A spring applied, hydraulically released (SAHR) parking and emergency brake system 1) can be manually overridden to permit towing or assisted vehicle transport when charge pump pressure is unavailable for the brakes, and 2) is reset either a) automatically when charge pump pressure becomes available or b) manually. Override is made possible by a manual override assembly that includes a manually-actuated hand pump and an override valve. The override valve is manually actuated to isolate the brake release actuators and the outlet of the hand pump from the system's reservoir and is reset to its open position in response to the presence of hydraulic pressure at a designated location of the braking system. Automatic reset of the override valve preferably is effected by the supply of pressurized fluid to a previously-unpressurized port of the override valve. The hand pump, override valve, and any other brake control valve(s) of the braking system preferably are incorporated into a single control module.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to braking systems and, more particularly, relates to a spring applied, hydraulically released parking and emergency brake system which is usable with a vehicle such as a ride-on roller and which includes a manually actuated, self-resetting override valve that permits manual release of the brakes for the purposes of vehicle towing or the like. The invention additionally relates to a vehicle employing such a braking system and to a method of operating such a braking system.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Many vehicles, and particularly many off-road vehicles, employ spring applied, hydraulically released (SAHR) parking and emergency braking systems. In these systems, a brake such as shoe assembly or a disk assembly is engaged under the force of a spring which permanently biases the brake towards its applied or engaged position. The brake is released by hydraulic pressure generated by a charge pump driven directly or indirectly by the vehicle's engine. In vehicles which either employ separate service and emergency braking systems or which lack a service braking system altogether, the emergency brake is released whenever the engine is operating and the charge pump is capable of generating hydraulic fluid pressure.
SAHR parking and emergency braking systems often include brake override assemblies to permit manual brake override for vehicle towing or assisted transport when the engine is not running, the charge pump fails, or when the vehicle otherwise is incapable transmitting hydraulic pressure to the brakes. One such brake override assembly is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,716 to Wirt (the Wirt patent). The brake override assembly of the SAHR braking system disclosed in the Wirt patent includes a manual cut-off valve and a manual hydraulic pump. The cut-off valve is located in a conduit leading from the system's brake control mechanism to the brake release actuators. The pump is disposed in an auxiliary conduit fluidically coupled to the brake release actuators. To release the brakes for towing or assisted transport, the cut-off valve is closed, and the pump is actuated to pressurize the brake release actuators and, hence, to release the brakes.
In braking systems such as the one disclosed in the Wirt patent, the brake release actuator of each brake assembly remains separated from the vehicle's tank or reservoir for so long as the manual override valve is in its actuated or closed position. As a result, the brakes remain disengaged unless and until the override valve is manually reset to its normal operating position in which fluid may flow from the brake release actuators to the vehicle's reservoir or tank. If the operator fails to reset the override valve to its normal operating position upon vehicle restart, the brakes cannot be reapplied. Hence, the safety of the operator and/or bystanders could be compromised by inadvertent operation of the vehicle with the parking and emergency brakes in an override condition.

Spring applied/hydraulically released braking system employing self-resetting override valve


An optical recording medium includes a first disk, a second disk, and an adhesive layer for bonding the first disk to the second disk. The first disk and the second disk each include a substrate having a first surface and a second surface and having a gradient on an outer peripheral portion of the second surface, two or more information signal layers disposed on the first surface, an intermediate layer disposed between adjacent information signal layers, and a cover layer covering the two or more information signal layers and the intermediate layer. The second surface of the substrate included in the first disk faces the second surface of the substrate included in the second disk with the adhesive interposed therebetween.

As an optical recording medium, a bonding type optical recording medium such as a digital versatile disc (DVD) is widely known. This optical recording medium includes a first substrate having an information signal layer on one surface thereof and a second substrate (dummy substrate) having no information signal layer, and has a configuration in which the second substrate is bonded to one surface of the first substrate having the information signal layer.
In recent years, a bonding type optical recording medium having a configuration different from the configuration described above has been proposed. This optical recording medium includes two disks each including a substrate, two or more information signal layers disposed on the substrate, an intermediate layer disposed between adjacent information signal layers, and a cover layer covering the two or more information signal layers and the intermediate layer. Among both surfaces of these disks, the surfaces on the substrate sides are bonded to each other with an adhesive (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this optical recording medium, the adhesive sandwiched between inner peripheral portions of the first and second disks is stretched from the inner peripheral portions to outer peripheral portions by a spin coating method, and then the adhesive is cured by ultraviolet irradiation. As a result, the two disks are bonded to each other.

Optical recording medium and method for manufacturing the same


A learning support system has an information processing apparatus, a portable information terminal and a learning management server which are connected through a network. The information processing apparatus includes a second memory unit for storing first learning information which includes result of learning, and the portable information terminal includes a fourth memory unit for storing second learning information which includes result of learning at the portable information terminal, and the learning management server includes a fifth memory unit for storing the first learning information transferred from the information processing apparatus and the second learning information transferred from the portable information terminal. The information processing apparatus or the portable information terminal carries out continuous learning after learning information of other party is acquired through the fifth memory unit.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a learning support system, and particularly, a learning support system in which learning data are transferred and managed between various information terminals through networks such as Internet. More particularly, this invention relates to an information processing apparatus and portable information terminals which are used in the learning support system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Since early times, electronic education systems using the Internet have been developed. For example, there was such a system that an education server and student terminals are connected through the Internet, a student sends data to the education server by inputting data into a form in a home page, and at the side of the education server, the received data is read/written and processed to a file of textual form by a CGI program and thereafter, sent back to the home page to be displayed.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 11(1999)-282826 describes an electronic education system in which student terminals and an education business owner terminal are connected to an electronic education server through the Internet. The electronic education server stores educational contents which are remotely thrown into the electronic education server from the education business owner terminal and provides students tests in the form of a home page based upon the educational contents. Students throw answers and/or inquiries into the tests provided in the form of the home page. The system is capable of providing educational services which correspond to each student in accordance with their learning curves with respect to each student.
Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-194251 describes a learning support system in which a server having learning material databases storing learning content materials and a plurality of computers having a content browser for obtaining the learning content material and a report editor for supporting preparation of a report by using the obtained material are connected through the Internet.
However, in these precedent systems, it is possible to automatically prepare tests which fit to students by analyzing and compiling answers of students at the server side, but there is a necessity of large capacity to store learning programs and learning data, and a student terminal is limited to a desk-top type personal computer which is placed at home or a notebook type personal computer.
Further, in case that a student carries out learning by use of a portable terminal, functions are limited since its capacity is small, and even in case that a student has both his/her own personal computer and a portable terminal at home, they are not linked with each other for learning. That is, in case that a student carries out learning by using both of a personal computer and a portable terminal, learning is carried out differently and respectively, and even in case that learning is completed by one of the computer and portable terminal, the other may present a test which contains the same contents as the completed one so that effective learning may not be carried out.
Further, in case of learning at home, it is possible to carry out multidirectional learning since learning can be carried out by securing a plenty of time in calm environment and by consulting a text book, but in case of a portable terminal, it is difficult to do the same learning as at home since there may be a case that long and concentrated time can not be secured for example during commute to and from work, and it is suitable to use such time for learning with easy operation such as memorization of words at most.
Furthermore, for example, in case learning is temporarily discontinued, it is advantageous to users if its learning can be continued at a portable terminal by reflecting the result of the at-home learning or halfway out-turn, and conversely, if learning discontinued at a portable terminal can be continued at a home personal computer, it is considered that more effective learning can be carried out.
This invention relates to information processing systems which are used in learning support systems, and particularly, information processing apparatus for preparing a data file of words which are searched by dictionary search or translation software and for learning the words in an information processing terminal such as a personal computer.
Since early times, such a search application software has been marketed that has a function for converting English words or Japanese words, which users have inputted, into Japanese words or English words. Also, such a learning application software has been marketed that has a function for preparing English word learning tests by use of illustrative sentences stored in an electronic dictionary such as English Japanese dictionary or Japanese English dictionary.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 11(1999)-109841 describes a language learning apparatus in which for example, in case that carried out is an operation for converting a letter string of a first language (for example, Japanese) which is inputted, into a letter string of a second language (for example, English), conversion history data comprising the letter strings and word class data relating to the letter strings is stored, and learning tests are prepared by the conversion history data, and the prepared tests are used for users to answer, and thereby, users can learn words which they could not answer.
Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 9 (1997)-185627 describes an electronic dictionary with a wordbook function which is used for rote learning of words by calling out words in registered order, which words are registered together with their meanings after consulting a dictionary is carried out by inputting spellings of words.
Such an information processing apparatus is designed to store history data in association with an operation for consulting a dictionary in case that an electronic dictionary is consulted for looking up unknown meaning and spelling, and to prepare learning data.
However, precedent learning apparatus simply consults a dictionary for a word which a user inputs, and it is possible to prepare a learning test by use of the word but it is not possible to present a test sentence which corresponds to learning level of a user. That is, learning curb or rote memorization level of a user is not considered.
Further, it is possible to carry out learning by calling out the registered words in various orders (such as registered order or alphabetical order) which users designate, but the number of consulting a dictionary as to the same word or whether it is a word for a user to feel difficulty in memorizing is not considered.
Accordingly, it is not necessarily mean to be able to learn effectively corresponding to learning curbs and intelligibility of users.
Further, this invention relates to portable information terminals and for example, portable type electronic learning apparatus used for learning a language.
Heretofore, as an electronic learning apparatus for learning foreign languages, there is an apparatus in which a word and a sentence of a foreign language are displayed and then, a user (respondent) is asked to input an answer and then, after being judged whether the inputted answer is correct or not, it is displayed and then, if the answer is wrong, a correct answer is displayed. Since, in such an electronic learning apparatus, words and sentences as a test are stored in a memory in advance, a memory of large capacity is necessitated in case that the number of a test is increased.
On the other hand, known is an apparatus having an electronic dictionary in which an index word and its illustrative sentence are extracted in a random order from the electronic dictionary, and the illustrative sentence from which the index word is removed is displayed as a test, and a plurality of index words extracted in a random order from the dictionary are given to a respondent as an option which should be filled in the removed portion (for example, see, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 9(1997)-330011).
However, such an electronic learning apparatus becomes large since a large size memory is necessitated for storing an electronic dictionary.
Further, since an option is extracted in a random order from the dictionary, one which is apparently a wrong answer far from a correct answer is extracted as the option so that there occurs a problem in which it becomes difficult to carry out effective learning.
From such a point, an electronic learning apparatus which is of small size and used as a portable one and effective learning is possible regardless of time and place has been desired since early times.
In the meantime, currently, small size communication terminals with enriched portability such as portable phones are in distinguished widespread use, and miniaturization and weight saving have been advanced, and corresponding to it, communication systems and communication patterns have been extremely progressed.


In a charging connector for an electric vehicle for charging a power receiving connector coupled with a power supplying connector, the power supplying connector includes an outer housing to be coupled with said power receiving connector; an inner housing to be slidably mounted on the front half and housing a plurality of terminals; and an air cylinder mounted inside said outer housing inside the rear half of said outer housing and a piston connected to the rear end of said inner housing. Whereby the inner housing is driven toward said power receiving connector by the operation of said air cylinder so that said terminals are connected to corresponding terminals of said power receiving connector. In such a configuration, since the advancing drive of an inner housing in which terminals are housed is carried out using the air cylinder, a small number of components can be used and the piston has only to be connected to the rear end of the inner housing, thus simplifying the production cost and reducing the production cost.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a charging connector for an electric vehicle, and more particularly to a charging connector in which a power supplying connector located on a charging stand has a simplified internal structure and can be coupled with a power receiving connector on the side of a vehicle body by small force.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A power supplying connector 51 as shown in FIG. 7 has been proposed which is used in a manner coupled with the power receiving connector of an electric vehicle (JP-A-192802).
This power supplying connector 51 is composed of a pair of split-type cases 52, 52'. Within the front half of the cases, a connector body 53 in which terminals are housed is slidably mounted, whereas within the rear half thereof, a straight tube segment of a handle 54 is slidably mounted. Lead wires to be connected to the above terminals are passed through the handle 54. Further, the acting portion of a lever 55 is coupled with the straight tube. By rotating the operating portion 55a which extends outwardly from the cases, the handle 54 can be moved with small force by a lever action of the lever 55.
Since the power supplying connector 51 is coupled with the power receiving connector by the lever action of the lever 55, they can be coupled with or separated from each other with relatively small force.
However, the above configuration has the following disadvantage. The handle 54 as well as the connector body 53 must be mounted in the split-type cases 52, 52'. In addition, in order to move the handle 54 smoothly, the lead wires for the terminals must be passed through the inside of the handle 54. Thus, the internal structure of the power supplying connector will be complicated and the production cost will be increased. Further, remarkable force is required regardless of using the lever 55.


A storage system having a plurality of disk controllers for accepting computer access through a SAN, and a plurality of file servers for accepting computer access through a LAN. The disk controllers and file servers are connected through a connection unit to a plurality of disk drive units in a disk pool. A disk pool management unit manages the relationships between the disk controllers and file servers and the disk drive units used by the respective disk controllers and file servers, and sends information identifying the usable disk drive units to the respective disk controllers and file servers. The disk controllers and file servers use the disk drive units based on the received usable disk information.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a storage system for use with a computer system, and relates more particularly to a storage system having multiple types of input/output interfaces.
2. Description of Related Art
There are two general types of interfaces ("I/F" below) used in computer systems to connect storage devices to the computer. The first type is the block I/O interface, which uses the data management unit of the storage device, the data block, as the unit for input/output ("I/O" below) access. The block I/O interface includes a fibre channel, SCSI (small computer systems interface), or other interface. The second type is the file I/O interface, which uses file units for I/O access. The file I/O interface is used with the network file system (NFS), common Internet file system (CIFS), and other file systems that use data from storage devices managed by a file server connected via a network.
Techniques for interconnecting a plurality of storage devices via a network can also be grouped in two categories based on the differences in the interfaces described above. The first is a Storage Area Network (SAN), a network for connecting to storage devices by connecting computers and storage devices using a fibre channel. The second is a Network-Attached Storage (NAS), a method for accessing storage devices with the file I/O interface by connecting the storage devices to a local area network (LAN) such as commonly used for communication between computers.
The SAN uses a high speed network that is dedicated to storage and is separate from the network used for sending messages between computers. Compared with NAS systems having the storage devices connected via a LAN, SAN systems enable faster data transfers. Protocol overhead is also small and fast response can be achieved with SAN systems because the block I/O interface is used. The disadvantage to SAN systems is that setup costs are high because a dedicated network is required. SAN is therefore used primarily in the backbone system of corporate computer networks, frequently for database applications.
With NAS the storage system is connected directly to the LAN. Setup costs are low and setup is relatively easy because an existing LAN can be used. A standardized NFS, CIFS, or other network file system is also used for the interface, and data is managed in file units. Data management is therefore easy, and files can be easily shared between plural computers. The disadvantage to NAS is that because the storage system is accessed via the same LAN used for communication between computers, LAN traffic (load) is increased. The processing overhead of a network file system is also high, and response is slower than with block I/O. For these reasons NAS is used primarily for corporate file management systems, Web content management, CAD data file management, and other such applications.
As will be known from the above, NAS and SAN are mutually complementary and are used for different purposes. NAS and SAN are therefore generally used for appropriate applications.
Technology for combining SAN and NAS is also known from the prior art as described below.
A computer is connected to a storage system through a file server connected to a LAN, or the computer and file server are connected directly to the storage system via a SAN. The file server is connected to the storage system through a fibre channel or other interface. The storage system used in this case is typically a disk array system having a plurality of disk drive units and a disk controller located between the plural disk drive units and the computers for controlling data access to the disk drive units.
To access data stored on the storage system, a computer connected only to the file server accesses files in the storage system via the file server using the NFS, CIFS, or other protocol. Computers connected to both the file server and SAN must send a request to the file server in order to access the storage system, but data is transferred from the storage system to the computer directly over the SAN.
It will be noted that with this prior art method a NAS system is created by the file server and the storage system connected to the file server by a fibre channel. In other words, this prior art technology creates a NAS system above the SAN.

Storage system having a plurality of controllers


A catalytic trap (10, 110) effective for conversion of NOx in an exhaust gas stream is inert to high-temperature reaction with basic oxygenated compounds of lithium, sodium or potassium. The catalytic trap may be substantially free of silica components and may include a catalytic trap material (20, 120) which contains a refractory metal oxide support, e.g., alumina, having dispersed thereon a catalytic component, such as a platinum group metal catalytic component, and a NOx sorbent comprised of one or more of the basic oxygenated compounds. The catalytic trap material is coated onto a suitable carrier member (12, 112), such as one made from stainless steel, titanium, alumina, titania, zirconia or silica-leached cordierite. A method of treating a NOx-containing gas stream involves maintaining the gas stream in alternating periods of (1) lean and (2) rich or stoichiometric conditions and contacting the gas stream with the catalytic trap under conditions in which NOx is adsorbed during periods of lean operation and released and reduced to nitrogen during periods of rich operation.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a catalytic trap for treating exhaust gas streams, especially those emanating from lean-burn engines, and to methods of making and using the same. More specifically, the present invention provides a catalytic trap which abates NOx in the exhaust streams being treated and exhibits enhanced durability after aging at high temperature and lean operation conditions.
2. Related Art
Emission of nitrogen oxides (xe2x80x9cNOxxe2x80x9d) from lean-burn engines (described below) must be reduced in order to meet emission regulation standards. Conventional three-way conversion (xe2x80x9cTWCxe2x80x9d) automotive catalysts are suitable for abating NOR, carbon monoxide (xe2x80x9cCOxe2x80x9d) and hydrocarbon (xe2x80x9cHCxe2x80x9d) pollutants in the exhaust of engines operated at or near stoichiometric air/fuel conditions. The precise proportion of air to fuel that results in stoichiometric conditions varies with the relative proportions of carbon and hydrogen in the fuel. An air-to-fuel (xe2x80x9cA/Fxe2x80x9d) ratio of 14.65:1 (weight of air to weight of fuel) is the stoichiometric ratio corresponding to the combustion of a hydrocarbon fuel, such as gasoline, with an average formula CH1.88. The symbol xcex is thus used to represent the result of dividing a particular A/F ratio by the stoichiometric A/F ratio for a given fuel, so that xcex=1 is a stoichiometric mixture, xcex greater than 1 is a fuel-lean mixture and xcex less than 1 is a fuel-rich mixture.
Engines, especially gasoline-fueled engines to be used for passenger automobiles and the like, are being designed to operate under lean conditions as a fuel economy measure. Such future engines are referred to as xe2x80x9clean-burn enginesxe2x80x9d. That is, the ratio of air to fuel in the combustion mixtures supplied to such engines is maintained considerably above the stoichiometric ratio (e.g., at an air-to-fuel weight ratio of 18:1) so that the resulting exhaust gases are xe2x80x9cleanxe2x80x9d, i.e., the exhaust gases are relatively high in oxygen content. Although lean-burn engines provide enhanced fuel economy, they have the disadvantage that conventional TWC catalysts are not effective for reducing NOx emissions from such engines because of excessive oxygen in the exhaust. The prior art discloses attempts to overcome this problem by operating lean-burn engines with brief periods of fuel-rich operation. (Engines which operate in this fashion are sometimes referred to as xe2x80x9cpartial lean-bum enginesxe2x80x9d.) It is known to treat the exhaust of such engines with a catalyst/NOx sorbent which stores NOx during periods of lean (oxygen-rich) operation, and releases the stored NOx during the rich (fuel-rich) periods of operation. During periods of rich (or stoichiometric) operation, the catalyst component of the catalyst/NOx sorbent promotes the reduction of NOx to nitrogen by reaction of NOx (including NOx released from the NOx sorbent) with HC, CO and/or hydrogen present in the exhaust.
The use of NOx storage (sorbent) components including alkaline earth metal oxides, such as oxides of Ca, Sr and Ba, alkali metal oxides such as oxides of K, Na, Li and Cs, and rare earth metal oxides such as oxides of Ce, La, Pr and Nd in combination with precious metal catalysts such as platinum dispersed on an alumina support, is known, as shown for example, at column 4, lines 19-25, of U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,887 of S. Takeshima et al, issued on Dec. 12, 1995. At column 4, lines 53-57, an exemplary composition is described as containing barium (an alkaline earth metal) and a platinum catalyst. The publication Environmental Catalysts For A Better World And Life, Proceedings of the 1st World Congress at Pisa, Italy, May 1-5, 1995, published by the Societa Chimica Italiana of Rome, Italy has, at pages 45-48 of the publication, an article entitled xe2x80x9cThe New Concept 3-Way Catalyst For Automotive Lean-Bum Engine Storage and Reduction Catalystxe2x80x9d, by Takahashi et al (below referred to as xe2x80x9cthe Takahashi et al paperxe2x80x9d). This article discloses the preparation of catalysts of the type described in the aforementioned Takeshima et al U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,887 and using these catalysts for NOx purification of actual and simulated exhaust gases alternately under oxidizing (lean) and reducing (rich or stoichiometric) conditions. The conclusion is drawn in the last sentence on page 46, that NOx was stored in the catalyst under oxidizing conditions and that the stored NOx was then reduced to nitrogen under stoichiometric and reducing conditions. A similar but more detailed discussion is contained in SAE Paper 950809 published by the Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc., Warrendale, Pa., and entitled Development of New Concept Three-Way Catalyst for Automotive Lean-Burn Engines, by Naoto Miyoshi et al, was delivered at the International Congress and Exposition, Detroit, Mich., Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 1995.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,742,038, xe2x80x9cMonolithic Catalyst Support and Catalyst Deposited on the Supportxe2x80x9d, issued May 3, 1988 to S. Matsumoto, discloses a metal substrate for carrying a catalytic material useful for the treatment of exhaust gases from internal combustion engines.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,874,057, xe2x80x9cLean NOx Catalyst/Trap Methodxe2x80x9d, issued on Feb. 23, 1999 to M. Deeba et al, discloses a method of NOx abatement utilizing a composition comprising a NOx abatement catalyst comprising platinum and, optionally, at least one other platinum group metal catalyst which is kept segregated from a NOx sorbent material. The NOx sorbent material may be one or more of oxides, carbonates, hydroxides and mixed oxides of one or more of lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, osmium, magnesium, calcium, strontium and barium.
Prior art catalysts as described above have a problem in practical application, particularly when the catalysts are aged by exposure to high temperatures and lean operating conditions, because after such exposure, such catalysts show a marked decrease in catalytic activity for NOx reduction, particularly at low temperature (250 to 350xc2x0 C.) and high temperature (450 to 600xc2x0 C.) operating conditions.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,558, xe2x80x9cProcess For the Reaction and Absorption of Gaseous Air Pollutants, Apparatus Therefor and Method of Making the Samexe2x80x9d, issued on September 19, 1995 to L. Campbell et al, (xe2x80x9cthe Campbell et al Patentxe2x80x9d) discloses a catalytic material for the reduction of NOx from a turbine in a power generating stack, although the patent also refers at column 1, lines 13-14, generally to a process and apparatus for reducing pollutants xe2x80x9cwhich are produced by combustion of hydrocarbons or hydrogen in an engine or boiler, and primarily in a gas turbine.xe2x80x9d As disclosed at column 2, lines 23-37, the turbine exhaust gases are cooled to the range of 250 to 500xc2x0 F (about 121 to 260xc2x0 C.) before contacting the catalytic/adsorbent material (column 2, lines 23-37) and the oxidation is stated (column 2, lines 45-48) to occur at temperatures in the range of 150 to about 425xc2x0 F. (66 to 218xc2x0 C.), most preferably in the range of 175 to 400xc2x0 F. (about 79 to 204xc2x0 C.). The catalytic species comprises an oxidation catalyst species which may comprise various metals including platinum group metals (see column 3, line 67 through column 4, line 3) deposited on a high surface area support which may be xe2x80x9cmade of alumina, zirconia, titania, silica or a combination of two or more of these oxides.xe2x80x9d The catalyst-containing high surface area support is coated with an adsorbent species which may comprise xe2x80x9cat least one alkali or alkaline earth compound, which can be a hydroxide compound, bicarbonate compound, or carbonate compound, or mixturesxe2x80x9d thereof. At column 3, lines 16-22, the xe2x80x9ccarbonate coatingxe2x80x9d is said to be a xe2x80x9clithium, sodium, potassium or calcium carbonate, and presently the preferred coating is a potassium carbonate.xe2x80x9d At column 4, lines 28-31, however, it is stated that the absorber comprises xe2x80x9cmost preferably sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate or calcium carbonate.xe2x80x9d The high surface area support containing the oxidation species and adsorbent may be coated onto xe2x80x9ca ceramic or metal matrix structurexe2x80x9d as a carrier. See column 4, lines 12-20. The catalytic material is applied to the carrier by coating the carrier with, e.g., platinum-impregnated alumina, and then wetting the alumina with an alkali or alkaline earth carbonate solution, and then drying the wetted alumina (see column 5, line 9 through column 6, line 12). The carrier may be alumina beads as illustrated in FIG. 1A, or a monolithic ceramic or stainless steel support as illustrated in FIG. 1C, both Figures being described at column 4, line 67, to column 5, line 8. The use of a metal monolith support for the catalytic/adsorbent material is suggested at column 5, lines 48-58. There is no suggestion in the Campbell et al Patent of criticality of, nor is any importance assigned to, the type of substrate or high surface area support to be used with a particular adsorbent species. In fact, as noted above, silica is one of four high surface area supports taught for use with compositions preferably including a potassium carbonate adsorbent.
Generally, the present invention relates to a catalytic trap member having coated thereon a catalytic trap material comprising a catalytic component effective for the reduction of NOx and a NOx sorbent essentially comprising a basic oxygenated compound of an alkali metal selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and potassium, the catalytic material being coated onto a carrier member which is inert to the basic oxygenated compound.
Specifically, in accordance with the present invention there is provided a catalytic trap for conversion of NOx in an exhaust gas stream which is periodically alternated between (1) lean and (2) stoichiometric or rich conditions, the catalytic trap comprising the following components: (a) a catalytic trap material which comprises (i) a refractory metal oxide support having dispersed thereon a catalytic component effective for promoting the reduction of NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust stream, and (ii) a NOx sorbent effective for adsorbing NOx under lean conditions of the exhaust gas stream and desorbing NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust gas stream and comprising one or more basic oxygenated compounds of an alkali metal selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and potassium, the catalytic trap material being inert to the aforesaid basic oxygenated compounds, and (b) a refractory carrier member which is inert to the aforesaid basic oxygenated compounds and on which the catalytic trap material is coated.
In one aspect of the present invention the refractory carrier member may be selected from the group consisting of (a) refractory metal, e.g., stainless steel, Fecralloy or titanium, or (b) refractory oxides such as alumina, titania, zirconia, zirconia-alumina, zirconia-titania, titania-alumina, lanthana-alumina, baria-zirconia-alumina, niobia-alumina, and silica-leached cordierite.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the catalytic trap for the above-described purpose comprises the following components: (a) a catalytic trap material which is substantially free of silica components and comprises (i) a refractory metal oxide support having dispersed thereon a catalytic component effective for promoting the reduction of NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust stream, and (ii) a NOx sorbent effective for adsorbing NOx under lean conditions of the exhaust gas stream and desorbing NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust gas stream, the NOx sorbent comprising one or more basic oxygenated compounds of an alkali metal selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and potassium; and (b) a refractory carrier member on which the catalytic trap material is coated, the carrier member being selected from the group consisting of a refractory metal, alumina, titania, zirconia, zirconia-alumina, titania-zirconia, titania-alumina, lanthana-alumina, baria-zirconia-alumina, niobia-alumina, and silica-leached cordierite.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the catalytic trap for the above-described purpose comprises the following components: (a) a catalytic trap material comprising (i) a refractory metal oxide support having dispersed thereon a catalytic component effective for promoting the reduction of NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust stream, and (ii) a NOx sorbent effective for adsorbing NOx under lean conditions of the exhaust gas stream and desorbing NOx under stoichiometric or rich conditions of the exhaust gas stream, the NOx sorbent comprising one or more basic oxygenated compounds of an alkali metal selected from the group consisting of lithium, sodium and potassium present in an amount sufficient to provide, after reaction with the aforesaid basic oxygenated compounds of all silica components present in the catalytic trap, an excess of the basic oxygenated compounds of at least about 0.1 g/in3, e.g., an excess of from about 0.1 to 2.5 g/in3 of the basic oxygenated compounds, calculated as M2O, where M=Li, Na or K; and (b) a refractory carrier member on which the catalytic trap material is coated.
In aspects of the present invention, the alkali metal comprises potassium, so that the basic oxygenated compound is a basic oxygenated compound of potassium.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the catalytic trap comprises a refractory carrier member which is inert to the aforesaid basic oxygenated compounds, e.g., a refractory carrier member which is inert to basic oxygenated compounds of potassium, on which is coated a catalytic trap material which is substantially free of silica components. The catalytic trap material comprises a discrete, first layer of catalytic trap material and a discrete, second layer of catalytic trap material overlying the first layer.
Another aspect of the present invention provides that the first layer comprises a first NOx sorbent comprising a first potassium oxygenated compound and a first catalytic component, and the second layer comprises a second NOx sorbent comprising a second potassium oxygenated compound and a second catalytic component.
In aspects of the present invention, the catalytic component is optionally selected from the group consisting of one or more of palladium, platinum and rhodium catalytic components.
For example, one aspect of the layered embodiment of the invention provides for the first catalytic component to comprise a platinum catalytic component and the second catalytic component to comprise a platinum catalytic component, a rhodium catalytic component and a palladium catalytic component.
In another aspect of the layered embodiment of the present invention, (a) the first catalytic component comprises a platinum catalytic component and the first layer further comprises lanthanum, barium and zirconium components, and (b) the second catalytic component comprises a platinum catalytic component, a palladium catalytic component and a rhodium catalytic component, and the second layer further comprises barium and zirconium components.
A broad aspect of the present invention provides for the carrier member to comprise a refractory material which is substantially free of silica components. For example, the carrier member may comprise a refractory metal, e.g., stainless steel, titanium or Fecralloy, or refractory metal oxides, including ceramic-like materials, e.g., alumina, titania, zirconia or silica-leached cordierite. Generally, the refractory metal may be any suitable refractory metal or alloy or refractory oxide or mixed oxide material which is inert to basic oxygenated compounds of one or more of lithium, sodium, and potassium. The carrier member may also comprise a combination of two or more of these materials, e.g., alumina and titania.
The NOx sorbent may further comprise one or more basic oxygenated compounds of one or more metals selected from the group consisting of (a) alkali metals other than lithium, sodium or potassium, (b) alkaline earth metals and (c) rare earth metals, although the latter are not preferred. For example, the NOx sorbent may further comprise one or more basic oxygenated compounds of one or more metals selected from the group consisting of magnesium, calcium, barium, strontium, and cesium.
A particular aspect of the present invention provides for the carrier member of the catalytic trap to have a longitudinal axis, a front face and a rear face, and a plurality of parallel gas-flow passages extending longitudinally therethrough and connecting the front and rear faces of the carrier member. The gas-flow passages are defined by walls on which the catalytic NOx sorbent is coated, and the NOx sorbent comprises one or more basic oxygenated compounds of lithium, sodium or potassium disposed only in a first longitudinal segment of the carrier member, that is, between one of the rear and front faces of the carrier member and an intermediate point along the longitudinal axis thereof (The distance from the front face of the carrier to the intermediate point may comprise from about 20 percent to 80 percent of the length of the carrier along its longitudinal axis.) In this way, the basic oxygenated compound or compounds of lithium, sodium or potassium, e.g., the basic oxygenated compounds of potassium, are excluded from a second longitudinal segment of the carrier member lying between either the front or the rear face of the carrier member and the said intermediate point.
A further aspect of the present invention provides the catalytic trap in combination with a treatment catalyst disposed upstream of the catalytic trap relative to the exhaust gas stream, the treatment catalyst being effective at least to promote under oxidation conditions the oxidation of hydrocarbons to CO2 and H2O.
A method aspect of the present invention provides a method of treating an exhaust gas stream containing NOx to abate the NOx content of the stream. The method comprises maintaining the stream under alternating periods of (1) lean and (2) stoichiometric or rich operation and contacting the stream during the periods of both lean and stoichiometric or rich operation with a catalytic trap material as described above at conditions whereby at least some of the NOx in the exhaust gas stream is adsorbed by the catalytic trap material during the periods of lean operation and is released from the catalytic trap material and reduced to nitrogen during the periods of stoichiometric or rich operation. Contact temperatures may be from about 200xc2x0 C. to 650xc2x0 C., e.g., about 350xc2x0 C. to 650xc2x0 C. (During stoichiometric or rich conditions, however, the catalytic trap may be exposed to higher temperatures, on the order of about 650xc2x0 C. to 850xc2x0 C.)
Another method aspect of the present invention provides that the exhaust gas stream contains hydrocarbons and the method further comprises contacting the exhaust gas stream under oxidizing conditions with a catalyst effective to promote oxidation of hydrocarbons, whereby to oxidize hydrocarbons contained therein, prior to contacting the exhaust gas stream with the catalytic trap.
Other aspects of the present invention are set forth in the appended drawings and in the detailed description set forth below.
Reference herein and in the claims to a xe2x80x9ccarrierxe2x80x9d (sometimes referred to as a xe2x80x9ccarrier memberxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ccarrier substratexe2x80x9d) or other material which is xe2x80x9cinertxe2x80x9d to the basic oxygenated compounds of one or more of lithium, sodium and potassium means a carrier or material which is substantially inert to reaction with such basic oxygenated compounds under the conditions encountered by aging or utilization of the catalytic traps of the present invention, including fuel-cut aging cycles at temperatures up to about 900xc2x0 C. (The term xe2x80x9cfuel-cut agingxe2x80x9d is explained below.) Such reaction would render the NOx sorbent (the aforesaid basic oxygenated compound or compounds) significantly less effective in fulfilling its role in NOx reduction. Similarly, reference herein and in the claims to a carrier which is xe2x80x9cpotassium-inertxe2x80x9d means a carrier which is substantially inert to reaction under the described conditions with basic oxygenated compounds of potassium.
As used herein and in the claims, an xe2x80x9coxygenated metal compoundxe2x80x9d means a compound including one or more metals and oxygen. For example, the aforesaid basic oxygenated metal compounds may comprise one or more of a metal oxide, a metal carbonate and a metal hydroxide.
Reference herein and in the claims to xe2x80x9ccomponentxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9ccomponentsxe2x80x9d with reference to catalytic components such as palladium, platinum or rhodium catalytic components means the metal or metals, as the element, alloy or compound, in catalytically effective form, e.g., usually as the element or an alloy. Similarly, reference herein and in the claims to metal xe2x80x9ccomponentsxe2x80x9d comprising NOx sorbents means any effective NOx-trapping forms of the metals, e.g., oxygenated metal compounds such as metal hydroxides, mixed metal oxides, metal oxides or metal carbonates.
The quantities of components of the catalytic material are expressed herein in units of weight per unit volume, specifically, grams per cubic inch (xe2x80x9cg/in3xe2x80x9d) and grams per cubic foot (xe2x80x9cg/ft3xe2x80x9d). This system of nomenclature accommodates voids in a carrier member such as the carrier member having a plurality of parallel, fine gas-flow passages extending therethrough, on the walls of which the catalytic NOx sorbent is coated. The nomenclature would similarly accommodate the voids contained in an embodiment wherein the catalytic NOx sorbent is coated onto beads of a catalytically inert material, the inert beads and the interstices between them providing voids in the catalytic trap. Concentrations (xe2x80x9cloadingsxe2x80x9d) in the trap member of catalytic metals such as Pd, Rh and Pt are given on the basis of the elemental metal and are expressed as, e.g., 200 g/ft3 Pd, 90 g/in3 Pt, etc. Loadings of NOx sorbents are similarly given on a weight per volume basis, but as grams per cubic inch (xe2x80x9cg/in3xe2x80x9d), and calculated on the basis of the following oxides: Li2O, Na2O, K2O, Cs2O, MgO, CaO, SrO and BaO. The coating of the catalytic NOx sorbent on the carrier member is sometimes referred to as a xe2x80x9cwashcoatxe2x80x9d because the carrier member is typically coated with an aqueous slurry of particles of the solids, e.g., the refractory metal oxide support, and the slurry coating is then dried and heated (calcined) to provide the washcoat.
Reference herein and in the claims to the use of xe2x80x9cdispersionsxe2x80x9d or the like of precursor compounds in a liquid includes the use of solutions or other dispersions in a liquid vehicle of precursor compounds and/or complexes.
Reference herein to a mixed metal oxide means an oxide which contains two or more metals, such as barium zirconate, barium titanate, barium aluminate, etc.
As used herein and in the claims, reference to xe2x80x9csilica componentsxe2x80x9d means and includes silica and silicates; reference to a material being xe2x80x9csubstantially freexe2x80x9d of silica components means that the quantity of silica components present, if any, is too little to noticeably adversely affect the efficacy of the catalytic trap material.

Catalytic trap with potassium component and method of using the same


A method and an apparatus for separating components having different viscosities and/or sizes from a composition are disclosed The apparatus comprises a rotatable hollow drum having an outer surface which is perforated, and an endless belt in engagement with a portion of the outer surface of said drum. The belt and said outer surface define an input zone where the belt and the outer surface engage. The input zone has the form of a wedge, and in use, the belt rotates synchronously with the outer surface. The apparatus further comprises an adjustable compression roller positioned to press the belt against said portion of the outer surface of the hollow drum, and a device positioned within the input zone. The device tends to urge the compression belt away from the outer surface. The apparatus has an improved input capability, particularly for bulky material.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a food processing apparatus, and more particularly to a method and an apparatus for separating components having different viscosities and/or sizes from a composition. The composition is preferably a food product or a food product and food product container.
2. Description of Related Art
A separating apparatus is generally used in the food industry, e.g., to chop meat and remove skins and sinews, to produce skin and bone free fish stuffing from fish fillets remnants or fish bone remnants, to produce fruit and vegetables juices, to recycle contents of packages, and the like.
German patent number 43 28 627 and corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,689 disclose an apparatus for separating components having different viscosities and/or sizes from a composition. The disclosed apparatus comprises a hollow, rotatable drum with a perforated outer surface, and an endless compression belt engaging a portion of the outer surface. The compression belt forms with the outer surface a wedge-shaped input zone, and rotates synchronously with the outer surface. The apparatus further comprises adjustable compression means to press the compression belt against the drum.
During operation of such an apparatus, goods to be processed are fed to the input zone where they are pulled in between the outer surface of the hollow drum and the compression belt, whereby the more viscous components flow through the perforations of the hollow drum into the interior under the influence of the compression, and the less viscous components remain at the periphery of the hollow drum, pass between the drum and the compression belt and are ejected from the belt beyond the drum, preferably by scraping with a scraping device.
German patent number 2 159 465 discloses a straining machine having in the area where the compression belt engages the hollow drum supporting means which support the compression belt from below to press against the belt to increase its engagement with the drum.
During processing of bulky goods, e.g., during automatic opening of food packages made of plastic or cellulose, the goods to be processed often cannot be pulled in because of their bulkiness. As experienced in practice, in most cases this effect cannot be reliably avoided by pre-chopping the goods to be processed. A pre-chopping apparatus is known from German utility model number 89 11 890.1. This reference discloses an unit which is positioned above the input zone and comprises rotating knives to chop the goods.
Generally, said effect cannot be overcome by using stuffing devices, e.g., known from European Patent number 375 877 or Canadian Patent number 965 297, which, inter alia, disclose a reciprocating ram element that periodically extends into the input zone.
In view of the deficiencies associated with processing goods in the prior art, there exists a need to improve the processing capabilities of separating apparatuses.

Method and apparatus for separating components having different viscosities and/or sizes from a composition


A grounding member (20) is formed with a receiving hole (23), and a ground terminal fitting (10) is formed with a cantilevered lock (13) including a step (13B). The lock (13) is locked to the receiving hole (23) with the step (13B) contact with a stopper (24) of the receiving hole (23). In tightening a first bolt (51) at a first mounting hole (151) and a first female screw hole (51), a rotational force in a direction to bring the step (13B) into contact with the stopper (24) is applied to a terminal main body (11). Butting portions (14) protrude from side edges (13D) of the lock (13) and prevent following rotation of the terminal main body (11) by contacting receiving surfaces (25) when the first bolt (51) is tightened.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connection structure for ground terminal fitting.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-253167 discloses a connection structure for fitting and connecting through holes of a ground terminal to two stud bolts projecting on a ground panel. The connection structure that has stud bolts projecting on the ground panel easily positions the ground terminal with respect to the ground panel. However, positioning the ground terminal with respect to the ground panel is difficult with a connection structure that has a female screw hole provided on a ground panel and a through hole of a ground terminal positioned with respect to the female screw hole.
Considered has been given to penetrating a receiving portion through the ground panel, projecting a lock on the outer peripheral edge of the ground terminal and then positioning the ground terminal by inserting the lock into the receiving portion and bringing a step into contact with the opening edge of the receiving portion. However, the step may deviate from the opening edge of the receiving portion and the lock may be inserted deep into the receiving portion when screwing a bolt inserted through one of the two through holes into the female screw hole. Thus, the ground terminal is displaced with respect to the grounding member and the other through hole deviates from the female screw hole and cannot be bolt-fastened.
The invention was completed based on the above situation and aims to prevent a displacement when a bolt is first tightened in the case of successively tightening bolts at two positions.

Connection structure for ground terminal fitting


The inside-band characteristic of an internal reflection type unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter is improved by using an internal reflection type unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter having positive and negative finger electrodes (10, 11) of the interdigital transducer and having open or short-circuit type floating electrodes (12) therebetween. The finger electrodes are subjected to weighting by a withdrawal technique and the filter is structured such that at portions wherein no electrical cross is made between the positive and negative finger electrodes, i.e., in case where adjacent finger electrodes each have the same sign as that of the positive finger electrode or negative finger electrode, the floating electrodes (13) located therebetween are not displaced from the center positions therebetween.

The present invention relates to a surface acoustic wave filter, and more particularly to an internal reflection type unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter having floating electrodes.
As means for converting a transversal surface acoustic wave filter to a low-loss version, there has hitherto been proposed a unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter. Japanese Patent Publication (b2) No. 20929 of 1991 shows that unidirectivity can be obtained by inserting an open or short-circuit type floating electrode between positive and negative finger electrodes of an interdigital transducer (IDT) and displacing the position of this floating electrode from a center position between the positive and negative finger electrodes.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, when a short-circuit type floating electrode 12 is disposed between positive and negative finger electrodes 10 and 11 of the interdigital transducer in such a way as to be displaced from a center position therebetween, a surface acoustic wave is strongly excited in an arrow-indicated direction in FIG. 1, with the result that unidirectivity occurs.
In this conventional internal reflection type unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter having open or short-circuit type floating electrodes, when using electrodes weighted by an apodization or withdrawal weighted electrodes in order to suppress the outside-band sidelobe levels, a structure of finger electrodes that includes the short-circuit type floating electrodes is as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3.
In a unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter with an IDT finger electrode width of .lambda./12 (.lambda.: wavelength) and short-circuit type floating electrodes 12, such as that illustrated in FIG. 3, when using the withdrawal weighted electrodes, the following phenomenon occurs at portions where the positive and negative finger electrodes 10 and 11 do not cross each other, i.e., in case where adjacent finger electrodes are the same positive finger electrode 10 or negative finger electrode 11. That is, although these finger electrodes 10, 11 or floating electrodes 12 have no relevancy to the excitation of surface acoustic waves, they disturb the phase thereof by acoustic reflection thereof, with the result that the inside-passband characteristic exhibits ripples as illustrated in FIG. 4.
FIG. 4 illustrates an amplitude characteristic 41 and a group delay characteristic 42 obtained from a filter prepared by disposing the electrode structure of FIG. 3 with respect to each of input and output transducers on a quartz substrate. In this graphic diagram, the center frequency is 201 MHz (megahertz'), the thickness of the aluminium electrode is 200 nm (nanometers) and the impedance is 90 ohms at the input side and 150 ohms at the output side. The axis of abscissas represents the frequency and is graduated in 100 kHz (kilohertz') per graduation. The axis of ordinates represents the insertion loss of the amplitude characteristic and the time delay of the group delay characteristic and is graduated in 1 dB (decibel) and 1 .mu.s (microsecond), respectively, per graduation.
In the conventional internal reflection type unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter, there is the problem that when using the withdrawal or apodization weighted electrodes, ripples occur inside the passband and so the filtering characteristic deteriorates.
The unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter is theoretically discussed in a paper contributed by K. Yamanouchi and another to the ELECTRONICS LETTERS, Vol. 20, No. 24 (Nov. 22, 1984), pages 989 to 990, under the title of "NEW LOW-LOSS SAW FILTER USING INTERNAL FLOATING ELECTRODE REFLECTION TYPES OF SINGLE-PHASE UNIDIRECTIONAL TRANSDUCER" and a paper contributed by T. Kodama and three others to the IEEE 1986 ULTRASONICS SYMPOSIUM, pages 59 to 64, under the title of "DESIGN OF LOW-LOSS SAW FILTERS EMPLOYING DISTRIBUTED ACOUSTIC REFLECTION TRANSDUCERS".

Unidirectional surface acoustic wave filter


A wall covering assembly comprising a front layer of a vinyl coated fabric or paper, a rear ceramic layer, and an intermediate layer made of an acrylic compound containing finely divided phase change material such as crystalline acryl hydrocarbons or salt hydrates. The wall covering assembly facilitates thermo-regulation due to latent heat absorption and latent heat release in the phase transition range of the phase change material, which enhances the thermal comfort of rooms and leads to energy savings.

Wall covering materials used in homes, hotels or office buildings mainly fulfil a decorating purpose. Wall covering materials are made, for instance, of fabrics or papers with a PVC coating on one side. The vinyl coating is printed or embossed in order to create different designs and textures. Because of the thinness and high density of a wall covering material it does not contribute to the thermal insulation feature provided by the walls or ceilings the wall covering material is attached to. On the other side, the wall coverings plays an important rule in thermal interactions between the walls and the room's interior. The walls release radiant heat into the room and receive radiant heat from the room's interior parts. The wall covering is the part of the wall which is mainly involved in this thermal interaction. The radiant heat absorbed by the wall covering is transported into the walls and the ceiling by conduction. Furthermore, the heat flux from the floor to the ceiling interacts with the wall covering system in form of convective heat. As a result, being in the forefront regarding the heat exchange between the wall and the ceiling and the room interior the wall covering should be considered for providing a thermo-regulating feature. A thermo-regulating feature supplied by the wall coverings leads to an substantial improvement of the thermal comfort of rooms. Furthermore, a thermo-regulating effect provided by the wall covering system results in a decrease in air-conditioning and heating demands which leads to substantial energy savings as well. A thermo-regulating effect can be provided by the application of phase change material.
Phase change material is a highly-productive thermal storage medium which possesses the ability to change its physical state within a certain temperature range. When the melting temperature is obtained during a heating process, the phase change from the solid to the liquid state occurs. During this melting process, the phase change material absorbs and stores a large amount of latent heat. The temperature of the phase change material remains nearly constant during the entire process. In a cooling process of the phase change material, the stored heat is released into the environment in a certain temperature range, and a reverse phase change from the liquid to the solid state takes place. During this crystallization process, the temperature of the phase change material also remains constant. The high heat transfer during the melting process and the crystallization process, both without any temperature change, is responsible for the phase change material's appeal as a source of heat storage.
In order to contrast the amount of latent heat absorbed by a phase change material during the actual phase change with the amount of sensible heat in an ordinary heating process, the ice-water phase change process will be used. When ice melts, it absorbs an amount of latent heat of about 335 J/g. When the water is further heated, it absorbs a sensible heat of only 4 J/g while its temperature rises by one degree C. Therefore, the latent heat absorption during the phase change from ice into water is nearly 100 times higher than the sensible heat absorption during the heating process of water outside the phase change temperature range.
In addition to ice (water), more than 500 natural and synthetic phase change materials are known. These materials differ from one another in their phase change temperature ranges and their latent heat storage capacities.
Currently, only crystalline alkyl hydrocarbon phase change materials having different chain lengths are used for finishing yarns, textiles and foams. Characteristics of these phase change materials are summarized in Table 1.
TABLE 1Crystalline alkyl hydrocarbonsLatent heatCrystallineMeltingCrystallizationstoragealkyltemperature,temperature,capacity,hydrocarbonsFormula° C.° C.J/gEicosaneC20H4236.130.6247NonadecaneC19H4032.126.4222OctadecaneC18H3828.225.4244HeptadecaneC17H3621.716.5213
The crystalline alkyl hydrocarbons are either used in technical grades with a purity of approximately 95% or they are blended with one another in order to cover specific phase change temperature ranges. The crystalline alkyl hydrocarbons are nontoxic, non-corrosive, and non-hygroscopic. The thermal behavior of these phase change materials remains stable under permanent use. Crystalline alkyl hydrocarbons are byproducts of petroleum refining and, therefore, inexpensive.
Salt hydrates are alloys of inorganic salts and water. The most attractive properties of salt hydrates are the comparatively high latent heat values, the high thermal conductivities and the small volume change during melting. Salt hydrates often show an incongruent melting behaviour which results in a lack in reversible melting and freezing making them unsuitable for permanent use. Salt hydrates with reversible melting and freezing characteristics are summarized in Table 2.
TABLE 2Salt hydratesMeltingLatent heat storagetemperature,capacity,Salt hydrates° C.J/gCalcium Cloride Hexahydrate29.4170Lithium Nitrate Trihydrate29.9236Sodium Sulfate Decahydrate32.4253
In the present applications of the phase change material technology in textiles, only crystalline alkyl hydrocarbon are used which are microencapsulated, i.e., contained in small micro-spheres with diameters between 1 micron and 30 microns. These microcapsules with enclosed phase change material are applied to a textile matrix by incorporating them into acrylic fibers and polyurethane foams or by coating them onto textile surfaces.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,958 reports a fiber with integral micro-spheres filled with phase change material which has enhanced thermal properties at predetermined temperatures.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,366,801 describes a coating where micro-spheres filled with phase change material are incorporated into a coating compound which is then topically applied to fabric in order to enhance the thermal characteristics thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,637,389 reports an insulating foam with improved thermal performance, wherein micro-spheres filled with phase change material are embedded.
The micro-encapsulation process of crystalline alkyl hydrocarbon phase change materials is a very time-consuming and complicated chemical process running over several stages making the microcapsules with enclosed phase change material very expensive.
There are several thermal effects which can be obtained by a phase change material application in a certain product, such as:                A cooling effect, caused by heat absorption of the phase change material.        A heating effect, caused by heat emission of the phase change material.        A thermo-regulating effect, resulting from either heat absorption or heat emission of the phase change material.
The efficiency of each of these effects is determined by the latent heat storage capacity of the phase change material, the phase change temperature range and the structure of the carrier system.
The total latent heat storage capacity of the phase change material in a certain product depends on the phase change material's specific latent heat storage capacity and its quantity. In order to obtain a successful phase change material application, the phase change temperature range and the application temperature range need to correspond.
In addition, performance tests carried out on textiles with phase change material have shown that the textile substrate construction also influences the efficiency of the thermal effects obtained by the phase change material. For instance, thinner textiles with higher densities readily support the cooling process.

Wall covering assembly with thermo-regulating properties


An aerial target that is reusable and recoverable after being launched, shot down or otherwise falling to the ground a body member having a saucer-shaped configuration and including a peripheral outer rim and a domed top wall extending upwardly from the outer rim, the body member including a central portion displaced from the outer rim and having a generally flat upper surface and an intermediate portion situated between the outer rim and the central portion, the intermediate portion having a domed configuration sloping downwardly from the central portion toward the outer rim. The body member includes an inner chamber substantially filled with air such that the body member is buoyant relative to water. The central portion is constructed of a hard rubber material that does not shatter after receiving an impact force and the intermediate portion is constructed of a self-healing material that reseals after being pierced by gun shot.

This invention relates generally to aerial targets known as clay pigeons and, more particularly, an aerial target that is durable to the impact of a gunshot, is reused after being shot down, and is recoverable even from a body of water.
Clay pigeon shooting, also referred to as trap shooting or clay target shooting, refers to the launching of a clay target into the air and then being shot down by a sportsman with a shotgun. Clay target shooting is done by amateur hunters as practice and by experienced or even professional shooters in competitions. Aerial targets are typically made of clay or other brittle material. A shooter knows that his shot has hit the aerial target in that the target is fragmented, shattered, or completely reduced to dust upon being impacted by shot from the shotgun blast.
Variations of clay pigeons have been proposed in the art, such as biodegradable targets, targets having markers or even electronic components for tracking or identification, and having various compositions or frangibility. Although presumably effective for their intended purposes, the existing devices and proposals do not provide an aerial target that is both reusable and easily recoverage after being shot down or after falling from the sky after being missed.
Therefore, it would be desirable to have an aerial target that is not frangible but rather durable to deflect or absorb the impact from a shotgun blast. Further, it would be desirable to have an aerial target that includes an air chamber such that the target floats if it lands in water and is, thus, recoverable.


Techniques for improving Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) resonator structures are disclosed, including filters, oscillators and systems that may include such devices. First and second layers of piezoelectric material may be acoustically coupled with one another to have a piezoelectrically excitable resonance mode. The first layer of piezoelectric material may have a first piezoelectric axis orientation, and the second layer of piezoelectric material may have a second piezoelectric axis orientation that opposes the first piezoelectric axis orientation of the first layer of piezoelectric material. A top acoustic reflector including a first pair of top metal electrode layers may be electrically and acoustically coupled with the first layer of piezoelectric material to excite the piezoelectrically excitable main resonance mode at a resonant frequency.

Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) resonators have enjoyed commercial success in filter applications. For example, 4G cellular phones that operate on fourth generation broadband cellular networks typically include a large number of BAW filters for various different frequency bands of the 4G network. In addition to BAW resonators and filters, also included in 4G phones are filters using Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) resonators, typically for lower frequency band filters. SAW based resonators and filters are generally easier to fabricate than BAW based filters and resonators. However, performance of SAW based resonators and filters may decline if attempts are made to use them for higher 4G frequency bands. Accordingly, even though BAW based filters and resonators are relatively more difficult to fabricate than SAW based filters and resonators, they can be included in 4G cellular phones to provide better performance in higher 4G frequency bands what is provided by SAW based filters and resonators.
5G cellular phones can operate on newer, fifth generation broadband cellular networks. 5G frequencies include some frequencies that are much higher frequency than 4G frequencies. Such relatively higher 5G frequencies can transport data at relatively faster speeds than what can be provided over relatively lower 4G frequencies. However, previously known SAW and BAW based resonators and filters have encountered performance problems when attempts were made to use them at relatively higher 5G frequencies. Many learned engineering scholars have studied these problems, but have not found solutions. For example, performance problems cited for previously known SAW and BAW based resonators and filters include scaling issues and significant increases in acoustic losses at high frequencies.
From the above, it is seen that techniques for improving acoustic device structures are highly desirable, for example for operation over frequencies higher than 4G frequencies, in particular for filters, oscillators and systems that can include such devices.

Bulk acoustic wave (BAW) resonator structures, devices, and systems


In a process for producing optical disks comprising the steps of subjecting the photoresist layer on a substrate formed of silicon, quartz, glass or a metal to light exposure, developing and etching treatments to obtain a stamper and then duplicating an information pattern for an optical disk from the stamper obtained above to a transparent substrate by using a UV curable resin to prepare a replicated substrate of an optical disk, a large number of stampers can be prepared in a short time by conducting the light exposure either by contacting the mask side surface of a substrate provided with a photomask having an information pattern for an optical disk to the photoresist side surface of said substrate having the photoresist layer or by noncontact projection, and a rapid replication of large quantities of replicated substrates becomes possible by using a large number of stampers thus prepared.

The present invention relates to a process for producing read only type optical disks, such as CD-ROM, and also write once type and rewritable type optical disks. In more particular, it relates to a process for producing optical disks excellent in attaining the speedup of replication process.
Optical disks may be roughly divided into read only type ones and writable ones. The former include laser disks (LD) and compact disks (CD) and are currently produced on a large scale. Read only type optical disks include, besides those mentioned above, CD-ROM, CD-I, DV-I and the like as multimedia means, and these are expected to grow greatly in the future. In particular, great expectation is harbored toward the use of optical disks as electronic publishing. As to the dimension of optical disks, small-sized disks 5 to 1 inch in diameter are becoming the mainstream. In the replication of such disks on a large scale, the electroplating process and the injection process, which constitute the mainstream of the processes for producing conventional LD and CD, have their limits in production speed.
In the prior art process, firstly, too much time is necessary because the stampers used are prepared by the electroplating process using nickel. Further, preparation of a large number of nickel stampers, which needs the application of electroplating process for each individual stamper, requires a still longer time. That is, it takes a long time from the receipt of the original tape to the completion of stampers, so that the process can hardly meet the requirement for a short delivery time as in electronic publishing. On the other hand, the injection method, used as a replication process, requires about 10 seconds per a disk and cannot be called a rapid replication. In this process, molten resin is filled in a mold provided with a nickel stamper at high temperature and high pressure, then cooled and taken out. A time of about 10 seconds is necessary to cool the resin at 330.degree.-350.degree. down to about 80.degree. C. In the case of CD-ROM, a reflecting layer of aluminum and the like is formed subsequently to the replication process, but the film-forming process is of a sufficiently high speed in itself. Therefore, the replication process is rate-determining in the whole production process.
Inventions regarding the speedup of a replication process include those disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) Nos. 1-115621 and 2-44540. The disclosed methods comprise pressing a nickel stamper having a surface unevenness pattern of information against the surface of a previously heated resin sheet to effect replication. They, however, are said to have a problem in the replicability of minute patterns of submicron order and, when the trend toward more minute patterns in future is taken into consideration, cannot be said an excellent process. As to the inventions regarding rapid replication based on a replication method using UV curable resins, namely so-called 2P (photo-polymerization) method, mention may be made of those disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) Nos. 56-51031, 56-87203, 57-50304, 63-153745 and 64-48246. The methods disclosed in these comprise coating a UV curable resin on a continuously moving transparent resin sheet, irradiating an ultraviolet light through the sheet to cure the UV curable resin while pressing a stamper against the sheet, then peeling the UV cured resin off the stamper to complete replication, thereafter forming a light reflecting layer and a protective layer and finally punching the sheet into the form of disk. These disclosed methods include one which uses a flat stamper, one which sticks one or more stampers onto the surface of a drum and rotates the drum as in a rotary press, or further one which uses plural stampers to permit a number of replications by one time irradiation. These disclosures, however, either describe nothing of the detail of the stampers to be used or only describe the use of nickel stampers prepared by conventional methods. When nickel stampers are made by conventional methods, a large number of stampers cannot be prepared in a short time and hence a large quantity of optical disks cannot be produced in a short period of time.
As to the inventions regarding stampers, on the other hand, those disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai (Laid-open) No. 59-224320 and Japanese Patent Kokoku (Post-Exam. Publication) No. 3-46894 can be referred to. The disclosed methods comprise irradiating laser beams light-modulated according to the information to be recorded onto a photoresist layer formed on a silicon substrate (this process being called "cutting process"), followed by developing and etching to form a surface unevenness pattern, and using the resulting product as a stamper. In this case also, the preparation of a large number of stampers requires too much time because each stamper requires a cutting process each time for its preparation. That is, though the time efficiency is improved in the method because of the disuse of an electroplating process, the method requires, each time a stamper is produced, a cutting process which takes 60-30 minutes per one time. In this method, further, the shape and dimension of raised or sunken pits on the stamper formed, which represent the information, are apt to fluctuate among individual stampers. In the prior method, therefore, among the original molds obtained by patterning through the cutting process, only those which have passed strict inspection are to be used in the next process; this makes it difficult to prepare a large number of stampers by such methods. There is also known a method which prepares a nickel stamper directly in a short time by means of ion milling. This method, however, produces a stamper of a sunken pattern wherein the sunken parts and the raised parts of the pattern are reversed. When such a stamper is used to replicate optical disks by the above-mentioned injection method, minute patterns can be difficultly replicated, resulting in a large proportion of defective products.


A draw frame for textile fiber slivers has a drawing system of successively arranged assemblies of rollers comprising a bottom and a top roller, in which, during operation, the top rollers are pressed against the bottom rollers by weighted pressing devices. When operation is suspended, the bearings of the top rollers are relieved of the weighting by the pressing devices. On interruption to continuous operation the top output roller or the top output rollers is/are capable of being relieved of loading in such a way that no or only slight pressure is exerted on the fiber slivers. To avoid or reduce undesirable formation of windings in a simple manner, resiliently loaded elements that lift the top roller bearings after the pressing devices have been relieved of loading are associated with the bearings of at least one top roller.

The invention relates to an apparatus on a draw frame for textile fibre slivers with a drawing system of successively arranged pairs of rollers comprising a bottom and a top roller in which a load can be applied to the top rollers.
During operation of a draw frame of the above-mentioned kind, the top rollers are pressed against the bottom rollers by weighted pressing elements in pressing arms. When operation is suspended, the bearings of the top rollers are relieved of the loading by the pressing arms and upon interruption to continuous operation the top output roller or the top output rollers are relieved of loading such that no or only slight pressure is exerted on the fibre slivers.
During operation, the pressing arms are closed and the pressing devices press the top rollers onto the associated lower rollers of the drawing system. When operation of the drawing frame is suspended, particularly for a longer time period, the pressure cylinders and hence at the same time the top rollers are relieved of load, so that the rollers (roundness) and their resilient coating are protected against deformation. When the pressing arms are pivoted open while the top rollers remain stationary on the lower rollers, the top rollers exert a pressure on the bottom rollers by virtue of gravity. Since the slivers are positioned between the top and bottom rollers, the top rollers, in their idle state, exert a pressure on the slivers. During operation, particularly at high sliver speeds of 1,000 m/min and above, the rollers heat up substantially. The fibres frequently contain substances that become sticky when heated, for example, honeydew in the case of cotton and lubricating agents in the case of synthetic fibres. When the draw frame is at a standstill for a relatively long period—especially for longer than the time required to exchange full for empty cans at the output end of the draw frame—for example, on sliver rupture, when exchanging empty for full cans at the input end of the draw frame, during operational disturbances and the like, the top output roller(s) in particular, at the roller nip with the bottom output rollers, press against the substances clinging to the fibres and the substances become sticky owing to the heat. The disadvantage of this is that the slivers stick firmly especially to the top roller or top rollers and, when operation resumes, are entrained by the rotating roller and wind undesirably around the roller. This causes considerable disturbance to operation, since the drawing system is immediately stopped and the wrapped-round sliver has to be manually removed. In particular, the incident can often not be immediately resolved, which leads to delays and thus to production losses.
In a known apparatus (DE 198 39 885 A1), at least one separately controllable pneumatic valve for the pneumatic cylinder is associated with the top output roller and/or the top output rollers and at least one adjustable carrier lever or similar for the top output roller is associated with the pneumatic cylinder. By pulling in the ram, the carrier lever is drawn up and with it, the associated top roller bearing. In order to realise two loading functions of the pressure cylinder, that is, a push function and a pull function, a complicated valve device with corresponding valve control (separately controllable pneumatic valve) is required.
It is an aim of the invention further to improve an apparatus of the kind described in the introduction, and to provide a draw frame which avoids or mitigates the said disadvantages and in which in particular the undesirable formation of windings is avoided or reduced.

Draw frame for textile fibre slivers having a drawing system with top rollers that can be loaded and relieved of load


A method and apparatus for generating a orthodontic template that assists in the placement of an orthodontic apparatus includes processing that begins by obtaining a digital model of an orthodontic structure of an orthodontic patient. The processing continues by obtaining a selection of one of a plurality of orthodontic apparatuses for the orthodontic structure to produce a selected orthodontic apparatus. The processing then continues by obtaining a digital model of placement of the selected orthodontic apparatus on the digital model of the orthodontic structure. The processing then continues by retrieving a digital image of a tooth mounting apparatus (e.g., a bracket, a band, a headgear tube, etc.) of the selected apparatus for a given tooth. The processing then continues by generating a orthodontic template for holding a physical embodiment of the tooth mounting apparatus based on the digital image of the tooth mounting apparatus, the digital model of the placement, and at least a portion of the digital model of the orthodontic structure.

Orthodontics is known to be the practice of manipulating a patient's teeth to provide better function and appearance. In general, brackets are bonded to a patient's teeth and coupled together with an arch wire. The combination of the brackets and wire provide a force on the teeth causing them to move. Once the teeth move to a desired location and are held in place for a certain period of time, the body adapts bone and tissue to maintain the teeth in the desired location. To further assist in retaining the teeth in the desired, the patient may be fitted with a retainer.
To achieve tooth movement, orthodontists utilize their expertise to first determine a three-dimensional mental image of the patient's physical orthodontic structure and a three-dimensional mental image of a desired physical orthodontic structure for the patient, which may be assisted through the use of x-rays and/or models. Based on these mental images, the orthodontist further relies on his or her expertise to place the brackets and/or bands on the teeth and then manually bends(i.e., shape) the arch wire such that a force is asserted on the teeth to reposition the teeth into the desired physical orthodontic structure. As the teeth move towards the desired location, the orthodontist makes continual judgments as to the progress in the treatment, the next step in the treatment (e.g., new bends in the arch wire, repositioning or replacing brackets, is headgear required, etc.) and the success of the previous step.
In general, the orthodontist makes manual adjustments to the arch wire and/or replaces or repositions brackets based on his or her own expert opinion. Unfortunately, in the oral environment, it is impossible for a human being to accurately develop a three-dimensional mental image of an orthodontic structure due to the limitations of human site and the physical structure of a human mouth. In addition, it is humanly impossible to accurately estimate three-dimensional wire bends (with an accuracy within a few degrees and to manually apply such bends to a wire). Further it is humanly impossible to determine an ideal bracket location to achieve the desired orthodontic structure based on mental images. It is also extremely difficult to manually place brackets in the estimated ideal location. Accordingly, orthodontic treatment is an iterative process requiring multiple wire changes, with the type, success, and speed of treatment being very much dependent on the orthodontist's motor skills and diagnostic expertise. As a result of multiple wire changes, patient discomfort is increased as well as treatment costs. As one would expect, the quality of care varies greatly from orthodontist to orthodontist, as does the time to treat a patient.
As described, the practice of orthodontic is very much an art, relying on the expert opinion and judgment of the orthodontist. In an effort to shift the practice of the orthodontic from an art to a science, many innovations have been developed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,518,397 issued to Andreiko, et. al, provides a method of forming an orthodontic brace. Such a method includes obtaining a model of the teeth of a patient's mouth and a prescription of desired positioning of such teeth. The contour of the teeth of the patient's mouth is determined from the model. Calculations of the contour and the desired positioning of the patient's teeth are then made to determine the geometry (e.g., groves or slots) to be provided. Custom brackets including a special geometry have been created for receiving an arch wire to form an orthodontic brace system. Such geometry is intended to provide for the disposition of the arched wire on the bracket in a progressive curvature of a horizontal plane and a substantially linear configuration in a vertical plane. The geometry of the bracket is altered, (e.g., by cutting groves into the bracket at individual positions and angles and with particular depth) and in accordance with such calculations of the geometry of the patient's teeth. In such a system, the brackets are customized to provide three-dimensional movement of the teeth once the wire, which has a two-dimensional shape, (i.e., linear shape in the vertical plane and curvature in the horizontal plane) is applied to the brackets.
Unfortunately, the current innovations to change the practice of orthodontics from an art to a science have only made limited progress. This is due to, but not restricted to, the brackets being the focal point for orthodontic manipulation. By having the brackets as the focal point, placement of each bracket on a corresponding tooth is critical. Since each bracket includes a custom sized and positioned wire retaining grove, a misplacement of a bracket by a small amount (e.g., an error vector having a magnitude of a millimeter or less and an angle of a few degrees or less) can cause a different forced system (i.e., magnitude of movement and direction of movement) than the desired force system to be applied to the teeth. As such, the tooth will not be repositioned to the desired location.
In general, there are two methods for applying brackets to teeth: an indirect method and a direct method. For the indirect method, a tooth impression model is created in the patient's mouth using a hardening material. The tooth impression model is then used to create a model of the teeth. Brackets are then manually placed on, and temporarily bonded to, the model of the teeth. A transfer tray is then fabricated by taking an impression of the model of the teeth with the brackets installed. Once the transfer tray is fabricated, brackets are placed therein and a bonding agent is applied to the bonding pad of each bracket.
Once an orthodontist has a transfer tray with brackets installed, the orthodontist manually positions the tray into the patient's mouth to place the brackets on the patient's teeth. Once the orthodontist believes the brackets are positioned properly, (s)he bonds the brackets to the teeth. Unfortunately, this manual process has limited accuracy to due human limitations. As such, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the orthodontist to position all of the brackets in an ideal location with known bonding agent thickness, slot position, etc. or verify such placements.
The direct bonding method is, as the name implies, a method where the brackets are directly bonded to the patient's teeth without the use of a transfer tray. The direct bonding method is typically less accurate than the indirect bonding method since the entire process is done manually without any mechanical assistance. Furthermore, it is difficult to manually judge the location of brackets during placement.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,368,478 issued to Andreiko, et. al provides an indirect bonding method that forms jigs for custom placement of orthodontic appliances on teeth. In general, the '478 patent teaches that each orthodontic template is provided with a surface conforming to the contour of the tooth to which they are to be mounted. Another surface of the orthodontic template engages the bracket to hold it in the proper position and orientation for mounting to the tooth and spaced in relation to the contour surface to precisely locate the orthodontic template on the tooth. The orthodontic templates are particularly useful in positioning brackets of custom appliances desired to the individual anatomy of the patient and requiring custom positions of the brackets on the teeth. While the '478 patent discloses a method for forming a jig, such jig utilization still keeps the bracket as the focal point of the orthodontic treatment. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,011,405 and 5,542,842 teach indirect bonding approaches, but suffer the same limitations as the '478 patent.
Therefore, a need exists for a method and apparatus for generating an orthodontic template that assists in the placement of an orthodontic apparatus without the limitations of current jig and transfer tray designs.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Method and apparatus for generating an orthodontic template that assists in placement of orthodontic apparatus


A method and apparatus are provided for obtaining a reproducible sample of solid particles. The reproducible sample is obtained by receiving solid particles into a collection system that includes a sheltered volume. Solid particles that settle outside of the sheltered volume are purged from the collection system. The remaining solid particles inside the sheltered volume correspond to the reproducible sample.

Fluidized beds of solid particles are employed in a variety of reactors, such as methanol to olefin (MTO) reactors, gas-phase polymerization reactors, and catalytic cracking reactors. Fluidized beds can also be found in reactors for treatment of pollutants via advanced oxidation processes. In reactors using a fluidized bed of solid particles, the solid particles typically serve as catalysts for the desired chemical reaction. For example, in MTO reactors the desired reaction is the conversion of methanol to an olefin such as ethylene or propylene. Methanol feedstock is passed through a fluidized bed of solid particles that catalyze this conversion.
One way to achieve greater control over the reaction in a reactor with a fluidized bed of solid particles is to monitor the state of the particles. Monitoring the condition of the solid particles within the reactor provides information for process adjustments to increase efficiency. For example, during operation of an MTO reactor, the solid catalyst particles in the fluidized bed will typically acquire some amount of amorphous carbon coating. This is sometimes referred to as 'coking' of the catalyst particles. Because the level of coking on the catalyst particles directly impacts the efficiency of the conversion reaction, MTO reactors typically include a regeneration system for reducing the level of coking on the catalyst particles. Monitoring the level of coking on the particles provides feedback for controlling this regeneration process.
Monitoring the state of the catalyst particles requires removal of a sample of the solid particles from the fluidized bed. Some current solid sampling methods for fluidized beds make use of lock hoppers with interlocked valves. A lock hopper refers to a volume within in an apparatus that can be isolated from the rest of the apparatus. Lock hopper designs are often employed to allow transfer of material between sections of an apparatus that operate at different pressures. In a system for collecting a sample of solid particles from a fluidized bed, the lock hopper is used to reduce the pressure of a sample from the higher pressure of the fluidized bed to a lower pressure (such as ambient) for testing of the sample. The interlocked valves prevent opening of a continuous path of valves that would allow escape of the pressurized particles from the fluidized bed.
An example of the lock hopper concept for sampling fluidized solids is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,614,230. According to the patent, a sample is drawn through a series of valves into a "deflaidization zone," where the sample is isolated from the fluidized bed. This allows any fluidization gas (and excess pressure) to be removed from the sample by use of a filter. The amount of sample collected is determined by the amount of time the valves are left open After defluidization, the sample is transferred to another chamber for further processing.
One of the shortcomings of the aforementioned systems for sampling solid particles is that it is difficult to reproducibly collect a sample of a particular size. For example, in the apparatus used in U.S. Pat. No. 3,614,230, the size of the solid particle sample depends on the length of time the appropriate valves remain open as well as the flow rate of solid particles into the sampling system. As a result, the size of a solid particle sample collected in these conventional systems will be sensitive to small changes in process conditions.
What is needed is an effective method for collecting a small, reproducible sample of solid particles from a fluidized bed. The method should be self-limiting, so that precise timing is not needed to maintain a consistent size between successive solid particle samples. The method should also be easy to use, to allow for repeated sampling of a process if desired.