Disclosed is an electrical contact assembly wherein a conductive contact member for electrically coupling two conductive surfaces also serves as part of a detent assembly. The electrical contact assembly has a contact member resiliently supported by a carrier, wherein the carrier controllably guides the contact member along a path. A feature of the electrical contact assembly is a detent bump disposed at a location along the contact member's path, wherein upon contact between the contact member and the detent bump, the detent bump provides resistance to relative movement between the carrier and the conductive surfaces, thereby producing "detent feel."

Electrical contacting devices are used in a number of electro-mechanical applications to make and break electrical circuits. Typically, electrical contacting devices have two conductive surfaces and a contact member formed of a conductive material, wherein at least one of the conductive surfaces is attached to an electrical source. When the contact member is positioned such that it makes contact with both of the conductive surfaces, it electrically couples the two conductive surfaces, thereby making an electrical circuit. Conversely, when the contact member no longer makes contact with both conductive surfaces, then it no longer electrically bridges the conductive surfaces and the circuit is broken.
Electrical contacting devices are commonly used in switches such as a rheostat. In operation, mechanical or electro-mechanical means (e.g. thumbwheels, slides, toggles) are used to move the contact member in and out of contact with both of the conductive surfaces, thereby varying the electrical output of the switch. It is common in the design of switches to slide a contact member along either a linear or arcuate path, wherein the conductive surfaces are disposed at discrete locations along these paths. When the contact member reaches a point in the path where both of the conductive surfaces are disposed such that the contact member makes contact with both conductive surfaces, a circuit is made. It is also typical for some switches to have a stationary contact member, wherein the conductive surfaces translate along a linear or arcuate path, thereby forming electrical circuits in a like manner.
Another common feature in switches is the inclusion of a detent assembly within the switch. The purpose of the detent assembly is to provide a user of the switch with "detent feel," which is either tactile or aural indications of the positioning of the switch. Detent assemblies frequently employ a spring biased finger which moves along a path within the switch upon movement of the electrical contact member, and a wedge-shaped detent bump which is positioned at a location along the finger's path. When the finger makes contact with the detent bump, the finger resiliently retracts, thereby allowing the finger to travel past the detent bump. When the finger clears the detent bump, the resilient nature of the finger snaps the finger back to its initial, unretracted position. To the user of the switch, the contact between the finger and the detent bump produces a resistive force on the contact member that can be tactilely sensed by the user. In addition, when the finger clears the detent bump, the snapping action of the finger produces an aural indicator of the switch's position to the user as well.
Detent assemblies are commonly used to assist the user of the switch to find a discrete position of the switch. For example, a switch using a detent assembly for the purpose of indicating an on or off position would produce "detent feel" only when the switch is either in the "on" position or in the "off" position, and not at any other point. It is common for switches employing detent assemblies to be used when the switch is used as a mode selector. In this application, the switch allows the user of the switch to select various modes, wherein the user will experience "detent feel" as the switch is positioned such that one of the modes is selected.


A four-wheel device used to lift drums with compressed air stored in an on-board storage tank without special straps, tools, or clamps that allows the operator to lift the drum with no physical stress and to roll the unit to another location with minimum effort.

Most devices for lifting and moving a container such as a 55 gallon drum require a fork truck or manual clamp around the drum. Other devices require the operator to use excessive manual force to tip the drum in order to move it. Tipping drums can be very dangerous because a drum can tip forward and injure another person or tip backward resulting in the carrier and the drum falling on top of the operator.


Methods and systems for providing access to content are disclosed. The method is performed at least in part at a client computer system having a processor and memory. The method includes executing a host application associated with a first party. In some implementations, the host application is a media player. The method further includes initiating a secure communication channel between the host application and a server associated with the first party. The method further includes executing a supplemental application associated with a second party. The method further includes accessing, with the supplemental application, content licensed to the first party, wherein the licensed content is accessible to the supplemental application via the secure communication channel subject to terms of a licensing agreement. In some implementations, the content is media content, such as music, movies, and the like.

In order to satisfy owners and producers of digital content, such as music, movies, and the like, digital content distribution requires many commercial and technical safeguards. Providers of digital content often must take measures to prevent access to their content by unauthorized computer programs, for fear that these applications will illegally copy, display, or distribute the protected content. Moreover, legitimate content providers often license content from content owners and/or producers (e.g., artists, record labels, movie studios, etc.), and the terms of the licenses typically require that adequate safeguards be used so that the licensed content is protected from pirating. Thus, distributors of such content often use digital rights management ("DRM") tools to prevent copying and recording of their content. But DRM techniques and the strict terms of the licenses between content providers and content owners/producers often impede legitimate content providers from offering fast, convenient, and ubiquitous access to their content catalogs. The ideas disclosed herein help alleviate these problems, and allow legitimate content providers to expand the ways in which they provide licensed digital content to users and third parties.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Content provider with multi-device secure application integration


A crusher comprises a main shaft a portion of which is disposed in a bore of a rotatable eccentric shaft, the main shaft (1) having a central axis that is inclined with respect to the axis of rotation of the eccentric shaft, and a first crushing head attached to the main shaft and rotatable by the main shaft with respect to a second crushing head so that constrained stroke motion is effected between the first crushing head and the second crushing head. The inclination of the central axis of the main shaft is changed with respect to the axis of rotation of the eccentric shaft by a gear transmission comprising cog wheels, such that the magnitude of the constrained stroke motion changes.

The invention relates to a crusher comprising a main shaft, which is placed into a bore of a rotatable eccentric shaft, the main shaft having a central axis which is inclined with respect to the axis of rotation of the eccentric shaft, and a first crushing head, which is attached to the main shaft and rotatable by the main shaft with respect to a second crushing head so that constrained stroke motion is effected between the first crushing head and the second crushing head, whereby material can be crushed between the first crushing head and the second crushing head, whereby the eccentric shaft comprises an outer eccentric shaft with a second bore and an inner eccentric shaft, which is at least partly positioned so as to be continuously turnable with respect to the outer eccentric shaft in said second bore, whereby the bore is in the inner eccentric shaft, and whereby the inner eccentric shaft and the outer eccentric shaft are turnable with respect to each other by means of gear transmission so that the inclination of the central axis of the main shaft changes with respect to the axis of rotation of the eccentric shaft such that the length of the constrained stroke motion changes.
An arrangement for adjusting the value of constrained pendulous motion or stroke of a crusher is previously known, in which an eccentric shaft is carried by an eccentric bearing having a wedge groove on the outer surface of the eccentric bearing. The eccentric bearing is held in place by means of a corresponding safety wedge so that the bearing cannot rotate during the rotating motion of the eccentric shaft. By turning the eccentric bearing, the stroke can be adjusted. In this crusher, the stroke is adjusted stepwise.
Another known method for adjusting stroke of a crusher having an eccentric bearing is to replace the entire eccentric bearing with a different kind of eccentric bearing providing a different stroke.
In the aforementioned arrangements, the stroke adjustment always requires dismantling of the crusher.
A solution to this problem is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,391. This publication discloses a stroke adjusting apparatus, wherein an outer eccentric shaft comprises a worm shaft turnable by means of a hydraulic motor, the worm shaft being arranged to co-operate with toothing on the outer surface of the inner eccentric shaft such that the inner eccentric shaft can be turned in the outer eccentric shaft. This arrangement thus allows the stroke adjustment to be made without having to dismantle the crusher. A disadvantage of this solution is, however, that the worm gear and hydraulic motor required for turning the eccentric shafts with respect to each other are machine elements that require a lot of space. Thus, the eccentric shaft and thereby the crusher frame have to be sized much bigger than would otherwise be necessary. Accordingly, the total weight of the crusher and its manufacturing costs increase considerably.
Furthermore, the crusher disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,391 has the problem that the hydraulic fluid required for effecting the stroke adjustment of the crusher has to be distributed through the outer eccentric shaft in rotating motion to the hydraulic motor while the crusher is in operation. Under dusty conditions of a crushing plant it is very difficult to make this kind of arrangement such that it does not leak.
The invention relates to a crusher which solves the problems described above. The crusher according to the invention is characterized in that the gear transmission comprises a first cog wheel attached to the inner eccentric shaft, a second cog wheel attached to the outer eccentric shaft, and a turning mechanism for turning the first cog wheel and the second cog wheel with respect to each other such that the inner eccentric shaft and the outer eccentric shaft turn with respect to each other.
Thus, the internal stroke adjustment arrangement of the crusher is entirely mechanical in the solution according to the invention.
The preferred embodiments of the crusher according to the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims.
The invention is based on the eccentric shaft comprising two parts, the outer eccentric shaft and the inner eccentric shaft inside it. The first cog wheel is attached to the inner eccentric shaft and the second cog wheel is attached to the outer eccentric shaft. By turning the first cog wheel and the second cog wheel with respect to each other by means of the turning mechanism, the inner eccentric shaft and the outer eccentric shaft turn with respect to each other.
With this arrangement the inclination of the central axis of the main shaft can be changed with respect to the axis of rotation of the eccentric shaft such that the value of the constrained pendulous motion, i.e., the stroke, changes.
The crusher according to the invention provides the advantage that the stroke can be adjusted without dismantling the crusher. The arrangement according to the invention also enables a continuous stroke adjustment within a range of 0 to 40 mm, for example.


Packaging is substantially entirely removed from an integrated circuit die. The method allows the batch processing of several integrated circuit dies, such that packaging is removed from each die approximately simultaneously.

Integrated circuit dies, or chips, are fabricated by the tens or hundreds on large semiconductor substrates. Once diced into discrete chips, they are encapsulated in individual packages that provide mechanical stability and protection from moisture and contamination. Conventional integrated circuit packages are made of ceramic materials such as alumina or plastic materials such as epoxy or silicone.
One method to increase the functionality and decrease the cost of integrated electronic devices is the integration of multiple integrated circuit dies in a common package. However, many suitable integrated circuit dies are only available pre-packaged in individual packages, and not directly from a diced or undiced wafer. In order to combine such components in a common package of minimum size, it is necessary to first remove the die from each pre-packaged component. Thus recovered, the bare dies may be combined together to provide enhanced functionality in a reduced volume.
Unfortunately, conventional methods of removing packaging from integrated circuit dies suffer from several problems. Conventional processes are often customized for each particular die, limiting throughput to one die at a time. Such processes include steps calibrated manually that are extremely time-consuming. Moreover, conventional processes often leave portions of wiring and/or ball bonds attached to the top surface of the die. Hence, to achieve a planar surface with such protrusions intact, a portion of the original package is necessarily preserved over the top surface of the die. Moreover, in order that the die not be damaged by mechanical package removal processes, a border of the package is also often left around the perimeter of the die, increasing its final cross-sectional area. These remaining portions of the package not only obscure the top surface of the die, preventing visual inspection, but can also flake off during subsequent processing and contaminate equipment.

Removal of integrated circuits from packages

The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.


An electric fluid pump, rotor unit therefore, and methods of constructions thereof are provided. The fluid pump includes a stator unit configured to generate a magnetic field in response to a control signal. A rotor unit is received within the stator unit, wherein the rotor unit is configured to rotate about a central rotor axis in response to the magnetic field generated by the stator unit. The rotor unit includes a plurality of magnets contained in through openings of a carrier assembly having first and second carrier members, wherein the first and second carrier members are fixed to one another by bond joints.

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates generally to electric fluid pumps of the type used in motor vehicles, and more particularly to an electric fluid pump having a rotor unit with a magnet carrier assembly including a pair of coaxial components fixed together and a method of constructing the rotor unit.
2. Related Art
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
As is well known, a water pump circulates a liquid coolant through a vehicle's coolant system to transfer heat from the engine for optimized engine performance as well as for use in heating the passenger cabin. Water pumps are largely divided into two classifications including mechanical water pumps and electric water pumps. Mechanical water pumps are typically driven by the engine via an accessory drive system (i.e. pulley and belt system). As such, the flow rate characteristics of mechanical water pumps are primarily dependent on the engine speed. To provide variable control of the flow rate independent of the engine speed, the coolant system is equipped with an electric water pump. The electric water pump typically includes an impeller driven by a variable-speed electric motor controlled by a control apparatus or system. As the number of vehicles equipped with an electric water pump continues to increase, a need exists to develop electrically-operated pump components that can provide enhanced performance and durability.
In many conventional electric water pumps, the rotor unit includes a "molded" magnet carrier within which a plurality of magnets are completely encapsulated. One example of an over-molded magnetic carrier in a rotor of an electric water pump is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,747,082. However, the process of over-molding the magnets within the plastic carrier is complicated by various characteristic including, without limitation, magnet tolerances, excessive flash, poor mold fill, inadequate magnet retention and imbalance issues. Accordingly, a recognized need exists to identify and develop alternative magnet retention systems for rotor units in electric water pumps.

Electric fluid pump with improved rotor unit, rotor unit therefor and methods of construction thereof

MAGNA POWERTRAIN FPC LIMITED PARTNERSHIP


An improved device provides a cost-effective, time-effective way to stably and reliably affix soft tissues (e.g., tendon or ligament) to the surface of anatomical structures with comparable or greater strength and stiffness (e.g., bone). The device does not require specialized procedures or tools. A single device applies both incremental tensioning and compression to the soft tissue being affixed. The device allows the user, typically a physician or veterinarian, to reliably manipulate, control, and maintain tissue tension. The device is versatile, and can accommodate attachment of soft tissues of different sizes and mechanical properties to bone or to other soft tissues. These features provide flexibility to human and veterinary health practitioners in a variety of specialized areas including orthopedics, joint stabilization, soft tissue repair, spinal surgery, and plastic surgery.

Surgical procedures, both human and veterinary, often require the fixation of soft tissue. One common example is anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. ACL reconstruction exemplifies the problems often associated with surgical fixation. A significant fraction of patients—as high as 40%—experience unsatisfactory outcomes caused by tension loss during implantation, or by post-operative cyclical loading. It is important for the surgeon to be able to accurately estimate and maintain tissue tension and stability. However, the surgeon's ability to estimate and maintain tissue tension can be compromised by implants whose installation requires multiple steps. During the fixation procedure, many conventional devices provide inconsistent tissue tensioning, and a loss of tension often results. Post-operative slippage at the fixation site also contributes to the problem. The holding strength of many conventional devices is insufficient to prevent tissue slippage during the initial post-operative period. Current standards for post-operative rehabilitation call for strong initial fixation. However, it is difficult if not impossible for many conventional devices to achieve sufficiently strong fixation.
Conventional technologies for the fixation of soft tissues (e.g., tendon) to anatomical structures with comparable or greater strength and stiffness (e.g., bone) has relied primarily on variations of traditional hardware devices such as screws, washers, staples, pins, and the like. Such conventional devices are ineffective at maintaining tissue tension during tissue fixation. Nor do they permit incremental and stable adjustments to tissue tensioning during the process. Conventional devices often require a patient to undergo multiple procedures, procedures that are often specific to the particular device employed, that are usually extraneous to the primary surgical procedure, and that would otherwise be unnecessary. Where bone tunnels are used, conventional devices are often located some distance from the tunnel. A substantial disadvantage of nearly all prior devices is that they do a poor job of maintaining the proper tension while the soft tissue is secured. No previous device known to the inventor permits the convenient, incremental, reversible, securely-maintained application of tissue tension during the affixing process.
Limitations of many conventional devices include: the time required for installation; otherwise extraneous procedures needed for device installation; unreliable tissue holding strength; loss of tissue tension during the affixing procedure; and the expense of acquiring and maintaining specialized application equipment that often has no other use.
Amis et al., patent application publication no. US 2011/0112640 discloses a graft fixation device for fixing a ligament graft to a bone. The device comprises a locating means for locating the device in the bone and a graft support means arranged to support the graft, wherein the graft support means allows adjustment of the position of the graft relative to the bone. The graft support means may be rotated to provide adjustment. Alternatively the graft support means may be arranged to slide axially or to move radially to provide adjustment.
May et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,433 discloses a prosthetic device for replacing a ligament or tendon. An adjustable connector allows tension on the ligament to be increased or decreased. Three embodiments of the adjustable connector are described: one employs a pin with a threaded shaft and a cylinder with a threaded bore, one employs a ratchet plate and a spool, and one employs cleats.
Johnson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,668 describes a screw tensioning device for holding one end of a ligament graft.
ElAttrache et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,544,281 discloses a method for securing soft tissue to bone. A blind hole or socket is created in the bone at the location the graft is to be secured. Preferably, suture is then passed through the graft at desired points. A cannulated driver is pre-loaded with a cannulated plug or screw slidably disposed onto the distal portion of the driver. The driver is inserted into the hole with the screw or plug just outside the hole. Tension is then placed on the suture. Once adequate tension is achieved on the suture, the driver is pressed into the hole, which engages the first thread or bump of the screw or plug on the bone. The screw or plug is then fully advanced into the hole using the driver.
Lopez and Monroe, U.S. Pat. No. 8,603,115 discloses a soft tissue fixation device for use in ACL or CCL reconstruction. A base member has a passageway extending perpendicularly from the top surface through the bottom surface. The passageway is sized to allow soft tissue to be inserted through it. An affixing member is attachable to the base member. The base member has a notched section in the top surface extending from the passageway to a first perimeter section of the base member sized to accommodate at least a portion of the graft. The base member is secured to bone. The base member is also provided with a sleeve whose interior wall surfaces form a part of the passageway and is sized to be inserted into the bone opening. The affixing member is provided with a series of teeth members extending downward from its lower surface. The teeth members are positioned so that when the affixing member is attached to the base member the teeth members will extend across and into the notched section of the top surface of the base member. The opposite ends of the affixing member are shaped to fit into aligned notches positioned along perimeter sections of the base member bottom surface for attaching the clip member to the base member.
See also: Lopez M J, Monroe W T. Initial Femoral Fixation Properties of One Novel and Two Established Devices in Canine Cranial Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction, Proceedings American College of Veterinary Surgeons Annual Symposium E15, 2006. (Abstract); Lopez M J, Borne A, Monroe W T, Bommala P, Kelly L, Zhang N. Novel anterior cruciate ligament graft fixation device reduces slippage. Med Devices (Auckland) 6:59-68, 2013; Lopez M J, Casey J P, Spencer N D, Monroe W T. Initial femoral fixation properties of one novel and two established devices in canine cranial cruciate ligament reconstruction. 41st American College of Veterinary Surgeons Annual Symposium, Washington D.C., Oct. 4-7, 2006 (Poster); Lopez M J, Casey J P, Spencer N D, Monroe W T. Biomechanical characteristics of an implant used to secure semitendinosus-gracilis grafts in a canine model of extra-articular anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Vet Surg 36:599-604, 2007; Lopez M J et al., "In vivo application of novel and commercially available bioabsorbable implants for tibial fixation of cranial cruciate ligament reconstruction grafts". 45th American College of Veterinary Surgeons Meeting, Chicago, Ill., Nov. 5, 2011. (Presentation)
Hoof, U.S. Pat. No. 8,540,734 discloses an adjustable, stand-alone tensioning system that allows an operator to provide adjustable tension to a suture during surgery, using a spring mechanism. The device is evidently designed to be used as a tool during surgery, but not to be implanted and to remain in a patient after surgery. The device is evidently designed to apply tension to a suture, rather than directly to a graft tissue.
L. Bodó et al., "Development of a tension-adjustable implant for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction," Joint Dis. Rel. Surg., vol. 19, pp. 27-32 (2008) discloses a "loop-in-loop" technique for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. The implant contains two parts: a plastic strap with a smooth inner surface and a serrated outside surface; and a plastic ring with a serrated latch. The two serrated surfaces of the two parts allow one-way movement of the plastic strap in the ring to adjust tightening of the graft.

Soft tissue tensioning and fixation device

Board of Supervisors of Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College


In a valve actuating system for a multicylinder internal combustion engine having a camshaft supported in bearing pedestals on the cylinder head of the engine with rocker arms pivotally supported by rocker arm support shafts also mounted on the bearing pedestals and coupling levers arranged adjacent at least some of the rocker arms and including hydraulically operable coupling devices for engagement with the adjacent rocker arms, at least one of the bearing pedestals includes a pressure control space to which oil under pressure is supplied and the rocker arm support shafts have internal fluid flow passages in communication with the pressure control space and with the coupling devices so that pressurized fluid can be admitted to the coupling devices under the control of valve means disposed in the bearing pedestal.

The invention relates to a valve actuating system for a multicylinder internal combustion engine with intake and exhaust valves and a cam shaft mounted on bearing pedestals and rocker arms mounted on support shafts and being actuated by the cam shaft for operating the valves.
DE 42 21 135 C1 discloses a valve actuating system for a multicylinder internal combustion engine, a valve being actuated by two actuating levers which can be coupled to one another by means of coupling elements and are driven by two cams with different lobes. The coupling elements are formed by locking pins which are guided in longitudinally displaceable fashion in the coupling levers, parallel to the rocker spindle, and can be subjected to pressure for movement in the direction toward the actuating lever by means of hydraulic oil. In the actuating lever there is a spring-loaded guide cup which serves to reset the locking pin to its initial position in the unpressurized state. To subject the locking pins in the coupling levers to pressure, oil is fed in through a longitudinal passage in the rocker spindle and a transverse hole in the coupling lever. The customary lubricating oil pump of the internal combustion engine can be used as the oil pump, a valve for controlling a switching pressure being provided in a pressurized oil line.
A similar arrangement is described in EP 0 576 768 A1. This arrangement makes it possible to control the coupling elements in such a way that it is possible to perform a valve shutdown, a cylinder shutdown or a lifting curve changeover.
The object on which the present invention is based is to provide for the oil supply of a cylinder head in a simple manner with minimal machining and assembly.

Valve actuating system for a multicylinder internal combustion engine


A system for injecting prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material into the ground includes a plurality of outlet nozzles which receive prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material from a supply tank and inject the material into the ground. Airless fluid ejector guns are connected to the outlet nozzles and control the flow of material through the nozzles. The prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material is pressurized by a powered piston pump and then delivered to the airless guns. The airless guns are actuated in a sequence which establishes a flow of pressurized prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material through some of the outlet nozzles while terminating flow of pressurized prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material through other of the outlet nozzles.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,812, issued Mar. 7, 1995, discloses one prior art approach for injecting a small quantum of gel-like substances of hydrophilic material into the ground as discrete cylindrical hydrophilic slugs deployed in a uniform pattern. Upon penetration in the soil, and especially when the slugs of material reach a soil change or gradient, the hydrophilic material stops its advancement into the soil substrate and either fans out or remains in its initial configuration.
Other known techniques for dispensing hydrophilic polymer material involve mixing the polymer with water in an injection pump which directly receives the polymer. Water is then pumped therein under high pressure. This approach stresses the equipment since the polymer may clump up when mixed, particularly when the dispensing is to be throttled on and off. Yet another prior art approach involves administering the polymer in a liquid solution as a uniform continuous steam into the ground. High pressures are involved in such distribution systems and the equipment employed is prone to failure because it cannot simultaneously and continuously achieve the force required to accurately penetrate the soil.
It is also known to treat sod, such as that employed on golf courses, with polymer by slicing into the sod with a disc-like implement or injecting a liquid ribbon. Use of a disc requires subsequent replacement of the soil over the polymer and such an approach imposes a limitation on the distance between rows of polymer. Linear ribbon application, on the other hand, causes sod to swell in a non-uniform manner, possibly providing undesirable undulations on the surface.
Referring once again to the arrangement disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,812, such patent provides an arrangement for mixing polymer in water and then injecting the mixture through the soil. A storage tank supported on a trailer receives a combination of polymer and water. A pump receives the mixture and delivers it through a high pressure hose to an outlet distribution device including a plurality of nozzles supported from a wheeled carriage frame.
The mixture is injected into the soil by periodic pulsing of a solenoid type valve so that upon opening of the valve, the mixture is injected under high pressure into the soil. When the valve is closed, a pressure bleed-off returns the mixture to the tank for agitating the mixture in the tank. Such an arrangement involving recirculation of the mixture not only adds to the complexity of the apparatus but can damage, such as by shredding, the polymer material, rendering it less effective when applied to the soil. Furthermore, such an arrangement necessarily requires a relatively high water to polymer ratio in the mixture resulting in inefficient delivery of the polymer to the soil.
The following additional patents are also believed to be representative of the present state of the prior art in this field: U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,069, issued Dec. 6, 1994, U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,663, issued Apr. 19, 1994, U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,745, issued Apr. 7, 1992, U.S. Pat. No. 5,291,842, issued Mar. 8, 1994, U.S. Pat. No. 4,009,666, issued Mar. 1, 1977, U.S. Pat. No. 3,875,876, issued Apr. 8, 1975, U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,618, issued Feb. 27, 1990, U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,686, issued Jul. 12, 1977, U.S. Pat. No. 3,331,340, issued Jul. 18, 1967, U.S. Pat. No. 3,330,070, issued Jul. 11, 1967, U.S. Pat. No. 2,930,334, issued Mar. 29, 1960, U.S. Pat. No. 4,807,544, issued Feb. 28, 1989, U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,618, issued Feb. 27, 1990, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,516, issued Mar. 13, 1990.

Apparatus and method for injecting prehydrated hydrophilic polymer material into the ground


Method and system for controlling ignition timing includes the steps of and means for discriminating when the time interval between knocking indicative signal pulses is shorter than a particular time period, and controlling ignition timing at a rate related to the frequency of occurrence of knocking to prevent the knocking from occurring. A pulse train is generated having an interval shorter than that of the knocking signal pulse train when the interval of the knocking signal pulse is shorter than the particular time period. The generated pulse train is fed to a control circuit for determining the time by which ignition pulses should be delayed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for delaying ignition timing when knocking is detected.
2. Prior Art
Heretofore, there has been known the so-called feedback control method for ignition timing wherein the ignition timing is set at the optimum position when knocking is not detected and the ignition timing is delayed when knocking is detected, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (Kokai) No. 87537/77 or Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (Kokai) No. 46606/76. The method of feedback controlling ignition timing as described above is disadvantageous in that, if the stability in ignition timing is improved, then the response in transient conditions becomes unsatisfactory. Thus, for example, frequent strong knocking cycles take place before ignition timing stabilizes when quick acceleration is effected from a low load condition (the condition where the throttle is fully closed).


The present invention relates to a fender, bogie, train, track and methods. The fender according to the invention comprises:                a support surface provided on the underside during use;        an inner pressure chamber provided in or on the support surface;        a feed arranged in the pressure chamber for feeding a fluid;        a first rim present round the inner pressure chamber, wherein at least a part of the rim is flexible; and        a second rim arranged round the first rim such that a pressure chamber is created between two adjacent rims.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fender.
Description of Related Art
Fenders are known in practice, for instance in hovercrafts. Another known fender, suitable for use for a train, is described in NL 1007109.
Known fenders are beset with a number of practical problems, including having to provide large support surfaces and having to supply sufficient liquid or air for the purpose of supporting a load.


Oral pharmaceutical compositions in unit dosage form suitable for swallowing (especially capsules) comprising a safe and effective amount of solid Colloidal Bismuth Subcitrate (CBS), and optionally one or more pharmaceutically-acceptable carrier materials, wherein the packing density of the dosage unit is less than about 1 g/ml.

The present invention relates to low density oral pharmaceutical compositions in unit dosage form suitable for swallowing comprising solid Colloidal Bismuth Subcitrate.
Solid Colloidal Bismuth Subcitrate ("CBS"; Trademark De-Nol.RTM. of Gist-brocades N.V.) is the product of European Patent 0,075,992, corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,608. It is also the active ingredient of British Patent 1,478,742. According to these specifications, CBS can be formulated into pharmaceutical compositions in solid dosage form for oral administration, such as tablets and capsules. Up to now only the tablet form (both chewable and swallowable tablets) has been realized and it is marketed in many countries.
The currently used swallowable tablet form of CBS has already been given to hundreds of thousands of patients and its clinical efficacy and safety are firmly established. However, recently there have been reports of a transient sharp peak of bismuth blood level in humans after the ingestion of this CBS-containing swallowable tablet, t.sub.max around 30 minutes (see C. U. Nwokolo et al, Aliment. Pharmacol. Therap., 3, 1989, 29-39). Since the therapeutic action of CBS is believed to be localized in the gastrointestinal tract, even a transient peak of bismuth blood level does not appear to serve any useful purpose and it is therefore desirable to minimize bismuth blood levels if possible.
It has been discovered that this currently used tablet form (having a density greater than 1 g/ml), in vitro in liquid acidic medium, has a tendency to sink to the bottom of the liquid and dissolve by first forming liquid CBS solution rather than the desired insoluble bismuth precipitate. By contrast, unit dosage forms (as according to the present invention) which are less dense than the current tablet form and also less dense than the acidic medium (approximately 1 g/ml) do not form this initial CBS liquid but rather quickly forms the desired insoluble bismuth precipitate. Interestingly, when these low density unit dosage forms are weighted to the bottom of the test liquid, again the CBS initially liquifies.
A low packing density of oral dosage units as specified above is contrary to the current tendency in the art of pharmaceutical production, which is to concentrate the oral dosage units, e.g. by compressing the contents of oral capsules to a high density (see Hard Capsules, Development and Technology, Ed. K. Ridgway 1987, chapter 9, G. C. Cole, pp. 92-103).
That the low density unit dosage form of the present invention in fact substantially reduces bismuth blood levels as predicted by these different in vitro characteristics has been confirmed by in vivo testing. The oral dosage units of the present invention, when compared to swallowable tablets comprising the same formula and dosage of CBS but with a higher density, were found to give not only a lower maximal blood plasma bismuth level (C.sub.max), but also a lower blood plasma bismuth rise (AUC) and a lower bismuth excretion in the urine. Therefore, systemic bismuth absorption after ingestion of the dosage units of the present invention has proved to be lower than after ingestion of the prior swallowable tablets. This is contrary to what one might expect--that less dense and thereby more dispersible material would lead to more rapid dissolution and consequently to greater absorption than compressing to higher density the same material.
Thus, the oral dosage units of the present invention surprisingly give peak bismuth plasma levels and a total bismuth absorption which are lower than that of the denser dosage units.
An object of the present invention therefore is to provide an oral dosage unit suitable for swallowing comprising CBS in a therapeutically effective amount which substantially reduces bismuth absorption and thereby the above described peak in the bismuth blood levels.
This and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent from the detailed description which follows.
All percentages and ratios used herein are by weight, and all measurements made at 25.degree. C., unless otherwise specified.

Swallowable pharmaceutical compositions containing Colloidal Bismuth Subcitrate


A motorcycle including a belt type continuously variable transmission (CVT) and having a reduced width. An engine unit includes an engine having a crank shaft, the belt type CVT, a clutch, an output shaft and a generator. The CVT has a primary sheave, a secondary sheave shaft and a secondary sheave. The primary sheave is on one side of the crank shaft and the clutch is on another side with respect to the secondary sheave on the secondary sheave shaft. The output shaft is on a side opposite to the clutch on the secondary sheave shaft. The generator is on the other side of the crank shaft. A center axis of rotation of the secondary sheave shaft is higher than a center axis of rotation of the crank shaft. Right and left footsteps are located behind a rear end of the rotation motor and under a lower end of the secondary sheave.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a motorcycle having a belt type continuously variable transmission.
2. Description of Related Art
An engine unit including an engine and a belt type continuously variable transmission (CVT) is disclosed, for example, in JP-A-2006-168468.
The engine unit of JP-A-2006-168468 is wide since the belt type CVT is located on an outer side of a piston of the engine in a vehicle width direction. Thus, a footstep of the motorcycle to which the engine unit is mounted projects greatly in the vehicle width direction. Accordingly, there is a problem in that it is difficult to downsize the vehicle body in width.


A membrane-electrode structure for use in an electrochemical cell comprising an ion exchange membrane with a cathode layer and an intermediate layer between the cathode and the membrane. The intermediate layer comprises about 5 to 80% by weight of inorganic solid particles and about 95 to 20% by weight of an ionic conductive polymeric binder.

It is known to attain an electrolysis by a so called solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) type electrolysis of an alkali metal chloride wherein a cation exchange membrane of a fluorinated polymer is bonded with a gas-liquid permeable catalytic anode on one surface and/or a gas-liquid permeable catalytic cathode on the other surface of the membrane (British Pat. No. 2,009,795, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,210,501 and 4,214,958 and 4,217,401).
This prior art electrolytic method is remarkably advantageous as an electrolysis at a lower cell voltage because the electric resistance caused by the electrolyte and the electric resistance caused by bubbles of hydrogen gas and chlorine gas generated in the electrolysis can effectively be decreased. This has been considered to be difficult to attain in the electrolysis with cells of other configurations.
A high percentage of hydrogen in chlorine poses problems in chlorine liquefaction processes. Extra steps are required to prevent the formation of dangerous gas mixtures. The hydrogen problem is a severe drawback if a cost effective method to reduce hydrogen percentage cannot be identified.
The anode and/or the cathode in the prior art electrolytic cell are bonded on the surface of the ion exchange membrane so as to be partially embedded. The gas and the electrolyte solution are readily permeated so as to remove, from the electrode, the gas formed by the electrolysis at the electrode layer contacting the membrane. That is, there are few gas bubbles adhering to the membrane after they are formed. Such a porous electrode is usually made of a thin porous layer which is formed by uniformly mixing particles which act as an anode or a cathode with a binder. U.S. Pat. No. 4,822,544 to Coker et al, which is herein incorporated by reference, discloses a method of fabricating a membrane-electrode structure. However, it has been found that when an electrolytic cell having an ion exchange membrane bonded directly to the electrode is used, the anode in the electrolytic cell is brought into contact with hydroxyl ions which migrate back from the cathode compartment, and accordingly, both chlorine resistance and alkaline resistance for anode material are required for this prior art method and an expensive material must be used. When the electrode layer is directly bonded to the ion exchange membrane, a gas is formed by the electrode reaction between an electrode and membrane and certain deformation phenomenon of the ion exchange membrane causes the characteristics of the membrane to deteriorate. In such an electrolytic cell, the current collector for the electric supply to the electrode layer which is bonded to the ion exchange membrane, should closely contact the electrode layer. When a firm contact is not obtained, the cell voltage may be increased. Therefore, the cell structure for securely contacting the current collector with the electrode layer according to the prior art is disadvantageously complicated.
Additionally, in chlor-alkali electrolyzers where the cathode is directly bound to the membrane there is permeation of hydrogen through the membrane which enters the anolyte compartment and mixes with the chlorine. High percentages of hydrogen are then found in the chlorine so as to cause problems in the liquefaction process. Prior means for reducing the hydrogen percentage includes 1) the use of a platinum black layer on the anode side of the membrane, 2) the use of a layer (e.g. Ag) less electroactive than the electrode layer itself between the membrane and the electrode, 3) the use of thickened membranes, and 4) the use of a membrane with a lower permeation rate for hydrogen permeation. These methods have proved to be expensive and ineffective.
Perfluoro membranes which are used as membranes for electrolysis reactions usually have fairly low water contents. As compared with conventional ion exchangers with same amount of water contents, the conductivity of the perfluoro membranes are abnormally high. This is because of phase separation existing in the perfluoro ionic membranes. The phase separation greatly reduces the tortuosity for sodium ion diffusion. The hydrogen diffusion path is the aqueous ionic region and the amorphous fluorocarbon region. Therefore, the tortuorsity experienced by the hydrogen molecules is also low for the phase-segregated fluorocarbon membranes as compared with conventional hydrocarbon ionic membranes.
The phase-segregation characteristics of the fluorocarbon membranes provides the high migration rates for sodium ions, thus relatively lower ionic resistivity is also the cause for the high hydrogen diffusion rates and the resulting high percentage of hydrogen in chlorine. Moreover, the high permeation rate of hydrogen is even more enhanced by the high solubility of hydrogen in the fluorocarbon membranes because of the hydrophobic interaction between hydrogen molecules and the fluorocarbon chains. Therefore, reducing hydrogen permeation rates by increasing the thickness of the membranes or modifying the structure of the membranes would not be very effective because the sodium migration rate would be reduced as one tries to reduce the hydrogen diffusion rate; and the tortuosity effect is difficult to introduce because of the phase separation.
A retardation layer is defined as a layer between the electrode layer and the membrane to retard hydrogen permeation. Any kind of layer can have a certain effect to retard hydrogen permeation as long as it is (1) inactive for electrolytic hydrogen generation, and (2) flooded. The latter requirement is also important for low resistance (i.e., lower voltage and good performance). With these considerations a layer of a blend of inert solid particles (usually inorganic) and binders (usually organic) would serve the purpose best.
The need for a binder is obvious: the binder can (1) bind the components in the barrier layer together and also (2) provide the necessary adhesion between the retardation layer and the electrode layer and that between the retardation layer and the membrane. The function of the solid particles is also two fold: (1) providing the physical strength to the barrier layer so that there is very limited interpenetration between different layers during fabrication, and (2) forming an agglomerate with the binder.
The reason that the retardation layer is better than the membrane itself in retarding hydrogen permeation is because (1) it allows hydroxide and sodium ions to migrate at a faster rate so relatively small voltage penalty has to be paid. On the other hand, in the membrane, sodium ion diffusion is slowned down by the coulombic interaction exerted by the sulfonate or carboxylate groups. The situation is even worse when the membrane is immersed in strong caustic solution as in the clor-alkali membrane. This is particularly severe for the carboxylic membranes. Ion pairing between sodium ions and carboxylate groups and hydroxide ions is believed to be the cause for the very slow diffusion rate when membrane dehydration occurs under this condition. The solubility of hydrogen is much lower in caustic solution than in the membrane, so the permeation rate (the product of diffusion coefficient and solubility) of hydrogen can be reduced by a larger factor compared with that of the sodium and hydroxyl ions. By introducing the blend of inorganic particles and binder and with the necessary morphology, the resistance of the caustic solution is increased. The ratio of the resistivity of the porous medium saturated with electrolyte, R.sub.p, to the bulk resistivity of the same electrolyte solution, R.sub.b is commonly called "formation resistivity factor", EQU F=R.sub.p /R.sub.b =X/O.
This equation describes the relationship between F and "electric tortuosity", X, and O, the porosity. X is different from hydraulic tortuosity which takes into account the fact the effective path length experienced the diffusing species is increased by the presence of impermeable blocking materials. On the other hand, X also takes into account the special effects due to convergent-divergent nature of the capillaries, called constrictedness, besides the hydraulic tortuosity.
Since conductivity is proportional to diffusion rate of the ionic species, formation resistivity factor is also related to diffusion rate in the porous medium, D.sub.p, and the diffusion rate in the bulk electrolyte, D.sub.b, by the following equation: EQU F=R.sub.p /R.sub.b =D.sub.b /D.sub.p
U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,805 to La Conti et al discloses a membrane-electrode assembly for electrolysis processes with multiple layers having different overvoltages. There is a layer attached to the membrane which has a higher overvoltage for the electrolysis process than the electrode attached to its upper surface. The intermediate layer comprises a polymeric binder such as tetrafluoroethylene and conductive metal or carbon particles.

Membrane-electrode structure for electrochemical cells

by Wanda G. Beaver, legal representative


An imaging processing system and method. In accordance with the invention, the illustrative method includes the steps of providing a transfer function between scene excitations and voltage returns based on geometry, beam pattern and/or scan rate; ascertaining a set of scene excitations that minimize a penalty function of the transfer function; and ascertaining a set of scene intensities based on the scene excitations, and a set of optimal weights for the penalty function based on the scene reflectivities. The inventive method provides significantly enhanced image sharpening. In the illustrative embodiment, the inventive method uses an iterative convergence technique which minimizes a penalty function of the sum of square errors between the scene excitations corrupted by the radar system (i.e. the antenna pattern and processing) and the radar voltage returns. The innovation significantly enhances radar imagery by iteratively deriving a best scene solution, which reduces corruption introduced by the radar system. The novel technique for enhanced discrimination by the radar imagery is an iterative technique, which models the true scene signal corruption and derives a solution for the scene intensities, which minimizes the errors in the derived image. The novel technique finds the scene scatterer powers, which best match the original image pixel powers. The effect of the antenna pattern is taken into consideration when computing the derived image, which is matched against the original image. The constraint is implemented iteratively by adding a weighted sum of scene powers to the penalty function. The weights are adjusted at each iteration.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to imaging systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to radar imaging systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
Imaging techniques are well known and widely used in the art. Certain imaging technologies are better suited for particular applications. For example, radar imagery is widely used for surveillance and reconnaissance as well as target tracking and identification. For radar and other imaging technologies, the ability to clearly resolve and discriminate targets may be essential in meeting objectives specified for a particular application.
One such application involves xe2x80x98real beam ground mappingxe2x80x99. Real beam ground mapping involves scanning an area, e.g., the earth""s surface, using a scanning antenna or an electronically scanned antenna. Returns from an illumination of the surface are then examined for xe2x80x98back-scatterxe2x80x99 or reflections therefrom. As the beam is scanned in azimuth, information is collected with respect to the range direction. At each beam position, the distance of various scatterers may be ascertained for each range cell. This information may then be displayed in a real beam ground mapped image.
Unfortunately, while range data may be resolved with adequate resolution, currently, resolution of azimuth data with comparable resolution has proved to be problematic. This is due to the fact that azimuth resolution is limited to the width of the beam and degrades as a function of range. Accordingly, the poor resolution of conventional real beam mapping systems limits the ability of the system to discriminate scatterers.
SAR (synthetic aperture radar) has been used for ground mapping. However, currently, SARs require several seconds at each beam position and are therefore too slow for many more demanding (e.g., military) applications.
xe2x80x9cSuper resolutionxe2x80x9d techniques are widely used to sharpen the radar imagery. However, the quality achieved is scene dependent and is not robust. The current techniques do not effectively account for the impact of the radar system on the true scene.
Hence, a need remains in the art for an improved system or method for providing ground-mapped images. Specifically, a need remains in the art for a system or method for providing enhanced cross-range (azimuthal) resolution for a real beam ground mapping radar system.
The need in the art is addressed by the image processing system and method of the present invention. In an illustrative embodiment, the inventive system is implemented in software running on a processor. The software provides a transfer function between scene reflectivities and image intensities in image databased on geometry, beam pattern and/or scan rate. The software ascertains a set of scene intensities that minimize a penalty function of the transfer function. Further, the software ascertains an optimal set of weights for the scene reflectivities based on the weighted scene intensities for the image data.
In an illustrative application, the invention is incorporated into a radar system including: a transmitter for illuminating a target with a beam of electromagnetic energy, the beam scanning in a cross-range direction; a receiver for receiving reflections of the beam as return data and convolving the beam with the return data; and a processor responsive to the receiver for enhancing the target return in the cross-range direction.
In short, the inventive method provides a novel technique, which provides significantly enhanced image sharpening. In the illustrative embodiment, the inventive method uses an iterative convergence technique that minimizes a penalty function whose weights are updated at each stage of the iteration. The present invention provides a technique for significantly enhancing radar imagery by iteratively deriving a best scene solution that reduces corruption introduced by a radar system. The inventive technique models the true scene signal corruption and derives a solution for the scene intensities, which minimizes the errors in the derived image.
The novel technique finds the scene scatterer powers, which best match the original image pixel powers. The effect of the antenna pattern is taken into consideration when computing the derived image, which is matched against the original image. For example, for Real Beam Ground Maps the power PDId (post detection noncoherently integrated) pixel responses are considered with the given known smearing of the antenna. In the illustrative embodiment, the penalty function is the sum of square errors between the hypothesized scene excitation convolved with the antenna pattern and the radar voltage returns. The weights are adjusted on each iteration based on the updated estimates of the scene intensities.


Compact thrust bearing assemblies, mechanical assemblies including the compact thrust bearing assemblies, and methods of providing limited rotational motion in a compact thrust bearing assembly are disclosed herein. The thrust bearing assemblies include a plurality of rigid load-bearing structures arranged in a layered stack that defines a first end and an opposed second end. The thrust bearing assemblies further include a plurality of rotation-limiting structures configured to restrict relative rotation between adjacent pairs of rigid load-bearing structures. The thrust bearing assemblies also include a first load-receiving surface configured to receive a first thrust load and a second load-receiving surface configured to receive a second thrust load. The methods include methods of providing limited rotational motion in a thrust bearing assembly.

Thrust bearing assemblies may be utilized to support thrust loads and/or to permit rotational motion of a first body relative to a second body. Such thrust bearing assemblies may be formed and/or defined in a variety of ways. As an example, helicopter rotors include a rotor hub and a plurality of blades, and it may be desirable to rotate, or feather, the blades relative to the rotor hub. This relative rotation generally is facilitated by a resilient bearing, or bushing. The rubber bushing supports the thrust loads generated by rotation of the helicopter rotor. In addition, the rubber bushing deforms and/or twists to permit rotation of the blades relative to the rotor hub. While such a rubber bushing may be suitable for some rotor hubs, it may exhibit a limited service life, or require significant bearing length to keep elastomer torsional strain within design limits. Thus, there exists a need for improved compact thrust bearing assemblies, for mechanical assemblies including the improved compact thrust bearing assemblies, and/or for methods of providing improved rotational motion in a compact thrust bearing assembly.

Compact thrust bearing assemblies, mechanical assemblies including compact thrust bearing assemblies, and methods of providing limited rotational motion in a compact thrust bearing assembly


A magnetic disk apparatus includes a magnetic disk that includes a plurality of zones in which a plurality of tracks are arranged for each of circumferences of a spiral, and gaps that are arranged between the zones to have a width a predetermined number of times larger than a track width and that are regions without providing recording bits; and a reproducing element that simultaneously makes an access to the recording bits contained in the tracks, reading information stored in the recording bits, wherein the number of the tracks is one or larger and a sum of one and the predetermined number or smaller in one of the zones.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic disk apparatus and an information reproducing method.
2. Description of the Related Art
With rapid improvements in the recent information processing technology, a higher recording density of a recording medium on a magnetic disk apparatus and a higher speed of recording data in the medium have been strongly demanded. For example, controlling technologies for accurate positioning of the head have been developed to improve the recording density, and bit-patterned media technologies have been developed to solve a heat fluctuation problem that arises from the reduced recording bit size.
To increase the speed of recording data onto the recording medium, JP-A H10-233063 (KOKAI) suggests a technology of arranging zones having concentric or helical tracks with respect to the center of rotation in a magnetic recording medium and providing each zone with an alternative track. With this technology, even when a defective sector appears, a magnetic disk that does not require long time in accessing data can be offered.
JP-A 2007-73116 (KOKAI) discloses a technology of designing the core of the magnetic recording head to have a width larger than a track width and recording data by sliding the magnetic head by a track pitch in the track width direction to increase the recording density of a patterned medium.
The above two documents, however, do not touch upon an operation of reproducing information from recording bits by making an access to more than one track. If the width of the reproducing element of a magnetic head is greater than the width of a track, the value acquired through an access is the sum of values recorded in several recording bits. For this reason, a process needs to be executed to retrieve individual values of the recording bits from the acquired value. In an effort to realize high-speed processing of this operation, a suitable arrangement of recording bits on a magnetic disk has been a problem to be solved.

Magnetic disk apparatus and information reproducing method


A method for forming a gate that improves the quality of the gate includes sequentially forming a gate oxide layer, a polysilicon layer, a conductive layer and a masking layer on a substrate. Thereafter, the masking layer, the conductive layer, the polysilicon layer and the gate oxide layer are patterned to form the gate. Then, a passivation layer, for increasing the thermal stability and the chemical stability of the gate, is formed on the sidewall of the conductive layer by ion implantation with nitrogen cations. The nitrogen cations are doped into the substrate, under the gate oxide layer, by ion implantation, which can improve the penetration of the phosphorus ions.

1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a method for fabricating a semiconductor device. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for forming a gate that improves the quality of the gate.
2. Description of Related Art
An embedded dynamic random access memory (DRAM) is an integrated circuit (IC) device combines a memory cell array and a logical circuit array in a single chip. The embedded DRAM, which improves the use of IC by accessing data with high speed, can be used as the logical circuit for processing data, in systems such as a graphics processor.
Conventionally, the material of the silicide layer, which is in the gate of the memory cell array, is tungsten silicide. Tungsten silicide is not suitable for the silicide layer in processes where the critical dimension is under 0.25 micron, because the resistivity of tungsten silicide is higher than titanium silicide. Processes in which the critical dimension is under 0.25 micron use titanium silicide as the material of the silicide layer formed by a self-aligned silicide (salicide) process.
FIGS. 1A-1D are cross-sectional views of a semiconductor device schematically illustrating a conventional fabrication process for forming a gate in a metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) transistor.
In FIG. 1A, isolation structures 12 are formed in a substrate 10. Then, a gate oxide layer 14 is formed on the substrate 10 by a thermal oxidation process, such as dry oxidation, wherein the substrate 10 is placed in a furnace for thermal oxidation. After the oxidation step, a polysilicon layer 16 is formed on the gate oxide layer 14 by low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD). In order to decrease the resistance of the polysilicon layer 16, boric ions are doped into the polysilicon layer 16 by an ion implantation process.
In FIG. 1B, the polysilicon layer 16 and the gate oxide layer 14 are patterned to form a gate 18. A lightly doped drain (LDD) process is performed after patterning. Then, a spacer 20 is formed on the sidewall of the gate 18, and a heavily doping step is performed to form the source and drain 22.
In FIG. 1C, a titanium metal layer 21 is formed on the gate 18 and the substrate 10 by magnetron DC sputtering deposition, wherein the thickness of the metal layer 21 is about 200 .ANG.to 1000 .ANG..
In FIG. 1D, the part of the titanium metal layer 21 that lies over the source and drain 22 and the gate 18 reacts with the silicon in the source and drain 22 and the polysilicon in the gate 18 at high temperature, to form titanium silicide. The conductive layer 24 of titanium silicide is formed on the source and drain 22 and the gate 18 by removing the other part of the titanium metal layer 21 via wet etching.
There are some problems in the MOS transistor formed by the conventional method according to the prior art. First, the resistance of the gate increases because the titanium silicide layer in the gate reacts easily with oxygen in the air at room temperature to form titanium dioxide. Second, the titanium silicide layer, formed by a self-aligned silicide process and containing an incomplete reaction product, causes instability in resistance of the titanium silicide layer. Third, the metallic impurities released from the silicide layer pollute the process equipment, wherein the metallic impurities are generated by the subsequent thermal treatment process or wet etching. Fourth, boric ions in the polysilicon layer diffuse into other devices by interconnect formed on the gate to affect the operation of these devices. Fifth, boric ions from the polysilicon layer readily penetrate into the gate oxide layer to reach the substrate, which causes the threshold voltage to decrease and the MOS transistor to operate unstably.
In light of the foregoing, there is a need to provide a method for forming a gate that improves the quality of semiconductor devices.


The invention relates to a method for converting carbon dioxide to methane. The method comprises exposing carbon dioxide adsorbed on a nanoporous silicate matrix to light in the presence of a source of carbon dioxide and a source of hydrogen for a time and under conditions sufficient to convert carbon dioxide to methane. The matrix contains at least one photochromic metal oxide entity, and contains a C1 impurity site. The light has a wavelength of about 437 nm to about 1200 nm.

Combustion of methane releases a significant amount of energy, but occurs with the concurrent evolution of one mole of the greenhouse gas CO2.CH4[g]+2O2[g]→CO2[g]+2H2O[l]ΔG°=−868.6 kJ1  [1]
A catalytic system utilizing ultraviolet light to recycle CO2 to methane increases energy production and reduces greenhouse gas emission. Cycling the system n times releases n(868.6 kJ), but evolves only one mole of CO2. (Olah et al., J. Org. Chem. (2009) 74(2):487-498; Haines, A., Medicine, Conflict, and Survival (2001) 17(1):56-62; Piver W., Environmental Health Perspectives (1991) 96:131-7; MacDonald, G. J., "The Long-Term Effects of Increasing Carbon Dioxide Levels," Ballinger, Cambridge, Mass., 1982; Nguyen et al., Applied Catalysis A: General (2008) 335:112-120; Lo et al., Solar Energy Materials & Solar Cells (2007) 91:1765-1774; Edmonds et al., Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Proceedings of the International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, 6th, Kyoto, Japan, 2002, pp. 1427-1432; Haneda et al., Chemistry Letters (2008) 37(8):830-831; Yan et al., ACS Symposium Series 2003, 852 (Utilization of Greenhouse Gases) pp. 42-56; Lo et al., Zhongguo Huanjing Gongcheng Xuekan (2005) 15(3):143-152; Pinaeva et al., "Environmental Challenges and Greenhouse Gas Control for Fossil Fuel Utilization in the 21st Century," "Environmental Challenges for Fossil Fuel Combustion"; "Greenhouse Gas Control and Utilization" American Chemical Society National Meeting, San Diego, Calif., 2001; Tan et al., Catalysis Today (2006) 115:269-273; Centi et al., Applied Catalysis, B: Environmental (2003) 41(1-2):143-155; Ziessel, R. "Carbon Dioxide as a Source of Carbon: Biochemical and Chemical Uses," Aresta et al., eds. Reidel, 1987, p 113; Dey, G. R. Journal of Natural Gas Chemistry (2007) 16(3):217-226; Iijima et al., Mitsubishi Juko Giho (2002) 39(5):286-289.)
Reduction of CO2 to CH4, formally an eight-electron process, is known to occur thermally and photochemically with ultraviolet light on silica surfaces doped with transition metal carbonyls. (Gafney, H. D., "Photochemistry of Metal Carbonyls Physisorbed on Porous Vycor Glass" in "Photochemistry on Solid Surfaces" Matsuura et al., eds., Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1989, 272; Gafney et al., Inorg. Chem. (1988) 27:2815; Gafney et al., "Photosensitive Metal-Organic Systems: Mechanistic Principles and Recent Applications", Kutal et al., eds. American Chemical Society (1993) p. 67; Brenner et al., Inorg. Chem. (1979) 18:1478-84; Brenner et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. (1980) 102:2484-87; Simon et al., Inorg. Chem. (1988) 27:2733; Xu et al., Proc. Electrochem. Soc. (1993) 93-18, 38.)
The thermal reaction is stoichiometric, and requires high temperatures; CH4 evolution is attributed to the hydrogenation of the coordinated carbonyl. The photochemical conversion is photocatalytic, occurs at room temperature and catalytically converts atmospheric CO2 to CH4 with co-adsorbed water providing hydrogen and the reducing equivalents. (Simon, R. C. "A Study of the Photochemistry and Photocatalysis of Group VIB Hexacarbonlys adsorbed to A Porous Glass Matrix", Ph.D. Thesis, City University of New York, 1983.)
For example, a 310-nm photolysis of W(CO)6 physisorbed onto Corning's code 7930 porous Vycor glass (PVG) or tetramethoxysilane/methanol/water (TMOS/CH3OH/H2O) xerogels leads to CH4 evolution. Photolysis initiates CO loss with the pentacarbonyl coordinating to a surface silanol group to form W(CO)5(OSi). (Simon et al., Inorg. Chem. (1985) 24:2565.) Continued photolysis leads to further CO loss, but when the complex is unable to achieve stability through coordination to the surface silanols, i.e., at an average stoichiometry of W(CO)4, the chemistry changes and the complex undergoes oxidation with the concurrent evolution of CO, H2 and CH4. (Simon, R. C. "A Study of the Photochemistry and Photocatalysis of Group VIB Adsorbed to a Porous Glass Matrix", Ph.D. Thesis, CUNY, 1983: 94-103.)
There remains a need in the art for a method by which to convert carbon dioxide to methane which does not require high temperatures or a particular kind of light, but instead can be effected under more natural environmental conditions.

Method for conversion of carbon dioxide to methane using visible and near infra-red light

Research Foundation of the City University of New York


Apparatus and methods are described that include ultrasound imaging devices, which may operate in a transmissive ultrasound imaging modality, and which may be used to detect properties of interest of a subject such as index of refraction, density and/or speed of sound. Devices suitable for performing high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU), as well as HIFU and ultrasound imaging, are also described.

Imaging technologies are used for multiple purposes. One purpose is to non-invasively diagnose patients. Another purpose is to monitor the performance of medical procedures, such as surgical procedures. Yet another purpose is to monitor post-treatment progress or recovery. Thus, medical imaging technology is used at various stages of medical care.
The value of a given medical imaging technology depends on various factors. Such factors include the quality of the images produced (in terms of resolution or otherwise), the speed at which the images can be produced, the accessibility of the technology to various types of patients and providers, the potential risks and side effects of the technology to the patient, the impact on patient comfort, and the cost of the technology. The ability to produce three dimensional images is also a consideration for some applications.
Different types of medical imaging technologies have different strengths and weaknesses with respect to the above-listed factors. Typically, the speed of a particular imaging system, and therefore its usefulness in various time-constrained environments such as emergency rooms, is compromised as the resolution is increased. For instance, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can provide high resolution images of various types of tissue, but is generally very slow, and suffers from other drawbacks including high cost, loud noise, and the use of potentially harmful magnetic field strengths. In contrast, conventional medical ultrasound imaging is implemented with less expensive equipment which produces images more quickly than MRI. Yet, the resolution of conventional ultrasound imaging is typically less than that of MRI, and the type of data collected is different.
Conventional techniques for producing three-dimensional images involve imaging multiple two-dimensional cross-sections, or "slices" of a volume to be imaged, and then stacking the distinct images of the slices together. Such techniques provide a limited interpretation of a three-dimensional object. Moreover, at least some such techniques require the mechanical scanning of the imaging device over the area of interest, which adds substantially to the time required to collect the data for the image. Accordingly, what is needed, for example, is an imaging technology that produces high resolution, volumetric three-dimensional images in a short time.

Transmissive imaging and related apparatus and methods


Gaming systems and methods for a battling game which may use two or four physical toy tops and a stadium-shaped toy game board arena for physical game play interactions between game players. The battling 2-in-1 stadium battle dome allows a number of users to play on one side and then flip over to play on the other, encouraging 2 and 4 player battles. The stadium is shaped like a dome, enclosed on both sides, and there are two different sides to play on, overall creating four different play surfaces. The toy has double sided suspended play surfaces for corresponding game play with various surfaces of the different sides.

The inventions discussed in connection with the described embodiments address various deficiencies of the prior art. The present inventions address a gaming system involving interactions between game players. The described embodiments concern Beyblade™ spinning tops as the physical game pieces. The described Beyblade™ spinning top usually includes a device, such as a ripcord, to help a player make the top spin. One or more players may engage in games where one or more players spin two or more tops so that the tops may "battle", where the player whose top is the last top spinning wins. The "battle" may include the tops colliding one or more times. The tops may have different designs where each design causes a top to respond to collisions in a unique way, thus adding a skill element to choosing opposing tops.
In some of the embodiments, the game may further enhance play by maximizing the frequency of collisions and interactions between actively spinning tops by guiding the tops in a one way flow pattern from the launch openings to the battling or game surfaces. A circular wall at least partially forming a raised perimeter around the battling or game surfaces prevents spinning tops from exiting back out of the battling or game surfaces and instead directing the spinning tops to the middle of the battling or game surfaces where collisions are most likely to occur.
In some embodiments, the game may further use physical game battle arena game apparatus in an integrated multi-environment interactive battle game physical game board, convertible or converting arena, e.g., being turned upside down and used as a stadium for plural or multiple players to spin two or more Beyblade™ tops so that the tops battle within the stadium confines by spinning and knocking into each other until only one top remains spinning.
There are known toy top play pads, toy top entertainment systems, and battle arenas which provide a surface along which toy tops are spun, travel in a specified direction along a rail element, or travel around on a circular platform. It is known to employ a circular arena for providing a surface on which toy tops can spin and possibly interact with one another, or to provide a rail element to guide a toy top along the direction of the rail.
There is a known toy top play pad which employs a circular launch pad and runway pad in juxtaposition with the launch pad as exemplified and disclosed in JP4659153 titled Game Table for a toy top, issued Mar. 27, 2008 to Jenoido Proto Design KK. Toy tops are spun into the circular launch pad where they revolve around the perimeter of the concave launch pad and discharge onto a runway pad in a racing fashion. A guide plate directs the tops only from the launch pad to the running pad where a user can race tops through running grooves and compete for running speeds.
The running grooves are carved into the runway pad and are designed to capture a tip of the toy tops as they enter the runway pad. The running grooves cut into the surface of the runway pad and direct the tops to circle around the perimeter of the play pad. The tip of each toy top comes into point contact with the bottom surface of the running groove to allow the toy top to travels within the running groove and circle the perimeter of the play pad in a racing fashion.
The circular launch pad is only a landing pad for toy tops to be introduced to the play pad before they are captured by the running grooves as the toy tops circle the outer perimeter of the circular launching pad. The toy tops enter the running grooves and are then directed around the runway pad circuit in a racing fashion and never collide in the circular launch pad nor are the runway pads guiding the tops into the middle of the circular launch pad to encourage collisions between the spinning toy tops. There is only an entrance into the runway pad from the circular launching pad, and the guiding plates are configured as such as to only direct tops from the perimeter of the circular launching pad to the running grooves. There is no disclosure for an exit from the runway pad to the circular launching pad for launching tops back onto the circular launch pad to collide with other spinning tops. There are no designated exits at the running pads to redirect spinning tops from the periphery of the circular launching pad, back into the middle of the circular launch pad.
There is also a known toy top entertainment system with interchangeable top components and interchangeable rail arrangements as exemplified and disclosed in WO 2013/016317 A2 Dynamic Entertainment System, published Jan. 31, 2013 to Gaines. The top entertainment system discloses interchangeable tops engaging and riding along interchangeable rail elements to maximize vector velocity in transit along the rail elements. The toy tops are launched onto a flat launch support adjacent a rail element. The tops have a ring with a ring side wall perpendicular with a pivoting axis and capable of engaging a rail side wall of the rail elements of the rail path in rolling line contact to travel along the line of the rail path.
Additionally, there are known transformable play sets which transform from one shape to another to allow a user to play and fantasize about the interchangeability of shapes. Known transformable toys include toys which manually convert from one shape to another such as a car transforming to a plane, etc., or an environmental scene such as a parking garage with ramps for toy cars, transformable to a different environmental scene by triggering a single actuator, or one game surface rotating around to display another game surface.
Significantly, known toy top play pads and arenas do not include or teach an integrated multi-environment interactive battle game physical game board, convertible or converting arena, e.g., being turned upside down and used as a stadium for engaging spinning toy tops in combat where the arena accommodates two players when placed in one orientation and four players after being flipped to another orientation. Plural or multiple players spin two or more Beyblade™ tops so that the tops battle within the stadium confines by spinning and knocking into each other until only one top remains spinning. It is desirable to maximizing the frequency of collisions and interactions between actively spinning tops by guiding the tops in a one way flow pattern from the launch openings to the battling or game surfaces. A circular wall at least partially forming a raised perimeter around the battling or game surfaces prevents spinning tops from exiting back out of the battling or game surfaces and instead directing the spinning tops to the middle of the battling or game surfaces where collisions are most likely to occur.

Integrated multi environment interactive battle game


A system for detecting malfunction of a transmission of a vehicle, more particularly a system for detecting a failure of a shift lever position sensor for a vehicle automatic transmission is provided with two detection modes based on urban driving and open-road driving. The number of times that the vehicle speed goes up and down between prescribed upper and lower values separately defined for the two modes is counted, when the shift lever position signal is absent. Probable failure is judged when the number of times reaches eight in the first mode and sensor failure is confirmed when the number of times reaches three in the second mode. Shift lever position sensor failure can be reliably detected irrespective of whether the driving environment is urban or open-road.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for detecting malfunction of a transmission of a vehicle, more particularly a system for detecting failure of a shift lever position sensor that detects the shift lever position of an automatic transmission of a vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the case of an automatic transmission shift lever having the positions P, R, N, D4, D3, 2, (1), for example, the shift lever position sensor has a fixed contact for each position and the lever has a movable contact that makes contact with the fixed contact at the position where the lever is set, causing an electric signal of a first level to be output. Positions other than the one at which the lever is set output electric signals of a second level. The position to which the shift lever is shifted can therefore be detected from the fact that only one of the plurality of positions outputs a first-level signal while the other positions output second-level signals.
With this arrangement, failure of the sensor may cause simultaneous detection of two positions or failure to detect even one position.
The object of this invention is therefore to deal with the latter case by providing a system for detecting malfunction of a transmission of a vehicle, more particularly a system for detecting failure of a shift lever position sensor for a vehicle automatic transmission, which can reliably detect failure of the shift lever position sensor to detect even one position.

System for detecting shifter position sensor malfunction


The present invention relates to a QAM signal demodulation system able to recover phase and frequency of the carrier and convert the signal to baseband, and to perform these functions when frequency errors are remarkable with respect to the symbol frequency (low capacity links); to reconstruct the synchronism of symbol in order to correctly sampling the analog signal to be processed; to complete the shaping of the signal through a digital filter and to equalize the baseband converted signal (in order to compensate the selective fading effects due to propagation and the linear distortions due to imperfections in the realization of the apparatus). Therefore the system comprises several subsystems devoted to performing the various functions and, in particular, at least a carrier frequency and phase recovery subsystem, a subsystem for reconstructing the synchronism frequency capable of driving the signal sampling circuit, and a subsystem of filters. The present invention is directed to the choice of the particular subsystems used as well as their implementation and interconnections.

Typically in coherent-demodulation Systems, e.g. with quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), local voltage controlled oscillators (VCO's) are used and driven in such a way as to generate an oscillation in phase and frequency coherence with the carrier of the received signal. The possibility of using free local oscillators having a frequency close to the frequency of the carrier would mean a remarkable advantage in terms of cost. However, such oscillators have tolerances different from zero on the nominal frequency and drift both with heat and aging. This requires a device which recognizes the frequency and phase difference between the oscillation generated by the local oscillator and the carrier of the signal and is capable of correcting the effects on the signal to be processed. The devices of this kind (phase and frequency locked loops) are characterized, inter alia, by the lock-in band, i.e. by the amount of frequency errors which they are able to recognize and correct. They belong to two main categories:
devices that make use of estimates of the received data (having a lock-in band smaller than one-eighth of the symbol frequency); PA1 devices that do not make use of estimates of the received data (having lock-in bands even greater than the symbol frequency but are sensitive to selective fading). PA1 A) a subsystem for recovering phase and frequency of the carrier, PA1 B) a subsystem for reconstructing the synchronism frequency capable of driving the signal sampling circuit, and PA1 C) a subsystem composed of filters. PA1 a) a system for recovering the carrier in turn comprises two subsystems: a quadricorrelator (subsystem A1 in FIG. 1) for recovering the carrier frequency and a loop (subsystem A2 in FIG. 1) for jointly recovering phase and frequency of the carrier that uses the estimated data. The two subsystems are structured as feedback loops. PA1 b) a subsystem B) that uses the signal at the input of the subsystem C) and includes the circuit (placed upstream of subsystem A1) used for sampling the signal entering the system and converting it into a digital one. Subsystem B) is based on a maximum power algorithm; this implies that its operation is independent of the behaviour of subsystem A) (because the algorithm is insensitive to the phase of the processed signal and therefore to errors in reconstructing phase and frequency of the carrier) and also independent of subsystem C) (because the algorithm does not use the estimated symbols). PA1 c) a subsystem C) comprises a fixed digital filter which completes the shaping of the transmitted pulse and an adaptive digital equalizer. For both, the structure of Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filters has been chosen because they are particularly easy to implement. The equalizer coefficients are updated through an algorithm insensitive to the phase of the incoming signal so that its convergence is independent of the carrier recovery carried out by subsystem A). PA1 it is not necessary to use a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) to carry out the baseband conversion, but a free oscillator is sufficient; PA1 both the subsystems and their interconnections maintain their operation and effectiveness in a wide range of low/medium capacity links; and PA1 single components and the demodulator as a whole are suitable for a wholly digital implementation that minimizes interconnection problems of analog and digital functional blocks; moreover the digital realization along with adaptivity of the subsystems make the trimming of the apparatus much less critical during its production.
The problem of tolerance and instability of the free oscillators is difficult to solve for small capacity links for which the symbol frequency is lower and therefore the ratio of the frequency error to the symbol frequency itself is higher.
If, on the other hand, links having capacity increasing gradually are considered, the spectral occupation or the number of modulation levels and hence the sensitivity of the system to selective fading are increased. Consequently the introduction of an adaptive equalizer for counterbalancing the effects becomes necessary. This device constitutes a countermeasure against fading, but at the same time it is able to correct the linear distortions inevitably introduced in the realization of the system because of non-idealness of components. Therefore the introduction of the equalizer makes the system more robust with respect to anomalies in propagation, and also implies a less critical trimming; for this reason an equalizer (even if with few coefficients) is also desirable in the design of a low capacity system.
Moreover, in any demodulation system, it is necessary to insert a device for recovering the clock synchronism phase and frequency. For the correct operation of the system, it is convenient that the algorithm for the clock recovery be independent of the behaviour of devices for carrier recovery and adaptive equalization.
In a digital modem, the clock synchronism is used to drive the signal sampling circuit with a suitable frequency, which is a multiple of the symbol frequency.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a solution for the above-mentioned problems having, inter alia, the advantages mentioned at the outset.

Wholly-digital demodulation system for QAM signalling in low capacity links


A sheet feeder device that stores and sends out a transfer medium includes: a sheet feeder device main unit having an opening formed at an upper portion and including an upstream partial lid located on an upstream side and a downstream partial lid located on a downstream side, the upstream partial lid and the downstream partial lid covering at least part of the opening; a sheet feed tray provided in the sheet feeder device main unit, the transfer medium being loaded onto the sheet feed tray; an elevating unit configured to lift up and down the sheet feed tray; and a control unit configured to control the lifting up and down of the sheet feed tray, wherein the control unit senses opening and closing of the upstream partial lid and the downstream partial lid, and controls the lifting up and down being performed by the elevating unit.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sheet feeder device that conveys a transfer medium, and an image forming apparatus including the sheet feeder device.
Description of the Related Art
In an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a transfer medium and performs printing, a paper sheet is supplied for printing from a sheet feeder device that stores paper sheets. In the sheet feeder device, a sheet feed tray is disposed in a sheet feeding position so that paper sheets are supplied.
In the image forming apparatus, an image is formed on a paper sheet called a long paper sheet in some cases. Unlike a standard paper sheet such as A3 paper or A4 paper, the long paper sheet is long in a predetermined direction. There are long paper sheets having various lengths, such as 660 mm, 750 mm, and 1200 mm. Particularly, there is an increasing demand for mass-printing on long paper sheets up to 660 mm in length these days. To supply a long paper sheet with a low frequency of use, it is necessary to prepare a sheet feeder device that is longer in size than the long paper sheet to be used. Such a sheet feeder device might fail to appropriately store A3 and A4 paper with a high frequency of use.
To counter this, an opening is formed at an upper portion of a conventional sheet feeder device, and a lid is provided to cover the opening. The sheet feeder device includes an elevating means to lift a sheet feed tray up and down in the sheet feeder device main unit. When the lid is located on the upstream side of the upper opening in the conveying direction and forms an obtuse angle with the tray, a long paper sheet that is longer than the tray can be loaded onto the tray and the lid (see JP 2010-143736 A).
In this conventional structure, the opening direction of the lid can be changed, and the elevating tray can be prevented from moving down from the sheet feeding position by a user operating a component related to the lifting up and down of the tray. By this technology, a large number of paper sheets with a high frequency use can be stored, and a long paper sheet that is not frequently used but has a great sheet length can be used while an increase in the size of the machine is prevented.
By the conventional technology, the lowering position of the elevating tray is changed by controlling the opening direction of the lid. However, the user needs to switch the opening direction of the lid when loading paper sheets onto the elevating tray, and needs to switch elevating drive joints or the like, resulting in a troublesome operation. Furthermore, in a case where the lid is opened in a wrong direction, the tray is not lowered even when the user wishes to load a large number of paper sheets onto the tray, or the tray is lowered too far, and a long paper sheet is bent or wrinkled though the user wishes to load the long paper sheet onto the tray.
Furthermore, the lid that covers the opening at the upper portion is also used as the sheet loading means. As a result, while paper sheets are being supplied, the lid might come into contact with a rotating member such as the drive roller for supplying paper sheets, and safety might be undermined.

Sheet feeder device and image forming apparatus


A marine capsule for sea rescue and transportation having a generally spherical configuration and on its sides hermetically closed hatches of tempered glass and a sun-reflecting signal-sending film. At its top are four larger diameter hatches, two of which preferably permit access of persons or equipment into the capsule. Also there may be waterproof lateral access windows or openings for persons without seafaring experience. The other two overhead hatches have a ventilation system, which admits air but not water. A stowable stabilizing element has members which can be telescoped by a gear and crank system so as not to interfere with handling of the capsule when not in use, but to extend when it is afloat. Radial fins ending in a peripheral fin protrude from the lower outside of the capsule, and an air chamber is built into its body. Other interior equipment includes a seat extending all around, storage compartments, water and toilet.

As has been mentioned above, the problem has always existed of constructing an adequate means for lifesaving of persons at sea in case of shipwreck. Up to the present time the usual means of rescue consists of boats or rafts of various sizes and designs; these all have the problem of their stability in high seas and hence of the safety of their occupants, whose chances of rescue are considerably reduced in rough weather, in addition to the discomforts entailed in the use of such lifesaving equipment, for their occupants are exposed to the atmosphere and the elements, as well as to the lack of adequate provisions for subsistence, for when disaster strikes no one provides such rafts with the minimum requirements for survival.