An integrated imaging apparatus for displaying images while capturing images of a scene, including an electronic display having an array of display pixels which are used to display image content; at least one image capture device which captures an image, wherein the image capture device having at least an imaging lens and an image sensor array; and wherein the image capture device looks through an aperture in the display, the aperture having at least one partially transparent pixel; and wherein the partially transparent pixels also provide light to display image content.

Two-way video systems are available that include a display and camera in each of two locations connected by a communication channel that allows communication of video images and audio between two different sites. Originally, such systems relied on setup at each site of a video monitor to display a remote scene and a separate video camera, located on or near the edge of the video monitor, to capture a local scene, along with microphones to capture the audio and speakers to present the audio thereby providing a two-way video and audio telecommunication system between two locations.
Referring to FIG. 1, a typical prior art two-way telecommunication system is shown wherein a first viewer 71 views a first display 73. A first image capture device 75, which can be a digital camera, captures an image of the first viewer 71. If the image is a still digital image, it can be stored in a first still image memory 77 for retrieval. A still image retrieved from first still image memory 77 or video images captured directly from the first image capture device 75 will then be converted from digital signals to analog signals using a first D/A converter 79. A first modulator/demodulator 81 then transmits the analog signals using a first communication channel 83 to a second display 87 where a second viewer 85 can view the captured image(s).
Similarly, second image capture device 89, which can be a digital camera, captures an image of second viewer 85. The captured image data is sent to a second D/A converter 93 to be converted to analog signals but can be first stored in a second still image memory 91 for retrieval. The analog signals of the captured image(s) are sent to a second modulator/demodulator 95 and transmitted through a second communication channel 97 to the first display 73 for viewing by first viewer 71.
Although such systems have been produced and used for teleconferencing and other two-way communications applications, there are some significant practical drawbacks that have limited their effectiveness and widespread acceptance. Expanding the usability and quality of such systems has been the focus of much recent research, with a number of proposed solutions directed to more closely mimicking real-life interaction and thereby creating a form of interactive virtual reality. A number of these improvements have focused on communication bandwidth, user interface control, and the intelligence of the image capture and display components of such a system. Other improvements seek to integrate the capture device and display to improve the virtual reality environment.
There have been a number of solutions proposed for addressing the problem of poor eye contact that is characteristic of many existing solutions. With conventional systems that follow the pattern of FIG. 1, poor eye contact results from locating the video camera on a different optical axis than the video monitor and causes the eyes of an observed participant to appear averted, which is undesirable for a video communication system. Traditional solutions for addressing this problem, employing a display, camera, beam splitter, and screen, are described in a number of patents, including U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,301 entitled "Teleconferencing terminal with camera behind display screen" to Smoot; U.S. Pat. No. 5,639,151 entitled "Pass-through reflective projection display" and U.S. Pat. No. 5,777,665 entitled "Image blocking teleconferencing eye contact terminal" to McNelley, et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,194,955 entitled "Video telephone" to Yoneta et al., for example. Alternately, commonly assigned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0024489 entitled, "Image capture and display device" by Fredlund et al. describes a display device for capturing and displaying images along a common optical axis. The device includes a display panel, having a front side and a back side, capable of being placed in a display state and a transmissive state. An image capture device is provided for capturing an image through the display panel when it is in the transmissive state. An image supply source provides an image to the display panel when it is in the display state. A mechanism is also provided for alternating placing the display panel between the display state and the transmissive state, allowing a first image to be viewed and a second image to be captured of the scene in front of the display at high rates such that alternating between the display state and the transmissive state is substantially imperceptible to a user.
Commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 7,042,486 entitled, "Image capture and display device" to Manico et al. describes an image capture and display device that includes an electronic motion image camera for capturing the image of a subject located in front of the image display device and a digital projector for projecting the captured image. An optical element provides a common optical axis electronic camera and a light valve projection screen electronically switchable between a transparent state and a frosted state located with respect to the common optical axis for allowing the electronic camera to capture the image of the subject through the projection screen when in the transparent state and for displaying the captured image on the projection screen when in the frosted state. A controller, connected to the electronic camera, the digital projector, and the light valve projection screen, alternately places the projection screen in the transparent state allowing the electronic camera to capture an image and in the frosted state allowing the digital projector to display the captured image on the projection screen. This system relies on switching the entire display device rapidly between a transparent and a frosted state. However, with many types of conventional imaging components, this can induce image flicker and result in reduced display brightness. Furthermore, the single camera used cannot adjust capture conditions such as field of view or zoom in response to changes in scene.
Although such solutions using partially silvered mirrors and beam splitters have been implemented, their utility is constrained for a number of reasons. Solutions without a common optical axis provide an averted gaze of the participant that detracts from the conversational experience. Partially silvered mirrors and beam splitters are bulky particularly in the depth direction. Alternately transparent or semi-transparent projection display screens can be difficult to construct and with rapid alternation between states, ambient contrast can suffer and flicker can be perceptible. As a number of these solutions show, this general approach can result in a relatively bulky apparatus that has a limited field of view and is, therefore, difficult for the viewer to use comfortably.
As an alternative approach, closer integration of image display and sensing components has been proposed. For example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0128332, entitled "Display apparatus with camera and communication apparatus" by Tsuboi describes a portable display with a built-in array of imaging pixels for obtaining an almost full-face image of a person viewing a display. The apparatus described in the Tsuboi '8332 disclosure includes a display element in which display pixels are arranged, along with a number of aperture areas that do not contain display pixels. In its compound imaging arrangement, multiple sensors disposed behind the display panel obtain a plurality of images of the scene through a plurality of clustered lenses that are disposed over aperture areas formed among the display pixels. Each sensor then converts the sensed light photo-electrically to obtain a plurality of tiny images of portions of the scene that are then pieced together to obtain a composite image of the scene. To do this, the display apparatus must include an image-combining section that combines image information from the plurality of images obtained by using the camera.
As another variation of this type of compound imaging approach, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0007222, entitled "Integrated sensing display" by Uy discloses a display that includes display elements integrated with image sensing elements distributed along the display surface. Each sensing pixel may have an associated microlens. As with the solution proposed in the Tsuboi '8332 disclosure, compound imaging would presumably then be used to form an image from the individual pixels of light that are obtained. As a result, similar to the device in the Tsuboi '8332 disclosure, the integrated sensing device described in the Uy '7222 application can both output images (e.g., as a display) and input light from multiple sources that can then be pieced together to form image data, thereby forming a low-resolution camera device.
Similarly, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0140973, entitled "System and method of a video capture monitor concurrently displaying and capturing video images" by Zanaty describes an apparatus and method for compound imaging in a video capture monitor that uses a four-part pixel structure having both emissive and sensing components. Three individual emissive pixel elements display the various Red, Green, and Blue (RGB) color components of an image for display of information on the video-capture monitor. Additionally, as part of the same pixel architecture, a fourth pixel element, a sensing element, captures a portion of an image as part of a photo-electronic array on the video capture monitor. Although this application describes pixel combinations for providing both image capture and display, however, the difficulty in obtaining image quality with this type of a solution is significant and is not addressed in the Zanaty '0973 disclosure. As an example of just one problem with this arrangement, the image capture pixels in the array are not provided with optics capable of responding to changes in the scene such as movement.
The compound imaging type of solution, such as proposed in the examples of the Tsuboi '8332, Uy '7222, and Zanaty '0973 disclosures, is highly constrained for imaging and generally falls short of what is needed for image quality for the captured image. Field of view and overall imaging performance (particularly resolution) are considerably compromised in these approaches. The optical and computational task of piecing together a continuous image from numerous tiny images, each of which may exhibit considerable distortion, is daunting, requiring highly complex and costly control circuitry. In addition, imaging techniques using an array of imaging devices pointed in essentially the same direction tend to produce a series of images that are very similar in content so that it is not possible to significantly improve the overall image quality over that of one of the tiny images. Fabrication challenges, for forming multi-function pixels or intermingling image capture devices with display elements, are also considerable, indicating a likelihood of low yields, reduced resolution, reduced component lifetimes, and high manufacturing costs.
A number of other attempts to provide suitable optics for two-way display and image capture communication have employed pinhole camera components. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,888,562 entitled, "Integral eye-path alignment on telephony and computer video devices using a pinhole image sensing device" to Rambo et al., describes a two-way visual communication device and methods for operating such a device. The device includes a visual display device and one or more pinhole imaging devices positioned within the active display area of the visual display. An image processor can be used to analyze the displayed image and to select the output signal from one of the pinhole imaging devices. The image processor can also modify the displayed image in order to optimize the degree of eye contact as perceived by the far-end party.
In a similar type of pinhole camera imaging arrangement, U.S. Pat. No. 6,454,414 entitled "Device for image output and input" to Ting describes an input/output device including a semi-transparent display and an image capture device. To be semi-transparent, the display device includes a plurality of transparent holes. As yet another example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,034,866 entitled "Image-sensing display device with particular lens and sensor arrangement" to Colmenarez et al. describes an in-plane array of display elements alternating with pin-hole apertures for providing light to a camera.
The pinhole camera type of solution, as exemplified in the Rambo et al. '562, Ting '414, and Colmenarez et al. '866 disclosures suffer from other deficiencies. Images captured through a pinhole reflect low brightness levels and high noise levels due to low light transmission through the pinhole. Undesirable "screen door" imaging anomalies can also occur with these approaches. Display performance and brightness are also degraded due to the pinhole areas producing dark spots on the display. Overall, pinhole camera solutions inherently compromise both display image quality and capture image quality.
As just indicated, a structure of integrated capture pixels intermingled in a display may cause artifacts for either the image capture system or the image display performance. To some extent, the capture pixel structures can be thought of as defective pixels, which might be corrected or compensated for by appropriate methods or structure. As an example, European Patent Application EP1536399, entitled "Method and device for visual masking of defects in matrix displays by using characteristics of the human vision system" to Kimpe, describes a method for reducing the visual impact of defects present in a matrix display using a plurality of display elements and by providing a representation of a human vision system. The Kimpe EP1536399 disclosure describes at least one defect present in the display deriving drive signals for at least some of the plurality of non-defective display elements in accordance with the representation of the human vision system, characterizing the at least one defect, to reduce an expected response of the human vision system to the defect, and then driving at least some of the plurality of non-defective display elements with the derived drive signals. However, a display having an occasional isolated defective pixel is a different entity than a display having a deliberate sub-structure of intermingled capture aperture or pixels. Thus the corrective measures to enhance display image quality can be significantly different.
One difficulty with a number of conventional solutions relates to an inability to compensate for observer motion and changes in the field of view. Among approaches to this problem have been relatively complex systems for generating composite simulated images, such as that described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0196360 entitled "Method and apparatus maintaining eye contact in video delivery systems using view morphing" by Hillis et al. Another approach to this problem is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,771,303 entitled "Video-teleconferencing system with eye-gaze correction" to Zhang et al. that performs image synthesis using head tracking and multiple cameras for each teleconference participant. However, such approaches side-step the imaging problem for integrated display and image capture devices by attempting to substitute synthesized image content for true real-time imaging and thus do not meet the need for providing real-life interaction needed for more effective video-conferencing and communication.
The proliferation of solutions proposed for improved teleconferencing and other two-way video communication shows how complex the problem is and indicates that significant problems remain. Thus, it is apparent that there is a need for a combined image capture and display apparatus that would allow natural two-way communication, provide good viewer eye contact, adapt to different fields of view and changes in scene content, provide good quality capture images with reduced artifacts, and provide a sufficiently bright display without noticeable defects in the displayed image.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Integrated display and capture apparatus


Provided are a liquid-crystal compound and a liquid-crystal composition containing the compound, of which the advantages are that they show nematic hybrid orientation on a rubbed TAC substrate, they are polymerizable in open air and they readily give a polymer having a high degree of polymerization even when exposed to a relatively small total quantity of light. The films formed by photopolymerizing them keep nematic hybrid orientation. The compound is represented by formula (1):

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid-crystal compound having an oxetanyl group as a polymerizable functional group, to a composition containing the compound, to a polymer obtained by polymerizing the compound or the composition, and to their use.
The term "liquid-crystal" as referred to herein is not limited to the meaning that a compound has a liquid-crystal phase. The term may apply also to compounds not having a liquid-crystal phase by themselves but usable as a component of a liquid-crystal composition when mixed with any other liquid-crystal compound.
2. Description of the Related Art
When a polymerizable liquid-crystal compound oriented in a nematic condition is polymerized, then its orientation condition is fixed and it gives an optically-anisotropic film. The optically-anisotropic film is usable as an optically-compensatory film for liquid-crystal display devices. In particular, a shaped article fixed in hybrid-nematic orientation is usable as a viewing angle compensatory element in twisted nematic liquid-crystal display devices. When combined with a polarizer, it is also usable as an elliptically-polarizing plate.
Nematic liquid crystal orientation includes various modes of homogeneous orientation, tilt orientation, homeotropic orientation, hybrid orientation, etc. For example, disclosed is a method of adding an additive such as surfactant to a polymerizable nematic liquid-crystal material, thereby controlling it to hybrid orientation (e.g., see Patent Reference 1). However, a shaped article obtained by curing a composition that contains a non-polymerizable compound such as surfactant added thereto is problematic in that its mechanical strength and heat resistance may lower.
On the other hand, for producing an optically-compensatory film, a polymerizable liquid-crystal composition containing a suitable photopolymerization initiator added thereto is first applied onto a substrate such as rubbed triacetyl cellulose (hereinafter abbreviated to as TAC) films. Next, the liquid-crystal compound in the polymerizable liquid-crystal composition is oriented, and then polymerized through irradiation with electron rays such as UV rays to obtain an optically-anisotropic film in which the liquid crystal orientation is fixed (e.g., see Patent Reference 2).
Proposed are a branched liquid-crystal polyoxetane compound, a liquid-crystal polymer useful in liquid-crystal devices, sensors and non-linear optical devices, and an oxetane monomer for obtaining the polymer. The oxetane monomer has an improved orientation characteristic, a rapid switching speed, and a broad temperature range for liquid-crystal phase (e.g., see Patent Reference 3).
In a process of film production, the step of monomer polymerization through irradiation with UV rays requires the following three conditions from the viewpoint of the equipment and the apparatus for it.
1) Room-temperature polymerization not requiring any specific heating device.
2) Open-air polymerization not requiring purging with inert gas such as nitrogen.
3) Polymerization through irradiation with UV rays at a relatively low total quantity of light.
When a conventional acrylic polymerizable liquid-crystal material is formed into an optically-anisotropic film according to the above-mentioned process, then it brings about the following two problems.
1) In the mode of open-air UV polymerization, oxygen in air retards the polymerization, and a polymer film having good reliability such as heat resistance is difficult to obtain.
2) Since its adhesiveness to the film substrate, TAC is poor, the optically-anisotropic film obtained through polymerization peels from TAC.
A polymerizable liquid-crystal compound and a composition capable of solving these problems are desired.    Patent Reference 1: JP-A 2001-55573    Patent Reference 2: JP-A 2001-154019    Patent Reference 3: JP-T 2003-513107 (U.S. Pat. No. 6,666,989)(The term "JP-T" as used herein means a published Japanese translation of a PCT patent application.)
An object of the invention is to provide a liquid-crystal compound that exhibits nematic hybrid orientation on a rubbed TAC substrate, and a liquid-crystal composition containing it. The film formed by photopolymerizing the compound or the composition keeps the nematic hybrid orientation. Another object of the invention is to provide a liquid-crystal compound having good polymerizability in open air and capable of readily giving a polymer that has a high degree of polymerization even at a relatively small total quantity of light applied thereto, and to provide a liquid-crystal composition that contains the compound. Still another object of the invention is to provide a shaped article having good adhesiveness to a TAC substrate.

Photopolymerizable oxetane derivative and liquid-crystal composition containing it

Abstract: wherein R1 is a hydrogen or an alkyl; R2 is a hydrogen, —OCF3, etc.; A1 is a 1,4-phenylene, etc.; A2 and A3 are independently a 1,4-cyclohexylene, a 1,4-phenylene, etc.; X1 is a single bond, —O—, etc.; X2 and X3 are independently a single bond, —COO—, —C≡C—, —CONH—, etc.; m is an integer of from 0 to 20; and n is 1 or 0.


An inkjet nozzle device configured for venting a gas bubble during droplet ejection. The inkjet nozzle device includes: a firing chamber for containing ink, the firing chamber having a floor and a roof defining a nozzle aperture having a perimeter; and a heater element bonded to the floor of the firing chamber. The device is configured to satisfy the relationships A=swept volume/area of heater element=8 to 14 microns; and B=firing chamber volume/swept volume=2 to 6. The swept volume is defined as the volume of a shape defined by a projection from the perimeter of the nozzle aperture to the floor of the firing chamber, and includes a volume contained within the nozzle aperture.

The Applicant has developed a range of Memjet® inkjet printers as described in, for example, WO2011/143700, WO2011/143699 and WO2009/089567, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. Memjet® printers employ a stationary pagewidth printhead in combination with a feed mechanism which feeds print media past the printhead in a single pass. Memjet® printers therefore provide much higher printing speeds than conventional scanning inkjet printers.
An inkjet printhead is comprised of a plurality (typically thousands) of individual inkjet nozzle devices, each supplied with ink. Each inkjet nozzle device typically comprises a nozzle chamber having a nozzle aperture and an actuator for ejecting ink through the nozzle aperture. The design space for inkjet nozzle devices is vast and a plethora of different nozzle devices have been described in the patent literature, including different types of actuators and different device configurations.
One of the most important criteria in designing an inkjet nozzle device is achieving ink drop trajectories perpendicular to the nozzle plane. If each drop is ejected perpendicularly outward, the tail following the drop will not catch and deposit on the nozzle edge. A source of flooding and drop misdirection is thus avoided. Additionally, with perpendicular trajectories, the primary satellite formed by breakup of the drop tail can be made to land on top of the main drop on the page, hiding that satellite. Significant improvements in print quality can thus be obtained with perpendicular drop trajectories.
Memjet® inkjet printers are thermal devices, comprising heater elements which superheat ink to generate vapor bubbles. The expansion of these bubbles forces ink drops through the nozzle apertures. To ensure perpendicular trajectories for these drops, the bubbles must expand symmetrically. This requires symmetry in the design of the nozzle device.
Perfect fluidic symmetry around the heater element is not possible unless the heater element is suspended directly over the inlet to the nozzle chamber Inkjet nozzle devices having this arrangement are described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,509, and a printhead comprising such a device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,441,865 (see, for example, FIG. 21B), the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. However, devices having a heater element suspended over the chamber inlet require relatively complex fabrication methods and are less robust than devices having bonded heater elements. Furthermore, these devices suffer from a relatively high rate of backflow through the chamber inlet during ink ejection (resulting in inefficiencies), as well as potential printhead face flooding during chamber refilling by virtue of the alignment of the inlet and the nozzle aperture.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,428 describes an inkjet printhead comprising a row of nozzle chambers, each nozzle chamber having a sidewall entrance which is supplied with ink from a common ink supply channel extending parallel with the row of nozzle chambers. The ink supply channel is supplied with ink via a plurality of inlets defined in a floor of the channel. The entrance to each nozzle chamber may comprise a filter structure (e.g. a pillar) for filtering air bubbles or particulates entrained in the ink. The arrangement described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,428 provides redundancy in the supply of ink to the nozzle chambers, because all nozzle chambers in the same row (or pair of rows) are supplied with ink from the common ink supply channel extending parallel therewith. However, the arrangement described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,428 suffers from the disadvantages of relatively slow chamber refill rates and fluidic crosstalk between nearby nozzle chambers.
In addition, the arrangement described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,428 inevitably introduces a degree of asymmetry into droplet ejection compared to the arrangement described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,509. Since the heater element is laterally bounded by the chamber sidewalls except for the chamber entrance, the bubble generated by the heater element is distorted by this asymmetry. In other words, some of the impulse generated by the bubble tends to force some ink back through the chamber entrance as well as through the nozzle aperture. This results in skewed droplet ejection trajectories as well as a reduction in efficiency.
One measure for addressing the asymmetry caused by a sidewall chamber entrance is to lengthen and/or narrow the chamber entrance to increase its fluidic resistance to backflow. However, this measure is not viable in high-speed printers, because it inevitably reduces chamber refill rates due to the increased flow resistance. An alternative measure which compensates for the asymmetry caused by a sidewall chamber entrance is to offset the heater element from the nozzle aperture, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,780,271 (the contents of which is incorporated herein by reference).
It would be desirable to provide an inkjet nozzle device, which has a high degree of symmetry so as to minimize the extent of any compensatory measures required for correcting droplet ejection trajectories. It would further be desirable to provide an inkjet nozzle device having a high chamber refill rate, which is suitable for use in high-speed printing. It would further be desirable to provide an inkjet printhead having minimal fluidic crosstalk between nearby nozzle devices.
Furthermore, the high density of nozzle devices in a typical pagewidth printhead poses a thermal management problem: the ejection energy per drop ejected must be low enough to operate in so-called 'self-cooling' mode—that is, the chip temperature equilibrates to a steady state temperature well below the boiling point of the ink via removal of heat by ejected ink droplets.
Conventional inkjet nozzle devices comprise resistive heater elements coated with a number of relatively thick protective layers. These protective layers are necessary to protect the heater element from the harsh environment inside inkjet nozzle chambers. Typically, heater elements are coated with a passivation layer (e.g. silicon dioxide) to protect the heater element from corrosion and a cavitation layer (e.g. tantalum) to protect the heater element from mechanical cavitation forces experienced when a bubble collapses onto the heater element. U.S. Pat. No. 6,739,619 describes a conventional inkjet nozzle device having passivation and cavitation layers.
However, multiple passivation and cavitation layers are incompatible with low-energy 'self-cooling' inkjet nozzle devices. The relatively thick protective layers absorb too much energy and require drive energies which are too high for efficient self-cooling operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,113,221 describes an inkjet nozzle device, which vents gas bubbles through nozzle apertures during droplet ejection. By venting gas bubbles, instead of the gas bubbles collapsing onto the heater element, the damaging effects of cavitation forces can be avoided. Consequently, heater elements without cavitation layer(s) may be employed, which improves thermal efficiency. However, the inkjet nozzle devices described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,113,221 are configured to evacuate the entire nozzle chamber of ink during droplet ejection such that the volume of ejected droplets is substantially equal to the volume of the nozzle chamber. This places constraints on nozzle chamber designs for a target drop ejection volume.
It would be desirable to provide inkjet nozzle devices which vent gas bubbles, whilst allowing more flexible design criteria than the venting devices described in the prior art.

Inkjet nozzle device configured for venting gas bubbles


An in-rush current limiter and method is provided. The in-rush current limiter reduces the maximum current that is drawn during system startup of an avionics system. During startup, power is provided through a power supply bus to a plurality of avionics units that are each coupled to the power bus. To reduce the maximum current drawn by the avionics units during startup, the in-rush current limiter includes a current limiter controller, a charging circuit, and a switching circuit. Specifically, during system startup the main current path from the power supply bus is interrupted by the switching circuit while an alternate current path is connected through the charging circuit. During this charging the amount of current flowing through the charging circuit is limited to an acceptable level by a resistive element in the charging circuit.

Modern aircraft have increasingly sophisticated control and communication systems. Included in many modern aircraft is an power supply bus that provides power and communication links between a variety of navigation, control and communication equipment. As the complexity of the aircraft has increased, the avionics system requirements have likewise increased. Furthermore, because of the numerous critical operations supported by the power supply bus, the reliability and performance of the power supply bus is of utmost importance.
One function provided by the power supply bus is to distribute power to various avionics components connected to the bus. For example, the power supply bus can provide operational power for navigation and communication radios, gauges, sensors and display units. The ability of the power supply bus to reliably power these avionics components is one key in the overall reliability of the aircraft.
One significant issue in power supply bus reliability is the large currents that can occur on system startup. In a typical system, the power supply bus is heavily loaded. On system startup, a large in rush of current is associated with turning on the power supply bus and its associated avionic components. This in-rush current can be 100 times the normal operating current of the power supply bus. Such an in-rush current can prematurely wear switches and other devices that make up the bus, and thus can reduce the reliability of the bus. For example, large in-rush currents associated with turning on an avionics master switch can actually damage the master switch itself.
Unfortunately, current avionic power supply bus systems have no reliable method for reducing the effects of large in-rush currents associated with system startup. Thus, what is needed is a system and method for limiting in-rush current on system startup of an avionics bus system.


A removable and re-attachable keyboard device for interfacing with an imaging device in a position adjacent to a display on the imaging device is presented. The keyboard device docks or otherwise couples the imaging device as opposed to residing on the table or base upon which the imaging device resides. The keyboard device includes a keyboard base which is generally planar with one end thereof being a keyboard base interface for facilitating at least mechanical coupling of the keyboard device with the imaging device and a keyboard. The keyboard base supports and maintains the keyboard in an ergonomic and more user-friendly attitude in relationship to a display of the imaging device. Messaging services are also available for dispatching directly from the imaging device as a result of data input to the keyboard device.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of imaging devices and, more specifically, to the field of data entry into such imaging devices.
2. State of the Art
Imaging devices, such as printers, copiers, scanners, facsimile machines, and the like, have generally and frequently been thought of as output devices which are typically controlled by an attached computer or other control device. For example, a printer is generally coupled to a computer which serves as the user interface device for the printer system. Likewise, copiers have generally lacked a sophisticated user interface and even more so, a sophisticated data input mechanism. As such, any sophisticated form of interface with these devices was generally retained at a remote location such as at an attached or networked controlling system, such as a computer.
As imaging devices became more complex, imaging devices assimilated simplified user interfaces at the device itself. Such interfaces took the form of displays that issued error codes or status and further included buttons for performing elementary control, such as reset, operations. Additionally, some imaging devices such as copiers and facsimile devices integrated numeric keypads allowing the user to input a print quantity, dialing sequence or other numeric value. As imaging devices have become more sophisticated, there is an increased need to provide a more efficient user-friendly and user-accustomed interface at the device itself.
FIG. 1 illustrates the coupling of an imaging device, such as a printer, copier, facsimile machine, scanner device, and the like, which is used for the processing, namely, printing, copying, scanning, or other print application or printed material analysis, of a target media to a keyboard. Those familiar with imaging devices 10 appreciate that such devices have become increasingly complex and sophisticated and therefore require not only extensive configuration, but may also require some forms of data input. For limited amounts of data entry, a control panel such as a keypad 12 may be sufficient. However, for any significant amount of user input data, a more ergonomic or user-friendly interface and entry mechanism is desirable. FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art configuration coupling a keyboard 14 to an imaging device 10 by utilizing the freestanding capabilities of keyboard 14. Because of the lack of spatial relationship between keyboard 14 and any display mechanism associated with imaging device 10, such data entry technique is limited in both efficient data input as well as ergonomic desirability. Therefore, there exists a need to provide a more usable data-entry configuration for use directly at an imaging device that facilitates both an efficient and user-accustomed input device as well as an ergonomic and usably efficient association with an imaging device display.

Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.


An exercise device includes a resilient plate body, a pair of handles, a pair of V-clips and a flexible adjusting sheet. The plate body has a protrusion integrally and transversely formed on a middle portion thereof, and defines a pair of inclined through holes each between one of two distal edges of the plate body and the protrusion. The protrusion defines an arch therethrough which has an opening in communication with an undersurface of the plate body to receive the adjusting sheet. The pair of handles each has a metal rod encased in a sponge tube. A distal end of the metal rod extends through a respective inclined through hole of the plate body. Then the V-clip grippingly fastens the respective distal end of the metal rod. The flexible adjusting sheet is shaped to be received in the arch of the protrusion. An inner periphery of the adjusting sheet is configured to have stepped portions, such that a thickness of the adjusting sheet increases from a first end thereof to a second end thereof with the progression of the stepped portions. With this arrangement, the exercise device can provides multiple resistance options.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exercise device, and more particularly to an exercise device which provides multiple resistance options by utilizing an adjusting sheet.
2. Description of Related Art
In general, exercise devices are popularly used in the modern society. Since they are movable and do not occupy a large space, the exercise device enables people to exercise indoors. A simple conventional exercise device which is designed to work out arms or hands of a user typically comprises a pair of handles and a spring mounted between the two handles. By repeatedly urging the pair of handles toward each other, the exercise effect is achieved. However, this kind of exercise device has a disadvantage that it provides only one level of resistance because the spring has a constant resilient coefficiency. A second drawback of the conventional exercise device is that it is not convenient for storage, because of it being an integral construction.
The present invention provides an improved exercise device to mitigate and/or obviate the aforementioned problems.

Resiliently compressible exercise device


A path detection apparatus for use in a CDMA reception device includes: storage means for storing a delay profile; and path detection means for detecting a path by reading the delay profile from the storage means, and performing a rake-combining process based on the read delay profile. With the configuration, the path detection means includes: reference path detection means for detecting a reference path for detection of a probable path based on the delay profile read by the storage means; and detection means for detecting as a probable path in the rake-combining process a path existing in a path detecting time in which reception characteristic of the CDMA reception device can be improved from the detecting time of the reference path detected by the reference path detection means.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a path detection apparatus in a CDMA reception device and, more specifically, to a path detection apparatus capable of eliminating the misidentification of a path as soon as possible.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A well-known path detecting method for use with the CDMA reception device generates a delay profile, and detects N (N indicates a natural number determined by the number of fingers) paths having high reception levels in the delay profile as the paths to be rake-combined.
The delay profile shows the reception level with the lapse of time as shown in FIG. 12. The delay profile is generated as follows. The horizontal axis shown in FIG. 12 indicates time with a scale indicating ¼ chip. The vertical axis indicates a reception level (code correlation value). One chip refers to a basic unit time in which a received signal is despread.
A reception level at a timing E1 is measured by despreading a received signal using a spread code replica at the timing E1. The timing E1 is set to the timing of the resolution for one chip, for example, the timing of ¼ resolution.
After the measurement at the timing E1, the one resolution timing is shifted, and the reception level is measured for the shifted timing. That is, the reception levels of the timings E2, E3, E4, . . . in FIG. 12 are sequentially measured. The frequency L of the measurement is the value determined by the search window size when a delay profile is generated in the multi-path search range.
The delay profile is thus generated by the L measured reception levels and the spread code replica.
FIG. 13 shows the configuration of the apparatus for use with the above mentioned conventional path detecting method. As shown in FIG. 13, the path detection apparatus is configured by despreading means 12, spread code replica generation means 14, a storage unit 16, highest reception level detection means 22, path detection means 4–28 and path masking means 30.
For input into the despreading means 12, a high frequency signal received by an antenna 11 is down-converted by a high frequency reception circuit 13, and a received signal obtained by performing a A/D conversion by a A/D conversion circuit 15 on the down-converted signal is provided. The received signal is provided for a finger 17, and the finger 17 outputs a signal (demodulated signal) despread based on the paths to be rake-combined (described later). The demodulated signal is provided for a rake reception circuit 19 and rake-combined. The rake-combined signal is provided for the circuit which regenerates received data not shown in the attached drawings.
In the despreading means 12 for receiving the received signal, the reception levels of a delay profile are sequentially generated using the spread code replica provided by the spread code replica generation means 14. The sequentially generated reception levels of the delay profile are stored in the storage unit 16.
The highest reception level detection means 22 reads the delay profile stored in the storage unit 16, and detects a path having the highest reception level as a reference path using the delay profile (SC1 shown in FIG. 14).
The path masking means 30 performs a masking process on the paths within ±¾ chip from the path to be rake-combined (SC2 shown in FIG. 14).
The path detection means 4–28 sets the reference path detected by highest reception level means 22 as a path to be rake-combined (SC3 shown in FIG. 14).
If the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers have not been detected before this process (N in SC4 shown in FIG. 14), the highest reception level detection means 22 defines as a new reference path the path having the highest reception level in the paths having the reception levels lower than the reception level of the current reference path, thereby returning control to the process in step SC2 (SC5 shown in FIG. 14).
The above mentioned processes in steps SC2 to SC5 are repeated until the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers can be detected.
When the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers are detected (Y in SC4 shown in FIG. 4), the process of detecting a path terminates.
The detected paths are rake-combined for respective fingers by the rake reception circuit 19 after the detection.
The above mentioned conventional path detecting method detects N (N indicates the number of fingers) paths from the highest reception level sequentially to lower reception levels in the generated delay profile as the paths to be rake-combined.
Therefore, if the delay profile is, for example, as shown in FIG. 15 (the horizontal axis shown in FIG. 15 indicates time with a scale indicating 5 chips, and 24 dots of reception levels measured by ¼ chip resolution in one chip, and the vertical axis indicates a reception level (code correlation value)), and the peaks of the reception levels of the paths to be correctly rake-combined are F1, F2, and F3. The peaks relating to the interference of noise and fading or relating to code correlation are F4 and F5. Additionally, the peak relating to the interference between the path of the peak F1 and the path of the peak F2 appears as F6. Under the condition, if the number N of the fingers is F6, then the peaks F1 to F6 are all detected as the paths to be rake-combined. Therefore, the paths of the peaks F4 to F6 which are not to be rake-combined are misconceived as the paths to be rake-combined, thereby lowering the reception characteristic.
The ±n (n indicates a natural number determined by the resolution when a delay profile is generated) paths from the path detected as the path to be rake-combined are masked. Therefore, although the paths are to be effectively rake-combined, they are excluded.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-115030 (first well-known reference) discloses a CDMA reception device for reducing the deterioration of the reception characteristic by avoiding frequent switch of path timings obtained in the above mentioned conventional path detecting method.
That is, as shown in FIG. 16, the high frequency signal received by the antenna 11 is down-converted by the high frequency reception circuit 13, the signal output from the high frequency reception circuit 13 is A/D converted by the A/D conversion circuit 15, and the A/D converted received signal is provided for a sliding correlator 60.
The sliding correlator 60 generates a delay profile. A delay profile power addition unit 62 performs the process of leveling the path fluctuation by the fading, etc. on the generated delay profile, and an arithmetic unit 64 multiplies the delay profile on which the leveling process has been performed by a weight function from a status weight unit 66. A correlation peak position detection unit 68 which receives the weighted delay profile detects a path timing. The detected path timing is provided for a rake path assignment unit 70. The rake path assignment unit 70 assigns a path position to the finger 17, and sets a weight function. The method of setting a weight function by the rake path assignment unit 70 is to increase a peak value in the current path assignment position.
The arithmetic unit 64, the status weight unit 66, the correlation peak position detection unit 68, and rake path assignment unit 70 are in a DSP 74, the program stored in control memory 72 is read by the program execution unit (not shown in the attached drawings) of the DSP 74, and the program is executed therein to perform the function.
The above mentioned settings of a weight function works such that a path assigned to the finger portion can be set at a higher level.
Therefore, although a state in which path timings frequently switch occurs, the switch can be avoided.
The method of detecting a path timing disclosed in the above mentioned first well-known reference is a method of detecting paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers from a generated delay profile in order from the highest reception level as shown in steps SD1 to SD4 shown in FIG. 22.
Therefore, the method of detecting a path timing disclosed in the above mentioned first well-known reference is the same as the above mentioned conventional path detecting method, and there is the above mentioned technological problem.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-336072 (second well-known reference) discloses a technological means for solving the above mentioned problem.
The rake receiver disclosed by the second well-known reference is configured as shown in FIG. 18, and includes the despreading means 12, spread code replica generation means 14, a storage unit 16, highest reception level detection means 22 lowest reception level detection means 52, first multiplication means 54, second multiplication means 56, the path masking means 30, and path detection means 5–28.
A received signal A/D converted by the A/D conversion circuit 15 shown in FIG. 13 is provided as input into the despreading means 12 as shown in FIG. 13.
In the despreading means 12 which receives the received signal, the reception levels of the delay profile are sequentially generated using the spread code replica provided by the spread code replica generation means 14. The sequentially generated reception levels of the delay profile are stored in the storage unit 16.
The highest reception level detection means 22 reads the delay profile stored in the storage unit 16, and detects the highest reception level using the delay profile. The lowest reception level detection means 52 reads the delay profile stored in the storage unit 16, and detects the lowest reception level using the delay profile. The first multiplication means 54 computes a first threshold G1 by multiplying the highest reception level detected by the highest reception level detection means 22 by a first threshold coefficient. The second multiplication means 56 computes a second threshold G2 by multiplying the lowest reception level detected by the lowest reception level detection means 52 by a second threshold coefficient (SE1 shown in FIG. 19).
The highest reception level detection means 22 detects the highest reception level using the delay profile stored in the storage unit 16, and also detects a path having the detected highest reception level as a reference path (SE2 shown in FIG. 19).
The path detection means 5–28 determines whether or not the reception level of the reference path detected by the highest reception level detection means 22 is larger than the first threshold G1 output by the first multiplication means 54 and the second threshold G2 output by the second multiplication means 56, and detects the path as a path to be rake-combined when it is larger (Y in SE3 shown in FIG. 19).
The path masking means 30 masks the paths within ±¾ chip from the path defined as the path to be rake-combined (SE4 shown in FIG. 19).
The above mentioned reference path is detected as a path to be rake-combined (SE5 in FIG. 19)
If the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers have not been detected before the above mentioned process (N in SE6 shown in FIG. 19), the path detection means 5–28 defines as a new reference path the path having the highest reception level in the reception levels lower than the level of the current reference path, thereby returning control to the process in step SE2 (SE7 shown in FIG. 19).
The above mentioned processes in steps SE3 to SE7 are repeated until the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers can be detected.
When the paths to be rake-combined for respective fingers are detected (Y in SE6 shown in FIG. 19), the path detecting process terminates.
The detected paths for respective fingers are rake-combined after the detection by a rake reception circuit connected to the path detection means 5–28 (refer to 19 shown in FIG. 13).
The path detecting method described in the above mentioned second well-known reference performs on each reference path a masking process of excluding paths within ±¾ chip from the reference path. Therefore, only the paths having the reception levels exceeding the first threshold G1 and the second threshold G2 are detected as paths to be rake-combined as shown in FIG. 20. The horizontal axis shown in FIG. 20 indicates time, and the display is the same as that shown in FIG. 15. The vertical axis indicates a reception level (code correlation value).
Therefore, in the peaks of the reception levels, the paths having the peaks F1, F2, and F3 are detected as the paths to be rake-combined. However, it is possible to determine that the paths having the peaks F4, F5, and F6 in the peaks of the reception levels are not to be rake-combined.
Nevertheless, when a delay profile contains the paths to be rake-combined having reception levels between the reception levels H1 and H2 as shown in FIG. 21, the reception characteristic can be improved by rake-combining the paths having the reception levels H1 and H2 as the paths to be rake-combined. The horizontal axis shown in FIG. 21 indicates time with a scale indicating ¼ chip. The vertical axis indicates a reception level (code correlation value).
However, in the path detecting method described in the above mentioned second well-known reference, the highest reception level and the lowest reception level are detected as mentioned above, the first threshold G1 and the second threshold G2 are computed from these reception levels, it is determined whether or not the highest reception level, in the above mentioned example, the reception level H1, is larger than the first threshold G1 and the second threshold G2, and the path having the reception level H1 is determined to be a path to be rake-combined. However, since the paths within ±¾ chip from the path having the reception level H1 are masked (the shadowed portion shown in FIG. 21 refers to a masked portion), the reception level H2 which is the second highest level following the reception level H1 is removed from the levels of the paths to be rake-combined, thereby failing in improving the reception characteristic. That is, there is the problem that the reception characteristic is lowered than in the case in which the paths to be rake-combined includes both reception levels H1 and H2.
When the paths to be rake-combined (having the reception levels I2 and I3 or the reception level between the reception levels I2 and I3) exist in the timing close to the path to be rake-combined (reception level I1) in the delay profile as shown in FIG. 22, and interfere with one another, the path having the reception level I1 is detected as a path to be rake-combined in the path detecting method described in the second well-known reference. However, the paths having the reception levels I2 and I3 or the reception level between the reception levels I2 and I3 (the shadowed portion shown in FIG. 22 refers to the masked portion) are also excluded from the paths to be rake-combined in the above mentioned masking process, thereby inevitably lowering the reception characteristic. The horizontal axis shown in FIG. 22 indicates time with a scale indicating ¼ chip. The vertical axis indicates a reception level (code correlation value).

Path detection apparatus in CDMA reception device


The invention relates to a device for transmitting optical signals between at least two components disposed for rotation.

The present invention relates to a device for transmitting optical signals, particularly via interfaces between components mobile for rotation or translation.
In many applications with optical data transmission using optical waveguides, a transmission via rotating interfaces is also required. To this end, various appropriate single-channel transmission systems have become known in the prior art. As the data rates increase, the number of channels to be transmitted is also increased. Hence the fields of application for multi-channel transmission systems have gone through a strong expansion.
When cable drums with optical waveguides in the cable are used, for example, in which data must be transmitted via the optical waveguides while the cable is reeled off or wound onto the drum, an optical multi-channel transmitter is necessary. Such cable drums are employed, for instance, in remotely operated vehicles (ROV) for movement on land or at sea (bomb deactivation drone, diving robots in offshore industry) or as sonar towed vehicles trailing behind ships for surveying the sea floor. Examples of other fields of application for multi-channel transmitter are rotatable remote prospecting and reconnaissance instruments for civil, scientific and military applications, which generate high data streams (radar, IR/visual, etc.), such as camera heads under helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), large-scale telescopes, satellites.
The on-board application in ships and aircraft requires a sturdy design (shocks and vibrations), especially as far as the adjustment stability is concerned (which is obviously easier to realize in a small number of small components than in a great number of large ones). In the case of aircraft, particularly in drone missiles, a low weight and small dimensions constitute an additional decisive criterion that is hardly satisfied by the solutions so far known.
Numerous approaches to solutions are known for multi-channel rotary transmission. The essay by Speer and Koch "The diversity of fibre-optic rotary connectors" in: SPIE vol. 839, pp. 122–129, provides a sound survey.
The approaches to solutions can be classified as follows on principle:
1. Concentric fiber bundles in which the light of the respective channel to be transmitted is distributed among concentric (hollow) cylindrical optical waveguide arrays that can be rotated relative to each other at the interface as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,945.
The essential disadvantage of this known array resides in the fact that the optical waveguides require increasing diameters as the respective channel is located farther to the outside. This system can be very well realized, for example, with synthetic optical waveguides. A transmission with single-mode fibers is practically precluded because these fibers can hardly be mounted in a sufficient number with a sufficient precision as a result of their extremely small core diameter. As the fiber diameter increases, the dispersion increases as well and hence the bandwidth or data rates that can be transmitted are reduced. This system does therefore not satisfy the demands on advanced data transmission systems requiring transmission in the Gbit/s range.
2. Coaxial imaging arrays are substantially based on the fact that a fixed (focal) point on the other side of the interface is associated with an emitting element rotating in an annular zone. The imaging function is implemented by an appropriate optical element such as a lens with different focal lengths for different annular zones (published in the laid-open German patent application DE 32 07 469 A1) or a holographic-optical element (published in the laid-open German patent application DE 197 80 642 A1).
The disadvantage of the first-mentioned known approach, i.e. the situation that all receiving fibers are disposed on the optical axis (OA) and that hence shading occurs, is avoided in the holographic-optical elements (HOE). However, the production of the HOE elements is presently still expensive when high efficiency ratios are required, and, due to the smaller angles of deviation in the preferably employed binary HOE elements, large structural dimensions are involved. For single-mode fibers, HOE elements can presently be used only with high losses. Moreover, this method can be applied in a unidirectional mode only. Advanced high-speed bus systems, however, principally require a bi-directional communication.
3. Imaging arrays with rotation compensation. Here, an optical element such as a Dove prism (described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,428,821) or a "de-rotation plate" (U.S. Pat. No. 4,258,976) rotating at precisely half the rotational speed compensates for the rotation. Hence, an array of the faces of the incoming fibers is projected onto the associated respective outgoing fibers.
The support and the drive of the de-rotating element with precisely half the rotational angular velocity, compared against the principal motion, require an expensive mechanical high-precision system. Moreover, the interposition of the de-rotating element requires long open light paths and high coupling losses involved. Specifically with the application of single-mode fibers an insufficient quality in optical transmission is achieved.
Among the transmission systems presented here, the two systems mentioned first must be ruled out for the majority of applications because they do not involve a sufficient bandwidth or because they permit only a unidirectional transmission. For this reason, the illustrated arrays with rotation compensation will preferably be discussed in the following description. Here, the nucleus consists in inverting optical elements that are rotated with half the angular velocity of the principal rotation. The light beams of the individual transmission channels may be inverted with an odd number of reflections by diffraction in a single axis only or by the shape of a pipe of optical conductors. The most important designs of an inverting optical element for these purposes, which are mentioned in literature, are as follows:                Dove prism        delta prism        Schmidt-Pechan prism        centrally mirrored sphere        inverting optical-fiber bundle (de-rotation plate)        axially mirrored gradient rod lens (slab lens).
The considerations of the optical systems described herein are not only applicable to systems rotating relative to each other but also to systems displaceable along an axis. In linearly displaceable systems, a de-rotating element is, of course, not necessary.
The optical systems used for coupling and decoupling have a decisive influence on the quality of the transmission systems described here. Various designs of these optical systems in correspondence with prior art, specifically those envisaged for the application of the third transmission technology operating on de-rotating elements, will be explained below. Even though the discussion will focus on exemplary glass fibers these considerations apply, by way of analogy, to other forms of optical waveguides as well, such as synthetic light-conducting fibers, or to active components such as transmitters or receivers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,725,116 discloses a modular multi-channel transmission system. There, each channel is transmitted by a separate mirror. The mechanical complexity of this system is substantial because a separate optical system and a corresponding precise supporting system are required for each mirror. Apart therefrom, the length of the optical paths increase as the number of channels increases, which, in its turn, means an impairment of the optical characteristics. Moreover, attenuation peaks occur at those sites where the feeding fibers pass the optical path. Furthermore, the overall length and the weight increase in proportion to the number of channels. As a consequence, the unit grows to a size that is unacceptable for many applications with a small number of channels already.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,737 discloses a multi-channel transmitter operating on the basis of a Dove prism. Beam coupling or decoupling is performed by several separate collimators. These collimators must be adjusted individually. A precise adjustment requires a comparatively long mechanical lever or a fine thread that requires additional space, too. As a result, the area to be projected, i.e. the entire surface projected via the de-rotating system, increases as the number of channels and the precision in adjustment increases. Therefore, a larger optical system is necessary which, in its turn, displays a higher optical attenuation as a result of the longer paths and, at the same time, involves higher demands on the precision in adjustment. For this reason, the enlargement of a mechanical lever in such an approach, for example, for an increase of the precision in adjustment does not result in an improvement. As the number of channels increase, rather improved adjustment systems must be found which involve a higher precision in adjustment at the same space requirement. Here the rhomboid prism mirrors for beam deviation or parallel beam shift, which are equally proposed in that above-mentioned patent, offer one possible solution. Even though the application of a larger-size de-rotation system is therefore avoided, the additional optical path and the additional surfaces entail an impairment of the optical transmission. The additional components increase the system costs.
An extremely flexible adjustment without a strong enlargement of the area to be projected is proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,157,745. The adjustment of the individual channels is performed here by correction lenses disposed for displacement in a direction orthogonal on the optical path, which can be used, via adjustment, to achieve the high precision required for single-mode transmission. The solution is very complex and expensive because a high number of components must be subjected to a troublesome time-consuming adjustment process. The additional adjustment components render the transmission system bulky, heavy and expensive. This system is certainly well-suited for stationary applications such as those in radar installations, but in mobile applications, which involve the occurrence of shocks and vibrations, the optical system will become misaligned very soon. Apart therefrom, due to the high number of air/glass transitions a worse quality in transmission will be achieved than in comparable systems without such transitions.
In an approach to avoid the aforedescribed disadvantages according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,442,721, a bundle of conventional collimators is mounted as a complete unit into the transmitter. As a consequence, only a single adjustment of the entire collimator bundle is still required. A substantial disadvantage of such bundling resides, however, in the fact that the rather substantial tolerances of the individual collimators cannot be compensated. The individual collimators as such are composed of fiber mounts and lens systems that are fixedly interconnected in a ferrule. The mounting precision of these collimators is limited and, as a rule, does not satisfy the demands on a rotary transmitter system. Such an approach, in which individual adjustment of the collimators is no longer possible, is therefore not applicable specifically in a single-mode transmission system.
All the aforedescribed solutions involve the disadvantage that a sufficient optical precision cannot be achieved on account of lack of adjustment potentials or that adjustment is highly complex and unreliable in continuous operation. Moreover, none of the aforedescribed solutions permits the realization of high channel numbers with more than 5 to 10 channels.

Abstract: The invention excels itself by the provision that at least one micro-optical component is used for beam forming or beam guidance.


A customization earphone structure and a detachable audio broadcasting module thereof are disclosed in the instant disclosure. The detachable audio broadcasting module includes an amplifier assembly and a detachable sound guiding assembly. The amplifier assembly includes a first outer casing and a plurality of first retaining structures disposed on the first outer casing. The first outer casing has an assembly concave groove. The detachable sound guiding assembly includes a second outer casing corresponding to the assembly concave groove, a sound-guiding component fixed and enclosed inside the second outer casing, and a plurality of second retaining structures disposed on the second outer casing. The detachable sound guiding assembly is received inside the assembly concave groove, the second outer casing is detachably positioned inside the assembly concave groove by respectively matching the second retaining structures and the first retaining structures with each other.

1. Field of the Invention
The instant disclosure relates to an earphone structure and an audio broadcasting module thereof, and more particularly to a customization earphone structure and a detachable audio broadcasting module thereof.
2. Description of Related Art
Along with continuous development of technology, electronic products are developed towards a trend of lightweight and miniaturization, and people can use the miniaturized electronic products such as radio, MP3 player, smart phone, etc., at anywhere anytime. Regardless of the type of the aforementioned electronic product, to facilitate the user hearing sound information provided by the electronic product without interrupting others, earphone becomes an indispensable accessory of the electronic product. Moreover, the earphone also provides a better sound transmission to a listener, and the listener can clearly hear and understand the sound content, which is superior to a situation that the sound is transmitted in the air causing the sound indistinct. Especially, when the user is in a moving state, for example, in sport, driving, intense activity or a noisy environment, the user can still hear the sound clearly by using the earphone.

Customization earphone structure and detachable audio broadcasting module thereof


An electrode package in which one or more adhesively-applied skin electrodes may be sealed has an envelope that includes a sheet of material and a releasable seal joining portions of the envelope to provide a sealed first compartment in which an electrode may be isolated from an external environment. The envelope includes a first wall that defines a first interior surface facing the interior of the sealed first compartment. The first interior surface includes an electrode mounting surface for direct attachment of an adhesive portion of an electrode. The envelope is releasably sealed so that, when the envelope is sealed, the first interior surface is isolated from an external environment and, when the envelope is unsealed, the first interior surface is not isolated from the external environment.

The invention relates to electrode packages.
Skin-applied electrodes used in medical applications such as cardiac pacing or defibrillation are well known. Typically, these electrodes consist of a wire lead that is attached at one end to a connector for a medical device and, at the other end, to a conductor such as a thin layer of tin or another metal resting on a foam backing. The conductor is covered with a water-based, conductive adhesive gel that contacts a patient's skin and electrically connects the electrode to the patient.
To prevent the adhesive gel from drying out, and to maintain the electrodes in a sanitary condition, the electrodes are stored in a package prior to use. In some such packages, plastic covers are positioned over the conductive adhesive gel of each electrode. The covered electrodes are then positioned within a sealed bag. To use the electrodes, medical personnel must tear open the bag, pull out and separate the electrodes, connect the electrodes to an appropriate medical device such as a defibrillator, remove the plastic covers, and apply the electrodes to the patient.


Methods of reducing or maintaining the value of an alkylene oxide production parameter (such as alkylene oxide production rate) in a process of making an alkylene oxide by reacting an alkylene and oxygen over a high efficiency catalyst are shown and described. One method comprises reducing the concentration of oxygen in the reactor feed gas to reduce or maintain the value of the alkylene oxide production parameter.

The production of alkylene oxides via catalytic epoxidation of olefins in the presence of oxygen using silver based catalysts is known. Conventional silver-based catalysts used in such processes typically provide a relatively lower efficiency or "selectivity" (i.e., a lower percentage of the reacted alkylene is converted to the desired alkylene oxide). In certain exemplary processes, when using conventional catalysts in the epoxidation of ethylene, the theoretically maximal efficiency towards ethylene oxide, expressed as a fraction of the ethylene converted, does not reach values above the 6/7 or 85.7 percent limit. Therefore, this limit had long been considered to be the theoretically maximal efficiency of this reaction, based on the stoichiometry of the following reaction equation:7C2H4+6O2→6C2H4O+2CO2+2H2O
cf. Kirk-Othmer's Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 4th ed., Vol. No. 9, 1994, p. 926.
Certain "high efficiency" or "high selectivity" modern silver-based catalysts are highly selective towards alkylene oxide production. For example, when using certain modern catalysts in the epoxidation of ethylene, the theoretically maximal efficiency towards ethylene oxide can reach values above the 6/7 or 85.7 percent limit referred to, for example 88 percent or 89 percent, or above. As used herein, the terms "high efficiency catalyst" and "high selectivity catalyst" refer to a catalyst that is capable of producing an alkylene oxide from the corresponding alkylene and oxygen at an efficiency greater than 85.7 percent. The observed actual efficiency of a high efficiency catalyst may fall below 85.7 percent under certain conditions based on process variables, catalyst age, etc. However, if the catalyst is capable of achieving at least an 85.7 percent efficiency, it is considered to be a high efficiency catalyst. Such highly efficient catalysts, which may comprise as their active components silver, rhenium, at least one further metal, and optionally, a rhenium co-promoter, are disclosed in EP0352850B1 and in several subsequent patent publications. "Promoters," sometimes referred to as "inhibitors" or "moderators," refer to materials that enhance the performance of the catalysts by either increasing the rate towards the desired formation of alkylene oxide and/or suppressing the undesirable oxidation of olefin or alkylene oxide to carbon dioxide and water, relative to the desired formation of alkylene oxide. As used herein, the term "co-promoter" refers to a material that—when combined with a promoter—increases the promoting effect of the promoter. In addition, promoters may also be referred to as "dopants." In the case of those promoters that provide high efficiencies, the terms "high efficiency dopants" or "high selectivity dopants" may be used.
"Promoters" can be materials that are introduced to catalysts during the preparation of the catalysts (solid phase promoters). In addition, "promoters" can also be gaseous materials that are introduced to the epoxidation reactor feed (gas phase promoters). In one example, an organic halide gas phase promoter may be added continuously to the epoxidation reactor feed to increase the catalyst efficiency. For silver-based ethylene epoxidation catalysts, both solid and gas phase promoters are typically required in any commercial processes.
Conventional catalysts have relatively flat efficiency curves with respect to the gas phase promoter concentration in the feed, i.e., the efficiency is almost invariant (i.e., the change in efficiency with respect to a change in gas phase promoter concentration in the feed is less than 0.1%/ppm) over a wide range of promoter concentrations, and this invariance is substantially unaltered as reaction temperature is changed (i.e., the change in efficiency with respect to a change in reaction temperature is less than 0.1%/° C.) during prolonged operation of the catalyst. However, conventional catalysts have nearly linear activity decline curves with respect to the gas phase promoter concentration in the feed, i.e., with increasing gas phase promoter concentration in the feed, temperature has to be increased or the alkylene oxide production rate will be reduced.
By contrast, high efficiency catalysts tend to exhibit relatively steep efficiency curves as a function of gas phase promoter concentration as the concentration moves away from the value that provides the highest efficiency (i.e., the change in efficiency with respect to a change in gas phase promoter concentration is at least 0.2%/ppm when operating away from the efficiency maximizing concentration). Thus, small changes in the promoter concentration can result in significant efficiency changes, and the efficiency exhibits a pronounced maximum, i.e., an optimum, at certain concentrations (or feed rates) of the gas phase promoter for a given reaction temperature and catalyst age as well as other conditions such as feed gas composition. Moreover, the efficiency curves and the optimum gas phase promoter concentration tend to be strong functions of reaction temperature and are thus significantly affected if reaction temperature is varied, for example, to compensate for decreases in catalyst activity, (i.e., the change in efficiency with respect to a change in reaction temperature can be at least 0.1%/° C. when operating away from the efficiency maximizing promoter concentrations for the selected temperatures). In addition, high efficiency catalysts have exhibited significant activity increases with increases in the gas phase promoter concentration in the feed, i.e., with increasing gas phase promoter concentration in the feed, temperature has to be decreased or the production rate will increase.
Many commercial alkylene oxide processes are operated to achieve a targeted value of an alkylene oxide production parameter, such as the concentration of the alkylene oxide in the reaction product, alkylene oxide production rate, alkylene oxide production rate/catalyst volume (also known as the alkylene oxide "work rate"), alkylene oxide yield, alkylene conversion, and oxygen conversion. In order to maximize conversion of the alkylene, many known processes maintain the maximum reactor feed gas oxygen concentration that is allowable based on feed gas flammability considerations. Neither the alkylene nor oxygen are stoichiometrically limiting (i.e., neither of them are completely converted), and some amount of each is contained in the reaction product. When a reduction in the alkylene oxide production parameter is desired, reaction temperature is frequently reduced. The reduction in reaction temperature reduces the overall rate of consumption of alkylene and oxygen. However, it can also cause a significant shift in the efficiency of the process, resulting in the excessive generation of the unwanted byproducts carbon dioxide and water. Moreover, in certain cases, temperature cannot be used to control a desired alkylene oxide production parameter value. Alkylene oxide formation reactions are typically exothermic and require a coolant system to maintain a desired reaction temperature. The minimum achievable reaction temperature may be limited by the design and operability of the coolant system and may be higher than the temperature needed for the target production, resulting in overproduction of the alkylene oxide beyond that which is economically desirable or resulting in limitations in downstream recovery sections, such as a distillation section. While it may be possible to reduce gas phase promoter concentration to avoid such overproduction, underchloriding the catalyst can irreversibly impair catalyst efficiency. In addition, gas phase promoter concentrations are sometimes difficult to control to a degree necessary to maintain a desired alkylene oxide production parameter value due to their relatively low flow rates and the lack of sensitivity of available flow control systems. The problem tends to be more acute in the period following start-up when the activity of high efficiency catalysts tends to be high and/or the alkylene production target is low.

Method of reducing or maintaining the value of an alkylene oxide production parameter in a process of making an alkylene oxide using a high efficiency catalyst


A semiconductor system according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a shared memory; a plurality of processing units each of which designates a memory size and a memory address, and which uses the shared memory; an address allocation unit which allocates memory addresses having the memory size designated by the each processing unit to the processing unit; and an address conversion unit which converts the memory address designated by the each processing unit into one of the memory addresses allocated to the processing unit, the converted memory address being including in the shared memory and being accessed by the processing unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor system and a memory sharing method.
2. Background Art
Conventionally, a plurality of intellectual property ("IP") circuits within a single chip individually include therein memories.
These IP circuits do not, however, always operate simultaneously. If the IP circuits do not operate simultaneously, unused memories are present. Thus, it is disadvantageously impossible to make effective use of the memories. Also in this way, in the case that each IP circuit has memories, there is also a problem that circuit area increases.

Semiconductor system and memory sharing method


Process for the preparation of a dialkyl trans-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylate from a corresponding dialkyl cis-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylate via a transsubstituted pyridine derivative of the formula ##STR1## wherein R is a (C.sub.1 -C.sub.3)alkyl group.

The present invention is directed to processes for the preparation of a dialkyl trans-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylate via a trans substituted piperidine derivative of the formula ##STR2## wherein R is (C.sub.1 -C.sub.3)alkyl. Said trans-piperidine derivatives are particularly useful as intermediates in the synthesis of certain neuroleptic, racemic or optically active perhydro-1H-pyrido[1,2-a]pyrazines having the relative stereochemical formula: ##STR3## wherein Z is H or Cl;
Y is O or S; PA0 n is 1, 2, 3 or 4; and PA0 L and X are taken separately, X is H or (C.sub.1 -C.sub.2)alkyl and L is R.sup.a (CH.sub.2).sub.m CO where m is 0, 1, 2 or 3 and R.sup.a is (C.sub.1 -C.sub.6)alkyl, (C.sub.3 -C.sub.7)cycloalkyl, phenyl, naphthyl, furyl, benzofuranyl, thienyl, benzothienyl, pyrrolyl, indolyl, isoindolyl or one of said groups substituted on aromatic or heteroaromatic ring with fluoro, chloro, (C.sub.1 -C.sub.2)alkyl or (C.sub.1 -C.sub.2)alkoxy; or PA0 L and X are taken together and are: ##STR4## where Y.sup.1 is CH.sub.2, S, O or NH; Y.sup.2 and Y.sup.3 are taken separately and Y.sup.2 and Y.sup.3 are each independently hydrogen or methyl, or Y.sup.2 and Y.sup.3 are taken together and are (CH.sub.2).sub.q ; p is 1 or 2; q is 2, 3, 4 or 5; and r is 0 or 1; ##STR5## where s is 0 or 1; and - - - represents a bond or no bond; ##STR6## where X.sup.1 is CH or N; ##STR7## where R.sup.b, R.sup.c and R.sup.d are each independently H or CH.sub.3 and - - - represents a bond or no bond; ##STR8## where R.sup.e is phenyl or phenyl substituted with F, Cl, (C.sub.1 -C.sub.2)alkyl or (C.sub.1 -C.sub.2)alkoxy; ##STR9## or a pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salt thereof.
The compounds of the formula (A), their preparation and their utility as antipsychotics are fully described herein and in concurrently filed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/661,791 by Bright et al., for "Perhydro-1H-pyrido[1,2-a] pyrazine Derivatives Having Neuroleptic Activity."
Dimethyl trans-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylate has been previously prepared by Mastafanova et al., Chemistry of Heterocyclic Compounds--Translated from Russian, v. 21, pp. 305-309 (1985), via trans-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylic acid which was in turn obtained as an equilibrium mixture with cis-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylic acid by prolonged heating of the cis-isomer at 200.degree. C. in a high pressure bomb in the presence of excess aqueous sodium hydroxide.
Yamada et al., J. Org. Chem., v. 48, pp. 843-846 (1983), have described a method for the racemization of optically active alpha-amino acids in which the amino acid is heated in a carboxylic acid (e.g., formic, acetic, or propionic acid) in the presence of an aliphatic or aromatic aldehyde.

Process for preparing trans-piperidine-2,5-dicarboxylates


A device for retaining a foot or boot on an apparatus, such as a binding for a snowboard. The device has a lateral portion and a medial portion demarcating a receiving zone, a rear support element, and a linkage. The linkage includes a front part and a rear part. The front part is located nearer a support surface of the rear support element and the rear part is located nearer a free surface of the rear support element.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for retaining a foot or a boot on a sports apparatus, in which the retention of the foot or boot is accomplished by means of at least one strap or linkage. The invention also relates to a strap or linkage adapted to be integral with the device.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
Devices of the aforementioned type are used for snowboarding, snow skiing, water skiing, snowshoeing, roller skating, surfing, and other activities.
A device using straps/linkages according to the prior art generally has a lateral portion and a medial portion which demarcate therebetween a zone for receiving the foot or the boot, as well as a rear support element, or highback, associated with at least one of the lateral and medial portions. The rear support element has a support surface facing the receiving zone and adapted to receive the rear of a lower leg of the user. The rear support element also has a free surface opposite the support surface. The device also has at least one linkage that extends between the lateral and medial portions, each linkage being used to retain the foot or the boot in the receiving zone.
The linkage is generally an elongated piece that is relatively flexible and substantially inextensible. Its flexibility enables it to adapt to the foot or to the boot. Its relative inextensibility promotes the retention of the foot or of the boot in the receiving zone.
Two linkages are frequently used on a device, one in the area of the metatarsophalangeal joint of the foot, the other in the area of the instep. The one which acts toward the instep is generally oriented so as to bias the foot or the boot toward both the receiving zone and the rear support element.
That is the case, for example, in snowboarding where a user must be supported at the rear. By having the lower leg in constant contact with the rear support element, steering precision can be assured.
However, it has been recognized that the retention of the heel in known devices is not always adequate, and that play can be created beneath the heel of the foot or boot. The application of forces in steering the apparatus, such as a snowboard, can induce heel movement.
For example, in snowboarding, a setting of the front running edge can cause the heel to be raised, which hinders steering precision.
In order to improve the retention of the heel, the prior art has proposed solutions.
One of these solutions, according to U.S. Pat. No. 6,206,403, involves using a linkage device, in the area of the heel, which has a front strap part and a rear strap part. The front strap is at the front of the lower leg and substantially above the instep, whereas the rear strap is at the rear of the lower leg and above the heel. The front and rear parts are joined to encircle the lower leg just above the heel. When the belt formed by the parts of the linkage device is properly tightened, the heel is retained with precision in the receiving zone. Thus, the amount of play created beneath the heel of the foot or the boot is reduced. However, it has been noted that a substantial amount of movement is formed between the rear of the lower leg and the rear support element. The movement hinders the support provided at the rear.
This is particularly the case in snowboarding when the user exerts supporting forces on the rear running edge. The leg extension movement is disturbed by the elimination of the aforementioned play. This hinders steering precision.
Thus, the device according to the document U.S. Pat. No. 6,206,403 improves the holding of the foot or boot beneath the heel, but it worsens it between the rear of the lower leg and the rear support element, which is an advantage, on the one hand, and a drawback, on the other hand.

Device for retaining a foot or a boot on a sports apparatus


A method and electrode assembly for treating a substrate with a non-equilibrium plasma in which the electrode assembly has two or more spaced barrier electrodes and a ground electrode spaced apart from the two spaced barrier electrodes for passage of a substrate to be treated. Plasma fluid medium is introduced between the barrier electrodes and is biased to provide a greater flow to an inlet region of the electrode assembly to help inhibit the ingress of air. Each of the barrier electrodes can be provided with central and leg sections having passages for introducing a cooling fluid into one of the leg sections and discharging said cooling fluid from the other of the leg sections. The central section can be provided with a transverse cross-sectional area less than that of the leg sections to increase velocity in the central section.

Non-equilibrium plasma, produced by a uniform glow discharge, is utilized for the surface treatment of polymer films, fabrics, wool, metal, and paper to improve the physical and optical properties of the surface. Such properties include printability, wetability, durability, and adhesion of coatings.
The non-equilibrium plasma is generated within a thin gap between two electrodes. The gap is generally less than about two millimeters. A high voltage is applied to an active electrode. The active electrode is encased within a dielectric barrier that can be a ceramic or glass to ensure uniformity of the discharge. A grounded, counter electrode is positioned opposite to the active electrode and can be in the form of a rotating drum or a flat plate. A plasma medium which can be helium is injected into the region between the two electrodes to generate the non-equilibrium plasma. The substrate, which can be in sheet form, is passed between the active and counter electrodes to be treated by the non-equilibrium plasma. At high processing speeds, difficulties have arisen in treating the substrate due to a laminar flow barrier created by air entrainment. The entrained air flow mixes with the gas that is used as a plasma medium to alter the composition of the plasma, as well as its chemical kinetics and stability.
It is known to inject the plasma medium gas between electrodes and toward the substrate. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,361,748 B1 a barrier electrode arrangement is disclosed in which a process gas or plasma medium, that is also used for cooling purposes, is injected between two electrodes and towards the substrate surface to be treated. U.S. Pat. No. 6,429,595 discloses two air cooled electrodes in which the plasma medium gas is injected between the electrodes through a porous ceramic that acts as a diffuser. In both of these patents, at high processing speeds, air would tend to be drawn into the plasma medium to alter its composition.
As will be discussed, the present invention solves this problem by utilizing plasma medium in such a manner as to inhibit air ingress into the electrode assembly.

Method and electrode assembly for non-equilibrium plasma treatment


A method in a mobile communication terminal includes receiving a Multi-User Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MU-MIMO) signal, which includes at least a precoded transmission that is addressed to the terminal and which includes one or more Demodulation Reference Signals (DM-RS). Control information, which indicates one or more scrambling sequences and one or more orthogonalization sequences used in producing the DM-RS, is received in the mobile communication terminal. The control information is provided in a format that does not permit signaling of every possible scrambling sequence and orthogonalization sequence selection. The control information is interpreted in the mobile communication terminal so as to identify the scrambling sequences and orthogonalization sequences used in producing the DM-RS, and the DM-RS are demodulated using the identified scrambling sequences and orthogonalization sequences.

In some communication systems, base stations transmit beam-formed transmissions to communication terminals by applying a precoding operation to the signals prior to transmission. In addition, the base stations transmit Reference Signals (RS) to the terminals, for example in order to enable the terminals to estimate the response of the communication channel.
Precoding and RS transmission are used, for example, in Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) systems, also referred to as Long Term Evolution (LTE) or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A). Precoding and RS transmission for E-UTRA are specified, for example, in "3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); Physical Channels and Modulation (Release 10)," 3GPP TS 36.211, version 10.3.0, September, 2011; and in "3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); Multiplexing and channel coding (Release 10)," 3GPP TS 36.212, version 10.3.0, September, 2011, which are incorporated herein by reference.
The description above is presented as a general overview of related art in this field and should not be construed as an admission that any of the information it contains constitutes prior art against the present patent application.

Enhanced demodulation reference signal (DM-RS) design