A heat treatable sputter-coated layer system for glass substrates may be applied before heat treatment if the layer system includes a metallic layer of nickel or a high nickel content alloy covered by a separate layer of metallic silicon or an oxide of nickel or the high nickel content alloy, which in turn is covered by a protective metal oxide such as stoichiometric Sn O.sub.2.

The popularity of metal and metal oxide coated glasses in architectural and automotive design is well known. As reported prolifically in patent and other literature, such glasses, through the manipulation of the coating's layering system, usually by choice of metals and/or metal oxides and/or thicknesses, can usually achieve, quite acceptably, the degree of reflectance, transmittance, emissivity and durability, as well as the color desired. See, for example, in this respect, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,935,351; 4,413,877; 4,462,883; 3,826,728; 3,681,042; 3,798,146; and 4,594,137 just to name a few.
It has also been well reported that while several reasonably acceptable techniques exist for applying such coatings, one of the most efficacious, and thus preferred, is the well known technique referred to as "magnetically enhanced sputter-coating". Such a technique is reported in U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,018, a recognized fundamental teaching on the subject. (See also, Munz et al. "Performance and Sputtering Criteria of Modern Architectural Glass Coatings" SPIE Vol. 325 Optical Thin Films, 1982 pp. 65-73.)
While efficacious for many known layer systems, the use of sputter-coating has been known to result in mechanical durability qualities less than that achieved by another known method called the "pyrolytic" technique. As a reverse function, however, sputter-coated systems often achieve better infrared reflectance than typical pyrolytic coatings. Also, sputter-coated glasses have generally been recognized as having superior optical and thermal performance characteristics than pyrolytically formed coatings, such as having improved coating uniformity, good emittance, and better solar performance characteristics. It is clear, that if a sputter-coating technique could be devised for a particular coating system wherein the mechanical durability qualities of the sputter-coated system could approach or equal that of a pyrolytic technique, while at the same time achieving the enhanced benefits of sputter-coated technology, a significant step forward in the art would be made. The subject invention described below, in the preferred embodiments thereof, achieves this long-felt need in the art.
In recent years, the popularity of coated glasses has occasioned numerous attempts at achieving a coated glass article which prior to heat treatment can be coated, and which thereafter, can be heat treated without adversely changing the characteristics of the coated glass article. One of the reasons for this is, for example, that it can be extremely difficult to achieve a uniform coating on an already bent piece of glass. It is well known that if a flat glass surface can be coated and thereafter bent, much simpler techniques can be used to get a uniform coating than if the glass has been previously bent.
Certain techniques have been developed in the past for making heat treatable glass articles which may then, and thereafter, be heat treated by way of tempering, bending, or a technique known as "heat strengthening". Generally speaking, many of these prior techniques have suffered from not being truly heat treatable at the higher elevated temperatures necessary to achieve economic bending, tempering, and/or heat strengthening (i.e. 1150.degree. F.-1450.degree. F.). In short, such techniques have often suffered from a need to keep the temperature at approximately 1100.degree.0 F. or less in order to achieve heat treatability without adversely affecting the glass or its substrate.
In this respect, however, two of the inventors of this invention have previously invented and offered for sale certain prior art coating systems which can be heat treated successfully at the higher, more elevated temperatures aforesaid, to achieve tempering, bending, or heat strengthening. Generally speaking, these prior art coating compositions find their uniqueness in a layering system which employs as a metallic layer, a high nickel content alloy which, in its preferred form, is an alloy known as Haynes 214, consisting essentially of 75.45% Ni, 4.00% Fe, 16.00% Cr, 0.04% C, 4.50% Al, and 0.01% Y (percentages are by weight). By using a high nickel content alloy, such as Haynes 214, and overcoating it with stoichiometric tin oxide (Sn O.sub.2) either alone or with other layers (such as an undercoating of the same stoichiometric tin oxide and/or an intermediate layer of aluminum between the top Sn O.sub.2 layer and the high content nickel alloy), it was found that heat treatability of glass articles at elevated temperatures of from approximately 1150.degree. F.-1450.degree. F. from about 2- 30 minutes, could be achieved without substantial degradation of color, durability, chemical resistance, emissivity, reflectance or transmittance. These compositions therefore constituted a significant improvement over prior heat treatable systems such as those disclosed in the following patents: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,790,922; 4,816,034; 4,826,525; 4,715,879; and 4,857,094.
In addition to the above disclosures in the aforesaid patents, the Leybold "Spectrum" windshield glass system TCC-2000 is also known. In this system, four or five layers of metals and metal oxides are employed to obtain a sputter-coated glass which, being somewhat heat treatable at temperatures up to 1100.degree. F. may be used as a pre-coated glass for making bent or unbent, glass windshields, provided that rapid time limits are placed on the heat treatment. The layering from glass substrate outwardly usually includes a first layer of tin oxide, a second layer of nickel/chrome alloy (usually about 80/20), a third layer of silver, a fourth layer of the nickel/chrome alloy, and a fifth layer of tin oxide. In addition to the rather low upper limit on heat treatment temperatures and times, the resultant coatings are rather soft and exhibit such unacceptably low chemical resistance characteristics that they can realistically be used only on the inner surfaces of laminated glass windshields.
In the aforesaid U.S. Pat. No. 4,715,879 it is specifically taught that the layering system therein can not be achieved unless the protective layer of a metal oxide (e.g. tin oxide) be formed such that the oxide has an oxygen deficit (i.e. is non-stoichiometric). This, of course, requires delicate balancing in the manufacturing process. Heat treatability, in this respect, is also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,525. However, in this patent it is specifically taught that a layer of aluminum must be applied to achieve heat treatability.
The alloy most preferred for use as the high content nickel alloy (i.e. a nickel alloy having a nickel content greater than about 50% by weight) in the practice of this invention is an alloy produced by Haynes International Corporation known as Haynes Alloy No. 214. This alloy is a nickel-based, high temperature alloy that is known for its excellent resistance to oxidation, carburization, and chlorination. Its nominal chemical composition is as stated aforesaid. While this particular unique alloy, as well as nickel and/or other alloys thereof having a nickel content by weight of greater than about 50% have been found to be useful in the practice of the subject invention, it is not by the use of these alloys alone that the improvements achieved by the subject invention are realized. The improvements, instead, are realized from a unique layering system, as opposed to a particular layer in and of itself.
There are three different types of heat treatments that are generally employed in working glass for architectural or automotive purposes; namely, bending, tempering, and a lesser form of tempering called "heat strengthening" or "hardening". When bending without tempering conventional 1/4" clear float glass, for example, times of 10-30 minutes at 1150.degree. F. or more, are generally necessary to use. In heat strengthening or tempering such glasses, with or without bending, temperatures as high as about 1450.degree. F. (e.g. 1150.degree. F.-1450.degree. F.) are normally employed for about 2-5 minutes. As can be seen, there are significant drawbacks to many of the known or reported prior art techniques which are limited in their upper temperatures, for providing heat treatable, coated glasses, particularly of the efficacious sputter-coated type. By the term "heat treatable" as used herein, therefore, is meant that the coated (layered) glass can undergo one or more of the above three treatments, and that in the preferred forms of this invention heat treatability can take place for the requisite periods of time at temperatures of from 1150.degree. F.-1450.degree. F.
Coated glasses for use in architectural or automotive design (e.g. vehicular privacy windows) generally have eight (8) characteristics which determine their efficacy and/or marketability: commercial feasibility, durability (mechanical resistance to abrasion), chemical resistance, long-term stability, emissivity, transmittance, reflectivity, and color. In prior systems, including those developed by two of the inventors herein, as reported hereinabove, some of the characteristics had to be significantly compromised in order to achieve the necessary degree of acceptability for the remaining characteristics. For example, in the case of the inventors' prior systems, while high temperature heat treatability was achieved, mechanical durability was not optimized. For this and other reasons, therefore, it is apparent that there exists a need in the art for a heat treatable, coated glass useful in architectural and/or automotive design which does not significantly compromise any of the above eight characteristics, and which preferably also may be heat treated (i.e. bent, tempered and/or heat strengthened) at the upper temperature ranges and times of such treatments. There is also a need for a coating which can be formed by sputter-coating techniques, but which also achieves the mechanical durability of pyrolytically formed coatings.
It is a purpose of this invention to fulfill the above-described needs, as well as other needs apparent to the skilled artisan from the following detailed description of this invention.

Heat treatable sputter-coated glass systems


A fiber reinforced composite shaft bearing a metallic flanged end coupling (Fl) attached to the outside diameter through a concentric cylindrical torsional joint, comprising:                a) a cylindrical end region comprising a wedge shaped inner layer of fiber (Hp) composite;        b) a layer of outer helical composite plies (He) forming the shaft and extending over the wedge shaped inner layer, wherein the layer of outer helical plies has a tapered end part overlying wedge shaped inner layer to form the cylindrical end portion, wherein all helical plies of fibre layers are exposed on an outer surface; and        c) a metallic flanged end coupling attached to the outer surface of the cylindrical end region through a primary mechanically interface (Sp) which may be splined.

Composite shafts for use in torque carrying, power transmission applications are highly dynamic as in motor propshafts, marine shafts, aircraft flap shafts, helicopter drive shafts, industrial drive shafts, wind turbines and dynamometers. They are required to have good torsional, static and fatigue strength coupled with a high whirling resistance. To achieve the latter, low shaft densities, large diameters, reduced length and high longitudinal modulus are all advantageous characteristics. However, for any specific design application the lengths and diameters of the shafts are fixed. A material combination with high specific axial modulus (high longitudinal modulus and low density) is required to produce a shaft with high resistance to whirling. To achieve this, composite tubes reinforced with high modulus fibres and in particular high modulus carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) are the materials of choice. Torque is transferred through flanged end fittings attached to the shaft ends. A structurally efficient design of this joint mechanism is the subject of this invention.
Fiber reinforced composite shafts exhibit advantages over metallic shafts, i.e., they are lighter in weight, more resistant to corrosion, stronger, and more inert. Fibre reinforced drive shafts comprising both glass fibers and carbon fibers in a resinous matrix have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,089,190, "Carbon Fiber Drive Shaft" by Worgan and Reginald. Tubular fibre reinforced composites have been proposed, as demonstrated by U.S. Pat. No. 2,882,072 issued to Noland on Apr. 14, 1959, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,661,670 issued to Pierpont on May 9, 1972, and in British Pat. No. 1,356,393 issued on Jun. 12, 1974. Vehicle drive shafts from tubular fiber reinforced composites, as demonstrated by U.S. Pat. No. 4,041,599 issued to Smith on Aug. 16, 1977, and to Rezin and Yates (Celanese Corporation) in U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,626. Here the filaments bearing an uncured thermosetting resin are wound around a mandrel until the desired thickness has been established, whereupon the resinous material is cured. Zones or layers are positioned circumferentially within the wall of the shaft in the specific angular relationships there disclosed. The transmission of torque into the composite shaft through mechanical and adhesive joints is the subject of a series of further Celanese U.S. patents granted in 1980-1981: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,185,472, 4,187,135, 4,214,932, 4,236,386, 4,238,539, 4,238,540, 4,259,382 and 4,265,951. Mechanical fixing of a tubular composite shaft through an internally fitted tubular metallic splined interface is described in JP2001065538 by Manabu et al (Mitsubishi Motors Corp.)
Composite shafts can be manufactured in a variety of ways. Filament winding allows combinations of winding helix angles, ply thicknesses and fibre type to be used in optimised lay ups. The main shaft may be made from fibrous reinforcement in a polymeric matrix. The fibres may be based on carbon, glass, ceramic or high stiffness polymer filaments or from hybrid mixes of these fibrous forms. The matrix may be based on thermosetting polymers such as epoxy or for high temperature applications polyimide or bismaleimides. Production methods can be based on laying combinations of low angle helical, higher angle, helical and hoop oriented layers distributed throughout the tube thickness to give combinations of controlled wall section, torsional and longitudinal stiffness and strengths commensurate with the design requirements. The composite tube properties are tailorable through control of the relative thickness of the plies and angles relative to the axis of the shaft. Fibres wound at low angles <30° impart high axial tensile properties; fibres wound at 40-50° impart high torsional properties; fibres wound at 75-89° impart high hoop properties.

Abstract: The joint may be strengthened by internally reinforcing the main shaft with an interference fit tubular plug (Pg) and protected from environmental degradation by inboard secondary adhesive bond (Ad).


A multipart intervertebral implant is provided which includes an implant portion and an implant extender portion. The implant portion and the implant extender portion can be fastened together using any known fastening means including pins, interlocking structure (e.g., dovetail, tongue and groove, etc.), adhesives, etc. The size of the implant extender portion can be selected during a surgical procedure to provide an implant suitable for a particular intervertebral receiving bed. An intervertebral implant is also provided which may be formed from a multiplicity of implant sections which are fastened together to provide an implant having a desired length. Implants having surface configurations which more closely correspond to the configuration of vertebral endplates are also provided.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates generally to biocompatible implants and, more particularly, to intervertebral implants suitable for implantation into the lumbar, thoracic and/or cervical regions of the spine during a spinal fusion procedure.
2. Background of Related Art
Intervertebral implants for fusing together adjacent vertebrae of a spinal column are well known in the art. Such implants are formed in a variety of different shapes and sizes and are configured for insertion into receiving beds formed in the lumbar, thoracic and cervical regions of the spine. The implants may be formed from a variety of different biologically compatible materials including ceramics, polymers, human or animal bone, composites, etc. The implants may also be shaped to maintain the natural lordoses of the spine or to prevent the implant from backing out of an intervertebral receiving bed in which it will be implanted.
Examples of known implants are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,020 to Vich and U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,915 to Brantigan. Vich and Brantigan each disclose cylindrical implants having an outer helical thread formed thereabout. The Vich implant is formed from autogenic bone taken from the iliac crest of a patient. The Brantigan implant is formed of an inert metal such as stainless steel, cobalt-chromium-molybdenum alloys and titanium.
One problem associated with known implants is the difficulty in adapting an implant to meet the size requirements of a particular intervertebral receiving bed. For example, because anatomically all patients are different, the specific size of implant required for a surgical procedure will not be known to any certainty until a surgeon has prepared the intervertebral space for implantation. Thus, a surgeon must keep a variety of different size implants available for use or have means to alter the dimensions of the implant at his disposal.
Another problem associated with known implants constricted from bone is that the anatomical limitations of donor bone limit the size of the implant which can be formed from bone. As a result, bone having satisfactory strength characteristics may not be available for use as an implant because of size limitations.
Finally, yet another problem associated with known implants is their inability to accurately maintain the natural lordoses of the spine. Because of the irregular shape of the vertebral endplates, wedge-shaped implants and cylindrical dowels are incapable of supporting adjacent vertebrae in their natural orientation without substantially altering the shape of the vertebral endplate(s).
Accordingly, a continuing need exists for an intervertebral implant whose size may be easily altered by a surgeon during a surgical procedure to meet the size requirements of a particular implant receiving bed and for an implant capable of maintaining the natural lordoses of the spine without substantially altering the shape of the vertebral endplates.


A sampling probe for enabling the analysis of gaseous species in a particle-laden flue gas. The sampling probe includes a tube for being inserted into a fluid stream of a particle-laden flue gas substantially perpendicular thereto to cause the fluid stream to separate and flow around the tube. The tube includes a first opening extending along a first axially extending face of the tube downstream relative to the fluid stream such that a portion of the gas enters the tube through the first opening for analysis within the tube, and a second opening extending along a second axially extending face of the tube such that the gas that enters the tube through the first opening exits the tube after analysis into the fluid stream through the second opening to allow analysis of the gas.

The present invention relates to the field of gas analysis. In particular, the invention relates to a sampling probe that enables the measurement of gaseous species in a particle-laden flue gas.
The continuous measurement of gaseous species in fossil fuel fired boilers is beneficial to the timely control of the combustion process, as well as ancillary pollution reduction technologies. Typically, optical measurement techniques are employed when conducting measurements of gaseous species. However, combustion of fuels containing ash, such as coal, results in particle-laden flue gas that scatters transmitted energy from an optical measurement device, thereby minimizing the potential measurement distance. In many applications, such as in ductwork on coal-fired utility boilers with dimensions greater than 15 feet, the utilization of optical measurement techniques and devices becomes impractical.
Accordingly, there is a need for a sampling probe that minimizes the influence of ash particles on optical measurement devices, and enables the measurement of gaseous species over an extended path length using optical measurement techniques.

Sampling probe enabling the measurement of gaseous species in particle-laden flue gas


An auto-focus camera for performing focusing adjustment of a focusing lens group to actualize an in-focus state, that includes an auto-focusing adjustment unit to move the focusing lens group along an optical axis based on a detection signal, and an in-focus state detection unit to detect the in-focus state and output a corresponding output signal. The auto-focusing adjustment unit performs the focus adjustment using the output signal of the in-focus state detection unit as the detection signal. The auto-focus camera also includes a displacement detection unit to detect displacement of the photographic optical system along the optical axis and to output a corresponding output signal. The auto-focusing adjustment unit switches the detection signal from the output signal of the in-focus state detection unit to the output signal of the displacement detection unit to enable continued focusing adjustment throughout the photographic operation, including during an exposure process.

The present invention relates to a camera having an auto-focus function, and more particularly, the present invention relates to a camera having an auto-focus function that prevents out-of-focus images resulting from changes in object distance during an exposure process or operation.
An auto-focusing function of a camera automatically focuses a photographic subject to prevent a photographic image taken by a photographer from being out-of-focus, without requiring the photographer to have special training. Current cameras that include an auto-focusing function are equipped with an auto-focus ("AF") mirror provided in an AF drive of a focusing lens group, an AF sensor for detecting an in-focus state, and a photographic optical system. The AF mirror introduces a portion of the photographic light into the AF sensor which is typically a CCD element, for example. The AF sensor determines whether an in-focus state is achieved by detecting lateral displacement of the photographic image formed by the light from the AF mirror. The AF drive moves a focusing lens to a position that corresponds to the in-focus state based on an output signal from the AF sensor.
The above noted series of operations effected by the AF sensor for reaching an in-focus state are executed during a photographic preparation mode when the photographer partially presses a shutter release button. If the shutter release button is pressed to a fully pressed position after the in-focus state is achieved by the AF sensor, a photographic operation takes place. During the photographic operation, the AF mirror is raised to recede outside of the photographic optical system, enabling photographic light to reach a photographic plane. Subsequently, an exposure occurs while the shutter is opened for a specified period of time.
Since the AF mirror recedes outside of the photographic optical system, the in-focus state cannot be confirmed during the photographic operation. In addition, since the photographic light is not introduced to the AF sensor during an exposure process of the photographic operation, the in-focus state of the photographic optical system cannot be confirmed during the exposure process. As a result, during the photographic operation of prior art auto-focus cameras, the present in-focus state of the photographic optical system is maintained. Therefore, despite changes in the object distance that result when the camera moves during the exposure process no readjustment is made to the focal point.
When held by hand, the camera moves in various directions during the photographic operation. For example, during hand-held operation, the camera tends to move in both the pitching and yawing directions with respect to an optical axis of the camera. A hand-held camera also has a tendency to rotate in a rolling direction by rotating in the direction of the optical axis, or about the optical axis in a vertical or lateral direction. This rotation in the rolling direction results in parallel vibration, which tends to corrupt the in-focus state of the camera.
Snap shots account for a greater portion of photographic pictures that are taken. When taking a snap shot, camera shake tends to result in either a parallel or rolling direction. This parallel vibration generally does not affect the intended photographic image in terms of the object distance and the focal length, since the amount of movement of the subject that results on the image forming plane due to the parallel vibration is insignificant to compared to the amount of movement that occurs due to vibration in either the pitch or yaw direction. In addition, the effect of parallel vibration is also diminished since the effect of parallel vibration to the intended photographic image is diminutive compared with either the depth of the field, permissible shaking on the image forming plane, or the resolution of the human eye. Consequently, although compensation for the shaking of the photographic image in either the pitch or yaw direction is accomplished using a camera shake compensation mechanism, disclosed for example, in either of Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 4-18514 or No. 7-294975, no appropriate measures have been taken for out-of-focus images caused by other types of camera shakes.
For instance, in portrait photography, where the photographic range is expanded and the aperture is set to an almost open position to shoot the photographic subject in a close up view, minute changes in distance between a photographic subject and the camera have a significant effect on the photographic image. During close-up operation, the depth of the field is decreased, causing the image forming position to be out of the depth of field. As a result, a slight movement of the camera can cause an out-of-focus image. In this way, even if the focus has been set just prior to exposure, the intended photographic image may nonetheless be out-of-focus, since the object distance may momentarily change when the camera moves along the optical axis during a shutter release time lag, or during exposure.
A similar condition may also occur during close-up photography if the photographic image is taken by a camera that is held by hand rather than using a tripod. Since a photographic magnification level is particularly high in close-up photography, the depth of the field is small and becomes out-of-focus when there is a slight change in the object distance of the photographic subject, thereby considerably affecting the outcome of the resulting photograph.
As a result, the auto-focusing function of prior art cameras is not fully utilized since the auto-focusing function does not operate during the exposure process. As a result, prior art auto-focus cameras tend to produce out-of-focus photographic images when used for portrait or close-up photography.


A distillation plant contains a column with packings as well as a vaporizer. The elements of the column are arranged along a vertical axis and assembled as a constructional unit. They are executed in such a manner that a slight pressure drop sets in during the operation of the plant between a sump and a head. At least two vaporizers are provided, namely a first vaporizer, which is arranged in or directly above the sump, and an intermediate vaporizer which is arranged above the first vaporizer and a lower packing section; and/or at least two liquefiers are provided, namely a first liquefier, which is arranged in the head of the column, and an intermediate liquefier, which is arranged below the first liquefier and an upper packing section.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a distillation plant, and more particularly, to a distillation plant having relatively low operating and maximum temperatures.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A distillation plant is described in EP-A 0 419 406 in connection with the manufacture of concentrated hydrogen peroxide H.sub.2 O.sub.2. This known plant is characterized by the fact that a low pressure drop is present between the sump and the head of the distillation column, and thus the relatively low operating and maximum temperatures offer an improved safety of the plant. The object of the present invention is to further develop the known plant. In this respect, a reduction of the energy costs should be achievable by the use of heat pumps.


A spherical wheel intended to move a vehicle and a vehicle implementing the wheel are provided, the wheel having its rotation motorized by a shaft able to rotate about an axis. The wheel (10) comprises two shells of which the surface follows the spherical surface of the wheel and each of which is bounded by a plane. The shells are each articulated by means of a pivot connection with respect to the shaft, an axis of each of the pivot connections being perpendicular to the plane of the relevant shell. The planes bounding the two shells are secant.

This embodiment has a disadvantage. Specifically, the driveshaft of a wheel enters the wheel via an equatorial plane of the wheel, which plane is situated between the two hemispheres. The equatorial plane is defined by analogy with the Earth's sphere. This plane separates the two hemispheres which can be likened to the Earth's northern and southern hemispheres. The driveshaft has to have a certain rigidity which means that a minimum diameter is imposed thereon. The two hemispheres are therefore distant by at least this diameter. In practice though, a functional clearance needs to be added to the diameter of the shaft in order to prevent the hemispheres from rubbing against the driveshaft. This then yields two hemispheres each bounded by a plane. The planes of the two hemispheres are parallel and positioned a distance apart that cannot be reduced without the risk of impairing the rigidity of the driveshaft.
When the equatorial plane of the wheel is in a vertical position with respect to the ground, which is assumed to be horizontal, a discontinuity appears in the pressing of the wheel on the ground. More specifically, when the wheel is driven, the equatorial plane of the wheel with each wheel revolution comes into contact with the ground and causes the ground pressure to switch from one hemisphere to the other and therefore from a plane of one hemisphere to the other. Whenever this discontinuity is encountered, a loss of grip may occur, the spherical nature of the wheel is temporarily lost and, at high speed, a noise occurs with each discontinuity.

Spherical wheel, and vehicle implementing the wheel


Garments and methods for monitoring radiation exposure and cumulative radiation exposure in individuals undergoing repeated exposure to ionizing radiation are disclosed.

Exposure to ionizing radiation (e.g., x-rays) is a frequent component of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in modern medicine. Although the precision of instruments used in such procedures continues to improve, individuals undergoing diagnostic or therapeutic procedures utilizing ionizing radiation are commonly exposed to at least some stray radiation that inadvertently contacts other parts of the body.
Because medical diagnostic and therapeutic procedures are often ordered and performed by different physicians and/or different facilities over extended periods of time (e.g., years) and are often directed to different parts of an individual's body, it becomes increasingly difficult for the individual to know or maintain a record of accumulated radiation exposure, particularly with reference to specific parts of the body.

Device and method for measuring radiation exposure


A swim fin includes a blade having a web for providing a propulsion thrust in a water environment and an opposing plate having a shoe rotatably attached. The shoe is rotatable about an axis of rotation perpendicular to the blade for a rotation of the shoe from a swimming position, wherein the web extends radially outward from the toe, to a walking position, wherein the web extends radially outward from the heel. The toe of the shoe interlocks within a transverse extending flange of the web while in the swimming position. The toe includes a tongue extending radially outward for engaging the flange in a tongue in groove interlocking manner when in the swimming position. Further, a tab extends from the toe and into a notch for indexing the shoe in the swimming position. A shaft extends outward from the sole of the shoe and through the blade where it is secured to a washer for securing the shoe to the blade. The bottom side of the blade includes a recess for receiving the washer therein and providing a smooth bottom surface of the swim fin.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a swim fin typically worn by SCUBA divers, and more particularly to a swim fin which is adaptable for swimming and walking.
2. Background Art
Swim fins are well known for providing a greater propulsive force than simple kicking bare feet during swimming. It is also well known in the art that swim fins are terribly inefficient while entering and leaving the water from the beach or a boat. Typically, the swimmer will assemble and wear the appropriate diving gear, while donning the swim fins last and only when near or in the water. Further, the fins will be removed first when approaching the shore or prior to climbing a ladder to a boat. There is a need to provide a swim fin that can effectively and efficiently accommodate the swimmer when entering and leaving the water environment.
Various devices have been developed to overcome this inconvenient. By way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,903,719 discloses a swim fin including a fin portion that is strapped to a shoe for swimming while having the swim portion unstrapped for walking or climbing up a ladder. U.S. Pat. No. 5,292,272 to Grim discloses a swim fin for use in a swimming and walking. The swim fin includes a foot and a web mounted to the foot for movement from an extended position to an upright position. For changing from the swimming mode to the walking mode and back, the swimmer would reach down to the swim fin and pull against a spring urging force to relocate pins securing the web in its selected position. Yet further, U.S. Pat. No. 3,068,499 to Von Biskupsky discloses a swim fin that includes a web rotatable from a forward extending position to a rearwardly extending position while pivoting the web under the shoe after manually unlatching the web from its locked position.
Such reversible styled swim fins are awkward to use, especially when wearing full diving gear while going from swimming to walking or climbing a ladder.


A temperature adaptive audio amplifier device includes a digital analog convertor, a gain controller, an amplifier, a temperature sensor and a decision circuit. The digital analog convertor transforms a digital audio signal into an analog convertor. The gain controller includes a gain value and is configured to perform gain processing on the analog audio signal and generate a gained analog audio signal. The amplifier is configured to amplify the gained analog audio signal and generates an amplified analog audio signal. The temperature sensor generates a temperature detect signal according to a junction temperature of the amplifier. The decision circuit receives the temperature detect signal and generates an adaptive gain adjustment signal to the gain controller. The adaptive gain adjustment signal is used to adjust the junction temperature of the amplifier to be within an upper temperature threshold and a lower temperature threshold.

In the semiconductor manufacturing process, an ambient temperature and a heat loss temperature of the chip are very important. When the heat loss temperature is too high, it can lead to a burning of the chip or a short-circuit phenomenon. In related art, there are several ways to reduce the ambient temperature and the heat loss temperature of the chip. To change the way of forming the thermal resistance of the chip, manufacturing costs may be increased, or the package volume may be increased. To reduce the ambient temperature, the heat dissipation mechanism would need to be changed, such as increasing the number of heatsinks or changing the assembly position of the internal components.

Temperature adaptive audio amplifier device and control method thereof


An apparatus and method for transferring a signal from a first bus circuit to a second bus circuit. The apparatus and method includes a first constant current circuit connected to the first bus circuit, a first capacitor connected between the first bus circuit and the first constant current circuit, a second constant current circuit connected to the second bus circuit, a second capacitor connected between the second bus circuit and the second constant current circuit, and an opto-coupler connected between the first and second constant current circuits and providing signal transfer control from the first capacitor to the second capacitor.

It is often desired to transmit information from one circuit to another in situations in which the two circuits must also be electrically isolated from each other. For example, a high voltage circuit may be operating in proximity with a low voltage circuit, and transfer of data may be desired from the high voltage circuit to the low voltage circuit. However, transfer of data must take place without compromising the isolation between the two circuits to prevent high voltages from being present on the low voltage side.
One example of the above situation may occur in machines or vehicles that employ one voltage bus, such as a high voltage DC bus, for purposes such as electric drive motors and the like. A second, low voltage DC bus, may also be found in the machine or vehicle for providing a low DC voltage to various accessories, such as lights and electronic control modules (ECMs). It is desired that the high voltage never be present on the low voltage side, yet some technique may be needed to deliver signals, such as analog data signals, from the high voltage bus to the low voltage bus, while maintaining isolation of the two voltages.
Past methods to accomplish this include such ideas as isolation amplifiers, linear opto-couplers, signal chopping and delivery via transformers, and the like. These methods, however, tend to be costly and are more suited for special purpose applications, such as high speed data transmission. For situations in which low speeds of data transmission are suitable, such as low speed analog data transmission, lower cost alternatives are needed that still provide efficient and reliable operation.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,430,229, Scott et al. provide a system in which capacitive coupling of two isolated circuits is used. A pair of capacitors is connected directly between the two circuits. The use of capacitors for direct coupling, however, requires much additional circuitry, such as a diode bridge power supply, an encoder, a decoder, a driver, a clock recovery circuit, and more, to prepare data for transmittal and receipt. This additional circuitry adds much to the cost, and also introduces much potential for breakdown and failure. Furthermore, the use of capacitors to directly connect two isolated circuits does not provide true electrical isolation, and may fail to isolate should one or both capacitors fail.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,404,609, to Mansfield et al., offers simplified circuitry, and also provides true electrical isolation by way of an opto-coupler. The circuit, however, is configured to work with transmittal of digital signals and is not suited for analog signal transmissions.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.

Apparatus and method for transferring an analog signal between isolated systems


A steamer device and system for a residential oven is shown for creating steam for the purpose of baking having a steamer insert having a bottom surface for resting on a rack in the oven, the steamer insert having, in sequence, a first chamber, a dam device and a second chamber; and the dam device having a metering hole such that when water is added to the first of the two chambers it can only reach, and does reach, the second chamber through the metering hole. The first and second chambers are angled such that gravity assists in the feeding of water when added from the first chamber through the metering hole to the second chamber. The metering hole is between ⅛ inch and 1/64 inch in diameter. Sloped side walls proximately located to the first and second chambers assist in the gravity feed. Also shown is a system for baking bread, in which the following steps occur: (a) the baking surface stone (like corderite or ceramic) is placed on a first rack in a residential oven; (b) the steamer insert is placed in the oven such that access to the first chamber can occur; (c) the oven is preheated to the optimum temperature (e.g., 410° F. and 475° F.) (and in this manner both the stone and the steamer insert have reached the ambient temperature as well); (d) about ¾ of a cup of water is placed in the first chamber; (e) the bread is then placed on the stone; (f) the oven door is closed. In this manner, the water will trickle through the metering hole into the second chamber, steam the entirety of the oven, the bread will bake, the oven will dry (additional water can thereafter be added for the carmelization effect discussed above), and the bread is allowed to bake for a period of time known to one of ordinary skill in the art sufficient to render it the virtual equivalent in quality of bread baked in a commercial oven.

Commercial ovens provide certain unique attributes that render the end product food material, including, by way of example, breads, pizzas, and other baked goods, of a quality far and away improved over their residential counterparts. Among some of the attributes are thermal control characteristics, materials, dimensions, and overall controls that, if applied to residential ovens, would render them far too expensive and unwieldy.
It has been observed by the inventor herein, that the use of certain materials, like the ceramics or corderites, in certain manner when used in residential ovens improve the characteristics of baking, and hence the byproducts. This invention, however, is not directed to the specific oven insert that can be used for improving the quality of baking. While a component of the process, the instant invention is instead directed to a far more critical component of the baking process—steam.
Steam plays a vital role in commercial hearth ovens in which crusty style breads are baked at relatively hot temperatures approaching 500° F. The introduction of steam into commercial hearth ovens is universal. Steam is introduced generally by the introduction of hot water (sometimes under light pressure) into chambers located on the sides of the commercial hearth oven. These chambers are designed to instantaneously convert the water into steam. Often made from cast iron and loaded with metal, these chambers flood the hearth baking chamber of the oven with steam.
The introduction of steam serves several known purposes. Initially, the steam changes the dry heat atmosphere in the hearth chamber into a moist one. This in turn accomplishes two things. One, the moist steam atmosphere reinvigorates the yeast in the dough. Two, by keeping the surface of the bread dough moist, it allows the bread loaf (in whatever shape it takes) to expand in an aesthetically pleasing way. The steam generated this way prevents the loaves from bursting open in an irregular manner. Concomitantly, the steam filled chamber prevents the crust of the bread from becoming too thick.
In order to accomplish the above, the steam must remain in the hearth oven chamber for between 7 and 10 minutes. After this period the steam dissipates and the atmosphere in the oven becomes dry. This allows the crust of the bread to start the browning process, which is extremely important in imparting taste to the bread.
Often, but not necessarily, steam is reintroduced into the baking chamber during the last stage of the baking process. This aids in the caramelization of the surface of the bread which produces a dark and characteristically tasty surface, which at this stage has permeated into the crust.
Thus, it is observable that steam plays a necessary, indeed critical part in imparting the necessary quality to baked goods, and must be applied in a manner of different ways, at different times, allowing drying times in the between, in order to create a high quality bread or other baked good.
Steam introduction in commercial ovens is known, as shown in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,210 B1. Temperature and humidity control in commercial ovens are also known, as shown in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,578 B 1. However, heretofore unknown is a device that provides a controlled, doseable, amount of steam to a residential oven thereby providing the virtual equivalent control as that provided in commercial counterparts.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device for the controlled dosing of water, and hence of steam into a residential oven that will create steam in the chamber, followed by drying (if necessary), thereby rendering the resultant baked goods not simply good, but excellent, as if created in a commercial counterpart.

Steaming device and system for residential ovens


A video may include a runtime. Based on analysis of the video, a scene or shot change may be generated based on the content of the video. For instance, the video may depict a character inside of a house in a first shot and, in a subsequent shot, the video may depict the character as being outside in a forest. A shot change may indicate the transition from the character being depicted inside in the first shot and outside in the second shot at a period of time during the runtime of the video. The video may be fragmented into fragments based on the shot change and based on a minimum or maximum fragment duration. When a video is fragmented into fragments, a key frame that is independently decodable may be inserted into a fragment. Encoding settings may then be determined based on the key frame.

A large and growing population of users enjoy entertainment through consumption of video. Video, which may be referred to as "video items" and "video content" herein, may include television shows, sporting events, concerts, movies, documentaries, and the like. Many people today consume video content through a wide variety of electronic devices. Among these electronic devices include cellular telephones, tablet computing devices, digital media players, laptop computers, desktop computers, television, virtual reality devices, and the like. Video content is available through a variety of services including subscription and non-subscription video streaming services, websites, mobile applications, and the like.
In particular, as more video content is made available to users through a growing number of electronic devices and streaming services, there is a desire for advancement with respect to the processing of video content to improve user experience when consuming video content. With respect to video streaming services, there are technological problems relating to encoding videos (e.g., the process of converting and/or transforming a video input into a digital format that may be compatible with an electronic device, application, and/or website) in a manner that ensures efficient, high-quality, and reliable viewing of a video by an end user. In some instances, video encoding may include converting an input, or source video, into an output format that is viewable by various electronic devices, websites, and applications. These technological problems stem from an inability to compress a source video such that is more easily stored and transferred via a digital network.

Optimal fragmentation of video based on shot analysis


A high rise recycling system for a multi-story building comprises a vertical chute extending from the bottom to top floor, discharge openings on each floor, a rotatable chute at the lower end to discharge garbage into a compactor and to discharge recyclable glass, paper, aluminum and plastic into a selective discharge assembly which selectively discharges each of the separate items into respective containers for such separate items. A control circuit having control switches on each floor controls operation of the selective discharge assembly. A power circuit drives a conveyor belt which carries the recyclable items through the selective discharge assembly to their respective discharge outlets for deposit into their respective containers.

This invention relates to the field of disposal systems in multi-story buildings to sort out different kinds of disposable items dropped therein and deliver them into separate receptacles for recycling or separate processing.
Examples of prior art disposal systems known to the inventor in this case include those disclosed in the following United States patents.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,829 discloses a separated waste collection system for a multi-story building having a vertical chute which extends to all floors, discharge openings on each floor, and a turntable positioned below the chute opening at the bottom with five separate receptacles thereon. A control system operable from each floor rotates the turn-table to position a selected receptacle under the chute which has been designated to receive a particular kind of disposable material. A microprocessor controller and interlocks on the access doors prevent conflicts between floors.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,988 discloses a refuse recycler which separates and collects specific varieties of trash in exterior trash cans through the use of a plurality of ducts or chutes leading to a corresponding plurality of receiving trash receptacles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,847,927 discloses a garbage collection device for a sink unit which provides for separating different kinds of garbage, below which are several waste containers to receive the different types of sorted out garbage when dropped into the unit after being positioned to direct such sorted out garbage into the desired waste container.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,661,255 discloses a sorting apparatus having three containers to receive three different sorted out items, and deflecting partitions thereabove controlled by an electrical control circuit and controller whereby the partitions are manipulated to direct particular ones of the items deposited in the sorter into particular ones of the three containers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,655,039 discloses a separating device for separating metallic matter from non-metallic matter comprising a movable funnel shaped hopper normally biased to a position for discharge of non-metallic materials into a corresponding opening for such materials and a metal-detecting sensor and operating mechanism that deflects the hopper to discharge any metal items sensed into a different opening or receptacle to receive such metal items.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,388,795 discloses a method and apparatus for selectively removing and sorting components from a mass of components such as diodes which are spatially suspended in a magnetic field. A magnetic pick up member is then inserted into such mass of components suspended in the magnetic field to withdraw a predetermined number for subsequent testing and sorting.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,198,330 discloses an automatic sorting machine for testing of electrical and electronic components such as diodes, comprising a machine which automatically feeds such components one by one to a testing station, a sensing device at the testing station which delivers an input signal as to characteristics of each component being tested to a distributing mechanism which directs the components having varying characteristics into appropriate receiving bins for such sorted out components.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,016,142 discloses a method and apparatus for distributing an article to one of several receiving locations, particularly carbon resistors used in the telephone industry. The invention includes a grid which can be reciprocated in the directions of the X and Y axis to sort the items into a corresponding group of receptacles in accordance with a measured physical characteristic of the items.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,382,168 discloses an apparatus for sorting granular material according to its moisture content comprising a conveyor for grain travelling at a predetermined speed, means to compress the stream of grain to a desired thickness while leaving it free to spread out laterally on the conveyor belt, electrodes in the path of the stream of grain which are connected in an electric circuit to sensing equipment for distinguishing successive portions of the continuing stream of grain in accordance with variations in the electrical properties of the grain passing between the electrodes due to variations in its moisture content.
The present invention is an improvement over prior art disposal systems for multi-story buildings by providing a separating mechanism for recyclable materials which extends in-line to convey whatever recyclable material is being disposed of from the upstream end of the separating mechanism in the downstream direction to the pre-designated discharge outlet for that particular recyclable material, the door for such discharge outlet opens inwardly of the conveyor path at an angle to intercept the particular recyclable material and direct it out through the pre-designated discharge outlet into a pre-designated receptacle positioned below. Such receptacles can set directly on the floor and are not moved until they have been filled. In some prior art disposal systems for multi-story buildings, the receptacles are mounted on turntables which have to be rotated into position under the high-rise chute for the particular material being disposed of. When the receptacles have to be rotated, there is always the risk they will be jolted out of position so the materials dropped down the chute will miss the intended receptacle. Also as the receptacles become filled they become heavier making it less certain that the rotating mechanism of the turn-table will be able to accurately place each receptacle under the chute to receive what is being dropped down. Such prior art systems also put great strain on the turn-table mechanism resulting in greater wear and risk of premature failure.
The specific embodiment of the present invention which is described and shown in this specification has four separate discharge outlets, a first one for glass, the next downstream for paper, the third downstream for aluminum and the fourth downstream for plastic. Since the separating mechanism in accordance with this invention is in-line, it can be made longer to provide for additional discharge outlets for additional types of disposable material.
This invention also includes an important feature which prevents throw-away garbage as such from being inadvertently conveyed into one of the receptacles intended only for recyclable material. It provides a rotatable spout at the bottom of the high-rise disposal chute which is rotated to discharge into the hopper of a compactor when someone on one of the floors presses the push-button for discharge of garbage. An over-ride control in the operating circuit makes it impossible for a person on a different floor to energize the mechanism which conveys and separates recyclable materials while the circuit for discharge of garbage is energized. It is only after the circuit for discharge of garbage has been opened and de-energized that the mechanism which conveys and separates recyclable materials can be energized. The spout then rotates away from the compactor hopper and into registration with the hopper of a completely different mechanism which conveys and directs recyclable materials through the pre-designated discharge openings and into their corresponding receptacles.
The invention also includes selective disabling circuitry in the control circuit which controls opening and closing of the respective discharge doors for the recyclable glass, paper, aluminum and plastic. When any one of such doors has been signalled to open by a person on one of the floors pressing the push-button switch for the particular kind of recyclable material he is disposing of down the hi-rise chute, none of the other discharge doors can be opened by a person on a different floor pressing the push-button for disposing of a different kind of recyclable material.
Other important features of this invention will become apparent from the detail description which follows and from the accompanying drawings.


Embodiments are directed to a reactive power supply circuit comprising: a capacitor configured to provide an output of the power supply circuit based on power received from a power source, a processor configured to control the output based on at least one of: a state of a first switch that selectively couples the capacitor to the power source based on a detected level of the output, and a state of at least one second switch that selectively couples the capacitor to the power source based on a determination of a state of one or more loads coupled to the output.

A power supply, such as a reactive power supply, may be designed to provide power to one or more loads. The one or more loads may generally consume relatively little power (e.g., current) during normal operating conditions, but may consume substantially larger power (e.g., current) when engaged or activated. If the power supply is designed or selected to provide sufficient power to accommodate the loads when engaged/active, then during normal operating conditions the power supply may, in effect, provide excess power. The excess power is dissipated (as heat) in one or more components that may be associated with the power supply, resulting in increased operational cost and a need for larger components or excessive component de-rating to ensure reliable and safe operation.


This present embodiment relates generally to the electrical treatment of malignant tumors and neoplasms by applying a voltage to affected tissue. Devices and various adaptations therein are described for use in electrical therapy. Additionally, various ambulatory devices are described which advantageously increase versatility of the electrical therapy system. The ambulatory devices may include an internal and external power source and/or a first and second power source. The ambulatory devices may also include communication means for communicating between various portions of the device.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the electrical treatment of malignant tumors and neoplasms by applying a voltage to affected tissue. Devices and various adaptations therein are described for use in electrical therapy. For example, a partially implantable device is described wherein one or more leads (a.k.a. wires) containing one or more electrodes are implanted into a patient having a tumor. Coupled to the lead or leads is a generator for supplying power to the electrode or electrodes. A portion of the generator may or may not be implanted into the patient.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Cancer is one of the major causes of hospitalization and death worldwide. However, many of the therapies applied to cancer treatment are either ineffective or not well-tolerated by patients.
Cancer malignancies result in approximately 6,000,000 deaths worldwide each year. In 1995, 538,000 cancer related deaths were reported in the United States, representing over 23% of the total deaths in the United States. This number has increased since 1970 when 331,000 deaths occurred. The estimated number of new cases in the United States in 1997 was 1,382,000. An astounding 40% of Americans will eventually be stricken with the disease and more than 1 in 5 will die from it. The percentage is increasing at about 1% per year and cancer deaths will soon outstrip deaths from heart disease.
Much of the medical care cost associated with cancer results from hospitalization. In 1994 there were 1,226,000 hospital discharges in the United States related to cancer treatment. The cost of cancer in terms of both human suffering and monetary expenditures is staggering. Effective treatment methods, which result in fewer days of hospital care, are desperately needed.
Primary treatment methods currently used in cancer therapy include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy and many others including bone marrow replacement, biological response modifiers, gene therapy, and diet. Therapy often consists of combinations of these treatment methods. It is well known that these methods may result in sickness, pain, disfigurement, depression, spread of the cancer, and ineffectiveness. Despite recent announcements of potential pharmaceutical "cures", which may work well in animals and in humans in certain cases, researchers are cautious in overstating their effectiveness. In the case of radiation treatment, rapid decreases in the size of poorly differentiated tumors after treatment may be experienced; however, shortly thereafter the tumor often experiences re-growth. Unfortunately, following re-growth the tumor is generally more insensitive to future radiation treatment attempts.
The approaches previously described, as well as other prior approaches, are not sufficient to meet the needs of real patients. The present invention addresses the above and other needs.

Partially implantable system for the electrical treatment of abnormal tissue growth


A method of authenticating an entity includes associating a local identity of the entity with a global identity of the entity, the local identity being associated with a first one of a plurality of restricted access zones, associating the global identity of the entity with particular ones of the plurality of restricted access zones for granting access to the particular ones of the plurality of restricted access zones, receiving an authentication request from the entity to access a second one of the plurality of access zones where the authentication request includes the local identity of the entity, and authenticating the entity for access to the second one of the plurality of access zones responsive to receiving the authentication request when the second one of the plurality of restricted access zones is one of the particular ones of the plurality of restricted access zones that are associated with the global identity of the entity.

The present disclosure relates generally to computer system and network security and, more particularly, to methods, systems, computer program products for authenticating a user of a computer system and/or network.
Cloud computing is a computing paradigm where shared resources, such as processor(s), software, and information, are provided to computers and other devices on demand typically over a network, such as the Internet. In a cloud computing environment, details of the computing infrastructure, e.g., processing power, data storage, bandwidth, and/or other resources are abstracted from the user. The user does not need to have any expertise in or control over such computing infrastructure resources. Cloud computing typically involves the provision of dynamically scalable and/or virtualized resources over the Internet. A user may access and use such resources through the use of a Web browser. A typical cloud computing provider may provide an online application that can be accessed over the Internet using a browser. The cloud computing provider, however, maintains the software for the application and some or all of the data associated with the application on servers in the cloud, i.e., servers that are maintained by the cloud computing provider rather than the users of the application.
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional cloud service model that includes Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS). Infrastructure as a Service, delivers computer infrastructure-typically a platform virtualization environment - as a service. Rather than purchasing servers, software, data-center space or network equipment, clients instead buy those resources as a fully outsourced service. Suppliers typically bill such services on a utility computing basis and the amount of resources consumed. Platform as a Service delivers a computing platform as a service. It provides an environment for the deployment of applications without the need for a client to buy and manage the underlying hardware and software layers. Software as a Service delivers software services over the Internet, which reduces or eliminates the need for the client to install and run an application on its own computers, which may simplify maintenance and support.
Authentication services are often based on granting access to a single resource. For example, a retailer may authenticate a customer for purchasing a product from its website, but the authentication is typically not valid to purchase a product from another retailer or possibly even another division of the retailer. Similarly, an enterprise may also authenticate uses for access to one or more restricted resources, but the authentication may be valid only for a particular department, division, or some other sub-organization of the entire enterprise. For example, a soldier who serves in the army may end up on a navy ship with a need to access one or more resources associated with the navy. It may be difficult to authenticate the soldier because his army identity cannot be authenticated by the navy's authentication service. In some instances, an entity may function as part of a node in a network structure and may require authentication as being qualified to fulfill that function in a particular network hierarchy. For example, a military application may involve a network node being implemented on a submarine. The home base for the submarine may be the Pacific Ocean region and the submarine may be authenticated as implementing a particular node in a network topology in the Pacific Ocean. The submarine may travel, however, to the Atlantic Ocean and may attempt to authenticate itself as a node in an analogous network topology in the Atlantic Ocean, but it may be difficult to authenticate the submarine's Pacific Ocean identity and position in the network hierarchy to allow the submarine to become part of a network in the Atlantic Ocean.

Methods, systems, and computer program products for authenticating an entity through use of a global identity of the entity that serves as a proxy for one or more local identities of the entity


The inventive system and method for verifying flow control of a queue on a cycle by cycle basis, involves modeling the queue, checking for an overflow condition and an underflow condition in the model during each cycle, and determining any changes to the number of entries in the queue during the cycle. This mechanism is repeated until each cycle has been verified. The queue is modeled to have a number of entries in the range of -1 to N+1, where N is the maximum number of entries the queue may hold, -1 represents the underflow condition, and N+1 represents the overflow condition. To accurately represent the number of entries in each cycle, the number of entries that the each producer and each consumer is capable of adding to or subtracting from the queue in each cycle is modelled.

FIG. 1 depicts a typical process 10 in designing and constructing a computer system that uses queues. The first step is the architectural design phase 11, and this is where the developer formulates the specification of the system, and determines which components will be in the system, the number and characteristics of the FIFO queues (first-in, first-out), whether the system will use cache, etc. The specification can be written in a natural language like English or in a pseudo code like C.
In the second step 12, the specification is written in a high level description language (HDL). Here the specification from the design step 11 is written in code language like VERILOG or VHDL. After the code is written, the next step 13 is to perform software simulation or hardware emulation on the system design and HDL implementation. Software simulation is using software to simulate the performance of the system. Hardware emulation is using off-the-shelf hardware components to construct a model of the system. The developer may choose to use either simulation or emulation, or both.
The design of step 11 and the implementation of step 12 are tested, and if bugs are found in step 14, depending upon their origin, then either the design or the implementations will be modified. From the design flow 10, it is apparent that design errors are more serious than implementation errors. Steps 11-14 are iterated until no more bugs are found.
Once no more bugs are found by simulation and/or emulation, then the chip is developed. In step 15 the design is synthesized, and put on tape, and released to the foundry where the chip is produced. Once the chip is produced, the actual chip will be tested via post silicon verification. As compared with to step 13, where the system chip was either simulated via software or emulated via hardware, in step 16 the actual physical chip is tested for bugs. If bugs 18 are present, then the developer will determine whether the bugs can be fixed by a change in a metal layer, or whether the design must be modified in step 11 or the implementation must be changed in step 12. If the change can be made in the metal layer then the change is made in step 15 by sending the chip back to the foundry. However, if the error is more serious, then correction will take place in either step 11 or step 12.
A critical aspect to the design flow 10 is queue flow control. Typical designs will have many queues and FIFOs, rams, stacks, as well as other components. One way of considering FIFO queues is to regard entities placing entries into the queue as a producer, and entities removing entries from the queue as a consumer. The interaction of consumers and producers with the queue can cause two problems. One problem is queue overflow, where producers overload a queue, insert more data than the queue can store and data is lost or overwritten, which is sometimes terms `dropped on the floor`. The other problem is queue underflow. This condition occurs when consumers pull more data from the queue than the queue is holding, and consequently the consumers receive invalid data.
Queue flow control is traditionally addressed in steps 13 and/or 16, where verification is being performed. The traditional approach to verify queue flow-control has been through simulation, emulation, or post-silicon verification. In large systems, the simulation approach verifies few cases as it becomes very difficult to stress the queues enough to get to the corner cases. This is because the queues are deep in systems, and thus it takes many simulation cycles to get an entry into the queue. Consequently, it is difficult and costly to fill up the queue and verify the corner or worst case situations.
One prior art solution is to reduce the number of queue entries for the simulation. For example, suppose that the queue is designed to store 100 entries, but for the simulation, it will be assumed that the queue only has 10 entries. Thus, it is now possible for the simulation to more easily fill up the queue and test the corner cases. However, this assumption introduces two new problems. First the reduction in size may lead to errors that would not exist if the queue was at 100 entries, i.e. false positives. Second, the reduction in size may hide other errors, and allow bugs to slip through the verification, i.e. false negatives.
Although hardware emulation covers more cases than software simulation, it does not guarantee that all the cases have been verified in the various queues in the system. Since, real off-the-shelf hardware is being used to model the design, then the system is working at a much faster rate than software simulation. Thus, the queues are easier to fill up and the case coverage is going to be better than the software simulation. However, since the system is represented in a piecemeal fashion, it is difficult to isolate the true sources of any errors that may occur, as each error might have multiple sources. Moreover, the piecemeal fashion may introduce errors that would not be present in the actual chip, because of conditions in the emulation that would not be present in the actual chip, e.g. additional wire delay. Furthermore, since this is a representation of the design and not the actual chip, there is still incomplete coverage, and not all of worst cases are tested.
Using post-silicon verification overcomes most of the problems associated with software simulation and hardware emulation, since the actual chip is being tested and not some representation of the design. However, the main problem with verification is that it takes place late in the design flow or cycle, such that errors in the design, implementation, and/or realization may occur after the chip has been shipped to a customer. Thus, making corrections to the design or implementation is extremely costly in terms of customer satisfaction, and time as corrections to the design require the complete traversal of the design flow.
Consequently, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for verification of queue flow control that substantially covers the corner or worst case situations, and performs this verification early in the design flow. Although this would not completely eliminate the need for simulation, emulation, and/or verification, as there are some design aspects that must be handled in this fashion. However, by reducing the number of bugs, particularly the queue flow control bugs, early in the design flow results in a superior system design potentially a faster tune to market.

Formal verification of queue flow-control through model-checking


Multifunctional optical fiber bundles for image and signal transmission or sensor applications are proposed. The optical fiber bundles exhibit reduced speckle noise resulting from spatial inhomogeneity and asymmetry of radiation of specific fibers of the bundle. This is achieved by ordering of fiber positions in the bundle sensitive probe tips according to some prescribed rule.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to multifunctional optical fiber bundles for image and signal transmission or sensor applications and particularly to a special kind of the bundles with reduced speckle noise (resulting from spatial inhomogeneity and asymmetry of radiation of specific fibers of the bundle) having ordered structure of fiber positions in its sensitive probe tip according to some prescribed rule.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
Multichannel optical fibers bundles provide very flexible tools for light transmission to and/or light receiving from some object. In general case such a bundles can be designed as a structure of fibers with prescribed positions of their ends in a sensitive probe tip bundled into specific light transmitting and light receiving channels.
Such bundles have many important applications. They can be used, for example, in various spectroscopic devices, process-photometers as a sensitive probe and light transmitting tool. Other applications of the bundles include high sensitive sensors of displacement or vibration measuring systems. Moreover, an ordered optical fiber bundle can be used as a light transmitting and reading device of raster type for linear detecting and light emitting components.
Many optical fiber bundles of various constructions have been designed and numerous methods of manufacturing of the bundles have been developed.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,894 describes photoelectric detection device utilizing randomized optical light conducting means which use a randomized single channel bundle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,275 describes a fiber optic encoding-decoding apparatus and method for its fabrication. The apparatus employs an image encoding-decoding single channel bundle. The bundle is fabricated by steps of coiling the fiber into a thyroidal bundle of fiber convolutions. A randomization between fibers can be performed only for reproducing the image portion in random.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,383,192 describes a method of making fiberscope. It utilizes the fiber bundles that comprise a flexible structure of fibers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,328,143 offers a method of making light-conducting optical multifiber structures which utilize a fiber optical image-transfer device.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,562 describes a method of making scrambled branched fiber optics. This method utilizes a mixed scrambling of branched fiber optic which is an initial layer of fibers on a drum of drawing machine. The fibers intermediate the tape strips are secured together by cement, and the fibers are then cut in the lacquered sections.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,452 claims a method of fabricating illuminated fiber optics. This method involves initially fabricating a fiber optic conduit, wherein a plurality of light-conducting fibers are formed in a bundle with a predetermined geometrical configuration at the first end and an identical geometrical configuration at the second end of the bundle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,669,639 describes a method for production of a fused energy-conducting structure and also describes an apparatus for cementing a plurality of fibers in a simple parallel arrangement.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,563 offers a method for producing an optical fiber bundle by winding the fiber element onto a drum while it is rotated in one direction so that a layer of the helical wound windings is formed one channel structure on the drum.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,584 describes a fiber optic proximity probe, wherein transmitting and receiving fibers are bundled into channels with casual randomization ordering. The random numbers of transmitting or receiving fibers are placed snugly at the probe tip, wherein signals coming from the fibers near-by located fibers are mixed.
None of these inventions, however, discloses an optical fiber bundle whose fibers are arranged according to a programmable order in such a way that a plurality of fibers in the transmitting and receiving channels have spatial type of a layer or a matrix structure providing reduction of speckle noise and maximizing sensitivity as required for sensor and other applications. The speckle noise in each specific fiber is due to dynamic variation of spatially inhomogeneous speckle pattern resulting from the interference of many fiber modes. Collecting the radiation from many fibers included in the bundle can be used for averaging the speckle pattern and thus for reducing the speckle noise. Moreover, the modal noise in a multichannel optical fiber bundle, sensitivity of the signal on distance and angle between a reflecting surface, and the sensitive probe tip essentially depend on the specific structure in which the fiber ends of the optical bundle are ordered in its sensitive probe tip. For example, in optical fiber bundles with some specific ordering of the fiber in sensitive probe tip the sensitivity can be increased and the modal noise decreased in many times in comparison with nonordered bundle.

Multichannel optical fiber bundle with ordered structure in its sensitive probe tip


The invention is directed to systems, methods, and an apparatus for bidding in online auctions. Bids for advertising include an amount that is a function of an expected value-per-click and a fraction of a budget already spent for advertising slots.

Online search engines provide a popular tool for searching keywords over the internet. Search engines and corresponding online auctions globally generate billions of dollars a year in revenue. The results page of a keyword search is therefore an effective place for advertisers to reach an engaged audience.
Using an automated auction mechanism, search engines sell the right to place ads next to keyword results and alleviate the auctioneer from the burden of pricing and placing ads. The intent of the consumer is matched with that of the advertiser through an efficient cost/benefit engine that favors advertisers who offer that which consumers seek.
On the advertising side, companies spend billions of dollars each year in marketing with an increasingly large portion of that money dedicated to search engine marketing. Since such large sums of money are being spent, advertisers strive to strategically bid against competing advertisers while maximizing return for advertising dollars.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


Provided is a method for removing wire-form objects, a device for removing wire-form objects, and a method for processing electronic/electrical apparatus component waste, which can efficiently sort wire-form objects from sorting target objects having various shapes. The method for removing wire-form objects includes: arranging a filter in a vibrating sieve machine, the filter including a plurality of rods extending at distances in a feed direction of a raw material; and placing a raw material containing at least wire-form objects and plate-form objects onto the filter, and vibrating the filter to sieve out the wire-form objects under a sieve.

There has been known a device for selectively removing particular foreign matters, for example, wire-form objects, from objects to be sorted. For example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-150505 A (Patent Literature 1) describes an example of a sorting device for sorting a target sorting object from a mixture of long materials by sorting with a vibrating screen and sorting with an air stream.
Further, from the viewpoint of resource conservation in recent years, recovery of variable metals from electronic/electrical apparatus component scrap such as waste electronic home appliances, PCs and mobile phones has increasingly become popular, and an efficient method for recovering the valuable metals has been studied. For example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-123418 A (Patent Literature 2) discloses that electronic/electrical apparatus component scrap containing copper is incinerated and then crushed to a predetermined size or less, and the crushed electronic/electrical apparatus component scrap is processed in a copper blast furnace.

Method for removing wire-form objects, device for removing wire-form objects, and method for processing electronic/electrical apparatus component scrap


A bearing assembly for a gas turbine engine rotor includes, in an exemplary, an inner race, an outer race assembly, and a rolling element. The outer race assembly includes a body, a plurality of first springs attached to the body, and a plurality of second springs. Each first spring is radially aligned with a corresponding second spring forming a spring pair. The outer race assembly also includes a plurality of connecting members. Each connecting member extends between and connects a first end of the first spring and a first end of the second spring of said spring pair. The outer race assembly further includes a flange with each second spring attached to the flange.

This application relates generally to gas turbine engine rotor assemblies and, more particularly, to bearing assemblies for gas turbine engine rotor assemblies.
Gas turbine engines typically includes a fan rotor assembly, a compressor, and a turbine. The fan rotor assembly includes a fan including an array of fan blades extending radially outward from a rotor shaft. The rotor shaft transfers power and rotary motion from the turbine to the compressor and the fan, and is supported longitudinally with a plurality of bearing assemblies. Bearing assemblies support the rotor shaft and typically include rolling elements located within an inner race and an outer race.
Additionally, at least some known bearing assemblies include a plurality of identical springs attached to the bearing outer race. The springs are spaced equally in a single row circumferentially around the rotor shaft to provide a discrete radial stiffness to the bearing and to center the outer race with respect to the support frame. A first end of the springs is attached to the bearing assembly outer race, and a second end of the springs is attached to a flange coupled to a support frame.
During operation, an unbalance within the engine may cause the engine rotor shaft to displace radially. The radial displacements of the shaft are transmitted to the bearing assembly. Because the springs are arranged in a single circumferential row, the deflection of each spring is the same. A parallel or dual row configuration facilitates optimizing the weight of the bearing assembly by utilizing a shorter axial space. However, this configuration also reduces the spring bending stresses, thus increasing fatigue life. In this stress field, a generic single row configuration would require more springs, a greater material strength, greater cross-sectional inertia, and/or an increased spring length. As a result, a cost and weight of the bearing assembly would increase.
To minimize the effects of potentially damaging radial forces, the number of springs, the cross-sectional area, and the length of the springs are often increased. As a result, the cost and weight of the bearing assembly is also increased.

Apparatus for centering rotor assembly bearings


Apparatus and method for determining pressure in a well is provided. A sensor for determining the rate of change of pressure in a well comprises: a first cavity body defining an enclosed volume, a portion of one wall of the cavity body being constituted by a pressure sensitive membrane capable of exposure to the well pressure so as to be responsive thereto; and a first capillary connected to the first cavity body at one end and being open to the well pressure at the other end so as to provide pressure communication between the well pressure and the interior of the first cavity body; wherein a length of the first capillary, an internal diameter of the first capillary, and the volume of the first cavity body are such that the sensor has a predetermined pressure response that comprises an input minus a low-pass filtered version of the input, and a predetermined time constant.

Following the drilling of wells such as oil or gas wells, it is desirable to characterize the formations surrounding the well in order that the appropriate measures can be taken to obtain optimum production from the well without causing damage to the formations and preventing effective recovery of the useful reserves. Properties such as permeability (horizontal, spherical, vertical, etc.), skin (the extent of damage to the formation around the well, typically arising from the drilling and well completion processes), and the limits of the producing formations are some of the properties typically used for such characterization. One tool used to make measurements to allow these properties to be determined is the MDT tool of Schlumberger. The MDT tool includes a highly accurate pressure gauge, the CQG, to enable measurements to be made of the fluid pressure in the formation around the well or in isolated intervals of the well. One well test that is possible with such a tool is the mini-DST in which fluid is drawn from an interval of the well isolated by means of a pair of inflatable packers and the pressure in the interval monitored as fluids flow from the formation into the interval. The pressure difference is measured over time and the pressure derivative, the rate of change of pressure over time determined. From these measurements, the properties of the formations can be determined. Examples of mini-DSTs can be found in The MDT Tool: A Wireline Testing Breakthrough, Schlumberger Oilfield Review, April 1992, 58-65; and Characterizing Permeability with Formation Testers, Schlumberger Oilfield Review, Autumn 2001, 2-23.
The fundamental challenge in downhole pressure gauge design is to provide something which is mechanically very strong so as to be able to withstand high static and dynamic stresses, but at the same very sensitive to small pressure changes (for accuracy and resolution), which implies mechanically weak. In high-end gauges such as CQG, there can be a dynamic range of more than 106 between the gauge pressure rating (e.g. 137895 kPa (20000 psi)) and the gauge resolution (e.g. 69Pa (0.01 psi)). Sensors with such a large dynamic range are difficult to design and manufacture.
However, if the way in which the data is used is considered, high resolution is not normally needed at the same time as high accuracy. For example, the resolution is used at the end of build-ups in well testing but there is no need to determine reservoir pressure to within 69 Pa (0.01 psi). The high resolution measurement is used to compute (and process and interpret) the derivative of the pressure signal.
This invention is based on the use of a pressure sensor that directly measures the derivative of the pressure. This can be achieved much more simply and at much lower cost than conventional high end pressure sensors.
A differential pressure gauge is described in A Deep-Sea Differential Pressure Gauge, Cox, C. et al, Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology Vol. 1, September 1984, 237-246. This document proposes a pressure sensor for use in sea-bed conditions to measure pressures generated by long ocean surface gravity waves, seismic disturbances of the seabed, microseisms, and the low-frequency end of the ocean acoustic spectrum, at frequencies in the range 102-10−4 Hz and at pressures of 105-10−5 Pa2/Hz, with a seabed pressure of 4×107 Pa.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,507,971 describes an apparatus for measuring pressure. The apparatus comprises a hydraulic filter having a capillary tube as a resistor to eliminate slow pressure fluctuations.

Method and apparatus for pressure measurements in well testing


A vibration isolating apparatus includes: a first mounting member; a second mounting member; an elastic body provided between the first mounting member and the second mounting member; a main fluid chamber, the elastic body forming a portion of a partitioning wall of the main fluid chamber such that the main fluid chamber can expand and contract; a first auxiliary fluid chamber disposed so as to be separated from the main fluid chamber; a first restricting passage communicating the main fluid chamber and the first auxiliary fluid chamber; a second auxiliary fluid chamber disposed so as to be separated from the main fluid chamber; a second restricting passage communicating the main fluid chamber and the second auxiliary fluid chamber; a first diaphragm forming a portion of a partitioning wall of the first auxiliary fluid chamber; a second diaphragm forming a portion of a partitioning wall of the second auxiliary fluid chamber; an air chamber disposed in opposition to the second auxiliary fluid chamber with the second diaphragm being interposed between the air chamber and the second auxiliary fluid chamber, the air chamber being filled with air; and a switching valve which when open, communicates the air chamber with outside air, and when closed, closes the air chamber off from the outside air. Accordingly, an isolating characteristic can be varied at a low cost, and the characteristic can be maintained over time.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vibration isolating apparatus which is used in a vehicle, an ordinary industrial machine or the like, and which absorbs vibration from a vibration generating portion.
2. Description of the Related Art
A vibration isolating apparatus serving as an engine mount is disposed between the engine and the vehicle body of a vehicle such as an automobile, and prevents the transmission of the engine vibration to the vehicle body.
Types of vibrations generated at the engine include so-called shake vibration which is generated when the vehicle is traveling at high speeds or the like, and so-called idle vibration which is generated when the vehicle is idling or is traveling at speeds of around 5 km/h.
The respective frequencies of shake vibration and idle vibration are different; generally, the frequency of shake vibration is less than 15 Hz, whereas the frequency of idle vibration is 20 to 50 Hz.
Fluid-filled vibration isolating apparatuses have been proposed as vibration isolating apparatuses which absorb and reduce shake vibration and idle vibration.
Such a fluid-filled vibration isolating apparatus is equipped with a main fluid chamber and a plurality of auxiliary fluid chambers. Portions of the wall surfaces of the main fluid chamber and the auxiliary fluid chambers are formed by an elastic body. The main fluid chamber and the auxiliary fluid chambers are connected by a plurality of restricting passages having respectively different sizes. Further, as is well-known, this type of vibration isolating apparatus reduces vibration by the fluid moving reciprocally within the restricting passages or resonating within the restricting passages when vibration is input.
The auxiliary fluid chamber of the vibration isolating apparatus is structured such that a diaphragm, whose opposite side contacts air, is a portion of a partitioning wall. Specifically, due to the diaphragm deforming, the volume of the auxiliary fluid chamber can be varied, and the fluid within the restricting passage communicating the main fluid chamber and the auxiliary fluid chamber can be made to move reciprocally. As a result, if the motion of the diaphragm is restricted, the fluid cannot flow within the restricting passage.
On the basis of this principle, fluid-filled vibration isolating apparatuses have been proposed in which the suction vacuum generated by the intake system of the engine is used to vary the isolating characteristic. In such a vibration isolating apparatus, an air chamber is provided at one surface side of the diaphragm, and the air chamber is connected to the intake system of the engine (e.g., an intake manifold) via a two-port/three-position switching valve (e.g., an electromagnetic valve). Accordingly, by communicating the intake system of the engine and the air chamber by the two-port/three-position switching valve, the internal pressure of the air chamber is lowered by the vacuum of the intake system of the engine, and the diaphragm is made to fit tightly to the inner wall of the air chamber.
In this way, fluid moves reciprocally in the restricting passages other than the restricting passage which is connected to the auxiliary fluid chamber facing the diaphragm which fits tightly to the inner wall, and an isolating effect is obtained.
However, the above-described vibration isolating apparatus has the following drawbacks.
First, a piping hose for supplying the vacuum generated by the engine intake system to the vibration isolating apparatus is needed. The piping hose results in added costs. Further, an assembly process for guiding and fixing the piping hose within the engine room is necessary, which results in an increase in manufacturing costs.
Second, in the event that the diaphragm breaks, there is the concern that the fluid within the vibration isolating apparatus will penetrate into the engine through the piping hose for the vacuum.
Third, when the diaphragm is sucked and is fit tightly to the inner wall of the air chamber due to the vacuum of the engine intake system, the fluid within the main fluid chamber moves to the auxiliary fluid chamber as the diaphragm moves. As a result, the volume of the main fluid chamber decreases, the elastic body caves in, and the position of a mounting member which is mounted to the elastic body changes. Specifically, there is a drawback in that the dimension between the vibration receiving portion and the vibration generating portion changes. For example, if the engine is supported at the vehicle body via the vibration isolating apparatus, the height of the engine varies.
Even in cases in which such a vibration isolating apparatus is used, when the engine starts, the idle rotational frequency of the engine increases and becomes a rotational frequency (for example, 900 to 1200 rpm) which is greater than or equal to the rotational frequency (around 700 rpm as illustrated in FIG. 13) which is set as the idle rotational frequency. Therefore, the vibration frequency becomes higher than ordinary idle frequency.
As a result, even if the vibration isolating apparatus is tuned in advance so as to match idle vibration, when the engine starts, the dynamic spring constant K increases, and vibration in the antiresonant region of the fluid is generated. A drawback arises in that the vibration cannot be reduced until the rotational frequency falls to less than or equal to the idle rotational frequency.