A wired spread spectrum communication device, a method for communication thereof and a wired spread spectrum communication system capable of enabling easy establishment of synchronism are disclosed. In a transmitter unit of the wired spread spectrum communication device, a spreading code generator generates spread spectrum signals that are based on specified spreading codes, a strobe signal generator and a timing gate output the spread spectrum signals as sync signals at specified timings, and an adder superposes the sync signals to the spread information signals, while the adder further sends the information signals that have been superposed with the sync signals as transmitting signals to transmission paths.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wired spread spectrum communication device for communicating information signals that have been spread through spreading codes by means of transmission lines.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional wired spread spectrum communication devices were arranged in that for the purpose of transmitting sync signals, sync bit strings comprised of, for instance, several tens of bits to several hundreds of bits were sent out in the form of so-called preamble signals prior to transmitting information signals of actual data. It was thus necessary to send such preamble signals each time synchronism was to be established with a counterpart side, which resulted in one cause of preventing improvements in transmission efficiency.
For solving such problems, the applicant (assignee) of the present invention has suggested "a wired spread spectrum communication device and a method for communication" as disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2001-144653, wherein it is disclosed that the wired spread spectrum communication device is "a wired spread spectrum communication device for transmitting information signals by means of transmission lines, comprising a sync signal generator which generates sync signals that are synchronous with one of information signals, spreading codes for spreading information signals or spread spectrum signals after spread, and a transmitting means which sends out the sync signals to transmission lines together with spread spectrum signals".
However, upon further studies that have been made by the inventors of the present invention, it has been found that the above-described wired spread spectrum communication device still exhibits the following drawbacks.
(1) It has been found that fluctuations in load connected to transmission lines for transmitting information signals or mixing of exogenous noise affect also properties of transmission lines so that cases may occur in which sync signals cannot be exactly extracted from received signals.
More particularly, when utilizing power lines such as power transmission lines or interior wirings as transmission lines, impedance properties of transmission lines fluctuate depending on load conditions of a demander side who receives supply of power or depending on supply conditions of a supplier side who supplies power, wherein such fluctuations cause attenuations in correlation peaks P to peaks P′ of waveform α as illustrated in FIG. 7(A). A drawback is accordingly presented in that establishment of synchronism becomes difficult.
Upon mixing of exogenous noise owing to electromagnetic waves or the like into transmission lines, peaks may appear at positions different from the original correlation peaks P that are shown as waveform β as illustrated in FIG. 7(A). Such peaks owing to exogenous noise also present the drawback that difficulties in establishing synchronism are found.
(2) When employing code division multiple access (hereinafter referred to as "CDMA") through spread spectrum multiplex method, peaks exist at time positions that differ from those of the original correlation peaks P. A drawback is presented in that establishment of synchronism becomes more difficult owing to fluctuations in load or mixing of exogenous noise as already discussed in (1) above.
The present invention has been made in view of the above drawbacks, and an object of this invention is to provide a wired spread spectrum communication device, a method for communication thereof, and a wired spread spectrum communication system with which it is possible to easily establish synchronism.

Wired spread spectrum communication device, a method for communication thereof, and a wired spread spectrum communication system


A testing apparatus includes a scenario processing unit that executes a test scenario for operating the testing apparatus to imitate the operation of a base station, a communication unit capable of transmitting and receiving a message to and from a mobile communication terminal, a layer processing unit for processing a message for each layer, a log data storing unit for storing log data indicating transmission of messages between the layers, and a display controller for creating a transmission schedule based on the extracted data associated with system information and causing a display unit to display the transmission schedule. The transmission schedule is written in a tabular form in which a block type of the system information is displayed at a position to which a frame for transmitting the system information is allocated.

In the development of mobile communication terminals such as cellular phones or mobile devices, it is tested whether a mobile communication terminal, which is currently being developed, can normally communicate with a base station in accordance with communication standards. To test the mobile communication terminal, a testing application for simulating the base station is utilized. This testing apparatus stores a prepared test scenario, which describes the operation sequence of the testing apparatus and communication sequence between the testing apparatus and the mobile communication terminal.
In the communication test for the mobile communication terminal, the testing apparatus is operated as a pseudo base station in accordance with the test scenario to communicate with the mobile communication terminal as a test target, thereby testing whether normal communication is performed.
In the mobile communication standards, system information is defined as important information to be sent from a base station to a mobile communication terminal. For instance, the system information includes base-station position information, peripheral cell information, and information for performing transmission control. The system information is cyclically broadcasted to mobile communication terminals per a predetermined number of frames, e.g., 128 frames.
In, for example, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), the system information is formed of a single Master Information Block (MIB) and a plurality of System Information Blocks (SIBs).
The MIB includes information for enabling each mobile communication terminal to detect the structure of the SIBs cyclically broadcasted in units of 128 frames, i.e., a transmission schedule indicating which SIB is transmitted in which frame, and also includes information for enabling each mobile communication terminal to detect a change in the system information.
The SIBs comprise different types of blocks labeled with, for example, SIB1, SIB2 and SIB3. SIB1 is used to inform each mobile communication terminal of common information shared between groups of cells. The other SIBs are used to inform each terminal of common information shared among cells.
The system information can include a plurality of SBs (scheduling blocks) as options. The SBs include SIB scheduling information, more specifically, SIB transmission scheduling information.
When transmitting the MIB, SIB and SB blocks, the base station allocates one block to every other frame in repetition made in units of 128 frames. These blocks are classified under the communication protocol into those fixed in allocation position and in the number of times of allocation in 128 frames, like the MIB, and those that are not fixed but can be arbitrarily set in allocation position and in the number of times of allocation.
It is a matter of course that the transmission of the system information is included in the above-mentioned test scenario. When performing the test, blocks are cyclically transmitted from the testing apparatus to each mobile communication terminal, based on the set transmission schedule.
Certain blocks in the system information have a high degree of freedom in setting, and hence it can be arbitrarily determined in which frames included in the 128 frames, these blocks should be transmitted or should not be transmitted. Further, since setting of the system information significantly influences the operation of the mobile communication terminal, there is a tester's demand for confirming the transmission schedule of the system information when a communication test is performed.
In the prior art, to confirm the system information transmission schedule, a tester reads the test scenario that will be executed by the testing apparatus, and extracts the portion of the scenario corresponding to the system information. Alternatively, the tester sees a displayed log associated with the communication performed in the communication test between the testing apparatus and a mobile communication terminal, and extracts the portion corresponding to system information from the log, as is disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2009-147640.
However, in order to confirm the transmission schedule of the system information, it is necessary to perform complex work of searching 64 blocks in the 128 frames cyclically transmitted, for the above-mentioned portion from the test scenario or the displayed log.
For the purpose of imparting an instruction to the testing apparatus, the test scenario is described in the form of, for example, program source code written in Pearl language. Further, since the log is a record of all data exchanged between all layers of the protocol stack used in communication for debugging, the log and the test scenario both contain a great amount of information. Accordingly, when confirming the system information transmission schedule, a lot of time and labor are required for, in particular, the portion of the system information to be visually searched for by the tester. Further, since a large number of system information items exist, it is difficult to grasp the entire system information schedule.

Testing apparatus and test display method


An amplified laser source for amplifying a laser projection that includes a diode laser source modulated by a pulse generator applying an alternate high and low voltages higher and lower than a threshold voltage for projecting a modulated optical signal. The laser source further includes a first erbium-doped fiber (EDF) for amplifying the modulated optical signal. The laser source further includes a set of Bragg gratings for receiving the modulated optical signal from the first EDF for reflecting a grating-specific pulse-distortion-reduced optical signal. The laser source further includes an electro-absorption (EA) modulator synchronized with the pulse generator for increasing an extinction ratio of the optical signals. The laser source further includes a second erbium doped fiber (EDF) for receiving and amplifying the optical signal from the EA modulator wherein the second erbium doped fiber (EDF) having a length of several meters and a diameter greater than or equal to thirty-five micrometers.

Conventional technologies for providing high power fiber laser sources for future free space telecommunication systems are still limited by several technical difficulties. Specifically, in the processes of producing high-energy pulses, current techniques and systems tend to sharpen the temporal responses and create a high peak region in the leading edge of the pulse. The high power leading edge causes potential optical damages of the internal components of the laser source and further reduces the transmission distance due to a non-transform limited pulse shape. The sharp leading edge of the laser pulses when projected into the optical components in an optical transmission system generates a high-energy shock over very short time duration. This instantaneous energy shock may well be over the damage threshold of the components, e.g., the damage thresholds of the photo-detectors and optical filters, and thus cause instantaneous system malfunction and that often leads to permanent damage. Moreover, for an optical communication system, the higher power density caused by these sharpened temporal responses and higher leading edge of the laser pulse are often detrimental to the detection subsystem due to the energy transfer to the Stokes lines now provided with a stronger fiber amplifier.
Another technical difficulty that often limits the capabilities of a fiber laser source is related to the laser chirp due to modulation and self phase modulation (SPM) that leads to distortions of the laser pulses. As that shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the time dependent frequency of a laser pulse in the frequency domain depends on the deviation of the pulse power. The relationships can be expressed by the following equations according to F. Koyama as disclosed in "Frequency Chirping in External Modulators" published in the Journal of Lightwave Technology, Volume 6, No. 1, 1988.
                                          f            ist                                          (            t            )                          =                              f            0                    +                                    α                              4                                                                                π                                                                                ∂                                      S                                                              (                      t                      )                                                                      /                                  ∂                  t                                                            S                                                  (                  t                  )                                                                                α        =                  2                                                              S                                                              ∂                Φ                            /                              ∂                t                                                                    ∂                S                            /                              ∂                t
The equations show that as the steepness of the pulse in time domain increases the frequency shift also increases. Under practical operational conditions, the optical signals are generally transmitted over a dispersive medium. As a result, when the signals are transmitted over a distance over a dispersive medium, more distortions are increasingly introduced into the optical signals and as the signals are spread over a broadened frequency range that usually also generates optical signals with an unsymmetrical spectrum. Therefore, the pulse distortions as encountered in the practical operational conditions described above, further causes the steepness of the laser pulses thus worsening the problems resulted from the high power at the lead-edging of the laser pulses.
Many laser source technologies are known and available for those of ordinary skill in the art. For application to modern telecommunication systems, due to the requirements to have well-defined pulse shape and large extinction ratios, the traditional Q-fiber lasers as disclosed by several prior art publications are no longer useful. These publications include: J. Yang, et al., "Wide band erbium doped fiber ring laser using switchable fiber Bragg gratings," SPIE 4594, 282 (2001); G. P. Lee, et al., "980 nm diode pumped Er/Yb doped Q switch fiber laser." Electron. Lett. 31(21), 1836-1837(1995); G. P. Lee, et al., "Q switched erbium doped fiber laser utilizing a novel large mode area fiber." Electron. Lett. 33(5), 393-394(1998); R. J. Mears, et al., "Low threshold tunable CW and Q-switch fiber laser operating at 1.55 micon," Electron. Lett. 22(3), 159-160(1986); P. Mylinski, et al., "High power Q switched erbium doped fiber laser," IEEE J. Quentum Electron. 28, 371-377 (1992); F. Sequin, et al, "Diode pumped Q switch laser," Opt. Eng. 32(9), 2036-2041 (1993); M. Sejka, et al., "High repetition rate Q switch erbium doped fiber ring laser," Optical Fiber Technology 1, 167-170 (1995); and A. Chandonnet, et al., "High power Q switched erbium fiber laser using an all fiber intensity modulator," opt. Eng. 32(9), 2031-2035 (1993).
More technologies to improve the performance and power of the laser sources were also investigated and published. However, the above-mentioned technical difficulties are not yet resolved by prior art investigations as disclosed in the many publications in the field of fiber laser researches. These disclosures include different amplification schemes used as alternative techniques to produce high energy and high repetition rate pulses via a gated amplification. The results are published by B. Desthieux, R. L. Laming, and D. N. Payne, entitled "111 kW Pulse amplification at 1.5 micron," Appl. Phys. Lett. 63(5), 585-588 (1993); D. Taverner, et al., "Generation of high energy pulses using a large mode area erbium doped fiber amplifier," Proc. CLEO'96, 496-497 (1996); and D. Gapontsev, et al., "25 kW peak power, wide tunable repetition rate and pulse duration eye safe MOPFA laser," Proc. CLEO'96, 209-210 (1996). Techniques by using multiple isolated gain stages were also investigated and published by A. Galvanauskas, et al., "Compact ultra high power laser system," SPIE 2377, 117-126 (1995); D. Taverner, et al., "158 micron Joul pulses from a single transverse mode, large mode area erbium doped fiber amplifier," Opt. Lett. 22 (6), 378-380 (1997); and D. Rafizadeh, et al., "Kilowatt pulses from a single mode erbium doped amplifier," Electron. Lett. 317-318 (1994). However, these techniques have not been successful to provide solution for the technical difficulties caused by sharpened temporal responses in the leading edge of high power laser pulses and different pulse distortions caused by laser chirp difficulties. FIGS. 1C and 1D is an example extracted from Opt. Lett. 22, 378 (1997) to illustrate the pulse shape evolution in amplifiers over test points 1,2, and 3. The sharp leading edges as discussed above are clearly shown in these figures. As shown by FIGS. 1C and 1D, the prior art technologies as those available to those of ordinary skill in the art, have not provided system configurations and methods to overcome these difficulties.
Therefore, a need still exists in the art of fiber laser source design and manufacture to provide a new and improved configuration and method to provide high power laser source with compact configuration, low power consumptions and high quality pulse shapes with high extinction ratio and overall power utilization efficiency.

High power pulse shaping fiber laser for high data rate free space telecommunication systems


An arrangement to receive and accommodate the power and control electronics of an electric motor comprises a first circuit board mounted with control electronic components, a second circuit board mounted with power electronic components which has a substrate that not only has electrically insulating properties but also good thermal conductivity, a cooling element in thermally conductive contact with the substrate of the second circuit board and a motor housing connected to the cooling element.

The invention relates in general to the field of electronically commutated, brushless DC motors. These kinds of motors may find application in a variety of different areas such as in automobile technology for blowers, coolant pumps or to support the steering system. Other areas include, for example, fan blowers in power supplies or spindle motors in hard disk drives for data processing systems, to name but a few possible applications.
An electronically commutated, brushless DC motor basically consists of a shaft, a rotor assembly having one or more permanent magnets arranged on the shaft and a stator assembly comprising a stator core and phase windings. Two bearings spaced apart axially are arranged on the shaft for the purpose of journaling the rotor assembly and the stator assembly with respect to each other.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a circuit to drive a three-phase DC motor. In the illustrated embodiment, the control circuit comprises six power transistors as well as other control electronics, not illustrated in the drawing, which control the operation of the DC motor. In the prior art it is standard practice to set up the control electronics for the DC motor on a printed circuit board as a closed unit which is plugged into the motor or connected to the motor in some other way. The electronic circuit board is connected to the motor via connecting wires and leads which are connected to the circuit board through soldering, using connectors or any similar means. Plug-in and soldered connections, as well as the length of the leads, increase the electrical resistance of the DC motor and consequently reduce the electric voltage available at the motor windings.
The power components of an electric motor, particularly a heavy-duty electric motor in a harsh environment, such as in a motor vehicle, are often heated to temperatures of over 100° C. To avoid overheating, it is therefore necessary to cool such power components in order to prevent their premature breakdown.
On the other hand, it is necessary to accommodate the power components as well as the control components of the electric motor on electrically insulating circuit boards and to connect them to each other. It is thus common practice to make the substrate of conventional circuit boards from a plastic having good electrically insulating properties. A plastic of this kind, however, has poor thermal conductivity.
A circuit board material which is not only electrically insulating but also conducts heat well is known (company publication "The T-Lam System—T-Guide for performance", THERMAGON Inc., Ohio/USA, 16, Nov. 1999).
The object of the invention is to provide an arrangement to accommodate the power and control electronics of an electric motor which meets the requirements, on the one hand, for good thermal conductivity of the heat generated in the power components and, on the other hand, for good electrical insulation of both the power components and the control components, combined with a simple, space-saving, low-cost design and construction.

Assembly for accommodating the power electronics and control electronics of an electric motor

Abstract: Since the first circuit board can be constructed in a conventional manner and satisfactory cooling of the power electronic components arranged on the second circuit board has been provided for by the provision of the second circuit board that conducts heat to the cooling element, a compact, cost-saving overall design and construction has been achieved which is reliable when the electric motor is in operation.


One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that performs a carry-save division operation that divides a numerator, N, by a denominator, D, to produce an approximation of the quotient, Q=N/D. The system approximates Q by iteratively selecting an operation to perform based on higher order bits of a remainder, r, and then performing the operation, wherein the operation can include, subtracting D from r and adding a coefficient c to a quotient calculated thus far q, or adding D to r and subtracting c from q. These subtraction and addition operations maintain r and q in carry-save form, which eliminates the need for carry propagation and thereby speeds up the division operation. Furthermore, the selection logic is simpler than previous SRT division implementations, which provides another important speed up.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for performing mathematical operations within computer systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for efficiently performing a carry-save division operation in circuitry within a computer system.
2. Related Art
In order to keep pace with continually increasing microprocessor clock speeds, computational circuitry within the microprocessor core must perform computational operations at increasingly faster rates. One of the most time-consuming computational operations that can be performed within a computer system is a division operation. A division operation involves dividing a numerator, N, by a denominator, D, to produce a resulting approximation of quotient, Q, wherein Q=N/D.
Computer systems often perform division operations using a variant of the SRT technique, which iteratively performs subtraction operations on a remainder, R, to retire a fixed number of quotient bits in each iteration. (The SRT technique is named for Sweeny, Robertson and Tocher, who each independently developed the technique at about the same time.)
Unfortunately, each iteration of the SRT division technique involves performing addition and/or subtraction operations that require time-consuming carry completions and selection logic to decide which operations to perform. Hence, hardware implementations of the SRT division technique tend to be relatively slow.
What is needed is a method and an apparatus for performing a division operation that takes less time than the SRT technique.

Method and apparatus for performing a carry-save division operation


A liquid crystal compound of the present invention is represented by the following general Formula I: ##STR1## wherein R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 are independently a linear or branched alkyl group or alkoxy group having 1 to 14 carbon atoms, provided that at least one of R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 is an alkyl group; --Y-- is a group represented by the following Formula (II) or (III); and X.sub.1, X.sub.2, X.sub.3, and X.sub.4 are independently a hydrogen atom or a fluorine atom: ##STR2##

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device used for a display of a clock, a calculator, a word processor, a small TV set, etc., and a liquid crystal compound and a liquid crystal composition (in particular, a ferroelectric liquid crystal composition) preferably used for the liquid crystal display device.
2. Description of the Related Art
At present, most of the above-mentioned liquid crystal display device s use a TN (twisted nematic) display system. TN liquid crystal display devices, which utilize a nematic liquid crystal composition, are roughly classified into two groups.
One group includes liquid crystal display devices which utilize an active matrix system in which a switching element, e.g., TFT (thin film transistor), is provided at each pixel. The active matrix system realizes a display quality comparable to that of a CRT (cathode ray tube). However, due to the complicated structure, it is costly to produce a large active matrix liquid crystal display device.
The other group includes liquid crystal display devices which utilize an STN (super twisted nematic) system. The STN system realizes an improved contrast and viewing angle characteristic, compared with those of a conventional simple matrix system. However, the STN system is not suitable for displaying animations because of its slow response speed. Furthermore, the STN system has the disadvantage of a lower display quality than that of the active matrix system using TFTs. On the other hand, the STN system can be produced at low cost. Considering a display quality and a production cost, the active matrix system and the STN system respectively have both advantages and disadvantages.
An example of a display system overcoming the above-mentioned problems includes a liquid crystal display system using ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) which is smectic liquid crystal exhibiting spontaneous polarization (R. B. Meyer et al., Journal de physique, 36L-69 (1975)). When the ferroelectric liquid crystal is placed between a pair of substrates (cell) opposing each other with a gap of several .mu.m therebetween, the helical structure of the liquid crystal is eliminated, so that bistable switching having a memory effect can be realized. Such ferroelectric liquid crystal is called surface stabilized ferroelectric liquid crystal (SSFLC). Currently, ferroelectric liquid crystal refers only to SSFLC. SSFLC was proposed by N. A. Clark, S. T. Lagerwall, Appl. Phys. Lett., 36, 899 (1980).
The SSFLC system has a high response and a memory property 100 to 1000 times as high as those of the conventional liquid crystal display device using nematic liquid crystal, and furthermore, has a wide viewing angle characteristic. These properties suggest the usefulness of SSFLC for a large capacity display.
However, as the study proceeds, problems of SSFLC which should be overcome are becoming apparent. Among them, it is the first objective to obtain a stable memory property. The reason why it is difficult to obtain a stable memory property in SSFLC lies in nonuniform smectic layer structure (e.g., twisted alignment, a chevron structure, etc.), and the generation of an inner reverse electric field which is considered to be caused by the excessively high spontaneous polarization.
As one means for obtaining a stable memory property, an AC stabilizing effect using a ferroelectric liquid crystal composition having a negative dielectric anisotropy (hereinafter, referred to as ".DELTA..epsilon.") has been proposed (Paris Liquid Crystal Conference, p. 217 (1984)). Hereinafter, the AC stabilizing effect will be described.
Liquid crystal molecules having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. have the property that they are aligned parallel to substrates (i.e. molecule long axes are aligned vertically to the direction of an electric field) while an electric field is being applied in a direction vertical to electrodes provided on the substrates in a cell subjected to a homogeneous alignment treatment. In the case where a low frequency electric field is applied, spontaneous polarization of the liquid crystal molecules can follow the inversion of the electric field. Therefore, the liquid crystal molecules move to another stable state along with the inversion of direction of the electric field and become parallel to the substrates due to the effect of .DELTA..epsilon.. In contrast, in the case where a high frequency electric field is applied, spontaneous polarization of the liquid crystal molecules does not follow the inversion of the electric field. Therefore, only .DELTA..epsilon. exerts its effect, and the liquid crystal molecules do not move while the direction of the electric field is inverted. Thus, the liquid crystal molecules remain parallel to the substrates. This is a mechanism of obtaining a memory property utilizing the AC stabilizing effect, which enables a high contrast to be obtained. An example of the AC stabilizing effect has already been reported in SID'85 Digest, p. 128 (1985).
Regarding a method for utilizing a liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon., a .tau.-V.sub.min driving method has been proposed by Surguy et al. (P.W.H. Ferroelectrics, 122, 63 (1991)). This is a promising method for realizing a high contrast, and P. W. Ross, SID'92, 217 (1992) discloses a ferroelectric liquid crystal display using this method. Hereinafter, the .tau.-V.sub.min driving method will be described.
In the case of ferroelectric liquid crystal not having a negative .DELTA..epsilon., a pulse width required for memory monotonously decreases with the increase in a driving voltage (V). On the other hand, in the case of ferroelectric liquid crystal having a negative .DELTA..epsilon., a voltage (V)-memory pulse width (.tau.) characteristic has a local minimum (.tau.-V.sub.min), as shown in FIG. 9. Surguy et al. has reported a JOERS/Alvey driving method using this characteristic. The principle of this driving method is as follows: as shown in FIG. 10, assuming that V.sub.s is a scanning voltage and V.sub.d is a data voltage, a memory state of a ferroelectric liquid crystal device is switched when a voltage .vertline.V.sub.s -V.sub.d .vertline. is applied, and the memory state is not switched when a voltage .vertline.V.sub.s -V.sub.d .vertline. which is higher than the voltage .vertline.V.sub.s -V.sub.d .vertline., or a voltage .vertline.V.sub.d .vertline. which is lower than the .vertline.V.sub.s -V.sub.d .vertline., is applied.
As described above, the ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. can utilize the AC stabilizing effect and the .tau.-V.sub.min driving method. Therefore, there may be a possibility that the ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. can be used to realize a ferroelectric liquid crystal display device with a high contrast and a high-speed switching.
In the case where the above-mentioned ferroelectric liquid crystal material is actually used for a liquid crystal display device, a number of characteristics are required. However, at present, it is difficult to satisfy all the requirements by a single compound. Thus, generally, optimization of characteristics is conducted by mixing various compounds. For example, in the case of a ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. which has a low viscosity and a high-speed response, it requires a high driving voltage. The driving voltage can be decreased by mixing a material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. with a large absolute value therewith.
Hithertofore, some liquid crystal compounds have been reported. For example, Japanese Laid-open Publication No. 60-54375 discloses the following compound: ##STR3## wherein either one of A and B is an alkyl group or an alkoxy group having 1 to 15 carbon atoms, and the other is a chlorine atom or a fluorine atom.
Furthermore, J. Barbera et al., LIQUID CRYSTALS, Vol. 11, No. 6 (1992) 887-897., C. G. Seguel et al., LIQUID CRYSTALS, Vol. 11, No. 6 (1992) 899-903, and J. Bartulin et al., Mol. Cryst. Liq. Cryst., Vol. 225 (1993) 175-182 discloses the following compound: ##STR4## wherein C and D are alkoxy groups.
The compound represented by the above Formula (i) is nematic liquid crystal having a positive .DELTA..epsilon. and does not exhibit a smectic phase. Thus, the compound (i) is not suitable as a ferroelectric liquid crystal material. On the other hand, the compound represented by the above Formula (ii) exhibits a smectic phase and is suitable as a ferroelectric liquid crystal material. However, the compound (ii) also has the disadvantage that it has a high viscosity due to two alkoxy groups on C and D.
Irrespective of whether or not the above-mentioned .tau.-V.sub.min driving method is used, in order to realize a high switching in ferroelectric liquid crystal, a material having large spontaneous polarization and a low viscosity is generally required. This is represented by the following Formula: EQU .tau..eta./P.sub.s
wherein .tau. is a response time or a pulse width required for memory; .eta. is a viscosity; and P.sub.s is spontaneous polarization.
However, according to the .tau.-V.sub.min driving method, the following relationship holds between a voltage V.sub.min and P.sub.s where .tau. becomes a local minimum .tau..sub.min : ##EQU1## wherein d is a cell thickness; .epsilon..sub.0 is a dielectric constant in a vacuum; Ae is a dielectric anisotropy; and .theta. is a tilt angle. As is understood from this formula, when the spontaneous polarization P.sub.s is increased in order to realize a high-speed switching, V.sub.min is also increased. This results in a high driving voltage and an increase in power consumption.
Accordingly, in order to realize high-speed driving while retaining V.sub.min at a low level, a ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. with a large absolute value and a low viscosity is required. In order to obtain a stable memory property using the above-mentioned AC stabilizing effect, a ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon. with a large absolute value is also required.
However, the compound (i) is nematic liquid crystal having a positive .DELTA..epsilon., so that it cannot be used as a ferroelectric liquid crystal material having a negative .DELTA..epsilon.. Furthermore, the compound (ii) has a high viscosity (i.e., is likely to have a high phase transition temperature), so that a driving voltage cannot be decreased.

Liquid crystal compound, liquid crystal composition, and liquid crystal display device using the same


A printing method, an arrangement, a computer program, and a computer-readable storage medium are provided to increase a number of printing devices used by a mobile terminal. The mobile terminal communicates with a server via a wireless communication interface and sends via the server data to a printing device including information identifying the printing device and a key assigned to the printing device. The method includes establishing a communications link, determining printing devices, transmitting information about the usable printing devices, selecting a usable printing device, transmitting the data intended for printing or information that enable the server to retrieve the data intended for printing from a remote storage location in a data network, checking the validity of one or more of the keys transmitted from the mobile terminal transmitted, and transmitting, depending on the validity of the key(s), the data intended for printing to the selected printing device.

To send a print job to a printer from a mobile terminal running the operating system iOS (iPhone™ Operating System) has some limitations compared to fixed devices such as PCs or other mobile terminals such as laptops. Only printers using the protocol (interface software) AirPrint™ can be addressed. The printers are found via the protocol Bonjour™. These printers must be accessible via a wireless local area network (WLAN) and have a network address in the same segment as the mobile terminal. The printer must therefore be located in the vicinity of the mobile terminal from which the print job is started. The access rights to the printers are not uniformly regulated, so that each manufacturer is free to use and design a user administration. This printing solution for iOS-based mobile terminals is therefore only feasible in small environments, i.e. with typically a few to several tens of users and a few printers in a limited space. This concept places considerable demands on the management of printers and mobile terminals in larger environments where not every user should have access to every printer, because each new mobile terminal must be made known to every printer to which print jobs can be sent from mobile terminals. For this reason, in practice, the printers allow by default every mobile terminal to print. In this environment, it makes sense to install a server which runs the AirPrint™ protocol, receives the print job and forwards the print job to the appropriate printer. This would remove the restrictions on the accessibility of the printer. Rights management with this system is still cumbersome. Both methods, direct printing with AirPrint™ or indirectly via an AirPrint™ server, have some drawbacks that are overcome by the present invention:
Printing rights can typically be granted only to a device, but not to a user.
Printing rights for a mobile terminal can be set up only at the printer itself.
It depends on the printer whether and to what extent printing rights can be awarded to a device or to a user. A comprehensive management for all users and devices is only possible when all printers enable user and device management.
The necessary administrative work must be done on the device itself, because the user interface is not standardized. At best, a rudimentary configuration server is installed on the printer, allowing the administrator to access the printer over the network. However, this does not solve the problem associated with the different user interfaces of different printers.
When no printing rights are awarded, each terminal is authorized to send print jobs to this printer. Or a printer does not accept a print job, which depends on the default setting of the printer.
The user has no control over his rights and the available devices. The AirPrint™ protocol offers him all available printers; however, the user learns only after starting the print job whether he is authorized to use the printer.
A typical scenario in an AirPrint™ environment looks like this:
1. The administrator has defined access rights on the printers.
2. The user selects the print function on his iOS device.
3. The device offers him to all printers that have been offered via the AirPrint™ protocol.
4. The user selects a printer.
5. The print job is sent to the printer.
6. If the printer accepts the job, printing begins. Otherwise, an error message is outputted and the user must repeat step 4.
7. Search for the printer to collect the print job.

Printing method, arrangement for the realization of the printing method, and a corresponding computer program and a corresponding computer-readable storage medium


A self-aligning, anti-cross threading fastener having first and/or second members with lead threads having a curved surface feature from the minor diameter to the major diameter which allows the surface of the lead threads to cam over the mating threads of the other member and thereby aligning collinearly the longitudinal axis of the two members. The initial presentation angle of the two threaded members may be restricted and therefore enhanced by providing a protruding diameter feature.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to threaded fasteners such as screws, bolts and nuts, and more particularly, to anti-cross threading fasteners.
2. Description of the Related Technology
Threaded fastener technology is basic to the construction or fabrication of most articles of manufacture such as machines, automobiles, trains, plains, engines, and the like. Threaded fasteners may be bolts, screws, studs, rods, or other substantially round members having uniform, non-uniform or tapered external helical threads that are screwably engaged into mating threaded fasteners such as nuts, bolts or holes having substantially matching internal helical threads. For proper engagement of the externally and internally threaded fasteners, the longitudinal axis of the externally threaded member must be substantially collinear with the longitudinal axis of the mating internally threaded member. When the externally threaded member is not substantially collinear with the internally threaded member, cross-threading occurs.
Cross-threading generally occurs when there is a misalignment between the externally threaded member, typically a screw or bolt, and the internally threaded member, typically a nut or other threaded hole. Specifically, cross-threading is the result of the threads of the two members attempting to engage at least one half pitch out of alignment. When this situation happens, the two members are not collinear with each other and wedging of the threads will occur as the threaded helixes are rotated against each other. If rotation continues, then threads on one or both members will be structurally damaged.
What is needed is a fastener that prevents cross-threading when an externally threaded member engages an internally threaded member.


A wet mate electrical connector includes a female connector and a male connector. The female connector can include a female connector body defining a central passage. The central passage can include a plurality of female contacts. The male connector can include a male connector body defining a central passage. A male pin can project from the central passage of the male connector body. The male pin can include a plurality of male contacts and be insertible into the central passage of the female connector. The male connector can also include a sleeve slidably displaceable over the male pin between a first position in which the sleeve covers the plurality of male contacts in a protected condition, and a second position in which the sleeve is retracted and exposes the plurality of male contacts.

Hydraulic lines and conduits are used to provide power and data communications to equipment installed in wet environments like downhole and subsea environments. Electrical and fiber-optic cable connections must often be made deep in a well bore or at great ocean depths. Therefore, wet-mateable or "wet mate" connectors have been developed that allow equipment to be connected and disconnected in harsh wet environments.
A number of wet mate connectors feature a male end that includes a plug, and a female end that includes a socket to receive the plug. The plug and socket each include one or more electrical contacts. The electrical contacts must be protected from exposure to production fluid, seawater and contaminants during mating and disconnection of the male and female ends. In addition, interior spaces in the connector must be pressure balanced with the exterior environment so that the male and female ends can be mated and disconnected properly. Balancing interior and exterior pressure alleviates stresses on internal components and prevents components from becoming locked or jammed.
Some wet mate connectors include internal seals to protect electrical contacts. Nevertheless, many seals are designed for short-term use, and are not adequate to withstand harsh temperature and pressure conditions through repeated use in permanent or long-term installations. In addition, many connectors incorporate seals and other components for balancing pressures that occupy a relatively large amount of space, and are not small enough to be used in many well bores. In some well bores, less than an inch of space is allocated for the diameter of the connector. Unfortunately, conventional wet mate connectors cannot simply be made smaller. Even if they were to be reduced in size, they still cannot address the challenges of providing adequate pressure balancing and seal integrity, which are necessary in permanent or long-term installations subject to high temperatures and pressures.


A buffer circuit operative at multiple power supply voltage levels includes first and second buffers, the first buffer being configured for operation with a first voltage source and the second buffer being operative with a second voltage source. The buffer circuit further includes a controllable isolation circuit. An output of the first buffer connects to an external pad of the buffer circuit, and an output of the second buffer connects to the pad via the isolation circuit. The buffer circuit is selectively operative in at least a first mode or a second mode in response to at least a first control signal. The isolation circuit is operative in the first mode to substantially isolate the second buffer from the external pad and is operative in the second mode to connect the output of the second buffer to the external pad.

Buffer circuits (e.g., output buffers, input buffers, and bidirectional buffers) are employed in a variety of electronic devices and applications. Certain portable devices, including wireless handsets, notebook computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs), often employ circuitry which runs on two or more different voltage levels. For instance, circuitry utilized with such portable devices may be configured so that a portion of the circuitry, such as, for example, input/output (IO) buffers, runs at a higher power supply voltage level (e.g., about 3.3 volts), as may be supplied by an IO voltage source. Another portion of the circuitry, such as, for example, core logic, may run at a substantially lower power supply voltage level (e.g., about 1.0 volt), as may be supplied by a core voltage source.
There are many applications in which a buffer circuit (e.g., an IO buffer) may be required to operate over a wide range of power supply voltage levels. The level of the power supply voltage source may be determined by the particular application. From a performance standpoint (e.g., speed, power consumption, reliability, etc.), buffer circuits designed to handle a wide range of power supply voltage levels generally do so at the expense of circuit performance. For instance, it is well known that when the power supply voltage level becomes comparable to the core voltage source level, a standard 10 buffer circuit often produces an undesirable amount of skew and operates at a substantially slower speed.
Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) bidirectional buffers that are required to work over a wide range of power supply voltages often have severe difficulty meeting speed requirements, and/or other requirements, in a low voltage (e.g., about 1.0 volt) range of operation. In an attempt to address this problem, one known approach is to employ a significantly large output buffer stage using transistors suitable for operation at the highest anticipated voltage level. The use of such large transistor sizes, typically several thousand micrometers in width, will cause the buffer size to grow accordingly, often to unacceptable limits, thereby significantly increasing a cost of the buffer circuit. In some applications, several hundred buffers may be required. Moreover, even with these very large sized transistors, a high-frequency operation of the buffers will be rather limited, due primarily to an increased gate capacitance of the large transistor devices.
Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved buffer circuit that does not suffer from one or more of the problems exhibited by conventional buffer circuits.

Buffer circuit with multiple voltage range


A holder device includes a base having an opening formed in a board, a seat received in the base and having a bracket attached to a panel, to form a channel between the bracket and the panel. The channel of the bracket is aligned with the opening of the board. A retainer is rotatably secured to a stand with a pivot shaft, and adjustable relative to the stand, and a housing is attached onto the retainer, and including a chamber formed therein for receiving an object therein. The stand is engageable into the channel that is formed or defined between the bracket and the panel, via the opening of the board. The board includes a front bag to receive a receiver device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a holder device, and more particularly to a holder device for stably supporting various objects in vehicles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various kinds of typical supporter devices or holder devices have been developed for holding or supporting various objects in vehicles, such as mobile phones or portable phones, or the like, and comprise a holder plate or bracket for receiving or supporting the objects.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,187,744 to Richter discloses one of the typical supporter devices or holder devices comprising a holder plate or bracket pivotally attached to a lower mount plate with a universally adjustable mounting device, to receive and to adjustably support the objects in vehicles or the like. However, the typical supporter devices or holder devices are required to be solidly attached or secured to the vehicles with screws or fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,302 to Wang discloses another typical supporter device or holder device also comprising a holder plate or bracket having a pair of slidable clamping plates movable toward or away from each other, to receive and to adjustably clamp and support the objects in vehicles or the like. However, similarly, the typical supporter device or holder device is also required to be solidly attached or secured to the vehicles with screws or fasteners.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,790,661 to Patterson discloses a further typical supporter device or holder device also comprising a cradle rotatably or pivotally attached to a lower mount plate for receiving or supporting the objects in vehicles or the like. However, similarly, the lower mount plate of the typical supporter device or holder device is also required to be solidly attached or secured to the vehicles with screws or fasteners.
The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages of the conventional supporter or holder devices.

Holder for supporting objects in vehicle


Disclosed is an embroidery data processing device for processing sewing data used for forming underlying stitches in a closed embroidery area defined between inside of an outer outline and outside of a plurality of inner outlines. In the embroidery data processing device, a connecting line is determined for each of the inner outlines, then the connecting line is evaluated to determined whether it is valid. If the connecting lines determined for all the inner outlines are valid, an outline of an underlying stitch area is determined based on the outer outline, inner outlines and the connecting line for each of the inner outlines.

The present invention relates to an embroidery data processing device for processing data to be used for forming an underlying stitch.
Conventionally, sewing data for sewing embroidery patterns is created by a skilled person such that a stitching point for each stitch cycle is determined. Recently, an embroidery data processing device which is capable of creating the sewing data automatically based on shapes, positions, sizes of embroidery patterns, direction of stitches, density of stitches and the like has been developed and widely used.
Among such data processing devices, there is a device for creating underlying stitch data which is used for performing an underlying stitch. The underlying stitch is carried out before an embroidery area is filled with embroidery stitches. By forming the underlying stitches beforehand, the embroidery stitches are formed thereupon, and the embroidery stitches can be seen to have an appropriate swell or three dimensional effect. In addition, the underlying stitches serve for preventing a work cloth from shrinking when the embroidery stitches are formed in succession on the underlying stitches. Examples of such a device are disclosed in Japanese Patent Provisional Publications HEI 2-307955, HEI 3-289989, and HEI 4-22393.
In the conventional data processing device described above, however, data processing for an area between an outline defining the outermost shape of an embroidery pattern, and outlines of areas included in the outermost outline (which will also be referred as an outer outline hereinafter) are not dealt with. Therefore, with the conventional embroidery data processing devices, it may not be possible to create appropriate sewing data for such areas under certain condition of the number, size, positions and the like of the outlines of the included areas (which will be referred to as inner outlines hereinafter).
For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, when underlying stitch data is to be created for a closed area A defined by the outermost outline OL and inner outlines IL1 and IL2 (i.e., the closed area which is inside the outermost outline OL, and outside of the inner outlines IL1 and IL2), the conventional data processing device has created the underlying stitch data as described below. Firstly, as shown in FIG. 6B, for each of inner outlines, a connecting lines is determined between another outline (for example, the outer outline). A reference point, which coincides with an end of the connecting line, is defined on each inner outline and, and a direction of the connecting line is determined to coincide with a direction similar to a predetermined direction of the underlying stitches. For example, if the direction of the underlying stitches is an up-down direction of FIG. 6B, the connecting line is determined from a lowest point of each inner outline and extends downward. Alternatively, the connecting line is determined to extend upwardly from a highest position of each inner outline. In FIG. 6B, shown is a case in which connecting lines CL1 and CL2 extend downwardly from the lowest points of the inner outlines IL1 and IL2, and respectively connect the inner outlines IL1 and IL2 with the outer outline OL.
Next, in order to prevent the underlying stitches from projecting out of the closed area A, an outline of a closed area B for the underlying stitches is determined such that the closed area (i.e., an underlying stitch area) B is apart from the closed area (i.e., an embroidery area) A by a distance "d" from the outer outline OL, inner outlines IL1 and IL2, and the connecting lines CL1 and CL2. The outline OL1 of the closed area B is shown by a broken line in FIG. 6B.
When the inner outlines IL1 and IL2 are arranged as shown in FIG. 7, and if the connecting lines CL1 and CL2 are determined as in the case shown in FIG. 6B, the outline OL1 would cross by itself as shown in FIG. 7 if the outline OL1 is defined as is done in the case shown in FIG. 6B. In such a case, it becomes impossible to identify the closed area in which the underlying stitch is to be carried out, and therefore, the underlying stitch data cannot be created.


A video compression system which is based on the image data compression system developed by the Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG) uses various group-of-fields configurations to reduce the number of binary bits used to represent an image composed of odd and even fields of video information, where each pair of odd and even fields defines a frame. According to a first method, each field in the group of fields is predicted using the closest field which has previously been predicted as an anchor field. According to a second method, intra fields (I-fields) and predictive fields (P-fields) are distributed in the sequence so that no two I-fields and/or no two P-fields are at adjacent locations in the sequence. According to a third method, the number of I-fields and P-fields in the encoded sequence is reduced by encoding one field in a given frame as a P-field or a B-field where the other field is encoded as an I-field and encoding one field in a further frame as a B-field where the other field is encoded as a P-field.

The present invention concerns video data compression and in particular, apparatus and a method for processing groups of successive fields of video information to obtain high levels of data compression.
Image sequence data compression systems such as that proposed by the Moving Pictures Experts Group (MPEG), a committee within the International Standards Organization (ISO), have been very effective in coding image sequences for video signals under the NTSC standard as well as for High Definition Television (HDTV) sources. The MPEG system is described in a paper entitled "MPEG Video Simulation Model Three (SM3)" by the Simulation Model Editorial Group, available from ISO as ISO-IEC/JTC1/SC2/WG11/N0010 MPEG 90/041, 1990 which is hereby incorporated by reference for its teachings on the MPEG video signal encoding method.
The MPEG system integrates a number of well-known data compression techniques into a single system. These include motion-compensated predictive coding, discrete cosine transformation (DCT), adaptive quantization and variable length coding (VLC).
The motion-compensated predictive coding schemes used in HDTV systems process the video data in groups of frames in order to achieve relatively high levels of compression without allowing the performance of the system to be degraded by excessive error propagation. In these group of frame processing schemes, image frames are classified into one of three types: the intra-frame (I-frame) the predicted frame (P-frame) and the bidirectional frame (B-frame).
A two dimensional DCT is applied to small regions such as blocks of 8 by 8 pixels to encode each of the I-frames. The resulting data stream is quantized and encoded using a variable-length code, such as an amplitude run-length Huffman code, to produce the compressed output signal. P-frames and B-frames are processed as residues of corresponding I and P-frames, respectively, encoded using the two-dimensional DCT, quantized and variable-length coded. A typical sequence of frames may be represented by a sequence such as I, B, B, P, B, B, I, B, etc.
To operate effectively in the presence of inter-frame motion, several overlapping corresponding blocks from the I-frame or P-frame are compared with each block of a P or B-frame to find the one with the smallest residue. The residue block is then encoded using the two-dimensional DCT, adaptive quantization and variable-length coding. The reference block that was used to obtain the residue is then designated as the predecessor of the block to be encoded and is defined by a motion vector which is transmitted with the encoded residue block. This vector describes the displacement in the image plane which is needed to place the reference block in its target position in the new frame.
Processing frames in groups achieves a high level of data compression due to the strong temporal correlation among successive frames in conventional video images. Redundant information in the images is greatly reduced by the predictive coding method used for the P and B-frames. Under this method, small blocks of data from reconstructed I and P-frames are subtracted from corresponding blocks of data from the respective frames to be encoded as P and B-frames. The result of this operation is residue data values which describe the P-frames in terms of the I-frames and the B-frames in terms of the I and/or P-frames. For P and B-frames, only this residue data is encoded and transmitted.
This coding is undone at a receiver which reverses the steps to obtain reconstructed image data. Any errors in a frame that is used to predict other frames may propagate to the predicted frames. In addition, the dependence of one frame on its predecessor I or P-frame limits the ability of the receiver to display a frame selected at random and to accommodate standard television functions such as intra-group scene changes and channel switching. These limitations could be removed by encoding each frame as an I-frame, however, the resulting coded video signal would need considerably more bits per frame since it would not exploit the temporal redundancy that is inherent in most video information.
The MPEG encoding standard is designed for frame-oriented image sequences. Most video sources, however, provide a frame of information as two interlaced fields which are separated in time by one field interval. The standard has been adapted in two ways to accommodate field-oriented image sequences. The first method combines the successive even and odd fields of the interlaced source to form a sequence of frame images and then applies MPEG encoding to the sequence of frames. It is well known that, due to the temporal separation between successive fields, this method may produce unsatisfactory results. The second method avoids these problems by applying MPEG encoding to the sequence of fields in the same manner that it would be applied to a sequence of frames.
Motion predictive encoding is a problem with any of the MPEG encoding methods. As described above, the process of matching blocks in a predicted frame to displaced blocks in an anchor frame plays a key role in reducing the prediction residue and, thus, the bit rate for an MPEG encoded signal. The block matching method which is most commonly used assumes that blocks of pixels move by simple translation (i.e. vertically and/or horizontally) in the image plane from frame to frame or from field to field. This method does not perform well, for example, when the block is part of an object which is rotated about an axis in the image plane or which is subject to a change in size due to motion into or out of the frame or such as would result from an image zoom. In addition, this encoding method may not work well when there is a relatively large temporal separation between a frame to be predicted and its reference or anchor frame.

Apparatus and method for processing groups of fields in a video data compression system

Matsushita Electric Corporation of America


A double wall coaxial piping system with enhanced strength designed to transport a medium underground and minimize leaks is provided. The double wall coaxial piping system includes a plurality of pipe assemblies connected together to form a constructed pipe assembly with a first end and a second end. Each pipe assembly has an outer pipe and an inner pipe secured within the outer pipe. The inner pipe of each pipe assembly is continuously connected to the inner pipe of an adjacent pipe assembly in the plurality of pipe assemblies. Each end in the first and second ends of the constructed pipe assembly has a pair of plates coupled to the outer pipe of the pipe assembly at the end of the constructed pipe assembly and a packing layer disposed between the pair of plates.

The embodiments herein relate generally to direct bury pipe systems used to transport different media such as water and steam underground. More specifically, embodiments of the invention relate to an underground double wall coaxial piping system with enhanced strength that reduces leaks in the piping system.
Direct bury pipe systems are commonly used to transport water, steam or other medium underground to a desired location such as a building. Each pipe system generally comprises a constructed assembly comprising a plurality of pipe segments connected together to form a desired length that connects the source of the medium to the destination such as a building or other location. The joints between adjacent pipe segments in the pipe assembly are wrapped by a thin shrink wrap material.
In this environment, the constructed pipe system is subject to a variety of problems due to the presence of ground water, which corrodes the pipe segments and forms holes thereon over time. Further, field joints in the pipe system between adjacent pipe segments are not properly sealed due to the use of weak shrink wrap materials. This causes segments in the pipe system to be more prone to additional leaks at these field joints.
As such, there is a need in the industry for an underground double wall coaxial piping system that addresses the limitations of the prior art, which provides a pipe system with enhanced strength that minimizes the likelihood for leaks throughout the pipe system. There is a further need for each end of the underground double wall coaxial piping system to have an improved seal to prevent ground water from entering the pipe system. There is a further need for the underground double wall coaxial piping system to allow for efficient pressure testing at the ends to check for leaks within the pipe system.

Underground double wall coaxial piping system


The present invention relates to methods and pharmaceutical compositions for decreasing the production of interferon-gamma inducing factor (IGIF). The invention also relates to methods and pharmaceutical compositions for decreasing the production of interferon-gamma (IFN-.gamma.). The compositions comprise a therapeutically effective amount of a compound which inhibits interleukin-1.beta. converting enzyme (ICE) and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. The methods comprise the step of administering the above compositions to a subject. The present invention also relates to methods for treating or reducing the advancement, severity or effects of an IGIF- or IFN-.gamma.-mediated inflammatory, infectious or autoimmune condition.

Interferon-gamma inducing factor (IGIF) is an approximately 18-kDa polypeptide that stimulates T-cell production of interferon-gamma (IFN-.gamma.). IGIF is produced by activated Kupffer cells and macrophages in vivo and is exported out of such cells upon endotoxin stimulation. Thus, a compound that decreases IGIF production would be useful as an inhibitor of such T-cell stimulation which in turn would reduce the levels of IFN-.gamma. production by those cells.
IFN-.gamma. is a cytokine with immunomodulatory effects on a variety of immune cells. In particular, IFN-.gamma. is involved in macrophage activation and Th1 cell selection (F. Belardelli, APMIS, 103, p. 161 (1995)). IFN-.gamma. exerts its effects in part by modulating the expression of genes through the STAT and IRF pathways (C. Schindler and J. E. Darnell, Ann. Rev. Biochem., 64, p. 621 (1995); T. Taniguchi, J. Cancer Res. Clin. Oncol., 121, p. 516 (1995)).
Mice lacking IFN-.gamma. or its receptor have multiple defects in immune cell function and are resistant to endotoxic shock (S. Huang et al., Science, 259, p. 1742 (1993); D. Dalton et al., Science, 259, p. 1739 (1993); B. D. Car et al., J. Exp. Md., 179, p. 1437 (1994)). Along with IL-12, IGIF appears to be a potent inducer of IFN-.gamma. production by T cells (H. Okamura et al., Infection and Immunity, 63, p. 3966 (1995); H. Okamura et al., Nature, 378, p. 88 (1995); S. Ushio et al., J. Immunol., 156, p. 4274 (1996)).
IFN-.gamma. has been shown to contribute to the pathology associated with a variety of inflammatory, infectious and autoimmune disorders and diseases. Thus, compounds capable of decreasing IFN-.gamma. production would be useful to ameliorate the effects of IFN-.gamma. related pathologies.
The biological regulation of IGIF and thus IFN-.gamma. has not been elucidated. It is known that IGIF is synthesized as a precursor protein, called "pro-IGIF". It has been unclear, however, how pro-IGIF is cleaved and whether its processing has biological importance.
Accordingly, compositions and methods capable of regulating the conversion of pro-IGIF to IGIF would be useful for decreasing IGIF and IFN-.gamma. production in vivo, and thus for ameliorating the detrimental effects of these proteins which contribute to human disorders and diseases.
Another cytokine, IL-1.beta., is produced as an inactive precursor (pre-IL-1.beta.) which is proteolytically cleaved into an active, mature form (IL-1.beta.) by a cysteine protease called interleukin-1.beta. converting enzyme (ICE). ICE is a member of a larger family of cysteine proteases, called the ICE/CED-3 family, which share common structural and functional features. See, e.g., P. A. Henkarp, Immunity, 4, p. 195 (1996); D. W. Nicholson, Nature Biotechnology, 14, p. 297 (1996).
However, ICE and other members of the ICE/CED-3 family have not previously been linked to the conversion of pro-IGIF to IGIF or to IFN-.gamma. production in vivo.

Compositions and methods for decreasing IGIF and IFN-.gamma. production by administering an ICE inhibitor


An image forming apparatus including a condition determining device for determining optimum conditions automatically for copying a document during copying, a blank lamp for recording information concerning the determined conditions in code on a sheet of copy paper, a code scanner for reading the coded information when producing a copy from the copy paper carrying the code thereon, and control circuits for setting copying conditions according to the read information. With this configuration, when producing copies of the image on the original document, by reading the coded information and setting the copying conditions, an image satisfying the optimum conditions is readily obtained whenever it is desired. Moreover, even when making copies from a copied image which was produced through subsequent copying, the formed images always have the same quality that the original has.

When a document is copied with the use of a conventional image forming apparatus, for example, a color copying machine, a formed image slightly differs from the original image in quality due to the machine's features. When another copy is made from a photocopy of the original document, the difference becomes more significant. Therefore, when the image on the original document and the image formed by the latest copying operation after subsequent copying are compared, there are differences between the two images in color quality and balance if they are color copies or in the thickness of letters and lines if they are black-and-white copies. The differences become greater as the number of times performing subsequent copying increases. To overcome such a problem, for example, a color copy is produced from an original color document by adjusting the color-balance in accordance with the tone of the original document. If there is a need to keep conditions for producing copies of a good color-balance with respect to a document, the conditions are stored in a memory in the main body of the color copying machine. So, when copying the document again, the copying conditions are read from the memory and set by depressing the memory key on the operation panel so as to make copies in accordance with the conditions.
With the apparatus, however, such conditions must be stored in the memory by the user, thereby causing the user to undertake time-consuming tasks.
Moreover, the user must remember which document corresponds to which copying conditions stored. This not only causes the user trouble, but may also produce copies depending on erroneous conditions due to the user's incorrect memory or changes in the content of memory made by someone else.

Image forming apparatus with storage for copying conditions


Raw cannabis plant material is dried, coarsely ground, agitated while chilled, sifted and collected to result in cannabis plant material rich in trichomes. Dried cannabis plant material is coarsely ground using a grinder. The coarsely ground cannabis plant matter is agitated in a tumbler in a cooled environment to separate the trichomes from the remainder of the plant matter. The trichomes are then sieved using a sieve shaker with sieves of different mesh sizes mounted in a tower. Chilling the plant material embrittles the trichomes so that they can be removed more easily from the remainder of the plant material.

In legal, adult-use markets, sales of cannabis extracts are growing ten times faster compared to the sales of dried cannabis, and extracts account for over 60% of revenue. With cannabis legalization, consumer preferences are shifting from dried cannabis to extracted cannabis products. Thus, the development of new, scalable refinement and extraction techniques in order to propose products with fewer impurities to the consumers, different flavors or new ways of consumption, is important for the cannabis industry.
Most psychoactive substances are contained in parts of the cannabis plant that are called trichomes, which can be defined as epidermal outgrowths of the plant. It is usually necessary to separate these trichomes from the raw cannabis plant material to produce cannabis-based products.
This background is not intended, nor should be construed, to constitute prior art against the present invention.

Cannabis trichome separation using a tumbler


A plurality of optical heads each of which comprises an independent light source and optical system are provided on the same side with respect to a recording medium having a plurality of recording layers. Alternatively, with respect to at least one light source in an optical head having a single objective lens and a plurality of light sources, an optical path correction system is provided on an optical path unique to the light source, and while light emitted from one light source is focused on a specific recording layer by shifting of the objective lens, light irradiated from another light source is focused on another recording layer by the optical path correction system. Thus, information can be reproduced from or recorded in a plurality of recording layers simultaneously and an error in focusing of light onto the plurality of recording layers can be suppressed.

Because of their large-capacity and high-density memory, optical information recording media have been receiving attention. The development of an erasable type from which information can be erased and on which information can be rewritten has been pursued at present. The erasable-type optical information recording media include one in which thin films whose phase is changed between an amorphous state and a crystalline state are used as recording layers and information is recorded and erased by thermal energy through the irradiation of laser beams.
As a phase-change material for the recording layers, an alloy film containing Ge, Sb, Te, In, or the like as the main component, for example, a Ge—Sb—Te alloy film, has been known. In many cases, information is recorded by formation of marks through partial change in a recording layer into the amorphous state and information is erased by crystallization of the amorphous marks. The amorphous state can be obtained by heating the recording layer to its melting point or more and then cooling it at a speed of at least a fixed value. On the other hand, the crystallization can be carried out by heating of the recording layer to a temperature between its crystallization temperature and its melting point.
Recently, with the improvement in processing capability of various types of information-processing equipment, the amount of information to be processed has been increasing. Therefore, large-capacity recording media on which information can be recorded or from which information can be reproduced at high speed have been demanded. As a means for increasing the capacity and speed, for example, JP-A-3-157816 describes a recording medium having a plurality of recording layers and transparent separating layers provided between the recording layers and a recording/reproducing apparatus for the same. In the first recording/reproducing apparatus described in the above-mentioned JP-A-3-157816, light is focused on an intended recording layer out of the plurality of recording layers in the medium by inserting a parallel plate whose thickness is varied depending on the intended recording layer, between an objective lens and a medium. The second recording/reproducing apparatus in JP-A-3-157816 comprises one objective lens and a plurality of light sources that emit lights with different wavelengths. By utilizing the chromatic aberration of the objective lens, focal positions of respective lights irradiated from the plurality of light sources onto a medium are varied from one another. As a result, the lights are focused on a plurality of recording layers respectively at the same time. Further, in the third recording/reproducing apparatus in JP-A-3-157816, a plurality of light sources that emit lights with the same wavelength are positioned so as to have different position relationships from one another with respect to an optical system and thus the focal positions of respective lights irradiated from the plurality of light sources onto a medium are varied from one another. Consequently, the lights are focused on a plurality of recording layers respectively at the same time.
In the above-mentioned first recording/reproducing apparatus, the demand for the increase in capacity can be satisfied. However, the other demand for the increase in speed has not been satisfied sufficiently since information cannot be reproduced from or recorded in a plurality of recording layers simultaneously and therefore the data rate has been the same as in the case of using a medium with a single recording layer. Further, in the second and third recording/reproducing apparatuses, a common shifting of the objective lens is used for focusing lights irradiated from the plurality of light sources. Therefore, the relative relationships among the focal positions of lights irradiated from respective light sources are continuously constant. Consequently, when the thickness of transparent separating layers in the recording medium is different from a designed value or is uneven, it was difficult to focus the lights on the plurality of recording layers precisely, which has been a problem.

Recording/reproducing apparatus with optical path correction system

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.


A rain hood assembly is position-adjustably mounted on an exteriorly mounted rearview mirror for protecting the rearview mirror and the side window adjacent to the mirror from rain. The assembly may have a body of which the position relative to the window may be adjusted. A strip of rubber is provided and is position-adjustably fixed on the body for contacting the window. In alternate, the hood assembly may be adjusted in size so as to be mounted on rearview mirror of different size.

Rearview mirror of vehicles like automobiles are usually mounted externally on the driver's door and on the passenger's door as well. In order to use the mirror, the driver must look through the side window adjacent the mirror. However, in poor driving condition such as rain, the driver's view through the externally mounted rearview mirror may be obstructed, either because of moisture on the mirror itself or on the window adjacent to the window through which the driver must look.
An object of the present invention is to provide a new rain hood assembly for protecting the externally mounted rearview mirrors on a vehicle and the adjacent window from rain.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a rain hood assembly which may be easily, adjustably mounted to the housing or support of the mirror.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a new rain hood assembly for protecting the externally mounted rearview mirrors on a vehicle wherein the rain hood assembly may be adjustable in size for mounting on rearview mirror housings of different size.

Rain hood assembly for exteriorly mounted rearview mirror


The invention relates to an apparatus for moving an Iron Roughneck into position to allow making-up or breaking-out of threaded joints in a drill string. The apparatus may also be used to move other drilling equipment into position on the centerline of the well or at mouse holes. A self-balanced, dual synchronized parallelogram arm is utilized to accomplish the movement of the devices. Hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders are used for extension and retraction of the arm rather than to support the tool. The arm may hold the tool in any position without cylinder assistance. The linkage in the synchronized parallelogram may be accomplished by gears, links, slots, or rollers.

In the oil and gas industry, a drill string is used by a drilling rig to drill a wellbore. The drillstring is typically composed of drillpipe and a bottomhole assembly; the latter including the drill bit, drill collars and other drilling related tools. An automated apparatus generally known as an "Iron Roughneck," may be utilized to make-up and break-out threaded joints of drill pipe in a drill string. Iron Roughnecks have been used in the drilling industry for several years and are commercially available from a number of suppliers. For example, several Iron Roughnecks are manufactured and marketed by National Oilwell, L.P. in Houston, Tex.
An Iron Roughneck generally comprises a two-piece wrench unit and a spinner unit. The spinner rotates a joint of drill pipe relative to a second joint to either screw the pin end of the tool joint of the first joint of drill pipe into the box end of the tool joint of the second joint, or to unscrew the tool joints of the two joints of drill pipe. The wrench unit provides the torque necessary to make-up or break-out the connection. The bottom wrench, which serves as a back-up wrench, grasps the tool joint of the drill pipe suspended in the rotary table or mousehole. The upper wrench grasps the tool joint of the pipe suspended from the derrick and applies either the final make-up, or the initial break-out torque to the connection.
At various times during drilling operations, the Iron Roughneck needs to be moved between several locations on the rig, including the well centerline, one or more mouse holes, and a parking or storage position. Movement of the Iron Roughneck can be difficult due to the size and weight of the unit. Existing Iron Roughnecks may be mounted on a trolley that rides on a pair of parallel tracks. The problem with this configuration is that if multiple locations are desired, such as a mouse hole and the centerline stabbing position, extra tracks are necessary. The more tracks on the deck, the more tripping hazards that are created for the rig personnel. If access to a second mouse hole is desired, then there could be three sets of tracks all converging on a single point.
A second type of Iron Roughneck-positioning device is a telescopic arm, or scissor arm. This type of arm uses hydraulics to telescope the roughneck to the desired location. These telescopic arms are costly and heavy, and they take up substantial space when retracted to the stored or parked position.
A third type of Iron Roughneck-positioning device is a suspended parallelogram apparatus where the Iron Roughneck is suspended from the derrick and a parallelogram device swings the Iron Roughneck into position. Another variation has the Iron Roughneck hanging from an arm mounted on a C-shaped positioning device. The problems associated with these devices are that the distance from the arm base to the pipe is very short, the Iron Roughneck continues to swing after being placed into position (gravity is used to keep it vertical), the Iron Roughneck is difficult to install, the Iron Roughneck is heavy, and the Iron Roughneck is not very adjustable to future positions.
Many of these prior art devices use hydraulic cylinders for lifting and supporting the Iron Roughnecks and thus are susceptible to failure of the cylinders or a power failure. Thus, it would be desirable to have a system that is lightweight, compact in size, easily installed, for the movement of Iron Roughnecks. Such a system could also be used with other drilling tools or equipment which are heavy and/or awkward to move about the drilling rig.

Automated arm for positioning of drilling tools such as an iron roughneck


Recessed bottom tankers. Vessels described herein are built or retrofitted with side ballast tanks and optional forward bulbs extending to a level below the level of the vessel's cargo compartment to protect the cargo in case of collision or grounding. When compared to a double-hull or mid-deck design, the devices disclosed herein will considerably reduce the cost of a new tanker construction and make the retrofitting of some old single-hull ships economically acceptable. Furthermore, ballast tanks and bulbs designed in accordance with the present invention greatly reduce the possibility of ballast contamination and the risk of explosion due to oil leakage into ballast spaces as in double-hull designs. By eliminating the double bottom under the cargo compartments (as in the double-hull design) as well as the lower tanks (as in mid-deck design) and providing direct access from the deck to all ballast spaces, this invention substantially facilitates inspections, surveys, cleaning and maintenance procedures as well as simplifying piping arrangements with considerable benefits to the vessel's operation.

Since the beginning of the oil industry, large volumes of crude oil and petroleum products have been carried on tankers and barges, usually in single hulled vessels of which a typical longitudinal and mid-ship transversal section is schematically indicated in FIG. 1A and 1B. In the great majority of tankers and barges operating today, the cargo and fuel is still separated from the surrounding water by a single barrier of steel plating which together with the internal structural members are adequate in terms of strength and rigidity for transporting cargo, but offer minimal protection of the environment from cargo and fuel oil spills in case of collision or grounding.
The international maritime community has dealt successfully with the problem of pollution caused by discharging overboard of the ballast water contaminated by oil residue. Until recent times however no provisions existed which were intended to prevent, or minimize, the pollution caused by cargo and fuel oil spills as the result of collision or grounding.
Numerous tanker disasters and ensuing oil spills in recent times however have caught the attention of the world (S.S. Terry Canyon, S.S. Amoco Cadiz, S.S. Corinthos to name just a few) and maritime community regulators have reacted by issuing new rules and regulations aimed at enhancing navigation safety as well as providing some structural protective measures. Thus, so-called "protectively located segregated ballast tank" arrangements for tankers are now mandatory. Unfortunately, all these measures proved inadequate and the need for more stringent regulations became evident in light of the Exxon Valdez and other more recent environmental disasters.
In 1990, the U.S. Congress enacted a law requiring that all new tankers operating in U.S. waters be built with double sides and double bottoms extending the full length of the cargo spaces--the so-called "double-hull" ships. This design in effect interposes two structural barriers separated by voids or spaces (which can also function as ballast tanks) between the cargo of oil and the waterway. FIG. 2A and 2B illustrates a typical double-hull design. U.S. law also now requires that existing single hull vessels, unless modified to suit the required double-hull arrangement, be phased out and scrapped when they reach a predetermined age.
In March 1992, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) endorsed the double-hull concept, and also accepted, as an alternative design, the so-called "Mid-Deck Ship" in which protection against pollution following collision is obtained by means of side (wing) tanks, the same as in the double-hull design, while protection against pollution following grounding is achieved by utilizing the hydrostatic pressure of the water outside the hull to force the oil or other petroleum products in the ruptured tank into another compartment in the tanker. The mid-deck design is illustrated in FIG. 3A and 3B. A description of a mid-deck design is found in A. Hirai, Mid-Deck Tanker: A Proposal for Future Tanker Designs from the Pollution Prevention Point of View, presented at the Philadelphia Section Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, Feb. 19, 1992, the teachings of which are specifically incorporated herein by reference.
The maritime community recognizes that the abovementioned designs do not represent ideal solutions. The double-hull design is complicated structurally and expensive to implement even in newly constructed tankers. It requires the use of considerable amounts of steel plates, beams and pipes, and greatly increases the weight of the vessel and its operating costs. It also incurs other operational and personnel safety problems, namely: cleaning, surveying, and risk of explosion. Furthermore, while the double-hull design appears to be satisfactory in case of low energy grounding, it may even prove detrimental in case of a high energy impact similar to the one sustained by the Exxon Valdez, since when the outer hull is ripped open, the void tends to fill with water, increasing the tanker's draft, thereby causing more petroleum product to spill if the inner hull is also pierced.
Conversely, the mid-deck concept will probably greatly reduce the spill in case of high energy grounding, but will not be very effective in a low energy accident when the cargo is denser than the water or when the cargo will first mix with the water to form a dangerous pollutant. Furthermore, the mid-deck design creates the same expensive steel requirements as the double-hull. The mid-deck design is simple in principle but complicated in reality, has not been tested, and requires serious structural modifications not easily implemented on an existing ship.
Furthermore, for existing tankers, the costs of retrofitting an old vessel with a double hull will be prohibitive, and would therefore force the retirement of such vessels. For these and other reasons, IMO and the U.S. Government have left the door open and will consider any other proposals that offer comparable protection and avoid some of the shortcomings of the two, so far accepted, designs.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new, safer, easy to maintain, more efficient and more economical hull design for waterborne vessels, particularly oil tankers, which will reduce the probability of serious oil or other contaminant spills and environmental pollution as the result of collision or grounding. This new hull design is easily implementable for new vessels and will not significantly increase the overall cost of construction. Furthermore, the new hull design will allow retrofitting of existing single hulls to bring them into compliance with national and international safety and antipollution regulations. Both of these goals are accomplished in an economical manner and without unduly increasing the weight of the vessel. Heretofore, these objectives and advantages have not been satisfactorily achieved with existing or presently proposed hull designs.


Electronic devices are provided that contain wireless communications circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry and antenna structures. A parallel-fed loop antenna may be formed from portions of an electronic device bezel and a ground plane. The antenna may operate in multiple communications bands. An impedance matching circuit for the antenna may be formed from a parallel-connected inductive element and a series-connected capacitive element. The bezel may surround a peripheral portion of a display that is mounted to the front of an electronic device. The bezel may contain a gap. Antenna feed terminals for the antenna may be located on opposing sides of the gap. The inductive element may bridge the gap and the antenna feed terminals. The capacitive element may be connected in series between one of the antenna feed terminals and a conductor in a transmission line located between the transceiver circuitry and the antenna.

This relates generally to wireless communications circuitry, and more particularly, to electronic devices that have wireless communications circuitry.
Electronic devices such as handheld electronic devices are becoming increasingly popular. Examples of handheld devices include handheld computers, cellular telephones, media players, and hybrid devices that include the functionality of multiple devices of this type.
Devices such as these are often provided with wireless communications capabilities. For example, electronic devices may use long-range wireless communications circuitry such as cellular telephone circuitry to communicate using cellular telephone bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz (e.g., the main Global System for Mobile Communications or GSM cellular telephone bands). Long-range wireless communications circuitry may also handle the 2100 MHz band. Electronic devices may use short-range wireless communications links to handle communications with nearby equipment. For example, electronic devices may communicate using the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz and the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz.
To satisfy consumer demand for small form factor wireless devices, manufacturers are continually striving to implement wireless communications circuitry such as antenna components using compact structures. At the same time, it may be desirable to include conductive structures in an electronic device such as metal device housing components. Because conductive components can affect radio-frequency performance, care must be taken when incorporating antennas into an electronic device that includes conductive structures.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved wireless communications circuitry for wireless electronic devices.


A movable die base (2) is moved toward a stationary die base (1). A pressing force is applied by a bending punch (21) disposed on the movable die base to a bending target portion of a pipe (A) which is placed on a die (11) provided on the stationary die base and which has inserted therein a core metal (17). At the time of this bending work, both ends of the pipe are restricted by holding them with restriction pads (22). When the pressing force is applied by the bending punch, the restriction pads are displaced to follow the pressing of the bending punch, whereby restricted state on both ends of the pipe is constantly maintained.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method of bending a pipe and an apparatus therefor and relates, in particular, to a method of, and apparatus for, smoothly bending a thin-wall metallic pipe such as a tail pipe for use in an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
When this kind of metallic pipe is subjected to bending work, wrinkling or deformation is likely to occur to the bent pipe if the restriction force on both ends of the pipe is not sufficient.
As a solution, there is known the following art. Namely, when a movable die base is moved toward a stationary die base in bending a pipe, one side of the pipe is fixed by pinching or holding by a pair of holding chucks which are disposed on both the die bases. The other side of the pipe is held by a pair of bending punches which are disposed on respective die bases in a manner to be swingable about that supporting shaft serving as a center of swinging movement which is disposed in a manner deviated in position in the axial direction of the pipe. These pair of bending punches are swung to thereby perform bending work.
In the above-described arrangement, at the time of bending, one end of the pipe is fixed and the other end of the pipe is subjected to bending work by applying a force from the outside toward the inside of the pipe, both as seen in the bending direction. Consequently, a large compression force is operated on the portion lying on the inside as seen in the bending direction, resulting in the occurrence of wrinkling or deformation as well as in a consequent failure in obtaining a stable bending accuracy. In case a pipe made by welding is subjected to bending work with the welded seam lying on the inside as seen in the bending direction, a large compression force may cause damages to the welded seam.

Method of bending pipe and apparatus therefor