A compact final drive assembly comprises a stationary housing and a rotatable housing. A bent axis hydraulic motor is coupled to the stationary housing. The bent axis hydraulic motor drives a planetary drive unit for driving the rotatable housing. A clutch/brake unit controls the planetary drive unit by braking the planet carrier. The clutch/brake unit is provided with a ring piston that is supplied pressurized hydraulic fluid from the motor inlet port of the bent axis hydraulic motor.

The present invention is directed to a two stage planetary final drive that is operatively coupled to a hydraulic motor for driving a wheel of a work vehicle.
Motor graders are large work vehicles. Typically they are provided with a main frame that is pivotally coupled to a forwardly extending frame about a vertical pivot axis. The main frame is provided with four driven wheels. Two longitudinally separated wheels are located on each side of the main frame. The main frame houses the internal combustion engine for powering the grader. The forwardly extending frame is supported on two front wheels. The forwardly extending frame is provided with a drawbar having a grader circle. A grader blade is mounted to the grader circle by a blade frame. The position of the grader blade relative to the grader frame is controlled by hydraulic cylinders. A saddle is mounted to the forwardly extending frame above the grader circle. The saddle is provided with hydraulic cylinders for manipulating the position of the grade circle relative to the forwardly extending frame.
Some graders are all wheel drive machines. Hydraulic wheel motors drive the front wheels. The motors selectively engage the front wheels by hydraulic clutches. The front wheels may be driven in an overdrive mode, where they are driven at a faster speed than the rear wheels; at an equal speed mode where they are driven at the same speed as the rear wheels; or in an underdrive mode, where they are driven slower than the rear wheels. The assignee of the present patent application manufactures an all wheel drive motor grader of the type discussed above. The clutch/brake in the front wheel final drive is triggered by twelve circumferentially arranged axially extending pistons. The arrangement of the final drive assembly causes the front wheel fastening assembly to be different from the rear wheel fastening assembly. This forces the operator to carry two different spare wheels and tire assemblies, one for the front and one for the rear, when operating in remote areas.
One manufacturer of all wheel drive motor graders uses mechanical overrunning clutches in place of hydraulically applied clutches.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a compact final drive assembly having a wide range of speed outputs.
The final drive is contained within the circumference of a wheel that is the same size as the rear drive wheels, and uses the same fastening dimensions. In this way an operator need only carry one spare wheel and tire assembly that fits all wheels.
The final drive assembly comprises a stationary housing to which a rotatable housing is mounted. The rotatable housing in turn is coupled to the disc of the drive wheel. A bent axis two speed hydraulic motor is mounted to the stationary housing. The motor drives a first stage sun pinion which drives two stages of planetary gear trains, which in turn drive a second stage planet carrier mounted to a rotatable housing.
A second stage sun pinion is mounted coaxially to the first stage sun pinion. The second stage sun pinion freely floats radially on the first stage sun pinion. The second stage sun pinion is not driven by the first stage sun pinion. The external splines/teeth of the second stage sun pinion are coupled to and drive the internal splines of the first stage planet carrier, and drive the circumferentially arranged second stage planet gears. The second stage planet gears are freely rotatably mounted to the second stage planet carrier, which is coupled to the rotatable housing, and engage a clutch brake ring gear. The clutch/brake ring gear is operatively coupled to a plurality of clutch plates that extend inwardly and engage a clutch pack located on the stationary housing. A ring piston is used to compress the clutch pack coupling the clutch/brake ring gear to the stationary housing. The second stage planet gears coupled to the rotatable housing by the second stage planet carrier, drive the second stage planet carrier and thereby the rotatable housing and wheel.
The ring piston for applying the clutch is extended by pressurized hydraulic fluid directed through a hydraulic conduit formed in the stationary housing. The pressurized hydraulic fluid is received from the motor inlet. In the underdrive mode, the motor operates at a speed that is a preselected amount slower than the synchronous speed of the vehicle. This causes the front wheel to try to drive the motor, resulting in low motor inlet pressure, and the clutch/brake slipping. As the vehicle rear wheels lose traction and s lip to a greater degree than the preselected amount, the front wheels slow to the synchronous speed of the vehicle, motor inlet pressure rises, and the front wheel drive system provides traction without the need for any attention by the operator. Conversely, if the overdrive mode is selected, the front wheels attempt to pull the rear wheels, the motor inlet pressure is high, the clutch brake is locked, and the front wheels are continually driven by their motors. When the front wheel drive system is shut off, the motor i s stopped and the clutch/brake released thereby allowing the planetary gear system to idle. Effecting the clutch/brake function via the second stage ring gear permits the entire gear train to idle at low speed, with resultant low churning losses, when the front wheel drive system is shut off. When operating in the underdrive mode, the above mentioned clutch/brake slip occurs at low speed and low toque, with low slip power dissipation and churning losses.


A system and method for enhancing XML schemas is presented. A schema enhancer inputs an input schema, a parameter file, and (optionally) a preamble file to generate an enhanced schema. The optional preamble file comprises definitions and syntax for elements and/or attributes to be added and/or to modify relationships in the input schema to create the enhanced schema. Instructions for modifying the input schema to generate the enhanced schema comprise the parameter file.

XML is short for eXtensible Markup Language, a programming language developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Both XML and HTML are derivations of SGML, (Standard Generalized Markup Language), widely used for large documentation projects and the standard for creating a document structure. XML is actually a simplified but functionality-enhanced subset of SGML. XML is "extensible" because, unlike HTML, XML markup symbols are unlimited and self-defining.
HTML is widely used to display web pages on the Internet although HTML can also be used for documentation purposes and need not be rendered in a browser. HTML describes the content of a web page (mainly text and graphic images) only in terms of how it is to be displayed and interacted with. For example, in HTML the letter "p" placed within markup tags ("<p>") informs the browser that the text that follows should be displayed as a new paragraph. The content to be displayed as the new paragraph is delimited by "</p>", which signals the end of the paragraph. Thus, in HTML, content, and tags to control the presentation of the content, are intermingled. Hence it is difficult to write a program in HTML to display the first word of every sentence in bold because before every first word of every sentence a tag indicating "start bolding" would have to be inserted and after every first word of every sentence a tag indicating "stop bolding" would have to be inserted.
XML is conceptually related to HTML and is an HTML-like formatting language, but has more functionality than HTML. Like HTML, XML makes use of tags and attributes. But while HTML specifies what each tag and attribute means, and often, how the text between them will look in a browser, XML uses the tags only to delimit pieces of data, and leaves the interpretation of the data to the application that processes the XML file. Thus, a "<p>" in an XML file may be a price, a parameter, a person, an order number, etc. For example, "<p>" could indicate that the data that followed it was a telephone number. If the XML file were processed purely as data by a program, perhaps the telephone number would be dialed. If the XML file were stored with similar data on another computer, the phone number might be stored. If, like an HTML file, the XML file were displayed, perhaps the phone number would be displayed. Hence, XML allows designers to create their own customized tags, thus expanding the amount and kinds of information that can be provided about the data held in files and enabling the definition, transmission, validation, and interpretation of formatted data between applications and between organizations.
The rules for XML files are strict. A forgotten tag, or an attribute without quotes makes an XML file invalid and unusable, while in HTML such a practice is tolerated and is often explicitly allowed. The official W3C XML specification prohibits applications from trying to guess what the creator of an invalid XML file meant to do. If the file is invalid, an application processing the file has to stop and report an error. Thus, it is helpful to validate an XML file before using it and it is especially helpful to have an automated tool to do the validating. It is even more helpful to be able to define a valid structure of an XML file so that the automated validation tool would be able to either verify that a file is correct, or list out the mistakes that were found in the XML file. Such an enabling file structure definition is called a "schema".
"Schema" is a term borrowed from the database world where it is used to describe the structure of data in relational tables. In the context of XML, a schema describes a model for a class of files. For example, an XML schema can describe the possible arrangement of tags and text in a valid document.
In schemas, models are described in terms of constraints. A constraint defines what can appear in any given context. A content model constraint describes the order and sequence of elements. A datatype constraint describes valid units of data.
For example, a schema might describe a valid <address> with the content model constraint that it consist of a <name> element, followed by one or more <street> elements, followed by exactly one <city>, <state>, and <zip> element. The content of a <zip> might have a further datatype constraint that it consist of either a sequence of exactly five digits or a sequence of five digits, followed by a hyphen, followed by a sequence of exactly four digits. No other text is a valid ZIP code.
A schema enables machine validation of document structure. Every specific, individual file that does not violate any of the constraints of the schema is, by definition, valid according to that schema. For example, using the schema described above, a parser (validation tool) would be able to detect that the following address is not valid:
<address><name>John J. Jones</name><Street>256 Eight Bit Lane</street><city>East Yabip</city><state>MA</state><state>CT</state><zip>blue</zip></address>
The address above violates two constraints of the schema: it does not contain exactly one <state> and the ZIP code is not of the proper form. Therefore, the parser is able to flag the above address as invalid with respect to the <state> and <zip>.
There are many excellent reasons to validate an XML file, for example:                to determine that a purchase order received from a customer is not missing anything and doesn't have anything extra, and that everything the purchase order has is the right datatype (e.g., quantities are all positive numbers, prices are all decimal numbers with two digits after the decimal point, etc.).        to determine that information received from one corporate database is valid before the received data is converted and inserted into the target database. Invalid transactions should be rejected immediately so that the target database is not corrupted.        to verify that the XML file that will control an overnight batch process will be understood by the processor so that 2:00 am telephone calls can be avoided.        to verify that an XML stylesheet will correctly present each of 1000 XML documents being published on a CD-ROM without proofing each document manually.
Using a schema and a validating parser offers one way to check XML files. (It is understood that even the most advanced validating parser can fail to detect some kinds of errors. Valid files can still contain the wrong content, e.g., a purchase order may ask for a hundred boxes of staples when only ten were actually wanted.) One way to think of a schema is that it is a contract between a producer of information and a consumer of information. The contract is enforced through validation of a particular document against the schema.
One way to define schemas is through the XML Schema Definition language XSD. The XML Schema Definition language enables the definition of structure and data types for XML files according to the W3C XML Schema Part 2: Datatypes specification. A schema, (i.e., an XSD schema), defines the elements, attributes, and data types that conform to the W3C XML Schema Part 1: Structures specification for the XML Schema Definition language. This reference is based on the W3C Apr. 4, 2001 Proposed Recommendation for Datatypes and W3C Mar. 30, 2001 Proposed Recommendation for Structures.
XML schemas as defined by the W3C standard can define a rich set of datatypes including booleans, dates, times, URIs (Uniform Resource Identifiers), integers, decimal numbers, real numbers, currencies and intervals of time. In addition to these simple, predefined types, other types including aggregate types and user-defined types, can be defined. For example, a user could define a "PostalAddress" datatype and then define two elements, "ShippingAddress" and "BillingAddress" to be of that type. Attribute grouping enables the grouping of several attributes that apply to a number of elements. Substitution groups enable different flavors of attributes to be substituted based on features of the data content and express the relationship between similar kinds of elements. Substitution groups are typically used when one of several different elements would be appropriate to use in a given context. For example, a purchase order might permit an "address" to be used, but not necessarily specify what type of address should be used in a particular document. The definition of an "address" substitution group with elements "USAddress" element and "CanadianAddress" as members of that substitution group is a way of indicating that an "address" must either be a valid "USAddress" or a valid "CanadianAddress". Substitution groups also provide an easy way to add new members, such as "UKAddress". Substitution groups facilitate the modification of XML files over time and are analogous to the idea of "inheritance" in object-oriented programming, but are applied to data only.
Because datatypes and data structures are so robust, schemas can be extremely complex, running into the thousands of lines of code. To complicate matters, applications typically are not static. In many cases, as applications and user requirements evolve, it is necessary to make global changes to complex schemas according to a set of predefined rules, a time-consuming, difficult, and repetitive task. Hence, maintaining these complex schemas can become a task of enormous proportions with correspondingly enormous potential for the introduction of errors.
Thus it would be very helpful to have a way to describe certain attributes and element definitions external to the schema and to automatically generate an enhanced schema from a simpler input schema.

System and method for enhancing XML schemas


A method for regulating and/or controlling an engine-transmission unit in a motor vehicle includes prioritizing torque demands to obtain an only torque value, storing the only torque value as a current successful situation and retaining the torque value for the previous successful situation, and processing the torque value of the current successful situation as well as the torque value of the previous successful situation to comparable torque values in each case required for the implementation of the demands. The method farther includes changing a desired torque demand at driving wheels of the motor vehicle from the torque value of the previous successful situation to the torque value of the current successful situation in the event of a priority change when the current successful situation is different from the previous successful situation, sending the desired torque demand to an electronic controller, and carrying out the desired torque demand by controlling at least one of engine parameters and a ratio of a transmission unit.

The present invention relates to a method and a system for controlling and/or regulating an engine transmission unit in a motor vehicle.
Methods and systems are provided in motor vehicles for converting a concrete torque demand at driving wheels of the motor vehicle by regulating desired values at an internal-combustion engine and/or a transmission ratio. As a rule, they therefore intervene at two points in an engine transmission unit for imaging a rotational-speed and torque range of an internal-combustion engine in a certain manner on the rotational-speed and torque range at the driving wheels of the motor vehicle corresponding to a given demand. In this case, among others, characteristic rotational speed—torque curves of the participating units should be taken into account separately.
According to the state of the art, a torque demand is defined by a respective driver of the motor vehicle, as a rule, by the position of an accelerator pedal or another input device. Various suggestions with respect to solutions are known from the field of automatic transmissions for motor vehicles with internal-combustion engines for the concrete conversion of such a torque demand. For example, in German Patent Document DE 199 49 703 C1, a method and a corresponding system are described for the continuous adjustment of each desired wheel torque in the case of an automatic range transmission. In German Patent Document DE 199 61 312 C1, an engine torque—rotational speed pair is determined as an operating point from a stored characteristic curve diagram for an infinitely variable automatic transmission depending on the driving situation and on the driver's intention. This operating point is taken as a point of intersection of the characteristic curve with a power demand hyperbola for this engine while talking into account losses determined by means of models. As relative criteria for the determination or selection of an engine operating point as the torque—rotational speed pair, the environmental and driving situation as well as the drivability, the engine-side overall efficiency, the acoustics and the driving characteristic may be entered. However, in this case, only one definition is converted by the driver as a demand, as in the case of all other methods and systems according to the state of the art,
Irrespective of the form of a respective transmission and of the type of the driving engine, in addition to the demand by the driver himself, for each possible torque demand of at least one external system, in an electronic control unit, a separate interface is provided at which the torque demand to be converted arrives. In the control device, at a corresponding point in the torque structure, depending on the type and dynamics of the demand, subsequently a decision is made by a minimal or maximal selection as to which of the demanded torques is converted. The transition from one demand to another, for example, when one of the demands is added or eliminated, takes place by way of a filter which defines certain transition gradients. Without transition gradients, the transition takes place according to defined torque buildup or torque reduction criteria which are fixedly defined in the control and/or regulation of the internal-combustion engine.
The disadvantages of this implementation essentially consist of the fact that a separate interface has to be provided in the control and/or regulation for each torque demand, and a prioritization, thus the determination as to which of the demands is finally adjusted or implemented, is fixedly coded by the maximal or minimal selection at different levels. Furthermore, the transition between different demands is implemented within the limits and definitions of a fixedly coded regulator. As a result of the increasing complexity of the overall systems in modern motor vehicles, the development expenditures of the above-described systems reach the limits of what can be mastered if there are additional expansions and/or adaptations to existing implementations. High balancing expenditures are required here in order to coordinate, when a new interface is added, its demands with those of already existing demanders and a reliable operation of the internal-combustion engine in one system.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to create a method and a system which, at acceptable costs, can be flexibly and reliably expanded and adapted to an adjustable number of demanders.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by a method or a system, which are described and claimed hereinafter.
Accordingly, in a method according to the invention, a calculation of a torque definition to be converted in each case from a defined number of demanders, which torque definition is directed at an electronic control of a driving machine and/or a transmission unit, is implemented in a separate function unit which is connected to the control. This method permits the evaluating of many different torque demands to be implemented to the control unit of a drive assembly or of an engine transmission unit according to physical and empirical aspects and then sending a torque demand to the electronic drive control unit. Thus, only one interface has to be defined in the control of the drive assembly for the torque to be set by the drive assembly, and has to be correspondingly coordinated. This coordination has to meet the dynamic requirements of the individual torque demands. The entire coordination of external torque demands takes place in the higher-ranking function unit (the master) and is therefore finally implemented by way of a single demand in the engine transmission unit or the drive assembly. All known regulating and adjusting methods and corresponding systems for the different drive assemblies can be seamlessly connected here, partly with the simplification that only one demand has to be converted. In this case, all types and models of engines/motors and transmission units can be used, such as internal-combustion, hydraulic or pneumatic drives as well as accumulator-fed electric motors or hybrid drives. In addition to automatic CVT or BIT transmissions, range transmissions can also be used as transmission units.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the implementation of such a master as a higher-ranking function unit takes place in three steps. First, in addition to internal torque demands, external torque demands, which are the result of different environmental and driving conditions, are considered. Then the external and internal torque demands are processed into wheel torques. Finally, the demands are prioritized, and a torque demand or torque definition is output to the electronic control of the driving machine and/or transmission unit.
In an advantageous embodiment according to the invention, a differentiation is made between the occurrence of a priority change and a progression of the respective regulating process without a priority change. In the case of a priority change, a special method is used for implementing the transition which will be explained in the following in the description by way of an example on an embodiment with reference to the drawings. Preferably, in the event of a priority change, a continuous transition is selected in the torque definition, which is determined as a function of an available time and the difference of the level of the new and of the old definition torque. In an embodiment, in a matrix for the output of the time applicable to a transition of priority demand and/or a respective curve shape are provided.
On the whole, for implementing a method according to one or more of the above-listed characteristics, a system is created in which a number of demanders can be flexibly and reliably expanded and can also be adapted with respect to their options. As a result of the definition of adapted transition functions, as a further development of the invention, in the event of a priority transition, a continuous adaptation of a torque definition takes place which is adapted to the physical characteristics of the subsequent electromechanical total system. Advantageously, on the whole, a simplification of a total control is achieved independently of the type of the engine-transmission unit and the number of torque demanders.
For illustrating additional advantages, an embodiment of the invention is described as an example in the following by means of the drawings.

Method and system for the regulation and/or control of an engine gearbox unit in a motor vehicle

Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft


An ion mobility spectrometer is provided with at least one ionization chamber (1) through which analyte-containing gas can flow. A radiation source (2) is provided from which ionizing radiation is suitable for ionizing the analyte-containing gas at least partially, enters the ionization space (1). A separation area is located behind the ionization space (1) in the direction of flow, into which the partially ionized gas is admitted as an ion carrier gas (4) and a nearly ion-free gas is admitted as a drift gas (5) in such a way that a flow in which predominantly ion carrier gas (4) flows through cross-sectional areas (6) and predominantly drift gas (5) flows through other cross-sectional areas (7, 7′), becomes established at least in the inlet area of the separation area (8). The drift gas (5) and ion carrier gas (4) flow unidirectionally and the cross-sectional areas (6), through which predominantly ion carrier gas (4) flows, are smaller in at least one dimension than the cross-sectional areas (7, 7′), through which predominantly drift gas (5) flows.

Ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) are used to detect trace substances in the air. They are widely used especially for detecting explosives, illegal drugs, chemical warfare agents and toxic industrial gases. The characteristic assembly units of an ion mobility spectrometer are the ionization chamber, the drift chamber and detectors. The ionization chamber and the drift chamber are usually separated by a grid in conventional ion mobility spectrometers. The analyte molecules to be determined are converted into ions in the ionization chamber. The ions formed are transferred from the ionization chamber into the drift chamber as an ion swarm by the action of an electric field. The analyte ions fly through the drift chamber against the resistance of the drift gas under the effect of a high-voltage electric field and are detected by the detector, due to the differences in the mobilities of different ions, in a time-resolved manner, since different analyte ions show different interactions with the drift gas, and therefore they also have different flight times and can thus be separated from one another.
Ion mobility spectrometers in which the drift gas flows from the detector in the direction of the ionization chamber have been known. The analyte gas is ionized and flows in the direction of the grid within the ionization chamber. The ions formed are consequently moving with the analyte gas in the direction of the grid against the direction of flow of the drift gas and then to the detector under the effect of a high-voltage field (Spangler and Carrico, Int. J. Mass Spectrom. Ion Phys., 1983, 52, 627).
Unidirectional flow guiding is described by Eiceman in U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,363, in which the analyte gas is introduced into the device on the detector side and leaves the device on the ionization chamber side. The ionization takes place in the ionization chamber and ions are accelerated toward the detector against the analyte gas flow. The drift gas and the analyte gas are identical here.
Both systems require a uniform electric field within the drift chamber for the separation of the ions. This field is built up by a series of ring electrodes, which are all electrically insulated. The necessary high voltage is usually 2,000-3,000 V. Such systems are very expensive, complicated to manufacture and can only be miniaturized with difficulty.
Contrary to the above-described IMS, it is, furthermore, known that the ions to be separated can be guided unidirectionally with the drift gas flow. The ions can be deflected from this direction of flow by a relatively low voltage. If they then reach electrodes, which are formed by the walls, they can be discharged, and a current can be measured. The drift gas and the analyte gas are identical here.
Such a system is found in so-called electron capture detectors. An early example is disclosed by Lovelock in U.S. Pat. No. 3,870,888. Total ionic currents can be measured with such systems. By contrast, it is not possible to distinguish different ion species.
It is known that long-lived ions can be separated from short-lived ones by extending the drift paths, e.g., by installing baffles. This principle is described, for example in connection with the detection of chemical warfare agents (U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,835,328, 4,075,550 as well as 5,223,712). The separation efficiency of such systems is relatively low, which may lead relatively frequently to the triggering of a false alarm.
An improvement is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,047,723 by Puumalainen. The gas flow to be analyzed is first ionized here and then passed through a series of electric deflecting fields. Depending on the type of the ions, the ions are discharged at different electrodes. The current is measured and is an indicator of analytes that are present.
In WO 9416320, Paakanen et al. modified such a system once again and identified substances on the basis of their characteristic patterns, which are obtained from a plurality of electrodes connected in series at closely spaced locations from one another due to ion discharge. Besides ion signals, signals of semiconductor sensors are also included in a pattern recognition.
Furthermore, it is known that the last-named system can be improved by heating the analyte gas before the analysis and by the sensor electrodes forming multidimensional arrays (US 2003/0155503 A1). The signal evaluation is based on pattern recognition in this case as well. The drawback that the measuring system must first learn the particular pattern, i.e., that an extremely great calibrating effort is necessary, is associated with this. This applies especially to mixtures. Mixtures that are not taken into account, i.e., for example, combinations of analytes to be monitored with unknown impurities, may lead to false alarms or hinder the detection of the analytes to be monitored.
Finally, it is known that the analyte ions can be deflected by a high-frequency alternating field, to which a low compensation voltage is superimposed. The analyte ions are likewise transported here in a system in the direction of the drift gas (U.S. Pat. No. 6,495,823). A defined analyte ion species is let through the system and reaches the detector under defined conditions of the alternating field and the compensation voltage only. These ion sensors, which can be manufactured in a compact form, can be combined in arrays. However, such systems are expensive and extremely susceptible to ambient effects, such as pressure and moisture.

Ion mobility spectrometer with parallel drift gas and ion carrier gas flows


A substantially anhydrous mixture which comprises ammonium chloride, the triamide, and ammonia is formed either by adding ammonia to a mixture of the other components or by conducting, in the presence of the ammonia and an organic solvent, a reaction to form the triamide and ammonium chloride as co-products. In all cases the ammonia is present in a sufficient excess amount relative to the ammonium chloride to form a separate liquid phase in which the ammonium chloride solids dissolve. Such separate liquid phase is separated from the remainder of said mixture.

N-hydrocarbylphosphoric triamides and N-hydrocarbylthiophosphoric triamides are known to be effective urease inhibitors for use with urea-based fertilizer compositions. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,530,714 to J. F. Kole, et al.
Known procedures for preparing such triamides involve operations in which N-hydrocarbylaminophosphoryl dichloride (also known as N-hydrocarbylphosphoramidic dichloride) or N-hydrocarbylaminothiophosphoryl dichloride (also known as N-hydrocarbylthiophosphoramidic dichloride) is formed in a first reaction, recovered, and often purified. In a second reaction, the N-hydrocarbylaminophosphoryl dichloride or N-hydrocarbylaminothiophosphoryl dichloride is reacted with ammonia to produce a slurry from which co-product ammonium chloride is separated by filtration. See for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,530,714.
Filtration of the co-product ammonium chloride from the reaction product mixture can be a difficult and time-consuming operation, especially if the process is being conducted on a large scale in commercial-type production facilities. A desirable contribution to the art would be a process wherein the filtration of co-product ammonium chloride formed in the production of N-hydrocarbylphosphoric triamides or of N-hydrocarbylthiophosphoric triamides can be eliminated. An additional desirable contribution would be to enable formation of a useful liquid co-product mixture containing the ammonium chloride formed in the process.
The NH.sub.4 Cl and NH.sub.3 binary system has been discussed in the literature. See, for example, Hideki Yamamoto, Seiji Sanga, and Junji Tokunaga, The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol. 66, February 1988, pp 127-130 ("Measurement of Heat of Mixing for Ammonium Chloride+Ammonia at 25.degree. C."); James Kendall and J. G. Davidson, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1920, Vol. 42, pp 1141-1145 ("Addition Compounds of Ammonia with the Ammonium Halides"); and Sueyoshi Abe, Kyozo Watanabe, and Tatsusaburo Hara, J. Soc. Chem. Ind. Japan, 1935, Vol, 38, pp 1402-1406 ("Solubilities and Vapor Pressures of NH.sub.4 Cl+NH.sub.3 System").

Separating ammonium chloride from N-hydrocarbylphosphoric triamide or N-hydrocarbylthiophosphoric triamide


A concrete structure includes a first concrete member, a second concrete member, a sheath that is disposed in a through hole extending from the first concrete member to the second concrete member, a tension part that is inserted over the entire length of the sheath and that is subjected to a tensile force, a fixing tool that fixes the tension part to the first concrete member or the second concrete member, and an anticorrosion part that covers the fixing tool. The tension part includes a stranded wire part and a first cover that covers an outer periphery of the stranded wire part. A space between the sheath and the tension part is not filled with a grout material.

A precast concrete block, which is a concrete member, can be used as, for example, a floor slab of a bridge. As a method of constructing a floor slab of a bridge, a method in which a plurality of precast-concrete (PC) floor slabs are disposed side by side on a steel beam and a tension part continuously inserted into the plurality of PC floor slabs is used to introduce a compressive stress to the PC floor slabs is known (refer to, for example, PTL 1 and PTL 2).


Methods and systems are provided for transporting and hydrating a redox flow battery system with a portable field hydration system. In one example, the redox flow battery system may be hydrated with the portable field hydration system in a dry state, in the absence of liquids. In this way, a redox flow battery system may be assembled and transported from a battery manufacturing facility to an end-use location off-site while the redox flow battery system is in the dry state, thereby reducing shipping costs, design complexities, as well as logistical and environmental concerns.

Redox flow batteries are suitable for grid scale storage applications due to their capabilities of scaling power and capacity independently, and charging and discharging for thousands of cycles with minimal performance losses. Electrolyte, including aqueous solutions comprising water and salts and/or acids, are recirculated between electrolyte tanks and the redox flow battery cells in order to supply sufficient electrolyte to carry of the redox reactions for battery charging and discharging. Commissioning a new redox flow battery system traditionally involves hydrating and filling a redox flow battery system, including the electrolyte tanks, at a battery vendor's manufacturing facility, prior to transporting the redox flow battery system to and installing the redox flow battery system at the end-use location.
The inventors herein have recognized potential issues with the above methods. Namely, a filled and hydrated redox flow battery system is heavy and cumbersome, and transport of filled and hydrated redox flow battery systems can be difficult and expensive. Furthermore, transporting of redox flow battery systems between a battery vendor/manufacturing facility and an end-use site may involve various modes of transportation such as by truck, by rail, and by ship over large distances, which may be slower when the redox flow battery system is filled and hydrated. In addition, the overall system may be modified to accommodate transporting a large quantity of mixed and hydrated chemicals to be structurally sound across various modes of transportation.
In one example, the issues described above may be addressed by a method of operating a redox flow battery system, the redox flow battery system including first and second electrolyte chambers fluidly coupled to a redox flow battery cell, the method comprising: during a first condition, including when the redox flow battery system is in a dry state without water and liquid solvents, adding first and second amounts of dry electrolyte precursor to the first and second electrolyte chambers, respectively, the first and second amounts corresponding to a desired concentration of first and second electrolytes in the first and second electrolyte chambers during an operating mode, including when the redox flow battery system is being charged or discharged, fluidly coupling the redox flow battery system to a field hydration system, the field hydration system including a water supply pump fluidly coupled to a water source, and supplying water from the field hydration system to the redox flow battery system, wherein the redox flow battery system would remain in the dry state without the water from the field hydration system.
In this way, a redox flow battery system may be assembled and transported from a battery manufacturing facility to an end-use location off-site while the redox flow battery system is in a dry state, thereby reducing shipping costs, design complexities, environmental concerns, and the amount of time to prepare a customer-ready redox flow battery system. Furthermore the methods and system herein facilitate commissioning of the redox flow battery system, including hydration of the redox flow battery system in the dry state, that can be performed by a 3rd party or customer utilizing a field hydration system at the end-use location remotely from the battery manufacturing facility. In this manner, the customer can more flexibly and independently schedule the commissioning of the redox flow battery system, which can increase customer satisfaction and reduce operation logistics complexities. In some examples, the methods and systems herein further facilitate commissioning of the redox flow battery system, including on-site hydration by a customer, followed by draining of the redox flow battery system, and shipment to a second in-use location where it can be rehydrated for energy storage applications at the second in-use location.
It should be understood that the summary above is provided to introduce in simplified form a selection of concepts that are further described in the detailed description. It is not meant to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, the scope of which is defined uniquely by the claims that follow the detailed description. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any disadvantages noted above or in any part of this disclosure.

Methods and systems for redox flow battery electrolyte hydration


A computer system and methods for loading a program and for modifying a program loaded in a memory without stopping the computer system are disclosed. The computer system includes a memory having a first area storing the executable codes, a second area storing the data codes, a third area which is a reserve area for the first area, and a fourth area which is a reserve area for the second area. When a modification of the program is required, execution of the program is stopped temporarily and modified executable codes are loaded in at least the first area. Then, the execution of the program is resumed. The modified executable codes may be loaded in the first area and third area when the size of the modified executable codes is greater than the size of the first area. The control program may be an operating system (OS), for example, of the computer system.

The present invention relates to a method for modifying a control program loaded in a memory of a computer system without stopping the computer system executing the control program.
Computer systems, such as general purpose computer systems (mainframe computer systems) and server computer systems, generally hold in their main memory a control program (such as an operating system (OS)) made of object codes having executable codes (instruction codes) and data codes mixed therein. The executable codes are constituted by a plurality of instructions, and the data codes are constituted by operand data required for execution of the executable codes. The computer systems carry out suitable processes under control of the control program being executed by the computer systems.
When the control program needs to be modified to incorporate additional functions or to remove errors (bugs), a conventional computer system controlled by the control program must be stopped temporarily. The computer system is then restarted for initial program loading of a suitably modified control program.
In recent years, however, it has become increasingly difficult to stop the computer system even temporarily due to needs of customers and other related demands. A need has been recognized to modify the control program while the system is in operation.
Illustratively, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 03-97030, there is disclosed a technique for modifying a control program executed by a computer system without performing initial program loading of the modified control program to a main memory or without stopping the computer system. The disclosed technique apparently permits modifications merely on a limited scale of the control program.
The above-cited reference fails to address the following two points. First, the control program in the above cited reference is provided with relocatable address constants. Since an address location at which the control program is placed is not fixed, an address to be assigned to the control program must be set to the relocatable address constants when the control program is loaded in the main memory. Therefore, when the modifications of the control program cause modifications of address locations at which the data codes are stored, values to be set to the relocatable address constants must be modified accordingly. Second, addresses at which operand data are stored are generated and saved upon execution of the executable codes. Those addresses are reused for the stored operand data upon execution of executable codes. Therefore, when the modifications of the control program cause modifications of address locations at which the data codes are stored, those addresses also must be modified. Modifying addresses of the data codes requires stopping the computer system and performing initial program loading of the modified control program to a main memory. The above-cited reference does not specify how to deal with the above-mentioned problems. This means that the technique disclosed in the above-cited reference is not applicable to a large-scale modification of a control program involving address modifications of data codes.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned problems of the reference technique and to provide a method capable of effecting a large-scale modification of the control program without stopping the computer system which executes it.
In accomplishing this object of the present invention and according to one aspect thereof, there is provided a system and a method for modifying a program loaded in a memory. The program includes executable codes having instructions and data codes having operand data required for execution of the executable codes.
According to the system and the method, there is provided a memory having a first area storing the executable codes, a second area storing the data codes, a third area which is a reserve area for the first area, and a fourth area which is a reserve area for the second area. The executable codes are loaded in the first area and the data codes are loaded in the second area and the program is executed by the computer system. When a modification of the program is required, modified executable codes are provided. The execution of the program is stopped temporarily and the modified executable codes are loaded in the first area. Then the execution of the program is resumed.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent in view of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments in conjunction with the drawings.

Computer system and methods for loading and modifying a control program without stopping the computer system using reserve areas


UV absorbing, colored film-covered glass articles comprising covering, on a surface of a glass substrate, a UV absorbing, colored film which comprises, as main components expressed by wt %, 5.about.50 of silicon oxide, 5.about.70 of titanium oxide, 20.about.80 of cerium oxide, 5.about.30 of coloring fine particles of at least one member selected from the group consisting of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, cadmium sulfide and cadmium selenide, and 0.about.30 of at least one coloring metal oxide selected from the group consisting of cobalt oxide, chromium oxide, copper oxide, manganese oxide, nickel oxide and iron oxide.. The UV absorbing, colored film-covered glass articles can be arbitrarily controlled with respect to the color tone, the UV transmittance, and the visible light transmittance.

The methods of making colored glass include (1) an ion-exchange method wherein inorganic salts of silver or copper are applied onto a glass surface and calcined, so that the ultrafine particles of the inorganic salt of silver or copper are allowed to penetrate into the glass substrate, thereby causing a transparent colloidal color development, and (2) a method wherein gold ions are mixed with a metal alkoxide solution and applied onto a substrate, followed by thermal treatment to deposit fine particles of the gold. Besides, (3) there is also known a method wherein a metallic film is vacuum deposited on a glass substrate by use of sputtering techniques.
On the other hand, the methods of forming a UV absorbing film on a glass substrate include a method wherein metal oxides serving as a UV absorbing component, e.g. zinc oxide, titanium oxide, cerium oxide and the like, are formed on a glass substrate according to a sol-gel technique or a sputtering technique thereby forming a UV absorbing film on the substrate. For instance, Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 6-192598 sets out a method wherein an UV absorbing film which contains CeO.sub.2 :TiO.sub.2 :SiO.sub.2 at ratios by weight of 64:18:18 is formed on a glass substrate by a sol-gel technique.
The films formed on glass substrates according to the above-mentioned methods are those which are colored but have no capability of UV absorption, or those which have the capability of UV absorption but are not colored. In Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 6-192598. there is described a glass article covered with a colored film which comprises fine particles of silicon oxide, titanium oxide and gold, and has a preferred composition comprising, for example, 85.about.3 wt % of TiO.sub.2, 40.about.0 wt % of SiO.sub.2 and 5.about.60 wt % of Au. However, this colored film-covered glass article is not satisfactory with respect to the UV cutting-off or screening performance when the content of TiO.sub.2 is not great. If the content of TiO.sub.2 is increased, a high UV screening performance is obtained and the film assumes a blue to pink color. Nevertheless, it is not possible to arbitrarily control the color of transmitted light, a UV transmittance and a visible light transmittance.


A synchronous parallel/serial converter is disclosed. In one embodiment, the a synchronous parallel/serial converter that receives a parallel n-bit input signal and comprising a first shift register that receives an odd-numbered part of the input signal with a first load signal in synchronism with a clock signal having a clock rate half the clock rate of a system clock, and provides a serial output as a first one-bit signal sequence; a second shift register that receives an even-numbered part of the input signal with a second load signal synchronism with the clock signal and provides a serial output as a second one-bit signal sequence; and a fusion unit that fuses the first serial one-bit signal sequence synchronously with the clock signal and the second serial one-bit signal sequence in synchronism the clock signal to form a serial one-bit output signal.

In previous DDR-DRAM semiconductor memories, the individual semiconductor memory components were supplied with the data, address and control signals as well as clock signals via separate bus line systems in each case. The read and write data was normally transmitted bi-directionally using a specific number of parallel data bits.
As a result of the considerably higher transmission rates (up to 7.2 Gbits/s per pin), data signals as well as address and control signals, and the clock signals as well, will be transmitted via differential signal lines in the next generation (for example DDR4 and NMT (New Memory Technology)) of DDR-DRAM memories that are currently being developed. For this reason, the number of pins for these signals would have to be at least doubled for the conventional architecture of memory transmitting and receiving interfaces. However, such an increased number of pins is neither desirable nor possible, either for the individual memory components (chips) or for the memory modules on which they are mounted.
In order to reduce the number of pins and, since the data, control and address signals will be transmitted unidirectionally in the next memory generation, new transmitting and receiving interface circuits are being developed which will transmit and receive the data, control and address signals to be transmitted within one frame (signal frame), that is to say in each case matching a transmitting and receiving protocol and complying with very strict time conditions. These signals will likewise, of course, be transmitted differentially, with the clock signal being transmitted separately. Protocol-oriented transmitting and receiving interface circuits such as these require high-speed coding and decoding logic in the transmitting and receiving section of the memory interface, with data and clock preprocesssing being required in the receiving section.
In order to combine the data bits which are read from the memory arrays and are to be transmitted to form a data stream which matches the protocol, the transmitting part of the memory interface requires parallel/serial conversion, which converts the data which is read in a parallel form comprising a plurality of bits from the memory arrays, to a serial one-bit data signal stream in synchronism with the clock signal.


A protective covering device for a circuit breaker having a breaker housing and breaker handle extending from a front surface of the breaker housing and having an ON and OFF position includes: a cover adapted to be mounted to the front surface of the circuit breaker; and an opening provided in the cover adapted to allow actuation of the breaker handle when the breaker handle is in the OFF position. The cover encloses the breaker handle when mounted.

The term "electrical safety device" comprises devices which protect individuals against an electrical shock, e.g. a Residual Current Device (RCD) or a Residual Current Circuit Breaker (RCCB), devices which protect electrical circuits or electrical appliances from damage caused by overcurrent, e.g. circuit breakers (such as a MCB or a MCCB), as well as devices which provide both types of electrical safety, e.g. a Residual Current Breaker with Overcurrent protection (RCBO), as long as those devices are provided with a trip mechanism with an actuator lever.
In rail applications, there are breakers which protect safety functions such as emergency brake loop, default ground current monitoring, over speed loop, black record box, etc. These breakers are called signaling breakers. These breakers cannot mechanically be operated. Only electrical triggering is considered in these applications. It is only allowed to remote the breaker, i.e. resetting the breaker remotely without coming into physical contact with the breaker, in the event of a potential breaker triggering. For some critical safety functions, this remote is performed under specific process in such a way that a common agent or driver cannot remote the breaker. Only qualified upgraded personnel are allowed to do this after filling out procedural documents.
Until now only special breakers allowed the above functions. These breakers do not have any handle like regular circuit breakers. The remote of the breaker is done via a small key tooling. Such special breakers are relatively expensive.

Switch cover limiting manual switch activation


The present invention relates to a melanin concentrating hormone antagonist compound of formula I: wherein “-----” is absent or is optionally a bond; q is 1 or 2; R1 is independently selected from hydrogen, —C1-C2 alkyl, halo, hydroxy, —C1-C2 haloalkyl, —C1-C3 alkoxy, cyano, —O—C3-C4 cycloalkyl, and —OC1-C2 haloalkyl; R2 is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, —C1-C3 alkyl, hydroxy, —C1-C3 alkoxy, cyano, —C1-C2 haloalkyl, —OC1-C2 haloalkyl, and halo; R3 is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, —C1-C4 alkyl, —C2-C4 haloalkyl, —C2-C4 alkylOH, —C3-C6 cycloalkyl, —CH2C3-C6 cycloalkyl, —C2-C4 alkyl-O—C1-C4 alkyl, —C(O)C1-C4 alkyl, —C(O)C1-C4 haloalkyl, —CH2-thiazole, phenyl, benzyl, tetrahydrothiopyranyl, and tetrahydropyranyl, wherein the cycloalkyl, tetrahydrothiopyranyl, tetrahydropyranyl and thiazolyl group is optionally substituted with one or two groups independently selected from the group consisting of halo, hydroxy, C1-C2 alkyl, and —C1-C2 haloalkyl; or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt, enantiomer, diastereomer or mixture thereof, useful in the treating, preventing or ameliorating of symptoms associated with obesity and related diseases.

MCH over-expressing transgenic mice are mildly obese, and both MCH−/− and MCHR1−/− mice are characterized by reduced weight gain relative to wild type controls. MCH-induced body weight gain and hyperphagia are absent in MCHR1 null mice. Non-peptide small molecule MCHR1 antagonists attenuate food intake stimulated by MCH. The forgoing support the hypothesis to treat obesity and related diseases with compounds that are effective antagonists of MCHR1.
PCT application number WO 2003/033476A1 discloses compounds reportedly useful as antagonists of the MCH receptor. PCT application number WO 2003/033480A1 discloses compounds reportedly useful as antagonists of the MCH receptor. PCT application WO 2006/066174A1 discloses compounds useful in the treatment, prevention or amelioration of symptoms associated with obesity and related diseases.
Current treatments targeted at obesity have not proven effective for all patients and for sustainable periods of time. Examples of such treatments include various over-the-counter appetite suppressants, various dietary regimens and/or exercise. Therefore, there is a need for new and/or improved therapeutically effective agents useful for treating, preventing and/or ameliorating the effects of obesity.
Antagonists of MCHR1 would be expected to be useful to treat or prevent obesity and related diseases. There is a need to find potent antagonists of MCHR1. There is also a need to find compounds that selectively bind MCHR1 relative to MCHR2. There also exists a need to find MCHR1 antagonists having an improved safety profile over the prior art compounds. The present invention provides such potent, selective MCHR1 antagonists having an improved safety profile for the treatment of obesity and related diseases.

5- [4-(azetidin-3-yloxy)-phenyl]-2-phenyl-5H-thiazolo[5,4-C] pyridin-4-one derivatives and their use as MCH receptor antagonists


A method is described that involves loading X bits at a time into a shift register and shifting groups of older, loaded X bits up in the shift register with each new group of loaded X bits. Each group of X bits has been received from a serial data stream. The method further involves identifying an alignment key within the shift register and presenting aligned data from the serial data stream by rotating selection of a first group of Y contiguous bits from the shift register and a second group of Y contiguous bits from the shift register after the identifying. Y is greater than X.

A serial data channel is used to transport binary information (e.g., in single ended or differential format) one bit at a time. FIG. 1 shows an exemplary depiction of a receive channel that includes a serial data channel 100. The serial data channel 100 is typically implemented with copper or fiber optic cabling (which is typically attached at an industry standard connector 120 (e.g., a BNC connector) and is coupled to a serial-to-parallel conversion block 101. The serial-to-parallel conversion block 101 effectively converts a number of bits received from the serial data channel 100 into a word of data of width X that is presented at output 105. The serial-to-parallel conversion block also includes a clock output 106. The clock provided at output 106 typically has a frequency that is equal to the frequency at which new words are presented at output 105 (i.e., CLK/X where the frequency of CLK corresponds to the baud rate of the serial data channel).
Other functions that may be performed by the serial-to-parallel conversion block 101 include optical-to-electrical conversion (O/E), amplification and clock extraction. O/E is used if the serial data channel 100 is actually implemented with an optical transport mechanism. Amplification is used when the serial data channel 100 traverses long distances and the transported signals are weakened as a consequence. Clock extraction is the derivation of the frequency of the clock used to transmit data onto the serial data channel from the data that is received on the serial data channel. A photodetector is often used for O/E, amplifier circuitry is often used for amplification; and, phase locked loop circuitry is often used for clock extraction.
An alignment key synchronization block 102 is used to synchronize or "align" the stream of 1s and 0s received on the serial data channel 100. Here, data carried over the serial data channel 100 is viewed as being organized into a series of words (e.g., where each word is a ten bit block of data). The alignment key synchronization block 102 is responsible for deciding where the boundaries of neighboring words reside in the stream of 1s and 0s that are received from the serial data channel 100. Typically a specific word pattern (e.g., a specific 10 bit word pattern), referred to as an alignment key, is embedded into the serial data channel's data stream at the transmitting source.
By looking for and recognizing the presence of the alignment key, the alignment key synchronization block 102 is able to precisely determine the word boundaries within the serial data channel's 100 data stream. In a typical embodiment, the alignment key found output 109 triggers to an active state when the alignment key is discovered in the data stream; and, subsequently, correctly aligned words from the serial data channel's data stream are provided at output 107. Thus, for example, if the serial data stream is organized into ten bit words, Y=10 or some integer multiple thereof. Moreover, as just mentioned above, the data is properly aligned at output 107 such that the least significant bit and the most significant bit of the Y wide output correspond to word "endpoint" bits within the serial data stream. The strobe output 108 provides a clock that times the presence of each new output word presented at output 107.
A decoder 103 decodes the aligned words that are presented at the alignment key synchronization block data output 107 into smaller words of data that correspond to the actual, substantive data that the serial data channel is used to transport. Here, on the transmit side, the actual substantive data that is to be transported by the serial data channel is first encoded in order to prevent data corruption in cases of long run lengths of the same binary value (e.g., a long run length of 1s or a long run length of 0s). The decoder 103 reverses the encoding process. Typically, a decoded word that corresponds to actual substantive data is provided at output 104 for each aligned word provided at the alignment key synchronization block output 107. Owing to the nature of encoding schemes, some inefficiency is associated with the decoding process in that more bits are needed to transport encoded data (as compared to un-encoded data). As such, the per word width at output 104 is less than the per word width at output 107 (i.e., Y>Z).
Note that, in cases where the serial-to-parallel block 101 does not form words of the same size as the words that are formed into the serial data stream, the alignment key synchronization block 102 also performs some degree of parallel word size translation from an input word of width X to an output word of width Y. Typically Y is greater than X. In cases where the output word width Y is an integer multiple of the input word width X (e.g., X=4 and Y=8), the parallel word size translation is straightforward to design. However, in cases where the output word width Y is not an integer multiple of the input word width X (e.g., X=4 and Y=10), the parallel word size translation can be much more complicated to design and, to the knowledge of the Applicants, has heretofore required the use of dual edge triggered flip flops.

Non-integer word size translation through rotation of different buffer alignment channels


The control apparatus includes a plurality of control units. Each control unit includes a cable containing electrical conductors. Male and female connectors may be disposed at opposite end portions of the cable. An inline connector may be disposed between the male and female connectors and is connected with the electrical conductors. A sensor has terminals which are engagable with terminals in the inline conductor to connect the sensor with the electrical conductors in the cable. Upon disconnection of one sensor from the control apparatus, an electrical connection is maintained with the remaining sensors.

The present invention relates to a new and improved control apparatus.
A known control apparatus is utilized in association with a conveyor to control movement of packages or other articles along the conveyor. This known control apparatus includes a plurality of sensors. The sensors are interconnected by integral cables having lengths which are greater than the longest expected length between adjacent sensors. In the event that the apparatus is utilized with shorter spacing between sensors, excess cable is coiled up and stowed. If the sensors were manufactured with integral cables of different lengths to match any length selected by a customer, the manufacturer would have to maintain an inventory which includes a relatively large number of sensors connected with integral cables of different lengths.
With a known control apparatus, a sensor cable may exit from the sensor body in a direction toward a next adjacent sensor in a chain of sensors. If the cable exits from the sensor body in a direction away from the next adjacent sensor in the chain of sensors, the cable would have to be bent 180 degrees and be longer than the desired spacing between sensors to make the next connection. With a known control apparatus, replacement of a damaged sensor requires disconnection of an integral cable associated with the damaged sensor from other sensors and their associated cables. The damaged sensor and its associated cable are then replaced.


A quadrature modulation circuit includes a low pass filter which operates by a time division process for the in-phase channel and quadrature-phase channel, and reduces address requirements data using amplitude symmetry of the wave form and/or using symmetry wave form on the time axis. The capacity of the ROM is reduced by half or more and the configuration of the quadrature modulation circuit is simplified.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a quadrature modulation circuit. In particular, the present invention relates to a quadrature modulation circuit which includes a base band wave reshaping circuit used for digital modulation such as four phase shift keying modulation (QPSK) in which the frequency band is limited by the digital transmission system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 8 shows a block diagram of a conventional quadrature modulation circuit used for QPSK. In FIG. 8, an in -phase channel signal 1.sub.i (I-ch) and a quadrature-phase channel signal 1.sub.q (Q-ch) are non-return-to-zero (NRZ) input signals. Low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q are read only memories (ROM) respectively which operate as band limitation filters for I-ch and Q-ch. Digital to analog converters (D/A converter) 3.sub.i and 3.sub.q convert the digital signals which are received from the ROM LPF 2.sub.i and ROM LPF 2.sub.q, to analog signals. Analog filters 4.sub.i and 4.sub.q suppress the step aliases received from the D/A converters 3.sub.i and 3.sub.q. A quadrature modulation circuit 5 which includes a phase shifter 51, multipliers 52, 53 and an adder 54 modulate a carrier orthogonally with the output signals of the analog filters 4.sub.i and 4.sub.q. An oscillator 6 supplies the modulation carrier signal to the quadrature modulation circuit 5.
FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of the low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q in FIG. 8. In FIG. 9, an input signal 1 corresponds to the in-phase channel signal 1.sub.i (I-ch) and the quadrature channel signal 1.sub.q (Q-ch). An n-step shift register 21 shifts the input signal 1 in sequence. An oscillator 22 generates a clock signal corresponding to the sample frequency of the ROM LPF 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q. A ROM 24 stores the resulting data of the wave form from the filter.
FIG. 10 shows another block diagram of the low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q in FIG. 8. A pair of n/2-step shift registers 211 and 212 shift the first half cycle of the input signal and the second half cycle of the input signal respectively. ROMs 241 and 242 store the different wave forms. An adder 25 adds the values received from the ROMs 241 and 242.
The operation of the above conventional art is explained hereinafter. In the digital modulation, such as QPSK, since the frequency component spreads over a wide range, the frequency of the modulated output signal is limited by band limitation filter. A QPSK signal S(t) limited in the base band frequency is expressed in the following equation (1). ##EQU1## where .omega..sub.c is a carrier frequency, I.sub.k and Q.sub.k are the digital signals of I-ch and Q-ch and have the value of +1 or -1 and h (t) is the impulse response of the band limitation filter. A nyquist filter having the characteristics of a raised-cosine roll-off is used for the band limitation filter.
The operation of FIG. 8 is explained by referring the equation (1). An in-phase channel signal 1.sub.i (I-ch) and a quadrature channel signal 1.sub.q (Q-ch) are inputted to the low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q respectively by the form of NRZ signal I.sub.k and Q.sub.k. Input signals I.sub.k and Q.sub.k are convoluted to form impulse responses in the low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q respectively. Smoothed wave forms I (t) and Q (t) are outputted as sampled and quantized numerical data from the low pass filters (ROM LPF) 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q respectively. These output data are inputted to the D/A converters 3.sub.i and 3.sub.q respectively and converted into analog signals. The analog filters 4.sub.i and 4.sub.q smooth the step data converted to the analog signals, suppress the aliases generated at the sampling process, and the output signals I (t) and Q (t) are inputted to the quadrature modulator 5. In the quadrature modulator 5, the carrier signal generated in the generator 6 is distributed into two quadrature carriers -sin .omega..sub.c and cos .omega..sub.c which is shifted 90 degrees using a shifter 51. These two carrier signals are applied to multipliers 52 and 53 and are multiplied by the output signals I (t) and Q (t) received from the analog filter 4.sub.i and 4.sub.q respectively. The two outputs from the multipliers 52 and 53 are added in an adder 54 and are outputted as a modulation wave form S (t).
The operations of the ROMs LPF 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q are explained by using FIG. 9 and FIG. 11. The operation of the LPF can be considered as the convolution of the input signal and the impulse response of the LPF. Therefore, they are expressed as the second and the third equations of equation (1).
FIG. 11 shows the convolution result of the equation (1). In FIG. 11, numeral 7 shows input impulse row (I.sub.k or Q.sub.k). The upward arrow shows "1" and downward arrow shows "0". 8 is an impulse response wave form [I.sub.k .multidot.h(t-kT) or Q.sub.k .multidot.h(t-kT)] of the LPF for each input impulse 7. These impulse response wave forms [I.sub.k .multidot.h(t-kT) or Q.sub.k .multidot.h(t-kT)] are shown in dotted lines. 9 is a filter output wave from [I (t) or Q (t)] in which all impulse response wave forms are added. The filter output wave form [I (t) or Q (t)] is shown in solid line.
The range k of .SIGMA. is k=-.infin. to .infin.. As easily known from each impulse response wave form 8 in FIG. 11, the value of the impulse response becomes negligibly small where .vertline.k.vertline. is very large. Therefore, the impulse response can be restricted within the finite range. In this example, 5 symbols before and 5 symbols after a certain symbol (total symbols are 10) are used for calculating the convolution of the impulse response. In this case, the impulse response wave form between the "5" symbol and "6" symbol shown in the solid line is calculated using 10 symbols shown in FIG. 11. When the convolution is calculated from the finite impulse response, the filter output wave form I (t) or Q (t) is obtained as the summation of all impulse response wave forms corresponding to each 10 symbols. That is, the impulse response wave form between the "5" symbol and "6" is calculated from only 10 symbols of "1" to "10" symbols.
FIG. 9 shows a ROM LPF which includes the ROM 24 for storing the wave form described above. In FIG. 9, digital signals I.sub.k or Q.sub.k (input signal 1) are inputted to the n-step shift register 21. The shift register 21 shifts the input data (symbol) in sequence and stores the most recent n symbols and outputs these n symbols to the address of the ROM 24. In this embodiment, as the 10 symbols are used, n is equal to 10.
All combination wave forms of n symbols are calculated beforehand and stored in the ROM 24. In this case, the wave form can not be processed continuously on the time axis. Therefore, the wave forms between two symbols are sampled on the time point of 2.sup.m and the quantized data is stored in the ROM 24. The m bits output from the 2.sup.m binary counter 23 which operates at the sampling clock received from the oscillator 22 is inputted to the ROM 24 as well as the n symbols received from the shift register 21. The ROM LPF in FIG. 9 operates as the LPF by selecting the output wave form stored in the ROM 24 at a time according to the address data constructed of n symbol data received from the shift register 21 and by reading in sequence the b 2.sup.m sampling number between the two symbols which is selected according to the output value from the counter 23.
The capacity of the ROM 24 is decided by the referred symbol data n and the sampling number 2.sup.m between the two symbols. For example, in the case of QPSK, as I.sub.k and Q.sub.k are expressed by one bit respectively, if n=10 and m=3, then the necessary capacity for the ROM 24 is 2.sup.(n+m) =2.sup.13 =8K words respectively for each I-ch and Q-ch ROM. Further, if n becomes larger in order to make the truncation error of the impulse response smaller, the capacity of the ROM will be increasing exponentially.
FIG. 10 is a block diagram of ROMs LPF 2.sub.i and 2.sub.q configuration which is able to decrease the required capacity of the ROM 24 of FIG. 9. In FIG. 10, the operation of the low pass filter is modified, and expressed by equation (2) which is introduced from the second and third equations of equation (1) as follows. ##EQU2##
In equation (2), the range of the impulse response exists between finite n symbols.
The operation of the FIG. 10 is explained using FIG. 12 and equation (2). The filter output wave form is considered as the summation of the filter output wave forms shown in FIGS. 12(a) and (b). That is, the wave form of the FIG. 12(a) indicates the first term of the right side of equation (2) and FIG. 12(b) indicates the second term of the right side of the equation (2). The reference numbers 71.about.91 and 72.about.92 in FIG. 12 correspond to the number 7.about.9 in FIG. 11.
The wave forms shown in FIG. 12(a) and (b) are stored in a ROM 241 and 242 of FIG. 10 respectively in the same way as stored in the ROM 24 in FIG. 9. Each n/2 data from the shift registers 211 and 212 and m bit data from the counter 23 are inputted to the ROMs 241 and 242 respectively, and the corresponding data are read from the ROMs 241 and 242 respectively. The two output data from the ROM 241 are added in an adder 25. That is, the ROM 241 operates to calculates the first term of the right side of equation (2), the ROM 241 operates to calculates the second term of the right side of equation (2), and the adder 25 calculates the addition of the right side of equation (2).
The n data input is divided into two portions, and the first half n/2 data (k=-n/2.about.-1) is stored in the n/2 step shift register 211 and the second half n/2 data (k=0.about.n/2 -1) is stored in the n/2 step shift register 212. The address data from the shift register 211 is outputted to the ROM 241, and the address data from the shift register 212 is outputted to the ROM 242. The m bits output from the counter 23 is inputted to the both ROM 241 and 242. The operation of the m bits output is the same as explained in the FIG. 9.
The capacity of the ROMs 241 and 242 in FIG. 10 is calculated as follows. For example, if n=10 and m=3, then the capacity of the both ROMs is 2.sup.(n/2+m) .times.2=2.sup.8 .times.2=512 words. In the case of 16 QAM, 8 PSK and .pi./4 shifted DQPSK, the capacity of the ROM is 2.sup.(2.times.n/2+m) .times.2=2.sup.13 .times.2=16K words.
As discussed above, the capacity of the ROM of FIG. 10 becomes smaller than that of FIG. 9. But, the capacity of the ROMs 241 and 242 still occupies a considerable amount of memory in the quadrature modulation circuit of FIG. 8. It is also necessary to provide two sets of the same ROM in the quadrature modulation circuit for each I-ch and Q-ch.
There is prior art, for example, laid-open Japanese patent publication No. 63-77246/1988, which describes such quadrature modulation.
As the conventional quadrature modulation is constructed as discussed above, it is necessary to provide a large capacity ROM LPF 2.sub.i and ROM LPF 2.sub.q for each I-ch and Q-ch respectively.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a quadrature modulation circuit which requires small capacity ROMs for operating as filters.
It is a further object of the present invention to reduce the hardware size compared with the prior art quadrature modulation circuit having ROMs for operating as filters.
It is a further object of the present invention to reduce the ROM size by using the amplitude symmetry of the wave form.
It is a still further object of the present invention to reduce the ROM size by using the symmetry of the wave form on the time axis.


This invention describes the transient incorporation of CO.sub.2 gas into fruits and vegetables so as to enhance their flavor. The fruits and vegetables are exposed to a strongly CO.sub.2 environment for a specified amount of time and within a specific temperature range. After this exposure the foodstuffs so exposed will have incorporated some of the CO.sub.2 to which they were exposed to and develop a more effervescent and/or tangy flavor through the uptake of the CO.sub.2 to form carbonic acid. This enhancement in flavor is a direct consequence of CO.sub.2 exposure.

Typical American snack foods such as carbonated colas and processed potato chips offer the consuming public choices that while flavorful are deficient in nutritional value, contribute to unhealthful caloric intake, and can exaggerate existing physiological problems in individuals consuming these snack items. Snack items which seek to fulfill the almost mutually exclusive roles of a healthy and nutritious food item that the public desires as a common snack item are rare.
Carbonated drinks or juices are snack items that the consuming public often seeks out for the enhanced taste of the various syrups or concentrated fruit juices that form the bulk of this snacks composition. Again these snack items are often no more than concentrated syrups that are devoid of nutritional value. As such they provide only large amounts of empty calories.
The invention herein disclosed attempts to answer these problems by enhancing the natural taste of fresh fruits and vegetables so as to make them more appealing as snack items to consumers. By doing so, a new snack item is created that carries with it significant nutritional value, and generally avoids caloric intake on the same level as the most popular carbonated drinks.

Method for enhancing the flavor of fruits and vegetables


Provided is a laminate having elastomer layers tightly bonded to each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laminate of elastomers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Acrylic elastomers and vulcanized products thereof, which are superior in physical properties such as heat-aging resistance, oil resistance, mechanical properties and compression set characteristics, have been used widely, for example, as the materials for hose parts, sealing parts and antivibration rubber parts in automobile engine rooms.
Under recent regulations tightening exhaust gas, mandating increases in engine output and others, there is a demand for parts with higher heat-aging resistance.
To solve the problems above and to improve the reliability of rubber parts, it is conceivable to use fluorine elastomers that are higher in durability than acrylic elastomers. However, fluorine elastomers, which are lower in low-temperature resistance and also expensive, are not ideal materials particularly for auto parts that demand cost-effectiveness and reliability simultaneously.
For example, Patent Documents 1 to 4 below disclose laminates of a fluorine elastomer layer and an acrylic elastomer layer. It is possible to raise the durability of a conventional material substantially by laminating a fluorine elastomer on the region thereof where there is truly a problem in durability.
An important requirement demanded when a laminate is produced from fluorine and acrylic elastomers includes bonding strength between these layers. Because low bonding strength between them impairs reliability of the laminate, it is extremely important to increase the bonding strength between them to obtain an inexpensive laminate higher in durability.
For that reason, the surface of the fluorine elastomer is subjected, for example, to surface-treatment with a metal sodium solution (see, for example, Patent Document 1), discharge treatment (see, for example, Patent Document 2), or plasma treatment (see, for example, Patent Document 3) for improvement of the bonding strength with an elastomer molded in a layer shape. It is also known that it is possible by using a particular kind of fluorine elastomer to improve the bonding strength between a fluorine elastomer layer and a non-fluorine elastomer layer (see, for example, Patent Document 4).

Abstract: The laminate according to the present invention 1 has an acrylic elastomer layer 11 and a fluorine elastomer layer 12 that are bonded to each other. The acrylic elastomer layer 11 is made of an acrylic elastomer composition having an epoxy group-containing acrylic elastomer and an onium salt added and the fluorine elastomer layer 12 is made of a fluorine elastomer composition having a fluorine elastomer and a polyol crosslinking agent added. In the laminate 1, the elastomer layers are bonded tightly to each other even without any surface treatment.


The present disclosure provides a downhole tool that includes a magnetometer and a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensor. One or more compensating magnets are provided on the tool to cancel or offset the effect of the magnetic field of the magnets of the NMR sensor on the magnetometer measurements made during drilling of a wellbore. The compensating magnets may have the same magnetic field characteristics as the sensor magnets and may be made of the same material.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to downhole formation analysis and in particular to the compensation of measurements made by a magnetometer during measurement while drilling.
2. Summary of the Related Art
Oil well logging has been known for many years and provides information about various characteristics of the particular earth formation being drilled. In conventional oil well logging, after a well or borehole has been drilled, a probe known as a sonde is lowered into the borehole to determine characteristics of the formations which the well has traversed. The probe is typically a hermetically sealed cylindrical body which hangs at the end of a long cable which gives mechanical support to the sonde and provides power to various sensors and other instrumentation inside the sonde. The cable also provides communication channels for transferring information between the sonde and surface equipment. The sonde is typically pulled while the various sensors in the sonde take measurements, which are processed to determine the various characteristics of the formation. It thus becomes possible to measure parameters or characteristics of the earth's formations as a function of depth, that is, while the sonde is being pulled uphole. Although, such "wireline" measurements are normally made in real time, these measurements, however, are taken long after the actual drilling of the well.
There are also several teachings in prior art for taking measurements of formation parameters while the borehole is being drilled, i.e. while drilling the wellbore. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,397,893 to Minette, discloses a method for analyzing data from a measurement-while-drilling (MWD) formation evaluation logging tool which compensates for the rotation of the logging tool (along with the rest of the drillstring) during measurement periods. U.S. Pat. No. 5,513,528 to Holenka et al. (the "'528 patent") discloses a method and apparatus for measuring formation characteristics as a function of azimuth about the borehole. The measurement apparatus of the '528 patent includes a logging while drilling tool which rotates in the borehole during drilling of the wellbores. In the '528 patent tool, the down vector of the tool is derived first by determining an angle "N" between a vector to the earth's north magnetic pole, as referenced to the cross sectional plane of the measuring while drilling (MWD) tool and a gravity down vector as referenced in the plane. The tool includes magnetometers and accelerometers placed orthogonally in a cross-sectional plane. Using the magnetometers and/or accelerometer measurements, the toolface angle can be determined. The angle N is transmitted to the tool, thereby allowing a continuous determination of the gravity down position in the logging while drilling tool
Neither Minette nor Holenka address possible sources of error in relying on readings made using magnetometers on a rotating drillstring. There are prior art methods that address the problem of correction of errors caused by metallic drill collars, casing, and accumulated debris. For example, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/256,794 of Blanz addresses the affect on magnetometer readings due to the rotation of the drillstring. U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,407 to Brooks discloses correction of bias errors due to interference and other sources by choosing the biases that minimize the variance of magnetic field magnitude at several sensor orientations. U.S. Pat. No. 6,966,211 to Wu discloses a method to correct errors in bias, scale-factor, misalignment of cross-axial magnetometers, and bias or scale-factor of axial magnetometer by requiring the magnitude of measured cross-axial magnetic field to be as constant as possible over several tool face angles at a survey point in a wellbore and the magnitude of the measured total magnetic field and dip angle equal to the reference values, respectively.
In general, the correction methods described above work reasonably well when the magnetometer is at a sufficiently large distance from magnetic disturbances on the downhole assembly. However, when a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) sensor is used in the tool, there is a major disturbance to the earth's magnetic field due to the magnets that are used for making the measurements. Typically, the magnets used in the NMR sensor are strong permanent magnets. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,111,408 to Blades discusses NMR measurements made utilizing permanent magnets with a field of 47 mT (470 Gauss). In contrast, the earth's magnetic field is of the order of half a Gauss. Even though the field of the magnets used for NMR measurements decays with distance, the disturbance to the earth's magnetic field can be significant to adversely affect the magnetometer measurements. The present invention provides apparatus and method that addresses this problem.

Compensation of magnetic influence in a MWD system


Disclosed are deoxyfructonucleotides and dideoxyfructonucleotides which may be used as propagators and terminators in DNA extension reactions.

DNA sequencing is one of the cornerstone analytical techniques of modern molecular biology. The development of reliable methods for sequencing has led to great advances in the understanding of genetic information and has made possible the manipulation of genetic material (i.e., genetic engineering).
There are currently two methods for sequencing DNA: the Maxam-Gilbert chemical degradation method [Maxam et al., Meth. in Enzym., Vol. 65, 499-559 (1980)] and the Sanger dideoxy chain termination method [Sanger et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, Vol. 74, 5463-5467 (1977)]. A common feature of these two techniques is the generation of a set of DNA fragments which are analyzed by electrophoresis. The techniques differ in the methods used to prepare these fragments.
With Sanger's technique, DNA fragments are produced through partial enzymatic copying (i.e., synthesis) of the piece of DNA to be sequenced. In the most common version, the piece of DNA to be sequenced is inserted, using standard techniques, into a "sequencing vector"; a large, circular, single-stranded piece of DNA such as the bacteriophage M13. This becomes the template for the copying process. A short piece of DNA with its sequence complementary to a region of the template just upstream from the insert is annealed to the template to serve as a primer for the synthesis. In the presence of the four natural deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates (dNTP's), a DNA polymerase will extend the primer from the 3'-end to produce a complementary copy of the template in the region of the insert. To produce a complete set of sequencing fragments, four reactions are run in parallel, each containing the four dNTP's along with a single dideoxyribonucleoside triphosphate (ddNTP) terminator, one for each base. (.sup.32 P-labeled dNTP is added to give labeled fragments). If a dNTP is incorporated by the polymerase, chain extension can continue. If the corresponding ddNTP is selected, the chain is terminated. The ratio of ddNTP to dNTP's is adjusted to generate DNA fragments of appropriate lengths. Each of the four reaction mixtures will, thus, contain a distribution of fragments with the same dideoxynucleotide residue at the 3'-terminus and a primer-defined 5'-terminus.
The key to the success of the Sanger method is the ability of the ddNTP's to function as chain terminating substrates which, after incorporation, prohibit further chain extension. The number of available chain terminating substrates is limited. Novel chain terminating substrates would be useful and valuable because they would expand the utility of the Sanger method.
The present invention relates to the use of dideoxyfructonucleotides as chain terminating substrates and deoxyfructonucleotides as chain propagating substrates in DNA chain extension reactions. Specifically, these novel compounds differ from the deoxynucleotides and dideoxynucleotides generally used in extension or termination reactions in that they possess a functional-group-bearing methylene unit at the anomeric carbon of the sugar residue. This one-carbon extension is a potential site for the attachment of reporters (detectable groups) such as fluorescent dyes or biotin. Reporter-labeled chain terminators have been shown to be useful in non-radioisotopic sequencing. Prober et al., Science, 238, 336-341 (1987). Reporter labeled chain propagators are useful in the labeling and detection of DNA fragments. Langer et al., Proc. Natl. Acad Sci. USA, 78, 6633-6637 (1981). In the compounds provided by the instant invention, the reporter may be contained within the sugar portion rather than the purine or pyrimidine portion of the molecule, as in previously developed methodogy. Hence, since the sugar portion of the nucleotide base is common to all nucleotides, a single fructosugar derivative would provide a convenient and universally useful means by which all nucleotides to be used in nucleotide extension or termination reactions could be prepared via a common intermediate.
References which disclose structurally related compounds include: Sturm et al., J. Org. Chem., Vol. 47, 4367-4370 (1982), which discloses a cyclic 4',6'-monophosphate of psicofuranine; Tatsuoka et al., Heterocycles, Vol. 24, No. 8, 2133-2136 (1986), which discloses synthesis of 1'-deoxy-1'-phosphono-1-.beta.-D-fructofuranosyluracil and 1',3'-dideoxy-1'-phosphono-1-.beta.-D-fructofuranosyluracil; Tatsuoka et al., Heterocycles, Vol. 24, No. 3, 617-620 (1986), which discloses synthesis of 2,3'anhydro-1'-phosphono-1-B-D-fructofuranosyl uracil; and Tatsuoka et al., Japanese Patent 61-275290.


A child bicycle seat and suspension apparatus has a housing that connects to a bicycle frame only at a seat post. The child seat is mounted to a suspended swing-arm connected to the housing at a fulcrum point for motion in the vertical axis. Torque converting levers are connected to the swing-arm assembly, and a horizontal adjustable shock is connected to the levers and to the housing.

This invention relates to bicycle seats.
Child seats designed for carrying children with a bicycle typically have a rigid auxiliary frame that attaches to a rear wheel axle and to the frame of the bicycle. Such designs, however, have several disadvantages. One drawback is that such child seats lack shock absorption to cushion the ride, and therefore there is a risk of harm to the child. Another drawback is that it is inconvenient to assemble and disassemble such a child seat with respect to the bicycle, and therefore it is time-consuming to transfer the child seat to another bicycle.

Free floating suspension apparatus for a child's bicycle seat