An object of the present invention is to provide a method for recovering iodine, which can be carried out simply and economically without practicing mixing processing operation of iodine-containing material, an alkali metal compound and a solvent in advance before introducing to a combustion furnace. The object of the present invention can be attained by a method for recovering iodine which comprises feeding an iodine-containing solution containing iodine and/or iodine compound, a basic alkali metal compound solution and/or a basic alkaline earth metal compound solution separately to a roasting furnace, oxidatively decomposing a combustible material by heat treatment, and absorbing iodine and/or iodine salt contained in a component at heat treatment exit with water or an aqueous solution.

Iodine is used for roentgen contrast agent, drug, germicide or fungicide as a raw material for daily lives, or for catalyst stabilizer, photographic material as an industrial use, and also for feed additive, herbicide, etc. as an agricultural use, and is a precious resource on a global basis. Further, in recent years, it is used, for example, in a manufacturing step of liquid crystal films, and has become an extremely important resource indispensable in the main industries in Japan. However, production of iodine is limited mainly to two countries of Japan (centered at Kanto district, producing about 40% of the world production) and Chile in South America, making iodine an extremely limited precious resource. Accordingly, recovery of expensive iodine from used iodine-containing materials containing iodine or iodine compound after utilized for specific use in each industry such as the aforementioned raw materials for daily lives, industrial chemicals, agricultural chemicals, and further, manufacturing step of the liquid crystal films, is very beneficial from the viewpoints of economy, natural environmental conservation and natural resources saving. As described above, iodine is used for raw materials, intermediates, catalysts, etc. for various products. For example, iodine is used for synthesis of an organic compound as an elemental substance or a compound, but the whole iodine used is not necessarily involved in the synthesis. Some parts may remain unreacted, or be converted to another compound. Also, when a solvent is used in a purification step to improve purity of a synthesized product, the entire product is not necessarily recovered simply, because some parts of the product may be dissolved in the solvent. Accordingly, iodine-containing materials discharged from production processes contain iodine in a form of an elemental substance or various organic or inorganic compounds, and its state also varies, for example, like waste liquid, waste oil and sludge. In the past, regarding to recovery of iodine, various proposals has been made. In particular, as an iodine recovery method associated with combustion process, for example, a method has been known, in which iodine-containing material containing iodine or iodine compound is continuously fed into a combustion furnace to generate free iodine, and the iodine gas is absorbed by a sodium thiosulfate or sodium sulfite aqueous solution. Also, an iodine recovery roasting furnace has been known, which is used for recovering iodine from iodine-containing material containing an organic compound, iodine and/or an iodine compound and an alkali metal compound. These conventional methods are very beneficial processes in terms of recovering iodine from iodine-containing material.
However, in such conventional iodine recovering method or iodine recovering roasting furnace, such problems have been pointed out that an excessive amount of chemical agent is used and that operation is complicated.
Consequently, as a method to solve these problems, a method for recovering iodine has been proposed in JP-A-1994-157005, which is characterized by comprising mixing iodine-containing material containing iodine or iodine compound with an alkali metal compound and a solvent, introducing the mixture into a combustion furnace having a combustion equipment to give heat treatment, and absorbing an iodine compound contained in the heat treatment gas with an alkaline aqueous solution.
However, in the method described in the above JP-A-1994-157005, before introducing into a combustion furnace, it was necessary that the iodine-containing material containing iodine or iodine compound was mixed with an alkali metal compound and a solvent in advance, and the resultant mixture was then introduced into a combustion furnace. Therefore, there was a problem that in the mixing step, the iodine-containing material containing iodine or iodine compound reacted with the alkali metal compound to form an insoluble precipitate, which caused clogging of piping and nozzles. If the method dared to be carried out, a step to separate solid and liquid was required. In addition, in order to remove heat of neutralization generated by the neutralization reaction between an acid contained in the iodine-containing material and the alkali metal compound as a base, an apparatus was needed. In addition, there was such a problem that in order to mix the iodine-containing material containing iodine or iodine compound with an alkali metal compound and a solvent by finely adjusting an amount of each component to be charged so that prescribed pH was obtained, a complicated and advanced mixing and stirring apparatus equipped with a flow rate regulating mechanism and a pH regulating mechanism was newly required. In addition, for performing continuous treatment, a plurality of such mixing apparatuses had to be installed, and hence had to make this system furthermore complicated and advanced one. In addition, since there was no solvent suitable for both of waste liquid and waste oil containing iodine or iodine compound, it was very difficult to homogeneously dissolve an alkali metal compound in both of waste liquid and waste oil, and this caused such a problem that when both were subjected to the heat treatment, iodine sublimed without being immobilized and reaction efficiency and consequently recovery rate was reduced. In addition, if much iodine sublimed, an absorption tower in the following step had more loading, and conventional facility could not correspond. If this problem was left unsolved, iodine was emitted to the atmosphere and environmental pollution could be caused. In order to correspond to a heavier loading, a large size of absorption tower had to be installed, but this is not economical.


A method of producing abrasive tools with abrasive particles consisting of Al2O3 has the steps of producing a mixture of initial components with particles of Al(OH)3, forming blanks of an abrasive tool from the mixture of the initial components with the particles of AL(OH)3, subsequently producing the abrasive tools with the abrasive particles of Al2O3 by subjecting the blanks to a heat treatment such that the particles of Al(OH)3 are converted into the abrasive particles of Al2O3 in the tools, wherein the forming includes rolling a sheet from the mixture of the initial components with the particles of Al(OH)3 before the heat treatment and conversion of the particles of Al(OH)3 the abrasive particles of Al2O3 which particles of Al(OH)3 are softer than the abrasive particles of Al2O3 and therefore do not damage a rolling equipment, and thereafter separating the blanks of the abrasive tools from the sheet for the subjecting to the heat treatment.

The present invention relates to a method of producing abrasive tools.
More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of producing abrasive tools.
Methods of producing abrasive tools of this type are known in the art. In accordance with a known method, an initial material including several components, and aluminum oxide abrasive powder is processed by rolling in rolls to obtain a sheet, and thereafter the corresponding tools are made from the sheet, for example by punching with subsequent thermal treatment. The disadvantage of this solution is that generally the rolls are formed of metal, and during rolling of the sheet, the hard particles of aluminum oxide cut the surfaces of the rolls and therefore significantly wear them.


Systems and methods are disclosed for migrating a virtual machine from a source hypervisor to a destination hypervisor. An example method of migrating a virtual machine from a source hypervisor to a destination hypervisor includes receiving, by a source hypervisor running a virtual machine, an indication to migrate the virtual machine to a destination hypervisor. A guest runs on the virtual machine and is allocated guest memory. The method also includes reading, by the source hypervisor, a free value indicating whether a memory page in the guest memory is active. The method further includes transmitting the memory page to the destination hypervisor if the free value indicates that the memory page is active. The method also includes determining to not transmit the memory page to the destination hypervisor if the free value indicates that the memory page is inactive.

A virtual machine (VM) is a portion of software that, when executed on appropriate hardware, creates an environment allowing the virtualization of an actual physical computer system. Each VM may function as a self-contained platform, running its own operating system (OS) and software applications (processes). A host machine (e.g., computer or server) is typically enabled to simultaneously run one or more VMs, where each VM may be used by a local or remote client. The host machine allocates a certain amount of the host's resources to each of the VMs. Each VM may use the allocated resources to execute applications, including OSs known as guests or guest OSs. The hypervisor virtualizes the underlying hardware of the host machine or emulates hardware devices, making the use of the VM transparent to the guest OS or the remote client that uses the VM. Typically, a hypervisor manages allocation and virtualization of computer resources and performs context switching, as may be necessary, to cycle between various VMs.
In a virtual environment, a VM running on a host machine may be migrated. Various considerations may be taken into account before the VM is migrated. For example, migrating a large VM may take a long time. As new technologies make VMs with terabytes of memory possible, and as network speeds and CPU cache sizes are growing more slowly, migration times may increase due to the need to move all VM memory across the network or even just read it on the hypervisor (e.g., to compress for faster transmission across the network).

Virtual machine migration using free page hinting


A process for removing nitrogen oxides in exhaust gases is provided. The process comprises mixing an exhaust gas generated during the chemical vapor deposition process for producing semiconductors and containing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O), nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) with ammonia (NH3) in an amount 0.5-3 times the sum of the stoichiometric amount corresponding to nitrogen monoxide and the stoichiometric amount corresponding to nitrogen dioxide; and then contacting said mixed gas with a noble metal catalyst at a sufficiently high temperature to decompose dinitrogen monoxide, nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. Dinitrogen monoxide (N2O), nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in exhaust gases can be treated in one step. No N2O is produced as a by-product.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process for removing nitrogen oxides, particularly dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) in exhaust gases.
2. Related Art
The selective catalytic reduction process and adsorption process are known for removing nitrogen oxides in exhaust gases discharged from incinerators, boilers and the like.
The selective catalytic reduction process involves adding a reducing agent in the presence of a catalyst to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) into a nitrogen gas (N2). The reducing agent preferably used is ammonia (NH3), which selectively reduces nitrogen monoxide (NO) or nitrogen dioxide (NO2) into a nitrogen gas (N2) and water (H2O). The catalyst used includes noble metal catalysts such as palladium and vanadium catalysts such as V2O5xe2x80x94WO3xe2x80x94TiO2.
On the other hand, the adsorption process involves using a molecular sieve, activated carbon, metal oxide or the like, which physically or chemically adsorbs NO and NO2.
Nitrogen oxides in exhaust gases discharged from incinerators, boilers and the like predominantly contain nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) with a minor amount of dinitrogen monoxide (N2O). For example, exhaust combustion gases from incinerators may contain 100 ppm of NO, 10 ppm of NO2 and 10 ppm of N2O. Therefore, conventional denitration processes put emphasis on removing nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide, but overlook removal of dinitrogen monoxide (N2O).
A process for producing semiconductors include a step of performing chemical vapor deposition, which may refer to CVD hereinafter, on wafers. The chemical vapor deposition process sometimes discharges an exhaust gas containing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) in addition to nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).
However, the selective catalytic reduction process may produce dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) as a by-product during reduction of nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) under inappropriately selected conditions. Moreover, the above-mentioned vanadium catalysts are effective to reduce nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) but ineffective for reducing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O).
The adsorption process can adsorb nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), but not dinitrogen monoxide (N2O). Moreover, adsorbents used in the adsorption process are readily consumed, and the consumed adsorbents must be replaced. The frequency of replacing adsorbents increases in proportion to an amount of NO and NO2 discharged, resulting in a high running cost.
JPA No. 7826/88 discloses a process for removing dinitrogen monoxide using a palladium catalyst or the like. However, this process removes dinitrogen monoxide after nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide have preliminarily been removed. This requires a bulky apparatus for removal in at least two steps with lowered heat efficiency. Thus, there is a demand for removing dinitrogen monoxide, nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide in one step.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a process for treating an exhaust gas containing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O), nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) without producing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) as a by-product.
The present invention provides a process for removing nitrogen oxides in an exhaust gas, comprising the steps of:
mixing an exhaust gas generated during the chemical vapor deposition process for producing semiconductors and containing dinitrogen monoxide (N2O), nitrogen monoxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) with ammonia (NH3) in an amount 0.5-3 times a sum of a stoichiometric amount corresponding to the nitrogen monoxide and a stoichiometric amount corresponding to the nitrogen dioxide; and
contacting said mixed gas with a noble metal catalyst at a sufficiently high temperature to decompose dinitrogen monoxide, nitrogen monoxide and nitrogen dioxide.
Preferably, the present process further comprises, before said contacting step, the step of heating said exhaust gas or said mixed gas at a temperature ranging from 200xc2x0 C. to said high temperature selected for said contacting step.
During said mixing step, said exhaust gas is preferably mixed with ammonia (NH3) in an amount 0.6-2 times the sum of the stoichiometric amount corresponding to nitrogen monoxide and the stoichiometric amount corresponding to nitrogen dioxide.
Preferably, said mixed gas contains 1 mole part or more of ammonia (NH3) per 1 mole part of an oxygen gas (O2).
Preferably, said exhaust gas contains 1 part by weight of dinitrogen monoxide (N2O), 0.01-3 parts by weight of nitrogen monoxide (NO) and 0.01-100 parts by weight of nitrogen dioxide (NO2).
Preferably, said exhaust gas contains 70% by weight or more, more preferably 80% by weight or more of nitrogen gas.
Also preferably, said exhaust gas is substantially free from sulfur oxides.
Preferably, said noble metal catalyst comprises palladium or platinum.
More preferably, said noble metal catalyst comprises a carrier in a particle form and palladium or platinum supported on said carrier.
Preferably, said contacting step takes place at 250xc2x0 C. -600xc2x0 C.
More preferably, said contacting step takes place at 350xc2x0 C.-400xc2x0 C.
During said mixing step, the outlet of said exhaust gas and the outlet of said ammonia preferably face to each other.
Preferably, the present process further comprises the step of passing said mixed gas through a tortuous path after said mixing step and before said contacting step.
Preferably, the present process further comprises the step of removing excessive ammonia after said contacting step.

Method for removing nitrogen oxides in exhaust gas


A HC adsorbing material whose deterioration can be judged with high accuracy and reliability. The HC adsorbing material contains a zeolite having cation adsorption sites (Al sites) to which are bonded ions of an element (Ce+) that exhibits oxygen storage capacity (OSC) in a nonionic state (when present as an oxide).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to HC (hydrocarbon) adsorbing materials and devices for judging deterioration of such materials. More particularly, the present invention relates to techniques for judging deterioration of a HC adsorbing material using a zeolite.
2. Description of the Related Art
An exhaust gas-purifying catalyst arranged in the exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine, such as a three-way catalyst, is constantly exposed to high-temperature exhaust gas and thus is liable to deteriorate with age under the influence of the exhaust heat. It is therefore important to keep track of deterioration of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst.
Generally, deterioration of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst is judged on the basis of a correlation between oxygen storage capacity of an oxygen storage material (OSC material) contained in the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst and deterioration of the catalyst. Specifically, an oxygen sensor is arranged downstream of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst, for example, and if the oxygen concentration on the downstream side of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst, detected by the oxygen sensor, approaches the oxygen concentration on the upstream side of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst, it is judged that the oxygen storage capacity of the oxygen storage material has lowered, that is, the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst has deteriorated.
Meanwhile, HC adsorbing materials capable of adsorbing HC in exhaust gas have recently been developed, and zeolites are commonly known as such HC adsorbing materials. However, the HC adsorbing materials also are liable to deteriorate with age under the influence of exhaust heat, and therefore, it is still important to keep track of deterioration of the exhaust gas-purifying catalyst.
An exhaust gas-purifying catalytic converter has also been developed in which a three-way catalyst and a HC adsorbing material are formed in layers, for example. In such a catalytic converter, there is a correlation between deterioration of the HC adsorbing material and that of the three-way catalyst, and the correlation is utilized to estimate deterioration of the HC adsorbing material through the detection of deterioration of the three-way catalyst.
The HC adsorbing material has the property of adsorbing HC at low temperatures, as in a cold state of an internal combustion engine, and desorbing the adsorbed HC at high temperatures, as in a warm state of the engine. A deterioration diagnosis technique utilizing this property of the HC adsorbing material has also been developed in which O2 sensors are arranged upstream and downstream of the HC adsorbing material, respectively, and deterioration of the HC adsorbing material is judged from the output characteristic of the downstream O2 sensor observed during the warm-up of the engine (cf. Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. H09-79028).
In the method wherein deterioration of the HC adsorbing material is estimated by judging deterioration of the three-way catalyst, however, the correlation between deterioration of the HC adsorbing material and that of the three-way catalyst needs to be obtained in advance. Further, deterioration of the HC adsorbing material cannot be judged in the case where the HC adsorbing material alone is used, namely, in the absence of the three-way catalyst.
Also, according to the technique disclosed in the aforementioned Japanese patent publication, the output of the downstream O2 sensor is continuously monitored during the warm-up of the engine, to diagnose the HC adsorption/desorption characteristic of the HC adsorbing material. Thus, if, during the warm-up, the engine operating condition fluctuates with respect to a reference operating condition, the accuracy of judgment is likely to lower to an undesirable level. Moreover, the technique is associated with the problem that deterioration of the HC adsorbing material can be judged only at the time of cold start of the engine.

HC adsorbing material and device for judging deterioration of the HC adsorbing material


An apparatus includes a conveyor, a programmable motion device, and a controller. The conveyor preferably includes actuatable rollers, and the programmable motion device is preferably a robotic arm. The controller operates the conveyor, a stopping rail, and a positioning rail to move and position a box in a cutting position relative to the robotic arm. The controller determines three dimension of the box and translates a programmed cut pattern to those determined dimensions. Based on the determined dimensions, the controller then operates the robotic arm to perform the programmed cut pattern in the box with the cutting element. The cutting element preferably has square blade so that each of the four blades can be used to cut a side of the box without having to rotate the cutting element during operation.

Many industries handle boxes, cartons, or other types of containers during operation. For example, co-pack operations, retailers, distributors, and various other facilities handle boxes during operation. These facilities use various handling systems, such as conveyor systems, bar code readers, radio frequency tag scanners, labeling systems, and weighing stations, to sort, track, and inventory the boxes and their contents during operation. In addition, these facilities may open or cut the boxes during handling. The boxes can have various sizes and may require various types of cuts. In addition, the boxes can be sealed or closed with various materials. Manually opening or cutting such boxes is not very efficient and is unsafe. What is needed is an automated way to open or cut boxes that can be incorporated into the existing handling systems used by such facilities.


A parking brake for a rail vehicle can automatically lock the rail vehicle brakes in an applied position, such as by clamping the brake cylinder push rod to prevent retraction from an applied position to a release position. An actuator can operate the parking brake, and a manual release can also be provided.

This invention relates generally to a parking brake for a rail vehicle braking system, and more particularly to a parking brake which can automatically lock the brakes on the rail vehicle in an applied position responsive to a brake application. The parking brake can be configured for use on both truck and car mounted rail car brake systems.
Freight car handbrakes provide two distinct functions, both important. One is to serve as a parking brake to prevent a car or cut of cars from moving when detached from a locomotive. The other is to serve as a manual speed-control brake on slow moving cars, as is often done with bulk commodity cars. While the conventional handbrake, as an individual car-based system, meets both sets of service requirements, this utility comes at a high cost. Both the normal use and the misuse of handbrakes generate substantial costs for railroads and/or car owners, in several different ways, including failure of a crewman to release a handbrake after normal use as a parking brake, mishaps during normal use as a parking brake, and time lost in waiting for a crewman to walk to, operate, and return from operation of the handbrake. The normal operational use of handbrakes on individual cars is both time consuming and labor intensive, and mishaps resulting from the task of setting and releasing handbrakes during such normal use accounts for a relatively high incidence of personal injury claims and lost time. Misuse, such as dragging cars with unreleased handbrakes is a pervasive, industry-wide problem that leads to inordinate numbers of wheelset changeouts and related equipment downtime. Additionally, trickle-down damage, such as from slid-flat wheels, create impacts on the rail and car that can damage equipment and lading, and increase both track and equipment maintenance costs.
The operation of a handbrake requires the presence of a trainman at that particular car; and the time for him to reach the car, operate the device, and move to another car or return is considerable. Later on, when the handbrake should be released, this time requirement is imposed a second time. Where remote-controlled locomotives are used, the entire switching operation must be held up until sufficient handbrakes are set to hold a car or group of cars. The tasks of setting up handbrakes every time cars are parked and then locating and releasing them when such cars are to be moved thus consumes substantial time and labor, which is a costly drain on railroad operations and productivity.
Parked cars must be secured, but the requirement that trainmen twice visit each car location in order to do so could be eliminated and the system effectiveness improved if a train-based system could be used rather than car-based equipment.
An automatic parking brake as described hereinafter could alleviate many of the problems and costs associated with handbrake use. Such a parking brake can be applied automatically, anytime cars are parked, and can also be released automatically when desired. Both the setup and release can be carried out without leaving the locomotive, and the holding power of the parking brake on any one car will be similar to that of the manual handbrake. Furthermore, and quite importantly, if empty cars are moved without releasing the parking brake, it will not normally result in any wheel sliding.
Accordingly, widespread implementation of such an automatic parking brake could eliminate a major portion of the problems and related costs associated with handbrake usage today, including wheel damage, secondary rail and equipment damage, time and labor requirements and injury claims. Moreover, in addition to resolving such existing problems as described previously, the automatic parking brake can also provide a measure of added safety for grade operations. For example, the automatic parking brake makes it easier to secure trains stopped on a grade and essentially provides a mechanical backup to the pneumatic emergency brake. Ultimately, each of these improvements in operating efficiency would directly impact train crew responsibilities and requirements.
A typical rail car hand brake system normally consists of an apparatus for manually applying and biasing one or more brake shoes against the tread of one or more wheels of the rail car by either turning a hand wheel or pumping a ratchet handle on a hand brake mechanism attached to the rail car. In both truck and car mounted rail car braking systems (illustrated in FIGS. 1–3), the hand brake mechanism is usually either a cast or stamped metal gear housing, and is typically attached to an outside end wall of the rail car. A rotatable chain drum must be rotated by turning the hand wheel to wind a brake chain onto the chain drum. The other end of the brake chain normally extends through the bottom of the gear housing and is interconnected with cable or other linkage, such as a hand brake lever, to the brake beams which carry the brake shoes. The winding of the brake chain onto the chain drum applies tension to the brake chain and brake linkage to draw the brake shoes against the tread surfaces of adjacent rail car wheels and, accordingly, applies the hand brake as intended.
A disadvantage of this prior art type hand brake arrangement is that train operators must manually apply the parking brake on each car to be left standing alone. When coupled groups of cars are to be left, it is up to the operator's judgment how many of the handbrakes must be set, and how hard the hand wheel must be turned to set them. This requires a considerable amount of time and labor. Additionally, the operators must be certain that the hand wheel is turned a sufficient amount to ensure that the parking brake is engaged. The possibility also exists that an operator may forget to apply the brake altogether on a rail car, which could result in unexpected movement of the rail car while parked at the siding or yard. Alternatively, wheel damage can result due to a failure to release the handbrake from the applied position before the car is to be moved. Operation of the hand wheel also requires exerting a considerable amount of physical force from a sometimes awkward position, which can make the hand brake difficult to apply. Injuries to operators also sometimes occur related to hand brake use, primarily due to slipping and tripping, but injuries due to overexertion have also been noted. Furthermore, since brake cylinder pressure can leak over time, a potentially hazardous condition can develop if a loss of brake cylinder pressure occurs subsequent to an emergency brake application, and particularly if the train is stopped on a grade.
A loaded brake engagement mechanism has been used in Type AB-8 and AB-10 Manual Empty and Load Freight Car Brake Equipments, manufactured By Westinghouse Airbrake Technologies, Inc., the assignee of the present invention. As described in Instruction Pamphlet 5062-2 Sup. 1, dated May 1942, this mechanism incorporated a telescoping housing, hollow rod and push rod arrangement inside a specially designed "UL" type brake cylinder, called a "load brake cylinder" which was used to make a loaded brake application. The load brake cylinder was one of two separate brake cylinders on the rail vehicle, the other being an "empty brake cylinder," which were used to control the application of brakes on the rail vehicle. The piston push rods of each brake cylinder were connected to a common lever, called the live cylinder lever, which was connected to the brake rigging on the rail car. In the load brake cylinder, the push rod telescoped within a hollow tube, and through a housing fastened to the end of the hollow rod the relationship between the hollow rod, & housing and the push rod was regulated by a ratcheting mechanism carried in the housing which cooperated with notches in the push rod and which carried a ratchet release trigger whose operation will be explained. During a loaded brake application, the empty brake cylinder would operate and, via the connection of the push rods of both the empty and load brake cylinders to the live brake cylinder lever, the push rod of the load brake cylinder would be pulled from the hollow rod as a result of force exerted on, and motion imparted to the push rod of the empty brake cylinder by its pressurization. The ratcheting mechanism was not operational in the release position of the load cylinder because in this position the release trigger was tripped. The load cylinder pushrod thus telescoped unimpeded out from the housing during the movement of the empty cylinder's piston and hollow rod. When, in the loaded car condition, the empty brake cylinder reached maximum extension of the push rod, the load brake cylinder could be pressurized through a special load sensing valve, which caused the load cylinder's hollow rod and housing to extend.
Extension of the housing containing the ratcheting mechanism would operate the ratchet trigger as soon as the housing moved away from the load cylinder body, and the now effective ratchet would prevent the push rod from returning to its telescoped position relative to the housing as the housing advanced under the influence of load cylinder pressurization. The push rod was thus caused to extend an additional amount along with the housing, thereby increasing the braking force. Basically, the telescoping function of the load cylinder push rod with respect to the housing, controlled via the ratcheting mechanism, permitted the application of additional piston force at a further distance from the pivot point of the live cylinder lever, without using an appreciable amount of air over and above that required for the empty cylinder, thus increasing the force delivered by this lever to the brake shoes at little price in air consumption as compared with an empty brake application.
When he brake was released, the ratchet mechanism, absent the release trigger, would have prevented the release of the shoes, because the load cylinder, even in release position, would have held its pushrod extended and thus held the live cylinder lever in its fully applied—empty car state.
This undesirable state of affairs was prevented by the operation of the ratchet release trigger operating as a result of the return of the hollow rod to its release position bringing the trigger back into contact with the cylinder's non-pressure head, tripping the ratchet release, and permitting the load cylinder pushrod to withdraw into the housing and hollow rod. This mechanism, however, was not a parking brake and could not address the disadvantages listed above.
A rail vehicle parking brake which is adapted to address such disadvantages of conventional rail vehicle parking brakes is described in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/438,141, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Further embodiments of a parking brake for a rail vehicle which can be applied automatically to lock the brakes on the rail vehicle are disclosed hereinafter.

Automatic parking brake for a rail vehicle


An electric motor includes a rotor body having a longitudinal central axis, a longitudinal central opening substantially coaxial with the central axis, a journal bearing which is received in the central opening, a rotor shaft rotatably journaled in the bearing, and a wicking element through which the rotor shaft is journaled. The wicking element is in wicking contact with a source of lubricant and the rotor shaft to deliver lubricant from the source of lubricant to the rotor shaft. The improved wicking element has an opening which positively contacts the rotor shaft at at least one point, and is spaced from the shaft throughout substantially the remainder of the periphery to provide a wick which will improve oil flow to the rotor to improve lubrication of the shaft. Further, the wick is made from a polyester-cotton blend textile which has relatively short fibers. These fibers will not readily separate from the wick.

This invention relates to unit bearing motors, and more particularly to a bearing wick for a unit bearing motor.
In certain dynamoelectric machines of the induction motor type, and particularly in many smaller motors, sometimes referred to as unit bearing motors, the motors have a squirrel cage rotor assembly in which the conductor bars for the rotor and the body of the rotor are made from die cast aluminum. Typically, these rotor assemblies include a stack or rotor core of individual laminations constructed from suitable ferro-magnetic material. Each lamination has a central opening and a plurality of so-called satellite openings adjacent its outer margin. The laminations are assembled in a stack and are rotated slightly with respect to one another in the stack so that their central openings are coaxial but so that their satellite openings are skewed relative to one another and so that the satellite openings constitute slots. The lamination stack or core is then placed in a suitable die casting mold and molten aluminum is injected under pressure into the mold so as to surround the core, to fill the mold, and to flow through the skewed slots in the core formed by the satellite openings so as to form the conductor bars of the rotor.
These die case squirrel cage rotors typically have a central opening therethrough and a rotor shaft extending through this opening which is rigidly secured to the rotor so that the shaft rotates with the motor. This central opening may be defined at least in part by the central opening of the laminations and is appreciably larger than the shaft so as to receive a rigid boss of the motor housing. The rotor shaft is received in an opening in the boss and is journaled therein by a suitable journal bearing or the like to rotatably support the rotor on the motor housing. As is typical, a portion of the rotor shaft journaled in the bearing has a helical oil groove formed on its outer surface and the outer end of the shaft rotates in a wick supplied with lubricating oil from a resevoir. Upon rotation of the rotor, the oil grooves in the shaft pick up oil from the wick and move it along the length of the bearing to lubricate it. Upon the oil being discharged from the inner end of the bearing, it is slung outwardly by the centrifugal force of the rotating rotor shaft.
In unit bearing motors currently available, the wick is formed as a washer and has a circular opening through which the rotor fits. The wick absorbs oil from the resevoir and brings the oil toward the wick's central opening where the oil is transferred to the rotor shaft. The oil is pumped by a spinal groove along the rotor shaft to lubricate the bearing. For the oil to be transferred to the rotor shaft, the rotor shaft must contact the wick. Generally, wicks used with such motors are made from fibers and cannot be formed to close specifications. If the opening is too large, the rotor shaft will not contact the wick and will not be adequately lubricated. If the opening is too small, the wick will create too much of a drag on the rotor and decrease performance. Oil is preferably delivered to the rotor shaft at a rate of at least 1.0 cc/hour. It has been found that the wicks currently used often deliver oil at a rate of less than 0.5 cc/hour.
Further, the wicks currently used are made of 100% wool. Wool has long fibers which come loose from the wick. These loose fibers then spool around the rotor shaft and freeze the motor.

Low drag/high feed rate bearing wick for a unit bearing motor


Devices and methods are provided to allow rapid deflection of a charged particle beam. The disclosed devices can, for example, be used as part of a hadron therapy system to allow scanning of a target area within a patient's body. The disclosed charged particle beam deflectors include a dielectric wall accelerator (DWA) with a hollow center and a dielectric wall that is substantially parallel to a z-axis that runs through the hollow center. The dielectric wall includes one or more deformed high gradient insulators (HGIs) that are configured to produce an electric field with an component in a direction perpendicular to the z-axis. A control component is also provided to establish the electric field component in the direction perpendicular to the z-axis and to control deflection of a charged particle beam in the direction perpendicular to the z-axis as the charged particle beam travels through the hollow center of the DWA.

Particle accelerators are used to increase the energy of electrically-charged particles, e.g., electrons, protons, or charged atomic nuclei. High energy electrically-charged particles can be used in various application. For example, high energy electrically-charged particles can accelerated to collide with a target such as atoms or molecules to break up the nuclei of the target atoms or molecules and interact with other particles. The resulting products are observed with a detector. At very high energies the accelerated charged particles can cause transformations in a target caused by the collision which can be used to discern the nature and behavior of fundamental units of matter. Particle accelerators are also important tools in the effort to develop nuclear fusion devices, and in medical applications such as proton therapy for cancer treatment, which is also known as hadron therapy.
In various applications, the beam of the charged particles output by an accelerator may be scanned to change its direction. For example, such beam scanning is desirable in directing protons to desired regions in a target tissue in proton cancer treatment such as the Intensity Modulated Hadron Therapy. Some hadron therapy centers place a mask in front of the patient to manipulate the distribution of the dose deposited in the tumor. However, neutron generation in the mask is a concern for secondary cancers. In some hadron therapy techniques that are free of masks, beam scanning is carried out through a combination of mechanical movement of the machine and/or the patient's bed and a large bending magnet at the end of the hadron machine. These types of scanning systems are large in size and heavy in weight. Additionally, it may be difficult to quickly change scan settings for the robotic couch/bed, the machine or the bending magnets, thus rendering beam scanning unpractical during a single treatment session.

Charged particle beam scanning using deformed high gradient insulator

Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC


There is described a method for providing auto-stereo three-dimensional views from a plurality of points of view, the method comprising: providing an image on a substrate made of a medium of sufficient transparency to allow light therethrough, the image being made up of a plurality of cells; placing a barrier screen in front of the image to provide a parallax effect, the barrier screen consisting of an optical arrangement providing staggered apertures through which light can pass, each of the apertures defining a window onto one of the plurality of cells and configured such that a view of a neighboring cell is obstructed from all of the points of view; and illuminating the image using a light source.

Many arrangements exist for presenting images in three-dimensions. One method is to color encode images for separate presentation to the left and right eyes of a viewer. The viewer perceives the motion picture as 3-D when viewing the projected images through special glasses having two different colored lenses which "decode" the separate right and left-eye images. This arrangement does not generate a true "auto-stereo" or automatic 3-D image in that, when viewed without the aid of the decoding glasses, the image does not appear three-dimensional.
Auto-stereoscopic displays require no viewing aids to be worn by the observer. Instead, the two views are only visible from defined regions of space. The region of space in which an image is visible across the whole of the display active area is termed a "viewing region". If the observer is situated such that one eye is in one viewing region and the other eye is in the other viewing region, then a correct set of views is seen and a 3D image is perceived. For auto-stereoscopic displays of the "flat panel" type, the viewing regions are formed by a combination of the picture element (pixel) structure of the display and an optical element, generically termed a parallax optic. An example of such an optic is a parallax barrier. The parallax barrier permits the right eye of a viewer to view only the strips of the right-eye image and permits the left eye of a viewer to view only the strips of the left-eye image. Viewed separately, these left and right-eye images result in a single image which appears three-dimensional.
Generating an auto-stereo image requires the following. When passing through a specially computer-processed image, the light takes on the color of that specific area of the image. The colored light goes through each aperture of a parallax barrier screen, which in turn projects it toward one direction in space. The resulting images, as formed by all the apertures of a barrier screen, are specific to each point of view. By combining the plurality of points of view, the object will be perceived as a "real" 3-D illustration. As we increase the number of views and/or apertures the smoother the auto-stereo image becomes.
One problem with this arrangement comes from the fact that the large projection screen sits behind a parallax barrier. Indeed, the opaque regions of the parallax barrier block most of the light coming out of the projection screen and only those parts of the projection screen behind apertures are visible to the viewer. In this case, it is expensive and wasteful to light up the whole surface of the projection screen, since most of the light is never visible.
In the early 1900, Clarence W. Kanolt invented a static 3-D images system using a barrier-screen formed of continuous vertical lines (FIG. 1). From Kanolt's invention, a variety of applications are currently being developed, such as the 3-D television systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,209,747 and 5,663,831. To obtain a similar quality in the appreciation of the 3-D output, the process of using a pattern of regular continuous vertical lines requires that the definition be more than twice that of a process using staggered or offset slits. Therefore, given similar definition and/or limitations, the long continuous vertical lines will be more than twice as apparent thus negatively affecting the overall quality of the 3-D illustration since the observer is distracted by the continuous vertical lines.
Another form of barrier screen, which uses a staggered honeycomb pattern of small apertures, was developed to generate static 3-D photographic images, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,324. However, this technique minimizes image definition because each aperture can only provide a single pixel. Given similar ambient light, this system minimizes the quantity and brightness of light emanating from behind the image, which results in very poor visibility as defined by the distance of the observer from the illustration.
From continuous vertical lines, a new innovative system using a barrier screen formed of a parallax or short vertical slits or apertures, which are provided in an alternating grid pattern whereby the adjacent columns are staggered or offset from one another, was developed to generate a 3-D motion picture, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,132. It is desirable for the apertures to repeat or align in offset or alternate pattern of rows and for the pattern to be non-visually repetitive as it reduces the perceived pattern of dots or stripes. While this approach to the barrier screen attenuates the restrictions of the previous arrangements, the costs associated to the system found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,132 render it almost unfeasible.
The goal of U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,132 is to generate a 3-D motion picture using less than 100 views. Should this system be used to generate a similar fixed 3-D image, composed of 1,000 or more views, the cost would increase to such an extent as to render the making of this image cost-intensive and quite unfeasible.
Therefore, there is a need to develop a method and apparatus that will reduce the costs of generating a fixed 3-D image, while providing high quality and high-definition three-dimensional images.


Maneuvers of a vehicle, in the presence of obstacles, are planned using a three-dimensional configuration space. Axes of the configuration space correspond to x and y coordinate locations of the rear differential of the vehicle and angle of the vehicle. The configuration space is filled with cost to goal and direction arrows values using an exhaustive search strategy. The direction arrows values point to a least cost path to a goal for the vehicle. The exhaustive search strategy involves searching a bow-tie shaped neighborhood of a goal state, and then a bow-tie shaped neighborhood of each state in the first neighborhood, iterating until all reachable states are searched. A precedence order is established so that states which are blocked are not searched.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to controlling maneuvers of a robotic vehicle and in particular to parking a car. Maneuvering a vehicle in this way is a particular example of planning an optimal path for an object to follow from a given start point to a nearest one of a set of goals, taking into account constraints and obstacles.
2. Related Art
One of the most important outstanding problems in robotics is that of path planning with obstacle avoidance. In a typical task, the robot has to move from a start location to a goal location. Obstacles should be avoided along the way, and the movement as a whole should be as efficient as reasonably possible. The planning of the path should be as rapid as possible. The problem of providing such a "path" for a robot, for instance by giving a series of set points, is called the path planning problem.
There are a number of existing robots. Typically they are controlled using a programming language. One commonly used language is Val II, described in Unimation, Inc., "Programming Manual: User's Guide to Val II: Version 2.0 398AG1", December 1986. Val II can be used to control products such as Unimation's Puma Robots and Adept Robots. Using Val II, a user can specify the movement of a robot, from a current point to a desired point, using the command MOVE POINT () on page 4-20 of the reference. Points are usually generated in joint coordinates. It is therefore sufficient for a path planning method to generate a series of set points to be inserted in the appropriate Val II command. The technology is in place for the robot to follow a path once the set points are generated.
Typical industrial robots use manually generated set points. Such manually generated set points are adequate for performing a simple repetitive task such as automated assembly in an environment which does not change from one task to the next. Manually generated set points are not practical and paths followed are often not efficient for dynamic situations, or for situations with large numbers of obstacles, or for obstacles with complex shapes. Therefore there is a need for a method to generate set points automatically.
One known method automatically generates a set of points along an optimal path. The set of points allows a robot to get from a start point to one of a set of goal points. One goal point is chosen over the others because it minimizes movement of the robot. This known method is disclosed in L. Dorst et al., "The Constrained Distance Transformation, A Pseudo-Euclidean, Recursive Implementation of the Lee-algorithm", Signal Processing III (I. T. Young et al. eds; Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., EURASIP 1986) ("L. Dorst et al."); and P. W. Verbeek et al., "Collision Avoidance and Path Finding through Constrained Distance Transformation in Robot State Space", Proc. Conf. Intelligent Autonomous Systems I, Dec. 8-11, 1986, Amsterdam pp. 627-634. The known method plans paths in the configuration space of the robot. Obstacles to robot movement are represented by forbidden states in configuration space. In this space, the series of set points is represented in so-called joint coordinates, this is a set of coordinates that can be used to drive the joints of the robot directly. No complicated coordinate transformations are needed. An advantage of the known method is the simplicity with which it can be expanded to greater numbers of degrees of freedom.
In the past, the path in configuration space was found in three steps:
1) A transformation is made of the obstacles and the goals of the robot from points in task space to states in configuration space. The configuration space is discretized. PA1 2) A cost field is created, specifying the total cost needed to reach the closest goal state at each state in configuration space. The particular method used to produce the cost field is described in L. Dorst et al. The method is a repeated scanning of the complete configuration space, while performing a basic cost propagation operation at each state. PA1 3) From the start state, steps are taken in the direction of the cost gradient of the cost field until the goal state is reached. The states passed on the way form the shortest path from start to goal, and can be used as the series of set points.
Steps 1) and 2) are performed only once for a given robot and a given set of obstacles and goals. Using the same cost field, Step 3) can be performed for different start states.
The above method has a number of disadvantages. First, in step 2), the whole configuration space has to be scanned several times. Second, the kinds of cost metrics considered are restricted. In particular the cost of transitions between states in configuration space are considered to be the same for a given direction independent of the state at which cost is calculated. These restrictions limit practical applications. For instance, it is not possible to find a path for a robot arm with revolute joints that will result in minimal movement of an end-effector. Minimal time paths are only possible for a few robots which are of limited practical application. A third disadvantage is that following the gradient requires computation of the gradient at every point of the path.
In the prior art, a search technique known as A.sup.* was known, see e.g. N. J. Nilson, Principles of Artificial Intelligence, Chapter 2 (Tioga 1980).
After propagating cost waves, some aspect of the configuration space may change, for instance, if an obstacle is removed or a goal added. In such a case, it may be inefficient to repropagate cost waves through the entire configuration space, because only a small part of the configuration space may be affected.
Another problem which arises after a change in configuration space is that the precise location of the changes, particularly in obstacle location, may not be known.
An approach to this problem is set forth in V. Lumelsky, "Algorithmic and Complexity Issues of Robot Motion in an Uncertain Environment", Journal of Complexity 3, 146-182 (1987); and V. Lumelsky, "Dynamic Path Planning for a Planar Articulated Robot Arm Moving Amidst Unknown Obstacles", Automatica, Vol. 23., No. 5, pp. 551-570 (1987). This approach suffers from certain shortcomings. For instance, the method disclosed is only able to deal with two dimensions. The method also does not have a memory for previously encountered obstacles.
A number of research projects have considered the problem of electronic maps for vehicles.

Method and apparatus for controlling maneuvers of a vehicle

Philips Electronics North America Corporation


A system and method for retaining and controlling supply chain information in the form of objects and associated metadata in a database to provide intelligent and controlled access to such objects is provided. The objects may be accessed by multiple users according to predetermined rules, and may be integrated into an application by using metadata that defines such access. A system may include a server configured to monitor and to provide intelligent access to supply chain information. The system may also include a repository for storing data and algorithms related to the retention and analysis of supply chain information, which may be explicitly developed by a user, or implicitly produced by dynamically monitoring and collecting information from an associated application. The system may also include an analysis engine configured to analyze supply chain information that is monitored and collected in the repository. A recommendation module may also be included for providing recommendations for activity related to a business supply chain.

The invention generally relates to methods and systems for retaining software objects and associated information and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for providing intelligent and controlled access to supply chain related objects and documents in a database.
Most business entities have a perpetual need to inventory and exchange data among other business entities, both internally and with customers. Manufacturers, for example, have a constant need to inventory their product data in order to keep production flowing efficiently. As business arrangements become more complex, it becomes important to carefully organize and retrieve data that is shared among business partners. In some product markets, inventory orders can impact a business in ways that are difficult to predict. Businesses may depend on projections of such impacts to make informed decisions in a short amount of time. They may also be critical to a business's competitive edge. This becomes important as manufacturers are now outsourcing more and more products, further depending on outside business partners. When certain supplies or demands of products or individual components change, it affects inventory, product releases and other business-critical operations.
To complicate matters further, these business partners often exchange information electronically on different and incompatible formats. As a result, many businesses resolve this problem by actually exchanging paper documents among themselves. This of course seems absurd in light of modern day advancements in computer technology. However, most businesses that focus on producing products will not easily change their business practices at the administration level in fear of inhibiting their product flow. In order to gain acceptance by businessmen, any new method of exchanging data needs to be easily adaptable.
One approach is to custom design a system suited for a particular business organization. Many inventory systems exist that are particularly tailored to a user's needs. They are developed from basic software code routines that are used as building blocks. In reality though, these systems require that software code be written from scratch in almost every new application. The software architecture of such systems must be created and developed on an individual application basis. The result is a very high up front cost for each application.
In conventional applications, separate modules are created to perform certain tasks related to supply chain control. In order to monitor a supply chain in a meaningful manner, operation modules must integrate to some extent. Typically, modules such as reporting tools are custom made to a user's preferences, while other modules critical to the function of the reporting tool, such as data loading and data mining tools, are developed separately. The data loading and mining tools typically operate in a relational database, which requires some type of dynamic catalog to operate. In order to combine a reporting module with these operations, it must be integrated to use such a catalog. Unfortunately, integration of these entities is usually an afterthought. As a result, integration is very complicated, requiring special software code to build relationships among the modules. The end result is usually an inflexible custom application that is developed for a particular use, requiring ongoing development and maintenance at the database level. As a result, end users must rely on highly trained individuals to maintain such systems on site.
Therefore, there exists a need for a solution that can centralize information and allow access to certain supply chain information in an organized and useful manner. Such a solution would obviate the need for first line support at the user's site. As discussed below, the invention accomplishes this in a unique and elegant manner.

Method and apparatus for providing intelligent and controlled access to supply chain information


A level adjusting device for a cutter head of a jointer/planer machine, includes a front support frame for supporting a front anti-friction bearing unit that holds a front journal segment of the cutter head, a rear support frame including left and right base abutments, a height-adjustable carrier for receiving a rear anti-friction bearing member that holds a rear journal segment of the cutter head, left and right lugs respectively having inner tubular threaded surfaces, and left and right adjusting screws respectively having threaded segments which are threadedly and respectively engaged with the inner tubular threaded surfaces, and abutting ends which are in frictional engagement with the base abutments, respectively, and which are turnable to move the respective lugs relative to the adjusting screws so as to raise or lower the carrier, thereby enabling level adjustment of the cutter head.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a cutter head of a jointer/planer machine, more particularly to a level adjusting device for a cutter head of a jointer/planer machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a conventional jointer/planer machine 10 is shown to include a machine frame 11, a base 12 secured on the machine frame 11, infeed and outfeed tables 13 mounted at two opposite sides of the base 12, a cutter head 14 mounted between the infeed and outfeed tables 13, front and rear anti-friction bearing members 15,17 journaling front and rear ends of the cutter head 14, a height-adjusting carrier unit 16, and a set screw 171 securing the front anti-friction bearing member 15 to a front seat wall 121 of the base 12 through a housing 151.
The base 12 has a mounting recess 122 for receiving the carrier unit 16. The carrier unit 16 has a carrier 161 for mounting the rear anti-friction bearing member 17, and two lugs 162 which are secured to the base 12 by means of two tightening screws 18 that are inserted into the lugs 162 and that are threadedly engaged with screw holes 124 in the base 12. An adjusting screw 19 is threadedly engaged with a tightening hole 123 to permit the carrier unit 16 to rest thereon.
Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, when it is desired to adjust the level of the cutter head 14, the tightening screws 18 are required to be loosened, and the adjusting screw 19 is turned to a desired height position. Subsequently, the carrier unit 16 is rested on the adjusting screw 19. Finally, the tightening screws 18 are turned to tighten the carrier unit 16, thereby completing the adjusting operation.
The tightening screws 18 must be turned repeatedly to loosen and tighten the carrier unit 16 during the adjusting operation, which renders the operation inconvenient. Moreover, the adjusting screw 19 must be turned to the desired level using a gauge, and cannot bring the carrier unit 16 to move synchronously therewith.

Level adjusting device for a cutter head of a jointer/planer machine


A method for manufacturing a high Tc superconducting circuit elements is disclosed, which comprises the steps of preparing a single crystal conductive substrate of Sr.sub.2 RuO.sub.4 by a floating zone melting process; epitaxially growing on the (001)-surface of the Sr.sub.2 RuO.sub.4 substrate a high Tc copper oxide-based superconducting film with a thickness of 1 to 1000 nm; depositing metal pads onto said superconducting film to form electrical contacts; and applying a metal pad to the surface of the substrate to form an electrical contact.

This invention relates to superconducting circuit elements, namely heterostructures such as SNS Josephson junctions and field-effect transistors, having a sandwich structure consisting of at least one layer of high-T.sub.c superconductor material arranged adjacent to a metallic substrate, having an insulating layer interposed between the high T.sub.c material and the metallic substrate. Both the substrate and the insulator consist of materials having structural properties sufficiently similar to those of the superconductor so that mechanical and chemical compatibility is guaranteed.
For device applications of high-T.sub.c superconductors, it is desirable to find electrically conductive materials, in particular metals, which are compatible with the high-T.sub.c superconductor materials. Compatibility in this context means a best possible match of the respective lattice constants, and the absence of deleterious diffusion effects at the interfaces of the materials involved. These materials may be used, for example in thin film form for SNS heterostructures (where S stands for superconductor, and N stands for normal metal), or they may serve as the bulk substrate in a field-effect transistor among other applications.
European application EP-A-0 409 338 discloses a planar Josephson device of the type where at least one layer of non-superconducting material is arranged between two layers of a superconductor material in one embodiment described, the superconductor is YUBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta. and the non-superconductor is silver sulphate Ag.sub.2 SO.sub.4. The silver sulphate being connected to the superconductor through layers of silver which serve to prevent diffusion of the sulphate into the superconductor.
The existence of an electrical field-effect in copper oxide high-T.sub.c superconductors (although later found to be very small) has already been reported by U. Kabasawa et al. in Japanese Journ. of Appl. Phys. 29 L86, 1990, and EP-A-0 324 044 actually describes a three-terminal field-effect device with a superconducting channel. Electrical fields are used to control the transport properties of channel layers consisting of high-T.sub.c superconductor material. While this seemed to be a promising approach, growth studies of such devices have shown that in the suggested configuration, the ultrathin superconducting layers readily degrade during deposition of insulator layer and top electrode.
The lattice constant matching problem has been tackled by using doped and undoped versions of the same material. In particular, the substrate, is used as the gate electrode of a field-effect transistor of the MISFET type. The substrate consists of conducting niobium-doped strontium titanate. Onto that substrate, a barrier layer consisting of undoped strontium titanate is epitaxially grown, and onto the latter the current channel layer consisting of the superconducting YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta., is epitaxially deposited. It has been found (cf. H. Hagesawa et al., Jap. Journ. Appl. Phys., Vol. 28 (1989)L2210) that during film growth a thin insulating surface layer forms on the Nb-doped SrTiO.sub.3, reducing the sensitivity of the device. The formation of this layer is possible due to a diffusion of Nb atoms from the gate/insulator interface into the bulk of the gate electrode.

Method for manufacturing high T.sub.c superconducting circuit elements with metallic substrate

International Business Machines Corporation


A liquid-cooled permanent chill mold for the continuous casting of metals, including a permanent chill mold plate (2) made of copper or a copper alloy and an adapter plate (3), on which the permanent chill mold plates (2) are fastened via fastening bolts (12). The permanent chill mold plates (3) are coupled to the adapter plates (3) via sheet metal holders (19) situated in their top regions and base regions (20, 21), in addition to via the fastening bolts (12).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid-cooled permanent chill mold for the continuous casting of metals.
2. Description of Related Art
It is within the related art to rough-work permanent chill mold plates from massive copper blocks, especially if the permanent chill mold plate is to be a component of a broad face plate in a beam blank mold. A beam blank mold is used for producing a preliminary I-profile by casting technique, which after casting is to be processed further by rolling technology. The casting surface geometry and also the cooling channel geometry are produced by cutting operations on the copper blocks. The permanent chill mold plates have very thick walls. Based on this construction principle and production principle, the possibilities are limited for shaping the cooling gap geometry according to requirements. Furthermore, thermal expansions of the regions close to the casting surfaces, which are created as a result of heat inputs by the metal melt, are impeded based on the thick-walled, and therefore stiff execution of the permanent chill mold plate, which increases the operating stress in the regions close to the casting surfaces.
In view of the fact that the copper permanent chill mold plate has been developed to be thick-walled up to now, as a rule, the fastening bolts for connecting the permanent chill mold plate to the adapter plate being typically selected to be greater than M 16, there has been no problem with maintaining greater distances between the fastening bolts. During the course of the transition to thin-walled permanent chill mold plates, because of the limited depth of screwing in the fastening bolts, one is only able to work now with fastening bolts that are smaller than, or equal to M 16. As a result of the stresses on the permanent chill mold plate during continuous casting, in the form of thermal expansions, cooling water pressure, clamping forces, the strain between the permanent chill mold plate and the adapter plate, as well as the limited space for fastening the permanent chill mold plate on the adapter plate, there is created, particularly in the top and base regions of the broad face plate, the problem of assuring a mold-strength fixing of the thin-walled permanent chill mold plate.
The conventional strain of the permanent chill mold plate and the adapter plate using fastening bolts is also disruptive based on the necessary sealing of the permanent chill mold plate from the adapter plate, since a seal has to be put around the fastening bolts. Besides that, fastening bolts situated in the edge region lead to additional uncooled, or rather poorly cooled regions of the permanent chill mold plate. Finally, in the case of a beam blank mold, an additional difficulty is the special geometry of a broad face plate in the area of the rounded transitions between the legs and the middle crosspiece on the one hand, and the legs and the flanges at the edge on the other hand. At this point, high pressure forces have to be transferred without, however, having enough space for a sufficient number of fastening bolts.

Liquid-cooled permanent chill mold for the continuous casting of metals


There is described support structures for a bed, and various embodiments of a bed for use in a hospital. In an example, a support structure comprises a plurality of sections, each configured to support a respective part of a body, and a plurality of resilient members that extend in a longitudinal direction from an upper end of the support structure to a lower end of the support structure, wherein a shape and/or profile of the support structure is determined by a shape and/or profile of the resilient members.

The types of beds used in hospitals varies widely and can range from a simple structure comprising an adjustable frame and a mattress, to very complex (and expensive) structures incorporating many motors and moving parts. A number of common features or characteristics of conventional hospital beds lead to problems for patients. For example, typically only one option for movement is provided, namely raising or lowering of a back rest. Furthermore it is difficult for patients to move in the bed without assistance, and/or adjust the fixed features of the bed (such as armrests) that assist such movement. A further problem may be bedsores, which is a sore developed by a patient because of pressure caused by lying in a bed in one position (e.g., when the patient is unable to move themselves).
It is desired to provide an improved bed for use in a medical or therapeutic environment such as a hospital, as well as improved methods of controlling such beds.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Bed, hospital bed and resilient support structure for bed


Magnetic resonance apparatus includes an RF measuring coil system (12) for detection of magnetic resonance signals to be generated in an object to be examined, which measuring coil system includes an at least one-dimensional array (33) of contiguous surface coils (33a, . . . 33f) and means for decoupling the surface coils from one another, and a signal processing circuit (15) which is connected to the surface coils and includes a number of processing channels (49a, 49b, 49c) for processing RF signals generated by the surface coils. Between the surface coils (33a, . . . ,) and the signal processing circuit (15) there is arranged a combination circuit (13) which includes at least two adder units (45a, 45b, 45c), each adder unit having at least two inputs and one output (47a, 47b, 47c) and being arranged to add signals, presented to its input, with a predetermined mutual phase shift, and to make the signal resulting from the addition available on the output. Each input of the adder unit (45a, . . . ) is connected to one of the surface coils (33a, . . . ) and the surface coils connected to the inputs of one and the same adder unit constitute a contiguous part of the array (33). The output of each adder unit (45a, . . . ) is connected to one of the processing channels (49a, . . . ) of the signal processing circuit (15). As a result of these steps, the number of processing channels (49a, . . . ) can be substantially smaller than the number of surface coils (33a, . . . ). Consequently, the construction of the signal processing circuit (15) is comparatively simple and inexpensive.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a magnetic resonance apparatus which includes a first magnet system for generating a steady magnetic field, a second magnet system for generating gradient fields, an RF transmitter coil and an RF measuring coil system for detecting magnetic resonance signals to be generated in an object to be examined, said measuring coil system including an at least one-dimensional array of contiguous surface coils and means for decoupling the surface coils from one another, and a signal processing circuit which is connected to the surface coils and includes a number of processing channels for processing RF signals generated by the surface coils.
2. Description of the Related Art
An apparatus of this kind is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,825,162. The surface coils in the known apparatus constitute, for example a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array, each surface coil being connected to a respective processing channel of the signal processing circuit. The advantage of this construction resides in the fact that the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal thus obtained is substantially higher than that in the case of a single surface coil having the same total surface area as said array of surface coils. This is of importance notably for the examination of large objects, because the use of a single, large surface coil would then necessitate very long measuring times so as to enable extraction of usable information still from the signal having a low signal-to-noise ratio. It appears from the cited document that the construction of each processing channel is comparatively complex. Therefore, the signal processing circuit becomes elaborate and expensive if the number of surface coils in the array is larger than, for example four or six. Consequently, the known apparatus is not very well suitable for the examination of very large objects, for example the complete torso of a patient.

Magnetic resonance apparatus with phased measuring coil system


An alignment film is given a 2-layer structure comprising a photoalignment film that is photoalignable and a low-resistivity alignment film whose resistivity is smaller than that of the photoalignment film. The photoalignment film is formed by a polyimide whose precursor is polyamide acid alkyl ester, the number molecular weight of the photoalignment film is large, and the stability of alignment of the photoalignment film by photoalignment is excellent. The low-resistivity alignment film is formed by a polyimide whose precursor is polyamide acid, the number molecular weight of the low-resistivity alignment film is small, and the resistivity of the low-resistivity alignment film is small. The 2-layer structure alignment film can be maintaining an excellent photoalignment characteristic, so DC afterimages can be controlled.

1. Technical Field
The present invention pertains to a liquid crystal display device and particularly relates to a liquid crystal display device that is equipped with a liquid crystal display panel where alignment control ability is imparted to an alignment film by irradiation with light.
2. Related Art
Liquid crystal display devices have a TFT substrate on which pixel electrodes and thin film transistors (TFTs) are formed in a matrix, an opposing substrate that opposes the TFT substrate and on which color filters are formed in places corresponding to the pixel electrodes of the TFT substrate, and liquid crystal that is held between the TFT substrate and the opposing substrate. Additionally, liquid crystal display devices form an image by controlling, per pixel, the transmittance of light by the liquid crystal molecules.
Liquid crystal display devices are flat and lightweight, so they are used for various purposes in many different fields, from large display devices in televisions and the like to mobile telephones and digital still cameras (DSC). On the other hand, viewing angle characteristics of liquid crystal display devices are a problem. Viewing angle characteristics are a phenomenon where brightness varies or chromaticity varies between when the screen is seen from the front and when the screen is seen from a diagonal direction. In-Plane Switching (IPS), where the liquid crystal molecules are moved by a horizontal direction electric field, has excellent viewing angle characteristics.
As a method of aligning an alignment film that is used in liquid crystal display devices, that is, imparting alignment control ability, the related art includes a method of aligning the alignment film by rubbing. This is a method where alignment is performed by rubbing the alignment film with a cloth. On the other hand, there is a technique called photoalignment where alignment control ability is imparted to the alignment film without contact. IPS does not require a pretilt angle, so photoalignment can be applied thereto.
In JP-A-2004-206091, there is disclosed photodegradative photoalignment by irradiation with light represented by ultraviolet light. According to this, photodegradative photoalignment (1) reduces alignment disorder caused by the complex step structure of the pixel portions and (2) resolves display defects caused by alignment disorder resulting from dust or disorder of the bristle tips of the rubbing cloth and breakage of the thin film transistors resulting from static electricity during alignment by rubbing and resolves the cumbersomeness of the process of frequent replacement of the rubbing cloth that is needed in order to obtain homogenous alignment control ability.
However, it is known that, in regard to the point of imparting alignment control ability to the alignment film, alignment stability is usually lower in photoalignment in comparison to alignment stability in rubbing. When alignment stability is low, the initial alignment direction fluctuates, which leads to display defects. Particularly in liquid crystal display devices that use an in-plane switching liquid crystal display panel where high alignment stability is demanded, it is easy for display defects symbolized by afterimages to occur as a result of alignment stability being low.
In photoalignment, there is, in the LCD process, no step of stretching the main chain of a polymer into a straight line as there is in rubbing. For that reason, in photoalignment, the main chain of a synthetic polymer alignment film represented by a polyimide that has been irradiated with polarized light is broken in a direction parallel to the polarization direction, whereby uniaxiality is imparted. The liquid crystal molecules align along the direction of the long main chain that remains extending on a straight line without being broken, but when the length of this main chain becomes short, uniaxiality drops, interaction with the liquid crystal becomes weak and alignment deteriorates, so it becomes easy for afterimages to occur.
Consequently, in order to improve the uniaxiality of the alignment film and improve alignment stability, it is necessary to increase the molecular weight of the alignment film. As a technique for solving this, a photoalignment film material obtained by imidizing polyamide acid alkyl ester can be used. According to this, in the polyamide acid alkyl ester material, the molecular weight can be kept large even after imidization without being accompanied by a decomposition reaction to an anhydride and a diamine at the time of the imidization reaction that had occurred in the conventional polyamide acid material, and alignment stability on a par with rubbing can be obtained.
Further, the polyamide acid alkyl ester material does not include carboxylic acid in its chemical structure, so its LCD voltage holding ratio rises in comparison to the polyamide acid material, and an improvement in long-term reliability can also be ensured.
In order to obtain alignment stability and long-term reliability of a photoalignment film, application of the polyamide acid alkyl ester material is effective, but this material usually has high alignment film specific resistance in comparison to the polyamide acid material. For that reason, when a direct-current voltage superposes on the signal waveform that drives the liquid crystal molecules and becomes residual DC, the time constant until the residual DC eases is large and it becomes easy for this to lead to image persistence (DC afterimages).

PANASONIC LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY CO., LTD.


A system for analyzing data, such as data representing samples of a received wireless signal, includes a memory controller for storing the data in one or more memory devices, a metadata extractor for extracting metadata in real-time from the data as it is being processed for storage, and one or more processors for analyzing the metadata to identify portions of the stored data having a characteristic of interest, and for processing the identified portions of the stored data.

As wireless communication systems are deployed, there is a need to be able to capture or make measurements of wireless communication signals at various locations to identify and diagnose communication problems, which may be location-dependent, and to identify when additional communication resources need to be deployed to serve a particular area.
FIG. 1 illustrates a process 100 of measuring a signal of interest and analyzing the measurement data. In the example of FIG. 1, the signal of interest may be a radio frequency (RF) signal of a wireless communication system.
In a step 110 a user provides the settings that will be used, for example by a measurement instrument, to measure the signal of interest.
In a step 120, the user starts the measurements, for example by providing the signal of interest to the measurement instrument and instructing the measurement instrument to begin capturing, or making measurements of, the signal of interest. From this point, the signal of interest is captured (e.g., digitally sampled) and measurement data representing the received signal of interest is recorded as time elapses. Typically, the signal of interest is captured for a particular length or time period.
In a step 130, the measurement data from the signal of interest is stored to a file or array in a memory device for subsequent processing.
In step 140, the measurement data representing the received signal is transferred from a storage device or memory to a processor which processes the measurement data "off-line" or in non-real-time according to a desired algorithm whose parameters may be provided by the user in step 110. In some embodiments, processing the measurement data may include detecting a power level of the received signal as a function of time. In some embodiments, processing the measurement data may include demodulating the received signal and converting it to a set of baseband data.
In a step 150, the processed data is sorted and displayed to a user.
Long captures of wireless communication signals can produce a lot of data. For example, a one minute recording of a 20 MHz wide Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless signal may produce 7 GB of data. Traditionally one needs to analyze all of this measurement data to find where a problem exists. However, analyzing this amount of data can take a prohibitively long time.
In order to avoid having to analyze such large amount of data, a trigger may be employed to try to capture only the data of interest. However, setting up the right trigger condition(s) is hard and time consuming, especially where the user does not have the a priori information needed to configure the trigger function. In some situations, a user may view a time-domain representation of a signal on an oscilloscope, and adjust the trigger accordingly. However, the time-domain representation of modern wireless signals, such as orthogonal frequency domain modulated (OFDM) signals, is often too complex for visual interpretation and may not reveal the information that is needed or desired.
What is needed, therefore, is a system and method for efficiently processing and analyzing large amounts of measurement data.

Method and system of signal analysis by using metadata


A device for and method of cryptographically wrapping information by first constructing information to be wrapped into an even multiple of y bits. Information to be wrapped is parsed into equal blocks P1, P2, . . . , Pn. Next, registers Ri are loaded with the blocks Pi. Next, an initialization vector IV is stored into a register A. Set j=0. Set i=1. Set t=(n×j)+i. Concatenate A and Ri. Encrypt the result of the last step to form 2y encrypted bits. Divide the encrypted bits into a first set of y bits and a second set of y bits. Set Ri equal to the first set. Combine the second set with t using a user-definable function. Set A equal to the combination. If i=n then increment j and reset i=1; otherwise, increment i. If j is equal to a user-definable number then return A, R1, R2, . . . , Rn as the cryptographically wrapped information and stop. Otherwise, return to the step where t is set.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Technology Administration, announced the approval of the Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) for the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) as described in FIPS Publication 197 (FIPS PUB 197), which is hereby incorporated by reference into the present specification. This standard specifies a symmetric encryption algorithm that may be used by U.S. Government organizations to protect sensitive, but unclassified, information.
The AES was designed to replace the Digital Encryption Standard (DES). However, Triple DES remains an approved algorithm for U.S. Government use for the foreseeable future. Single DES is being phased out of use, and is currently permitted only in legacy systems. DES and Triple DES are described in FIPS PUB 46-3, which is incorporated by reference into the specification of the present invention.
The length of a cryptographic key (hereinafter referred to as a key) used with AES may be either 128 bits, 192 bits, or 256 bits. For these key lengths, there are 3.4×10^38 possible 128-bit keys, 6.2×10^57 possible 192-bit keys, and 1.1×10{circumflex over ( )}77 possible 256-bit keys or on the order of 10^21 more keys than are possible with the 56-bit key required by DES (i.e., 7.2×10^16 possible 56-bit keys).
Any cryptographic method is rendered useless if an adversary can obtain the key used to encrypt information, which is commonly referred to as a content-encryption key or CEK. Therefore, a secure key management is needed for any encryption method including AES.
One approach to key management is to protect the CEK by encrypting it with another cryptographic key, which is commonly referred to as a key-encryption key or KEK. Two such methods are described in a document published in 1999 by The Internet Society concerning Cryptographic Message Syntax entitled "RFC2630." This document describes two methods of encrypting, or wrapping, CEKs for use with Triple DES and RC2, respectively.
The first step of the Triple DES key wrapping method is setting odd parity for each of the DES key octets comprising the CEK.
The second step of the Triple DES key wrapping method is forming ICV by computing an 8 octet key checksum value on CEK. The preferred method of forming ICV is by computing a 20 octet message digest on the CEK using the Secure Hashing Algorithm (SHA-1) and using the most significant, or first, eight octets of the message digest value as ICV.
The third step of the Triple-DES key wrapping method is forming CEKICV by concatenating CEK and ICV.
The fourth step of the Triple-DES key-wrapping method is generating an initialization vector (IV) as 8 random octets.
The fifth step of the Triple-DES key-wrapping method is forming TEMP1 by encrypting CEKICV in DES Cipher Block Chaining (CBC) mode using a KEK and IV.
The sixth step of the Triple-DES key-wrapping method is forming TEMP2 by concatenating IV and TEMP1.
The seventh step of the Triple-DES key-wrapping method is forming TEMP3 by reversing the order of the octets in TEMP2. That is, swapping the most significant, or first, octet with the least significant, or last, octet, and so on.
The eighth, and last, step of the Triple-DES key-wrapping method is encrypting TEMP3 in CBC mode using the KEK and 0x4adda22c79e82105 as IV. The length of the resulting ciphertext is 40 octets.
This Triple DES key wrapping method requires that a different IV be used when the same CEK is wrapped using a different KEK.
The first step of the RC2 key wrapping method is setting LENGTH equal to the length of the CEK, where LENGTH is a single octet.
The second step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming LCEK by concatenating LENGTH and CEK.
The third step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming LCEKPAD by concatenating LCEL with PAD, where PAD is the fewest number, including zero, of random octets that make the length of LCEKPAD a multiple of 8.
The fourth step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming ICV by computing an 8 octet key checksum value on LCEKPAD. The preferred method of forming ICV is by computing a 20 octet message digest on the LCEKPAD using the Secure Hashing Algorithm (SHA-1) and using the most significant, or first, eight octets of the message digest value as ICV.
The fifth step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming LCEKPADICV by concatenating LCEKPAD with ICV.
The sixth step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming an initialization vector (IV) by generating 8 random octets.
The seventh step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming TEMP1 by encrypting LCEKPADICV in CBC mode using a KEK and IV.
The eighth step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming TEMP2 by concatenating IV and TEMP1.
The ninth step of the RC2 key wrapping method is forming TEMP3 by reversing the order of the octets in TEMP2. That is, swapping the most significant, or first, octet with the least significant, or last, octet, and so on.
The tenth, and last, step of the RC2 key wrapping method is is encrypting TEMP3 in CBC mode using the KEK and 0x4adda22c79e82105 as IV. The length of the resulting ciphertext is 40 octets.
This RC2 key wrapping method requires that a different IV be used when the same CEK is wrapped using a different KEK.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,625, entitled "ELECTRONIC CRYPTOGRAPHIC PACKING," discloses a method of unwrapping wrapped digital data by obtaining an acceptance phrase from a user, deriving a cryptographic key from the acceptance phrase, and unwrapping the wrapped digital data using the derived cryptographic key. The present invention does not derive a key from an acceptance phrase provided by a user. The present invention also differs from U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,625 in other ways as described below. U.S. Pat. No. 5,995,625 is hereby incorporated by reference into the specification of the present invention.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,256,733 and 6,260,142, both entitled "ACCESS AND STORAGE OF SECURE GROUP COMMUNICATION CRYPTOGRAPHIC KEYS," disclose a device for and method of securing stored security credentials by encrypting, by various members of a group, at least a portion of the stored security credentials. The present invention does not require actions by members of a group. The present invention also differs from U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,256,733 and 6,260,142 in other ways as described below. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,256,733 and 6,260,142 are hereby incorporated by reference into the specification of the present invention.
The present invention is such a secure key management method for AES.

Device for and method of cryptographically wrapping information

The United States of America as represented by the National Security Agency