A reassembly and/or a segmentation function is spread across (i.e. partially performed in) each of two (or more) network processors, with use of buffers in a storage device to temporarily buffer data that is received in one or more ingress data units. In using the buffers, no attempt is made to completely fill each buffer. Instead, filling of data into a current buffer is stopped (and the remainder of current buffer is filled with padding) if there is no more data available, or if sufficient data has been accumulated to form an egress data unit. If there is any more data available, the remaining data is stored in a next buffer that remains partially filled (remainder filled with padding). Such partially filled buffers serve as temporary storage until additional data is received.

Segmentation and reassembly (SAR) of units of data (such as packets or cells) that are transferred between elements (also called "store and forward elements") of a communication network is performed to break up large data units into smaller, more manageably sized data units. The need to break up a data unit may arise, for example, if the data unit is of a length greater than a maximum length permitted by a portion of the network. Once broken up, such fragments of a data unit are sequentially transmitted, may traverse different network paths, and must be reassembled at a destination.
For example, when performing voice trunking over ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) using AAL2 for narrowband services (e.g. as described in ATM Forum standard AF-VTOA-0113.000), a number of packets (called CPS packets) are generated and embedded in ATM cells that are transmitted to a remote device. CPS stands for "common part sublayer". At the destination, a number of ATM cells are processed by a SAR device 101 (FIG. 1A) to recover the CPS packets. SAR device 101 may use an external memory to temporarily hold data during such processing. Depending on the application, several CPS packets may be received, as payload in an ATM cell. In some cases, only a portion of a CPS packet is present at the end of the cell, with the remainder of the packet being at the beginning of the next cell.
A network processor 102 and a switch fabric 103 normally process each CPS packet retrieved by the SAR device. For example, network processor 102 may perform classification, metering and/or ATM policing of the CPS packets, collect statistics, and perform operation and maintenance (OAM) functions. Switch fabric 103 (and/or a traffic manager) provides a number of fixed size buffers for temporary storage, and also performs per-flow queuing and scheduling, implements dynamic discard thresholds and random early detection. Switch fabric 103 (and/or a traffic manager) is typically connected to other network processors either directly or via an interconnect fabric (not shown).
Instead of performing segmentation and reassembly (SAR) in hardware, these functions can be implemented in software that is programmed into network processor 106 (FIG. 1B). In such a case, network processor 106 may use a doubly linked list implemented in a memory 105 to temporarily hold the data. For example, if an incoming unit of data is a fragment of a packet in conformance with the Internet Protocol (IP), network processor 102 may attempt to match its source and destination addresses to an existing entry in such a linked list. If there is a match, network processor 106 may check if the complete datagram has arrived and if not, add the fragment to the linked list for use in future when the last fragment has arrived. Otherwise, if the complete datagram has arrived, network processor 106 may assemble the datagram in sequence and then transmit the datagram to a queue in switch fabric 103 (also called egress queue).
Instead of using a doubly linked list, a software implementation in network processor 106 may use a number of queues also implemented in memory 105, with each queue being limited to holding multiple fragments of a single datagram. Note that in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the network processors may be identical although different reference numbers 102 and 106 have been used to indicate that these network processors are programmed differently.
Network processors (also called communications processors) of the type described above may perform one or more of the following functions (called "network processing functions"): parsing, searching, resolving and modifying. During parsing, a network processor analyzes and classifies the contents of the header and fields. During searching, tables are searched for a match between the content that was classified and pre-defined content and rules. During resolving, the destination and quality of service (QoS) requirements are resolved and the packet/cell is routed to its destination. During modifying, where necessary, the packet/cell is modified, e.g. certain fields (such as time to live and checksum) within the packet/cell are changed. Examples of commercially available network processors include: Intel's IXP1200, Agere's Payload Plus, AMCC's nP7250, IBM's PowerNP NP4GS3, Motorola's C-Port C-5 and Vitesse's IQ2000.
A network processor of the type described above is typically coupled to and used with a traffic manager and/or a switch fabric. Either or both devices (traffic manager and/or switch fabric) may perform one or more of the following functions: queuing and output scheduling (round robin, weighted fair queuing), policing of traffic flows to assure quality of service, traffic shaping (e.g. to meet delay or jitter requirements), statistics collection, congestion management and provisioning. Examples of commercially available devices that perform switch fabric functions include: Motorola's Q5 TMC, and AMCC's nPX5710/nPX5720 (together referred to as nPX5700).
For traffic management as well as for switching, each packet/cell must be stored in memory and later transmitted. The above-described functions may be implemented together in a chipset consisting of two chips: a traffic manager (such as AMCC's nPX5710) and a memory manager (such as AMCC's nPX5720). The just-described two chips are normally used together and frequently treated as a single device that contains queues. Such a queue-containing device may have four ports, each of which is coupled to a network processor by serial links operating at 2.5 Gbps or 10 Gbps.
Buffering of traffic is typically implemented via an external memory attached to the memory manager. Typical requirements in today's networks may require traffic up to two hundred and fifty six thousand (256K) queues to be managed. In some implementations, at any given time, only information related to a subset of these queues (e.g. up to eight thousand queues) may be cached on chip (e.g. in DDR SDRAM or RDRAM) by taking advantage of statistical multiplexing (i.e. the likelihood that the incoming traffic belongs to more than eight thousand queues is very low). Therefore, eight thousand queues (containing packets/cells) are stored in a buffering chip (such as AMCC's nPX5720) having embedded DRAM channels for example, and these queues are managed by a control logic chip (such as AMCC's nPX5710). These two chips when used together act as a switch fabric and traffic manager.
Incorporated by reference herein in their entirety are the following references:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,307,860 granted to Joffe, et al. on Oct. 23, 2001, and entitled "Systems and methods for data transformation and transfer in networks";
U.S. Pat. No. 6,330,584 granted to Joffe, et al. on Dec. 11, 2001, and entitled "Systems and methods for multi-tasking, resource sharing and execution of computer instructions";
U.S. Pat. No. 5,901,147 granted to Joffe on May 4, 1999, and entitled "Apparatus and methods to change thresholds to control congestion in ATM switches"; and
U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,278 granted to Joffe, et al. on Oct. 3, 2000 and entitled "Cell queuing in ATM switches."

Reassembly of data fragments in fixed size buffers


An electromagnetic flow meter and method for monitoring the flow of a fluid is provided. In particular, the electromagnetic flow meter and method measure the axial velocity profile of a conducting fluid. The conducting fluid may be a conducting single phase fluid or a conducting continuous phase of a multiphase fluid. The conducting fluid may have a uniform flow profile or a non-uniform flow profile. The electromagnetic flow meter and method measure the axial velocity profile of a conducting fluid by dividing the flow cross section into multiple pixels and determining the axial velocity of the conducting fluid in each pixel. Having derived the axial velocity profile, the electromagnetic flow meter and method may further derive the volumetric flow rate of the conducting fluid. The electromagnetic flow meter and method may be suitable for measuring the axial velocity profile and optionally the volumetric flow rates of each phase of a multiphase fluid.

Electromagnetic flow meters are used in a variety of industries to monitor the flow of conducting fluids. Electromagnetic flow meters utilise Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction to induce a voltage in the conducting fluid as it moves through a magnetic field. The flow rate of the conducting fluid is then derived from the measured induced voltage.
In a conventional electromagnetic flow meter the conducting fluid is directed to flow through a flow pipe, electromagnetic coils are located outside the flow pipe to create a magnetic field, two electrodes are mounted in the flow pipe wall to detect the induced voltage and processing means are configured to process the induced voltage data to determine the average flow rate. Although conventional electromagnetic flow meters are widely used it is recognised that they have a number of limitations. For example, conventional electromagnetic flow meters can only measure the average flow rate of a conducting fluid—they can not determine the axial velocity profile of a conducting fluid. Moreover, conventional electromagnetic flow meters are generally only effective when the conducting fluid has a uniform flow profile—they are unsuitable and/or inaccurate when the conducting fluid has a non-uniform flow profile.
Unfortunately, non-uniform flow conditions are often encountered. For example, a fluid may develop a non-uniform flow profile downstream of a pipe bend, at a partially open valve, in a blocked pipe and/or along an inclined pipe. A multiphase fluid may have a non-uniform flow profile if the component parts have different flow characteristics. The flow of a fluid is non-uniform when, for example, the fluid has a non-axisymmetric velocity profile.
One approach to accurate flow rate measurement of non-uniform single phase fluids has been proposed by HORNER in HORNER, B. (1998) A novel profile-insensitive multi-electrode induction flow meter suitable for industrial use. Meas. Sic. Technol., 24, 131-137. However, this type of flow meter does not provide information on the axial velocity profile of the fluid. This can be a major drawback, particularly in multiphase fluids where, for example, the volumetric flow rate of a particular phase can only be found by integrating the product of the local phase velocity and the local phase volume fraction in the flow cross section. As a result, the approach proposed by Horner can not be used to determine the flow rate of the conducting continuous phase of a multiphase fluid with a non-uniform flow profile.
Other known types of flow meters that are suitable for measuring the flow rate of a conducting phase of a multiphase fluid are constrained by high cost and the use of hazardous radioactive sources to monitor the flow.

Electromagnetic flow meter and method for monitoring fluid flow of a conducting fluid having either a uniform or a non-uniform flow profile


A canister mounting structure including: a spare tire disposed in a rear underfloor region of a vehicle body in a forward tilted position wherein a front end of the spare tire is positioned lower; a canister disposed between the vehicle body and the spare tire and fastened to an underfloor member; a fuel tank disposed in front of the spare tire; a first space formed between the spare tire and the fuel tank; and a second space formed between the canister and the fuel tank.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting structure of a canister installed in an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
In some automobiles, a spare tire is housed in a rear underfloor region of the vehicle body by use of a chain for hanging the spare tire, and a fuel tank and a canister for adsorbing vaporized fuel are disposed under the floor.
Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. S63-105518 discloses a canister mounting structure in which a spare tire is disposed in a substantially central area in the vehicle transverse direction, a fuel tank is disposed in front of the spare tire, an exhaust pipe and a muffler are disposed on one side in the vehicle transverse direction of the spare tire, and a canister is disposed on the opposite side of the spare tire from the muffler.


A circuit for controlling the moving of a pickup (track jump) between tracks of a recording medium, such as a CD-ROM. The circuit includes a first circuit which generate a pulse signal corresponding to changing points of a track jump signal and an off track signal. A second circuit generates a signal for controlling the moving speed or deceleration of the pickup, as it approaches a target track, in accordance with the pulse signal.

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling track jump, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for controlling track jump in a data reproduction apparatus that reads digital data from a disc type recording medium and transfers the data to a computer.
A compact disc (CD) is mainly used as a digital audio recording medium, but it can also be used as a read only memory (CD-ROM) for storing various types of digital data read by computers.
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing a conventional disk reproduction apparatus. A disc 1 has a spiral recording track formed on at least one of its surfaces. Digital data, which is in a predetermined format, is recorded along the recording track. The disc reproduction apparatus includes a pickup 3 to read the data recorded on the recording track. The disc reproduction apparatus further includes a servo mechanism for controlling the position of the pickup 3 relative to the disc 1 so that the pickup 3 tracks the recording track properly.
The pickup 3 is arranged opposite the recording track of the disc 1. An actuator 4, which is operated in accordance with a drive signal TD, moves the pickup 3 in the radial direction of the disc 1. The pickup 3 includes laser beam sources and sensors. Referring to FIG. 2, the pickup 3 generates a main reading beam P and a pair of auxiliary reading beams T1, T2 which are radiated toward the recording track. The pickup 3 has a main beam receiving portion and an auxiliary beam receiving portion. The main reading beam P is received by the main beam receiving portion to detect pits on the recording track surface. The auxiliary reading beams T1, T2 are received by the auxiliary beam receiving portion to detect when the pickup 3 moves away from the recording track. The reading beams P, T1, T2 radiated against the pits of the disc 1 are reflected toward the beam receiving portions as weak lights. The reading beams D, T1, T2 radiated against portions other than the pits of the disc 1 are reflected toward the beam receiving portions as strong lights. When the beam receiving portion associated with each of the reading beams P, T1, and T2 receives the corresponding reflection beam, the receiving portion generates a voltage having a value which corresponds to the intensity of the reflected light. The actuator 4 supports the pickup 3 and performs track jump to move the pickup 3 radially along the disc 1 in response to the drive signal TD.
The pickup 3 sends a voltage signal, the value of which corresponds to the main reading beam P, to a signal processor 5. The signal processor 5 performs a waveform shaping process and a digitizing process on the voltage signal to generate an EFM signal. The EFM signal repetitively goes back and forth between a low level and a high level in accordance with the existence of pits.
The signal processor 5 generates a tracking error signal TE from the difference between the voltage values of the auxiliary reading beams T1, T2 and an off track signal OT from a low frequency component of the EFM signal. The waveform of the tracking error signal TE is a sine wave, the polarity of which is inverted each time the pickup 3 moves across the recording track. The tracking error signal TE is digitized to generate a track jump signal TJ.
The voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T1 is substantially the same as the voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T2 when the pickup 3 is accurately tracking the recording track (i.e., when the pickup 3 is at the proper position). Under these conditions, the tracking error signal TE is at a null level. When the pickup 3 is not accurately tracking the recording track (i.e., when the pickup 3 is not at the proper position), for example, when the position of the pickup 3 is offset inward from the recording track, the voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T1 becomes smaller than the voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T2 and causes the tracking error signal TE to take a negative value. On the other hand, if the position of the pickup 3 is offset outward from the recording track, the voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T2 becomes smaller than the voltage value corresponding to the auxiliary reading beam T1 and causes the tracking error signal TE to take a positive value. When the pickup 3 is completely separated from the recording track, the voltage values of the auxiliary reading beams T1, T2 become equal to each other and cause the tracking error signal TE to become null. The track jump signal TJ is generated from the tracking error signal TE using the null level as a threshold value. Further, the track jump signal TJ goes high or low when the center of the pickup 3 is located at the center of the recording track.
when the pickup 3 is properly tracking the recording track of the disc 1, the signal processor 5 continuously outputs the EFM signal. Thus, the EFM signal has a predetermined amplitude and does not include a low frequency component. Accordingly, the off track signal OT is maintained at a low level when the pickup 3 is properly tracking the recording track. The off track signal OT rises or falls when the center of the pickup 3 is located near an edge of a pit.
As shown in FIG. 1, the signal processor 5 sends the EFM signal, the tracking error signal TE, and the off track signal OT to the servo controller 6. The servo controller 6 generates a spindle motor drive signal SD and the actuator drive signal TD based on the tracking error signal TE and the off track signal OT. The spindle motor drive signal SD controls the spindle motor 2 so that the frequency of the EFM signal is maintained at a predetermined value. The actuator drive signal TD controls the actuator 4 so that the tracking error signal TE has a null level and the off track signal OT is maintained at a low level. The spindle motor drive signal SD and the actuator drive signal TD servo control the spindle motor and tracking.
FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) are charts showing the waveforms of the signals detected when the pickup 3 moves across the lines of the recording track on the disc 1 (when a so-called track jump is performed). The horizontal axis represents time. FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) show a state in which the pickup 3 gradually decelerates.
As described above, the track jump signal TJ rises or falls when the center of the pickup 3 is located at the center of the recording track. The off track signal OT rises or falls when the center of the pickup 3 is located near the edges of the pits. Accordingly, the phase difference between the off track signal OT and the tracking error signal TE is normally +90xc2x0. The tracking error signal TE or the off track signal OT are counted to detect the number of recording tracks the pickup 3 traverses. The moving direction of the pickup 3 is detected by the difference between the phase of the tracking error signal TE and the phase of the off track signal OT. The movement of the pickup 3 is controlled based on the two detection results.
The moving speed of the pickup 3 must be detected to perform the track jump. In other words, the pickup 3 is moved to the desired position by monitoring the moving speed of the pickup 3 and accelerating and decelerating the pickup 3 at optimal timings to decrease the moving time of the pickup 3. During a single cycle of the track jump signal TJ or the off track signal OT, a clock signal CLK is counted to measure the time of the cycle and detect the moving speed. The clock signal CLK, which is sent to the servo controller 6, has a cycle sufficiently advanced from the track jump signal TJ and the off track signal OT.
However, only the average speed during one cycle is obtained in the above speed measuring method. The resolution of the measured speed may then be insufficient and the measured speed may be inaccurate. Accordingly, the pickup 3 may not be able to stop precisely at the predetermined position, causing sliding to occur. In addition, if excessive force is applied to stop the movement of the pickup 3, the pickup 3 may stop before reaching the target position or may move in the reverse direction.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a track jump control method and control circuit for accurately controlling the moving speed of the pickup.
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The method includes the steps of generating a pulse signal corresponding to changing points of a track jump signal and an off track signal, and generating a signal for controlling the moving speed of the pickup in accordance with the pulse signal.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a method for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The method includes the steps of generating a track jump signal having a first changing point when the pickup is located above a track and a second changing point when the pickup is located between adjacent tracks, and generating an off track signal indicating a first state when the pickup is located above a track and a second state when the pickup is located apart from the track. The off track signal is changed from the first state to the second state at a third changing point and changed from the second state to the first state at a fourth changing point. The method also includes the steps of dividing a cycle of the track jump signal and the off track signal into four periods at the first to fourth changing points of the track jump signal and the off track signal, and measuring the length of the divided four periods, and controlling the moving speed of the pickup in accordance with the lengths of the divided four periods.
A further aspect of the present invention provides a method for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The method includes generating a track jump signal having a first changing point when the pickup is located above a track and a second changing point when the pickup is located between adjacent tracks, and generating an off track signal indicating a first state when the pickup is located above a track and a second state when the pickup is located apart from the track. The off track signal is changed from the first state to the second state at a third changing point and changed from the second state to the first state at a fourth changing point. The method further includes the steps of detecting one of the first changing point and the second changing point of the track jump signal corresponding to one of a target track to where the pickup jumps and a track located a predetermined number of tracks before the target track, decelerating the pickup when one of the first changing point and the second changing point is detected, measuring the time between one of the first changing point and the second changing point and one of the third changing point and the fourth changing point of the subsequently generated off track signal, and adjusting the deceleration of the pickup in accordance with the measured time.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a circuit for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The circuit includes a first circuit for generating a pulse signal corresponding to changing points of a track jump signal and an off track signal, and a second circuit for generating a signal for controlling the moving speed of the pickup in accordance with the pulse signal.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a circuit for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The circuit includes a measuring circuit for receiving a track jump signal, which has a first changing point and a second changing point, and an off track signal, which has a third changing point and a fourth changing point, and measuring a length between one of the first changing point and the second changing point of the track jump signal and one of the third changing point and the fourth changing point of the off track signal. The first changing point occurs when the pickup is located above a track, the second changing point occurs when the pickup is located between adjacent tracks, the third changing point occurs when the off track signal changes from a first state to a seconded state, and the fourth changing point occurs when the off track signal changes from the second state to the first state. A control circuit is connected to the measuring circuit to generate a drive signal corresponding to the measured result of the measuring circuit.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a circuit for controlling track jump on a disc by a pickup. The circuit includes a measuring circuit for receiving a track jump signal, which has a first changing point and a second changing point, and an off track signal, which has a third changing point and a fourth changing point, and measuring the length between one of the first changing point and the second changing point of the track jump signal and one of the third changing point and the fourth changing point of the off track signal. The first changing point occurs when the pickup is located above a track, the second changing point occurs when the pickup is located between adjacent tracks, the third changing point occurs when the off track signal changes from a first state to a second state, and the fourth changing point occurs when the off track signal changes from the second state to the first state. A track counter detects one of the first changing point and the second changing point of the track jump signal corresponding to one of a target track to where the pickup jumps and a track located a predetermined number of tracks before the target tracks. A control circuit is connected to the measuring circuit and the track counter for generating a drive signal when one of the first changing point and the second changing point is detected by the track counter. The control circuit controls deceleration of the pickup by adjusting the drive signal in accordance with the time measured by the measuring circuit.
Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.

Method and apparatus for controlling track jump


The invention relates to grout powder for admixture with water to produce grout. The grout powder comprises cement powder and is characterized in that the grout powder has been mixed with a fluorochemical compound. The present invention further relates to a method of preparing grout powder for admixture with water to produce grout, comprising mixing grout powder comprising cement powder with a fluorochemical compound. Still further, the invention relates to an alternative method for making the grout powder, which method comprises treating at least one of the components of the grout powder with a fluorochemical compound.

As is well known, spaces between tiles that are fixed to a wall or floor are typically filled with grout, which is produced by mixing grout powder with water. Because of the presence of cement powder, the grout upon drying will cure and effectively adhere and fill the spaces between the tiles. For improving the stain repellency, the tiles may have been surface treated with a fluorochemical composition which generally also provides water and oil repellency to the tile surface. Such is for example of particular interest for bathroom tiles. For example, it has been disclosed to use a fluorochemical silane to treat for example the surfaces of tiles to render these oil- and water repellent as illustrated for example by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,608,003; 5,442,011; 5,550,184; and 5,274,159.
However, while the tile surface is thereby rendered repellent to water, oil and dirt, the grout spaces between them, when left untreated, still pick up dirt thereby somewhat reducing the benefits of having treated tiles. Accordingly, it has already been proposed to also treat the surface of the grout between the tiles with a fluorochemical compound in order to effect repellency properties also to the grout. For example, GB Pat. No. 2,218,097 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,775, disclose treatment of tiles as well as cured cement materials on the surface of a grout with a fluorochemical silane compound.
Although these treatments of the grout surface are effective, the durability of the treatment leaves a desire for further improvement. Also, applying the treatment to a grout filling a space between tiles would be highly labor intensive and therefore costly.
It would thus be desirable to provide oil- and/or water repellency as well as stain repellency to grout in a cost effective way and preferably with improved durability.

Grout powder containing a fluorochemical compound


Metal ions and/or complexes of metal ions are removed from a solution by formation of an insoluble chelated complex of the metal ions and a polymeric precipitating agent. A two-step process of mixing the influent with the precipitating agent is used to induce rapid precipitation and obtain large, self-agglomerated precipitate without addition of flocculating agent and/or pH adjustment. In addition, parallel loops are employed to simultaneously discharge treated metal-free solution and effectively collect/remove the precipitate-containing sludge without interfering with each other. The metal capturing capacity of the polymeric precipitant is maximized by forcing the influent solution through layers of the collected precipitate and by recycling unsaturated metal-precipitant complexes in the processing loop.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the removal of metal ions and/or their complexes from a solution.
2. Description of the Related Art
Metal ions and/or their complexes, hereinafter collectively referred to as "metal ions", can be removed from waste water streams by using precipitating agents which form insoluble compounds. See, for example, published Japanese Patent Application Nos. 07-148492 and 07-248582, European Patent Application Publication No. 0670289 A1, and "Silver Recovery from Photographic Waste Processing Solutions By Using the Trisodium Salt of 2,4,6-Trimercapto-5-Triazine," by Spears et al., presented at the Seventh International Symposium on Photofinishing Technology in San Francisco, Calif., Feb. 3-5, 1992, the disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference.
Conventional precipitation technology uses sequential processing. Referring to FIGS. 1a and 1b, for example, it is shown in block diagram and schematic format, respectively, a conventional processing system 10 for removing metal ions from waste water. System 10 includes an influent line 12 for providing waste water to a mixing unit 14 for mixing and reacting the precipitating agent with the metal ions contained in the waste water and also for conducting sedimentation of the precipitate.
Treated solution flows through line 16 by the pumping action of pump 32 to a sludge collection unit 18, which may include a coarse filter for removing relatively large particles and a fine filter for removing relatively small particles from the solution; the coarse and fine filters are sequentially arranged. Filtrate from sludge collection unit 18 flows through line 20 to discharge unit 22, and a portion of the filtrate may optionally be returned through recycle line 24 to the mixing unit 14 to further react or coat dead-end type filters to increase system efficiency.
This system is shown in more detail in FIG. 1b. In particular, mixing unit 14 typically comprises a tank 26 including a stirrer 28. Treated solution flows out from the system through discharge line 40. Optional recycle lines 42 and 35 may be used to coat the filtration media 34 and 38 respectively in the initial stages.
The above-described sequential system, however, is disadvantageous. The most significant disadvantage is the sludge run-through problem. In order to achieve reasonable processing capacity, the system throughput must be maintained at a certain level. However, at this level, the flux of the solution passing through the filter tends to be so large that it may breakdown the precipitate, causing sludge to run through the filters to the discharge. This is especially true for soft polymeric precipitates.
While it may be possible to solve this problem by increasing the effective area of the filtration medium to reduce the actual flux while keeping the same level of total throughput, it will be appreciated that this solution is neither desired from an economic standpoint, nor from the standpoint of maintaining a consistently reliable and very low silver discharge level.
Additionally, the above-described sequential technique for removing metal ions from a waste water stream is typically conducted as a batch process which involves both time consuming charging and discharging steps plus a sedimentation step. Still further, this system is disadvantageous economically when scaling up, since the capacity and size of the equipment will be proportional to the treatment capacity desired.

Method for removing metal ions and/or complexes containing metal ions from a solution


A syringe system includes a syringe and a filtration device connected to the syringe for sterilizing and introducing fluid into the syringe. The syringe includes a syringe barrel having a proximal end defining a barrel opening, a distal end defining a delivery opening, a bore extending between the proximal end and the distal end, and a stopper disposed in the bore of the syringe barrel. The filtration device has an inlet and an outlet coupled in fluid communication with the delivery opening at the distal end of the syringe barrel. The filtration device includes a stem and a filter membrane disposed in line with the stem. The filter membrane optionally has a plurality of pores each with a nominal pore size in a range of approximately 0.1 μm to approximately 0.5 μm such that a pharmaceutical fluid can be introduced as a sterilized pharmaceutical fluid into the bore of the syringe barrel by passing through the filtration device.

Often, drugs and nutrients are mixed with a diluent before being delivered to a patient. The diluent may be, for example, a dextrose solution, a saline solution or even water. Many such drugs or nutrients are supplied in a concentrated form such as powder, liquid, gel, foam, etc., and packaged in glass or plastic vials.
In order for the concentrate to be administered to a patient, it must first undergo reconstitution. As used herein, the term reconstitution includes not only liquidization of non-liquid concentrates but also dilution of liquid concentrates.
One way of reconstituting a concentrate is first to inject a diluent into the vial holding the concentrate. This may typically be performed by a pre-filled syringe having a liquid diluent contained in the syringe barrel. After the rubber stopper of the vial is pierced by the syringe needle, the liquid is injected into the vial. The vial is shaken to reconstitute and dilute the concentrate with the liquid. The liquid is then withdrawn back into the syringe. These steps may be repeated several times to ensure complete reconstitution of the concentrate. After the final mixing, the syringe is withdrawn and the reconstituted medication may then be injected into an administration set for bolus intravenous administration to a patient or into the medication port of a parenteral solution container (e.g., an IV bag) containing a medical solution or diluent such as dextrose or saline solution. The drug, now further diluted with the medical solution in the parenteral solution container, is delivered through an administration set for intravenous administration to the patient. Other methods of administration to the patient may also include attaching a needle to the syringe and proceeding with a venous, intramuscular or subcutaneous injection.
In other embodiments, the concentrate may already be present in the syringe in a lyophilized or other concentrated form. Diluent is then added to the syringe and the reconstitution may take place within the syringe barrel. The syringe assembly may be construted where it contains a single chamber or there may be dual chambers where the diluent is added to one of the chambers with the concentrate contained in the other and the assembly provides for mixing of the components of the chamber.
If the syringe is pre-filled with the container, the sterility is provided by steam or heat sterilizing the syringe after filling with the diluent. The high temperatures present in the sterilization cycle will limit the materials that may be used for the barrel and stopper and may impact the frictional forces between the barrel and stopper. The pre-filled syringe may also cause the syringe to have a shelf life that must be monitored to insure the syringe is used before the expiration of the shelf life. If diluent is added to the syringe, the addition will likely be made by a health care provider using aseptic technique such as connecting the syringe to a container of diluent under a hood. Failure to practice such technique may cause the diluent to contain contaminants and impact sterility.

Medical syringe system with filtered filling port


In a voice coding section 1, a digital voice signal coded in a voice coder 10, a linear predictive coefficient used as a filter coefficient in a short-term predictive filter 102, a pitch period and a pitch predictive coefficient used, respectively, as a tap coefficient and a filter coefficient in a long-term predictive filter 103, and voice/no-voice status information of an input voice, are multiplexed in a multiplexer 12. Only when the voice/no-voice status information indicate the voice state is a cell assembled and transmitted. In a voice decoding section 2, the received cell is disassembled to provide multiplexed coded data. The voice signal is decoded by a short-term synthesis filter and a long term synthesis filter. The short term synthesis filter uses a linear predictive coefficient as a filter coefficient that is decoded from multiplexed coded data. The long-term synthesis filter uses a pitch period and a pitch predictive coefficient, respectively, as a tap coefficient and a filter coefficient, where the pitch period and pitch predictive coefficient are decoded from the multiplexed coded data. When the cell has been received, the voice signal is output. When the cell has not been received, a noise signal from a noise generator is output. Thus, a voice coding/decoding system can be provided wherein, even upon a change from a silence period to a speech period, the internal state is smoothly transited avoiding the deterioration in voice quality.

In recent years, a code excited linear prediction (CELP) system as a voice analysis/synthesis method and a conjugate-structure algebraic-code-excited linear prediction system (CS-ACELP) are being used in voice coding processing performed in a voice coder.
In a CS-ACELP system, in accordance with ITU-T Recommendation G.729, an excitation pulse is successively passed through a short-term synthesis filter and a long-term synthesis filter, and the position and the polarity of the pulse, which can provide a decoded voice closest to the input signal, are coded and transmitted.
In the silence suppression, a voice coding apparatus is provided where the coding system is combined with a voice detector to transmit only coded data during the speech period. The non-coincidence of the internal state between the voice coding side and the voice decoding side is created in a portion where the no-voice state is changed to the voice state. This poses a problem in that the voice quality is deteriorated at the beginning of the speech period. Voice coding/decoding systems have been proposed in order to solve this problem.
For example, a first conventional voice coding/decoding system interrupts the operation of the coder and the decoder during a silent period during speech, for example. The operation of the coder and the decoder is resumed simultaneously with the initiation of a speech period. This permits the internal state on the voice coding side to be coincident with the internal state on the voice decoding side. As a result, the deterioration of the quality of the voice is reduced. (See, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 064235/1991 and 272850/1990).
A second conventional coding/decoding system is such that the same object as described above is attained by refuging a delay element of a coding filter and a decoding filter during the silent period in a memory and loading the delay element from the memory at the beginning of the speech. (See, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 0210845/1991).
A third conventional coding/decoding system resets or initializes a coder and a decoder each to a specified value in the silent period to provide coincidence in an internal state at the beginning of the speech, thereby preventing deterioration of the voice (see, for example, 292121/1993, 167635/1992, and 244935/1990).
The above described conventional voice coding/decoding systems have the following problems. According to the first described conventional coding/decoding system, the operation of the coder and the decoder is interrupted during the silence period of speech rendering the internal state on the voice coding side and the internal state on the voice decoding side coincident with each other. According to the second conventional coding/decoding system, the internal state at the time of switching from a speech period to a silence period is saved in a memory to render the internal state on the voice coding side and the internal state on the voice decoding side coincident with each other. In the first and second voice coding/decoding systems, input of the voice initiates the voice state initiating the original coding process and the decoding process. In this case the internal state is not smoothly transited, since there is no correlation between, the internal state in the coding and the decoding obtained from the input voice, and the held internal state, resulting in deteriorated voice quality.
In particular, when the first and second voice coding/decoding systems are applied to a coding system, comprising a combination of a short-term predictive filter and a long-term predictive filter (corresponding to a short-term synthesis filter and a long-term synthesis filter on the decoding side), adopted in recent highly efficient voice coding systems, (such as CS-ACELP), no significant deterioration in voice quality due to a relatively short impulse response in the internal state of the short-term predictive filter is apparent.
However, the impulse response of the long-term predictive filter is considerably longer such that a significant amount of time is taken during a period when the speech period is initiated. In this case, the held internal state is used as an initial value. In addition, the impulse response concludes with the internal state of the original coding/decoding processing. This poses a problem of a significant deterioration in voice quality until the impulse response is concluded.
The long-term predictive filter utilizes the periodicity of a stationary portion in a vowel during speech. In this case, a satisfactory effect can be expected in the stationary portion associated with a vowel. On the other hand, the effect of a prediction in the no-voice/silence portion is unknown. As a result the predictive gain approaches 0 (zero).
Therefore, when the conventional first or second method is applied to the long-term predictive filter, having the above characteristics, the initial value of the long-term predictive filter in the speech initiation portion has an unfavorable value corresponding to the stationary portion associated with a vowel, or the like.
According to the third conventional coding/decoding system, during the silence period, the coder and the decoder are reset or initialized to a specified value to achieve coincidence in the internal state at the beginning of speech.
As described above, however, input of the voice initiates the voice state and the original coding and decoding process. In addition, there is no correlation between the internal state in the coding and decoding obtained from the input voice and the internal state of the initial value. Furthermore, the internal state is not smoothly transited resulting in a deteriorated voice quality.
As described above, in the coding system, comprising a combination of a short-term predictive filter and a long-term predictive filter (corresponding to a short-term synthesis filter and a long-term synthesis filter on the decoding side), adopted in a highly efficient voice coding system, such as CS-ACELP, effective coding is executed at the beginning of speech depending upon the predictive gain of the short-term predictive filter.
On the other hand, the long-term predictive filter cannot be operated to develop the predictive filter effective unless the long-term predictive filter is initiated from a predictive gain of 0 (zero) and the input signal is gradually transited to a stationary voice signal.
For this reason, application of the third coding/decoding system to a coding system comprising a short-term predictive filter and a long-term predictive filter is useful in the long-term predictive filter in the speech initiation portion where the effect cannot be originally expected. According to the third coding/decoding system, however, the expected effect of the short-term predictive filter cannot be attained. As a result, voice quality is deteriorated.
Therefore, even though the voice coding/decoding systems are operated effectively in a silence suppression, voice coding/decoding system comprising a coding system relying upon short-term prediction alone, such as ADPCM (adaptive differential PCM) or APC (adaptive predictive coding), and a voice activity detector, combined with a recent coding system comprising a short-term prediction and long-term prediction to enhance the coding efficiency, unfavorably results in deteriorated voice quality in the speech initiation portion.

Voice coding/decoding system including short and long term predictive filters for outputting a predetermined signal as a voice signal in a silence period


An electronic device comprises: an electronic component; a resin molded body in which the electronic component is embedded and fixed; and a bendable bend portion continuous with the resin molded body. For example, the bend portion is molded integrally with the resin molded body. Thus, electronic device can be reduced in size and thickness.

In recent years, due to increasing demand for microminiaturization of a portable device and the like, the device has only a limited area for fixing a rigid substrate on which electronic components are mounted. Accordingly, a technique is known in which a bendable flexible substrate is used to connect a plurality of rigid substrates that are not in the same plane.
FIG. 11 shows an example electronic device that combines rigid substrates and a flexible substrate. The electronic device shown in FIG. 11 includes rigid substrates 70, 75 and a flexible substrate 80.
Rigid substrate 70 has an electronic component 71 mounted thereon, the electronic component 71 being connected to interconnections 72a, 72b formed on rigid substrate 70. Rigid substrate 75 has electronic components 76a, 76b mounted thereon, the electronic components 76a, 76b being connected to interconnections 77a to 77c formed on rigid substrate 75. A conductive layer 81, which is formed on flexible substrate 80, is connected to interconnection 72b of substrate 70 via a conductive adhesive layer 90a and is also connected to interconnection 77a of substrate 75 via a conductive adhesive layer 90b. Thus, substrates 70, 75 are electrically connected to each other via bendable flexible substrate 80.
In the electronic device shown in FIG. 11, however, each of rigid substrates 70, 75 requires a terminal area for connection to flexible substrate 80, resulting in enlarged substrate area. Further, the increase in man-hour for assembly increases the manufacturing cost.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 6-177490 (PTL 1) discloses a printed wiring board produced by integrating a flexible wiring board and rigid wiring boards together by sandwiching the flexible wiring board between the rigid wiring boards from above and below with adhesive layers being interposed. In the technique described in Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 6-177490, the flexible wiring board and the rigid wiring boards can be connected via interlayer circuit interconnections, such as through holes. This eliminates the need for a terminal area for connection to the flexible substrate, thus preventing enlarged substrate area.

Electronic device and method for manufacturing the same


A one-way clutch assembly (15) including a driven member (37) defining a plurality of driven pockets (41), with a radially moveable pawl (59) disposed in each pocket. The pockets (41) are interconnected by circumferentially-extending grooves (47), and disposed in each groove (47) is a spring member (53). Each spring member (53) includes a retaining portion (55) engaging a radially outer surface (67) of one pawl (59a), to retain the pawl in its pocket (41), and a spring portion (57) engaging a radially inner surface (69) of another pawl (59b), biasing part of the pawl toward the drive position (FIG. 6). The arrangement of the invention makes it practical to provide a one-way clutch having as few parts as possible, and being adapted for "drop-in" assembly of the clutch within a device such as a torque converter stator.

The present invention relates to one-way clutches, and more particularly, to such clutches in which one of the members is able to overrun the other member.
More specifically, the present invention relates to such a one-way clutch (OWC) of the "radial" type, in which a drive torque or force is transmitted from one member to the other by means of a plurality of pawls (sometimes also referred to as "struts"). In a radial type OWC, one end of each of the pawls is biased to move radially outward (or radially inward) and engage the other member of the OWC assembly.
One common application for a radial type OWC is as the overrunning clutch in the stator assembly of a torque converter for a vehicle automatic transmission. This environment for an OWC is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,441,315, incorporated herein by reference. Typically, the manufacturer of the OWC assembly is a supplier to the manufacturer of the stator assembly and torque converter, such that the OWC is one element of the stator assembly. Therefore, those skilled in the art have recognized the desirability of an OWC which comprises a "drop-in" element, i.e., where the OWC can literally be dropped into place within the stator hub.
One obstacle to providing such a drop-in OWC of the radial type has been the fact that in many radial type OWC designs, when the OWC is held with its axis of rotation oriented vertically, various parts such as pawls or springs are susceptible to falling out of the assembly.
In an effort to maintain the radial type OWC in its assembled condition, those skilled in the art have utilized various "cage" arrangements. In a typical radial type OWC including a cage, the pawls and springs are assembled within a cage which surrounds the inner race, in much the manner of a bearing cage. One example of such a cage arrangement is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,331.
Although the use of a cage to maintain the pawls and springs in their assembled position may be functionally acceptable, it adds substantially to the number of parts in the OWC assembly, and adds to the time of assembly, thus substantially increasing the total cost of the OWC.

One-way clutch and torque converter stator


A display device includes a timing controller, a data driver and a gate driver. The timing controller receives a first clock and an image data signal and outputs a second clock having a lower frequency than that of the first clock and the image data signal. The data driver receives the image data signal in synchronization with the second clock and converts the image data signal into a pixel voltage in response to a data control signal. The gate driver outputs a gate voltage in response to a gate control signal generated based on the second clock.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a display device and a display apparatus having the same, and more particularly, to a driving device capable of improving a charge rate and reducing an electromagnetic interference.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display includes a liquid crystal display panel having two display substrates and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the two substrates. The liquid crystal display panel applies an electric field to the liquid crystal layer and adjusts intensity of the electric field to control transmittance of light passing through the liquid crystal layer, thereby displaying a desired image thereon.
The liquid crystal display panel is provided with a plurality of gate lines, a plurality of data lines and a plurality of pixels connected to the gate and data lines. The gate lines sequentially receive a gate voltage, and the data lines receive a pixel voltage. The pixels are turned on in a row in response to the gate voltage to apply the pixel voltage to the liquid crystal layer. When a common voltage is zero, a voltage corresponding to the pixel voltage is charged in the liquid crystal layer, to thereby tilt liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer and control the light transmittance of the liquid crystal layer.
However, according to the scaled-up size of the liquid crystal display panel, the number of pixels for the liquid crystal display panel increases. Further, when a resolution of the liquid crystal display increases, the number of pixels per square inch also increases.
Since the number of pixels increases, a time necessary to turn on the pixels in the same row is reduced, resulting in reduction of a charging time for the liquid crystal layer corresponding to the pixels arrayed in the same row.
As a result, the charge rate of the liquid crystal layer decreases, thereby causing deterioration in brightness and brightness uniformity.

Driving device and display apparatus having the same


This invention relates to an apparatus and method for separating immiscible liquids having different specific gravities. Although the disclosure illustrates the invention by showing its application to the separation of oil and water, the invention may be used to separate many other immiscible liquids having different specific gravities. A column of a liquid is supported by vacuum in a vertical column partially submerged in a reservoir containing a first liquid. A mixture of first and second liquids is continuously injected into a separation vessel disposed within the column. Due to their difference in specific gravities, the lighter second fluid will ascend to occupy the upper region of the column while the heavier first fluid will occupy the lower region until equilibrium is achieved. As the mixture continues to enter the system, equilibrium is maintained; the liquids of the upper and lower phases are displaced by equal volumes of incoming liquids. An evacuation tube with a valve disposed therein is connected at the top of the vertical column for the removal of the lighter liquid at reduced pressure by means of a cell-siphon. The heavier liquid is displaced and discharged through the submerged end of the vertical column. Other features are disclosed which increase the rate and efficiency of the separation.

It is generally recognized that there is a need to separate immiscible liquids. This need is particularly acute with respect to various environmental accidents. Hazardous liquids frequently become mixed with water normally found in the environment. Oil spills are, unfortunately, an increasingly common occurrence which require the separation of the oil so that it may be eliminated as a hazard to the environment.
A wide variety of methods and apparatus have heretofore been proposed to provide an efficient means for removing oil or other liquid contaminants from water, but have been met with little success. Recent methods of dealing with the problem of oil pollution include chemical dispersant, as well as various other methods for separating the oil from the water. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,773 of Macaluso issued Aug. 22, 1978, teaches an oil salvaging apparatus comprising a chamber into the base of which contaminated seawater is charged for separation of the liquids of differing densities. The Macaluso reference like many others, however, suffers from significant shortcomings inherently associated with its design, namely, it cannot guarantee the purity of both fluids to be separated because of its inability to regulate injection and evacuation rates.
In Macaluso, water is evacuated from the chamber by means of a pump. The escape velocity of water, therefore, will exceed the buoyancy force of the oil in mixture with the water, preventing the oil's assent to the top of the chamber and instead, being discharged along with the water. Similarly, because the Macaluso reference provides no means for effectively regulating the contaminated water's injection rate, and because the chamber will only support a predetermined weight of water under vacuum, excessive injection rates will result in the discharge of unseparated oil and water either through the chamber's top oil evacuation conduit or out of its lower submerged end.
In general, the prior art methods of separating immiscible liquids fail to take advantage of related fundamental fluid dynamics and separation principles and, therefore, are unable to achieve superior separation rates which are both measurable and predictable. Furthermore, and as exemplified above, prior art methods of separation are often incapable of assuring qualitatively acceptable end-products.
Other methods involve the use of skimmers, surface guides and the like to channel the surface oil to a location where it can be removed by pumps. However, such water is usually removed with the oil.
In many cases, the oil layer is very thin, making it particularly difficult to remove without also removing water. In order to remove small amounts of oil, large amounts of water must also be removed.
The subject invention completely obviates all of the shortcomings associated with the prior art by providing an apparatus and method for continuously separating oil from water at superior rates and purities.

Apparatus and method for separation of immiscible fluids


A device for laying a flexible material web 1 on a point of deposit 4 and which has at least one pair of deposit rollers 2, 3 that rotate in opposite directions. The deposit rollers 2, 3 form part of a deposit carriage 5 which is reciprocated in a reversible direction over at least the deposit length L of the material web 1. The device is more cost-effective in that the deposit carriage 5 has a smaller width than the point of deposit 4 and is reciprocated in a reversible direction over at least the deposit width B of the point of deposit 4.

The present invention relates to a device for laying a flexible material web and having at least one pair of deposit rollers rotating in opposite directions, where the material web can be supplied to at least one point of deposit by means of the deposit rollers, where the deposit rollers are a part of the deposit carriage which can be traversed over the deposit length of the material web and with a reversible direction, where the deposit carriage has a smaller width than the point of deposit and can be traversed over the deposit width of the point of deposit and with a reversible direction.
A device of the type under discussion follows from U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,551. There a device for stacking strip-like, flexible material is described. The carriage there moves forward and back along a third frame over the deposit length and transversely, where a second frame and the third frame are moved together so that the next layer is deposited next to the previously formed layer. If the entire depositing over the length and width has taken place, the platform turns by 90° and the depositing process is done anew but on a foundation which consists of layers offset by 90°. The flexible material web arrives free and unguided at the deposit rollers. Due to this, twisting of the material web between the supply and deposit rollers can occur so that the upper side of the material web in the stack could incorrectly point downwards.
From DE 3422352 A1 a device is known for stacking an approximately flat cable to form an approximately square block. There the cable is introduced, from a source at a distance, into a drawing-in device which is mounted on a transverse carriage. The transverse carriage is mounted in the manner of a cat on a longitudinal carriage. It is significant that no transport belts are provided. The supply of the material web up to the drawing-in device is of no interest.
Furthermore, JP 60102367 discloses a device with a deposit carriage which can be traversed in the longitudinal and transverse direction, where the material web arrives from a conveyor belt freely suspended at a funnel and from there between two rollers to an exit opening. Also in the case of this device no transport belts are provided and thus no secured supply of the material web.
According to DE 101 25 452 C2 a device is known, where a material web is also guided via deposit rollers as a component of the deposit carriage to a point of deposit. There the secured transport of the material web on a transport belt has in fact already been disclosed but the deposit carriage has a width which corresponds to the width of the point of deposit. The point of deposit can be formed as a pallet, a lifting table, a cardboard container, or the like. For each deposit carriage a point of deposit is provided onto which depositing is possible in the longitudinal direction and in the transverse direction. Depositing in the longitudinal direction is realized by the traversability of the deposit carriage in the longitudinal direction. Depositing in the transverse direction is realized by the fact that the material web, if it is narrower than the width of the deposit rollers, is moved over them in the transverse direction. For this, a material web supply device is equipped to be correspondingly traversable in the transverse direction. The device known from DE 101 25 452 C2, which in fact discloses a secured material web supply by means of a transport belt, requires, due to the width of the deposit carriage corresponding to the deposit width, a very extensive and massive form of construction. Such a form of construction entails larger masses having to be accelerated, therefore powerful drives are used, which from the viewpoint of construction and in regard to the power required is naturally associated with high costs. Furthermore, large, heavy forms of construction are always at the expense of the production rate.
An additional device for laying a flexible material web follows DE 298 23 580 U1. Also in the case of this device, a pair of deposit rollers rotating in opposite directions is provided, via which the material web is supplied to a point of deposit. The deposit rollers from DE 298 23 580 U1 are however not a part of a deposit carriage and have the same width as the point of deposit and are furthermore also not traversable in the transverse direction.
From DE 44 38 770 A1 the next device is known in which the accommodation of yarn take-up rolls or the assembly of winding machines with yarn take-up rolls is involved. This device has a storage device to accommodate these rolls. It is therefore a storage device in which rolls are stored. DE 196 44 383 C1 is concerned with a pivotable deposit arm, not with deposit rollers.
Starting from the state of the art known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,551, the objective of the invention is to provide a device which is of the type under discussion and makes possible a higher production rate with a secure transport of the material web to the deposit carriage.

Device for laying a flexible material web


An enclosure assembly allows a hinge bracket to realize establishment of the opened attitude or the closed attitude of a second enclosure relative to a first enclosure. The second enclosure rotates relative to the hinge bracket around the second rotation axis. The second enclosure in this manner changes its attitude relative to the first enclosure. The hinge bracket stays where it is. The hinge bracket does not rotate. The position of the light sources is thus kept unchanged. The position of the light is maintained regardless of a change in the attitude of the second enclosure around the second rotation axis. The enclosure for an electronic apparatus is thus allowed to enjoy an enhanced appearance. This leads to an enhanced appearance of the electronic apparatus.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus such as a cellular or mobile phone terminal. In particular, the present invention relates to an electronic apparatus including a hinge bracket coupled to a first enclosure for relative rotation around a first rotation axis parallel to the front surface of the first enclosure, the hinge bracket supporting a second enclosure for relative rotation around a second rotation axis extending within an imaginary plane perpendicular to the first rotation axis.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A cellular or mobile phone terminal of the clamshell type allows superposition of a display enclosure on the front surface of a main body enclosure. When the display enclosure rotates around a first rotation axis, the mobile phone terminal establishes the opened attitude. The screen of a display panel and keypads such as numeric keypads are exposed. The display enclosure is rotatable around a second rotation axis on a hinge bracket. The screen of the display panel can be changed over from a portrait state to a landscape state.
One is expected to consider impressive illumination for the mobile phone terminal. Light blinks in response to receipt of a call, in synchronization with music, and the like, for example. When a light source is incorporated in the display enclosure of the mobile phone terminal, the position of the emitted light moves when the display enclosure rotates. Impressive illumination thus cannot be realized as expected.

Electronic apparatus and enclosure assembly therefor


A prize game apparatus that has plural pairs of pickup arms and can adjust the distance between the pairs of pickup arms is provided.

The present invention relates to a prize game apparatus for picking up or releasing a prize, using plural pairs of pickup arms.
Many prize game apparatuses such as crane game machines designed for a player to win a prize contained in a housing are placed not only in amusement parks, but also at general shops and shopping malls because it is fun to operate those kinds of game apparatuses, and fascinating targets such as popular characters are used as prizes, giving a player incentive to play the game.
Various kinds of goods of different shapes, sizes, and materials are used as prizes in a prize game apparatus. Since a catcher (or a prize pickup device) directly comes in contact with a prize in the prize game apparatus, the shape and other characteristics of the prize greatly affect the chances of obtaining the prize. However, conventional prize game apparatuses are configured to allow only one pattern for the opening/closing action of the pickup arms provided on the catcher, and the probability of winning a prize with the catcher is determined largely depending on the shape of the pickup arms. Accordingly, this type of prize game apparatus has turned out to be monotonous as a game machine.
Therefore, JP-B-7-102253, for example, introduces a prize game apparatus having a catcher equipped with: plural pairs of pickup arms (or claws); a pickup arm drive unit for closing the pairs of pickup arms, each pair independently; a selector for randomly selecting the pair of pickup arms to be closed by the prize pickup drive unit; and a control unit for controlling the pickup arm drive unit to close only the selected pair of pickup arms. When the catcher in this prize game apparatus is lowered, the pair of pickup arms selected by the selector is closed to pick up a prize on a platform. Therefore, the number of prizes picked up can change according to the selection by the selector, thereby further stimulating the player's interest and eagerness for the game.
JP-A-2002-239209, for example, also introduces a prize game apparatus including: a grasping-power changing unit capable of automatically changing the power of pickup arms of a catcher that grasps a prize; and a drive control unit for driving the grasping-power changing unit to change the grasping power of the pickup arms. Since this prize game apparatus automatically changes the grasping power of the pickup arms by driving the grasping-power changing unit, variations can be created in a game by, for example, causing the grasping power of the pickup arms that have easily picked up a prize to be weakened during a game, thereby making the pickup arms drop the prize. Consequently, the player's interest in and eagerness for playing the game with the prize game apparatus will be further stimulated.
Moreover, JP-A-2005-34249, for example, introduces a prize game apparatus including: shaking members that are configured to be capable of shaking the pickup arms of a catcher, that apply a shaking force to the pickup arms, and make the pickup arms shake synchronously toward their respective 'open' position of the pickup arms; a moving unit for moving the shaking members; respective springs with one end locked by a pickup arm and their other end locked by a shaking member to apply a force to the pickup arms in their 'closing' direction; and a control member for controlling the moving unit so that the part of each spring locked with the relevant shaking member is kept separated from the part of each spring locked with the relevant pickup arm after moving away from the pickup arm, and the movement distance of the shaking member is able to be adjusted. This prize game apparatus can easily adjust the force to be applied to the pickup arms, thereby stimulating the player's interest and eagerness for the game.
However, in the prize game apparatus described in JP-B-7-102253, the distance between a pair of pickup arms and another adjacent pair of pickup arms is decided in advance. Therefore, the distance cannot be adjusted arbitrarily as desired.
In the prize game apparatuses described in JP-A-2002-239209 and JP-A-2005-34249, a catcher having a pair of pickup arms is provided. A catcher with plural pairs of pickup arms is not considered in these cases.

Abstract: A prize game apparatus includes: a pickup unit capable of moving in specified directions; plural pairs of pickup arms attached to the pickup unit; an opening/closing unit for opening and closing the pairs of pickup arms; and a distance adjustment unit for adjusting the distance between the pairs of pickup arms by moving the pair(s) of pickup arms; wherein a prize is picked up or released by closing or opening the pairs of pickup arms.


In order to provide an image processing system and the like which can reduce calibration time, the image processing system comprises: a device profile storage section which stores ideal-environment-measurement data; a light separating section which derives output light data indicating output light from an image projecting section and ambient light data based on a difference between first and second viewing-environment-measurement data measured through a sensor, a projection-plane-reflectance estimating section which estimates a reflectance of a projection plane, based on the output light data and the ideal environment-measurement data; a sensing data generating section which generates viewing-environment-estimation data based on the reflectance, the ideal-environment-measurement data and the ambient light data; an LUT generating section which updates an LUT based on the viewing-environment-estimation data; and a correcting section which corrects image information based on the updated LUT.

The present invention relates to an image processing system, a projector, a program, an information storage medium, and an image processing method which can correct image information in consideration of the influence of ambient light and projection plane.
When an image is subjected to the effect of ambient light (illuminating light or sunlight, or the like) or projection plane, the color and/or brightness thereof may be varied. Thus, the image appearance may be different from the intention of a person who has produced it.
In order to regulate such an image appearance, a projector or the like has been designed to display an image by displaying each of single-colored (e.g., black-, red-, blue- and white-colored) calibration images for a predetermined gray scale (e.g., 16-level gray scale), measuring each of the displayed calibration images, correcting a lookup table or the like based on the measured data and using the corrected lookup table to correct the image information (e.g., R-, G- and B-signals) used to display the image.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-37091 discloses a system which measures the color of an illuminating light and R-, G- and B-colors while stepwise changing the light-emitting level, as shown in FIG. 3 thereof.
Thus, the conventional art required much time to perform the calibration since a number of calibration images had to be displayed and measured.
As a result, much time was required to initiate the calibration, for example. when a presenter is to make a presentation before the customer to which he went. The time to be primarily applied to the presentation may be reduced.
Particularly, the projector or the like must correct an image projected onto a projection plane such as a screen or the like in consideration of not only the ambient light, but also the influence of the projection plane.

Image processing system, projector, image processing method, and information storage medium


The present invention relates to a field of genetically modified fungal cells and converting galacturonic acid to meso-galactaric acid, more precisely to a method of producing meso-galactaric acid. The invention further relates to recombinant fungal cells having a specific combination of modifications including but not limited to expression of uronate dehydrogenase enzyme, reduced D-galacturonic acid reductase activity, and furthermore reduced meso-galactaric acid catabolism, as well as uses and methods related thereto.

meso-Galactaric acid, also known as mucic acid or galactaric acid, is an aldaric acid having terminal carboxylic acid groups. In nature, it occurs as a metabolite in the bacterial oxidative catabolic pathway for D-galacturonic acid which produces α-ketoglutarate, an intermediate of TCA cycle, as final product (Chang and Feingold, 1970; Dagley and Trudgill, 1965). In the pathway, an uronate dehydrogenase (UDH) oxidizes D-galacturonic acid resulting in formation of galactaro-1,4-lactone (FIG. 1). After the spontaneous or enzymatic hydrolysis of the lactone, meso-galactaric acid is formed. D-Galacturonic acid in turn is the most abundant monomer in pectin. Pectin is a component of plant primary cell wall and especially abundant in non-woody plant biomass such as in fruit peels. Several pectin-rich waste biomass streams, such as residues from citrus fruit and sugar beet processing are available and currently poorly utilized.
As a dicarboxylic acid, meso-galactaric acid is an attractive renewable alternative to be used as a platform chemical in polymers. It can be, for instance, chemically reduced to adipic acid or 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA). Adipic acid has a huge market and it is widely used as a precursor in polymers such as nylon. FDCA is considered as promising renewable replacement for the fossil-based terephthalic acid that is used e.g. in PET plastic.
Production of meso-galactaric acid from D-galacturonic acid via chemical (Rautiainen et al., 2015) or biochemical (Benz et al., 2014; Mojzita et al., 2010) oxidation has been described in the literature. In addition, a combined process was recently reported including enzymatic hydrolysis of pectin, oxidation of resulting D-galacturonic acid to meso-galactaric acid by engineered E. coli and chemical reduction of meso-galactaric acid to adipic acid (H. Zhang et al., 2016). In the biochemical route, the filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei was recently engineered for meso-galactaric acid production by disrupting the homologous D-galacturonic acid catabolism and introducing a heterologous UDH from the bacterial oxidative pathway (Mojzita et al., 2010; WO2010/072902 (A1)). The same strategy was also tested with Aspergillus niger that is, in contrast to T. reesei, efficient in pectin hydrolysis allowing a consolidated bioprocessing of pectin rich biomass (Kuivanen et al., 2014). However, expression of UDH in A. niger did not result in efficient meso-galactaric acid production.
Therefore, a need still exists for micro-organisms, specifically fungal cells, having ability to effectively produce meso-galactaric acid. The present invention improves the biochemical production of meso-galactaric acid in recombinant micro-organisms.

Method for producing meso-galactaric acid by contacting a fungal cell with a biomaterial having galacturonic acid


A self warming mask is disclosed. The self warming mask includes a facing layer configured to cover at least a portion of a person's face. Attached to the facing layer is at least one thermal delivery pad. The thermal delivery pad contains an exothermic composition. Once the mask is removed from a sealed package, air contacts the thermal delivery pad causing the mask to elevate in temperature . The thermal delivery pad can be constructed so that the rise of temperature and the length of time the mask remains heated is carefully controlled. The mask product can be used in combination with a fragrance or vapor delivery device for also releasing a fragrance, a vapor, or both as the mask is heated. In one embodiment, the fragrance or vapor delivery device can be attached and removed to the mask as a user desires.

Almost everyone, at one time or another, is inflicted with the common cold. For decades, researchers have been attempting to find a cure that prevents people from getting a cold or that shortens the life of a cold once various symptoms are present.
Currently, there are various medications and treatments available for treating the symptoms of colds, such as congestion, sinus pressure and pain, headaches, and other upper respiratory conditions. For instance, numerous over the counter medications are available that are intended to provide some relief. These medications, however, rarely provide immediate relief since they typically require time for the body to metabolize the drugs and then usually only provide relief for a limited period of time.
In addition to over the counter medications that are taken orally, various inhalation therapies are available. For instance, pressurized aerosol products are available that are inhaled. Nebulizers and hot water vaporizers are also used. In addition, various decongestants, such as camphor, are sometimes applied to the throat and chest to help relieve cough and cold symptoms.
Vaporizers, inhalers, and nebulizers as described above, however, do not allow the direct application of heat at the source of symptoms, such as over the sinus cavities. Thus, in some applications, heat may separately be applied to the face and chest of the user during use of the above treatments. Heat is also applied to the face and chest of the user. Most products that are intended to deliver heat, however, are usually somewhat complicated and require an external power source in order to heat the product. For instance, several heating products exist that require microwaving, boiling, or some other external energy supply.
In view of the above, a need currently exists for a product that provides quick relief for a person suffering from congestion, sinus pressure and pain that is self warming and does not require an external heating or power source to provide heat. A need also exists for a self warming product that is also capable of providing aromatherapy to the user if desired. Such a product may be used to not only treat a person suffering from a sinus congestion, a headache, or other related upper respiratory condition but may also be used in any other application wherein heat and/or a fragrance is desired such as in a spa application or the like.


A lighting assembly that is modular and highly configurable is disclosed. The assembly consists of one or more light fixtures that are fitted into a mounting rail. A flat, flexible cable lies within the rail and makes contact with the light fixtures through spring-loaded connectors. A power conditioning unit supplies power to the lighting assembly. The lighting assembly may be assembled and maintained with a minimum of tools, and is adaptable to a wide variety of environments and lighting design options.

The present invention is directed to lighting assemblies, and in particular to a lighting assembly system that is highly configurable using standardized, easy-to-assemble and maintain components.
Indirect or "wash" lighting systems are used for a vast array of indoor and outdoor applications today. These applications include the use of such lighting systems on corporate and commercial aircraft, as well as on luxury yachts and watercraft. In these environments, the wash lighting system is a critical component of the entertainment and control systems of the craft. An ideal wash lighting system in such environments would be capable of different settings depending upon the section of the cabin or cabins and the mood or activity of the occupants. For example, studies have shown that people prefer a brighter, bluer light with which to read, while a softer, redder light is preferred at mealtimes. In addition, different light settings might be used at different times of day or in different areas of the cabins of such craft, depending upon the particular application.
Existing wash lighting systems for aircraft and watercraft are based on incandescent or, more commonly, fluorescent light sources. Fluorescent tube lights are bulky themselves, and also require bulky and heavy high-voltage ballasts in order to operate. Such lights also require extensive cabling, connectors, and wiring, particularly if the lights are to be separately controllable to achieve different lighting effects in different areas of the cabin. The bulk of the tubes, ballasts, and cabling required for fluorescent lighting occupies significant space that could otherwise be used for passenger headroom or storage, which is an especially critical issue in aircraft cabin design. In addition, fluorescent lights are difficult and costly to maintain. Fluorescent tubes, while typically exhibiting a useful life longer than that of incandescent bulbs, must still be replaced fairly frequently.
In addition, the high-voltage ballasts required for the installation of fluorescent lights produce electromagnetic interference/radio frequency interference (EMI/RFI) that may interfere with aircraft or watercraft communication or navigation systems. The interference produced by these devices must be carefully considered by aircraft designers, and appropriate electromagnetic shielding must be used to protect sensitive equipment. In the case of communications equipment, complete shielding may not be possible. In any event, the necessary shielding further increases the weight and space requirements, as well as the costs, associated with the use of fluorescent wash lighting systems.
There are significant limitations on the variation in light type and quality that may be achieved using fluorescent lights. A single fluorescent tube can only produce light of one color and of a very limited intensity band. Thus if different lighting effects are to be achieved in the same cabin or area, multiple tubes (and hence multiple ballasts and multiple sets of cabling, connectors, and other components) must be installed for this purpose. As a result, significant use of lighting effects is impractical in most current installations using fluorescent tube lighting designs.
Another limitation of fluorescent tube lighting systems is that a smooth light output across the lighted surface cannot be achieved. To achieve a smooth light output when multiple light sources are used, the light sources must be placed directly next to each other. For example, in order to achieve a smooth line of light with fluorescent tubes, the tubes would need to be placed directly end-to-end with each other. Due to the practical limitations of fluorescent tube design, this is not possible. Placing fluorescent tubes end-to-end would necessarily result in "dark spots" at the gap between the tube ends.
What is desired then is a lighting system that is highly configurable, allows a wide variety of lighting effects, reduces weight and space usage over existing lighting systems, is easy and inexpensive to install and maintain, can produce a smooth lighted surface when multiple light sources are employed, and is modular in form to allow many different installation configurations depending upon the application or desire of the user.


In one embodiment, a method includes establishing a geo-fencing environment for the information handling system. The method further includes monitoring a stream of context information. In addition, the method includes determining whether the geo-fencing environment should be dynamically modified responsive to new context information in the stream. Furthermore, the method includes dynamically modifying the geo-fencing environment responsive to the determining so indicating.

Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to information security and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to systems and methods for dynamically maintaining a geo-fencing environment.
History Of Related Art
Traditional geo-fencing solutions specify an action to be taken when a monitored device enters or exits a geo-fenced area. For example, the geo-fenced area may be defined as a distance radius relative to a fixed point, and the specified action may be to sound an alarm. However, traditional geo-fencing solutions are generally inflexible. For example, such solutions do not generally enable a geo-fence to be modified once it is established.
Moreover, as the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.

System and method for dynamic geo-fencing


A tension control apparatus for a material winder of the type including a material supply package and a material take-up package, an electric motor for driving the take-up package and a tension responsive dancer arm positioned intermediate the material supply package and the material take-up package for angular movement about an axis proportional to tension variation in the moving material. The tension control apparatus includes a polar magnet mounted for axial rotation about the axis of movement of the dancer arm in fixed relation to the movement of the dancer arm about the axis. A magnetic angular position sensor is positioned in magnetic field sensing relation to the polar magnet for sensing the change in the angular position of the polar magnet responsive to tension variation in the moving material and outputting an electrical signal proportional to the angular position of the polar magnet. A signal processing feedback circuit receives and processes the electrical signal and outputs a voltage and current as required to vary the speed of the motor to maintain constant tension.

This invention relates to an apparatus and method for controlling tension in a moving material. Industries that use or produce fibers or materials utilize many forms of winding apparatus to wind the material or product onto spools or rolls. Fibrous materials may be natural or synthetic thread, yarn, rope, wire, or the like. Material products may be woven cloth, webbing, pliable sheet plastic, fibrous substances, sheet metal or the like.
The particular disclosure of this application is directed to a winder of the type used to wind yarn or thread. However, it is understood that the invention has application to winding in general to the extent that the particular winding process is enhanced by control of the tension generated by the winding process.
It is usually desirable to maintain a preset tension on the yarn while it is wound to insure a compact and uniformly wound package. Typically the supply of product to be wound flows from a supply source such as a supply package or the actual production process such as extrusion from a synthetic fiber extruder. The yarn then goes through a slack take-up-and-tensioning mechanism (commonly called "dancer") to maintain the proper "pull" on the product. From there the product moves to a motor-driven take-up spool or roller mechanism, usually referred to as a take-up package.
The quality of the yarn on the take-up package and the uniformity of downstream processes is often directly dependant on the uniformity of the tension on the yarn on the take-up package. For example, areas of too tightly wound yarn on a package can cause light spots after the yarn on the package is dyed. Excess tension also can cause increased wear on guides, bearings and other downstream processing equipment.
The objective therefore is to keep the tension constant. The yarn flows from the supply package at a speed that is determined by the rate at which the take-up package is driven and the diameter of the take-up package. The speed may be fixed or variable. In order to maintain constant tension the speed of the take-up mechanism must be constantly regulated to follow the supply speed so that the yarn exerts a relatively constant force against the tensioning mechanism. The tensioning mechanism is typically a movable roller in the case of sheet materials or a pulley on a movable arm in the case of yarn or thread. The tensioning mechanism is spring-loaded and is typically called a dancer arm. Its position depends upon the force exerted on it by the yarn, so that an increase in tension will pull the dancer arm in one direction and a decrease in tension will allow the dancer arm to move in the opposite direction.
Prior art systems are known wherein a position sensing device is applied to the dancer arm. The position sensing device output is compared to a set value and the resulting signal value is used to control the electric power going to the take-up spindle motor. This comprises a closed-loop feedback system that makes whatever changes in motor power that are necessary in order to maintain a constant position of the tensioning mechanism and consequently constant tension on the product.
This type of take-up machine has been in use for many years. However, various prior embodiments have suffered from numerous disadvantages and problems:
1. The complexity of the position sensing device makes it difficult to install and adjust;
2. Sensor failures occur frequently because the mechanical linkages and constantly switching electrical contacts are prone to wear;
3. System components are expensive to replace;
4. Component replacement is time-consuming; and
5. The accuracy of the system is limited by the condition known as "hunting", where the tensioning mechanism constantly oscillates above and below the desired setpoint causing nonuniformity in the wound product package;
A survey of yarn fiber winding industry suppliers and users points to the definite need for a modern electronic device to address these problems. Thousands of yarn winders are in use currently with old technology tension control devices. Replacement parts are scarce and expensive. Present day quality control standards call for yarn product uniformity that is not achievable using old winding tension control technology.

Apparatus and method for controlling tension in a moving material


Methods and compositions are disclosed utilizing optically pure R(-) ketoprofen for the treatment of pain including, but not limited to, pain associated with toothaches, headaches, sprains, joint pain and post-surgical pain, for example dental pain and ophthalmic pain, while substantially reducing adverse effects including, but not limited to, gastrointestinal, renal and hepatic toxicities, and leukopenia, which are associated with the administration of racemic ketoprofen. Optically pure R(-) ketoprofen is also useful in treating pyrexia while substantially reducing the adverse effects associated with the administration of racemic ketoprofen.

This invention relates to novel compositions of matter containing optically pure R(-) ketoprofen. These compositions possess potent activity in treating pain including but not limited to, pain associated with toothaches, headaches, sprains, joint pain and surgical pain, for example dental pain and ophthalmic pain, while substantially reducing adverse effects associated with the administration of the racemic mixture of ketoprofen including but not limited to gastrointestinal, renal and hepatic toxicities, as well as leukopenia. Additionally, these novel compositions of matter containing optically pure R(-) ketoprofen are useful in treating or preventing pyrexia while substantially reducing the adverse effects associated with the administration of the racemic ketoprofen. Also disclosed are methods for treating the above-described conditions in a human while substantially reducing the adverse effects that are associated with the racemic mixture of ketoprofen, by administering the R(-) isomer of ketoprofen to said human.
The active compound of these compositions and methods is an optical isomer of ketoprofen. Ketoprofen is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,641,127. Chemically, the active compound is the R(-) isomer of 2-(3-benzoylphenyl)propionic acid, hereinafter referred to as R(-) ketoprofen. The term "R(-) isomer of ketoprofen" and particularly the term "R(-) ketoprofen" encompass optically pure and substantially optically pure R(-) ketoprofen.
Ketoprofen, which is the subject of the present invention, is available commercially only as the 1:1 racemic mixture. That is, ketoprofen is available only as a mixture of optical isomers, called enantiomers.

Antipyretic and analgesic methods and compositions containing optically pure R(-) ketoprofen


A new and distinct cultivar of Phlox plant named ‘Cleopatra’, characterized by its tall upright plant habit; dark-green colored leaves; freely flowering habit; long flowering period; red purple-colored semi-double flowers; and good cut flower and garden performance.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Phlox plant, botanically known as Phlox paniculata and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name 'Cleopatra'.
The new Phlox plant originated from a cross-pollination of two unnamed proprietary selections of Phlox paniculata, not patented, in 2010. The new Phlox was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant from within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination grown in a controlled greenhouse environment in Hillegom, The Netherlands in July, 2012.
Asexual reproduction of the new Phlox plant by vegetative cuttings in a controlled greenhouse environment in Hillegom, The Netherlands since February, 2013, has shown that the unique features of this new Phlox plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.