A system and method for controlling an air-fuel ratio of an internal combustion engine using a ratio of cylinder pressures measured within at least one cylinder. The air-fuel ratio control system includes an electronic control module (ECM) which computes a measured cylinder pressure ratio of the cylinder pressure measured at a predetermined crank angle before top dead center and the cylinder pressure measured at a predetermined crank angle after top dead center. The measured cylinder pressure ratio is compared with an optimal cylinder pressure ratio. Based upon the results of this comparison, the ECM then determines an adjusted air-fuel ratio which would modify the measured pressure ratio to equal the optimal pressure ratio. This system controls the air-fuel ratio by measuring the quality of combustion without the need to measure the amount of air or fuel actually delivered to the engine. The measured pressure ratio corresponds to an excess air ratio of the internal combustion engine at those operating conditions, wherein a measured excess air ratio of the engine may be obtained from the computed pressure ratio. The measured excess air ratio may be compared with an optimal excess air ratio for the specific engine operating conditions currently being sensed, wherein the ECM then determines the adjusted air-fuel ratio which would modify the measured excess air ratio to equal the stored optimal excess air ratio.

1. Techincal Field
The present invention relates to an air-fuel ratio and engine control system for internal combustion engines. More particularly, the present invention relates to the control of the air-fuel ratio and other engine parameters in response to a ratio of cylinder pressures as a function of rotational crankshaft angles.
2. Background Art
Currently, various methods of controlling the combustion process in internal combustion engines are known. Adjustments to controlling the energy conversion function of an engine during combustion are obtained by sensing at least one engine operating condition, such as coolant temperature, manifold pressure, engine speed, mass airflow into the engine, throttle angle, fuel temperature, fuel pressure, fuel rate, EGR rate, exhaust emissions, etc., and adjusting the energy conversion in response thereto. Usually, engine control is determined by varying certain engine operating conditions on a control reference engine to determine the proper energy conversion for the various operating conditions. The problem encountered with this approach is that the engine being controlled is not necessarily the same as the control test engine used for reference, due to manufacturing differences and aging. Therefore, the operating condition being sensed can provide an inaccurate control variable for engine control. In order to overcome this problem, a control system must be implemented with the capability to adjust for these differences and changes. Such a control system is possible using combustion chamber pressure sensors and applying feedback control to ignition timing, EGR rate, or fuel rate.
In a typical engine control, the three controlled combustion parameters are spark timing, EGR rate, and air-fuel ratio. The first parameter affects the timing of the initiation of the combustion process and the latter two affect the speed and duration of the combustion process, while all three parameters affect engine emissions. Air-fuel ratio is generally controlled in a closed loop by an exhaust oxygen sensor to produce a constant stoichiometric ratio for emission control by oxidizing and reducing catalysts in the exhaust system. Since the efficiency of one or the other catalyst falls rapidly as the air-fuel ratio strays even slightly from stoichiometric in either direction, this parameter must be strictly controlled and is not available for maximizing power or fuel efficiency. Internal combustion engines in most cars today typically operate stoichiometrically. Stoichiometric conditions exist when there is exactly the right amount of oxygen available to convert all of the fuel molecules to CO.sub.2 and H.sub.2 O. Under these conditions, there is very little, if any, oxygen in the exhaust to prevent the oxygen from interfering with the catalytic removal of NO.sub.X emissions. Furthermore, there is also virtually no unburned fuel or CO in the exhaust.
However, it has been found that there are situations when it is advantageous to operate with a very lean air-fuel ratio rather than a stoichiometric air-fuel ratio, such as to produce better fuel economy or reduce exhaust emissions. Lean mixtures provide numerous additional advantages as well, such as lowering combustion temperatures which lowers NO.sub.X emissions, increasing efficiency through a higher ratio of specific heats, lowering exhaust temperatures which increases durability, especially at high loads, and having a greater knock margin which allows higher compression ratios to be used resulting in better efficiency. When operating with a very lean air-fuel ratio, existing exhaust gas oxygen sensors cannot accurately measure the exhaust oxygen concentration, which results in inaccurate control of the air-fuel ratio. Therefore, it is desirable to provide an engine control system that easily and reliably is able to control engine operation at lean air-fuel ratios.
As previously stated, combustion chamber pressure sensors can be utilized along with applying feedback control to provide control of engine operation. One such system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,996,960 issued to Nishiyama et al., which teaches an air-fuel ratio control system for an internal combustion engine using a ratio of two cylinder pressure measurements, one at top dead center (TDC) and one at 60.degree. before TDC (BTDC), in conjunction with the intake air temperature to calculate a correction for the delivered fuel flow during acceleration or deceleration and thus changing the air-fuel ratio. This control system uses the well known polytropic behavior of the air-fuel mixture that is typically observed during the compression stroke in the cylinder to estimate the charging efficiency and, once the charging efficiency is known, to correct for changes in air flow without the use of an air flow meter. Nishiyama et al. teach taking all cylinder pressure measurements at or before TDC, which is prior to combustion, and their control system does not measure any parameters during the actual combustion event. Therefore, this air-fuel ratio control system would not be able to accurately control the air-fuel ratio of a lean burn engine, which requires the quality of combustion to be monitored.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,939 issued to Matekunas discloses a method of controlling spark timing for achieving the best torque in an internal combustion engine by comparing the ratio of combustion chamber pressure to motored pressure for several predetermined crankshaft rotational angles, namely at least 10.degree. and 90.degree. ATDC. The motored pressure is a calculated value of the estimated pressure at 10.degree. and 90.degree. ATDC based upon initial pressure measurements taken at 90.degree. and 60.degree. BTDC, and a ratio between the first and second ratios of combustion chamber pressure to motored pressure at 10.degree. and 90.degree. ATDC is calculated to adjust the ignition timing to maintain a predetermined ratio between the first and second pressure ratios for MBT. Therefore, this control system requires numerous calculations and additional sampling of the pressure signal to determine the motored pressures and all of the ratios as well as additional memory to store all of these calculations. Additionally, the pressure ratio calculated at 90.degree. ATDC occurs at substantially complete combustion, wherein pressure measurements taken late in the combustion cycle are particularly sensitive to measurement errors, such as thermal shock. Thermal shock occurs as the transducer is exposed to hot and cold gases and its body deforms due to thermal expansion of the transducer body, which, in turn, moves the transducer's diaphragm and causes an error which is nearly impossible to remove. Therefore, measurements at substantially complete combustion as implemented by Matekunas are likely to have too great an error to allow adequate precision in the measured pressure ratio. Further, the purpose of the Matekunas invention is to adjust the spark timing to keep the 50% point of combustion relatively fixed in order to achieve MBT timing, and the Matekunas invention does not control the air-fuel ratio. Accordingly, there is a need for an engine control system which is not affected by thermal shock and which does not require a plurality of pressure samplings and a large amount of memory to store calculations of such pressure samplings. There is further a need for an engine control system which adequately functions with a lean air-fuel ratio.
One approach to controlling the operation of an internal combustion engine at lean air-fuel ratios is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,724 issued to Hamburg et al. This control system uses an in-cylinder pressure sensor and a sensor for monitoring the airflow into the engine in a combustion pressure feedback loop, wherein the sensors are attached to a compensation device coupled to the fuel controller. The compensation device modifies the fuel air command applied to the engine as a function of airflow and in-cylinder pressure. The engine's air-fuel ratio is maintained at the lean limit based on continuously measured in-cylinder combustion pressure signals. This control system performs a constant heat release calculation to measure the burn duration, and requires a fast time response in the feedback loop as the burn duration is compared with the lean limited preprogrammed in a burn duration table. Therefore, this control system requires a great deal of processing power and storage memory to continuously monitor the in-cylinder pressure to calculate burn duration. Furthermore, this control system requires the additional measurement of the airflow into the engine which further complicates the required components of the control system and adds another variable to the calculations, which increases the opportunity for error.
Accordingly, there is clearly a need for an engine control system which provides for effective control of the air-fuel ratio at lean conditions while not requiring a plurality of complex calculations and a large amount of memory to store such calculations. Further, there is a need for an engine control system which adequately controls an internal combustion engine at a lean air-fuel ratio in a simpler and more efficient manner.

Cylinder pressure based air-fuel ratio and engine control


An open-end spinning device 1 with a bearing arrangement for supporting a spinning rotor 3, which is seated so it can rotate at high turning frequency and is electrically insulated in relation to the housing of the spinning device and of the bearing. The static charge being created on the spinning rotor 3 during the spinning process is diverted to a grounded component of the spinning device 1 by means of an electrical conducting mechanism. The electrical conducting mechanism 40 is arranged in the area of the axial bearing 18.

Open-end spinning devices with such rotor bearing arrangements are known in various different embodiments, and have been extensively described, for example in German Patent Publications DE 195 43 745 A1, DE 196 01 034 A1, DE 197 05 607 A1 or DE 41 17 175 A1.
For example, German Patent Publication DE 195 43 745 A1 describes an embodiment in which the spinning rotor is supported both radially and axially by means of a magnetic bearing arrangement. The magnetic bearing at the end of the rotor shaft described in German Patent Publication DE 195 43 745 A1 has a magnetic rotor ring as well as a magnetic stator ring. Here, the two magnetic rings are aligned magnetically in such a way that a bearing gap is created between them. To suppress the radial oscillations of the magnetically seated spinning rotor, which occur in particular during a starting phase, the stator magnet is furthermore seated with its movements limited in the radial direction. Here, the radial deflections of the magnetic stator ring are damped by a mechanical friction device.
However, it is disadvantageous with this known installation that the static charge, which in particular occurs during the spinning of synthetic materials in the area of the spinning rotor, cannot be dissipated in a defined manner, since the spinning rotor is electrically insulated from the grounded components of the open-end spinning device. This electric charge has an interfering effect on the spinning process.
In the open-end spinning device in accordance with German Patent Publication DE 197 05 607 A1, the spinning rotor is supported with its rotor shaft in the wedge gaps of a support ring bearing, and rests axially against an aerostatic bearing. The rotor shaft is made of carbide, at least in the area of the bearing surface which cooperates with the axial bearing.
Because of the electrically insulated bearing of the spinning rotor, it is also possible with this known bearing arrangement for a static charge of the spinning rotor to appear during spinning of synthetic material in particular, leading to disadvantageous effects on the spinning process. Even temporary unintentional contact between the rotor shaft bearing surface and the bearing plate of the axial bearing, made of a carbon material, cannot produce a sufficient removal of the charge.
An open end spinning device is furthermore known from German Patent Publication DE 196 01 034 A1, in which the spinning rotor is aerostatically seated both radially and axially. As with the above described bearing arrangements, the bearing arrangement in accordance with German Patent Publication DE 196 01 034 A1 also has the problem that a permanent electric insulation of the spinning rotor during the spinning operation is produced because of the air gap of the aerostatic bearing, and therefore no sufficient removal of the electrostatic charge created during spinning takes place.
The problem of insufficient grounding of the spinning rotor, in particular in the course of processing synthetic feed materials, is also present in bearing arrangements of open-end spinning devices, such as those known from German Patent Publication DE 41 17 175 A1. With these bearing arrangements, which per se have proven themselves in actual use, the radial seating of the rotor shaft is customarily provided by plastic-coated support rings. Since the rotor shaft has a non-conducting, for example oxide-ceramic, insert in the area of its axial support, this also leads to an electric insulation and therefore to a static charge buildup of the spinning rotor.


A method of prostate treatment includes the step of inserting into a prostatic portion of urethra an energy emitting device that is connected to an energy source. Energy is delivered to the prostate from the energy emitting device. The amount of energy emitted to prostatic tissue adjacent to a bladder is greater than that emitted to prostatic tissue distant from the bladder.

The present invention relates to methods for treating the prostate. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of delivering varying amounts of energy to the prostate along the prostatic urethra.
The prostate gland is a complex, chestnut-shaped organ which encircles the urethra immediately below the bladder. The portion of the urethra extending through the prostate (i.e., the prostatic urethra) includes a proximal segment, which communicates with the bladder, and a distal segment, which extends at an angle relative to the proximal segment by the verumontanum.
Although a relatively small organ, the prostate is the most frequently diseased of all internal organs and is often the site of a common affliction among older men, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), as well as a more serious affliction, cancer. BPH is a nonmalignant, bilateral expansion of prostate tissue occurring mainly in the transition zone of the prostate adjacent to the proximal segment of the prostatic urethra. As this tissue grows in volume, it encroaches on the urethra extending into the region of the bladder neck at the base of the bladder. Left untreated, BPH causes obstruction of the urethra which usually results in increased urinary frequency, urgency, incontinence, nocturia and slow or interrupted urinary stream. BPH may also result in more severe complications, such as urinary tract infection, acute urinary retention, hydronephrosis and uraemia.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) may be treated using transurethral thermal therapy as described in further detail in U.S. Pat. 5,413,588 entitled DEVICE FOR ASYMMETRICAL THERMAL THERAPY WITH HELICAL DIPOLE MICROWAVE ANTENNA and in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/309,137 entitled COOLANT PRE-CHILLING PRIOR TO BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERPLASIA TREATMENT, both of which are herein incorporated by reference. During transurethral thermal therapy, the transition zone of the prostate is heated to necrose the tumorous tissue that encroaches on the urethra. Transurethral thermal therapy is administered by use of a microwave antenna-containing catheter which includes a multi-lumen shaft. The catheter is positioned in the urethra with the microwave antenna located adjacent to the hyperplastic prostatic tissue. Energization of the microwave antenna causes the antenna to emit electromagnetic energy which heats tissue within the prostate.
One of the main objectives of transurethral thermal therapy is to selectively deliver a sufficient intensity of electromagnetic energy to the hyperplastic tissues of the prostate to generate necrosis-producing temperatures in those tissues without harming adjacent healthy tissue. In this regard, it is important to avoid thermal damage to urethral, rectal and bladder neck tissues.
Damage to the bladder neck may cause such complications as bladder contractures and trigone damage. Bladder neck contractures occur when the muscle of the bladder neck becomes damaged and as a result contracts and becomes fibrotic. As a result, the opening between the bladder neck and the urethra narrows and possibly closes due to scarring. Occlusion of the opening between the bladder neck and the urethra causes urinary retention. However, removal of scarring to reopen the opening between the bladder neck and the urethra poses a risk of severe infections and bladder stones. In addition, removing scarring often leads to additional new scarring. As a result, bladder neck contractures require continual treatment.
Damage to the bladder wall or trigone occurs when the portion of the bladder wall located between the urethral orifices and the bladder neck is damaged by excessive heat such as that caused by electromagnetic energy. The trigone contains nerves which signal the need for urination. As a result, damage to the trigone causes irritation, dysuria, which is pain upon urination, and possibly hematuria bleeding.

Method of axial preferential thermal therapy


A transmission component is incorporated into a transmission in which an input shaft, an output shaft, or a gear is rotatably supported by a rolling bearing. The component has a nitriding layer at a surface layer and an austenite grain with a grain size number falling within a range exceeding 10. This provides a transmission component having an increased anti-crack strength, enhanced dimensional stability, and a long fatigue life. A method of manufacturing such a transmission component and a tapered roller bearing are also provided.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmission component having a long rolling contact fatigue life, an increased anti-crack strength, or a reduced secular variation in dimension, and to a method of manufacturing the same and a tapered roller bearing.
2. Description of the Background Art
To increase a bearing's components in life, a thermal treatment is performed. Specifically, for example, in quenching the components they are heated in an ambient RX gas with ammonium gas further introduced therein to carbo-nitride their surface layer portion, for example as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laying-Open Nos. 8-4774 and 11-101247. This carbonitriding process can harden the surface layer portion and generate retained austenite in a microstructure to provide increased rolling contact fatigue life.
The above-mentioned carbonitriding process is a process to diffuse carbon and nitrogen. This requires a high temperature maintained for a long period of time. As such, for example a coarsened structure results and increased anti-crack strength is hardly obtained. Furthermore, as more austenite is retained, secular dimensional variation rate increases, which is also a problem in this carbonitriding process.
Against rolling fatigue, an increased life can be ensured, an enhanced anti-crack strength provided and an increased secular dimensional variation avoided by relying on designing a steel alloy to provide an adjusted composition. Relying on designing the alloy, however, increases source material cost disadvantageously.
Future bearings in a transmission will be used in environments exerting large loads at high temperatures. In addition, they will be required to be employed in a downsized transmission. Therefore, the bearings will be required to be operable under larger loads at higher temperatures than conventional. As such, there is a demand for a bearing having large strength, long life against rolling contact fatigue, and large anti-crack strength and dimensional stability.

Transmission component, method of manufacturing the same, and tapered roller bearing


A method for receiving and presenting interactive voice response data can include sending a telephony connectivity request for establishing a voice channel connection between an originating device and a interactive voice response system. Prior to establishing the voice channel connection, an interactive voice response menu associated with said interactive voice response system can be received via a ringback channel. At least a portion the interactive voice response menu can be presented to a user of the originating device.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to the field of telecommunications and, more particularly, to interactive voice response applications and pre-connection telephony signals.
2. Description of the Related Art
The advent of interactive voice response (IVR) applications for use in telephone systems has reduced operating costs for many types of businesses by reducing telephone related staffing requirements. Such IVR applications typically answer incoming telephone calls and present to callers audible menus of selectable options. The callers usually make menu selections in one of two ways: depressing a key or sequence of keys on a touch tone keypad; or issuing a spoken utterance.
Oftentimes a plurality of hierarchically related menus are presented which a caller must navigate to find the option that the caller wishes to select. Navigating through such menus can be time consuming and frustrating, especially if the caller makes an incorrect selection during the navigation process. Consequently, callers often hang up prior to successfully navigating the menus or opt out of the menu system in an attempt to speak with an operator. Particularly concerning are the cases in which callers that hang up in frustration are potential customers or clients. Although such frustrations could be minimized by allowing callers a simplified navigational method for contacting a desirable node within an IVR menu, conventional systems offer callers no such alternative means to navigate an IVR menu.

Telephony signals containing an IVR decision tree

International Business Machines Corporation


Techniques for providing an efficient real-time hierarchy based on change events are disclosed. In some embodiments, a computer-implemented method comprises: storing a hierarchy table comprising hierarchy data that represents a snapshot state of a hierarchy tree of entities at a first point in time and having been last updated at the first point in time; receiving one or more user requests to change entity data representing entities of the hierarchy tree; storing one or more change events in a queue based on the user request(s); receiving a query request for the hierarchy tree; in response to the receiving of the query request, generating a query result based on the hierarchy table stored in the database and the change event(s) stored in the queue; and performing a function of an enterprise application platform using the query result.

Current solutions for managing a hierarchy of entities in a computer system suffer from technical problems. In programming, a hierarchy tree may be used to represent a hierarchy and may be persisted in a relational database. One way to persist a hierarchy tree in a relational database is by saving a pre-order (NLR) traversal result of the hierarchy tree. The saved traversal result of the hierarchy tree can be used to service query requests for data of the hierarchy tree, which improves the speed and efficiency of generating responses to the query requests, since the traversal that would be used to search the hierarchy tree has already been performed prior to servicing of the query requests. However, when a change is made to the hierarchy tree, such as the addition of a new entity to the hierarchy tree, the computer system must traverse the hierarchy tree again and save the result. It is not efficient to traverse the hierarchy tree for each change that is made. For example, a hierarchy tree for an organization may include tens of thousands of employees. If changes to the organization are frequent, the functional impact on the computer system is significant, as the computational expense and the time involved in implementing the changes are high. In some solutions, the hierarchy tree is periodically traversed and saved to a database. However, since the updates in these solutions are periodic with gaps between them, the changes to the hierarchy tree are not reflected in real-time. Users that depend on the changes being implemented in the hierarchy tree must wait until the hierarchy tree is completed refreshed. As a result, the underlying computer system fails to reliably reflect changes made to a hierarchy tree in real-time. In addition to the issues discussed above, other technical problems may arise as well.

Efficient real-time hierarchy using change events


An article holder assembly for use in a dishwasher appliance includes a first attachment arm for securing to a first side wall of a rack of the dishwasher appliance, a second attachment arm for securing to an opposing, second side wall of a rack of the dishwasher appliance, and at least one article positioning arm secured between the first and second attachment arms. The article positioning arm(s) is movable between an engaged position and a disengaged position. Thus, the article positioning arm(s) defines a predefined geometry configured to receive a portion of one or more articles for cleaning in the dishwasher appliance. Further, when the article positioning arm(s) is in the engaged position, the predefined geometry positions and secures one or more of the articles on a rack of the dishwasher appliance for cleaning.

Dishwasher appliances generally include a tub that defines a wash chamber. Dishwasher appliances also generally include a rack assembly mounted within the wash chamber. The rack assembly is configured for receipt of articles for washing. For example, a user can slide the rack assembly out of the wash chamber and load plates, bowls, cups, or any suitable article or combination of articles into the rack assembly. After loading is complete, the user may slide the rack assembly back into the wash chamber.
In particular, the user can slide the rack assembly is to a retracted position. During operation of the dishwasher appliance, such a configuration for the rack assembly is preferable and may be required for certain dishwasher appliance components to function properly. Further, certain dishwasher appliances include a spray assembly mounted to the rack assembly. The spray assembly is normally configured such that the rack assembly must be positioned in the retracted position for the spray assembly to receive wash fluid during operation of the dishwasher appliance. The rack assembly may include, for example, top and bottom racks or top, middle, and bottom racks.
In certain dishwasher appliances, the top rack assembly may include a stemware holder on either side thereof. However, the top rack places stringent height restrictions on stemware and other tall articles placed therein. Furthermore, with the addition of a middle rack, such height restrictions are even more stringent.
Accordingly, an article holder assembly for a dishwasher appliance that addresses the aforementioned issues would be useful. Thus, the present disclosure is directed to an article holder assembly for use in the lower rack that can be placed atop the silverware cleaning system such that taller articles can be placed therein and which also has better wash performance.

Article holder assembly for a dishwasher appliance


A method and system for authenticating messages is provided. A message authentication system generates an encrypted message by encrypting with a key a combination of a message and a nonce. The message authentication system generates a message authentication code based on a combination of the message and the nonce modulo a divisor. To decrypt and authenticate the message, the message authentication system generates a decrypted message by decrypting with the key the encrypted message and extracts the message and the nonce. The message authentication system then regenerates a message authentication code based on a combination of the extracted message and the extracted nonce modulo the divisor. The message authentication system then determines whether the regenerated message authentication code matches the original message authentication code. If the codes match, then the integrity and authenticity of the message are verified.

The authentication of messages exchanged over public channels is an important goal in cryptography. A message is authenticated when both the integrity and the authenticity of the message are verified. The integrity of a message is verified when the message has not been modified, and the authenticity of a message is verified when the message is confirmed to be sent by the purported sender. Typically, a sender of a message encrypts the message, generates a message authentication code ("MAC") from the message, and transmits the encrypted message and the MAC to a receiver. The receiver uses the MAC to authenticate the message. Many algorithms have been designed for the sole purpose of authenticating. Based on needed security, MACs can be either unconditionally or computationally secure. Unconditionally secure MACs are secure against forgers with unlimited computational power, while computationally secure MACs are secure only when forgers have limited computational power.
A popular class of unconditionally secure MAC algorithms is based on universal hash-function families developed by Carter and Wegman. (Carter, J., Wegman, M., "Universal Classes of Hash Functions," in Proceedings of the 9th Annual ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing—STOC '77, pp. 106-112, ACM (1977).) The basic concept allowing for unconditional security is that the authentication key can be used to authenticate only a limited number of exchanged messages. Since the management of one-time keys is considered impractical in many applications, computationally secure MACs, rather than unconditionally secure MACs, are used for most practical applications. With computationally secure MACs, keys can be used to authenticate an arbitrary number of messages. That is, after agreeing on a key, legitimate users can exchange an arbitrary number of authenticated messages with the same key. Computationally secure MACs can be classified into three main categories: block cipher, cryptographic hash function, or universal hash-function family.
The cipher-block chaining MAC ("CBC-MAC") is one of the most well-known block cipher based MACs. The CBC-MAC is specified in many governmental and international standards. The exclusive OR ("XOR-MAC") and parallelizable MAC ("PMAC") are other well-known block ciphers.
The use of one-way cryptographic hash functions for message authentication was introduced by Tsudik. Examples of cryptographic hash functions for MACs include the hash-based MAC ("HMAC") and the message digest x MAC ("MDx-MAC"), which are specified in the International Organization for Standardization ISO/IEC 9797-2.
The use of universal hash-function families in the Carter-Wegman style is not restricted to the design of unconditionally secure MACs. Rather, computationally secure MACs based on universal hash functions can be constructed with two rounds of computations. In the first round, the message to be authenticated is compressed using a universal hash function. Then, in the second round, the compressed image is processed with a cryptographic function (e.g., a pseudorandom function).
Indeed, universal hashing based MACs give better performance when compared to block cipher or cryptographic hashing based MACs. There are two main factors leading to the performance advantage of universal hashing based MACs. First, processing messages block by block using universal hash functions is faster than processing messages block by block using block ciphers or cryptographic hash functions. Second, since the output of the universal hash function is much shorter than the original message itself, processing the compressed image with a cryptographic function can be performed efficiently.
One of the main differences between unconditionally secure MACs based on universal hashing and computationally secure MACs based on universal hashing is the requirement to process the compressed image with a cryptographic primitive with the computationally secure MACs. This round of computation is necessary to protect the secret key of the universal hash function. That is, since universal hash functions are not cryptographic functions, the observation of multiple message image pairs can reveal the value of the hashing key. Since the hashing key is used repeatedly in computationally secure MACs, the exposure of the hashing key will lead to breaking the security of the MAC. Thus, processing the compressed image with a cryptographic primitive is necessary for the security of this class of MACs. This implies that unconditionally secure MACs based on universal hashing are more efficient than computationally secure ones. On the negative side, unconditionally secure universal hashing based MACs are considered impractical in most modern applications, due to the difficulty of managing one-time keys.
A couple of observations can be made about existing MAC algorithms. First, they are designed independently of any other operations required to be performed on the message to be authenticated. For example, if the authenticated message must also be encrypted, existing MACs are not designed to utilize the functionalities that can be provided by the underlying encryption algorithm. Second, most existing MACs are designed for general computer communication systems, independently of the properties that messages can possess. For example, most existing MACs are inefficient when the messages to be authenticated are short.
There is, however, an increasing demand for the deployment of networks consisting of a collection of small devices. In many practical applications, the main purpose of such devices is to communicate short messages. A sensor network, for example, can be deployed to monitor certain events and report some collected data. In many sensor network applications, reported data consist of short confidential measurements. For example, the ability to authenticate messages in a sensor network deployed in a battlefield with the purpose of reporting the existence of moving targets or other temporal activities is of critical importance. In another application, the radio frequency identification (RFID) systems also send short confidential messages. In such systems, RFID readers need to identify RFID tags. In such scenarios, RFID tags usually encrypt their identity, which is typically a short string, to protect their privacy. Since the RFID readers also authenticate the identity of the RFID tag, RFID tags are equipped with a message authentication mechanism. Another application that is becoming increasingly important is the deployment of body sensor networks. In such body sensor networks, small sensors are embedded in a patient to report some vital signs. The confidentiality and integrity of such reported messages can be important.
Significant effort has been devoted to the design of hardware efficient implementations for such small devices. For example, many hardware efficient implementations of block ciphers and cryptographic hash functions have been proposed. However, little or no effort has been devoted to the design of algorithms for message authentication codes for such networks. Because of the computational expense of existing MAC techniques, it would be desirable to have a technique for authenticating short encrypted messages that is more efficient than existing MAC algorithms.

Efficient authentication for mobile and pervasive computing


Instructions of a program are stored in compressed form in a program memory. A cache loading unit includes a decompression section and performs a cache loading operation in which one or more compressed-form instructions are read from the position in the program memory identified by the program counter and are decompressed and stored in one of the said cache blocks of the instruction cache. When a cache miss occurs because the instruction to be fetched is not present in the instruction cache, a cache loading unit performs such a cache loading operation. An updating unit updates the program counter and cache pointer in response to the fetching of instructions so as to ensure that the position identified by the said program counter is maintained consistently at the position in the program memory at which the instruction to be fetched from the instruction cache is stored in compressed form.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to processors having compressed instructions. In particular, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to very long instruction word (VLIW) processors having compressed instructions. The present invention also relates to methods of compressing instructions for processors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A VLIW instruction schedule (program) may contain a significant number of "no operation" (NOP) instructions which are there simply to pad out empty slots in the overall instruction schedule. As it is wasteful to store such NOPs explicitly in a schedule or program memory used for storing the instruction schedule, it is desirable to provide a mechanism for storing the VLIW instructions in the schedule memory in a compressed form.
FIG. 1(A) of the accompanying drawings shows an example original (non-compressed) VLIW instruction schedule made up of three VLIW packets P0, P1 and P2. Each packet is made up of two instructions. In this example, therefore, the processor which is to execute the instruction schedule must have first and second execution units, the first instruction of each packet (instruction 1) being executed by the first execution unit in parallel with the execution of the second instruction (instruction 2) of that packet by the second execution unit.
In the FIG. 1(A) example, half of the slots in the schedule contain NOP instructions (slots 1, 2 and 4).
FIG. 1(B) shows how the instruction schedule of FIG. 1(A) would be stored in its original non-compressed form in the schedule memory. In FIG. 1(B) the instructions appear as a sequential scan from left to right and from top to bottom of the VLIW instruction schedule of FIG. 1(A).
FIG. 1(C) shows how the FIG. 1(A) schedule can be stored in the schedule memory in compressed (or compacted) form. The first word of the compressed schedule contains a bit vector, referred to hereinafter as a "decompression key". The decompression key has a plurality of bits corresponding respectively to the instructions in the non-compressed schedule (FIG. 1(B)). If a particular bit in the key is a 0 this denotes that the instruction corresponding to that bit is a NOP instruction. If the bit is a 1 its corresponding instruction is a useful (non-NOP) instruction. In this way, all NOP instructions can be eliminated in the compressed version of the schedule.
Such a compression mechanism is highly valuable in an embedded processing environment (in which the processor is embedded in a system such as in a mobile communication device) where high code or instruction density is of critical importance because of the limited resources of the system, for example in terms of available program memory. However, such compression complicates the task of executing instructions in parallel. For example, when a VLIW instruction schedule contains two instructions which could in principle be executed in parallel but which are separated by a number of NOP instructions, the processor would have to search linearly through the compressed version of the schedule to identify instructions that could be executed in parallel. Most importantly, after compression, concurrency between one instruction and other instructions can no longer be determined simply by observing the position of that one instruction relative to those other instructions as they are stored in the schedule memory. In general, one of the primary advantages of VLIW processing (over more complex schemes for issuing instructions in parallel such as superscalar processing) is that in a (non-compressed) VLIW instruction schedule it is possible to determine when instructions are independent of one another (and hence can be executed concurrently) by observing the relative positions of instructions in the schedule. Accordingly, it is desirable to facilitate determination of independence even in a situation in which the instruction schedule is stored in the schedule memory in compressed form.
When a VLIW instruction schedule is stored in compressed form in the schedule memory the compressed packets must of course be decompressed before they can be supplied to the execution units for execution of the instructions contained therein. The decompression is desirably performed "on the-fly", i.e. during actual execution of the instruction schedule. To make such on-the-fly decompression possible, the decompression must be performed with low computational complexity and involve a comparatively simple hardware implementation so that the cost, in terms of lost execution time, arising from the decompression process is small.

Processor and method for generating and storing compressed instructions in a program memory and decompressed instructions in an instruction cache wherein the decompressed instructions are assigned imaginary addresses derived from information stored in the program memory with the compressed instructions


Image data compression apparatus for generating groups of encoded image data representing respective sub-areas of an image, in which the degree of data compression applied to each sub-area is specified at least in part by an attribute value associated with that sub-area, comprises selection logic for selecting the attribute value to be associated with each sub-area of an image; an attribute encoder for encoding the attribute value for each sub-area of the image according to a selected one of a plurality of predetermined sets of attribute codes, different sets of attribute codes being encoded using different respective quantities of data; a comparator for comparing attribute values for a group of the data blocks to detect whether the attribute values for the group of sub-areas could be encoded using a replacement one of said sets of attribute codes requiring a smaller quantity of data; and replacing logic responsive to a detection that the attribute values for the group of sub-areas could be encoded using a replacement set of attribute codes requiring a smaller quantity of data, for replacing the attribute codes from the selected set of attribute codes with corresponding codes from the replacement set of codes.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus and methods for image data compression and decompression.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known to take account of a detection of a so-called "activity" level of a block of image pixels in determining an appropriate degree of quantisation to be applied as part of a data compression process for that block of pixels.
GB-A-2 306 832 describes a data compression and decompression system of this type, in which blocks of pixels are subjected to discrete cosine transformation (DCT), quantisation and then entropy encoding for recording on a tape medium. Because the channel data capacity of the tape medium is limited, it is necessary to adjust the degree of compression applied to the image data to ensure that the tape data capacity is not exceeded by generating too much compressed data, while at the same time the available channel capacity is not wasted by generating too little compressed data. Therefore, the degree of quantisation applied to the DCT data is adjusted between blocks or groups of blocks to maintain a substantially constant data rate.
In this previously proposed system, the degree of quantisation is also adjusted between blocks according to the image "activity" of the blocks. In other words, how the block activity is used to determine how heavily individual blocks of an image should be compressed relative to other blocks, within an overall target bit rate for the compressed image.
The block activity is therefore essentially a representation of how noticeable compression artefacts will be in that block, compared to their visibility in other blocks. For example, in a block containing very little image detail (a "smooth" image area) compression artefacts might be more visible in the ultimate compressed and decompressed image than in an area containing a lot of image detail--where the artefacts would be "lost" in the other image detail of the block.
When the compressed image data is encoded, it is necessary to indicate the degree of compression (e.g. the degree of quantisation) applied to each block or group of blocks of the image, so that the correct decompression can be applied to reconstruct the image later. One way of encoding this information is to indicate a "base" quantisation level to be applied to pixels of an area of the image, with variations from that base quantisation level (e.g. in response to the activity assessment) being indicated on a block-by-block basis.
This arrangement requires an amount of header data for each block of the image, just to store the activity level in order to specify the modification to be applied to the "base" quantisation level for that block. If more data is allowed for this purpose, a greater resolution can be used in the activity measurement, but this data overhead has to be balanced against the general requirement in image compression systems to use as little of the available data rate as possible for header and other control data.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved technique for handling activity codes in data compression and decompression apparatus and methods.

Image activity data compression and decompression method and apparatus


A manually operated surgical steel rod cutter is disclosed. The rod cutter has a rod shearing tool head for cutting a rod when the rod is provided within aligned bores of two shearing subassemblies of the tool head. To cut the rod, an operator rotates an extendable handle to a substantially vertical position, inserts the rod in the tool head and rotates the handle to a substantially horizontal position. In order to increase the operator's shearing leverage, the handle can be extended from its retracted compact position by a linear pulling motion on a handle grip. The motion causes a handle extension that is adjacent and along the length of a first portion of the handle that has one end attached to the tool head, to extend from a sheath also attached to the first portion. The handle extension subsequently locks into an extended position when fully extended. The handle also has a vertical bow or bend which cooperates with a handle stop so that the handle not only rotates through an angle effective for shearing of rods but also limits handle movement in the horizontal direction so that an operator's hand on the handle grip does not contact the surface upon which the rod cutter rests.

In the cutting of metal rod materials, and in particular, toughened surgical steel, superior accuracy is required given that the rod being cut is used inside a patient's body. In the past, bolt cutting devices have been used by surgeons having compound levers and pivoted jaws. The problems encountered with such bolt cutting devices, however, is that the cut ends of rods were often left rough or having a wedge-shaped tip due to the extreme compression of metal during the cutting operation. Bolt cutters also prove to be difficult to use in the operating room due to the possibility that work pieces have been known to be propelled in unpredictable directions during the cutting operation, causing concern for operating personnel, as well as patients. In particular, when a rod is cut in this manner while a portion is in the patient, the force from such a compressed type cut will also be transmitted to the rod section in the patient causing some fracture of the implant placement in the bone. Moreover, given the extreme toughness of surgical metal rods, conventional bolt cutters are often difficult to operate manually and require significant strength of the operator. Numerous rod and bolt cutters have been developed having various designs and that are capable of providing a satisfactory cutting edge of a hardened surgical steel rod. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,303 to Strippgen describes a rod cutter that operates by a shearing action with applied rotatory torque, shearing surgical metal rods with excellent smoothness on the cut end. A disadvantage with this rod cutter device, however, is that during the final rotary motion of the cutting operation the operator's hand would often come into contact with a table top surface upon which the rod cutter was placed. Moreover, the design incorporates a pivotable handle that folds toward the cutting assembly in a manner wherein the hand grip area of the handle (where rod cutting force is applied) is narrow, having substantially no width on the inner side of the fold of the handle.
In another known rod cutter, having a pivotable handle, the handle is deformed with an offset to accommodate a wider hand grip when folded. However, the offset handle position is uncomfortable for a user and is necessarily outside the plane of rotary motion of the handle when used for cutting a rod. Further, such a pivotable handle has been the cause of a pinched finger or hand while setting up for use.
It would be desirable to have a compact, manually operated surgical rod cutting device that has an extensible handle for increased rod cutting leverage without any pivotal action to extend the handle. Further, it would be desirable to have the handle entirely within the plane of rotary motion during the rod cutting process. Additionally, it would also be desirable to have the handle configured in such a way that there is less potential for damage to an operator's hand when performing the cutting operation. Moreover, a rod cutter for surgical steel rods should be of a size that permits ready sterilization of the unit as a whole, as well as individual parts of the unit.


An output circuit having a buffer, the buffer including the first transistor which receives at a gate thereof a periodic input voltage and the second transistor, the first and the second transistors being connected in series across a power line and a ground line, a junction of the first and second transistors being connected to an output terminal. The output circuit includes a circuit for applying, to a gate of the second transistor, a first voltage for the second transistor to serve as a bias transistor for charging a load connected to the output terminal with a voltage corresponding to the input voltage, and the second voltage greater than the first voltage for the second transistor to serve as a discharge transistor for discharging the load.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an output circuit with a buffer.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 3 shows a prior output circuit. In the output circuit, a source follower transistor N1 and a bias transistor N2 constitute an output buffer. N4 denotes a discharge transistor whose drain is connected to an output terminal TOUT. The gate of the transistor N4 is given a periodic discharge pulse DIS for the purpose of discharging a load LD, and the gate of the transistor N2 is given a constant bias voltage Vb as shown in FIG. 4
When an input voltage VIN is applied to the gate of the transistor N1 and the constant bias voltage Vb is applied to the gate of the transistor N2, an output voltage according to the input voltage VIN is supplied to the load LD. The discharge pulse DIS is applied to the gate of the transistor N4 in synchronism with the periodic input voltage VIN. After the load Ld is discharged through the transistor N4, the load LD is charged again according to the input voltage VIN.
The above described output circuit has a problem that it takes not a little time to discharge the load LD due to the limit of the discharge capacity of the transistor N4, and to charge the load LD to a sufficient voltage level for the output circuit to output a voltage corresponding to the input voltage since the load LD is completely discharged to the ground level.


The present invention provides a process and an apparatus for the preparation of a motor coil by which a longitudinally wound motor coil, so called, can be easily prepared. First, a molded product 10 comprising a column part 11, and a fin part 12 projected in the form of flat plate from an outer peripheral surface 11A, 11B, 11C, 11D of the column part to an outer side in a radial direction of the column part and helically continuing in an axis direction of the column part at predetermined intervals along the outer peripheral surface of column part is prepared. The column part 11 of the first molded product is punched out in an axis direction of the column part with retaining the fin part 12 to remove the column part, and the fin part 12 having helical shape left after the removal is coated with an insulating film. Then both sides of the fin part 12 in a direction F punching out the column part 11 are pressurized to deform the fin part 12 such that flat plate portions of the fin part 12 are superposed on one another.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for the preparation of a motor coil, particularly a motor coil which is penetrated and retained by a column-shaped motor core and in which a ribbon conductor is disposed such that a width direction of the ribbon conductor is extended in a radius direction of the motor core and the ribbon conductor is helically superposed on one another in an axis direction of the motor core and along an outer peripheral surface of the motor core, and an apparatus for the preparation of the motor coil.
2. Description of the Related Art
For instance, a motor coil which is retained by a column-shaped through motor core and in which a ribbon conductor is disposed such that a width direction of the ribbon conductor is extended in a radius direction of the core and the ribbon conductor is helically superposed on one another in an axis direction of the core and along an outer peripheral surface of the core, has been already suggested. The motor coil is referred to as a longitudinally wound motor coil.
FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 are views for explaining a process for preparing the longitudinally wound motor coil. In the conventional process, first a block 101 composed of copper or aluminum is prepared as one body by extrusion molding, and a helical groove 104 is formed on the block 101, the groove 104 reaching from an outer peripheral surface 102 of the block to a hollow part 103 of the block, whereby a helical electric current path is formed.
In more detail, as shown in FIG. 11, a rotating cutting tool 110 moves in the direction of the arrow, and forms a straight groove 104a on the block 101. The groove is formed at same intervals so as to have necessary winding number. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 12, the locations of the block 101 and the cutting tool 110 are changed relatively, whereby a straight groove 104b is formed. Beginning and end points of the groove 104b are obliquely connected with the groove 104a to form the helical groove 104 on the block 101. Further it is already known that the grooves 104a and 104b are simultaneously formed by using the cutting tools 110 of the same number as that of the grooves arranged in a row (see JA07-163100).

Method and apparatus for manufacturing motor coil


Biocompatible materials that have the ability to release nitric oxide (NO) in situ at the surface-blood interface when in contact with blood. The materials which may be polymers (e.g., polyurethane, poly(vinyl chloride), silicone rubbers), metals, such as stainless steel, carbon, and the like are provided with biocatalysts or biomimetic catalysts on their surface that have nitrite, nitrate, and/or nitrosothiol-reducing capability. Illustratively, the catalysts are adsorbed or immobilized at the surface of the material. The catalysts can act on endogenous nitrite, nitrate, or nitrosothiols within the blood creating a local increase in the NO levels at the surface of the material. An illustrative enzymatic biocatalyst is mammalian xanthine oxidase. In another illustrative embodiment, a biomimetic catalyst is a copper (Cu(II)-ligand complex, e.g. dibenzo[e,k]-2,3,8,9-tetraphenyl-1,4,7,10-tetraaza-cyclododeca-1,3,7,9-tetraene. In some cases, lipophilic salts of nitrite/nitrate (e.g., tridodecylmethylammonium nitrite (TDMA+NO2−/NO3−)) or certain salts of nitrosothiols can be doped within a polymer material, or an underlying polymeric film, to create a reservoir of nitrite or nitrosothiol that continuously leaks into the immobilized catalytic layer. Adequate levels of endogenous reducing equivalents are present within blood to provide catalytically-generated surface levels of NO that are above the threshold reportedly required to prevent platelet adhesion or activation.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to biocompatible materials, such as polymers or metals, and more particularly, to biocompatible materials having blood interface surfaces that are capable of biocatalytic or biomimetic generation of nitric oxide in situ when contacted with endogenous nitrite, nitrate, or nitrosothiols in blood.
2. Description of the Related Art
Although medical devices such as extracorporeal circuits and hemodialysis tubes are widely used in clinical settings, the polymers typically used to fabricate such devices (PVC, polyurethane, silicone rubber, etc.) are still subject to platelet aggregation and adhesion onto the surface of these materials. Thus, patients are often given anti-clotting agents (i.e., heparin) in order to reduce thrombosis on the surface of these devices. Similarly, implanted devices made of stainless steel or other alloys, or even carbon, can cause thrombus formation when in direct contact with blood. There is, therefore, a need for materials that more closely simulate the antithrombogenic properties of the endothelial cells that line blood vessels in order to obviate the need to administer anticoagulants.
Nitric oxide (NO) is an important intracellular and intercellular messenger molecule that plays an important physiological role in anti-platelet aggregation and anti-platelet activation, vascular relaxation, neurotransmission, and immune response. It has been proposed that synthetic materials that release low levels of NO would, therefore, more closely simulate the natural activity of endothelial cells, and therefore, would have improved biocompatibility.
Several classes of NO-releasing materials are currently under investigation worldwide. These include NO donors (i.e., diazeniumdiolates, nitrosothiols) that may be relatively complicated to synthesize and may, in some instances, require stringent storage conditions. Thus, there is a need for improved materials that are easier to fabricate and store.
Currently, NO generation is determined by water uptake (such as in the case of diazeniumdiolates) or the intensity of light (as with iron nitrosyls). However, blood already contains a host of species that are derived from, or are physiologically-generated in vivo that can be reduced to NO. These species include nitrites, nitrates, and a host of nitrosothiols (e.g., nitrosoglutathione, nitroso albumin, etc.). This raises the possibility of recycling these species back to nitric oxide. There is, therefore, a need for materials that can reduce these species to nitric oxide locally at the substrate/blood interface.
It is an object of this invention to provide improved materials for biomedical applications that are capable of releasing NO from blood-contacting surfaces materials, so as to prevent platelet activation and adhesion onto these surfaces, thereby lowering thrombus formation and other complications associated with interactions between blood and foreign materials.
It is a further object of this invention to provide improved materials for biomedical applications that are relatively inexpensive to manufacture and that have improved biocompatibility.
It is still a further object of this invention to provide materials for biomedical applications that are capable of releasing NO from blood-contacting surfaces materials in response to nitrites, nitrates, and nitrosothiols in the blood.

Material containing metal ion ligand complex producing nitric oxide in contact with blood

The Regents of the University of Michigan


Systems and methodologies are described that facilitate establishing a forward link acknowledgement channel and transmitting acknowledgment signals thereupon. In particular, the signals can be spread within contiguous channel clusters in a tile where the signals in the cluster are mutually orthogonal to one another. Additionally, the signals can be multiplexed over a plurality of frequency regions. In this regard, the acknowledgment signals are diverse with respect to frequency and interference; moreover, the signals can be received and decoded even where one of the channels experiences high interference. Furthermore, the acknowledgement signals can also communicate a channel deassignment value, which allows devices to utilize persistent channels in communicating data to one another.

I. Field
The following description relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to forward link acknowledgement channels in a wireless communications system.
II. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as, for example, voice, data, and so on. Typical wireless communication systems may be multiple-access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, . . . ). Examples of such multiple-access systems may include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, and the like.
Generally, wireless multiple-access communication systems may simultaneously support communication for multiple mobile devices. Each mobile device may communicate with one or more base stations via transmissions on forward and reverse links. The forward link (or downlink) refers to the communication link from base stations to mobile devices, and the reverse link (or uplink) refers to the communication link from mobile devices to base stations. Further, communications between mobile devices and base stations may be established via single-input single-output (SISO) systems, multiple-input single-output (MISO) systems, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, and so forth.
In such systems, acknowledgement packets can be sent from a base station to a mobile device to indicate that a portion of data was properly received. Acknowledgements can take place for substantially all communications sent from the mobile device to the base station (e.g., on the reverse link). Also, a channel can be established for each communication between the mobile device and base station or can be persistent to some extent as not to require establishment for each communication.

Acknowledgment channel for wireless communications


A water heater includes a base formed in a board, a control device disposed on the base, a vessel fixed to the board and connected to the base, and a heater disposed in the vessel for heating the water contained in the vessel. The water heater occupies a small volume and includes a simplified structure such that the manufacturing cost of water heater can be greatly reduced.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water heater.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Typically, water heater occupies a huge volume and includes a complicated configuration such that the water heater is very expensive.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional water heaters.


A constant velocity joint includes a male element (4) having at least two trunions (8) and a shaft (12) with an outside diameter (DAE). A respective wheel (32) is mounted to rotate on each trunion (8). The joint also includes a female element (20) having, for each wheel (32), a pair of paths (22, 24) and defining a path primary circle (PCD). The ratio of the outside diameter (DAE) of the shaft (12) to the path primary circle diameter (PCD) is greater than 0.55.

Tripod constant velocity joints, such as joints of the "GI" type sold by GKN Driveline S.A., typically include a male element having at least two trunions and a shaft extending along a first axis and having an outside diameter (DAE). Each of the trunions is provided with a rolling surface which extends along a respective second axis, in particular an axis perpendicular to the first axis, and which has a rolling surface diameter (DSR). For each trunion, a wheel mounted on the trunion rotates about the second axis, and is free to slide along said axis. The wheel has an outside diameter (DGE). A female element comprises, for each wheel, a pair of paths and defines a primary circle path.
U.S. Publication No. 2002/0032063 A1 describes a constant velocity joint of the foregoing type having dimensional proportions with specific ratios for the purpose of reducing the size or bulk of the joint while obtaining equilibrium between its structural strength and its service life.
The structural strength of a joint relates to the mechanical strengths of the elements making up the joint when subjected to static and dynamic stresses. The service life of the joint relates to the ability of the contact surfaces of the paths, the wheels, and the needles to withstand wear, such as scaling.
According to U.S. Publication No. 2002/0032063 A1, the parameters that have an influence on structural strength are, amongst others, shaft diameter (ds), trunion diameter, wheel wall thickness, and wheel width. The parameters that have an influence on service life are the diameter (PCD) of the primary circle of the guide paths, trunion diameter, needle length, and needle diameter.
The joint of U.S. Publication No. 2002/0032063 A1 has a ratio of shaft diameter (ds) over path primary circle diameter (PCD) that lies in the range 0.5 to 0.55. The ratio of wheel width over wheel outside diameter is equal to or less than 0.32, and preferably lies in the range 0.27 to 0.24. The ratio of trunion diameter over wheel diameter lies in the range 0.54 to 0.57.
Automotive applications for such joints demand at least equivalent service life in still more compact packages.


A substantially closed baffle construction, filled thermal article comprises at least one baffle made with overlapping ribbons. A first ribbon is not attached to the inner surface of the lower layer in the overlapping portion and a second ribbon is not attached at the inner surface of the upper layer in the overlapping portion. The baffles are attached to either vertical channel baffles or to the sides of the article. This provides a self-closing gate that permits fill material to be placed within the baffle but does not allow it to migrate after the baffle portion is filled. The article of the present invention can be machine-washed.

This invention relates to a substantially closed baffle construction, filled article such as a down comforter, sleeping bag, or down jacket. More particularly, it relates to a substantially closed baffle construction article that is machine washable, wherein machine washable means that the article is able to washed with water in a typical mechanical washing machine without significant migration of fill material through the baffle gates. The invention further relates to a self-closing baffle gate. It also relates to a method for manufacturing a closed baffle construction thermal article.
Filled thermal articles typically have one of two constructions. Either the article has a closed construction or it has a random flow construction.
There are two types of closed constructions: baffle or sewn through. In an article with a closed baffle construction, ribbon-like baffles, attached to the upper and lower layers of an article and either the sides of the article or vertical channel baffles, separate the article into discrete portions so that the fill material is confined to the particular portion. Typically, the baffle will have an open gate area to allow the fill material to be fed into the article. Because the gate remains open after the article is filled, some fill material can migrate from one portion through the gate into another portion of the article. This undesirable migration is accelerated if an article is washed in a washing machine. Therefore, closed baffle construction articles must typically be dry cleaned to reduce the fill material migration.
A less expensive method of making an article with a closed construction is to sew through the upper and lower layers of the article after it has been filled. This has the advantage of providing a closed construction without the expense of adding a baffle. Such a sewn-though article can be machined washed. However, it has the disadvantage that the area of the upper and lower layer that has been sewn together results in a "cold spot" in the article. There is little or no thermal insulation at the sewn area. This results in an article that is not as thermally insulative as a closed baffle construction article. In addition, the sewn area results in a less aesthetically pleasing product. It does not have the loft and full appearance associated with traditional comforters with a baffle construction.
In a random flow article, the fill material is allowed to migrate throughout the article. While some random flow configurations can impede migration, there is nothing to prevent migration of the filler from one area to another area of the article.
Closed baffle construction is preferred for articles where migration of the fill material must be limited; however, it has the disadvantage that it cannot be machine-washed. Therefore, for many articles, particularly down comforters, where consumers prefer a machine washable product, a random flow article and a sewn through article are the only currently available alternatives.
The present invention provides a closed baffle construction article that can be machine-washed. It provides a gate within the baffle that allows the article to be filled, while at the same time preventing migration of the fill material during use and, particularly during machine washing.

Closed baffle construction article, baffle gate and method to make same


A low-power low-voltage buffer with a half-latch is provided. The half-latch buffer design may provide increased speed without dramatically increasing power consumption.

This invention relates to a low-power low-voltage buffer with a half-latch. More particularly, this invention relates to a half-latch low-voltage buffer design that may provide increased speed without dramatically increasing power consumption.
Typical buffer designs consist of an NMOS passgate, two inverters, and a half-latch. The NMOS passgate serves as a switch to selectably pass or block voltage from the inverters. Typical NMOS passgates may not be able to pass full voltage levels. A typical NMOS passgate may reduce the passed voltage level by an amount approximately equal to the threshold voltage (VT) of the transistor. The half-latch, in response to the output of one of the inverters, may pull up the output of the NMOS passgate to the full voltage level.
When operated with high voltage levels, the voltage reduction of the NMOS passgate may not significantly affect the performance of the buffer. However, when operated with lower voltage levels, the voltage reduction of the NMOS passgate may slow down or prevent the buffer from passing the input signal.
One approach used to increase the speed of low-voltage buffer circuits is to reduce the threshold voltage of the NMOS passgates. This minimizes the reduction in the voltage level by the passgate and increases the speed of the buffer. One drawback to using lower threshold voltage NMOS passgates is increased leakage currents. The lower the threshold voltage of the NMOS passgates, the greater the leakage current passing through the passgates. The greater the leakage currents passing through the passgates, the higher the power consumption of the buffer circuit. Thus, when adjusting the threshold voltage of the NMOS passgates there is a tradeoff between increased speed and increased power consumption.

Low-power low-voltage buffer with half-latch


A diagnostic technique allows an easy visual detection of poor media advance calibration. The diagnostic technique employs a print mode that prints different areas of the plot at different passes with a controlled amount of advances between them. The dot positioning error in the different areas has a non-systematic nozzle contribution, that tends to cancel out, and a systematic contribution due to the accumulative media advance error. Different patterns can be used to make the dot positioning error due to the accumulative media advance error show up. By increasing the number of media advances between the printing of sets of pixels, e.g. pixels in a horizontal line, the effect of accumulated errors and the apparent visual effect is increased.

Large scale plotters typically support roll-form print media, i.e., a supply of paper or transparent film on a roll. The media is loaded into the printer, and is advanced along a media path to a print area. A swath-type printer includes a carriage mounted for scanning movement along a swath axis, transverse to the media path at the print area. Hereafter, the media path is known as the X-axis, and the scanning or swath axis is the Y-axis. For color printing, the carriage holds a plurality of ink-jet printheads, each for printing a different color ink, typically black, cyan, magenta and yellow. The printer includes a media drive mechanism for moving the media along the media path, and a carriage drive mechanism for scanning the carriage along the scan axis. The printer controller issues print control signals to cause the printheads to eject droplets of ink in a controlled manner to form a desired image or plot on the medium.
Ink-jet printing is based on accurate ballistic delivery of small ink droplets to exact locations onto the paper or other media. Typically the droplet placement occurs onto a grid of different resolutions, most common grids being 300×300 dpi or 600×600 dpi, although other solutions are continuously being considered. One key factor for sharp and high quality images stems from the accuracy of the droplet placement.
There are several contributors to droplet placement inaccuracies. Some of these arise from the printer and some other from the printhead. They can occur along the scan axis or the media path directions. Some inaccuracies are systematic, while some others follow random patterns.
Several factors contribute to error in paper/media movements. The media roll is typically mounted in the printer on an axis or spindle. The spindle is prevented from turning at idle by a friction brake. This creates "back-tension" which helps the media auto-alignment. The media auto-alignment process includes X-axis movements, i.e. movements along the media advance direction, and rotations of the paper to prevent skew and mispositioning of the paper on the print zone. These movements create some undesirable paper slip on the print zone that negatively affect dot placement. These errors affect both printing and also dot placement calibration.
Some other movements have been detected when advancing the paper with back-tension. These movements are due to irregularities on the pinch-wheels as well as different pressures between pinch-wheels and roller and media tensions along the X-axis.
The reliable detection of media advance errors has traditionally been a hard problem, and a critical step in the process of finding the root causes of poor image quality. With the decrease of drop volume, the increase of the printing resolution, and the growing sophistication of the imaging pipeline, image quality problems are becoming increasingly difficult to track down. They are in many cases caused by subtle interactions between print masks, nozzle directionality problems, and media advance. Finding ways of decoupling the effect of possible root causes of poor image quality has become an important issue, both for internal development and for helping system users in a trouble-shooting process.

Diagnostic for visual detection of media advance errors

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


The lock of the passive door blade of a double door according to the invention comprises a lock body (23), a latch (17) and a control wedge (18). The control wedge is arranged to linearly move to a position extended out from the lock and to a position retracted inside the lock. The lock additionally comprises a lever (20), a leading shaft (21) and a spring system (27). The lever (20) is rotatably attached (25) to the control wedge (18) by its first end and rotatably attached (24) to the leading shaft (21) by its second end. The leading shaft (21) is additionally rotatably attached (22) to the lock body (23) and the leading shaft comprises a control cam (26) being in connection with the latch (17). The lever (20) and the leading shaft (21) are arranged to transfer the force of the spring system (27) to the control wedge (18) so that the force parallel with the linear movement of the control wedge is at its largest in the extended position of the control wedge and at its smallest when the control wedge is in the retracted position inside the lock.

FIG. 1 illustrates two known ways of locking the passive door of a double door. The double door consists of an active door blade 1 and a passive door blade 2. The active door blade and the passive door blade are also called the active door and the passive door. The active door blade is the door for normal usage, used when the doorway is passed through when not carrying larger loads. In case larger items must be transported through the doorway, such as during moving, opening the active door blade does not necessarily form a large enough opening. In such case the passive door blade is opened as well. Usually the passive door blade is locked to the jamb structure 4 of the doorway and the floor level 3.
The active door blade 1 and the passive door blade 2 are rotatably attached to the jamb structure 4 of the doorway by means of hinges. Usually the active door blade 1 comprises a lock 5 comprising a bolt 6. When the active door 1 is locked, the bolt 6 is partially inside the striker lock body 7, thus locking the active door to the passive door. The striker lock body is also called a striker lock and vice versa, because in practice the body comprises the lock functions. Because the passive door 2 is locked to the jamb structure 4 of the doorway and the floor level 3, the passive door cannot rotate and neither can the active door locked to the passive door. It can be said that in normal use the passive door is a part of the jamb structure of the doorway 4. The locking of the active door 1 is released normally and the door is opened normally.
The striker lock body 7 is combined with pull bars 9, 10 installed in the passive door 2 and locking the passive door to the jamb structure of the doorway and the floor. Recesses 12, 11, into which the ends of the striker bars are located when the passive door is locked, are arranged in the jamb structure 4 and the floor level 3. A release means 8 is arranged in the striker lock body for pulling the pull bars towards the inside of the passive door so that the ends of the pull bars move away from the recesses 11, 12 of the frame structure and the floor level. The name of the pull bars is derived from this action. When the pull bars are pulled inside the passive door, the passive door can be opened, i.e. rotated. A typical release means 8 comprises a hand-turnable lever. In some known solutions the release means 8 is not located in connection with the striker lock body of the passive door but instead it is formed as a separate unit being in connection with the pull bars. The pull bars can also be moved back to the protruding position away from the inside of the passive door by using the release means 8, whereby the passive door can be locked back to the jamb structure and the floor level.
Another way of locking the passive door is by using separate locks in the upper edge and/or lower edge of the passive door blade. FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment in which both the upper edge and the lower edge of the passive door blade comprise a lock 13. The lock comprises a latch 15 that is in protruded position when the door is locked. The latch of the upper lock 15 locks the passive door to the frame 4 while the latch 15 of the lower lock locks the door to floor level 3. The locking of the doors is released when the active door blade is opened, whereby the control wedge 14 of the lock 13 can move out. The protrusion of the control wedge directs the latch 15 to the inside of the lock, whereby the passive door can be opened. The locking is effected when the active door is turned against the passive door, whereby the control wedge is depressed to inside the lock and simultaneously directs the latch 15 from the lock.
The problem with the upper and lower lock is that the control wedge 14 resists closing and opening the active door. The lock 13 has a spring/spring system pressing the control wedge out from the lock. The control wedge then presses the active door. This reduces convenient usability of the active door. Further, if the active door is combined with door automatics, the lock 13 can also resist the operation of the door opening/closing apparatus.
There also are solutions in which the ends 9, 10 of the pull bars are in connection with the upper and lower lock of the passive door. Thereby the bolts of the upper and lower locks lock the passive door to the jamb structure and the floor level instead of the ends of the pull bars. The operation of the upper and lower locks can be controlled by means of the release means 8 via the pull bars 9, 10.

Lower lock of the passive door blade of a double door


Method and device, respectively, for determining which one of the owners of a shared radio network that a visiting mobile terminal (MT), which MT is not subscribed to any of the owners of said shared radio network, is going to be connected to, by deriving information from the visiting MT concerning its identity. The method and device, respectively, is characterized in that said information is used in said shared radio network for determining which one of said owners said visiting MT is going to be connected to.

Due to the development of equipment for wireless transport of data, for example e-mail, many network operators are establishing such services for their customers. Future fields of use may be to acquire video sequences from an on-going sports event, for example a game of football. When a goal is scored one may watch the event on, by way of example, a cell phone monitor.
Previously, so-called circuit coupling has been used for transmission of data. Data is then sent via a line, and the operator charges the user for the time the line is open. Then data is only sent sporadically, and the user pays for the capacity that is reserved for him.
When using GPRS (Global Packet Radio Service), data is sent in packages and the operator then has the possibility to charge the user for the amount of data that is sent. Using this service, the line is either shared with other users, or only open when the packages are transmitted.
Previous GPRS systems are called 2.5 G (second and a half generation) and use GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) as a radio system. Now the operators are going to introduce 3 G (third generation) where GPRS uses UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) as a radio system. UMTS is faster then the older GSM, and has the support of many major telecommunications operators and manufacturers because it represents a unique opportunity to create a mass market for highly personalised and user-friendly mobile access to tomorrow's information society. UMTS will deliver pictures, graphics, video communications and other wideband information as well as voice and data, directly to people who can be on the move. UMTS builds on the capability of today's mobile technologies (like digital cellular and cordless) by providing increased capacity, data capability and a far greater range of services using an innovative radio access scheme and an enhanced, evolving core network.
However, the introduction of UMTS is expensive for the operators as licenses have become very expensive for many 3 G operators. The equipment is also quite expensive. One way to decrease the cost of the UMTS introduction is for two or more 3 G operators to establish a shared 3 G radio network. Some network elements are located in the home network of a respective operator. Example of network elements in the home network are GGSN (Gateway GPRS Support Node) and HLR (Home Location Register). The GGSN is a gateway node that terminates specific protocols, and the HLR is a large data base containing information about all subscribers. The shared network must be able to pass outgoing packet sessions via the correct home network.
A network may be shared by two or more operators. For illustrative reasons we suppose that the shared network is shared by two operators and call them operator A and B. If two mobile terminals, MT1 and MT2, which are subscribed to operator A and operator B, respectively, are going to pass outgoing data packet sessions via the shared network, an SGSN (Switching GPRS Support Node), a kind of switch, in said shared network is able to pass said outgoing packet sessions via the correct home network of the operators A and B.
If a visiting mobile terminal MT3, which is subscribed to an operator X, is going to pass outgoing data packet sessions via the shared network belonging to operators A and B the shared network is able to determine that MT3 is a visiting mobile terminal, and that it may use the shared network (operator X has an agreement with either operator A or operator B, or both). The shared network is, however, not able to determine via which home network of the operators A and B the data packages are to be passed. The result is that it is not possible to predict towards which GGSN the visiting MT3 will establish a so-called PDP context (Packet Data Protocol), i.e. a connection for GPRS.
If two mobile terminals MT3 and MT4 are subscribed to operators X and Y, respectively, and are going to pass data packages via a shared network belonging to operators A and B, the SGSN in said shared network may only state that MT3 and MT4 are visiting mobile terminals, and if they are allowed to use the shared network, nothing else.
It would be of interest to route the visiting mobile terminals in a shared network, subscribed to different operators, that not are the ones that own the shared network, to predetermined home networks of the operators that own the shared network depending on which operators the visiting mobile terminals are subscribed to. There is no way for the current available technology to admit the shared network to identify to which operator a visiting mobile terminal is subscribed.

Method and device for a shared radio network


A system and method for querying metamodel data is provided. In one embodiment, the method includes receiving, at a computer, a query indicator, the query indicator defining a type of query for a value in the metamodel data; performing, based on the query indicator, the query for the value by searching a first set of parent and child nodes and recursively querying the metamodel data to identify the value in another set of parent and child nodes; and providing, as a result, the value and at least one of the nodes from the sets of parent and child nodes.

A metamodel is a data model that selects and structures the data for a specific purpose. By selecting specific data and viewing it in a specific way, the metamodel can decrease the time required by, and eliminate unnecessary detail from, an activity. For example, consider an aerial photograph that shows every road, street, driveway, and backyard swimming pool in a given geographical area. This view, or metamodel, might be quite valuable in observing changes to a neighborhood over time. In contrast, a street map of the same area might be an excellent metamodel for a tourist trying to find a particular address, and an aeronautical chart may help a private pilot pinpoint her destination airport. The underlying information or data (in this case, every physical thing in the geographical area) is exactly the same, but each metamodel (the aerial photograph, the street map, and the aeronautical chart) provides a different view of the data that is selected (e.g., no backyard swimming pools on the aeronautical chart) and structured (e.g., street names printed and major roads shown in color on the street map) to facilitate a specific purpose. Imagine how cumbersome it might be for tourists to find their way around with an aerial photograph. Thus, the metamodel eliminates unnecessary data from the view and provides more rapid access and processing of the information.
The metamodel may serve as a schema (i.e., structured framework or plan) for storing and organizing data—enabling the schema to define the organization of the data. For example, the metamodel may organize the data in a tree-like, hierarchical structure. In this type of structure, a piece of data is referred to as a "node," and nodes may be defined to have relationships (also referred to as associations, links, or paths) that link nodes to each other. For example, nodes may be referred to as parent nodes and child nodes. The parent node may be related to one or more child nodes. Moreover, the parent node may be higher in the hierarchy than a child node. For example, in a customer database, customer information may be organized as a parent node and a sales order associated with the customer may be organized as a child node. The child node, in this example a sales order, includes sales order information, such as products ordered, product descriptions, delivery dates, ship dates, and the like. In a metamodel, the relationship between a two nodes is given an explicit name (e.g., "ExecutedOrders") which can then be used to refer to all node sets related in the same way. This is referred to as a "named relationship". As used herein, the phrase "metamodel data" refers to data organized according to a schema or plan.
Metamodel data may be stored in a database to allow a user to perform a query of the metamodel data. A query is the primary mechanism for retrieving information from a database and consists of questions presented to the database in a predefined format. For example, some databases use the Structured Query Language (SQL) to retrieve metamodel data or portions of that data. XPath is a query language which is used to perform queries on XML (eXtensible Markup Language) documents. XPath may also be adapted for use with metamodel data. XML is an extensible markup language which is used to describe data.
Past approaches for querying data, which can be used with metamodel data, may be limited in the types of queries that can be performed. In particular, these approaches may only allow the computer to access data according to the named relationships (or associations) that are defined in the metamodel. For example, in a metamodel that identifies a human and a pet living in each house on a street with the named relationship name "HumansPets", the computer may identify the pets living with the human "Bob" because the named relationship of "HumansPets" is defined in the metamodel and specified in the query. However, using past query tools, the computer would not be able to identify the pets living next door to the human "Bob" because the metamodel did not define the neighbors, only "HumansPets" and the query can only search on specified named relationships. If a relationship between two pieces of data (or nodes) is not defined in the metamodel, there may be no way of accessing the data in a query. In addition, querying data may only be executed in one direction, such as from a parent node to a child node using the defined and named relationship between the nodes. Querying the data from a child node to a parent node may not be possible using past approaches to querying a metamodel. Also, past approaches may require the computer system to test every piece of data to determine if it answers the query. Moreover, there may be no mechanism to stop the query process once a positive result is reached (i.e., a result that answers the query). In addition, it may be necessary at times for an application to call itself to complete a query. This type of recursive query may not be possible with past approaches. In view of the foregoing, there is a need to improve past approaches of accessing data associated with a metamodel.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as described. Further features and/or variations may be provided in addition to those set forth herein. For example, the present invention may be directed to various combinations and subcombinations of the disclosed features and/or combinations and subcombinations of several further features disclosed below in the detailed description.

Systems and methods for querying metamodel data