A retractable gate comprising a movable arm gate having multiple sections which nest or telescope into each other when parked (e.g. upright), and extends into a full length blocking position as it is deployed. The gate arm sections are deployed by the movement of one of the arms, e.g. the outer one section, relative to the ground or a stationary support member and is joined to the stationary support member by a pivot point or bearing, and is connected to the stationary support or ground by a cable connection (or equivalent) which powers the arm sections into extended or retracted positions by movement of the gate about the pivot bearing. A novel corresponding counterweight system provides selectable balance and torque requirements.

Movable arm gates, especially road gates for railroad crossing protection, are often required to extend over a significant expanse of horizontal surface, and to remove that gate completely to permit free travel over that surface within specified time limits. However, a long gate arm represents a considerable weight and movement inertia, which is further increased by added counter balances. Moreover, the moved gate requires a place to park when not positioned to block access. For vertically moving gates which are parked in an upright (or nearly upright) position, the upward motion is difficult especially in the initial stage of being raised from the horizontal, and significant vertical space above the gate is required. The weight and inertia and vertical space requirements of long arm style gates discourage and ultimately limit the gate arm length. Especially significant for the all gates, long or short, which are parked in the raised position is their vulnerability to wind and other weather related damage.


A nosecone apparatus for hypersonic aircraft, rocket or missiles using a method for the mitigation of the created the shock front of a rocket or aerospace plane flying at hypersonic speeds by using nosecone splines to create both centripetal and isentropic airflows in conjunction with regeneratively cooling the nosecone structure.

This application describes the systems, apparatus, and methods for the reduction of drag in a spacecraft or missiles. The reduction of drag in spacecraft and missiles is desired as atmospheric friction will cause heat that can then cause a nosecone to fail. Clearly ways to reduce nosecone friction would benefit high speed missiles, allowing them to travel at higher speeds, and spacecraft, during the period of atmospheric reentry.
Also described are the details and means to transform a hypersonic stochastic vortex flux Z-plane singularity back into isentropic Y-plane mode by means of micro/planetary splines that reset the hypersonic stochastic vortex flux back into a supersonic isentropic front by means of contra rotating micro or planetary splines.

System, apparatus, and methods for a nosecone and propulsive nozzle


A bias material for magnetic markers is produced by plastic working to provide a strip form, which has a metal structure consisting of the iron-base matrix and a non-magnetic copper group metal phase in an amount of not less than a solubility limit thereof in an equilibrium state at a room temperature. The non-magnetic copper group metal phase is dispersed in the matrix so as to form a microstructural rod pattern. The bias material comprises preferably 3 to 35% wt % of a copper group metal. The magnetic marker is produced by combining the bias material and a magnetostriction element.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bias material for magnetic markers for applying a bias magnetic field to a metal piece (hereafter called a magnetostriction element) which oscillates under the magnetostriction effect, a magnetic marker, and a method of producing a bias material for magnetic markers.
2. Description of Related Art
Some electronic monitoring systems have been proposed, by which magnetic labels attached to commodities are detected as markers for a purpose of preventing theft or watching a transferring flow or kinds of commodities, goods or articles. Among such systems, there is a system in which markers are made from a magnetostriction material.
For example, JP-A-8-60312 (EP702096A1) teaches to use an amorphous magnetostriction material as a marker. Particularly, JP'312 discloses a system according to which a magnetostriction element made of a specific amorphous metal is detected by a pickup coil by way of causing the magnetostriction element to resonate within an alternating magnetic field so as to vary the magnetic field.
WO-96/32518 (USP5628840) and JP-A-8-87237 teach, respectively, a magnetic marker which is a combination of a magnetostriction material and a bias material which exerts a preliminary magnetic field (or a bias magnetic field) on the magnetostriction material. The magnetic marker taught in the publications is preliminarily provided with a bias magnetic field so that the magnetostriction material mechanically resonates under exertion of an alternating magnetic field.
According to such magnetic marker in which the bias material is made of a semi-hard magnetic material by which a magnetostriction element for a marker is exposed to a bias magnetic field, the marker can be inactivated by demagnetizing the bias material without removing it from a commodity or article.
Thus, if markers are inserted into or attached to commodities or articles, they can be distinguished from one another by way of inactivating the magnetic markers being attached to the commodities when paying therefor, which are those properly purchased and those intended to illegally bring out from a shop, the latter commodities carrying active magnetic markers.
In such electronic monitoring systems, a selection of the bias material for applying a bias magnetic field to the magnetostriction material is important as well as a selection of the magnetostriction material for markers.
The bias material is required to have a higher coercive force than the magnetostriction material so as not to be demagnetized by the magnetostriction material, and must be magnetizable and demagnetizable.
As magnetizable and demagnetizable materials, there have been known Fe--Cr--Co semi-hard magnetic materials represented by an Fe--25Cr--10Co alloy (by weight percent), which are used for lead relays and other applications.
Although Fe--Cr--Co alloys have been used also as bias materials, they are expensive because of a large amount of Co, which have coercive force of as high as 7,200 A/m, residual magnetic flux density (Br) of about 1.1 T, and remanence ratio (Br/B8,000), which is a ratio of magnetic flux density at an imparted magnetic field of 8,000 A/m (saturated magnetic flux density (B8,000)) to residual magnetic flux density (Br), is as relatively low as about 0.8.
As mentioned above, the bias material is a material which can be magnetized and demagnetized, and if its coercive force is too high, it is difficult to demagnetize. If the bias material is not fully demagnetized, the electronic monitoring system may be operated erroneously.
Similarly, if the remanence ratio and magnetization steepness are unsatisfactory in the B-H curve, the boundary between magnetized and demagnetized states is unclear also resulting in erroneous operation.
The term "magnetization steepness" (or steep rise and fall magnetization property) used herein is the property of radical or abrupt change in the magnetized state when the bias material is magnetized or demagnetized, and the B-H curve of materials which is significant or excellent in magnetization steepness have a generally rectangular form.
It is determined as follows whether or not the magnetization steepness is significant or excellent.
In general, it has been believed that a semi-hard magnetic material reaches a saturated magnetic flux density when a magnetic field of five times the coercive force of the material is applied. This magnetic flux density is herein called B(5Hc). Further, a magnetic flux density when a magnetic field of 1.5 times the coercive force of the material is applied is called B(1.5Hc), and when the ratio of B(1.5Hc)/B(5Hc) exceeds 0.8, the material is herein determined to have excellent magnetization steepness.
While the residual magnetic flux density is preferably as high as possible for applying a bias magnetic field to the magnetostriction element, that of Fe--Cr--Co alloys is much lower than 2.1T of residual magnetic flux density of pure iron.
The magnitude of the bias magnetic field applied to the magnetostriction element is in proportion to the residual magnetic flux density and the cross-sectional area of the bias material. Also, if the residual magnetic flux density is low, the cross-sectional area of the bias material must be increased, which is not suitable for downsizing the magnetic markers.

Bias material, magnetic marker and method of producing the bias material


A laundry treating system includes a laundry treating appliance having a first basket for receiving a first laundry load and a first clothes mover disposed in the first basket. The laundry treating system is user configurable between first, second, and third configurations. A kit for customizing a laundry treating appliance can include a second clothes mover and a second basket configured to removably couple with the laundry treating appliance.

Laundry treating appliances, such as clothes washers, refreshers, and non-aqueous systems, can have a configuration based on a rotating laundry basket that defines a treating chamber in which laundry items are placed for treating. The laundry treating appliance can have a controller that implements a number of pre-programmed cycles of operation having one or more operating parameters. The controller can control a motor to rotate the laundry basket according to one of the pre-programmed cycles of operation. The controller can also control a clothes mover within the laundry basket to impart mechanical energy to laundry items according to a selected cycle of operation.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Laundry treating system and kit for use with a laundry treating appliance


A leash handle includes a grip, a mounting post, and a mid-section provided with an integrated storage compartment. The grip is configured for convenient gripping in one hand by a user. The mounting post is configured for connection to the looped end of a strap leash. A manually openable door or wall element provides access to the storage compartment.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a handle configured for connection to a leash for walking a pet such as a dog or cat.
More particularly, the invention relates to a handle of the above-described type with an integrated storage compartment for storing articles while walking the pet.
2. Background Art
One common leash includes an elongated flexible strap with a connector (e.g., a hook or buckle) at one end for connection to apparatus (e.g., a collar or harness) secured to a pet, and a loop at the other end for gripping by the user while walking the pet. A second common leash includes a cord that is spring-coiled into a rigid plastic housing, with the free end of the cord having a connector for connection to the collar or harness on the pet. One advantage of this second type of retractable leash is that the housing is typically provided with a formed handle or grip section that is preferred by some people as compared with gripping the flexible looped end of the strap leash.
Prior arrangements provide add-on or connected article storage capability for the strap type leash, such as in Sebastian, U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,192; Conboy, U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,500; Carey, U.S. Pat. No. 6,019,067; and Saunders, U.S. Pat. No. D-492,454. Arrangements, such as in Edwards et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,717, provide add-on or connected storage capability for the retractable leash. Edwards et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,695 includes a refuse bag dispenser integrated in the rigid handle of a retractable leash. However, no prior arrangement includes a storage compartment that is integrated into a rigid handle configured for connection to a leash by a user. Additionally, no prior leash arrangement includes a rigid handle with an integrated compartment that is configured for general purpose storage of articles while walking a pet.

Leash handle with an integrated compartment


Described is a quiet hand-held hair dryer with configuration and component combinations for making the hair dryer exceptionally quiet and efficient. The hair dryer includes a housing having a lower handle portion and an upper body portion separated by an air-directing wall. A large impeller moves air downward from a large top air inlet and passes it outward through a side air outlet in a hair drying stream. An electric motor is mounted in the handle housing adjacent its bottom and is connected in driving relation with the impeller by a long vertical shaft. The motor is mounted in a rubber casing permitting cooling air flow and minimizing vibration to the housing; and the upper end of the shaft is stabilized by a bearing mounted in a rubber housing for the same purpose. The configuration of the described hair dryer permits high air flow with relatively low motor speeds.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to providing a quiet hand-held hair dryer. More particularly, this invention concerns hair dryer configuration and component combinations for making the hair dryer exceptionally quiet and efficient.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typically, a portable (hand-held) electric hair dryer has an elongated housing of insulating material which is provided with a handle and has an air-admitting inlet and an air-discharging outlet. A rotary impeller which is driven by an electric motor draws air into the housing by way of the air-admitting inlet and induces a flow of air toward the air-discharging outlet whereby the air stream passes along one or more electric heating elements. Typically, such portable hair dryers emit noise which is both loud and experienced as unpleasant. Some of the reasons for this noise are the following:
1) The typical internal configuration places the electric motor between the impeller and air-discharging outlet. This configuration limits the space available for air passage, necessitating a velocity of air flow at the impeller which is much faster than that experienced at the air-discharging outlet. In order to achieve this faster airflow, the motor must operate at very high revolutions per minute (18,000-20,000). At this high speed, the electric motors emit a sound which is experienced by users as being both loud and irritating.
2) The electric motor is typically pressed into a casing which is integral to the housing and secured with machine screws. As a result, the housing amplifies the vibrations of the motor by converting mechanical energy of the motor to sound energy.
3) The noise emitted by electric motors is typically left undampened, leaving the motor noise an unobstructed passage to the user's ear.
4) The air-admitting inlet, through which much of the high frequency sound escapes, is usually positioned in the back of the hair dryer--which points the high frequency noise emission at salon users, or it is on the side of a hair dryer--which faces the high frequency emission at both salon and home users.
5) The tip speed of the impeller is kept slower than optimal for a given motor speed due to impeller sizes typically measuring only two and a quarter inches across their diameter. Tip speed is also diminished in relation to motor speed by impeller blade designs which equalize the rate of airflow between the inside of an impeller blade and the outside of an impeller blade.
A hair blower design which addresses one or more of the above issues would reduce the noise output of a hand-held portable hair dryer. A hair dryer which successfully addresses all of these issues would substantially reduce the noise output. Inasmuch as hair dryers are appliances in daily use, which can only survive in the marketplace if they can be manufactured at attractive prices in large quantities utilizing the latest mass-production techniques, design improvements must be combined with the aim of achieving the desired improvements with minimal to no additional manufacturing costs. Typically, portable hair dryer patents which have addressed noise output have neglected the above design issues.

Hand-held hair dryer with vibration and noise control


An AV switching method capable of auto-configuring a plurality of AV input signals and associated apparatus is provided. An audio-video detector capable of auto-configuring the AV input signals includes an audio-video detecting module, an impedance adjustment module, and an audio-video switching module. The audio-video detecting module receives and detects the AV input signals to generate an AV detecting result. The impedance adjustment module adjusts matching impedance for the AV input signals according to the AV detecting result. The audio-video switching module switches the AV input signals to output AV output signals according to the AV detecting result.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of auto-switching audio-video signals and an associated apparatus, and more particularly, to a method of auto-switching audio-video signals capable of auto-configuring audio-video signals and associated apparatus.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With speedy advancements in multimedia technology, miscellaneous audio-video apparatuses are used for providing data transmission and sense enjoyment of images and voices. However, as the audio-video technology changes with each passing day, image signals and voice signals with various signal standards come with the tide of fashion. Digital televisions usually support various I/O interfaces, for example, video signals include a composite video broadcast signal (CVBS), an S video signal, a component video signal (Y, Pb, or Pr), etc.
In the market nowadays, three kinds of analog video signals can be found by consumers, which are the composite video broadcast signal, the S video signal, and the component video signal. The composite video broadcast signal transmits its luminance signal mixed up with its chrominance signal together to be compatible to both gray-scale and color television systems in order to save bandwidths.
The S terminal transmits the luminance signal (Y) and the chrominance signal (C) separately. Please note that the component video signals in different television system use different symbol representatives. For example, the chrominance signals of an NTSC system are expressed by I signal and Q signal, and the chrominance signals of PAL system are expressed by U signal and V signal. The component video signals include Y, Cb, and Cr (or Y, Pb, and Pr), where Y represents the luminance signal and Cb and Cr represent the chrominance signal.
Therefore, most multimedia devices and monitors will support the A/V terminals, the S terminal, and the component video signal terminals to satisfy the user's demands. An audio-video connection port may include three A/V terminals and three chrominance terminals. Some monitors are equipped with several audio-video connection ports and connect to several video players. Hence, many connectors having the same appearance are installed adjacently. Wrong connection happens often, especially when the RCA connectors of the multimedia devices, such as televisions, are not easily accessible by the user due to facing to a wall. So, apparatuses cannot operate or display normally.

Method of auto-configuring audio-video signals and associated apparatus


A microscope having a moveable object holder forming a part of a stage assembly. The stage assembly includes at least one x-y control, for moving the stage assembly or a portion thereof, e.g. the object holder, in a horizontal x direction, which x direction is parallel to the shoulders of an operating microscopist sitting square to the microscope, and for moving the stage assembly or portion thereof in a horizontal y direction perpendicular to the x direction. The microscope has dual controls for moving the stage assembly or a portion thereof in a z direction perpendicular to the x-y directions and parallel to an optical path into an objective lens of the microscope, wherein the x-y control and z controls are located so as to permit single hand operation of both controls with minimal hand movement or so as to permit comfortable ergonomic dual hand operation while permitting the shoulders of an operating microscopist to remain aligned parallel to the x direction.

As is well known, a microscope is an optical instrument used to view, examine and study very small objects. There are many different types of microscopes, each best suited to particular applications. These include compound microscopes, stereomicroscopes, confocal microscopes, inverted microscopes, and laser microscopes, to name but a few.
The present invention relates generally to compound microscopes and to those microscopes that are equipped with a sample stage capable of being controlled by a stage drive mechanism.
Microscopes have long used stages for the positioning of samples within the optical path. Such stages usually have a flat planar surface upon which an object or object holder rests. Such objects are specimens or samples for microscopic examination. An object, i.e. a specimen or sample, can be manipulated by moving the stage, or a portion thereof, in an x, y and z axes
Often, the focusing mechanism of a microscope functions by adjusting the stage height in the z axis, which is usually in line with or parallel to a light path from a light path into an objective lens of a microscope. By changing the sample height, the microscopist can focus upon the object and can focus and observe different depths within the z-axis of the sample. The focusing mechanism usually involves at least one rack and a matching pinion construction for adjusting the height of, i.e. raising and lowering, the stage. The rack is usually attached to the stage and the pinion is directly or indirectly rotatably attached to the frame so that rotation of the pinion raises and lowers the stage along the rack. At least one focusing knob is in turn secured to the pinion so that rotation of the focusing knob in turn rotates the pinion. In better microscopes, focusing knobs are attached on both the left and right of the microscope to permit easy left and right hand operation of a focusing knob.
The x and y axes are generally perpendicular to the z axis and to each other. Conventionally, the x axis is considered to be left and right relative to an operating microscopist during normal operation and the y axis is considered to be forward and backward relative to the operating microscopist during normal operation. The z axis is usually up and down relative to the earth during normal; operation. It is to be understood that the directions described above are relative directions to each other and when the microscope is not in operation may not maintain the above described relationship to a microscopist or the earth.
In order to adjust the x or the y position of the object, the user must have available a control mechanism capable of performing this movement. Typically such mechanisms are simple manual slides or involve pinion and rack or cable and pulley mechanisms or combinations thereof.
Due to the variety of microscopists using these instruments, both left & right-handed stages are desirable. The location of the stage control mechanism is preferably on the side of the stage matching the user's predominant hand of use. Further complicating the problem, a laboratory may have a left-handed and a right-handed user sharing a single microscope.
A further very significant problem with existing microscopes is that control mechanisms, for adjusting x-y position of an object, by moving the stage or portions thereof, i.e. x-y control, have been placed inconveniently causing difficult operation. Such known x-y control mechanisms have, for example, been placed at the rear of the stage or behind a focusing knob and have thus not been conveniently placed for single hand operation of both the x-y control and focusing knob with minimal, e.g. less than a five centimeter, hand movement. Further, such known x-y controls have not even been conveniently placed for dual hand operation of both the x-y control and focusing knob without requiring inconvenient postural positions by the microscopist. Such x-y controls have thus been ergonomically unsatisfactory.

Erogonomically arranged object adjustment controls


In a light irradiation device in which a light emitting element is attached to a printed circuit board, the heat radiation properties are enhanced, and improvement of the light emitting efficiency and reduction of the size and weight are realized. A Cu pattern covered with Ni is formed on a metal substrate 11. Light emitting elements 11 are mounted on the pattern in the form of a series circuit. Metal substrates in each of which the series connection is formed are connected to one another in parallel. Since Ni has excellent corrosion resistance and a high reflection efficiency, the surfaces of the substrates themselves can be used as reflective plates. A lens 37 is formed for each of the light emitting elements, whereby the emission efficiency can be further improved.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hybrid integrated circuit device, and more particularly to a light irradiation device in which a plurality of light emitting elements are mounted.
2. Description of the Related Art
When a plant such as a flower or a vegetable is to be irradiated with a large amount of light, a device such as an electric lamp is usually used. In some cases, in order to reduce the size and weight of the device and the power consumption, a device in which light emitting elements 2 are mounted on a printed circuit board 1 as shown in FIG. 15 is used.
As the light emitting elements, light emitting diodes which are configured by semiconductor materials are mainly used. Alternatively, semiconductor lasers or the like may be used.
In each of the light emitting diode chips 2, two leads 3 and 4 are used. The rear face (anode or cathode) of the light emitting diode chip 2 is fixed to the lead 3 by soldering or the like. The other lead 4 is electrically connected via a thin metal wire 6 to an electrode (cathode or anode) on the surface of the chip. A transparent resin sealing member 7 which will serve as a lens is formed to seal the leads 3 and 4, a bare diode 5, and the thin metal wire 6.
On the other hand, electrodes 8 and 9 for supplying a power to the light emitting diode 2 are disposed on the printed circuit board 1. The leads are inserted into through holes opened in the electrodes. The light emitting diode 2 is mounted on the board via solder or the like.
A light irradiation device using such light emitting diodes is described in, for example, JP-A-9-252651.
As described above, the light emitting element 2 is configured by a package into which the resin sealing member 7, the leads 3 and 4, and the like are incorporated. When a large number of light emitting elements are mounted, therefore, there arise problems such as that the circuit board 1 is large in size and weight. Since the heat radiation properties of the circuit board itself are inferior, the circuit board has a problem in that the temperature of the whole device is excessively raised. Consequently, the temperatures of semiconductor chips themselves which constitute the light emitting elements are raised, thereby producing a problem in that the driving ability is lowered.
In the light emitting diode 2, light is emitted also from side and rear faces, and hence light directed toward the circuit board 1 exists. Since the circuit board 1 is configured by a printed circuit board, there is another problem in that irradiation of a high efficiency cannot be realized.
The invention has been conducted in view of the above-discussed problems, and the present invention intends to obtain a light irradiating apparatus which can obtain an efficient light.
The present invention solves the problems by disposition of first flow-stopping means which is formed to substantially surround a light emitting element, and which is made of a brazing material, and a light transmitting resin which is protrudingly formed in a region surrounded by the first flow-stopping means.
The light transmitting resin before curing is held to a protruding shape by the flow-stopping means, and then cured. Therefore, the resin exhibits also a lens function. Since the flow-stopping means is configured by a brazing material, light emitted from the light emitting element can be efficiently upward reflected by using the glossiness of the surface of the brazing material and the protruding shape of the brazing material. As a result, irradiation of a high efficiency can be realized.
A brazing material is electrically conductive. When a brazing material is formed so as to be continuous over the whole periphery, therefore, a short circuit occurs. This problem is solved by disposing second flow-stopping means which is made of an insulating material, in a portion of the brazing material, the portion overlapping with the first electrode and/or the second electrode.
The problems are solved by a configuration in which first and second electrodes made of Cu are employed, first flow-stopping means which is formed around a light emitting element, and a protruding light transmitting resin are disposed,
a metal film covers the first electrode and/or said second electrode, the metal film being inferior in wettability with respect to a brazing material and superior in light reflection than the Cu,
a portion of the metal film corresponding to the first electrode and/or said second electrode and in a region where the first flow-stopping means is disposed is removed away, and a brazing material is formed in the region.
With respect to solder, for example, Ni is inferior in wettability than Cu. Furthermore, Ni maintains glossiness of the surface for a long term. Solder also maintains glossiness of the surface for a long term. These properties are used in the invention. Specifically, a Cu film is formed as a lower layer, an Ni film is formed as an upper layer, and a part of the Ni film is removed away to form a Cu exposed region. When solder is formed in the exposed region, the resulting solder upward protrudes. The protruding solder surface forms a reflective plate to efficiently upward reflect light which cannot be upward reflected in the conventional art.
As seen from the above description, when a substrate mainly made of Al is employed, particularly, it is possible to realize a hybrid integrated circuit device which can attain excellent heat radiation properties, light weight, and high workability, and which has a high reflection efficiency.
Each aspect if the device described below is separately illustrative of the various embodiments of the invention and is not intended to be restrictive of the broad invention.
Namely, a first aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device comprising:
first and second electrodes formed on a substrate;
a light emitting element in which a rear face of a chip is electrically fixed to said first electrode;
connecting means for electrically connecting said second electrode to an electrode which is on a surface of said light emitting element;
first flow-stopping means which is formed to substantially surround said light emitting element, and which is made of a brazing material; and
a which is protrudingly formed in a region surrounded by said first flow-stopping means.
A second aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein said flow-stopping means is a ring made of an insulating resin.
A third aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein the flow-stopping means comprises a first flow-stopping means made of a brazing material and a second flow-stopping means made of an insulating material is disposed in a portion of said brazing material, said portion overlapping with said first electrode and/or said second electrode.
A fourth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the third aspect, wherein the second flow-stopping means is made of epoxy resin, and the light transmitting resin is made of silicone resin.
A fifth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein the first and second electrodes are made of reflective material.
A sixth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein the first and second electrodes are made of nickel.
A seventh aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, further comprising a solder resist layer formed so as to cover the first and second electrodes.
An eighth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein said substrate is made of a metal substrate whose surface is insulative processed.
A ninth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein the device comprises:
a wiring portion consisting of a first wiring of reflective conductive film so as to cover an whole surface of a substrate; and a second wiring facing to the first wiring through a slit;
a light emitting element mounting region formed on a part of the wiring portion comprising the first wiring and the second wiring connected with the first and second electrodes respectively; and
a light emitting element mounted on the first and second electrode so as to introduce a light emitted by the light emitting elements into a front direction effectively.
A tenth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein said hybrid integrated circuit device comprises:
first and second electrodes which are insulatedly formed on a hybrid integrated circuit substrate, and which are made of Cu;
a light emitting element in which a rear face of a chip is electrically fixed to said first electrode;
connecting means for electrically connecting said second electrode to an electrode which is on a surface of said light emitting element;
first flow-stopping means which is formed around said light emitting element; and
a light transmitting resin which is protrudingly formed in a region surrounded by said first flow-stopping means,
a metal film covers said first electrode and/or said second electrode, said metal film being inferior in wettability with respect to a brazing material and superior in light reflection than the Cu,
a portion of said metal film corresponding to said first electrode and/or said second electrode and in a region where said first flow-stopping means is disposed is removed away, and a brazing material is formed in said region.
An eleventh aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the third aspect, wherein said first electrode is formed in an annular shape to substantially surround said second electrode, and said brazing material is formed on said first electrode in a substantially annular shape.
A twelfth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the third aspect, wherein said first electrode is formed in an annular shape to substantially surround said second electrode, and said region where said brazing material is formed is formed in a substantially island-like shape in said first electrode.
A thirteenth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the third aspect, wherein said metal film is made of Ni.
A fourteenth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein a plurality of said light emitting elements are connected in series on said hybrid integrated circuit substrate.
A fifteenth aspect of the device is a hybrid integrated circuit device according to the first aspect, wherein the light transmitting resin has a two stage structure so as to introduce a light emitted by the light emitting elements into a front direction effectively.

Abstract: Flow-stopping means 36 made of a brazing material is formed around each of the light emitting diodes 10. Also the surface of the brazing material is used as a reflecting surface.


A horseshoe assembly and a method for mounting the horseshoe assembly onto a hoof is disclosed. The horseshoe assembly includes a core and a sole, wherein the sole overlays or encapsulates the core, and the core being mounted directly beneath a surface of a horse hoof. The method including: securing a cover plate over the horse hoof, the cover plate includes a plurality of anchor points distributed across the cover plate; disposing the horseshoe assembly beneath the horse hoof with the core directly contacting the bottom surface of the horse hoof; and utilizing one or more tying elements, securing the horseshoe assembly to the bottom surface of the horse hoof with a binding force which presses one or both of the core and the sole against the bottom surface of the horse hoof.

Horseshoes serve as protective shoes to protect horse hoofs from wearing out over time caused by impacts and abrasions on terrain surfaces. Horseshoes may be designed to improve speed performance of a racing horse or to improve traction on terrains or road surfaces, or simply to reduce wear and tear on a hoof capsule (110), which is a keratinous protein protective layer of tissue, beneath the horse hoof (similar to human finger nail).
As a result, different horseshoe designs are made available to provide better performance on certain competitive events such as horse racing, sport horses, show horses, English and Western riding disciplines, horse harness activities, or simply the horseshoes are to provide better comfort to the horse hoofs while engaging rider's leisurely horse activities or any horse usage.
FIG. 1A illustrates a side view (100A) of a current method of mounting a horseshoe onto a horse hoof (102). More specifically, FIG. 1 depicts a side view of a lower portion of a horse leg, which a hair line (104) demarcates a horse hoof (102) from a pastern column (106). A front portion of the horse hoof (102) is known as a toe (103), where a hind portion of the horse hoof (102) is known as a heel (108). There exists a small cavity or pocket area (shown as dotted lines with details in FIG. 1B) which extends from a rearmost end of the heel (108) towards a center of the horse hoof (102). The small cavity includes a frog area (110b) (because it shapes like a frog when viewed from the bottom) and a buttress area (110a). As seen in FIG. 1A, the current practice of mounting a horseshoe (150) involves simply nailing (154) the horseshoe (150) onto the hoof capsule (110) at the bottom surface (107) of the horse hoof (102).
FIG. 1B illustrates a bottom view (100B) of a current practice method in mounting a horseshoe beneath a horse hoof as shown in FIG. 1A. Referring to FIG. 1B, there is shown a U shaped horseshoe (150) shaped and contoured to fit beneath the horse hoof. The horseshoe (150) typically includes a groove or a slot (152) or punched holes which are aligned along each side to enable direct nailing of nails (154a-154h) onto the hoof capsule (110) in order to secure the horseshoe (150) beneath the horse hoof (102).
FIG. 1B also depicts the frog area (110b) and the buttress area (110b) (shaded portion), which is a small cavity or pocket area near a heel (108) of the horse hoof. The frog area (110b) is made up of mostly soft tissues, which extends towards a center of the horse hoof (102) and the frog area (110b) terminates at the apex (110c).
The inventor of the pending disclosure has contributed to some studies (see the above cited references) to support an observation that horses which roam in the wild without horseshoes tend to have more healthy hooves than horses having rigid horseshoes (150) nailed under their hooves (102). For example, one of the indications of the health of the horse hoof (102) may be observed by inspecting how uniform is a horse hoof hairline (104) and by inspecting the wearing of soft tissues in the frog area (110b) under the horse hoof (102). A subject of finding an optimal balance position to mount a horseshoe under the hoof to improve horse standing posture which mitigates fatigue on the hoofs has been discussed.
The inventor has discovered that the existing horseshoe designs and the current practice in horseshoe mounting (i.e., nailing) cause confinement or restriction to the natural movement of the horse hoof (102) due to natural loading (i.e., see FIG. 1A, a downward compressive force (170) on the horse hoof or upon ground impact from standing, trotting or running). Such confinement to natural horse hoof movement by the horseshoe (150) tends to restrict blood flows to the horse hoof (102). Over an extended period of time, confinements to the horse hoof movements or blood flow restriction may accelerate fatigue and contribute to an unhealthy hoof because of a tourniquet binding effect causing rigidity of the toe regions as they relate to the sides of the hoof capsule.
In addition, the current practice (see FIGS. 1A, 1B) of horseshoe mounting by nailing (154) does not provide flexibility and ease in mounting and dismounting a horseshoe (150). It may be desirable to mount a suitable type of horseshoe for a specific riding purpose based on terrain types (paved or unpaved, rocky or smooth), distance, activities to perform (e.g., racing, jumping, pulling) and based on the physical condition of the horse.
The efforts of mounting (nailing) and dismounting (un-nailing) horseshoes are nevertheless, quite tedious, time consuming and can be costly since it involves training and knowledge to properly perform such tasks. In addition, improper positioning of a horseshoe (150) at an optimal distance from the apex (110c) without considering proper load balance distributed on the horse leg may cause premature injury to a horse hoof. Moreover, excessive nailing and un-nailing of a horseshoe (150) may quickly wear out the hoof capsule (110) (i.e., the keratinous protein layer of tissue similar to human finger nail) which would require time to grow back.

Horseshoe assembly and a method of mounting the same onto a horse hoof


The present invention pertains generally to the field of cryo balloon therapy and the use of cryo balloon therapy catheters to generate cold-induced lesions. The present invention includes a cryo balloon therapy apparatus, comprising a catheter having a proximal and a distal end, a cooling member disposed at the distal end of the catheter, a pull cord coupled to the cooling member, and a sheath that couples the pull cord and the catheter. A method for causing cold-induced necrosis is also disclosed.

A number of medical conditions may be treated using ablative techniques or devices. Ablative techniques, generally, result in the killing of abnormal tissue at an area of interest. Killing the abnormal tissue may result in an efficacious treatment for a medical condition. For example, atrial fibrillation may be the result of abnormal electrical activity in the left atrium and the pulmonary vein, and may be treatable by ablation of the abnormal tissue within the left atrium and/or the pulmonary vein.
Atrial fibrillation is a serious medical condition that is the result of abnormal electrical activity within the heart. This abnormal activity may occur at regions of the heart including the sino-atrial (SA) node, the atrioventricular (AV) node, the bundle of His, or within other areas of cardiac tissue. Moreover, atrial fibrillation may be caused by abnormal activity within a isolated focal center within the heart. It is believed that these foci can originate within the pulmonary vein, particularly the superior pulmonary veins.
Minimally invasive techniques have been described that use ablation catheters to target the pulmonary vein with the hope of ablating foci having abnormal electrical activity. The techniques typically are characterized by application of energy to cause lesions within the foci or other areas possessing abnormal electrical activity.
Some ablation devices utilize radio frequency (RF) energy for ablation, including the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,024,740 to Lesh et al. The RF energy devices may be used to ablate an area of interest with heat. The use of RF energy for ablation may, however, lead to untoward healing responses such as collagen build up at the area of interest after treatment. Moreover, RF ablation of within an atrium may decrease atrial output. A need, therefore, exists for ablative devices and methods that include improved healing responses.
An alternative treatment strategy has been developed that uses cooling energy for ablation. This method, termed cryoplasty or cryo balloon therapy, may be used to cool the lesion to freeze a portion of the affected area. For example, cryo balloon therapy may be used to freeze a lesion within a blood vessel that might otherwise lead to restenosis or recoil.
In addition to its potential utility in preventing and slowing restenosis and addressing recoil, cryo balloon therapy may be used for ablation techniques. For example, cryo balloon therapy may be efficacious in varicose vein treatment of incompetent valves, valvular disease, mitral valve regurgitation therapy, atrial fibrillation, gastric reflux disease, gastro esophageal reflux disease, GURD, esophageal disease, cancer treatment including stomach or uterine cancer, etc.
Uses of cryo balloon therapy include cold-induced killing of cells within the body. When the target area is located within the heart or pulmonary vasculature, it may be important to precisely control the cryo balloon therapy catheter to kill only the desired tissue. Moreover, the irregular shapes of blood vessels and heart chambers may make it difficult to steer a cryo balloon therapy catheter to a precise location. A need, therefore, exists for a cryo balloon therapy catheter with a desirable level of control.


Methods and systems are provided for operating an engine fuel system including fuels of different fuel types. A first fuel type is delivered for port injection upon circulation through a high pressure pump when direct injection of a fuel is not requested to cool and/or lubricate the high pressure pump.

Various fuel systems may be used to deliver a desired amount of fuel to an engine for combustion. One type of fuel system includes a port fuel injector and a direct injector for each engine cylinder. The port injectors may be operated during engine starting to improve fuel vaporization and reduce engine emissions. The direct injectors may be operated during higher load conditions to improve engine performance. In addition, both port injectors and direct injectors may be operated under some conditions to leverage advantages of both types of fuel delivery.
Direct injection fuel systems may include a high pressure fuel pump upstream of a fuel rail to raise a pressure of the fuel delivered to the engine cylinders through the direct injectors. However, when the high pressure fuel pump is turned off, such as when no direct injection of fuel is requested, pump durability may be affected. Specifically, the lubrication and cooling of the pump may be reduced while the high pressure pump is not operated, thereby leading to pump degradation.
Various approaches have been developed to reduce high pressure pump degradation. In one approach, as shown by Faix et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,230,688, a constant fuel lubrication flow quantity is branched off from the delivery flow of a low pressure pump coupled to a fuel tank, and delivered to a high pressure pump.
However, the inventors herein have identified a potential issue with such an approach. As one example, when the fuel tank becomes empty or the fuel level in the fuel tank falls below a threshold, the constant lubrication flow may not be available. Consequently, the high pressure pump may degrade. In particular, in dual fuel systems where the fuel tank coupled to the direct injection system is smaller than the fuel tank coupled to the port injection system, the fuel tank may become empty more often, leading to frequent disabling of the high pressure pump. As such, this may reduce the reliability of the high pressure pump.
Thus, in one example, the above issue may be at least partly addressed by a method of operating an engine fuel system. In one embodiment, the method comprises, supplying a first type of fuel solely from a first fuel tank to a second fuel pump and to a group of port fuel injectors via a first fuel pump, an output of the second fuel pump in communication with a group of direct injectors, and supplying the first type of fuel from an outlet of the second fuel pump to the group of port fuel injectors.
In one example, an engine may include a dual fuel system with a first fuel tank storing a first fuel type (such as, gasoline) and a second fuel tank storing a second fuel type (such as an alcohol blend like E85). A first group of port injectors in communication with a group of cylinders of the engine may be configured to port inject fuel into the group of cylinders. A second group of direct injectors also in communication with the group of cylinders may be configured to direct inject fuel into the group of cylinder. A first low pressure pump, in communication with the first fuel tank, may be operated to deliver the first fuel type along a first fuel passage to a first common rail of the first group of port injectors. Similarly, a second low pressure pump, in communication with the second fuel tank, may be operated for delivering the second fuel type along a second fuel passage to a second common rail of the second group of direct injectors. In one example, the low pressure fuel pumps may be electrically-driven.
The fuel system may also include a high pressure fuel pump, the output of the high pressure pump communicating with the first and second group of injectors, may be provided along the second fuel passage. In one example, the high pressure fuel pump may be mechanically driven. The high pressure fuel pump may communicate with the second group of direct injectors via the second common rail, and may further communicate with the first group of port injectors via a solenoid valve and the first common rail. During selected engine operating conditions, such as when direct injection of a fuel (first or second fuel type) is requested, the high pressure pump may be operated in addition to the low pressure pump corresponding to the fuel type so as to raise a pressure of the fuel delivered to the second common rail and through the direct injectors, thereby delivering a high pressure direct injected fuel into the group of cylinders.
The fuel system may further include a first bypass passage coupling the first fuel passage to the second fuel passage upstream of the high pressure pump, and a second bypass passage coupling the first fuel passage to the second fuel passage downstream of the high pressure pump. The second bypass passage may include a solenoid valve, such as an electronically controlled solenoid valve, coupling the first fuel passage to the second fuel passage, downstream of the high pressure pump, when the valve is opened. Thus, when opened, the output of the high pressure pump can communicate with the first group of port injectors via the solenoid valve. In comparison, when closed, the high pressure pump can communicate with the second group of direct injectors.
Based on engine operating conditions, operation of one or more of the low pressure pumps coupled to the first and second fuel tanks, as well as operation of the high pressure pump may be adjusted, while also adjusting the opening of the solenoid valve, to thereby provide fuel to the group of cylinders via the first and/or second group of injectors while enabling sufficient cooling and/or lubrication of the high pressure pump.
For example, based on engine operating conditions, as well as an amount of fuel available in each of the first and second fuel tanks, a first amount of the first fuel type may be port injected into the cylinders. Accordingly, the first low pressure pump may be operated to supply the first fuel to the group of port injectors via the first fuel pump only. In another example, based on operating conditions, a second amount of the second fuel type may be direct injected into the cylinders. Accordingly, the second low pressure pump may be operated to supply the second fuel to the high pressure pump, and the high pressure pump may be operated to raise the pressure of the received second fuel. The higher pressure fuel may then be supplied from an outlet of the high pressure pump to the second group of direct injectors. As such, when direct injection is enabled, the flow of fuel through the high pressure pump enables sufficient cooling and lubrication of the high pressure pump.
During selected engine operating conditions, such as when no direct injection of fuel is requested but cooling and/or lubrication of the high pressure pump is required (such as due to the pump temperature exceeding a threshold temperature and/or a duration of pump operation exceeding a threshold duration), fuel may be port injected into the group of cylinders via the high pressure pump. Specifically, the first low pressure pump may be operated to supply solely the first fuel type from the first fuel tank to the high pressure pump, and the high pressure pump may be operated to supply solely the first fuel type from an outlet of the high pressure pump to a first group of port injectors via the (open) solenoid valve. An output of the high pressure pump may be coordinated with the output of the first low pressure pump to provide a desired fuel rail pressure at the first common rail of the first group of injectors, and to adjust the amount of fluid circulated through the high pressure pump. At the same time, the second low pressure fuel pump and the second group of direct injectors may be deactivated. In this way, by supplying at least some of the first fuel type to the first group of injectors via the high pressure pump, the high pressure pump may be maintained lubricated and cooled even when no direct injection is requested, thereby reducing high pressure pump degradation.
In another example, when direct injection of the second fuel type is requested, but the level of second fuel in the second fuel tank is below a threshold, the first fuel type may be supplied to the group of direct injectors via the high pressure pump to compensate for the second fuel as well to reduce degradation of the high pressure pump due to fuel insufficiency. Specifically, if the fuel level in the second fuel tank is below the threshold, and high pressure pump cooling and/or lubrication is required, then the first low pressure pump may be operated to supply solely the first fuel type from the first fuel tank to the high pressure pump, and the high pressure pump may be operated to supply solely the first fuel type from the high pressure pump to the group of direct injectors. Herein, the solenoid valve may remain closed. The controller may determine an amount of first fuel to be direct injected that compensate for the amount of second fuel that was to be direct injected and further to account for high pressure pump cooling and lubrication. Additionally, in case of a sudden surge in cylinder fuel demand, such as during cylinder enrichment, the solenoid valve may be opened and at least some of the first fuel may also be delivered from the high pressure pump to the first group of port injectors via the solenoid valve so the direct injection of the first fuel is supplemented with the port injection of the first fuel. In this way, by flowing fuel of the first fuel type through the high pressure pump when an insufficient amount of second fuel is available, lubrication and cooling of the high pressure pump is enabled.
In this way, by circulating at least some fuel from a first fuel tank through the high pressure pump when no direct injection is required, and/or when no fuel from the second tank (coupled to the direct injector) is available, a high pressure pump may be maintained lubricated and cooled, thereby reducing high pressure pump degradation. Furthermore, by reducing the need to disable the high pressure pump due to insufficient availability of second fuel and/or no need for direct injection, high pressure pump reliability may be improved.


According to the embodiment of the invention, a communication apparatus including: a first communication module radio communicating based on a first radio access technology; a second communication module radio communicating based on a second radio access technology; a first information storing module storing radio access technology information indicating at least one of the first and second radio access technologies to be used in a radio communication of the communication apparatus; a chip storing module configured to store an information chip that stores company information with respect to a company providing a communication service; a search module configured to read out the company information from the information chip to perform a radio wave search according to one of the first and second radio access technologies based on the company information; and a setting module configured to set the radio access technology information in the first information storing module based on the result of the radio wave searching

1. Field
The present invention relates to a communication apparatus such as a cell phone which car perform kinds of communication corresponding to different radio access technologies.
2. Description of the Related Art
UMTS (universal module telecommunications system), GRM (global system for mobile communications), etc. are employed as the above-mentioned radio access technologies (RATs) Among these technologies, UMTS is employed in Japan and known as WCDMA (wideband code division multiple access).
A cell phones (refer to JP-A-2006-217268) capable of receiving an overseas roaming service are equipped with a communication section which can accommodate both of the above-mentioned UMTS and GSM, and is configured in such a manner that the user himself or herself sets, through a setting picture of the cell phone, information of radio access technology employed by a communication company that operates a network in each country. Such setting is called RAT setting.
Such a cell phone capable of receiving an overseas roaming service is associated with a problem that if the user goes to a country where only GSM is supported with the RAT setting made to an UMTS only mode, no communication can be performed because of improper setting though the cell phone has a GSM communication function. To avoid this problem, an UMTS/GSM dual mode is provided.
If the RAT setting is made to the dual mode, a communication can be performed by a cell phone having the above function in either of a case that the user goes to a country where only UMTS is supported and a case that the user goes to a country where only GSM is supported. However, if the RAT setting is made to the dual mode, a radio wave search which accommodates both radio access technologies (UMTS and GSM) is performed every time. This results in a problem that the radio wave search time is long and the power consumption is increased.

Fujitsu Toshiba Mobile Communications Limited


A power converter includes a multiple-winding transformer. The multiple-winding transformer provides an electromagnetic link between an input side and an output side of the power converter. An inductor is arranged on at least one of the input side and the output side of the power converter in parallel with the multiple-winding transformer. At least one first capacitor is arranged on the input side of the power converter in parallel with the multiple-winding transformer and the inductor. At least one second capacitor is arranged on the output side of the power converter in parallel with the multiple-winding transformer. The inductor, the at least one first capacitor, and the at least one second capacitor define a parallel resonance tank. A first plurality of switching devices is arranged on the input side. A second plurality of switching devices is arranged on the output side.

This section provides background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the disclosure. It should be understood that the statements in this section of this document are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Conversion of one form of electric power to another is frequently required in various applications. For example, a particular application might require a frequency or a voltage of alternating current (AC) power to be adjusted. Additionally, various applications might require changing the voltage of direct current (DC) power. Finally, various applications might require changing AC power to DC power and vice versa. Many prior systems exist for effecting conversions of electric power. Most conventional systems, however, require a staged approach where, for example, a frequency is converted in a first stage and a voltage is converted in a second stage. Additionally, such prior power conversion systems often require large electrolytic capacitors which are ambient temperature sensitive and have a relatively short service life. Thus, a need exists for a single-stage power conversion system that offers galvanic isolation and soft switching.

Method and apparatus for medium-voltage electronic power conversion


Embodiments herein describe transferring ownership of data (e.g., cachelines or blocks of data comprising multiple cachelines) from a host to hardware in an I/O device. In one embodiment, the host and I/O device (e.g., an accelerator) are part of a cache-coherent system where ownership of data can be transferred from a home agent (HA) in the host to a local HA in the I/O device—e.g., a computational slave agent (CSA). That way, a function on the I/O device (e.g., an accelerator function) can request data from the local HA without these requests having to be sent to the host HA. Further, the accelerator function can indicate whether the local HA tracks the data on a cacheline-basis or by a data block (e.g., multiple cachelines). This provides flexibility that can reduce overhead from tracking the data, depending on the function's desired use of the data.

Server CPU-Accelerator systems, such as those enabled by the Compute Express Link (CXL), Cache Coherent Interconnect for Accelerators (CCIX), QuickPath Interconnect (QPI)/Ultra Path Interconnect (UPI), AMD Infinity Fabric, NVLink, and OpenCAPI are all inherently hardware cache-coherent systems—i.e. the hardware maintains a universal, coherent view of accessed, modified, and cached data regardless of whether the processor or accelerator is acting as the producer or consumer of the data and metadata (information about the data).
Current shared-memory Host-Accelerator execution frameworks rely on fine-grained hardware coherency for producer-consumer interactions in those systems. Over time, at least one of the CPUs on the Host or attached Accelerator acts as a Producer or Consumer of the data or metadata as part of an application or as part of performing a function. Movement of that data between the producer-consumer pair is tracked at a fine-grained, cache line level, by hardware coherency mechanisms at either the Host or Accelerator, regardless of whether the producer-consumer actions between the Host CPU and Accelerator are at the coarse-grained, block, level. This fine-grained tracking also takes place regardless of whether the Home Node and Memory is adjacent to the Host CPU Producer/Consumer or adjacent to the Accelerator Producer/Consumer.
Hardware coherency based producer-consumer interactions rely on fine-grained tracking of data and metadata movement between the producer and consumer. Producer and consumer actions on data and metadata typically take place at cacheline (e.g. 64 Byte) granularity, regardless of whether the size of the data is orders of magnitude larger than a cacheline, e.g. in the MB, GB, or even TB granularity. The disadvantage of the fine grained hardware coherency enforcement is that fine-grained tracking independent of the size of the producer and consumer actions on data and metadata leads to inefficient use of resources, in terms of both resources that track this data movement (such as Caches and Snoop Filters), at a fine granularity, as well as coherency messaging overhead related to tracking the movement of the data and metadata, and ensuring the system maintains a universal, coherent view of accessed, modified, and cached data. The hardware coherency wmputational and messaging overhead at the Home Node also affects the performance of maintaining coherency for one region of memory where fine-grained tracking is needed, because concurrent coherency actions are taking place on another region of memory where Producer and consumer actions are such that coarse grained tracking would have sufficed. Thus, in current cache coherent systems, (i) the host needlessly tracks at a fine-grain the Accelerator coherency actions to Accelerator Attached memory managed by the Host, (ii) there is needless data movement consuming bandwidth and queueing resources between the Host and Accelerator—e.g., Accelerator accesses to local Accelerator Attached memory must loop through the Host because the memory is managed by the Host, (iii) there is an inefficient usage of caching resources for Accelerator coherency actions to Accelerator Attached memory if the Accelerator has a cache and the Accelerator Attached memory also has a cache, and (iv) Accelerator coherency actions to Accelerator Attached memory that are managed by the Host impact the performance of other Host-CPU to Host Memory coherency actions.

Hardware coherent computational expansion memory


The invention provides a method and an architecture for deploying non-terrestrial cellular network base stations, so as to enable cellular network coverage in remote areas, where no fixed infrastructure is available. The proposed methods allow for efficient power management at the terminal devices that need to synchronize to the airborne or spaceborne cellular base stations. This is particularly important for IoT devices, which have inherently limited power are computing resources.

Cellular wireless communication networks are nowadays widely available in developed and mainly urban environments. A ground-based network allows a user equipment, such as a telephone, smartphone or personal computer, to establish a data communication link with a data network such as the public Internet via a base station that manages the geographical network cell in which they evolve.
Several cellular network standards have been deployed based on GSM technology, UMTS/3G, LTE/4G and 5G networking technology. Crucially, when no cellular network infrastructure is available in a given geographic area, no wireless data communication is available for any users or device in that area. In remote areas, the construction if network infrastructure is often difficult and overly costly given a low population or device density.
The Internet of Things is a paradigm in which devices such as objects or sensors are able to enter into communication with a remote network backend, such as a data center or data processing server. The transmission of data from an IoT device is often not delay critical. However, a reliable communication link to the network backend needs to be established, at least intermittently. IoT devices may for example be deployed on maritime vessels, or in remote areas. However, in such areas, cellular network access is often not provided by the traditional fixed networking infrastructure. Such devices are usually battery-powered, so that the available transmit power is limited at any point in time.
The deployment a non-terrestrial cellular wireless communication network, involving a partly airborne/spaceborne network architecture appears to be an interesting solution for providing cellular data network coverage to the requisite remote areas. However, at the time of writing there is no solution in the state of the art which would enable cellular access from a piece of user equipment having low available power, via a non-terrestrial piece of network infrastructure equipment. Today's communication standards have indeed been designed with unlimited power as a prerequisite for the infrastructure, as well as low delays and stationary location with respect to the user equipment.

Frequency synchronization for non-terrestrial cellular wireless communication networks


A snowmobile includes a pivotally mounted motor cover that moves between open and closed positions relative to the snowmobile's frame. A latch fastener selectively secures the motor cover in its closed position. The latch fastener includes a pin that is rigidly mounted to the frame and positioned such that the pin extends through an opening in the motor cover when the motor cover is in the closed position. A resilient latch mounts to the frame and selectively engages the pin to hold the motor cover in the closed position. When the motor cover is in the closed position, the pin engages the peripheral edge of the opening to discourage the motor cover from moving relative to the frame. The latch covers the tip of the pin to discourage clothing, debris, etc. from catching on the pin.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a latch, and more particularly to a latch for use with a vehicle such as a snowmobile.
2. Description of Related Art
FIG. 10 is a side view of a prior art snowmobile 10. The snowmobile 10 includes a main body 15 that is supported by a frame. A rear portion of the main body 15 includes a seat 20 and a front portion of the main body includes an engine cover 25. The engine cover 25 can be removed or pivoted about a laterally extending axis to a raised position (FIG. 11) to allow access to the engine and/or other interior compartments of the snowmobile 10. Various prior art latch fasteners have been used to secure the cover 25 with respect to the main body 15.
As shown in FIG. 12, which is a partial rear perspective view of the snowmobile 10, such a latch fastener 30 may include an elastic member 35. The elastic member 35 in FIG. 12 is shown as being anchored or secured to the main body 15 of the snowmobile 10 using a fastener 40. The elastic member 35 includes an opening 45 that is intended to receive and cooperate with a hook 50 provided on the cover 25. To secure the cover 25 to the main body 15 using the latch fastener 30, the elastic member 35 is stretched until the opening 45 overcomes the hook 50, and the elastic member 35 is released such that the hook 50 is coupled to the elastic member 35, preferably under a predetermined tension. In the coupled position, the hook 50 protrudes through and out of the opening 45 such that the hook 50 remains exposed to the surrounding environment. Loose clothing or other material may therefore inadvertently become caught on the hook 50.
FIGS. 13 and 14 show an alternative prior art latch fasteners. FIG. 13 shows a lever 55 that is pivotably connected to the main body 15 of the snowmobile 10. The cover 25 includes a receptacle 60 with a slot 65 that is sized to receive the lever 55. A square protrusion 70 on the lever 55 fits within the slot 65 when the lever 55 is pivoted into the locking position, as shown in FIG. 14. The lever 55 can be pivoted using a knob 75. When the lever 55 is in the locking position, the entire locking force of the latch fastener is transferred through the lever 55. This locking force stresses and strains the lever 55.
FIGS. 15A–16 show yet another prior art latch fastener. The latch fastener includes a latch 76 (FIG. 15A) provided on cover 77 that can be used to releasably connect the cover 77 to a hook 78 (FIG. 15B) provided on a main body 79 of the snowmobile. The latch 76 is pivotably mounted on a support bracket 80, which is mounted to a base 81 connected to the cover 77. The latch 76 is shown in the open position in FIG. 15A, with a pair of arms 82 extending away from the latch 76. The arms 81 include springs and are connected by a cross member 83.
When the cover 77 is closed, the cross member 83 is coupled to the hook 78 on the main body 79 (FIG. 15B). After reaching this position, the latch 76 is pivoted downwardly toward the base 81, such that the cover 77 and main body 79 are secured to one another. This secured position is shown in FIG. 16. A pair of upstanding flanges 84 are aligned with the tab portion of the latch 76. The flanges 84 include through openings 85 that can accommodate a locking pin (not shown) to maintain the latch 76 in the closed position shown in FIG. 16.
These prior at latch fasteners have drawbacks. For example, these latch fasteners can require a great deal of strength or space to operate. Also, the designs can be overly complicated and expensive, and they can require additional parts to keep them in stable open and closed positions. Hooks and other protruding parts of several of these latch fasteners may also inadvertently catch clothing and other materials (e.g., twigs, small branches, debris, etc.). Furthermore, resilient portions of several of these latch fasteners must bear significant portions of the forces exerted on the latch fastener by the motor cover.


An equipment turnaround easily installs on a driveway or garage floor surface. The turnaround has a large support platform compared to the equipment footprint providing ease of loading or unloading the equipment. The turnaround is fastened to the surface by fasteners that allow the turnaround to rotate about the centerline of the drive mechanism surface contact plate. This changes the direction the equipment is facing, allowing equipment to be parked in a narrow space without having to back the equipment out of the space. Alternately the turnaround may be used for a rotatable equipment display. The turnaround may be turned manually or use a self-contained power supply.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a rotatable equipment support device for moving a vehicle or other equipment in a rotary motion and a method of manufacturing such a device.
2. Descripton of Related Art
Rotatable equipment supports are known in the art. This equipment may be used as a turnaround to revise the direction of a vehicle or other equipment, or for a rotating display of a vehicle or other equipment.
A number of designs of automobile turntables were proposed late in the 19th century or in the early part of the last century at the end of the era of the horse-drawn car and at the dawn of the automobile industry. Examples of these early manually-operated designs are U.S. Pat. No. 244,703 (White) U.S. Pat. No. 813,462 (Stickney), U.S. Pat. No. 819,014 (Hillenbrand), U.S. Pat. No. 878,135 (Hastings), U.S. Pat. No. 1,572,728 (Brobst), U.S. Pat. No. 1,596,156 (Craig), U.S. Pat. No. 1,753,550 (Cook), U.S. Pat. No. 1,797,830 (Koehler), U.S. Pat. No. 1,843,047 (Smith), and U.S. Pat. No. 2,080,506 (Ash). A characteristic of these is a limited range of equipment they would accommodate, and the need for considerable skill in installing equipment due to the use of narrow tracks to support the equipment. In the examples not employing narrow tracks, a design requires excavation and a foundation to install the device.
A more modern version of the manual turntable is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,467,746 (Paskiewicz). This recognizes a manual turntable is suitable only for smaller equipment, such as motorcycles or snowmobiles.
Motorized turntables, either having their own motor or using power from the equipment supported, or using the weight of the supported equipment, were proposed as early as the 1920's through the end of the last century, examples using narrow tracks to support the equipment are U.S. Pat. No. 1,378,8898 (Potts), U.S. Pat. No. 1,772,075 (Exon), U.S. Pat. No. 2,135,924 (Toews), U.S. Pat. No. 2,244,598 (Ash), U.S. Pat. No. 2,952,221 (Hobel), U.S. Pat. No. 3,566,798 (Peitzman), U.S. Pat. No. 4,172,422 (McBride), U.S. Pat. No. 4,562,774 (Dehring), U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,929 (Park), U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,870 (Coles), U.S. Pat. No. 5,086,704 (Mueller), and U.S. Pat. No. 5,755,160 (Bluforcraving).
Motorized turntables employing a circular platform to support the equipment are described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,025,320 (Waalkes) U.S. Pat. No. 2,566,634 (Ready), U.S. Pat. No. 3,566,799 (Stern), U.S. Pat. No. 4,562,774 (Dehring), U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,173 (James), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,884 (Seay, Jr.). Such turntables use excessive material due to the wasted space if the footprint of the equipment supported is rectangular and the turntable is round.
Turntables employing rectangular platforms and using power from the equipment supported, or using the weight of the supported equipment to rotate the turntable are described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,993,648 (Cook) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,562,774 (Dehring). These require a substantial and unique foundation to be installed prior to installing the turntable.


A device for detecting a layer thickness of a coated component, particularly a brake disc for a disc brake of a motor vehicle, includes at least one holding device and a guiding device. The holding device has a bearing surface for the component. The guiding device is configured to hold and guide a sensor in order to measure the layer thickness. The sensor is configured to be moved by the guiding device along a vertical axis and pivot about a first axis of rotation that is oriented horizontally. The sensor is further configured to be moved by the guiding device along a horizontal axis.

The disclosure relates to a device for detecting the layer thickness of a coated component, in particular a brake disk for a disk brake of a motor vehicle, comprising at least one holding device having a bearing surface for the component and a guiding device for holding and guiding a sensor for measuring the layer thickness, the sensor being movable by the guiding device along a vertical axis and pivotable about a first axis of rotation.
In addition, the disclosure relates to a method for operating the device.

Device and method for detecting a layer thickness of a coated component


A disparity vector generation section generates disparity vectors indicating a part of a disparity between a first layer image and a second layer image different from the first layer image and different part of the disparity based on a code indicating the part of the disparity. A predicted image generation section reads a reference image of a region indicated by the disparity vector generated by the disparity vector generation section from a reference image storage section that stores the reference image and generates a predicted image based on the read reference image.

In image encoding technologies for a plurality of viewpoints, parallax prediction encoding methods of reducing an information amount by predicting a parallax between images when images of a plurality of viewpoints are encoded and decoding methods corresponding to the encoding methods have been proposed (for example, see NPL 1). A vector indicating a parallax between viewpoint images is referred to as a parallax vector. The parallax vector is a 2-dimensional vector having a component value (x component) in the horizontal direction and a component value (y component) in the vertical direction and is calculated for each of the blocks which are regions divided from one image. When multi-viewpoint images are acquired, a camera disposed at each viewpoint is generally used. In the multi-viewpoint encoding methods, each viewpoint image is encoded using such that a plurality of layers as different layers. An encoding method in which each layer further includes a plurality of layers is generally referred to as scalable coding or hierarchy coding. In the scalable coding, high coding efficiency is realized by executing prediction between layers. A layer serving as a criterion without executing the prediction between the layers is referred to as a base layer and the other layers are referred to as enhancement layers. The scalable coding when layers are configured from a viewpoint image is referred to as view scalable coding. At this time, the base layer is referred to as a base view and the enhancement layer is also referred to a non-base view.
As the scalable coding, there are spatial scalable coding (a method of processing a picture with a low resolution as a base layer and processing a picture with a high resolution as an enhancement layer) and SNR scalable coding (a method of processing a picture with low quality as a base layer and processing a picture with high resolution as an enhancement layer) in addition to the view scalable coding. In the scalable coding, for example, a picture of a base layer is used as a reference picture in encoding of a picture of an enhancement layer in some cases.

Image decoding device and image encoding device


Systems and methods for altering the character of data originating from a Virtual Private Network (VPN) are provided. First data is received from the VPN by a first network interface. The first data comprises a first plurality of packets. A message is generated by combining the first plurality of packets. Second data is generated by segmenting the message into a second plurality of packets. A third plurality of packets in the second plurality of packets is equal to the network maximum transfer unit allowed by the Internet and the last packet in the second plurality of packets is less than the network maximum transfer unit allowed by the Internet. The second data is forwarded to the second network interface. The second network interface sends the data to a web server.

VPNs tend to provide users with various advantages over using a raw Internet connection. As one example, a user can avoid interception and surveillance through use of a VPN. The VPN, rather than the user's local computer, has an Internet point-of-presence visible to third parties. As another example, the use of a VPN allows the user to appear to be accessing the Internet from the geographic location that corresponds to the VPN's Internet point-of-presence. This means that the user may be able to access resources that are geographically-restricted by the user's local computer, but allowed by the VPN. In addition, through the use of a VPN, the user could disguise his/her true geographic location from outside observers for other reason.
The use of a VPN may also create disadvantages. For example, because the VPN encapsulates the user's network packet data inside an additional layer of network protocols, the character of the user's data is necessarily altered. Because the VPN layer adds overhead to the network packet data, the VPN divides the network packet data into smaller chunks so that they, along with the overhead, can fit inside an underlying network transport layer's maximum transfer unit (MTU) size. An internet resource server that the VPN connects to on behalf of the user can determine that the user is traversing the VPN before appearing on the open internet by analyzing the VPN data characteristics, specifically the size of the data. If a service provider detects that the user is traversing a VPN, it could take preventative actions that are adverse to the user. For example, the service provider could prevent the user from accessing geographically-restricted information, throttle the user's data rate, or otherwise interfere with the user's normal network operations, thereby cancelling out some of the benefits provided through the use of the VPN.

Systems and methods for altering the character of network traffic


A semiconductor device includes a substrate, a semiconductor layer formed on the substrate, and an optically functional portion formed by using at least a portion of the semiconductor layer. The optically functional portion performs light emission or light reception. The semiconductor device further includes a first driving electrode that is electrically connected to a semiconductor layer on a surface of the optically functional portion, and the first driving electrode drives the optically functional portion. The semiconductor device further includes an encapsulating electrode that is formed on the semiconductor layer to surround periphery of the optically functional portion, and electrically connected to the first driving electrode.

1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a semiconductor device and an optical apparatus.
2. Related Art
As light sources for data communication using optical fibers or the like or for a data processing apparatus such as a copier, surface emitting semiconductor lasers, i.e., Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser diodes (hereinafter referred to as VCSEL), which consume less power and can be easily arranged in two dimensional arrays, have been used.
A typical mounting example of a semiconductor device of a related art is shown in FIGS. 11A to 11C. As shown in FIG. 11A, a semiconductor device 10 includes a light emitting portion 12 such as a VCSEL and a p-side electrode 14 and an n-side electrode 16 of the light emitting portion 12. As shown in FIG. 11B or FIG. 11C, in the semiconductor device 10, the light emitting portion 12 and the electrodes 14 and 16 face a mounting substrate 18. The electrodes 14 and 16 are connected to a wiring pattern of the mounting substrate 18. The surrounding or the entirety of the light emitting portion 12 is encapsulated with a resin 20 to obtain a semiconductor device module. However, in general, the resin 20 has moisture permeability, and thus for devices, in which moisture is not desirable, a more highly hermetic encapsulation is needed to ensure reliability.
As shown in FIG. 12A, to improve hermeticity of the light emitting portion 12 of the semiconductor device 10, there is a method in which an encapsulating electrode 22 is formed to surround the electrodes 14 and 16 of the light emitting portion 12, and the encapsulating electrode 22 is connected to the mounting substrate 18. In this case, the encapsulating electrode 22 becomes an obstacle when the wiring pattern connected to the electrodes 14 and 16 is extracted from the surface of the mounting substrate.
The present invention aims to provide a semiconductor device in which hermeticity of an optically functional portion such as a light emitting portion or a light receiving portion can be enhanced, and a wiring can be extracted from a mounting substrate surface, and an optical apparatus using the semiconductor device.

Semiconductor device and optical apparatus


A label printing apparatus for accommodating a plurality of widths of rolled label stock is provided. The label printing apparatus includes a frame, a label stock support arm extending from the frame, and a print head located for having label stock pass thereby for printing. The label stock support arm may have at least two stepped regions for supporting rolled label stock, including a first stepped region with edges spaced apart by a first distance corresponding to a first width of label stock and a second stepped region with edges spaced apart by a second distance corresponding to a second width of label stock. One or more label stock guides may include recessed regions for guiding different widths of label stock. A movable wall may also be provided. The various features could also be provided in connection with printers using rolled print media other than label stock.

Thermal print heads are used for marking various indicia on heat sensitive labels. The labels may be attached to a backing and provided as a roll of label stock. Other types of label stock include linerless or backerless label stock. A roll of label stock is positioned within the printer to move label stock past the thermal print head. The label stock is driven by a roller which moves the label stock past the thermal print head so that the heat of the heating element acts on the heat sensitive labels, thereby marking the labels. Different widths of label stock are commonly used and available. Label printers may also utilize other types of print heads and label stock.
Accordingly, there is a need for a printer that can accommodate various widths of rolled label stock or other print media while at the same time maintaining proper alignment of the label stock or other print media with the print head.

Apparatus to guide label stock in a printer


The embodiments provide an application diagnostics apparatus including an instrumentation engine configured to monitor one or more methods of a call chain of the application in response to a server request according to an instrumentation file specifying which methods are monitored and which methods are associated with a code extension, an extension determining unit configured to determine that at least one monitored method is associated with the code extension based on code extension identification information, a class loading unit configured to load the code extension from a resource file when the at least one monitored method associated with the code extension is called within the call chain, a code extension execution unit configured to execute one or more data collection processes, and a report generator configured to generate at least one report for display based on collected parameters.

In most cases, a relatively large concern for customer facing Internet based applications (e.g., banking, retail, services) is the quality of service and/or end user experience for their customers. This service generally translates into server requests, e.g., associated with web-based applications, which are the entry points for customer-based transactions, and generally impact a company's ability to generate revenue. Currently, there are a number of methods that may monitor the performance of such web-based applications. However, most conventional monitoring products have a fixed set of instrumentation that is applied to measuring the round trip (and associated dependencies) for an individual server request. For example, a monitoring product may measure the incremental flow through the actual application method calls that service that request. The classes containing the method calls are generally instrumented in such a way that the instrumentation (which is inserted for interception) is called when the method is entered and called when the method is exited. The instrumentation in most cases is based on a descriptive file (e.g., instrumentation file, recording file, etc.) that essentially identifies the particular classes and methods to be monitored, as well as how they should be handled and what information should be collected.
However, in the event that the customer wishes to change the instrumentation and/or has a new set of customized methods that the customer wishes to monitor, implementing dynamic/custom changes in a timely manner without affecting the application is a difficult challenge. For example, in order to deploy a customized change to the underlying instrumentation, the application may have to be shut down for a lengthy period of time, which may be cost prohibitive and/or disadvantageous when assisting customers who desire to minimize downtime (e.g., some restarts can be excess of 45 minutes to complete). Further, making changes to the underlying instrumentation is a complex process that requires a relatively significant amount of time to implement, and often involving a highly skilled person with an in-depth understanding of the instrumentation product and/or the underlying server application.

Application instrumentation code extension


An isolated polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence corresponding to the amino acid residues forming a full or partial α-helical domain, the hinge domain, the β-triple spiral domain and a full or partial globular head domain of an avian reovirus sigma C protein, and lacking the amino acid sequence that is N-terminal to said α-helical domain is provided. Furthermore, a vaccine comprising, or a viral vector expressing, at least one of the isolated polypeptides of the present invention is provided.

Avian reovirus (ARV) is a member of the Orthoreovirus genus in the family Reoviridae. It is associated with a number of diseases, the most prominent being viral arthritis syndrome (tenosynovitis) which is characterized by swelling of the hock joints and lesions in the gastrocnemius tendons, and causes considerable economic loss to the poultry industry. Susceptibility to ARV occurs mostly in young (1-2 weeks of age) chickens. The control of viral tenosynovitis in broiler chicks is conferred by antibodies that are transferred to the progeny following vaccination of maternal flocks. The available live-attenuated and inactivated vaccines for ARV are based on the s1133 strain (van der Heide et al. 1983), as well as isolated strains belonging to a single serotype (Goldenberg et al. 2010). However, those vaccines are not effective against the diverse ARVs found in the field (Jones 2000; Goldenberg et al. 2010; Lublin et al. 2011).
Sequencing of the sigma C (SC) protein of ARV isolates for genetic characterization enabled their division into genotypes (Kant et al. 2003; Lublin et al. 2011; Goldenberg et al. 2010; Troxler et al. 2013). Vaccination based on a mixture of the four representatives of ARV genotypes conferred protection against all tested viruses from the four genotypes [Lublin et al. 2011; WO 2009/093251]. The outer capsid cell attachment protein SC of ARV, encoded by the S1 gene, is a relatively small protein of 326 amino acids (Benavente & Martinez-Costas 2007), a homotrimer with a tertiary structure consisting of two domains: the "head", which is located at the C-terminal end of the protein, and the "shaft", at the N terminus. The crystal structure of the C-terminal domain and of residues 117-326 has been resolved (Guardado Calvo et al. 2005; Guardado-Calvo et al. 2009). SC elicits reovirus-specific neutralizing antibodies (Shapouri et al. 1996; Grande et al. 1997), making it a suitable candidate for a recombinant subunit vaccine.
Indeed, efficient recombinant vaccines have been developed in the past for a number of viruses, including vaccines for hepatitis B (McAleer et al. 1984) and for papillomavirus (Valentino & Poronsky 2015) for humans, as well as infectious bursal disease (IBD) (Pitcovski et al. 2003) and egg drop syndrome (Fingerut et al. 2003) for chickens and hemorrhagic enteritis virus for turkeys (Pitcovski et al. 2005). SC has been expressed in various expression systems, including bacteria, baculovirus, yeast, plants and mammalian cells. Recombinant SC proteins have been used for diagnostics to distinguish between strains. Anti-SC antibodies have been shown to neutralize the virus in cell lines [28,31]. In a previous study, SC expressed in bacteria showed only weak immunogenicity (Goldenberg et al. 2011; Vasserman et al. 2004). There remains therefore a great need for an efficient vaccine against ARV.

Optimized polypeptide for a subunit vaccine against avian reovirus