In the reclining apparatus of the invention(1, 21, 41, 61), the support member(2, 22, 42, 62), the seat member(3, 23, 43, 63) and the back rest member(5, 25, 45, 55, 75) are adjustably interconnected and the rod(11, 31, 51, 71) of the lock device(13, 33, 53, 73) is mounted on one of the support member, the seat member and the back rest member and fitted across another one of them. When a force is applied between the rod and the member through which the rod is fitted, all the positions of the above members are maintained.. When a person changes the posture, e.g., stretches himself, on the reclining chair(1, 21, 61) or the reclinable bed(41), the lock between the rod and the member through which the rod is fitted is released and the positions of the support member, the seat member and the back rest member are re-adjusted. After the re-adjustment, when the person seats or lies on the chair or the bed, the rod is again firmly engaged with the member.

General reclining apparatus includes a seat member supporting the lumbar region of a seated person, a support member, a back rest member supporting the back region and a lock device. The seat member is fixed to the support member and is articulatingly connected to the back rest member. The lock device provided between the support member and the seat member locks the seat member in a position and at an angle desired. The lock device generally used is a prop-support type or a serration-support type. The serration-support lock device locks the seat member at a certain set angle using serrations engaged each other and fixed with a screw.
The reclining apparatus or device is generally attached to a bed or a chair as an independent part, thus damaging the appearance of the furniture and making the price high. To attain the firm lock, the lock device is step-adjustable; a user chooses one of the angles set previously at certain intervals. The apparatus is hence incapable of maintaining the furniture in a desirable reclining position. Besides the apparatus can mainly be mounted only on chairs or beds made of metal.
A back-rest angle adjusting mechanism for a reclining chair is stepless adjustable reclining apparatus generally used for an automobile seat or ratchet type reclining apparatus. The former consists of mechanical parts relatively complicated and thus attains easy and accurate adjustment or regulation; but the disadvantage is high cost. The latter has a simple structure and is thus manufactured at a reasonable cost; but the disadvantage is poor adjustment or regulation. A further disadvantage common to both the mechanisms is that a seated person feels discomfort in the reclining position because the rear portion of the seat member maintains its original position whereas other portions move to change their positions.
An objective of the invention is to provide reclining apparatus favorably attached to furniture like a wooden chair or bed without damaging its appearance.
Another objective of the invention is to provide simply constructed and uncostly manufactured reclining apparatus which steplessly locks the furniture in a desirable reclining position.

Higashizakura Building 606, 31-14 Izumi 3-chome


A client-server computer system has one or more clients connected to one or more servers. During request/reply interactions, a client-side application sends a request for services (e.g., read a file, return some information, update a database record, process data, etc.) to the server. A server-side application request program processes the request, prepares a reply to the request, and returns the reply to the client-side application. The server runs a resource manager to log operations and data pages in a manner that enables application and database recovery. Among other tasks, the server's resource manager creates a stable log file that can be used to help recover the client-side application in the event of a system crash. To capture the client-server interaction, the server's resource manager records the reply in the log buffer and commits the reply record to the stable log before the reply is sent back to the client. This results in only one forced logging event for each request/reply exchange. The server further maintains an active application table and a message lookup table to speed recovery. The active application table lists all currently active applications running at the client and server to identify those applications that should be recovered. The message lookup table keeps copies of the logged replies that can be used during client recovery in place of the logged records to avoid searching the server's stable log file. The server further truncates parts of its stable log file when notified that reply log records are no longer needed by the client.

Computer systems occasionally crash. A "system crash" is an event in which the computer quits operating the way it is supposed to operate. Common causes of system crashes include power outage, application operating error, and computer goblins (i.e., unknown and often unexplained malfunctions that tend to plague even the best-devised systems and applications). System crashes are unpredictable, and hence, essentially impossible to anticipate and prevent.
A system crash is at the very least annoying, and may result in serious or irreparable damage. For standalone computers or client workstations, a local system crash typically results in loss of work product since the last save interval. The user is inconvenienced by having to reboot the computer and redo the lost i1 work. For servers and larger computer systems, a system crash can have a devastating impact on many users, including both company employees as well as its customers.
Being unable to prevent system crashes, computer system designers attempt to limit the effect of system crashes. The field of study concerning how computers recover from system crashes is known as "recovery." Recovery from system crashes has been the subject of much research and development.
In general, the goal of redo recovery is to return the computer system after a crash to a previous and presumed correct state in which the computer system was operating immediately prior to the crash. Then, transactions whose continuations are impossible can be aborted. Much of the recovery research focuses on database recovery for database computer systems, such as network database servers or mainframe database systems. Imagine the problems caused when a large database system having many clients crashes in the midst of many simultaneous operations involving the retrieval, update, and storage of data records. Database system designers attempt to design the database recovery techniques which minimize the amount of data lost in a system crash, minimize the amount of work needed following the crash to recover to the pre-crash operating state, and minimize the performance impact of recovery on the database system during normal operation.
FIG. 1 shows a database computer system 20 having a computing unit 22 with processing and computational capabilities 24 and a volatile main memory 26. The volatile main memory 26 is not persistent across crashes and hence is presumed to lose all of its data in the event of a crash. The computer system also has a non-volatile or stable database 28 and a stable log 30, both of which are contained on stable memory devices, e.g. magnetic disks, tapes, etc., connected to the computing unit 22. The stable database 28 and log 30 are presumed to persist across a system crash. The persistent database 28 and log 30 can be combined in the same storage, although they are illustrated separately for discussion purposes.
The volatile memory 26 stores one or more applications 32 and a resource manager 34. The resource manager 34 includes a volatile cache 36, which temporarily stores data destined for the stable database 28. The data is typically stored in the stable database and volatile cache in individual units, such as A cache manager 38 executes on the processor 24 to manage movement of data pages between the volatile cache 36 and the stable database 28. In particular, the cache manager 38 is responsible for deciding which data pages should be moved to the stable database 28 and when the data pages are moved. Data pages that are moved from the cache to the stable database are said to be "flushed" to the stable state. In other words, the cache manager 38 periodically flushes the cached state of a data page to the stable database 28 to produce a stable state of that data page which persists in the event of a crash, making recovery possible.
The resource manager 34 also has a volatile log 40 that temporarily stores log records for operations, which are to be moved into the stable log 30. A log manager 42 executes on the processor 24 to manage when the operations are moved from the volatile log 40 to the stable log 30. The transfer of an operation from the volatile log to the stable log is known as a log flush.
During normal operation, an application 32 executes on the processor 24. The resource manager receives requests to perform operations on data from the application. As a result, data pages are transferred to the volatile cache 36 on demand from the stable database 28 for use by the application. During execution, the resource manager 34 reads, processes, and writes data to and from the volatile cache 36 on behalf of the application. The cache manager 38 determines, independently of the application, when the cached Data State is flushed to the stable database 28.
Concurrently, the operations being performed by the resource manager on behalf of the application are being recorded in the volatile log 40. The log manager 42 determines, as guided by the cache manager and the transactional requirements imposed by the application, when the operations are posted as log records on the stable log 30. A logged operation is said to be "installed" when the versions of the pages containing the changes made by the operation have been flushed to the stable database.
When a crash occurs, the application state (i.e., address space) of any executing application 32, the data pages in volatile cache 36, and the operations in volatile log 40 all vanish. The computer system 20 invokes a recovery manager. It begins at the last flushed state on the stable database 28 and replays the operations posted to the stable log 30 to restore the database of the computer system to the state as of the last stably logged operation just prior to the crash.
While database recovery techniques are helpful for recovering data, the database techniques offer no help in recovering an application from a system crash. Usually all active applications using the database are wiped out during a crash. Any state in an executing application is erased and cannot usually be continued across a crash.
There has been some work in designing recovery procedures that preserve applications across a system crash. One preferred approach is an application recovery system developed by David Lomet, an inventor in this invention. The application recovery system is described in a series of patent applications:
1. U.S. Ser. No. 08/814,808, entitled "Database Computer System With Application Recovery", filed Mar. 10, 1997; PA1 2. U.S. Ser. No. 08/813,982, entitled "Database Computer System With Application Recovery And Dependency Handling Read Cache", filed Mar. 10, 1997; PA1 3. U.S. Ser. No. 08/832,870, entitled "Database Computer System With Application Recovery And Dependency Handling Write Cache", filed Apr. 4, 1997; and PA1 4. U.S. Ser. No. 08,826,610, entitled "Database Computer System With Application Recovery And Recovery Log Sequence Numbers To Optimize Recovery", filed Apr. 4, 1997.
All of these patent applications are assigned to Microsoft Corporation and are incorporated by reference. These applications are collectively referred to as the "Lomet applications" throughout this disclosure.
Another approach is to make the application "stateless." Between transactions, the application is in its initial state or a state internally derived from the initial state without reference to the persistent state of the database or to other input. If the application fails between transactions, there is nothing about the application state that cannot be re-created based on the static state of the stored form of the application. Should the transaction abort, the application is replayed, thereby re-executing the transaction as if the transaction executed somewhat later. After the transaction commits, the application returns to the initial state. Gray and Reuter describe this form of transaction processing in a book entitled, Transaction Processing: Concepts and Techniques, Morgan Kaufmann (1993), San Mateo, Calif.
Another approach is to write persistent application checkpoints at every resource manager interaction. The notion here is that application states in between resource manager interactions can be re-created from the last such interaction forward. This is the technique described by Bartlett, "A NonStop Kernel," Proc. ACM Symp. on Operating System Principles (1981) pages 22-29 Borg et al. "A Message System Supporting Fault Tolerance," Proc. ACM Symp. on Operating System Principles (Oct. 1983) Bretton Woods, NH pages 90-99.
The above application recovery techniques are all restricted to recovery local to or under the control of a single recoverable resource manager (database computer system). In the client-server context, however, these recovery techniques are difficult to apply to client-side applications that are interacting with the server.
Prior work on application fault-tolerance in distributed systems is based on some form of application "installation points" and/or "message logging". The prior work can be categorized into the following three approaches, all of which incur high normal operation and/or recovery costs.
1. Fault-tolerant Process Pairs: This approach has aimed to build fault tolerance into the operating system by providing each critical process with a hot-standby backup process, usually on a different processor. When the primary process fails, the backup process takes over and re-executes the application starting from the most recent installation point that has been generated by the primary process. Messages that would be repeated, especially output to the human user, are suppressed during the re-executed path, based on testing sequence numbers against logged messages. While this approach was a pioneering one in the early eighties, it is a heavyweight solution that can be justified only for the most mission-critical high-end applications. The reason for this is that the method requires either an application installation point or a forced message log record at every process interaction. The frequently required disk I/O greatly limits the achievable throughput of both the server and the clients. This approach is described in the above cited Bartlett and Borg papers, as well as by Borr, "Transaction Monitoring in Encompass: Reliable Distributed Transaction Processing," VLDB Conference, Cannes (1981) and by Kim, "Highly Available Systems for Database Applications," ACM Computing Surveys, Vol. 16, No. 1 (1984), pp. 71-98.
2. Distributed State Tracking: This approach is based on a model of communicating processes. Processes generate installation points only occasionally and independently of each other. In addition, messages are logged in an optimistic, non-forced manner. When a process fails, it restarts from its most recent installation point, but other processes may also be forced to restart from a former state to guarantee a causally consistent global state. Thus, this line of methods incurs recovery dependencies among the various processes that would be unacceptable for a database server. Furthermore, the eventually restored global state is not necessarily the most recent, externally observed state. This is tolerable when restarting long-running distributed "number-crunching"-style computations, an initial target of this work, but would not mask all application failures from the human user (unless more stringent, forced logging were employed). It is exactly for this reason that this algorithmically deep work has had very little impact on real systems.
A variation of message logging that eliminates recovery dependencies is pessimistic message logging. Unfortunately, this approach is very conservative and thus expensive in that it forces every log record to disk immediately. In general, most of the research in this category ignored both the necessity to minimize logging I/O costs and the importance of log truncation for fast restart. Rather, it overemphasized communication costs, which is less of an issue with modem networks.
3. Persistent Queues: The third line of solutions restricts all interactions between processes to be via persistent queues. Here, when a process sends a message to another process, the sender explicitly enqueues the message to a persistent queue. This takes place within the boundaries of a distributed transaction involving the queue and the sender; so it incurs the high forced logging I/O costs of a two-phase commit protocol. Moreover, the same protocol is used when the receiver dequeues the message. This solution has been very successful in the context of transaction-structured applications such as reservation systems (including "pseudo-conversational" applications), and is even suitable for heterogeneous platforms. However, its disk I/O costs are very high, and applications must be decomposed completely into sequences of transactions with no application state outside of the queued messages.
Despite these efforts, there remains a need to improve application recovery techniques in client-server systems. Particularly, there is a need to attain reliable recovery, while minimizing the logging costs and enabling fast restart. The inventors have developed such application recovery techniques for client-server systems.

Client-server computer system with application recovery of server applications and client applications


Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, a network node of a first Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) receives a request from a user equipment (UE) for a service to be provided to the UE by the first PLMN, and sends a response to the UE indicating whether the request is accepted or rejected, wherein the response indicates to the UE whether the UE is allowed to repeat the request if the UE connects to a second PLMN that is an equivalent PLMN with the first PLMN.

A mobile device such as a user equipment (UE) may switch among one or more networks such as a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) available in a given geographical location, or may switch to a new network when moving from one geographical location to another. When the UE registers with the new network, the UE may send a request to the network to utilize a service that the UE desires to utilize. Generally, it can occur that the network may reject one or more such requests from the UE, and there is a requirement that UE shall not send the same request until the UE registers with another PLMN or one of a number of other events occurs. The other event may include, but is not limited to, a switch-off/switch-on of the UE, removal of a Universal Subscriber Identity Module (SIM/USIM), or expiry of a timer which is started when the reject message is received by the UE. In some cases, however, for example for some network configurations, it makes sense to allow the UE to send the same request only after it registered with another PLMN which is not in the list of equivalent PLMNs, whereas in other cases the UE should be allowed to send the same request after registration with any other PLMN, regardless whether it is equivalent to the network sending the reject message or not. Current Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocols do not provide the network with the flexibility to indicate whether or not the UE is allowed to apply the above conditional re-requests. In general, all network configurations have to live with that same UE behavior even though a UE behavior different from the one presently specified may be appropriate. Further UE access attempts and request repeats may result in unnecessary additional signaling if a given feature or service is not supported anywhere in the equivalent PLMNs. On the other hand, the UE may not reattempt a request for the feature or service after a registration with an equivalent PLMN, even though the new PLMN would be able to support the feature or service because the new PLMN may be configured differently from the previous PLMN. Currently, it is not possible to handle service re-requests from the UE in a flexible way for various reject cases. Typically only one behavior or rule is specified as the only possible UE implementation, and all network operators have to live with that UE behavior. In certain cases, the specification for a given UE behavior may force network operators to coordinate the deployment of services or features among all the equivalent PLMNs which may result in a delay of rolling out of a feature or service that some PLMNs otherwise may be able to provide before other PLMNs are able to provide that feature or service.
It will be appreciated that for simplicity and/or clarity of illustration, elements illustrated in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements for clarity. Further, if considered appropriate, reference numerals have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding and/or analogous elements.

Preventing a mobile device from repeating a request toward a mobile network


An epoxy resin composition comprising an epoxy resin (A), a curing agent (B) and a phosphorous-containing compound (C) indicated by the following general formula (1) and also, if necessary, a flame retardant (D), and a laminated plate comprising said resin composition;

Although epoxy resin has been industrially used in a wide range of areas, performances for epoxy resin have been more and more highly required in recent years along with the development of industry. For example, epoxy resins have been conventionally used for a copper-clad laminated plate for electronics parts and electronics devices, and a sealing agent etc. to form a semiconductor package. In order to enhance the credibility of thermal shock, it is required that the Tg. (glass-transition temperature) of a cured material of the epoxy resin should be more highly improved. In addition, from the viewpoint of taking safety into consideration such as a fire prevention and a fire spread retardation, and also from the viewpoint of coping with an environmental problem, the epoxy resin, which has a flame-retardant effect without using the conventionally used halogen, has been actively developed.
For example, as for the production of a prepreg for manufacturing a multilayer laminated plate, the prepreg having the improved Tg is proposed which is obtained by adding a solid melamine having three amino groups in an epoxy resin composition (Patent document 1). However, in cases where the crosslink density of the cured epoxy resin material is improved to raise the Tg, by incorporating the melamine that is a trifunctional material in this way. there was a disadvantage in that molding properties of prepreg are poor, for the reason that the dispersing properties of the melamine, when the prepreg is manufactured, is poor since the melamine is solid.
In addition, a one-component epoxy resin composition using a trifunctional epoxy resin (having three epoxy groups) is proposed as a filler for plugging a through hole of a printed wiring substrate (Patent document 2). In this case, a large amount of inorganic filler required for decreasing the linear expansion coefficient of cured material can be added if a liquid low-viscosity epoxy resin is used, and workability can be excellent, however, the epoxy resin cured material having a satisfactory Tg could not be obtained.
Moreover, all of the aforementioned epoxy resins had unsatisfying evaluations concerning flame retardancy. On the other hand, as a means of improving the flame retardancy of epoxy resin, a method for adding phosphate esters in the epoxy resin is also known (Patent document 3). The flame retardancy of the epoxy resin is improved to some extent by this method. However, since the added phosphate ester does not have reactive properties with other components in the epoxy resin, there was a disadvantage in that a bleed phenomenon in which a part of the phosphate ester is liberated when the epoxy resin is cured occurs, or the Tg of a cured material markedly drops.

Abstract: wherein m indicates an integer from 2 to 10, R1 to R4 each independently indicate a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group or an aryl group, R5 indicates a hydrocarbon group that may contain an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom or a nitrogen atom, X indicates an oxygen atom or a sulfur atom, Y indicates an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom or —NR6—, and R6 indicates a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group or an aryl group.


An apparatus and method for preventing car-jacking including a receiver situated within a vehicle and adapted to allow the receipt of the activation signal and deactivation signal from an off site transmitting source similar to that employed in the art of pagers. Also included is a control mechanism electrically connected to an existing alarm, ignition coil of a vehicle, and the receiver. The control mechanism is adapted to activate the alarm and deactivate the ignition coil after a predetermined amount of time upon the receipt of the activation signal by the receiver. The control mechanism is also adapted to deactivate the alarm and activate the ignition coil upon the receipt of the deactivation signal.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for preventing car-jacking and more particularly pertains to preventing injury to a driver of a car-jacked vehicle and further precluding the successful theft of the vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of theft prevention devices is known in the prior art. More specifically, theft prevention devices heretofore devised and utilized for the purpose of preventing the theft of a vehicle are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
By way of example, the prior art discloses in U.S. Pat. No. 4,808,981 to Seibold an automotive electronic communication apparatus with theft disabling audio equipment. U.S. Pat. No. 5,349,329 to Smith discloses an anti-theft apparatus to prevent car jacking including a transmitter carried by the driver and a receiver and a switch circuit installed on the vehicle such that when the receiver fails to detect the signal broadcasted by the transmitter, the switch circuit disables the vehicle for operation. U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,748 to Wilson discloses an anti-theft apparatus. Lastly, U.S. Des. Pat. No. 270,830 to Jacobs; U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,868 to Thibeault; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,756 to Villani are provided as being of general interest.
In this respect, the apparatus and method for preventing car-jacking according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of preventing injury to a driver of a car-jacked vehicle and further precluding the successful theft of the vehicle.
Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a continuing need for a new and improved apparatus and method for preventing injury to a driver of a car-jacked vehicle and further precluding the successful theft of the vehicle. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.

Apparatus and method for preventing car-jacking


A wireless communications device may include a path searcher for detecting signal peak locations in a received spread-spectrum signal, and a RAKE finger stage. The RAKE finger stage may include a plurality of RAKE fingers for determining symbol values from the received spread-spectrum signal based upon the detected peak locations. Each RAKE finger may include at least one de-spreader for de-spreading time-staggered versions of the received spread-spectrum signal and operating at a signal rate of the received spread-spectrum signal, and a frequency corrector downstream from the at least one de-spreader comprising a phase lock loop (PLL) operating at a rate that is less than the signal rate.

Various communications protocols are used for cellular and other wireless communications. One such protocol is Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), which employs spread-spectrum technology and uses unique codes assigned to different signal streams to allow the signals to share a common frequency band. A third generation (3G) variant of CDMA is Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), which is a wideband spread-spectrum mobile air interface that utilizes the direct sequence CDMA signaling method and achieves higher speeds and support more users, as compared to typical Time Division Multiplexing (TDMA) used by second generation (2G) Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) networks, for example.
Some wireless environments may also be subject to high Doppler frequency offset or spreading, as well as multi-path fading. Thus, to achieve desired signal acquisition may require relatively sophisticated frequency tracking circuitry. One particular receiver that is commonly used to mitigate the effects of multi-path fading is the so-called RAKE receiver. A RAKE receiver uses several sub-receivers each delayed slightly to tune in to the individual multi-path components. Each component is descrambled and de-spread independently, but combined at a later stage.
One exemplary approach to acquire and track pilots in a CDMA system which utilizes a RAKE receiver arrangement is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 7,088,955 to Challa et al. Frequency acquisition of a number of signal instances (i.e., multi-paths) in a received signal is achieved concurrently based on a frequency control loop maintained for each finger processor of a RAKE receiver. Upon successful acquisition, frequency tracking of acquired multi-paths is achieved based on a combination of a frequency control loop maintained for an oscillator used for downconverting the received signal and the RAFCs for the finger processors. In a tracking mode, the VAFC tracks the average frequency of the acquired multi-paths by adjusting the frequency of the oscillator. The RAFC of each finger processor tracks the residual frequency error (e.g., due to Doppler frequency shift) of the individual acquired multi-path by adjusting the frequency of a complex sinusoidal signal used in a rotator within the finger processor.
Despite the potential advantages of such systems, further advancements may be useful to help reduce the complexity of receiver architectures, yet while still providing desired pilot signal acquisition, in relatively harsh multi-path environments, even when characterized by a high Doppler frequency or frequency offset.

Wireless communications device including rake finger stage providing frequency correction and related methods


Systems and methods are provided for processing objects. For example, a call request message is received, the call request message carrying an identification (ID) of order data associated with one or more objects, the order data including at least a total value of the objects and an ID of a second subject; a first account related to a first subject and a user password related to the first subject are acquired; the first account and the user password and the ID of the order data are sent; the first account and the user password and the ID of the order data are forwarded; and based on at least information associated with the first account and the user password and the ID of the order data, the total value is deducted from a first value included in the first account related to the first subject.

Certain embodiments of the present invention are directed to computer technology. More particularly, some embodiments of the invention provide systems and methods for network technology. Merely by way of example, some embodiments of the invention have been applied to data processing. But it would be recognized that the invention has a much broader range of applicability.
With the rapid development of Internet technology, online shopping has become increasingly popular. Currently, users can log onto an E-commerce website using a cell phone for shopping and then process purchased goods to pay a certain amount of money for the purchased goods to a merchant.
Often, a user downloads and installs a shopping client from the E-commerce website. In addition, the user downloads and installs a payment client from a third-party system. The user logs onto the E-commerce website via the shopping client and choose goods to purchase. The E-commerce website generates an order which includes at least the amount of money for the purchased goods and an ID of the merchant and sends the order to the user. The user then logs onto the third-party system and sends the order number and a user account to the third-party system via the payment client. The third-party website pays to the merchant the amount of money for the purchased goods according to the order number and the user account, hence completing the processing of the purchased goods.
But the above-noted conventional approach often has certain problems. For example, the user usually needs to log onto the third-party system for processing the purchased goods, which often results in low efficiency.
Hence it is highly desirable to improve the techniques for processing objects.

Systems and methods for object processing

Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Company Limited


Power management techniques include a method for power management of a processor chip which comprises the following steps. An initial operating level is set for the processor chip. After a predetermined time interval, slack is calculated. If the slack is greater than zero, the initial operating level is increased to a next higher level, otherwise the initial operating level is maintained. After the predetermined time interval, the slack is re-calculated and further includes accumulated slack. If the re-calculated slack is greater than zero, the operating level is increased to the next higher level if the processor chip is being operated at the initial operating level, otherwise the operating level is returned to the initial operating level if the processor chip is being operated at the next higher operating level. The steps to re-calculate the slack and either increase the operating level to the next higher level or return the operating level to the initial operating level are repeated.

Power management features are common in today's high-power computing devices to conserve power and are especially useful in devices, such as laptop computers, that run on batteries. One way to conserve power is to modulate processor activity, which is typically enabled through the use of power management actuators, such as dynamic frequency scaling (DFS) or combined frequency and voltage scaling (DVFS) actuators, that scale-down processor frequency and/or voltage at certain times or in certain modes. By temporarily reducing processor activity, heat produced by the device is also reduced, thereby further conserving power needed for cooling.
Power management actuators typically can only adjust the voltage and/or frequency in set increments (or levels). As such, with conventional power management techniques that use power management actuators, such as MaxBIPS, the voltage is adjusted to the highest level at which power consumption by the processor approximates, but does not exceed, a particular power budget. See, for example, C. Isci et al., "An Analysis of Efficient Multi-Core Global Power Management Policies: Maximizing Performance for a Given Power Budget," Proceedings of the 39th annual International Symposium on Microarchitecture (MICRO' 06), IEEE, pp. 347-358 (Dec. 9-13, 2006) (hereinafter "Isci"), the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. For example, as described in Isci, MaxBIPS predicts power and billion instructions per second (BIPS) values for different combinations of power (voltage (Vdd)/frequency (f)) modes, i.e., full-throttle execution (Vdd, f), medium power savings (95% Vdd, 95% f) and high power savings (85% Vdd, 85% f), and chooses the combination with the highest throughput that meets a power budget. This however, can leave a large margin between the power budget and actual consumed power, in particular, if the power budget is just below the power that the processor would consume at the next higher voltage level (see, for example, FIG. 1, described below). Thus, in many instances the processor is operated at a sub-optimal power level so as not to exceed the power budget. As a result, processor performance suffers.
FIG. 1 is graph 100 illustrating suboptimal power allocation for a processor chip from use of conventional power management techniques. In graph 100, relative power is plotted over time. The term "relative power" refers to a percentage of a maximum power consumption by the processor core. In the example illustrated in graph 100, voltage and frequency (both of which can contribute to power consumption) can be controlled in three voltage/frequency pairs or levels. The given power budget is 80 percent (%) of maximum available power. As can be seen from graph 100, more than 10% of the maximum available power is foregone at the voltage level closest to the power budget. This suboptimal use of available power also translates to suboptimal processor performance, since the lower voltage correlates to operation at a lower frequency.
Therefore, processor chip power management techniques that further improve processor performance under a given power budget would be desirable.

International Business Machines Corporation


A turnbar for use in a sheet accumulator having an accumulating assembly which causes sheets serially and separately entering an entry point to overlap each other to form a stack at an exit point. The turnbar is used to change the direction of the sheets at the entry point and the stack at the exit point. The turnbar can be disengaged from the accumulating assembly for jam clearance and maintenance purposes. Preferably, the turnbar has a securing mechanism for removably mounting the turnbar on the sheet accumulator.

The present invention relates generally to an inserting machine for mass mailing and, more specifically, a device to cause a large number of separate cut sheets to be accumulated into individual stacks each having a number of sheets.
Multi-station document inserting systems are generally used by organizations such as banks, insurance companies and utility companies for producing a large volume of specific mailings where the contents of each mailpiece are directed to a particular addressee. One of the most important features of the inserting systems is speed, which is measured by the number of mailpieces that can be assembled in a given time period. A modern inserting system is expected to assemble over ten thousand mailpieces per hour. A typical inserting system includes a plurality of serially arranged stations including a sheet feeding station, a folding station and an insertion station. In general, the sheet feeder feeds one or a plurality of sheets of mailing materials to an accumulator, which collects the fed sheets into a predefined collated packet or stack. Mailing materials are usually printed on a continuous web of paper and the printed paper is cut into individual sheets. These sheets are then accumulated into individual stacks and each stack is stuffed into an envelope for mailing. One of the conventional ways of sheet accumulation is to slow down or stop the sheets in an impending accumulation (i.e., for a mailpiece) at a certain point until all the sheets have arrived. This conventional method is cumbersome and inefficient because it requires a drastic change in machine speed.
As disclosed in related patent application Ser. No 09/310,217, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,419 sheets 1001, 1002, 1003 are accumulated in an apparatus 1, which has a plurality of paths 211, 212, 213, . . . , connecting the entry point 2 and the exit point 4, with each path having a different pathlength. Related U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,419 in hereby expressly incorporated by reference. The paths are so controlled that, for each stack of the sheets in an impending accumulation, a sheet entering the accumulator will travel a progressively shorter path than the preceding one. In other words, the first sheet travels a longer path than the second sheet, the second sheet travels a longer path than the third sheet, and so forth. The pathlength difference between two successive paths can be designed in accordance with the requirement in sheet stacking. If the sheets are stacked in a way that one sheet is partially overlapped with another, like the shingle pattern on a rooftop (see stack 110, FIG. 1), then the pathlength difference between two successive paths is smaller than the length of the sheets. If the edges of the accumulated sheets in a stack are flush with each other, then the pathlength difference is substantially equal to the sheet length. For example, if only three sheets 1001, 1002, 1003 are to be accumulated into a stack 110, then sheets 1001 1002, 1003 are separately directed to paths 213, 212 and 211, respectively, as shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, when the sheets to be accumulated enter the entry point 2 along a path 200, they are caused to change direction so that they can be separately directed toward different paths. As shown, the direction of incoming sheets is changed from 200 to 202. After being accumulated, the stacked sheets are moved along path 218 and they are again caused to change direction to path 220 before exiting through the exit point 4.
As sheets are moved in high speed in and out of the accumulating apparatus 1, jams could occasionally occur. It is advantageous and desirable to provide a way to clear the jam.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for sheet accumulation, wherein the sheets to be accumulated are not required to slow down significantly or pause in the accumulation process.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for sheet accumulation, wherein the apparatus can have a small footprint.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for sheet accumulation, which has a turnbar to change the direction of the sheets to be accumulated when the sheets are separately entering the accumulation apparatus, and the direction of the accumulated stack when the stack exits the accumulation apparatus. As such, the sheets prior to accumulation and the accumulated stack travel in the same direction. According to the present invention, the turnbar can be removed from the accumulation apparatus for jam clearance and maintenance purposes.
Accordingly, the first aspect of the present invention is a sheet accumulator, which comprises:
an accumulating assembly that accumulates a plurality of sheets that serially and separately enter an entry point so as to allow these sheets to overlap each other thereby forming a stack at an exit point, the accumulator having a plurality of paths connecting the entry point and the exit point with each path having a different path length, and means for controlling the paths so as to allow each sheet of said plurality of sheets to travel a different path such that a sheet entering the entry point travels a shorter path than a preceding sheet, wherein the sheets travel along a first direction prior to entering the entry point, a second direction different from the first direction after entering the entry point, a third direction different from the second direction prior to leaving the exit point, and a fourth direction different from the third direction after leaving the exit point;
a removable turnbar having first means located in the proximity of the entry point for directing the sheets entering the entry points from the first direction to the second direction, and second means located in the proximity of the exit point for directing the sheets leaving the exit point from the third direction to the fourth direction.
Preferably, the turnbar is operable at a first position and a second position, and wherein when the turnbar is operated at the first position, the turnbar is engaged with the accumulating assembly for directing the sheets entering the entry point from the first direction to the second direction and for directing the sheets leaving the exit point from the third direction to the fourth direction, and when the turnbar is operated at the second position, the turnbar is disengaged from the accumulating assembly to facilitate maintenance and/or jam clearance of the sheet accumulator.
Preferably, the sheet accumulator further comprises a securing mechanism to prevent the turnbar from being disengaged from the accumulating assembly when the turnbar is operated at the first position, wherein the security mechanism comprises a pin on the turnbar which is engaged with a latch on the accumulating assembly.
Preferably, the sheet accumulator further comprises a securing mechanism to prevent the turnbar from accidentally engaging with the accumulating assembly when the turnbar is operated in the second position, wherein the security mechanism comprises a pin on the turnbar which is engaged with a latch on the accumulating assembly.
The second aspect of the present invention is a turnbar for use in a sheet accumulator having an accumulating assembly, wherein the accumulating assembly accumulates a plurality of sheets that serially and separately enter an entry point so as to allow these sheets to overlap each other and thereby form a stack at an exit point, the accumulator having a plurality of paths connecting the entry point and the exit point with each path having a different path length, and means for controlling the paths so as to allow each sheet of said plurality of sheets to travel a different path such that a sheet entering the entry point travels a shorter path than a preceding sheet, wherein the sheets travel along:
a first direction prior to entering the entry point;
a second direction different from the first direction after entering the entry point;
a third direction different from the second direction prior to leaving the exit point; and
a fourth direction different from the third direction after leaving the exit point. The turnbar comprises:
a first means located in the proximity of the entry point for directing the sheets entering the entry point from the first direction to the second direction;
a second means located in the proximity of the exit point for directing the sheets leaving the exit point from the third direction to the fourth direction; and
a mounting mechanism for removably mounting the turnbar on the sheet accumulator.
According to the present invention, the sheets are capable of leaving the exit point along the fourth direction in a first exit path or a second exit path, and the turnbar further comprises a path diverting mechanism for selecting either the first or the second path.
According to the present invention, the turnbar further comprises a center bar located between a first side arm and a second side arm, wherein the first side arm has a first surface substantially parallel to the first direction for guiding the sheets to move toward the entry point, the second side arm has a second surface substantially parallel to the fourth direction for guiding the sheets to move away from the exit point, the center bar has a third surface substantially parallel to the second direction for guiding the sheets to move toward the accumulating assembly in the second direction and a fourth surface substantially parallel to the third direction for guiding the sheets to move toward the exit point in the third direction.
According to the present invention, the first means may comprise a curved surface located between the first surface and the third surface for urging the sheets to move from the first direction to the second direction, and the second means may comprise a curved surface located between the second surface and the fourth surface for urging the sheets to move from the third direction to the fourth direction.
According to the present invention, the sheets are capable of leaving the exit point along the fourth direction in a first exit path along the second surface or a second path spaced from the second surface, and wherein the turnbar further comprises a path diverting mechanism for selecting either the first or the second path.
According to the present invention, the path diverting mechanism comprises a flipper operable at a first position to allow the sheets to reach the second curved surface and a second position protruding into the third direction to cause the sheets to move toward the second path.
The present invention will become apparent upon reading the description taken in conjunction with FIGS. 3 to 6b.

Removable turnbar in a sheet accumulator


An image forming apparatus includes a rotating polygon mirror configured to rotate and reflect the first laser beam and the second laser beam, a first generation unit configured to generate a first signal based on timings at which the respective first laser beams, a second generation unit configured to generate a second signal for determining a timing to form an electrostatic latent image on the second image bearing member with the second laser beam based on the first signal and a correction value, and a calculation unit configured to calculate the correction value based on the output of the detection unit, in which the calculation unit calculates the correction value based on the signal output from the detection unit in a period of time that has passed until the rotating polygon mirror reaches steady rotation since it has started to be driven to rotate.

Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.
Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a color-image forming apparatus using an electrophotographic system has performed image formation by reflecting a laser beam modulated in response to an image signal from a polygon mirror serving as a rotating polygon mirror and scanning a photosensitive drum with the reflected laser beam to form an electrostatic latent image. In such an image forming apparatus, when a plurality of scanners including light sources for laser beams in colors is used, a main body of the apparatus increases in size and the apparatus increases in cost.
To miniaturize the apparatus and reduce the cost thereof, a configuration in which a common scanner is used for a plurality of colors has been known. Furthermore, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-313776 discusses using a common scanner for a plurality of colors and providing a beam detect (BD) sensor for one of a plurality of light sources.
Japanese Patent Publication No. 4393133 discusses measuring, if an error a occurs on each of mirror surfaces of a polygon mirror (see FIG. 8A), a period of a BD signal when the mirror surface of the polygon mirror is scanned with a laser, using a BD sensor, and calculating a correction value for each mirror surface to correct the error.
By adding the correction value, it is possible to generate an accurate BD signal for light sources other than a light source provided with the BD sensor even if a plane division error occurs on each of the mirror surfaces of the polygon mirror. The BD signal for the light source other than the light source provided with the BD sensor is referred to as a pseudo BD signal.
In a configuration in which the pseudo BD signal is generated, discussed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4393133, a scanner is started after a print instruction is received so that the polygon mirror converges at a rotation speed for performing image formation (a steady rotation state), and a correction value for generating the pseudo BD signal is then calculated. Then, the image formation is started. Thus, the start of the image formation is delayed by a period of time during which the correction value for generating the pseudo BD signal is calculated compared with a configuration in which the pseudo BD signal need not be corrected. As a result, a first print output time serving as a period of time that has passed until image formation on the first recording medium is completed since the print instruction has been received is extended.

Image forming apparatus that controls timing of polygon mirror


A valve made principally of plastic has a creep compensating features providing consistent engagement between valve members and their respective valve seats, minimizing creep, and compensating for any creep that does occur. The features compensate for compression of internal valve components as well as extension of the valve body. In a manually operated three way valve embodiment of the invention, a trapped spring mechanism inserted between an actuator portion and the upper valve member provides the closure force for the upper valve member on the upper valve seat. The first valve member and second valve member connect through a extensible portion. Valves according to the invention are particularly suitable for quarter-turn three-way manual diaphragm valves and for applications in the semiconductor industry.

This invention relates to valves, more particularly the invention relates to valves with plastic valve bodies and other plastic components which are subject to creep.
In the semiconductor processing industry, highly corrosive or caustic fluids are utilized with temperatures exceeding 150xc2x0 C. Traditional metal valves, fittings, and plumbing are not suitable in such applications. Rather, highly inert materials such as fluoropolymers, for example PFA (perfluoroalkoxy) and PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), are utilized. In such applications it is critical to have a very high performance level in valves. Due to the highly caustic ultra-pure chemicals utilized, valve leakage or failure can have economically catastrophic results as well as presenting a hazard to personnel. A problem encountered with plastic in general and plastic valves in particular is that plastic under stress can creep impairing the integrity of the valve. Creep is exacerbated by high temperatures and fluctuating temperatures. Typically, the valve stem, the valve seat, and the valve body are components subject to creep under stress. Such creeping can reduce reliability, lower the life expectancy of such valves, increase maintenance of the valves, and generally increase the costs associated with the valves.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a prior art manually operated three way valve such as used in the semiconductor processing industry is illustrated and is generally designated with the numeral 10. A valve body 11 has a handle 12 extending therefrom which is rotated to operate the valve. An actuator portion 13 includes the handle, the actuator shaft 14, and a motion translation mechanism 16. The actuator portion is engaged with a valve stem assembly 18 having a first or upper valve member 20 and a second or lower valve member 22 each configured as poppets and each with a diaphragm 24 extending therefrom. The motion translation mechanism 28 may be such as a threaded shaft 32 or cam surfaces 34 for transforming the rotational motion of the handle into linear motion of the valve stem assembly. Both mechanisms are illustrated although only one would generally be used on an individual valve. A first spring 36 is positioned below the lower valve member and provides the seating pressure to seal said lower valve member and the corresponding lower valve seat 40. A supplemental spring 38 may be used. The actuation mechanism operates against the spring force to separate the lower valve member from the valve seat and open the lower valve portion 42.
The upper valve member 20 is moved axially by the motion translation mechanism which may include intermediate connecting members 44. In valves which utilize a threaded actuator shaft, the seating pressure between the valve member and valve seat can be directly dependant upon the torque provided to the handle. A disadvantages of this arrangement is that the seating pressure depends upon the subjective determination of the operator as to when the valve is tight enough. Operators tend to use excessive force closing such valves to be sure they are tight enough. This can result in immediate valve failure or cause excessive creep to the actuator mechanism including the motion translation mechanism, as well as the valve seat and other portions of the valve body. Sufficient creep to be detrimental to the operation of the valve can occur after a limited number of use cycles.
One way of addressing this problem is to provide a stop to limit the rotation of the handle and shaft to take tightening discretion away from the operator. These types of valves also are subject to creep and will typically have an adjusting nut so that the actuator mechanism can be adjusted to compensate for creep. An inherent problem with these valves is knowing when creep has occurred and knowing how much to adjust the adjustment nut. These are often subjective determinations determined by operators and thus are subject to error.
In valves which utilize the cam surfaces, the shaft will typically have a rotational stop and the sealing pressure of the valve member on the valve seat is not dependant upon the torquing of the handle as long as the handle is fully rotated. These cammed translation mechanisms effectively provide a limited rotation, for example, a quarter turn, to effectuate full closure and opening. Plastic valves utilizing the cam surfaces are also subject to creep and where the short one quarter rotation is utilized creep considerations are pronounced. These valves typically will need an adjusting nut such that after extended use the valves can then be adjusted to restore original closure pressures between the upper valve member and valve seat.
Still referring to FIG. 1, plastic valves, particularly those used the semiconductor manufacturing industry, will often have an annular groove or recess 48 at the valve seat. This feature gives the valve seat some flexibility which provides more consistency in seating and sealing, provides lowers manufacturing tolerances for the plastic components, and thus provides lower manufacturing costs. The flexible valve seat also makes the valve seat more susceptible to creep.
A valve is needed that takes the discretion away from the operator in determining how much to torque a plastic valve. A plastic three-way diaphragm valve is needed that does not need periodic adjustment to compensate for creep. A plastic valve is needed that minimizes internal stresses in the valve to minimize the occurrence of creep. A plastic valve is needed that is self-compensating for creep.
A valve made principally of plastic has a creep compensating portion that provides consistent engagement between valve members and their respective valve seats. The features compensate for contraction of internal valve components as well as extension of the valve body. Moreover, the creep compensation portion in embodiments having manual handles, limit the force applied by valve members on the valve seats. Valves according to the invention are particularly suitable for applications in the semiconductor industry.
One embodiment of the invention is a three-way diaphragm valve configuration having a first flow duct, a second flow duct, and a common flow duct. Valve portions control the flow between the first flow duct and the common flow duct as well as between the second flow duct and the common flow duct. An actuation portion operatively connected to a creep compensating portion to control the closing force provided by a first valve member on a first valve seat and a second valve member on a second valve seat. The creep compensating portion comprises a pair of captured spring mechanisms. The captured spring mechanisms self compensate for any creep of the valve components while maintaining substantially constant closure force.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the actuator portion includes an actuator connecting portion that moves axially up and down by rotation of a handle. This causes the valve stem assembly to move axially and the valve portions to open and close. The actuator connecting portion extends through the hollow stem and is directly engaged with the valve member of the lower valve portion and is axially slidable within the first valve member.
In said preferred embodiment, the lower spring provides upward bias to the valve stem assembly and specifically provides upward force to close the lower valve portion when the actuator connecting portion is not holding the lower valve member open. When the actuator assembly moves downwardly by rotation of the handle, the actuator shaft causes the lower valve member to be separated from the lower valve seat and correspondingly causes the first spring to be compressed by the actuator shaft. Additionally, the downward movement of the actuator assembly pushes down on the upper valve member of the upper valve portion through a creep compensating mechanism to seat the upper valve member on the upper valve seat. The creep compensating mechanism is comprised of a captured preloaded spring mechanism. The mechanism has an extended position and by providing sufficient axial compressive force may be compressed to a contracted and compressed position. The actuator mechanism is configured such that the upper valve member seats before the handle is rotated through its complete range of motion. As the handle is further rotated, the upper valve member remains seated and further downward movement of the actuator assembly compresses the trapped preloaded spring mechanism. This additional available movement of the actuator assembly then does not require a corresponding motion of the upper valve member. Thus if the valve stem compresses, that is shortens, due to creep of the plastic valve stem, the first valve member will seat slightly later that with an uncompressed valve stem and the trapped spring mechanism will still compress but will compress later in the rotational movement of the handle and will compress slightly less. The downward force of the valve member on the valve seat will be substantially the same as in the case of the uncompressed valve stem. Thus the trapped spring mechanism effectively and automatically compensates for the compressive creep in the valve stem assembly. Expansive creep in the valve body members is compensated for in a similar fashion.
A feature and advantage of particular embodiments of the invention is that valves made in accordance therewith are subjected to minimal and controlled internal stresses thereby minimizing the occurrence of creep.
A feature and advantage of particular embodiments of the invention is that creep is automatically compensated for by the valve without the need for adjustment.
A feature and advantage of certain embodiments of the invention is that no adjustment nut is needed.
A feature and advantage provided by particular embodiments of the invention is a plastic valve with a greater degree of reliability and longer life expectancy.
A feature and advantage of particular embodiments of the invention is that a quarter turn valve three way valve is possible without an adjustment nut and that has extended life expectancy and improved reliability compared to known quarter turn three-way valves.
A further significant feature and advantage of particular embodiments of the invention is that the closure force of each valve member is provided by the deflection of a separate spring. Moreover, the springs do not operate against each other to put additional stress on internal valve components. This minimizes the occurrence of creep.
Various embodiments of the invention are illustrated and described below. Note that the words xe2x80x9cconnectxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cconnectionxe2x80x9d, and xe2x80x9cconnectingxe2x80x9d when used herein do not require direct physical contact between the involved component, that is, intermediate components may be present. Where reference is made to a plastic valve, this does not require all components of the valve be made of plastic, only that the valve is principally constructed of plastic. Moreover, xe2x80x9cspringxe2x80x9d when used herein may comprise a single or multiple springs. When directions are indicated herein, such as xe2x80x9cupxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cdownxe2x80x9d, xe2x80x9cupwardlyxe2x80x9d, and xe2x80x9cdownwardlyxe2x80x9d, these are to be construed only as references relative positions of the valve elements and components and are not to be construed as requiring the valve or components to be placed in a specific orientation in the environment in which the valve is utilized.


An electromagnetic drill stand, of the type having a drill driven by an electric motor and mounted on a stand provided with an electromagnetic coil in the bottom of the stand to secure the stand to ferromagnetic material when the coil is energized, is provided with switch means preventing operation of the motor when the coil is not energized, said switch means being mounted in proximity to said coil and responsive to the magnetic flux of the coil for controlling the power supply to the motor and operative to interrupt the power supply in absence of a predetermined flux density.

Electromagnetic drill stands are currently characterized by three approaches to safety interlock of the operation. One approach simply ignores the problem. Another approach utilizes an ineffective interlock using, for example, a magnet switch in series with the motor circuit. This is really a one-way interlock that shuts off the drill if the magnet is de-energized. However, it turns the drill on again when the magnet is re-energized. Unless the drill switch has been mechanically shut off before the magnet is re-energized, unsafe operation will occur. The third approach involves a functional but awkward to use interlock, namely a sequential interlock that requires additional operator actions in order to function. These additional operations by the user become a nuisance and tempt the operator to bypass the interlock in order to remove the nuisance.

Safety interlock for electro-magnetic drill stand


The present invention is directed to isolated nucleic acids containing functional polynucleotide sequences representing an enhancer element for the Gene Differentially Expressed in Prostate (GDEP). Such molecules are useful in conferring retinal specific transcriptional responsiveness on associated promoters and methods for directing retinal specific gene expression are accordingly disclosed.

While modern medicine has been successful in treating numerous human conditions, a large number still remain outside the scope of effective treatment. Gene therapy is one method of potentially treating diseases that are currently untreatable. However, successful gene therapy requires improvements in delivery of the target gene (1). To increase the safety and efficacy of gene therapy agents, tissue specific promoter elements are being incorporated into the delivery vectors (2). This is particularly true for gene therapy agents developed to treat cancers that originate from a particular tissue or cell lineage (3). While tissue specific promoters restrict expression of the gene therapy agent to target tissues, they often direct only low levels of gene expression within the targeted cells (2). To increase gene expression to therapeutic levels a number of enhancer elements have been used (2). However, only a limited number of tissue specific promoter and enhancer elements have been described thus far, making it important to continue to identify additional tissue specific regulatory sequences that may be developed for gene therapy.
GDEP (gene differentially expressed in prostate cancer, aka., PCAN1), a newly discovered gene with remarkable tissue specificity, is a promising candidate for regulatory analysis because it exhibits a high level of expression that is limited to two tissues, the retina and the prostate (4,5,6). As these two tissues have different origins and disparate functions it is likely that the regulatory mechanisms responsible for expression are not shared in their entirety. In addition, both the retina and prostate are prime targets for gene therapy (7,8).
GDEP expression in prostate tissue has been previously documented. GDEP was initially identified through dbEST data mining for prostate specific genes (4). The high level of prostate specific expression was confirmed using Northern Blot analysis and reverse transcriptase PCR (4,5,6). GDEP is expressed exclusively in the prostate epithelial cells, particularly basal epithelial cells, and not in the surrounding stromal prostate tissue (4,5). GDEP is also expressed in a number of prostate cell lines and this expression is enhanced when cells are grown in the presence of Matrigel suggesting that paracrine factors influence GDEP expression (6). Furthermore, GDEP expression is insensitive to testosterone treatment (5,6) making this gene a potential vehicle for investigating prostate specific but testosterone independent regulation.
In addition to prostate expression, GDEP is highly expressed in neural retinal tissue as well as retinoblastoma cell lines (6). Neural retinal tissue from both male and female donors was tested for GDEP expression to ensure that expression was not sex limited. All tissue exhibited a high level of GDEP transcript when compared to actin using RT-PCR. Retinoblastoma cell lines Y79 and WERI-Rb-1 were also both positive for GDEP expression. In contrast, ARPE-19 (a retinal pigmented epithelial cell line) exhibited no expression of this gene, making this gene specific to the cell types found in the neural retina and not the surrounding retinal tissue (6).
As can be appreciated, GDEP is a promising candidate for regulatory analysis because it exhibits a high level of expression that is limited to two tissues, the retina and the prostate. To date there have been no functional studies of the GDEP promoter. Therefore, gaining an understanding of how GDEP is regulated in the tissue specific context and identifying the sequences responsible for this regulation are important goals. Identification of such sequences would open routes for a wide variety of practical applications including, but not limited to, novel methods for tissue specific gene therapy.

GDEP enhancer element and use thereof to confer retinal specific gene expression


A virtual 3D modeling of a custom posterior concha module from a digital ear impression. This modeling is done with 3D inserts that fill the posterior concha area and are merged into a concha ring, concha plate, or another custom solid or hollow 3D object. The 3D object is integrated with the custom concha and custom canal modules. The resulting 3D mold is the virtual custom hearing aid shell or earmold. This method is suitable for modeling Full-Shell custom hearing aids, and Full-Shell, Shell, Skeleton, and Semi-skeleton earmolds. It is also applicable to modeling a Canal-lock and Helix-lock.

This invention relates to a process for the production of custom-moulded ear inserts that are required for ear-level hearing aids and earmolds.
The shape of a custom mould is derived from an ear impression taken individually from the subject's ear. The ear impression is a negative replica of the ear.
There are currently two methods of impression shaping into custom moulds.
The older method is manual impression shaping. In this process, the impression is shaped manually by a technician with the use of mechanical cutters and grinders. The technician removes outer layers from the impression to achieve a mould shape suitable for a given custom product.
The newer method is computer-aided shaping of a digital ear image that is obtained by scanning of silicone impression, direct in-ear scanning, CT scanning, MRI scanning, or any volumetric imaging technique, and is further called a digital impression. In this process, the digital impression is virtually shaped with cutting and grinding tools available in the software.
Both the manual shaping and computer-aided modeling methods are time consuming, subjective, intuitive, and not free from inaccuracies. Inaccuracies in impression shaping result in ear moulds that have inadequate fit and are subsequently returned to the manufacturer with either a request for a new earpiece, or a request for a refund.
There are inventions that disclose automated processes where a pre-modelled shell stored in a computer database is matched with a custom ear impression. This approach requires a large number of pre-modelled shells to cover the almost unlimited number of human ear shapes and sizes, and the great variety of custom hearing aid styles and options, which renders this concept impractical. In addition, a shell selected from a computer database is not a custom product.
U.S. Pat. No. 10,158,954 by Pirzanski discloses a virtual method for modeling a custom canal module from a digital impression with the use of templates with predetermined shapes. In this method, 2D templates are inserted into the impression, aligned with the impression contour lines, assembled into a 3D frame, and surfaced. The resulting 3D mould is a virtual custom canal module. The limitation of this method is that 2D templates are insufficient for modelling the concha that features a sophisticated spatial form.
This drawback is partially solved by Pirzanski proposing virtual modeling of the concha that comprises a combination of 3D custom and 3D pre-modelled modules that are integrated into a virtual custom concha module. Still, this method is inadequate for modelling full concha modules that reside into the posterior concha, helix and anti-tragus.
This disclosure describes an innovative method for modeling custom posterior concha modules.
This innovation provides the means of manufacturing custom product that is globally uniformed in physical fit and cosmetic appearance.

3D virtual automated modeling of custom posterior concha module


The present invention provides a treating unit of activated sludge for wastewater treatment and a treating apparatus having the same. The treating unit is constructed by a cage-shaped supporting structure which defines an interior space for containing the microbial cell therein. The present invention provides a measure for simultaneous removal of organics and nitrogen compounds from the wastewater under a condition of controlled aeration, and makes the configuration of treating apparatus as well as the treating process more simplified. It is also an alternative to replace the traditional A2O process. According to the present invention, the design of sludge return, which is essential for the conventional activated sludge treatment, is not needed. Moreover, the present invention is compatible with the conventional activated sludge treatment process and is advantageous in its short start-up period during which a stable operation is achievable.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a biological treatment apparatus for wastewater, and more particularly to a biological treatment apparatus for wastewater adopting the activated sludge process.
2. Description of the Related Art
Biological treatment is a secondary procedure of wastewater treatment, which is typically employed for the wastewater being primarily treated. The wastewater from the primary sedimentation tank is biologically treated and settled, and then discharged. The organics contained in the wastewater is degraded by means of biological metabolism, so as to remove the organics (the so-called biochemical oxygen demand, BOD, and chemical oxygen demand, COD) as well as nitrogen compounds and phosphorous compounds therefrom.
Typically, the biological treatment is classified into such as aerobic treatment and anaerobic treatment. The aerobic treatment is carried out to remove the organic carbon from the wastewater and to make the organic nitrogen and ammonia nitrogen bio-oxidize into nitrates. The removal of nitrates from wastewater is carried out by means of anaerobic treatment, which is so-called as denitrification. The microbes employed in biological treatment are consisting of bacteria, fungus, algae and protozoa, where the community thereof shall be well-acclimated for various kinds of wastewater to be treated and substances to be removed. It is so difficult to well-control the treatment efficiency, since the treatment efficiency is highly depending upon the community of microbes and treating condition. In this case, the operation of such process is much complicated and needs technicality.
In an activated sludge process, which is one kind of aerobic treatment, wastewater being primarily treated is directed into an aeration tank to contact and mix with the activated sludge therein, and is subsequently directed therefrom into a settlement tank for sludge separation. A portion of the separated sludge is returned into the aeration tank (i.e. the returned sludge) while the remaining portion thereof is discharged to be further processed (i.e. subjected to the so-called sludge treatment and disposal). In addition to the difficulty in acclimation of microbial community, it needs to precisely control a variety of factors and conditions, such as the retention time, the return ratio of sludge, the aeration condition . . . etc. for the activated sludge process, so as to optimize the operation condition and achieve an improved efficiency.
Typically, the activated sludge composed of suspended aerobic microbial community is easily peeling off, which may cause the concentration of suspended solids of water and thus the loading of the activated sludge process to significantly increase. Moreover, the peeling-off of microbial aggregation also makes the control of operation condition of such process much difficult.
Due to the selectivity nature of biological degradation, it is necessary for the biological treatment to adopt multiple stages of sludge return and wastewater return for controlling the anoxic mode, anaerobic mode and aerobic mode in different reactors or tanks, so as to carry out the nitrification of ammonia nitrogen and removal of organic carbons (e.g. BOD and COD) under the aerobic condition, to carry out the denitrification and removal of nitrate nitrogen under the anaerobic condition. Such process is also termed as an A2O process, which is complicated, land-consuming, and cost-inefficient.
On the other hand, the membrane separation process is commonly used in treating the industrial wastewater and municipal wastewater. Some membrane modules, such as microfiltration (MF) modules, are capable of being combined with the biological treatment for the bio-sludge separation in a membrane bioreactor (MBR), so as to obtain the effluent of good quality. Nevertheless, the suspended solids caused by the peeling-off of microbial aggregation as well as the adsorption of sludge floe onto the membrane may result in the membrane fouling, and hence the membrane needs to be frequently replaced or cleaned. Accordingly, such process is not cost-efficient and needs to be improved.

Treating unit for simultaneous removal of carbon and nitrogen from wastewater and treating apparatus having the same


A cutting tool, particularly for a mining machine includes an elongated support having a first end and an axially spaced second end. The support also includes an outer circumferential surface having at the first end a first outer dimension and at the second end a second outer dimension which is smaller than the first dimension. The outer surface includes a portion adjacent to one of the ends and having a non-linear configuration with an exterior dimension which gradually decreases in direction from the above-mentioned one end towards the other of the first and second ends. A plurality of cutting units are located on the outer circumferential surface of the support along a line circumferentially embracing the support.

The present invention relates to winning machines for winning coal, minerals, and the like.
More particularly, the present invention is concerned with a rotating head for such a winning machine.
It is known in the prior art to provide a power loader which has a cutting tool such as a rotating head (usually a drum or drums) armed with picks or some form of cutter bits. Such a rotating head includes a tubular support and one or more blades which may extend helically about the circumference of the tubular support. The blades are rigidly connected (e.g., welded) to the outer surface of the support. A plurality of cutting units are mounted equally spaced on the blades. Each of the cutting units includes a pick holder rigidly connected (e.g. welded) to the blade and a pick detachably fixed in the holder. Cutting is achieved by the picks which extend from the periphery of the blades towards a working (i.e., mining) face of the material to be mined. The tubular support has one open end which faces the working face and which is closed by an end face plate.
It has been also suggested to provide the rotating head with a conical locking ring which is welded to the end face plate and extends outwardly away therefrom towards the working face. The outer periphery of the locking ring may also be provided with a plurality of the cutting units similar to those provided on the blades. The picks, which are fixed in the corresponding holders welded to the outer periphery of the locking ring, extend towards the working face. Due to the conical locking ring the contact of the end face of the rotating head with the working face is considerably reduced as opposed to a rotating head having the end face entirely planar. Obviously, the forces of the engagement between the end face of the rotating head and the working face and the frictional losses in such an engagement are considerably reduced in the case of the rotating head having the conical locking ring. Accordingly, the effectiveness of the cutting process is increased, whereas the dust development during the cutting process is reduced.
It has been recognized, that any inclination of the end face of the rotating head from the planar configuration leads to improving of the cutting process. It is further advantageous to maintain a cone angle of the end face, that is an angle between any imaginable line extending radially along the end face and the axis of the rotating head, substantially below 90.degree.. In practice, the cone angle is between 30.degree. and 85.degree.; however, a preferable range of inclination would be between 50.degree. and 70.degree. . Quite sufficient results have been obtained with the cone angle of 60.degree..
It is very difficult and time consuming to displace such a rotating head in the mine. However, it is often necessary to remove the head from the mine to the ground surface, for example, for repairing purposes.
However, such displacement is not always possible or very easy to accomplish, for example, due to the unpredictable and, therefore, uncontrollable swelling of the floor of the mine which leads to narrowing of the main passage of the mine. Thus, in order to remove the head from the mine, it becomes necessary to excavate additional material from the mine only to widen the main passage. Obviously, any additional excavation is relatively complicated and expensive. Thus, the cutting (i.e. mining) process, which is quite expensive by itself, becomes even more expensive due to the above-mentioned additional excavations.
The blades on the tubular support have the same outer diameter, so that the picks which are mounted on the blades constitute a common generatrix. Therefore, the spaces defined by the corresponding surfaces of the blades on the one hand and the respective portions of the outer surface of the tubular support on the other hand are equal to one another. This leads to the fact that the removed material moves along a relatively wide section all the way until it reaches a conveyor which results in an undesired comminuting of the removed material into small particles. Besides, since the removed material moves always along the passage of the same cross-section there might be a situtation where the removed material develops a plug in this passage, which plug unavoidably results in negative consequences for the whole power loader.
In German Offenlegungsschrift No. 2647171 it has been suggested to provide the tubular support with a conical linear outer surface having a first end which faces the working surface and an axially spaced second end which faces away from the working face of the mine. In this case, the first end has the largest outer diameter, whereas the second end has the smallest outer diameter. Thus, the passage for the removed material at the first end of the tubular support is smaller than that at the second end of the support. Advantageously, the transporting of the removed material in direction from the first end, that is from the working face, towards the second end of the tubular support and onto the conveyor located adjacent to the second end of the tubular support is considerably facilitated due to the cone angle of the outer surface of the support.
However, it has been recognized, that the linear extension of the outer surface of the tubular support is not always satisfactory with respect to the requirements made to a reliable, simple and fast transporting of the removed material from the working surface towards the conveyor. In fact, the linear increase of the cross-section of the passage for the removed material has been found to be the reason of the unsatisfactory conditions during transporting of the removed material from the working face.
The rotating head in accordance with the German Offenlegungsschrift No. 2647171 consists of two halves which may be connected to each other right in front of the working face. Obviously, this fact considerably facilitates the displacement of the head itself. Especially, the displacement of the head back onto the ground surface becomes considerably less complicated.
However, in order to repair such a head, the latter still has to be moved from the mine onto the ground surface. Such a displacement of the head causes significant expenses comparing with an initial purchase-cost of the head. Thus, for example, the repair- and displacement expenses may sometimes exceed the purchase-cost of a new head. Nevertheless, it has never been suggested, even in the case of the one-piece head, to provide such a rotary head that can be assembled underground and left there, for example, after being broken.
The assembling of the rotating head in accordance with the above-mentioned German Offenlegungsschrift No. 2647171 is very complicated. The tubular-support halves are connected to each other by screws which after a relatively short time of use corrode significantly due to the direct contact with underground water. Thus, the corroded screws can be moved (i.e. unscrewed) only upon applying thereto a significant pulling force (i.e. torque) which is a quite difficult task to accomplish, especially if considered the limited free space in the mine.
Moreover, the separate conical locking ring additionally increases the cost of the rotating head, since the ring has to be connected to the conical tubular support. Obviously, additional operations of making (or purchasing) the locking ring and welding this ring onto the support correspondingly increase the overall cost of the rotating head.

Rotating cutting drum having tapered and curved conveying surface

Krampe & Co. Fertigung in Bergbaubedarf GmbH


A non-backlash toothed wheel mechanism comprises, an internal gear, and an external gear mating with the internal gear wherein at least one of the internal gear and the external gear has a circumferentially arranged gear teeth array and at least two gear parts each of which has gear teeth forming a part of the circumferentially arranged gear teeth array, a positional relation between the gear parts is changeable, and the mechanism further comprises elastic means for urging one of the two gear parts relatively to another one of the two gear parts to change the positional relation between the gear parts so that each of the gear parts mates with another one of the internal gear and the external gear to reduce a backlash between the one of the internal gear and the external gear and the another one thereof.

The present invention relates to a toothed wheel mechanism and a rotational phase adjuster therewith.
A prior-art rotational phase adjuster for changing a rotational phase difference between a camshaft and a crank shaft in an internal combustion engine is disclosed by each of Publications of Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 61-279713, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 62-3111 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No. 62-3112.
In the prior-art rotational phase adjuster, a first wheel has an outer-side internal helical gear, a second wheel has an outer-side external helical gear mating with the outer-side internal helical gear and an inner-side internal helical gear, and a third wheel has an inner-side external helical gear mating with the inner-side internal helical gear. The second wheel is moved in an axial direction of the gears relatively to the first wheel and the third wheel to generate a rotationally differential movement between the first wheel and the third wheel. The second wheel is divided into two parts by a plane extending perpendicularly to the axial direction of the gears, and an elastic member between the two parts urges one of the two parts to go away from another one of the two parts in the axial direction of the gears, so that backlashes between the outer-side external helical gear and the outer-side internal helical gear and between the inner-side external helical gear and the inner-side internal helical gear are reduced.

Non-backlash toothed wheel mechanism and rotational phase adjuster therewith


A circuit and a method for power conversion and for generating an output voltage in accordance with a reference voltage are presented. The power converter has a circuit for filtering the output voltage, an error amplifier circuit that compares the reference voltage and the filtered output voltage for generating an error voltage as a result of the comparison. There is a circuit for driving one or more switching devices in dependence on the error voltage. The error amplifier circuit has a first differential circuit and a first bias current generation circuit for generating a first bias current for the first differential circuit, a second differential circuit and a second bias current generation circuit for generating a second bias current for the second differential circuit, and a circuit for redistributing the first bias current to the second differential circuit or redistributing the second bias current to the first differential circuit.

A large number of conventional techniques for power conversion (e.g., DC-DC power conversion) rely on a converter regulation loop with a feedback factor less than unity to reduce the active filter amplifier input voltage range. However, these techniques achieve the regulation goal at the expense of system costs and a number of disadvantages that include static power loss due to divider static current consumption, decreased efficiency especially at low load/power conditions, increased thermal noise sensitivity due to higher thermal (4KTR) noise, reduced signal fidelity due to reduced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) stemming from reduced signal level in the presence of increased noise, reduced output voltage accuracy due to divider component leakage, increased number of large passive component count leading to increased silicon area, and possible bandwidth stability issues depending on the chosen divider component values.
On the other hand, loop compensators without feedback division can exhibit challenges of error amplifier (EA) input signal-level correlated gain variation and severe bandwidth degradation posed by using a feedback factor equal to unity. Such loop compensators are subject to large gain variation which complicates loop design and stability and thus are applicable only to scenarios where limited or narrow input range of operation is pertinent.
Also presently there is a burgeoning trend in the field of portable computing power management towards usage of high-speed fully integrated or system-in-package (SiP) voltage regulators/converters to reduce system printed circuit board (PCB) area and system bill of material (BOM) cost as well as establishing fast dynamic voltage scaling (DVS) performance in response to CPU/GPU power saving needs among other factors. However with such practical embedded high-speed multi-phase power converters (e.g., DC-DC converters) having to operate at switching frequencies in the range of high tens to hundreds of megahertz (MHz), the previously neglected aforementioned system costs of using regulation loop dividers start to matter.

Adaptive amplification active filter for divider-less high frequency DC-DC converters


Apparatus for the adjustment of the accommodation volume of a workpiece carrier supported on a line. A bottom plate is disposed in the side walls of the workpiece carrier and is loosely displaceable at different heights within the workpiece carrier to provide a different volume for the carrier, there being provided a positioner for picking-up and moving a plate to different level within a workpiece carrier.

The invention relates to an apparatus for adjusting the accommodation volume of a substantially tubular workpiece carrier having side walls and supported in a line.
Widely diverse conveyor means are known for the transporting of workpieces, and in this situation the emphasis is on those conveyors where the workpiece is picked up and conveyed in a carrier supported on the conveyor line. For example and preferably, thoughts turn to liquids packagings which are indeed directly transported on conveyor belts, even without a carrier but where disposition in a workpiece carrier is preferred during their handling, particularly filling and sealing, even just for positioning purposes.
Various sizes of packages are known. For example, spirits, wine and juices are transported in relatively small packages while in some cases juice, milk, oils and water are transported in larger packages. The rough classification indicated here is intended solely to illustrate the fact that packages to hold liquids--and of course other types of contents--are filled and used with different volumes. For the manufacturer and user of an apparatus of the type mentioned at the outset, it is desirable to produce workpieces, e.g., liquids packages from paper, for different contents on the same production machine after minor adjustment operations. If a part of the production machine is a conveyor with a line on which workpiece carriers are fixed, then the workpiece carrier should be convertible from a large volume workpiece to one which has a lesser volume.
For such an adjustability of the accommodation volume of workpiece carriers, in the case of conveyor means it is already known to incorporate lifting rails along the conveyance path, so that while having the same cross-section, the workpiece carrier has maximum depth and thus maximum accommodation volume without the lifting rails. When a lifting rail is installed it can for example be adjusted to suit a shorter package, because then the bottom of this shorter package is brought by the lifting rail in the tool carrier to such a height that the top edges of the workpiece carrier and the workpiece are the same for all volumes. Such a lifting rail is indeed adjustable but cannot be used on curved portions of a conveyor, which is a drawback. Furthermore, practice has shown that three different lifting rails have to be used for three different volumes for example.
Practical experience has shown furthermore that at some processing stations in the production machine a workpiece carrier, in respect of the delivery level, has to be raised, lowered and restored to the original position. When lifting rails are used, such raising or lowering out of the datum level can only be achieved at considerable cost.

Apparatus for adjusting the accomodation volume of a workpiece carrier


An image processing apparatus includes an image data acquiring portion, an image determining portion, and an image data converting portion. The image data acquiring portion is configured to acquire first image data representing a color image. The image determining portion is configured to determine whether or not the image represented by the first image data is an image mainly composed of black characters. The image data converting portion is configured to convert the first image data to second image data by converting the first image data to binary image data when the image determining portion determines that the image represented by the first image data is an image mainly composed of black characters.

The present disclosure relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method for processing image data representing a color image.
Conventionally, there are known color copying machines and color multifunction peripherals having ACS (Auto Color Selection) function of automatically determining whether a document is a color document or a monochrome document. Also there is known a technique of determining, in reading an image of a document, whether the image of the document is a multilevel color image, a multilevel monochrome image, or a binary monochrome image, and regulating a charge accumulation time or a document reading speed of a color image sensor according to the determination result.

Image processing apparatus and image processing method