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referring now to the drawings in greater detail , fig1 shows the components which make up the washing system of the present invention . the environmental protection agency ( epa ) requires users of containers that have been used with chemicals and / or herbicides to triple rinse the containers . this is a very time consuming process . in addition , the process of rinsing is dangerous since there is a risk of getting the chemicals and / or herbicides on the users clothing , hands , eyes and face . the present invention is designed to reduce this time consuming process , and at the same time make it safe both for the user and the environment . the present system shown in fig1 depicts a normal applicator tank 21 which will be used to apply water to a field . the present invention can be incorporated into the normal watering system and used to rinse container which have held chemicals . water is taken from a water source such as a supply tank 1 or in the alternative water can be taken from a hydrant 2 , and transferred , by means of pump 19 to applicator tank 21 . in order to use this normal water applicator system to rinse chemical containers 14 , the water , from either source 1 or 2 , is passed into the system by way of tubes or hoses 3 , through a shut off valve 8 , which can be any conventional valve . leading out of valve 8 is a pipe 9 which passes through a main body 16 and connects with a vertical pipe 10 . the pipe 10 passes through a seal 15 and then connects with a wand 12 which is located within a container 14 to be cleaned or rinsed . a seal 15 , of any conventional design is attached to the main body 16 , section 16 , by means of a pipe clamp 22 , and seals the inlet of the main container 14 which slips into seal 15 and main body 16 so any water inside the container will not leak out . the wand 12 is essentially a hollow tube which has a slit 13 at one end to allow water to exit from the wand into the container 14 , and the other end is connected to pipe 10 . spaced along the length of the wand 12 is a plurality of additional angled slits 13 which , when the water is turned on , will direct the water to all interior portions of the container 14 . the slits 13 will extend at an angle less than 90 ° to the longitudinal axis of the disbursing wand 12 in order to direct water to all portions of the inside of the container 14 . when water is introduced into the container 14 it will strike the sides and bottom of the container , thus rinsing any chemicals or herbicides that may be in the container . as the water drains down the sides of the container , it will pass through open area 23 positioned around the pipe 10 in the seal 15 . from there it will be pulled through the main body 16 , through pipe 17 and then through tube or hose 18 by means of a transfer pump 19 . the transfer pump can be of any conventional design that will perform the intended function . the pump 19 will then transfer the waste water and any chemicals therein to applicator tank 21 . an alternative or backup water source 2 can be used as a substitute or additional water source to the main water source 1 . water source 2 is a bulk water tank that can store 1000 - 1500 gallons of water and can introduce water through pipe or hose 4 , through fitting 5 and then into the hose 18 and into applicator tank , where the water will be pulled from the tank by the transfer pump . the valve 7 connected to fitting 6 would be used to either allow water from the rinser to enter the flow of water from the bulk tank to the applicator or to prevent water from the rinser from entering the flow line . it should be noted that valve 7 must be opened before valve 8 in order to prevent back pressure on the jug . in the alternative , instead of having the rinsing system as a stand alone system mounted on a support stand 24 , it could be mounted on an existing chemical mixing cone that is used to mix chemicals . this would reduce the cost of the system as the stand 24 , 5 , 17 , 7 could be eliminated . also , it should be noted that the chemical mixing cone is not part of my invention , and my invention is adapted to be used with the existing chemical mixing cone . the arrows show the path that water will take as it moves through the system . although the chemical jug rinser and the method of using the same according to the present invention has been described in the foregoing specification with considerable details , it is to be understood that modifications may be made to the invention which do not exceed the scope of the appended claims and modified forms of the present invention done by others skilled in the art to which the invention pertains will be considered infringements of this invention when those modified forms fall within the claimed scope of this invention . | 1 |
as shown in fig3 , the present invention provides a platform authentication method suitable for a trusted network connect architecture based on tri - element peer authentication , which may be a tri - element peer authentication protocol performed by a tnc client , a tnc access point and an evaluation policy server . specifically , the tnc client and the tnc access point request an integrity measurement value of each other &# 39 ; s platform , the tnc client and the tnc access point verify only a platform signature of the integrity measurement value of each other &# 39 ; s platform , and the validity of the platform identity certificates and the evaluation of the integrity measurement values are performed by the evaluation policy server . the platform identity certificate may be a platform attestation identity key ( aik ) certificate in the tcg - tnc architecture . the method may include the steps below . 1 ) the tnc access point generates an integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar according to an evaluation policy , and then sends a message 1 to the tnc client . the message 1 may include a platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , an integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , and another parameter text1 . 2 ) upon receipt of the message 1 , the tnc client sends firstly the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar to an imc in the corresponding access requester , then the tnc client obtains an integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar ( including pcr index data of the access requester pcrsindex imc - ar ) returned by the imc in the access requester ; if the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component ( the encoding methods are different , or integrity measurement layer protection is enabled , e . g ., a protection applied between an imc in the access requester and an imv in the policy manager ), then the imc in the access requester also needs to return pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar ; and finally , the tnc client sends a message 2 to the access controller , and the message 2 may include the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar , the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , a platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , an integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , an evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller evals c - ac , and another parameter text2 . the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar may be an integrity measurement layer message , and may be in the integrity report format or the if - m message format as in the tcg - tnc architecture ( it may be provided with a protection between the access requester and the policy manager , or may also be provided with a protection between the imc in the access requester and the imv in the policy manager ). the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar may be in the quotedata format in an integrity report as in the tcg - tnc architecture . 3 ) upon receipt of the message 2 , the tnc access point verifies firstly a platform signature in the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , e . g ., aik signature , and if the verification fails , then the message is discarded , otherwise , the tnc access point sends the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac to the imc in the corresponding access controller , and obtains the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac ( including the pcr index data of the access controller pcrsindex imc - ac ) returned by the imc in the access controller ; if the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component , e . g ., the encoding methods may be different or integrity measurement layer protection may be enabled , which may be a protection applied between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager , then the imc in the access controller also needs to return the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac ; and finally , the tnc access point sends a message 3 to the evaluation policy server , and the message 3 may include a platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , a platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , an aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar , an aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac , an integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar , an integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac , an integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , an evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , an evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , and another parameter text3 . the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac may be an integrity measurement layer message , and may be in the integrity report format or the if - m message format as in the tcg - tnc architecture ( it may be provided with a protection between the access controller and the policy manager , or may also be provided with a protection between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager ). the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , is the part of the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar that has been measured and is determined according to a message type in the encapsulation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar . the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , is generated according to a message type in the encapsulation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar as well as a local evaluation policy , and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar may be provided with a protection between the access controller and the policy manager . the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , is the part of the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac that has been measured and is determined according to a message type in the encapsulation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac . the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , is the part of the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller evals c - ac that has been measured and is determined according to a message type in the encapsulation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac . 4 ) upon receipt of the message 3 , the evaluation policy server may process the message 3 in one of the following two manners and sends a message 4 to the tnc access point . a ) first manner , where the verification of the validity of the aik certificate and the evaluation of the integrity measurement value both are performed in a centralized manner . a . 1 ) the evaluation policy server verifies the validity of the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar and generates an aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , and the evaluation policy server verifies the validity of the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac and generates an aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac . a . 2 ) if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then the evaluation policy server firstly sets , according to the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , an imv in a corresponding policy manager ; secondly , the evaluation policy server sends the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar to the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set ; next the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set evaluates the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar and returns a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar . they are integrity measurement layer information , and may be provided with protections between the access requester and the policy manager , as well as protections between the imc in the access requester and the imv in the policy manager . if the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component ( the encoding methods are different or integrity measurement layer protection is enabled , e . g ., a protection applied between an imc in the access requester and an imv in the policy manager ), then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar ; and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component , then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar . a . 3 ) if the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then the evaluation policy server firstly sets , according to the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , an imv in a corresponding policy manager ; secondly , the evaluation policy server sends the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac to the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set ; next the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set evaluates the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac and returns a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac . they are integrity measurement layer information , and may be provided with protections between the access controller and the policy manager , as well as protections between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager . if the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component ( the encoding methods are different or integrity measurement layer protection is enabled , for example , a protection between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager ), then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac ; and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component , then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac . a . 4 ) the signatures on the verification result of the validity of the aik certificate and on the evaluation result of the integrity measurement value may be signed in a centralized manner , or may be signed in a separate manner . a . 4 . 1 ) in the separated case , the evaluation policy server sends a message 4 to the tnc access point , and the message 4 may include the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , a separate signature 1 sig1 pm , a separate signature 2 sig2 pm , and a parameter text4 . the separate signature 1 sig1 pm is a signature signed by the policy manager by using a private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the platform identity certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar , the platform identity certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , and a parameter text7 . the separate signature 2 sig2 pm is a signature signed by the policy manager by using the private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the platform identity certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac , platform identity certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex &# 39 ; imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , and a parameter text8 . if the platform identity certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if the platform identity certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . a . 4 . 2 ) in the centralized case , the evaluation policy server sends a message 4 to the tnc access point , and the message 4 may include the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , a separate signature sig pm , and another parameter text4 . the separate signature sig pm is a signature signed by a policy manager by using the private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , and another parameter text7 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist ; b ) second manner , where the validity of the verification of the platform identity certificate and the evaluation of the integrity measurement value are performed in a separate manner . b . 1 ) the evaluation policy server verifies the validity of the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar and generates an aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , and the evaluation policy server verifies the validity of the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac and generates an aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac . b . 2 ) the signatures on the verification result of the validity of the aik certificate may be signed in a centralized manner , or may be signed in a separate manner . b . 2 . 1 ) in the separated case , the aik certificate validity verification part of the message 4 may include the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , a certificate validity verification separate signature 1 sig1 pm - aik , and a certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik . the certificate validity verification separate signature 1 sig1 pm - aik is a signature signed by using the private key corresponding to the user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , and a text7 . the certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik is a signature signed by using the private key corresponding to the user certificate on the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , and a text8 . b . 2 . 2 ) in the centralized case , the aik certificate validity verification of the message 4 may include the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , and a certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik . the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik is a signature signed by using the private key corresponding to the user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar , the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , and a text7 . b . 3 ) if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then the evaluation policy server firstly sets , according to the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , an imv in a corresponding policy manager ; secondly , the evaluation policy server sends the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar to the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set ; next the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set evaluates the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar and returns a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar . they are integrity measurement layer information , and may be provided with protections between the access requester and the policy manager , as well as protections between the imc in the access requester and the imv in the policy manager . if the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component ( the encoding methods are different or integrity measurement layer protection is enabled , e . g ., a protection applied between an imc in the access requester and an imv in the policy manager ), then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar ; if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component , then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar . b . 4 ) if the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then the evaluation policy server firstly sets , according to the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , an imv in a corresponding policy manager ; secondly , the evaluation policy server sends the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac to the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set ; next the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set evaluates the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac and returns a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , they are integrity measurement layer information , and may be provided with protections between the access controller and the policy manager , as well as protections between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager . if the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component ( the encoding methods are different or integrity measurement layer protection is enabled , for example , a protection applied between the imc in the access controller and the imv in the policy manager ), then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac ; if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac is unknowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component , then the imv in the policy manager in which the evaluation policy is set also needs to return a component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac . b . 5 ) the signatures on the evaluation result of the integrity measurement value may be signed in a centralized manner or in a separate manner . b . 5 . 1 ) in the separated case , the integrity measurement value evaluation part of the message 4 may include the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , an integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 1 sig1 pm - im , and an integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im . the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 1 sig1 pm - im is a signature signed by the policy manager by using the private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res &# 39 ; imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , and another parameter text9 . the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im is a signature signed by the policy manager by using the private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , and another parameter text10 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if the platform identity certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . b . 5 . 2 ) in the centralized case , the integrity measurement value evaluation part of the message 4 may include the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , and an integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im . the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im is a signature signed by the policy manager by using the private key corresponding to its user certificate on the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res &# 39 ; imv - ar , the platform authentication request challenge from the access requester n ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac , and another parameter text9 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if the platform identity certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . b . 6 ) the evaluation policy server sends message 4 to the tnc access point , and the message 4 may include the aik certificate validity verification part of the message 4 , the integrity measurement value evaluation part of the message 4 , and another parameter text4 . 5 ) upon receipt of the message 4 , the tnc access point may perform the following processes . c ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step a . 4 . 1 ), then the following processes will be performed . c . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the separate signature 1 sig1 pm , and the message is discarded if the separate signature 1 sig1 pm is invalid . c . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates , according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , an access decision for the access controller action ac ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ), and sends the action ac to the network access controller . if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the platform identity certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . c . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . c . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the separate signature 2 sig2 pm and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . d ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step a . 4 . 2 ), then the following processes will be performed . d . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the separate signature sig pm , and the message is discarded if the separate signature sig pm is invalid . d . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates an access decision for the access controller action ac according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ). if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . d . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . d . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the platform identity certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the platform identity certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the separate signature sig pm and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . e ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step b . 6 ), and if the signatures in both the aik certificate validity verification part and the integrity measurement value evaluation part are signed in a separate manner , then the following processes are performed . e . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature 1 sig1 pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 1 sig1 pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . e . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . e . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . e . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik , the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im , and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . f ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step b . 6 ), and if the signatures in both the aik certificate validity verification part and the integrity measurement value evaluation part are signed in a centralized manner , the following processes are performed . f . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . f . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res &# 39 ; imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . f . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . f . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik , the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . g ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step b . 6 ), and if the signatures in the aik certificate validity verification part are signed in a separate manner and the signatures in the integrity measurement value evaluation part are signed in a centralized manner , then the following processes are performed . g . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature 1 sig1 pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . g . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res &# 39 ; imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . g . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . g . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , the certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik , the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . h ) if the message 4 received by the tnc access point is the message 4 sent in the step b . 6 ), and if the signatures in the aik certificate validity verification part are signed in a centralized manner and the signatures in the integrity measurement value evaluation part are signed in a separate manner , then the following processes are performed . h . 1 ) the tnc access point verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 1 sig1 pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . h . 2 ) if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar and the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . if the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar indicates that the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access controller action ac ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access controller action ac to the network access controller . h . 3 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not block or the access decision for the access controller action ac has not been generated , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac exist and are not null , then the tnc access point sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac to the corresponding imc in the access controller . h . 4 ) the tnc access point sends a message 5 to the tnc client , and the message 5 may include the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the access decision for the access controller action ac , the platform authentication verification challenge from the access controller n ac - pm , the aik certificate verification result for the access requester re aik - ar , the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik , the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im , and another parameter text5 . if the aik certificate of the access requester cert aik - ar is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access requester are set to be null or not exist ; and if aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the parameters related to the evaluation of the integrity measurement value of the access controller are set to be null or not exist . 6 ) upon receipt of the message 5 , the tnc client performs the following processes . i ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step c . 4 ), the following processes are performed . i . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed , and generates an access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , the step 1 . 2 ) is performed . i . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the separate signature 2 sig2 pm , if invalid , then the message is discarded . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . i . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . i . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . j ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step d . 4 ), the following processes are performed . j . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed and generates an access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , then step j . 2 ) is performed . j . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the separate signature sig pm , and the message is discarded if invalid . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . j . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . j . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . k ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step e . 4 ), the following processes are performed . k . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed and generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , the step k . 2 ) is performed . k . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im , if invalid , then the message is discarded . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . k . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . k . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . 1 ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step f . 4 ), the following processes are performed . 1 . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed , and generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , the step 1 . 2 ) is performed . 1 . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . 1 . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then by the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . 1 . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . m ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step g . 4 ), the following processes are performed . m . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed , and generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , the step m . 2 ) is performed . m . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature 2 sig2 pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature sig pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . m . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . m . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . n ) if the message 5 received by the tnc client is the message 5 sent in the step h . 4 ), the following processes are performed . n . 1 ) if the access decision for the access controller action ac is block , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester that platform remediation is not needed , and generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the access controller blocks the access ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester ; otherwise , the step n . 2 ) is performed . n . 2 ) the tnc client verifies the validity of the certificate validity verification separate signature sig pm - aik and the integrity measurement value evaluation separate signature 2 sig2 pm - im , and the message is discarded if invalid . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is valid , then firstly it is verified whether the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac are the same , and if not the same , then another around of the platform authentication protocol may be executed by using the difference between the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac and the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms c - ac , otherwise , the tnc access point generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( which indicates allowed / blocked / isolated , and may include the reason for this access decision ) according to the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac in each round of the platform authentication protocol during the platform authentication , and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . if the aik certificate verification result for the access controller re aik - ac indicates that the aik certificate of the access controller cert aik - ac is invalid , then the tnc client generates the access decision for the access requester action ar ( the result is block , and the reason for this access decision is that the aik certificate is invalid ) and sends the access decision for the access requester action ar to the network access requester . n . 3 ) if the access decision for the access requester action ar is not block or the access decision for the access requester action ar has not been generated by the tnc client , and if the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar exist and are not null , then the tnc client sends , according to the message type , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar to the corresponding imc in the access request ; and if the access decision for the access controller action ac is not null , then the tnc client notifies the imc in the access requester of the access decision for the access controller action ac . n . 4 ) when the tnc client has generated the access decision for the access requester action ar , it sends a message 6 to the tnc access point . the message 6 may include the platform authentication activation challenge from the access controller n ac , the access decision of the access requester action ar , and another parameter text6 . 7 ) upon receipt of the message 6 , if the access decision for the access requester action ar is block , then the tnc access point notifies the imc in the access controller that platform remediation is not needed ; if the access decision for the access requester action ar is isolate , then the tnc access point notifies the imc in the access controller that platform remediation is needed . in the platform authentication protocol according to the present invention , the messages between the tnc client and the tnc access point are transmitted in a secure channel between the access requester and the access controller . as a matter of course , the platform authentication protocol according to the present invention may be a two - way authentication protocol , or , may also be applied in one - way authentication . when it is applied in one - way authentication , the parameters related to the authentication in the other direction may be set to be null or not exist . the platform authentication method suitable for a trusted network connect architecture based on tri - element peer authentication may be implemented without the verification of the validity of the aik certificate , for example , in a platform authentication process , after the first round of the platform authentication protocol , other rounds of the platform authentication protocol can be performed without the verification of the validity of the aik certificate , with the parameters related to the verification of the validity of the aik certificate set to be null or not exist . the integrity measurement layer message can provide a protection between the integrity measurement collector and the integrity measurement verifier . if the imv in the policy manager is implemented remotely , then a protection needs to be provided between the evaluation policy server and the imv in the policy manager ; the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller evals c - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar may be provided with a protection between the access requester and the policy manager ; and the integrity measurement value of integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac may be provided with a protection between the access controller and the policy manager . the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester parms c - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller parms pc - ac , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller evals c - ac , the integrity measurement parameter for the access requester that is actually measured parms pc - ar , the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access requester that is actually measured evals pc - ar , the integrity measurement parameter for the access controller that is actually measured parms pc - ac , and the evaluation policy for the integrity measurement value of the access controller that is actually measured evals pc - ac may be encapsulated in the format below : the integrity measurement value of the access requester integrityinfo imc - ar , the integrity measurement value of the access controller integrityinfo imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ar , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester rems imv - ar , the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access requester faults imv - ar , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester res imv - ac , the component - level remediation information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller rems imv - ac , and the component - level fault information for the integrity measurement value of the access controller faults imv - ac all are integrity measurement layer messages , and their encapsulation format in the trusted platform evaluation layer may be as shown below : the pcr index data of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ar , the pcr index data of the access controller knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component pcrsindex ′ imc - ac , the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ar , and the component - level evaluation result for the integrity measurement value of the access requester knowable to a trusted platform evaluation layer component res ′ imv - ac may be encapsulated in the format below : the embodiments of the present application disclosed herein shall not be interpreted as limiting the scope of protection of the present application . any modifications , equivalents , improvements and the like within the scope of the present invention shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention . | 7 |
fig1 a is a side cross sectional view of a power device with deep trench contact structures manufactured by applying the processing steps of this invention . the power device is supported in an n - type epitaxial layer 110 formed on top of an n - type semiconductor substrate ( not shown ). the semiconductor power device includes an active cell region extended over an area covered by a top source metal 190 - s and a termination area covered by a gate pad metal layer 190 - g . the power device comprises a plurality of trenched gates 130 formed in deep trenches 115 padded with a gate oxide layer 120 , where each of the trenched gates is surrounded by a p - type body region 150 with the body region 150 encompassing a n - type source region 160 . the power device further includes a plurality of source / body contacts 180 formed as a deep trench contact 180 . each of these deep contact trenches penetrates through a hdp oxide layer 145 , vertically extends below the source regions 160 and further penetrates through a top portion of the body region 160 contacts to a contact implant region 170 formed in the body region 150 and is filled with a metal layer forming the source / body contact 180 . each of these source / body contact 180 further directly contacts to the source metal 190 - s covering over the top of the hdp oxide layer 145 and the spacer layer 165 . the center of the source / body contact 180 is substantially aligned with the center of the mesa between two adjacent active trenches 115 . however , in the mesa between the last active trench 115 and the gate pick up trench 115 ′, the source / body contact 180 ″ is off center of the mesa closer to the last active trench . in this embodiment , the semiconductor power device further comprises a body clamping layer ( bcl ) 140 formed as boron implant regions for clamping the bvdss . the polysilicon gate pickup 130 ′ formed in a deep gate pickup trench 115 ′ padded with a gate oxide layer 120 contacts to the metal layer 190 - g metal layer through a pickup contact 180 ′ penetrating through the hdp oxide layer 145 and the bpsg layer 148 and vertically extending through a top portion of the polysilicon gate pickup 130 ′, where the gate pickup 130 ′ has a greater width than that of the trenched gates 130 in the active cell area . a gap g separating the source metal 190 - s and gate metal 190 - g extends across the edge of the hdp oxide layer 145 and the bpsg layer 148 substantially aligned with the trench sidewall of the gate pick up trench 115 ′ closer to the active trenches 115 . fig1 b is a side cross sectional view of an alternative power device of this invention , which is similar to the power device of fig1 a , excepting that the termination area does not include the bcl layer 140 . fig1 c shows the special structural features of the semiconductor power device for the device shown in fig1 a . specifically , the width of the source / body trench contacts 180 is now reduced to about 0 . 1 to 0 . 2 micron , for example 0 . 13 micron , and the pitch between the deep contact trenches is reduced to about 0 . 2 to 0 . 3 micron , for example 0 . 25 micron . fig2 a to 2t are a series of side cross sectional views illustrating the processing steps of forming the deep trench contact structures to reduce the cell pitches of a semiconductor power device of fig1 a according to the configuration and methods of the present invention . in fig2 a , a thermal oxide layer 112 , which is a hard mask , is grown on top of an n - type epitaxial layer . the epitaxial layer 110 is formed on top of an n - type semiconductor substrate ( not shown ). the thickness of the thermal oxide layer 112 is approximately 2700 angstroms . in fig2 b , a trench photoresist mask 113 , with a critical dimension ( cd ) substantially around 0 . 25 micrometers for active trenches and 0 . 9 micrometers for the gate pickup trench is applied to pattern the hard mask 112 forming a trench hard mask layer 112 ′ followed by removal of the mask 113 as that shown in fig2 c . in fig2 d , an etch process is carried out to open trenches 115 , 115 ′ with a trench depth for active trenches 115 of approximately 1 . 45 micrometer . the trench sidewalls are opened not exactly perpendicular relative to the top surface of the substrate and having an angle of about 86 . 5 degrees . after the trench etch process , a caro cleaning process is carried out and a portion of the hard mask 112 ′ having a layer thickness of about 1200 angstroms still remains . in fig2 e , a sacrificial oxide pre - cleaning process is carried out using standard clean 1 ( sc1 ) process with hf to remove the oxide layer having a thickness of about 50 angstroms followed by growing another sacrificial oxide layer of about 100 angstroms and removing 130 angstroms of a target oxide layer . then a gate oxide layer 120 having a thickness of about 310 angstroms covering over the trench sidewalls is grown . the remaining hard mask oxide layer 112 ′ has a thickness of about 1000 angstroms . in fig2 f , an in - situ phosphoric doped polysilicon layer 130 ″ is deposited into the trenches 115 , 115 ′ and atop the surface of the hard mask 112 ′ followed by a chemical - mechanical planarization ( cmp ) process to planarize the top surface of the polysilicon layer 130 ″ and the hard mask layer 112 ′ as that shown in fig2 g . the remaining hard mask layer 112 ′ has a thickness of about 800 angstroms . then a pre - anneal cleaning process is carried out using caro , standard clean 1 ( sc1 ) and standard clean 2 ( sc2 ) cleaning processes followed by performing a poly - anneal process on the polysilicon layer 130 ″ at a temperature of about 1150 degree celsius . in fig2 h , the processes proceed with the application of a bcl photoresist mask 132 to carry out multiple steps of bcl implantations . in an exemplary embodiment , the implantations includes a ) bf2 dopant with a doping concentration of 2e15 cm − 3 implanted at 2100 key ; b ) boron dopant with a doping concentration of 1e15 cm − 3 implanted at 100 kev ; c ) boron dopant with a doping concentration of 2e12 cm − 3 implanted at 460 kev ; and d ) boron dopant with a doping concentration of 2e12 cm − 3 implanted at 700 kev to form the bcl regions 140 . in fig2 i , the bcl implant mask 132 is removed followed by first carrying out an oxide break through etch to remove a top portion of the hard mask oxide layer 122 ′ of about 300 angstroms on top of the polysilicon layer 130 ″. then a polysilicon etch back process is carried out to etch the polysilicon layer 130 ″ to a depth of about 0 . 4 micrometers below the top surface of the silicon substrate 110 forming the trenched gates 130 and polysilicon pickup gate 130 ′ in the trenches 115 and 115 ′. the remaining hard mask oxide layer has a layer thickness of about 200 angstroms . in fig2 j , the manufacturing processes continue with a step of depositing a hdp oxide layer 145 having a layer thickness of about 3000 angstroms followed by forming a bpsg layer 148 having a layer thickness of about 4300 angstroms on top of the hdp oxide layer 145 . in fig2 k , a self - aligned contact ( sac ) photoresist mask 149 is applied to carry out a self - aligned contact oxide etch to remove the hdp oxide layer 145 and the bspg layer 148 from the uncovered portion and stop at the top surface of the silicon substrate 110 , where the edge of hdp oxide layer 145 and the bpsg layer 148 after masked etching is substantially aligned to the trench sidewall of the gate pickup trench 115 ′ closer to the active trenches 115 . in fig2 l , a mesa recess etch is performed to etch the silicon substrate to form a mesa recess 155 having a recess depth of about 0 . 3 micrometers . in fig2 m , the photoresist mask 149 is removed followed by a blanket body implantation with boron ions firstly at an energy level between 100 kev and then at 600 kev to form the body regions 150 . in fig2 n , the processes proceeds by carrying out a blanket implantation to form the source regions 160 with arsenide dopant at a doping concentration of about 4e15 cm − 3 and at 80 kev followed by an anneal process at 950 degree celsius for 30 second . in fig2 o , a low temperature oxide deposition is carried out to form a thin oxide layer of about 800 angstroms atop the structure followed by a blanket oxide etching process , for example plasma dry etch , to form an oxide spacer on each side surface of the oxide layer 145 . then , in fig2 p , a contact etch is performed , for example plasma dry etch , to open contact openings 168 with a contact trench depth 0 . 25 micrometers below the mesa surface . as shown in fig2 o , the pair of spacers 165 on top of the mesa between two active trenches 115 are symmetric through the center of the mesa such that the center of the contact opening 168 is substantially aligned with the center of the mesa . however in the mesa between the last active trench 115 and the gate pickup trench 115 ′, the spacer 165 ″ attached to the edge of the oxide layer 145 and the bpsg layer 148 is thicker and higher than the spacers 165 and spacer 165 ′ attached on the side surface of the oxide layer 145 atop of the last active trench 115 such that the center of the contact opening formed by the spacers 165 ′ and 165 ″ is off center of the mesa between the last active trench 115 and the gate pickup trench 115 ′ and closer to the last active trench 115 . the spacer 165 ′ has substantially the same size as the spacer 165 . in fig2 q , a contact implant 170 is formed at the bottom of the contact trenches 168 , for example bf2 dopant with a doping concentration of 1e14 cm − 3 at 20 kev . in fig2 r , a poly pickup contact mask 172 is applied to open a polysilicon pickup contact trench 174 . in fig2 s , the mask 172 is removed followed by a rapid thermal anneal ( rta ) followed by the deposition of the barrier layer on the side surface of the openings 168 and 174 ( not shown ), for example ti / tin barrier layer , then the contact trenches 168 and 174 are filled with tungsten then etched back to form tungsten plugs ( w - plugs ) 180 , 180 ′ and 180 ″, where the center of the source / body contact 180 is substantially aligned with the center of the mesa between two adjacent active trenches 115 and the source / body contact 180 ″ is off center of the mesa closer to the last active trench 115 . in fig2 t , the processes are completed with the formation and patterning of source contact 190 - s and gate pad 190 - g followed by standard passivation formation and patterning processes ( not specifically shown ). as mentioned above , the gap g separating the source metal 190 - s and gate metal 190 - g extends across the edge of the hdp oxide layer 145 and the bpsg layer 148 substantially aligned with the trench sidewall of the gate pickup trench 115 ′ closer to the active trenches 115 . although the present invention has been described in terms of the presently preferred embodiment , it is to be understood that such disclosure is not to be interpreted as limiting . various alterations and modifications will no doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the above disclosure . accordingly , it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as covering all alterations and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention . | 7 |
there is illustrated in fig1 an industrial lift truck 10 of generally conventional construction , including a chassis supported on wheels 11 , 12 and a power lift mechanism 13 . the vehicle 10 is propelled and the lift mechanism 13 is operated by storage batteries ( not shown ) carried in a generally conventional manner within the chassis . the lift mechanism 13 includes a mast assembly 14 on which a fork carriage 16 is vertically guided . within reach of an operator &# 39 ; s station generally surrounding an operator seat 17 are controls for vertically positioning the carriage 16 on the mast assembly 14 and tilting the mast forward and backward a limited degree from the vertical , in accordance with generally conventional practice . a steering wheel 19 , forward of the operator &# 39 ; s seat 17 , operates a pair of rear wheels 12 ( only one is shown in fig1 ). the steering wheel 19 and a column 22 supporting the steering wheel are pivotal between a normal operational position , indicated most clearly in fig3 and a retracted position , indicated in fig5 to provide clearance for removal and replacement of the batteries from the truck chassis . the structure for pivotally supporting the steering column 22 and wheel 19 is known in the prior art and forms no part of the present invention . for purposes of protecting the operator from exposure to the environment in which the truck 10 operates , the truck is fitted with a cab enclosure 30 . the cab 30 includes a space frame or network of elongated structural elements comprising a set of generally vertical corner posts 31 , 32 and a set of four generally horizontal header elements 34 . the corner posts 31 , 32 and header elements 34 may be fabricated of rectangular steel tubing joined by welding or certain elements may be integral and bent into the desired configuration . a steel plate 36 at the horizontal top face of the cab 30 is welded on the headers 34 and provides protection for the operator against falling objects , as well from the environment . the plate 36 may be provided with slots 37 for purposes of overhead vision , and such slots may be covered with a transparent medium , such as acrylic or polycarbonate sheet stock suitably secured on the upper face of the plate 36 . a steel door 38 suitably hinged on the top face of the steel plate 36 provides access to a slot 39 cut into the roof plate . when the door 38 is opened , strands of cable , chain or the like of an overhead hoist may be operated through the slot 39 to vertically hoist the storage batteries from the truck chassis . the horizontal header 34 on the side of the roof plate 36 associated with the slot 39 is sectioned at the slot to provide horizontal passage therethrough . the generally vertical faces of the cab 30 comprise side door panels 41 , a rear panel 42 , and a front panel 43 . in the illustrated case , the side door panels 41 are of a bifold type having separate , generally linear folding sections 46 , 47 . the rearward or port section 47 of each side is pivoted on a continuous hinge 49 fixed to an associated rear corner post 32 . the forward door section 46 is pivoted to the port section 47 on pin hinges 52 . the port door sections 47 are latched closed to the cab by conventional springloaded catches of conventional construction , and the forward or main door sections 46 are latched by commercially available paddle handle latches 54 carried on the door sections to tabs 53 welded to associated front corner posts 31 . the bifold side panel construction enables an operator to open only the forward main door section 46 for his passage and permits full access to the cab interior for battery removal and other service when both panels 42 , 43 are opened . each section 42 , 43 is fabricated from sheet metal material , and includes a window of safety glass or other suitable material carried in elastomeric glass mounting extrusions known in the art . the perimeters of the side door panels are fitted with conventional balloon - type elastomeric seals to form a relatively weathertight seal with adjacent surfaces of the cab 30 or truck 10 . the front panel 43 is a generally planar structure comprising a frame 56 fabricated of sheet steel and suitable stiffening members 57 and a windshield 58 of safety glass or other transparent sheet material . the windshield 58 is mounted , like the side lights , in elastomeric extrusions . as illustrated , the windshield 58 comprises the majority of the area of the front panel 43 to provide a high degree of forward visibility for the operator . as indicated in fig5 when the steering wheel 19 is manually shifted to its retracted position , it passes forward through the plane normally occupied by the front cab panel 43 . to permit movement of the steering wheel 19 , the front panel 43 is movably mounted on the cab to enable it to be shifted forwardly of its normal closed position lapped on the front corner posts 31 , associated header 34 , and a cowl plate 61 . the mounting arrangement affording this front panel movement includes a continuous hinge 62 interposed between the front panel 43 and an associated corner post 31 . the hinge 62 provides a pivot axis for the front panel 43 which is substantially vertical , although it is ideally slightly canted to the rear , for example , being parallel to the associated corner posts 31 . the slight rearward cant of the hinge axis causes the front panel 43 to be biased by the force of gravity to its closed position where it abuts and seals with the front corner posts 31 , adjacent header 34 , and cowl plate 61 . a rod 63 is provided to maintain the front panel 43 in its open position . the rod 63 is pivotally affixed to a stiffening channel 57 of the front panel frame 56 by a bolt extending through the channel and a slot in the upper end of the rod . when propping the front panel 43 in its open position , the lower end of the rod 63 is positioned in a blind hole formed in a boss 64 welded to the adjacent front corner post 31 ( fig8 ). in the storage position of the rod 63 , its lower end is disposed in a hole 65 in a lower stiffening channel 57 of the front panel frame 56 . in its closed position , the front panel 43 is latched by a bolt 67 biased by a spring 68 into a hole formed in the adjacent header 34 ( fig9 ). the latch bolt 67 is manually operated by depressing the bolt through a finger grip extension 69 . a handle 71 bolted to the front side of the front panel 43 adjacent the edge opposite the hinge 62 facilitates opening and closing of this panel . the cowl plate 61 underlying the front panel 43 is a generally planar steel plate which is affixed to the front corner posts 31 by bolts or other suitable means . on a side of the cowl 61 adjacent the front panel hinge 62 is a wiper motor unit 74 and blade assembly 75 . the wiper motor 74 is a typical design of commercially available units incorporating an electric motor and having an oscillating output shaft 76 ( fig5 ). the wiper unit 74 is fixed to the cowl 61 with screws or other suitable means . the blade assembly 75 is also a typical design of commercially available units having an arm with its lower end mounted on the free end of the output shaft 76 and a wiper blade 78 carried on its opposite free end . in accordance with conventional practice , the wiper arm 77 has a knee or clevis joint 79 above the motor shaft 76 but below the lower edge of the adjacent area of the front panel 43 , and includes a spring ( not shown ) biasing the arm 77 about the joint 79 towards the windshield 58 . the axis of the joint 79 is perpendicular to the shaft 76 and generally parallel to the front panel 43 . when it is desired to retract the steering wheel 19 for battery access , it is first necessary to open the front panel 43 to its clearance position . it will be understood from the foregoing description that this is accomplished by manually depressing the finger grip 69 to release the latch bolt 67 on the front panel 43 and thereafter urging the front panel forwardly until it assumes the position of fig2 and 5 . the lower end of the prop rod 63 is removed from the retaining hole 65 and is inserted into the corner post boss 64 . the length of the rod 63 is such that it holds the front panel in a position where its area immediately adjacent to the steering wheel 19 is forward of the extreme forward position of the steering wheel when the latter is fully retracted . since the axis of the hinge 62 is at the side of the cab furthest from the steering wheel , there is only a limited degree of forward overtravel of the free side edge 81 of the front panel 43 opposite this hinge 62 , so that the potential for interference of this free side edge with the mast is reduced . as indicated in fig5 the front panel and hinge interrelationship with the mast 14 allows this free edge 81 to pass through the plane of the mast without obstruction . since it does so at points laterally outside of the lateral extent of the mast . thus , the geometry of the front panel hinge reduces problems of interference with the mast and requires less restriction on the tilt of the mast 14 when it is desired to open the front panel 43 . from the drawings , it will be understood that the wiper arm 77 is automatically caused to withdraw with opening movement of the front panel 43 . a lower edge 82 of the front panel 43 engages directly with the arm 77 and causes the latter to pivot on its knee joint 79 . the requisite deflection of the arm 77 is reduced by the strategic location of the wiper motor shaft 76 adjacent the side of the cab at which the front panel hinge 62 is located . that is , at the locus of contact between the wiper arm 77 and the lower edge 82 of the front panel 43 , there is only a relatively small amount of movement of the lower edge as compared to the degree of movement , for example , of the front panel near the steering wheel 19 . as a result of the fixed location of the wiper motor 74 on the fixed cowl 61 , the electrical wiring to this unit is simplified , since the wiring can be fixed directly to the cowl plate 61 without free loops which might otherwise be required where the motor unit was mounted to the movable front panel 43 . still further , the location of the wiper motor in the lower area of the cab avoids obstruction of vision at the upper regions of the windshield 58 or slots 37 . as discussed above , the side door panels 41 and front panel 43 are hung in such a manner that they lap over the associated corner posts 31 , 32 and headers 34 . during the manufacture of the chassis of the truck 10 , mounting points are ordinarily provided for securing the corner posts 31 , 32 or their equivalents to the chassis . where such mounting points comprise preformed holes for reception of bolts to be threaded onto the corner posts 31 , 32 or extensions thereof , it may occur during production of the truck that such mounting holes vary in position within a range of tolerance which is expected to be taken up by provisions on the corner posts 31 , 32 or their equivalents . fig7 illustrates one manner in which a rear corner post 32 may be fastened to a casting 86 comprising a part of the chassis of the vehicle 10 . the casting 86 is provided with a generally vertical mounting hole 87 . the cab 30 is set on the truck 10 with a lower face 88 of a rear corner post 32 abutting a top surface of the casting . the corner post 32 has a steel block 89 welded or otherwise fixed within its lower end . the block is fabricated with an internally threaded , generally vertical hole 91 . when the threaded hole 91 is aligned with the casting hole 87 , a bolt 92 is inserted from beneath the casting and threaded into the block to affix the corner post to the casting . because of manufacturing tolerances in either the truck 10 or cab 30 , it may be necessary to spread the individual corner posts 31 , 32 relative to one another longitudinally and / or laterally of the truck to make the respective casting holes align with the corner post threaded holes 91 . since the side door panels 41 and front panel 43 are lapped over these corner posts 31 , 32 they pose no restriction to such limited movement of the corner posts . with reference to fig6 and 7 , there is provided a rear cab panel 96 having a light 97 in its central region . the light or rear windshield 97 , like the side lights , is formed of safety glass or other transparent sheet material mounted in a rubber extruded gasket . as illustrated in fig6 the rear panel 96 is affixed to the roof plate 36 or adjacent header 34 by welding or the like across its horizontal upper edge . the vertical edges 98 of the rear panel 96 are adjustably secured to associated rear corner posts 32 by bolts 99 disposed in horizontal slots punched or otherwise formed in the rear panel and threaded into the wall of the rear corner posts 32 . the slots 102 are centered on the nominal center of the bolts 99 so that lateral or horizontal shifting of the rear corner posts 32 towards or away from one another to account for the actual production spacing of the casting holes 87 associated with these corner posts will be accommodated by the slots 102 . once the bolts 92 holding the corner posts 31 , 32 to the truck are tightened , the rear panel retaining bolts 99 can be fully tightened to draw the rear panel tight to the rear corner posts 32 . although the preferred embodiment of this invention has been shown and described , it should be understood that various modifications and rearrangements of parts may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the invention as disclosed and claimed herein . | 1 |
at the outset , it should be clearly understood that like reference numerals are intended to identify the same structural elements , portions or surfaces consistently throughout the several drawing figures , as such elements , portions or surfaces may be further described or explained by the entire written specification , of which this detailed description is an integral part . unless otherwise indicated , the drawings are intended to be read ( e . g ., arrangement of parts , proportion , degree , etc .) together with the specification , and are to be considered a portion of the entire written description of this invention . as used in the following description , the terms “ horizontal ”, “ vertical ”, “ inner ”, “ outer ”, “ up ” and “ down ”, as well as adjectival and adverbial derivatives thereof ( e . g . “ horizontally ”, “ rightwardly ”, “ upwardly ”, etc . ), or similar terms , simply refer to the orientation of the illustrated structure as the particular drawing figure faces the reader . similarly , the terms “ inwardly ” and “ outwardly ” generally refer to the orientation of a surface relative to its axis of elongation , or axis of rotation , as appropriate . in a first preferred embodiment of the present invention , corresponding to ac sinusoidal excitation of a magnetic component having a fixed number of winding layers and a fixed number of turns per winding layer , one or more of the following steps are performed to calculate or determine a desired winding layer thickness in one or more magnetic windings : a . identify the current magnitude and phase for each winding in the magnetic component . b . using ampere &# 39 ; s law , calculate the boundary conditions of peak magnetic surface field intensity and phase at each winding layer boundary . c . for each winding layer , determine the ratio of opposing peak magnetic surface field magnitudes ( r n ) and the relative phase displacement , φ n = φ n − φ n − 1 . d . for each winding layer , determine the value of b ( b optimum ) which minimizes the loss function , f ( h , r , b , φ ), set forth in fig3 . after applying the loss function , optimum or desired conductor thickness is then equal to b optimum * δ ( skin depth ). e . use one or more of the following methods to find the minimum or desired values of the loss function : i . plot f ( h , r , b , φ ) as a function of b and find the minimum by inspection . ii . use a computer program to calculate the loss function for a range of potential conductor thicknesses , and select the conductor thickness which yields minimum or desired loss function value . iii . for the case of r = 0 , b optimum = π / 2 . iv . for the case of r =− 1 and φ = 0 , b optimum = π . v . for the case of r = 1 and φ = 0 , b optimum = 0 ( no incremental macroscopic current in the conductor layer ). vi . for the case of r & gt ; 1 and φ = 0 , determine b using the equation : cosh ( b )= r * cos ( b ). vii . for the case of r & gt ; 1 and cos ( φ )& gt ; 0 , determine b using the equation : [ r 2 + 1 ]/ r =[ cos ( b )/ cosh ( b )+ cosh ( b )/ cos ( b )]* cos ( φ ). viii . for the general case , determine b using the function : r cos ( φ ) sin ( b ) [ sinh ( b ) [ 4cos 2 ( b )+ 1 ]+ sinh ( 3 b )]−[ r 2 + 1 ] sin ( 2 b ) sinh ( 2 b )= 0 . b optimum is given by the first positive zero of this function . in each case , physical and / or manufacturing constraints , among other things , may affect the selection of b , and , therefore , winding layer thickness . fig4 is a chart representing an example of the application of this embodiment to determine winding layer thickness in a magnetic component having three windings . more specifically , this example relates to a transformer having one primary ( winding 3 ) and two secondary ( winding 1 and winding 2 ) windings , with an assumed load current in each secondary winding of 1 amp ; an assumed primary excitation current at no load of 1 amp ; a winding length in each winding of 0 . 1 m ( corresponding to element 1 in fig1 ); six winding layers ; and six turns per winding layer . current phase in windings 1 , 2 and 3 is − 1 . 3 , 0 . 5 and 2 . 23 radians , respectively , with the phase in winding 3 derived from assumed values in windings 1 and 2 in consideration of the no load primary excitation current . from the secondary load currents , the magnitude of the current in the primary winding ( winding 3 ), 1 . 88 amps , is calculated using the condition of load ampere - turn equivalence to determine the primary load current component . the total primary current is the vector sum of the primary load current component and the primary no load excitation current component . b , the ratio between winding layer thickness and skin depth , is initially assumed to be 2 . the magnitude and phase of peak magnetic surface field intensities below and above each layer ( h below and h above in fig4 ) are determined from the following expressions : wherein { right arrow over ( h )} n equals h n cos ( ωt + φ n ) and { right arrow over ( i )} n equals { right arrow over ( i )} n cos ( ωt +⊖ n ), ω is the radial frequency and φ n and ⊖ n are phase values . fig2 illustrates { right arrow over ( h )} n for an example winding layer 10 . notably , in fig4 , the magnitude and phase of the magnetic surface field intensity above layer number 1 , for example , is equal to the intensity below layer number 2 , as expected . the ratio of opposing magnetic surface field intensities ( h above / h below in the example ) is then computed as well as phase shift . in the example of fig4 , normalized dissipation values are then computed for each winding layer . these normalized values are determined from the power loss function , f ( h , r , b , φ ), defined in fig4 . the dissipation of each element is referenced to a common value . therefore , in this example , the normalized dissipation has a value of 100 %. to determine the desired winding layer configuration , the expression in step e . vii . above , for the general case , was plotted . the improved ( desired or optimum ) value for b was then determined as the value for b which caused the first positive zero of the expression . the bottom portion of the chart in fig4 sets forth the winding layer thicknesses ( in terms of b ) and related boundary conditions for the improved magnetic component . notably , each winding layer has a different thickness and the power dissipation is reduced by 16 . 7 percent . in this example , number of layers and turns per layer were held fixed so boundary conditions are unchanged . further , no specific skin depth was presented since the utilized expression is not dependent upon skin depth , only b . although true power is indeed a function of skin depth , actual skin depth is irrelevant because the results in this example are displayed in a normalized comparison . in another preferred embodiment , corresponding to nonsinusoidal excitation having fourier harmonic components ( which may include dc ) and fixed winding layers and a fixed number of turns per winding layer , one or more of the following steps are performed to determine a desired winding layer thickness : a . identify the current waveform for each winding in the magnetic component . b . using fourier decomposition , evaluate the harmonic components of each current waveform , noting magnitude and phase for each harmonic component . c . using computer iteration , vary the thickness of each winding layer to determine the conductor thickness which minimizes total harmonic dissipation in each layer . i . using the respective harmonic components of each winding current , apply ampere &# 39 ; s law to evaluate the peak magnetic surface field intensity and phase at each winding layer boundary for each harmonic frequency . ii . for each layer , and at each harmonic frequency , determine the ratio of opposing magnetic surface field magnitudes and the relative phase displacement . iii . for each layer , calculate the respective harmonic dissipations using the loss function , f ( h , r , b , φ ), applied to each harmonic boundary condition . for a dc component of current , i dc , in a winding layer of n turns and winding thickness t , the normalized dc power loss function is : iv . calculate the total harmonic dissipation in each layer by summing the dissipations for each harmonic frequency . v . for each layer , determine the thickness which minimizes the total harmonic dissipation . each of these steps ( as with the steps in the other disclosed embodiments ) may be performed with the aid of a computer , or through computer software or code , and may be performed manually . in another preferred embodiment , corresponding to nonsinusoidal excitation having fourier harmonic components ( including dc ) and a variable number of winding layers and a variable number of turns per winding layer , one or more of the following steps are performed to determine desired winding parameters comprising winding layer thickness , the number of winding layers and the number of turns per winding layer : a . identify the current waveform for each winding in the magnetic component . b . using fourier decomposition , evaluate the harmonic components of each current waveform , noting magnitude and phase for each harmonic component . c . using computer iteration , vary the number of layers , the number of turns per layer , and the conductor thickness of each winding layer to determine the configuration which minimizes total winding dissipation . i . for each considered combination of winding layer ( s ) and number ( s ) of turns per layer , apply ampere &# 39 ; s law to evaluate the magnetic surface field intensity and phase at each conductor layer boundary for each harmonic frequency , using the respective harmonic components of each winding current . ii . for each considered winding layer ( s ) and number ( s ) of turns per layer , and at each harmonic frequency , determine the ratio of opposing surface field magnitudes and the relative phase displacement . iii . for each considered combination of winding layer ( s ) and number ( s ) of turns per layer , calculate the respective harmonic dissipations using the loss function , f ( h , r , b , φ ), applied to each harmonic boundary condition . for a dc component of current , the normalized power loss function is expressed as fdc above . iv . for each considered combination of layer ( s ) and number ( s ) of turns per layer , calculate the total harmonic dissipation by summing the dissipations for each harmonic frequency . v . for each considered combination of layer ( s ) and number ( s ) of turns per layer , determine the thickness which minimizes the total harmonic dissipation . vi . evaluate the minimum dissipation for all other considered combinations of winding layers and number of turns per layer using this method . vii . determine the particular winding configuration ( number of layers , respective turns per layer , and respective conductor layer thicknesses ) which yields minimum total loss . as in each embodiment , the winding parameters selected may be limited by cost , manufacturing or physical constraints , or by a specification such as leakage inductance or capacitance . fig5 is a chart representing an example of the application of this embodiment to determine a desired number of winding layers , turns per layer and winding layer thickness for a transformer having one primary ( winding 2 ) and one secondary ( winding 1 ) winding . this problem assumed a variable number of winding layers and turns per winding layer . the example also assumed a load current of 1 amp and a corresponding current in the primary winding of 1 . 41 amps considering an assumed primary no load current of 1 amp . winding length 1 is 0 . 1 meters . the current phase in windings 1 and 2 is 0 . 0 and 2 . 36 radians , respectively . in this example , the method of this embodiment was applied to only one winding ( winding 2 ). b was initially assumed to be 1 . 57 for each of two winding layers . the desired configuration was determined as follows : a specific configuration of number of layers and turns per layer was selected . for the resultant corresponding boundary conditions of r and φ , the desired winding layer thickness was determined by plotting the expression in step e . vii . the improved ( desired or optimum ) value for b was determined as the value for b which caused the first positive zero of the expression . the bottom portion of the chart in fig5 , labeled “ after improvement ,” sets forth the winding layer parameters and related boundary conditions for the improved magnetic component , after applying the method of this embodiment . in this example , power dissipation is improved by 55 percent . one significant aspect of the resulting improved configuration is that the number of turns per layer differs in the three resulting layers , and dissipation is significantly improved . this alone distinguishes from the prior art . while there has been described what is believed to be the preferred embodiment of the present invention , those skilled in the art will recognize that other and further changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention . for example , the method of the present invention may be applied irrespective of conductor geometry and manufacturing or other physical or cost constraints . further , all or portions of the inventive method may be applied to all or portions of a magnetic component . therefore , the invention is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described herein . accordingly , persons skilled in this art will readily appreciate that various additional changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention , as defined and differentiated by the following claims . in addition , the terminology and phraseology used herein is for purposes of description and should not be regarded as limiting . | 8 |
a ps / pdi system implementing the null test is illustrated in fig1 a . the system includes a source of electromagnetic radiation 17 which directs a beam 19 onto an entrance pinhole 16 located in mask 14 that is placed in the object plane of the optical system 22 . if the entrance pinhole is sufficiently small , the electromagnetic radiation 15 emitted through the entrance pinhole 16 is spatially coherent and essentially spherical . to this end , the entrance pinhole 16 is chosen to be several times smaller than the resolution limit of the optical system . the optical system 22 under test is illuminated by the essentially spherical wave 15 . beam divider 28 , e . g ., a transmission grating , splits the illuminating beam 15 to create the required test and reference beams 110 and 112 , respectively . a null - mask 120 comprising pinholes 121 and 122 is placed in the image plane of the optical system 22 to block the unwanted diffracted orders generated by the beam divider 28 and to spatially filter the test and reference beams 110 and 112 , respectively . positioned downstream is a fixed reference coordinate system 118 that functions as a reference to which the image point pair and the pinhole pair can be independently aligned . examples of fixed reference coordinate systems include a camera with a photosensitive film , and a vidicon camera ; a preferred fixed reference coordinate system is a charged - couple device ( ccd ). the test and reference beams propagate to the mixing plane where they overlap to create an interference pattern recorded on the ccd detector 18 . fig1 b depicts a null - mask 30 comprising first and second pinholes 31 and 32 , that are preferably identical in size , and an alignment window 33 . ( null - mask 30 is a detailed proportionally correct view of null - mask 120 of fig1 a .) each pinhole is usually in the 50 to 150 - nm diameter range and they are created by electron beam lithography and reactive ion etching . in one embodiment , the mask comprises a 200 - nm thick ni absorbing layer evaporated on a 100 nm si 3 n 4 membrane . the null - mask features are etched completely through the membrane prior to the ni evaporation . thus , the pinholes are completely open in the finished null - mask , which maximizes their transmission . fig1 a shows that the initial orientation of the pinholes 121 and 122 is set by the rotation of the null - mask 120 and the separation of the pinholes 121 and 122 is fixed . in order to achieve alignment between the image point pair and the pinhole pair , rotation control of the grating or mask and longitudinal position control of the grating are required as further described herein . ps / pdi systems may be configured many different ways . the source of electromagnetic radiation may be , for example , a laser or some other quasi - monochromatic source . if the source of radiation provides a spherical wave , the interferometer does not need to include the entrance pinhole through which radiation passes before it illuminates the test optic as described above . the beam divider is preferably , though not necessarily , located between the source of electromagnetic radiation and the test optic region . examples of suitable beam dividers include reflection type diffraction gratings , transmission type diffraction gratings , and polarization beamsplitters . the preferred method for achieving rotational and separation alignment is by control of the beam divider . the beam divider can , for example , be mounted on a rotation stage with height control . in this case , the stage could be used to control the beam divider rotational orientation which would in turn control the image point rotational orientation and the stage could also control the separation between the beam divider and the entrance pinhole which would in turn control the image point separation . it is convenient for the stage to be controllable in situ . for certain applications such as extreme ultraviolet interferometry , where the system under test must be placed in vacuum , in situ control requires the stage motion to be in - vacuum motor actuated or manually actuated with vacuum feed - throughs . the invention facilitates the proper alignment of the two image points in the image plane to the two pinholes in the null - mask . fig1 a illustrates that ( i ) the orientation of the image points created by the test and reference beams 110 and 112 and null - mask 120 is related to the orientation of the grating 18 and concomitantly ( ii ) the distance between the image points is related to the distance separating the entrance pinhole 16 and the grating 18 . in a preferred embodiment , adjusting the orientation of the image points is accomplished by moving the grating 18 along rotation angle as shown . moreover , adjusting the distance between the image points is accomplished by moving the grating 18 away or toward the input pinhole 16 . as the separation , z , between the grating 18 and the entrance pinhole 16 increases , the distance between image points increases . by proper control of the grating orientation and the grating - to - entrance - pinhole separation , the image points can be aligned with the pinholes 121 and 122 in null - test mask 120 . fig2 shows another embodiment null - mask design which includes an array of null - masks each comprising dual pinholes and an alignment window . the array is used to facilitate the alignment and to allow a variety of pinholes to be studied without going through the extended task of changing masks . the null - mask comprises a plurality of pinhole pairs 51 and 52 and corresponding alignment or reference windows 50 . the arrangement of the null - masks along row 56 are staggered in height to prevent higher grating orders from passing through adjacent null - mask pinholes . square windows of dimensions preferably much larger than the image point size are placed above and below the pinhole pairs for x - y alignment purposes . typically , the window width is set equal to the image - plane point separation . implementing the null test using the mask design of fig2 requires residual transmission through the mask in order to determine the grating - induced image point separation and orientation . the transmission method is effective down to pinhole sizes of ˜ 100 nm because at this pinhole size or larger , a 200 nm ni mask provides sufficient attenuation to observe the two - pinhole fringes , yet enough transmission to observe the transmission - fringes when the image points are moved away from the pinholes . however , when smaller pinholes are used , a more attenuating mask is required to prevent the residual transmission from overpowering the extremely small amount of light diffracted by the pinholes . this additional attenuation , unfortunately , also makes observing the grating transmission - fringes impossible due to detector limitations . in order to overcome the high - attenuation problem , null - masks with alignment features can be used as described herein . another problem that arises when going to smaller pinholes with the mask design in fig2 is the relatively large alignment windows and their close proximity to the pinhole pairs . this allows an inordinate amount of scattered light to propagate through open areas in the mask when compared to the extremely small amount of light getting through the sub - 100 - nm pinholes . using fewer and smaller alignment windows and placing them farther apart alleviates this problem . the principle purpose of these windows is to provide easy - to - find references that are known distances from the pinhole pairs . fig3 a , 3b and 3c show a null - mask array 65 that is particularly suited for small pinhole (& lt ; 100 nm diameter ) null tests . referring to the third column of null - mask array 65 , the array includes a plurality of pinhole pairs 61 and 62 ( 4 . 5 μm on center apart ) and a corresponding alignment window 60 which is located about 75 μm away from the pinhole pair . similarly , pinhole pairs 63 and 64 are associated with alignment window 70 . to reduce the scattered light problem , the alignment windows 60 ( 2 . 25 μm × 2 . 25 μm ) have been reduced by a factor of two in size relative to the mask design in fig2 and their separation from the closest pinhole pair has been increased from 37 . 5 μm to 72 . 5 μm . in addition , the column to column separation has been increased from 40 μm to 50 μm . in order to maintain the density of null - masks in the array , two null - masks have been placed between each alignment window pair . this method could readily be extended to further increase the null - mask density in the array . as discussed above , the smaller pinholes require a higher absorption mask ; this is achieved by increasing the absorber ( ni ) thickness from 200 nm to 240 nm . at 240 nm of ni the mask transmission is only ˜ 10 - 7 for the 13 . 4 nm wavelength light used in the implementation described here , making transmission - fringes impossible to detect on a ccd . to overcome this problem , grating alignment aids have been added to the null - mask array . these aids are windows 82 at the top left and 92 bottom right corners of the array that are adjacent to alignment windows 80 and 90 , respectively . windows 80 , 82 and 90 , 92 , respectively , form two pairs of 2 . 25 μm windows separated by 4 . 5 μm on center in the direction of the pinhole separation . these window pairs allow two grating orders to pass unobstructed through the mask . these two grating orders are then used to perform the grating alignment instead of relying on the transmission fringes . the extra alignment windows orthogonal to the pinhole separation , 81 and 91 , have been added as visual alignment marks for the initial mounting of the null - mask array . if scatter is of little concern , it could be beneficial to replace all the single reference windows with reference window pairs as illustrated in fig4 a , 4b and 4c . the null - mask 165 has substantially the same elements as those of null - mask 65 but further include reference windows pair such as , for example , pairs 60 and 95 , 70 and 96 , and 100 and 97 . in this case , the grating alignment could be performed in many more places in the array , thereby , reducing the required time for moving from the pinhole orientation characterization mode to the grating orientation characterization mode . another significant problem with performing null tests using very small pinholes is focusing . in order to get a reasonable amount of light to pass through sub - 100 - nm pinholes , focusing is crucial . with the conventional mask design , focusing is achieved by performing a &# 34 ; knife - edge &# 34 ; test using a reference window edge . in this technique , a knife - edge is scanned across the focus of the optic under test . the intensity of radiation passing by the knife - edge is monitored . a transition region is observed between maximum intensity ( when the beam passes by free of the knife - edge ) and minimum intensity ( when the beam is completely blocked by the knife - edge ). the width of this transition region roughly gauges the quality of the focus , with a smaller transition region corresponding to a sharper focus . in practice , the width of the measured transition depends both on the size of the focused image point and on the quality of the knife - edge . when trying to achieve the extremely tight focus required for performing the null test with small pinholes , this method does not provide sufficient accuracy . furthermore , this method is very time consuming . the enhanced mask array designs described in fig3 and 4 have addressed the focusing problem by converting all the simple alignment windows to ps / pdi masks with 150 - nm reference pinholes . these ps / pdi masks allow conventional ps / pdi interferometry to be performed in order to focus accurately . focus is achieved by interferometrically measuring the wavefront , determining the zernike defocus term , and adjusting the image - plane mask height position in order to null - out the zernike defocus term and , hence , bring the system into the best possible focus . as is appreciated by those skilled in the art , the electromagnetic radiation employed in the ps / pdi is not limited to soft x - rays ( also referred to as extreme ultraviolet ) since the radiation wavelength will depend on the particular application . indeed , the wavelength can range , for instance , from about 5 nm to 1500 nm . as a consequence , the dimensions of the pinhole in the entrance mask , of the pinholes in the null - mask , and of the alignment windows will depend on the wavelength of the radiation used . typically , the pinholes in the null - mask can have a diameter in the range from about 5 nm to 2000 nm and the alignment windows can have an area ranging from about 1 μm 2 to 0 . 36 mm 2 . for euv photolithography , the radiation employed typically has a short wavelength in the range of about 5 nm to 15 nm and in current prototype systems has a wavelength of about 13 . 4 nm . when employing radiation of this short wavelength , the pinholes in the null - mask typically range from about 50 nm to 150 nm in diameter and are preferably less than about 120 nm . also , the alignment windows have an area typically 4 μm 2 to 25 μm 2 and preferably less than 16 μm 2 . it should be particularly noted that all the specific window sizes , pinhole sizes , and separations stated here have been chosen based on our implementation of testing 0 . 1 na euv lithographic optical systems . the optimal parameters will vary as a function of application . in general , the null mask pinholes should be smaller than the diffraction limited point - spread function ( psf ) of the optical system under test . the size of the ps / pdi mask pinholes used for focusing should be on the order of the size of the psf of the optical system under test or smaller . finally , the reference and grating alignment windows should be significantly larger the psf of the optical system under test . a preferred method of performing image point separation and orientation measurements employs a partially transmitting mask . typically , the semi - transparent mask has a surface made of material that transmits about 10 - 3 to 10 - 7 of the incident electromagnetic power of the radiation . a preferred technique of measuring the pinhole separation and orientation is by determining the spatial frequency and orientation of fringes created by light diffracted by the two pinholes . this is most readily done by fourier domain analysis . the two - pinhole fringes are easily recognized because they are present outside the numerical aperture ( na ) of the optic under test due to the fact that in the ps / pdi the reference pinhole size is always chosen to be significantly smaller than the diffraction limited resolution limit of the optic under test . this in turn causes the pinhole diffracted light to cover a larger area of the ccd than would light simply imaged by the optic under test . because the preferred method employs the two - pinhole fringes to align the image points to the pinholes , the question of capture tolerance ( how to get close enough to the pinholes to see the initial two - pinhole fringes ) is considered . the alignment technique has a capture range limited by the spot size of the optic . with careful pre - alignment and mask design , this capture alignment can readily be achieved . for example , with a typical euv lithographic system , this capture tolerance can be shown to be about one degree for the grating relative to image - plane mask rotation and about 1 . 5 mm for the grating - to - entrance - pinhole separation . as described above , the particular method presented here is intended for the nanometer level alignment required to perform a meaningful null test . with the system pre - aligned to capture tolerances , the image points are maneuvered to a pinhole pair in the image - plane mask array or vice versa in x - y . this is achieved by employing the large , easy to find , alignment windows on the mask and moving a prescribed distance to a pinhole pair . the actual motion can be performed in several ways including moving the optic alone thereby moving the image points relative to the mask , moving the optic and image - plane mask as a unit thereby moving the image points relative to the mask , or moving the image - plane mask alone . in interferometers where the object - plane illumination is broad or movable , it is also possible to move the image points relative to the mask by moving the entrance pinhole . in a preferred embodiment , the optic and image - plane stage are moved as a unit due to the optical demagnification this configuration provides compared to moving the optic or image - plane stage alone . for the 10 × demagnification system considered here , this allows us to achieve a relative motion resolution between the image points and the mask that is ten times better than the actual mechanical resolution of the system . this is equivalent to moving the entrance pinhole alone , however , with an essentially immobile optical source ( e . g ., a synchrotron undulator beamline ) moving the entrance pinhole is impractical . in the case of a more conventional optical source , such as an optical fiber , it may be preferable to move the entrance pinhole instead of the rest of the system . having measured the separation and orientation of the pinholes , as described above , there is now a target for the image point separation and orientation . the image point separation and orientation is determined by the grating and can be quantified by measuring the fringes present in the absence of the null - mask . because it is impractical to remove and accurately replace the null - mask , it is desirable to measure the grating based fringes with the mask in place . this can be achieved by way of a partially transparent mask . 200 - nm thick ni absorber masks currently used for extreme ultraviolet ps / pdi with reference pinholes greater than 100 nm in diameter meet this criterion . the transmission of a 200 - nm ni mask at 13 . 4 nm , however , is less than 10 - 6 , therefore care must be taken to design a mask that has sufficiently large feature - free areas such that the transmitted light fringes (&# 34 ; transmission - fringes &# 34 ;) can be observed relative to the scattered light from the optic making it through open mask areas such as alignment windows . this becomes less of an issue as the quality of the optic , in terms of scatter , improves . in order to observe the transmission fringes , the image points must be moved away from the pinholes by , for example , translating the optic and image - plane mask unit as described above . the image - plane mask design is setup in such a way that there are large feature free areas adjacent to the pinhole pairs allowing the transition from viewing two - pinhole fringes to viewing transmission - fringes to occur quickly . in another method , where a partially transparent mask is not available or not practical , select window pairs are used to observe the transmission fringes . in this case , the image points are moved to a window pair and the resulting fringes are observed . to study the effectiveness of the null test alignment technique , a ps / pdi system as shown in fig1 a was employed . the optical system used was a two mirror system comprising a 10 ×- demagnification schwarzchild objective with numerical aperture of 0 . 08 ( image side ) and measured system wavefront aberration magnitude on the order of 1 nm root - mean - squared ( rms ). placed approximately 60 mm from the entrance pinhole on the 0 . 008 na ( object side ) of the test optic is a square - wave transmission grating beam splitter with 18 - micron pitch , producing approximately 50 fringes within the measurement numerical aperture . the grating is mounted to a motor - actuated stage that provides both rotation and height control . the electromagnetic radiation source which provided coherent illumination was a synchrontron undulator beamline source ( cxro beamline 12 . 0 . 1 . 2 at the advanced light source , lawrence berkeley national laboratory ) operating at a wavelength of 13 . 4 nm with a bandwidth λ / δλ of about 200 . the null - mask employed was that illustrated in fig4 . the detector is a back - thinned , back - illuminated euv ccd detector positioned 132 mm downstream from the image - plane mask . fig5 ( a )- 5 ( d ) illustrate the fourier domain alignment technique described above . fig5 ( a ) shows a representative two - pinhole fringe pattern prior to alignment . these fringes are obtained by positioning the image point pair in close proximity to a pinhole pair in the image - plane mask . the positioning must simply be accurate enough such that at least part of the first image point light gets through the first pinhole and at least part of the second image point light gets through the second pinhole . fringes obtained under these conditions are seen to nearly extend to the edges of the ccd , which is beyond the na of the optic under test as seen by the optic exit pupil outline in fig5 ( c ). fig5 ( b ) shows the fourier transform of the two - pinhole fringe pattern clearly calling out the 2 - d carrier frequency , hence the spatial frequency and orientation of the fringes . the pinhole orientation is seen to be well aligned to the ccd . fig5 ( c ) shows a representative transmission - fringe pattern . these fringes are obtained by positioning the first and second image points in an at least partially transparent region of the image - plane mask . the contrast is extremely low due to the high attenuation of the mask used here . the fringes are seen to be limited to the area set by the na of the optic under test . fig5 ( d ) shows the fourier transform again calling out the 2 - d carrier which this time represents the grating alignment . the rotation of the grating relative to the ccd is evident and can be quantified allowing the proper adjustments to the grating or mask orientation to be made . in this experiment , the adjustments were performed by rotating the grating in order to get the transmission - fringes to match the two - pinhole fringes . alternatively , one could rotate the image - plane mask to get the two - pinhole fringes to match the transmission fringes . having corrected the orientation , there remains the issue of image point separation relative to pinhole separation . although the separation information is present in the data of fig5 ( a )- 5 ( d ) and both the orientation and separation misalignments may be corrected at the same time , the process is separated in this discussion for the sake of clarity . fig6 shows line - outs of fourier transforms of the two - pinhole fringe spectrum and transmission - fringe spectrum after correction of the grating orientation . the solid line is the two - pinhole pattern and the dashed line is the grating pattern . note the increased power of the higher order terms in the dashed line ( transmission fringes ) due to the square wave grating . these higher order terms are less evident in the two - pinhole fringe case as the fringes are dominated by light originating from the two pinholes as opposed to all the grating orders . the separation of the carrier term ( the first non - centered peaks to the left and right of center ) for the two cases is indicative of the grating - to - object - pinhole separation error . the required correction can be readily determined from the known geometry of the system . the correction is made by moving the grating longitudinally ( z ). fig7 shows the two - pinhole interferogram after completion of the alignment . the dramatic improvement over the two - pinhole fringes obtained with only capture - tolerance alignment ( fig5 ( a )) is evident . the accuracy of this alignment technique is limited by the repeatability in the measurement of the interferometric tilt terms . this repeatability has experimentally been found to be about 3 . 3 nm ( 3 ) for the two - pinhole fringes and ˜ 0 . 9 nm ( 3 ) for the transmission fringes , yielding an alignment accuracy of 3 . 4 nm ( 3 ). the counterintuitive larger error with the higher contrast two - pinhole fringes is most likely due to the pinholes not being small enough to completely remove the tilt term of the illuminating spot . although only preferred embodiments of the invention are specifically disclosed and described above , it will be appreciated that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings and within the purview of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and intended scope of the invention . | 6 |
fig1 illustrates a cross - section of a preferred embodiment of an umbilical according to the present inventions . a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises an inner section 10 comprising at least two inner tubes 12 . in one preferred embodiment , the inner section comprises at least three inner tubes arranged in a triangular configuration wherein a composite fiber element is positioned between each pair of adjacent inner tubes , as illustrated in fig1 . in another preferred embodiment , the inner section has a circular cross sectional area , as shown in fig1 . this embodiment further comprises a composite fiber element 30 positioned between the two inner tubes and a composite tape 16 surrounding the inner section . a preferred embodiment of the invention further comprises an outer annular section 18 surrounding the composite tape and comprising at least one outer tube 20 and one transmission cable 22 . in one preferred embodiment , the transmission cable is electrically conductive . in another preferred embodiment , the transmission cable is a fiber optic cable . this embodiment of the invention further comprises a composite fiber element 30 positioned between the outer tube and the transmission cable , and an outer wall 24 surrounding the outer annular section . in another preferred embodiment , the inner section is concentrically located , relative to the outer annular section , as shown in fig1 . in another preferred embodiment , the outer wall has a circular cross section . in a preferred embodiment , each composite fiber element has a cross sectional area comprising a central elongated region 32 comprising a first end 34 , and a second end 36 . in this preferred embodiment , the composite fiber element further comprises a first flared region 37 connected to the first end , and a second flared region 38 , connected to the second end , as shown in fig1 . in another preferred embodiment , each flared region is circular . in yet another preferred embodiment , at least one composite fiber element comprises a region having a substantially circular cross section , as shown in fig1 . in one preferred embodiment , the outer annular section comprises at least two outer tubes located on substantially opposing sides of the inner section , at least two transmission cables , each of which are located between two outer tubes , and a composite fiber element located between each adjacent pair of outer tubes and transmission cables , as shown in fig1 . using composite fiber beam elements and / or composite taping layers and / or composite fibers which may be incorporated directly into umbilicals , a more robust umbilical design may be realized , allowing installation and use of umbilicals in deeper water without requiring upgrading of installation equipment . in addition to radial support , an umbilical of the present inventions may also be used as an axial tension member , e . g . by terminating them in umbilical strength terminations in such a way was to share axial loads with one or more existing tension members . in this embodiment , the umbilical comprises a first end region comprises a termination having equivalent strength to that of the remainder of the umbilical . such a termination is illustrated in fig1 . such tension members are typically steel tube components and / or steel armor layers . in another embodiment , the first end of the umbilical is connected to an axial tension member with which the first end of the umbilical shares an axial load . the foregoing disclosure and description of the inventions are illustrative and explanatory . various changes in the size , shape , and materials , as well as in the details of the illustrative construction and / or a illustrative method may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention . | 6 |
exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig1 a to 1e are procedural cross - sectional views illustrating a method of manufacturing a multilayer ceramic circuit board according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention . first , as shown in fig1 a , a non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 ′ having a plurality of low - temperature ceramic green sheets 1 a to 11 e laminated therein is provided . each of the ceramic green sheets 11 a to 11 e includes a low - temperature sinterable glass - ceramic powder and an organic material such as an organic binder . the each of the green sheets 11 a to 11 e includes an electrode pattern 12 and a conductive via hole 14 for forming an inter - layer circuit . the green sheets 11 a to 11 e are laminated to produce the non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 ′ as shown in fig1 a . next , as shown in fig1 b , hard - to - sinter constraining layers 15 are disposed on top and bottom surfaces of the non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 ′. generally , the constraining layer 15 can be provided on one of the top and bottoms surfaces of the ceramic substrate 11 ′ but may be disposed on both the top and bottom surfaces to ensure less shrinkage effectively . each of the constraining layers 15 includes an inorganic powder 15 a and an organic binder 15 b . the inorganic powder of the constraining layer does not employ alumina ( al 2 o 3 ) or barium titanate ( batio 3 ) which has been mainly used conventionally . the inorganic powder of the constraining layer may utilize a graphite powder or a mixed power having a graphite powder used as a main composition and a silicon carbide powder and pyrolic boron nitrite ( pbn ) added thereto . this hard - to - sinter inorganic powder can be easily removed under conditions ( fig1 d ) of the present invention and can be solidly bonded to the ceramic substrate to assure a sufficient constraining force . particularly , the inorganic powder of the constraining layer may further include an mos 2 powder to increase a constraining force and additionally adjust a sintering initiation temperature . thereafter , the non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 ′ having the hard - to - sinter constraining layers disposed on the top and bottom surfaces thereof is sintered to produce a desired sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 as shown in fig1 c . the sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 shrinks in a thickness direction but can be suppressed from shrinking in a plane direction , i . e ., horizontal direction due to the constraining layer 15 . as described above , the multilayer ceramic substrate 11 is restrained from shrinking in a plane direction owing to a greater number of contact points resulting from the hard - to - sinter powder of the constraining layer 15 a . as shown in fig1 d , the sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 is immersed in an acidic solution 22 to remove the hard - to - sinter constraining layer 15 from the sintered multilayer ceramic substrate 11 . in this process , the acidic solution is accommodated in a bath 20 and a multilayer ceramic substrate 11 having the constraining layers 15 formed on the top and bottom surfaces thereof is immersed in the acidic solution . to obtain the acidic solution , a nitric acid , a hydrofluoric acid or a mixture thereof is mixed with a neutral solvent such as water and alcohol . thereafter , to ensure the constraining layer 15 is removed more easily , a contact between the constraining layer 15 and the acidic solution 22 is activated . here , activating a contact does not denote a natural contact in a static state but generating mechanical vibration on a surface of the constraining layer so that a friction with the acidic solution is active . this vibration generating device may utilize an expensive ultrasonic device , but in the present invention , may employ a simple and cheap bubble generator 25 . this bubble generator 25 is installed at a proper location of the bath 20 to generate bubbles b . these bubbles b serve to activate a contact of the acidic solution 22 with a surface of the constraining layer 15 . as a result , this allows the constraining layer to be easily removed using the acidic solution and the bubble generator , thus producing a multilayer ceramic substrate having a surface where the constraining layer is completely removed without residual dust . particularly , when forming the constraining layer and removing the constraining layer as described above , a constraining reaction layer formed at an interface between the constraining layer and the ceramic substrate is thoroughly removed during sintering , thereby ensuring superior plating characteristics in a follow - up plating process . this will be described in greater detail by way of examples below . to fabricate a constraining layer under conditions of the present invention , a mixed powder having a graphite powder , a silicon carbide powder and pyrolic boron nitride ( pbn ) was added at about 65 wt %. an acrylic binder of 15 wt %, a dispersant of 0 . 5 wt % and a mixed solvent of toluene and ethanol were added and then dispersed using a ball mill to produce a slurry . the slurry was filtered and deareated and a constraining layer having a thickness of 100 μm was formed using doctor blading . a non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate was provided and the constraining layer was disposed and compressed under a proper pressure on each of top and bottom surfaces thereof . thereafter , sintering was performed for 30 to 60 minutes at a temperature of 850 to 870 ° c . to remove the constraining layers formed on the top and bottom surfaces of the sintered ceramic substrate , a nitric acid of 10 wt % and a hydrofluoric acid of 45 wt % were mixed into water which is a neutral solvent to prepare an acidic solution for removing the constraining layers . this acidic solution was provided to a bath where an ozone o 3 bubble generator was installed . with the sintered substrate immersed in the acidic solution of the bath , bubbles were generated to activate friction and the constraining layers were removed . comparative examples 1 and 2 were prepared for comparative test . according to comparative examples 1 and 2 , respectively , to fabricate a constraining layer , an alumina ( al 2 o 3 ) powder was added at about 65 wt %. also , an acrylic binder of 15 wt %, a dispersant of 0 . 5 wt %, and a mixed solvent of toluene and ethanol were added and then dispersed using a ball mill to produce a slurry . the slurry was filtered and deareated and constraining layers each having a thickness of 100 μm were formed using doctor blading . afterwards , similarly to the inventive example , a non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate was provided and the constraining layers were disposed and compressed on top and bottom surfaces of the non - sintered multilayer ceramic substrate . subsequently , sintering was performed for 30 to 60 minutes at a temperature of 850 to 870 ° c . to remove the constraining layers formed on the top and bottom surfaces of the sintered ceramic substrate , an ultrasonic device was employed . in comparative example 1 , water was used as a medium and in comparative example 2 , alcohol was used as a medium . fig2 a to 2c are optical microscopic pictures illustrating a surface of the resultant product . according to the inventive example of the present invention , as shown in fig2 a , dusts are almost fully removed to clearly reveal a circuit pattern . in contrast , referring to fig2 b and 2c , in the multilayer ceramic substrate where the constraining layers are removed according to comparative examples 1 and 2 , respectively , the constraining layers are not removed over a wide area of a surface but residuals of the constraining layers partially remain . thereafter , the circuit pattern of each of the multilayer ceramic substrates according to inventive example and comparative examples 1 and 2 was subjected to plating . when residuals remain as in comparative examples 1 and 2 , the process of removing the constraining layers was additionally conducted over a long time until the residuals were removed and plating was performed . according to the inventive example , as shown in fig3 a , the circuit pattern was observed to be plated clearly according to a conductor pattern . on the contrary , as for a plating layer of each of the multilayer ceramic substrates according to comparative examples 1 and 2 , as shown in fig2 b and 2c , a plated portion was partially diffused or a non - plated portion was observed . as described above , in removing the constraining layers , plating defects such as plating diffusion or non - plating occur because the constraining reaction layer has not been fully removed . however , as shown in fig3 a , in a case where the constraining layer is provided and removed under the condition of the present invention , even a constraining reaction layer is completely removed to ensure superior plating characteristics . this difference in plating conditions results from a difference in adhesion strength in case of a surface - mount technology ( smt ) process . table 1 below shows measurement results of adhesion strength for 12 samples prepared according to the inventive example and comparative examples 1 and 2 , respectively . as shown in table 1 , in a case where the constraining layer is removed using an acidic solution as in the inventive example , superior adhesion strength is assured , that is , 2 . 5 times higher than in a case where water is employed according to comparative example 1 and 1 . 7 times higher than in a case where alcohol is employed . this higher adhesion strength ensures better reliability in terms of drop and thermal impact and also saves costs through higher yield in the case of mass production . as set forth above , according to exemplary embodiments of the invention , unlike a conventional mechanical machining process such as surface polishing which has problems due to removal of a non - constraining layer and tedious process time , a method of manufacturing a multilayer ceramic substrate allows a constraining layer to be removed effectively in a short time . particularly , the manufacturing method solves plating defects such as plating diffusion and non - plating which occur in the conventional method employing only water or alcohol , thereby guaranteeing superb plating characteristics in forming fine patterns . the manufacturing method ensures superior plating characteristics and thus significantly improves adhesion strength . while the present invention has been shown and described in connection with the exemplary embodiments , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims . | 7 |
fig1 and 2 illustrate left and right perspective views , respectively , of on embodiment of an automatic body spray system 100 . the system 100 includes a base 104 configured to support a human body 109 . extending vertically from the perimeter of the base 104 are a spray column 102 , a mist extraction column 103 , and partial side walls 105 a , 105 b , which together defined a spray booth to house the user therein . these partial sidewalls 105 a , b contact the spray column 103 and continue in a curved pattern toward the spray column 102 ( see also fig1 ). the partial sidewalls 105 a , b also seat against the base 104 at the bottom of the system 100 . the partial sidewalls 105 a , b stop short of the spray column 103 to allow for user access into the system 100 . the partial sidewalls 105 a , b can be of any shape or size and can be modified to provide the desired amount of mist containment . a partial top 180 can also be provided to keep any excess mist from escaping out the top of the system 100 . in an alternative embodiment , the system 100 can include full - size sidewalls , instead of partial walls . in a preferred embodiment , the system 100 can be employed to apply sunless tanning solutions as well as other solutions onto a human body 109 . exemplary sunless - tanning solutions include one or more colorants , such as dihydroxyacetone , crotonaldehyde , pyruvaldehyde , glycolaldehyde , glutaraldehyde , otho - phthaldehyde , sorbose , fructose , erythrulose , methylvinylketone , food coloring , or any other available colorant . the sunless tanning solutions can additionally or alternatively include one or more bronzers , such as lawsone , juglone , or any other available bronzer . it will be appreciated that the sunless - tanning solutions can include additional ingredients , such as moisturizers and scents , to make the solution more appealing to a user . while the system 100 can be employed as a sunless tanning spray system , it can also be employed to spray other fluids onto the human body . for example , the system 100 can be configured to spray sunscreens , suntan lotions , moisturizing lotions , sunless tanning pre - spray treatments , tanning accelerators , sunburn treatments , insect repellants , skin toners , skin bleaches , skin lighteners , anti - microbial compositions , exfoliants , nutriments or vitamins , massage aides , muscle relaxants , skin treatment agents , burn treatment agents , decontamination agents , cosmetics , or wrinkle treatments or removers , or any other solution or lotion desired to be applied to the human body . as shown in fig3 , the spray column 102 includes two high volume , low pressure ( hvlp ) atomization nozzles 106 a , b fluidly connected to an hvlp turbine ( not shown ) with an air supply hose and also fluidly connected to at least one fluid container 160 . with the assistance of the hvlp turbine , the hvlp nozzles 106 a , b are configured to eject an atomized mist of fluid . in alternative embodiments ( not shown ), the spray column 102 may include one hvlp nozzle or more than two hvlp nozzles . in another embodiment ( not shown ), a high pressure fluid pump may be employed , instead of the hvlp turbine . each hvlp nozzle 106 a , b is coupled to a linear slide ( not shown ) that is configured to move the hvlp nozzles 106 a , b up and down vertically , thereby adjusting the vertical of the hvlp nozzle 106 a , b . in this configuration , the hvlp nozzles 106 a , b are moveably mounted to the spray column 102 , such that the spray pattern of the hvlp nozzles 106 a , b is sufficient to completely coat the human body 109 with a desired fluid , solution , or lotion . in an alternative embodiment as shown in fig4 , a vertically standing column 131 that rotates back and forth about its vertical axis can be employed . one or more hvlp nozzles 106 can be mounted to the rotating column 131 and be connected to an hvlp turbine with an air supply hose and also fluidly connected to at least one fluid reservoir or container 160 . this column can be automatically rotated back and forth to automatically coat the human body . with reference back to fig3 , the system 100 includes three fluid containers 160 ac contained in the drawer 108 . in alternative embodiments , the system 100 can include two or less containers or more than three containers provided in the drawer 108 . as shown in fig3 , a start button 110 and an lcd user interface panel 107 are also provided . the start button 110 is used to initiate a session . the lcd user interface is used to set up a session and also to perform other functions including , but not limited to , defining the system parameters , turning on a wash down function , turning on a light , and viewing session counts . fig5 illustrates a perspective view of the fluid container drawer 108 with the drawer 108 opened to expose the fluid containers 160 a , b , c . the drawer 108 provides for a simple method of accessing the containers 160 . the drawer 108 includes a pull handle 111 and a key lock 112 for security purposes . in this embodiment , the drawer 108 is attached to the spray column 102 with two slide rails 113 a , b . the drawer 108 can also be attached to the spray column using a rotating mount or any other type of mount . as discussed in more detail above , the fluid containers 160 a - c can hold sunless tanning solutions or other types of fluids . in one embodiment , each fluid container 160 a - c can hold a different sunless - tanning solution . the different solutions can have different chemical compositions which affect the hue of the resulting tan . alternatively , one fluid container ( e . g ., the first fluid container 160 a ) can contain water or another dilution agent to dilute a solution contained in the second solution container ( e . g ., the second fluid container 160 b ). the contents of the different fluid containers can be mixed in various combinations to provide a range of shades , thereby allowing the user to select a preferred tanning shade . also , the fluid containers can hold other types of solutions to be applied to the human body . one control method for applying the solutions can be to apply a first atomized solution , dry the body with air only coming from the hvlp nozzles , apply a second atomized solution , dry the body with air only coming from the hvlp nozzles , apply a third atomized solution and then dry the body with air only coming from the hvlp nozzles . fig6 illustrates a side view of one embodiment of a fluid container 160 . in this embodiment , the fluid container 160 includes a handle 164 , a male quick disconnect valve 161 at an opening located at one end portion of the fluid container 160 , and a vent 162 provided at the other end portion of the fluid container 160 . the fluid container 160 can also include a check valve 163 to ensure that fluid flows in only one direction such that , when the fluid container 160 is empty , the check valve 163 will prevent any residual solution from leaking out when the fluid container 160 is removed . it will be appreciated that the fluid container 160 can be configured differently in shape and size from the one illustrated in fig6 . also , it will be appreciated that different fittings such as interchange couplings , poppet couplings , or threaded couplings , can be used to dispense solution from the fluid container 160 . in one embodiment , the fluid containers 160 a - c are removable . alternatively , the spray column 102 can house fixed fluid containers that can be filled with solution while still in spray column 102 when the solution level falls below a predetermined threshold . as shown in fig4 , each fluid container 160 a - c is inverted such that the male quick disconnect valve 161 mates with a female quick disconnect fitting 165 a - c disposed in the drawer 108 . when a new fluid container 160 is added to the system 100 , the male quick disconnect valve 161 of the fluid container 160 is snapped into the female quick disconnect fitting 165 a - c in the drawer 108 . the vent 162 on the fluid container 160 can then be opened to equalize the air pressure inside the fluid container 160 , allowing fluid to flow freely . fig7 is a perspective view of the inside of the drawer 108 containing three fluid pumps 113 a - c positioned below the female quick disconnect fittings 165 a - c . the first pump 113 a is configured to pump the solution held in the first fluid container 160 a along a fluid flow path f 1 through the hose assembly 116 to the hvlp nozzle assemblies 106 a , b . the second pump 113 b is configured to pump the solution held in the second fluid container 160 b along a fluid flow path f 2 through the hose assembly 116 to the hvlp nozzle assemblies 106 a , b . the third pump 113 c is configured to pump the solution held in the second fluid container 160 c along a fluid flow path f 3 through the hose assembly 116 to the hvlp nozzle assemblies 106 a , b . in one embodiment , the pumps 130 a , b , c are positive displacement pumps . any other type of fluid pump may suffice . it will be appreciated , however , that one or more of the pumps 113 a , b , c can be positioned anywhere in the drawer 108 . fig8 illustrates a simplified perspective view of the interior of the spray column 102 . fig9 is a close up view of fig8 showing the hvlp nozzle mounting arms 128 a , b in one embodiment of the system 100 . the nozzle mounting arms 128 a , b also hold fluid solenoid valves 115 a - c . these solenoid valves 115 a - c turn on or off the fluid flow through fluid paths f 1 , f 2 , and f 3 between fluid pumps 113 a - c and the hvlp nozzle assemblies 106 a , b . the solenoid valves are controlled by the controller 122 . the valves 115 a - c can also be any type of suitable control valve . the hose assembly 116 holds the fluid paths f 1 , f 2 , and f 3 as well as the air path a 1 . the three fluid paths f 1 , f 2 , f 3 route to each solenoid valves 115 a - c , respectively , and than to each nozzle assembly 106 a , b . the air path a 1 routes to each nozzle assembly 106 a , b from the hvlp turbine 118 and through hose assembly 116 . fig1 shows a detailed perspective view of an hvlp nozzle 106 and mounting arm assembly 124 . the top of nozzle body 126 mounts to the bottom side of the nozzle mounting bracket 129 . the nozzle mounting bracket 129 mounts to the moveable nozzle arm 128 a or 128 b . the hvlp air supply line a 1 enters the nozzle body 126 from the backside and the three fluid lines f 1 , f 2 , f 3 all enter the nozzle body 126 from one of the other sides . the fluid paths for f 1 , f 2 , f 3 all merge toward the center of the nozzle body 126 internally and exit at nozzle tip 127 . the hvlp air supply from the air path a 1 also exits the nozzle body 126 at the nozzle tip 127 . in this embodiment , the hvlp air and the fluid are externally atomized at the nozzle tip 127 . it can be appreciated that any number of fluid paths may enter the nozzle body 126 . also shown in fig1 are check valves 133 a - c . the nozzle body 126 with multiple inlet ports and the check valves 133 a - c allow multiple solutions to enter the nozzle body 126 and eliminate any cross contamination of different fluids . fig1 is a close up view of fig8 showing the hvlp fan 118 mounted inside the spray column 102 . the hose assembly 116 carries the air path a 1 from the hvlp fan 118 to the nozzle assemblies 106 a , b . the hvlp fan 118 can be controlled on or off by use of a relay or other type of electronic switch . the relay or switch is controlled by the main controller 122 . this hvlp fan 118 acts as the air source to atomize any desired solution or fluid . another embodiment is to have a heating source that the hvlp air passes through to provide a warmer spray and dry session to the user . this heating source can be controlled by the controller 122 . in the illustrated embodiment , the controller 122 is configured to control the operation of the system 100 . specifically , the controller 122 is configured to operate the hvlp nozzles , hvlp turbine , pumps , valves , and other electrical or electro - mechanical devices in the system 100 . suitable controllers can include a processor , a microprocessor , a control circuit , a plc , or any other appropriate control device . fig1 also shows the controller 122 and the lcd user interface panel 107 . the main controller 122 can be programmed many ways to operate the system 100 for its desired function . for example , in one embodiment , the controller has pre - programmed parameters such as fluid pump values ( these control the speed of each fluid pump 113 a - c via pulse width modulation which in turn controls how much fluid is applied over a period of time therefore controlling the intensity level of the fluid being sprayed ), linear slide speed ( this can control the speed of a linear slide that moves the nozzles 106 a , b vertically up and down ; this will also control the amount of solution applied over time and also the length of each application session ), number of spray passes ( this parameter controls how many times the body is sprayed ). any other variable that controls the operation of the machine can be stored and modified with the lcd interface display 107 and main controller 122 . with continued reference to fig7 , the lcd interface display 107 and main controller 122 can be programmed and configured to perform many unique application sessions . in one embodiment , a linear slide that moves nozzles 106 a , b up and down vertically can be controlled with a motor drive system and any type of position encoding device . the encoding device can be connected to the main controller 122 so that the controller always knows the position of the nozzle arm 128 a , b . this encoding system allows a user to select a partial body spray application . for example , the user can select to spray just their face , input their head height , and the system 100 will spray just their face with the desired solution or combination of solutions at the selected levels . another example is that the user selects to just spray their legs or their whole body , excluding their legs or face or both . a height monitoring sensor can also be added to the control system so that it automatically adjusts the nozzle 106 a , b positions for each user . this can also be used for full body sprays where the starting height of the nozzles 106 a , b are adjusted to the height of each user , thereby reducing the amount of solution sprayed for bodies shorter than the maximum height of the nozzles 106 a , b . with reference back to fig1 and 2 , the system 100 also includes a mist extraction column 103 a described above . the mist extraction column 103 can be mounted to the base 104 in a relative position opposite the spray column 102 . the mist extraction column is used to capture any excess mist during spray sessions . fig1 is a perspective view showing the internal components of the mist extraction column 103 . the mist extraction fan 142 will be turned on by the controller 122 during a spray session to draw air flow and excess spray mist through vent openings 145 through a filter assembly 140 that is supported by a filter compartment 141 . the mist is captured in the filter 141 and clean air is passed through the fan 142 and out the back of the mist extraction column 103 . the size and cfm of the mist extraction fan 142 can be adjusted to provide the required amount of air flow to contain the mist generated by the hvlp nozzles 106 a , b . fig1 is a detailed perspective view of the internal components of the mist extraction column 103 . provided in a position relative to filter 140 is a filter wash down nozzle 146 . the filter 140 in this embodiment is oriented in a horizontal position parallel to the ground plane . the mist extraction column 103 also provides for an internal column wash down nozzle 147 . this column wash down nozzle 147 can be used to clean the inside of the mist extraction column 103 to eliminate the buildup of any spray residue that may occur . this internal column wash down nozzle 147 can have a water supply line connected to it with a solenoid valve ( not shown ). this solenoid valve can be activated by the controller 122 to provide for a mist extraction column 103 cleansing cycle after each spray session or at desired intervals . in another embodiment , a manual valve could be used to control the water supply to the internal column wash down nozzle 147 . the number of fans , filters , and nozzles or orientation of the fans , filters , and nozzles can be modified as needed . fig1 shows how the filter is inserted and removed from the mist extraction column 103 . the filter 140 slides in a direction perpendicular to the front of the mist extraction column 103 and allows for easy removal . the wash down nozzle 146 can have a water supply line connected to it with a solenoid valve ( not shown ). this solenoid valve can be activated by the controller 122 to provide for an automatic filter cleansing cycle after each spray session or at desired intervals . the horizontal position of the filter 140 in this embodiment allows for the filter cleansing water to be passed through the filter 140 and emptied at the bottom of the mist extraction column 103 . in another embodiment , a manual valve could be used to control the water supply to the filter wash down nozzle 146 . fig1 shows a perspective view of a wash down system hose 149 used for this open system design . because the system is open , care has to be taken when providing for an automatic wash down system so that excess wash down water does not leak out of the system . this embodiment shows the wash down hose 149 having holes along its length pointed toward its mounting surface . in this embodiment , the wash down hose 149 mounts along both side walls 105 a , b and the mist extraction column 103 . this configuration allows a waterfall - type wash down where the rinsing water is softly directed in a many small streams toward its relative mounting surface and runs down the surface to be cleaned . this waterfall wash down hose 149 can have a water supply line connected to it with a solenoid valve ( not shown ). this solenoid valve can be activated by the controller 122 to provide for system 100 cleansing cycle after each spray session or at desired intervals . in another embodiment , a manual valve could be used to control the water supply to the water fall wash down hose 149 . fig1 shows a simplified perspective view of a waste water sump pump 150 mounted in base 104 . fig1 shows a side section view of a waste water sump pump 150 mounted in base 104 . the base 104 has an integral drain basin 151 to catch waste water from the various wash down systems described above , including the filter wash down waste water , the internal column wash down waste water , and the system wash down waste water . the waste water from the above mentioned wash down systems flow down from their respective components to be cleaned over the top surface of the base 104 and towards the sump pump basin 151 . the waste water also passes through a filter screen 152 to keep debris from entering the sump pump 150 . the sump pump 150 will then pump out the waste water when its float switch activates the pump . the fluid spraying system 100 can include additional components without departing from the scope of the present application . for example , the system 100 can include fluid detection sensors ( not shown ) disposed near the bottom of each fluid container 160 a , b , c . the fluid detection sensors can be configured to sense the solution level in each fluid container 160 a , b , c . when the solution level falls below a predetermined threshold , the fluid detection sensors can be configured to transmit a signal to the controller 122 . upon receipt of the signal , the controller 122 can deactivate the fluid spraying system 100 to prevent air from being pulled into one or all of the fluid flow paths f 1 , f 2 , and f 3 . exemplary fluid detection sensors that can be employed include capacitive solution detection switches , optical sensors , or piezoelectric sensors . also , the fluid spraying system 100 can include a heating element ( not shown ), such as a heating coil or other heating device , that can be placed around or adjacent to the first and / or second and / or third fluid flow paths f 1 , f 2 , f 3 thereby creating a warm , atomized mist of fluid that can be ejected from the nozzles 106 a , b . additionally , a heating element can be placed around or inside the air flow path a 1 . alternatively , heating elements can be placed around or adjacent to one or all of the fluid containers 160 a , b , c . fig1 is a flow chart showing one example of a control process . this process shown is for a full body session and a choice between a single solution spray or a multiple solution spray . the multiple solution spray shown in this example is for a two solution multispray but can be configured for any number of multi - session sprays . this flow chart can also apply for face only sprays , leg only sprays , or any other height adjustable spray session . in one specific method to coat the human body , the method can include spraying can the atomized mixture of hvlp air and fluid onto the body and then turning off the fluid supply and moving the nozzles up and down with the hvlp air still on to dry the body . the speed , volume , and temperature natural to the hvlp air source is ideal for drying the body . hence , the same nozzles that apply the atomized solution can also be used as a drying source when the solution is turned off and the air is turned on . the system 100 described above and illustrated in the figures provides one or more of the following benefits : ( 1 ) the system does not require a large external air compressor for air delivery method , ( 2 ) the atomized spray using an hvlp air supply does not produce a lingering fog of mist and over spray , because of the lack of fog and over spray , ( 3 ) the system does not need to be completely enclosed to capture excess mist and keep it from escaping into the surrounding environment , ( 4 ) the user is not subjected to breath or be surrounded by excess fog or mist , and the transfer efficiency of the atomized fluid onto the human body is much higher than with compressed air systems , ( 5 ) the system allows many different types of products to be applied to the human body in one application session , ( 6 ) the system employs the use of a convenient slide out drawer to access the solution containers for multiple products to be applied , and ( 7 ) the system can be programmed to apply a fluid to only user specified areas of the body . while the present application has been illustrated by the description of embodiments thereof , and while the embodiments have been described in considerable detail , it is not the intention of the applicants to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail . additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art . therefore , the application , in its broader aspects , is not limited to the specific details , the representative apparatus , and illustrative examples shown and described . accordingly , departures can be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of the applicant &# 39 ; s general inventive concept . the system is not designed solely for sunless tanning products or for the purpose for spraying a human body . it can accommodate almost any type of product being sprayed . | 1 |
please refer to fig1 , which is across section view of a motion sensing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention . the motion sensing device 10 is utilized for sensing infrared rays , to detect the moving traces and the motions of external objects . as shown in fig1 , the motion sensing device 10 comprises a substrate 100 , an optical module 102 and a coating layer 104 . the substrate 100 comprises an optical sensing layer 106 and a transmission layer 108 , for sensing the light and accordingly outputting corresponded sensing signal . the optical layer 102 comprises spacer layers 110 - 114 , glass layers 116 and 118 and lens 120 and 122 , for filtering the light emitting to the substrate 100 such that the light emitting to the substrate 100 only comprises light with a specific wavelength ( e . g . the wavelength of the infrared rays ). for example , the optical module 102 may be a wafer level lens used for receiving the infrared rays . the coating layer 104 covers the optical layer 102 , for preventing additional infrared rays from emitting to the substrate 100 . please note that , the coating layer 104 does not cover the lens 120 ( i . e . does not cover the path of light emits to the substrate 100 ), for ensuring the motion sensing device 10 operates normally . as a result , the motion sensing device 10 for sensing the moving traces and the motions of the external objects can be realized by the wafer level lens . the motion sensing device 10 equipped with micro volume can be achieved . in detail , the optical sensing layer 106 comprises a sensing unit sen for sensing the light filter by the optical module 102 and outputting the corresponded sensing signal . according to different applications and design concepts , the method of configuring the sensing unit sen on the substrate 100 can be appropriately changed . for example , the sensing unit sen may be configured on the substrate 100 via a chip scale package ( csp ) method , printed circuit board method or a lead frame method , and is not limited herein . in this embodiment , the transmission interface layer 108 comprises a ball grid array ( bga ) ( i . e . realized in the packaging technology of the ball grid array ). via a wafer - level chip scale packaging method with a through - silicon via technique , the sensing signal generated by optical sensing layer 106 can be transmitted to the external circuit through the transmission interface layer 108 , for performing corresponded calculating processes . in addition , the optical module 102 is coupled ( e . g . bonded ) to the substrate 100 through the spacer layer 110 . for example , the spacer layer 110 may be glue or paint , and is not limited herein . the glass layer 116 is configured on the spacer layer 110 , for protecting the sensing unit sen . the spacer 112 is configured between the glass layers 116 and 118 , for generating a space 124 . in this embodiment , the materials of the spacer layer 112 may comprise glass . the glass layer 118 is configured on the spacer layer 112 as the substrate of the lens 120 and 122 . the spacer layer 114 is configured on the glass layer 118 and forms an opening 126 . the lens 120 is configured in the opening 126 and is coupled ( e . g . bonded ) to a side of the glass layer 118 ( e . g . the top side of the glass layer 118 ) via a translucent glue , such as a silicone , an epoxy , and an ultraviolet light ( uv ) curable adhesive . similarly , the lens 122 is configured in the space 124 and is coupled ( e . g . bonded ) to another side of the glass layer 118 ( e . g . the bottom side of the glass layer 118 ) via the translucent glue . finally , since the operations of the sensing unit sen senses the motions of the objects is achieved via detecting the infrared rays , the sensing unit sen is sensitive to the variations of infrared rays in the surrounding environment . in such a condition , the coating layer equipped with the function of shielding the infrared rays is needed to cover the optical module 102 , for shielding the infrared rays of the specific wavelength range , so as to avoid affecting the sensing result of the sensing unit sen . please note that , the coating layer 104 does not cover the lens 120 , for ensuring the path of the infrared rays emits to the sensing unit sen . in addition , the motion sensing device 10 may further comprise an infrared ray emitting unit ( not shown in fig1 ), for emitting the infrared rays capable of passing through the lens 120 and 122 and being sensed by the sensing unit sen . as a result , via the coating layer 104 absorbing the additional infrared rays , the motion sensing device 10 can receive the infrared rays emitted by the infrared ray emitting unit by the optical module 102 ( e . g . the wafer level lens . the functions of sensing the moving traces and motions of the objects can be accordingly achieved , therefore . noticeably , the above embodiments provide a motion sensing device realized by the wafer level lens , so as to reduce the manufacture cost and increase the production efficiency via the wafer level manufacturing technology . according to different applications and design concepts , those with ordinary skill in the art may observe appropriate alternations and modifications . for example , the wavelength of the light received by the sensing unit sen for performing the operations of sensing the moving traces and motions of the objects can be altered to different wavelength ranges , such as the wavelength ranges of the uv and the visible light . note that , when the wavelength range of the light received by the sensing unit sen changes , the wavelength range of the light shielded by the coating layer 104 needs to be accordingly altered for avoiding affecting the sensing result of the sensing unit sen . in the above embodiments , the single motion device is described for illustrating the structure and the packaging method . in general , when producing the packages of the motion sensing device , the entire packaging materials are configured layer by layer for generating multiple packages at the same time . then , the multiple packages are sawed for acquiring multiple separate packages . according to different applications , the motion sensing device can be packaged by different packaging methods . for example , the substrate 100 and the optical module 102 can be realized in different wafers . via wafer bonding , the substrate 100 and the plurality of optical module 102 configured on different wafers can be bonded . next , the coating layer 104 is formed on each optical module 102 via the package coating . finally , the single motion sensing device 10 can be acquired after the package sawing process . on the other hand , the step of bonding the substrate 100 and the plurality of optical modules 102 configured on different wafer can be appropriately modified according to different applications . in an embodiment , the plurality of optical modules 102 configured on the wafer is cut for acquiring the plurality of separate optical modules 102 . each of the optical modules 102 is bonded to the substrate 100 configured on the wafer , and then performing the follow - up processes , such as the coating process and the sawing process . according to the above steps , the single motion sensing device 10 also can be acquired . the packaging method of the motion sensing device abovementioned can be summarized into a packaging method 20 , as shown in fig2 . the packaging method 20 comprises the following steps : step 202 : perform a wafer bonding process , for bonding a plurality of optical modules on a first wafer and a substrate on a second wafer . step 204 : perform a package coating process , for forming a coating layer , used for absorbing infrared rays , on the plurality of optical modules . according to the packaging method 20 , a plurality of optical modules on a first wafer can be bonded to a substrate on a second wafer . next , a coating layer can be formed on each optical module for absorbing the infrared rays , via performing a package coating process . after performing a package sawing process , the single motion sensing device can be acquired . the packaging method of the motion sensing device abovementioned can be further summarized into another packaging method 30 , as shown in fig3 . the packaging method 30 comprises the following steps : step 302 : perform a package sawing process on a plurality of optical modules configured on a first wafer , for acquiring separate optical modules . step 304 : bond the separate optical modules to a substrate configured on a second wafer . step 306 : perform a package coating process , for forming a coating layer , used for absorbing infrared rays , on the plurality of optical modules . according to the packaging method 30 , the plurality of optical modules configured on the first wafer is sawed into separate optical modules ( e . g . wafer level lens ) and then the separate optical modules are bonded to the substrate configured on the second wafer . similar to the steps 204 and 206 of the packaging method 20 , after performing the package coating process and the package sawing process , the single motion sensing device is therefore acquired . to sum up , the above embodiments utilize the wafer level lens to realize motion sensing device . the manufacture cost can be reduced and the production efficiency can be improved via the wafer level manufacturing technology . moreover , the motion sensing device of the above embodiments can be packaged via different packaging methods according to different applications and design concepts . those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention . accordingly , the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims . | 8 |
the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings . herein , the detailed description of a related known function or configuration that may make the purpose of the present invention unnecessarily ambiguous in describing the present invention will be omitted exemplary embodiments of the present invention are provided so that those skilled in the art may more completely understand the present invention . accordingly , the shape , the size , etc ., of elements in the figures may be exaggerated for explicit comprehension . hereinafter , a method for searchable symmetric encryption according to the present invention will be described in detail . the basic architecture of the method for searchable symmetric encryption according to the present invention is shown in fig1 . the basic architecture is configured to include generating and previously preparing a secret key of a user ( s 100 ), encrypting data and generating indexes and storing them in a database by a user ( s 200 ), generating a trapdoor by a user by using a given keyword ( s 300 ), and searching by a server ( computing device ) ( s 400 ). in the present invention , the number of data to be stored is denoted as n and keywords included in each data is represented as an integer value ( all keywords may be considered as a bit string having a predetermined length ) from 1 to r . for convenience , assume that r = 2 r is satisfied due to an existence of any integer r . further , assume that each data has an integer from 1 to n as an identifier of data . the key generation step of the user ( 100 ) determines a secret key k and a one - way function f : r ×{ 0 , 1 } r →{ 0 , 1 } s , h : r ×{ 0 , 1 } r →{ 0 , 1 } w to be used in encrypting the symmetric encryption system e ( use the secret key having a w bit length ) and data , where s = log ( r ×( n + r )). the secret key k and the one - way function f , h are secret information known to only the user . the index ( a ) generated in the build index step ( 200 ) is an array formed of r ×( n + r ) elements and has a form of a [ i ]=( id i , ( ld i , lk i ), ( rd i , rk i )). id i represents an identifier of the data stored in the element and ( ld i , lk i ) and ( rd i , rk i ) are two linkages indicating next elements . a method configuring the index ( a ) is as follows . for convenience , s is a set of all the data , s i is a set of data including keywords i ( iε { 1 , 2 , . . . , r }). 1 . the user configures an array a and initializes all the values of each element to ‘ empty ’ or 0 . 2 . the user generates an array b including elements with the same number to a . the array b is a temporary array in which each element has a size of w bits and is initialized as ‘ empty .’ set the initial interval r 0 , 0 =[ 1 , r ] for tε { 1 , 2 , . . . , r }, the following work is performed from t = 1 to t = r . however , d = 0 , . . . , 2 t − 1 . ii ) separate r t − 1 , d into two sub - intervals , r t , 2d =[ a , e t − 1 , d ] and r t , 2d + 1 =[ e t − 1 , d + 1 , b ]. fig2 is a diagram showing definition of an interval tree used in the present invention . referring to fig2 , r t − i , d is divided into two sub - intervals from t = 1 to t = r . 4 . indication of a starting point : for each t , i ( 1 ≦ t ≦ r , 1 ≦ i ≦ r ), f ( t , i ) is calculated and a [ f ( t , i )] is searched . a [ f ( t , i )] is reserved as a starting point for a t - th layer of a keyword i . in other words , a value of id f ( t , i ) is changed from ‘ empty ’ to ‘ none ’ and h ( t , i ) is stored in b [ f ( t , i )]. 5 . for each t , i ( 1 ≦ t ≦ r , 1 ≦ i ≦ r ), s t , i = s i is defined and the following process is performed . a data d is optionally selected in s t , i and is stored in id f ( t , i ) and data d is deleted from the s t , i . if s t , i is an empty set , all the following processes are omitted and progresses to the next t and i . the following is repeated until s t , i is an empty set . i ) select a data d in s t , i randomly , and d is deleted in s . ii ) ‘ empty ’ element a [ j ] is randomly selected among elements of the array a and random w bit key k j is generated . iii ) the identifier of d is stored in id j and k j is stored in b [ j ]. iv ) in a linked tree starting from a [ f ( t , i )], one ‘ empty ’ link is searched and the value of the link is changed to ( j , k j ). for convenience , the linked tree generated by the above method will be denoted as g t , i for each t , i . fig3 is architecture of a linked tree used in the present invention . referring to fig3 , the linked tree generated by the above method is presented as an example . 6 . connection of an external link : the user performs the following process on all r t , d =[ a , b ]( 1 ≦ t ≦ r , 0 ≦ d ≦ 2 t − 1 ). when d is even number , g t , a , g t , a + 1 , . . . , g t , b is concatenated in an ascending order using g t , a as a starting point . in other words , ( f ( t , i + 1 ), h ( t , i + 1 )) is stored at one of the ‘ empty ’ links of g . when d is an odd number , g t , b , g t , b − i , . . . , g t , a are concatenated in a descending order by using g o as a starting point . in other words , ( f ( t , i − 1 ), h ( t , i − 1 )) is stored at one of the ‘ empty ’ links of g t , i . 7 . an empty element among the elements of the array a and b is filled with randomly generated value . finally , each element a [ j ] is encrypted by using b [ j ] as a secret key . in other words , e b [ j ] ( a [ j ]) is computed . a [ j ] is replaced with e b [ j ] ( a [ j ]). each data d , is encrypted using the user &# 39 ; s secret key k separately from the index and the index and the ciphertext is transmitted to the server to be stored . at the trapdoor generating step 300 , the user generates the trapdoor for any search range [ a , b ]. 1 . the user first searches tε { 1 , 2 , . . . , r } suitable for [ a , b ] as follows . it is initialized to t = 1 , r 0 =[ 1 , r ]=[ a 0 , b 0 ]. is calculated and if e t e [ a , b ], t value is stored and ends . if e t & lt ; a , then a t = e t , b t = b t − 1 are set . otherwise ( i . e . e t & gt ; a ), a t = t − 1 , b t = e t − 1 are set . after being changed into t = t + 1 , it is returned to the above step . 2 . the user calculates the trapdoor with t obtained at step 1 . when [ a , b ] is divided by two sub - intervals [ a , e t ],[ e t + 1 , b ], each sub - interval is included in the two consecutive intervals such as [ a , e t ] ⊂ r t − d , [ e t + 1 , b ] ⊂ r t , d + 1 . ( r t , d , r t , d + 1 are intervals defined at the build index step ) in addition , r t , d is defined as the linked chain in a right direction and r t , d + 1 is defined as the linked chain in a left direction , which each has e t and e t + 1 as an end point . therefore , when searching for the value of the two linked chains starting from a and b ending at e t and e t + 1 , all data included in [ a , b ] can be searched . at the searching step ( 400 ), assume that the server receives the trapdoor (( f ( t , a ), h ( t , a )), ( f ( t , b ), h ( t , b ))) from the user . the server first searches a [ f ( t , a )] at the array a and decrypts a [ f ( t , a )] by using h ( t , a ) as a decryption key . assuming that the decrypted element is a [ v ]=( id v ,( ld v , lk v ), ( rd v , rk v ), b v ), id v is included in the search results and the search is performed for each link . in other words , a [ ld v ] is decrypted with lk v and the stored identifier is included in the result list . this process is continued until all the links starting from a [ v ] has ‘ empty ’ value . similarly , the search for the linked chain starting from a [ f ( t , b )] is performed . finally , the indexes of all the searched data are transmitted to the user . some steps of the present invention can be implemented as a computer - readable code in a computer - readable recording medium . the computer - readable recording media include all types of recording apparatuses in which data that can be read by a computer system is stored . examples of the computer - readable recording media include a rom , a ram , a cd - rom , a cd - rw , a magnetic tape , a floppy disk , an hdd , an optical disk , an optical magnetic storage device , etc . and in addition , include a recording medium implemented in the form of a carrier wave ( for example , transmission through the internet ). further , the computer - readable recording media are distributed on computer systems connected through the network , and thus the computer - readable recording media may be stored and executed as the computer - readable code by a distribution scheme . as described above , the exemplary embodiments have been described and illustrated in the drawings and the description . herein , specific terms have been used , but are just used for the purpose of describing the present invention and are not used for qualifying the meaning or limiting the scope of the present invention , which is disclosed in the appended claims . therefore , it will be appreciated to those skilled in the art that various modifications are made and other equivalent embodiments are available . accordingly , the actual technical protection scope of the present invention must be determined by the spirit of the appended claims . | 7 |
in accordance with the embodiment shown by way of example in fig1 and 2 , the support provide by the present invention is intended to carry the load , for example , furniture , which is to be displaced or moved through the intermediary of a preferably circular removable plug - shaped member 3 . the elastomeric body 4 , disposed in the cup - shaped member 5 , comprises , in this case , a housing 6 which in shape and size corresponds to the plug - shaped member 3 . in particular , the height of the plug - shaped member 3 preferably corresponds to the depth of the housing 6 , so that after assembly , the upper surface of member 3 is disposed at the level corresponding to the upper surface of the elastomeric body 4 . the plug - shaped member 3 and the housing 6 respectively comprise coaxial circular ribs and / or grooves 3 1 , 6 1 in order to enhance the attachment of the plug - shaped member in the elastomer so reliably avoiding their relative displacement when a load is being displaced in relation to the ground . in the example illustrated , the plug - shaped member 3 likewise comprises a central projection 3 2 of a height which is slightly greater than that of the ribs / grooves 3 1 , this projection being housed in a corresponding central recess 6 2 in the elastomer 4 . it is in particular an object of this projection to facilitate the fitting of the plug - shaped member in its housing . the plug - shaped member 3 is intended to be fixed under the load to be displaced by any means and , in particular , by means of a screw , a point or a rivet which traverses the center of the plug - shaped member . similarly , fitting the plug - shaped member to be located under the load may be achieved by gluing and , in particular , by means of a double - sided adhesive . in the embodiment shown by way of example in fig1 and 2 , the elastomeric body comprises concentric grooves 4 1 intended to improve the attachment of the load in so far as the load and , for example , the foot of an item of furniture which is to be displaced . for such an example , the foot is of a width greater than that of the plug - shaped member 3 which is situated in the elastomer 4 . it will be noted that the disposition according to the invention makes it possible to use plug - shaped members 3 of identical dimensions and cup - shaped members 5 of different dimensions in so far as the elastomer 4 of each of the cup - shaped members comprises a housing 6 of identical shape and dimensions for all the cup - shaped members and corresponding to those of the plug - shaped member 3 . likewise , in this case , the elastomeric body 4 is preferably made by over - moulding on a sheet of synthetic material which is simultaneously moulded under heat in order to easily and rapidly obtain a rugged attachment of the elastomeric material in the cup - shaped member simultaneously with its forming . likewise preferably , the rib 3 1 ( see fig4 ) will comprise a rounded end 7 in order to facilitate its penetration into the corresponding groove 6 1 . likewise , the base 8 of the rib 3 1 has a narrowed cross - section while the corresponding groove 6 1 comprises a narrowed opening 9 in order to obtain a snap action of the plug - shaped member 3 into the body 4 . such a snap - action provision is provided while still maintaining the removable fitting of the member 3 to the elastomeric member 4 . in the embodiment , shown by way of example in fig3 the plug - shaped member 10 is made simply in the general form of a cylindrical flat disc which is removably placed in a correspondingly shaped housing 11 provided in the elastomeric body 12 which is fixed inside the cup - shaped member 13 . in this construction , as in that in fig3 the elastomeric body 12 allows the cup - shaped member 13 at all times to adapt its angular position in relation to the plug - shaped member 10 in order to allow for unevenness of the ground . likewise , it has the object of providing a flexible horizontal link between the cup - shaped member 13 and the plug - like member 10 , this resilient link making it possible to favor sliding of the cup - shaped member on the ground . finally , the elastomeric body 12 , by virtue of its anti - slip properties , is intended to avoid the plug - shaped member 10 slipping in respect of the load which is to be moved , or displaced . likewise , in this example which is shown in fig3 and also in the example shown in fig1 the housing 11 and the plug - shaped member 10 could be provided with means such as bevels , ribs , projections , etc ., which ensure axial retention of the elastomeric body on the plug - shaped member in order to avoid their untimely separation . these means could likewise consist of magnetic means ( not shown ) provided on the plug - shaped member in the housing of the elastomeric body as well as the elastomeric body itself . | 0 |
fig1 is a schematic view of a light source apparatus according to the present invention . the light source apparatus 100 comprises a discharge lamp 10 and a concave reflection mirror 20 . in front of a light source apparatus 100 , a rotation filter 200 , a rod integrator lens 300 , a lens 400 , a dmd 500 , and a lens 600 are arranged one by one . the arc luminescent spot of the discharge lamp 10 and the first focal point of the concave reflection mirror 20 are arranged so as to locate at approximately the same position . the second focal point of the concave reflection mirror 20 is located approximately in the incidence edge of the rod integrator lens 300 , and incidence of the reflected light from the concave reflection mirror 20 is carried out to the rod integrator lens 300 through the rotation filter 200 . driving control , for example , for rotating and stopping the filter 200 is carried out by a filter driving mechanism 210 . power supply control of the discharge lamp 10 is carried out by a power supply controlling apparatus 30 . the discharge lamp 10 is turned on at , for example , rated power 200 w , rated current 2 . 6 a . fig2 a and 2b are an enlarged view of the rotation filter 200 . fig2 a shows a state where blue light is incident to the rod integrator . fig2 b shows a state where a boundary of blue and white areas is located above the rod integrator so that blue light and white light are mixed and incident to the rod integrator . the rotation filter is called a color wheel and made from disc shaped glass . in the filter , red ( r ), green ( g ), blue ( b ), and white ( w ) areas , each of which has a lemon wedge shape , are formed . light reflected from the light source apparatus 100 transmits a light condensing area 201 formed on the rotation filter 200 . by rotation of the filter 200 , color corresponding to the light condensing area 201 is led to the rod lens provided downstream one by one . therefore , since red light ( r ), green light ( g ), or blue light ( b ) is projected in a time - shared manner , only one of the colors is projected instantaneously through an image display element , human eyes visually recognize these colors or mixed colors as an image . since white ( w ) light makes an image bright entirely , the image can be made brighter entirely by projecting white light at predetermined time intervals . since the filter 200 is rotated at , for example , 180 hz ( 180 revolutions per second ), each of red , green , blue and white light is projected 180 times per second . although each of the areas of filter 200 is determined by considering color balance and brightness of the ultimate image , the area of each color is shown as the same , as a matter of explanatory convenience in the drawings . the rotation filter 200 has , for example , a 25 mm diameter , and the light condensing area 201 has , for example , a 3 . 6 × 4 . 8 rectangular shape . in the present invention , power supply to the discharge lamp is shut off or reduced when the rotation filter 200 is in a position where a boundary of one color area and another color area is located above the light condensing area ( predetermined position ), as shown in fig2 b . this is because it may not be used as color information by projection since in that state , 2 colors are mixed . in addition , in case that light emission of the discharge lamp is shut off or current applied to the discharge lamp is reduced , the current saved by stopping light emission or reducing current can be used at time of projection of other color information , thereby improving usability of light per electric input , and attaining entire brightness and reproducibility of color even at the same rated power . in particular , the filter driving mechanism 210 sends , to the power supply controlling apparatus 30 , information of the state where the filter 200 is positioned as shown in fig2 b , and the power supply controlling apparatus 30 stops light emission of the discharge lamp 10 or reduces current applied to the discharge lamp 10 . fig3 a , 3b , and 3 c are schematic charts showing relationship between current applied to the discharge lamp and light output projected . fig3 a shows a signal which is sent to the power supply controlling apparatus 30 from the filter driving mechanism 210 , wherein an on - signal is generated when a boundary of the filter is located above the light condensing area . in the figure , the vertical axis represents two states , that is , an on state and an off state , and the horizontal axis represents time . fig3 b is a chart of current value i l flowing through the discharge lamp , wherein the vertical axis represents current value and the horizontal axis represents time . although , to be exact , the current value is affected by overshoot or ripple at rising time , the effects are not shown as a matter of explanatory convenience in the figure . fig3 c shows light output and color information projected on a screen , wherein the vertical axis represents light output and the horizontal axis shows time . as shown in the figure , it is found that power supply to the discharge lamp is stopped at the time when a boundary of color areas of the filter is located so as to correspond to the light condensing area . fig4 is an over view of the high pressure discharge lamp which is used for a light source apparatus according to the present invention . the discharge lamp 10 has an approximately spherical light emitting portion 11 formed as part of a discharge container made of quartz glass , wherein in the light emitting portion 11 , an anode 2 and cathode 3 are disposed facing each other . a sealing portion 12 is formed so as to extend from each end portion of the light emitting portion 11 , and in each sealing portion , a metallic foil for conduction 4 usually made of molybdenum is airtightly buried by , for example , shrink sealing . one end of each metallic foil 4 is connected to the anode 2 or the cathode 3 , and the other end of the metallic foil 4 is connected to an external lead 16 . a coil 31 is wound around the tip of the cathode 3 . the coil 31 is made of tungsten and tightly wound around or welded to the cathode 3 . while the coil 31 functions as a source of lighting initiation ( starting position ) according to a surface concavo - convex effect at the time of lighting initiation , it has a heat dissipation function according to the surface concavo - convex effect and the heat capacity after lighting . in the light emitting portion 11 , mercury , rare gas , and halogen gas are enclosed . the light emitting portion 11 is filled with 0 . 25 mg / mm 3 or more of mercury in order to obtain radiation light of necessary visible light wavelength , for example , 400 - 700 nm wavelengths . although the amount of the filling differs depending on the temperature condition , the vapor pressure is extremely high when it is 150 or more atmospheric pressure at time of lighting . moreover , it is possible to make a high mercury vapor pressure discharge lamp whose mercury vapor pressure is 200 or more atmospheric pressure , or 300 or more atmospheric pressure at time of lighting by enclosing much more mercury , so that it is possible to realize a light source suitable for a projector apparatus , as the mercury vapor pressure becomes high . as for rare gas , for example , 13 kpa of argon gas is filled so that the lighting starting nature is improved . the halogen is enclosed in form of compound of iodine , bromine , chlorine etc . and other metals . the filled amount of halogen is selected from the range of , for example , 10 − 6 to 10 − 2 μmol / mm 3 . although the function of the halogen is to extend the life time of the discharge lamp by using the halogen cycle , in case of an extremely small discharge lamp with high inner pressure , as described above , there is an advantage that devitrification or destruction of the discharge container is prevented by enclosing halogen . as a numerical example of such a discharge lamp , for example , the outer diameter of the light emitting portion is selected from the range of ψ6 . 0 - 15 . 0 mm , such as 9 . 5 mm , and the distance between the electrodes is selected from the range of 0 . 5 - 2 . 0 mm , such as 1 . 5 mm , and the arc tube internal volume is chosen from the range of 40 - 300 mm 3 , such as 75 mm 3 . as the lighting conditions , for example , the tube wall load is selected from the range of 0 . 8 - 2 . 0 w / mm 2 , such as 1 . 5 w / mm 2 , and rated voltage and rated - apparent - power are 80 v and 200 w , respectively . moreover , this discharge lamp is built in a projector apparatus etc . to be miniaturized , and while the entire structure is miniaturized extremely , the high intensity light is required . therefore , the thermal conditions of the inside of the light emitting portion become very severe . and the discharge lamp is disposed in an apparatus for presentations like a projector apparatus or an overhead projector , in which radiation light with good color rendering nature is provided . the concave reflecting mirror 20 is an elliptic light condensing mirror having a short focal point , wherein a multi - layer film comprising titania , silica etc . is formed by vapor deposition on borosilicate glass or crystallization glass which is a base of the mirror . further , a front glass 21 is disposed on a front opening of the concave reflecting mirror 20 . next , description of a power supply controlling apparatus will be given below . fig5 shows the power supply feeding apparatus for lighting the discharge lamp 10 . in the power supply controlling apparatus ( ex ), a step down chopper type ballast circuit ( bx ) is operated by voltage from a dc power source ( mx ) such as pfc etc . in the ballast circuit ( bx ), current from the dc power source ( mx ) is turned on and off by a switching device ( qx ) such as fet etc . and a smoothing condenser ( cx ) is charged through a choke coil ( lx ). this voltage is impressed to the discharge lamp 10 and current flows in the discharge lamp 10 . high voltage pulses are generated on a secondary winding ( hi ) by a starter ( ui ) at time of lighting initiation . this high voltage is superimposed onto output voltage of the ballast circuit ( bx ) and impressed between the electrodes 2 and 3 , thereby starting discharge of the discharge lamp 10 . a power supply controlling circuit ( fx ) generates a gate driving signal ( sg ), and the gate driving signal ( sg ) is applied through a gate driving circuit ( gx ) to a gate terminal of the switching device ( qx ), thereby controlling current to be turned on / off by the dc power source ( mx ). discharge lamp current ( il ) flowing through the discharge lamp 10 and lamp voltage ( vl ) generated between the electrodes 2 and 3 are detected by a current detector ( ix ) and a voltage detector ( vx ) respectively . discharge lamp current signal ( si ) from the current detector ( 1 ×) and discharge lamp voltage signal ( sv ) from the voltage detector ( vx ) are inputted in the power supply controlling circuit ( fx ), and the duty cycle ratio of the gate driving signal ( sg ) is controlled in a feedback manner , by comparing it with a desired value . when a signal sf for shutting off discharge lamp current from the filter driving mechanism 210 is inputted in the power supply controlling circuit ( fx ), the power supply controlling circuit ( fx ) transmits an off - gate driving signal ( sg ) to the gate driving circuit ( gx ), prioritizing it over the above - mentioned feedback control , thereby the switching device ( qx ) is turned off , that is , power supply to the discharge lamp 10 is shut off . in such a discharge lamp according to the present invention , in which the distance between electrodes is 2 mm or less , the amount of mercury is 0 . 15 mg / mm 3 or more , the filled halogen amount is 10 − 6 ˜ 10 − 2 μmol / mm 3 , it is preferred that power supply shutting off period is 4 milliseconds , preferably , 1 millisecond , and more preferably , 0 . 1 to 0 . 6 milliseconds . these conditions are obtained from various experiments , and when the power supply is shut off for more than 4 milliseconds , the discharge lamp itself is completely turned off , so that re - lighting is not possible without a starter . furthermore , when the power supply shutting off period is 1 millisecond or more , it is possible to re - light the discharge lamp without initiating the starter . however , after supplying power , the arc becomes unstable , thereby causing notably unstable light output . that is , in stationary lighting , the cathode is heated to a high temperature by current supplied from the outside , so that plasma is actively generated on the front face of the cathode by the thermionic emission from the cathode so that the stable arc discharge can be maintained . however , when the power supply is shut off , heat from the plasma which has heated the cathode is not applied to the cathode thereby causing temperature drop of the cathode . if it is a very short time , when current is supplied again , plasma can be generated by thermoelectron which is less than that at the time of the stationary lighting so that the lamp can be returned to the stationary lighting state in a short time by applying voltage higher than that at the time of the stationary lighting . however , since , when the shutting off time is longer , the density of electron in the discharge space declines , the discharge lamp cannot be returned to the stationary lighting state unless supply voltage is raised to a large extent , and as a result , the discharge lamp goes out . moreover , the current supplied to the discharge lamp is not necessarily shut off and the current may be reduced . particularly , the current may be reduced to 90 % or less of that at time of stationary lighting , preferably 50 % or less . in this case , there is an advantage that the current tends to be stable when the current returns , as compared with the case of shutting off current . as an example , in order to reduce the current , when the power supply controlling circuit ( fx ) of the power supply controlling apparatus 30 receives a signal sf from the filter driving mechanism as the case where the current is shut off , it transmits a gate driving signal ( sg ) so as to reduce the duty ratio to the switching device ( qx ) ( to make on period short ). in the present invention , the lamp current is not necessarily shut off or reduced on all the boundary of the color areas of the rotation filter . although in the embodiment , the rotation filter 4 has 4 boundaries , the lamp current can be reduced or shut off on at least one boundary in order to obtain the effects of the present invention . specifically , it is effective if the current is reduced or shut off on a boundary between colors other than white area . the present invention can be applied to a case where such a rotation filter does not have a white area . that is , current applied to the discharge lamp is reduced or shut off on each boundary of a rotation filter having 3 color ( rgb ) areas . since the boundary cannot be used for obtaining color information , when color reproducibility is important , the dmd element is moved in a dark side direction and held so that light is not projected . as described above , when light is not effectively used , the lamp output can be effectively used by reducing or shutting off current to the discharge lamp , while the rated power of the entire discharge lamp is not changed . the discharge lamp according to the present invention is not limited to such a direct current lighting type discharge lamp shown in fig4 , and may be an alternate current lighting type discharge lamp . fig6 is the structure of the rotation filter according to another embodiment of the present invention . in the rotation filter shown in fig6 , an area of each color is determined , taking color balance or brightness at a time of projection on a screen into consideration . in particularly , center angles of the lemon wedge shape in the green ( g ), red ( r ), blue ( b ), and white ( w ) areas are 103 degrees , 77 degrees , 97 degrees , and 83 degrees , respectively . the light condensing area 201 which is virtually formed on the rotation filter is a 3 . 6 × 4 . 8 rectangular . while by using the rotation filter in the apparatus as shown in fig1 , the discharge lamp was turned on at rated current 3 . 1 a , and then shut off for 0 . 2 millisecond on each boundary of color areas . fig7 shows relationship between light output and lamp current when the filter shown in fig6 is used . the lamp current was shut off in 1 . 0 millisecond after the lamp was turned on , and the lamp current ( 3 . 1 a ) was applied to the discharge lamp in 0 . 2 millisecond after that . in this case , light output of white color was approximately 11 . 4 mv . in addition , the light output was shown as display value of a photocell further , in 2 . 2 milliseconds after the lamp was turned on , the lamp current was shut off again , and then lamp current ( 3 . 1 a ) was applied to the discharge lamp in 0 . 2 millisecond after that . in this case , light output of blue color was 4 . 4 mv . furthermore , in 3 . 7 milliseconds after the lamp was turned on , the lamp current was shut off again , and then lamp current ( 3 . 1 a ) was applied to the discharge lamp in 0 . 2 millisecond after that . in that case , light output of blue color was 0 . 6 mv . moreover , the lamp current was shut off again in 4 . 9 millisecond after the lamp was turned on , and the lamp current ( 3 . 1 a ) was applied to the discharge lamp in 0 . 2 millisecond after that . in this case , the light output of green was approximately 6 . 9 mv . further , lamp current was shut off again in 6 . 5 millisecond after the lamp was turned on , and the lamp current ( 3 . 1 a ) was applied to the discharge lamp in 0 . 2 millisecond after that . in this case the light output of white was 11 . 4 mv . further , for comparison purposes , a filter in which color balance can be obtained with constant output without shutting off the lamp current is prepared , and light output thereof is measured . as a result , it is confirmed that in the light source apparatus according to the present invention , light output is improved over the compared apparatus , and further rgb color balance thereof is approximately the same as that of the compared apparatus . thus the present invention possesses a number of advantages or purposes , and there is no requirement that every claim directed to that invention be limited to encompass all of them . the disclosure of japanese patent application no . 2004 - 003765 filed on jan . 9 , 2004 including specification , drawings and claims is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . although only some exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above , those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention . accordingly , all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention . | 6 |
referring to fig1 a and 1b , there is shown in longitudinal cross - section the tip region of a conventional ammonia gas sensing electrode , e . g ., an orion model 95 - 10 . this electrode comprises a polymeric body tube 19 threaded at the outboard end to accept an annular screw cap 19a . as marketed , the electrode is provided with gas - permeable membrane 16 , maintained in place against base ring 19b by the compression of screw cap 19a , internal electrolyte solution 17 , and ph sensing glass membrane 18 . in the practice of this invention , catalytic degradation of amino acid in clear or turbid aqueous medium samples is achieved by attaching , in the tip region of the electrode , a thin layer 10 of the fresh animal tissue containing , as a natural constituent thereof , a preselected enzyme effective to catalyze degradation of the amino acid in analysis to either ammonia or to an intermediate compound subject to further degradation to ammonia in the presence of an additional preselected enzyme . conveniently , tissue layer 10 is maintained snugly against the electrode tip of fig1 a by a piece of monofilament nylon mesh 11 , ( mesh size typically 105 microns ) which is secured in place by assembly under screw cap 19a . it is not essential that tissue layer 10 overlie the entire open area of base ring 19b , good results being achieved where the tissue layer approximates the ph sensing glass membrane 18 tip area and is generally aligned therewith . protective dialysis membrane 15 is interposed between tissue slice 10 and gas - permeable membrane 16 , as it has been found that tissue slice 10 otherwise causes deterioration of membrane 16 over a prolonged period . in the analysis of the amino acid glutamine , we have found that pork kidney possesses high glutaminase activity which rapidly degrades glutamine to products including ammonia , thereby permitting direct amino acid concentration determination without the necessity for additional enzyme supplementation . the kidney tissue is obtained in the fresh state from hogs immediately after their slaughter from the cortex region of the kidney , the thickness typically being approximately 0 . 05 mm and a typical size of 12 mm diameter . pork kidneys are preferably stored at 4 ° c . before use . dialysis membrane 15 typically has a molecular weight cutoff of about 12 , 000 . if desired , a dialysis membrane of the same characteristics as membrane 15 can be substituted for nylon mesh 11 as the retainer for tissue slice 10 . the potentiometric response of the kidney slice electrode was evaluated at 26 ° c . in 0 . 1 m phosphate buffer , ph 7 . 8 , containing 0 . 02 % sodium azide as preservative . the response to buffer solely is that indicated by the horizontal line to the right of point o , upper right hand portion of fig2 and this constitutes the background potential . between experiments , the electrodes were stored in the buffer at room temperatures . fig2 full line plot , is a typical calibration curve of the electrode for l - glutamine . the slope , linear range and detection limit remain unchanged over at least 28 days of electrode use . typically , 5 - 7 minutes are required for the electrode to attain a steady potential value after each addition of glutamine to the test solution . the kidney tissue electrode yielded negligible response to such possible interferents as urea , l - alanine , l - arginine , l - histidine , l - valine , l - serine , l - glutamic acid , l - aspargine , l - aspartic acid , d - alanine , d - aspartic acid , glycine and creatinine . the dotted plot at the upper right - hand section of fig2 represents the maximum response ( curve a ) to the thirteen possible interferents tested . it will be seen from curve a that , in terms of equivalent glutamine , the maximum interference which can possibly exist is approximately two and one half orders of magnitude less than a given glutamine concentration , so that , practically , there is no interference problem . in service , potentiometric measurements are conducted in the conventional manner using a commercially available ph meter or similar device . thermostating of samples is desirable . an acceptable procedure involves placing 10 - 25 ml of the glutamine - containing sample into the thermostated cell , stirring and thereafter immersing the electrode probe . a steady potential is normally reached in 5 - 10 minutes . calibration curves are prepared using known standards , and the ph should be held constant throughout . a ph of about 7 . 8 is optimal . between measurements , the electrode is returned to the buffer solution to stabilize the background potential . the quantitative relationship of sensed potential to nh 3 concentration is expressed by the following equation : as shown in fig2 the electrode probe hereinbefore described can measure glutamine over the concentration range of at least 10 - 2 to 5 × 10 - 5 molar with response slopes of approximately 53 mv per 10 - fold concentration change . when prepared from fresh pork kidney , the electrode displays good selectivity for glutamine over other amino acids and over substances such as urea . as another example , an arginine sensing electrode was prepared using a beef liver slice as the tissue layer 10 . this electrode is more complex than the glutamine electrode because the beef liver enzyme arginase carries the degradation of arginine only to urea , which must then be finally degraded to ammonia by supplementation with the enzyme urease . the arginine electrode is constructed exactly as described for the glutamine electrode of fig1 a and 1b , except that assembly is completed with a second dialytic membrane ( replacing nylon mesh 11 ) mounted outboard of the elements shown in fig1 a and interfacing with the test solution . a few drops of the supplemental enzyme urease are applied to the outward face of the beef liver tissue and the second dialytic membrane maintains it in place and against loss to the solution . we have found that a suitable buffer solution for the arginine electrode is 0 . 2 molar tris hcl having a ph of 8 . 5 . by way of comparison , parallel electrode experiments were conducted using the isolated porcine kidney glutaminase enzyme ( sigma , grade vi ) known to be thermally unstable . small volumes ( approx . 15 μl ) of enzyme suspension were immobilized at the surface of the ammonia gas sensing electrode by means of a dialysis membrane and electrode response toward l - glutamine was evaluated in the buffer medium . freshly prepared enzyme electrodes yielded moderate potentiometric response ( e . g ., 44 millivolts per tenfold change in substrate concentration ) but lost more than 50 % of their activity within two days , and showed negligible response after four days at room temperature . thus , it is clear that the kidney tissue electrode affords a very substantial improvement in terms of both lifetime and response , over the conventional enzyme electrode . it is clear that other tissue - based electrodes can be readily prepared for the concentration determination of yet other specific amino acids using the teachings of this invention , and no limitations are intended beyond those of the appended claims . | 6 |
in the following , principles and embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . [ 0092 ] fig8 and 9 are diagrams showing a first embodiment of the present invention . the present embodiment relates to a method of manufacturing a high - frequency module 30 a which is characterized in that a sub - member 70 is used in a molding process of a resin package 35 . fig8 shows a high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state before being clamped in a mold 60 a . fig9 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig8 and 9 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig7 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . also , since the high - frequency circuit board 32 a used in the present invention is identical to what is used for the high - frequency module 30 a , no further detailed explanation is made for the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . the sub - member 70 is made of a material such as a thermally resistive hard resin and is provided with raised parts 71 and recessed portions 72 on its surface facing towards the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . the raised parts 71 and the recessed portions 72 are configured such that it forms a negative of ( or has a reversed shape of ) the configuration of the land portions 49 a and the recessed portions 51 provided on the second surface of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . in other words , when the high - frequency circuit board 32 a and the sub - member 70 are placed opposite each other , the land portions 49 a of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a face the recessed portions 72 of the sub - member 70 , and , the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a face the raised parts 71 of the sub - member 70 . also , the height of the raised parts 71 is made equal to the height of the land portions 49 a . in order to implement molding process using the sub - member 70 of the above structure , firstly , the sub - member 70 is joined with the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . thus , the land portions 49 a of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a engage with the recessed portions 72 of the sub - members 70 , and , the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a engage with the raised parts 71 of the sub - members 70 . in other words , the recessed portions 51 formed in the high - frequency circuit board 32 a are filled with the sub - member 70 . accordingly , when implementing a molding process as shown in fig9 the recessed portions 51 are filled with the raised parts of the sub - member 70 . there is no gap between the cavity 64 a and the high - frequency circuit board 32 a while injecting the resin 66 . therefore , even if the base material 45 is biased due to pressure exerted by the resin 66 during molding , the base material 45 is supported by the raised parts 71 of the sub - member 70 and its deformation will be restricted . thus , during a molding process , deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a can be restricted ( or reduced ). therefore , it is possible to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 a and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . now , a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig1 and 11 . in the first embodiment described above , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a during the molding process is restricted by supporting the base material 45 using the sub - member 70 having raised parts 71 that engage with the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . whereas in the present embodiment , in order to restrict ( or reduce ) the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a , a further high - frequency circuit board 32 a is used in place of the sub - member 70 of the first embodiment . [ 0101 ] fig1 shows a high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state before being clamped in a mold 60 a . fig1 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig1 and 11 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . as has been described above , the second surface of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a is unleveled since a plurality of land portions 49 a are provided thereon . in the present embodiment , two high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are situated such that the second surfaces thereof are opposing each other and offset by a distance corresponding to a pitch between neighboring land portions 49 a . thus , the land portions 49 a of a first high - frequency circuit board 32 a face with the recessed portions 51 of the second high - frequency circuit board 32 a placed below the first high - frequency circuit board 32 a . similarly , the recessed portions 51 of the first high - frequency circuit board 32 a face with the land portions 49 a of a second high - frequency circuit board 32 a . in the present embodiment , a molding process is implemented as follows . firstly , the high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are placed in the mold 60 b . the first high - frequency circuit board 32 a is placed in the cavity 63 b of the upper mold 61 b and the second high - frequency circuit board 32 a is placed in the cavity 64 b of the lower mold 62 b . when placed in the mold 60 b , the second surfaces of the high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are opposing each other and the high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are offset by a distance corresponding to a pitch of the land portions 49 a . then , the upper mold 61 b and the lower mold 62 are joined together . the land portions 49 a of the first high - frequency circuit board 32 a placed in the upper mold 61 b engages the recessed portions 51 of the second high - frequency circuit board 32 a placed in the lower mold 62 b . similarly , the recessed portions 51 of the first high - frequency circuit board 32 a placed in the upper mold 61 b engages the land portions 49 a of the second high - frequency circuit board 32 a placed in the lower mold 62 b . in other words , the recessed portions 51 of one of the first and second high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are filled with the land portions 49 a of another one of the first and second high - frequency circuit boards 32 a . as shown in fig1 , during a molding process , since the recessed portions 51 are filled with the land portions 49 a of the opposing high - frequency circuit board 32 a , the resin 66 is injected in a state where there is no space between a pair of high - frequency circuit board 32 a . accordingly , during a molding step , even if the base materials 45 of the first and second high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are biased due to a pressure exerted by the resin 66 , a pair of high - frequency circuit boards 32 a will mutually support the recessed portions 51 . thus , during a molding step , the deformation of each of the high - frequency circuit boards 32 a can be restricted . therefore , it is also possible in the present embodiment to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 a and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . in the present embodiment , the sub - member 70 used in the first embodiment can be omitted . therefore , there is no need to design and manufacture the sub - member 70 and the cost required for the molding process can be reduced . in the molding process of the present embodiment , the ground layers 48 a formed on the first and second high - frequency circuit boards 32 a must also engage with each other . accordingly , the ground layers 48 a is configured to engage with each other when the first and second high - frequency circuit boards 32 a are joined together . now , a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig1 and 13 . in the first embodiment described above , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a during the molding process is restricted by supporting the base material 45 using the sub - member 70 of hard resin having raised parts 71 that engage with the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . whereas in the present embodiment , in order to restrict the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a , an elastic sub - member 75 is used in place of the sub - member 70 of the first embodiment . [ 0112 ] fig1 shows a high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state before being clamped in a mold 60 a . fig1 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 a in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig1 and 14 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . the elastic sub - member 75 is made of a resin material having an elastic property such as polyimide and is configured in a rectangular shape with no protruded parts nor recessed portions . when implementing a molding process using the elastic sub - member 75 , the high - frequency circuit board 32 a is placed in the cavity 63 a of the upper mold 61 a and the elastic sub - member 75 is placed in the cavity 64 a of the lower mold 62 a . then , the upper mold 61 a and the lower mold 62 a are joined together . accordingly , the high - frequency circuit board 32 a pressed the elastic sub - member 75 . the elastic sub - member 75 elastically deforms into a shape corresponding to an unleveled profile ( formed by the land portions 49 a ) of a second ( lower ) surface of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . due to such elastic deformation , the elastic sub - member 75 enters the recessed portions 51 . as shown in fig1 , during a molding process , the recessed portions 51 are filled with the elastic sub - member 75 , the resin 66 is injected in a state where there is no space between the cavity 64 a and the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . accordingly , during a molding step , even if the base materials 45 is biased due to a pressure exerted by the resin 66 , the base material 45 is supported by the elastic sub - member 75 and its deformation is restricted . thus , during a molding step , the deformation of each of the high - frequency circuit boards 32 a can be restricted . therefore , it is also possible in the present embodiment to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 a and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . also , in contrast to the sub - member 70 , since the elastic sub - member 75 elastically deforms , only one elastic sub - member 75 is required for various thin - film resin substrate having different number of lands 49 a or different pattern . in other words , with the sub - member 70 with protruded parts 71 and recessed portions 70 of the first embodiment , one wishes to implement the molding process for various high - frequency circuit board with different number of lands 49 a or different pattern , various types of sub - members 70 must be prepared for various types of high - frequency circuit boards . with the molding process of the present embodiment , there is no need to prepare different types of elastic sub - member 75 for various types of the land portions 49 a of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . accordingly , it is possible to reduce cost required for the molding process . also , in the present embodiment , the elastic sub - member 75 is provided as sheet member of polyimide resin . therefore , the same material is used for the elastic sub - member 75 and for the base material 45 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a . accordingly , in the molding process performed under heated environment , any stress due to the difference of thermal expansion can be prevented from being produced between the base material 45 and the elastic sub - member 75 . now , a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig1 through 18 . in each of the embodiments described above , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a during the molding process is restricted by supporting the recessed portions 51 of the base material 45 using the sub - member 70 or the elastic sub - member 75 . whereas in the present embodiment , in order to restrict the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a , the recessed portions 51 are reinforced so as to improve the structure of the high - frequency module . [ 0123 ] fig1 is a plan view of the high - frequency module 30 b of the present embodiment . fig1 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line a - a of fig1 . fig1 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line b - b of fig1 . fig1 is a bottom view of the high - frequency module 30 b . further , fig1 the high - frequency circuit board 32 b in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig1 to 18 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig2 to 6 , 8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . as has been described above with reference to fig7 during the molding process , the base material 45 is deformed at positions of the recessed portions 51 where the base material 45 is exposed between neighboring land portions 49 a . thus , by mechanically reinforcing the recessed portions 51 , the deformation of the base material 45 can be reduced . in the present embodiment , supporting parts 76 a are formed in the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 b constituting the high - frequency module 30 b . as shown in fig1 , the supporting parts 76 a are formed integral with the ground layer 48 a . as shown in fig1 , the thickness of the supporting parts 76 a and the thickness of the land portions 49 a are equal . when the width l 2 of the recessed part 51 is , for example , 600 μm , the width l 1 of the supporting part 76 a is preferably 100 μm ≦ l 1 ≦ 300 μm . in the manufacturing process of the high - frequency module 30 b of the above - described structure , the supporting parts 76 a are formed before forming the resin package 35 . as has been described above , since the supporting parts 76 a are formed integral with the ground layer 48 a , the ground layer 48 b and the land portions 49 a may be formed simultaneously . accordingly , even if the supporting parts 76 a are provided , the manufacturing process of the high - frequency module 30 b will not become complicated . also , the manufacturing process can be simplified in comparison to a method in which the supporting parts 76 a are formed in a forming process that is separate from the process of forming the ground layer 48 a and the land portions 49 a . in the molding process , as shown in fig1 , the high - frequency circuit board 32 b provided with the supporting parts 76 a is placed in the mold 60 a and then the resin 66 is injected . when the high - frequency circuit board 32 b is placed in the mold 60 a , the land portions 49 touches the cavity 64 of the lower mold 62 a . in this state , the supporting parts 76 a having the same height as the land portions 49 a also touches the cavity 64 . accordingly , the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a are supported by the supporting parts 76 a . thus , even if the base materials 45 is biased due to a pressure exerted by the resin 66 during the molding step , the base material 45 is supported by the supporting parts 76 a and its deformation is restricted . thus , deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 a can also be restricted with the molding process of the present embodiment . therefore , it is possible to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 b and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . accordingly , since the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 b is restricted , the high - frequency module 30 b that is manufactured with the manufacturing process described above can be mounted to a mounting board with an improved mounting ability . when the high - frequency module 30 b is mounted on the mounting board , the land portions 49 a for providing electrical connection touches the mounting board , and the supporting portions 76 a also touches the mounting board . therefore , the high - frequency module 30 b of the present embodiment can be mounted on the mounting board with a high stability . accordingly , the land portions 49 a and the mounting board can be soldered with an improved soldering ability . further , as shown in fig1 , supporting parts 76 a are positioned between neighboring land portions 49 a . also , the supporting parts 76 a are formed integral with the ground layer 48 b that is grounded . thus , since a pair of neighboring land portions 49 a is electro - magnetically separated from the supporting part 76 a , the land portions 49 a can be securely isolated from one another . accordingly , with the high - frequency module 30 b of the present embodiment , it is possible to reduce the interference between the land portions 49 a through which the high - frequency signals are input / output . as shown in fig1 for the high - frequency circuit board 32 v , curved parts 77 , 78 are formed at corners of the land portions 49 b and the supporting parts 76 b . thus , it is possible to further reduce the interference between the land portions 49 b . now , a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig2 through 22 . this embodiment is also characterized in that the recessed portions 51 are reinforced by adding improved feature to the structure of the high - frequency module . accordingly , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 d is reduced . [ 0134 ] fig2 is a plan view of the high - frequency module 30 c of the present embodiment . fig2 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line b - b of fig2 . fig1 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line b - b of fig1 . further , fig2 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 d in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig2 to 22 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig2 to 6 , 8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . in the fourth embodiment described above , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit boards 32 b , 32 c is restricted by providing the supporting parts 76 a and 76 b in the recessed portions 51 . whereas in the present embodiment , in order to restrict or to reduce the deformation of the base material 45 , the recessed portions 51 are mechanically reinforced using various interconnections provided on the high - frequency module 30 c . in detail , in the present embodiment , the positions of the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 b , 37 b and the dc circuit interconnection 38 b are altered such that they are provided on the base material 45 at positions opposing the recessed portions 51 . accordingly , as shown in fig2 , the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 b , 37 b and the dc circuit interconnection 38 b are provided . above the recessed portions 51 with the base material 45 being interposed therebetween . the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 b , 37 b and the dc circuit interconnection 38 b formed simultaneously with the dc circuit interconnection 39 . also , the positions of the interconnections 36 a to 38 b can be easily altered by altering the mask pattern used for forming the interconnections 36 b to 38 b and 39 . also , the thickness of each of the interconnections 36 b to 38 b is , for example , 35 μm . in the manufacturing process of the high - frequency module 30 c of the above structure , the interconnections 36 b - 38 b and 39 b are formed before forming the resin package 35 . in the molding process , as shown in fig2 , the high - frequency circuit board 32 d provided with the interconnections 36 b to 38 b is placed in the mold 60 a and the resin 66 is injected . when the high - frequency circuit board 32 d is placed in the mold 60 a , the land portions 49 a touches the cavity 64 a of the lower mold 62 a . in this state , gaps are formed at positions corresponding to the recessed portions 51 . however , as has been described above , the interconnections 36 b to 38 b are formed on the first surface of the base material 45 opposing the recessed portions 51 . accordingly , the mechanical strength at the recessed portions 51 is increased . therefore , even if the base material 45 is biased due to pressure exerted by the resin 66 during molding , the base material 45 is reinforced by the interconnections 36 b to 38 b and its deformation will be restricted . thus , during a molding process , deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 d can be restricted . therefore , it is also possible in the present embodiment to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 a and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . accordingly , since the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 d is restricted , the high - frequency module 30 c of the present embodiment can be mounted on the mounting board with a high stability . now , a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig2 through 27 . this embodiment is also characterized in that the mechanical strength at the recessed portions 51 is increased . accordingly , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 e is reduced . [ 0145 ] fig2 is a plan view of the high - frequency module 30 d of the present embodiment . fig2 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line a - a of fig2 . fig2 is a bottom plan view of the high - frequency module 30 d . further , fig2 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 e in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig2 to 27 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig2 to 6 , 8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . the present embodiment is characterized in that embedded members 79 are provided in the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 e that is provided in the high - frequency module 30 d ( see fig2 and 26 for detailed illustration ). the embedded member 79 is made of an insulating material such as a polyimide resin . in order to form the embedded members 79 , the insulating material is heated until it becomes soft , and then the insulating material is filled in the recessed portions 51 . thus , the recessed portions 51 are filled with the embedded members 79 and the bottom surface of the high - frequency module 30 d becomes flat . in the manufacturing process of the high - frequency module 30 d of the above - described structure , the embedded members 79 are formed before forming the resin package 35 . screen - printing may be used for providing the embedded members 79 so that the embedded members 79 can be easily provided in the recessed portions 51 . in the molding process , as shown in fig2 , the high - frequency circuit board 32 e provided with the embedded members 79 in the recessed portions 51 is placed in the mold 60 a and then the resin 66 is injected . when the high - frequency circuit board 32 e is placed in the mold 60 a , the land portions 49 a touches the cavity 64 a of the lower mold 62 a . in this state , the embedded members 79 also touches the cavity 64 a . accordingly , the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 e are supported by the embedded members 79 . thus , even if the base materials 45 is biased due to a pressure exerted by the resin 66 during the molding step , the base material 45 is supported by the embedded members 79 and its deformation is restricted . thus , deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 e can also be restricted with the molding process of the present embodiment . therefore , it is possible to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 b and the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 a , 37 a , 38 a , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . accordingly , since the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 e is restricted , the high - frequency module 30 d that is manufactured with the manufacturing process described above can be mounted to a mounting board with an improved mounting ability . when the high - frequency module 30 d is mounted on the mounting board , the land portions 49 a for providing electrical connection touches the mounting board , and the embedded members 79 also touches the mounting board . therefore , the high - frequency module 30 d of the present embodiment can be mounted on the mounting board with a high stability . accordingly , the land portions 49 a and the mounting board can be soldered with an improved soldering ability . further , as has been described above , the embedded members 79 are made of an insulating material and are provided in the recessed portions 51 each positioned between neighboring land portions 49 a . thus , with the embedded members 79 , the neighboring land portions 49 a can be securely isolated . accordingly , the interference may be reduced between the electrodes whereto and wherefrom the high - frequency signals are provided . also , after completing the molding process of the resin package 24 , the embedded members 9 may be removed from the recessed portions 51 . with this structure , since the land portions 49 a will be protruded from the base material 45 , the high - frequency module 30 d may be connected to the mounting board with improved connecting ability . now , a seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig2 through 30 . [ 0154 ] fig2 is a plan view of the high - frequency module 30 e of the present embodiment . fig2 is a partial cross - sectional diagram along line b - b of fig2 . fig3 shows the high - frequency circuit board 32 f in a state after being clamped in a mold 60 a and also shows how the resin 66 is injected . in fig2 to 30 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig2 to 6 , 14 to 22 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . in the present embodiment , in a similar manner to the above - described fourth embodiment , the supporting parts 76 a are formed in the recessed portions 51 of the high - frequency circuit board 32 f ( see fig1 to 18 ). further , the present embodiment is characterized in that , in a similar manner to the above - described fifth embodiment , the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 b , 37 b and the dc circuit interconnections 38 b are provided on the first surface of the base material 45 facing the recessed portions 51 ( see fig2 to 22 ). with the structure of the present embodiment , the recessed portions 51 are reinforced by the embedded members 79 a and by the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 b , 37 b and the dc circuit interconnections 38 b . as shown in fig3 , in the molding process for forming the resin package 35 , the recessed portions 51 are supported by the supporting parts 76 a and are also reinforced by the interconnections 36 b , 37 b and 38 b . therefore , even if the base material 45 is biased due to pressure exerted by the resin 66 during molding , the deformation of the base material 45 will be restricted . thus , during a molding step , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 f can be restricted . therefore , it is also possible in the present embodiment to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the high - frequency circuit board 32 f and the interconnections 36 b , 37 b , 38 b , 39 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 36 b , 37 b , 38 b , 39 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . accordingly , since the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 f is restricted , the high - frequency module 30 e that is manufactured with the manufacturing process described above can be mounted to a mounting board with an improved mounting ability . now , the supporting parts provided in the recessed portions 51 will be described in detail . in order to restrict the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 f ( base material 45 ), it is preferable to provide the supporting parts 76 a that extends across the entire surface of the recessed portions 51 . however , as has been described above , the land portions 49 a needs to be isolated from one another . therefore , if the supporting parts 76 a are made of , for example , a conductive material or a magnetic material and are provided across a great area in the recessed portions , the land portions 49 a will not be sufficiently isolated between each other . that is to say , when the supporting parts 76 a are formed by the conductive material or the magnetic material , it is necessary to provide sufficient space within the recessed portions 51 to ensure isolation between the land portions 49 a . the width of the space required is in an order of about 300 μm . accordingly , with the structure provided with the supporting parts 76 a in the recessed portions 51 , the deformation of the base material 45 may not be restricted for some strength of a pressure exerted by the resin 66 during molding . however , in the present embodiment , the high - frequency module 30 e is provided with the supporting parts 76 a and with the interconnections 36 b , 37 b , and 38 b formed on the base material 45 opposing the recessed portions 51 . thus , even if the supporting parts 76 a are formed in a shape that ensures that the land portions 49 a are isolated from one another , the recessed portions 51 will be reinforced by the interconnections 36 b , 37 b and 38 b . with such a structure , the deformation of the high - frequency circuit board 32 f can be restricted while ensuring isolation between the land portions 49 a . now , a seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig3 through 35 . in each of the embodiments described above , the land portions 49 a are formed on the second surface of the base material 45 , and then the resin package 35 is formed . whereas in the present embodiment , the resin package 35 is formed before forming the land portions 49 a . with this method , since the resin package 35 is formed while there is no land portions 49 a , there will be no unleveled portions formed on the second surface of the base material 45 . accordingly , the deformation of the base material 45 can be restricted . in the following description , a method of manufacturing the high - frequency module 30 f of the present embodiment will be described in detail . in fig3 to 35 , those elements that are similar to elements shown in fig2 to 6 , 8 and 9 are indicated by similar reference numerals and will not be described in detail in the following description . a method of manufacturing the resin package 35 f is as follows . as shown in fig3 a , the base material 45 is prepared . the base material 45 is a polyimide film of a thickness of about 25 μm to 70 μm . as shown in fig3 b , a copper layer 80 is provided on a surface of the base material 45 . in order to provide this copper layer 80 , firstly , a thin layer of copper is formed by copper sputtering process and then a flush copper plating is implemented . then , as shown in fig3 c , a dry film 1 is provided over the copper layer 80 . the dry film 81 is a photo - sensitive resin layer of a negative type . then , the method proceeds to an exposure process . as shown in fig3 d , a glass mask 82 having a predetermined pattern is provided and a light ( such as an ultra - violet ray ) is illuminated thereto . then , the method proceeds to a development process . since the dry film 81 is a photo - sensitive resin layer of a negative type , the development process serves to leave only the portions of the dry film 81 that have been irradiated by light . fig3 a shows a state after the exposure process has been completed . then , the base material 45 is placed in an electrolytic plating vessel . electrolytic plating process of copper is carried out using the copper layer 80 as electrodes . accordingly , using the dry film 81 as a mask , a copper plating body 83 with a predetermined pattern is formed . fig3 b shows a state where the copper plating body 83 have been formed . then , as shown in fig3 c , the dry film 81 is removed . subsequently , the copper plating body 83 is subjected to flush etching so as to form independent copper patterns 84 . fig3 d shows a state where the copper patterns 84 have been formed . then , a finishing plating layer 85 of , for example , gold , is formed on over the copper patterns 84 such that interconnections 86 shown in fig3 e are formed . the interconnections 86 will serve as the high - frequency circuit interconnections 36 a , 37 a , the dc circuit interconnections 38 a , 39 , and the bias terminals 40 to 44 . after forming the interconnections 86 , the chip components 34 are soldered between the predetermined interconnections 86 as shown in fig3 a . after the interconnections 86 and the chip components 34 are provided on the base material 45 , a molding process is implemented for forming the resin package 35 on the base material 35 . in the molding process , as shown in fig3 b , the base material 45 is placed in the mold 60 c and the resin 66 is injected on the upper surface of the base material whereon the chip components 34 and the interconnections 86 are formed . then , after the above - described molding process when the resin package is provided on the base material 45 , the dry film 87 of photo - sensitive resin is provided on the lower surface of the base material 45 as shown in fig3 c . then , the dry film 87 undergoes an exposure process using a glass mask 88 having a predetermined pattern . the dry film 87 used herein is also a photo - sensitive resin of a negative type . the pattern formed on the glass mask 88 is configured such that the light is irradiated at portions where via holes 50 are not formed . after exposure , a development process is implemented . as shown in fig3 a , the dry film 87 is provided with openings 89 provided at positions opposing the via holes 50 . then , polyimide etching is implemented using the dry film 87 as a mask . thus , as shown in fig3 b , through - holes 90 are formed in the base material 45 . then , as shown in fig3 c , a copper layer 91 is formed on the second surface of the base material 45 having the through - holes 90 . in order to provide the copper layer 91 , firstly , a thin film of copper is formed by copper sputtering and then a flush copper plating is implemented . when the copper layer 91 is formed , processes similar to those described with reference to fig3 c to 32 b are implemented . as shown in fig3 a , using the dry film 92 as a mask , a copper plating body 93 is formed . the copper plating body 93 is formed by electrolytic plating using the copper layer 91 as electrodes . also , since the copper plating body 93 is also formed in the through - holes 90 , the via holes 50 are formed . after the copper plating body 93 is formed in the above - described manner , the dry film 92 is removed . then , the copper plating body 93 undergoes a flush etching process , so as to provide independent copper patterns . then , a finishing plating layer 94 of , for example , gold is formed over the copper patterns . accordingly , as shown in fig3 b , the high - frequency module 30 f having the via holes 50 and the land portions 49 a is manufactured . now , a molding process of the resin package 35 of the above - described method will be described in detail . as has been described above , the deformation of the base material 45 during the molding process is due to unleveled portions produced before molding as a result of the formation of the land portions 49 a of the second surface of the base material 45 . however , with the manufacturing method of the present embodiment , the resin package 35 is formed before forming the land portions 49 a on the base material , or , before the second surface of the base material 45 becomes unleveled . thus , as shown in fig3 b , during the molding process , the second surface of the base material 45 is flat and thus there is no gap between the lower mold 62 c of the mold 60 c and the base material 45 . therefore , even if the base material 45 is biased due to pressure exerted by the resin 66 during molding , the base material 45 is supported by the lower mold 62 c and its deformation will be restricted . the present embodiment also restricts the deformation of the base material 45 during molding . therefore , it is also possible in the present embodiment to prevent the chip components 34 from falling off from the interconnections 86 and the interconnections 86 from peeling off from the base material 45 . further , it is possible to prevent the interconnections 86 from being disconnected due to stress applied thereto . in the embodiments described above , a transfer molding process has been described as an example of a method of forming the resin package 35 . however , it is to be noted that the method of forming the resin package 35 is not limited thereto . instead , it can be widely applied for cases where a resin forming method is used in which biasing force is exerted on a high frequency circuit board while forming the resin package 35 by method such as compression molding . further , the present invention is not limited to these embodiments , but variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention . the present application is based on japanese priority application no . 2000 - 196965 filed on jun . 29 , 2000 , the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference . | 7 |
referring to fig1 a schematic block diagram is shown of an automated robotic canopy polishing system in accordance with the present invention . an &# 34 ; end effector &# 34 ; or polishing mechanism 10 is shown positioned over the surface of a canopy 12 to be polished . in the preferred embodiment of the invention , a polishing pad ( not shown ) having a coarse grit sandpaper , such as 30 micron , is used initially to remove flaws , while finer grit sandpapers , such as 15 micron and 9 micron , are used in subsequent stages to reduce surface roughness induced by the coarser grit sanding and to restore clarity . overall restoration of a smooth contour to the canopy surface is achieved by moving the polishing mechanism 10 through a path of points mapped onto the canopy surface , with the polishing mechanism 10 being normal to the surface . the position of the polishing mechanism is controlled by a robot 14 . the method for determining the optimum grinding path will be discussed in greater detail below . the processing steps implemented to refinish a transparency 12 include : initial overall inspection , cleaning or polishing , flaw gradation , grinding site selection , abrasive removal of canopy material , intermittent in - process inspection to determine when flaws have been removed , abrasive refinishing to restore clarity , and finally , overall polishing . a strobe illuminated video camera 16 provides a video representation of the surface of the canopy . the output of the video camera 16 is connected to a data acquisition system 18 which is operable to convert the video signals from the video camera 16 into a voltage signal which can be transferred to a vision system computer 20 . in the preferred embodiment of the invention , the vision system computer is an international robomation / intelligence model d - 256 . the signals received by the vision system computer 20 are converted , using techniques known in the art , into data signals which can be used by control computer 24 . the control computer uses an algorithm stored in program storage 26 to process the data signals to determine the optimum polishing pattern , to monitor the effectiveness of the polishing activities and to provide appropriate control signals to robot control interface 28 . the robot 14 can thus be controlled to move the polishing mechanism 10 over the surface 12 in a manner to optimize the polishing process . although the system illustrated in fig1 is shown with a single robot 14 , it is apparent that multiple robots could be used for the various polishing steps . in the preferred embodiment of the system , two or more robots are employed to perform the polishing activities . the following discussion will be directed to the methodology employed to determine where best to remove plastic from the canopy given the raw data indicating flaw positions and severity . this method is optimized in accordance with the following requirements : 1 ) to completely remove the flaws , 2 ) to minimize the number of grinding patterns laid on the canopies , and 3 ) to minimize the distortion caused by overlapping grinding patterns . as was discussed previously , restoration of a smooth contour to the surface of the canopy 12 is achieved by moving the polisher 10 through a path of points mapped onto the canopy surface , with the polisher 10 normal to the surface . this surface mapped path of points is called the grinding path . fig2 is an illustration of a coordinate system used in the method of the present invention to obtain a map of the canopy surface . the model is used to project points from a given plane in three dimensions onto the surface of the canopy . these planar points may represent points along a path for grinding or points viewed by the inspection system . the inside and outside surfaces of a canopy are modeled as composite surfaces constructed from overlapping bicubic patches . these patches are defined parametrically by an angle θ and a height z . the surface is bounded such that in parameter - space the angle θ must be between a minimum θ min and a maximum θ max , and the height z must be between a minimum z min and a maximum z max . the size of each bicubic surface patch is determined by n . sub . θ control points equally distributed in the θ parameter , and n z control points equally distributed in the z parameter . for bicubic surface patches , the values of n . sub . θ and n z must be larger than three . due to this equal spacing of parameters θ and z , the sixteen - point form of a biparametric cubic surface is used . this technique is discussed in the following reference : m . e . mortenson , geometric modeling , john wiley & amp ; sons , 1985 . due to the surface curvature of the canopy , the surface is modeled by a composition of overlapping bicubic surface patches , where neighboring patches share common control points . to obtain a point on the surface of the canopy given the parameter values of θ and z , the bicubic surface patch where θ and z are nearest the center of the patch , is selected . this method of constructing the composite surface guarantees c 0 continuity ; i . e ., there are no gaps or breaks between the beginning and ending points on any curve on this composite surface . this method of constructing the composite surface , however , fails to guarantee c 1 continuity , i . e ., the tangent vector for a surface point may not be the same for all bicubic surface patches that contain the point . if a large number of control points are defined for both the θ and z parameters , and the canopy surface is not discontinuous , the normal of the point on the canopy surface is nearly approximated by the normal at the point on the centered bicubic surface patch . a better approximation is obtained from the average of the normal at the point on the overlapping bicubic surface patches that contain the point . the distance across a canopy surface between two points on the surface is computed using an adaptive quadrature algorithm known in the art . the algorithm constructs a surface curve between the two points and subdivides the curve into four segments equally spaced in the parameters θ and z . the sum of the euclidean distance between the two original endpoints of these four segments is compared to the euclidean distance between the two original endpoints . if the difference is within an acceptable tolerance , the length of the surface curve segment is the euclidean distance between the original endpoints . otherwise , the length of the surface curve segment is the sum of the distances calculated by the algorithm applied to each of the four segments , in a recursive manner . points on an xy plane are projected onto the canopy surface from a known surface point given by the θ and z parameters . the ( x , y ) rectangular coordinate values on the plane are converted to polar coordinates . the angle determines a surface curve that results from intersecting the surface with a rotated plane that is perpendicular to the tangent plane at the given surface point . the radius is the distance along this surface curve from the given point to the projected point . the projection algorithm rotates the xy plane about the x - axis so that the normal vector of the xy plane has the same z - component as the normal vector at the surface point ( with no x - component ). this plane is then rotated about the normal vector of the new z - axis until the normal vector of the new xy plane coincides with the normal vector at the surface point , and the origin of this new xy plane is translated to the given surface point . the point on the original xy plane is transformed into a point on the tangent plane to the surface . the θ and z values of this transformed point in cylindrical coordinates are used to obtain the projected point on the surface . the requested distance ( radius of the point on xy plane in polar coordinates ), is compared to the distance between this projected point and the given surface point . if the difference is within an acceptable tolerance , the projected point is successfully mapped to the surface . otherwise , the algorithm is repeated where the projected point becomes the given surface point , and a new point on the xy plane is determined using the same angle and the difference between the compared distances . if the projection algorithm does not converge within a certain number of iterations , the surface point most recently used as the given surface point is accepted . image resolution requirements demand that the inspection system take relatively small ( approximately 6 × 7 inch ) images of the canopy surface during the initial overall inspection of the surface area , which can be up to 45 square feet . this requires a careful scheme for the control of where the center of each field of view ( fov ) falls on the surface of the canopy . the canopy model is used to generate overlapping regions ( sectors ) of the proper fov size and to provide a surface normal vector for inspection camera orientation . fig3 is an illustration of a sector map for a fighter canopy which has been subdivided into vision inspection sectors illustrated by reference numeral 30 . ( the sectors in the figure are not to scale , nor does the figure denote sector overlap ). the entirety of the canopy &# 39 ; s area of interest falls within the course boundary set out by the rectangular quantization of the inspection sectors . in the first of identifying flaws , the transparency is prepared to allow inspection to determine the location of flaws . this is accomplished by covering both surfaces of the canopy with white , water soluble paint , which can be easily removed with light polishing of the surface . the light polishing will remove the paint from portions of the surface which do not contain flaws , but will leave paint in areas which contain flaws . the canopy is mapped using the above described imaging technique . the images are then analyzed for flaw information . general image processing techniques , known in the art , are used to abate noise and other artifacts . when both sides of the canopy have been cleaned , the marked areas are inspected again to determine the relative severity of the flaws . flaw graduation occurs as the flaws are categorized as being either major or minor , where a major flaw would generally be more than 0 . 003 inches deep . the severity of the flaw is determined in the invention system by correlating the number of pixels corresponding to each flaw as measured by the output signal of the video camera 16 . when processing is complete , a map is constructed ( using techniques discussed below ) for each flaw to provide information relating to its severity , shape , location , and on which surface it appears . fig4 is an illustration of a sector map for a canopy showing a plurality of flaws 32a - 32f mapped into various inspection sectors of the map . when a sanding pad of the polishing mechanism 10 is in contact with the surface , the amount of pressure applied varies across the pad . the pad pressure profile is a function which yields the amount of pressure applied to the canopy surface at any point on the grinding end effector pad . fig5 is a graphical illustration of the pad pressure profile for sanding pads on a polishing mechanism 10 of the type used in the present invention . the pad pressure profile is assumed to be radially symmetric and is modelled by a second order polynomial function of the radius . the amount of material removed by the canopy grinding operation at a point on the canopy surface is proportional to the summation over time of the pad pressure profile function evaluated for that surface point under the grinding pad of the polisher 10 at each grinding path position . the amount of material removed about an area on the canopy surface for a grinding path is called the material removal pattern . for a finitely small flaw mark at a point on the surface of the canopy , the ideal material removal pattern is defined to be a circular pattern with the following constraints : the amount of material removed is radially symmetric ; i . e . strictly a function of the radius of the circular pattern . the maximum amount of material is removed at the center of the pattern . the center of the pattern , i . e . the point where the pattern radius is zero , is positioned over the finitely small flaw mark . the maximum amount of material to remove here is the gauged depth of the flaw . no material at the outer edge of the pattern is removed . the outer edge is defined by the set of points at the maximum radius of the pattern . the slope of the material removal as a fraction of the pattern radius must be zero at the center of the pattern and at the edges of the pattern . this is to avoid any discontinuities in the ideal material removal pattern . material removal as a function of the pattern radius must be a smooth continuous function in order to minimize the distortion . fig6 is a graphical illustration of the ideal material removal curve in terms of normalized cutting depth and polishing area radius . note the curve has a zero slope at the point of intersection with the vertical axis and that the slope is also approximately zero as the right hand portion of the curve becomes asymtopic with the horizontal axis . under the above conditions , the material removal as a function of the pattern radius is represented by a cubic polynomial with the proper coefficients . let r max be the maximum pattern radius where r max & gt ; 0 . let r be any radius such that 0 ≦ r ≦ r max . then the normalized radius r is defined by let h be the gauged depth of the flaw mark . then the material removal as a function m ( r ) of the normalized radius is defined to be the parametric cubic curve given by and the function m ( r ) which represents the slope of the curve is given by the constraints on the circular pattern as an ideal material removal pattern can be expressed in terms of the functions m ( r ) and m ( r ), by solving this set of four simultaneous equations for the four unknown coefficients yields the robot grinding path for an idea material removal pattern , which is a circular pattern on the canopy of some specified maximum radius , is constructed from a series of concentric circular paths . fig7 is an illustration of a family of concentric circles 36a - 36d representing possible grinding paths . each concentric path is controlled by two parameters : the radius of the path from the center of the pattern and a grinding coefficient which corresponds to the amount of time to be spent by the robot in following this path . the time for following a concentric circular path is a function of the commanded robot speed and the spacing between points along the path ( empirically , while holding the commanded robot speed constant , the distance between tightly spaced points is a more accurate control for the actual robot velocity ). a robot grinding path is constructed by matching the summation of material removal patterns for the concentric circular paths to the ideal material removal pattern by varying the two circular path parameters using methods of least squares . the gauging of flaw depths results in the classification of flaws into two severity groups : major and minor . from this classification , a single ideal material removal pattern is constructed for each severity group -- a medium ideal pattern for major flaws and a light ideal pattern for minor flaws . to simplify nomenclature , the medium ideal pattern and the light ideal pattern will be referred to as the medium pattern and light pattern , respectively . the medium pattern removes material to 1 . 5 times the depth that the light pattern removes material , and the medium pattern removes material over 1 . 5 times the surface area as that for the light pattern . fig8 is a graphical illustration of the amount of material removal along a radial cut of the medium and light patterns . the material removal curves are shown as a function of radial axis versus pattern depth and also as a function of radial axis versus pixel intensity . a larger area flaw mark is considered as a closed collection of many of many finitely small flaw marks . for simplicity , the severity of the composite flaw mark is considered to be the average severity of each of these smaller flaw marks . the ideal material removal pattern for this composite flaw mark is constructed from the ideal material removal patterns for each of these smaller flaw marks . this is done by using the maximum amount of material removal at every finitely small point on the canopy surface from the superimposed ideal material removal patterns for each of these smaller flaw marks . consider such a composite flaw that has an arbitrary shape and size . for a very large composite flaw , it would be impossible to construct a robot grinding path which would guarantee that every point along the path could be reached with the robot polishing mechanism 10 being normal to the surface ( this problem is due to the finite work envelop of a given robot ). furthermore , for an irregular flaw mark shape , the amount of numerical computation to construct the optimal robot grinding path would be overwhelming and it would be difficult to accurately determine the proper grinding coefficients . the ideal material removal pattern for the composite flaw can be more easily constructed by limiting robot grinding paths to be constructed only for the medium and light patterns , and by developing a strategy for optimal placement of these two patterns . the placement of an ideal material removal pattern yields a robot grinding path which is mapped to the surface of the canopy . the canopy surface point at the center of this robot grinding path is called a grind site . this concept can be understood by considering a specific composite flaw mark that is long and linear . the medium pattern is selected if the flaw is major ; otherwise , the light pattern is selected . the selected material removal pattern is centered in the middle of this linear flaw mark . the length of this linear sequence of flaw marks that is completely removed by the selected material removal pattern is called the effective cutting diameter for that material removal pattern . the effective cutting radius is half of this effective cutting diameter . for the finitely small flaw , a circular pattern is constructed of the effective cutting radius for the medium pattern where the amount of material removed at every point inside the effective cutting radius is the amount of material removed at the effective cutting radius of the medium pattern . this circular pattern is called the medium effective cutting pattern . a similar pattern is constructed using the effective cutting radius of the light pattern . this circular pattern is called the light effective cutting pattern . clustering refers to the process of linking flaws together into groups because they will interact with one another during their removal . in superclustering , flaws may be drawn from any of the inspection sectors if they are considered proximal . in perfect superclustering , each point on a flaw is searched against every other point on every other flaw to determine if any of the points fall within a light or medium pattern radius of the reference point . a simple and faster method uses the bounding box of the flaws ( the rectangular box formed by the maximum and minimum extensions of the flaw &# 39 ; s outline on both of the coordinate axes ) to determine the flaw extent . the process begins by declaring the first flaw as the root of a supercluster . subsequent flaws are then searched for proximity to the root or to the current members of the expanding supercluster . if such flaws are within the effective cutting radius of a medium pattern , they are appended to the cluster and the search restarts . this continues until no more additions to the cluster are made . the next unused flaw is the root of the next supercluster . the superclustering process is complete when all flaws are members of a cluster for both surfaces of the canopy . for most superclusters , the next step of operation is the preparation for grind site location selection . flaws from various inspection sectors are required to be gathered together into a single graphical image for processing . this effort is usually accurate , except for certain areas of the canopies where extensive curvature induces misalignment between the overlapping adjacent frames . this overlap is controlled so that it is possible to add reduced - scale flaw images together maintaining a 1 : 1 aspect ratio in scale ( the scale factor is the same for both axes ). the scale used for the reduction is determined by the maximum spread of the cluster across inspection sectors , but is not allowed to be less than two . this minimum scale factor allows the scaled medium pattern to fit within the image frame boundaries of the video inspection system , and is the prevalent scale factor observed during system operation . superclusters with only one element present a special case to the algorithm . if such a cluster can fit within the effective cutting radius for its stated severity , then it is possible to create a grind site immediately , using the centroid of the flaw as the grind site &# 39 ; s center . if the flaw does not completely fit within the effective cutting radius , then it must be classed with the other , more complex forms of superclusters , i . e ., those with multiple flaws and the possibility of multiple vision sector involvement . fig9 shows hypothetical flaw images corresponding to individual flaws 32c , 32d , and 32e of fig4 following the superclustering operations . the large flaw 32c to the left of the image has been classified as a major flaw , while the two flaws 32d and 32e in the upper right of the image are minor . the composite flaw image generated is now ready for a simple process designed to create the boundaries for the search for grind site locations . in designing a set of boundaries , ideally , one would like a grinding pattern to fall somewhere on a flaw for maximum effectiveness . alternatively , it may be possible to remove flaws with pattern centers placed not on the flaw , but near the flaw , such that the patterns &# 39 ; effective cutting radii sweep through multiple flaws . in the present invention , the flaw severities are used to create a new image based upon effective cutting patterns . as was discussed above , the number of pixels recorded by the vision system can be correlated with the severity of the flaw . for each pixel in the image of a particular severity , an effective cutting pattern of that severity is placed in the output image . referring again to fig8 it can be seen that the effective cutting depth can be correlated with a number of pixels forming an image . further , grey - level representations of effective pattern can also be created in terms of grey level figures comprised of a plurality of pixels . each severity estimate is done separately as a binary operation , then brought together with the proper identifying grey - level representation in the final image , which is the effective cutting area image shown in fig1 . the reference numeral 40 corresponds to the effective cutting area image for flaw 32c , while the reference numeral 42 corresponds to the effective cutting area image for flaws 32d and 32e . in this figure , grey scales are not shown ; however , in practice minor flaws merged with light patterns will be assigned a grey - level darker than that of major flaws merged with medium patterns . note that the two light flaws 32d and 32e in the upper right - hand corner of the image have been merged into a larger pattern image 42 in fig1 . this feature is very desirable to minimize the number of grinding sites selected . the images 40 and 42 are now ready to be searched to determine the location of grinding sites . the optimal selection of grinding sites involves efficiently matching combinations of the medium and light pattern images to the effective cutting area image . in many image analysis applications , it is necessary to determine whether an image contains a particular object , and , if present , the exact location of that object . provided that the appearance of this feature in the image is known accurately , then object detection can be performed by a template matching operation where the object searched for is the template that is compared to the image under investigation . a variety of measures of match or mismatch are used in template matching algorithms , as can be found in the following references : a . rosenfield and a . c . kak , digital picture processing , 2nd edition , vols . 1 and 2 , academic press , 1982 ; and g . x . ritter , j . n . wilson and j . l . davidson , image algebra : an overview , internal report , university of florida , center for computer vision research , july 1988 . the grind site selection strategy employs a template matching technique which is based on a unified and algebraic approach to image processing . the following is a brief discussion of a framework for using template matching . let the set of integers z be a value set , and let x =( z n × z n ) be a two - dimensional coordinate set of the non - negative integers 0 , 1 , . . . , n - 1 . then a z valued image a on coordinate set x is a graph of the function a : x → z and is given by in this notion , an element ( x , a ( x )) in the image a is called a picture element or pixel , where x is the pixel location , and a ( x ) is the pixel value . the set of all z valued images on x is denoted z x . let a and b be two images in z x . then addition , multiplication , and maximum are defined by : an image cεz x is called a constant image if all its grey values are the same ; i . e . c ( x )= k for all xεx and for some kεz . then ka = ca and k + a = c + a . if c ( x )= 0 for all xεx , then c = 0 is the constant zero image ; if c ( x )= 1 for all xεx , then c = 1 is the constant unit image . for image a and b , the operations of subtraction and minimum can be expressed by let x =( z n × z n ) be a two dimensional n × n coordinate set and let y ( z n × z n ) be a subset of a two dimensional coordinate set . then a generalized z valued template t from y to x is a function t : y → x . for each yεy , template t y εz x is a z valued image on x , and is given by the template t y depends on the target pixel y and the template weights t y ( x ). let ( z x ) y denote the set of all z valued templates from y to x . the configuration of a template t y ε ( z x ) y which represents a medium or light pattern is given by x 1 , x 2 εz n , such that ( x 1 , x 2 ) εx is the center of the template ; ( r 2 + c 2 ) 1 / 2 & lt ; r max , where r max is the maximum radius of the medium or light pattern ; t y (( x 1 + r + n ) modn , ( x 2 + c + n ) modn ) is given by m ( r ), the material removal as a function of the normalized radius ; let aεz x be the effective cutting area image and bεz y be an image to store the results of a template matching operation . let t y ε ( z x ) y be a template with configuration s ( t y ) given above . define the absolute difference template mismatch operation by ## equ1 ## the image b = a ˜ t contains the mismatch value y when the template t y was centered over the pixel in image a at coordinate x . the minimum mismatch value is given in image b by an yεy , where b ( y )≦ b ( y ) for all yεy . this corresponds to the best placement of the medium or light pattern in image a at coordinate x . the operation of removing this best matched medium or light pattern is expressed by max ( 0 ,( a - t y )). the coordinate set y ( z n × z n ) is given by where the constant c is the grey value of the medium or light effective cutting pattern . this implies that the only locations a template match will be attempted is at pixels in the effective cutting area image a with pixel values exceeding the pixel value of an effective cutting pattern . the template matching calculations can be visualized by imagining the template being shifted across the image to different offsets , where the template is a gray level representation of the medium or light pattern . the template is shifted to offsets in the image such that the center of the template is positioned over a point on the image with a positive gray value greater than or equal to that of the effective cutting pattern . when the template is shifted to an offset that is near the boundary of an image , the template shift is allowed to wrap around in the image instead of being clipped at the boundary . the sum of the absolute differences between the superimposed gray values within the area of the template is computed , and the offset where a minimum sum occurs is the location of the best match . alternatively , the template matching calculations can be visualized by imaging the template in the center of some image , and the source image being shifted across the template image by different offsets . the source image is shifted by offsets to the center of the template image , where the offsets are determined by every point on the source image with a positive grey value greater than or equal to that of the effective cutting pattern . when the source image is shifted by an offset determined by a point near the boundary of an image , the source image shift is allowed to wrap around . the template image has a corresponding mask image which contains a gray value of one for every non - zero gray value in the template image . the sum of the absolute differences between the superimposed gray value within the area of the template , is computed from the dot product of the mask image with the image from the absolute difference of the template image with the shifted source image . given a flaw image that has been mapped into an effective cutting area image such as those shown in fig1 , the system determines grind sites by placing ideal patterns , where the medium patterns are to be placed first . the grey - level representations of the light and medium patterns can be determined by the pixel density scale shown in fig8 . it is generally preferable to place a larger pattern once , than to place a smaller pattern several times . this stems largely from concerns for minimizing the optical distortion in the canopy . pattern overlap deep into the effective cutting radius from placing multiple adjacent patterns can produce unusual artifacts in the plastic . a medium pattern can be used on a light flaw area , or on residual medium material ( material near a grind site that has not been completely removed ). the medium pattern is the template used in the absolute - difference template mismatch technique and measures of pattern fit are generated to determine the best position in the image for the pattern . the location in the image with the lowest mismatch is selected by the algorithm . suitability of this location is determined by the use of thresholds . a threshold exists for both the light and medium patterns , and is defined to be quality of mismatch where a perfect mismatch for a given severity is the volume described by the ideal pattern of that severity . the volume of that pattern is the sum of the difference of that pattern taken against a black background , which would be an area without flaw information . fractions of the perfect value are calculated and used to control when to accept a decision to place a pattern . after the algorithm selects the first tentative grind site , and the mismatch has satisfied the threshold criterion , the pattern may be placed . placing the pattern entails removing that pattern from further consideration by subtraction . the process repeats , attempting to place medium patterns until no medium pattern can be placed within the mismatched criterion , and then attempts to place light patterns . two primary methods are used to control the operation of the grind site selection algorithm : mismatch threshold , and the effective cutting radius . the mismatch thresholds are very critical values and have been empirically refined over time to produce repeatable quality results . the thresholds must be set to minimize unnecessary patterns , and yet to remove all of the flaws . the effective cutting radius controls how closely each type of pattern can be placed on the canopy . this number is closely related to changes in the grinding operation . while the numbers used initially for these values were based on system tests specifically designed to determine them , exhaustive operations revealed that these numbers could be altered to produce better results . patterns can be separated to moved together at will for each severity to match the demonstrated grinding results . fig1 shows a plurality of grinding patterns which have been fitted to the grinding patterns shown in fig1 . the grinding patterns are shaded to illustrate light and medium patterns . grinding pattern 44 represents a light pattern which has been placed at one end of the grinding path to remove the flaw 32c shown in fig9 and 10 . subsequent grinding patterns can be added , in accordance with the template matching technique discussed above , to completely fill the grinding pattern thereby removing the flaw . the smaller flaws 32d and 32e , shown in fig9 and 10 , have been removed by grinding patterns 46a , 46b and 48 . grinding patterns 46a and 46b are both medium grinding patterns having approximately the same diameter . pattern 48 is a light grinding pattern having a slightly smaller diameter than the two medium patterns . the aggregate material removal resulting from the combined grinding patterns will result in the complete removal of flaws 32d and 32e shown in fig9 and 10 . although the method and apparatus of the present invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiment , it is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein , but on the contrary , it is intended to cover such modifications , alternatives and equivalents as can reasonably be included within the spirit and scope of the claims . | 6 |
referring more particularly to fig1 - 10 , wherein like numbers refer to similar parts , an improved end actuated shock sensor 20 is shown in fig1 , 7 and 8 . referring to fig1 the shock sensor has a housing 22 which is divided into a first portion 24 which holds and positions the reed switch 26 , and a second portion 28 which contains an actuation magnet 30 . the actuation magnet 30 has a central bore 32 which is slidably engaged on the axially extending guide bar 34 of a molded plastic bobbin 36 . as shown in fig2 and 8 , the bobbin 36 is inserted into a hollow tube 38 which is defined by the second portion 28 of the shock sensor housing 22 . the second portion has a closed end 40 which terminates the hollow tube 38 and is adjacent to the housing first portion 24 and also spaced from a first end 42 of the reed switch 26 . a biasing spring 44 is positioned about the guide bar 34 and extends between the closed end 40 of the housing second portion and a radially extending lip 46 in the central bore 32 of the magnet 30 . the closed end 40 of the housing second portion forms a first abutment for the magnet 30 , and the disk 50 forms a second abutment . the bobbin 36 has a first radially extending disk 50 which is formed axisymmetrically about the bobbin guide bar 34 . a second radially extending disk 52 is also formed on the guide bar 34 and is axially spaced from the first disk away from the reed switch 26 in the assembled shock sensor 20 . a self - test coil 54 is wound on to a portion 56 of the guide bar 34 between the first disk 50 and the second disk 52 . as shown in fig1 the second disk 52 has a first slot 58 and a second slot 60 which pass the ends 62 of the coil 54 . the coil ends 62 are soldered or welded to extending coil leads 64 . when the shock sensor 20 is assembled , as shown in fig1 the bobbin 36 is centered and positioned within the hollow bore 38 of the housing second portion 28 of the shock sensor 20 . the bobbin 36 is radially positioned by the first and second radial disks 50 , 52 which engage the inside surface 61 of the hollow tube 38 . the guide bar 34 has a conical end 74 which aids in aligning the guide bar along the axis 68 of the shock sensor 20 by engaging with a nubbin 70 which protrudes from the closed end 40 of the housing second portion 28 within the tube 38 . the nubbin is smaller in diameter than the internal bore 32 of the magnet 30 and has a concave surface 72 which faces toward the bobbin disks and which engages with the conical end 74 of the guide bar 34 . the bobbin 36 is positively retained within the hollow tube 38 by two tapered ears 76 which extend from the base 73 of the bobbin 36 . the tapered ears 76 engage in openings 78 in the second portion 28 of the housing 22 . the housing 22 is constructed of resilient plastic and the walls 80 of the housing 22 allow the passage of the ears 76 by resiliently deforming outwardly until the ears protrude through the openings 78 in the walls 80 , thus positively locking the bobbin 36 within the hollow tube 38 of the housing second portion 28 . the reed switch 26 is formed of a glass capsule 82 which is fused about two reeds 84 . the glass capsule 82 has a first end 42 adjacent to the housing second portion 28 and a second end 43 distal from the housing second portion 28 . the reeds 84 have contact areas 86 which when brought into engagement , as shown in fig8 close an electrical circuit between a first lead 88 and a second lead 90 . the leads 88 , 90 are bent downwardly at approximately 90 degrees from the axis 68 of the shock sensor 20 and reed switch 26 . the so - called staple formed leads 88 , 90 position the reed switch 26 on the first portion 24 of the housing 22 . a downwardly opening hole 94 is defined at the juncture 92 between the housing first portion 24 and the housing second portion 28 . the first lead 88 extends through the hole 94 . during assembly , the reed switch is assembled to the housing 22 by inserting the first lead 88 into the hole 94 with the reed switch 22 initially positioned approximately forty - five degrees from the axis 68 of the reed switch 20 . the reed switch 26 is then swung into axial alignment so that the first lead 88 is engaged in a frontwardly facing notch 96 shown in fig5 . the first housing portion has a slim resilient beam 102 , shown in fig1 and 5 , which extends the length of the reed switch from the juncture 92 to a downwardly depending member 100 . the beam 102 is flexible to allow it to be deformed upwardly so that the second lead 90 can be positioned beneath the depending member 100 . once the beam is released the second lead 90 is engaged within a slot 98 formed in the depending member 100 . the shock sensor 20 has relatively few individual piece parts . these individual parts are self - aligning and positioning on and within the housing 22 , thus facilitating machine assembly of the components . legs 104 extend downwardly from the housing 22 to position the shock sensor 20 above a circuit board ( not shown ), thus allowing the reed switch 20 to be mounted above other electrical components which are mounted to the circuit board . the operation of the reed switch 20 is shown and illustrated in fig7 and 8 . in the non - actuated position shown in fig7 the first end 106 of the magnet 30 is disposed against the second abutment 108 formed by the first disk 50 of the bobbin . when the shock sensor 20 experiences an acceleration of sufficient magnitude with a sufficient component of acceleration aligned along the housing axis 68 , the magnet 30 , functioning as an acceleration sensing mass , moves towards the first end 42 of the reed switch 26 . as shown in fig8 the magnet 30 will be halted in its travel when the second end 110 of the magnet engages against the first abutment defined by the housing end 40 . this travel of the magnet 30 brings it into an activation position , in which the magnetic field produced by the magnet causes the reed switch reeds 84 to mutually attract so that the contact surfaces 86 close the circuit between the leads 88 and 90 . the shock sensor 20 is not only readily assembled by machine , but may use reed switches of standard lead length and configuration . the shock sensor 20 has a compact package which is achieved by employing end activation of the reed switch such as disclosed in my previous patent , u . s . pat . no . 5 , 194 , 706 , the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein . the first lead 88 is preferably formed of a ferromagnetic material such as steel to create a magnetic attractive force between the magnet 30 and the lead 88 . the shock sensor 20 utilizes the force of attraction between the magnet 30 and the first lead 88 to control the characteristics of the force - distance curve 112 shown in fig9 . in fig9 the y - axis is delineated in grams force positive and grams force negative , with grams force positive being the force which holds the activation magnet 30 away from the first end 42 of the reed switch 26 . curve 114 is the spring force curve and illustrates how the force applied to the magnet 30 by the spring increases linearly as the magnet is moved along the x - axis towards the reed switch 26 . lower curve 116 is a plot of increasing magnetic attraction between the lead 88 and the actuation magnet 30 as the actuation magnet 30 moves along the x - axis toward the first end 42 of the reed switch 26 . thus the design of the shock sensor 20 takes advantage of the attractive force between a staple formed reed switch lead and the actuation magnet to add an additional parameter which may be utilized in the design of shock sensors advantageously to improve the design and to introduce new capabilities and functions . fig9 illustrates how the combination of the spring force represented by curve 114 and the magnetic attraction force represented by curve 116 combine to provide a force - distance curve 112 which achieves additional dwell time by reducing the return force acting on the magnet 30 between the activation point and the stop point . the pre - load position shown in fig9 corresponds to the magnet 30 being positioned with its rear face 106 against the second abutment 108 . the stop location corresponds to the magnet 30 having its second face 110 positioned adjacent to the first abutment 40 . activation takes place as the magnet 30 moves from the second abutment 108 to the first abutment 40 . by decreasing the restoring force shown by curve 112 , the dwell time of the activation for the shock sensor 20 may be extended . in other words , because the attractive force between the magnet and the lead is opposite to the spring restorative force , the net force tending to open the reed switch is reduced . this reduction in force corresponds to a reduced acceleration of the magnet back to the unactivated position and hence an extended time to traverse the distance between the first abutment and the at - rest position . extended dwell times are highly desirable in improving the reliability of the operation of equipment driven by the shock sensor 20 . if an activation time of a given length can be depended on , the overlap of contact closures of the shock sensor 20 and the contact closure of another shock sensor that may be activated in parallel to the shock sensor 20 in the crash sensing system , the overlap between sensors becomes greater , and thus the triggering of the safety devices based on both shock sensors becomes possible . by proper selection of spring and magnet characteristics , the shock sensor 20 may be configured so that upon activation the magnet will latch with the reed switch in the activated position . a spring selected to have , for example , the spring activation curve 118 , shown in fig1 , has a restorative force at the magnet stop position which is less than the attractive force between the magnet and the lead 88 at the same position , as indicated by the magnet attraction curve 120 . the net force on the magnet at any position is illustrated by the force - distance curve 122 . the net negative force at the stop position means that the magnet actuating the reed switch latches in the closed position . the shock sensor 20 may thus , by employing a properly configured spring 44 and magnet , provide a latching switch without the additional coil and current loop required in conventional latching reed switches . the shaded regions 117 in fig9 and 119 in fig1 represent the tolerance bands on the force - distance curves produced by variation in the individual components which make up the shock sensor 20 . as illustrated in fig1 , the stop distance is chosen so that no permissible tolerance variation will prevent the reed switch of fig1 from latching . in a similar way , the reed switch of fig9 is configured so that latching will not occur within the permissible tolerance variations for the reed switch of fig9 . the coil 54 can be used to achieve self - testing of the shock sensor 20 as disclosed in my earlier rencau u . s . pat . no . 4 , 980 , 526 et al . the coil may be used to perform two additional functions in the shock sensor 20 . first , it may be used to unlatch the shock sensor 20 when it is configured as in fig1 . secondly , the coil the may be used to adjust the actuation parameters of the shock sensor 20 so adjusting its sensitivity . this can be critical in applications in automobiles for actuating passive passenger restraint devices such as airbags and seatbelt locks . because the placement of the shock sensor can be critical to the proper function in the event of a crash , it will often prove infeasible to repair or replace a faulty sensor . however because multiple sensors are employed on a single vehicle , adjustments in the sensitivity of the remaining sensors may be accomplished by supplying a biasing magnetic field to the coil 54 which will change the sensitivity of a shock sensor 20 allowing a crash detection system which continues to be functional despite the loss of one or more individual sensors . in any batch of reed switches , as manufactured , the individual switches have a relatively wide distribution in the magnetic field strength required to close the switch . thus , alter manufacture , the parts am normally tested to determine the required field strengths for actuation , typically measured in amp turns , and the switches are sorted into groups of with a narrow range of amp turn requirements for activation . the required production volume of a reed switch for employment in a typical automobile project may be several hundred thousand to a million or more . each car requires multiple shock sensors employing one or more reed switches each . a year &# 39 ; s production of a car is often in the hundreds of thousands . thus , the feasibility of selecting reed switches of a particular functional range from a larger population of reed switches manufactured for all uses has practical problems in view of the sheer number of components required for a particular application . further , to the extent that the specification required by a particular user of shock sensors is unique , a large population of reed switches to select from will not be available . thus , in the normal practice , an entire family of shock sensors will need to be developed to provide one configuration of components to function with each group of reed switches falling within a particular amp turn tolerance range . this requirement of a multiplicity of shock sensors for a single application can be a serious impediment to holding down the overall cost of such shock sensors . the shock sensor 20 of this invention may be modified to function with reed switches of varying amp turn requirements by modifying only two components . the first component which may be modified is the bobbin . by manufacturing a range of bobbins with the position of the second abutment 108 formed by the first bobbin disk 50 set closer or farther away from the reed switch end 42 along the guide bar 32 , the pre - load position of the magnet 30 may be changed . the second bobbin disk 52 is relocated relative to placement changes of the first bobbin disk 50 and second abutment 108 . the second component which must be modified is the spring 44 . as shown in fig7 the spring 44 in its uncompressed state has a number of touching coils 124 . by adjusting the number of touching coils in the manufacturing process of the spring , the spring characteristics may be adjusted without adjusting either the gauge of the wire forming the spring or the length of the wire forming the spring . thus , by adjusting the two components , the spring 44 and the bobbin 36 , the shock sensor 20 can be designed to provide similar activation characteristics when employed with reed switches of varying amp turn activation requirements . a production run of shock sensors with consistent performance characteristics may thus be manufactured using substantially all the reed switches from a production batch by sorting the reed switches into tolerance ranges and then assembling the reed switches within each group with a bobbin and spring of appropriate characteristics . the shock sensor 20 also may be hermetically sealed by placing a sealant 126 such as an epoxy about the base 73 as shown in fig8 . an alternative embodiment shock sensor 220 is shown in fig4 and 6 . the shock sensor 220 employs two reed switches 226 mounted on the housing 222 which is divided into a first portion 224 and a second portion 228 . the closed end 240 of the hollow tube ( not shown ) is indicated on fig4 and 6 and shows the relative size of the activation magnet ( not shown ) and shock sensing mechanism . the shock sensor 220 is otherwise similar in configuration and actuation mechanism to the shock sensor 20 . in circumstances where redundancy or circuit separation , such as driver - passenger or bag - belt , is required in the circuit closing capability of a shock sensor , the shock sensor 220 provides a compact , cost - effective package which is made feasible by the overall configuration , including the end activation of a shock sensor 220 . as shown in fig4 and 6 , shock sensor 220 has legs 204 which terminate in barbs 205 . the barbs may be advantageously used in some circumstances where it is desirable to lock the shock sensor into slots on a circuit board to prevent its movement before the shock sensor 220 is soldered to the circuit board . additionally , where no coil is employed , the barbs 205 provide additional stability in positioning and anchoring the shock sensor on a circuit board . as shown in fig6 the shock sensor 222 has leads 288 which fit into slob 296 which facilitate the machine loading of reed switches from first one side and then the other of the shock sensor 222 . it should be understood that because the tolerancing of the placement of the glass capsule 82 exhibits a wider tolerance in the placement of the contact areas 86 of the reeds 84 , a relief notch 128 may advantageously be formed on the second portion 28 of the housing to allow the glass capsule portion forming the first end of the reed switch to enter into engagement with slot 96 without coming into interfering engagements with the housing 28 . it should be understood that the shock sensor 20 can be employed with reed switches of varying configuration including those that are normally closed or employ a single reed . it should also be understood that the reed switch while capable of being hermetically sealed will function satisfactorily in many circumstances without hermetic sealing . it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular construction and arrangement of parts herein illustrated and described , but embraces such modified forms thereof as come within the scope of the following claims . | 7 |
fig1 discloses an embodiment of heater 10 mounted upon truck 12 . liquid tank 14 and fuel tank 16 are also mounted upon the truck 12 . as seen , and more particular in fig2 , and 4 , the heater itself is basically a four - sided box having an outer wall or shell 18 . the outer wall or shell 18 is conveniently made of steel and encases sleeve 20 . suitable spacers 22 are used to space the outer wall 18 from the sleeve 20 so as to form an air passageway or airway 24 between the two . blower 26 is located at the top of each of the four outer walls 18 . these blowers or fans , blows air into the airways 24 between the outer walls 18 and the sleeve 20 . outer floor 28 is insulated . inner floor 30 is supported above the outer floor 28 . burners 32 are mounted above the inner floor 30 . the inner floor 30 is perforated to permit the air to pass from bottom airway 34 through the perforations to provide combustion air for the burners 32 . condensate drain 36 extends through the outer , insulated floor 28 to drain any moisture which might condense within the heater during periods of non - use . fuel inlet 38 extends through the outer shell 18 and sleeve 20 to provide fuel to the burners 32 . if the outer elements are considered a housing , it may be seen that there is a housing having the closed outer floor 28 , which is joined to the four closed outer walls 18 . as used herein , liquid is meant to be that product which is heated by the heater . usually the liquid being heated will be the liquid as produced by the oil well , which will include crude oil and water . however , on other cases , it may be that the liquid would be only oil . liquid inlet 40 and liquid outlet 42 also extend through both the outer wall 18 and the sleeve 20 . condensate drain 36 , fuel inlet 38 , liquid inlet 40 , and liquid outlet 42 , each extend through the shell , or housing , near the junction of the outer floor 28 and one of the outer side walls 18 . the liquid inlet 40 connects to primary coil 44 . the primary coil 44 is a continuous pipe , which includes legs which extend along the bottom of a first side and a first end and an opposite side and an opposite end and on around in a helical pattern from the bottom of the sleeve 20 to the top , as seen in the drawing . in this regard , the primary coil 44 could be thought of as the inner wall and the sleeve 20 merely a gas - tight sleeve therearound . the successive pipes of the primary coil are placed as close together as possible for construction purposes so that they effectively form a wall around firebox 46 of the heater 10 . the firebox 46 being that space having the burners 32 at the bottom , the primary coil 44 around the four sides , and secondary coil 48 at the top . the top of the primary coils 44 taper in at an area 50 , so that a truncated pyramid is formed in this area . from there a few courses or successive loops of the helical pattern of the primary coil continue to form a short stack 52 . referring to fig1 it may be seen that if the truck 12 is to meet highway standards , the height of the heater 10 is limited , and therefore an extended or tall stack is not possible . from the extreme top of the primary coil 44 , connecting pipe 54 extends within the stack 52 to the top layer of the secondary coil 48 . the top of the secondary coil 48 is about at the bottom or slightly below the bottom of the taper area 50 of the primary coil 44 . the secondary coil 48 is a bundle of pipe , which is spaced apart in layers ; i . e . there are parallel , spaced - apart pipe extending in each layer , and there are successive layers or courses with the pipes between the layers staggered from one to the other . again , there is a single , continuous conduit , or a single path for the passage of the liquid . by the term continuous , it is meant that there is only one flow path through the heater and that there are no t &# 39 ; s , y &# 39 ; s , or dual paths . the secondary bundle continues to the bottom course or layer 56 , which , as indicated above , forms the top of the firebox 46 . the end of the secondary coil 48 is connected to the liquid outlet 42 . those with ordinary skill in the art will understand that a great amount of the auxiliary equipment , such as thermostats , fuel control valves , liquid pumps , liquid control valves , pilot flames and the like have not been shown inasmuch as these elements are all conventional . also , certain details of construction such as the saddles and support brackets for the secondary coil as well as the primary coil , have not been shown inasmuch as they are all within the skill of those having ordinary skill in the construction of equipment of this category . short outer stack 58 is attached by suitable clips to the sleeve 20 and outer shell 18 . airspace 60 is between the outer stack 58 and the shell 18 . a short distal flange or baffle 62 extends outward from the bottom of the outer stack 58 . spaced below this is the sleeve baffle 64 , which is attached to the sleeve 20 , spaced from the flange 62 and also slopes downward as the flange 62 . fan baffle 66 is immediately below the sleeve baffle 64 and is attached to inner fan wall 68 as shown in the drawing . therefore , in operation , a certain amount of induced air will enter through the airspace 60 . a portion of this air will go between the flange 62 and the sleeve baffle 64 and be expelled along the interior perimater of the outer stack 58 . although this air will cool the very top of the sleeve 20 around the stack 52 , the main purpose of this air is to form an air shield to prevent a total disruption of the exhaust gasses coming from the burners 32 . those skilled in the art of operating oil field heaters of this category , will understand that often the liquid within liquid tank 14 will be heated by the heater 10 while the truck 12 is moving from one location to another . since there is this desirability of operating the heater in this manner , it is necessary that the wind does not disrupt the normal operation of the burners 32 . the remainder of the air entering through the airspace 60 , will pass between the sleeve baffle 64 and the fan baffle 66 and then downward along the sleeve 20 to the airway 24 . this air will be cooling air , which will cool the sleeve 20 along that portion of the sleeve which covers the stack 52 and also the taper area 50 . the flange 62 , sleeve baffle 64 , and fan baffle 66 are all parallel to the sleeve 20 covering the taper area 50 . rain cap 70 is pivoted to the outer stack 58 so that it may cover the opening in the outer stack when the truck 12 is stationary . the embodiment shown and described above is only exemplary . i do not claim to have invented all the parts , elements or steps described . various modifications can be made in the construction , material , arrangement , and operation , and still be within the scope of my invention . the limits of the invention and the bounds of the patent protection are measured by and defined in the following claims . the restrictive description and drawing of the specific example above do not point out what an infringement of this patent would be , but are to enable the reader to make and use the invention . as an aid to correlating the terms of the claims to the exemplary drawing , the following catalog of elements is provided : ______________________________________10 heater 42 liquid outlet12 truck 44 primary coil14 liquid tank 46 firebox16 fuel tank 48 secondary coil18 outer wall ( or shell ) 50 taper area20 sleeve 52 stack22 spacers 54 connecting pipe24 airway 56 bottom layer26 blower 58 outer stack28 outer floor 60 airspace30 inner floor 62 flange32 burners 64 sleeve baffle34 bottom airway 66 fan baffle36 condensate drain 68 inner fan wall38 fuel inlet 70 rain cap40 liquid inlet______________________________________ | 5 |
the embodiment of the present invention will now be described according to the drawings attached hereto . fig1 is a perspective view of the flap based on the present invention and fig2 is a schematic diagram showing the cross section of fig1 . a flap ( 4 ) is made by forming a pressing / supporting layer ( 3 ) coated with a composite containing a vinyl binder , a polyester or polyurethane binder and a carbon black lubricant the thickness of about 2 . 5 μm on both sides of its body , which uses a pet film ( 1 ), as the base and the said flap ( 4 ), forms a catching piece ( 6 ), which makes its one side a hinge part ( 5 ), by stamping out a certain portion of its body ( 2 ), but the rear side of hinge part ( 5 ) is made of an installing piece ( 7 ), and such a flap ( 4 ) is made to be fixed to the supporting ribs ( 11 ) and ( 12 ) ( fig3 ), formed in the front wall ( 10 ), on the supply side ( 9 ) of a tape cassette body ( 8 ), but the end of catching piece ( 6 ) is made so it is caught by the supporting rib ( 12 ). fig4 a shows another installing structure based on the present invention . a catching piece ( 6a ) which has on one side a hinged part ( 5a ) is formed by stamping out a certain portion of the body ( 2 ) of the flap ( 4 ), but a bending part ( 15 ) is formed in the catching piece ( 6a ) and the rear side of the hinged part ( 5a ) is made of an installing piece ( 7a ) so as to be fixed to the fixing rib ( 13 ) and the supporting rib ( 12a ) which are formed in the front wall ( 10 ) on the supply side ( 9 ) of the tape cassette body ( 8 ); but the bending part ( 15 ) of the catching piece ( 6a ) is made to be fixed to the fixing rib ( 13 ) and the end of the catching piece ( 6a ) is made to be caught by the supporting rib ( 12a ). in fig4 a the said flap ( 4 ) is made to be fixed to the supporting ribs ( 11a ) ( 12b ) and the fixing rib 13a ), which are formed in the front wall ( 10 ) but the end of the catching piece ( 6b ) is made so it is caught by supporting rib ( 12b ) with an installing piece ( 7b ) being closely supported by the supporting rib ( 11a ) and the bending part ( 15a ) of the catching piece ( 6a ) is made to be inserted between the supporting rib ( 11a ) and the fixing rib ( 13a ). fig4 c shows that catching pieces ( 6c ) and ( 6d ), which have hinged parts ( 5b ) and ( 5c ), are formed by stamping out a certain portion of the body ( 2 ), of flap ( 4 ), and the rear side thereof and the catching pieces ( 6c ) and ( 6d ) are thereby made to be inserted into the inclined chipped groove ( 14 ) of the supporting rib ( 11b ) formed in the front wall ( 10 ). the aforesaid present invention has the effect of improving productivity and curtailing production costs by reason that it reduces the number of parts and accordingly shortens the length of its production process , rendering the conventional pressing / supporting tape unnecessary , by not being formed into a double - combined body but into a single body . likewise , it also has the effect of improving quality and reliability by reason that its fitting is convenient and can be fixed correctly and firmly . | 6 |
this invention provides a method of alleviating a condition of halitosis in a person , the method comprising contacting the person &# 39 ; s oral cavity , typically by ingesting an aqueous solution containing an effective amount of dissolved oxygen . the solution , typically a beverage , of this invention , will contain dissolved oxygen in an amount effective to reduce halitosis . these amounts will be concentrations sufficient to inhibit the anaerobic bacteria and stimulate the aerobic bacteria in the oral cavity of those individuals suffering from halitosis . typically , dissolved oxygen will be present at a concentration of from about 20 to about 1000 mg / l , preferably about 40 to 400 mg / l . the method of dissolving supersaturated concentrations of oxygen into a solution can apply to virtually any aqueous solution , such as a beverage . water ; mineral water ; water with added flavoring agents such as mint , lemon , citrus oils , and sweeteners ; tea ; herbal teas ; fruit juices ; coffee ; cola ; root beer and mouthwash are examples of beverages with or without carbonation , which can be supersaturated with oxygen in order to produce the desired benefit of reducing halitosis caused by anaerobic bacteria in the oral cavity . a problem arises in that oxygen in a beverage can support microbial growth within the beverage . if the beverage is consumed within a short time ( on the order of an hour or less ) of the addition of oxygen , there is little reason for concern about microbial growth . however , if a beverage is to be bottled with oxygen present , especially supersaturated concentrations of oxygen , then it is necessary that the beverage and the container be completely sterile ( absent of any microbes , including bacteria , fungi , and algae ). the aqueous medium is generally prefiltered to remove bacteria , treated with an antibacterial agent , or can be heated for sterilization . alternatively , since ozone is a strong oxidant and disinfectant that decomposes into molecular oxygen upon storage in solution , it is the preferred source of oxygenation . the invention also provides a method of forming a sealed , pressurized aqueous solution containing a supersaturated concentration of dissolved oxygen . the method comprises : ( a ) passing a stream of pressurized ozonized oxygen into an aqueous solution in a container until the dissolved oxygen concentration reaches a predetermined pressurized level above saturation ; and supersaturated concentrations of dissolved oxygen are those above the maximum that will occur naturally given a specific water temperature and atmospheric pressure . table 1 gives the saturated concentrations for dissolved over a range of temperatures and pressures . table 1__________________________________________________________________________dissolved - oxygen concentration in water as a function of temperature andbarometricpressure ( salinity = 0 ppt ). sup . adissolved - oxygen concentration , mg / lbarometric pressure , millimeters of mercurytemp .° c . 735 740 745 750 755 760 765 770 775 780__________________________________________________________________________0 14 . 12 14 . 22 14 . 31 14 . 41 14 . 51 14 . 60 14 . 70 14 . 80 14 . 89 14 . 991 13 . 73 13 . 82 13 . 92 14 . 01 14 . 10 14 . 20 14 . 29 14 . 39 14 . 48 14 . 572 13 . 36 13 . 45 13 . 54 13 . 63 13 . 72 13 . 81 13 . 90 14 . 00 14 . 09 14 . 183 13 . 00 13 . 09 13 . 18 13 . 27 13 . 36 13 . 45 13 . 53 13 . 62 13 . 71 13 . 804 12 . 66 12 . 75 12 . 83 12 . 92 13 . 01 13 . 09 13 . 18 13 . 27 13 . 35 13 . 445 12 . 33 12 . 42 12 . 50 12 . 59 12 . 67 12 . 76 12 . 84 12 . 93 13 . 01 13 . 106 12 . 02 12 . 11 12 . 19 12 . 27 12 . 35 12 . 44 12 . 52 12 . 60 12 . 68 12 . 777 11 . 72 11 . 80 11 . 89 11 . 97 12 . 05 12 . 13 12 . 21 12 . 29 12 . 37 12 . 458 11 . 44 11 . 52 11 . 60 11 . 67 11 . 75 11 . 83 11 . 91 11 . 99 12 . 07 12 . 159 11 . 16 11 . 24 11 . 32 11 . 40 11 . 47 11 . 55 11 . 63 11 . 70 11 . 78 11 . 8610 10 . 90 10 . 98 11 . 05 11 . 13 11 . 20 11 . 28 11 . 35 11 . 43 11 . 50 11 . 5811 10 . 65 10 . 72 10 . 80 10 . 87 10 . 94 11 . 02 11 . 09 11 . 16 11 . 24 11 . 3112 10 . 41 10 . 48 10 . 55 10 . 62 10 . 69 10 . 77 10 . 84 10 . 91 10 . 98 11 . 0513 10 . 17 10 . 24 10 . 31 10 . 38 10 . 46 10 . 53 10 . 60 10 . 67 10 . 74 10 . 8114 9 . 95 10 . 02 10 . 09 10 . 16 10 . 23 10 . 29 10 . 36 10 . 43 10 . 50 10 . 5715 9 . 73 9 . 80 9 . 87 9 . 94 10 . 00 10 . 07 10 . 14 10 . 21 10 . 27 10 . 3416 9 . 53 9 . 59 9 . 66 9 . 73 9 . 79 9 . 86 9 . 92 9 . 99 10 . 06 10 . 1217 9 . 33 9 . 39 9 . 46 9 . 52 9 . 59 9 . 65 9 . 72 9 . 78 9 . 85 9 . 9118 9 . 14 9 . 20 9 . 26 9 . 33 9 . 39 9 . 45 9 . 52 9 . 58 9 . 64 9 . 7119 8 . 95 9 . 01 9 . 07 9 . 14 9 . 20 9 . 26 9 . 32 9 . 39 9 . 45 9 . 5120 8 . 77 8 . 83 8 . 89 8 . 95 9 . 02 9 . 08 9 . 14 9 . 20 9 . 26 9 . 3221 8 . 60 8 . 66 8 . 72 8 . 78 8 . 84 8 . 90 8 . 96 9 . 02 9 . 08 9 . 1422 8 . 43 8 . 49 8 . 55 8 . 61 8 . 67 8 . 73 8 . 79 8 . 84 8 . 90 8 . 9623 8 . 27 8 . 33 8 . 39 8 . 44 8 . 50 8 . 56 8 . 62 8 . 68 8 . 73 8 . 7924 8 . 11 8 . 17 8 . 23 8 . 29 8 . 34 8 . 40 8 . 46 8 . 51 8 . 57 8 . 6325 7 . 96 8 . 02 8 . 08 8 . 13 8 . 19 8 . 24 8 . 30 8 . 36 8 . 41 8 . 4726 7 . 82 7 . 87 7 . 93 7 . 98 8 . 04 8 . 09 8 . 15 8 . 20 8 . 26 8 . 3127 7 . 68 7 . 73 7 . 79 7 . 84 7 . 89 7 . 95 8 . 00 8 . 06 8 . 11 8 . 1728 7 . 54 7 . 59 7 . 65 7 . 70 7 . 75 7 . 81 7 . 86 7 . 91 7 . 97 8 . 0229 7 . 41 7 . 46 7 . 51 7 . 57 7 . 62 7 . 67 7 . 72 7 . 78 7 . 83 7 . 8830 7 . 28 7 . 33 7 . 38 7 . 44 7 . 49 7 . 54 7 . 59 7 . 64 7 . 69 7 . 7531 7 . 16 7 . 21 7 . 26 7 . 31 7 . 36 7 . 41 7 . 46 7 . 51 7 . 46 7 . 6232 7 . 04 7 . 09 7 . 14 7 . 19 7 . 24 7 . 29 7 . 34 7 . 39 7 . 44 7 . 4933 6 . 92 6 . 97 7 . 02 7 . 07 7 . 12 7 . 17 7 . 22 7 . 27 7 . 31 7 . 3634 6 . 80 6 . 85 6 . 90 6 . 95 7 . 00 7 . 05 7 . 10 7 . 15 7 . 20 7 . 2435 6 . 69 6 . 74 6 . 79 6 . 84 6 . 89 6 . 93 6 . 98 7 . 03 7 . 08 7 . 1336 6 . 59 6 . 63 6 . 68 6 . 73 6 . 78 6 . 82 6 . 87 6 . 92 6 . 97 7 . 0137 6 . 48 6 . 53 6 . 57 6 . 62 6 . 67 6 . 72 6 . 76 6 . 81 6 . 86 6 . 9038 6 . 38 6 . 43 6 . 47 6 . 52 6 . 56 6 . 61 6 . 66 6 . 70 6 . 75 6 . 8039 6 . 28 6 . 33 6 . 37 6 . 42 6 . 46 6 . 51 6 . 56 6 . 60 6 . 65 6 . 6940 6 . 18 6 . 23 6 . 27 6 . 32 6 . 36 6 . 41 6 . 46 6 . 50 6 . 55 6 . 59__________________________________________________________________________ from colt , j . : &# 34 ; computation of dissolved gas concentrations in water as functions of temperature , salinity , and pressure ,&# 34 ; american fisheries society special publication 14 , bethesda , md , 1984 note : ppt = parts per thousand the container is tightly sealed so that the supersaturated oxygen cannot leak out . the container is usually made of glass or plastic , or other materials used by vendors of soft drinks , and the bottling process is similar to those for carbonated beverages . typically , the solution is stored under a slight positive pressure of 2 . 0 to 6 . 0 atmospheres , since this increases the solubility of dissolved oxygen . the clinical effectiveness of oxygenated beverages in reducing halitosis as measured by a halimeter ( interscan corporation , chatsworth , calif .) is illustrated by the results described in the following table 2 : table 2__________________________________________________________________________ average oral average oral volatile sulfur volatile sulfur compound compound average initial concentration , as concentration , as oral volatile parts per billion parts per billion sulfur compound of hydrogen of hydrogen concentration , as sulfide in air , 5 sulfide in air , 30 parts per billion minutes after minutes after number of of hydrogen ingesting 12 ingesting 12 subjects sulfide in air ounces of water ounces of water__________________________________________________________________________control : 5 130 80 103tap water chilled to32 degrees ftap water chilled to 5 130 65 7032 degrees f andsupersaturated with pure oxygenat a gauge pressure of 50pounds per square inch__________________________________________________________________________ it is to be noted that the concentration of volatile sulfur compounds found to be offensive varies upon the olfactory sensitivity of the individual being offended . however , concentrations of approximately 100 parts per billion in air typically are offensive to most individuals at a range from the source of approximately 18 inches , especially upon exhalation by the offending party . the foregoing invention has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example , for purposes of clarity and understanding . it will be obvious to one of skill in the art that changes and modifications may be practiced within the scope of the appended claims . therefore , it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive . the scope of the invention should , therefore , be determined not with reference to the above description , but should instead be determined with reference to the following appended claims , along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled . all patents , patent applications and publications cited in this application are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes to the same extent as if each individual patent , patent application or publication were so individually denoted . | 0 |
the following description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention . descriptions of specific embodiments and applications are provided only as examples and various modifications will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art . the general principles described herein may be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from the scope of the invention . thus , the present invention is not to be limited to the embodiments shown , but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein . for purpose of clarity , details relating to technical material that is known in the technical fields related to the invention have not been described in detail . an adaptive receiver for protecting optoelectronic components from damage due to high power optical signals is disclosed herein . the adaptive receiver is configured to adapt power level to protect components exposed to high power optical signals and optimize input power level for optimum ber ( bit error rate ( ratio of received bits to error bits )). the optoelectronic components may be , for example , apd ( avalanche photodiode ) based modules , such as discrete , non - module based designs , 200 - pin or 300 - pin msa ( multi - source agreement ) form - factors , which are fixed on the pcb ( module design ), and pluggable devices , including the xenpak msa form factor ( 10 gbps transponder ), x2 ( 10 gbps transponder ), sfps ( small form factor ), and xfps ( 10 gbps form factor ), or any other component requiring protection from high power optical signals . the optoelectronic component may also be a pin ( positive - intrinsic - negative photodiodes ) based device . referring now to the drawings , and first to fig1 , an example of a system utilizing an adaptive receiver of the present invention is shown . the system includes an optoelectronic device 12 , which contains the adaptive receiver . the adaptive receiver is configured to receive fiber optics ( e . g ., 2 . 5 gbps , 10 gbps , 40 gbps , or other data rates ) and adapt power levels to protect the adaptive receiver and other components within the optoelectronic device 12 . the optoelectronic module 12 receives optical signals from a fiber optic cable coupled to an optical network 10 , converts the optical signals to electrical signals , and provides the electrical signals to a host device ( e . g ., computer ) 14 . the module 12 also receives electrical signals from the computer 14 and converts the electrical signals to optical signals , and provides the optical signals to the fiber optic cable . the optoelectronic device 12 includes a transmitter optical subassembly ( tosa ) and receiver optical subassembly ( rosa ) ( not shown ). an optical connector optically couples the tosa and rosa to the optical network 10 . the optoelectronic device 12 also includes an electrical connector which is electrically connected to a circuit board for transmitting electrical signals between the circuit board and host device 14 . the optoelectronic module 12 receives optical signals from the fiber optic cable using the ( rosa ). the rosa typically includes a lens that receives the optical signals from the fiber optic cable and focuses the optical signals on an optoelectronic device provided with a receiver unit . the adaptive receiver may be coupled to the rosa or integrated directly into the rosa of a currently available module form factor , for example . the integration may be monolithic or hybrid . it is to be understood that the system shown in fig1 and described herein is only one example , and that the adaptive receiver may be used in different systems ( e . g ., other bit rates and different modules ), without departing from the scope of the invention . fig2 illustrates one embodiment of the adaptive receiver . the adaptive receiver includes a semiconductor optical device referred to herein as a semiconductor optical attenuator / amplifier ( soaa ) 20 , an agc ( automatic gain controller ) 22 , photodetector ( pd ) 24 , and tap 26 . the photodetector 24 and tap 26 may be removed , without departing from the scope of the invention . the receiver is shown at 28 . the receiver 28 may be configured with current clamp bias . the soaa 20 is similar to a conventional semiconductor optical amplifier ( soa ), but it is configured to provide a small amount of amplification and a large amount of attenuation . for example , in an ‘ off ’ state , the semiconductor optical attenuator / amplifier 20 can provide high attenuation . a conventional soa is typically a high gain device which operates only over a small wavelength range . the soaa 20 is a small gain device ( e . g ., 2 db ) with a large bandwidth ( e . g ., 1250 nm - 1650 nm ). the semiconductor optical attenuator / amplifier 20 is configured to provide variable gain , which is controlled directly via bias current . interference by the soaa 20 is generally avoided by operating it in the linear regime . the soaa 20 includes multiple rare earth metals to provide the small gain over a large bandwidth ( e . g ., approximately 300 nm range ). the soaa preferably includes at least two different rare earth metals and may contain more that two different rare earth metals . for example , the soaa 20 may be doped with erbium , strontium , or presodynium , or any combination of these and other rare earth metals , to provide the desired bandwidth , as is well known by those skilled in the art . the soaa 20 is preferably an uncooled device , however a tec ( thermoelectric cooler ) may be used . fig3 is a flowchart illustrating a process for adapting incoming power level to protect equipment and optimize input power level for optimum ber . at step 30 a large pulse input is received . the soaa 20 decreases input amplitude and widens the pulse ( step 32 ). the soaa 20 therefore protects the components from an initial high spike optical power signal before the controller 22 operates to adjust the soaa to compensate for the high power signal . the agc 22 then provides feedback to the soaa 20 to increase attenuation by reverse biasing the soaa ( step 34 ). the agc 22 thus operates to protect the receiver from high input power signals and allow the soaa 20 to present the receiver with an optimum power level . the agc 22 automatically adjusts the gain in a specified manner as a function of input level or another specified parameter . the input level may be adjusted to provide optimum ber . in one example , if the maximum power level of a single wavelength is + 17 dbm , optimum power to present a 10 g apd is − 10 dbm with 27 db of attenuation . in most applications , the attenuation will not exceed approximately 30 db . although the present invention has been described in accordance with the embodiments shown , one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that there could be variations made to the embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention . accordingly , it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense . | 7 |
the present invention will now be described in the context of recovering carrier and clock information from a received signal of the form ## equ1 ## where the modulating waveforms a i ( t ) and b i ( t ) are each representative of filtered bipolar binary data . thus , there are four possible signals which can be sent over any time interval t , and the entire data sequence is of length n . it should be noted that the invention is not intended to be limited to use only with quarternary signals , but by setting a i ( t ) or b i ( t ) to zero , the system degenerates readily to a binary transmission system . it is also possible to extend the synchronization system according to the present invention to any m - ary signal set . a carrier and clock recovery network according to the present invention is shown in fig6 . for carrier synchronization , the ppl is similar to a conventional &# 34 ; costas loop &# 34 ; with decision directed feedback . a double side band suppressed carrier signal is injected at the input terminal 100 and is supplied in parallel to mixers 102 and 104 . a carrier signal from vco 106 is supplied through a 90 degree phase shift circuit to the other inputs of mixers 102 and 104 so that both the in phase and quadrature components of the received signal are translated to baseband and the signal at the output of each mixer includes components from both data streams modulated a phase error . at the outputs of the mixers , the signal in the carrier synchronization loop is split into two paths . in the first path , the baseband signals are provided through lowpass filters 110 and 112 to sampled comparators 114 and 116 , respectively . the comparators are sampled with the clock signal from vco 118 in the clock synchronization portion of the network , to be described in more detail below . the outputs of the sampled comparators 114 and 116 are quantized matched filter data estimates a and b , and these data estimates are supplied through filters 120 and 122 to produce their analog counterparts a and b , respectively . in the other signal path of the carrier synchronization loop , the baseband signals at the outputs of mixers 102 and 104 are each provided to mixers 124 and 126 , respectively . the baseband signal provided by mixer 102 is multiplied in mixer 124 by the analog bit estimates b , and the baseband signal at the output of mixer 104 is multiplied in mixer 126 by the analog bit estimates a from the opposite channel . the outputs of these mixers 124 and 126 are then differenced in a subtractor 128 to remove modulation from the incoming carrier . the output of the subtraction circuit 128 is provided through a loop filter 130 to the control terminal of vco 106 . the output of loop filter 130 will appropriately adjust the phase of vco 106 until it phase - locks onto the center frequency of the input signal r ( t ). a significant distinction between the above - described carrier synchronization loop and conventional carrier synchronization loops resides in the nature of the data estimates being fed back for modulation removal . during the synchronization interval , or preamble , a known sequence such as &# 34 ; 1010 . . .&# 34 ; may be used , followed by an unknown data pattern over the message cycle . after filtering , this &# 34 ; 1010 . . .&# 34 ; known sequence degenerates into a sine wave and , therefore , it is a simple matter to provide the bit estimates during the preamble from a vco . accordingly , during the preamble the switches 140 and 142 are in the position shown in fig3 so that the &# 34 ; 1010 . . .&# 34 ; data estimates can be provided from the vco 118 through the divide - by - two circuit 144 in the clock recovery loop , to be described later . similarly , during the preamble the switches 146 and 148 are maintained in the position shown in fig6 so that the output of mixers 102 and 104 will be provided directly to the inputs of mixers 124 and 126 , respectively . at the end of the preamble , the data is unknown , and must be detected and fed back in order to achieve modulation removal for carrier recovery . accordingly , before the end of the preamble the switches 140 and 142 are changed to their alternate positions from those shown in fig6 so that the analog bit estimates a and b are supplied to the mixers 126 and 124 , respectively . these estimates are substantially noise - free due to the sampling operation . also , since the operation of the matched filters requires some finite amount of time in order to generate the data estimates at the outputs of filters 120 and 122 , delays 150 and 152 are switched into the second paths of the carrier synchronization loop at this time . it may also be desirable to change the characteristics of loop filter 130 at the end of the preamble in order to optimize for both acquisition and steady state performance . the switches 140 , 142 , 146 and 148 may all be ganged together and operated by a common signal , with the same signal being supplied to a control input terminal of filter 130 in order to alter the filter response thereof . this control signal is preferably an acquisition signal which is generated whenever the degree of carrier synchronization is within prescribed limits . the acquisition signal is generated by combining the outputs of carrier loop multipliers 124 and 126 in a summation circuit 160 , integrating in integration circuit 162 and passing the integrated signal through a sampled bipolar threshold comparator 164 . the sampling signal is generated by passing the output of vco 118 through a divide - by - n circuit 166 so that the sampling signal at comparator 164 is some integer sub - multiple of the recovered clock signal . the degree of reliability desired , such as the probability of false or missdetection at some s / n will determine the length of the integration time for integrator 162 . it should be noted , however , that as the length of this interval increases , more uncertainty will exist as to the precise time at which acquisition commences or terminates . the operation of the clock synchronization loop of the present invention is substantially similar to that of the above - described carrier synchronization . however , rather than mixing the base band signal from the output of mixer 102 in multiplier 124 with the estimated analog bit stream b , it is multiplied in multiplier 200 with the time derivative of the analog bit stream a as supplied from differentiation circuit 202 . similarly , the output of mixer 104 is multiplied in multiplier 204 with the time derivative of the analog bit stream b as supplied through differentiation circuit 206 . as in the carrier synchronization loop , the switches 140 , 142 , 146 and 148 may all be ganged together and / or operated by a common control signal , preferably the acquisition signal at the output of sampled comparator 164 . the output of summation circuit 207 is provided through a loop filter 208 to the control terminal of vco 118 . the output of loop filter 208 will indicate the degree of synchronization between the vco output and the incoming data bit rate . as in the carrier synchronization loop , the acquisition signal at the output of sampled comparator 164 is applied to a control terminal of loop filter 208 in order to alter the filter response between the preamble and the message cycle of the burst . in the above description , the carrier and clock recovery loops have been discussed separately , but it should be emphasized that a significant feature of the invention is their interdependent operation in which the performance of each is augmented by the estimate developed in the other . for example , the recovered clock is used to sample each of comparators 114 and 116 , thus enhancing the bit estimates fed back during the message portion of the burst for both carrier and clock recovery purposes . further , since a substantial portion of the clock and carrier recovery loops are common to one another , the clock recovery network can benefit from the coherency developed in the carrier loop . significant advantages of the circuit structure according to the present invention are that the estimation of carrier and clock timing are performed in parallel so that only a single interval must be allocated for acquisition , thus making the present invention highly useful in the context of burst mode data transmission systems . further , the coherent references derived from each synchronization loop are coupled together to further expedite synchronization . noise injected at the input of the synchronization circuit is eliminated by sampling and will not pass through any nonlinearity which may cause degradation of the s / n ratio . a further significant advantage is that the data estimates fed back for modulation removal in both the carrier and clock recovery networks are the best available estimates . more specifically , during the acquisition period , or preamble , a known sequence is utilized in which the only uncertainty involved is that of the bit timing . after synchronization is detected , the matched filter estimates of the data sequences are then used , since they are the best estimates obtainable when the data pattern is unknown . as a result of these various features and advantages , the synchronization circuitry according to the present invention will provide a better mean acquisition time , steady state phase jitter and error rate performance than conventional synchronization circuits . further , since the data is removed from the carrier , the problem of false lock at offset frequencies which are sub - multiples of the bit rate is substantially eliminated . finally , the acquisition signal at the output of sampled comparator 164 also provides a continuously updated indication of lock during the entire burst . if an &# 34 ; end of burst &# 34 ; notification is necessary , it can be triggered off the trailing edge of the acquisition signal . thus , indications such as acquisition , loss of lock and end of burst are easily procured at little or no increase in circuit complexity . it should be appreciated that there are various possibilities for implementing the various system blocks disclosed above , all of which possibilities fall within the scope of the present invention . without limitation , some examples of circuit details which could be used to implement the present invention are as follows . first , the delay networks could be implemented by using all - pass filter sections , charge coupled devices , etc . further , switching could be accomplished either softly or abruptly , and the vco &# 39 ; s can be analog or digital or could even operate at some multiple of the intended frequency in order to provide coherent references at other rates . a still further possibility which may reduce the complexity at a slight penalty in performance would be to utilize the quantized data estimates a and b in the feedback structure rather than their analog counterparts a and b . in this instance , some modification to the differentiator may also be necessary . | 7 |
fig1 is a diagram illustrating a progressive watermark decoding process for a distributed computing platform . the watermark decoding process scans a digital image of a watermarked object . an image printed on the watermarked object carries a hidden digital watermark with a variable multi - bit message payload as well as a synchronization signal component . the digital watermark subtly modifies image sample values in a particular color channel of a host digital image up or down to encode the message and synchronization components . this digital image is then printed or engraved onto the surface of a physical object , such as paper , product packaging , id cards etc . a consumer then holds the object to a web camera , which captures digital image frames of the watermarked object ( 100 ). a watermark decoding process detects the presence of the watermark , including synchronizing with the embedded synchronization component , and extracts the multi - bit message component . this message carries an index to a database entry indicating an action to take in response to the message . blocks 102 – 110 of fig1 illustrate processes performed on a client device , which captures the digital image , performs pre - processing on the digital image , and progressively sends it to one or more other devices to complete watermark decoding . blocks 200 – 208 illustrate processes performed on one or more servers that progressively receive the pre - processed image data from the client . before describing the process of fig1 in more detail , it is useful to begin with brief illustration of a watermark embedding process to put the decoding operations in context . in one implementation , the digital watermark embedder repeatedly embeds the watermark signal in blocks of a host digital image . in each block , the embedder modulates image samples within a particular color channel ( e . g ., the luminance channel , or a channel that varies depending on the host image color ). the embedder redundantly encodes the message signal in sub - blocks of the image block . it forms the message from a variable bit payload as well as control and error checking bits . this message is repeated and error correction encoded using a block or convolution code ( e . g ., bch , turbo , etc .). the message is also modulated with a carrier signal , such as pseudo random number . the synchronization component is integrated with the message signal as a fixed portion of the message , as part of the carrier signal , and / or as a separate signal . one aspect of the synchronization component forms a constellation of signal peaks in a transform domain , such as the autocorrelation domain and / or fourier magnitude domain . the embedder inserts the digital watermark signal , including the message and synchronization components , into the host image by adjusting the image samples in the spatial domain and / or spatial frequency domain up or down . theses adjustments are preferably adapted based on human visibility system modeling to take advantage of the data hiding attributes of the host image . ultimately , the watermarked image is printed on the host object to form a watermarked object . returning to fig1 , we now describe the progressive watermark decoding process . the client device , such as a pda or cell phone , captures digital image frames of the watermarked object through a digital camera ( 102 ). the client then pre - filters the image to segregate a portion of the image likely to contain a recoverable digital watermark signal ( 106 ). one aspect of this filtering is to transform the color space of the digital image into the color channel or channels in which the watermark has been embedded . another aspect is to identify a block of each of the incoming frames that is a likely candidate to have a recoverable digital watermark signal . one implementation segments the center block of each frame and discards the remainder of the frame . an alternative implementation performs an analysis of the image content , looking for spatial block areas that are likely to have a strong watermark signal . this analysis includes , for example , identifying spatial areas with high signal activity ( particularly in certain spatial frequency bands ), such as textures and areas where there is a high density of image edges . in such areas , the human visibility system modeling of the embedder causes the embedder to place more watermark signal energy due to the greater data hiding capability of the host image , and as such , the watermark signal is likely to be more detectable at these locations . using such an analysis the pre - processor identifies a block within the frame that is a good candidate for watermark detection . an enhancement to this approach is to rank candidates based on signal activity metrics , and queue the blocks for transmission to the server based on their ranking . as a further enhancement , the distributed decoding system can be programmed to make block selection of candidate blocks , and transfer candidate blocks based on the computational and memory capabilities of the client , and the bandwidth of the communication link . in particular , when the client software detects that the client device has sufficient processor resources and memory , it can select additional candidate blocks for watermark detection , and buffer them for progressive transmission to the server . the client then forwards candidate blocks to the server as a function of the available bandwidth , the server &# 39 ; s availability , and the decoding results from previous blocks . as bandwidth and server availability increases , the client sends more blocks from the current frame , unless the decoding results returned by the server indicate that the watermark signal is weak in that frame . to further regulate resource usage , the client can spatially scale the image ( e . g ., down sample ) to adjust the size of the image to the available memory , bandwidth and processing resources of the client . another aspect of the filtering is to segregate the digital watermark from its host image to the extent possible . one way to accomplish this is to apply a de - correlating filter to separate an estimate of the digital watermark signal from the host image . one way to segregate an estimate of the digital watermark signal is to band - pass filter the image to isolate spatial frequency content that is likely to have a larger ratio of watermark signal to host signal energy . another way to estimate the digital watermark signal is to apply a predictive filter to predict the original image , which enables the pre - processor to isolate the residual portion of the signal with a larger ratio of watermark signal to host signal energy . one such predictive filter compares each image sample with neighboring samples to derive an estimate of the watermark signal . for example , it compares a center sample with 8 surrounding samples , and measures the extent to which the center is greater than or less than the neighbors . for efficient implementation , a non - linear predictive filter can be designed as a look up table that takes each difference value between the center sample and the neighbors as input , looks up an output value ( either positive or negative , optionally with varying magnitude , depending on the difference value ) for each comparison , and sums the output values . the output of this non - linear filter provides an estimate of the watermark signal , which has been embedded by adjusting the image samples up or down . the result of the pre - filtering operation comprises a reduced version of the received image frame . in particular , it comprises a block within an image frame , representing an estimate of the digital watermark signal . as shown in block 110 , the pre - processor quantizes this block of image data into lower levels of detail . in particular , the digital watermark signal modifies the host image up or down . as such , the pre - filter estimates these adjustments , and the quantizer quantizes the estimated adjustments . at the lowest level of detail , the quantized data comprises a bit of binary information , indicating an up or down adjustment per sample in the selected image sample block . at the next level , the quantized data comprises two bits of binary information , including two levels of detail for a positive adjustment , and two levels of detail for a negative adjustment . in this particular implementation , the finest level of detail includes four bits of information , including 8 levels of positive adjustment and 8 levels of negative adjustment . the client queues the quantized levels of detail for sending to a server for watermark decoding , and progressively transmits the levels , starting at the lowest level of detail ( 110 ). experiments show that in most cases , a successful read operation occurs on quantized data including two bit planes per image sample in the selected block of an image frame captured from the camera . as such , the server provides feedback on the decoding results ( namely , whether it has a successful detect and read ), and the client proceeds to send the next quantized block when it appears that a successful read operation will not occur for the current block . bandwidth permitting , the client continues to send data for a current block until the server reports that reading from that block is futile . at that point , the progressive transmitter sends the next block . the client may choose the next block from the next frame , or from the current frame in the case where the block analysis routine has identified multiple strong candidate blocks in the current frame . the client and server communicate over a communication link ( 210 ). in one implementation , the communication link comprises a tcp / ip connection over a computer network , namely , the internet . other communication protocols and physical transport layers may be used as well , including protocols like udp and / or protocols used for networked pdas , cell phones , etc . some examples or wireless communication protocols that may be used in a distributed architecture for digital watermark decoding include blue tooth , gsm and cdma , to name a few . for example , a blue tooth enabled hand held image capture device can function as the client in the distributed watermark decoding method . in this example , the hand held reader captures the image , pre - filters it , and progressively transmits the filtered image data to a computer , which completes the decoding operation . the computer itself may be connected to the internet to send the extracted watermark payload to a server , which looks for related information or content in its database , and returns it to the user &# 39 ; s computer or personal digital library accessible via a web interface on the internet . referring to the right side of fig1 , the server receives quantized data ( 200 ) from the client . while fig1 shows one server decoding process , the distributed architecture may also be designed to include multiple decoding processes or threads of execution on one or more server computing devices or processors within a server . in a case of multiple , parallel decoding processes , the client broadcasts the quantized data to each decoding process , which independently processes the quantized data and reports the results of the decoding operation . the server can transmit the watermark message payload back to the client and / or forward it to a re - direction server for further handling . as shown in block 202 , the decoding process analyzes the quantized block of image data to detect the presence of a watermark . in one implementation , this entails detecting the synchronization component of the digital watermark , and using that component to ascertain the geometric distortion parameters of the block , such as rotation , scale , and translation of the block . next , the decoding process uses the geometric distortion parameters to align the quantized image data ( 204 ). in one implementation , the alignment process operates in stages in conjunction with the detection process . first , the detection process detects transform domain peaks . the measurement of the peaks provides a preliminary indicator of the presence of the watermark . the decoding process uses a correlation metric to evaluate the presence of the watermark and reports back to the client as shown by the arrow emanating from block 202 to the communication link . at this point , the decoding process may instruct the client to begin sending data for the next block when the preliminary detection result indicates that it is unlikely to extract the digital watermark message . when the preliminary detection metric is positive , the detection process derives rotation and scale parameters from the detected peak locations and the expected orientation of the peaks in synchronization component . using these parameters , the alignment process rotates and scales the image data to approximate its original orientation . next , the alignment process uses a known component of the digital watermark to estimate translation . the translation parameters provide a point of reference to extract embedded message symbols from the quantized data . next , the decoding process reads the watermark from the quantized message data ( 206 ). as noted previously , the client implementation provides an estimate of the digital watermark signal as an array of positive or negative adjustments . the message reader extracts message symbol estimates from this array by demodulating these estimates from the array using the pseudo random carrier signal and the inverse of the modulation function in the embedder . this process generates multiple estimates for each error correction encoded message symbol . as such , the aggregate of these estimates for each symbol provides a soft bit estimate for an error correction encoded symbol . the reader then performs error correction decoding compatible with the embedder . the error correction decoded result may undergo further error checking to validate the message . when a valid message is decoded , the server reports this event back to the client as shown by the arrow from block 206 back to the communication link . the watermark message payload may include one or more fields of information , including information about the watermarked object , an index , control flags or instructions , etc . the decoding process may either initiate an action in response to the message , or forward the message to the client or another server to initiate an action related to the watermarked object 208 ). in one application of this technology , an identifier in the message payload is used to look up a responsive action related to the watermarked object . one such action is to return a network address of a network resource , such as a web page or other program or service to return to the client . for example , the decoding server passes the identifier to a re - direction server , which in turn looks up a corresponding uniform resource locator ( url ) and returns it to the client . this look up operation may also involve other context information , such as information about the user of the client device or capabilities of the device , so that the information returned is tailored to the user and / or device . software on the client device , such as an internet browser , then fetches a web page at the specified url . a number of variations are possible . for example , the re - direction server can return a web page directly to the client , including links to get information or perform electronic transactions relating to the watermarked object . for more information about this type of use of a digital watermark , see u . s . pat . nos . 6 , 122 , 403 and 6 , 505 , 160 , and pending u . s . patent applications ser . no . 09 / 571 , 422 , which are hereby incorporated by reference . while the above technique is illustrated in the context of a watermarked object , a similar distributed and / or progressive decoding operation may be performed on watermarked audio and video . for example , in the case of watermarked audio , the user holds up the microphone of a client device , such as a cell phone or pda , to ambient audio , embedded with a digital watermark . the client dsp then pre - filters digitized audio from the microphone to de - correlate the watermark signal from the host audio signal , and progressively sends a quantized version of the resulting estimate of the watermark signal to a decoding process for watermark detection and message extraction operations as above . the technique described above operates on a video stream captured from a digital camera . however , the video stream may come from other sources as well , such as in streaming or broadcast video delivery to a cell phone or pda over a wireless connection . in these cases , the client and server process watermarked image blocks from frames of the video stream as above . another approach for progressive watermark decoding on a distributed computing system is to transmit varying spatial resolution images progressively from the client to the server until the server achieves a successful decode of the digital watermark message payload . in particular , the client initially sends a low spatial resolution image and progressively sends higher resolution versions of that image to the server . systems that generate jpeg 2000 images and progressive scan jpeg images are particularly well suited for this application because both systems format the image so that the client can generate a low resolution image version , followed by several iterations of more resolution . in such a system , the server tries to detect the watermark on the low resolution image version first , then again with the next resolution until it successfully extracts a valid watermark message payload . in certain applications , it is expected that the server will process requests to decode watermarks from blocks transmitted by a large number of clients . in such applications , the server infrastructure includes a number of enhancements to support these requests . one enhancement is distributed request handling . the server system is designed to handle watermark decoding requests from several clients . to process multiple requests , the server has a handler interface that receives the request and queues it for processing on one of many processing units across one or more computers . further processing requests are supported using multiple threads of execution in the decoding process , including a thread to manage buffering of blocks from a client , one or more threads to detect and read the watermark message from each block , and a thread for dispatching the embedded message extracted from a block . the decoding process supports multiple input and output streams . each input stream refers , for example , to the queue of blocks from a particular client . each output stream refers to the detection and decoding results transferred from the decoding process . the server system comprises one or more processor units over which the processing load from multiple block decoding requests are distributed . a load balancing process monitors the availability of processing units and regulates the processing load distributed to these processing units based on the availability of processing cycles . the distributed decoding architecture can also be adapted for client devices that do not always have an available connection to the server system . for example , in devices that are not connected , the client software caches pre - filtered and quantized image blocks . later , when the user places the client device in a docking station for synchronization with a computer connected to the docking station , the client passes the cached blocks to the server . the server may reside in the docking station computer , or in a computer connected to the docking station computer over a network such as the internet . in short , the blocks may make one or more hops from client device , to an intermediate device , and finally , to decoding server . with each hop , the transmission protocol may change , such as a serial connection ( usb ) to the docking station computer , and tcp / ip connection from docking station computer to decoding server . the data returned in response to the watermark message may be displayed on the docking station computer , may be downloaded to the pda for display , and / or may be sent to a database on the internet that the user can access at his or her convenience to download information related to the watermarked object via the embedded watermark . one example is a music file that is transferred to the user &# 39 ; s personal library on the internet in response to showing a watermarked cd or music promotion poster to the client &# 39 ; s camera . another example is an electronic coupon or ticket that is forwarded to the user &# 39 ; s e - mail account in response to showing a watermarked object to the client &# 39 ; s camera . the distributed architecture performs efficient watermark decoding by performing a lossy compression of a watermarked media signal that discards much of the media signal information , yet leaves a residual media signal from which the digital watermark is decoded . to further reduce bandwidth requirements , the client may also apply a lossless compression process , such as run length or entropy coding ( e . g ., huffman or arithmetic coding ) to reduce the residual image further in size . the losslessly compressed residual image then requires less bandwidth to send to the server at the expense of further lossless compression and decompression steps . having described and illustrated the principles of the technology with reference to specific implementations , it will be recognized that the technology can be implemented in many other , different , forms . to provide a comprehensive disclosure without unduly lengthening the specification , applicants incorporate by reference the patents and patent applications referenced above . the methods , processes , and systems described above may be implemented in hardware , software or a combination of hardware and software . for example , the auxiliary data encoding processes may be implemented in a programmable computer or a special purpose digital circuit . similarly , auxiliary data decoding may be implemented in software , firmware , hardware , or combinations of software , firmware and hardware . the methods and processes described above may be implemented in programs executed from a system &# 39 ; s memory ( a computer readable medium , such as an electronic , optical or magnetic storage device ). the particular combinations of elements and features in the above - detailed embodiments are exemplary only ; the interchanging and substitution of these teachings with other teachings in this and the incorporated - by - reference patents / applications are also contemplated . | 6 |
first of all , referring to fig3 , a notebook computer in accordance with the invention includes a conventional display 30 a and a main frame 30 b . the other apparatuses like display panel , mother board , electronic devices , optic devices , etc . belong to the prior art so that no further descriptions thereto are given hereinafter . the invention features in the combination structure of a display housing 10 and a main frame housing 20 . as shown in fig3 , the main frame housing 20 consists of a top metal cover 21 , a first middle plastic frame 22 and a bottom metal cover 23 that are combined to form a sandwich structure . meanwhile , the display housing 10 consists of a rear metal cover 11 , a second middle plastic frame 12 and a front metal cover 13 that are combined to form a sandwich structure . the material of the above - mentioned metal covers is preferably selected from a group consisting of aluminum , magnesium , and aluminum - magnesium alloy . it should not be restricted thereto . another equivalent metal or alloy is applicable thereto . as shown in fig4 , the rear metal cover 11 is formed in a stamping process such that a rim portion 111 is bent forward with a rear engaging part 112 at the inner side thereof . the rear engaging part 112 is formed at the same time when the rear engaging part 112 is created . alternatively , the rear engaging part 112 can be formed separately in a reworking process . the front metal cover 13 is formed in a stamping process to create a frame - shaped body with a hollowed portion 133 at the center thereof for receiving a display panel 42 ( see fig3 ). referring to fig5 a , the top of the front metal cover 13 is bent backward to form a rim portion 131 with a front engaging part 132 at the inner side thereof . the second middle plastic frame 12 includes a middle protrusion portion 121 defining a front and a rear frame portion of the display housing 10 with a front and a rear cavity 122 , 123 , respectively . in this way , the rear engaging part 112 of the rim portion 111 and the front engaging part 132 of the rim portion 131 can fit snugly in the front and the rear cavity 122 , 123 of the second middle plastic frame 12 , respectively . accordingly , the rear metal cover 11 , the second middle plastic frame 12 and the front metal cover 13 can be joined together to form a sandwich structure , as shown in fig5 b . as shown in fig4 a and 4b , the display panel 42 having positioning rods 421 and positioning elements 422 at both sides thereof is locked at the inner side of the second middle plastic frame 12 by respective locking elements 424 . the positioning rods 421 include each at the bottom thereof a hinge 423 that protrudes from the bottom side of the second middle plastic frame 12 . the display panel 42 , the positioning rods 421 and the hinges 423 belong to the prior art so that no further descriptions to their detailed elements are given hereinafter . the protruding hinge 423 is coupled to a corresponding a mounting element 227 and then fixed to tenon screw holes 225 . in this way , the display 30 a and the main frame 30 b , as shown in fig3 , are pivotally coupled at the bottom rear side thereof . this structure doesn &# 39 ; t fall within the scope of the claim of the invention . however , the aforementioned descriptions imply the applicability of the invention . as shown in fig3 , each of four corners of the front metal cover 13 of the display housing 10 includes a second screw 14 . another fixing elements equivalent to the screw are also applicable . the second screws 14 fit in corresponding through holes 124 of the second middle plastic frame 12 and are then locked in the tenon screw holes 113 of the rear metal cover 11 ( see fig4 a and 4b ). accordingly , the rear metal cover 11 , the second middle plastic frame 12 and the front metal cover 13 can be tightly combined together . meanwhile , the rear metal cover 11 protects the front metal cover 13 and the rear metal cover 11 from contact to each other while they are joined together . so , it is avoidable that uneven contact faces of both stamped metal pieces are created due to precision error resulted from the stamping process . as shown in fig5 b , the display housing 10 in the combination sandwich type has a flush external rim without gap . it &# 39 ; s because that the flexibility of the second middle plastic frame 12 can absorb the slight manufacturing error . in this way , the stamping pieces can be made flush . in addition to the above - mentioned effects , the second middle plastic frame 12 permits a beautiful appearance . so , it can serve many purposes . as shown in fig4 c , 4 d , 6 a and 6 b , the main frame housing 20 consists of a top metal cover 21 , a first middle plastic frame 22 and a bottom metal cover 23 that are combined to form a sandwich structure . the top metal cover 21 is stamped in a form with both ends 211 bent downward while the bottom side of the top metal cover 21 defines a cavity portion . the bending ends 211 of the top metal cover 21 each have an upper engaging portion 212 at the inner side of the bending ends 211 . the bottom metal cover 23 is stamped in a form with both ends 231 bent upward while the top side of the bottom metal cover 23 defines a cavity portion . the bending ends 231 of the bottom metal cover 23 each have a lower engaging portion 232 at the inner side of the bending ends 231 . the first middle plastic frame 22 includes a middle protrusion portion 221 at the center thereof defining a front and a rear frame portion of the main frame housing 20 with a top and a bottom arched cavity 222 , 223 , respectively . in this way , the upper engaging portion 212 of the bending end 211 and the lower engaging portion 232 of the bending end 231 can fit snugly in the top and the bottom arched cavity 222 , 223 of the first middle plastic frame 22 , respectively . accordingly , the top metal cover 21 , the first middle plastic frame 22 and the bottom metal cover 23 can be combined together to form a sandwich structure with a flush external rim without gaps . the sandwich structure of the main frame housing 20 is identical with that of the aforementioned display housing 10 . the difference lies in the position of cavities and other configuration designed for meeting different requirements . as shown in fig4 c and 4d , the inside of the first middle plastic frame 22 can receive a mother board , a cd - rom , and other electronic components . so , the main frame housing 20 can be provided with partition ribs 224 and through holes 226 . meanwhile , the bottom metal cover 23 includes cavities 234 and tenon screw holes 235 in accordance with difference requirements and notebook computer models . no further descriptions thereto are given hereinafter . referring to fig7 , 8 a , and 8 b , the configuration of the display housing 10 is the same to that of the display housing of the previous embodiments . the difference lies in that the front metal cover 13 is stamped to be a flat frame with a middle cavity 133 for accepting the display panel 42 . meanwhile , the second middle plastic frame 12 includes a middle protrusion portion 121 at a front section thereof and a cavity 122 at a rear section thereof . the cavity 122 extends from the middle protrusion portion 121 to the rear outside wall of the second middle plastic frame 12 . the cavity 122 serves to hold the rear metal cover 11 in place . the inner rim of the middle protrusion portion 121 defines a front groove 123 ′ for receiving the front metal cover 13 in place . in this way , the rear metal cover 11 , the second middle plastic frame 12 , and the front metal cover 13 of the display housing 10 are combined together to form a sandwich structure . the front metal cover 13 can be fastened in position by glue or by screws 14 . it &# 39 ; s taken into account that the swiveling configuration and position of this embodiment are something different from that of the previous embodiment . some of them are more complicated . so , the front metal cover 13 can be designed in a flat frame type that requires only an easier stamping process . meanwhile , the pivoted portion of the display housing 10 extends from the bottom of the second middle plastic frame 12 and is integrally formed therewith . alternatively , a small member 425 can be extruded and mounted around the hinge 423 as shown in fig4 a . besides , the not - shown lead of the display panel 42 can be extended from the small member 425 and enters from a pivoted connection opening 426 into the main frame for an electric connection to the circuit board . these components are not objects of the invention so that no further descriptions thereto are given hereinafter . based on the above - mentioned sandwich structure of the invention , the display housing 10 and the main frame housing 20 are made of material selected from a group consisting of aluminum , magnesium , and aluminum - magnesium alloy and formed in a stamped process except that the middle protrusion portions 121 , 221 extends from the middle transitional portion . this provides not only the metal housing of high technology . all of the production speed , defect - free rate , and structural strength are also superior to the conventional plastic housing . moreover , the metal surface is not sprayed with any coating so that all material can be recycled for reuse . this ensures an environmentally friendly application . in addition , the metal surface produces a hairline texture after a special grinding , polishing , and anodizing treatment . the fabrication of the invention doesn &# 39 ; t require injection molds but stamping dies so that the fabrication cost can be considerably reduced . furthermore , the stamping metal piece includes vertical sides so that the strength of the whole cover can be enhanced . in this way , the thickness of the stamping metal pieces can be lower than that of plastic members , thereby creating a light - weight and compact notebook computer . many changes and modifications in the above - described embodiments of the invention can , of course , be carried out without departing from the scope thereof . accordingly , to promote the progress in science and the useful arts , the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims . | 6 |
in a first aspect , the invention provides a compound of formula i z is ch 2 , n , o , s , s (═ o ), or s (═ o ) 2 ; t ′ represent , independently from one another when p is greater than 1 , hydroxy ; mercapto ; amino ; cyano ; nitro ; oxo ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , hydroxyalkyl , aminoalkyl , mercaptoalkyl , alkoxy , alkylthio , alkylcarbonyl , alkoxycarbonyl , alkylcarbonylamino ; ( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylcarbonylamino ; mono - or di -, linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkoxy -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , mono - or di -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , or ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylthio -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl ; ( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylsulphonylamino ; ( c 1 - c 3 ) alkylsulphonylamino ; mono - or di -( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylaminosulphonyl ; mono - or di -( c 1 - c 3 ) alkylaminosulphonyl ; sulphamoyl ; mono - or di -( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylaminocarbonyl ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; or , when p is 2 or 3 , two t ′ substituents , with the atoms they are attached to , may form a 5 - to 8 - membered ring with spiro or fused junction ; q and q ′ are , independently from one another , integers from 1 to 4 ; r represents a 5 to 10 - membered aromatic or heteroaromatic ring optionally substituted with one or more groups selected from : halogen ; hydroxy ; mercapto ; cyano ; nitro ; amino ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , alkoxy or alkylcarbonyl ; ( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroaryl - carbonylamino ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylcarbonylamino , mono - or di -( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylaminocarbonyl ; mono - or di , linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino or alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; ( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylsulphonylamino ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylsulphonylamino ; ( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylsulphonyl ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylsulphonyl ; mono - or di -( c 5 - c 10 ) aryl - or heteroarylsulphamoyl ; mono - or di - linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylsulphamoyl ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkoxy -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , mono - or di -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylthio -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl ; r ′ represent , independently from one another when j = 2 , halogen ; hydroxy ; mercapto ; cyano ; nitro ; trihalomethyl ; trihalomethoxy ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , alkoxy , hydroxyalkyl , mercaptoalkyl , alkoxycarbonyl , alkylcarbonyl , alkylsulphonyl ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylcarbonylamino ; mono - or di , linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; ( c 6 - c 10 ) aryl - or ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylsulphonylamino ; ( c 6 - c 10 ) aryl - or linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylsulphamoyl ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkoxy -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , mono - or di -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylthio -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl . in a first preferred embodiment , the invention provides compounds of formula ( i ) wherein : t ′ represent , independently from one another when p is greater than 1 , linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , hydroxyalkyl , alkoxy , alkylcarbonyl , alkoxycarbonyl , alkylcarbonylamino ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkoxy -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; or , when p is 2 or 3 , two t ′ substituents form a 5 - to 8 - membered ring with spiro or fused junction ; q and q ′ are , independently from one another , integers from 1 to 4 ; r represents a 5 to 10 - membered aromatic or heteroaromatic ring optionally substituted with one or more groups selected from : halogen ; hydroxy ; mercapto ; cyano ; nitro ; amino ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , alkoxy or alkylcarbonyl ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylcarbonylamino ; mono - or di , linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkylamino or alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkoxy -( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl ; r ′ represent , independently from one another when j = 2 , halogen ; hydroxy ; trihalomethyl ; trihalomethoxy ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 6 ) alkyl , trihaloalkyl , alkoxy , hydroxyalkyl . in this embodiment , particularly preferred are those compounds of formula i wherein : q and q ′ are , independently from one another , integers from 1 to 3 ; r represents a 5 to 10 - membered aromatic or heteroaromatic ring optionally substituted with one or more groups selected from : halogen ; linear , branched or cyclic ( c 1 - c 3 ) alkyl , alkoxy ; linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 3 ) alkylcarbonylamino ; mono - or di , linear , branched , or cyclic ( c 1 - c 3 ) alkylaminocarbonyl ; carbamoyl ; yet more preferred are those compounds wherein both q and r are phenyl . the compounds of formula i can be prepared through a number of synthetic routes amongst which the ones illustrated in schemes 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 below . according to scheme 1 , hereby exemplified by a = 2 and a = n , an amine 1 is reacted under reductive alkylation conditions , such as for example treatment with sodium triacetoxyborohydride , sodium cyanoborohydride or sodium borohydride , in the presence of a catalytic amount of acid , such as for example acetic acid or formic acid , in an organic solvent such as for example dichloromethane or tetrahydrofuran , with a cyclic ketone 2 containing a protected amine functionality , hereby exemplified by tert - butoxycarbonyl . other suitable protecting groups may be represented by benzyloxycarbonyl , fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl , and any other amine protecting group as described in greene , t . and wuts , p . g . m . protective groups in organic synthesis , john wiley and sons , 1999 . the thus obtained amine 3 is further modified by removal of the protecting group , for example in the case of the tert - butoxycarbonyl group by treatment with trifluoroacetic acid in dichloromethane or with hydrochloric acid in methanol or with any other suitable method as described in ref . 1 , to obtain amine 4 . amine 4 is then reacted with an isocyanate , hereby exemplified by a phenylisocyanate , in a suitable solvent such as for example dichloromethane , tetrahydrofuran , dimethylformamide or mixtures thereof , to yield the ureas ia . in the case of r being a halogen or a boronic acid ester , ia can be further processed — for example via a cross - coupling reaction , for example under the conditions described as suzuki coupling conditions ( suzuki , a . pure and appl . chem . 1994 66 213 - 222 ), with a boronic acid or an aryl or heteroaryl halide — to yield compounds iβ . a = ch , an amine 1 is reacted with an activated acid 5 ( lg = leaving group ) containing a protected amine functionality , hereby exemplified by tert - butoxycarbonyl , to afford an amide 6 in a solvent such as for example dichloromethane , tetrahydrofuran , dimethylformamide or mixtures thereof . suitable activation for acids may be represented by acid chloride , an acyl imidazolide as obtained by treatment of an acid with a stoichiometric amount of carbonyldiimidazole , an activated ester such as for example a benzotriazolyl ester or a pentafluorophenyl ester , a mixed anhydride such as for example the one obtained by reaction of an acid with a iso - butyl chloroformate in the presence of a tertiary amine . the thus obtained amide 6 is further modified by removal of the protecting group , for example in the case of the tert - butoxycarbonyl group by treatment with trifluoroacetic acid in dichloromethane or with hydrochloric acid in methanol or any other suitable method as mentioned above , to obtain amine 7 . amine 7 is then reacted with a reducing agent , such as lithium aluminium hydride or borane in a suitable solvent such as for example tetrahydrofuran to afford amine 8 , which is further reacted with an isocyanate , hereby exemplified by a phenylisocyanate , in a suitable solvent such as for example dichloromethane , tetrahydrofuran , dimethylformamide or mixtures thereof , to yield the ureas iα . in the case of r being a halogen or a boronic acid ester , iα can be further processed — for example via a cross - coupling reaction , for example under the suzuki coupling conditions , with a boronic acid or an aryl or heteroaryl halide — to yield compounds iβ . according to scheme 3 , hereby exemplified by n = 2 and a = ch , an activated acid 9 ( lg = leaving group ) is reacted with an aromatic or heteroaromatic amine , hereby exemplified an a substituted aniline , to afford an aromatic or heteroaromatic amide 10 . suitable activation for acids may be represented by acid chloride , an acyl imidazolide as obtained by treatment of an acid with a stoichiometric amount of carbonyldiimidazole , an activated ester such as for example a benzotriazolyl ester or a pentafluorophenyl ester , a mixed anhydride such as for example the one obtained by reaction of an acid with a iso - butyl chloroformate in the presence of a tertiary amine . the resulting amide is then reacted with an amine x under reductive alkylation conditions , such as for example treatment with sodium triacetoxyborohydride , sodium cyanoborohydride or sodium borohydride , in the presence of a catalytic amount of acid , such as for example acetic acid or formic acid , in an organic solvent such as for example dichloromethane or tetrahydrofuran . in the case of r being a halogen or a boronic acid ester , iα can be further processed — for example via a cross - coupling reaction , for example under the suzuki coupling conditions , with a boronic acid or an aryl or heteroaryl halide — to yield compounds iβ . according to scheme 4 , the hydroxy group of a suitably protected hydroxyalkylcyclamine , hereby exemplified , but not limited to , by 4 -( 2 - hydroxyethyl ) piperidine n - protected as its tert - butylcarbamate derivative , is activated by the transformation into a leaving group , hereby exemplified by , but not limited to , a para - toluenesulphonyl group and subsequently displaced in the reaction with a primary or secondary amine . following removal of the cyclamine protecting group , this is then reacted with an aryl or heteroaryl isocyanate in a suitable solvent , such as for example dichloromethane , or tetrahydrofurane to furnish product iα . in the case of x being a halogen or a boronic acid ester , iα can be further processed — for example via a cross - coupling reaction , for example under the suzuki coupling conditions , with a boronic acid or an aryl or heteroaryl halide — to yield compounds iβ . the compounds of formula i , their optical isomers or diastereomers can be purified or separated according to well - known procedures , including but not limited to chromatography with a chiral matrix and fractional crystallisation . the pharmacological activity of a representative group of compounds of formula i was demonstrated in an in vitro assay utilising cells stably transfected with the alpha 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and cells expressing the alpha 1 and alpha 3 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and 5ht3 receptor as controls for selectivity . according to a further aspect , the invention is therefore directed to a method of treating neurological and psychiatric disorders , which comprises administering to a subject , preferably a human subject in need thereof , an effective amount of a compound of formula i . neurological and psychiatric disorders that may benefit from the treatment with the invention compounds include but are not limited to senile dementia , attention deficit disorders , alzheimer &# 39 ; s disease and schizophrenia . in general , the compounds of formula i can be used for treating any disease condition , disorder or dysfunction that may benefit from the activation of the alpha 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor , including but not limited to parkinson &# 39 ; s disease , huntington &# 39 ; s chorea , amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , multiple sclerosis , epilepsy , memory or learning deficit , panic disorders , cognitive disorders , depression , sepsis and arthritis . the dosage of the compounds for use in therapy may vary depending upon , for example , the administration route , the nature and severity of the disease . in general , an acceptable pharmacological effect in humans may be obtained with daily dosages ranging from 0 . 01 to 200 mg / kg . in yet a further aspect , the invention refers to a pharmaceutical composition containing one or more compounds of formula i , in association with pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and excipients . the pharmaceutical compositions can be in the form of solid , semi - solid or liquid preparations , preferably in form of solutions , suspensions , powders , granules , tablets , capsules , syrups , suppositories , aerosols or controlled delivery systems . the compositions can be administered by a variety of routes , including oral , transdermal , subcutaneous , intravenous , intramuscular , rectal and intranasal , and are preferably formulated in unit dosage form , each dosage containing from about 1 to about 1000 mg , preferably from 1 to 600 mg of the active ingredient . the compounds of the invention can be in the form of free bases or as acid addition salts , preferably salts with pharmaceutically acceptable acids . the invention also includes separated isomers and diastereomers of compounds i , or mixtures thereof ( e . g . racemic mixtures ). the principles and methods for the preparation of pharmaceutical compositions are described for example in remington &# 39 ; s pharmaceutical science , mack publishing company , easton ( pa ). unless otherwise specified all nuclear magnetic resonance spectra were recorded using a varian mercury plus 400 mhz spectrometer equipped with a pfg atb broadband probe . hplc - ms analyses were performed with a waters 2795 separation module equipped with a waters micromass zq ( es ionisation ) and waters pda 2996 , using a waters xterra ms c18 3 . 5 μm 2 . 1 × 50 mm column . preparative hlpc was run using a waters 2767 system with a binary gradient module waters 2525 pump and coupled to a waters micromass zq ( es ) or waters 2487 dad , using a supelco discovery hs c18 5 . 0 μm 10 × 21 . 2 mm column . gradients were run using 0 . 1 % formic acid / water and 0 . 1 % formic acid / acetonitrile with gradient 5 / 95 to 95 / 5 in the run time indicated . all column chromatography was performed following the method of still , c . ; j . org chem 43 , 2923 ( 1978 ). all tlc analyses were performed on silica gel ( merck 60 f254 ) and spots revealed by uv visualisation at 254 nm and kmno4 or ninhydrin stain . when specified for array synthesis , heating was performed on a buchi syncore ® system . the secondary amine ( 1 . 0 eq ) was dissolved in dcm and n - boc - piperidone ( 1 . 0 eq ) was added . the reaction was stirred for 1 hour and then nabh ( oac ) 3 was added and reaction stirred for other 18 hours . the mixture was then extracted into a hcl solution at ph2 and non - basic impurities removed by washing with dcm . the aqueous phase was then brought to ph 12 with sodium hydroxide and extracted with dcm . the organic phase was concentrated under reduced pressure affording the reductive alkylation product pure enough for the following step . the product obtained from the above reductive alkylation step ( 1 eq ) was dissolved in dcm and an excess of tfa ( 80 eq ) was slowly added . the reaction was stirred for 1 h and then concentrated under reduced pressure . the mixture was neutralised with naoh 10 % and extracted with dcm , affording a piperidine product pure enough for the following step . to a suspension of n - boc - isonipecotic acid ( 1 eq ) and tbtu ( 1 eq ) in ch 3 cn , the appropriate amine ( 2 eq ) was added . the resulting solution was stirred at 85 ° c . for 6 hours . the reaction mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and then dissolved in dcm and washed twice with sat . aqueous na 2 co 3 solution . solvent removal gave the 4 -( alkyl ) carbamoyl - piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester product usually pure enough for the next step . the amide thus obtained was dissolved in 6n hcl solution at 0 ° c . after 10 minutes tlc analysis generally showed disappearance of starting material , and the mixture was basified to ph 12 with naoh ( pellets ) and extracted with acoet . the organic phase concentrated under reduced pressure gave the piperidine - 4 - carboxylic acid amide product that was used without further purification for the next step . the piperidine - amide was added ( at 0 ° c .) to a suspension of lialh 4 in anhydrous thf . after stirring for 30 minutes the reaction was heated at reflux for 1 hour and when tlc analysis generally showed complete conversion of the starting amide . the reaction was cooled to 0 ° c . and lialh 4 was quenched with h 2 o and naoh ( 10 % aqueous solution ). the inorganic salts were filtered and the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure , yielding the piperidin - 4 - yl methylamine product usually pure enough for the next step . to a solution of 4 -( 2 - hydroxy - ethyl )- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester in dcm ( 0 . 65 mmol / ml ) p - toluensulphonyl chloride ( 1 . 5 eq ) and dimethylaminopyridine ( 1 eq ) were added . the reaction was left at rt for 18 h and then tlc showed complete conversion of the starting material . the mixture was washed with naoh 2n and then with hcl 2n , the organic phase was dried over na 2 so 4 and then concentrated under reduced pressure . the oil obtained was purified with sio 2 column , eluting with dcm , giving the pure product in quantitative yield . 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ): 1 . 01 - 1 . 15 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 44 ( s , 9h ), 1 . 47 - 1 . 57 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 62 - 1 . 72 ( m , 3h ), 2 . 44 ( s , 3h ), 2 . 54 - 2 . 65 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 95 - 4 . 1 ( m , 4h ), 7 . 36 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 3 ), 7 . 78 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 3 ). to the chosen alkylamine ( 2 eq ) was added a solution of 4 -[ 2 -( toluene - 4 - sulfonyloxy )- ethyl ]- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester in ch 3 cn ( 0 . 65 mmol / ml , 1 eq ) and the reaction was heated at 80 ° c . for about 6 hours . upon complete conversion ( as monitored by thin layer chromatography ) the mixture was cooled down to room temperature and washed with saturated nacl water solution . the organic phase was dried over na 2 so 4 and then concentrated under reduced pressure . the oil obtained was purified by sio 2 column eluting with gradient starting from 100 % dcm to dcm - nh3 ( 2n meoh solution ) 9 : 1 . to a solution of hcl 6n ( 30 eq ) was added the 4 -( 2 -( n - alkylamino )- ethyl )- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester and the reaction was stirred at room temperature for 10 minutes . the mixture was basified to ph 12 and the product was extracted with dcm . the organic phase was dried over na 2 so 4 and then concentrated under reduced pressure affording the pure product . to a cooled solution of amine ( 1 eq ) in dichloromethane an equimolar amount of an aryl or heteroaryl isocyanate was added . in the case of the amine being in the form of a hydrochloride or bis - hydrochloride salt , equimolar amounts of tea were added to free - base the amine . the mixture was left stirring at 0 ° c . for 1 - 4 hours . the p - bromophenyl ureas generally precipitated out of solution as white solids , were recovered by filtration and if necessary purified further by washing with et 2 o or by flash chromatography . the m - bromophenylureas were isolated by solvent removal under reduced pressure and purified by crystallisation from an mixture of acoet : et 2 o . to a degassed solution of aryl or heteroaryl bromide prepared following the general procedure for urea synthesis described above ( 1 eq ), the appropriate boronic acid ( 1 . 3 eq ) was added dissolved in 40 volumes ( wt / vol ) of acetonitrile / 0 . 4n aqueous na 2 co 3 ( 1 / 1 ), pd [( pph 3 )] 4 ( 10 % mol ). the solution was refluxed overnight under nitrogen either in a round - bottom flask or in a glass test tube in a buchi syncore ® apparatus . the acetonitrile phase was separated and the desired products purified over a scx or silica column . fractions containing the desired product were combined and dried under reduced pressure . to a degassed solution of bromide prepared following the general procedure for urea synthesis ( 1 eq ), the appropriate boronic acid ( 1 eq ) and na 2 co 3 ( 3 eq ) in 20 volumes ( wt / vol ) of acetonitrile / water ( 1 / 1 ), pd [( pph 3 )] 4 ( 10 % mol ) were added . the solution was irradiated with microwave using following parameters : power 200 watt ; ramp time 1 min ; hold time 20 min ; temperature 90 ° c . ; pressure 200 psi . the acetonitrile phase was separated , the solvent was removed under reduced pressure and the crude material purified using scx column ( eluting with a gradient of dcm / meoh , meoh , nh 3 / meoh ). the fractions containing the desired product were combined and dried under reduced pressure . to a degassed solution of aryl / heteroaryl bromide prepared following the general procedure ( 1 eq ), in dme / h 2 o ( 1 . 8 / 0 . 3 ), the appropriate boronic acid . 1 . 5 eq ) na 2 co 3 ( 2 eq ), pd ( oac ) 2 ( 10 % mol ) and tri - o - tolylphosphine ( 40 % mol ), were added . the solution was irradiated under microwave conditions for 20 minutes at power = 200 w . the organic phase was separated and the desired products purified using scx column and / or prep - hplc . fractions containing the desired product were combined and dried under reduced pressure . azepine ( 0 . 99 g , 10 mmol ) was dissolved in 20 ml of dcm and n - boc - piperidone ( 2 . 58 g , 13 mmol ) was added . the reaction was stirred for 1 hour and then nabh ( oac ) 3 ( 3 . 16 g , 15 mmol ) was added and the mixture stirred for further 18 hours . the mixture was extracted with hcl solution at ph2 and then the aqueous phase was basified to ph 12 and extracted with dcm . the organic phase was concentrated under reduced pressure affording the title product ( 1 . 7 g , 60 % yield ). 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ) 1 . 29 - 1 . 52 ( 1h , m ); 1 . 53 - 1 . 67 ( 8h , m ); 1 . 67 - 1 . 81 ( 2h , m ); 2 . 48 - 2 . 80 ( 7h , m ); 3 . 98 - 4 . 28 ( 2h , m ). 4 - azepan - 1 - yl - piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester ( 1 . 7 g , 6 . 1 mmol ) was dissolved in 10 ml of dcm and 10 ml of tfa was slowly added . the reaction was stirred for 1 hour and then concentrated under reduced pressure . the mixture was neutralised with naoh 10 % and extracted with dcm , affording the title compound ( 800 mg , 72 % yield ). 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ) 1 . 30 - 1 . 46 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 49 - 1 . 67 ( 9h , m ), 1 . 70 - 1 . 82 ( 2h , m ), 2 . 44 - 2 . 61 ( 3h , m ), 2 . 63 - 2 . 67 ( 4h , m ), 3 . 04 - 3 . 17 ( 2h , m ). to a cooled solution of 1 - piperidin - 4 - yl - azepane ( 0 . 80 g , 4 . 4 mmol ) in dichloromethane ( 20 ml ), 4 - bromophenylisocyanate ( 0 . 88 g , 4 . 4 mmol ) was added . the mixture was stirred at 0 ° c . until precipitation of a white solid was observed after 2 hours . the white solid was filtered and washed with et 2 o to afford 1 . 49 g of the title product ( 90 % yield ). nmr ( 400 mhz , dmso ): 1 . 19 - 1 . 39 ( 2h , m ); 1 . 43 - 1 . 58 ( 8h , m ); 1 . 61 - 1 . 63 ( 2h , m ); 2 . 52 - 2 . 65 ( 4h , m ); 2 . 65 - 2 . 82 ( 2h , m ); 4 . 03 - 4 . 19 ( 2h , m ); 7 . 36 ( 2h , d , j = 8 hz ); 7 . 42 ( 2h , d , j = 8 hz ), 8 . 57 ( 1h , s ). 4 - azepan - 1 - yl - piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid ( 4 - bromo - phenyl )- amide was weighed ( 0 . 1 g , 0 . 26 mmol ), placed in a glass test tube and dissolved in 4 ml of a degassed solution of acetonitrile / 0 . 4n aqueous na 2 co 3 ( 1 / 1 ). to this solution , 2 - chlorophenyl boronic acid ( 0 . 066 g , 0 . 42 mmol ) and pd [ p ( ph ) 3 ] 4 ( 10 % mol ) were added . the mixture was heated at 80 ° c . and shaken in a buchi syncore ® for 18 hours . the solution was diluted with acoet and the organic phase was separated , and dried under reduced pressure ; the crude was purified over a sio 2 column ( eluent : gradient from dcm to dcm / meoh 9 / 1 ). the fractions containing the product were collected and dried under reduced pressure ( 14 % yield ). [ 1 , 4 ′] bipiperidinyl - 1 ′- carboxylic acid ( 4 - bromo - phenyl )- amide was weighed ( 0 . 1 g , 0 . 28 mmol ), placed in a glass test tube and dissolved with 4 ml of a previously degassed solution of acetonitrile / 0 . 4n aqueous na 2 co 3 ( 1 / 1 ). to this solution , 2 - chlorophenyl boronic acid ( 0 . 066 g , 0 . 42 mmol ) and pd [ p ( ph ) 3 ] 4 ( 10 % mol equivalents ) were added . the mixture was heated at 80 ° c . and shaken in a buchi syncore ® for 18 hours . the solution was diluted with acoet and the organic phase was separated , and dried under reduced pressure ; the crude was purified over a sio 2 column ( eluent : gradient from dcm to dcm / meoh 9 / 1 ). the fractions containing the product were collected and dried under reduced pressure to give the title compound ( 13 % yield ). 4 - pyrrolidin - 1 - yl - piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid ( 4 - bromo - phenyl )- amide was weighed ( 0 . 1 g , 0 . 30 mmol ), placed in a glass test tube and dissolved in 4 ml of a degassed solution of acetonitrile / 0 . 4n aqueous na 2 co 3 ( 1 / 1 ). to this solution , 3 - benzamide - phenyl boronic acid ( 0 . 069 g , 0 . 42 mmol ) and pd [ p ( ph ) 3 ] 4 ( 10 % mol ) were added . the mixture was heated at 80 ° c . and shaken in a buchi syncore ® for 18 hours . the solution was diluted with acoet and the organic phase was separated , and dried under reduced pressure ; the crude was purified over a sio 2 column ( eluent : gradient from dcm to dcm / meoh 9 / 1 ). the fractions containing the product were collected and dried under reduced pressure ( 28 % yield ). 1 h - nmr ( cd3od ): 1 . 30 - 1 . 48 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 65 - 1 . 79 ( 4h , m ), 1 . 85 - 2 . 01 ( 1h , m ), 2 . 49 - 2 . 66 ( 4h , m ), 2 . 76 - 2 . 92 ( 2h , m ), 4 . 06 - 4 . 21 ( 2h , m ), 7 . 36 - 7 . 47 ( 3h , m ), 7 . 49 - 7 . 56 ( 2h , m ), 7 . 68 - 7 . 75 ( 1h , m ), 8 . 03 ( 1h , s ). to a suspension of n - boc - isonipecotic acid ( 3 . 0 g , 13 . 1 mmol ) and tbtu ( 4 . 2 g , 13 . 1 mmol ) in 60 ml of ch 3 cn , piperidine ( 1 . 67 g , 19 . 6 mmol ) was added . the resulting solution was stirred at 85 ° c . for 6 hours . the reaction mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and then dissolved in dcm and washed twice with saturated aqueous na 2 co 3 solution . solvent removal gave 3 . 2 g of title compound that was used without further purification in the next step . 3 . 2 g ( 10 . 8 mmol ) of 4 -( piperidine - 1 - carbonyl )- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester were dissolved in 25 ml of 6n hcl solution at 0 ° c . after 10 minutes tlc showed complete conversion of the starting material , the mixture was cooled at 0 ° c ., basified to ph 10 with naoh ( pellets ) and extracted with acoet . the organic phase concentrated under reduced pressure gave 1 . 9 g of title compound ( 91 % yield ). nmr ( 400 mhz , dmso ): 1 . 43 - 1 . 59 ( 4h , m ), 1 . 60 - 1 . 75 ( 8h , m ), 2 . 53 - 2 . 71 ( 3h , m ), 3 . 06 - 3 . 20 ( 2h , m ), 3 . 36 - 3 . 47 ( 2h , m ), 3 . 50 - 3 . 61 ( 2h , m ). 1 . 9 g ( 9 . 8 mmol ) of piperidin - 4 - yl - piperidin - 1 - yl - methanone were added ( at 0 ° c .) to a suspension of 0 . 74 g ( 17 . 7 mmol ) of lialh 4 in anhydrous thf . after stirring for 30 minutes the reaction was heated at reflux for 1 hour when tlc analysis showed complete conversion of the starting amide . the reaction was cooled to 0 ° c . and lialh 4 was quenched with 0 . 7 ml of h 2 o and 2 . 8 ml of naoh ( 10 % aqueous solution ). the inorganic salts were filtered and the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure , affording 1 . 2 g of the title compound , with nmr purity about 80 %, that was used for the following step . nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ): 0 . 99 - 1 . 23 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 30 - 1 . 45 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 46 - 1 . 67 ( 4h , m ), 1 . 67 - 1 . 77 ( 2h , m ), 2 . 15 - 2 . 37 ( 4h , m ), 2 . 52 - 2 . 63 ( 1h , m ), 3 . 02 - 3 . 11 ( 1h , m ). to a cooled solution of 4 - piperidin - 1 - ylmethyl - piperidine ( 1 . 2 g , 80 % purity , 6 . 3 mmol ) in dichloromethane ( 20 ml ) p - bromophenylisocyanate ( 1 . 24 g , 6 . 3 mmol ) was added and the mixture stirred at 0 ° c . until a white solid precipitated out of solution after 2 hours . the white solid was filtered off and washed with et 2 o to give 1 . 2 g of pure title compound ( 50 % yield ). nmr ( 400 mhz , dmso ): 0 . 81 - 1 . 07 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 29 - 1 . 39 ( 2h , m ), 1 . 40 - 1 . 50 ( 4h , m ), 1 . 57 - 1 . 73 ( 3h , m ), 1 . 95 - 2 . 08 ( 2h , m ), 2 . 15 - 2 . 35 ( 4h , m ), 2 . 66 - 2 . 77 ( 2h , m ), 4 . 00 - 4 . 10 ( 2h , m ), 7 . 35 ( 2h , d , j = 8 . 8 hz ), 7 . 41 ( 2h , d , j = 8 . 8 hz ), 8 . 54 ( 1h , s ). to a degassed solution of 4 - piperidin - 1 - ylmethyl - piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid ( 4 - bromo - phenyl )- amide ( 100 mg , 0 . 26 mmol ) in dme / h 2 o ( 1 . 8 ml / 0 . 3 ml ) 2 - fluorophenyl boronic acid ( 55 mg , 0 . 39 mmol ), na 2 co 3 ( 55 mg , 0 . 52 mmol ), pd ( oac ) 2 ( 6 mg , 10 % mol ) and tri - o - tolylphosphine ( 34 mg , 20 % mol ), were added . the solution was irradiated under microwave conditions for 20 minutes with power 200 w . the organic phase was then diluted with 1 ml of acoet , separated and loaded on a scx column and eluted with 10 ml of meoh to remove triphenylphosphinoxide and then with nh3 ( 2n meoh solution ) to recover the pure product ( 55 mg , 56 % yield ). 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , d6 - dmso ): 0 . 92 - 1 . 09 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 28 - 1 . 40 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 41 - 1 . 56 ( m , 4h ), 1 . 61 - 1 . 79 ( m , 3h ), 2 . 01 - 2 . 11 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 12 - 2 . 37 ( m , 4h ), 2 . 69 - 2 . 84 ( m , 2h ), 4 . 00 - 4 . 19 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 22 - 7 . 29 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 31 - 7 . 36 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 38 - 7 . 44 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 43 - 7 . 56 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 51 - 7 . 59 ( m , 2h ), 8 . 57 ( s , 1h ). to 2 . 5 ml of neat piperidine ( 26 mmol ) a solution of 4 . 9 g of 4 -[ 2 -( toluene - 4 - sulfonyloxy )- ethyl ]- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester in 20 ml of ch 3 cn was added and the reaction was heated at 80 ° c . for about 6 hours . when tlc showed complete conversion the mixture was cooled down to room temperature and washed with 20 ml of saturated nacl water solution . the organic phase was dried over na 2 so 4 and then concentrated under reduced pressure . the oil obtained was purified by sio 2 column eluting with gradient starting from 100 % dcm to dcm - nh3 ( 2n meoh solution ) 9 - 1 , affording 1 . 8 g of pure product ( yield 46 %). 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ): 1 . 08 - 1 . 14 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 38 - 1 . 46 ( m , 15h ), 1 . 52 - 1 . 67 ( m , 7h ), 2 . 26 - 2 . 42 ( m , 6h ), 2 . 61 - 2 . 74 ( m , 2h ), 3 . 91 - 4 . 15 ( m , 2h ). to 44 ml of a solution of 6n hcl 4 -( 2 - piperidin - 1 - yl - ethyl )- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester was added and the reaction was stirred at room temperature for 10 minutes . the mixture was basified to ph 12 and the product was extracted with 20 ml of dcm . the organic phase was dried over na 2 so 4 and then concentrated under reduced pressure affording 440 mg of the pure product ( yield 37 %). to a cooled solution of 4 -( 2 - piperidin - 1 - yl - ethyl )- piperidine ( 440 mg , 2 . 2 mmol ) in dichloromethane ( 10 ml ) p - bromophenylisocyanate ( 442 mg , 2 . 2 mmol ) was added and the mixture stirred at 0 ° c . for 2 hours . the mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and the residue was washed with et 2 o . the solid obtained was filtered giving 750 mg of pure product ( yield 85 %). to a degassed solution of 4 -( 2 - piperidin - 1 - yl - ethyl )- piperidine - 1 - carboxylic acid ( 4 - bromo - phenyl )- amide ( 100 mg , 0 . 25 mmol ) in dme / h 2 o ( 1 . 8 ml / 0 . 3 ml ) 2 - fluorophenyl boronic acid ( 55 mg , 0 . 39 mmol ), na 2 co 3 ( 55 mg , 0 . 52 mmol ), pd ( oac ) 2 ( 6 mg , 10 % mol ) and tri - o - tolylphosphine ( 34 mg , 20 % mol ), were added . the solution was irradiated under microwave conditions for 20 minutes with power 200 w . the organic phase was diluted with 1 ml of acoet and separated . the organic phase was loaded on scx column and eluted with 10 ml of meoh to remove triphenylphosphine oxide and then with nh3 ( 2n meoh solution ) to recover the pure product ( 25 mg , 25 % yield ). 1 h - nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl3 ): 0 . 97 - 1 . 10 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 27 - 1 . 32 ( m , 3h ), 1 . 43 - 1 . 49 ( m , 4h ), 1 . 58 - 1 . 70 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 18 - 2 . 37 ( m , 4h ), 2 . 67 - 2 . 78 ( m , 2h ), 4 . 03 - 4 . 11 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 19 - 7 . 28 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 29 - 7 . 36 ( m , 1h ), 7 . 36 - 7 . 41 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 43 - 7 . 49 9m , 1h ), 7 . 51 - 7 . 56 ( m , 2h ), 8 . 55 ( s , 1h ). table 1 — examples 6 - 20 table 1 shows a selection of the compounds synthesised , which were prepared according to the method indicated in the last column of the table and discussed in detail in the experimental procedures with the synthesis of examples 1 - 5 . when the compound is indicated as the hcl salt , the salt was formed by dissolution of the free base in methanol and addition of 1 eq 1m hcl in ether followed by evaporation of the solvents . when the compound is indicated as hcooh ( formic acid ) salt , the compound was purified by preparative hplc . cloning of alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and generation of stable recombinant alpha7 nachr expressing cell lines full length cdnas encoding the alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor were cloned from a rat brain cdna library using standard molecular biology techniques . rat gh4c1 cells were then transfected with the rat receptor , cloned and analyzed for functional alpha7 nicotinic receptor expression employing a flipr assay to measure changes in intracellular calcium concentrations . cell clones showing the highest calcium - mediated fluorescence signals upon agonist ( nicotine ) application were further subcloned and subsequently stained with texas red - labelled α - bungarotoxin ( bgtx ) to analyse the level and homogeneity of alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor expression using confocal microscopy . three cell lines were then expanded and one characterised pharmacologically ( see table 2 below ) prior to its subsequent use for compound screening . a robust functional flipr assay ( z ′= 0 . 68 ) employing the stable recombinant gh4c1 cell line was developed to screen the alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor . the flipr system allows the measurements of real time ca 2 + - concentration changes in living cells using a ca 2 + sensitive fluorescence dye ( such as fluo4 ). this instrument enables the screening for agonists and antagonists for alpha 7 nachr channels stably expressed in gh4c1 cells . gh4c1 cells stably transfected with rat - alphα7 - nachr ( see above ) were used . these cells are poorly adherent and therefore pretreatment of flasks and plates with poly - d - lysine was carried out . cells are grown in 150 cm 2 t - flasks , filled with 30 ml of medium at 37 ° c . and 5 % co 2 . ec 50 and ic 50 values were calculated using the idbs xlfit4 . 1 software package employing a sigmoidal concentration - response ( variable slope ) equation : the functional flipr assay was validated with the alpha7 nachr agonists nicotine , cytisine , dmpp , epibatidine , choline and acetylcholine . concentration - response curves were obtained in the concentration range from 0 . 001 to 30 microm . the resulting ec 50 values are listed in table 2 and the obtained rank order of agonists is in agreement with published data ( quik et al ., 1997 )( 22 ). the assay was further validated with the specific alpha7 nachr antagonist mla ( methyllycaconitine ), which was used in the concentration range between 1 microm to 0 . 01 nm , together with a competing nicotine concentration of 10 microm . the ic 50 value was calculated as 1 . 31 ± 0 . 43 nm in nine independent experiments . functional flipr assays were developed in order to test the selectivity of compounds against the alpha1 ( muscular ) and alpha3 ( ganglionic ) nach receptors and the structurally related 5 - ht3 receptor . for determination of activity at alpha1 receptors natively expressed in the rhabdomyosarcoma derived te 671 cell line an assay employing membrane potential sensitive dyes was used , whereas alpha3 selectivity was determined by a calcium - monitoring assays using the native sh - sy5y cell line . in order to test selectivity against the 5 - ht3 receptor , a recombinant cell line was constructed expressing the human 5 - ht3a receptor in hek 293 cells and a calcium - monitoring flipr assay employed . the compounds were tested using the functional flipr primary screening assay employing the stable recombinant gh4c1 cell line expressing the alpha7 nachr . hits identified were validated further by generation of concentration - response curves . the potency of compounds from examples 1 - 20 as measured in the functional flipr screening assay was found to range between 10 nm and 30 microm , with the majority showing a potency ranging between 10 nm and 10 microm . 1 . prendergast , m . a ., harris , b . r ., mayer , s ., holley , r . c ., pauly , j . r ., littleton , j . m . ( 2001 ) nicotine exposure reduces n - methyl - d - aspartate toxicity in the hippocampus : relation to distribution of the alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit . med . sci . monit . 7 , 1153 - 1160 . 2 . gamido , r ., mattson , m . p ., hennig , b ., toborek , m . ( 2001 ) nicotine protects against arachidonic - acid - induced caspase activation , cytochrome c release and apoptosis of cultured spinal cord neurons . j . neurochem . 76 , 1395 - 1403 . 3 . semba , j ., miyoshi , r ., kito , s . ( 1996 ) nicotine protects against the dexamethasone potentiation of kainic acid - induced neurotoxicity in cultured hippocampal neurons . brain res . 735 , 335 - 338 . 4 . shimohama , s ., akaike , a ., kimura , j . ( 1996 ) nicotine - induced protection against glutamate cytotoxicity . nicotinic cholinergic receptor - mediated inhibition of nitric oxide formation . ann . n . y . acad . sci . 777 , 356 - 361 . 5 . akaike , a ., tamura , y ., yokota , t ., shimohama , s ., kimura , j . ( 1994 ) nicotine - induced protection of cultured cortical neurons against n - methyl - d - aspartate receptor - mediated glutamate cytotoxicity . brain res . 644 , 181 - 187 . 6 . yamashita , h ., nakamura , s . ( 1996 ) nicotine rescues pc12 cells from death induced by nerve growth factor deprivation . neurosci . lett . 213 , 145 - 147 . 7 . shimohama , s ., greenwald , d . l ., shafron , d . h ., akaika , a ., maeda , t ., kaneko , s ., kimura , j ., simpkins , c . e ., day , a . l ., meyer , e . m . ( 1998 ) nicotinic alpha 7 receptors protect against glutamate neurotoxicity and neuronal ischemic damage . brain res . 779 , 359 - 363 . 8 . socci , d . j ., arendash , g . w . ( 1996 ) chronic nicotine treatment prevents neuronal loss in neocortex resulting from nucleus basalis lesions in young adult and aged rats . mol . chem . neuropathol . 27 , 285 - 305 . 9 . rusted , j . m ., newhouse , p . a ., levin , e . d . ( 2000 ) nicotinic treatment for degenerative neuropsychiatric disorders such as alzheimer &# 39 ; s disease and parkinson &# 39 ; s disease . behav . brain res . 113 , 121 - 129 . 10 . kihara , t ., shimohama , s ., sawada , h ., kimura , j ., kume , t ., kochiyama , h ., maeda , t ., akaike , a . ( 1997 ) nicotinic receptor stimulation protects neurons against beta - amyloid toxicity . ann . neurol . 42 , 159 - 163 11 . kihara , t ., shimohama , s ., sawada , h ., honda , k ., nakamizo , t ., shibasaki , h ., kume , t ., akaike , a . ( 2001 ) alpha 7 nicotinic receptor transduces signals to phosphatidylinositol 3 - kinase to block a beta - amyloid - induced neurotoxicity . j . biol . chem . 276 , 13541 - 13546 . 12 . kelton , m . c ., kahn , h . j ., conrath , c . l ., newhouse , p . a . ( 2000 ) the effects of nicotine on parkinson &# 39 ; s disease . brain cogn 43 , 274 - 282 . 13 . kem , w . r . ( 2000 ) the brain alpha 7 nicotinic receptor may be an important therapeutic target for the treatment of alzheimer &# 39 ; s disease : studies with dmxba ( gts - 21 ). behav . brain res . 113 , 169 - 181 . 14 . dajas - bailador , f . a ., lima , p . a ., wonnacott , s . ( 2000 ) the alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtype mediates nicotine protection against nmda excitotoxicity in primary hippocampal cultures through a ca ( 2 +) dependent mechanism . neuropharmacology 39 , 2799 - 2807 . 15 . strahlendorf , j . c ., acosta , s ., miles , r ., strahlendorf , h . k . ( 2001 ) choline blocks ampa - induced dark cell degeneration of purkinje neurons : potential role of the alpha7 nicotinic receptor . brain res . 901 , 71 - 78 . 16 . jonnala , r . r ., terry , a . v ., jr ., buccafusco , j . j . ( 2002 ) nicotine increases the expression of high affinity nerve growth factor receptors in both in vitro and in vivo . life sci . 70 , 1543 - 1554 . 17 . bencherif , m ., bane , a . j ., miller , c . h ., dull , g . m ., gatto , g . j . ( 2000 ) tc - 2559 : a novel orally active ligand selective at neuronal acetylcholine receptors . eur . j . pharmacol . 409 , 45 - 55 . ref type : journal 18 . donnelly - roberts , d . l ., xue , i . c ., arneric , s . p ., sullivan , j . p . ( 1996 ) in vitro neuroprotective properties of the novel cholinergic channel activator ( chca ), abt - 418 . brain res . 719 , 36 - 44 . 19 . meyer , e . m ., tay , e . t ., zoltewicz , j . a ., meyers , c ., king , m . a ., papke , r . l ., de fiebre , c . m . ( 1998 ) neuroprotective and memory - related actions of novel alpha - 7 nicotinic agents with different mixed agonist / antagonist properties . j . pharmacol . exp . ther . 284 , 1026 - 1032 . 20 . stevens , t . r ., krueger , s . k ., fizsimonds , r . m . and picciotto , m . r . ( 2003 ) neuroprotection by nicotine in mouse primary cortical cultures involves activation of calcineurin and l - type calcium channel inactivation . j . neuroscience 23 , 10093 - 10099 . 21 . wang h , yu m , ochani m , amelia c a , tanovic m , susarla s , li j h , wang h , yang h , ulloa l , al - abed y , czura c j , tracey k j ( 2003 ) nicotinic acetylcholine receptor alpha7 subunit is an essential regulator of inflammation . nature 421 : 384 - 388 . 22 . quik m , philie j . and choremis j . ( 1997 ). modulation of alpha7 nicotinic receptor - mediated calcium influx by nicotinic agonists . mol . pharmacol ., 51 , 499 - 506 . | 0 |
the present invention relates to an enhancement to messaging handling capabilities available in existing messaging systems . this is accomplished by incorporating an additional application module that alerts and allows a user to quickly view notifications of new messages for which a notification has not been cleared . this application module , hereinafter referred to as “ quick view ”, is preferably provided to the user by means of a graphical user interface ( gui ). this gui can be presented on any number of suitable devices such as , but not limited to a desktop or laptop computer ; a portable electronic device such as 3com &# 39 ; s palm ™ series or research in motion &# 39 ; s blackberry ™ series ; any other device operating on an operating system such as windowsce ™, palmos ™ or java . although the preferred embodiment employs a graphical user interface , it is equally possible to use the present invention with any of the variety of text user interfaces available such as those written in wireless markup language ( wml ) on a wireless access protocol ( wap ) compliant telephone . it is also possible to use the present invention with known telephony user interfaces . the quick view application module and the main messaging system , preferably a unified messaging system , can share the same messaging data . the enhanced functionality of viewing only those new messages for which a notification has not been cleared empowers the user to manage such messages quickly and efficiently . this may be achieved in a user friendly manner in which a given message notification can be opened , cleared from view or the sender can be called for a response by using , for example , standard graphical manipulation on a computer screen by means of point - and - click operations on a variety of menu choices and buttons . fig1 shows a basic view of an embodiment of the quick view notification application . the figure illustrates the main notification viewer window , along with a menu bar on the top and a row of functionality buttons on the bottom . the main notification viewer lists only notifications for messages that are new and for which a notification has not been cleared . within the main notification viewer window , a list of sample message notifications 1 is displayed . this list indicates the type of message for which a notification is being provided , along with a corresponding icon . the highlighted sample message in fig1 is one that has been selected b y the user for potential manipulation using any one of the features indicated on functionality buttons 2 , 3 , 5 , 7 , 8 , and 9 . the selection of one of these buttons may be performed by clicking on the button with a computer mouse pointer , selecting it with a series of keystrokes on a keyboard , or by means of any other similar selection device . selecting “ clear item ” button 2 will clear a selected message notification item from the quick view application . this feature permits the user to clear the notification of the selected message without deleting the message itself from the unified messaging system . selecting “ call sender ” button 3 will enable the user to rapidly respond to a message notification . this permits the user to respond immediately to the sender of the selected message without the necessity of reading , hearing or seeing the entire contents of the message . selecting “ open ” button 5 enables the user to quickly play back the selected message , in the case of a voice or video message , or to display the selected message , in the case of a text , facsimile or electronic mail message . selecting “ open callpilot ” button 7 will launch the full functionality of the unified messaging application provided with the unified messaging system . this button can generally be referred to as an “ open messaging application ” button , and the button may be customized so as to reflect the name of the particular application being employed . in this case , reference is made to an embodiment wherein pressing this button will open the callpilot unified messaging application mentioned earlier . by way of this button , the user is given not only access to the selected message for which the notification is given , but also to all of the added features that are normally associated with the unified messaging application . selecting “ clear all ” button 8 will clear the entire list of message notifications . selecting “ print ” button 9 permits the user to print on paper a facsimile or electronic mail message without having to open the message itself or change the status of the message or its notification . fig2 illustrates a comprehensive view of a quick view application window that is similar to fig1 , except that all of the menu options available by way of the menu bar choices are shown . “ option ” menu 4 enables the user to select which types of messages are to be included in the notification list . selecting a box that corresponds with one of the listed menu items will instruct the quick view application to include that type of message in the message notification window . “ file ” menu 6 enables the user to exit the quick view application by selecting the “ close ” menu option , as illustrated in fig2 . in an embodiment of the present invention , the quick view application is integrated with a unified messaging application from which the quick view application may be launched . this may be achieved , for example , by selecting an option from a pull - down menu within the unified messaging application entitled “ open quick view ”. this selection will launch the quick view notification application in the foreground , with the unified messaging application continuing to function in the background . in another embodiment of the present invention , the quick view application may be integrated within the unified messaging application itself and designated as a particular view style . this particular view style would be seamlessly integrated within the messaging application . this would be similar to the availability of ‘ normal ’ and ‘ page layout ’ view styles in word processing applications . as such , the user would be able to toggle between the quick view and the standard view within the messaging application . table 1 below provides sample messages and their attributes in order to more clearly explain how the two integrated embodiments of the present invention may determine which message notifications to display in the quick view list . of the messages listed in table 1 , only messages 3 and 4 would be presented in the quick view window since both are new and neither has had its notification cleared . message 1 has been read and its notification has been cleared ; therefore , it would show up in a message list as read , but would not appear in the quick view application . message 2 has not been read , but its notification has been cleared . ( this may be accomplished by setting a notification bit within the system to a value of “ 1 ”.) message 2 would show up in a message list as new , but would not appear in the quick view application . as soon as the user clears the notification for either of messages 3 or 4 , the notification bit would be turned on ( i . e . set to a value of 1 ), and the message would no longer appear in the list in the quick view application window . in an alternate embodiment , a user could activate the quick view application as a standalone software notification application , independent of a unified messaging application . in this alternate embodiment , the quick view application is involved in polling the unified messaging system for new messages . table 2 provides sample messages and their attributes in order to more clearly explain how this standalone embodiment of the present invention may determine which message notifications to display in the quick view list . table 2 is somewhat similar to table 1 . the standalone implementation of the quick view application maintains a list of new messages whose notification has not been cleared by assigning a quick view message identification to them . in addition , the quick view application maintains a variable containing the date , time and sequence of each message . therefore , if the notification for message 3 were to be cleared , that notification would be removed from the quick view message identification list . the quick view application would periodically poll or check the unified messaging system , or other systems , to see if any new messages have arrived since the last notified messaging date . also , the quick view application would verify that messages in its quick view message identification list had not been deleted or read on the unified messaging system . protocols such as internet message access protocol ( imap ) are well known in the art and can be used to poll the unified messaging system for new messages , as well as to ascertain changes to the status of existing messages . a further embodiment is possible in the case of the quick view application in another standalone environment . in this other environment , one or more messaging systems notify the quick view application of the presence of new messages . this “ push ”- type technology is in contrast to the “ pull ”- type technology exemplified by the polling example in the previous standalone embodiment . table 3 provides sample messages and their attributes in order to more clearly explain how this other standalone embodiment of the present invention may determine which message notifications to display in the quick view list . table 3 shows a message attribute structure somewhat similar to that of the polling case . however , since it is the messaging systems that are notifying the quick view application of new messages as they arrive , as well as removals of notifications as messages are read or deleted , the quick view application no longer needs to store the date / time / sequence of the last notified message . the quick view application merely adds message identifications as it is notified , since any “ new ” message indication in this embodiment , regardless of date / time , needs to be added to the list . as in previous embodiments , each notification is deleted from the quick view when it is cleared by the user . the relative advantages of the integrated and standalone implementations are dependent on the particular environment in which they will be deployed and will take into account factors such as software complexity , vendor interworking , etc . the standalone quick view application may have an advantage in cases wherein a plurality of distinct and heterogeneous messaging systems need to be monitored . currently , definitions outlining modifications to existing protocols such as imap are complete and are being formalized by standards groups to permit “ push ” status notifications . the standalone embodiments of the quick view application would be ideally suited for use with these modified protocols . as has been mentioned previously , although a graphical view of message notifications is preferred , it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that there would also be advantage in providing this kind of functionality where only an auditory interface is available , e . g . a telephone , or other speech - activated access to messages . in this case , the graphical list and functions would be replaced by an auditory list and dtmf - activated or spoken commands , both technologies being well known . while not as quickly used as a graphical display , it may be the most advantageous solution to mobile users who do not have graphical technology at their disposal . | 7 |
an orthosis assembly 10 is used in connection with an ankle joint , and the assembly includes a leg support shell 12 that fits around rear portions of a lower leg of a wearer , and it can be strapped in place in a normal manner . a foot shell 14 is used for supporting the foot of a wearer and moves about an ankle joint of the wearer . shell sections 12 and 14 are joined together with a flexure assembly 16 on each side of the shells , forming an ankle joint . the flexure assembly 16 has right and left forms , and the right hand assembly is shown in detail . the left side is a mirror image of the right side . the flexure assembly 16 made to provide a biasing force for positioning the foot shell 14 relative to the lower leg shell section 12 , and to provide a certain amount of bias in an upward direction so that there is a “ toe lift ” action or assist by the flexure assembly 16 . the flexure assembly , as can be seen , includes a flexure unit or column 20 which is made of a suitable elastomeric material , such as polyurethane material . the flexure unit can be made in the manner shown in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 826 , 304 . the flexure unit or column 20 has a center elastomeric column portion 22 that is in turn extends between end or fastening portions 24 ( see fig5 ). the lower end of the flexure unit or column 20 as shown is connected to the foot shell 14 with a non - adjustable connection 15 such as a rivet or screw , as is done in prior art . the upper end portion 24 is mounted as shown , in an angularly adjustable flexure unit mounting assembly 26 , that permits pivoting the end portions 24 about a central axis of a bore 29 in each end portion 24 that is used for mounting the flexures . the bores 29 may have bushings in the bores for strength . the bores 29 fit on posts 34 on the base plates 28 . each of the adjustable mounting assemblies 26 includes a base plate 28 that is on the interior of an inwardly opening recess 27 formed by walls 27 a , b and c that protrude on the sides of shell section 12 . the base plates are held securely on shell section 12 . the base plates 28 have upper end lugs 33 that fit into a slot in the top wall 27 a forming part of recess 27 to prevent rotation of the base plate 28 relative to the shell post 12 . other types of fasteners can be used to insure the base plate 28 will not move relative to the shell . the end portion 24 of each flexure unit or column 20 is retained on a post 34 on the base plate 28 within an overlying adjustable housing 30 . the housing 30 captures and supports the respective end portion 24 of a flexure unit . the housing 30 has a wall 31 ( fig6 and 7 ) at a side thereof which is parallel to the base plate 28 , and adjacent wall 27 b forming a recess 27 on shell post 12 . ( see fig4 ) a bore 50 fits over the post 34 mounted on the respective base plate for pivotally mounting the housing 30 . a threaded screw 36 is threaded into a bore in the post 34 and has a head that bears on wall 27 b for retaining the cover member 30 in position on the respective post 34 . the base plate 28 and post 34 is integral with the base plate and the base plate is secured to wall 27 b forming part of recess 27 with the screw 36 as well . the head of the screw clamps the wall 27 b against the end of post 34 . the housing 30 traps the associated end portion 24 of the flexure unit 20 for pivotal movement about the post 34 . the screw 36 and lug 33 serve to mount the base 28 securely . an integral edge wall 38 curves around the end of the housing 30 as seen in fig5 and wall 38 joins reaction walls 40 at the first and rear sides of the housing 30 that restrict movement of the flexure end 24 relative to the housing . walls 38 and 40 are perpendicular to wall 31 and the end portion 24 is confined so the end of the flexure moves with the housing . the respective end portion 24 of the flexure unit held in the respective housing 30 will pivot on post 34 only by pivoting the housing 30 . the pivoting of the housing 30 about its mounting post 34 is controlled with an adjustment device 42 that in the form shown , comprises a threaded pinion or screw 44 supported in a pinion retainer frame 46 on the upper portion of the base plate 28 . the pinion is positioned to engage rack teeth or pinion gear teeth 48 on the upper periphery of wall 38 of housing 30 , when housing 30 is in place on pin 34 . as shown in fig5 and 6 , the pinion 44 has screw threads that engage the teeth 48 , and when the pinion 44 is rotated , the housing 30 will be caused to pivot about the axis of post 34 , and change the angular orientation of the end portion 24 of the flexure unit 20 held by that housing . the thread lead angle of the pinion 44 is such that the housing 30 is held in position , because loads the housing 30 cannot drive the pinion 44 in reverse . the pinion 44 has a drive head 44 h accessible through an opening 27 d in a rear wall 27 c of the recess 27 . again , the housing 30 has side or edge walls 40 that engage and trap edges of the end portions 24 of the flexure unit 20 in position . the end portion 24 of the flexure unit 20 is changed in mounting angle when the housing 30 is adjusted with the pinion and pinion gear . in fig7 the gear teeth 48 are shown as well as the interior of the housing 30 . in fig8 a perspective view of a base plate 28 is shown , in its preferred form . as can be seen , the post 34 protrudes from the base plate 28 at right angles . it can be seen that the pinion housing 46 has end walls 46 a with recesses 46 b that will receive the center rotatable shaft portion of the pinion 44 . the threads of the pinion fit inside the housing 46 . the relationship between recesses 46 b and the post 34 can be maintained so that the gear teeth 48 of the housing 30 are engaged by the threads on the pinion when post 34 is in the bore 50 . in order to adjust the toe lift or assist force , the housings 30 on each side of the orthosis can be pivoted about the axis of the posts 34 on the respective base plate 28 , by rotating the pinions . as shown in fig1 the bottom of foot shell 14 has a lift angle 70 at rest , which is the toe lift , and that angle can be changed by moving the housings 30 on each side of the orthosis . the mounting of the base plates 28 and housings 30 is done so that the axis of pivoting of the center portions of the flexure units 20 is substantially aligned with the axis of movement of the ankle of a wearer . the ankle axis can actually shift slightly as the foot as moved , and by proper adjustment the center portions 22 of the flexures 20 can be aligned appropriately . the adjustable mounting housing 30 is preferably on only one of the ends of the flexure units 20 , as shown , but if desired , both ends of each flexure can be adjustably mounted for obtaining adjustable toe lift as shown schematically in fig9 where a lower angle adjustment device 72 is illustrated . the lower adjustment device operates as described . the inner surfaces of the base plates can be suitably padded to provide comfort . the base plates 28 , as shown in fig8 also have stop walls 64 along the edges at the ends of the base plate opposite from the pinion housing 46 , to limit the amount of pivotal movement of the mounting housings 30 so that they do not move excessively . the edges of the walls 40 of the mounting housing 30 can be flared and radiused to avoid unnecessary wear on the flexure units . the amount of toe lift can be easily adjusted to accommodate individual users . again , mounting housings 30 are used on the opposite sides of one or both of the flexure shells , and certain parts will have to be right and left hand orientation , or in other words mirror images of each other . the base plates 28 and housings 30 can be molded , cast metal , or machined as desired . the material used for the flexure units 20 is not critical , as long as the material is elastomeric , and flexible , to permit adequate hinging movement for the orthosis . the adjustment devices can be on the exterior of the shells , if desired . although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments , workers skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . | 0 |
fig1 is a block circuit diagram of a digital circuit for forming the difference of sequential periods of rotation , namely the above referred - to value δ ( δt ) for defining the smoothness of operation of an internal combustion engine . the circuit also provides the correct algebraic sign . the above cited formula for the smoothness value δ ( δt ) may be resolved to obtain the following formula : δ ( δt ) = t 1 - 2t 1 + 1 + t i + 2 . t i , t 1 + 1 and t i + 2 are the time periods of three sequential crankshaft revolutions . using this equation , one needs only three especially configured counters 1 , 2 and 3 and , after the completion of each crankshaft revolution , the content of the last counter 3 directly represents the desired result of engine smoothness δ ( δt ). in particular , the first counter is an up - counter which is provided with a relatively high frequency f 1 , in the general region of 1 - 2 megahertz . this same frequency f 1 is provided as a clock frequency to the last counter 3 which is also an up - counter . a frequency f 2 equal to twice the first counter frequency f 1 is provided to the intermediate counter 2 which is embodied as a down - counter only . the two required frequencies f 1 and f 2 are generated by using a system clock frequency having the frequency 2 f 1 which is divided in a known frequency divider circuit 4 in the ratio 2 : 1 and the output of this frequency divider circuit 4 is connected to the counting inputs of counters 1 and 3 . the various input and output lines from the counters are so connected that , at any particular point in time , the content of counter 1 may be transferred to counter 2 and , similarly , the content of counter 2 may be transferred to counter 3 . in other words , at the end of each crankshaft revolution the content of the up - counter 1 is transferred in parallel as the initial content of the down - counter 2 . in similar manner , the content of the down - counter 2 is transferred in parallel as the initial counting value of the up - counter 3 . thus , only the first up - counter 1 starts each interval with the value zero . the timing of the counting start and the transfer of contents is controlled by an rpm synchronous signal , obtained , for example at the top dead piston center . such a signal may be derived , for example , by the inductive cooperation of a crankshaft marker 5 affixed to the vibration damper 6 and a pulse generator and shaper 17 . thus , such a circuit , in which only the intermediate down - counter 2 gets the double counting frequency , and employing data transfer , causes the output count of the last counter 3 to be exactly equal to the right hand term of the last - mentioned equation in which this term is equal to the smoothness value δ ( δt ). it is a particular advantage of such a circuit that a very small number of bits in each counter is sufficient , because , in general , the differences in r . p . m . or period of any three sequential crankshaft revolutions are probably not very great . on the other hand , however , the counter frequency must be made very high so as to obtain a sufficiently precise resolution . if the individual counters 1 , 2 and 3 were so embodied that they had to fully store and show the counted numbers obtained during very low r . p . m ., they would have to have extremely high counting capabilities , of up to or more than 16 bits . however , even at very high counter frequencies , it is only the differences of the counters that are of interest and not their absolute value , since by forming the difference , these values would become relatively small again . thus , the capacities of each counter 1 , 2 and 3 may be quite low ; for example , to obtain a resolution of 1 microsecond one needs a counter size of only 8 - 9 bits per counter which includes the algebraic sign of the smoothness value δ ( δt ). of course , one has to accept the fact that , in the case when fairly high counter frequencies are used , each counter will overflow , possibly several times . but this is of no consequence for the correct operation , provided that the capacity of each counter is sufficient to store the maximum value of any prevailing magnitude of smoothness δ ( δ ). thus , even when very high counter frequencies are used , it is possible to get by with 8 - 9 bits per counter , i . e ., a total of 27 counting stages . the algebraic sign of δ ( δt ) is obtained from the most significant bit ( msb ) of the last counter 3 . fig2 illustrates a second exemplary embodiment of the invention . this embodiment is derived from the consideration that , if one looks at the down - counter 2 in the first exemplary embodiment more closely , one sees that its lowest counting stage , i . e ., that stage which is coupled immediately to the counter frequency 2f 1 , actually only always shows that value , after predetermined periods of time , which it receives in parallel from counter 1 at the start . and , hence , this lowest stage need not even be triggered by the frequency 2f 1 but one may proceed as shown in the modification of fig2 and control the second lowest counting stage of counter 2 directly , but at the frequency f 1 . in this manner , one can dispense with the frequency divider circuit 4 shown in fig1 . the lowest counting stage of the down - counter 2 , represented in the second embodiment of fig2 as the down - counter 2 &# 39 ;, need then only perform the function of a storage flip - flop . thus , the system shown in fig2 may be driven at a single frequency f 2 and , by increasing the frequency f 1 appropriately , one can also enhance the power of resolution . as is generally done in digital technology , the algebraic sign of the result may be determined from the value of the msb . using the circuit of fig1 or 2 , the invention further provides a control system for the engine , shown in fig3 which is so embodied that the derived value of the smoothness is used to determine the lean - running limit of the internal combustion engine . the circuit further performs a comparison of nominal command values with the actual value and finally performs an operational control of the engine in the sense that , at each operating condition , it engages the fuel supply system . the circuit of fig3 may thus be used as a smooth - running limit controller which generates a control signal that can be processed by any known fuel control system . as has been explained above , the circuits in fig1 and 2 are able to provide a measure of the absolute smoothness of the rotation of the internal combustion engine . in order to use this value for engine control , these measured values of δ ( δt ) must be compared continuously with a set - point value and a correction datum must be provided when the comparison indicates that the set point value is exceeded . however , it is also clear that this set point value cannot be a constant provided in advance , because the engine smoothness is necessarily different at different engine speeds so that the set - point values may also be changed appropriately . the foregoing observation is easily understood when considering that , at low rpm ( large period ), the power strokes at the crankshaft occur at greater time intervals , so that , for this reason alone , at low rpm , one would have to accept a greater set point value , i . e ., one would have to accept an increased degree of engine roughness . fig4 is a diagram showing the dependence of the set point value of engine roughness as a function of the period . it may be seen that this set point value depends on rpm n as a function of 1 / n 3 . the improvement of the invention illustrated in fig3 is able , in a particularly advantageous and simple manner , to perform the above - mentioned comparison of the actual value with the set - point value and , furthermore , the set - point value may be represented in rpm - dependent manner , according to practically any desired functional relationship . to perform this task , the first up - counter 1 in the circuits of fig1 and 2 is enlarged by a certain number of bits , for example by the addition of a supplementary counter 1a . the expansion of counter size is such that the counter 1 and the supplementary counter 1a are able to count the longest period , for example at n = 1 , 000 rpm . since the counters 1 and 1a count continuously , their individual counting stages continuously show as many different partial frequencies as there are stages , so that by suitable choice of the partial frequencies which are available , one can select one or , if necessary , several of these frequencies which approximate an rpm - dependent set point signal and are then supplied in a predetermined time interval to the above - mentioned set - point counter for generating an rpm - dependent set point . however , advantageously , these rpm - dependent frequencies ( compare also fig5 which has a schematic picture of one possibility for generating an rpm - dependent frequency ) are used immediately for counting down a totalizing counter 7 , which is thus counted down at different intervals with different frequencies . the totalizing counter 7 , in which the comparison of set point value and the actual value is made , is connected behind the last up - counter 3 and controlled , for example , by the top dead center signal , accepts the content of the counter 3 and holds it for the duration of one period in which the comparison is made by counting down at the appropriate rpm - dependent frequency . thus , it is possible to perform the adjustment of the set point value , on the one hand and , also , to perform the comparison between the set point and actual values in the same counter by counting the totalizing counter down . if this counter exceeds its zero content , then the set point value had not been exceeded . if the zero content is not reached then the set point was exceeded by the actual value . this state of affairs is signaled by the msb and is stored for one revolution in a subsequent one bit storage 8 . thus , the value of the msb in the totalizing counter makes it possible to determine whether the set point value was exceeded during the rpm - dependent countdown of the totalizing counter and this value is taken over into the bit storage 8 . the number of times when the set point value was exceeded in one direction or the other then gives an indication in which direction the fuel supply should be changed by the fuel quantity controller . for this reason , an integrating stage is connected to the output of the bit storage 8 , or the bit storage immediately effects an integrating final control element . in known systems for fuel injection , the output of the integrating final element can engage immediately a multiplier stage for shortening or lengthening the fuel injection pulses . thus , in the exemplary embodiment of fig3 a computation is first made and the δ ( δt ) value for the engine roughness is determined by the counters 1 , 2 and 3 . in the next time period , the apparatus performs the rpm - dependent frequencies election and makes the comparison between set point and actual values . however , the great rapidity of operation of the entire system , which operates in an rpm - synchronous manner , makes this delay insignificant . fig4 is a diagram which illustrates how the counting frequencies for the totalizing counter 7 change as a function of the period t and how the theoretical curve for the set point function given in dotted lines is thereby approximated . the following will illustrate how the rpm - dependent frequency , which is generated in a circuit shown in fig3 by the block 9 , is formed in detail . the individual counter positions of the main counter 1 and the supplementary counter 1a in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in fig5 carry sixteen different partial frequencies which are here designated by x1 , x2 , . . . x 16 . if the counter 1 receives a frequency of 1 mhz , then x1 is equal to 500 khz , x2 equal to 250 khz , etc . the selected frequencies x 8 , x 9 , x 13 and x 16 in the illustrated exemplary embodiment travel to and gates 10 , 10a , 10b , etc ., whereas the other inputs of the and gates are controlled by bistable flip - flops 11 , 11a , 11b , etc . these flip - flops , in turn , are triggered by the outputs of the individual counting stages . what is substantial is that the set point value is generated in an rpm - dependent manner and since , in the preferred exemplary embodiment of the invention , the set point is , so to speak , simulated by an rpm - dependent frequency , this frequency must also be chosen to be rpm - dependent . however , the appearance to outpus signals at the outputs of the individual counting positions of the counter 1 and the supplementary counter 1a is already rpm - dependent because , the beginning and end of a counting period , as described above , is supervised by the top dead center signal of the crankshaft . thus , the only thing that is required is to use the counter contents themselves as switching data for the bistable flip - flops 11 , 11a , 11b . further individual details of the circuit need not be given because the connections of the inputs of the flip - flops 11 , 11a , 11b to the respective outputs of the counter stages depend on the choice of the particular set point value . in general , the output of one switching flip - flop 11 , 11a always controls one of the inputs of the following flip - flop . | 6 |
referring now to the drawings , fig1 depicts an embodiment of the motorcycle kickstand accessory . as shown in fig1 , the accessory comprises a bracket 100 and a pad 200 . referring now to fig2 , the bracket 100 comprises an upper surface 110 . in an embodiment , the bracket 100 is generally a cube shape , having a bottom surface opposite the upper surface and opposite sides . in an embodiment , the upper surface 110 comprises a logo section 111 . the logo section is formed such that a symbol ( an example is shown in fig1 at 1111 ) or other graphic may be attached to the logo section 111 . the symbol may be attached by any means , such as molding upon formation of the accessory , or as an after market addition , such as a sticker , button , rivet , pin , and the like . the pad 200 comprises an upper side 210 and an underside 220 ( best seen in fig5 and 6 ). the upper side 210 comprises a channel 230 that extends from a first end 231 to a second end 232 of the upper side 210 . the channel 230 is formed between opposing channel sides 215 a , 215 b each of which run the length of the upper side 210 . in an embodiment a top corner of each opposing channel sides 215 a , 215 b is rounded . in an embodiment depicted in fig5 , the channel sides 215 a , 215 b extend from a floor 216 of the channel about 0 . 15 to about 0 . 3 inches . in an embodiment , the pad 200 is approximately 3 inches from a first side to the second side . in an embodiment , the pad 200 is approximately 2 inches from an outer wall 217 a of the first channel side 215 a to an outer wall 217 b of the second channel side 215 b . in an embodiment , the bracket 100 is connected to the pad 200 at the points 300 , 301 . in an embodiment , the bracket 100 is connected to the pad at least at the points 300 a , 300 b and 301 a , 301 b . in an embodiment , the points 300 a , 300 b and 301 a , 301 b are at about a mid - portion of each channel side 215 a , 215 b . as shown in fig3 , a first length of the bracket 100 extends from the channel sides 215 a , 215 b . as shown in fig4 , a second length of the bracket 100 extends over a portion of the length of the channel 230 . in an embodiment , the second length of the bracket 100 extends approximately ¼ to ⅓ of the length of the channel 230 . in an embodiment a center point of the second length of the bracket is aligned to a center point of the length of the channel 230 . referring to the embodiment shown in fig5 , the bracket 100 is removably connected to the pad with at least one fastener , such as a nail , a screw , a staple , a rivet , an adhesive , and the like . in an embodiment , the fasteners are any device that permit the attachment and removal of the bracket as needed . in an embodiment , the bracket 100 is connected to the pad 200 at points 300 ab , 301 ab using at least one fastener at each point . in an embodiment , the bracket 100 is connected to the pad 200 at points 300 ab , 301 ab using two screws 400 ab , 410 ab at each point 300 ab , 301 ab ( as best seen in fig7 ). in an embodiment , the pad 200 comprises at least one preformed receptor 500 ab , 510 ab adapted to receive a portion of the fastener . in an embodiment , at least one preformed section 500 ab , 510 ab of the pad 200 is aligned with each point 300 ab , 301 ab to receive a portion of each screw 400 ab , 410 ab . the fasteners are of any length necessary to secure the bracket to the pad and to maintain the attachment when the kickstand is retracted and deployed . the fasteners may extend to the underside 220 of the pad ( described below ), but do not extend beyond the tread as to prevent scuffing of a floor by the fasteners if the motorcycle is moved while the kickstand , with the accessory attached , is deployed . referring to fig6 , the pad 200 comprises an underside 220 . in an embodiment , the underside 220 comprises an irregular surface 221 . in an embodiment , the underside 220 comprises a pattern molded into the irregular surface . in an embodiment , the underside comprises an irregular surface 221 and a logo , which may be the same or different from the logo 1111 . in an embodiment , the irregular surface 221 is any design that provides friction points when in contact with a resting surface , such as a floor , deck , road surface , sidewalk , ground , gravel , sand and the like . the irregular surface 221 minimizes the amount of surface area in contact with the ground or floor . in an embodiment , the irregular surface 221 comprises a tread having at least one cut , dimple and or nub . in an embodiment , the irregular surface is molded , stamped , milled or formed in any other conventional manner on the bottom side of the pad . in an embodiment , the pad 200 is shaped such that the first end 211 and the second end 212 are in the same plane . the kickstand accessory of the present invention is made from at least a polymer , rubber , or similar material . in an embodiment , the accessory is made from a thermoplastic rubber , although any other similar light weight and formable resilient material that is easy to process and easy to clean , is chemical resistance to both acids and alkalis , and provides high strength , low viscosity , flexibility and durability may be used . acceptable construction materials are those having a usable temperature range from about − 51 to about 135 degrees c . examples of construction materials include santoprene ® thermoplastic rubber , ( advanced elastomer systems , an affiliate of exxonmobil chemical ), sarlink ® thermoplastic elastomer ( dsm thermoplastic elastomers , inc . ), vichem ® thermoplastic elastomer ( vichem corp .) and kraton ® polymer ( kraton polymers llc ). in an embodiment , a first component of the accessory is formed from a different polymer , rubber , or similar material than a second component . in an embodiment , a layer or section of a component of the accessory is formed from a different polymer , rubber , or similar material than a second layer or section of that component . the fasteners are made from any material that provides sufficient mechanical coupling means and withstands the force exerted on the accessory when the kickstand is deployed and an extra force , such as a rider sitting on the motorcycle , is added . in an embodiment , the fastener is a screw that creates resistance to vibrational loosening , such as , but not limited to , plastite ® # 6 pan head ( manufactured by mcmaster carr ). in an embodiment , the base material of at least one component of the accessory comprises an additive . in an embodiment , at least one of an antioxidant , a ultra violet stabilizer , carbon black , a processing aid , a colorant , and the like is added to the material prior to forming the accessory . the accessory can be formed in a variety of ways , including but not limited to blow molding , injection molding , extrusion , stamping and the like . in an embodiment the accessory is formed by press molding . in an embodiment , the accessory is formed so that the resulting hardness of the accessory ranges from slightly flexible to firm . in an embodiment , the accessory is formed from a resin with a resulting hardness of between about 55 to about 90 shore a hardness . in an embodiment , the accessory is formed from a thermoplastic rubber with a resulting hardness of between about 70 to about 80 shore a hardness . in an embodiment , the accessory is formed from a resin with a resulting hardness of about 73 shore a hardness . in an embodiment , the pad and bracket are formed from a resin with the same shore a hardness . in an embodiment , the pad is formed from a resin with a resulting shore a hardness that is greater than the shore a hardness of the bracket . having the pad harder than the bracket enables the pad , when pressed on by the kickstand , to maintain its rigidity and provide a stable surface to distribute the weight of the motorcycle . having a bracket of a lesser hardness allows the bracket to flex slightly when the kickstand is deployed so that the accessory is held tightly to the kickstand . fig8 depicts the present invention as attached to a kickstand ( of a motorcycle ( dotted line ). the kick stand accessory of the present invention allows a user to attach the accessory to the kickstand of a motorcycle so that the kickstand , when deployed , does not gouge the floor when the motorcycle is at rest or moved dragging the kickstand . to removeably attach the accessory to a kickstand , a user ( 1 ) places the pad 200 on a surface , ( 2 ) deploys the kickstand so that a portion of the bottom of the kickstand is positioned on the channel 230 ( as depicted in fig8 ), and ( 3 ) attaches the bracket 100 . the user may select an accessory based on a pre - fixed logo . alternatively , a user selects one or more logo to attach to the bracket at any time . logos are removable , reusable and replaceable . when the accessory is attached to a motorcycle kickstand and the kickstand is deployed , the pad provides a removably attached durable resting surface that adds stability when the kickstand is deployed on a soft surface . the tread provides improved gripping or traction for resistance to slipping on wet or slick surfaces . when deployed on a finished surface , the accessory provides cushion between the surface and the metal kickstand to prevent marring or gouging of the finished surface . the present invention attaches to a kickstand so that the accessory does not interfere with the rider or the storage of the kickstand when not in use , but is immediately positioned when parking the motorcycle . the present invention allows movement of the kickstand , when the accessory is attached with out scuffing a finished surface . an advantage of the current invention is the addition to motorcycles in a dealer &# 39 ; s showroom to allow a potential customer to sit on a parked motorcycle on the floor without damage to the surface . one skilled in the art will understand that the description of the present invention herein is presented for purposes of illustration and that the design of the present invention should not be restricted to only one configuration or purpose , but rather may be of any configuration or purpose which essentially accomplishes the same effect . the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments and examples of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description . they are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed , and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings . it will be understood that the invention is intended to cover alternatives , modifications and equivalents . the embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application , to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated . it is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein . | 1 |
referring now to fig1 and 12 , there is shown a first embodiment of a water massage apparatus 10 according to the invention , in use in a portable spa 12 having an interior wall 14 with a threaded receptacle 16 for receiving a threaded water jet casing ( not shown ). water massage apparatus 10 comprises a head 20 , a hollow replacement casing 24 selectively insertable into the receptacle 16 in place of the original spa casing , and a hollow adapter 22 dimensioned to register with the replacement casing 24 . a conventional hollow connector 25 connects replacement casing 24 to adapter 22 . a plain plastic tube 26 having ends 28 and 30 is attached at one end 28 to head 20 and at the other end 30 to adapter 22 . referring now to fig2 - 4 and 12 , head 20 comprises a cylindrical cap 34 rotatably disposed upon a base 36 . base 36 comprises a side wall 40 having inner and outer surfaces 42 and 44 , an upper rim 46 , an open top 48 defined by upper rim 46 , and a lower wall 50 defining a closed bottom 52 and having inner and outer surfaces 54 and 56 . side wall 40 has an inlet aperture 58 therethrough and a substantially circular lateral cross - section . an inlet port 60 extends outwardly from outer surface 56 at inlet aperture 58 , and includes external annular threads or barbs 62 for selectively connecting head 20 to end 28 of tubing 26 . the inner diameters to inlet aperture 58 and inlet port 60 are 7 / 8 inch ( 2 . 22 cm ) each while the inner diameter of tubing 26 is 3 / 4 inch ( 1 . 91 cm . ), in order to ensure proper flow - through of water through tubing 26 and inlet aperture 58 without any change in the water pressure , and in order to allow a force fit of tubing 26 over barbs 62 . also , if a conventional pool or garden hose having female threaded ends is to be used , inlet port 60 can be provided with external threads for selective mating engagement with one of the hose ends , as shown in my copending application ser . no . 252 , 935 , which is specifically incorporated herein by reference . upper rim 46 of base 36 is planar adjacent outer surface 44 of side wall 40 and is angled inwardly adjacent inner surface 42 of side wall 40 to receive an o - ring 64 . base 36 also includes a first set of l - shaped locking posts 66 extending upwardly from inner surface 54 of bottom wall 50 adjacent one side of aperture 58 , and a second set of l - shaped locking posts 68 extending upwardly from inner surface 54 of bottom wall 50 offset from the other side of aperture 58 . a tubular mounting post 70 having internal threads 72 extends upwardly from the center of inner surface 54 of lower wall 50 , for a purpose to be described hereinafter . cap 34 comprises a side wall 80 having inner and outer surfaces 82 and 84 , a lower rim 86 , an open bottom 88 defined by lower rim 86 , and an upper wall 90 defining a closed top 92 and having inner and outer surfaces 94 and 96 . side wall 80 has a substantially circular lateral cross - section . inner and outer surfaces 94 and 96 are rounded adjacent side wall 80 and are substantially frusto - conical inwardly of side wall 80 . a tubular extension 98 extends inwardly from the center of upper wall 90 for a purpose to be described hereinafter . upper wall 90 also includes a plurality of evenly spaced - apart radial outlet apertures 100 therein . outlet apertures 100 are circular in shape , and are formed by drilling through upper wall 90 with a circular bit . in the embodiment shown , there are eight apertures , although the number can be varied . in order for the pressure of the water exiting head 20 to be substantially the same as the pressure of the water entering head 20 , the sum of the areas of outlet apertures 100 is substantially the same as the lateral cross - sectional area of inlet aperture 58 . the frusto - conical configuration of top wall 90 directs water out of outlet apertures 100 in a concentrated flow . a finger 102 extends vertically downwardly from lower rim 86 of cap 34 . finger 102 has inner and outer surfaces 104 and 106 , inner surface 104 being coextensive with inner surface 82 of side wall 80 and outer surface 106 sealingly engaging inner surface 42 of side wall 40 of base 36 . legs 108 extend downwardly from either side of finger 102 . finger 102 is dimensioned to cover aperture 58 and defines a valve for opening and closing aperture 58 . cap 34 also includes a flange 110 extending outwardly from outer surface 84 offset from lower rim 86 . flange 110 has upper and lower surfaces 112 and 114 . lower surface 114 registers with upper rim 46 , while outer surface 84 of side wall 80 of cap 34 sealingly engages inner surface 42 of side wall 40 of base 36 , o - ring 64 preventing water from leaking at the facing surfaces . radial ribs 116 can be provided on outer surface 84 to improve the user &# 39 ; s grip on cap 34 . tubular extension 98 is dimensioned to matingly receive mounting post 70 . a washer 120 is then inserted in extension 98 , resting on post 70 , and a screw 122 is inserted therethrough to matingly engage interior threads 72 of post 70 , thereby rotatably mounting cap 34 on base 36 . one leg 108 is engaged by locking posts 66 when finger 102 closes aperture 58 , while the other leg 108 is engaged by locking posts 68 when cap 34 is rotated to open aperture 58 . cap 34 is thereby locked in either the &# 34 ; off &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; on &# 34 ; position until rotated into the contrary position by the user . referring now to fig1 , 11 , and 12 , casing 24 in a first embodiment is tubular , having a substantially circular lateral cross - section , and has a receptacle end 130 and an exterior end 132 . receptacle end 130 is provided with a first set of external spiral threads 134 dimensioned to engage the internal spiral threads ( such as threads 138 ) of a water jet receptacle of a portable spa . exterior end 132 is provided with a second set of external spiral threads 136 for a purpose to be described hereinafter . referring now to fig8 , and 12 , adapter 22 in a first embodiment is tubular , having a substantially y - shaped axial cross - section , and has wide end 140 and a narrow end 142 . narrow end 142 is provided with external annular threads or barbs 144 dimensioned to selectively engage end 30 of tubing 26 . wide end 140 is provided with an external flange 146 dimensioned to abut and register with exterior end 132 of casing 24 , and two opposed sets 147a and 147b of holes positioned circumferentially and set in from flange 146 . sets 147a and 147b consist of three circular holes each and can be positioned at any point of the circumference of flange 145 as long as they are opposite one another . sets of holes 147a and 147b are necessary to provide air - entrainment means for the entrainment of air into the water flowing through tubing 26 , without which the apparatus will not function properly . preferably , the holes have a diameter of approximately 1 / 8 inch ( 0 . 32 cm .) and are set in from flange 146 by a sufficient distance to allow entry of air into the tube 26 when adapter 22 is connected to casing 24 as discussed below , approximately 7 / 32 inch ( 0 . 56 cm .). narrow end 142 has an inner diameter of approximately 7 / 8 inch ( 2 . 22 cm .) to match the inner diameter of inlet port 60 . also , if a conventional pool or garden hose is used , narrow end 42 of adapter 22 can be provided with external threads for engagement of the other end of the hose . referring now to fig1 , connector 25 is tubular and is provided with internal threads 148 to selectively engage external threads 136 of casing 24 and an internal flange 150 to engage flange 146 of adapter 22 . in a preferred embodiment , adapter 22 , casing 24 , cap 34 , and base 36 are made from injection - molded abs plastic . connector 25 is a commercially available standard bushing , for example , the cap which is normally used to cover the casing of an in - ground spa . the width of side walls 40 and 80 and upper and lower walls 90 and 50 are generally 0 . 090 inch . the outer height of cap 34 ( excluding finger 102 ) is 1 . 04 inches and the outer height of base 36 is 1 . 30 inches . upper rim 46 of base 36 and flange 110 of top 34 have an outer diameter of 3 . 30 inches . bottom rim 86 of cap 34 has an outer diameter of 3 . 12 inches ( substantially equal to the inner diameter of bottom rim 86 of base 36 ). in order to use apparatus 10 in a portable spa with adapter 22 and casing 24 , the original casing surrounding the water jet is unscrewed from receptacle 16 in wall 14 . receptacle end 130 of casing 24 is then placed over the proximal end of the water jet and inserted into the spa wall 14 so that external threads 134 engage internal threads 138 . external threads 136 will then extend out of wall 14 . next , wide end 140 of adapter 22 is placed with flange 146 abutting exterior end 132 of casing 24 and connector 25 is placed over adapter 22 so that internal threads 148 engage external threads 136 of casing 24 and internal flange 150 engages external flange 146 of adapter 22 , thereby establishing a water - tight connection between adapter 22 and casing 24 . end 30 of tubing 26 can then be force fit onto barbed end 142 of adapter 22 . finally , barbed inlet port 60 is force fit into the other end 28 of tubing 26 . head 20 can then be held by the user and cap 34 rotated to the &# 34 ; on &# 34 ; position to provide a water massage to any part of the body , as shown in fig1 . when the use of apparatus 10 is no longer desired , cap 34 can be rotated to the &# 34 ; off &# 34 ; position . in order to use apparatus 10 in a pool spa or an in - ground spa , only adapter 22 and connector 25 are used . adapter 22 is placed with flange 146 abutting the exterior end of the original casing and connector 25 is placed over adapter 22 so that internal threads 148 engage the external threads of the original casing . end 30 of tubing 26 can then be force fit onto barbed end 142 of adapter 22 . finally , barbed inlet port 60 is force fit into the other end 28 of tubing 26 and the user can proceed to use head 20 as previously described . referring now to fig1 , 16 and 17 , casing 24 &# 39 ; in a second embodiment is tubular , having a substantially circular lateral cross - section , and has a receptacle end 130 &# 39 ; and an exterior end 132 &# 39 ;. receptacle end 130 &# 39 ; is identical to end 130 of casing 24 and is provided with a first set of external threads 134 &# 39 ; dimensioned to engage the internal threads ( such as threads 16 ) of a water jet receptacle of a portable spa . exterior end 132 &# 39 ; is provided with an external flange 150 &# 39 ; and a pair of opposed interior circumferential ribs 152 &# 39 ; for a purpose to be described hereinafter . referring now to fig1 , 14 , and 17 , adapter 22 &# 39 ; in a second embodiment is similar to adapter 22 , having a wide end 140 &# 39 ; and a narrow end 142 &# 39 ;. narrow end 142 &# 39 ; is identical to end 142 of adapter 22 and is provided with external barbs 144 &# 39 ; dimensioned to selectively engage an end 30 of tubing 26 . wide end 140 &# 39 ; is similar to end 140 of adapter 22 , being provided with an external flange 146 &# 39 ; and two opposed sets 147a &# 39 ; and 147b &# 39 ; of holes positioned over flange 146 &# 39 ; identical to sets 147a and 147b of holes in adapter 22 . however , flange 146 &# 39 ; is adapted to be received within exterior flange 150 &# 39 ; of bushing 24 &# 39 ;, and the bottom of flange 146 &# 39 ; is provided with opposed bayonets 160 &# 39 ; which provide a bayonet joint means for engaging ribs 152 &# 39 ; of bushing 24 &# 39 ;, so as to provide a watertight connection between adapter 22 &# 39 ; and bushing 24 &# 39 ; using integral connecting members . adapter 22 &# 39 ; and bushing 24 &# 39 ; are also preferably made from injection - molded abs plastic , and narrow end 142 &# 39 ; of adapter 22 &# 39 ; has an inner diameter of 7 / 8 inch ( 2 . 22 cm .). in order to use apparatus 10 &# 39 ; in a portable spa adapter 22 &# 39 ; and casing 24 &# 39 ;, the original casing surrounding the water jet is unscrewed from receptacle 16 in wall 14 . receptacle end 130 &# 39 ; of casing 24 &# 39 ; is then placed over proximal end of the water jet and inserted into the spa wall 14 so that external threads 134 &# 39 ; engage internal threads 138 . external threads 136 &# 39 ; will then extend out of wall 14 . next , wide end 140 &# 39 ; of adapter 22 &# 39 ; is placed with flange 146 &# 39 ; received in exterior flange 150 &# 39 ; of casing 24 &# 39 ; and rotated so that bayonets 160 &# 39 ; engage ribs 152 &# 39 ;, thereby establishing a water - tight connection between adapter 22 &# 39 ; and bushing 24 &# 39 ;. end 30 of tubing 26 can then be force fit over barbed end 142 &# 39 ; of adapter 22 &# 39 ;. finally , barbed inlet port 60 &# 39 ; is force fit into the other end 28 of tubing 26 . in order to use apparatus 10 &# 39 ; in a pool spa or an inground spa , only adapter 22 &# 39 ; and connector 25 are used . adapter 22 &# 39 ; is placed with flange 146 &# 39 ; abutting the exterior end of the original casing and bayonets 160 &# 39 ; received inside the original casing . adapter 24 &# 39 ; is then connected to the original casing using connector 25 as previously described with respect to adapter 22 . end 30 of tubing 26 can then be force fit over barbed end 142 &# 39 ; of adapter 22 &# 39 ;. finally , barbed inlet port 60 &# 39 ; is force fit into the other end 28 of tubing 26 and the user can proceed to use head 20 as previously described . thus , it will be seen that the disclosed embodiments of the present invention provides a unique water massage apparatus for use in a pool or spa or the like . moreover , the installation and operation of the apparatus is both effective and easy to accomplish , so as to render the apparatus according to the invention convenient to users . while preferred embodiments of the invention have been disclosed , it should be understood that the spirit and scope of the invention is to be limited solely by the appended claims , since numerous modifications of the disclosed embodiment will undoubtedly occur to those of skill in the art . | 0 |
in the following , the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . in fig1 showing a conventional unit in its circuitry , numeral 1 denotes a detecting condenser having one electrode thereof electrically connected with one side of a high frequency current source 2 , while the opposite electrode is connected through an impedance element 3 and a parallel combination of condenser 4 and resistor 5 to the opposite side of the source 2 . one side of impedance element 3 is electrically connected through a diode 6 to one side of the parallel combination of condenser 7 and resistor 8 , while junction point 100 between the condensers 4 and 7 is connected through junction point 101 , diode 9 and junction point 102 to one side of the high frequency current source 2 . the latter junction point 102 is connected through condenser 1 to a further junction point 103 which is at the common point between impedance element 3 and diode 6 . a junction point 104 is positioned between the resistors 5 and 8 and is connected to the first - mentioned junction point 100 . as the impedance element 3 , a coil is generally used and arranged to provide a series resonator relative to the frequency of the source 2 in cooperation with the sensing condenser 1 . the voltage appearing across impedance element 3 is rectified through the diode 6 and the thus rectified current is smoothed by the combination of condenser 7 and resistor 8 . the initial voltage across the diode 9 is cancelled out by the smoothed voltage by means of condenser 4 and resistor 5 . thus , the input terminals 105 , 106 of an operational amplifier 10 , connected across the series - connection of resistors 5 and 8 , will be zero . when a yarn , not shown , is passed through the sensing condenser 1 , the static capacitance thereof is varied and the circuit deviates from the series - resonant position and a variable input will appear at the input terminals of amplifier 10 . the variable capacitance change at the condenser 1 caused by the denier variations of the running yarn is a small value . thus , the condenser 1 is designed to have a small capacitance value to enable detection of such a change , while the frequency at the source 2 is designed to have a rather high value , such as , for instance , 10 - 100 mhz . since the combination of condenser 1 , and coil 3 is kept in series - resonance condition , stray capacitance may frequently appear between coil 3 and the case , not shown , of the sensor unit which capacitance naturally provides an adverse effect to the unit . to eliminate the adverse effect , the diode 6 represents generally a high interrupting resistance which resulte in an inferior sensing capability for of the unit . a resistor may be used as the impedance element 3 in place of the coil in the above known arrangement . in this case , the resonance phenomenon will disappear and the output to be supplied to the amplifier will become very small . therefore , the gain at the amplifier 10 must be appreciably enlarged with a correspondingly increased noise level . a modification from the foregoing known arrangement is shown at fig2 . in this modification , the output from the source 2 is supplied to primary winding of a phase - reversing transformer 11 , a midpoint m of the secondary winding 11s and one end thereof , being connected to a parallel combination of the sensing condenser 1 &# 39 ; and a further condenser 12 , so as to provide a parallel resonance circuit by cooperation with the secondary winding . in the similar way , a parallel combination of condensers 13 and 14 is inserted between midpoint m and the opposite end of the secondary winding , so as to provide another a parallel resonance circuit . condensers 12 and 13 have equal capacitances and similarly , condensers 1 &# 39 ; and 14 have equal capacitances . the resonance voltages of these both resonance circuits have been designed to be equal to each other . the ends of the secondary winding are connected through diodes 6 &# 39 ;, 9 &# 39 ; to respective capacitor - resistor parallel circuits 4 &# 39 ;, 5 &# 39 ; and 7 &# 39 ;, 8 &# 39 ;, the smoothed outputs therefrom being kept in blance with to each other and thus , the input at the terminals 105 &# 39 ;, 106 &# 39 ; being zero . however , when a yarn , not shown , is passed through the sensing condenser 1 &# 39 ;, the resonance condition of the upper resonance circuit including the sensing condenser 1 &# 39 ; is altered and a variable input corresponding to the yarn denier alteration is supplied to the amplifier 10 &# 39 ; through its input terminals 105 &# 39 ;, 106 &# 39 ;. in the sensor arrangement shown in fig2 it will be seen that outside influence acts equally upon the both resonance circuits included therein and the effects being cancelled out by each other . if , however , it is desired to use a sealed casing , not shown , with the sensor arrangement shown , substantial difficulty will occur in designing the casing , to provide equal effects in both resonance circuits . a perfect pre - balanced condition between these resonance circuits is highly difficult to realize . when used for a long time period , the resonance point will shift by unavoidable aging of the constituent parts , resulting in the possibility of an unbalanced condition . as a counter measure in such a case , an outside adjuster means must be provided which invites a substantial complexity of the whole arrangement and an increased manufacturing cost thereof . in the first embodiment of the present invention shown in fig3 the static capacitance type sensor is shown at 31 , one electrode thereof being connected to one side of high frequency source 32 which is similar to that shown at 2 or 2 &# 39 ; in the previously described embodiments . the opposite electrode of the said sensor or condenser is connected to the anode of a diode 46 as well as the cathode of a further diode 47 . the cathode of diode 46 is connected to input 135 of an operational amplifier 40 similar to that shown to that denoted 10 or 10 &# 39 ; in the previously described embodiments and having an output terminal 137 as at 107 or 107 &# 39 ; in the foregoing . the anode of diode 47 is connected to the opposite side of source 32 as well as common terminal 136 of the amplifier 40 . in this arrangement , the combination of condenser 31 , diodes 46 and 47 constitutes a half wave voltage doubler rectifier 48 the input condenser of which is the sensing condenser 31 . with the half waves of the source current from 32 which make the anode of diode 47 to be positive , the condenser 31 is charged , with the right hand electrode kept positive . with the arrival of succeeding half waves of the opposite polarity , the condenser electrode at 31 , directing toward source 32 , becomes positive , and the source voltage at this moment and the voltage at the said condenser act in series to each other and are rectified at 46 . therefore , the output voltage is doubled in comparison with that obtained with the single effective condenser arrangement . when a yarn is passed through the passage formed by and between the electrodes at 31 , the static capacitance value thereat will be subjected to alteration in accordance with variations of yarn denier . therefore , the rectified output does vary therewith , and a corresponding and amplified output voltage may be taken out from the output terminal 137 . noise calcellation as was referred to in connection with fig2 may equally be applied to the embodiment shown at fig3 . such a modified embodiment is shown at fig4 . the same reference numerals as those employed in fig3 represent similar or equal corresponding circuit constituents . more specifically , this applies to those denoted 31 , 32 , 46 - 48 , 135 , 136 and 137 . in this arrangement , a comparative condenser 70 is provided . one electrode of this condenser is connected with a junction 108 arranged between sensor condenser 31 and source 32 , while the opposite electrode is connected to a junction 109 between condensers 71 and 72 . the anode of diode 72 is connected through junction 110 the anode of diode 47 . the cathode of diode 46 is grounded through a parallel combination of condenser 73 and resistor 74 . in a similar way , the cathode of diode 71 is grounded through a parallel arrangement of smoothing condenser 75 and resistor 76 . the cathodes of diodes 46 and 71 are connected to input terminals 135 and 136 to amplifier 40 , respectively . the opposite side of source 32 is grounded as shown . with no yarn placed on the sensing condenser 31 , the inputs to amplifier are balanced and the d . c . output from 137 is null . with insertion of a yarn in the condenser 31 the static capacitance of the condenser will be subjected to variation and thus the voltage charged in this condenser from source 32 and the voltage charged in the condenser 70 differ from each other and a d . c . voltage corresponding to this voltage difference will be supplied to the amplifier 40 through its input terminals 135 ; 136 , to be amplified . the thus amplified output appearing at the output terminal 137 , fig4 corresponds to the instant dielectric mass of the yarn under measurement . in order to adjust an unbalance between condensers 31 and 70 and at the d . c . side , any one of the two different counter measures may be employed , as shown in fig5 and 6 . in the first modification shown at fig5 the junction point 110 has a variable resistor 78 and the adjustable top thereof 78a is grounded . in the second modification shown at fig6 a variable resistor 78 &# 39 ; is inserted between the resistors 74 and 76 and the adjustable top thereof 78a &# 39 ; is grounded . in order to take out only denier - or mass deviation of the yarn under measurement , a still further modified embodiment shown in fig7 may be employed . in this case , respective rectified outputs from diodes 46 and 71 are supplied through respective condensers 79 and 80 to input terminals 135 and 136 of the amplifier 40 , respectively . in this case , occasional unbalance between the d . c . voltage caused by the unbalance between the capacitances of condensers 31 and 70 has no influence on the output at 137 so that no correction means need be provided . it will be clear from the foregoing disclosure that the conventionally used resonance circuit , and in particular the coil means included therein may be dispensed with according to the principle of the present invention for a yarn denier sensor unit for sensing out fine and minor capacitance variations caused by the yarn when being run through a sensor condenser . occasionally necessary adjustment of adjusting means employable in the inventive unit can be highly simplified when compared with the conventional adjusting operation of a resonator employed in the conventional technique . outside adverse effects can also be minimized by virtue of elimination of the conventional resonator circuit . the unit can be used for a long time period without adjustment and further , without aging variations in the characteristic performance of the included circuit elements . the doubled voltage rectifier may be replaced with equal result by 3 - or 4 - fold voltage rectifier . fig8 represents a comparative and combined chart showing relative noises appearing at respective output terminals 107 and 137 shown in fig1 and 7 . in this case , the yarn has not yet been placed in the respective sensor 1 or 31 for showing the desired noise output . in fig8 gq1 - gq4 represents three representative noise models measured practically on or from three known sensors corresponding to that shown at 1 . in the similar way , agq1 and agq2 represent two modes of noise output practically measured at 137 shown in fig7 . the arrangements shown in fig1 and 7 have been so designed and constructed to obtain 8 - volt output at each of the said output terminals 107 and 137 when a 50 - denier polyester yarn has been placed on the sensor and kept stationary without running . when compared , as an example , between gq1 and agq1 , the nose level is 0 . 1 and 0 . 03 volt , respectively , the design signal level being 8 . 00 volts , respectively . thus , the sn - ratio will be 80 : 1 and 800 : 3 , respectively and the merits and improved results are self - explanatory . an example of static signal output measured at each of the output terminals , being commonly denoted 137 , appearing at fig4 and 6 , respectively is shown at fig9 wherein the yarn , having a 150 denier was placed in each of the sensors . the voltage range extends from 0 to 3 . 2 volts . these values were measured at a chart speed of 2 . 5 mm per second . the yarn was of 150d / 32 fils . acrylonitrile fibers . several signal charts shown at ( a ) - ( d ) in fig1 are examples of the output appearing at each of the output terminals 137 shown at fig4 - 6 . in each of these cases , the yarn of nominal diameter , 150 denier plus 1 , 2 , 3 and 4 % deviation in the mean , was passed through the sensor . as seen , with larger deviation in the mean , the signal represents mean level and broader signal range . the yarn travel speed was 120 meters per minute . in fig1 , a static signal chart is shown which was obtained at the terminal 137 of the arrangement shown at fig7 by on - and off condition of the sensor with the yarn of 50d / 24 fil . polyester multifilament . max . output voltage was 8 . 0 volts as shown . in fig1 , an output signal chart with use of the arrangement shown in fig7 is illustrated . the yarn was of the same kind as that described above with reference to fig1 . the yarn travel speed was 900 meters per minute , while the chart speed was 0 . 5 mm per second . a specific configuration of the sensor usable in each of the arrangements shown in fig5 - 6 is illustrated in fig1 generally at 301 . numeral 301a represents a yarn passage gap which is formed between a pair of static capacitance electrodes 305 and 306 . numerals 303 and 304 represent respective stationary yarn guides defining the initial end and the terminating end of the yarn passage . numeral 301b represents a comparative gap constituting a noise - cancellation condenser as shown commonly at 70 in fig4 - 7 by cooperation with the neighboring electrode at 307 and the detecting electrodes 305 ; 306 , constituting the sensing condenser 31 . numerals 305 ; 306 and 307 shown in fig1 represents three physically parallel electrodes which in combination define two parallel electrode gaps 301a and 301b . the middle electrode 305 thus constitutes a common electrode for the formation of said gaps 301a and 301b . in fig1 , these three electrodes 305 ; 306 and 307 are shown in their schematic perspective view . each of the electrode gaps 301a and 301b has a dimension of 0 . 6 - 1 . 0 mm . the length of the electrode is approximately , while the width is approximately 5 mm . numeral 308 appearing in fig1 represents the head of an adjusting screw adapted for adjusting the variable resister 78 or 78 &# 39 ; shown in fig5 or 6 . numeral 310 represents a group of connecting cables leading to plugs 311a projecting from a connector unit 311 . as the operational amplifier 40 shown in fig3 - 7 , type model lm 301a manufactured and sold by national semi - conductor corporation ( u . s . a .) may be used for example , having operational characteristics illustrated on the chart shown at fig1 wherein the x - axis represents frequency while the y - axis represents the degree of amplification . in the shown example , the phase correction condenser , c f , has a capacitance value of 3 pf . when comparing the conventional arrangement of fig1 with the inventive arrangement of fig4 - 7 , the dotted line in fig1 represents conventional results , while the chain line illustrates the results of the inventive arrangement . therefore , it will be seen that the degree of amplification in the inventive arrangement amounts to only about 1 / 2 of the conventional value while the frequency characteristic of the invention represents about a doubled value of the conventional for obtaining equal output performance . now turning back to fig4 several circuit components data are shown only by way of example . ______________________________________sensing condenser 31 : 0 . 5 pf ; silicon diodes 47 ; 76 ; 72 ; 71 : model 1s 21 35 , of nippon electric co ., tokyo ; resistors 74 ; 76 : 20 kilo ohms ; condensers 73 ; 75 : 2 , 000 pf ; h . f . source voltage at 32 : peak - to - peak 40 - 60 volts ; 20 mhz . ______________________________________ finally , a table is shown for demonstrating the doubled voltage output characteristics as measured at the input to the operation amplifier of the inventive arrangement . as the yarn material , polyester was used . ______________________________________osc ( p - p . sup . v ) yarn denier 40 . sup . v 50 60______________________________________30 d 0 . 7 1 . 2 1 . 750 d 1 . 1 1 . 8 2 . 475 d 1 . 8 2 . 6 3 . 4100 d 2 . 4 3 . 8 5 . 0150 d 3 . 3 5 . 3 7 . 2______________________________________ although not appearing , the sensor 301 in its broader sense and shown in fig1 includes therein the voltage doubler rectifier circuit , the comparison circuit and the amplifier , so as to provide a compact unit in a single package . one of connector pins 311a may constitute said terminal 137 . other pins 311a may act as high frequency source terminals , and other source and shielding terminals for the amplifier . | 6 |
fig1 shows a circuit diagram of a first possible circuit layout 1 of a control unit 2 for actuating a valve unit 4 . the valve unit 4 in the present sample embodiment has an actuator 5 ( formed essentially from an electric coil 8 in the present sample embodiment ) with a valve body 6 . in the present sample embodiment , the actuator 5 acts to move the valve body 6 upward ( so that , for example , the valve head makes contact with a valve seat and the valve unit 4 is closed accordingly ) when an electric current is applied to the electric coil 8 . if , on the other hand , no electric current is flowing through the electric coil 8 , a return spring 7 provided in the present sample embodiment brings about a return movement of the valve body 6 . of course , the valve body 6 can also be opened once more by external forces ( such as a pressure difference at the valve head ) or the like . the actual switching of the actuator 5 ( and thus the movement of the valve unit 4 or the valve body 6 ) on and off is initiated by the imposing of an input signal at the signal input 9 . the input signal imposed at the signal input 9 — depending on the voltage imposed — brings about a corresponding current in the electric coil 8 . thanks to a suitable circuitry logic , however , an overcontrolling of the electric coil 8 is prevented , so that under normal conditions this cannot be damaged even if an excessively strong and / or relatively long input signal ( possibly also provided with a high duty cycle ) is applied . in the sample embodiment of the circuit layout 1 shown in fig1 , the valve unit 4 is only supposed to be moved back and forth between an open and a closed state . accordingly , only a binary signal ( with suitable voltage in the power - on state ) is applied to the signal input 9 . of course , it is also possible to provide electrical devices of different design in combination with the circuit layout 1 and / or also to realize intermediate positions of the electrical device ( in which case it need not necessarily be a valve unit 4 ). the input signal furnished by the signal input 9 is applied to the non - inverting input of an operational amplifier 10 . at the inverting input of the operational amplifier 10 the voltage falling across a shunt resistor 11 is applied , being a measure of the current flowing through the electric coil 8 of the actuator 5 ( shunt resistor 11 and electric coil 8 form a voltage divider circuit ). depending on the difference of the two input voltages at the operational amplifier 10 , the result is an output voltage 21 whose magnitude is the voltage corresponding to the difference . the output voltage 21 of the operational amplifier 10 is taken to an analog / digital converter 12 and digitized . the digital value is placed in a comparison register 13 . the comparison register 13 is in communication with a counting register 14 , which counts the signals of a clock signal 15 . depending on the outcome of the comparison ( i . e ., counting register 14 & gt ; comparison register 13 or counting register 14 & lt ; comparison register 13 ) a flip flop 16 is switched on or off appropriately . since the counting register 14 has only a finite length , the counting register 14 overflows at a certain time , so that it is again reset to 0 . in addition to this or optionally , it is also possible to set the counting register 14 at 0 by applying a special ( input ) signal . for example , this can be a signal that is furnished by a separate input line ( not shown in fig1 ) and / or which constitutes a distinct reset signal . but it is likewise conceivable ( in addition or alternatively ) for a resetting of the counting register 14 to occur , for example , from a passage through zero of a voltage signal ( especially a voltage signal supplied to signal line 9 ) ( of course , instead of a passage through zero of the voltage signal also basically any other value can be chosen ). finally , a clocked , pulse width modulated control signal 17 is produced at the output of the flip flop 16 . the pulse width modulated control signal 17 actuates a switching transistor 18 , which applies the circuit through the actuator 5 to a voltage source 19 or cuts it off from this . based on the inductance of the electrical coil 8 , in combination with the freewheeling diode 20 , a current strength is set in the actuator 5 , corresponding to the pulse width ratio ( so - called duty cycle ) of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 . however , the pulse width modulated control signal 17 is not taken only to the switching transistor 18 , but also to an electronic evaluation unit 22 . based on the pulse width ratio and / or the frequency of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 , this calculates the position of the valve body 6 . in particular , the evaluation electronics 22 registers not only the particular absolute value of frequency or pulse width ratio of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 , but also in particular abrupt changes in frequency and / or pulse width ratio of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 . it should be pointed out that it is also entirely possible to use the output signal 21 of the operational amplifier 10 as the input signal for the evaluation unit 22 , since the current passing through the electrical coil 8 also still has the ripple factor of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 ( albeit with a distinctly lesser intensity , and in addition a d . c . voltage component is also superimposed on it ). hence , the pulse width modulated control signal 17 can also be used “ in part ”. fig2 shows a second , preferred sample embodiment for a circuit layout 23 for actuating a valve unit 4 . the valve unit 4 in the present sample embodiment is identical to the valve unit 4 shown in fig1 . of course , it is possible for the valve units 4 depicted in fig1 and 2 to also have a different layout , or to use instead of the valve unit 4 a totally different type of electrical device . similar to the sample embodiment of a circuit layout 1 as shown in fig1 , in the present sample embodiment of a circuit layout 23 the voltage dropping across a shunt resistor 11 is also used as a measure of the current flowing through the electrical coil 8 . at first , the voltage dropping at the shunt resistor 11 is preamplified in a preamplifier 24 . the output signal of the preamplifier 24 thus constitutes the actual signal 25 for a comparator 27 , which is implemented in the present case by software in a microcontroller . the software implementation is such that the comparator 27 has a hysteresis ( which is shown in fig2 by a corresponding symbol in the comparator circuit symbol 27 ). furthermore , a setpoint signal 26 is applied at the software - implemented comparator 27 . based on a comparison of setpoint signal 26 and actual signal 25 ( factoring in a time hysteresis ), a control signal 17 is generated , which is pulse width modulated . the modulation of the pulse width modulated control signal 17 is modulated not only “ classically ” in regard to the pulse width ratio ( duty cycle ), but also in terms of its frequency . in order to process the input signals ( setpoint signal 26 and actual signal 25 ) numerically by software , the comparator 27 has — if required — an analog / digital converter at its inputs . in the sample embodiment shown in fig2 , the setpoint signal 26 is already in digital form . accordingly , the corresponding input of the comparator 27 has no analog / digital converter . therefore , only the analog signal coming from the preamplifier 24 has to be converted into a digital form . optionally , it can also be advantageous for the conversion from analog to digital form to occur already in or immediately after the preamplifier 24 . accordingly , no analog / digital converter is needed in the comparator 27 any more . similar to the sample embodiment of a circuit layout 1 as shown in fig1 , the circuit layout 23 shown in fig2 also has an evaluation unit 22 , which infers the current position of the valve body 6 based on the frequency and / or the pulse width ratio of the control signal 17 . at the same time , the control signal 17 is applied to the input of a switching transistor 8 , so that in this way the current flowing through the actuator 5 is regulated accordingly . a voltage source 19 and a freewheeling diode 20 are also provided , similar to the sample embodiment shown in fig1 . the benefit of the software design of the comparator 27 shown in fig2 is that a larger quantity of information is present in the comparator 27 . hence , several properties of setpoint signal 26 and actual signal 25 can be processed . it is also very easy to change the magnitude of the setpoint signal 26 , for example , in order to cancel out drift effects during permanent duty of the valve unit 4 . for this , the value of a corresponding variable can simply be changed . moreover , it is also possible for certain properties of the setpoint signal 26 and / or the actual signal 25 as detected by the comparator 27 to be provided in digital form to the evaluation unit 22 , so that a more precise result can be achieved in the evaluation unit 22 . for this , a data line can be provided between comparator 27 and evaluation unit 22 ( not shown in the present case ). it is also possible for evaluation unit 22 and comparator 27 to be designed , for example , as software modules on a single hardware unit ( such as a computer - on - a - chip or a microcontroller ). fig3 shows a third , especially preferred sample embodiment of a circuit layout 43 for actuating a valve unit 4 . the circuit layout 43 shown in fig3 for the most part resembles the circuit layouts 1 , 23 shown in fig1 and 2 , especially the circuit layout 1 shown in fig1 . components or subassemblies that have an identical function and / or an identical layout are provided with identical reference numbers and not described once more in detail , to avoid needless repetition . a major difference between the circuit layouts 1 , 23 described thus far and the presently depicted circuit layout 43 is that use is made , in particular , of standard components 18 , 44 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , which are configured as hardware components or subassemblies . thus ( apart from the evaluation unit 22 ), no use is made of a software control system . the circuit layout 43 has two control inputs 9 , 45 , namely , a first signal input 9 and a logic input 45 ( signal flag input ). by the logic input 45 , the actuator 5 can be switched on and off by means of a binary signal . in addition , a reference voltage can be applied via the signal input 9 , by which one can set the maximum setpoint of the electric current flowing through the electrical coil 8 of the actuator 5 . because in the present sample embodiment the reference voltage does not need to be switched on and off , the circuit to generate the reference voltage can be particularly simple . the logic input 45 , for example , can be actuated by an electronic control circuit ( a so - called controller , not shown here ). of course , it is possible for the electronic control circuit to resort to output values of the evaluation unit 22 to generate a signal for the logic input 45 . when a signal is applied to the logic input 45 in the circuit layout 43 ( which has the effect of closing the valve unit 4 fastened to the actuator 5 ), the second switching transistor 49 on the one hand is switched via the second amplifier circuit 48 to “ conducting ”. the second switching transistor 48 remains connected through for as long as a signal is present at the logic input 45 . the actual regulating task , i . e ., the controlling of the current strength flowing through the electrical coil 8 of the actuator 5 , is on the other hand realized by the first switching transistor 18 ( as described more closely below ). moreover , the signal at the logic input 45 has the effect that the logical and circuit 44 for the output signal 21 of the operational amplifier 10 is “ connected through ”. the output signal 21 of the operational amplifier 10 thus brings about through the first preamplifier 47 a switching on and off of the first switching transistor 18 , and thus a releasing or a blocking of the electric current flowing through the electrical coil 8 of the actuator 5 . immediately after imposing the signal at the logic input 45 , the first switching transistor 18 at first switches to “ conducting ” ( the second switching transistor 49 is likewise switched to “ conducting ”). the current strength through the electrical coil 8 of the actuator 5 rises steadily . accordingly , the voltage across the shunt resistor 11 increases . the electrical voltage tapped off there is taken to the inverting input of the operational amplifier 10 . at a certain current strength , the voltage tapped off at the shunt resistor 11 exceeds the reference voltage supplied across the signal input 9 , which is taken to the non - inverting input of the operational amplifier 10 . this has the effect that the output signal 21 of the operational amplifier 10 decreases , and thus the first switching transistor 18 is blocked . due to the inductance of the electrical coil 8 , the electric current through the electrical coil 8 is at first maintained ( current flow through the first freewheeling diode 20 and the second switching transistor 49 ), but with rapidly diminishing current strength . this causes a drop in the voltage across the shunt resistor 11 , so that the operational amplifier 10 again switches , and puts out an output signal 21 . the “ quickness ” of the switching between the two switching states of the operational amplifier 10 is determined by the hysteresis of the operational amplifier 10 , which is basically influenced by the magnitude of the feedback resistance 50 . the external switching of the operational amplifier 10 is furthermore chosen in the present case such that the output signal 21 is basically a binary signal . thus , the output signal 21 basically knows only the two states “ on ” and “ off ”. in this way , a current flow with predetermined setpoint current strength ( the magnitude of the current strength is predetermined by the signal input 9 ) through the actuator 5 is accomplished . the current flow here has certain fluctuations about the actual setpoint current strength . as already mentioned ( and yet to be further discussed below ), one can infer the switching state of the valve unit 4 from the frequency and the duty cycle of the output signal 21 of the operational amplifier 10 . accordingly , the output signal 21 is used not only for feedback , but is also taken to an evaluation unit 22 . the information obtained from this evaluation unit 23 can also be used for feedback purposes , incidentally ( for example , to vary the actuation signal over time , and thereby cancel out any drift due to wear or temperature drift ). if at a later time the valve unit 4 opens once more , the signal imposed at the logic input 45 is switched off . this has the effect that both the first switching transistor 18 ( via the logical and circuit 44 ) and the second switching transistor 49 are blocked . the inductance of the electrical coil 8 , which at first tries to maintain the current flow , now “ pumps ” electric current from ground potential to the ( relatively high ) voltage potential of the voltage source 19 via the first freewheeling diode 20 and the second freewheeling diode 46 . this brings about an especially fast decay in the current strength and thus an especially fast opening of the valve body 6 . thus , a fast cutoff function is achieved by the design with two switching transistors 19 , 49 . merely for sake of completeness it is pointed out that it is entirely possible to design the circuit layout 43 also without a second switching transistor 49 ( and without the second amplifier circuit 48 ). but then the current flow through the electrical coil 8 of the actuator 5 decays more slowly ; hence , the fast cutoff functionality is not as good . fig4 shows the time course of the various signals in an actuating of a valve unit 4 making use of a circuit layout 1 per fig1 , a circuit layout 23 per fig2 , or a circuit layout 43 per fig3 ( while other circuit layouts are also conceivable ). at time to , an input signal 9 , 26 of corresponding magnitude is applied . the valve 4 at this time is still in an open state , for example ( shown in fig4 by the valve position curve 28 ). the control unit 2 at first switches the control signal 17 to a “ permanently ” switched - on value . due to the inductance of the electrical coil 8 , it takes a certain time until the current 29 through the coil 8 rises and follows the control signal 17 . at time t 1 , the maximum permissible current strength 29 through the electrical coil 8 is reached . accordingly , the control unit 2 changes the control signal 17 to a pulse width modulated signal with a particular switching frequency and a particular switching ratio ( a particular “ duty cycle ”). this has the consequence that the current 29 through the electrical coil 8 ( apart from a residual ripple ) remains almost constant . as one can furthermore see from fig4 ( especially the valve position curve 28 ), the valve body 6 has begun to move . however , the valve unit 4 is not yet closed ; the valve body 6 is accordingly still in movement . at time t 2 , the valve unit 4 is now fully closed . ( of course , it is also possible for the “ switching logic ” of the valve unit 4 to be different . for example , in the case of a valve unit 4 that is opened by a current pulse , the valve unit 4 is still fully open at time t 2 . the other positions are “ switched around ” accordingly from the presently described embodiment .) this is well seen from the break in the valve position curve 28 . now , the inventors have found that this reaching of the end position of the valve body 4 results in a distinct change in the control signal 17 produced by the control unit 2 . initial measurements have revealed that both the frequency and the pulse width ratio of the control signal change significantly . this is evident in fig4 from the altered form of the control signal 17 itself . furthermore , it is clear from fig4 that the time variation of the electric current 29 through the electrical coil 8 also changes ( especially the frequency of the residual ripple changes significantly ). accordingly , the current signal 29 can also be used for a position evaluation of the valve body 6 or the like . as long as the input signal 9 , 26 remains switched on , nothing changes in the situation . the current strength 29 through the valve unit 4 remains constant , the control signal 17 does not change , and the position of the valve body 6 also remains constant ( see valve position curve 28 ). only when the input signal 9 , 26 is again switched off ( at time t 3 ) is the control signal 17 for the switching transistor 18 “ permanently ” switched off , the current 29 through the electrical coil 8 decreases , and the valve body 6 of the valve unit 4 moves back to its starting position ( see valve position curve 28 ). with the experimental layout presented in fig4 , a change in the frequency of the control signal 17 from 6 . 25 khz ( valve body 6 still moving ) to a frequency of 4 . 517 khz ( valve body 6 no longer moving ; valve unit 4 fully closed ) was achieved in initial experiments . the pulse width ratio ( the duty cycle ) also changed significantly in these experiments . thus , the pulse width ratio jumped from initially 50 % to 30 % within a very short span of time . thus , it is clearly apparent that both the control signal 17 and the actual current 29 through the electrical coil 8 constitute a very good input signal for an evaluation unit 22 . finally , fig5 shows in a highly simplified schematic representation an electrically switched hydraulic pump 35 . the electrically switched hydraulic pump 35 has a piston 36 , which moves up and down in a cylinder 37 by means of an eccentrically arranged drive pulley 38 ( the downward movement can result , for example , from a return spring , not shown here ). accordingly , the cavity 39 located in the cylinder 37 is increased and decreased in cycles . if the cavity 39 increases by a downward movement of the piston 36 , hydraulic oil will be sucked out from a reservoir 41 through an electrically controlled inlet valve 40 . the electrically controlled inlet valve 40 can be , for example , the valve unit 4 shown in fig1 or fig2 . when the piston 36 has reached its lower dead center , for example , has moved beyond it , it will again move upward ( into the cylinder 37 ) and accordingly the cavity 39 is decreased . the hydraulic oil present in the cavity 39 will at first be forced back into the reservoir 41 via the still open inlet valve 40 . thus , effectively no hydraulic oil will be pumped . but the situation changes when the inlet valve 40 is closed by a corresponding control pulse . now the hydraulic oil can no longer drain across the inlet valve 40 . hence , the hydraulic oil now leaves the cavity 39 via a simple one - way valve 42 in the direction of a high - pressure reservoir ( not otherwise depicted at present ). the major difference between an electrically switched hydraulic pump 35 and a classical hydraulic pump with passive inlet and outlet valves is that the closing of the inlet valve 40 by means of the actuator 5 can be brought about at any given time . in this way , it is possible to vary the effectively pumped quantity of hydraulic oil in broad limits from one pump cycle to the next . the inlet valve 40 ( which , as already mentioned , can be configured according to a valve unit 4 represented in fig1 or fig2 ) is closed and opened again if desired via an actuator 5 ( it being possible for the opening process to occur by a pressure difference in the hydraulic oil on either side of the inlet valve 40 ). the actuating of the actuator 5 ( and thus the inlet valve 40 ) occurs especially by use of a control unit 2 , as shown in fig1 or fig2 . fig6 shows , again in schematic form , a flow chart 3 illustrating the process flow of the proposed method . in a first step 30 , we read in an input signal ( e . g ., an input signal 9 , 26 ; see fig1 and 2 ). this entered input signal 9 , 26 ( setpoint signal 26 ) is compared in a following step with the actual signal 25 , which is supplied from the electrical device ( such as a valve unit 4 ). based on the comparison of setpoint versus actual 31 ( for example , in a control unit 2 ), a suitable control signal ( such as control signal 17 ) is calculated 32 and used to actuate the electrical device . the control signal found in the calculation 32 is used not only to actuate the electrical device 4 , but also in addition ( say , at the same time ) to calculate a state signal 33 . for example , the state signal calculated 33 in this way can be a signal that the electrical device 4 has adopted a certain position ( such as an end position ). the state signals obtained in this step 33 can then be used in a further process step 34 , for example , for a fine - tuning . thus , for example , it often happens that many mechanical , electrical or other technical components have a certain drift over the course of time . but such a drift can be effectively counteracted by the fine - tuning in step 34 . as a preferred example in this connection we can mention a change in the hold - back time for the next valve movement ( the next “ shot ”). although various embodiments of the present invention have been described and shown , the invention is not restricted thereto , but may also be embodied in other ways within the scope of the subject - matter defined in the following claims . | 6 |
in the drawings the same reference numerals are used to denote like features . as an overview , with reference first to both fig1 and 2 , therein is illustrated a carton 10 with drop - down separator panel 48 and blank 12 according to a preferred embodiment of the invention . the drop - down separator panel 48 of the carton 10 is compatible with other features of the carton 10 , including a top - opening feature of the carton and reinforced top and end closure walls . the features of the carton 10 and blank 12 from which it may be formed will be initially described with simultaneous reference to fig1 and 2 . the blank 12 illustrated and described is a simple preferred means of forming the carton 10 . the carton 10 is a generally tubular structure with end closures . the bottom panel 14 has first and second bottom end panels 16 , 18 foldably connected to opposed end edges of the bottom panel 14 . the bottom panel 14 contains at least one bottom separation tab 20 , and preferably several . first and second side panels 22 , 24 are connected to opposed side edges of the bottom panel 14 . each side panel 22 and 24 has first and second side end panels 26 , 28 and 36 , 38 , respectively , hingedly connected to opposed end edges of the respectively side panels 22 and 24 . each side end panel 26 , 28 and 36 , 38 has a slot - type opening with a hand - hole tab 30 , 32 and 40 , 42 hingedly connected to and generally covering the opening . the multiple - ply top wall of the carton 10 may be formed from as many plies of material as desired , however , in the preferred embodiment illustrated two layers of material are used . an inner - most top panel 46 has a top separator panel 48 hingedly connected thereto . fold lines 47 form a part of the hinge structure . the inner - most top panel 46 also has a detachably attached inner access ( or opening ) panel 50 integrally formed therewith . in the preferred embodiment illustrated , the separator panel 48 does not extend all the way to the side edges of the inner - most top panel 46 but instead defines an opening which leaves peripheral strips of material 62 , 64 . the chamfered or otherwise truncated corners of the separator panel 48 and the openings defined and associated therewith provide surfaces and edges which are less likely to adversely tear when the opening features , and other features , of the carton 10 are utilized . the inner opening / access panel 50 does not extend all the way to the side edges of the inner - most top panel 46 but instead also defines an opening which when removed leaves the extended peripheral strips 62 , 64 . also , as with the structure of the separator panel 48 , the inner access panel 50 in the preferred embodiment illustrated has truncated corners to enhance structure integrity . an outer - most top panel 66 has a pair of adjacent pivotable outer access panels 68 , 70 integrally formed with the outer - most top panel . a pair of outer top end panels 72 , 74 are hingedly connected to opposed end edges of the outer - most top panel 66 . each outer top end panel 72 , 74 has a hand - hole opening 76 and 78 , respectively . the outer access panels 68 , 70 and inner access panel 50 and the separator panel 48 have configurations corresponding to one another . and , likewise , the openings defined by the outer access panels 68 , 70 and the openings defined by the inner access panel 50 and the separator panel 48 have configurations corresponding to one another . also in a manner similar to the structure associated with the inner - most top panel , the outer access panels 68 , 70 do not extend all the way to the side edges of the outer - most top panel 66 but instead define an opening which leaves peripheral strips of material 82 , 84 . also in like manner , the chamfered or otherwise truncated corners of the outer access panels 68 , 70 and the openings defined and associated therewith provide surfaces which are less likely to adversely tear when the features of the carton 10 are utilized . adjacent starter flaps 86 , 88 serve several purposes . these flaps 86 , 88 share a weakened severance line 87 which allows them to be separated from one another as a hand is inserted to separate the two and open the top of the carton 10 . when turned under ( by folding along fold lines 85 , 89 , respectively ) the starter flaps 86 , 88 provide a cushion for grasping the access panels 68 , 70 . assembly of the carton 10 from the blank 12 is accomplished by folding the bottom separation tabs 20 upward and side panels 22 , 24 upward at right angles to bottom panel 14 . the inner - most top panel 46 is folded so that it is parallel to and overlies the bottom panel 14 . the separator panel 48 drops down to a generally vertical position due to gravity and the fold lines 47 which help form the hinge structure . the outer - most top panel 66 is folded over the inner - most top panel 46 and adhered thereto . at this point a tubular structure with open ends is formed . articles , such as bottles , may then be inserted from each open end of the carton 10 . lastly , the various end panels 16 , 18 , 26 , 28 , 36 , 38 , 52 , 54 , 76 , 74 are overlapped and secured to form respective end closures . the order in which the various end panels 16 , 18 , 26 , 28 , 36 , 38 , 52 , 54 , 76 , 74 are overlapped for closure may be modified without adversely affecting the structural integrity of the carton . different aesthetic appearances can be achieved by modifying the order of overlapping . in the erected carton 10 , the openings in the various side end panels 26 , 28 , 36 , 38 and top end panels 52 , 54 , 72 , 74 and bottom end align to form hand - hole apertures 34 , 44 . the bottom separation tabs 20 help provide separation between the groups of articles / bottles on opposite sides of the tabs 20 . each bottom separation tab 20 is configured to provide adequate separation for the heels of packaged articles ( for example , bottles ). however , because of the configuration and size of the bottom separation tabs 20 , when the tabs 20 are folded out of the plane of the bottom wall 14 the integrity and strength of the bottom wall 14 and carton 10 are not adversely affected . the drop - down separator panel 48 provides separation between articles / bottles at least at the upper regions of the articles . for example , at the shoulder regions of bottles . in the preferred embodiment illustrated the separator panel 48 is shown to extend only part of the distance toward the bottom wall of the carton 10 , however , the dimensions of the carton 10 may also be such that the separator panel extends more closely or completely to the bottom wall . the separator panel 48 is shown attached to the inner - most top panel 46 by a weakened score line 47 but may utilize any other carton structural element which encourages the separator panel to easily drop down into place in the erected carton . the carton 10 of the preferred embodiment has reinforcement and opening features with which the drop - down separator panel 48 is compatible . the end walls 60 , 80 ( shown in fig2 but wherein end wall 80 is not readily visible ) are multiple - ply , composite walls formed by the various end panels 16 , 18 , 26 , 28 , 36 , 38 , 52 , 54 , 72 , 74 of the blank 12 previously discussed . the innermost top panel 46 and outer top panel 66 contribute to reinforcement of the side walls 60 , 80 by means of the various top end panels 52 , 54 , 72 , 74 described . the inner 46 and outer 66 top panels contribute directly to reinforcement of the top wall by providing two overlapping panels . the rigidity of the composite top wall is maintained even when the access panels 50 , 68 , 70 are partially separated from and pivoted outwardly with respect to the inner 46 and outer top 66 panels because of the strips 62 , 64 , 82 , 84 discussed above . as previously mentioned , the drop - down separator panel 48 has a configuration which corresponds to and is positioned in register with the access panel 70 in the outer top panel 66 . thus , the opening provided when the separator panel 48 drops into place is compatible with the opening provided when the access / opening panel 70 in the top wall is lifted . the separator panel 48 is attached to the inner top panel 46 by hinges in such a manner that it is securely attached yet freely drops into place . the rear cut - out ( or aperture ) 49 of the separator panel 48 , which in the preferred embodiment has a generally u - shaped configuration corresponding to and compatible with the configuration of the adjacent facing hand - hole flaps 86 , 88 in the carton 10 , generally enables the carton to be opened without interference and , further , enables noninterfering manipulation of the access panels 68 , 70 and starter panels 86 , 88 in the outer top panel 66 . an adhesive may be strategically applied by means known in the art to bond the opening / access panels 50 , 68 to one another and the strips 62 , 82 and 64 , 84 to one another in the inner 46 and outer 66 top panels . the bonded area along the edges and corners strengthens the carton where needed to keep the carton intact when the bottles are full and afterwards when the opening panels are lifted and empty bottles are loaded through the top . because multiple plies of material are used , thin stock can be used . the bevelled corners on the various opening flaps 50 , 68 , 70 and drop - down partition 48 help inhibit undesirable tearing when these features are separated from the panels with which they are integrally formed . chamfering the corners of the panels eliminates sharp corners that could promote tearing and eventual destruction of the structural integrity of the carton . while the invention has been described with particular reference to the preferred embodiments , it is evident that certain aspects of the invention are not limited to the particular details of the examples illustrated , and it is therefore contemplated that other modifications and applications will occur to those skilled in the art . for example , the carton can be assembled from the blank using a different sequence of steps than described , and , while a unitary blank is preferred , a multi - piece blank can be used . it is accordingly intended that the claims shall cover all such modifications and applications as do not depart from the true spirit and scope of the invention . | 1 |
with a view to solving this problem , the invention provides a mechanically - driven compressor for air - conditioning devices , particularly for air - conditioning of vehicle cabins , in which the compressor rotor is driven via a magnetic clutch having two rotating pole rings facing each other . the poles of one pole ring are excited by windings supplied with dc . one pole ring is secured to the driving system while the other pole ring is secured to the pressure producing system . a separating wall of magnetically pervious material which hermetically seals the two systems with respect to each other extends through a gap between the pole rings and forms part of a housing which sealingly encloses the compressor . in this way any leakage loss of refrigerant from the pressure producing system via shaft seals , as in the case of arrangements in accordance with the state of the art , is eliminated . the compressor may be connected to stationary heat exchangers via conduits arranged in the proximity of the axis . the heat exchangers of the compressor may however also be in the form of rotary heat exchangers , which are rigidly connected to the driven part of the compressor and which rotate with the latter . the second pole ring which is associated with the pole ring having the windings may be made up of permanent magnets , although it may also be constructed in the form of a soft magnetic pole ring with a cage winding , of the kind employed in the rotors of induction motors . in this case the device embodying the invention not only enables the equipment to be shut down when desired , but the device can be switched on whilst the pole ring which is secured to the driving device rotates . the electro - magnetic pole ring is advantageously wound on the principle of the wave winding or / of claw pole construction , so that only one coil is required . preferably the drive is arranged via a v - belt variable transmission , which is controlled by the speed of the motor . hysteresis magnets or pole rings with cage windings are also suitable . in both cases constant speed operation can then be dispensed with . the invention will now be described , by way of example , with reference to the drawings . fig1 shows a compressor embodying the invention in section and partly in elevation . fig2 shows a section on the line ii -- ii in fig1 . fig3 shows a portion of the wave winding of the pole ring . fig4 shows the drive disc of the compressor in fig1 in section . the device shown in fig1 has a pivot arm 1 , which is pivotable about a bolt 2 secured to a motor vehicle engine . a hollow axle 3 and a housing 5 are rigidly secured to the pivot arm 1 . a rotor 7 of a compressor is driven via a shaft 8 and a wheel disc 9 by a first pole ring 10 which has permanent magnets . this pole ring has a substantial number of poles 11 of alternate polarity distributed over its perimeter . the compressor is located in a hermetically sealed chamber 12 , which is formed by the separating wall 13 constructed in the form of a split tube and the end wall 14 together with the compressor wall 4 . an electro - magnetic second pole ring 15 having the same number of soft iron poles 16 as the magnetic poles 11 of the pole ring 10 rotates relative to the compressor housing 5 . a coil 17 of wave configuration as shown in fig2 forms the pole 16 . the two ends of the coil are connected to the slip rings 18 , 18 &# 39 ;. the latter are connected via the brushes 19 , 19 &# 39 ; to the dc supply via a switch ( not shown ). the pole ring 15 , which is supported in ball bearings 20 , 20 &# 39 ; forms a unit with a driven v - belt split pulley 21 . the latter has an axially displaceable wall or cheek 22 which is pressed against the second wall or cheek 24 by a spring 23 . in operation of the compressor , refrigerant is sucked through the conduit 34 and discharged via the conduit 25 in compressed form . lubricating oil within the chamber squirts out of the bearing gap 26 and collects in the rotating annular chamber 27 . a pipe 28 in the form of a wing - shaped interceptor extends into the chamber 27 and directs the oil under pressure to the lubricating grooves 29 of the compressor rotor 7 . together the pipe 28 and grooves 29 form a lubricating means for the compressor rotor . a second driving v - belt split pulley , as shown in fig4 is secured to a rotary power take - off from the motor vehicle engine . the axially movable wall or cheek 40 is pressed against the stationary wall or cheek 42 by a spring 41 whilst the fly weights 43 , which are pivotable about the axes 44 , cause the axially movable wall 40 to become spaced from the wall 42 by a distance which increases with the speed of the shaft 45 . by this means the curvature of the v - belt and hence the transmission ratio is variable . | 8 |
referring now to the drawings , the rectangular sheet metal toolbox 2 has a continuous peripheral upstand 4 surrounded by a continuous ledge 6 . the box is closed by a lid 16 . ledge 6 acts as a landing surface for the lid when the lid opens and closes . a box hinge 22 ( fig4 ) about 300 mm long is welded to the central area of the box ledge and a hinge 26 is welded to the central area of the underside of the lid . in fig1 - 4 , lid hinge 26 is also connected by a short flat steel link 30 to intermediate hinge 32 . this is welded to the top face of flat elongated steel link 36 . steel link 38 is of z - section shape with a step or tongue 40 in the front edge . tongue 40 projects through a window 42 in the link 38 in order to be connected to intermediate hinge 32 . the lid has a rotatable handle 52 which actuates a double armed lever 54 . one end of the lever reacts against a reaction bar 58 . elongated link 38 transmits reaction to the box and consequently , when the handle is rotated , the only part which can move is the lid which slides to the left to lock and to the right to unlock . the opposite end of the lever 54 is a hook 60 which engages a slot 62 in the upstand 4 . key operated lock 66 engages a projection 68 on the lever and arrests handle rotation . locking is made possible by the provision of an l - section angle 70 welded to the underside of the lid adjacent the front closing edge . the l - section angle 70 underlies ledge 6 and the edge of the lid adjacent the handle 52 is bent to form a flange 72 . the opposite , rear lid edge is bent into a channel section 74 . this forms a hook profile with an outwardly turned flange 76 depending from the upstand 4 . upright flange 74 moves towards and away from horizontal flange 76 around the rim of the box . likewise flange 72 moves towards and away from the box upstand 4 . a pry inserted at the front of the box will not lift the lid because l - section angle 70 meets ledge 6 . in use the toolbox resists prying because the hook profile is present at the rear and the overlying lid flange 72 at the front edge may bend upwards but the angle 70 remains beneath the ledge 6 . in the locked position hook 60 engages the front wall of the box and resists prying force aimed at sliding the lid rearwardly out of engagement with the front ledge . referring now to fig5 , the variant has the same components as fig1 - 4 but in addition has a channel section bracket 74 with a web 80 joining a pair of segments 82 which in turn are welded to the undersurface of z - link 38 . segments 82 brace web 80 and provide support . the rear wall of the box has a pair of upright flanges 84 . the flanges support a pair of ties 86 which together with box hinge 22 secure the lid to the box while allowing it to open and close . in other words , flanges 84 anchor ties 86 . gas struts 88 are also connected between the flanges 84 and the segments . these assist smooth opening of the lid in known manner since gas struts 88 push up the heavy lid as soon as the lid is slid back from the lock position . adjustable bolt 90 extends between web 80 and the overlying tongue 40 . this permits threaded adjustment of the inclination of the lid about the axis of the box hinge 22 . during operation , z - link 38 pivots on box hinge 22 and as z - link 38 swings forward , flange 74 approaches the upstand 4 and underlies it when the lid 16 slides shut . the lid has a rotatable handle 52 which actuates a double armed lever 54 . one end of the lever reacts against reaction bar 58 and the reaction surface is step 40 . at the same time l - section angle 70 must be ready to slide under horizontal flange 76 . the handle rotation pushes and pulls on step 40 . the inventor found that the slide motion permitted by link 30 could be eased if adjustment by bolt 90 was made . referring now to fig6 , the box hinge 22 carries z - link 38 . the layer between lid 16 and z - link 38 is e - shaped in plan as shown in our co - pending australian application no . 2008904078 which has now become australian application no . 2009203066 and corresponding to u . s . ser . no . 12 / 462 , 917 , which is incorporated by reference herein . this embodiment allows the use of a sliding lid 16 which relies on slots 100 and pins 102 instead of the triple hinge assembly of fig1 - 5 . in fig7 , 8 and 9 , lid 16 is hinged differently from the embodiment in fig1 - 6 . lid hinges 26 are bolted to lugs welded to the lid . the box hinges 22 are welded to a channel section cap 104 fastened to the upstand 4 by bolts . the double hinge gives the required arc of sliding motion to the lid . the box hinges 22 are joined and from the central area between the hinge ends projects a bracket 106 to which reaction link or pivoting connector 58 is pivoted . arm 108 extends from the bracket 106 in order to reach the gas strut 88 and tie 110 . the key operation and latching are the same as in the embodiments of fig1 - 5 above . as the door closes the l - section angle 70 contacts landing surface 76 and aligns the lid 16 which makes the final slide action precise . flange 74 underlies cap 104 to prevent rear prying from a pry bar or other tool . likewise l - section angle 70 underlies ledge 6 to prevent front prying . referring now to fig1 and 11 , the handle 52 in this embodiment reacts against static box hinge 22 sliding the lid 16 left and right . channel section cap 114 is fastened to upstand 4 by bolts . channel section cap 114 is the same component as 104 in fig7 and box hinge 22 is welded to channel section cap 114 as in fig1 . flange 74 underlies cap 114 to prevent rear prying from a pry bar or other tool . comparison of the lock / unlock positions of fig1 - 3 show that the lid movements are reversed in this embodiment , i . e . box hinge 22 remains static and the lid “ floats ” left and right between lock position shown in fig1 and unlock position shown in fig1 . in this embodiment the landing surface for the lid is the external portion of ledge 6 . at the side opposite hinge 22 the upstand 4 has an inverted lip 120 which ends in a downwardly projecting hook 122 . the inwardly projecting edge of door 16 has a flange 124 which ends in upwardly projecting hook 126 . this double hook construction is duplicated at flange 128 and cap 130 . the twin mutual obstruction of the hook 126 with hook 122 and flange 128 with welded cap 130 defeat prying at the front of the security box . 1 . good degree of access to the interior . 2 . hinges are internal and inaccessible . 3 . pry resistant construction because the hooks and flanges which withstand the prying forces extend along the full length of one side of the box . the box and lid are mutually supportive in resisting entry . it is to be understood that the word “ comprising ” as used throughout the specification is to be interpreted in its inclusive form , i . e . use of the word “ comprising ” does not exclude the addition of other elements . it is to be understood that various modifications of and / or additions to the invention can be made without departing from the basic nature of the invention . holes can be provided in the floor or walls of the box for passage of bolts to secure the box to the site or vehicle . these modifications and / or additions are therefore considered to fall within the scope of the invention . | 8 |
reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments , examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings . fig1 is a schematic cross - sectional view illustrating a scribing process of a foldable oled device , and fig2 is a schematic cross - sectional view illustrating damages in an encapsulation film of a foldable oled device . as shown in fig1 and 2 , an oled device 1 includes a flexible substrate 10 , an emitting diode d and an encapsulating film 20 covering the emitting diode d . the flexible substrate 10 may include polymer such as polyimide , and the emitting diode d is formed on or over the flexible substrate 10 . although not shown , the emitting diode d includes first and second electrodes facing each other and an organic emitting layer between the first and second electrodes . in addition , on the flexible substrate 10 , a switching thin film transistor ( tft ) as a switching element and a driving tft as a driving element are formed , and the first electrode of the emitting diode d is connected to the driving tft . the encapsulating film 20 covers the emitting diode d to prevent damage to the emitting diode d under conditions of high temperature and high humidity . in the encapsulation film 20 , an inorganic layer and an organic layer are alternately stacked . for example , the encapsulation film 20 may have a triple - layered structure including a first inorganic layer 22 on the emitting diode d , an organic layer 24 on the first inorganic layer 22 and a second inorganic layer 26 on the organic layer 24 . a plurality of cells are formed on a mother substrate , and each cell is separated by a scribing process to provide the oled device 1 . namely , a plurality of emitting diodes d are formed in each cell , and the encapsulation film 20 is formed to cover an entire surface of the mother substrate . then , the scribing process is performed to separate each cell . since the scribing process is performed onto the encapsulation film 20 , the encapsulation film 20 is damaged . namely , cracks may be generated in the first inorganic layer 22 and the second inorganic layer 26 , and moisture may penetrate into the emitting diode d through the cracks as shown in fig2 . as a result , the emitting diode d may be damaged . in the foldable oled device , stress by folding operation is concentrated into the encapsulation film 20 in a folding region . accordingly , when damages , such as cracks , are generated in the encapsulation film 20 by the scribing process , the cracks can grow due to the folding operation causing further damage to the emitting diode d . fig3 a is a schematic plane view illustrating a foldable oled device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure . as shown in fig3 , an oled device 100 is a foldable oled device capable of being folded along a folding region fr . for example , the folding region fr is defined along a direction of a minor axis of the foldable oled device 100 . alternatively , the folding region fr may be defined along a direction of a major axis of the foldable oled device 100 . when the folding region fr is defined along the direction of the minor axis of the foldable oled device 100 , a pad region ( not shown ) is defined in at least one end along the direction of the major axis . in the foldable oled device 100 of the present disclosure , a plurality of pixel regions p are defined on a flexible substrate 110 , and an emitting diode ( not shown ) is formed in a display region including the plurality of pixel regions p . in addition , an encapsulating film covering the emitting diode is formed . in the folding region fr , the encapsulation film has a width smaller than the flexible substrate 110 . namely , in the direction of the minor axis , both ends of the encapsulation film are positioned inside both ends of the flexible substrate 110 . in addition , the end of the encapsulation film in the folding region and the end of the encapsulation film along a direction , which crosses the folding region , may have a symmetric structure or an asymmetric structure . due to the encapsulation film , damages on the encapsulation film from the scribing process and the folding operation are prevented such that the problem of the display quality and the lifetime in the foldable oled device 100 is overcome . fig3 b is a view of the foldable oled device 100 folded across the folding region fr shown in fig3 a . fig4 a and 4b are schematic cross - sectional views illustrating a foldable oled device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure , and fig5 is a schematic cross - sectional view illustrating a pixel structure of a foldable oled device of the present disclosure . fig4 b is a cross - sectional view taken along the line a - a ′ in fig3 , and fig5 is a cross - sectional view taken along the line b - b ′ in fig3 . as shown in fig4 a , an emitting diode d is formed to correspond to a display region of each cell in a mother substrate ( not shown ), and an encapsulation film 170 is formed to cover the emitting diode d and correspond to the display region and a part of a non - display region at peripheries of the display region . next , a scribing process is performed to separate each cell such that the flexible oled device 100 is fabricated . since ends of the encapsulation film 170 are positioned inside scribing lines , the scribing process is not performed to the encapsulation film 170 . accordingly , the damages , such as cracks , are not generated in the encapsulation film 170 in the scribing process . as shown in fig4 b , the flexible oled device 100 fabricated by the above scribing process includes the flexible substrate 110 , where the display region and the non - display region are defined , the emitting diode d corresponding to the display region and disposed on or over the flexible substrate 110 , and the encapsulation film 170 covering the emitting diode d and corresponding to the display region and a part of the non - display region . referring to fig5 , a tft tr , the emitting diode d , and the encapsulation film 170 are sequentially stacked on the flexible substrate 110 . for example , the flexible substrate 110 may be a polyimide substrate . since the flexible substrate 110 is inadequate to a process of forming elements , such as the tft tr , the process of forming the elements is performed on the flexible substrate 110 attached to a carrier substrate ( not shown ) such as a glass substrate . after the process of forming the elements , the carrier substrate and the flexible substrate 110 is separated or released . the tft tr is formed on the flexible substrate 110 . although not shown , a buffer layer may be formed on the flexible substrate 110 , and the tft tr may be formed on the buffer layer . a semiconductor layer 122 is formed on the flexible substrate 110 . the semiconductor layer 122 may include an oxide semiconductor material or polycrystalline silicon . when the semiconductor layer 122 includes the oxide semiconductor material , a light - shielding pattern ( not shown ) may be formed under the semiconductor layer 122 . the light to the semiconductor layer 122 is shielded or blocked by the light - shielding pattern such that thermal degradation of the semiconductor layer 122 can be prevented . on the other hand , when the semiconductor layer 122 includes polycrystalline silicon , impurities may be doped into both sides of the semiconductor layer 122 . a gate insulating layer 124 is formed on the semiconductor layer 122 . the gate insulating layer 124 may be formed of an inorganic insulating material such as silicon oxide or silicon nitride . a gate electrode 130 , which is formed of a conductive material , e . g ., metal , is formed on the gate insulating layer 124 . in one embodiment , the gate electrode 130 is formed at a location corresponding to a center of the semiconductor layer 122 . in fig5 , the gate insulating layer 124 is formed on the entire surface of the flexible substrate 110 . alternatively , the gate insulating layer 124 may be patterned to have the same shape as the gate electrode 130 . an interlayer insulating layer 132 , which is formed of an insulating material , is formed on an entire surface of the flexible substrate 110 including the gate electrode 130 . the interlayer insulating layer 132 may be formed of an inorganic insulating material , e . g ., silicon oxide or silicon nitride , or an organic insulating material , e . g ., benzocyclobutene or photo - acryl . the interlayer insulating layer 132 includes a first contact hole 134 and a second contact hole 136 exposing both sides of the semiconductor layer 122 . the first contact hole 134 and second contact hole 136 are positioned at both sides of the gate electrode 130 to be spaced apart from the gate electrode 130 . in fig5 , the first contact hole 134 and second contact hole 136 extend into the gate insulating layer 124 . alternatively , when the gate insulating layer 124 is patterned to have the same shape as the gate electrode 130 , there may be no first contact hole 134 and second contact hole 136 in the gate insulating layer 124 . a source electrode 140 and a drain electrode 142 , which are formed of a conductive material , e . g ., metal , are formed on the interlayer insulating layer 132 . the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 are spaced apart from each other with respect to the gate electrode 130 and respectively contact both sides of the semiconductor layer 122 through the first and second contact holes 134 and 136 . the semiconductor layer 122 , the gate electrode 130 , the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 constitute the tft tr , and the tft tr serves as a driving element . in fig5 , the gate electrode 130 , the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 are positioned over the semiconductor layer 122 . namely , the tft tr has a coplanar structure . alternatively , in the tft tr , the gate electrode may be positioned under the semiconductor layer , and the source and drain electrodes may be positioned over the semiconductor layer such that the tft tr may have an inverted staggered structure . in this instance , the semiconductor layer may include amorphous silicon . although not shown , a gate line and a data line are disposed on or over the flexible substrate 110 and cross each other to define a pixel region . in addition , a switching element , which is electrically connected to the gate line and the data line , may be disposed on the flexible substrate 110 . the switching element is electrically connected to the tft tr as the driving element . in addition , a power line , which is parallel to and spaced apart from the gate line or the data line , may be formed on or over the flexible substrate 110 . moreover , a storage capacitor for maintaining a voltage of the gate electrode 130 of the tft tr during one frame , may be further formed on the flexible substrate 110 . a passivation layer 150 , which includes a drain contact hole 152 exposing the drain electrode 142 of the tft tr , is formed to cover the tft tr . a first electrode 160 , which is connected to the drain electrode 142 of the tft tr through the drain contact hole 152 , is separately formed in each pixel region . the first electrode 160 may be an anode and may be formed a conductive material having a relatively high work function . for example , the first electrode 160 may be formed of a transparent conductive material such as indium - tin - oxide ( ito ) or indium - zinc - oxide ( izo ). when the flexible oled device 100 is operated in a top - emission type , a reflection electrode or a reflection layer may be formed under the first electrode 160 . for example , the reflection electrode or the reflection layer may be formed of aluminum - paladium - copper ( apc ) alloy . a bank layer 166 , which covers edges of the first electrode 160 , is formed on the passivation layer 150 . a center of the first electrode 160 in the pixel region is exposed through an opening of the bank layer 166 . an organic emitting layer 162 is formed on the first electrode 160 . the organic emitting layer 162 may have a single - layered structure of an emitting material layer formed of an emitting material . alternatively , to improve emitting efficiency , the organic emitting layer 162 may have a multi - layered structure including a hole injection layer , a hole transporting layer , the emitting material layer , an electron transporting layer and an electron injection layer sequentially stacked on the first electrode 160 . a second electrode 164 is formed over the flexible substrate 110 including the organic emitting layer 162 . the second electrode 164 is positioned at an entire surface of the display area . the second electrode 164 may be a cathode and may be formed of a conductive material having a relatively low work function . for example , the second electrode 164 may be formed of aluminum ( al ), magnesium ( mg ) or al — mg alloy . the first electrode 160 , the organic emitting layer 162 and the second electrode 164 constitute the light emitting diode d . an encapsulation film 170 is formed on the light emitting diode d to prevent moisture penetration into the light emitting diode d . the encapsulation film 170 has a width smaller than the flexible substrate 110 , and the ends of the encapsulation film 170 are positioned on the flexible substrate 110 . namely , as shown in fig4 a , since the mother substrate including the encapsulation film 170 , which has a smaller area than the cell , is scribed , the width of the encapsulation film 170 is smaller than that of the flexible substrate 110 such that the ends of the encapsulation film 170 are positioned inside the ends of the flexible substrate 110 . as a result , the damages , such as cracks , in the encapsulation film by the scribing process are prevented . in addition , since there is no encapsulation film 170 in the end of the folding region fr , the folding stress generated in the folding operation is not concentrated in the encapsulation film 170 . accordingly , the damages on the encapsulation film 170 by the folding operation is minimized or prevented . in other words , in the ends of the folding region fr , the encapsulation film 170 is removed such that one of the passivation layer 150 ( of fig5 ), the interlayer insulating layer 132 ( of fig5 ), the gate insulating layer 124 ( of fig5 ) and the flexible substrate 110 is exposed and the ends of the encapsulation film 170 are disposed on the one of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , the gate insulating layer 124 and the flexible substrate 110 . on the other hand , to prevent the damages on the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 or the gate insulating layer 124 by the scribing process and moisture penetration into the display region , all of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 and the gate insulating layer 124 may be removed in the ends of the folding region fr such that the encapsulation film 170 may contact the flexible substrate 110 in the ends of the folding region fr . the encapsulation film 170 includes a first inorganic layer 172 , an organic layer 174 and a second inorganic layer 176 . however , it is not limited thereto . for example , the encapsulation film 170 may further include an organic layer on the second inorganic layer 176 to have a quadruple - layered structure or may further include an organic layer and an inorganic layer on the second inorganic layer 176 to have a five - layered structure . the first and second inorganic layers 172 and 176 have the same plane area and completely overlap each other . the organic layer 174 is positioned between the first and second inorganic layers 172 and 176 . the organic layer 174 has a plane area smaller than the first and second inorganic layers 172 and 176 and completely overlaps the first and second inorganic layers 172 and 176 . namely , the organic layer 174 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 176 such that moisture penetration through the organic layer 174 is prevented . for example , when the organic layer 174 has the same plane area as or larger area than the second inorganic layer 176 , a side surface of the organic layer 174 is exposed and moisture penetration may be generated through the side surface of the organic layer 174 . however , in the present disclosure , since the organic layer 174 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 176 , moisture penetration through the organic layer 174 is prevented . each of the first inorganic layer 172 and second inorganic layer 176 may be formed of silicon oxide or silicon nitride , and the organic layer 174 may be formed of an epoxy compound or an acryl compound . although not shown , a barrier film may be attached to the encapsulation film 170 , and a polarization plate for reducing an ambient light reflection may be attached to the barrier film . for example , the polarization plate may be a circular polarization plate . as mentioned above , in the flexible oled device 100 of the present disclosure , since the encapsulation film 170 is positioned inside the flexible substrate 110 , the damages on the encapsulation film 170 by the scribing process are prevented . in addition , since the ends of the encapsulation film 170 in the folding region fr are positioned inside the ends of the flexible substrate 110 , the folding stress is not concentrated in the ends of the encapsulation film 170 . accordingly , the decrease of the display quality and the lifetime in the flexible oled device 100 generated by the damages on the elements , e . g ., the emitting diode d , by the moisture penetration is minimized or prevented . fig6 a and 6b are schematic cross - sectional views illustrating a foldable oled device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure . fig6 a is a cross - sectional view taken along the line a - a ′ in fig3 , and fig6 b is a cross - sectional view taken along the line c - c ′ in fig3 . as shown in fig6 a and 6b , a flexible oled device 200 according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure includes the flexible substrate 210 , where the display region and the non - display region are defined , the emitting diode d corresponding to the display region and disposed on or over the flexible substrate 210 , and the encapsulation film 270 covering the emitting diode d and corresponding to the display region and a part of the non - display region . for example , the flexible substrate 210 may be a polyimide substrate . the tft tr ( of fig5 ), the emitting diode d and the encapsulation film 270 are formed on or over the flexible substrate 210 . as illustrated with fig5 , the tft tr may include the semiconductor layer 122 , the gate electrode 130 , the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 , and the emitting diode d may include the first electrode 160 , which is connected to the drain electrode 142 , the second electrode 164 , which faces the first electrode 160 , and the organic emitting layer 162 between the first and second electrodes 160 and 164 . the encapsulation film 270 covers the emitting diode d and has an area smaller than the flexible substrate 210 . namely , the ends of the encapsulation film 270 are positioned inside the ends of the flexible substrate 210 . in the ends of the folding region fr , the encapsulation film 270 is removed such that one of the passivation layer 150 ( of fig5 ), the interlayer insulating layer 132 ( of fig5 ), the gate insulating layer 124 ( of fig5 ) and the flexible substrate 210 is exposed and the ends of the encapsulation film 270 are disposed on the one of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , the gate insulating layer 124 and the flexible substrate 210 . on the other hand , to prevent the damages on the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , or the gate insulating layer 124 by the scribing process and moisture penetration into the display region , all of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 and the gate insulating layer 124 may be removed in the ends of the folding region fr such that the encapsulation film 270 may contact the flexible substrate 210 in the ends of the folding region fr . the encapsulation film 270 includes a first inorganic layer 272 , an organic layer 274 and a second inorganic layer 276 . however , it is not limited thereto . for example , the encapsulation film 270 may further include an organic layer and an inorganic layer on the second inorganic layer 276 to have a five - layered structure . the first and second inorganic layers 272 and 276 have the same plane area and completely overlap each other . the organic layer 274 is positioned between the first and second inorganic layers 272 and 276 . the organic layer 274 has a plane area smaller than the first inorganic layer 272 and second inorganic layer 276 and completely overlaps the first inorganic layer 272 and second inorganic layer 276 . namely , the organic layer 274 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 276 such that moisture penetration through the organic layer 274 is prevented . for example , when the organic layer 274 has the same plane area as or larger area than the second inorganic layer 276 , a side surface of the organic layer 274 is exposed and moisture penetration may be generated through the side surface of the organic layer 274 . however , in the present disclosure , since the organic layer 274 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 276 , moisture penetration through the organic layer 274 is prevented . each of the first inorganic layer 272 and second inorganic layer may be formed of silicon oxide or silicon nitride , and the organic layer 274 may be formed of an epoxy compound or an acryl compound . as shown in fig6 a , in the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 270 has a first distance d 1 from the flexible substrate 210 . on the other hand , as shown in fig6 b , in a side along a first direction , which is perpendicular to an extension direction ( i . e ., a second direction ) of the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 270 has a second distance d 2 , which is smaller than the first distance d 1 , from the flexible substrate 210 . namely , the encapsulation film 270 has an asymmetric shape such that a distance between the end of the encapsulation film 270 and the end of the flexible substrate 210 is varied with respect to a direction . in other words , in the second direction , where the ends of the folding region fr , in which the folding stress is generated , are disposed , the end of the encapsulation film 270 is positioned to be far away from the end of the flexible substrate 210 , the damage on the encapsulation film 270 by the folding stress is minimized . in addition , in the first direction , which may be perpendicular to the extension direction of the folding region fr , since the end of the encapsulation film 270 is disposed to be relatively close to the end of the flexible substrate 210 , efficiency of the mother substrate is increased . namely , since there is no folding stress in the end of the line c - c ′ in fig3 , there is no damage in the encapsulation film 270 even when the end of the encapsulation film 270 has the second distance d 2 , which is a relatively small , from the end of the flexible substrate 210 . in this instance , since the end of the flexible substrate 210 and the end of the encapsulation film 270 is closer , the number of the cells in the direction of the line c - c ′ can be increased . moreover , as explained in fig4 a , the encapsulation film 270 has a patterned shape , i . e ., an island shape , in each cell of the mother substrate , the damage on the encapsulation film 270 by the scribing process is prevented . accordingly , the damage on the emitting diode d by the moisture penetration is prevented , and the production costs of flexible oled device are reduced . fig7 a and 7b are schematic cross - sectional views illustrating a foldable oled device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure . fig7 a is a cross - sectional view taken along the line a - a ′ in fig3 , and fig7 b is a cross - sectional view taken along the line c - c ′ in fig3 . as shown in fig7 a and 7b , a flexible oled device 300 according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure includes the flexible substrate 310 , where the display region and the non - display region are defined , the emitting diode d corresponding to the display region and disposed on or over the flexible substrate 310 , and the encapsulation film 370 covering the emitting diode d and corresponding to the display region and a part of the non - display region . for example , the flexible substrate 310 may be a polyimide substrate . the tft tr ( of fig5 ), the emitting diode d and the encapsulation film 370 are formed on or over the flexible substrate 310 . as illustrated with fig5 , the tft tr may include the semiconductor layer 122 , the gate electrode 130 , the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 , and the emitting diode d may include the first electrode 160 , which is connected to the drain electrode 142 , the second electrode 164 , which faces the first electrode 160 , and the organic emitting layer 162 between the first and second electrodes 160 and 164 . the encapsulation film 370 covers the emitting diode d and has an area smaller than the flexible substrate 310 . namely , the ends of the encapsulation film 370 are positioned inside the ends of the flexible substrate 310 . in the ends of the folding region fr , the encapsulation film 370 is removed such that one of the passivation layer 150 ( of fig5 ), the interlayer insulating layer 132 ( of fig5 ), the gate insulating layer 124 ( of fig5 ) and the flexible substrate 310 is exposed and the ends of the encapsulation film 370 are disposed on the one of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , the gate insulating layer 124 and the flexible substrate 310 . on the other hand , to prevent the damages on the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 or the gate insulating layer 124 by the scribing process and moisture penetration into the display region , all of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 and the gate insulating layer 124 may be removed in the ends of the folding region fr such that the encapsulation film 370 may contact the flexible substrate 310 in the ends of the folding region fr . the encapsulation film 370 includes a first inorganic layer 372 , an organic layer 374 and a second inorganic layer 376 . however , it is not limited thereto . for example , the encapsulation film 370 may further include an organic layer and an inorganic layer on the second inorganic layer 376 to have a five - layered structure . the organic layer 374 is positioned between the first inorganic layer 372 and second inorganic layer 376 . the organic layer 374 has a plane area smaller than the first and second inorganic layers 372 and 376 and completely overlaps the first and second inorganic layers 372 and 376 . namely , the organic layer 374 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 376 such that moisture penetration through the organic layer 374 is prevented . for example , when the organic layer 374 has the same plane area as or larger area than the second inorganic layer 376 , a side surface of the organic layer 374 is exposed and moisture penetration may be generated through the side surface of the organic layer 374 . however , in the present disclosure , since the organic layer 374 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 376 , moisture penetration through the organic layer 374 is prevented . each of the first and second inorganic layers 372 and 376 may be formed of silicon oxide or silicon nitride , and the organic layer 374 may be formed of an epoxy compound or an acryl compound . as shown in fig7 a , in the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 370 has a first distance d 1 from the flexible substrate 310 . on the other hand , as shown in fig7 b , in a side along a direction , which is perpendicular to an extension direction of the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 370 has a second distance d 2 , which is smaller than the first distance d 1 , from the flexible substrate 310 . namely , the encapsulation film 370 has an asymmetric shape such that a distance between the end of the encapsulation film 370 and the end of the flexible substrate 310 is varied with respect to a direction . in other words , in a direction , where the ends of the folding region fr , in which the folding stress is generated , are disposed , the end of the encapsulation film 370 is positioned to be far away from the end of the flexible substrate 310 , the damage on the encapsulation film 370 by the folding stress is minimized . in addition , in a direction , which may be perpendicular to the extension direction of the folding region fr , since the end of the encapsulation film 370 is disposed to be relatively close to the end of the flexible substrate 310 , efficiency of the mother substrate is increased . namely , since there is no folding stress in the end of the line c - c ′ in fig3 , there is no damage in the encapsulation film 370 even when the end of the encapsulation film 370 has the second distance d 2 , which is a relatively small , from the end of the flexible substrate 310 . in this instance , since the end of the flexible substrate 310 and the end of the encapsulation film 370 is closer , the number of the cells in the direction of the line c - c ′ can be increased . moreover , as shown in fig7 a , in a first direction , the second inorganic layer 376 covers a side surface of the first inorganic layer 372 . namely , in the first direction , the second inorganic layer 376 has a width larger than the first inorganic layer 372 , and an end of the second inorganic layer 376 contacts an upper surface of the flexible substrate 310 . accordingly , even though the folding stress is concentrated into the encapsulation film 370 , the first inorganic layer 372 , which is a final - protection element for the emitting diode d , is covered with the second inorganic layer 376 such that the damage on the emitting diode d by moisture penetration can be minimized . on the other hand , as shown in fig7 b , in a second direction , the first and second inorganic layers 272 and 276 have the same width and completely overlap each other . to protect the emitting diode d , the first inorganic layer 372 should have a width being larger than a pre - determined width . in the present invention , since the second inorganic layer 376 in the second direction , where the folding stress is not generated , has the same width as the first inorganic layer 372 , an area increase of the non - display region in the second direction can be prevented . accordingly , the damage on the emitting diode d by the moisture penetration is prevented , the production costs of the flexible oled device are reduced , and the flexible oled device having a narrow bezel is provided . fig8 a to 8d are schematic views illustrating a foldable oled device according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure . fig8 a is a schematic plane view of the foldable oled device , and fig8 b to 8d are schematic cross - sectional views taken along the lines a - a ′, c - c ′ and d - d ′ in fig8 a . as shown in fig8 a to 8d , a flexible oled device 400 according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure includes the flexible substrate 410 , where the display region and the non - display region are defined , the emitting diode d corresponding to the display region and disposed on or over the flexible substrate 410 , and the encapsulation film 470 covering the emitting diode d and corresponding to the display region and a part of the non - display region . for example , the flexible substrate 410 may be a polyimide substrate . the tft tr ( of fig5 ), the emitting diode d and the encapsulation film 470 are formed on or over the flexible substrate 410 . as illustrated with fig5 , the tft tr may include the semiconductor layer 122 , the gate electrode 130 , the source electrode 140 and the drain electrode 142 , and the emitting diode d may include the first electrode 160 , which is connected to the drain electrode 142 , the second electrode 164 , which faces the first electrode 160 , and the organic emitting layer 162 between the first and second electrodes 160 and 164 . the encapsulation film 470 covers the emitting diode d and has an area smaller than the flexible substrate 410 . namely , the ends of the encapsulation film 470 are positioned inside the ends of the flexible substrate 410 . in the ends of the folding region fr , the encapsulation film 470 is removed such that one of the passivation layer 150 ( of fig5 ), the interlayer insulating layer 132 ( of fig5 ), the gate insulating layer 124 ( of fig5 ) and the flexible substrate 410 is exposed and the ends of the encapsulation film 470 are disposed on the one of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , the gate insulating layer 124 and the flexible substrate 410 . on the other hand , to prevent damage on the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 , or the gate insulating layer 124 by the scribing process and moisture penetration into the display region , all of the passivation layer 150 , the interlayer insulating layer 132 and the gate insulating layer 124 may be removed in the ends of the folding region fr such that the encapsulation film 470 may contact the flexible substrate 410 in the ends of the folding region fr . the encapsulation film 470 includes a first inorganic layer 472 , an organic layer 474 and a second inorganic layer 476 . however , it is not limited thereto . for example , the encapsulation film 470 may further include an organic layer and an inorganic layer on the second inorganic layer 476 to have a five - layered structure . the first and second inorganic layers 472 and 476 have the same plane area and completely overlap each other . alternatively , as shown in fig8 b and 8c , in a first direction , i . e ., an extension direction of the folding region fr , the second inorganic layer 476 may cover a side surface of the first inorganic layer 472 ( fig8 b ), and in a second direction , which may be perpendicular to the first direction , the second inorganic layer 476 may have the same width as the first inorganic layer 472 to completely overlap each other ( fig8 c ). as a result , the damage on the emitting diode d by moisture penetration in the folding region fr and an area increase of the non - display region in the second direction can be prevented . the organic layer 474 is positioned between the first inorganic layer 472 and second inorganic layer 476 . the organic layer 474 has a plane area smaller than the first and second inorganic layers 472 and 476 and is completely overlapped by the first and second inorganic layers 472 and 476 . namely , the organic layer 474 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 476 such that moisture penetration through the organic layer 474 is prevented . for example , when the organic layer 474 has the same plane area as or larger area than the second inorganic layer 476 , a side surface of the organic layer 474 is exposed and moisture penetration may be generated through the side surface of the organic layer 474 . however , in the present disclosure , since the organic layer 474 is completely covered and protected by the second inorganic layer 476 , moisture penetration through the organic layer 474 is prevented . each of the first inorganic layer 472 and second inorganic layer 476 may be formed of silicon oxide or silicon nitride , and the organic layer 474 may be formed of an epoxy compound or an acryl compound . as shown in fig8 b , in the folding region fr ( of fig8 a ), the end of the encapsulation film 470 has a first distance d 1 from the flexible substrate 410 . on the other hand , as shown in fig8 c , in a side along a second direction , which is perpendicular to an extension direction ( i . e ., a first direction ) of the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 470 has a second distance d 2 , which is smaller than the first distance d 1 , from the flexible substrate 410 . in addition , as shown in fig8 d , in a unfolding region , which is a region in the first direction except the folding region fr ( of fig8 a ), the end of the encapsulation film 470 has a third distance d 3 , which is smaller than the first distance d 1 , from the end of the flexible substrate 410 . the third distance d 3 may be equal to or different from the second distance d 2 . in the ends of the folding region fr , the end of the encapsulation film 470 is positioned to be far away from the end of the flexible substrate 410 such that the damage on the encapsulation film 470 by the folding stress is minimized . in addition , in the second direction , which may be perpendicular to the extension direction of the folding region fr , since the end of the encapsulation film 470 is disposed to be relatively close to the end of the flexible substrate 410 , efficiency of the mother substrate is increased . moreover , in the ends of the unfolding region in the first direction , a width of the encapsulation film 470 is increased in comparison to the folding region ( fr ) such that moisture penetration is minimized . further , as explained in fig4 a , the encapsulation film 470 has a patterned shape , i . e ., an island shape , in each cell of the mother substrate , the damage on the encapsulation film 470 by the scribing process is prevented . accordingly , the damage on the emitting diode d by the moisture penetration is prevented , and the production costs of flexible oled device are reduced . it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents . | 7 |
referring now to the drawings , there is shown a cart 21 having two tubular , inverted u - shaped frames 22 . frames 22 each include a front leg 24 , an upper cross bar 25 , a rear leg 26 and a handle 27 . the lower end of front legs 24 have wheels 29 mounted thereon . the tubular frames 22 are preferably formed from a single piece of tubular metal , such as aluminum . a pair of simple ninety degree bends separate the legs 24 , 26 from the cross bar 25 . the handle 27 is formed by making a 180 degree bend at the lower end of leg 26 , thereby forming skids 31 on which the cart 21 rests . the upper ends of handles 27 have ninety degree bends that form horizontal hand pieces 32 . as is clear from the drawings , the frames 22 are of identical construction . to maximize cart stability , the wheels 29 , also of identical construction , are preferably mounted on the legs 24 so as to be located on the outside of the cart 21 . the frames 22 are joined by three shelf brackets 35 , 36 , 37 that extend around the exterior of the sides and front of cart 21 in a u - shaped configuration . three straight shelf brackets 38 , 39 , 40 , fixed at their ends to frames 22 , extend across the rear of cart 21 . the brackets 35 - 40 , preferably fabricated from l - shaped angle irons , are fixed to the frames 22 with bolts that pass through appropriate openings in the tubular legs 26 and handles 27 . the respective u - shaped shelf brackets 35 , 36 , 37 in combination with respective straight shelf brackets 38 , 39 , 40 provide bearing support for shelves 50 , 51 , 52 , as hereinafter described in greater detail and more particularly shown in fig2 to vertically - spaced horizontal shelf supports . a pair of identical center posts 43 are joined at their upper ends to the center of cross bars 25 . the shelf brackets 35 - 37 are also bolted to the posts 43 to retain the posts 43 in vertical positions on each side of the cart 21 . four compartments 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 are defined by the shelves 50 , 51 , 52 and the center posts 43 ( fig2 ). posts 43 have wheels 30 mounted thereon of similar dimensions and are larger than wheels 29 . flat rectangular shelves 50 , 51 , 52 , preferably made from thin plastic or metal material , are placed on the brackets 35 - 40 ( fig1 b ). shelves 50 - 52 act as supports for receptacles that are placed in the four compartments 61 , 62 , 63 or on the top of the uppermost shelf 52 . shelves 50 - 52 may be placed on each of the brackets 35 - 40 as shown in fig1 b and 2 , or on selective vertically - spaced horizontal shelf supports . by placing only the middle shelf 51 and the lower shelf 50 in the respective shelf supports , for example , tall recyclable waste material , such as oversized glass bottles can be put into a receptacle on the middle shelf 51 . shelves 50 , 51 , 52 may also be formed to extend partially across a shelf support to leave open space for oversized waste materials . fig6 illustrates a perforated basket 69 for use as a receptacle to be placed in the lower compartments 63 - 63 . basket 69 has an open top , vertical sides , a vertical back and a tilted front face which provides an opening into which the recyclables may be deposited when the basket is mounted in the compartments 60 - 63 ( fig1 b , 3 ). the baskets 69 are shaped to receive and sort irregular items such as aluminum cans , glass of various colors , plastic , etc . the upper shelf 52 is used to support a receptacle 70 ( fig1 b ) which may receive such items as cardboard , newspapers , containers of used motor oil , etc . of course , properly bundled newspapers may also be placed directly on upper shelf 52 without the need for the receptacle 70 . it should now be clear that the cart 21 has a number of features that make it easy to fabricate , package , ship , assemble and use . the various parts that make up cart 21 are similarly shaped and sized for ease in manufacturing and shipping . the parts can be formed from conventional tubular , flat and angled stock . the parts can be easily assembled by a consumer with only a few easy - to - use tools . when the cart 21 is in use and fully loaded , one or two users can readily grasp the hand pieces 32 , lift the rear end of cart 21 until skids 31 are free and roll the cart 21 with ease . recyclables may be easily deposited in the baskets 69 while they are mounted on the cart 21 . the type and amount of waste materials that has already been deposited in a particular basket 69 is easily visible to the exterior for viewing by a user and / or waste collector . the cart 21 will neatly store sorted recyclables at curbside in a manner that reduces the possibility of accidental spillage . skids 31 will act as brakes to prevent inadvertent cart runaway due to high winds or the like . still further , the baskets 69 and receptacles 70 are conveniently arranged to be removable from the cart 21 so that they may be carried about a home or office or , when loaded , they may be readily transported in a motor vehicle to a distant recycling center . obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings . it is therefore to be understood , that within the scope of the appended claims , the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described . | 1 |
in describing the invention , the meaning of several important terms is clarified , so the claims must be read with careful attention to these clarifications . specific examples are given to illustrate aspects of the invention , but those of skill in the relevant art ( s ) will understand that other examples may also fall within the meaning of the terms used , and hence within the scope of one or more claims . important terms may be defined , either explicitly or implicitly , here in the detailed description and / or elsewhere in the application file . in particular , an “ embodiment ” of the invention may be a system , an article of manufacture , a method , and / or a signal which configures a computer memory or other digital or analog computer - readable medium as described herein to one of skill . in one embodiment according to fig1 , the present invention initially bars 102 the user from access to at least one feature of the program or device . this may be done using familiar access control barriers , such as those employed with authentication to implement password - controlled access , certificate - controlled access , and other identity - controlled access . in the present embodiment access is controlled to enforce notice of patent or other legal rights . the present invention may be combined with access controls that enforce limitations on the identity of users , although it may also be used separately from such identity - based access controls . the embodiment presents 104 a user with a notice statement such as “ this product is covered by u . s . pat . no . ______ ”, where the blank is replaced by the actual patent number . other jurisdictions and / or additional patent numbers may be presented 104 in the notice statement . the preface “ this product is covered by ” may be worded differently or omitted . the patent number may be plain text , or it may be active text such as a hyperlink or button , so that selecting or clicking on it displays 112 a copy of the patent to the user . copyright , trademark and other notices may be included with the presented 104 patent notice , the notice statement may be accompanied 106 by a statement acknowledging previous receipt of notice , such as “ i have previously reviewed all those patents ” or “ i &# 39 ; ve already looked at u . s . pat . no . ______ ; thanks .” an implicit command sequence or an explicit button or other active text takes 116 the user to the core features 118 after the user has seen the patent ( s ) or , in some embodiments but not all , after the user has acknowledged 116 previously reviewing those patents . if the acknowledgement of previous notice 106 is present , and is activated 116 by the user , the possibility exists that the user has not actually previously seen the patent ( s ) and — for some reason — does not want to review the patent ( s ) at this time . one embodiment emails 112 copies of the patents to the user despite that , and another prints 112 the patent . but one embodiment simply accepts 116 the user &# 39 ; s representation at face value , and moves on by giving 118 the user access to the core features which are , after all , the main reason most users want to use the program . if the user actively represents 116 that the user has previously seen the patent but has not actually done so , then the user is lying about having seen the patent . from the patentee &# 39 ; s point of view in enforcement proceedings , this embodiment may reduce the strength of an argument that the user received actual notice of the patentee &# 39 ; s rights , but it also provides an argument that the user lied about having seen the patent in order to gain access to the patented system &# 39 ; s functionality . the notice statement may be accompanied by 108 a statement to the effect that if the user is not properly licensed and does not own the patent rights in question , then this use of the program is an infringing use , and it may include a way 110 to help the user determine if he or she is properly licensed . for instance , contact information for the patentee may be provided 110 to permit a user to inquire of the program &# 39 ; s vendor whether the user is properly licensed for the program and the use of the program in question . also , the name of the licensee may be displayed 110 , so the user is on notice of infringement if the displayed licensee name is not the user &# 39 ; s name . the notice statement may be accompanied by 108 a statement to the effect that if the user is not properly licensed and does not own the patent rights in question , then making copies of the patented program constitutes contributory or direct infringement , depending on the patent claims . if the patent contains claims for media configured to operate according to a specified method , for instance , then making such configured media is direct infringement . if the patent only claims methods that are performed by the software , and does not claim copying media configured to perform such methods , then the infringement from copying the program onto other disks , ram , etc . would likely be contributory rather than direct . the notice statement step ( s ) 104 - 112 and core feature access control steps 102 , 116 , 118 described herein may be performed on installation of the program , on the first attempted execution of the program , or on the first attempted execution of the program by a particular user . it would be possible , but inconvenient , to perform the access control each time the program is run . evidence that the program was run may come from the program itself , if it keeps 114 an internal log and / or sends usage information 114 over a network connection to the vendor . evidence of program usage may also come from testimony given under oath in court , for instance . if the user has information that is disclosed only within the program and only after presentation 112 of the patent and of the notice 104 ( or after acknowledgment 116 of previous such presentation ), then that fact may also serve as evidence supporting a conclusion that the user ran the program , and hence that the user received notice provided according to the present invention . the invention goes beyond conventional marking under 35 u . s . c . § 287 by providing not only the patent number ( or other rights id number such as a government - provided registration number ) but also at least an option to view the patent itself before program core feature use . in some embodiments , the invention goes even further , by refusing to give access to the program &# 39 ; s core features unless and until the patent is displayed to the user and the user is notified that unlicensed use of the program constitutes patent infringement . conventionally , actual notice of infringement is typically done by sending the alleged infringer a letter with a copy of the patent , a statement identifying the accused device or process , and a statement to the effect that patentee believes the accused device or process infringes the enclosed patent . sometimes the patent is not included but is instead identified by number . the accused device is typically one not being made by the patentee ; often it is a device that draws sales away from the patentee &# 39 ; s own device . by contrast , the present invention puts infringement notices in the patentee &# 39 ; s product , with language specifying that unlicensed uses of that product are infringing uses . the accused device is an illegally made or otherwise improperly used copy of the patentee &# 39 ; s own device ( e . g ., program , or system such as a personal computer or network elements configured with the program ). the actual notice is not in a letter sent to a specific alleged infringer , but is rather displayed by software ( and / or hardware , e . g ., computer , personal electronics device , consumer electronics device , tool , etc .). the device that displays the notice to infringers is similar or identical to that which is also used ( in one copy or another ) by licensed users . whether the display to alleged infringers constitutes actual notice for the purpose of determining when damages began to accrue , and / or constitutes notice for the purpose of establishing willful infringement of the patent , will be ultimately determined in particular cases in court . but it will be extremely hard for an alleged infringer to successfully argue they had no knowledge of the patent and its coverage of the device if they ever used the device &# 39 ; s core features . this is because the only way to use a device ( program , system , or otherwise ) configured according to the present invention is : ( a ) to be presented with the patent or other instrument and a chance to review it before being given access to the device &# 39 ; s core features ; ( b ) to affirmatively represent and acknowledge that they have previously reviewed the patent / instrument and understand that it covers at least some of the device &# 39 ; s features , again before being given access to the device &# 39 ; s core features ; or ( c ) to actively evade the program code / hardware restrictions that present the patent notice , e . g ., by jumping around it inside a debugger or physically tampering with the hardware . note that tampering with the device to prevent it from presenting the patent notice and patent for review may constitute unfair competition , may be a misrepresentation under the lanham act , and may be otherwise illegal . the invention also includes displaying 112 other documents in place of , or in addition to , a patent , when such other documents have the same or similar notice requirements as patents . that is , the invention may be used to ease the burden of proving that someone who attempts to use 118 a particular piece of computer software and / or hardware technology has been shown 112 a particular legal instrument before being given access 118 to the core features of the technology piece in question . access 118 to the technology piece may be made consideration ( in the contractual sense ) for reviewing and acknowledging review 116 ( or opportunity therefore ) of the legal instrument , and vice versa . embodiments such as the methods illustrated or corresponding systems may omit items / steps , repeat items / steps , group them differently , supplement them with familiar items / steps , or otherwise comprise variations on the given examples . suitable software to assist in implementing the invention is readily provided by those of skill in the pertinent art ( s ) using the teachings presented here and programming languages and tools such as c ++, c , java , pascal , apis , sdks , assembly , firmware , microcode , and / or other languages and tools . although particular embodiments of the present invention are expressly illustrated and described herein , it will be appreciated that discussion of one type of embodiment also generally extends to other embodiment types . for instance , the description of the methods illustrated in fig1 also helps describe systems which operate according to those methods , comprising a combination of standard components ( e . g , processors , screens ) and configuring components ( e . g ., software , circuitry according to the specific steps illustrated ). all claims as filed are part of the specification and thus help describe the invention , and repeated claim language may be inserted outside the claims as needed . as used herein , terms such as “ a ” and “ the ” and designations such as “ displaying ” and “ statement ”, are inclusive of one or more of the indicated item or step . in particular , in the claims a reference to an item generally means at least one such item is present and a reference to a step means at least one instance of the step is performed . 15 the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its essential characteristics . the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive . headings are for convenience only . the scope of the invention is , therefore , indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description . all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope to the full extent permitted by law . | 6 |
fig1 shows a display device 11 according to the invention in the assembled state as a finished structural unit , while the exploded view of fig2 shows it dismantled into its individual parts . as is clear from the plan view of fig3 , the display device 11 is elongate and curved slightly , while exhibiting a roughly constant width . the display device 11 comprises a support 12 of this basic shape , which may in particular be a printed circuit board . on the right - hand side on the support 12 lines show by way of example how electrical connections 13 may be configured , namely as it were as fields for multiconnectors for plugging a corresponding mating connector thereon according to fig1 at the rightwardly protruding end of the support 12 . a correspondingly constructed housing 14 of plastics is placed on the support 12 , the construction of which is more clearly visible from fig2 and is described below in greater detail . this housing 14 bears at the top a cover 15 , which is likewise apparent from fig2 . the cover 15 takes the form of a basically light - transmitting but translucent thick film or thin plastics layer . it comprises a symbol zone 16 in its front region , which is in turn opaque apart from light - transmitting symbols 17 . this opacity may be brought about by coating the symbol zone 16 while omitting the symbols 17 . thus , light may be radiated from below through both the symbols 17 and the rest of the surface area of the cover 15 and this illumination may be perceived from above . in these light - transmitting or translucent zones 17 , the cover 15 may act to a degree as a diffuser , which gives the light a more uniform , more visually attractive appearance . this is known in principle , however . the housing 14 comprises fastening eyelets 19 constructed integrally therewith and rubber feet 20 attachable close thereto . thus , a possible way of fastening the display device 11 may involve fixing thereof by pins engaging in the eyelets with simultaneous pressure or resilient mounting as a result of the rubber feet 20 upwards against a hob plate corresponding to fig4 extending thereover . a plurality of leds are arranged on the support 12 , specifically in one case twelve leds 22 a , which form a first row 23 matching the curvature of the support 12 . in addition , eighteen leds 22 b are arranged parallel thereto and form the parallel second row 24 of leds , which extend somewhat beyond the first row 23 on both the left and right . the number of leds 22 a or 22 b may vary . in addition it is also possible for an extra third row of leds to be provided . it is clear from fig2 that the spacing both of the leds 22 a and of the leds 22 b relative to one another is the same in each case within the rows 23 and 24 . furthermore , the distances between the leds of each row are the same in the two rows . these distances amount for instance to five times the length of the leds 22 , but this may also vary . furthermore , it is also clear from fig2 that the distances between the leds 22 a of the first row 23 correspond approximately to the distance between the midpoints of the symbols 17 in the cover 15 . thus in each case , one of the leds 22 a lies exactly below a symbol 17 . the particular construction of the housing 14 ensures that light ducts 27 a formed by separators 26 a are associated with each led 22 a of the first row 23 . this therefore means that , when the housing 14 has been positioned on the support 12 , one led 22 a is situated approximately in the middle of the rectangular light duct 27 a and may thus radiate light freely upwards onto the underside of the cover 15 or onto the respective symbols 17 . the separators 26 a prevent light from spilling over into a light duct 27 a of an adjacent led 22 a . thus each led 22 a has its own light duct , wherein , in a modification of the invention , provision may under certain circumstances also be made for a plurality of leds to be provided for each light duct . light ducts 27 b are provided in corresponding fashion for the leds 22 b of the second row 24 , which light ducts are in each case separated from one another or screened relative to one another by separators 26 b . it is best to this end for the separators 26 to extend at the underside of the housing 14 as far as the support 12 or at least very nearly that far . to prevent light from escaping undesirably out of the display device 11 at the longitudinal sides , the housing 14 clearly grips over the support 12 , as is visible in fig1 . if it is not intended to provide any electrical connections 13 or the like at the ends of the support 12 , since electrical connection takes place for example in some other way , the housing may here too extend beyond the support and grip over it . unlike over the first row 23 of leds 22 a with the opaque symbol zone 16 and the light - transmitting symbols 17 thereabove , the cover 15 is uniformly light - transmitting in the strip over the second row 24 of leds 22 b , but is advantageously again translucent to achieve the above - stated diffuser effect . it is precisely here , since the leds 22 b shine over an area corresponding to the cross - section of the light duct 27 b onto the underside of the cover 15 , that the diffuser effect is regarded as advantageous , because then in principle this entire area is seen as shining approximately uniformly upwards . in a further development of the invention it is possible to make the separators 26 a and 26 b and the other walls of the light ducts 27 a and 27 b as smooth or reflective as possible , optionally also inclined or in the manner of a parabolic reflector , such that as much as light as possible is radiated upwards from the leds 22 . fig2 does not show theoretically possible further electrical or electronic components , arranged for example on the underside of the support 12 opposite the leds 22 , in particular for actuation of the display device 11 . these may comprise for example microcontrollers for actuating the display device 11 , for example for an above - stated bus connection to a control bus of an electrical appliance or hob . fig3 shows a plan view of how for example all the leds 22 b of the second row 24 are actuated or illuminated , which is intended to be illustrated by the gray shading . the result is an elongate light strip consisting of three light bars 29 a , 29 b and 29 c . the different gray shading is intended to make clear that for example the light bars 29 a and 29 c shine green or in general in a lighter shade and the middle light bar 29 b shines red or in a stronger shade . however , since this entire light bar does not always have to be illuminated over its entire length made up of all the leds 22 b , but rather is subdivided by the light ducts 27 b into eighteen individual light segments , the length of the light strip may vary . furthermore , any desired light segments may be activated , such that the entire light strip may be lit up for example only in the form of the light bars 29 a and 29 c or indeed in even smaller subdivisions . further lighting effects may for example involve periodic variation of the luminance or flashing with a uniform or varying flashing frequency . this may in each case readily be achieved by a person skilled in the art , if it appears appropriate in the circumstances . likewise , color variations may also be provided , in particular by selecting different colors for the individual leds 22 b , this also applying to the leds 22 a of the first row 23 . some illuminating means of one row , in particular the first row , may for example be in permanent operation , preferably in a constant number or with constant operation . illuminating means of the other row may then for example be operated variably , with different illuminating means being switched on and off , preferably in light strips with a moving light pattern , in the manner of a “ running light ”. this light strip may travel to and fro , for example , wherein in particular the in each case front region of the light strip with a width of two or three leds may shine more brightly than the rear one with more leds . thus , a ring operation display may be provided with which the brightness , rate of motion or length of the light strip advantageously depend on the heat setting . it is additionally clear from fig3 that some of the leds 22 a of the front row 23 are activated and thus particular symbols 17 are illuminated . in the middle the letters hot are illuminated , thus showing the word hot as an indication that the hob is hot . in addition , this is further indicated by the symbols 17 taking the form of flames to the left and right of the word . since indicating that the hob is hot is thought of as a warning , the color red or a similar signal color is here suitable for example for the illuminated leds 22 a therebelow . whether , in actual operation , indication that the hob is hot according to fig3 is simultaneously indicated by illuminated leds 22 a and the light strip located thereabove , which tends more to be used to display heat settings , may be individually decided and is a question of design of the display device or the underlying display method . as an alternative to signal color , indication that the hob is hot may advantageously be effected as an operating method , by flashing , in particular with an elevated or temperature - dependent frequency . as a further alternative , the temperature may be represented by the length of a light strip located thereabove . this is one of the advantages of a two - row display device according to the invention , as has been explained above , namely a larger amount of more detailed information may be provided . fig4 is a plan view of a hob 31 according to the invention . it comprises as is conventional a hob plate 32 , advantageously of glass ceramic , and four rings 33 a to d . the rings 33 comprise induction coils as inductive heating means , which are here not shown in any greater detail . in the front middle zone there is located an operating means 35 with touch - sensitive switches , shown by the round symbols , and the seven segment display , as is known however to a person skilled in the art . associated with the operating means 35 is a central control unit 36 shown by broken lines . this central control unit 36 both controls the hob 31 , such that it receives operating commands , which have been input at the operating means 35 , and , as a function thereof , sets the operating state of the rings 33 a to d . a central control unit may also be integrated in the operating unit . fig2 additionally shows two recesses 25 a and 25 b provided on the housing 14 to the left and right of the first row 23 . these , like the light ducts 27 , pass through the housing 14 and serve in the arrangement thereon of the above - stated overlap sensors and / or temperature sensors . these sensors are advantageously likewise mounted on the support 12 and electrically connected . they should be configured such that their functioning is not impaired by the cover 15 above them . alternatively , the cover 15 should be removed in this region or be made completely light - transmitting , i . e ., transparent . in fig4 , connecting leads 37 a to d are shown by broken lines , these extending in each case from the central control unit 36 to a display device 11 a to d . they may under certain circumstances be combined with connecting cables for the heating means of the rings to form a cable harness . alternatively , they may be looped onwards from display device to display device , i . e ., form a type of loop extending from the central control unit 36 to the display devices 11 b , 11 a , 11 d , 11 c and then back to the central control unit . the display devices 11 a - 11 d are each arranged at the same point in front of and at roughly the same distance from the outer edge of the rings 33 a to 33 d , specifically below the transparent or light - transmitting hob plate 32 . the display devices 11 are shown by broken lines , since they cannot themselves be detected when not illuminated or deactivated . in the case of the display device 11 c at bottom right , the light bars 29 b and 29 c according to fig3 are illuminated , while in the display device 11 d there - behind it is the light bars 29 a and 29 b which are illuminated . for clarity &# 39 ; s sake , the illuminated symbols 17 over the first row 23 of leds 22 a are not shown here in fig4 . with reference to fig3 , however , it is easy to conceive how individual ones of these symbols 17 are illuminated and then , like the seven segment display of the operating means 35 , may be detected in the form of light appearing from below the hob plate 32 arranged thereover . different modes of display or operating methods have also been described above . fig1 and 2 do not show the above - stated spacers . they may however be provided , for example , at the four corners of the top of the housing 14 , possibly also with one or more spacers therebetween over the length of the housing 14 , to prevent flexure in this middle region towards the underside of the hob plate 32 extending thereover . as a result of these spacers , the cover 15 or the top thereof is at a small distance therefrom , for example around 0 . 5 mm . in this way , in the case of the conventionally bumpy undersides of a hob plate 32 of glass ceramic , the appearance of the illuminated symbols 17 and the light bars 29 therethrough may be optimal . actuation of the display devices 11 by means of the central control unit 36 as a function of inputs at the operating means 35 or as a function of the state of the rings 33 a to d proceeds by way of an above - described bus system . to this end , the central control unit 36 comprises a control bus for bidirectional connection with each display device 11 or indeed for an above - described circuit connection or looping . moreover , these connecting leads 37 also ensure power supply for operation of the leds 22 . | 5 |
generally , the details of the novel method are similar to those of the method described in the previously cited u . s . pat . no . 4 , 921 , 767 , op . cit ., except for the composition of the photoconductive layer . that patent application is incorporated by reference herein for the purpose of disclosure . briefly , fig1 shows a color crt 10 having a glass envelope 11 comprising a rectangular faceplate panel 12 and a tubular neck 14 connected by a rectangular funnel 15 . the funnel 15 has an internal conductive coating ( not shown ) that contacts an anode button 16 and extends into the neck 14 . the panel 12 comprises a viewing faceplate or substrate 18 and a peripheral flange or sidewall 10 , which is sealed to the funnel 15 by a glass frit 21 . a three color phosphor screen 22 is carried on the inner surface of the faceplate 18 . the screen 22 , shown in fig2 preferably is a line screen which includes a multiplicity of screen elements comprised of red - emitting , green - emitting and blue - emitting phosphor stripes r , g and b , respectively , arranged in color groups or picture elements of three stripes or triads in a cyclic order and extending in a direction which is generally normal to the plane in which the electron beams are generated . in the normal viewing position for this embodiment , the phosphor stripes extend in the vertical direction . preferably , the phosphor stripes are separated from each other by a light - absorptive matrix material 23 , as is known in the art . alternatively , the screen can be a dot screen . a thin conductive layer 24 , preferably of aluminum , overlies the screen 22 and provides a means for applying a uniform potential to the screen as well as reflecting light , emitted from the phosphor elements , through the faceplate 18 . the screen 22 and the overlying aluminum layer 24 comprise a screen assembly . with respect again to fig1 a multi - apertured color selection electrode or shadow mask 25 is removably mounted , by conventional means , in predetermined spaced relation to the screen assembly . an electron gun 26 , shown schematically by the dashed lines in fig1 is centrally mounted within the neck 14 , to generate and direct three electron beams 28 along convergent paths , through the apertures in the mask 25 , to the screen 22 . the gun 26 may be , for example , a bi - potential electron gun of the type described in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 620 , 133 , issued to morrell et al . on oct . 28 , 1986 , or any other suitable gun . the tube 10 is designed to be used with an external magnetic deflection yoke , such as yoke 30 , located in the region of the funnel - to - neck junction . when activated , the yoke 30 subjects the three beams 28 to magnetic fields which cause the beams to scan horizontally and vertically in a rectangular raster over the screen 22 . the initial plane of deflection ( at zero deflection ) is shown by the line p - p in fig1 at about the middle of the yoke 30 . for simplicity , the actual curvatures of the deflection beam paths in the deflection zone are not shown . the screen 22 is manufactured by a novel electrophotographic process that is schematically represented in fig3 a through 10 3f . initially , the panel 12 is washed with a caustic solution , rinsed with water , etched with buffered hydrofluoric acid and rinsed once again with water , as is known in the art . the inner surface of the viewing faceplate 18 is then coated with a layer 32 of a suitable electrically conductive material which provides an electrode for an overlying photoconductive layer 34 . the resultant structure is shown in fig3 a . the photoconductive layer 34 comprises a solution of a volatilizable organic polymeric material , a suitable photoconductive dye sensitive to visible light , a novel plasticizer , for a purpose to be described hereinafter , and a solvent . the composition and method of forming one formulation of the conductive layer 32 is described in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 921 , 767 , op . cit . the photoconductive layer 34 , overlying the conductive layer 32 , is charged in a dark environment by a conventional positive corona discharge apparatus 36 , schematically shown in fig3 b , which moves across the layer 34 and charges it within the range of + 200 to + 700 volts , + 300 to + 600 volts being preferred . the shadow mask 25 is inserted into the panel 12 , and the positively - charged photoconductor is exposed , through the shadow mask , to the light from a xenon flash lamp 38 disposed within a conventional lighthouse ( represented by lens 40 of fig3 c ). after each exposure , the lamp is moved to a different position , to duplicate the incident angle of the electron beams from the electron gun . three exposures are required , from three different lamp positions , to discharge the areas of the photoconductor where the light - emitting phosphors subsequently will be deposited to form the screen . after the exposure step , the shadow mask 25 is removed from the panel 12 , and the panel is moved to a first developer 42 ( fig3 d ). the first developer contains suitably prepared dry - powdered particles of a light - absorptive black matrix screen structure material . the black matrix material is triboelectrically charged , e . g ., negatively , and expelled from the developer 42 and attracted to the positively - charged , unexposed area of the photoconductive layer 34 to directly develop that area . the photoconductive layer 34 , containing the matrix 23 , is uniformly recharged to a positive potential of about 200 to 400 volts , for the application of the first of three triboelectrically charged , dry - powdered , surface treated , color - emitting phosphor screen structure materials , which are manufactured by the processes described in copending u . s . patent application , ser . no . 287 , 355 and filed by p . datta et al . on dec . 21 , 1988 , and u . s . pat . no . 4 , 921 , 767 , op . cit ., each of which relates to the surface treatment of phosphor particles . preferably , the phosphor particles are positively - charged . the shadow mask 25 is reinserted into the panel 12 , and selected areas of the photoconductive layer 34 , corresponding to the locations where green - emitting phosphor material will be deposited , are exposed to visible light from a first location within the lighthouse to selectively discharge the exposed area . the first light location approximates the convergence angle of the green phosphor - impinging electron beam . the shadow mask 25 is removed from the panel 12 , and the panel is moved to a second developer 42 . the positively - charged green - emitting phosphor particles are expelled from the developer , repelled by the positively - charged areas of the photoconductive layer 34 and matrix 23 , and deposited onto the discharged , light exposed areas of the photoconductive layer , in a process known as reversal developing . the process of charging , exposing and developing is repeated for the dry - powdered , blue - and red - emitting , surface - treated phosphor particles of screen structure material . the exposure to visible light , to selectively discharge the positively - charged areas of the photoconductive layer 34 , is made from a second and then from a third position within the lighthouse to approximate the convergence angles of the blue phosphor - and red phosphor - impinging electron beams , respectively . the matrix material and phosphors are attached to the photoconductive layer 34 by thermal or vapor bonding . the vapor bonding step is graphically represented in fig3 e , and is described in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 917 , 978 , issued to ritt et al ., on apr . 17 , 1990 . subsequently , the resultant structure is fixed , to further minimize displacement of the screen structure materials , as shown in fig3 f and as described in the above - referenced u . s . patent application ser . no . 299 , 507 . the structure is then filmed and aluminized as is known in the art . the faceplate panel 12 is baked in air at a temperature of 425 ° c . for about 30 - 60 minutes to drive off the volatilizable constituents of the screen , including the conductive layer 32 , the photoconductive layer 34 , and the solvents present in both the screen structure and filming materials . the novel photoconductive layer 34 is prepared by forming a photoconductive control solution comprised of about 3 . 0 to 7 . 0 but preferably about 5 . 0 weight percent of a volatilizable polymeric material , such as polyvinyl carbazole ( pvk ); about 0 . 1 to 0 . 4 , but preferably about 0 . 2 weight percent , relative to the pvk , of a dye sensitive to visible light , such as ethylene violet ; about 0 . 001 weight percent , relative to the pvk , of a suitable leveling agent such as silar - 100 , marketed by ( silar laboratories , scotia , n . y . ), and the balance , about 95 weight percent , a solvent such as chlorobenzene . the solution is mixed thoroughly and filtered through a 1 micron filter . the viscosity of the control solution is 65 cps . to this control solution is added a suitable quantity of a plasticizer so that the concentration of the plasticizer ranges from 5 to 30 weight percent of the pvk . the viscosity of the plasticized control solution is adjusted to a viscosity of 45 cps by the addition of an additional quantity of the solvent . the preferred plasticizer is a dialkyl phthalate such as dibutylphthalate ( dbp ), dioctylphthalate ( dop ), or diundecylphthalate ( dup ). by way of example , a control solution useful in determining the electrostatic properties of photoconductive layers having different concentrations of plasticizers has the following formulation : the electrostatic properties of different photoconductive layers , with and without plasticizers , were determined by applying a photoconductive solution to 48 cm ( 19 in ) faceplate panels that previously had been coated with a suitable organic conductor having a thickness of about 1 micron to form the layer 32 . fourteen samples were evaluated ; one sample contained a photoconductive layer 34 without a plasticizer , and the other thirteen samples comprised four classes of plasticizers having plasticizer concentrations ranging from 5 to 30 weight percent of the pvk used in the control solution the plasticized photoconductive solutions were made as follows : to 200 grams of the photoconductive control solution was added a known weight percent of a plasticizer . the viscosity of the plasticized photoconductive solution was adjusted to 45 cps and coated on a 48 cm faceplate panel to form a 3 to 4 micron thick layer 34 overlying the layer 32 . the electrostatic properties of the photoconductive layer that are of interest include the initial electrostatic surface voltage acceptance , ( vi ), of the coated panel , the voltage remaining , vr , after the panel is held in the dark for a given period of time , s , and the rate of dark decay ( v / s where v = vi - vr ). the tests were conducted by charging each panel with the charging apparatus 36 , which was operated at a positive voltage of 9 . 5 kv and a current of 74 microamperes ( μa ). each panel was charged for 30 seconds in an ambient atmosphere of 21 ° c . and 68 % rh . the initial voltage , vi , was measured and the panel was held in the dark for 90 seconds and the voltage , vr , was read at the end of the 90 second hold time . the charged panel was then exposed to the light from a xenon flash lamp operated at 570 volts , 430 microfarads , and a pulse width of 1 millisecond . the voltage on the panel was remeasured after the initial lamp flash , and the number of flashes required to reduce the panel voltage to 10 % of the voltage remaining after the 90 second dark hold , vr , also was recorded . the panel was then held for 48 hours , at room temperature and at 75 % rh , and visually evaluated for cracks in the photoconductive layer . several of the panels that exhibited no cracks in the photoreceptor ( i . e ., conductive layer 32 and photoconductive layer 34 ) were then screened , filmed and reexamined . the results are summarized in the table . table__________________________________________________________________________ photoreceptor changing evaluation 48 cm eps . system cracking volts after exposure after plasti - initial volts dark to xenon flash 48 hrs aftersample cizer volts 90 sec decay # flashed at 75 % filmingno . plasticizer ( wt %) ( vi ) ( vr ) ( v / s ) 1 to 1 / 10 vr rh process__________________________________________________________________________1 none -- 590 470 1 . 3 90 2 yes yes2 dop 5 550 410 1 . 6 85 2 yes -- 3 dop 10 570 430 1 . 6 105 3 no -- 4 dop 20 550 390 1 . 8 120 3 no no5 dop 30 500 320 2 135 4 no no6 dup 10 590 460 1 . 4 95 2 no -- 7 dup 20 540 405 1 . 5 110 3 no no8 dbp 10 470 308 1 . 8 120 3 no -- 9 dbp 20 420 240 2 120 4 no -- 10 plastolein - 10 320 140 2 80 6 yes -- 906611 same 20 150 60 1 no light sensitivity no -- 12 plastolein - 10 120 30 1 no light sensitivity yes -- 905813 cumar - 21 10 670 590 0 . 9 230 5 yes -- 14 cumar - 21 20 720 650 0 . 9 325 8 yes -- __________________________________________________________________________ sample 1 was a control sample in which no plasticizer was added to the control solution . while the initial charge acceptance of the photoconductive layer 34 to the charge provided by the apparatus 36 was good ( vi = 590 volts ), the charge remaining on the photoconductive layer after being held in the dark for 90 seconds also was good ( 470 volts ), and the dark decay of the voltage ( vi - vr / s = 120 volts / 90 sec .= 1 . 3 v / s ) appeared to satisfactory , the photoreceptor layer was found to be cracked at the end of the 48 hour hold period , and the layer cracked further on filming , thus demonstrating the need for a plasticizer to prevent such cracking . the plasticizers selected for evaluation fell into four general classes : ( 1 ) dialkyl phthalates , more be specifically , dibutylphthalate ( dbp ), dioctylphthalate ( dop ), and diundecylphthalate ( dup ); ( 2 ) dialkyl adipates , i . e ., [ di - 2 - ethyl hexyl adipate ( marketed as plastolein - 9066 , from quantum chemical corp ., cincinnati , ohio ); ( 3 ) di - 2 - ethyl hexyl azelate ( marketed as plastolein - 9058 , also from quantum chemical corp . ); and ( 4 ) terpene resins ( marketed as cumar - 21 , from neville chemical co ., pittsburgh , pa .). the materials of classes 2 and 4 correspond to materials known in the prior art and the material of class 3 is related to class 2 . none of the materials in classes 2 through 4 is included within the group of diesters of phthalatic acids recited in class 1 . again with reference to the table , with the exception of the sample 2 ( 5 wt % dop ), samples 3 through 9 , representing plasticizer concentrations of 10 to 30 wt %, showed no cracking of the photoreceptor layer ( i . e ., layer 34 ) when held at 75 % rh for 48 hours . the charge acceptance , i . e ., the initial voltage , vi , on samples 3 through 9 , as well as the voltage remaining after a 90 second dark hold , vr , decreased with increasing concentrations of plasticizer . only samples 4 , 5 ( both dop ) and 7 ( dup ) were filmed since it was believed that the higher concentrations of plasticizers , i . e ., from 20 to 30 wt % of the pvk , would provide the necessary flexibility to the photoreceptor layer . the charge acceptance and retention of the dop and dup samples exceeded that of the dbp samples so that the two former materials in concentrations of 10 to 30 wt % and 10 to 20 wt % were preferred over the two dbp samples ( 8 and 9 ); although , dbp was an acceptable material . samples 10 and 11 ( plastolein - 9066 ) were unacceptable for use in the &# 34 ; dry &# 34 ; process described herein because of cracking ( sample 10 ) of the photoreceptor layer , or no light sensitively of the layer , at a plasticizer concentration of 20 wt % ( sample 11 ). sample 12 also was unacceptable since a 10 wt % concentration of plastolein - 9058 exhibited no light sensitivity . while samples 13 and 14 exhibited outstanding charge acceptance ( vi ) and charge retention ( vr ) ability , both samples , utilizing 10 and 20 wt % concentration of cumar - 21 , exhibited cracks in the photoreceptor layer after the 48 hour hold at 75 % rh . | 7 |
referring now to the drawings in more detail , particularly to fig1 therein is illustrated schematically a well logging operation in which a portion of the earth 10 is shown in vertical section . a well 12 penetrates the earth &# 39 ; s surface wherein casing 14 has been installed and cement 16 pumped into the annulus between earth formations 10 and casing 14 . disposed within well 12 is subsurface instrument 18 of the well logging system . subsurface instrument 18 includes an electromechanical acoustic transducer 20 for detecting acoustic energy caused by fluid movement within and in the vicinity of well 12 . acoustic transducer 20 consists preferably of a plurality of piezoelectric transducers functioning as a microphone . transducer 20 is electrically coupled to amplifier circuit 22 which is further electrically coupled to line driver circuit 24 . the output signal from line driver circuit 24 is electrically coupled to electrical conductors within cable 26 for transfer to the surface electronics . additionally , cable 26 suspends instrument 18 in well 12 . cable 26 is wound or unwound from drum 27 in raising and lowering instrument 18 to traverse well 12 . disposed adjacent instrument 18 is an illustrative portion of the earth formations . the portion of the earth formations under consideration comprises three strata ; a porous zone 28 , such as a sand , which is bedded above by a relatively non - porous zone 30 , such as a shale , and a topmost porous zone 32 , such as a sand . vertical fracture or channel 34 is illustrated as allowing fluid communication between porous zones 28 and 32 . as previously stated this fluid can comprise single - phase gas , single - phase liquid or some multi - phase combination thereof . cable 26 passes over measuring wheel 36 which is electrically coupled to depth indicator circuit 38 . the output signal from depth indicator circuit 38 is coupled into recorder 40 causing recorder 40 to move in correlation with depth as instrument 18 is positioned within well 12 . the electrical signals from cable 26 are coupled by slip rings located on drum 27 into signal processor 42 where these electrical signals are processed and further coupled to recorder 40 . in the operation in accordance with the present invention , subsurface instrument 18 is positioned within well 12 , disposed preferably proximate a channel , such as 34 , fluidly communicating two strata 28 and 32 . the acoustic patterns associated with fluid movement through channel 34 are detected by transducer 20 and coupled into amplifier circuit 22 where they are amplified before being coupled into line driver circuit 24 . line driver circuit 24 couples the electrical signals through conductors within cable 26 into signal processor 42 . referring now to fig2 therein is illustrated in greater detail a portion of the circuitry of signal processor 42 . the output signals from line driver circuit 24 are coupled into first amplifier circuit 44 which functions as a signal conditioning amplifier . the output of amplifier 44 is coupled into second amplifier circuit 46 , which in the preferred embodiment functions as a scaling amplifier having a fixed gain of 2 . 83 . scaling amplifier 46 converts the rms input value to a peak - to - peak value . the output of amplifier 46 is parallel coupled into the inputs of four high - pass filters 48 , 50 , 52 and 54 . high - pass filters 48 , 50 , 52 and 54 tramsmit all frequencies above individual preselected cutoff frequencies and substantially attenuate all other frequencies . in the preferred embodiment filter 48 has a cutoff frequency of approximately 200 hz , filter 50 has a cutoff frequency of approximately 600 hz , filter 52 has a cutoff frequency of approximately 1000 hz and filter 54 has a cutoff frequency of approximately 2000 hz . the outputs of filters 48 , 50 , 52 and 54 are illustrated in fig3 with curve 56 representing the output signal from filter 48 , curve 58 representing the output from filter 50 , curve 60 representing the output from filter 52 and curve 62 representing the output from filter 54 . the area a under the filter response curves represents the amount of acoustic energy that is concentrated in the frequency band from approximately 200 - 600 hz ; b the energy in the frequency band from approximately 600 - 1000 hz ; c the energy in the frequency band from approximately 1000 - 2000 hz ; and d the energy above approximately 2000 hz . these energy concentrations are further illustrated in fig4 which is an exemplary plot of energy level verses frequency . the output signals from filters 48 , 50 , 52 and 54 are coupled into rms - dc converters 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 , respectively . the outputs are d . c . voltages which are the rms values of the alternating voltage inputs thereto . since the input signals have been multiplied by 2 . 83 by amplifier 46 , the d . c . voltage outputs are the peak - to - peak value of the input signal to signal processor 42 . these d . c . voltage outputs from converters 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 are coupled into line correction circuitry 72 wherein these input signals are corrected for line effects in a manner common in the art of well logging . the 2000 hz high - pass output , 62 of fig3 from line correction circuit 72 is parallel coupled to digital volt meter 74 and to recorder 40 by conductor 76 . the 1000 hz high - pass output , 60 of fig3 from line correction circuit 72 is coupled to digital volt meter 78 and to recorder 40 by conductor 80 . additionally , the 1000 hz high - pass output is coupled into one input to ratio circuit 82 . the 600 hz high - pass output , 58 of fig3 from line correction circuit 72 is parallel coupled to digital volt meter 84 and to recorder 40 by conductor 86 . additionally , the 600 hz high - pass output is coupled into one input to subtractor circuit 88 . the 200 hz high - pass output , 56 of fig3 from line correction circuit 72 is parallel coupled to digital volt meter 90 and recorder 40 by conductor 92 . additionally , the 200 hz high - pass output is coupled into the second input to subtractor circuit 88 . the output of subtractor circuit 88 is coupled into the second input to ratio circuit 82 the output of which is parallel coupled into the inputs to comparator circuits 94 , 96 and 98 , the outputs of which are coupled to recorder 40 . in the operation of the processing circuitry of fig2 the composite acoustic data detected by transducer 20 ( fig1 ) is serially coupled through amplifier circuits 44 and 46 . the amplified output from amplifier circuit 46 is parallel coupled into filters 48 , 50 , 52 and 54 , which as previously stated are high - pass filters passing frequencies above a preselected cutoff frequencies . the output signals from high - pass filters ( fig3 ) are converted to d . c . level signals by converters 64 , 66 , 68 and 70 and corrected for line effects in line correction circuit 72 . the 200 hz high - pass output , 56 of fig3 and the 600 hz high - pass output , 58 of fig3 are coupled into subtractor circuit 88 . the output of subtractor 88 is a signal of the acoustic energy level within the frequency band from between 200 - 600 hz , illustrated by area a of fig3 and 4 . the output of subtractor circuit 88 is coupled into one input of ratio circuit 82 the other input being the acoustic energy level of the 1000 hz high - pass range , curve 60 of fig3 and the combination of areas c and d of fig4 . the output of ratio circuit 82 is an indication of the relative distribution of acoustic energy between the two selected frequency ranges . for illustrative purposes , the ratio output of ratio circuit 82 is parallel coupled into three comparator circuits 94 , 96 and 98 where the signal is compared to the predetermined functions k a and k b . the operation of comparators 94 , 96 and 98 is illustrated in fig5 where energy level of the signal above 1000 hz is shown on the ordinate , y axis , and the energy level of the signal within the 200 - 600 hz range is shown on the abscissa , x axis . predetermined functions k a and k b divide the graph into three sectors , 100 , 102 and 104 . if the comparison of the energy distribution between the two preselected frequency bands yields a signal greater than the function k a , then comparator circuit 94 outputs a signal . an output from comparator 94 is the functional equivalent of a ratio value located above k a in sector 100 of fig5 and is indicative of single - phase gas flow within the channel . if the output signal from ratio circuit 82 is of a value less than k a but greater than k b comparator circuit 96 will output a signal . an output from comparator 96 is the functional equivalent of ratio value located in sector 102 of fig5 and is assumed to be indicative of multi - phase flow or bubbling gas . ( if the output signal from ratio circuit 82 is of a value less than k b comparator circuit 98 will output a signal . an output from comparator 98 is the functional equivalent of a ratio value located in sector 104 of fig5 and is indicative of single - phase liquid flow .) thus by monitoring the relative disbursement of acoustic energy between two selected energy ranges a reliable indicator of the characteristic of fluid flowing within a channel located behind pipe can be obtained . it should be recognized that the particular values for functions k a and k b are established through standard experimental techniques and in the preferred embodiment are approximately 2 and 1 / 2 , respectively . thus there has been described and illustrated herein a method and system in accordance with the present invention for evaluating the flow characteristics of fluid in channels located behind a pipe . those skilled in the art will recognize that numerous other variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention . for example , the energy level signals corresponding to the selected energy bands could be plotted directly as cartesian coordinates by means of an x - y plotter , thus eliminating the need for a ratio signal . accordingly , it should be clearly understood that the forms of the invention described and illustrated herein are exemplary only , and are not intended as limitations on the scope of the present invention . | 6 |
turning now to the drawings , in fig1 there is shown a battery heat shield or enclosure 10 assembled onto a conventional battery container 12 . in accordance with the invention , the heat shield 10 is a unitarily molded structure that surrounds the sides 14 , 16 , which are commonly referred to as the ends 14 and sides 16 , and top 18 of the battery container 12 and snaps into its final assembled position on the battery container 12 . a handle ( not illustrated ) may extend from the sides 16 of the battery 12 from the ends 14 of the battery 12 . for the purposes of this disclosure , the terms &# 34 ; side &# 34 ; and &# 34 ; sidewall &# 34 ; will be used as generic terms for both sides and ends and sidewalls and end walls , respectively . the heat shield 10 includes a top portion 20 , and sidewalls 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ( see also fig3 ). according to an important feature of the invention , the lower edges 26 of the sidewalls 24 , 25 include sufficient clearance for the use of conventional hold down hardware ( not shown ). as shown in the drawings , the sidewalls 24 , 25 preferably include a cutout portion or are sufficiently short to expose the hold down shoulders 28 of a conventional battery design . in this way , when the battery container 12 is assembled into a vehicle engine , conventional mounting or hold down hardware may be utilized to bear directly against the battery 12 container itself , rather than against the heat shield , as in some prior art designs . it will thus be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the battery / heat shield subassembly need not be completely removed from the engine in order to remove the heat shield 10 from the battery container 12 . the sidewalls 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 may include strengthening ribs . in the embodiment illustrated , sidewalls 24 , 25 are provided with strengthening ribs 29 ( see fig2 and 3 ). the top portion 20 of the heat shield 10 includes openings 30 , 32 , 34 to accommodate the battery terminals 36 , 38 , and substantially adjacent the battery state of charge indicator 40 . it will be appreciated that one or more larger openings may be provided to accommodate the terminals 36 , 38 and / or the state of charge indicator 40 . for example , a single large rectangular opening may be provided through which each of the elements may be accessed . this or a separate opening might likewise permit viewing of a label or printed text on the top 18 of the battery container 12 . in this way , the heat shield 10 does not obstruct access to the terminals 36 , 38 . similarly , the heat shield 10 does not obstruct visual monitoring of the current state of charge of the battery 12 . additionally , the top portion 20 preferably includes a raised portion 42 disposed adjacent the battery vents ( not visible ). the raised portion 42 includes a plurality of bores 44 for the escape of gases from the interior of the battery via the cell vents . it will be appreciated that the bores 44 permit the escape of gases , while the raised portion acts as a splash shield against possible acid expulsion from the battery under extreme operating conditions . according to an important feature of the invention , an insulating layer of air is provided in spaces between the battery container 12 sidewalls 14 , 16 and the heat shield 10 sidewalls 22 - 25 . to space the heat shield 10 from the battery container 12 surface , ribs 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 extend inward from the inside surfaces of the sidewalls 22 , 23 of the heat shield 10 . as may be seen in fig3 - 5 and 7 , the ribs 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 are disposed substantially adjacent the ends or sides 14 of the battery container 12 to limit the side to side movement of the shield 10 relative to the battery container 12 . the ribs 29 on 24 likewise limit side - to - side movement in the opposite direction . preferably , spaces for insulating layers of air are provided around all sides 14 , 16 of the battery container 12 . it will be appreciated , however , that such spaces may be provided around less than all sides of the battery container 12 and still provide cooling of the battery . accordingly to another important feature of the invention , the heat shield 10 snaps into place over the battery container 12 . in order to so couple the heat shield 10 to the battery container 12 , inwardly extending protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 are provided along the inner surfaces of the heat shield sidewalls 22 , 23 . when assembled to the battery container 12 , as shown in fig7 and 8 , the protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 are disposed below the standard handle bracket 70 , 72 of the battery container 12 . it will be appreciated that the protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 engage the brackets 70 , 72 to prevent the heat shield 10 from being lifted upward off of the battery container 12 . in the preferred embodiment , each protrusion 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 is actually a series of parallelly disposed , thin ribs . it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that this structure provides certain molding advantages . in order to permit the heat shield 10 to slide downward over the battery container 12 , resilient , cantilevered end flaps 74 , 76 are provided in the heat shield sides 22 , 23 . preferably , the protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 are of a ramped structure . as the heat shield 10 is moved downward , the ramped protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 ride along the handle brackets 70 , 72 to cause the end flaps 74 , 76 flex outward from the planer surface of the heat shield sides 22 , 23 . once the ramped protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 pass the handle brackets 70 , 72 , the resilient end flaps 74 , 76 snap back into their original position , as shown in fig7 and 8 to couple the heat shield 10 to the battery container 12 . in this position , at least a portion of the top portion 20 of the heat shield 10 is preferably disposed adjacent the top 18 of the battery container 12 . in this way , the abutment of the top portion 20 of the heat shield 10 with the top 18 of the battery container 12 , and the abutment of the protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 with the handle brackets 70 , 72 , minimize upward and downward movement of the heat shield 10 relative to the battery container 12 . thus in order to assemble the heat shield 10 to the battery container 12 , the user need only slide the heat shield 10 downward over the battery container 10 until the protrusions 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 snap into place to couple the shield 10 to the battery container 12 . the heat shield 10 is a single unit , and there are no latches required to couple the heat shield 10 to the battery container 12 . in order to remove the heat shield 10 from the battery container 12 , the user need only flex the end flaps 74 , 76 away from the battery container 12 to provide clearance for the heat shield 10 to be lifted upward . it will thus be appreciated by those skilled in the art that only a single user is required to disassemble the heat shield 10 from the battery container 12 . the heat shield 10 may be injection molded as a unitary structure by conventional molding techniques . the heat shield 10 is preferably made of a relatively rigid thermoplastic material , such as polypropylene , though other materials may be utilized . | 7 |
fig1 shows a pump 11 according to the invention in section , the design of which as a radial pump or impeller pump corresponds substantially to de 102007017271 a1 mentioned at the outset , to which reference is made in this regard explicitly . it can advantageously be used in a dishwasher or a washing machine . in the left - hand region , the pump 11 has a pump housing 12 with an inlet 13 , an outlet 14 and a pump chamber 16 . a customary impeller 18 is arranged as rotor or pump impeller close to a pump chamber bottom 17 . it is driven by a pump motor 20 which is not described in greater detail . by way of rotation of the impeller 18 , fluid is sucked in at the inlet 13 in the axial direction along the longitudinal center axis l ( shown using a dashed line ) of the pump 11 and is then ejected by the impeller 18 in the radial direction . the fluid is then brought into circulation in the pump chamber 16 and circulates and finally exits from the pump 11 at the outlet 14 . to this end , it has an axial flow component in addition to the circulating movement component of the fluid . the pump chamber 16 is delimited or formed to the outside substantially by a metallic carrier tube 24 , and heating elements 26 are provided on its outer side on an insulating layer 25 , with the result that a heating device 22 is formed . the carrier tube 24 is arranged sealingly in the pump housing by means of seals or sealing rings 21 . fig2 shows an enlarged plan view of a first embodiment of a heating device 22 a in accordance with fig1 . it can be seen how heating elements 26 a are provided on the carrier tube 24 or on its outer side on an insulating layer 25 . the heating elements 26 a are all of identical configuration and run in the direction of the axial flow component s of the water in the pump chamber 16 in accordance with fig1 . here , the heating elements 26 a not reach quite as far as the lower and the upper edge of the carrier tube 24 , with the result that the carrier tube 24 can be installed satisfactorily with the sealing rings 21 in accordance with fig1 . the heating elements 26 a have starting regions 28 a which are tapered toward the bottom and , after approximately one third of the length , have achieved a width which they then retain as far as upper end regions 30 a . the thickness of the heating elements 26 a which are configured as thick film heating elements is identical everywhere here . here , a pronounced increase in the power output or the thermal energy which is generated is achieved as a result of the reduction in the width at the lower end of the starting regions 28 a , which width is , in particular , less than half the main width and once again runs as far as the upper end regions 30 a . a transition of the abovementioned turbulent flow of the conveyed water in the pump chamber 16 outside the impeller 18 on the inner side of the heating device 22 into a laminar flow is indicated on the right next to the heating device 22 a by way of a dashed line . however , the transition is not as sudden or abrupt as indicated by the dashed line , but rather assumes a defined region , in which the flow gradually changes from turbulent to laminar . the transition therefore runs somewhat above that region , from which the heating elements 26 a have reached a constant width or their width and therefore their heating power output no longer change . this means that there is a lower area power output in the region of the laminar flow than in the region of the turbulent flow . moreover , the area power output in the region of the laminar flow is substantially constant in the direction of the axial flow component . it can be seen from fig2 that more heating power output is provided or more heat is generated on account of the tapered starting regions 28 a in the lower region of the heating device 22 a . here , in particular , the heating power output can be at least twice that in the upper region close to the end regions 30 a , and the area power output can therefore also be virtually double . in the further alternative of a heating device 22 b according to fig3 , the heating elements 26 b are configured in such a way that they become continuously wider in their longitudinal course along the flow direction s from lower starting regions 28 b as far as upper end regions 30 b which lie in each case on contacts 33 on the carrier 24 or the insulating layer 25 . here , the smallest width in the lower starting region 28 b and the greatest width in the upper end region 30 b correspond approximately to those from fig2 . it can also be seen in fig3 that the area power output is greater in the lower region of the heating device 22 b than in the upper region , the area power output as it were decreasing substantially continuously or uniformly along the axial flow component s , whereas this took place in fig2 just below the dashed transition from the turbulent flow to the laminar flow with a jump or rather in a jump - like manner . further variants of the course of the width of the heating elements 26 according to fig2 and 3 which are not shown in part are readily conceivable to a person skilled in the art . thus , instead of widening continuously , they can also become wider in a jump - like manner . a combination of uniform and jump - like widenings can also be provided . uniform widenings are considered , however , to be more advantageous with regard to stream flow and power output generation . in the further alternative of a heating device 22 c according to fig4 , the heating elements 26 c then do not run along or in the direction of the axial flow component s , but rather perpendicularly with respect thereto , that is to say in the circumferential direction on the carrier tube 24 . it can be seen here that the heating elements 26 c are considerably narrower in the lower end than the heating elements 26 c at the upper end , that is to say the width of the heating elements 26 c increases in the direction s in each case from one heating element to the next . the heating elements 26 c according to fig4 are in each case at the same spacing from one another . overall , the width of the lowermost heating element 26 c is less than half the uppermost heating element 26 c . a heating power output which decreases in each case is therefore also provided here as a result of the width of the heating elements 26 c which increases toward the top . as a consequence , in a similar manner as for the heating devices according to fig2 and 3 , the area power output in the lower region is considerably higher than in the upper region , in particular is at least twice as high . here , the increase in the width of the heating elements 26 c from the bottom to the top along the axial flow component s can be uniform , for example by in each case from 20 % to 30 %. in the further exemplary embodiment of a heating device 22 d according to fig5 , six heating elements 26 are provided , as has otherwise already also been provided in the heating device 22 c according to fig4 . here , the lowermost three heating elements 26 d have the same width . two heating elements 26 d which are considerably wider than the lower three , in particular are approximately twice as wide , are provided above the transition ( shown using a dashed line ) from the turbulent to the laminar flow . above this , a heating element 26 d is provided which in turn is considerably narrower , in particular is approximately as narrow as the lower three heating elements 26 d . in this way , in the heating device 22 d according to fig5 , the heating power output of the individual heating elements 26 d and therefore , on account of the respectively identical spacing from one another , the area power output in the lower region of the heating device 22 d is therefore once again considerably greater than in the upper region , in a similar manner to fig4 . here , however , it has no or only a small change along the axial flow component s in the lower region . the change is then rather jump - like above the transition which is shown using a dashed line , namely in the direction of approximately halving of the area power output . toward the very top at the upper end of the heating device 22 d , the area power output then rises once again as a result of the narrower uppermost heating element 26 d which once again ensures an increased area power output in the uppermost region . it can be seen from fig1 that this is as close as possible to the outlet 14 from the pump 11 , with the result that an attempt is made here finally once again to introduce as much heat as possible into the conveyed water . here , the flow can also change again from laminar to rather turbulent , with the result that an increased heat transfer is possible . unlike fig4 , fig5 also shows the electrical contact of the heating elements 26 d via the two contacts 33 d . the contacts 33 d are elongate strips as contact fields , advantageously made from highly electrically conductive material such as for example silver conductive paste or the like . all the heating elements 26 d are therefore connected in parallel , which also applies to the embodiments of fig4 , 6 and 7 . the heating elements 26 of the heating devices 22 a and 22 b from fig2 and 3 were after all connected in series . however , the thickness and composition of the heating elements are also in each case identical or constant in the heating devices according to fig4 to 7 . in a further alternative of a heating device 22 e according to fig6 , the respective heating elements 26 e are in turn at the same spacing from one another . two lower heating elements 26 e have the same width and reach approximately up to the transition which is shown using a dashed line . two heating elements 26 e which are arranged above the latter are considerably wider , in particular are approximately twice as wide . although there are therefore only two types or widths of heating elements 26 e here with in each case a different power output , since the area power output is once again considerably smaller in the upper region of the heating device 22 e on account of the lower heating power output which is provided than in the lower region , the result here is also the effect according to the invention of an area power output which becomes lower in the axial direction along the flow direction s of the pump 11 toward the outlet 14 . fig7 shows a further alternative of a heating device 22 f having heating elements 26 f which once again are all at a constant spacing from one another . two lower heating elements 26 f correspond in terms of width to those of the heating device 22 e from fig6 , and they reach as far as approximately the transition which is shown using a dashed line between the turbulent and laminar flow . a wide heating element 26 f is arranged above this , and a heating element 26 f which is once again narrow is also arranged above that . in view of the previous explanations , it is clear here that the area power output in the lower region is relatively great , and then the area power output decreases in the region of the wide heating element 26 f above the transition which is shown using a dashed line , in order then to increase once more toward the top . a similar effect can therefore be achieved here as in the heating device 22 d according to fig5 which has already been explained above . fig8 shows a further alternative of a heating device 22 g . here , five heating elements 26 g are provided which are in each case equally wide , but the spacing of which from one another becomes greater in each case , that is to say increases , along the axial flow component s . although all the heating elements 26 g therefore generate the same heating power output , the area power output is at any rate increased according to the invention in the direction s as a result of the respectively increasing spacing from one another . this takes place in a relatively uniform manner , since the spacings also , as it were , become uniformly greater , for example increase in each case by from 20 % to 30 %. it can be seen that the illustration of fig8 is approximately an inverted illustration of that from fig4 , where the individual heating elements 26 c in each case became uniformly wider , whereas the spacings between them remained identical . | 5 |
throughout the following description , similar reference numerals refer to similar elements in all figures of the drawings . fig1 is an illustration of a classic transonic flow pattern in which a model bluff body 10 is positioned in an airstream flowing in the direction of arrow 15 and having a freestream velocity of about mach 0 . 7 . the transonic flow pattern has an embedded supersonic flow region 20 located beneath a subsonic flow region 30 and separated from same by a boundary designated by sonic line 40 , shown in phantom . immediately adjacent to the surface of bluff body 10 is boundary layer 50 of subsonic and supersonic flow . region 20 is bounded on its downstream side by recompression shock 60 . the rapid recompression and deceleration of fluid at the downstream portion of region 20 adjacent recompression shock 60 results in a separation shear layer 70 . fig2 shows a top plan view of a surface incorporating a preferred embodiment of the present invention . the directon of freestream flow is from the left of the drawing to the right as shown by arrow 15 . as is visible in the drawing , the surface is provided with array means 75 for retaining vortices , which in the preferred embodiment is a plurality of cells . fig3 shows a typical cell 78 having a rectangular cross - section when viewed from the top with bottom 110 and sides 80 , 90 , 100 , and 130 . the cells are arranged in slots 85 transverse to the flow formed by dividers 86 . each slot , in turn , is divided by partitions 95 . the sides of the slot make up walls 80 and 90 ; the inside faces of the partitions make up walls 100 and 130 . cell 78 is preferably small , that is , its profile surface area is small compared to the surface in which it is embedded . as shown in fig2 partitions from one slot to the next may be staggered to create a tiered array that repeats , for example , every third row . staggering prevents large contiguous surfaces over which there is no suction or vortices . it is preferred as a general design criterion to dispose the cells comprising array means 75 sufficiently proximate to one another that there are no large contiguous surfaces having no embedded vortices . the optimum arrangement for this purpose is a dense array , that is , an array wherein the cells are substantially adjacent one another , as shown in fig3 . as seen therein , each rectangular cell is separated from cells in the immediately neighboring slots by the narrow divider 86 , and from neighboring cells in the same slot by partition 95 , which is about one - quarter of a cell length long . this serves to create a dense array . it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art , however , that other relative displacements will satisfy the general design criterion . reference is now made to fig4 and 5 wherein fig4 is a cross - sectional view of the cellular array taken along line 4 -- 4 of fig3 and fig5 is a perspective view , shown partially in section and corresponding to the structure of fig4 . the flow direction is as indicated by arrow 15 . visible now are dividers 86 in cross section and holes 120 in the side 100 of the cell . hole 120 communicates with suction means as described below . the flow over the top of cell 78 together with flow out of cell 78 through hole 120 create a vortex within cell 78 spiraling in the direction of the curved arrow 135 . the scale of the vortex within cell 78 is determined by the interior dimensions of cell 78 . inasmuch as the interior dimensions of the cell are small compared with the radius of curvature of the body on which it is located , it is appropriate to refer to the embedded vortex as a &# 34 ; mini vortex .&# 34 ; the cell is as deep as it is wide , giving it a square cross - section as shown in fig4 . fig6 is a cross - sectional view of the structure shown in fig3 taken along line 6 -- 6 . visible now are channel means 125 connected to holes 120 for drawing fluid therethrough . fluid flows in the direction of the arrows 137 as shown . fig7 is a schematic diagram of the means for pumping fluid out of the cells . cell array means 75 communicates in the manner described above to channel means 125 . the fluid drawn through channel means 125 then passes into a manifold 140 . the manifold pressure is maintained low enough to ensure choked ( sonic ) flow at the hole 120 at the lowest static pressure point outside the array 75 to obtain the required local suction mass flow . fluid then flows to suction means 150 , which is any conventional device for inducing negative pressure , e . g . a pump . according to the present invention , there are two primary modes of vortex flow interaction . in the relatively weak vortex case , deflection of the outer flow in passing over the cells is minimal as the mass removal through the vortex core is relatively small . in this case , the dominant effect is preservation of the sonic flow velocity at the foot of the shock acting as a near surface tangential jet . the other mode of vortex flow interaction involves the relatively strong vortex mode . in this case , the flow deflection over the cells is strong and slot vortex development is also strong . the remarkable effect which appears to be unique to this flow situation is the creation of nearly symmetric supersonic flow fields on both the expansion and compression sides . the normally strongly localized single shock is broken up into small increments over which approximate flow symmetry is maintained . tests conducted using a worst case two - dimensional flow cylinder in transonic flow show that as suction through hole 120 is increased , separation is delayed further and further around the circumference of the bluff body . it appears as if flow is being &# 34 ; stitched down &# 34 ; farther downstream around the body . if the suction is great enough , flow separation is completely prevented thereby eliminating the separation layer 70 of fig1 . this effect is shown in fig8 which is derived from actual schlieren photographs of flow about a cylindrical bluff body . expressing the theory of operation of a minivortex array mathematically , the basic equation for two - dimensional boundary layer flow over a curved surface is given by upstream of the portion of greatest cross - section of a body of elements ∂ u /∂ x and ∂ u /∂ x are both positive at a normal continuous surface and ∂ p /∂ x is negative . past the portion of greatest cross - section , ∂ p /∂ x becomes positive . since u is small and positive at the foot of the boundary layer , ∂ u /∂ x must be large and negative to balance the equation . in order to achieve balance , ∂ u /∂ y at the surface becomes zero , and separation occurs . for systems using conventional distributed suction , the ∂ v ∂ u /∂ y term becomes dominant because v at the surface becomes negative . the limited usefulness of the technique becomes apparent because as ∂ u /∂ x at the surface becomes very small , the absolute magnitude of - v must increase accordingly for the term containing both to continue to balance the adverse pressure gradient . the mini vortex apparatus according to the present invention makes u at the surface large and positive . then , only a small -∂ u /∂ x is needed to balance -∂ p /∂ x . also , since ∂ u /∂ y at the surface is relatively large , the small - v required to remove the low energy cores of the mini - vortices also adds an appreciable contribution from the second term . a unique feature of the apparatus producing the mini - vortex surface is that it actively makes the first term of the above equation dominant for prevention of flow separation . the apparatus can obviously be used as an alternative to distributed suction to prevent separation in all subsonic flow as almost a trivial case . in the preferred embodiment , the slots are of rectangular ( equal width and depth ) cross - section . the partitions are four slot widths apart and are staggered in a three - tier pattern . this arrangement makes the interior volume of the cell to be that of a rectangular parallelepiped ( rectangular solid ) having equal with and depth , and a length four times its width . the core removal holes 120 have an inlet diameter of one - half the slot width . the downhole diameters through channel means 125 are three - quarters of a slot width . it should be clear to one of ordinary skill in the art that there will be optimized design solutions for particular flow cases ranging from bluff bodies to conventional transonic airfoils . one design parameter will be minimization of the mass suction rate for a given application . in the tests described above , the maximum mass removal is approximately four percent of the incident mass flow . optimization of the hole sizes to control local slot vortex effect could reduce required total mass removal by as much as an order of magnitude . in the embodiment described above , suction or negative pressure alone has been described for use in driving the vortices . it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that a similar effect could be achieved by blowing or positive pressure . specifically , with reference to fig6 one of the channel means 125 could be connected to a suction source , while the other could be connected to a source for high - presure fluid for blowing . the low energy core of the vortex would then be blown out . preferably , the cell would be &# 34 ; focussed &# 34 ; if this arrangement were used , that is , its geometry would be altered to facilitate core removal from the blowing side to the sucking side . it would also be preferable to make the hole on the sucking side slightly larger to accommodate both the blown air and the entrained low energy core of the vortex . having described preferred embodiments of the invention , certain other modifications thereto will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art . it is understood that these modifications are part of this invention as defined in the appended claims . | 1 |
referring now to fig1 a schematic view of a particular embodiment of the present invention for a starter control system 70 is shown . such an embodiment , as shown in fig1 is for an automatic transmission vehicle ( not shown ). the control system 70 includes an engine controller of electronic control unit ( ecu ) 40 . the ecu 40 includes a microprocessor , memory ( volatile and non - volatile ), bus lines ( address , control , and data ), and other hardware and software needed to perform the task of engine control . the starter control system 70 also includes a crankshaft sensor 64 interconnected to the ecu 40 and internal combustion engine to measure the rotational speed and angular position of the crankshaft ( not shown ). the control system 70 further includes a transmission gear state switch wherein the switch is a park / neutral switch 44 , in the automatic transmission embodiment and a clutch interlock switch 52 in the manual transmission embodiment . the park / neutral switch 44 is interconnected to the ecu 40 and the vehicle transmission . the park / neutral switch 44 is fed into the ecu 40 at the park / neutral signal lead 45 . the park / neutral switch 44 is in a closed or conducting position if the vehicle transmission is in a &# 34 ; park &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; neutral &# 34 ; state . the control system 70 also includes a power ground line 58 , for grounding the ecu 40 , fed from the engine ground terminal 56 of the battery 54 to the ecu 40 . moreover , the control system 70 includes data input and output lines provided by a body controller bus 48 to the ecu 40 and also connected to the ignition switch 46 . the controller bus 48 is for notifying the ecu 40 if the vehicle operator is attempting to start the engine . the starter relay control system 70 also includes a battery feed 59 connected to the ecu 40 and the battery 54 . the battery feed 59 provides voltage to the ecu 40 from the positive terminal of the battery 54 . moreover , the control system 70 provides for an ignition feed 61 connected between the ecu 40 and the ignition switch 46 . the ignition feed 61 provides a voltage switch 46 in a &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; position by a vehicle operator . in the preferred embodiment , the control system 70 further provides starter relay control signal means 60 connected between the ecu 40 and a starter relay 50 . through the relay control signal means 60 , the ecu 40 can provide a ground path such that current will conduct through and energize the coil of the starter relay 50 . it is to be understood , however , that other circuit components could be used in place of the starter relay 50 , such as a power or mosfet transistor , that could be controlled by the ecu 40 to provide relay power throughout the control system 70 . the current starter relay control system 70 also includes an ignition switch 46 connected to the starter relay 50 , vehicle battery 54 via a forty ( 40 ) amp fuse , ignition feed 61 of the ecu 40 , and bus controller 48 . the ignition switch 46 is turned to various positions by a vehicle operator . typical vehicle ignition switches provide an &# 34 ; off &# 34 ; position for disabling all mechanical and electrical means , and an &# 34 ; unlock &# 34 ; position for enabling select electrical circuitry to operate such as a radio and power windows , a &# 34 ; run &# 34 ; position which the ignition switch stays in while the vehicle is running , and a &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; position for enabling the vehicle to begin start - up operations . the present starter relay control system 70 also includes a starter relay 50 . the starter relay 50 is connected to the ecu 40 , starter relay control 60 , starter motor 42 , battery 54 , and ignition switch 46 . the starter relay 50 provides means for energizing and de - energizing the starter motor 42 by providing and denying current flow to the starter motor 42 . the starter relay control system 70 further includes a vehicle battery 54 with positive and negative terminals . the negative terminal is connected to engine or vehicle ground 56 , while the positive terminal is connected to the starter motor 42 , ecu 40 , battery feed 59 via a twenty ( 20 ) amp fuse 20a , and the ignition switch 46 via a forty ( 40 ) amp fuse 40a . referring now to circuit operation of the present invention , under normal operating conditions , the vehicle transaxle must be in &# 34 ; park &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; neutral &# 34 ; for automatic transmission vehicles to start the engine 75 . the ecu 40 monitors if the transmission is in the proper gear for engine starting by sensing the park / neutral switch 44 at the park / neutral signal lead 45 . with the ignition key in the ignition switch 46 , the ignition switch 46 is turned to the &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; position . the body controller 48 transmits a signal to the ecu 40 if the operator of the vehicle is starting the engine ( i . e ., &# 34 ; cranking &# 34 ;). if the engine is not running by determination of the current rpm versus the calculated rpm in the starter relay methodology stated infra , the ecu 40 provides a ground path for the starter relay 50 . this results in the engagement of the starter motor 42 . if the engine is running , the ecu 40 does not provide a ground path to energize the starter relay 50 , which in turn does not engage the starter motor 42 . referring now to fig2 a schematic view of a particular embodiment of the present invention for the starter relay control system 70 is shown . such an embodiment , as shown in fig2 is applicable to a manual transmission vehicle ( not shown ). the starter relay control system 70 includes an engine controller or electronic control unit ( ecu ) 40 . the ecu 40 includes a microprocessor , memory ( volatile and non - volatile ), bus lines ( address , control , and data ), and other hardware and software needed to perform the task of engine control . the starter relay control system 70 also includes a crankshaft sensor 64 interconnected to the ecu 40 and internal combustion engine to measure the rotational speed and angular position of the crankshaft ( not shown ) whereby the ecu 40 can determine the engine rpm . the crankshaft sensor 46 is fed to the ecu 40 via crank signal lead 63 . moreover , the ecu 40 can return signals to the crankshaft sensor 64 via the sensor return lead 65 . it is to be expressly understood that a plurality of sensors can be used in the present invention to provide signals to the ecu 40 and whereby the ecu 40 can then determine the engine rpm . the control system 70 further includes a clutch interlock switch 52 , in the manual transmission embodiment , interconnected to the start relay 50 and the vehicle ignition switch 46 . the clutch interlock switch 52 will be placed in a closed or conducting position if the vehicle clutch is depressed by the operator . the starter relay control system 70 also includes a power ground line 58 , for grounding the ecu 40 , fed from the engine ground terminal 56 of the battery 54 to the ecu 40 . moreover , the starter relay control system 70 includes data input and output lines provided by a body controller bus 48 to the ecu 40 and also connected to the ignition switch 46 . the body controller bus 48 is for notifying the ecu 40 if the vehicle operator is attempting to start the engine . the starter relay control system 70 also includes a battery feed 59 connected to the ecu 40 and the battery 54 . the battery feed 59 provides voltage to the ecu 40 from the positive terminal of the battery 54 . moreover , the starter relay control system 70 provides for an ignition feed 61 connected between the ecu 40 and the ignition switch 46 . the ignition feed 61 provides a voltage signal to the ecu 40 upon placement of the ignition switch 46 in a &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; position by a vehicle operator . the starter relay control system 70 further provides starter relay control signal means 60 connected between the ecu 40 and the starter relay 50 . through the starter relay control signal means 60 , the ecu 40 can provide a ground path such that current will conduct through and energize the coil of the starter relay 50 . the current starter relay control system 70 also includes an ignition switch 46 connected to the starter relay 50 , vehicle battery 54 , ignition feed 61 of the ecu 40 , and bus controller 48 . the ignition switch 46 is turned to various positions by a vehicle operator . typical ignition switches provide an &# 34 ; off &# 34 ; position for disabling all mechanical and electrical means , an &# 34 ; unlock &# 34 ; position for enabling select electrical circuitry to operate such as a radio and power windows , a &# 34 ; run &# 34 ; position which the ignition switch stays in while the vehicle is running , and a &# 34 ; start &# 34 ; position for enabling the vehicle to start . the present starter relay control system 70 also includes a starter relay 50 . the starter relay 50 is connected to the ecu 40 , starter relay control signal means 60 , starter motor 42 , battery 54 , and ignition switch 46 . the starter relay 50 provides means for energizing and de - energizing the starter motor 42 by providing and denying current flow to the starter motor 42 . the starter relay control system 70 further includes a vehicle battery 54 with positive and negative terminals . the negative terminal is connected to engine or vehicle ground 56 , while the positive terminal is connected to the starter motor 42 , ecu 40 , battery feed 59 , and the ignition switch 46 . under normal operating conditions , the vehicle clutch must be depressed in manual transmission vehicles to start the engine ( not shown ). if the clutch is not in a depressed position , the starter relay 50 will not be able to energize since an open circuit is created and current will not be able to conduct through the relay coil . with the ignition key in the ignition switch 46 , the ignition switch 46 is turned to the start position . the body controller 48 transmits a signal to the ecu 40 if the operator of the vehicle is starting the engine ( i . e ., &# 34 ; cranking &# 34 ;). if the engine is not running by determination of the current rpm versus the calculated rpm in the starter relay methodology stated infra , the ecu 40 provides a ground path for the starter relay 50 . if the clutch is also depressed , current will be conducted through the starter relay coil to the ground path created at the starter relay control signal means 60 of the ecu 40 . this will result in the engagement of the starter motor 42 causing it to operate . if the engine is running , the ecu 40 does not provide a ground path to energize the starter relay 50 , which in turn does not engage the starter motor 42 . referring to fig4 a partial frontal view and partial schematic view of an engine block 75 is shown . the engine block 75 has a ring gear 68 rotationally engaged to one or more parts for imparting motion to the engine crankshaft ( not shown ). the ring gear 68 is positioned such that it can be in rotationally meshing engagement with a pinion gear 66 . the pinion gear 66 is rotationally connected to the starter motor 42 which imparts motion to the pinion gear 66 . the axial movement and rotation of the pinion gear 66 moves the gear teeth into alignment with the engine ring gear 68 to provide for meshing engagement of the pinion gear 66 to the ring gear 68 . the starter motor 42 has electrical connections supplied from the starter relay 50 , ignition switch 46 , and vehicle battery 54 for providing current and voltage to the starter motor 42 . the vehicle battery 54 has a positive lead connected to the starter motor 42 and a ground lead connected to engine or vehicle ground 56 . fig4 also shows a view of the starter relay 50 . the starter relay 50 is electrically connected to the starter motor 42 and the ignition switch 46 . the starter relay 50 provides the relay of power to the starter motor 42 . further shown in fig4 is the ignition switch 46 which is electrically connected to the starter relay 50 and provides input from the vehicle operator . referring now to fig3 a flow chart of a method for controlling the starter relay 50 of a vehicle through the electronic control unit ( ecu ) 40 , is shown . the methodology begins at bubble 10 . to initiate the starter relay control routine in the ecu 40 , the occurrence of a run - start reference signal from the ignition switch 46 is received and the method falls through to decision block 11 . at decision block 11 , the methodology determines whether a neutral safety switch flag has been set in the ecu 40 which denotes that the vehicle gear is in drive or reverse . if the vehicle is in drive gear , the methodology will then proceed to block 34 and disable the starter relay 50 . if , however , the neutral safety switch flag has not been set , denoting that the vehicle is not in drive or reverse , the methodology falls through to decision block 12 . in decision block 12 , the methodology determines if the operator of the vehicle is attempting to start the engine . this is determined by the ecu 40 receiving a signal from the body controller 48 , on the status of the ignition switch 46 . if the operator is not attempting to start the engine , the methodology proceeds to block 34 and disables the starter relay 50 . if , however , the operator of the vehicle is attempting to start the engine by engaging the ignition switch 46 to the start position , the methodology enters decision block 13 . in decision block 13 , the methodology determines if the starter relay 50 is enabled by the ecu 40 . if the starter relay 50 is enabled , the methodology then falls through to decision block 18 . if the starter relay 50 is not disabled , the methodology proceeds to decision block 14 and determines if the engine has stopped . if the engine has stopped running , the methodology will fall through to block 20 where a disable timer of the ecu 40 will be armed . if , however , it is determined in decision block 14 that the engine has not stopped , the methodology will advance to bubble 36 . in bubble 36 , the methodology returns from the starter relay control routine of the ecu 40 . returning now to decision block 13 , if the methodology determines that the starter relay is enabled , the methodology falls through to decision block 18 . in decision block 18 , the methodology determines if the current engine revolutions per minute ( rpm ) is greater than a calculated disable rpm . the calculated disable rpm is the minimum rpm at the current temperature , determined by the ecu 40 , at which the engine is running . if the current rpm is greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology proceeds to decision block 22 . if , however , the current rpm is not greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology proceeds to block 20 . in block 20 , the methodology sets the disable delay timer of the ecu 40 . the disable delay timer is activated to provide sufficient time for the engine to transfer from start to run mode , including rough idle conditions . the methodology then falls through to block 32 and enables the starter relay 50 . the methodology then continues to bubble 36 . in bubble 36 , the methodology returns from the starter relay control routine . returning now to decision block 22 , the methodology checks if the disable delay timer has expired . if the disable delay timer has expired , the methodology proceeds to decision block 26 . if , however , the disable delay timer has not expired , the methodology falls through to block 30 . at block 30 , the methodology decrements the disable delay timer . the methodology then continues through to bubble 36 . in bubble 36 , the methodology is returned from the starter relay control routine . if the timer has not been disabled in decision block 22 , the methodology advances to decision block 26 . in decision block 26 , the methodology determines if the current engine rpm is greater than the calculated rpm . the calculated disable rpm is the minimum rpm at the current temperature , determined by the ecu 40 , at which the engine is running . if the actual rpm is greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology falls through to block 34 . if , however , the actual rpm is not greater than the calculated disable rpm , meaning that the engine had not sustained the required rpm after the disable delay timer has expired , the methodology proceeds to block 20 to arm the disable timer . if the actual engine rpm is greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology falls through to block 34 . in block 34 , the methodology disables the starter relay 50 . this is accomplished by the ecu 40 withholding the transmittance of a voltage signal to the starter relay s0 such that the starter relay 50 is not energized . the methodology then continues through to bubble 36 . in bubble , 36 , the methodology is returned from the starter relay control routine . referring now to fig5 a schematic view of a particular embodiment of the present invention for a clutchless starter control system 100 is shown . the control system 100 includes an engine controller or electronic control unit ( ecu ) 40 . the ecu 40 includes a microprocessor , memory ( volatile and non - volatile ), bus lines ( address , control , and data ), and other hardware needed to perform the task of engine control . the ecu 40 is electrically coupled via data input line 102 to the starter motor 42 . the motor armature 104 of the starter 42 is connected to engine ground 56 and vehicle battery 54 via solenoid contact points 104 . as described in greater detail below , the ecu 40 monitors if the voltage of the starter armature 104 is greater than zero under given engine operating parameters . if so , the starter pinion gear 66 has likely remained engaged with the engine ring gear 68 . accordingly , the ecu 40 may vary the fuel - air mixture delivered to the engine to cause a load variation between the pinion 66 and the ring gear 68 allowing the pinion 66 to retract under the influence of the starter return spring ( not shown ). thereafter , subsequent monitoring of the voltage at the starter motor armature 104 by the ecu 40 will determine if the pinion 66 did indeed retract . if not , the ecu 40 may send a message indicator via the instrument panel to warn the vehicle operator of the condition . referring now to fig6 a flow chart of a method for controlling the clutchless starter control system 100 through the electronic control unit 40 is shown . the methodology begins at bubble 110 and falls through to decision block 112 . in decision block 112 , the methodology determines if the current engine revolutions per minute ( rpm ) is greater than a calculated disable rpm . the calculated disable rpm is the minimum rpm at the current engine temperature , determined by the ecu 40 , at which the engine is running . if the current rpm is greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology proceeds to decision block 114 . if , however , the current rpm is not greater than the calculated disable rpm , the methodology proceeds to bubble 116 . in bubble 116 , the methodology exits the subroutine pending a subsequent execution thereof as controlled by the ecu 40 . in decision block 114 , the methodology determines if the ecu 40 has opened the circuit to the starter solenoid such that the starter is &# 34 ; off &# 34 ;. if so , the methodology continues to decision block 118 . if , however , the methodology determines that the engine control unit has not opened the circuit to the starter solenoid at decision block 114 , the methodology advances to bubble 116 where it exits the routine . in decision block 118 , the methodology determines if the voltage level at the starter armature is equal to a predetermined threshold such as zero volts . if so , the pinion gear 66 has disengaged from the ring gear 68 and operation may proceed as normal . therefore , the methodology advances from decision block 118 to bubble 116 and exits the routine . however , if the voltage level at the starter armature in decision block 118 is greater than zero , which would be the case if the pinion gear 66 remained engaged with the ring gear 68 , the methodology advances from decision block 118 to block 120 . at block 120 , the ecu 40 changes the vehicle operating parameters to vary the fuel / air mixture delivered to the engine to cause a load variation between the pinion gear 66 and ring gear 68 . this load variation should enable the pinion gear 66 to retract from the ring gear 68 . from block 120 , the methodology continues to decision 122 where the ecu 40 re - checks the voltage level at the starter armature . if the voltage level at the starter armature is now equal to zero at decision block 122 , the pinion gear 66 has retracted from the ring gear 68 , and the methodology advances to bubble 116 and exits the routine . if , however , the voltage level at the starter armature remains greater than zero at decision block 122 , the methodology advances to block 124 where the ecu 40 sends a warning message to the vehicle operator via an instrument panel or the like . the present invention has been described in an illustrative manner . it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation . many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . therefore , within the scope of the appended claims , the present invention may be practiced other than as specifically described . | 5 |
a specific embodiment of the present invention will hereinafter be described with reference to the drawings . in the present invention , the construction of the apparatus is the same as the construction of the prior - art apparatus and therefore , in the following , a description will be provided by the use of the prior - art apparatus construction . a method of making the acceleration table of the pulse motor stored in the memory in the mpu 52 which is used when the head is sought by trapezoidal locus velocity control will first be described by the use of table 1 . in table 1 , the difference between adjacent data is calculated in accordance with the following equations : where tb p is the pth table data , p is the table pointer , and n is the total number of data of the table . the calculated stb p is tabulated in table 2 . in table 2 , pmtbl means the top address of the table . pmend means the end address of the table , and dw means that the data succeeding thereto is data of 2 bytes paying attention to table 2 , stb p becomes smaller as the table pointer p becomes greater . so , the case is classified for each magnitude of stb p as follows . ( 1 ) in the case of stb p ≧ 256 , 2 bytes ( 16 bits ) are necessary to express ( binary notation ) that value in the memory and therefore , a 2 - byte table is used and stb p is defined as 2 - byte table data . ( 2 ) in the case of 256 & gt ; stb p ≧ 16 , 1 byte ( 8 bits ) is necessary to express that value in the memory and therefore , a 1 - byte table is used and stb p is defined as 1 - byte table data . ( 3 ) in the case of 16 & gt ; stb p , 4 bits are necessary to express that value in the memory . accordingly , a 4 - bit table is used and f4 ( p )= stb p * 16 + stb p + 1 is defined as table data . that is , the table is divided for each magnitude of data , and 2 - byte data can be put into a 2 - byte table , 1 - byte data can be put into a 1 - byte table , and as regards 4 - bit data , two data can be put into 1 byte and therefore , different data are put into the most significant 4 bits and the least significant 4 bits in 1 byte , and are used as data . the thus classified table data are shown in table 3 . tb 0 shows the initial value , which , in table 1 , is the first value ( 5715 ). pmtbl16 , pmtbl8 and pmtbl4 represent the top addresses of 16 - bit , 8 - bit and 4 - bit tables , respectively , pmend16 , pmend8 and pmend4 represent the end addresses of the respective tables , and tcnt16 , tcnt8 and tcnt4 represent the numbers of the respective table data . dw represents that the data succeeding thereto is 2 - byte table data , and db represents that the data succeeding thereto is a 1 - byte table data . these table data are stored in the memory in the mpu 52 . the flow charts when the pulse motor is driven on the basis of the aforedescribed table data by the use of table 3 are shown in fig7 a and 7b . fig7 a shows the background routine , fig7 b shows the timer interrupt routine , and fig7 c shows the subroutine for loading the table data . the background routine of fig7 a will first be described . when an access command comes from the outside host computer into the mpu 52 , the mpu 52 calculates the seek track number ( cnt ) from the current track to a desired track ( step 1 ). if cnt is greater than two times , i . e ., n , when the seek track number during the acceleration period is cnt1 , cnt1 is set up as n ( step 3 ), and when the seek track number during the predetermined velocity period is cnt2 , cnt2 is set up as { cnt - 2n }, and when the seek track number during the deceleration period is cnt3 , cnt3 is set up as n . when cnt is 2n or less , whether cnt can be divided by 2 is examined ( step 4 ), and if cnt cannot be divided by 2 , the seek track number cnt1 during the acceleration period is made into a value equal to the quotient obtained by dividing cnt by 2 , and the seek track number cnt2 during the predetermined velocity period is made into 1 , and the seek track number cnt3 during the deceleration period is made into the same value as cnt1 ( step 5 ). if cnt can be divided by 2 , the seek track number cnt1 during the acceleration period is made into the same value as the quotient obtained by dividing cnt by 2 , and the seek track number cnt2 during the predetermined velocity period is made into 0 and the seek track number cnt3 during the deceleration period is made into the same value as cnt1 ( step 6 ). after the seek track numbers during the acceleration period , the predetermined velocity period and the deceleration period , respectively , have been determined in this manner , those determined values are stored in the memory in the mpu 52 . subsequently , the table pointer p is rendered to , 0 ( step 7 ), and further , tm ( a value set in the timer ) is rendered to tb0 ( step 8 ). thereafter , the timer is initialized ( step 9 ) to thereby permit the timer interruption ( step 10 ). if cnt ≠ 0 ( or cnt2 ≠ 0 or cnt3 ≠ 0 ) ( steps 11 , 12 and 13 ), the program skips to the timer interrupt routine . the timer interrupt routine will now be described here . the processing in the timer interrupt routine differs depending on the acceleration , the predetermined velocity or the deceleration and therefore , branches off to respective process depending on the values of cnt1 , cnt2 and cnt3 . if cnt1 ≠ 0 ( step 15 ), the program branches off to p4 , and cnt1 stored earlier is decreased by 1 , and that value is stored in the memory instead of cnt1 stored earlier ( step 16 ). subsequently , the data indicated by the table pointer is called out from the acceleration table in the memory in the mpu 52 ( step 17 ). this called - out data will hereinafter be referred to as temp . temp called out from tm is then subtracted ( step 18 ), and the result is stored as new tm . thereafter , the value of this tm is set in the timer ( step 19 ), and the table pointer is increased by 1 ( step 20 ). the timer then counts down the set value , and when the count value becomes 0 , the mpu 52 outputs a pulse motor driving pulse ( step 29 ). then , the program returns to the background routine , and if cnt1 ≠ 0 , a similar operation is repeated ( step 11 ). if it is the predetermined velocity period , that is , cnt2 ≠ 0 ( step 21 ), the program branches off to p5 , and cnt2 stored earlier is decreased by 1 ( step 22 ). since the table pointer during the predetermined velocity period is not varied , tm set in the timer the last time is again set in the timer ( step 23 ). the timer then counts down the set value , and when the count value becomes 0 , the mpu 52 outputs a pulse motor driving pulse . then , the program returns to the background routine again and if cnt2 ≠ 0 , a similar operation is repeated ( step 12 ). if it is the deceleration period , that is , cnt3 ≠ 0 , the program branches off to p6 , and cnt3 and the currently stored table pointer are decreased by 1 ( steps 24 and 25 ). thereafter , the data indicated by the current table pointer is called out from the acceleration table in the memory in the mpu 52 ( step 26 ). then , temp is added to tm set in the timer the last time ( step 27 ), and the result is stored as tm ( step 28 ). the value of this tm is then set in the timer . the timer counts down the set value , and when the count value becomes 0 , the mpu 52 outputs a pulse motor driving pulse ( step 29 ). then , the program returns to the background routine again , and if cnt3 ≠ 0 , a similar operation is repeated ( step 13 ). finally , when cnt3 becomes 0 , the timer interruption is inhibited ( step 14 ) and the seek is terminated . the routine for calling out the data indicated by the table pointer from the acceleration table in the memory in the mpu 52 will now be described in greater detail . fig7 c is the flow chart of a subroutine for calling out and storing the table data indicated by the table pointer p . the table data is divided into 16 - bit data , 8 - bit data and 4 - bit data and therefore , it is necessary to determine which bit data the current table pointer p is . for this purpose , the table pointer p is compared with a value resulting from the addition of tcnt16 indicative of the number of 16 - bit data to tcnt8 indicative of the number of 8 - bit data ( step 30 ). if the , table pointer p is smaller than ( tcnt8 + tcnt16 ), the process is abandoned to a step 36 . if the table to a step 31 . at the step 36 , the table pointer p is further compared with tcnt16 , and if the table pointer p is smaller than tcnt16 , the process is advance to a step 39 . if the table pointer p is greater than tcnt16 , the process is abandoned to a step 37 . in this way the present invention determines which bit data the data indicated by current table pointer p is determined . if the table pointer p is less than tcnt16 , it is determined to be 1 - bit data and the program branches off to p9 . then , the address in the data table is calculated to call out on the basis of the table pointer p ( step 39 ), whereafter the table data is loaded by 2 bytes from that address . that value is then stored in temp ( step 40 ), thus terminating the subroutine ( step 41 ). thereafter , a return is made to the background routine . if the table pointer p is greater than tcnt16 and smaller than the value of tcnt8 plus tcnt16 , it is determined to be 8 - bit data , and the program branches off to p8 . subsequently , the address in the data table is calculated to call out on the basis of the table pointer p ( step 37 ), whereafter the table data is loaded by 1 byte from that address . that value is then stored in temp ( step 38 ), thus terminating the subroutine . thereafter , a return is made to the background routine , ( step 41 ). if the table pointer p is greater than the value of tcnt8 plus tcnt16 , it is determined to be 4 - bit data , and the program branches off to p7 . then , the address in the data table is calculated to call out on the basis of the table pointer p ( step 31 ), whereafter the table data is loaded by 1 byte from that address ( step 32 ). in the case of 4 - bit data , different table data are contained in the most significant 4 bits and the least significant 4 bits in 1 byte and therefore , it is necessary to convert the 1 - byte data loaded to call out and take out the data into the original data . therefore , when the data to call out is determined to be the most significant 4 bits in the 1 - byte data ( step 33 ), the quotient obtained by dividing the called - out 1 - byte data by 16 is stored in temp ( step 34 ), and when the data to call out is determined to be the least significant 4 bits , the most significant 4 bits are masked by 0 , and then are stored in temp ( step 35 ), thus terminating the subroutine ( step 41 ). thereafter , a return is made to the background routine . as regards the determination as to whether the data indicated by the table pointer p is the most significant 4 bits or the least significant 4 bits in the 1 - byte data , if the value obtained by subtracting tcnt16 and tcnt8 from the value of the table pointer p is divided by 2 and can be divided by a positive integer , the data indicated by that table pointer p is regarded as the most significant 4 bits in the 1 - byte data , and if the value cannot be divided by a positive integer , the data is regarded as the least significant 4 bits in the 1 - byte data . in the aforedescribed embodiment , a description has been made of the method of taking the difference between the adjacent data of the pulse motor acceleration table , making a 16 - bit table , 8 - bit table an and a 4 - bit table for each magnitude thereof , decreasing the memory amount indicated by the acceleration table , and accelerating the head by the use of that table . however , the size of the acceleration table and the magnitude of the difference between the adjacent data differ depending on the conditions such as the acceleration and maximum velocity of the pulse motor . therefore , the efficient manner of dividing the table data for decreasing the memory amount can be freely determined . a description has also been provided of the case where acceleration is linearly effected , but the present invention can also be applied to an expotential functional or other acceleration method . as described above , in the information recording - reproducing head driving circuit of the present invention , the acceleration table for feeding the head at a high speed can be greatly compressed simply by a slight change of software , with the result that the space the acceleration table in the memory in the mpu occupies can be made small . table 1__________________________________________________________________________pulse motor acceleration table__________________________________________________________________________pmtblequ $ dw 5715 , 5192 , 4793 , 4476 , 4216 , 3997 , 3809 , 3646 , 3502 , 3375 , 3260 , 3157 , 3063 , 2976 , 3897 , 2824dw 2756 , 2693 , 2634 , 2579 , 2527 , 2479 , 2432 , 2389 , 2348 , 2308 , 2271 , 2235 , 2202 , 2169 , 2138 , 2108dw 2080 , 2053 , 2026 , 2001 , 1976 , 1953 , 1930 , 1908 , 1887 , 1867 , 1847 , 1828 , 1809 , 1791 , 1773 , 1756dw 1740 , 1724 , 1708 , 1693 , 1678 , 1664 , 1650 , 1636 , 1622 , 1609 , 1597 , 1584 , 1572 , 1560 , 1549 , 1537dw 1526 , 1515 , 1505 , 1494 , 1484 , 1474 , 1464 , 1454 , 1445 , 1436 , 1427 , 1418 , 1409 , 1401 , 1392 , 1384dw 1376 , 1368 , 1360 , 1352 , 1345 , 1337 , 1330 , 1323 , 1316 , 1309 , 1302 , 1295 , 1288 , 1282 , 1275 , 1269dw 1263 , 1256 , 1250 , 1244 , 1238 , 1233 , 1227 , 1221 , 1216 , 1210 , 1205 , 1199 , 1194 , 1189 , 1184 , 1179dw 1174 , 1169 , 1164 , 1159 , 1154 , 1149 , 1145 , 1140 , 1136 , 1131 , 1127 , 1122 , 1118 , 1114 , 1109 , 1105dw 1101 , 1097 , 1093 , 1089 , 1085 , 1081 , 1077 , 1074 , 1070 , 1066 , 1062 , 1058 , 1055 , 1051 , 1048 , 1044dw 1041 , 1037 , 1034 , 1030 , 1027 , 1024 , 1020 , 1017 , 1014 , 1011 , 1007 , 1004 , 1001 , 998 , 995 , 992dw 989 , 986 , 983 , 980 , 977 , 974 , 972 , 969 , 966 , 963 , 960 , 958 , 955 , 952 , 950 , 947dw 944 , 942 , 939 , 937 , 934 , 932 , 929 , 927 , 924 , 922 , 919 , 917 , 915 , 912 , 910 , 908dw 905 , 903 , 901 , 899 , 896 , 894 , 892 , 890 , 888 , 886 , 883 , 881 , 879 , 877 , 875 , 873dw 871 , 869 , 867 , 875 , 873 , 871 , 859 , 847 , 855 , 853 , 851 , 849 , 847 , 846 , 844 , 842dw 840 , 838 , 836 , 835 , 833 , 831 , 829 , 828 , 826 , 824 , 822 , 821 , 819 , 817 , 816 , 814dw 812 , 811 , 809 , 807 , 806 , 804 , 803 , 801 , 799 , 798 , 796 , 795 , 793 , 792 , 790 , 789dw 787 , 786 , 784 , 783 , 781 , 780 , 778 , 777 , 775 , 774 , 772 , 771 , 770 , 768 , 767 , 765dw 764 , 763 , 761 , 760 , 759 , 757 , 756 , 755 , 753 , 752 , 751 , 749 , 748 , 747 , 745 , 744dw 743 , 742 , 740 , 739 , 738 , 737 , 735 , 734 , 733 , 732 , 731 , 729 , 728 , 727 , 726 , 725dw 724 , 722 , 721 , 720 , 719 , 718 , 717 , 715 , 714 , 713 , 712 , 711 , 710 , 709 , 708 , 707dw 706 , 704 , 703 , 702 , 701 , 700 , 699 , 698 , 697 , 696 , 695 , 694 , 693 , 692 , 691 , 690dw 689 , 688 , 687 , 686 , 685 , 684 , 683 , 682 , 681 , 680 , 679 , 678 , 677 , 676 , 675 , 674dw 673 , 672 , 671 , 670 , 670 , 669 , 668 , 667 , 666 , 665 , 664 , 663 , 662 , 661 , 660 , 660dw 659 , 658 , 657 , 656 , 655 , 654 , 653 , 653 , 652 , 651 , 650 , 649 , 648 , 648 , 647 , 646dw 645 , 644 , 643 , 643 , 642 , 641 , 640 , 639 , 639 , 638 , 637 , 636 , 635 , 635 , 634 , 633dw 632 , 631 , 631 , 630 , 629 , 628 , 628 , 627 , 626 , 625 , 625 , 624 , 623 , 622 , 622 , 621dw 620 , 619 , 619 , 618 , 617 , 616 , 616 , 615 , 614 , 614 , 613 , 612 , 612 , 611 , 610 , 609dw 609 , 608 , 607 , 607 , 606 , 605 , 605 , 604 , 603 , 603 , 602 , 601 , 601 , 600 , 599 , 599dw 598 , 597 , 597 , 596 , 595 , 595 , 594 , 593 , 593 , 592 , 591 , 591 , 590 , 590 , 589 , 588pmendequ $ __________________________________________________________________________ table 2__________________________________________________________________________calculated data table__________________________________________________________________________pmtblequ $ dw 0 , 523 , 399 , 317 , 260 , 219 , 188 , 163 , 144 , 127 , 115 , 103 , 94 , 87 , 79 , 73dw 68 , 63 , 59 , 55 , 52 , 48 , 47 , 43 , 41 , 40 , 37 , 36 , 33 , 33 , 31 , 30dw 28 , 27 , 27 , 25 , 25 , 23 , 23 , 22 , 21 , 20 , 20 , 19 , 19 , 18 , 18 , 17dw 16 , 16 , 16 , 15 , 15 , 14 , 14 , 14 , 14 , 13 , 12 , 13 , 12 , 12 , 11 , 12dw 11 , 11 , 10 , 11 , 10 , 10 , 10 , 10 , 9 , 9 , 9 , 9 , 9 , 8 , 9 , 8dw 8 , 8 , 8 , 8 , 7 , 8 , 7 , 7 , 7 , 7 , 7 , 7 , 7 , 6 , 7 , 6dw 6 , 7 , 6 , 6 , 6 , 5 , 6 , 6 , 5 , 6 , 5 , 6 , 5 , 5 , 5 , 5dw 5 , 5 , 5 , 5 , 5 , 5 , 4 , 5 , 4 , 5 , 4 , 5 , 4 , 4 , 5 , 4dw 4 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 3 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 3 , 4 , 3 , 4dw 3 , 4 , 3 , 4 , 3 , 3 , 4 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 4 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 3dw 3 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 3 , 2 , 3dw 3 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 2dw 3 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 3 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2dw 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 2dw 2 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2dw 2 , 1 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1dw 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 2dw 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 2 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0dw 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1dw 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 1dw 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0dw 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 0 , 1 , 1pmendequ $ __________________________________________________________________________ table 3__________________________________________________________________________pulse motor acceleration table__________________________________________________________________________tbo equ 5715tcnt16 equ 5pmtbl16 equ $ dw 0 , 523 , 399 , 317 , 260pmend16 equ $ tcnt8 equ 46pmtbl8 equ $ db 219 , 188 , 163 , 14 , 127 , 115 , 103 , 94 , 87 , 79 , 73 , 68 , 63 , 59 , 55 , 52 db 48 , 47 , 43 , 41 , 40 , 37 , 36 , 33 , 33 , 31 , 30 , 28 , 27 , 27 , 25 , 25 db 23 , 23 , 22 , 21 , 20 , 20 , 19 , 19 , 18 , 18 , 17 , 16 , 16 , 16pmend8 equ $ tcnt4 equ 207pmtbl4 equ $ db 255 , 238 , 238 , 220 , 220 , 203 , 203 , 186 , 186 , 170 , 169 , 153 , 153 , 137 , 136 , 136 db 135 , 135 , 119 , 119 , 119 , 103 , 102 , 118 , 102 , 86 , 101 , 101 , 101 , 85 , 85 , 85 db 85 , 84 , 84 , 84 , 84 , 69 , 68 , 68 , 68 , 68 , 67 , 68 , 67 , 67 , 67 , 67 db 67 , 52 , 51 , 52 , 51 , 51 , 51 , 51 , 51 , 50 , 51 , 51 , 35 , 50 , 51 , 35 db 35 , 35 , 35 , 35 , 34 , 50 , 35 , 34 , 35 , 34 , 34 , 35 , 34 , 34 , 34 , 34 db 34 , 34 , 34 , 34 , 34 , 18 , 34 , 34 , 18 , 34 , 18 , 34 , 18 , 33 , 34 , 18 db 33 , 33 , 34 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 18 , 17 , 33 , 33 , 18 db 17 , 33 , 18 , 17 , 33 , 18 , 17 , 18 , 17 , 18 , 17 , 17 , 33 , 17 , 17 , 33 db 17 , 17 , 33 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 33 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 db 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 17 , 1 , 17 db 17 , 17 , 1 , 17 , 17 , 1 , 17 , 17 , 1 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 17 , 1 , 17 , 16 db 17 , 16 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 16 , 17 , 1 , 16 , 17 , 16 , 17 db 1 , 16 , 17 , 1 , 16 , 17 , 1 , 16 , 17 , 1 , 16 , 17 , 1 , 1 , 16pmend4 equ $ __________________________________________________________________________ | 6 |
hereinafter , the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the appended drawings . fig1 and 2 are perspective views of the recording - head cartridge in the first embodiment of the present invention . fig1 ( a ) shows the recording head cartridge in the ink container holder , and fig1 ( b ) shows the recording head cartridge , which is not in the ink container holder . fig2 shows the recording head cartridge as seen from the side opposite to the side from which the cartridge is seen in fig1 . fig3 is a plan view of the recording head cartridge . as will be evident from fig1 , 2 , and 3 , the recording head cartridge 1 in this embodiment comprises : a recording head ( unshown ) for ejecting ink ; a black ink container 3 for supplying the recording head with black ink ; a color ink container 4 for supplying the recording head with color inks ; and an ink container holder 5 into which the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 are removably mountable . the recording head , which is not shown , is attached to the ink container holder 5 , and has plural rows of nozzles for ejecting ink , and plural electrically resistant elements for generating the thermal energy for ejecting the ink supplied from an ink container . the plural rows of nozzles are different in the color of the ink they eject . the recording head forms an image by ejecting ink with the use of the thermal energy generated by the electrically resistant elements ; the so - called film - boiling phenomenon is used to eject ink . obviously , the application of the present invention is not limited to the above described ink ejection mechanism . for example , it is also applicable to some of the well - known ink ejection mechanisms , in accordance with the prior art , such as an ink ejection mechanism which employs a piezoelectric ink ejection system , an ink ejection mechanism structured to use electrical charge , and the like ink ejection mechanism . referring to fig1 ( b ) and fig2 ( b ), the ink containers 3 and 4 are provided with a container proper 31 and a lid 32 . the container proper 31 is in the form of a box , which cannot be open on the bottom side , and has a storage chamber in which ink is to be held . the lid 32 is for covering the opening ( unshown ) of the container proper 31 . the lid 32 has through holes ( unshown ), and labyrinthine grooves ( unshown ). the through holes reach inward of the ink containers 3 and 4 from outside the lid 32 . the labyrinthine grooves are in the outward surface of the lid 32 , and extend from the through holes to the peripheries of the lid 32 . the labyrinthine grooves are covered with a sheet 40 so that they are exposed to the ambient air only at the peripheries of the lid 32 ; air vents are provided . with the provision of this structural arrangement , it is possible to minimize the amount by which the inks in the ink containers 3 and 4 evaporate from the air vents 42 ; virtually no inks in the ink containers 3 and 4 evaporate from the air vents 42 . the bottom wall of the container proper 31 is provided with a plurality of ink outlets 33 through which inks are supplied to the ink container holder 5 side . the ink container holder 5 is provided with a plurality of ink delivery tubes 23 through which ink is taken in from the ink containers 3 and 4 . the ink delivery tubes 23 are in the bottom walls of the first and second ink container compartments 11 and 12 , which will be described later . each ink delivery tube 23 is provided with a filter 23 , which is located at one end of the ink delivery tube 23 . it is in the formed of a chimney . as the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , the filter 24 of each ink delivery tube 23 of the ink container holder 5 is placed in contact with the ink retaining portion located inward of the corresponding ink outlet 33 of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), and the elastic members 25 attached to the ink container holder 5 so that they surround ink delivery tubes 23 , one for one , airtightly seal between the adjacencies of the ink outlets 33 and the adjacencies of the ink delivery tubes 23 , one for one , preventing ink from evaporating or leaking , and therefore , making it possible for ink to be desirably delivered to the recording head . in order to assure that the adjacencies of the ink outlets 33 and ink delivery tubes 23 are airtightly sealed , the elastic members 25 may be shaped so that their cross sections , parallel to the direction in which they are compressed , look like the cross section of the bell portion of a trumpet , parallel to its axial direction . obviously , a piece of sealing tape or a rubber plug may be used instead of the elastic member 25 ; ink outlet is sealed with the sealing tape or rubber plug , which will be penetrated by the needle - tipped ink delivery tube of the ink container holder , when an ink container is mounted into the ink container holder . in other words , the elastic member 25 may be replaced with a component different in structure from the elastic member 25 , as long as the ink delivery ( supply )- joint between the ink container and ink container holder 5 remains airtightly sealed . next , the structures of the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 will be described in more detail with reference to the appended drawings . fig4 is a sectional view of the black ink container 3 , and fig5 is a sectional view of the color ink container 4 . incidentally , the internal structures of the black and color ink containers 3 and 4 in this embodiment , which will be described next , are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . first , the black ink container 3 for black ink will be described with reference to the drawings . as shown in fig4 , the container proper 31 of the black ink container 3 contains an absorbent member 34 as an ink retaining member , and an ink delivery member 35 . this ink retaining member 34 absorbs and retains black ink . the ink delivery member 35 is positioned between the absorbent member 34 and ink outlet 33 , with its top surface being airtightly in contact with the absorbent member 34 so that ink outlet 33 is sealed at the inward end . the absorbent member 34 and ink delivery member 35 are both capable of absorbing and retaining ink . in terms of the ink retainment property ( capillarity ), however , the ink delivery member 35 is made greater than the absorbent member 34 . with this setup , the ink retained in the absorbent member 34 is smoothly drawn into the ink delivery member 35 , improving thereby the efficiency with which the ink remained in the absorbent member 34 is consumed . as the material for the absorbent member 34 and ink delivery member 35 , fiber formed of thermoplastic resin such as poly - olefin was used . more specifically , a certain number of pieces of web formed by arranging thermoplastic fibers virtually in parallel were layered , and compressed in the direction perpendicular to the webs . as the material for the absorbent member 34 , the fibrous material , which was roughly 6 . 7 [ dtex ] in the fiber thickness , was compressed to a density of roughly 0 . 09 [ g / cm 3 ] was used . as for the material for the ink delivery member 35 , fibrous material , which was roughly 2 . 2 [ dtex ] in the fiber thickness , was compressed to a density of roughly 0 . 20 [ g / cm 3 ]. incidentally , the container proper 31 and lid 32 of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) in this embodiment are formed of resinous material , in particular , poly - olefin , that is , the same material as the material for the absorbent member 34 and ink delivery member 35 , due to environmental concerns , more specifically , in order to drastically improve the amount by which the ink container 3 ( 4 ) can be recycled or reused . the black ink container 3 is structured so that it can be removably mounted in the ink container holder 5 . more concretely , the black ink container 3 is provided with a locking claw 36 for preventing the black ink container 3 from dislodging from the ink container holder 5 after the mounting of the black ink container 3 into the ink container holder 5 . the locking claw 36 is an integral part of the black ink container 3 and projects from the bottom of the front wall of the black ink container 3 , in terms of the direction in which black ink container 3 is inserted into the ink container holder 5 . the locking claw 36 engages with the black ink container locking hole 26 of the ink container holder 5 , and keeps the black ink container 3 solidly secured to the ink container holder 5 . the black ink container 3 is also provided with a latching lever 37 , which engages with the ink container holder 5 . the latching lever 37 is also an integral part of the black ink container 3 , being on the side opposite to where the locking claw 36 is present . it is elastically bendable in the direction indicated by an arrow mark a 1 in fig4 , and springs back into the original position in the direction indicated by an arrow mark a 2 in fig4 . it is attached to the bottom wall portion of the container proper 31 of the black ink container 3 by its base port - ion , and has a latching claw 38 , which is on the outward surface of the top portion of the latching lever 37 . the latching claw 38 engages with the ink container holder 5 . the latching lever 37 projects at a predetermined angle from the bottom portion of the container proper 31 , so that the distance between the latching lever 37 and the container proper 31 gradually increases toward the top portion of the black ink container 3 . it is provided with a finger placement spot 39 by which the latching lever 37 is to be pressed toward the container proper 31 in order to elastically deform the latching lever 37 when disengaging the latching claw 38 from the ink container holder 5 . the finger placement spot 39 is located at the tip of the latching lever 37 . when the black ink container 3 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , the latching lever 37 comes into contact with the rear lateral wall 21 of the ink container holder 5 , being thereby elastically bent by the wall 21 in the direction indicated by the arrow mark a 1 in fig4 , and the latching claw 38 of the latching lever 37 engages with the latching lever locking hole 27 of the ink container holder 5 , which will be described later . next , the color ink container 4 for the recording head 1 will be described . the structure of the color ink container 4 is basically the same as the above described structure of the black ink container 3 shown in fig1 , 2 , and 3 . referring to fig5 , the color ink container 4 in this embodiment comprises a container proper 31 , in the form of a topless box , in which three inks different color are held , and a lid 32 which covers the opening ( unshown ) of the container proper 31 . the container proper 31 has three independent chambers which are separated by two parallel partitioning walls 41 , and in which three inks different in color are held one for one . the two parallel partitioning walls 41 are positioned perpendicular to the two parallel lateral walls of the color ink container 4 , by which the lateral movements of the color ink container 4 are controlled when the container 4 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 . thus , the three chambers are parallel to each other , and overlap with each other in the lengthwise direction of the bottom wall of the container 4 . the three chambers contain absorbent members 34 y , 34 m , and 34 c , which absorb and retain yellow , magenta , and cyan inks , respectively . the bottom wall of the color ink container 4 has ink outlets 33 y , 33 m , and 33 c , which lead to three chambers , one for one , and the openings of which are aligned in the lengthwise direction of the bottom wall . the structures of the three chambers are the same as the above described structure of the black ink container 3 , and therefore , they will be not described here . also in the case of the color ink container 4 , fiber formed of thermoplastic resin such as poly - olefin is used as the material for the absorbent members 34 and ink delivery member 35 . more specifically , a certain number of pieces of web formed by arranging thermoplastic fibers virtually in parallel are layered , and compressed in the direction perpendicular to the webs . for the absorbent member 34 , the fibrous material , which was roughly 6 . 7 [ dtex ] in the fiber thickness , was compressed to a density of roughly 0 . 07 – 0 . 09 [ g / cm 3 ]. for the ink delivery member 35 , fibrous material , which was roughly 2 . 2 [ dtex ] in the fiber thickness , was compressed to the density of roughly 0 . 20 [ g / cm 3 ]. the lid 32 is also virtually the same as that for the black ink container 3 , except that the lid 32 of the color ink container 4 has three air vents 42 , one for each chamber , and that it is structured to hermetically separate the three chambers from each other . therefore , it will not be described here . the structure for removably securing the color ink container 4 to the ink container holder 5 is the same as the above described structure for the black ink container 3 ; it comprises a locking claw , and a latching lever with a latching claw as does that of the black ink container 3 . referring to fig1 ( b ), the ink outlets 33 y , 33 m , and 33 c are aligned in the direction parallel to the plane which includes the center lines of the latching claw 38 and locking claw 36 , and which is perpendicular to the bottom wall of the color ink container 4 . further , they are positioned closer to one of the lateral walls ( walls parallel to ink container insertion direction ) of the color ink container 4 than the other . in other words , the ink outlets 33 , the presence of which are likely to weaken the mechanical strength of the areas of the bottom wall of the color ink container 4 , in which they are positioned , are positioned in the adjacencies of one of the ridges which the bottom wall and one of the lateral walls of the container proper 31 , that is , the portion of the container proper 31 which is relatively high in rigidity . therefore , the amount by which the container proper 31 is reduced in mechanical strength by the presence of the ink outlets 33 is minimized . moreover , the two portions ( locking claw 36 and latching claw 38 ) for securing the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 to the ink container holder 5 are also positioned in the adjacencies of one of the lateral walls of the container proper 31 as are the ink outlets 33 . therefore , the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 can be reliably mounted into the ink container holder 5 , without causing the ink containers 3 and 4 to become twisted , and can be solidly secured to the ink container holder 5 in spite of the presence of only a small number of ink container locking means . in particular , aligning the ink container securing means and ink outlets in a single plane as in this embodiment , minimizes the amount by which the ink containers are twisted when the ink containers are mounted into the ink container holder . in other words , with the provision of the above described structural arrangement , even if an ink container is provided with two or more ink outlets , the ink container can be reliably mounted into the ink container holder , without becoming substantially twisted , as long as the ink outlets are aligned in the same manner as those of the color ink container in this embodiment . further , positioning the ink container securing means in the adjacencies of one of the lateral walls of the container proper makes it possible to place the ink container positioning mechanism on the area of the container proper , which is relatively high in mechanical strength , making it therefore possible to obtain an ink container reliably mountable in the ink container holder , that is , making it possible to obtain an ink container , the ink outlets 33 of which are reliably connected to the ink delivery tubes 23 . the above described structural arrangement for an ink container is extremely beneficial for reducing the thickness of the walls of an ink container in order to increase the internal volume of the ink container without increasing its external size . incidentally , not only does “ aligning the container locking means and ink outlets in a single plane ” means that the axial lines of the openings of the ink outlets 33 coincides with the plane which includes the center lines of the locking claw 36 and latching claw 38 , but also that they coincide with the line connecting the centers of the ink locking claw 36 and latching claw 38 . referring to fig2 ( a ), the black ink container 3 is provided with a guiding projection 43 , which is on only one of the lateral walls of the black ink container 3 , which is parallel to the ink container insertion direction , and the color ink container 4 is also provided with a guiding projection 43 , which is also on only one of the lateral walls of the color ink container 4 , which are parallel to the ink container insertion direction . the guiding projection 43 of the black ink container 3 guides the black ink container 3 along the guiding rail 28 of the ink container holder 5 when the black ink container 3 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , and the guiding projection 43 of the color ink container 4 guides the color ink container 4 along the guiding rail 29 of the ink container holder 5 when the color ink container 4 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 . next , the ink container holder 5 in this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings . referring to fig1 , 2 , and 3 , the ink container holder 5 is roughly in the form of a topless box having the first ink container compartment 11 in which the black ink container 3 holding black ink is removably mounted , and the second ink container compartment 12 in which the color ink container 4 holding color inks is removably mounted . the first and second ink container compartments 11 and 12 are positioned next to each other , and are effected by the lateral walls 21 of the ink container holder 5 and a partitioning wall 22 . that is , the space surrounded by the lateral walls 21 of the ink container holder 5 is divided by the partition wall 22 , into two sub - spaces , or two compartments , into which the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 are mounted one for one . referring to fig1 ( b ), one of the lateral walls 21 of the ink container holder 5 ( left lateral wall in fig1 ( b )), which is parallel to the direction in which the black ink container 3 is mounted into the first ink container compartment 11 , is provided with the guiding rail 28 , which smoothly guides the black ink container 3 , while regulating the movement thereof , when the black ink container 3 is mounted into , or removed from , the ink container holder 5 . also referring to fig1 ( b ), the partitioning wall 22 of the ink container holder 5 is shaped so that its top edge functions as the guiding rail 29 which smoothly guides the color ink container 4 into the second ink container compartment 12 , while regulating the movement of the color ink container 4 , when the color ink container 4 is mounted into , or removed from , the ink container holder 5 . in other words , the ink container holder 5 is provided with only two guiding rails , that is , one guiding rail 28 and one guiding rail 29 . the guiding rail 28 is on one of the lateral walls of the ink container holder 5 , parallel to the ink container insertion direction , and the guiding rail 29 is the specifically contoured top edge of the partitioning wall 22 of the ink container holder 5 . therefore , the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is guided from only one side , in terms of the ink container insertion direction . the guide rail 28 ( 29 ) has a horizontal portion which is roughly parallel to the bottom wall of the ink container holder 5 , and a tilted portion which is tilted downward , in terms of the direction perpendicular to the bottom wall of the ink container holder 5 , as seen from the trailing side in terms of the ink container insertion direction . the horizontal and tilted portions are continual . as the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , they are guided , horizontally as well as diagonally downward , by the guide rail 28 ( 29 ), respectively , until the container 3 ( 4 ) reaches the bottom wall of the ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ). the role of the guide rail 28 ( 29 ) is to regulate the movement of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) in order to prevent the problem that when the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ), the ink container holder 5 is damaged due to the contacts between the ink container 3 ( 4 ) and the ink delivery tubes 23 of the ink container holder 5 . more specifically , the ink delivery tube 23 of the first ink container compartment 11 , that is , the space for the black ink container , is located roughly at the center of the bottom wall of the first ink container compartment 11 , in terms of the lengthwise direction of the compartment 11 , which is parallel to the ink container insertion direction . in comparison , the three ink delivery tubes 23 , one for each color ink , of the second ink container compartment 12 , that is , the space for the color ink container 4 , are aligned in the ink container insertion direction . thus , the possibility that the color ink container 4 will come into contact with the ink delivery tubes 23 of the ink container compartment 12 is greater than the possibility that the ink container 3 will come into contact with the ink delivery tube 23 of the ink container compartment 11 . therefore , in this embodiment , the guiding rail 28 for the black ink container 3 is made different in shape from the guiding rail 29 for the color ink container 4 , optimizing thereby the movement of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) in order to prevent the ink container 3 ( 4 ) from coming into contact with the ink delivery tubes 23 . the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 is provided with a locking hole 26 , into which the locking claw 36 of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) engages , and which is virtually at the bottom ( in immediate adjacencies of bottom wall ). the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 is provided with a locking hole 27 , into which the latching claw 38 of the latching lever 37 of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) engages . the locking hole 27 is located at the opposite end of the ink container holder 5 from the locking hole 26 . the top edge of the this wall of the ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 having the locking hole 27 functions as a second guiding portion , which comes into contact with the bottom wall of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), guiding thereby the ink container 3 ( 4 ) while controlling the movement thereof , when the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into the ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 . next , the movement of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), which occurs as it is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , will be described . fig6 is a perspective view of the combination of the color ink container 4 and ink container holder 5 , showing the movement of the color ink container 4 , which occurs during the mounting of the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 . the movement of the color ink container 4 , which occurs during the mounting into the ink container holder 5 , is basically the same as that of the black ink container 3 . thus , only the movement of the color ink container 4 , which occurs during the mounting of the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 , will be described ; the movement of the black ink container 3 will not be described . fig6 ( a ) shows the color ink container 4 in the initial stage of the mounting of the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 , and fig6 ( b ) shows the color ink container 4 in the middle stage of the mounting of the color ink container into the ink container holder 5 , in which the ink container 4 is being guided by the guiding rail 29 of the ink container holder 5 . fig6 ( c ) shows the color ink container 4 in the final stage of the mounting of the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 , in which the color ink container 4 has just been completely mounted into the ink container holder 5 . first , referring to fig6 ( a ), as the color ink container 4 is inserted into the ink container holder 5 , from the front wall side , that is , the side opposite to the latching lever 37 , the guiding projection 43 of the color ink container 4 , which projects a predetermined distance from the bottom end of the front wall of the color ink container 4 , comes into contact with the guiding rail 29 of the ink container holder 5 . next , referring to fig6 ( b ), as the color ink container 4 is further inserted , the guiding projection 43 slide on the guiding rail 29 , with the rear end portion of the color ink container 4 being in contact with the walls of the ink container holder 5 , that is , being supported by the wall of the ink container holder 5 , which is in contact with the color ink container 4 by its top edge . further , the front portion of the color ink container 4 is supported by the guiding rail 29 , by the guiding projection 43 of the container 4 . therefore , all that is necessary to smoothly mount the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 is to simply push the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 . the color ink container 4 and ink container holder 5 are designed so that there will be a predetermined amount of clearance between each of the aforementioned lateral walls of the color ink container 4 and the corresponding wall of the ink container holder 5 when mounting the former into the latter . therefore , when mounting the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 , the color ink container 4 tends to slightly wobble in the direction ( left and right direction in fig1 ( b )) perpendicular to the cartridge insertion direction , in the second ink container compartment 12 of the ink container holder 5 . however , this slight wobble of the color ink container 4 in the direction perpendicular to the lateral walls of the color ink container 4 , which occurs while the color ink container 4 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , is regulated by one of the lateral walls 21 of the ink container holder 5 , a part of which constitutes one of the lateral walls of the second ink container compartment 12 , and the portioning wall 22 having the guiding rail 29 . more specifically , it is regulated by the inward surface of the above described wall 21 of the ink container holder 5 , and one of the surfaces of the partitioning wall 22 . further , as described above , the guiding projection 43 is specifically positioned so that the bottom wall of the color ink container 4 does not interferes with ( contacts ) the ink delivery tubes 23 , etc ., of the bottom wall of the ink container holder 5 . in other words , with the provision of the above described structural arrangement , it is unnecessary for the color ink container 4 to be modified in external shape , in consideration of the interference between the color ink container 4 and the components of the ink container holder 5 , that is , in order to prevent the color ink container 4 from interfering with the ink delivery tubes 23 , etc ., of the second ink container compartment 12 of the ink container holder 5 ; it is unnecessary for the color ink container 4 to be given such an external shape that reduces the internal volume of the color ink container 4 . therefore , the color ink container 4 in this embodiment can be smoothly mounted into , or removed from , the ink container holder 5 , even though its internal volume is just as large as a color ink container in accordance with the prior art . as described above , the distance by which the guiding projection 43 of the color ink container 3 ( 4 ) projects from the external surface of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), must be large enough to assure that the projection 43 will engage with the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) to correctly guide the ink container 3 ( 4 ) when the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into , or removed from , the ink container holder 5 . on the other hand , increasing the distance by which the guiding projection 4 projects increases the possibility that the projection 43 will come into contact with the vertical wall of the ink container holder 5 and / or the lateral wall of the ink container in the adjacent ink container compartment . such contacts between the projection 43 and the vertical wall of the ink container holder 5 and the lateral wall of the ink container in the adjacent ink container compartment generate friction , that is , container restraining force , which interferes with the insertion of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) into the ink container holder 5 . therefore , the distance by which the projection 43 projects must be set to be large enough to assure that it will not fail to rest on the guide rail 28 ( 29 ), but small enough not to cause unnecessary interferences . in other words , the ink container 3 ( 4 ), and ink container holder 5 are desired to be structured to satisfy the following inequality ( fig6 ): a : external dimension ( exclusive of guiding projection 43 ) of container proper 31 , in terms of the direction parallel to the direction in which ink container 3 ( 4 ) is inserted into the ink container holder 5 ; b : internal dimension of the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 , in terms of the direction parallel to the direction in which ink container 3 ( 4 ) is inserted into the ink container holder 5 ; c : distance by which the projection 43 on one of the lateral walls of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) projects from the lateral wall ; and d : thickness of the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) of the ink container holder 5 . with the measurements of a – d set to satisfy inequality 1 , it is assured that when ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into , or removed from , the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 5 , the guiding projection 43 of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) will properly rest the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) of the ink container holder 5 , and will be smoothly guided by the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) without becoming disengaged therefrom . further , the aforementioned contacts which interfere with the mounting of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) into the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) do not occur . further , as described above , the ink container 3 ( 4 ) slightly wobbles left and right when it is mounted into the ink container holder 5 . even though this wobbling movement of the left ( right ) side of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) having the guiding projection 43 which is guided by the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ), perpendicular to the bottom wall of the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ), is properly regulated , the wobbling movement of the right ( left ) side of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), that is , the side opposite to where the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ), perpendicular to the bottom wall of the first ( second ) ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ), is not regulated . therefore , when the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is mounted into the ink container holder 5 , it becomes slightly tilted relative to one of the lateral walls 21 of the ink container holder 5 , and the partition wall 22 of the ink container holder 5 . naturally , therefore , the shape of the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) and the shape of the guiding projection 43 are desired to be designed in consideration of the angle at which the ink container 3 ( 4 ) tilts as described above . in particular , in the case of an structural arrangement in which the ink outlets 33 y , 33 m , and 33 c are positioned closer to one of the lateral walls of the ink container holder 5 , parallel to the ink container insertion direction , it is desired that the lateral wall of the ink container holder 5 closer to the ink outlets 33 y , 33 m , and 33 c is provided with a guiding mechanism similar to the aforementioned guiding projection of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ) of the ink container holder 5 , etc . further , it is possible for the guiding projection 43 , with which the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is provided , to be deformed by the external force to which the ink container is subjected when the ink container is mounted into , or removed from , the ink container holder 5 . therefore , in order to improve the ink container 3 ( 4 ) in terms of operational reliability , it is desired that the guiding projection 43 is attached to the area of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), which is relatively greater in mechanical strength , for example , the joint between the external walls of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), more specifically , the joint between the front wall and one of the two side walls of the ink container 3 ( 4 ), parallel to the ink container insertion direction . referring to fig6 ( c ), the mounting of the color ink container 4 ends as soon as the color ink container 4 , which is being pushed into the ink container holder 5 , comes into contact with the bottom wall of the ink container holder 5 , by virtually the entirety of its bottom surface . as will be evident from fig6 , during the insertion of the color ink container 4 into the ink container holder 5 , the locking claw 36 located at the bottom end of the front wall of the color ink container 4 is inserted into the locking hole 26 of the ink container holder 5 . then , the rear portion of the color ink container 4 is to be pushed in the direction indicated by an arrow mark e shown in fig6 ( c ). as the rear portion is pushed in the above described direction , the color ink container 4 rotates about the locking claw 36 in the locking hole 26 . as a result , the latching lever 37 is forced into the ink container holder 5 , and the latching claw 38 of the latching lever 37 latches with the edge of the latching hole 27 , assuring that each of the ink outlets 33 of the color ink container 4 will remain properly connected to the corresponding ink delivery tubes 23 of the ink container holder 5 . when the color ink container 4 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 as described above , it is assured that the ink delivery tubes 23 of the ink container holder 5 come into contact with the ink holding members ( ink delivery member 35 ) in the ink outlets 33 of the color ink container 4 , one for one , and ink is reliably supplied to the recording head . also , when the color ink container 4 is mounted into the ink container holder 5 as described above , each of the elastic members 25 fitted around the ink delivery tubes 23 , one for one , is compressed in its thickness direction , that is , the direction perpendicular to the bottom wall of the ink container holder 5 , airtightly sealing the adjacencies of the peripheral surface of each ink outlet 33 of the color ink container 4 and the adjacencies of each ink delivery tube 23 of the ink container holder 5 . therefore , should ink leaks from between one of the ink outlets 33 of the color ink container 4 and the corresponding ink delivery tube 23 of the ink container holder 5 , the ink will be confined in the immediate adjacencies of the joint between the ink outlet 33 and ink delivery tube 23 . on the other hand , when removing the color ink container 4 from the ink container holder 5 , the latching lever 37 is to be pushed in the direction indicated by an arrow mark f shown in fig6 ( c ). as the latching lever 37 is pushed as described above , the latching claw 38 disengages from the edge of the latching hole 27 of the ink container holder 5 , allowing the color ink container 4 to be pulled out of the ink container holder 5 by grasping the rear end portion of the color ink container 4 . then , as the color ink container 4 is pulled outward , the locking claw 36 of the color ink container 4 comes out of the locking hole 26 , and the color ink container 4 comes out of the ink container holder 5 in its entirety . obviously , even when the color ink container 4 is pulled out of the ink container holder 5 , the movement of the guiding projection 43 ( ink container 4 ) is regulated by the guiding rail 29 , and therefore , the ink delivery tubes 23 do not interfere with the movement of the color ink container 4 . as described above , according to this embodiment , when mounting the ink container 3 ( 4 ) of the recording head cartridge 1 into the ink container holder 5 of the recording head cartridge 1 , or removing the ink container 3 ( 4 ) from the ink container holder 5 , one side of the ink container 3 ( 4 ) is guided by the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ), and the other side is directly regulated ( guided ) by one of the lateral walls of the ink container holder 5 . therefore , it is assured that the ink container 3 ( 4 ) will not be incorrectly mounted into the ink container holder 5 . also according to this embodiment , the guiding rails 28 and 29 , and the guiding projections 43 , of the recording head cartridge 1 , which are for preventing the ink container 3 ( 4 ) from being incorrectly mounted into the ink container holder 5 , need to be provided only on one side of the ink container holder 5 and ink container 3 ( 4 ), respectively , in terms of the ink container insertion direction , making it unnecessary to provide the guiding rail 28 ( 29 ), and the guiding projection 24 , on both sides of the ink container holder 5 and ink container 3 ( 4 ), respectively , in terms of the ink container insertion direction , as in the case of a recording head cartridge in accordance with the prior art . in other words , the space necessary for one of the two sets of the guiding rails and guiding projections , which the prior art requires , can be eliminated to reduce in size the ink container 3 ( 4 ) and ink container holder 5 of a recording head cartridge . also according to this embodiment , the top edge of the partitioning wall 22 of the ink container holder 5 , is utilized as the guiding rail 29 , making it possible to reduce in size the ink container 3 ( 4 ), and ink container holder , of a recording head cartridge , compared to a recording head cartridge , in accordance with the prior art , in which the guiding rail is independent from the partitioning wall . in other words , according to this embodiment , even a recording head cartridge , the black ink container 3 and color ink container 4 of which are different in their movements which occur when they are mounted into the ink container holder 5 , can be reduced in size while assuring that the recording head and the like will not be damaged by incorrect mounting of the black ink container 3 or color ink container 4 . incidentally , in the case of the above described embodiment , the latching lever 37 is employed as a means for securing the ink container 3 ( 4 ) to the ink container holder 5 . however , the application of the present invention does not need to be limited to a recording head cartridge employing a latching lever as the means for securing an ink container to an ink container holder . that is , the present invention is applicable to any recording head cartridge which efficiently regulates the movement of an ink container with the use of guiding rail , whether the lever of the ink container locking mechanism is on the ink container side , or ink container holder side , or whether the ink container securing system employs the locking lever or not . further , this embodiment is described with reference to the ink container which contains an ink absorbing member formed of fibrous material . the application of the present invention , however , does not need to be limited to such an ink container . for example , the material for the ink absorbing member may be formed of one of the known foamed material such as foamed urethane . moreover , the application does not need to be limited to an ink container containing an absorbent member . further , the liquid to be held in an ink container does not need to be limited to the aforementioned black , cyan , magenta , and yellow inks . for example , it may be the liquid for forming a printed circuit , or the like liquid . next , the recording head cartridge in the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the appended drawings . the recording head cartridge in this embodiment is basically the same in structure as the above described recording head cartridge 1 in the first embodiment . therefore , the components , portions , etc ., of the recording head in this embodiment , which are the same as those in the first embodiment , will be given the same referential symbols as those given for the description of the first embodiment , and will not be described here . fig7 is a perspective view of the recording head cartridge and ink container holder in this embodiment . fig7 ( a ) shows the ink container which is not in the ink container holder , and fig7 ( b ) shows the pair of ink containers , and the ink container in which the ink containers are to be mounted . fig8 is a plan view of the recording head cartridge . the recording head cartridge 2 in this embodiment comprises : a recording head ( unshown ) for ejecting ink ; a pigment ink container 6 which holds pigment black ink to be supplied to the recording head ; a dye ink container 7 which holds dye black ink to be supplied to the recording head ; and an ink container holder 8 in which the ink containers 6 and 7 are removably mounted . the ink containers 6 and 7 are roughly the same in shape . the ink container 6 ( 7 ) is provided with an ink outlet 33 , which is in the middle of the bottom wall of the ink container container proper 31 . therefore , the ink containers 6 and 7 are virtually the same in their movements which occur when they are mounted into the ink container holder 8 . referring to fig7 , each of the pigment black ink container 6 and dye black ink container 7 is provided with a guiding projection 43 for guiding the ink container 6 ( 7 ) along the guiding rail 30 of the ink container holder 8 when the ink container 6 ( 7 ) is mounted into the ink container holder 8 . the guiding projection 43 is on only one side of the ink container 6 ( 7 ), more specifically , the partitioning wall 44 side of the ink container 6 ( 7 ) in terms of the ink container insertion direction . the guiding rail 30 is the top edge of the partitioning wall 44 of the ink container holder 8 , and is shared by the ink containers 6 and 7 . structuring the ink containers 6 and 7 , and the ink container holder 8 , so that the guiding rail 30 , that is , the top edge of the partitioning wall of the ink container holder 8 , is shared by the two containers 6 and 7 , makes the thickness of the partitioning wall 44 equal to roughly twice the distance by which the guiding projection 43 of the ink container 6 ( 7 ) projects , increasing therefore the mechanical strength of the partitioning wall 44 . further , with the provision of such a structural arrangement , if the ink container 6 ( 7 ) is inserted into the wrong ink container compartment , the guiding projection 43 of the ink container 6 ( 7 ) comes into contact with the lateral wall 21 of the ink container compartment 11 ( 12 ) of the ink container holder 8 , making it virtually impossible to insert the ink container 6 ( 7 ) further into the ink container holder 8 . in other words , the above described structural arrangement makes it possible to prevent the ink container 6 ( 7 ) from being mounted into the wrong ink container compartment . incidentally , this embodiment was described with the structural arrangement in which the guiding rail 30 , that is , the specifically contoured top edge of the partitioning wall 44 of the ink container holder 8 was shared by the ink containers 6 and 7 , which are mounted next to each other . however , the two guiding rails different in contour , as those in the first embodiment , may be provided as integral parts of the partitioning wall 44 of the ink container holder 8 . further , this embodiment was described with reference to the recording head which comprises two ink containers , and the ink container holder in which the two ink container are mounted . however , this embodiment is also applicable to a recording head comprising three or more ink containers , for example , black , cyan , magenta , and black ink containers , which are independent from each other . as described above , according to the present invention , the guiding projection for guiding a liquid container when mounting the liquid container into a liquid container holder has to be on only one of the two lateral walls , parallel to the direction in which the liquid container is inserted into the liquid container holder , of the liquid container . in other words , the space occupied by one of the pair of guiding projections on the two lateral walls , parallel to the liquid container insertion direction , of a liquid container in accordance with the prior art , can be eliminated . therefore , not only is it possible to reduce the size of a liquid container while assuring that the liquid container is reliably mounted into a liquid container holder , but also to assure that even if the liquid container is incorrectly mounted into a liquid container holder , the liquid container holder , etc ., are not damaged . while the invention has been described with reference to the structures disclosed herein , it is not confined to the details set forth , and this application is intended to cover such modifications or chances as may come within the purposes of the improvements or the scope of the following claims . | 1 |
example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings . according to the principles of the present teachings , as illustrated in fig1 - 8 , a real - time visual alert display system 10 is provided . the real - time visual alert display system 10 can comprise an alert display device 12 operably coupled to a plurality of sensors , probes , or other data collecting or monitoring devices 14 . the plurality of sensors 14 can be operable to be coupled to a patient and collect real - time physiologic data from the patient . alert display device 12 can comprise a control system or controller separate from or integrated therewith for assembling data from the plurality of sensors 14 for interpretation and / or display on alert display device 12 , which will be described herein . it should be noted that alert display device 12 can comprise one or more display layouts , however , generally , in some embodiments the alert display 10 comprises one or more icons or display indicia representative of the vital organs and / or major portions of a human body , such as brain , lung , heart , kidneys , and the skin . however , it should be appreciated that additional parameters , organs , or the like could be displayed . in some embodiments , these icons can be animated such that they move in real - time with the input of real - time physiologic data from the plurality of sensors 14 . for example , the heart beats in real - time with the patient &# 39 ; s heartbeat provided by the physiologic monitor and the lungs expand and retract ( ventilate ) in real - time with the physiologic data provided from the monitoring system and ventilator ( airway pressures ). in some embodiments , the icons can be color coded to signify the parameters are in various ranges , such as a normal range being depicted in the color green , a marginal range being depicted in the color yellow , and an abnormal range being depicted in the color red . additionally , in some embodiments , additional color depictions can be used to indicate alert ranges or parameters . for example , in some embodiments , an alert color , such as orange , can be used to highlight an organ that has risk factors for or a history of organ dysfunction / damage . for example , the outline of the heart will be orange if the patient has a history of heart disease or a history of risk factors for heart disease . the same is applied to other organ systems , i . e ., the brain has a history of a stroke or risk factors for a stroke , the kidneys have a history of renal disease or risk factors for renal disease such as illustrated in fig9 . the general layout of the screen is illustrated in fig1 , which is a screen capture of the display , with all systems in the normal range . as can be seen , the screen can comprise two or more sections 16 and 18 . the first section 16 can comprise pertinent patient history , such as the patient &# 39 ; s name 20 , registration number 22 , and location , followed by hours npo 24 ( that is , hours since the patient has taken fluids ), estimated blood loss 26 , and patient &# 39 ; s weight 28 . the first section 16 can further comprise fluid assessments 30 ( which will be covered in detail in the heart section under cardiac fluid ) and an alert section 32 , which in this case informs the provider that there are no glucose measurements for this patient or that the glucose needs to be rechecked . finally , first section 16 can comprise an alert reset button 34 . in some embodiments , the second section 18 can comprise a series of icons as discussed herein . in some embodiments , the icons can be arranged such that at the top is the brain icon 40 having a tracheobronchial tree icon 42 extending there below connected to right and left lung icons 44 , 46 . centrally disposed is a heart icon 48 being fed from the left by the vena cava 50 and the output aortic arch 52 on the right going to the body 54 below . the body icon or box 54 can comprise scales indicating temperature 56 , hemoglobin 58 , glucose 60 , potassium , and inr ( international normalization ratio ). on opposing sides of body 54 can include kidney icons 62 . these icons and / or the overall layout of alert display device 12 are designed to be readily identifiable by a layman and / or healthcare professional . in some embodiments , real - time physiologic values can be provided to complement the associated icon . for example , the brain icon 40 can comprise a mac level at 66 on the right which is the minimum alveolar concentration for anesthesia ( will be discussed in the brain section ), a bis ( bispectral index ) value at 68 on the left for measuring anesthetic depth . below in the tracheobronchial tree icon 42 , peak airway pressures can be presented along with respiratory rate . the outline of the lungs can illustrate the positive end expiratory pressure ( peep ). additionally , in each lung on the right is oxygenation with spo2 ( pulse oximeter arterial oxygen saturation ) and on the left is carbon dioxide from the end tidal co2 . in the heart icon 48 , the level can be green colored to indicate normal operation . that level in the heart icon 48 can go up and down with estimated intravascular volume , which is filling the heart , i . e . fluid resuscitation status . in some embodiments , the input of information being used to determine that fluid status level can be designated 70 . this will be discussed in the cardiac section . below the right lung 44 the systolic and diastolic blood pressure can be presented at 72 . those values relate to the color of the aortic arch 52 on the right of the heart icon 48 . a urine output measurement can be depicted below the right kidney at 74 and , in some embodiments , the patient &# 39 ; s serum creatinine 76 ( fig8 ) can be depicted below the left kidney . each of the values within the body 54 are the temperature from the physiologic monitor ; the hemoglobin / hematocrit either from the lab or an estimated value derived from the patient &# 39 ; s last hemoglobin value , and blood loss and blood transfusion ; and glucose , potassium , and inr , which are derived from the value from the lab . moreover , in some embodiments , each of the icons can be illustrated in one or more alert colors , such as green , yellow , red , orange , and the like . it should be recognized that in some embodiments the icons can be illustrated with one or more alert colors simultaneously , such as an orange alert color at the rear base portion of the brain icon ( see fig9 ). still further , in some embodiments , a graphic or scale , such as scales 56 , 58 , 60 , 68 , and the like , can include a highlighted region surrounding the scale to bring such scale to the appropriate attention of a layman and / or healthcare provider ( see fig9 ). it should be appreciated , however , that variations can exist in terms of both color , shape , and / or pattern of these highlighted alerts without departing from the present teachings . in some embodiments , the brain icon 40 can be colored coded for assessing the level of anesthesia / consciousness . when patients are receiving anesthetic drugs the level of the anesthetic drug is constantly calculated by measuring the expired concentration of the inhaled anesthetics ( vapor anesthetics : isoflurane , sevoflurane , desflurane , nitrous oxide ) and intravenous anesthetics ( propofol , dexmedetomidine , midazolam ). these anesthetic concentrations come from the anesthesia machine &# 39 ; s infrared analyzer and the intravenous anesthetics data are provided from the anesthesia information system . in addition , these anesthetics derive a term referred to as minimum alveolar concentration for anesthesia ( mac ). the estimation of a patient &# 39 ; s level or depth of anesthesia is associated with its mac level . the brain icon 40 will turn colors when the mac level reaches awake ( red ), borderline of awake and asleep ( yellow ), and when the brain is under anesthesia , that is , & gt ; 0 . 6 mac or the mac equivalent ( green ) ( see fig2 , 4 , and 5 ). as previously described at reference 68 , in some embodiments , a column labeled bispectral index ( bis ) ( or other similar brain function monitor , e . g . entropy monitor ) can be disposed adjacent brain icon 40 . this is an additional physiologic monitor which is applied on the patient &# 39 ; s forehead and provides information from a processed eeg lead to estimate the level of anesthesia . the manufacturer of the device and the literature suggest that a bis level between 60 and 40 is general anesthesia , above 60 may be light anesthesia , and between 80 and 100 the patient is most likely awake or lightly sedated . when this is less than 40 , it is considered “ too deep ” of an anesthetic level and the brain icon will turn blue to designate too deep a level . the bis device is just an example of this type of eeg based brain activity monitor which provides input data to the brain icon . similarly , in some embodiments , a real - time calculated mac value , displayed at reference 66 , can be provided . this mac value , which also provides a method to quantify a level of sedation , can be coupled with the bis column to assess the level of anesthesia . although these levels frequently agree , it is often up to the clinician to determine which method , or the combination of methods , will be used in adjusting their anesthetic level . during anesthesia , if the mac level drops to a range where the patient may be aware , the brain icon 40 will change color and a pop - up alert will say “ awareness alert .” there are also risk factors for patients developing stroke in the perioperative period . these risk factors are derived from large studies of patients undergoing surgical procedures . if the patient has this constellation of risk factors , as mentioned herein , a small portion at the top of the brain icon will be colored orange , indicating this patient is at risk of perioperative stroke or if the patient has had a stroke . when patients under anesthesia require mechanical ventilation , an endotracheal tube is placed through the vocal cords into the trachea . that tube is then connected to a mechanical ventilator . this is required for most general anesthetics and whenever a patient requires ventilator support in the icu . placing this tube in the trachea is called endotracheal intubation . generally , this is done when a patient has been given a sedative hypnotic , such as propofol , and most frequently followed by a neuromuscular blocking agent , which paralyzes the muscles and enables the anesthesiologist or anesthesia provider or intensivist to intubate the patient with a device called a laryngoscope . sometimes this process is difficult due to the anatomy of the patient . there are a variety of predictors of difficult intubation , or difficult airway as it is called , such as recessed chin , immobility of jaw , thick neck , neck which cannot flex or extend , poor view of the posterior airway when the mouth is open (“ mallampati grade ”), etc . knowing these risk factors will cause an anesthesia provider to consider a different method of placing the endotracheal tube , possibly doing an awake technique called fiberoptic intubation . once someone is intubated and is determined to be difficult , it is very important that future anesthesia care providers are aware of this problem . not knowing that a patient was a difficult intubation could cause a potential life - threatening event the next time they are planning to intubate the patient . for this reason an icon of an endotracheal tube placed in the airway will be colored orange if the risk factors are present for a potential difficult airway , and it will be red if the patient has a history of a known difficult airway . below the brain the trachea splits into two , the right and left main stem bronchi which enter the right and left lung . the right and left main stem bronchi will be green when the airway pressures during mechanical ventilation are in the normal range , turn yellow when they are slightly elevated , and turn red when they are abnormally elevated ( see fig7 ). all these ranges are configurable . this information is provided continuously from the ventilator . if the patient has a history of reactive airway disease ( asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ) which may result in bronchospasm , the outline of the trachea will be the color orange ( signifying potential for bronchospasm ). the right and left lungs are depicted on either side of the heart . the lungs have an outline which expands and contracts with ventilation , that is , they expand during inspiration when the pressure goes up ventilating the lungs and they retract when the pressure goes down . these data are provided continuously from the ventilator data and move in real - time with the patient &# 39 ; s breathing . the outline of each lung changes color with the level of peep . acute increases in peep may represent a ventilator malfunction or tension pneumothorax . in the right lung there is a column that shows arterial hemoglobin saturation from the pulse oximeter , which is the oxygenation of the arterial blood ; in the left lung is a column that shows the carbon dioxide which is continuously recorded from the capnometer ( the end tidal co2 machine , which is part of the anesthesia machine or a separate monitor ). when these values are in the normal range they are both green , when they are in a marginal range they are yellow , and when they are in the abnormal range they are red . these data are continuously updated to the display . the numerical saturation values are provided below the pulse oximeter column on the right and the numerical value of the expired carbon dioxide is provided on the left . when the lungs are ventilated the digital values for respiratory rate and peak airway pressure are provided in the upper right . should the airway pressures acutely rise above a critical value , an alert will pop - up that says “ potential airway obstruction , bronchospasm ” to alert the provider that there are high airway pressures that need to be investigated . if there are combinations of high inspired peak pressures and high expired airway pressures , also associated with decreasing blood pressure , a pop - up alert is provided saying the patient may have a “ potential tension pneumothorax ” or “ potential severe bronchospasm ”. this can be a life - threatening situation and occurs when the inspired and expired ventilator pressures are both acutely elevated in association with a decreased blood pressure . this is a situation that needs to be investigated immediately . the heart icon 48 which has several functions , including depicting the heartbeat . the heart icon 48 beats ( contracts ) with the heartbeat of the patient so there is a real - time assessment of the heart rate . there is a level in the heart icon 48 which represents the filling volume of the heart or the estimated adequacy of fluid resuscitation of the patient . a filling level in the middle of the heart icon 48 is normal ( green ), a low level ( red ), and a high level ( red ) ( see fig3 a , 3 b , and 3 c ). that is , there are ranges where the heart does not have enough fluid ( dehydrated ) and ranges where the heart is overfull ( cardiac failure ). the information to calculate this level is provided from several aspects depending on the available data . for patients with no invasive monitoring of the heart , the estimate of fluid resuscitation use standard rules of fluid replacement provided from the literature ( generally known is the 4 : 2 : 1 rule for obligate fluid loss ), also the time that the patient has been without fluid intake ( the npo time ) times the obligate fluid loss of a standard patient based on their weight . in addition to this , the data from the anesthesia information system are retrieved which provides the amount of fluid the patient has been given and the type of fluid . that is , whether they have received a crystalloid solution like normal saline or lactated ringers , or a colloid solution such as albumin , or a blood or a blood product . the calculation also takes into account the estimated blood loss which is entered into the anesthesia information system . therefore , to determine the level of fluid resuscitation the system automatically calculates in a balance of fluid inputs and outputs to estimate the adequacy of fluid resuscitation during the procedure . because this clinical process of calculating fluid needs is also dependent on the degree of surgical trauma ( sometimes referred to as third - space losses ), the present teachings provide several options for selecting these third - space losses in the first section 16 . the three selections on the third - space losses are to be selected by the anesthesia provider depending on the type of surgical procedure ( minor procedures with little surgical trauma are light , moderate procedures are moderate , and procedures with large incisions and more tissue manipulation are severe ). each one of these will automatically use a different calculation to determine the needs of fluid during the surgical procedure ( these specific losses for three types of surgical trauma are configurable ). all of these inputs are estimates . they are generally accepted ways in which clinicians estimate the fluid needed by the patient . they must take those calculations into account and at the same time the response of the patient to fluid given with respect to blood pressure , urine output and the patient &# 39 ; s history of response to fluid volumes . for example , patients with a history of congestive heart failure may require less fluid then others . this is a clinical decision by the anesthesia provider . the normalize button 90 allows the provider to “ renormalize ” the volume icon . that is , if the provider feels that the intravascular volume of the patient at any point in time is where they want them to be they can hit the “ normalize volume ” icon and it will move the icon fluid level up to the green level in the middle of the heart and then restart a new calculation from that point in time . if this normalization button has been used a star will be placed beside it to alert other providers and to remind the provider that they have renormalized the volume in that patient . in some patients who are undergoing larger procedures or have more preoperative risk , invasive monitoring catheters are placed to continuously measure arterial blood pressure , central venous blood pressure , or pulmonary artery blood pressure . if an arterial blood pressure catheter is placed and the providers can measure a variable known as systolic pressure variation ( spv ) ( or the similar parameter pulse pressure index , ppi ) then the spv value will be used to determine the level of cardiac filling and below the heart icon it will state “ spv ” for systolic pressure variation and present the last spv value and the time it was last measured ( or pulse pressure variation , which is similar to spv ). if the patient has a central venous catheter and central venous pressure values are collected from the physiologic monitor then below the heart icon it will say “ cvp ” for central venous pressure and use those values to determine high , low , or normal filling of the heart and the cvp real - time values will be presented . and finally , if the patient has a pulmonary artery catheter then data from the pulmonary artery diastolic pressure will be presented below the heart and those numbers will be used to determine the adequacy of fluid volume . many patients coming to the operating room are older and have a history of ischemic heart disease or risk factors for ischemic heart disease . cardiac risk assessment is probably the most important evaluation done preoperatively to determine the patient &# 39 ; s ability to undergo the procedure and what types of monitoring should be in place during and after the procedure . there is significant literature looking at large datasets to determine the specific preoperative risk factors for having an intraoperative or postoperative myocardial infarction ( heart attack ) and more recently intraoperative data such as blood pressure and heart rate have been determined to increase those risk factors . if the patient has preoperative risk factors for perioperative myocardial infarction then the cardiac outline will be orange . if during the procedure there are changes in heart rate and blood pressure that would be associated with a postop myocardial infarction which will add to the risk , then a portion of the icon will turn red and a pop - up alert of “ potential ischemia ” will be presented , fig2 . in addition , during surgical procedures or in the icu , patients are continually monitored with an ekg . the physiologic monitors of the ekg can continuously measure changes in the ekg associated with ischemia of the heart ( st segment changes ). if these ischemic st segment changes are noted during the case then the icon will also turn red and a pop - up of “ possible ischemia ” will be presented , fig2 . the intraoperative hemodynamic changes , blood pressure and heart rate which are associated with postoperative myocardial infarctions , would be impractical if not impossible to do in real - time for they are calculated as a median blood pressure decreases more than 40 % from their baseline blood pressure ( in the preop area ). this type of calculation could not be done by a practitioner in real - time ; therefore this computer allows such complex calculations to happen in real - time on a rolling average to alert for situations that put the patient at risk . on the right side of the heart an aortic arch rises and falls down to the body . this aortic arch represents the aorta and the real - time blood pressure . to the right of the blood pressure sbp , which is the systolic blood pressure , presents the current numerical values and diastolic blood pressure . the aorta will change color from green to yellow to red as the blood pressure drops or elevates into abnormal levels , fig6 . these levels are configurable for values of sbp , mean arterial pressure ( map ) or percents of the patient &# 39 ; s preoperative normal blood pressure values . for example , the alert may display ( color of the aorta change ) when an individual patient &# 39 ; s sbp drops below 60 % of their preoperative sbp . it is the standard of care during aesthesia that blood pressure be measured and documented every five ( 5 ) minutes . if blood pressure is not measured / recorded in the aims for five ( 5 ) minutes , the blood pressure number and minutes since last blood pressure flash red and alert the anesthesia provider that it needs to be measured . the control system of the present teachings includes an algorithm that predicts future low blood pressure . the present device takes the blood pressure over time and uses that along with the inspired anesthetic level to predict potential low blood pressure in the immediate future ( in the next 3 - 5 minutes ). when potential abnormal blood pressure is predicted a pop - up alert will be displayed to the provider . more specifically , the system monitors changes in sbp . if the predicted sbp in the next time interval ( e . g ., 4 - 5 minutes ) is predicted ( using a linear prediction ) to be less than 50 mmhg ( configurable ), the system then looks to see if the inspired anesthetic agent concentration has decreased ( this decrease in agent concentration shows that the anesthesia provider has noted the decrease in sbp and has taken the appropriate action of decreasing the anesthetic dose ). if the inspired agent concentration has not decreased ( meaning appropriate action has not been taken ), the system alerts to the potential of hypertension . the rectangle below the heart has several variables being presented . on the left is body temperature which comes from the physiologic monitor , in the center is hematocrit / hemoglobin which comes from the lab ( or an estimate described below ) and on the right is the glucose value which comes from the laboratory . below the glucose it will present the numerical value and the time since this measure was last determined . the same will be done for hematocrit , the time since the last measurement will be presented , that is , in minutes , hours and days , fig7 . another column for estimated hematocrit will be presented which estimates the current level of hemoglobin in the blood using the patient &# 39 ; s initial hemoglobin measurement , the blood loss as retrieved from the anesthesia information system and the fluid given to the patient , also retrieved from the anesthesia information system . using literature reported techniques on hemodilution an estimated level of hematocrit will be presented to alert the provider at which point they may wish to measure a hematocrit to see whether a transfusion might be needed . this is an estimate and will be updated whenever a measurement of the current hematocrit is provided to the system from the laboratory . two additional important lab values are reported : potassium ( k +) and international normalization ratio ( inr ). inr is a test of coagulation / bleeding status . it is used to test the bleeding / clotting ability , specifically for patients taken warfarin or other drugs effecting bleeding . it is very important to know the inr before surgery if the patient has been taking the blood thinners . the system looks in the patient &# 39 ; s medication list for warfarin or other blood thinners . if present , the inr column is outlined in orange . if inr value is available , it will be presented in the inr column , including normal / abnormal range . on either side of the body are icons representing the kidneys . under the right kidney will be the urine output , if available , provided in mls , mls / minute and mls / kg of body weight / minute , fig1 . these different measurements of urine flow are of use to the provider . on the left side below the kidney is the laboratory value of creatinine , which is a measure of renal function . these values of creatinine along with glucose and hemoglobin are retrieved automatically from the hospital &# 39 ; s laboratory system . if the patient &# 39 ; s history suggests that the patient is at risk of postoperative renal failure , then the outer edge of the kidney icon will be the color orange . in some embodiments , the present teachings , or particularly the present software , can include various rules requiring input data from various parts of the patient &# 39 ; s electronic medical record ; history and physical , home medications , live physiologic data , and anesthesia information system data . basic traditional rules . the basic system can provide information based on clinical rules of management that are part of the current training in anesthesiology . an example of such a rule is the rule that determines the filling level of the heart . this fluid level in the heart which either shows a low level in red , a normal level in green , and a high level in red is based on a calculation of fluid inputs and outputs of the patient . the inputs are intravenous fluids of various types , including blood . the outputs are obligate fluid loss due to metabolism and ventilation of vapor , as well as , blood loss , urine output , and surgical trauma . these rules are based on published literature from anesthesia textbooks . this type of basic rule as an alert for “ out of normal range ,” which is based on general training in anesthesiology , can be configured by the practitioner if desired . rules based on recent literature which require detailed history and physical information . this second , more complex , rule is based on published literature regarding risk factors for certain adverse outcomes for the surgical procedure , e . g . having a postoperative myocardial infarction ( heart attack ). the patients come to the operating room with a series of co - morbidities ( other medical diseases ) which put them at higher risk for having a myocardial infarction in the perioperative period , e . g . a history of diabetes , history of a previous heart attack , cerebral vascular or renal disease . if a patient has several of these risk factors they are in a higher risk group and based on published literature this rule in the display system will alert the practitioner of the organ at risk . these types of literature are becoming more and more prevalent as outcomes research has developed more detailed risk analysis because of the expanded electronic medical record providing the data source . some of these risks are published in the literature but would not be feasible to be calculated in real - time . those risk analyses not only include the patient &# 39 ; s history , but also current physiologic data , e . g . heart rate and blood pressure . therefore , a patient would be at higher risk and the system would alert the practitioner that the patient is at higher risk when , for example , the blood pressure has decreased below the patient &# 39 ; s normal blood pressure value by more than 40 % for more than 10 minutes . this type of real - time calculation of patient risk would be impossible to do in the clinical setting while caring for patients . these types of risk analyses are being developed and published in the literature more frequently , as stated above , with the advent of the electronic medical record . the most complex risk analysis can be developed which use large databases (& gt ; 200 , 000 patients ) with large amounts of data to identify patients at risk . this is done through a complex control system analysis . these types of analyses have been done in the manufacturing industry for quality control of products . this type of complex statistical engineering analysis is being applied to the perioperative and critical care data to derive complex algorithms which predict the potential of adverse outcomes and therefore can alert practitioners in advance to enable earlier diagnosis and treatment of potential adverse events . in some embodiments , the present teachings can be used for the detection of the disease malignant hyperthermia and malignant neuroleptic syndrome during anesthesia . specifically , by way of background , malignant hyperthermia is a rare , but life - threatening disease that occurs under general anesthesia when a patient is exposed to the muscle relaxant succinylcholine and / or a potent halogenated vapor anesthetic , e . g . isoflurane , sevoflurane , desflurane . this is a genetic disorder which is autosomal dominant with a mixed penetrance that involves an abnormality of the ryanodine receptor in the muscle . it causes uncontrolled release of calcium and results in a severe metabolic crisis . malignant neuroleptic syndrome has the same clinical signs , symptoms , and treatment . it also occurs under anesthesia . the present teachings use the simultaneous collection of data from anesthesia machine and an anesthesia information system and monitors to identify the onset of malignant hyperthermia to allow early detection and treatment . if treated early with the drug dantrolene the disease has a very good outcome . the present teachings , in some embodiments , requires electronic data from an anesthesia machine , more specifically , end expired carbon dioxide measurements , inspired carbon dioxide measurements , minute ventilation ( respiratory volume times respiratory rate ), and with or without the patient &# 39 ; s weight . in some embodiments , if the following calculated events occur , malignant hyperthermia alert will be activated : end expired carbon dioxide increases at a rate greater than 1 . 5 mmhg / min . ( which is configurable ) while , simultaneously the minute ventilation ( expired tidal volume × respiratory rate ) remains at 80 % of the normal level ( 80 cc / kg / min . ( which is configurable )) or greater and , the inspired carbon dioxide level remains less than 2 mmhg * and is not increasing . with all three of these events happening simultaneously for more than 10 minutes or other predetermined time period , then malignant hyperthermia or malignant neuroleptic syndrome is diagnosed . it should be appreciated that these numeric thresholds and / or conditions can be configurable and / or eliminated in some embodiments . in some embodiments , a diagnosis of malignant hyperthermia can be diagnosed when the end expired co2 is rising steadily in the presence of no increase in inspired co 2 and a normal minute ventilation . if all of these three events occur during anesthesia , it is diagnostic of malignant hyperthermia . in some embodiments , the present teachings can be used for the detection of tension pneumothorax . specifically , by way of background , a tension pneumothorax is an acute hemodynamic emergency where the air is trapped in a thoracic cavity producing high pressure which prevents blood from returning to the chest and right heart causing a life - threatening reduction in cardiac blood flow and blood pressure . this only occurs in patients receiving positive pressure ventilation either during anesthesia in the operating room or being ventilated in intensive care or other ventilator unit . for this alarm to be utilized it requires electronic capture of blood pressure data and inspired and end expired pressure ventilator data . these data are available when there are anesthesia information systems or critical care information systems in place . in some embodiments , the present teachings use the simultaneous collection of data to detect the occurrence of three events diagnostic of a tension pneumothorax : elevated peek airway pressures by the ventilator greater than 40 mmhg ( which is configurable ) and increasing . elevated end expired ventilator pressures greater than 15 mmhg ( which is configurable ) and increasing . it should be appreciated that these numeric thresholds and / or conditions can be configurable and / or eliminated in some embodiments . it should be noted that variations in display parameters , indicia , and threshold values are configurable . the present teachings can be used beyond the enumerated embodiment . in each of the foregoing examples , it should be appreciated that without the simplified monitoring and display capabilities of the present teachings , it may be difficult for a caregiver or healthcare provider to assembly such information to provide a quick and reliable diagnosis of such rare diseases . the foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description . it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention . individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment , but , where applicable , are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment , even if not specifically shown or described . the same may also be varied in many ways . such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the invention , and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention . | 6 |
referring to the drawings and more particularly to fig7 , there is illustrated a waste - disposal unit 10 of the type having a bag - closing mechanism 11 used with a film - dispensing cassette 12 , recipient or cartridge ( hereinafter cassette 12 ), or alternatively used with a rimmed bag 12 ′ ( described hereinafter for fig8 and 10 ). the waste - disposal unit 10 may be used for any type of waste items , but is well suited for the disposal of cat litter and hygienic items such as diapers . the waste - disposal unit 10 is shown as having a bin , but the waste - disposal unit 10 may have any other configuration capable of supporting the cassette 12 ( such as a wire rack ), and having the mechanism 11 . the cassette 12 is of the type having an annular shape with tubular film 13 dispensed from a top of the cassette 12 , passing through the central opening of the cassette 12 , and into the inner cavity of the waste - disposal unit 10 . the free end of the tubular film 13 is closed , for instance with a knot 13 a ( shown in fig2 ), to define a bag to receive the waste , with the central opening of the cassette 12 forming the opening of the bag . the free end of the tubular film 13 may be closed in any other suitable way , for instance by using a sealing unit to form a sealing joint at the free end of the tubular film 13 . the mechanism 11 is actuatable to press the bag of the tubular film 13 shut , thereby keeping odors in the bag of the tubular film 13 . it is also possible to have the tubular film 13 dispensed from a bottom of the cassette 12 , instead of being dispensed from the top . in such a case , the central opening of the cassette 12 defines the opening of the bag of tubular film 13 . the cassette 12 is therefore held by a support 14 adjacent to a top opening of the waste - disposal unit 10 , above the mechanism 11 . the support 14 may be of any possible shape or configuration to support the cassette 12 . the tubular film 13 may be of any suitable material . in an embodiment , the tubular film 13 is made of a polymer , or numerous layers thereof . in another embodiment , the polymer is made of a barrier material generally odor - proof , such as evoh . moreover , the mechanism 11 may be a lid 15 sealingly secured to a top of the cassette 12 or to a top of the waste - disposal unit 10 to hold odors in the bag of the cassette 12 . referring concurrently to fig1 to 3 , the cassette 12 is shown in greater detail . the cassette 12 has an annular body 20 that is a recipient of the tubular film 13 , held in an accumulated condition ( e . g ., pleated ) radially outward of an inner annular wall 20 a . the annular body 20 also has a bottom wall 20 b , and may have an outer annular wall 20 c , with the tubular film 13 being respectively on top of the bottom wall 20 b and radially inward of the outer annular wall 20 c . as explained hereinafter , the inner annular wall 20 a , the bottom wall 20 b and / or the outer annular wall 20 c may be arranged to define clearances or the like . the inner annular wall 20 a also defines a central opening 21 of the annular body 20 . as shown in fig2 , the tubular film 13 exits from a top of the annular body 20 , and then projects below the annular body 20 by passing through the central opening 21 . the closed end of the tubular film 13 is knotted at 13 a , thereby forming a bag whose length is deployed from the cassette 12 , until the bag is full . referring to fig1 to 3 , a cover 22 is connected to a top edge of the inner annular wall 20 a , and defines an outward flange with respect to the inner annular wall 20 a , to help retain the tubular film 13 in the annular body 20 in the accumulated condition . the cover 22 may also / alternatively be connected to a top edge of the outer annular wall 20 c if the cassette 12 has such a wall , or extend beyond the outer annular wall 20 c to define a peripheral shoulder 22 a . alternatively , as shown in fig4 a , the peripheral shoulder 22 a may be part of the annular wall 20 c . from a plan view , the peripheral shoulder 22 a projects radially beyond the bottom wall 20 b or beyond the outer annular wall 20 c . moreover , the cassette 12 may not have the cover 22 , with the tubular film 13 being retained solely by the inner annular wall 20 a , or may only have a portion of a cover 22 . the cover 22 may have a plurality of throughbores 23 . the throughbores 23 are provided to help press the accumulated tubular film 13 down with fingers contacting the film therethrough , while the cover 22 is being connected to the annular body 20 . the cover 22 may be welded , glued , or mechanically retained to the annular body 20 . referring to fig1 and 3 , a tear - off strip 24 may be provided in the cover 22 . the tear - off strip 24 is secured to a remainder of the cover 22 by a frangible joint , whereby a pulling action on tab 25 causes a rupture of the frangible joint and thus the removal of the strip 24 . as shown in fig2 , the removal of the strip 24 defines a radial gap that exposes the tubular film 13 , whereby a user may pull a free end of the accumulated tubular film 13 out of the annular body 20 to form a knotted bag , as explained above . referring to fig8 , there is shown another embodiment of non - circular self - supported bag , in the form of a rimmed bag 12 ′. the rimmed bag 12 ′ has several components in common with the cassette 12 , whereby like numerals will refer to like elements . the rimmed bag 12 ′ supports a closed - end bag 13 ′ by way of an annular body 20 ′. the closed - end bag 13 ′ is welded , glued , snapped or connected to the annular body 20 ′ in any appropriate manner . moreover , the bag 13 ′ may simply be folded over the annular body 20 ′ as shown in fig1 , without the necessity of welding or gluing the bag 13 ′ to the annular body 20 ′. in fig1 , the annular body 20 ′ is a square - sectioned tube . in fig8 , the annular body 20 ′ is shaped as a flat ring , and is made of a rigid or semi - rigid material , as it structurally supports a bag and its content . however , it may have other shapes , such as a cylinder ( fig1 ) or a circle of metallic wire . the annular body 20 ′ has a central opening 21 , by which an interior of the bag 13 ′ is accessed . the annular body 20 ′ may be constituted of a pair of parts foldable toward one another to seal the bag shut . once the rimmed bag 12 ′ is filled , it is discarded . although not shown , the annular body 20 ′ may have tabs on its periphery or connector holes adjacent the periphery , so as to be clipped or secured to a waste disposal unit . referring to fig3 , fig8 and fig1 , the central openings 21 of the cassette 12 and of the rimmed bag 12 ′ are shown having a generally square outline 30 , with rounded corners . more specifically , the generally square outline 30 may be a squircle . accordingly , the central opening 21 has at least one axial dimension ( or diameter , axis , namely passing through the center of the outline shape ) that is larger than another axial dimension , in a transverse plane of the cassette 12 . this is shown as a 1 being of greater dimension than a 2 in fig3 ( a 1 & gt ; a 2 ), in the transverse plane of the cassette 12 . the generally square outline of the central opening 21 shown in fig3 ( i . e ., not perfectly square because of the rounded corners ), has two diagonals ( represented by a 2 ) of the same dimension , and two minimum widths ( represented by a 1 ) of the same dimension . it is observed that the outline of the outer periphery of the cassette 12 ( as shown in fig3 ) and the outline of the central opening 21 are similar figures . referring to fig6 a to 6d , other outlines respecting the rule a 1 & gt ; a 2 are illustrated at 30 a to 30 d , for one or both of the contour of the central opening 21 and outer periphery of the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′. the outlines 30 a to 30 d may be used as shapes for the central opening 21 and / or outer periphery of either one of the cassette 12 and rimmed bag 12 ′, as may the outline 30 of fig3 . other shapes are considered as well , such as super - ellipses and squircles ( i . e ., a specific type of super - ellipse ). in an embodiment , it is preferred that the central opening 21 and / or outer periphery of the cassette 12 have an outline shape having at least two axes of symmetry in the transverse plane , such as the square outline 30 ( fig3 ), the rectangular outline 30 a ( fig6 a ), the oval or elliptical outline 30 b ( fig6 b ), and the hexagonal outline 30 c ( fig6 c ). other outlines with an a 1 & gt ; a 2 outline and at least two axes of symmetry include octagonal outlines , decagonal outlines , and the like . the trapezoidal outline 30 d of fig6 d does not have two axes of symmetry in the plan view ( transverse plane ). with a 1 & gt ; a 2 outlines , the cassette 12 has a greater amount of tubular film than cassettes without such outlines , for a same minimum axial dimension a 2 . moreover , as shown in fig5 , cassettes with a 1 & gt ; a 2 outlines allow tools t to be fitted into the central opening 21 while minimizing the size of the cassette 12 or rimmed bag 12 ′. in other words , a cassette without an a 1 & gt ; a 2 outline will be of greater dimension than a cassette with a 1 & gt ; a 2 outline , if it must receive a tool t in the central opening 21 , in the manner shown in fig5 . the tool t is illustrated as being a scooping tool , with a width w . referring to fig9 , there is illustrated a comparative view between the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′, and a cassette 12 ″ of the prior art . the cassette 12 ″ does not have an a 1 ′& gt ; a 2 outline for its central opening 21 ′, but rather an a 1 ′= a 2 outline . therefore , when comparing the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′ with the cassette 12 ″ as superposed in fig8 , it is observed that dimension a 1 in the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′ is greater than dimension a 1 ′ in the cassette 12 ″, for the same minimum axial dimension a 2 . accordingly , for similar inner and outer dimensions , the cassette 12 can support more tubular film than the cassette 12 ″. as the outlines of the central opening 12 and of the outer periphery of the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′ are similar figures , the a 1 , a 1 ′ and a 2 representations in fig9 are only for the central opening 12 for clarity of illustration , but could also be made for the outer periphery . according to the arrangement of fig5 , a sequence of manipulations is performed to dispose of waste in the bag formed of the tubular film 13 dispensed by the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′. the tool t is positioned over the central opening 21 of the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′. the tool t is rotated or oriented such that a width w of the tool is generally parallel to the a 1 dimension of the central opening 21 . the tool t is then lowered into the central opening 21 with the width w of the tool t remaining generally parallel to the a 1 dimension . the tool t is then pivoted approximately about the a 1 dimension , or about an axis generally parallel to the a 1 dimension , such that waste slides out of the tool t , through the central opening 21 , and into the bag of tubular film 13 of the cassette 12 / rimmed bag 12 ′. the sequence of manipulations is advantageously used when the waste has a volatile solid component , such as dust . for instance , when the waste is cat litter , it is desired to reduce the movement of the cat litter from the scoop t to the bag of tubular film 13 , to minimize the creation of dust from the disposal action . referring to fig4 a to 4d , various sections considered for the annular body 20 are illustrated , as dispensing the tubular film 13 . fig4 a and 4c show a clearance 40 . the clearance 40 is used in combination with a projection in the support 13 of the waste - disposal unit 10 , to ensure that the cassette 12 is properly inserted into the waste - disposal unit 10 . the clearance 40 may also be at the junction of the bottom wall 20 b and the outer annular wall 20 c , any may take any suitable form , such as screw - in slots ( for complementary engagement with retainer tabs ), threading , etc . if the cassette 12 dispenses the tubular film 13 from its bottom , the clearance may not be required . according to another embodiment , the bottom wall 20 b projects radially inwardly into the central opening 21 . in such a case , the bottom wall 20 b may serve as a support for the cassette 12 . | 1 |
fig1 illustrates a triband antenna generally indicated by numeral 10 including two coaxially arranged sections 12 and 14 forming a removable antenna mast section generally indicated by the numeral 16 which extends from a base section generally indicated by the numeral 18 which is typically fixedly mounted to a fender 20 of a vehicle . referring also to fig2 the base section 18 includes a connector assembly 22 . the connector assembly 22 is provided with an inner connector sleeve 24 formed preferably of brass with a threaded upper end 26 ( fig3 ). the inner connector sleeve 24 is molded in place within a middle connector sleeve 28 injection molded of a plastic resin such as polypropylene or polyethylene . an outer connector sleeve 30 surrounds the lower end of the middle connector sleeve 28 . the middle connector sleeve 28 and outer connector sleeve 30 are provided with an aperture 32 which allows a center conductor 34 of a am / fm cable 36 to be connected to the inner connector sleeve 24 . a braid element 38 of the am / fm cable 36 is connected to the outer connector sleeve 30 . to protect this connection , a plastic am / fm pickoff shroud 40 encapsulates the end of the am / fm cable 36 thereby forming an am / fm pickoff connector . inserted in the lower end of the outer connector sleeve 30 is a ground bushing 42 having a flange 44 which seats the outer connector sleeve 30 . the ground bushing 42 is held in assembly with the outer connector sleeve 30 by a screw 46 . the ground bushing 42 has a threaded axially extending aperture 48 dimensionally sized to receive a tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 . the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 extends through an aperture 52 ( fig3 ) in a universal mounting strap 54 whereby the flange 44 of the ground bushing 42 abuts the universal mounting strap 54 . the flange 44 has a plurality of slots 56 while the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 has a thru hole 58 therein to drain any water which might accumulate inside the connector assembly 22 . the ground bushing 42 is made of brass plated with tin to ground the antenna 10 to the universal mounting strap 54 . a lock nut 60 is threadingly received on the exterior of the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 to secure the antenna 10 to the universal mounting strap 54 . as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art , the free end of the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 can be attached to a coaxial cellular jumper cable ( not shown ) for conveying cellular transmission signals to and from a transceiver ( not shown ) located in the vehicle . connection of the connector assembly 22 of the base section 18 to the fender 20 is accomplished by use of a mounting apparatus generally indicated by numeral 62 . underneath the fender 20 , the connector assembly 22 is provided with a tubular spacer 64 surrounding the middle connector sleeve 28 and abutting the outer connector sleeve 30 at the upper end thereof . seated on the tubular spacer 64 is a chrome plated steel cup lock member 66 with a swivel lock member 68 thereabove . the swivel lock member 68 has two parallel semi - circular sidewalls 70 with a plurality of teeth 72 thereon allowing the swivel lock member 68 to be positioned to accommodate various angular orientations ( up to 21 . 5 °) of the fender 20 . the upper edge of each sidewall 70 has a thin elongated straight extension 74 extending through a hole 76 ( fig3 ) in the fender 20 . sharpened nubs 78 are provided on an upper side of the swivel lock member 68 to engage the inner surface of the fender 20 thereby inhibiting relative movement of the antenna 10 . the mounting apparatus 62 above the fender 20 includes a rubber seal grommet 80 in the form of a resilient annulus in which a plastic universal mounting dome 82 is seated . the universal mounting dome 82 has diametrically opposed interior slots 84 which receive the extensions 74 of the swivel lock member 68 . a curved cantilevered finger 86 extends downwardly from the universal mounting dome 82 through the seal grommet 80 , the fender 20 and into the interior of the swivel lock member 68 . a steel black chrome plated shroud 88 provides a protective covering for the seal grommet 80 . to secure the connector assembly 22 to the fender 20 , a black chrome plated threaded mounting adaptor 90 , made of brass , is threadingly received on the threaded upper end 26 of the inner connector sleeve 24 . the threaded mounting adaptor 90 thereby extends through the universal mounting dome 82 and the shroud 88 . the threaded mounting adaptor 90 includes an interior shoulder 92 functioning as an abutment stop for the threaded upper end 26 and also for an antenna locking nut 94 . a threaded plug 96 shown in fig2 is also provided to replace the antenna locking nut 94 when the removable antenna mast section 16 is removed from the base section 18 . to install the base section 18 , a suitable mounting location is selected on the front or rear fender . the chosen location should have enough clearance on the underside to accommodate the base section 18 . a 7 / 8 inch hole 76 is drilled in the selected location . if the hole 76 already exists , its diameter should be checked . paint and undercoating is removed from the underside to ensure proper grounding of the antenna 10 . the connector assembly 22 , tubular spacer 64 , cup lock member 66 and swivel lock member 68 are installed from the underside of the fender 20 with the threaded upper end 26 and extensions 74 protruding through the hole 76 of the fender 20 . the seal grommet 80 , universal mounting dome 82 , shroud 88 and threaded mounting adaptor 90 are installed until the shoulder 92 of the threaded mounting adaptor 90 engages the threaded upper end 26 to hold the base section 18 firmly in place . the universal mounting strap 54 is bent as required and its free end attached to an acceptable inner panel ( not shown ) of the vehicle . with the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 positioned through the aperture 52 , the lock nut 60 is then tightened on the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 to hold the base section 18 and universal mounting strap 54 in place . the am / fm cable 36 and a cellular jumper cable ( not shown ) are connected to the radio and transceiver as appropriate . the removable antenna mast section 16 can then be inserted in the base section 18 as will be explained further hereinafter . referring to fig3 and 4 , the am / fm antenna section 12 of the removable antenna mast section 16 is preferably formed of a brass or stainless steel stepped - down tube which may be plated on the exterior surface for ornamental and corrosion - resistance purposes . section 14 has a cap 98 and is formed of a fiberglass material and functions as a radome in which the cellular antenna portion ( not shown ) is mounted . the cellular antenna portion comprises a center - fed half - wave dipole antenna ( not shown ) comprising a whip portion ( not shown ) and a coaxial skirt ( not shown ). the dipole is fed by a 50 - ohm coaxial feed line cable 100 which extends upwardly through the cellular antenna section 14 of the antenna 10 . the details of the configuration for the antenna design can be found in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 079 , 562 entitled multi - band antenna issued jan . 7 , 1992 to inventors george d . yarsunas , michael l . brennan and james r . hendershot . the am / fm antenna section 12 and cellular antenna section 14 extend into a slide contact sleeve 102 in a force fit relationship and terminate in an injection molded sleeve 104 . an inner plug 105 provides a stop for the injection molded sleeve 104 during the manufacturing process . the lower portion of the am / fm antenna section 12 has two or more holes therethrough to allow the injection molded sleeve 104 to mechanically connect thereto . the coaxial feed line cable 100 extends completely through the injection molded sleeve 104 to a tnc straight plug 106 . the tnc straight plug 106 is a modified tnc connector with its outer body housing removed so that it engages the tnc coaxial dual receptacle 50 when the removable antenna mast section 16 is inserted in the base section 18 . the tnc straight plug 106 is securely connected to the coaxial feed line cable 100 by means of a crimped ferrule 108 made of nickel plated brass locking the braid ( not shown ) of the cable 100 to the barbed end ( not shown ) of the plug 106 . the slide contact sleeve 102 is made of beryllium - copper ( or a similar metal ) and has four cantilevered resilient fingers 110 spaced ninety degrees apart . the cantilevered resilient fingers 110 maintain contact between the slide contact sleeve 102 and the inner connector sleeve 24 to complete the am / fm circuit . the upper end of the slide contact sleeve 102 has a flange 112 which acts as an abutment stop when the removable antenna mast section 16 is inserted in the base section 18 . as seen is fig3 when the removable antenna mast section 16 is fully inserted in the base section 18 with the flange 112 abutting the threaded upper end 26 of the inner connector sleeve 24 , the antenna locking nut 94 can be threadingly received in the threaded mounting adaptor 90 until the antenna locking nut 94 bottoms out on the shoulder 92 thereby sandwiching the flange 112 between the threaded upper end 26 of the inner connector sleeve 24 and the antenna locking nut 94 . in this fashion , the removable antenna mast section 16 is held firmly in the base section 18 . to remove the removable antenna mast section 16 , the procedure is reversed . the user must first remove the antenna locking nut 94 whereby the removable antenna mast section 16 can then be pulled axially out of the base section 18 . with the removable antenna mast section 16 removed , the threaded plug 96 can be inserted in the threaded mounting adaptor 90 as shown in fig2 . thus , the present invention provides a triband antenna with a removable antenna mast section capable of receiving signals in the am / fm commercial radio bands and receiving and transmitting cellular telephone signals . the antenna has a unique removable connection used to transfer both the cellular and am / fm signals to the respective transceiver and radio . the preferred embodiment described above admirably achieves the objects of the invention ; however , it will be appreciated that departures can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is limited only by the following claims . | 7 |
the following illustrative embodiments are provided to illustrate the disclosure of the present invention , these and other advantages and effects can be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the disclosure of this specification . the present invention may also be implemented and applied according to other embodiments , and the details may be modified based on different views and applications without departing from the spirit of the invention . fig1 a to 1d are sectional views showing a semiconductor package device and a fabrication method thereof according to the present invention . as shown in fig1 a , a wafer 10 having a plurality of silicon substrates 100 is provided . each of the silicon substrates 100 has a first surface 101 and a second surface 102 opposed to the first surface 101 . a plurality of tsvs 103 is formed in each of the silicon substrates 100 , wherein the tsvs 103 are filled with a conductive material . that is , at least a through hole is formed on the second surface 102 of the silicon substrate 100 , a conductive material such as cu or ni / au is filled in the through hole , and a grinding process is performed for thinning the first surface 101 of the silicon substrate 100 so as to expose the conductive material filled in the through hole , thus forming a tsv 103 . subsequently , a plurality of semiconductor chips 11 is disposed on the first surfaces 101 of the silicon substrates 100 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 . therein , an underfill adhesive 111 is filled between the silicon substrates 100 and the semiconductor chips 11 so as to reduce relative deformation of the wafer 10 and the semiconductor chips 11 . as shown in fig1 b , an encapsulant 12 is formed on the first surfaces 101 of the silicon substrates 100 so as to encapsulate the semiconductor chips 11 . thereafter , a hard component 13 is formed on the encapsulant 12 , wherein the hard component 13 may be made of a glass material , a metal material such as copper , or a thermosetting material such as a polyimide resin , a bt ( bismaleimide triazine ) resin , fr - 4 and so on . as shown in fig1 c , a plurality of conductive elements 14 such as solder bumps is formed on the second surfaces 102 of the silicon substrates 100 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 . therein , during a solder bump process , the first surfaces 101 of the silicon substrates 100 with the hard component 13 face downward and the second surfaces 102 face upward so as to form the conductive elements 14 on the second surfaces 102 . as a result , the semiconductor chips 11 can be electrically connected to an external device through the tsvs 103 and the conductive elements 14 . meanwhile , the hard component 13 ensures flatness of the wafer 10 during the solder bump process . as shown in fig1 d , the wafer 10 is singulated to separate the silicon substrates 100 from each other , thereby forming a plurality of semiconductor package devices with tsvs 103 . during the singulation process , since the hard component 13 made of a glass material , a metal material or a thermosetting material provides support for the wafer 10 , the wafer 10 can be firmly placed on a carrier , thereby facilitating cutting of the wafer so as to form a plurality of semiconductor package devices . further , the hard component 13 that is disposed above the semiconductor chips 11 provides protection to the semiconductor chips 11 . in addition , the hard component 13 made of a metal material improves the heat dissipating efficiency of the semiconductor package devices . further referring to fig1 c to 1d , through the above - described fabrication method , a semiconductor package device is provided , which comprises : a silicon substrate 100 having a first surface 101 , an opposed second surface 102 and a plurality of tsvs 103 ; a semiconductor chip 11 disposed on the first surface 101 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 ; an encapsulant 12 formed on the first surface 101 of the silicon substrate 100 to encapsulate the semiconductor chip 11 ; a hard component 13 disposed on the encapsulant 12 ; and a plurality of conductive elements 14 disposed on the second surface 102 of the silicon substrate 100 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 . referring to fig1 e , a semiconductor package structure according to the present invention is shown . same as the above - described method , a wafer having a plurality of silicon substrates 100 with tsvs 103 is provided , with the tsvs 103 filled with a conductive material , a plurality of semiconductor chips 11 is disposed on the silicon substrates 100 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 , and an encapsulant 12 is formed on the silicon substrates 100 to encapsulate the semiconductor chips 11 , then , a hard component 13 is formed on the encapsulant 12 and a plurality of conductive elements 14 is formed . thereafter , a singulation process is performed to separate the silicon substrates 100 from each other , thereby forming a plurality of semiconductor package devices . further , a carrier 15 is disposed to such a semiconductor package device so as to electrically connect the semiconductor chip 11 through the conductive elements 14 , thereby forming a semiconductor package structure . the carrier 15 may be a substrate , a circuit board or a lead frame . through the above - described method , a semiconductor package structure is provided , which comprises : a silicon substrate 100 having a first surface 101 and an opposed second surface 102 and a plurality of tsvs 103 ; a semiconductor chip 11 disposed on the first surface 101 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 ; an encapsulant 12 formed on the first surface 101 of the silicon substrate 100 to encapsulate the semiconductor chip 11 ; a hard component 13 disposed on the encapsulant 12 ; a plurality of conductive elements 14 disposed on the second surface 102 of the silicon substrate 100 and electrically connected to the tsvs 103 ; and a carrier 15 disposed to the conductive elements 14 so as to electrically connect the semiconductor chip 11 through the conductive elements 14 . therefore , the present invention mainly involves providing a wafer having a plurality of silicon substrates , wherein each of the silicon substrates has a first surface and an opposed second surface and a plurality of tsvs filled with a conductive material ; disposing a plurality of semiconductor chips on the first surfaces of the silicon substrates with the semiconductor chips electrically connected to the tsvs ; forming an encapsulant on the first surfaces of the silicon substrates to encapsulate the semiconductor chips ; forming a hard component on the encapsulant ; forming a plurality of conductive elements on the second surfaces of the silicon substrates ; and then performing a singulation process to the wafer so as to separate the silicon substrates from each other , thereby forming a plurality of semiconductor package devices with tsvs . further , the semiconductor package devices can be respectively electrically connected to carriers such as substrates , circuit boards or lead frames through the conductive elements so as to form semiconductor package structures . therein , the hard component is made of a glass material , a metal material or a thermosetting material . the hard component ensures flatness of the wafer during mounting of the conductive elements . the hard component also provides support to the wafer such that the wafer can be firmly placed on a singulation carrier during the singulation process , thereby facilitating cutting of the wafer . in addition , the hard component provides protection to the semiconductor chips disposed therebelow , and the hard component made of a metal material improves the heat dissipating efficiency of the semiconductor package device . the above - described descriptions of the detailed embodiments are only to illustrate the preferred implementation according to the present invention , and it is not to limit the scope of the present invention , accordingly , all modifications and variations completed by those with ordinary skill in the art should fall within the scope of present invention defined by the appended claims . | 7 |
referring particularly to fig1 and 2 , the sealed contact relay includes a metal mounting plate 1 , a molded plastic base section housing 2 , a molded plastic energizing and switch section housing 3 , and a molded plastic timing section housing 4 . the energizing and switch section housing 3 is fastened to the base section housing 2 by a set of screws 5 which extend upward from beneath the housing 2 and are received in aligned threaded openings 6 formed on the underside of the housing 3 . the base section housing 2 is fastened to the mounting plate 1 by a set of screws 7 which extend downward through integrally formed feet portions 11 into threaded openings formed in the mounting plate 1 . the mounting plate 1 is suitable for attachment to a mounting track ( not shown in the drawings ) or the back wall of a cabinet ( not shown in the drawings ) which houses the control system of which the relay is a part . the timing section housing 4 is fastened in place atop the relay by a set of screws 8 , which pass downward through openings formed in flanges 9 that extend outward from the housing 4 , and which are received in aligned threaded openings 10 formed in the housing 3 . the housings 2 , 3 and 4 are substantially rectangular in shape and they enclose the elements of the sealed contact relay which are now to be described . the size and general appearance of the structure thus formed is substantially the same as a standard sealed contact relay such as that disclosed in the above cited u . s . pat . no . 3 , 605 , 049 . the base section housing 2 serves as an enclosure for a power supply indicated generally at 12 . the power supply includes an isolation transformer 13 which is mounted with other circuit elements to a circuit board 14 that is fastened to the bottom of the housing 2 by a set of screws 15 . the power supply 12 is electrically connected to other elements in the relay as will be described hereinafter by a flexible cable 16 . the energizing and switch section housing 3 supports a second circuit board 18 which in turn mounts an instantaneous relay coil 19 and a timed relay coil 20 . the driving circuits for the coils 19 and 20 are mounted to the bottom side of the board 18 and face downward into the space defined by the base section housing 2 . a pair of timed control terminals 21 extend outward from one end of the board 18 and a pair of power supply terminals 50 extend outward in the opposite direction . the circuit board 18 connects to the power supply circuit board 14 through the flexible cable 16 . the housing 3 encloses the relay coils 19 and 20 and their associated magnetic circuits . the instantaneous relay coil 19 supports a magnetic circuit which is comprised of a pair of l - shaped legs 23 and 24 and a pair of u - shaped flux finger elements 25 and 26 . each flux finger element 25 and 26 defines a respective compartment 27 and 28 into which a sealed contact switch cartridge 29 may be inserted . similarly , the timed relay coil 20 supports a magnetic circuit which includes a pair of l - shaped legs 35 and a pair of u - shaped flux finger elements 30 and 31 that define two additional cartridge compartments 32 and 33 . the elements of the magnetic circuits are made of a low reluctance material such as steel . when the relay coil 19 is energized , the magnetic flux which it generates is conducted through the leg portions 23 and 24 of its associated magnetic circuit , and this flux is diverted by the flux finger elements 25 and 26 upward and through a switch cartridge 29 disposed in one of the compartments 27 or 28 . as shown best in fig2 each switch cartridge 29 includes a sealed contact switch 34 which provides a relatively low reluctance path that extends between the flux finger elements 26 and 27 to complete the magnetic circuit . as is well known in the art , the contacts in the sealed contact switch 34 are operated in response to the magnetic flux which flows therethrough , and they are thus operated by the relay coil 19 . the timed relay coil 20 and its associated magnetic circuit function in a similar manner to operate sealed contact switches 34 which are contained in cartridges 29 disposed in the compartments 32 and 33 . as will be described in more detail hereinafter , however , the timed relay coil 20 is coupled to the output of the digital programmable timer and is not necessarily operated at the same time as the instantaneous relay coil 19 . for a more detailed description of the magnetic circuit , cartridges and sealed contact switches therein , reference is made to the above cited u . s . pat . no . 3 , 605 , 049 entitled &# 34 ; sealed contact relay &# 34 ;. referring to fig1 and 6 , the housing 4 which mounts atop the relay encloses a timing circuit board 37 which is fastened in place by a set of screws 38 . the timing circuit board 37 is electrically connected to the circuit board 14 by a flexible cable 39 , and among other elements , it mounts a digital programmable timer 75 which is contained within a dual in line package . the circuit board 37 also supports a timing light 40 and a potentiometer 91 which extend upward therefrom and through openings in the top surface of the enclosure 4 . it also supports a four - pole switch receptacle 41 which is substantially rectangular in shape and which extends upward through a rectangular opening in the top surface of the enclosure 4 . the receptacle 41 is a series 300 data module commercially available from interswitch and when a shaped molded insert 42 is plugged into it , the four poles , or switches , contained therein are selectively operated . eight uniquely shaped inserts 42 are provided , and as will be described in more detail hereinafter , the insertion of any one of these inserts 42 will select a mode of timer operation and one of four time intervals . the relay may thus be easily &# 34 ; programmed &# 34 ; by the user . referring particularly to fig4 the elements of the electrical circuit which are disposed on the circuit boards 14 , 18 and 37 comprise the power supply 12 , an actuation and driver circuit 45 , a programmable timer circuit 46 , a driver circuit 47 and a light driver circuit 48 . substantially all the elements of the programmable timer 46 and light driver circuit 48 are mounted on the timer circuit board 37 , the elements of the actuation and driver circuit 45 and the driver circuit 47 are mounted on the circuit board 18 , and the elements of the power supply 12 are mounted on the circuit board 14 . the flexible cables 16 and 39 provide electrical connection between the circuit boards 14 , 18 and 37 . referring particularly to fig4 the power supply 12 includes the isolation transformer 13 which has a primary winding connected to a pair of 120 - volt a - c input terminals 50 and a secondary winding connected to the inputs of a full - wave bridge rectifier circuit 51 . a varistor 52 connects across the terminals 50 to provide added protection from line transients . one output terminal on the bridge rectifier circuit 51 connects to circuit ground and the other output thereof connects to a power supply terminal 53 . a filter capacitor 54 and a resistor 55 also connect to the rectifier circuit output , and the other lead on the resistor 55 connects to a regulated power supply terminal 56 . a zener diode 57 connects between the terminal 56 and circuit ground to clamp the voltage at 11 volts . the actuation and driver circuit 45 includes a full - wave bridge rectifier circuit 58 which has a pair of input terminals connected to the timed control terminals 21 and a pair of output terminals 59 and 60 . a varistor 61 connects across the timed control terminals 21 to provide added protection from high voltage line transients . the output terminal 59 on the bridge rectifier circuit 58 connects to one terminal on the instantaneous relay coil 19 and it connects through a coupling resistor 62 to the base of an npn drive transistor 63 . the collector on the transistor 63 connects to the other terminal on the instantaneous relay coil 19 and its emitter connects through a light emitting diode portion 64 of an optical isolator circuit 65 to the output terminal 60 on the bridge rectifier circuit 58 . a bias resistor 66 connects between the base and emitter of the transistor 63 and a dropout resistor 67 connects between the collector and emitter of the transistor 63 . a bleeder resistor 68 and filter capacitor 69 connect between the emitter of transistor 63 and the bridge rectifier output terminal 60 . the optical isolator 65 is a commercially available device such as jedec no . 4n35 manufactured by optron , inc ., and it includes a transistor portion 70 that has an emitter which connects to signal ground and a collector which connects through a load resistor 71 to power supply terminal 56 . the collector of transistor portion 70 serves as the circuit output terminal 72 . when a 120 - volt a - c signal is applied to the terminals 21 , the drive transistor 63 is turned on and current flows through the relay coil 19 to instantaneously energize it . a portion of the current conducted by the transistor 63 flows through the light emitting diode portion 64 of the optical isolator 65 and the transistor portion 70 therein is driven into saturation . the voltage at the circuit output terminal 72 is thus driven from a logic high voltage to a logic low voltage . when the 120 - volt a - c signal is removed from the terminals 21 , the d - c voltage generated across the bridge rectifier output terminals 59 and 60 drops to zero , causing the instantaneous relay coil 19 to become deenergized and the transistor 63 to become nonconductive . current also ceases to flow through the light emitting diode portion 64 of the optical isolator 65 and its transistor portion 70 becomes nonconductive . the voltage at the circuit output terminal 72 thus rises from a logic low voltage to a logic high voltage when the input signal is removed . for a more detailed description of the manner in which the drive transistor 63 and associated resistor 62 , 66 and 67 operate , reference is made to u . s . pat . no . 3 , 666 , 998 issued to wayne h . wielebski on may 30 , 1972 . the actuation and driver circuit 45 operates the programmable timer 46 which is comprised of the oscillator / timer 75 and supporting logic circuitry . the oscillator / timer 75 is a commercially available integrated circuit such as no . mc14541 manufactured by motorola semiconductor products , inc . and it has a reset terminal 76 which is coupled to the output terminal 72 on the actuation and driver circuit 45 through an exclusive or gate 77 . a noise filter capacitor 78 also connects to the exclusive or gate 77 , and a second input on the exclusive or gate 77 connects to a lead 74 . the lead 74 connects through a coupling resistor 79 to the power supply regulated output terminal 56 , and it connects to circuit ground through one pole 80 of the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the lead 74 also connects to one input on a nand gate 81 which drives a set terminal 82 on the oscillator / timer 75 , and a second input on the nand gate 81 is connected to the power supply output terminal 56 through a second coupling resistor 83 . an initial set capacitor 84 connects the second input on the nand gate 81 to circuit ground . the lead 74 also connects to one input of an output exclusive or gate 85 . a second input on the exclusive or gate 85 connects to an output terminal 86 on the oscillator / timer 75 and the output of gate 85 connects to the light driver circuit 48 through a lead 87 and couples to the driver circuit 47 through a resistor 88 . a noise filter capacitor 89 connects the output of the exclusive or gate 85 to circuit ground . the oscillator / timer 75 is comprised primarily of an inverter oscillator ( not shown in the drawings ) and a binary counter ( also not shown in the drawings ). the frequency at which the inverter oscillator is operated , and thus the rate at which the binary counter is incremented is determined by a timing resistor 90 , a potentiometer 91 and a timing capacitor 92 which connect to a set of three terminals 93 on the oscillator / timer 75 . in the preferred embodiment , an oscillator frequency of from 55 hertz to 6 . 5 kilohertz is selected by the potentiometer 91 and in combination with the inserts 42 provide a minimum selectable time interval of 0 . 1 seconds and a maximum selectable time interval of 120 seconds . the oscillator / timer 75 also includes a decoder circuit ( not shown in the drawings ) which has four inputs connected to selected stages on the binary counter and an output which is connected to the output terminal 86 of the oscillator / timer 75 . a pair of control terminals 94 and 95 control the interval decoder circuit to select one of the four counter stages as the output of the programmable timer . thus , by applying appropriate logic signals to the control terminals 94 and 95 , a time interval may be selected . the control terminal 94 connects to the logic high power supply terminal 56 through a third coupling resistor 96 and it connects to logic low circuit ground through a second pole 97 on the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the control terminal 95 similarly connects to the logic high power supply output terminal 56 through a fourth coupling resistor 98 and to circuit ground through a third pole 99 on the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the driver circuit 47 is controlled by the output exclusive or gate 85 in the programmable timer circuit 46 . it includes an npn power transistor 100 which has its base connected to the resistor 88 and its collector connected to one terminal on the timed relay coil 20 . a bias resistor 101 connects the base of transistor 100 to its emitter and the emitter connects to signal ground through a fourth pole 102 on the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the other terminal on the timed relay coil 20 connects to the unregulated power supply terminal 53 and a diode 103 and resistor 104 are connected in shunt with the coil 20 . when the switch pole 102 is closed , and the base of transistor 100 is driven to a logic high voltage level by the programmable timer circuit 46 , the transistor 100 is driven into saturation and current flows through the timed relay coil 20 to energize it . when the base of the transistor 100 is driven to a logic low voltage level by the programmable timer circuit 46 , the transistor 100 is turned off and the timed relay coil 20 is deenergized . the timed relay coil is thus controlled by the programmable timer circuit 46 . the light driver circuit 48 is also connected to the output of the exclusive or gate 85 through the lead 87 . the lead 87 couples through a first nand gate 105 , a second nand gate 106 and a resistor 107 to the base of an npn power transistor 108 . the collector of transistor 108 connects through a resistor 109 to the light emitting diode ( led ) timing light 40 which in turn connects to the unregulated power supply terminal 53 . the emitter of transistor 108 connects to its base through a bias resistor 110 and it connects to circuit ground through the fourth pole 102 on the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the timing light 40 is thus controlled in part by the logic state of the exclusive or gate 85 in the programmable timer circuit 46 . as indicated above , not only is the light 40 turned on when the timed relay coil 20 is energized and turned off when it is deenergized , but it is also rapidly turned on and off while the programmable timer circuit 46 is timing . to accomplish this blinking mode of operation , the light driver circuit 48 is also connected to the reset terminal 76 on the oscillator / timer 75 through a lead 111 and is connected to the oscillator / timer output 86 through a lead 112 . the lead 111 is connected through an inverter gate 113 to an input on a third nand gate 114 and to an input on a fourth nand gate 115 . the lead 112 is similarly connected through an inverter gate 116 to second inputs on the nand gates 114 and 115 . the output of the fourth nand gate 115 connects to a second input on the first nand gate 105 and the output of the third nand gate 114 connects to an inverter gate 117 and to a second input on the second nand gate 106 . the output of the inverter gate 117 is coupled through a capacitor 118 and resistor 119 to a third input on the third nand gate 114 and the capacitor 118 is coupled to the input of the inverter gate 117 through a resistor 120 . the nand gate 114 and inverter gate 117 form an inverter oscillator which generates a two - hertz square wave to the second nand gate 106 . the frequency of oscillation , or blinking , is determined by the values of the capacitor 118 and the respective resistor 120 and 119 . two modes of operation of the circuit in fig4 will now be described with reference to the graphs in fig5 a and b . these modes are selected by inserting a properly shaped molded insert 42 into the four - pole switch receptacle 41 . the insert 42 operates the first pole 80 and the fourth pole 102 to enable the circuit and select the mode and it operates the second and third poles 97 and 99 to select one of four time intervals . when no inserts 42 are in place , the fourth pole 102 opens to disable the driver circuit 47 and light driver circuit 48 . an on delay molded insert 42 closes the first pole 80 and the fourth pole 102 . referring particularly to fig4 and 5a , when a signal is applied to the timed control terminals 21 at time t1 as illustrated by graph 121 , a logic low voltage is generated at circuit output terminal 72 and applied to one input of the exclusive or gate 77 . the other input on the gate 77 is held at a logic low voltage by the pole 80 , and as a result , its output is driven to a logic low voltage which is applied to the reset terminal 76 on the oscillator / timer 75 . driving the reset terminal low sets the interval counter to zero and starts the timed interval . concurrently , the logic low at the output of exclusive or gate 77 is coupled through the lead 111 where it is inverted by the gate 113 and applied to the nand gate 114 in the light driver circuit 48 . as the oscillator / timer 75 is timing , its output 86 is at a logic low voltage . this is inverted by the gate 116 in the light driver circuit 48 and is applied to the nand gates 114 and 115 . as a result , the inverter oscillator comprised of nand gate 114 and inverter gate 117 generates an oscillating logic signal to one input of the nand gate 106 which is coupled through to the transistor 108 to blink the timing light 40 as illustrated by graph 122 . during the timed interval both inputs to the output exclusive or gate 85 are at a logic low voltage , and as a result , a logic low is generated at its output and coupled through the resistor 88 to the driver circuit 47 where it holds the transistor 100 in its nonconductive state . the timed relay coil 20 is thus maintained in its deenergized state as indicated by the graph 123 . when the oscillator / timer 75 &# 34 ; times out &# 34 ; it generates a logic high voltage at its output terminal 86 . this is applied through the lead 112 to the light driver circuit 48 to disable the inverter oscillator therein and it is applied to the exclusive or gate 85 to generate a logic high voltage at its output . the blinking of the light 40 is thus terminated and the logic high voltage generated on the lead 87 is coupled through nand gates 105 and 106 to energize the light 40 . the logic high voltage at the output of the exclusive or gate 85 is also coupled to the driver circuit 47 to turn on the transistor 100 . the timed relay coil 20 is thus energized when the timed interval terminates at time t2 , as indicated by the graph 123 . both the timing light 40 and the timed relay coil 20 are driven to their deenergized state when the 120 - volt a - c signal is removed from the timed control terminals 21 at a later time t3 . referring particularly to fig4 and 5b , when an off delay molded insert 42 is employed in the switch receptacle 41 , the first pole 80 is opened and the fourth pole 102 is closed . as a result , the lead 74 which connects to one input on each exclusive or gate 77 and 85 in the programmable timer circuit 46 is held at a logic high voltage by the resistor 79 . consequently , the oscillator / timer 75 is responsive to start the timed interval upon removal of the 120 - volt a - c signal from the timed control terminals 21 as will now be described . when the 120 - volt a - c signal is removed from the terminals 21 at time t1 as shown by graph 124 , a logic high voltage is generated at the actuator and driver circuit output 72 and a logic low voltage is consequently applied to the reset terminal 76 on the oscillator / timer 75 . the timed interval is thus initiated as shown by the graph 125 and the light driver circuit 48 begins to blink the timing light 40 as shown in graph 126 . during timing a logic high voltage is generated at the output of exclusive or gate 85 and this maintains the timed relay coil 20 in its energized state . when the oscillator / timer 75 times out at time t2 , its output terminal 86 is driven to a logic high voltage which is coupled through the lead 112 to terminate the blinking . the output of exclusive or gate 85 also is driven to a logic low voltage and this is coupled to the driver circuit 47 and the light driver circuit 48 to deenergize the timed relay coil 20 and the timing light 40 . when the 120 - volt a - c signal is again applied to the terminals 21 at a later time t3 , a logic low voltage is generated at the actuator and driver circuit output terminal 72 and the reset terminal 76 on the oscillator / timer 75 is thus driven to a logic high voltage in preparation for the initiation of the next timed interval . the nand gate 81 which connects to the set terminal 82 on the oscillator / timer 75 insures that timing is not initiated when the circuit is first turned on and the power supply voltages are rising to their proper operating values . the value of capacitor 84 is chosen to hold one input of the nand gate 81 low during turn on and to thus momentarily inhibit operation of the oscillator / timer 75 . although the preferred embodiment of the circuit described above includes a particular combination of integrated circuits and discrete components , it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the circuit can be constructed entirely from discrete components . in the alternative , many of the discrete components such as those in the light driver circuit 48 and the programmable timer circuit 46 may be incorporated into an integrated circuit along with the oscillator / timer 75 . these and other variations can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention , and reference is therefore made to the following claims for interpreting the breadth of the invention . | 7 |
the pumping head is defined by two portions 1 and 2 of a pump body and by a spacer 3 interposed therebetween . these items 1 , 2 , and 3 are axially clamped to one another , thereby clamping against a composite diaphragm 4 that is level with the annular spacer 3 , which diaphragm is described in greater detail below . the composite diaphragm constitutes the moving dividing wall between a working ( or pump ) chamber 5 and a hydraulic control chamber 6 . in conventional manner , the chamber 5 is connected to a suction duct 7 and to a delivery duct 8 via non - return valves 9 and 10 . the fluid contained in the chamber 5 is thus delivered to the duct 8 when the diaphragm 4 is displaced to the left in the figure . displacement to the right establishes suction of the fluid from the suction duct 7 via the valve 9 . the motion of the diaphragm 4 is driven by reciprocating displacement of a piston 11 in the hydraulic control chamber 6 . the control fluid when pushed to the left in the figure displaces the diaphragm 4 likewise to the left ( delivery ). in its reverse stroke , the piston 11 establishes suction that returns the diaphragm to the right . according to the invention , the composite diaphragm 4 comprises two metal outer diaphragms 12 and 13 , e . g . made of stainless steel . they are thin so as to have a degree of non - elastic deformability . they are made so that their areas are greater than the area of a disk having the same diameter . the peripheral zone of each of these diaphragms is clamped between the annular spacer 3 and a respective one of the portions 1 and 2 of the pump body . an intermediate diaphragm 14 is disposed between the two diaphragms 12 and 13 . the diaphragm 14 is thick and it is shaped , i . e . when at rest it takes up a cup or cone shape shown in fig1 with its concave face 14a facing the pumping chamber 5 . this diaphragm is elastically deformable , i . e . under the effect of pressure on its convex face it tends to flatten and even to flex the other way . when the pressure ceases to be applied , the diaphragm 14 returns elastically to its initial shape . the material of the diaphragm is a synthetic material having high compression strength ( about 500 kg / cm 2 without deforming ). examples of materials of this kind are substances known commercially under the names delrin ( polyacetate ) or arnite . the thick diaphragm 14 is received inside the annular spacer 3 and it has channels 15 shown in the figure that establish communication between the concave and convex faces 14a and 14b of the diaphragm 14 and a diaphragm breakage detection duct 16 which is known per se , which is formed radially through the spacer 3 , and which is fitted with a non - return valve 17 . the thick diaphragm has a stepped outside surface 18 which is complementary to a stepped inside surface 19 of the spacer 3 . the steps constitute a way of ensuring that the diaphragm 14 cannot be installed with its concave side facing the wrong way . a small amount of circumferential clearance exists between the spacer 3 and the diaphragm 4 . it will also be observed that the thickness e of the diaphragm 14 is slightly greater ( by a few hundredths of a millimeter ) than the thickness e of the spacer 3 . finally , the zone where the composite diaphragm is clamped between the two portions 1 and 2 of the pump body is of sufficient width l to ensure that the force clamping the two portions 1 and 2 against the spacer 3 via the metal diaphragms 12 and 13 as applied by assembly draw bars ( that are not shown and that are known per se ) is exerted uniformly through the diaphragms against the periphery of the thick diaphragm 14 . on assembly , the space lying between the diaphragms may be filled with a liquid ( a drop of oil suffices ) or else , if so required by the application , the space may be left untouched and the pump is operated with progressively increasing load which has the effect of expelling excess filler liquid or air from between the diaphragms via the valve 17 , with the liquid or the air being expelled via the clearances and the channels 15 between the diaphragms and the spacer 3 under the effect of the delivery pressure of the pump acting on either side of the composite diaphragm . as mentioned above , the shape and the elasticity of the thick diaphragm 14 provides assistance during suction , thereby significantly increasing the degree of suction provided by such a pump , which suction may be as great as a water column of 10 meters . in the event of a metal diaphragm breaking , liquid leaks out through the valve 17 during each delivery stroke and on being detected this can be used to trigger an alarm and / or to stop the pump . | 5 |
referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first , particularly , to fig1 thereof , there is shown a method according to the invention for producing three - dimensional sintered work pieces 1 , which in particular is a stereolithography method for use in an automated laser sintering unit . first , a sintering material is applied to a substrate in layers 8 from a storage device . the sintering material may be liquid , pasty , pulverulent or granular . then , the sintering material is heated by regional irradiation of defined individual sections 2 , in such a manner that the constituents of the sintering material , with complete or at least partial melting , are joined to one another as a function of irradiation regions to form the work piece 1 . as can be seen from the plan view of the work piece 1 shown in fig1 , the individual sections 2 which are irradiated successively in terms of time are at a distance from one another that is greater than or at least equal to a mean diameter of the individual sections 2 . the individual sections 2 are provided with numerals illustrating the order in which they are irradiated . the individual sections 2 are in this case irradiated successively in a stochastic distribution . as a result of the individual sections 2 being irradiated in the manner outlined , stresses that result from changes in the material are distributed uniformly over the work piece 1 and distortion of the work piece 1 is prevented . in particular , the individual sections 2 which are irradiated successively in terms of time are at a distance from one another that is such that the introduction of heat which occurs as a result of the irradiation takes place substantially uniformly into the layer 8 , 8 ′ which is to be sintered . in the enlarged excerpt of the work piece 1 illustrated in fig2 , the order of the irradiated individual sections 2 is once again provided with corresponding numerals . as is shown in step 5 or step 6 , edges of adjacent individual sections 2 , 2 ′ overlap one another . this results in the formation of a grid structure 3 which has an increased density compared to the inner regions of the individual sections 2 , 2 ′, since the edge regions 4 of the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ are melted more than once , with an increased introduction of energy . the grid structure 3 with its increased density can absorb forces which occur when the finished work piece 1 is in use , with the required ductility of the work piece 1 being achieved as a result of the lower density of the individual sections 2 , 2 ′. this makes it possible to produce the work piece 1 with a high hardness and tensile strength combined , at the same time , with a high ductility . it is then possible for the laser beam to pass around the edge regions 4 once again . as an alternative to the above - described production of the grid structure 3 , it is also possible for the grid structure 3 , the density of which differs from surface regions 5 located within the grid structure 3 , to be sintered into the layers of sintering material . the density of the grid structure 3 is in this case preferably higher than the density of the surface regions 5 located therein . to produce the grid structure 3 , it is possible for the laser beam to be moved over the entire work piece 1 in a manner corresponding to the grid structure 3 . it is then possible for the surface regions 5 located in between also to be melted , in particular in a stochastic distribution as outlined above . as a result , the surface regions 5 located in between also acquire the required strength and at the same time impart the required ductility to the work piece 1 . within the individual sections 2 , 2 ′, as shown in fig2 , irradiation in row or column form is carried out by irradiation lines 6 located next to one another . the adjacent individual sections 2 , 2 ′ ( in steps 5 and 6 ) have irradiation lines 6 located at right angles to one another , with the result that overall a uniform texture is formed over the entire work piece 1 if all the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ are irradiated with irradiation lines 6 which are offset with respect to one another , in particular are located at right angles to one another . moreover , this configuration of the irradiation lines further reduces stresses in the work piece 1 . as an alternative irradiation method , it is possible for the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ to be irradiated in punctiform fashion in their inner region 7 , so that both the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ and the work piece 1 as a whole are isotropic in structure . the edges or edge regions 4 of the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ in accordance with fig2 are additionally exposed to a peripheral irradiation following the irradiation of the section inner regions 7 , so that the desired grid structure 3 is clearly formed . this increased application of laser sintering energy leads to additional strengthening , which is of benefit to the ability of components of this type to mechanically withstand distortion and the like . in accordance with fig3 , the grid structure 3 is in an offset configuration within the work piece 1 . however , it is also possible for the grid structure 3 to be in an offset configuration in both directions ( see fig4 ), so that the stresses that may result from the grid structure 3 are compensated for still further . in this case , the individual sections 2 are also of different sizes , in order , for example , to satisfy different demands in the edge region or inner region of the sintered work piece 1 . it is also possible for the individual sections 2 of layers 8 , 8 ′ disposed above one another to be of different sizes and / or of different shapes and / or to have different orientations with respect to a longitudinal axis . the individual sections 2 , 2 ′ of layers 8 , 8 ′ disposed above one another are disposed offset with respect to one another in accordance with fig5 . the result is a high - strength , distortion - free structure . fig6 shows a different configuration of the grid structure 3 in the region of a work piece surface 9 compared to a work piece inner region 10 . the mean density in an edge region 11 approximately corresponds to the density of the grid structure in the work piece inner region 10 . an intermediate region 12 , which is located between the edge region and the inner region , has a mean density that is between the mean density of the edge region and of the inner region . moreover , the mean density of the overall edge region 11 is higher than in the work piece inner region 10 . the higher density in the edge region 11 leads to simpler re - machining of the outer surfaces , for example , by chip - forming or grinding machining . the higher density of the grid structure 3 in the edge region 11 also produces an increased strength of the highly loaded work piece surface and a ductility in the core region of the work piece 1 , so that the work piece 1 is protected , for example , from brittle fracture . this can be achieved using a laser focal spot of higher energy density . the higher density in the edge region 11 can be achieved by substantially complete melting of the sintering material . the higher density can also be sintered into the region of inner surfaces at work piece passages , screw threads or other formations , which can accordingly be re - machined without difficulty after sintering . moreover , this also results in that the inner surfaces , which are generally exposed to high levels of load , also have the required hardness . in this figure too , some individual sections 2 are provided , by way of example , with numerals that illustrate the order in which they are irradiated . the overlap between adjacent individual sections 2 , 2 ′ is approximately 0 . 03 - 0 . 5 mm . the overlap is preferably greatest in the edge region 11 of the work piece 1 and decreases across the intermediate region 12 to the inner region 10 . accordingly , the mean density is also highest in the edge region 11 . the edge region 11 of the work piece 1 may also be melted completely , with the result that just in the edge region 11 the grid structure 3 is no longer present . for this purpose , a laser focal spot of higher energy density is used in the edge region . to ensure a uniform introduction of energy , there are longer time periods between the irradiation of adjacent sintered sections in more extensively structured work piece regions than in sintered regions that are of a flatter configuration . the sintering materials used may be both metallic powders , pastes , liquids or granular material or plastics sintering material . | 1 |
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention , a coffee plant cell , and a coffee plant , respectively , may be obtained by reducing the endogenous level of α - d - galactosidase activity so that the galactose branching in the galacto - mannans is increased . the reduction of α - d - galactosidase activity may be achieved by conventional methods of mutation and selection using the techniques available in the art . thus , plant cells may be subjected to mutagenic treatments , such as by exposing them to chemicals or radiation that bring about an alteration of the cell &# 39 ; s dna . the cells thus treated are subsequently screened for the desired property . according to another preferred embodiment , such a reduced endogenous level of α - d - galactosidase activity is obtained by introducing a construct into a coffee plant cell , containing a nucleic acid that is transcribed into an antisense copy of the mrna encoded by the α - d - galactosidase gene , or to a part thereof . to this end , the antisense copy of the mrna encoded by the α - d - galactosidase gene may be any ribonucleic acid capable of forming dimers under physiological conditions , i . e ., to hybridize with the mrna encoded by the α - d - galactosidase gene under conditions prevailing in the cell . thus , the antisense copy does not need to be a 100 % homologue to the corresponding counterpart , but rather needs to provide sufficient binding for forming a dimer . consequently , antisense copies ( and the corresponding nucleic acids from which they are transcribed ), that are modified by substitution , deletion and / or insertion of nucleotides are well within the context of the present invention . in this respect , it will also be appreciated that the antisense copy may represent a full counterpart to the mrna encoded by the α - d - galactosidase gene , that is , it may provide a rna molecule having essentially the same length as the mrna encoding the α - d - galactosidase polypeptide . on the other hand the antisense copy may only cover a part of the mrna encoding the α - d - galactosidase polypeptide . the nucleic acid encoding a ribonucleic acid , antisense to the mrna encoded by the α - d - galactosidase gene , or to a part thereof , may be under the control of a constitutive or an inducible promoter , so that the level of the antisense rna may be conveniently controlled . however , in all cases the level of the antisense copy should be sufficiently high so as to reduce the number of mrna copies encoding the α - d - galactosidase polypeptide accessible for the ribosomes . according to a preferred embodiment the promoter utilized is the coffee csp1 promoter , which gives a sufficiently high transcription rate . the present invention therefore provides for a modified coffee plant cell and a coffee plant , respectively , wherein the level of α - d - galactosidase activity has been reduced such that eventually the galactose branching on galacto - mannans is increased . according to a preferred embodiment the plant is a transgenic plant , the cells of which harbor a construct capable to provide an antisense copy of the mrna derived from the α - d - galactosidase gene or a part thereof . the present invention also provides a method for preparing soluble coffee , which comprises the step of using coffee beans derived from a plant exhibiting a reduced α - d - galactosidase activity . in this respect the present invention also provides a method for increasing the solubility of coffee by increasing the galactose branching . this invention aims to increase in the solubility of coffee galacto - mannans by increasing their galactose branching . the strategy adopted is to reduce the endogenous level of α - d - galactosidase activity , preferably by introducing an antisense copy of its cdna under the control of the coffee csp1 promoter . this csp1 promoter has already been characterized ( marraccini et al ., plant physiol . biochem . 37 ( 1999 ), 273 – 282 ) and controls the expression a gene encoding coffee 11s storage protein . a cassette containing said promoter was constructed and introduced into the t - dna region of a binary vector of transformation , which derives from the ptit37 plasmid ( bevan , nucl . acids res . 12 ( 1984 ), 8711 – 8721 ). this recombinant vector was introduced in agrobacterium tumefaciens , which was used to transform coffee explants . coffee plants harboring the t - dna inserted in their genome were regenerated and analyzed for the α - d - galactosidase activity in their grains . i . analysis of the α - d - galactosidase activity in coffee grains during maturation fruits were harvested at different stage of maturation ( age is expressed as weeks after flowering : waf ) from coffea arabica variety caturra t2308 grown in greenhouse ( temperature of approximately 25 ° c ., 70 % humidity and natural lighting ). cherries were frozen in liquid nitrogen subsequent to harvesting and stored at − 85 ° c . until use . for maturation studies , endosperm and perisperm tissues were separated . plant material was ground in liquid nitrogen and extracted in ice cold enzyme extraction buffer ( glycerol 10 % v / v , sodium metabisulfite 10 mm , edta 5 mm , mops ( naoh ) 40 mm , ph 6 . 5 ) at an approximate ratio of 20 mg per 100 μl . the mixture was stirred on ice for 20 min , subjected to centrifugation ( 12 , 000 g × 30 min ), aliquoted and stored at − 85 ° c . until use . α - d - galactosidase activity was detected spectrophotometrically with the substrate p - nitrophenyl - α - d - galactopyranoside ( pngp ). the reaction mixture contained 200 μl pngp 100 mm in mcllvain &# 39 ; s buffer ( citric acid 100 mm — na 2 hpo 4 200 mm ph 6 . 5 ) up to final volume of 1 ml with enzyme extract . the reaction was maintained at 26 ° c . and started with the addition of enzyme and was stopped by addition of 4 volumes of stop solution ( na 2 co 3 — nahco 3 100 mm ph 10 . 2 ). absorption is read at 405 nm . evolution of nitrophenyl is calculated using molar extinction coefficient ε = 18300 ( specific for ph 10 . 2 ) and converted to mmol min − 1 mg protein − 1 . total protein was measured in samples extracted in aqueous buffers by the method of bradford ( anal . biochem ., 72 ( 1976 ), 248 – 254 ). for the expression of activity , each sample was extracted and aliquoted , and assays were performed in triplicate , the results being expressed as averages . α - d - galactosidase activity is extremely low or undetected in the young grain stages , and reaches a peak that coincides with a reddening of color of the pericarp . in later stages the activity declines while the cherries are still red . activities are also compared in different tissues of coffee plant . the activity in perisperm , roots and leaves is particularly low , and close to the limits of detection . however , high activities are recorded in the endosperm where the activity reaches a peak at approximately 36 waf but also in germinating grain following imbibition of water . though several coffee α - d - galactosidase cdna sequences are available in the literature the origin of the coffee material is not indicated . in order see if amino acid and nucleic sequence differences are observed between c . arabica and c . canephora , it was decided to clone α - d - galactosidase cdnas from both species . a cdna library from coffea arabica var . caturra t2308 was constructed with polya + mrna extracted at 30 weeks after flowering according to rogers et al . ( plant physiol . biochem ., 37 ( 1999 ), 261 – 272 ). this plasmid cdna library ( 10 ng ) was tested by pcr using the primers beta1 ( seq id no : 3 ) and beta3 ( seq id no : 4 ) directly deduced from the coffee α - d - galactosidase cdna sequence ( zhu and goldstein , 1994 ). the beta1 primer is located between the nucleotides 177 and 193 in the sequence seq id no : 1 . the beta3 primer is located between the nucleotides 1297 and 1313 in the sequence seq id no : 1 . the pcr reaction was performed with pfu dna polymerase ( stratagene , 11011 north torrey pines road , la jolla , calif . 92037 , usa ) in appropriate 1 × buffer , 0 . 2 mm of each dntp and 0 . 25 μm of each oligonucleotides . denaturation , annealing and extension temperatures are 94 ° c . for 30s , 46 ° c . for 30s and 72 ° c . for 3 min , respectively . this cycle was repeated 30 times in robocycler statagene ( usa ). pcr products were purified with a microcon 100 ( millipore sa , bp307 saint quentin yvelines cedex 78054 , france ) cartridge and ligated in the pcr - script sk (+) as described by stratagene ( usa ). the ligation mixture was then used to transform e . coli strain xl1 - blue mrf ′ and a recombinant vector containing the α - d - galactosidase fragment was purified and cloned into the sfri site of the pcr - script sk amp (+). its sequence is located between the positions 177 and 1313 of the sequence seq id no : 1 . according to literature , the 5 ′ end of the α - d - galactosidase cdna contains 198 bp upstream the 5 ′ end of the beta 1 primer . in order to clone this sequence from our genotype , we perform an additional pcr , as described previously , with the primers beta100 ( seq id no : 5 ) and beta101 ( seq id no : 6 ). this c . arabica sequence was cloned into the pcr script amp sk (+) vector to give the plp1 , and corresponds to seq id no : 1 . the cdna obtained contains an open reading frame of 1263 bp , beginning in position 51 and ending in position 1313 of the sequence seq id no : 1 . the translation product corresponds to sequence seq id no : 2 suggesting that the coffee α - d - galactosidase is synthesized as a preproenzyme , using the translational start codon atg in position 51 instead of the atg in position 126 . on the other hand , the analysis of the α - d - galactosidase cdna cloned from c . canephora showed that its translation product is very homologous ( similarity & gt ; 99 %) to the protein found in c . arabica . the expression of the gene encoding the α - galactosidase in coffee beans of c . arabica caturra harvested at various stages of development , i . e ., 9 , 12 , 16 , 30 and 35 weeks after flowering ( waf ) was monitored . to do this , 10 μg of total rnas of these coffee beans were denatured for 15 min at 65 ° c . in 1 × mops buffer ( 20 mm mops , 5 mm sodium acetate , 1 mm edta , ph 7 ) in the presence of formamide ( 50 %) and formaldehyde ( 0 . 66 m final ). they were then separated by electrophoresis , for 6 hrs at 2 . 5 v / cm , in the presence of 1 × mops buffer , on a 1 . 2 -% agarose gel containing 2 . 2 m formaldehyde as final concentration . after migration , the rnas were stained with ethidium bromide ( bet ) according to sambrook et al . ( molecular cloning , a laboratory manual , cold spring harbor laboratory press , usa , 1989 , chapter 9 . 31 to 9 . 51 ). this makes it possible to standardize the quantities deposited on a gel from the intensities of fluorescence of the 18s and 25s ribosomal rnas . the total rnas were then transferred and fixed on a positively charged nylon membrane according to the recommendations provided by boehringer mannheim ( roche - boehringer mannheim gmbh , biochemica , postfach 310120 , mannheim 31 , de ). the pre - hybridization and hybridization were carried out according to the conditions described above . results from northern - blotting demonstrated a peak of gene expression during the early phase of endosperm development . the peak of specific mrna expression under greenhouse conditions occurred at approximately 26 waf , and corresponds to the start of increase in enzyme activity . the peak period of mrna expression corresponds to the major period of endosperm expansion and hardening taking place in the maturing grains under these conditions . peak expression for α - galactosidase - specific mrna either coincided or was slightly later than peak expression of the 11s grain storage protein mrna . these results led to the construction of an antisense cassette of the coffee cdna encoding for the α - galactosidase , under the control of the 11s - coffee promoter , in order to reduce the level of α - galactosidase activity in coffee grains under maturation . the 11s promoter sequence ( marraccini et al ., plant physiol . biochem . 37 ( 1999 ), 273 – 282 ) from coffee is amplified with the specific primers up210 - 1 corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 7 , and bagus2 , corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 8 . the oligonucleotide up210 - 1 corresponds to the sequence between the nucleotides 24 and 76 published by marraccini et al ., supra and contains within its 5 ′ end the synthetic sequence cggggtaccccg containing a kpni restriction site and corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 9 . the bagus2 primer contains in its 5 ′ end the synthetic sequence cgcggatccgcg corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 10 which carries a bamhi restriction site . this primer also contains the nucleotides 998 to 976 of the sequence published by marraccini et al . ( 1999 ). this reaction is carried out in the presence of pfu dna polymerase ( 3 units ), with 10 ng of pcspp4 ( wo 99 / 02688 ), in a final volume of 50 μl containing 10 mm kcl , 6 mm ( nh 4 ) 2 so 4 , 20 mm tris - hcl , ph 8 . 0 , 0 . 1 % triton x - 100 , 2 mm mgcl 2 , 10 μg / ml bsa , 0 . 2 mm of each dntp , 0 . 25 μm of each oligonucleotides described above . the reaction mixture was then incubated for 30 cycles ( 94 ° c .- 60 s , 55 ° c .- 60s , 72 ° c .- 3 min ) followed by a final extension cycle at 72 ° c . for 7 min . the pcr fragment of about 950 bp was purified on a microcon 100 cartridge ( millipore , france ), and ligated in the pcr - script amp sk (+) vector in the presence of t4 dna ligase ( promega corporation , 2800 woods hollow road , madison , wis . 53711 usa ), according to the recommendations provided by the supplier . next , the e . coli strain xl1 - blue mrf ′ was transformed with the entire ligation mixture . one transformant was selected and its plasmid was purified to sequence the insert in order to determine the orientation of the pcr fragment . this analysis thus made it possible to select the plasmid plp7 . a shorter version of the 11s promoter was also amplified by the same approach except that the primer up213 - 1 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 11 replaces the primer up210 - 1 . this primer corresponds to the sequence between the nucleotides 754 and 777 published by marraccini et al ., supra , and contains in its 5 ′ end the synthetic sequence seq id no : 9 . this led to the amplification of a 250 bp fragment of the p11s coffee promoter which was cloned as described previously to give the plasmid plp8 . the tnos terminator is amplified following the protocol described for the amplification of the p11s promoter excepted that the primers tnos1 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 12 and tnos2 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 13 were used . tnos1 contains the sequence seq id no : 10 in its 5 ′ end . tnos2 contains the sequence seq id no : 9 in its 5 ′ end sequence . these primers led to the amplification of the tnos sequence from the p35sgfp commercial vector ( clontech laboratories inc ., 1020 east meadow circle , palo alto , calif . 94303 – 4230 usa ). the pcr product was cloned in the pcr - script amp sk (+) vector as described before , leading to the recombinant vector called plp32 and was sequenced to determine its orientation . this vector was then digested by bamhi to remove the tnos sequence that was treated afterwards by the t4 dna polymerase to provide blunt ends . in the other hand , the plp7 and plp8 vectors were linearized by ecori and also treated with t4 dna polymerase to provide blunt ends . the tnos terminator was then cloned in the correct orientation in the plp7 and plp8 vectors leading to the vectors p11stnos7 and p11stnos7 +, respectively . the α - galactosidase cdna was amplified from the previously isolated vector plp1 , using the conditions described above except that the primers beta100b1 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 14 and beta101b1 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 15 were used . these oligonucleotides correspond to the previously used beta101 and beta100 primers in which a bamhi restriction site , corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 10 , has been introduced in their 5 ′ ends . the pcr product was cloned into the pcr - script amp sk (+) vector as described before , leading to the recombinant vector called plp20 . this plasmid was digested with bamhi to release the α - galactosidase cdna . on the other side , recipient vectors p11stnos7 and p11stnos7 + were digested independently by means of the same restriction enzyme and dephosphorylated by a ciap treatment according to the furnisher ( promega , usa ). the α - galactosidase cdna was cloned in the antisense orientation , respectively in the p11stnos7 and p11stnos7 + vectors , leading to the vectors designated palpha1 and palpha9 . to mobilize these cassettes into the binary vector used during the transformation of coffee cell suspension , a final pcr reaction with the pfu dna polymerase was carried out using the primers upsal1 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 16 and upsal2 , having the nucleic sequence seq id no : 17 . both oligonucleotides contain a sali restriction site and recognize dna sequences of the pcr script amp sk (+) vector flanking the 11s promoter and the nos terminator ( tnos ) dna regions . in addition this restriction site is absent from the sequence which was intended to be introduced into the t - dna of the binary plasmid . these pcr products were cloned again into the pcr - script amp sk (+) vector , which was digested with sali to verify that this restriction site flanks the cassettes . plasmids obtained were called palp414 and palp50 , and derive respectively from palpha1 and palpha9 . v . cloning of the α - galactosidase antisense cassette in the binary vector of transformation the α - galactosidase cassettes contained in the vectors palp414 and palp50 were sequenced to verify their integrity , particularly to confirm that no point mutations or rearrangements have occurred during the pcr amplification cycles . these cassettes were then purified by digestion of the palp414 and palp50 vectors with the sali restriction enzyme and cloned independently into the pbin19 derivative plasmid related to the vector described by leroy et al . ( plant cell rep . 19 ( 1999 ), 382 – 389 ), except that the gene crylac was absent . in order to do this , the vector was digested with the sali restriction enzyme , which recognizes a unique site between the uida and csr1 - 1 genes , and was dephosphorylated . after this ligation , the vectors pbia121 , pbia126 and pbia9 were selected . in the pbia121 vector , the sali cassette obtained from palp414 is cloned in the orientation [ lb ] gus - intron & gt ; p11s ( long ) antisense α - galactosidase cdna & gt ; csr1 - 1 [ rb ]. however , the same cassette is cloned in the reverse orientation in the pbia126 vector . in the other hand , the sali cassette obtained from palp50 cloned in the pbia9 vector is in the following orientation : [ lb ] gus - intron & gt ; p11s ( short ) antisense α - galactosidase cdna & gt ; csr1 - 1 [ rb ]. the binary vectors of transformation pbia121 , pbia126 and pbia9 described above were introduced independently into the disarmed agrobacterium tumefaciens strain lba4404 according to the direct transformation method described by an et al . ( plant mol . biol . manuel , gelvin , schilperoort and verma eds , kluwer academic publishers dordrecht , netherlands , a3 ( 1993 ), 1 – 19 ). for each transformation , the recombinant agrobacterium tumefaciens clones were selected on lb medium supplemented with kanamycin ( 50 μg / ml ), stretomycin ( 100 μg / ml ) and rifampicin ( 50 μg / ml ). in order to check the structure of the plasmids introduced into agrobacterium tumefaciens , they were extracted by the rapid mini - preparation technique and were then analyzed by restriction mapping after reverse transformation in e . coli strain xl2 blue mrf ′. leaf explants were cultured and subcultured every five weeks for 3 to 5 months until somatic embryos appeared at the edge o the explants . somatic embryos were harvested at the torpedo stage , wounded with a sterile scalpel and soaked for two hours in a 0 . 9 % nacl solution containing recombinant agrobacterium tumefaciens strain lba4404 at a od 600nm of 0 . 3 to 0 . 5 . the co - culture was performed in the dark on semi - solid ms medium without hormones during three days and then washed in liquid ms medium containing cefotaxim ( 1gr / 1 ) for 3 to 5 hours under constant but gentle agitation . embryos were cultivated on semi - solid medium with 5 μm of bap , 90 μm sucrose in presence of cefotaxim ( 400 mg / l ) under low - light condition ( 16 hrs photoperiod per day ). after a period of 3 to 4 weeks , they were transferred to a selective ms medium supplemented with cefotaxim ( 400 mg / l ) and chlorsulfuron ( 80 mg / l ). they were then transferred every month to a new selective medium until the regeneration of calli . transformed embryos growing around the calli were then cultured on the semi - solid ms medium with morel vitamins ( 1 μm bap and 30 μm sucrose ) to induce their germination . after this step , they were transferred on the rooting medium corresponding to the medium described before but without bap . to check the effectiveness of the transformation , calli , shoots , roots and leaves were regularly tested for the expression of the uida reporter by a gus histochemical assay ( jefferson et al ., j . embo 6 ( 1987 ), 3901 – 3907 ). after this procedure , several individual plants were selected and propagated in vitro by micro cuttings . some of them were transferred in greenhouse to achieve their development . no morphological anomalies were observed . somatic embryos were also induced from leaf explants to detect the presence of α - galactosidase antisense mrna . 11s coffee storage proteins were detected in somatic embryos ( yuffa et al ., plant cell rep . 13 ( 1994 ) 197 – 202 ), suggesting that the csp1 promoter is active in this tissue . if this is the case , analysis of somatic embryos induced from leaves of young transgenic coffee plants should permit to detect the presence of the α - galactosidase antisense mrna earlier than in beans . total rnas were then extracted from 100 mg of transformed somatic embryos as described previously and tested by rt - pcr using the kit access rt - pcr system ( promega , usa ). firstly the presence of 11s specific mrna was confirmed by performing a rt - pcr using the primers located in the coding sequence of the 11s cdna . this was performed using the primers so11 corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 18 and so 2 - 1 corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 19 . the so11 primer corresponds to the sequence between the nucleotides 1035 and 1059 of the sequence published by marraccini et al ., supra . on the other hand , the so2 - 1 primer corresponds to the last 24 nucleotides of the sequence published . the synthesis of the first strand of the cdna ( step of reverse transcription ) was performed as described by the furnisher ( 45 min ., 48 ° c .). the following parameters were used for the pcr reaction : 45 cycles ( 60 sec . at 94 ° c . for the denaturation step , 90 sec at 52 ° c . for the annealing step , 4 min at 68 ° c . for the elongation step ) with a final extension at 68 ° c . for 7 min . from this experiment a pcr product of 1590 bp corresponding to the 11s cdna sequence flanked by the primers so11 and so2 - 1 was obtained . the result confirmed that 11s mrna were absent from all the tissue tested , i . e . roots , leaves , flowers but were effectively present in somatic embryos of coffea canephora as well as in beans at 27 waf . secondly , the presence of the α - galactosidase sense mrna was tested by performing a rt - pcr reaction using only the primer b33 , corresponding to the sequence seq id no : 21 during the phase of reverse transcription ( condition 1 ). this primer corresponds to the complementary sequence of the nucleotides 1286 to 1314 of the sequence seq id no : 1 . in parallel , the detection of the α - galactosidase antisense mrna was performed using only the primer b11 during the phase of reverse transcription ( condition 2 ). this primer corresponds to the sequence between the nucleotides 50 and 78 of the sequence seq id no : 1 . after this reverse transcription ( 45 min ., 48 ° c . ), the reaction mixture was treated at 94 ° c . during 1 min to inactivate the mmlv reverse transcriptase . the missing oligonucleotide , b11 in the condition 1 and b33 in condition 2 , was added and the reaction was continued by a pcr : 45 cycles ( 60 sec . at 94 ° c . for the denaturation step , 90 sec at 45 ° c . for the annealing step , 4 min at 68 ° c . for the elongation step ) with a final extension at 68 ° c . for 7 min . using somatic cells from non transformed c . arabica , an amplification product of 1310 bp was observed for the condition 1 but not for the condition 2 experiment . however , for somatic embryos obtained from a coffee plantlet transformed by the pbia9 vector , it was possible to detect an amplification product during the experimental condition 2 , confirming the presence of the α - galactosidase anti sense mrna . | 2 |
the fluid flow engine indicated here as a compressor according to fig1 is comprised of a stator 3 and a rotor . the rotor , i . e . the shaft , in this fig . consists of two shaft parts 1 , 2 , which are connected to each other by means of welds . the weld 4 extends circumferentially only over a fraction of the face end for weld engineering reasons . the shaft ends of the shaft parts 1 , 2 have rotationally symmetrical recesses , which after welding form a rotationally symmetrical cavity 10 . on the flow side and downstream of the cavity 10 , in the circumferential direction , a ring of stationary blades 5 are disposed between stator 3 and shaft 1 , 2 , which channel the flow of working gas 13 to the turbine blades 9 that follow . the stationary blades 5 are each provided with a cover plate , which is let into the shaft . furthermore , the stationary blades 5 are provided with a continuous conduit 7 that is continued in the shaft part 2 ; a labyrinth seal 8 is provided at this transition . this continuation conduit 11 extends in the axial direction and extends a predominant portion of the entire length of the corresponding shaft part 2 of the fluid flow engine . at the very least it extends into the region of the cavity that follows , which is not shown . in the radial direction , the continuation conduit 11 is attached roughly in the middle of the radius of the respective shaft part 2 , as measured from the axis 14 . in principle , the radial partitioning must be carried out so that the entire shaft is subjected to an even temperature influence . thus it can be postulated that the axial course of the continuation conduits 11 must be provided closer to the hotter surface of the shaft . depending on the temperature conditioning of the shaft parts 1 , 2 in comparison to the stator 3 , a conditioning medium , preferably a conditioning gas 6 , flows at an appropriate temperature via the conduit 7 of the stationary blade 5 into the continuation conduit 11 . after flowing axially through it , this gas 12 , which is employed to promote cooling or heating , is discharged at suitable positions into the flow of the working gas 13 of the corresponding fluid flow engine . in principle , the described temperature conditioning of the shaft in comparison to the stator in the different operational states is also good to a greater degree for the shaft parts in the region of the turbine . if one is using a single - shaft machine , particular attention must be paid to the temperature conditioning in the region of the shaft part on the turbine end compared to the colder shaft part on the compressor end . in this temperature conditioning of the individual shaft parts , it should moreover be taken into account that with a welded shaft , the radiation - dictated heat transfer in the cavity 10 makes up about 5 % of the metallic thermal efficiency . for the most part , the temperature conditioning of the shaft must be designed for cooling , with the aim of more rapidly achieving the cooling of the shaft , for the reasons mentioned . fig2 shows a section through the shaft part 2 . in it , the continuation conduits 11 are shown , which being spaced apart from each other make possible uniform temperature conditioning of the shaft . it must be taken into account that the spacing of the continuation conduits 11 from one another , because of the different force influences upon the shaft , may not be chosen as overly small , in order to not weaken this shaft ; in other words , under some circumstances , not every stationary blade 5 has a conduit 6 , and this also depends upon which media circuit or loop the continuation conduits 11 are disposed in . for manufacturing engineering reasons , the course of the individual continuation conduits 11 is laid out individually ; for example in sintered shaft parts , a system of communicating conduits having a reduction of the inlet and outlet openings for the gas employed can easily be used . see fig3 for this aspect . fig3 shows a further fluid flow engine or machine , which is represented as a turbine . the problems involved in adapting or equalizing the characteristic curve of the temperature course between stator and rotor , however , are the same . compared to fig1 fig3 shows that the supply of the conditioning gas 6 in comparison to the hot gas 22 can be disposed in both directions . to this end , on the end of the shaft part 2 , a stationary blade configuration 17 is also provided which is likewise provided with a through flow conduit 18 . this kind of operating mode calls for a controllable valve 19 , 20 for each of the two through flow conduits 7 , 18 . for easier comprehension , the turbine is shown with two turbine blades 21 and a single stationary flow blade 16 connected between them . in comparison to fig1 the continuation conduits 15 in the shaft parts 1 , 2 are no longer laid out strictly axially , rather they describe an undulating course , which has the advantage of more integrally engaging the entire material thickness of the shaft . these continuation conduits 15 feed into the cavity 10 and flow onward from there , and as a result they are thermally influenced there as well . | 5 |
shown in fig1 is the principal physical manifestation of an optical archival storage system constructed in accordance with the present invention . the archival storage system of fig1 includes a large number of two - sided optical disks 12 which are housed in a large cabinet 14 . the disks 12 are each two - sided one gigabyte optical disk cartridges . the cabinet 14 includes a plurality of vertical rows of racks which are vertically arranged to receive a number of the optical disk cartridges 12 . a number of read / write units 16 are located in the middle of the rack 14 . the read / write units are capable of writing one time into each location in each optical disk carried in each optical disk cartridge and then reading many times from the same location . a robot , generally indicated at 18 is provided to retrieve a particular optical disk cartridge 12 and to transport it and insert it into an appropriate one of the four read and write units 16 . the control of the entire unit as illustrated in fig1 including both the indexing for the location and file structure in each of the optical disk cartridges , the date of transfer to and from each of the read / write units 16 , and the operation of the robot 18 , is all under the control of a separate digital computer , in this case a vax 11 / 750 , not shown in fig1 . the controlling digital computer has the responsibility of selecting an appropriate optical disk cartridge 12 for transportation by the robot 18 into an unused one of the read / write units 16 . the controlling computer therefore must have a directory of the files on each of the optical disks and be able to properly select disk cartridges for transport to and from the read / write unit 16 . it is also advantageous for the computer to have information about the files contained in each individual disk on an on - line basis so that indexing and searches for particular files can be conducted without the necessity for transporting each disk cartridge individually to the read / write units to find the contents thereof . a related objective is that the access to files in each of the optical disks must be convenient to the users , and in particular to casual users , so that extensive training or instruction is not required for users to make access of the optical archive storage . these objectives are implemented in the optical archive store in accordance with the present invention through the use of a &# 34 ; token &# 34 ; file contained in the magnetic memory of the controlling computer . the attributes of the token file itself are determined by the operating system of the operating computer . in the case of a vax computer as used within the embodiment of the present invention described here , the vax computer utilizes an operating system known as vms , for virtual memory system , which implements a standard file system known as rms . each of the token files on the magnetic memory of the vax system would therefore be stored as an rms file and have associated with it all of the normal overhead components for any other rms file under the operating system of the vax computer . within the token file itself , there may be placed additional information specific to the data requirements of handling the optical disks in the optical archival store . together , the relevant attributes of the controlling computer operating system and the additional data contained within the token file provide all of the information reasonably necessary to the users to learn about , search , and determine ownership and access rights to any given file contained on an optical disk which is not on line at a given instant . in this way , swift and efficient maintenance of information about files is maintained at all times . in addition , since many attributes of the token file are maintained in the context of the environment of the operating system of the controlling computer , many casual users who simply have a knowledge about the operating system of such a computer will be able to use the optical archive storage without the need for great additional knowledge or information . therefore , the purpose of the token data base system is to provide an index to all of the files located on the optical archive system . the index is intended to provide the following capabilities : the index should provide fast lookup of a file when the name of the file or other primary key information is known . the index should provide search capability when the name of the file is not known . the optical archive system is an archival system , therefore it is expected that many years may elapse between the time a file is written and the time it is again needed . a user may be able to remember only bits and pieces of the information needed to retrieve the file . the index should provide security services , so that only authorized persons will have access to the index information or to the data . the index should provide facilities for auditing the number of files and size of each file stored , so that storage costs can be billed to the owner . within each optical disk of the optical archive system there is an index log . the index log serves the purpose of an index file on a conventional magnetic disk except that it is constructed as a log since erasures cannot be made to it . thus , for example , file headers cannot be erased from the log but newer versions can be written thereon superseding older versions . a sequence number field in the index log indicates the most recent version of the file header . the file header format on the optical disk itself contains information about the actual files contained on that disk and contains all the appropriate information for the files which are there . this information is contained in the large index file which includes such information as the serial numbers , the logical names , the physical locations , and individual attributes ( access , owner , etc .) of all of the files on the disk . it is a block of this information that is written into the token file located in the magnetic storage of the controlling computer . the token data base consists of a single small rms file stored on magnetic disk for each individual file stored on optical disk . the rms file on magnetic disk is a &# 34 ; token &# 34 ; that points to the corresponding optical file written on optical disk . the token file creates an illusion that the optical file resides on magnetic disk rather than optical disk . a subset of the rms attributes of the token file are interpreted by the optical archive storage system to be the attributes of the corresponding optical file . additional information abort the optical file is contained as data within the token file . the optical disks of the optical archive storage system are grouped into logical volumes . each volume consists of one or more optical disks . for this purpose each side of a double - sided cartridge is considered a separate optical disk , but both sides are generally placed within the same volume . there can be an arbitrary number of optical disks in any given volume . under each volume , the files stored on the oas system are arranged in directories and subdirectories up to seven levels deep . the complete token file specification consists of &# 34 ; store :: volume :[ directory ] name . ext ; version &# 34 ; where store is the name of the optical archive storage system ( if multiple systems exist on the same network ,) volume is the name of the logical volume , and the remainder is equivalent to an ordinary rms file specification . the entire token file specification uniquely identifies a token file . from the point of view of the rms operating system , a token file is in all respects an ordinary rms sequential text file , usually less than 512 bytes in length . in this way the optical archive system can make use of all standard rms facilities for manipulating the token files . this greatly reduces the amount of programming needed to create an on - line data base with equivalent capability , because the system utilizes the effort that has already been placed into the rms file system and the rms operating system . for example , the rms directory command can be used to display directory information about the token files , and the rms file ownership and protection facilities can be used to enforce file ownership and protection . the attributes of an rms file under the rms operating system that are relevant to the optical archive storage system are : file specification , of the form &# 34 ; store :: volume :[ directory ] name . ext ; version &# 34 ;, which is the name of the file . this is an ordinary rms file specification . the name of the token file is interpreted by the optical archive storage system as the name of the file on optical disk . this is the primary key into the token data base . creation date , of the form &# 34 ; dd - mmm - yyyy hh : mm : ss . cc &# 34 ;, which is the date on which the file was created . the creation date of the token file is interpreted by the system as the date the optical file was created on optical disk . modification date , of the form &# 34 ; dd - mmm - yyyy hh : mm : ss . cc &# 34 ;, which is the date on which the attributes of the file were last changed . the modification date of the token file is interpreted by the system as the modification date of the optical file on optical disk . file protection , of the form &# 34 ;( system , owner , group , world )&# 34 ;, which is the user identification code based protection mask of the file . this is an ordinary rms file protection . it is interpreted as the protection of the file on optical disk for purpose of determining access rights to the optical file . user identification code , of the form [ group , id ] that identifies the owner of the file . this is an ordinary rms user identification code . it is interpreted as the ownership of the file on optical disk for the purpose of determining access rights , and for allocating storage charges to a particular user of the oas system . optical disk serial number , is the serial number of the optical disk on which the file is located . this uniquely identifies the optical disk and serves as the key for discovering any other attributes of the optical disk which are needed in order to process a file request . it also identifies which optical disk of a volume the file is actually written on . optical file id , is the file id number of the file on the optical disk . each file on an optical disk has a unique optical file id . the serial number and the optical file id can be used in combination as a key to find information on the optical file that is cached on magnetic disk . information on the most frequently used optical disks is cached on magnetic disk in order to speed up the process of mounting an optical disk in a read / write unit . optical file id address , is the logical address on the optical disk where the optical file header of the optical file is located . the optical file header contains all information about the optical file . the optical file id address is used to speed the process of looking up optical file information when the file is to be modified or restored to magnetic disk . size , is the size of the file on optical disk in units of 512 byte blocks . this information is of interest to the owner of the file , and is also used in charging for the storage costs of the optical file . original file specification , of the form &# 34 ; node :: device :[ directory ] name . ext ; version &# 34 ;, is the original file specification of the magnetic disk file that was copied to optical disk to create the optical file . this is maintained on - line in order to assist the user in finding a file based upon components of the original name . description , is a textual description of the optical file . it is maintained on - line in order to assist the user in finding a file based upon key words within the description . the description is optional , but it is preferred that all users of the optical archive storage system include a description with each file . thus the actual data portion of the token file will consistently be rather modest in length . because a large portion of the attributes of the optical archive file which are necessary to be stored is stored as part of the overhead of the rms operating system , the data portion of the rms file needs contain only the relatively modest amount of information referred to above which is additive to the other overhead rms information . illustrated just below is an example of the data portion of a sample token file . b14024 fid = 00000403 , fid addr = 000f560f 0000000504 blocks written this file was archived from d13 :[ apvoas ] pdp . sav ; 1 save set of rt - δ1 oas drive code . in the example shown above the first numeral , b14024 , refers to the serial number of the optical disk on which the file is stored . the second value which begins with &# 34 ; fid =&# 34 ; is the file id of the optical file on the particular optical disk identified by the serial number . the third parameter , identified by &# 34 ; fidaddr =&# 34 ; refers to the address of the optical file 403 identified in the previous file id parameter . this is the logical address of the optical file as referred to above . the next line contains the file size which is indicated to be 504 blocks . the last two lines are the comments or narrative description of the file and contained therein is the original file specification indicating where the file was archived from . this is the entire contents of a token file data portion . all the remaining other attributes of the file necessary for data manipulations , search , and handling , as described in further detail below , are all contained within the overhead portion of the rms file organization and do not require specific manipulation or handling or organization of file structure to maintain proper organization of the optical archive storage system . the addition of the relevant rms file attributes and the data portion of each token file provides all of the necessary information for each file contained on the optical archive system to uniquely determine the name of each optical file , determine which optical disk any given optical file resides on , to determine the ownership and access rights to any given optical file , to quickly look up relevant access information concerning any optical file , to quickly determine where on the optical disk the optical file header is located , to search for a particular optical file based on the original name of the file , to search for any optical file based upon key words in a text description , and to generate charging information as to the storage charges accrued for the storage of any particular optical file . the token data base structure allows all of these operations to be performed without the need to load any optical disk whatsoever into any of the read / write units contained in the optical archive storage system . the speed of the entire system is facilitated and efficient search of the entire token data base is practical for any file based on some combination of information that a user may remember . the amount of programming required to create and maintain the token data base is minimized by the fact that standard rms and rms facilities are available to perform all the necessary operations . the optical archive storage system software should automatically maintain the token data base as each optical file operation is performed . there are five primary optical file operations : archive . copy a file from magnetic disk to optical disk . this operation automatically creates a token file for the corresponding optical file . access rights to archive a file can be determined by the user &# 39 ; s access rights to create a file in the rms directory where the token file will be located . restore . copy a file from magnetic disk to magnetic disk . this operation uses the token file to quickly locate the optical file on the optical disk . in all cases the user need not know which optical disk the optical file resides upon . it is sufficient to know the name of the optical file , which is identical to the name of the corresponding token file . access rights to restore a file can be determined by the user &# 39 ; s access rights to read the token file . change . change the ownership , protection , or other attributes of an optical file . this does not affect the date stored within the optical file . the file receives a new optical file header . the attributes and / or data of the corresponding token file are also changed . access rights to change an optical file can be determined by the user &# 39 ; s access rights to &# 34 ; control &# 34 ; the token file . rename . change the name of the optical file . this does not affect the data stored within the optical file . the file receives a new optical file header . the name of the corresponding token file is also changed . access rights to rename an optical file can be determined by the user &# 39 ; s access rights to &# 34 ; control &# 34 ; the token file . if the directory location of the optical file is to be changed as part of the rename operation , the user must also have write access to the destination token file directory . retire . mark an optical file as deleted . this is the equivalent of deleting an optical file , since the data is not actually erased . the optical file receives a new optical file header . the corresponding token file is deleted . access rights to delete an optical file can be determined by the user &# 39 ; s access rights to delete the token file . there are a number of desirable auxiliary operations that involve the use of the token data base : directory . perform a directory search on selected portions of the token data base . this is done by the optical archive storage system software using the rms directory command and other rms facilities . only directory information relevant to the optical archive storage system is displayed . special handling of the data stored in the token file is performed so that a user may request the size , original name , description or other information about the optical file which is not directly available to the rms directory command . search . perform a fast search of selected portions of the token data base in order to locate an optical file based upon some known items of information such as keywords in a description or components of the original file name . this is done directly by the user using the rms search command . create / directory and other directory manipulations . create , modify or delete a directory in the token data base . this is done by the optical archive storage system software or directly by the user using the corresponding rms facilities . accounting . account for storage charges of each optical file . this is done by sequentially processing all token data base files to determine the number of optical files and total size of all optical files owned by each user . the token file ownership and the size data within the token file are used for this purpose . exceptional operations . a token file can be &# 34 ; temporarily &# 34 ; changed to allow different access rights to an optical file without actually making a change on optical media . this is useful for one time operations where the original attributes are to be restored when the operation is completed . it may be desirable for a user to allow another user to have temporary access to his or her files . if every such instance required giving an optical file a new optical file header ( to make the change permanent ), an unnecessary waste of optical disk space would occur . temporary changes to the token files can be made using standard rms commands . rebuild token files . in the event that token files are accidentally lost or corrupted , they can be rebuilt from information contained on the optical disk . the token data base is preferably protected against loss or corruption by ordinary magnetic tape backup of the magnetic disk ( s ) on which it resides . backup may be done using the rms backup command . renaming , binding and unbinding optical disk volumes . the &# 34 ; store :: volume :&# 34 ; portion of the token file specification is not recorded on optical media . this allows a volume to be renamed . an optical disk can be added or removed from a volume . a volume can be moved from one optical archive storage system to another . all these operations can be done without changing anything actually written on the optical media . these operations are performed using standard rms commands . thus , it is possible relatively simply to program an optical archive storage system control program which makes use principally of the overhead of the vms and rms operating system and which requires only a few routines and special programs to properly handle and make available all of the file attributes for the files on the optical archive system . thus , a user may need to know as few as five commands to do all of the things necessary to archive a file to the optical archive system and retrieve it . a first operation would be required to begin communication with the program and control of the optical archive storage system . a second command would be necessary to archive a given file onto the optical archive system and to assign it a name on the system . this second command would implement the archive operation described above and automatically result in the creation of an appropriate token file . a third command would be a retrieve or restore command which would read a file from the optical archive storage system and restore it in a given location on a magnetic disk . a fourth command would be a directory which would allow the user to obtain a directory of the users files located on the optical archive storage system . this would make use of the directory operation referred to above and would not require the system to access any of the optical disks . lastly , the user would have to know the exit command to leave communication with the optical archive system . the use of the token file system as described herein makes the implementation of such a simple communication protocol with a casual user both practical and relatively efficient to implement . attached hereto is appendix a and incorporated herewith by reference is a source code listing of the routines and sub - routines necessary to implement the optical archive storage operations referred to above . also contained are printouts of the source code listings for the operations as to checking user access for various file operations . all of these routines are implemented in fortrand and make extensive use of the vms routines contained in the overheaded operating system implemented on a vax computer of the type used for the implementation of the present invention by the inventors . one of ordinary skill in programming and familiar with the implementation of the vms operating system may readily scan this code , which is fully commented , to understand in detail the operation of the functions described above and the manner in which those operations are implemented through the use of vms utilities . one of ordinary skill in the art will also be able to ascertain from these code listings how to implement similar functions in other programming environments and with other machines . in summary , the use of a token file data base as an index to access files contained on an optical archival storage system provides for a full range of indexing functions for a large mass storage device with a minimum of programming and maintenance . these objectives are accomplished by creating an illusion to the user that the optical file resides on a magnetic disk rather than on an optical disk so that the format and attributes of the file will be familiar to the casual user . standard functions contained within the operating system of the controlling computer and the use of the utilities provided by that computer are utilized whenever possible . this allows for efficient searches of the index data base to the entire archival storage unit by searching the token data base and thereby avoiding the necessity for loading each individual optical disk onto a read / write unit during such searches . thus the token data base is a strategy which reduces the cost of implementation of the optical archive storage unit and which enhances its index , particularly for very large storage units . it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the particular arrangement and construction of parts as discussed above , but embraces all such modified forms thereof as come within the scope of the following claims . ## spc1 ## ## spc2 ## ## spc3 ## ## spc4 ## ## spc5 ## ## spc6 ## ## spc7 ## | 6 |
the present invention provides a process for the production of dimensionally stable abrasive sheet materials which comprises laminating a sheet of an abrasive material comprising abrasive grain adhered to a major surface of a fibrous backing material to a sheet of a secondary backing material that is isotropic in the plane of the sheet and comprises a fibrous material and a polymeric material in a polymer to fiber volume ratio of from 1 : 3 to 30 : 1 . the secondary backing with such a structure has sufficient rigidity and dimensional stability to overcome any stresses imposed on the combined structure by any of the forces discussed above that typically lead to curling . because the secondary backing sheet is applied after the abrasive sheet material is formed it can be designed with the specific application in mind and to some extent tailored appropriately . as an example if the finished product is a disc intended to be used with a rotary grinder tool and attached thereto by a paired hook and loop attachment mechanism , the appropriate component of the pair can be attached to the secondary backing sheet opposed to that laminated to the abrasive material . equally if the attachment means were a pressure sensitive adhesive , ( psa ), the secondary backing material could comprise a sheet with one major surface provided with a psa covered by a release film . equally if the application is one in which a heavy duty abrasive operation is required , a more robust secondary backing material may be provided than would be required if the application is one in which less pressure will be applied during grinding . thus the process of the invention provides a high level of flexibility in production wherein any jumbo in which an abrasive grain of a given grit size has been incorporated can be used to produce a range of dimensionally stable products distinguished by the nature of the sheet of secondary backing material laminated thereto . a further significant advantage of the present invention is that lighter weight materials can be used to provide the backing to which the abrasive grains are adhered since the necessary level of dimensional stability and physical integrity can be supplied by the secondary backing material . thus the number of different types of jumbo that will need to be produced and stored can be significantly reduced and the required product can be made to order , thereby reducing the need for extensive inventory in all the product lines offered . the abrasive - bearing sheet and the secondary backing material can be laminated by any appropriate technique including application , to one or both of the surfaces to be adhered , of a curable adhesive that is compatible with both sheets to be laminated . of course a pressure sensitive adhesive can also be used . it is also possible , where the polymer component of the secondary backing material is a thermoplastic resin to simply heat - soften the resin and contact the materials to be laminated under pressure to allow the resin component to penetrate the fibrous backing of the abrasive sheet material before it hardens again . the secondary backing material can be selected from materials such as those described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 582 , 625 which describes the use of a backing material comprising a staple fiber mat bonded by a thermoset resin with the resin and fibers present in a volume ratio of from 1 : 3 to 30 : 1 that is isotropic in the plane of the backing . the secondary backing material can also have a similar structure to that described above with the resin being a thermoplastic resin providing this has sufficient heat resistance to withstand normal temperatures encountered during the grinding or lamination processes . typical products of this sort are described in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 417 , 726 for example and the contents of both u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 582 , 625 and 5 , 417 , 726 are incorporated herein by reference . the fibers from which the mat incorporated in the backing may be formed can be staple fibers or spun - bonded or tangled continuous crimped or un - crimped filaments . these may be of nylon , polyester , polyolefins , carbon , glass as well as mixtures of such fibers . the resin matrix in which the resin mat is disposed can be a polyurethane , a polyesterurethane , an epoxy resin , unsaturated or saturated polyester , phenolic resin , polyolefin , a radiation curable resin such as an acrylate - based resin as well as mixtures of such resins . the relatively high proportion of resin ensures that the secondary backing material has a high degree of resistance to curling and the effects of moisture . at the same time the random orientation of the fibers ensures that the backing has isotropic properties in the plane of the backing . the primary backing upon which the abrasive grains are deposited can be of any desired fibrous material such as paper or woven , non - woven or knitted fabric . however in order to secure the greatest versatility for the product it is preferred that the backing is a woven cellulosic fabric and preferably one that has received a conventional front and optionally also a back size treatment to limit its porosity and capacity to absorb a maker coat deposited thereon and to improve the rheology of the material . clearly if adhesion to the secondary backing material is to be enhance by penetration of the binding agent into the primary backing material , any back size applied should preferably not be such as would preclude this possibility . the abrasive grit can be any conventionally used in coated abrasive products including fused and sintered alumina , silicon carbide and alumina / zirconia the grit sizes are typically from about 16 to 400 grit with the most commonly used grit sizes for abrasive discs being from about 24 to 220 grit . the coated abrasive made in the manner described in this application are preferably abrasive discs where the property of curl resistance is most important . however if a belt is to be made from a jumbo using the process of the invention , the secondary backing can be designed with the flexibility usually required for such a belt in mind rather than the curl resistance . thus the process of the invention is extremely flexible with the same coated abrasive sheet being adapted for different end purposes with specific desired properties by selection of an appropriate secondary backing . | 1 |
with reference to fig1 fig2 and fig3 it can be seen that a humidifier in accordance with the present invention consists first of an upper portion ( 10 ) including a housing ( 3 ) surmounted by a cover ( 2 ); second , of a lower portion ( 11 ) consisting of a housing ( 6 ) which is identical to said upper housing ( 3 ) but positioned symmetrically ; placed on a base ( 7 ); third , of an aluminum structural element ( 4 ) which is fixed in position between housings ( 3 ) and ( 6 ); and fourth , of a tank ( 5 ) located within structural element ( 4 ) below upper housing ( 3 ). cover ( 2 ) includes a bottom plate ( 22 ) around the periphery of which are joined integrally above the plate a wall ( 20 ), and below the plate a wall ( 21 ), wall ( 21 ) being ( angled ) inwardly in relation to wall ( 20 ) in such a way as to fit onto housing ( 3 ). bottom plate ( 22 ) is pierced by an aperture ( 23 ) which is extended downwardly by a well ( 24 ). housings ( 3 ) and ( 6 ) include bottom plates ( 31 ) and ( 61 ), respectively , around the periphery of which are integrally joined walls ( 30 ) and ( 60 ), respectively , whose respective lower and upper edges overlap bottom plates ( 31 ) and ( 61 ) to aluminum structural element ( 4 ). housing ( 3 ) is compartmented , as is housing ( 6 ); however , the compartments within the housings do not serve the same function . a compartment ( 38 ) which is isolated from the rest of housing ( 3 ) and which is located within housing ( 3 ) contains the electronic control board ( 39 ) for humidifier , with the front panel ( 300 ) of wall ( 30 ) providing access to the various commands , such as power - on , start - up , adjustment , drainage , etc . for the humidifier . a compartment ( 36 ) located at the back of housing ( 3 ) is designed to contain the water - supply inlet solenoid valve ( 360 ). compartment ( 36 ) itself contains two compartments ( 32 ) and ( 34 ) which communicate with one another , which are separated by a low wall ( 320 ), and the bottoms of which contain apertures ( 33 ) and ( 35 ) respectively , which are extended downwardly , below bottom plate ( 31 ), by wells ( 330 ) and ( 350 ), respectively . in compartment ( 36 ), bottom plate ( 31 ) is also pierced by an aperture ( 361 ) which is extended downwardly by a well ( 362 ) ( see fig3 ), and by another aperture ( 37 ) which is extended upwardly by a well ( 370 ). aluminum structural element ( 4 ), which is formed by extrusion , includes two portions , ( 46 ) and ( 47 ), whose cross - section is l - shaped and which face one another , thus forming a space ( 40 ) in the front portion of humidifier , and a space ( 43 ), having a lesser volume , at the back portion thereof . portions ( 46 ) and ( 47 ) are hollow , and within each of them a channel , ( 41 ) and ( 42 ), respectively , extends vertically . structural element ( 4 ) also includes two vertical grooves ( 44 ) and ( 45 ), located facing the separation line of spaces ( 40 ) and ( 43 ), and formed within portions ( 46 ) and ( 47 ), respectively . vertical grooves ( 44 ) ( 45 ) are designed to receive a plate of sheet metal ( 48 ) to which is integrally joined a solenoid valve ( 49 ) located within space ( 43 ), plate ( 48 ) being able to slide vertically within vertical grooves ( 44 ) and ( 45 ). housing ( 3 ) is mounted on structural element ( 4 ) in such a way that the lower portion of wall ( 30 ) covers the upper edge of structural element ( 4 ) with well ( 330 ) of compartment ( 32 ) being inserted within vertical channel ( 41 ), and well ( 362 ) of compartment ( 36 ) being inserted within channel ( 42 ). cover ( 2 ) is positioned on housing ( 3 ), and well ( 370 ) , of compartment ( 36 ) is inserted within aperture ( 23 ). housing ( 6 ) is mounted on the base of structural element ( 4 ) in the same way in which housing ( 3 ) is mounted on the upper portion of structural element ( 4 ). it can be seen in fig1 that channel ( 41 ) opens into a well ( 62 ) which corresponds to well ( 362 ) of compartment ( 36 ) and opens into base ( 7 ) by means of an aperture ( 70 ) which is extended downwardly by a well ( 71 ) to which water - extraction tubing ( 72 ) is connected . in housing ( 6 ) a well ( 63 ), corresponding to well ( 370 ) of housing ( 3 ), allows the recovery of residual water from any possible leakages , with well ( 63 ) opening into a small tank ( 73 ) in base ( 7 ), with the entire assembly forming a siphon . valve ( 49 ) is connected by means of a length of flexible tubing ( 490 ) to a well of housing ( 6 ) corresponding to well ( 350 ) of housing ( 3 ). tank ( 5 ) is formed by the assembly of an upper half - shell ( 50 ) and a lower half - shell ( 51 ), joined integrally together by their edges at a joint ( 52 ). upper half - shell ( 50 ) includes on its upper surface an aperture ( 53 ) which is extended outwardly by a well ( 530 ), and an aperture ( 54 ) which is extended inwardly by a well ( 540 ), and is traversed by two male plugs ( 56 ) ( 57 ) to which are soldered respectively electrodes ( 58 ) ( 59 ) located within tank ( 5 ). lower half - shell ( 51 ) is pierced laterally by an aperture ( 55 ) which is extended outwardly by means of a well ( 550 ). the installation of tank ( 5 ) within the remainder of the device is performed first by introducing tank ( 5 ) into space ( 40 ) of structural element ( 4 ) and by connecting external well ( 550 ) of half - shell ( 51 ) to solenoid valve ( 49 ) carried by plate ( 48 ), with the hermetic qualities of the assembly being ensured by a tight sealing joint . next , tank ( 5 ) is subjected to a movement upwardly from the bottom , with the plate of sheet steel ( 48 ) sliding in vertical grooves ( 44 ) and ( 45 ), and external well ( 530 ) of half shell ( 50 ) of said tank ( 5 ) being introduced into well ( 370 ) of compartment ( 36 ) of housing ( 3 ), with lower well ( 350 ) of compartment ( 34 ) being inserted into aperture ( 54 ) of half - shell ( 50 ), and plugs ( 56 ) ( 57 ) passing through the bottom plate ( 31 ) of housing ( 3 ) at compartment ( 38 ) by means of apertures ( not shown ), then passing through electronic board ( 39 ) by means of apertures ( not shown ), then passing through electronic board ( 39 ) by means of apertures ( 390 ) ( 391 ) in order to be connected to female plugs ( not shown ), with tank ( 5 ) then being held in position by means of fixative elements ( also not shown ). the operation of humidifier in accordance with the invention is as described below : water is introduced into compartment ( 34 ) by means of solenoid valve ( 360 ) located in compartment ( 36 ), and flows into tank ( 5 ) through aperture ( 35 ) whose well ( 350 ) is connected to aperture ( 54 ) of tank ( 5 ). in the event of an overflow of water into compartment ( 34 ), i . e ., in the event that the water level exceeds the height of wall ( 320 ), excess water flows into compartment ( 32 ) and is evacuated by means of aperture ( 33 ) into channel ( 41 ) of structural element ( 4 ). if by chance aperture ( 33 ), or channel ( 41 ), should become clogged , water overflow can exit from compartments ( 32 ) ( 34 ) and spread into compartment ( 36 ), from which it is evacuated into channel ( 42 ) by means of aperture ( 361 ). electrodes ( 58 ) ( 59 ), which are immersed in the water and to which power in the form of alternating current is supplied by means of male plugs ( 56 ) ( 57 ), covert the water into steam which is evacuated by means of aperture ( 53 ) and led toward the outside of humidifier successively by well ( 530 ) and well ( 370 ), to which a length of tubing ( not shown ) is connected . the water from various wells is recovered at various points and is collected in compartment ( 36 ) in order to be evacuated into channel ( 42 ) by means of aperture ( 361 ). the evacuation of water , which contains an excessively high concentration of mineral salts , from tank ( 5 ) is performed by means of solenoid valve ( 49 ), which dips into the tank by means of aperture ( 55 ). because of the lateral position of aperture ( 55 ), the water which is transported by means of valve ( 49 ) is not charged with limestone or scale , which remains at the bottom of half - shell ( 51 ); therefore , valve ( 49 ) does not become dirty . the water to be evacuated is poured into base ( 7 ), either by means of channels ( 41 ) and ( 42 ) of structural element ( 4 ), or by means of the length of flexible tubing ( 490 ) or by means of well ( 63 ), and then flows by means of well ( 71 ) into a multi - directional fitting ( 72 ). furthermore , when tank ( 5 ) is considered to have become excessively dirty with limestone or scale , it is sufficient to remove tank ( 5 ) and to replace it with another tank , with the dirty tank being either discarded or re - used after cleaning . it is obvious that the present invention is not limited to the preceding description of one of its embodiments , which can undergo a number of modifications without thereby departing from the scope of the invention . | 5 |
referring now to the drawing , particularly fig1 and 2 , there is shown , in a preferred embodiment of this invention , a portion of an electronic postage meter 11 having a secured exterior housing 10 . the housing 10 is designed to provide security from tampering including unauthorized access to the interior of the housing where accounting information is retained in a nonvolatile memory 24 and where microprocessor control circuits 30 may be actuated as will be explained in further detail later ( fig6 ). further , the housing provides protection from electromagnetic interference for the electronic components contained within housing 10 . housing 10 includes a slot 12 through which protrudes the operating end of a carrying handle 14 . integral with the handle 14 is a shutter blade 16 . the handle 14 including shutter blade 16 is pivotable about a point 18 between a first position &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; where the operating end of handle 14 nests against housing 10 and an extended position &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; where operating end of handle 14 is in an operating position permitting lifting of the housing 10 and its contents . it will be noted that shutter 16 has an arcuate shape such that it blocks access through aperture 20 in housing 10 . the shuttering of aperture 20 occurs when the operating end of handle 14 is in the &# 34 ; a &# 34 ; position , the &# 34 ; b &# 34 ; position or in any intermediate position ( such as that shown in fig1 ). mounted within housing 10 is a printed circuit board 22 having a nonvolatile memory 24 mounted thereon . an electrical communication channel 26 from nonvolatile memory 24 is provided on printed circuit board 22 and shown in the form of lead lines directed toward aperture 20 . aperture 20 provides access to communication channel 26 for an electronic probe connector 28 which electrically engages communication channel 26 in a male - female connection to provide electrical access to the register of nonvolatile memory 24 . referring to fig6 an electronic postage meter 11 is shown schematically including secured housing 10 within which is enclosed a microprocessor control circuit 30 , nonvolatile memory 24 and power supply 40 . external to the housing 10 , and in electrical communication therewith through circuit connections 32 , 34 and 35 , which may include optical isolation circuits , not shown , are keyboard 36 , display 38 and postage printer 39 , respectively . as shown in fig6 the power supply 40 supplies various voltage levels to elements of the microprocessor control circuit 30 , the nonvolatile memory 24 , and through 5 volt outlet 52 , to other peripheral circuits , not shown , through connections 44 , 46 , 48 , and 50 respectively . electrical connection of power supply 40 to the electronic elements of postage meter 11 is controlled through switch 56 which controls electrical connections 58 and 60 . power supply 40 may also be connected to an external power supply 54 through isolation circuit 55 . nonvolatile memory 24 includes a multiple lead output channel 61 connected to a multiple output communication channel 26 which is accessed through the exterior of housing 10 by electrical connector probe 28 . probe 28 accesses the read lines only of nonvolatile memory 24 and thus communication channel 26 is shown to include 21 lead lines or one less than the 22 lead lines shown for channel 61 ( see fig6 ) the additional lead line which exits from channel 61 is lead 57 which includes the write lines for memory 24 . thus accessing of communication channel 26 by probe 28 permits readout of the contents of the registers of nonvolatile memory 24 only , while the capability of writing in or changing the information contained in nonvolatile memories 24 is precluded when accessing memory 24 through probe 28 . referring now to fig2 - 5 , there is shown a switch assembly 56 which includes a limit switch 59 mounted on circuit board 60 . switch 59 includes a spring loaded lever arm 62 which , in the solid line position shown in fig2 depresses a contact button 64 which maintains the switch 59 in a closed circuit configuration . in the dotted line position shown in fig2 lever arm 62 permits button 64 to disengage switch 59 so as to create an open circuit configuration breaking the electrical connection between leads 58 and 60 ( fig6 ), thereby disconnecting power supply 40 from the remaining circuit elements within postage meter 11 . in the solid line position shown in fig2 during assembly of the meter , a latch 66 retains lever arm 62 in the depressed position to maintain switch 59 in a closed circuit configuration . assembly of the remaining elements of meter 11 within housing 10 is completed and a retaining member in the form of a mounting screw 68 is inserted through opening 70 in housing 10 . mounting screw 68 is threaded into an interior plate 72 mounted within housing 10 . insertion of mounting screw 68 during final assembly dislodges latch 66 while maintaining lever arm 62 in the closed circuit position . latch 66 falls to the solid line position shown in fig2 . mounting screw 68 has a threaded portion which engages mounting plate 72 and a shaft portion 74 which forms a journalled surface about which handle 14 and shutter portion 16 rotates at pivot point 18 . when screw 68 is fully inserted into mounting plate 72 a protective cap 80 which engages opening 70 in housing 10 is mounted within opening 70 and retained therein by flange 75 . cap 80 is formed of a breakable material and mounting head 76 of screw 68 is formed with a sharp cutting edge 79 which permits breaking of the mounting cap 80 by means of a hand tool such as a screwdriver . cutting edge 79 completes the breaking of cap 80 when mounting screw 68 is withdrawn from opening 70 . when a malfunction of the postage meter 11 is encountered , it is desired to read out the contents of memory register 24 in order to immediately transfer the postal balance in the inoperative meter to a replacement meter , thereby avoiding a lengthy delay during repair of the malfunctioning meter . it is desired at this point to able to access the memory register 24 while maintaining security of the accounting information in memory 24 . accordingly , a hand tool is employed to break cap 80 and to disengage mounting screw 68 from plate 72 . when mounting screw 68 is disengaged from mounting plate 72 and withdrawn from housing 10 , lever arm 62 , which is spring loaded , moves to the dotted line position shown in fig2 and thereby opens switch 58 to provide an open circuit condition which disconnects the electronic components within housing 10 from power supply 40 . handle 14 may then be removed from housing 10 through slot 12 thereby removing shutter 16 from its location blocking aperture 20 . access is thus provided for probe 28 through aperture 20 in housing 10 and opening 73 in plate 72 to engage communication channel 26 on printed circuit board 22 to permit readout of the memory register 24 . aperture 20 has mounted therewithin a mounting plate 90 as shown in fig3 and pressing of the probe against element 90 moves it inwardly so that it may drop to the interior of housing 10 . aperture plate 90 is retained in its position by handle 14 and shutter portion 16 and thus may not be removed until handle 14 is removed . thus a visual indication is provided that access through aperture 90 has been provided . further , the destruction of cap 80 provides an additional visual indication that handle 14 has been removed and that the switch 56 is in the open circuit configuration . thus a knowledgeable repair person or postal service employee can detect that the meter 11 is capable of being or has been accessed to readout its memory register . it will be noted that withdrawal of mounting screw 68 which permits switch 59 to move to the open circuit configuration disables the postage meter . since latch arm 62 has moved to the dotted line position which is the open circuit configuration , reinsertion of mounting screw 68 will not re - engage the switch 59 to close the circuit . thus only destruction of the secured housing ( and possibly the meter itself ) will permit movement of the switch 58 to the closed circuit configuration permitting further operation of the meter . in recapitulation , it will be seen that an electronic postage meter has been provided with a security system such that transfer of the accounting information contained in the nonvolatile memory can be made at the postal service location without the lengthy delay usually required while the meter is returned to a repair location and then taken to the postal service for recharging and resetting . it will be seen that this access is permitted in a secure fashion which disables the meter for further use thereby preventing unauthorized changing of the contents of the nonvolatile memory or operation of the meter and postage printer . it is therefore evident that there has been provided in accordance with the present invention a security system for an electronic device that fully satisfies the objects , aims and advantages set forth above . while this invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof , it is evident that many alternatives , modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , it is intended to embrace all such alternatives , modifications and variations that follow within the spirit and scope of the appended claims . | 6 |
in the following description , reference is made to the accompanying figures , which show by way of illustration how the invention may be practiced . fig1 shows an example of the object feeder system 100 seen from above . the object feeder system comprises a plate assembly 101 with object holders 102 mounted in tracks 105 , and an arm assembly 103 for moving the object holders 102 . all object holders 102 are arranged in their respective tracks 105 in the outer edge of the plate assembly 101 . the object feeder system 100 is arranged on a swinging axis 104 in a scanner ( not shown ). due to the arrangement of the object holders 102 on the plate assembly 101 there is nothing obstructing the passage of emitted light from the light source in the scanner to an object in an object holder 102 in a scanning area in the centre of the plate assembly 101 , and nothing obstructing the passage of light reflected from the object in the object holder 102 in the scanning area in the centre of the plate assembly 101 to the camera receiving and detecting the reflected light . when the plate assembly is positioned in a 3d scanner , its centre is arranged at the optical focus of the scanner . fig2 shows an example of the plate assembly with object holders seen in perspective view . the object holders 102 are arranged in respective tracks 105 on the plate assembly 101 . there are six object holders 102 and each track 105 is marked with a number of dots 106 on the plate assembly corresponding to the number of the object holder 102 in that track , i . e . object holder number one has one dot , object holder number two has two dots etc . up to object holder number six having six dots . these dot numbers can help the user to place the place an object in the correct object holder defined by e . g . a cad system on the user &# 39 ; s pc . fig3 shows an example of the plate assembly in an exploded view . the plate assembly 301 comprises a fixture plate 307 , a core plate 308 arranged in the centre of the fixture plate 307 and a base plate 309 onto which both the fixture plate 307 and the core plate 308 is arranged . the core plate 308 is fixed to the base plate 309 by fixing means , such as screws 310 extending through the core plate 308 to the base plate 309 . the fixture plate 307 can thus move relative to core plate 308 and the base plate 309 . the outer rim of the core plate 308 is bevelled or has a recess such that the core plate 308 covers the inner rim of the fixture plate , whereby the fixture plate 307 is retained between the core plate 308 and the base plate 309 . a permanent magnet 311 is arranged in a hole in the centre of the base plate 309 . the core plate 308 has a bore in its centre corresponding to this magnet 311 such that when an object holder is arranged in the centre of the plate assembly 301 on the core plate 308 , there will be a magnetic attraction between the magnet 311 and the object holder , if the object holder is magnetic too . hereby the object holder will be retained in the centre even though the plate assembly 301 or the entire object feeder system moves . when an object holder is arranged in the centre of the plate assembly 301 it is in the scanning position . in order for an object in the object holder to be scanned from all sides , the core plate 308 on which the object holder is arranged , rotates , thereby rotating the object holder and the object . the plates , 307 , 308 and 309 in the plate assembly 301 can be made of metal , such as iron , or the plates can be made of a hard plastics or polymer material , such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene ( abs ), which can be moulded , or polyoxymethylene ( pom ), which can be milled or molded . fig4 shows an example of the tracks in the fixture plate and in the core plate . the fixture plate 407 in fig4 a ) comprises the outer part or portion 414 of each of the tracks , and the core plate 408 in fig4 b ) comprises the inner part or portion 413 of one track . when the plate assembly is assembled as seen in the previous figures , the core plate 408 is arranged in the centre of the fixture plate 407 , and when the fixture plate 407 and the core plate 408 are rotated relative to each other , the fixture plate 407 can be arranged such that the inner part 413 of the one track in the core plate 408 is aligned with the outer part 414 of one of the tracks in the fixture plate 407 , such that the object holder in the respective outer track part 414 can be moved all the way from the outer edge of the fixture plate 407 into the centre of the core plate 408 , where it is scanned . when the object holder has been scanned , it is moved out from the centre of the plate assembly again , the fixture plate 407 turns relative to the core plate 408 such that another outer track portion 414 of the fixture plate 407 aligns with the inner track portion 413 , such that the object holder in that outer track portion can be moved from the outer edge of the fixture plate 407 into the centre of the core plate 408 . by turning the fixture plate 407 relative to the core plate 408 a complete track can be made by aligning the inner track portion 413 with one of the outer tracks portions 414 one at a time , so that all object holders can be moved into the centre of the core plate 408 one at a time to be scanned . the core plate 408 comprises a recess 416 in the inner track portion 413 on the side facing the base plate , and the fixture plate 407 also comprises recesses 415 in the outer track portion 414 on the side facing the base plate . by means of these recesses 415 , 416 , object holders having a flange can fit into or under these recesses 415 , 416 , such that the object holders are secured in the tracks . fig5 a shows an example of an object holder in exploded view . the object holder 502 comprises an object holder top 517 arranged on an object holder bottom 518 . the top 517 is attached to the bottom 518 on a border on the bottom 518 . fig5 b ) shows an example of the bottom in cross section view . the bottom 518 comprises the border on which the top is resting , and a flange 520 configured for fitting into the recesses of the tracks as explained in connection with fig4 above . in fig5 a ) a permanent magnet 519 is arranged in the bottom of the object holder bottom for ensuring that the object holder is secured to the plate assembly , such that the object holder will stay in its position in the track on the plate assembly unless the arm assembly moves the object holder . in fig5 b ) a space 527 in which the permanent magnet 519 can fit is seen . the permanent magnet 519 may be glued into the space 527 . the object holders 502 can be made of metal , such as iron , or the object holder can be made of a hard plastics or polymer material , such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene ( abs ), which can be molded , or polyoxymethylene ( pom ), which can be milled or molded . fig6 a ) shows an example of the arm assembly seen from above . the arm assembly 603 comprises a first arm 621 configured for moving the object holders one at a time and a second arm 622 configured for locking the plate assembly in a specific position . the first arm and the second arm are adapted to rotate relative to each other . fig6 b ) shows an example of the arm assembly in exploded view . the first arm 621 comprises a head member 623 comprising a dc electromagnet , which is adapted to be turned on when the first arm 621 starts contacting an object holder to move it e . g . from the centre out to the outer edge of the plate assembly . the electromagnet is adapted to turn off , when the object holder has been moved to the outer edge of the plate assembly again . the head member 623 is flexibly attached to the first arm 621 and adapted to move relative to the first arm , whereby establishing contact to the respective object holder is facilitated . the head member 623 is attached to the first arm by means of a screw 624 . the arm assembly 603 is driven and thereby moved by a motor . the finished module contains a dc motor , a gearbox and control electronics hereunder a microprocessor and power transistor ( s ) as motor driver . the servo motor can be mounted in the swinging axis of the scanner and wires to connect the motor and the electromagnet can be arranged on or in the swing axis . the dc electromagnet can be made by winding copper to form a solenoid around an h - shaped iron / steel core . the magnet can be powered by 24v dc when it should be on . a light emitting diode ( led ) can be present in the head member 623 for indicating that the electromotor is active when the light is on , and transient voltage suppression ( tvs ) protection diode can also be provided . the led can also be used as a communications means inside the scanner , for communicating to the scanner camera where the first arm is positioned . this can be used in case of errors in positioning the first arm or the arm assembly 603 relative to e . g . the plate assembly . the first arm 621 and the second arm 622 are joined together in a base 625 which comprises a spring 626 enabling that the first arm 621 and the second arm 622 can move relative to each other with a spring - loaded tension . fig7 shows examples of different states of the object feeder system . in fig7 a ) the object feeder system 700 is in the start position . all object holders 702 are arranged in the outer edge of the plate assembly 701 , ready to be moved into the centre of the plate assembly 701 one at a time by means of the first arm 721 . the second arm 722 is in a lock position , locking the plate assembly 701 in position . the complete track 705 is made between the inner track portion of the core plate and the outer track portion in which object holder number six can move . in fig7 b ) the first arm 721 is contacting object holder number six in the scanning position in the centre of the plate 701 . either the object holder 702 has just been moved in there by the first arm 721 , or the first arm 721 is about to move the object holder 702 out of there . in fig7 c ) the same situation as in fig7 b ) is shown , but only the plate assembly 701 with the object holders 702 are shown and not the first arm 722 such that the complete track 705 in which object holder number six can move is shown . in fig7 d ) object holder number one has been moved into the centre of the plate assembly 701 and the first arm 722 is away from the scanning area such that scanning can be performed . in fig7 e ) object holder number two is contacted by the first arm 722 for being moved from the outer edge of the plate assembly 701 into the centre of the plate assembly 701 . in fig7 f ) object holder number two has been moved into the centre of the plate assembly 701 , and the first arm 722 is out of the scanning field , so that scanning of the object in object holder number two can be performed . fig8 shows a flow chart of an example of a method of how the object feeder system can be used for scanning objects . in this example , the scanning area is located in the centre of the plate assembly . in step 801 the objects to be scanned is selected and placed in the objects holders , which are placed in the parking area at the outer edge of the plate assembly . an adhesive , such as blue tack adhesive or plastilin should be added in all object holders before placing objects in the object holder . the blue tack adhesive should only be placed flush with , or above , the top of the object holder , because blue tack adhesive on the sides of the object holders rings may prevent normal operation of the object feeder system . in step 802 the object feeder system is arranged in the scanner , i . e . the plate assembly is placed on the swinging axis of the scanner and the arm assembly and the base for the arm assembly is also placed in the scanner and wires are connected to the motor for driving the electromagnet in the first arm . when in arranged in the scanner , the scanning area of the plate assembly is positioned in the scanning region of the scanner . the plate assembly should be placed in the scanner such that the six object holders in their respective tracks are pointing away from the scanner door since hereby the plate assembly and object holders are arranged correct relative to the optical system , so that none of the object holders shades for the scanning light . the scanner door is closed . in step 803 the scanning sequence is initiated , and maybe a calibration is performed before the scanning sequence . in step 804 first the track in the fixture plate on which object holder number one is placed , is aligned with the inner track in the core plate . in step 805 the object holder is then pushed by the first arm into the centre of the plate assembly . in step 806 scanning of the object ( s ) in object holder number one is then performed , e . g . by rotating the object holder such that the object can be scanned from different sides . the rotation is provided by rotating the core plate relative to the normal vector to the plate assembly . in step 807 when the scanning of the object ( s ) in object holder number one is finished , the object holder is dragged out to the outer edge of the plate assembly by the first arm . in step 808 the fixture plate now rotates such that the track in the fixture plate on which object holder number two is placed is aligned with the inner track in the core plate and steps 805 - 807 is repeated for the second object holder . step 808 is subsequently repeated for all the remaining object holders . in step 809 scanning of all objects are finished and the object feeder system can be taken out of the scanner again . fig9 shows a schematic presentation of the scanning plate assembly 901 . the plate assembly comprises a number of object holders 9021 , 9022 of which one 9022 has been moved from the parking area 931 to the scanning area 930 along a track 905 . the object holders may be moved between the parking area 931 and the scanning area 930 one by one , or in groups , such as such in groups consisting of two , three or even more object holders . for embodiments wherein electromagnetic radiation , such as light , is used to obtain a 3 - dimensional representation of the objects , it may be preferred that only one object is scanned at a time to ensure visual access for the light source and camera system to the object when the object holder is rotated and tilted relative to the camera ( s )/ light source . for some embodiments , the visual access is not required and several objects may be scanned at a time . this may e . g . be the case when the scanning utilizes a probe , which is brought into direct contact with the object . the movement of the object holders between the scanning area 930 and the parking area may occur along one or more tracks 905 . the scanning area 930 and the parking area 931 may in principle be arranged anywhere on the scanning plate assembly . for a 3 - dimensional scanning of the objects , it may be preferred that the scanning area can be rotated and tilted relative to the camera ( s )/ light source of a 3 - dimensional scanner without the scanning area being moved out of the scanning region of the scanner . fig1 shows an example of the plate assembly in an exploded view with object holders 1002 and an intermediate plate . the plate assembly 1001 comprises a fixture plate 1007 , a core plate 1008 arranged in the centre of the fixture plate 1007 and a base plate 1009 onto which both the fixture plate 1007 and the core plate 1008 are arranged . the core plate 1008 is fixed to the base plate 1009 by means of fixing know to the skilled person , such as screws 1010 extending through the core plate 1008 to the base plate 1009 . between the base plate 1009 and the fixture plate 1007 is arranged an intermediate plate 1032 . the intermediate plate may be formed such that friction between the base plate 1009 and the fixture plate 1007 is reduced and the fixture plate 1007 can be turned relative to the base plate 1007 with little effort . the plates , 1007 , 1008 and 1009 in the plate assembly 1001 can be made of metal , such as iron , or the plates can be made of a hard plastics or polymer material , such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene ( abs ), which can be molded , or polyoxymethylene ( pom ), which can be milled or molded . the intermediate plate 1032 can be made of a ferromagnetic material , such that a magnetic interaction with a magnetic object holder may hold or contribute to holding the object holder located in the parking area in place during a scanning of an object located in the scanning area . although some embodiments have been described and shown in detail , the invention is not restricted to them , but may also be embodied in other ways within the scope of the subject matter defined in the following claims . in particular , it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention . in device claims enumerating several devices , several of these can be embodied by one and the same item of hardware . the mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims or described in different embodiments does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage . it should be emphasized that the term “ comprises / comprising ” when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features , integers , steps or components but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features , integers , steps , components or groups thereof . the features of the method described above and in the following may be implemented in software and carried out on a data processing system or other devices capable of processing data by the execution of computer - executable instructions . the instructions may be program code loaded in a memory , such as a ram , from a storage medium or from another computer via a computer network . alternatively , the described features may be implemented by hardwired circuitry instead of software or in combination with software . | 6 |
the present invention comprises several developments that can be incorporated singly , or in any combination , into conventional chair designs . for example , the method and mechanism of the present invention for reclining the back of a chair can be used alone , or it could be used with the method and mechanism of the adjustable armrest , the method and mechanism of the adjustable headrest and / or the method and mechanism of the tilt mechanism . fig3 illustrates a chair that incorporates several aspects of the present invention into a chair design specifically including the method and mechanism of the present invention for reclining the back of a chair , the method and mechanism of the adjustable armrest , the method and mechanism of the adjustable headrest and the method and mechanism of the tilt mechanism . to understand how the present invention operates , the several separate inventive aspects are described separately . to start with , the method and mechanism for reclining the back of the seat in a way that uses the seat occupant &# 39 ; s weight to counteract the reclining force is described . thereafter , other inventive aspects of the inventive chair design are described . referring first to fig1 , it will be seen that the chair comprises a base 110 , a seat 111 which is secured to seat support 119 and a back support 113 which supports back 112 . the base 110 is supported on pintle 114 projecting upwardly from the center of five - legged pedestal 115 , the ends of the legs accommodating casters 116 supporting the chair on floor 117 . seat 111 is supported by seat support 119 , which in turn is connected to base 110 rearwardly by back support extension 123 and forwardly by support arm 120 . specifically , back support extension 123 is connected to base 110 by horizontal pivot point 124 and to seat support 119 by horizontal pivot point 122 . correspondingly , support arm 120 is connected to base 110 by horizontal pivot point 121 and to seat support 119 by horizontal pivot point 118 . as a result , the combination of base 110 , support arm 120 , seat support 119 , back support extension 123 and horizontal pivot points 118 , 121 , 122 and 124 form a substantially parallelogram linkage that permits movement between the forward and downward position in one direction ( shown in fig1 ) and the rearward and upward position of seat 111 in the other direction ( shown in fig2 ). an imaginary horizontal extension of base 110 and support arm 120 forms a forward facing acute angle 101 , which , when the chair is in its resting position , is of at least about 5 °, preferably of at least about 10 °, and most preferably of at least about 20 °. nonetheless , the forward facing acute angle 101 , when the chair is in its resting position , is normally less than about 45 ° and preferably less than about 40 °. a highly preferred forward facing acute angle 101 , when the chair is in its resting position , is about 26 °. correspondingly , base 110 and back support extension 123 form a forward facing acute angle 102 which is typically less than the forward facing acute angle 101 . the forward facing acute angle 102 , when the chair is in its resting position , is of at least about 5 °, preferably of at least about 8 °, and most preferably of at least about 15 °. nonetheless , the forward facing acute angle 102 , when the chair is in its resting position , is normally less than about 40 ° and preferably less than about 30 °. a highly preferred forward facing acute angle 102 , when the chair is in its resting position , is about 18 °. it is preferred that the raising of seat 111 to counteract the reclining of back support 113 lifts seat 111 between about 0 . 2 and 2 inches . its is further preferred that the seat is raised between about 0 . 4 and 1 inch . in a particularly useful embodiment of the present reclining chair invention , the seat is raised by about 0 . 6 inches in the front and by about 0 . 8 inches in the rear . as is apparent from the above description , the pivot point for the recline of the back support 124 is not the chair occupant &# 39 ; s hip joint . consequently , the recline of the back circumscribes an arc that is displaced from the arc based on the user &# 39 ; s hip joint . however , the concurrent action of the reclining mechanism described herein of raising the seat produces a net positioning of the user that is substantially the same as the positioning which would have been achieved if the center of the back recline arc were coextensive with the hip joint . fig1 and 2 also show spring means 125 which acts to restore back support 113 to its resting position when the chair is unoccupied . typically , both seat 111 and back 112 have a rigid shell , such as an injection molded plastic . it is preferred that seat 111 has a layer of a non - compressible , displacing gel . for example , a polyurethane gel is useful . typically the gel pad on seat 111 is about half an inch thick and is located on top of a one inch thick layer of a conventional soft foam . it is further preferred that the seat 111 is shaped to reduce pressure points at the thickest portion of the gel . typically the back 112 has an about ¾ inch thick layer of a conventional soft foam attached to the rigid shell . fig2 provides another view of the interaction of the parts of the mechanism that uses the chair occupant &# 39 ; s weight to counteract the reclining forces to help return the chair back to its upright or resting position . again , chair back 113 is pivotally linked to base 110 at pivot point 124 . chair back extension 123 continues and is pivotally linked to seat support 119 at pivot point 122 . similarly , the front of base 110 is linked to the front of seat support 119 by the operation of link 120 which is pivotally coupled to base 110 at pivot point 118 and it is pivotally connected to seat support 119 at pivot point 121 . fig2 also shows spring 125 and telescoping spring guide 464 interacting through pillow block 715 with connecting element 350 , which is attached to back support arms 113 . also shown in fig2 is a plurality of slots that permit the seat of the chair to be advanced forward or backward to alter the chair to better accommodate a user . in the embodiment shown in this figure , the slots anchor the seat in the appropriate position . fig2 a shows a means to secure the movable seat in the desired position . in this embodiment , lifting lever 2100 causes lever 2100 to pivot about pivot joint 2110 and lift pin 2120 out of slot 2130 . when pin 2120 is out of slot 2130 , seat 111 can move along support 119 , while being attached by pin 2140 that has an enlarged head 2145 below support 119 . at its upper end , pin 2140 is attached to seat 111 . an alternative mechanism for interconnecting the seat occupant &# 39 ; s weight to the force to restore the chair to its upright position replaces support arm 120 with a mechanism that performs the same function as the four - bar mechanism described above can be substituted for the four - bar mechanism . for instance , support arm 120 could be replaced by a track mounted on base 110 and a traveler projecting downward from seat support 119 . when back support extension 123 is pivoted as back 112 is reclined , seat support 119 pulls the traveler up the track which is inclined in a backward direction . desirably , the track or the traveler , or both , have a low friction surface such as polytetrafluoroethylene . in the embodiments of the present invention having a headrest , it is preferred that the headrest has a layer of about one inch thick of a conventional soft foam . a first embodiment of base 110 of the present invention is illustrated in fig7 . as seen in this figure , base 110 is mounted on pintle 114 via piston 400 . piston 400 is part of a conventional gas cylinder for raising or lowering the height of the chair . base 110 has a forward pivot axis 121 and a rearward pivot axis 124 . in the reclining chair of the present invention , the pivot axes are connected to two links of the four - bar linkage that interconnects the reclining of the chair back with a raising of the seat . base 110 also has a spring means 125 that applies a force to the chair so as to maintain the unoccupied chair in its upright position . spring means 125 is mounted about cylinder 720 , which in turn is mounted on cylinder base 710 which is attached , preferably pivotably attached , to attachment point 700 which is an integral portion of base 110 . additionally , fig7 also shows telescoping spring guide 464 ( which is slidably mounted in spring cylinder 720 ). pivotably seated on top of telescoping spring guide 464 is a top pillow block 715 which bears against connecting element 350 between back support arms 113 . desirably , the top pillow block 715 is made of a low friction material such as polytetrafluoroethylene commonly marketed under the tradename teflon . also shown in fig7 is extension 725 , attached to seat support or link 119 , which in automatically adjusting headrest embodiments can form an attachment platform for the rod that translates the recline of the chair back into a forward motion of the headrest . in an alternative , preferred embodiment of the present invention , for purposes of tilting seat 111 and back 112 , base 110 has a somewhat inclined , two - part housing . for instance , as shown in fig8 and 10 , top 320 of base 110 houses horizontal pivot points 121 and 124 . also shown in fig1 is housing 315 for a conventional mechanism ( such as lever 317 ) for releasing a first conventional gas cylinder located in pintle 114 that controls the elevation of base 110 . this embodiment also has a second conventional gas cylinder , namely gas cylinder 300 . gas cylinder 300 functions to tilt the portions of the chair above base 110 and all parts attached to top 320 . fig8 shows a side view of base 110 in the forward tilted position . in this view , base housing top 320 is substantially horizontal . base housing top 320 is pivotally connected to base housing bottom 430 at horizontal pivot point 121 . piston 420 of gas cylinder 300 , is pivotally connected to linkage 430 at pivot point 431 . in turn , linkage 430 is pivotally connected to linkage 433 at pivot point 432 , forming a crank , which is connected at pivot point 435 to linkage 437 which is secured to base housing top 320 at pivot point 439 . through this linkage system , gas cylinder 300 applies a force to alter the tilting angle of the chair parts above it . also shown in fig8 is a conventional linkage mechanism that operatively connects housing 315 ( for lever 317 ) with a conventional release mechanism 405 for conventional gas cylinder 400 located in pintle 114 that controls the elevation of base 110 . in a preferred embodiment of the mechanism of fig8 , the counterclockwise rotation of lever 317 activates conventional release mechanism 405 , whereas the clockwise rotation of lever 317 activates gas cylinder 300 . concurrently , the clockwise rotation of lever 317 , because of slot 427 , permits the mechanism connecting lever 317 to gas cylinder 400 to “ float ” or slid in slot 427 and thereby not activate conventional release mechanism 405 . fig8 further shows the preferred spring mechanism that increases the tilt restoring force as the tilt angle is increased . specifically , spring 125 is mounted on spring base 460 that is pivotally connected to mount 458 within chamber 456 of spring housing 450 . arm 454 pivotally connects spring housing 450 to lower base housing part 408 . mounted in spring 125 is spring piston 462 , the top of which , spring piston top ( or telescoping spring guide ) 464 , pushes against chamber 468 top 466 . it is preferred that chamber 468 top 466 is an arc equidistant from spring base 460 mount 458 to chamber 468 top 466 . this arrangement allows spring 125 and piston assembly ( or telescoping spring guide ) 464 to move varying distances from pivot 124 , thereby increasing or reducing leverage force to back support 113 . fig9 shows a side view of base 110 in its full rearward tilt position . in this view , base housing top 320 is substantially inclined . in particular , arm 454 and its pivotal connection 452 , in this figure , has slid radially along the under - surface of top 466 to its position furthest from the pivot axis at 124 . top 466 has an under - surface which is angled in a curvilinear fashion such that arm 454 connected to spring base 460 , spring piston 462 and piston assembly ( or telescoping spring guide ) 464 is tilted to the rear moving the top of spring 125 further from pivot 124 thereby increasing leverage . the top of telescoping spring guide 464 is pivotally seated in pillow block 715 so that it will slide along the arcuate under - surface of top 466 without changing compression of spring 125 . as a result of this repositioning , spring piston top 464 now pushes against chamber 468 top 466 at a point that is further from horizontal pivot point 124 . in other words , as the tilt mechanism increases is rearward tilt , the centerline of spring 125 tilts rearwardly at an increased angle relative to a vertical plane . these chances increase the leverage on spring 125 in the rear tilted position , producing a recline compression in spring 125 that increases as the angle of the tilt of spring 125 from the vertical plane increases and decreases as the angle of the tilt of spring 125 from the vertical plane decreases . the net effect is to increase the resistance of spring 125 to any further incremental deformation . this increase in spring 125 &# 39 ; s resistance to incremental deformation provides greater resistance to support the increased load on the backrest resulting from the occupant being at a greater recline angle with more load of the occupant &# 39 ; s upper body transferred to the back rest . spring 125 &# 39 ; s resistance to incremental deformation can be increased as the chair is reclined in other ways . for example , any mechanism that tilts spring 125 away from horizontal pivot point 124 could accomplish this end . in an alternative embodiment , spring 125 is mounted on a pivoting base from which arises a shield . a manually engaged bar pushes against the shield and thereby tilts spring 125 . this tilting increases the distance between the top of spring 125 and horizontal pivot point 124 , which increases spring 125 &# 39 ; s resistance to incremental deformation . the functioning of the additional tilt mechanism of the present invention incorporated into a reclining chair is illustrated in fig5 and 6 . fig5 shows the chair in a resting position . not shown in the figs . is a forward tilt position that the additional tilt mechanism is able to achieve . fig6 shows a reclining chair with the additional tilt mechanism in an enhanced tilt position . more particularly , in fig5 , top 320 of base 110 is in a somewhat horizontal position . as top 320 is the fixed link in the four - bar linkage that raises seat 111 , when top 320 is horizontal , seat 111 is also largely horizontal . lower base housing part 408 is pivotally connected to top 320 of base 110 at pivot point 121 . when the chair occupant reclines in the chair , the additional tilt mechanism lowers the rear portion of top 320 while the forward portion of top 320 remains in substantially the same position . this movement of top 320 moves 454 about pivot 452 , which in turn lowers spring housing 450 and increases the angle between the centerline of spring 125 and a vertical line going through the base of the centerline of spring 125 . this movement also increases the distance between pivot point 124 and the point at which spring 350 contacts back support 113 . as noted above , this rotation of spring 125 increases the distance of the center of spring pressure which in turn increases the force urging the chair back into its resting position . however , this spring force requires the additional force provided by the occupant &# 39 ; s weight to return the chair to the upright position when the chair occupant reclines . desirably , the additional tilt mechanism adds up to between about 1 ° and 15 ° of a forward tilt ( i . e ., a tilt in which the rear end of the seat rises in relation to the front ) and it is more preferred that the additional tilt mechanism adds up to between about 3 ° and 10 ° of a forward tilt . it is yet further preferred that the additional tilt mechanism adds up to between about 4 ° and 8 ° of forward tilt . in a particularly preferred embodiment , the additional tilt mechanism adds up to about 6 ° of a forward tilt . as noted above , the additional tilt mechanism add up to between about 1 ° and 12 ° of a rearward tilt ( i . e ., a tilt in which the rear end of the seat is lowered in relation to the front ). it is more preferred that the additional tilt mechanism adds up to between about 2 ° and 10 ° of a rearward tilt . it is yet further preferred that the additional tilt mechanism adds up to between about 3 ° and 7 ° of rearward tilt . in a particularly preferred embodiment , the additional tilt mechanism adds up to about 5 ° of a rearward tilt . in adding an additional rearward tilt , caution must be taken to prevent the chair from reclining to a position such that the center of gravity of the occupied chair is moved significantly behind pintle 114 to prevent the chair from tumbling over backwards . in a further aspect of the present invention , the chair is provided with a headrest that is urged forward as the back of the chair is tilted . the more the chair is tilted , the more the headrest moves forward . a preferred embodiment of this automatic headrest adjustment mechanism in a chair that incorporates both the reclining back that is opposed by the weight of the user and the automatically adjusting headrest developments of the present invention is illustrated by fig3 and 4 . specifically , in addition to the several elements discussed in connection with the reclining mechanism of the chair of fig1 , this embodiment also includes automatically adjusting headrest 370 . mounted to the back of headrest 370 ( also illustrated in an enlarged form in fig2 ) is vertical adjustment bar 380 . typically , there are a pair of parallel vertical adjustment bars 380 mounted to the back of headrest 370 . it is preferred that vertical adjustment bars have an adjustment range of between about 2 and 10 inches , and it is more preferred that these bars have an adjustment range of between about 3 and 7 inches in length . a particularly preferred range of vertical adjustment bar is about 5 inches . vertical adjustment bar ( s ) 380 pass through mounting 390 . it is preferred that mounting 390 and vertical adjustment bar 380 interact in a manner that retains the position of the headrest 370 relative to mounting 390 . for example , vertical adjustment bar 380 might be maintained in position within mounting 390 by a conventional frictional engagement . alternatively , vertical adjustment bar 380 might have a plurality of apertures through which a mounting bar might pass to anchor vertical adjustment bar 380 within mounting 390 . a further alternative might consist of a conventional ratchet mechanism or substantially any other conventional means for fixing the position of a bar within a mounting . mounting 390 is affixed to a carriage 385 . carriage 385 travels along a track on the interior side of back support extension 375 . back support extension 375 , and correspondingly the track along the interior side of back support 375 , is curved . the curve of back support extension 375 ( and hence of the interior track ) corresponds to the arc through which a user &# 39 ; s head travels when it the head is tilted back and forth when the user is seated . desirably , this arc has a centerpoint corresponding to an imaginary axis through the shoulder joint of the user and a radius corresponding to the distance from this centerpoint to the bottom of the user &# 39 ; s ear . at carriage connection 365 , carriage 385 is pivotally connected to rod 360 at point 367 . rod 360 is at its lower end , pivotally connected to seat support extension 725 at point 357 , which in turn is connected to seat support 119 . as the length of rod 360 is substantially fixed , the differential in arc between chair back 113 and lower rod pivot 725 combined with the additional lifting action of seat support 119 to which pivot 725 is a part results in an upward push on rod 360 which in turn moves head rest support carriage 385 in its track 375 to cause the desired upward and forward motion . this upward force causes carriage 385 to travel along the track that is on the interior side of back support 375 in an arcuate path . this movement of carriage 385 in turn , moves headrest from its position substantially aligned with back support 113 to a forward position shown in fig4 . as a result of this motion , headrest 370 is positioned by the reclining of the chair into the position where it provides the head of the chair user the support needed when the user reclines . cut away view fig2 a shows a spring and piston mechanism that can be used to hold vertical adjustment bar ( s ) 380 in place in mounting 390 . cut away view fig2 b shows how tongue 387 of carriage 385 fits into track groove 377 of back support extension 375 . cut away view fig2 c shows how back support extension 375 is secured to back 113 by a conventional attachment means such as a screw . fig2 and 22 provide alternative views of an embodiment of an automatically adjusting headrest according to the present invention . upper and lower interior portions of headrest 370 are connected by vertical adjustment bars 380 . vertical adjustment bars pass through mounting 390 as described above . mounting 390 is affixed to the upper portion of carriage 385 . near the lower portion , rod 360 is connected to carriage at point 365 . carriage 385 travels along a track in back support extension 375 and is propelled by a force applied to carriage 385 by rod 360 . exploded view fig2 shows an embodiment of the track in back support 375 along which carriage 385 travels . in this embodiment , the track is groove 377 which is in the interior side of each back support 375 . complementarily , carriage 385 has a tongue 387 on each exterior side adapted to fit within grooves 377 . yet another aspect of the present invention is a mechanism for fixing the position of the adjustable arms which can be used in any chair , including the reclining chair of the present invention . fig1 and 12 illustrate a preferred embodiment of the mechanism for fixing the position of the adjustable arms . in fig1 , the mechanism is engaged and the arm is secured in its position . the same mechanism is shown in fig1 where the mechanism is disengaged and the position of the arm can be readily changed . more particularly , fig1 shows armrest 600 in an in use ( and locked ) position . armrest 600 is attached by a pair of pivot joints 615 and 620 to corresponding substantially parallel bars 625 and 630 . these bars 625 and 630 are connected to back 113 . in this embodiment , back 113 has at least two ratchet surfaces 640 and 650 located on opposite sides of the interior of back 113 . secured to bar 625 by a connecting device 660 is locking bar 675 which has a ratchet face that is complementary to ratchet tooth 640 . similarly , secured to bar 630 by a connecting device 665 is locking bar 670 which has a ratchet face that is complementary to ratchet tooth 650 . when terminal end 610 of armrest 600 is gently raised , as shown in fig1 , bar 625 is pushed backward while concurrently bar 630 is pulled forward . this movement of bars 625 and 630 correspondingly cause complementary ratchet face 645 to disengage from ratchet tooth 640 and complementary ratchet face 655 to disengage from ratchet tooth 650 . in this disengaged condition , the armrests can be repositioned with very little effort . to assist the engagement of the ratchet faces with the complementary ratchet teeth , the reverse side of the locking bars ( 670 and 675 ) can have a chamber into which a spring 34 can push against a piston 690 that in turn pushes against an interior wall of a chamber inside back support arms 113 to drive the ratchet teeth into the complementary ratchet faces . typically , the armrests are attached to the back of the chair about 6 to 12 inches above the rear portion of the seat . commonly when a chair has two armrests that are coupled together , the two armrests are linked by a pair of substantially “ c ” shaped rods . the locking mechanism interacts with these substantially “ c ” shaped rods at the points where the rods pass through the support for the chair &# 39 ; s back , or a housing for this purpose mounted on the back of the chair . when the arms are not interconnected , the shape of the rods may be approximately quarter circle shaped . however , these shapes are general characterizations , any shape can be used provided the shape is effective to ( i ) position the two armrests substantially parallel to the sides of the seat ( if the armrests incorporate the horizontal adjustment development of the present invention , then the armrests should be substantially parallel to the sides of the seat when the armrests are in a centered position ) and ( ii ) not interfere with the user sitting back in the chair . u . s . pat . no . 5 , 292 , 097 to russell discloses a variety of alternative locking mechanisms that can readily be adapted for use in support of the armrest of the present invention . this patent is hereby incorporated by reference . fig1 and 14 illustrate an alternative embodiment of the mechanism for fixing the position of the adjustable arms . in this embodiment , only lower bar 630 has a ratchet face which engages with a ratchet tooth 650 . correspondingly , fig1 and 16 illustrate a further embodiment of the mechanism for fixing the position of the adjustable arms in which only upper bar 625 is connected to a ratchet face 645 that engages a ratchet tooth 640 . in a preferred embodiment of the mechanism for fixing the position of the adjustable arms , for a chair having a left and a right arm , the two arms are interconnected so that the adjustment of one arm adjusts the other . in such an embodiment , a preferred configuration is one in which only upper bar 625 on one arm , e . g ., the right arm , has a ratchet face 645 and a corresponding ratchet tooth 640 and on the other are , the left arm in this example , only the lower bar 630 has a ratchet face 655 and a ratchet tooth 650 . in such embodiments , there are two ratchet mechanisms ( one on an upper bar and one on a lower bar ) between the two arms that cooperate to control the positioning of the arms . fig1 provides an isometric view of a pair of armrests in which the upper and the lower bars are interconnected . specifically , armrests 600 are supported by upper bars 625 and lower bars 630 . within back supports 113 , the upper bars 625 and lower bars 630 engage and disengage with the positioning mechanisms . upper bars 625 are interconnected by connecting bar 637 and lower bars 630 are interconnected by connecting bar 633 . fig1 provides an isometric view of a pair of armrests in which the upper and lower bars are independent . in this embodiment , the repositioning of one arm does not effect the position of the other . fig1 provides an isometric view of a pair of armrests in which upper bars 625 are interconnected . in this embodiment , the repositioning of one arm is translated into the repositioning of the other arm by means of connecting bar 637 . in an alternative embodiment , connecting bar 637 may include a conventional means to connect and disconnect the bar , such as a sliding bar or a set screw . in such an embodiment , the user can choose to have the adjustment of one armrest adjust the other when the connecting bar is used or the adjustment of one armrest becomes independent of the other when the connecting bar is disengaged . fig2 shows yet a still further aspect of the present invention that can be incorporated into the reclining chair of the present invention or any other chair having a back support 113 and a separate seat back 112 . in this embodiment , a track 900 mounted on the forward side of back support 113 . seat back 112 has a pair of carriages adapted to travel on these tracks 900 . in addition , either track 900 or carriage 910 has a conventional locking mechanism for fixing the position of carriage 910 on track 900 . useful conventional locking mechanisms include ratchet mechanisms , levers that cause the carriage 910 to clamp onto track 900 , screw mechanisms , and mechanisms in which a pin is inserted to fix the carriage position . in a particularly preferred embodiment of the track 900 and carriage 910 mechanism , carriage 910 also has a conventional pivot mechanism that permits seat back 112 to rotate somewhat about this pivot and provide a further adjustment to better support the chair occupant . such an embodiment is illustrated in fig2 a . to fix carriage 910 into the appropriate position , lever 920 is attached to carriage 910 . mounted on lever 920 is pin 930 which when engaged fits into one of a plurality of slots 940 . conversely , when lever 920 is pulled and pin 930 is withdrawn from slot 940 , carriage 910 can be moved up or down along track 900 and then when lever 920 is returned to its engagement position , pin 930 enters a new slot 940 and secures seat back 112 into position . a spring can be employed to urge lever 920 into engagement . additionally , seat 111 , or alternatively a conventional seat pan located directly under seat 111 , can be mounted on a pair of carriages that are adapted to travel along a track mounted on the top of seat supports 119 . desirably such carriages would also have a conventional means for fixing the position of the carriages on the track . additionally , it is also desirable that such tracks have stops on each end of the track to prevent the carriage from traveling beyond the end of the tracks . by putting seat 111 on such a track mechanism , the user is provided with yet another means of ensuring that the seat conforms the geometry of the user &# 39 ; s body , and not vice versa . a further development in armrests that can be incorporated into the adjustable armrests of the present invention , or into conventional armrests is a mechanism to permit pivotal horizontal repositioning of the armrests as illustrated in fig2 through 33 . for instance , as shown in fig2 , armrest 600 can be pivoted either inward or outward . this additional pivoting of the armrest allows the user to position the armrest under the user &# 39 ; s forearm when the user is performing a task such as typing on a keyboard . as a result , the chair provides more support to the user and as a result , it is believed that the user will be less worn as a result of using such support . turning now to fig2 , a top 800 view of an embodiment of a pivoting armrest taken without the cushioning . starting at the back of armrest 600 , there is clevis base 810 which attaches to bars 625 and 630 to support armrest 600 . within clevis base 810 there is a pivot pin that permits the rotation of armrest 600 about pin 805 . however , to restrict the range of rotation available in armrest 600 , attached to pivot pin 805 is index arm 820 whose motion is restricted by index arm limiters 815 . additionally , to prevent free pivoting of armrest 600 , the armrest also has bar 825 with grooves into which index bar 820 can be secured . in the embodiment of fig2 , bar 825 is locked into place ( or permitted to swing freely ) by the cooperative action of spring 830 , cam follower 840 , cam cut - out 845 and sliding lock - release control 835 . when sliding lock - release control 835 is in the position shown , spring 830 urges bar 825 towards index arm 820 so as to lock pivoting armrest 600 in place . however , when sliding lock - release control is slid into its alternate position , cam follower 840 is positioned in its alternate position in cam cut - out 845 , which releases the tension of spring 830 on bar 825 and thereby permitting index arm 820 to be moved into a different groove . if cam follower 840 is left in the detent position , lock bar 825 is disengaged so that armrest 600 can move freely . in a further preferred embodiment of the pivoting armrest , the distance between adjacent grooves represents about 5 ° of pivoting . thus , if there are six grooves , armrest 600 can be pivoted through about 30 ° of pivoting . fig2 shows a side view of a pivoting armrest embodiment . in this view , armrest 600 is attached to bars 625 and 630 by conventional fastening means 615 and 620 , respectively . useful fastening means include nuts and bolts , and clevis pins . also in this view clevis base 810 is seen as is pivot pin 805 . additionally , index arm limiter 815 is seen in the plane of index arm 820 . spring 830 urges bar 825 into index arm 820 . sliding lock - release control 835 projects out slightly from armrest 600 . screws 850 attach the cushioning top to the armrest body . it is particularly preferred that the sliding lock - release control 835 is positioned under the interior tip of the user &# 39 ; s thumb on one side and the user &# 39 ; s fingers on the other so that the user can readily adjust the pivot position of the armrest . fig2 shows a rear view of a pivoting armrest . in this view , clevis base 810 and sliding lock - release controller 835 are apparent . fig2 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 28 — 28 in fig2 . in this view , both the locked and released positions of sliding lock - release control 835 can be seen . fig2 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 29 — 29 in fig2 . fig3 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 30 — 30 in fig2 . fig3 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 31 — 31 in fig2 . fig3 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 32 — 32 in fig2 . fig3 shows a sectional view of armrest 600 taken along line 33 — 33 in fig2 . | 0 |
a simplified consumer digital audio video system is illustrated in fig1 . sources of packetized , compressed audio video and control data are shown coupled for decoding and display . a receiver , ird 100 is depicted coupled to a receiving antenna 50 , however , a modulated signal may be provided from a cable distribution network ( not shown ). the modulated packetized signal is tuned , demodulated and a user determined program is separated within the block indicated as packet source 109 . an output of packet source 109 comprises a transport packet stream of audio video and control data which is mpeg decoded to produce audio and video signals by decoder 117 . the output from decoder 117 is coupled for monitoring by display 300 . other sources of packetized signals are shown coupled with a dotted line as alternative data streams for mpeg decoding by decoder 117 . thus decoder 117 may be utilized to decode transport streams from external packet sources thereby reducing the cost of these other sources . for example , packet source 75 may represent a computer forming a packetized output signal . such a signal may be derived from a computer memory , or may originate from an external source such as a computer network . such a computer source may reproduce compressed audio video and control data from disk memory . in addition , packet source 75 may represent a digital video disk player such as , for example , a dvd format device . a further source of transport packets may be provided by a magnetic tape player recorder , packet source 200 , which may have a format in accordance with , for example , d - vhs or dvc standards . a simplified consumer digital video receiver , recorder and display system is illustrated in the exemplary block diagram of fig2 . the system employs a digital video signal source , for example an integrated receiver decoder or ird 100 , an audio video monitor display device 300 and a digital video cassette recorder 200 , for example employing a d - vhs or dvc format . in the illustrated system , a digital video representative signal is modulated on an rf carrier and received by an antenna 50 . antenna 50 is coupled to an integrated receiver decoder ird 100 . however , a modulated carrier may be delivered to receiver 100 by a cable distribution system ( not shown ). the integrated receiver decoder 100 is tuned to the rf carrier frequency and demodulates therefrom an mpeg compatible transport data stream modulation . the transport data stream may be decoded to produce analog audio and video signals for immediate monitoring by audio video display 300 . the decoded output signals are represented by signals 101 and 104 , which are coupled between receiver , ird 100 and display 300 . cost considerations may dictate that digital recorder 200 does not include mpeg encoding and decoding . hence digital recorder 200 functions as a bit stream recorder / player , to provide time shifting or program delay capability . the omission of mpeg processing and the degree of complexity required to facilitate non - standard speed replay capability , precludes image reproduction in shuttle , slow motion or trick - play modes . thus in summary , receiver 100 couples an mpeg compatible packet stream to digital a / v bus 112 for recording by recorder 200 . similarly a reproduced packet stream from recorder 200 is coupled back to the receiver for mpeg decoding , and audio / video generation . an additional consequence of omitting mpeg processing from the recorder is that status messages , in the form of on - screen display messages or osds , cannot be combined or added to the replay packetized bit stream . thus the operational status of the recorder is not readily obvious to the user . in addition , since recorder image data is only available during record , play and stop modes , the user may be uncertain as to the responsiveness of the recorder following control commands . for example , transitioning from play to rewind may result in the replay image switching for example , to the input bit stream , a condition known as electronics to electronics or e to e , or for example , the replay image may disappear and be replaced by frozen frame derived by the ird , or perhaps the moving image may be substituted by a colored field . thus the user may not readily associate these visual display effects as indicia of recorder mode responsiveness . the system illustrated in fig2 , shows a first inventive interconnection arrangement where a demodulated transport bit stream is coupled from receiver ird 100 to recorder 200 via a bi - directional data bus 112 . the transport packet stream is coupled to the data bus via an interface port 110 and is received at recorder 200 by means of interface port 210 . the interface ports are controlled via a control data stream which is carried on a separate conductor included with data bus 112 . control signals may be derived from user input by activation of control switches ( not shown ), or by user generated ir remote control commands . for example , a user may chose to monitor a digital audio video signal received by dish antenna 50 . the receiver may be selected by touch or via a remote control , for example ir . receiver selection may result in the automatic monitoring the display selection , i . e . the display is automatically switched to monitor the mpeg decoded audio video outputs . the user may select a digital record mode which results in coupling the received transport stream from ird 100 via bus 112 to the recorder and initiating recording . similarly selection of a digital recorder play mode results in a replayed data stream being coupled via bus 112 for decoding by decoder 117 of receiver 100 . the mpeg compatible , packetized signal is coupled to recorder 200 and processed for recording by block d . rec . 210 . a buffer memory is included in block d . rec . 210 , and buffers the data stream to establish a signal more suited for recording than the packetized signal comprising bursts of data with variable duration gaps . the buffered data stream is read from the buffer to form record format sync blocks which may be encoded with error detection / correction data words . the sync block formatted data stream may be modulated for recording as described , and coupled from recording block d . rec . 210 via a selector switch a 4 . selector switches a 4 and a 5 are controlled responsive to the selected d - vcr operating mode . for example , in fig2 switches a 4 and a 5 are shown , for digital recording and reproduction , with switch contacts dr , digital record and dp digital playback coupling data streams to and from a rotating head assembly 250 . for analog operation , switches a 4 and a 5 assume the alternate position as indicated by ar , analog record and ap analog playback . the sync block formatted data stream from d . rec . 210 is coupled to rotating head assembly 250 for recording on a magnetic tape . in a play mode the recorded sync block formatted data stream is reproduced from the magnetic tape by heads positioned on assembly 250 . the recovered signal is demodulated by digital replay block d . rep . 220 , to remove any recording channel modulation . the replay signal is then subject to error detection and correction by means of the data words inserted prior to recording . following error correction , the sync block formatting is removed and the bit stream restored to have substantially the same the packet format as that coupled to the recorder for recording . the packet stream from block d . rep . 220 is coupled to interface port 210 which , responsive to the recorder play mode couples the packet stream to the bi - directional data bus 112 for mpeg decoding by decoder 117 . integrated receiver decoder 100 decodes the mpeg compatible packet stream and generates both video and audio output signals . for example , fig2 illustrates video and audio output signals 101 and 102 and a component video signal 104 , for example s - video . however , these digitally reproduced video signals are without recorder status information usually provided by means of an on - screen display or osd . receiver ird 100 , shown in simplified form in fig2 , comprises a controller , ctrl . 115 , which provides overall control of the receiver , for example tuning , packet header control demultiplexing , bus interface control and selection of packet source for coupling to mpeg decoder 117 . in addition the receiver status , or operational mode , may be indicated by means of an on - screen display message added to the decoded video signals . controller 115 may construct an on - screen display message or may read a predetermined stored message from memory block mem . 510 . the on - screen display message or osd is coupled to an osd inserted or adder , block 520 where the message is formatted for analog video display and added or combined with the mpeg decoded video signal . the video with osd signal is coupled out via output amplifier 118 for display by monitor display 300 . in fig2 recorder player 200 includes an on - screen display generator , osd . gen . 270 , coupled to a control system ctrl 205 . in response to signals from the recorder control system 205 , osd generator 270 generates status or warning messages appropriate to the operation condition . these messages are formatted as video signals for insertion or combination with an analog video signal in block , osd . add 275 . analog video signals are coupled to the on - screen display adder 275 from a video selector block sel . 280 . selector 280 is controlled by control system 205 and provides selection capability between various analog signal sources . for example , switch a 1 provides analog input signal selection between a tuner derived signal , a baseband analog signal input and an mpeg decoded audio video output signal 102 . the output from switch a 1 is coupled for analog recording by block a . rec . selector switch a 3 of sel 280 advantageously provides selection of signal coupling to on - screen display adder 275 . in fig2 switch a 3 is shown providing an inventive coupling of the video component of output signal 102 to the input of on - screen display adder 275 . thus , recorder player 200 status messages generated , for example during playback , may be added to video signal component 102 decoded from the output transport packet stream . thus the digitally derived mpeg decoded replay signal with on - screen messages added , signal 103 , may be viewed by display 300 . during analog operation of recorder player 200 , switch a 3 couples an analog replay signal , shown as signal vhs , to on - screen display adder 275 . thus during analog operation osd messages are added to the analog replay video signal . when digital recording is selected , osd messages may be advantageously added to the analog video signal 102 decoded from the reproduced bit stream . thus , by means of this advantageous feedback connection recorder status messages are combined with the video component and output as analog signal 103 . switch a 2 of selector sel . 280 advantageously provides a connection which bypasses on - screen display adder 275 and allows output signal 102 to be coupled directly to monitor display 300 . thus the bypass action of switch a 2 allows viewing of decoded output signals and removes the possibility of signal degradation due to adder 275 . the bypass path a 2 may be automatically selected when the recorder is off , in a stand by mode , or when viewing a decoded , non - recorded “ live ” bit stream . to permit viewing of decoded non - recorded signals during analog recording , the bypass switch may be manually activated . the advantageous bypass connection obviates unnecessary analog recorder signal processing , for example via the e / e recorder path which inherently degrades the digitally derived signal 102 . in addition the advantageous bypass function may be facilitated , for example by mechanical contact , such that switch a 2 allows receiver ird 100 to be connected to monitor display 300 without regard to the operational status of recorder 200 . on - screen display generator 270 generates messages formatted with specific horizontal and vertical synchronizing timing such that when inserted into the video signal the message is displayed at a predetermined position on the display screen . however , when operating in the digital replay mode and employing the advantageous feedback connection discussed above , osd messages may be advantageously generated with horizontal and vertical synchronizing timing which is different from that employed during analog recorder operation . this different horizontal and vertical synchronizing timing advantageously compensates for replay signal propagation and mpeg decoding delays encountered , for example , in receiver 100 . thus , the use of different osd synchronizing timing advantageously achieves substantially the same predetermined message position in either analog or digital recorder operation . processing and mpeg decoding time delays may amount to periods of multiple frames . a multiple frame delay , or temporal offset , will result in an osd message preceding an actual reproduced visual event . this temporal offset , where the recorder osd message precedes a reproduced event , may be revealed as a consequence of a user control command and the delayed appearance of the corresponding reproduced image effect . the temporal offset may represent a more significant problem when displaying a recorded time code signal or the recorder tape timer . for example , during tape replay specific events may be noted from an on - screen display of the recorder tape timer or an osd of a recorded time code signal . the noted times allow for subsequent location of the selected events . however , should the noted times be used as edit points for electronic editing performed between recorders , the resultant edited scenes will precede those selected during previewing . the effect of the temporal offset between the message and the replay image may be advantageously eliminated by a delaying , message generation , message communication , osd presentation or by modifying the tape timer / time code numbers or count . in recorder 200 a delay , depicted as dly . 207 , may be selected by switches a 7 or a 8 . for example , when decoded video signal 102 is fed back for recorder osd message insertion at block 275 , an osd message command may be generated responsive to controller 205 . the message command signal cmd , from controller 205 is illustrated coupled to switch a 7 and delay dly 207 . switch a 7 is controlled responsive to the recording mode selected for recorder 200 , i . e . analog or digital . switch a 7 is shown in the digital mode , and selects a delayed version of signal cmd from delay 207 . the delayed command signal results in the generation and insertion of an osd message which is substantially coincident with decoded video signal . an alternative arrangement employs switch a 8 which may insert delay 207 into the output from the osd generator 270 . in this arrangement switch a 7 is connected to the output of controller 205 . switch a 8 may also be employed to delay coupling of signal cmd to bus 112 and ird 100 . the temporal offset between the osd message and the decoded replay image may also be corrected in receiver 100 by the introduction of a delay , for example as depicted by dly . 116 , into either the memory accessing signal or the memory output signal . synchronization of repay image and osd may be achieved by various methods , for example , by means of a delay using a clocked data latch , shift register , monostable multivibrator , etc . a tape timer or time code osd may be synchronized with the decoded image , for example during edit mode preview by arithmetic manipulation of the display numerals . thus the selected image and associated display numerals may be entered to enable an electronic edit to be performed . during analog operation of recorder 200 the command signal cmd , from controller 205 is not delayed and switch a 7 couples directly to generator 270 . in another inventive embodiment , on - screen display messages originated by recorder 200 , may advantageously utilize the on - screen display capability of receiver 100 . recorder derived messages may be coupled via the control conductor of data bus 112 to receiver 100 for on - screen display insertion at block osd 520 of fig2 . the recorder message data may be formatted as a text message by generator 270 , to which a tag or label is appended . the tagged text message shown as signal 271 is coupled to controller 115 of ird 100 for separation from other control bus data . following separation the text message is coupled for display formatting and video insertion by osd 520 . the text message is generated responsive to osd command signal cmd from controller 205 . as described earlier , signal cmd may be subject to delay at block 207 . however , the text message from block 270 may be delayed at an alternative point by switch a 7 insertion of delay 207 . in a further inventive embodiment , receiver 100 includes a memory 510 which contains receiver on - screen display messages and osd messages specific to recorder 200 . recorder specific messages may be accessed responsive to recorder on - screen display command signal , cmd , which may be coupled via the control bus to controller 115 . in recorder 200 the on - screen display command signal cmd , is generated by controller 205 which in addition determines the message to be generated . thus command signal cmd , may be advantageously coupled to receiver 100 to enable accessing and display formatting of recorder specific graphical messages stored in memory 510 . in yet another inventive arrangement receiver 100 may adaptively select between the recorder text message or a receiver graphical message responsive to a recorder command . the selection between the recorder text or ird graphical message display permits the interconnection of recorders and receivers of differing ages having different features and facilities . for example , an older receiver may be connected to a recently manufactured recorder thus , the receiver memory may not contain preprogrammed graphical messages to support recorder on - screen message presentation . thus the receiver may display the simple text message generated by the recorder . conversely , a more modern receiver may be preprogrammed with selections of graphical messages for a variety of products of various manufactured ages and these various graphical messages may be displayed in place of the recorder text message . selection between simple text or graphical message is facilitated by the tag or label which is appended to the text message . for example , the tag or label may contain the command signal cmd which selects , and enables the required recorder specific message . in addition the label may provide sufficient data capacity to communicate recorder profile information relating to , for example , the date of recorder manufacture , model , version or revision level and serial number . when the text message with tag or label is received by controller 115 , the tag or label is interpreted which results in the selection of a recorder specific graphical message from ird memory 510 . however , if the receiver memory is not preprogrammed with the specified recorder message or with a message specific to the recorder profile , the tag enables formatting and display of the appended simple text message . as described previously a delay element may be inserted to compensate for temporal and spatial displacement between the osd message , text or graphical , and the replayed decoded image . fig3 illustrates the use of a reduced cost display , for example , as depicted as display 301 . to reduce the display cost the number of signal inputs may be limited to , for example , an rf input , a component video or s - video input and one audio video signal input . the advantageous selection and bypass capability of selector 280 of fig2 , permits display 301 to monitor recorded , and non - recorded material via a single a / v input . | 7 |
evidence is available that neurotransmission in the cns is disturbed in psychiatric and neurologic diseases . in many instances , for example in schizophrenia or parkinson &# 39 ; s disease , pharmacotherapies based on antagonism or agonism at dopamine receptors are useful , but not optimal . in recent years much efforts have been put on finding novel and selective ligands for dopamine receptor subtypes ( d 1 , d 2 , d 3 , d 4 , d 5 ) with the aim to improve efficacy and reduce side effects . the present invention offers another principle for novel therapeutics based on interactions with dopamine systems . the compounds according to the invention have effects on brain neurochemistry similar to antagonists at dopamine d 2 receptors . in contrast to currently used dopamine receptor antagonists the compounds according to the invention show no or limited inhibitory effects on spontaneous locomotion . they may induce behavioral activation with concomitant increases in small - scale movements , e . g . stops in the center of the behavior recording arena , similar to that induced by dopaminergic agonists . the behavioral activation is limited , not reaching the profound increases in activity induced by direct or indirect dopamine receptor agonists . surprisingly , the preferred substances can actually reduce the increase in activity induced by direct or indirect dopaminergic agonists , i . e . d - amphetamine and congeners . the preferred structures are substituted in the meta position on the aromatic ring . an example of such a compound is methanesulfonic acid 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenyl ester , which is shown in example 14 below . in rat , this compound increases 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the striatum from 1265 ± 74 ( controls ) to 3208 ± 236 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c . in combination with a slight increase in behavioral activity ; 1485 ± 328 cm / 30 min ( controls ) to 2126 ± 240 cm / 30 min at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., n = 4 . another preferred example of a compound according to the invention is 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl - piperidine , further illustrated in example 6 . in rat , this compound increases 3 , 4 - dihydroxy - phenylacetic acid in the striatum from 914 ± 19 ( controls ) to 1703 ± 19 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c . this increase in dopamine turnover is followed by a trend towards an increase in motor activity from 2030 ± 299 cm / 60 min to 2879 ± 398 cm / 60 min p = 0 . 14 . in animals habituated to the motilitymeter box the compound described in example 6 , 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl - piperidine , increases behavioral activity from 476 ± 279 cm / 60 min ( controls ) to 1243 ± 72 cm / 60 min , p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and 4 - dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the striatum from 975 ± 23 ( controls ) to 2074 ± 144 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 . in addition , the compound described in example 6 , 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl - piperidine , has the preferred ability to reduce behavioral activation induced by both d - amphetamine ( 1 . 5 mg / kg s . c .) and dizolcipine ( mk - 801 , 0 , 7 mg / kg i . p .). d - amphetamine hyperactivity is reduced from 10694 ± 2165 cm / 60 min to 1839 ± 344 cm / 60min , p & lt ; 0 . 05 n = 4 , at 50 μmol / kg s . c . of the compound described in example 6 and behavioral activation induced by dizolcipine ( mk - 801 ) is reduced from 32580 ± 4303 cm / 60 min to 18197 ± 1389 cm / 60 min p & lt ; 0 . 05 , at 50 μmol / kg sc . surprisingly , the compound described in example 6 has an oral availability ( f ) of 85 % in rat . unlike the somewhat similar compounds described in wo91 / 09594 , the compound of example 6 , 4 -( 3 - methane - sulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl - piperidine , lacks affinity at the sigma receptor , & lt ; 50 % inhibition of [ 3 h ]- dtg binding ( according to a method for measurement of sigma binding described by shirayama y . et al ., 1993 , eur . j . pharmacol . 237 , p 117 ) at 10 μmol / l to rat brain membranes . in order to demonstrate the surprising effects of the compounds according to the invention , some of the compounds have been compared to similar compounds according to prior art . the compounds - used for comparison with the compounds according to the invention in the comparative examples are thus not compounds according to the invention since they do not exhibit the desired properties . 4 -( 4 - methanesulphonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl piperidine illustrates that substitution in the para position yields inactive compounds . 4 -( 4 - methanesulphonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl piperidine has no effect on 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenyl - acetic acid in the striatum as demonstrated in the neurochemical experiment ; 988 ± 70 ( controls ) ng / g tissue and 928 ± 51 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c . 4 -( 4 - methanesulphonyl - phenyl )- 1 - propyl piperidine does not have the properties desired according to the invention . to further illustrate the importance of the substitition on the aromatic ring for the desired properties , 4 - phenyl - 1 - propyl - piperidine is demonstrated to lack activity in the behavioral assay in the non - pre - treated rat , 3661 ± 494 cm / 60 min , controls , to 2553 ± 471 cm / 60 min , p & gt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , at 33 μmol / kg and lacks effects on 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenyl - acetic acid in the striatum as demonstrated in the neurochemical experiment ; 1027 ± 31 ( controls ) ng / g tissue and 1190 ± 70 ng / g tissue at 33 μmol / kg s . c ., p & gt ; 0 . 05 ., 4 - phenyl - 1 - propyl - piperidine ] also lacks the desired inhibition of behavioral activity in the d - amphetamine stimulated ( 17295 ± 4738 cm / 60 min , d - amphetamine , to 13764 ± 2919 cm / 60 min , n = 4 , p & gt ;& gt ; 0 . 05 at 33 μmol / kg . further , 1 - phenyl - 4 - propyl - piperazine , described as sigma receptor binding compound in wo91 / 09594 , is found to reduce behavioral activity in the non - pre - treated animal , from 3370 ± 227 , controls , to 1923 ± 204 cm / 60 min , n = 4 , p & lt ; 0 . 05 at 33 μmol / kg s . c ., thus lacking the properties sought for . substitution in the ortho position as exemplified by 1 -( 2 - methoxy - phenyl )- 4 - propyl piperazine yields a compound which increases 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the striatum from 1028 ± 9 ( controls ) ng / g tissue to 3836 ± 65 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 . this is followed by the behavioral inhibition not sought for in the present invention ; 1651 ± 300 cm / 60 min ( controls ) to 67 ± 34 cm / 60 min , at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 . the properties of the substituent in the meta position are important . 1 - propyl - 4 -( 3 - triflouro - methyl - phenyl ) piperazine increases 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenyl - acetic acid in the striatum from 1066 ± 46 ( controls ) ng / g tissue to 3358 ± 162 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , however , followed by behavioral inhibition from 1244 ± 341 cm / 60 min ( controls ) to 271 ± 137 at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , thus , lacking the properties sought for in the present invention . further , the compound of 3 -( 4 - propyl - piperazine - 1 - yl )- benzonitrile increases 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenyl - acetic acid in the striatum from 1432 ± 57 ( controls ) ng / g tissue to 4498 ± 243 ng / g tissue at 100 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and reduces 5 - hydroxy - indole acetic acid from 630 ± 16 ( controls ) ng / g tissue to 484 ± 26 ng / g tissue at 100 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 . these effects are followed by behavioral inhibition from 3959 ± 688 cm / 60 min ( controls ) to 634 ± 266 at 100 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , thus , lacking the properties sought for in the present invention . 3 -( 4 - propyl - piperazine - 1 - yl )- benzonitrile has the following properties : m . p . 159 ° c . ( fumarate ) ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 229 ( m +, 28 ), 200 ( bp ), 157 ( 27 ), 129 ( 22 ), 70 ( 25 ). another example of the importance of the substituent is preparation 14 which has no effect on 3 , 4 - dihydroxy - phenyl - acetic acid in the striatum ; 1121 ± 36 ( controls ) ng / g tissue to 1169 ± 42 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c . the physicochemical properties of the substituent on the basic nitrogen is also important for the desired profile . it is not possible to use any substituent , which is exemplified by 1 - phenethyl - 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - phenyl )- piperazine described as a sigma receptor ligand in wo 91 / 09594 and wo 93 / 00313 which has some effects on 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the striatum ; 852 ± 33 ( controls ) to 1406 ± 77 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , but also reduces both 5 - hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the striatum from 358 ± 20 ( controls ) to 289 ± 16 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and serotonin ( 5 - ht ) from 379 ± 10 ( controls ) to 282 ± 6 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , which is an undesired property according to this invention but in accordance with the reported ic50 of 20 , 3 nm at the 5 - ht 1a receptor ( wo 93 / 00313 ). in addition , 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and 3 -( 1 - benzyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol , compounds with benzylic substitution on the basic nitrogen , both has the undesired property to interact with serotonin systems in the brain . 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine increases 5 - hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the striatum from 428 ± 20 ( controls ) to 487 ± 7 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and reduces serotonin ( 5 - ht ) from 442 ± 15 ( controls ) to 345 ± 18 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and induces the serotonin behavioral syndrome ( serotonin behavioral syndrome is e . g . described by tricklebank et al ., 1985 , eur . j . pharmacol , 106 , pp 271 - 282 ). 3 -( 1 - benzyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol has the undesired ability to increse 5 - hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the striatum from 404 ± 10 ( controls ) to 492 ± 26 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 , and reduces serotonin in the limbic region ( 5 - ht ) from 734 ± 8 ( controls ) to 677 ± 20 ng / g tissue at 50 μmol / kg s . c ., p & lt ; 0 . 05 , n = 4 . substitution on the basic nitrogen according to 2 -[ 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperazin - 1 - yl ]- ethanol ] ( described in gb 2027703 ) renders compounds which are inactive in the behavioral activity test ; 3238 ± 1089 cm / 60 min ( controls ) to 3782 ± 962 cm / 60 min at 33 μmol / kg s . c ., n = 4 , p & gt ; 0 . 05 , as well as in the neurochemical test ; effects on 3 , 4 - dihydroxyphenylacetic acid in the striatum ; 1158 ± 126 ( controls ) to 1239 ± 162 ng / g tissue at 33 μmol / kg s . c ., n = 4 , p & gt ; 0 . 05 . the compounds according to the invention are especially suitable for treatment of disorders in the central nervous system , and particularly for treatment of dopamine mediated disorders . they may , e . g . used to ameliorate symptoms of mood disorders , in obesitas as an anorectic agent and in other eating disorders , to improve cognitive functions and related emotional disturbances , to improve cognitive and motor dysfunctions associated with developmental disorders , to improve all symptoms of schizophrenia and schizophreniform disorders as well as other psychoses , to improve ongoing symptoms as well as to prevent the occurrence of new psychotic episodes , to regulate pathological disorders due to intake of food , coffee , tea , tobacco , alcohol , addictive drugs etc . the compounds according to the invention can thus be used to treat symptoms in e . g . : schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders , such as catatonic , disorganized , paranoid , residual or differentiated schizophrenia ; schizophreniform disorder ; schizoaffective disorder ; delusional disorder ; brief psychotic disorder ; shared psychotic disorder ; psychotic disorder due to a general medical condition with delusions and / or hallucinations ; mood disorders , such as depressive disorders , e . g ., dysthymic disorder or major depressive disorder ; bipolar disorders , e . g ., bipolar i disorder , bipolar ii disorder , and cyclothymic disorder ; mood disorder due to a general medical condition with depressive , and / or manic features ; and substance - induced mood disorder ; anxiety disorders , such as acute stress disorder , agoraphobia without history of panic disorder , anxiety disorder due to general medical condition , generalized anxiety disorder , obsessive - compulsive disorder , panic disorder with agoraphobia , panic disorder without agoraphobia , posttraumatic stress disorder , specific phobia , social phobia , and substance - induced anxiety disorder ; eating disorders , such as anorexia nervosa , bulimia nervosa , and obesitas ; sleep disorders , such as dyssomnias , e . g ., breathing - related sleep disorder , circadian rhythm sleep disorder , hypersomnia , insomnia , narcolepsy , and “ jet lag ”; impulse - control disorders not elsewhere classified , such as intermittent explosive disorder , kleptomania , pathological gambling , pyromania , and trichotillomania ; personality disorders , such as paranoid , schizoid or schizotypal disorder ; antisocial , borderline , histrionic , and narcissistic disorder ; and avoidant , dependent , obsessive - compulsive disorder ; medication - induced movement disorders , such as neuroleptic induced parkinsonism , neuroleptic malignant syndrome , neuroleptic induced acute and tardive dystonia , neuroleptic induced akathisia , neuroleptic induced tardive dyskinesia , medication induced tremor , and medication induced dyskinesias ; substance - related disorders , such as abuse , dependence , anxiety disorder , intoxication , intoxication delirium , psychotic disorder , psychotic disorder with delusions , mood disorder , persisting amnestic disorder , persisting dementia , persisting perception disorder , sexual dysfunction , sleep disorder , withdrawal , and withdrawal delirium due to use ore misuse of alcohol , amphetamine ( or amphetamine - like substances ), caffeine , cannabis , cocaine , hallucinogens , inhalants , nicotine , opioids , phencyclidine ( or phencyclidine - like substances ), sedative substances , hypnotic substances , and / or anxiolytic substances ; disorders usually first . diagnosed in infancy , childhood , or adolescence , such as mental retardation ; learning disorders ; motor skills disorders , e . g . developmental coordination disorder ; communication disorders , e . g . expressive language disorder , phonological disorder , receptive - expressive language disorder and stuttering ; pervasive developmental disorders , e . g . asperger &# 39 ; s disorder , autistic disorder , childhood disintegrative disorder , and rett &# 39 ; s disorder ; attention - deficit and disruptive behavior disorders , e . g . attention - deficit / hyperactivity disorder , conduct disorder , and oppositional defiant disorder ; feeding and eating disorders of infancy or early childhood , e . g . feeding disorder of infancy or early childhood , pica , rumination disorder ; tic disorders , e . g . chronic motor or vocal tic disorder , and tourette &# 39 ; s disorder ; other disorders of infancy , childhood , or adolescence , e . g . selective mutism , and stereotypic movement disorder ; delirium , dementia , amnestic and other cognitive disorders , such as alzheimer &# 39 ; s , creutzfeldt - jakob disease , dead trauma , huntington &# 39 ; s disease , hiv disease , pick &# 39 ; s disease , and diffuse lewy body dementia ; conversion hysteria ; conditions connected to normal aging , such as disturbances in motor functions and mental functions ; parkinson &# 39 ; s disease and related disorders , such as multiple system atrophies , e . g . striatonigral degeneration , olivopontocerebellar atrophy , and shydrager syndrome ; progressive supranuclear palsy ; corticobasal degeneration ; and vascular parkinsonism ; tremors , such as essential , orthostatic , rest , cerebellar , and secondary tremor headaches , such as migraine , cluster headache , tension type headache , and paroxysmal headache ; movement disorders , such as dyskinesias , e . g . in deneral medicine condition , secondary to trauma or vascular insult , hemiballism , athetosis , sydenham &# 39 ; s chorea , and paroxyssmal ; dystonias ; ekbom &# 39 ; s syndrome ( restless legs ); wilson &# 39 ; s disease ; hallerworden - spatz disease ; rehabilitation medicine , e . g . to improve rehabilitation after vascular or traumatic brain injury ; pain in conditions characterized by increased muscular tone , such as fibromyalgia , myofascial syndrome , dystonia , and parkinsonism ; as well as conditions related to the above that fall within the larger categories but does not meet the criteria of any specific disorder within those categories . the synthesis of the present compounds is carried out by methods that are conventional for the synthesis of related known compounds . the syntheses of compounds in formula 1 , in general , comprise the reaction of an intermediate that supplies the alkyl group with an intermediate piperidine or piperazine that supplies the amine group of formula 2 : a convenient method of synthesis of the present compounds is by use of an alkyl iodide ( e . g . 1 - propyl - iodide ). alternatively , other leaving groups besides iodide may be used on the alkyl group , of course , such as sulfonates , particularly methanesulfonate or toluenesulfonate , bromo and the like . the alkyl intermediate is reacted with the appropriate amine in the presence of any convenient acid scavenger . the usual bases such as alkali metal or alkaline earth metal carbonates , bicarbonates and hydroxides are useful acid scavengers , as are some organic bases such as trialkylamines and trialkanolamines . the reaction medium for such reactions may be any convenient organic solvent which is inert to the basic conditions ; acetonitrile , esters such as ethylacetate and the like and halogenated alkane solvents are useful . usually the reactions will be carried out at elevated temperatures such as from ambient temperature to the reflux temperature of the reaction mixture , particularly from 50 ° c . to about 100 ° c . another convenient method of synthesis of the present compounds involves reductive amination with an amine of formula 2 : with an aldehyde or ketone , either in the presence of a reducing agent such as sodium cyanoborohydride or sodium triacetoxyborohydride or followed by reduction , e . g . using catalytic hydrogenation , to give a corresponding compound of formula 1 . where z is a leaving group like iodide . other leaving groups besides iodide may be used on the alkyl group , of course , such as sulfonates , particularly methanesulfonate or toluenesulfonate , bromo and the like . the alkyl intermediate is reacted with the appropriate amine in the presence of any convenient acid scavenger . the usual bases such as alkali metal or alkaline earth metal carbonates , bicarbonates and hydroxides are useful acid scavengers , as are some organic bases such as trialkylamines and trialkanolamines . the reaction is performed in a suitable solvent such as n - butanol by heating at about 50 - 150 ° c . compounds of the formula 1 wherein x ═ n is also accomplished by reacting compounds of formula 6 : where z is halide e . g . chloro , bromo , iodo , or sulfonate e . g . — oso 2 cf 3 , or — oso 2 f , in the presence of a base and a zerovalent transition metal catalyst such as pd or ni , according to known method ( tetrahedron letters , vol 37 , 1996 , 4463 - 4466 , j . org . chem ., vol . 61 , 1996 , 1133 - 1135 ). the catalyst , preferably pd will have the ability to form ligand complex and undergo oxidative addition . typical pd catalysts will be pd 2 ( dba ) 3 ( wherein dba refers to di - benzylidene acetone ), pd ( pph 3 ) 4 , pd ( oac ) 2 , or pdcl 2 [ p ( o - tol ) 3 ] 2 and typical phosphine ligands will be binap , p ( o - tol ) 3 , dppf , or the like . the usual bases such as alkali metal or alkaline earth metal carbonates , bicarbonates and alkyloxides are useful acid scavengers , as are some organic bases such as trialkylamines and trialkanolamines . the reaction medium for such reactions may be any convenient organic solvents , which are inert to the basic conditions ; acetonitrile , toluene , dioxane , nmp ( n - methyl - 2 - pyrrolidone ), dme ( dimethoxyethane ), dmf ( n , n - dimethylformamide ), dmso ( dimethylsulfoxide ) and thf ( tetrahydrofuran ) solvents are useful . usually the reactions will be carried out at elevated temperatures such as from ambient temperature to the reflux temperature of the reaction mixture , particularly from 50 ° c . to about 120 ° c . compounds of the formula 1 wherein x ═ n is also accomplished by reacting compounds of formula 6 with an aryl substituted with a leaving group ( e . g . f or cl ) via nucleophilic aromatic displacement reactions in the presence of a base as explained above . compounds of the formula 1 wherein x ═ ch is also accomplished by transition metal catalyzed cross - coupling reaction , known as , for example , suzuki and stille reactions , to those skilled in the art . the reaction may be carried out between compounds of formula 8 : wherein y is , for example , a dialkylborane , dialkenylborane or boronic acid ( e . g . bet 2 , b ( oh ) 2 ( dotted lines can be double bonds )) or a trialkyltin ( e . g . snme 3 , snbu 3 ), and an aryl substituted with a leaving group of formula 7 : ( for definition of z , see above ) in the presence of a base and a zerovalent transition metal catalyst such as pd or ni , according to known methods ( chem . pharm . bull ., vol 33 , 1985 , 4755 - 4763 , j . am . chem . soc ., vol . 109 , 1987 , 5478 - 5486 ., tetrahedron lett ., vol . 33 , 1992 , 2199 - 2202 ). in addition , y can also be a zink - or magnesium - halide group ( e . g . zncl 2 , znbr 2 , zni 2 , mgbr 2 , mgi 2 ) according to known methods ( tetrahedron lett ., vol . 33 , 1992 , 5373 - 5374 , tetrahedron lett ., vol . 37 , 1996 , 5491 - 5494 ). the catalyst , preferably pd will have the ability to form ligand complex and undergo oxidative addition . the definition of ligands , bases and solvents , is mentioned above . alternatively , the transition metal catalyzed cross - coupling reaction can be performed with the opposite substitution pattern : in the presence of a base and a zerovalent transition metal catalyst such as pd or ni , according known methods discussed in the previous paragraph . can be prepared by catalytic hydrogenation of the tetrahydropyridine or pyridine from the previous paragraph , using standard methods known in the art , generally with palladium on carbon , pto2 , or raney nickel as the catalyst . the reaction is performed in an inert solvent , such as ethanol or ethyl acetate , either with or without a protic acid , such as acetic acid or hcl . when the pyridine ring is quaternized with an alkyl group the ring can be partly reduced by nabh 4 or nacnbh 4 , yielding the tetrahydropyridine analog which can further be reduced with catalytic hydrogenation . another convenient method of syntheses of compounds of the formula 1 , wherein x ═ ch is also accomplished by treating arylhalides of formula 7 : wherein z is cl , br , or i , with alkyllithium reagents , for example , butyllithium , sec - butyllithium or tert - butyl - lithium , preferably butyllitium or mg ( grignard reaction ) in an inert solvent . suitable solvents include , for example ether or tetrahydrofuran , preferably tetrahydrofuran . reaction temperatures range from about − 110 ° c . to about 60 ° c . the intermediate lithium anions or magnesium anions thus formed may then be further reacted with a suitable electrophile of formula 12 : wherein a is defined as a protecting group like t - boc ( tert - butoxycarbonyl ), fmoc ( fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl ), cbz ( benzyloxycarbonyl ) or a an alkylgroup like benzyl . the intermediates of formula 13 : which are formed require that the hydroxy group be removed so as to result in compounds of formula 1 ( x ═ ch ). this step may be accomplished by one of several standard methods known in the art . for example , a thiocarbonyl derivative ( for example a xanthate ) may be prepared and removed by a free radical process , of which are known to those skilled in the art . alternatively , the hydroxyl group may be removed by reduction with a hydride source such as triethylsilane under acidic conditions , using such as , for example , trifluoroacetic acid or boron trifluoride . the reduction reaction can be performed neat or in a solvent , such as methylene chloride . a further alternative would be to first convert the hydroxyl group to a suitable leaving group , such as tosylate or chloride , using standard methods . the leaving group is then removed with a nucleophilic hydride , such as , for example , lithium aluminium hydride . this last reaction is performed typically in an inert solvent , such as , ether or tetrahydrofuran . another alternative method for removing the hydroxyl group is to first dehydrate the alcohol to an olefin with a reagent such as burgess salt ( j . org . chem ., vol 38 , 1973 , 26 ) followed by catalytic hydrogenation of the double bond under standard conditions with a catalyst such as palladium on carbon . the alcohol may also be dehydrated to the olefin by treatment with acid such as p - toluenesulfonic acid or trifluoroacetic acid . the protecting group , a , is removed under standard conditions known by those skilled in the art . for example , t - boc cleavages are conveniently carried out with trifluoroacetic acid either neat or in combination with methylene chloride . f - moc is conveniently cleaved off with simple bases such as , ammonia , piperidine , or morpholine , usually in polar solvents such as dmf and acetonitrile . when a is cbz or benzyl , these are conveniently cleaved off under catalytic hydrogenation conditions . the benzyl group can also be cleaved off under n - dealkylation conditions such as treatment with α - chloroethyl chloroformate ( j . org . chem ., vol 49 , 1984 , 2081 - 2082 ). it is further possible to convert a radical r 1 in a compound of the formula 1 into another radical r 1 , e . g . by oxidizing methylsulfide to methylsulfone ( for example by m - chloroperoxybenzoic acid ), substitution of a triflate or halide group with a cyano group ( for example palladium catalyzed cyanation ), substitution of triflate or halide group with a ketone ( for example palladium catalyzed heck reaction with butyl vinyl ether ), substitution of a triflate or halide group with a carboxamide ( for example , palladium catalyzed carbonylation ), or cleaving an ether by , for example , converting a methoxy group into the corresponding hydroxyl derivate , which can further be converted into the corresponding mesylate or triflate . the terms mesylate andtriflate refers to oso 2 ch 3 , ch 3 so 3 or oso 2 cf 3 , cf 3 so 3 , respectively . in summary , the general process for preparing the present compounds has six main variations , which may briefly bedescribed as follows : as used herein the term c 1 - c 4 alkyl refers to an alkyl containing 1 - 4 carbon atoms in any isomeric form . the various carbon moieties are defined as follows : alkyl refers to an aliphatic hydrocarbon radical and includes branched or unbranched forms such as methyl , ethyl , n - propyl , i - propyl , n - butyl , i - butyl , s - butyl , t - butyl . the term cycloalkyl refers to a radical of a saturated cyclic hydrocarbon such as cyclopropyl , cyclobutyl , cyclopentyl , cyclohexyl . the term “ patient ” used herein refers to an individual in need of the treatment according to the invention . the term “ treatment ” used herein relates to both treatment in order to cure or alleviate a disease or a condition , and to treatment in order to prevent the development of a disease or a condition . the treatment may either be performed in an acute or in a chronic way . both organic and inorganic acids can be employed to form non - toxic pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts of the compounds according to the invention . illustrative acids are sulfuric , nitric , phosphoric , hydrochloric , citric , acetic , lactic , tartaric , palmoic , ethane disulfonic , sulfamic , succinic , cyclohexylsulfamic , fumaric , maleic , and benzoic acid . these salts are readily prepared by methods known in the art . the pharmaceutical composition containing a compound according to the invention may also comprise substances used to facilitate the production of the pharmaceutical preparation or the administration of the preparations . such substances are well known to people skilled in the art and may for example be pharmaceutically acceptable adjuvants , carriers and preservatives . in clinical practice the compounds used according to the present invention will normally be administered orally , rectally , or by injection , in the form of pharmaceutical preparations comprising the active ingredient either as a free base or as a pharmaceutically acceptable non - toxic , acid addition salt , such as the hydrochloride , lactate , acetate , sulfamate salt , in association with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier . the carrier may be a solid , semisolid or liquid preparation . usually the active substance will constitute between 0 . 1 and 99 % by weight of the preparation , more specifically between 0 . 5 and 20 % by a weight for preparations intended for injection and between 0 . 2 and 50 % by weight for preparations suitable for oral administration . to produce pharmaceutical preparations containing the compound according to the invention in the form of dosage units for oral application , the selected compound may be mixed with a solid excipient , e . g . lactose , saccharose , sorbitol , mannitol , starches such as potato starch , corn starch or amylopectin , cellulose derivatives , a binder such as gelatine or polyvinyl - pyrrolidine , and a lubricant such as magnesium stearate , calcium stearate , polyethylene glycol , waxes , paraffin , and the like , and then compressed intotablets . if coated tablets are required , the cores , prepared as described above , may be coated with a concentrated sugar solution which may contain e . g . gum arabic , gelatine , talcum , titanium dioxide , and the like . alternatively , the tablet can be coated with a polymer known to the man skilled in the art , dissolved in a readily volatile organic solvent or mixture of organic solvents . dyestuffs may be added to these coatings in order to readily distinguish between tablets containing different active substances or different amounts of the active compound . for the preparation of soft gelatine capsules , the active substance may be admixed with e . g . a vegetable oil or poly - ethylene glycol . hard gelatine capsules may contain granules of the active substance using either the mentioned excipients for tablets e . g . lactose , saccharose , sorbitol , mannitol , starches ( e . g . potato starch , corn starch or amylopectin ), cellulose derivatives or gelatine . also liquids or semisolids of the drug can be filled into hard gelatine capsules . dosage units for rectal application can be solutions or suspensions or can be prepared in the form of suppositories comprising the active substance in a mixture with a neutral fatty base , or gelatine rectal capsules comprising the active substance in admixture with vegetable oil or paraffin oil . liquid preparations for oral application may be in the form of syrups or suspensions , for example solutions containing from about 0 . 2 % to about 20 % by weight of the active substance herein described , the balance being sugar and mixture of ethanol , water , glycerol and propylene glycol . optionally such liquid preparations may contain coloring agents , flavoring agents , saccharine and carboxymethylcellulose as a thickening agent or other excipients known to the man in the art . solutions for parenteral applications by injection can be prepared in an aqueous solution of a water - soluble pharmaceutically acceptable salt of the active substance , preferably in a concentration of from 0 . 5 % to about 10 % by weight . these solutions may also containing stabilizing agents and / or buffering agents and may conveniently be provided in various dosage unit ampoules . the use and administration to a patient to be treated in the clinic would be readily apparent to an ordinary skill in the art . in therapeutical treatment an effective amount or a therapeutic amount of the compounds according to the invention are from about 0 . 01 to about 500 mg / kg body weight daily , preferably 0 . 1 - 10 mg / kg body weight daily . the compounds may be administered in any suitable way , such as orally or parenterally . the daily dose will preferably be administered in individual dosages 1 to 4 times daily . it is known for those skilled in the art that replacing a hydrogen in a non - substituted position in the aromatic ring with a fluorine atom may block the possibility for enzymatic hydroxylation which render the compound low oral bioavailability . this type of exchange ( h to f ) seldom changes the pharmacological profile . thus , it may be important , in some cases to introduce a fluorine atom in any non - substituted positions in the aromatic ring of compounds of formula 1 to improve the oral bioavailability . the invention is further illustrated in the examples below , which in no way are intended to limit the scope of the invention . a suspension of 1 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperazine ( 350 mg ) and ground k 2 co 3 ( 403 mg ) was stirred in ch 3 cn ( 25 ml ) at room temperature . 1 - iodo - propane ( 712 μl ) was added . the mixture was refluxed overnight . the reaction mixture was filtered and the volatiles were evaporated in vacuum . the oily residue was chromatographed on a silica column with meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 30 ( v / v )) as eluent . collection of the fractions containing pure product and evaporation of the solvent afforded pure 1 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 4 - propyl - piperazine ( 220 mg ). the amine was converted into the hcl salt and recrystallized from ethanol / diethylether : m . p . 233 ° c . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 282 ( m + , 30 ), 254 ( 15 ), 253 ( bp ), 210 ( 17 ), 70 ( 21 ). the following compounds according to examples 2 - 11 were prepared in a manner similar to the one described in example 1 . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 336 ( m +, 16 ), 307 ( bp ), 77 ( 18 ), 70 ( 38 ), 56 ( 23 ). beginning with 1 -( 3 - piperazin - 1 - yl - phenyl )- ethanone and n - pr - i : m . p . 119 ° c . ( oxalate ), ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 246 ( m +, 10 ), 217 ( 33 ), 132 ( 18 ), 70 ( bp ), 56 ( 41 ); rf 0 . 23 ( etoac ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - phenyl )- piperidine and n - pr - i : m . p . 195 ° c . ( hcl ), ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 271 ( m +, 4 ), 243 ( 16 ), 242 ( bp ), 159 ( 13 ), 70 ( 49 ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - phenyl )- piperidine and n - bu - br : m . p . 222 ° c . ( hcl ), ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 285 ( m +, 3 ), 243 ( 12 ), 242 ( bp ), 70 ( 51 ), 56 ( 17 ). m . p . 200 ° c . ( hcl ) ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 281 ( m +, 5 ), 252 ( bp ), 129 ( 20 ), 115 ( 20 ), 70 ( 25 . beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydro - pyridine and iodopropane : ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 279 ( m +, 26 ), 250 ( bp ), 171 ( 6 ), 128 ( 12 ), 115 ( 8 ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and iodoethane : m . p . 158 ° c . ( hcl ). ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 267 ( m +, 20 ), 252 ( bp ), 130 ( 10 ), 115 ( 12 ), 84 ( 20 ); beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and i - propylbromide : m . p . 220 ° c . ( hcl ); ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 281 ( m +, 4 ), 266 ( bp ), 187 ( 5 ), 129 ( 5 ), 115 ( 5 ) beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and n - bucl . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 295 ( m +, 3 ), 252 ( bp ), 130 ( 5 ), 115 ( 3 ), 70 ( 8 ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and i - butylbromide ; m . p . 212 ° c . ( hcl ); ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 295 ( m +, 1 ), 252 ( 80 ), 129 ( 40 ), 115 ( 50 ), 70 ( bp ). a solution of 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- benzamide ( 350 mg ) and pocl 3 ( 326 μl ) in dry dmf ( 6 ml ) was heated at 80 ° c . for 3 h under an argon atmosphere . evaporation of the solvent yielded a dark , oily residue , which was dissolved in water . the solution was basified and extracted with ch 2 cl 2 . the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated . the oily residue was chromathographed on a silica column with meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 19 ( v / v )) as eluent . collection of the fractions containing pure product and evaporation of the solvent afforded pure 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- benzonitrile ( 127 mg ). the amine was converted into the fumarate salt and recrystallized from ethanol / diethylether : m . p . 122 ° c . ; ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 228 ( m +, 2 ), 199 ( 42 ), 129 ( 26 ), 70 ( bp ) 56 ( 53 ). 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine hydrochloride ( 20 mg ), glacial acetic acid ( 4 . 4 mg ) and 2 - butanone ( 5 . 1 mg ) were mixed in 1 , 2 - dichloroethane ( 5 ml ). sodium triacetoxyborohydride ( 23 . 5 mg ) was added to the solution and the reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature under a nitrogen atmosphere for 5 h ( g . l . c . analysis indicated a complete reaction ). the reaction was quenched with saturated aqueous nahco 3 and the product was extracted with ch 2 cl 2 . the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered , and the solvent was evaporated to afford 1 - sec - butyl - 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine as an oily residue . the product was chromatographed on a silica column with ch 2 cl 2 : meoh ( 9 : 1 ( v / v )) as eluent . collection of the fractions containing pure product and evaporation of the solvent afforded pure amine ( 15 mg , 71 %); ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 295 ( m +, 1 ), 280 ( 7 ), 266 ( bp ), 187 ( 4 ), 129 ( 4 ). a solution of 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol ( 340 mg ) and triethylamine ( 187 mg ) in 20 ml of ch 2 cl 2 was cooled to 0 ° c . then methanesulfonyl chloride ( 194 mg ) dissolved in 10 ml of ch 2 cl 2 was added dropwise . the reaction mixture was allowed to reach room temperature and then stirred for 2 . 5 h at 25 ° c . the reaction was finally quenched with water . the organic layer was separated and washed with 10 % hcl and then 10 % na 2 co 3 . after drying ( mgso 4 ) the solvent was removed under reduced pressure . the residue was chromathographed on a silica column using meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 9 ( v / v )) as eluent . the fractions containing pure methanesulfonic acid 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenyl ester were collected , and the solvent was removed in vacuum , affording 206 mg of the title compound . ( ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 297 ( m +, 3 ), 268 ( bp ), 189 ( 24 ), 131 ( 13 ), 79 ( 16 ); the following compounds in examples 15 - 19 were prepared in a manner similar to the one described in example 14 . beginning with 3 -( 1 - ethyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol and methanesulfonyl chloride . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 283 ( m +, 6 ), 268 ( bp ), 189 ( 54 ), 131 ( 20 ), 79 ( 70 ); beginning with 3 -( 1 - butyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol and methanesulfonyl chloride . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 311 ( m +, 3 ), 268 ( bp ), 189 ( 20 ), 131 ( 18 ), 79 ( 12 ); beginning with 3 -( 4 - propyl - piperazin - 1 - yl )- phenol and methanesulfonyl chloride : m . p 143 - 144 ° c . ( fumarate ); ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 298 ( m +, 35 ), 269 ( 95 ), 121 ( 25 ), 84 ( 30 ), 70 ( bp ); beginning with 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol and triflic anhydride ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 351 ( m +, 4 ), 322 ( 65 ), 189 ( 30 ), 131 ( 20 ), 69 ( bp ). beginning with 3 -( 1 - ethyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol and triflic anhydride : ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 337 ( m +, 4 ), 322 ( 65 ), 189 ( 30 ), 131 ( 20 ), 69 ( bp ). to a stirred solution of trifluoro - methanesulfonic acid 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenyl ester ( 300 mg ) in dmf ( 4 ml ) under argon atm at r . t . was subsequently added net 3 ( 356 μl ), butyl vinyl ether ( 823 μl ), 1 , 3 - bis ( diphenylphosphino ) propane ( 50 mg ), and pd ( oac ) 2 ( 19 mg ). the reaction mixture was then heated to 80 ° c . and after 2 h the reaction was stopped . 5 % hydrochloric acid solution ( 6 ml ) was added and the combined mixture stirred for 45 min . then ch 2 cl 2 was added and the phases were separated . the aqueous layer was then extracted with ch 2 cl 2 . the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated to dryness . the crude product was purified by flash chromatography ( meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 9 ( v / v )). collection of the fractions containing pure product and evaporation of the solvent afforded pure 1 -[ 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenyl ]- ethanone ( 35 mg ). ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 245 ( m +, 4 ), 216 ( bp ), 100 ( 19 ), 70 ( 36 ), 57 ( 13 ). 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethylsulfonylphenyl )- pyridine ( 0 . 3 g ) was dissolved in 1 - iodo - propane ( 2 ml ) and heated to 100 ° c . for 2 h . then the voilatiles were evaporated and the residue redissolved in abs etoh ( 20 ml ) and nabh 4 ( 340 mg ) was addded portions wise at − 20 ° c . the mixture was then allowed to reach r . t . and stirred over night . to the mixture was added 10 % na 2 co 3 solution ( 20 ml ). the aqueous layer was extracted with ch 2 cl 2 and the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated to dryness . the crude product was purified by flash chromatography ( meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 9 ( v / v )) collection of the fractions containing pure product and evaporation of the solvent afforded pure 1 - propyl - 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - sulfonylphenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydropyridine ( 150 mg ). ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 333 ( m +, 21 ), 305 ( 16 ), 304 ( bp ), 171 ( 14 ), 128 ( 14 ). rf 0 . 55 ( meoh ) beginning with 1 - propyl - 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - sulfonyl - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydropyridine , 1 - propyl - 4 ( 3 - trifluoro - methylsulfonylphenyl )- piperidine was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 9 . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 335 ( m +, 3 ), 307 ( 17 ), 306 ( bp ), 173 ( 26 ), 70 ( 10 ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and allylbromide , the titled compound was recovered by the procedure described in example 1 . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 279 ( m +, 74 ), 96 ( bp ), 82 ( 98 ), 68 ( 74 ), 55 ( 93 ). rf = 0 . 42 ( meoh , 0 . 08 ( etoac ). beginning with 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidine and tetrahydrofurfuryl chloride , the titled compound was recovered by the procedure described in example 1 . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 323 ( m +, 1 ), 252 ( bp ), 129 ( 9 ), 115 ( 6 ), 70 ( 17 ). rf = 0 . 3 ( meoh , 0 . 03 ( etoac ). syntheses of intermediates used in the above examples are described in the preparations below . 1 - bromo - 3 - methylsulfanyl - benzene ( 5 . 0 g , 24 . 6 mmol ) was dissolved in dry thf ( 40 ml ) and cooled to − 78 ° c . under a stream of argon ( g ). n - buli ( 12 . 8 ml , 2 . 5 m in hexane , 31 . 9 mmol ) was added dropwise via syringe and the reaction mixture was stirred for an additional 30 min at − 78 ° c ., then the temperature was increased to 0 ° c . for 5 min and then decreased to − 78 ° c . 1 - tert - butoxycarbonyl - 4 - piperidone ( 5 . 4 g , 27 . 06 mmol ) dissolved in dry thf ( 30 ml ) was added via syringe . the reaction mixture was allowed to reach room temperature and then stirred for 1 hour , and finally quenched with saturated ammonium chloride solution ( 30 ml ). the mixture was extracted several times with etoac and the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated to dryness . the oily residue was chromatho - graphed on a silica column using ch 2 cl 2 : meoh ( 19 : 1 ( v / v )) as eluent , yielded 4 - hydroxy - 4 -( 3 - methylsulfanyl - phenyl )- piperidin - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester ( 6 g , 76 %). ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 323 . 1 ( m +, 6 ), 223 . 0 ( 11 ), 178 . 0 ( 7 ), 152 ( 3 ), 57 . 0 ( bp ), 56 ( 30 ). beginning with 3 - bromoanisole ( 5 g ) and 1 - benzyl - 4 - piperidone ( 5 . 5 g ), 4 . 58 g of 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- piperidin - 4 - ol was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 1 . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 297 ( m +, 8 ), 279 ( 13 ), 206 ( 28 ), 146 ( 17 ), 91 ( bp ). beginning with 3 - trifluoromethyl - iodobenzene ( 3 g ) and 1 - benzyl - 4 - piperidone ( 2 . 1 g ), 1 . 75 g of the title compound was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 1 . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 335 ( m +, 29 ), 244 ( 22 ), 146 ( 19 ), 91 ( bp ), 56 ( 19 ). 4 - hydroxy - 4 -( 3 - methylsulfanyl - phenyl )- piperidin - 1 - carboxylic acid tert - butyl ester ( 3 . 97 g ) was dissolved in ch 2 cl 2 ( 500 ml ) and trifluoroacetic acid ( 80 ml ) was added in one portion . the mixture was refluxed for one hour and then washed with two portions of 10 %- na 2 co 3 , dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated to dryness . yield 2 . 07 g . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 205 ( m +, 73 ), 158 ( 44 ), 129 ( 95 ), 128 ( 80 ), 82 ( bp ). beginning with 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- piperidin - 4 - ol ( 4 . 5 g ) and trifluoroacetic acid ( 80 ml ), 3 . 5 g of 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydro - pyridine was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 4 . ms m / z , ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 279 ( m +, 35 ), 145 ( 13 ), 115 ( 15 ), 91 ( bp ) 65 ( 22 ). beginning with 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - phenyl )- piperidin - 4 - ol ( 1 . 74 g ), 1 . 44 g of the title compound was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 4 ( neat cf 3 cooh ). ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 317 ( m +, 71 ), 226 ( 13 ), 172 ( 15 ), 91 ( bp ), 65 ( 17 ). 4 -( 3 - methylsulfanyl - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydro - pyridine ( 2 g ) and net3 ( 1 g ) were dissolved in ch 2 cl 2 ( 75 ml ) and cooled to 0 ° c . methyl chloroformate ( 0 . 96 g ) dissolved in ch 2 cl 2 ( 20 ml ) was added dropwise and the reaction mixture was then allowed to reach room temperature . after an additional two hours at room temperature the reaction mixture was washed with 10 % na 2 co 3 solution , dried ( mgso4 ), filtered and concentrated by evaporation . the oily residue was chromatographed on a silica column using ch 2 cl 2 : meoh ( 19 : 1 ( v / v )) as eluent , 4 -( 3 - methylsulfanyl - phenyl )- 3 , 6 - dihydro - 2h - pyridine - 1 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ( 1 . 4 g ). ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 263 ( m + 45 ), 248 ( 89 ), 129 ( 83 ), 128 ( bp ), 59 ( 96 ). 4 -( 3 - methylsulfanyl - phenyl )- 3 , 6 - dihydro - 2h - pyridine - 1 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ( 1 . 4 g ) was dissolved in ch 2 cl 2 ( 150 ml ) and cooled to 0 ° c . m - chloroperoxybenzoic acid ( 2 . 48 g ) was added portions wise and the mixture was stirred at room temperature for three hours . the resulting clear solution was washed with 10 %- na 2 co 3 solution , dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and concentrated by evaporation and yielding an oily residue ( 1 . 3 g ). ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 295 ( m +, 19 ), 280 ( 56 ), 129 ( 70 ), 128 ( 89 ), 59 ( bp ). 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- 3 , 6 - dihydro - 2h - pyridine - 1 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ( 2 . 0 g ) was dissolved in methanol ( 40 ml ). concentrated hydrochloric acid ( 2 ml ) and pd / c ( 500 mg ) were added . the resulting mixture was hydrogenated under a hydrogen gas pressure ( 50 psi ) for 8 h and then filtered through a pad of celite . the solvent was evaporated in vacuum and the residue was purified by flash chromatography ( ch 2 cl 2 : meoh , 3 : 1 ( v / v )). yield 0 . 92 g ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 297 ( m +, 54 ), 282 ( 62 ), 238 ( bp ), 115 ( 92 ), 56 ( 93 ). beginning with 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydro - pyridine ( 5 . 1 g ) and 900 mg pd / c , 1 . 7 g of 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- piperidine was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 9 . the oily residue was purified by flash chromatography ( sio 2 , ch 2 cl 2 : meoh , 3 : 1 ( v / v ) with 1 % net 3 ) to give the pure title compound . ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 191 ( m +, 75 ), 160 ( 60 ), 83 ( 55 ), 57 ( 80 ), 56 ( bp ) beginning with 1 - benzyl - 4 -( 3 - trifluoromethyl - phenyl )- 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 - tetrahydro - pyridine ( 1 . 44 g ), 1 g of the title compound as hcl salt was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 9 . m . p . 202 ° c . ( hcl ); ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 229 ( m +, 44 ), 228 ( 33 ), 83 ( 12 ), 57 ( 54 ), 56 ( bp ). 4 -( 3 - methanesulfonyl - phenyl )- piperidin - 1 - carboxylic acid methyl ester ( 0 . 92 g ) dissolved in ethanol ( 15 ml ) and 8 m hcl ( 40 ml ) was refluxed for 12 hours . the mixture was then evaporated in vacuum to dryness . yield 0 . 85 g ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 239 ( m +, 59 ), 238 ( 50 ), 69 ( 20 ), 57 ( 79 ), 56 ( bp ). 4 -( 3 - methoxy - phenyl )- piperidine ( 1 . 7 g ) was dissolved in 48 -% hbr ( 60 ml ) and stirred at 120 ° c . under an argon - atmosphere for 3 h . the excess of hbr was then evaporated and absolute ethanol added and evaporated . this procedure was repeated several times to yield dry crystals of 3 - piperidin - 4 - yl - phenol × hbr ( 2 . 3 g ). ms m / z ( relative intensity , 70 ev ) 177 ( m +, bp ), 176 ( 23 ), 91 ( 14 ), 57 ( 44 ), 56 ( 60 ). beginning with 3 - piperidin - 4 - yl - phenol × hbr ( 300 mg ) and n - propyl iodide ( 200 mg ), 340 mg of 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol was recovered by the procedure described in example 1 . the hbr salt was prepared to provide the title compound . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 219 ( m +, 21 ), 190 ( bp ), 119 ( 22 ), 91 ( 30 ), 70 ( 63 ); m . p . 181 - 184 ° c . ( hbr ). beginning with 3 - piperidin - 4 - yl - phenol × hbr ( 200 mg ) and ethyl iodide ( 121 mg ), 120 mg of 3 -( 1 - ethyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol was recovered by the procedure described in example 1 . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 205 ( m +, 12 ), 190 ( bp ), 119 ( 36 ), 91 ( 22 ), 70 ( 87 ). beginning with 3 - piperidin - 4 - yl - phenol × hbr ( 200 mg ) and n - butyl chloride ( 73 mg ), 118 mg of 3 -( 1 - butyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenol was recovered by the procedure described in example 1 . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 233 ( m +, 6 ), 190 ( bp ), 119 ( 42 ), 91 ( 26 ), 70 ( 45 ). a mixture of 1 - bromo - 3 - methanesulfonyl - benzene ( 0 . 8 g ), piperazine ( 1 g ), sodium tert - butoxide ( 0 . 5 g ) binap ( 42 mg ) and [ pd 2 ( dba ) 3 ( 38 mg ) in toluene ( 7 ml ) was heated under argon at 80 ° c . for 24 h . after cooling to room temperature , the solvent was evaporated to dryness . the crude material was purified by flash chromatography on silica gel using etoac . yield 0 . 48 g : ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 240 ( m +, 17 ), 199 ( 12 ), 198 ( bp ), 119 ( 9 ), 56 ( 7 ). beginning with 3 - bromo - trifluoromethanesulfonyl - benzene and piperazine , the titled cmp was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 17 . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 294 ( m +, 22 ), 252 ( bp ), 119 ( 32 ), 104 ( 10 ), 56 ( 15 ). ( 45 ). beginning with 3 - bromo - acetophenone and piperazine , the titled cmp was recovered by the procedure described in preparation 17 . ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 204 ( m +, 5 ), 162 ( 35 ), 77 ( 30 ), 57 ( 35 ), 56 ( bp ) a mixture of trifluoro - methanesulfonic acid 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- phenyl ester ( 1 . 2 g ), triethyl amine ( 0 . 9 g ), meoh ( 5 . 4 ml ), pd ( oac ) 2 ( 25 mg ) and 1 , 3 - bis ( di - phenyl - phosphino ) propane ( 45 mg ) in 15 ml dmso was stirred at room temperature for 15 min . a stream of co ( g ) was passed through the solution for 4 - 5 min ., and then the reaction vessel was placed under a sligthly positive pressure of co ( g ). the temp was increased to 70 ° c . after 6 h the reaction was allowed to cool to r . t . water was then added , and the aqueous solution was extracted with five portions of ethyl acetate and the combined organic phases were dried ( mgso 4 ), and evaporated . the residue was chromathographed on a silica column using meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 9 ( v / v )) as eluent . the fractions containing pure titled compound were collected , and the solvent was removed in vacuum , affording 650 mg of the titled compound . ( ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 261 ( m +, 5 ), 233 ( 16 ), 232 ( bp ), 161 ( 5 ), 70 ( 20 ) a solution of 3 -( 1 - propyl - piperidin - 4 - yl )- benzoic acid methyl ester ( 0 . 6 g ) and formamide ( 320 μl ) in dmf ( 9 ml ) was heated to 100 ° c . under a blanket of argon . sodium methoxide in methanol ( 30 %, 770 μl ) was added dropwise and after 1 h , gc analysis revealed the complete absence of starting material and indicated the titled compound as the sole product . after cooling , ch 2 cl 2 was added and the resulting solution was filtered through a pad of celite and evaporated to dryness . the residue was chromathographed on a silica column using meoh : ch 2 cl 2 ( 1 : 3 ( v / v )) as eluent . the fractions containing pure titled compound were collected , and the solvent was removed in vacuum , affording 400 mg of the titled compound . m . p . 182 ° c . ( oxalate ) ( ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 246 ( m +, 4 ), 217 ( bp ), 131 ( 19 ), 100 ( 22 ), 70 ( 63 ). 1 - bromo - 3 - trifluoromethylsulfonyl benzene ( 580 mg ) and 4 - pyridine - boronic acid ( 275 mg ) was dissolved in toluene ( 5 ml ) and abs etoh ( 5 ml ). to the mixture was then added na 2 co 3 ( 424 mg ) and pd ( pph 3 ) 4 ( 119 mg ) under an atmosphere of argon . the resulting mixture was heated to 90 ° c . for 18 h . then ch 2 cl 2 was added and the organic phase was washed with water and dried ( mgso 4 ), filtered and evaporated to dryness . the residue was then used without any further purification . ( ms m / z ( rel . intensity , 70 ev ) 287 ( m +, 33 ), 218 ( 22 ), 154 ( bp ), 127 ( 56 ), 69 ( 27 ). the following tests were used for evaluation of the compounds according to the invention . for behavioral testing , the animals were placed in separate motility meter boxes 50 × 50 × 50 cm equipped with an array of 16 × 16 photocells ( digiscan activity monitor , rxyzm ( 16 ) tao , omnitech electronics , usa ), connected to an omnitech digiscan analyzer and a apple macintosh computer equipped with a digital interface board ( nb dio - 24 , national instruments , usa ). behavioral data from each motility meter box , representing the position ( center of gravity ) of the animal at each time , were recorded at a sampling frequency of 25 hz and collected using a custom written labview ™ application . the data from each recording session were analyzed with respect to distance traveled and small - scale movements , e . g . stops in the center of the behavior recording arena , during the recording session . to determine stops in the center , velocity at each time point is calculated as the distance traveled since the preceding sample divided by the time elapsed since the preceding sample . the number of stops is then calculated as the number of times that the velocity changes from a non - zero value to zero . the number of stops in the center of the behavioral recording arena is calculated as the number of stops occurring at a position at least ten centimeters from the edges of the recording arena . for behavioral testing of habituated rats , the animals were placed in the motility meter boxes 30 minutes before the administration of test compound . each behavioral recording session lasted 6 or 30 minutes , starting immediately after the injection of test compound . similar behavioral recording procedures was applied for non - habituated rats , habituated rats and drug pre - treated rats . rats pre - treated with d - amphetamine are given the dose 1 , 5 mg / kg s . c . 5 min before the behavioral session in the motility meter . rats pre - treated with dizolcipine ( mk - 801 ) are given the dose 0 , 7 mg / kg i . p . 90 min before the behavioral session . in the motility meter . after the behavioral activity sessions the rats were decapitated and their brains rapidly taken out and put on an ice - cold petri - dish . the limbic forebrain , the striatum , the frontal cortex and the remaining hemispheral parts of each rat were dissected and frozen . each brain part was subsequently analyzed with respect to its content of monoamines and their metabolites . the monoaminergic indices analyzed were dopamine ( da ), 3 , 4 - dihydroxy - phenylacetic acid ( dopac ), homovanillic acid ( hva ), 3 - methoxytyramine ( 3 - mt ), serotonin ( 5 - ht ), 5 - hydroxyindole acetic acid ( 5 - hiaa ), and noradrenaline ( na ). all monoaminergic indices in the dissected tissue were analyzed by means of hplc with electrochemical detection as described by svensson k , et al ., 1986 , naunyn - schmiedeberg &# 39 ; s arch pharmacol 334 : 234 - 245 and references cited therein . to determine oral availability ( f ) and plasma half life ( t½ ) of test compounds according to the invention experiments performed in the rat were undertaken . on day one rats were implanted with one catheter in the jugular vein and one catheter in the carotid artery under ketamine anesthesia . on day three test compound is injected either orally or in the jugular vein catheter . blood samples are collected during 8 hours from the arterial catheter . the blood samples were heparinized and centrifuged . plasma is collected from the centrifuged samples and frozen . the levels of test compound were subsequently determined in each sample by means of gas chromatography - mass spectrometry ( hewlett - packard 5972msd ). the plasma samples , taken from the rats of the sprague - dawley strain , ( 0 . 5 ml ) were diluted with water ( 0 . 5 ml ), and 30 pmol ( 50 μl ) of ((−)- s - 3 -( 3 - ethylsulfonylphenyl )- n - n - propyl - piperidine as internal standard was added . the ph was adjusted to 11 . 0 by the addition of 25 μl saturated na 2 co 3 . after mixing , the samples were extracted with 4 ml dichloromethane by shaking for 20 min . the organic layer was , after centrifugation , transferred to a smaller tube and evaporated to dryness under a stream of nitrogen and subsequently redissolved in 40 μl toluene for gc - ms analysis . a standard curve over the range of 1 - 500 μmol was prepared by adding appropriate amounts of test compound to blank plasma samples . gc was performed on a hp - ultra 2 capillary column ( 12 m × 0 . 2 mm id ), and 2 μl was injected in the splitless mode . the gc temperature was held at 90 ° c . for 1 minute following injection , and was then increased by 30 ° c ./ min to the final temperature of 290 ° c . each sample was run in duplicate . the lowest detectable concentration of test compound was generally found to be 1 pmol / ml . | 2 |
fig1 shows block - schematic an example of a push - pull amplifier . via an input unit iu the amplifier receives the input signal . the input unit is coupled to a pulse - width modulator pwm , which is coupled with an output to a switching unit su . the switching unit supplies an output signal via a demodulation filter df to the output o of the amplifier . the pulse - width modulator is coupled in a feedback loop with a feedback element rf that is coupled with one side to the output of the switching unit su and with the other side to the input of the pulse - width modulator . the pulse - width modulator further comprises a first integrator fi and a second integrator si and a comparator com , the input of the first integrator is coupled to the output of the input unit iu and the input of the second integrator is coupled to an output of the first integrator fi and also coupled to an oscillator osc . the switching unit su comprises a switch control unit scu and a first and second switch sw 1 , sw 2 , respectively . the demodulation filter is in this example shown as an inductance l and a capacitance c can be a second order low - pass demodulation filter or higher order demodulation filter . fig2 describes an example of a demodulation filter df 2 for use in a push - pull amplifier according to the invention . the demodulation filter is coupled to a load r l . this example of a demodulation filter comprises a first and second input i 21 , i 22 respectively , and a first and second output o 21 , o 22 respectively . between the first input and the first output a first inductance l 21 is coupled , and between the second input and the second output a second inductance is coupled . between the first output and the second output a series arrangement of a first capacitance c 21 and a second capacitance c 22 is coupled . at the connection point of the first and the second capacitance a parallel arrangement of a third capacitance c 23 and a resistance r 23 is coupled , which parallel arrangement is coupled with the other side to a predetermined voltage for example zero . the operation of this demodulation filter is improved in relation to the prior art demodulation filters due to the adding of the resistor r 23 and the capacitance c 23 to provide common mode damping . however , these components do not influence the differential mode transfer . further , there is no quiescent dissipation in the resistor r 23 . if this demodulation filter df 2 is dimensioned for the same common mode attenuation and differential mode cut - off frequency as the prior art demodulation filter the peaking is reduced to 2 . 9 db while the high frequency differential attenuation is improved 16 db . dimensioning of the demodulation filter can be done as follows . the values of the differential mode components l d and c d can be calculated from the values l se and c se for a single ended filter with the same load as : the differential mode frequency transfer is given by : h d ( s ) = 1 s 2 l d c d + s 2 l d r l + 1 the component l d is in this example equal to l 21 and to l 22 , and the component c d equal to c 21 and to c 22 . for the dimensioning of the common mode components a common mode equivalent circuit is used as shown in fig3 and the common mode characteristics are shown in fig4 . also herein the value of l d is equal to l 21 and to l 22 , and the value of c d is equal to c 21 and to c 22 . further the value of c c is equal to c 23 and the value of r c is equal to r 23 . the common mode transfer is given by : h c ( s ) = sr c ( c c + 2 c d ) + 1 s 3 l d c d c c r c + s 2 l d c d + sr c ( c c + 2 c d ) + 1 for very small values of r c the transfer converges to : h c ( s ) r c → 0 = 1 s 2 l d c d + 1 which peaks at the cut - off frequency of the differential mode transfer . for very high values of rc the transfer converges to : h c ( s ) r c → ∞ = 1 s 2 l d c d c d 2 c d + c c + 1 which peaks at a higher frequency . the peaking can be damped to a minimal value . it is to be noticed here that the above - mentioned example of the demodulation filter can be amended without departing from the invention . a demodulation filter according to the invention can be used with all kind of push - pull amplifiers ( for example class d - amplifiers ). instead of the push - pull amplifier as described in relation to fig1 . | 7 |
[ 0019 ] fig1 shows a system comprising a device 100 of the invention , an apparatus 200 and a car stereo 300 comprising a tape player 310 . the apparatus 200 may communicate text , audio or data signals over a wireless network 400 . in this embodiment , the apparatus 200 is a cell - phone and the network 400 is a cellular wireless network 400 based on one of the various standardized wireless communication protocols such as the umts , gsm or cdma standards . electronics and modules of the cell - phone 200 enabling communicating over the wireless cellular network 400 are not shown here . the cell - phone 200 comprises a bluetooth chip 210 enabling the cell - phone 200 to communicate with another bluetooth - enabled device when in the receiving range of the other device . the protocol used for the communication of audio and data signals between the cell - phone 200 and another bluetooth device is specified in the bluetooth specification and in the draft of october 2002 , “ hands - free profile ” of the bluetooth sig car profile working group as mentioned in a previous paragraph . the car stereo 300 comprises a control interface 320 with various control buttons , a display 330 and a tape player 310 . the tape player 310 is a conventional tape player comprising a cassette - slot where a magnetic tape may be inserted and the tape player 310 also comprises internal mechanisms and electronics for rendering or play out of data stored on a magnetic tape or for recording of data onto the magnetic band of the tape player . the internal mechanisms and electronics of the tape player 310 are not shown in fig1 . in this embodiment , the car stereo is coupled to a sound system such as a set of loudspeakers . in this embodiment , the device 100 of the invention has a shape of a conventional magnetic tape . the device 100 is designed to be inserted in future or available conventional tape players such as the tape player 310 of the car stereo 300 . like the cell - phone 200 , the device 100 comprises a bluetooth module 130 for communicating over a bluetooth network . the device 100 further comprises a transducer 110 configured to convert a low frequency signal 20 received by the bluetooth module 130 over the bluetooth network into a magnetic signal for rendering by the stereo 300 or another device coupled to the stereo 300 , e . g . the sound system as will be shown hereinafter . in the invention , a user may accept a call 10 received on the cell - phone 200 by inserting the device 100 in the tape player 310 . when the phone 200 notifies the user that the call 10 is received , e . g . by ringing or vibrating , the user inserts the device 100 in the tape player 310 . the device 100 comprises a detection module 135 that detects the insertion of the device 100 in the tape player 310 . in this embodiment , the module 135 is a mechanical trigger that gets depressed when the device 100 is inserted in the player 310 . in another embodiment of the invention , the detection module 135 is an electronic arrangement that gets connected to the car stereo 300 when the device 100 is inserted in the tape player 310 . it is to be noted that the invention encompasses any detection module configured to mechanically or electronically detect the insertion of the device 100 in a tape player . upon detection , the module 135 informs and configures the bluetooth module 130 to enable to take the incoming call 10 on the cell - phone 200 . the module 130 may transmit a configuration signal to the chip 210 to control the cell - phone 200 to accept the incoming call 10 . from there , the voice data associated with the call will be forwarded from the cell - phone 200 to the device 100 for play out by the car stereo 300 . to this end , the bluetooth module 210 communicates a low frequency bluetooth data signal 20 representative of the voice data received by the phone 200 . the bluetooth chip 210 converts the radio frequency signal 10 into the low frequency signal 20 and communicates the signal 20 to the bluetooth module 130 . the cell - phone 200 and the device 100 may have reciprocally identified each other and have exchanged protocol information upon detection of each other in their respective receiving range . such identification allows both devices to interoperate using the bluetooth protocol . alternately both devices 100 and 200 may carry out such identification and probe / quest exchange upon insertion of the device 100 in the tape player 310 . the module 130 thereafter transmits the received bluetooth data signal 20 to the transceiver 110 . the transceiver 110 is configured to convert a signal 30 received from the module 130 into a magnetic signal 40 . the magnetic signal 40 may be a magnetic field modulated by the voice data signal 30 representative of the original live voice data received by the cell - phone 200 . the tape player 310 is equipped with a magnetic head , not shown here , for reading conventional magnetic tapes . the transceiver 110 is embedded in the device 100 to face the magnetic head of the tape player 310 and the transceiver 110 communicates the magnetic signal 40 to the magnetic head for play out by loudspeakers of the car stereo 300 . thus , a device 100 of the invention enables to automatically render the live voice data through the sound system associated with the tape player 310 when the device 100 is inserted in the tape player 310 . such a device 100 of the invention provides an advantageous alternative to the poor sound quality of cell - phones when used in cars . it must be appreciated that the automatic transfer of data other than voice data from the bluetooth chip 210 to the bluetooth module 120 is also encompassed in the invention . indeed , the chip 210 may be configured to forward to the device 100 data representative of voice mails , songs , emails and the like . for example , when a new voice mail is detected on the mailbox of the phone 200 , e . g . the cell - phone 200 just entered the wireless service zone of the network 400 , the bluetooth chip 120 may automatically forward this voice mail to the device 100 upon insertion of the device 100 in the tape player 310 or upon detection of the new voice mail if the device 100 had been previously inserted in the tape player 310 . in another embodiment of the invention , the phone 200 may transmit other data to the device 100 in addition to the audio data representative of the live voice conversation . the bluetooth chip 210 may be configured to transmit identification data to the bluetooth module 120 representative of the identity of the caller or addresser of the data signal 10 received on the cell - phone 200 . for example , a phone number or a name of the person calling or the name or phone number of the person who left the new voice mail may be transmitted to the device 100 for display by the car stereo 300 onto display 330 . in yet another embodiment of the invention , the apparatus 200 may be a laptop with wireless connection to the network 400 . the module 120 may be configured to control the bluetooth chip 210 to forward any data signal received by the apparatus 200 over the wireless network . for example , when the apparatus 200 receives an email over the network 400 , the chip 210 may automatically forward data representative of the email to the module 120 for rendering by the car stereo 300 . such representative data may be audio data for rendering by the loudspeakers associated with the car stereo 300 or text data to be displayed onto display 330 as mentioned previously . the apparatus 200 may comprise a text - to - speech application that generates an audio file representative of the email and this audio file is further converted into a bluetooth signal for transmission by the chip 210 to the module 120 . [ 0027 ] fig4 and fig5 show possible embodiment of the device 100 with different power sources . the device 100 comprises a rechargeable battery 120 . in the embodiment of fig4 the battery 120 is solar - powered by way of a solar cell 150 mounted on a retractable tray 140 . thus , advantage is taken of the fact that the device 100 would be left in the car while not in used . in this embodiment , the tray 140 is placed on the outer face of the device 100 , the one that faces the outside of the tape player 310 so that the cell 150 may still receive the natural light when inserted in the tape player 310 . the battery 120 may thus be charged when the device 100 is in use and inserted in the tape player 310 . the device 100 further comprises a charge indicator indicating a state of charge of the battery 120 . when the indicator 170 indicates a low charge of the battery 120 , the tray 140 may be opened to recharge the battery 120 . fig5 shows another embodiment where the battery is recharged using a cigarette - lighter connector 160 such as the ones commonly available . it is also to be noted that the apparatus 200 is not necessarily a cell - phone as described previously . the invention also encompasses other bluetooth devices , e . g . pdas , mp3 players , pager , for which a received audio or text data signal will be forwarded to the device 100 and rendered by the tape player 310 or ancillary devices coupled to it when the device 100 is inserted in the tape player 310 . it is within the scope of the invention to consider alternative embodiments where the device 100 is inserted in the tape player 310 before any call is received on the phone 200 . thus , for example once a call that was rendered using the device 100 of the invention is terminated , the user may leave the device 100 in the tape player 310 . in such case , a future incoming call received on the cell phone 200 will automatically be accepted by the device 100 of the invention and rendered through the device 100 unless specified otherwise by the user . indeed , a user may interrupt or inactivate the automatic forwarding of phone calls to the device 100 by ejecting the device 100 from the tape player 310 or by inactivating the device 100 . the user may also accept the call through the cell - phone itself by pressing a “ call accepting ” button on the cell - phone 200 . it is also within the scope of the invention to consider an embodiment where several bluetooth cell - phones or other bluetooth - enabled consumer electronic devices , such as a pda or an mp3 player , are within the receiving range of the bluetooth module 130 . in such embodiment , any incoming audio data received by one of such devices will be rendered through the device 100 when inserted in a tape player according to a method of the invention . | 7 |
fig1 through 5 show various perspective views of a first exemplary embodiment 01 of the fastening device according to the present invention . the fastening device 01 comprises a base plate 02 , which has dovetail edges 12 on its two long sides . as shown in fig4 , various fastening elements 09 are located on the top side of the base plate 02 , which are used for fastening auxiliary parts 19 such as a telescopic sight , an illumination unit , or a rangefinder device . these fastening elements 09 comprise locking and orientation pins as well as threaded holes , into which the auxiliary part may be screwed using screws . the locking pins are used for precise orientation of the auxiliary part 19 on the base plate 02 of the fastening device 01 . two clamping jaws 06 are guided on the dovetail edges 12 of the base plate 02 , the clamping jaws 06 having dovetail guides 07 , which are guided in the dovetail edge 12 . the clamping jaws 06 have friction - increasing coatings 05 on their clamping jaw face . such friction - increasing coatings 05 may be manufactured , for example , from friction - increasing films , and prevent axial slipping of the fastening device 01 along the barrel of a weapon . the clamping jaws 06 are displaceable to the dovetail edge 12 perpendicularly to the barrel direction of the weapon and may be adjusted on the one hand by a fixing screw 10 and on the other hand by a locking lever 03 , so that they may be pressed perpendicularly to the orientation of a barrel rail against the barrel rail and / or against the barrel of the weapon . the clamping jaws 06 may thus support a precise orientation and positive connection of the fastening device 01 by pressing the clamping jaw face , on which a friction - increasing layer 05 is located , as a support to the magnetic fastening . on the side of the base plate 02 facing toward the barrel rail , permanent magnets 04 are inlaid in the base plate 02 . the two magnets 04 produce the magnetic connection between fastening device 01 and weapon . in the exemplary embodiment shown , the north poles of the permanent magnets 04 point in the direction of the weapon , but the two magnets may also be inserted having opposite polarity in the direction of the weapon , to be able to close the magnetic circuit better . to be able to orient the fastening device 01 precisely on the barrel of the weapon , the two clamping jaws 06 are equipped with clamping and locking capabilities in relation to the base plate 02 . while one clamping jaw may be moved and fastened in a lockable way with the aid of a locking lever 03 in the dovetail guides 07 so it is displaceable in relation to the barrel of the weapon , the other clamping jaw is adjusted in its distance perpendicular to the barrel rail with the aid of a fixing screw 10 . fig1 thus shows the first exemplary embodiment of a fastening device 01 , the clamping jaw having the fixing screw 10 being located in a middle position , and the clamping jaw having the locking lever 03 being located in the closed state . in fig2 , the fastening device 01 is shown in a situation in which the clamping jaw having the fixing screw 10 is located in a maximally extended position , and the clamping jaw having the locking lever 03 is also located in the closed position . fig3 shows a fastening situation in which the clamping jaw having the fixing screw 10 is located in a minimal locking position , and the clamping jaw having the locking lever 03 is located in a closed , locked position . the various adjustment possibilities of the two clamping jaws within the dovetail guide allow a lateral orientation of the fastening device 01 in relation to the barrel of the weapon . fig6 through 8 show various exploded illustrations of the individual parts which the first exemplary embodiment of the fastening device according to the present invention comprises . fig8 shows a 2 - d illustration of all individual parts of the first exemplary embodiment , viewed from top to bottom , a counter screw fastening the locking lever 03 in relation to an adjustment screw in a threaded collar 11 , and two screws defining the clamping jaw associated with the lever in its maximally extended position , return springs 08 inside the dovetail guides 07 between clamping jaw and dovetail edge 12 being used for the purpose of pressing the clamping jaw 06 , which is assigned to the locking lever 03 , against the dovetail edge 12 when the locking lever 03 is opened , i . e ., moving the clamping jaw into a maximally retracted position when the locking lever 03 is opened . the clamping jaws 06 have a friction - increasing layer 05 on their clamping jaw faces , which prevents axial offset of the fastening device 01 when the clamping jaws 06 press against the barrel rail . the base plate 02 comprises the two opposing dovetail edges 12 , which are used for guiding the clamping jaws 06 , and has two recesses , into which the two permanent magnets 04 are inserted . the clamping jaw assigned to the fixing screw 10 in turn has a dovetail guide 07 , and is guided with the aid of two guide screws and the fixing screw 10 in the dovetail edge 12 and adjusted in its lateral position in relation to the longitudinal axis of the barrel rail with the aid of the fixing screw 10 . fig6 shows a perspective illustration of an exploded view of the individual parts shown in fig8 from top left in relation to the base plate 02 , and fig7 shows a perspective schematic illustration from bottom right in relation to the base plate 02 . fig9 shows a second exemplary embodiment 14 of a fastening device according to the present invention in the barrel direction of a weapon . the fastening device 14 comprises a base plate 15 , as well as two clamping jaws 16 extending opposite to one another along the barrel rail , which enclose both the barrel rail 20 and also parts of the double barrel 13 of a hunting rifle . the double barrel 13 of the hunting rifle is used on one hand for firing projectile ammunition , and on the other hand for firing shot , and has both a rifled barrel and also a smooth barrel . fig1 shows a side view of the second exemplary embodiment of the fastening device 14 , various fastening elements for accommodating an auxiliary part being recognizable on the base plate 15 . the clamping jaw 16 is attached to the base plate 15 with the aid of screws , and has a top magnetic strip 17 and a bottom magnetic strip 18 . the top magnetic strip 17 is used for the magnetic fastening of the fastening device 14 to the barrel rail 20 of the double barrel 13 . the bottom magnetic strip 18 fastens the clamping jaw 16 to the top barrel of the double barrel 13 . fig1 shows , in a view similar to fig1 , the fastening device 14 having the attached auxiliary part 19 . the auxiliary part 19 , in this case a red - dot sight , is snapped into the fastening elements of the base plate 15 , and oriented precisely along the barrel 13 therein . the fastening device 14 encloses the top barrel of the double barrel 13 using its two clamping jaws 16 for this purpose , each of the clamping jaws 16 having a top magnetic strip 17 , which adheres magnetically to the barrel rail 20 , and a bottom magnetic strip 18 , which produces a magnetic positive connection to the top barrel of the double barrel 13 . thus , for example , a shotgun , which typically only has a bead for coarse target sighting , may be subsequently retrofitted with a red - dot sight 19 without tools with the aid of such a removable and magnetically fixable fastening device 14 , without leaving visible traces on the weapon . | 5 |
in fig1 the processing of a call to an inwats customer is explained by assuming that it is originated from a calling station 10 in california . the inwats customer is assigned a single telephone number which is dialed by callers on all calls to that customer regardless of their place of origination . the number comprises ten digits including an 800 area code portion followed by seven digits nxx - xxxx . the nxx digits identify the data base , such as data base 11 in texas , which stores the inwats customer data utilized for processing the call to the appropriate destination . the nxx - xxxx digits identify the inwats customer within the data base . the &# 34 ; n &# 34 ; digit is any value 2 - 9 and each of the &# 34 ; x &# 34 ; digits is any value 0 - 9 . for the exemplary embodiment , call processing is described by assuming that the call may be routed to any one of three destinations , namely , first , second and third choice numbers respectively identifying stations 22 , 30 and 31 . each such station is depicted as an individual telephone station for the purpose of illustration . it is to be understood that in many cases inwats call answering facilities commercially utilize automatic call distributor systems involving numerous groups of incoming telephone lines served by a local or toll telephone switching system . a typical distributor system is disclosed , for example , in s . f . dunning u . s . pat . no . 3 , 111 , 561 of nov . 19 , 1963 . the three destination stations will suffice to explain typical call situations encountering open / closed and busy / idle conditions and the likelihood of completing inwats calls in geographic areas with different local business hours . after station 10 initiates a call and dials the inwats customer number , office 12 recognizes the 800 area code and routes the call illustratively over a trunk 14 to a toll office 15 equipped with ccis facilities . office 12 also forwards the dialed inwats number to office 15 for assembly in office 15 with the area code for that portion of california from which the call originates . office 15 determines the originating area code based on the serving of the call over trunk 14 in a known manner . office 15 routinely translates the dialed 800 digits and determines that the call is to be routed to a data base for deriving call routing data . as a consequence , office 15 formulates an inwats ccis message including an identification of the special service call , the office 15 and the originating area code as well as the dialed number and sends that message over the ccis link 17 to a signal transfer point or system 18 . the latter is responsive to the received message for translating the 800 - nxx digits to determine that the inwats customer data is stored in the data base system 11 , which illustratively is located in dallas , texas . system 18 then forwards the ccis message to data base 11 over a ccis link 19 . system 18 is essentially a data link , or packet , switching arrangement for ccis applications . packet data switching facilities are disclosed for example in a . g . fraser u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 749 , 845 of july 31 , 1973 and 3 , 979 , 733 of sept . 7 , 1976 . structure and operations of ccis are described , by way of example , in the 57 bstj no . 2 , page 230 , et seq . thus , the call is processed from the toll telephone switching network to a data base for deriving call service information . data base system 11 is , by way of example , a commercially available system , such as a western electric company , incorporated 1a processor ( disclosed in 56 bell system technical journal no . 7 , february 1977 ), equipped with disk storage and a system of programs to establish , edit and manage information stored in memory . it is equipped via a peripheral unit bus ( disclosed in 57 bell system technical journal no . 2 february 1978 ) with ccis facilities for interface communication with the signal transfer system 18 and the toll network . system 11 is responsive to the received inwats number and originating area code for deriving all of the stored information needed for processing the call to an idle and available inwats customer station designed as the preferred called station to serve the call . the information includes data for the active - inactive status of the dialed inwats number , the storage files associated with the active number , the inband / out - band character of the call based on the received originating area code , and a directory - unlisted pots number of a destination subsystem or station . for each active inwats number , data base system 11 is equipped with translator tables 20 and 21 of fig2 and 3 . table 20 contains a list of originating area codes and a correlated list of pots ddd ( plain ordinary telephone service direct distance dialing ) numbers identifying one or more called stations primarily designated to serve calls from the respective originating areas . each listed area code is uniquely associated with an individual one of the listed pots numbers when the inwats customer is entitled to receive calls from that originating area on a toll - free basis to the calling party . a single such pots number may be shared by a plurality of different originating area codes . whenever table 20 contains a pots number for an originating area code , calls from that area are designated as being &# 34 ; in - band &# 34 ;. otherwise , in the absence of a pots number for the area code , ( null entry ) calls from that area are &# 34 ; out - of - band &# 34 ; for the inwats customer and calls are not completed on a toll free basis to the caller . illustratively , on the call originating from station 10 , the originating area code is 805 and table 20 lists a correlated pots number 919 - 658 - 3399 , which is a called station 22 in north carolina , preferably designated as a first choice to serve the inwats calls . accordingly , such a call is &# 34 ; in - band &# 34 ;. if it were not , no pots number would be listed in table 20 for the area code 805 . each originating area code in table 20 is furnished with a counter 27 which is incremented on each call attempt involving that area code . in this way , statistics are derived on calls by area codes regardless of whether the inwats customer purchases the serivce for that area . table 21 contains a plurality of files each of which is associated with an individual pots number in table 20 . each such file , such as file 23 , contains eight individual items of data for each such number . these data items are utilized , as appropriate , for completing calls to the associated pots number and for recording the number of such calls for network management purposes . the first item 49 is a loop bit used to ensure that the alternate routing does not loop on itself . the second item 24 identifies the times and dates on which the station associated with the pots number 919 - 658 - 3399 is closed or personnel is unavailable for serving incoming calls . closed times are , for example , nonbusiness hours , such as 5 p . m .- 9 a . m ., holidays , and weekends , such as sunday . the third item 25 contains a bit indicating the current busy - idle status of the pots number 919 - 658 - 3399 . the fourth item 26 contains an alternate pots ddd number 206 - 582 - 2044 which is used when the preferred pots number is busy , closed or unavailable . the fifth item 46 contains a call counter which accumulates a count of the number of calls made to the pots number 919 - 658 - 3399 for a current time interval , for example , two minutes . the sixth item 47 contains a threshold number for inhibiting calls to the pots number . the seventh item 50 indicates whether a network management control is currently effective based on the previous time interval . the last item is a time interval 48 specifying the period for inhibiting data base inquiries to the 800 + nxx - xxxx . entry 48 is dynamically updated by a procedure described in fig5 . the utilization of data in tables 20 and 21 and inwats information processing operations of the data base system 11 are now described for the call from station 10 of fig1 with reference to the flow diagram of fig4 . after the tables 20 and 21 are loaded with the data as depicted in fig2 and 3 , system 11 is responsive to the receipt of the ccis inwats message for checking its records ( not shown ) to determine whether the dialed inwats number is active or inactive . if it is not validly in use and therefore inactive , system 11 effects a return of a ccis vacant code message to the toll office 15 of fig1 via link 19 , signal transfer system 18 and link 17 . office 15 thereupon routinely causes an announcement to be returned to the caller for conveying dialing instructions and indicating that the dialed number is not a working number . if the number is active , system 11 examines table 20 and its file 28 for translating the dialed inwats number and originating area code into a pots ddd number 919 - 658 - 3399 by a look - up operation in table 20 . next , the area code counter 27 is incremented to indicate a call from a station in area code 805 . had the look - up failed to find such a pots number ( null entry ) correlated with the originating area code in file 28 , the dialed inwats number would be &# 34 ; out - of - band &# 34 ; to that call originating area . resultingly , system 11 then effects an incrementing of a counter 27 and a return of an out - of - band ccis message to toll office 15 of fig1 via the ccis links 19 and 17 and the signal transfer system 18 . office 15 then routinely effects the transmission of a reorder message to the caller . system 11 determines that the inwats call is &# 34 ; in - band &# 34 ; when its lock - up operation extracts a pots ddd number 919 - 658 - 3399 from file 28 . that number is then used to locate the file , such as file 23 , in table 21 which contains the eight data items needed for further call processing and traffic management . system 11 initially checks file 23 to ascertain whether the station associated with the pots number is indicated to be open . this is done by examining item 24 of file 23 . if the station is open , system 11 next examines the busy / idle data , item 25 . if the station is idle , then the pots number , 919 - 658 - 3399 will be returned to office 15 for normal call setup . if the station is closed or busy , then system 11 examines item 26 of file 23 to obtain an alternate pots number . the loop bit , item 49 , is set to prevent looping between pots numbers . if an alternate pots number exists , such as 206 - 582 - 2044 , and its loop bit is not set , then the process continues until either an open and idle station is found , no alternate pots number is found , or transfer is made to a pots number whose loop bit is set . the last two situations will cause system 11 to send a ccis message to office 15 , via the ccis facilities , indicating an ineffective attempt . if the call results in an ineffective attempt and in the process of picking alternate pots numbers a busy condition is encountered , then the ccis message includes an indicator telling office 15 to return either a busy tone or audible message to the caller . if all encountered pots numbers had been closed , then the ccis message includes an indicator telling office 15 to transmit an audible message to the caller indicating the status of the called station . upon finding that the inwats call is &# 34 ; in - band &# 34 ; and that a station , such as station 22 , 30 or 31 associated with a preferred or alternate pots number is opened and nonbusy , system 11 effects a transmission of a ccis message including that number to toll office 15 via the ccis facilities 16 . office 15 then controls the establishment of call connections to the respective station 22 , 30 or 31 illustratively , over trunk 33 , toll office 34 , trunk 35 , toll office 36 , trunk 37 , local office 38 , and line 39 to station 22 or from office 34 , trunk 40 , local office 41 , to station 30 . connections to station 31 similarly are extendable from office 36 via trunk 42 and office 43 . the called station is then alerted to the incoming call and conversation ensues . each file in table 21 is equipped with a network management counter which retains a current count of the number of calls directed to the pots number . for example , file 32 has the counter 51 for counting calls directed to the number 212 - 525 - 3333 . the last file examined in the sequence of first choice or alternate pots numbers increments its current counter item 46 . this counter will be reinitialized periodically , for example , every two minutes . after the ccis message is returned to office 15 with either a pots number or an ineffective attempt , then item 50 of the last file is checked . this is an indication of whether a control is presently in progress for that pots number . if the control is on , then the inhibit time , item 48 , is returned in another ccis message to office 15 . office 15 then inhibits all new data base attempts to that 800 - nxx - xxxx for the prescribed time period . calls to this number , arriving at office 15 during such an interval of time , are given an audible message indicating the situation . periodically , for example every two minutes , all counters , item 46 , are compared against this threshold , item 47 . the threshold per unit time is set on the basis of the number of lines of the inwats station , call holding times and similar factors . if the control is currently off and the counter is less than the threshold , then the counter is merely set to zero . if the control is currently off and the counter exceeds the threshold , then the control is turned on , item 50 , inhibit time is set to an initial state , for example 6 seconds , and the counter is set to zero . if the control is on and the counter is less than the threshold , the inhibit time is decreased by three seconds , for example , while if the counter is over the threshold the inhibit time is increased by , for example , three seconds . again the counter is set to zero . if the inhibit time goes to zero , then the control is taken off , item 50 . the result of the network management action is that mass calling attempts that are not likely to be completed are not routed to data base 11 or beyond toll office 15 . this frees data base 11 , ccis facilities 17 , 18 and 19 and the toll network to serve other calls and reduces the probability of call blockage due to mass calling of an inwats customer . busy data for an inwats station is written into the data base 11 under control of the terminating office utilizing the ccis system . illustratively , such data is gathered for the line ( s ) of station 22 by the terminating office 38 and busy / idle records for the one or more lines , such as line 39 , serving that station . the busy / idle data is sent by ccis message over ccis facilities 44 and signal transfer system 45 the response to the appropriate busy or idle condition . when an all lines busy condition exists for station 22 , terminating office 38 sends a ccis message to transfer system 45 which translates it and determines that the busy data is to be routed to data base 11 for entering a busy status &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; in the busy record 25 of the file of table 21 for station 22 . resultingly , inwats calls designated for routing to that station are blocked and alternate routing is effected as priorly explained . a similar ccis signaling operation occurs to enter an idle bit &# 34 ; 0 &# 34 ; in record 25 when station 22 has at least one idle line . the foregoing method , in addition to being utilized for inwats service , is useful for automated collect calls , toll call forwarding and other special service calls of a type served for example by a traffic service position system as disclosed in r . j . jaeger et al u . s . pat . no . 3 , 484 , 560 of dec . 16 , 1969 . for the collect call service , the entitled customer is given a single multi - digit number , such as a 700 - nxx - xxxx , number or a φ - 700 - nxx - xxxx + pin ( personal identification number ) code where the pin code is a multidigit security code , which is given to anyone that the customer wishes to give a standing authorization to call him collect . in the data base , the customer telephone number is stored in a first memory table , such as table 20 of fig2 in correlation with the number . when a caller dials the number , the data base receives from the communication system a special service call message including that number and selectively a suffix code , such as an originating area code ; verifies the in - band nature of the call plus the security code if supplied ; translates the received message into a call completion control message , such as a routing message including the customer telephone station number ; and sends the control message to the telephone machine for controlling the establishment of call connections from the calling station to the customer station authorizing the automatic collect calling . charges are then billed to that customer . busy / idle and open / closed station data , alternate station routing data , and network management data including call counting such as are stored in the table 21 of fig3 are usable for automated collect calling . toll call forwarding is essentially the same as described for inwats and automated collect calling except that the forwarding is illustratively effected by allowing the called party to change the pots number in fig2 by contacting , for instance , an operator having access to the ccis system for sending a message to the data base to update the number . reference is made to a . b . mearns ( case 1 ) patent application ser . no . 924 , 169 , filed concurrently herewith . | 7 |
referring first to fig2 and 3 , the support post 204 is preferably made from schedule 40 pipe with a 3½ inch outer diameter . the post can be 7 feet , 4 inches to 8 feet , 3 inches , depending on the height range desired . the top end 102 of the present invention is identical to the prior art . the top end 102 with the threaded bolt 104 allows for small , exact adjustments . in order to provide for larger adjustments , base collar 209 and spacer rings 202 , 203 and 205 are provided . the base collar 209 is a 4 inch outside diameter metal pipe with an inside diameter of 3½ inches and a preferred height of 14 inches . the base collar 209 is welded to a base plate 113 . the base plate 113 has two steel straps 111 , 112 welded to the top surface 113 of the base plate on either side of the base collar 209 . the base plate 113 is attached to the i beam 114 in the basement floor by bending the straps 111 , 112 over the top flange 115 of the i beam 114 . the spacer rings have a length of d 1 or d 2 , as shown in fig2 and 3 . the spacer rings 202 , 203 have identical diameter to the support post 204 . in the preferred embodiment d 1 is 2 inches and d 2 is 3 inches . it can be seen that d 4 is 6 inches which is the insertion depth of the support post 204 into the base collar 209 . it is important that the bottom end 201 of post 204 and the spacer rings 202 , 203 be cut square so that all of the load is evenly transferred to i beam 114 and no stress is put on the base collar 209 or on the spacer rings 202 , 203 . this is normally assured by cutting the post 204 and the spacer rings 202 , 203 in a shop , not on site . the overall height of the support post 200 is adjusted by placing one or more spacer rings inside the base collar 209 . the bottom end 201 of the post 204 is then inserted into the base collar 209 . it is required that the support post 204 has a minimum insertion d 4 into the base collar 209 of 6 inches to ensure proper stability . in order to ensure that the support post 204 has been inserted the required minimum , a line 205 could be marked on the support post 6 inches from the bottom edge 201 . this allows for easy visual inspection of the installed post by an inspector . the marking can be paint or similar material or it could be scored on the post . the height of the base collar 209 is d 3 . in the preferred embodiment d 3 is 14 inches . this allows for a total adjustment range of 8 inches , plus the 3 inches from the prior art top adjustment . the spacer rings 202 , 203 can be used alone or in combination to provide 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 or 8 inch adjustments within the base collar 209 . adjustments of less than 3 inches are done using the threaded bolt 104 . this allows for a total amount of adjustment of 11 inches . referring next to fig4 a support post 400 is preferably made of schedule 40 pipe with a 3½ inch outer diameter . the shaft 409 can be over 7 feet in height . the support post 400 comprises the shaft 409 inserted into the base collar 401 which has a base plate 408 . spacers 402 , 403 and 406 are inserted into the base collar 401 to provide a desired height for the support post 400 . nominal dimensions are d 40 = 2 ′ 10 ″; d 41 = 14 ″; d 42 = 3 ″; d 44 = 2 ″; d 45 = 12 ″. d 45 is the minimal insertion length of the shaft 409 into the base collar 401 . although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments , numerous modifications and variations can be made and still the result will come within the scope of the invention . no limitation with respect to the specific embodiments disclosed herein is intended or should be inferred . | 4 |
fig1 a depicts the inventive instruction cache ( icache ) 100 of a processor , and includes long cache lines 101 , 102 , 103 , and 104 . only four lines are depicted for simplicity , icache 100 size is implementation dependent . each cache line includes a tag 105 , which is used to tell a cache hit or miss , a plurality of instruction bundles 106 , and counter / branch information 107 . fig1 b depicts the contents of instruction bundles 106 . each bundle is comprised of a group of instructions 108 that can be issued in the same cycle , for example , bundle 0 includes a load instruction , an add instruction , and a compare - branch instruction . note that each bundle has a fixed number of instructions , however , some of the instructions may be nops . fig1 c depicts the counter / branch information associated with each instruction bundle . each instruction bundle has counter information 109 , which is used to determine whether the code within the bundle is hot code . when the bundle is brought into the icache , the counter is initialized to a threshold value . depending on the threshold value desired , the counter can be as small as 8 to 10 bits . the counter is updated when the instruction bundle is retired from the execution pipeline . each update decrements the counter by 1 . note that the counter could initially be set to zero and increment with each retirement . however , this would require a comparison with a non - zero threshold number , e . g . 100 , which requires more work than comparing with a zero threshold number . each instruction bundle 106 in the icache 100 also maintains a branch history 110 , 111 for each instruction within the bundle . this history describes whether the comparisons in the branch instructions have resulted in a fall through to the next instruction or a branch taken to another instruction . branch history 110 is associated with bundle 0 , including slots a , b , c , which correspond to the instructions within the bundle 0 . thus , it appears one slot in the history is allocated for each instruction in the bundle , whether the instruction is a branch instruction or not . when the instructions from the original binary are brought into the icache , the branch history is cleared . the branch history information is updated when the instruction bundle is retired from fie pipeline . note that the number of instructions ( and thus the number of slots ) is by way of example only , as each bundle could have more or fewer instructions . since the third instruction in bundle 0 is a branch instruction , then slot 110 c has branch information . binary zeros indicate a fall through , and binary ones indicate a branch taken . thus , the information in 110 c , i . e . 00100 , indicates that of the last five times that this instruction has been executed , that the instruction br 1 has fallen through , fallen through , been taken , fallen through , and fallen through . note that the number of bits in the history is by way of example only , and more bits could be used to provide a more detailed history ( while requiring more space ), while fewer bits could be used to save space ( while providing less history ). note that either the most significant bit or the last significant bit may represent the most urgent execution instruction . similarly , the information in 111 b and 111 c describe the histories of instruction br 2 and br 3 respectively . note that br 2 has not recently branched , whereas the previous four executions of br 3 have resulted in the branch taken . in operation , once the counter of a bundle reaches zero , a software component known as the trace selector 201 is invoked , via a special trap , to select a trace . diagnose instructions ( special instructions to diagnose hardware ) are used by the trace selector to examine the icache and the branch history information to form a trace . regular instructions cannot read i - cache contents since i - cache is not part of the architecture states . each processor has a set of diagnose instructions defined ( not visible to application programmer ) which can be used to examine i - cache contents . fig2 a and 2b depict trace formation . fig2 a depicts instruction bundles 106 and their associated branch information 11110 . assume that the counter of bundle 1 ( not shown ) has reached zero , and that bundles 5 - 9 and 14 - 99 are not shown for reason of simplicity . note that bundles 1 - 101 may be in one or more cache lines of icache 100 . the trace selector 201 begins building the trace 202 from the hot code , in this case bundle 1 . the trace selector 201 examines the branch information ( if any ) in bundle 1 to predict whether the branch will be taken or fall through . if there are no branch instructions in the bundle , then bundle will fall through to the next sequential bundle . if the trace selector determines that the branch is most likely to fall through , then the next sequential bundle is added to the trace 202 , in this case it would be bundle 2 . note that if a branch instruction that is in the middle of bundle is assumed to be taken , the remaining instructions of the bundle are not included in the trace . the trace 202 is stored in the trace memory 203 . if the trace selector determines that the branch is most likely to be taken , then the target bundle of the branch is added to the trace 202 , in this case it would be bundle 30 . after examining the branch history 112 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has not been taken and has fallen through . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 30 will not be taken , and will add the next sequential bundle , bundle 2 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 2 . after examining the branch history 113 of bundle 2 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has been taken four times and fallen through once . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 10 will be taken , and will add the target bundle , bundle 10 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 10 . after examining the branch history 114 of bundle 10 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has not been taken and has fallen through . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 20 will not be taken , and will add the next sequential bundle , bundle 11 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 11 . bundle 11 does not contain any branch instructions , and therefore will not have a branch history , thus the trace selector 201 will add the next sequential bundle , bundle 12 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 12 . after examining the branch history 115 of bundle 12 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has not been taken and has fallen through . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 24 will not be taken , and will add the next sequential bundle , bundle 13 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 13 . after examining the branch history 116 of bundle 13 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has been taken four times and fallen through once . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 101 will be taken , and will add the target bundle , bundle 101 , to the trace 202 , and then will examine bundle 101 . after examining the branch history 117 of bundle 101 , the trace selector 201 will note that in the previous five executions of the branch instruction , the branch has been taken five times . therefore , the trace selector will predict that the branch to bundle 1 will be taken . the trace selector notes that bundle 1 is already part of the trace 202 in trace memory 203 , via the trace of a sequence of bundles , by examining the address of a backward branch , it can be detected whether the target bundle is already part of a trace . the trace selector then ends the trace or passes the formed trace to the optimizer . the branch to bundle 1 from bundle 101 is known as a backward branch , which forms a loop . at this point , the trace may be stopped , as the trace would merely repeat bundles that are already present in the trace . the trace selector may also end the trace based on other criteria from a set of heuristics including the length of the trace , the number of conditional branches encountered , the probability of accumulated branch predictions and other considerations . thus , a trace may end when its length is a multiple of a cache line size . this would make cache operations easier , as the entire line could be loaded or overwritten without having to be concerned about starting and stopping points in the middle of a cache line . the trace could also end after a certain , predetermined number of conditional branches has been encountered . note that branch histories 113 and 116 do indicate that branch falls through occasionally , and thus the trace would be inaccurate as the trace predicts that the branch will be taken . the predetermined number could be based on the probability of error of the trace . for example , the predetermined number would be low if many of the branches have histories of 00011 or 00111 . on the other hand , the predetermined number would be high if many of the branches have histories of 00000 or 11111 . note that a trace may terminate at an indirect branch since the target address is not known . an indirect branch is different from an ip - relative ( or pc - relative ) branch in that the branch target address cannot be computed directly from the branch instruction . its target is stored either in a register or in a memory location . so the target address is unknown unless the instruction is actually executed . for example , however , the trace selector may decide to grow the trace by predicting its most recent target from the target address cache ( tac ), which is a structure commonly used to predict branch target address . for a return branch which is an indirect branch , with its target being dependent on the call site , the trace selector would know the return address if the call instruction is in the trace , if the call instruction is not in the trace , the trace selector can predict the call site using the top address of the return stack buffer ( rsb ), which is a commonly used data structure to predict return branches . the tac and the rsb are discussed in the co - pending and commonly assigned u . s . patent application entitled efficient mapping to optimized code for processor embedded run - time optimizer ser . no . 09 / 252 , 367 , filed feb . 18 , 1999 , and issued feb . 6 , 2001 , as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 185 , 669 ; which is hereby incorporated by reference . the trace 202 will be stored in the trace memory 203 . there is a mapping from the trace starting instruction bundle in the original binary to the trace in the trace memory . when the trace starting bundle is executed , the mapping will automatically lead the execution to the trace stored in the trace memory 203 . typically , an executed branch instruction has its target in the trace memory . this is discussed in the co - pending and commonly assigned u . s . patent application entitled system and method using a hardware embedded run - time optimizer ser . no . 09 / 252 , 170 , filed feb . 18 , 1999 , and issued sep . 17 , 2002 , as u . s . pat . no . 6 , 453 , 411 , which is hereby incorporated by reference . note that the trace may require more than one cache line . as stated previously , long cache lines are inefficient for original binary . this is because the original binary is loaded sequentially , i . e . bundle 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , etc ., and branches taken within the bundles may result in many of the loaded bundles not being used . for example , suppose bundle 6 has a branch taken to bundle 50 , then the loading of bundles 7 - 49 represent wasted time and cache space as they are not going to be used . however , when the trace is loaded into the cache , the entire trace is almost certain to be used . thus , the long cache lines are much more efficient , because of the sequential locality , as the bundles of the trace will ( almost always ) fall through to the next bundle of the trace . note that a trace usually spans several cache lines . it may not end at the end of a cache line . in this case , the remaining part of the cache line can be the start of another trace . note that since traces are also brought into the icache , the profiling and trace selection may end up generating a trace on top of an existing trace . traces can be identified since their addresses are preserved addresses in physical memory . if their participation in subsequent trace selection is not desired , then when the trace is moved into the icache , the counters associated with the trace will not be initialized to the threshold value , and instead are set to a null value . thus , the trace will not participate in profiling . however , subsequent profiling and trace selection could be used to determine whether the trace is considered “ good .” for example , if a trace has frequent early exits , then the trace may need to be regenerated . note that more bits of branch history will allow for more accurate predictions to be made by the trace selector . however , this will require more cache space . alternatively , a multi - tiered system may be used such that the trace selector would not to select a trace when a bundle traps for the first time . instead , the trace selector may record the branch history information of the bundle in another location of memory , and then set the threshold back to a second value , which could be smaller , larger or the same as the original threshold value , and return to execution . when this bundle traps again , the trace selector can accumulate the current branch history with the branch history from the first trap to make more accurate branch predictions . although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail , it should be understood that various changes , substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims . | 6 |
an excess amount of liquid containing an adhesive distributed therein is continuously introduced in known manner , for instance by means of the liquid applying device disclosed in the aforementioned u . s . patent application ser . no . 187 , 966 , into a suitably prepared staple fiber arrangement . by squeezing - off the excess liquid and compacting the fiber arrangement there is produced a slubbing or the like containing a certain quantity of a still moist not yet set adhesive , which is immediately subjected to drying and thus transformed into a yarn . with throughpassage velocities of 100 to greater than 300 m / min . and at the same time small dimensions of the installation the time between application of the liquid and starting drying amounts to less than one second . owing to the expansion in cross - section which is present after departing from the pressure zone and possibly a further loosening of the compactness of the fine band due to adhesion of the staple fibers at the working or work disks of the liquid applying device there should result , upon setting of the adhesive in dry air , a loosened hairy yarn with lesser breaking or tear strength and poorly utilized adhesive and , in the case of hydrophilic fibers , the quality of the yarn is still further reduced owing to the aforementioned sandwich - effect . suppression of such drawbacks requires a specific drying technique which , now according to the teachings of the invention resides in the features that the moist slubbing is supplied into , or otherwise suitably brought into contact with , a condensing vapor atmosphere . with this procedure there preferably occurs a shock - like condensation of liquid at the surface of the slubbing which , as can be readily calculated , can amount to about 10 to 15 percent based upon the weight of the slubbing after introduction of the liquid . in order to increase the quantity of the condensate at the surface of the slubbing it is possible to maintain the quantity of the introduced liquid as large as possible and the temperature of the introduced liquid and the fiber material as low as possible , for instance at room temperature . moreover , the slubbing prior to feeding same into contact with the condensing vapor atmosphere can be further sprayed with liquid in order to additionally increase the quantity of applied liquid . as has been found in practice it is possible to extensively reduce the previously discussed loosening of the structure of the slubbing by the condensation of liquid at the surface of the slubbing and , for instance , additionally by carrying out a suitable stretching or tensioning of the slubbing . this is so because fibers protruding from the surface of the slubbing tend to again completely bear against the body of the slubbing owing to the prevailing capillary action . at the same time there is made the best possible use of the adhesion or bonding force of the adhesive introduced into the liquid and upon completion of the drying operation there results an adhesively bonded yarn which , for instance , is manifested by its high breaking strength and rupture elongation as well as also by its extremely smooth surface . the condensing vapor atmosphere can be generated by evaporation or vaporization and possibly subsequent superheating or overheating of the liquid introduced into the slubbing . in order to initiate the continuous course of the process , that is for the initial production of the condensing vapor atmosphere liquid can be atomized , vaporized and possibly superheated . superheating of the vapor atmosphere has , for instance , proven to be advantageous for the purpose of increasing the affect of the condensation and drying , and therefore , it is preferred to maintain the condensing vapor atmosphere at a temperature which is at least 20 ° c above the boiling point of the introduced liquid . after completion of the condensation - heating of the slubbing the primary and secondary applied liquid , while simultaneously setting the adhesive , can be again evaporated or vaporized and the thus formed adhesively bonded yarn , following removal from the vapor atmosphere and passage through a cooling zone , can be wound practically without twist upon a bobbin or the like . the invention will now be further explained in conjunction with the following exemplary examples : in a first process stage and for instance as disclosed in swiss patent no . 426 , 704 or u . s . pat . no . 3 , 426 , 389 , a stable band of 1550 tex and formed of acrylic fibers sold under the trademark &# 34 ; dralon &# 34 ; of the well - known german concern bayer , leverkusen , west german , of 1 . 4 denier and a staple length of 40 millimeters is dyed with a light - fast dye known as &# 34 ; deorlin - licht &# 34 ; of the swiss concern , ciba - geigy , of basel , switzerland . with eight - fold doubling this stable band is delivered in a further process step to a single - zone drafting arrangement and attenuated with a draft of 86 to 180 tex and delivered to a liquid applicator device , for instance of the type disclosed in the aforementioned u . s . patent application ser . no . 187 , 966 . after application at room temperature of the liquid containing the adhesive in distributed form there is present a compacted , still moist slubbing . suitable as the introduced liquid is a 50 percent aqueous solution of the size or sizing agent pe , fabricated by the well - known german concern basf of ludwigshaven , west germany . directly after introduction of the liquid , i . e . in less than 1 second after leaving the impregnation device , the slubbing is continuously subjected to a drying process and after completion of drying and passing through a cooling zone this slubbing is wound at room temperature upon a bobbin . drying occurs with dry air at a temperature of 90 ° and 140 ° c respectively . in the dried condition the yarn essentially free of twist and consisting of bonded staple fibers is clamped in a tensile tester of the concern instron limited of high wycombe , bucks , england and the breaking or tear strength and its rupture or breaking elongation is determined . the necessary recalculations gave a breaking length value in breaking or tear kilometers ( rkm ). in the present case such amounted to 6 . 4 and 7 . 5 rkm respectively for a rupture elongation of 4 . 2 and 5 . 2 percent respectively . now instead of carrying out the drying operation in dry air a slubbing treated in the same manner with adhesive is introduced into a condensing vapor atmosphere at 140 ° c and having a vapor content of approximately 90 percent by volume . after completion of the drying operation and passage through a cooling zone such is wound likewise at room temperature in the form of a yarn upon a bobbin . tests carried out at the aforementioned tensile tester and the calculations resulted in a breaking length of 12 . 8 rkm with a breaking or rupture elongation of 12 . 4 percent . a comparison of these results shows that by virtue of the specific drying technique , namely owing to the direct infeed of the moist slubbing into the condensing vapor atmosphere , i . e . with simultaneous smallest dimensions of the installation , there can be realized a considerably greater breaking strength and a considerably greater rupture elongation . in particular , in many instances it is only possible with these process procedures to fulfill the highest requirements as concerns yarn values , as such for instance are required when using a bonded staple fiber yarn as warp material . in this field of use it is even possible to oftentimes dispense with the warp sizing required for normal twisted yarns , resulting in a considerable saving in the processing costs . additionally , such yarns manifest themselves by an extremely smooth appearance of their surface with very few protruding fibers , so that processing is simplified and the problem of fly or the like is drastically reduced . it is also possible , and this is of economic significance for certain requirements of yarn values for further processing , to achieve a considerable saving in the quantity of adhesive ; it is also possible with the same effect to employ other adhesives , such as polyvinyl alcohol , suitable starch derivatives and the like . a carded raw cotton of american origin with a staple of 11 / 16 inch is simultaneously dyed in a manner analogous to the procedures explained in example i in a first process stage with a reactive dye , like cibacron of ciba - geigy , basel , switzerland and adhesively bonded into a stable band of 2380 tex ( ne 0 . 25 ). this stable band is presented with eight - fold doubling in a second process stage to a single - zone drafting arrangement , attenuated with a 95 - fold draft to 200 tex , again is delivered to a liquid applicator device and after applying a liquid at room temperature containing adhesive in distributed form is delivered in the form of a compacted slubbing . suitable as the introduced liquid is a 5 percent aqueous solution of sodium algenate , &# 34 ; manutex f &# 34 ; available from the swiss concern , firma chem . fabrik , schweizerhall , basel , switzerland and commercially available on the market . in order to maintain the dimensions of the installation small the slubbing , less than 1 second after leaving the impregnation device , is continuously subjected to a drying process and after drying and passing through a cooling zone such is wound in the form of a bonded cotton yarn upon a bobbin or the like . drying takes place with dry air at a temperature of 95 ° c . testing of the yarn at the tensile tester and calculations resulted in a breaking length of 6 . 3 rkm with a rupture elongation of 2 . 4 percent ; yarn values which in many instances make any further processing impossible . instead of drying in dry air a slubbing treated in the same manner with adhesive is introduced into a condensing vapor atmosphere formed from the liquid , this vapor atmosphere being at a temperature of 145 ° c and having a vapor content exceeding 85 percent by volume . after drying of the slubbing and subsequent cooling such is likewise wound upon a bobbin in the form of a bonded yarn . the yarn tests which were carried out now resulted in a breaking length of 10 . 1 rkm and a rupture elongation of 4 . 7 percent . also in this example the surprising influence of the inventive drying technique is quite clear and oftentimes even renders possible the utilization of a bonded staple fiber yarn . additionally , as evident by the results , the sandwich - effect feared when working with hydrophilic fiber materials and the therewith associated migration of the adhesive is noticably improved , that is to say , the improved results , for the same quantity of adhesive , are based upon a homogeneous distribution over the cross - section and an improved utilization of the adhesion force or bonding effect of the adhesive . of course , it would be possible to replace the adhesive employed in this example by suitable starch derivatives , polyacrylates , mixtures of different adhesives and so forth , without destroying the effective mechanism of the inventive process , as well as it also being possible to admix to the cotton as hydrophilic fiber during the doubling of the second process stage a pronounced hydrophobic fiber , such as polyester . in contrast to the previously discussed examples i and ii in this case the production of a bonded and essentially non - twisted staple fiber yarn takes place in a single - stage process . this example will be explained on the basis of a crimped polyacrylic nitrile fiber of 3 denier and a staple length of 60 millimeters and which has been previously contracted by thermal treatment : a carded band of 5 , 000 tex is presented to a conventional three - cylinder drafting arrangement , attenuated by a 7 . 6 - fold draft to 660 tex , and then presented to a liquid applicator device for instance of the type disclosed in the aforementioned u . s . patent application ser . no . 187 , 966 . after application of the liquid at room temperature and containing the adhesive in a distributed form such fiber material appears in the form of a compacted slubbing . there can be used as the introduced liquid an 8 percent aqueous solution of a starch derivative &# 34 ; meyprogum np 25 &# 34 ;, commercially available from the swiss concern meyhall - chemical , of kreuzlingen , switzerland . immediately after departing from the impregnation device the slubbing is continuously subject to drying and after passing a subsequent cooling zone is wound in the form of an adhesively bonded yarn upon a bobbin . for comparison purposes drying takes place with dry air at a temperature of 110 ° c , there resulting a breaking length of 1 . 7 rkm and a rupture or breaking elongation of 3 . 4 percent . on the other hand , treatment of the same slubbing in a superheated or overheated vapor atmosphere at 160 ° c and a vapor content exceeding 90 percent by volume resulted in an increase of the breaking length of 3 . 2 rkm and an increased rupture elongation of 6 percent . depending upon the manner of utilizing such yarn during further processing very different requirements can be made as concerns the breaking length and rupture elongation , which can be attained in all cases by practicing the process of this invention and in contrast to drying with dry air can be realized with a minimum quantity of adhesive . while there is shown and described present preferred embodiments of the invention , it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims . | 3 |
methods and apparatus for implementing a palmtop computer system that is well integrated with a personal computer system is disclosed . in the following description , for purposes of explanation , specific nomenclature is set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . however , it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that these specific details are not required to practice the present invention . in other instances , well - known circuits and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the present invention . fig1 illustrates a portable computer system 130 . the portable computer system 130 may execute a number of different computer programs . however , the most common applications on the portable computer system 130 will consist of a suite of personal information management ( pim ) applications such as an addressbook , a daily organizer , a to - do list , and a memo pad . most people that use a portable computer system 130 , also have a personal computer system that has the same applications . it would therefore be desirable to synchronize information between the portable computer system 130 and the personal computer system . also illustrated in fig1 is a desktop personal computer system 110 . coupled to the serial port 113 of the desktop personal computer system 110 is a cradle 120 . the cradle is used to provide a serial communication link between the portable computer system 130 and the personal computer system 110 . specifically , the serial communication lines from the serial port 113 are extended and terminate at a serial connector 127 on the cradle 120 . a matching serial connector ( not shown ) on the portable computer system 130 connects the portable computer system 130 to the personal computer system 110 . to synchronize the information between the portable computer system 130 and the personal computer system 110 , a user drops the portable computer system 130 into the cradle 120 and presses a synchronization button 125 . the synchronization button 125 causes a synchronization program on the portable computer system 130 to execute . the synchronization program on the portable computer system 130 wakes up a peer synchronization program on the personal computer system 110 . the synchronization program on the portable computer system 130 and the peer synchronization program on the personal computer system 110 perform the necessary operations to synchronize information stored on the two computer systems . the architecture of the synchronization process is described in the u . s . patent application entitled “ extendible method and apparatus for synchronizing multiple files on two different computer systems ” with ser . no . 08 / 542 , 055 , filed on oct . 13 , 1995 , now u . s . pat . 5 , 884 , 323 . to efficiently synchronize the information between the two computer systems , each system maintains a set of status flags for each of the data records . the status flags on each data record identify if the record is new , modified , or deleted . thus , when a record on the portable computer system 130 or the personal computer system 110 is created , modified , or deleted , the status flags for that record are set to new , modified , or deleted respectively . the status flags on the data records greatly simplify the synchronization process since only the new , modified , or deleted records on each computer system need to be shared with the other computer system . after each synchronization , all the data record status flags are cleared since the two systems have identical databases after the synchronization point . as described in the previous section , a personal computer system can easily be equipped with a cradle 120 that allows a portable computer system 130 to synchronize with the personal computer system 110 . in this manner , the information on the portable computer system 130 can be backed - up on the personal computer system 110 . each personal computer system usually has ample resources for backing - up several portable computer systems . to back - up another portable computer system , such as portable computer 140 , the second portable computer system 140 can be placed into the same cradle 120 . when the synchronization button is pushed , the synchronization process begins . in order to properly back - up the second portable computer system 140 , the personal computer system 110 needs to recognize that the second portable computer system 140 is different from the first portable computer system 130 such that the data from the first portable computer system 130 is not destroyed . to accomplish this goal , each portable computer system is assigned a name . typically , the name of the portable computer system will be the same name as the user of the portable computer system . the name of the portable computer system is assigned when the portable computer system is first synchronized . then , when the second portable computer 140 system is inserted into the cradle and synchronized , the personal computer system 110 will recognize that a different portable computer system is being synchronize such that a different database will be used . the first time the second portable computer system 140 is synchronized , the personal computer will ask the user if a new account should be created on the personal computer system 110 for storing information from the second portable computer 140 . thus , a second portable computer can be synchronized on a single personal computer . the user of a portable computer system may work with more than one personal computer system . for example , many white collar workers that use a personal computer system at an office often have a second personal computer system at home . the second personal computer system allows the worker to work at night , work on weekends , or telecommute by working at home . it would be desirable to allow such a user to synchronize with both the personal computer at the office and the second personal computer system at home . referring to fig1 a second personal computer system 150 with a second cradle 160 is illustrated . if the portable computer system 130 is placed into the second cradle 160 and the synchronization button 165 is pressed , then the portable computer system 130 will attempt to synchronize with the second personal computer system 150 . as described in a previous section , the data records on the portable computer system 130 each have flags that specified if the record is new , modified , or deleted since the last synchronization . however , these flags are only relevant to the particular personal computer system that the portable computer system 130 last synchronized with . if the portable computer system 130 has been synchronized with a first personal computer system 110 and then the user later attempts to synchronize the portable computer system 130 with the second personal computer system 150 , then the status flags on the data records will only relate to the first personal computer system 110 . thus , an interesting problem is created when a portable computer system is synchronized with a first personal computer system , used , and then later synchronized with a second personal computer system . to handle the problem , the synchronization program on each personal computer system stores a copy of the reconciled database after each synchronization . the stored database copy is not modified . then , when a synchronization must be performed wherein the new , modified , deleted record flags are not available , then the entire contents of the portable computer database is read and compared with the stored database . this comparison will yield a set of records that have been created ( new ), modified , or deleted since the last synchronization . these new , modified , and delete records can then be used to synchronize with the personal computer &# 39 ; s current database . a detailed description of this technique can be found in the u . s . patent application entitled “ method and apparatus for synchronizing information on two different computer systems ” with ser . no . 08 / 544 , 927 , filed on oct . 18 , 1995 , now u . s . pat . no . 5 , 727 , 202 . in this document , a synchronization that requires the copy of the database from the previous synchronization is known as a “ slow sync .” before the problem of multiple synchronization hosts for a single portable computer can be solved , the problem first must be detected . to detect the problem of synchronizing with multiple personal computers , the portable computer creates a unique synchronization token after each synchronization . the synchronization token is stored by both the portable computer system and the personal computer system . later , when a synchronization is attempted , the two systems compare synchronization tokens . if the synchronization tokens do not match , then the portable computer system &# 39 ; s last synchronization was with a different personal computer system . in such situations , the reconciled database from the previous synchronization with this computer is fetched to perform the current synchronization . personal computer systems are often coupled together into computer networks . when personal computer systems are coupled together into a network , each computer system can its share resources with the other computer systems coupled to the network . similarly , each computer system can access the shared resources available from the other computer systems coupled to the network . when a personal computer that is used to synchronize portable computers is coupled to a network , that network infrastructure can be used to route a synchronization to that “ preferred ” personal computer . for example , a user of a portable computer system will usually have a personal computer system that is “ his ” personal computer system . the user will store his personal data such his address lists , his personal calendar , and his to - do list on his personal computer . new changes to the address list , calendar , and to - do list will be made to his personal computer . it would therefore be desirable to always synchronize with his personal computer ( a “ preferred ” computer ). often , the user of a portable computer system will not be near his personal computer system . but if the user is near a personal computer that is coupled to his personal computer through a network , the user can synchronize with his personal computer using the network as a communication medium . to perform this synchronization across the network , the portable computer system must store an identifier that can be used to uniquely address the “ preferred ” personal computer across the network . an example can be provided by referring again to fig1 . in fig1 two personal computers 110 and 150 are illustrated . the two personal computers 110 and 150 are coupled together using a computer network 180 . in one embodiment , the computer network 180 uses the tcp / ip suite of protocols . personal computer 150 will be designated as the user &# 39 ; s own personal computer ( the “ preferred ” computer ). if the user of portable computer system 130 is near personal computer 110 and wishes to synchronize with his personal computer system 150 , the user simply drops his portable computer system into the cradle 120 of the nearby personal computer 110 and presses the synchronization button 125 . the synchronization process then commences . using the identifier that uniquely addresses the “ preferred ” computer , the synchronization software in personal computer 110 attempts to reach the preferred computer across the network 180 . if the synchronization software in personal computer 110 can reach the preferred personal computer 150 through the network 180 , then the synchronization software in personal computer 110 simply acts as a pass - through and allows the synchronization software in personal computer 150 to perform the synchronization . this type of synchronization is referred to as a “ net synchronization .” if personal computer 110 can not reach the preferred personal computer 150 through the network 180 , then the user may still synchronize with the local personal computer 110 . as described in the previous sections the present invention uses three pieces of identification information in order to synchronize properly : a portable computer user name ; a net address of the personal computer ; and a unique synchronization token . these three pieces of information are initialized when the portable computer system is first synchronized . the user name for the portable computer will remain static unless the user specifically requests a change . the net address of the personal computer may change due to a request by the user or an automatic update by the synchronization software . a new unique synchronization token is created every time the portable computer system is synchronized with a personal computer system . fig2 illustrates a flow diagram of an initialization that occurs during the first synchronization process of a portable computer system . the initialization occurs when the portable computer system is brand new and has never been used , or if all the information in the portable computer has been lost due to malfunction or complete battery discharge . referring to fig2 the flow diagram starts where the hot sync manager on the personal computer system is monitoring the serial port . ( as described in previous sections , the synchronization may be performed with other communication means , but in most cases the first synchronization will be across a serial line .) then , at step 215 , the portable computer requests a synchronization . at step 220 , the hot sync manager on the personal computer responds to the synchronization request by sending a request for the identification information on the portable computer system . at step 230 , the portable computer system sends empty identification fields back to the hot sync manager program on the personal computer since the portable computer system is being used for the first time or has lost all of its information . since the portable computer system has not sent any identification information to the hot sync manager , the portable computer system is indicating that it is brand new or it has lost its information because of failure . thus , the hot sync manager on the personal computer system first determines if there is any portable computer system back - up information on the personal computer at step 235 . if back - up information for a portable computer system exists on the personal computer , then at step 240 the hot sync manager asks the user if he wishes to restore the portable computer system using the back - up information stored on the personal computer system . if the user requests to restore the portable computer from the back - up information , the hot sync manager proceeds to step 250 where the portable computer system is restored using the back - up copy of information . otherwise the system proceeds to step 260 where the process of initializing a new portable computer system begins . the first step in initializing a portable computer is to request a name for the portable computer system as stated in step 260 . in one embodiment , the portable computer system simply asks for the name of the intended user . the user name is assigned to the portable computer system such that the portable computer system can be identified during future synchronizations . next , at step 265 , the hot sync manager program attempts to obtain a network address for the personal computer system in order to have a “ preferred ” personal computer system . the hot sync manager program attempts to obtain an ip address , a host name , and a subnet mask that will be used to locate the preferred personal computer system during future synchronization operations across a network . the user name and preferred personal computer network address are stored in the portable computer system at step 270 . finally a unique synchronization token for this synchronization session is given to the portable computer system at step 275 . the unique synchronization token will be used next time the portable is synchronized to determine if it is being synchronized on the same computer system that it was last synchronized with . fig3 illustrates how the hot sync manager program obtains the network address information for the preferred personal computer . first at step 310 the hot sync manager program determines if the personal computer has tcp / ip services available . if the personal computer does not have tcp / ip protocol services then the hot sync manager program simply moves to the next step of the synchronization initialization . in an alternate embodiment , the hot sync program retrieves a host name for the personal computer name from a windows registry . the host name from the registry is then later used to obtain the preferred personal computer address for synchronization operations across a network . if the personal computer is running tcp / ip protocol , then the hot sync manager proceeds to step 320 where the hot sync manager obtains a host name . the host name may later be used with a domain name service ( dns ) in order to obtain an ip address for the preferred personal computer . after obtaining a host name then the hot sync manager proceeds to step 330 where the hot sync manager determines if the personal computer has been assigned an internet protocol ( ip ) address . if the personal computer has been assigned a ip address then that ip address is stored for future use . finally , the hot sync manager proceeds to step 340 and attempts to obtain a subnet mask . once a portable computer system has been initialized with the proper information , the portable computer system can be synchronized with a main desktop personal computer system in a number of different ways . this section will describe how the portable computer systems synchronizes with the personal computer system with reference to the block diagram in fig4 and the flow diagram in fig5 . fig4 illustrates a block diagram of a portable computer system coupled to a personal computer through a serial line for synchronization . the personal computer 420 is also connected to a local area network 450 . other personal computers such as preferred personal computer 460 are also coupled to the network . the portable computer 410 can synchronize either with the local personal computer 420 or the preferred personal computer 460 across the network . fig5 illustrates a flow diagram that describes an embodiment of the synchronization process in detail . specifically , fig5 describes most of the steps performed by one embodiment of the hot sync manager program 421 to determine the synchronization environment . initially the portable computer systems sends a synchronization request at step 505 . in the case where the portable computer 410 is synchronizing through a cradle as illustrated in fig4 the synchronization request is carried across the serial line to the local personal computer 420 . the personal computer 420 recognizes the synchronization request packet and responds by sending a request for additional information from the portable computer system 410 at step 507 in response to the request for additional information , the portable computer 410 sends the three items of identification information as previously described . specifically , the portable computer system 410 sends the personal computer system 420 the portable system &# 39 ; s name , a network address of the preferred personal computer , and the synchronization token received during the previous synchronization at step 509 . at step 510 the synchronization program first checks the last synchronization token to determine if this is the same personal computer that the portable computer last synchronized with . if this is the same personal computer that the portable computer last synchronized with , then the hot sync program immediately performs a fast synchronization at step 515 . if this is not the personal computer that the portable computer most recently synchronized with then the synchronization manager program proceeds to step 525 where it determines if network address information is available for both the personal computer 420 on which the hot sync program is running and the “ preferred ” personal computer requested by the portable computer system . if network address information is not available for both the current personal computer and the desired personal computer , then the hot sync manager proceeds to step 527 where it may attempt to do some type of local synchronization . at step 527 , the hot sync manager determines if an account for this portable computer exists on this personal computer . if an account exists on this personal computer for the portable then the hot sync manager proceeds to step 530 where a slow synchronization is performed using the last synchronization information available for the portable computer system . if the account for this portable does not exist , the user is asked if a new account should be created at step 580 . if at step 525 , the hot sync manager determines that the network address information is available for both the current personal computer and the portable &# 39 ; s preferred personal computer , then the synchronization process proceeds to step 540 . at step 540 the network address of the local personal computer is compared with the network address information of the preferred personal computer . if the two addresses match , then this is the preferred personal computer but portable computer was last synchronized with another personal computer system . in such a situation , the hot sync manager performs a slow synchronization using the information stored from the last synchronization with this personal computer at step 530 . if this is not the preferred the personal computer then the hot sync manager proceeds to step 550 to determine if tcp / ip services are available on this personal computer . if tcp / ip services are not available then a synchronization across a network cannot be performed . thus , the hot sync manager proceeds to step 565 to determine if a local account for this portable exists . if an account exists , a slow synchronization is performed using the information stored from the last synchronization performed with this personal computer . if no local account exists then the user will be asked if a new account should be created . however , if this is not the preferred personal computer and tcp / ip services are available , then the hot sync manager will look across the network for the preferred personal computer at step 555 . if the preferred personal computer can be contacted across the network then the synchronization will be performed with the preferred personal computer across the network . in this situation the local hot sync program 421 merely acts as a pass - through such that all synchronization information passes from the local hot sync program 421 to the remote hot sync program 461 on the preferred personal computer 460 . thus , the remote hot sync program 461 takes over the synchronization process and performs a fast sync or slow sync as necessary . a person traveling with a portable personal computer system may want to synchronize with a desktop personal computer system while on the road . for example , a traveling executive may wish to receive calendar updates that have been placed into his personal computer by an administrative assistant . one architecture for remotely synchronizing with a desktop personal computer is illustrated in fig6 a . referring to fig6 a , the portable computer 610 with its hot sync program 615 is coupled to a modem 630 . the hot sync program 615 is configured such that it can initialize the modem 630 and dial another computer system . also illustrated in fig6 a is a personal computer system 660 with a hot sync manager program 661 and a hot sync database 663 . to monitor for remote synchronizations the hot sync manager can be instructed to listen to a serial line coupled to a modem 669 . if a ring signal is detected by the modem 669 the hot sync manager 661 will answer the call and attempt to begin a synchronization with a remote portable computer system 610 . to synchronize remotely , the hot sync program 615 on the portable computer 610 configures the modem 630 and dials the modem 669 coupled to desired personal computer 660 . the modem 669 notices the ringing phone and informs the hot sync manager 661 on the personal computer 660 . the hot sync manager program 661 response by instructing the modem 669 to answer the call . once the call has been answered , the hot sync manager program 661 listens for a synchronization token . when the hot sync program 615 in the portable computer system 610 notices the call has been answered by another modem , the hot sync program 615 in the portable computer system 610 sends a synchronization request token to the computer that answered . the hot sync manager 661 responds to the synchronization request token by requesting the identification information from the portable computer system 610 . the synchronization progresses as described in the previous sections . although the remote synchronization system illustrated in fig6 a is very useful , it suffers from a few drawbacks . the synchronization system illustrated in fig6 a requires a dedicated telephone line and a modem for the hot sync manager 661 on the preferred personal computer 660 . furthermore , the modem 669 is only used to listen for synchronization requests . additionally , if the user with the portable computer 610 is far away from the personal computer system 660 then a long - distance toll call will be required to synchronize with the personal computer system 660 . therefore an alternate system of remote synchronization is desirable . fig6 b illustrates an alternate embodiment of the remote synchronization system . in the alternate embodiment of fig6 b , the hot sync program 615 communicates through a tcp / ip stack 617 with a serial line internet protocol ( slip ) or point - to - point protocol ( ppp ) client program 619 before communicating with modem 630 . thus , by using the tcp / ip stack 617 and a slip or ppp client program 619 , the hot sync program 615 in fig6 b attempts a remote synchronization by performing a net synchronization across a slip or ppp link . to remotely perform a net synchronization , the hot sync program 615 first establishes a slip or ppp link with a server that is coupled to the same network as the preferred personal computer . thus , the slip / ppp software using the modem 630 to dial and connect to a modem 641 on a remote access server 640 . a slip / ppp server process 643 on the remote access server 640 will answer the call and establish a slip / ppp session . once the slip / ppp session has been created the hot sync program 615 can use the network address of the preferred personal computer to access the hot sync manager program on the preferred personal computer that is coupled to the tcp / ip local area network 650 . the hot sync manager in the preferred personal computer will be monitoring the tcp / ip packets for a synchronization request across the tcp / ip lan . if the hot sync manager 661 on the preferred personal computer gets such a synchronization request packet , then the hot sync manager 661 begins a synchronization with the portable computer system . the tcp / ip based remote synchronization system can be performed using the global internet . fig7 illustrates an example of a portable computer system 710 synchronizing with a preferred pc 760 across the global internet 780 . specifically the hot sync program 715 in the global computer system establishes a ppp or slip connection with an internet service provider ( isp ) 740 . the slip / ppp session is established between the slip / ppp client on the portable computer system 710 and a slip / ppp server 743 at the isp 740 . the slip / ppp server at the isp 740 can communicate across the global internet to any internet addressable location . thus , if the network address of the preferred personal computer 760 is accessible through the global internet 780 then the global computer system 710 can communicate with the preferred personal computer 716 to perform a remote synchronization . many businesses , however , install firewall servers or gateway servers 790 on their local area network as illustrated in fig7 . the firewall server acts as a protection mechanism to protect the internal local area network 750 of a company from attacks by unscrupulous internet users . one method of protecting the internal local area network is to require any communication with the global internet to pass through a proxy application . in fig7 proxy applications 791 , 792 and 793 are used to bridge various communication protocols . each proxy application filters the packets associated with its respective protocol before allowing the packets to access the internal local area network 750 . if such firewall system is installed at the corporation of a user who wishes to synchronize a portable computer , then a proxy application for the specific synchronization protocol may be required . although the present invention has been described in terms of specific exemplary embodiments , it will be appreciated that various modifications and alterations might be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims . | 8 |
the present invention , according to aspects thereof , will be described herein in the context of illustrative hardware and hardware / software embodiments . it should be understood , however , that the present invention is not limited to these or any other particular circuit arrangements and / or sequences of instructions . rather , the invention is more generally applicable to any digital systems ( hardware and / or software ) utilized for tone detection . as a result , it will become apparent to those skilled in the art given the teachings herein that numerous modifications can be made to the embodiments shown that are within the scope of the present invention . that is , no limitations with respect to the specific embodiments described herein are intended or should be inferred . an application that utilizes digital tone detection typically performs three functions : a . filtering ( transforming ) a digital input signal ; b . calculating the power of the transformed input signal at a particular frequency under evaluation ; and c . making a decision based on the calculated power . the input signal is first segmented into appropriate data segments ( typically of about 2 - 5 milliseconds ( ms ) in duration each ). the segmented input signal is then filtered ( transformed ) at the frequency under evaluation . the power of the transformed output at the frequency under evaluation is calculated , and finally processed by a decision process . the decision process may , for example , compare the calculated power to a predetermined threshold value . optionally , the decision may also take into account the powers from previous data segments to enhance the decision quality . in the dft method , the input signal x ( n ) is passed through a single frequency fourier transform according to the following formula : x ( ω )= σ n = 0 n - 1 x ( n ) e − jωn ( 1 ) where x ( n ) is the input signal ; ω is the angular frequency ω = 2πf / f s where f is the frequency of the tone under evaluation and f s is the sampling frequency ; n is the number of samples among which the existence of the tone is being evaluated ; j is the complex number j =√{ square root over (− 1 )}; exp (− jωn )= cos ( ωn )+ j sin ( ωn ); and x ( ω ) is the filtered ( transformed ) input signal at the evaluated frequency f . the input signal x ( n ) can be complex or real , but is typically real in telephony applications . the sampling frequency f s in a telephony application may be , for example , 8 kilohertz ( khz ) which translates to n = 40 in 5 ms . where x r ( ω ) and x i ( ω ) are the real and imaginary components , respectively , of the complex value x ( ω ). once these values are computed , the power of the transformed signal , e , is , by definition , the sum of squares of the real and imaginary components : goertzel filtering is a modified approach to calculate the dft transformation at the desired frequency f . in this method , the dft is evaluated via passing the input signal , x ( n ), through two cascaded filters . more particularly , in the goertzel - based algorithm , x ( ω ) is given by : y ( n − 1 )= y 1 ( n − 1 )− y 1 ( n − 2 )· e − jω ( 5 ) y 1 ( n )= x ( n )+ 2 · cos ( ω )· y 1 ( n − 1 )− y 1 ( n − 2 ) ( 6 ) equation 6 is evaluated for n = 0 to n = n − 1 . the initial conditions y 1 (− 1 ) and y 1 (− 2 ) can be set to zero or , alternatively , be taken as the last two y 1 samples of the previous data segment . it is noted that there are other variants of the goertzel algorithm that use a complex first order differential equation instead of the real - valued second order equation of equation 6 , but the fundamental technique and limitations are substantially the same . it is noted that y ( n − 1 ) needs to be calculated only once for the last sample y ( n − 1 ) to detect a tone over an n sample data segment . equation 6 on the other hand needs to be evaluated recursively for all the samples of y 1 since obtaining y 1 ( n − 2 ) and y 1 ( n − 1 ) for equation 5 requires all previous values of y 1 to be determined . ultimately , the power , e , for the transformed signal can be calculated utilizing the same power calculation utilized with the dft method , namely equation 3 . equations 5 and 6 are realizations of a system with two cascaded filters as given in the following equations : y ( n )= x ( n )* h 1 ( n )* h 2 ( n ) ( 9 ) where the “*” operator in equations 7 - 9 above represents a convolution operation . from the z - transforms of h 1 and h 2 it is apparent that h 1 is a system with poles ( i . e ., an infinite impulse response ( iir ) filter ) while h 2 is a zero - only system ( i . e ., a finite impulse response ( fir ) filter ). the transfer function of h 1 is given by : h 1 ( z ) = 1 1 - 2 · cos ( w ) · z - 1 + z - 2 ( 10 ) h 1 ( n )= cos ( nw )*[ cos ( w )] n = σ k = 0 n cos ( kw )·[ cos ( w )] ( k − n ) ( 11 ) with the “*” operator again representing convolution operations . notably , the impulse response h 1 ( n ) may be pre - computed and stored in a table . it can be calculated directly via equation 11 , or indirectly by generating the impulse response via equation 10 . now , given the impulse response of h 1 , y 1 can be calculated via convolution rather than recursion . the convolution is given by : y 1 ( n )= σ k = 0 n x ( k )· h 1 ( n − k ) ( 13 ) rather than needing to calculate all the values of y 1 in order to find y 1 ( n − 1 ) and y 1 ( n − 2 ) as was the case in equation 6 , these parameters can instead be calculated by : y 1 ( n − 1 )= σ k = 0 n - 1 x ( k )· h 1 ( n − 1 − k ) ( 14 ) y 1 ( n − 2 )= σ k = 0 n - 2 x ( k )· h 1 ( n − 2 − k ) ( 15 ) once so calculated , these values may be placed into equation 5 to yield , y ( n − 1 ), which in fact is a realization of the convolution of y 1 with h 2 for the last data sample only ( as needed for the final segment transform ). the filtered input signal x ( ω ) may then be determined via equation 4 . high process efficiency in performing tone detection is highly desirable . the fewer the number of clock cycles that a tone detection function takes , generally the less power consumed and the greater the number of concurrent channels that can be processed on a given processor . as indicated in the background section , in most applications , tone detection functions are implemented on dsps . a dsp may be a processor that has , among many other components a set of multipliers and adders , a set of mac units , and a set of buses to memory . nevertheless , as a result of the balance between the number of multipliers or mac units and the bandwidth of the memory buses , many dsps cannot be 100 % utilized when performing dft - and goertzel - based tone detection methodologies . for example many of the advanced dsps today are capable of performing eight parallel 16 - bit × 16 - bit ( 16 × 16 ) mac operations , but are paired with memory buses with bandwidths of only 128 bits per clock cycle ( what are hereafter called “ typical dsps ” for conciseness ). examples of such dsps are the sc3850 from freescale semiconductors inc . ( austin , tex ., usa ), the tms320c64x + and tms320c66x + from texas instruments ( dallas , tex ., usa ), and the sc3400e from lsi corporations ( milpitas , calif ., usa ). the dft based transformation is based on the sum of multiplications of real values x ( n ) by the complex values exp (− jωn )= cos ( ωn )− j sin ( ωn ). stated another way , there are two summations : x r ( ω )= σ n = 0 n - 1 x ( n )· cos ( ω n ) ( 16 ) x i ( ω )= σ n = 0 n - 1 x ( n )· sin ( ω n ) ( 17 ) accordingly , assuming that both summations can be calculated in a given dsp in parallel utilizing some mac units to calculate x r ( ω ) and others to calculate x i ( ω ), there is a need to fetch 3n values from memory : n values of x , n values of the cosine function , and n values of the sine function . at the same time , the number of multiplications needed to complete the transformation is 2n : n multiplications for the real component , and n multiplications for the imaginary component . in telephony signal processing applications , it is common to represent each value of a signal with 16 bits . the minimum number of clock cycles that a typical dsp ( see section 2 for definition ) would require to determine the real values of the dft transformation of the real signal x ( n ) is therefore 3n *( 16 / 128 )= 3n / 8 clock cycles . for n = 40 , this translates to 15 clock cycles . on the other hand , were there no limitation on the memory bus width in the dsp , the number of clock cycles required to do the same calculation would be 2n / 8 = n / 4 . for n = 40 , this translates to only 10 clock cycles . hence , due to the memory bus bandwidth in the above example being limited to only 128 bits , the calculation of the single tone dft will take at least 15 clock cycles for a 40 - sample input signal . in the goertzel method , the calculation of y 1 ( n ) depends on y 1 ( n − 1 ) and cannot be calculated until y 1 ( n − 1 ) has been determined . accordingly , almost no parallelism is possible during processing , and the minimum number of clock cycles required to calculate y 1 ( n − 1 ) will be n clock cycles . in addition , another 1 - 2 clock cycles will be needed to translate y 1 ( n − 1 ) and y 1 ( n − 2 ) to x ( ω ) per equation 5 . for a 40 - sample signal , the goertzel method will take more than 40 clock cycles . it is worth noting that there have been attempts to improve the efficiency of the goertzel algorithm on dsps with a plurality of mac units by evaluating the difference equation and deriving a formula where y 1 ( n ) depends on y 1 ( n − m ) where m & gt ; 1 . this indeed enables parallelism , but at the expense of additional computations . for example , for m = 2 there is a need for three multiplications per y 1 sample , rather than one multiplication when m = 1 . this fact limits the depth of evaluation of equation 5 according to the number of available parallel mac units in the processor . for a typical dsp ( i . e ., a dsp capable of performing eight parallel mac operations ), this approach is limited to m = 2 , which results in the minimum number of clock cycles required to calculate the algorithm being n / 2 ( e . g ., 20 clock cycles for a 40 - sample input signal ). it is also noted that the evaluation of equation 5 may cause instabilities when dealing with long signal segments and therefore may be available for use with short signal segments only . from equations 14 and 15 it may be observed that calculating y 1 ( n − 1 ) requires n multiplications ( or mac operations ), and calculating y 1 ( n − 2 ) requires n − 1 multiplications ( or mac operations ). accordingly , 2n − 1 multiplications ( or mac operations ) are required in total . for a typical dsp , this results in ( 2n − 1 )/ 8 ≅= n / 4 clock cycles to calculate these values . on the other hand , it is also observed from equations 14 and 15 that the same set of values for x and for the cosine function are needed for the calculation of both y 1 ( n − 1 ) and y 1 ( n − 2 ). hence only 2n values need to be fetched from memory . the number of clock cycles that are needed to load all of this data from the memory is therefore 2n *( 16 / 128 )= n / 4 . accordingly , with respect to both the number of multiplications and the bus bandwidth , the minimum number of clock cycles needed to calculate the relevant y 1 values for the novel tone detection method is n / 4 clock cycles ( e . g ., 10 clock cycles for the case of 40 samples segments ). this number of clock cycles is clearly less than those required for the dft and goertzel methods described above . fig1 shows a table of a pseudo code for achieving the novel tone detection method on a typical dsp with eight mac units and at least 16 registers . it is assumed that the dsp has its mac units ordered in dot - product structures , as is typical . the ordering of the eight mac units in dot - product structures means that the mac units are not independent from each other . instead , every two mac units are tied together to generate the following calculation : ( i . e ., multiply - accumulate of two multiplications ). accordingly the dsp has four “ dot - product ” units , which are labeled in fig1 as arithmetic units nos . 1 - 4 . dsp bandwidth is still assumed to be 128 bytes with 16 - bit signal values . lastly , the dsp is assumed to have two load units capable of fetching data from memory , load unit no . 1 and load unit no . 2 . for the pseudo code description in fig1 , di is used as a notation for the processor &# 39 ; s register number i . in addition , the common load - store architecture is used as a baseline for this simulation , where data that is loaded in a certain clock cycle is available for arithmetic operations only in the following clock cycles . the results of the pseudo - code simulation indicates that , overall , ( n / 4 )+ 3 clock cycles are needed to calculate x ( ω ) according to the novel tone detection method , which is just three clock cycles above the theoretical lower limit of n / 4 . the extra three clock cycles are the overhead needed to initiate the processing : a clock cycle that loads the first set of variables from memory plus two clock cycles that combine the parallel processing to a single result . note that overhead clock cycles exist in any method and need to be added to the theoretical lower bound for each . for example , in the goertzel method , the overhead is much larger than that calculated here . for the dft method , the overhead is similar to novel tone detection method , namely about 3 - 4 clock cycles . embodiments utilizing the novel tone detection method described herein can be implemented in hardware alone or in hardware executing software . the term software as used herein comprises computer - readable program code that , when executed by hardware , allows that hardware to perform a particular function or functions . fig2 shows a block diagram of at least a portion of a dsp 200 in accordance with a first illustrative embodiment of the invention for implementing the novel tone detection method . in the dsp 200 , an input signal ( i . e ., a sampled signal ) x ( k ) is fed into two processing paths . the input sample x ( k ) can either originate in an external device , or be loaded from memory ( neither of which is explicitly shown ). the upper path feeds an upper mac unit ( composed of a respective multiplier and a respective accumulator ), while the lower path feeds a lower mac unit ( also composed of its own respective multiplier and respective accumulator ). the upper and lower mac units multiply the input sample x ( k ) by filter coefficients h 1 ( n − 1 − k ) and h 1 ( n − 2 − k ), which are pre - stored in a memory table of h 1 ( k ). the filter coefficients are loaded from the memory table in reverse order starting at k = 0 and incrementally increasing to k = n − 1 once per clock cycle . a delay unit ( d ) causes the filter coefficient received by the lower mac unit to be one clock cycle behind the filter coefficient being received by the upper mac unit . two switches , s 1 and s 2 , are closed at k = n − 1 and k = n − 2 , respectively , to sample the required values of y 1 ( n − 1 ) and y 1 ( n − 2 ) per equations 14 and 15 . the last portion of the dsp 200 ( that is located to the right of the switches s 1 and s 2 ) implements the final stage of the transform per equation 4 . this is a complex operation wherein y 1 ( n − 2 ) is multiplied by exp (− jω ) in a multiplier and subtracted from y 1 ( n − 1 ) in an adder to yield y ( n − 1 ). in the present embodiment , the value exp (− jω ) is loaded from a memory table of exp (− jω ) although , in alternative embodiment , this value may be hard coded in the hardware since it is a single complex value . the output y ( n − 1 ) is ultimately utilized to calculate the power e in a power calculation unit via hardware implementations of the equations 4 and 3 . fig3 shows a block diagram of at least a portion of a dsp 300 in accordance with a second illustrative embodiment of the invention for implementing the novel tone detection method . the dsp 300 is capable of executing software ( i . e ., computer - readable program code ) that allows the dsp 300 to perform the pseudo code provided in fig1 . the dsp 300 comprises a program control unit ( pcu ), an address generation unit ( agu ), and a data arithmetic logic unit ( dalu ). a memory is divided into two parts : a program memory and a data memory . the pcu communicates with the program memory via a program address ( pa ) bus and a program data ( pd ) bus . the agu , in turn , communicates with the data memory via a first data address ( da 1 ) bus and a second data address ( da 2 ) bus . finally , the dalu communicates with the data memory via a first data ( dd 1 ) bus and a second data ( dd 2 ) bus . the dd 1 and dd 2 buses carry data to / from the data memory at memory addresses indicated by the da 1 and da 2 buses . the dd 1 and dd 2 buses are bi - directional ; they enable read and write data from / to the data memory . in the present embodiment , the remaining buses are unidirectional . the pcu issues addresses of program instructions via the pa bus and receives program instructions from the program memory via the pd bus . these instructions are then decoded and executed in the agu and dalu . the agu block calculates and generates memory addresses that are needed by the program ( i . e ., memory addresses where relevant data is located for the program execution ). the agu is able to generate two addresses in every clock cycle and accordingly has two arithmetic logic units ( alus ). these alus calculate the addresses to be sent to the memory as needed by the program instructions . for the address calculations , the agu has a set of registers r that are used as inputs and outputs of the agu &# 39 ; s internal calculation units . the dalu performs numeric and logic calculations . in the present embodiment , the dalu has four alus . each alu can execute a single instruction every clock cycle , giving the dalu the ability to execute four instructions in parallel every clock cycle . each alu comprises multiple calculation units . all the dalu instructions operate on data that is stored in the dalu &# 39 ; s registers d . data that is loaded from the program memory via the dd 1 and dd 2 buses is loaded into the registers d . among others , the dalu &# 39 ; s alus can perform add instructions ( di = dk + dn ), multiply instructions ( di = dk * dn ), multiply - accumulate instructions ( di = di + dk * dn ), dot - product instructions ( di = dk * dn + dm * dj ), and dot - product - accumulate instructions ( di = di + dk * dn + dm * dj ) ( where i , j , k , m , and n represent register index numbers ). so configured , the dsp 300 may execute program instructions that implement the pseudo code set forth in fig1 . in a first clock cycle , the dalu &# 39 ; s alus initialize four data registers d to zero ( e . g ., d 0 = 0 , d 1 = 0 , d 2 = 0 , d 3 = 0 ). in parallel , the agu issues two data reads on the two data buses da 1 and da 2 . each data read is of four consecutive values . one bus ( e . g ., the da 1 bus ) accesses the signal buffer x ( n ) and fetches four x ( n ) signal samples from the data memory , and the other bus ( e . g ., the da 2 bus ) fetches four filter coefficients h 1 ( k ) from the filter buffer in the data memory . these values are loaded into the data registers d in the dalu . as just an example , signal samples x ( 0 ), x ( 1 ), x ( 2 ), and x ( 3 ) can be loaded to data registers d 4 , d 5 , d 6 , and d 7 , respectively , and filter coefficients h 1 ( n − 1 ), h 1 ( n − 2 ), h 1 ( n − 3 ), h 1 ( n − 4 ) can be loaded to data registers d 8 , d 9 , d 10 , and d 11 , respectively . the dsp 300 thereby performs the functions of clock cycle 0 of the pseudo code in fig1 . in the second clock cycle , the first three alus of the dalu execute dot - product - accumulate instruction . the first dalu alu may perform the calculation d 0 = d 0 + d 8 * d 0 + d 7 * d 1 that implements d 0 = d 0 + x ( 0 )* h 1 ( n − 1 )+ x ( 1 )* h 1 ( n − 2 ), and so forth . the fourth dalu alu implements a mac instruction d 3 = d 3 + d 11 * d 6 , which implements d 3 = d 3 + x ( 2 )* h 1 ( n − 4 ). in parallel to these calculations , the two data buses da 1 and da 1 perform two memory fetches of the next four values of x and h 1 . these eight values are loaded into the dalu &# 39 ; s registers d and are subsequently used for the calculations in the following clock cycle . the dsp 300 thereby executes the pseudo code related to cycle number 1 in fig1 . such a process is continued until ultimately y 1 ( n − 1 ) and y 1 ( n − 2 ) are calculated after ( n / 4 )+ 1 clock cycles . in this clock cycle , y 1 ( n − 1 ) is loaded into the register d 0 and y 1 ( n − 2 ) is loaded into the register d 1 . at the same time , exp (− jω ) is fetched from the data memory . finally , in the clock cycle ( n / 4 )+ 2 , y ( n − 1 ) is calculated and loaded into the register d 0 . this value may , in turn , be utilized to calculate the power e per equations 4 and 3 . as is known in the art , at least a portion of one or more aspects of the methods and apparatus discussed herein may be distributed as an article of manufacture that itself includes a computer readable medium having non - transient computer readable code means embodied thereon . the computer readable program code means is operable , in conjunction with a computer system , to carry out all or some of the steps to perform the methods or create the apparatuses discussed herein . the computer readable medium may be a recordable medium ( e . g ., floppy disks , hard drives , compact disks , eeproms , or memory cards ) or may be a transmission medium ( e . g ., a network including fiber - optics , the world - wide web , cables , or a wireless channel using time - division multiple access , code - division multiple access , or other radio - frequency channel ). any medium known or developed that can store , in a non - transitory manner , information suitable for use with a computer system may be used . the computer - readable code means is intended to encompass any mechanism for allowing a computer to read instructions and data , such as magnetic variations on a magnetic medium or height variations on the surface of a compact disk . as used herein , a tangible computer - readable recordable storage medium is intended to encompass a recordable medium , examples of which are set forth above , but is not intended to encompass a transmission medium or disembodied signal . the computer systems and servers described herein each contain a memory that will configure associated processors to implement the methods , steps , and functions disclosed herein . such methods , steps , and functions can be carried out , e . g ., by processing capability on individual elements in the figures , or by any combination thereof . the memories could be distributed or local and the processors could be distributed or singular . the memories could be implemented as an electrical , magnetic or optical memory , or any combination of these or other types of storage devices . moreover , the term “ memory ” should be construed broadly enough to encompass any information able to be read from or written to an address in the addressable space accessed by an associated processor . with this definition , information on a network is still within a memory because the associated processor can retrieve the information from the network . thus , elements of one or more embodiments of the present invention can make use of computer technology with appropriate instructions to implement the methodologies described herein . furthermore , it should be noted that any of the methods described herein can include an additional step of providing a system comprising distinct software modules embodied on one or more tangible computer readable storage media . all the modules ( or any subset thereof ) can reside on the same medium , or each module can reside on a different medium , for example . methodologies according to embodiments of the invention can then be carried out using the distinct software modules of the system , as described above , executing on the one or more hardware processors ( e . g ., the dsp 300 in fig3 ). further , a computer program product can include a tangible computer - readable recordable storage medium with code adapted to be executed to carry out one or more steps of the illustrative methodologies described herein , including the provision of the system with the distinct software modules . accordingly , it will be appreciated that one or more embodiments of the invention can include a computer program including computer program code means adapted to perform one or all of the steps of any methods or claims set forth herein when such program is implemented on a processor , and that such program may be embodied on a tangible computer readable recordable storage medium . further , one or more embodiments of the present invention can include a processor including code adapted to cause the processor to carry out one or more steps of methods or claims set forth herein , together with one or more apparatus elements or features as depicted and described herein . at least a portion of the techniques of the present invention may be implemented in an integrated circuit . in forming integrated circuits , identical die are typically fabricated in a repeated pattern on a surface of a semiconductor wafer . each die includes an element described herein , and may include other structures and / or circuits . the individual die are cut or diced from the wafer , then packaged as an integrated circuit . one skilled in the art would know how to dice wafers and package die to produce integrated circuits . any of the exemplary elements illustrated in , for example , fig2 and 3 , or portions thereof , may be part of an integrated circuit . integrated circuits so manufactured are considered part of this invention . moreover , it should again be emphasized that the above - described embodiments of the invention are intended to be illustrative only . other embodiments may use different types and arrangements of elements for implementing the described functionality . these numerous alternative embodiments within the scope of the appended claims will be apparent to one skilled in the art given the teachings herein . lastly , the features disclosed herein may be replaced by alternative features serving the same , equivalent , or similar purposes , unless expressly stated otherwise . thus , unless expressly stated otherwise , each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features . | 7 |
the invention includes a forwarding table synchronization ( fts ) manager and an inter - agent communication protocol , the forwarding table synchronization ( fts ) protocol , which provides for efficient distribution of forwarding table entries across a network . fig1 schematically illustrates a network system architecture in accordance with embodiments of the invention . a plurality of agents 120 122 124 126 128 and the fts protocol 130 132 134 136 138 enable the synchronization of multiple virtual forwarding information bases ( fibs ), scale to large numbers of routes , minimize utilization of network resources , and provide for future extensibility . destination network addresses included in a fib may be of any type , including , by way of example and not limitation , ip v 4 addresses , ip v 6 addresses , layer 2 addresses , mac addresses , or other types of network addresses that will be apparent to those skilled in the art . in embodiments of the invention , the fts manager is implemented as one or more independent software processes . in some embodiments , the fts manager may be implemented as one or more software agents ( sometimes referred to herein as “ fts agents ”), each of which operates in either master or slave mode . an fts agent is a software module that is responsible for synchronizing forwarding information base ( fib ) entries among a set of a machines . these machines may operate as normal network devices or as virtual devices with a virtual routing / forwarding tables . each fts agent is responsible for one or more virtual routing / forwarding tables ( vrfs ). each vrf table is uniquely defined by an identifier that is significant within the scope of a set of agents . such a set of agents is termed a “ cluster ”. agents are not assumed to have the same set of virtual tables , but are assumed to know the scope of a table identifier . in embodiments of the invention , a master agent ( or master fts agent ) is responsible for distributing routing information ( i . e ., fib entries ) over the network to one or more slave agents in a cluster . the master fts agent registers to receive routing table information from its local system , and listens for slave agents to attach to the master agent &# 39 ; s process . each slave agent in a cluster listens to the master agent for new routes to be added to its fib , and behaves identically to the master when forwarding packets ; the master is responsible for distribution of virtual fib entries to the other agents operating in slave mode . an agent may operate as either master or slave , transitioning between the two during its lifetime . embodiments of the invention include mechanisms to allow dynamic changes of the master / slave state , as further described herein . furthermore , an agent that is a slave with respect to a first cluster may be a master with respect to a second cluster . an agent ( either slave or master ) is associated with one or more virtual routing tables , referred to as vrfs ( virtual routing / forwarding tables ). in embodiments , each table is identified by a unique 32 - bit table identifier that is significant within the scope of a set of agents ; other suitable identifiers shall be apparent to those skilled in the art . upon starting up or entering the master state , the fts agent queries the full table and request any forwarding / route table changes to be sent from the local kernel to the master agent . in embodiments of the invention , the fts protocol includes a set of operations / protocol messages for inter - agent communication , and a finite state machine to connect fts agents , pass routing / forwarding table information ( vrf tables ) and disconnect the agents . in some embodiments , the messages are sent over tcp ; other suitable protocols shall be apparent to those skilled in the art . the operations provide the ability to synchronize multiple tables between ftsp speakers using this set of messages . embodiments of the invention further include a canonical application programming interface ( api ) for facilitating interaction amongst the fts agents and network applications , as well as to allow individual fts agents to configure operational parameters such as logging , message connection endpoint address , and timers . the api 901 903 904 is schematically illustrated in fig5 , and may be further utilized to set or query the network application for numerous system parameters , including : master or slave state 905 , information about clusters ( size , members , my id , role_of_member ) 906 , determine the end - point id of connection 907 , determine whether interface names are consistent across virtual machines , determine interface cluster address mapping 908 , determine cluster to interface name mapping 909 , determine if there is routing activity 910 , register for asynchronous notification 911 embodiments of the invention include an fts agent api , that allows the fts agent to gather information from the fts network application . by way of illustrative , non - limiting example , fig6 shows apis for each of the fts agents ( agent 1000 &# 39 ; s api is 1002 , agent 1001 &# 39 ; s api is 1010 , agent 1006 &# 39 ; s api is 1007 , agent &# 39 ; s 1013 is 1014 , agent 1016 is 1017 ). this invention supports high performance synchronization of fibs between multiple process on multiple machines in normal , virtual routing environments , and cluster environments . implementations of the invention can support millions of routes , hundreds of virtual forwarding tables ( vrf ) and hundreds of fts agents . in addition to the foregoing , embodiments of the invention may include one or more of the following elements : fts cluster information — information fts queries from a cluster environment . this information includes ( but is not limited to ): master and slave state an indication whether interface names are consistent across all cluster machines , and cluster address to name mappings . fig5 shows the fts cluster info api as a part of the fts agent api 902 . fts asynchronous notification — the fts agent api allows the fts agent to register to receive asynchronous notification of change of network application information . ( fig5 shows illustrates setting of the fts asynchronous notification feature as part of the fts agent api 903 ). vrf — virtual routing / forwarding table that a fts agent synchronizes . the fts method can support any address family or sub - address family . non - limiting examples of address families supported herein include ipv4 and ipv6 address families with the unicast and multicast sub - address identifiers . fig6 depicts an illustrative , non - limiting example of three vrfs associated with fts master agent 1000 : vrf 1 , vrf 2 , and vrf 3 . fts agent 1001 supports vrf 3 only . fts agent 1006 , 1013 , 1016 support vrf 1 and vrf 2 . vrf table id — a virtual routing / forwarding table id is the identifier for a virtual table . vrf table entry — a vrf table entry is the basic unit of vrf synchronization . for a ipv4 vrf table entry this information may include one or more of : ipv4 prefix information , vrf next hop table index pointer , simple metric value , a complex metric table entry and flags . the next hop information may include a group of next hop entries each of which has : next hop table entry index , next hop table entry — a vrf nexthop table entry contains information about the next hop forwarding for a single vrf table entry . each next hop table entry has a index value ( a next hop index value ). the table entry contains all information necessary to forward information to the appropriate next hop ( s ). a next hop forwarding table entry may be used for unicast or multicast information . nexthop table entry index id — index id value for each entry fts routing table activity — changes in the fib or vrf on the master fts agent . the master fts agent register to receive information on the fib or vrf changes on its local node . fts protocol ( ftsp )— the fts protocol utilizes fts messages ( open , close , vrf update , delete ) to establish a connection between fts agents ( master and slaves ) and send information to synchronize fibs . each message contains certain type - length - value ( tlv ) fields that may in turn contain sub - tlvs for additional data . the protocol runs over a communication method determined by the fts instance configuration . fig6 illustrates an example implementation of the ftsp 1005 1011 1019 1020 . ftsp neighbor endpoint — the message connection ( such as tcp ) endpoint of an agent operating as a master . the fts agent a virtual communication end - point or provide multiplexing services for a group of virtual clients . in embodiments of the invention , an fts agent may have a master fts service for a set of clusters and a slave fts service for a different cluster of devices ( physical or logical ). ftsp fsm : the finite state machine for fts protocol between agents that governs initialization , connection establishment between agent , message passing , reconfiguration ( from master to / from slave ). ftsp fsm events : the events defined for the state machine for fts agents that governs initialization , connection establishment between agent , message passing , reconfiguration ( from master to / from slave ). ftsp fsm timers — the timers defined for the state machine for fts agents that governs initialization , connection establishment between agent , message passing , reconfiguration ( from master to / from slave ). ftsp nexthop index — index id for the fts protocol &# 39 ; s nexthop ip address that the packet will be forwarded to . fts transport protocol — the protocol that transport the ftsp protocol embodiments of the invention include a set of methods for forwarding table synchronization ( fts ) agents that collude to distribute virtual forwarding / routing table ( vrf ) information . the association between the agents can either be “ pre - associated ” ( pre - configured ) or associated in real time . a method to allow an fts agent to be either a master or slave within a set of associated fts agents denoted as a cluster of fts agents . a method for master fts agent distributing forwarding table information the master fts agent accepts connections from its slave fts agents and sends fib information to synchronize the slave fts agent fibs . upon initial connection to the master fts agent , a fts slave agent receives the current fib for all vrfs from the fts master agents . after the initial connection , the fts agent receives any route changes ( add or deletes ) to the fib . a method for a slave fts agent receiving forwarding table information a finite state machine automata that controls the transition between a plurality of states of fts agents : un - initialized , agent slave or agent master and established connections between fts agents . 2 . 1 master or slave state within a cluster of fts agents a fts agent cluster may align with the network applications clustering ( such as node clusters or virtual cluster ). an fts agent may serve as a master fts agent in one cluster , and a slave in another cluster of agents . in embodiments of the invention , upon starting , the fts agent enters the “ initializing ” state , the following steps are completed : 1 . set the value of currentmode to uninitialized , 2 . discard any stored routing information , 3 . cancel any running timers ( remnantdeletiontimer & amp ; connectretryinterval ) 4 . query the local system for the ftsagent mode by using the external api call : api_cluster_state_get ( ). this call returns the role of the fts agent as : cs_master , cs_slave or cs_none at this point , the system , the local fts agent knows the status of master or slave within the cluster . this status is saved in the currentmode global variable associated with each cluster . in addition , the fts agent determines , either by its configuration or via the api_cluster_state_get call , what cluster and vrfs this agent is attached to . if the fts agent is attached to two clusters , the fts agent will spawn a fts agent per cluster . each cluster includes one or more of the following state machine variables . note that the default values presented below are for example purposes only , and that other suitable values shall be apparent to those skilled in the art : 1 . currentmode — the current mode of operation of an fts agent . this variable can be set to master , slave or uninitialized . 2 . masterendpointaddress — the transport endpoint address of the master . ( this variable has no meaning if the agent is in the master state .) 3 . agentport — the well known transport port on which the master agent listens for incoming connections from slaves . the default value is decimal 2010 . 4 . connectionretryinterval — the interval at which the slave agent is to retry initiating a transport connection . the default value is 5 seconds . 5 . remnantdeletiontime — the number of seconds a fts agent in the master state waits before deleting any remaining agent routes in the table . the default time is 60 seconds . the masterendpointaddress , agentport , connectionretryinterval , and remnantdeletiontime can be set via configuration or default values . the currentmode is queried from the system for this cluster . masterendpointaddress may be queried from the target system for this endpoint . if the node has multiple clusters , each cluster may be queried to determine if the local node is master and slave . an fts agent may be created per cluster . after the fts agent state has been detected , the initializing state also queries local routing information with : api_get_all_vrf ( ). this call is a wrapper on the system call to obtain the number of vrfs , and load them into a local routing table . if the new mode is cs_slave , the fts agent queries for the masterendpointaddress via the call : api_master_address_get ( ). if the new mode is cs_master , the fts agent transitions to the agent master state . 1 . sets the cs_master state into the currentmode , and 2 . queries all vrf information on the local machine via api_get_all_vrf ( ), and asks for asynchronous forwarding table updates via the api_notify_registero 3 . sets the value of master endpoint address to one of its own endpoint address . this masterendpointaddress is set from either the local configuration of the master agent or queried via the api_master_address_geto . 4 . starts the remnantdeletiontimer with a value for remnantdeletiontime . when this timer fires , all remaining agent routes in the routing table are deleted . these external api calls ( api_get_all_vrf ( ), api_notify_register ( ), api_master_address_get ) translate to a series of calls to the target system that obtain the routing / forwarding table information to be passed per vrf . in the agent master state , the fts agent listens on an agentport for incoming connections from fts slaves . if configured to listen to only listen on the masterendpointaddress , the master fts agent will restrict acceptance of incoming transport connections from fts slave agents to those transport connections whose destination address is the ip address of masterendpointaddress . checks that the version advertised by the sender matches or is compatible with that of the receiver , and checks that there are sufficient resources to support the connection . if either check fails , the master agent receiving the open can close the fts protocol session by sending a close message with the appropriate reason code in the message . if the open message passes both tests , the master fts agent sends the all register vrf information to slave fts agent , via vrf update messages . an further changes are transmitted to the slave fts agent via vrf update and vrf delete messages . fig3 illustrates the logic for the fts protocol processing of the open message . fig4 illustrates the logic for the fts protocol processing of the close , vrf update and vrf delete . 1 . sets the currentmode to cs_slave 2 . sets the masterendpointaddress to the transport endpoint address ( e . g ., by way of non - limiting example , the tcp address ) of the master agent , 3 . attempts to establish a transport connect to the masteragents at masterendpointaddress . if the connection cannot be established , the connectretrytimer is set to connectretryinterval seconds . upon the timer expiring , the slave fts agent will attempt another connection . 4 . once a transport session is established , the fts slave agent sends an open with a vrf registration tlv to register for the cluster and vrfs configured for this cluster . if the fts slave agent receives a vrf update or vrf delete , the fts agent updates the forwarding table to match the vrf function . if the fts slave agent receives a close message , the fts agent will drop the tcp connection and set a connectionretrytimer to connectretryinterval . upon the expiration of the connectionretrytimer , the fts slave agent will resume at step 3 of the above steps . fig3 illustrates the fts protocol processing for the open message and fig4 illustrates the logic for the fts processing of close , vrf update , and vrf delete . in embodiments of the invention , an fts agent may be in any one of the following states : initializing state , agent slave state , agent master state . the fts agent can handle the following events : 1 ) master change or 2 ) shutdown in any state . upon starting the fts agent , it goes into initializing state . the logic for the state transitions includes the following variables ( default values stated below are for example purposes only — other suitable default values shall be apparent those skilled in the art ): current mode — master , slave or uninitialized masterendpoint address — transport layer address of the master agent port — well - known transport port on which the master agent listens for incoming connections from slaves . ( default 2233 ). connectionretryinterval — the interval at which the slave agent is to retry initiating a tcp connection ( default 10 seconds ) remnantdeletiontime — when in the master state , the number of seconds to wait before deleting any remaining agent routes in the table . fig2 illustrates a state machine 200 used by the agents . as described above , the state machine references the following variables : currentmode — the current mode of operation , set to either master , slave or uninitialized . masterendpointaddress — the tcp endpoint address of the master . agentport — the well - known tcp port on which the master agent listens for incoming connections from slaves . as a non - limiting example , the default value may be set to decimal 2233 . connectionretryinterval — the interval at which the slave agent is to retry initiating a tcp connection . as a non - limiting example , the default value may be set to 10 seconds . remnantdeletiontime — when in the master state , the number of seconds to wait before deleting any remaining agent routes in the table . as a non - limiting example , the default value may be set to 60 seconds . for the purposes of discovering changes in this information , the agent registers to receive a signal ( which may , by way of non - limiting example , be implemented as sighup ) when the current state and endpoint address change . upon starting 1201 , an agent enters the initializing state and the value of currentmode is set to uninitialized . any stored information relating to local fib entries is discarded . if the remnantdeletiontime timer is running , it is cancelled . the agent then determines the following : its new mode of operation , master or slave . this is learned through an external api . if the new mode is slave , then the value of masterendpointaddress is learned 202 . the contents of all vrfs on the local machine . this is determined by reading the linux protocol field of the route ( or some route identifier in other systems , as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art ). after reading this information , the agent transitions to either the agent slave state 1202 or the agent master state 1203 , depending on which mode is determined from the external mechanism . the agent can then process the following events in this state : master change 220 — this event does not have significance in this state . the agent does not leave the initializing state until the above information is learned . shutdown 222 — upon receipt of this event , the agent closes all tcp connections and shuts down gracefully . in the agent slave state 1202 , the agent connects to the endpoint of another agent determined to be the master , receives vrf entries , and updates the vrfs on the local machine . the vrf entries are communicated from the master in the form of ipv4 vrf entry tlvs which are described further herein . upon transitioning to this state , the agent sets currentmode to slave and sets the value of masterendpointaddress to the tcp endpoint address of the master agent , after which the following actions are performed : open a tcp connection to the master agent at masterendpointaddress . if the connection cannot be established , retry the connection every connectionretryinterval seconds . once the tcp connection is established , send an open message ( as described hereinafter ) and register for the configured vrf entries using the vrf registration tlv if applicable the agent makes a request for all vrf entries if it is possible that updates have been missed between sessions . the agent maintains a transport connection to the master agent while in the agent slave state . if at any time the underlying transport connection is broken or a close message is received , the agent continues to retry the connection every connectionretryinterval seconds until the connection is restored and normal vrf entry processing is resumed . master change 206 — upon receipt of this event , the agent transitions to the initializing state . shutdown 208 — upon receipt of this event , the agent closes all tcp connections and shuts down gracefully . in the agent master state 1203 , the agent monitors routing information in all vrfs on the local machine . agents operating in agent slave may connect and register for updates . routing information for registered vrfs is transmitted by the master to all listening slaves in vrf update and vrf delete messages . upon transitioning to this state , the agent sets currentmode to master and sets the value of masterendpointaddress to one of its own endpoint addresses . this address may be learned through an api if necessary . the agent then performs the following actions : listen for tcp connections on agentport . if configured to listen only on masterendpointaddress , the agent may restrict connections to those that connect to this address . respond to and update any slave agents that connect and register for vrfs , using the vrf update and vrf delete messages , as hereinafter described . master change 204 — upon receipt of this event , the agent transitions to the initializing state . shutdown 210 — upon receipt of this event , the agent closes all tcp connections and shuts down gracefully . in embodiments of the invention , the agent is continuously monitoring the master / slave state from the external api or is receiving asynchronous notifications of changes . the current mode as well as the endpoint address of the master are monitored . if a change is indicated in either of these values , the master change event is executed . this event is executed when a graceful shutdown is requested . the agent sends a close message before terminating any tcp connections . the invention for synchronization of forwarding table entries between a set of machines , allowing them to forward data in a consistent manner . one non - limiting example of this functionality is within a cluster configuration in which multiple machines are forwarding data ( i . e . load balancing ) which allows for the failure of one or more machines without an interruption in forwarding of network traffic . as illustrated in fig1 , an agent that is a slave for a first cluster ( cluster 1 ) 122 can be a master for a second cluster ( cluster 2 ). alternative embodiments include a high availability mode where all machines have consistent fib entries , but only one participates in forwarding of data . in both types of embodiments , fib synchronization allows fail - over of routing participation to another machine , such that data can continue to be forwarded while a control plane ( i . e . a routing process ) relearns its database . the fts agent provides a functional call interface to the network applications . these applications pass back the information indicated in response . this apis provides an abstraction layer for information retrieved from network applications as a non - limiting example , the following data structure can be utilized by the example api described herein . typedef enum { cs_none , cs_master , cs_not_master } cluster_state_t ; struct_sockaddr * api_master_address_get ( void ) typdef enum { note_good , note baed } cluster_pnote_t ; extern cluster_state_t mode ; # cluster mode extern int same_int ; # same interface names this fts agent api puts a wrapper on specific cluster information calls to get information . struct sockaddr * api_master_address_get ( void ) function : calls target specific _ * functions to get master fts agent &# 39 ; s ip address .. these calls query the customer &# 39 ; s cluster information . arguments : none return code : sockaddr * ip - address - address of the master on the sync network cluster_state_t api_cluster_state_get ( void ) function : calls target specific functions to get cluster information : these calls areget the node id , ip address , and role the node plays . arguments : none return code : role ( cs_none , cs_master , cs_non_master ) int api_same_int_status_get ( void ) function : calls target specific functions to find out if the cluster application uses the same interface names . arguments : none return code : & lt ; 0 - failures , 0 or & gt ; 0 = success int api_notify_register ( void ) function : calls customer register functions to start register to receive asynchronous updates . arguments : none return code : & lt ; 0 - failures , 0 or & gt ; 0 = success int api_notify_unregister ( void ) function : calls customer unregister functions to stop receiving asynchronous updates . arguments : none return code : & lt ; 0 - failures , 0 or & gt ; 0 = success int api_cluster_address_from_name ( char * name , u_int32 * ip , u_int32 * mask ); function : calls cxl_ * functions to get cluster ip address ( ip and mask ) from name . the cxl_ * functions called is : cxl_get_cluster_info - from_member_if_name ( name , ip , mask ) arguments : char * name - name of the interface u_int32 * ip - pointer to ip address u_int32 * mask - pointer to ip address mask return code : − 1 - failures , 0 = success int api_cluster_name_from_address ( u_int32 ip , u_int32 mask , char ** name ); function : calls target specific functions to obtain the cluster name from the ip address . arguments : char ** name - pointer to the pointer of the name of the interface u_int32 * ip - pointer to ip address u_int32 * mask - pointer to ip address mask return code : − 1 - failures , 0 = success int api_get_vrf_ids ( u_int32 * id , char * name , u_int32 ip , u_int32 mask ); arguments : id - array of vrf ids char * name - pointer to the pointer of the name of the interface u_int32 ip - ip address of cluster u_int32 mask - ip address mask for cluster return code : − 1 - failures , 0 = success iapi_get_all_vrf ( void ); return code : − 1 - failures , 0 = success embodiments of the invention include an fts protocol for communication amongst agents . examples of messages used in embodiments of the protocol are provided herein , and agent responses to protocol messages are illustrated in fig3 and fig4 . each message consists of a fixed - length header followed by a set of tlv ( type , length , value ) entities . unrecognized tlv entities and message types are ignored and do not cause the connection to be terminated if present . tlvs ( and subtlvs ) can appear in any order when a packet type allows multiple types . in embodiments , the tcp session openings are deterministic . this determinism is provided by an external api that dictates the state of the agent and master endpoint in a deterministic manner . in embodiments of the invention , this 32 - bit fixed - length message header appears at the beginning of all protocol messages . the version field is the same for the lifetime of a connection . if an agent is unable to support a version sent by another agent , the connection can be closed . an agent can downgrade its version for the purpose of compatibility with another agent . version — the version of the protocol in use by the sender . the value is 1 . message type — the type of the message . packet length — the length of the message , including the header . this message is the first message sent by the opener of the tcp connection after the tcp link is established . version — the version of the protocol in use by the sender . the value is 1 . message type — the open message is type 1 . packet length — the length of the message , including the header . in some embodiments , only an agent operating as a slave sends the open message . the master agent performs the following checks on receipt of this message : check that the version advertised by the sender matches or is compatible with that of the receiver 1313 . check that there are sufficient resources to support the connection 1314 . if either of these checks fail , the receiver can close the session 1317 with an appropriate reason code in a close message , as described herein . the following type , length , value entities are allowed in the open message : in some embodiments , this packet can only be sent from the slave state . additionally , this packet can only be processed from the master state . it is ignored if it is received in any other state . this message is used to communicate an update to a virtual forwarding table . version — the version of the protocol in use by the sender . this value is 1 . message type — the vrf update message is type 2 . packet length — the length of the message , including the header . in some embodiments , only an agent operating as a master sends the vrf update message . the slave agent performs the following actions upon receipt of this message : process all ipv4 vrf entry tlvs 1415 . if an entry has changed , override the current database entry with the new entry . update the local vrfs 1416 as necessary to reflect any new information . this is done in batches to prevent sending information to the forwarding plane too quickly . the following type , length , value entities are allowed in the vrf update message . in some embodiments , this packet can only be sent from the master state . additionally , this packet can only be processed from the slave state . it is ignored if it is received in any other state . the vrf delete message is used to communicate that an entry in a virtual forwarding table has been deleted . version — the version of the protocol in use by the sender . this value is 1 . message type — the vrf delete message is type 3 . packet length — the length of the message , including the header . in some embodiments , only an agent operating as a master sends the vrf delete message . the slave agent performs the following actions on receipt of this message : process all ipv4 vrf entry tlvs 1417 . the entries in this type of packet are deleted from the local database . update the local vrfs 1418 to reflect any new information . this is done in batches to prevent sending information to the forwarding plane too quickly . the following type , length , value entities are allowed in the vrf update message . in some embodiments , this packet can only be sent from the master state . additionally , in some such embodiments , this packet can only be processed from the slave state , and is ignored if it is received in any other state . the close message is used to communicate that the sender is closing the session . when possible , the close message is sent before terminating any tcp connection . upon receipt of this message , the receiver closes the tcp connection if it has not already been closed by the sender . this message effectively delimits the end of the session . version — the version of the protocol in use by the sender . this value is 1 . message type — the close message is type 4 . packet length — the length of the message , including the header . tlv entities allowed the following type , length , value entities are allowed in the close message . a sender uses this tlv to indicate to the receiver that the sender wants to monitor changes in a virtual forwarding table . type ( 0x02 )— the type value of this tlv . length — the length of this tlv is always 8 . vrf id — the vrf identifier for which the sender wants to register for updates . flags — the flags vector for this request . the sender can set the flags vector to convey further information . two flag values are defined here . upon processing a full update request , the receiver queues the contents of all vrfs for the requester . if the contents of the vrfs change while this snapshot is queued , the latest update is queued for the requester . because the most recent update always represents the most current information , the requester can update the contents of the vrfs with the most recent message for a vrf entry when it arrives . full_update_request ( 0x01 )— when this flag is set , it indicates that the sender would like to receive a “ snapshot ” of the entire forwarding table with this vrf id . if the flag is not set , only updates after the time of registration are sent to the sender . all_vrf —( 0x02 ) when this flag is set , it indicates that the sender would like to monitor changes in all virtual forwarding tables on the receiver &# 39 ; s machine . when this flag is set , the value of vrf id is ignored . in some embodiments , this packet can only be sent from the slave state . additionally , in some such embodiments , this packet can only be processed from the master state , and is ignored if it is received in any other state . the ipv4 vrf entry tlv is a top - level tlv that contains a set of subtlvs . type ( 0x07 )— the type value of this tlv . length — the length of this tlv , which is the collective length of all the enclosed subtlvs . subtlvs — zero or more subtlvs describing the details of this entry . in embodiments of the invention , the variable field format is made of tlvs . each tlv may have multiple subtlvs within it . agent state allowed to subtlvs receive the tlv within message tlv entities within receive receive allowed within tlv and and message message yes / no process ignore send open vrf no master slave or slave registration initialized update ipv4 vrf yes master slave / init slave vrf entry ipv6 vrf yes master slave / init slave entry ipv4 yes master slave / init slave multicast vrf entry ipv6 yes master slave / init slave multicast vrf entry delete ipv4 vrf yes master slave / init slave vrf entry ipv6 vrf yes master slave / init slave entry ipv4 yes master slave / init slave multicast vrf entry ipv6 yes master slave / init slave multicast vrf entry close reason no master never master or slave ignored or or unini - slave tialized the ipv4 prefix subtlv indicates the key value for a forwarding table entry . any received ipv4 prefix subtlv can be considered as the most recent forwarding table entry for its prefix . if the prefix did not exist in the local database , then a new one is created upon receipt of this tlv . if the tlv is received in a vrf delete message , the prefix is deleted from the local vrf . this prefix can be of variable length . the component values of this subtlv are : type ( 0x01 )— the type value of this subtlv . length — the length of this subtlv is always 5 , or a variable depending on the mask length . mask length — the mask length for this prefix . acceptable values are 0 to 32 inclusive . ipv4 prefix — the 32 - bit ipv4 address prefix of the forwarding table entry . this value , in combination with the mask , is considered a “ key ” value that may be used to uniquely identify an entry . the flags subtlv exists to communicate only the flags entered by the operative routing algorithms into the forwarding table . type ( 0x03 )— the type value of this subtlv . length — the length of this subtlv is always 4 . ipv4 prefix — a 32 - bit flag vector representing the forwarding table flags for this route . possible flag values are : rtf_up ( 0x01 )— this flag indicates whether the entry is usable . rtf_reject ( 0x08 )— this flag indicates whether the entry is a reject route . rtf_blackhole ( 0x08 )— this flag indicates whether the entry will be kept in the table . rtf_end ( 0x11 )— this flag indicates that this entry represents the last entry in the initial snapshot of data . upon receiving an entry with this flag set , the ( slave ) receiver can delete any entries that were present at the opening of the connection but were not updated in the received snapshot . type ( 0x05 ) - the type value of this subtlv . length - the length of this subtlv is either 0 or a multiple of five . next hop index - the index of this entry . this index is used to match other interface - related subtlvs . ipv4 next hop - the ipv4 next hop addresses for the entry . each address is a 32 - bit value . the entry cannot have a next hop . this tlv can have zero or more next hop entries , each of which is five bytes long with an 8 - bit index and a 32 - bit next hop . type ( 0 × 08 )— the type value of this subtlv . length — the length of this subtlv is always 4 . metric — a 32 - bit unsigned integer representing the metric for this forwarding table entry . type ( 0 × 18 )— the type value of this subtlv . length — the length of this subtlv . nexthop index — the index of the next hop in the ipv4 nexthops subtlv that is being referenced . interface name — a string of up to 253 bytes representing the name of the outgoing interface for this entry ( for example , eth0 ). the name is not zero - terminated . type ( 0 × 24 )— the type value of this subtlv . length — the length of this subtlv . nexthop index — the index of the next hop in the ipv4 nexthops subtlv that is being referenced . interface address — a 32 - bit ipv4 address representing an address of the outgoing interface for this entry . this tlv indicates a reason code for termination of the session . the reason code indicates a reason why the sender is terminating the session . after the reason code , a variable - length string containing more information about the termination may be present in this tlv . example uses of this area are error strings such as , “ malloc ( ) failed ” or “ version number not understood ”. if an error string is present , it is not zero - terminated . going_down ( 0x01 )— the sender is performing a graceful shutdown operation . internal_error ( 0x02 )— the sender has encountered an internal unrecoverable error . version_incompatible ( 0x04 )— the sending agent does not want to speak the requested version of the protocol . insufficient_resources ( 0x08 )— the sender does not have sufficient resources to support the connection . state_change ( 0x09 )— the sender is performing a state transition and has determined that it no longer wants to support this connection . this section outlines functionality that is present in the software agent . configuration can be achieved through command - line flags . the following flags are supported : − d file — this option enables debug tracing to the specified file . − n — this option prevents the software agent from daemonizing . − b a . b . c . d — this option causes the agent to bind to the local ipv4 address a . b . c . d . if this option is not given , the agent will bind to the inaddr_any address and accept tcp connections incoming on any interface . note that this address can also be dynamically learned through an external api and can change during the lifetime of the agent . − t time — this option sets the remnant deletion timer , in seconds . important events , such as state changes , are logged to the system syslog facility . in addition , an optional file can be configured ( using the − d option above ) to contain debugging trace messages . the software agent responds to the sigterm signal , which causes the agent to terminate gracefully , notifying all of its connected agents . the vrfs are not modified upon termination . the sighup signal is currently used for asynchronous notification of changes in cluster state . this section outlines extended tlv formats for distribution additional information between agents . the ipv6 prefix subtlv indicates the key value for a routing entry . any received ipv6 prefix subtlv should be considered as the most recent forwarding table entry for its prefix . if the prefix did not exist in the local database , then a new one should be created upon receipt of this tlv . if the tlv is received in a vrf delete message , the prefix should be deleted from the local vrf . it is expected that the ipv6 link local prefix will not be distributed between agents because this represents an interface route that is not learned via the routing protocols . the ipv6 prefix subtlv should not be in the same top - level tlv with an ipv4 prefix subtlv as they both represent key values for an entry . the prefix is of variable length , from 0 to 16 bytes . type ( 0x06 )— the type value of this subtlv length — the length of this subtlv is variable mask length — the mask length for this prefix . all masks are assumed to be contiguous . acceptable values are 0 - 32 inclusive . variable — the ipv6 address prefix of the forwarding table entry . this value , in combination with the mask , is considered a “ key ” value , i . e . it can be used to uniquely identify an entry . type ( 0 × 25 )— the type value of this subtlv length — the length of this subtlv nexthop index — the index of the nexthop in the ipv4 nexthops subtlv that is being referenced . variable — an ipv6 address representing an address of the outgoing interface for this entry . type ( 0 × 26 )— the type value of this subtlv length — the length of this subtlv ipv4 mfc origin — the ipv4 address that is originating the multicast data ipv4 multicast group — the class - d multicast address associated with this entry ttl count — a count of the number of 8 - bit ttl values that follow ttl1 . . . n — 8 - bit ttl values the ipv4 mfc entry subtlv should not be mixed with ipv4 or ipv6 subtlvs in the same entry top - level tlv . the embodiments and implementations presented herein are for illustrative purposes only , but are not intended to limit the scope of the invention ; many alternative embodiments and implementations shall be readily apparent to those skilled in the art . | 7 |
referring now to the single figure of the drawing , there is shown therein an imaging or image - setting device including a laser 1 , which serves as an imaging energy source . with the aid of the laser 1 , an image is set on a printing form 2 which is mounted on a cylinder 3 . the laser 1 is disposed on a linearly displaceable carriage 4 which has a plurality of piezoelectric elements 5 . the piezoelectric elements 5 support the laser 1 with respect to the carriage 4 . the cylinder 3 is rotatably mounted in two side walls 6 . the laser 1 and / or the carriage 4 have a first acceleration sensor 7 for registering an acceleration a_laser acting on the laser 1 , and a second acceleration sensor 8 for registering an acceleration a_pz acting on the cylinder 3 and , therefore , on the printing form 2 . as an alternative thereto , the acceleration of the side wall 6 can also be determined and registered . the signal outputs from the first acceleration sensor 7 and the second acceleration sensor 8 , respectively , are connected to an input of a subtracting device 9 , which subtracts the acceleration a_laser of the laser 1 from the acceleration a_pz of the printing form 2 and outputs a differential signal a_pz minus a_laser at the output thereof . the output from the subtracting device 9 is connected to the input of a controller 10 , which generates a signal u_control and provides this signal at the output thereof . the target for the control , i . e ., in other words , the set - point or nominal value of the control , is typically selected so that a differential acceleration of zero is to be achieved : a_pz minus a_laser = 0 . the output from the controller 10 is connected to the input of an amplifier 11 . the amplifier 11 has a plurality of outputs , respectively , connected to each of the piezoelectric elements 5 . in an advantageous development of the invention , the piezoelectric elements 5 can be wired differentially : it is expedient to provide piezoelectric elements 5 in pairs in such a manner that a first piezoelectric element 5 on the first side of the laser 1 has assigned thereto a second piezoelectric element 5 on the second side of the laser 1 . the stroke axes of the first and second piezoelectric element 5 are then mutually coordinated so that they are able to cooperate with the laser 1 . in the figure , two such pairs of piezoelectric elements 5 are shown . in addition , the stroke axes of the pairs are mutually alignable , in particular in parallel or orthogonal with one another . if a voltage u 1 is applied to a first piezoelectric element 5 in order to produce a first stroke h 1 of the piezoelectric element 5 , a voltage u 2 , typically at least approximately equal to − u 1 , should then be applied to the opposite , second piezoelectric element 5 associated therewith , producing an opposing stroke − h 1 . in this case , it is correspondingly true of each pair of piezoelectric elements 5 . a voltage u 3 is applied to a third piezoelectric element 5 , which is located on the same side as the first piezoelectric element 5 , assuming an identical orientation of the first and third piezoelectric element 5 ( parallel stroke ), in order to produce a second stroke h 2 of the third piezoelectric element 5 with the same sign as that of the first stroke h 1 . a voltage u 4 , typically equal to at least approximately − u 2 , should then be applied to the opposite , fourth piezoelectric element 5 assigned thereto , producing an opposing stroke − h 2 . in order to set an image on the printing form 2 , the imaging information is transferred to the printing form 2 with the aid of a laser beam 12 produced by the laser 1 . in order to achieve full - surface imaging , the laser beam 12 is scanned over the surface of the printing form 2 . for this purpose , the cylinder 3 is set into rotation , and the carriage 4 is moved parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cylinder 3 . in this regard , the rotational movement of the cylinder 3 and the translational movement of the carriage 4 are mutually coordinated so that the laser beam 12 is guided over the surface of the printing form 2 in accordance with a prescribable scheme . in synchronism therewith , the intensity of the laser beam 12 is modulated so that the desired information pattern is written into the printing form 2 . during the imaging operation , both the laser 1 and the cylinder 3 with the printing form 2 are subjected to interference , which leads to an undesired force action on the laser 1 or on the cylinder 3 . this interference can be caused , for example , by mechanical oscillations of the system , which are excited when the system components are driven . because of the different mechanical properties of the laser 1 and of the cylinder 3 , the interference has a different effect upon the laser 1 and the cylinder 3 , so that the laser 1 will generally execute a different movement than the cylinder 3 and , therefore , than the printing form 2 which is mounted on the cylinder 3 . the acceleration of the laser 1 and of the cylinder 3 and the printing form 2 therewith , respectively , resulting from the interference , can have a negative effect upon the precision of the imaging . in order to prevent this from happening , the piezoelectric elements 5 are driven in accordance with the invention in a manner that the relative acceleration between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 , caused by the interference , becomes as small as possible . for this purpose , the signal a_laser generated by the first acceleration sensor 7 belonging to the laser 1 is subtracted in the subtracting device 9 from the signal a_pz from the second acceleration sensor 8 mounted on the cylinder 3 . the differential signal ( a_pz - a_laser or a_pz minus a_laser ), which corresponds to the current relative acceleration between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 , is fed into the controller 10 as a control deviation . the controller 10 attempts to outcontrol or stabilize the control deviation , i . e ., the differential acceleration ( a_pz minus a_laser ), and for this purpose outputs the signal u_control to the amplifier 11 , which in turn drives the piezoelectric elements 5 accordingly . because the dimensions of the piezoelectric elements 5 depend upon the respective voltage applied , the laser 1 fixed to the piezoelectric elements 5 can be moved by varying the voltages applied to the piezoelectric elements 5 . in particular , the laser 1 can be accelerated by applying suitable voltages to the piezoelectric elements 5 . in this regard , the voltages applied to the piezoelectric elements 5 can be controlled by the controller 10 so that the laser 1 is subjected to an acceleration which compensates as accurately as possible for the relative acceleration between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 caused by the interference . if the cylinder 3 with the printing form 2 is accelerated by interference , the controller 10 then drives the piezoelectric elements 5 via the amplifier 11 in a manner that exactly the same acceleration acts upon the laser 1 , so that the relative acceleration ( a_pz minus a_laser ) between the laser 1 and the cylinder 3 , and therefore also between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 , becomes zero , and the imaging operation is therefore not impaired . if , on the other hand , the interference acts upon the laser 1 so that the latter is accelerated , the controller 10 then causes the piezoelectric elements 5 to produce an opposite acceleration of the laser 1 , so that the interference is compensated for . the overall effect , therefore , is that the laser 1 and the printing form 2 are subjected to approximately the same acceleration at every instant of time , independent of interference , i . e ., the resultant relative acceleration ( a_pz minus a_laser ) is virtually zero . this results in the relative movement between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 , required for setting an image on the printing form , being not impaired by the interference , so that highly accurate imaging of the printing form 2 is possible . the source of the interference is unimportant in this regard . in particular , the laser 1 and the printing form 2 can carry out identical translational movements , i . e ., also with a relative speed of zero , in the direction of the controlled degree of freedom . the imaging device according to the invention can also be modified so that the relative speed between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 is determined by one or more suitable sensors , and the components of the relative speed which are not provided within the context of the imaging operation are compensated for by appropriately driving the piezoelectric elements 5 . it is likewise also possible to determine , respectively , the relative position between the laser 1 and the printing form 2 by one or more sensors and , if the relative position does not correspond to the positioning desired during the imaging , to correct it . for desired movements which are required within the context of the imaging process , the compensation mechanism can be disabled in a simple manner . for this purpose , a filter which allows no low - frequency signals to pass can be disposed , for example , between the subtracting device 9 and the controller 10 . because the interference usually has a considerably higher frequency than the desired movements , only the signals caused by the interference are supplied to the controller 10 and accordingly controlled out . the signals caused by the desired movements , on the other hand , are not taken into account . the limit between the interference and the desired movements is typically at a frequency of the order of magnitude of 1 hertz . instead of a single laser 1 , the imaging device according to the invention can also have a plurality of lasers 1 . in this case , the lasers 1 are either rigidly connected to one another or each laser 1 is supported on its own set of piezoelectric elements 5 and has its own first acceleration sensor 7 . in an imaging device according to the invention , control can include the differential acceleration , as described hereinabove with respect to the schematic view of fig1 in one , two or three spatial directions . one possible embodiment of the imaging device according to the invention can have piezoelectric elements 5 for each controlled spatial direction , the respective elements 5 being able to produce a stroke in one spatial direction . expressed in other words , the stroke vectors which describe the orientations of the strokes of the piezoelectric elements 5 can be linearly independent of one another . an alternative embodiment of the imaging device according to the invention includes piezoelectric elements 5 , the stroke of which can be oriented . in other words , the piezoelectric elements 5 in such an embodiment are formed of a plurality of individual piezoelectric elements with linearly independent orientations , so that the individual strokes thereof can be superimposed for forming an overall stroke . the imaging device according to the invention can selectively be constructed as a self - contained unit or integrated into a printing unit or into a printing press . | 7 |
popular medical literature has referred to breast removal as a superficial operation , noting that it does not involve the invasion of body cavities as is required for the removal of lungs , kidneys , the gall bladder or other internal organs . although technically correct , this characterization tends to minimize the severe effects on the body of a radical mastectomy and the resulting pain , which is generally far greater than that caused by removal of a melanoma or skin cancer . fig1 and 2 show the structures which are completely or partially removed in a radical mastectomy . a breast 2 includes fatty superficial fascia 4 within which are glandular lobes 6 leading to lactiferous ducts 8 which conduct milk to the nipple 10 . the breast is covered by skin 12 and supported by a plurality of fibrous suspensory ligaments 14 both on the periphery of the breast and extending outward from the deep fascia 16 of the pectoralis major or chest muscle 18 . the breast also includes blood vessels and nerves ( not shown ). the pectoralis major 18 extends from the clavicle 20 and across the chest to the upper arm 22 and overlies ribs 24 . most importantly , the breast contains a plethora of lymphatic vessels . normally these function to drain the fat portion of the milk produced during lactation . however they also are vehicles for the transfer of infection or neoplastic ( cancerous ) cells to more distant parts of the body . in fig1 arrows are used to show the various directions of lymphatic drainage from the breast . the most significant is arrow 26 leading to the axillary lymph nodes 28 in the armpit which receive the bulk of the drainage . other drainage paths are upward toward apical nodes indicated by arrow 30 , toward parasternal nodes indicated by arrow 32 , toward the opposite breast indicated by arrow 34 and toward the abdomen indicated by arrow 38 . from this description of body structure and function , the high degree of danger of cancer of the breast spreading to the rest of the body can be appreciated , as well as the advisability of the radical mastectomy procedure which includes , as a precaution , removal of the axillary lymph nodes and certain muscle tissues . but it can also be appreciated that the post - operative pain will not be superficial or short lived and that the patient must deal with this before considering cosmetic matters , however important they may be from the psychological standpoint . referring now to fig3 through 11 , the garment comprises a body portion 40 and an arm portion 42 which are detachable from and attachable to one another so that they may be worn and used separately or in combination with one another , depending on the needs of the user . one common feature of both the body portion and the arm portion is that they are both covered by a fabric which is flexible and soft to the touch of the skin but which is not stretchable in one or more directions , so that the shape and fit of the garment is stable . the fabric desirably should be natural to avoid allergic reactions particularly for patients whose immune systems may not be functioning normally as a result of post - operative therapy . the fabric also desirably should allow the passage of moisture and air to and from the skin of the user . another desirable characteristic is freedom from dyes or other chemical treatments which could cause patient reactions . still other desirable characteristics are a high thread count to minimize or prevent any leakage of the filler materials described below , strength , and washability . a 100 % cotton downproof white ticking material is preferred . such a material comprises both the outer layer of the arm portion and the inside and outside layers of the body portion . both portions include filling or padding material in structures which are described below . much of the padding material is 100 % cotton batting . however , in some portions where absorption of shock is more significant , polyester batting may be more desirable . the use of polyester is desirably minimized because it may create unpleasant warmth for the user . alternating layers of cotton and polyester can combine the best features of each material . the body portion 40 of the garment generally resembles a vest in that it is adapted to encircle the upper body portion , closes over the patient &# 39 ; s chest and lacks integral sleeves . as illustrated in fig3 and 5 and as first described herein , the garment is adapted for a patient who has undergone a mastectomy of the right breast . the invention is , of course , not limited to this situation . changes to adapt the garment to a left mastectomy fall within the scope of the invention . fig6 and 8 illustrate the variations desirable in the case of a double mastectomy and identical reference numerals are used in all of these figures . the inner and outer covering layers of the body portion are each made of a single piece of material thus minimizing seams and enhancing comfort . the body portion 40 includes a curved back neck opening 44 , and a curved front neck opening in two portions 46 and 48 . the two neck openings are each adjacent to two upwardly extending shoulder pieces 50 . between the front and rear right pair of shoulder pieces and between the front and rear left pair of shoulder pieces are downwardly extending arm openings 52 and 54 . the shoulder pieces are fastened to one another when the user dons the garment by adjustable straps . mating velcro ® pieces 55 are presently the most practical form of fastener because of their continuously , infinitely variable adjustability and because they can easily be operated with one hand . this is particularly significant for a post - mastectomy patient who usually finds arm movement difficult and painful . the arm opening 52 shown in fig4 and 5 is substantially larger than arm opening 54 . as illustrated , opening 52 is the arm opening which is not adjacent the removed breast . therefore it is larger to accommodate normal arm movement . by contrast , arm opening 54 is much smaller so that the garment extends to the very armpit . two rows of stitching 56 provide gathers which enclose an elastic band or draw cord 58 extending parallel to the lower edge of the body portion . this location is approximately at the waistline of the wearer to provide gathering for a tight fit at the waist . below the gathers , the body portion extends for a suitable distance to provide a section 60 of material which may be tucked inside the waist of a skirt , slacks , or other lower body garment . this section does not include any padding . adjacent arm opening 52 , the front part 62 of the body portion is lightly padded or unpadded . it may include any conventional breast cup structure 64 to receive the intact breast or none if so desired . vertical pleats 66 are provided extending from the breast site to the waistband 58 for better fit under the breast . the back 68 of the body portion is thickly padded with the materials disclosed above . the back portion 68 is provided with an opening 70 below and close to arm opening 54 . this opening extends through both the inside and outside layers of the garment and the intermediate padding . around the opening 70 , the inside and outside layers are stitched together to prevent loss of padding . the purpose of the opening is to accommodate the drain tubes and fluid collectors required after a mastectomy . the front part 72 of the body portion adjacent arm opening 54 is also heavily padded . heavy padding is also provided under arm opening 54 . front part 72 , unlike front part 62 , is substantially flat on the inside because it overlies the site of breast removal . front part 72 is somewhat wider than front part 62 so that it overlaps front part 62 . closure of the body portion of the garment is accomplished by a plurality of infinitely variable fasteners , preferably mating velcro ® pieces 73 which can be operated with one hand . the loose strips are on the front part 72 so that the body portion adjacent the breast removal site can easily be made to fit snugly against the wearer &# 39 ; s body , which minimizes pain . as additional features , the front part 72 of the body portion includes on its inside surface pouches 74 and 76 which , respectively , overlie the site of the removed breast and extend downward from arm opening 54 . both pouches have openings at their upper ends to receive packs of pain alleviating materials such as , for example , hot packs , cold packs , or solid additional padding . another type of pack which may prove useful is an inflatable pack to increase pressure on the affected area similar to those developed in recent years for athletic shoes , skates and ball gloves with customized fit . either or both pouches may be provided with flaps 78 and 80 to assure retention of the inserted packs . fig6 and 8 illustrate the body portion of the garment adapted for a patient with a double mastectomy . for such cases , both front portions are very thickly padded and heavily padded under both arm openings . drain tube openings and pouches are provided on both sides . both arm openings are cut high to provide padding directly under the armpit . the front portions in this garment are symmetrical and come to the center of the body . the front closures in these figures are shown with their loose and fastenable ends alternating on opposite sides to permit the wearer to adjust the pressure to be greater on either side as needed . fig9 shows a cross - section of the padded areas of the body portion 40 in one embodiment . inside layer 82 , central layer 84 and outside layer 86 are of the previously mentioned downproof 100 % cotton ticking . each cotton ticking layer is adjacent to a layer of cotton batting 88 , 90 , 92 and 94 . sandwiched between the layers of cotton batting are layers 96 and 98 of polyester batting used for their resiliency and shock absorbing qualities . the arm portion 42 , as shown in detail in fig1 and 11 , includes an arm support 100 and an arm enclosure or sleeve 102 . the arm support 100 comprises a lower arm portion 104 , an upper arm portion 106 , shoulder portions 108 , shoulder closure means 110 , and body portion attachments 112 . the lower arm portion 104 , upper arm portion 106 and shoulder portions 108 are constructed of a casing 113 of the comfortable 100 % cotton ticking previously described , stuffed with a relatively firm but resilient material commonly used for firm pillows such as cotton or polyester . since its primary purpose is support of the arm which is an extremity of the human body , the disadvantages of artificial materials as used in the body portion 42 are not as significant for the arm support . the lower arm portion 104 and upper arm portion 106 are demarcated by a neck 114 containing less stuffing material than either the upper or lower support portions . the casing 113 is gathered at the neck between the two portions by an elastic band . pleats 126 on the top of the casing provide flexibility for allowing the arm to bend . in combination with a lesser adjacent amount of padding in both portions , this provides a means of bending one portion against the other to accommodate natural placement of the arm . the shoulder portions 108 encircle the wearer &# 39 ; s shoulder at the upper end of the upper arm portion 106 and are fastened together by continuously variable fasteners preferably mating velcro ® strips which constitute the shoulder closure means 110 . as illustrated , the lower end of the lower arm portion 104 is provided with an opening and closure therefor 116 which may be a zipper or velcro ® strips . the purpose of the opening is to permit insertion of an inflatable device to adjust the volume of the lower portion . when the inflatable device is not present , the volume of the lower portion is much less than when the garment is in use . this provides advantages in packing the garment or in airline travel . in use , the lower arm portion is thicker than the upper arm portion , which provides elevation for the lower arm when the patient is lying down . one or both of the shoulder portions are provided with body portion attachments 112 . as with all other attachment means , velcro ® fasteners at present appear to be the most practical . the arm enclosure 102 is mounted on the arm support 100 and is designed to enclose the arm and secure it to the arm support . fastening of opposite edges of the arm enclosure around the arm is also accomplished by adjustable fasteners 118 such as velcro ® strips . on the side of the arm enclosure 102 adjacent the arm support are pouches 120 with flaps 122 similar to those included in the body portion and similarly adjusted to receive hot or cold packs , solid padding or inflatable packs to relieve pain . two arm portions may be provided for a patient who has undergone a double mastectomy . both portions of the garment may easily be adjusted to provide a firm , snug , comfortable fit which lessens pain during normal activities and during sleep . the pouches permit the application at all such times of various pain - relieving packs . the pressures applied to the body may also serve to reduce post - operative fluid collection . although the invention has been described with respect to certain specific embodiments , numerous variations will be apparent which will fall within the scope of the appended claims . | 8 |
fig1 to 5 will largely be described jointly . by way of a first flange plate 12 , an electric motor is bolted on to a bearing block 13 which forms a second flange plate 14 . in the bearing block 13 , there is supported an extension of the motor shaft 15 which carries a first pinion 16 . in the bearing block 13 , there is also supported an ancillary shaft 17 which carries a further pinion 18 which engages the pinion 16 and which , for the purpose of forming a reduction stage , carries a further pinion 19 . via the bearing flange 14 the bearing block 13 is secured , for example , to a drive housing . a bearing sleeve 21 whose axis extends parallel to the motor axis is shown to include a flange plate 22 which is rotatably supported in the drive housing . a first setting ring 23 is supported on the bearing sleeve 21 by way of a radial bearing 24 . the setting ring 23 includes a tooth segment 25 . the pinion 19 of the ancillary shaft 17 engages the tooth segment 25 of the first setting ring 23 . in parallel to the first setting ring 23 , there is arranged a further setting ring 26 which , by way of a holding lug 27 , in a rotationally fast way can engage the drive housing . between the setting rings 23 , 26 , there is arranged a plurality of balls 29 which are held in a cage 28 and by way of which the second setting ring 26 is centered on the first setting ring 23 . the first setting ring 23 is supported via an axial bearing 31 on a disc 32 which is secured by a securing ring 33 on the bearing sleeve 21 . the second setting ring is supported via an axial bearing 34 on a pressure plate 35 which is held by plate spring packages 36 in the flange plate 22 . the pressure plate 35 simultaneously acts on pressure pins 37 which penetrate the flange plate 22 . ball grooves in the setting rings 23 , 26 holding the balls 29 are provided in the form of ramps rising across the circumference in opposite directions . the electric motor is shown to have cable connections 38 , 39 . by driving the electric motor 11 , the tooth segment 25 and thus the first setting ring 23 are rotated relative to the second setting ring 26 which , via the holding lug 27 , engages the drive housing and which , as a result , is axially displaced against the returning force of the plate springs 36 and in consequence , loads the pressure pins 37 . further details as regards the functioning of the setting rings can be obtained from the description of the following drawings . a voltage reversing circuit 49 and a motor speed recording device 48 for the electric motor 11 are logically connected to each other as a function of the idling speed of the electric motor 11 in such a way that the voltage reversing circuit 49 is disconnected if , in the course of the device being returned , the idling speed of the electric motor is reached . the voltage reversing circuit applies either on positive or negative voltage to the electric motor 11 as desired . the voltage reversing circuit 49 also acts as a short circuit switching assembly when short circuiting of the electric motor 11 is desired . likewise , the motor speed recording device 48 operates as a rotational position sensor for indicating a position of the setting ring . fig6 to 11 , again , will be described jointly below . the first setting ring 23 with the tooth segment 25 , in its end face , has five ball grooves 41 which are circumferentially distributed at a pitch angle of 72 ° and which each span a circumferential length of 58 °. as can be seen in fig8 the ball grooves , across the ring circumference , have a helical angle of 1 . 5 ° and thus a variable depth between two stops 42 and 43 for the balls 29 . in the sectional view of the ball groove , the ball is shown in its two stopping positions in a dash - dotted line . fig1 to 16 will also be described jointly below . in its end face , the second setting ring 26 includes five ball grooves 44 which are circumferentially distributed at a pitch angle of 72 ° and span a circumferential length of 58 °. the holding lug 27 with the guiding groove 47 is clearly drawn . as can be seen in fig1 , the ball grooves have a variable depth across the circumference due to a helical angle of 1 . 5 ° and include two stops 45 , 46 for the balls 29 . one ball is shown in dash - dotted lines in its two stopping positions . the rising gradients of the ball grooves 44 in the second setting ring 26 rise in the same direction as the gradients of the ball grooves 41 in the first setting ring 23 . as the setting rings 23 , 26 are mounted in such a way that their end faces containing the ball grooves 41 , 44 face one another , a relative rotation of the two setting rings relative to one another causes a ball 29 to roll so as to rise simultaneously in both ball grooves 41 , 44 or so as to descend simultaneously . the cage holds the balls in the ball grooves in positions which correspond to one another . a relative rotation of the two setting rings 23 , 26 relative to one another in a first direction thus pushes the two setting rings 23 , 26 apart , whereas a relative rotation in the opposite direction allows said two setting rings 23 , 26 to approach one another . the former is achieved entirely by driving the electric motor ; the latter is achieved in particular by the returning force of the plate springs 36 . [ 0044 ] fig1 and 18 , will be described jointly below . a setting device of the above - mentioned type can be mounted in a differential drive 51 . in this case , the bearing sleeve 21 ′ is integral with a differential carrier 52 which is rotatably supported in the differential drive via rolling contact bearings 53 , 54 . in the differential carrier 52 , there are supported two axle shafts 55 , 56 which carry bevel gears 57 , 58 which engage differential bevel gears 59 , 60 . a friction coupling 61 includes first friction plates 63 which are connected in a rotationally fast way to a sleeve 62 which is secured to an axle shaft 55 , as well as two friction plates 64 which are connected to the differential carrier 52 in a rotationally fast way . the friction coupling 61 is arranged between an axially displaceable pressure plate 65 and a supporting member 66 fixed in the differential carrier 52 . the pressure plate 65 can be loaded directly by the pressure pins 37 ′ which are displaced when the first setting ring 23 ′ rotates relative to the second setting ring 26 ′. the second setting ring 26 ′ is held in a rotationally fast way by pins 67 , 68 which engage holding lugs 27 and which are secured in the differential drive housing 51 . by rotating the setting ring 23 in a first direction , the friction coupling 61 is closed , so that the differential drive develops a locking effect , whereas by returning the setting ring 23 , the friction coupling 61 is disconnected , so that the differential drive again becomes an open differential . [ 0045 ] fig1 shows the above - mentioned process of disconnecting a friction coupling with reference to various characteristics on a time axis . these characteristics are the torque transmitted by the friction coupling ( torque transmitted ), the current in the electric motor ( current ) and its rotor &# 39 ; s rotational speed ( rotational speed rotor ). in the negative time range , the setting device is shown in the outermost advanced position . starting from time 0 . 0 , the setting device is returned as quickly as possible into the starting position , avoiding any stopping jerks . in the negative time range , the current is characterised by pulse width modulation with rectangular jumps between 0 and approximately 25 a . the torque transmittable by the friction coupling is constant at approximately 2000 nm . the rotational speed of the electric motor fluctuates with the frequency of the pulse width modulation approximately around 0 . at the time 0 . 0 , the electric motor is subjected to negative current ( active disconnection ), as a result of which the engine speed increases to returning negative values , with the transmittable torque decreasing due to the friction coupling being opened . after approximately 0 . 01 seconds , the current is switched off , so that at the time of 0 . 015 seconds , the current in the electric motor becomes 0 . the disconnection of the current ( passive disconnection ) has been chosen to be such that , approximately after the elapsed time , the motor reaches its nominal speed of approximately 200 radian / sec ., so that thereafter , due to the effect of the plate springs , the speed can continue to increase in returning . the transmittable torque continues to decrease up to a time of 0 . 095 seconds . at that point in time , the electric motor is short - circuited , so that , within the shortest possible time , a short - circuit current reaches a value of approximately 45 a . as a result , the speed of the motor , up to the time of 0 . 14 seconds , is again braked to 0 , as a result of which only slight overshooting occurs . the transmittable torque had already previously reached the value 0 . as a result of the braking process initiated by the electric motor , the balls stop against the groove stops in a completely impact - free way . [ 0047 ] fig2 shows the torque curve ( transmitted torque ) of the friction coupling as a function of time as a result of the application of negative current ( active “ optimum ”) being interrupted in accordance with the invention , as compared to a permanent application of negative current ( active “ standard ”) and the return motion taking place entirely as a result of spring force ( passive ). the return motion under spring force is referred to as being “ passive ”— it can be seen that such spring force effects the slowest decrease in transmittable torque . “ active standard ” refers to the permanent application of negative current to the electric motor which , due to an internal voltage being induced , from approximately 0 . 04 seconds onwards , leads to a clear reduction in the transmittable torque , whereas “ active optimum ” indicates the application of negative current which , after the idling speed has been reached , is interrupted after approximately 0 . 04 seconds , which results in the quickest possible decrease in the transmittable torque . for the three types of disconnection described in connection with fig2 , fig2 shows the curves of the returning speeds of the electric motor ( rotational speed rotor ) as a function of time . the spread , in terms of time , of the increases in rotational speed is responsible for the above - mentioned torque decreases , with the speed 0 occurring when the balls reach the end stops in the ball grooves . in the case of the permanent application of negative current ( active standard ), this takes place at the latest point in time and especially much later than in the case of the free ( passive ) return motion , whereas the short application of negative current ( active optimum ) in accordance with the inventive method leads to the balls reaching the stops in the quickest way , which is characterised by the zero crossing of the speed curve accompanied by a related overshoot . the overshoot indicates the return motion of the motor as a result of jerk - like spring - back at the end stops in the ball grooves . [ 0049 ] fig2 shows two processes which are similar to those shown in fig2 and 21 , i . e . the illustration of the transmittable torque ( transmitted torque ) and the illustration of the motor speed in the case of the return motion ( rotational speed rotor ) and which refer to a further advantageous control process which takes place directly prior to the balls reaching the end stops in the ball grooves . the curves marked “ active ” refer to the torque and speed curves resulting from the short application of negative current in accordance with the process type “ active optimum ” according to fig2 and 21 . the “ active ” curves show the steep decrease in the returning negative motor speed to 0 and the overshoot to a clearly positive speed when the balls hit the stops in the ball grooves hard . the curves “ active with short circuit ” refers to the torque and speed curves under the influence of electric motor short - circuiting shortly before the balls hit the stops . the short - circuiting ensures early braking of the motor , so that the speed is returned to 0 in a practically impact - free way . the undesirable hard impact of the balls against the ends of the ball grooves is thus avoided . from the foregoing , it can be seen that there has been brought to the art a new and improved electromechanical torque control system and method which includes the elimination of stopping noise . while the invention has been described in connection with one or more embodiments , it should be understood that the invention is not limited to those embodiments . thus , the invention covers all alternatives , modifications , and equivalents as may be included in the spirit and scope of the appended claims . | 5 |
fig1 illustrates one embodiment of a display according to an embodiment of the invention . a window 102 shows artwork for multiple products which glide across in a stream . a second , expanded , single - page buy window 104 shows more information on a selected product which has been clicked on . alternately , instead of a window 102 with multiple products , a single static ad could be clicked on to bring up window 104 , or even just text with the product name in an article , blog , etc . alternately , just the buy box 103 from window 104 could be displayed , or just a pricing information box 114 plus a buy button 120 , or any other combination allowing a buy to be accomplished . in one example , the buy window can be just the cover art , with the price , condition and buy button above , below or on the cover art . alternately , any other combination of information may be provided to give a small footprint buy window . window 104 includes artwork 108 and product description 112 , including a version 107 . window 104 can show one product , or a number of versions or conditions of product . the example of fig1 shows 3 products , which can all be offered by the same seller , or 2 or all 3 could be from different sellers . the user thus has the option of buying a new dvd 109 ( or book or other product ), a used dvd in excellent condition 111 , or a used dvd in good condition 113 . other conditions could be used as well , such as acceptable condition . in addition to condition , other parameters could be used , such as disc - only sales , where a bare disk without the package is sent , instead of a packaged disc . thus , a single seller is selected for each stock keeping unit ( sku ) and each condition category for that sku . for purposes of simplicity and quality of the user experience , poor products are not displayed . alternate embodiments may provide more options for the user , such as more degrees of condition , or different ranges of prices or different seller reliability ratings . each product is listed with price information 114 , which includes item cost , shipping cost and total cost . the price information includes the shipping costs . the shipping cost is calculated based on the dimensions and weight of the product , the address of the seller , and the address of the buyer . because both seller and buyer information is stored , it is available at the time the user clicks on the product , and the calculation is run before window 104 is displayed . if the windows are on the system server , a local database can be used . if the windows are an ad on a 3rd party database , the information is pushed or fetched over the internet to the window . in one embodiment , the product is offered by multiple sellers . the price information is calculated by first selecting the appropriate seller using a number of factors , including item price , seller reliability rating , and shipping price and speed from the seller location . the price 114 reflects the selection of the appropriate seller . in one embodiment , an actual seller is not picked until a buyer makes a buy decision . the software merely determines that there are one or more sellers who can supply the product at the price and shipping costs displayed . additionally , since the buyer information is available , the buyer preferred payment information 116 is displayed , in this instance the last digits of a credit card . also , the buyer &# 39 ; s preferred shipping address 118 is displayed for the buyer to see . the buyer is identified from a cookie on the buyer &# 39 ; s computer . thus , no matter on what website the buyer is browsing , the buyer information is readily available . if the buyer agrees , the buyer can initiate what is truly a single - click , or a single - page , buy . this is done by clicking on buy button 120 . if the buyer instead wants to select a different payment mechanism or shipping address , the buyer can click on payment information 116 or address 118 to bring up other options the buyer has previously entered , and a form for entering new data . if the buyer enters a different shipping address , the shipping costs and / or seller selection may be re - calculated . the buyer can indicate interest in an ad by clicking on it , moving a cursor over it , having eye gaze at the ad detected , etc . the user can click on an image , words describing a product , a buy button on an ad , etc . in one embodiment , the time - sensitive data ( such as price and product availability ) in the window is updated using comet software program or similar technology . comet enables web servers to send data to the browser without the need by the browser to continually request it . it allows creation of event - driven web applications , enabling real - time interaction in a browser . an open connection is established with the browser to update the web window in real time . for a gliding ad display 102 , the various ads are pushed to the browser . when a buyer clicks on one , part or all of the additional information in window 104 is pushed to the browser . this information is designed so that it rarely needs to be updated , minimizing the bandwidth needed . for example , the cover art , description , version , buy buttons , etc . should be stable , almost never changing . the price is calculated for the buyer before it is displayed , so it also would rarely change , unless the market price changes while the window is open . since the market price is designed to be stable , this should also rarely occur ( see co - owned application ser . no . ______ , filed even date herewith , entitled “ system and method for dynamic product pricing ” [ attorney docket no . : 027050 - 000200us }, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference . fig2 illustrates a system supporting the present invention . a server 201 hosting the multi - seller website is connected to a network 203 ( e . g ., the internet ). also connected to the internet is a 3rd party seller 204 which may display ads for products on the multi - seller website . finally , a user computer 205 is shown connected to the internet , for browsing either the multi - seller or 3rd party website . the server 201 is configured to provide the window 104 with a display of products , and react to user actions . the server 201 may be implemented using multiple computing devices . a database 202 stores data on both sellers and users . in one embodiment , database 202 is directly connected to server 201 . in another embodiment , database 202 includes multiple storage devices that are accessible over network 203 or another network . fig3 illustrates one embodiment of how commerce can be atomized . not only are ads ( in particular , widgets ) pushed out everywhere on the internet , but the user experience is one of all or most of the buy capability being in the widget itself . fig3 shows an example of a blog 302 mentioning a movie 304 available on dvd . the blog author will have subscribed to the multi - seller website , downloaded software or embedded a code snippet . as part of that process , software is provided to the blogger that compares what the blogger writes to product descriptions at the multi - seller website . if there is a match , the words are hyperlinked . after hyperlinking , if a reader clicks ( or mouses over ) the hyperlink , a single page buy window 306 is generated , as described above with respect to fig1 . the information for identifying the buyer for the single - page buy window comes from a cookie 308 on the reader &# 39 ; s computer , and a pipeline 310 opened by the comet application to retrieve the product information including current market price from the multi - seller server 311 . the buyer is identified by the cookie which is sent to the multi - seller server . from identifying the buyer , the multi - seller server looks up the buyer &# 39 ; s address , which can be used to determine the best market price ( by determining the best seller from the item price , seller reliability , and shipping costs and time from the seller location ). that information is used to generate the single - page buy window . if the user clicks the buy button on the single - page buy window , the purchase is made and a receipt is displayed to the buyer , as well as an email receipt being sent to the buyer &# 39 ; s registered address . thus , from the user &# 39 ; s perspective , it appears as if the blog site handles the purchase . note that this works only if both the blogger and the buyer are registered . if the blogger doesn &# 39 ; t register , the text isn &# 39 ; t highlighted . if the user isn &# 39 ; t registered , when the user clicks , the single page buy page may prompt the user to enter a zip code or other aspects of an address , or sign in or log in . with or without that information , the best market price can be determined and displayed . if the new buyer clicks “ buy ,” the user will be directed to enter a credit card or other payment information , as well as completing the full address information , if that hasn &# 39 ; t already been done . the buy is then completed as for a true single - page buy . a cookie is placed on the user computer , and the user is registered , with the payment and shipping address information being stored at the multi - seller server . if desired , the user could instead opt - out of registration . window 310 of fig3 is another example of the atomization of commerce . the buy trigger is pushed out into an article 312 , which is a review of a product 314 . again , the review website with article 312 first registers , and product descriptions matching those on the multi - seller website are hyperlinked . when the potential buyer clicks , a single page buy window 316 pops up , pulling information from cookie 308 and a pipeline 318 to the multi - seller server 311 opened by a comet application , as described above . as can be seen , anything could be hyperlinked - a traditional ad , a word description , an image , etc . the ads could be hyperlinked text or images on a person &# 39 ; s myspace or facebook or other social networking page , or in an email . in another example , a blog 302 includes a product reference 304 ( pirates of the caribbean ). when a user clicks on reference 304 , a single page buy window 306 pops up . window 306 pulls information from cookie 308 and a pipeline 310 to the multi - seller server 311 . in one embodiment , a buyer ad display is provided . the ad display is associated with the buyer , not with the multi - seller website or 3rd party websites the buyer visits . a gliding display 102 can be placed by the buyer on his / her desktop , phone , etc . the user can download a plug - in application for the user &# 39 ; s browser to do this function . the gliding display will appear as the buyer browses around the internet . any other ad described herein can also be used . the display or widget can be in a toolbar , in a window at the bottom of the display , or in any other location on the desktop . the application for producing the ad or widget can be a client added to a desktop or a plug - in for a browser , or any other local application . alternately , a link to activate a remote application can be downloaded . words can also be highlighted as in the blog example described above , for either online or offline content . for example , documents the user has locally saved , or even as they are being typed , can have keywords linked to an ad . when the buy pulls up material on the web , such as an article , the ad software can highlight items in the article and link them to ads . the user may receive an incentive for accepting such software , such as a discount on items bought . fig1 illustrates a gliding display 102 according to an embodiment of the invention . as a product image 120 moves off the display to the left , a new product image 122 appears from the right . the product images move , or glide , in a scrolling movement across the display window 102 . this display window can be placed in a banner ad area on any website or as a widget anywhere on a 3rd party site . the information is provided and updated in real time using comet or a similar technology . the scrolling movement is similar to a ticker - tape . by using such a scrolling motion , multiple products can be displayed in an area typically used for a single product ad . thus , multi - product , multi - seller information can be easily distributed throughout the internet on 3rd party sites . in addition , this format can be used for the multi - seller site itself , with multiple gliding windows being displayed on a page . in one embodiment , the type of product information displayed can be controlled by the user if desired . alternately , it can be controlled by the publisher &# 39 ; s preferences , or multi - seller website system discretion or algorithmic determination . for example , if dvds are being displayed , as illustrated , the user can click on one of buttons 124 to select a genre of movies . alternately , or in addition , the user could select other classes of products to be displayed , or a random mix of different products . for a registered user , the multi - vendor website will have historical data on that user stored in a database . that information is used to generate personalized product ads that are most likely to appeal to that particular user . thus , any where that user goes on the internet ( anytime the user &# 39 ; s browser is opened ), specialized ads will be displayed at any site also registered . in alternate embodiments , variations may be used . for example , the ads could flip over or be replaced to reveal the new ads , instead of scrolling . a single or double click could cause the ad to flip over , revealing more information , with the changing of ads being paused for a period of time . in one embodiment , a widget can be used to display images of products . widgets are downloadable interactive virtual tools . they can be loaded into social networking pages , such as myspace or facebook , or could be put on retailer or other sites . typical uses of widgets include showing the user the latest news , the current weather , a dictionary , a map program , etc . fig4 is a diagram of a user interface for configuring a widget according to an embodiment of the invention . a box 402 shows how the gliding display described above can be imported as a widget , configured as the user desires . for example , the user can select a category 406 and a genre 408 . alternately , the user can use box 404 to create a scrolling display of a list of that user . the user can select an existing user list 410 , import a list 412 , or create a list 414 . the software of the multi - user site will access the list , compare it to items in its database , and generate a scrolling display of just those products . the user can also customize the title 416 that will appear on the widget , such as “ check out these cds . guess which are in my top 10 .” the user is provided radio buttons 418 to select one or more locations to download the widget to . an option to turn on or off the glide function is provided by buttons 420 . the user can preview the widget with button 422 , and if satisfied , can export and download it with button 424 . in one embodiment , a scrolling window 426 is shown , and is configured on the fly as the user makes the selections , giving an instant preview . fig5 is a diagram of an embodiment of a users facebook page showing the widget 428 having been imported . the user can click on a portion of the widget display , such as the title , to bring up the configuration screen of fig4 to modify the widget display or turn it on or off . it is to be understood that the examples and embodiments described above are for illustrative purposes only and that various modifications or changes in light thereof will be suggested to persons skilled in the art and are to be included within the spirit and purview of this application and scope of the appended claims . for example , the scrolling of gliding ads could be left to right , or vertical , or spiral shaped . a non - open connection could be used , with static ads that are periodically replaced , but still using the single - page buy with its open connection when clicked on . the ads could be placed in video games , such as an image of a dvd on a shelf in a virtual room being linked to a single page buy when clicked . for another example , the products can be dvds , cds , video games , books , consumer electronics ( i . e ., pdas , cell phones , etc . ), jewelry , toys , software or any other product or service . the product or service can be bought , bartered for or rented . the embodiments can be applied to single or multi - vendor websites , and the vendors can be individuals , large corporations , small businesses , charities or any other organization . as used in the claims , the term “ products ” includes services . therefore , the above description should not be understood as limiting the scope of the invention as defined by the claims . | 6 |
the present invention provides a ceramic - glass ic package which has a low lead to lead capacitance while using low temperature sealing glass . the package is generally comprised of a base substrate and a cap substrate , each coated with a vitreous or devitrifying glass frit material . the deposition of the glass frit material is controlled such that there is at least one area on the base substrate devoid of the glass material to provide a site for attachment of an integrated circuit chip . a ground plane and a lead frame are embedded in the glass material on the base substrate separated from one another by glass material but electrically connected in one or more places . the inclusion of a ground plane results in a substantially lessened parasitic capacitance between the leads of the lead frame . referring to fig1 an exploded view of a prior art construction of a ceramic - glass ic package ( in this case a cerquad package ) can be seen . the major components of the prior art ceramic - glass ic package consist of a base substrate 2 , a lead frame 8 , and a cap substrate 12 . a metal die attach pad 14 is typically printed or otherwise deposited in the center of the base substrate . the die attach pad 14 is sized to provide a site for attachment of an integrated circuit chip . next , a vitreous or devitrifying glass frit material 4 is typically screened onto the base substrate 2 in one or more layers by well - known screening processes . as can be seen in fig1 the layers of glass material 4 are screened onto the base substrate 2 in the prior art constructions to form a uniform glass layer across the base substrate 2 except for a central die attach cavity 6 which corresponds in size and location to the die attach pad 14 . in the prior art construction of ceramic - glass ic packages , the cap substrate 12 is also covered with a layer of vitreous or devitrifying glass frit material 4 by the same screening process which is used to apply the glass material 4 on the base substrate 2 . again in the prior art construction , the glass material 4 is deposited uniformly across the cap substrate 12 , except for a chip cavity 16 , which is devoid of glass material 4 . during the assembly of prior art ceramic packages , a lead frame 8 , with its associated leads 10 , is embedded in the glass frit material 4 on the base substrate 2 . the lead frame 8 is positioned on the base substrate 2 . the vitreous or devitrifying glass material 4 is then heated to a temperature at which the glass material 4 becomes semiliquid and flows around the leads 10 of the lead frame 8 . once the glass material 4 cools , the glass material 4 becomes a solid and thus securely holds the lead frame 8 in its position adjacent to the base substrate 2 . the cap substrate 12 and its glass material 4 are similarly heated and then cooled so that the glass material 4 adheres to the cap substrate 12 . in the utilization of a prior art ceramic package such as the cerquad shown in fig1 an integrated circuit chip ( not shown ) is placed in the die attach cavity 6 . the integrated circuit chip is then bonded to the die attach pad 14 in the die attach cavity 6 and electrically coupled to the lead frame 8 . this electrical coupling is performed by connecting minute wires from the integrated circuit chip to the bonding wire pads 18 at the inward - most portion of the leads 10 . next , the cap substrate 12 is placed above the base substrate 2 and properly aligned with the base substrate 2 whereby the die attach cavity 6 and chip cavity 16 are aligned to form a glass - free cavity 20 shown in fig2 . the entire assembly is then fired in a furnace at a sealing temperature substantially above the temperature used to create an adherence between the glass material 4 and either the base substrate 2 or cap substrate 12 . if a devitrifiable glass is used , this elevated temperature will result in the devitrifying of the glass material 4 and will result in the secure adherence of the cap substrate 12 to the base substrate 2 . fig2 is a cross - sectional view of the completed prior art cerquad package 1 shown in fig1 taken along the lines a -- a of fig1 . located above the base substrate 2 is the cap substrate 12 , each substrate being fused to the other by the glass material 4 . the prior art construction of ceramic packages , as illustrated in fig1 and 2 , is generally very successful in encapsulating an integrated circuit chip in an extremely hard ceramic package . however , due to the passage of the leads 10 of the lead frame 8 through the glass material 4 , the electrical parasitic capacitance between the leads 10 is high . these packages therefore cannot be used for high frequency applications since the distortion and crosstalk of the electrical signals due to the parasitic capacitance would be too great . fig3 illustrates , in an exploded view , the construction of one embodiment of a ceramic - glass ic package of the present invention ( in this case a cerquad package ). as in the prior art construction of a ceramic - glass ic package , a metal pad 30 to which an integrated circuit chip may be affixed is deposited on the base substrate 2 and a vitreous or devitrifying glass frit material 4 is selectively deposited on the base substrate 2 by a well known screening process . also , as in the prior art construction , the glass material 4 is not deposited in the die attach cavity 6 . however , in distinction to the prior art construction , the metal pad 30 covers substantially the entire surface of the base substrate 2 to form a ground plane in addition to forming a die attach pad 14 . in other words , in this embodiment , the die attach pad 14 present in the prior art ceramic - glass ic package is extended to form a die attach pad / ground plane 30 . fig4 is a cross - sectional view of the completed inventive ceramic - glass ic package shown in fig3 taken along line b -- b of fig3 . this illustration more clearly shows the ground plane 30 as being an extension of the die attach pad 14 . the ground plane 30 preferably does not completely cover the base substrate 2 , leaving instead a small margin 32 around the periphery of the base substrate 2 . this margin 32 is filled in with glass material 4 . while the small margin 32 is not required , filling this area with glass material 4 improves bonding between the layers of the completed ceramic - glass ic package . a variety of metals may be utilized to form the ground plane 30 . suitable metals include , for example , a molybdenum - manganese combination , silver , gold , or ( in cases where the base substrate is formed from multiple layers of green tape ceramic ) tungsten . as in the prior art assembly of a ceramic - glass ic package , the cerquad package embodying the present invention , as shown in fig3 and 4 , embeds the lead frame 8 in the glass material 4 which has been screen - printed onto the base substrate 2 in one or more layers . when embedded , the lead frame 8 is separated from the ground plane 30 by glass material 4 . one or more of the leads 10 of the lead frame 8 of the inventive ceramic - glass ic package is electrically coupled to the ground plane 30 . in the embodiment illustrated in fig4 the leads 10 are electrically connected to the ground plane by small wires 34 which are down - bonded to the die attach pad portion 14 of the ground plane 30 through the die attach cavity 6 . fig5 illustrates in cross - section the base substrate 2 of an alternate embodiment of the invention wherein a lead 10 of the lead frame 8 and the ground plane 30 are electrically coupled by a solder ball 36 . specifically , in this embodiment , a small hole is drilled or otherwise placed through the glass material after it has been screened onto the base substrate 2 and conductive material such as a solder ball 36 is inserted therein to contact the ground plane 30 . the lead frame 8 is then placed onto the glass material so that one of its leads 10 is aligned with the solder ball 36 and the entire base substrate is fired to embed the lead frame 8 in the glass 4 and to simultaneously permit one of the leads 10 to contact the solder ball 36 , thus establishing an electrical contact between the lead 10 and the ground plane 30 . fig6 illustrates in cross section the base substrate 2 of yet another embodiment of the present invention . in this embodiment , the base substrate 2 comprises multiple layers of pressed ceramic green tape . prior to pressing the layers of the green tape , a layer 40 made of conductive material is printed between two of the green tape layers . this conductive layer 40 serves as the ground plane . the surface of the base substrate is additionally provided with a separate smaller metalized area which serves as the die attach pad 14 . the die attach pad 14 , in turn , is surrounded by glass material 4 as in the prior art ceramic - glass ic package illustrated in fig1 and 2 . also , as in the prior art ceramic - glass ic package , a metal lead frame 8 is embedded in the glass material , separated from the die attach pad 14 by the glass material 4 . in the embodiment illustrated in fig6 the ground plane is electrically isolated from the die attach pad 14 . to establish an electrical connection between the lead frame 8 and the ground plane 40 , one or more of the leads 10 of the lead frame 8 are electrically connected to the ground plane by a combination of solder balls 42 and via holes 44 . specifically , before the glass is screen - printed onto the base substrate 2 , a plurality of small via holes 42 are drilled or punched through the top layer of the green tape forming the base substrate 2 to provide access to the ground plane 40 . the via holes 44 are filled with a suitable , electrically conductive material , e . g ., tungsten . next , glass material is screen - printed onto the base substrate . small holes aligned with the via holes 42 are then drilled or otherwise placed into the glass material and pieces of conductive material such as solder balls 44 are placed therein . finally , a lead frame is placed onto the glass layer so that at least one lead 10 is aligned with a solder ball 44 . the entire base substrate is then fired to an elevated temperature to allow the glass material to melt and the lead frame 8 to become embedded therein . at least one lead 10 of the lead frame 8 thereby contacts a solder ball 44 and establishes electrical contact between the leads 10 and the ground plane 40 . the final assembly of the ceramic - glass ic package which embodies the present invention does not differ from the prior art assembly . that is , the user of a ceramic - glass ic package embodying the present invention places an integrated circuit chip in die attach cavity 6 , bonds that integrated circuit chip to the die - attach pad 14 of the base substrate 2 , and electrically connects the chip to the bonding pads 18 at the extreme ends of leads 10 . once the integrated circuit chip is installed in the die attach cavity 6 , a cap substrate 12 identical to the prior art cap substrate 12 is positioned over the base substrate 2 , and the entire assembly is placed in a furnace where it is heated sufficiently to allow the glass material 4 to seal the assembly . this glass sealing process secures the cap substrate 12 to the base substrate 2 and completely seals the integrated circuit chip in the chip cavity 20 . the inclusion of a ground plane dramatically reduces both the parasitic capacitance between the leads and the associated signal noise . the ground plane furthermore may keep the impedance throughout the leads constant and thereby reduces signal reflections . inclusion of a ground plane in ceramic - glass ic packages such as cerquads and cerdips thus effectively adapts such packages for high - frequency applications at very low cost . in summary , a novel ceramic - glass ic package having low inter - lead capacitance due to the presence of an integral ground plane has been described herein . while specific embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed and described in detail herein , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . for example , the number and location of the via holes through the ceramic and / or solder balls in the glass material can be varied from the embodiments disclosed herein or alternate methods for establishing electrical contact between the lead frame and the ground plane may be utilized without departing from the scope of the present invention . also , while the invention has been described with reference to the ground plane being embedded in glass material screen - printed onto the base substrate , the ground plane could , alternatively , be embedded into the glass material screened onto the cap substrate . furthermore , the invention can easily be adapted for use with cerdip packages or other ceramic - glass ic packages without departing from the scope of the present invention . accordingly , it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited by the specific illustrated embodiments , but only by the scope of the appended claims . | 8 |
refer now to fig1 which is a plan view of a typical high density integrated circuit chip 10 which is mounted on a substrate or ground plane 11 and is surrounded by a plurality of elongated fingers 12 which form conductive lead outs for the integrated circuit device 13 . chip 10 is provided with a plurality of first conductive pads 14 onto which a first bond is to be made by a wire bonding machine which forms the interconnection wires 15 through 20 . it will be noted that the outer conductive pads or fingers 12 are arranged in a pattern or array in which the distance from the first bond position to the second bond position is not constant . the distance between the first bond and the second bond may vary from as little as 30 mils up to 200 mils . the interconnecting fine wire 15 is not axially aligned with its elongated finger 12 , however , the interconnecting wire 15 crosses the front or end of the finger 12 . the interconnection wire 19 and 20 cross over the side of the elongated fingers 12 and when the second bond is being made on the finger 12 the wire has a tendency to move sideways due to the force or thrust exerted by the side of the elongated finger . this thrust or force can cause the interconnecting wires 19 and 20 to have deviations from a straight line path . as will be explained in detail hereinafter , the present invention provides a method of forming the interconnection wires so that the side thrust or side forces exerted by the edges of the elongated fingers 12 is avoided even though the interconnecting wires 15 to 20 may cross over the side of a finger 12 . refer now to fig2 which is a pictorial representation in elevation showing a preferred fine wire interconnection being formed . the interconnection wire 21 is shown ball bonded to the first conductive pad 14 and the capillary bonding tool 22 is shown raised to its maximum height or rise point . after making the first ball bond 23 on the first conductive pad 14 the capillary bonding tool 22 is raised vertically a small amount . this small distance is preferably six up to about 17 mils and then the bonding tool 22 is moved to the left which is a direction away from the elongated finger 12 . this vertical rise and subsequent movement in the rear away from conductive pad 12 forms a bend 24 adjacent the bond 23 and forms a second bend 25 under the working face 26 of the bonding tool 22 . the bonding tool 22 is preferably moved initially in a substantially horizontal direction to a position shown in phantom lines as bonding tool 22a . the fine wire 21 extending from capillary bonding tool 22a is shown acquiring only a slight skew or deviation from the vertical . this substantially horizontal movement is desired because it permits time to initiate ultrasonic vibration of the bonding tool 22 if such is desired . it will be understood that ultrasonic vibration of bonding tool 22 keeps the friction between fine wire 21 and the sides of the bonding tool 22 very low . when the bonding tool 22 has moved to the position shows as 22b the fine wire 21 is being bent in the throat of the bonding tool 22 , however , since the friction between the throat 27 and the fine wire 21 is very low , the wire 21 re - enters the throat of the bonding tool 22 . as bonding tool 22 moves through successive positions shown in phantom lines as 22c and 22d the fine wire 21 continues to re - enter the bonding tool 22 . stated differently , the bonding tool 22 is being moved in a predetermined path in which the distance from the first bond 23 to the working face 26 of the bonding tool 22 is decreasing . by the time the bonding tool 22 has reached the position shown in phantom lines as bonding tool 22e the fine wire 21 has begun to bend substantially at the working face of the bonding tool . by the time the bonding tool 22 has reached the position shown as 22f the fine wire 21 is substantially bent at the working face 26 of the bonding tool 22f and a capstan effect or locking effect has taken place . as the fine wire 21 is locked at the working face 26 of the bonding tool 22f the bonding tool 22 enters a second predetermined path in which the distance from the bonding tool 22 to the first bond 23 is increasing . this increase in the distance from the first bond 23 to the bonding tool 22 applies a tension in the wire 21 which causes the bends 24 and 25 to be reformed . the bonding tool position 22g , 22h , 22i and 22j form a arcuate path in which the bonding tool 22 is approaching an arcuate path described by a radius r whose distance is measured from the first bond 23 to the bonding input 28 where the second bond will be made on the second conductive pad or elongated finger 12 . if a segment of a circle having a radius whose length is equal to the distance between the first bond 23 and the second bond 28 and having its focal point the first bond 23 it will be found that the bonding tool positions 22f through 22j are always inside of the segment of the circle . accordingly , it will be understood that the bonding tool as it approaches its final bonding position 22j is converging on or moving asymptotic to the segment of the circle whose radius is the distance between the bonding points . the length of wire 29 which is extending from the bonding tool 22 is slightly greater than the length of wire required for the final interconnection 30 . the total length of wire in the interconnection 30 is approximately the distance between bonding points 23 and 28 plus the final height of the loop 31 above the first bond 23 . the main reason for raising the bonding tool 22 to a maximum height which pays out a length of wire 29 which is over twenty - five percent greater than the length of wire 30 requires for the final interconnection is to provide a factor of safety . the first predetermined path described by the position of the bonding tools 22a through 22e is not a critical path but enables the bonding tool to enter the critical path shown by the bonding tools 22f through 22j . as long as bonding tool 22 bends the fine wire 21 under the working face 26 to cause a locking effect when the length of wire extending from the bonding tool 22 is the desired length for making the final interconnection the bonding tool 22 could be moved through a number of different paths . if the bonding tool 22 is raised too high there is a distinct possibility that the wire 21 could bend or push back and it would be difficult to enter the correct second predetermined path shown by the bonding tools 22f through 22j . when the bonding tool 22 is not raised high enough , the capstan or the locking effect on the wire 21 occurs too early at the end of the first predetermined path and the length of wire extending from the bonding tool 22 will be too short causing the loop height 31 to be lower or in some cases the wire can be stretched to the point where the first bond 23 is destroyed . having explained the preferred operation to provide a margin of safety it will be understood that a first predetermined path in which the bonding tool 22 is moved from position 22a to position 22e can be described which will permit the length of wire 29 to remain substantially constant as the bonding tool reaches the point approximately shown at position 22f where the lock up or capstan effect occurs . refer now to fig3 through 9 showing the small length of fine wire 21 which extends from the first bond 23 . after the bond 23 is made on the first conductive pad 14 the bonding tool 22 is preferably raised substantially vertical a distance of approximately 15 mils when employing 1 . 3 mil gold wire . after the bonding tool has been raised to the vertical position shown by height 32 the bonding tool 22 may be moved horizontally a distance from 3 to 15 mils as shown by the distance 33 so that the lower bend 24 and the upper bend 25 take a permanent set when the wire 21 is stressed beyond its elastic limit . it is desirable that the slope of the wire 21 shown in fig3 is not bent or diverted from the vertical axis more than 45 degrees which could incur damage to the wire . fig4 shows the reformed shape of the initial small length of wire 21 after the bonding tool 22 has moved to the position 22c as shown in fig2 . similarly , fig5 shows the small length of wire as it would occur after the bonding tool has moved to the position 22e as shown in fig2 . fig6 shows the small length of wire at the first bond 23 after the bonding tool 22 has moved to position 22g . fig7 shows the small length of wire 21 after the bonding tool has moved to the position shown at 22h . fig8 shows the small length of wire 21 after the bonding tool has moved to position 22i and fig9 shows the small length of wire 21 after the bonding tool has moved to the position 22j shown in fig2 . refer now to fig1 which comprises fig1 a through 10f . fig1 is designed to show in detail how the wire 21 is bent under the working face of the bonding tool to cause a locking effect so that the desired length of wire for the final connection is always assured . the bonding tool positions are numbered 22d through 22j as shown in fig2 . it will be noted that the wire 21 somewhere between the positions 22d and 22g is definitely bent under the working face 26 of the bonding tool 22g so as to cause a capstan or locking effect . the exact point at which the locking effect takes place depends on the aforementioned first predetermined path . it is entirely possible that a path could be designed which would enable the bonding tool 22 to initially lock at the position approximating 22a and still enter into the desired second predetermined path in which the arcuate movement of the bonding tool moves in a arcuate path so as to move away from the first bond 23 and maintain the fine wire 21 in tension as it is being bonded to the second bond position 28 . for purposes of this description the second predetermined path starts when the bonding tool 22 has effectively stopped relative movement with the wire 21 . fig1 is a curve 33 showing the desired maximum rise of the bonding tool 22 above the first bond 23 versus the distance between bonding points 23 and 28 in mils . the curve shown was discovered to give optimum results when using 1 . 0 to 1 . 3 mil diameter gold wire . it will be understood that the curve 33 has been proven to enable the bonding tool 22 to enter into the aforementioned second predetermined path and may change slightly when the wire sizes or wire hardnesses are changed . for example , it would be expected that hard aluminum wire would have a different friction coefficient with the throat 27 of the bonding tool 22 which would enable the modification of the maximum height , but would not change the desired arcuate path as the bonding tool approaches the second bond 28 . a typical range of examples for larger wires would be a height of 150 mils when the pads are 40 mils apart , up to 220 mils height when the pads are 100 mils apart . having explained a preferred embodiment of the method employed to obtain consistent slack free wire interconnections when the distance between bonding points exceeds 80 mils , it will also be understood that the fine wire 21 under the face of the bonding tool is substantially in a horizontal plane . having the wire 21 basically flat and parallel to the second conductive pad 12 eliminates any side thrust or force which could cause the interconnection wire 30 to stray from a straight path between bonds . by maintaining a tension force in the wire 21 during the traversal of the second predetermined arcuate path , sagging wires and bent wires are vitually eliminated . employing the methods of the present invention , the small preformed bends in the wire 21 assure a constant loop height . by controlling the maximum use of the bonding tool after a first bond , excessive pay out of wire 21 is eliminated and shooting wires which results from excessive pay outs are eliminated . as explained hereinbefore the method preferred can be modified and under special conditions would provide consistent bonds . for example , when the distance between bonds stays substantially constant , the bonding tool could be raised to an exact height which gives the desired length of wire for the interconnection . when such attempts are made , additional clamping means are required to hold the wire 21 relative to the bonding tool 22 . the present invention method has a built - in factor of safety which does not require such clamping means because the bonding tool locks the wire at a point when the bend in the wire 21 is acting as a spring to maintain tension while the locking takes place . accordingly , it will be understood that the locking effect takes place not at a precise point but during traversal of a desired predetermined path . | 7 |
the problem of producing internal shroud inert gas coherent jets , in particular , argon coherent jets , is solved by the method of the present invention by introducing a mixture of fuel and oxygen into the outer periphery of the inert gas jet . the resultant supersonic “ structured jet ” is composed of a central region of argon gas and is surrounded by an outer circumferential region composed of argon , fuel and oxygen gas . the technique effectively transforms the surface of the argon jet into an oxygen - like jet , thereby rendering the internal fuel injection effective for producing a coherent jet of argon . the furnace atmosphere contacts the jet through the formation of a shear ( mixing ) layer and activates combustion between the fuel and oxygen and results in the production of an argon coherent jet . relative to the external shroud , the primary advantages of positioning the fuel and oxygen injectors within the nozzle ( i . e ., internal shroud ) include one or more of the following : 1 . eliminate plugging of the shroud gas ports . because the ports are located within the high flow main nozzles , the propensity for plugging is very small . 2 . for the bof external shroud coherent jet lance , there is a very strong dependence of the coherent jet length versus the main nozzle divergence angle ( with respect to the lance axis ). locating the injectors within the main nozzle effectively renders the coherent jet length independent of main nozzle angle . 3 . for the bof external shroud coherent jet lance , there is a strong dependence of tip and lance skull ( accretion ) formation on the external shroud fuel rate . that is , the skull growth rate and composition are dependent on the external fuel rate . it is believed the external fuel injection acts as a coolant ( via fuel cracking ) which tends to solidify slag and metal on the tip and also as a reducing agent ( reducing feo on tip to fe ). as a result , the skulls are larger and more metallic when compared to normal bof lance skulls . such a condition leads to more frequent and more difficult skull removal , which increases costs by increased labor and reduced tip life . locating the injectors within the main nozzle will eliminate the contribution of fuel cracking and reduction on tip skulls by eliminating the injection of pure fuel into the furnace . 4 . for the bof external shroud coherent jet lance , such skulls can interfere with the process of coherent jet formation by interfering with the process of forming a flame shroud . this can result in variation and overall reduction of the anticipated coherent jet benefits , or may render the process of forming a coherent jet impossible . 5 . there will be an improvement to top lance inert gas blowing with internal shroud coherent jet . the internal shroud method of the present invention is an enabling technology for applying the coherent jet principle to the bof converter , which will provide process benefits coupled with a more practical lance design . an improved inert gas coherent jet , particularly an argon coherent jet , should enable more steelmaking benefits per volume of inert gas supplied and therefore , possibly render the top lance argon blowing process economical for bof . the internal shroud inert gas coherent jet apparatus incorporates the following elements : 2 . a means for introducing argon , oxygen and hydrogen containing fuel into the lance body ; 3 . a tip containing one or more converging - diverging nozzles for the production of a supersonic argon stream ( s ); 4 . a means for injecting oxygen into the outer perimeter of the argon streams , either into the diverging section or any other section of the nozzle ; 5 . a means for injecting hydrogen - containing fuel into the outer perimeter of the argon stream , preferably into the diverging section of the nozzle . experiments were conducted in an apparatus used to simulate the hot furnace gas . the apparatus used in examples 1 and 2 is shown in fig2 . the hot furnace gas is interacted co - axially with the internal shroud coherent jet nozzles . the apparatus ( 20 ) comprises a passageway ( 21 ) for the main inert gas flow contained in a water - cooled sheath ( 22 ). the preheat burner ( 23 ) provides co and o 2 ( indicated as p . h . co and p . h . o 2 ). additional co flow is introduced through co - axial passageway ( 24 ). water is introduced into the water - cooled sheath through passageway ( 25 ). a first thermocouple is placed at the mid - point ( 26 ) ( t . c . mid ) of the main passageway and a second thermocouple is placed at the exit ( 27 ) ( t . c . exit ) of the main passageway . experiments were conducted to try to produce a pure argon coherent jet injecting only internal shroud fuel . the internal shroud inert gas coherent jet injector used is illustrated in fig1 ( a ) and 1 ( b ). fig1 ( a ) is a view of the outlet of the injector ( 10 ) having eight ports ( 11 ), equally spaced . these ports are drilled holes and are each approximately 1 / 16 inch in diameter . fig1 ( b ) is a side cutaway view of the injector ( 10 ), showing a converging - diverging passageway ( 12 ) for the inert gas and passageways ( 13 ) that can be used for fuel or a mixture of fuel and oxygen . the argon was injected at 100 psig and 3795 scfh and the fuel was natural gas ( ng ). the nozzle exit ( d ) and throat ( t ) diameters were 0 . 38 - in . and 0 . 26 - in ., respectively . in a simulated furnace gas , the internal injection of fuel resulted in no change in jet length , as shown in table 1 . the coherent jet length is defined as the axial centerline distance from the nozzle exit to where a pitot tube registers 50 psig , which corresponds to a position within the supersonic core of about mach 1 . 7 . the experimentally measured temperatures above , when corrected for radiation losses , result in actual simulated furnace gas temperatures near to commercial furnaces , in the range of about 3000 ° f . in this set of experiments , the same injector design as in example 1 was used and both oxygen and fuel were pre - mixed and injected via the passageways 13 into the internal shroud ports to try to produce a coherent argon jet . however , injecting only internal oxygen ( up to 2 % relative to the argon flow ) and injecting both fuel ( 0 . 66 %) and oxygen ( 0 . 97 %) resulted in no changes in jet length ( i . e ., l / lo =. about . 1 for all experiments ), as shown in table 2 . further experiments were run using the injector shown in fig3 . this injector ( 30 ) used a single porous metal ( 31 ), typically brass or bronze or copper , but any metal can be used , to evenly distribute a “ pre - mixed ” mixture of fuel and oxygen as the internal shroud gas into argon / oxygen main jets of varying compositions , including pure argon . the injector ( 30 ) comprises a converging / diverging passageway for the inert gas ( 32 ) and additional passageways ( 33 ) for fuel and oxygen to form the internal shroud . these experiments were conducted as single nozzle experiments and the converging / diverging passageway was designed to allow for oxygen flow at 4000 scfh ( 100 psig , mach 2 ). in the experiments , the argon and oxygen were flowed between 3775 - 4000 scfh at 100 psig . the temperature at which the experiments were run was approximately 2250 ° f . ( not corrected for radiation losses ). fig4 is a graphical representation of the normalized jet length ( length / diameter = l / d ) in the simulated furnace gas as a function of argon concentration , balance oxygen , without introducing internal shroud gas . the values taken in ambient air are also shown . fig5 is a photograph of the experimental apparatus operating with a pure mach 2 argon jet with no internal shroud gas . the argon jet is invisible and in this experiment produced a l / d of about 38 . fig6 is a photograph of a mach 2 argon jet under the conditions of the invention . the internal shroud oxygen was admitted at about 13 % and the internal methane was admitted at about 3 % of the initial main argon flow . the jet is now visible because of the reaction of fuel , oxygen and carbon monoxide from the simulated furnace gas . the jet length increased to l / d = 60 . fig7 is a graphical representation of the internal shroud effect on a main jet with initial composition of 42 % argon , balance oxygen . jet length l / d is plotted against the internal shroud fuel rate , for different internal oxygen rates . in this case , the amount of oxygen initially present in the main jet allows the internal fuel injection to be effective . however , by adding internal shroud oxygen , the jet lengths are substantially improved relative to adding only fuel . fig8 is a graphical representation of the internal shroud effect on a main jet with initial composition of 72 % argon . jet length l / d is plotted against the internal shroud fuel rate , for different internal oxygen rates . in this case , the amount of oxygen initially present in the main jet was not sufficient to allow the internal fuel injection process effective . however , adding internal shroud oxygen allowed the jet lengths to increase substantially from the initial condition . fig9 is a graphical representation for main jet initially containing 74 . 5 % argon . fig1 , 11 and 12 are graphical representations for a main jet initially containing pure argon . in all of these cases , adding only fuel resulted in a decrease in jet length . however , adding both fuel and oxygen allowed the production of long coherent jets . another such embodiment that uses two separate conduits to supply the shroud fuel and oxygen is shown in fig1 ( b ). this embodiment utilizes two porous bands to supply the fuel and oxygen separately . the porous metal is fabricated as part of the nozzle diverging section . most likely , the fuel would be delivered in the lower band where the nozzle fluid is at a lower pressure . as compared with an argon only jet with no internal shroud , as shown in fig1 ( a ), the internal shroud provides a longer supersonic core , resulting in a longer coherent jet . the concept of forming a compositionally “ structured ” jet applies to the formation of argon coherent jets with the internal shroud technique . composition measurements were taken under the conditions of this invention and provided insight into the mixing and reaction of the fuel and oxygen injection process into a pure argon jet designed for mach 2 . fig1 shows a radial pitot pressure and composition profile for a 100 % argon jet with about 10 % internal oxygen and about 2 % internal methane during the operation of this invention . the measurements were taken at an axial position of about 1 nozzle diameter from the nozzle exit plane . the design used to obtain this data is shown in fig3 . the data plot in fig1 shows the “ structure ” of the internal shroud argon jet operating in a simulated furnace gas . the plot contains pitot - tube pressure ( psig ) and gas composition ( vol %) as a function of the radial position . oxygen , methane , carbon monoxide , carbon dioxide were the only gases analyzed ; argon could not be measured . the central core of the jet consists of very high velocity pure argon . at the outer circumferential region , the gas contains oxygen , methane and argon ; the gas is not burning within the nozzle as determined by the lack of detection of combustion products in the range of − 1 to 1 (− 1 & lt ; r / r n & lt ; 1 ). at about − 1 . 5 ≦ r / r n ≧ 1 . 5 , the methane and oxygen peaks precipitously drop due to reaction with the furnace atmosphere to produce carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide . this position marks the location of the inner edge of the flame front . r is the radial coordinate and r n is the nozzle exit radius ( r n = d / 2 ) although the invention has been described in detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments , those skilled in the art will recognize that these are other embodiments within the spirit and the scope of the claims . | 5 |
exemplary embodiments of an electromagnetic shield structure according to an embodiment of the present invention are explained next with reference to the accompanying drawings . although the invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments for a complete and clear disclosure , the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art which fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth . fig1 is a cross - section of an electromagnetic shield structure according to an embodiment of the present invention . an electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 in fig1 is the circuit board substrate that is shielded by the electromagnetic shield structure . various kinds of circuit elements such as transistors , integrated circuits ( ics ), large - scale integrations ( lsis ), etc . are mounted on the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . when these circuit elements are powered up , they produce an electromagnetic noise . if the electromagnetic noise is ignored and no appropriate action is taken to check it , it may lead to malfunctioning of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 and the electronic gadget of which the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is a part , and in addition , may cause other electronic gadgets to malfunction as well . the present embodiment aims to block the electromagnetic noise . a metal frame 1 encloses a top surface 2 a and sides of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . as shown in fig2 and fig3 , the metal frame 1 is a one - side - open , rectangular , metal case . fig2 is a perspective view of the metal frame 1 viewed from above and fig3 is a perspective view of the metal frame 1 viewed from below . the metal frame 1 may be made of any material as long as it effectively blocks the electromagnetic noise . further , although it is mentioned above that the metal frame 1 is one - side - open , rectangular , metal case , it may have any other shapes . for instance , the metal frame 1 may be of a shape that is same as that of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 , or of a shape that is same as that of the electronic gadget in which the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is mounted . the metal frame 1 may be of any shape as long as it effectively encloses the top surface and the sides of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the metal frame 1 may also be of any size , such as to suit the size of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 or the space inside the electronic gadget in which the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is mounted , etc . as long as the metal frame 1 effectively encloses the top surface and the sides of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the metal frame 1 is electrically connected to the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 via connecting members 1 a provided inside the metal frame 1 . to be more specific , the metal frame 1 is connected to a connector pad 5 ( see fig4 ) provided on the surface ( the top surface 2 a in fig1 ), in other words , the side that is opposite to a base substrate 11 , of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 which is facing the metal frame 1 . the connector pad 5 is connected to an embedded ground ( gnd ) plane 2 c provided within the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . fig4 is a magnified view of the region a shown in fig1 , which is the point of connection between the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the connector pad 5 and the embedded gnd plane 2 c are electrically connected by a through hole 2 d that traverses widthwise from the top surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to the embedded gnd plane 2 c . this connector pad 5 may be etched to match the surface pattern that is pre - etched on the top surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . if the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is a printed circuit board and the like , the connector pad 5 can be etched together with the wiring print , thus making the etching process simple . the through hole 2 d may have any shape or size as long as it enables the embedded gnd plane 2 c and the top surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to be effectively electrically connected . further , there are no limitations on the number of through holes 2 d , and any number of through holes 2 d may be provided . further , the connector pad 5 used in the electromagnetic shield according to the present invention may be of any material as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to be effectively electrically connected . the connector pad 5 again may be of any shape as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to be effectively electrically connected , and may have a shape that matches the shape of the connecting member 1 a , and the like . the connector pad 5 may be of any size as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to be effectively electrically connected , and may be of a size that matches the size of the connecting member 1 a , and the like . the other surface ( the bottom surface 2 b ) of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is covered by the base substrate 11 provided on the side of the bottom surface 2 b of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the base substrate 11 functions as a foundation for the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the base substrate 11 is disposed substantially parallel to and at a predetermined distance from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . an embedded gnd plane 4 is disposed in the base substrate 11 running roughly parallel to the main surfaces ( a top surface 11 a and a bottom surface 1 b ) of the base substrate 11 . the width of the embedded gnd plane 4 is broader than the width of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 in all directions . consequently , the bottom surface 2 b of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is covered by the embedded gnd plane 4 provided within the base substrate 11 . the base substrate 11 having such a structure is connected to the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 via connectors 3 provided on the top surface 11 a of the base substrate 11 . an input / output 9 of power and signals from the base substrate 11 to the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 takes place via the connectors 3 . consequently , no opening is required in the metal frame 1 for connection to the outside . the base substrate 11 is electrically connected to the metal frame 1 via a connector pad 10 provided on the surface ( the top surface 11 a in fig1 , fig5 , and fig6 ) of the base substrate 11 that faces the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . to be more specific , as shown in fig5 , the base substrate 11 is connected via the connector pad 10 to a mounting member 1 c provided at an end of a side surface 1 b of the metal frame 1 . the connector pad 10 and the mounting member 1 c may for instance be connected by a solder 12 . the connector pad 10 is connected to the embedded gnd plane 4 provided within the base substrate 11 . fig5 is a magnified view of the region b shown in fig1 , which is the point of connection between the metal frame 1 and the base substrate 11 . fig6 is a view of the region b shown in fig5 cut along the line c - c . the connector pad 10 and the embedded gnd plane 4 are electrically connected by a through hole 6 that traverses widthwise from the top surface 11 a of the base substrate 11 to the embedded gnd plane 4 . the through hole 6 may have any shape or size as long as it enables the embedded gnd plane 4 and the connector pad 10 to be effectively electrically connected . further , there are no limitations on the number of through holes 6 , and any number of through holes 6 may be provided . further , the connector pad 10 used in the electromagnetic shield may be of any material as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 4 to be effectively electrically connected , and effectively blocks the electromagnetic noise issuing from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the connector pad 10 again may be of any shape as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 4 to be effectively electrically connected , and effectively blocks the electromagnetic noise issuing from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the connector pad 10 may have a shape that matches the shape of the through hole 6 and that of the mounting member 1 c . the connector pad 10 may be of any size as long as it enables the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 to be effectively electrically connected , and effectively blocks the electromagnetic noise issuing from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . the connector pad 10 may be of a size that matches the size of the through hole 6 or that of the mounting member 1 c . in this manner , according to the present invention , the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is covered by a metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 4 of the base substrate 11 . in other words , in this structure , the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is electromagnetically sealed by the metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 4 of the base substrate 11 . this structure effectively blocks the electromagnetic noise that is issued when the circuit elements such as the transistor , ic , lsi , etc . mounted on the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 are powered up . thus , the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate is effectively shielded by the metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 4 of the base substrate 11 . as a result , malfunctioning of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 or the electronic gadget in which the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is mounted , and other electronic gadgets caused by the electromagnetic noise issuing from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 can be prevented . in this electromagnetic shield structure , the top surface 2 a and the sides of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 are covered by the metal frame 1 , and the bottom surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is covered by the embedded gnd plane 4 of the base substrate 11 disposed facing the bottom surface 2 b of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . in a conventional electromagnetic shield structure , as shown in fig7 , an electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 102 is fixed to a base substrate 111 by connectors 103 . the base substrate 111 functions as a foundation for the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 102 . both surfaces ( a top surface 102 a and a bottom surface 102 b ) of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 102 are sealed by covering them with metal frames 101 and 107 . thus , this structure enables blockade of the electromagnetic noise . however , in this structure , more area is required for accommodating the two metal frames 101 and 107 . besides , this structure leads to higher components cost since two metal frames 101 and 107 are required . however , in the electromagnetic shield structure according to the present invention , the need to enclose all the surfaces of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 with a metal frame is obviated . in other words , as against two metal frames 101 and 107 required in the conventional electromagnetic shield structure , only one metal frame 1 is required in the present invention . consequently , the area required for accommodating the metal frame can be drastically reduced . thus , the electromagnetic shield structure 20 of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is space - efficient . as a result , the electronic gadget using this space - efficient electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 can be made really compact . in the electromagnetic shield structure of the present invention , the need to enclose all the surfaces of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 with a metal frame is obviated . in other words , as against two metal frames 101 and 107 required in the conventional electromagnetic shield structure , only one metal frame 1 is required in the present invention . consequently , the weight of the metal frame can be drastically reduced . thus , a light electromagnetic shield structure 20 is realized . as a result , the electronic gadget using this light electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 can be made lightweight . in the electromagnetic shield structure of the present invention , the need to enclose all the surfaces of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 with a metal frame is obviated . in other words , as against two metal frames 101 and 107 required in the conventional electromagnetic shield structure , only one metal frame 1 is required in the present invention . consequently , the cost of the metal frame can be drastically reduced . thus , a cost - effective electromagnetic shield structure 20 is realized . as a result , the cost of the electronic gadget using this cost - effective electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 can be effectively reduced . thus , according to the present invention , a space - efficient and cost - effective electromagnetic shield structure is realized that enables electromagnetic shielding of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . in the above description , a structure is explained in which the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 are uniquely connected through the connection between the connecting members 1 a of the metal frame 1 and the connector pads 5 of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . however , in the present invention , a structure can be obtained in which the connection can be selected . in other words , as shown in fig8 , a connector pad 13 is provided on the top surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 corresponding to the connecting member 1 a of the metal frame 1 . a chip part 14 that connects with the embedded gnd plane 2 c of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 is provided on the top surface 2 a of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 . thus a structure is obtained in which the metal frame 1 and the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 can be electrically connected by connecting the connector pad 13 and the chip part 14 by a solder 15 , as shown in fig9 . this structure enables the selection of whether or not the metal frame 1 and the embedded gnd plane 2 of the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 are to be connected , at the step in which electromagnetic noise radiation is evaluated . the chip part may be a condenser , resistor , inductor , ferrite beats , and the like . the electromagnetic shielding effect of the electromagnetic shield structure according to the present invention can be controlled in according to the selection of the chip part . it is preferable to mount faster circuits on the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 and slower circuits on the base substrate 11 . in this way , more circuits can be mounted , and in spite of more circuits , the electromagnetic waves issuing from the electromagnetic shield - requiring substrate 2 and the base substrate 11 can be effectively blocked . the electromagnetic shield structure according the present invention can be adapted as an electromagnetic shield of any circuit board substrate that issues electromagnetic noise , though it is most suitable for electronic gadgets in which very low electromagnetic radiation , if at all , from the circuit board substrate is desirable . the electromagnetic shield structure according to the present invention may be used in electronic gadgets in which space - efficiency is desirable . the usefulness of the electromagnetic shield structure can be more effectively demonstrated by using it in electronic gadgets in which very low electromagnetic radiation from the circuit board substrate as well as space efficiency is desirable . although the invention has been described with respect to a specific embodiment for a complete and clear disclosure , the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art which fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth . | 7 |
referring to figures from 1 to 5 , a rectangular table board 3 is coupled to one side of a travel bag 1 by for example a hinge , and a retractable stand 4 fastened to one side of the table board 3 remote from the travel bag 1 . the aforesaid hinge comprises a first leaf 13 fixedly fastened to the travel bag 1 , a second leaf 31 integral with a smoothly arched portion 32 at one short side of the table board 3 , and a pivot pin 313 mounted in barrels 132 at the first leaf 31 and barrels 311 at the second leaf 31 to secure the leaves 13 ; 31 together , for permitting the table board 3 to be turned about the pivot pin 313 relative to the travel bag 1 . the first leaf 13 has a longitudinal groove 131 . the second leaf 31 has a flange 312 at one side inserted into the longitudinal groove 131 to limit the turning of the table board 3 within about 90 °. therefore , the table board 3 can be turned within 90 ° relative to the travel bag 1 and set between the collapsed position closely attached to the travel bag 1 ( see fig1 ) and the operative position perpendicular to the travel bag 1 ( see fig1 ). when the table board 3 is set in the operative position , the retractable stand 4 is extended out to support the table board 3 on the ground in a horizontal position . referring to fig1 , 6 and 7 , the retractable stand 4 comprises two coupling holder frames 45 respectively pivoted to lugs 36 on the table board 3 by a respective pivot 454 , two sleeves 42 respectively pivoted to the coupling holder frames 45 by a respective pivot 455 , a control block 41 connected between the sleeves 42 at one end remote from the coupling holder frames 45 , two inner tubes 43 slidably mounted in the sleeves 42 , a foot 44 connected between the inner tubes 43 at one end remote from the sleeves 42 , and two folding braces 451 , each folding brace 451 having one end pivoted to one coupling holder frame 45 and an opposite end pivoted to a rib 35 on the table board 3 . when the table board 3 is turned outwards from the travel bag 1 and supported on the ground by the retractable stand 4 , the folding braces 451 are extended out to support the coupling holder frames 45 in the extended position . two push rods 432 are respectively coupled to the sleeves 42 and moved along longitudinal sliding slots 421 on the sleeves 42 and the coupling holder frames 45 , each push rod 432 having a hooked end 4321 extended out of the respective coupling holder frame 45 and retained in contact with one folding brace 451 . a spring 433 is connected between the pivot 455 in one coupling holder frame 45 and the push rod 432 in one sleeve 42 . the spring 433 imparts an outward pressure to the respective push rod 432 . when the inner tubes 43 are received in the sleeves 42 , the push rods 432 are respectively forced inwards to compress the springs 433 , and simultaneously to collapse the folding braces 451 . two torsional springs 453 are respectively mounted on the pivots 454 , each torsional spring 453 having one end stopped at the bottom of the table board 3 and an opposite end connected to a lug 452 at one coupling holder frame 45 . when the table board 3 is extended out , the retractable stand 4 is automatically forced outwards by the torsional springs 453 . referring to fig1 and 8 , the control block 41 comprises a spring 413 , two locating members 412 bilaterally supported on the spring 413 , each locating member 412 having a pin 4122 at an outer side respectively forced by the spring 44 into engagement with respective locating holes 431 at the inner tubes 43 . the locating members 412 each have a respective bevel face 4121 at an inner side . a control knob 411 is mounted in a hole ( not shown ) at the top side of the control block 41 , having two bevel faces 4111 respectively disposed in contact with the bevel faces 4121 of the locating members 412 . when the control knob 411 is depressed , the bevel faces 4111 of the control knob 411 are forced against the bevel faces 4121 of the locating members 412 , thereby causing the locating members 412 to be pulled inwards and disengaged from the locating holes 431 on the inner tubes 43 , for permitting the inner tubes 43 to be moved into the sleeves 42 . referring to fig9 two side plates 441 are respectively pivoted to two opposite sides of the foot 44 . the side plates 441 can be turned outwards into longitudinal alignment with the foot 44 for supporting the retractable stand 4 on the ground stably . when not in use , the side plates 441 are turned inwards and closely attached to the foot 44 . referring to fig2 a , 2b , 2c and 11 , a knob 33 is mounted on the table board 3 in the space 32 at one end of a link 34 . the link 34 has an opposite end inserted into a box 342 at the bottom side of the table board 3 . the box 342 has a hole 343 . a movable hook 344 is coupled to one end of the link 34 inside the box 342 the movable hook 344 has a bottom hole 3441 . a spring 345 is mounted in the bottom hole 3441 on the hook 344 and supported on the bottom wall of the box 342 . the spring 345 imparts an upward pressure to the hook 344 and the link 34 . the travel bag 1 has a hook 15 at one side near the bottom . when the table board 3 is closed on the travel bag 1 , the hook 15 is inserted through the hole 343 into the box 342 into engagement with the movable hook 344 . the link 34 has a hook 341 near the knob 33 . when the retractable stand 4 is collapsed , the foot 44 is forced into engagement with the hook 341 . when extending out the table board 3 , the knob 33 is depressed to lower the link 34 . when the link 34 is lowered , the hooks 341 ; 344 are simultaneously lowered and respectively disengaged from the hook 15 on the travel bag 1 and the foot 44 of the retractable stand 4 , and the retractable stand 4 is forced outwards from the travel bag 1 by the torsional springs 453 . after the control knob 411 has been depressed , the inner tubes 43 can then be pulled out of the sleeves 42 . referring to fig1 and 10 , a locating member 143 is mounted in the travel bag 1 near the wheel 14 of one wheel holder 142 of the travel bag 1 , and supported on a spring 1433 . the locating member 143 has a pin 1432 . a knob 144 is mounted in the travel bag 1 , having a bevel face 1441 disposed in contact with a bevel face 1431 on the locating member 143 . when the table board 3 is extended out , the locating member 143 is forced outwards by the spring 1433 , causing the pin 1432 of the locating member 143 to be forced into engagement with one locating hole 141 on the wheel 14 to stop the wheel 14 from rotation . when the table board 3 is closed on the travel bag 1 , the knob 144 is forced inwards to move the locating member 143 backwards , thereby causing the pin 1441 to be moved backwards with the locating member 143 and disengaged from the wheel 14 . while only one embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described , it will be understood that various modifications and changes could be made thereunto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention disclosed . | 0 |
the invention is described below with reference to the embodiment shown in the drawings . fig3 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a programmable controller according to this invention . as shown in fig3 the programmable controller of this embodiment includes a program memory 14 , a system data memory 15 , a sequence execution control part 11 , and a pipeline register 20 which constitutes a holding register . sequence execution control part 11 includes an instruction pointer 17 , an instruction register 16 , a data register 18 , a bit computation processing part 19 , and a timing control part 21 . instruction pointer 17 and program memory 14 are connected by a program address bus 22 - 1 , and instruction register 16 and program memory 14 are connected by first program data bus 23 - 1 . program memory 14 and pipeline register 20 are connected by second program data bus 23 - 2 , and data memory 15 and pipeline register 20 are connected by an operand address bus 22 - 2 . furthermore , data memory 15 and data register 18 are connected by an operand data bus 23 - 3 . program memory 14 stores a group of sequence instructions consisting of instruction part ( instruction parts 1 to n ) and operand part ( operand parts 1 to n ). data memory 15 stores computation data such as process input / output data , and internal data . pipeline register 20 latches the operand part 14b that constitutes the address of the computation data . sequence execution control part 11 executes sequence computation based on computation data input from data memory 15 and an instruction part fetched from program memory 14 . specifically , in sequence execution control part 11 , instruction pointer 17 designates a program address in program memory 14 , and instruction register 16 latches the instruction part of program memory 14 . furthermore , data register 18 latches the computation data from data memory 15 , and bit computation processing part 19 executes binary logic computation , which is the main part of the sequence instruction , based on the content of instruction register 16 and the content of data register 18 . furthermore , timing control part 21 generates timing signals φ 1 , φ 2 from the internal clock signal , φ 1 , controls the operation of instruction pointer 17 , instruction register 16 , and bit computation processing part 19 . timing signal φ 2 , controls the operation of data register 18 and pipeline register 20 . the operation of the programmable controller constructed as above will now be described . first of all , on timing signal φ 1 that updates the content of instruction pointer 17 , the instruction part and operand part of program memory 14 whose address is the content of instruction pointer 17 before update , are respectively input into instruction register 16 and pipeline register 20 . next , on timing signal φ 2 , the computation data of data memory 15 whose address is the content of pipeline register 20 is input into data register 18 . at the same time as this , in order for the computation data of the next instruction to be input , pipeline register 20 is put in a transparent state , having regard to the memory access time of data memory 15 . subsequently , binary logic computation is executed at timing signal φ 2 by bit computation processing part 13 , based on the content of instruction register 16 that has already been input , and based on the content of data register 18 . also at the same time as this , the content of a instruction pointer 17 is updated on timing signal φ 1 . fig4 shows conceptually the operation of a the programmable controller in this case . on timing signal φ 1 , execution of previous instructions and fetching of current instruction are completed , at the same time , fetching of next instruction is started . on timing signal φ 2 , input of operand data ( computation data ) of current instruction is completed and input of operand data ( computation data ) of next instruction is started . the details of the above operation will be explained with reference to fig5 . first of all , the content of instruction pointer 17 is updated with timing signal φ 1 , and the address of instruction 3 is output . at the same time as this , instruction 2 and operand 2 that have already been output by program memory 14 are respectively latched in instruction register 16 and pipeline register 20 . thereupon , with timing signal φ 2 , operand 2 starts to be input in the transparent state , and operand 2 constituting the address of computation data is already output to operand address bus 22 - 2 . next , in data register 18 , input of computation data 2 is commenced in the transparent state from timing signal φ 1 , and it is latched with timing signal φ 2 . subsequently , the binary logic computation that is the major part of the sequence instruction is executed on timing signal φ 1 by bit computation processing part 19 , based on the computation data 2 that is input into data register 18 . after this , the above operation is repeated . as described above , in a programmable controller according to this embodiment , the program address bus 22 - 1 and operand address bus 22 - 2 are separate , and the first program data bus 23 - 1 and second program data bus 23 - 2 and operand data bus 23 - 3 are separate . also , second program data bus 23 - 2 and operand address bus 22 - 2 are separately provided with pipeline register 20 , so fetching of the next instruction and execution of the current instruction can be carried out by simultaneously processing . that is , the next instruction fetching is performed using instruction pointer 17 , program address bus 22 - 1 , first program data bus 23 - 1 , and second program data bus 23 - 2 . instruction execution is performed using pipeline register 20 , operand address bus 22 - 2 , operand data bus 23 - 3 , instruction register 16 , data register 18 and bit computation processing part 19 . fetching of the next instruction and execution of the current instruction can therefore be carried out simultaneously . consequently , in the period of sequence instruction execution , of which the major part consists of binary logic computation , the proportion occupied by memory access time can be reduced , so high speed computation execution of sequence instructions can be achieved with reduced loss time . by this means , an upgrading of the processing capability of the programmable controller can be achieved , and the control accuracy which is the objective of a programmable controller can be improved . numerous modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings . it is therefore to be understood that , within the scope of the appended claims , the present invention can be practiced in a manner other than as specifically described herein . | 6 |
the present invention comprises various embodiments of a security device or assembly for securing a bar across the span or width of a set of double doors , generally as shown in fig1 of the drawings . double door sets by definition include opposed first and second doors , e . g . doors d 1 and d 2 of fig1 , hingedly secured to the sides of the door frame f by a series of hinge assemblies , e . g . hinge assemblies h 1 , h 2 , h 3 , h 4 , etc . in an exterior doorway having double doors , a series of three such hinge assemblies is typically used to attach each door d 1 and d 2 to opposite sides of the door frame f . the central hinge assemblies are concealed by the present invention and by a door bar b 1 secured therein , in fig1 . the present invention includes at least one first door bar retainer and at least one second door bar retainer , with each first and second door bar retainer comprising a pair of identical retainers in any given installation . the door bar retainers of fig1 , 3 , and the upper retainer of the two retainers shown in fig4 . are identical in configuration , and are all designated by the reference numeral 10 throughout the drawings . a door bar retainer 10 ( and / or other door bar retainer configuration shown in the drawings and discussed further below ) is removably secured to the corresponding hinge assembly to each side of the double door installation , and a door bar b 1 of appropriate configuration and length l sufficient to extend at least slightly beyond the span defined by the opposed door bar retainers is removably installed through the door bar passages defined by the door bar retainers and their hinges . fig2 provides a detailed exploded perspective view of the installation of a door bar retainer 10 to a door hinge assembly h , as would be used in any of the hinge installations h 1 , h 2 , h 3 , etc . of fig1 . each door hinge assembly h comprises a door frame hinge element hf for attaching to the door frame and a door edge hinge element he which is attached to the edge of the door . the two hinge elements hf and he are interposed with one another and are secured together by a hinge pin , e . g . headed pin p 1 of fig2 , or alternatively a pin p 2 having a diametric passage formed therethrough with a stop pin s ( cotter pin , roll pin , wire , small diameter bolt or screw , etc .) installed therein . the integral head of the pin p 1 and the stop pin s of the pin p 2 serve as stop means to prevent the hinge pins p 1 or p 2 from falling through the hinge passage defined by the two interposed hinge elements hf and he . the door bar retainer 10 is formed of an elongate flat strip of metal and bent for installation on the corresponding hinge assembly , generally as shown in fig2 . each door bar retainer 10 includes opposite first and second attachment end portions , respectively 12 and 14 , which are bent to lie parallel to one another and which define a door bar channel c therebetween . each of the two attachment end portions 12 and 14 includes a distal hinge pin passage , respectively 16 and 18 , formed therethrough , with the hinge pin p 1 or p 2 passing through the hinge pin passage 16 and 18 and through the interposed hinge elements he , hf to secure the door bar retainer 10 to the hinge assembly h . each door bar retainer 10 includes a medial portion 20 having a span or length essentially equal to the height of the hinge assembly h . the two attachment end portions 12 and 14 of the door bar retainer 10 span the interposed portions of the hinge elements he and hf , with the hinge pin p 1 or p 2 having sufficient length to pass through the interposed hinge elements and through the two hinge pin passages 16 and 18 of the attachment end portions 12 and 14 of the door bar retainer 10 when installed . the medial portion 20 and opposite attachment end portions 12 and 14 of the door bar retainer 10 , along with the interposed portions of the hinge assembly h , define a door bar passage a for the removable installation of a door bar , e . g . door bar b 1 , therein , as shown in fig4 . it will be noted that the corners 22 of the distal ends of the end attachment portions 12 and 14 of the door bar retainer 10 are beveled . this provides certain advantages and benefits in an installation , as shown in fig3 . fig3 provides a top plan view of an exemplary door bar retainer installation to a hinge assembly h , with the hinge assembly having a door frame hinge element hf secured to the door frame f and a door edge hinge element he attached to the edge of the door d . the assembly is secured together by a hinge pin p 1 , with the head of the pin being visible in the top plan view of fig3 . it will be noted that the beveled corners 22 of the end attachment portions , e . g . the upper attachment portion 12 shown in fig3 , provide clearance for the door d to swing open , and also serve as a stop means to prevent excessive opening of the door . the beveled flats also spread the contact pressure of the door surface against the door bar retainer 10 and pressure of the retainer against the door frame f , thereby minimizing marring of those surfaces . fig4 provides an end elevation view of two exemplary door bar retainer installations to vertically adjacent hinge assemblies in a door installation . while normally it is anticipated that only a single door bar would be installed across two horizontally opposed door bar retainers installed upon corresponding horizontally opposed hinges , fig4 illustrates the concept of multiple retainers installed upon each side of the door , and also illustrates different configurations or embodiments of door bar retainers as well . the upper hinge assembly h 1 includes a generally rectangular door bar retainer 10 installed thereon , with the medial portion 20 of the retainer having a height or span essentially equal to the height or span of the hinge assembly h and the two substantially equal length arms or end portions 12 and 14 defining a generally rectangular door bar passage a , suitable for a door bar b 1 comprising a conventional “ two by four ” or “ two by six ” wood stud or the like . the lower hinge h 3 of fig4 includes an alternate embodiment door bar retainer 10 a installed thereon . the door bar retainer 10 a includes a somewhat longer lower or second attachment end portion 14 a , and a somewhat shorter intermediate portion 20 a . the first or upper end portion 12 a includes an offset portion 13 a therein , to allow for the difference in span between the two distal ends of the attachment portions 12 a and 14 a and the shorter span of the intermediate portion 20 a . this configuration defines a lower but wider rectangular door bar passage a 1 therein , providing for the installation of a rectangular door bar b 1 with its major width or thickness oriented horizontally and its minor width or thickness oriented vertically , i . e . ninety degrees to the orientation shown with the door bar retainer 10 installation on the upper hinge assembly h 1 in fig4 . the greater horizontal thickness of the door bar b 1 in the lower portion of fig4 provides greatly increased resistance to bending and shear , and thus a stronger installation , in comparison to the configuration of the door bar retainer 10 of the upper portion of fig4 . while the lower or second attachment end portion 14 a is straight and the upper or first attachment end portion 12 a has an offset portion 13 a , it will be seen that the retainer 10 a may be inverted from the orientation shown in the lower portion of fig4 , if so desired . this may allow the location of the door bar b 1 to be adjusted slightly to clear any door hardware , etc . which may protrude from the door and into the path of the door bar b 1 . fig5 provides an end elevation view of two additional door bar retainer embodiments installed upon vertically adjacent hinge assemblies h 1 and h 3 on a door frame f . the door bar retainer 10 b of the upper portion of fig5 includes offsets , respectively 13 b and 15 b , in both the first or upper and second or lower attachment ends 12 b and 14 b . the medial portion 20 b of the retainer 10 b is shortened correspondingly . this configuration provides a somewhat smaller door bar passage a 2 , configured to hold a door bar b 2 of square section steel pipe or tube , or perhaps a solid bar , of somewhat smaller cross sectional dimensions than the wood bar b 1 of fig1 and 4 . the steel door bar b 2 can still provide at least the same strength as the wood bar b 1 , even with the smaller cross sectional dimensions of the steel bar b 2 , depending upon its size relative to the wood bar b 1 . the door bar retainer 10 c shown installed upon the lower hinge assembly h 3 in the lower portion of fig5 illustrates still another configuration or embodiment . the door bar retainer 10 c includes first and second offset portions , respectively 13 c and 15 c , formed in the corresponding first and second hinge attachment ends 12 c and 14 c . the medial portion 20 c has a semicircular shape , connecting the two offset portions 13 c and 15 c of the device and defining a semicircular door bar passage a 3 . this configuration is suited for the use of a door bar b 3 comprising a length of steel pipe or the like having a circular cross section . again , the steel pipe door bar b 3 may have a smaller cross sectional dimension or diameter than a wood bar of equivalent strength , depending upon the wall thickness or schedule of the pipe . in conclusion , the present double door security device provides a much needed means of positively securing both doors of a double door installation against unwanted entry , etc . the present security device makes use of the existing conventional hinge installation to each side of the door frame opening and to each of the doors , requiring only a slightly longer hinge pin at each door bar retainer to secure the retainer to the hinge assembly . not only is this installation generally superior in strength to many other door bar retainer installations , but it is also considerably faster and easier to install . a number of different retainer configurations may be provided , corresponding to different cross sectional dimensions and shapes for the door bar to be used . additional strength and security may be provided by installing multiple door bar retainers along each side of the door opening , and using multiple door bars . it will also be recognized that the present security device is readily adaptable to virtually any form of panels installed upon opposed hinges , e . g . window shutters , etc . accordingly , the present double door security device will prove to be a most welcome accessory wherever double doors , shutters , etc . are installed . it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above , but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims . | 8 |
in fig1 and 2 , the number 1 designates a vessel &# 39 ; s deck , which , on its lower section , is reinforced with frames 2 . the frames 2 feature commonly a l profile and are attached with their extended flank at the lower section of the ship &# 39 ; s deck 1 , by means of the welded seams , not shown , so that the best possible moment of resistance of the profile may be utilized for reinforcing said ship &# 39 ; s deck 1 . a fire protection construction of such an area of the vessel consists , in principle , in that the lower section of the vessel &# 39 ; s deck 1 is being protected in such a fashion against fire below the vessel &# 39 ; s deck 1 , that the high fire temperature in the area above vessel &# 39 ; s deck 1 results to the threshold temperature rate only after a predetermined period of time . it is understood that the fire protection construction must also physically continue to exist , since otherwise an undesired thermal passage would result with a consequent temperature increase . in the example of fig1 , frames 2 are covered with mineral wool felt 3 , produced in the centrifugation basket process with internal centrifugation . for a fire resistance category a15 , a very light roll felt material 3 will suffice with an surface weight of 1 , 2 kg / m 3 , as an example , which was supplied as a roll with a compression ratio of 1 : 3 . 5 . the area between frames 2 is also covered by mineral wool material in the form of plates 4 , produced by internal centrifugation . these units , in the exemplified case , also feature a surface weight of 1 . 2 kg / m 2 . both the felts 3 , as well as the plates 4 , are attached with adequate metal clips , as shown at 5 in fig1 and 2 . with the embodiment according to fig2 , the same cover construction is covered with plate - like mineral wool material , which was also produced by internal centrifugation . in this case , the frames 2 are insulated in the form represented , however by means of correspondingly cut plate sections 6 and 8 , i . e . they are involved in a box - like fashion . in the intermediate area , intermediate plates 7 are introduced , and all elements are attached to the cover construction with adequate metal clips 5 . the plate sections 6 through 8 may preferably be formed also as integral molded section , which is applied around the frames in such a way that in one operational step it embraces the frames without forming thermal bridges . the plate material for plate sections 6 , 7 and 8 features , in the example , a surface weight of 2 . 3 kg / m 2 . with such a fire protecting construction , it is possible to attain the fire resistance category a60 without problems . the material resistance in the event of fire is insured due to the fact that the mineral wool fibers are selected in such a way , that their point of fusion is located above 1 . 000 ° c . this will insure that also with fire resistance category a60 , the insulating element of the invention is resistant , for a sufficiently extended period of time , i . e . one hour , against the fire temperatures . in the version shown , the average geometrical fiber diameter is 3 . 2 μm and the binding agent content is 1 . 8 weight %. the composition in weight % of the conventional insulating elements , i . e . molded section , produced from traditional rock wool , as well as insulating elements i . e . molded section , produced from traditional glass wool , results from table 2 , and the traditional rock wool , as well as the insulating element i . e . molded section of the invention , feature a melting point of at least 1000 ° c . according to din 4102 , part 17 . fig3 features a measuring series of a heat conductivity test at 400 ° c . with the gross density in for of a diagram . the results of the measurements were determined according to din 52612 - 1 with a so called double - plate instrument . it can be seen in a simple fashion from this diagram , which potential of economy is feasible , by utilizing the mineral wool of the invention , compared to conventional rock wool , the example featuring two gross densities of 65 and 90 kg / m 3 . the same heat conductivity capacity of 116 mw / mk , which is being attained with traditional rock wool with a gross density of 65 kg / m 3 , is being obtained with the mineral wool of the invention already with a gross density of approximately 45 kg / m 3 , i . e . with a weight economy of approximately 31 %. in an analogue fashion , with a gross density of 90 kg / m 3 of conventional rock wool , a weight economy of approximately 33 % is attained with the mineral wool of the present invention . finally , fig4 and 5 feature the conventional rock wool , mentioned in the description , as well as conventional glass wool , featuring a typical fiber histogram of the insulating elements , and fig6 features a histogram of fibers of the insulating elements of the invention . the following table shows comparable essays between on the one side insulation elements made of conventional rock wool and elements according to invention indicated with im and that in regard of the different fire resistance categories a15 , a30 and a60 as well as differentiated into bulkhead and deck . the results of the table show that despite considerably reduced surface weight and significant reduced gross density , which is especially essential for the use of insulation elements in shipbuilding , the examination requirements of the fire resistance categories a15 , a30 and a60 have been fulfilled by the im insulation elements . | 8 |
the roof rack is comprised of two spaced units each comprised of a lower stationary support 10 , 20 and an upper cargo support 30 , 40 , the units being mountable atop a vehicle in spaced generally parallel relationship to each other . as best seen in fig2 and 5 , the stationary supports and cargo supports each preferably comprise similarly sized rectangular channels so that the lower surface of the cargo supports 30 , 40 can rest upon and slide against the upper surface of the associated stationary support 10 , 20 . the stationary supports 10 , 20 each have an elongated longitudinally extending slot 12 in the upper surface thereof and the upper cargo supports 30 , 40 each have an elongated slot 32 of similar length in a lower surface thereof . since only one of the cargo support units is shown in the drawings other than in fig1 it will be appreciated that the rear cargo support unit is of similar construction to the front cargo support unit , therefore only one unit will be fully described . each stationary support 10 , 20 is provided with cargo support guide saddles 14 , 16 ; 24 , 26 pivotally affixed thereto at or proximate each end thereof . the guide saddles 14 , 16 ; 24 , 26 are sized to slideably receive and restrain an associated cargo support 30 therein for longitudinal sliding movement relative to the stationary support 10 and to essentially prevent fore and aft movement of the cargo support 30 which , however , is free translate and pivot in a generally vertically extending plane extending through the associated stationary support 10 or 20 . the guide saddles comprise opposed rectangular channels 15 , 17 which are pivotally affixed to an associated stationary support 10 or 20 at oppositely facing vertical sides of the stationary support . the exploded view of fig6 shows the channels 15 , 17 which are pivotally affixed to rigid support plates 19 , 21 on opposite sides of the stationary support 10 . an intermediate lock support plate 23 is also affixed by welding or fasteners not shown to one side of the stationary support 10 and extends upwardly so that a lock 70 may be received in a mounting aperture 72 in the plate 23 so that a longitudinally moveable plunger 74 of the lock may engage an associated aperture 76 in the side wall of a associated cargo support 30 to lock the cargo support in place relative to the stationary support 10 when desired . the channels 15 , 17 are free to pivot around a horizontal mounting axis so that the cargo support 30 , when positioned between the faxing channels 15 , 17 can be pulled therethrough to free the other end of the cargo support 30 from the associated guide saddle channels at the other end of the stationary support 10 so that the cargo support 30 can be pivotally moved in a vertical plane as it is pulled through the channels 15 , 17 to move the cargo support 30 to one or the other side of the vehicle . connecting links 50 , 60 extend through each of the associated slots in the upper surfaces of the stationary supports 10 , 20 and lower surface of the associated cargo support 30 , 40 . the links have upper and lower retainers 52 , 54 attached thereto at or near each end of the link , the retainers being respectively engageable with the associated inner surfaces of the rectangular cargo supports and stationary supports to prevent the links from being disengaged from the slots during operation of the roof rack . the links 50 , 60 and associated slots are designed to permit the cargo supports 30 , 40 to slide laterally with respect to the stationary supports 10 , 20 so that the cargo supports may be longitudinally moved through the guide saddles 14 , 16 ; 24 , 26 and pivoted in vertical planes to tip the cargo supports toward either side of a vehicle . the retainers 52 , 54 on the opposite ends of the links are preferably of cylindrical configuration having an end - to - end length slightly less then the inner width of the associated channel so that the retainers and links can freely slide in the channels as the links move in the associated slots . as constructed , the cargo supports should be capable of pivoting while being restrained in one or the other of the guide saddles at either end of the associated stationary support 10 , 20 so that the cargo supports 30 , 40 ( with cargo thereon ) are capable of pivoting in a vertical plane at an angle of not less then about 20 ° with respect to the stationary support so that cargo can easily be loaded or unloaded from either side of the vehicle . each cargo support 10 , 20 preferably includes a series of spaced cargo clamp mounting sites which , in the drawings , are shown to comprise a series of apertures in the upwardly facing surfaces of the cargo supports 30 , 40 . the cargo supports 30 , 40 are thereby adapted to receive various types of cargo support clamps such as for holding bicycles , skis , enclosed cargo containers , etc ., at selected positions on the roof rack . additionally , each of the stationary supports 10 , 20 may also have two or more spaced support feet 78 attached on the underside thereof , the support feet 78 having a rubber or other suitable non - slip lower surfaces designed for contacting a vehicle roof without scratching thereof . although the configuration of the stationary supports and cargo supports in the drawings is in the form of rectangular channels , other configurations are contemplated including telescoping tubular members or other geometric shapes of complementary cross - section . optionally , adjustable elongated spacers 80 , 90 interconnecting the stationary supports 10 , 20 parallel to each other at an selected distance longitudinally of the vehicle are provided to lend stability to the system . it will be appreciated that the elongated spacers 80 , 90 are not essential in all instances if the stationary members 10 , 20 are designed to be permanently affixed to the vehicle roof instead of being removeably affixed thereto in suitable fashion . similarly , adjustable elongated spacers 82 , 92 interconnecting the cargo supports as shown are provided to lend stability to the structure . various connection means , not pertinent to the present invention , are available for affixing the stationary supports to a vehicle roof or to rain gutters along side the vehicle as is well known in the art . the components of the roof rack may be fabricated form steel or aluminum stock or of suitable plastic . persons skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications of the preferred embodiment may be made without departing from the teachings herein and that the scope of protection is defined by the claims which follow . | 1 |
referring to fig1 , a generator 10 has an output socket 10 s providing a radio frequency ( rf ) output for an instrument 12 via a connection cord 14 . activation of the generator may be performed from the instrument 12 via a connection in cord 14 or by means of a footswitch unit 16 , as shown , connected to the rear of the generator by a footswitch connection cord 18 . in the illustrated embodiment footswitch unit 16 has two footswitches 16 a and 16 b for selecting a coagulation mode and a cutting mode of the generator respectively . the generator front panel has push buttons 20 and 22 for respectively setting coagulation and cutting power levels , which are indicated in a display 24 . push buttons 26 are provided as an alternative means for selection between coagulation and cutting modes . referring to fig2 , the instrument 12 comprises a blade shown generally at 1 and including a generally flat first electrode 2 , a larger second electrode 3 and an electrical insulator 4 separating the first and second electrodes . the first electrode 2 is formed of stainless steel while the second electrode 3 is formed from copper integrally with a body portion 9 . the surface of the second electrode is plated with a biocompatible material such as stainless steel , or alternatively with a non - oxidising material such as gold , platinum or palladium . the electrical insulator 4 is formed from a ceramic material such as al 2 o 3 . a conductive lead 5 is connected to the first electrode 2 , while lead 6 is connected to the second electrode 3 . the rf output from the generator 10 is connected to the blade 1 via the leads 5 and 6 so that a radio frequency signal having a substantially constant peak voltage ( typically around 400v ) appears between the first and second electrodes . when the blade 1 is brought into contact with tissue at a target site , the rf voltage will cause arcing between one of the electrodes and the tissue surface . because the first electrode 2 is smaller in cross - sectional area , and has a lower thermal capacity and conductivity than that of the second electrode 3 , the first electrode will assume the role of the active electrode and arcing will occur from this electrode to the tissue . electrical current will flow through the tissue to the second electrode 3 , which will assume the role of the return electrode . cutting of the tissue will occur at the active electrode , and the blade may be moved through the tissue . referring to fig3 , the generator comprises a radio frequency ( rf ) power oscillator 60 having a pair of output lines 60 c for coupling via output terminals 62 to the load impedance 64 represented by the instrument 12 when in use . power is supplied to the oscillator 60 by a switched mode power supply 66 . in the preferred embodiment , the rf oscillator 60 operates at about 400 khz , with any frequency from 300 khz upwards into the hf range being feasible . the switched mode power supply typically operates at a frequency in the range of from 25 to 50 khz . coupled across the output lines 60 c is a voltage threshold detector 68 having a first output 68 a coupled to the switched mode power supply 16 and a second output 68 b coupled to an “ on ” time control circuit 70 . a micro - processor controller 72 coupled to the operator controls and display ( shown in fig1 ) is connected to a control input 66 a of the power supply 66 for adjusting the generator output power by supply voltage variation and to a threshold - set input 68 c of the voltage threshold detector 68 for setting peak rf output voltage limits . also coupled across the output lines 60 c is a current detection circuit 80 which feeds signals to the controller 72 via line 81 . in operation , the microprocessor controller 72 causes power to be applied to the switched mode power supply 66 when electrosurgical power is demanded by the surgeon operating an activation switch arrangement which may be provided on a hand - piece or footswitch ( see fig1 ). a constant output voltage threshold is set independently on the supply voltage via input 68 c according to control settings on the front panel of the generator ( see fig1 ). typically , for desiccation or coagulation the threshold is set at a desiccation threshold value between 150 volts and 200 volts . when a cutting or vaporisation output is required the threshold is set to a value in the range of from 250 or 300 volts to 600 volts . these voltage values are peak values . their being peak values means that for desiccation at least it is preferable to have an output rf wave - form of low crest factor to give maximum power before the voltage is clamped at the values given . typically a crest factor of 1 . 5 or less is achieved . when the generator is first activated , the status of the control input 60 i of the rf oscillator 60 ( which is connected to the “ on ” time control circuit 70 ) is “ on ”, such that the power switching device which forms the oscillating element of the oscillator 60 is switched on for a maximum conduction period during each oscillation cycle . the power delivered to the load 64 depends partly on the supply voltage applied to the rf oscillator 60 from the switched mode power supply 66 and partly on the load impedance 64 . the voltage threshold for a desiccation output is set to cause trigger signals to be sent to the “ on ” time control circuit 70 and to the switched mode power supply 66 when the voltage threshold is reached . the “ on ” time control circuit 70 has the effect of virtually instantaneously reducing the “ on ” time of the rf oscillator - switching device . simultaneously , the switched mode power supply is disabled so that the voltage supplied to oscillator 60 begins to fall . the operation of the generator in this way is described in detail in our european patent application no . 0754437 , the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by way of reference . referring back to fig2 , when the instrument 12 is in use , small particles of condensed tissue and other debris can become adhered to the edge electrode 2 and , to a lesser extent , the base electrode 3 . if the instrument is used particularly aggressively , it is possible that a conductive track of such debris can build up between the electrodes 2 and 3 across the ceramic insulator 4 . such a conductive track is shown schematically at 11 in fig2 . if no action is taken to prevent it , this conductive track 11 will develop into a “ flare - out ” in which the current passing directly between the electrode 2 and the electrode 3 will cause the instrument to overheat and finally fail . the following description explains how the generator 10 detects and compensates for just such a situation . at regular intervals , in this case every 10 ms the current is measured across the load 64 by the current detector 80 and the current value is sent to the controller 72 . the controller uses the current value to determine repeatedly the impedance across the load 64 . the difference between successive impedance values , irrespective of their absolute value , is calculated , and summed for 16 consecutive readings to give a first total z 1 . the current measurements continue every 10 ms until a further 16 consecutive impedance calculations have been made , which calculations are again summed to give a second total z 2 . if z 1 and z 2 are both less than the threshold criteria for the sum q of the impedance changes , then the generator continues to supply rf signals to the instrument 12 . the process is continued with further current measurements being sent to the controller 72 every 10 ms . this normal operation is shown in fig4 , in which the voltage across the electrodes 2 , 3 is shown by trace 31 , the current flowing by trace 32 and the impedance measured by the generator by trace 33 . if a flare - out starts to develop between the electrodes 2 and 3 , the current measured across the load 64 will start to fluctuate widely , and with a high frequency of oscillation . this is shown in fig5 , with the build up to the flare - out being shown at 34 and the onset of the flare - out at 35 . in these circumstances z 1 and z 2 ( representing difference in impedance values , not absolute impedance values ) will both be above the threshold for the sum q of the impedance changes , and this causes the controller to send a signal to the power supply 66 to cause the power to be interrupted . a typical value for q is 1000 ohms , for a 16 measurement cycle . in addition to interrupting the power supply , the controller may cause a message ( such as “ clean tip ”) to be displayed by the display 24 . the controller does not allow power to be restored to the output of the generator until the surgeon has pressed a reset button to indicate that the tip has been cleaned , and will repeat the interruption process if the impedance measurements show that the flare - out conditions are still in existence when the power is recommenced . it will be appreciated that criteria other than the changeability of the impedance across the output of the generator could be employed to give an indication of the onset of a flare - out . these include , non - exhaustively , the high frequency content ( e . g . the number of high frequency components ) of the modulation of the current or voltage signal , or the d . c . thermionic current flowing between the electrodes 2 and 3 . the latter will be measured in the manner disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 547 , 786 , the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference . it will also be appreciated that , while the embodiments of the invention have been described with reference to the elimination of flare - outs , the invention could in some aspects be used to prevent overheating of electrodes without the actual existence of a flare - out . the generator , detecting criteria indicating the start of a potential overheating situation , could reduce the power or alter the radio frequency signal in other ways so as to maintain operation of the electrosurgical system operating within proper parameters . those skilled in the art of electrosurgical generators will readily be able to establish suitable detection criteria to keep the generator operating within safe and effective limits . | 0 |
a low pressure ( 50 to 180 bar or 80 to 180 bar or 120 to 180 bar or 80 to 120 bar ) organics extrusion press ( biorex ) recovers organics from mixed solid waste streams by applying pressure to solid waste infeed placed in an extrusion chamber in order to extrude readily digestible putrescible organics through a perforated plate . a commercial press such as a press sold by vm press or a press as shown in fig1 may be used or adapted . the extruded organics are termed “ wet fraction ” and the material that remains in the extrusion chamber is termed “ dry fraction ”. the wet fraction can be converted to renewable natural gas , electricity , and fertilizer through anaerobic digestion or composting . the dry fraction can be landfilled , recycled , or further processed to a renewable solid fuel . the infeed material can include wet commercial waste , commercial and industrial waste ( c & amp ; i ), and source separated organics ( sso ). varying processes for pre - sorting are possible , and in many cases encouraged , to remove large objects if present in the waste stream , that could obstruct the extrusion press liberate waste from bags , recovery recyclable materials , homogenize the waste stream , and concentrate organics . other pressing processes have been described for mixed municipal solid waste , where higher pressures ( i . e . 150 to 220 bar ) are applied to extract organics . in msw approximately 30 to 50 % of the material fed to the press is recovered as wet fraction for anaerobic digestion . pressures in excess of 150 bar are used to extract organics form these waste streams . in sso and c & amp ; i waste the wet fraction can be 70 to 90 or 95 %, meaning that there are less rejects and lower pressure is required to recover the organics . after sso or c & amp ; i waste extrusion at low pressure , the majority of the organics present in the incoming waste are removed as wet fraction , yet , a minority fraction of organics remain in the dry fraction . the quantity of residual organics remaining in the dry fraction depends on a number of variables including , in part , the waste composition , the bulk density of the infeed , the dimensions and geometry of the extrusion chamber , and the pressure applied to the infeed . generally , high pressure extrusion removes a larger fraction of organics from the infeed than lower pressure extrusion . for example , the low pressure extrusion is optimal for feedstocks with high fractions of food or organic waste such as sso and packaged food waste ; whereas , high pressure extrusion is optimal for dense waste streams with higher non - organic or non - readily biodegradable fractions such as residential msw or some commercial waste streams . the residual organics remaining in the dry fraction can be recovered through milling and washing . here , the dry fraction is milled under high force shearing , hammering , or pulverizing in order to dislodge material and separate residual organics from the dry fraction . for example , a hammer mill can violently dislodge organics bound to dry fraction and break large organic pieces into small particles and even a slurry . in some cases , the mill requires dilution of the dry fraction to 10 - 20 % total solids content ; the dry fraction is typically generated with 40 - 60 % total solids content . the organics can be recovered separated from the dry fraction by a screen that retains the dry fraction and permits the passage of organics driven by the hammering or other shearing force ( fig2 ). alternatively , the pulverized mixture of organics and dry fraction can pass through the mill and into a screw press that separates the organic slurry and water from the dry fraction through a screen and under relatively low pressure ( fig3 ). in either case , the retained dry fraction is washed to remove organic films and residual organics . the residual organics extracted by the mill and the dry fraction wash water are combined and amended to the bulk flow of wet fraction generated by the extrusion press . the combined flow from organics removed by the mill and the wash water from cleaning the dry fraction is a minority fraction of the bulk flow of wet fraction from the extrusion press ; the combined stream continues downstream to further processing to remove small residual inert contaminants for use in an anaerobic digester or composting . the combined low pressure system may be used to process waste streams with high organic fractions such as sso and c & amp ; i and removes the vast majority of organics larger throughput at a similar treatment level than extrusion or milling alone . in at least some cases , the combined system can achieve near complete removal of organics . a system has the highest capacity unit process upstream , and cascades to one or more lower capacity unit processes for the dry fraction . organics extraction begins with the highest capacity unit process , low pressure extrusion , which removes over 80 % or over 90 % of the organics and generates a small dry fraction . the dry fraction is then introduced into a lower capacity unit process such as a hammer mill , where residual organics are removed . in the configurations described below and shown in fig2 and 3 , sso or c & amp ; i pass through a bag opener or double screw conveyor to liberate the contents of bags and to dislodge material . then , the waste enters a press where low pressure extrusion separates a majority of the organics . dry fraction from the press enters a mill where hammering or vigorous shearing dislodges and pulverizes material . the mill may require dilution of the dry fraction stream . residual organics in the dry fraction can be separated in the mill through perforations in the mill itself ( configuration 1 ), or by a downstream screw press or other separation process ( configuration 2 ). the dry fraction exits either the mill or the screw press as a reject stream where it enters , for example , a drum washer for washing . here trace residual organics are removed . the wash water stream and the organics extracted by the mill or screw press can be combined with the wet fraction generated by the low pressure extrusion press and treated , for example by anaerobic digestion . in a first system and process , as shown in fig2 , dry fraction is milled where organics are extracted through perforations on a plate while hammered , and dry fraction rejects are discharged and polished in a wash to remove residual organics . in a second system and process , as shown in fig3 , dry fraction is milled , and milled slurry is transferred to a screw press or other separation device to extract residual organics from the dry fraction . dry fraction is discharged as press rejects and washed for final removal of trace organics . recovering organics from the dry fraction can increase yield to the anaerobic digester , reduce contamination of landfill with animal by - products , or both , relative to using a press alone . | 8 |
the following description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements . various modifications to the embodiment will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments . thus , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein . the present invention can take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment , an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment containing both hardware and software elements . in a preferred embodiment , the present invention is implemented in software , which includes but is not limited to firmware , resident software , microcode , etc . furthermore , the present invention can take the form of a computer program product accessible from a computer - usable or computer - readable medium providing program code for use by or in connection with a computer or any instruction execution system . for the purposes of this description , a computer - usable or computer readable medium can be any apparatus that can contain , store , communicate , propagate , or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system , apparatus , or device . the medium can be an electronic , magnetic , optical , electromagnetic , infrared , or semiconductor system ( or apparatus or device ) or a propagation medium . examples of a computer - readable medium include a semiconductor or solid state memory , magnetic tape , a removable computer diskette , a random access memory ( ram ), a read - only memory ( rom ), a rigid magnetic disk and an optical disk . current examples of optical disks include compact disk - read only memory ( cd - rom ), compact disk - read / write ( cd - r / w ) and dvd . a data processing system suitable for storing and / or executing program code will include at least one processor coupled directly or indirectly to memory elements through a system bus . the memory elements can include local memory employed during actual execution of the program code , bulk storage , and cache memories which provide temporary storage of at least some program code in order to reduce the number of times code must be retrieved from bulk storage during execution . input / output or i / o devices ( including but not limited to keyboards , displays , point devices , etc .) can be coupled to the system either directly or through intervening i / o controllers . network adapters may also be coupled to the system to enable the data processing system to become coupled to other data processing systems or remote printers or storage devices through intervening private or public networks . modems , cable modem and ethernet cards are just a few of the currently available types of network adapters . the flowchart and block diagrams in the figures illustrate the architecture , functionality , and operation of possible implementations of systems , methods and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention . in this regard , each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a module , segment , or portion of code , which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified local function ( s ). it should also be noted that , in some alternative implementations , the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures . for example , two blocks shown in succession may , in fact , be executed substantially concurrently , or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order , depending upon the functionality involved . it will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustration , and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustration , can be implemented by special purpose hardware - based systems that perform the specified functions or acts , or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions . the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention . as used herein , the singular forms “ a ”, “ an ” and “ the ” are intended to include the plural forms as well , unless the context clearly indicates otherwise . it will be further understood that the terms “ comprises ” and / or “ comprising ,” when used in this specification , specify the presence of stated features , integers , steps , operations , elements , and / or components , but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features , integers , steps , operations , elements , components , and / or groups thereof . fig1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a virtual application distribution chassis 300 managed by an administrative host 100 . the administrative host 100 may also be referred to herein as host 100 . administrative host 100 is a computing device with network access capabilities . as shown in fig2 , the host 100 is operationally coupled to a processor 103 , a computer readable medium 104 and a network interface 105 . the computer readable medium 104 stores computer program code executable by the processor 103 . the network interface 105 connects to data network 153 . examples of network interface 105 include ethernet , wifi , mobile network interface , bluetooth , wimax , digital subscriber line ( dsl ), cable interface , broadband network interfaces such as t 1 or t 3 , optical network interfaces , wireless network interfaces or other data network interfaces . in one embodiment , host 100 is a workstation , a desktop personal computer or a laptop personal computer . in one embodiment , host 100 is a personal data assistant ( pda ), a smartphone , a tablet , or a cellular phone . in fig1 , the virtual application distribution chassis 300 includes a plurality of blades such as blade 310 , blade 312 , blade 314 and blade 316 . each blade , for example blade 310 , as illustrated in fig2 , is operationally coupled to a processor 303 , a computer readable medium 304 and a network interface 305 . the computer readable medium 304 stores computer readable program code , which when executed by the processor 303 , implements the various exemplary embodiments as described herein . returning to fig1 , in one embodiment , virtual application distribution chassis 300 implements at least a network application 350 , such as a server load balancing application , an application delivery controlling application , a service delivery application , a traffic managing application , a security gateway application , a component of a firewall system , a component of a virtual private network ( vpn ), a load balancer for video servers , or a service gateway to distribute load to a plurality of servers . the network application 350 is implemented by one or more blades of virtual application distribution chassis 300 . in one embodiment , the network application 350 is implemented by all the blades of virtual application distribution chassis 300 . in one embodiment , the network application 350 is implemented by one or more , but not all , blades of virtual application distribution chassis 300 . the network interface 305 ( fig2 ) connects to data network 153 . in fig1 , blades 310 , 312 , 314 , 316 form the virtual application distribution chassis 300 through their connections to the data network 151 . in one embodiment , data network 151 connects virtual application distribution chassis 300 to data network 153 . in one embodiment , data network 151 includes data network 153 . in one embodiment , data network 151 resides in a data center , spans across multiple data centers over a wide area network such as optical network , or spreads over multiple buildings in a campus area network . blade 310 includes storage 306 ( fig2 ) to store various data necessary for the execution of the program code stored in the computer readable medium 304 , as well as other data . in one embodiment , storage 306 includes a memory module , a hard disk , a solid state disk , a flash memory module , a dynamic memory module , a memory cache , or a removable memory module , such as a removable hard disk or flash memory drive . assume that blade 310 is the master blade of the virtual application distribution chassis 300 . master blade 310 additionally includes management interface 307 , as illustrated in fig2 . master blade 310 uses management interface 307 to communicate with administrative host 100 . management interface 307 is a network interface connecting to data network 153 . in one embodiment , network interface 305 and management interface 307 reside on the same network card . in one embodiment , management interface 307 resides in a different network card from network interface 305 . in fig1 , administrative host 100 sends a configuration command 113 to master blade 310 using data network 153 . master blade 310 receives the configuration command 113 over management interface 307 . in this embodiment , configuration command 113 is applied to configure one or more blades of virtual application distribution chassis 300 . for example , configuration command 113 configures network interface of blade 314 such as setting up an ethernet address , an ip address , of an ethernet port of blade 314 . in another example , configuration command 113 configures a buffer size in the network interface of blade 312 . in another embodiment , configuration command 113 is applied to configure a network application 350 of virtual application distribution chassis 300 . for example , the network application 350 is a server load balancing application , and configuration command 113 sets up a server load balancer policy for a server . in one example , the network application 350 is a network traffic management application , and configuration command 113 configures a quality of service parameters for the traffic management application . in another example , the network application 350 is a vpn firewall application , and configuration command 113 configures a company user account for the vpn access . in another example , the network application 350 is a high availability service for another network application , and configuration command 113 configures the high availability service . in one embodiment , the network application configuration command 113 applies to all the blades , when the network application 350 is implemented by all the blades . in one embodiment , the network application configuration command 113 applies to one or more of the blades implementing the network application 350 . data network 153 connects the host 100 and the virtual application distribution chassis 300 , also referred to as virtual cluster system 300 . in various embodiments , data network 153 is an internet protocol ( ip ) network , a corporate data network , a regional corporate data network , an internet service provider network , or a residential data network . data network 153 includes a wired network such as ethernet , and / or a wireless network such as a wifi network , or cellular network . data network 151 connects virtual cluster system 300 to data network 153 . in one embodiment , data network 151 resides in a data center , spans across multiple data centers over a wide area network such as optical network , or spreads over multiple buildings in a campus area network . fig3 illustrates connectivity of the blades of an embodiment of a virtual application distribution chassis according to the present invention . in this embodiment , blade 310 is a separate piece of hardware from the other blades . blade 310 connects to the other blades 312 , 314 , and 316 over data network 151 . in one embodiment , data network 151 includes a plurality of network switches such as switch 414 , switch 412 and switch 416 . network switch 412 or network switch 414 is a networking device connecting a plurality of blades and network switches . in one embodiment , switch 412 is an ethernet switch , an ip router , an optical network switch , wan network equipment , an atm switch , a mpls switch , a layer - 2 network switch / hub / bridge , or a layer - 3 network switch / router . in the embodiment illustrated in fig3 , switch 412 connects blade 312 , blade 310 and switch 416 ; switch 414 connects blades 314 , blade 316 and switch 416 . in this embodiment , blade 312 communicates with blade 310 using switch 412 , and with blade 316 using switches 412 , 416 , and 414 . in one embodiment , switches 412 , 414 , and 416 reside in a same physical location , such as a data center . in one embodiment , switches 412 , 414 , and 416 reside in different locations , such as in two or more data centers . assume that in this embodiment , blades 310 , 312 , 314 and 316 reside in different data centers . blade 310 communicates with the other blades by sending and receiving a virtual cluster system ( vcs ) message 500 . in one embodiment blade 310 sends virtual cluster system message 500 using a broadcast network address such as an ethernet broadcast address . in one embodiment , virtual cluster system message 500 uses a multicast address , such as an ethernet multicast address , an ip multicast address , or other multicast network address . in one embodiment , blade 310 establishes a communication session ( not shown ) with blade 312 and sends virtual cluster system message 500 to blade 312 using the communication session . blade 310 establishes a separate communication session with each of the other blades to send virtual cluster system message 500 to the other blades . examples of the communication session include an udp session , a tcp session , an ip - based communication session , a peer - to - peer communication session , a unicast communication session or other form of data communication session . in one embodiment , blade 310 receives virtual cluster system message 500 using a broadcast , a multicast address or a communication session with blade 312 or one of the other blades . in one embodiment , blade 310 sends and receives a configuration message 502 which is a type of virtual cluster system message 500 . configuration message 502 communicates a configuration command 113 to the receiving blades . the configuration command 113 in the configuration message 502 may be the actual configuration command sent by the host 100 , or may instead be a command which implements the host &# 39 ; s configuration command at the receiving slave blade . fig4 illustrates virtual application distribution chassis 300 processing a configuration command 113 according to an embodiment of the present invention . administrative host 100 sends configuration command 113 to virtual cluster system 300 . master blade 310 of virtual cluster system 300 receives configuration command 113 from administrative host 100 ( 800 ). master blade 310 determines that configuration command 113 is to be applied by one or more slave blades . for purposes of illustration , assume that master blade 310 determines that configuration command 113 is to be applied by slave blade 314 ( 801 ). in one embodiment , administrative host 100 specifies an identity of blade 314 in configuration command 113 . in one scenario , configuration command 113 is a configuration of a network interface of blade 314 . administrative host 100 includes blade 314 identity in configuration command 113 . master blade 310 determines that the configuration command 113 is to be applied by blade 314 from the blade 314 identity in configuration command 113 . in one embodiment , configuration command 113 includes an identity of the network interface . master blade 310 determines that the configuration command 113 is to be applied by blade 314 using the network interface identity in configuration command 113 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 stores in storage 306 a plurality of network interface identities and identities of the blades in virtual application distribution chassis 300 , where each network interface identity is associated with a blade identity . master blade 310 matches the network interface identity with the plurality of network interface identities in storage 306 . master blade 310 obtains the blade identity of the matching network interface in the storage module 306 . in one embodiment , configuration command 113 applies to network application 350 which is to be applied by all of the blades implementing network application 350 . master blade 310 determines based on configuration command 113 that all of these blades are to apply the configuration command 113 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 stores in storage 306 a plurality of configuration commands which are applicable to all of these blades . master blade 310 matches configuration command 113 with one or more of the plurality of configuration commands in storage 306 and determines that the configuration command 113 is to be applied by all of these blades . for this embodiment , the processing of the configuration command 113 by the master blade 310 with blade 314 is repeated for each of the other blades of the virtual application distribution chassis 300 . in one embodiment , configuration command 113 includes an identity of blade 314 and a configuration for network application 350 . master blade 310 determines that the configuration command 113 is to be applied by blade 314 based on the blade 314 identity from configuration command 113 . in response to determining that the configuration command 113 is to be applied by blade 314 , master blade 310 sends a configuration message 502 to slave blade 314 ( 804 ). in various embodiments , master blade 310 includes configuration command 113 in configuration message 502 . the configuration message 502 is delivered to slave blade 314 is as described above with reference to fig3 . slave blade 314 receives configuration message 502 and retrieves configuration command 113 ( 816 ). slave blade 314 applies a configuration or change according to configuration command 113 ( 818 ). configuration command 113 may apply to the network interface 314 b of slave blade 314 or an implementation of a network application 314 a by slave blade 314 . after slave blade 314 completes the application of the configuration command 113 , slave blade 314 replies to master blade 310 ( 819 ). slave blade 314 sends a reply configuration message 503 as a response to master blade 310 to indicate that the configuration command 113 has been applied by blade 314 . master blade 310 receives the reply configuration message 503 in step 807 from slave blade 314 ( 807 ). fig5 illustrates a master blade updating a configuration file after processing a configuration command according to an embodiment of the present invention . master blade 310 includes storage 306 . storage 306 includes a most recent configuration file 330 . configuration file 330 includes a plurality of configuration commands recently received and processed by virtual application distribution chassis 300 . upon completing processing configuration command 113 , master blade 310 updates configuration file 330 to configuration file 331 , which includes configuration commands of configuration file 330 and configuration command 113 . configuration file 331 is more recent than configuration file 330 . in various embodiments , master blade 310 replaces configuration file 330 with configuration file 331 , or archives configuration file 330 to a different location in storage 306 . for example , master blade 310 changes the file name of configuration file 330 . configuration file 331 becomes the most recent configuration file . in order to distinguish configuration file 331 as more recent than configuration file 330 , configuration file 330 includes a tag 340 . master blade 310 puts a tag 341 different from tag 340 in configuration file 331 . tag 341 indicates that configuration file 331 is more recent than configuration file 330 . in one embodiment , tag 341 is a time stamp . tag 341 is a time stamp when master blade 310 creates configuration file 331 . tag 341 is a time stamp later than tag 340 , and therefore indicates configuration file 331 is more recent than configuration file 330 . in this embodiment , master blade 310 includes a clock ( not shown ). master blade 310 obtains the current time from the clock and uses the current time as the time stamp for tag 341 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 obtains the current time after receiving the response from slave blade 314 as described above with reference to fig4 . in one embodiment , tag 341 is a number . tag 341 is a number larger than tag 340 to indicate configuration file 331 is more recent than configuration file 330 . for example , tag 341 is an integer , and tag 341 is one larger than tag 340 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 obtains tag 340 from configuration file 330 and calculates tag 341 by adding one to tag 340 . in one embodiment , tag 341 is a revision number . master blade 310 obtains tag 340 from configuration file 330 and calculates a newer revision number based on tag 340 . master blade 310 puts the newer revision number as tag 341 . after master blade 310 creates configuration file 331 , master blade 310 informs the slave blades of configuration file 331 in order to synchronize configuration file 331 with the configuration files stored locally by the slave blades . master blade 310 sends a configuration message 505 to slave blades 312 , 314 and 316 to inform them of configuration file 331 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 includes tag 341 in configuration message 505 . slave blades 312 , 314 and 316 receives configuration message 505 and retrieves tag 341 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 includes configuration file 331 in configuration message 505 . fig6 illustrates a master blade synchronizing an updated configuration file with a slave blade according to an embodiment of the present invention . master blade 310 sends configuration message 505 to slave blade 312 . slave blade 312 receives configuration message 505 and retrieves tag 341 from configuration message 505 . slave blade 312 includes storage 413 . in one embodiment , storage 413 includes configuration file 330 being the most recent configuration file that slave blade 312 had obtained from a master blade . configuration file 330 in storage 413 includes tag 340 . upon retrieving tag 341 from configuration message 505 , slave blade 312 obtains tag 340 from configuration file 330 in storage 413 . slave blade 312 compares tag 340 and tag 341 , and determines that tag 341 is more recent than tag 340 . thus , slave blade 312 determines that there is a more recent configuration file 331 than configuration file 330 in storage 413 . in one embodiment , configuration message 505 does not include tag 341 . upon receiving configuration message 505 , slave blade 312 sends a request configuration message to master blade 310 for tag 341 , and master blade 310 responds with tag 341 using another configuration message . in response to determining that tag 341 is more recent than tag 340 , slave blade 312 sends a request configuration message 507 to master blade 310 to request a configuration file . in one embodiment , slave blade 312 places tag 341 in request configuration message 507 . master blade 310 receives the request configuration message 507 and retrieves tag 341 . master blade 310 finds a match of tag 341 from configuration message 507 against tag 341 from configuration file 331 in storage 306 . master blade 310 sends configuration file 331 to blade 312 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 sends configuration file 331 in a configuration message 509 to slave blade 312 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 sends configuration file 331 using a separate file transfer communication session with slave blade 312 . in one embodiment , request configuration message 507 does not include tag 341 . after receiving request configuration message 507 , master blade 310 automatically sends the most recent configuration file , say configuration file 331 , to slave blade 312 . after receiving configuration file 331 from configuration message 509 or a file transfer communication session , slave blade 312 stores configuration file 331 and tag 341 into storage 413 of blade 312 . in various embodiments , slave blade 312 replaces configuration file 330 by configuration file 331 , or stores configuration file 330 in a different location or using a different file name in storage 413 . configuration file 331 becomes the most recent configuration file for slave blade 312 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 has a configuration file more recent than configuration file 331 . for example , between the sending of the configuration message 505 by the master blade 310 and the sending of the reply configuration message 507 by the slave blade 312 , another configuration command may have been received from the host 100 , resulting in a further configuration change . in this case , master blade 310 sends the more recent configuration file to slave blade 312 , despite the fact that slave blade 312 asked for configuration file 331 corresponding to tag 341 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 sends configuration message 502 about tag 341 more than once . in this way , slave blade 312 will receive at least one copy of the configuration message 502 in case slave blade 312 fails to receive the other copies of configuration message 502 . in one embodiment , master blade 310 sends configuration message 502 periodically , such as once every 30 seconds , 1 second , 5 minutes , or 100 milliseconds . fig7 illustrates a new slave blade synchronizing a configuration file in the process of joining the virtual application distribution chassis according to an embodiment of the present invention . slave blade 316 , a blade of virtual application distribution chassis 300 , re - joins virtual application distribution chassis 300 . slave blade 316 may have failed while master blade 310 was processing configuration command 113 . slave blade 316 becomes available and re - joins virtual application distribution chassis 300 . slave blade 316 includes storage 417 with the configuration file 330 stored in the storage 417 . in one embodiment , slave blade 316 obtains configuration file 330 as the most recent configuration file received earlier from a master blade such as master blade 310 . slave blade 316 retrieves configuration file 330 from storage 417 and applies the plurality of configuration commands in configuration file 330 . slave blade 316 joins virtual application distribution chassis 300 with a blade configuration associated to configuration file 330 . slave blade 316 receives configuration message 505 from master blade 310 , and retrieves tag 341 from configuration message 505 . slave blade 316 compares tag 341 with tag 340 of configuration file 330 in storage 417 . slave blade 316 determines tag 341 is more recent than tag 340 . slave blade 316 obtains configuration file 331 from master blade 310 , as described above with reference to fig6 . once slave blade 316 obtains configuration file 331 , slave blade 316 applies configuration commands in configuration file 331 . in one embodiment , slave blade 316 resets itself to clear the configuration based on configuration file 330 . after slave blade 316 is reset , slave blade 316 finds configuration file 331 in storage module 416 and applies configuration commands in configuration file 331 . in one embodiment , slave blade 316 applies configuration commands in configuration file 331 without clearing the configuration based on the configuration commands in configuration file 330 . in one embodiment , slave blade 316 undoes configuration commands based on configuration file 330 , and applies configuration commands in configuration file 331 . after slave blade 316 applies configuration commands in configuration file 331 , slave blade 316 rejoins virtual application distribution chassis 300 . when slave blade 316 receives configuration message 502 and obtains tag 341 from configuration message 505 , slave blade 316 compares tag 341 of configuration message 505 with tag 341 from configuration file 331 in storage module 416 . slave blade 316 determines the two tags are the same and configuration file 331 is the most recent configuration file indicated by master blade 310 . although the present invention has been described in accordance with the embodiments shown , one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that there could be variations to the embodiments and those variations would be within the spirit and scope of the present invention . accordingly , many modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims . | 7 |
fig1 is a block diagram of a first embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig1 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering a sequence of data values of an input digital signal , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on the output data values produced from the reordering unit 1 , 3 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 30 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 3 by a fixed delay time , and 6 denotes a selector unit for selecting an output data value from the delay unit 30 , an output data value from a multiplier 32 , or an output data value from an adder 34 . numeral 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on the output data values produced from the selector unit 6 , 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 8 by a fixed delay time , and 11 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values produced from the multiplier 32 , outputs produced from the adder 34 , or outputs produced from the delay unit 35 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on the outputs produced from the selector unit 11 , 36 denotes a delay unit for delaying the outputs produced from the butterfly unit 12 , and 37 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data value data values produced from the delay unit 36 or output data value data values produced from the multiplier 32 . numeral 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the selector unit 37 to obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values produced from the reordering unit 3 , output data values produced from the reordering unit 8 , or output data values produced from the butterfly unit 12 . numeral 32 denotes the aforementioned multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 , 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting one set of signals from the output data values of the reordering unit 3 or from the output data values of the reordering unit 8 . numeral 34 denotes the aforementioned adder , for executing addition of output data values produced from the selector unit 33 . the block diagram of fig1 is intended as a conceptual diagram , for describing the embodiment , and for that reason various system blocks in that diagram are referred to as &# 34 ; units &# 34 ;. however in an actual practical embodiment in accordance with fig1 the respective functions of the various the selector units and the delay units is preferably implemented by a memory and by memory control means for controlling the memory such as to execute write and read operations as required to execute a selection or a delay function . that is to say , a data value is subjected to a specific delay by writing that value into the memory and subsequently reading the value out of memory after a specific integral number of sample periods has elapsed . similarly , to select one of a plurality of data values produced from respective system blocks , these data values are written beforehand into memory , and selection is executed by reading out the data value that is to be selected . thus , although the delay and selection functions are shown as being executed separately in fig1 these can of course be implemented in combination , by such use of a memory and memory control circuit . the operation of the orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention having the configuration described above is as follows . in fig1 blocks which have the same operation as blocks in fig8 or fig1 are indicated by corresponding reference numerals . firstly , the case will be described in which an orthogonal transform is to be executed which is as shown by the signal flow chart of fig7 . in fig7 there are 8 actual multiplications to be executed for one orthogonal transform operation . the multiplier 32 of fig1 is capable of executing one multiplication in one sample period , so that all of the multiplication processing can be executed by time division multiplex operation of the multiplier 32 , based on control of the aforementioned selector units 6 , 31 etc . also in fig7 addition operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) are executed five times in each orthogonal transform operation , so that since the adder 34 is used to execute one addition in one sample period , all of the addition processing can be executed by time division multiplex operation of the adder 34 . in that way , the multiplier 32 executes multiplication processing in place of the multipliers 4 , 9 and 13 of fig8 and the adder 34 executes addition processing in place of the adders 5 and 10 of fig8 while the selector unit 31 and selector unit 33 execute data selection as required by the time division multiplex operation of the multiplier 32 and adder 34 . the delay units 30 , 35 and 36 function to ensure that respective data values that are transferred through each delay unit will be outputted at the appropriate time to be supplied to the corresponding one of the selector units 6 , 11 or 37 , as required for correctly executing the algorthm shown in fig7 . the timing of operations for the embodiment of fig1 can be similar to that shown in the timing chart of fig1 . however whereas with the prior art orthogonal transform apparatus of fig8 it is possible for two multiplication operations by respective ones of the multipliers to take place within the same sample period , that is of course impossible with the embodiment of fig1 so that for example it would be necessary to modify the timing relationships shown in fig1 so that these multiplications do not occur in parallel . the same is also true for the addition operations executed by the adder 34 . as described hereinabove , in a practical apparatus each of the selector units and each of the delay units can be implemented by the operation of a memory in conjunction with a memory control circuit , so that the incorporation of the selector units 33 , 31 , delay unit 30 , etc . in the apparatus of fig1 do not significantly affect the reduction of scale of hardware that is achieved by eliminating two adders and two multipliers by comparison with the prior art apparatus of fig8 . as a result , the orthogonal transform apparatus of fig1 provides the same operational results as are achieved by the prior art orthogonal transform apparatus of fig8 but with only a single multiplier and a single adder ( other than those required to execute the butterfly operations ) being required . considering now the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig1 , in this case there are four actual multiplication operations and two addition operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) in an orthogonal transform . comparing the orthogonal transform apparatus of fig8 with fig1 ( i . e . with the prior art orthogonal transform apparatus described hereinabove for realizing the orthogonal transform of fig1 ) the multiplier 4 , the adder 5 and the selector unit 6 of fig8 are not present in the apparatus of fig1 . that is to say , the apparatus of fig1 can be considered as being arrived at by removing these blocks 4 , 5 and 6 from the apparatus of fig8 and supplying the output from the reordering unit 3 directly to the butterfly unit 7 . thus it will be clear that , as for the orthogonal transform of the signal flow chart of fig7 the orthogonal transform of fig1 can also be realized by the orthogonal transform apparatus shown in fig1 . thus with the embodiment of fig1 an orthogonal transform apparatus can be realized for executing a 1 - dimensional 8 points cosine transform by using the algorithm shown in fig7 and also for executing a 2 - dimensional cosine transform made up of a 2 points cosine transform and a 4 points cosine transform , by using the algorithm shown in fig1 . the apparatus of fig1 achieves that by using only 3 butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single adder , and five selector units . in the orthogonal transforms of fig7 and 11 , respectively different values of operation timings are required for the reordering , addition , multiplication , and selection operations that implement the processing algorithm for each orthogonal transform . in addition , the respective apparatus configurations shown in fig8 and 12 differ as described hereinabove , so that to convert from the apparatus of fig8 to that of fig1 it is necessary to remove the multiplier 4 , the adder 5 and the selector unit 6 of fig8 and supply the output from the reordering unit 3 directly to the butterfly unit 7 . in fig1 the various system blocks are respectively designed such as to respond to an changeover control signal 100 , which is supplied from an external source ( not shown in the drawings ), by establishing appropriate operation timings and system configuration for executing the algorithm of fig7 when the signal 100 is in a first condition , and by establishing appropriate operation timings and system configuration for executing the algorithm of fig1 when the signal 100 is in a second condition . the values of the multiplication coefficients are of course also altered in accordance with the algorithm which is to be executed , in response to these two conditions of the changeover control signal 100 . thus , the embodiment of fig1 can be selectively set to execute either of the two algorithms of fig7 and 11 , by means of the changeover control signal 100 . fig2 is a block diagram of a second embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig2 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the input signals , 40 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 1 , 41 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the delay unit 40 or output data values from a multiplier 32 , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values from the selector unit 41 , 3 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 30 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 3 , and 6 denotes a selector unit for selecting the output data values from the delay unit 30 or output data values from the multiplier 32 or output data values from a subtractor 42 . numeral 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit 6 , 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 8 , 11 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the multiplier 32 , output data values from the subtractor 42 , or output data values from the delay unit 35 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit 11 , and 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 12 to obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the reordering unit 1 , output data values from the reordering unit 3 , or output data values from the reordering unit 8 . numeral 32 denotes the aforementioned multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 , 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the reordering unit 3 or output data values from the reordering unit 8 . numeral 42 denotes the aforementioned subtractor for subtracting output data values produced from the multiplier 32 from output data values produced from the selector unit 33 . with an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention having the configuration of fig2 the operation is as follows . units which have identical operation to units in fig1 or 14 are designated by corresponding reference numerals . firstly , the operation will be described for the case of the orthogonal transform that is shown in the signal flow chart of fig9 . in fig9 a total of 8 actual multiplication operations are executed for a single orthogonal transform . thus , by using a multiplier 32 in the embodiment of fig2 which is capable of one multiplication in one sample period , that multiplier can execute all of the multiplication processing by time sharing operation . furthermore in the case of fig9 the number of subtraction operations ( other than those of butterfly operation ) is five , so that by using a subtractor which can execute one subtraction within one sample period , all of the subtraction operations can be executed by time sharing operation . in that way , the multiplier 32 of the embodiment of fig2 performs all of the actual multiplications in place of the multipliers 4 , 9 and 21 of the orthogonal transform apparatus of fig1 , the subtractor 42 executes all of the subtraction operations ( other than those of butterfly operations ) in place of the subtractors 22 and 23 of fig1 , and the selectors 31 and 33 execute data selection in accordance with time division multiplex operation of the multiplier 32 and subtractor 42 . as a result , the same operation as that of the orthogonal transform apparatus of fig1 can be achieved , i . e . the algorithm of fig9 for the 8 points inverse cosine transform can be executed . considering the orthogonal transform of fig1 , there are four actual multiplication operations and one subtraction operation ( other than butterfly operation processing ) to be executed for one orthogonal transform . comparing fig1 with the block diagram of fig1 , which is prior art orthogonal transform apparatus described hereinabove for realizing the orthogonal transform of fig1 , it can be seen that in fig1 the multiplier 9 , the subtractor 23 and the selector unit 11 of fig1 are omitted from the apparatus of fig1 . thus , as for the orthogonal transform of the signal flow chart of fig9 the orthogonal transform apparatus of fig2 can execute the algorithm shown in the signal flow chart of fig1 for the 2 - dimensional inverse cosine transform consisting of a 2 points inverse cosine transform and a 4 points inverse cosine transform . as described in the above , the embodiment of fig2 enables an orthogonal transform apparatus to be realized which is capable of executing either of the two orthogonal transforms that are shown in the signal flow charts of fig9 and 13 respectively , by using a total of three butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single adder , and five selector units . in the orthogonal transforms of fig9 and 13 , respectively different values of operation timings are required for the reordering , subtraction , multiplication , and selection operations that implement the processing algorithm for each orthogonal transform . in fig2 as described hereinabove for the embodiment of fig1 the various system blocks are respectively configured to respond to the changeover control signal 100 by establishing appropriate operation timings for the algorithm which is to be executed , and also by altering the values of the multiplication coefficients as required for the algorithm which is to be executed , in accordance with whether the signal 100 is set to a first or a second condition thereof . thus when the signal 100 is set to its first condition , the apparatus of fig2 is configured to execute the algorithm of fig9 and with signal 100 set to its second condition the apparatus is configured to execute the algorithm of fig1 . fig3 is a block diagram of a third embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig3 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the input signals , 40 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 1 , 41 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the delay unit 40 or output data values from a multiplier 32 , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values from the selector unit 41 , 3 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 30 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 3 , and 6 denotes a selector unit for selecting the output data values from the delay unit 30 or output data values from the multiplier 32 or output data values from an adder / subtractor 50 . numeral 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit 6 , 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the reordering unit 8 , 11 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the multiplier 32 , output data values from the adder / subtractor 50 , or output data values from the delay unit 35 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit 11 , 36 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 12 , 37 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the delay unit 36 or output data values from the multiplier 32 , and 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the selector unit 37 to obtain obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the reordering unit 1 , output data values from the reordering unit 3 , or output data values from the reordering unit 8 . numeral 32 denotes the aforementioned multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 , 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting output data values from the reordering unit 3 or output data values from the reordering unit 8 , or output data values from the multiplier 32 , and for outputting one set of data from the selected output data values . numeral 50 denotes the aforementioned adder / subtractor for addition and subtraction of output data values produced from the selector unit 33 . the embodiment of fig3 constitutes an orthogonal transform apparatus which is capable of realizing each of the four different types of orthogonal transform algorithms that are shown in fig7 , 11 and 13 respectively . with this embodiment , by comparison with the embodiment of fig1 the delay unit 40 and the selector unit 41 are added , and the adder / subtractor 50 replaces the adder 34 . it will be clear from the description given hereinabove of the embodiments of fig1 and 2 that this embodiment can execute each of the the orthogonal transform algorithms of fig7 and 11 by time division multiplex operation of the adder / subtractor 50 as an adder . furthermore with this embodiment , by comparison with the embodiment of fig2 the delay unit 36 and selector unit 37 are added , and the adder / subtractor 50 replaces the subtractor 42 . thus , it will be apparent that this embodiment can also execute processing for each of the orthogonal transform algorithms of fig9 and 13 respectively by time division multiplex operation of the adder / subtractor 50 as a subtractor . in the orthogonal transform algorithms of of fig7 , 11 and 13 , respectively different values of operation timings are required for the reordering , addition , subtraction , multiplication , and selection operations that implement the processing algorithm for each orthogonal transform . in fig3 the control signal 100 can take four respectively different conditions , and the various system blocks are respectively configured to respond to the changeover control signal 100 by establishing appropriate operation timings for the algorithm which is to be executed , and also by altering the values of the multiplication coefficients , as required for the algorithm which is to be executed . that is to say , with the changeover control signal 100 set at a first condition , the apparatus of fig3 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig7 with signal 100 set at a second condition the apparatus of fig3 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig9 with signal 100 set at a third condition the apparatus of fig3 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig1 , and with signal 100 set at a fourth condition the apparatus of fig3 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig1 , as described in the above , the third embodiment of the invention can realize each of the four types of orthogonal transforms of fig7 , 11 and 13 respectively , by using three butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single adder / subtractor , and five selector units . fig4 is a block diagram of a fourth embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig4 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the input signals , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values from the reordering unit 1 , 30 denotes a delay unit for applying a fixed delay to outputs produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 17 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the delay unit 30 or an output produced from a selector unit 60 . numeral 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 17 , 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit reordering unit 8 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 by a fixed amount , 18 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from a selector unit 61 or an output produced from the delay unit 35 , and 20 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 18 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the reordering unit 20 , 36 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 12 , 19 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the delay unit 36 or an outputs produced from multiplier 32 , and 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the selector unit 19 to obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output from the butterfly unit 2 , the output from the butterfly unit 7 , or the output from the butterfly unit 12 . numeral 32 denotes a multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 by predetermined coefficients , and 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output from the butterfly unit 2 , or the output from the butterfly unit 7 . 34 denotes an adder for executing addition processing of one set of data that are outputted from the selector unit 33 . 60 denotes a selector unit , for selecting either the output of the adder 34 or the output from the multiplier 32 , 61 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output of the adder 34 or the output from the multiplier 32 . in fig4 units having identical operation to units shown in fig8 or fig1 are designated by corresponding reference numerals . the operation for executing the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig7 will first be described . in fig7 there are 8 actual multiplications executed for one orthogonal transform operation . the multiplier 32 is capable of executing one multiplication within one sample period , so that all of the multiplication processing can be executed by time sharing operation . also in fig7 addition operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) are executed five times for one orthogonal transform operation , so that since the adder 34 can execute one addition within one sample period , all of the addition processing can be executed by time sharing operation of the adder 34 . in that way , the multiplier 32 executes multiplication processing in place of the multipliers 4 , 9 and 13 of fig8 the adder 34 executes addition processing in place of the adders 5 and 10 of fig8 and the selector unit 31 and selector unit 33 execute data selection by time sharing processing so that the same operation can achieved as that of the system of fig8 . considering the orthogonal transform that is shown in the signal flow chart of fig1 there are four actual multiplication operations and two addition operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) in one orthogonal transform operation . comparing fig8 with fig1 , i . e . with the prior art orthogonal transform apparatus for realizing the orthogonal transform of fig1 , the multiplier 4 , the adder 5 and the selector unit 6 of fig1 are eliminated in the apparatus of fig1 . thus , as for the orthogonal transform algorithm of the signal flow chart of fig7 the algorithm of fig1 can also be realized by the orthogonal transform apparatus shown in fig4 . hence by using the above embodiment , with three butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single adder , and five selector units , each of the orthogonal transform algorithms shown in fig7 and 11 can be realized . in the algorithms of fig7 and 11 , respectively different values of - operation timings are required for the reordering , subtraction , multiplication , and selection operations that implement the processing algorithm for each orthogonal transform . in fig4 the various system blocks are respectively configured to respond to the changeover control signal 100 by establishing appropriate operation timings for the algorithm which is to be executed , and also by altering the values of the multiplication coefficients as required for that algorithm , in accordance with whether the control signal 100 is set to a first or a second condition thereof . that is to say , when the signal 100 is set to its first condition , the apparatus of fig4 is configured to execute the algorithm of fig7 and with signal 100 set to its second condition the apparatus is configured to execute the algorithm of fig1 . fig5 is a block diagram of a fifth embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig5 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the input signals , 40 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output from the reordering unit 1 by a fixed time delay , 45 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output from the delay unit 40 or an output from a multiplier 32 , 3 denotes a reordering unit for reordering outputs produced from the selector unit 45 , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values from the reordering unit 3 , 30 denotes a delay unit for applying a fixed delay to outputs produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 17 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the delay unit 30 or an output produced from a selector unit 60 . numeral 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 17 , 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the selector unit reordering unit 8 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 by a fixed amount , 18 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from a selector unit 61 or an output produced from a delay unit 35 , and 20 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 18 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the reordering unit 20 , and 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 12 to obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the reordering unit 1 , and output produced from the butterfly unit 2 , an output produced from the butterfly unit 7 , or an output numeral 32 denotes a multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 by predetermined coefficients , and 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output from the butterfly unit 2 or the output from the butterfly unit 7 . 42 denotes a subtractor for executing subtraction of an output produced from the multiplier 32 with respect to an output produced from the selector unit 33 . 60 denotes a selector unit , for selecting either the output of the subtractor 42 or the output from the multiplier 32 , 61 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output of the subtractor 42 or the output from the multiplier 32 in fig5 units having identical operation to units shown in fig1 or fig1 are designated by corresponding reference numerals . the operation for executing the orthogonal transform of fig9 will first be described . in fig9 there are 8 actual multiplications executed for one orthogonal transform operation . the multiplier 32 is capable of executing one multiplication within one sample period , so that all of the multiplication processing can be executed by time sharing operation . also in fig9 subtraction operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) are executed five times for one orthogonal transform operation , so that since the subtractor 42 can execute one subtraction within one sample period , all of the subtractor processing can be executed by time sharing operation of the subtractor 42 . in that way , the multiplier 32 executes multiplication processing in place of the multipliers 4 , 9 and 21 of fig1 , the subtractor 42 executes subtraction processing in place of the subtractors 22 and 23 of fig1 , and the selector units 31 and 33 execute data selection by time sharing processing so that exactly the same operation can achieved as that of the system of fig1 . considering the orthogonal transform that is shown in the signal flow chart of fig1 there are four actual multiplication operations and two subtraction operations ( other than those of the butterfly operation ) in one orthogonal transform operation . comparing the apparatus of fig1 ( for realizing the orthogonal transform of fig1 ) with fig1 , i . e . with the prior art orthogonal transform apparatus for realizing the orthogonal transform of fig9 the multiplier 9 , the subtractor 23 and the selector unit 11 of fig1 are eliminated in the apparatus of fig1 . thus , as for the orthogonal transform of the signal flow chart of fig9 the orthogonal transform of fig1 can also be realized by the orthogonal transform apparatus shown in fig5 . hence by using the above embodiment of fig5 having three butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single subtractor , and seven selector units , an orthogonal transform apparatus which can execute each of the orthogonal transforms shown in fig9 and 13 can be realized . in fig5 the various system blocks are respectively configured to respond to the changeover control signal 100 by establishing appropriate operation timings for the algorithm which is to be executed , and also by altering the values of the multiplication coefficients as required for that algorithm , in accordance with whether the changeover control signal 100 is set to a first or a second condition . that is , when the signal 100 is set to its first condition , the apparatus of fig5 is configured to execute the algorithm of fig9 and with signal 100 set to its second condition the apparatus is configured to execute the algorithm of fig1 . fig6 is a block diagram of a sixth embodiment of an orthogonal transform apparatus according to the present invention . in fig6 numeral 1 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the input signals , 40 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output from the reordering unit 1 by a fixed time delay , 45 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output from the delay unit 40 or an output from a multiplier 32 , 3 denotes a reordering unit for reordering outputs produced from the selector unit 45 , 2 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values from the reordering unit 3 , 30 denotes a delay unit for applying a fixed delay to outputs produced from the butterfly unit 2 , 17 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the delay unit 30 or an output produced from a selector unit 60 . numeral 8 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 17 , 7 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the reordering unit 8 , 35 denotes a delay unit for delaying the output data values produced from the butterfly unit 7 by a fixed amount , 18 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the selector unit 61 or an output produced from a delay unit 35 , and 20 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the outputs produced from the selector unit 18 . numeral 12 denotes a butterfly unit for executing butterfly operation on output data values produced from the reordering unit 20 . numeral 31 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an output produced from the reordering unit 1 , an output produced from the butterfly unit 2 , an output produced from the butterfly unit 7 , or an output produced from the butterfly unit 12 . numeral 32 denotes a multiplier for multiplication of output data values produced from the selector unit 31 by predetermined coefficients , and 33 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output from the butterfly unit 2 or the output from the butterfly unit 7 . 50 denotes the adder / subtractor , for executing addition or subtraction of an output produced from a selector unit 62 with respect to an output produced from the selector unit 33 . 60 denotes a selector unit , for selecting either the output of the adder / subtractor 50 or the output from the multiplier 32 , 61 denotes a selector unit for selecting either the output of the adder / subtractor 50 or the output from the multiplier 32 , and selector unit 62 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an outputs produced from selector unit 31 or an outputs produced from multiplier 32 . 36 denotes a delay unit for delaying an outputs produced from butterfly unit 12 by a fixed amount , 19 denotes a selector unit for selecting either an outputs produced from delay unit 36 or an outputs produced from multiplier 32 , and 14 denotes a reordering unit for reordering the output data values produced from the selector unit 19 to obtain an output digital signal consisting of orthogonally transformed data values . this embodiment is capable of realizing the four different orthogonal transform algorithms which are shown respectively in the signal flow charts of fig7 , 11 and 13 . in the embodiment of fig6 by comparison with the embodiment of fig4 the delay unit 40 and the selector units 45 and 62 are added , and the adder / subtractor 50 is used in place of the adder 34 . thus it will be apparent that this embodiment can execute the orthogonal transforms of fig7 and 11 . moreover by comparison with the embodiment of fig5 the embodiment of fig6 has the delay unit 36 and selector unit 19 added , and the adder / subtractor 50 replaces the subtractor 42 . thus , from the description given hereinabove of the embodiment of fig5 it will be apparent that the embodiment of fig6 can also execute the orthogonal transforms of fig9 and 13 . for example , the multiplier 32 executes multiplication processing in place of the multipliers 4 , 9 and 21 of fig1 , the adder / subtractor 50 executes subtraction processing in place of the subtractors 22 and 23 of fig1 , and the selector units 31 , 33 , 60 and 61 execute data selection as required for time division multiplex operation of the adder / subtractor 50 and the multiplier 32 . as a result , the same operation can achieved as that of the system of fig1 . hence by using the above embodiment of fig6 having three butterfly units , a single multiplier , a single adder / subtractor , and eight selector units , a orthogonal transform apparatus which can execute the respective algorithms for each of the orthogonal transforms shown in fig7 , 11 and 13 can be realized . in fig6 the control signal 100 ( produced from an external source , not shown in the drawing ) can be set to four respectively different conditions , and the various system blocks are respectively configured to respond to the changeover control signal 100 by establishing appropriate operation timings for the algorithm which is to be executed , and also by altering the values of the multiplication coefficients as required for the algorithm which is to be executed . specifically , with the changeover control signal 100 set at a first condition , the apparatus of fig6 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig7 with signal 100 set at a second condition the apparatus of fig6 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig9 with signal 100 set at a third condition the apparatus of fig6 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig1 , and with signal 100 set at a fourth condition the apparatus of fig6 becomes configured to execute the orthogonal transform algorithm of fig1 . | 6 |
referring now to the drawings , wherein like numerals indicate like elements , there is shown in fig1 and 3 a stackable non - spillable drinking container 110 . the present invention may be understood best by simultaneously referring to fig1 and 3 , fig1 being an assembled container with the expandable diaphragm in the unexpanded condition , fig2 being an assembly view and fig3 being a cross - sectional view of an assembled container with the expandable diaphragm in the expanded condition . the overall non - spillable stackable drinking container is comprised of a container 112 with a top 114 which is securably mountable to the container . container 112 is formed of a linearly increasing cross - section . the degree of linear increase of cross - sectional size may be preferably selected to maximize the stackability of container 112 . container 112 may be comprised of a sidewall 116 with an open mouth 113 at its larger cross - sectional area and a closed bottom 118 at or near the smaller end . although bottom 118 is shown being formed flat with the lower ends of sidewall 116 , it is understood that the sidewall 116 may project for a slight distance beyond bottom 118 if so desired . sidewall 116 preferably may be frustro - conical in shape . however , it is understood that the increasing cross - sectional area of container 112 may be provided with other cross - sectional shapes , including , but not limited to , hexagonal , octagonal , rectangular , square , etc . the primary concern is to provide a container 112 of linearly increasing cross - sectional area proceeding from the closed bottom to the open top to provide stackability . however , as discussed hereinafter , top 114 is preferably threadably securably mounted over open mouth 113 of container 112 , and the selection of a shape other than frustro - conical for container 112 would require that top 114 be mounted by means other than screw threads , such as a snap on top or a slideable closure . in accordance with the invention described in the parent application , of which this application is a continuation - in part application , the stackable non - spillable drinking container is provided with an expandable diaphragm 126 having a plurality of perforations 140 which may be slits which may be opened when the drinker pulls upwardly in the direction of arrow 146 . normally slits 140 are closed when expandable diaphragm 126 is not in its expanded condition . the perforations 140 in expandable diaphragm 126 may be in the form of slits 140 as shown in fig1 and 6 . preferably , these slits , in the unexpanded condition of diaphragm 126 may be formed to have their longitudinal direction perpendicular to the imaginary radial lines of diaphragm 126 . therefore , when there is an upward tension in the direction of arrow 146 on a central portion of diaphragm 126 , perforations or slits 140 would be forced open to their maximum condition as diaphragm 126 is expanded . when tube 120 is retracted in the direction of arrow 144 by the release of the upward tension 146 by the lips of the drinker , diaphragm 126 is in its unexpanded condition and perforations or slits 140 are closed . when tube 120 is pulled upwardly in the direction of arrow 146 by the lips or fingers of a drinker , expandable diaphragm 126 is expanded opening perforations 140 which allows fluid flow through the open perforations 140 and up through tube 120 into the mouth of the drinker . when tube 120 is released , it is retracted in the direction of arrow 144 by the elastic forces of contracting diaphragm 126 which may be assisted by sealing means 134 when it is in the form of a bellows 133 . in accordance with the invention described herein , a base plate 125 is provided . an expandable diaphragm 126 , as previously described , is mounted to one surface or side of base plate 125 . expandable diaphragm 126 is provided with a means for attaching tube 120 to it . in a preferred embodiment , this attachment means may be the combination of rim 121 formed on the lower end of tube 120 and an opening 130 in a central portion of expandable diaphragm 126 . the expandable diaphragm , with its combined base plate 125 , may be readily attached to tube 120 by slanting or cocking the expandable diaphragm with respect to rim 121 as shown at 132 in fig2 and forceably inserting rim 121 through opening 130 . once the expandable diaphragm 126 and base plate 125 are attached to the lower end of tube 120 , the unit may be inserted into container 112 in juxtaposition to the bottom 118 of container 112 as shown in the various figures , particularly fig3 . base plate 125 , with expandable diaphragm 126 thereon , is held in juxtaposition to closed bottom 118 of container 116 by a securing means which may be in the form of a bead 127 through which base plate 125 is snapped . securing means may be in the form of a retaining bead 127 which completely encircles the inside surface of sidewall 116 . alternatively , as shown in fig5 and 6 , the securing means retaining the base plate in position may be in the form of a plurality of fingers or projections 132 formed around the inside surface of sidewall 116 near its lower end . the base plate 125 may also be formed of a special shape , such as the base plate having a relatively substantial thickness with the edges having a configuration , such as slants , with the inside of container 112 having a mating slanting surface 128 . this provides the advantage of additional rigidity and support for the baseplate with respect to the inside of the container . however , this is a preferred embodiment which is not essential . an alternate embodiment is shown in fig5 wherein the base plate 150 is of a thinner cross - section without special configuration on its edges . fig5 also discloses an alternate means for securing the base plate in juxtaposition to the bottom of the container , which may be utilized with or without projections 132 as previously discussed . as shown in fig5 a snap type fastener in the form of arrowhead structure 152 is formed on the bottom 154 of container 172 which is adapted to mate with opening 156 in base plate 150 . arrowhead 152 may snappily engage alternate baseplate 150 by snapping through opening 156 formed in base plate 150 . preferably , such an arrowhead retaining structure would be centrally located to obviate any need for manual alignment and would project into the opening of tube 120 . a ball or other shape snap , instead of an arrowhead , may serve equally well . other means of securing the base plate to retain it in juxtaposition to the bottom of the container will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art . once the base plate is securly mounted in the bottom of the container with tube 120 attached to diaphragm 126 , top 114 may be secured over opening 113 . preferably , top 114 may be threadably engaged to the upper end of sidewall 116 by mating threads 117 on sidewall 116 and threads 115 of top 114 . top 114 is provided with a sealing means 134 which may be comprised of a bellows 133 , the sealing action of which may be enhanced by a sealing bead 123 on tube 120 . the tube 120 is mounted through an opening in top 114 with sealing means 134 providing a seal between the outer surface of tube 120 and the opening through top 114 . sealing means 134 is of the type which allows movement of tube 120 in a direction toward or away from base plate 125 and / or 118 of container 112 . in a preferred embodiment as shown in fig1 through 3 , sealing means 134 may be comprised of a bellows type structure 133 constructed of a suitably thin flexible synthetic plastic material . the structure of top 114 and bellows 133 may be molded from a suitable flexible synthetic plastic material as a single unit , but other materials and methods of fabrication are understood to be within the bounds and spirit of the present invention . bead 123 on tube 120 provides the dual function of enhancing the seal between the bellows structure 133 and the outer surface of tube 120 and of enabling the spring action of the bellows 133 to provide an additional force in the direction of arrow 144 retaining tube 120 in the direction of arrow 144 thereby ensuring that tube 120 is maintained at its lower end in juxtaposition to base plate 125 . this assists in maintaining diaphragm 126 in its unexpanded condition when a drinker is not applying a force to tube 120 in the direction of arrow 146 . the embodiment of the invention as illustrated in fig1 through 3 provides the important advantage of stackability of the container . it is noted that the drawings are not necessarily to scale and that a greater degree of increase of cross - sectional dimension for length of travel along the axis of frustro - conical container 112 may be desired to provide the maximum degree of stackability . in other words , containers 112 may be inserted one into another to decrease the amount of volume necessary in warehousing and shipping a specified number of containers from a manufacturer to a user , such as a movie theater operation , and decreases the amount of storage area necessary by the end user for storing the containers until the time that they are used . the embodiment of the present invention as shown in fig1 through 3 , in addition to providing the significant advantage of stackability , provides an important advantage of increased economy in manufacture . in accordance with the present invention , it is contemplated that the present invention may be utilized in various manners . one manner of usage is to provide the container of the present invention to the dispenser or user of the liquid in four components which may be readily assembled around the time of the filling of the container . the four components would be the container 112 , the base plate 125 with expandable diaphragm 126 attached thereto , drinking tube 120 and top 114 or 160 . the dispenser , such as an attendant at a snack counter in a movie theater , or an end user , such as a person about to take a drink onto a bus or boat , would insert the rim 121 of tube 120 into expandable diaphragm 126 as previously described with respect to fig2 . the base plate 125 with expandable diaphragm 126 and tube 120 attached thereto would be inserted into container 112 and secured to the bottom thereof by a suitable securing means such as retaining bead 127 , projections 132 , arrow head latch 152 or other suitable securing means . once the container 112 is filled , top 114 would be inserted over tube 120 and secured to the top of container 112 by screwing top 114 thereto by means of threads or secured thereon by other suitable securing means . all of the components of the drinking container may be manufactured by a suitable molding process such as blow molding or injection molding . however , diaphragm 126 may be comprised of rubber which may be adhesively bonded to base plate 125 . however , preferably , diaphragm 126 may be molded from an elastic synthetic material and sonically welded around its periphery to base plate 125 . unitary molding of a complete unit of an expandable diaphragm on a base plate is possible with greater difficulty . throughout , it is understood that reference to base plate 125 includes various other shapes of base plates , such as base plate 150 illustrated in fig5 . furthermore , as discussed above , container 112 may be of other suitable cross - sectional shapes , such as hexagonal , octagonal or the like , and , in such instances , the base plate and expandable diaphragm would be of a mating configuration . container 112 may be molded from a synthetic plastic material in an inexpensive manner as is well known in the art . in a similar manner , top 114 with bellows structure 133 may be inexpensively molded as a unit . the lower end of bellows 133 would be molded to form a tight fit on tube 120 to provide a sealing function . furthermore , it is recognized that any increased pressure in container 112 , such as by squeezing the container , would further tighten the seal between bellows 133 and tube 120 by causing compression of the bellows structure 133 on the external surface of tube 120 at multiple points . rim 121 on the lower end of tube 120 may be of various suitable configurations sufficient to provide a means of attachment of the tube to the expandable diaphragm . particularly , in a preferred embodiment , rim 121 may be an oval or tear dropped shape to enhance the ease of insertion of rim 121 into opening 130 of expandable diaphragm 126 . in addition to the use of the container in accordance with the present invention as aforesaid , wherein it would be assembled by the dispenser or end user , the container may be utilized for the prepackaged shipment of liquids . in such a case , means would be provided for sealing the upper end of tube 120 where it extends outside of container 112 . one method of providing such a seal or sanitary cover is illustrated in fig4 . the portion of tube 120 extending out of tube 112 is provided with a removable cover 124 for sanitary purposes . cover 124 may be readily removed , or it may be made of a sufficiently thin and tearable material to enable rapid removal by the tearing with ease of cover 124 thereby enabling drinking through tube 120 by a consumer . if desired , the container and its contents may be made sterile at the time of filling . another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in fig7 wherein a top 160 is illustrated . top 160 is formed in the shape of a portion of a sphere , the surface of which is provided with an extremely slippery surface . the purpose of top 160 is to preclude the removal or at least the easy removal of the top under certan circumstances , such as by children in movie theaters wherein the top may be removed for various reasons with the resulting increased possibility of an undesired spill . top 160 does not provide a good gripping surface for turning in view of its circumference being provided with an uncomfortable edge rather than a flattened gripping surface . the top 160 may be installed by dispenser , such as an attendant in a movie theater snack shop by utilizing a special high friction gripping cloth to initially install the cap after filling . in view of the above , the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and , accordingly , reference should be made to the appended claims , rather than to the foregoing specification as indicating the scope of the invention . | 0 |
for a general understanding of the features of the present invention , reference is made to the drawings , wherein like reference numerals have been used throughout to identify identical or similar elements . fig1 is a perspective view of an apparatus 10 for attaching a plurality of rf devices 20 to a carrier strip or tape 12 . carrier 12 is made of a woven polyester tape . the apparatus of the embodiment of fig4 includes carrier 12 , a thk linear track 14 , a bracket 16 , a 40 khz ultrasonic welder 18 , and a solid surface 22 . as carrier tape 12 advances it passes over support surface 22 . carrier 12 can travel via a linear advance or other advance mechanism . at support surface 22 the rf devices or tags are inserted between surface 22 and tape 12 , such that the rf devices are located below strip 12 . the ultrasonic welder 18 is located above tape 12 . welder 18 is mounted on linear track 14 and bracket 16 , such that the welder can be moved upward and downward to adhere the rf device to strip 12 . as shown in fig2 , ultrasonic welder 18 includes bar horn 24 , the face of which seals rf device 20 to strip 12 . for example , ultrasonic welder 18 has soundwaves traveling through it at a frequency of 40 khz . however , the ultrasonic settings of welder 18 can be adjusted based upon the material of strip 12 . moreover , the actuation speed of linear track 14 can be coordinated with the advance speed of strip 12 . referring to fig3 and 4 , the front and back sides of strip 12 with rf devices 20 adhered thereto are illustrated . strip 12 can have a width d 1 , of for example , 15 . 0 mm . the centerlines of consecutive rf devices are spaced by a distance d 2 . distance d 2 can be 30 . 0 mm , for example . moreover , rf devices 20 are orientated with carrier strip 12 such that an angle α therebetween is 90 °. as shown in fig3 and 4 , one end of rf device 20 extends from edge 12 b of strip 12 . however , the opposite end of rf device 20 does not extend over edge 12 a of carrier strip 12 . the rf devices encapsulated in the labels can include scannable circuitry embedded in the labels . it should be appreciated that many arrangements of attachment are possible . referring to fig5 , a first embodiment of an apparatus for attaching rf devices to a woven label is shown . carrier strip 12 having rf devices adhered thereto is mounted on a roller 26 . folded ribbon 30 of material containing labels is advanced from a press station 32 via a drive roller 34 . the apparatus has two linear drive mechanisms . the first , which is part of the press station , is an uninterrupted linear advance , which maintains tension during folding . the second is an indexing mechanism . regulating the tension of the ribbon of material is important during the folding process . in particular , the upper edge and the lower edge of the material must be maintained at essentially equal tensions . a centerline of the material is the main control for this adjustment . the centerline is preferably setup equal to the centerline of the press unit and the folding station . raising or lowering the roll from this point can be done to equalize the tensions in the upper and lower edge of the material . folded ribbon of labels 30 can be composed of virtually any material that can be cut and pressed including a thermoplastic material ( e . g ., polyester ), acetate , cotton , nylon , linen , paper , rayon and combinations thereof , in woven and non - woven form . polyester is preferred . the labels can be printed or woven , however , woven is preferred . it is preferred that the logo of the label is made such that it is 90 degrees from the typical orientation used in broadloom , needeloom or shuttleloom weaving of the woven labels . for woven labels this can be readily done on existing harness repeats . the change of orientation greatly reduces “ window shading ” ( curling after laundering ) and decreases shrinkage when the product is exposed to heat at temperatures above 275 ° f . in the folding station ( not shown ) folded label ribbon 30 can be guided through a series of adjustable equalizing rollers ( not shown ) that make up the tension equalizer assembly to provide an even distribution of tension . after emerging from the equalizing rollers , the ribbon is guided over a folding rod ( not shown ). for producing a centerfold label , the folding station comprises two folding lenses ( not shown ). folding lenses are pivotably mounted on supports and can be adjusted vertically . the lenses are a caliper - like device comprising two adjustable jaws . the lenses restrain and guide the material into an even consistent fold . one lens can be a guiding lens used for making for slight adjustments before the material enters the other lens , the working lens that brings the ribbon to a fold . in certain situations a proper fold can be obtained using more or less that two lenses . it is preferred that the distance along the x - axis on the lens be ½ of the loom cut width + 1 . 5 mm or − 1 . 5 mm depending on the thickness and stability of the material being processed . the y - axis distance should allow for even flow of material . changing lenses to a larger or smaller diameter may be necessary for widths over 120 mm or below 50 mm . movement of the lens in the “+” x - axis direction will create a larger top fold . movement of the lens in the “−” x - axis direction will create a larger bottom fold . placement of the y - axis for both lens is along a centerline . if the material has a tendency to twist then an angle downward or upward may be set on either lens . it is preferable that the location of folding rod ( not shown ) be kept in center with folding lenses along the centerline . the folding rod is square to the base . material angle is kept from 5 °- 170 °, more preferably 30 °- 90 °. the distance from the folding rod to the press unit is dictated by the loom cut width of the material being folded . the wider the tape / ribbon cut , the further the folding rod is located from the press unit . the folded material exits the folding station and enters the press station . the press station subjects the folded material to both heat ( 100 °- 400 ° f .) and pressure . a range of pressure between 5 - 80 pounds of force is preferred . in one embodiment , the press unit includes a support frame upon which are movably affixed belt rolls about which is positioned a high temperature resistant endless conveyor belt . the belt may be driven at selected , controlled , constant speeds by known means such as an ac or dc electric drive motor and speed regulator or controller . between the affixed belt rolls are a series of rollers , spring mounted to the support frame , upon which the top of the conveyor rides . the speed of the press station motor can be trimmed with an ultrasonic range - finder that is wired into the motor controller inside the unit . a speed signal is sent to the servo - motor . from this signal a calculation is made and held in memory . the ultra sonic range finder makes a reading of the slack of material as it travels between press station and cutting station . this is added to the number held in memory and this sum is sent to the belt drive motor to control belt speed . the press station can have multiple heat zones that can be controlled separately . the first heat zone can be designed to carry most of the heat and the heat zones can be designed as a cool down area . the settings of the press station are dictated by the type of material being processed . thicker materials require a higher press setting and more heat , while thinner materials require less . the folded material travels though the press unit via a conveyer mechanism . it is this conveyor mechanism that provides a linear advance pulling the ribbon from the tension let off device through the folding station . other mechanisms for linear advance can be used . the folded pressed ribbon exits the press station and is led to the cutting station on a support plate . upon advance of the material , downward pressure from the roll is dependent on material thickness , and structure . thinner , looser structure materials require low pressure . thicker and more stable structures of material require a higher downward pressure . referring once again to fig5 , a sensor 36 is used to monitor and control the slack of the folded ribbon of labels 30 between an applicator unit 40 , which will be described further herein , and drive roller 34 through a control unit ( not shown ). the speed of the applicator 40 is controlled to stay consistent with the advancing material and the delays set for cut time and acceleration and deceleration of the servo motor that turns drive roller 34 . a roll of ribbon of material 36 is also advanced via drive roller 34 . drive roller 34 pulls folded ribbon of labels 30 and fabric ribbon of material 36 forward and under a fiber optic eye 42 . to maintain the proper alignment for materials with logos and written instructions such as woven or printed labels , the fiber optic eye is used , which reads color contrast as material advances past its read point . when a registration point passes under the eye or when the eye sees a color change an immediate interrupt signal is sent to the controller , at this point the servo motor , via roller 34 , advances the material the distance set in the operator interface . the deceleration is calculated so that the material advance will be accurate to ± 0 . 05 mm . at this point the material remains stopped for the cutting , e . g ., knife delay time set on the operator interface . the material then advances and follows the same sequence above . a typical setting for the advance is the width of the label ( length along loom cut edge ) minus 5 mm . this number may be adjusted to influence centering of the logo . additional adjustment can be made if necessary . at the stop , carrier strip 12 is advanced over a peeler 44 presenting the rf devices 20 to ribbon of material 36 . the carrier strip minus devices 20 is rewound unto roller 46 . applicator 40 includes an anvil and attached piston 48 . anvil 48 includes a vacuum device which attracts ribbon of material 36 . the piston activates an ultrasonic horn 50 which welds the rf device to ribbon of material 36 . the applicator unit is adjustable via a frame 52 to align with the logo on folded ribbon of labels 30 . the ribbon of material 36 with the rf devices 20 mounted thereon is guided by roller 38 and drive roller 34 to cutting station 60 . the rf device is registered with the logo on the label ribbon by advance of both ribbons 30 , 36 through drive roller 34 and optic eye 42 . the material is cut at cutting station 60 to form folded labels 70 using an ultrasonic system 62 comprising a horn 64 and an anvil 66 . for example , the ultrasonic horn 64 has sound waves moving through it at a frequency of 20 - 40 khz . the residence of these waves can be magnified through proper booster and horn combination . anvil 66 is actuated at an adjustable pressure to collide with the horn . the material passes between the horn and the anvil and is exposed to very high - localized heat , cutting and sealing the material . the larger the radius on the anvil the larger the seal area and the more pressure required for a cut . the default delay time for the knife up is calculated and taken into account . for example , a typical delay is 70 ms , which may be adjusted if necessary to accomplish the desired results . ultrasonic rotary dies can also be used . the cutting station can utilize other known cutting techniques to subdivide the ribbon into individual labels . such techniques include , for example , cold or hot shearing knives , hot fuse knives that squeeze off the product during cutting , extreme high mechanical pressure , high - pressure air , high - pressure water , laser cutting , rotary die cutters , and others . in the case of the fabric carrier , the fabric carrier is cut and bonded to the cut edges of the label . the fabric layer can be within a centerfold label , along the back of a centerfold label , along the front of a centerfold label along the back of an end fold label , along the front of an end fold label , along the front of an end fold label , or any of the above conditions on other labels processed on the equipment . after cutting the finished label , the process proceeds to a packer ( not shown ). the packer then pushes the label into a packing box . packing of the cut labels can also be accomplished by bagging or placing the goods in boxes through any number of methods including single column stacks in horizontal or vertical orientation , curved stacker frays , or magazine devices in a rotary or sliding configuration . unlike centerfold labels produced using traditional techniques , the centerfold label of the present invention has the front and back folds sealed together along an edge with the rf device therein . by using alternative folding stations , the apparatus of the present invention can be used to form other varieties of folded labels . for example , to form “ end - fold ” labels . fig6 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention wherein the rf device is adhered to the ribbon of labels prior to the folding step . in this embodiment , the roll of ribbon of labels 30 is advanced by two linear drive mechanisms . the first linear advance mechanism 72 is part of the press station and is an uninterrupted linear advance which maintains tension during folding . the second is an indexing mechanism . as in the previous embodiment , mechanism 72 can be a pair of drive rollers or other mechanically equivalent advance . ribbon of labels 30 is advanced along guide rollers 38 pass optical eye 42 and an application unit 80 . optical eye 42 provides the signal for the placement of the rf device as the ribbon of labels is in motion . application unit 80 includes a blower which blows the rf device 20 , such as an electronic article surveillance tag , onto ribbon of labels 30 . blower 80 is commercially available through label - aire , inc ., custom label - aire model 2111m combination air blow left hand labeled . the devices 20 are supported on a roll of carrier strip 12 , as previously discussed herein . as in the embodiment of fig5 , after rf device 20 is applied to ribbon of labels 30 , the carrier strip 12 is separated therefrom by peeler 44 and rewound on roll 46 . the ribbon of labels 30 with rf devices 20 thereon passes through press unit 32 ′ which adheres the rf devices to ribbon of labels 30 . the ribbon of labels 30 then passes into the folding station 74 where the ribbon is folded , as previously set forth herein . after folding , the ribbon can pass to either a cutting device or rolled into a roll for further processing remote from the apparatus . a label made according to the method and apparatus whereby the rf device is not separated from the carrier strip is illustrated in fig8 - 10 . the label is unique in that the cut sides are bonded and sealed along an edge . at the cut , the carrier is bonded to the edges of the individual rf label upon separation of the label from the ribbon of labels . as noted above , the resultant labels have a unique smooth feel based upon the process used to make them . furthermore , thermoplastic ribbon of labels , preferably a woven polyester , is subdivided using an ultrasonic system as part of the claimed apparatus , the labels are unique in that the cut sides are bonded or welded together . as noted above , this bonding not only prevents the label from being skewed when sewed into a garment , but also provides the edges with a generally scratchless feel . the apparatus of the invention is particularly suited for insertion of devices such as security and inventory control devices , e . g ., radio frequency inventory devices ( rfid ) tags , into labels . rfids are known in the art and include that disclosed in u . s . pat . nos . 5 , 874 , 902 ; 5 , 874 , 896 ; 5 , 785 , 181 ; and 5 , 745 , 036 . such devices can be inserted at a number of locations . by using an ultrasonic cutting system , these devices can be sealed into the bonded top and bottom edges of the material . this will cause the label to be destroyed if the device is removed ; thus guaranteeing the tag and label stay as one during processing . at one location , the folded material is opened and the device is inserted at desired positions . at another location , adhesive backed devices are placed on the material before folding . edge sealing can be achieved with these methods as well . the rfid tag can include a scannable circuit board chip . the rfid technology will allow a rf label to be read or written to . the ability to write to the rf labels enables users to keep and update a database without the end user being able to alter the information on the embedded circuit board . in addition , the identification information may be reused and written over . look - up databases can be readily available to facilitate quick access to the information embedded on the rf labels . moreover , lost or stolen items having the rf labels can be reunited with its owner or place of origin . the scannable rf labels enables tracking of inventory , pricing and place of origin , without necessitating human intervention to research such information . the programmable and read - only scannable circuit boards cannot be altered or read without a programmer or reader . the rfid system typically consist of one or more transceivers ( exciters ) and one or more tags . an rfid tag is an electronic device that generally incorporates a specific and unique identification number , where the number may be read by a rf transceiver ( transmitter / receiver ) system . the rfid tags may acquire energy from the incident radio frequency field or powered by a battery . rfid tags typically consists of an antenna or a coil , to collect rf energy , and an integrated circuit ( ic ) which contains identification code or other information in its on - chip memory . attaching a rfid tag to a label enables the item to be located and identified with the aid of an rf interrogation system . as such , an interrogation system is able to identify information associated with the rfid labels as set forth in the present invention . commercially available rfid tags generally operate at low frequencies , typically below 1 mhz . although lower frequency devices are more common , a wide range of high frequencies are available , for example , 13 . 56 mhz , 915 mhz , 2 . 45 ghz and 5 . 6 ghz . low frequency tags usually employ a multi - turn coil resulting in a tag having a thickness much greater than a standard sheet of paper . 2 . 45 ghz and 5 . 6 ghz can be done in a single turn or as a die pole antenna . high frequency passive rfid tags , which operate at around 2 . 54 ghz , typically consist of a single turn , flat antenna , printed onto a flat single layer sheet of plastic or paper . the combination of the folded labels with a rf device in the present invention allows for locating and tracking of items , detecting items and reporting of pricing , for example . this ability to read rf labels from codes may be utilized , for example , as the items having the rf labels leave predetermined areas and pass through an exit . referring to the apparatus of fig7 , the rf devices 20 are not separated from carrier strip 12 but inserted into a label while on strip 12 . carrier strip 12 together with ribbon material 30 are advanced by drive roller 34 past optic eye 42 to ultrasonic cutting station 62 where the labels can be cut . such a center fold label is illustrated in fig8 - 10 . label 70 with the rf device 20 and carrier strip 12 is disposed in folded ribbon of labels 30 . in fig8 , a portion of the material is pulled back showing device 20 and a portion of the carrier strip 12 to which it is mounted . the edge 12 a of strip 12 is located at the folded edge 31 of the ribbon material . in the assembled state , as shown in fig9 and 10 , the carrier strip is bonded into the inside edges 29 of the label by the ultrasonic cutting device of the present invention . fig1 is a perspective view of an end fold label made according to the apparatus and method of fig7 . as shown , label of ribbons 30 , carrier strip 12 and rf device 20 disposed therebetween are subdivided along edge 27 into individual labels . referring to fig1 , the ends of label 30 are folded over strip 12 . fig1 illustrates an apparatus for applying a radio frequency device into the ribbons of labels and registering the cut of the ribbons of labels by sensing the edge or part of the rf device disposed inside the folded ribbon . as illustrated , a length of the ribbon of labels 30 , rf devices 20 and carrier strip 12 passes through press station 32 , past drive rollers 34 , past sensor 100 and light source 101 , to ultrasonic horn 64 and anvil 66 . the rf device disposed inside of the folded ribbon is detected by optical sensor 100 via light source 101 , which shines light through the ribbon of labels , but does not shine light through the device embedded therein . the advance mechanism indexes the ribbon by detection of the rf device , not by the logo or text on the front of the ribbon . as the device passes by light sensor 101 , the light will go out until the rf device passes . optical sensor 100 senses the absence of light as the rf device passes . alternatively , a sensor that would sense the metal component in the rf device could also be used to sense the edge or part of the rf device inside the folded ribbon . a label made according to the method and apparatus of fig1 , is shown in fig1 . as shown , the design or logo 102 can be repeated anywhere on the label and need not be centered with regard to cut line c l . in the case of a “ cut it out before you wear ” label as shown in fig1 , the text can be written in succession on the label . subdivision of the label does not depend on the position of the text , but only on the position of the rf device therein . the same applies to a permanent label . the apparatus of the present invention can be modified at any point to include various accessories . a vision system can be included to inspect the logos and image on the material as it passes . labels with errors are detected and removed automatically . additionally , the apparatus can be modified such that the cutting station the corners of the cut material are removed to provide for heightened comfort . further , the apparatus can be modified to ultrasonically seal the open loom cut edge giving a centerfold label , for example , three ultrasonically sealed edges and one folded edge . specially , it will be understood that the instant invention applies to all various types of label types and is not intended to be limited by the manner in which the labels are developed . the apparatus of this present invention may have several different folding stations or interchangeable folding stations , thus allowing the user to select different fold configurations . alternatively , there may be a series of components that function in one overall device . the press and cutting stations are electronically linked by means of at least one sensor to coordinate operation . although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof , many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art . it is preferred therefore , that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein , but only by the appended claims . | 1 |
there will now be described one particular embodiment of the invention which consists in an interfacing circuit for providing high speed data rate for an image processor contained in the imaging and video sub - system of a 2g / 3g terminal baseband circuit . indeed such embedded image processor requires ( to fulfill state of the art video support ), both big image resolutions and large frame rates resulting in a very high speed data flux from the image sensor to the image signal processor . such application requires for example in the case of a parallel interface , reception of data clock , video synchronization signals ( vertical + horizontal ) and data on a parallel bus that will be called here “ camera interface bus ”. in a real product , an external device called an image sensor is connected to this bus , delivering a pixel clock , vertical and horizontal video synchronization depending on data format and pixel data ( on 8 or 10 bits ) as processed by the image sensor optics and sensor embedded signal processor . clearly , in view of the high resolution and high frame rate of the image and video captures , the interface between the sensor ( or the memory storing the images and video files ) requires a very high rate of transfer and such high rate significantly stresses the intermediate storage circuit , such as the fifo . fig3 illustrates one embodiment of an interfacing circuit which achieves high speed transfer of the data generated by a data producer device 100 providing data into a memory 150 ) or , alternatively by a memory 150 and an external ( data consumer device 299 ) video processing interface receiving a high speed flux of pixel data via a bus 211 . by using memory 150 in lieu of a real sensor , the interfacing circuit becomes able to continuously produce loop images . it should be noticed that , generally speaking , the particular realization of the interfacing circuit of fig3 depends on the data format used for representing the image and video : ( yuv 422 - bt601 , yuv 422 - bt656 , raw bayer - bt601 , raw bayer - bt656 , data mode ). in particular , the processing of pixel data being represented in colors components will result in the use of three fifo circuits , one dedicated to each particular color component ( r , g , b or y , u , v ). for clarity &# 39 ; s sake , the interfacing circuit of fig3 only shows one fifo storage but it is clear to the skilled man that the circuit of fig3 may be adapted and arranged so as to include multiple fifo circuits , each dedicated to one color component . furthermore , the conventional address and control bus are being arranged so as to allow the interface between memory 150 and circuit 120 . all those buses being simply illustrated by bus 151 . interface 120 achieves a physical interfacing between the particular format of the data stored into memory 150 ( e . g . a 32 bit format ) and the format of the subsequent fifo storage . for instance , in the preferred embodiment , interface 120 , will performs successive reading operation into memory 150 so as to generate on a bus 101 a 192 bits vector ( for instance ) which is representative of a sequence of picture elements or more generally data to be processed . in one particular embodiment , the interface 120 produces a serie of picture elements ( pel ) belonging to a group of n pels . the interfacing circuit further comprises a redundancy filter 230 which receives the pixel data y 0 , y 1 , y 2 . . . y n - 1 which is carried by bus 101 and which forward to fifo 201 via a lead 201 a corresponding sequence of filtered values y 0 , y * 1 , y * 2 . . . y n - 1 . furthermore , redundancy filter 230 generates a control word on a bus 231 consisting in a vector of n + 1 bits , where each & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ; represents a redundancy present in the corresponding pels . practically , if one particular pel yk is identical to pel yk − 1 , the control word will be such that : fig2 particularly illustrates one example of 16 consecutive pels y 0 , y 1 , y 2 , . . . y 15 , which are such that : in that case , redundancy filter 230 generates the following control word : it can be seen that a & lt ;& lt ; 1 & gt ;& gt ; in the control word is representative of a pel y [ i ] ( i = 1 to n − 1 ) which is considered to be significant ( since it provides a new information ), while a & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ; is representative of a non significant ( or redundant ) pel because it carries a value which was already carried by the previous one . while the example which was described above is based on a & lt ;& lt ; strict & gt ;& gt ; mathematical comparison of the two consecutive pels — 0 being reported only when strict mathematical equality — many embodiments may be considered for the purpose of generating a redundancy filtering based on the measurement of & lt ;& lt ; distance & gt ;& gt ; between two consecutive pels . alternatively , one may consider a more complex redundancy filtering reporting , for instance , a close proximity of two subsequency pels . for instance , one may decide that the redundancy vector will report a & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ; when the difference between two consecutive pels is inferior to a predetermined threshold . it can be seen in the fig3 that the control word cw which is generated by redundancy filter 230 is forwarded to a control unit 250 which achieves the generation of write control signals , and particular the wr ( inverted ) and clk_write signals , respectively on leads 203 and 202 ) controlling the fifo memory 200 which , on the other side , receives from the data consumer ( such as audio or image processor ) the conventional enable signal on a lead 213 and the clk_rd clock signal on a lead 212 . control unit 250 generates the wr ( inverted ) and cl wr control signals so as to reduce the writing operations within fifo 200 when the considered pels y [ i ] carries a non significant data ( cw [ i ]= 0 ). conversely , when the pels y [ i ] carries a is significant data ( cw [ i ]= 1 ), then an effective write operation is performed within the fifo so as to keep in the storage such data . by only writing the significant pels ( corresponding ( cw [ i ]= 1 )), one can avoid a write operation in fifo 200 and thus reduce both the amount of data written in fifo and the average speed on the write clock . but what is even more interesting is that the interfacing circuit of fig3 allows to significantly increase the average read clock of the & lt ;& lt ; data consumer device & gt ;& gt ; ( without any need of an increase in the speed of access in memory 150 , which can hence be a low cost slow memory ). this gain is obtained at redundancy occurence instants by just repeating redundant data on lead 211 towards data consumer device . what happens is that during periods of high redundancy pels , while the same redundant data is repeated at lead 211 to consumer device , the fifo have time to refill from the slow memory . this significantly reduces the probability for a fifo_empty signal to occur later on , it is important to notice that in case of a slow memory 150 , the rate of activity of fifo_empty signal is directly correlated to the slow down of the average data flux going to the & lt ;& lt ; data consumer device & gt ;& gt ; through lead 211 . in other words , it can be seen that the new architecture of the interfacing circuit which is shown in fig3 , allows to increase the & lt ;& lt ; clk_read & gt ;& gt ; while requiring any change in the fondamental structure of the fifo . by using the arrangement shown in fig3 , a conventional fifo may be operated at a higher read clock . alternatively , a given fifo storage , having predetermining clocking requirements , can be used at an extended high rate . with respect to fig4 and 5 , there will now be described the two state machines embodying the control unit 250 . fig4 shows the state machine of the write operation of fifo 200 . state 310 consists in an idle state which the state machine remains as long as the value of the current index & lt ;& lt ; i & gt ;& gt ; of the control word cw ( i ) ( with i = 1 to n − 1 ) is equal to & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ;. ( arrow 311 ), that is to say as long as the pixel data is representative of a non significant ( or redundant ) data . when the value of the current index cw ( i ) is equal to a & lt ;& lt ; 1 & gt ;& gt ;, which is representative of a significant pixel data ( giving a new information also named & lt ;& lt ; innovation & gt ;& gt ; in signal processing theory ), then the state machine proceeds to a state 320 ( write ) where the following actions ( arrow 321 ) are taken : activating the wr control signal of the fifo by switching the ( inverted ) wr control signal to a & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ;; and present the redundancy filter value y *( i ) on bus 201 the state machine then waits until a rising edge of the clk_write signal , in which case it proceeds to a control state 330 , where the wr control signal is disactivated by switching the ( inverted ) wr signal to & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ;, thus controlling the end of the write operation . the state machine remains at that state 330 when the fifo_full condition is present , representative of a full condition of the fifo . conversely , if the fifo does not show to be full , then the state machine proceeds again to the idle state 310 . fig5 shows the state machine of the read operation of fifo 200 . state 410 consists in an idle state which the state machine remains as long as the value of the current index & lt ;& lt ; i & gt ;& gt ; of the control word cw ( i ) ( with i = 1 to n − 1 ) is equal to & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ; ( arrow 411 ), but also when the fifo_empty condition is present . this causes the non significant data to remain at the physical output interface of fifo 200 which can thus generate the same data to the video system during multiplex periods of the clock rd signals . in that case , fifo 200 behaves as if it was operated at a high speed receive clock . when the value of the current index cw ( i ) is equal to a & lt ;& lt ; 1 & gt ;& gt ;, which is representative of a significant pixel data , then the state machine proceeds to a state 420 ( read ) where the enable control lead of the fifo 200 is activated , by means of switching the ( inverted ) enable control lead to a & lt ;& lt ; 0 & gt ;& gt ;. the state machine then waits until a rising edge of the clk_rd signal , in which case it proceeds to a control state 430 , where the enable is disactivated , by means of switching the ( inverted ) enable control lead to a & lt ;& lt ; 1 & gt ;& gt ;, thus controlling the end of the read operation . the state machine then loops back again to idle state 410 . it can be seen that , thanks to those two state machines , the significant pixel data are effectively stored and retrieved from fifo storage 200 , while the non significant pixel data remain at the input interface of the fifo or are simply repeated at the output interface . | 7 |
referring now to fig1 - 3 , the bat 10 embodied in the present invention is shown comprising a barrel 30 , a sweet spot 31 , a transition area 32 , a handle 33 , and an end knob 34 . a preferred embodiment of the present invention is bat 10 having a barrel 30 of constant outer diameter 42 of 2 . 25 inches ( 5 . 72 cm ) and an inner diameter 43 of 1 . 85 inches ( 4 . 70 cm ), and having a barrel wall thickness 45 of 0 . 2 inches ( 0 . 51 cm ). the composition of the bat 10 is preferably continuous throughout , including the barrel 30 , the sweet spot 31 , the transition area 32 , the handle 33 and the end knob 34 . alternative bat 10 constructions are known where the end knob 34 is a separate component attached to the handle 33 . also , the barrel 30 may have a separate end cap . even further , the bat 10 may be composed of a composite material or a metal / composite combination , as is known in the art . the bat 10 has a sweet spot 31 that is an area at the center of percussion where the contact between bat 10 and ball results in the “ best hit .” more particularly , the sweet spot 31 is where the maximum energy is transferred to the ball when struck , the ball leaves the bat 10 with the greatest speed , and the player &# 39 ; s hands feel the least vibration from the impact . the center of the sweet spot 31 is typically five to seven inches ( 12 . 7 to 17 . 8 cm ) down from the top of the barrel 30 and extending two inches ( 5 . 08 cm ) to either side . the novel aspect of the present invention occurs within the cavity 35 bounded by the inner diameter of the barrel . a retaining member 22 is inserted into the cavity 35 . in a preferred embodiment , the retaining member 22 is aligned with the barrel 30 and incorporates one notch 21 allowing one support 20 to be inserted into said notch 21 , positioning the support transverse to bat &# 39 ; s 10 axis 48 . the retaining member 22 is cylindrical in shape so that it may be inserted into the barrel 30 . the retaining member 22 has an outer diameter 43 preferably equal to the inner diameter 43 of the barrel 30 so as to permit the retaining member 22 to fit snugly against the inner wall of the barrel 30 to prevent slippage . in an embodiment with the bat 10 having an inner diameter 43 of 1 . 85 inches ( 4 . 70 cm ), the retaining member 22 will have an outer diameter 43 of 1 . 85 inches ( 4 . 70 cm ), an inner diameter 44 of 1 . 6 inches ( 4 . 06 cm ), and a length 46 of 1 inch ( 2 . 54 cm ). preferably one support 20 is positioned about two inches ( 5 . 08 cm ) on each side of the center of the sweet spot 31 . therefore , the supports 20 are separated by a distance of about four inches ( 10 . 16 cm ), as depicted in fig1 a . as is shown in fig1 b , another embodiment of the present invention the bat 110 preferably includes three supports 20 with one positioned at the center of the sweet spot 31 and one approximately two inches ( 5 . 08 cm ) on either side of the center of the sweet spot 31 . the support 20 located at the sweet spot 31 being constructed such that the bat 110 cannot be rolled . in an alternative embodiment , fig1 c shows bat 210 with the retaining member 122 having a plurality of notches 21 for which multiple supports 20 may be inserted to provide structural integrity to the interior of the bat 210 . in this alternative embodiment , the retaining member 122 would be approximately 5 inches ( 12 . 7 cm ) in length 146 . the supports 20 of the present invention should be of a lightweight resilient composition to prevent a “ weighting ” effect on the bat 10 . some weighted bats are improper under asa guidelines . the supports 20 may , for example , be composed of any material suitable to prevent rolling the bat 10 , such as graphite or magnesium . in a preferred embodiment , the supports are disk - shaped . some embodiments of the present invention utilize the durability and structural integrity of graphite to reinforce the interior cylinder of the barrel . graphite is a resilient material capable of resisting compression and fracturing in the rolling process . the orientation of the grain within the graphite should be structured so as to provide maximum integrity for all 360 degrees of the bat 10 such that the bat 10 cannot be rolled in any direction . the supports 20 of the present invention will preferably be constructed of 16 to 24 plies of graphite , and approximately one eighth of an inch ( 3 . 18 mm ) in total thickness 47 . for the bat 10 with an inner diameter 43 of 1 . 85 inches ( 4 . 70 cm ), these supports 20 will be disks composed of solid graphite having an outer diameter 40 of 1 . 75 inches ( 4 . 45 cm ) and , as is explained hereafter , preferably include a center hole 23 having an inner diameter 41 of 0 . 625 inches ( 1 . 59 cm ). however , supports 20 without a hole 23 or in shapes other than disks could be used . the supports 20 of the present invention will preferably include a hole 23 in the center so that a liquid may be poured through the center of the supports in the bat 10 manufacturing process . thus , in embodiments using disk - shaped supports 20 , the supports 20 of the present invention will resemble washers . the supports 20 should be designed in such a way that they will not cause dead zones within the bat 10 . dead zones are areas in the bat with extremely low levels of elasticity . the lower the elasticity , the less propulsion effect the bat will have on the ball . in the instance of ball bats , a dead zone is an area where the energy from the ball - to - bat contact is transferred to the bat rather than to the ball . the present invention will allow a manufacturer to determine the elasticity of the bat , such that it will be acceptable under asa guidelines . the supports 20 are designed to have an outer diameter 40 slightly smaller than the inner diameter 43 of the bat 10 . in one embodiment , the outer diameter 40 is 1 . 75 inches ( 4 . 45 cm ) and the inner diameter 43 is 1 . 85 inches ( 4 . 70 cm ). thus , in this embodiment , a gap 56 of 0 . 05 inches ( 1 . 27 mm ) will be present between the supports 20 and the bat 10 . this gap 56 is necessary to allow the bat 10 to “ hoop bend ” without the hoop bend being inhibited by the support 20 . a hoop bend is a slight temporary deformation of the bat 10 when it impacts a ball . the retaining member 22 of the present invention must be reinforced sufficiently to prevent the force of repeated strikes of the bat 10 from knocking the supports 20 loose within the barrel 30 of the bat 10 . the notches 21 made within the retaining member 22 must be deep enough to prevent the supports 20 from coming loose when the bat 10 is used . in a preferred embodiment , the retaining member 22 is composed of urethane foam of sufficient stiffness to maintain the supports 20 in a position transverse to the axis 48 of the bat 10 . in a first embodiment , the retaining member 22 of the present invention is inserted into the barrel 30 and when the supports 20 is at the final location , the retaining member 22 is adhered to the interior of the barrel 30 with an adhesive 24 . in this first embodiment , the retaining member 22 is cylindrical . any means for adhesion may be used , but preferably the means will be urethane or silicone . in a second embodiment , retaining member 222 is a non - circular geometric shape having at least three contact points 52 , as shown in fig4 and fig5 . in this second embodiment , the retaining member is sized so that the contact points 52 contact the interior of the barrel 30 , as shown in fig7 . the retaining member 222 has a hole 50 . in this second embodiment , the means of adhesion 24 is positioned at the final location of the supports 20 , as shown in fig6 . in this second embodiment , the means of adhesion 24 is positioned such that the means of adhesion 24 will not contact the retaining member 222 , as shown in fig7 . the retaining member 222 of the present invention is inserted into the barrel 30 until the supports 20 contacts the means of adhesion 24 at the final location of the supports 20 , as shown in fig8 . additional means of adhesion 54 is then added to adhere the entire perimeter of the support 20 to the interior of the barrel 30 , as shown in fig9 . any means for adhesion may be used , but preferably the means will be urethane or silicone . the retaining member 22 of the present invention must not be resistant to the adhesive 24 . the retaining member 22 of the present invention will preferably be of a lightweight composition to prevent a “ weighting ” effect . in a preferred embodiment , the retaining member 22 will be of a lightweight composition capable of being adhered to the interior of the bat 10 , such as urethane foam . the bat 10 of the present invention may be included in one - wall or multiple - wall bat technology . the foregoing detailed description is given primarily for clearness of understanding and no unnecessary limitations are to be understood therefrom for modifications can be made by those skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure and may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims . | 0 |
referring to fig1 a selective call receiver comprises an antenna 10 for receiving signals coupled to a selective call receiver circuit 12 that demodulates the signals received . a microprocessor controller 14 is coupled to the receiver circuit 12 for processing the received signals . a memory 16 is coupled to the microprocessor controller 14 for storing those messages containing the address of the selective call receiver as determined by the microprocessor controller 14 . a code plug 18 is preferably an electrical erasable , programmable read only memory ( eeprom ) coupled to the microprocessor 14 for providing option information , such as the address and frequency of the selective call receiver , to the microprocessor 14 . also stored in the code plug 18 are configurations of various optional features which enhance the operation and / or performance of the selective call receiver , such as the length and types of various alerts and alarms , the type of code used by the selective call receiver ( e . g ., alphanumeric , numeric or voice ) and various reminder chirps such as an unread message reminder chirp every half hour . a serial communications interface 19 comprises a serial input / output data port that allows digital communication between a device outside the selective call receiver and the microprocessor 14 . a display device 20 visually presents information and is controlled by the microprocessor controller 14 . alerts 22 provide alarms , such as audible and visual alerts , to inform the selective call receiver user of various events and is also controlled by the microprocessor controller 14 . user controls 24 allow the user to command the microprocessor controller 14 to perform the selective call receiver operations such as selecting and reading messages and other selective call operations well known to those skilled in the art . the user controls 24 typically include control switches such as an on / off control button , directional controls , and a message read control . a battery 26 is coupled to the receiver circuit 12 , the microprocessor 14 , the display 20 and the alerts 22 to provide power for the operation of the selective call receiver . for a more detailed description of the structure and operation of a selective call radio paging receiver of the type shown in fig1 reference is made to u . s . pat . no . 4 , 518 , 961 , u . s . pat . no . 4 , 649 , 538 , and u . s . pat . no . 4 , 755 , 816 , all commonly assigned to the same assignee as the present invention , and the teachings of which are hereby incorporated by reference . referring next to fig2 the selective call receiver comprises a housing 30 including openings 32a and 32b in a front plate 34 with user selectable control buttons 24a and 24b , and 24c , respectively , accessible therethrough . a visual alert 22a is also viewable through opening 32a . an audible alert 22b is mounted behind slotted opening 32c . the display device 22 is a liquid crystal display ( lcd ) viewable through another opening 36 in a top plate 38 . the display 20 of the preferred embodiment is capable of displaying alphanumeric information . each activation of the user selectable control buttons 24a and 24b select one of the messages stored in memory 16 ( fig1 ). by activating the user selectable control button 24c , the user can display the selected stored message on the display device 20 . a clip 40 is mounted on a back plate 41 of housing 30 to allow the user to mount the selective call receiver on the user &# 39 ; s clothing , such as a belt or a pocket . referring to fig3 a right plate 42 of the selective call receiver has an on / off power switch 44 mounted thereon . other user selectable controls could be added to the selective call receiver but are not essential to the operation of the present invention . a bottom plate 46 of the selective call receiver has an opening 48 for inserting the battery 26 ( fig1 ). a battery cover 50 restrains the battery 26 within the selective call receiver . the serial communications interface 19 has three receptacles 52a , 52b , and 52c for receiving three conductive plugs thereby forming a digital data input / output port . referring next to fig4 an interface unit 60 contains the three conductive plugs to allow the selective call receiver 10 to be physically and electrically coupled thereto . in the preferred embodiment , the interface unit 60 allows reprogramming of the code plug 18 ( fig1 ) via a program in the microprocessor 14 of the selective call receiver . reprogramming of the code plug 18 is handled by a computer 62 via a computer data port 64 , such as an rs232 data port . the computer 62 could be a personal computer and the interface unit 60 could additionally serve as a battery charger for charging the battery 26 ( fig1 ). referring to fig5 the processing of the reprogramming routine of the computer 62 ( fig4 ) starts at step 70 , where the selective call receiver is accessed by the computer 62 via the interface unit 60 and the serial communications interface 19 ( fig3 ). the computer 62 places the selective call receiver in a upload mode 72 , whereby the computer 62 uploads the information stored in the code plug 18 . a password is requested from the user 74 . the password is received 76 from a keyboard of the computer 62 . if the password data received is equivalent to the password information stored in the code plug 78 , a lockout counter lockoutcnt is initialized to zero 80 . the code plug can then be read or reprogrammed 84 . the password information in the code plug can be encrypted to prevent anyone tampering with the serial communications interface 19 from reading the password information . if the received password data is not equivalent to the password information stored in the code plug 78 , lockoutcnt is incremented by one 90 . if lockoutcnt does not equal seven 92 , the reprogramming routine requests another password from the user 74 . if lockoutcnt equals seven 92 , the selective call receiver is user disabled 94 and no further attempts to enter a correct password by the user will be allowed . the selective call receiver can be user disabled in a variety of ways . in the preferred embodiment , the display 20 ( fig2 ) displays an alphanumeric message stored in nonvolatile memory every time that the display 20 is activated . the alphanumeric message is &# 34 ; pager disabled &# 34 ;. in addition , when the receiver is user disabled an audible alert 22b and / or a visual alert 22a could be activated either continuously or intermittently which has the added advantages of being annoying to the user who attempted unauthorized reprogramming and quickly discharging the battery 26 causing the receiver to have no operating power . an alternate embodiment would allow for the receiver to be functionally disabled upon the entry of a first incorrect password but would allow subsequent entries of passwords up to the predetermined number of attempts . after a predetermined number of failed attempts to enter the correct password , no further attempts to enter a correct password would be allowed . a subsequently entered correct password would functionally reenable the selective call receiver . once user disabled , the receiver can only be reenabled by returning the selective call receiver to a manufacturer designated repair facility or by replacing the parts so disabled . in the preferred embodiment , purchase of the user disabled parts for replacement amounts to a price substantially equivalent to the purchase of a new selective call receiver , thereby making theft of the protected selective call receivers economically disadvantageous . | 6 |
fig1 and 2 schematically illustrate patient flow utilizing the present invention . these figures will be discussed more fully below . next , referring to fig3 , a hospital layout 30 , in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention , is illustrated . the layout includes a lobby area 32 , a portion of which may be occupied by a retail sub - area 34 offering flowers , gifts , toiletries , and other products , as in a typical hospital . public / family support area 36 is adjacent to the lobby . in this area , family members can meet with hospital personnel to discuss / conduct administrative matters and consult regarding procedures being carried out or to be carried out . also , waiting areas and restrooms may be provided . concierge stations 38 are also located in the lobby adjacent to universal patient rooms 40 that are arranged in two rows on the opposite side of a center courtyard 42 . a nursing support area 44 is located at the opposite end of the courtyard from the public / family support area 36 . nursing stations , a lounge , lockers , and other facilities for medical staff are in the support area 44 . a series of high volume intervention or operating rooms 46 and a series of high - acuity intervention or operating rooms 48 are located adjacent the nursing support area 44 . a series of imaging procedural rooms 50 are located adjacent or between the or / intervention rooms 46 and 48 to create imaging suites . as discussed more fully below , the imaging procedural rooms and or / intervention rooms share ct , mri , and other imaging equipment . or / intervention room intubation rooms 52 , as well as extubation rooms 54 , are located adjacent to the high volume or / intervention rooms 46 . a corridor 56 extends around the or / intervention rooms and the intubation and extubation rooms and between rows of patient rooms 540 . the structure and use of universal patient rooms 40 , high volume or / intervention rooms 46 , and corresponding intubation and extubation rooms 52 and 54 and high - acuity or / intervention rooms 48 are described in further detail . fig4 illustrates two universal patient rooms 40 , positioned side by side . such patient rooms are located closely adjacent to the or / intervention rooms 46 and 48 and are designed to eliminate several separate rooms or stations currently used for patient care between admission and discharge . patients are initially met at the concierge station 38 and then taken directly to the universal patient rooms 40 for admission and preparation prior to the surgical / intervention procedure . from the patient room 40 , the patient is taken either to an intubation room 52 or directly to a high - acuity or / intervention room 48 . family members may be with the patient in rooms 40 . as shown in fig4 , the patient rooms 40 may include a bed 60 and a lounge area 61 furnished with a couch 62 or other types of seating furniture for the patient or family members . the rooms 40 are also configured with a desk surface 64 and desk chair 66 for use by the patient and / or family members . toilet and bathing facilities 68 are provided for each of the universal patient rooms . a large screen monitor 70 is provided to display applicable physiological data of the patient being monitored , as well as to serve as a patient television for education , ordering of meals , and entertainment . as noted above , patients are taken from universal patient rooms 40 directly to an intubation room immediately prior to a procedure to be performed in a high volume or / intervention room 46 , or directly to a high acuity or / intervention room 48 . after the procedure is completed , patients are returned directly to the universal room 40 from either the high - acuity or / intervention room 48 or a high volume or / intervention room 46 , or via an extubation room 54 . in the universal patient room 40 , the patient is reunited with family members after an initial recovery period ( stage i recovery ) the patient remains in the universal patient room 40 during the recovery period and until discharged . the patient may be discharged directly from the universal patient room 40 , rather than having to be transported to a separate inpatient bed unit or discharge station / area . the use of the universal patient room 40 reduces the number of patient transports needed , thereby enhancing not only patient safety and reduced anxiety , but also operation efficiency , as well as reduction of potential medical errors . as a result , the satisfaction of both patients and medical staff is increased . to meet these goals , the universal patient rooms need to be “ acuity adaptable .” in other words , the patient rooms must be able to accommodate a variety of activities , from an intensive care level , after an organ transplant , to a more traditional patient room , for example , for a patient recovering from surgery for a broken arm . the patient room is capable of accommodating the equipment and monitoring devices needed for intensive patient care . next , the high volume or / intervention rooms 46 and associated intubation rooms 52 and extubation rooms 54 will be described with reference to fig5 - 10 . fig5 illustrates a series of high volume or / intervention rooms 46 positioned in side - by - side pairs and separated by a common wall 80 . as also shown in fig5 , a singular extubation room 54 is positioned at the end of common wall 80 to serve both of the two or / intervention rooms 46 . an intubation room 52 is located on opposite sides of the extubation room 54 so as to be adjacent a corresponding or / intervention room 46 . a scrubbing station 82 may be located along each side of the intubation rooms 52 opposite the extubation room 54 . also an equipment room 84 may be located between adjacent sets of or / intervention rooms 46 . of course , rooms for other purposes may also be positioned between the sets of or / intervention rooms 46 . next , referring to fig6 , one extubation room 54 is illustrated as positioned between two intubation rooms 52 . as described above , the extubation room 54 is shared by two adjacent or / intervention rooms 46 . some of the activities / tasks currently carried out in the or / intervention room are instead performed in the intubation and extubation rooms 52 and 54 . a patient is prepped and induced in the intubation room while the previous procedure is being completed in the or / intervention room and while the or / intervention room is being cleaned and prepared for the patient . in this regard , the intubation room , as noted above , is located directly adjacent an or / intervention room . also in the intubation room , the patient is placed on a surgical table 90 , which is then simply rolled into the adjacent or / intervention room and used during the procedure . as discussed more fully below , the surgical table includes an anesthesia unit 92 that docks to the surgical table and remains with the table until the patient has been extubated after the procedure . the patient is anesthetized in the intubation room so that the procedure may begin immediately upon the patient being moved to the or / intervention room . as shown in fig7 , the or / intervention room may include a large wall screen display 100 on which the patient &# 39 ; s physiological condition , including vitals , can be displayed in large format . also , digital x - rays , the results of prior ct scans , or mris can be shown on the screen display 100 . the intubation room may include other screens , for example , the ceiling 102 of the room can display various scenes , for instance the sky , even the condition of the actual sky outside of the hospital clinic . another wall 104 of the intubation room may display a television screen or a video screen for the comfort and / or distraction of the patient . once the patient has been prepared and the or / intervention room has been turned over , the patient is moved directly into the or / intervention room for the start of the procedure . after the procedure has been completed , the patient is immediately moved to the extubation room to be awakened and extubated . this allows the or / intervention room to be immediately cleaned and readied for the next patient . as a consequence , the or / intervention room can be used for more procedures than in a conventional or existing hospital or clinic , especially when the or / intervention room is being used for interventions of less than about two hours duration . such interventions may include , for example , orthopedic , general , urological , ent , ophthalmological or plastic procedures . as in the or / intervention room , the extubation room may include a large format screen display on one of the walls 106 of the room to display the physiological condition of the patient . also , the room is equipped to provide medical cases , fluids , medication , etc ., to the patient . in the room , the patient may be lying on the same surgical table previously used in the or / intervention room and the intubation room . this reduces having to move the patient from a procedure surface to a recovery surface and then a transport surface . from the extubation room , the patient is returned to the same room 40 where the patient was admitted . the patient will recover and remain in the same room 40 until discharged . the or / intervention room 46 will now be described with reference to fig8 , 9 , and 10 , 10 a and 10 b . as shown in fig8 and 9 , two or / intervention rooms 46 are located side - by - side . this enables the two or / intervention rooms to share an extubation room 54 . however , more than two or / intervention rooms may be positioned side - by - side to each other . one severe problem with current or / intervention rooms is that there is so much equipment , tables , booms , cords , and tubes leading to and from the patient and monitors , devices , etc ., that mobility around the patient may be very difficult , and in fact dangerous . the present invention establishes a surgery / intervention zone of a defined size around the patient that is free from articulating arms for monitors , lighting , equipment , etc ., free from hose drops and utility columns from the ceiling , or other electrical , data , medical gases , vacuum , or evacuation lines , tubes , and cords . such surgery / intervention zone may be of a select size , for example , a 20 - foot diameter . this establishes an unobstructed sterile zone for the surgery / intervention team to freely and efficiently function within . to establish the surgery / intervention zone , medical gases , electrical and data outlets , vacuum lines , evacuation lines , and communication lines , are brought into the or / intervention room through an interstitial space located in the floor for connection to the base portion of the surgical table 90 . a connector hub assembly 107 for such medical gases , utilities , data , communications , vacuum , and evacuation , as shown in fig1 b , is located centrally in the surgery / intervention zone for automatic and secure connection to the base 244 of the surgical table 90 when the surgical table is positioned over the connector hub assembly . fig1 b shows various lines that enter into the or / intervention room 46 through a sleeve 108 in the floor 142 . the lines can include , for example , a vacuum line 110 , a power line 111 , a gas line 112 , and a data line 113 . additional or alternative lines can be provided for other fluids and purposes , such as oxygen or nitrous oxide . preferably , the sleeve and lines 110 - 113 are hermetically sealed at the floor 142 . continuing to refer to fig1 b , the hub assembly 107 includes a connection collar 114 for securely supporting the ends of the lines 110 - 113 . the connection collar 114 can be received in close registry within an indexing socket or cavity 115 at the bottom of the table base 244 , so that the terminal ends of line 110 - 113 are disposed in registry with the lower ends of corresponding lines 110 a , 111 a , 112 a and 113 a , having associated connectors 110 b , 111 b , 112 b , and 113 b . the connectors 110 b - 113 b may be powered or otherwise configured to automatically engage with the corresponding ends of lines 110 - 113 when the collar 114 is properly indexed with socket 115 . the present invention also contemplates a digital monitoring system 116 for receiving lines 110 a - 113 a , and for monitoring and controlling the gas , liquid or other fluid or data or electricity flowing through such lines . although the hub assembly 107 is illustrated as utilized in conjunction with the base 244 of the surgical table 90 , alternatively or in addition , the same or similar hub arrangement may be utilized in conjunction with the anesthesia machine 92 when docked with the surgical table 90 , as discussed below . also , when the surgical table 90 and / or anesthesia machine 92 is disengaged from hub assembly 107 , the adjacent ends of the lines 110 - 113 and 110 a - 113 a are automatically closed to prevent gas / liquid / data flow or contamination . alternatively , the water - tight collar 114 may be flush with the floor surface when not in use to permit unobstructed cleaning of the floor between cases . the collar may be motorized to raise automatically from the floor surface for quick connection and disconnection to the utility portals in the surgical table . to establish a surgical / intervention zone , the or / intervention room 46 is free from the typical lights mounted on articulated arms suspended from the ceiling . such arms are difficult to manipulate and create barriers between medical personnel , as well as block sightlines of the personnel . moreover , such arms , as well as the lighting fixtures themselves , interfere with the laminar airflow over the surgical / intervention site , as discussed more fully below . in the present situation , multiple lights 118 are positioned in recesses 120 formed in the ceiling . the lights may be of various types , including , for example , halogen or xeon lights . as shown in fig1 a , the lights 118 may include a bulb 122 mounted in a socket assembly 124 . a high performance reflector 126 , for instance a cold mirrored glass reflector , may be used to direct the light from the bulb 122 . the lights include individual mounting systems 128 that enable the direction of the lights to be moved or manipulated , and focused as desired . for example , the light 118 can be tilted and swiveled about the mounting system to direct the light as desired . actuation of the mounting systems may be by microchip - driven radio frequency controls or other types of controls positioned in the glove of surgical / intervention room personnel to enable the lights to be aimed and focused as desired as well as the intensity of the light to be varied . rather than being mounted on a glove , the microchip controls can be mounted in other locations , such as on a wrist band , or head band of or / intervention room personnel . the light controls can also be tied to a radio frequency identification device or tag that can be embedded in or mounted on a clamp or other device located within the surgical / intervention zone that would remain static in the area during the procedure . further , the lights can be pre - set by an automatic lighting system based on the procedure being performed . in this regard , the positioning of the lights can be programmed using a wall panel or remote control unit , or controlled from a central computer system . additionally , or alternatively , the lights can be voice actuated . lights of the nature of the present invention are articles of commerce , but retrofitted with special high intensity bulbs capable of achieving optimum focal length from the surface of the or / intervention room ceiling to the surgical / intervention site . as shown in fig1 , substantially the entire ceiling portion of the intervention zone is covered with openings 120 for placement of the lights for the present invention . as mentioned previously , in current or / intervention rooms , light fixtures , utility cord drops , and other items obstruct the laminar air flow from the ceiling of the or / intervention room to the surgical / intervention site this situation is corrected by establishing the surgical / intervention zone in the or / intervention room , including by eliminating typical boom - mounted light fixtures . as a consequence , air can be introduced into the or / intervention room through openings 120 similar to those used for the lights , and the air can flow , unobstructed , in a laminar manner down to the surgical / intervention site and out through exit outlets 140 located about the or / intervention room near the floor 142 . as shown in fig5 and 9 , relatively deep wells 144 are formed in the interstitial space above the ceiling of the or / intervention room where the ventilation air that is routed downwardly into the or / intervention room through ceiling panel diffusers using openings 120 . use of the ventilation wells 144 ensures that a uniform flow of ventilation air is supplied to the entire volume of the or / intervention rooms , so that no significant “ dead air ” space exists . moreover , with the elimination of lighting fixtures , equipment , etc ., from the intervention zone , air flow eddies are eliminated within the laminar air flow to the surgical / intervention site . other sources of “ congestion ” in the or / intervention room are the various monitors used to display physiological data of the patient , anesthesia data , as well as for image guidance , for example , during laparoscopic surgery or other procedures that utilize endoscopic cameras . moreover , these monitors and display screens block light from the typical lighting fixtures used in or / intervention rooms , as well as block the flow of ventilation air . such monitors currently typically are mounted on articulating booms suspended from the ceiling within the surgical intervention zone . in accordance with the present invention , a plurality of large flat screen monitors 160 are arrayed outside of the surgical / intervention zone . in this regard , see also fig1 which illustrates a high - acuity or / intervention room 48 . the monitors are suspended from arms 162 that suspend downwardly from a rail system extending around the perimeter of the or / intervention room outwardly of the intervention zone . the monitors may be of various types , such as plasma screen monitors , lcd screen monitors , etc . the important point is that the monitors 160 are of a size and high resolution so that their content may be easily viewed by the personnel in the or / intervention room . the monitors include screens 164 that are supported by a mounting structure 166 that enables the screens to be adjusted both vertically and horizontally . in addition , the mounting structure 166 can be designed to enable the screens 164 to be rotatable about a vertical axis , and also about a horizontal axis for better viewing by personnel . to this end , the mounting structure 166 may include upper and lower tracks 168 and 170 as well as vertical end tracks 172 for guiding horizontal and vertical movement of the screens 164 . alternatively , the mounting structure 166 may be designed to move vertically relative to arms 162 . the position of the screens can be controlled by voice command . the content of the screens can also be controlled by voice command . moreover , the instruments and other devices that are being monitored on the screens 164 may also be controlled by voice command . such control systems are articles of commerce . voice recognition software is commercially available for use with voice command systems . the large screen monitor may be pre - programmed and arrayed for specific procedures and individual surgeon / interventionist preferences . to create the surgical / intervention zone , a perimeter ring or rail system 180 is formed in the ceiling of the or / intervention room around a perimeter thereof . as shown in fig1 , arms extend downwardly from the rail system to support previously floor - mounted tables , equipment , and cabinets . for example , a vertical arm 184 is illustrated as extending downwardly from rail system 180 to support the distal end of a first horizontal articulating arm 186 which in turn is pivotally coupled to a second horizontal articulating arm 186 . a telescoping vertical arm system 188 extends downwardly from the proximal end of horizontal arm 186 . the corners of two vertically spaced apart upper and lower shelves 190 and 192 are coupled to telescoping arm 188 by collar assemblies 194 . the collar assemblies allow the shelves 190 and 192 to pivot relative to telescoping arm assembly 188 and then lock in position once the position of the shelves is as desired . a telescoping arm assembly 188 enables the shelves 190 and 192 to be raised and lowered as desired . when the shelves 190 and 192 are not in use , they can be removed beyond the intervention zone by rotation of horizontal arms 184 and 186 . the movement of such arms , as well as the operation of telescoping arms 188 , can be controlled by various means , such as a remote control device . also , the movement of such arms can also be controlled by voice command . fig1 also illustrates cabinet 200 which is mounted on a pair of horizontal articulating arms 202 and 204 , which in turn are supported by a vertical arm 206 that extends downwardly from track system 180 . the cabinet 200 may include shelves and drawers for storing various instruments , supplies , and other equipment . cabinet 200 can be positioned by personnel at desired locations by remote control or by voice command , in the manner of the shelves 190 and 192 . as with the shelves 190 and 192 , the cabinet 200 can be moved out of the way , and outwardly of the surgical / intervention zone , when not in use . referring to fig1 , utilities needed for cauteries , lasers , drills , and other accessories may be stationed remote from the surgical / intervention zone as a secondary utility distribution system from that provided in the floor 142 . such utilities can be provided in a vertical arrayed mounting system 210 which illustrates various medical gas , electrical , data and communications outlets 212 - 222 . such outlets will supplement corresponding outlets provided in the floor of the or / intervention room beneath the table 90 . it will be appreciated that the above described lighting system , monitors , table supports , cabinet supports , and auxiliary utilities allow elimination of virtually all ceiling and floor mounted obstructions in the surgical / intervention zone . moreover , they also keep the floor free from obstructions whereby the floor can be cleaned by automated robots , described below . next , describing the surgical table 90 in greater detail , referring specifically to fig1 , 15 , and 16 , in basic form , the table includes a top portion 240 , a pedestal portion 242 , and a base portion 244 . the top portion 240 is constructed in various sections , including a head section 246 , a shoulder section 248 , a torso section 250 , and a lower extremity section 252 . each section may be pivotable or elevatable relative to the adjacent section . the retractable arm structures 254 and 256 are positioned at the head and foot of the tabletop 240 , on which are mounted outlets for all medical gases , vacuum source , evacuation source , electrical supply , data and communications that are brought into the or / intervention room through the floor 142 , as described above . the arm structures 254 and 256 include connections that are made at an ergonomically correct height and then are rotatable downward to a position below the surgery intervention table surface so as to move out of the way and not be accidentally bumped . also by locating the arm structures at the head and foot of the table 90 , the outlets are maintained clear of a sterile surgical drape which may be clamped on the sides of the patient . further , an arm structure is accessible to the anesthesiologist located at the head of the patient . the medical gases , vacuum , utilities , data lines , tubes , and cords are routed to the arms 254 and 256 through pedestal 242 from the base 244 . as mentioned previously , the base has a connector assembly that connects with the connector hub located in the or / intervention room floor 142 . in this manner , ceiling drops , columns , and articulating booms and cords to carry medical gases , vacuum , evacuation , electrical , and data to the location of the immediate patient area are eliminated . as previously discussed , the same table 90 is used to support the patient from the intubation room 52 , the or / intervention room 46 and the extubation room 54 . as such , the surgical table 90 is provided with wheels in the base 244 to enable the table to be easily moved from place to place . as also mentioned above , an anesthesia machine 94 is configured to be dockable and dedockable to the table base 244 . the anesthesia machine 94 has quick disconnect fittings to connectors located on the table base 244 or pedestal 242 , which , in turn , are connected to the utility hub in the floor 142 . anesthesia outlets may also be incorporated into the table arm structure 254 and 256 . by this construction , the anesthesia machine 94 is independently mobile relative to the table for cleaning and servicing . moreover , the anesthesia machine may be controlled by an anesthesiologist or technician in a remote control room . as such , physical intervention and manipulation of the anesthesia machine in the or / intervention room is not required . of course , a nurse anesthesiologist may be present in the or / intervention room to administer to the patient . however , the anesthesiologist can move from or / intervention room to or / intervention room or be located in a remote control room to monitor a number of patients at one time , thereby increasing efficiency of the anesthesiologist and safety of the patient . fig1 a and 15b illustrate an anesthesia machine 304 , docked with surgical table 90 , but with the anesthesia machine coupled to a hub assembly 307 in a manner similar to hub 107 coupled to the surgical table 90 shown in fig1 b . in fig1 a and 15b the components similar to those shown in fig1 b are given corresponding part numbers but as a “ 300 ” series . as in fig1 b , in fig1 a and 15b medical gases , vacuum lines , evacuation lines , electrical and data outlets and communication lines are interfaced with the or / intervention room through an interstitial space located in floor 342 for connection to the base portion of anesthesia machine 304 . as in fig1 b , a connector hub assembly 307 is utilized for such medical gases , utilities , data , communications , vacuum and evacuation . the connection hub assembly 307 includes a lower connection collar 314 a that is nominally disposed within a recess 309 formed in the floor 342 . the collar 314 a may be raised upwardly into engagement with a corresponding collar 314 b , positioned at the base portion of the anesthesia machine . the upward extension or downward retraction of the lower collar 314 a is via linear actuator 318 connected to the collar 314 a via push - pull rod 319 . as shown in fig1 a and 15b , the terminal ends of vacuum line 310 , power line 311 , gas line 312 , and data line 313 , are attached to connection collar 314 a . connectors 310 c , 311 c , 312 c , and 313 c are provided for the lines 310 - 313 , which connectors are held securely by the connection collar . the lines 310 , 311 , 312 , and 313 are connectable to the lower ends of corresponding lines 310 a , 311 a , 312 a , and 313 a , which extend downwardly from the anesthesia machine to terminate at connectors 310 b , 311 b , 312 b , and 313 b , securely held by upper collar 314 b . as in fig1 b , a control and monitoring system 316 is interposed in lines 310 a - 313 a for monitoring and controlling the gas , liquid or other fluids , or evacuation or data or electricity transmitted through such lines . also , when lower connection collar 314 a is in retracted position within recess 309 , connectors 310 c , 311 c , 312 c , and 313 c automatically close off corresponding lines 310 , 311 , 312 , and 313 . when the anesthesia machine 304 is docked with surgical table 90 , lines 310 a , 311 a , 312 a , and 313 a automatically connect to corresponding lines 310 d , 311 d , 312 d , and 313 d of the surgical table 90 . to this end , a second set of connection collars 320 and 322 are provided between the anesthesia machine and the surgical table . the collars 320 and 322 automatically mate with each other upon the docking of the anesthesia machine with the surgical table , thereby to permit flow between lines 310 a - 313 a to corresponding lines 310 d - 313 d . as in connection collar 314 a , one or both of the connection collars 320 and 322 can be designed to extend forwardly or retract rearwardly to lock with the corresponding connection collar . when the anesthesia machine and surgical table are disengaged from each other , the adjacent ends of lines 310 a - 313 a and 310 d - 313 d are automatically closed to prevent gas , liquid , data , vacuum , electrical flow or contamination . as an alternative to the foregoing , when the anesthesia machine 304 is docked with surgical table 90 , a hub assembly similar to hub 307 can be used to connect utilities , gases , data , to the surgical table rather than to the anesthesia machine . in this option , when the anesthesia machine is docked with the surgical table , a connection system is utilized at the lower portion of the anesthesia machine to connect to the surgical table , in a manner similar to connection collars 320 and 322 . in this situation , the anesthesia machine controls the flow of gases and other utilities to and from the surgical table in a manner similar to that contemplated in the embodiment of the present disclosure shown in fig1 a and 15b . this may be a less desirable option than having the hub assembly 307 connectable to the anesthesia machine , since it requires that the surgical table also be configured to connect to the hub assembly , thereby duplicating the connection capabilities of the anesthesia machine . in fig1 , the anesthesia machine 94 is shown as supported on the floor 342 by wheels . as an alternative , when the anesthesia machine 304 is docked with surgical table 90 , the anesthesia machine could be carried by and supported by the surgical table . to this end , wheel channels or supports ( not shown ) could extend along the inside portions of rails 245 of base 244 of the surgical table to receive wheels 340 of the anesthesia machine 304 . another source of expense and inefficiency in a typical hospital or medical clinic setting is that patients must be transported from or / intervention rooms to remote locations where imaging equipment is located . alternatively , the costly imaging equipment may be dedicated to a single or / intervention room . the transport of the patient to a remote imaging room can increase the incident of medical errors and compromise patient safety . in accordance with the present invention , scanning equipment , for example , scanner 270 , shown in fig8 and 10 may be brought into an or / intervention room , as needed , by an overhead monorail system 272 , as shown in fig8 and 9 . the monorail system allows the scanner 270 to be moved among a number of or / intervention rooms for real time use during an intervention procedure . when not needed in an or / intervention room , the scanner can be used for routinely scheduled diagnostic studies in imaging suites 50 , see fig3 . this enables the scanner to be used more efficiently than in existing hospitals and medical facilities . various types of scanners can be employed in the mobile manner of the present invention , including ct scanners , mri machines , fluoroscopy c - arm , ultrasound , and other types of scanners . as shown in fig1 , the scanner 270 is connected to the lower end of a vertical arm 274 , with the upper end of the arm connected to a powered carriage 276 which moves along the monorail system 272 . all required electrical and data services are provided by retractable cables . in the case of moveable mri scanners , a telescoping duct system extends or retracts to exhaust cryogen gases in the event of an unexpected “ quench ” of the cryogen system . appropriate retractable openings 278 can be formed in the walls of the or / intervention rooms to allow passage of the vertical arm 274 . the imaging equipment can be controlled and operated by a logistics core , for example , located at the center of a number of or / intervention rooms . this provides for efficient usage of imaging equipment personnel . alternatively , the scanning device such as a ct or mri scanner may be fixed in an imaging room positioned between two or / intervention rooms . in this alternative , the patient is automatically transported from the surgical / intervention zone to the centrally located scanner on a commercially available surgical / intervention table . fig8 - 10 illustrate or / intervention room 46 , which is specifically designed for relatively high volume usage , meaning for procedures of about two hours or less . to make maximum usage of the or / intervention room 46 adjacent intubation and extubation rooms 52 and 54 are utilized , as described above . fig1 - 14 illustrate the high - acuity or / intervention room 48 which is used for longer and more extensive procedures than in or / intervention room 46 . such procedures may include , for example , orthopedic , general , craniofacial , cardiovascular interventions , neurological interventions and organ transplants . as such , intubation rooms and extubation rooms are typically not utilized with the high - acuity or / intervention room 48 . however , in other respects , the or / intervention room 48 is constructed and laid out similarly to the or / intervention room 46 described above . thus , like components and structures used in or / intervention room 48 are given the same part numbers as the corresponding structure / components used in or / intervention room 46 . as in or / intervention rooms 46 , the high - acuity or / intervention rooms 48 also utilize mobile imaging equipment 270 . further , as in the high volume or / intervention rooms , a surgical / intervention zone is established in the high - acuity or / intervention rooms 48 . in addition , as in the high volume or / intervention room 46 , the high - acuity or / intervention room 48 includes a utilities hub in the floor of the room for connection to the base of the surgical table 90 . an area of hospital / clinical practice usage that has not kept pace with diagnostic and treatment technologies is materials logistics , supplying the instruments , equipment and other items needed in the or / intervention room . these are typically delivered to the or / intervention room manually and also removed from the or / intervention room manually after usage . the present invention incorporates the use of robots to deliver case packs , supplies , instruments , etc ., to the or / intervention room and remove used linens , supplies , instruments from the or / intervention room in an efficient and quick manner . case packs and supply cabinets can be configured as part of a robot itself , for example , robot 300 , shown in fig1 . also , the instrument 302 shown in fig1 may be incorporated into a robot . such robots enter the room vertically by automatic cart lifts incorporated into the or / intervention room , for example , along the perimeter thereof . the robots are delivered to the or / intervention room from a logistics core , located at the center of a plurality of or / intervention rooms . the deployment of the robots and their return to the logistics core can be completely or partially automated or controlled from the logistics core . the robots return soiled linens , instruments , equipment and waste to a decontamination area of central sterile supply . robots of the foregoing nature are articles of commerce . such robots are available , for example , from pyxis corporation . such robots may operate without fixed tracks or guidewires . another robot is marketed under the designation transcar automated guided vehicles from swisslog hcs . such robots are able to efficiently travel from location to location , avoiding stationary moving objects . some may need elevators or lifts . such robots announce their arrival at a destination , signaling closed doors to open and maintaining communications with a central computer system . instruments and re - usable supplies are frequently not available when needed in an or / intervention room , often due to breakdowns in the logistics system . this may result in costly as well as dangerous or compromising delays during a procedure . as a consequence , greater inventories are often prescribed than actually needed , to compensate for such delays . the present invention contemplates tracking instruments and re - usable equipment with a radio frequency system , which is not affected by the sterilization process . radio frequency tags may be mounted on , or incorporated into , such instruments and re - usable equipment . the location of such equipment can then be monitored or readily ascertained . as a consequence , instrument and re - usable equipment loss , as well as inventories , may be reduced , thereby resulting in lower operational costs , fewer or shorter delays , as well as reduced medical errors . radio frequency tags are articles of commerce , as well as equipment from monitoring or reading such tags . in another aspect of the present invention , or / intervention rooms , as well as intubation and extubation rooms , are automatically cleaned between uses . currently , or / intervention rooms are manually cleaned requiring a significant length of time . as such , if existing clean durations can be reduced significantly , the number of surgical interventions performed in an or / intervention room per day can be increased . to this end , the present invention incorporates the use of several cleaning robots 304 that are housed in the or / intervention room or in the intubation / extubation rooms , see fig1 and 13 . such cleaning robots are capable of dispensing a biocidal cleaning solution onto the floor and then scrubbing and vacuuming the floor thoroughly . such robots have a biocidal cleaning solution storage compartment , scrub brushes , a vacuum system , and a waste bin for collecting the used cleaning solution and other debris or items removed from the or / intervention room floor . waste cleaning solution and debris are automatically purged from the cleaning robots in their docked position . cleaning robots somewhat similar to robots 304 are available from irobot corporation . after cleaning by the cleaning robots , a biocide aerosol is dispensed into the or / intervention room through ports in the ceiling . the aerosol decontaminates all surfaces of the or / intervention room . the aerosol is exhausted from the or / intervention room through the exhaust ports 140 located near the floor . the biocide aerosol is non - hazardous to humans , though typically staff will not be in the room during the cleaning process . applicants estimate that the time for cleaning an or / intervention room using the foregoing equipment and process to be reduced to about two minutes . this dramatically shortens cleaning time over current manual procedures . a further aspect of the present invention to improve the quality and efficiency of hospital / clinical procedures is to utilize an automated hand / arm scrubbing system . currently , manual scrubbing by the intervention team takes at least eight minutes . the present invention contemplates utilizing an automatic scrubber system , not shown , utilizing power brushes to gross clean the hands and arms of the surgical / intervention team members . the system could include efficient powered brushes to reach all areas of the users hands , fingers , and arms , as well as a biocide cleaning solution and sterile water for rinsing . the system also contemplates a self - cleaning system for the brushes after usage . after gross cleaning by the brushes , final cleaning occurs by the application of a biocidal solution , for instance , by spraying such solution onto the hands and arms of the user . using the foregoing equipment and procedure , it is estimated that the time required for scrubbing can be reduced from eight minutes to approximately two minutes with greater effectiveness . alternatively , the hand wash system may not utilize brushes , but instead numerous rotating nozzles that automatically spray water and anti - bacterial solution on the hands and under the fingernails . thereafter , the hands are rinsed with non - irritating , high - pressure water spray , and then dried with a built - in air dryer . alternatively , paper towels can be used for drying . such hand washers are articles of commerce , for example , available from meritec , inc ., of centennial , colo . referring to fig1 , the method of the present invention is schematically illustrated . in accordance with the method , a patient is received at a medical / clinical facility at the concierge area 38 by personnel having information about the patient , the intervention to take place , and the schedule of the intervention . the patient is taken to a universal patient room 40 . here the patient can be admitted , and pre - preparation tasks performed . also in the patient room , family members may be present . from the patient room 40 , the patient is taken to the induction room 52 for induction tasks performed , including , for example , attachment of monitoring and fluid lines to the patient , performing anesthesiology on the patient , and carrying out final pre - intervention preparation of the patient . in the next step the patient is transported to the or / intervention room 46 , where the intervention is performed . as noted above , such interventions typically are of relatively short duration , typically two hours or less . after the intervention , the patient is transported to an adjacent extubation room 54 for extubation of the patient , including awakening the patient and possibly removing monitoring and fluid lines from the patient . next , the patient is returned to the patient room for recovery . the patient room , as noted above , is adaptable to the acuity level required for the patient , from high level intensive care to traditional low level recovery and rest . subsequently the patient is discharged directly from the patient room . fig2 is a schematic flow diagram similar to fig1 , but for high acuity interventions , wherein the intubation room 52 and extubation room 54 are not utilized . rather , the patient is taken directly from the patient room 40 to the high acuity or / intervention room 48 for performance of the intervention procedure . thereafter the patient is taken directly from the or / intervention room back to the patient room 40 for recovery . next , referring to fig1 , 19 , and 20 , a further disclosure of an or / intervention room 400 constructed and operationally very similar to the other or / intervention rooms of the present application . the or / intervention room 400 includes a drop - down ceiling structure 402 which is shown as being circular in shape to define the surgery / intervention zone around the patient that is free from articulating arms , from monitors , lighting , equipment , etc ., and also free from hose drops and utility columns from the ceiling or other electrical , data , medical gas , vacuum or evacuation lines , tubes , or cords . the surgical / intervention zone may be of a selected size defined by the size of the drop - down ceiling structure 402 which may be from , for example , 10 - 20 feet in diameter . as previously discussed , this establishes an unobstructed sterile zone for the surgery / intervention team to freely and efficiently function within . as shown in fig1 - 20 , the drop - down ceiling structure 402 extends downwardly from the ceiling height of the rest of the or / intervention room 400 , with the ceiling height of structure 402 being , in one disclosure of the present application , approximately 7 . 5 feet above the floor . of course , this height may be varied somewhat , for example in the range of about 7 feet to 8 feet above the floor . the lowered height of the ceiling structure 402 has advantages in providing a better focal length for the lighting of the or / intervention room , as discussed more fully below , and requiring a shorter distance for the ventilation air to flow from the ceiling structure to the floor and then out of the or / intervention room 400 . as previously mentioned , in conventional or / surgical sites , lights are mounted on booms directly over the surgical site . these lights must be positioned manually by the surgeon or scrub nurse . also , the suspended lights and boom obstruct the work zone . in addition , the lights and their support beams dramatically disrupt laminar flow of the ventilation air . further , particulates and squames collect on the lights and the support beams , including during the time that the or / surgical site is not in use , and then are drawn into the surgical site by the laminar ventilation flow . these drawbacks are substantially reduced , or even eliminated , by the or / intervention room 400 and drop - down ceiling 402 that promote laminar air flow for the entire distance from the ceiling , to the surgical site , and then to the floor . also , the typical ten - plus - foot high ceilings in existing or / surgical sites ( necessitated by surgical light beams ) enable cold air from the ceiling to accelerate in the downward air flow direction due to gravity . air supplied at 30 feet per minute at the ceiling can accelerate to 90 feet per minute at the surgical site . this relatively high velocity air can overcome the “ thermal plume ” from the surgical wound and impinge contaminated particles into the wound site . also , the heat disseminated from typical surgical lights can cause the surgical staff to require lower ambient room temperatures for their comfort . for example , the supply air at the ceiling can be from about 5 to 15 degrees cooler than the ambient temperature . the requirement for lower ambient temperature due to heat from typical surgical lights , and the increase in laminar air flow velocity due to the ten - foot - plus high ceiling , can create a condition of hypothermia at the wound site . it has been documented that achieving nomothermia at a wound site can enhance healing and reduce the risk of surgical site infections . thus , laminar air flow systems in typical or / surgical sites can result in less than optimal conditions and may contribute to increased risk of surgical site infections . the or / intervention room 400 with its drop - down ceiling structure 402 also leads to “ reduced age ” of the air for the entire or / intervention room generally , and also at the surgical site . studies have shown that the age of the air in the or / intervention room 400 is about 16 % less than in a typical or room with 10 - foot - plus high ceilings . this reduced length of time air remains in the or / intervention room 400 reduces the likelihood that the air is simply recirculating in the or . it also reduces the possibility that the air at the surgical site comes from entrainment . the drop - down ceiling structure 402 includes a perimeter sub - substructure 404 that defines the outer perimeter of the ceiling structure . a support grid 406 ( see fig2 and 23 ) is supported by the lower portion of the perimeter substructure 404 which in turn supports a diffuser in the form of a perforated stainless steel ceiling panel 408 . the support grid may be composed of inverted “ t ” members or structural members of other shapes . the ceiling panel 408 serves as a laminar airflow diffuser so that the uniform , laminar flow of ventilation air is supplied to and flows downwardly through the surgical zone . this uniform laminar air flow system reduces , or even substantially eliminates , any dead air spaces or air flow eddies that commonly occur in conventional or / surgical rooms . the perforated ceiling panel diffuser 408 supports a hepa or other type of filter 410 , see fig2 and 24 . of course , the hepa filters may be alternatively located upstream . the ceiling structure also includes a diffuser housing 425 spaced above the diffuser in the form of panel 408 ). an insulation layer 414 overlies the upper panel 412 of the diffuser housing 424 . the insulation layer can be composed of an appropriate material for heat and noise insulation . the ceiling structure is supported by a series of spaced apart support beams 415 that span across the ceiling 402 of the or / intervention room , see fig2 . the beams 415 can be composed of structural channels , i beams or numerous other structural shapes and types that are sufficient to support the ceiling structure . referring specifically to fig2 , ventilation air for the or / intervention room 400 is supplied from a building source to large ducts 420 . the ducts 420 are attached to the building source ducts by a “ quick connect ” coupling apparatus pre - installed on both components for convenient and rapid installation . a series of branch distribution ducts 422 direct the ventilation air from ducts 420 downwardly and exhaust the ventilation air through volume control dampers 423 and old exhaust nozzles 424 at a location above ceiling diffuser panel 408 . the distribution ducts 422 are arranged about the area of the diffuser 408 to provide substantially uniform flow of laminar air downwardly through the surgical site . of course the volume , temperature , and other aspects of the air can be automatically or manually or semi - automatically controlled . as noted above , the reduced height of the ceiling structure 402 results in a shorter distance that the ventilation air flows from diffuser housing 424 and diffuser 408 to the floor , thereby enhancing the ability to provide laminar air flow through the surgical zone than if the air were required to flow downwardly from the full height of the or / intervention room , typically at least 10 feet . referring additionally to fig2 - 23 , the series of light assemblies 430 are spaced about the area of ceiling panel 408 . several light assemblies 430 are clustered about the central portion of the ceiling panel to provide increased light at the surgical / operational site . the lights may be of various constructions . in fig2 - 24 , such lights are shown as composed of an array of led lights 432 , each having a high performance reflector 434 . the lights 432 and corresponding reflectors 434 are mounted on a carrier 436 , which in turn is mounted on a yoke 438 to pivot about pivot axis 442 . a servomotor 444 acts through a linkage assembly 446 to pivot the carrier 436 , and thus lights 432 , about axis 442 . the yoke 438 is in turn carried by a shaft 450 , which may be rotated by a second servomotor 452 , thereby to rotate the yoke about axis 454 . the servometer 452 is mounted to and carried by a housing 456 constructed from perforated aluminum or other suitable material that can serve to mount the light assembly 430 rigidly to ceiling structure 402 and provide ventilation to remove the heat generated by the lights 432 . as noted above , such removal of the heat from the lights can significantly improve the thermal conditions in the or / intervention room 400 . rather than perforations , other types of ventilation openings can be used . through the operation of the two servomotors 444 and 452 , the lights 432 may be pivoted about a dual axis to enable the lights to be aimed at a desired direction , see fig2 . a combination optical lens and dust - proof cover 460 is generally semi - circular in shape to cover the lights 432 as well as provide a desired directionality and focal length for the lights . the cover 460 mates with the housing 456 to protect and encase the internal components of the light assemblies 430 described above . as noted above , the drop - down ceiling structure 402 places the light assemblies 430 closer to the operational site than if the light assemblies were positioned at a higher elevation , as in present typical operating rooms for example , the elevation of ambient lights 470 , as shown in fig1 . the intensity and direction of lights 432 can be individually controlled or controlled in groups or collectively controlled to not only aim the light in desired direction ( s ), but also change the intensity and color temperature of the of the led lights . such control can be carried out by systems described above , including microchip - driven radio frequency controls , controls positioned in or on the glove of surgical / intervention room personnel , on a wrist band or head bank worn by surgical / intervention room personnel , or controlled by voice actuation . in addition , as described above , the controls for lights 432 can be tied to a radio frequency identification device or tag that can be imbedded in or mounted on a surgical tool or other device , located within the surgical / intervention zone , that would remain in static position during the procedure being conducted . also , the lights can be pre - set by an automatic lighting system based on the procedure being performed . in this regard , the positioning of lights can be programmed using a wall panel or a remote control unit , or controlled from a central computer system or controlled by voice actuation . the or / intervention room 400 , as in the other or / intervention rooms of the present disclosure , includes a support ring or rail system 480 formed in the ceiling 482 of the room , see fig1 and 20 . as in the rail system 180 discussed above , arm assemblies 484 extend downwardly from the rail system to support previously floor - mounted cabinets 486 , tables , equipment , etc . the arm assembly 484 may be constructed to telescope upwardly and downwardly , and also includes articulating horizontal arms to move the cabinet 486 closer or further from the center of the surgical zone . such movement can be controlled by remote - controlled device , including by voice actuation . as shown in fig1 and 20 , additional arm structures 488 are provided for mounting monitors 490 . the arm structure 488 is illustrated as being telescopically extendable downwardly or retractable upwardly . the monitor 490 could be mounted on other types of arm assemblies , including arm assembly 484 , or arm assemblies described above and illustrated in other figures of the present disclosure . the rail system 440 also may be used to support a utility supply system , such as similar to system 210 shown in fig1 . although the drop - down ceiling structure is shown as circular in shape , it can be of other shapes , such as oval , triangular , square , or rectangular . also , the drop - down ceiling structure and the associated lighting , ventilation , and other components described above can be pre - manufactured in an off site factory environment and subsequently installed in the or / intervention room 400 as substantially a unitary product . for example , the unitary ceiling structure 402 can be designed to be attached to ceiling beams 414 by any number of standard attachment methods , such as by bolting or welding . the foregoing has described a number of advances in the structure , construction and usage of hospital / clinical facilities for performing of surgery interventions . it is to be understood that some or all of the foregoing advancements can be utilized in a particular situation . also , although specific examples of the foregoing structures , apparatus and methods have been described , the present invention is not limited thereto . | 0 |
the present invention relates to requirements for and proposes an architecture for a computer system that provides trusted third party (“ ttp ”) services to licensed professionals for secure handling of documents . according to an embodiment of the present invention , a system operator (“ sysop ”) operates the ttp system . licensed professionals and other individuals use the system as an intermediary for sending and receiving documents ; these parties can access the system via the interconnection of computers and computer networks commonly referred to as the internet using a world - wide - web (“ www ”) browser or electronic - mail client applications . referring now to fig1 there is shown an overview 10 of ttp document transmission and security services according to one embodiment of the present invention . generally , the overview 10 includes a ttp system 11 , users 12 , 14 and network 13 . the predominant function of the ttp system 11 is to transmit or convey electronic documents between users ( senders 12 and recipients 14 ). a user , sender 12 for example , submits a document to the system 11 , specifying one or more other users , recipients 14 for example . the system 11 propagates the document to the recipients 14 via a web - based or e - mail - based transport , preferred by each recipient 14 for example , across network 13 . other functions of the ttp system 11 preferably include tracking and storage of documents . the overview 10 according to the present invention offers a range of security assurances , including : authentication of the sending and receiving parties ; protection of documents in transit and in storage , through data encryption and access control ; and proof of sending and receipt , through timestamping , digital singing , and logging . the ttp services provided by the sysop deliver a novel combination of features and benefits to professionals and their clients , enabling convenient , efficient , reliable , and secure sharing of information . while the description of the present invention is according to a comprehensive ttp system , it is expected that some offering of a ttp system according to the present invention will implement a subset of this . implementations may also depart in some respects from the architecture . for sake of clarity , the parties who will be involved in providing and consuming ttp services and the documents that will be handled by the ttp system will be described in a non - limiting manner . these parties generally include a sysop &# 39 ; s ttp staff which serves as the operators of the ttp system , providing ttp services to the users of the system . users may be aggregated into groups . sysop &# 39 ; s ttp customers preferably contract with a sysop as subscribers to ttp services and enroll individuals as users . these subscribing entities may be firms of licensed professionals , other types of organizations , or individuals , for example . for convenience , subscribing entities will also be referred to herein as firms , but a subscribing entity may be any organization or individual that subscribes to ttp services . further , while the present invention will be described in a non - limiting manner herein as it relates to law firms , and law firm clients , for sake of explanation only , it should be understood that the present invention has broad applicability to many industries though . sysops may enter into agreements with individuals or organizations who assume a share of responsibility for authenticating the identities of users or potential users . for example , a professional association may authenticate its members , and a firm may authenticate its clients . these authenticating entities authorize the registration of users with sysop , possibly having performed functions such as verification of names and addresses and background checking . as will be evident to one possessing an ordinary skill in the pertinent art , a sysop is the trusted third party to the users . sysop staff will serve as operators of the ttp system . each member of the operational staff is preferably conferred a distinct security identity within the ttp system . these individuals are preferably authorized only to perform operational tasks . as set forth , firms preferably contract with sysop for ttp services and enroll individuals as users of the ttp system . the relationship between a user and a firm may take various forms ; for example , a user may be an employee of the firm , a consultant to the firm , or a client of the firm . users interact with the ttp system to send , receive , store , retrieve , or perform other operations on documents . each user is preferably conferred a distinct security identity within the ttp system . each firm is defined as a group , whose members will include all of the users enrolled by the firm . the grouping of users into firms facilitates the management of services such as user enrollment , access control , and billing . groups can also be defined for subsets of the users in a firm . administrative responsibility for users and documents is preferably partitioned between sysop and the firms , so that the firms have an appropriate degree of control over their own data . each firm preferably designates a group of users who have authority to administer certain embodiments of the users enrolled by the firm and the documents originated by the firm . administrative functions in which firms participate preferably include : user naming , access control and billing . referring more particularly to user naming , a ttp system according to an embodiment of the present invention denotes each user by a unique combination of a firm name and an individual name . the sysop preferably manages the names of firms , while each firm preferably manages the individual names of its users . referring more particularly to access control , according to an embodiment of the present invention the ttp system controls access to data in the system . the sysop assigns to each firm authority to administer access control for its own users and documents . referring more particularly to billing , according to an embodiment of the present invention a sysop preferably bills for actual usage of the ttp system . for each of the users it enrolls , a firm designates either itself or another party as the entity to be billed for the ttp services rendered to the user . according to one embodiment of the present invention , responsibility for authentication of a user can be shared between sysop and one or more authenticating entities . an authenticating entity may also be a subscribing entity . for example , a licensing authority may arrange with a sysop to serve as an authenticating entity for an association of licensed professionals , and a firm may arrange with sysop to enroll some of these professionals , plus some of its clients , as users of the ttp system . in addition to its role as a subscribing entity , the firm serves as an authenticating entity , assuming greater authentication responsibility for the clients than for the professionals . according to an embodiment of the present invention , confidential and collective identities may require other authentication arrangements . for example , some users of the ttp system ( for example , clients or witnesses ) may require that their identities be kept confidential . a firm can preferably enroll such a user with a sysop under an alias . the user confides its true identity only to the firm . further , a subscribing entity may wish to enroll a collective party ( for example , a corporation ) with a sysop under its collective name ; the subscribing entity may itself be the collective party . the subscribing entity ensures that only appropriately authorized individuals use the ttp system on behalf of the collective party . in both of the above cases , sysop will have a limited share of responsibility for authentication and the subscribing entity will have a large share . a document may be any electronic file that can be transmitted through the web or e - mail . hence , a document need not be textual , and it may contain any kind of information . the contents of a document are preferably treated as opaque data and are preferably not interpreted or modified by the ttp system . a primary purpose the ttp system is that it enable users to send and receive documents conveniently and securely . from a web browser or an e - mail application , a sender submits a document to the ttp system . the send may specify one or more recipients for the document , at or after the time of submission . the ttp system will forward the document to the recipients , using the web - based or e - mail - based transport preferred by each recipient . the ttp system preferably provides senders with an intuitive and convenient way to specify recipients . the system preferably does not require senders to be aware of the transport preferences of recipients . the ttp system preferably enables users to query the status of delivery , receipt , and storage of a document . the document tracking function allows users to monitor the flow of a document while transmissions are pending and to ascertain the disposition of a document after transmission or storage . the ability to track the flow of a document is preferably subject to access control , as document flow information will be considered confidential . by default , only the user who originates a document preferably has access to document flow information . if desired , that user or the administrators of the originating firm are able to ease access control ; for example , the originating user may choose to enable tracking of a document by any other user in the firm . the ttp system preferably enables the storage and archival of documents . a short - term storage capability is preferably used to support the document transmission function ( for example , when a delivery is via web download or when a delivery via e - mail fails and is preferably retried ). in addition to this capability , the ttp system preferably supports long - term storage and archival of documents . a sysop can offer these services as added value at extra cost , for example . a short - term on - line storage period , needed to enable document transmission , applies to every document , according to an embodiment of the present invention . ( a system - wide default for this period may be established , and firm - specific or user - specific values could override the default .) according to one embodiment of the present invention , upon expiration of the short - term storage period , any deliveries not yet completed are abandoned , and errors will be reported ; if no long - term on - line storage has been requested , and if any requests for off - line archival have been satisfied , the document is deleted . according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system implements an on - line long - term storage service , whereby a document is retained on disk in the document database and made available to authorized users for tracking , searching , retrieval , and other operations . retention is preferably for a period specified by the document originator , and upon expiration of that period , the document will be subject to deletion . further , users can be notified of imminently expiring documents and could be given the opportunity to extend storage . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system implements an off - line archival service , whereby selected documents are archived to permanent retained media , from which they can later be restored . ( this service is preferably distinct from backups that a sysop may perform as part of system maintenance ; those backups saving all data in the system to rotated media , for example .) archival could be specified as a simple yes / no choice by the originator of a document at the time of submission , for example . the ttp system preferably enables the long - term retention of document flow data , either on - line or off - line , since this information may be needed months or years after a document transmission to craft a non - repudiation proof . in some cases , a non - repudiation proof may require both document flow data and the document itself ( for example , to re - verify signatures ). to enable such a proof , the document itself may be retained either by the user or by a sysop storage or archival service , while the ttp system retains public keys used for verification . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system offers a search function to users , to facilitate the selection of documents for tracking , forwarding , or retrieval . search capabilities can be simple and / or advanced . a sophisticated search function may enable bounding , selection , and sorting based on a range of parameters such as the document name , the names of sending or receiving users , the contents of various billing or annotation fields , and time . according to one embodiment of the invention , searching does not extend to the actual content of a document , as the content may be encoded in a format that is specific to an application or is otherwise opaque . upon completion of a search , the ttp system preferably returns a list of documents that satisfied the conditions of the search to the user , and the user is then be able to use this result to initiate a tracking , retrieval , or other operation . the ttp system preferably applies access control to ensure that the search facility returns only information that the user is authorized to see . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp service may be transmitting or storing documents in file formats that are specific to particular applications . for example , a textual document that was written in one word processing application may not be readable in another application . a receiver of the document is preferably able to consume such a document by opening the file from a particular application ( and perhaps only from a particular application or version of the application on a particular platform ). by preserving any document it receives , the ttp system thereby preserves any information about the type of a document that is embedded in it . the ttp system also preferably attempts to preserve any type information that may be implicit in the file name ( such as a file name suffix ). as will be evident to one possessing an ordinary skill in the art though , preservation of file names may not always be possible ; the ttp system or other intermediaries may manipulate names to satisfy naming constraints or avoid naming collisions . the ttp system preferably enables a user to register capabilities or preferences for applications and platforms and enables other users to look up this registered information . however , the system preferably is not required to validate such information , to validate that a recipient has the application and the platform appropriate for a document , to store names or copies of applications and platforms , or to perform conversions of document formats . users may wish to create various logical associations of documents , such as successive versions of a document or aggregations of related documents . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system supports operations such as transmission , storage , retrieval , or access control on these sets of documents as well . according to an embodiment of the invention , a user can be associated with a document either as a sender or as a receiver . each document is preferably associated with exactly one sender , the user who submitted the document . however , a document may have several receivers , the users who were named as receivers by the sender . according to an embodiment of the invention , the sender of a document is preferably able to view the document , track it , and view its history . similar modes of access can be granted to other users within the same firm as the sender , for example . defaults for such access should be configurable through an inheritance mechanism that applies throughout the hierarchy of documents originated by each firm . similarly , a receiver of a document is preferably able to view the document but not to track the document or view its history . the ability of a receiver to view a particular document does not imply the ability to view other information such as its ancestors in the document hierarchy or its access control data , according to an embodiment of the present invention . the ttp system is preferably designed to accommodate user preferences for transports ( e . g ., for web - based versus e - mail - based communication ). it should be recognized that users need not be aware of the preferences or capabilities of other users though . support for web - based access via off - the - shelf web browsers , using the secured socket layer (“ ssl ”) protocol as a secure communications protocol , and for e - mail - based access from commercial e - mail applications , using pretty good privacy (“ pgp ”) or secure / multipurpose internet mail extensions (“ s / mime ”) as the protocol is preferably provided . any transport supported by the ttp system preferably enables strong authentication , data confidentiality , and data integrity , to ensure adequate protection of all documents transmitted to or from the system though . some transports may offer additional security capabilities that the ttp system should exploit ; for example , if an e - mail transport allows users to sign messages , the ttp system should store the signed data for potential later use in a non - repudiation proof . it should be recognized that not all functions of the ttp system will be naturally expressible through all transports though . for example , delivery of a document via e - mail is a straightforward operation , but delivery in the web - based paradigm may require the ttp system to issue a notification by e - mail for example , so that the recipient will know to download the document via the web . conversely , while the menus and forms in a web - based interface are well suited for functions such as tracking , storage , retrieval , and search ; much of this functionality may be cumbersome in an e - mail interface . that being said , the primary functions of sending and receiving documents are preferably available via both e - mail and web interfaces . however , other functions may be restricted to the transports that are best suited for them . the ttp system preferably also offer user interfaces for various other services , such as registering new users , requesting certificate renewals or revocations , and setting access control . parties who interact with the ttp system , whether users or administrators , are preferably strongly authenticated . an authentication infrastructure based on public key technology enables the ttp system to support the security mechanisms used by a large body of commercial software and to be consistent with emerging legislation on electronic messages , transactions , and signatures . the sysop preferably acts as the root certification authority (“ ca ”) for the public key infrastructure . the sysop may operate branded cas on behalf of professional associations or other organizations , and these cas will be subordinate to the original root ca . sysop may also establish trust relationships between its cas and authorities in other ca hierarchies . because authentication through this public key infrastructure will not be possible for all transports , the ttp system preferably accommodates other authentication mechanisms . for example , to support pgp users , the ttp system preferably provides for management of their pgp public keys . the ttp system preferably controls access to the data by regulating users , documents , document flow , and system operation . authority and responsibility for setting access control is preferably divided between the sysop and the firms that subscribe to ttp services . firms are preferably responsible for managing access control within their own hierarchies of users and documents . the sysop is preferably responsible for initializing these hierarchies , defining initial protection and inheritance data , and defining a group of users designated within each firm that will have administrative privileges . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the system supports default rules that will satisfy most user needs with little or no customization . the ttp system preferably protects documents , through conventional cryptographic techniques , while they are transmitted to or from the system over open channels such as the global interconnection of computers and computer networks commonly referred to as the internet . this enables the ttp system to provide confidentiality of document transmissions involving the system and its users . an illegitimate party eavesdropping a transmission is preferably not able to easily discern any of the transmitted content by implementing these cryptographic techniques . however , according to an embodiment of the present invention , this confidentiality does not apply when the ttp system issues a notification — that a document is available for retrieval , that a delivery has failed , or that a certificate is about to expire , for example . in particular , a user who uses protected web access to retrieve documents is preferably able to use unprotected e - mail to receive notifications , for example . notification messages are preferably generic , so that they do not disclose any sensitive information . documents are also preferably cryptographically protected while they are stored on - line in the ttp system . in addition to the confidentiality provided by access control , the ttp system preferably encrypts documents when they are stored on - line , to prevent exposure in the event of an intrusion or an inappropriate use of privileges by a system operator . the system preferably decrypts a stored document only when necessary for an operation such as delivery to a recipient or backup , so that the plain - text form of the document is present only transiently on the ttp system . the ttp system preferably encrypts documents when they are backed up or archived . the system preferably decrypts a backed up or archived document only when the document is restored . the ttp system preferably ensures the integrity of document transmissions involving the system and its users . each transmission is preferably verified in a way that detects tampering . preferably , the integrity requirement also does not apply to notifications . the ttp system preferably ensures the integrity of documents while they are stored on - line . an integrity check is preferably conducted when a document is stored and is verified each time the document is accessed . further , documents are also preferably cryptographically protected while they are stored off - line in archives and backups . again , the ttp system preferably ensures the integrity of documents while they are stored off - line in archives and backups . an integrity check is preferably included when a document is backed up or archived and is preferably verified when the document is restored . a non - repudiation capability provides assurance that a correspondent who participates in a communication cannot later deny having done so . this assurance is in the form of proof that one party can use as protection against false denial by another party . a proof may depend on data such as timestamps , digital signatures , and log files , for example . non - repudiation can extend to several phases or embodiments of a communication according to an embodiment of the present invention . the ttp system preferably enables non - repudiation with proof of origin , proof of submission , proof of delivery , and proof of receipt . in each case , the system generates and / or retains data about document transmissions to enable as strong a proof as is practical . however , it should be recognized that the strength of proof that is achievable might be limited by factors such as the data that the transports can produce and the data that users choose to yield . the ttp system may sometimes be able to generate only a weak proof , for example . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system uses a proof of origin to establish the identity of the originator of a document . the ttp system preferably provides data to associate a document with the particular user who submitted it . proof of submission establishes that a document was submitted by a party to a delivery service and was accepted by that service . the ttp system preferably provides data to demonstrate the uploading of a particular document onto the system . proof of delivery establishes that a document was delivered to a party . the ttp system preferably provides data to demonstrate the delivery of a document to a particular recipient . it should be understood that the meaning of “ delivery ” in this context may depend on the behavior of the particular transport service used to convey the document between the ttp system and the recipient . proof of delivery may be provided by logging the retrieval of the document by the recipient . proof of receipt establishes that a party has taken receipt of a delivered document . as with delivery , the meaning of “ receipt ” may depend on the behavior of the particular transport service used . typically , a strong proof of receipt requires the cooperation of the recipient , because the recipient typically gains possession of a document before yielding proof . the ttp system preferably retains any such proof that a recipient yields . the non - repudiation capabilities described above establish the fact that a party took a particular action with respect to a particular document . according to an embodiment of the present invention , a timestamping service is used to enhance these capabilities by establishing the time at which such an action occurred . trusted timekeeping and timestamping can also advantageously be used to enhance the integrity and manageability of the public key infrastructure , the user database , the document database , and the logging and billing subsystems . the timestamping service in the ttp system preferably issues timestamps that are accurate to within some predetermined temporal period , such as one second . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the drift found in the clocks of many computer systems , which can be several minutes per month , may be therefore unacceptable , and the ttp system preferably assures accuracy by reference to another time source . the time source is preferably stable enough to maintain one - second accuracy over a period of one to ten years with little or no operator intervention , for example . further , to maintain data integrity , the sequence of timestamps generated by the ttp system preferably progress monotonically , so that the order of events in all document flow data is correct . if the time source is external to the ttp system and accessed via dialup , network , or radio for example , then dependencies on continuous connectivity and exposures to spoofing or jamming attacks should be reasonably minimized . the ttp system itself is preferably designed and deployed in a way that prevents ( to the extent practical ) unauthorized access to ttp data , compromising the integrity of the data , or denying ttp services to users . measures to detect a compromise are also preferably provided , so that security can be monitored and demonstrated . hosts that provide document handling services are preferably protected by one or more firewalls that restrict access via the supported web and e - mail transports . hosts that sign and issue certificates preferably exhibit strong protection . hosts that perform registration functions may also be protected by a firewall , for example . protection of the private key for the root ca itself is particularly critical ; storage for the key should be highly resistant to tampering . deterring or countering denial - of - service attacks may also be important for particular implementations of a ttp system according to the present invention that allows access via the internet , such as the document handling server . in such a case solutions can be adopted to at least mitigate this risk . to assist in the detection of possible compromise , automated mechanisms to check the integrity of the ttp system are preferably deployed . according to an alternative form of the present invention , a sysop can enhance its authentication services by issuing cryptographic tokens such as smart cards to users . such smart cards can serve as tamper - resistant storage for private keys and enhance the security of the user platform in other ways ( for example , by integrating with a screen - locking utility to prevent unauthorized use of the computer while unattended ). further , a community of users , such as a professional association or a corporation , may use these smart cards both as id cards and as tokens for accessing ttp services . there are no absolute constraints on the hardware platforms and operating systems that users can use , since no executable software is preferably installed on these hosts . there are no absolute constraints on the hardware architectures or operating systems for the platforms on which the ttp system is deployed . however , the platforms selected are preferably among those widely used in mission - critical business environments , so as to ease the integration of third - party products and services ( such as for boundary protection , system maintenance , high availability , and upgrades of performance or capacity ) into the ttp system . according to an embodiment of the present invention , users are not required to install application specific software on their hosts . the ttp system instead preferably leverages common off - the - shelf software , such as web browsers like internet explorer available from microsoft and netscape navigator available from netscape , and e - mail applications such as groupwise available from novell or outlook available from microsoft , that are likely to be present already on many user hosts . according to an embodiment of the present invention , web - based interfaces should avoid reliance on plug - in modules , which may not always be available for all user platforms , although this is a matter of design choice . users should not be required to download active content , such as java or javascript programs , onto their hosts . however , platform - independent and non - executable data , such as public key certificates and cookies , may be downloaded onto user hosts to enable security services or state management . however , it should be recognized that some requirements for client application software will necessarily be imposed on users . for example , web browsers may be required to support particular versions of the hypertext markup language ( html ) and ssl protocols , or e - mail applications may be required to support a particular version of the pgp or s / mime protocols . the architecture is preferably adapted to specify a ttp system that accommodates a broad range of user preferences and inter - operates with a broad range of popular off - the - shelf applications . a ttp system according to the present invention preferably provides mechanisms for managing user account information . operations preferably include : creation of a user account , including the issuance of user certificates ; revocation and / or rollover of certificates ; deletion of an account , including the revocation of certificates ; and management of auxiliary user data , such as billing defaults , storage defaults , and transport preferences . many of these operations require the participation of both users and the sysop staff . the sysop preferably defines the procedures whereby users request accounts , renew certificates , report key compromise , and so forth . special cases such as confidential or collective identities can also be supported . agreements between sysop and the firms will specify the respective responsibilities of the parties for certification and management of users . as will be recognized by one possessing an ordinary skill in the pertinent art , groups , and their associated privileges , are the vehicle by which administrative responsibilities are partitioned between sysop and the firms . the ttp system preferably provides mechanisms that both sysop staff and the designated administrators in each firm can use to create groups and to manage group memberships . the ttp system preferably provides tools and information that sysop staff can use to diagnosis and repair problems that users experience . the critical subsystems of the ttp system preferably emit diagnostic messages to persistent logs . ideally , the level of detail will be adjustable and a unified view of the logs is available . a ttp system according to the present invention preferably allows for regular automated backup of system and user data . ideally , backups cause little or no interruption or degradation of ttp services , especially if run at times of low activity . however , the integrity of the backup image is paramount , and if necessary , quality of service can be compromised to enable an internally consistent backup . likewise , a ttp system according to the present invention preferably allows for the restoration of data from backup media , either in small sets such as single documents ( in the event of accidental deletion by a user ) or in large sets such as all system and user data ( in the event of a catastrophic failure ). a sysop is preferably able to monitor the quality of service being delivered by the ttp system and to detect performance problems , resource utilization problems , and error conditions . the ttp system and the operating systems on the ttp system platforms generate raw data on performance and resources , and monitoring tools will analyze the data , produce regular reports on quality of service , and notify sysop staff via an alert mechanism of conditions that require attention . a ttp system according to the present invention is preferably highly reliable , so that service interruption and data loss are minimized , to the extent achievable at reasonable cost . according to an embodiment of the present invention , a sysop can bill for a range of ttp services , optionally including document transmission , document tracking , long - term document storage and archival , and generation of non - repudiation proofs . therefore , the ttp system preferably enables a sysop to bill a firm for any ttp services that it or its users request . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the ttp system also enable a sysop to bill a user directly rather than a firm . direct billing of a user can be predicated on arrangements among the user , the firm , and sysop . for example , a firm may allow an employee to make personal use of the ttp system , and the employee may arrange with sysop for payment by personal credit card . the ttp system also preferably generates information that firms can use to bill their clients , such as a billing label . when a user requests a ttp service , the ttp system preferably associates the request with billing information , such as a client account number or a matter number , which either the firm has specified for that user or the user has specified with the request . together with the bills that the ttp system generates for each firm , the system also preferably generates itemized reports that include this information ; which the firm can then use to bill its clients . the reports can be itemized according to the user and according to the billing information according to yet a further embodiment of the present invention . referring now also to fig2 an overview of the structure and functionality of a ttp system according to an embodiment of the present invention is set forth , and further described in more detail . the ttp system 11 preferably includes a certificate management system ( cms ) 20 and document server 30 , each of which in turn contain several components . as set forth , users 12 , 14 preferably access the ttp system 11 over the internet 13 using web browsers and e - mail client applications . the sysop preferably administers the ttp system 11 both via the web access and through direct access to system hosts . referring now also to fig3 according to one embodiment of the present invention the cms 20 includes several unix hosts : a ca server 21 that issues certificates and certificate revocation lists ( crls ) in combination with a ca signor 25 ; a certificate server 22 that communicates with the ca server 21 , maintains a current database of certificates and crls and provides a lightweight directory access protocol ( ldap ) interface 24 through which other components can query the database ; and one or more registration agents 23 that handle certificate requests . the cms 20 may take the form of the commercially available cybertrust product from gte . referring now also to fig4 the document server 30 may reside on a single unix server . according to one embodiment of the present invention the major components of the document server include : a document database 31 that stores documents , information about past and pending operations on documents and information about users 12 , 14 ; a database engine 32 ; a document daemon 33 ; transport modules 34 and infrastructure components 35 . referring more particularly first to the documents database 31 , documents are preferably organized into a hierarchy of categories while users are organized into a hierarchy of groups . the database engine 32 manages storage and retrieval of information in the database 31 . the database engine 32 applies access control to operations on the database 31 . the document daemon 33 initiates execution or retry of pending operations on documents and performs database maintenance tasks such as reaping of files that are no longer needed . the transport modules 34 include a web server 36 and an e - mail server 37 that convey requests from users 12 , 14 to the database engine 32 and convey responses from the database engine 32 back to users 12 , 14 . and , the infrastructure components 35 provide services such as cryptography ( in combination with keys 36 ), validation ( in cooperation with the certificate server 22 ), timestamping ( in combination with clock 100 ), logging , billing , integrity assurance , backup and archival . some of these components can be libraries that document server 30 component calls as is necessary , for example . others can take the form of daemon processes that run in the background or at regular intervals , for example . ttp cms functions handle public key certificates on which ttp authentication is based . these functions include : handling certificate requests ; issuing certificates ; rolling certificates over , so that the expiration of one certificate and its replacement by another does not disrupt legitimate access to the system ; deleting users ; revoking certificates , either due to deletion of a user or due to a reported key compromise ; and issuing certificate revocation lists . the cms preferably retains management information about all certificates and crls that it issues , beyond times of expiration or revocation . the cms also provides ldap directory interfaces that document server components can use to retrieve current certificate and crl data . users preferably request ttp document handling services through a set of document server user functions . only limited services are preferably available through the e - mail transports , while additional services are preferably available through the web transport . the ability of a user to invoke a function , and in some cases the data returned by a function , can be contingent on the authorization of the user , as defined and enforced by the document server access control mechanism . the ttp document transmission functions may require multiple steps , which may be performed by senders , by receivers , and by the document server . the transport preferences of users preferably determine which functions are available to them and influence how the document server performs its steps . according to an embodiment of the present invention , web users are able to initiate the following document transmission functions by submitting web forms to the document server : store , which uploads a document into the document database ; forward , which instructs the document server to deliver an uploaded document to one or more recipients ; send , which combines the store and forward functions into one , allowing a user to upload a document and specify recipients in a single web form ; and retrieve , which will download a document from the document database . the document will be placed in a specified location and possibly also opened by a specified application on the user desktop . e - mail users are preferably able to initiate the following document transmission functions by sending an e - mail to the document server : send , which uploads a document into the document database and instruct the document server to deliver the document to one or more recipients ( in e - mail to the document server , the sender preferably specifies recipients in the body and include the document as an attachment ); and store , which uploads a document into the document database ( for an e - mail user , a store is preferably a send with no recipients specified ). the document server will perform the following document transmission functions : deliver to a web user will be a notification via e - mail , advising the user to perform a retrieve ; and deliver to an e - mail user will be a direct transmission via e - mail , including the document as an attachment . in addition to the above basic functions , both the ttp system and its users , when acting as recipients of documents , are preferably able to acknowledge receipt . the document server preferably offers a facility to look up the names of users , so that , for instance , the sender of a document can reliably and unambiguously specify the recipients of the document . lookup in the web interface is accomplished through lists of firms and users , which the document server constructs and displays to the user in menus . lookup in the e - mail interface is accomplished through exchanges of e - mail , whereby a user submits lookup requests and the document server returns current lists of firms and users . it should be recognized that while a lookup via e - mail may not offer ideal usability or responsiveness , this function is preferably available in some form . in practice , users who send documents via e - mail may prefer to look up users via the web , and thus a web form that assists in the construction of e - mail messages may be provided . further , an additional lookup query , given the name of a user , preferably returns any capabilities or preferences for applications that the user may have registered . according to an aspect of the present invention , the e - mail interface system may be based on the simple mail transfer protocol ( smtp ). a platform - independent , java - centric environment , such as java 2 platform enterprise edition ( j2ee ) software development kit ( sdk ), can be used to provide a set of classes and interfaces , which provide an application layer interface to the smtp . according to an aspect of the present invention , the e - mail interface system may make extensive usage of classes , such as follows : 1 ) a session may be created and used to access store and transport objects of the mail server ; 2 ) a store class provides mechanism for connecting messaging server folders ; 3 ) an inbox folder provides mechanism for retrieving messages stored in the inbox ; 4 ) the transport provides a mechanism for sending messages ; 5 ) a mimemessage provides e - mail message representation ; and , 6 ) a pgpmessage provides e - mail message representation . of course , mime stands for multipurpose internet mail extensions , while pgp stands for pretty good privacy , as both are conventionally understood . according to an aspect of the present invention , the e - mail application processes incoming email messages , sends abandoned data e - mail messages to users who originate data distribution requests , sends e - mail certificates to newly registered users with the e - mail delivery preference , and sends storage consumption exceed messages to organization administrators , for example . according to an aspect of the present invention , the e - mail application executes associated use cases periodically , such as on an hourly interval ( hourly on the hour ). according to an aspect of the present invention , the authentication module is executed when a user initially accesses the system . according to an aspect of the present invention , two - factor authentication may be required : ( 1 ) a system issued private key certificate , and ( 2 ) a user account password . according to an aspect of the present invention , the authentication module may perform certificate authentication function automatically , while password authentication is performed only following success of certificate authentication . according to an aspect of the present invention , the authentication module validates the password applied by the user . following password validation , a system member list provides methods for querying a databases and returning collections of directory objects . directory objects include attribute information about users , for example . user attribute information includes , for example , public / private key preferences such as e - mail representations , e . g . mimemessage or pgpmessage . according to an aspect of the present invention , the system provides methods for accessing public / private keys and accessing session encryption keys . in other words , and by way of a non - limiting example , according to an aspect of the present invention , if a user who has designated pgp as an attribute ( pgp user ) wants to send a protected communication to a user who has designated s / mime as an attribute ( smime user ), for example , the pgp user encrypts the communication using a pgp and a public key associated with the trusted third party , or system . the trusted third party , using a corresponding private pgp key for example , decrypts the communication . the trusted third party identifies the s / mime user as the intended recipient of the communication and , using an s / mime public key associated with the s / mime user , encrypts the communication . the s / mime user can than merely decrypt the communication using an associated private key . according to another aspect of the present invention , one or more of the users may designate both pgp and s / mime capabilities , in which case any common scheme can be employed , for example . according to an aspect of the present invention , security audit procedures apply to the pgpmime to s / mime interchange and serve to provide additional assurance that the ttp did not tamper with the communication . web users are preferably able to track the progress or the history of a document , during or after transmission or storage . track causes the document server to retrieve from the document database the history of operations on a specified document , then to display the history in human - readable form . a user can preferably invoke a track by opening the document of interest and clicking on a button . web users are also preferably able to browse the document database , navigating through the document hierarchy by opening categories and documents . an open command in the hierarchy preferably causes the document server to display a view of that category , which will include descriptive information , links to related objects , and buttons to invoke various administrative operations . an open command on a specified document in the hierarchy preferably causes the document server to display a view of that document , which preferably includes descriptive information , links to related objects , and buttons to invoke operations such as download , forward , track , and administrative operations . a user can preferably specify an object either by entering an explicit universal resource locator ( url ) or by clicking on a link , for example . web users are preferably able to search the document database for documents that meet various criteria . a search facility helps users to locate documents on which they may then wish to perform retrieval , tracking , or other operations . search causes the document server to search the document database according to specified criteria , then to display links to documents that satisfy the criteria . a user invokes a search by clicking on a button to bring up a search form , entering the search criteria in the form , then submitting the form . criteria for searching can include names of documents , names of sending or receiving users or firms , keywords or other annotations , billing information , and times of submission or receipt , for example . documentation is preferably made available to assist users of the ttp system . this documentation preferably includes help in the web interface which is available through help buttons , which in turn cause the document server to display online documentation . it also includes help in the e - mail interface which is preferably will be accomplished through an exchange of e - mail , whereby the user submits a help request and the document server returns a summary of the syntax for operations available in the e - mail interface . any e - mail request that the document server cannot parse will return an error as well as a syntax summary . other miscellaneous operations are preferably available to web users , such as : modifying annotational information for documents such as abstracts and keywords ; modifying parameters that determine storage or archival services for a document ; modifying billing information for a document ; and copying , moving , or deleting documents in the database . users preferably invoke these operations through buttons and / or forms . administrative functions define access control in the document database and support the operation of the document server . administrative functions that pertain to user groups , document categories , and access control are available both to sysop staff and to designated staff in each firm . these functions include : creating and deleting user groups ; defining the membership of a user group ; creating and deleting document categories ; and setting access control by users or groups to documents or categories . sysop staff largely administer the top levels of the user and document hierarchies , defining for each firm a tree within each hierarchy for its own users and documents . designated staff in each firm has administrative access only to the tree allocated to that firm . sysop staff perform a number of routine operational tasks , including : backing up of software and data in the ttp system ; archiving data that requires long - term retention ; and billing operations . these tasks are preferably largely automated but will require some action or attention from system administrators . the primary basis for authentication in the ttp system is a public key infrastructure ( pki ), for which the sysop acts as the certification authority . a certificate , in the format defined by the iso x . 509 v3 standard for example , binds the identity of each user to a public key . a certification authority operated by sysop preferably attests to this binding by digitally signing the certificate . the sysop ca is preferably a root ca , and its certificate is self - signed . according to one embodiment of the present invention , the sysop operates only as the root ca . alternatively , the infrastructure can be expandable to a hierarchy of authorities operated by sysop , with the original ca as the root . it should be recognized that a single deployment of cms hardware and software will preferably be capable of implementing several cas and switching dynamically between them . each operator and each user of the ttp system has a public key identity that is established in one or more x . 509 v3 certificates . these certificates are issued by the sysop root ca , by a ca subordinate to the sysop root , or by another ca trusted by sysop , for example . the ttp system is therefore able to validate any user certificate and establish trust by traversing a hierarchy of certificates . a user who accesses the ttp system via more than one transport may need a separate key pair and certificate for each , because the various applications that the user employs may not be able to access a single certificate . in addition , transports may require the use of different key pairs for different functions ( e . g ., for signing and encryption ). all of these certificates preferably denote the same identity . the subject field of each certificate preferably specifies the x509 distinguished name ( dn ) for a user . a dn identifies a unique user . that is , no two users should have the same dn , although one user may have several dns and one user may have several certificates with the same dn . through its registration processes , a sysop preferably ensures the uniqueness of dns can be relied upon within the set of ca hierarchies that sysop operates or otherwise trusts . some of the certificate fields important to the ttp system are : version , issuer , validity and subject . typically , version 3 is used to enable the use of extensions required by ssl and other protocols . the issuing authority is a ca within a hierarchy operated by sysop or otherwise trusted by sysop . the period for which the certificate is valid is used by the sysop and firms to establish policies for validity periods ; and a firm may request validity periods of different lengths for different users . the dn is used to identify the subject of the certificate . the x . 509 certificates are preferably managed by and stored in a directory in the cms . the cms , the transport mechanisms , and the document server preferably use lightweight directory access protocol ( ldap ) interfaces to access the certificates . certificates issued by the cms follow the certificate profiles required by s / mime , ssl , and other protocols , as necessary . the private key associated with each certificate is preferably protected by the user and preferably shouldn &# 39 ; t leave the user desktop . ( the key might be stored on disk and protected by a password , or it might be stored in a token such as a smart card .) in the case of the sysop root ca identity , the private key is preferably stored off - line in a tamper - resistant hardware device . the sysop operates the certificate management system (“ cms ”) that issues certificates and certificate revocations . tasks carried out by the sysop staff include processing certificate requests , processing notifications of key compromise , and managing the rollover of imminently expiring certificates . the sysop assumes significant responsibility for the certification of human identities ( for example , establishing that a certificate request claiming to be from john doe really is from the human being named john doe ). in some cases , as discussed earlier , the sysop may distribute significant responsibility to the authenticating entities and subscribing entities with which those users are associated . policies and procedures for issuing and revoking certificates are preferably set and followed by the sysop . a certificate policy outlining the responsibilities of subscribers is also preferably presented . sysop ability to support the certificate policy is preferably documented in a certificate practice statement , which is made available to sysop &# 39 ; s liability agents and , possibly , to sysop &# 39 ; s subscribers . users are preferably responsible for generating their pairs of private and public keys , initiating certificate requests , and protecting their private keys . the means for executing these tasks are typically provided by applications such as web browsers or e - mail clients . users also preferably notify the sysop if a key is lost , disclosed , used without authorization , or otherwise compromised . the use of a certificate issued by sysop preferably implies acceptance of sysop &# 39 ; s certificate policy . a sysop may allow firms to implement their own user - registration and key - distribution procedures , some of which will impose particular responsibilities on the firms . for example , a firm may authorize one of its administrators to generate key pairs and initiate certificate requests for all of its users , using an existing database as input for bulk registration for example . the administrators would then be responsible for securely transferring private keys to the users . a firm may also authenticate users who participate in the ttp system under a confidential or collective identity . in such a case , the firm then assumes any additional risks posed by alternative registration procedures . the document server preferably manages a relational database of information about documents and users , controls access to this information , and performs many of the document operations requested by users . the document database is central to much of the core functionality in the ttp system . the document server stores its own information about users , separate from the user information in the cms . associated with each user in the document database is a profile of information that is used by the document server when it execute operations that involve the user . within the document server , each user is denoted by a unique combination of a firm name and an individual name . ( the name might be constructed through a simple concatenation , perhaps borrowing from internet e - mail naming the @ delimiter , as in “ johndoe @ acmecompany ”). the sysop preferably ensures the uniqueness of firm names , at the time that each firm subscribes to ttp services . a firm preferably ensures the uniqueness within the firm of the individual names for its users , at the time that it enrolls each user . according to an embodiment of the present invention , one correspondence between the document server and cms databases is maintained for each user : the dn for the user in the cms is stored in the profile for that user in the document server . this correspondence allows authentication for ttp system access to be based on public key certificates while document server functions employ simple user names . the simplicity of user names in the document server , as well as their incorporation of firm names and individual names , enhance the usability of functions such as setting access control and listing document recipients . user profile information preferably includes : the dn of the user ; the e - mail address to which documents and / or notifications should be sent ; the transport by which the user prefers to receive documents ; the e - mail transport by which the user prefers to receive notifications ; the pgp user id of the user , which can take the form of an internet e - mail address if the user employs pgp as a transport ; and , the party that sysop will bill for services requested by the user if a firm is not being billed . user profile information may also include : default billing labels for services requested by the user ; default parameters for services such as document storage and archival ; preferences or capabilities for document applications or formats ; and , practical information such as mail addresses , phone numbers , and fax numbers . the user profile is also a potential vehicle for specifying authorization restrictions that may not otherwise be expressible in the document server access control framework ( for example , allowing a client to exchange documents only with a particular attorney or firm ). referring now also to fig5 users and groups in the document database form a hierarchy 50 . the document server also advantageously enables the creation of user groups , e . g . user groups 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 . each group preferably has a distinct name and a defined set of members ; the members of a group may include individual users and / or other groups , e . g . user 130 and user 131 in the case of group 51 or user 159 and group 53 in the case of group 54 . groups serve several purposes , for example the sysop can create a group for each firm . according to one embodiment of the present invention each user of the ttp system is a member of exactly one such group ; this association of user to firm identifies the firm that bears certification and billing responsibilities for each user . these groups enable a sysop to ensure that each firm has access only to its own documents . further , when a firm subscribes to ttp services , the sysop preferably creates a group of administrators within the firm . the sysop defines and control the membership of each such group , based on direction from an individual in each firm with appropriate authority for example . these groups advantageously enable the sysop to delegate some administrative responsibility to each firm . when a firm wishes to aggregate or differentiate access control for its own users , firm administrators preferably create groups of users who have common access control needs . for example , a firm may define a group that corresponds to a particular case ; where all users working on the case would be members of a group for example , and are therefore given the same access to documents pertaining to that case . finally , the ability to create a group and to define its membership is preferably itself subjected to access control . information about each firm is preferably stored in a profile in the document server database . this profile may include billing logistics such as account numbers and mail addresses . it may also include default values that specify services such as storage and archival for documents submitted by each firm . documents are preferably stored as objects in a relational database . associated with each document is an event history , containing information about past operations on the document ; an event queue , containing information about pending operations ; and various ancillary data . the database engine preferably calculates a hash or digest of each document when it is submitted and stores this value with the document in the database . the database engine also verifies this integrity check each time the document is accessed . the database engine further encrypts each document when it is submitted , stores the encrypted form in the database , and decrypts the document when it is accessed . the selection of encryption algorithms and key sizes are constrained by performance requirements , as these transforms directly impact the responsiveness of the system to user requests . keys specific to this purpose are preferably controlled by sysop and protected against misuse by intruders or by operators . some transport protocols specify particular ways to encode transmissions , for purposes such as optimizing use of bandwidth or ensuring correct handling by transfer agents . ( for example , pgp may perform compression , then perform a radix 64 encoding that represents data in a set of characters that mail gateways will reliably handle correctly .) the document server transparently accommodates such encodings , so that a document can be sent or received by several users employing several different transports , without the users being aware of the differences . a document will generally be stored in the database in a transport - independent format . in some cases , a transport - specific encoding includes the digital signature of the user to whom a document , an acknowledgement , or another communication can be attributed . ( for example , s / mime v3 signed messages and signed receipts are encoded in a syntax that may not be meaningful to other mail protocols .) to enable later use of this signature in a non - repudiation proof , the document server stores the data , in event history , in its original transport - specific encoding . a document , once submitted , preferably cannot be modified . however , a new version of a document can be submitted as a separate document , and the relationship between the documents can be made apparent through document naming and / or annotations . event data is preferably associated with each document as the ttp system processes the document . each document operation ( e . g ., submission , receipt , or deletion ) is preferably recorded as one or more discrete events . completed events are preferably stored in a document event history ; while pending events are preferably stored in a document event queue . as will be evident to one possessing an ordinary skill in the pertinent art , some operations are simple , comprising a single event and returning a result immediately . for example , the deletion of a document is a relatively simple operation ( it may not be , if archival tasks are pending for example ). such a simple operation , if successfully completed , is preferably recorded directly into the document event history . as will also be evident , other operations are complex , comprising multiple events , returning multiple results , and / or executing in a delayed fashion . consider , for example , a document transmission from one sender to three receivers , which could comprise one submission from the sender to the ttp system , followed by an acknowledgement of submission from the ttp system to the sender , three deliveries from the ttp system to the recipients , and finally three acknowledgements of receipt from the recipients to the ttp system . complex operations may require that information be recorded in both the event queue and the event history . any events that execute immediately and successfully are preferably recorded directly in the document event history . events whose execution may be deferred or protracted are preferably added to the document event queue , and the record for each event remains in the queue until the event either executes successfully or is abandoned . when an event executes successfully , the record is preferably deleted from the event queue and a new record is added to the event history . if execution of an event is abandoned , due to unrecoverable error or exhaustion of retries , the record is preferable deleted from the event queue and a record of the failure is added to the event history . the data stored as a record of each event may include : the type of event ( e . g ., submission , acknowledgment of submission , delivery , acknowledgement of receipt , or deletion ); the parties involved in the event ( e . g ., the sender and the receivers involved in a document transmission ); data specific to the transport used for the event ( e . g ., the protocols used , the quality of protection applied , the certificates of the parties , any digital envelope created by a party , or any digital signature applied by a party ); a timestamp applied by the document server to record the time of the event ; and a signature applied by the document server to the document plus accumulated history data . data in event queues are preferably used by the document server to schedule and execute asynchronous operations , particularly those such as e - mail notifications that are subject to deferred , protracted , or periodically retried execution . data in event histories is preferably used to generate results for document tracking requests and for non - repudiation proofs . the document server satisfies a document tracking request simply by presenting the event history of the document in a human - readable format . non - repudiation proofs use a similar presentation , combined with the re - verification of any signatures and the retrieval of any associated log entries . the document server preferably stores , in addition to the event data described above , the several types of ancillary document data . to help users navigate through the database and identify documents , the document server preferably stores annotational information about each document , supplied initially by the originating user at the time of submission for example . this information may include : an abstract of the document , which authorized users could view without having to download the actual file ; and a set of keywords , which could be used by the document search facility . a billing label is the vehicle by which a firm can input information that facilitates its own billing of its clients a billing label is preferably a printable text string , that may have meaning only to the user or firm that creates it for example , such as an account number , a client name or a matter number , or combination of these . a user may attach a billing label to a document at the time the user submits the document . if the label is omitted , or if the firm that enrolled the user is not permitting the user to dictate billing , then a default billing label in the user profile may automatically be attached to the document . billing labels are preferably stored with each document as ancillary data and are emitted by the ttp system via log entries recording any billable operations on the document . through the ttp billing service , this information is ultimately passed on by sysop to each firm , and the firms may use the information to perform their own billing . to enable direct billing of a user by sysop , such as for personal use of the ttp system , the sysop may define a special format for a billing label , which could include a personal credit card number for example . this is an example of billing label that the ttp system will interpret rather than simply pass through . with each document , the document server maintains information that records any storage or archival options that have been requested and / or fulfilled . the maintenance processes that perform document aging and archival examine this information to determine which documents require retention or archival . the document server enables the creation of document categories . a category is an aggregation of documents that has a name and has as its contents individual documents and / or other categories . the documents and categories in the document database form a hierarchy , wherein the documents are leaves and categories are nodes . the document hierarchy is somewhat analogous to a file system ; documents correspond to individual files and categories correspond to directories ( as in unix ) or folders ( as in microsoft windows ). a category and its contents may be thought of and referred to as a parent and its children , respectively . document categories facilitate access control in the document database and navigation through the database . the ability to create a category and define its contents will itself be subject to access control . referring now also to fig6 at the top level of the document hierarchy 60 is a root category 61 , over which the sysop has complete control . at the second level , just below the root 61 , the sysop can create a separate category 62 for each firm , for example . within its own category , a firm is preferably provided with an inbox 63 for documents it receives . each firm can preferably organize the documents that it originates in any structure it wishes . firms may wish to create categories 64 within their portion of the document hierarchy , to reflect patterns of usage and access control . for example , a firm may aggregate all documents pertaining to one case into one category 64 , and it may also aggregate all the cases for one client into a higher category . the access control mechanism preferably ensures that users from one firm can see and touch only the objects within the category for that firm . referring now also to fig7 unlike a typical file system hierarchy , the document hierarchy 60 ( fig6 ) according to an embodiment of the present invention preferably allows a document or a category to have more than one parent category . hence , there can exist multiple paths , e . g . 71 , 72 , to a given document , e . g . 73 , even though only a single instance of the document exists . this characteristic enables one copy of a document in the database to be accessible by both a sender and a recipient — that is , the path visible to the recipient will traverse the inbox of the receiving firm . users who interact with the ttp system via a web based interface can preferably navigate interactively through categories until they reach a specific document or category . users who submit documents to the ttp via e - mail can use a path name to specify a document or category . the access control mechanism preferably ensures that a user can see a given path to a document only if that user has privileges to see every category in that path . the document server preferably implements an access control mechanism to ensure that a user can perform on a document only those operations , if any , for which the user is authorized . access control is the primary means for maintaining the confidentiality of documents while they reside on the system . in addition to documents , the access control mechanism preferably governs operations on other objects within the document database , such as categories , users , and groups . preferably , access control in the document server does not rely on , nor will it be impacted by , the operating system security on the ttp service platforms . whenever a user requests an operation on an object , the access control mechanism renders a decision to allow or refuse the operation , by evaluating : who the user is ; what level of privilege is required to perform the requested operation ; whether the user has that level of privilege for that object . access control relies on strong authentication of the identity of the user ; this authentication is preferably performed in the transport agents through the use of x . 509 v3 certificates , for example . the transport agents pass the x . 509 dn of a user to the database engine , which then uses the dn to look up the user name by which that user is represented in the document database . for pgp authentication , which does not use x . 509 certificates for example , the pgp agent preferably uses public keys in a pgp key ring to authenticate users , and then pass the pgp user in to the database engine . within the document database , users are preferably identified by their user names in all access control information . the document server preferably defines several levels of privilege , including reader , author , administrator , and super user privileges , for example . each level of privilege preferably enables particular operations on documents or other database objects . reader privilege is typically granted to recipients of a document . it allows a user to download the document from the database . reader privilege on categories allows a user to see and traverse those categories in the document hierarchy . author privilege is typically granted to the submitter of a document . it allows a user to modify the access control on the document , to view the event history of the document , to modify the ancillary data of the document , and to delete the document . an author privilege on a category allows a user to submit a document in that category . administrator privilege allows users to perform general administrative functions , including those relating to user groups and document categories . a small set of users at a firm will typically be granted administrator privilege on its users and documents . super user privilege is preferably granted only to certain sysop staff members . it allows a user to administer all embodiments of users , groups , documents , and categories throughout the document database . referring now also to fig8 access control links (“ acls ”) grant a particular level of privilege to a particular user for a particular object . an acl connects a subject ( which may be a user or a group ) to an object in the document database ( which for example may be a document , category , user or group ). an acl specifies a level of privilege that a subject has on that object . for example , and still referring to fig8 in the acl exemplary embodiment schematic 80 shown therein , acl 81 connects or associates user user 159 to the category designated docy and specifies an author privilege . user user 159 can then perform on that category docy any operations for which author privileges suffice . if the subject of an acl is a group rather than an individual user , then the specified privilege is preferably tacitly granted , via inheritance , to all members of that group ( that is , all users who are members of the subject group , plus all users who are members of groups that are members of the subject group , and so on ). referring now also to fig9 just as groups can be used to grant several users the same privilege on a given object , categories can be used to grant a given subject the same privilege on several documents . if the object of an acl is a category rather than an individual document , and if inheritance of the specified privilege is enabled between that category and its contents , then that privilege is preferably granted to the subject on contents of the category . thus , groups , categories , and acls enable firms to conveniently authorize several users to have the same privileges on several documents . for example , the set of users working on a given case can constitute a group , and the set of documents pertaining to that case can constitute a category . a single acl can establish privilege for those users on those documents . new documents can be added to the category , and new users added to the group , without requiring explicit access control administration . thus , acls enable appropriate protection of an uploaded document even though paths to the document may exist from several firms . thus , acls coupled with groups , categories , and privileges provide a rich and flexible framework for authorization services that rule on access to documents . other authorization mechanisms may be needed to express and enforce other types of rules , such as a restriction that a particular client can transmit documents only to a particular attorney . such rules can be defined in user profiles and checked by the document database engine , but they should be kept relatively simple to minimize possible adverse impact on performance and usability . transmission , storage , retrieval , and search operations on documents are typically initiated by users from either e - mail client applications or web browsers . these applications communicate with the e - mail and web servers in the ttp system to securely transport requests from users , responses from the system , and associated document files . web communications are preferably via http , using ssl authentication and data protection , for example . e - mail communications are via protocols such as s / mime and pgp according to an embodiment of the present invention . the transport specific code or operations in the ttp system are preferably relegated as much as possible to the e - mail and web servers , so that the document database engine code or operations remain largely transport independent and is affected minimally by the introduction of new transport protocols or protocol versions . thus , according to an embodiment of the present invention , the e - mail and web servers are preferably responsible for : mutually authenticating the user and the document server ; establishing protected data communications , selecting or negotiating protocols and algorithms to provide sufficient assurance of data integrity and data confidentiality ; mapping authenticated x . 509 user identities to the simple user names understood by the document server ; conveying requests , responses , and documents between the user applications and the document database engine ; and capturing data signed by users that is of value for non - repudiation ( e . g ., signatures or envelopes in signed receipts or signed submissions ) and conveying this information to the document database engine . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the web based interface to the ttp system offers greater interactivity to users than the e - mail based interface does . functions such as browsing , searching , tracking , and retrieving are available to users via the web interface in this embodiment . further , the web based interface allows users to browse through the document hierarchy . a user is able to view html representations of categories and documents and to navigate through the hierarchy by clicking on links to the parents or children of the currently displayed object . according to an embodiment of the present invention , the representation of a category displays a directory of links to its contents . the representation of a document displays the ancillary data associated with the document and presents buttons , for example , for operating on the document . the web based interface preferably offers document server functions through two types of user interaction : simple buttons and buttons that bring up forms . a user can click a simple button while viewing a document . for example , the tracking function can be made available as a button in document views , which returns an html page that summarizes the document history in human - readable format . a user can use buttons to bring up forms for example , which the user then completes and submits . for example , the search function uses forms to prompt the user for keywords and other criteria , and returns an html page that presents links to the objects satisfying the criteria . the send function uses forms and menus to prompt the sender for the names of recipients and for ancillary document data such as an abstract , a billing label , and storage or archival options . the web - based interface preferably straightforwardly supports virtually all of the user functionality in the ttp system , with one fundamental exception : according to one embodiment of the present invention the web interface or transport , unlike e - mail , does not deliver a document onto the computer system of a user without the active participation of that user . therefore , when the recipient of a document transmission is a user who prefers to receive documents via the web , the ttp system can notify the user by e - mail , so that the user knows to download the document via the web . according to an embodiment of the present invention , in effect , the transmission of a document between two web users can be decomposed into three steps : uploading , notification and downloading . regarding uploading a document , it is performed via the web by the sender , for example . when processing an upload , the document database engine preferably creates a record in the document event queue for the ensuing notification step , and the execution of that step is driven by the document daemon . an upload places the document in a category specified by the sender . regarding notification to the receiver , it is issued by the ttp system via the e - mail transport by which that user prefers to receive notifications , for example . the notification preferably includes a url that the recipient can use to navigate directly to the document . regarding downloading the document , it is performed via the web by the receiver . to enable download , the document server preferably creates a navigational path to the document through the inbox of the receiving firm . an ssl handshake , which occurs when an ssl session is established , is preferably used to authenticate web users and provide data protection . as part of the handshake , the web browser and the web server negotiate a cipher suite and establish a session key for the transfer of data . the server then sends its certificate to the browser and request the user certificate from the browser . upon receiving the user certificate , the web server calls the ttp validation service to validate it . because the web based interface establishes a session of ongoing interaction between user and server , risks of unauthorized access , particularly while a desktop is unattended , should be considered . security can be enhanced by requiring re - authentication after a maximum session length or a maximum inactivity period has expired . cookies can be used to facilitate session management or to maintain state for other purposes , for example . a strong proof of non - repudiation may include a digital signature applied by the user ; for an operation involving a document , such as receipt , the document itself should be among the data signed by the user . newer browsers are now providing form - signing capabilities , intended for use in web commerce , but these features may not enable the signing of files and may require downloads of java or javascript code . browsers used with the ttp system preferably support ssl v3 and x . 509 v3 certificates . to perform uploads and downloads of documents , browsers preferably support the & lt ; input type = file & gt ; element of html . this syntax is supported by netscape navigator 3 . 0 , microsoft internet explorer 3 . 02 ( with patches ), and later versions of those browsers , for example . the e - mail based interface to the ttp system preferably offers only select functions of sending and receiving documents , not the more interactive functions such as browsing and searching according to one embodiment of the present invention . e - mail also is the transport by which the system sends notifications to users . the e - mail transport preferably supports protocols such as s / mime and pgp for secure document transmission , but may use insecure e - mail in certain instances , such as for notifications for example . when sending a document via e - mail , users preferably list recipients and provide ancillary document data in the body of the message , include the document as an attachment , and mail the message to the ttp document server . the list of recipients and other information in the body is in a format that the e - mail server can parse . a template in this format is preferably provided to e - mail users , and fields can be provided with default values . a message that does not specify any recipients is preferably submitted to the document database and not forwarded . a message without an attachment is preferably returned to the sender with an error message . unlike transmissions to web users , a document transmission to an e - mail user preferably does not involve a separate notification step . a transmission between two e - mail users preferably occurs as follows . the sender mails the one or more documents to be submitted to the ttp document server . the e - mail server parses the user inputs and passes control to the document database engine , which uploads the one or more documents into the database and creates a record in the document event queue for the ensuing delivery . the document daemon invokes the e - mail transport for delivery to the recipient . because it relies on remote mail - transfer agents for deliveries to recipients , and because these agents may return errors several hours or days after posting , the mail transport preferably includes more elaborate error handling than the web transport . for example , each outbound e - mail message , whether for notifications or for deliveries , is preferably marked by the document server , in the subject line for example , with unique identifying data . the data identifies the document , the forwarding event being executed , and optionally a retry serial number for that event . if any outbound mail is returned as undeliverable , the document server can use this information to associate the returned error with the original event , optionally initiate a retry , notify the sender of the error , and report a correct status in subsequent tracking requests . retry algorithms preferably specify a progressive backoff of a retry frequency and a maximum number of retry attempts before delivery is abandoned and a final error status is returned . the e - mail transport preferably uses s / mime or pgp protocols to authenticate sending or receiving users and to assure data protection . s / mime preferably uses x . 509 certificates to represent user identities , so validation will be straightforward . pgp preferably uses pgp public keys , so the pgp e - mail agent will rely on public keys and trust values in the pgp key ring to determine validity . because e - mails are preferably transmitted to or from the ttp document server , rather than directly from user to user , pgp users share public keys only with the document server and preferably not with each other . hence , as will be readily understood , the ttp system does not act as a pgp key server to pgp users . for operations conducted via the e - mail transport to have strong non - repudiation , digitally signed receipts should be provided . s / mime , v 3 introduces support for signed receipts . the document server preferably includes an infrastructure of supporting services that are used by various components of the server . these services are implemented as dynamic libraries according to an embodiment of the present invention . a cryptographic library implements functions such as encryption , hashing , and signing according to an embodiment of the present invention . several components of the document server invoke these functions , including the transport agents , the signing service , and the validation service . the cryptographic library also preferably integrates with the mechanism used to store and protect the private key of the document server . for example , a hardware token can both store the private key and implement some of the cryptographic functions that use the key . the set of algorithms implemented in the cryptographic services depend partly on the particular transport protocols that are supported . algorithms can include , for example , des , triple des , rc2 , and idea for encryption ; md5 and sha - 1 for hashing ; and rsa and dsa for signing . a validation library can be used to perform the checks needed to validate x - 509 v3 certificates . validation services are invoked by various components of the ttp system : by the web server and the e - mail agents , when authenticating a party who is accessing the system ; by the document database manager , when signed data recorded in a document history requires verification ; and by integrity assurance tools , when verifying signed logs . inputs to validation functions include certificates , public keys , and various signed data . signature verification functions verify that a signed quantity has indeed been signed by using a private key corresponding to a given public key . certificate validation functions also check for the expiration or revocation of a given certificate and of any other certificates in the chain of trust up to the sysop root . the validation library obtains current information on certificates and crls via an ldap interface to the certificate server in the cms . it should be recognized that the validation library may not be the sole means of certificate validation in the document server . the document server can further incorporate off - the - shelf servers and toolkits for the e - mail and web transports , and these may include their own validation code . however , this code may perform unacceptably weak validation ( for example , checking for expiration but not for revocation , or checking only the first certificate in a chain ). therefore , the validation library can be used as a supplement or replacement for off - the - shelf code . a trusted time stamping service is preferably used to generate the timestamps that are recorded in document histories and possibly also in logs . timestamps are important elements of non - repudiation proofs , establishing the time at which a document operation occurs relative to other operations , relative to validity periods or revocations of certificates , or versus external deadlines . time sources for the ttp system can be either internal ( devices contained within the secure operating facilities for the ttp system , contacted via media also within those facilities ) or external ( devices outside the system , contacted via a network , a phone line , or a broadcast medium such as radio ). selection of a time source is a trade off of cost , accuracy , ease of deployment and maintenance , and vulnerability to attacks and outages . several designs for the ttp time service may be used ; the service described here employs an internal time source as the primary reference for the system and an external sources as a secondary reference . an internal time source can be conventionally based on a quartz , rubidium , or cesium oscillator , for example . according to an aspect of the present invention , a rubidium clock , barring malfunction , may be stable enough never to need adjustment , and hence the low cost of operation may justify the initial outlay . whatever the underlying technology , an internal time source is likely to be more resistant to attacks , and in that regard more suitable as a primary reference , than an external source . referring now also to fig1 , the primary reference clock 100 is preferably connected by serial line 101 to a primary reference interface 106 of the document server 30 host ( see fig4 also ). alternatively , an external time source may deliver time values to its consumers through various media , including for example : the internet via protocols such as the network time protocol (“ ntp ”); dialup , to sources such as the automated computer time service (“ acts ”) of the national institute of standards and technology (“ nist ”); radio broadcast , from sources such as station wwv , operated by nist , or the satellites of the global positioning system (“ gps ”), operated by the department of defense . each of these media is prone to some form of spoofing or jamming attack and / or some form of accidental outage . however , an external time source can still complement the primary reference clock in two important ways : enabling the initialization of the primary reference clock to a recognized authoritative standard ; and , serving as an independent source against which the primary reference clock can be monitored . these purposes could be served well either by a gps receiver or by one or more ntp connections to trusted hosts . two software modules preferably cooperate in the generation of timestamps , for the document server . a device - specific clock module preferably manages the interface to the primary reference clock and converts the time codes that the clock emits into a generic timestamp format . on request from other components in the document server , a device - independent timestamp module preferably obtains and returns a timestamp . the timestamp module maintains a cache , and optionally also a log , of timestamps that it generates . it preferably compares each timestamp that it generates against its own previous outputs , assuring that the timestamps advance monotonically . the granularity of timestamps should be fine enough to enable both monotonicity and accuracy . additional software modules preferably manage interfaces to secondary references and to other clocks that warrant synchronization . a secondary reference 105 communicably coupled to a secondary interface 107 of the document server 30 can optionally be polled periodically , and the time obtained from primary 100 and secondary 105 sources compared using monitoring element 104 . discrepancies are preferably logged and monitored ; and a persistent and / or severe discrepancy treated as an alert condition . ( whether the primary reference will ever be adjusted to a secondary reference , under what conditions , and through what procedures , are partly questions of policy .) the time service can also use time values from the primary reference clock 100 to synchronize other clocks , such as the operating system clocks on the document server and cms hosts . although accuracy and monotonicity are not as crucial for these clocks as for the timestamping service , it is still beneficial to synchronize them , even coarsely . many platform , transport , and network services will continue to depend on system clocks ; synchronization , as is illustrated by designation 102 with the timestamp service 103 will facilitate coordination of these services and correlation of their logs . the components of the ttp system preferably leverage a common status reporting mechanism , where practical . an extensible set of numerical status codes is preferably defined to communicate errors and other conditions between components of the system . the system emits textual status messages to log files and to user interfaces . an on - disk catalog can be used to map the status codes to these messages at runtime . components throughout the ttp system preferably generate logs to record the activity or status of the system . this logging facilitates the delivery or maintenance of ttp services in several ways . diagnostic log output assists in the detection and solution of problems in system operation and performance . logging accesses to the system , changes in certificate or user data , and changes in access control data enable monitoring and auditing of activities with potential security impacts . logging document operations provides input data for billing and supplements document event histories as non - repudiation data . components that generate logs preferably include the cms , the document server , the web and e - mail transport agents , the time service , and the platform operating system and network services . a unix “ syslog ” mechanism is preferably used to manage concurrent access to a log file by several services , and many existing unix and networking services can already log to it . automated procedures can be used to manage the archival of logs and ensure their integrity . logs in the ttp system , including logs from the cms , the document server , and the transport agents , are preferably retained on disk for a limited time , then archived to permanent media . logs are preferably retrievable from the archival media at any future time , should they be needed for non - repudiation purposes . while on disk , each log file can optionally be periodically retired and replaced with a fresh , e . g . empty , log file to which new entries are then directed . the retired log file can be labeled , by appending to the file name a suffix that denotes the time of retirement for example . for instance , if log files were replaced on a daily basis , a retired log file might be given a suffix in the form “ 1999 . 123 . 1 ”. this procedure of retiring and labeling log files prepares each file for permanent archival . a log file can optionally be deleted from disk after any archival procedures and post - processing procedures ( such as for billing ) on the file have completed . to ensure their integrity , document server logs are preferably periodically signed , facilitating the detection of any subsequent tampering . signing can occur whenever a log is retired and labeled , but signing could also occur more frequently to further restrict opportunities for tampering . the signature of one log file can be included in the first log entry in the next file as well . depending on the duties and the hours of coverage that are defined for the operational staff of the ttp system , it may be desirable for the system to provide alert services , which expedite response to serious error conditions . circumstances that trigger alerts may include by way of example : fatal errors reported from a component of the system ; suspected intrusions or other security problems ; excessive skew between the primary reference clock and the backup clocks ; performance degradation ; and depletion of disk , memory , or other resources for example . an alert can result in notification of operation staff via e - mail , telephone , beeper , or another messaging medium . some conditions may result in automated responses , such as shutting down the system or disabling internet access . alerts can also preferably be raised by explicit calls from ttp component code and / or by tools that monitor log output . the ttp system provides a partially automated mechanism to perform two services that copy data to off - line media : backups of all data in the ttp system to rotated media ; and archival of all document history data , most logs , and selected documents to permanently retained media . backup and archival operations preferably occur regularly during relatively quiescent periods . the document daemon and / or an operating system service , such as the unix cron daemon , preferably schedule these operations . backups preferably take two forms : full backups , which copy large sets of data to media in their entirety ; and incremental backups , which copy only objects that have changed since the previous backup . archival involves a preparatory selection phase during which the database engine queries the database to identify documents and document histories that require archival . this query preferably makes use of the fields in ancillary document data where user requests for archival , and their fulfillment , are recorded . the archival of logs is preferably coordinated with the regular retirement of log files . backup or archival of a document preferably includes the integrity check that is stored with the document on - line in the document database . the integrity check can be verified if the document is restored from media . the backup and archival services preferably also encrypt data that is copied to a media . for the archival service performance may be less critical than security , and due to the potential longevity of archived data , archival may be provided with relatively stronger encryption than other storage services , for example . keys specific to this purpose are preferably controlled by sysop and protected , by hardware tokens for example , against misuse by intruders or by operators . referring now also to fig1 , and as described earlier , the document database 31 preferably stores billing information 110 for users and documents . a user profile may specify a billable party for services requested by the user ; or default to a default value such as the firm that enrolled the user . a billing label ( e . g ., an account number or a matter number ) is preferably stored with each document . this label may be supplied by a user or may be derived from the user profile , for example . the information in a billing label preferably passes through the document database 31 substantially unmodified and is included in document server log entries 111 for billable document operations . according to one embodiment of the present invention , a billing program periodically reads document server logs 113 , processes log entries for billable operations , and generates input for a commercial billing package 112 . ( the processing of server log files 113 for billing may be coordinated with the periodic rolling and archival of the logs .) the billing package 112 bills the firm ( or other specified billable party ) for the services provided to its users by a sysop . it also preferably generates billing reports itemized by user and by billing label for each firm , which the firm can then use to bill its own clients . direct billing of a user by sysop ( e . g ., for personal use of ttp services ) may involve a special case of this process , the only case in which the billing package will interpret billing labels rather than pass them through to firms . the billing package preferably recognizes the label format that requests direct billing , and bills the specified personal credit card number rather than the firm . according to an aspect of the present invention , a checksum can be calculated to confirm that the data received by the bill package or application matches that generated by the system . for sake of completeness , the following discussion illustrates interactions among users , operators , and components of the ttp system by walking through two fundamental operations of the system , enrollment of a user and transmission of a document . in the first scenario , a licensed professional who is an individual practitioner subscribes with a sysop to receive ttp services , obtaining the public key certificates and the ttp user account needed to use the system . the professional belongs to an association for which sysop operates a branded ca , and the association serves as an authenticating entity for its members . the professional generates a public / private key pair in a web browser and sends a certificate request to a registration agent for the branded ca . the certificate request includes the public key and the x . 509 distinguished name for the professional , which was assigned by the professional association . the dn identifies the association in an organization or organizational unit attribute and identifies the individual in a common name attribute . the branded ca processes the certificate request , creating and signing a certificate for the professional . the certificate is forwarded to the professional and also is stored within the cms in the ca database and the certificate server database . the professional submits forms , via the web or another medium , to the sysop to obtain a ttp subscription and a user account . through a subscription form , the professional provides information needed to establish his / her individual practice as a subscribing entity for ttp services . this information includes : the names of users who will have administrative responsibility for the firm ; names and addresses for billing ; and default values for services such as storage and archival . through an enrollment form , the professional provides information needed to establish himself / herself as a user of ttp services . this information includes : the dn ; an email address ; transport preferences for document delivery ; and transport preferences for notifications . the sysop assigns a unique firm name to the new subscriber . the professional , in the capacity of an administrative user for the firm , assigns an individual name to himself / herself . using information in the subscription and enrollment forms , sysop ttp operators create several objects in the document database : a home category in the document hierarchy for the firm ; an inbox within that category ; a group in the user hierarchy for the firm ; an administrative subgroup within that group ; and a user profile for the professional . the operators create access control links that give the professional administrator privilege for these categories and groups . sysop staff also use information in the subscription form to input data on the firm to the ttp billing package . referring now also to fig1 , in the second scenario a user sends a document to two recipients . the sender and one recipient prefer to use web browsers to handle documents ; the other recipient prefers to use e - mail . the sender connects to the ttp document server in an ssl enabled web browser by opening the url for the home category of his / her firm . the ttp web server receives a certificate from the sender via the ssl handshake , and it authenticates , the sender by validating the certificate . the web server includes the x . 509 dn of the sender in all requests that it passes to the document database engine 32 , and the engine 32 uses the dn to retrieve the user profile of the sender using the database 31 . the sender navigates through the document hierarchy to a category that the sender has targeted to contain the document . for each category that the sender traverses , the document database engine dynamically generates an html view that includes only the parents and children to which the sender has access . the sender navigates by clicking on links in these views . in the view for the target category , the sender clicks a send button , which brings up a form that prompts for recipients , text of an abstract , keywords , storage options , a billing label , and a file name for the document . the sender specifies the recipients by selecting them from a menu of firms and submenus of users . the sender types in an abstract , some keywords , and the account number for the client to which the sending firm will charge any handling costs for the document . referring now also to fig1 , a sender specifies the document file either by typing a path name or by browsing the local file system . the browser transmits the send request , with the associated information and document , to the document server . the database engine 32 uploads the document by creating a new document object as a child of the target category . the document object includes the document itself , the ancillary information on storage , billing , and so forth ; an event queue ; and an event history . the database engine 32 creates several links to establish correct access to the document : an acl specifying that the sender has author privilege on the document ; navigational links that make the document a child of the inbox categories for the receiving firms ; and access control links specifying that the recipients have reader privilege on the document . the database engine 32 creates a send event history record that includes the event type , the recipients , the protocols by which the document was received , a timestamp and signature . the signature is generated by using a private key 131 , of the keys 36 , of the document server to sign fields in the event history record plus the document itself . the database engine 32 generates an html page acknowledging the submission and returns this page through the web server 36 to the sender . as the last step in its direct processing of the send request , the database engine 32 creates three event queue records for asynchronous processing and informs the document daemon 33 of these events : an acknowledge event record for the sender , a notify event record for the web recipient and a deliver event record for the e - mail recipient . referring now also to fig1 , the document daemon 33 initiates processing for each of the events in the queue , all of which involve e - mail delivery . the daemon 33 invokes the database engine 32 to compose the e - mail , look up the addresses and preferences of the recipients , and post the message through the appropriate e - mail agent . each e - mail posting , if it is successfully processed by the ttp e - mail server 37 , results in deletion of the corresponding record from the event queue and addition of a record to the event history . the acknowledgement to the sender is a more formal version of the web acknowledgement and includes a signed receipt from the document server . the notification to the web recipient indicates a url by which the document can be downloaded . if the web recipient does download the document , this access is logged by the document server and added to the event history . the delivery to the e - mail recipient conveys the document as an attachment and , if the transport preferred by the recipient supports it , requests a signed receipt . if the recipient does return a signed receipt , this receipt is added to the event history . the ttp system preferably employs a combination of measures to deter or detect threats of unauthorized access to data , compromise to the integrity of the data , or denial of services to users . hosts in the ttp system will be protected by a firewall that allows only the access via the web and e - mail protocols that is required for the delivery of ttp services . hosts that function as registration agents will ordinarily reside within the ttp facility , behind the firewall . however , these hosts may also operate from time to time in a standalone mode , uploading registration data at subscriber sites . some elements of the system will be further protected by not being connected to a network at all . the ca host is preferably off - network and connected via a communications line to the on - network certificate directory host . critical private keys in the ttp system are preferably appropriately protected from disclosure or unauthorized use . the private key of the sysop root ca itself is the most critical key in the system . it is the basis for all chains of trust in the public key infrastructure and hence is fundamental to authentication in the ttp system . storage for the root ca private key should be in a hardware device highly resistant to tampering . the private keys of the document server identity are also critical , since they will be used to establish authenticated and protected communications with users and to sign logs and document event histories . the certificate for a key that signs non - repudiation data is preferably accorded a long validity period , and the keys are preferably protected for that duration . ( the key size is also preferably sufficiently large that the key does not become too weak before it expires .) storage in hardware devices for document server keys should be considered . automated mechanisms to assure the integrity of the ttp system should be considered . methods could include : signing and verification of log files , monitoring of log files , and auditing of accesses or modifications to critical system files . security , reliability , and availability requirements dictate some characteristics of the platforms and environment for the ttp system . operation in a secure facility may be necessary to ensure adherence to policies and practices . un - interruptible power supplies (“ upss ”) and redundant internet connectivity can be used to reduce disruptions of service . redundancy of disks or other hardware also helps to prevent data loss and provide a fail - over capability in the event of hardware failure . additional platform characteristics , such as speed and capacity , will be dictated by performance and scalability requirements . although the invention has been described and pictured in a preferred form with a certain degree of particularity , it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made by way of example , and that numerous changes in the details of construction and combination and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . | 6 |
before describing the preferred embodiments according to the invention , examples of aforementioned related art are given with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig1 is a schematic block diagram of the structure of a conventional dsp 91 . a sequence control part 16 outputs various control signals for calculation and data input / output , etc . according to software instructions stored in a rom 66 thereof . an arithmetic and logic unit ( alu ) 71 performs high - speed product and sum operations ( as a 1 x 1 + a 2 x 2 . . . ) in cooperation with an adder 68 , a multiplier 69 , and an accumulator 70 . an input interface 61 samples serial data input from a data input terminal 51 in synchronization with an input / output clock input from a clock input terminal 53 and stores the data , independently of the sequence control part 16 . the stored data is transferred to data registers 63 , etc . in accordance with control signals from the sequence control part 16 , is processed to carry out various calculations , and is output through an output interface to a data output terminal 54 . as the calculation step progressing in floating point form , data in the input interface 61 must be converted to floating points when the data represents an integer . if the integer is coded in the smb code , it is converted directly to the floating point form by a conversion circuit 64 in accordance with control signals from the sequence control part 16 . where an integer coded in the btc code is input from an a / d converter ( not shown ), the integer is converted at the data registers 63 to the smb code form by a bit operation , in accordance with control signals from the sequence control part 16 , i . e ., in accordance with software instructions stored in the rom 66 , before conversion by the conversion circuit 64 . where the result of a calculation is output to a d / a converter ( not shown ), the floating point data is converted by conversion circuit 64 to the smb code integer , which is converted at the data registers 63 to the btc form by a bit operation in accordance with control signals from the sequence control part 16 , i . e ., in accordance with software instruction stored in the rom 66 . fig2 shows an example of a circuit for converting the btc code to the smb code with hardware logic . the circuit performs the aforementioned exact conversion . in the figure , 110 is a 16 - bit register for storing an integer coded in the btc code , and consists of 16 flip - flops . the register 110 may be a shift register which converts serial input data to parallel data to input the serial input data . one input of each of the eor gates 150 - 1 to 150 - 15 is connected to an output of the most significant bit ( msb ) or a sign bit of the register 110 . the other inputs of each of the eor gates 150 - 1 to 150 - 15 are connected to outputs of the remaining bits , except for the sign bit , respectively . the 16 bit adder 190 arithmetically adds data b constructed from bits b 0 to b 15 to data a constructed from bits a 0 to a 15 to output data c constructed from bits c 0 to c 15 . an input of the bit b 0 is connected to the output of the sign bit of the register 110 and inputs of the bits b 1 to b 15 are grounded . accordingly , the data b becomes 1 when the data in the register 110 is negative , and the data b becomes 0 when the data in the register 110 is positive . an input of the bit a 15 is connected with the output of the sign bit of the register 110 and inputs of the bits a 0 to a 14 are connected with the output of the eor gates 150 - 1 to 150 - 15 . the inputs of a 16 - bit register 120 are connected to the outputs of the adder 190 . the register 120 may be a buffer register arranged between the input interface 61 and a internal bus 67 ( fig1 ). in the circuit shown in fig2 data exactly converted from the data in the register 110 is stored in the register 120 when a latch signal 200 for the register 120 is activated . fig3 shows an example of a circuit for converting the smb code to the btc code with hardware logic . in the figure , 130 is a 16 - bit register for storing an integer coded in the smb code . the register 130 may be a buffer register arranged between the internal bus 67 and the output interface 62 ( fig1 ). the 16 - bit adder 191 has the same construction as the adder 190 shown in fig2 . an input of the bit b 0 is connected with an output of the sign bit of the register 130 and inputs of the bits b 1 to b 15 are grounded . accordingly , the data b becomes 1 when the data in the register 130 is negative , and the data b becomes 0 when the data in the register 130 is positive . inputs of bits a 0 to a 15 are connected to the outputs of the register 130 , respectively . one input of each of the eor gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 is connected to an output of the sign bit c 15 of the data c of adder 191 , and the other inputs of each of the eor gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 are connected to outputs of the bits c 0 to c 14 of the data c of adder 191 . converted data is stored in an 16 - bit register 140 . the register 140 may be a shift register which converts parallel data to serial data , to output the serial output data . an input of a sign bit of the register 140 is connected with the output of the bit c 15 of the data c of the adder 191 , and the other inputs of the register 140 are connected with the outputs of the eor gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 , respectively . in the circuit shown in fig3 data exactly converted from the data in the register 130 is stored in the register 140 when a latch signal 202 for the register 140 is activated . fig4 a and 4b show the problems of related art as mentioned above . a sine curves shown in fig4 ( a ) and 4 ( b ) represent original data and a part of converted data . the highest points of the curves correspond to the maximum value of the integers represented in the btc code , i . e ., 011 . . . 111 , and the lowest points of the curves correspond to the minimum value of the integers represents in the btc code , i . e ., 100 . . . 000 . the chain lines in fig4 ( a ) represent an input a of the adder 190 ( fig2 ) when the data in register 110 is negative . note , the distance thereof to the sine curve is emphasized . as shown in fig4 ( a ), the data a is slightly offset when negative , and thus an output signal of the dsp 91 is slightly distorted when close to the zero level . the chain lines in fig4 ( b ) represent an output c of the adder 190 , i . e ., the result of a conversion in the circuit of fig2 when the original data is at a minimum value ( i . e ., 100 . . . 000 ). note , the width of an area formed by the chain lines is emphasized . as shown in fig4 ( b ), the circuit gives an incorrect , i . e ., 000 . . . 000 , when the original signal is equal to or higher than the lower limit . the preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . fig5 shows a basic construction of a btc to smb and an smb to btc code conversion circuits for a dsp , according to the invention . the circuit for converting the btc code to an smb code , comprises a first m - bit register 11 , first exclusive or gates 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 , a first n - bit smb code register 12 , where n & gt ; m , and means for providing a logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; 16 . one input of each of the first exclusive or gates 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 is connected to a sign bit 11 - 1 in the first m - bits register 11 , and the other inputs of each of the first exclusive or gates 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 are connected to bits , except for the sign bit , 11 - 2 to 11 - m in the first m - bits register 11 , respectively . the sign bit 11 - 1 in the first m - bits register 11 is connected to an input of a sign bit 12 - 1 in first n - bits register 12 . the outputs of the first exclusive or gates 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 are connected to inputs of the m - 1 bits 12 - 2 to 12 - m , except for the sign bit 12 - 1 and a least significant bit 12 - n , in the first n - bits register 12 . an output of the means for providing a logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; is connected to an input of a bit 12 - m + 1 which is the less significant bit next to the least significant bit 12 - m of the m bits in the first n - bits register 12 . when the integer stored in the first m - bits register 11 is positive , or zero , the bits except for the sign bits pass through the gate 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 . an absolute value of the converted data represented by the bits 12 - 2 to 12 - n is increased by one half by the logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; providing means 16 , and thus the integer stored in the first n - bits register 12 is incremented by one half . when the integer stored in the first m - bits register 11 is negative , the bits except for the sign bits are inverted at the gates 15 - 1 to 15 - m - 1 . the absolute value of the converted data represented by the bits 12 - 2 to 12 - m is increased by one half , and thus the integer stored in the first n - bits register 12 is decremented by one half . the effect of this increase and decrease is diagrammatically explained with reference to fig4 and fig6 . in fig6 the chain line curve represents a result of a conversion in the btc to smb conversion circuit in the dsp according to the present invention . the upper half of the curve in fig4 ( a ) is raised by one half and the chain line curve in fig4 ( a ) is lowered by one half , and becomes as shown by the chain line curve in fig6 . the chain line curve is not distorted and will not give an incorrect result as shown in fig4 ( b ), because the chain line curve does not reach the lower limit . the circuit for converting an smb code to a btc code comprises a second n - bit register 13 storing an integer coded in the smb code , second exclusive or gates 17 - 1 to 17 - m - 1 , and a second m - bit register 14 storing an integer coded in the btc code , as shown in fig5 . one input of each of the second exclusive or gates 17 - 1 to 17 - m - 1 is connected to a sign bit 13 - 1 in the second n - bits register 13 , and the other inputs of each of the second exclusive or gates 17 - 1 to 17 - m - 1 are connected to m - 1 bits 13 - 2 to 13 - m in the second n - bits register 13 , respectively . the sign bit 13 - 1 in the second n - bits register 13 is connected to an input of a sign bit 14 - 1 in the second m - bits register 14 . the outputs of the second exclusive or gates 17 - 1 to 17 - m - 1 are connected to inputs of m - bits 14 - 2 to 14 - m in the second m - bits register 14 , except for the sign bit 14 - 1 , respectively . a bit in the second n - bits register 13 corresponding to the bit in the first n - bits register 12 connected to the logic &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; providing means 16 is not connected to the exclusive or gates or the second m - bit register . therefore , an increment caused by the conversion from btc to smb is eliminated upon a conversion from smb to btc , if an operation was not executed between the registers 12 and 13 . various arithmetic or logical operations , however , are naturally executed on the data stored in register 12 , before a transfer thereof to the register 13 , and therefore , the one half increment remains in the data stored in register 14 . nevertheless , this is a direct - type current , and thus this effect can be ignored as only the ac component is important in , for example , an audio signal process . fig7 is a block diagram of an audio system which comprises a plurality of dsp &# 39 ; s according to the present invention for controlling the sound quality and volume . the system comprises a plurality of sound sources such as an am tuner 200 , an fm tuner 202 , a cassette tape deck ( cs ) 204 , a compact disk ( cd ) player 206 , and a digital audio tape deck ( dat ) 208 . the am tuner 200 , the fm tuner 202 , and the cassette tape deck ( cs ) 204 output analog audio signals , which are passed through a switch 210 and input to a low - pass filter 212 which removes the high frequency component undesirable for a digital signal process . signals output by the low - pass filter are input to an analog to digital ( a / d ) converter 214 , which converts the analog signals to digital signals at predetermined intervals . the compact disk player 206 and the digital audio tape deck 208 output digital audio signals , which are passed through a switch 218 , together with the output of the a / d converter 214 , and input to the dsp &# 39 ; s 92 . the plurality of dsp &# 39 ; s 92 are interconnected in serial , and at least a part of each of the dsp &# 39 ; s 92 is connected to a microcomputer 216 which controls the dsp &# 39 ; s 92 . a signal output by the final stage of the dsp &# 39 ; s 92 is input to a digital to analog ( d / a ) converter 220 , which converts the digital signals to analog signals . a signal output by the d / a converter 220 is passed through a low - pass filter 222 , amplified in an amplifier 224 , and transferred to a speaker 226 . in the dsp &# 39 ; s 92 , various operations are executed representedly within twenty to thirty micro - seconds , to implement the control of the sound quality and volume . fig8 is a block diagram of the dsp 92 in fig7 . the same reference numerals as used in fig1 are used for constituent which are similar to those in fig1 and thus descriptions thereof are omitted . the input interface 61 comprises two shift registers 616 , 618 , a bit exchanger 614 , a code converter 612 , a switch 611 , and a buffer register 610 . the shift registers 616 , 618 convert serial input data to parallel data in synchronization with an input / output clock provided from outside of the dsp . the bit exchanger 614 rearranges the bit arrangement to bring the input floating data in line with the floating point format within the dsp . the code converter 612 converts the input integer in the btc code to the msb code . the switch 611 is provided with two contact point a and b , and when the input data is a real number , the contact a is used , and when the input data is an integer the contact b is used . the buffer register 610 is used to provide the real or integer number to the internal bus 67 . if the contact b is conductive , the data in the shift register 616 is continuously converted in the code converter 612 and sent to the buffer register 610 . when a control signal for storing the input data to the data register 63 , in a desired time is sent in accordance with a software instruction , an integer coded in the smb code is stored in the data register 63 , and is converted to the floating point format in the conversion circuit 64 in accordance with another software instruction . the output interface 62 comprises a buffer register 620 , a code converter 622 , a bit exchanger 624 , two switches 621 and 623 , and two shift registers 626 and 628 . the buffer register 620 is used to provided a real or integer number processed by the internal bus 67 and sent to the circuit for data output . the bit exchanger 624 rearrange the bit arrangement stored in the buffer register 620 to provide an arrangement which is the reverse of that provided by the bit exchanger 614 . the code converter 622 converts an integer coded in the smb code to the btc code . both switches 621 and 623 are provided with two contact points a and b , and when the output data is a real number , the contact a is used , and when the output data is an integer , the b is contact used , as in the switch 611 . the contact a of the switch 621 is connected to a part of the outputs of the bit exchanger 624 and the contact b of the switch 621 is grounded . the contact a of the switch 623 is connected to another part of the outputs of the bit exchanger 624 and the contact b of the switch 623 is connected to the output of the code converter 622 . both switches 621 and 623 cooperate to provide a real number or an integer to the shift registers 626 and 628 . the shift registers 626 and 628 convert parallel data stored therein to serial output data in synchronization with the input / output clock . the result of operation in the dsp is converted in the conversion circuit 64 to an smb form integer in accordance with a software instruction . when the smb form integer is set in the buffer register 620 , in a desired time , in accordance with a software instruction , the integer is converted to the btc form in the code converter 622 and input to the shift register 626 , if the contact b of the switch 626 is conductive . then the data stored in the shift register 626 is converted to serial data and output . fig9 shows a detailed construction of the shift register 616 , the code converter 612 , and the buffer register 610 , except for the switch 611 . the most significant bit q 15 of the shift register 616 is connected to the input of the most significant bit ( msb d 23 of the buffer register 610 . one input of each of the exclusive or gates 150 - 1 to 150 - 15 is connected to the msb of the shift register 616 , and the other inputs of each of the exclusive or gates 150 - 1 to 150 - 15 are connected to the bits q 14 to q 0 in the shift register 616 , respectively . the outputs of the exclusive or gates are connected to inputs of the bits d 22 to d 8 in the buffer register 610 , respectively . an input of a bit d 7 in the buffer register 610 is connected to a power source via a resister 160 , and the inputs of the bits d 6 to d 0 are grounded . when a latch signal 200 for the buffer register 610 is activated , the result of a conversion of an integer of the btc code stored in the shift register 616 to the smb code is stored in the buffer register 610 , as explained before . fig1 shows a detailed construction of the buffer register 620 , code converter 622 , and a shift register 626 except for the switch 623 . the msb q 23 of the buffer register 620 is connected with an input of the msb of the shift register 626 . one input of each of the exclusive or gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 is connected to the msb of the buffer register 620 , and the other inputs of each of the exclusive or gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 are connected to the bits - 22 to q 8 in the buffer register 620 . the outputs of the exclusive or gates 170 - 1 to 170 - 15 are connected to inputs of the bits d 15 to d 0 in the shift register 626 . when a latch signal 202 for the shift register 626 is activated , the result of a conversion of an integer of the smb code stored in the buffer register 620 to the btc code is stored in the shift register 626 , as explained before . | 7 |
the flow diagram of fig1 illustrates various embodiments of the invention . in the first embodiment of the invention , the manufacturing process begins with the formation of a porous low - density base material . as indicated in the flow chart of fig1 a first dryblend layer is formed on a release carrier . in the formation of the base material a mixture of resinous dryblend particles and expanded perlite is prepared . the dryblend is in the form of free - flowing homogeneous mixture of unfused thermoplastic resin particles , including liquid vinyl plasticizer , filler , pigment , and vinyl stabilizer . poly ( vinyl chloride ) is the preferred resin for use in forming the surface covering of the present invention , although copolymers of vinyl chloride with minor proportions of other materials such as vinyl acetate , vinylidene chloride , other vinyl esters such as vinyl proprionate , vinyl butyrate as well as alkyl substituted vinyl esters may be used . other thermoplastic resins which are receptive to high frequency heating or which can be combined with materials receptive to high frequency heating may also be used . these may include , for example , polyethylene , polyurethanes , polyesters , polyamides , polyacrylates ( e . g ., polymethyl methacrylate ) as well as polymers derived from acetates and cellulose esters . the free - flowing mix of resin , plasticizer , stabilizer , pigment , and filler may be readily formed by adding the resin , for example a homopolymer of vinyl chloride in the form of discrete particles , along with the vinyl resin plasticizer such as di - 2 - ethylhexyl phthalate , butylbenzyl phthalate , epoxidized soybean oil , or tricresyl phosphate , filler , pigment , and suitable vinyl resin stabilizers to a mixer , or blender , such as a henschel blender , where they are mixed under moderate heat , for instance , at a temperature of about 160 °- 220 ° f ., for a period of time to ensure that the liquid plasticizer and the stabilizer become absorbed and thus diffused throughout the resin particles and the remaining ingredients absorbed thereon . care is taken so that no fusion of the resin particles occurs during the mixing , and the temperature must be kept below that at which such would occur . generally speaking , the addition of fillers and / or pigments to the mix may be made either initially , at the end of the mixing cycle when the resin particles remain relatively warm , or after the dryblend particles have been mixed and cooled . the dryblend composition useable in the present invention may include the following ingredients in the indicated ranges , based on 100 parts of resin : ______________________________________ingredients parts by weight______________________________________poly ( vinyl chloride ) dispersion grade 50 - 100resin - average mw 70 , 000 - 80 , 000poly ( vinyl chloride ) blending grade resin - 50 - 0average mw 33 , 000 - 46 , 000dioctyl phthalate , plasticizer 25 - 75organatin stabilizer 1 - 3titanium dioxide paste ( 50 % in dop ) 0 - 5limestone ( 50 mesh ) filler 0 - 200______________________________________ the dryblend / perlite mix used in the present invention is formed by a simple mixing or tumbling together of the two dry materials until a uniform blend is obtained . about 90 parts by weight of the dryblend and about 10 . 5 parts by weight of the perlite are used . the quantity of perlite used in the composition , however , can be varied considerably , but the upper limit is determined by the ability of the composition to hold together in a useful manner after heating and consolidation . this upper level is affected by the particle size of the perlite used , and , since we add or mix our proportions by weight , the density of the perlite particles . the perlite particles preferred for use in the present invention is spherepack mm - 100 , sold by patentech corporation , shepherd grove , ill . the particle size of the perlite useable in the present invention ranges from about 35 to 850 microns . the average particle size for the spherepack mm - 100 perlite is about 60 microns . the effective range of the quantity of perlite useable would be between 2 and 20 percent by weight when combined with a quantity of dryblend in the range of from about 98 to 80 percent by weight . the preferred range of the perlite used would be about 5 to 15 percent by weight , and the most preferred range would be about 8 to 12 percent by weight . the levels of other types of perlite , for example , the 3 . 5 and 10 pound / cubic foot bulk density material , may differ dur to their different particle size and / or density . although it is preferred that the base material should be formed using expanded perlite as the hollow particles , it is contemplated that other hollow particles of , for example , glass , ceramic , or organic materials could be used within the scope of the invention . a layer of the perlite - containing dryblend mixture about 100 mils thick is then formed on a release - surfaced carrier and heated to a temperature sufficient to cause surface portions of the resinous particles to melt slightly and stick together at their points of contact with each other . a reinforcing layer of non - woven glass scrim or loose glass fibers is then placed on the perlite - containing dryblend layer so formed and light consolidating pressure is applied thereto . the glass scrim may have a basis weight of about 10 g - 50 g / m 2 . alternatively , the reinforcing layer may comprise woven or non - woven fibrous layers of glass , polyester , polyamide , and the like . another layer of similar thickness of the dryblend and perlite mixture is formed on top of the scrim and this second layer is then heated to a temperature similar to that used in forming the first layer and slight consolidating pressure is again applied . alternately , the porous base may consist of a homogeneous blend of resinous dryblend or powder containing loose fibers such as glass , polyester , and the like . the resulting base material is now in a friable but suitable condition to be handled for further processing . it is also porous , allowing it to be subsequently compressed in a vertical direction with minimum lateral flow . it is also receptive to high frequency energy . the preferred reinforced , sintered dryblend and expanded perlite composite is a unique porous structure in which each individual pore is reinforced by the rigid cellular structure of the individual expanded perlite particle . the collective effect of the many reinforced pores contributes to a great extent to the necessary dimensional stability and light weight of the product , while at the same time still allowing crushability during the embossing step with limited lateral flow . the porous structure is such that the dryblend layer contains air within the layer and air can pass or flop through the layer from one side to the other side or from one side and out the edges of the layer . although it is preferred that the base material should be as described , other porous structures such as open - celled thermoplastic resin foams ( e . g ., vinyl foam ), thermoplastic matting , open - cell polyurethane foam , and the like may be used ; however , results generally are not as good since print distortion , material extrusion , and structural collapse may occur during subsequent processing operations . in one embodiment of the invention , a dimensionally stable release carrier is then provided with a first resinous thermoplastic film preferably about 4 mils thick and having ornamented design portions on the surface therof facing away from the carrier . the film may , however , range from about 0 . 1 - 15 . 0 mils in thickness , and , at this point , may be permeable or impermeable , but must be capable of becoming permeable when the composite structure is subsequently embossed . the film may be cast , calendered , extruded , or laminated onto the release carrier and , the design or decoration may be applied either prior to , or subsequent to , application of the film to the release carrier . also , it is recognized that the decoration may be applied to the top surface of the base material and non - decorated films or coatings applied thereover . the first resinous film preferably comprises poly ( vinyl chloride ) and / or vinyl chloride copolymers ( e . g ., vinyl chloride and acrylic monomers and copolymers such as ethylene - acrylic acid ). however , other thermoplastic materials such as polyesters , polyurethanes , polyamines , polyolefins ( e . g ., polyethylenes ), polyacrylates , and the like could be used in the invention . adhesive may be applied to the decorated surface of the film or , the adhesive may be in the ink or may be combined with the ink . a second resinous layer which also may be in the form of a film may then be provided either on the exposed surface of the first layer or on the top surface of the base material . as previously stated , the decoration may be either on the first resinous layer surface which faces away from the release carrier , or on the top surface of the base material . the first and second layers may be die cut to the desired dimensions in register with the design while they are on the release carrier , but without cutting the carrier . the base material is cut into shapes corresponding to those of the cut portions of the top layers . the decorated cut portions of the top layers are then placed on the top surface of the shaped portions of the base material , the release carrier is removed and the top layers are perforated . the both top lyers are perforated all the way through and the perforations are in register particularly when the top layers are in the press during embossing . the die - cut layers are laminated to the base and may be preheated to only warm the adhesive so that lamination can be carried out at a relatively low temperature . the pieces of base material may also be pre - heated , but not all the way through . the composite structures so formed are then put into a flatbed press comprising a cooled deep embossing plate and a cooled flat back plate . high frequency energy is applied after the press is closed . the temperature of the material goes from ambient temperature to about 350 ° f . because the greatest heat is generated within the structure of the base material which is next to the second of the resinous top layers , it will soften and flow before the first resinous top layer and thereby assist and ensure sealing of the air passageways therein particularly in the first resinous top layer . the high frequency power is then turned off and the pieces are allowed to sit under pressure for about 4 to 20 seconds . the press is then opened , the pieces removed and die - cut in register . adhesive is applied to the back of the pieces and release paper is applied . in the second embodiment of the invention the same material and procedures are used except that the top layers and base material are die - cut simultaneously in register with the design portions after the first and second layer or films have been applied to the top surface of the base material , and after separation of the release carrier . the following examples are given for purposes of illustration , but the invention is not limited to these examples . all parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise specified . in forming the base material for the surface covering of the present invention , dryblend granules were prepared by mixing the following components together in a conventional herschel dryblending apparatus through a heat history from ambient conditions to 220 ° f . to ambient conditions , using the following ingredients in the indicated ranges : ______________________________________ingredients parts by weight______________________________________poly ( vinyl chloride ) dispersion grade 66 . 6resinpoly ( vinyl chloride ) blending grade 33 . 4resindioctyl phthalate 25 - 75organotin stabilizer 2titanium dioxide paste ( 50 % in dop ) 2limestone ( 50 mesh ) filler 100the dryblend granules formed as above were then mixedwith perlite particles in the following proportions : dryblend particles 90 * perlite ( spherepack mm - 100 ) 10 . 5 100 . 5______________________________________ * a low density , hollow silica glass particle available from patentech corporation , shepherd grove , illinois . the above dry materials were mixed together by a simple tumbling operation until a uniform blend was obtained . the dryblend mixture was deposited on a release - surfaced carrier to form a uniform layer of about 100 mils thick . heat was then applied via infra - red irradiation of the top surface and electric heating of the lower platen for a period of about 2 minutes to bring the mixture to a temperature of about 375 ° f . to cause partial melting of surface portions of the dryblend granules and cause them to stick together at their points of contact . a sheet of non - woven glass scrim having a basis weight of about 35 g / m 2 and having linear dimensions similar to those of the dryblend layer was then placed thereon and slight consolidating pressure applied by passing the structure through a roll laminator . another layer of the same dryblend mixture similar in thickness to that of the first layer was deposited onto the glass scrim covering thereon and similiarly heated and slightly consolidated . after cooling , the composite sheet , which was approximately 100 mils thick , was cut into about 7 by 7 inch tile size portions which were low density , porous to air flow , reinforced and in a suitable condition for handling and further processing procedures . a 3 - 4 mil poly ( vinyl chloride ) first coating film or layer was applied to a 1 . 42 ( 0 . 036 mm ) thick polyester release carrier and heated to an interface temperature of about 290 ° f . ( 143 ° c .). the resulting film was then printed with vinyl inks in a decorative pattern . a second layer consisting of a 1 - mil ( 0 . 025 mm ) poly ( vinyl chloride ) coating , and in this case containing white pigment , is applied to the decorated surface of the poly ( vinyl chloride ) film and heated to an interface temperature of 270 ° f . ( 132 ° c .). the decorated first layer and second layer were then cut into shapes and sizes corresponding to those of the base material without cutting the release carrier . the first and second films or layers were then applied to the top surface of the pieces of the base material which were pre - heated to only warm the top portions thereof , the second layer thus being positioned between the decorated upper film layer and the top surface of the base material . if an adhesive is used in the process , it is applied to the decorated surface of the first coating or film layer to assure good bonding of the first and second layers . the adhesive may be an acrylic type lacquer having the following composition : ______________________________________ parts by weight______________________________________ * a21lv resin 13ethyl acetate 43methyl ethyl ketone 13 69______________________________________ * a methyl methacrylate resin available from rohm & amp ; haas , philadelphia , pennsylvania . heat was applied from a silicone roller heated at about 400 ° f . to soften the adhesive on the decorated surface of the film , and light pressure was applied by a roll laminator to bond the second film layer to the base material . after cooling , the release carrier was removed . the top film layers were then perforated in registry through both layers using a pin roll to provide a plurality of 0 . 050 inch openings spaced about 5 / 16 &# 34 ; apart . the composite structures were then placed in a flatbed press having water - cooled embossing and back - up plates . high frequency electrical energy was applied to fuse the resins in the structures which were then embossed by the downward pressure exerted by the embossing plate . as the pressure is applied , the entrapped air of the deep recesses of the embossing plate escapes through the in register holes in the top film layers into and through the porous base material . the heat then fuses the resins and allows the holes of the top layers to seal under continuing pressure resulting in an impermeable top film . the products were then allowed to cool under pressure , removed from the press , and die - cut in register to remove excess trim . a water - based acrylic type adhesive having the following formulation was then applied to the back of the finished pieces to facilitate their subsequent attachment to a surface such as a wall or floor : ______________________________________ parts by weight______________________________________ * polyacrylic emulsion ( ucar174 ) 98 . 62 ** sodium polyacrylic solution 1 . 31 ( alcogum 6940 )*** 1 , 2 - benzisothiazolin - 3 - one 0 . 7 ( proxel crl ) ______________________________________ * available from union carbide , danbury , connecticut ** available from alco chemical co ., philadelphia , pennsylvania *** available from ici america , inc ., wilmington , delaware a release - coated paper was then applied onto the adhesive . the paper is easily removable at the time of installation of the product on a substrate . the product is a stress - free , decorated , embossed surface covering having non - curling tendencies . a dimensionally stable , embossed , ornamented surface covering was formed by using the same base material dryblend - perlite mixture and procedures as in example i . the decorated first and second film layers were also provided using the same materials and procedures as in example i . in the formation of this surface covering , however , neither the first and second film layers nor the base material were cut prior to lamination of the films and base material . in this procedure , the decorated surface of the first film layer was interfaced with the top surface of the second film layer prior to application of the films to the base material , and heat and pressure was applied to activate the adhesive . after cooling , the release carrier was removed , the films perforated and the films and base material cut simultaneously in register with the design on the film . the embossing of the structure , fusing of the resins , die - cutting to remove excess trim , and application of adhesive and release paper to the back of the product were done in the same manner and using the same materials as in example i . the surface covering formed is substantially dimensionally stable , stress free and has non - curling tendencies ; is relatively easier and more economical to produce ; and provides an improved , more aesthetically appealing product having improved surface maintenance properties . it has been found that the perforations which aid in air release during embossing do not completely seal in some cases , for example , where the embossing plate is very deep and does not have enough raised areas to mechanically help seal the perforations , e . g ., a deep , smooth , and recessed plate . unsealed holes allow penetration of stains to the interior of the finished product in use , which is undesirable . by incorporating a second resinous thermoplastic layer beneath the decorated top layer or film , which second layer will soften in the embossing and fusion step prior to fusion of the top decorated film , the healing of the openings in the top film is assisted . this is because the greatest heat is generated within the structure of the base which is next to the more flowable second layer . the second resinous thermoplastic layer may be a poly ( vinyl chloride ) layer , advantageously in the form of a plastisol or in the form of a sintered powder layer , such as that designated vyfs by union carbide . it could also be any of the other thermoplastic materials mentioned above for the base material , provided that it softens and starts to soften and flow prior to the softening and flowing of the first layer at a lower temperature than does the first , or top , perforated film or layer , thereby ensuring complete closure of the perforations in the final product . in the preferred method of manufacture in which the base material is heated by radio frequency energy , and the embossing plate is cooled , e . g ., to about 180 ° f . ( 82 ° c . ), the second layer will soften and flow before the top layer because the second layer is closer to the high temperature material . the resulting flow in the second layer contributes to the sealing of the perforations . | 1 |
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