Systems and methods are disclosed for transcribing private information. The method, includes receiving a first information segment during a first interview session, and receiving a second information segment during a second interview session, wherein the first information segment A includes private information and the second information segment includes only non-private information. The exemplary method also includes providing information in the first information segment to a first transcriber, providing information in the second information segment to a second transcriber, wherein the second transcriber has no communication with the first transcriber. The exemplary method further includes providing a combination of the information transcribed from the first and second information segments to a user or other recipient authorized to receive the private information.

Transcription services translate verbal dictation into text documents. Typically, a user of a transcription service speaks information into a device to be stored as an audio file. When, for example, the user is a health care provider, the audio file can include patient-specific information such as the patient's name, age, and medical record number. The resulting dictation is given to a transcriptionist for translation into a text document. Because patient-specific information in the dictation is revealed to the transcriber, the transcription process places the patient's private information at risk of unauthorized disclosure.
Patient-specific information is referred to as protected health information (PHI). Protected health information generally includes health information that reasonably could be expected to allow identification of an individual. More specifically, protected health information is any information that identifies an individual, as well as the individual's relatives, employers, or household members. Protected health information can include, for example, names, addresses, dates (e.g., birth date, admission date, discharge date, date of death), contact information, medical record numbers, and account numbers.
Good medical practice requires that patients' private information be protected from disclosure or use without consent. Health care providers may also be liable under privacy laws, such as The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, for unauthorized disclosure of protected health information.
Some prior patent references attempt to protect information during the transcription processes. For instance, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0081428 to Malhotra et al. discloses a transcription system in which private information is filtered from dictation so that transcriptionists never have access to the private information. A software program extracts any private information and, after the transcription is completed, reinserts the removed private information back into the final report.
The disclosed methods and systems for information transcription are directed toward, but not limited to, improving the above-noted methods for transcribing medical dictation.

Methods and systems for protecting private information during transcription


An information processing unit of a communication apparatus includes a non-volatile memory and a volatile memory. A control unit of the communication apparatus loads the boot image from the non-volatile memory to the volatile memory upon activation of the communication apparatus, activates the virtual machine template in the loaded boot image on the volatile memory, deactivates the activated virtual machine template after reconfiguring the activated virtual machine template to minimum required configuration to execute a virtual machine. Upon receipt of a request for addition of communication service, the control unit creates a replicate virtual machine template by replicating the deactivated virtual machine template, activates the replicate virtual machine template, reconfigures the activated replicate virtual machine template to configuration according to the request for addition of communication service, and executes the reconfigured replicate virtual machine template as a virtual machine to provide the communication service.

This invention relates to a communication apparatus.
In cloud computing (hereinafter, abbreviated as cloud), a server in a data center is accessed from remote sites; accordingly, a network among the sites and the data center is requisite. In many cases, the network used in the cloud for consumers is the Internet and the network used in the cloud for businesses is a virtual network system including VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) in view of security and network performance.
For a plurality of virtual networks to coexist in a single physical network, a system ensuring independencies of the virtual networks is necessary.
Telecommunications carriers use wide area Ethernet (registered trademark; the same applies hereinafter) employing a technology called extended VLAN tagging (VLAN stands for Virtual Local Area Network) or provider bridging (802.1Q-in-802.1Q, Q-in-Q, double tagging) standardized by IEEE 802.1ad to achieve the independencies of virtual networks. As to the extended VLAN tagging, refer to The Evolution of Carrier Ethernet Services—Requirements and Deployment Case Studies, Luyuan Fang et al., IEEE Communications Magazine, March, 2008, pp. 69-76.
The extended VLAN tagging is a technology that adds another VLAN tag to a VLAN tagged Ethernet Frame to make communications using Ethernet Frames including multiple VLAN tags.
The VLAN tag of an Ethernet Frame which is added on the outer side of the Ethernet Frame is called STAG (Service TAG). The network apparatuses for extended VLAN tagged communication identify virtual networks for individual companies (tenants) by S-VLANs identified by STAGs to distribute Ethernet Frames to the individual virtual networks.
The VLAN tag of an Ethernet Frame which is added on the inner side than the STAG (on the payload-side of the Ethernet Frame) is called CTAG (Customer TAG). The network apparatuses for extended VLAN tagged communication identify individual networks in a business (tenant) by C-VLANs identified by CTAGs to distribute Ethernet Frames to individual office networks.
As described above, the extended VLAN tagged communication can be assured of independencies of networks among tenants and in each tenant by the STAG and the CTAG.
In the meanwhile, a telecommunications carrier uses a system called appliance (network appliance) specialized for a specific function to provide the tenants with a cloud communication service. Examples of the appliance include a WOC (Wide Area Network Optimization Controller) or a WAN accelerator for improving the communication speed between data centers or sites, an IDS/IPS (Intrusion Detection System/Intrusion Protection System) or a FW (FireWall) for detecting or blocking an abnormal communication, and a session load balancer. The functions of these systems can improve the communication function and communication performance of the cloud. Accordingly, in the following description, cloud communication services having these functions are generally called communication services as a matter of convenience.
The appliances for providing communication services include quite a number of appliances which do not support network virtualization. For this reason, it is common to install such appliances in a site of a company or a data center logically configured to be private within a company.
However, for a telecommunications carrier to provide a plurality of companies (tenants) with a communication service as one of the cloud functions, it is expected that the appliance be installed in a shared apparatus having a function of a gateway in a switching office or a data center of the telecommunications carrier. The telecommunications carrier is required to configure the appliance for different virtual networks of individual companies (tenants).
For a telecommunications carrier to provide a plurality of client companies (multiple tenants) with a communication service such as WAN optimization as one of the cloud services, it is desirable to use at least one communication apparatus that can provide a plurality of communication services while assuring the tenants of independencies of both of their respective communications by virtual network system such as wide area Ethernet and communication services.
To assure the tenants of independencies of their respective network communications, extended VLAN tagged communication is employed. For a single communication apparatus to provide a plurality of services, the communication apparatus is required to run a plurality of virtual machines. Accordingly, it is desirable to use the extended VLAN tagged communications in coordination with the communication services executed in the virtual machines and vice versa.
To use extended VLAN tagged communications in coordination with the virtual machines in executing communication services, it is required to install different virtual machines for individual tenants and individual communication services in the communication apparatus.
The existing technology has a problem to be solved: To provide a suitable starting image matching a hardware configuration of a PC to be booted via a network (refer to JP 2006-011506 A).
JP 2006-011506 A provides a solution: Based on hardware configuration information sent from a boot node 200, a starting image selection part 101 in a boot server 100 selects a starting image matching the hardware configuration information from the starting images stored in a starting image storage part 200 and transfers it to a starting image selection part 103. The starting image selection part 103 returns the selected starting image to the boot node 200. In this way, the starting image matching the hardware configuration of the boot node 200 can be provided.
The existing technology has another problem to be solved: To allow high speed deployment processing when a plurality of VMs are deployed from one template (refer to JP 2009-230655 A).
JP 2009-230655 A provides a solution: The deployment acceleration system of the virtual machine is provided with: a server 100 having a virtual machine 132; storages 300-360 which store entity of the virtual machine 132 as a virtual disk 302; and a management server 200 which controls the server 100 and the storages 300-360, wherein the storage 300 has the template 301 in which an OS (Operating System) and applications used for the virtual disk are integrated, creates a plurality of duplicates of the template 301, distributes the duplicated templates to other storages. The other storages perform VM (Virtual Machine) deployment for installing individual information about the virtual machine including an IP address and a name of a computer to the duplicated templates. The management server 200 controls each storage so that all the number of times of VM deployment and all the number of times of duplication of the templates may be minimized.

Communication apparatus and configuration method


An image forming apparatus which is capable of, even when the density of an image in a color with low reflectivity has decreased, detecting a misregistration of this color with high accuracy. A first image of a first color and a second image of a second value having lower reflectivity than that of the first color are transferred to an image carrier. A first signal corresponds to reflected light from a first measurement image, a second signal corresponds to reflected light from a second measurement image, and a third signal corresponds to reflected light from the image carrier. A threshold value is set based on the second signal and the third signal. A color misregistration between the first and second images is corrected based on information on a positional relationship between the first and second images determined by comparing the first signal and the threshold value.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and in particular to a threshold value setting process in measuring a measurement image.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrophotographic image forming apparatus has image forming units for respective color components which form images using toners of different colors. Toner images formed by the image forming units for the respective color components are transferred in a superposed manner to an image carrier. The image forming apparatus transfers the toner images superposed on top of one another on the image carrier to a recording material and then fixes the toner images to the recording material through heat and pressure of a fixing device to generate full-color printed matter.
In such an image forming apparatus, if images of the respective colors are out of register when they are transferred in a manner being superposed on top of one another onto an image carrier, color misregistration of the images on a recording material will occur. To address this problem, those which form a measurement image on an image carrier, and based on a result obtained by detecting this measurement image, adjust positions and timings of images to be formed for each image forming unit are known.
For example, when there is not much difference between an intensity of reflected light from an image carrier and an intensity of reflected light from a measurement image formed using a toner of a predetermined color, it is difficult for an optical sensor to detect the measurement image. For this reason, an image forming apparatus forms a composite pattern in which a measurement image of a predetermined color is superposed on a measurement image of another color (other than the predetermined color) and transferred and corrects for a color misregistration based on a detection result of the composite image by an optical sensor (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2012-3234). It should be noted that a reflectivity of the other color is higher than that of the predetermined color.
The image forming apparatus described in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2012-3234 obtains sensor output values output from an optical sensor during movement of an image carrier. The sensor output values of the optical sensor includes a sensor output value corresponding to reflected light from the image carrier and sensor output values corresponding to reflected light from the composite pattern. Further, the sensor output values corresponding to the reflected light from the composite pattern includes a sensor output value corresponding to reflected light from the measurement image of the predetermined color, a sensor output value corresponding to reflected light from the measurement image of the other color, and a sensor output value corresponding to reflected light from an area in which the measurement image of the predetermined color overlaps the measurement image of the other color. The sensor output values of the optical sensor are converted into binary signals based on a threshold value, and a color misregistration is corrected based on the signals.
FIG. 7A is a view showing the relationship between sensor output for a composite pattern and sensor output binary-coded using a threshold value. FIG. 7B is a view showing the composite pattern.
When the density of a measurement image of the predetermined color (for example, a black (K) measurement image) decreases, a sensor output value corresponding to reflected light from the composite pattern may exceed a threshold value as shown in FIG. 7A. This is because when the density of the black image decreases in an area where a magenta (M) image and the black image overlap, the magenta image is seen through the black image. As a result, the sensor can receive reflected light from the magenta image covered with the black image, thereby causing sensor output corresponding to the area where the magenta image and the black image overlap to be higher than the threshold value.
For this reason, when the density of the measurement image of the predetermined color decreases in the composite pattern, the sensor output corresponding to an area of the other color covered with the toner of the predetermined color in the composite image exceeds the threshold value, and hence it is difficult to correct for a color misregistration with high accuracy.

Image forming apparatus which corrects for color misregistration


An injection molding device comprising an injection mold with a middle mold part arranged in a first direction between a first outer mold part and a second outer mold part. The first outer mold part and the second outer mold part are linearly movable with respect to the middle mold part in the first direction between an open position and a closed position of the injection mold. The middle mold part is turnable about a rotation axis and comprises a side face which comprises a first cavity suitable to temporarily receive a first component. The first cavity communicates with a first half of a second cavity. At least one of the outer mold parts comprises a second half of the second cavity which interacts with the first half to form the second cavity to receive a liquefied first plastic material to form a second component interconnected to the first component.

From the prior art injection molding machines are known which are used to make multi component injection molded products.
US2010117440A was first published in 2009 in the name of Zahoransky A G. It describes a brush manufacturing machine which has a first injection-molding machine for the region-by-region injection molding of material around bristle bundles held in cartridges and for forming a bristle carrier connecting the bristle bundles. A second injection-molding machine is present in which the bristle carrier can be inserted and material can be injection molded around this carrier for forming a brush body or partial brush body. The first injection-molding machine is constructed for forming a thin-walled plate as a bristle carrier and has a shorter cycle time than the second injection-molding machine. At least the second injection-molding machine is constructed as a multi-compartment injection-molding machine and has a multiple of the number of mold cavities of the first injection-molding machine.
US2001013152 was first published in 2000 in the name of M and C Schiffer GmbH. It relates to a method of manufacturing a brush head comprising a brush head body carrying bristle bundles, such as tooth brushes, by way of injection molding. A first plastic component is injected into a first mold cavity for forming a bristle carrier. The ends of the bristle filaments projecting into the first mold cavity are encompassed by the first plastic component. The bristle carrier manufactured during the first step is relocated into another mold cavity, which is larger than the bristle carrier, and which is filled with a hard component. A brush head complying with the above-mentioned demands, that the brush body comprises a bristle carrier encompassing the bristle filaments on the attachment side, said bristle carrier being embedded into a hard component.

Method and device for making of aseptic blood bags and the like


A truck box cover device extended and retracted in a transmission manner includes a clutch type driving gearbox, a roller shutter shaft and roller shutter cover rail support frames. The clutch type driving gearbox is connected with the roller shutter shaft. The roller shutter shaft is stripped winding shaft and comprises a transmission end and a roller shutter cover mounting shaft. One end of the transmission end is connected with the clutch type driving gearbox and is driven by the clutch type driving gearbox to correspondingly rotate, and the other end is connected to the roller shutter cover mounting shaft. One end, away from the transmission end, of the roller shutter cover mounting shaft is fixed to the interior of a driven bearing.

Boxes for containing and carrying articles provide enormous convenience for people's lives. Generally, the box for containing articles includes box panels and a storage cavity, wherein the box panels surround to form the storage cavity. The box for containing articles may be opened at one side face, the top, or the side face and the top in a matching manner. Recently, with the development of vehicles, a pickup truck with an opened box-shaped cargo area is more and more popular. The pickup truck is a light-duty truck having a top-opened cargo area arranged at the rear of the cab, and side panels of the cargo area are integrated with the cab. The pickup truck further is a passenger-cargo dual-purpose vehicle having a passenger compartment at the front and a cargo area at the rear. The cargo area is covered with an electric tonneau cover such that the carried cargoes are prevented from the influence of the weather and the theft; thus, the cargo area is convenient to open and close, and the appearance of the pickup truck is more attractive. In a transmission clutch structure of an electric retractable tonneau cover of the existing pickup truck on the market, a motor main shaft and a roller shutter main shaft are connected by using an internal hexagonal sleeve, and they are regular hexagonal main shafts. Transmission of power is achieved when the internal hexagonal sleeve sleeves the motor main shaft and the roller shutter main shaft so as to open and close an electric roller shutter. When the internal hexagonal sleeve moves to leave from the motor main shaft, the transmission of power of the motor main shaft is interrupted; the electric tonneau cover can be opened and closed manually at this time.
When the electric tonneau cover of the existing pickup truck cannot be regularly opened and closed due to a power system failure and the like, because the internal hexagonal sleeve has a large contact area, and the motor main shaft still affects the internal hexagonal sleeve and the roller shutter main shaft during rotation, it is difficult to move the internal hexagonal sleeve. To eliminate the abnormal state, the internal hexagonal sleeve needs to move to the motor shaft. Such operation should be completed without observation, and the internal hexagonal sleeve has the large contact area; so, it needs a professional person to complete such complex operation. Furthermore, after the electric tonneau cover is mounted on the cargo area of the pickup truck, if there is a circuit failure, or the car battery is lack of power and cannot regularly drive the motor to rotate, or the motor is damaged, the electric tonneau cover cannot be opened; so, the regular use of the cargo area is severely influenced.
Therefore, it is an emergent technical problem how to provide a convenient, rapid and high-stability box cover device extended and retracted in a transmission manner in the prior art.

Truck box cover device extended and retracted in transmission manner


A washing machine having a friction apparatus which can uniformly wash articles to be washed and can improve the washing efficiency. The friction apparatus is installed in openings formed at a side wall of a spin tub. Upper and lower slots are formed at upper and lower portions of the openings. The friction apparatus has a cylinder, a rod which extends through the cylinder, a plurality of blades which are integrally formed with an outer wall of the cylinder, and first and second bushings fixedly inserted into the upper and lower slots. An inner wall of the cylinder is formed with a spiral groove, and the rod is provided at its outer wall with a spiral strip which is engaged with the spiral groove. The friction apparatus fully makes contact with the articles while the washing cycle is being carried out thereby uniformly washing the articles and improving the washing efficiency.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a washing machine, and more particularly to a washing machine having a friction apparatus which not only can uniformly wash articles to be washed, but also can improve the washing efficiency.
2. Prior Arts
As is well known, a washing machine is an appliance for separating dirt from articles to be washed such as clothing by sequentially carrying out various cycles in the order of liquid feeding, washing, rinsing, dehydrating, and draining cycles.
While the above cycles are being executed, dirt contained in the articles separates from the articles by means of friction between a liquid flow and the articles or by means of detergents.
FIG. 5 shows such a conventional washing machine 500.
As shown in FIG. 3, conventional washing machine 500 includes a housing 510. An outer tub 520 for receiving a washing liquid is disposed in housing 510. Enclosed within outer tub 520 is a spin tub 530 formed at its side wall with a plurality of discharging holes 532. Below outer tub 520 but within housing 510, there are provided a motor 540 for generating a driving force, and a gear assembly 550 which transfers the driving force of motor 540 to spin tub 530 or to a pulsator 560 rotatably mounted on a bottom wall of spin tub 530.
While the washing cycle is being carried out, pulsator 560 driven by motor 540 rotates is formed and reverse directions, thereby creating a swirl-shaped liquid flow in spin tub 530. The swirl-shaped liquid flow collides with the articles in spin tub 530, so the articles are washed.
However, is conventional washing machine 500, the swirl-shaped liquid flows generated by pulsator 560 become weak as they reach an upper portion of spin tub 530 due to an interference by the articles. For this reason, when a large amount of articles are placed in spin tub 530, the washing effect at the upper portion of spin tub 530 is reduced. Particularly, articles having light weight are not completely immersed in the washing liquid, but float on the surface of the washing liquid in the direction of the liquid flow. As a result, the articles do not widely collide with the liquid flow, so the dirt contained in the articles is not completely separated from the articles.
In addition, since the detergent permeated in the articles is not completely dissolved in the washing liquid, the articles are not cleanly washed.
In order to solve the above problems, various washing machines have been suggested, but they have presented many problems.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,857 issued to Rew et al. discloses a washing machine having a roller type agitator. In Rew's washing machine, the roller type agitator comprises at least one roller rotatably mounted on a rotator by means of a rotation shaft. In a washing operation, articles disposed in a spin tub directly makes contact with the rollers so that the articles are equally washed and so that a good washing effect can be obtained.
However, since the rollers are mounted on the rotator installed at a bottom wall of the spin tub, the rollers cannot make contact with the articles placed at an upper portion of the spin tub, so the washing effect at the upper portion of the spin tub is relatively reduced.


Techniques of relevant content surfacing in a computer productivity platform are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving, at an email server of the computer productivity platform, an email having a message body containing content and determining whether the content of the email contains a request to or a commitment by the user. In response to determining that the content of the email contains a request to or a commitment, inserting metadata containing one or more properties of the request or commitment into the email, the metadata. Then, when viewing of the content of the email by the user is detected, the computer productivity platform is queried for additional content using the properties of the request or commitment as keywords. The additional content is then surfaced to the user as being related to the content in the message body of the email.

Corporations, schools, charities, government offices, and other types of enterprises often deploy computer productivity platforms configured to allow members of an enterprise to share information. For example, a computer productivity platform can include a file management system that is configured to store, track, or otherwise manage internal documents of an enterprise. In another example, a computer productivity platform can also include an electronic communications system for handling emails, contacts, instant messages, or other suitable types of messages.

Relevant content surfacing in computer productivity platforms


A hood scoop decoration kit includes a bezel trim member having a concave shape with first and second ends extending in a common direction from a center section thereof. The bezel trim member is attached to an exterior surface of a hood scoop adjacent a forward facing end thereof. A planar mesh member, having a trapezoidal shape, is attached to a forward facing end of a hood scoop. The kit includes an attachment device for securing the bezel trim and planar mesh members to the hood scoop. In one embodiment, an adhesive material is applied to the concave surface of the bezel trim member and to an edge of the mesh member to provide attachment of these members to the hood scoop. The adhesive material includes a fluid adhesive and/or a tape having opposed adhesive sides. Alternatively, mechanical fasteners are employed for securing the decorative members to the hood scoop.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hood scoop decoration kit and, more particularly, to a hood scoop decoration kit adapted for use by an individual and, most particularly, to a hood scoop decoration kit that provides all materials for attaching the decorative items to the various surfaces of a simulated automotive hood scoop.
2. Background Information
It is common for high performance or sporty passenger vehicles to have an air intake scoop in the center of the hood to provide additional air to the intake of the engine. This feature is commonly referred to as a hood scoop. The hood scoop extends above the vehicle hood and has a forward facing, open, front end that provides intake of air. A screen or mesh is routinely attached within the open front end to prevent debris from being carried into the engine. The body of the hood scoop tapers to a rearward end that merges into the vehicle hood.
To further enhance the appearance of a vehicle which is not fitted with a hood scoop, a number of simulated hood scoops are available for purchase and installation on the vehicle hood. The simulated hood scoops are often fabricated from plastic polymer and fiberglass, and painted to match the color of the vehicle. The simulated hood scoops are often rather plain, and the owner of the vehicle may wish to further enhance the appearance with various decorative features.
Applicant has invented a hood scoop decorative kit to meet this need. The kit allows an individual to dress up a simulated hood scoop, or an actual hood scoop, at a reasonable cost.


A method of producing .alpha.-tocopherol from non-.alpha.-tocopherols is disclosed. In the disclosed method, non-.alpha.-tocopherols are hydroxymethylated and reduced to .alpha.-tocopherol in a single step by reacting formaldehyde or a formaldehyde-producing compound with the non-.alpha.-tocopherol under catalytic reducing conditions in a reaction mixture containing the non-.alpha.-tocopherol, formaldehyde or formaldehyde-producing compound and boric acid or a boric acid-producing compound dispersed in a solvent of an azeotropic mixture of trimethyl borate and methanol and a non-polar organic solvent.

The present invention is concerned with the hydroxymethylation of mixtures containing so-called "non-.alpha.-tocopherols" and the subsequent conversion of the hydroxymethylation products into .alpha.-tocopherol, with the two reaction steps being carried out together as a one-pot process.
As is known, the naturally occurring non-.alpha.-tocopherols, .beta.-, .gamma.- and .delta.-tocopherol, differ from .alpha.-tocopherol, the tocopherol which has the highest vitamin E activity and which is therefore the biologically most valuable tocopherol, by the absence of one or two methyl groups in the 5- and/or 7-position of the chroman part of the molecule. Accordingly, there exists a need for the chemical conversion of such non-.alpha.-tocopherols into (.alpha.-tocopherol, with the main problem residing in the efficient, complete mono- or dimethylation of the benzene ring of the substituted chromanyl group.
Since synthetic processes for the manufacture of .alpha.-tocopherol identical to the natural form thereof have hitherto been found to be uneconomical, and natural, especially vegetable, sources of tocopherols usually contain only a relatively small amount of .alpha.-tocopherol, but predominantly non-.alpha.-tocopherols, such that the isolation of .alpha.-tocopherol from such natural materials (raw materials) is also not particularly viable, the object of the present invention is to develop a process for the conversion of non-.alpha.-tocopherols, which may be present in respective raw materials or obtainable therefrom, into .alpha.-tocopherol, this process being more economical in many respects than previous pertinent processes.
With the same purpose as the object of the present invention, several processes for the conversion of non-.alpha.-tocopherols into .alpha.-tocopherol are known from the state of the art. For example, Japanese Patent Publication (Kokoku) No. 4183/1985 (Eisai Co. Ltd.) discloses a process for the manufacture of .alpha.-tocopherol from non-.alpha.-tocopherols by reacting at least one non-.alpha.-tocopherol with formaldehyde in the presence of boric acid or a derivative thereof under catalytic reducing conditions. This process, which comprises not only hydroxymethylation but also a subsequent reduction, is a one-pot process, so that the isolation of the very unstable hydroxy-methylated intermediates as well as side-reactions are avoided.
However, the process is clearly carried out at relatively high temperatures of about 200.degree. C. (see Examples 1-12), which is known to lead to an undesired decomposition of the formaldehyde to carbon monoxide and hydrogen and consequentially to a pressure increase in the reaction vessel. Further, it is noted that a whole series of allegedly suitable solvents, inter alia also the reagent "alkyl borate" (trialkyl borate, e.g., trimethyl borate), is mentioned; but the possibility of using a combination of solvents is not suggested. In view of the use of relatively high temperatures in the known process, this necessitates stronger and consequently more expensive process equipment (autoclaves) as well as high energy costs for the heating and cooling. In particular, the pressure increase caused by the decomposition of the formaldehyde gives rise to problems, not least dangers, in carrying out the reaction: the gases thereby generated necessitate expensive safety measures, which reduces the economy and renders additional investments necessary.
Further, the best results are achieved when trimethyl borate is used as the single solvent. This use, however, is expensive in the production or recycling and accordingly represents an expensive measure. Therefore, the process disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4183/1985 has serious disadvantages with respect to plant investment and operating costs.


Disclosed is a planetary gear train (8) comprising an internal gear (24), a sun gear (52), a planet carrier (10) which is provided with planet shafts (18) and on which at least one planetary gear (20) is mounted, and a shifting device with a sliding sleeve (66). Said shifting device allows for a direct connection between a shaft (44) driving the planetary gear train (8) and an output shaft (12) of the planetary gear train (8) in one shifting position while making it possible to modify the rotational speed between the driving shaft (44) and the output shaft (12) of the planetary gear train (8) in another shifting position. The planet shaft (18) is disposed inside the planet carrier (10) so as to be rotatable within a bearing (22, 80).

Commercial vehicles with a large number of gear ratios frequently exhibit a speed range gear which is connected to the principal gear with its gear ratios. By means of a speed range gear, the overall multiplication factor of the principal gear can be increased, because all of the gear ratios of the principal gear can be used together with each gear ratio of the speed range gear, and in at least one gear ratio of the speed range gear, the multiplication factor of the gear ratios of the principal gear can be reduced and/or increased.
A speed range gear for automobiles has been disclosed, by way of example, in DE 41 21 709 A1. A planetary gear of this type, installed downstream of the principal gear, provides the possibility of operating the automobile in two different speed ranges for each of the gear ratios of its principal gear. In a first slowed-down gear ratio level of the speed range gear, the annulus of the planetary gear is coupled to the gearbox by means of a switching clutch, so that the output shaft of the speed range gear exhibits a lower revolution speed than the output shaft of the principal gear. In a second gear ratio level, direct transmission takes place from the output shaft of the principal gear to the output shaft of the speed range gear, whereby the direct connection between the output shaft of the principal gear and the output shaft of the speed range [gear] is created by means of a switching clutch. The switching device is extremely complex.
DE 198 51 895 A1 describes an additional speed range gear in the form of a planetary gear. In that publication, the annulus of the planetary gear is connected in a torque-proof manner to the gearbox. The sun gear of the planetary gear is arranged coaxially to the output shaft of the main gear and is freely rotatable relative to the output shaft of the principal gear. In order to create a reduction ratio between the output shaft of the principal gear at the output shaft of the speed range gear, the sun gear can be connected in a torque-proof manner to the output shaft of the principal gear. This planetary gear is also complex and problematic for the mounting of individual components.
The invention is based on the task of improving a planetary gear and especially the component mounting.


A gaze point detection device includes a processor; and a memory which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to execute, capturing an image of at least part of a scene around a vehicle; detecting a direction of a line of sight of a person in the vehicle; determining an intersection between a plane and a line of sight of the person in the vehicle, the plane being along a running direction of the vehicle and apart from the vehicle by a given distance; and presenting a resultant projected point on the image as a gaze point.

In recent years, a technique has been proposed to assist a driver to drive a vehicle by detecting a point gazed at by the driver and identifying a point, corresponding to the gaze point, on a captured image of a scene around the vehicle.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2009-43003 discloses a drive assist apparatus configured to capture an image of a face of a driver and detect an angle of a line of sight of a right eye of the driver and an angle of a line of sight of a left eye based on the captured image of the face of the driver. Furthermore, the drive assist apparatus detects a line-of-sight vector extending from the center between the left and right eyes to an intersection between a vector indicating the angle of the line of sight of the right eye and a vector indicating the angle of the line of sight of the left eye.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 6-189906 discloses an apparatus of detecting a direction of a line of sight configured to detect a direction of a line of sight of a person based on signals output from an eye camera and a 3-dimensional magnetic sensor worn by the person. When the person is seeing a distant point through a windshield, the apparatus of detecting the direction of the line of sight assumes that the point of gaze is at infinity and maps the point of gaze on an image generated by a TV camera capturing an image of a scene in front of the person.
International Publication Pamphlet No. WO 2007/069489 discloses a safety-travel assistance device configured to detect an object to be paid attention to by a driver from two images of a scene in front of a vehicle captured by two cameras. The safety-travel assistance device further determines a relative positional relationship between the vehicle and the object using a triangular method. Furthermore, this safety-travel assistance device detects a direction of a line of sight of a driver, for example, based on a pupil and corneal reflection. In this safety-travel assistance device, a 2-dimensional space is set between the object and the driver, and the object is mapped at a point where a line extending from an eye of the driver to the object intersects the 2-dimensional space. Furthermore, the direction of the line of sight of the driver is mapped into the 2-dimensional space. The safety-travel assistance device detects a relationship between the object and the direction of the line of sight in the 2-dimensional space.

Gaze point detection device and gaze point detection method


Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) signaling messages, such as a SIP INVITE message and/or a SIP Redirect message, which are adapted for communicating signaling information between a plurality of network elements located on a multi-media services provider system to set-up a call between at least a first communication device and at least a second communication device of a plurality of communication devices. The SIP INVITE message includes a plurality of address and/or routing information located in a request-URI portion. The SIP Redirect message includes a plurality of address and/or routing information located in a contact header portion.

Presently, SIP is becoming an increasingly popular protocol for transporting both standard and non-standard information in a common framework over Internet Protocol (IP) based Local Area Networks (LANs), such as systems and services provided by AT&T. However, one drawback to the present SIP protocol is that the headers of SIP messages do not define a standard way to convey addressing and/or routing information.
The addressing and/or routing information is required for setting-up calls and/or for forming a multi-media communication path between a calling communication device and destination communication device. Since the SIP protocol and associated SIP messages do not define the parameters necessary to set-up calls or to form multi-media communication paths between the calling and destination communication devices, SIP cannot provide a standard way for signaling address and/or routing information between core network elements of the IP-based LAN.
Therefore, an unsolved need remains for a SIP protocol that provides SIP signaling messages, which are adapted for carrying address and/or routing related information necessary for providing signaling between core network elements of the IP-based LAN for setting-up calls and/or for forming multi-media communication paths between calling and destination communication devices.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Session initiation protocol (SIP) messages incorporating address and/or routing information obtained from a contact header of a redirect message


A bird feeder is provided having a seed reservoir with a side wall that has at least one seed access opening and an adjustable feed port assembly. The feed port assembly includes a base mounted to the side wall in a fixed relationship thereto and having a central opening in communication with the seed in the reservoir. Fitted to the base is a rotatable insert having a perch coupled thereto in fixed relationship so that the perch and insert rotate as a unit. The insert is rotatable between two positions, an upright position in which the perch is below the base central opening enabling birds to feed while standing on the perch, and an upside down position in which the perch is above the base central opening, requiring birds to hang upside down from the perch to feed.

Persons have long used bird feeders, birdbaths, and the like to attract birds of various types to their homes, both to view the birds and to feed the birds out of concern for their welfare in the event that food is scarce, as in winter. Different types of feeders have been developed, which each dispense foodstuffs that are preferred by a selected variety of bird that a person might desire to attract. For example, seeds, grains, suets, and nectars are common foodstuffs that can be dispensed by a selected type of feeder.
Seed dispensing birdfeeders are perhaps the easiest and most popular way of attracting a myriad of wild birds to a particular location for viewing. This is especially so in the winter months when food is scarce. Typically, seed feeders are suspended from or supported by a pole or post or hung from a tree branch so as to elevate the feeder above the ground and are built to hold and protect the seed from the elements.
There are a variety of seed feeders that have been constructed to attract various species of wild birds. One popular type is the tube feeder. Tube feeders are hollow, cylindrical tubes, often made of plastic, and have multiple feeding stations spaced along the length of the tube. Typically, feeding stations include a feed port and an adjacent perch, such as a radially extending post, positioned below the feed port to provide the feeding bird with a place to alight and then obtain seed through the port while the bird stands on the perch. Feeders intended for gold finches, however, who like to feed while in an upside down position, are made with the perch positioned above the feed port. Other birds such as nuthatches, and some varieties of woodpeckers, also like to eat upside down and will do so if a suitable bird supporting structure is available to them.
Thistle seed is attractive to finches and can be effectively dispensed with a tube feeder having a plurality of feeding stations. However, thistle seed is also attractive to other birds as well. Since thistle seed is one of the more expensive seeds on the market, when a consumer wants to attract gold finches using thistle seed it would be advantageous if other birds could be prevented from also consuming the seed. At other times, however, the consumer may want to use the feeder to dispense other types of seeds without concern for the type of birds that are able to feed. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to the consumer to have a feeder with an adjustable feed port assembly that can be configured to allow birds to feed in either an upright position or an upside-down position.


A method for attenuating parallel artifacts an ultrasonic acoustic imaging system, including generating a temporal average a plurality of received line acquisitions that laterally and symmetrically transposed with respect to transmitted lines wherein the averages represent received lines with attenuated parallel artifact component. The line acquisitions may be interleaved among a set of frames and directions and a packet of line acquisitions may be performed for each frame. The rate of data acquisition may be increased by executing a plurality of line acquisitions at divergent angles, by generating and providing to a transducer a summation of a plurality of transmitted lines for each line acquisition, or by generating a diverging and spatially separated plurality of transmitted lines for each line acquisition by means of disjoint sub-apertures of the transducer formed of non-overlapping sub-sets of transducer elements. The transmission apertures may be used in sequence with a plurality of concurrent receiving apertures. The maximum time intervals between spatially adjacent line acquisitions may be reduced by use of a plurality of sub-sectors and alternately incrementing and decrementing the receive angle in each sub-sector by a multiple of an angular increment, and by acquisition of packets of lines. The data acquisition rate may also be increased by interleaving line acquisitions among a set of frames and temporal averaging to generate successive updated images.

Ultrasonic transducers and imaging systems are used in many medical applications and, in particular, for the non-invasive acquisition of images of organs and conditions within a patient, typical examples being the ultrasound imaging of fetuses and the heart. Such systems commonly use a linear or phased array transducer having multiple transmitting and receiving elements to transmit and receive narrowly focused and "steer able" beams, or "lines", of ultrasonic energy into and from the body. The transmitted beams, or lines, are reflected from the body's internal structures as received beams, or lines, that contain information that is used to generate images of the body's internal structures.
In a typical application, such as cardiac scanning, a number of beams or lines are transmitted and received along a plurality of angles forming a sector, that is, a wedge shaped three dimensional volume of interest, wherein the angular width of a sector may be the full range of angles that the transducer is capable of generating and receiving, or a selected portion of that range. The lines of a sector are typically organized into "frames" wherein each frame contains data representing a volume of interest, that is, a sector, and may be further processed or viewed to extract or present the information of interest.
The sequence and timing in which the lines are acquired and the organization of lines into frames often depends upon the particular application and the information desired and is affected by such factors as the dynamics of the information that is being acquired, the time required to transmit and receive a line, the data processing necessary to extract the desired information, and the processing required to generate an image display of the information. For example, in certain types of cardiac scanning the frames may be organized so that each frame contains data representing the sector at a selected point in time in the cardiac cycle so that the dynamic operation of the heart in a volume of interest can then be observed by viewing successive frames.
In many applications, however, these requirements conflict or interact to produce undesirable results. For example, one important application of ultrasonic imaging is color flow mapping wherein doppler information is extracted from the returning signals to generate images, or maps, of blood flow velocity in, for example, the chambers of a heart. Color flow mapping, however, requires multiple data acquisitions, typically 8 to 12 along each line, and the time required for each acquisition along a line is determined by the speed of ultrasound wave in the body and the maximum depth of the volume of interest from the transducer. As a result, one or all of the frame rate, that is, the rate at which data is acquired, the line density, that is, the granularity or sharpness of the map as determined by the number of lines used to generate the map, or the field of view, that is, the angular width and depth of the sector as determined by the number and length of the lines, are compromised.
The ultrasound imaging systems of the prior art, including color flow mapping systems, have addressed this problem in a number of ways, such as allowing the systems to be configured in operate in either or both of the "rapid burst" and "interleaved line" modes.
In the "rapid burst" mode, the system transmits and receives a sequence or set of lines along a single direction, wherein the set of lines along a single direction is referred to as a "packet", and this process is repeated across the sector so that the set of all of the packets of the sector comprise a frame. That is, and to illustrate by a simple example, in a given system each packet may be comprised of four lines in the same direction, so that the lines and packets may be designated as lines A1, A2, A3 and A4 in the A packet, each of which are directed at an angle A, lines B1, B2, B3 and B4 in the B packet, which are directed at an angle B, lines C1, C2, C3 and C4 in the C packet, each of which are directed at an angle C, and so on. A frame is then comprised of all of the lines of the packets A, B, C and so on, while a sector is the total angle of view covered by angles A, B, C, and so on. In the instance of a "rapid burst" system, the lines are transmitted and received in the sequence A1, A2, A3, A4, B1, B2, B3, B4, C1, C2, C3, C4, and so on. Because all of the lines in a given direction, that is, along a given angle, are transmitted and received in a rapid sequence, the "rapid burst" method is advantageous in applications where the condition being observed is changing rapidly, such as in blood flow mapping of regions wherein the blood is fast flowing or wherein it is necessary to identify and map relatively short transients in the blood flow. In this instance, a frame represents a relatively small interval in time with respect to the cardiac cycle, but is sufficient in time to show blood movement.
In the "interleaved line mode", the total set of lines per frame is the same as in the rapid burst method but the sequence of transmission and reception of the lines is in a different order from the rapid burst method in that the system interleaves the acquisition of lines in a pattern among a sequence of two or more packets. Illustrating the "interleaved line mode" by means of the same example as just discussed for the rapid burst method, the sequence of transmission and reception of lines could be, for example, A1, B1, C1, A2, B2, C2, A3, B3, C3, and so on. As a consequence, interleaving reduces the pulse repetition rate in each direction, that is, the rate at which lines are transmitted and received in a given direction, but does so while acquiring the same total number lines in the same interval as does the rapid burst mode. This approach may be used, for example, where the condition being observed is relatively stable or changes relatively slowly, such as in blood flow mapping in regions where blood is moving relatively slowly. In such situations longer sampling times are necessary in order to observe blood movement and interleaving allows more time for the blood to move between "looks" in each direction while not affecting the frame rate.
A significant limitation of systems requiring multiple acquisitions along each line, however, such as in blood flow mapping systems or in B-mode systems operating with multiple transmit focus depths, is that the requirement for multiple acquisitions along each line limits the number of lines that can be acquired in an allowable time, even using "rapid burst" or "interleaved line" operation, thereby limiting the data acquisition rate of the system and, for example, the system resolution.
More recent blood flow mapping systems have therefore used a "parallel line" method wherein each transmission and reception is comprised of a single transmitted line and multiple received lines and wherein the term "parallel" refers to the simultaneous or concurrent reception of multiple lines. The received lines are typically offset to either side of but straddling the transmitted line, thereby increasing the density of acquired lines and, as a consequence, the resolution of the acquired data. This method may be used in conjunction with the "rapid burst" or "interleaved line" modes of operation and, as presently implemented, typically provides two or four received lines for each transmitted line, referred to respectively as two way and four way parallel receive systems.
The parallel line method of operation, however, is susceptible to "parallel artifacts", which appear in the displayed image as periodic gain variations in the lateral direction across the image, that is, as strong, weak, strong, weak, and so on, variations in the image. While the variation can be slight, for example on the order of 1 dB, the variation is very noticeable in the image because it is periodic and because it is fixed, relative to the to transducer, rather than moving with the tissues or fluids being imaged.
Parallel artifacts are typically caused by asymmetric shading of the transducer aperture and a consequent asymmetric variation in the transmitted signal strength by, for example, a rib or an air bubble. The asymmetric shading of the transducer aperture, in turn, causes an apparent shift in the origin of the transmit lines on the aperture while the foci of the transmitted lines remain in their correct, original position in space, thereby causing the transmit lines to effectively pivot slightly around their foci. The receive lines, however, are continuously focused in the typical system and are thereby not affected and do not pivot around their foci. The round trip gain of a line signal increases when the transmit directions are closer to the receive directions and decreases when the transmit directions are farther from the receive directions, so that when the transmit lines pivot around their foci there is a resulting periodic strong/weak parallel artifact that swaps from strong to weak and the reverse at the transmit focal depth.
There are yet other parallel artifacts which arise because the direction of the round-trip path of a transmitted and received line is the combination of and lies between the transmit and receive directions. Typically, the receive lines are over-steered to direct the round-trip lines in the desired directions, but the parallel round-trip beam shapes still have mirror symmetry rather than translational symmetry. As a consequence, a target or region forming an image or part of an image that moves laterally with a constant velocity moves through the image in a slightly non-uniform way, somewhat like an inchworm, and causes a moving image to appear as if it was viewed through rippled glass. As with the first described parallel artifact, this is very noticeable because it is periodic and does not move along with the tissues or fluids being imaged.
The systems of the prior art using multiple, parallel received lines have attempted to eliminate or reduce the affects of parallel artifacts by the use of lateral spatial filters with equal weighting for odd and even lines to attenuate the artifacts. As is well understood in the art, spatial filtering utilizes periodicity of data in space, such as provided by the evenly spaced received lines of a scanning ultrasound transducer, to attenuate unwanted affects at one point in space by, in effect, averaging the data at that one point in space with data acquired from one or more periodically adjacent points in space. This approach has been somewhat successful in systems using two way parallel receive systems, but the method effectively reduces the resolution of the data and results in degraded or blurred images. While the results of spatial filtering are undesirable but acceptable for many applications in two way parallel receive systems, the degradation and blurring of the image in four way parallel receive systems is unacceptable.
The present invention provides a solution to these and other problems of the prior art.

Data acquisition in ultrasonic imaging systems using multiple, parallel receive and transmit lines


An electrical connector includes an outer conductive member including a cylindrical member and an outer lid portion for covering the cylindrical member; an insulation member disposed in the outer conductive member; and a terminal disposed in the insulation member. The insulation member includes a main body portion retained in the cylindrical member, a middle lid portion for pressing a center conductive member of a coaxial cable and a cut portion formed between the main body portion and the middle lid portion. The terminal includes a contact portion for contacting with the center conductive member and an engaging portion for engaging with a mating connector, so that the middle lid portion is bent at the cut portion to press the center conductive member against the contact portion when the outer lid portion is bent to cover the cylindrical member and push the middle lid portion.

The present invention relates to an electrical connector such as an L-type coaxial connector. More specifically, the present invention relates to an insulation member disposed in an outer conductive member which configures the L-type coaxial connector.
An information device such as a laptop computer, a small electric device such as a mobile phone, and the like is configured to have an internal wiring arrangement using many small coaxial cables. For example, the coaxial cable is downsized so that a connector has a height as low as 1 mm when the coaxial cable is connected to the connector. In addition, the coaxial connectors are configured to have various shapes so that the coaxial cables are connected to a mating connector on a board or other coaxial cable. Commonly, a center conductive member of the coaxial cable is soldered to a central terminal of the coaxial connector in order to establish an electrical connection. However, when the electrical connection is established by the soldering method, it is necessary to implement a soldering process which requires a skilled technique. As a result, it may become difficult to improve productivity.
As one of solutions solving the problem above, Patent Reference 1 has disclosed a conventional coaxial electrical connector (a conventional connector). The conventional connector includes an outer conductive member having a cylindrical connecting portion, a dielectric member retained and held in the cylindrical connecting portion, a central terminal held with the dielectric member and having a connecting portion and a contact portion, and a pressing member for pressing a central terminal placed on a holding surface of the connecting portion.
Patent Reference 1: Japanese Patent Publication No. 2008-147094
In the conventional connector disclosed in Patent Reference 1, the cylindrical connecting portion has an axis in a direction the connector is connected to a mating connector and is opened in one end thereof. The connecting portion of the central terminal is to be connected to a center conductive member of a coaxial cable. The contact portion of the central terminal contacts a mating terminal of the mating connector. The outer conductive member includes a lid portion for covering the cylindrical connecting portion as being bent at a portion thereof next to the cylindrical connecting portion. The outer conductive member of the conventional connector further includes a surrounding portion for holding the coaxial cable after the lid portion is bent. The surrounding portion and the lid portion are formed consecutively.
In the conventional connector disclosed in Patent Reference 1, the center conductive member of the coaxial connector is exposed by removing an end portion of an outer jacket. Then the center conductive member is placed on the holding surface. The holding surface is formed in the connecting portion of the central terminal of the conventional connector. Next, the pressing member receives a pressing force as the lid portion of the outer conductive member is bent. The pressing member receives the pressing force and then presses the center conductive member of the coaxial cable between a pressing surface of the pressing member and the holding surface of the contact portion. Further, at least either of the pressing surface of the pressing member and the holding surface of the contact portion of the central terminal includes a position regulating portion. As a pressing surface presses the center conductive member against the holding surface, the center conductive member is held in a proper position by the position regulating portion. As described above, in the conventional coaxial electrical connector in Patent Reference 1, it is possible to hold the center conductive member in the proper position without the soldering process.
In the conventional connector disclosed in Patent Reference 1, however, when the pressing member is made with a molding material such as a liquid crystal polymer (LCP) resin and the like filled with a filler such as a glass fiber, a carbon fiber, mica and the like, the pressing member may not be bent at a fixed position as the connector is downsized. As a result, the pressing surface of the pressing member may not press the center conductive member of the coaxial cable against the holding surface of the contact portion to the proper position. For example, when the pressing member is molded with the LCP resin and the like filled with the filler, the pressing member may not be bent at a regular position of a bottom portion thereof since the filler is not distributed uniformly at the bottom portion or as the filler exists right in the bottom portion where the pressing member is bent.
In a case described above, the pressing surface of the pressing member of the lid portion shifts from the regular position where the pressing surface correctly overlaps the holding surface of the contact portion. As a result, it is not possible to press the center conductive member of the coaxial cable to the proper position with the sufficient pressing force. Therefore, the coaxial cable may have unstable response in high frequency since impedance thereof is deteriorated.
Patent Reference 2 has disclosed a conventional coaxial plug connector including a shell portion, an inner plug contact, a plug outer conductive member and an insulating lid portion. The insulating lid portion in Patent Reference 2 is situated between the shell portion and the inner plug contact and insulates between the plug outer conductive member and the inner plug contact. Further, the insulating lid portion corresponds to the pressing member in Patent Reference 1. The insulating lid portion covers a dielectric member of a coaxial cable placed in a neck portion of the plug outer conductive member as being closed together with a lid portion of the plug outer conductive member. The insulating lid portion made from an insulating material is connected to an insulator main body through a hinge provided an inner side thereof. The hinge is bent as the insulating lid portion is closed.
Patent Reference 2: Japanese Patent Publication No. 08-022851
When the insulating lid portion is accompanied with the hinge as described above, the hinge has a certain width. Therefore, due to the same reason described above, when the insulator is made with a molding material such as the LCP resin and the like filled with the filler, the insulating lid portion may not be bent at a fixed position of the hinge as being closed. Accordingly, the insulating lid portion may not be bent at a proper position.
In view of the problems described above, an object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector including an insulation member retained in an outer conductive member and a terminal fixed to the insulation member. The electrical connector of the present invention enables a middle lid portion of the insulation member to be bent consistently at a proper position in a bottom portion thereof as the middle lid portion of the insulation member is bent for pressing a coaxial cable between an inner surface thereof and an upper surface of the terminal without soldering of a center conductive member of the coaxial cable.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention.


An airbag device for use with a vehicle door having a window, the airbag device comprising: an inflatable cushion having a predetermined shape, the predetermined shape being configured to have a periphery larger than the periphery of the window of the door when the inflatable cushion is inflated; a backing plate for mounting the inflatable cushion in a desired location, the backing plate providing a reaction surface for a portion of the inflatable cushion as it is being inflated; an inflator for providing an inflation output to the inflatable cushion; and a conduit for providing fluid communication between the inflator and the inflatable cushion, the conduit having a diffuser portion disposed within the inflatable cushion, the diffuser portion having a plurality of diffuser openings for allowing the inflation output to be received within the inflatable cushion, wherein inflation of the inflatable cushion by the inflator will cause portions of the inflatable cushion to overlap the periphery of the window opening such that a retentive covering is provided over the window.

Side air bags and inflatable curtains are positioned to deploy in the event of a predetermined threshold event. The air bag or inflatable cushion is inflated by an inflator, which provides an inflation output to the inflatable cushion. In an un-deployed state the cushion is stored in a folded position proximate to the area of deployment. A sensing system determines whether air bag deployment is necessary. The sensing system can be either local or remote to the inflatable cushion and typically includes an accelerometer operatively coupled with a controller to provide an activation signal to the inflator. If the sensing system determines that the predetermined threshold event has occurred the activation signal is sent to the inflator. Upon activation, the inflator provides an inflation output to inflate the cushion.
It is desirable to provide an airbag device for use proximate to a vehicle door or vehicle door opening.

Method and apparatus for providing an inflatable cushion for use with a vehicle door


A rate matching method is provided for a mobile communication system that performs an adjustment to a code rate based on an optimal level by puncturing or repetition to respective bit streams of transport channels. The rate matching method is preferably applicable to uplink and downlink rate matching for channel coding including turbo coding, convolutional coding and the like. The rate matching method for uplink can include executing coding for bits of a transport channel, and branching off the bits into a plurality of sequences, constructing a first interleaving pattern for the plurality of sequences, constructing a virtual interleaving pattern for at least one sequence based on a mapping rule with a corresponding first interleaving pattern and calculating different bit shifting values in each column of each virtual interleaving pattern. Then, a bit position to be punctured is determined in each constructed virtual interleaving pattern using the calculated bit shifting values.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the next generation mobile communications, and more particularly, to a rate matching method for the next generation mobile communication system.
2. Background of the Related Art
The ARIB of Japan, ETSI of Europe, T1 of U.S.A., TTA of Korea and TTC of Japan mapped out a more advanced next generation mobile communication system based on a radio access technique and a core network technique of the existing global system for mobile communications (GSM) that services multimedia such as sound, an image and data. The parties agreed with joint researches to present a technical specification for the advanced next generation mobile communication system, and the project was called a third generation partnership project (hereafter "3GPP").
The 3GPP is classified into several technical specification groups (TSG). In a research field for a radio access network (RAN) among the TSGs of the 3GPP, a technical specification for an uplink rate matching and a downlink rate matching is provided. The rate matching is realized by adjusting to a code rate level most appropriate to a radio interface through a puncturing process for removing a specific bit or a repetition process for adding a specific bit for a bit stream provided via a channel coding.
Algorithms used in the rate matching can be divided into puncturing algorithms and repetition algorithms. Further, different rate matching algorithms are embodied in an uplink and a downlink, which is the reason why an interleaving for a rate matched bit stream is performed in the downlink and a rate matching for an interleaved bit stream is executed in the uplink.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure for an uplink in a conventional 3GPP standard. In the uplink, data streams of several transport blocks having the same quality of service (herinafter "QoS") have a channel coding execution according to a desired code rate, and then, are branched off into several sequences. These sequences are passed through a procedure of a 1st interleaving in a unit of a code symbol. Such 1st interleaved sequences undergo the rate matching using the puncturing algorithm or the repetition algorithm.
FIG. 2 represents a block diagram showing the structure for a downlink in the conventional 3GPP standard. In the downlink, data streams of several transport blocks having the same as 'QoS' have a channel coding execution according to a required code rate, and then, are branched off into several sequences. The sequences of the respective branches undergo rate matching using the puncturing algorithm or the repetition algorithm. Such rate matched sequences have an execution of a 1st interleaving in a unit of a code symbol.
In the channel coding applicable to the transport channel (TrCH) of the uplink or downlink there is a convolutional coding and a turbo coding. However, other specific channel coding may be applied thereto.
A multi-stage interleaver (MIL) is used as an interleaver for performing the 1st interleaving in this uplink or downlink. For reference, the span of the 1st interleaving using the MIL is same as a transmission time interval (TTL) of the TrCH.
The MIL writes a bit stream on an interleaver memory in a unit of a row, reads it in a unit of a column, and constructs an output bit stream. At this time, it is characterized that a rule based on a bit reversing order is applied in an order of reading the interleaver memory.
For example, if the number of column for the 1st interleaver is 8, each column number can be represented with 3 digits. Bit reversing for the column number can be performed in such a way that the column number bit value is reversed, namely, in such a method as '0(000)→0(000)', '1(001)→4(100)', '2(010)→2(010)', '3(011)→6(110)' etc. and thereby the column bit stream based on an order of "0 4 2 6 1 5 3 7" is outputted by 1st MIL interleaver, instead of an output of the column bit stream based on an order of "0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7".
The following table 1 represents the order of the column bit stream outputted from the MIL on the basis of respective columns of the interleaver.
TABLE 1R(k) KR(0)R(1)R(2)R(3)R(4)R(5)R(6)R(7)20140213804261537Table 1 shows bit reversing when the number of columns (k) of the interleaver is 2,4 and 8, respectively, and where R(k) indicates a result of a bit reversing.
FIG. 3 provides an order of the column bit stream outputted from the MIL in case that the column number of the interleaver, K, is 8 as shown in Table 1, in an example. Digits represented in shadow blocks of FIG. 3 indicate the order of the column bit stream actually outputted from the interleaver.
One code symbol in a turbo coder is constructed with a systematic bit, a 1st parity bit and a 2nd parity bit. The first parity bit represents output bits of an upper Recursive Systematic Convolutional Coder (RSC coder), and the second parity bit indicates output bits of a lower RSC coder. In contrast to the convolutional code, in the turbo code an importance of the three bits constructing the code symbol is different among one another.
In other words, among the systematic sequence, the 1st parity sequence and the 2nd parity sequence turbo-coded and branched off, the systematic sequence is relatively important and the remaining parity sequences decrease in importance, when decoding. Therefore, a method is needed for excluding the puncturing for the systematic sequence and puncturing mutually equally only for the remaining parity sequences, in the puncturing technique for the turbo code.
A conventional puncturing algorithm for the turbo code in the downlink is described in the following. For the turbo code in the downlink, the puncturing is generated in a unit of a code symbol, differently from the convolutional code basically generating the puncturing in a unit of a code bit.
One example out of the puncturing algorithms for the turbo code in the downlink provides that a puncturing position of the code symbol unit is decided so as to constantly perform the puncturing in the code symbol unit, and after that, the parity sequences on a corresponding code symbol position are alternately punctured. In another puncturing algorithm for the turbo code in the downlink, a position having the puncturing occurring in the code symbol unit is extended by twice distance, and after that, the parity sequences are simultaneously punctured every a code symbol in which each puncturing occurs.
Such puncturing algorithms for the turbo code are considered in the downlink. Since the puncturing procedures for the turbo code of the downlink occurs before the interleaving, the puncturing can be performed independently from the interleaving procedure.
However, if the puncturing algorithm for the turbo code are considered in the uplink, the puncturing procedure for the rate matching should be performed after the interleaving. Thus, additional terms need to be considered in comparison with the downlink.
As described above, the related art uplinks and downlinks in the 3GPP standard have various disadvantages. That is, parameters used in the puncturing procedure for the turbo code in the downlink cannot be used as is, and other and/or additional parameters should be used to satisfy a uniform puncturing of a code bit unit having a consideration for the interleaving. In other words, for a uniform amount for the respective interleaved column bit stream to be punctured, parameters are needed so that the puncturing may be uniformly generated even for the bit stream before the interleaving.
However, it is the present situation such a puncturing technique for such turbo code of the uplink is not yet considered And needed. Further, when the parameter used in the existing downlink is used in the uplink without change, even in the repetition procedure for the turbo code, a problem is caused that only a stream of a specific row is repeated. Also, it is the present situation that a rate matching method is needed that is applicable to all of a channel code such as the turbo code and the convolutional code etc. and channel codes used in the uplink and downlink.
The above references are incorporated by reference herein where appropriate for appropriate teachings of additional or alternative details, features and/or technical background.

Rate matching method in mobile communication system


Reproducing and recording apparatus and method for dubbing video data includes structure and steps employed in a system for copying encoded video data recorded on a first recording medium to a second recording medium. Structure and steps are provided for reproducing from the first recording medium (i) the encoded video data and (ii) identification data indicating an area of the first recording medium in which the video data is not to be reproduced. Structure and steps are also provided for supplying the reproduced encoded video data to the recording apparatus for recording on the second recording medium. Structure and steps are also provided for controlling the recording operation of the recording apparatus and the reproducing operation of the reproducing apparatus according to the identification data.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to reproducing and recording apparatuses and, more particularly, to apparatuses used in a system which transmits digital data reproduced by a reproducing apparatus to a recording apparatus to record the reproduced digital data.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, "dubbing" has been carried out in which two video tape recorders (VTRs) for reproducing and recording, respectively, are used and video data or another type of data (which has been reproduced using a reproducing apparatus) is transmitted to a recording apparatus to record the data.
Specifically, to perform dubbing, a tape cassette is set in the recording VTR, then the recording tape is fed to a position where the recording is to be started and it is paused there.
In the reproducing VTR, the reproducing tape is fed to a position where an image to be dubbed is recorded and it is paused there.
After both recording VTR and the reproducing VTR have been set ready for dubbing, a user places the reproducing VTR in a reproducing mode and the recording VTR in a recording mode, then begins dubbing.
When the tape on the reproducing VTR reaches the end of dubbing, the user stops the recording VTR and the reproducing VTR to terminate the dubbing.
According to such a dubbing method, however, if the reproducing tape has an area which should not be dubbed, then the foregoing dubbing operation has to be repeated before and after the area, which is extremely cumbersome.


Disclosed herein is a front-end device for a phased array system. The front-end device includes an array of horn antennas, a first set of transmission lines coupled to the horn antenna array for a first polarization, a second set of transmission lines coupled to the horn antenna array for a second polarization orthogonal to the first polarization, and a plurality of L-shaped excitation elements. Each L-shaped excitation element of the plurality of L-shaped excitation elements couples a transmission line from each of the first and second sets of transmission lines to a respective horn antenna of the horn antenna array.

1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates generally to phased array radar and communication systems and, more particularly, to RF (radio frequency) front-end structures and devices for such systems.
2. Brief Description of Related Technology
Recent advances in radar imaging and sensor systems have led to demands for compact, low cost, and robust phased array front ends. For example, radars for automotive adaptive cruise control (ACC) systems involve phased arrays detecting targets up to a range of 150 meters while maintaining a cost affordable to consumers. In addition, smart antennas with multiple beam forming capabilities should also achieve satisfactory link quality and reliability. Unfortunately, high performance phased array systems have typically been limited by the inherent complexity and bulkiness arising from the additional circuitry and hardware needed to achieve multiple performance functions and capabilities in a single, complete system. In modern radar systems, desirable capabilities include rapid beam scanning, transmit and receive functions at multiple simultaneous scan angles, and target distinction based on polarization signatures. Further, to achieve superior resolution and range, it is desirable to maintain a broad bandwidth with minimal losses throughout the entire system. Still further, the growing focus toward imaging radar systems and high data rate communication systems is pushing the frequency range for next generation phased array systems well into the millimeter-wave range and beyond. As a result, the production of radar systems addressing such functionality often amounts to a challenge met at the price of increased size, weight and cost.
In the past several years, a variety of new techniques have been introduced with the aim of realizing practical phased array architectures suitable for automotive collision avoidance radar, remote sensing, tactile missile, and communication applications. Multifunctional, one-dimensional multibeam phased arrays have been demonstrated, where beam control is obtained by implementing phase shifter or signal processing components as part of a hybrid circuit. To improve the overall gain and performance of the system, two-dimensional arrays have been formed. See, for example, the quasi-optical techniques described in Popovic et al., "Multibeam antennas with polarization and angle diversity," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., vol. 50, no. 5, pp. 651-657 (2002); and, Granholm et al., "Dual polarization stacked microstrip patch antenna array with very low cross-polarization," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., vol. 49, no. 10, pp. 1393-1402 (2001). However, to obtain electronically controlled multibeam steering with independent polarization control, additional circuitry and hardware are needed, which may lead to adverse design constraints on the system, such as increased adjacent antenna element spacing, or excessive power dissipation and heat due to tight dimensional limitations of the circuit layout.
Achieving a constant progressive phase shift between adjacent antennas over a wide bandwidth is also a significant challenge at millimeter-wave frequencies. A true time delay (TTD) approach has been used in past solutions involving, for instance, microelectromechanical system (MEMS) phase shifters, multi-line phase shifters, photonic control, and Rotman lens implementations. See, for example, Metz, et al., "Fully integrated automotive radar sensor with versatile resolution," IEEE Trans. Microwave Theory & Tech., vol. 49, no 12, pp. 2560-2566 (2001); Russell, et al., "Millimeter-wave radar sensor for automotive intelligent cruise control," IEEE Trans. Microwave Theory & Tech., vol. 45, no. 12, pp. 2444-2453 (1997); and, Chio et al., "A Rotman lens fed ridge-element multibeam array demonstrator," IEEE AP-S Int. Symp. Dig., vol. 1, pp. 655-658 (1994).
Of these approaches, the Rotman lens has been used to achieve low cost, reliable, multibeam phased arrays. See, for example, Archer, "Lens-fed multiple beam arrays," Microwave J., pp. 171-195 (1984). However, the Rotman lens is not an efficient power dividing component because losses of nearly 3 dB may be attributed to the non-perfect focusing of the rays within the lens. In the ideal situation, all power emanating from a particular beam port would be divided and coupled to each array port. However, in reality, a substantial amount of power is distributed throughout the lens and not focused upon the array ports. Substantial power losses, in fact, occur via the sides of the Rotman lens, which have been terminated to reduce unwanted reflections and minimize phase errors at the array ports.
Dual polarized phased arrays are becoming increasingly popular for identifying targets with various polarization signatures. Polarimetric radar systems extract both the amplitude and phase information to correctly characterize the position and polarization signature of such targets. This information is obtained through the independent processing of two orthogonal polarizations. In addition, communication systems can effectively double the bandwidth of the transmitted and received signals by taking advantage of polarization diversity.
One of the major components that has limited the performance of polarimetric radar systems is the antenna and its corresponding feeding system. For instance, slot antennas have been difficult to implement in a compact dual polarized array configuration, and horn antennas have required additional hardware, such as an orthomode transducer (OMT) or orthogonal coupling elements to achieve the desired dual polarized functionality. See, for example, Ali-Ahmed, et al., "92 GHz dual-polarized integrated horn antennas," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., vol. 39, no. 6, pp. 820-825 (1991).
Other common approaches, such as the use of patch antennas, have resulted in an inherently narrow bandwidth. For example, one past design involved passive microstrip circuitry feeding an array of perpendicular aperture coupled microstrip feeds, which then excite an array of dual polarized patch antennas. See Al-Zayed, et al., "A dual polarized millimeter-wave multibeam phased array," IEEE MTT-S Int. Microwave Symp. Dig., vol. 1, pp. 87-90 (2004). The combination of microstrip-based components and patch antennas helped form a tray architecture with a low profile suitable for stacking to form a two-dimensional phased array. However, the antenna array and feeding structure limited the system bandwidth to 2% for 32.2 to 32.9 GHz operation along with 13 dB cross-polarization radiation. See also Metz, et al. (cited above), and Ortiz, et al., "A Ka-band perpendicularly-fed patch array for spatial power combining," 2002 IEEE MTT-S Int. Microwave Symp. Dig., vol. 3, pp. 1519-1522 (2002).

Phased array systems and phased array front-end devices

The Regents of the University of Michigan


A method is disclosed for preparing metastable nanoenergetic composites (MNC) and for wet loading those MNCs into percussion primer cups. The method involves dispersing nanosize reactants in an inert liquid or, alternatively, making a nanosize reactant surface modification for improvement of reactant's chemical inertness towards water, followed by application of additives supporting a solid reactant particle dispersion in water or water solution prior to mixing. After mixing of the reactants, one maintains the presence of liquid water together within an energetic material in order to enhance safety during pre-loading of the primer mixture into the primer cups and during the final drying.

During the past several years the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Energy (DOE) have made a significant effort to find a replacement for currently used lead styphanate-based percussion primers due to their toxicity. Several metastable nanoenergetic composites (MNC, also known as metastable interstitial composites or superthermites), including Al—MoO3, Al—WO3, Al—CuO and Al—Bi2O3, were identified as the potential substitutes for currently used lead styphanate. These materials have shown excellent performance characteristics, such as impact sensitivity, high temperature output and low temperature ignition limit. However, it has been found that the MNC systems, despite of their excellent performance characteristics, are difficult to process safely. The main difficulty is handling of dry MNC powder mixtures due to their sensitivity to friction and electrostatic discharge (ESD).
It has been demonstrated at a laboratory scale that it is possible to mix nanosize (i.e., granules with dimensions on the order of <10−6 m) aluminum and oxidizer powders in low-boiling temperature solvents using ultrasonic devices. After the mixing, the solvent is vaporized and MNC mixture is collected from the drying pan. The MNC powder is weighed and dry-loaded into percussion primer cups. Unfortunately, this process has several drawbacks which prevent its scale-up. These drawbacks include: i) the necessity of using organic solvents, ii) potentially inadequate dispersion and mixing, iii) drying and handling of sensitive MNC mixtures, iv) dry-loading of sensitive MNC mixtures, and v) adverse susceptibility of the MNC percussion primers to humid air and liquid water. Up to now, there has been no reported research work addressing the use of surface modifiers and additives to efficiently prevent reaction of aluminum nanopowders with water, to improve dispersion and mixing in liquid water and to reduce the ESD, friction and impact sensitivities during processing and loading of percussion primers. All these outlined processing characteristics are essential for scale-up of percussion primer production.

Wet processing and loading of percussion primers based on metastable nanoenergetic composites

The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy


The refrigerator includes a main body having a storage room, a door for opening and closing the storage room, and a camera device having a plurality of cameras for photographing the storage room and mounted on the inner surface of the door. The state of the storage room can be checked without opening the door by the camera device.

Generally, a refrigerator is a household appliance including a storage compartment configured to store food and a cold air supply device configured to supply cold air to the storage compartment to make it possible to keep the food fresh.
In the case of a conventional refrigerator, only a function of storing food in a low temperature state may be performed. However, recently, functions in addition to the function of storing food have increased in necessity.
Since a refrigerator is an apparatus configured to accommodate and store certain objects to be accommodated, a door of the refrigerator has to be opened to check the inside of the refrigerator. Further, in the case in which a user does not know an amount and type of food stored in a refrigerator when buying something from a market or a store, the user faces an inconvenience of making a redundant food purchase or being unable to buy necessary food.


An aircraft landing gear 501 includes a folding side stay 502, wherein the folding side stay includes an integral locking mechanism and does not require the landing gear to include a lock stay. The lack of a lock stay reduces the airframe noise created by the aircraft, which is particularly significant when the aircraft is landing. The aircraft landing gear 501 is movable between an stowed and deployed position. The folding side stay 502 comprises a first section and a second section foldable relative to the first section. The integral locking mechanism 503 is arranged to lock the first section and second section of the folding side stay into position when the landing gear is in the deployed position.

It is desirable to reduce the noise that an aircraft makes when it is operating, for example to lessen disruption or inconvenience. There also exist regulations that limit the noise that an aircraft may make-when taking off and landing. Two main elements combine to create the noise of an aircraft flying; the engine noise and the airframe noise produced by the air flowing past the aircraft, which results in turbulent flows and consequently noise. When an aircraft takes off the engine noise dominates the airframe noise as the engines are on full power. However, when an aircraft lands the engines are on flight idle, a reduced power level, exposing the airframe noise, which dominates by producing about half of the noise created. A significant contribution to the airframe noise is made by the aircraft landing gear, which for safety reasons are typically deployed early when landing.
A typical landing gear 101 on an aircraft (as shown in FIG. 1) is movable between a stowed and deployed position. The stowed position is when the landing gear is retracted and housed within either the wings or body of the aircraft. The deployed position is when the landing gear is extended prior to landing. The landing gear 101 includes a main fitting 102, a side stay 103, a lock stay 104 and a down lock actuator 105. The side stay 103 is foldable in order to enable the landing gear 101 to move between the stowed and deployed positions and therefore in order to offer support to the main fitting 102 it is locked into a slightly over centre position by the lock stay 104 which is in turn locked by the down lock actuator 105. As with the rest of the landing gear 101 the folding side stay and the lock stay 104 each contribute to airframe noise by displacing air as the aircraft flies.


A terminal for a solenoid has a weld portion to which an end portion of a lead wire of the solenoid covered with a cover member is welded. The terminal also has a clamp portion for clamping a portion of the lead wire that is located toward a main body of the solenoid from the end portion of the lead wire. Tensile loads on the lead wire of the solenoid are received by the clamped portion of the lead wire and the welded end portion of the lead wire remains free from tensile loads.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a terminal for a solenoid which is used, for example, on solenoid-operated valves or sensors
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a conventional solenoid valve (electromagnetic valve) as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a solenoid 101 of solenoid valve 20 is covered with a resin molding 201. Solenoid valve 200 has a connector 202 for supplying power to the solenoid 101. Lead wires of solenoid 101 are connected to connector pins.
Solenoid 101 is formed by winding a wire on a resin bobbin 102, as illustrated in FIG. 4. The two end portions of solenoid 101 form lead wires 103, 104. Lead wires 103, 104 are connected by welding (fusing) to weld portions 107, 108 of terminals, that is, base portions of connector pins 105, 106.
When lead wires 103, 104 are welded to weld portions 107, 108, crystals in portions of lead wires 103, 104 adjacent to weld portions 107, 108 become large and rough. Such roughly grown crystals adversely affect the mechanical strength of lead wires 103, 104.
Solenoid valves are used in, for example, various control mechanisms in automotive engines. As an engine is repeated operated and stopped, the hot-cold cycles repeated expand and shrink resin mold 201 of solenoid valve 200, moving solenoid 101 back and forth. Because of such expansion and shrinkage, the portions adjacent to weld portions 107, 108 at which lead wires 103, 104 of solenoid 101 are fixed, receive tensile loads. Although the portions of lead wires 103, 104 adjacent to weld portions 107, 108 have roughly grown crystals that adversely affect the mechanical strength thereof as described above, conventional solenoid valves are designed so that no significant problems occur under normal working conditions.
However, there is a growing demand for increased service life of various component parts of motor vehicles or other machines that include solenoid valves and various sensors.