A guiding apparatus and a method are presented for efficiently guiding and loading fuel rods into a fuel assembly without introducing surface damage to the fuel rod. The apparatus simultaneously loads a row of fuel rods into the grid cells of the grids using the guiding device, disposed at the entry side of each grid. The guiding device includes a comb-shaped section and a freely detachably engaged bottom side wall plate, forming a plurality of guiding spaces to superimpose on the plurality of grid cells requiring fuel rods. The guiding device is provided with protective guiding strips which are inserted into the grid cells prior to inserting the fuel rods so as to protect the fuel rod surface from being scratched by the springs and dimples provided. The method of fuel rod insertion using the apparatus is as follows. The guiding spaces formed by the comb-shaped section and the bottom side wall plate are placed adjacent to the opening end surface of a row of grid cells. After the fuel rods are inserted, the comb-shaped section is separated from the bottom side wall plate, and is raised to the next row of horizontal grid cells. The detached bottom side wall plate located below the fuel rods is rotated away and then raised above the fuel rods to the next row of horizontal grid cells. The bottom side wall plate is now rotated back and reengaged with the comb-shaped section and the loading process is repeated for the row above.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an assembling apparatus and an assembling method of a nuclear fuel assembly, and more specifically to a guiding apparatus which enables the insertion of fuel rods to be carried out efficiently and free of surface scratches.
2. Technical Background of the Invention
In general, pressurized light water nuclear reactors utilize a type of fuel assembly in which a number of fuel rods are arranged horizontally at regular intervals. The fuel assembly comprises an upper nozzle, a lower nozzle and a plurality of fuel rod supporting grids (shortened to grids henceforth), made of thin metal straps intersecting orthognally to form grid cells. Fuel rod-guide pipes and instrumentation pipes are inserted into the grid cells, and are fixed to the grids and also to the upper and the lower nozzles at the ends. Fuel rods are also inserted into and are supported elastically in the grid cells by means of springs formed inside the grid cells.
When assembling such a fuel assembly, there is a danger of introducing scratches on the surface of the fuel rods if the rods are inserted into the grid cells as they are, because of the presence of the fuel rod supporting springs and dimples which are formed inside the grid cells. To prevent such a surface damage to the fuel rods, the springs must temporarily be deactivated while the fuel rods are being inserted into the grid cells. However, the technology to successively deactivate a large number of springs formed on each strap in the assembly required a high precision in the tooling and advanced drive-control technology.
In view of such problems in the existing technology, there have been, prior to the present invention, alternative proposed techniques, such as those presented below.
An assembling method is known, in which surface scratches are prevented by applying a cylindrical protective sleeve on the fuel rod over its entire external surface before its insertion into the grid cells, and removing the sleeve after the insertion is completed. (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, S53(1978)-11294)
Another approach is to insert a slitted cylindrical jig in the grid cell beforehand, and after placing the fuel rod in the jig, the jig is moved into the assembly with the fuel rod, and the jig is removed with the use of the slit. (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, S60(1985)-50490)
Another method is to arrange a plurality of such slit tools in a line along the grid cells, and to insert a line of fuels rods all at once. (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, S60(1985)-67891)
Yet another method is to insert a cylindrical plastic sheet into the grid cell prior to inserted a fuel rod in the plastic sheet. (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, S60(1985)-181680)
Yet another method is to prepare a rattan type support made of a series of thin plastic strips, and arrange the supports in accord with the grid cells prior to inserting the fuel rods into the support. (Japanese Patent Application, First Publication, S60(1985)-213889)
Such method which utilize various protective covers between the grid cells and the fuel rods are effective in preventing the formation of surface scratches on the fuel rods, but none of them provided for an automated facility for insertion of a plurality of fuel rods efficiently. Therefore, the operation was labor-intensive, and a need existed to reduce the labor content associated with such operations.

Fuel rod guiding apparatus and method therefor


Human MADr3 or MADr4 polypeptides and DNA (RNA) encoding such MADr3 or MADr4 and a procedure for producing such polypeptides by recombinant techniques is disclosed. Also disclosed are methods for utilizing such MADr3 or MADr4, or compounds which inhibit or stimulate MADr3 or MADr4 for stimulating wound healing, and treating cancers, among others, are also disclosed. Agonist and antagonists of these MAD proteins and methods of their use are also disclosed. Also disclosed are diagnostic assays for detecting diseases related to mutations in the nucleic acid sequences and altered concentrations of the polypeptides. Also disclosed are diagnostic assays for detecting mutations in the polynucleotides encoding the MADr3 or MADr4 and for detecting altered levels of the polypeptide in a host.

Cellular growth and differentiation appear to be initiated, promoted, maintained and regulated by a multiplicity of stimulatory, inhibitory and synergistic factors and hormones. The alteration and/or breakdown of the cellular homeostasis mechanism seems to be a fundamental cause of growth related diseases. Growth modular factors are implicated in a wide variety of pathological and physiological processes including signal transduction, cell communication, growth and development, embryogenesis, immune response, hematopoiesis cell survival and differentiation, inflammation, tissue repair and remodeling, atherosclerosis and cancer.
The transforming growth factor .beta. (TGF-.beta.) family of cytokines/growth factors regulates cell proliferation, differentiation, recognition and death, and figures in the control of development, tissue recycling and repair. Included in this family are Drosophila decapentaplegic (DPP) Sekelsky et al, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 139:1347-1358 (1995)!, TGF.beta.-1, TGF.beta.-2 and TGF.beta.-3; and bone morphogenetic proteins, BMP2/BMP4 Hoodless et al, Cell, 85:489-500 (1996); Graff et al, Cell, 85:479-487 (1996); Liu et al, Nature, 381:620-623 (1996); and Vhang et al, Nature, 383:168-1782 (1996)!.
TGF-.beta. family members signal by simultaneously contacting two transmembrane serine/threonine kinases known as the type I and type II receptors. Certain proteins mediate the complex signalling cascade of the TGF-.beta. family. It has been suggested that different TGF-.beta. family members may signal through different MAD isoforms. MAD (Mothers against DPP) protein was discovered in Drosophila to be required for the signal transduction of DPP. Other MAD proteins in other species, such as Xenopus, mouse, and human, have been found to transduce signaling of BMP2/BMP4.
Several reports suggest that subsequent to ligand activation, the TGF-.beta. type I receptor phosphorylates MAD Hoodless et al, cited above; and Liu et al, cited above!. The phosphorylated MAD then translocates into the nucleus and effects gene expression of selected early intermediate genes specific to the MAD isoform subtype J. Massague, Cell, 85:947-950 (Jun. 28, 1996)!.
Therefore, selective antagonists of the MAD isoforms are anticipated to be beneficial in many diseases where selective interruption of TGF-.beta. or BMP signaling are indicated see, e.g., Eppert et al, Cell, 86:543-552 (Aug. 23, 1996)!. Such disorders include, without limitation, chronic renal failure, scarring, colorectal carcinoma, and cardiovascular disease.
There, thus, exists a need in the art for a variety of TGF-.beta. signalling proteins, antagonists and agonists thereof, as well as compositions and methods for the use of same.


The thread form can provide a controlled thread stiffness which can more evenly distribute loads and can be less sensitive to changes in relative pitch. The controlled stiffness of the thread can provide a desired cantilever bending of the thread under assembled load. The thread form can utilize a traditional thread form at and/or above the pitch diameter, thereby maintaining the area of contact close to that of a standard thread form. Standard gaging implements can be used to ascertain the thread pitch and for quality control. The thread form includes a side extending between the crest and the root. The side has a first portion extending from the crest toward the root and the second portion extending from the first portion toward the root. The first and second portions extend toward the root in different orientations relative to the thread.

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present teachings and may not constitute prior art.
Threaded fasteners, such as bolts, are used to join components together. The bolt can be used in conjunction with a nut or an internal threaded bore in one of the components to retain the components together. The exterior surface of the bolt and interior surface of the nut or the bore (hereinafter threaded member) include complementary threads that contact axially as the bolt is inserted into the threaded member and rotated. The purpose of the bolt and the threaded member are to create and retain axial load throughout the service life of the components being joined together. The bolt and the threaded member thereby impart a clamping load on the components. If the bolt and the threaded member do not retain a minimum axial load (clamp load) a highly loaded joint will fail.
In conventional bolted joint design, nominally perfect internal and external threads of a bolt and its threaded member contact axially as the bolt is inserted into the threaded member and rotated relative to the threaded member. However, normal deflection of the bolt threads as tightening loads are applied locally changes the thread pitch which can result in uneven distribution of the load. This uneven distribution loads the top or first thread of the bolt most heavily when the bolt is tightened. These localized changes in bolt pitch can result in stress concentrations and plastic yield that increase susceptibility to load loss under service due to yield and creep. The yielding and creeping can be more pronounced when one of the threads, such as the internal threads, are weaker.
In highly stressed joints, such as a cylinder head or a crankshaft bearing journal cap, the goal is to maximize tension in the bolt. To achieve this, bolt tightening strategies are designed to tighten the bolt to a point that the bolt yields plastically. As the bolt is taken to such high levels of tension, the threaded member sees very high shear loads, ultimately to the point of the threads of the threaded member yielding, starting in most cases with the most highly loaded top thread as discussed above. When the threads of the threaded member are at or near yield, they are susceptible to creep and further yield due to service loads. Yield and creep are both contributors to load loss and ultimate joint failure. Therefore, to improve the clamp load retention of a joint, it is desirable to reduce the sensitivity to changes in the relative pitch that occur between the bolt and the threaded member that cause uneven load distribution.
Additionally, the current standard thread form or pattern is optimized for applications where steel bolts are engaging steel internal threads. However, current applications can call for the use of steel bolts into weaker materials, such as aluminum or other materials. These different materials have different properties, such as different thread stiffness, which can cause the stiffer threads to unevenly distribute loads on the less stiff threads. Moreover, the different materials can have different coefficients of thermal expansion. As a result, the bolt and threaded member can have different growths for the same temperature. The different growths can change the relative pitch of the bolt and threaded member as they grow and can change the initial distribution of loads and can promote uneven distribution of the load. The different growths can also cause stress concentrations and plastic yield that can increase susceptibility to load loss under service. Furthermore, the location of the bolt and threaded member relative to a heat source can also effect their growth relative to one another over time. For example, the component closer to the source of thermal heat may experience a temperature increase prior to the other component, thereby causing the first component to begin expanding prior to the second component expanding. This temporal aspect of temperature change can be exacerbated by the use of different materials having different coefficients of thermal expansion. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the sensitivity of the load distribution to changes in the dimensions of the bolt and the threaded member.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to develop a new thread form or pattern that addresses the above desires and concerns. Furthermore, in some applications it would be desirable if the new thread form were able to substantially maintain the core axial stiffness (minor diameter) of the bolt thereby avoiding increased variation in the relative pitch during assembly. Furthermore, it would be desirable if the new thread form could maintain a sufficient contact area between the internal and external threads to prevent compressive yield on the sides (also known as flanks) of the weaker threads. Additionally, it would be advantageous to maintain the ability to manufacture such a thread form with standard manufacturing techniques, such as standard roll forming. Moreover, it would be desirable if the thread form maintained the ability to gage the thread form using existing gages for quality control without causing an increase in cost to make new gages for the new thread form. It would be further advantageous if the new thread form could be used in conjunction with an existing typical prior art thread form, thereby facilitating retrofitting with the new thread form.

Thread profile modification for controlled stiffness


The device of a stretchable and contractable desk lamp comprising a lamp shade and a stand, the lamp shade is pivotally connected on one end thereof to a first pivot connection on the top of the stand, the connection is for pivotal mounting of a handle for carrying the lamp, the bottom of the stand is provided with a second pivot connection for pivotally mounting of a separated rotating seat, the lamp thus has a function of rotating with two pivot axles, and is portable and can save space in packaging; a receptacle is provided on the top of and engaged with the lamp shade, the receptacle receives a stretchable or drawable frame therein, a magnifying glass is provided in the frame and can be stretched out and firmly kept in a suitable anglular position on the lamp shade for viewing under illumination, the magnifying glass can be hidden in the receptacle when not in use.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to the device of a stretchable and contractable desk lamp, and especially to a device wherein two pivot colnnections are provided, the first pivot connection on the lamp stand for pivotally connecting the lamp shade is used for pivotally mounting a handle, this can simplify the assembling elements and space for the handle; and the second pivot connection on the bottom of the stand is provided with a round hole for pivotal mounting of a separated rotating seat. The whole lamp can thereby afford the function of wide range illumination by adjustment in taking advantage of the two pivot connections, while the separated rotating seat is comprised of a main seat and an auxiliary seat, this can save space of packaging by virtue that they can be disassembled; within the allowable space tolerance favourable for packaging, a receptacle is provided on and engaged with the lamp shade, the receptacle is provided therein with a pair of slide ways for hiding a frame therein, in the frame there is a magnifying glass mounted to be drawable or stretchable, the magnifying glass can be positioned on one side of the lamp shade in a suitable angle for viewing, so that a user can see clearly things under illumination of the desk lamp; therefore, the structure of the desk lamp of the present invention further includes the handle, the separated rotating seat using the second pivot connection and the magnifying glass.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Desk lamps in the markets are referred to the lamps wherein each lamp is comprised of an upright stand which is mounted with a lamp shade holding a lamp bulb or a lamp tube, this forms the basic construction of the desk lamp and is suitable for use on a common desk, an office desk or a working desk etc. for illumination. However, the lamps can be various in their shapes, the lamp shades and stands thereof in the markets are made with numerous shapes and fashions; in which, one is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the conventional desk lamp shown is provided with two pivot knobs 21 by which a lamp shade 1 can be pivotally connected to the top of a stand 2, the lamp shade 1 can be adjusted or moved to make stretching or contracting function. When this conventional desk lamp having the functions of stretching and contracting is stretched out (as shown in FIG. 1), the lamp tube thereon can be turned on for emitting light to illuminate in a desired angle position; on the contrary, when the lamp shade 1 is contracted to close over one side of the stand 2 (as shown in FIG. 2), volume of the lamp is reduced for storing or packaging.
However, the conventional desk lamp still has the following undesired defects, and is necessary to be improved in the present invention:
1. The light source thereof can only be adjusted about one axis, when in use, it can not afford illumination for a broad area of the desk unless the stand is wholly moved.
2. There is no handle provided with, when it is carrying to another place for use, the user must grasp the stand or the lamp shade thereof not suitable for grasping, a risk of dropping of the lamp is thereby increased.
3. When the user needs to read fine words or articles, a magnifying glass must be obtained, this induces inconvenience.
The undesired defects of the conventional desk lamp also are found frequently on the desk lamps of other fashoins, this is becaused that, if a desk lamp is provided with rotating axles in two directions, it is very difficult to make a design with the function of rotating with two pivot axles and for including both a handle and a magnifying glass.
Although some desk lamps in the markets are mounted each with a rotating seat, a handle or a magnifying glass, they are of the exposed and fixed types, they make unecessary visual impedence and also are unfavourable to saving of packaging space, and thus need improvement.

Stretchable and contractable desk lamp device


An anode structure may include a first bus bar having a first conductive coating, a second bus bar having a second conductive coating, and a plurality of silicon elements between the first bus bar and the second bus bar with a first void between a first one of the silicon elements and a second one of the silicon elements. Additionally, at least the first one of the silicon elements to expand into the first void.

1. Field
Embodiments may relate to a battery or battery cell having a silicon anode (or anode structure).
2. Background
A battery may include an anode, a cathode and an electrolyte between the anode and the cathode. The anode (or negative electrode) may be negatively charged and the anode may be where charge carriers may accumulate in order to provide power to an electronic device. The anode may be a terminal where current flows into a battery (or battery cell) from outside of the battery. In other words, a positive current may flow into an anode. The cathode (or positive electrode) may provide a positive charge, which may compel electrons to travel from the anode to the positive charge. The cathode may be a terminal where current flows out of the battery (or battery cell). In other words, the positive current may flow out from the cathode. The electrolyte may keep the electrons from traveling between the anode and the cathode through the internal battery structure.


A wear-resistant silent chain includes a large number of link plates articulately connected together in an endless fashion by rocker joint pins each composed of a long pin and a short pin. The long and short pins have an outer peripheral surface formed by, at least, a convexly arcuate rocker surface which is adjacent to the convexly arcuate rocker surface of another pin, a load-bearing surface on the side opposite to the rocker surface and being seated on an inner peripheral surface of each of a pair of pin holes formed in each link plate, and a pair of lubricant guide surfaces each extending substantially linearly from one circumferential end of the load-bearing surface to an adjacent circumferential end of the rocker surface while extending divergently with respect to the inner peripheral surface of each of said pin holes. The lubricant guide surface provides a large lubricant collecting area which is sufficient to lubricate the load-bearing surface with an enough amount of lubricating oil and thereby prevents local wear caused between the inner peripheral surface of each pin hole and the load-bearing surface of each pin.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a so-called xe2x80x9crocker joint typexe2x80x9d silent chain which is particularly suitable for use, as an automobile silent chain, in a drive unit for an engine cam shaft, an engine auxiliary device, a transmission, a transfer box and so on of an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a conventional rocker joint type silent chain A1 includes a large number of link plates A4 articulately connected together in an endless fashion by means of rocker joints each composed of a long pin A2 and a short pin A3 which is smaller in length than the long pin A2. The link plates A4 each have an inverted tooth-like engagement surface T designed for direct meshing engagement with teeth of a sprocket A5 so that power is transmitted between the sprocket and another sprocket (not shown).
The link plates A4 are arranged in many rows in the transverse direction of the silent chain A1 in such a manner that the plates A4, which are adjacent to each other back and forth in the traveling direction of the silent chain A1, are sandwiched alternately in the transverse direction.
As shown in FIG. 6, opposite ends of the long pin A2 are press fit in non-circular pin holes A9, A10 formed in two guide plates A6 which are arranged adjacent both outsides of plural, transversely arranged link plates A4 and are guided by side surfaces of the teeth of the sprocket A5.
The long pin A2 and the short pin A3, as shown in FIG. 6, have substantially the same cross-sectional shape and are inserted into each of a pair of pin holes A7 and A8 in each link plate A4 so as to be opposed to each other such that convexly arcuate rocker surfaces R of the long and short pins A2, A3, respectively, are adjacent to each other.
The long pin A2, inserted in each pin hole A7, A8 and located closer to an outer end of the link plate A4 than a center of the link plate A4, has a load-bearing surface C1 composed of a concavely arcuate portion formed on the side opposite to the rocker surface R and a pair of convexly arcuate portions extending contiguously from both circumferential ends of the concavely arcuate portion. The load-bearing surface C1 comes into engagement with a pin-seating surface S1 of each pin hole A7, A8 and is thereby prevented from rotating. The pin-seating surface S1 is composed of a convexly arcuate portion and a pair of concavely arcuate portions extending continuously from both circumferential ends of the convexly arcuate portion.
The short pin A3, inserted in each pin hole A7, A8 and located closer to the center of the link plate A4 than the outer end of the link plate A4, is engaged at a load-bearing surface C1 thereof with pin-seating surface S1 of a pin hole A9, A7 formed in a longitudinally adjacent link plate (not shown) and is thereby prevented from rotating.
FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 7, showing the manner in which the rocker surface R and the load-bearing surface C1 are connected with each other. As shown in FIG. 8, the rocker surface R and the load-bearing surface C1 of each pin (long pin A2 being shown) are connected together by a pair of convexly arcuate connecting surfaces C2 having an extremely small radius of curvature, such as about one-twentieth of a chain pitch, such that each of the convexly arcuate connecting surfaces C2 produces no substantial gap or clearance between itself and the peripheral surface of each pin hole A7, A8.
When the silent chain A1 is entrained around on the sprocket A5, as shown in FIG. 4, and a tensile force is exerted between front and rear link plates A4, the rocker surfaces R, R of the long and short pins A2 and A3 are pressed against each other to effect transfer of the tensile force.
In this instance, the silent chain A1 is under oiled or lubricated condition so that a lubricating oil is supplied to the silent chain A1 from the outside thereof. Since the opposite rocker surfaces R, R are each formed in a convexly arcuate surface, it becomes possible to perform a relative rocking motion between the long and short pins A2 and A3, thus permitting bending between longitudinally adjacent link plates A4.
In the conventional silent chain A1 constructed as described above, the convexly arcuate pin-seating surface S1 of each pin hole A7, A8 of the link plate A4 and the concavely arcuate load-bearing surface C1 of the long pin A2 which is closer to the outside of the link plate A4 are brought into engagement with each other to effect transfer of the tensile force or load while preventing rotation of the long and short pins A2 and A3 relative to the link plate A4.
However, the rocker surface R and the load-bearing surface C1 of each pin A2, A3 are connected together via the edge-like convexly arcuate connecting surfaces C2 having an extremely small radius of curvature not producing a substantial clearance between themselves and the inner peripheral surface of the corresponding pin hole A7, A8. As a result, it is difficult for the lubricating oil supplied from the outside of the silent chain A1 to enter between the load-bearing surfaces C1, C1 of the pins A2, A3 and the inner peripheral surface of each pin hole A7, A8. Accordingly, if the pins A2, A3 and pin holes A7, A8 have different manufacturing accuracies, abnormal wear such as local wear is likely to occur due to insufficient lubrication. This abnormal wear has a great influence on the reduction of wear of the silent chain as a whole.
In addition, when the long pins A2 are press fit into the non-circular pin holes A9, A10 of the link plates A4 to assemble a silent chain, the convexly arcuate connecting surfaces C2 of each long pin A2 are susceptible to stress concentration. When a tensile load is exerted between adjacent link plates A4 during use of the silent chain A1, the silent chain A1 as a whole is likely to cause fatigue failure due to stress concentrated on the convexly arcuate connecting surfaces C2. The fatigue failure becomes remarkable as the degree of interference between the long pins A2, A3 and the pin holes A9, A10 during press-fitting operation is enlarged to increase the joint strength between the guide plates A6 and the long pins A2 .
With the foregoing drawbacks of the prior art in view, it is an object of the present invention to provide a wear-resistant silent chain which is capable of permitting entry of a sufficient amount of lubricating oil between load-bearing surfaces of two rocker joint pins seated on an inner peripheral surface of each of a pair of pin hole in each link plate, thereby eliminating local wear which would otherwise occur between the rocker joint pins and the inner peripheral surface of each pin hole.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a wear-resistant silent chain which is capable of improving the fatigue strength of the chain by eliminating stress concentration which may occur at connecting portions between a load-bearing surface and a rocker surface of each rocker pin when a longer one of the rocker pins is press fit at each end into a pin hole in each guide plate and when the silent chain is loaded during power transmitting operation.
To achieve the foregoing objects, there is provided according to the present invention a wear-resistant silent chain including a multitude of link plates articulately connected together by a plurality of rocker joint pins, wherein each of the link plates has a pair of pin holes formed therethrough in symmetrical relationship with respect to a center of the link plate, and each of the rocker joint pins is composed of a long pin and a short pin which is smaller in length than the long pin, the long and short pins being inserted into each of the pair of pin holes in each link plate so as to be opposed to each other in such a manner that the long pin is closer to an outer end of the plate than the center of the plate, and the short pin is closer to the center of the plate than the outer end of the plate. Each of the long and short pins has an outer peripheral surface formed by, at least, a convexly arcuate rocker surface which is adjacent to the convexly arcuate rocker surface of another pin, a load-bearing surface on the side opposite to the rocker surface and being seated on an inner peripheral surface of each of the pin holes of the link plate, and a pair of lubricant guide surfaces, each lubricant guide surface extending substantially linearly from one of opposite circumferential ends of the load-bearing surface toward an adjacent one of opposite circumferential ends of the rocker surface while extending divergently with respect to the inner peripheral surface of each of the pin holes.
The terms xe2x80x9clubricant guide surface extending substantially linearlyxe2x80x9d used herein is intended to refer to not only a flat lubricant guide surface of a rectilinear profile but also a curved lubricant guide surface of a nearly straight curvilinear profile.
The wear-resistant silent chain may further includes guide plates each having a pair of pin holes each of which is defined by an inner peripheral surface substantially the same in profile as the outer peripheral surface of the long pin. Each end of the long pin is press fit in each of the pair of pin holes in each guide plate. The lubricant guide surfaces can, therefore, be connected to both circumferential ends of the rocker surface and both circumferential ends of the load-bearing surface via smoothly curved arcs.
The terms xe2x80x9can inner peripheral surface substantially the same as the inner peripheral surface of the long pinxe2x80x9d mean that the inner peripheral surface has a shape which is similar to the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the long pin but is a size smaller than the size of the outer peripheral surface in view of the press-fitting engagement between the pin hole and the long pin.
It is preferable that the inner peripheral surface of each of the pin holes in the link be subjected to shaving to improve the surface roughness of the inner peripheral surface. Owing to the improved surface roughness, the shaved inner peripheral wall of the pin hole is able to create a smooth and large lubricant flow region which ensures smooth feeding of a lubricating oil onto the load-bearing surface of the pin seated on the inner peripheral surface of each pin hole. With this lubrication, the load-bearing pin surface and the inner peripheral pin hole surface are protected against local wear.
Preferably, the inner peripheral surface of each pin hole in the link plate and each of the lubricant guide surfaces of each of the long and short pins define therebetween a substantially triangular lubricant collecting space for collecting and holding a lubricating oil therein. The triangular lubricant collecting space converges toward the load-bearing surface of the pin so that when the silent chain is traveling around the sprocket, a sufficient amount of lubricating oil is introduced between the inner peripheral surface of the pin hole and the load-bearing surface of the pin due to an inertial force acting on the lubricating oil.


An apparatus for printing a liquid crystal alignment layer of uniform thickness on a substrate of an LCD and a method for its use include an ink jet head that prevents the formation of stripes in the alignment layer as a result of variations in thickness of the alignment layer. The apparatus includes an alignment layer ink ejecting unit that includes an orifice unit having a plurality of orifices, and a plurality of control units, each including a piezoelectric element that controls the flow of ink through a corresponding one of the orifices. Each of the orifices includes a plurality of ink ejection passages through which the ink is ejected, and each of the passages terminates at nozzle, or ink ejection hole.

The present invention relates to an ink jet printing apparatus for printing an alignment layer on a substrate of a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a method for printing an alignment layer using the novel apparatus. More particularly, the present invention relates to an LCD alignment layer printing apparatus having an ink jet head incorporating a structure for ensuring that the printed alignment layer has a uniform thickness.
A liquid crystal display (LCD) forms desired images by adjusting the amount of light transmitted through the panel in accordance with image signals applied to a number of control switches arrayed in a matrix on a substrate of the panel. The LCD comprises an LCD panel on which images are displayed by disposing a liquid crystal material between a color filter substrate and a thin film transistor (TFT) substrate, an LCD drive IC for operating the LCD panel, a back-light unit used as a light source of the LCD, and a chassis used to fasten respective components of the LCD into a single display unit.
During the fabrication of an LCD panel, an alignment layer, which is used to align the molecules of the liquid crystal material in a predetermined direction, is applied on an upper substrate, viz., the color filter substrate, and a lower substrate, viz., the TFT substrate, of the display. FIG. 1A is a schematic perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a prior art LCD alignment layer printing apparatus, and FIG. 1B is a schematic perspective view of another exemplary embodiment of a prior art alignment layer printing apparatus.
The prior art alignment layer printing apparatus shown in FIG. 1A comprises an ink dispenser 141, a printing roller 142, a resin plate 143, an anilox roller 144, a doctor roller 145 and a stage 146. In this embodiment, an LCD substrate 147 is seated securely on the stage 146, and an alignment layer is printed on the substrate 147 using a flexography technique, i.e., a method in which a liquid alignment-layer-forming ink is applied on the resin plate 143 by the anilox roller, which contains a pattern of very fine dimples, or cells, corresponding to the pattern of the desired alignment layer to be formed, and then transferred from the resin plate onto the substrate 147. However, a drawback involved with using the foregoing flexography type of alignment layer printing apparatus is that it wastes a relatively large amount of the alignment layer ink during the process, thereby increasing LCD production costs.
The prior art alignment layer printing apparatus of FIG. 1B includes an ink jet head 150 for ejecting an alignment layer ink directly onto an LCD substrate 160. In this embodiment, the inkjet head 150 ejects the alignment layer ink directly onto the LCD substrate 160 through nozzles having orifices that eject the alignment layer ink onto the substrate in a pattern corresponding to the desired alignment layer 170.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged schematic perspective view of the prior art ink jet head 150 used in the prior art alignment layer printing apparatus of FIG. 1B, and FIGS. 3A and 3B are elevation views schematically illustrating a method for printing an alignment layer on an LCD substrate using the prior art ink jet head apparatus of FIG. 1B. Referring to FIG. 2, the ink jet head 150 includes a plurality of nozzles N1, N2, N3, N4, . . . , N2n−1 and N2n that are arranged in two parallel rows. The nozzles in the two rows are arranged such that the nozzles are spaced apart from one another by a selected interval, e.g., 750 microns (μm).
Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, in a first pass, or scanning session with the prior art apparatus, an alignment layer ink is ejected through the respective, spaced-apart nozzles of the ink jet head onto the substrate in the form of droplets, as illustrated in FIG. 3A, left, and the ink droplets are subsequently spread out and leveled with a wiping blade to form respective first alignment layer patterns, as illustrated in FIG. 3A, right. At this stage, since the spacing between the nozzles is relatively large, the alignment layer exhibits an undesirable variation in thickness, as illustrated in FIG. 3A, right. Then, in a second scanning session with the apparatus, the ink jet head is offset, or moved, relative to the substrate, such that the nozzles eject droplets of the alignment layer ink onto the substrate at positions intermediate of the positions at which the ink droplets were initially ejected during the first scanning session, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, left. These alignment layer droplets are also then spread out and leveled, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, right. However, as shown in FIG. 3B, right, even with this "two-session" ejection-and-leveling procedure, the alignment layer can still exhibit a variation in its thickness that results in the formation of undesirable longitudinal "stripes" in the alignment layer that can adversely affect the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules of the display, and hence, the quality of the images that it forms.

Printing alignment layers on LCD substrates with ink jet printing apparatus


A pneumatic tire comprises a tread portion provided with a tread element provided with a pair of sipes. Each sipe comprises a radially outer constant width part and a widening part extending radially inwardly from the constant width part while gradually increasing the width of the sipe and then extending to the radially inner end of the sipe while gradually decreasing the width of the sipe. Each of the paired sipes has an inside sidewall surface positioned toward the other of the paired sipes and an outside sidewall surface positioned away from the other of the paired sipes. The inside sidewall surface includes an inside curved bottom surface having a radius of curvature Rib. The outside sidewall surface includes an outside curved bottom surface having a radius of curvature Rob more than the radius of curvature Rib.

The present invention relates to a pneumatic tire whose tread portion is provided with sipes, more particularly to a design of a pair of sipes capable of preventing cracks at the bottoms of the sipes and improving demolding of the vulcanization mold with siping blades.
Pneumatic tires are often provided in the tread portion with sipes in order to adjust the rigidity of ground contacting tread elements such as block, rib and the like, or increase edge effect for improving the traction performance and braking performance on icy roads for example. If such sipped tire receives a force to open the sipes during rolling and as a result stress concentrates at the bottoms of the sipes, there is a possibility that cracks occur at the bottoms of the sipes.
In Japanese Patent Application Publication No. H3(1991)-007604, in order to prevent cracks, a sipe (a) is provided at the bottom with a circular cross sectional shape (c) whose diameter is larger the thickness (w) of the sipe as shown in FIG. 5(a).
If such sipes (a) are formed at small intervals by the use of siping blades (g) provided on the inside of a vulcanizing mold, then it becomes hard to demold or the rubber (ba) between the siping blades (g) is torn off by the siping blades (g) when demolding as shown in FIG. 5(b).


According to one embodiment, a microcapsule for selective catalysis of gases, the microcapsule comprising: a polymeric shell permeable to one or more target gases; and at least one biocatalyst disposed in an interior of the polymeric shell. In more embodiments, methods of forming such microcapsules include: emulsifying at least one biocatalyst in a polymer precursor mixture; emulsifying the polymer precursor mixture in an aqueous carrier solution; crosslinking one or more polymer precursors of the polymer precursor mixture to form a plurality of microcapsules each independently comprising: a polymeric shell permeable to one or more target gases; and at least one biocatalyst disposed in an interior of the polymeric shell. In further embodiments, corresponding methods of using the inventive microcapsules for catalyzing one or more target gases using include: exposing a plurality of the biocatalytic microcapsules to the one or more target gases.

Most chemical reactions of interest for clean energy are routinely carried out in nature. These reactions include the conversion of sunlight to chemical energy, the transfer of carbon dioxide into and out of solution, the selective oxidation of hydrocarbons (including methane to methanol), the formation of C—C bonds (including methane to ethylene), and the formation and dissolution of Si—O bonds (including enhanced mineral weathering). Conventional industrial approaches to catalyze these reactions are either inefficient or have yet to be developed.
Certain enzymes have been identified that carry out each of the aforementioned reactions. Unfortunately, industrial biocatalysis is primarily limited to the synthesis of low-volume, high-value products, such as pharmaceuticals, due to narrow operating parameters required to preserve biocatalyst activity.
Conventional gas conversion involves enzyme-catalyzed reactions typically carried out in fermenters, which are closed, stirred, tank reactors configured to use bubbled gases for mass transfer. FIG. 1, illustrates a conventional stirred tank reactor 100, which may include a motor 102, an input/feed tube 104, a cooling jacket 106, one or more baffles 108, an agitator 110, one or more gas spargers 112, and an aqueous medium 114. Gas exchange in the stirred tank reactor 100 may be achieved by bubbling from the sparger(s) 112 at the bottom of the aqueous medium 114 and gas collection above said aqueous medium 114. Care must be taken to maintain a narrow set of conditions in such stirred tank reactors to favor the desired metabolic pathways and discourage competing pathways and competing organisms. Moreover, stirred tank reactors are energy inefficient, require batch processing, suffer from loss of catalytic activity due to enzyme inactivation, and exhibit slow rates of throughput due to low catalyst loading and limited mass-transfer resulting from low solubility of the target gases in the liquid medium and relatively low surface area of the bubbled gases. Although surface area may be improved with increased stirring/agitation, this exacerbates the energy inefficiency of the stirred tank reactor and is an impractical solution to improving gas conversion efficiency.
To allow reuse of enzymes in stirred-tank reactors, and to improve stability in reactor conditions, enzymes may be immobilized on inert, artificial materials. As shown in FIG. 2, one conventional approach is to immobilize enzymes 202 on the surface of an inert material 204. Other conventional approaches may involve immobilizing enzymes on the surface of accessible pores of inert materials. However, such conventional enzyme immobilization techniques also suffer from lower volumetric catalyst densities, low throughput rates, and do not have routes for efficient gas delivery or product removal. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide systems and techniques enabling the re-use of catalytic components while also providing high surface area and mass transport to improve the catalyst density, throughput, and efficiency of gas conversion.
In addition, certain applications in which gas conversion is important, e.g. preservation of organic or gas-sensitive materials such as food, medicine, etc. may prohibit the use of a liquid medium to facilitate mass transport. Accordingly, it would be a further advantage to provide systems and techniques enabling efficient gas conversion using dry compositions capable of effective mass transport and catalysis to preserve the sensitive material.

Biocatalytic microcapsules for catalyzing gas conversion

Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC


A method for treatment and disposal of propellant wastewaters, soil washwaters or groundwaters having dissolved perchlorate salts is described, which comprises adding to the contaminated water in an anaerobic reactor a mixed bacterial culture containing a specific bacterium, HAP1, which uses perchlorate as its terminal electron acceptor and thus reduces the perchlorate ion to chloride in the water; maintaining the proper nutrient and environmental conditions for HAP1 to optimally reduce perchlorate in the water and discharging effluent wastewater from the anaerobic reactor to an aerobic reactor and maintaining proper nutrient and environmental conditions for the optimal conversion of soluble organics to carbon dioxide and sludge and reduction of BOD, COD, ammonia and odor in the effluent water.

The present invention relates to methods for biologically treating wastewater, groundwater and soil washwater contaminated with ammonium perchlorate based rocket propellants, and specifically to an economical and environmentally safe method for treatment and disposal of process wastewater containing explosive materials such as may be generated from the manufacture, maintenance, refurbishment and disposition of solid propellant rocket motors and the remediation of groundwater or soil washwater contaminated with perchlorate based material.
Existing methods for disposal of ammonium perchlorate based solid rocket propellants consist generally of open burning/open detonation of the fuel or of static firing of the fueled rocket motor. Disposal by open burning or detonation is performed in an open pit where the propellant burns in an uncontrolled manner and may explode and spread in the area immediately surrounding the burn site. This exploded material serves as a contamination point for soil and groundwater. Static firing of a rocket motor produces the same concentration of exhaust gases as are produced during a normal launch. In either disposal procedure, hydrogen chloride gas is produced at a rate of about 0.2 pound per pound of burned propellant, and nitrogen oxides and various hydrocarbons are also produced. Open burning or detonation of the propellant or static firing of the fueled rocket may therefore be considered environmentally unacceptable.
The invention solves or substantially reduces in critical importance problems in the related prior art by providing a two stage anaerobic-aerobic process for the biological reduction of wastewater containing ammonium perchlorate which may be generated from the manufacture, maintenance, refurbishment and disposition of Class 1.1 and 1.3 rocket motors or the remediation of soils an groundwaters contaminated with said materials. Class 1.1 rocket motor propellants typically contain 14% ammonium perchlorate, 14% HMX and 30% nitroglycerine as oxidizers, 20% aluminum fuel and 22% nitrocellulose binder. Class 1.3 propellants typically contain 70% ammonium perchlorate oxidizer, 17% aluminum fuel and 13% PBAN binder. Wastewater is generated from rocket motor washout operations in which propellant is removed from the motor casing with high pressure water. For class 1.3 propellants, about 7550 gallons of liquid containing about 10% by weight of ammonium perchlorate normally are produced per 10,000 pounds of propellant. Wastewater treatment according to the invention comprises reducing perchlorate to chloride in a first stage anaerobic reactor using a specific unique microorganism in a mixed culture under controlled pH and temperature conditions, followed by reduction in a second stage aerobic reactor of the organics produced in the anaerobic reactor. The effluent liquid may be disposed of routinely to a conventional sanitary sewer system.
Known in the art is a method for biochemical reduction of chromium or chlorine inorganic oxygen containing compounds in industrial wastewaters (U.S. Pat. No. 3,755,156). The process involves the mixing of said wastewaters with municipal sewage whose biological oxygen demand (BOD) exceeds the amount of oxygen in the inorganic chromium and chlorine oxides. The combined wastewaters, municipal sewage and recycled acclimated sludge are maintained under anaerobic conditions with the bioreduction of perchlorates occurring at volumetric rates of approximately 12 mg ClO.sub.4.sup.- /hr per liter. The treated wastewater is then passed to an aeration chamber for the further reduction of BOD.
Also known in the art is the controlled addition of the micro-organism Vibrio dechloraticans Cuznesove B-1168 to a similar mixture of perchlorate or chlorate bearing industrial wastewater and municipal sewage with bioreduction of those compounds to chloride salts (U.S. Pat. No. 3,943,055). This process increases the volumetric bioreduction rate of perchlorate to over 100 mg/hr per liter compared to the previous method and improves the specific perchlorate degradation rate to 70 mg ClO.sub.4.sup.- /hr per gram of biomass solids.
The invention has advantages over the prior art in that, (1) it can reduce perchlorate wastewater concentrations as high as 7750 mg per liter, a 26 fold increase over previous methods; (2) the organism used (HAP1) has a specific degradation rate of at least 1492 mg ClO.sub.4.sup.- /hr per gram of dry biomass, a 21-fold increase over previous methods; (3) it has a demonstrated continuous volumetric degradation rate at least two-fold higher (221 mg ClO.sub.4.sup.- /hr liter) than previous methods at ten-fold higher perchlorate concentrations (3000 mg/liter); (4) it provides a self-contained optimum nutrient feed system and thus does not require a municipal sewage source for operation. This is a requirement for the operation of this type of system in remote demilitarization processes and contaminated soil and groundwater sites.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a method for treating and disposing of wastewater containing perchlorate-based explosive materials.
It is another object of the invention to provide an economical and environmentally safe process for the biotreatment of perchlorate wherever desired, including, but not limited to, rocket motor washout systems, contaminated demilitarization facilities, contaminated soils or contaminated groundwater.
A further object of the invention is to provide a unique microorganism capable of degrading perchlorate at rates and concentrations significantly higher than reported in the prior art.
These and other objects of the invention will become apparent as a detailed description of representative embodiments proceeds.

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force


A heat-sensitive recording material having excellent light-fastness and raw stock storability is disclosed. The material includes a support and a heat-sensitive recording layer provided on the support, and the heat-sensitive recording layer contains a diazo compound and a coupler. The coupler contains at least one species of pyrazolone compounds represented by the following formula (1): ##STR1## wherein Ar represents a phenyl group, a naphthyl group, or an aromatic heterocyclic group, any one of which may have a substituent bonded to the nucleus, said substituent may be a halogen atom, a cyano group, a trifluoromethyl group, an alkyl group, an aryl group, an alkoxycarbonyl group, a carbamoyl group, or a sulfamoyl group; R.sup.1 and R.sup.2 independently represent an alkyl group, an alkenyl group, or an aryl group, or R.sup.1 and R.sup.2 may be linked to each other so as to form a heterocycle.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heat-sensitive recording material using a diazo compound and a coupler in combination as color-developing compounds, and particularly to a diazo heat-sensitive recording material which, after recording, exhibits excellent light-fastness with image and non-image areas.
2. Description of the Related Art
A diazo compound (diazonium salt compound) reacts with a compound called a coupler, such as phenol derivatives or compounds having an active methylene group, to form an azo dye. When irradiated with light, diazo compounds decompose and lose activity. Because of this property, diazo compounds have long been used as photosensitive recording materials; especially diazo copy (The Society of Photographic Science and Technology of Japan, "Basics of Photographic Engineering--Non-silver Salt Photography-" Corona Publishing Co., Ltd. (1982), pp. 89-117, 182-201).
Recently, diazo compounds have also been applied to recording materials which require fixation of an image. As a typical example of such application, there can be mentioned a light-fixation type heat-sensitive recording material in which a diazo compound and a coupler are heated and reacted in accordance with an image signal so as to form an image. Subsequently the thus-formed image is irradiated with light in order to be fixed (Koji SATO, et al. "The Journal of the Institute of Image Electronics Engineering of Japan" Vol. 11, No. 4 (1982), pp. 290-296).
However, these recording materials have the drawback of a relatively short shelf life since even when stored in a dark place, active diazo compounds gradually decompose thermally and thus lose reactivity. In order to solve this problem, there is proposed a method in which a diazo compound is contained in a microcapsule so as to isolate the diazo compound from water, bases, and similar compounds which would otherwise decompose the diazo compound. This method enables a recording material to dramatically increase its shelf life (Tomomasa USAML et al. "Journal of The Electrophotography Society" Vol. 26, No. 2 (1987), pp. 115-125).
A microcapsule having a glass-transition temperature higher than room temperature does not allow substances to enter through the wall at room temperature. It only allows substances to enter the wall at the glass-transition temperature or above, and thus can be applied as a heat-responsive microcapsule to a heat-sensitive recording material. Accordingly, a recording material comprising a support having a heat-sensitive recording layer coated thereon in which the heat-sensitive recording layer contains a diazo compound encapsulated in a heat-responsive microcapsule, a coupler, and a base enables: (1) the diazo compound to be stably stored over a long period of time; (2) an image to be color-developed through application of heat; and (3) an image to be fixed through irradiation with light.
Recently, there have been developed heat-sensitive recording materials of this kind having advanced functions for forming multicolor images (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) Nos. 4-135787 and 4-144784). Improved performance is desired in such heat-sensitive recording materials having advanced functions. As is fundamentally improved raw stock storability before use for recording, and improved light-fastness with image and non-image areas after use for recording.
For example, there are proposed methods of using a cyclic 1,3-diketone compound as a coupler in order to obtain a red image (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) Nos. 2-54250 and 2-54251).
However, these methods fail to sufficiently provide the above-described performance or improvements.


A circuit includes a switched-capacitor array for converting a digital signal into a corresponding amount of electric charge, a switching circuit, and a continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit. The switched-capacitor array includes a plurality of capacitors and a summing node to which the plurality of capacitors are connected. The switching circuit is coupled between the summing node and the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit, and supplies a pulsed current signal to the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit. The circuit may further include a gain stage coupled between the summing node and the switching circuit, for controlling a gain of the pulsed current signal. The gain stage may include a coupling capacitor. A digital signal is supplied to the switched capacitor array and converted into a corresponding amount of electric charge. The electric charge is supplied as a pulsed current signal to the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit without converting into a voltage signal.

The present invention relates to broadband telecommunications. More particularly, the present invention relates to a circuit interfacing a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) and a continuous-time reconstruction filter in a broadband telecommunication system.
FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a typical transmission path 10 for a broadband telecommunications system, such as an asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) system. Digital data is sent from a digital signal processing (DSP) unit 12, such as an encoder, to a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 14. The analog output of the DAC 14 represents a modulated signal that is to be transmitted on a transmission line 20 such as a telephone line (or twisted-pair copper line). Since the operation of an actual DAC is not ideal, the analog output of the DAC 14 generally contains a large amount of spurious, out-of-band harmonics generated by the zero-order hold nature of the DAC. Thus, a reconstruction filter 16 is used to reduce or substantially eliminate the out-of-band harmonics. The reconstructed transmit signal is input to a line driver 18. The line driver 18 provides sufficient power to the signal to drive the transmission line.
FIG. 2 schematically illustrates the basic structure of a typical reconstruction filter 16. As shown in FIG. 2, the reconstruction filter 16 is configured as a low-pass filter circuit, and includes an amplifier 26, a feedback resistor Rf and a capacitor C. The output of the DAC 22 is input via an input resistor 24 to the amplifier 24. However, since the operation of the DAC 14 is inherently discrete time in nature, its analog output is typically distorted from the ideal form of an impulse voltage signal shown in FIG. 3A. FIG. 3B schematically illustrates an actual analog output of the DAC 14. As shown in FIG. 3B, the actual analog output includes distortions such as stewing 27 and glitching 28. In addition, a zero-order held waveform of the DAC 14 causes a frequency dependent droop across the output band, which requires a costly correction by means of digital processing before the DAC 14 or within the subsequent analog filter.
In order to solve these problems associated with the DAC analog output distortions, a reconstruction filter having an input sampling circuit was proposed in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,215,431, entitled DROOP-FREE QUASI-CONTINUOUS RECONSTRUCTION FILTER INTERFACE, issued on Apr. 10, 2001, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference as if set forth fully herein. FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a typical reconstruction filter 30 having an input sampling circuit 32. Instead of inputting the analog voltage signal via the input resistor 24 (FIG. 2), the DAC output is resampled by the input sampling circuit 32 before being supplied to a low-pass filter portion 39. As shown in FIG. 4, the input sampling circuit 32 includes a sampling capacitor 36, a sampling switch 37, and an input switch 38.
By appropriately selecting the timings of the sampling switch 37 and the input switch 38 with respect to the clock signal of the DAC 34, the analog voltage signal from the DAC 34 is sampled at the point where the DAC 34 has settled to the correct voltage level. The sampled voltage signal is stored in the sampling capacitor 38 and then is effectively xe2x80x9cdumpedxe2x80x9d into the low-pass filter portion 39 as an impulse current signal. FIG. 3C schematically illustrates the current signal from the sampling circuit 32 input to the low-pass filter 39. As shown in FIG. 3C, the impulse current signal approximates the ideal output signal of the DAC shown in FIG. 3A.
FIG. 5 illustrates an example of circuit implementation of a reconstruction filter 40 with the resampling feature for a traditional switched-capacitor DAC 42. As shown in FIG. 5, the conventional switched-capacitor voltage-mode DAC 42 includes a capacitor array 52 controlled by a digital word, and an amplifier 54 for converting the charge from the capacitor array into an analog voltage signal. The digital word is supplied via one or more DAC references 53. The reconstruction filter 40 includes a sampling circuit 44 and a low-pass filter 46. The low-pass filter 46 is of a quasi-continuous nature, including a switched capacitor 48 in its feedback path which is synchronized with the sampling capacitor 49.
In a typical arrangement in the transmission path, as shown in FIG. 5, the switched-capacitor DAC 42 is followed by a reconstruction filter 40. Thus, an amplifier is required for the DAC 42 to generate an analog voltage signal, as well as amplifiers required in the reconstruction filter 40. However, more amplifiers consume more power in the system, and in some applications, power saving is very important. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an interface circuit for a reconstruction filter which can provide an impulse signal approximating the ideal DAC output and requires less power than prior art circuits.
A circuit includes a switched-capacitor array for converting a digital signal into a corresponding amount of electric charge, a switching circuit, and a continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit. The switched-capacitor array includes a plurality of capacitors and a summing node to which the plurality of capacitors are connected. The switching circuit is coupled between the summing node and the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit, and supplies a pulsed current signal to the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit. The circuit may further include a gain stage coupled between the summing node and the switching circuit, for controlling a gain of the pulsed current signal. The gain stage may provide a variable gain. The gain stage may include a coupling capacitor which may be programmable. A digital signal is supplied to the switched capacitor array and converted into a corresponding amount of electric charge. The electric charge is supplied as a pulsed current signal to the continuous-time reconstruction filter circuit without converting into a voltage signal.

Switched-capacitor DAC/continuous-time reconstruction filter interface circuit


The present invention is directed to an automated composting apparatus which includes a rotatable drum assembly mounted to a chassis which is adapted to provide wheeled transportability for the entire composting apparatus. Automation is provided primarily by a feedback control system having at least one sensor disposed inside the rotatable drum assembly, and being disposed to control the temperature and flow of air and/or water into the composting materials disposed in the rotatable drum assembly. The interior of the rotatable drum assembly has several unique features including a plurality of stationary dispensers mounted to a stationary, substantially hollow axle. The dispensers are adapted to disperse air and/or water into the compost material as the compost material is moved in and through the rotatable drum assembly. The drum assembly also has disposed therein, one or more elongated stripper elements which are each fixed at one end to the interior surface of the rotating drum and at the other end to a bearing member. Each bearing member is disposed on and rotates around the stationary axle. A unique spiral or semi-spiraled feed vane is also attached to the inner surface of the rotating drum to move the compost material in and through the rotating drum.

Composting is a process which generally provides two major benefits. It provides a method for handling organic waste materials so that these materials need not be disposed of in landfills, incinerators or in other non-environmentally beneficial disposal facilities. Furthermore, composting produces end materials, also known as the finished compost, which is highly regarded for its ability to improve soils and enhance plant growth. See: E. Fabian, et al. "Agricultural Composting: A Feasibility Study for New York Farms, a Staff Report from Cornell Composting" (February, 1993).
However, most traditional methods of composting suffer considerable drawbacks. Composting in windows, piles, pits or vaults necessitates the usage of considerable time and real estate. Large machinery is then also necessary to turn the composting materials in order to aerate the materials. Compaction is yet another problem with these methods. Thorough decomposition of the compost materials requires maintenance of proper levels of moisture, heat and aeration in the mass throughout the process. Compost materials which are simply stacked in stationary windrows, piles or pits do not permit accurate maintenance of these critical conditions throughout the mass of composting materials.
There have been attempts to address these conditions in the past. For instance, several persons have proposed rotating cylindrical composting apparatuses to avoid compaction and remove the need for large machinery to turn the composting material. See e.g., Carlsson et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 2,954,285); Shibayama et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 3,676,074); Eweson (U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,799); Kreuzburg et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,959); and Murphy et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,169,782); among others.
Moreover, the movement of rotatable cutting and scraping elements through composting material to agitate these materials and keep them from compacting have also been attempted. See e.g., Brown (U.S. Pat. No. 3,556,420); Waldenville (U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,939); Robbins (U.S. Pat. No. 3,850,364) and Brill (U.S. Pat. No. 4,411,682). However, in each of these examples the cutters and scrapers are fixed to a rotating shaft mounted within a stationary cylindrical drum.
Furthermore, some of those previous composting apparatuses which have had rotating drums as parts of their assemblies have also taught the affixation of various elements to the interior surfaces of the rotating drums for the purpose of, inter alia, agitating and lifting and moving the mass of composing materials along the length of the rotating drum. For example, Murphy, ibid, disclosed longitudinal vanes; Shibayama, ibid, taught lifting cross pieces and Kreuzburg, ibid, taught partition walls. Also, Eweson taught the attachment of knives and chains to the interior surface of a rotating drum to cut, shred, crush and grind composting materials moving therethrough.
Still further, limited computerized composting controls have been introduced in Waldenville, ibid, Blackwood et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,049,486) and C. Eccles et al., "Controlled Composting, Microcomputers Monitor Static Pile Performance," BioCycle (January 1987). These have all three been generally directed to time and/or temperature measurements and control of non-rotating drum composting environments.
However, even in view of these prior apparatuses, there remains a need for a composting apparatus which provides satisfactory control over the amounts of aeration, moisture and heat present throughout a mass of moving composting materials. It is toward the satisfaction of this need that the present invention is directed.

Transportable, self-contained, fully automated composter


A welder power supply and welding method are provided which welds in a DCEN state, but when a short circuit is detected the current waveform switches to an EP state and the short circuit is cleared while the electrode has a positive polarity.

Field of the Invention
Devices, systems, and methods consistent with the invention relate to welding, and more specifically to devices, systems and methods for welding and clearing a short circuit.
Description of the Related Art
In electric arc welding, it is generally known that welding in an electrode negative state can result in a lower overall heat input during a welding operation. For example. It is generally known that GMAW type welding can be done with a pulse waveform in an electrode negative state. However, it has been noticed that when a short circuit occurs in the electrode negative state and is cleared using a negative polarity an arc instability or spatter event can occur. That is, for example, during certain pulse periods, especially in applications where the welding electrode operates very close to the workpiece, molten metal contacts the workpiece before being entirely released from the advancing wire electrode. This creates a short circuit (a.k.a., a short) between the advancing wire electrode and the workpiece. It is desirable to eliminate or clear the short rapidly to obtain the consistency associated with proper pulse welding. However, clearing a short can result in undesirable spatter being generated. Such spatter causes inefficiencies in the welding process and can result in molten metal being spattered over the workpiece which may have to be removed later using a grinding tool, for example.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional, traditional, and proposed approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such approaches with embodiments of the present invention as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.

Apparatus and method for welding with AC waveform


External connection conductors are arranged on a back surface of a base material, and wiring conductors are arranged on a front surface. An insulating layer is provided on surfaces of the wiring conductors. Component mounting conductors are provided on a surface of the insulating layer. The component mounting conductor and the wiring conductor are electrically coupled to each other, and the component mounting conductor and the wiring conductor are electrically coupled to each other. The wiring conductor and the external connection conductor are electrically coupled by a conductor film on an inner wall surface of a hole provided between forming areas of the component mounting conductors. The wiring conductor and the external connection conductor are electrically coupled by a conductor film on an inner wall surface of a hole provided between the forming areas of the component mounting conductors.

LED illumination using a light emitting diode (LED) has become popular now because it offers power saving and long life.
An LED element has low electrostatic resistance. Hence, when the LED element is simply and directly mounted on a motherboard, it is highly likely to be broken by direct influence of static electricity resulting from the motherboard or static electricity applied from the outside via the motherboard. To avoid this, it is conceivable to connect an electrostatic protection element to the LED element. However, when the LED element is directly mounted on the motherboard, the electrostatic protection element also needs to be mounted near the LED element. This increases the total mounting area, and miniaturization is not achieved.
Accordingly, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-251644 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-270327 describe a structure in which an LED element is mounted on a motherboard with a mounting substrate, including a base material of silicon single crystal or a ceramic material, being disposed therebetween. There is a method for providing the mounting substrate with the function of the above-described electrostatic protection element.
Such a mounting substrate is shaped like a flat plate. An LED element is mounted on a front side of the mounting substrate, and a back side of the mounting substrate is mounted on a motherboard. For this reason, component mounting conductors are provided on a front surface of the base material of the mounting substrate, and external connection conductors are provided on a back surface of the base material. To ensure continuity between the component mounting conductors and the external connection conductors, connection conductors are provided to penetrate the base material.
For example, FIGS. 9(A), 9(B), and 9(C) show a front view, a sectional side view, and a back view of an example of a mounting substrate of the related art.
A mounting substrate 10P1 includes a base material 20 shaped like a flat plate. On a front surface of the base material 20, component mounting conductors 31 and 32 are provided. On a back surface of the base material 20, external connection conductors 41 and 42 are provided. The component mounting conductor 31 and the external connection conductor 41 are provided to be superposed on each other when the base material 20 is viewed in plan. The component mounting conductor 32 and the external connection conductor 42 are provided to be superposed on each other when the base material 20 is viewed in plan. The component mounting conductor 31 and the external connection conductor 41 are coupled by a conductive via 51P1 penetrating the base material 20 in the thickness direction. The component mounting conductor 32 and the external connection conductor 42 are coupled by a conductive via 52P1 penetrating the base material 20 in the thickness direction.
The conductive vias 51P1 and 52P1 are filled with a conductive material. When conductive vias 51P1 and 52P1 are used, they need to have a small diameter to prevent the substrate from being broken by thermal stress of the conductive material.
However, the difficulty in filling the conductive material increases as the diameter decreases. Hence, it takes much time to fill the conductive material.
For this reason, for example, structures using through holes illustrated in FIGS. 10(A) through 10(C) and 11(A) through 11(C) have been hitherto used. FIGS. 10(A), 10(B), and 10(C) and FIGS. 11(A), 11(B), and 11(C) each show a front view, a sectional side view, and a back view of a different example of a mounting substrate of the related art.
In a mounting substrate 10P2 illustrated in FIGS. 10(A), 10(B), and 10(C), the conductive vias 51P1 and 52P1 of the mounting substrate 10P1 are replaced by conductive through holes 51P2 and 52P2. Other structures are the same.
The conductive through holes 51P2 and 52P2 include holes 511P2 and 521P2 having a certain diameter, respectively. The hole 511P2 penetrates a component mounting conductor 31, a base material 20, and an external connection conductor 41. The hole 521P2 penetrates a component mounting conductor 32, the base material 20, and an external connection conductor 42. A conductor film 512P2 is provided on an inner wall surface of the hole 511P2. A conductor film 522P2 is provided on an inner wall surface of the hole 521P2.
In a mounting substrate 10P3 illustrated in FIGS. 11(A), 11(B), and 11(C), structures of conductive holes 51P3 and 52P3 are different from those of the conductive through holes 51P2 and 52P2 of the mounting substrate 10P2. Other structures are the same.
The conductive holes 51P3 and 52P3 include holes 511P3 and 521P3 having a certain diameter, respectively. The hole 511P3 penetrates an external connection conductor 41 and a base material 20, and reaches a surface of a component mounting conductor 31 on the base material 20. The hole 521P3 penetrates an external connection conductor 42 and the base material 20, and reaches a surface of a component mounting conductor 32 on the base material 20.
A conductor film 512P3 is provided on an inner wall surface of the hole 511P3. The conductor film 512P3 is provided not only on the inner wall surface of the hole 511P3 in the base material 20, but also on the inner wall surface of the hole 511P3 at the component mounting conductor 31. A conductor film 522P3 is provided on an inner wall surface of the hole 521P3. The conductor film 522P3 is provided not only on the inner wall surface of the hole 521P3 in the base material 20, but also on the inner wall surface of the hole 521P3 at the component mounting conductor 32.

Mounting substrate and light emitting device


In a device for rotating a stack of two-dimensional sheet-type or film-type products, or a stack thereof, at least two drive-roller pairs (11, 12; 13, 14) which are disposed beside one another so as to be spaced apart for conveying the products (1) are provided, the drive speed of said drive-roller pairs being modifiable in such a manner that the two roller pairs, oriented toward the same conveying direction, are operable at different speeds.

In envelope-filling technology nowadays, the documents are mostly printed and processed so as to be 2-up, that is to say having two documents beside one another. The documents mostly have the standardized format of DIN-A4, letter or legal, and are printed in a portrait style (on end). On the other hand, in envelope-filling technology nowadays envelope-filling is preferably carried out into envelopes which have the opening and thus the envelope flap on the long side. In order to process applications in which the documents are folded in order to be packed into envelopes of the C5, C6/5, or similar formats, on account of folding the short edge of the portrait-fed initial document automatically becomes the long edge of the folded format. The document, which has been infed in the portrait style having the short edge leading, may thus be packed in the folded format having the long edge leading into the envelope.
If, for example, documents infed in the portrait format are to be packed unfolded into a C4 envelope on one and the same machine, the documents have to be rotated by 90° in order for them to be able to be conveyed and envelope-filled having the long edge leading (landscape style) and without having to deflect said documents by 90° (i.e. to convey them onward in a lateral manner), which then would prevent processing of folded applications. The direction of rotation, to the right or to the left, is mostly determined by the position of the window in the envelope.
It is proposed in patent CA1077534 (family: DE2829221A1/U.S. Pat. No. 4,155,440A) titled "Document Turning Station" to rotate a document by 90° by way of a plurality of rollers which are disposed parallel to one another and rotate at different speeds. Rotation here takes place about a corner of the document. In this variant of rotation the center axis is thus permanently displaced in the conveying direction.
DE 10219569A1 titled "Rotating installation of an ID card" a rotating installation which by means of rotating balls and a stop rotates ID cards about said stop. This method has the disadvantage that it can be employed only for rigid objects; a single document would be bent and damaged, a stack of documents could not be processed as it would slide apart. Moreover, the method is reliant on conveying the object to be rotated along a curved edge, which is not possible with a corner of a sheet of paper.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,137 titled "Right Angle Turn Table and Method" a rotating installation for rotating documents by means of two conveyor belts which operate at different speeds is described. The long space requirement, the inaccurate rotation requiring subsequent lateral alignment, which in the case of thin sheets may often lead to a rising of the edge and thus to disruptions are disadvantageous. Furthermore, a stack of documents cannot be processed using this solution, since the document on the lower side merely bears on two belts and on the upper side is merely guided by light rollers. Moreover, a stack of documents would slide apart when impacting the stop roller which initiates the rotation. Furthermore, there is the risk of damage to the edge of the sheet by the stop which initiates the rotation and about which the document is rotated.
In DE 102007054822A1 a "Device for rotating flat objects, in particular blanks for folding boxes" is proposed. On account of the free rotation said device is not suitable for rotating light sheets of paper which, on account of their very light dead weight, would shift out of place in an uncontrolled manner. Rotating a stack of sheets is not at all possible, since said stack would also internally shift out of place. The unit requires a large space. The alignment of the entire unit which is additionally required in order to achieve a good rotation result, for optimization moreover requires a large number of identical objects to be rotated, while in the case of the requirements of the present remit various thicknesses and numbers of sheets may occur from one object to another.
The object of the present invention lies in proposing a further solution for rotating sheet-type products, such as, in particular, documents individually or in stacks, letters, and the like, which enables an increased throughput rate in the case of the rotating operation, requires little space, enables a variable thickness to be processed and also processing of a plurality of loosely stacked documents, and all this without permanently displacing the conveying axis.
According to the invention a device and a method as disclosed herein are proposed.
The present invention proposes a solution by way of which this rotating operation can be performed at a significantly higher throughput rate and less strain on both the documents and the machine elements.
The objects to be rotated are individual documents or document groups of a plurality of documents which are stacked on top of one another or, in more general terms, two-dimensional objects. Elsewhere, these may also be envelopes, non-filled, filled, having an open or closed flap. The documents or document groups are infed into the chain of the entry modules in the portrait style (longitudinally). The rotating device has the task of rotating the documents/document groups by 90°, selectively in a clockwise or counter-clockwise manner, so that said documents/document groups can subsequently be infed in the landscape style (transversely) to the enveloping module. Of course, the rotation from landscape to portrait or of equilateral documents or those of non-rectangular shape is also possible. Documents which are already delivered in the correct orientation, that is to say folded documents for example, have to be able to be conveyed by the rotating device without rotating.
The center of the document should lie both ahead of the rotation and after the rotation on the same axis. During the rotating operation, the center of the document can travel along a curve of any desired shape, however.
Stopping the documents with subsequent on-the-spot rotation during start-stop operation requires a relatively large amount of time; cycle times which are required in the future can therefore no longer be achieved. A principle is therefore required which rotates the documents in a controlled manner by 90° in the desired direction within a short time, but without permanently displacing the document laterally in the process and optionally also allowing documents which are not to be rotated to be conveyed onward.
The rotation of the documents is implemented by two roller pairs which rotate at different speeds and in this manner set the document (or the document group) which is clamped between the rollers into a rotating movement. The two drive-roller pairs may in each case dispose of a separate drive.
It is proposed that the roller pairs, oriented toward the same conveying direction, rotate at different speeds and conveying of the documents is not interrupted, i.e. that no start-stop operation takes place, as is known in part from the prior art.
Further variants of embodiments of the device and also of the inventive method are characterized in the dependent claims.
The invention is now explained in more detail in an exemplary manner and with reference to the appended figures.

Rotating device for flat products or for a stack thereof


An apparatus for use in moving a control surface during operation of an aircraft includes a flexible drive shaft to be connected with an actuator assembly by a coupling assembly. Operation of the actuator assembly operates a force transmission apparatus to move a control surface on an aircraft. The coupling assembly includes an input member connected with the flexible drive shaft and an output member which may be connected with the actuator assembly. A plurality of balls interconnect the input and output members and are rotatable to accommodate relative movement between the input and output members.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for use in moving a control surface during operation of an aircraft.
A known apparatus for use in moving a control surface during operation of an aircraft includes an actuator which is disposed on a wing of an aircraft and is connected with the control surface. A flexible drive shaft connects the actuator with a source of power. A coupling is provided between the flexible drive shaft and the actuator. This coupling has a polygonal cross sectional configuration.
To obtain relative movement between the actuator and the flexible drive shaft, a locking interaction at polygonal surfaces of the coupling must be overcome. However, the locking interaction at the polygonal surfaces of the coupling requires a relatively large force to effect relative movement between the actuator and the flexible drive shaft.


An information handling system and method provide for receiving a request to remove a selected physical disk from a disk group realizing a virtual disk in a redundant array data storage subsystem, determining whether removal of the selected physical disk is feasible, and, when feasible, removing the selected physical disk from the disk group without deleting the virtual disk realized by the disk group and reconstructing the virtual disk to be realized by the disk group using only the proposed number of physical disks, wherein the proposed number of physical disks is less than an initial number of physical disks of the disk group.

As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option is an information handling system. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes. Technology and information handling needs and requirements can vary between different applications. Thus information handling systems can also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information can be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems can include a variety of hardware and software resources that can be configured to process, store, and communicate information and can include one or more computer systems, graphics interface systems, data storage systems, networking systems, and mobile communication systems. Information handling systems can also implement various virtualized architectures. Data and voice communications among information handling systems may be via networks that are wired, wireless, or some combination.
One subsystem of an information handling system is a storage subsystem. A storage subsystem can be implemented using a redundant array of independent disks (RAID). A RAID storage subsystem comprises a RAID controller and a disk group (DG). The DG comprises a plurality of physical disks (PDs) configured to store information which is presented to the information handling system as being stored on a virtual disk (VD) even though the storage of the information is distributed among the PDs. The VD is thus realized by the DG. A PD of the PDs may be replaced by a replacement PD through the use a member replacement feature of the RAID controller. In existing RAID storage subsystems, a PD cannot be removed to reconstruct a VD using fewer than the existing number of PDs.
In an existing RAID storage subsystem, when the system has multiple disks connected and all the disks are in use (for example, all disks are used for RAID creation), if user is in need of a disk to assign as a hot spare or as hot spares for an important VD or to new create VD, the user has to delete an existing VD to make a PD free and then use it for any other operation.
For example, if the user has created a RAID level 5 VD with four PDs (for example, HDD1, HDD2, HDD3, HDD4) and the user wants to migrate to RAID level 5 with three disks (for example, HDD1, HDD2, HDD3), then the controller would not allow such migration even though RAID level 5 can be utilized with minimum of three PDs. Now, if the user is in need of a disk and doesn't have a free PD for creating new VD or to assign as a dedicated hot spare (DHS) or a global hot spare (GHS), the user cannot perform disk level migration from a RAID level 5 VD realized using four PDs to a RAID level 5 VD realized with three PDs even in a situation where the same VD data capacity can be realized using three of the four PDs.
Currently, if a RAID level 5 VD is created with four PDs (for example, HDD1 (100 GB), HDD2 (100 GB), HDD3 (100 GB), HDD4 (100 GB)) with a VD capacity of 50 GB, the individual used disk space will be 12.5 GB for each PD, where GB stands for gigabytes. Even though HDD1 (12.5 GB/100 GB), HDD2 (12.5 GB/100 GB), HDD3 (12.5 GB/100 GB), and HDD4 (12.5 GB/100 GB) each have little of their available capacity used to store data of the VD, the RAID controller will not allow migration of the VD by removing one of the PDs, for example, such as removing HDD4 (12.5 GB) and splitting its data among the other HDDs (for example, HDD1, HDD2, and HDD3).
The use of the same reference symbols in different drawings indicates similar or identical items.

Enhanced reconstruction in an array of information storage devices by physical disk reduction without losing data


A blending system incorporating a blender with an operating cavity housing a plurality of elongate rod elements extending at least partially along the length of the operating cavity such that controlled relative movement between the rod elements and a multi-constituent composition within the operating cavity causes the development of predefined structures within the multi-constituent composition. The cavity within the blender incorporates a diminished cross-section in the vicinity of its terminal end. Methods to provide controlled development of microstructures and properties are also provided.

It is generally known that two or more constituent materials can be mixed to obtain a composition in which the constituents are substantially completely dispersed so as to yield a homogenous final composition of predefined character. Such practices may be carried out by known equipment such as screw extruders and blade blenders and yield extruded or batch compositions of generally consistent non-alterable morphology. The properties of such compositions are thus defined almost exclusively by the compositional character of the blended material without regard to structure. That is, the dispersed individual constituents are not controlled in a manner to impart particular desired structural characteristics.
It has been proposed to use so-called smart blenders based on chaotic advection (also known as chaotic mixing) to produce controlled morphological characteristics within a resulting extrudate. Such systems are disclosed, for example, in my U.S. Pat. No. 6,770,340, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. As will be appreciated, unlike mixers such as screw extruders and the like that do not have as a goal the formation of specific structures among material components, blenders based on chaotic advection operate to stretch and fold the constituents within the compositional blend to progressively develop a defined sequence of physical structures that are retained within the blend composition following extrusion. Thus, by controlling the degree of blending, predefined morphological characteristics may be achieved within an extrudate formed from the blend composition.


A method of displaying, for a system for anti-collision monitoring of an aircraft, the limits of flight margins in relation to obstructions located in a flight zone, and a device for displaying the limits of operational flight margins and the limits of alert zones, is provided. The operational flight margins in the flight zones not initially envisaged, and the limits of the alert zones around the trajectory of the aircraft, are presented.

Owing to the type of missions carried out, landing and takeoff in zones that are difficult to access, sometimes unprepared, or flight at low altitude, a helicopter, for example, is a craft which is very highly exposed to the risk of collision with obstacles situated in its close environment. Beyond the geographical aspect, during medical evacuation operations, the use of the helicopter is quite often reserved for emergency survival cases for which swiftness of action and the continuation of the mission are vital in respect of the victim to be rescued. The urgent nature of the mission and the taking of risks which stems therefrom, correspondingly increase the risks of being in proximity to obstacles.
The person skilled in the art is familiar with systems of TAWS type, "Terrain Awareness and Warning System". The aim of these systems is to generate an alert when the aircraft is in a dangerous situation where the operational margins are no longer complied with TAWSs in the guise of autonomous computer or computer integrated with the TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) function and WXR (Weather Band X Radar) function, in an ISS (Integrated Surveillance System), fulfill a primary function of terrain anti-collision surveillance ("Safety Net") and the aim of which is the emission of audible alerts upon an exceptional approach to the relief allowing the crew to react by engaging a vertical resource before it is too late.
Accordingly, the TAWS systems, decoupled from navigation systems, proceed in two ways. They periodically compare the theoretical trajectory that would be described by the aircraft during a resource and compare it with a sectional cut through the terrain and with the obstacles overflown obtained on the basis of a worldwide digital terrain model embedded aboard the computer. Or then, some TAWSs also integrate modes termed "reactive modes" which, by periodically comparing some of the current parameters of the craft, for example the radio-altitude and the vertical speed, various charts determine whether the current situation of the aircraft is a normal situation or whether it is potentially dangerous. In the latter case, an alert, limited to a verbal message, is generated to inform the crew. The availability of a model of the terrain permits functions making it possible to improve the perception of the situation of the crew. Among them, the alert lines have the objective of delimiting the terrain zones for which a TAWS alert might appear. For their part, the "Alert Areas" show the zones giving rise to a TAWS alert. These alert lines are displayed in the navigation display device, commonly called the "navigation display".
Beyond the logic of alerts, the requirements expressed by pilots are to have at their disposal graphical information allowing them to remain outside of situations that may evolve dangerously.
One known at-risk obstacle zone detection system compares the position of an obstacle in relation to the current position of the aircraft. The calculation method for determining the risk of the dangerous zones does not take into account the current behavior of the aircraft, nor the capabilities of the aircraft. Moreover, the display of the zones of obstacles shows the zones for which alerts are already engaged.
A display of the zones at risk for which alerts are already engaged aboard the aircraft is also known.

Method and device for displaying the limits of flight margins for an aircraft


A winding device for a Venetian blind includes at least one support seat secured to a headrail to correspond to the position of at least one pull cord and having an inside formed with a through hole and a side formed with a guide hole, and at least one slide bushing mounted on a drive shaft to rotate therewith and pivotally mounted in the through hole of the at least one support seat. Thus, the wound pull cord pushes the slide bushing to move relative to the support seat during rotation of the slide bushing, so that the pull cord is wound around the slide bushing smoothly by movement of the slide bushing so as to lift the pull cord smoothly.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a winding device and, more particularly, to a winding device for a window covering, such as the Venetian blind and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
A winding device for a Venetian blind is used to wind or unwind two pull cords to lift or lower the two pull cords so as to fold or expand the slats of the Venetian blind. The conventional winding device comprises a threaded rod rotatably screwed into a screw bore so that the two pull cords are wound or unwound by movement of the threaded rod. However, the winding device has an expensive price, thereby increasing costs of fabrication. In addition, it is necessary to screw the threaded rod into the screw bore, thereby wasting the working time and manual work in assembly of the winding device.