A digital data receiver having a converter for frequency conversion of the input high frequency digital orthogonal modulation signal in a fixed intermediate frequency band, a demodulator for orthogonally demodulating an intermediate frequency signal output from the conversion signal based on a fixed frequency, and a controller for matching a frequency of the oscillation signal to a central frequency of the intermediate frequency band based on a frequency control signal generated to perform an orthogonal detection process by the demodulator. The central frequency of the oscillation signal is offset to correspond to a carrier frequency of the digital data orthogonal modulation signal in the state that a plurality of digital orthogonal modulation signal is frequency division multiplexed in the intermediate frequency band.

There are increasing tendencies in CATV (cable television) broadcasting systems or satellite television broadcasting systems, for instance, to use a digital transmission technique for transmitting image data in place of a conventional analog transmission technique. FIG. 1 shows a digital image data receiver in such a digital television transmission system using such a satellite. In FIG. 1 transmission signals from 11.7 GHz to 12.3 GHz, which are processed using a QPSK (quadrature phase shift keying) modulation, are transmitted from a satellite and then received by a satellite antenna 11. Groups of received signals are translated into 950 MHz to 1450 MHz by a frequency converter 12, an then amplified at an amplifier 13.
The received broadcasting signal output from the amplifier 13 is converted into an intermediate frequency signal in the 140 MHz band at a mixer 15 for mixing the received signal with a local oscillation signal from a variable local oscillation VCO (voltage controlled oscillator) 16, after being suppressed its image frequency regions at a pre-selector 14. The output from the mixer 15 is amplified at a variable gain amplifier 17 and then limited in a desirable band width at a BPF (band pass filter 18). The intermediate frequency signal is branched off on two paths at a separator 19. One of the intermediate frequency signals on the paths output from the separator 19 is supplied to a phase detector 20, and the other of it is supplied to another phase detector 21.
The phase detector 20 orthogonally detects an I-axis base-band signal by a phase detection on the input intermediate frequency signal based on an oscillation signal supplied from the VCO 22 through a separator 28. Also, the other phase detector 21 orthogonally detects a Q-axis base-band by the phase detection on the other intermediate frequency signal based on a 90.degree. phase shift signal of the oscillation signal from the separator 28 through a 90.degree. phase shifter 24.
Further, the I axis and Q axis base-band signals output from the phase detectors 20, 21 are each shaped their waveforms at LPFs (low pass filter) 25, 26, and then digitized at A/D (analog to digital) converters 27, 28. The digitized signals are supplied to a digital processor 29 which demodulates them into their corresponding data sequences together with a clock reproduction and a carrier reproduction. Thus, the demodulated data sequences are output through output terminals 30, 31. Further, the digital processor 29 generates a frequency control voltage signal for controlling the oscillation frequency of the VCO 22 which is used for the phase detection processings in the phase detectors 20, 21. The digital processor 29 also generates a control signal for controlling the gain of the amplifier 17.
Here, the band width of a satellite transponder is about 24 MHz to 40 MHz, and, in the analog video transmission, one transponder is typically occupied for the transmission of one video channel with an FM modulation. However, if a digital image compression technique is employed, it is possible to multiplex up to eight channels since one video channel is able to be transmitted by about 4 Mbps to 10 Mbps.
As such a multiplex system, there are an MCPC (Multi Channel Per Carrier) system which transmits a plurality of digital image data by multiplexing them on one carrier and an SCPC (Single Channel Per Carrier) system which transmits one channel image data by dividing it into a plurality of frequency bands. It is expected that these two multiplex systems will be used together in taking account of their features. And also it is expected that the analog transmission system will be used in the same satellite together with the multiplex systems.
The conventional digital image data receiver, as shown in FIG. 1, performs a channel tuning by varying the oscillation frequency of the variable frequency local oscillation VCO 16 in adjusting to the carrier central frequency of the received signal. In the tuning of the digital image data multiplexed in the MCPC system, there rises no problem since the central frequency of the tuned signal band, as indicated by a solid line in FIG. 2(a), agrees with the central frequency fc of the satellite transponder frequency band, as indicated by a broken line in the same FIG. 2(a).
However, in the SCPC system there are a plurality of data carriers D1 to D3, as shown by solid lines in FIG. 2(b) within the one transponder band, as shown by the broken line in the same FIG. 2(b) (three carriers are shown in the drawing's case). To select a desirable carrier from these data carriers D1 to D3, the oscillation frequency of the local oscillation variable VCO 16 must be offset so as to make the central frequency of the intermediate frequency signal output from the mixer 15 agree with the central frequency fd1, fd2 or fd3 of the desired carrier.
Accordingly when the left side data carrier D1 is selected, as shown in FIG. 2(c), a possibility of signal S1 of an adjacent channel entering within the intermediate frequency band of the data carrier D1 becomes higher. Further, it the SCPC system it employs a backoff for limiting the total power of the transponder lower than a prescribed power level to account for signal distortions. As a result, when the adjacent channel is the type of the MCPC system or the analog transmission system there also arises a level difference.
Accordingly, there is required a narrow band filter in the reception of signals in the SCPC system. However, it is technically difficult to provide such a 1 GHz band pre-selector 14 with a sufficiently narrow band characteristics. Thus, the mixer 15 is subject to the crosstalk of adjacent channel signals. To avoid such a crosstalk of the adjacent channel signals, a sophisticated intermodulation distortion must be performed based on the level difference between the desired and undesired signals. Although it is possible to make the band width of the BPF 18 narrower, in the reception of signals shared with signal in the MCPC system or signals with different data rates, it is required to change over many frequency bands, resulting in a sophisticated receiver circuit arrangement having increased size.
As described above, in the conventional digital data receiver, it is difficult to satisfactorily receive the whole digital data transmitted by mutually different multiplex systems such as a time division multiplex system or a frequency division multiplex system, at a simple construction.


A post urination drip collector includes a tubular member having a first end, a second end and a perimeter wall extending between the first and second ends. The first and second ends are open. A cap member is integrally coupled to and covers the second end such that a housing is defined. An absorbent material is attached to and substantially covers an inner surface of the cap member. The housing is removably positioned over a penis to collect any post urination dripping that may occur.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to urination collection devices and more particularly pertains to a new urination collection device for the collection of post urination dripping.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of urination collection devices is known in the prior art. However, a primary flaw in these devices has been their ability to sufficiently retain themselves on a penis for a sufficient duration so that all urine expelled is caught. Therefore, the need remains for a device that retains itself on the penis in such a manner that it is generally only removed by the intended actions of the user to do such.


A storage bin system (10) includes a plurality of storage bins (11) which can be stacked upon each other or nested within each other. Each bin (11) includes a bottom surface (12) with opposed side walls (13, 14) and a rear wall (15) extending upwardly therefrom to form an upper rim (18). For stacking purposes, sockets (31, 32, 33) are formed near the top of the side walls (13, 14) and the rear wall (15) to be engaged by foot members (22, 23, 24) formed near the bottom of side walls (13, 14) and the rear wall (15). Each bin (11) has a generally open front defined by a short wall (16) having an upper lip (17) thereon. The foot members (22, 23, 24) are configured so as to readily receive caster assemblies (26) should it be desired to render the bin system (10) mobile. For nesting purposes, the side walls (13, 14) are provided with ribs (41 ) which, when the bins (11) are nested, rest on the upper rim (18) of the bin (11) below while at the same time the bottom surface (12) of the bin (11) above rests on the lip (17) of the bin (11) below.

Storage bins of the type which are stackable to form a storage bin system are known in the art. For example, in one type of system one bin above merely rests on a bin below without any positive interconnection between the bins of the stack. As such, not only is there a stability problem, but also if the user wishes to carry the stack of bins, he must inconveniently do so by grasping the bottom bin because if he engages the top bin, it will merely be removed from the stack.
In an attempt to eliminate these problems, one known stacking bin system includes bins having a rib on the bottom with apertures therein and a rim on the top with similar apertures therein. By aligning the bottom apertures of one bin with the top apertures of another bin, and by installing pop rivets through the aligned apertures, the two bins may be interconnected. The deficiencies of this system are that the extra small pop rivets are required which are not only quite susceptible to being lost, but also they could tend to wear and become ineffective after multiple uses.
Some of the aforementioned storage bin systems have been rendered mobile by the application of wheels to the bottom bin of the stack. In instances where the wheels might be permanently attached to the bin, this of course requires that the particular bin with the wheels is the only one usable as the bottom bin of a system. In some systems the bins are provided with additional feet which may receive casters therein, but such additional feet add to the expense of the product and in addition often prohibit the economically advantageous nesting of the bins as is desirable for shipping, retail display, and consumer storage.
Thus, the need exists for a storage bin system which is readily and securely stackable, as well as optionally nestable, and for one which can be conveniently rendered mobile to form a cart system.


A water-dispersible, particulate film-forming composition is produced by blending a mixture of particles of water-soluble cellulose acetate; pigment particles, a plasticizer for the water-soluble cellulose acetate, and a surfactant. The composition is useful as a film-forming material for coating solid pharmaceutical forms.

It is well known in the art to envelop solid pharmaceutical materials, tablets, granules and seeds, for example, in a film covering as protection against oxidation, moisture, light, abrasion, rough handling, etc. A pigment is usually present as added protection against light and as a color aid for product identification. The film should be free of roughness, irregularities, cracks or mottled colorations. Film smoothness is important as an aid in swallowing. A hard, shiny surface is desirable for an attractive appearance. Of course, films and coating compositions for ingestion must be edible or physiologically compatible.
Film-forming compositions for coating pharmaceutical tablets preferably contain as the film-forming element, a film-forming resinous material, either naturally occurring or synthetic. Normally, film-forming compositions are applied as a liquid coating formulation comprising a liquid carrier medium having dispersed or dissolved therein the film-forming components. The liquid medium can be an organic solvent or water or a combination of both. Water is preferred owing to the risk of fire and toxicity from organic solvents. Also having to comply with governmental safety standards pertaining to the transportation and handling of industrial chemicals is another minus factor against solvent use.
Generally speaking, application of the liquid coating formulation is effected by spraying dry pharmaceutical forms in rotation in a coating pan or in a fluidized air bed. After evaporation of the liquid medium, the film coated pharmaceuticals are recovered.
As a commercial product, liquid coating compositions are unsatisfactory because of the high transportation costs due to the weight of the liquid carrier. Clearly, it is more practical and economical to ship coating compositions in dry form which can be reconstituted with the appropriate solvent or liquid by the pharmaceutical customer.
An example of a dry film-forming pharmaceutical coating composition and one which is made commercially is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,543,370 and 4,683,256 to Porter et al. and assigned to Colorcon, Inc. In preparing such coating composition, the initial step consists in the high intensity blending of polymer and pigment particles in the presence of a plasticizer and optionally a surfactant. The resulting powder is then fine ground, after which it can be mixed with a solvent or water to provide a coating dispersion for application to tablets or other pharmaceutical forms. On drying, a uniform film is said to be produced on the coated substrate.
Film-forming polymers used in formulating the coating compositions of the patents include both water-soluble and water-insoluble types. Coating dispersions produced from the water-soluble polymers comprise an aqueous solution of the polymer in which are suspended the pigment particles. Water-soluble, film-forming polymers are advantageous in that coating dispersions can be prepared therefrom without the need for organic solvents and their attendant hazards.
The list of water-soluble, film-forming polymers enumerated in the cited patents are: hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, hydroxypropylcellulose, polyvinylpyrrolidone, methylcellulose and sodium ethylcellulose sulfate.
Although an advance in the art, the pharmaceutical coating system of the Colorcon patents is not entirely satisfactory for providing film coatings from solvent free aqueous dispersions owing to certain deleterious characteristics of the water-soluble polymers. For instance, hydroxypropyl-cellulose and polyvinylpyrrolidone produce sticky or tacky films on tablets when coated with aqueous dispersions of these polymers. Methocel is sometimes used but the film coatings tend to be dull and opaque. As far as sodium ethylcellulose sulfate is concerned, it is not normally used as a coating material.
Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC), on the other hand, does give smooth transparent tack-free films from aqueous coating dispersion. It is the preferred polymer for coating pharmaceutical forms with the water-dispersible powders of the Colorcon patents. In fact, Colorcon manufactures and sells such dry HPMC film coating compositions under the trademark Opadry. However, coatings produced from HPMC-based Opadry powders are not as stable to moisture and temperature as might be desired. As a consequence, Opadry coated pharmaceuticals tend to deteriorate if exposed much above ambient humidity and temperature.

Film-forming composition and use for coating pharmaceuticals, foods and the like


This invention is a color scanner comprising an image reading means for reading an original stored in an original cassette by carrying out of a rough-scanning or main scanning, a signal processing means for signal-processing the main scan data of said original, which the main scan data obtained by said image reading means, a calculation setting means for obtaining characteristic values of said original on the basis of rough-scan data obtained by said rough-scanning, calculating original classification informations on the basis of the characteristic values, setting a signal processing conditions into said signal processing means, and outputting a certainty factor, an input means for inputting supplemental informations necessary when said certainty factor is low, and a recording means for recording the image on the basis of the output of the signal processing means. This invention relates to a method thereof. This invention is a color scanner comprising an input section for scanning and reading an original while conducting color separation, an original storage and transporting section having an original storage portion, said original storing and transporting section being capable of automatically transporting said original from said storage portion to said input section, image processing section for performing image processing on the basis of color separation signals from said input section so as to produce halftone signals, an output section for producing and outputting a halftone film from said halftone signals, and automatic condition setting section for determining processing conditions on the basis of the rough-scan data from said image processing section and for setting set-up parameters of said image processing section.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a color scanner and an automatic setting method of a signal processing conditions, in particular, to the method for automatically or manually setting the signal processing conditions and the color scanner provided with an automatic setting function or by an input means, which signal processing conditions being in the color scanner of a flat bed type. The color scanner is adapted to manufacture separations of C (cyan), M (magenta), Y (yellow) and K (black) colors by halftoning them after the color original is line scanned, color-separated, magnified by the predetermined times, the color separation signals are suitably processed by color correction, sharpness emphasis, gradation conversion and so on. Further, this invention relates to a color scanner capable of performing full-automatic operation from reading of an original till output of an image.
2. Description of the Prior Art
According to one of the conventional method for manufacturing each color separation plate of a plurality of original color images, each original image is halftoned by the predetermined times by means of an image input/output system so as to produce a color separation film, a mask plate produced in a different process and the halftoned color separation film are laid out on and adhered to layout sheet, and the layout sheet is adherently exposed to light. However, the conventional method for manufacturing color separation has disadvantages, such as many processing steps, a necessity of skilled craftmen for precisely positioning and adhering the color separation at the predetermined places of the layout sheet, much time, much laborous and skillful work, and much material.
There is another conventional method for reproducing the color image, in which method a plurality of original color images respectively are printed in color by the predetermined times, the reproduced original images are cut out in the predetermined shape of an image on the predetermined block copy, the cut out images are laid out and adhered on the predetermined positions of the block copy board. However, becauses the conventional method has used a photographic technique, it is not possible to freely change a color correction processing, a sharpness emphasis, and a gradation conversion, resulting in poor image quality. In addition, there has been an apparatus output-layouting simultaneously square images through a plurality of input apparatus (refer to, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 31762/1977). According to the conventional apparatus for outputting square image. It is difficult to correspond to all or any shapes of the image, is necessary of laborous works for producing the mask plate and of a plurality of input scanning section used to input the color original.
Recently, a layout retouch system which is so called as a total system for plate making process of the printing industry has been proposed, in which system the images are inputted through a digitizer in order to display images and patterns on a color CRT. The color original image is color-scanned with a designated magnification and the scanned image is stored in a memory device after A/D-converting. Then, the stored color original image information is displayed on the color CRT according to the inputted image information, the displaying image is editted in a main memory device of a computer through an interactive input system and then the resultant is again stored in a magnetic disc or the like with a format corresponding to the outputted display. Next, the color image information corresponding to the display or scene editted and outputted is D/A-converted and inputted to the output control circuit of a color scanner in order to obtain the desired laid out image. The layout retouch system above necessitates disadvantageously a memory medium of much capacity for storing the information of the color original image and a high speed computer for editting or processing the information, resulting in a cost rising of the whole construction of the system and a time increase for editting or processing the information.
Another conventional system for inputting and outputting the image, which has been improved to solve the shortcomings mentioned above, is shown in FIG. 1 and described in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 11062/1984. According to the conventional system shown in FIG. 1, a color original 2 applied on a rotary input drum 1 is outputted as an image on a recording material, for example, a color paper 11 pasted on an output drum 10, which rotating according to the image information inputted through a digitizer 14 of an image input apparatus. In the image input/output system above, the color original 2 is color-scanned by a reading head 21 in order to color separate and the color separation signal CS obtained is inputted to a logarithmic converting circuit 3. The color separation signal CS is converted to density signals DN through the logarithmic converting circuit 3 and then it is converted to digital density signal DS by an A/D converter 4. The digital density signal DS is inputted to a signal processing section 5 and a microprocessor 12. In the signal processing section 5, a color correction processing, a sharpness emphasis, and a gradation conversion are carried out, the color-processed image information DSA is converted to analog signals through a D/A converter 6 and inputted to a modulator 8 installed in a laser beam printer in order to modulate a laser beam emitted from a laser oscillator 7 and expose the color paper 11 pasted on the output drum 10 by means of an output head (not shown).
While, it is necessary to install in the system a console 16 provided with a keyboard through which data and commands are inputted. According to the conventional system, the data and the commands or instruction inputted through the console 16 are inputted to the computer 13 for processing these data and commands outputting information and the information is displayed on an interactive graphic display 15. The computer 13 is connected to a microprocessor 12 of a lower-level system, the microprocessor 12 receives the density signal DS outputted from the A/D converter 4 and further connected to the signal processing section 5 in order to function the process. The computer 13 and the microprocessor 12 constructs a computer system and the system displays the instruction for the operator and the like on the graphic display 15 according to the instored programs. The positions of the input drum 1 and the output drum 10 are respectively detected by detectors (now shown) and the positional informations are inputted into the motion control section 9. The microprocessor 12 is adapted to be connected to the motion control section 5 so as to relatively drive and control the positional relationship of the input drum 1 and the output drum 10. The digitizer 14 has an original coordinate and X-Y axes of its own, and the origin coordinate can be easily moved to any points and the X-Y axes can easily rotate by processing the signal. The corresponding relationship between the image position on the input drum 1 and the digitizer 14 is determined by installing guides, such as pins at the common plural position. The digitizer 14 is connected to the computer 13 to which the shape of the images and desired positional coordinates are inputted.
In the image input/output system shown in FIG. 1, it is noted that the color original 2 is pasted directly to the smooth outer face of the cylindrical input drum 1 as shown in FIG. 2, which drum being made of acrylic resins, glass or the like. The input drum 1 has a light source 20 therein and the light source illuminates the color original 2 and the light beam LT passes through the cylindrical wall of the input drum 1. The reading head 21 situated outside of the input drum 1 receives the passed light beam LT, so that the image of the color original 2 is inputted to the reading head 21. In the condition, if there is a space or gap of a length about wavelength of the beam of the light source 20 between the color original 2 and the input drum 1, a Newton ring (interference fringe) is formed by an interference phenomenon happened on the surface between the rear face of the color original 2 and the front face of the input drum 1, so that the Newton ring is appeared on the color original 2 in the shape of stripes or density irregularity, deteriorating the quality of the original considerably.
According to the conventional method, in order to prevent the interference stripes from forming, super fine particle powder has been scattered or applied between the color original 2 and the input drum 1 or filler agent is coated on the cylindrical drum 1. However, the fine particle powder has disadvantages, such as the outlines of particles are clearly seen when the multiplication of the image is high and the powder is troublesome to handle, and the filling agent has shortcomings, such as the application or coating and removing or wiping-out of the agent is very difficult to do them completely.
It is known that the image input/output system of the prior art receives an image information on the original film and the like, functions to enlarge or reduce the image, and outputs the image with an any layout on the display or some output device. The image input/output system must know or determine the coordinates of the color original 2 on the input drum 1 in order to layout the image during the reading of the original as shown in FIG. 2. Consequently, as shown in FIG. 3, the the color original 2 is pasted on the original pasting base 22 of transparent and square-shaped sheet by pasting tapes 23. Positioning holes 24 formed in the original pasting base sheet 22 are fitted onto the corresponding pins of the digitizer so as to input the coordinates of the particular or necessary portion of the color original 2 to the image input/output system. Then, the positioning holes 24 of the original pasting base sheet 22 are fitted securely onto the corresponding pins 25 planted on the input drum 1 as shown in FIG. 4. As next step, the light source 20 in the interior of the input drum 1 as shown in FIG. 2 irradiates the color original 2 and the reading head 21 receives the passed light beam LT through the drum wall and the coloriginal 2, so that the image of the color original 2 is inputted to the reading heat 21. The inputted image is compared to the coordinates inputted by the digitizer so as to layout the image.
Furthermore, the conventional image input/output system necessitates expert operators determing and settling the separating conditions and signal processing conditions and the time used to the condition determination is considerably longer than that of the system for which time the system actually processes the separating operation and the signal processing. Then, operation of the conventional image input/output system for setting the parameter is complicated, so that psychological burden upon the operator is very heavy. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 37378/1985 specification describes an automatic setting system of a gradation conversion table of the image input/output system, which system determines directly solely the setting condition from the inputted character values. It is noted that any macro-sized information in the original fails to have a rule and accordingly the presumption precision of the parameter has a limit. Another example of Japanese Patent Laid-open No. 111570/1987 describes an automatic setting process of signal processing condition, an operation of the condition setting of which process depends on selective appointment of the basis of the subjective judgement of the operator for the automatic setting machine, so that the operation has shortcomings, such as uneffectiveness and non-correctness.
Generally, conventional color scanners are of drum scanner type in which an original to be read and outputted is pasted on an input drum by means of an pasting tapes or the like for enabling reading. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the conventional color scanner has an input section 30 which scans and reads a color reversal film original so as to produce a color separation signal CS composed of color of red (R), green (G) and blue (B). The color separation signal CS is delivered to an image processing section 40A which produces a dot % signal DS and delivers it to an output section 50, whereby a halftone film compose of four color images of cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y) and black (K) is obtained from the output section 50. The image processing section 40A is arranged such that an operator can externally and manually input a set-up condition SU which directly viewing the original or monitoring the image of the original displayed on a display device.
As stated above, the conventional color scanner is constructed such that the operator determines and inputs the set-up condition SU for each of the originals. The input is conducted by manipulating dials, keys or the like. In addition, the conventional color scanner of drum-scan type requires a troublesome work for setting the original on the cylinder or drum. In addition, replacement of the cylinder is necessary when the magnification has to be changed largely. Moreover, the setting of the original on the input section 30 also is conducted manually. Thus, the conventional color scanner was quite far from full-automation of the image forming process.

Color scanner and automatic setting method of signal processing conditions


Disclosed is a dispenser for dispensing a composition in response to level changes in a liquid in a tank. The dispenser includes a container for holding the composition, a discharge conduit in fluid communication with the container, an air inlet in fluid communication with the container, and a level sensing member mounted to the dispenser such that a lower end of the level sensing member contacts the liquid in the tank and senses its level. In use, a rise of the liquid in the tank between a lower liquid level and a higher liquid level causes the level sensing member to alter air pressure in a headspace of the container above the composition and thereby cause a controlled discharge of the composition from the discharge conduit; and a fall of the liquid in the tank between the higher liquid level and the lower liquid level causes the level sensing member to alter pressure in the headspace and thereby causing air to be vented into the headspace from the air inlet.

The present invention relates to automatic dispensers used in liquid holding tanks in which the liquid level changes, and in particular to such dispensers which dispense cleaner from a container into a toilet overflow tube.
A variety of dispensers exist for automatically dispensing chemicals into a water tank such as a toilet tank. Some toilet bowl cleaner dispensers use a float valve which opens and closes with changes in the toilet tank level during a flush cycle. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,903,930 describes a toilet cleansing agent dispenser having a cylindrical housing, a receiving body, and a float piece. The cylindrical housing is provided with a frame for mounting the dispenser in a toilet water tank. The float piece is capable of up-and-down displacement in accordance with the water level in the toilet water tank, so as to regulate the flow of the toilet cleansing agent from the receiving body into the toilet water tank.
As the water level in the toilet water tank rises to a certain level after the flush, the float piece seals off the flow hole of the receiving body so as to terminate the flow of the cleansing agent into the toilet water tank. This type of dispenser can be inefficient. First, many such automatic liquid dispensers have a tendency for the product that is being dispensed to leak out of the dispenser in a somewhat uncontrolled manner which can result in overdosing of the product. Second, the objective is to keep the toilet bowl clean, not the water holding tank. Since all the cleaner is dispensed into the tank, rather than the bowl, most of the cleaner is flushed down the drain without cleaning the toilet bowl at all.
It has been recognized that cleaner can be dispensed into the toilet overflow tube rather than into the toilet tank. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,254,797 describes a liquid chemical dispenser that is attached to the overflow pipe with a float positioned beneath the water in the toilet tank. Upon flushing, the water moves downward allowing the float to move downward to flex a diaphragm downwardly. This opens an inlet valve which allows liquid to fill the diaphragm cavity above the diaphragm. As the toilet tank refills with water, the float moves upward to flex the diaphragm upwardly to discharge liquid from the cavity above the diaphragm and into the overflow pipe.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,321,392 describes another example device that dispenses cleaner into the toilet overflow tube. The device uses a solid puck of a chlorine donor. A body member receives the solid puck of cleaning agent. An inlet is in communication with the body member and is connectable to a ball cock through a refill tube, and an outlet is in communication with the body member and is connectable to the toilet overflow pipe through a connecting hose. The device delivers water and dissolved cleaner to the toilet overflow tube as the tank fills after a flush. However, the use of a solid puck results in inconsistent release of actives to the toilet bowl, particularly when the puck is near the end of its life.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,957 describes yet another example device that dispenses cleaner into the toilet overflow tube. The device includes a container for holding a liquid cleaner, a dispensing nozzle, and a sensing tube. The dispensing nozzle is positioned on the container below the liquid level within the container. The sensing tube is immersible in the water in the toilet tank, whereby the cyclic fall and rise of the tank water results in the discharge of the liquid from the container through the dispensing nozzle. The container can be clipped to the upper open end of the toilet overflow tube such that the liquid falls from the dispensing nozzle into the toilet overflow tube.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,015 describes still another example device that dispenses cleaner into the toilet overflow tube. The dispensing device includes an accumulator chamber having a conduit communicating with the toilet tank water. The accumulator chamber also has a product inductor conduit communicating with a product chamber. The device also includes a first product discharge conduit communicating with the accumulator chamber and a second product discharge conduit communicating with the discharge conduit and extending into the toilet tank overflow pipe. When the toilet tank water level falls during flushing, the water level in the conduit falls, causing a reduced pressure in the accumulator chamber and a rising of the product in the inductor conduit. When the toilet tank fills, the water rises in the toilet tank, compressing the air in the conduit forcing the product to be discharged from the accumulator through the first and the second product discharge conduit and into the toilet tank overflow pipe.
Notwithstanding this variety of devices which dispense cleaner into a toilet overflow tube, a need still exists for improved dispensers for delivering an accurately controlled volume of liquid cleaner into a toilet overflow tube at a time when it will remain in the toilet bowl until the next flush.


A double annular combustor having concentrically disposed inner and outer annular combustors is provided with inner and outer domes. A centerbody is disposed between the inner and outer domes and is constructed of a plurality of substantially rectangular segments positioned such that circumferential gaps between adjacent centerbody segments align alternatively with and between carburetors positioned in the inner and outer domes.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the combustion system of a gas turbine engine and, more particularly, to a double annular combustor having concentrically disposed inner and outer annular combustors with inner and outer domes and a centerbody disposed between the inner and outer domes constructed of a plurality of substantially rectangular segments positioned such that circumferential gaps between adjacent centerbody segments align alternatively with and between carburetors positioned in the inner and outer domes.
2. Description of Related Art
Efforts to reduce emissions in gas turbine engines have brought about the use of staged combustion techniques wherein one burner or set of burners is used for low speed, low temperature conditions such as idle, and another, or additional, burner or burners are used for high temperature operating conditions. One particular configuration of such a concept is that of the double annular combustor wherein the two stages are located concentrically in a single combustor liner. Conventionally, the pilot stage section is located concentrically outside and operates under low temperature and low fuel/air ratio conditions during engine idle operation. The main stage section, which is located concentrically inside, is later fueled and cross-ignited from the pilot stage to operate at the high temperature and relatively high fuel/air ratio conditions. The swirl cups of the respective pilot and main stage sections generally lie in the same radial and circumferential planes, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,292,801 to Wilkes, et al. and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,374,466 and 4,249,373 to Sotheran.
However, as discussed in a development report to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on combustion system component technology for the Energy Efficient Engine (E.sup.3) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,358 to Stenger, the pilot stage and the main stage may be radially offset (i.e., lie in distinct radial planes). In both the '358 patent and E.sup.3 configurations, the effective length of the main stage section is relatively short and the effective length of the pilot stage section is relatively long. This configuration allows for complete or near-complete combustion to reduce the amount of hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions since there is a relatively long residence time in the pilot stage section and a relatively minimal residence time in the main stage section.
Whether the inner and outer combustors are radially aligned or not, and whether the outer annular combustor acts as the pilot stage or main stage, the prior art discloses the use of a centerbody to isolate the pilot and main stages. The intended purpose of isolating the pilot stage from the main stage is to ensure combustion stability of the pilot stage and lower gaseous emissions at various operating points.
Combustor centerbodies generally have been a continuous ring fabricated from forged or rolled rings and sheet material. This one-piece design, however, is difficult to manufacture due to tight size and form tolerance requirements for fabrication and assembly. Further, the difference in temperature between the combustor structure and the centerbody, as well as between individual points within the centerbody structure, generate large hoop stresses and associated forces at the point of attachment. Another problem with one-piece centerbodies is the effect on the entire piece caused by a local problem. For example, the entire centerbody is depressurized in the event of a local burn-through due to the resulting leakage. Also, if one area of the centerbody is damaged the entire piece must be repaired or replaced.
It is also understood that replacement of a one-piece centerbody with a centerbody having a plurality of segments introduces other considerations. In particular, freedom of movement for such segments is required during various staging modes of a double annular combustor since each centerbody segment experiences an axial thermal gradient from the relatively cold upstream end and the hot downstream end, as well as a circumferential thermal gradient from one side to the other due to inherent hot streaks from the fuel nozzles positioned within the carburetors. Therefore, such thermal gradients must be accounted for in addition to the radial thermal gradients already present on one-piece centerbodies. Accordingly, a combustor centerbody having a plurality of segments is needed that eliminates the problems associated with one-piece centerbodies and accounts for the radial, axial and circumferential thermal gradients which arise therefrom.

Segmented centerbody for a double annular combustor


A controller for controlling a hybrid front-and-rear-drive automotive vehicle including a front wheel and a rear wheel an engine, an electric generator operated by the engine, and an electric motor operable with an electric energy generated by the electric generator, and wherein one and the other of the front and rear wheels is driven by the engine and the electric motor, respectively, the controller includes an electric energy storage device, and a cooperative energy supply device for supplying an electric current from the electric energy storage device to the electric motor, concurrently with a supply of an electric energy from the electric generator to the electric motor, to operate the electric motor for driving the other of the front and rear wheels.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a controller for a hybrid front-and-rear-drive automotive vehicle wherein an engine and an electric motor are provided as two drive power sources for operating one and the other of front and rear wheel drive systems, respectively.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
There is known an automotive vehicle of a type wherein an internal combustion engine is used to drive one of a front wheel drive system and a rear wheel drive system while an electric motor is used to drive the other of the front and rear wheel drive systems. In this type of automotive vehicle, all of the four wheels can be driven by concurrent operations of the engine and the electric motor. For instance, the electric motor is activated to drive the wheels of one of the front and rear wheel drive systems while the wheels of the other drive system is operated by the engine. In this respect, the vehicle of the type in question may be called a hybrid 4-wheel-drive vehicle. For improved overall driving performance of this hybrid 4-wheel-drive vehicle while maintaining high degrees of fuel economy and other running characteristics of the vehicle, the electric motor is activated to assist the engine, namely, to provide an engine-assisting motor drive torque only where the vehicle is placed in a predetermined running condition requiring acceleration of the vehicle.
In the field of such a hybrid front-and-rear-drive vehicle, it has been proposed to provide an electric generator operable by the engine for generating an electric energy used for operating the electric motor, in an attempt to eliminate a high-voltage battery for operating the electric motor, and reducing the size of the electric motor. An example of such a hybrid front-and-rear-drive vehicle is disclosed in JP-A-8-126117.
In the hybrid front-and-rear-drive vehicle wherein the electric motor is operated by an electric energy supplied thereto directly from the electric generator driven by the engine, as described above, however, an operation of the electric motor is more or less delayed since it takes a time for the electric energy to rise to a level sufficient for starting the electric motor. Accordingly, an increase of the engine-assisting torque generated by the electric motor is delayed. Where the vehicle is started on an ascending road surface having a relatively high gradient, by concurrent operations of the engine and the electric motor, the delayed increase of the engine-assisting motor torque will unfavorable lead to initial slipping of the wheels driven by the engine on the ascending road surface.

Controller for hybrid vehicle wherein one and the other of front and rear wheels are respectively driven by engine and electric motor


The invention relates to a method for mechanically recovering flesh from fish, in which by introducing incisions, the dorsal bones and the ventrally directed bones are cut free from the laterally located fillets without separating the pin bones from the spine and the separating gaps formed by the incisions are then expanded, thereby moving the lateral fillets away from the spine of the fish in the lateral direction transverse to the dorsal bones, wherein the fillets are peeled away from the pin bones extending laterally out from the spine or the flank bones, and a corresponding apparatus for mechanically recovering the flesh of fish.

Technical Field
The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for mechanically recovering flesh from slaughtered fish with opened abdominal cavity, particularly from fish species having pin bones extending from the spine into the fish flesh, for example salmon (salmo solar) or white fish.
State of the Art
It is known for recovering fillets from fish to cut the ventral and dorsal spokes or bones of the fish up to the vertebrae of the spine both from above and also from below by means of two rotating circular blade pairs spaced apart, to cut free the fillets in the region of the abdominal cavity by means of rib incisions from the lateral vertebral processes and ribs or flank bones, and to separate them completely from the bone structure by separating the meat strip from the tail root to behind the abdominal cavity. A filleting machine for carrying out this method, in which a conveyor that is fitted at intervals with sliding saddles for receiving the slaughtered fish conveys the fish tail-first through a processing area, is disclosed in DE 29 12 982 C2. To carry out an effective filleting process, in which pin-bone-free fillets should be recovered from fish of the type described above, a method is proposed in DE 22 48 536 A in which, after carrying out the dorsal incisions and scraping of the flesh from the vertebral processes, the flesh is scraped off closely above the pin bones and is then separated from the ribs and if necessary the ventral spokes.
A further apparatus for manufacturing pin-bone-free fish fillets is disclosed in DE 35 18 960 CI. During the filleting process, circular knives are used to make lateral incisions essentially perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of the fish above the pin bones up to the dorsal spokes as a result of which, in continuing the filleting process, the boneless fillets and the ventral flaps arise separately. Finally, an apparatus for recovering pin-bone-free fish fillets is disclosed in DE 36 32 561 C2 in which during filleting two rotating circular knives spaced apart from each other make two incisions above and below the pin bones running approximately perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of the fish up to the ribs or the lateral vertebral processes. A burin knife which fills the intermediate space between the pin bone knives separates out the meat strips containing the pin bones. In this way, fillets are obtained that are free of pin bones and other bones but to which the ventral flap adheres. This is undesirable during the recovery of pin-bone-free fish fillets.
In contrast to the known methods for recovering pin-bone-free fish fillets in which the pin bones are separated from the spine and are then removed in a separate work operation, DE 101 16 248 A proposes a method for filleting slaughtered fish with opened abdominal cavity in which the pin bones are left on the spine and in a separate work step are drawn out of the fish flesh while exerting relative deformation forces between the pin bones and the flesh regions surrounding them. During the process, the pin bones are pushed out of their originally upright position, essentially perpendicular to the spine, towards the spine until they assume a position approximately parallel to it. Due to this deformation and associated load on the pin bones, there is a risk that the pin bones will be detached from the spine and will break away from it while being drawn out of the fish flesh. As a result, the pin bones remain completely or partially in the fish flesh which means a reduction in the quality of the fish fillets obtained.
According to effective fish processing technologies, the object of the invention is therefore to supplement and further develop the known filleting and deboning methods in such a manner that, as a result of the processing procedure, a pin-bone-free fish fillet emerges without any fish bone remnants in the fish flesh and without damage to the fish flesh.
This object is achieved by a method having the features indicated in claim 1 and by an apparatus having the features indicated in claim 9. Preferred embodiments emerge from the associated dependent claims in addition to the following description and the accompanying figures.

Method and device for automatically extracting flesh from fish

Nordischer Maschinenbau Rud. Baader GmbH + Co. KG


A self-retaining scraping device for continuously cleaning work rolls of a roller leveler assembly has a first wall having two angled or curved portions and a straight portion extending between the angled portions; and a second wall having two angled or curved portions and a straight portion extending between the angled portions.

The present invention relates to roller levelers. More particularly, it relates to self-retaining scrapers for continuously cleaning work rolls for roller levelers. Roller levelers are used to flatten metal strip, typically coming from a coil. The strip is unwound and subsequently passed through the roller leveler.
A roller leveler includes multiple pairs of offset work rollers or rolls. Different size levelers can have different quantities of work rolls and back-up rolls. The upper rolls are typically offset one-half the distance between a pair of adjacent lower rolls. The metal strip passes between the upper and lower rolls. The number and spacing of the rolls depend on the thickness and strength of the metal strip. Typically, as the strip thickness decreases, the spacing of the rolls, as well as the roll diameter, decrease. As the strip passes between the rolls, it is bent up and down multiple times before it exits the leveler. This reversed bending beyond the yield point of the material is the mechanism whereby the strip is flattened.
In addition to strip curvature, other unwanted properties are sometimes impressed upon the strip during hot and/or cold rolling which render the problem of flattening strip much more complex. In order to reduce cross-sectional thickness of the strip during rolling, it is necessary to force the strip between rolls under tremendous pressure whereby the strip essentially becomes a wedge which tends to separate the rolls. The force of roll separation is dependent upon the physical properties of the strip including width, thickness, hardness, temperature, yield strength, and amount of reduction being attempted during the pass of the strip between the rolls. If the work rolls are not sufficiently supported by back-up rolls, it is possible for the strip to actually cause the work rolls to bend at their centers, wherein the resultant strip cross-sectional shape is thicker in the middle than at the edges. Strip rolled with thicker center portions indicates that greater pressure has been applied to the edges of the strip than at the center, thereby causing the edges to elongate at a greater rate than the center of the strip. Because this excess metal on the edges must go somewhere, but is restrained by the center, the result usually is a product having what is referred to as edge waves. In other words, the center of the strip is relatively flat longitudinally, but the edges of the strip are sinusoidal.
Just the opposite may occur during rolling of strip, wherein the rolls may be so reinforced, or may be so contoured, that they resist or otherwise offset the wedge effect of the strip. However, if the rolls are over compensated against roll bending, the resultant is strip that is rolled thinner in the center than at the edges. In this circumstance, the center of the strip tends to become elongated, producing a condition sometimes referred to as "oil canning". By this is meant that the elongated center portion of the strip compensates for this elongation by bulging either up or down. The result is strip that can literally be snapped up and down like the bottom of an oil can because of the stresses set up by this localized elongation.
Metal is formed into strip by a process known as rolling, wherein the strip is passed between a pair of work rolls of a rolling mill to reduce its cross-sectional thickness. In the process, the strip is elongated and rolling continues until the strip is reduced to the cross-sectional thickness desired. This rolling process may start with heated billets or slabs of metal, wherein the metal is rolled at a very high temperature, or it may start with previously rolled strip wherein the strip is passed between work rolls in the cold state. In either event, when the strip exits from the mill, it may be convolutedly wrapped to form a coil. When the coil has been formed, curvature of the coil tends to stay with the strip when it is necessary to uncoil the strip for further processing. Thus, the primary problem with strip coming off of a coil is the curvature which remains with the strip and which varies throughout the entire length of the coil as a function of the radius of any particular portion of the strip while in the coil. Accordingly, the outer wrap of the coil will have less curvature than an inner wrap. To remove this variable curvature in the strip is one of the purposes of a roller leveler. It is necessary to remove this curvature so that the strip may be cut accurately and rendered suitable for other manufacturing operations, such as punching, drawing, forming and the like. It is well established that the flatter the strip is prior to a subsequent manufacturing operation, the more accurate and satisfactory will be the end product of that operation. Thus, even where portions of steel strip are deep drawn, they do not draw as satisfactorily if the strip initially is not substantially flat before the draw.
For some materials, the strip is covered with scale and other fine particulates. Additionally, as the strip passes through the leveling section, more fine scale is generated as a result of the reverse bending action. Overtime, the scale or "dirt" like deposits collect on the faces of the work rolls and can ultimately imprint a mark on the strip, thus hurting the surface quality of the strip. It is thus desirable to remove the scale or "dirt" from the strip.
For some metals, the strip can have a surface scale that breaks up as the strip passes between the leveler work rolls. This scale can stick to the surfaces of the work rolls and build up to a point where the scale imprints marks on the surfaces of the strip. Additionally, other "dirt" can enter the leveler and mark the strip.
Several existing techniques are used to minimize or eliminate marking of the strip, including frequent extraction of the work rolls from the leveler with subsequent off-line cleaning. Another method includes cleaning of the work rolls while they are still in the machine but the line is not running. In other words, between processing coils, when the strip has tailed out of the leveler, a cleaning pad can be mechanically inserted into the roll nip, and the roll is turned against this mildly abrasive surface. Yet another method includes washing the work rolls with a water spray when the line is not running.
Each of these techniques has a common problem; that is, they all affect the productivity of the process, as they require the leveler to not be in production during the cleaning cycle. They also may require removal of the work rolls from the leveler. Also, for longer coil runs, there can be sufficient buildup to cause additional strip marking before the coil is even totally processed.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method for continuously cleaning the Work rolls which does not require removing the work rolls or shutting down the leveler, thus improving productivity, which overcomes the above-mentioned deficiencies and others, while obtaining better and more advantageous results.

Abstract: The first wall and second wall are connected to each other via the straight portions. The angled or curved portions of the first wall extend in an opposite direction from the angled or curved portions of the second wall. The scraping device is inserted between adjacent work rolls and has multiple scraping edges contacting outer surfaces of the work rolls to continuously clean the work rolls. The scraping device is supported by the work rolls.


A regulator configured to provide at an output node a load current at an output voltage is described. The regulator comprises a pass transistor for providing the load current at the output node. Furthermore, the regulator comprises feedback means for deriving a feedback voltage from the output voltage at the output node. In addition, the regulator comprises a differential amplifier configured to control the pass transistor in dependence of the feedback voltage and in dependence of a reference voltage. The regulator further comprises compensation means configured to determine a sensed current which is indicative of the load current at the output node. Furthermore, the compensation means are configured to adjust an operation point of the regulator in dependence of the sensed current and in dependence of a value of a track impedance of a conductive track which links the output node to a load.

Voltage regulators are frequently used for providing a load current to different types of loads (e.g. to the processors of an electronic device). In this context it is typically desirable to supply the loads with stable load voltages, even if the load currents vary. In other words, it is desirable to maintain a stable voltage at a load, even subject to changing load currents.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Voltage regulator with impedance compensation


A receptacle assembly (34) includes a radial groove (58) supported by a housing (46) which houses a plurality of electrical sockets (50). A radial abutment (60) is positioned on the housing adjacent the radial groove. A plug assembly (32) includes cantilever fingers (88) terminating in radially inwardly and outwardly directed protuberances (90,92). The inwardly directed protuberances are disposed to engage the radial groove. A locking sleeve (78) has a radially inward directed annular groove (112) and a surface (110) adjacent to groove (112). The sleeve groove is alignable with outwardly directed protuberances (92) to permit radial deflection of the cantilevered fingers and movement of inwardly directed protuberances (90) over the abutment and into groove (58). The sleeve is movable to position its surface (110) over outwardly directed protuberances (92) to lock inwardly directed protuberances (90) in groove (58). A shell (76) is engageable with the cantilevered fingers and the locking sleeve, and is moveable by a coupling ring (64) to effect the respective engagement relationships of the protuberances in their respective grooves. A restraining shaft (114) is connected to the locking sleeve and to a manifold assembly (116) to lock proturbances (90) in groove (58) and to permit movement of the locking sleeve under spring action away from its retention of protuberances (90) in groove (58). Operation is assisted by use of an ejection spring (62), a loading spring (146) and a plurality of withdrawl springs (144). Engagement between collet detent (168) and a notch (72) in a timing ring (68) secured to the coupling ring provides precise movement of the shell without depending upon the accuracy of the threaded engagement between the shell and the coupling ring.

Not Applicable
Not Applicable
The present invention relates to connectors of electromagnetic energy carriers and, more particularly, to facile repeated mating and unmating thereof without harm or stress to associated structures or the connector itself or, at least, to limit the harm.
In any application where the electrical, fiber optic, pneumatic or other connection is necessary until separation, the connection must be quickly and easily severed. Such applications include launches of satellites from mother vehicles, stage separation within a single rocket, and the like. The departing vehicle on such as a satellite typically operated on low power. Anything that would create a distorting force would throw it off its trajectory.
In addition, it is often necessary to provide an electrical data and/or power connection between two structures that can be easily and quickly separated from each other at the proper time, e.g., upon the launch of a satellite or stage separation of a launch vehicle. This typically takes the form of a two-part connection assembly comprising a unit having pins and a unit having a like number of sockets. By way of an example, a satellite may require a 41-pin connection between stages of a launch vehicle (or to an adjoining satellite in a xe2x80x9cstackedxe2x80x9d configuration) until the moment of release. Such a connector must mate easily, stay in place and then release easily. It is important or, at least, very helpful if such connectors can be repeatedly mated and unmated without damage or harm to associated structures. If the triggering mechanism for separating such connectors is initiated by an explosive charge, such as by a squib, an added attraction is to limit any damage to the area of the charge, in order to protect the remaining connector from any deleterious effects of the explosion.
Furthermore, where threaded interconnections are used in the connectors, reliance in timing between parts may utilize timing of the threads in the interconnections. This requires precision in forming the threads, which adds expense to the connectors.
An umbilical connector includes separable halves, a plug assembly and a receptacle assembly. When mated, the connector provides electrical continuity for a plurality of isolated electrical or other electromagnetic energy circuits throughout a predetermined range of flight and storage environments. The connector is manually matable and is dematable by manual or automatic triggering means. Manual mating and demating is accomplished by rotating an internally threaded cylindrical coupling ring located on the exterior of one of the assemblies with respect to an element coupled to a collet having peripheral locking fingers. While in the mated condition, the connector assemblies are maintained locked together by the peripheral locking fingers having protuberances on one assembly which are engageable with grooves on the other assembly by a locking sleeve on the other assembly. Remote separation may be accomplished by such means as a squib, for example, for pyrotechnically ignition.
In contradistinction to the above described timing of threads, the present invention allows adjustment by using a timing ring attached to the coupling ring, a notch on the timing ring to provide a reference point, and a detent on the collet. The adjustment is set by properly orienting the timing ring with respect to the coupling ring. This arrangement compensates for the need to establish a polar timing of the threaded engagement between the coupling ring and the element coupled to the collet, that is, the positioning of plug assembly housing with reference to the collet, when the detent is in the notch.
Several advantages are derived from this arrangement. Separation is rapidly effected without shock or harm to any structures associated with the connector. Mating and demating is easily effected and repeatable without damage to or degradation of the connector parts, and without needing to refurbishment or resetting after each mating-unmating cycle. If triggering of the separation is initiated by an explosive charge, any damage is limited to the manifold assembly, which can be easily replaced without other affect to the plug and receptacle assemblies. Mating between the assemblies can be effected using a single hand. A xe2x80x9csoft dockingxe2x80x9d is provided in which little force is required to mate the assemblies. The provision of an explosively triggered disconnect between the assemblies milliseconds before separation avoids the problems associated with anything that would create a distorting force that would throw the departing vehicle off its trajectory. Adjustment of the coupling ring by timing the threads is avoided by use of a timing ring.
Other aims and advantages, as well as a more complete understanding of the present invention, will appear from the following explanation of an exemplary embodiment and the accompanying drawings thereof.


Methods, non-transitory computer readable media, and security management computing devices are disclosed herein. With this technology, an executable code is sent to a client. The executable code is configured to obtain information associated with the client, assemble the information into a fingerprint, and return the fingerprint. A determination is made when the fingerprint is returned from the client. When the determining indicates that the fingerprint has been returned, a determination is made when a record of a reputation database matches the fingerprint. Historical data in the record is updated to include information associated with the request and an action is initiated based on the historical data or other data included in the record. The action includes blocking an access request or providing access to a requested resource to the client, when the determining indicates that the record of the reputation database matches the fingerprint.

Network security is increasingly important as more sensitive data is exchanged online. While nefarious activity can be identified based on an Internet Protocol (IP) address associated with a client device from which the activity originated, IP addresses do not provide sufficient granularity for effective network security management. More specifically, bad actors can use a variety of techniques that render IP address filtering ineffective, including frequent changing of IP addresses, IP address spoofing, and operating behind hidden proxies, for example. Accordingly, current methods for identifying bad actors originating nefarious network activity are not robust and are insufficient to protect server devices and associated web applications and other resources.

Methods for utilizing fingerprinting to manage network security and devices thereof


Signs including electroluminescent lamps are described. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, electroluminescent lamps are coupled to a sign by first forming a rear electrode on a front surface of the sign. After forming the rear electrode on the sign, a dielectric layer is screen printed over the rear electrode, and a phosphor layer is screen printed over the dielectric layer. A layer of indium tin oxide ink is then screen printed to the phosphor layer to form an EL lamp.

An electroluminescent (EL) lamp generally includes a layer of phosphor positioned between two electrodes, and at least one of the electrodes is light-transmissive. At least one dielectric also is positioned between the electrodes so the EL lamp functions essentially as a capacitor. When a voltage is applied across the electrodes, the phosphor material is activated and emits a light. EL lamps typically are manufactured as discrete cells on either rigid or flexible substrates. One known method of fabricating an El, lamp includes the steps of applying a coating of light-transmissive conductive material, such as indium tin oxide, to a rear surface of polyester film, applying a phosphor layer to the conductive material, applying at least one dielectric layer to the phosphor layer, applying a rear electrode to the dielectric layer, and applying an insulating layer to the rear electrode. The various layers; may, for example, be laminated together utilizing heat and pressure. Alternatively, the various layers may be screen printed to each other. When a voltage is applied across the indium tin oxide and the rear electrode, the phosphor material is activated and emits a light which is visible through the polyester film.
Typically, it is not desirable for the entire EL polyester film to be light emitting. For example, if an EL lamp is configured to display a word, it is desirable for only the portions of the EL polyester film corresponding to letters in the word to be light emitting. Accordingly, the indium tin oxide is applied to the polyester film so that only the desired portions of the film will emit light. For example, the entire polyester film may be coated with indium in oxide, and portions of the indium tin oxide may then be removed with an acid etch to leave behind discrete areas of illumination. Alternatively, an opaque ink may be printed on a front surface of the polyester film to prevent light from being emitted through then entire front surface of the film.
Fabricated EL lamps often are affixed to products, e.g., signs, and watches, to provide lighting for such products. For example, EL lamps typically are utilized to provide illuminated images on display signs. Particularly, and with respect to a display sign, EL lamps are bonded to the front surface of the display sign so that the light emitted by the phosphor layers of such lamps may be viewed from a position in front of the sign.
Utilizing prefabricated EL lamps to form an illuminated display sign is tedious. Particularly, each EL lamp must be formed as a reverse image. For example, when utilizing an EL lamp to display an illuminated word, e.g., "THE", it is important that the word be accurate, i.e., be readable from left to right, when viewed from the front of the sign. Accordingly, and until now, it was necessary to apply the indium tin oxide to the polyester film as a reverse image, e.g., as a reverse image of "THE". The subsequent layers of phosphor, dielectric, and rear electrode then are similarly applied as reverse images. In addition, it is possible that the EL lamp may become damaged while bonding the EL lamp to the sign.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a method for fabricating an illuminated sign having EL lamps which does not require coupling prefabricated EL lamps to the sign. It also would be desirable for such method to facilitate applying the various layers of the EL Limps to the EL substrate as a forward image, rather than a reverse image.


A foot-adjustable leveler comprising a threaded bolt for upward insertion into a table leg, and a foot anchored to the bolt. The foot may be formed from a thin metal jacket that is stamped or pressed onto a hard rubber insert. In this case the bolt is equipped with a flange at one end and is suspended thereby centrally within the hard rubber insert. This serves to reduce vibration and noise transfer. The internal rubber insert is optional, and the bolt can be anchored directly to the metal exterior of the foot jacket. In either case, a rubber foot-adjustment disk is centered on the bolt and is seated on the upper surface of the stamped metal foot. A user simply turns the foot-adjustment disk counterclockwise with the side of their shoe sole in order to raise the table leg, and clockwise to lower the leg. Other embodiments are presented, including one in which the rubber insert and foot-adjustment disk are combined into one integral foot-adjustment member. Alternatively, a rubber collar is provided around the bottom of the bolt and is seated atop the stamped metal foot jacket. A foot-adjustment ring encircles the rubber collar and is anchored thereto. A user simply turns the foot-adjustment ring counterclockwise with the side of their shoe sole in order to raise the table leg, and clockwise to lower the leg. Alternatively, a concave disk overlay may be slid down over the collar, and a the foot-adjustment ring may be inset around the periphery of the disk overlay.. A safety accessory is also provided for use in preventing over-extension of the leveler. The safety accessory includes a spiral notch cut along a length of the bolt threads, and a safety disk with spring-detent that engages the notch to stop further unscrewing.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to levelers for tables and the like and, more particularly, to an improved table leveler which, when installed on the legs of a table, allows convenient foot-actuated adjustment to compensate for uneven floors.
2. Description of the Background
Many tables have a seemingly ever-present wobble that causes constant irritation. Such wobbling generally results from equal table legs on an uneven floor. Although the problem may be fixed by inserting skids beneath the short leg(s), this is only a temporary solution and usually requires a prolonged search for a makeshift skid of the proper size. There are prior art levelers for tables and the like. These typically include a simple metal foot with extending bolts that can be inserted into the bottom of each leg to an adjustable depth. These are common items and are readily available. However, in all known variations the metal feet have a fairly small diameter and cannot easily be rotated by hand (especially if bearing the weight of the table). Some do come equipped with a hex collar to allow rotation by a hex wrench. Unfortunately, use of a hex wrench is not always convenient, especially in a setting such as a restaurant. In this context, there are a multitude of tables which regularly need adjustment. Neither restauranteurs or their customers want to be seen on their hands and knees.
Accordingly, it would be a great advantage to provide a leveler for allowing quick and easy adjustment of table legs and the like by manipulation with the feet.


A technique is provided for very efficiently injecting DC current into a horizontal deflection yoke to achieve raster shifting. The DC current (which is bi-directional) is used to unbalance the scan current, thereby providing a means to shift the horizontal scan raster to the left and right. This ability makes it is possible to offset symmetry problems in the yoke and CRT gun system. The amount of current and the direction of the current is both user adjustable and system adjustable, and is controlled through a microcontroller. Preferably, the microcontroller uses an H-synchronized clock generated by an on-screen display (OSD) controller, thereby avoiding the need to separately generate a high frequency clock. Using a current switching approach, low power losses are achieved in a circuit that is low cost and requires few components.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to horizontal beam deflection in television and video display monitors, particularly to raster shifting whereby the horizontal position of a video raster on a display screen is adjusted.
2. State of the Art
In television and video display monitors using a CRT (cathode ray tube), a horizontal deflection current is produced in a horizontal deflection coil to create a magnetic field used to deflect an electron beam (produced by a cathode of the CRT) back and forth across a display screen. As the electron beam is scanned back and forth across the display screen, it is modulated to produce on the display screen spots of varying luminous intensity, thus forming an image to be viewed. A high voltage, referred to as EHT (electrical high tension), is applied to an anode of the CRT and accelerates the electron beam, causing it to strike the screen at a very high speed.
Typically, a periodic horizontal drive signal is applied to a horizontal scan output stage (i.e., a power transistor) to produce a train of high-voltage retrace pulses used to generate the horizontal retrace current within a horizontal deflection, or DY, coil. The DY coil is part of a deflection yoke of the CRT, a combination of coil windings formed so as to surround particularly a neck portion of the CRT.
Because of manufacturing uncertainties, the yoke and CRT gun system may exhibit symmetry problems. To correct these problems, raster shifting may be used to adjust the horizontal position of the video raster on the display screen. In practice, all CRTs require some amount of raster shift. For example, symmetry problems are often caused by a slanted gun mounting inside the tube, but also occur in the convergence and beam landing adjustment process.
In existing designs that provide for raster shifting, basically a DC current is injected through a inductor into the deflection yoke. The DC current is generated from a floating power supply output. The polarity and amount of raster shift is usually only manually adjustable.
Deflection yokes used for high resolution monitors tend to have very low impedance, which reduces the trace voltage but increases the scan current. In order to provide the necessary raster shift, a DC current of 1A must be provided, which requires a drive voltage of only about 0.8 V.
Modern power supplies designed for high efficiency, however, generate 3 to 4 volts per turn, which causes 3 to 4 V to be the lowest possible supply voltage. In known raster shifting circuits, when the required 1A current is supplied, high power losses are inevitable because the lowest output voltage which can be generated by the power supply is unavoidably a few times higher then needed. If, on the other hand, a non switching approach is used, a complicated drive circuit is required to make the current controllable and the H-scan rate dependable.

Method and apparatus for digital control of raster shift in CRT displays


An external signal light system with two intensity levels. The system includes a dual-filament lamp bulb to alert observers that the vehicle brakes are being actuated. A power circuit connected to the vehicle storage battery provides electrical current to the bulb through a pair of serially connected switches. A first switch is closed upon actuation of the automobile's brakes. A second switch, controlled by a relay, delivers electrical current through the power circuit to either one of the bulb filaments in response to the energization state of the vehicle headlights. In the event that the headlights are energized, the second switch directs electrical current to the bulb's high wattage filament upon actuating the brakes. When the headlights are de-energized, however, electrical current is directed to the low wattage filament upon actuation of the brakes.

Motor vehicles are typically equipped with external lights to indicate their approach to nearby observers. In addition to turn signal lights, and headlights for nighttime operation, most vehicles are provided with at least one brake or stop indicator light. In known vehicle signal light systems, the stop indicator lights have been unsatisfactory because if they are of sufficient luminosity to command attention during daylight driving conditions, they are too dim or indistinct to be readily observed during nighttime use. A need, therefore, exists for an improved vehicle signal light system having means for automatically adjusting the intensity of a stop indicator light for daytime or nighttime driving conditions.


A system and method for characterizing a point in a three-dimensional digital medical image includes determining third order derivatives of the three-dimensional digital medical image at one or more points in the three-dimensional digital medical image. At each of the one or more points, one or more invariant or semi-invariant features that characterize a local geometry at the point is determined using the third order derivatives of the three-dimensional digital medical image. The invariant or semi-invariant features are used for automatic detection of lesions, abnormalities, and other anatomical structures of interest in the three-dimensional digital medical image.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to medical imaging and analysis. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for detecting lesions, abnormalities or other anatomical structures in medical images.
2. Background Art
Medical imaging is generally recognized as key to better diagnosis and patient care. It has experienced explosive growth over the last few years due to imaging modalities such as x-ray, Computed Tomography (CT), ultrasound, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET). Conventionally, medical images have been inspected visually by highly-trained medical practitioners in order to identify anatomic structures of interest, such as lesions. However, the process can be tedious, time consuming and must be performed with great care.
Computed Tomography Colonography (CTC) is a form of medical imaging that has been used for the detection and screening of colonic cancers. The purpose of CTC is to locate and identify polyps on the colon wall by computationally processing CT scans. A polyp is an abnormal growth on a mucous membrane, and may be benign or malignant (cancerous). The effectiveness of CTC is hindered by the large amount of data generated by a CTC scan, variability among human experts and the complexity of the classification. A typical modern CTC scan produces around one thousand axial CT images (slices) for the supine and prone data sets. To address these problems, a number of Computer Aided Detection (CAD) schemes for detecting polyps with CTC have been proposed.
Existing CAD algorithms detect polyps through their shapes by estimating curvature, either directly or indirectly, and define features based on these curvatures and use them in the detection and classification phases. For example, Yoshida et al. [1, 2] characterized several features including the shape index, curvedness, gradient concentration and directional gradient concentration from a conventional label segmentation of the colon wall to try to distinguish polyps from the normal colon tissues. However, Yoshida et al.'s method can sometimes fail to distinguish polyps from the colon wall adequately.
Thus, there is a need for improved methods for computer aided detection of lesions, abnormalities or other anatomical structures in medical images. In particular, there is a need for an improved automated system for detecting and classifying polyps, especially for use in Computed Tomography Colonography, that is able to distinguish polyps from the surrounding tissue more reliably.

System and method for detection of lesions in three-dimensional digital medical image


A vertical lift system for storage and in particular for parking motor vehicles comprising a multi-level frame comprising a structure extending upward from a base, and a lifting mechanism centrally positioned within the frame and in communication with each level, and a plurality of platforms positioned on each level about the lift mechanism the plurality of platforms for the receipt of a vehicle. The lift mechanism has capability to retrieve a selected vacant platform and transport it to an entrance/exit level, which can be located at any level within the structure, for positioning of a vehicle thereon, and subsequent transportation to its position on the frame. The lift mechanism provides for shifting the platform and the vehicle thereon either forwardly or rearwardly on the structure into a parking space, laterally to either side into a parking space, and either a forward and lateral or rearward and lateral movement into a parking space thereby providing eight parking spaces surrounding the lift mechanism on each level for vehicles.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a material handling system and in particular to a vertical lift system particularly adaptable for parking motor vehicles in a vertical configuration on limited area.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Single level and multi-level parking systems for automobiles, trucks, etc., have been used for many years. Single level parking is not cost effective, especially in urban areas. Multi-story parking buildings are utilized but are expensive to construct. Vertical lift systems have been employed, but the known systems are either too complex or too expensive. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,579,688; 3,387,722; 3,706,356; 3,750,899; and 4,209,276 disclose different types of vertical lift systems. Applicant is also the co-holder of U.S. Pat. No. 4,674,938 for a vertical parking system.
The difficulty with vertical lift systems heretofore was that the vehicle could be lifted to a certain level, but then the vehicle was limited in its movement to a parking space by the mechanicals of the system. The vehicles could be stacked one above the other or the vehicle could be moved off of the vertical lift either forwardly or rearwardly to a parking space or laterally to either side. Therefore while the vehicle vertical lift system could park more vehicles within a foot print of land by parking the vehicles vertically, the systems could not take advance of the entire foot print of land by parking cars in the four corners of the foot print of land. Thus the vertical lift systems could not take advantage of all the vertical space provided.
Still further, in urban areas, the zoning laws oftentimes prescribe spacing required for ingress and egress into parking garages and the size of parking spaces. The present system is adaptable to design compliance with the myriad of zoning laws that are present in various urban areas.


A transparent cleansing bar having a logo or other design or message printed on a non-supporting sheet positioned at approximately the mid-point of the bar. The message is printed on one or both sides of a thin, clear, colorless sheet of synthetic polymer material. The bar is formed from transparent modified soap material. The message is viewable through the transparent bar. An improved method for forming the transparent cleansing bar with a printable film also is disclosed.

This invention relates generally to bar soaps and more particularly, to a transparent bar skin cleanser bearing an internal, printed logo that can be offered as decorative soap, an advertising premium, or a novelty.
Bar soaps are well known to the art. Traditional soaps are salts of fatty acids prepared mainly by reacting fats with caustic alkali through a process known as saponification. The treatment of fat with alkali to make traditional soap has been practiced for at least 5000 years.
Conventional toilet bar soaps use higher quality fats and the water content is reduced. Warm molten soap, including perfumes and other additives, is made into flakes and then milled. The milled flakes pass to a plodding machine which works the flakes and compacts the worked soap into bar form. The bars then are cut and stamped to their final shape.
Other modified soaps can be formed into a bar shape and commonly referred to as "soap" by consumers, even though they are not formed totally from fat and alkali through the traditional saponification process. One such common product is Neutrogena.RTM. Soap (Neutrogena Corp.), which is a transparent, nondetergent modified bar soap including triethanolamine, stearic acid, tallow, glycerin, coconut oil, castor oil, sodium hydroxide, oleic acid and cocamide DEA. Another is Basis.TM. Glycerin Soap (Beiersdorf), which is a transparent modified bar soap including tallow, coconut oil and glycerin. These products generally are indicated for people with sensitive, dry or irritated skin who may not tolerate common soap products.
Besides functioning primarily as cleansers, bar soaps, both conventional and modified, generally are provided in aesthetically pleasing forms. The products include perfumes and fragrances and usually are provided in attractive packaging. Often, the bar soaps are impressed with designs so as to render them decorative or aesthetically pleasing. Moreover, the soap bars often serve as advertising vehicles for their manufacturers. The manufacturer's name and trademarks generally are printed directly on the wrap and packaging. Furthermore, the manufacturer includes the trademark or company name on the soap bar itself. That is, most commonly, the name of the soap or company is molded or stamped into the bar of soap. This molding or stamping of the company or product name into the product serves as a source of company and product advertising at least until use of the soap bar under normal bathing or washing conditions wears the company and product name from the soap bar.
Further, the desire to have a company name or product name affixed to a soap bar is not limited to the manufacturer of the soap. For example, large hotel and motel chains provide complimentary soap in their rooms, the soap having the name or the hotel chain stamped or molded into the surface of the bar soap. Other concerns, such as trendy restaurants, gambling casinos and amusement parks have been known to offer such decorated or labeled bar soap for sale in gift shops as premium souvenirs. Thus, there is an incentive to provide a high quality, resilient printed or decorated bar soap with a relatively long-lasting design.
Prior art patents have addressed the desire to decorate, emboss or label soap. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 165,628, to Strunz, provides for transparent soap having a business card or other advertising medium to form a business card made of soap; U.S. Pat. No. 648,247, to Dunne, provides a soap cake having a center core made of insoluble material in two hollow sections that can be placed together to form a container or holder for advertising or other matter; U.S. Pat. No. 1,441,315, to Walbridge, provides a cake of soap having cavo-convex halves with an inscription inside; U.S. Pat. No. 1,764,009. to Embree, shows a soap bar with an inserted card for advertisement and to add reinforcement to the bar; U.S. Pat. No. 1,827,549, to Villain, discloses a transparent soap having cardboard, metal or paper piece at the middle; U.S. Pat. No. 2,051,625 provides an advertising soap; U.S. Pat. No. 3,149,188, to Schmitt, shows imprinted soap; U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,230, to Dupuis, shows a floating soap cake with included educational features; U.S. Pat. No. 3,432,325, to Haba, discloses a process for printing on soap; U.S. Pat. No. 3,432,325, to Baba, provides a process for printing on soap; U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,482, to Goerig et al., discloses a method of embossing an indicia on soap with an elastomeric coated printing head. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 4,297,228, to Kamada et al., teaches a soap with a decorated surface and a method for decorating the soap; U.S. Pat. No. 4,504,433, to Inui et al, provides a process for making a soap bar containing dried soap figures; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,545, to Maiki, provides a method for affixing labels to soap bars.
Other prior art patents simply teach the use of some reinforcing or buoyant inserts not particularly adapted to use as an advertising medium. Representative patents include U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,707,334; 3,773,672; 4,438,010; Canadian Patent No. 835913; and British Patent No. 881,767.
The conventional methods for labeling bars of soap all suffer from several drawbacks. First, conventional stamping, embossing or molding results in a superficial decoration formed in the soap which quickly deteriorates or wastes as the soap is used. Moreover, this type of decoration is limited. The design or lettering either is cut or stamped into the soap or consists of raised soap material. Thus, the design necessarily is of the same color and texture as the soap. This type of embossing or etching does not allow for the use of varied, unique, colored or stylized print or design. Presently, with the value of recognizable trademarks and logos advertisers seek a high quality representation of their trademarks, including logo designs and colors.
Although some of the prior art methods are an attempt at forming a long lasting design, if the soap is used for its intended purposes, the designs will deteriorate before the bar of soap is used up. The prior art soaps that include an insert employ an insert having a substantial thickness that supports the bar itself. Several of the prior art designs include a substantial insert for that purpose, i.e. to support the bar until it is used up. However, such supporting inserts, whether plain or bearing a message, create disposal problems and, perhaps even present safety concerns.
The old methods of printing advertisements or trademarks and the like on paper or cardboard and molding the printed paper into the soap suffers from obvious disadvantages. The paper or cardboard medium on which the message or design is printed is detectable through the soap and hence detracts from the aesthetic appeal of the printed message as well as the soap. Furthermore, as the soap bar is used up, the printed paper is exposed to water and the printed message is defaced, becomes unsightly, can leach through the soap and eventually is destroyed. The printed paper presents an obvious disposal or waste problem. Wet paper or cardboard can clog drains and cause other disposal problems.
One attempt to provide a bar of soap bearing a design or printing that remains intact and readable until the bar of soap is used up is a bar soap having an imbedded, printed logo called "To Be", distributed by Dong Won Chemics, South Korea. The "To Be" soap is a dark amber, transparent bar having an embedded, printed message.


A compressor intermediate case for a gas turbine engine includes a plurality of intermediate case struts joining the compressor intermediate case to an inner engine structure. Each strut of the plurality of intermediate case struts includes a leading edge. A turning scoop is disposed at the leading edge of each strut of the plurality of intermediate case struts. A plurality of diffusers extends radially outwardly from the compressor intermediate case so that each diffuser of the plurality of diffusers engages with a corresponding turning scoop. A substantially annular structural fire wall extends radially outwardly from the compressor intermediate case. An environmental control system manifold is disposed on the compressor intermediate case. The environmental control system manifold includes an exit port.

Gas turbine engines may include a low pressure compressor and a high pressure compressor. In many engine configurations, a low pressure compressor case surrounds the low pressure compressor and a high pressure compressor case surrounds the high pressure compressor with a compressor intermediate case located therebetween. The area located between the low pressure compressor case and the high pressure compressor case is commonly referred to as station 2.5. Station 2.5 generally includes a 2.5 bleed path through the compressor intermediate case to allow air to bleed into the fan stream. In addition to relieving pressure when the engine is at idle or low power, the 2.5 bleed path also allows dirt particles from the low pressure compressor discharge air to exit into the fan stream, so that cleaner air passes downstream through the core engine. The 2.5 bleed path is traditionally regulated by a 2.5 bleed valve that controls the amount of bleed air flowing to the fan stream. In many configurations, the 2.5 bleed valve is located in the core compartment to facilitate maintenance.
An environmental control system bleed path may also be implemented in gas turbine engines. The environmental control system bleed path guides the air to the environmental control system for supplying air to the cabin of an aircraft. Conventional environmental control system bleed paths are usually sourced from the middle section of the high pressure compressor. While effective, the environmental control system air sourced from the middle section of the high pressure compressor may contain dirt particles that were not diverted through the 2.5 bleed path. However, cleaner environmental control system bleed air is desirable because this air eventually circulates throughout the aircraft cabin and is breathed in by the passengers.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide cleaner environmental control system bleed air into the aircraft cabin such as by sourcing this air from station 2.5 immediately downstream of the 2.5 bleed path so that there is minimal disruption to the core air flow.

Integrated environmental control system manifold