is susceptible to a diaphragm effect and fatigue failure of the flange. Accordingly, there is a need to reduce fatigue failure of prior art flanges which include multiple components secured thereto.


A three-dimensional display device includes an image display portion for time-sharing a left eye image and a right eye image, and a parallax barrier for separating the left and right eye images provided from the image display portion into a direction of a left eye and a right eye of a user, respectively, by using a first and a second electrode set.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driving method of a three-dimensional display device, and in particular, to a driving method of an autostereoscopic three-dimensional display device using a parallax barrier.
2. Description of the Related Art
A three-dimensional display device may be categorized as a stereoscopic display device where a user wears a viewing aid such as polarizing glasses, or an autostereoscopic display device where the user can see a desired three-dimensional image without wearing such a viewing aid.
A common autostereoscopic display device utilizes an optical separation element such as a lenticular lens, a parallax barrier, or a microlens array, to spatially separate or isolate the left-eye image part and the right-eye image part displayed at an image display unit in the directions of the left and right eyes of the user, respectively.
In particular, the parallax barrier may be formed with a liquid crystal shutter utilizing a transmission type liquid crystal display, and in this case, it may be converted between a two-dimensional mode and a three-dimensional mode. Thus the parallax barrier can be applied to laptop computers or cellular phones.
Generally, the parallax barrier includes stripe-shaped light interception portions and light transmission portions. It selectively separates left and right eye images displayed at the image display unit through the light transmission portions such that the left and right eye images are respectively provided to the left and right eyes of the user.
A common three-dimensional display device having a parallax barrier displays left and right eye images according to left and right image signals inputted to pixels of the image display portion, and it separates the left and right eye images spatially by using the parallax barrier.
However, since the left and right images are entered into the respective eyes of the user, the resolution of a three-dimensional image is no more than half as fine as that of a two-dimensional image.
To solve this problem, a time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device has been developed.
An image display portion of the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device shows patterns of left and right eye images, and the patterns of the left and right eye images are changed alternately at regular time intervals. Patterns of the light interception portions and the light transmission portions of the parallax barrier are changed alternately at the regular time intervals.
Accordingly, the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device provides left and right images having patterns that are opposite to each other at certain time intervals to the left and right eyes of the user, respectively.
Consequently, the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device provides a three-dimensional image having a resolution that is equal (or substantially equal) to that of a two-dimensional image.
The parallax barrier of the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device may be formed with a liquid crystal shutter utilizing a transmission type of liquid crystal display, and the liquid crystal display may include first electrodes and second electrodes formed in a striped pattern and arranged alternately and repeatedly relative to each other.
Light transmittance rates for portions of the parallax barrier corresponding to each of the electrodes should be substantially uniform to enable the user to see images having a regular (or uniform) brightness during operation of the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device.
However, it is difficult for the time-sharing type of three-dimensional display device to maintain a uniform light transmittance rate due to differences in lengths of electrode paths along which applied voltages are conducted.

Driving method of three-dimensional display device

Abstract: A method includes applying a first driving voltage to the first electrode set during a first period, and applying a second driving voltage to the second electrode set during a second period. The second driving voltage has a level different from that of the first driving voltage.


A vehicle mounted imaging system and method, enabling selective imaging of objects in a low-visibility environment. The system includes a light source providing non-visible light pulses and a camera having an image intensifier enabled to gate selected received images. The light source may be a laser generator, which may be enabled to generate a pulse width related to the depth of a field to be imaged. The gated image intensifier may determine gating time spans according to the depth of a field to be imaged.

When driving a vehicle at night, or in poor visibility conditions, the insufficient illumination generated by a vehicle's headlights and/or any ambient road lighting, nearly always limits the driver's visibility range. When driving, the driver needs a sufficient range, hence time, to identify a danger from a distance and to react accordingly. The range of vision an alert driver requires to escape danger may be calculated empirically. It is customary to calculate the range required by multiplying the driving speed by the time needed for the combined human and vehicle reaction time. This time may range from 6 to 10 seconds for highway driving to more than double for heavy off-highway vehicle, and even ten times that for trains, boats or landing aircrafts. For example, a driver cruising at a speed of 120 km/h (i.e., 33 m/sec), would need a visibility range of approximately 200-333 meters.
However, the light system of vehicles, even when the headlamps are set to the high beam lights state, will generally illuminate a distance not exceeding approximately 200 meters, i.e. approximately 6 seconds of driving at a speed of 120 km/h. However, It should be noted that the use of high beam lights or alternative high powered lights is not neither customary nor allowed for continuous driving, as it causes glare ("blinding") other drivers. The situation is worse when the headlights are set to their low beam state, as the illuminated distance will not exceed 100 meters, generally, i.e. about only 3 seconds of driving at a speed of 120 km/h. The situation is worst during off-highway driving in a dusty environment where the visibility is down to 50 meters and time to stop may be 15-20 sec, or a boat sailing inside a fogy port with 50 meters visibility and time to react of 30-60 sec.
This seems to mean that drivers are driving currently under conditions of insufficient visibility range or, at least, in a state on the borderline of the required range of safe vision, and are, therefore, endangering themselves and others. Simply improving vehicle headlights to increase their illumination range may not be a suitable solution, because blinding of other drivers should be avoided, and also due to technological limitations.
With this current state of affairs, and as a natural outcome, developments in the field of night imaging equipment in aerospace/military applications have given rise to the idea of introducing and integrating night imaging systems in vehicles, which might increase the driver's visibility range. Furthermore, display systems for images received from observation systems under conditions of deficient vision or low visibility have also improved. Outstanding examples thereof are the HUD (Head Up Display) and LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) Systems.
One technology, which might be integrated and operated in vehicles, is the thermal imaging technology. An array of detectors, sensitive to infrared radiation absorbs the heat energy emitted by bodies and creates a video image according to the absorbed heat emission. An example of thermal imaging technology is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,439, titled "Head Up Display with Night Vision Enhancement". This patent describes the installation of an infrared camera in a vehicle for watching road conditions by using thermal imaging. The camera transmits a video signal to the HUD System, which displays the image on the vehicle's windshield (or any other optical combiner) located in front of the operator.
The system described in the '439 patent is based on a thermal camera, which does not offer a solution for perceiving differences in colors and shades of gray (a thermal camera displays heat distinctions and emissivity only). The system is heat sensitive and therefore, does not detect elements' temperature if equal to the road background temperature. In other words: the system does not offer the driver any help in reading signs, signposts, etc. Nor does the thermal camera exploit the extensive use of reflecting colors applied in road markings, light reflectors of vehicles, and so on. Furthermore, the thermal camera does not display the visible light (it operates in the remote infrared range). In addition, inasmuch as the system is based on an array of IR detectors operating on the remote infrared wavelengths (8 μm to 14 μm), it may not be possible to install the system inside a vehicle's driver compartment, because vehicle windows do not transmit energy in the remote IR wavelength.
Consequently, in considering an installation in a vehicle for the purpose of increasing the driver's range of vision, the disadvantages of thermal imaging technology are markedly apparent. The system is cumbersome, sensitive to various driving states, might not give a clear view of "cold" road signs, and is relatively expensive.
Another technology, which might apparently be integrated and assimilated in a vehicle, is the image intensification technology. An intensifier intensifies the available photons at the input by 50.000 to 100.000 times and enables observations in even a very dark environment. Intensification technology, however, is prone to "bloom". The image intensifier is sensitive to photons of the visible and near IR wavelengths. Consequently, an image intensifier may be bloomed by sources in the visible wavelength and the near IR entering the field of view.
Therefore, for installation in a vehicle for the purpose of increasing the driver's visibility range, this technology also has marked disadvantages. A vehicle moving on the road will, of necessity, encounter light from oncoming, preceding, and passing vehicles, as well as from street lamps. These sources emit light in both the visible and near IR spectrum. These sources might cause intensifier saturation and bloom the provided image.
An additional imaging technology that may be used for nighttime imaging is gated imaging technology. To reduce the influence of interference in the space between the night imaging system and the target, gated imaging is used, such that energy reflected from the illuminated target is absorbed only in specified time intervals. In this manner, the image displayed may be influenced by the imaging receiver input only when the reflected energy from the illuminated target actually reaches it (after having covered, at the speed of light, the distance from the target to the imaging receiver). While the illumination's beams travel the distance to the target, and while the reflected energy (beams) from the target and its adjacent environment travel the distance from the target to the imaging receiver, the imaging receiver is switched "OFF".
For application in vehicular installation aiming at increasing the driver's visibility range, the disadvantage of adding a source of light is apparent. For example, such technology may concern a system that requires radiation safety (e.g.—meeting the requirements of MPE standards) and the additional source of light should be at eye safety levels.
Night driving necessitates an increase in the driver' visibility range by implementing a system that might provide the driver with an expanded range of observation (e.g.—up to 500 meters ahead). Such a system may be required to operate in an environment saturated with sources of light in the visible and near IR wavelengths (e.g., headlights of other cars, roadside lights, other active night vision systems), while overcoming the challenge of eliminating blinding resulting from such sources of light, and without encountering radiation and other safety problems in influencing the system.

Vehicle mounted night vision imaging system and method


Direct memory accessed is used to perform database operations between two or more machines. A first segment of memory is allocated for a second machine, where at least one of the first machine and second machine is a database server. During performance of a database operation that involves the transfer of data from the second machine to the first machine, data in the first segment of memory is buffered in response to the second machine writing the data to a second segment of memory on the second machine.

Direct Memory Access (DMA) is a technique for transferring data from one memory segment to another memory segment without passing the data through a central processing unit. Computers that have DMA enabled channels can transfer data to and from devices much more quickly that computers that use more traditional Internet Protocol channels.
DMA technology has increasingly been incorporated into different high-speed transfer protocols and architectures. Examples of architectures that use DMA as a feature include VIRTUAL INTERFACE, and INFINIBAND. The DMA feature in such systems enable data in a memory on one device to specifically be targeted for memory on another external location, such as on another node or computer system. To gain full advantage of DMA, systems that incorporate DMA features do so with fast network connect devices.
DMA data transfers remove data bit overhead that is characteristic of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) data transfers. TCP/IP protocol transfers use byte streams that are segmented, where each segment includes header information and other characteristics to enable that particular data segment to reach its intended target. In contrast, DMA transfers data in a memory segment without segmenting the data into individually deliverable bytes. While DMA provides a favorable contrast to TCP/IP, techniques also exist to use DMA with TCP/IP. One such technique is referred to as remote DMA (RDMA) over TCP/IP.

Using direct memory access for performing database operations between two or more machines


A capacitor is connected in parallel with a gradient coil to form a parallel resonance circuit with the gradient coil. A gradient coil current is reversed utilizing parallel resonance of the gradient coil and the capacitor. The gradient coil current is detected by a shunt resistor connected in series to a power source. A voltage across the shunt resistor is compared with a reference voltage to control a power-source voltage, thereby controlling a gradient-coil current waveform. This arrangement allows imaging sequences to be performed in a short time without involving gradient field waveform distortion and increasing power consumption. A gradient power source apparatus suited for ultra high-speed MRI apparatus is provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gradient power source apparatus for use in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus which supplies a gradient coil with a current having a desired waveform to thereby cause the gradient coil to produce a gradient magnetic field with a desired waveform.
2. Description of the Related Art
As one of magnetic resonance imaging techniques an echo-planar technique which permits ultra high-speed scan has been developed in recent years. The echo-planar technique will replace the conventional spin-echo technique. With such an ultra high-speed imaging technique, such a pulse sequence as shown in FIG. 1 is used. In this pulse sequence, a readout gradient field Gr is several times as strong as that used in the spin-echo technique. An ultra high-speed MRI apparatus requires a high current of the order of 500 to 600 amperes to flow through a gradient coil having considerably high inductance. Moreover the high current needs to be switched between positive and negative polarities at a high speed.
As a prior art of a gradient power source apparatus for carrying out an ultra-high-speed-scan pulse sequence there is known a "gradient current speed-up circuit for high-speed NMR imaging system" which is disclosed U.S. Pat. No. 4,961,054. This is a kind of inverter, and its basic arrangement is illustrated in FIG. 2. A gradient coil 2 represented by a series combination of inductance Lg and resistance Rg has an end connected in common to ends of switching devices SW1 and SW4 and the other end connected in common to ends of switching devices SW2 and SW3. The other ends of the switching devices SW1 and SW3 are connected together to the positive terminal of a constant-voltage source 6 through a choke coil 4 represented by a series combination of inductance Lc and resistance Rc. The other ends of the switching devices SW2 and SW4 are connected together to the negative terminal (ground terminal) of the voltage source 6. That is, the switching devices SW1 to SW4 construct a bridge circuit. As the switching devices SW1 to SW4, transistors, thyristors, gate turn-off thyristors (GTO) or the like can be used. The switching devices SW1 to SW4 are subjected to on/off control by control signals from a sequence controller (not shown) incorporated into MRI apparatus, thereby carrying out such a pulse sequence as shown in FIG. 1. Snubber circuits S used for protection are connected in parallel with the respective switching devices SW1 to SW4.
The operation of the gradient power source apparatus shown in FIG. 2 for producing, for example, the readout gradient magnetic field Gr shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 3, which is a timing diagram illustrating on and off times of the switching devices SW1 to SW4, and waveforms of a source voltage Vin, a source current Iin, and a gradient coil current Ig.
At time t=0, the switching devices SW1 and SW4 are turned on and then the apparatus waits for the source current Iin to reach a predetermined value Ip (t=t1). At time t=t1, the switching devices SW3 and SW4 are turned on, and the switching devices SW1 and SW2 are turned off, so that a current Ig flows through the gradient coil 2. At time t=t2, the switching devices SW1 and SW2 are turned on, and the switching devices SW3 and SW4 are turned off, so that the direction of current flow through the gradient coil 2 is reversed. Repeating the on/off switching of the switching devices SW1 to SW4 in accordance with the timing diagram of FIG. 3 permits a rectangular-wave current Ig having such a flat top as the readout gradient field Gr shown in FIG. 1 has to flow through the gradient coil 2.
Since the inductance Lg of the gradient coil 2 is considerably high, however, the waveform of the coil current Ig may be so degraded that its flat top cannot be kept. In order to avoid the waveform degradation of the gradient coil current Ig, the choke coil 4 is connected between the power source 6 and the bridge-connected switching devices. The choke coil 4 has inductance Lc which is five to twenty times higher than the inductance Lg of the gradient coil 2, thus permitting the source current Iin to be kept substantially constant.
With such an arrangement, however, the connection of the choke coil 4 having high inductance Lc (usually 5 to 20 millihenries) requires to wait until the source current Iin reaches a predetermined current value Ip at t=1 from when the power is turned on at t=0. During the interval t=0 to t=t1, magnetic resonance imaging cannot be performed. That is, a waiting time of t1 is required from when the power is turned on until data acquisition is started, which offsets an advantage of ultra high-speed MRI apparatus that a large number of imaging scans can be accomplished within a short period of time. If, on the other hand, current were continued to flow between imaging scans so as to eliminate the waiting time, power consumption would increase because of a high current on the order of 500 to 600 amperes.
Moreover, the choke coil, which has high inductance and permits a high current flow, is very great in size and weight.
Furthermore, keeping the source current Iin substantially constant requires to store high magnetic energy in the choke coil 4, which increases power consumption. The magnetic energy Wc (in joules) is represented by EQU Wc=(1/2)LcIp.sup.2 ( 1)
where Lc is the inductance of the choke coil 4, and Ip is a current flowing through the choke coil 4 which equals a maximum value of the gradient coil current Ig.
Equation (1) shows that the higher the choke coil inductance Lc becomes, the higher the magnetic energy Wc to be stored becomes, and thus power consumption increases.
If the choke coil inductance Lc were decreased so as to shorten the waiting time and reduce the power consumption, the waveform of the gradient coil current Ig would deteriorate. Non-rectangular coil current waveforms would degrade MRI image quality.
It is required to keep a peak value of the gradient coil current substantially constant. When the switching is made at regular intervals as shown in FIG. 3, the peak value can be kept constant. If, however, the switching were made at irregular intervals to regulate echo acquisition times, the peak value could not be kept constant because of decay due to loss in the snubber circuits.
Another prior art, as shown in FIG. 4, adds capacitors C1 and C2 and diodes D1 to D4 to the arrangement of FIG. 2 for the purpose of regulating a reversing time (from t3 to t4 in FIG. 5) of the gradient coil current. FIG. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating the operation of this prior art.
However, a problem with the prior art is that the waveform of the gradient coil current Ig shown in FIG. 5 will be distorted by charging and discharging of the capacitors C1 and C2. This problem will be solved by further increasing the inductance of the choke coil 4. However, this not only increases the power consumption and lengthens the waiting time as described above but also makes the choke coil itself large.
Still another solution is to connect a resistor in parallel or series with each of the capacitors C1 and C2, thereby consuming extra energy. However, a problem arises in that power consumption increases.
As shown in FIG. 6A, even if a rectangular current is caused to flow through the gradient coil 2 to thereby produce a rectangularly pulsed gradient field, the waveform of a composite magnetic field, within a static-magnetic-field forming superconducting magnet, of the gradient field and a magnetic field component due to an eddy current generated in a metal cylinder of the superconducting magnet may be non-rectangular. Heretofore, in order to compensate for such waveform distortion, an eddy current compensating component is superimposed upon the gradient coil current as shown in FIG. 6B so that a composite magnetic field can have a rectangular waveform. However, a current type inverter will not generate a current having such a waveform as shown in FIG. 6B, failing to compensate for waveform distortion due to eddy current.

Gradient power source apparatus for magnetic resonance imaging system


A composition and method for treating excess cyanide and hydrogen sulfide comprising administering a cobinamide. Further a method for determining extent of binding by an agent to an extracellular matrix.

Cyanide is a highly toxic agent which inhibits mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase, thereby depleting cellular ATP. It contributes to smoke inhalation deaths in fires, and could be used as a weapon of mass destruction. Cyanide is generated in household fires due to the high amount of plastic material that is usually present.
Hydrogen sulfide is an extremely toxic gas for which no treatment is available. Workers in a variety of industries are exposed to hydrogen sulfide—most notably the petroleum industry, where one-third of workers are exposed to sufficient gas to have symptoms, with 8% having experienced loss of consciousness. Moreover, inhalation of hydrogen sulfide gas is a common mode of suicide and the gas could be used by terrorists as a weapon of mass destruction.
Cobinamide has been disclosed as a treatment for cyanide toxicity. In its aqueous state, cobinamide takes the form of aquohydroxocobinamide at neutral pH and is effective when administered intravenously. However, intravenous administration of antidotes is not preferred in mass casualty situations because of the additional skill required to inject intravenously and the time it takes to do such an injection. In a disaster situation, such as a terrorist attack, every second counts and thus a form of cobinamide that can be administered more simply than intravenously is needed.

Methods and compositions for treatment of cyanide and hydrogen sulfide toxicity

THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA as represented by THE SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE


The present invention relates to a method of increasing Adenosine Triphosphate levels in a mammal wherein 2-(carbamimidoyl-methyl-amino)ethoxyphosphonic acid inhibits the leakage of the Adenosine Triphosphate-dependant enzyme Creatine Kinase. Via the inhibition of Creatine Kinase leakage, Adenosine Triphosphate is not utilized in the conversion of creatine to phosphocreatine, thereby making it available for use in muscular contractions. The increase in availability leads to longer endurance and more forceful muscular contractions.

The energy requirements of contracting muscles involved in high-intensity exercise may increase 100-fold relative to resting muscles, thereby exceeding the aerobic energy production capacity of the cells (Westerblad H, et al. News Physiol Sci. 2002 February; 17:17-21). In this case, anaerobic metabolism is required to provide additional energy. However, high-intensity exercise results in an eventual reduced capacity for muscular contractile function, or commonly known as fatigue. Thus, there is seemingly a link between anaerobic metabolism and fatigue.
In a 2000 review on the role of creatine in skeletal muscle, Casey and Greenhaff provide a thorough overview of energy supply and its utilization in muscle (Casey A, et al. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 August; 72(2 Suppl):607S-17S). ATP is the direct energy source for contracting muscle as the energy needed for muscular contraction is released by the dephosphorylation of ATP to yield the low-energy metabolite Adenosine Diphosphate, hereinafter referred to as ADP and inorganic phosphate (Pi) according to the following reaction:ATP+H2O→ADP+Pi+H++energy  (reaction 1)Therefore, it is naturally observed that the function of muscle is largely dependent upon the availability of ATP. However, the concentration of ATP available in muscle at rest prior to the start of exercise, is only sufficient to supply about 1-2 seconds of the energy required for intense activity. ATP, however, can be readily and rapidly regenerated through the anaerobic dephosphorylation of available phosphocreatine. However, like that of ATP, the concentration of phosphocreatine in muscle is low and only sufficient to sustain muscular activity for an additional 6 seconds. After repeated bouts of contraction, muscle phosphocreatine levels become nearly depleted (Greenhaff P L, et al. J. Physiol. 1993 January; 460:443-53). Naturally, fatigue, although likely multifaceted in terms of biochemical events, is the point at which the energy required by contracting muscle exceeds the level available either from the stored supply of ATP or the indirect synthesis of high-energy ATP through phosphocreatine dephosphorylation.
CK is an ATP-dependent enzyme, which, using magnesium, hereinafter referred to as Mg2+, as a co-factor, phosphoylates ADP to ATP. CK is normally found within cells however, when muscle cells are damaged the cells often rupture and the normally cell-bound proteins leak out in to the surrounding serum. Since the phosphoylation reaction is ATP-dependent, an elevated presence of CK outside the cells ultimately leads to the consumption of the high-energy molecule ATP. The consumption of ATP by CK in the serum is detrimental to cells, which requires ATP as an energy source for energetic properties in relation to muscular contractions.

Increasing ATP availability by inhibition of creatine kinase (CK) leakage resulting from high-intensity exercise


The invention is directed to an optical element and techniques for creating the optical element. The optical element may comprise an optical delay line or a similar optical part. The optical element may have a wide variety of applications in optical data transmission, optical computing, short term transient storing, applications for optical timing, or a number of other applications. Rather than drawing a long length of optical fiber, the invention can make use of mastering and replication techniques to define a long continuous groove in a substrate. Alternatively, an etching process may be used. In either case, the groove is filled with an optical material of higher index of refraction than the substrate to define a light guide that can transmit light via total internal reflection (TIR).

Fiber optics are commonly used for many applications, including data transfer applications and a number of optical computing applications. For data transfer, light is typically transferred down a length of optical fiber from a source to a destination. The optical fiber comprises a light guide that operates according to principles of total internal reflection (TIR). The light may be modulated as it is introduced into the optical fiber in order to encode information in the transmitted light. For example, information may be encoded in the light by switching the light on and off, modulating the light intensity, modulating the frequency and wavelength of the light, or various combinations. In some cases, a plurality of different frequencies of light can be multiplexed on a given light guide for simultaneous transmission.
Optical computing is viewed as a potentially high-speed alternative to conventional computing techniques. The goal of an entirely optical computing machine is to replace the electrical currents and voltages common in conventional computing techniques with manipulations of light. Current implementations typically rely, at least in part, on opto-electronic elements wherein electrical signals may be converted to optical signals, transferred or manipulated, and then converted back to electrical signals. However, purely optical computing aims to virtually eliminate the opto-electronic components altogether, and therefore, eliminate the need for conversions from optical to electrical signals. Light controlled gates, light to light transistors, light amplification devices, and a number of other optical computing components are currently being developed to realize practical optical computing applications.
One type of optical component that may be very useful for optical computing, data transfer applications, or other optics applications is an optical delay line. An optical delay line is generally a relatively long length of optical fiber that introduces a time delay to an optical signal. The amount of time required for light to traverse the optical fiber (at the speed of light through the medium) is referred to as the optical delay. Delay lines have many applications, including applications as short-term transient memory elements, timing elements, or phase delayed comparator devices. In some cases, micron adjustments to the length of an optical delay line may equate to changes in the optical delay on the order of pico-seconds, which make optical delay lines attractive as accurate timing elements.
Optical fiber, such as that used for optical delay lines, is typically drawn or extruded and then wrapped around a large spool. In some cases, the optical fiber may be drawn and then embedded in a resin to form a more rigid and robust optical part. Features may also be added to optical fibers, such as diffraction gratings, to facilitate manipulation of the light that traverses the fiber.


According to one embodiment of the invention, a power absorber for receiving a signal having a fundamental frequency includes an input node for receiving the signal and a first PIN diode circuit having a first end electrically connected at the input node and a second end. The first PIN diode circuit includes at least one PIN diode. The absorber also includes a load resistance having a first end electrically connected to the second end of the PIN diode circuit and a second end electrically connected to a reference voltage. The absorber also includes a quarter wave transmission line having a first end electrically connected to the input node at a second end. The quarter wave transmission line has an electrical link that is one quarter of the wavelength of the fundamental frequency. The power absorber also includes a second PIN diode circuit having an input electrically connected to the second end of the quarter wave transmission line and an output electrically connected to the reference voltage. The first choke is provided in parallel with the load resistor.

High power limiters are used to prevent damage to devices such as a low noise amplifier. In one example implementation, a radio frequency receiver include a power limiter in combination with a low noise amplifier. The power limiter limits power provided to the low noise amplifier to avoid damage to the low noise amplifier. Such damage may occur where a receiver is configured to detect low amplitude radio frequency signals and it instead receives a high amplitude signal. Example limiters include reflective limiters and absorptive limiters.
Reflective limiters generally involve shunting PIN diodes to ground in parallel with an RF choke. Alternatively, PIN diodes are shunted to ground in parallel with NIP diodes. Thus, for low radio frequency levels the PIN diode is off and no current flows to ground; the limiter has low loss. For high voltage swings, however, the PIN diode turns on and current flows to ground. Either the choke or the NIP diode provides a current path. In such a case, the received signal is reflected toward the signal source. This results in a disadvantage in that, for example, a clandestine radio frequency receiver can be seen when it reflects the radio frequency energy back to its source.
Absorptive limiters generally use a quarter wave shunt with PIN diodes. For low amplitude received signals the PIN diodes are off, resulting in low current flow. Thus the limiter has a low loss. For high levels, however, the PIN diodes turn off and current flows. In such a case, the output diodes look like a low impedance when turned on. The low impedance of the output diode reflects through a quarter wave line and looks like an open circuit in parallel with a 50 ohm load. Thus, the radio frequency energy is absorbed by the 50 ohm load.
The above-described reflective and absorptive limiters are not satisfactory in all regards. In particular, in certain applications the limiters do not act sufficiently to limit received power.


A master cylinder which has an unusual ability to limit space requirements, to be fitted in vehicles controllable by handlebars, comprises a cylinder body provided with a seat for housing a portion of the handlebar. A chamber for slidably housing a piston extends along an axis inside the cylinder body. A manual control lever which acts on the piston is mounted on the cylinder body for pivoting about its fulcrum in a plane. The axis along which the chamber for slidably housing the piston extends intersects the plane of pivoting of the control lever at a point.

More particularly, the invention relates to a master cylinder for motor-vehicle brakes or clutches. In fact, as is known, in motor vehicles such as, for example, motorcycles, the brake generally associated with the front wheel is operated by means of a master cylinder mounted on the handlebars in the vicinity of one of the hand grips, conventionally the right-hand hand grip of the motorcycle.
Similarly, the clutch can also be operated by means of a master cylinder mounted on the handlebars on the opposite side to the brake master cylinder, that is, on the left-hand side of the motorcycle.
A master cylinder of the type described above is generally constituted by a cylinder body in which a chamber is formed for housing a piston. When the piston is operated by the driver, it acts on a working fluid contained in the respective brake or clutch system.
The chamber is arranged in communication with a reservoir which holds the working fluid and may be formed integrally with the cylinder body or may be separate and connected thereto by an external pipe.
A master cylinder of the above-mentioned type also has a control lever which is mounted for pivoting on the cylinder body and is intended to act on the piston. This control lever faces the respective hand grip of the handlebar on which the master cylinder is mounted and is operated by the driver by being pivoted about its fulcrum. In known master cylinders, as the control lever pivots about its fulcrum, it defines a plane which generally includes the axis along which an end portion of the handlebar extends, in the region of the hand grip to be gripped by the driver. The axis along which the chamber housing the piston extends and which is also defined as the axis of the master cylinder, also lies in the said plane, or in a plane parallel thereto.
In order to make the gripping of the control lever ergonomic for the driver, this plane, which contains both the axis of the end portion of the handlebar and the axis of the cylinder, is inclined to a horizontal plane, for example, defined by the plane in which the free surface of the working fluid is disposed inside the reservoir. The extent of this inclination is about 15° downwards in the direction of travel of the vehicle, this statement meaning that a point in the plane in the vicinity of the control lever is disposed below a point in the plane in the vicinity of the end portion of the handlebar, as described more specifically below.
In the field of motor vehicles, and motorcycles in particular, there is a particular need to have an especially compact and aesthetically pleasing external design which at the same time satisfies functional needs, for example, connected with aerodynamic requirements.
From this point of view, the above-mentioned master cylinders have many disadvantages. For example, both technical and aesthetic disadvantages connected mainly with problems of space requirements are encountered in mounting these cylinders on a motor vehicle. Motor vehicles in fact have bodywork elements such as hoods, windscreens, hand guards, fairings or other components which extend up to the vicinity of the ends of the handlebars where the hand grips, the master cylinders, and generally their respective reservoirs, are positioned. In particular, in the case of cylinders in which the cylinder body and the reservoir are formed integrally, the reservoir is generally positioned above the chamber housing the piston and may even reach considerable dimensions when the master cylinder is of a size suitable for operating, for example, two brake calipers.
Since the bodywork elements have to be designed to envelop the handlebars completely, housing both the master cylinders and the reservoirs, ugly protuberances are inserted in the vicinity of the latter and, as well as affecting the appearance of the bodywork, these also affect its functional and aerodynamic aspects.
The problem upon which the present invention is based is that of proposing a master cylinder for vehicles controlled by means of handlebars which has structural and functional characteristics such as to satisfy the above-mentioned requirements and, at the same time, to overcome the disadvantages mentioned with reference to the prior art.

Hydraulic pump for vehicles controllable by handlebars


Embodiments of the invention prevent data loss due to very frequent writing onto adjacent data tracks. In one embodiment, an alternate zone made up of multiple adjacent data tracks is formed by setting data tracks whose usage is to be prohibited for every other data track. The data updated very frequently and data not updated too frequently are recorded in the alternate zone. Data tracks for recording the data updated very frequently, and data tracks for recording data not updated too frequently, each have one cylinder of spacing. Data loss due to leakage fluxes can thus be prevented.

The present invention relates to a technique for preventing the occurrence of an event in which the data pre-recorded on the data tracks of a magnetic disk drive is lost by data writing onto data tracks adjacent to the foregoing tracks.
The magnetic disk of a magnetic disk drive that is a recording medium has multiple data tracks set by servo data concentrically on the recording faces of the disk, and multiple data sectors (hereinafter, referred to simply as sectors) are set in a circumferential direction on each data track. The sectors become the minimum unit of the data recorded on the magnetic disk, and are set as, for example, 512-byte storage blocks. Each data track is arranged on the magnetic disk in a radial direction thereof at a required track pitch, and the magnetic disk drive, after receiving a command from a host apparatus, positions an associated magnetic head at the data track including the sectors of a specified address.
In recent years, with the improvement of magnetic disks in recording density, track pitch density (the number of tracks per inch, TPI) has become increasingly small. Accordingly, the event that since magnetic flux leakage from a write head during data recording on a data track affects the data pre-recorded on adjacent data tracks, an increase in the updating frequency of the data recorded on that track eventuates in the pre-recorded data being lost or becoming unreadable, is occurring in the magnetic disk drives used for specific purposes. This event is known as adjacent-track interference (ATI). Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-273060) discloses a technique in which, as summarized in the "Abstract" thereof, even if the situation arises that leakage fields progressively erase data present on adjacent data tracks, this situation is compensated for to prevent a data error from occurring in the magnetic disk drive.
The technique described in Patent Document 1 employs the steps of counting the number of writing operations on a data track, detecting that the writing operations count has reached a predefined value, temporarily reading the data on data tracks adjacent to that data track, and rewriting data onto the adjacent data tracks. Also, when data is written onto data tracks, writing of the data skips alternate physical data tracks, and completion of writing onto half of all data tracks is followed by writing onto the skipped data tracks.
Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 3-203071) discloses a technique in which, since a magnetic disk, because of its circumferential velocity, is smaller in TPI margin at its outer data track than at its inner data tracks, the TPI margin is made constant over the entire magnetic disk surface. More specifically, in order to ensure higher recording density, servo signals are written so that the data track pitch continuously changes to be wider as the data tracks are more distant from the inner edge of the magnetic disk.

Alternate cylinder table to improve adjacent track interference problem

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies Netherlands B.V.


Critical sections used for multiple threads in a parallel program to access shared resource may be selected to merge with each other to reduce the number of signals/tokens used to create critical sections. Critical section merge may be based on a summarized dependence graph which is obtained from an instruction level dependence graph constructed based on a result of critical section minimization.

1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to compiling technologies in a computing system, and more specifically but not exclusively, to method and apparatus for merging critical sections when compiling a computer program.
2. Description
Multithreading and multiprocessing are common programming techniques often used to maximize the efficiency of computer programs by providing a tool to permit concurrency or multitasking. Threads are ways for a computer program to be divided into multiple and distinct sequences of programming instructions where each sequence is treated as a single task and to be processed simultaneously. An application that may use the multithreaded programming technique is a packet-switched network application that processes network packets in a high speed packet-switched system concurrently.
To maintain and organize the different packets, a new thread may be created for each incoming packet. In a single processor environment, the processor may divide its time between different threads. In a multiprocessor environment, different threads may be processed on different processors. For example, the Intel® IXA™ network processors (IXPs) have multiple microengines (MEs) processing network packets in parallel where each ME supports multiple threads.
In such a parallel programming paradigm, accesses to shared resources, including shared memory, global variables, shared pipes, and so on, are typically be protected by critical sections to ensure mutual exclusiveness and synchronizations between threads. Normally, critical sections are created by using a signal mechanism in a multiprocessor system. A signal may be used to permit the entering or to indicate the exiting of a critical section. For instance, in an Intel® IXP™, packets are distributed to a chain of threads in order (i.e., an earlier thread in the chain processes an earlier packet). Each thread waits for a signal from the previous thread before entering the critical section. After the signal is received, the thread executes the critical section code exclusively. Once this thread is done, it sends the signal to the next thread after leaving the critical section.
Due to hardware cost, the number of signals is limited by the scale of processing element. For example, each thread only has 16 signals in Intel® IXP™ MEs. Excessive use of critical sections may adversely impact the performance of a program. Therefore, it is desirable to efficiently use critical sections.

Method and apparatus for merging critical sections


An apparatus and method for removing pollutants from a gas stream wherein a spray of steam is directed against a primary deflector plate to disperse a portion of the spray and repel the spray off of the primary deflector plate against a secondary deflector plate to disperse at least a portion of the spray rebounded against the secondary deflector plate, the placement of the primary deflector plate and secondary deflector plate adapted such that the dispersed spray from the primary and secondary deflector plates forms an aerosol in the path of the gas stream, allowing the aerosol to condense into water, and recovering the condensed water.

In the prior-art there are devices, using steam or water scrubbing, which are used to remove particulates from exhaust gasses. While these devices are effective to some degree in removing particulates and gasses from exhaust gas streams, stricter standards for exhaust emissions have created a need for more efficient pollution removal.
Furthermore, many devices of the prior art include moving parts, e.g., dispersing wheels, fans, and the like, which contributes to the building and maintaining costs of the device. In addition, many have a specialized structure and can only be applied to certain exhaust or waste-gas systems and not to existing installations without extensive rebuilding.
In Chemical Engineers' Handbook (5th Edition) by R. H. Perry, and Cecil H. Chilton, on pages 20-94 to 20-103 are disclosed various gas scrubbers which use water sprays for removing particulates from gas streams. Adding steam to the aerosol created by the water spray is also disclosed. (See page 20-96.)
U.S. Pat. No. 3,139,331 to Boudreau discloses a smoke cleansing apparatus in which the smoke is wetted with water or steam while being directed through a coiled duct. Centriftigal force causes the smoke particles to be carried away by the condensed steam to a discharge port.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,582,051 to Klein discloses a smoke cleaning apparatus wherein smoke is first directed through conical baffle of closely spaced overlapping rings, which holds back larger particles, and then through helical baffles where an apertured spray pipe sprays water to cool the smoke and fumes and entrap further particles in the smoke.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,605,386 to Erwin discloses a pollution eliminator comprising a section with steam injectors followed by a section with water injecters. In the steam injector section, baffles confine the exhaust to ensure saturation of exhaust solids.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,920,423 to Ross discloses a steam scrubber comprising steam injecters, which inject steam from a conduit in the center of a tank through which smoke is directed.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,888,642 to Toyama discloses an exhaust-stack scrubber attachment comprising a steam jet for mingling the exhaust stream with steam upstream from off-set filter baffles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,017,277 to VanDyke, Sr. et al. discloses a direct contact water heating system that comprises transferring heat to water from flue gasses and stripping the water of dissolved gasses with steam.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,113,453 to Rector discloses an anti-pollution device comprising a nozzle directing steam upwardly into stack, with a series of cooling chambers to condense pollutant containing steam above the nozzle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,624,190 to Cappi discloses an apparatus for disposal of flue gas that scrubs the flue gas with water from nozzles.
In some prior art devices, the water or steam is mechanically dispersed in the path of smoke. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 750,351 to Doyle discloses a device for removing smoke, which comprises water jets directed upwardly with sprayer or spreader plates above the jets to deflect the water spray downward.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,257,792 to Cremo discloses a stream-pressured smoke eliminator that comprises a steam supply fed to a steam-jet-operated star wheel. The star wheel dispenses a sheet-like layer of steam to intercept smoke rising through the eliminator. The eliminator can be assembled as a unit, which is inserted into a smoke-stack by means of a helicopter.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,760,567 to Stalker discloses a smoke cleaner that uses extractor fans to draw the smoke upward. Water is directed to the underside of the fan, which sprays the water outwardly in a spray. Steam or hot water may also be directed against the fan to remove heavy pollution constituents such as oils and tars (col. 3, lines 53 to 68).
Another device for mechanically dispersing a water stream is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,537,065 to Burdin, which describes a humidifier comprising a water nozzle and an angularly disposed adjustable target plate. In operation, water under pressure impinges against the deflecting plate and breaks the water into a spray. The outer line of the spray, after striking the bottom of the chamber, may rebound and break up further. (See page 2, lines 52 to 59).

Pollution abatement apparatus and method


A method and system are disclosed for providing a near-real-time measurement of sentiment and advocacy associated with user interactions within a social media environment. A first and second set of social media data, respectively associated with a first and second set of social media interactions, are processed to generate a first and second set of social network advocacy (SNA) data in near-real-time. The resulting first and second sets of SNA data are then processed to generate a first and second set of SNA Pulse (SNAP) metric data, which respectively indicate a near-real-time measurement of sentiment and advocacy for a given aspect of an organization. The first and second sets of SNAP metric data are then processed to generate a set of SNAP metrics differential data, which indicates a corresponding improvement or decline in sentiment or advocacy.

Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to information handling systems. More specifically, embodiments of the invention provide a method and system for a method and system is disclosed for providing a near-real-time measurement of sentiment and advocacy associated with user interactions within a social media environment.
Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
These same information handling systems have been just as instrumental in the rapid adoption of social media into the mainstream of everyday life. Social media commonly refers to the use of web-based technologies for the creation and exchange of user-generated content for social interaction. As such, it currently accounts for approximately 22% of all time spent on the Internet. More recently, various aspects of social media have become an increasingly popular for enabling customer feedback, and by extension, they have likewise evolved into a viable marketing channel for vendors. This new marketing channel, sometimes referred to as "social marketing," has proven to not only have a higher customer retention rate than traditional marketing channels, but to also provide higher demand generation "lift."
Traditional methods of measuring the effectiveness of a social media channel include Social Media Analytics (SMA), determining a Net Promoter Score (NPS), and likewise determining a Brand Health Score (BHS). NPS is a customer loyalty metric intended to reduce the complexity of implementation and analysis frequently associated with measures of customer satisfaction with the objective of creating more "Promoters" and fewer "Detractors." As such, a Net Promoter Score is intended to provide a stable measure of business performance that can be compared across business units and even across industries while increasing interpretability of changes in customer satisfaction trends over time. Currently, several approaches are known for defining, calculating and monitoring a Brand Health Score. In general, these approaches typically include the generation of a score card that comprises a mix of leading and lagging indicators of the health of a brand, whether individually or as part of a brand portfolio.
Such scores assist executives in understanding the return on investment (ROI) of their marketing investments, and by extension, the value of long-term versus short-term investments. However, neither of these approaches provides social media channel feedback in real-time, nor do they provide actionable information at a granular level, such as by industry segment, product line, or a topic of discussion. As a result, marketers are unable to proactively react to changes in consumer sentiment in a categorical context, which can adversely affect revenue and profits.

Method and apparatus to calculate real-time customer satisfaction and loyalty metric using social media analytics