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the present invention relates to acaricides . more particularly , the present invention relates to botanical acaricides . in particular , the present invention relates to compositions and methods for controlling plant - infesting acari with plant extracts and notably with compositions comprising oil extracts derived from plant material . the invention further relates to compositions comprising such extracts as acaricidal compositions and providing the advantages of minimal development of resistance thereto , minimal toxicity to mammals , minimal residual activity and environmental compatibility . the compositions of the present invention further display insecticidal activity on plant - infesting insects . the plant acaricidal composition comprises α - terpinene , ρ - cymene , limonene , carvacrol , carveol , nerol , thymol , and carvone .

unless defined otherwise , all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs . “ pests ” refers to organisms that infest plants and can impact plant health and may include for example , acari , insects , fungi , parasites , and microbes . “ mite ” refers broadly to plant acari . similarly , “ acari ” means plant infesting acari or phytophagous acari such as , but not limited to , the two - spotted spider mite ( tetranychus urticae ). “ locus ” means a site which is infested or could be infested with acari and / or insects or other pests and may include , but is not restricted to , domestic , agricultural , and horticultural environments . “ essential oil extract ” means the volatile , aromatic oils obtained by steam or hydro - distillation of plant material and may include , but are not restricted to , being primarily composed of terpenes and their oxygenated derivatives . essential oils can be obtained from , for example , plant parts including , for example , flowers , leaves , seeds , roots , stems , bark , wood , etc . “ active constituents ” means the constituents of the essential oil extract to which the pesticidal activity , for example , acaricidal , insecticidal , and / or fungicidal activity is attributed . the essential oil extract of the present invention generally comprises the active constituents including : α - terpinene , ρ - cymene , limonene , carvacrol , carveol , nerol , thymol , and carvone . the term “ partially purified ”, when used in reference to an essential oil extract means that the extract is in a form that is relatively free of proteins , nucleic acids , lipids , carbohydrates or other materials with which it is naturally associated in a plant . as disclosed herein , an essential oil extract of the invention is considered to be partially purified . in addition , the individual components of the essential oil extract can be further purified using routine and well known methods as provided herein . other chemistry terms herein are used according to conventional usage in the art , as exemplified by the mcgraw - hill dictionary of chemical terms ( ed . parker , s ., 1985 ), mcgraw - hill , san francisco , incorporated herein by reference . the present invention provides for essential oil extracts derived from plant material with pesticidal activity . in one embodiment , the essential oils of the present invention have acaricidal activity . in another embodiment , the essential oil extracts of the present invention has insecticidal activity . in another embodiment , the essential oil extracts of the present invention has fungicidal activity . the present invention also provides for the use of the essential oil extracts to produce pesticidal compositions and formulations demonstrating acaricidal , insecticidal , and / or fungicidal activity to control plant - infesting pests . such extracts , compositions , and formulations of the present invention are derived from plant sources preferably by steam or hydro - distillation extraction methods from said plant material . in one embodiment , these extracts , compositions , and formulations can be used to control pests , such as plant - infesting acari , at any locus without detriment to the environment or other beneficial insects . in a further aspect , these extracts , compositions , and formulations can be incorporated into integrated pest management programs to control plant - infesting pests . plant material that may be used in the present invention includes part of a plant taken individually or in a group and may include , but is not restricted to , the leaf , flowers , roots , seeds , and stems . as is known by persons skilled in the art , the chemical composition and efficacy of an essential oil extract varies with the phenological age of the plant ( jackson et al ., 1994 ), percent humidity of the harvested material ( chialva et al ., 1983 ), the plant parts chosen for extraction ( jackson et al ., 1994 ; and chialva et al ., 1983 ), and the method of extraction ( perez - souto , 1992 ). methods well - known in the art can be adapted by a person of ordinary skill in the art to achieve the desired yield and quality of the essential oil extract of the present invention . in one embodiment , plant material is derived from the genus chenopodium . in a further embodiment , the plant material is derived from chenopodium ambrosioides . the plant material may be used immediately after harvesting . in one embodiment the fresh plant material having a humidity level of & gt ; 75 % is used . otherwise , it may be desirable to store the plant material for a period of time , prior to performing the extraction procedure ( s ). in another embodiment wilted plant material having a humidity level of 40 to 60 % is used . in another embodiment dry plant material having a humidity level of & lt ; 20 %) is used . in a further embodiment , the plant material is treated prior to storage . in such cases , the treatment may include drying , freezing , lyophilisizing , or some combination thereof . in addition to such parameters as the phenological age of the plant , the percent humidity of the harvested material , the plant parts chosen for extraction , and the method of extraction , the chemical composition and efficacy of an essential oil extract may be affected by pre - treatment of the plant material . for example , when a plant is stressed , several biochemical processes are activated and many new compounds , in addition to those constitutively expressed , are synthesized as a response . in addition to pests , fungi , and other pathogenic attacks , stressors include drought , heat , water and mechanical wounding . moreover , persons of skill in the art will also recognize that combinations of stressors may be used . for example , the effects of mechanical wounding can be increased by the addition of compounds that are naturally synthesized by plants when stressed . such compounds include jasmonic acid ( ja ). in addition , analogs of oral secretions of insects can also be used in this way ( baldwin , i . t . 1999 ), to enhance the reaction of plants to stressors . in one embodiment , the essential oil extracts of the present invention are derived from plant material which has been pre - treated , for example by stressing the plant by chemical or mechanical wounding , drought , heat , or cold , or a combination thereof , before plant material collection and extraction . essential oil extracts can be extracted from plant material by standard techniques known in the art . a variety of strategies are available for extracting essential oils from plant material , the choice of which depends on the ability of the method to extract the constituents in the extract of the present invention . examples of suitable methods for extracting essential oil extracts include , but are not limited to , hydro - distillation , direct steam distillation ( duerbeck , 1993 ), solvent extraction , and microwave assisted process ( map ™) ( belanger et al ., 1991 ). in one embodiment , plant material is treated by boiling the plant material in water to release the volatile constituents into the water which can be recovered after distillation and cooling . in another embodiment , plant material is treated with steam to cause the essential oils within the cell membranes to diffuse out and form mixtures with the water vapor . the steam and volatiles can then be condensed and the oil collected . in another embodiment , organic solvents are used to extract organically soluble compounds found in essential oils . non - limiting examples of such organic solvents include methanol , ethanol , hexane , and methylene chloride . in a further embodiment , microwaves are used to excite water molecules in the plant tissue which causes cells to rupture and release the essential oils trapped in the extracellular tissues of the plant material . to confirm the presence of the constituents of the present invention in the essential oil extract , a variety of analytical techniques well known to those of skill in the art may be employed . such techniques include , for example , chromatographic separation of organic molecules ( e . g ., gas chromatography ) or by other analytical techniques ( e . g ., mass spectroscopy ) useful to identify molecules falling within the scope of the invention . following extraction of a candidate essential oil extract of the invention , it may be desirable to test the efficacy of the extracts for pesticidal activity . any number of tests familiar to a worker skilled in the art may be used to test the pesticidal activity of the extracts , compositions , and formulations of the invention . acaricidal activity of an essential oil extract may be evaluated by using a variety of bioassays known in the art ( ebeling and pence , 1953 ; ascher and cwilich , 1960 ; dittrich , 1962 ; lippold , 1963 ; foot and boyce , 1966 ; anonymous , 1968 ; and busvine , 1958 ). one exemplary method that may be used tests the contact efficacy of the essential oil extract , or formulations thereof , with the adult stage of a mite species . for example , adult mites may be placed on their dorsum with a camel hair brush on a double - sided sticking tape glued to a 9 cm petri dish ( after anonymous , 1968 ). essential oil extracts and / or formulations may then be applied to the test subjects by spraying with the spray nozzle of a potter spray tower mounted on a stand and connected to a pressure gauge set at 3 psi . mites that fail to respond to probing with a fine camel hair brush with movements of the legs , proboscis or abdomen are considered dead . in one embodiment , the contact efficacy of an essential oil extract is determined using the two - spotted spider mite ( tetranychus urticae ), at the adult stage , as a model test subject . a person skilled in the art , however , will readily understand that other species of acari can be used . the ovicidal effect can be determined by treating mite eggs with concentrations of essential oil extracts . for example , adult female t . urticae may be transferred to 2 cm diameter leaf disks cut out of lima bean leaves and left for four hours for oviposition . when at least 20 eggs / disk are laid , adult mites may then be removed . essential oil extracts and / or formulations may then be applied by spraying the test subjects . egg hatch is assessed daily and for 10 days following treatment by counting the number of eggs remaining on the leaf disks and the number of live and dead nymphs present . percent egg hatch is determined with live nymphs only . the nymphs are considered dead if no movement is observed after repeated gentle probing with a single - hair brush . in one embodiment the ovicidal activity of an essential oil extract is determined with mite eggs of the two - spotted spider mite ( tetranychus urticae ), as a model test subject . a person skilled in the art , however , will readily understand that other species of acari can be used . similar bioassays can be conducted to evaluate the insecticidal activity of an essential oil extract by utilizing an insect model . in one embodiment , the greenhouse whitefly ( trialeurodes vaporariorum ( westw .)) is used as a model test subject in an insecticide bioassay . for example , whitefly adults may be glued to a black 5 cm × 7 , 5 cm plastic card sprayed with tangle - trap ® ( gempler &# 39 ; s co .) to obtain at least 20 active adults per card . each card is sprayed with the essential oil extract , composition , or formulation and allowed to dry . the cards are then placed sideways on a styrofoam rack in a closed clear plastic container of 5l with moistened foam on the bottom to keep humidity high (& gt ; 90 % r . h .). the plastic container is stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c . and 16 l : 8d photoperiod . mortality is evaluated 20 hours following treatment by gently probing the whitefly with a single - hair brush under the binocular microscope . absence of movement ( antennae , leg , wing ) following probing is recorded as dead . a person skilled in the art , however , will readily understand that other insect species can be used . similar bioassays can be conducted to evaluate the fungicidal activity of an essential oil extract by utilizing a fungal model . for example , laboratory tests of fungicidal efficacy may be conducted by incorporating test samples of essential oil extracts , or compositions thereof , in an agar overlay in a petri dish or on a filter disk placed on top of untreated agar . the system is then challenged with fungal plugs cut from lawns of indicator organisms at the same stage of growth . the plates are incubated at 30 ° c . for 5 - 10 days with visual observations and the zone of inhibition measured and recorded . a positive control , i . e ., a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water may be tested in the same way . greenhouse tests may also be employed to evaluate fungicidal efficacy . for example , the effect of the essential oil extracts , or compositions thereof , may be tested on host plants infected by a disease organism such as , for example , botrytis cinerea , erysiphe cichoracearum or sphaerotheca fuliginea , rhizoctonia solanli , and phytophthora infestans , by observing the percent damage or presence of lesions on the host plant after treatment and against controls . formulations containing the essential oil extracts of the present invention can be prepared by known techniques to form emulsions , aerosols , sprays , or other liquid preparations , dusts , powders or solid preparations . these types of formulations can be prepared , for example , by combining with pesticide dispersible liquid carriers and / or dispersible solid carriers known in the art and optionally with carrier vehicle assistants , e . g ., conventional pesticide surface - active agents , including . emulsifying agents and / or dispersing agents . the choice of dispersing and emulsifying agents and the amount combined is determined by the nature of the formulation and the ability of the agent to facilitate the dispersion of the essential oil extract of the present invention while not significantly diminishing the acaricidal , insecticidal , and / or fungicidal activity of the essential oil extract . non - limiting examples of conventional carriers include liquid carriers , including aerosol propellants which are gaseous at normal temperatures and pressures , such as freon ; inert dispersible liquid diluent carriers , including inert organic solvents , such as aromatic hydrocarbons ( e . g ., benzene , toluene , xylene , alkyl naphthalenes ), halogenated especially chlorinated , aromatic hydrocarbons ( e . g ., chloro - benzenes ), cycloalkanes ( e . g ., cyclohexane ), paraffins ( e . g ., petroleum or mineral oil fractions ), chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons ( e . g ., methylene chloride , chloroethylenes ), alcohols ( e . g ., methanol , ethanol , propanol , butanol , glycol ), as well as ethers and esters thereof ( e . g ., glycol monomethyl ether ), amines ( e . g ., ethanolamine ), amides ( e . g ., dimethyl sormamide ), sulfoxides ( e . g ., dimethyl sulfoxide ), acetonitrile , ketones ( e . g ., acetone , methyl ethyl ketone , methyl isobutyl ketone , cyclohexanone ), and / or water ; as well as inert dispersible finely divided solid carriers such as ground natural minerals ( e . g ., kaolins , clays , vermiculite , alumina , silica , chalk , i . e ., calcium carbonate , talc , attapulgite , montmorillonite , kieselguhr ), and ground synthetic minerals ( e . g ., highly dispersed silicic acid , silicates ). surface - active agents , i . e ., conventional carrier vehicle assistants , that can be employed with the present invention include , without limitation , emulsifying agents , such as non - ionic and / or anionic emulsifying agents ( e . g ., polyethylene oxide esters of fatty acids , polyethylene oxide ethers of fatty alcohols , alkyl sulfates , alkyl sulfonates , aryl sulfonates , albumin hydrolyzates , and especially alkyl arylpolyglycol ethers , magnesium stearate , sodium oleate ); and / or dispersing agents such lignin , sulfite waste liquors , methyl cellulose . emulsifiers that can be used to solubilize the essential oil extracts of the present invention in water include blends of anionic and non - ionic emulsifiers . examples of commercial anionic emulsifiers that can be used include , but are not limited to : rhodacal ™ ds - 10 , cafax ™ db - 45 , stepanol ™ dea , aerosol ™ ot - 75 , rhodacal ™ a246l , rhodafac ™ re - 610 , and rhodapex ™ co - 436 , rhodacal ™ ca , stepanol ™ wac . examples of commercial non - ionic emulsifiers that can be used include , but are not limited to : igepal ™ co - 887 , macol ™ np - 9 . 5 , igepal ™ co - 430 , rhodasurf ™ on - 870 , alkamuls ™ el - 719 , alkamuls ™ el - 620 , alkamide ™ l9de , span ™ 80 , tween ™ 80 , alkamuls ™ psmo - 5 , atlas ™ g1086 , and tween ™ 20 , igepal ™ ca - 630 , toximul ™ r , toximul ™ s , polystep ™ a7 and polystep ™ b1 . if desired , colourants such as inorganic pigments , for example , iron oxide , titanium oxide , and prussian blue , and organic dyestuffs , such as alizarin dyestuffs , azo dyestuffs or metal phthalocyanine dyestuffs , and trace elements , such as salts of iron , manganeses , boron , copper , cobalt , molybdenum and zinc may be used . spreader and sticking agents , such as carboxymethyl cellulose , natural and synthetic polymers ( e . g ., gum arabic , polyvinyl alcohol , and polyvinyl acetate ), can also be used in the formulations . examples of commercial spreaders and sticking agents which can be used in the formulations include , but are not limited to , schercoat ™ p110 , pemulen ™ tr2 , and carboset ™ 514h , umbrella ™, toximul ™ 858 and latron ™ cs - 7 . time - release formulations are also contemplated by the present invention . for example , formulations which have been encapsulated and / or pelletized . in one embodiment , the formulation can contain a final concentration of 0 . 125 % to 10 % by volume of essential oil extract . in another embodiment , the formulation can contain between 0 . 25 % to 2 % by volume of essential oil extract . in a further embodiment , the formulation can be a concentrate which can be diluted before use , for example , containing 95 % essential oil extract . in yet another embodiment , the formulation can be an emulsifiable concentrate comprising 5 % to 50 % ( by volume ) essential oil extract . the person skilled in the art , however , will understand that these concentrations can be modified in accordance with particular needs so that the formulation is acaricidal , insecticidal , and / or fungicidal , but not phytotoxic . effect of the essential oil extract or formulations on beneficial insects and mites natural enemies of phytophagous pests include both predators and parasitoids . predators are generally as large , or larger than the prey they feed on . they are quite capable of moving around to search out their food , and they usually consume many pest insects during their lifetime . parasitoids , or parasitic insects , are smaller than their prey . one or more parasitoids grow and develop in or on a single host . the host is slowly destroyed as the parasitic larva ( e ) feed and mature . such beneficial insects and mites can help prevent or delay the development of pesticide resistance by reducing the number of pesticides required to control a pest . they will also feed on the resistant pests that survive a pesticide application . integrated pest management ( ipm ) programs take advantage of the biological pest control provided by beneficial insects and mites by conserving or augmenting natural enemies . when chemical controls are necessary in an ipm program , pesticides recommended are those that have minimal impact on naturally occurring beneficials . essential oil extracts of the present invention , and formulations thereof , may be tested for their effect on beneficial insects and mites , i . e ., predators and parasitoids , by means of standardized iobc ( international organization for biologicial control ) testing methods ( hassan , 1998b ) as illustrated in example xii . the essential oil extract of the present invention can be used for controlling pests by applying a pesticidally effective amount of the essential oil extract and / or formulation of the present invention to the locus to be protected . the essential oil extract formulations can be applied in a suitable manner known in the art , for example by spraying , atomizing , vaporizing , scattering , dusting , watering , squirting , sprinkling , pouring , fumigating , and the like . the dosage of the essential oil extract is dependant upon factors such as the type of pest , the carrier used , the method of application and climate conditions for application ( e . g ., indoors , arid , humid , windy , cold , hot , controlled ), and the type of formulation ( e . g ., aerosol , liquid , or solid ). the effective dosage , however , can be readily determined by persons of skill in the art . the essential oil extract of the present invention can be used as part of an integrated pest management program . for example , in conjunction with augmentation of beneficial insects and mites . the invention now being generally described , it will be more readily understood by references to the following examples , which are included for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the invention unless so stated . phytochemical profile of an essential oil extract derived from chenopodium ambrosioides whole plants of c . ambrosioides were harvested . plant material used for extraction purposes comprised the whole plant above root . essential oil extracts were extracted from the plant material by steam distillation , i . e ., distillation in water ( dw ) and / or direct steam distillation ( dsd ). distillation in water was carried out in a 380l distillator with a capacity for processing ca . 20 kg of plant material . during the process of dw , plant material was completely immersed in - an appropriate volume of water which was then brought to a boil by the application of heat with a steam coil located at the base of the still body . in dsd , the plant material was supported within the still body and packed uniformly and loosely to provide for the smooth passage of steam through it . steam was produced by an external generator and allowed to diffuse through the plant material from the bottom of the tank . the rate of entry of the steam was set at ( 300 ml / min ). with both methods , the oil constituents are released from the plant material and with the water vapor are allowed to cool in a condenser to separate into two components , oil and water . the essential oil extracts were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography ( gc ) equipped with a flame ionization detector ( fid ). gc was carried out using a varian 6000 series vista and peak areas were computed by a varian ds 654 integrator . spb - 1 ( 30 m × 0 . 25 mm φ , 0 . 25 μm ) and supelcowax ( 30 m × 0 . 25 mm φ , 0 . 25 μm ) fused silca columns were used . compounds in the sample come off the column at different times in minutes ( rt &# 39 ; s or retention times ) and these are compared to known standards and the compounds can thus be identified . when gc - fid gave ambiguous identification of certain compounds , mass spectrometry ( ms ) was used to compare the mass spectra of the compounds with a database of known spectra . the relative amount of each component of the essential oil extracts was determined for different lots of a variety of c . ambroisiodes . each lot represents pooled extractions taken from a crop within one harvest date . fig1 shows the phytochemical profile of the essential oil extract taken from three different lots . lot no . 00mc - 21p indicates an ascaridole content of 9 . 86 %; lot no . 00mc - 24p has an ascaridole content of 6 . 39 % and 00mc - 29p has an ascaridole content of 3 . 63 %. the activity of the extract is not apparently affected by the variability in relative amount of ascaridole as results from bioassays with these lots suggest . extensive testing was done in order to determine the active ingredients of the essential oil extract . all compounds present in the oil were tested except for trans - ρ - mentha - 2 , 8 - dien - 1 - ol and cis - ρ - mentha - 2 , 8 - dien - 1 - ol because they were unavailable . all compounds tested were obtained commercially ( sigma - aldrich ) except for ascaridole and iso - ascaridole that were isolated from a sample of our extract by laboratoires lasève , chicoutimi qc . to test acaricidal activity , thirty adult female mites were placed on their dorsum with a camel hair brush on a double - sided sticking tape glued to a 9 cm petri dish ( after anonymous , 1968 ). three dishes were prepared for each concentration of each compound tested and the control ( e . g ., water ) for a total of 90 mites per treatment per treatment day . one ( 1 ) ml of each preparation and of microfiltered water as control was added with a gilson pipetman ™ p - 1000 to the reservoir of the spray nozzle of a potter spray tower mounted on a stand and connected to a pressure gauge set at 3 p . s . i . petri dishes were weighed before and immediately after each application to calculate the amount of oil deposited ( mg / cm 2 ) with each sample tested . the entire procedure was followed three times to give a total number of 270 mites tested with each treatment . mite mortality was assessed 24 and 48 h after treatment . mites that failed to respond to probing with a fine camel hair brush with movements of the legs , proboscis or abdomen were considered dead . individual compounds were tested at 0 . 125 , 0 . 50 , 1 . 0 and 2 . 0 % concentrations with the two - spotted spider mite ( tssm : tetranychus urticae ). results are illustrated in fig2 . comparisons were made with mortality data obtained with the 1 % concentration of each compound and it was observed that carvacrol is the most active compound ( 90 % mortality of tssm ) followed by carveol ( 82 % mortality ), nerol ( 82 % mortality ), thymol ( 78 % mortality ), carvone ( 78 % mortality ) and α - terpineol ( 71 % mortality ). other compounds gave less than 40 % mortality . no mortality was recorded for ascaridole at 1 % . although 3 % mortality was obtained with a solution of 0 . 125 % ascaridole , we believe that this is an erroneous or undependable result because too few individuals were tested ( n = 125 ) and the standard deviation is high ( 13 ), compared to the higher number of individuals tested at the higher concentrations of this compound ( n = 300 each at 0 . 5 % and 1 . 0 %) where no mortality was recorded . the results obtained with individual compounds , do not indicate that the compounds present in large quantities in the oil , i . e α - terpinene , ρ - cymene , limonene , ascaridole , iso - ascaridole , have a great impact on the biological activity of the extract . mortality obtained with each of these compounds tested at 1 % concentration was 17 % or less . ascaridole and iso - ascaridole at 1 % concentration had no effect on the spider mite ( 0 % mortality ). carvacrol , carveol , nerol , thymol and carvone on the other hand may have a much greater impact on the activity of the oil (& gt ; 70 % of tssm at a i % concentration ) even though each of these compounds are present in relatively small quantities (& lt ; 1 %) tests were also done using compounds that had demonstrated the higher degree of activity , i . e . carvacrol , nerol and thymol with the greenhouse whitefly ( trialeurodes vaporariorum ) our model bioassay for insecticidal effect . whitefly adults were glued to a black 5 cm × 7 , 5 cm plastic card sprayed with tangle - trap ® ( gempler &# 39 ; s co .) by placing cards directly in the greenhouse colony cage until at least 20 adults have alighted on each card . cards were observed before spraying under the binocular scope to remove all dead and immobile whiteflies . only active whiteflies were kept for the experiment . four cards were used per treatment . each card was sprayed at 6 psi with 300 μl of emulsion using a badger 100 - f ® ( omer deserres co ., montréal , canada ) paintbrush sprayer mounted on a frame at a distance of 14 . 5 cm from the spray nozzle in an exhaust chamber . cards were weighed immediately before and after spraying to calculate the amount of active ingredient deposited in mg / cm 2 . cards were allowed to dry under the exhaust chamber and then placed sideways on a styrofoam rack in a closed clear plastic container of 5l with moistened foam on the bottom to keep humidity high (& gt ; 90 % r . h .). the plastic container was stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c . and 16 l : 8d photoperiod . this procedure was repeated three times . mortality was evaluated 20 hours following treatment by gently probing the whitefly with a single - hair brush under the binocular microscope . absence of movement ( antennae , leg , wing ) following probing was recorded as dead . relative efficacy of the compounds were compared by transforming mortality data to arcsin { square root } p and then subjecting to an anova analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute 1988 ). results with the gwf , shown in fig3 confirm the important biological activity of these three compounds . a ready - to - use ( rtu ) sprayable insecticidal formulation having as the active ingredient an extract of chenopodium was prepared . in one embodiment , this formulation contains between 0 . 125 % and 10 % ( by volume ) of the essential oil extract , an emulsifier , a spreader and sticking agent , and a carrier . ingredient amount (%) amount (%) amount (%) essential oil 1 . 00 1 . 00 1 . 00 extract rodacal ipam 0 . 50 0 . 83 0 . 83 igepal ca - 630 — 0 . 50 — macol np 9 . 5 — — 0 . 50 water 98 . 5 97 . 67 97 . 67 [ 0139 ] ingredient amount (%) amount (%) amount (%) essential oil extract 1 . 00 1 . 00 1 . 00 rhodacal ipam 0 . 83 0 . 83 0 . 83 igepal ca - 630 0 . 50 0 . 50 0 . 50 carboset 514h 2 . 00 — — pemulen tr2 — 0 . 05 — schercoat p110 — — 5 . 00 propylene glycol — 2 . 00 — water 95 . 67 95 . 62 92 . 67 efficacy trials were conducted using the ready - to - use ( rtu ) formulation of the present invention . thirty adult female mites were placed on their dorsum with a camel hair brush on a double - sided adhesive tape glued to a 9 cm petri dish ( after anonymous 1968 ). three dishes were prepared for each concentration of each formulations or products tested and the control , ( e . g . water ), for a total of 90 mites per treatment per treatment day . one ( 1 ) ml of each preparation and of microfiltered water as control was added with a gilson pipetman ™ p - 1000 to the reservoir of the spray nozzle of a potter spray tower mounted on a stand and connected to a pressure gauge set at 3 p . s . i . petri dishes were weighed before and immediately after each application to calculate the amount of oil deposited ( mg / cm 2 ) with each sample tested . the ready - to - use formulation was tested according to the method mentioned above to identify the minimum concentration needed for the desired mortality (& gt ; 95 %) at different concentrations ( 00 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 75 , and 1 %) in order to compare the relative efficacy of this rtu formulation and other acaricidal products ( synthetic and natural ) presently on the market . the entire procedure was followed three times to give a total number of 270 mites tested with each treatment . mite mortality was assessed 24 and 48 h after treatment . mites that failed to respond to probing with a fine camel hair brush with movements of the legs , proboscis or abdomen were considered dead . in order to obtain lc 50 values ( lethal concentration in mg / cm 2 is the amount of product needed to kill 50 % of the test organism ; therefore the lower the lc 50 value the more toxic the product ) results of the 48 h counts were subjected to probit analysis using polo computer program ( leora software , 1987 ). mortalities were entered with corresponding weighed dose ( mg / cm 2 ) to take into consideration variability in the application rate . the results obtained with these bioassays are shown in fig4 . although the toxicity tests presented herein were performed with female mites , it will be clear to a person skilled in the art that those results show that the mortality that would have been observed for male mites would have been the same if not higher knowing that male mites are smaller than females . effect on the egg and nymphal stages of the spider mite ( rtu formulation ) the rtu formulation was also tested on the egg and the nymphal stages of the spider mite . the ovicidal effect was determined with eggs of the twospotted spider mite following treatment with concentrations of the rtu formulation . adult female t . urticae are transferred to 2 cm diameter leaf disks cut out of lima bean leaves and left for four hours for oviposition . when at least 20 eggs / disk are laid , adult mites are then removed . leaf disks are moist and then sprayed and petri dishes are weighed before and after treatment and stored after treatment . egg hatch is assessed daily and for 10 days following treatment by counting the number of eggs remaining on the leaf disks and the number of live and dead nymphs present . percent egg hatch is determined with live nymphs only . the nymphs are considered dead if no movement is observed after repeated gentle probing with a single - hair brush . results of the test on the egg stage ( fig5 ) indicate that the rtu formulation has some effect on the eggs with 30 % mortality using a 0 . 5 % solution of the oil . it is expected that a higher concentration of the oil should show greater efficacy on eggs . similarly to the effect of the rtu formulation on the nymphal stage , even at the 0 . 5 % concentration , the rtu gave higher results ( 95 . 8 %) than the existing commercial preparations of either avid ( 80 . 1 %) or safer soap ( 61 . 7 %) ( fig6 ). residual effect of the rtu formulations of the present invention and comparison thereof with commercially available acaricidal products the residual effect of the rtu formulation was also tested with the spider mite and compared to natural and synthetic products already on the market , ( i . e . kelthane ™, avid ™, safer &# 39 ; s ™ soap and wilson &# 39 ; s dormant oil ). the procedure for this test involved the preparation of vials containing a nutrient solution in which individual faba bean leaves were placed . eighteen leaves were prepared for each concentration tested and each were sprayed with the indicated concentration until run - off lo and allowed to dry . ten spider mites were placed on nine of the leaves one hour after spraying and ten were placed on the other nine leaves one day following treatment . mortality was observed 24 and 48 hr following mite introduction on the leaves . the entire procedure was repeated three times . the results of the residual effect of the different products when the mite is introduced on the plant one hour following treatment are shown in fig7 . these results indicate that there is a residual effect of the rtu and that this effect is greater than in the safer product . however , it is inferior to the residual effect of synthetic products such as kelthane and avid . these results show the rtu formulation &# 39 ; s very low persistence in the environment ( about 23 mortality of spider mites when the pest is introduced on the plant one hour after treatment with the product ). the rtu formulation is therefore compatible with the recommendations of the integrated pest management program which supports control methods that do not harm natural enemy populations and permit rapid re - entry of workers to the tested area and uninterrupted periods of harvest while assuring safety to workers and consumers . to confirm the efficacy of the formulations of the present invention on plant infesting acari in general , certain bioassays were performed on another plant infesting mite , the european red mite , panonychus ulmi , a mite which shows a close taxonomical relationship with t . urticae . the rtu formulation was thus tested on the red mite panonychus ulmi , a pest of apple orchards , following the same protocol described for contact efficacy on adult spider mites in order to confirm its broad effect as an acaricide . the results confirm the effectiveness of the essential oil extract as a contact acaricide ( fig8 ) which is not exclusively active on t . urticae . similar efficacy tests were also performed on several insect species that are serious pests of cultivated plants . the species tested were the greenhouse whitefly , trialeurodes vaporariorum ; the western flower thrips , frankliniella occidentalis ; the green peach aphid , myzus persicae ; and the silverleaf whitfly , bermisia argentifolii following the same protocol described in example xi ( c ) below . results presented in fig9 indicate that the rtu product is toxic to all organisms tested . lc 50 could be calculated for the greenhouse whitefly and the green peach aphid and results ( lc 50 of 0 . 00131 mg / cm 2 and 0 . 0009 mg / cm 2 respectively ) show that the product is as or more effective to these insects as the spider mite . an emulsifiable concentrate formulation with an extract of chenopodium ambrosioides was also prepared . the concentrate contains between 10 to 25 % essential oil extract , emulsifiers , a spreader / sticker , and a carrier . amount amount amount amount amount amount ingredient (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) essential 25 25 25 25 25 25 oil extract rhodopex 5 2 . 5 — — 1 . 25 — co - 436 rhodopex — — — — — — co - 433 igepal co - — 2 . 5 — — 1 . 25 2 . 5 430 igepal ca - — — 5 2 . 5 — — 630 igepal co - — — — 2 . 5 — — 887 isopropanol — — 10 — — — isopar m — — 60 70 — — macol np — — — — — 2 . 5 95 thfa 70 70 — — 72 . 5 70 contact and residual bioassays were conducted in the laboratory to test the efficacy of the essential oil extract of the present invention . uda - 245 , a 25 % emulsifiable concentrate ( ec ) formulation of oil was tested against the adult and eggs of the twospotted spider mite and the european red mite . the twospotted spider mite was reared on lima bean plants ( phaseolus sp .) and the european red mite on apple leaves cv mcintosh ( malus domestica borkhausen ). the methodology used for adults was the same for both species . twospotted spider mite adults were treated with four concentrations of oil of a north american herbaceous plant ( 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 and 1 . 0 % active ingredient ( ai ) uda - 245 ec25 %; urgel delisle et associés , saint - charles - sur - richelieu , qc , canada ), neem oil ( neem rose defense ® ec 90 %; green light , san antonio tex ., usa ) at 0 . 7 % ai , insecticidal soap ( safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® ec 20 % potassium salts of fatty acids with 0 . 2 % pyrethrins ; safer ltd . scaborough , on , canada ) at 1 % ai and a water control . european red mite adults were treated with five concentrations ( 0 . 0312 , 0 . 0625 , 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 and 0 . 5 %) of uda - 245 , abamectin ( avid ® ec1 . 9 %; novartis , greensboro , n . c ., usa ) at 0 . 006 % ai and a water control . twenty - five mature female mites were deposited dorsally on a 1 cm 2 piece of double - coated tape glued on a glass microscope slide . for each treatment period , four slides were prepared for each treatment or acaricide application as defined above . solutions for each treatment were prepared on the treatment day and each slide was sprayed at a pressure of 0 . 42 kg / cm 2 under an exhaust chamber with 250 μl of solution using a badger 100 - f ® paint brush sprayer ( badger air - brush co ., franklin park , ill ., usa ) mounted on a frame at a distance of 15 cm from the slide . the slides were weighed immediately before and after spraying to calculate the amount of active ingredient deposited per surface area ( mg / cm 2 ); this quantity varied less than 15 % between slides . after spraying , the slides were placed on a styrofoam rack in a closed clear plastic container with a wet foam at the bottom to keep moisture high ( 90 % r . h .). the container was stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c . and 16l : 8d photoperiod . this experimental procedure was repeated on three consecutive days in a complete block design where treatment period was considered a block . mortality was assessed under a binocular microscope 48 ( twospotted spider mite ) and 24 hours ( european red mite ) following treatment . because european red mite mortality in the control group at 48 hours was high , it was judged to be inadequate for statistical evaluation . mites were considered dead if movement was imperceptible after repeated gentle probing with a single - hair brush . data were transformed by arcsin { square root } p and subjected to an anova statistical analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute , 1988 ). the lc 50 and lc 90 ( in mg / cm 2 of ai ) of uda - 245 were calculated with probit analysis using polo - pc ® software ( leora software , 1987 ). uda - 245 at 1 % concentration and insecticial soap at 1 % were most effective at controlling the adult twospotted spider mites causing 99 . 2 and 100 % mortality respectively ( fig1 ). at 0 . 5 , 0 . 25 and 0 . 125 % uda - 245 resulted in 94 . 7 , 76 . 8 and 68 % mortality respectively . the least effective treatment was neem oil , which at the recommended dose caused only 22 . 1 % mortality . the lc 50 and lc 90 of uda - 245 for the twospotted spider mite were 0 . 009 mg / cm 2 ( 99 % confidence interval 0 . 0082 - 0 . 0099 mg / cm 2 ) and 0 . 0292 mg / cm 2 ( 99 % confidence interval 0 . 0268 - 0 . 0321 mg / cm 2 ) respectively ( significant at p = 0 . 01 ). in comparison , the lc 50 of insecticial soap had been determined by the manufacturer to be 0 . 016 mg / cm 2 . at 0 . 5 % concentration , uda - 245 was significantly more toxic ( 97 . 1 % mortality ) to p . ulmi adults than abamectin ( 82 . 4 %) ( fig1 ). treatments with uda - 245 at concentrations ranging from 0 . 0625 to 0 . 25 % gave statistically the same control level as abamectin . the lc 50 and lc 90 of uda - 245 for the red spider mite were 0 . 0029 mg / cm 2 ( 99 % confidence interval 0 . 0019 - 0 . 0038 mg / cm 2 ) and 0 . 014 mg / cm 2 ( 99 % confidence interval 0 . 0108 - 0 . 0203 mg / cm 2 ). uda - 245 gave & lt ; 80 % control of the adult stage of the two mites species at low doses . the ovicidal effect of the following products was determined with eggs of the twospotted spider mite and the european red mite : six concentrations of uda - 245 ( 0 . 0625 , 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 , 1 and 2 %), neem oil at 0 . 7 % ai , insecticidal soap at 1 % ai and abamectin at 0 . 006 % and a water control . twenty adult female t . urticae were transferred to 2 cm diameter leaf disks cut out of lima bean leaves and left for four hours for oviposition . female p . ulmi were left for 24 hours to lay their eggs on 2 cm diameter leaf disks of apple leaves . when at least 20 eggs / disk were laid , adult mites were then removed with a soft brush leaf disks were kept on moist soft cotton swabs placed in small ( 4 cm diameter ) plastic petri dishes . three leaf disks were prepared for each treatment or acaricide application . leaf disks were sprayed and petri dishes were weighed before treatment and stored after treatment as for the slides used in the bioassay with adults . this experimental procedure was repeated on three consecutive days in a complete block design where treatment period was considered a block . egg hatch was assessed daily and for 10 days following treatment by counting the number of eggs remaining on the leaf disks and the number of live and dead nymphs present . percent egg hatch was determined with live nymphs only . the nymphs were considered dead if no movement was observed after repeated gentle probing with a single - hair brush . all nymphs ( alive and dead ) were removed daily from the leaf disks . percent egg hatch ( number of nymphs / total number of eggs on leaf disk x 100 ) were transformed with arcsin { square root } ρ and subjected to an anova statistical analysis using sass software ( sas institute , 1988 ). egg hatch for the twospotted spider mite was significantly reduced by abamectin ( 8 . 0 % egg hatch ) and neem oil ( 2 . 1 %) ( fig1 ). egg hatch was reduced to 67 and 40 % with 1 . 0 and 2 . 0 % concentrations of uda - 245 respectively and to 61 . 3 % with insecticial soap . egg hatch for the european red mite was significantly reduced compared to the control treatment with the recommended doses of insecticial soap ( 27 . 2 % egg hatch ), abamectin ( 11 . 0 %) and neem oil ( 14 . 2 %) ( fig1 ). leaf discs measuring 2 cm in diameter of bean leaves were sprayed on both sides with a vega 2000 sprayer ( thayer & amp ; chandler co ., lake bluff , ill ., usa ) at 0 . 42 kg / cm 2 to runoff with 6 . 25 ml of each the following solutions : 2 , 4 , 8 , and 16 % of 99b - 245 , the recommended dose of dicofol ( kelthane ® 35wp , rohm and haas co ., philadelphia , pa ., usa ) at 0 . 037 % ai and a water control . each treatment consisted of eight discs . one hour after treatment , 10 spider mites were transferred to each disc . mortality was evaluated 48 hours following transfer of mites to the leaf discs . the procedure was repeated three times on three subsequent days . uda - 245 at 2 , 4 , 8 and 16 % concentrations caused 23 . 0 , 18 . 3 , 13 . 9 and 32 . 5 % mortality respectively to the adult spider mites when mites were introduced on bean leaves , 1 hr after treatment ( fig1 ). dicofol &# 39 ; s residual activity was significantly higher ( 99 . 5 % mortality ) than any of the uda - 245 concentrations . uda - 245 was as effective as the insecticidal soap and synthetic acaricide abamectin to control adult twospotted spider mite and the european red mite . uda - 245 decreased egg hatch , but not as effectively as abamectin or neem oil . it may be important however to continue these investigations to determine the viability of emerged nymphs treated with the essential oil product because some botanicals , such as neem mixtures have shown growth - inhibiting properties to various pests ( rembald , 1989 ) and pulegone decreased larval growth of southern armyworm , spodoptera eridania ( grunderson et al ., 1985 ). furthermore we demonstrated that when adult mites are introduced one hour after treatment , the mortality rate was statistically comparable to that of the control ( fig1 ). a botanical such as uda - 245 may be an alternative to the more toxic or incompatible products . a contact acaricide with low residual activity can be used for treatments of localized infestations , before scheduled introductions of natural enemy populations or in absence of the natural enemy , i . e . treating at night in absence of diurnal parasitoids or predators . plant essential oils may be phytotoxic ( isman , 1999 ). the oil used for uda - 245 was evaluated on several edible and ornamental plants for its phytotoxic effects and results indicate that at the recommended dose , i . e . 0 . 5 %, there were no observable effects on the leaves and flowers of tested plants ( h . chiasson , unpublished results ). efficacy trials were conducted ( laboratory and small - scale greenhouse trials ) using the emulsifiable concentrate formulation of the present invention ( lot no . uda - 245 at 25 % ec of chenopodium oil ) with the following organisms : the green peach aphid ( myzus persicae ), the western flower thrips ( frankliniella occidentalis ), the greenhouse whitefly ( trialeurodes vaporariorium ) as well as the parasitoïa encarsia formosa . all bioassays were conducted in the laboratory of the horticultural research and development center ( hrdc ) of agriculture and agri - food canada in saint - jean - sur - richelieu , quebec , canada . a . contact bioassays in the laboratory and greenhouse using uda - 245 and commercially available bioinsecticides with the green peach aphid ( myzus persicae ( sulz .)) five concentrations ( 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 , 1 and 2 %) of formulation uda - 245 were compared to commercial preparations of neem rose defense ® at 0 . 5 % ( ec 90 % hydrophobic neem oil ), safer &# 39 ; s trounce at 1 % ( ec 20 % with 0 . 2 -% pyrethrin ) and a water control . each treatment was repeated 12 times and each replicate consisted of a 2 month old shoot ( 10 - 15 cm ) of verbena speciosa ‘ imagination ’ placed in a plastic aqua - pick ® ( tube used by florist to keep stems of cut flowers wet ) filled with 10 ml of water . aqua picks were secured on a block of styrofoam placed on the bottom of a 11 transparent plastic container modified with screened sides and top to permit aeration . green peach aphids ( myzus persicae ( sulz .)) were collected in plastic containers from a rearing cage maintained in a greenhouse colony . ten adults were transferred to each verbena shoot . the shoot was sprayed at 8 psi under an exhaust chamber for about 15 seconds ( long enough to cover the whole shoot ) with a vega 2000 ® paintbrush sprayer equipped with a 20 ml reservoir ( thayer & amp ; chandler co ., lake bluff , ill ., usa ). each shoot and plastic container was then stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c ., 65 % r . h . and 16l : 8n photoperiod . the entire procedure was repeated four times . mortality was evaluated 48 hours following treatment by probing the aphid for movement with a small brush ; absence of movement was recorded as dead . to evaluate the relative efficacy of uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ®, percentage mortality data were transformed to arcsin { square root } p and subjected to anova analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute 1988 ). lc 50 and lc90 were calculated using mortality results by probit analysis using polo - pc ® software ( laora software 1987 ). product concentrations (%) were used because data on quantity of active material deposited were not available . results show that uda - 245 at 2 . 0 % concentration was more effective ( 92 . 3 % mortality ) at controlling the green peach aphid than uda - 245 at 1 % concentration ( 71 . 7 %) and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® ( 55 . 2 %) though not significantly ( fig1 ). this lack of distinction between treatments may be due to the low number ( n ) of aphids tested . treatments with uda - 245 at concentrations of 0 . 5 % and less and with neem rose defense ® resulted in & lt ; 50 % mortality of the aphids and results were not significantly different to those obtained with the water control . the lc 50 and lc 90 of uda - 245 for the green peach aphid was 0 . 63 ( in % concentration ) ( confidence interval 0 . 47 %- 0 . 79 %) and 1 . 84 % ( confidence interval of 1 . 39 %- 2 . 95 %) respectively ( fig1 ). three concentrations ( 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 and 1 %) of formulation uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® at 0 . 5 % ( ec 90 % hydrophobic neem oil ), safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 % ( ec 20 % with 0 . 2 % pyrethrin ) and a water control were tested with the green peach aphid ( myzus persicae ( sulz .)). fifteen plants ( replicates ) of two month old verbena speciosa ‘ imagination ’ ( 10 - 15 cm ) grown in small plastic insertions cells ( used for potting plants ) filled with pro - mix bx ® were used for each treatment . each insertion cell was glued to the bottom of a 11 transparent plastic container with screened sides and top , to permit aeration . green peach aphids were collected in plastic containers from a rearing cage maintained in a hrdc greenhouse and ten adults were transferred to each plant . the whole plant was sprayed for 15 seconds on average , at 8 psi under an exhaust chamber with a vega 2000 ® paintbrush sprayer equipped with a 20 ml reservoir ( thayer & amp ; chandler co ., lake bluff , ill ., usa ). spraying was done three times over the course of the experiment , i . e . on days 0 , 7 and 14 . containers with the sprayed plants were kept in a greenhouse under shade for the duration of the experiment . counts were done on days 7 , 14 ( prior to spraying ) and on day 21 by dismantling five of the fifteen replicates in each treatment . aphids were individually counted when numbers were small (& lt ; 50 ). for larger numbers , plants were shaken over a clear 250 ml container filled with soapy water over a black and white grid to evaluate the number of aphids present . plant leaf surface ( cm 2 ) was measured with an area meter li - 3100 ® ( li - cor inc ., lincoln , nebr ., usa ) and counts were averaged to number of aphids / cm 2 for each treatment and transformed to square root ( x + 0 . 5 ) for anova analysis with sas ® software ( sas institute , 1988 ) to evaluate the efficacy of the different treatments . counts within treatments did not differ significantly ( p = 0 . 3647 ) from one sampling day to the other , so results within treatments were pooled and averaged for the whole experiment . all concentrations of uda - 245 and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® were more effective in controlling the aphids than the water control ( fig1 ). uda - 245 at 0 . 5 % and 1 . 0 % and safer &# 39 ; s trounce were significantly more effective in reducing the number of aphids / cm 2 than neem rose defense ® and uda - 245 at 0 . 25 %. both 0 . 5 % and 1 . 0 % uda - 245 concentrations were more effective ( 0 . 5 aphids / cm 2 and 0 . 0 aphids / cm 2 respectively ) than safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® ( 0 . 9 aphids / cm 2 ) though not significantly . b . contact bioassays in the laboratory and greenhouse with the western flower thrips ( frankliniella occidentalis ( perg .)) using uda - 245formulation and two commercially available bioinsecticides . six concentrations ( 0 . 05 , 0 . 18 , 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 and 1 %) of formulation uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® at 0 . 7 % ( ec 90 % hydrophobic neem oil ), safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 % ( ec 20 % with 0 . 2 % pyrethrin ) and a water control were tested with the western flower thrips ( wft : frankliniella occidentalis ( perg .)). wft were collected in plastic containers by tapping infested lima bean leaves over white paper . ten wft ( either adults or 3 rd or 4 th instar nymphs ) were transferred to a closed 250 ml transparent plastic container . wet dental cotton was inserted through the lid for use as a water source . four replicates were prepared for each treatment . containers were sprayed at 6 psi under an exhaust chamber for 15 seconds with a vega 2000 ® paintbrush sprayer equipped with a 20 ml reservoir ( thayer & amp ; chandler co ., lake bluff , ill ., usa ). containers were weighed just before and after spraying to calculate the amount of active ingredient deposited in mg / cm 2 . containers were then stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c ., 65 % r . h . and 16l : 8d photoperiod . the entire procedure was repeated four times . mortality was evaluated 24 hours following treatment under a binocular scope by probing wft with a small brush . absence of movement was recorded as dead . the efficacy of uda - 245 was compared to neem rose defense ® and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® and data were transformed by arcsin { square root } p and subjected to anova analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute 1988 ). the lc 50 and lc 90 ( in mg / cm 2 of active ingredients ) were calculated mortality results by probit analysis using polo - pc ® software ( laora software 1987 ). formulation uda - 245 at 0 . 5 % and 1 . 0 % were significantly more effective ( 98 . 8 % and 95 . 8 % mortality respectively ) in controlling the wft than all other treatments except for safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® ( 82 . 7 % mortality ) ( fig1 ). uda - 245 at 0 . 25 % caused significantly more mortality ( 63 . 7 %) than the control ( 10 . 8 %) but all remaining treatments did not . the lc 50 and lc 90 of uda - 245 for thrips was determined as 0 . 0034 mg / cm 2 ( confidence interval : 0 . 0027 - 0 . 0039 mg / cm 2 ) and 0 . 0079 mg / cm 2 ( confidence interval : 0 . 0067 - 0 . 0099 mg / cm 2 ) respectively ( fig1 ). two concentrations ( 0 . 25 % and 1 %) of formulation uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® at 0 . 7 % ( ec 90 % hydrophobic neem oil ), safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 % ( ec 20 % with 0 . 2 % pyrethrin ) and a water control were used to evaluate their relative efficacy in controlling the western flower thrips ( wft : frankliniella occidentalis ( perg .)) in a greenhouse setting . ten 10 day - old lima bean plants ( phaseolus sp .) were prepared for each treatment . one leaf and the cotyledons of each plant were removed to keep only one leaf per plant grown in pro - mix bx ® in a plastic insertion cell ( used for potting plants ) glued to the bottom of a clear plastic container ( 1 ) with screened sides and top . wft were collected in small plastic containers by tapping infested bean leaves over white paper and lifted with a small brush . ten adult thrips ( or 3 rd or 4 th instar larvae ) were transferred on each single leaf of each plant / insertion cell which were sprayed to drip point at 6 psi under an exhaust chamber with a vega 2000 ® paintbrush sprayer equipped with a 20 ml reservoir ( thayer & amp ; chandler co ., lake bluff , ill ., usa ). spraying was done on days 0 , 8 and 14 . each replicate / plastic container was then kept in a greenhouse under shade for the duration of the experiment . counts were made on days 8 and 14 ( prior to spraying ) and on days 21 and 28 . all live stages present on the whole plant were counted under a binocular scope and the leaf surface was measured by comparing it to a series of pre - measured hand - made leaf - size patterns . on the last day of the experiment ( day 28 ), the leaf was cut and its surface was measured with an area meter li - 3100 ® ( li - cor inc ., lincoln , nebr ., usa ). counts were calculated as average number of thips / cm 2 per treatment . in order to compare treatments , average counts were then calculated as a percentage of thrips present on the control plants : n  /  cm 2   on   treated   plants n  /  cm 2   on   control   plants × 100 the control treatment therefore had a value of zero and other treatments had positive or negative values indicating that more or less thrips were present respectively in relation to the control treatment . at the end of the experiment on day 28 , leaves treated with uda - 245 at a concentration of 1 . 0 % had 69 . 3 % less wft than leaves treated with the control while leaves treated with safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® had 101 . 1 % more wft ( fig2 ). leaves treated with neem rose defense ® had slightly more thrips ( 19 . 3 %) than the control on day 28 . leaves treated with uda - 245 at 0 . 25 % concentration had 52 . 3 % more thrips than the control on day 28 . c . contact bioassay in the laboratory with the greenhouse whitefly ( trialeurodes vaporariorium ( westw .)) using uda - 245 and commercially available insecticides five concentrations ( 0 . 0625 , 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 and 1 %) of formulation uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® at 0 . 7 % ( ec 90 % hydrophobic neem oil ), safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 . 0 % ( ec 20 % with 0 . 2 % pyrethrin ), thiodan ® at 0 . 044 % ( 50 wp ) and a water control were used to evaluate their relative efficacy in controlling the greenhouse whitefly ( trialeurodes vaporariorium ( westw .)). whitefly adults were collected with an insect aspirator from hrdc greenhouses and glued to a black 5 cm × 7 , 5cm plastic card sprayed with tangle - trap ® ( gempler &# 39 ; s co .) by emptying the aspirator over the card to obtain at least 20 adults per card . cards were observed before spraying under the binocular scope to remove all dead and immobile whiteflies . only active whiteflies were kept for the experiment . four cards were used per treatment . each card was sprayed at 6 psi with 300 μl of emulsion using a badger 100 - f ® ( omer deserres co ., montréal , canada ) paintbrush sprayer mounted on a frame at a distance of 14 . 5 cm from the spray nozzle in an exhaust chamber . cards were weighed immediately before and after spraying to calculate the amount of active ingredient deposited in mg / cm 2 . cards were allowed to dry under the exhaust chamber and then placed sideways on a styrofoam rack in a closed clear plastic container of 5l with moistened foam on the bottom to keep humidity high (& gt ; 90 % r . h .). the plastic container was stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c . and 16 l : 8d photoperiod . this procedure was repeated three times . mortality was evaluated 20 hours following treatment by gently probing the whitefly with a single - hair brush under the binocular microscope . absence of movement ( antennae , leg , wing ) following probing was recorded as dead . relative efficacy of uda - 245 and the two commercially available bioinsecticides , neem rose defense ® and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ®, and the synthetic insecticide thiodan ®, were compared by transforming mortality data to arcsin { square root } p and then subjecting to an anova analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute 1988 ). lc 50 and lc 90 ( in mg / cm 2 of active ingredients ) were calculated by probit analysis using polo - pc ® software ( laora software 1987 ). formulation uda - 245 at concentrations 0 . 5 % and 1 . 0 % were significantly more effective ( 98 . 9 % and 100 . 0 % mortality respectively ) at controlling the greenhouse whitefly than all other treatments except for safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® ( 98 . 0 % mortality ) ( fig2 ). formulation uda - 245 at 0 . 125 % concentration and neem rose defense ® were significantly more effective than the control treatment but significantly less effective than uda - 245 at 0 . 25 , 0 . 5 and 1 . 0 % concentrations and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ®. thiodan and uda - 245 at 0 . 0625 % concentration were as effective as the control treatment . lc 50 and lc 90 were 0 . 0066 mg / cm 2 ( conf . int : 0 . 0054 - 0 . 0076 mg / cm 2 ) and 0 . 014 mg / cm 2 ( conf . int : 0 . 0121 - 0 . 0172mg / cm 2 ) respectively ( fig2 ). d . contact bioassay in the laboratory with the parasitoïd ( encarsia formosa ) using uda - 245 and commercially available bioinsecticides four concentrations ( 0 . 0625 , 0 . 125 , 0 . 25 and 0 . 5 %) of formulation uda - 245 , neem rose defense ® at 0 . 7 % ( ec - 90 %), safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 . 0 % ( ec 20 . 2 %) and a water control were tested with the parasitoïd encarsia formosa ( ef ) ( obtained from koppert co . ltd ). ef were kept in a growth chamber at 24 ° c ., 16l : 8n photoperiod and 65 % r . h . until emergence . sixty newly emerged adult ef were transferred with a mouth aspirator into plastic solo ® cups of 20 ml . cups were sprayed at 6 psi under an exhaust chamber with 250 ml of solution with a badger 100 - f ® paintbrush sprayer ( omer de serre co ., montréal , canada ) mounted on a frame at a fixed distance of 14 . 5 cm . solon cups were weighed just before and after spraying to calculate the amount of active ingredient deposited in mg / cm 2 . once sprayed , the ef were gently transferred with a small brush from the solo ® cups to small clear plastic petri dishes ( 10 ef / petri ) lined with a filter paper wetted with a 5 % sugar solution as a food source . four replicates were prepared for each treatment . the petri dishes were then placed in a tray and stored in a growth chamber at 24 ° c , 65 % r . h . and 16l : 8d photoperiod . the entire procedure was repeated three times . mortality was evaluated 24 hours following treatment under a binocular scope by observing the ef . absence of movement was recorded as dead . the effect of uda - 245 was compared to neem rose defense ® and safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® using mortality data transformed by arcsin { square root } p and subjected to anova analysis using sas ® software ( sas institute 1988 ). all uda - 245 formulations at concentrations ranging from 0 . 0625 to 0 . 5 % were significantly less effective than safer &# 39 ; s trounce ® at 1 % ( 71 . 9 %) ( fig2 ). results from all concentrations of uda - 245 and neem rose defense ® formulations were not significantly different than the control . these results indicate that the recommended dose ( 0 . 5 %) of uda - 245 can be safely used with the biological control agent , encarsia formosa . a . direct toxicity of the essential oil extract on predatory mites amblyseius fallacis and phytoseiulus persimilis the purpose of this study was to evaluate the direct toxicity of the uda - 245 , a botanical biopesticide with two predaceous mites amblyseius fallacis , a natural regulator of mites in integrated control orchards and phytoseiulus persimilis , a known mite predator for the control of the twospotted mite in vegetable crops grown under glasshouses in quebec and elsewhere . the suitability of uda - 245 as a primary tool in ipm of greenhouse crops would therefore be determined . the phytophagous mite , tetranychus urticae has been reared on common bean plants ( phaseolus vulgare ) for several years at the horticultural research and development centre , st . jean - sur - richelieu , quebec . the beans were sown at high densities of 40 to 50 plants per tray ( 39 cm × 30 cm ). colonies of t . urticae were kept in a growth chamber set at 25 ° c ., 75 % hr and 16 l photoperiod . the predaceous mite amblyseius fallacis was maintained on tetranychus urticae and kept in a greenhouse set at 25 ° c ., 75 hr and 16l photoperiod . a fan placed in front of the cage containing both amblyseius fallacis and the twospotted spider mite provided continuous air flow to the colonies . trays containing bean plants infested with the twospotted spider mites were added regularly to provide sufficient food to the predator colonies . colonies of phytoseiulus persimilis were bought from koppert canada and reared in the laboratory in the same conditions as for a . fallacis . the colonies originating from the shipment were maintained and acclimatized in a growth chamber set at 25c , 70 - 85 % rh and 16 : 8 ( light / darkness ) for two weeks . the bioassays were carried out in petri dishes using a leaf disc method . a wet sponge was placed in a plastic petri dish ( 14 cm diameter and 1 . 5 high ) and rings of apple leaf ( cv . mcintosh ; 3 . 5 cm of diameter ) were cut and placed upside down on the surface of a water - saturated sponge . sufficient numbers of all stages of the twospotted spider mite tetranychus urticae koch were then brushed onto each leaf disc . a total of five leaf discs were put in a petri dish and each petri dish represented one replicate . ten replicates per treatment were prepared over a period of three weeks . gravid females of amblyseius fallacies ( 5 ) or phytoseiulus persimilis ( 9 ), were picked up at random under a stereormicroscope from leaves taken from plants used to rear the predator colonies . they were transferred individually with a fine camel brush to a small petri dish ( 5 . 5 cm of diameter ) containing a leaf piece of the common bean , phaseolus vulgare . they were treated topically with 0 . 3 ml of pesticide solution at different dosages using a paintbrush sprayer ( vega 2000 , thayer & amp ; chandler , lake bluff , ill ., usa ) at 6 psi set at 14 . 5 cm above the treated area . the pesticide solutions were prepared on the day of application . treated females were then transferred carefully and individually to each apple leaf disc . to avoid contamination , a new camel brush was used for each concentration to transfer the treated females to leaf discs . petri dishes were put in a black tray and covered with transparent plastic covers and a strip of brown paper was placed on top to reduce glare and to keep the mites within the leaf disc area . water was added to the tray to maintain high relative humidity . the trays were incubated in a growth chamber set at 25 ° c ., 75 % hr and 16 l photoperiod . mortality was recorded 24h and 48h after treatment . one and 2 replicates were set up per day respectively for a . fallacis and p . persimilis and only 11 treatments were evaluated for p . persimilis . uda - 245 is an ec formulation with 25 % essential oil as an active ingredient . seven concentrations of uda - 245 were prepared as follows . the 1 % concentration was prepared by mixing 0 . 4 ml of the formulation and 9 . 6 ml of tap water and successive dilutions were made from the stock solution . the following commercially available insecticides were used at their recommended rates : trounce ® ( 20 . 2 % of fatty acids and 0 . 2 % pyrethrin ) at the recommended concentration of 1 %; the insect growth regulator enstar ® ( s - kinoprene ) at the concentration of 0 . 065 %; and avid ® ( abamectin 1 . 9 % ec ), at the concentrations of 0 . 0057 % and 0 . 000855 %. a water treatment was used as a control for a total of twelve treatments with a . fallacies and 11 with p . persimilis where the enstar treatment was dropped . the test product uda - 245 was sprayed first starting from the lower to the higher concentrations . then the control treatment was applied followed the reference products avid , trounce and enstar . the spray apparatus was rinsed three times between treatments using successively ethanol 95 %, acetone , hexane , distilled water . mortality percentages were transformed to logit or probit to determine which analysis gave a better fit as recommended by robertson and preisler ( 1992 ). the analysis which presents the highest number of small individual chi square ( χ 2 ) is chosen . probit mortality were regressed on 1 + log 10 ( dose ) for uda - 245 . concentration mortality regression lines were determined to estimate the lethal concentration to kill 50 % of the predator population using the polo - pc program ( leora , 1987 ). toxicity values of lc 50 , lc 90 and lc 99 are given as percent (%) of active ingredient . data were transformed to arcsine before analysis of variance . comparison between treatments were analysed using glm procedure and means were separated by the fisher test at 5 % probability ( sas , 1996 ). a total of 667 adult females of amblyseius fallacis was tested and only 12 females ( 1 . 79 %) walked out of the leaf disc area ; number of missing was subtracted from initial total . mortality in the control was 5 . 56 % at 24 h and remained unchanged at 48 h following treatment ( fig2 ). there was a highly significant difference between treatments at 24 h ( f = 30 . 32 , df = 11 , p & lt ; 0 . 001 ) and at 48 h ( f = 31 . 64 , df = 11 , p & lt ; 0 . 001 ). there was no mortality after 48 h was with uda - 245 at the concentration of 0 . 125 % and 3 , 1 % 7 % and 23 % mortality with uda - 245 at 0 . 25 %, enstar and uda - 245 at 0 . 5 % and these results were not significantly different from the control . note that at the concentration of 0 . 5 % the uda - 245 suggested commercial rate , mortality was 23 . 11 % which is less than the 50 % limit of the iobc for harmless pesticides . amongst the commercially available products , trounce caused the highest mortality ( 85 . 11 %) after 48 h . this was followed by the avid treatments at concentrations of 0 . 0057 % ( 94 . 8 % mortality ) and 0 . 000855 % ( 81 . 5 % mortality ) and results did not differ significantly , demonstrating that both products are equally toxic to amblyseius fallacis . lc 50 , lc 90 and lc 99 values at 48 h ( fig2 ) are well above ( 1 . 01 %, 3 . 91 % and 4 . 12 % respectively ) the 0 . 5 % effective dose used to control the spider mite pest , tetranychus urticae )( chiasson , unpublished results ). these results indicate that uda - 245 might have low or no residual toxicity to amblyseius fallacis and most adult females that remained alive 24 hours after the uda - 245 treatments continued to reproduce and were observed laying eggs . a cohort of 555 adult females was used to evaluate the toxicity of uda - 245 and the commercially available trounce and avid with the mite predator , phytoseiulus persimilis . in this bioassay , 7 . 35 % and 13 . 17 % of the total number of gravid females escaped from the leaf disc 24 h and 48 h respectively after treatments . they contributed to 13 . 06 % and 18 . 35 % of the total mortality recorded at 24 h and 48 h respectively . the highest number of predator escapees were observed in the control treatment and in the uda - 245 treatments at concentrations lower than 2 %. we will discuss only mortality calculated over total number treated minus missing individuals ( 3 rd column of fig2 ). highest mortality were caused by trounce ( 99 , 71 %) followed by avid at the concentration of 0 . 0057 % ( 93 . 69 %). the lowest mortality was observed in the treatment with uda - 245 at the 0 . 125 % concentration ( 13 . 43 %). mortality with uda - 245 at 0 . 125 %, 0 . 25 and 0 . 5 % were not significantly different from the control treatment . when missing females were deducted from the initial number of adults tested , the lc 50 of p . persimilis was 1 . 2 % and 0 . 8 % at 24 h and 48 h after treatments respectively ( fig2 ). b . direct toxicity of the essential oil extract on aphid endoparasitoids aphidius colemani ( hymenoptera : brachonidae , aphidiinae ) in the present study , adult aphidius colemani wasps were exposed to a direct spray application of uda - 245 and remained in permanent contact with the biopesticide residues , which is considered worse case conditions , to test the potential side effects this biopesticide may have on beneficial hymenoptera such as aphidius colemani [ 0238 ] aphidius colemani wasps were purchased from plant product quebec in lots of 250 mixed mummies and adults . the emerged wasps and the remaining mummies were directly transferred to a 5 litre plastic bag filled with air and the wasps were provided with a 10 % solution of sucrose and honey ( w / w ) as food source and water . six to 14 adult parasitoids less than 48 h old were transferred into a large solo cup ( 500 ml ca .) using a mouth aspirator . the solo cup was lined with a filter paper ( rothmans # 1 ) and had two large openings drilled on the side and one on the cover to provide ventilation and these openings were covered with a fine screen to prevent escape of adult wasps and condensation of the pesticide vapour . the filter paper was humidified with a 10 % solution of sucrose and honey . the solo cup containing the wasps was weighed and the wasps were dragged down to the bottom of the solo cup by means of successive beats on the cover with a 15 cm long stick . they were treated with 0 . 3 ml of the insecticide solution using a paintbrush sprayer ( vega 2000 , thayer & amp ; chandler , lake bluff , ill ., usa ) at 6 psi and set at 14 . 5 cm above the treated area . the solo cup was then covered and re - weighed to determine weight of pesticide used . the treated wasps were then incubated in a growth chamber set at 18 ° c .- 22 ° c . and 60 - 65 % hr . assessment of treatment effects were made at 24 h and 48 h following treatment . ten to 20 adult wasps including at least 5 females were picked up and put in a glass petri dish and covered . the cover had an opening covered with a screen to enable ventilation and to prevent condensation of the pesticide vapour . the petri dishes were previously treated with a pesticide solution exactly in the same manner as for direct toxicity bioassay but dishes were left to dry for an hour before covering and exposing the wasps to the pesticide residues . on the cover , two small circular holes were drilled and used to provide the wasps with water and a solution of honey and sucrose . mortality was recorded at 24 h and 48 h . the test product isuda - 245 , an 25 % essential oil ec formulation obtained from codena inc . seven concentrations were prepared as follows : uda - 245 at 8 % was prepared by mixing 3 . 2 ml of uda - 245 and 6 . 4 ml of tap water and successive dilutions of 4 %, 2 %, 1 %, 0 . 5 % and 0 . 125 % were made from the stock solution . commercially available insecticides were used at their respective recommended doses as positive controls : trounce ® ( 20 . 2 % of fatty acids , safer ltd , scarborough , ont .) at the recommended concentration of 1 %, the insect growth regulator enstar ® ( s - kinoprene ) at the concentration of 0 . 065 %; avid ® ( abamectin 1 . 9 % ec ) at the concentrations of 0 . 0057 % and 0 . 000855 %, and thiodan ® ( endosulfan 50 wp ) at the concentration of 5 %. the test product uda - 245 was used first , starting from the lowest to the highest concentration and followed by the water control and finally by avid , trounce , enstar and thiodan . the spray apparatus was rinsed three times between treatments using successively ethanol 95 %, acetone , hexane , distilled water . concentration was analysed as main effect and the weight of pesticide applied was tested as a covariate to correct for difference in quantity of applied pesticide . this covariate was deleted from the model when found not significant . mortality regression lines were determined to estimate the lethal concentration to kill 10 %, 50 % and 90 % of the parasitoid population using the polo - pc program ( leora , 1987 ). toxicity values of lc 50 are given as percent of active ingredient . data were transformed to arcsine before analysis of variance but actual means were presented . comparison between treatments were analysed using glm procedure and means were separated by fisher test at 5 % probability ( sas , 1996 ). [ 0249 ] myzus persicae mummies parasitized by aphidius colemani females on leaves of cabbage ( cv . lennox ) were used in this test . portions of leaves bearing mummies were cut and placed in a petri dish . the petri dish was weighted and treated with a pesticide solution and immediately re - weighted to determine the amount of pesticide used . the treated petri dish was then covered and sealed with parafilm . the cover of the petri had a screened opening to enable ventilation and to prevent escape of emerging aphidius adults . the incubation period lasted 7 days and all mummies that did not emergence as adult wasps were considered dead . females that survived the pesticide residual treatments were assessed for fecundity on wheat plants infested with aphids . myzus persicae aphids reared on cabbage plants ( c . v . lennox ) were brushed onto a pot containing 25 to 30 plants of wheat 6 days old . soon after , the brushed aphids climbed the wheat plants and a density of at least 100 aphids per pot was required . female wasps that survived the 48 h residual treatments were removed individually from the test arena by means of an aspirator and confined over pots of aphid - infested plants using ventilated transparent plastic cylinders for a period of 24 h . the females were then removed and the plant bearing parasitized aphids were incubated for a period of 10 days at 18 ° c . to 22 ° c . at the end of the incubation period , the wheat plant was cut and put in a petri dish . the number of parasitized aphids were counted . a total of 1174 adult wasps including 657 or 55 . 9 % female parasitoids were tested in the bioassay . the mean quantity of pesticide solutions applied was 4 . 58 ± 1 . 36 mg / cm 2 which was more than double the amount of 2 . 0 ± 0 . 2mg / cm 2 recommended for the typical bioassay ( mead - briggs et al ., 2000 ). mortality with uda - 245 at concentrations up to 1 % was not significantly different than for the water control after 24 h . though at 48 h , results with uda - 245 treatments at the 0 . 5 % and 1 % concentrations significantly different from the control ( fig2 ). at the 0 . 5 % concentration of uda - 245 , recommended for field application , mortality varied from 18 . 6 % to 35 . 2 % at 24 h and 48h after treatments respectively . highest mortality was observed with the avid treatments at concentrations of 0 . 0057 % and 0 . 000855 % and with the uda - 245 treatment at concentrations of 4 % and 8 %. results in fig2 show that female wasps were relatively less sensitive to treatments than adult males . lc 50 values for uda - 245 on a . colemani females ( fig2 ) was equal to 1 . 28 % which is more than twice the recommended concentration of 0 . 5 % for field application . the lc 50 for a . colemani males was lower at 0 . 77 % but still above the 0 . 5 % field recommended concentration of uda - 245 . however , the 95 % confidence limits ( cl 95 %) of ld50 % for both males and females were overlapping and therefore their ld50 % were not differently significant ( robertson and presisler , 1992 ). effect of treatments on aphidius colemani emergence from treated mummies [ 0260 ] fig3 showed that the effects of treatments on emergence of aphidius colemani adults from treated mummies were significant ( f = 6 . 94 , dl = 16 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). the emergence rate of a . colemani decreased steadily when uda - 245 concentration increased and there was no emergence at the concentration of 8 %. at the recommended concentration for field application , i . e . 0 . 5 %, emergence was 86 . 4 % and this result was not statistically different from that observed in the control . in the reference products tested , the highest emergence was observed in the avid treatment with 96 . 1 % and the lowest was enstar at 35 % emergence . the results of fig3 indicated that females that survived the treatment were able to parasitize myzus persicae hosts and that their reproductive functions did not seem to be affected . there was no enough surviving female to test for the uda - 245 concentration of 4 % and 8 %. the lowest fecundity rate was observed in the treatment of avid with 9 . 1 mummies per plants compared to 23 . 9 mummies per plant recorded in the control treatment . the number of mummies produced from females treated with uda - 245 treatments at concentrations varying from 0 . 125 to 2 % were not significantly different from the control . c . direct toxicity of the essential oil extract on predatory minute bug orius insidiosus say various orius species including orius insidiosus say ( heteroptera : anthocoridae ) are effective biological control agents of western flower thrips ( wft ) frankliniella occidentallis pergrande ( thysanoptera : thripidae ) in sweet pepper , cucumber and other vegetable and ornamental crops ( veire de van et al ., 1996 ). the present study was initiated to evaluate the side effects of uda - 245 on the predatory bug orius insidiosus under laboratory conditions . [ 0267 ] orius insidiosus stock culture was initiated with individuals obtained from a commercial supplier ( plant prod quebec , 3370 le corbusier , laval , quebec ) and maintained in a laboratory growth chamber . eggs of ephestia spp were served as a food source and snaps beans of phaseolus vulgaris as an oviposition substrate . the beans containing eggs were then incubated in folded brown paper until emergence . the folded paper was used to reduce cannibalism . emerging nymphs were then transferred into one litre jars containing bean pods and fed with ephestia eggs until the adult stage . the stock culture was renewed regularly . the bioassays were carried out in small petri dishes ( 5 . 5 cm in dia .) using a leaf disc method . a thin layer of agar 2 % ( 2 - 3 mm ) was poured into each petri dish and a ring of apple leaf ( cv . mcintosh , 3 . 5 cm in dia .) was cut and placed upside down on the surface of the agar . at least 10 orius insidiosus 2 nd nymph instar or adults were transferred carefully using an aspirator on the surface of the apple leaf disc . the petri dish containing the nymphs or the adults bugs were dragged down to the bottom of the petri dish by means of successive beats on the cover with a 15 cm long stick . the petri dishes were weighted and immediately , they were treated immediately with 0 . 3 ml of pesticide solution at different concentrations using a paintbrush sprayer ( vega 2000 , thayer & amp ; chandler , lake bluff , ill ., usa ) at 6 psi and set at 14 . 5 cm above the treated area . the petri dishes were then re - weighted to determine the quantity of pesticide applied . the pesticide solutions were prepared on the day of treatment . the treated nymphs or adults were then transferred carefully to the surface of the apple leaf disc containing eggs of ephestia spp - as a source of food . to avoid contamination , a new camel brush is used for each concentration to transfer the treated nymphs or adults to the leaf discs . the petri dishes were put in a tray and incubated in a growth chamber set at 25 ° c ., 65 % hr and 16 l photoperiod . a fan was placed in front of the tray to provide continuous air flow . mortality of nymphs was recorded at 1 , 2 , 5 , 7 and 9 days after treatment when more than 80 % of the nymphs became adults . mortality of adult predators was recorded at 24h and 48h following treatment . ten replicates were prepared per treatment and 12 treatments were evaluated on second instar nymphs and adults . the test product is a uda - 245 , a 25 % ec essential oil formulation obtained from codena inc . seven concentrations were prepared as follow : uda - 245 at 8 % was prepared by mixing 3 . 2 ml of uda - 245 and 6 . 4 ml of tap water and successive dilutions of 4 %, 2 %, 1 %, 0 . 5 % and 0 . 125 % were made from the stock solution . uda 245 was compared to the recommended doses of the following commercially available insecticides : trounce ® ( 20 . 2 % potassium salts of fatty acids and 0 . 2 % pyrethrins ) at the recommended concentration of 1 % ; the insect growth regulator enstar ® ( s - kinoprene ), at the recommended concentration of 0 . 065 % and avid ® ( abamectin 1 . 9 % ec ) at the concentration of 0 . 000855 %, thiodan ® ( endosulfan 50 wp ) at the concentration of 5 % and cygon ® ( dimethoate ) at the concentration of 4 %. water was used as a negative control . the test product uda - 245 was sprayed first , starting from the lowest to the highest concentration followed by the water control treatment and finally by the reference products avid , cygon , enstar , thiodan and trounce . the sprayer was rinsed three times between treatments using successively ethanol 95 %, acetone , hexane and distilled water . the potential sublethal effects of uda - 245 on orius insidiosus female fecundity was monitored . fecundity assessment was carried out on females that survived 48 h after the direct contact pesticide treatments . surviving females were separated from males and put individually in a petri dish filled with a 2 mm layer of agar used as a support and an apple ring ( 5 . 5 cm ) placed upside down on the agar surface along with a 3 cm long pod of faba bean ( phaseolus vulgare ). the apple leaf disc and the bean pod were used as oviposition substrates . the petri dish was covered with the correspondent cover and sealed with parafilm . the petri cover had an opening covered with fine muslin tissue for ventilation and air exchange . females were left undisturbed for 48h for oviposion and then were fed with sufficient numbers of ephestia spp eggs . after the 48 h period , females were then transferred to another petri dish for a second 48h oviposition test . during both periods , the eggs laid were counted and left to hatch for 5 days . the eggs that do not hatch after 5 days were considered dead and not viable . lc 50 values of uda - 245 were determined using probit analysis with polo software ( leora , 1987 ). concentrations were analysed as main effects and the weight of pesticide applied was tested as a covariance to correct for difference in quantity of the applied pesticide . this covariance was deleted from the model when found not significant . mortalities were analysed using general linear model ( glm ) procedure within sas ( sas , 1996 ) and the number of individuals initially introduced were tested as a covariant . means were adjusted for covariance when appropriate and separated using the fisher test for means comparison . however , actual means were presented in the results section . results show ( fig3 ) that nine days following treatment application , with onus nymphs , the most toxic treatments were in decreasing order , trounce ( 99 , 5 % mortality ), cygon ( 98 % mortality ), uda - 245 at 8 % concentration ( 87 . 6 % mortality ), avid ( 82 . 5 % mortality ) and uda 245 at 4 % concentration ( 79 . 6 % mortality ). all results were significantly different from that of the control treatment ( 3 . 6 % mortality ). less than 50 % mortality was obtained with the other treatments though only thiodan ( 45 . 7 %) and uda - 245 ( 35 . 1 %) results were significantly different from the control .. results with uda - 245 at the recommended concentration for field application of 0 . 5 % were not significantly different from results obtained with the control . results show ( fig3 ) that the effects of the 12 treatments expressed as percent mortality of adults was significantly different at 24h after treatment ( f = 55 . 9 , df = 11 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ) and at 48h after treatment ( f = 63 . 2 , df = 11 , p & lt ; 0 . 0001 ). the least toxic treatments of uda - 245 at concentration of 0 . 125 % and 0 . 25 % were not statistically different from the control treatment . the treatment of uda - 245 at the recommended field concentration of 0 . 5 % was the least toxic of the remaining treatments causing a mortality of 28 %. the most toxic group included cygon ( 100 % mortality ), trounce ( 98 . 9 % mortality ), uda - 245 at concentrations of 4 and 8 % ( 94 % and 94 % respectively ) and avid ( 87 . 8 %). the results from the fedundity assessment assay ( fig3 ) showed that almost all females tested had laid eggs . there were few surviving females to test for fecundity following treatments with avid , cygon , trounce and uda - 245 at concentrations of 2 , 4 and 8 %. the mean number of eggs laid per female per day in the control treatment was 7 . 6 which was almost 4 times the minimum number of 2 eggs per female per day set by the iobc standards for fecundity for orius leavigatus , a closely related species of o . insidiosus . the lowest rate was 2 . 8 eggs per female per day obtained in the treatment with thiodan followed by uda at 0 . 5 % concentration with 3 . 6 eggs per female per day and both were significantly different from the rate obtained with the water control ( 7 . 6 eggs per female per day ). the date rate of eggs laid in the uda - 245 treatments at concentrations of 0 . 25 % ( 5 eggs ) and 0 . 5 % ( 5 . 4 eggs ) were not significantly different from the number of eggs laid in the control . the eclosion rate varied from 28 . 5 % in the thiodan treatment to 53 % in the control . there was 33 . 9 % egg eclosion in the uda - 245 at 0 . 5 % concentration treatment . lc 50 values for orius nymphs were 2 . 65 %, 9 days following treatment with uda - 245 ( fig3 ) and for adults were 1 . 14 %, 2 days following treatment with uda - 245 ( fig3 ). whole plants of a . absinthium and of t . vulgare were harvested in full bloom in the fall of 1993 from a cultivated plot at the agriculture and agri - food canada experimental farm at l &# 39 ; acadie , quebec , canada . a microwave assisted process ( map ™) and two variants of steam distillation i . e . distillation in water ( dw ) and direct steam distillation ( dsd ) ( duerbeck , k ., 1993 ), were used to extract the fresh plant material . extraction using the map process involved using whole plant parts that were shredded ( 20g ) and immersed in 100 ml of hexane and irradiated at 2450 mhz for 90 seconds at an instensity of 675 w . distillation in water ( dw ) and dsd were carried out as previously described . briefly , a 380l distillator with a capacity for processing ca . 20 kg of plant material was used . during the process of dw , plant material was completely immersed in an appropriate volume of water which was then brought to a boil by the application of heat with a steam coil located at the based of the still body . in dsd , the plant material was supported within the still body and packed uniformly and loosely to provide for the smooth passage of steam through it . steam was produced by an external generator and allowed to diffuse through the plant material from the bottom of the tank . the rate of entry of the steam was set at ( 300 ml / min ). with both methods , the oil constitutents are released from the plant material and with the water vapor are allowed to cool in a condenser to separate into two components , oil and water . thirty adult female mites were placed on their dorsum with a camel hair brush on a double - sided adhesive tape glued to a 9 cm petri dish ( anonymous , 1968 ). three dishes wer prepared for each concentration of the oil extracted by the three methods and the control , i . e ., water , for a total of 90 mites per extraction method per treatment day . for each application ( one per petri dish ), 1 mlof each preparation and of microfiltered water for the control was added with a gilson pipetman ® p - 1000 to the reservoir of the spray nozzle of a potter spray tower mounted on a stand and connected to a pressure guage set at 3 psi . petri dishes were weighed before and immediately after each application and , on average , 205 mg (± 42 ; n = 50 ) of solution was deposited on each dish , representing 2 . 1 ( 1 %), 4 . 1 ( 2 %), 8 . 2 ( 4 %) and 16 . 4 mg / cm 2 ( 8 %) of oil deposited with each concentration . the entire procedure was followed twice ( 1 and 2 % of a . absinthium map and 4 % of t . vulgare map solutions ) and three times ( the remaining map and all dw and dsd solutions of both plant species ). the third tests using map extracts were not done because of insufficient quantities of the oil . mite mortality was assessed 24 and 48 h after treatment . as previously , mites that failed to respond to probing with a fine camel hair brush with movements of the legs , proboscis or abdomen were considered dead . results of the 48 h counts were subjected to probit analysis using the polo computer program ( leora software , 1987 ). mortalities were entered with corresponding weighed doses ( mg / cm 2 ) to take into consideration variability in application rate . the significance of differences in lc 50 values was determined by comparing the 95 % confidence intervals computed by polo ( leora software , 1987 ). chromatographic analysis of the oils extracted from a . absinthium indicated differences in chemical composition between extraction methods ( fig3 ). both sabinene and α - thujone were absent in the dsd oil and present in the map and dw oils and a compound identified as a c 15 h 24 was present in dsd but absent in map and dw . in t . vulgare extracts , β - thujone was the major component of all three extraction techniques ( map : 92 . 2 %; dw 87 . 6 %; dsd : 91 . 9 %) ( fig4 ). terpin - 4 - ol and α - cubebene were present in the dw extract and absent in map and dsd . after 48 h , all three extracts ( map , dw , and dsd ) of a . absinthium were lethal to t . urticae ( fig4 ). however , there was variability in the degree of toxicity of the extracts to the two - spotted spider mite . thus , at 4 % concentration , oil extracted by the map and the dw methods caused 52 . 7 and 51 . 1 % mortality respectively , whereas oil extracted by dsd resulted in 83 . 2 % mortality . lc 50 values obtained for oil extracted by map ( 0 . 134 mg / cm 2 ) and with the dw ( 0 . 130 mg / cm 2 ) whereas the lc 50 of the oil extracted by dsd was significantly lower ( 0 . 043 mg / cm 2 ) ( fig4 ). the t . vulgare extracts were also lethal to the two - spotted spider mite ( fig4 ), though extracts obtained by dw and dsd had greater acaricidal effect than the extract obtained by the map process . at 4 % concentration , the oil extracted by the dw and dsd methods caused 60 . 4 and 75 . 6 % mortality respectively , while oil extracted by map gave 16 . 7 % mortality . probit analysis of mortality data obtained from bioassays with the dw and dsd methods could be compared ; however analysis of the map mortality data gave unreliable results because of the high variation in % mortality values between replicates treated at the same concentration ( fig4 ). it is likely that this variation is due to the physical properties of the map extract . during this process , organic compounds such as waxes and resins were released from plant cells along with the essential oils . these products may not have been adequately mixed by the alkamuls - el620 emulsifier resulting in a heterogenous solution . while some variation has been observed in the bioassays with a . absinthium and t vulgare extracts , the present invention has nevertheless shown that a . absinthium oil extracted by dsd is more effective at controlling the spidermite than the a . absinthium oils extracted by the other methods . the sesquiterpene c 14 h 24 compound , present at 4 . 2 % in dsd and absent in the other two extracts ( fig3 ), may be responsible for the higher degree in biological activity . however , identification of the unknown c 15 h 24 compound in a . absinthium , and bioassays with individual compounds using the same three extraction methods , will be necessary for the determination of the active ingredients found in a . absinthium oil . the similarity in biological response between the oil of tansy extracted by dw and dsd , implies that terpin - 4 - ol and α - cubebene ( present in dw nad not in dsd ) contribute very little to the acaricidal activity of the oil extracted by dw . because of the considerably high % of β - thujone in all three extracts , this component is likely to be the main active ingredient ( a . i .) with negligable activity attributable to the other chemical constituents . this would explain the similar results obtained from dw extracts at 4 % concentration ( 60 . 4 % mortality and 87 . 6 % β - thujone ) and dsd extracts ( 75 . 5 % mortality and 91 . 88 % β - thujone ) but does not account for the low mortality with the map extract ( 16 . 7 % mortality and 92 . 2 β - thujone ). the map extract may not have been adequately emulsified in the solution due to the presence of waxes and resins . identification of the active ingredient ( s ) in an extract is essential for registration when developing a botanical pesticide . variabilty in response from a series of essential oil extracts must be minimized in order to obtain consistency in toxicity of a product . in addition , other variables such as phenological age of the plant , % humidity of the harvested material and plant parts selected for the extraction must be considered for the extraction of oils with the highest biological activity ( as seen above ). dsd is the most widely accepted method for the production of essential oils on a commercial scale and should be considered for large - scale production of a biologically active oil because , besides producing oil of greater toxicity in the case of a . absinthium , it is less expensive and yields are comparable to that of the other extraction methods ( chiasson and belanger , unpublished results ). the amount of energy required to generate steam in dsd is considerably lower than that required to boil water for the dw process . map is still experimental , and cannot yet be considered for large scale production . fungicidal efficacy of the essential oil extract and compositions thereof fungicidal efficacy is tested in the laboratory or in greenhouse trials . the fungicidal efficacy of an essential oil can be done in the laboratory using several methods . one method incorporates the test samples in an agar overlay in a petri dish . a second method would use a filter disk saturated with the test samples and placed on top of untreated agar . both systems are challenged with fungal plugs cut from lawns of indicator organisms at the same stage of growth . the plates will be incubated at 30 ° c . for 5 - 10 days with visual observations and the zone of inhibition measured and recorded . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are tested in the same way . the following are tests done on five disease organisms ( botrytis cinerea , erysiphe cichoracearum or sphaerotheca fuliginea , rhizoctonia solani , phytophthora infestans ) in the greenhouse . [ 0303 ] botrytis cinerea . tomato plants are seeded and grown following current commercial practices for greenhouse tomato production . about 2 months following seeding , lesions are made on the leaves and the stem ( 5 lesions / plant ) and inoculated with a suspension of 3 × 10 6 spores of b . cinerea , 2 ml per lesion . treatments are then applied to the plants . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are also tested and all treatments are done in a randomized block design . the length of lesions are measured every two weeks over a period of 3 months , then the number of fruit , the total weight of fruit and the average weight of fruit are calculated during the entire production period of the plant . the experiment is repeated and the effect of treatments is subjected to an analysis of variance ( anova ) and means are compared with a lsd test . erysiphe cichoracearum or sphaerotheca fuliginea . these disease organisms are obligatory parasites that do not have the capacity to survive in absence of its host . therefore to provide the inoculum for the test , cucumber leaves are taken from an infested greenhouse . the conidia present on these leaves will transfer onto cucumber plants grown for the experiment one or two months previously . new plants are periodically infested in this manner in order to increase the inoculum . treatments are then applied to the plants before or after inoculation depending on the type of fungicide used . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are also tested and all treatments are done in a randomized block design . the effect of the disease is evaluated on individual leaves of all plants using a index of infestation from 0 to 5 ( 0 = absence of blemish and 5 = 80 - 100 % of the leaf surface with blemishes ). the degree of the infestation is evaluated 3 , 7 , and 14 days following inoculation and reported in averages per plant . the experiment is repeated and the effect of treatments is subjected to an analysis of variance ( anova ) and means are compared with a lsd test . [ 0307 ] rhizoctonia solani . an isolate of rhizoctonia solani is produced on a culture media ( pda ) 3 days before inoculation and a plug of the disease is then transferred to erlenmeyer flasks filled with a ymg broth for 5 days . the mycelium is filtered , suspended in distilled water and blended . seeds of tomato are used and sterilized on the surface using successive ethanol 70 %, bleach and distilled water solutions . a suitable sterile potting soil mix is used in which 60 mg blended mycelium is inoculated per 100 g of potting soil . tests are done in bedding boxes of 72 cells / box and 3 boxes are used per treatment . the boxes are spread out in a randomized arrangement in a controlled atmosphere growth chamber the following conditions : 20 ° c . during the day and 16 ° c . at night , 16 hours of light , 162 umol of light intensity and 60 % humidity . the boxes are incubated in the growing chambers during 3 weeks . treatments are then applied to the young plants before or after inoculation depending on the type of fungicide used . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are also tested and all treatments are done in a randomized block design . plants are examined each week and the incidence of the disease is measured as well as the degree of infestation on a scale of 0 to 5 ( 0 = absence of infestation and 5 = 80 - 100 % of the leaf surface attacked ). the experiment is repeated and the effect of treatments is subjected to an analysis of variance ( anova ) and means are compared with a lsd test . [ 0310 ] phytophthora infestans . on tomato plants . tomato plants are seeded and grown following current commercial practices for greenhouse tomato production . about 2 months following seeding , leaves and stems are inoculated with a suspension of 1 × 10 4 spores of p . infestans until the plant surfaces are completely covered . treatments are then applied . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are also tested and all treatments are done in a randomized block design . percent damage or presence of lesions is evaluated every 3 - 4 days for a period of 2 weeks on leaves that had been identified previously ( 15 - 30 leaves per plant ). the experiment is repeated and the effect of treatments is subjected to an analysis of variance ( anova ) and means are compared with a lsd test . on potato plants . potato tubers are sown and grown in pots of 6 - 8 inches . about 1 , 5 months after seeding , the leaves and stems of the plants are inoculated with a suspension of 1 × 10 4 spores of p . infestans until the plant surfaces are completely covered . treatments are then applied . a positive control , i . e . a commercially available fungicide and a negative control , i . e . water are also tested and all treatments are done in a randomized block design . percent damage or presence of lesions is evaluated every 3 - 4 days for a period of 2 weeks on leaves that had been identified previously ( 15 - 30 leaves per plant ). the experiment is repeated and the effect of treatments is subjected to an analysis of variance ( anova ) and means are compared with a lsd test .

US-19513102-A

disclosed is an bioelectrical impedance measuring apparatus which is simplified in structure and which is easy to use . a measuring apparatus comprising a personal data input unit which is used in inputting personal data and a plurality of electrodes which are used in measuring bioelectrical impedance is improved according to the present invention in that it comprises : a memory in which the personal data are stored via said personal data input unit ; and a control device which carries out a required control by using at least one selected electrode to store the personal data in said memory or to retrieve the personal data from said memory .

now , a body fat meter according to a first embodiment of the present invention is described by referring to fig1 which shows its front view . the body fat meter 1 is equipped with a weight scale 1 a for measuring one &# 39 ; s weight . a display 2 , electrodes a , b , c and d , and a personal data - inputting or setting button 3 are arranged on the upper surface of the body fat meter 1 . a scroll - up button 4 and a scroll - down button 5 are arranged to be adjacent to the setting button 3 . the display 2 is responsive to depression of the setting button 3 for displaying a series of marks representing adult , child , male and female for selection , two of which marks , for examples , “ adult ” and “ female ” or “ child ” and “ male ” can be selected as personal data to be inputted . in addition the user &# 39 ; s height is inputted as personal data , allowing the inputted value to be displayed . after the required measurement is finished , the weight and body fat percentage thus measured are displayed . the electrodes a , b , c and d are used in measuring bioelectrical impedance . fig2 shows the structure of a mode switching section 6 , which has a group of switch units s 1 to s 4 connected to the electrodes a , b , c and d and to an associated switch control section 61 . in normal or stand - by mode the movable contacts of the switch units s 1 to s 4 are connected to the first stationary contacts a 1 to a 4 , thereby allowing weak current to flow through any one of the electrodes a , b , c and d when touched . in body fat measuring mode the switch control section 61 makes the switches s 1 to s 4 move their movable contacts from the first stationary contacts a 1 to a 4 to the second stationary contacts b 1 to b 4 . fig3 shows the block diagram of a central control section 101 and associated sections of the body fat meter 1 . a power supply circuit 100 is connected to the central control section 101 , which includes an internal microprocessor and a memory . a personal data inputting switch section 102 includes the setting button 3 , the scroll - up button 4 and the scroll - down button 5 , and is connected to the central control section 101 . a weight measuring circuit 103 includes a weight - responsive strain gauge capable of providing the control section 101 with an electric signal representing one &# 39 ; s weight . a bioelectrical impedance measuring circuit 105 is well known per se , and is capable of providing the central control section 101 with the bioelectrical impedance appearing between selected points of a living body , on which points the electrodes a , b , c and d are attached . for the purpose the bioelectrical impedance measuring circuit 105 can be connected to the electrodes a , b , c and d via the mode switching section 6 . likewise , a touch - sensitive switch circuit 104 can be connected to the electrodes a , b , c and d via the mode switching section 6 , thereby permitting detection of the touching of any one of the electrodes a , b , c and d in terms of the weak current , which flows through the electrode thus touched . then , the touch - sensitive switch circuit 104 makes the power supply turn on . now , the manner in which the body fat meter 1 works is described by referring to fig1 to 5 . the operation begins with the inputting of personal data as shown in fig4 . an individual user can select one of the electrodes a , b , c and d for exclusive use in inputting his personal data . assuming that the electrode a is selectively touched with finger or tiptoe ( step 1 ), the movable contacts of the switches s 1 to s 4 are switched to the second stationary contacts b 1 to b 4 to make the power supply circuit 100 turn on ( step 2 ), and then the sign a representing the touched electrode a appears on the display 2 ( step 3 ). next , it is checked whether the personal data pertaining to the particular user is available from the memory in terms of the touched electrode a ( step 4 ). in the affirmative case the stored personal data appear in the display 2 ( step 14 ). in the negative case no personal data appears , and then , the user depresses the setting button 3 at step 5 . in response to depression of the setting button 3 the marks representing male and female appear on the display 2 . either mark can be selected and inputted by means of the scroll - up button 4 or scroll - down button 5 ( step 6 ). the so inputted personal data on sex can be stored by depressing the setting button 3 ( step 7 ). at the same time , the marks representing adult and child appear on the display 2 . likewise , either mark can be selected and inputted by means of the scroll - up button 4 or the scroll - down button 5 ( step 8 ). at step 9 the so inputted personal data can be stored by depressing the setting button 3 . at the same time , a predetermined height appears on the display 2 , which height can be changed to the user &# 39 ; s height by means of the scroll - up button 4 or the scroll - down button 5 . when the user &# 39 ; s height is reached to the user &# 39 ; s height on the display 2 , the setting button 3 is depressed so that the height may be stored . thus , all the inputted personal data are stored in the particular location of the memory allotted to the electrode a ( step 12 ). at step 13 it is checked whether the setting button 3 was depressed or not . in the affirmative case the proceeding goes back to step 5 , in which the personal data can be modified or reregistered . in the negative case the proceeding goes to step 20 ( see fig5 ), where the weight and bioelectrical impedance appearing between both feet are measured while the user stands on the body fat meter 1 with the heel and tiptoe of one foot on the electrodes c and a , and with those of the other foot on the electrodes d and b . the weight and bioelectrical impedance thus measured are used to calculate the body fat percentage ( step 21 ). then , the body fat percentage along with the measured weight appear on the display 2 ( step 22 ). after displaying the measured weight and the calculated body fat percentage on the display 2 for a predetermined length of time ( step 23 ), the mode switching section 6 switches the mode of the measuring apparatus 1 from the measuring mode to the normal or stand - by mode . specifically the switch control section 61 makes the movable contacts of the switches s 1 to s 4 move from the second stationary contacts b 1 to b 4 to the first stationary contacts a 1 to a 4 ( step 24 ), and the central control section 101 shuts power off ( step 25 ). thus , the measurement is finished . at step 10 the input of a predetermined number ( e . g . “ 000 ”) in place of the height puts the body fat meter in condition for measurement and presentation of one &# 39 ; s weight rather than the bioelectrical impedance . although not shown in fig4 and 5 , the central control section 101 includes an internal timer for counting the length of time for which an interruption continues in the course of entry of the personal data or in the course of a required measurement . in the event that the counted length of time exceeds a predetermined length of time , the electrodes a , b , c and d are connected to the touch - sensitive switch circuit 104 via the mode switching section 6 , in which the movable contacts of the switches s 1 to s 4 are put in contact with the first stationary contacts a 1 to a 4 , and power is shut off by the central control section 101 . the personal data are allowed to be stored in a selected location of the memory allotted to the touched one of the electrodes a , b , c and d . thus , access is permitted to the stored personal data by touching the same electrode as used in inputting . four users can store or retrieve their personal data from the memory of the body fat meter 1 by using the electrodes a , b , c and d allotted to their exclusive use . the personal data may be inputted in a desired sequence other than that described above . the electrodes a , b , c and d may have different number of protrusions for identification ( see electrodes a 1 , b 1 , c 1 and d 1 in fig6 and 7 ). the electrodes a , b , c and d may be modified to be responsive to the touch for emitting light , thus facilitating confirmation by sight of the touched electrode . the body fat meter 1 may be circular , and each electrode may have a fan - like shape or sector as shown in fig7 . the present invention is described above as being applied to a weight scale type of body fat meter which measures the bioelectrical impedance appearing between both feet , but it can be equally applied to a hand - held type of body fat meter which measures the bioelectrical impedance appearing between both hands . furthermore , it can be equally applied to body fat meter which measures the bioelectrical impedance appearing between hand and foot . the present invention may be applied to a physical variable measuring apparatus having electrodes equipped therewith for measuring other physical variable than body fat percentage in terms of one &# 39 ; s bioelectrical impedance , such as pulse rate meter or body water meter . as may be understood from the above , a body fat meter according to the present invention is simplified in structure , permitting a required control to be carried out by using its electrodes to store or retrieve the personal data . in measuring the retrieval of personal data can be easily effected simply by touching selected electrodes , which is easier than depressing of selected individual keys as in the conventional body fat meter . the body fat meter can be stand on the floor with any one of its sides down without fear of turning power on ; the body fat meter has no switch arranged on every side .

US-89451201-A

a ticket processing system in which a single ticket drive cylinder drives a ticket on a circular ticket guide path past stations for visibly printing and for magnetically encoding or bar encoding the ticket . a passive ticket inverter adjacent the circular ticket guide receives a ticket and guides a first end of the ticket into an inverting space while the drive cylinder rotates the second end of the ticket past the first end and draws the ticket , second end first and inverted , back into the circular ticket guide .

when used herein , the term &# 34 ; ticket &# 34 ; refers generally to an elongate flexible card or document with a means for receiving magnetically - encoded or bar - encoded information and visibly printed information . such a ticket is indicated in fig1 by reference numeral 10 . reference numeral 10a shows one face ( or &# 34 ; side &# 34 ;) of the ticket 10 , while the other face is indicated by reference numeral 10b . the invention enables the processing of information on each side of the ticket 10 , without regard to the form in which the information appears on the ticket . the ticket 10 may have the general structure and characteristics of , for example , a flight coupon serving as a passenger ticket , baggage check , and boarding pass with the additional capacity to carry magnetically - encoded information . relatedly , the ticket may have a stripe 11 of magnetically - encoded material and may be visibly imprinted on side 10b . the ticket 10 has two ends 14 and 16 and a generally longitudinal axis 17 extending between the ends 14 and 16 . as is known , tickets such as the ticket 10 are fully described by iata specifications 1722 - c and - d , resolutions 20 - 13 , 20 - 14 , and 20 - 20 . preferably , the invention is a ticket processing mechanism which employs a single roller for advancing a ticket such as the ticket 10 through a series of processing steps in which the ticket is visibly printed and magnetically written and read . as the magnetic strip is on one face of the ticket 10 and printing must be done on the opposite face of the ticket , it will be necessary to flip or invert such a ticket to perform both functions . the invention takes advantage of the spring - like qualities of a ticket undergoing slight bending to efficiently and effectively perform the inverting as illustrated in fig2 and 3 . fig2 and 3 illustrate a ticket processing system 20 with a ticket inverting mechanism according to the invention . the ticket processing system 20 is enclosed in housing 21 having internal structure which defines a cylindrical or circular ticket guide 22 . a ticket is advanced along a revolutionary path around the ticket guide 22 by a rotating drive cylinder 23 . the drive cylinder 23 is conventionally mounted on the circular ticket guide 22 to rotate therein in either a first or second revolutionary direction . the drive cylinder is conventionally powered by a reversible , high speed motor controlled by a processor in the processing system . a ticket inverting mechanism indicated generally by 25 is positioned above the drive cylinder and adjacent the ticket guide 22 . the ticket inverting mechanism 25 includes a curved upper surface 26 and a curved lower surface 27 , with the curved lower surface being positioned generally adjacent the drive cylinder 23 . the curved upper and lower surfaces 26 and 27 meet in a cusp 28 . in the preferred embodiment of the invention , the curved upper surface 26 transitions at its upper end to a surface portion 29 . the ticket inverting mechanism 25 is intended to invert or to &# 34 ; flip &# 34 ; a ticket which is moving in a revolutionary direction in the circular ticket guide 22 . a representative ticket is indicated by reference numeral 36 , and extends between an end 38 and an end 39 . the ticket has a first face 40 and a second face 41 . preferably , the length of the ticket between the ends 38 and 39 is approximately three quarters of the circumference of the drive cylinder 23 , although this dimension may be varied to fit particular design considerations . the operation of the ticket inverting mechanism 25 can be understood with reference to the ticket 36 , assuming that the ticket is driven into the circular ticket guide 22 between feed rollers 44 and 45 . as the ticket 36 is driven toward the ticket guide 22 , eventually , the first end 39 and the face 40 will be engaged by the drive cylinder 23 and the ticket will be driven in a first revolutionary direction ( ccw ) in the circular ticket guide with the first end 39 being the leading edge , the face 40 being engaged by the drive cylinder 23 , and the face 41 facing the circular ticket guide 22 . as the drive cylinder 23 continues to rotate in the first revolutionary direction , eventually the leading end of the ticket will reach a point 47 in the circular ticket guide 22 . between the point 47 and the cusp 28 is an arcuate opening 49 ( shown in fig2 ) in the circular ticket guide 22 . when the leading edge of the ticket 36 reaches the point 47 , the natural resilience of the ticket stock will cause the leading end of the ticket to spring away from the drive cylinder and travel a path which is tangential to the circular ticket guide at the point 47 ; this tangential path eventually causes the leading end of the ticket to engage the curved upper surface 26 above the cusp 28 . this is illustrated in fig3 by reference numeral 39a which corresponds to the first end 39 of the ticket 36 . as the drive cylinder 23 continues to rotate in the first revolutionary direction , the curved upper surface 26 will guide the first end 39a of the ticket 36 until the entire ticket is in the inverting mechanism . when in the inverting mechanism , the trailing end of the ticket is retained against the drive cylinder 23 by the force of gravity as indicated by reference numeral 38a in fig3 . the outer surface of the drive cylinder is sheathed in a relatively thin layer of a rubber - like material which maintains a good frictional engagement with the cardboard material of the ticket . the engagement between the trailing end 38a and the outer surface of the drive cylinder 23 will pivot the second end of the ticket past the first end and draw the ticket 36a back into the circular ticket guide 22 with the faces inverted . in this regard , when the ticket 36 is initially drawn by the drive cylinder 23 into the circular ticket guide 22 , the face 40 engages the cylinder 23 , while the face 41 faces the ticket guide 22 . now , with the ticket positioned as indicated by 36a , when the second end 38a is drawn into the ticket guide 22 , the face 41 will engage the drive cylinder 23 , while the face 40 will face the ticket guide 22 . this is indicated in fig3 by face 41a which is identical with , but oppositely oriented from , face 41 of the ticket 36 and by the face 40a which is identical with , but oppositely directed from , the face 40 of the ticket 36 . thus inverted , the ticket will continue to be driven in the first revolutionary direction by the drive cylinder 23 with the sides inverted and the ends transposed . in this latter regard , the end 38a will now be the leading end . retention of the second end of the ticket against the outer surface of the drive cylinder 23 is key to operation of the invention , for it is the continued motion of the cylinder in the first revolutionary direction which moves the second end of the ticket past the first end and re - engages the ticket in the ticket guide 22 . in the preferred embodiment , the vertical arrangement of the ticket inverter 25 and the drive cylinder 23 , with the inverter above the drive cylinder keeps the trailing end of the ticket against the drive cylinder . those skilled in the art will appreciate that other means may be employed to keep the ticket trailing end against the drive cylinder while the ticket is in the inverter . for example , the surface portion 29 may be spaced from the drive cylinder 23 by a distance which is less than the length of a ticket . this will flex the ticket and press the trailing end against the drive cylinder . alternatively , the leading end may be nipped between rollers disposed in the inverter toward the upper end of the guide surface at a distance which flexes the ticket against the drive roller . neither of these latter two embodiments requires placement of the ticket inverter vertically above the drive roller 23 . as can be appreciated with reference to fig3 without reversing the ccw rotation of the drive cylinder 23 , ticket 36 will be inverted or &# 34 ; flipped &# 34 ; with each revolution of the drive cylinder 23 . extraction of the ticket 36 from the circular ticket guide 22 requires reversal of the direction in which the drive cylinder 23 revolves . for example , assume that the end 39a of the ticket 36 has engaged the curved upper surface 26 while the drive cylinder 23 is rotating ccw . if the rotation of the drive cylinder 23 is reversed before the trailing end of the ticket reaches the point 47 in the circular ticket guide 22 , but after it has passed either of the ports 51 or 53 , a complete cw revolution of the drive cylinder 23 will drive the ticket out of the circular ticket guide 22 through one of these ports . with the foregoing explanation , processing of both sides of the ticket in the ticket processing system of fig2 and 3 will now be described . preferably , new tickets are fed into the circular ticket guide 22 from an accordian - folded length of blank ticket stock 55 . a new ticket is advanced to the guide 22 by the roller pair 57 , 58 through the input port 59 . a sensor 61 detects the leading edge of the new ticket and triggers a cutting mechanism 56 which operates conventionally to separate the new ticket from the ticket stock 55 . the new ticket is advanced by the rollers 57 , 58 until its leading edge is detected by an escrow station sensor 62 . the ticket is held with its leading edge at the escrow station sensor 62 until it is needed , at which time the rollers 57 , 58 will be activated to drive the ticket into to the circular ticket guide 22 and the drive cylinder 23 will be rotated ccw . preferably , the ticket is oriented such that its face with the magnetic stripe is oriented toward the circular ticket guide 22 . when the leading end of the ticket reaches a magnetic write / read ( mwr ) head sensor 63 , a magnetic write / read head assembly 65 will be activated to first write , and then read magnetic information in the magnetic stripe of the ticket . the write / read sequence is employed to validate information written in the magnetic stripe and also to store the information , if necessary , to be printed on the ticket in visible form as explained below . as the drive cylinder 23 continues to rotate in the ccw direction , the leading edge of the ticket is driven past the magnetic write / read assembly 65 , the end of a magnetic block 67 which positions the assembly 65 adjacent the circular ticket guide 22 , a printhead block 68 holding a thermal printhead , a ticket - under - printhead ( tup ) sensor 69 , an output hopper block 70 , a capture block 72 , a lower feed block 74 , and the point 47 where the leading edge of the ticket travels tangentially to the curved upper surface 26 of the ticket inverting mechanism 25 . as explained above , the ticket &# 39 ; s lead end travels up the curved upper surface 26 and the ticket is inverted in the ticket inverting mechanism 25 and drawn back into the circular ticket guide 22 . when the now - leading ( formerly trailing ) end of the ticket reaches the tup sensor 69 , a printhead solenoid 66 is energized and the printhead block 68 is positioned against the ticket . the block &# 39 ; s thermal printhead is energized and visible printing is placed on the ticket face opposite that which carries the magnetic stripe . the visible printing operation is conventional , requiring a ccw stepping of the drive cylinder 23 in synchronism with operation of the solenoid 66 driving the printhead block 68 . the printhead 69 can operate according to any of a variety of well - known visible printing techniques , including thermal printing , ink printing , laser printing , and any equivalent . as the printing operation proceeds , the ticket continues to be driven in the ccw direction by rotation of the drive cylinder 23 . eventually , the trailing edge of the ticket will pass under the tup sensor 69 . immediately following the printing operation , when the trailing edge is detected at 69 , the ccw stepping of the drive cylinder 23 continues for an appropriate number of steps to position the trailing edge of the ticket in the gap 51 between the output upper block 70 and the capture block 72 . at this point , the rotation of the drive cylinder 23 is reversed , the trailing edge of the ticket again becomes the leading edge , and the ticket is driven into the output hopper 84 with the help of auxiliary drive rollers 82 and 83 . a hopper 95 may contain a number of pre - cut tickets or coupons which are escrowed for a purpose other than the purpose intended for tickets fed through the input port 59 . tickets are fed singly from the hopper 95 through the auxiliary input port 97 by a ccw - rotating feed roller 100 and counter rotating &# 34 ; soft throat &# 34 ; ticket separator roller 102 . in this regard , the roller 102 is spaced from the path of travel of a ticket being input by the drive roller 100 by an amount sufficient to engage a second ticket which may be dragged by the ticket being fed . the counter rotating roller 102 will prevent the second ticket from riding &# 34 ; piggyback &# 34 ; into the auxiliary feed port 97 on the ticket being fed therethrough by the roller 100 . a ticket is fed through the auxiliary feed port 97 on a direction of travel which is tangential to the drive cylinder 23 and which contacts the curved lower surface 27 of the ticket inverting mechanism beneath the cusp 28 . this forces the leading edge to the lower point 104 of the inverter block 105 where it engages the drive roller 23 and is drawn thereby into the circular ticket guide 22 . tickets fed in this manner from the hopper 95 can be processed for magnetic or visible printing as described above and can be output through the exit port 51 or the capture port 53 as required by operational considerations . a third input path is through an opening 106 , between the rollers 44 and 45 . this input path is fed manually by a processing system operator and is intended for revalidation of previously - issued tickets which may not be used . these tickets enter through the opening 106 in the upper right side of the ticket inverting mechanism , travel past the stop surface 29 , pass between the rollers 44 and 45 , and are advanced into the circular ticket guide 22 . if a ticket is inserted in this manner for the purpose of validating its magnetic information , a validation procedure may be commenced when the ticket &# 39 ; s leading edge is sensed by the sensor 63 . the ticket may then be output through the output port 51 or the capture port 53 . last , the output hopper 84 is provided for output of validated tickets which are to be delivered for ticketholders . the output hopper is fed through the output port 51 . a capture hopper 108 is also provided to capture defective tickets which may have been written or printed incorrectly and which are not intended to be provided to a ticketholder . tickets are placed in the capture hopper 108 by advancing a ticket in the ccw direction in the ticket guide 22 until its trailing edge is between the point 47 and the tip 111 of the capture block 72 . at this point , the direction of rotation for the drive cylinder 23 is reversed , the ticket is driven into the capture port 53 and fed into the capture hopper 108 between rollers 109 and 110 . the construction of the ticket inverter and other described mechanisms is conventional , the circular ticket guide 22 , the inverter surface , and the parts in fig2 and 3 are provided as surfaces on contoured blocks and plates mounted in the housing . the drive cylinder may be rotationally mounted and powered by a reversible stepper motor ( not shown ) as disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 788 , 419 . the mechanization used to electronically control the operations of ticket advancing portions of the processing system illustrated in fig2 and 3 are conventional . an exemplary configuration including a processor assembly for implementing control functions is shown in fig8 of u . s . pat . no . 4 , 788 , 419 . it will be evident to those well - versed in the art that the control mechanization can be conventionally mounted on one or more printed circuit boards located within the housing of the processing system and connected by conventional signal conduction means to the various components of the ticket advancing mechanism of fig3 . last , the invention has been explained in the context of processing a ticket with magnetic information on one side and printed information on the other . in fact , this is not meant to limit the invention &# 39 ; s practice which can be in any context requiring access to both sides for processing . while i have described a preferred embodiment of our ticket inverter , it should be understood that modifications and adaptations thereof will occur to persons skilled in the art . therefore , the protection afforded our invention should only be limited in accordance with the scope of the following claims .

US-86948592-A

there is provided a fully automatic distribution center system capable of preventing mistakes made in distribution caused by human error . the system includes facilities which , after articles to be distributed are brought into the distribution center are conveyed to a storage area , permit the following series of operations to be performed automatically : sorting of the articles until they are conveyed to a shipping area , storing in various packing styles of the cargoes , arranging of the cargoes , packing , palletizing , and the like . these facilities free workers from the task of handling the articles to be distributed during the usual operation of the center .

one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig1 through 3 . each figure is a block diagram or a schematic view showing the arrangement of the facilities of and article flow in an automatic distribution center , wherein small orders for distributing relatively small articles of a minimum unit amount can be accepted , and the articles can be sorted in accordance with their destination , after which they are distributed . referring to fig1 the packages and the like which have been brought into the distribution center by a truck 1 is unloaded at a place for unloading 2 , after which the arrived packages are inspected and sent to storage / sorting area 3 . articles which have arrived at the distribution center are sorted according to how they are packed , that is as pallet cargo 4 , case cargo 5 , or bulk cargo 6 . the pallet cargo 4 consists of a plurality of articles contained in a case 7 , loaded on pallet 8 formed into a flat board , the case cargo 5 consists of a plurality of articles contained in the case 7 , put together in a box - shaped pallet 9 , and the bulk cargo 6 consists of a plurality of articles 10 which are put in the opened case 7 , all of which are cargo containing a relatively small number of articles . at the storage / sorting area 3 , there are provided a pallet - type automatic storage 11 in which the case 7 containing a plurality of articles is loaded onto the pallet 8 formed into a flat board for storage and automatically taken out in accordance with requests for taking out articles ; a case picking apparatus 12 in which the case 7 containing a plurality of articles is each stored in case units and taken out in case units in accordance with orders made ; and a piece picking apparatus 13 in which a plurality of articles 10 is each put into the opened case 7 for storage and taken out in the smallest handling unit in accordance with orders made . the articles loaded on the pallet , those contained in the cases , and the individual article can be automatically taken out upon orders made . after the articles which have been taken out are packed using a packing machine 14 , a palletizer 15 , and the like , they go through a delivery inspection and are then transported by the truck 1 from the shipping area 16 . the outline of the distribution center is as described above . each portion will be described in detail below with reference to fig2 . referring to fig2 a truck driver who has transported the cargo to the place of unloading 2 cooperates with workers at the place of unloading and unloads the cargo from the truck 1 . the cargo goes through a delivery inspection while part or all of the cargo is on a transfer port 17 . the transfer port 17 serves as a starting point for the movement of a transfer device 18 to the storage / sorting area 3 , from where the sequence of operations such as conveying articles to the storage / sorting area 3 , sorting within the storage / sorting area 3 , storing in various package styles , sorting cargo , packing , and palletizing , and conveying articles to the shipping area 16 are carried out . for these operations , there are provided automatically operable facilities , by which , during the usual operation of the center , the workers are freed from the task of handling articles to be distributed . the transfer port 17 is provided with an automatic reader which identifies the articles which have been brought in and compares the identified articles to information related to arrived cargo , after which the destination of the articles is instructed to the transfer device 18 . with reference to the articles which arises trouble in identifying of the automatic reader 19 , an identification mark indicator 20 gives additional identifying marks thereon , so that no interference occurs in the automatic operation within the distribution center . the transfer device 18 has a loop - shaped track 21 and a plurality of carriages 22 ( ten illustrated ), which move at a high speed , connecting a large area covering the unloading / shipping area 2 , 16 and the storage / sorting area 3 . the articles which come in relatively large amounts are frequently loaded on the pallet 8 and stored in the pallet - type automatic storage 11 . the article which have been transferred to a pallet storage shelf 25 by way of a conveyor 23 for putting in and taking out articles from the storage and stacker crane 24 ( six illustrated ) from the carriage 22 are , in accordance with requirements of shipping the articles , shipped from the shipping area 16 passing in reverse order the routes which the arrived articles took in the package style during storage . in addition , they are sent to a depalletizer 28 ( seven illustrated ) by way of a pallet cargo transfer conveyor 26a and a pallet cargo feed conveyor 27a and sorted and put in the case 7 and on the plate pallet 8 respectively . each case 7 is then sent to either a case picking device 12 or a piece picking device 13 by way of a case storage conveyor 29a or a case transfer conveyor 30a , and the plate pallet 8 formed into a thin board once again travels on the pallet cargo feed conveyor 27a and the pallet cargo transfer conveyor 26a to be sent to a pallet storage feed / device 31 . the case picking device 12 includes a flow rack 32 , a device 33 for putting the cases into the storage ( three illustrated ), a port 34 for sending the cases into the storage , a device 35 for taking out the cases from the storage ( four illustrated ), and a port 36 for passing the cases out of the storage . after travelling on the case transfer conveyor 30a and passing the port 34 for sending cases into the storage and the device 13 for putting in the cases in the storage , each case 7 which has been stored in the flow rack 32 , in accordance with the requirement of taking out the cases from the storage , passes the device 35 for taking out the cases from the storage and the port 36 for passing the cases out of the storage , and travels on a case transfer conveyor 30b and a case storage conveyor 29b in order to be sent to the palletizer 15 , or further travels on the case transfer conveyor 30a and a case transfer conveyor 30c in order to be sent out to the piece picking device 13 . the piece picking device 13 includes a bulk cargo storage shelf 37 , a picking robot 38 ( thirty illustrated ), a picking case conveyor 39 , a bulk cargo replenisher 40 ( thirty illustrated ), and a bulk cargo replenishing port 41 , and has , as peripheral devices , a case packer 14 , a case packing opener 42 , and a picking case storage / supplying device 43 . after travelling on the case transfer conveyor 30 and entering the case packing opener 42 , each case 7 is opened and pass the bulk cargo replenishing port 41 and the bulk cargo replenisher 40 to be stored on each bulk cargo storage shelf 37 . in the bulk cargo replenisher 40 and the picking robot 38 located opposite thereto with the bulk cargo storage shelf 37 put between them , each article 10 is taken out from each opened case 7 stored in each bulk cargo storage shelf 37 and is put into the picking case on the picking case conveyor 39 , in accordance with requirements of taking out the cases from the storage . the picking case is assembled with the picking case storage / supplying device 43 and is supplied onto the picking case conveyor 39 , after which it moves in front of the bulk cargo storage shelf 37 containing the articles to be picked . then , each article 10 is gathered and packed by means of the case packer 14 . after travelling on a case transfer conveyor 30d , the case transfer conveyor 30b , and the case storage conveyor 29b , the cases are sent to the palletizer 15 . at the palletizer 15 , the cases 7 are sent from the case picking device 12 and the case packer 14 , and are sorted on the case storage conveyor 29b in accordance with their destination , after which each lined - up case 7 is loaded on the plate pallet 8 or the box - shaped pallet 9 . after travelling on the pallet cargo transfer conveyor 26a and a pallet cargo feed conveyor 27b from the pallet storage / feed device 31 , the pallet 8 and the box - shaped pallet 9 are supplied . after being loaded into the cases , the pallet cargo 4 travels on the pallet cargo feed conveyor 27b and the the pallet cargo transfer conveyor 26b , and passes the transfer device 18 in order to be sent to the shipping area 16 . at the shipping area 16 , while each article 10 to be shipped passes past the transfer port 17 the identifying mark indicator 20 clearly indicates each destination , and the automatic reader 19 controls the shipment , loading each article on the truck 1 . fig3 is a block diagram of the control system in the distribution center . the control system of the distribution center is divided into a computer 44 for controlling the distribution center system , a mechanical system control equipment 45 , and a data control equipment 46 , each of which are mutually connected to one another and are also connected to the high - level information management system 47 by lan ( local area network ). the mechanical system control equipment 45 includes a transfer port controller 49 , a transfer device controller 50 , a pallet - type automatic storage controller 51 , a case picking device controller 52 , a piece picking device controller 53 , a palletizer / depalletizer controller 54 , a case packing opener / packer controller 55 , a picking case storage / feed device controller 56 , and a conveyor controller 57 . the information management equipment 46 includes equipment 58 for controlling cargo entering and leaving the storage , equipment 59 for controlling articles within the center , and a pallet / case control equipment 60 , each of which cooperates with the controller 44 for controlling the distribution center system and the high - level information management system 44 , whereby the distribution center system is supported so as to operate normally . in the present embodiment , the palletizer 15 and the depalletizer 28 , and the transfer port 17 in the unloading area 2 and the transfer port 17 in the shipping area 16 , have their facilities arranged respectively in the same way , so that if one of the loads reaches its peak the load can be equalized by using the other facility . fig4 represents another embodiment of the present invention . fig4 is divided into two groups such as pallet - type automatic storage 11a and 11b , and shows a schematic view of the facilities of the automatic distribution center in which the pallet - type automatic storage 11a and the palletizer 28 are assembled together to form a case picking device 12 , or an opened - case type automatic storage ( bucket - type automatic storage ) 61 and the picking robot 38 are assembled together to form the piece picking device 13 . an embodiment of the case picking device 12 and the piece picking device 13 different from that in fig2 will be hereunder described . the case picking device 12 includes a pallet - type automatic storage 11a having stacker crane 24a ( four illustrated ), a pallet cargo storage shelf 25a , and a conveyor 23a for putting in and taking out the pallets from the storage , a depalletizer 28 , and a pallet cargo feed conveyor 27a , and a case storage conveyor 29a . after passing a conveying device 18 and travelling on the conveyor 23a for putting in and taking out pallets from the storage and the stacker crane 24a , the pallet cargo 4 stored in the pallet cargo storage shelf 25a is transported to the depalletizer 28 by the pallet cargo feed conveyor 27a in accordance with requirement of shipping the pallets from the storage . the required case 7 is then transferred on the case storage conveyor 29a . after being transferred , the pallet cargo 4 is once again stored in the pallet cargo storage shelf 25a . the case 7 which has been transferred on the case storage conveyor 29a is transported to the palletizer 15 by way of the case transfer conveyor 30b and the case storage conveyor 29b , or transported to the piece picking device 13 by way of a case transfer conveyor 30c and a case packing opener 42 . the piece picking device 13 includes a case - type stacker crane 62 ( four illustrated ), the opened case - type automatic storage 61 having the bulk cargo storage shelf 37 and the bulk cargo feed port 41 , the picking robot 38 ( thirty - two illustrated ), a bulk cargo conveyor 63 , and a picking case conveyor 39 . the case 7 opened by the case packing opener 42 is stored in the bulk cargo storage shelf 37 by way of the bulk cargo feed port 41 and the case - type stacker crane 62 , and transported to the picking robot 38 by the bulk cargo conveyor 63 in accordance with requirements for taking out the cases from the storage . the picking robot 38 is provided with the picking case conveyor 39 which intersects the bulk cargo conveyor 63 , and transports the required articles from the opened case placed on the bulk cargo conveyor 63 to the picking case placed on the picking case conveyor 39 . after transferring , the opened cases are once again stored in the bulk cargo storage shelf 37 . the picking case which has received the articles are sent differently according to the shipping package style to the shipping area 16 , and the pallet cargo and the case cargo are packed by the case packer 14 and then sent thereto by way of the palletizer 15 , and the bulk cargo are sent directly to the shipping area 16 .

US-16228393-A

immunoassay test kit for detecting analyte indicative of type i collagen resorption in vivo , comprising an immunological binding partner which binds to an amino - terminal or carboxy - terminal 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - linked telopeptide of type i collagen isolatable from a urine sample of a patient with active paget &# 39 ; s disease , wherein the immunological binding partner does not cross - react more than 10 % with the type ii and type iii collagen telopeptides of formulas xvi , xiv , xii , xi , vii , viii , x , ix , and xi .

the core peptide structure of the type ii collagen peptides may be found in body fluids as a component of larger peptides that bear additional amino acids or amino acid sequences on one or more ends of the three peptide sequences joined by the hp residue . fig . i shows how type ii collagen telopeptides , which are linked to a triple - helical sequence , may be produced in vivo from a human source using the proteolytic enzymes pepsin and trypsin . smaller fragments that have lost amino acids from the core peptide structure , particularly from the helical sequence , may also occur in body fluids . generally , additions or deletions of amino acids from the core peptide structure will involve from 1 to about 3 amino acids . additional amino acids will generally be determined by the type ii collagen telopeptide sequence that occurs naturally in vivo . as examples , peptides having the following structure : ## str14 ## can be isolated chromatographically from urine , and another of structure : ## str15 ## may also be isolated . in addition , glycosylated variants of the core structure and its larger and smaller variants may occur in which a galactose residue or a glucosyl galactose residue are attached to the side chain hydroxyl group of the hp cross - linking residue . each peak in the graph shown in fig4 a and 4b may correspond to a cross - linked fragment of particular structure that may be quantitated for purposes of the present invention . these structures are consistent with their site of origin in human type ii collagen fibrils at a molecular cross - linking site formed between two α1 ( ii ) c - telopeptides and residue 87 of a triple - helical domain , the known sequences about which are : ## str16 ## cross - linked peptides that embody type ii collagen n - telopeptides can also be isolated from human body fluids . as a first step , molecular sieve fractions equivalent to pools i and ii of fig2 ( as described below ) are prepared . by further chromatography on a deae - hplc column ( deae - 5pw , bio - rad labs ) eluted with a nacl gradient , a late eluting fraction ( pool ii , fig9 ) reveals peptides having the n - terminal sequences gly - gly - phe - asp - glu - x - ala - gly - gly ( seq id no : 2 ) or phe - asp - glu - x - ala - gly - gly ( seq id no : 2 ) ( where x is a blank sequencing cycle ), which are component sequences of cross - linked structures of formula : ## str17 ## where ## str18 ## is hydroxylsyl pyridinoline ( hp ) or lysyl pyridinoline ( lp ), and the parentheses indicate optional amino acid residues . an lp / hp ratio of & lt ; 1 / 20 was observed . the structures are consistent with their site of origin in human type ii collagen fibrils at a molecular cross - linking site formed between two α1 ( ii ) n - telopeptides and residue 930 of a triple - helical domain , the known sequences about which are ## str19 ## the isolated peptide fragments represent the products of proteolytic degradation of type ii collagen fibrils within the body . the core structures containing the hp residue are relatively resistant to further proteolysis and provide a quantitative measure of the amount of type ii collagen , and hence cartilage , degraded . collagen type ii is present in hyaline cartilage of joints in the adult skeleton . quantitation of the collagen type ii telopeptides in a body fluid , for example by way of a monoclonal antibody that recognizes an epitope in the peptide structure , would provide a quantitative measure of whole - body cartilage destruction or remodeling . in a preferred embodiment , the present invention involves an assay for cartilage tissue degradation in humans based on quantifying the urinary excretion rate of at least one member of this family of telopeptides . such an assay could be used , for example , to : ( 1 ) screen adult human subjects for those individuals having abnormally high rates of cartilage destruction as an early diagnostic indicator of osteoarthritis ; ( 2 ) monitor the effects of potential antiarthritic drugs on cartilage metabolism in osteoarthritic and rheumatoid arthritic patients ; or ( 3 ) monitor the progress of degenerative joint disease in patients with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis and their responses to various therapeutic interventions . osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease of the articulating cartilages of joints . in its early stages it is largely non - inflammatory ( i . e . distinct from rheumatoid artrits ). it is not a single disease but represents the later stages of joint failure that may result from various factors ( e . g . genetic predisposition , mechanical overusage , joint malformation or a prior injury , etc .). destruction of joint articular cartilage is the central progressive feature of osteoarthritis . the incidence of osteoarthritis , based on radiographic surveys , ranges from 4 % in the 18 - 24 year age group to 85 % in the 75 - 79 year age group . at present the disease can only be diagnosed by pain and radiographic or other imaging signs of advanced cartilage erosion . the assays disclosed above may be used to detect early evidence of accelerated cartilage degradation in mildly symptomatic patients , to monitor disease progress in more advanced patients , and as a means of monitoring the effects of drugs or other therapies . in normal young adults ( with mature skeletons ) there is probably very little degradation of cartilage collagen . a test that could measure fragments of cartilage collagen in the urine ( and in the blood and joint fluid ) would be very useful for judging the &# 34 ; health &# 34 ; of cartilage in the whole body and in individual joints . the type ii collagen - specific peptide assays described above will accomplish this . in the long term , such an assay could become a routine diagnostic screen for spotting those individuals whose joints are wearing away . they could be targeted early on for preventative therapy , for example , by the next generation of so - called chondroprotective drugs now being evaluated by the major pharmaceutical companies who are all actively seeking better agents to treat osteoarthritis . other diseases in which joint cartilage is destroyed include : rheumatoid arthritis , juvenile rheumatoid arthritis , ankylosing spondylitis , psoriatic arthritis , reiter &# 39 ; s syndrome , relapsing polychondritis , the low back pain syndrome , and other infectious forms of arthritis . the type ii collagen - specific assays described herein could be used to diagnose and monitor these diseases and evaluate their response to therapy , as disclosed above in connection with osteoarthritis . as pointed out above , human type iii collagen telopeptides that may be present in body fluids are expected to have a core structure embodied in the following parent structures : ## str20 ## wherein ## str21 ## is hydroxylysyl pyridinoline . by analogy to the type ii peptides , the type iii collagen peptides may occur in glycosylated forms of the core structure . for example , galactose residues or glucosylgalactose residues may be attached to the core structure , e . g . by way of hydroxyl groups . the cross - linking residue of the type iii collagen peptides is depicted as a 3 - hydroxypyridinium residue , hydroxylysyl pyridinoline . the type ii telopeptide structures have been found to primarily have hydroxylysyl pyridinoline cross - linking residues . type iii collagen is present in many connective tissues in association with type i collagen . it is especially concentrated in vascular walls , in the skin and in , for example , the synovial membranes of joints where its accelerated turnover might be observed in inflammatory joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis . a specific assay for type iii collagen degradation by quantitating cross - linked type iii collagen peptides as disclosed above , can be used for detecting , diagnosing , and monitoring various inflammatory disorders , possibly with particular application to the vasculitis syndromes . in conjunction with assays for measuring bone type i and cartilage type ii collagen degradation rates , such an assay could be used as a differential diagnostic tool for patients with various degenerative and inflammatory disorders that result in connective tissue destruction or pathological processes . urine is collected form a normal adolescent during a rapid phase of skeletal growth . using a sequence of chromatographic steps that include but are not limited to , adsorption on selective cartridges of a hydrophobic interaction support and an ion - exchange support and molecular sieve , ion - exchange and reverse - phase hplc column chromatography steps , individual peptides are isolated . the cross - linked peptides containing hp ( and lp ) residues are detected during column chromatography by their natural fluorescence ( ex max 297 nm & lt ; ph 4 , ex max 330 nm ,& gt ; ph 6 ; em max 390 nm ). an exemplary isolation procedure is provided in the example below . fresh urine ( at 4 ° c .) diluted 5 times with water and adjusted to 2 % ( v / v ) trifluoroacetic acid , passed through a c - 18 hydrophobic binding cartridge ( waters c - 18 sep - pak prewetted with80 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile then washed with water ). retained peptides were washed with water then eluted with3 ml of20 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile , and this eluent was adjusted to 0 . 05 m nh 4 hco 3 , 10 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile by addition of an equal volume of 0 . 1 m nh 4 hco 3 . this solution was passed through a qma - sep - pak ( waters ), which was washed with 10 ml of 0 . 1m nacl , 20 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile followed by 10 ml of water and the peptides were then eluted with 3 ml of 1 % ( v / v ) trifluoroacetic acid and dried by speed - vac ( savant ). peptides were fractionated in three chromatographic steps . the first step was molecular sieve chromatography on a column of bio - gel p - 10 ( bio rad labs , 2 . 5 cm × 90 cm ) eluted by 10 % ( v / v ) acetic acid , monitoring the effluent for hp fluorescence as shown in fig2 . in fig2 the y - axis is the relative fluorescence emission at 390 nm ( 297 nm excitation ), and the x - axis is the fraction number . the fraction size was 4 ml . the fractions indicated as ii ( and to a lesser extent i ) are enriched in the cross - inked collagen type ii telopeptides . the cross - linked collagen type i telopeptides are contained in the fractions indicated as iii and iv . fractions spanning pool ii ( enriched in the type ii collagen cross - linked peptides ) were combined , freeze - dried and fractionated by ion - exchange column chromatography on a deae - hplc column ( tsk - deae - 5pw , 7 . 5mm × 7 . 5mm , bio - rad labs ), equilibrated with 0 . 02 m tris / hcl , 10 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile , ph 7 . 5 and eluted with a gradient of 0 - 0 . 5m nacl in the same buffer , as shown in fig3 . fig3 a plots relative fluorescence emission at 390 nm ( 330nm excitation ) versus elution time . the cross - linked collagen type ii telopeptides ( c - telopeptides ) are found primarily in the segment indicated as iv . fig3 b plots absorbance at 220 nm as a function of elution time in minutes . pool iv contains the type ii collagen cross - linked peptides . individual peptides were then resolved from pool iv by reverse phase hplc on a c - 18 column ( aquapore rp - 300 , 25 cm × 4 . 6 mm , brownlee labs ), eluting with a gradient of 0 - 30 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile in 0 . 1 % ( v / v ) trifluoroacetic acid . fig4 a shows a plot of relative fluorescence intensity at 390 nm ( 297 nm excitation ) as a function of elution time . the peaks associated with particular peptides are indicated in fig4 a . fig4 b shows the relative absorbance at 220 nm as a function of time . fig9 shows an equivalent chromatogram on deae - hplc of a pool from another p - 10 run ( peak i / ii ) from which the collagen type ii cross - linked n - telopeptides were isolated . pool ii in this chromatogram ( fig9 ) is equivalent in elution position to pool v shown in fig3 a . cross - linked peptide fragments of type iii collagen containing hp cross - linking residues may be isolated by a similar combination of steps from the urine of normal growing subjects or , for example , from the urine of patients with inflammatory disorders of the vasculature . this aspect of the invention is based on the discovery that both lysyl pyridinoline ( lp ) and hydroxylysyl pyridinoline ( hp ) peptide fragments ( i . e ., telopeptides , as used herein ) derived from reabsorbed bone collagen are excreted in the urine without being metabolized . the invention is also based on the discovery that no other connective tissues contain significant levels of lp and that the ratio of hp to lp in mature bone collagen remains relatively constant over a person &# 39 ; s lifetime . fig5 compares the concentration of hp and lp in both cortical and cancellous human bone with age . it is observed that the concentration of hp plus lp cross - links in bone collagen reaches a maximum by age 10 to 15 years and remains reasonably constant throughout adult life . furthermore , the ratio of hp to lp , shown in fig6 shows little change throughout life , remaining constant at about 3 . 5 to 1 . these baseline data demonstrate that the 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links in bone collagen remains relatively constant and therefore that body fluids derived from bone collagen degradation will contain 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - linked peptide fragments at concentrations proportional to the absolute rate of bone resorption . since lp is the 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - link unique to bone collagen , the method for determining the absolute rate of bone resorption , in its simplest form , is based on quantitating the concentration of peptide fragments containing 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links and preferably lysyl pyridinoline ( lp ) cross - links in a body fluid . as used in this description and in the appended claims with respect to type i , ii , or iii telopeptides , by &# 34 ; quantitating &# 34 ; is meant measuring by any suitable means , including but not limited to spectrophotometric , gravimetric , volumetric , coulometric , immunometric , potentiometric , or amperometric means the concentration of peptide fragments containing 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links in an aliquot of a body fluid . suitable body fluids include urine , serum , and synovial fluid . the preferred body fluid is urine . since the concentration of urinary peptides will decrease as the volume of urine increases , it is further preferred that when urine is the body fluid selected , the aliquot assayed be from a combined pool of urine collected over a fixed period of time , for example , 24 hours . in this way , the absolute rate of bone resorption or collagen degradation is calculated for a 24 hour period . alternatively , urinary peptides may be measured as a ratio relative to a marker substance found in urine such as creatinine . in this way the urinary index of collagen degradation and bone resorption would remain independent of urine volume . in one embodiment of the present invention , monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies are produced which are specific to the peptide fragments containing lysyl pyridinoline cross - links found in a body fluid such as urine . type i telopeptide fragments may be isolated from a body fluid of any patient , however , it is preferred that these peptides are isolated from patients with paget &# 39 ; s disease or from rapidly growing adolescents , due to their high concentration of type i peptide fragments . type ii and type iii telopeptides may be isolated from a body fluid of any patient but may be more easily obtained from patients suffering from diseases involving type ii or type iii collagen degradation or from rapidly growing adolescents . urine from patients with active paget &# 39 ; s disease is dialyzed in reduced porosity dialysis tubing (& lt ; 3 , 500 mol . wt . cut off spectropore ) at 4 ° c . for 48 h to remove bulk solutes . under these conditions the peptides of interest are largely retained . the freeze - dried non - difflusate is then eluted ( 200 mg aliquots ) from a column ( 90 cm × 2 . 5 cm ) of bio - gel p2 ( 200 - 400 mesh ) in 10 % acetic acid at room temperature . a region of effluent that combines the cross - linked peptides is defined by measuring the fluorescence of collected fractions at 297 nm excitation / 395 nm emission , and this pool is freeze - dried . further resolution of this material is obtained on a column of bio - gel p - 4 ( 200 - 400 mesh , 90 cm × 2 . 5 cm ) eluted in 10 % acetic acid . two contiguous fraction pools are defined by monitoring the fluorescence of the eluant above . the earlier fraction is enriched in peptide fragments having two amino acid sequences that derive from the c - terminal telopeptide domain of the α 1 ( i ) chain of bone type i collagen linked to a third sequence derived from the triple - helical body of bone type i collagen . these three peptide sequences are cross - linked with 3 - hydroxypyridinium . the overlapping later fraction is enriched in peptide fragments having an amino acid sequence that is derived from the n - terminal telopeptide domain of bone type i collagen linked through a 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links . individual peptides are then resolved from each of the two fractions obtained above by ion - exchange hplc on a tsk deae - 5 - pw column ( bio rad 7 . 5 cm × 7 . 5 mm ) eluting with a gradient of nacl ( 0 - 0 . 2m ) in 0 . 02m tris - hcl , ph 7 . 5 containing 10 % ( v / v ) acetonitrile . the n - terminal telopeptide - based and c - terminal telopeptide - based cross - inked peptides elute in a series of 3 - 4 peaks of fluorescence between 0 . 08m and 0 . 15m nacl . the c - terminal telopeptide - based cross - linked peptides elute first as a series of fluorescent peaks , and the major and minor n - terminal telopeptide - based cross - linked peptides elute towards the end of the gradient as characteristic peaks . each of these is collected , freeze - dried and chromatographed on a c - 18 reverse phase hplc column ( vydac 218tp54 , 25 cm × 4 . 6 mm ) eluted with a gradient ( 0 - 10 %) of acetonitrile : n - propanol ( 3 : 1 v / v ) in 0 . 01m trifluoroacetic acid . about 100 - 500 μg of individual peptide fragments containing 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links can be isolated by this procedure from a single 24h collection of paget &# 39 ; s urine . amino acid compositions of the major isolated peptides confirmed purity and molecular sizes by the whole number stoichiometry of recovered amino acids . n - terminal sequence analysis by edman degradation confirmed the basic core structures corresponding to the sequences of the known cross - linking sites in type i collagen and from the matching amino acid compositions . the n - terminal telopeptide sequence of the α2 ( i ) chain was blocked from sequencing analysis due presumably to the known cyclization of the n - terminal glutamine to pyrrolidone carboxylic acid . a typical elution profile of n - terminal telopeptides obtained by the above procedure is shown in fig7 a . the major peptide fragment obtained has an amino acid composition : ( asx ) 2 ( glx ) 2 ( gly ) 5 val - tyr - ser - thr , where asx is the amino acid asp or asn and glx is the amino acid gln or glu . the sequence of this peptide is represented by formula iii below . the c - terminal telopeptide - based cross - linked peptides resolved by reverse phase hplc as described above are shown in fig7 b . as can be seen from this figure , these peptides are further resolved into a series of c - terminal telopeptides each containing the 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links . the major peptide , shown in fig7 b , was analyzed as described above and was found to have the amino acid composition : ( asp ) 5 ( glu ) 4 ( gly ) 10 ( his ) 2 ( arg ) 2 ( hyp ) 2 ( ala ) 5 . the sequence of this peptide is represented by formula iv below . it is believed that the other c - terminal telopeptide - based cross - linked peptides appearing as minor peaks in fig7 b represent additions and deletions of amino acids to the structure shown in formula iv . any of the peptides contained within these minor peaks are suitable for use as immunogens as described below . ## str22 ## where ## str23 ## represents the hp or lp cross - links and gln represents glutamine or pyrrolidone carboxylic acid . equivalents of the peptides represented by the above structures include those cases where there is some variation in the peptide structure . examples of such variation include 1 - 3 amino acid additions to the n and c termini as well as 1 - 3 terminal amino acid deletions . smaller peptide fragments of the molecule represented by formula iv derived from bone resorption are especially evident in urine . these are found in the minor peaks of the c - terminal telopeptide fraction seen in fig7 b and can be identified by amino acid composition and sequence analysis . immunological binding partners capable of specifically binding to peptide fragments derived from bone collagen obtained from a physiological fluid can be prepared by methods well known in the art . the preferred method for isolating these peptide fragments is described above . by immunological binding partners as used herein is meant antibodies and antibody fragments capable of binding to a telopeptide . both monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies specifically binding the peptides disclosed herein and their equivalents are prepared by methods known in the art . for example , campbell , a . m . laboratory techniques in biochemistry and molecular biology , vol . 13 ( 1986 ). elsevier , herein incorporated by reference . it is possible to produce antibodies to the above peptides or their equivalents as isolated . however , because the molecular weights of these peptide fragments are generally less than 5 , 000 , it is preferred that the hapten be conjugated to a carrier molecule . suitable carrier molecules include , but are not limited to , bovine serum albumin , ovalbumin , thyroglobulin , and keyhole limpet hemocyanin ( klh ). preferred carriers are thyroglobulin and klh . it is well known in the art that the orientation of the hapten , as it is bound to the carrier protein , is of critical importance to the specificity of the antiserum . furthermore , not all hapten - protein conjugates are equally successful immunogens . the selection of a protocol for binding the particular hapten to the carrier protein therefore depends on the amino acid sequence of the urinary peptide fragments selected . for example , if the peptide represented by formula iii is selected , a preferred protocol involves coupling this hapten to keyhole limpet hemocyanin ( klh ), or other suitable carrier , with glutaraldehyde . an alternative protocol is to couple the peptides to klh with a carbodiimide . these protocols help to ensure that the preferred epitope , namely tyr and a 3 - hydroxy - pyridinium cross - link , are presented to the primed vertebrate antibody producing cells ( e . g ., b lymphocytes ). other peptides , depending on the source , may require different binding protocols . accordingly , a number of binding agents may be suitably employed . these include , but are not limited to , carbodiimides , glutaraldehyde , mixed anhydrides , as well as both homobifunctional and heterobifunctional reagents ( see for example the pierce 1986 - 87 catalog , pierce chemical co ., rockford , ill .). preferred binding agents include carbodiimides and heterobifunctional reagents such as m - maleimidobenzyl - n - hydroxysuccinimide ester ( mbs ). methods for binding the hapten to the carrier molecule are known in the art . see for example , chard , t ., laboratory techniques in biochemistry molecular biology , vol . 6 ( 1987 ) partz elsevier , n . y ., herein incorporated by reference . either monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies to the hapten - carrier molecule imnmunogen can be produced . however , it is preferred that monoclonal antibodies ( mab ) be prepared . for this reason it is preferred that immunization be carried out in the mouse . immunization protocols for the mouse usually include an adjuvant . examples of suitable protocols are described by chard , t . ( 1987 ) vida supra . spleen cells from the immunized mouse are harvested and homogenized and thereafter fused with cancer cells in the presence of polyethylene glycol to produce a fused cell hybrid which produces monoclonal antibodies specific to peptide fragments derived from collagen . examples of such peptides are represented by the formulas given above . suitable cancer cells include myeloma , hepatoma , carcinoma , and sarcoma cells . detailed descriptions of this procedure , including screening protocols , protocols for growing selected hybrid cells and harvesting monoclonal antibodies produced by the selected hybrid cells are provided in galfre , g . and milstein , c ., meth . enzymol ., 73 : 1 ( 1981 ). a preferred preliminary screening protocol involves the use of peptide fragments derived from bone collagen resorption and containing 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links in a solid phase radioimmunoassay . the monoclonal antibodies or other immunological binding partners used in connection with the present are preferably specific for a particular type of collagen telopeptide . for example , assays for the type ii or type iii collagen degradation telopeptides should preferably be able to distinguish between the type i , type ii , and type iii peptides . however , in some cases , such selectivity will not be necessary , for example , if it is known that a patient is not suffering degradation of one type of collagen but is suspected of suffering degradation from the assayed type of collagen . because of the differences in amino acid sequences between the type i , type ii , and type iii families of telopeptides , cross - reactivity should not occur to a significant degree . indeed , hybridomas can be selected for during the screening of splenocyte fusion clones that produce monoclonal antibodies specific for the cross - linked telopeptide of interest ( and lack affinity for those of the other two collagen types ). based on the differences in sequence of the isolated peptide structures , such specificity is entirely feasible . peptide fragments of the parent types i , ii , and iii collagens , suitable for such hybridoma screening , can be prepared from human bone , cartilage and other tissues and used to screen clones from mice immunized appropriately with the individual cross - linked peptide antigens isolated from body fluid . immunological binding partners , especially monoclonal antibodies , produced by the above procedures , or equivalent procedures , are employed in various immunometric assays to quantitate the concentration of the peptides having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links described above . these immunometric assays comprise a monoclonal antibody or antibody fragment coupled to a detectable marker . examples of suitable detectable markers include but are not limited to : enzymes , coenzymes , enzyme inhibitors , chromophores , fluorophores , chemiluminescent materials , paramagnetic metals , spin labels , and radionuclides . examples of standard immunometric methods suitable for quantitating the telopeptides include , but are not limited to , enzyme linked immunosorbent assay ( elisa ) ( ingvall , e ., meth . enzymol ., 70 ( 1981 )), radio - immunoassay ( ria ), and &# 34 ; sandwich &# 34 ; immunoradiometric assay ( irma ). in its simplest form , these immunometric methods can be used to determine the absolute rate of bone resorption or collagen degradation by simply contacting a body fluid with the immunological binding partner specific to a collagen telopeptide having a 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - link . it is preferred that the immunometric assays described above be conducted directly on untreated body fluids ( e . g . urine , blood , serum , or synovial fluid ). occasionally , however , contaminating substances may interfere with the assay necessitating partial purification of the body fluid . partial purification procedures include , but are not limited to , cartridge adsorption and elution , molecular sieve chromatography , dialysis , ion exchange , alumina chromatography , hydroxyapatite chromatography and combinations thereof . test kits , suitable for use in accordance with the present invention , contain monoclonal antibodies prepared as described above that specifically bind to peptide fragments having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links derived from collagen degradation found in a body fluid . it is preferred that the monoclonal antibodies of this test kit be coupled to a detectable marker of the type described above . test kits containing a panel of two or more immunological binding partners are also contemplated . each immunological binding partner in such a test kit will preferably not cross - react substantially with another type of telopeptide . for example , an immunological binding partner that binds specifically with a type ii collagen telopeptide should preferably not cross - react with either a type i or type iii collagen telopeptide . a small degree ( e . g . 5 - 10 %) of cross - reactivity may be tolerable . an alternative procedure for assaying for the above - described peptides consists of measuring a physical property of the peptides having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links . one such physical property relies upon electrochemical detection . this method consists of injecting an aliquot of a body fluid , such as urine , into an electrochemical detector poised at a redox potential suitable for detection of peptides containing the 3 - hydroxypyridinium ring . the 3 - hydroxypyridinium ring , being a phenol , is subject to reversible oxidation and therefore the electrochemical detector ( e . g ., model 5100a coulochem sold by esa 46 wiggins ave ., bedford , mass .) is a highly desirable instrument for quantitating the concentration of the present peptides . two basic forms of electrochemical detector are currently available : amperometric ( e . g ., bioanalytical systems ) and coulometric ( esa , inc ., bedford , mass . 01730 ). both are suitable for use in accordance with the present invention , however , the latter system is inherently more sensitive and therefore preferred since complete oxidation or reduction of the analyzed molecule in the column effluent is achieved . in addition , screening or guard electrodes can be placed &# 34 ; upstream &# 34 ; from the analytical electrode to selectively oxidize or reduce interfering substances thereby greatly improving selectivity . essentially , the voltage of the analytical electrode is tuned to the redox potential of the sample molecule , and one or more pretreatment cells are set to destroy interferents in the sample . in a preferred assay method , a standard current / voltage curve is established for standard peptides containing lysyl pyridinoline or hydroxylysyl pyridinoline in order to determine the proper voltage to set for optimal sensitivity . this voltage is then modified depending upon the body fluid , to minimize interference from contaminants and optimize sensitivity . electrochemical detectors , and the optimum conditions for their use are known to those skilled in the art . complex mixtures of body fluids can often be directly analyzed with the electrochemical detector without interference . accordingly , for most patients no pretreatment of the body fluid is necessary . in some cases however , interfering compounds may reduce the reliability of the measurements . in such cases , pretreatment of the body fluid ( e . g ., urine ) may be necessary . accordingly , in an alternative embodiment of the invention , a body fluid is first purified prior to electrochemically titrating the purified peptide fragments . the purification step may be conducted in a variety of ways including but not limited to dialysis , ion exchange chromatography , alumina chromatography , hydroxyapatite chromatography , molecular sieve chromatography , or combinations thereof . in a preferred purification protocol , a measured aliquot ( 25 ml ) of a 24 hour urine sample is dialyzed in reduced porosity dialysis tubing to remove the bulk of contaminating fluorescent solutes . the non - diffusate is then lyophilized , redissolved in 1 % heptafluorobuyric acid ( hfba ), an ion pairing solution , and the peptides adsorbed on a waters sep - pak c - 18 cartridge . this cartridge is then washed with 5 ml of 1 % hfba , and then eluted with 3 ml of 50 % methanol in 1 % hfba . another preferred method of purification consists of adsorbing a measured aliquot of urine onto an ion - exchange adsorption filter and eluting the adsorption filter with a buffered eluting solution . the eluate fractions containing peptide fragments having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links are then collected to be assayed . still another preferred method of purification employs molecular sieve chromatography . for example , an aliquot of urine is applied to a bio - gel p2 or sephadex g - 20 column and the fraction eluting in the 1000 - 5000 dalton range is collected . it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that a combination of the above methods may be used to purify or partially purify urine or other body fluids in order to isolate the peptide fragments having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links . the purified or partially purified peptide fragments obtained by the above procedures may be subjected to additional purification procedures , further processed or assayed directly in the partially purified state . additional purification procedures include resolving partially purified peptide fragments employing high performance liquid chromatography ( hplc ) or microbore hplc when increased sensitivity is desired . these peptides may then be quantitated by electrochemical titration . a preferred electrochemical titration protocol consists of tuning the redox potential of the detecting cell of the electrochemical detector ( coulochem model 5100a ) for maximum signal with pure hp . the detector is then used to monitor the effluent from a c - 18 hplc column used to resolve the partially purified peptides . an alternative preferred method for quantitating the concentration of peptides having 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links as described herein is to measure the characteristic natural fluorescence of these peptides . for those body fluids containing few naturally occurring fluorescent materials other than the 3 - hydroxypyridinium cross - links , fluorometric assay may be conducted directly without further purification of the body fluid . in this case , the peptides are resolved by hplc and the natural fluorescence of the hp and lp amino acid residues is measured at 395 nm upon excitation at 297 mn , essentially as described by eyre , d . r ., et al ., analyte . biochem . 137 : 380 ( 1984 ), herein incorporated by reference . it is preferred , in accordance with the present invention , that the fluorometric assay be conducted on urine . urine , however , usually contains substantial amounts of naturally occurring fluorescent contaminants that must be removed prior to conducting the fluorometric assay . accordingly , urine samples are first partially purified as described above for electrochemical detection . this partially purified urine sample can then be fluorometrically assayed as described above . alternatively , the hp and lp cross - linked peptides in the partially purified urine samples or other body fluids can be hydrolyzed in 6m hcl at about 108 ° c . for approximately 24 hours as described by eyre , et al . ( 1984 ) vida supra . this process hydrolyzes the amino acids connected to the lysine precursors of &# 34 ; tripeptide &# 34 ; hp and lp cross - links , producing the free hp and lp amino acids represented by formulae i and ii . these small &# 34 ; tripeptides &# 34 ; are then resolved by the techniques described above , preferably by hplc , and the natural fluorescence is measured ( ex 297 nm , ex 390 nm ). optionally , the body fluid ( preferably urine ) is passed directly through a c - 18 reverse phase affinity cartridge after adding acetonitrile / methanol 5 to 10 % v / v . the non - retentate is adjusted to 0 . 05 - 0 . 10m with a cationic ion - pairing agent such as tetrabutyl ammonium hydroxide and passed through a second c - 18 reverse phase cartridge . the washed retentate , containing fluorescent peptides , from this second cartridge is eluted with acetonitrile : water ( or methanol : water ), dried and fluorescent peptides are analyzed by reverse phase hplc or microbore hplc using an anionic ion - pairing agent such as 0 . 01m trifluoroacetic acid in the eluant . fig8 a displays the elution profile resolved by reverse phase hplc of natural fluorescence for a hydrolysate of peptide fragments from normal human urine . measurement of the integrated area within the envelope of a given component is used to determine the concentration of that component within the sample . the ratio of hp : lp found in normal human urine and urine from patients having paget &# 39 ; s disease , fig8 b , are both approximately 4 . 5 : 1 . this is slightly higher than the 4 : 1 ratio found in bone itself ( eyre , et al ., 1984 ). the higher ratio found in urine indicates that a portion of the hp fraction in urine may come from sources other than bone , such as the diet , or other sources of collagen degradation , i . e ., cartilage catabolism . it is for this reason that it is preferred that lp which derives only from bone be used to provide an absolute index of bone resorption . however , in the absence of excessive cartilage degradation such as in rheumatoid arthitis or in cases where bone is rapidly being absorbed , hp or a combination of hp plus lp may be used as an index of bone resorption . while the invention has been described in conjunction with preferred embodiments , one of ordinary skill after reading the foregoing specification will be able to effect various changes , substitutions of equivalents , and alterations to the subject matter set forth herein . hence , the invention can be practiced in ways other than those specifically described herein . it is therefore intended that the protection granted by letters patent hereon be limited only by the appended claims and equivalents thereof . __________________________________________________________________________ # sequence listing - - - - & lt ; 160 & gt ; number of seq id nos : 4 - - & lt ; 210 & gt ; seq id no 1 & lt ; 211 & gt ; length : 4 & lt ; 212 & gt ; type : prt & lt ; 213 & gt ; organism : human & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : n - telopeptide sequence of - # type ii collagen - - & lt ; 400 & gt ; sequence : 1 - - gly gly phe asp 1 - - - - & lt ; 210 & gt ; seq id no 2 & lt ; 211 & gt ; length : 2 & lt ; 212 & gt ; type : prt & lt ; 213 & gt ; organism : human & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : n - telopeptide sequence of - # type ii collagen - - & lt ; 400 & gt ; sequence : 2 - - phe asp 1 - - - - & lt ; 210 & gt ; seq id no 3 & lt ; 211 & gt ; length : 9 & lt ; 212 & gt ; type : prt & lt ; 213 & gt ; organism : human & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : xaa is a 3 - hydroxypyridin - # ium residue & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : n - telopeptide sequence of - # type ii collagen - - & lt ; 400 & gt ; sequence : 3 - - gly gly phe asp glu xaa ala gly gly 1 5 - - - - & lt ; 210 & gt ; seq id no 4 & lt ; 211 & gt ; length : 7 & lt ; 212 & gt ; type : prt & lt ; 213 & gt ; organism : human & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : xaa is a 3 - hydroxypyridin - # ium residue & lt ; 220 & gt ; feature : & lt ; 223 & gt ; other information : n - telopeptide sequence of - # type ii collagen - - & lt ; 400 & gt ; sequence : 4 - - phe asp glu xaa ala gly gly 1 5__________________________________________________________________________

US-32742499-A

methods are disclosed for loading a database for a computerized procurement system in a standard format that will allow suppliers in varying industries that have and have not standardized their nomenclature . the first step is for a supplier to put data describing an item into the cae format . this format easily accommodates iso , non - iso , and unspsc compliant suppliers . the format is then converted into xml which allows for easy transmittal of the information on a computerized network . thus anyone with access to the internet can relay this information to anyone else on the internet . the information is then deconverted back into the cae file format once it is received by someone with a procurement database . the data is then stripped from the cae format using a parser and properly loaded into a procurement database .

for purposes of explaining the detailed description of the invention and for purposes of making clear the intended scope of the appended claims , the following definitions of key terms are provided : 1 . parametric searching : a search based upon variable quantity ( ies ) and / or quality ( ies ) that restricts or gives a particular form to the item it characterizes . 2 . textual searching : a search based on the matching of a string of characters with the contents of a database . 3 . attribute characteristic : a particular quality ( ies ) that restricts or gives a particular form to the item it characterizes . 5 . name : one or more of the elements of a keyword having a specific set of attribute characteristics , wherein keyword represents the name or string of names for initiating a parametric search for an item . in order to use the format set forth in the present invention , a series of steps may be taken so that the organization of the data and the hardware involved is compatible . fig1 a and 1b describe this process . the process is slightly different for iso and non - iso suppliers . the first step for an iso supplier is to put their data into the current iso standard 1001 . in one embodiment , this process will be one that the supplier must perform . this process will utilize iso 13399 , or analogous , document . the supplier then logs on to a network or exchange that provides many services such as a data aggregator or a self - aggregation service 1002 . next , the supplier data is aggregated from iso 13399 to construction , agricultural , and engine ( cae ) format 1003 ( the cae format is discussed at length below ). then the data is converted appropriately 1004 . the supplier then sends the converted data to the requestor , e . g ., requesting company , using the specified xml file format 1005 ( described in detail below ). the data then passes through a firewall using xml file transfer format 1006 . then the data is received by the requestor in the cae format using xml file transfer format 1012 . if the supplier is not an iso supplier the sequence of events is different . first , the supplier then logs on to a network or exchange that provides many services 1001 and one of those could be data aggregator or a self - aggregation service 1008 . the supplier data is aggregated from supplier format to cae format 1010 . the data is then converted appropriately 1009 . the supplier then sends the converted data to the requestor using the specified xml file format 1010 . the data then passes through the firewall using xml file transfer format 1011 . after the data has passed through a firewall from either an iso or non - iso supplier , the data is then received by the requestor in the cae format using xml file transfer format 1013 . then , if the data was from an iso supplier , the data is run through an applet that maintains internal relationship of the requestor &# 39 ; s format to iso 13399 format 1014 . the data is also deconverted from xml to the cae standard format in this step . then the data is run through a java xml parser that strips out the iso codes and values in the cae standard transmitted with the xml file transfer format and finally loads the corporate tables 1015 . the data is now available for internet applications on the cae exchange 1016 . the cae file format was designed to both iso and non - iso compliant manufacturers to easily be able to format data about their items in a way that allows efficient transport over a network , and ready to be entered into a database designed for both parametric and non - parametric searching . the format includes 27 separate fields , some of which may be repeated , depending upon the item . each field describes an important aspect of a particular item and thus a manufacturer is able to describe each item in a unique way given the flexibility of the fields . the fields that are included in the cae file format are : the supplier item number field . this is simply a number that uniquely identifies the particular item . next , are the attribute name , attribute value , and attribute value numeric indicator fields . the attribute name field holds the name of a particular attribute characteristic i . e . shape . the attribute value field , holds the specific attribute of that attribute characteristic i . e . rectangle . the attribute value numeric indicator field indicates whether or not the attribute value field is a number or not i . e . n ( it is not a number ). in one embodiment , these fields are then repeated in the above order for every attribute characteristic that defines the particular item . next are the manufacturer name , manufacturer address 1 , manufacturer address 2 , manufacturer address 3 , manufacturer city , manufacturer state , manufacturer zip , manufacturer phone , manufacturer fax , web link ( url ) fields . the manufacturer name field stores the name of the manufacturer of the part i . e . abc corp . the manufacturer address 1 , manufacturer address 2 and manufacturer address 3 fields store the street address of the manufacturer i . e . manufacturer address 1 = 1234 washington way , manufacturer address 2 = dept . 1234 , manufacturer address 3 = suite 9876 . if there is no need for a second or third line in an address , either or both of the manufacturer address 2 or manufacturer address 3 fields are not used . the manufacturer city , manufacturer state and manufacturer zip fields hold the city , state and zip code for the manufacturer . for example , manufacturer city = abctown , manufacturer state = ab and manufacturer zip = 12345 - 6789 . the manufacturer phone , manufacturer fax , web link ( url ) fields hold the phone number , fax number and web address of the company respectively . for example , manufacturer phone =( 123 ) 456 - 7890 , manufacturer fax =( 123 ) 456 - 7891 and web link ( url )= http :// www . abccorp . com . the unit of measure field holds the unit of measure that an item is sold in . for instance , a piece or a gallon etc . the bulk field holds the quantity that the item is sold in . for example , if the item is a nail and it is sold in boxes of 200 , the bulk field would contain 200 . the price and quantity fields store the price of an item based on the quantity purchased . these are both repeating items if necessary . for example , if an item costs $ 2 for 200 , $ 3 for 325 , and $ 4 for 500 , then the first price field would contain 2 , and the first quantity field would contain 200 , the second price field would contain 3 , and the second quantity field would contain 325 , and the third price field would contain 4 , and the third quantity field would contain 500 . the manufacturer item number field is used to store the manufacturers &# 39 ; part number for the item . the item description field contains a detailed description of the item . this field is very important to non - iso manufacturers , because this is the field where they can describe the particular item without needing to use attributes . the item description field is one of the fields that a non - parametric search will check , and thus allows this file format to accommodate non - iso manufacturers . the keyword field is used to hold the name of an item . this field is used to determine what category the item is a part of . for instance , if the item is a kind of adjustable drill bit , then the keyword field will contain the entry drill / bit / adjustable . the most broad category of item is first , followed by narrower categories separated by a forward slash . this will be determined by the particular unspsc standard for an unspsc compliant manufacturer , but leads to more flexibility for a non - iso manufacturer in categorizing their items . thus this field is crucial to the development of the keyword search tree . the image file field will contain the filename of an image file of the particular item if one is provided . for instance , the image file field might contain c :/ picture / image . jpg . the supplier code field is used to identify the supplier of the particular item . the ident number field may be used to store a number that is assigned by the requester , e . g ., current organization . this field is useful for internal inventory purposes . the hazardous indicator field is used to identify if the item is hazardous or not . ‘ y ’ means the item is hazardous , ‘ n ’ means it is not . the unspsc code field is used to store the ten digit unspsc code string which categorizes a particular item . finally an english - metric indicator field , is used to determine if the numeric values used to describe this item are in english or metric units . if this field has an ‘ e ’ the item uses english units , and if the field has an ‘ m ’ it uses metric units . the file may then be formatted , if necessary , in a way that will be understood by a database that expects a cae file . the data regarding an item must be in a text file . each of the above fields is delimited ( separated ) by the “& gt ;” character . for instance , acme & gt ; 100 main street . the manufacturer name ( acme ) is separated from the manufacturer address 1 ( 100 main street ) by a “& gt ;”. each field should separated by a ‘& gt ;’. if a field does not have any data , then a ‘& gt ;’ should still separate these fields . if in the above example there was no data for a manufacturer address 2 and manufacturer address 3 fields and the manufacturer city was ade , the proper format would look like this acme & gt ; 100 main street & gt ;& gt ;& gt ; ade . it must also be mentioned that no field can contain the ‘& gt ;’ character within it . since an item can have an indeterminate amount of attributes , the attribute name , attribute value , and attribute value numeric indicator fields are formatted in a special way . these fields will actually be a part of the attribute name field rather than fields by themselves . the attribute name will be listed first , and the attribute value and attribute value numeric indicator will follow , delimited by the ‘˜’ character and after the attribute value numeric indicator a semicolon (;) will be used to separate the next attribute name field . for example , & gt ; color ˜ red ˜ n ; diameter ˜ 1 . 4 ˜ y ; size ˜ 110 volt ˜ n & gt ;. this item has a red color , which is not numeric , a 1 . 4 diameter , which is numeric , and a 110 volt size , which is not numeric . it must also be mentioned that no attribute field can contain the ‘˜’ or ‘;’ characters within it . special formatting may also be used for keywords . for example , in one embodiment , if a keyword is made up of multiple words , the words should be delimited by a “/” for example , drill / bit / adjustable . keywords should be formatted with the most general word first , for instance , drill / bit / adjustable not adjustable / drill / bit . there also should never be a space adjacent to the “/” delimiter . thus adjustable / drill / bit is not acceptable . the price and quantity fields are allowed to repeat for items that have bracket prices . price and quantity are separated by a “˜” in these cases . for example , & gt ; 2 . 25 ˜ 10 & gt ; indicates that one must purchase 10 or more of the item to receive the 2 . 25 price . multiple bracket prices are separated by a “;” for example , & gt ; 2 . 50 ˜ 1 ; 2 . 25 ˜ 10 ; 2 . 00 ˜ 20 & gt ;. then one needs to buy 1 for the 2 . 50 price , 10 for the 2 . 25 price , and 20 for the 2 . 00 price . if the item does not have bracket prices then the single item price is used without a quantity for example , & gt ; 2 . 50 & gt ;. thus no matter how many or few are bought , the price for each is 2 . 50 . in one embodiment , any values in these fields must be numeric i . e . the “.” character or digits 0 – 9 . in addition , in one embodiment , dollar signs and commas are not permissible . given the above rules , in one embodiment , a properly formatted cae record layout could look like this : ga7000505 & gt ; type ˜ weekly ˜ n ; dimensions ˜ 3 . 25 × 6 . 25 ˜ n ; color ˜ black ˜ n & gt ; acme & gt ; 100 main street & gt ;& gt ;& gt ; ade & gt ; oh & gt ; 43607 & gt ; 800 - 842 - 1234 & gt ; 800 - 760 - 0776 & gt ; www . acme . com & gt ; ea & gt ;& gt ; 8 . 23 & gt ; bk001 & gt ; split page format lets you view two weeks at a time . simulated leather cover .& gt ; book / appointment & gt ; b0000001 . jpg & gt ; j4944b1 & gt ; fc59265937 & gt ; n & gt ; 0102030405 & gt ; e . in addition to the above constraints , the other rules of xml should also be observed . for example , in one embodiment , the xml tags must be exactly balanced . every start tag must have a closing tag to match it . for instance , the sequence & lt ; p & gt ;& lt ; b & gt ; bold text & lt ;/ p & gt ;& lt ;/ b & gt ; has mismatched tags , whereas the sequence & lt ; p & gt ;& lt ; b & gt ; bold text & lt ;/ b & gt ;& lt ;/ p & gt ; is correct . in another embodiment , tag attributes must be quoted . xml requires that attribute values are quoted , either with single or double quote characters like this : & lt ; table border =“ 1 ” width =“ 95 % ”& gt ;. in another embodiment , certain characters must always be “ escaped ” when present as data content in an xml file , according to the following : “ should be represented as & amp ; quot ; ‘ should be represented as & amp ; apos ; & lt ; should be represented as & amp ; lt ; & gt ; should be represented as & amp ; gt ; & amp ; should be represented as & amp ; amp . failing to use these “ entities ” ( as the xml spec calls them ) may result in the creation of an invalid xml file , which no xml parser ( program ) may be able to read . one example of using xml entities to represent a description for an amplifier is : if the original plain - text description is : b & amp ; k amplifier , 30w per channel , & lt ; 0 . 05 % thd , rated class “ a ”, then the xml - safe equivalent value is : b & amp ; amp ; k amplifier , 30w per channel , & amp ; lt ; 0 . 05 % thd , rated class & amp ; quot ; a & amp ; quot . in another embodiment , when viewed as a tree like structure , valid xml files only have one root element . in another embodiment , tag names are case sensitive , so & lt ; item_list & gt ;, & lt ; item_list & gt ; and & lt ; item_list & gt ; are all treated as different tags . in this case , all of the standards &# 39 ; tag names are entirely in lowercase . in another embodiment , the following line must be included at the very top ( outside of the root node ) of every xml file : & lt ;? xml version =“ 1 . 0 ”?& gt ;. each tag in the record must be accounted for . if the data for a particular tag is not available or not applicable , leave the data blank , but keep the tags intact . parametric searching is able to remove the guesswork from searching by proactively presenting the user with possible choices , and letting the user select which choices are desired . parametric searching also eliminates the possibility of an incorrect search based on improper terminology or names . a database should already contain desired attribute characteristics and specific attributes about an item , and allow a user to use them to search more efficiently than traditional searches . after the type of the item is properly selected through use of a keyword , a list of all or a preselected subset of all attribute characteristics about that type of item is displayed to the user . the benefit of this is that it takes the guesswork out of the user inputting what the name of an attribute might be when searching for an item . further , with columns titled “ equal to ”, “ maximum ”, and “ minimum ” and the rows being the attribute characteristics , a spreadsheet is created where the user only has to worry about inputting the specific attributes in the appropriate cells . also , because all or multiple attribute characteristics are shown , multiple criteria can be searched without the need of knowing connectors , simply by entering specific attributes in multiple cells that correspond to the different attribute characteristics . thus , the only reason entered criteria would lead to no results is if the specific attributes entered in the cells did not correspond to anything in the database , not because of an improperly formatted query due to lack of system specific search terminology . further discussion will assume that all attribute characteristics of the item are displayed for searching . further , now that a user has access to all of the attribute characteristics of an item , he has amazing control over the specificity of the search for an item . whereas filling in a specific attribute for one attribute characteristic might allow for many results which satisfy the search criteria , filling in a specific attribute for multiple attribute characteristics will quickly narrow a search to just a few possible items . this allows for fast filtering of results and less time wading through results that are not desired . another benefit of parametric searching in this manner , is that this kind of search will always bring back a conclusive answer . when searching the traditional way , it is possible that the item being searched for exists in the database but is unable to be found because of human error in spelling or formatting etc . a user has no choices to begin with and must find something that matches his query . if there is no match , a user can never be 100 % sure that it wasn &# 39 ; t his own improper searching that caused such a result . parametric searching changes this by giving the user everything in the database first , and letting the user filter his choices to what he wants . thus , if a user doesn &# 39 ; t find a match for what he is looking for , he can be assured that the item is not available in the database and , hence , not available in inventory . a system that allows parametric searching may be built from a combination of off - the - shelf hardware and software packages and custom software . the system may exist on any conventional personal computer or workstation running a suitable operating system such as windows ™, windows nt ™, or linux , for example . a suitable web browsing application , such as microsoft internet explorer ™ or netscape ™, for example may also be enabled for web - based application of the security . one aspect of the present invention includes a technique by which a user can participate in the procurement of an item via an electronic network , such as the internet or an intranet , a wide area network ( wan ) or local area network ( lan ). in one embodiment , the present invention is carried out in a computer system by a microprocessor executing files containing sequences of instructions ( e . g ., java , java server pages , or hypertext markup language or “ html ” script embedded with graphics and other scripts ) contained in a memory . the execution of these instructions cause the microprocessor to perform steps of the present invention , which are described below . the instructions may be loaded into computer - readable media for execution by the microprocessor from a storage type device . also , the instructions may be received by the computer system via a network or wireless network from another computer system . in other embodiments , hardwired circuitry may be used in place of , or in combination with , software instructions to implement the present invention . referring now to the drawings , and initially to fig2 , in one embodiment of the invention , there is a connection via internet 20 between a client system 22 and web server system 24 . web server system 24 is a multi - user , concurrent use system and includes a web server and other programs and files that can contain references to other files in addition to a computer system in which one or more web servers and other programs run . the web server system 24 further includes a database 26 , such as a relational , distributed , or object - oriented database with logic functions , processing , creating and storage , and importation and exportation of data capabilities . more specifically , the web server within the web server system 24 is a program that , using a client / server model and the world wide web &# 39 ; s hypertext transfer protocol or secure hypertext transfer protocol (“ http ” or “ https ”), serves files containing information that form web pages to users whose client systems 22 contain http clients that forward their requests . for example , a web browser application , such as microsoft internet explorer ®, for example , is a http client that sends requests to web server systems . when a user on a client system 22 enters file requests by either “ opening ” a web file ( typing in a uniform resource locator or “ url ”) or selecting a hypertext link , the web browser application builds an http request and sends it to the internet protocol address indicated by the url . the web server system 24 receives such request and , after any necessary processing , the requested file is returned to the client system 22 . the client system 22 is a computer system that includes a bus , a microprocessor coupled with the bus for processing information , and a main memory , such as ram or other dynamic storage device , coupled to the bus for storing information and instructions to be executed by the processor . the client system 22 further includes rom or other static storage device coupled to the bus for storing static information and instructions for the processor . a storage device , such as a magnetic disk or optical disk for example , is also provided and coupled to the bus for storing information and instructions . the client system 22 also includes a communication device and various input / output devices , such as monitors , keyboards , pointing devices , or printers , both being coupled to the bus . the communication device provides the client system with a connection to the internet 20 and may be a device suitable for such purpose , such as a telephone or cable modem , isdn adapter , or wireless adapter for example . fig2 – 11g illustrate examples of screens , or displayed images , of one embodiment of the present invention . fig3 a illustrates an example depicting the initial screen for a keyword search module 40 . fig3 b illustrates an individual portion of an exemplary screen depicting the category selection box 52 and pull - down menu within the keyword search module 40 . fig4 a – 4d illustrate individual portions of exemplary screens depicting keyword input field 62 , keyword selection tree 64 , and image window 82 within the keyword search module 40 . fig5 a – 5d illustrate individual portions of exemplary screens depicting an expanding keyword selection tree 64 . fig6 illustrates an example of image window 108 overlaying a screen . fig7 a – 7d illustrate whole and individual portions of exemplary screens depicting the differing attribute characteristics screens . fig7 e – 7f illustrate whole and individual portions of exemplary screens depicting the internal location and quantity search . fig8 a – 8h illustrate whole and individual portions of exemplary screens displaying specific attributes of each specific item as well as the sort order window 184 . fig9 illustrates an example of a detail screen . fig1 a – 10g illustrate whole and individual portions of images displaying exemplary screens within the manufacturer search module 42 . fig1 a – 11g illustrate whole and individual portions of images displaying exemplary screens within the global search module 44 . fig1 a – 12b illustrate the sequence of events and hardware involved in encoding , transmitting and decoding the product information using one embodiment of the present invention . fig1 a – 13b illustrate the general table structure within relation database 1004 with individual tables and their corresponding interrelationships . deciphering data from multiple manufacturers may be difficult if each manufacturer is allowed to organize his data in a different way . if this happens , each individual manufacturer would have to be dealt with in a unique way when trying to extract data from the electronic file he sent to a database . since a particular database expects data to be organized in one particular way , there would have to be a program for each manufacturer that would decipher the data properly . it would be much simpler if there was just one standardized data format to deal with , that would satisfy all of the different manufacturers associated with a corporation needs . in the case where parametric searching is involved , figuring out what attribute characteristics define a particular item , and what the specific attributes are of each attribute characteristic are crucial for the searching to work properly . a data format must be able to handle this complexity in a way that is easy for manufacturers to enter , and for the corporation to extract . unfortunately , there are situations in the procurement context where an item is not able to be searched parametrically . certain items may not yet have been standardized amongst an industry ( or iso or un / spsc ) and thus do not have attributes that are generally understood . for instance , there are no standards for defining the attributes of a pencil . one office supplier might use color and hardness in a description , where as another office supplier might use the shape and composition of the eraser as a distinguishing feature . since there are no standards , trying to search parametrically for such an item is impossible . this does not preclude the need for pencils to be in a procurement database however . it would still be nice to have data regarding a pencil in the database , but just be able to search it in a non - parametric way . thus , by having a data file format that accommodates both suppliers whose products have standardized attributes and / or keywords ( via iso and / or un / spsc ) and those suppliers whose products do not have standardized attributes and / or keywords , or suppliers with both , the present invention becomes simple enough for either kind of supplier use , and flexible enough to accommodate a wide variety of industries . this will then save time and money , since only one kind of system and program is needed to accomplish the decoding and storing of supplier data from any kind of supplier . the invention and the manner and process of making and using it are now described in such full , clear , concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains , to make and use the same . it is to be understood that the foregoing describes preferred embodiments of the present invention and that modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims . to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter regarded as invention , the following claims conclude this specification .

US-10163902-A

a method for controlling vehicle powertrain operation includes activating all - wheel - drive or 4 × 4 - operation provided one of an environmental condition , vehicle use condition and vehicle electrical condition exceeds a corresponding reference , deactivating fuel saving operation provided all - wheel - drive or 4 × 4 - operation is activated , activating fuel saving operation provided none of said conditions indicates need for awd / 4 × 4 - operation , deactivating all - wheel - drive or 4 × 4 - operation provided fuel saving operation is activated .

in fig1 a and 1b , a controller 12 , such an electronic microprocessor , receives various input signals 14 , 16 , 18 , 20 representing the environment in which the vehicle is operating 22 , the on / off state of a vehicle operator &# 39 ; s request for 4 × 4 or awd operation 24 , vehicle conditions 26 , and vehicle electrical usage and requirements 28 . the environmental conditions 22 may include , without limitation , altitude , road grade , material of the road surface ( gravel , mud , wet ), traction , condition of the road surface ( irregular terrain , snow , ice , sand ), and weather . the vehicle conditions ( operator usage ) 26 may include , without limitation , significant bed load , towing load , fifth wheel attached to the vehicle and contacting the ground , off - road terrain , adaptive / historical vehicle usage , estimated torque demand , engine throttle activation history , low transmission speed ratio , and a state of requested engine braking . the vehicle electrical usage and requirements 28 may include , without limitation , exceeding an electrical supply reference and depleted stored energy reserves in a battery . an automatic engine stop / restart system is activated and deactivated based on the presence or absence of a request for awd / 4 × 4 - operation . most vehicles equipped with awd / 4 × 4 powertrain systems operate in an automatically - applied ( awd ) manner , on - the - fly shift , or through use of a manually engaged lever . awd / 4 × 4 - operation can be integrated inside controller 12 , such as a powertrain control module ( pcm ), body control module ( bcm ), or other vehicle module . alternatively , awd / 4 × 4 - operation may be initiated from a separate module . communication may occur through can or other messaging system that provides feedback signals to alert other modules that awd / 4 × 4 - operation is activated or is desired to be activated . an automatic engine stop / restart system is also activated and deactivated in response to a signal 18 indicating a need for awd / 4 × 4 operation based on road conditions and weather conditions . automated examination of driving conditions 26 , environmental conditions 22 , and / or other available indications , such as might be provided by an anti - lock brake system ( abs ), rain sensors , a traction control system , cold weather / icy road conditions , etc . can determine whether the enhanced traction provided by off - road awd / 4 × 4 systems is required . at step 30 the control logic divides in two parts to establish whether current conditions would prioritize fuel savings over awd / 4 × 4 - operation . at step 32 a test is made to determine whether such conditions warrant activating awd / 4 × 4 automatic engine stop - restart operation . if the result of test 32 is true or positive , at step 34 , optional information regarding a change of vehicle operator is supplied to controller 12 . at step 36 if traction enhancement is required , awd / 4 × 4 - operation is activated . at step 38 deactivation of the fuel saving mode , which includes automatic engine stop - restart operation and hybrid electric - only mode , occurs or is recommended . the control logic is terminated at 40 . if the result of test 32 is false or negative indicating that such conditions are absent , deactivation of the fuel saving mode , which includes automatic engine stop - restart operation and hybrid electric - only mode , occurs at step 42 , and the control logic is terminated at 40 . one or more of the following options determine whether driving conditions may warrant enabling awd / 4 × 4 - operation and deactivating automatic engine stop - restart operation . 1 . environmental conditions may include indications of precipitation , detection of conditions for frosting or icing , wipers activated , heated windshield activated , or indications of off - road surface conditions such as operating on gravel , mud , wet , icy , etc . 2 . indications of operation in rough terrain , off - road , or mountainous conditions such as high altitude indication , road grade estimates or other angles of vehicle inclination such as indications of axial , longitudinal , yaw ( rollover ) angle , rapidly toggling between high levels of acceleration and deceleration . an automatic engine stop / restart system is also activated and deactivated in response to signal 20 indicating the capability of the vehicle &# 39 ; s electrical system to support awd / 4 × 4 - operation . if electrical power consumption governs whether automatic engine stop / restart - operation is activated , then knowledge of electrical load can be examined to determine whether to deactivate automatic engine stop / restart - operation . these actions may be decided by the powertrain controller 12 or in combination with the body / electrical controller and in reliance on information regarding current power consumption , status of active features and their energy consumption , and / or a strategy for managing loads during awd / 4 × 4 transitions to predict capability of supporting awd / 4 ×- operation . if electrical power demands or electric power references indicate that the vehicle is not capable of supporting these systems , then automatic engine stop - restart operation is deactivated at step 42 . a test is performed at step 44 to determine whether operating conditions warrant deactivating fuel saving logic including automatic engine stop - restart operation and hybrid electric - only operation . if the result of test 44 is positive , at step 46 optional information regarding a change in the vehicle operator is supplied as feedback to controller 12 . at step 50 optional activation of awd / 4 × 4 - operation occurs or is recommended , and the control logic terminates at step 40 . but if the result of test 44 is false or negative indicating absence of conditions requiring deactivation of fuel saving operation , activation of the fuel saving mode , which includes automatic engine stop - restart operation and hybrid electric - only mode , occurs at step 52 , and the control logic terminates at step 40 . as illustrated in fig2 and 3 , indications of non - uniform vehicle suspension usage are represented by air suspension indication of non - uniform displacement , torque , compression , height , angle , ground clearance indication , electronic suspension indication , and tire pressure monitoring indication of rear loading . if any of the vehicle &# 39 ; s wheels is out of position relative to one or more of the other wheels as a function of wheel height , wheel or suspension angle , in comparison to reference point , reference line or reference angle , or suspension tension , or shock travel , terrain / road control ( shown by vertical arrows in fig2 and 3 ), logic 60 of fig4 is enabled at 61 . at step 62 the vehicle suspension is evaluated in relation to suspension references , and at step 63 an estimate is made of the current terrain and road conditions . at step 64 a test is made to determine whether the current terrain and road conditions warrant deactivating fuel saving operation . if the result of test 64 is positive , at step 66 fuel saving operation is deactivated . at step 67 an optional signal representing a command to activate awd / 4 × 4 - operation or to recommend its activation issues , and the control 60 terminates at 68 . if the result to test 64 is negative , at step 69 resumption of normal vehicle operation is commanded with the fuel saving operation activated , and the control 60 terminates at 68 . fig5 shows examples of vehicle load indicators that may include any or all of the following signal outputs : air suspension indication of rearward leveling , ground clearance indication , electronic suspension indication , tire pressure monitoring indication of rear loading , engine throttle - based indication , road grade indication of load , detection of trailer hitch or fifth wheel connection ( indicated by arrows in fig5 ). when the system detects heavy engine load , high vehicle mass , trailer in tow , heavy loading , heavy payload exceeding reference limits , fuel saving operation is deactivated at step 66 substantially as described with reference to steps 62 - 67 of fig4 , unless the result of test 64 is negative , in which case resumption of normal vehicle operation is commanded at step 69 with the fuel saving operation activated . fifth wheel contacting the ground indicators may include any or all of the following output signals : air suspension indication of rearward leveling , ground clearance indication , electronic suspension indication , tire pressure monitoring indication of rear loading , throttle - based indication , road grade indication of load , engine load - based indication , road grade indication of load , tow - in - progress indication , and trailer wiring attachment indication . when the system detects vehicle operation with a fifth wheel contacting the ground fuel saving operation is deactivated at step 66 substantially as described with reference to steps 62 - 67 of fig4 , unless the result of test 64 is negative , in which case resumption of normal vehicle operation is commanded at step 69 with the fuel saving operation activated . in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes , the preferred embodiment has been described . however , it should be noted that the alternate embodiments can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described .

US-201414217690-A

in order to meet higher demands for the properties of paperboard products an improved method and machine for the manufacture of paperboard are proposed according to the present invention in which a core of a paperboard web is formed in a second forming unit from a stock with a consistency of 1 . 5 - 6 . 0 % being supplied to the fourdrinier wire of a fourdrinier former carrying a back layer formed previously in a first forming unit , from a headbox for high consistency stock and being dewatered upon being enclosed between the fourdrinier wire and a top wire in said second forming unit , and in which an underliner is formed in a third forming unit of stock with a consistency of 0 . 3 - 1 . 4 % being supplied to the fourdrinier wire carrying the back layer and core , from a headbox for stock of low consistency . in both cases dewatering occurs under the influence of upper and lower tables in the loop of respective top wires , said tables having slats separated by spaces and defining between them a passage through which a sandwich structure consisting of the fourdrinier wire , top wires and stock layer is conveyed and influenced alternatively by upper and lower slats so that the stock layer is compressed alternately from above and below , pressure pulses and shear forces thus being created in the stock layer . furthermore , in the second forming unit for high consistency forming the stock layer is kept in a fluidized state .

fig1 shows schematically a wet end in a board machine for manufacturing a paperboard web 1 composed of four layers -- a back layer 2 , a core 3 , an underliner 4 and a surface or top layer 5 . the wet end comprises an extended fourdrinier former having a fourdrinier wire 6 running in a loop around an upstream breast roll 7 , a downstream suction couch 8 , a wire running roll 9 and a plurality of guide rolls 10 consisting of alignment and tension rolls 11 and 12 , respectively . the stock - dewatering and web - forming upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 between the breast roll 7 and suction couch 8 is flat and horizontal except in certain sections , as will be explained below . the wet end comprises a plurality of forming units for forming said layers . in the embodiment shown a first forming unit 14 comprises said fourdrinier wire 6 and a headbox 15 arranged near the breast roll 7 to supply a jet of stock on the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 , said stock having a consistency of 0 . 2 - 0 . 6 %. the fourdrinier former has a fourdrinier forming section comprising a forming table 16 and hydrofoils 17 . suction boxes 18 are arranged after the fourdrinier forming section , on the lower side of the flat draw 13 of the fourdrinier wire , in order to dewater the stock , thereby producing a first layer 2 , designated the back layer , having a consistency of about 6 - 15 %, preferably 8 - 12 %. the wet end comprises a second forming unit 24 for forming a second layer 3 , designated the core or core layer , in cooperation with the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 within a first section a of the fourdrinier former . the second forming unit 24 comprises a headbox 25 , a top wire 26 and dewatering means . downstream of the headbox 25 is a support table 27 for the fourdrinier wire 6 . as can be seen in fig2 the top wire 26 runs over a plurality of guide rolls 28 and in an accompanying run 29 within said section a for cooperation with the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 . the headbox 25 of the second forming unit 24 is designed to emit a jet of stock with high consistency within the interval 2 . 5 - 3 . 5 %, in order to form the core 3 on the previously formed back layer 2 carried by the fourdrinier wire 6 . the dewatering means of the second forming unit 24 dewater the stock so that the two - layer web 2 , 3 formed has a consistency of 6 - 15 %, preferably 8 - 12 %. the wet end also has a third forming unit 34 for forming a third layer 4 , designated the underliner or underliner layer , in cooperation with the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 within a second section b of the fourdrinier former . the third forming unit 34 comprises a headbox 35 , a top wire 36 and dewatering means . downstream of the headbox 35 is a support table 37 for the fourdrinier wire 6 . as can be seen in fig4 the top wire 36 runs over a plurality of guide rolls 38 and in an accompanying run 39 within said section b for cooperation with the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 . the headbox 35 of the third forming unit 34 is designed to emit a jet of stock with low consistency within the interval 0 . 5 - 1 . 0 %, in order to form the underliner 4 on the previously formed two - layer web 2 , 3 , carried by the fourdrinier wire 6 . the dewatering means in the third forming unit dewater the stock so that the three - layer web 2 , 3 , 4 formed has a consistency of 6 - 15 %, preferably 8 - 12 %. finally , the wet end has a fourth forming unit 44 for forming a fourth layer 5 , designated the surface layer or top layer . this forming may take place in cooperation with the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 within a third section of the fourdrinier former and using a forming unit similar to the third forming unit 34 . in the alternative embodiment shown the fourth forming unit 44 comprises a short upper fourdrinier wire 46 , running in a loop around a breast roll 47 , and upper guide roll 48 and a lower guide roll 49 , the lower guide roll 49 being arranged close to the upper run 13 of the fourdrinier wire 6 of the fourdrinier former in order to couch together the surface layer 5 formed , with the three - layer web 2 , 3 , 4 . the fourth forming unit 44 comprises a headbox 45 arranged near the breast roll 47 to emit a jet of stock onto the upper flat run 53 of the fourdrinier wire 46 , said stock having a consistency of 0 . 2 - 0 . 6 %. a forming table 50 and hydrofoils 51 follow the breast roll 47 . suction boxes 52 are arranged downstream of the hydrofoils 51 , on the lower side of the flat run 53 of the fourdrinier wire 46 , in order to dewater the stock , thereby forming said surface layer 5 with a consistency of 6 - 15 %, preferably 8 - 12 %. a suction box 54 of the extended fourdrinier former causes the four - layer web to adhere to the lower fourdrinier wire 6 so that the web can subsequently be transferred at the suction couch 8 to the press section of the board machine . as best shown in fig2 the dewatering means in the second forming unit 24 comprise a leading suction box 55 arranged below the fourdrinier wire 6 at the beginning of the run 29 of the top wire 26 along the fourdrinier wire 6 , and a separation suction box 56 arranged below and along the fourdrinier wire 6 at the end of the run 29 of the top wire 26 where the top wire 26 leaves the fourdrinier wire 6 , so that the two - layer web 2 , 3 accompanies the fourdrinier wire 6 forwards . said two suction boxes 55 , 56 have curved surfaces 57 , 58 , along which the fourdrinier wire 6 slides , the downstream end of the leading suction box 55 and the upstream end of the separating suction box 56 being arranged below a reference plane at a tangent to the breast roll 7 and suction couch 8 . the dewatering means also comprise an upper dewatering table 59 located in the loop of the top wire 26 , and a lower dewatering table 60 located in the loop of the fourdrinier wire 6 . the tables 59 , 60 define a passage between them , through which the fourdrinier wire 6 and top wire 26 , enclosing the two - layer web 2 , 3 between them , pass in sliding contact with the tables 59 , 60 . the upper table 59 is arranged on the lower side of a housing 61 suspended in a stand 62 via adjustment means 63 enabling the upstream and downstream ends of the table 59 to be raised and lowered independently of each other in order to incline the table 59 in relation to a reference plane at a tangent to the breast roll 7 and suction couch 8 , and also enabling the table 59 as a whole to be lowered and set at a level below said reference plane so that the top wire 26 and fourdrinier wire 6 are bent downwards and brought into sliding contact with the curved surfaces 57 , 58 of the suction boxes 55 , 56 . in the embodiment shown , the housing 61 comprises four suction chambers 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 to collect the white water pressed up through the top wire 26 due to the suction action . the upper table 59 comprises a plurality of slats 69 , fixed in relation to the housing 61 and separated by spaces 68 , whereby each suction chamber , except for the first one , is in open communication with its own group of spaces 68 in order to suck up the white water pressed out of the core 3 through the top wire 26 . as best seen in fig3 the upstream end of the upper table 59 has a slat 70 which scrapes gently against the top wire 26 in order to deflect the white water that collects on the upper side of the top wire as it passes said leading suction box 55 , to the first suction chamber 64 as seen in fig2 via an autoslice 71 . the upper table 59 has a first or leading straight zone 72 and a second or final curved zone 73 with large radius . the lower table 60 is located opposite the leading straight zone 72 of the upper table 59 , and comprises a plurality of slats 74 displaced in relation to the slats 69 of the upper table 59 . the slats 74 are separated by spaces 75 in order to deflect the small quantity of white water that is pressed out of the web in a downward direction . these spaces 75 are located opposite the slats 69 of the upper table 59 , whereas the spaces 68 of the upper table 59 are located opposite the slats 74 of the lower table 60 in an overlapping relationship . the slats 74 of the lower table 60 are mutually adjustable in vertical direction so that their pressure against the fourdrinier wire 6 can be regulated . in the embodiment shown the slats 74 rest on rubber tubes 76 in which the air pressure can be regulated . the slats 74 are carried by a stand 77 as seen in fig2 via upper and lower u - beams 78 , 79 enclosing the rubber tube 76 so that it can press the upper u - beam 78 and its slat 74 in an upward direction . the passage between the tables 59 and 60 converges in the direction of travel of the fourdrinier wire 6 , the convergence being regulated by the inclination of the upper table 59 by means of adjustment means 63 . this convergence , not shown in detail in fig3 controls the amount of water remaining in the core in order to retain a fluidized state in the core . the slats with the inclined surfaces 80 , 81 contribute to enough water being retained in the stock layer 3 during its forming to prevent the fibers from &# 34 ; freezing &# 34 ;. the slats 69 of the upper table 59 within said leading straight zone 72 and the slats 74 of the lower table 60 have inclined surfaces 80 , 81 facing the wires 6 , 26 and converging in the direction of travel of the wires 6 , 26 , so that each slat 69 , 74 has a downstream end portion 82 along which the wires 6 , 26 slide , and an upstream end portion 83 which is not in contact with the wires 6 , 26 . the inclined slat surfaces 80 , 81 form an angle α of 5 - 25 °, preferably 10 - 15 °, with a reference plane that intersects the downstream end portions 82 of the slat surfaces 80 , 81 . as shown in fig4 the dewatering means in the third forming unit 34 comprise a leading suction box 85 arranged below the fourdrinier wire 6 at the beginning of the run 39 of the top wire 36 along the fourdrinier wire 6 , and a separation suction box 86 arranged below and along the fourdrinier wire 6 at the end of the run 39 of the top wire 36 where the top wire 36 leaves the fourdrinier wire 6 , so that the three - layer web 2 , 3 , 4 accompanies the fourdrinier wire 6 forwards . said two suction boxes 85 , 86 have curved surfaces 87 , 88 , along which the fourdrinier wire 6 slides , the downstream end of the leading suction box 85 and the upstream end of the separating suction box 86 being arranged below a reference plane at a tangent to the breast roll 7 and suction couch 8 . the dewatering means also comprise an upper dewatering table 89 located in the loop of the top wire 36 , and a lower dewatering table 90 located in the loop of the fourdrinier wire 6 . the tables 89 , 90 define a passage between them , through which the fourdrinier wire 6 and top wire 36 , enclosing the three - layer web 2 , 3 , 4 between them , pass in sliding contact with the tables 89 , 90 . the upper table 89 is arranged on the lower side of a housing 91 suspended in a stand 92 via adjustment means 93 enabling the upstream and downstream ends of the table 89 to be raised and lowered independently of each other in order to incline the table 89 in relation to a reference plane at a tangent to the breast roll 7 and suction couch 8 , and also enabling the table 89 as a whole to be lowered and set at a level below said reference plane so that the top wire 36 and fourdrinier wire 6 are bent downwards and brought into sliding contact with the curved surfaces 87 , 88 of the suction boxes 85 , 86 . in the embodiment shown , the housing 91 comprises four suction chambers 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 to collect the white water pressed up through the top wire 36 due to the suction action . the upper table 89 comprises a plurality of slats 99 , fixed in relation to the housing 91 and separated by spaces 98 , whereby each suction chamber , except for the first one , is in open communication with its own group of spaces 98 in order to suck up the white water pressed out of the underliner 4 through the top wire 36 . the upstream end of the upper table 89 has a slat 100 which scrapes gently against the top wire 36 in order to deflect the white water that collects on the upper side of the top wire as it passes said leading suction box 85 , to the first suction chamber 94 via an autoslice ( not shown ). the upper table 89 has a first or leading straight zone 102 and a second or final curved zone 103 with large radius . the lower table 90 is located opposite the leading straight zone 102 of the upper table 89 , and comprises a plurality of slats 104 displaced in relation to the slats 99 of the upper table 89 . the slats 104 are separated by spaces 105 in order to deflect the small quantity of white water that is pressed out of the web in a downward direction . these spaces 105 are located opposite the slats 99 of the upper table 89 , whereas the spaces 98 of the upper table 89 are located opposite the slats 104 of the lower table 90 in an overlapping relationship . the slats 104 of the lower table 90 are mutually adjustable in a vertical direction so that their pressure against the fourdrinier wire 6 can be regulated . the slats 104 are influenced by rubber tubes ( not shown ) in which the air pressure can be regulated . the slats 104 are carried by a stand 107 via elements 108 similar to the beams 78 , 79 in fig3 said elements enclosing the rubber tubes to press the slats 104 in an upward direction . the passage between the tables 89 , 90 converges in the direction of travel of the fourdrinier wire 6 , the convergence being regulated by the inclination of the upper table 89 by means of adjustment means 93 . this convergence controls the amount of water to remain in the underliner . if desired , an additional forming unit may be used for forming the core , in which case it may have the same design as the second forming unit described above .

US-86655797-A

a transmission for transmitting rotary power in forward and reverse directions from a programmable source of input motion such as an electric motor uses individually rotatable coaxially mounted lock plates each having a pawl receiving socket therein providing access to an arcuate slot of selected angular length permits engagement and disengagement of the transmission only when input torque is applied thereto in forward and reverse directions to rotate the transmission input gear through pre - defined angles . the pawl is part of a frictionally driven shift arm on which a driven shift gear is also mounted whereby the driven shift gear is pivotally moved into and out of engagement with the output gear or gears of the transmission when the pawl is pivotally moved out of or into the sockets in the lock plates . rotation limit stops are provided on the lock plates at selected angular positions so that the transmission can be engaged or disengaged for transmission of torque in both forward and reverse directions only when the motor is rotated through a sequence of predetermined angles in predetermined directions .

the transmission of the present invention preferably is comprised of molded plastic parts such as nylon ®, delrin ® / pom , polycarborate and is preferably enclosed in a frame or housing of suitable configuration which may include spaced side plates 12 , 14 as shown schematically in fig1 . in the orientation of the transmission seen in fig1 the side plate 12 will be referred to as an “ inner ” side plate and the opposite side plate 14 will be referred to as an “ outer ” side plate as will various other parts of the transmission . the inner side plate 12 has an input gear shaft 18 extending therefrom to receive an input sun gear 20 which is freely rotatable on the shaft 18 , and a shift arm 30 which is also freely rotatable on the shaft 18 and is urged by a compression spring 32 seated against the outer side plate 14 into face - to - face frictional engagement with the outer side face of the input or sun gear 20 . optionally , an input gear train comprised of additional input gears 22 , 24 respectively supported on shafts 26 , 28 , in driving relationship with the input sun gear 20 may also be present to receive input torque from a controllable drive motor , not shown . a specially configured non - rotatable generally cylindrical clutch shaft 40 receives an inner lock plate 50 and a clutch gear 60 which are freely rotatable on the shaft 40 , the inner lock plate 50 and clutch gear 60 having abutting surfaces which are urged into frictional engagement with each other by a spring 62 . the clutch shaft 40 has an inner end 41 of non - circular configuration received in a complementary configured aperture 42 in the inner side plate 12 . extending from the outer end of the clutch shaft is a cylindrical pin 43 on which is received an outer lock plate 70 . the outer lock plate 70 is urged by a spring 72 seated against the outer side plate toward the outer end surface of a rotation limiter shown as a semi - circular disc 44 integrally formed on the clutch shaft 40 . as shown , the semi - circular disc 44 has stop shoulders 45 , 46 spaced from each other at a selected angle which , as shown , is somewhat less than 180 °. the inner lock plate 50 includes a c shaped socket 52 therein comprised of a radially extending gate 54 and an arcuate slot 56 of selected angular length . similarly , the outer lock plate 70 also has a socket 72 therein including a radially extending gate 74 and an arcuate slot 76 of selected angular length . as seen in the drawing , the angular length of the outer lock plate slot 76 is significantly shorter than the angular length of the inner lock plate slot 56 ; however , the relative lengths of the slots 56 , 76 in the lock plates 50 , 70 are not critical and are selected to coact with programed forward and reverse rotation of the motor which supplies input power to the transmission as will be described below . the clutch gear 60 is continuously engaged with the input sun gear 20 and is thus continuously driven thereby whenever rotary power is supplied in forward or reverse directions to the input gear 20 . an output gear shaft 77 extends from the inner side plate 12 and receives at least one and preferably two mutually engageable output gears 80 , 82 . when the transmission is engaged , the outer output gear 80 is engaged with a shift gear 90 rotatably supported on the shift arm 30 and the shift gear 90 is continuously engaged with and driven in forward and reverse directions by the sun gear 20 . the shift gear 90 is arcuately moved into and out of engagement with the outer output gear 80 as the shift arm 30 pivots on its support shaft 18 . the shift arm 30 also includes an integrally formed pawl 34 receivable in the radially extending gates 54 , 74 of the inner and outer lock plates 50 , 70 , the pawl 34 being captured in the arcuate slots 56 , 76 of the lock plates when the transmission is engaged . the compression spring 32 seated against the outer side plate 14 urges the shift arm 30 into face - to - face frictional engagement with the input sun gear 20 as previously described . a designed - in lag in commencement of and cessation of transmission output may be provided by use of a second or inner output gear 82 which is driven by the outer output gear 80 through the use of axially extending mutually engageable stops 84 , 86 of selected angular extent on the facing sides of the outer and inner output gears 80 , 82 as best seen in fig1 and 13 . as seen in fig6 and 8 which show the facing sides of the inner and outer lock plates 50 , 70 respectively , two rotation limit stops 58 and 59 are provided on the outer side of the inner lock plate 50 and a single rotation limit stop 78 is formed on the inner side of the outer lock plate 70 . rotation of the outer lock plate 70 is confined to the angle between the disc shoulders 45 , 46 which are engaged by the outer lock plate stop 78 at the ends of travel of the outer lock plate . rotation of the inner lock plate 50 relative to the outer lock plate 70 is confined to the angular spacing between the stops 58 , 59 which are also engaged by the outer lock plate stop 78 . it will be noted that in the embodiment shown , rotation of the outer lock plate 70 relative to the inner lock plate 50 is defined by the excess by which the angular length of the slot 56 in the inner lock plate exceeds the angular length of the slot 76 in the outer lock plate . the facing sides of the inner lock plate 50 and outer lock plate 70 are also preferably also configured to define a generally cylindrical cavity or recess 59 in which the semi - circular disc 44 is received . operation of the transmission will now be described with reference to the sequence of positions schematically shown in fig1 starting with fig1 a which shows the transmission after disengagement with the radial gates 54 , 74 in the lock plates remaining aligned and the pawl 34 positioned externally of the lock plate sockets . counterclockwise rotation of the sun gear 20 will be assumed to be the forward direction of rotation and clockwise rotation of gear 20 will be reverse . forward rotation urges the pawl 34 radially toward the lock plates due to frictional engagement of the sun gear 20 and shift arm 30 , causing the pawl 34 to enter the gates 54 , 74 when the gates are aligned . conversely , reverse rotation causes the pawl 34 to exit the sockets 52 , 72 when the pawl 34 is aligned with the gates 54 , 74 and when the gates 54 , 74 are aligned with each other . the transmission is engaged by first rotating the input gear 20 by a programmed motor through a selected angle in a reverse direction to ensure that the pawl 34 has been pivoted out of the lock plate sockets 52 , 72 and then rotating the input gear 20 in the forward direction to cause the pawl 34 to enter the sockets in the lock plates to permit the shift gear 90 , driven by the input gear 20 , to pivot into engagement with the output gear 80 . the lock plate 50 then rotates clockwise due to frictional engagement with the clutch gear 60 and the lock plate 70 is rotated clockwise due to engagement of the inner lock plate stop 58 with the outer lock plate stop 78 until the pawl 34 contacts the left ends of the gate slots 56 , 76 as seen in fig1 b . at this time the outer lock plate stop 78 also contacts the right side disc shoulder 46 to prevent further clockwise rotation of the outer lock plate 70 . when the motor is driven in the reverse direction , the pawl 36 hits the right ends of the slots 56 , 76 as seen in fig1 c , reverse torque then being applied to the output gears 80 , 82 . the transmission is disengaged after forward drive by first rotating the input gear 20 in reverse which frictionally rotates the inner lock plate 50 counterclockwise and the outer lock plate counterclockwise due to engagement of the stops 59 and 78 until rotation of the outer lock plate 70 is terminated by engagement of the stop 78 with the left shoulder 45 of the disc 44 . the inner lock plate 50 continues to rotate counterclockwise for only the necessary angular distance under programmed control of the motor for a selected angle until the gates 54 , 74 are aligned . the motor then drives the transmission forward until gates align with the pawl 36 which then permits the pawl 34 to exit the sockets 52 , 72 under frictional urging by the face to face contact of the shift arm 30 with the sun gear 20 . the transmission is disengaged after reverse drive by rotating the motor forwardly for the precise angle until the gates align with the pawl 36 which then exits the sockets 52 , 72 . the transmission can only be engaged with precise controlled reverse rotation and can only be disengaged by programmed precise forward and then reverse rotation . if the reverse rotation angle is shorter or longer than the prescribed amount , then the transmission will not engage . likewise , if the angles of rotation in the forward and reverse directions are incorrect the transmission will not disengage . the precise angles of rotation of the input gear 20 to cause engagement or disengagement of the transmission as desired are accurately controllable through programming of the input motor which applies torque to the input gear 20 or gear train 20 , 22 , 24 . two lock plates 50 , 70 are shown in the described embodiment but it will be appreciated that a transmission can be constructed with more than two lock plates such that multiple programmed reverse and forward rotations of the input gear 20 by a motor are required to cause engagement and disengagement . when the transmission is disengaged , i . e ., when the pawl 34 is clear of the lock plate sockets 52 , 72 , the lock plate 50 is permitted to freely rotate on the clutch shaft since the inner lock plate 50 is friction coupled to the clutch gear 60 and turns with the gear 60 since the pawl 34 is clear of the sockets . rotation of the outer lock plate 70 is caused and the angles of rotation thereof are limited by engagement of the stops 58 or 59 with stop 78 and by engagement of stop 78 with the disc shoulders 45 , 46 which create a hysteresis or dead band of rotation of selected arcuate length . only one particular sequence of forward and reverse input motions is required to engage the transmission and a second and different sequence is used to disengage the transmission . the sequences can be designed to be equal to each other but in this implementation are not the same . the preferred embodiment therefore allows selective engagement or disengagement of the transmission with merely the proper programmed forward and reverse rotation of the input motor . the transmission can be used to transmit torque in both the forward and reverse directions without disengagement and can be disengaged when not in use to reduce parasitic power consumption . adjustment of the angular extent of the lock plate slots 56 , 76 and angular spacing between the stop shoulders 45 , 46 on the clutch shaft disc 44 and the spacing and configuration of the mutually engageable stops 84 , 86 on the inner and outer output gears 80 , 82 ( if two output gears are provided ), permits variation of the engagement and disengagement sequences and optionally designed motion lag thus allowing for a single motor to selectively power a number of devices independently or simultaneously . the design is entirely mechanical requiring no external input , either mechanical , electrical or otherwise beyond the easily programmable rotational power input of the torque of drive torque . persons skilled in the art will also appreciate that various additional modifications can be made in the preferred embodiment shown and described above and that the scope of protection is limited only by the wording of the claims which follow .

US-84800901-A

a device for separating constituents of a fluid mixture includes an elongate vessel oriented at an acute angle to horizontal . the vessel is operable to receive the fluid mixture and direct the fluid mixture to flow in a convection cell spanning substantially a length of the vessel . the convection cell is formed by gravitational forces acting on the fluid mixture and is operable to deposit a heavy constituent of the fluid mixture about a lower end of the vessel and a light constituent of the fluid mixture about an upper end of the vessel .

referring first to fig1 , an illustrative separator 100 constructed in accordance with the invention includes an elongate vessel 110 oriented with its longitudinal axis at an acute angle θ relative to horizontal . as is discussed in more detail below , the angle θ may be different in different applications . in one instance , angle θ is between about 30 ° and about 70 °. additionally , as is discussed in more detail below , the length of the vessel 110 is greater than a transverse dimension , for example diameter , of the vessel 110 . in one instance , the length of the vessel 110 may be greater than twice or three times the transverse dimension ( e . g . diameter ). in one instance , the aspect ratio of the vessel 110 is 2 : 1 or greater . the vessel 110 can include one or more inlet ports 112 through which a fluid mixture for separation is introduced . the vessel 110 can include one or more outlet ports 114 through which the separated constituent fluids and particulate can be withdrawn . the inlet port 112 and outlet port 114 can be in various different locations . for example , the separator 100 of fig1 includes a light constituent outlet port 114 a about an upper end of the vessel 110 and a heavy constituent outlet port 114 b about a lower end of the vessel 110 . in another instance , the inlet port 112 can be near the bottom of the vessel 110 and the one or more outlet ports 114 can be above the inlet port 112 . in yet another instance , the inlet port 112 can be near the top of the vessel 110 and the one or more outlet ports 114 below the inlet port 112 . although depicted in fig1 as exiting a lateral wall of the vessel 110 , the outlet ports 114 may exit the vessel 110 elsewhere . for example , in illustrative separator 200 of fig2 a , the outlet ports 114 exit the end walls of the elongate vessel 210 . referring back to fig1 , the inlet port 1112 is located intermediate the outlet ports 114 . although depicted substantially equidistant between the outlet ports 114 , the inlet port 112 may be positioned closer to one or the other ends of the vessel 110 . the illustrative separators described herein are operable in separating one or more constituents of disparate density from a fluid mixture . the fluid mixture can be a mixture of one or more immiscible fluids , as well as a mixture of one or more fluids and solids ( e . g . particulate ). the constituents of disparate density are referred to herein for convenience of reference as a light constituent and a heavy constituent of the fluid mixture . in one instance , for example in an oilfield application , the separators may be used in separating a fluid mixture of oil and water , where the heavy constituent is water and the light constituent is oil . the separators may be used in separating particulate such as formation fines ( e . g . sand ) and fracturing proppant from one or more liquids ( e . g . oil and water ). in use separating particulate from oil and / or water , the heavy constituent is particulate and the light constituent is the oil and / or water . there are many other mixtures of immiscible fluids and mixtures of fluids and solids to which the concepts described herein are applicable . for example , in another instance , such as a beverage manufacturing application , the separators can be used in separating a fluid mixture including orange juice ( light constituent ) and orange pulp ( heavy constituent ). some other examples can include milk and particulate , paint and particulate , and lubrication oil and contaminates . in operation , the fluid mixture is input through the inlet port 112 into the interior of the vessel 110 . by force of gravity , the heavy constituents 115 of the fluid mixture begin to sink substantially vertically downward ( substantially parallel to the gravity vector ) and collect about lower sidewall 116 of the vessel 110 . this sinking or vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 115 occurs substantially throughout the length of the vessel 110 . the collecting heavy constituents 115 about the lower sidewall 116 creates a hydrostatic pressure imbalance between the fluid mixture about upper sidewall 118 of the vessel 110 and the fluid mixture about the lower sidewall 116 , because of the density differential of the fluid mixtures . as a result , the fluid mixture about the lower sidewall 116 , containing a larger portion of heavy constituents 115 , begins to travel downward along the lower sidewall 116 and substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vessel 110 . the fluid mixture about the upper sidewall 118 , containing a smaller portion of heavy constituents 115 , correspondingly begins to travel upward along the upper sidewall 118 and substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vessel 110 . the result is a convection cell 120 that spans between upper end 122 and lower end 124 of the vessel 110 ; the convection cell 120 defined by fluid flowing down the lower sidewall 116 , turning at the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 , flowing up the upper sidewall 118 and turning at the upper end 122 of the vessel 110 . in addition to the convection cell 120 , the substantially vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 115 continues substantially throughout the vessel 110 . as the fluid mixture containing a larger portion of heavy constituents 115 turns at the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 to flow back upward along the upper sidewall 118 , it deposits a portion of the heavy constituents 115 at the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 . therefore , the fluid flowing from the lower end 124 , back up the upper sidewall 118 has a reduced portion of heavy constituents 115 . the amount of heavy constituents 115 in the flow flowing up from the lower end 124 further decreases as the flow continues back up the upper sidewall 118 , because the heavy constituents 115 continue to sink vertically downward ( vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 115 ) and join the flow along the lower sidewall 116 . the vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 115 continues , and continues to join the flow along the lower sidewall 116 as the flow continues upward to the upper end 122 . no undulations or protrusions are needed on the interior surface of the vessel 110 to turn or otherwise disturb the fluid flow to effect the constituent separation . the convection cell 120 and the vertically downward flow of heavy constituent 115 operate continuously while fluid is introduced through the inlet port 112 . therefore , the heavy constituents 115 are separated toward the lower end 124 and the light constituents toward the upper end 122 . the heavy constituents 115 can be withdrawn through the heavy constituent outlet port 114 b near the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 . likewise , the light constituents can be withdrawn through the light constituent outlet port 114 a near the upper end 122 of the vessel 110 . it has been found that an angle of inclination ( θ ) between about 40 - 60 degrees produces efficient operation , although other angles also work . steeper angles are less conducive to convective action , but may still be operable . shallower angles , likewise may still be operable , but generally need longer sidewalls 116 . putting the increased size of the vessel 110 aside , longer sidewalls 116 also mean more friction ; thus reducing effectiveness of the separation . because the fluid circulates within the convection cell 120 , the separator 100 can separate the constituents of a fluid mixture faster than the heavy constituent 115 can settle vertically downward and out of the light constituent . furthermore , no energy needs to be input into the system to effect the separation other than the force of gravity . conventional separators relying solely on the heavy constituents settling vertically downward and out of the light constituents are limited by the terminal velocity of the heavy constituent in the fluid mixture . once the heavy constituent reaches its terminal downward velocity , the separation cannot occur any faster . the convection cell 120 formed by the separator 100 , however , carries the heavy constituent 115 towards the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 at a rate that is faster than the terminal velocity of the heavy constituent 115 . therefore , the heavy constituent 115 is transported to the lower end 124 and separated from the light constituent at a higher rate . a long , narrow vessel 110 is more efficient at forming a convection cell 120 than a short , wide vessel . the efficiency of a long , narrow vessel 110 stems from the pressure in the axis of the downward flow along the lower sidewall 116 being greater than the pressure in the axis of the vertically downward flow of heavy constituent 115 at the point where the flow along the lower sidewall 116 turns to flow upward . at the lower end 124 of the vessel 110 , the downward flow along the lower sidewall 116 turns and flows against the vertically downward flow of heavy constituent 115 . to form a convection cell 120 , the upward flow from the lower sidewall 116 must overpower the vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 1115 . as a transverse dimension of the vessel 110 decreases , the hydrostatic pressure differential in the axis of the vertically downward flow of heavy constituents 115 is reduced . likewise as the length of the vessel 110 increases , the hydrostatic pressure differential in axis of the downward flow along the lower sidewall 116 increases . therefore , as the ratio of length to width increases , so does the ability of the upward flow from the lower sidewall 116 to overpower the vertically downward flow of the heavy constituent 115 . likewise , as the length increases , the fluid velocity gets higher . this increases friction between the fluid and the walls , and also between the two opposing fluids . therefore , increases in length , beyond a certain length may not increase the speed of separation . however , increasing the length further would increase the quality or purity of the separation as separation continues throughout the length of the vessel the separator 100 can be configured to be free - standing or linked to other equipment for above - ground or on - seafloor installations . alternately , the separator 100 can be buried below the earth &# 39 ; s surface . locating the separator 100 below the earth &# 39 ; s surface not only preserves the surface for other uses , but protects the separator 100 from potential damage that may occur when on the surface . additionally the separator 100 may be placed inside of a well bore , or located adjacent one or more wells for use in separating a fluid mixture associated with the wells . as an alternative to burying the separator 100 , an equivalent structure to one or more of the vessel 110 , inlet port 112 , and / or outlet ports 114 can be bored into the earth and used as a separator . other configurations of separators described herein may also be buried below the earth &# 39 ; s surface or constructed with equivalent structures bored into the earth . fig2 a shows a space efficient manner of co - locating two or more separators 200 . as is shown in the figure , the separators 200 are substantially linear , and therefore can be placed closely adjacent one another in a nested arrangement . the separators 200 can be arranged to operate in series ( fig2 b ), where an outlet 114 of one separator 200 feeds an inlet 112 of another separator , or the separators 200 can be arranged to operate in parallel ( fig2 c ), where a fluid mixture to be separated is distributed among the inlets 112 of the two or more separators 200 . configuring the separators 200 in series ( fig2 b ) enables further separation of one constituent of a fluid mixture into sub - constituents . for example , a first of two separators 200 in series may separate particulate and water from oil , and the second of the two separators 200 may separate the particulate from the water . fig3 a depicts a plurality of alternate illustrative separators 300 , each separator 300 substantially helical and configuration . in a similar manner to the substantially linear separators 200 depicted in fig2 a , the substantially helical separators 300 of fig3 a can be placed closely adjacent one another and a nested arrangement . the separators 300 , each have an elongate helical vessel 310 with an inlet port 312 and one or more outlet ports 314 , for example a light constituent outlet port 314 a and a heavy constituent outlet port 314 b . as is best seen in fig3 b , the separators 300 configured in a nested arrangement are suited for placement within a cylindrical body , such as the conductor casing 316 at or near a subsea wellhead 320 . turning now to fig4 , another alternate illustrative separator 400 incorporates a filter 426 . the separator 400 is operable to separate the heavy and light constituents of a fluid mixture by establishing a convection cell 420 as is described above with reference to fig1 . however , rather than being the primary separation mechanism , as above , the convection cell 420 in the separator 400 operates to initially separate the heavy and light constituents of the fluid mixture prior to filtration of a portion of the fluid mixture by the filter 426 . by operating to initially separate the heavy constituents of the fluid mixture prior to filtration by the filter 426 , the convection cell 420 reduces the filtering load on the filter 426 . the reduced filtering load on the filter 426 reduces clogging and prolongs the life of the filter 426 . the separator 400 includes an elongate vessel 410 having an inlet port 412 and one or more outlet ports 414 , for example a light constituent outlet port 414 a and a heavy constituent outlet port 414 b . as above , the light constituent outlet port 414 a may be positioned about an upper end 422 of the vessel 410 and the heavy constituent outlet port 414 b may be positioned about a lower end 424 of the vessel 410 . in one illustrative implementation , the filter 426 may be a membrane that spans , at least partially , across an interior of the vessel 410 . gaps ( not specifically shown ) may be provided in the filter 426 to allow passage of fluid if the filter 426 becomes blocked . in one implementation the filter 426 may be an ionically treated porous membrane that may also or alternatively be a molecularly sized porous membrane . the filter 426 may be positioned above or below the inlet port 412 . in the configuration of fig4 , the filter 426 is positioned below the inlet port 412 and oriented to span the interior of the vessel 410 at a diagonal . one instance where it may be desirable for the filter 426 to be positioned below the inlet port 412 is a configuration where the filter 426 filters the light constituent and passes the heavy constituent . for example , the filter 426 may be oil philic and hydrophobic to filter oil from water and pass the water . one instance where it may be desirable for the filter 426 to be positioned about the inlet port 412 is a configuration where the filter 426 filters the heavy constituent and passes the light constituent . for example , the filter 426 may be a fine mesh that filters particulate from water and / or oil . operation of the separator 400 is similar to the separator 100 of fig1 above in that a fluid mixture is introduced through the inlet port 412 , heavy constituent 415 sinks substantially vertically downward ( vertically downward flow of heavy constituent 415 ) toward lower sidewall 416 and begins convection cell 420 of a fluid mixture containing a larger portion of heavy constituent 415 flowing downward along the lower sidewall 416 and a fluid mixture containing the remaining light constituent and a lesser portion , if any , of the heavy constituent 415 flowing upward along upper sidewall 418 . the fluid mixture containing a larger portion of heavy constituent 415 flows down the lower sidewall 416 and through the filter 426 . as the fluid mixture flowing down the lower sidewall 416 and through the filter 426 contains a lesser portion of the light constituent , the amount of the light constituent that the filter 426 must remove is less . accordingly the filter 426 is less prone to clogging with light constituent and will last longer than if the filter 426 is used alone without the convection cell 420 . in a configuration where the filter 426 is adapted to filter the heavy flow and pass the light flow , for example in a configuration where the filter 426 is positioned above the inlet port 412 , the flow entering the filter 426 has a smaller portion of the heavy constituent 415 , thereby reducing clogging with heavy constituent 415 and increasing the life of the filter 426 . the concepts described herein are not limited to use of a membrane type filter 426 . rather , numerous other types of filters can be used , including but not limited to capillary filters , centrifuges , cyclones , and others . for example , fig5 depicts another alternate illustrative separator 500 that incorporates a prepacked screen as a filter 526 . a prepacked screen is a screen that carries filter media , for example a particulate media such as sand , operable to filter a constituent from the fluid mixture . in an instance of filtering oil from water , the filter media can be sand that is treated to be hydrophobic and thereby pass water and filter oil . as above , the separator 500 is configured to form a convection cell 520 that operates to initially separate the heavy and light constituents of the fluid mixture prior to filtration of a portion of the fluid mixture by the filter 526 . the filter 526 may be positioned above or below the inlet port 512 . additionally , the vessel 510 may include one or more outlet ports 514 , for example a light constituent outlet port 514 a about an upper end 522 of the vessel 510 and a heavy constituent outlet port 514 b about a lower end 524 of the vessel 510 . the filter 526 is cylindrical in configuration and resides adjacent lower sidewall 516 of the vessel 510 . because the filter 526 resides adjacent the lower sidewall 516 , the fluid mixture entering the filter 526 contains a larger portion of the heavy constituent . the fluid mixture enters through an upper end wall 528 and / or a lateral sidewall 530 of the filter 526 , passes axially through the filter 526 , and exits about a lower end 532 of the filter 526 . the filter 526 can also be used in conjunction with a bypass mechanism 534 , for example a choke or pressure limiting valve , to allow passage of the fluid mixture should be filter 526 become plugged or otherwise stopped . although several illustrative implementations of the invention have been described in detail above , those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many other variations and modifications are possible without materially departing from the concepts described herein . accordingly , other implementations are intended to fall within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims .

US-11995605-A

an exhaust gas system for converting harmful substances of an exhaust gas of a mobile internal combustion engine includes at least one reducing agent feed , a catalytic converter , a filter element and an exhaust pipe . the reducing agent feed opens into the exhaust pipe upstream of the filter element , while the catalytic converter is disposed downstream of the filter element , as seen in exhaust gas flow direction . additional components , such as a mixer , a pre - catalytic converter and a heating element , etc . used for purifying exhaust gas , may also be advantageously integrated into the system .

referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first , particularly , to fig1 thereof , there is seen an illustration of an exhaust gas system 1 for converting pollutants in an exhaust gas from a mobile internal combustion engine 2 . the illustrated embodiment shows a number of specific configurations of components used for the conversion . the advantages referred to above may also be realized individually . as is seen in a flow direction 7 of the exhaust gas , the internal combustion engine 2 is followed first of all by a primary catalytic converter 17 , which is preferably connected downstream of but relatively close to the engine . the primary catalytic converter 17 in particular performs the function of starting the conversion of pollutants even during the cold - start phase . it is able to do so because the exhaust gas emitted by the internal combustion engine 2 is relatively hot . downstream of the primary catalytic converter 17 is a structural unit made up of a catalyst carrier 16 and a heating element 14 . this structural unit is explained in more detail below with reference to fig2 . a reducing agent , in particular solid urea , which is used to reduce nitrogen oxides , is introduced into an exhaust pipe 6 with the aid of a reducing agent feed 3 , at a location downstream of the heating element 14 and upstream of a filter element 5 . the filter element 5 is represented in this case by a plurality of disk - like , in particular metallic , honeycomb bodies . in the illustrated exemplary embodiment , a reducing agent feed 3 is not provided only upstream of the filter element 5 , but instead reducing agent is additionally supplied downstream of the filter element 5 ( for example in liquid and / or gas form ). the exhaust gas which has been provided with the reducing agent then comes into contact with a mixer 11 , which effects a final fine distribution of reducing agent droplets or particles in the exhaust gas . the exhaust gas which has been pretreated in this way then comes into contact with a catalytic converter 4 , which in this case has a conical honeycomb structure 15 on an exhaust - gas inlet side . the pollutants in the exhaust gas are converted with the aid of the catalytic converter 4 . this is true in particular of nitrogen oxides , which are converted by using the scr process . fig2 diagrammatically illustrates a sectional view through the structural unit made up of the catalyst carrier 16 and the heating element 14 . the configuration of these components is selected to be such that the heating element 14 is connected downstream of the catalyst carrier 16 , as seen in the flow direction 7 of the exhaust gas . the catalyst carrier 16 includes a tubular casing 18 , in the interior of which a multiplicity of sheet - metal layers 9 are disposed . these sheet - metal layers are structured and / or wound together in such a way as to form passages 13 through which an exhaust gas can flow . the heating element 14 is secured to a downstream end side of the catalyst carrier 16 . this is done by pins 19 , which are disposed on the outside of the tubular casing 18 of the catalyst carrier 16 or extend into inner regions . due to the fact that the heating element 14 is electrically heated , the pins 19 are provided with an insulation 20 , preventing electrical contact with the catalyst carrier 16 . the illustrated heating element 16 likewise has a multiplicity of sheet - metal layers 9 which form passages 13 through which the exhaust gas can flow and which are preferably disposed parallel to the flow direction 7 of the exhaust gas . the exhaust pipe 6 has terminals 21 , through which electrodes 22 extend in electrically insulated form , for the supply of current . the heating element 14 can be supplied with direct current or alternating current via the electrodes 22 . fig3 shows portions of sheet - metal layers 9 which have microstructures 10 and form a honeycomb body 8 . these configurations of sheet - metal layers 9 or honeycomb structures 8 can be used in particular as the mixer 11 . the microstructures 10 are , for example , a plurality of openings 23 and guiding surfaces 27 ( see fig4 ), which ensure intensive mixing or combining of reducing agent and the exhaust gas . the sheet - metal layers 9 have a coating 12 which can be selected differently depending on the intended use of the mixer 11 and / or its position in the exhaust gas system . the microstructures 10 are disposed in such a way that the exhaust gas or reducing agent , which preferably flows in the flow direction 7 , is also diverted in the transverse direction 24 and / or radial direction 25 . fig4 shows a fragmentary view of a filter element 5 . the filter element 5 once again includes a plurality of at least partially structured sheet - metal layers 9 which form passages 13 through which the exhaust gas can flow . the exhaust gas has a multiplicity of particulates 28 , which follow a path 26 substantially parallel to the flow direction 7 of the exhaust gas . the microstructures 10 ( see fig3 ) or guide surfaces 27 divert the particulates 28 toward an intermediate layer 29 . this intermediate layer 29 may also be constructed as an uncoated metallic sheet - metal layer 9 , but in this illustrated case it is an intermediate layer 29 formed from fibers 30 . this intermediate layer 29 that is formed of fibers 30 preferably has a coating which , for example , promotes selective catalytic reaction . if the intermediate layer has a low porosity ( approximately 50 %), the guide surfaces 27 are preferably constructed to be small , so that on one hand sufficient ( carbon ) particulates 28 are filtered out of the exhaust - gas stream , but on the other hand a relatively unimpeded flow of the reducing agent / exhaust gas mixture through the filter element 3 is also ensured . however , it is also possible for the filter layer or the intermediate layer 29 provided with fibers to be made relatively permeable , i . e . to be provided with a very high porosity , in particular in the range of from 75 to 90 %. as a result , the reducing agent particles , which have been finely distributed , can pass through a filter layer of this type or can be successfully accumulated there , and can therefore display or realize their effect either in the coated intermediate layer 29 itself or on , or in , the downstream scr catalytic converter . the exhaust gas system proposed herein is distinguished by particularly high conversion rates at relatively low production costs . this concept is in particular easy to integrate in existing exhaust gas systems .

US-13503905-A

a method and apparatus for implementing a recovery process for a resource manager . the method and apparatus has the resource manager take checkpoints in a manner such that in the case of failure of the resource manager , the time it takes to have requests processed again is shorter than a specified request processing time .

fig1 shows the typical structure of an application server . a number of applications request services from the application server via application clients . application server 100 implements a collection of services which are requested from applications 110 , 112 , and 114 via application clients 120 , 122 , and 124 . applications 110 , 112 , and 114 , application server 100 , and application clients 120 , 122 , and 124 may be implemented by computer programs of any nature not limited to any specific type or implementation . applications 110 , 112 , and 114 , application server 100 , and application clients 120 , 122 , and 124 are only logical structures . for example , application server 100 can be application 110 itself that requests services from another application server ( not shown here ) or even requests services from itself . as application server 100 is stateless , all information that is needed between subsequent requests from applications 110 , 112 , and 114 are kept in data store 130 . fig2 consists of a particular implementation of an application server , namely message - based application server 200 , which means the communication between application client 210 and application server 200 is based on asynchronous reliable message exchange . but it is understood hereby that the invention is not limited to a certain communication paradigm . fig2 is used to illustrate how an application server processes requests as transactions ; the transaction boundaries are indicated by dashed lines . when application 220 requests a service from application server 200 , application client 210 puts a message reflecting the request of application 220 into application server input queue 280 . this is done as transaction 260 , labeled transaction 1 , so that when the request has been successfully put into application server input queue 280 , the request of application 220 will be honored . application server 200 processes requests within transaction 240 , labeled transaction 2 . the transaction consists of reading the request from input queue 280 , performing processing based on the request , saving processing state information persistent into data store 230 , and putting a response into application server output queue 285 . application 220 gets this response by application client 210 reading the response from application server output queue 285 . this process is run as transaction 250 , labeled transaction 3 . in the processing of a request and generating a response by application server 200 , multiple resources are accessed and possibly modified . since multiple resources and thus multiple resource managers are involved in such a transaction , the transaction must be coordinated via transaction manager 270 typically using a two - phase - commit ( 2pc ) protocol . the individual resources are typically managed by different resource managers . for example , the application server &# 39 ; s input and output queue 280 , 285 are managed by a message queuing system ( not shown ) and data store 230 by a relational database management system ( not shown ). the involvement of multiple resource managers mandates a transaction manager which coordinates the processing of the individual resource managers when the transaction needs to be committed or aborted . the 2pc protocol is the protocol that transaction managers typically exploit to coordinate commit / abort processing with the resource managers involved in a particular transaction . further information can be found in the textbook “ transaction processing : concepts and techniques ”, authored by jim gray and andreas reuter and published by morgan kaufmann publishers , inc ., 1993 which is regarded to be entirely incorporated herein by reference . referring again to fig2 , application server 200 processes each individual client request as a transaction . the term transaction should not be understood as limited to the classical definition of transactions , that means having acid properties , but to all units of work concepts that provide some form of transaction control by weakening one or more of the acid properties . it is further noted that , although the above description is related to an application server , the scope of the present invention is by no means limited to such an application server and , moreover , can be used for any other application which performs the described interaction patterns with resource managers . fig3 shows the processing of a request by the resource manager ( rm ) when the resource manager supports user - specified checkpoint processing based on the present invention . it assumes that one or a multitude of users has specified a maximum restart time , hereafter referred to as restart time , for the resource manager and the resource manager has stored this information internally . it is noted that the user or multitude of users , alternatively , can specify two or more restart times wherein the proposed mechanism takes the minimum restart time for generating checkpoints . when the resource manager processes next request 300 , it first determines the current settings for user specified restart time 310 . this restart time must not be exceeded in case of failure . next , the resource manager determines the restart time needed for current request 320 and the potential previous requests , which would participate in restart processing since the last checkpoint processing , and then calculates new restart time 330 . if the new restart time would exceed the specified restart time effect of the request on overall restart time 350 , a checkpoint is taken 340 . then the request is processed 360 and the new restart time is calculated 370 . it should be noted , that fig3 is for illustration purpose only ; actual implementations are most likely more sophisticated . in the following , two different embodiments of the invention are described in more detail . it is hereby assumed that resource managers provide the capability for applications to request checkpoints . how the resource managers externalize this capability is not relevant , whether it is the sending of a message to queue or the invocation of the request via an application programming interface . fig4 shows the processing of a request by the application server ( as ) using load - controlled checkpointing according to the present invention . it is assumed that the application server has knowledge about the amount of log data written by each resource manager and the amount of time it takes to process the log during recovery . it further assumes that the user has specified the maximum request response time ( not the restart time ), hereafter referred to as response time , for the application server , and the application server has stored this information internally . when the application server processes next request 400 , it first determines the current settings for user specified request response time 410 . this request response time must not be exceeded in case of failure . next , the application server performs a set of actions ( indicated by loop 470 ) for all resource managers . first , the application server determines the restart time needed for current request 420 and the potential previous requests , which would participate in restart processing since the last checkpoint processing , and then calculates new restart time 430 . if the new restart time would exceed the restart time necessary to keep within requested response time 450 , the resource manager is requested to take checkpoint 440 . the mapping of the request response time to the restart time takes into effect additional processing that is associated with the restart after a failure , such as starting the application server or reattaching to the failing resource manager . after all resource managers have been processed , the request is processed 460 and the new restart time is calculated for all resource managers 470 . it should be noted , that fig4 is for illustration purpose only ; actual implementations are most likely more sophisticated . if the resource manager does not support the notion of a resource manager instance , then the resource manager must provide the capability to assign a separate log to a particular application . in addition , the resource manager must provide the capability that applications can request that checkpoints are taken only for a particular log . when a crash occurs , then the resource manager must process this log before any other log , unless there is no time penalty when processing multiple logs in parallel . to summarize , in the load - controlled checkpointing approach the above teaching is embodied within an application server which controls the checkpointing frequency based upon guaranteed response time requirements on behalf of the underlying resource managers . in addition , this approach reflects the processing required to restart the application server itself . the load - controlled checkpoint approach requires that the application server has a deep understanding of the logging and restart operations of each of the involved resource managers . in particular , the metrics associated with logging and restart need to be changed whenever the resource manager is changed . in order to increase performance and throughput of the application server ( s ), in the present embodiment , the resource managers themselves keep track of the restart time instead of the application server . the resource manager externalizes the capability for applications to set the restart time and the resource manager then takes a checkpoint whenever the specified restart time is reached . fig3 shows how a resource manager could implement this capability . fig5 shows the actions that the application server needs to take when the resource manager ( rm ) supports a user - defined restart time . in step 500 , the application server obtains user specified maximum request response time , hereafter referred to as request response time . the application server then performs a set of actions ( indicated by a loop ) for all resource managers . step 510 calculates the appropriate restart time for the resource manager from the specified request response time . transformation of the request response time to the restart time of the resource manager is necessary to cope with additional processing needs , such as the start up of the application server itself . in step 520 , the application server hands over this restart time to the resource manager . the resource manager itself would then execute the code shown in fig3 if called by the application server . it should be noted , that fig5 is for illustration purpose only ; actual implementations are most likely more sophisticated . although specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoing detailed description , it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein , but is capable of numerous rearrangements , modifications and substitutions without departing from the scope of the invention . the following claims are intended to encompass all such modifications .

US-68301501-A

psoriasis in humans is treated by applying to the affected skin area 2 - 6 times a day an ointment containing ursolic acid and oleanolic acid in the weight ratio of 3 : 1 dispersed in a vaseline / lanolin carrier . an homogenous ointment may be prepared by dissolving the acids in ethyl ether , adding the carrier , warming until homogeneous and heating to remove the ether .

______________________________________ursolic acid 0 . 3 - 0 . 9oleanolic acid 0 . 1 - 0 . 3petroleum jelly 30 - 90lanolin anhydrous 10 - 30and optionallypropyl paraben 0 . 02methyl paraben 0 . 005______________________________________ a mixture of the oleanolic and ursolic acids is dissolved in the necessary quantity of ethyl ether . a mixture of the lanolin / petroleum jelly is added to the ether solution which is then warmed in order to dissolve the ingredients and form a homogeneous mixture . to this mixture , the necessary quantity of methyl paraben and propyl paraben , dissolved in a small quantity of ethyl alcohol , is added . the whole is warmed to to remove the ether . the above method is necessary only if a completely homogeneous mixture is desire . if not , the ingredients may be simply mixed and shaken well . the obtained product is a yellow ointment having a slight odor like lanolin . it is stable under ambient conditions of temperature , moisture and light . the composition according to the invention has been clinically tested on humans afflicted with psoriasis . even after the first application of this ointment , the itching ceases and the rest of the symptoms subside . after the first week of treatment , exfoliation and elimination of the psoriatic area occur and in psoriasis of recent onset , complete cure follows in about 70 - 80 % of the cases . during the second week of treatment the recent cases of psoriasis are completely cured and the characteristic white spots are left in the psoriatic areas , which again subside in a few days . the chronic severe forms of psoriasis are cured in 50 - 60 % of the cases . during the third week of treatment , the usual psoriasis cases are cured . the recommended dosage is 2 - 6 times daily according to the severity of the case . continuous application of the above ointment for 4 months did not reveal any side effects . it is not necessary to combine this drug with any other . 0 . 1 g of the ointment is dissolved in 10 ml of ethyl ether . a small quantity is chromatographed in layer ( silica gel layer 0 . 25 mm ) using toluene : acetic acid : acetone 100 : 0 . 07 : 3 as the solvent . after the chromatography , the chromatogram is sprayed with a 20 % solution of sbcl 3 in methanol and warmed to 100 ° c . two characteristic blue spots are seen : the ursolic acid spot with rf 0 . 065 and the oleanolic acid with rf 0 . 125 . the above composition was used in the treatment of psoriasis on 40 patients of different age / sex distribution and duration of the disease . the clinical results are shown in the following table . ______________________________________ duration patient &# 39 ; s duration distribution ofpatient &# 39 ; s age of disease of treatmentsex ( in years ) ( in years ) psoriasis ( in days ) ______________________________________1 . female 30 7 upper - lower 20 extremities2 . male 43 28 whole body 403 . male 48 27 whole body 424 . female 12 1 / 12 upper - lower 12 extremities5 . male 74 8 elbows 156 . female 40 1 whole body 157 . male 66 43 lower extremities 358 . male 44 24 whole body 459 . female 38 1 hand extremities 1510 . male 17 3 upper - lower 25 extremities11 . male 12 3 &# 34 ; 2212 . female 16 2 &# 34 ; 2513 . female 17 3 &# 34 ; 3014 . male 12 4 whole body 3515 . male 14 9 &# 34 ; 4016 . female 12 4 &# 34 ; 4017 . female 50 10 &# 34 ; 4518 . male 64 30 &# 34 ; 6019 . male 50 30 &# 34 ; 4020 . male 75 10 hand extremities 3021 . female 35 5 &# 34 ; 3022 . male 50 4 elbows 3523 . male 18 5 whole body 5024 . male 74 20 hand extremities 3025 . male 52 22 whole body 4026 . male 55 30 &# 34 ; 6527 . male 53 25 &# 34 ; 7028 . male 21 5 &# 34 ; 4029 . male 44 8 upper - lower 30 extremities30 . male 40 7 &# 34 ; 3231 . male 43 8 &# 34 ; 3532 . female 35 3 hand extremities 2533 . female 55 20 whole body 6034 . female 75 40 upper - lower 50 extremities35 . male 48 8 upper extremities 4536 . female 45 5 upper - lower 30 extremities37 . female 65 10 feet 2038 . male 12 2 whole body 3039 . female 32 5 &# 34 ; 2040 . male 22 6 &# 34 ; 60______________________________________ the above table reveals that this concentration of acids has therapeutic effects on psoriasis . itching as well as other subjective symptoms cease completely from the first week of treatment . after the first week of treatment one can see desquamation of psoriasis , diminution of the extent and heading of new forms of psoriasis in percentages up to 70 - 80 %. during the second week of treatment the recent forms of psoriasis heal almost completely and in the sites of the rash , white patches remain which disappear within a few days . grave chronic forms of psoriasis heal in percentages up to 50 - 60 %. during the third week of treatment mild forms of psoriasis heal completely and the skin comes back to its normal condition . grave forms of psoriasis show a considerable improvement up to 60 - 70 %. the rash becomes reddish and a regeneration of the skin is noticed . very serious whole body psoriatic patients show improvement within 40 - 70 days from the beginning of treatment . the main characteristic qualities of the drug action are the ceasing of pruritus and the gradual disappearance of psoriatic lesicus . a biopsy was done on a 74 year - old man on the 20th day of treatment and the result was as follows : the microscopic examination of the spindle - shaped skin specimen was 2 . 5 × 1 . 0 cm in size and revealed a hyperkeratosis in the center , acanthosis and hyperkeratosis of the epidermis as well as lymphocytic inflammatory infiltrates around the vessels of the cutis . perakeratosis or absence of the granulak stratum was not observed except in minimal foci . in the epidermis and close to the above few foci , few formations in the form of microabcesses of munro and spongiotic vesicles of cogoj were observed . young subjects ( under 16 years ) compared to older individuals respond more rapidly to treatment . the treatment in patients , who have been given cortisone treatment in the past , takes longer . two patients had a relapse of their psoriasis within 3 years during their aforementioned treatment , but this fact cannot be evaluated , because they stopped the therapy before the complete disappearance of the signs of psoriasis . after repeating their treatment they were completely cured . the successful treatment of psoriasis is confirmed by biopsy , but since this procedure is usually objected to by the patients , it is recommended to continue the treatment 5 days after the complete disappearance of the symptoms . the mechanism of the action of the composition , as well as the etiology of psoriasis are unknown .

US-8575787-A

an insulation material comprising the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate and method of producing such . aluminum sulphate materials and potassium sulphate materials are combined to form aluminum potassium sulphate which is then dehydrated to remove the water of hydration . porous forms are made by mixing the hydrated aluminum potassium sulphate with a binder before dehydration . the resultant dehydrated sulphate expands greatly to provide an insulative material which is of lightweight and inorganic .

fig1 illustrates a method for making panels and other shapes of rigid insulation , in an embodiment of the present invention , referred to herein by the general reference numeral 10 . the method 10 comprises a step 12 of mixing a double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate , in powder form , al 2 k 2 ( so 4 ) 4 24h 2 o , preferably with three percent of a binding agent , also in powder form , comprised of equal parts of calcium sulphate caso 4 , calcium silicate casio 4 and calcium hydroxide ca ( oh ) 2 . one to four percent of binding agent to double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate can be used , but tests indicate that approximately three percent produces a rigid insulation that does not easily flake or crumble . a step 14 includes spraying a carbon mold - releasing agent to cover the inside surfaces of a chrome - plated carbon steel mold that defines a final shape for the rigid insulation . wax is conventionally used for mold release , but dehydrating double salts of aluminum potassium sulphate are so sticky when they foam and expand that carbon has proven to be a better releasing agent . the carbon forms a thin film on the surface of the rigid insulation . a step 16 includes adding the mix of the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate and the binding agent to the mold . a step 18 heats the mold and the mix to dehydrate the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate , wherein the mix foams and expands to fill the inside surfaces of the mold and steam escapes from steam vents provided in the mold . a step 20 separates a now rigid state of the expanded foam of the dehydrated double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate and binding agent from the mold . a step 22 includes applying a protective paper covering to exposed surfaces of the expanded foam of the dehydrated double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate and binding forming a piece of rigid insulation . for example , ordinary gypsum wallboard conventionally has the paper backing contemplated for the step 22 . in one embodiment , the step 18 of heating comprises heating the mold to 250 ° c . at a temperature rate increase of approximately 50 ° c . each three minutes . such a controlled heating provides for the uniform foaming of the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate as it dehydrates and this has the beneficial effects of producing a strong rigid insulation with a high r - value . in an alternative embodiment , the step of heating 18 comprises heating the mold to 500 ° c . at a temperature rate increase of approximately 50 ° c . each three minutes to calcinate the mix to form a calx of alumina in the dehydrated foam of the rigid insulation . the insulation material of the present invention includes an expanded aluminum potassium sulphate made from the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate by using the expansion caused when removing the water of hydration . the resulting dehydrated double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate provides an insulation at temperatures up to approximately 500 ° c . for higher temperatures , the dehydrated double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate is calcined to produce alumina with potassium sulphate which is capable of providing insulation to temperatures up to approximately 1200 ° c . various methods are available for providing the crystalline aluminum potassium sulphate double salt . one method involves adding aluminum sulphate and potassium sulphate in water and cooling below 750 ° c . depending on the concentration of salt in solution , to produce the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate crystals with up to twenty - four parts of water of hydration . for example : another method is by adding sulfuric acid to aluminum trihydrate and potassium sulphate in water and cooling below 75 ° c . depending on the concentration of salt in solution , to produce the aluminum double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate crystals with up to twenty - four waters of hydration . for example : another method is adding alumina or aluminum trihydrate to potassium hydroxide , sulfuric acid in water and cooling below 75 ° c . depending on the concentration of salt in solution , to produce the double aluminum potassium sulphate double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate . for example : al . sub . 2 o . sub . 3 + 2koh + 4h . sub . 2 so . sub . 4 + 19h . sub . 2 o → al . sub . 2 k . sub . 2 ( so . sub . 4 ) . sub . 4 24h . sub . 2 o a further method is to add potassium hydroxide to bauxite , filtering to remove the residue and then adding sulfuric acid and cooling , depending on the concentration of salt in solution , to produce the aluminum potassium double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate . another method of acquiring the aluminum and potassium double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate is to add sulfuric acid to calcined bauxite , calcined clay or dry sludge waste tailings from oil sands operations containing alumina and then removing the residue . the leach liquor with the aluminum , which may also have some potassium values depending on its presence in the source sludge fines , is reacted with potassium sulphate or potassium hydroxide . on cooling , depending on the concentration of salt in solution , the liquors , the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate is formed . thus , a number of ways can be used to produce the aluminum and potassium double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate with waters of hydration . when crystallization of the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate occurs at temperatures above 65 ° c ., the waters of hydration are reduced to six . for example : when either of these salts is dehydrated at temperatures in the range between 200 ° c . and 300 ° c ., expansion of the crystals takes place to provide the required insulation product . further , if these dehydrated crystals are then calcined at temperatures of approximately 850 ° c . and above , the aluminum sulphate portion of the crystal is converted to alumina providing an insulation product which can withstand operating temperatures of 1200 ° c . for example : in operation , the drying and dehydration of potassium aluminum sulphate crystals may be carried out in a continuous microwave unit or in an indirect heated rotary drum or other such device such as heated screws and jacketed blenders at temperatures between 200 ° c . and 300 ° c . a preferred route is to prepare a liquid solution at 95 ° c . wherein the aluminum potassium double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate dissolves in its own water of hydration . this can be done in a spray drier wherein the liquid solution is flakes that are formed and collected for use as insulation product . the expanded matrix of the aluminum potassium sulphate allows for extremely porous lightweight crystal material . the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate aluminum potassium crystals containing waters of hydration can be dissolved at approximately 95 ° c . to produce a liquid and then the resultant liquid formed into a spray such that it appears like snowflakes . the resulting material density is in the order of 0 . 06 grams per cubic centimeter and is useful for producing high temperature insulation for up to 800 ° c . the insulation material may assume any of various forms , popped popcorn that can be shipped to users in bags , for example . a further method for structuring the insulation material begins with the double aluminum potassium salt in a powder form , mixing in a binder of gypsum or calcium silicate , putting it in a container , heating it to approximately 250 ° c . to produce a porous material , and then allowing it to cure and cool . heating double salts of aluminum potassium sulphate causes it to expand in a foam with a very low bulk density . such a uniform porous material can be formed into sheets that may be used in construction as plasterboard , insulation board and soundproofing board . such sheets are very economical to ship and easy to install . this can also apply to pre - formed molds for special shapes , such as required for pipe insulation . for uniform porous material of bulk density around 0 . 15 , it is important that the container be evenly ventilated to allow for controlled , steady expansion to the shape required . in addition , porous shapes can be easily cut out of blocks of such rigid material . thus the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate expands as it is dehydrated at a temperature in the order of 200 ° c . to 300 ° c . it is transformed at these temperatures as the h 2 o loses its chemical bond and is driven off . consequently , there is a resultant insulation material capable of performing from sub - zero to over 500 ° c . such have a very low density , in the order of 0 . 06 grams per cubic centimeter and an r - factor of approximately five for resultant material that is approximately 0 . 125 inches in thickness . the &# 34 ; r - factor &# 34 ; is the reciprocal of the thermoconductivity of btus per hour per cubic foot per degree fahrenheit per inch and increases with the thickness of the resultant insulative material . the insulation material with the double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate can be realized in large production volumes . for example , potash mined from potash mines may be used as a source to provide potassium chloride and potassium sulphate . sulfuric acid can be added to it . it can then be mixed with bauxite and sulfuric acid to provide the aluminum sulphate salt . generally , two tons of bauxite and sulfuric acid will make approximately one ton of aluminum sulphate . another source includes oil sand tailings , such as those realized from the mines of altabasca , canada . such tailings have potassium and aluminum and when properly leached and treated with sulfuric acid can provide the potassium aluminum double salt of aluminum potassium sulphate . such process is described in u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 165 , 974 , filed dec . 10 , 1993 , and incorporated herein by reference . fig2 a , 2b and 2c show a mold 30 for producing molded rigid insulation shapes in the form of parts of hollow cylinders . such pieces are useful to wrap pipes to provide insulation , e . g ., hot water and steam pipes . the mold 30 is comprised of ordinary carbon steel that has been chrome - plated to reduce sticking of the molded pieces to the mold . a series of steam vents 34 allow water vapor to escape the mold 30 when heated . a fill hole 36 allows a dry mix of double salt and binding agent to be inserted within the mold and closed to prevent escape during dehydration foaming . as described in fig1 the aluminum potassium sulphate double salt is heated and steam formed by boiling waters of hydration in the crystals of the aluminum potassium sulphate double salt foams the material and expands it to conform to the inner confines of the mold 30 . care should be taken to provide for a uniform foam expansion by the gradual application of heat . flat panels of rigid insulation can , of course , be produced by appropriately reshaping and re - sizing the mold 30 . a hinge 38 joins a bottom half 40 to a top half 42 . in fig2 b , the top half 42 is swung away from the bottom half 40 . in fig2 c , a molded piece of rigid insulation 50 comprises an expanded rigid foam 52 of dehydrated aluminum potassium sulphate double salt and binding agent that is withdrawn from the open mold 30 . a paper backing 56 is attached to the outside of the piece and another paper backing 54 is applied inside . preferably , more paper backing is used to finish the edges of the insulation 50 to provide protection from moisture and abrasion . typically , the carbon releasing agent used in the step 14 of the method 10 will leave a film that covers the rigid foam 52 , and is itself covered by the paper backing 54 and 56 . although the present invention has been described in terms of the presently preferred embodiments , 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 having read 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 .

US-72695896-A

a fabric for use as a base fabric in an air bag comprises a fibrous substrate having adhered to it a covering layer made of a thermoplastic synthetic resin and of 10 μm or less in average thickness . the adhesion between the fibrous substrate and covering layer is effected by causing the thermoplastic synthetic resin material of the covering layer to fill interstices between the fibers of the fibrous substrate . this may be achieved by applying to the fibrous substrate a solution or dispersion of the thermoplastic synthetic resin . an air bag may be constructed entirely from the fabric such that when it comprises sheet material additional to the base fabric , these may also be provided by the same fabric as that used for the base fabric .

thus , referring to fig1 an air bag for a driver &# 39 ; s seat has a base fabric portion 1 which , when fitted in front of the driver &# 39 ; s seat , faces the driver , a fabric portion 2 for contact with an inflator , a circular opening 3 for connection to the inflator and vent holes 4 . referring to fig2 an air bag for a passenger &# 39 ; s seat has a base fabric portion 5 which , when fitted in front of the passenger &# 39 ; s seat , faces the passenger , a pair of fabric portions 6 providing respective laterally disposed fabric pieces for controlling the configuration of the bag when in an inflated condition , a rectangular opening 3 for connection to an inflator and vent holes 4 . the respective properties referred to in the examples below were evaluated according to the following methods : tensile strength : the average of the values of warp and weft directions was obtained according to jis l 1096 ( 6 . 12 . 1a ) method . breaking elongation : the average of the values of warp and weft directions was obtained according to jis l 1096 ( 6 . 12 . 1a ) method . bursting strength : the average of the values of warp and weft directions was obtained according to jis l 1096 ( 6 . 12 . 1a ) method . thickness of covering layer : a photomicrograph of a cross section of the coated fabric was taken and a covering layer portion of a certain length was cut out of it . then , the average thickness of the covering layer was obtained from the following formula : weight ratio of resin : fabric : this can be determined by multiplication of the cut out area referred to above by the density of the resin . alternatively , the weight ratio of resin : fabric can be determined merely by measuring the difference between the respective weights of coated and uncoated fabrics . however , this method may sometimes be less accurate because the weight ratio may be very small and the fibrous substrate may not be sufficiently dimensionally stable for an accurate measurement . air permeability : a laminar flow type air permeability measuring instrument was used , and air was fed at a pressure of 0 . 2 kg / cm 2 , to measure the flow rate of the air passing through the sample ( cc / cm 2 / sec ). environment resistance : the base fabric was treated at 110 ° c . for 500 hours , then at 80 ° c . and 95 % for 500 hours , and finally at − 40 ° c . for 24 hours respectively in a thermohygrostat , and then the air permeability was measured . prevention of fraying : the woven fabric was cut into a disc 20 cm in diameter , and placed in a drum type rotating machine , being rotated at 25 ° c . for 15 minutes . the degree of fraying was expressed in terms of the following grades . ( grade 2 and grade 4 express the respectively intermediate conditions of fraying .) foldability : a 60 - liter air bag was folded into a predetermined form , and with a pressure of 98n applied , its folded height was measured . it was expressed as a relative value with reference to the folded height of a standard silicone rubber coated air bag ( coated by 45 g / m 2 ) as 100 . nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns each of 420 deniers 467 dtex and each filament yarn consisting of 72 filaments , 9 . 5 g / denier ( 10 . 6 g / dtex ) in strength and 24 . 1 % in elongation were used to obtain a plain weave of 53 yarns / inch ( 20 . 9 yarns / cm ) in both the warp and weft yarn densities , using a water jet loom . the woven fabric was scoured at 60 ° c . and dried at 130 ° c . respectively according to conventional methods . then , the woven fabric was immersed in a diluted resin solution containing 10 wt %, as solid content , of an anionic ionomer type polyester based urethane resin consisting of an aliphatic polyisocyanate and a polyol and of 150 ° c . in softening point [ example 1 ] or a water dispersed polyester based urethane resin with the same composition emulsified by a polyethylene glycol aliphatic ester based emulsifier [ example 2 ], and pressed and rendered smooth by a mangle at 3 kg / cm 2 . in this case , the softening point was measured as follows . the solid resin to be measured was placed in a tube of 1 mm in inner diameter , and heated at a pressure of 10 kg / cm 2 , and the temperature at which the resin began to flow was measured and identified as the softening point . the coated woven fabric was then dried at 120 ° c . for 3 minutes and thermally set at 160 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . subsequently , from the base fabric for air bags , two base fabric discs of 725 mm in diameter were punched out . at the center of one of the discs , three circular reinforcing fabric sheets of 200 mm in diameter of the same fabric were laminated , and circular lines of 110 mm , 145 mm and 175 mm in diameter were respectively sewn by a lock stitch sewing machine using sewing threads of nylon 6 . 6 fiber 420d / 1 × 3 as needle and bobbin threads . at the center , a hole of 90 mm in diameter was formed as the inflator installing opening . furthermore , each one circular reinforcing fabric sheet of 75 mm in diameter of the same fabric was placed at two opposite positions 255 mm from the center in the bias direction , and circles of 50 mm and 60 mm were sewn by a lock stitch sewing machine using sewing threads of nylon 6 . 6 fiber 420d / 1 × 3 as needle and bobbin threads . at the two positions , holes of 40 mm in diameter were formed as vent holes . then , on the fabric disc with the reinforcing fabric sheets kept outside , the other fabric disc was overlapped with its warp axis shifted by 45 degrees , and circles of 700 mm and 710 mm in diameter were sewn by a multi - thread chain stitch sewing machine using sewing threads of nylon 6 . 6 fiber 1260d / 1 as needle and looper threads . the bag was reversed , to complete an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained are shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of the present invention retained the mechanical properties required for air bags , were free from fraying during sewing , and were excellent in low air permeability and foldability as an air bag . the same woven fabric as that used in example 1 was scoured at 60 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c . and thermally set at 160 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . then , as described for example 1 , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained are shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 1 was excellent in foldability as an air bag , but rather insufficient in low air permeability , and furthermore , when sewn , it was frayed so as also to pose a problem in productivity . nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns each of 315 deniers ( 35 dtex ) and each filament yarn consisting of 72 filaments , 9 . 4 g / denier ( 10 . 4 g / dtex ) in strength and 23 . 3 % in elongation were used to obtain a plain weave of 60 yarns / inch ( 23 . 6 yarns / cm ) in both the warp and weft yarn densities , using a water jet loom . then , the woven fabric was foam - coated , on one side , with a foam diluted solution containing 30 wt %, as solid content , of the same ionomer type polyester based urethane resin as used in example 1 and 0 . 1 wt %, as solid content , of a nonionic foaming agent , and of 7 times in expansion ratio . it was dried at 130 ° c . for 2 hours , and thermally set at 160 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . from the base fabric for air bags , one main body fabric sheet and two lateral fabric sheets were fusion - cut , and an air bag for the front passenger &# 39 ; s seat of 120 liters in capacity as shown in fig2 was manufactured . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained were similarly evaluated and found to be as shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of the present invention held the mechanical properties required for air bags , and was free from fraying during sewing , and excellent in low air permeability and foldability as an air bag . the same woven fabric as used in example 1 was thermally set at 160 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . then , an air bag for the front passenger &# 39 ; s seat of 120 liters in capacity was manufactured , as described for example 2 . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained were similarly evaluated and found to be as shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 2 was excellent in foldability as an air bag , but was rather insufficient in low air permeability , and when sewn , it was frayed so as also to pose a problem in productivity . polyethylene terephthalate filament yarns each of 420 deniers ( 467 dtex ) and each filament yarn consisting of 144 filaments , 9 . 0 g / denier ( 10 g / dtex ) in strength and 18 . 2 % in elongation were used to obtain a plain weave of 57 yarns / inch ( 22 . 4 yarns / cm ) in the warp yarn density and 53 yarns / inch ( 20 . 9 yarns / cm ) in the weft yarn density , using an air jet loom . then , the woven fabric was scoured at 80 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c ., thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 seconds , immersed in a diluted resin solution containing 12 . 5 wt %, as solid content , of an anionic ionomer type aliphatic polyester resin of 155 ° c . in softening point , pressed and rendered smooth by a mangle at 4 kg / cm 2 , dried at 150 ° c . for 2 minutes , and thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . from the base fabric , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured as described for example 1 . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained are shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of the present invention were free from fraying during sewing , and excellent in low air permeability and foldability as an air bag . the same woven fabric as used in example 4 was scoured at 80 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c ., and thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 seconds , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . from the base fabric , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured as described for example 1 . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained were similarly evaluated and found to be as shown in table 3 . the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 3 was excellent in foldability as an air bag , but was rather insufficient in low air permeability , and when sewn , it was frayed remarkably , so as to pose a problem in productivity . the same woven fabric as used in example 1 was scoured at 80 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c . and thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 seconds . then , it was pressurized and compressed on one side , between a metallic roll , having a smooth surface , heated to 160 ° c . and a plastic roll at room temperature at a pressure of 25 tons at a speed of 15 m / min , to produce a base fabric for air bags . then , as described for example 1 , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured . the properties of the base - fabric for air bags thus obtained are shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 4 was rather improved but insufficient in low air permeability . nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns of 840 deniers ( 933 dtex ) and each filament yarn consisting of 136 filaments , 9 . 4 g / denier ( 10 . 4 g / dtex ) in strength and 23 . 8 % in elongation were used to obtain a plain weave of 25 yarns / inch ( 9 . 8 yarns / cm ) in both the warp and weft yarn densities , using a water jet loom . the woven fabric was scoured at 60 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c . and thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 seconds . then , the woven fabric was coated with 95 g / m 2 of chloroprene rubber by twice coating , using a type of knife coater , dried at 130 ° c ., and vulcanized at 1 ° c . for 3 minutes , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . subsequently , as described for example 1 , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained were evaluated as described for example 1 and found to be as shown in table 1 . the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 5 was excellent in the prevention of fraying and low air permeability , but was so hard as to impair foldability and to complicate processing disadvantageously having regard to productivity . the same nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns as used in example 1 were used , to weave a plain weave of 46 yarns / inch ( 18 . 1 yarns / cm ) in both the warp and weft yarn densities , using a water jet loom . the woven fabric was scoured at 60 ° c ., 20 dried at 130 ° c . and thermally set at 180 ° c . for 25 hours . then , the woven fabric was coated with 45 g / m 2 of a methylvinyl based silicone rubber , using a type of knife coater , dried at 130 ° c ., and vulcanized at 180 ° c . for 3 minutes , to obtain a base fabric for air bags . subsequently , as described for example 1 , an air bag for the driver &# 39 ; s seat of 60 liters in capacity was manufactured . the properties of the base fabric for air bags thus obtained were evaluated as described for example 1 and found to be as shown in table 1 . a photomicrograph of the base fabric for air bags of comparative example 6 is shown in fig9 . as can be seen by comparison with fig3 - 7 , the covering layer of the base fabric of fig9 is particularly thick . as is evident from table 1 , the base fabric of comparative example 6 was excellent in the prevention of fraying during sewing , and low air permeability , but was so hard as to impair foldability and also to complicate processing disadvantageously having regard to productivity . nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns each having a denier of 420 ( 467 dtex ) and each filament yarn consisting of 72 filaments , having a strength of 9 . 5 g / denier and an elongation of 24 . 1 % were used to obtain a plain weave having both warp and weft yarn densities of 53 yarns / inch ( 21 yarns / cm ) using a water jet loom . the woven fabric was then knife - coated with a paste - like foam prepared by adding a thickening agent to a solution of an anionic ionomer type polyester based urethane resin having a softening point of 150 ° c . and dried at 130 ° c . for three minutes . a photomicrograph of the resulting base fabric is shown in fig6 . nylon 6 . 6 filament yarns each having a denier of 420 ( 467 dtex ) and each filament yarn consisting of 72 filaments , having a strength of 9 . 5 g / denier and an elongation of 24 . 1 % were used to obtain a plain weave having both warp and weft yarn densities of 55 yarns / inch ( 22 yarns / cm ), using a water jet loom . the woven fabric was scoured at 80 ° c ., dried at 130 ° c . and heat set at 180 ° c . a photomicrograph of this untreated fabric is shown in fig8 . the woven fabric was then immersed in a diluted resin solution containing 10 wt %, as solid content , of an anionic ionomer type polyester based urethane resin having a softening point of 120 ° c . and squeezed with a mangle under a pressure of 3 kg / cm 2 . the fabric was dried at 120 ° c . for three minutes and heat set at 160 ° c . for 25 seconds . a photomicrograph of the resulting base fabric is shown in fig7 . as can be seen from the above examples and comparative examples , the present invention enables air bag to be provided which still have the required mechanical properties , while at the same time minimising the incidence of fraying during sewing and exhibiting excellent foldability and low air permeability , all at an expense lower than that of conventional coated air bags and calendered air bags .

US-23643299-A

the purpose of this invention is a propeller capable of generating high tst at reduced noise levels , weight and drag . the propeller blades employ a tangential slot along the trailing edge of each propeller blade and circulation control blowing from the tangential slot over the trailing edge . lift is generated by the coanda blowing . the lift is proportional to the momentum flow of the air out of the slot and is substantially independent of the rotational velocity . additionally a circulation control shroud expands the thrusting slipstream of the propeller so that the shroud diffusion angle is increased and the average exit velocity is reduced , thereby increasing efficiency and reducing noise .

referring now to fig1 a a first embodiment is shown . the shroud , 13 , is circular in shape and surrounds the propeller mounted for rotation at rotational axis 15 . the propeller comprises blades 17 . shown in fig1 a is recess 19 which extends circumferentially about the interior wall 21 of the shroud , 13 . referring now to fig1 b , the shroud in fig1 a is shown in cross section . as shown in fig1 b the recess 19 has a radius of curvature r and its center is substantially at the point of travel of the blade tip 23 . the radius of curvature is substantially equal to the size of the vortex generated by the blade tip as measured by the size of the vortex at its point of maximum velocity . this is more commonly known as the vortex core size . the inflowing stream is accelerated by the propeller 17 and this accelerated stream is labeled as the thrust stream on the outflow side of the propeller . the propeller 17 is supported at the hub 15 by stators in the standard manner such as shown in u . s . pat . no . 2 , 929 , 580 issued on 22 mar . 1960 to ciolkosz . for the purpose of clarity the stators are not shown in the drawing . as indicated elsewhere in this specification the propeller may be driven by the thrust of the air blown out of the circulation control slots . air is pumped through passages in the stator into the hub and into the propeller blades . the air may be supplied from a pump source into the propeller blades in the manner shown in u . s . pat . no . 2 , 925 , 129 issued on 16 feb . 1960 to yuan et al . as in the yuan et al disclosure the momentum flux from the slot can be varied by adjusting the output of the source . the inflow stream expanding about the leading edge 25 of the shroud 13 produces an effect known as negative drag and induces a secondary propulsive effect . the exit diffusion angle θ 1 of the shroud is a physical dimension as shown in fig1 and is a function of the structure of the shroud at its trailing edge 27 . in normal use without the benefit of the circumferential recess 19 , a boundary layer builds at the shroud surface 29 causing the thrust stream to diffuse at an angle less than θ 1 . with recess 19 the vortex generated by the propeller tip is temporarily trapped in the recess 19 and travels slowly aft at approximately the rate of the self induced vortex velocity . as it spirals towards the sharp trailing edge 27 , it scrubs the boundary layer from the surface 29 and the thrust stream remains attached to the surface 29 . the effect of this scrubbing and attachment of the thrust stream to surface 29 is an increase of the exit diffusion angle to substantially the structural diffusion angle θ 1 . referring now to fig2 a , a second embodiment of this invention is shown and wherein the same numbers are used to designate similarly structured and similarly operating parts . as shown in fig2 a , a circular shroud 13 surrounds a multi - bladed propeller having blades 17 and rotating on axis 15 . the shroud has an interior wall 21 and as shown cross section in fig2 b is substantially elliptic having a leading edge 25 and a blunt trailing edge 33 . the blunt trailing edge has a circumferentially extensive slot 37 for coanda circulation control blowing over the blunt edge 33 . the air blown out of slot 37 curves down around the blunt trailing edge and detaches at a point on the opposite side of the shroud , dependent upon the momentum flux of the blown air . the path of this air is shown by arrow 39 . the structural exit diffusion angle is represented by θ 2 . the effective diffusion angle , realized responsive to circulation control blowing is θ 3 . the effective increase in diffusion angle produced by circulation control blowing over blunt edge 37 is ( θ 3 - θ 2 ). since the point of detachment of the blown air is dependent on its velocity , or momentum ( flux ), the diffusion angle θ 3 may be varied by varying the momentum flux from slot 37 . the increase diffusion angle is produced by circulation control blowing from slot 37 adhering to the shroud &# 39 ; s surface at its blunt edge and to its opposite side and detaching from the opposite side at a point dependent upon the momentum of the blown air . the inflowing stream accelerates about leading edge 25 causing a thrust effect which adds to the propulsion force of the device . the inflow stream is accelerated by the rotating propeller 17 and the resultant thrust stream is directed towards the rearward shroud opening . the shroud can be used with a circulation control propeller as shown in fig3 a and 3b . in fig3 a , the circulation control propeller is designated generally by numeral 41 and has an elliptic shape as shown in cross section at its root 43 . a plenum chamber 45 is supplied with air which is directed out slot 47 at blunt trailing edge 49 . the direction of the air is shown by arrows 52 . the blown air curves down and around the blunt edge and detaches at a point on the underside of the blade functionally related to the intensity of the blowing . the effect is to produce increased lift on surface 51 of the propeller and thereby increase the propulsive force produced . additionally , the propeller can be driven by the force of the air directed from the slot without the need of mechanical machinery . a blade of the type shown in fig3 a may be used within the shroud and in a multi - bladed propeller unit employing small chord blades to raise the frequency of the generated noise and reduce the intensity of the transmitted noise . the propeller blade sections are of a high thickness ratio at the hub or root 43 ( approximately 50 %) and decreases in thickness toward the tip 55 ( approximately 20 %). because the thick sections can generate high lift , the blades can be made of a small chord dimension . in conjunction with the shroud a multi - bladed propeller presents less area to the airstream and can be employed in such applications as a tail fan on helicopters . in such case , the propeller aspect ratio will be in the order of 10 / 1 to 15 / 1 . the blade of fig3 a shown in modified form in fig3 b where the same numbers are used to indicate the same or similar operating parts . in fig3 a , the blade employs a single slot while in fig3 b , the symmetrical blade employs two slots , one on each side of the blade adjacent to its blunt edge . these slots are shown as 47 and 57 and slots are used in conjunction with chambers a and b respectively . the purpose of the double slots is to permit reversible thrusting . by closing the air supply to one of the chambers and supplying air to the other chamber , the direction of the propulsion force induced by this blade can be reversed and the blade can be used in maneuvering as when it is employed in the tail fan of a helicopter or it can be used to reverse thrust in a fixed wing aircraft and when the aircraft is landing and must be quickly deaccelerated . the shroud used separately or in conjunction with the circulation control propellers is not limited to aircraft application but may be used in compressors so that compression is obtained in a minimum of stages , roughly one third as many as in present compressors . it may also be used in hover craft propulsion systems where large static thrust in a minimum area is desirable , in the marine propeller designs where reversible thrust is a distinct advantage and in pump design .

US-28970872-A

a fishing net system comprises a handle having a top and a bottom . a loop extends from the bottom of the handle , and a mesh is attached to the loop . a connector system is operably coupled to the fishing net at a location spaced apart from the top of the handle . the connector system is configured to removably couple the fishing net to a user &# 39 ; s back . a method is also provided for attaching a landing net to the back panel of a fishing garment , which includes the steps of removably coupling the handle of the landing net to the top section of the garment ; and removably coupling the landing net to the middle section of the garment .

the invention will be further described with reference to the drawings . the same number is used in different drawings to refer to the same elements . the invention provides a variety of techniques for securing a fishing net to a garment or other article . for example , the techniques of the invention may be used to removably couple a fishing net to a fishing vest , chest waders , shirts , jackets or other types of apparel and garments . to removably couple the fishing net to such articles , a variety of techniques may be used . typically , such nets will be configured to clip to a garment , such as at the end of the handle . some aspects of the invention provide an additional removable coupling arrangement somewhere on the article being worn by the fisherman to prevent the net from swinging side to side or even over the top of the fisherman . such a removable coupling arrangement can be integrally formed with the net or may be a removable coupling arrangement . in this way , the coupling arrangement may be sold as an integral part of the net or may be retrofit . similarly , the connection system may be an integral part of the clothing or garment , or may be attached after purchasing the garment . further , the coupling arrangement may be provided anywhere along the net or on the garment , but will typically be located somewhere along the handle and the back of the user . some of the embodiment may use magnets to removably couple the net to the garment , although other connectors may be used , such as a hook and loop fastener material . when magnets are used , they may be provided in pairs so that they may be easily be coupled to the net or clothing with essentially no alterations . for example , one pair of magnets may be placed on opposite sides of the net &# 39 ; s mesh and the other pair may be placed on opposite sides of the garment . the first pair of magnets may then be coupled to the second pair to secure the net to the garment . fig1 illustrates one embodiment of a fishing garment system 10 according to the invention . fishing garment 10 comprises a fishing vest 100 having a back panel with a top section 101 and a middle section 102 . landing net 105 comprises handle 106 and loop 107 to which mesh 108 is attached . in accordance with the present invention , a first connection system 109 removably couples handle 106 of landing net 105 to vest 100 , and a second connection system 110 removably couples intersection 114 of landing net 105 ( where handle 106 joins loop 107 ) to vest 100 . however , it will be appreciated that the second connection system 110 could be located anywhere along handle 106 , on loop 107 , or at multiple locations on the net 105 . as illustrated in fig1 , first connection system 109 comprises ring 112 secured to top section 101 of vest 100 and clip 113 , which is attached to end 111 of handle 106 . clip 113 is adapted to engage ring 112 when landing net 105 is not in use , and is adapted to disengage ring 112 when landing net 105 is needed . fig2 illustrates an alternative first connection system 209 that removably couples ring 112 of vest 100 to handle 106 of landing net 105 . connection system 209 comprises a first magnet 201 secured to ring 112 and a second magnet 202 secured to handle 106 . when landing net 105 is not in use , first magnet 201 and first magnet 202 are engaged by magnetic attraction . when it is desired to use landing net 105 , magnets 201 and 202 are pulled apart with moderate force , whereupon magnet 201 remains attached to ring 112 and magnet 202 remains attached to the released landing net 105 . referring again to fig1 , a second connection system 110 is provided that removably couples landing net 105 to vest 100 at the intersection 114 of handle 106 and loop 107 . as shown in fig1 , second connection system 110 comprises connecting panel 115 ( e . g . as shown in fig3 a and 3b ) secured to middle section 102 of vest 100 and connecting adaptor 116 ( e . g . as shown in fig4 a and 4b ) secured to intersection 114 of landing net 105 . fig3 a illustrates one embodiment of connecting panel 115 , which may comprise a support 301 having connector 302 disposed on its upper surface 303 . pin 304 is attached through hinge 305 to lower surface 306 of support 301 . the end of pin 304 is adapted to pierce the fabric of middle section 102 of vest 100 and then engage hook 307 , thereby securing connecting panel 115 to vest 100 . in this way , a connection system may easily be retrofit to existing clothing or garments . fig3 b illustrates another embodiment of connecting panel 115 comprising support 307 having connector 308 disposed on its upper surface . connecting panel 115 may be sewn into the fabric of middle section 102 of vest 100 with stitches 309 , thereby securing connecting panel 115 to the back panel of vest 100 . panel 115 may be provided at the time best 100 is manufactured , or at a later time . fig4 a illustrates one embodiment of connecting adaptor 116 , which may comprise circumferential strap 401 adapted to wrap around handle 106 of landing net 105 ( fig1 ) and middle strap 402 adapted to engage circumferential strap 401 at each end thereof and wrap around loop 107 of landing net 105 at intersection 114 of handle 106 and loop 107 ( fig1 ). circumferential strap 401 and middle strap 402 may be made from any suitable material , e . g . nylon , rubber , canvas , etc . circumferential strap 401 may comprise a continuous circle that can be slid over handle 106 ( as shown in fig4 a and 4b ), or a linear strip the ends of which may be secured together after wrapping around handle 106 , e . g . using a hook and loop fastener such as velcro ® tape . as shown in fig4 b , middle strap 402 may comprise a linear strip , one or both ends of which are secured to circumferential strap 401 using velcro ® tape 404 . connector 403 may be disposed on the outer surface of circumferential strap 401 . when positioned on landing net 105 , adaptor 116 covers the intersection 114 of handle 106 and loop 107 , with connector 403 facing connecting panel 115 so as to engage the connector thereon . in some cases , connector 403 could be coupled with an adhesive , placed into a bored out hole in the net , or the like . also , in one option , some or all of the net itself could be constructed of a metal so that it will easily couple to a magnet on the fishing vest , or vice versa . the connectors used on connecting panel 115 and adaptor 116 may be any complementary connectors that secure landing net 105 to vest 100 when landing net 105 is not in use , yet pull apart when moderate force is applied to remove landing net 105 from vest 100 . for example , the connectors on both connecting panel 115 and adaptor 116 may comprise first and second magnets that attract each other , or one connector may be a magnet and the other connector may be a metal plate to which the magnet is attracted . alternatively , the connectors may comprise first and second hook and loop fasteners such as velcro ® tape . as a further example , one connector may be a ring and the other connector may be a spring - loaded hook or clip that releases from the clip when moderate force is applied . the present invention is suitable for retrofitting fishing vests that are currently available at a variety of retail outlets . for example , many fishing vests now come equipped with a ring on the top of the rear panel , such as ring 112 shown in fig1 , and many landing nets include a handle clip such as clip 113 shown in fig1 . all that is required to take advantage of the present invention with such an arrangement would be to secure a connecting panel , such as connecting panel 115 shown in fig3 a and 3b , to the middle section of the vest and to install a connecting adaptor , such as connecting adaptor 116 shown in fig4 a and 4b , on the landing net so that the connector on the connecting adaptor engages with the connector on the connecting panel . alternatively , a new vest may be manufactured with the connecting panel integrated into the back of the vest and / or a new landing net may be manufactured with a connector integrated into the intersection of the landing net . another embodiment of a system that may be used to easily retrofit a fishing net and garment with connectors is illustrated in fig5 a and 5b . fig5 a illustrates a net connection system 500 that comprises a pair of magnets 502 and 504 . magnets 502 and 504 may be encased in a plastic or other protective material that permits the two magnets to easily interlock when attracted to each other . for example , the plastic may having interlocking features , teeth or detents which permit that magnets to interlock and keep from rotating relative to each other . connection system 500 may be placed on either sides of the mesh 508 of a fishing net 509 . in this way , the fishing net may easily be retrofit to include a connector . typically , the magnets 502 and 504 will be placed on the mesh within a few inches of where the handle meets the loop , although other locations are possible . fig5 b illustrates a garment connection system 510 that comprises magnets 512 and 514 which may be constructed in a manner similar to magnets 502 and 504 . in this way , magnets 512 and 514 may be placed on opposite sides of a garment 516 , such as a fishing vest , to hold the magnets to the garment . when systems 500 and 510 are coupled to the net and the garment , they may be coupled together simply by hanging the fishing net from the user &# 39 ; s back and permitting the two pairs of magnets 502 , 504 and 512 , 514 ( which are attracted to each other ) to couple to each other . by wiggling the net or the user &# 39 ; s back , the two pairs of magnets will come close enough to each other to couple together . this configuration permits a retrofit kit to be sold which includes four magnets and instructions for use . such a system is inexpensive and easy to use . the foregoing description is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact details shown and described herein , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention . thus , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and substitutions can be made to the preferred embodiments herein described without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims .

US-47049506-A

in cospinning two fiber - forming polymers to produce a composite heather yarn from filaments of different dyeability , the apparent weight ratio of one polymer in the yarn can be varied by spinning only a portion of that polymer as a monocomponent filament and hiding the remainder as the core of a sheath - core filament having the other polymer as its sheath . thus , a wide range of apparent weight ratios of the two polymers in the cospun yarn is provided , without changing the flow rate of the two polymer solutions fed to the spinneret .

the process of this invention produces cospun heather yarns by a series of steps which begin with the cospinning of sheath - core filaments and single component filaments . these comprise ( 1 ) feeding at least two molten , synthetic , thermoplastic , fiber - forming polymer compositions to a common spinning assembly , said polymer compositions having substantially different receptivities for a first class of dyes and a common receptivityfor a second class of dyes , ( 2 ) spinning a portion of one composition into a first group of filaments and spinning a second group of filaments havinga substantially concentric sheath - core configuration with the other polymercomposition as the sheath and the remaining portion of said one compositionas the core , with said core being a minor component by weight of said sheath - core filaments , ( 3 ) combining said groups of filaments into a composite yarn and ( 4 ) winding said yarn into a package . by having &# 34 ; substantially different receptivities for a first class of dyes &# 34 ; it is meant that one of the polymers is readily dyed by a given dye while the other polymer remains substantially undyed under the same conditions , that is remains colorless or at most becomes only slightly stained to a nonobjectionable degree . by having &# 34 ; a common receptivity for a second class of dyes &# 34 ; it is meant that under a given dyeing condition both polymers become colored to a substantial degree ; it is not intended that the degree of dyeing be necessarily identical , that is the same weight of dye on fiber . preferably the &# 34 ; first class of dyes &# 34 ; are selected from the group consisting of so - called basic or cationic and acid dyes , and the &# 34 ; second class of dyes &# 34 ; are disperse dyes . preferably said &# 34 ; one polymer composition &# 34 ; of the first group of filaments is the polymer composition receptive to both classes of dyes , and the &# 34 ; other polymer composition &# 34 ; is the sheath polymer and is receptive to onlythe one class of dyes . as a result , a fabric prepared therefrom and dyed accordingly will show different colorations known as heather .&# 34 ; the different dye colorations may arise not only from the use of homopolymer / copolymer combinations but also from polymers of different generic classes . the polymer combinations selected for use in the invention are determined by the particular dyed and textile property effects to be achieved . in general they include the entire range of polymer combinations suggested by the prior art cited above , including combinations of poly -( ethylene terephthalate ) and a cationically dyeable poly ( ethylene terephthalate / sulfonium salt modified ester ) copolymer ; poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) and poly ( hexamethylene adipamide ); poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) and an acid - dyeable modified polyester ; an acid - dyeable polyester and a basic dyeable polyester ; a polyester and a polyamide ; a regular or deep - acid dyeable polyamide and a cationically dyeable polyamide such as poly ( hexamethylene adipamide ), or a copolymer thereof with a sodium sulfonate - salt - substituted mono - or dicarboxylic aromatic acid , e . g . 5 - sodiumsulfoisophthalic acid ; and a polyamide of dodecanedioic acid and bis ( 4 - amino - cyclohexyl ) methane and a differentiallydyeable polyamide or polyester . illustrative , and as a preferred embodiment , is a yarn containing filaments as described comprised of poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) and poly [ ethylene terephthalate / 5 -( sodium - sulfo ) isophthalate ]. a surprising aspect of the invention is the absence of any staining problemfrom the presence of the differentially dyeable core in the sheath - core filaments . thus the visual effects achieved upon dyeing the sheath - core filaments are substantially identical to those achieved when dyeing filaments composed 100 % of the sheath polymer . to avoid complications fromdye staining by the core polymer , which would reduce the heather contrast , the ratio of sheath polymer to core polymer must be so chosen that the sheath thickness is sufficient to prevent passage of an appreciable amountof the dye to which the core alone is receptive . this will depend on the size of the filaments , the polymer system , the types of dyes and the dyeing conditions . for example , for a yarn comprised of poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) and a copolymer of poly -[ ethylene terephthalate / 5 -( sodium sulfo ) isophthalate ] as shown in example i below , acceptable freedom from staining is achieved when the minimum sheath thickness of the sheath - core filaments averages at least about 2 microns . the core should be substantially concentric with respect to positioning within the sheath . preferably this means that the ratio of maximum sheath thickness to minimum sheath thickness within the filament cross - section should be less than about 3 . 5 : 1 , presuming a round cross - section , and lessthan about 1 . 5 : 1 for fine denier filaments below 3 dpf . for nonround cross - sections the ratio should be determined with respect to a circle circumscribed within the filament to exclude any lobes and irregularities . another aspect of the invention is the fact that the core is also mutually dyeable with the sheath such that in a cross - dyeing situation the core does not remain undyed , which could lead to ring dyeing problems if the sheath were deeply dyed and the core undyed . indeed , the concept was made possible by the observation that during cross - dyeing of a sheath ( homopolymer )/ core ( copolymer ) yarn , disperse dyes will dye both the sheath and core components . basic dyes which are also present in the dye bath are incapable of reaching the core component where basic dye sites are available . the sheath which is nonbasic dyeable is therefore effectively blockading the basic dyes . in a reverse case with a basic dyeing component in the sheath , the dyeing characteristic of each component also works favorably for the intended application . the sheath will take - up both disperse dyes and basic dyes which shows up as a deep dyeing &# 34 ; ring &# 34 ; in a filament cross - section . the disperse dyes are capable of &# 34 ; penetrating &# 34 ; the basic dyeable sheath and reach the disperse dyeable core component . the core component is not left undyed which minimizes , or prevents , the potential undesirable optical or luster effects , often associated with sheath - core yarns . the proportion of one group of filaments to the remaining proportion of theother group of filaments in the yarn is limited only by practical application . preferred ranges are from about 10 : 90 to 90 : 10 . the inventionpermits this entire range of filament ratios , and the associated ranges of effects , to be covered by a single mid - range polymer ratio such as 50 : 50 . otherwise , for example , using a spinning position designed to yield maximumproduction by cospinning two polymers at a 50 : 50 homopolymer / copolymer ratio , the switch to a 70 / 30 polymer ratio would cause a 30 % loss of production , not to mention the man - hours required to change the process settings to reduce polymer throughput , etc . such additional penalties in time and manpower are avoidable by the process of this invention . fig1 illustrates the apparatus needed to cospin two polymers from a single spinneret in accordance with this invention . essentially it requires the use of a distribution plate 11 , meter plate 12 , and shim 13 in combination with an existing spinneret 14 . metering of the appropriate amount of one polymer to the homofilaments and to the core of the sheath - core filaments is done by properly sizing the diameter of the sheath - core capillaries 28 and homofilament capillaries 17 in the meter plate 12 . the overall pressure drop through the plates 12 and 14 should becomparable between the two types of capillaries . shim 13 is used to providethe appropriate clearance between the meter plate 12 and spinneret plate 14so that the sheath component can properly enter into the spinneret counterbore and form the sheath . this provides more precise control and greater flexibility than by machining the final clearance on the face of the meter plate itself . shim plate 13 also determines which extrusion orifices ( 19 , 25 ) in spinneret plate 14 produce homofilaments 29 and which ones produce sheath - core filaments 30 . in operation polymer a , for example a cationically dyeable polyester copolymer , is supplied from a source ( not shown ) to melt pool cavity 15 indistribution plate 11 . melt pool cavity 15 distributes the polymer to selected orifices by means of channels such as channel 16 in plate 11 aligned with orifices 17 in meter plate 12 and 18 in shim plate 13 , and thus supplies the polymer to extrusion orifice 19 in spinneret plate 14 toproduce a homofilament 29 . individual orifice 18 in shim plate 13 provides direct communication between 17 and 19 and thus prevents formation of a sheath - core filament . polymer a is also supplied to melt pool cavity 26 in distribution plate 11 ( which may or may not be connected with melt pool cavity 15 ) from a source ( not shown ) which directs the polymer to channel 27 aligned with orifice 28in meter plate 12 . from a separate source ( not shown ) polymer b , for example polyester homopolymer , is supplied to melt pool cavity 20 in distribution plate 11 which forwards the polymer to orifice 21 aligned with orifice 22 in meter plate 12 feeding the polymer into fluid - carrying channel means 23 in meter plate 12 . channel means 23 distributes the polymer by means of opening 24 in shim plate 13 to a plurality ( not shown ) of extrusion orifices such as 25 for extrusion as filament 30 . simultaneously , polymer a from orifice 28 which is concentrically aligned with orifice 25 supplies polymer a to the center of orifice 25 while beingsurrounded by polymer b , so that both polymers are extruded as a concentricsheath - core filament 30 . the product of the invention is of high commercial interest , particularly for a heather yarn composed of 80 % filaments of one type and 20 % of a differentially dyeable type . this invention achieves such a product without sacrifice in productivity from a 50 / 50 spinning capability . thus , a cospun 34 - filament ( equal denier per filament ) yarn can be prepared which will give upon dyeing the effect of an &# 34 ; apparent &# 34 ; polymer composition ratio of about 80 / 20 ( 27 filaments of one component and seven filaments of the other ) while having an actual polymer composition ratio of 50 / 50 . this can be achieved by cospinning seven homofilaments of one component ( a ) and 27 sheath - core filaments containing 37 % of polymer ( a ) in the core and 63 % of the other polymer ( b ) in the sheath as shown below : ______________________________________ parts in s - c parts in homo - total partspolymer filaments filaments in yarn______________________________________a 37 % of 27 fil .= 10 100 % of 7 fil .= 7 17b 63 % of 27 fil .= 17 0 % of 7 fil .= 0 17______________________________________ in the examples which follow , the terms &# 34 ; rv ,&# 34 ; &# 34 ; hrv ,&# 34 ; and &# 34 ; dfi &# 34 ; have these meanings : relative viscosity ( rv ) for nylon is the ratio of the viscosity of a solution of 8 . 4 % by weight polymer in 90 % formic acid / 10 % water by weight at 25 ° c . to the viscosity of the solvent . relative viscosity for the polyester ( hrv ) as used herein is the ratio of the viscosity of a solution of 0 . 8 gms . polymer dissolved at room temperature in 10 mls . of hexafluoroisopropanol containing 80 parts / million h 2 so 4 to the viscosity of the solvent itself , both measured at 25 ° c . in a capillary viscometer . it relates to rvas described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 593 , 513 by the expression : degree of filament intermingling ( dfi ) is determined as described in u . s . pat . no . 3 , 593 , 513 on dyed yarn samples removed from the fabric and imbedded in epoxy resin . specific dyestuffs of the examples are identified by their color index ( c . i .) name or number per the american association of textile chemists andcolorists . molten poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) of 22 hrv and a molten copolymer of poly [ ethylene terephthalate / 5 -( sodium sulfo ) isophthalate ] of 98 mole % and2 mole % respectively , and of 14 hrv are separately metered from twin screw - melters to a melt - spinning apparatus having a spinneret pack of the type illustrated in fig1 designed for spinning two yarn ends of 34 filaments each , of which 27 are of a substantially concentric sheath - core configuration and seven are single component filaments or homofilaments . the poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) is supplied as the sheath of the sheath - core filaments ( fig2 ). the copolymer is supplied for the homofilaments ( fig3 ) and the core of the sheath - core filaments ( fig2 ). the meter plate 12 ( 4 . 83 mm . thick ) has 0 . 61 mm . diameter holes dimensionedand positioned to supply the homofilament capillaries ; 0 . 71 mm . diameter holes concentrically positioned for the core polymer and 1 . 98 mm . diameterholes 3 . 36 mm . long for the sheath polymer . the distribution plate 11 directs the two polymers from their metered sources to the appropriate meter plate openings . using a polymer throughput ratio of 50 / 50 by weight 56 lbs ./ hr . ( 25 . 4 kg ./ hr . ), a yarn is spun , quenched and drawn in a continuous operation . the two groups of filaments for each yarn are converged prior to drawing , drawn 3 . 8 × their original length using a steam jet draw assist and heat - set to give a 150 denier yarn having a tenacity of 4 . 2 grams per denier , an elongation at break of 30 % and a boil - off shrinkage of 8 . 9 %. the yarns are treated with a lubricating finish composition suitable for texturing feed yarns and are interlaced prior to being wound into packages . the yarns are then false - twist textured on a leesona 553 texturing machine under conventional conditions . two ends of the yarns , one with s and one with z textured twist are knit into single jersey knit tubing . the knit fabric is dyed under commercial conditions . three different cross - dyeing bath compositions , listed below , were tested . ______________________________________ a1 . 23 %* c . i . 510040 . 66 % c . i . basic red 220 . 33 % c . i . 4805515 % &# 34 ; tanalon &# 34 ; jet ( biphenyl nonionic carrier - tanatex chemical corp .) 3 . 5 ph b0 . 2 % c . i . basic orange 210 . 04 % c . i . 425100 . 3 % c . i . basic violet 2415 % chemocarrier kd5w ( nonionic carrier for cationic dyes - tanatex chemical corp .) 4 . 5 ph c1 . 2 % c . i . disperse yellow 541 . 23 % c . i . 510040 . 66 % c . i . basic red 220 . 33 % c . i . 4005515 % &# 34 ; tanalon &# 34 ; jet ( biphenyl nonionic carrier ) 3 . 5 ph______________________________________ *% on weight of fabric ? the dyed fabrics demonstrate good heather appearance and color contrast in both color and white and cross - dyed heathers . the effect is fully equivalent to a yarn of the same filament count containing 27 filaments ofthe homopolymer and seven filaments of the copolymer . the test yarn has a dfi of 85 . 3 ( average of three determinations ). as indicated above , to utilize the 50 / 50 polymer ratio in 27 / 7 filament yarn the sheath - core filaments are composed of 63 % by weight of the homopolymer in the sheath and 37 % by weight of copolymer in the core . the cores are substantially concentrically located as shown by a maximum / minimum sheath thickness ratio of less than about 3 . 5 : 1 . the average minimum sheath thickness is 2 . 7 microns based on 22 determinationswith a standard deviation of 0 . 67 . in this and subsequent examples the sheath thickness is determined microscopically by placing a cross - section of the yarn on a microscope slide and adding a solution of a dye to which the core only is receptive . the resulting distinct color contrast between sheath and core permits accurate measurement of the sheath thickness . using the same spinning assembly , except for the required changes in spinneret pack parts to alter the ratio of sheath - core and homofilaments , and under the same conditions of polymer throughput and windup speed as example i ( no change in productivity ) a yarn is spun to produce a slightlydarker heather effect having a composition of 23 substantially concentric sheath - core filaments and 11 homofilaments of the copolymer to produce a 23 / 11 filament ratio heather effect from the same 50 / 50 polymer ratio . because of the change in filament ratio while keeping the same 50 / 50 polymer ratio the sheath - core filaments are composed of 73 . 8 % by weight ofthe homopolymer in the sheath and 26 . 2 % by weight of copolymer in the core . the average minimum sheath thickness is 3 . 9 microns based on 20 determinations with standard deviation of 0 . 76 . the yarn is spun , drawn , set , interlaced and packaged essentially as above using a draw ratio of 3 . 8 × to provide a total denier of 150 , a tenacity of 4 . 0 gpd ., a break elongation of 36 % and a boil - off shrinkage of 8 . 3 %. knit fabrics of textured yarn prepared as described above and dyed , provide a pleasing heather effect ( dfi 94 . 2 , average of three measurements ) and color contrast fully equivalent to a yarn composed of 23homopolymer filaments and 11 copolymer filaments . using the cospinning technique of example i , a composite yarn is prepared from poly ( hexamethylene adipamide ) of 41 rv and poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) of 22 hrv of 145 total denier and containing 23 substantially concentric sheath - core filaments with poly ( ethylene terephthalate ) in the sheath and the polyamide in the core and 11 homofilaments of the poly ( hexamethylene adipamide ). the polymers are spun in a 54 / 46 ratio by weight of polyester to polyamide such that the sheath - core filaments are composed of 82 . 2 % by weight polyester and 17 . 8 % by weight polyamide . the 145 denier 34 - filament yarn has a tenacity of 4 . 9 gpd ., an elongation of 40 . 2 % and a shrinkage of 7 . 5 %. the average minimum sheath thickness is 4 . 7 microns based on 34 determinations with a standard deviation of 0 . 68 . the yarn is false - twist textured and knitted into fabric , and the fabric samples cross - dyed using two different dye recipes as shown in the following table . ______________________________________ d 2 . 2 % c . i . abl107 9 . 0 ph 1 hour at boil e0 . 8 % c . i . disperse yellow 542 . 2 % c . i . abl10715 % charlab w - 5 ( biphenyl nonionic carrier from charlotte chem . laboratories , inc .) 2 hours at boil______________________________________ the dyed fabrics demonstrate good heather appearance and color contrast representative of the filament ratio rather than the overall yarn polymer ratio .

US-44290574-A

a method and system is provided in which an electric automotive charging station connects to the host computer system using un - dedicated network resource contained within the electric vehicle to be charged enabling un - supervised deployment of said charging stations .

in the following detailed description numerous specifics are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention . however , the present invention may be used without understanding many of these specific details . turning to the drawings , fig1 illustrates a charging station 1 consistent with the principles of the present invention . the charging station 1 also includes connection to the electric grid utility 2 where the charging station receives power to run its internal operation thru connection 3 , and a connection 4 that is used to supply power for re - charging the internal battery of the electric vehicle 5 . in another specific embodiment , the electrical vehicle 5 , consistent with the principles of the present invention includes a wireless communication device 6 that is used to transmit and receive information with the radio network controller 7 which is connected to the ethernet cloud thru cable 8 to a computer server installation 11 thru cable 10 . as will be apparent from the description herein , in one aspect of the invention provides a manner of interfacing the charging station 1 to the computer server installation 11 . another aspect of the invention provides a manner of interfacing the charging station 1 to the electric vehicle 5 . each of these aspects will be discussed in greater detail herein . however , it should be appreciated that each aspect of the invention may be implemented separate of the other in specific embodiments of the invention . specific embodiments which implement this aspect of the invention generally operate by utilizing multiple processing elements interfaced to each other using multiple communication radios utilizing a - symmetrical public key encryption algorithms to encrypt all data which travel over the public access communication channels . enabling public key infrastructure uses public key certificates issued by a certificate authority that establishes the chain of trust between the charge station and the electric vehicle which is administrated by the authentication server which contains the certificate authority . fig2 illustrates a specific embodiment of the circuit board 13 in greater detail . as shown in the figure , a circuit board 14 in the electrical vehicle 5 includes a circuit arraignment shown in the form of a micro processor unit 15 internally coupled to flash re - programmable rom 16 and ram 18 over an internal address and data bus 17 . secure system includes secure memory 20 , program flash memory 19 are coupled to micro processor 15 over address and data bus 21 . other memory mapped devices such as a cell radio 22 used to communicate to a wireless cellular network , wire - line radio 23 used to communicate to a directly attached charge station , can - bus interface 24 used to communicate to the internal electric vehicle network are all coupled to the micro controller 15 over address and data bus 21 . the tamper switch 25 is included to protect the circuit board 13 from un - authorized physical access of the circuit board 13 by means of a pressure sensitive cover arrangement , such that the internal battery 26 will supply current to the micro controller thru power manager 27 which will cause the micro processor to enter a safe operating mode which will erase the private id that is used to encrypt all information within the circuit board 14 . cell radio 22 is coupled to an antenna 6 thru connection 28 to support cellular communication , wire - line radio 23 is coupled to charge cable 4 thru connection 29 to support charge communication , can - bus 24 is connected to electric vehicle &# 39 ; s 5 internal can - bus network thru connection 30 , power management 27 is connect to the electric vehicle &# 39 ; s dc power source thru connection 31 . fig3 illustrates a specific embodiment of the circuit board 12 in greater detail . as shown in the figure , a circuit board 32 in the charging station 1 includes a circuit arraignment shown in the form of a micro processor unit 33 internally coupled to flash re - programmable ram and rom 34 over an internal address and data bus 35 . secure system includes secure memory 36 , program flash memory 37 are coupled to micro processor 33 over address and data bus 41 . other memory mapped devices such as a wire - line radio 38 used to communicate to a directly attached electrical vehicle 5 , current meter 39 used to measure the power flowing to the electric vehicle thru 4 , switch 40 used to connect utility power 4 to electric vehicle 5 . general operation of the charge station is illustrated in fig4 and fig6 from circuit arrangement detailed in fig3 , and from the electric vehicle circuit arrangement detailed in fig5 and fig6 authentication flow detailed in fig5 and fig6 . referring to fig4 , initial query for connection is asserted creating the secure tunnel 142 between the charge station 1 and electric vehicle 5 using industry established pki secure tunneling methods . authentication of the ev - roam certificate from the electric vehicle sent via 143 occurs within charge station 1 using information contained from the authentication server certificate 145 . once the charge station verifies the certificate from the electric vehicle 5 , power is released via connection 4 which is used to charge the electric vehicle . the physical representation of tunnel 143 may comprise of a wireless or wired radio . referring to fig4 , while the secure tunnel 142 exists , two independent communication channels are opened to the electric vehicle , one in bound 149 the other out bound 150 . the in bound communication channel supplies periodic update information 148 from the authorization server . the out bound communication channel is used to report status 147 of current and past charge events as well as operation health status 146 . traffic for both of these channels is covered from the electric vehicle . this aspect represents the first part of a two part method of maintaining the charge station using a secure store - forwarding messaging . referring to fig5 , periodically , the electric vehicle will contact the authentication server for reporting a charge event , or for maintenance updates . an initial query for connection is asserted creating the secure tunnel 151 using industry established pki secure tunneling between the electric vehicle and the authentication server . once a secure tunnel is established , the authorization server service 156 can update the ev - roam ev certificate 144 on the electric vehicle by message 152 . referring to fig5 , while the secure tunnel 151 exists , two independent communication channels are opened to the electric vehicle , one in bound 154 the other out bound 155 . the in bound communication channel supplies periodic update information 148 from the authorization server 157 to a charge station . the out bound communication channel is used to except status 147 of current and past charge events as well as operation health status 146 from a charge station . traffic for both of these channels is covered from the electric vehicle . this aspect represents the second part of a two part method of charge station maintenance using a secure store - forwarding messaging . as an addition aspect of the invention , referring to fig6 , the electric vehicle can act as a real - time communication conduit between the authentication server and charge station . in this case a second secure tunnel 158 is opened within secure tunnel 142 and secure tunnel 151 . messages 159 are used to transfer information between the charge station and authorization server such as billing and maintenance updates without the electric vehicle incepting the traffic . referring to fig7 a ( charge station flow ), initial query for connection 42 is asserted true when a positive response is received from electric vehicle , 43 ( fig8 a ) in response to detecting a wire - line connect query . after a basic wire - line connection is established between the electric vehicle and charge station , the charge station sends out a request for secure connection 44 to the electric vehicle by sending its public key id to the electric vehicle 45 ( fig8 a ). the electric vehicle generates a session key which is covered by charge station public key 46 ( fig8 a ) and 47 ( fig8 a ) and sends a response to the charge station 48 . the charge station upon receiving a response from the electric vehicle sends an id request to the electric vehicle covered by the session key , otherwise errors out to 50 . referring to fig7 a ( charge station flow ), 51 a secure tunnel request is asserted by the charge station . the requested is processed in the electric vehicle , secure connection valid 52 ( fig8 a ), at tunnel query 53 ( fig8 a ). this query begins a wireless communication connection 54 ( fig8 a ) using a gprs radio 22 ( fig2 ) to establish a connection to the internet 55 ( fig8 a ). upon successful connection 56 ( fig8 a ), an internet routing handle is sent to the charge station 57 . the charge station receiving an internet routing handle , generates a communication request to an authentication server . referring to fig9 a , the incoming communication request 60 , for charge station is validated and responds with its id number for its public key 58 . referring to fig7 a , the charge station generates an internet session key and covers this and its id with the authentication server &# 39 ; s public key which is sent to the authentication server 59 . the authentication server checks for a valid charge station id 61 ( fig9 a ) and sends back a positive response 62 ( fig9 a ) establishing the secure communication session between the charge station 65 and the authentication server . the authentication server verifies the current revision status if the charge station 63 ( fig9 a ) and sends an update to the charge station 64 ( fig9 a ) if needed . referring to fig7 a , 66 the charge station sends the ev id to the authentication server covered by the internet session key with a charge event request and kw limit . this query is detected referring to fig9 b , 67 . the authentication server verifies the ev id &# 39 ; s billing status 68 , 69 and responds with an accepted message 70 or denied message 71 . referring to fig7 a , 64 , the charge station sends any off - line billing history to the authentication server for processing and stores any updates received from the authentication server 72 . referring to fig7 a , 73 the charge station processes the acceptance by sending a debit for a 1 kw 77 to the authentication server 74 ( fig9 b ), 75 ( fig9 b ), 76 ( fig9 b ). the charge station closes the current switch 77 and 40 ( fig3 ), connecting utility power to the electric vehicle thru connection 4 ( fig3 ) until 1 kw is measured on meter 39 ( fig3 ). once the 1 kw of charge is consumed 79 , another update request for 1 kw , 77 is send to the authentication server . this method of sending periodic updates to the authentication server while a charge event is taking place covers surprise disconnect 80 , which resets the charge station to initial state 81 . the charge station always sends a debit to the server prior to delivering the charge to the electric vehicle ; otherwise all communication to the authentication server is lost at the instant the electric vehicle disconnects from the charge station . referring to fig8 b , 82 demonstrates the notification method for a completed battery charge event while connected to a change station 83 , once the battery controller notifies the electric vehicle circuit arrangement 14 ( fig3 ) using the can - bus connection 30 ( fig2 ), a charge complete message 85 is generated and sent using the wire - line radio 23 ( fig2 ) via connection 29 ( fig2 ) which is coupled to cable 4 ( fig3 ) to the charge station where it &# 39 ; s received 86 . the final debit amount for the power consumed is sent to the authentication server 87 ( fig4 b ) and to the electric vehicle 88 ( fig4 b ) using the appropriate session keys . after the electric vehicle sends a charge complete message 85 , it will send a disconnection message to the charge station 89 ( fig4 b ) upon which the charge station sends a disconnect tunnel message 90 ( fig4 b ) to the authentication server 91 ( fig9 a ) which disconnects it session 92 ( fig9 a ) with the charge station . the charge station also terminates the secure channel to the electric vehicle message 90 ( fig4 b ) and returns to idle state waiting for the next connection . referring to fig7 a , 57 or 65 , if the wireless connection was not available , a no - connect message is sent to the charge station which causes the charge station to access the electric vehicle per - arranged credit line 59 . referring to fig8 a , a pre - determined credit balance is stored within secure memory on 13 ( fig2 ) within the electric vehicle is processed 93 and returned to the charge station 94 . referring to fig4 b , the charge station verifies there is a positive balance 95 , and issues a 1 kw debit message to the electric vehicle 98 and also stored it the charge station history log 101 . the message is processed in the electric vehicle 99 ( fig8 a ) and stored in its history log 100 ( fig8 a ) for future authentication server sync . the charge station begins a charge event 102 and cycles thru 103 , 104 , and back to 59 to request new balance from the electric vehicle until either the batteries are charged or the balance in the electric vehicle is depleted . in another aspect of the invention , whenever the electric vehicle credit balance is below the initial value and the history log is present due to an “ off line ” charge event referring to fig8 b 105 , the electric vehicle will send an update for billing at a later time when the wireless communication is in range 106 , using the wireless radio 6 ( fig1 ) to open a communication channel to authentication server 107 . a secure communication request is made 108 and processed at the authentication server 109 ( fig9 b ), and is resolved at 110 ( fig9 b ) & amp ; 111 , where the billing debit and billing credit is exchanged . once the credit is issued to the electric vehicle a clear log command is send to the electric vehicle 112 ( fig9 b ). a disconnect command from the issued from the electric vehicle 113 . in an additional aspect of the invention , referring to fig7 a , whenever the charge station has a history log from an “ off line ” charge event , this debit message is sent to the authentication server once a secure communication channel is established 114 . this log is resolved 115 ( fig9 b ) & amp ; 116 ( fig9 b ) with the electric vehicle credit balance when the electric vehicle establishes communication session at a later time . alternatively , if the electric vehicle had already cleared the history with the authentication server , prior the charge station contact , the history log is also cleared 117 ( fig9 b ). program updates and public key updates may be remotely enabled every time a secure communication session is established between the ev and the authentication server that is independent of a charging event . periodically the ev will contact the authentication server to check for updates referring to fig8 b 118 . 119 enables the wireless radio 6 ( fig1 ) to open a communication channel to authentication server 120 , 130 ( fig9 a ), 121 & amp ; 131 ( fig9 a ). if an update is available 132 ( fig9 a ) the update is pushed to the electric vehicle , 133 ( fig9 a ) which is scheduled to be processed 124 and a disconnect command is issued 125 . the update is processed at 126 . also if a charge station update is available based on the location history of the electric vehicle , a charge station update package is downloaded which will be pushed to the charge station at a later time 124 when a package is present 122 ( fig8 a ) and sent to the charge station 123 ( fig8 a ). to insure an electric vehicle can be charge at any time , as an aspect of the invention , referring to fig8 b , the connection to a charge station 127 is independent to the wire - line method herein . if a connection is established and current is available 128 , the battery controller 129 will charge the battery as a separate path to the authentication method described herein . to indicate the cost per kilowatt of power based on time of day and day of the week or any arbitrary future date and or time , a rate schedule can be loaded into the charge station 1 ( fig1 ) by previously described methods based on its id number using the program update method contained herein . this information can be used to display the cost of charging based on time and date which can be changed when ever an electric vehicle connects to it .

US-60531809-A

the present invention is a grooved belt , or surface roll where applicable , and a method for making these belts or rolls , comprising placing a chemically reactive material on a partially completed belt surface , and depositing an elastomeric material onto the chemically reactive material which reacts and forms a bond therewith to create a pattern . placement of the elastomeric material is used to create the grooves , for example . the grooves are formed without machining and the resulting belt surface is smooth and uniform without cuts or cracks .

a preferred embodiment of the present invention , as illustrated in fig1 will now be described in the context of making a shoe press belt used in papermaking machines and the process of making it . however , it should be noted that the invention is also applicable to the manufacture of a roll or roll cover used in a papermaking machine . continuing to refer to fig1 the belt may include a base structure or substrate which may be any conventional belt base substrate known in the art , including woven , nonwoven , spiral - link , md or cd yarn arrays , knitted fabric , extruded mesh , and spiral wound strips of woven and nonwoven materials . these substrates may comprise yarns of any of the varieties used in the production of paper machine clothing , such as monofilament , plied monofilament , multifilament and plied multifilament yarns . these yarns may be obtained by extrusion from any of the polymeric resin materials used for this purpose by those of ordinary skill in the art . accordingly , resins from the families of polyamide , polyester , polyurethane , polyaramid , polyolefin and other resins suitable for the purpose may be used . the present invention can be , produced by using a device similar to that shown in fig1 . for the present invention , the device has ( a ) a mandrel 11 for supporting a belt substrate 10 ( or roll cover base where applicable ) during production of the belt ; ( b ) means for applying ( not shown ) a chemically reactive material 12 on the belt substrate 10 ; ( c ) means for depositing 14 a second material 16 onto the belt substrate 10 to form a pattern . for example , material 16 may be elastomer ribbons placed so as to form grooves therebetween ; ( c ) means for mounting ( not shown ) the depositing means 14 for movement in at least one direction relative to the surface of the belt substrate 10 ; and ( d ) means to control ( not shown ) the movements and to control the depositing of the second material 16 from the depositing means 14 . in the example of the present invention illustrated in fig1 a belt forming mandrel 11 is provided . the belt substrate 10 can and usually does have at least a partial impregnation of resin already . the inside surface ( that is , the surface against the mandrel 11 ) also has a smooth layer of resin applied by any means known in the art . initially , a thin film of chemically reactive elastomeric material 12 is placed on the belt substrate 10 to create a chemical bond between the substrate 10 and the second material 16 to be deposited . in this connection , the thin layer 12 must be chemically reactive for the time which is required to apply the second material 16 . with the embodiment shown in fig1 this second material is a liquid elastomeric ribbon stream 16 . to deposit this ribbon stream 16 , a chemical mixing head 14 containing the elastomeric material is so angled and controlled to traverse the width of the belt substrate 10 . in this way , each revolution of the mandrel leaves a ribbon deposition of raised land areas with grooves on either side . that is , the placement of the ribbons 16 is used to create the grooves . fig2 shows the distribution of the small liquid elastomer ribbons which nestle next to each other to form the lands 20 and the shaped grooves 22 . advantageously , the elastomer is engineered so that it turns from a liquid to a solid in a sufficiently short time ( i . e ., seconds ), thus allowing the ribbon of material to retain its shape . the resulting ribbon laid surface 24 is uniform and smooth without cuts or cracks . it should be understood that the mixing head 14 shown in fig1 may have either one port or multiple ports . however , a mixing head 14 having multiple ports is preferred . in this connection , it is noted that the number of ports and dimensions thereof , and the amount of material being applied determine the size and shape of the ribbons 16 . it is further noted that the greater the surface speed of the belt substrate 10 , the greater the amount of material must be pumped through the ports . in this connection , controlling precisely the traverse speed of the mixing head 14 is very important , since the ribbon lay must match each previous pass . it should be further understood that the weld lines ( i . e ., where the respective ribbons start and end ) should also match when making the ribbon pattern . it is evident from this disclosure that a superior grooved belt or surface roll can be produced using the aforedescribed method . in this way , the direct deposition of the ribbons to produce the grooves eliminates the problems caused by the machining of grooves as practiced in the prior art . more specifically , the present invention uses the ribbons &# 39 ; placement to create the grooves . the resulting ribbon laid surface is uniform and smooth without cuts and cracks that lead to delamination of the belt or roll surface . further , by controlling the mixing head , a relatively greater amount of material ( or lesser amount , as the case may be ) may be applied to the desired region of the belt or roll surface in a controlled manner in a controlled geometry in three planes ( x , y and z ). where applicable , this permits the formation of , for example , a crown formed as part of a roll cover , or the formation of other variations in the diameter of the surface along the cross machine direction . it is noted that the present invention differs from the aforementioned u . s . pat . no . 5 , 171 , 389 in that the present invention specifies first placing a chemically reactive layer 34 ( see fig3 b ) onto the belt surface prior to depositing the elastomeric ribbon stream , whereas the &# 39 ; 389 patent instead mentions merely preapplying an adhesive . in addition , while both the &# 39 ; 389 patent and u . s . pat . no . 5 , 208 , 087 ( stigberg ) specify strips 30 having a groove already formed therein ( fig3 a ), the present invention instead uses the ribbons &# 39 ; 32 placement or gelling time to create the groove ( fig3 b ). this is a major distinguishing feature . other distinctions will be apparent to those skilled in the art . although preferred embodiments have been disclosed and described in detail herein , their scope should not be limited thereby rather their scope should be determined by that of the appended claims .

US-44441603-A

this invention relates to a product packaging material and method , and in particular to a product packaging material formed from a length of rolled corrugated paper and a method of manufacture therefor . there is provided a packaging material comprising corrugated paper , the corrugated paper including non - sinusoidal corrugations . there is also provided a method of making a packaging material of multi - layer corrugated paper including the steps of forming corrugated paper having a sheet with sinusoidal corrugations , and compressing the sheet to destroy the sinusoidal form of at least some of the corrugations .

in fig1 a paper - based sheet 10 is of generally planar section , and has attached thereto at positions 12 , as by adhesive , a similar sheet 14 but formed into corrugations 16 , 18 . thus , there is provided a sheet of single - faced corrugated paper 20 . in this embodiment the corrugations 16 , 18 have been deformed ( as by the nip rollers 40 of fig4 ), and as a result the corrugation 16 has been tilted so that its apex 17 is no longer in the median plane between the points , lines , or positions of adhesion 12 , whilst the corrugation 18 has been generally crushed i . e . its apex has been flattened and its wall portions 13 deformed , and partially crushed . in other embodiments , all of the corrugations on a single sheet are deformed similarly i . e . all of the corrugations are crushed , or all of the corrugations are tilted . in yet another embodiment , the form of the deformed corrugations is random . in an alternative known embodiment , the apices of the corrugations can be adhered to a second planar sheet , with the corrugations sandwiched therefore between two planar sheets , to form corrugated board . for use as a packaging or cushioning material , the corrugated paper will be wound or laminated into multi - layer form in conventional manner . a single - faced sheet of corrugated paper has glue painted upon the apices of the corrugations , and is then wound ( around a mandrel ) upon itself to produce a wound roll 22 ; thereafter the roll is retained in a &# 34 ; forming &# 34 ; machine until the adhesive sets , whereby to provide the required final shape of packaging material , in this embodiment a flattened roll 24 ( fig3 ). the flattened roll 24 is then cut to length to provide one or more blocks of packaging material 26 ( fig4 ), which blocks are then compressed ( as by a press 50 of fig8 ), to deform the corrugations and produce a block 27 of packaging material ( fig5 ). it will be understood that since the corrugated paper is wound upon itself ( in this embodiment as a double coil or winding ), that the corrugations 28a , b of the innermost winding of the roll become enmeshed , i . e . as viewed in fig5 the lower two sheet portions have the corrugations upwards whilst the upper two sheet portions have the corrugations downwards . in this embodiment the roll 22 is formed into a packaging material having four layers of over - laid single - faced corrugated paper , whereby to provide the packaging material , though in other embodiments a greater or lesser number of over - laid layers can be utilised . in the alternative embodiment of fig6 the roll is formed into an &# 34 ; l &# 34 ; section corner piece 30 , suitable for protecting the corners of an article to be transported . this corner piece could likewise be formed from adhering two of blocks 22 at 90 ° to each other . other suitable shapes of packaging material may be provided , either &# 34 ; as formed &# 34 ;, or by combining blocks of suitable shape . in the embodiment of fig1 the sheet is compressed i . e . the corrugations are deformed prior to forming the multi - layer packaging material . this may be achieved by a pair of nip rollers 40 as shown in fig7 . thus , after the corrugated sheet 14 has been adhered to the planar sheet 10 in conventional manner , the sheet of single - faced corrugated paper 20 is passed between rollers 40 , which are spaced apart by less than the height of the ( undeformed ) sinusoidal corrugations 42 . upon passing between the rollers 40 , the corrugations become deformed , either to the crushed condition 18 , or the tilted condition 16 , of fig1 or to a random combination of these conditions . the degree of compression can be determined by the spacing of the rollers 40 , whilst the deformation of the corrugations can in part be determined by the rate of rotation of the rollers 40 relative to the permitted speed of pass of the sheet 20 . in the embodiment of fig5 the corrugations have been deformed by compression only after the packaging material has been formed to shape . as shown in fig8 already formed product packaging material 27 of known type is placed beneath a reciprocating press 50 , shown returning from a compression step . it will be understood that prior to the engagement of the press , the corrugations in the packaging material had been sinusoidal , but after being compressed by the press , they are in the deformed condition such as that of fig5 . whilst in fig5 all of the formed layers 52 , 53 and 54 are shown deformed , the pressure applied by press 50 is arranged preferentially to deform only the corrugations of the inner layer ( s ) 53 i . e . rather than the corrugations of the outer layer ( s ). likewise , in a product packaging material formed from a sheet 10 of fig1 it may be arranged that not all of the corrugations be defomed prior to roll winding , e . g . the portion of the corrugated sheet which will make up the outer layers of the block of packaging material is not passed through nip rollers 40 , whilst the portion of the corrugated sheet which will make up the inner layers is passed through nip rollers . alternatively , different degrees of compression , and thus of corrugation deformation , may be applied to different portions of the sheet , as by varying the gap between the nip rollers 40 as the sheet passes therethrough , or by compressing a formed block with a curved , or otherwise non - flat , press . the degree of compression used will affect the properties of the product packaging material . furthermore , the thickness of the paper from which the corrugations are formed , the size and spacing of the corrugations , the number of layers of corrugated sheet used , as well as the degree of compression can all be varied to determine the properties of the finished material and packaging product . in the further alternative embodiment of fig9 ( exploded view ), flat prepared sheets of corrugated paper 60 of predetermined size and shape are adhered together in a stack providing the multi - layer packaging material 62 . in this embodiment the corrugations of adjacent pieces of corrugated paper are arranged to run perpendicular to those of adjacent layers , but in an alternative embodiment they can run parallel . it will be understood that the corrugations in this embodiment can be deformed prior to adhering the sheets into a stack ( as in fig1 ), or the packaging material 62 may be compressed , as by a press 50 of fig8 after the sheets have been adhered together . a single planar sheet 64 is added to the upper layer ( as viewed ) of corrugations so that the product packaging piece presents a flat surface on its top and bottom surfaces , though in some situations the planar sheet 64 will not be required . the sheet of corrugated paper 70 of the embodiment of fig1 is produced on a non - standard corrugating roller , so that the form of the corrugated paper sheet 72 as manufactured is non - sinusoidal , and has in - built i . e . pre - formed deformations or shoulders 74 , which in use act we believe to allow preferential compression of the corrugated paper if under reduced loading . thus , the corrugated paper 70 will have a lower resistance to compression than paper with sinusoidal corrugations . the corrugated paper 70 may be formed into a packaging material by the winding process discussed in relation to fig2 or by the layering process discussed in relation to fig6 . a packaging material so made has been found to have improved cushioning capabilities over material made with standard ( sinusoidally ) corrugated paper . the corrugated paper 70 , and any packaging material made therefrom , does not require a subsequent or separate compression process to achieve the improved cushioning properties . it will be understood that other embodiments , having different forms of irregular corrugations , can also be developed to provide the required cushioning properties . it has been found that the packaging material is particularly effective for light but bulky products , having a low static loading upon the packaging material . in one example , a packaging material comprising twenty four layers of corrugated paper was fully compressed , i . e . all of the corrugations were deformed to a flat condition throughout the material ; the resilience of the material caused it to spring back to a thickness of approximately 45 mm , and the material was then found to provide maximum cushioning protection in a 300 mm drop for a static loading of between 0 . 015 kg / cm 2 and 0 . 03 kg / cm 2 . furthermore , tests have suggested that if a product is to be subjected to &# 34 ; normal &# 34 ; transit conditions ( i . e . to mail order drop test specifications or general materials handling specifications ), a packaging material 40 mm thick ( comprising twenty layers of corrugated paper , which material has been fully compressed ) will be required to provide sufficient cushioning . clearly , however , where the conditions of use can be better controlled , the thickness required may be less than 40 mm .

US-55328095-A

a conversion machine and related method for making a dunnage product by converting a sheet - like stock material of at least one ply into a dunnage product is characterized by a manual reversing mechanism that is useful , for example , for clearing paper jams . the conversion machine includes a housing through which the stock material passes along a path , and an assembly that advances the stock material from a source thereof along the path , crumples the stock material , and maintains the shape of the crumpled stock material to produce a strip of dunnage . this assembly includes at least one rotatable member rotatable in a first direction for engaging and advancing the stock material , a feed motor for driving a driven rotatable member in the first direction , and a crank connected to the rotatable member for enabling rotation of the driven rotatable member in a second direction opposite the first direction .

in fig1 and 2 , a cushioning conversion machine 100 according to the present invention is shown . the machine 100 converts an essentially two - dimensional web of sheet - like stock material ( the thickness thereof being negligible compared to the width and length thereof — thus the phrase “ essentially two - dimensional ) into a three - dimensional cushioning product of a desired length . the preferred stock material consists of plural plies or layers of biodegradable and recyclable sheet - like stock material such as 30 to 50 pound kraft paper rolled onto a hollow cylindrical tube to form a roll r of the stock material . more preferably , the stock material consists of two plies of paper which are intermittently glued together with small drops of glue up the center of the paper plies , the glue drops being spaced approximately one foot apart . the preferred cushioning product has lateral accordion - like or pillow - like portions and is connected , or assembled , along a relatively thin central band separating the pillow - like portions . the cushioning conversion machine 100 includes a housing 102 having a base plate or wall 103 , side plates or walls 104 , a downstream end plate or wall 105 , a top cover 106 , and a downstream cover , or wall 107 . the base , side , and end walls 103 – 105 collectively form the machine &# 39 ; s frame structure . the top cover 106 , together with the base , side and end walls 103 – 105 , form an enclosure for the interior assemblies of the machine 100 . ( it should be noted that the terms “ upstream ” and “ downstream ” in the context of the present application correspond to the direction of flow of the stock material through the machine 100 .) the walls 103 – 107 of the housing 102 are each generally planar and rectangular in shape . the upstream edges of the base wall 103 and sides walls 104 are turned in to form , along with a top bar 108 , a rectangular border defining a centrally located , and relatively large , rectangular stock inlet opening . the rectangular border may be viewed as an upstream end plate or wall extending perpendicularly from the upstream edge of the base wall 103 . the end plate 105 extends perpendicularly from a location near , but inward from , the downstream end of the base wall 103 and defines a dunnage outlet opening . the downstream cover wall 107 is attached to the downstream edges of the base wall 103 , with the side walls 104 and a downstream portion of the top cover 106 forming a box - like enclosure for certain components of the machine 100 . preferably , the cover wall 107 may be selectively opened to provide access to these components . the downstream portion of the top cover preferably is fixedly secured in place while an upstream portion of the top cover may be in the form of a hinged door which may be opened to gain access to the interior of the housing and particularly the below mentioned forming assembly to facilitate loading of the stock material in a well known manner . the cushioning conversion machine 100 further includes a stock supply assembly 109 , a forming assembly 110 , a feeding / connecting assembly 111 , a severing assembly 112 , and a post - severing assembly 113 . during the preferred conversion process , the stock supply assembly 109 supplies stock material to the forming assembly 110 . the forming assembly 110 causes inward folding of lateral edge portions of the sheet - like stock material into an overlapping relationship . the feeding / connecting assembly 111 advances the stock material through the machine 100 and also crumples the folded over stock material to form a dunnage strip . as the dunnage strip travels downstream from the feeding / connecting assembly 111 , the severing / aligning assembly 112 severs or cuts the dunnage strip into sections , or pads , of a desired length . the cut pads then travel through the post - severing assembly 113 . the stock supply assembly 109 includes support brackets 114 which are laterally spaced apart and mounted to the upstream end of the machine &# 39 ; s housing 102 . the stock supply assembly 109 also includes first and second guide rollers 115 and 116 which are rotatably mounted between the support brackets 114 , and a dancer roller 117 which is pivotally suspended from the support brackets 114 via swing arms 118 . as paper is unwound from the stock or supply roll r , it travels around the dancer roller 117 so that the pull of the paper upward on the dancer roller 117 , combined with the pull of gravity downward on the dancer roller and swing arms 118 , helps maintain a uniform tension on the paper . the paper then travels over and under the two guide rollers 115 and 116 to guide the paper into the forming assembly 110 . the forming assembly 110 consists of a central plate 119 , a pair of fold - down rollers 120 , with folding elements 121 and 122 forming a chute - like passage , or chute , for lateral edge portions of the stock material . the central plate 119 is mounted on a pedestal 123 attached to the base wall 103 and slopes slightly downwardly , and tapers inwardly , going from the upstream end to the downstream end of the central plate . the rollers 120 are mounted on a shaft 124 a extending between the ends of a pair of swing arms 124 b that are pivotally connected at their opposite ends to a support bar 124 c extending between the side walls 104 . the folding elements 121 and 122 are mounted , in a cantilever - like fashion , from a mounting plate 125 . as the paper enters the forming assembly 110 , the central portion of the paper ( preferably about ⅓ of the paper width ) will be positioned on the central plate 119 and its remaining lateral edge portions ( preferably each about ⅓ the paper width ) will be urged , or folded , downward by the rollers 120 . as the paper contacts the folding elements 121 and 122 , the folding elements will fold the lateral edge portions of the paper inward one over the other , whereby they will overlap in a folded arrangement . this overlapped paper , or strip , advances to the feeding / connecting assembly 111 . the feeding / connecting assembly 111 includes a support structure 126 , a wheel ( or roller ) network 127 , a drive system 128 , and a guide chute 129 . the feeding / connecting components 126 – 129 feed the stock material , for example by pulling it from the stock supply assembly 109 and through the forming assembly 110 . the feed / connecting assembly 111 longitudinally crumples the strip of stock material and then connects , or assembles , overlapped portions of stock material together to lock in a desired three - dimensional geometry of the resultant pad . with additional reference to fig3 and 5 a – 5 c , the support structure 126 includes a pair of vertical side plates 130 , and a horizontal cross bar 131 . the downstream edges of the side plates 130 are coupled to the machine &# 39 ; s housing 102 , and more particularly to the end wall 105 . the cross bar 131 extends between and is secured to the side plates 130 . as best shown in fig3 and 5 a – 5 c , the wheel network 127 includes a feed ( or input ) wheel 132 , a support wheel 133 for the feed wheel 132 , a compression ( or output ) wheel 134 , a support wheel 135 for the compression wheel 134 , and shafts 137 – 140 for each of the wheels 132 – 135 , respectively . the lower wheels 132 and 134 are secured to the shafts 137 and 139 , respectively , and the upper wheels 133 and 135 are rotatably mounted on their shafts 138 and 140 , respectively . during operation of the feeding / connecting assembly 111 , the lower shafts 137 and 139 are positively driven by the drive system 128 to rotate the lower wheels 132 and 134 which will in turn rotate the upper , or “ idler ”, wheels 133 and 135 . the lower shafts 137 and 139 extend between , and are rotatably journalled in the support side plates 130 . ( see fig3 and 5 a – 5 c .) the upper shaft 140 extends between the side plates 130 and has its opposite ends positioned within a vertical guide slot 130 a in the corresponding side plate 130 . ( see fig3 and 5 a – 5 b .) the upper shaft 138 has opposite ends thereof terminating short of the side plates . a pair of laterally spaced apart shaft connectors 142 are connected between the upper shafts 138 and 140 , and each shaft connector is attached , at about the middle thereof , to the lower end of a respective suspension pin or member 143 . each pin extends vertically though a respective guide opening in the cross bar 131 and carries thereon a compression spring 144 interposed between the cross bar and shaft connector . in this manner , the upper or “ idler ” wheels 133 and 135 will be resiliently biased towards the corresponding lower wheels 132 and 134 , while being able to vertically “ float ” relative thereto during operation of the machine 100 . as seen in fig4 a – 4d , the wheels 132 and 133 are both generally cylindrical in shape . the feed wheel 132 includes a middle portion 145 separating opposite axial end portions 146 . the middle portion 145 is in the form of an annular groove which , for example , may have an approximately rectangular ( as shown ) or semi - circular cross section . the cylindrical periphery of the opposite axial end portions 146 is interrupted by flat faces 147 . the flat faces 147 on one end portion 146 are staggered relative to the flat faces on the other end portion 146 . in other words , the flat faces 147 on one axial end portion 146 are aligned with the “ non - flat ”, or arcuate , knurled areas 148 on the other axial end portion 146 . the support wheel 133 for the feed wheel 132 also includes a middle portion 149 separating opposite axial end portions 150 . the middle portion 149 is in the form of a radially outwardly protruding annular rib which is preferably rounded at its radial outer side , while the end portions 150 have knurled radial outer surfaces . the radial outer surfaces of one or both of the wheels 132 and 133 , or portions thereof , may be manufactured from an elastomeric material , such as rubber ( neoprene or urethane ) thereby reducing the cost and complexity of the wheels while still providing a high level of friction - enhancement for relatively slip free engagement with the stock material . as seen in fig4 e – 4h , the wheels 134 and 135 are also both generally cylindrical in shape . the compression wheel 134 includes a middle portion 151 separating opposite axial end portions 152 . the middle portion 151 is radially relieved and has a smooth radial surface . the end portions 152 are ribbed to form rectangular , circumferentially spaced apart teeth . the support wheel 135 for the compression wheel 134 includes a continuous , knurled outer diameter surface . the radial outer surfaces of one or both of the wheels 134 and 135 , or portions thereof , may again be manufactured from an elastomeric material such as rubber ( neoprene or urethane ) thereby reducing the cost and complexity of the wheels while still providing a high level of friction - enhancement for relatively slip free engagement with the stock material . as seen in fig1 , the drive system 128 for the feeding / connecting assembly 111 includes an electric motor 153 , and motion - transmitting elements 154 – 159 ( fig3 , 3 a and 5 a ). the motor 153 is mounted to the base plate 103 on one side of the forming assembly 110 . the motion - transmitting elements transfer the rotational power of the motor 153 to the wheel network 127 , or more particularly the lower shafts 137 and 139 . as seen in fig3 , 3 a and 5 a , the motion - transmitting elements include a drive chain 154 and sprockets 155 and 156 . the sprocket 155 is secured to an output shaft 153 a of a speed reducing gear box 153 b driven by the motor 153 ( see fig1 ), and the sprocket 156 is secured to the compression wheel shaft 139 . the drive chain 154 is trained around the sprockets 155 and 156 to rotate the compression wheel shaft 139 . the motion transmitting elements 157 – 159 are gears forming a gear train between the compression wheel shaft 139 and the feed wheel shaft 137 . the gear 157 is secured to the end of the compression wheel shaft 139 opposite the sprocket 156 , the gear 158 is rotatable mounted to support side plate 130 , and the gear 159 is secured to an adjacent end of the feed wheel shaft 137 . in this manner , the feed wheel shaft 137 and the compression wheel shaft 139 will rotate in the same direction . however , the gears are selected so that the shaft 137 ( and thus the feed wheel 132 ) is rotating at a faster feed rate than the shaft 139 ( and thus the compression wheel 134 ). in the illustrated embodiment , the set speed ratio is on the order of about 1 . 7 : 1 to about 2 . 0 : 1 . as seen in fig1 and 2 , the guide chute 129 extends from the exit end of the forming assembly 110 to the outlet opening in the housing end wall 105 . in fig3 , the guide chute 129 can be seen to be substantially rectangular in cross - section . the upstream bottom and / or side edges of the chute preferably flare outwardly to form a funnel or converging mouth inlet 160 ( fig5 b ). the top and bottom walls of the guide chute 129 each include an opening 161 through which the wheels 132 – 135 extend into the interior of the guide chute ( fig5 a – 5c ). it will be appreciated that the cross - sectional dimensions ( i . e ., width and height ) of the guide chute 129 approximate the cross - sectional dimensions of the cushioning product . the strip formed in the forming assembly 110 is urged into the guide chute 129 through its funnel inlet 160 whereat it is engaged and fed forwardly ( or downstream ) by the feed wheel 132 and its support wheel 133 . the staggered arrangement of the flat faces 147 on the end portions 146 of the wheel 133 will cause the strip to be fed alternately from each side of its longitudinal axis , instead of just being pulled only axially . that is , the strip will be fed alternately from each side of its longitudinal axis , instead of being pulled only axially . this advance by successive pulls from one side and then the other side back and forth makes it possible to have at the center a surplus of paper with respect to its flat configuration , this surplus being generated by the rib 159 fitting in the mating groove in the wheel 132 . the strip is then engaged by the compression wheel 134 and its support wheel 135 . because the wheels 134 and 135 are rotating at a slower speed than the wheels 132 and 133 , the strip is longitudinally crumpled between the upstream and downstream pairs of wheels with the latter compressing folds in the strip . ( for further information regarding an assembly similar to the feeding / connecting assembly 111 , reference may be had to european patent application no . 94440027 . 4 , filed apr . 22 , 1994 and published on nov . 2 , 1995 under publication no . 0 679 504 a1 , which is hereby incorporated herein by reference .) the strip then exits the guide chute 129 and passes through the dunnage outlet opening in the end wall 105 . as the strip exits the feeding / connecting assembly 111 and passes through the dunnage outlet opening in the end wall 105 , the severing assembly 112 severs its leading portion into a desired length . the illustrated severing assembly 112 includes cutting components 162 preferably powered by an electric motor 163 ( fig1 ). the cutting components 162 are mounted on the downstream surface of the end wall 105 are contained within the enclosure closed by the downstream cover 107 . the severing motor 163 is mounted on the base wall 103 on the side of the forming assembly opposite the feed motor 153 . ( see fig1 and 2 .) a suitable severing assembly is disclosed in u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 188 , 305 , which is hereby incorporated by reference . the cut sections of dunnage then travel through the post - severing assembly 113 . as seen in fig1 and 2 , the post - severing assembly 113 is mounted to the downstream cover 107 . the inlet and outlet of the assembly 113 are aligned with the dunnage outlet opening in the end wall 105 . the post - severing assembly 113 is rectangular in cross - sectional shape and flares outwardly in the downstream direction . as the cut section of the dunnage strip , or pad , emerges from the outlet of the assembly 113 , the pad is ready for use as a cushioning product . referring now to fig1 and 18 , a modified form 109 u of stock supply assembly is shown . the stock supply assembly 109 u , operates to layer the stock material prior to its entry into the forming assembly 110 . while the stock supply assembly 109 u could be used with multi - ply stock material to double the number of layers of material , it is preferably used with single - ply stock material , in that it eliminates the need for rewinding single - ply stock material into multi - ply rolls . the stock supply assembly 109 u includes a pair of support brackets 114 u which are vertically spaced ( as opposed to laterally spaced like the brackets 114 ) and support the stock roll r u in a vertical orientation ( the stock roll will usually be twice as wide as the normal width because the stock material is folded over on itself to provide a two layer web ). the stock supply assembly 109 u further includes a layering plate 1001 which is vertically positioned upstream of the fold - down rollers 120 u , via a bracket suspending it from a pedestal on the base wall 103 . the layering plate 1001 is generally triangular except that it includes a rounded entry edge 1002 . as the stock material is unwound from the roll r u in a vertical plane and pulled over the layering plate 1001 into the forming assembly 110 , it is folded in half into a web having two layers . this web is positioned in a horizontal plane ready for receipt by the forming assembly 110 . if desired , the stock roll may be supported in a horizontal orientation with its axis oriented perpendicular to the entry path into the forming assembly 110 and an angled turner bar employed between the stock roll and the layering plate to guide the sheet material from a horizontal plane as it is payed off the stock roll to a vertical plane for passage to the layering plate 1001 . it will also be appreciated that a horizontal disposition of the stock roll may also be obtained by rotating the entire machine embodiment of fig1 and 18 by 90 degrees about its longitudinal axis . in addition , additional layers may be provided by supplying stock material from one or more additional rollers , as schematically illustrated by the stock roll r v . two , three or more stock rolls may be used with the other embodiments herein described if desired . according to another aspect of the invention , a modified version of the feeding / connecting assembly 111 may include interchangeable quick change gear sets are provided to provide respective different feed rate ratios between the input and output wheel of the wheel network . these gear sets would be similar to the gears 157 – 159 ( fig5 b ), except they would be of different sizes or tooth number to produce a corresponding change in feed rate ratio and thus the pad characteristics as may be desired . by employing appropriate marking on the gear sets corresponding to desired packaging applications , changes in the speed ratio could be accomplished with minimal training on the part of a machine operator by substituting the proper gear set for a given application . as explained herein , the speed ratio between the feed wheel 132 ( fig5 c ) and compression wheel 134 affects the characteristics ( such as density , compactness , cushioning ability , etc .) of the pad produced during the conversion process . while the set speed ratio provided by the gear train 157 – 159 may be appropriate in many situations , it may be desirable to selectively change this speed ratio to alter pad characteristics specifically , if the speed differential is increased , a stiffer , more dense pad will be produced for use in , for example , the packaging of heavier objects . on the other hand , if the speed differential is reduced , a less dense pad will be produced ( possibly resulting in greater yield from a given amount of stock material ) for use in , for example , the packaging of lighter objects . in another modified form of the feeding / connecting assembly , two separate feed motors could be used , one for the feed wheel shaft 137 ( fig5 a and 5c ) and one for the compression wheel shaft 139 . either or both of the motors could have a variable speed option to allow selective adjustment of the speed ratio . it is noted that if these motors are directly coupled to the shafts 137 and 139 , the need for the motion - transmitting elements 154 – 159 ( fig5 a ) would be eliminated . in any event , this modification would eliminate the need for the gear train 157 – 159 ( fig5 a ). in another modified version of the feeding / connecting assembly , shown partially in fig7 , the gear train 157 – 159 ( fig5 a ) of the drive system 128 u is replaced with a variable pitch pulley assembly 1010 . in the drive system 128 u , the variable pitch pulley assembly 1010 controls the speed ratio between the feed wheel shaft 137 and the compression wheel shaft 139 . the illustrated pulley 1010 includes a sl - sheave 1011 coupled to the feed wheel shaft 137 , a mc - sheave 1012 coupled to the compression wheel shaft 139 , and a v - belt 1013 trained therebetween . an adjustment device 1014 allows manual control ( via a control knob 1015 preferably positioned outside the machine &# 39 ; s housing for easy access ) of the position of the v - belt 1013 on the sheaves 1011 and 1012 to thereby vary the speed ratio between shafts 137 and 139 , in well known manner . another modified form of the feeding / connecting assembly is shown in fig8 and 9 which is designed to provide for a convenient , and even dynamic , selective change in the biasing force between the compression wheel 134 and its support wheel 135 . the support structure 129 t of the wheel network 127 t includes a pair of horizontal cross bars 131 a t and 131 b t which extend between , and are secured to , the side plates 130 . the cross bar 131 a t is vertically aligned with the shaft 138 and the cross bar 131 b t is vertically aligned with the shaft 140 . a first pair of pins 143 a t ( similar to the suspension pins 143 ) couple the shaft connectors 142 to the first support cross bar 131 a t . the pins 143 a t extend from the ends of the shaft - connectors 142 adjacent the shaft 138 . another pin 143 b t is coupled to the shaft connectors 142 via a yoke 1020 connected to the ends of the shaft connectors 142 adjacent the shaft 140 . the pin 143 b t is attached to the cross bar 131 b t via an adjustment device 1021 . the adjustment device includes an adjustable stop 1021 a into which the pin 143 b t is threaded such that rotation of the pin will move the adjustable stop towards and away from the shaft 140 . a spring 1021 b is interposed between the adjustable stop 1021 a and the cross member 131 b t of the yoke 1020 . accordingly , rotation of the pin will increase or decrease the biasing force acting on the yoke and in turn on the shaft 140 and wheel 135 , it being noted that the pin is free to rotate relative to the yoke . as is preferred , the end of the pin projecting above the cross bar has secured thereto a knob 1022 . as will be appreciated , the knob provides for easy manual adjustment of the biasing force acting on the shaft 140 . the knob preferably is located external to the machine &# 39 ; s housing , or at least at a conveniently accessible location within the machine &# 39 ; s housing . if the knob 1022 is tightened , the biasing force between the compression wheel 134 and its support wheel 135 will be increased , thereby creating a more dense pad . if the knob 1022 is loosened , the biasing force will be decreased , thereby creating a less dense pad . dynamic changes could be made while the machine is operating to change pad characteristics “ on the fly .” if desired , the knob may be replaced by other drive mechanisms , such as an electric motor that may be remotely controlled for adjustment of the biasing force . the drive system 128 w of another modified form of the feeding / connecting assembly is shown in fig1 . the drive system 128 w includes a reversing device 1030 which allows the reverse movement of the feeding / connecting assembly to , for example , clear paper jams in the machine . the device 1030 includes a clutch 1031 and a hand crank 1032 . the clutch 1031 allows selective disengagement of the shaft of the motor 153 w from the compression wheel shaft 139 . the hand crank 1032 is coupled to the compression wheel shaft 139 so that , upon disengagement of the motor drive shaft , the shaft 139 may be manually turned in the reverse direction . the hand crank 1032 can be permanently fixed to the machine as shown , or can be “ folded away ,” or even removed during normal operation . alternatively , the motor could be reversed to effect reverse movement of the feeding / connecting assembly . another modified form of the feeding / connecting assembly is shown in fig2 and 21 , this assembly incorporating a modified drive system 128 x . in the modified drive system 128 x , the feed wheel shaft 137 ( and thus the feed wheel 132 and its support wheel 133 ) is directly driven by the motor 153 at a constant speed . however , the compression wheel shaft 139 ( and thus the compression wheel 134 and its support wheel 135 ) are driven intermittently , rather than continuously , by an indexing device 1040 which replaces the gear train 157 – 159 . when the indexed wheels 134 and 135 are not rotating , the stock material is crumpled as the rotating wheels 132 and 133 continue to advance stock material downstream . when the indexed wheels 134 and 135 are rotating , the stock material will be emitted from the feeding / connecting assembly . the indexing device 1040 is a conventional “ geneva ” gear mechanism and , in the illustrated device , the compression wheel 134 rotates a quarter of a revolution for every half revolution of the feed wheel 132 . the device 1040 includes a driver disk 1042 mounted to the support wall 130 , a cam pin 1041 mounted to the driver disk 1042 , a gear 1043 coupled to the end of the feed shaft 137 , and a four - slotted disk 1044 coupled to the end of the compression wheel shaft 138 . the driver disk is indexed with the compression shaft 139 so that upon every half revolution of the feed wheel shaft 137 , the driver disk 1042 will also make one revolution . as the driver disk 1042 makes one revolution , it will cause the four - slotted disk 1044 to rotate a quarter of a revolution via the cam pin 1041 . another modified form 111 y of the feeding / connecting assembly is shown in fig1 a – 19c . the wheel network 127 y of this assembly includes a “ stretching assembly ” comprised of a stretch wheel 1050 , its support wheel 1051 , and corresponding shafts 1052 and 1053 . during operation of the feeding / connecting assembly 111 y , the wheels 1050 and 1051 are rotated at a faster feed rate speed than the wheels 134 and 135 whereby the strip will be “ stretched ” prior to passing through the outlet opening in the end wall 105 . the wheels 1050 and 1051 may be essentially identical in design and size as the wheels 134 and 135 , respectively . the addition of the wheels 1050 and 1051 necessitates changes in the support structure 126 y , the wheel network 127 y , and the drive system 128 y . the support structure 126 y includes extended side walls 130 y each with an additional slot to accommodate the shaft 1053 , and a cross bars 131 y positioned between each adjacent set of support wheels . in the wheel network 127 y , shaft - connectors 142 y connect all three shafts 138 , 140 , and 1053 , and two sets of suspension pins 143 y couple the shaft - connectors 142 y to the cross bars 132 y . in the drive system 128 y , gears 1054 and 1055 are added to the gear train , gear 1054 being mounted to the stretch wheel shaft 1052 and gear 1055 being mounted to the side wall 130 y to convey motion from the gear 157 to the gear 1054 . the gears 1054 and 1055 may be sized so that the stretch wheel 1050 is rotated anywhere between a feed rate speed just slightly faster than the compression wheel 134 to a feed rate speed equal to the feed wheel 132 . also , although not shown in fig1 a – 19c , the guide chute 129 ( fig5 a – 5c ) is preferably elongated and its slots modified to accommodate the wheels 1050 and 1051 . in a further modified form 111 z of the feeding / connecting assembly shown in fig2 – 24 , a movable barrier 1060 replaces the compression wheel 134 , its support wheel 135 , and the compression wheel shaft 139 . the barrier 1060 is spring biased towards the feed wheel 132 so that as the strip of cushioning is expelled therefrom , it will be restricted by the barrier 1060 , thereby crumpling the strip in a longitudinal direction . as pressure applied by the crumpling strip increases , the spring bias of the barrier 1060 will be overcome , and it will open to allow the crumpled strip to pass through the outlet opening in the end wall 105 . the illustrated barrier 1060 is made from a circular ( in cross - section ) bar formed into a rectangular loop having rounded corners . the loop is perpendicularly bent at a central portion to form a rounded corner 1061 between an upper portion 1062 and a lower portion 1063 of the barrier 1060 . the corner 1061 of the barrier 1060 is rotatably attached around the shaft 140 ( previously used for the support wheel 135 ). when in a rest position , the barrier &# 39 ; s lower portion 1063 extends into the guide chute 129 z in a downward and downstream sloping direction with its upper portion 1062 extending upwardly therefrom . in the wheel network 127 z , a guide pin 1064 is connected to , and extends horizontally from , cross bar 131 . the pin 1064 is attached at its other end to a bracket 1065 secured to the top portion 1062 of the barrier , and a spring 1064 a is carried on the pin 1064 and interposed between the bracket 1065 and the cross bar 131 . as the pressure of the crumpling strip increases behind the lower portion 1063 of the barrier , the upper portion of the barrier 1062 will be pushed towards the cross - bar 131 thereby pivoting the lower portion 1063 upward to allow release of the strip . in the guide chute 129 z , the upper slot 161 z is extended to the downstream edge of the guide chute , which extends beyond the outlet opening in the end wall 105 . ( see fig2 .) the drive system 128 z is essentially the same as the drive system 128 , except that the gear train 157 – 159 is eliminated . in fig6 a and 6b , a cushioning conversion machine 200 is shown . the machine 200 converts sheet - like stock material into a three - dimensional cushioning product of a desired length . as with the machine 100 , the preferred stock material for the machine 200 consists of plural plies or layers of biodegradable and recyclable sheet - like stock material such as 30 to 50 pound kraft paper rolled onto a hollow cylindrical tube to form a roll r of the stock material . however , the stock material would preferably consist of three plies of paper and , in any event , would not be intermittently glued together . as with the machine 100 , the preferred cushioning product of the machine 200 has lateral accordion - like or pillow - like portions and is connected , or assembled , along a relatively thin central band separating the pillow - like portions . the machine 200 is similar to the machine 100 discussed above , and includes an essentially identical housing 202 , feeding / connecting assembly 211 , severing assembly 212 , and post - severing assembly 213 . however , the stock supply assembly 209 and the forming assembly 210 of the machine 200 differ from these assemblies in the machine 100 . the stock supply assembly 209 includes two support brackets 214 which are laterally spaced apart and mounted to the machine &# 39 ; s frame , or more particularly the upstream wall ( or rectangular border ) 208 . the stock supply assembly 209 also includes a sheet separator 216 , and a constant - entry roller 218 . the sheet separator 216 includes three vertically spaced rollers which extend between , and are connected to , the support brackets 214 . ( the number of separator rollers corresponds to the number of plies or layers of the stock material whereby more or less rollers could be used depending on the number of layers .) the constant - entry roller 218 also extends between , and is connected to , the support brackets 214 . as the paper is unwound from the supply roll r , it travels over the constant - entry roller 218 and into the separating device 216 . in the separating device , the plies or layers of the stock material are separated by the separator rollers and this “ pre - separation ” is believed to improve the resiliency of the - produced cushioning product . the constant - entry roller 218 provides a non - varying point of entry for the stock material into the separator 216 regardless of the diameter of the roll r . ( details of a similar stock supply assembly are set forth in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 322 , 477 , the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference .) the forming assembly 210 includes a shaping chute 219 and a forming member 220 . the shaping chute 219 is longitudinally converging in the downstream direction and is positioned in a downstream portion of the enclosure formed by the machine &# 39 ; s housing . its entrance is outwardly flared in a trumpet - like fashion and its exit is positioned adjacent the feeding / connecting assembly 211 . the chute 219 is mounted to the housing at the bottom wall 103 and at 221 . the forming member 220 has a “ pinched u ” or “ bobby pin ” shape including a bight portion joining upper and lower legs . the lower leg extends to a point approximately coterminous with the exit end of the shaping chute 219 . the rearward portion of the forming member 220 preferably projects rearwardly of the entry end of the shaping chute by approximately one - half its overall length . also , the radius of the rounded base or bight portion is approximately one - half the height of the mouth of the shaping chute . this provides for a smooth transition from the separating device 216 to the forming member and then into the shaping chute . the lower leg 220 a of the forming member 220 extends generally parallel to the bottom wall 219 a of the shaping chute 219 . however , the relative inclination and spacing between the lower leg of the forming member and bottom wall of the shaping chute may be adjusted as needed to obtain proper shaping and forming of the lateral edges of the stock material . such adjustment may be effected and then maintained by an adjustment device 223 which , as best shown in fig6 c , extends between the legs of the forming member at a point midway along the length of the lower leg , it being noted that the upper leg may be shorter as only sufficient length is needed to provide for attachment of the top wall of the shaping chute . the adjustment device 223 includes a rod 224 having a lower end attached to the lower leg of the forming member 220 by a rotation joint 225 ( such as a ball - and - socket joint ). the upper threaded end of the rod 224 extends through a threaded hole in the top wall of the shaping chute as well as through a threaded hole in a upper leg of the forming member 220 and is held in place by a nut 224 a secured to the shaping chute 219 . to adjust the gap between the lower leg of the forming member and the bottom wall of the shaping chute , the top of the threaded rod is turned the appropriate direction . the rod &# 39 ; s top may be provided with a screwdriver slot or wrench flats , to easily accomplish this turning with standard tools . further details of the preferred chute 219 and shaping member 220 are set forth in u . s . application ser . no . 08 / 487 , 182 , the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference . however , it should be noted that other chutes and shaping members are possible with , and contemplated by , the present invention . by way of example , the chutes and / or shaping members set forth in u . s . pat . nos . 4 , 026 , 198 ; 4 , 085 , 662 ; 4 , 109 , 040 ; 4 , 717 , 613 ; and 4 , 750 , 896 , could be substituted for the forming chute 219 and / or the shaping member 220 . as the stock material passes through the shaping chute 219 , its lateral end sections are rolled or folded inwardly into generally spiral form and are urged inwardly toward one another so that the inwardly rolled edges form a pillow - like portions of stock material disposed in lateral abutting relationship as they emerge from the exit end of the shaping chute . the forming member 220 coacts with the shaping chute 219 to ensure proper shaping and forming of the paper , the forming member being operative to guide the central section of the stock material along the bottom wall of the chute 219 for controlled inward rolling of the lateral side sections of the stock material . the rolled stock material , or strip , then travels to the feeding / connecting assembly 211 . another cushioning conversion machine 300 , formed from modular units 300 a and 300 b according to the present invention , is shown in fig1 a , 11 b , 11 c and 12 . the machine 300 converts sheet - like stock material into a three - dimensional cushioning product of a desired length . as with the machines 100 and 200 , the preferred cushioning product of the machine 300 has lateral crumpled pillow - like portions and is connected , or assembled , along a central band separating the pillow - like portions . as with the machines 100 and 200 , the preferred stock material for the machine 300 consists of plural plies or layers of biodegradable and recyclable sheet - like stock material such as 30 to 50 pound kraft paper rolled onto a hollow cylindrical tube to form a roll r of the stock material . the first modular unit 300 a includes a housing 302 a similar to the downstream portion of the housing 102 of the machine 100 . ( see fig1 a .) a feeding / connecting assembly 311 , a severing assembly 312 and a post - severing assembly 313 , which are essentially identical to the corresponding assemblies in the machine 100 , are mounted to the housing 302 a in the same manner as they are mounted the downstream portion of the housing 102 . however , an expanding device 370 occupies the space in the machine housing 102 that had been occupied by the forming assembly 110 and requires less space . ( see fig1 a .) additionally , a guide roller 372 is mounted to the upstream end of the housing 302 a via brackets 374 . the expanding device 370 includes a mounting member 378 to which a separating member 380 is joined . ( see fig1 b and 11c .) the mounting member 378 includes a transverse support or mounting arm 381 having an outwardly turned end portion 383 and an oppositely turned end portion 385 to which the separating member 380 is attached . the outer end portion 383 is mounted to the housing 302 a by a bracket 387 and suitable fastening elements . the separating member 380 includes a transverse support 393 and fold expansion elements 395 at opposite ends of the transverse support 393 that are relatively thicker than the transverse support 393 , with respect to the narrow dimension of the stock material . in the illustrated expanding device , the mounting member 378 is formed by a rod or tube , and the fold expansion elements are formed by rollers supported for rotation on the transverse support at opposite ends thereof . the transverse support 393 is attached near one end thereof to the adjacent end portion 385 of mounting member 381 for support in cantilevered fashion . the expanding device 373 is designed for use with flat - folded stock material which is formed by the second modular unit 300 b . during the conversion process , the layers of the stock material ( formed by the edge and central portions of the ply or plies ) travel through the expanding device 373 . more particularly , the central section of the folded stock material travels over the sides of the rollers 395 opposite the mounting arm 381 , while the inner edge portion of the stock material travels in the narrow v - shape or u - shape slot formed between the transverse support 393 and the mounting arm 381 and the other or outer edge portion of the travels over the side of the mounting arm 381 furthest the separating member 380 . as a result , the lateral end sections are separated from one another and from the central section , thereby introducing loft into the then expanded material which now takes on a three dimensional shape as it enters the guide chute of the feeding / connecting device 311 . further details of the expanding device 370 are set forth in u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 584 , 092 , which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety . the second modular unit 300 b includes a housing 302 b similar to the upstream portion of the housing 102 of the machine 100 . ( see fig1 .) a forming assembly 310 is essentially identical to , and is mounted to the housing 302 b in the same manner as , the corresponding assembly in the machine 100 . however , a stock roll r may be supported by a floor mounted stand or stock roll support 2002 . additionally , a guide roller 398 is mounted to a downstream end of the housing 302 a via bracket 399 . a packaging system 2000 incorporating the cushioning conversion machine 300 is shown in fig1 . in addition to the machine 300 , the system includes a table 2001 and a floor - mounted stock support 2002 . the first modular unit 300 a is located on top of the table 2001 and the second modular unit 300 b is located below the table . as the stock material is unwound from the roll r , it travels from the support 2002 , over the plate 119 through the forming assembly 310 , under the guide roller 398 ( positioned between the legs of the table ), over the guide roller 372 , through the expanding device 370 and into the feeding / connecting assembly 311 . the strip is then severed by the severing assembly 312 and the cut section travels through the post - severing assembly 313 . a modified version 2000 u of the packaging system is shown in fig1 . in the packaging system 2000 u , the folded stock material from the unit 300 b passes through an opening 2003 in the table 2001 u . this arrangement allows a more central positioning of the units 300 a and 300 b relative to the table 2001 u and also protects the folded strip from interference as it travels between the units . another modified version 2000 w of the packaging system is shown in fig1 . in the packaging system 2000 w , the first unit 300 a is stacked on top of the second unit 300 b below an elevated ( when compared to tables 2001 and 2001 w ) table 2001 w . additionally , the post - severing assembly 313 w is curved upwardly towards an opening 2003 w in the table whereby the cut section of cushioning will be deposited on the table top . this arrangement allows the table top to be clear of all machine components during the production of cushioning products . another packaging system 2000 x according to the present invention is shown in fig1 . this packaging system incorporates a machine 300 x which is similar to the machine 300 except for its first modular unit 300 a x . specifically , the unit 300 a x has manual , rather than motor - powered , severing assembly 312 x . additionally , the housing 300 b x is in the form of a two part casing . the other components , such as the expanding device 370 and the feeding / connecting assembly 311 , operate in essentially the same manner as described above . for further details of the unit 300 b x , reference may be had to u . s . patent application ser . no . 08 / 584 , 092 . one may now appreciate that the present invention provides an improved cushioning conversion machine related methodology . although the invention has been shown and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments , it is obvious that equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification . the present invention includes all such equivalent alterations and modifications . accordingly , while a particular feature of the invention may have been described above with respect to only one of the illustrated embodiments , such feature may be combined with one or more features of the other embodiments , as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application . it is noted that the position references in the specification ( i . e , top , bottom , lower , upper , etc .) are used only for ease in explanation when describing the illustrated embodiments and are in no way intended to limit the present invention to particular orientation . also , the terms ( including a reference to a “ means ”) used to identify the herein - described assemblies and devices are intended to correspond , unless otherwise indicated , to any assembly / device which performs the specified function of such an assembly / device that is functionally equivalent even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs the function in the illustrated exemplary embodiment of the invention .

US-92170104-A

the invention relates to an improved process and apparatus for electroplating an object and removing the excess electroplating solution from the electroplating object . the improvement comprises performing the electroplating process utilizing an apparatus and in a manner which eliminates all waste rinse solution and which provides substantially complete recovery of the chemicals utilized , but not used up , in the plating process .

the object to be electroplated , in accordance with the present invention , can include a variety of alloys and metals . generally , the plating being applied consists of a different alloy or metal than the object to be plated . those skilled in the art are familiar with objects of alloys or metals onto which an alloy or metal may be electroplated . though the invention will be described in detail with respect to zinc and cadmium plating , the process and apparatus of the present invention is useful in all plating operations , especially in those plating operations wherein the metal to be plated can be described as &# 34 ; cyanide dissolvable &# 34 ;, e . g . including the &# 34 ; noble &# 34 ; metals , platinum , gold , palladium , silver and the like , with or without minor adaptations or modifications . in zinc and cadmium plating operations , any number of high carbon , medium carbon and low carbon steels , nickel steels or other metals to which a nickel strike can be applied , can be plated . in many instances , the object to be plated is a worn part which , in use , has become rusty , greasy , scratched or otherwise incompatible with immediate plating . therefore , the object may be pre - treated so that a properly adherent and sufficiently uniform plated coating may be achieved . before these objects are electroplated they can first be optionally prepared and treated by employing one or more conventional well - known techniques . whether or not the object should be pre - treated would depend upon the condition of the object . specifically , if the object contains particles or scales of rust on the surface , these should be removed prior to electroplating . accordingly , if rusting or scaling is present , the objects are first tumbled so that they may attain a smoothened configuration . the tumbling is a type of abrasion which removes heavy accumulation of unwanted surface irregularities and impurities . the objects may thereafter be degreased in any conventional manner . optionally , after the objects have been degreased they can be heat treated . once the object has been sufficiently pre - treated , if necessary , by the optional pre - treatment steps , the object is ready to be plated . fig1 shows one embodiment of the present apparatus and process and the references in the detailed description which follows are to fig1 . as one pre - electroplating step , the object is usually or typically hot electrocleaned in order to remove any additional grease and dirt which may be adhered to the object . this is accomplished by immersing the object in a hot electroclean solution which is contained within a single , stagnant hot electroclean bath ( 1 ). the electroclean solution comprises a mixture or solution of base or caustic , e . g . of sodium hydroxide , and water . those skilled in the art are familiar with the various concentrations ( weight / volume ) of sodium hydroxide / water which may be used as the electroclean solution . for most purposes , a solution of 10 - 80 %, preferably 25 - 75 % more preferably 40 - 60 % and especially preferably 50 % weight / volume can be used . the object is tumbled in the electroclean solution while a reverse dc current of a predetermined voltage and amperage is applied . generally , the voltage is in the range of about 5 - 20 volts , preferably in the range of about 5 - 10 volts and especially preferably in the range of about 6 - 9 volts . generally , the amperage is in the range of about 100 to 400 amps , preferably in the range of about 100 to 200 amps , and especially preferably in the range of about 100 to 150 amps . the object should be permitted to remain within the electroclean solution for a period time sufficient to remove any additional grease and dirt . in general , a time of about 5 minutes to about 20 minutes is sufficient , depending of course on the size and surface characteristics of the object . also , preferably , the object to be plated is contained in a rotating barrel within the electroclean bath and tumbled to effect more efficient contact with the electroclean solution . a suitable electrocleaning solution is commercially available under the name oakite 90 , which can be purchased from oakite corporation , berkeley heights , n . j . in the practice of the process of the present invention with the apparatus of the present invention , the electroclean bath ( 1 ) is filled with a sufficient amount of the appropriate hot electroclean solution so that the object may be immersed therein . after being electrocleaned , the object is removed from the electrocleaning solution and is rinsed in the single , stagnant rinse bath ( 2 ) associated with the electroclean bath . the rinse bath ( 2 ) is filled with a sufficient amount of water , at the outset of the process , so that the object may be immersed therein . during operation of the process , &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; of the electroclean bath is carried over into the single , stagnant rinse bath . over the course of time , the single , stagnant rinse bath attains a chemical composition , i . e . basicity , which is substantially identical to that of the electroclean bath . in this regard , &# 34 ; substantially identical &# 34 ; means that the concentration of the base in the rinse bath ( weight / volume ) approaches that of the electroclean bath , and is at least about 50 %, preferably is at least about 75 % and especially preferably is at least about 90 % of the concentration in the electroclean bath . in some instances , it may be that the concentration of the base in the rinse bath exceeds that in the electroclean bath . this may come about when the electroclean bath has been depleted to some degree and has not been replenished while , at the same time , the rinse bath has been subject to prolonged conditions of &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ;. &# 34 ; substantially identical &# 34 ; also means , in an alternative , that the ph of the rinse bath approaches or , under conditions just mentioned , became more basic than the ph of the electroclean bath . as noted above , the electroclean bath is usually basic . the ph of the electroclean bath is usually in the range of about 10 to about 14 , preferably in the range of about 10 to about 12 , and especially preferably in the range of about 11 to about 12 . once the process has been in operation , it has been found that the ph of the rinse bath associated with the electroclean solution becomes basic relatively quickly and within a few plating cycles is in excess of about ph 10 - 11 . within about 4 - 5 five days the ph is in excess of about 12 . therefore , in this regard , &# 34 ; substantially &# 34 ; identical means that the ph of the rinse bath is within about 2 ph units of the ph of the electroclean bath , is preferably within about 1ph unit of the ph of the electroclean bath , is especially preferably within about 0 . 5 ph units of the electroclean bath and most preferably is within about 0 . 1 to about 0 . 5 ph units of the electroclean bath . in some instances , the rinse bath may be more basic , i . e . have a higher ph , than the electroclean bath . in an alternative and preferred embodiment of the present process and apparatus , it may be desirable to replace or replenish the &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the electroclean bath with solution from the rinse bath associated therewith . this is especially so when the chemical composition of the rinse bath associated with the electroclean bath becomes substantially identical to that of the electroclean bath . the replacement or replenishment of the electroclean bath with untreated solution from the rinse bath can be accomplished through the use of any appropriate return means , including , for example , the manual use of a bucket . in a preferred embodiment of the present apparatus , the rinse bath will have associated with it return means comprised of a pump ( 7 ) and ingress and egress lines ( 8 ) which can be made of any suitable tubing or piping . the reduction in volume of rinse bath caused by replenishment of the electroclean bath ( or evaporation from the rinse bath ) can be made up by the addition of water to the rinse bath . as can be seen from the foregoing , the chemical recovery and reuse of the chemicals involved in the electroclean bath and associated rinse bath of the present process and apparatus is close to 100 %. the only chemical additives which are necessary to replace are those actually consumed by the electroclean step of the process ( e . g . naoh ). in addition , the electroclean bath and associated rinse bath are essentially &# 34 ; self - contained &# 34 ;. in this regard , &# 34 ; self - contained &# 34 ; is taken to mean that there is no waste water produced as effluent from the process and apparatus . only water and / or base are added to the apparatus , if and when necessary . after the object has been treated with the electroclean solution in the electroclean bath and rinsed , the object may optionally be once again tumbled in the manner heretofore described , if additional grease or dirt removal is required . because the electroplating solution is acidic , the object , which becomes alkaline after treatment with the electrocleaning solution , is usually acid activated to avoid disturbing the ph of the electroplating solution . the object is acid activated by immersing it into an acidic pg , 18 solution . the acid activating solution in a zinc plating process and apparatus will usually be comprised of hydrochloric acid , while in a cadmium plating process it will usually be comprised of sulfuric acid . in the practice of the process of the present invention with the apparatus of the present invention , the acid activator bath ( 3 ) is filled with a sufficient amount of the appropriate acid solution so that the object may be immersed therein . as mentioned above , in a zinc plating process and apparatus the acid activator bath will usually be comprised of hydrochloric acid , while in a cadmium plating process and apparatus the acid activator bath will usually be comprised of sulfuric acid . variations on the compositions of the acid activator bath for both zinc and cadmium plating process and apparatus are known to those skilled in the art . other acid activator baths which are employed when plating metals other than zinc and cadmium are likewise known to those skilled in the art . the acid activator bath can be of any concentration of acid which , combined with the length of time the object is immersed therein , is sufficient to at least partly counteract the alkaline effects of any residue remaining from the immersion of the object in the electrocleaning bath or sufficient to activate the object to be plated to be more receptive to electroplating . thus , if the acid activator bath is of a lower concentration of acid , then the immersion time will normally be longer , while if the acid activator bath is of a higher concentration of acid , then the immersion time can be shorter . all such variations of the concentration of the acid activator bath are well within the knowledge of those skilled in the art . thus , the concentration may be varied based upon the size and configuration of the object to be plated , the volume of throughput of objects through the process and apparatus , the speed of throughput of objects through the process and apparatus , the concentration of the base in the electrocleaning solution , and the like . all such variations in process and apparatus parameters and the resulting effect upon the desired or operating concentration of the acid activator bath are within the knowledge of those skilled in the art , or are achievable without undue experimentation . in practice , any concentration of acid , as noted above , can be employed . however , it has been found that an acid to water ratio of between 1 : 10 and 10 : 1 ( based upon standard commercially available concentrated hydrochloric or sulfuric acid ), preferably in the ratio of about 1 : 4 and 4 : 1 , more preferably in the ratio of about 1 : 3 to 3 : 1 , especially preferably in the ratio of about 1 : 2 to 2 : 1 and most preferably in the ratio of about 1 : 1 , are useful in the process and apparatus of the present invention . the ph of the acid activator bath is usually below about 4 , preferably in the range of from less than about 1 to about 3 , more preferably in the range of from less than about 1 to about 2 , and most preferably from less than about 1 to about 1 . 5 . in the plating processes and apparatuses known in the prior art , there is usually associated with the acid activator bath a flowing type rinse bath or series of rinse baths which are utilized to remove excess acidic solution from the objects to be plated due to dragout from the acid activator bath . applicants have found that the process and apparatus of the present invention can be greatly simplified through the use of a single , stagnant post - activator rinse bath ( 4 ) . this single , stagnant rinse bath is of a type and character similar to the single , stagnant rinse bath associated with the electroclean bath . for example , the post - activator rinse bath , over the course of time and as a result of &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the acid activator bath , attains a chemical composition , i . e . acidity , which is substantially identical to that of the acid activator bath . in some instances , it may be that the concentration of the acid in the rinse bath exceeds that in the acid activator bath . &# 34 ; substantially identical &# 34 ; as used with respect to the post - activator rinse bath has meanings as described in relation to chemical composition and ph ranges with respect to the post - electroclean rinse bath . in an alternative and preferred embodiment of the present process and apparatus , it may be desirable to replace the &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the acid activator bath with solution from the post - activator rinse bath . this is especially so when the chemical composition of the post - activator rinse bath becomes substantially identical to that of the activator bath . the replacement or replenishment of the acid activator bath with solution from the post - activator rinse bath can be accomplished through return means similar to those described with respect to the post - electroclean rinse bath , above , with the reduction in the post - activator rinse bath being made up through the addition of a suitable diluent , e . g ., water , to the rinse bath . thus , the acid activator bath and post - activator rinse bath are also self - contained as that term has been used in conjunction with the electroclean bath and post - electroclean rinse bath . in an especially preferred embodiment , the post - activator rinse bath can be eliminated entirely . in this embodiment of the present process and apparatus , the object to be plated is removed from the acid activator bath and immersed in the electroplating bath , without rinsing . when removed from the acid activator bath , the object to be plated will have the excess acid activator solution removed from it by , e . g . , allowing the excess to drip or run back into the acid activator by gravity , by spinning , by shaking and the like . in this embodiment , though the acid activator bath is still self - contained , it may be necessary to periodically replace acid activator solution lost through evaporation and &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; with fresh solution directly into the acid activator bath . it has been found that the objects plated suffer no loss in quality of the plated surface when the post - activator rinse bath is eliminated . once the object has been electrocleaned and acid activated , if necessary , in the manner heretofore described , it is ready to be electroplated . in the practice of the process of the present invention with the apparatus of the present invention , the electroplating bath ( 5 ) is filled with an amount of an appropriate electroplating solution which is sufficient to immerse the object to be plated therein . in general , the electroplating solution is comprised of a quantity of the metal to be plated dissolved in solution , e . g . as an aqueous solution of a metal salt or as an acidic solution of the dissolved metal , per se . also included in the electroplating solution may be stabilizers and buffers which serve to maintain the metal to be plated in a dissolved state under electroplating conditions and / or which maintain the proper ph of the electroplating solution under electroplating conditions . those skilled in the art are familiar with the compositional and other requirements of electroplating solutions for use in electroplating processes and apparatuses , and the manner of preparing and / or varying a particular electroplating solution to be adapted to a particular process and / or apparatus . the electroplating solution for a zinc electroplating process may comprise a suitable amount of a zinc salt , e . g . zinc chloride , dissolved in water , or a suitable amount of zinc metal dissolved in acid and diluted with water . the electroplating solution will also usually contain certain other components such as electrolytes ( to aid in carrying the high currents ), stabilizers and buffers , e . g . potassium chloride and boric acid . the electroplating solution may also optionally contain brighteners . the electroplating solution for a cadmium electroplating process may comprise a cadmium salt , e . g . cadmium oxide dissolved in water or an amount of cadmium metal dissolved in acid and diluted . the solution will also usually contain electrolytes , stabilizers and buffers and , optionally , brighteners as well . generally , the electroplating bath is kept at or above ambient temperatures , usually in the range of 70 - 90 ° f ., preferably in the range of 75 - 85 ° f . and especially preferably in the range of about 80 ° f . in some instances , due to the concentration of dissolved materials in the electroplating solution or due to a lowering of the operating temperature , crystallization of the salts may occur . this can be overcome by increasing the operating temperature . in most cases , heat is generated by the current applied to the electroplating solution and this heat is sufficient to bring the operating temperature within the desired range . experience with barrel plating installations indicates that some cooling of the electroplating solution may be required . in rack plating installations cooling may be required if the current per gallon is above about 1 . 5 amps . whether or not cooling is required is also a function of the ability of the electroplating bath to dissipate heat to the environment by radiation , which in turn is dependent to some degree on the configuration of the tank which holds the electroplating bath . if cooling is required or desired , various cooling means with their respective mode of operation , e . g . graphite heat exchanger , water - cooled titanium coils or water - cooled plastic coils , may be used . the surface area of the cooling means depends upon heat exchange conditions between the bath and the cooling means and may be varied accordingly . such variations are well within the knowledge of those skilled in the art . the rate of deposition of plating the metal onto the object to be plated is in part a function of the current density in the electroplating bath . in most plating operations , current densities up to about 40 amps per square foot of the surface area of the component to be plated can be used . lower current densities are used for the most part , with current densities in the range of about 5 - 20 amps per square foot being used . preferably , current densities of about 7 - 15 amps square foot are employed , with current densities of about 10 - 15 amps square foot being especially preferred . of course , the current density used is dependent on a number of factors including the degree of cathode agitation , if any , the type and configuration of the part to be plated , the type of metal to be plated , the chemical makeup of the bath and the like . for example , in a barrel plating installation , movement of the objects to be plated is provided through rotation of the barrel and the current density employed is to some degree dependent on the speed of rotation of the barrel . higher current densities require higher rotational speeds ( and higher rotational speeds allow higher current densities ) to avoid streaking or dull areas on the plated object . in rack plating installations , cathode agitation is usually required and better cathode agitation permits higher current densities ( and higher current densities require higher agitation ). as in barrel plating installations , if the agitation of the cathode is not sufficient for the current density employed , streaking and / or dull areas may result . for a particular application , those skilled in the art are familiar with the variations necessary to effect a proper rate of deposition based on a combination of variables , e . g . configuration of the object to be plated , current density and cathode movement , and suitable parameters may be achieved with little or no experimentation . periodic filtration of the electroplating solution may be employed . filtration is effective at times to prevent roughness of the finish on the plated part , particulary when electroplating is conducted at a high current density . when employed , the filter should preferably operate to effect at least one complete bath turnover per hour , although lower and higher turnover rates may be used . in a preferred embodiment of the present invention , the filter from the electroplating bath is removed and the plated objects have been found to be satisfactory in surface appearance under all plating conditions , whether a high or low current density has been used . the ph of the electroplating solution is dependent upon the metal being plated , the current density and the like and may vary within a given range for any particular metal . those skilled in the art are familiar with such variations . in the process of the present invention where zinc is the metal to be plated , the ph of the electroplating bath is usually solution maintained as slightly acidic , i . e ., within the range of about 5 . 0 to 6 . 0 , preferably within the range of about 5 . 2 to 5 . 8 and especially preferably at about 5 . 5 . if necessary , hydrochloric acid or potassium hydroxide can be used to reduce or raise the ph of the zinc electroplating solution . in the process of the present invention where cadmium is the metal to be plated , the ph of the solution should also be maintained as acidic , i . e . within the range of less than about 1 . 00 to about 2 . 00 , preferably within the range of less than about 1 . 00 to about 1 . 50 , and especially preferably of less than about 1 . 00 to about 1 . 05 . if necessary , sulfuric acid can be used to reduce the ph of the cadmium electroplating solution . in the plating processes and apparatuses known in the prior art there is usually associated with the electroplating bath a flowing type rinse bath or series of rinse baths which are utilized to remove excess plating solution from the objects plated due to &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the electroplating bath . applicants have found that the process and apparatus of the present invention can be greatly simplified through the use of a single , stagnant post - electroplating rinse bath ( 6 ) into which the plated object is immersed . this single , stagnant rinse bath is of a type and character similar to the single , stagnant rinse baths associated with the electroclean bath and , optionally , with the acid activator bath . for example , the post - electroplating rinse bath , over the course of time and as a result of &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the electroplating bath , may attain a chemical composition , e . g . acidity or potassium chloride concentration , which is substantially identical to that of the electroplating bath . in some instance , it may be that the concentration of the acid or one of the chemicals in the rinse bath exceeds that in the electroplating bath . &# 34 ; substantially identical &# 34 ; as used with respect to the post - electroplating rinse bath has similar meanings as described with respect to the post - electroclean and post - activator baths . in an alternative and preferred embodiment of the present process and apparatus , it may be desirable to replace the &# 34 ; dragout &# 34 ; from the electroplating bath with solution from the post - electroplating rinse bath . this is especially so when the chemical composition of the post - electroplating rinse bath becomes substantially identical to that of the electroplating bath . the replacement or replenishment of the electroplating bath with solution from the post - electroplating rinse bath can be accomplished through return means similar to those described with respect to the post - electroclean bath , above , with the reduction in the post - electroplating rinse bath being made up through the addition of a suitable diluent , e . g . water , to the rinse bath . thus , the electroplating bath and post - electroplating rinse bath are also self - contained as that term has been used in connection with , e . g ., the electroclean bath and associated rinse bath . in an especially preferred embodiment of the present process and apparatus , the post - electroplating rinse bath can be eliminated entirely . in this embodiment , the plated part is removed from the electroclean bath and is dried . drying can be accomplished by evaporation , by an air stream or by spinning the plated part , e . g . by centrifuge , and the like . preferably , there are provided &# 34 ; recapture &# 34 ; means associated with the electroplating bath so that the residual electroplating bath solution spun off the plated part by centrifuge or blown off the plated part by an air stream can be &# 34 ; recaptured &# 34 ; and returned to the electroplating bath . one such simple recapture means can be comprised of , e . g ., an extension ( either integral with or separate from the electroplating tank ) in association with , and above the level of , the electroplating bath . in practice , the object , after removed from the electroplating bath , can be blown with an air hose . the residual electroplating solution will be blown from the plated object , strike the extension and thereby be recaptured and returned to the bath . one such recapture means ( 11 ) is shown in fig2 and 3 . the recapture means shown in fig2 and 3 can be an integral part of the electroplating bath tank as opposed to the separate means shown and attached with attachment means ( 12 ). also , such recapture means can be used in conjunction with baths of the present process and apparatus other than with , or in addition to , the electroplating bath . it should be mentioned that the tanks utilized to hold the various baths , and the recapture means , when used , should preferably be fabricated from materials which are resistant to the baths themselves . in this regard , keroseal , rubber - lined steel , polypropylene , polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride tanks and the like may be employed . it should also be mentioned , referring to fig1 that &# 34 ; immersion &# 34 ; can be effected through the use of alternate circulating means . one such alternate means is depicted in fig1 . therein , in each of the post - electroclean rinse bath , the post - activator rinse bath and the post - electroplating rinse bath , there is a pump ( 7 ) associated with delivery means ( 9 ) and a spray head ( 10 ). a similar circulating means can also be included with the acid activator bath . the combination serves to draw solution from the respective baths and to spray the solution over the surface of the part , thereby &# 34 ; immersing &# 34 ; it . although only one such circulating means has been depicted with each bath in the figure , multiple circulation means may be used . other alternate circulating means , all included within the scope of the present invention , will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art . the invention will now be described by reference to the following examples which are intended to show representative or best embodiments of the present invention and should in no way be deemed to limit or restrict the full scope of the present invention . examples of zinc electroplating solutions , which have been discovered to impart the highest quality finish onto the subject to be coated , include those materials listed in table 1 and table 2 below . table 1______________________________________ concentration of component per 1 gallon of liquidcomponent electroplating bath______________________________________zinc chloride 3 . 0 ouncespotassium chloride 14 . 5 ouncesboric acid ( brightener ) 4 . 5 ouncesslz plus 26s ( brightener ) . 01 quartslz plus 35r . 03 gallonwater amount sufficient to yield 1 gallon of solution______________________________________ table 1 includes materials and their relative concentrations based upon a 1 gallon mixture of zinc electroplating bath solution . table 2______________________________________ concentration of component per 100 gallons of electro - component plating solution______________________________________zinc chloride 50 lbs . potassium chloride 135 lbs . boric acid 24 lbs . slz plus 26s ( brightener ) 1 quartslz plus 35r ( brightener ) 3 gallonswater amount sufficient to yield 100 gallons of solution______________________________________ table 2 includes materials and their relative concentrations based upon a 100 gallon mixture of zinc electroplating bath solution . on a commercial scale , the zinc electroplating solution is prepared by adding 50 gallons of water to a tank . the water is heated to a temperature of between 100 °- 120 ° f . the zinc chloride , boric acid and potassium chloride are then added into the vessel containing the heated water and are dissolved by stirring the vessel contents . the resulting solution is then permitted to cool to approximately between 80 °- 85 ° f . the cooled solution is then filtered into a clean electrocleaning tank . thereafter , the slz plus 26s and slz plus 35r are added , both of which are available from learonal , inc ., freeport , n . y . the tank is the filled to a final volume of 100 gallons with water . the object to be electroplated is first immersed into a hot electroclean bath comprised of sodium hydroxide solution . the temperature of this bath is approximately 180 ° f . the concentration of the sodium hydroxide in the hot electroclean bath is approximately 33 % ( weight / volume ). the electroclean bath has a ph of about 12 . 0 . a reverse dc current of about 150 amps is applied at a voltage of about 8 volts . the object is allowed to remain in the electroclean bath for about 10 - 20 minutes . the object is then removed from the hot electroclean bath , excess electroclean solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the electroclean bath , and the object is immersed in the post - electroclean single , stagnant rinse bath . the temperature of this bath is ambient temperature , i . e . about 65 °- 70 ° f . the object is allowed to remain in the rinse bath about 5 - 10 seconds , while gently agitating the object to aid rising . the object is then removed from this rinse bath , excess rinse solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the rinse bath , and the object is immersed in the acid activator bath . the acid activator bath is at ambient temperature , i . e . at a temperature of about 65 °- 70 ° f . the solution in the acid activator bath is comprised of hydrochloric acid at a dilution of about 1 : 1 ( volume / volume ). the acid activator bath has a ph of about 2 . 0 . the object is allowed to remain in the acid activator bath for about 30 seconds , while gently agitating the object to aid in thoroughly contacting the object , which may still be alkaline , with the acid activator solution . the object is then removed from the acid activator bath , excess acid activator solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the acid activator bath , and the object is immersed in the electroplating bath . the electroplating bath comprises the solution described above in table 2 and prepared according to the description thereafter set forth . the electroplating bath has a ph of about 5 . 8 and is at a temperature of about 70 °- 75 ° f . a dc current of about 100 amps is applied at a voltage of about 3 - 4 volts . after about 1 hour the object has a uniform , adherent , high - quality plated surface of zinc in a thickness of about 0 . 2 mm . the object is then removed from the electroplating bath , excess electroplating solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the electroplating bath , and the object is immersed in the post - electroplating single , stagnant rinse bath . the post - electroplating single , stagnant rinse bath has a ph of about 5 . 5 . the temperature of this bath is about 65 ° 70 ° f . the object is allowed to remain in this rinse bath about 2 minutes , while gently agitating the object to aid in rinsing , and is then removed and dried . the plated object has a zinc plated surface of a quality which is equal to that of zinc plated surfaces of the prior art processes and apparatuses . quality control tests show that the zinc plated surfaces produced by the process and apparatus of example 1 of the present invention can satisfy the requirements of the military and industry . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 1 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate zinc onto an object . however , &# 34 ; immersion &# 34 ; in the post - electroclean rinse bath , the post - electroplate rinse bath and the acid activator bath is accomplished by spraying the respective baths over the object through the use of the circulating means , above described . the plated object has a zinc - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 1 . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 1 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate zinc onto an object . however , after immersion in each bath , the object is spun or shaken to effect more thorough removal of the respective solution before immersion of the object into the successive bath . the plated object has a zinc - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 1 . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 1 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate zinc onto an object . however , after immersion in each bath , the object is immediately immersed into the successive bath without spinning or shaking the object and without allowing excess solution to drip back into each bath . the plated object has a zinc - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 1 . the process and apparatus as generally set forth in example 1 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate zinc into an object . however , only the hot electroclean bath , the acid activator bath and electroplating bath are used . no rinse baths are utilized . in addition , each bath used has associated with it &# 34 ; recapture &# 34 ; means as described herein . after immersion in each bath , the object is blown substantially dry with an air hose and the residual , respective solution remaining on the object is returned to the respective bath via the recapture means . the plated object has a zinc - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 1 . table 3______________________________________ concentration of component per 100 gallons of electro - component plating solution______________________________________cadmium oxide 37 . 5 lbs . sulfuric acid 96 lbs . brightener 8 gallonsstabilizer 3 quartswater amount sufficient to yield 100 gallons of solution______________________________________ table 3 includes materials and their relative concentrations based upon a 100 gallon mixture of cadmium electroplating bath solution . on a commercial scale , the cadmium electroplating solution is prepared by adding 50 gallons of water to a tank . the water at a temperature of between 65 °- 75 ° f . the cadmium oxide and sulfuric acid are then added into the vessel containing the water and are dissolved by stirring the vessel contents . the resulting solution is then permitted to cool to approximately between 60 °- 80 ° f . there - after , the brighteners and stabilizers are added and the solution stirred . the tank is then filled to a final volume of 100 gallons with water . the object to be electroplated is first immersed into a hot electroclean bath comprised of sodium hydroxide solution . the temperature of this bath is approximately 180 ° f . the concentration of the sodium hydroxide in the hot electroclean bath is approximately 33 % ( weight / volume ). the electroclean bath has a ph of about 12 . 0 . a reverse dc current of about 100 amps is applied at a voltage of about 8 volts . the object is allowed to remain in the electroclean bath for about 10 - 20 minutes . the object is then removed from the hot electroclean bath , excess electroclean solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the electroclean bath , and the object is immersed in the post - electroclean single , stagnant rinse bath . the temperature of this bath is about 65 °- 70 ° f . the object is allowed to remain in the rinse bath about 5 - 10 seconds , while gently agitating the object to aid rinsing . the object is then removed from this rinse bath , excess rinse solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the rinse bath , and the object is immersed in the acid activator bath . the acid activator bath is at a temperature of about 65 °- 70 ° f . the solution in the acid activator bath is comprised of sulfuric acid at a dilution of about 1 : 1 ( volume / volume ). the acid activator bath has a ph of about 1 . 0 . the object is allowed to remain in the acid activator bath for about 30 seconds , while gently agitating the object to aid in thoroughly contacting the object , which may still be alkaline , with the acid activator solution . the object is then removed from the acid activator bath , excess acid activator solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the acid activator bath , and the object is immersed in the electroplating bath . the electroplating bath comprises the solution described above in table 3 and prepared according to the description thereafter set forth . the electroplating bath has a ph of about 1 . 3 and is at a temperature of about 65 °- 70 ° f . a dc current of about 100 amps is applied at a voltage of about 3 - 4 volts . after about 45 minutes the object has a uniform , adherent , high - quality plated surface of cadmium in a thickness of about 0 . 3 mm . the object is then removed from the electroplating bath , excess electroplating solution is allowed to drip off the object and back into the electroplating bath , and the object is immersed in the post - electroplating single , stagnant rinse bath . the post - electroplating single , stagnant rinse bath has a ph of about 1 . 5 . the temperature of this bath is about 65 °- 70 ° f . the object is allowed to remain in this rinse bath about 30 seconds , while gently agitating the object to aid in rinsing , and is then removed . the plated object has a cadmium plated surface of a quality which is equal to that of cadmium plated surfaces of the prior art processes and apparatuses . quality control tests show that the cadmium plated surfaces produced by the process and apparatus of example 1 of the present invention can satisfy the requirements of the military and industry . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 6 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate cadmium onto an object . however , &# 34 ; immersion &# 34 ; in the post - electroclean rinse bath , the post - electroplate rinse bath and the acid activator bath is accomplished by spraying the respective baths over the object through the use of the circulating means , above described . the plated object has a cadmium - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 6 . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 6 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate cadmium onto an object . however , after immersion in each bath , the object is spun or shaken to effect more thorough removal of the respective solution before immersion of the object into the successive bath . the plated object has a cadmium - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 6 . the process and apparatus as set forth in example 6 are again utilized as described therein to electroplate cadmium onto an object . however , after immersion in each bath , the object is immediately immersed into the successive bath without spinning or shaking the object and without allowing excess solution to drip back into each bath . the plated object has a cadmium - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 6 . the process and apparatus as generally set forth in example 6 are again utilized as described therein to plate cadmium onto an object . however , only the hot electroclean bath , the acid activator bath and electroplating bath are used . no rinse baths are utilized . in addition , each bath used has associated with it &# 34 ; recapture &# 34 ; means as described herein . after immersion in each bath , the object is blown substantially dry with an air hose and the residual , respective solution remaining on the object is returned to the respective bath via the recapture means . the plated object has a cadmium - plated surface of a like quality to that of example 6 . accordingly , the process of electroplating can now be practiced without incurring the substantial costs relating to the treatment and disposal of the toxic rinse water . in addition , any negative impact that the toxic rinse water may have on the environment is eliminated . these advantages which are associated with the present process for electroplating exist because , in accordance with the present process , there is no need for any sort of waste disposal whatsoever . after being electroplated , the electroplated objects are usually further treated in order to attain the most lustrous and durable finish . the objects may be centrifuged for a time period between about 2 to about 5 minutes or for as long as necessary to substantially dry the object by removing any excess liquid which might have remained thereon . in a preferred embodiment , the excess liquid resulting from the centrifuging , if any , is gathered and periodically transferred back into the electroplating bath or the rinse bath associated with the electroplating bath . once the object has been dried , a certain amount of potassium chloride may remain on the object . the potassium chloride can be permitted to remain on the object or can be removed therefrom . this is determined by the type of finishing process to be employed . for instance , if a standard commercial chromating finishing process is to be employed , then the potassium chloride can remain on the electroplated object . thus , a finished product is attained by dipping the product into a standard chromate solution . however , if a silver - clear chromating finish is desired , then the potassium chloride must be removed . the residual potassium chloride can be removed from the electroplated object by immersing the object into a nitric acid bath . the nitric acid bath generally comprises a dilute solution of nitric acid , in an amount of between about 1 to about 3 % ( volume / volume ) and water . after the object has been immersed into the nitric acid bath , it may immersed in a clear chromate solution , such as ronabrite 101 which is available from learonal , inc ., freeport , n . y ., and then centrifuged until it is dry , at which time no further residue remains on the finished product . while preferred embodiments and several variations of the present invention are described in detail herein , it should be apparent that the disclosure and teachings of the present invention will suggest many alternative designs to those skilled in the art . all the patents set forth in the above description are incorporated herein by reference .

US-80167091-A

compositions made by metallothermal reduction from aerogels and phase separated glasses and glass ceramics formed and methods of producing such compositions are provided . the compositions have novel structures that incorporate nanoporous silicon and other metal , metalloid , or metal - oxide nanowires in form of three - dimensional scaffolds . additional compositions possess unusual photoluminescence properties that indicate possible applications in lighting and electronics .

the present disclosure can be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description , drawings , examples , and claims , and their previous and following description . however , before the present compositions , articles , devices , and methods are disclosed and described , it is to be understood that this description is not limited to the specific compositions , articles , devices , and methods disclosed unless otherwise specified , as such can , of course , vary . it is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects only and is not intended to be limiting . the following description is provided as an enabling teaching . to this end , those skilled in the relevant art will recognize and appreciate that many changes can be made to the various aspects described herein , while still obtaining the beneficial results . it will also be apparent that some of the desired benefits can be obtained by selecting some of the features without utilizing other features . accordingly , those who work in the art will recognize that many modifications and adaptations to the present embodiments are possible and can even be desirable in certain circumstances . thus , the following description is provided as illustrative and not in limitation thereof . disclosed are materials , compounds , compositions , and components that can be used for , can be used in conjunction with , can be used in preparation for , or are embodiments of the disclosed method and compositions . these and other materials are disclosed herein , and it is understood that when combinations , subsets , interactions , groups , etc . of these materials are disclosed that while specific reference of each various individual and collective combinations and permutation of these compounds may not be explicitly disclosed , each is specifically contemplated and described herein . thus , if a class of substituents a , b , and c are disclosed as well as a class of substituents d , e , and f , and an example of a combination embodiment , a - d is disclosed , then each is individually and collectively contemplated . thus , in this example , each of the combinations a - e , a - f , b - d , b - e , b - f , c - d , c - e , and c - f are specifically contemplated and should be considered disclosed from disclosure of a , b , and c ; d , e , and f ; and the example combination a - d . likewise , any subset or combination of these is also specifically contemplated and disclosed . thus , for example , the sub - group of a - e , b - f , and c - e are specifically contemplated and should be considered disclosed from disclosure of a , b , and c ; d , e , and f ; and the example combination a - d . this concept applies to all aspects of this disclosure including , but not limited to any components of the compositions and steps in methods of making and using the disclosed compositions . thus , if there are a variety of additional steps that can be performed it is understood that each of these additional steps can be performed with any specific embodiment or combination of embodiments of the disclosed methods , and that each such combination is specifically contemplated and should be considered disclosed . in this specification and in the claims which follow , reference will be made to a number of terms which shall be defined to have the following meanings : “ include ,” “ includes ,” or like terms means encompassing but not limited to , that is , inclusive and not exclusive . the term “ about ” references all terms in the range unless otherwise stated . for example , about 1 , 2 , or 3 is equivalent to about 1 , about 2 , or about 3 , and further comprises from about 1 - 3 , from about 1 - 2 , and from about 2 - 3 . specific and preferred values disclosed for compositions , components , ingredients , additives , and like aspects , and ranges thereof , are for illustration only ; they do not exclude other defined values or other values within defined ranges . the compositions and methods of the disclosure include those having any value or any combination of the values , specific values , more specific values , and preferred values described herein . the indefinite article “ a ” or “ an ” and its corresponding definite article “ the ” as used herein means at least one , or one or more , unless specified otherwise . “ aerogels ,” as used herein , refers to a low density material that has been derived from a gel through extraction of the liquid components . in some embodiments , aerogel comprises at least one component comprising an oxide . in some embodiments , aerogel comprises a metal oxide . in some embodiments , aerogel may comprise elements including silica , carbon , alumina , sulfur , selenium , iron , cobalt , nickel , zinc , lanthanide , copper , cadmium , and nickel or combinations thereof . in some embodiments , aerogels may have densities from about 500 mg / cm 3 to 0 . 5 mg / cm 3 . the pore size in the aerogels may be from less than about 2 nm (“ microporous ”), from about 2 nm to 50 nm (“ mesoporous ”), or greater than about 50 nm (“ macroporous ”), or combination thereof . in some embodiments , aerogels may be hydrophilic or hydrophobic . “ metallothermic ,” as used herein , refers to a gas / solid displacement reaction wherein at least one solid oxide compound is at least partially converted to the base element or an alternative compound comprising the base element via reaction with a gas . in some embodiments , the gas comprises mg or ca . “ aerometal ” or “ aero [ element ],” as used herein , refers to an aerogel that has undergone metallothermic processing and at least part of one oxide component has been converted to the base element . for example , “ aerosilicon ” comprises a metallothermically processed silica aerogel wherein the silica has been at least partially converted to silicon . “ aeroaluminum ” comprises a metallothermically processed alumina aerogel wherein the alumina has been at least partially converted to aluminum . “ phase - separated glasses ” and “ phase - separated glass ceramics ,” as used herein , refers to glasses and glass ceramics that are separated into at least two compositionally different phases . for example , borosilicate glasses in certain composition regions tend to separate into a silica - rich phase , and a borate - rich phase upon heat treatment . in some borosilicate glass compositions , the silica - rich phase is continuous , while the borate - rich phase is either continuous at sufficiently high borate concentrations , or at low borate concentrations , the borate - rich phase may be incorporated in the form of colloids in the major silica - rich phase . “ nanowires ,” as used herein , refers to a nanostructure , with the diameter of the order of a nanometer ( 10 − 9 meters ), or alternatively , can refer to structures that have a thickness or diameter constrained to tens of nanometers or less and an unconstrained length . “ powders ,” as used herein , refers to finely dispersed solid particles with an average diameter along their shortest dimension of from about 10 nm to about 500 μm . the current disclosure expands the scope of applications available for the manufacturing of unique structures , such as nanowires , films , and powders . many powders and nanowires are made of oxide materials such silica , titania and alumina . manufacturing of nanostructured materials , such as powders and nanowires may be accomplished by a variety of techniques that use either gas or solutions as its precursors . the use of typical semiconductor techniques such as deposition / growth , oxidation , photolithography , dry etching and wet etching , allow the manufacturing of some semiconductor nanowires and powders on substrates , such as silicon nanowires on top of a silicon wafer . however , all these methods have relative difficulty in producing large quantities of nanowires cheaply and none are capable of producing three dimensional structures comprising these substances . current embodiments disclose cheap , efficient and powerful ways to manufacture highly porous structures . in some cases , these structures comprise nanowires that can be used in photoluminescent devices , gas / bio sensors , catalytic activity and perhaps in future electronic devices . in some aspects , the structures comprise highly porous phase separated glasses or glass ceramics that may be used in photoluminescent devices , gas / bio sensors , catalytic activity , and perhaps in future electronic devices . aerogels , such as silica aerogels , are some of the lightest materials known . with the use of the metallothermal reduction it is possible to create the lightest three dimensional semiconductor arrangement or metallic arrangement known , and therefore by reduction ( removal of oxygen from the aerogels ), new , extremely light materials . traditionally , nanowires are formed using vacuum systems or very high temperatures , often along with toxic gases such as the ones used in cvd systems ( silane , phosphine , etc .). embodiments herein avoid many of these problems while allowing for production of large amounts of nanowires simultaneously . in one embodiment , the composition comprises an aerometal . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises a transition metal . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises a metalloid . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises a lanthanide - or actinide - series metal . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises b , si , al , sc , ti , v , cr , mn , fe , co , ni , cu , zn , ga , ge , as , se , y , zr , nb , mo , tc , ru , rh , pd , ag , cd , in , sn , sb , te , lu , hf , ta , w , re , os , ir , pt , au , tl , pb , bi , po , la , ce , pr , nd , pm , sm , eu , gd , tb , dy , ho , er , tm , yb , ac , th , pa , u , np , pu , am , or cm . aerometals have ultralow densities due to their formation from aerogel precursors . in some embodiments , the aerometal has a density of from about 1 mg / cm 3 to about 500 mg / cm 3 . in some embodiments , the aerometal has a density of about 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 35 , 40 , 45 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 125 , 150 , 175 , 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , or 500 mg / cm 3 . aerometals , in some embodiments , have high surface areas and / or are highly porous . in some embodiments , the aerometal has a surface area from about 200 to about 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the surface area is about 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 325 , 350 , 375 , 400 , 425 , 450 , 475 , 500 , 525 , 550 , 575 , 600 , 625 , 650 , 675 , 700 , 725 , 750 , 775 , 800 , 825 , 850 , 875 , 900 , 1000 , 1100 , 1200 , 1300 , 1400 , 1500 , 1600 , 1700 , 1800 , 1900 , or 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the aerometal has an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 nm to about 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the average pore size is about 0 . 4 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 6 , 0 . 7 , 0 . 8 , 0 . 9 , 1 . 0 , 1 . 5 , 2 . 0 , 2 . 5 , 3 . 0 , 3 . 5 , 4 . 0 , 5 . 0 , 6 . 0 , 7 . 0 , 8 . 0 , 9 . 0 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 35 , 40 , 45 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 125 , 150 , 175 , 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , 500 , 550 , 600 , 650 , 700 , 750 , 800 , 850 , 900 , 950 , or 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the aerometal is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the aerometal is photoluminescent of electroluminescent in the uv , visible , and / or ir regions of the electromagnetic spectrum . in some embodiments , the aerometal is photoluminescent of electroluminescent in the uv region . in some embodiments , the aerometal is photoluminescent or electroluminescent in the visible region . one unexpected result of the formation of aerometals is the formation of nanowires . in forming aerometals from aerogels , the resulting aerometal may comprise nanowires of the metal or metalloid . use of this process allows for the formation of large number of nanowires simultaneously . in some embodiments , the nanowires comprise a combination of one or more elemental types of nanowire . in some embodiments , the nanowires may be interwoven . in some embodiments , the nanowires may form a three dimensional structure , which may be porous . aerometals may further be formed , produced , or converted to powders subsequent to formation . the aerometal powders may comprise either porous or nonporous structures . in some embodiments , the aerometal powders comprise nanowires . the powders may have an average particle size of from about 0 . 01 μm to 500 μm . in some embodiments , the particles have an average particle size of about 0 . 01 , 0 . 02 , 0 . 03 , 0 . 04 , 0 . 05 , 0 . 1 , 0 . 2 , 0 . 3 , 0 . 4 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 6 , 0 . 7 , 0 . 8 , 0 . 9 , 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 40 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 150 , 200 , 250 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , or 500 μm . aerometals may be formed into any forms that the base aerogel may be formed into . this includes films , bodies , molds , monoliths , or other forms . in another aspect , the processes herein described can be further extended to phase separated glasses and glass ceramics with similar performance and properties . phase separate glasses are usually , but not necessarily , binary or ternary structures involving sio 2 , b 2 o 3 and geo 2 . these oxides show strong tendency to phase separate . ( see , e . g ., arun k . varshneya , f undamentals of i norganic g lasses , chpt . 3 , academic press ( 1994 ), herein incorporated by reference ). one example is v ycor ® ( corning inc .) that is na 2 o - b 2 o 3 - sio 2 in the range 55 - 75 % sio 2 , 20 - 35 % b 2 o 3 and 5 - 10 % na 2 o . other common phase separated systems are the bao - b 2 o 3 - sio 2 glasses . it is important that you can have a phase separated glass where the silicate and sodium borate phase are separated after a heat treatment process ( for example , around 500 - 600 ° c . in v ycor ®). in order to make ‘ porous v ycor ®’ it is necessary to etch the glass . the etching may be done in 3n h 2 so 4 at 90 ° c ., which etches the sodium borate phase leading to a nanoporous mostly silica porous v ycor ®. glass ceramics are polycrystalline materials formed by the controlled crystallization of glasses . glass ceramics can provide significant advantages over conventional glass or ceramic materials , by combining the ease and flexibility of forming glass with unique properties . examples of glass ceramics that may be used in embodiments may be found in k irk - o thmer e ncyclopedia of c hemical t echnology , vol . 12 ., pp . 577 - 579 and 626 - 631 , wiley interscience ( 5 th ed . 2004 ), herein incorporated by reference . one advantage to the use of phase separated glasses and glass ceramics is that they can be molded by extrusion or other techniques in multiple dimensions . in some embodiments , phase separated glasses and glass ceramic comprise silicate , borosilicate ( e . g ., v ycor ®, p yrex ®). in some embodiments , phase separated glasses and glass ceramics may have an average pore size from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the metal or metalloid body formed from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic have an average pore size from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments the average pore size of the phase separated glass or glass ceramic and / or the body formed therefrom is about 0 . 4 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 6 , 0 . 7 , 0 . 8 , 0 . 9 , 1 . 0 , 1 . 5 , 2 . 0 , 2 . 5 , 3 . 0 , 3 . 5 , 4 . 0 , 5 . 0 , 6 . 0 , 7 . 0 , 8 . 0 , 9 . 0 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 35 , 40 , 45 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 125 , 150 , 175 , 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , 500 , 550 , 600 , 650 , 700 , 750 , 800 , 850 , 900 , 950 , or 1000 nm . additionally , in some embodiments , the surface area of the body formed from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises from about 200 to about 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the surface area is about 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 325 , 350 , 375 , 400 , 425 , 450 , 475 , 500 , 525 , 550 , 575 , 600 , 625 , 650 , 675 , 700 , 725 , 750 , 775 , 800 , 825 , 850 , 875 , 900 , 1000 , 1100 , 1200 , 1300 , 1400 , 1500 , 1600 , 1700 , 1800 , 1900 , or 2000 m 2 / g . the body formed from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic may further be formed , produced , or converted to powders subsequent to formation . the powders may comprise either porous or nonporous structures . in some embodiments the powders are porous . the powders may have an average particle size of from about 0 . 01 μm to 500 μm . in some embodiments , the particles have an average particle size of about 0 . 01 , 0 . 02 , 0 . 03 , 0 . 04 , 0 . 05 , 0 . 1 , 0 . 2 , 0 . 3 , 0 . 4 , 0 . 5 , 0 . 6 , 0 . 7 , 0 . 8 , 0 . 9 , 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 40 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 150 , 200 , 250 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , or 500 μm . additionally , the body formed from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic may be formed into any forms that the base material be formed into . this includes extruded bodies , films , bodies , molds , monoliths , or other forms . in another aspect , embodiments may be produced by the method comprising forming an aerogel of a metal oxide or metallaloid oxide and subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process , or alternatively , forming a phase separated glass or glass ceramic and subjecting it to a metallothermic process . in some embodiments , the method comprises providing an aerogel or a phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprising a metal oxide or metalloid oxide and extracting oxygen from the aerogel or a phase separated glass or glass ceramic by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction . in some embodiments , the formed metal - oxygen complex is removed to yield a nanostructured substrate with a density of less than 500 mg / cm 3 . in some embodiments , the formed material has a density of about 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 15 , 20 , 25 , 30 , 35 , 40 , 45 , 50 , 60 , 70 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 125 , 150 , 175 , 200 , 225 , 250 , 275 , 300 , 350 , 400 , 450 , or 500 mg / cm 3 . as an example of one embodied process comprises the reaction of a general metal or metalloid oxide substrate and metallothermic reduction via mg gas . however , as noted previously , the scope of the present disclosure extends beyond specific metallothermic reduction processes . more specifically , according to embodiments described herein , an metal - or metalloid - based structure comprising a porous metal or metalloid layer can be fabricated by extracting oxygen from the atomic elemental composition of a metal or metalloid oxide . the metal or metalloid oxide substrate may comprise any metal or metalloid element , such as , but not limited to , silicon , aluminum , iron , copper , boron , or combinations thereof . oxygen is extracted from the metal or metalloid oxide substrate by reacting a metallic gas , such as mg , with the metal or metalloid oxide substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex along a surface of the metal or metalloid oxide substrate . to facilitate the oxygen extraction , the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature t , which , in the case of many metal or metalloid oxide substrates , will be between about 400 ° c . and about 900 ° c . for example , and not by way of limitation , for alkaline earth alumina borosilicate glass , a suitable reaction temperature t will be approximately 675 ° c . or slightly less and can be maintained for approximately two hours . in some embodiments , the reaction temperature is about 400 ° c ., 425 ° c ., 450 ° c ., 475 ° c ., 500 ° c ., 525 ° c ., 550 ° c ., 575 ° c ., 600 ° c ., 625 ° c ., 650 ° c ., 675 ° c ., 700 ° c ., 725 ° c ., 750 ° c ., 775 ° c ., 800 ° c ., 825 ° c ., 850 ° c ., 875 ° c ., or 900 ° c . in most cases , the metal or metalloid oxide substrate can be characterized by a thermal strain point and the inert atmosphere can be heated to a reaction temperature below the thermal strain point of the metal or metalloid oxide substrate . for example , and not by way of limitation , for glass having a strain point of about 669 ° c ., the inert atmosphere can be heated to about 660 ° c . reduced reaction temperatures are contemplated for low pressure reaction chambers . the metal or metalloid oxide substrate may comprise any form . in some embodiments the metal or metalloid oxide substrate is an aerogel or a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the aerogel or phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises oxides of boron , phosphorous , titanium , germanium , zirconium , vanadium , etc . it is contemplated that a variety of suitable reduction gases can be utilized without departing from the scope of the present disclosure . for example , and not by way of limitation , it is contemplated that the metallic reducing gas may comprise mg , ca , na , rb , or combinations thereof . in a simplified , somewhat ideal case , where the metallic gas comprises mg , the corresponding stoichiometric reaction with the silica glass substrate is as follows : in non - stoichiometric or more complex cases , reaction byproducts like mg 2 si are generated and the reducing step described above can be followed by the byproduct removal steps described herein . to avoid byproduct generation and the need for the byproduct removal step , it is contemplated that the stoichiometry of the reduction can be tailored such that the metallic gas is provided in an amount that is not sufficient to generate the byproduct . however , in many cases , the composition of the glass will be such that the generation of additional reaction byproducts is inevitable , in which case these additional byproducts can be removed by the etching and thermal byproduct removal steps described herein . to enhance reduction , the metal or metalloid substrate can be subject to microwave or rf exposure while reacting the metallic gas with the metal or metalloid substrate . the metallic gas can be derived from any conventional or yet to be developed source including , for example , a metal source subject to microwave , plasma or laser sublimation , an electrical current , or a plasma arc to induce metal gas formation . in cases where the metallic gas is derived from a metal source , it is contemplated that the composition of the metal source can be varied while reacting the metallic gas with the metal or metalloid substrate to further enhance reduction . additional defects can be formed in the metal or metalloid substrate by irradiating the surface of the substrate with electrons . the resulting defects enable a more facile and extensive extraction of oxygen by the metallothermic reducing gas agent and , as such , can be used to enhance oxygen extraction by subjecting the glass substrate to electron beam irradiation prior to the above - described metallothermic reduction processes . contemplated dosages include , but are not limited to , dosages from approximately 10 kgy to approximately 75 kgy , with acceleration voltages of approximately 125 kv . higher dosages and acceleration voltages are contemplated and deemed likely to be advantageous . the metal - oxygen complex that is formed may be removed to yield a porous metal or metalloid structure . although the various embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to a particular removal process , it is noted that the metal - oxygen complex can be removed from the surface of the metal or metalloid substrate by executing a post - reaction acid etching step . for example , and not by way of limitation , post - reaction acid etching may be executed in 1m hcl solution ( molar hcl : h 2 o : etoh ratio = 0 . 66 : 4 . 72 : 8 . 88 ) for at least 2 hours . depending on the porosity of the glass , some additional mgo may be trapped inside the glass and additional etching may be needed for longer periods of time with multiple flushes of the acidic mixture . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a composition comprising an aerometal . in some embodiments , aerometal has a density of from about 1 mg / cm 3 to about 500 mg / cm 3 . in some embodiments , the aerometal has a surface area of from about 200 to about 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the aerometal has an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , aerometal is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises a nanowire , a powder , a film , or a three - dimensional body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of producing an aerometal , comprising : a . forming an aerogel of a metal oxide or metallaloid oxide ; b . subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process ; and c . optionally , removing reaction by - products to give a substantially pure aerometal . in some embodiments of the method , the subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process comprises heating to a temperature of greater than 400 ° c . for more than 2 hours or subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process comprises heating to a temperature of greater than 400 ° c . for more than 2 hours and subsequently , heating to a temperature of greater than 600 ° c . for more than 2 hours . in some embodiments , the removing reaction by - products comprises acid etching the aerometal . in some embodiments , the aerometal produced has a density of from about 1 mg / cm 3 to about 500 mg / cm 3 . in some embodiments , the aerometal has an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , aerometal is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the aerometal comprises a nanowire , a powder , a film , or a three - dimensional body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of forming an aerometal comprising : a . providing an aerogel comprising a metal oxide or metalloid oxide ; b . extracting oxygen from the aerogel by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction ; and c . removing the metal - oxygen complex to yield a nanostructured substrate with a density of less than 500 mg / cm 3 . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a composition comprising an elemental nanowire , a body , a film , or a powder , wherein the composition has a density from about 1 mg / cm 3 to about 500 mg / cm 3 and the elemental nanowire , a body , a film , or a powder comprises a metal or metalloid . in some embodiments , the composition comprises an elemental nanowire . in some embodiments , the composition comprises a three dimensional body . in some embodiments , the composition comprises a film . in some embodiments , the composition comprises a powder . in some embodiments , the composition comprises nanoparticles . in some embodiments , the composition comprises an aerometal . in some embodiments , the composition has a density of from about 1 mg / cm 3 to about 500 mg / cm 3 . in some embodiments , the composition has a surface area of from about 200 to about 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the composition has an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the composition is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the composition comprises a powder , a film , or a three - dimensional body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of producing a nanowire comprising : a . forming an aerogel of a metal oxide or metallaloid oxide ; b . subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process to form metal or metalloid nanowires ; c . optionally , removing reaction by - products to give a substantially pure nanowires ; and d . optionally , isolating the substantially pure nanowires . in some embodiments , the subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process comprises heating to a temperature of greater than 400 ° c . for more than 2 hours . in some embodiments , the subjecting the aerogel to a metallothermic process comprises heating to a temperature of greater than 400 ° c . for more than 2 hours and subsequently , heating to a temperature of greater than 600 ° c . for more than 2 hours . in some embodiments , the removing reaction by - products comprises acid etching the nanowires . in some embodiments , the nanowire comprises a powder , a film , or a three - dimensional body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of forming a nanowire comprising : a . providing an aerogel comprising a metal oxide or metalloid oxide ; b . extracting oxygen from the aerogel by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction ; and c . removing the metal - oxygen complex to yield a nanostructured substrate with a density of less than 500 mg / cm 3 . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a body comprising a cellular structure wherein the body comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the surface area of the body is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the body is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the body is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the body is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a film comprising a cellular structure wherein the film comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the surface area of the film is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the film is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the film is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the film is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the film . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a powder comprising a cellular structure wherein the powder comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm . in some embodiments , the surface area of the powder is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the powder is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the powder is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the powder is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the powder . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of forming a body comprising a cellular structure wherein the body comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm , comprising : a . providing a phase separated glass or glass ceramic article ; b . extracting oxygen from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic article by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction ; and c . removing the metal - oxygen complex to yield the body . in some embodiments , the surface area of the body is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the body is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the body is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the body is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the body . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of forming a film comprising a cellular structure wherein the film comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm , comprising : a . providing a phase separated glass or glass ceramic article ; b . extracting oxygen from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic article by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction ; and c . removing the metal - oxygen complex to yield the film . in some embodiments , the surface area of the film is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the film is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the film is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the film is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the film . in embodiments , the disclosure provides a method of forming a powder comprising a cellular structure wherein the powder comprises a metal or metalloid in elemental form ; wherein the cellular structure comprises interconnected pores with an average pore size of from about 0 . 4 to 1000 nm , comprising : a . providing a phase separated glass or glass ceramic article ; b . extracting oxygen from the phase separated glass or glass ceramic article by reacting a metallic gas with the substrate in a heated inert atmosphere to form a metal - oxygen complex , wherein the inert atmosphere is heated to a reaction temperature sufficient to facilitate the oxygen extraction ; and c . removing the metal - oxygen complex to yield the powder . in some embodiments , the surface area of the powder is from about 200 to 2000 m 2 / g . in some embodiments , the powder is photoluminescent or electroluminescent . in some embodiments , the powder is photoluminescent below 400 nm . in some embodiments , the powder is formed from a phase separated glass or glass ceramic . in some embodiments , the phase separated glass or glass ceramic comprises a borosilicate glass . in some embodiments , the disclosure provides an article comprising the powder . silica aerogels were purchased and used as obtained . the magnesium source used was magnesium turnings 99 . 8 % pure from alfa aesar . the mg turnings were put at the bottom of a graphite crucible with a lid made of a graphite plate . the aerogel was put into the crucible the crucible was put into an oven under an argon atmosphere at 650 - 675 ° c . ( we used 660 ° c . to keep the temperature below the strain point of the glass and to avoid stress to the samples ) for a period of 2 hours , and then cooled . the mg gas reacts with silica to produce porous silicon ( si ) ( gray in color ) and the mgo byproduct which appears as a brown color stain on the material &# 39 ; s surface . a second by - product of this reaction is the appearance of mg 2 si that arises from a secondary reaction of the formed si with more mg due to the non - balanced amount of mg used in the reaction ( more mg than si atoms ). subsequently , the sample is heated again under a controlled inert atmosphere ( here argon ) at a temperature higher than 650 ° c . ( here we used 660 ° c .) with no mg present . the mg 2 si is evaporated leaving only si and mgo . as a final step , the sample is subjected to acid etching in 1m hcl solution ( molar hcl : h 2 o : etoh ratio = 0 . 66 : 4 . 72 : 8 . 88 ). the aerogel was put into a glass contained and etched anywhere from a few minutes to dozens hours , which allowed for full removal of the mgo . the final result was porous si and potentially some residual silica in the powder form that can be further etched in hf if needed . the reaction process detailed in example 1 was repeated using phase separated glass powder ( vycor ®) and phase separated glass extruded forms ( vycor ®). the pieces of glass were put into the crucible and the glass powder was put into a smaller crucible inside the first one together with some extra mg turnings in a mix . for the final etching step , robust 3d structures were still observed after the etching process . depending on the porosity of the glass some additional mgo may be trapped inside the glass and additional etching is needed for longer periods of time with multiple flushes of the acidic mixture . in fig1 , we show x - ray diffraction spectra of silica aerogel ( spectrum “ a ”) showing its amorphous background and lack of crystallinity peaks , in comparison to aerosilicon ( spectrum “ b ”). spectrum b shows the aerosilicon after processing at ( 660 ° c . for 4 hours + 725 ° c . for 6 hours ). the graph shows the appearance of peaks for mgo and si as consistent with this stage of the processing of the sample . after the etching step , shown in spectrum c , the aerogel sample collapsed due to the surface tension with the liquid and showed some strange peaks corresponding to mg 2 sio 4 . fig2 a and 2b show tem images of the sample after processing 660 ° c . for 4 hours and subsequently 725 ° c . for 6 hours . here one can observe the nanowires that are a mixture of mgo and si and sio 2 . some of the nanowires are around a few nanometers in width ( e . g . 4 - 5 nm ) while being as long as several dozens of nanometers . fig3 a and 3b is a photograph of the optical emission of silica aerogel ( object “ a ”) and the aerosilicon ( objects “ b ”) under different light conditions . the aerosilicon was processed at 660 ° c . for 4 hours and subsequently 725 ° c . for 6 hours without the final acid etch . in ambient light ( fig3 a ), the aerogel is pristine and blue in haze , while the aerosilicon is of a gray color . under a hand held uv lamp at 365 nm ( fig3 b ), the silica aerogel does not present photoluminescence , but the aerosilcon presented photoluminescence in the white / blue spectral range . the aerosilicon showed luminescence at 365 nm ( strong intensity ) and 302 nm ( medium intensity ). fig4 a and 4b compare the excitation spectra of quinine sulfate at 1 μm concentration as a reference ( target emission 447 . 5 nm ) ( fig4 a ) versus aerosilicon , where the target emission is at 440 nm ( fig4 b ). fig5 and 6 describe the emission spectra of quinine sulfate ( spectra “ qs ”) versus the aerosilicon ( spectra “ ssa ”). in this case one can compare the emission obtained under these conditions for the aerosilicon and the quinine sulfate with a concentration of 10 μm in h 2 so 4 ( fig5 ) and 10 μm in h 2 so 4 ( fig6 ). fig7 compares aerosilicon ( spectrum “ ssa ”) to aeroaluminum ( spectrum “ aa ”). the aeroaluminum presented similar photoluminescence behavior as the silica aerogel . as shown in the figure , the spectral characteristics for aeroaluminum are red shifted , leading to a more warm emission with a white - orange luminescence . fig8 is a contour graph of the lifetime measured form excitation at 349 nm with a bandwidth of 1 nm of the aerosilicon . the graph describes the lifetimes observed in a photomultiplier tube for a wavelength range from 380 nm to 600 nm with a bandwidth of 1 nm . an untreated silica aerogel was used as reference sample and its spectra due to scattering of light or possible impurity defects subtracted . one can observe the peak and different decays depending on the wavelength of emission . fig9 a , 9 b , and 9 c are photographs of the optical emission of a porous vycor ® slab and from an extruded porous vycor ® 3d monolith both before and after methalothermic processing to form the silicon equivalent . the samples were processed at 660 ° c . for 4 hours , 725 ° c . for 6 hours , and then an acid etch in hcl : etoh : h 2 o solution . under ambient light , the unprocessed and processed samples look similar ( fig9 a ), but when exposed to uv radiation , the processed sample was strongly luminescent in the uv at 365 nm ( strong intensity ) and 302 nm ( medium intensity ) ( fig9 b ). fig9 c compares the luminescence in the presence of a uv filter of the treated and untreated vycor ® samples . as can be seen from the figure , the processed vycor ® sample shows strong luminescence in the uv region . fig1 is an x - ray diffraction spectrum of the extruded porous vycor ® in the form of a 3d monolith of silicon . as expected , it shows just the peaks related to silicon .

US-201213693453-A

a light energized high voltage direct current power supply comprises a li source including solid - state laser diodes powered by electrical current at a voltage level , v 1 , for generating light ; a photocell array positioned to receive the light and fabricated with silicon - on - sapphire for providing electrical power having an output voltage v 2 , where v 2 & gt ; v 1 , where the photocell array includes serially connected photovoltaic cells ; and a voltage regulator operably coupled to the light source and the photocell array for controlling the output of the power supply to a predetermined voltage level .

one embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to fig1 showing laser energized high voltage direct current power supply 10 which transforms low voltage dc power to high voltage dc power . low voltage power , provided through input terminals 9a and 9b , energizes laser diodes 1 which direct light energy 2 onto photocell array 3 comprised of many photocells 16 connected in series . photocells 16 each convert light energy 2 into a dc electrical voltage . the high voltage dc output available across contacts 5 and 6 is the algebraic sum of the voltage outputs of the individual photocells 16 . photocell array 3 comprises individual photocells 16 connected in series . such an array may consist of thousands of photocells such as p - n junction photovoltaic cells fabricated on an insulating substrate such as sapphire wafer 19 ( referring to fig6 et seq .) by well known methods of electronic circuit micro - fabrication . in the preferred embodiment , photocell array 3 may be fabricated as described further herein . light 2 from laser diodes 1 is directed onto photocell array 3 , as for example , by positioning laser diodes so that the emitted light beams 2 are directed onto photocells 16 after passing through transparent sapphire substrate 19 . this configuration advantageously avoids shadowing photocells 16 by layers on the top surface of photocell array 3 . an example of this technique is described below with reference to fig2 where there is shown laser source 1a positioned so that light 2 is emitted from surfaces 1c into solid transparent medium 3a and through sapphire substrate 19 in order to illuminate photocell array 3 . medium 3a may be , for example , a prism made of glass or quartz . laser source 1a may comprise linear array 1b of laser diodes with a linear array of emitting surfaces 1c . sapphire substrate 19 may be attached to solid transparent medium 3a by well known methods such as adhesive bonding using transparent adhesive , not shown . bonding sapphire substrate 19 to solid transparent medium 3a allows solid transparent medium 3a to conduct heat away from photocell array 3 . the heat is generated by absorbed light which is not converted into electrical energy . a sapphire substrate is particularly useful for heat dissipation because of the high thermal conductivity of sapphire . one example of a suitable laser source 1a is model lcw - 5105 , manufactured by laser diode , inc . alternative methods for illuminating photocell array 3 include using single laser diodes or two dimensional diode arrays in conjunction with suitable optical elements such as lenses , prisms , and mirrors to direct the light from the laser diodes onto the photocells . in order to prevent energy waste and to control the high voltage output of photocell array 3 , feedback control may be employed with power supply 10 as shown in fig3 and described as follows : low voltage dc power is input into terminals a and b of control circuit 13 . contacts 11 and 12 , located on photocell array 3 , provide feedback voltages to contacts e and f of control circuit 13 . typically , contact 12 would be a &# 34 ; center tap &# 34 ; to photocell array 3 , i . e ., it would be connected to the center of the series circuit of photocells 16 . contact 11 is connected at a circuit point suitably selected somewhere between serially connected photocells 16 that is separated by several photocells separated from contact 12 . in this way a low voltage difference is produced between contacts 11 and 12 which is proportional to the high voltage output available across contacts 5 and 6 . control circuit 13 compares the feedback voltage to a selected reference voltage and suitably controls the power provided to laser diodes 1 through terminals c and d . in this way , a desired output voltage across terminals 5 and 6 can be maintained ; and energy is provided to photocell array 3 only as needed to maintain the desired output voltage . an embodiment of a control circuit suitable for use in the present invention is described below with reference to fig4 . differential amplifier 15 produces an output signal which is proportional to the difference between the feedback voltages , available at terminals e and f , and a reference voltage derived from variable resistor 17 . the output of amplifier 15 controls power transistor 14 , which may be a power cmos transistor , to control the power directed to laser diodes i through terminals c and d . low voltage dc input power is connected to terminals a and b . control circuit 13 , as illustrated in fig4 and described above , is presented by way of example only . it is to be understood that control circuit 13 may be implemented in many different ways , as would be well known to those skilled in the art of electrical circuit design . referring to fig5 photocell array 3 includes arrays of individual photocells 16 connected in series by interconnecting lines 18 and 26c . elements of photocell array 3 include sapphire substrate 19 , silicon islands 21c , contact junctions 22c , and interconnecting lines 26c and 18 . typical dimensions of silicon islands 21c may be 100 micrometers by 100 micrometers . there may be any number of photocells 16 in photocell array 3 . for example , a suitable array may consist of 4000 photocells . such an array may occupy an area of 1 cm 2 and produce a maximum output of about 2000 volts when illuminated with laser diodes of the type described above . if the optical power intensity is 1 watt / cm 2 , then the available current will be about 40 microamperes . a method for fabricating photocell array 3 is described as follows with reference to fig6 : beginning with sapphire substrate 19 , a thin layer of silicon 20 is epitaxially deposited on to substrate 19 by well known methods ( fig7 ). silicon layer 20 may have a thickness in the range of 1000 to 5000 angstroms , with a typical value of 3000 angstroms . silicon layer 20 is made amorphous by bombardment with high energy silicon ions , then recrystallized by thermal annealing . this step is done to achieve the desired electrical properties of the silicon epitaxial layers . layer 20 is then ion implanted with a p - type dopant such as boron to a doping level in the range of 10 18 cm - 3 . referring to fig8 lightly doped p - type silicon layer 21 is epitaxially grown on top of silicon layer 20 . the doping level of p - type silicon layer 21 may be in the range of 10 15 to 10 16 cm - 3 . a typical dopant is boron , and the thickness of silicon layer 20 may be in the range of 1 to 10 micrometers . referring to fig9 top junction layers 22a - 22d are formed by ion - implantation of an n - type dopant such as phosphorous to a doping level in the range of 10 16 to 10 18 cm - 3 into p - type silicon layer 21 . top junctions layers 22a to 22d are implanted in selected regions of p - type silicon layer 21 by the well know method of selective ion - implantion . briefly , this consists of using optically patterned photoresist to form an implantion mask . the photoresist is removed after ion - implantation . next , referring to fig1 , highly doped p - type regions 23a - 23c for making electrical contact to lightly doped p - type layer 21 are formed by selective ion - implantion . the doping level of regions 23a - 23d may be in the range of 10 18 cm - 3 . electrical activation of the ion - implanted regions of p - type silicon layer 21 is accomplished by the well known method of thermal annealing . prior to thermal annealing , a protective layer of silicon dioxide , not shown , is deposited over substrate 19 . the protective layer may then be removed . as shown in fig1 , silicon layers 20 and 21 are next selectively etched using well known plasma etching techniques to form isolated islands , or mesas 21a , 21b , 21c , and 21d of silicon on sapphire substrate 19 . the selective etching process is well known . it includes steps in which a photoresist mask is deposited and optically patterned . protective silicon oxide layer 24 is deposited over silicon mesas 21a -- 21d and sapphire substrate 19 as shown in fig1 . referring to fig1 , planarizing layer 25 then is deposited and patterned as shown in fig1 between mesas 21a - 21d . this step may be performed by depositing a layer of photosensitive polyimide which is optically patterned to obtain the result illustrated . planarization reduces the problem of step coverage when forming interconnection layers between the silicon mesas 21a - 21d . contact holes are selectively etched in protective oxide 24 as shown in fig1 . as with selective ion - implantation and selective etching of the silicon mesas , selective etching of holes in silicon oxide layers is well known . metal layer 26 such as aluminum is deposited as shown in fig1 . metal layer 26 is selectively patterned to form electrical connection from regions 23a to 22b , 23b to 22c , etc . as shown in fig1 . referring to fig1 , protective silicon oxide layer 27 is formed over the entire substrate 19 . holes , not shown , provided in protective oxide layer 27 are formed over large metal areas for the purpose of providing contact areas for contacts 5 and 6 shown in fig1 and 3 . photocell array 3 , shown in cross - section in fig1 , includes sapphire substrate 19 , heavily p - type layers 20a - 20d , lightly p - type layers 21a - 21d , n - type layers 22a - 22d , heavily p - type layers 23a - 23d , protective silicon oxide layer 24 , planarizing layer 25 , metal interconnection layers 26a - 26d , and protective silicon oxide layer 27 . photocell mesa 16a may include , for example , the patterned silicon region with layers 20b , 21b , 22b , and 23b . photocell mesa 16b is connected to photocell mesa 16a by metal layer 26b . arrays of photocell mesas with up to thousands of photocells 16 are fabricated as illustrated , by way of example , in fig5 . the photocell array fabricated with the above - referenced techniques is particularly well suited for employment in the present invention because it provides very high voltage with optimized efficiency . when exicted by optical power , an individual photocell mesa produces up to approximately 0 . 5 v of electrical potential . a photocell with lateral dimensions of 100 by 100 micrometers is expected to produce an output electrical current up to approximately 40 microamperes when illuminated by 1 watt cm - 2 of optical power with a wavelength of about 0 . 8 micrometers . an alternative method of manufacturing photocell array 3 would be to follow the fabrication steps outlined above , but to substitute n - type doping in the layers which are specified as p - type , and p - type doping in the layers which are specified as n - type . the polarity of the electrical output will be reversed , but comparable performance would otherwise be expected . obviously , many 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 invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described .

US-74504591-A

a process for preparing acrylonitrile using novel compounds containing critical amounts of uranium , antimony and an element from group iv b of the periodic table .

the following will provide a further understanding of the invention claimed herein . to a flask equipped with a mechanical stirrer and containing 80 . 3 grams of sb 2 o 3 there was added 321 ml . of concentrated nitric acid and the mixture was refluxed for one - half hour . meanwhile a solution of 60 . 2 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o in 100 ml . of hot distilled water was prepared . the latter solution was then added to the flask and refluxing was continued for another three hours . the mixture was then brought to a ph of 8 . 0 by the addition thereto of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the resulting precipitate was recovered by filtration , dried in an oven for 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . and then calcined in air at a temperature of 900 ° c . for 16 hours . the product by x - ray diffraction was found not to be a single phase but contained the following crystalline compounds : usb 3 o 10 and sb 2 o 4 . to a solution containing 100 cc . of water and 6 . 84 grams of sbcl 3 there was first added 40 cc . of concentrated hcl and then a solution containing 100 cc . of water and 5 . 02 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o . the hydrous metal oxides were precipitated from solution by the addition thereto of 120 cc . of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the precipitate obtained was filtered , washed with one liter of water and then placed in a drying oven for about 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . the dried precipitate was then calcined in air at a temperature of 910 ° c . for 16 hours . in this example , as well as in those following , the preparation was carried out at atmospheric pressure and , unless otherwise stated , at atmospheric temperature . the product obtained , amounting to 7 . 05 grams , was shown by x - ray diffraction patterns to be the crystalline chemical compound usb 3 o 10 , with only small amounts ( less than about 10 weight percent , based on the total compounds produced ) of sb 2 o 4 and usbo 5 . to a solution containing 100 cc . of water there was first added 5 . 48 grams of sbcl 3 and 5 . 02 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o , followed by 40 cc . of concentrated hcl and then a solution containing 1 . 62 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 1oh 2 o and 100 cc . of water . the hydrous metal oxides were precipitated from solution by the addition thereto of 120 cc . of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the precipitate obtained was filtered , washed with one liter of water and then placed in a drying oven for about 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . the dried precipitate was then calcined in air at a temperature of 910 ° c . for 16 hours . the product obtained , amounting to 6 . 70 grams , was shown by x - ray diffraction patterns , to be the crystalline chemical compound usb 2 · 4 ti 0 · 6 o 9 - 10 . the compound obtained in this example falls within the definition of the novel compounds defined herein . the procedure of example ii was repeated , except that 4 . 56 grams of sbcl 3 and 2 . 7 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 1oh 2 o was used . the single crystalline compound usb 2 · 0 ti 1 · 0 o 9 - 10 was obtained . the compound obtained herein also falls within the definition of the novel compounds defined herein . this time the procedure of example ii was repeated using 6 . 84 grams of sbcl 3 , 10 . 04 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 6h 2 o and 8 . 10 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 10h 2 o . a compound of the type usb 3 - x ti x o 9 - 10 , wherein x is a number between 1 . 0 and 1 . 2 was obtained , along with a small amount of tio 2 . again , the predominant compound obtained herein falls within the definition of the novel compounds defined herein . in this example , the run of example iv was repeated , except that 4 . 56 grams of sbcl 3 and 10 . 86 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 10h 2 o were used . the product obtained did not consist substantially of a single phase , but contained the same compounds as in example v , except that the amount of tio 2 was greater . the procedure of example v was followed , except that 13 . 5 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 10h 2 o and 2 . 28 grams of sbcl 3 were used . in addition to the compounds found in example v , the product also contained significant amounts of utio 5 . the procedure of example v was repeated except that no antimony compound was present and 10 . 04 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o and 16 . 20 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 10h 2 o were used . the product obtained was a mixture consisting of substantial amounts of utio 5 and tio 2 . to a solution containing 9 . 12 grams of sbcl 3 , and 5 . 02 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o and 100 cc . of water there was 40 cc . of concentrated hcl and then a solution containing 2 . 43 grams of ti 2 ( c 2 o 4 ) 3 · 10h 2 o and 100 cc . of water . the hydrous metallic oxides were precipitated by the addition to the resulting solution of 120 cc . of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the precipitate was filtered , washed with one liter of water , dried in an oven for about 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . and then calcined in air at a temperature of 910 ° c . for 16 hours . the product by x - ray diffraction was found not to be a single phase but contained substantial amounts of sb 2 o 5 and usb 3 o 10 and a lesser amount of tio 2 . antimony powder ( 12 . 18 grams ) was added to 61 grams of concentrated nitric acid at 95 ° c . over a period of 15 minutes , the mixture was boiled for five minutes , diluted with 50 grams of distilled water and filtered . the filter cake was washed once with 10 grams of distilled water then added to 7 . 01 grams of u 3 o 8 , 5 . 10 grams of nitric acid and 14 . 4 grams of distilled water . the mixture was stirred at room temperature and an aqueous ammonia solution having a specific gravity of 0 . 880 was added dropwise thereto until the ph reached 6 . 5 . the resulting suspension was filtered and the precipitate was washed twice by resuspension for 15 minutes in 50 grams of distilled water containing 0 . 025 gram of carboxymethyl cellulose . the washed filter cake was suspended in 1000 grams of distilled water and a solution containing 3 . 41 grams of tetranormalpropylene orthotitanate [( ch 3 ch 2 ch 2 ) 4 tio 4 ] in 87 . 9 grams of benzene was added dropwise . the suspension was stirred for one hour , filtered and the precipitate washed once by resuspension in 100 grams of water . the filter cake was dried at 110 ° c . for 15 hours and sieved to pass 30 mesh , mixed with 0 . 37 gram of graphite and then pelleted . the pellets were heated in air from 300 ° to 800 ° c . at the rate of 21 ° c . per hour and held at a temperature of 800 ° c . for 16 hours . the product by x - ray diffraction was found not to be a single phase but contained the following crystalline compounds : sb 2 o 5 , usb 3 o 10 , usbo 5 and smaller amounts of tio 2 and sb 2 o 4 . to one liter of water there was added 91 . 24 grams of sbcl 3 and then 400 cc . of concentrated hcl . to this solution there was added a solution containing 100 cc . of water and 100 . 46 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o and then a solution containing one liter of water and 64 . 44 grams of zrocl 2 · 8h 2 o . to obtain the corresponding metal oxide precipitates , there was added to the resulting solution 1200 cc . of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the precipitate obtained was washed with 10 liters of water and then placed in a drying oven for about 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . the dried precipitate was then calcined in air at a temperature of 910 ° c . for 16 hours . the product obtained was found by x - ray diffraction to be the crystalline chemical compound usb 2 zro 9 - 10 . the compound obtained in this example falls within the definition of the novel compounds defined herein . to a solution containing one liter of water and 104 . 9 grams of sbcl 3 there was added 400 cc . of concentrated hcl , a solution containing one liter of water and 50 . 21 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o and then a solution containing 400 cc . of water and 32 . 23 grams of zrocl 2 · 8h 2 o . the metal oxides were precipitated by the addition to the resulting solution of 1200 cc . of concentrated ammonium hydroxide . the precipitate was filtered , washed with four liters of water , dried in an oven for about 16 hours at a temperature of 120 ° c . and then calcined in air at a temperature of 910 ° c . for 16 hours . the product by x - ray diffraction was found not to be a single phase but contained substantial amounts of sb 2 o 5 and usb 3 - x zr x o 10 , wherein x is a number between 0 . 25 and 1 . 0 . each of the above catalysts was used to prepare acrylonitrile as follows . a 0 . 5 ml . sample of 20 - 40 mesh catalyst was weighed and charged to a 0 . 64 cm . o . d . x 0 . 48 cm . i . d . tubular stainless - steel microreactor . the reactor was placed in an electric furnace . air was flowed over the catalyst at the rate of 32 . 5 cc - stp min - 1 as the furnace was heated to about 450 ° c . when the furnace temperature reached 450 ° c ., the reaction was carried out in cyclic fashion . the ammonia and propylene flows were started at 3 . 0 and 2 . 5 cc - stp min - 1 , respectively . the furnace temperature was adjusted so that the reaction temperature , as measured by a sheathed thermocouple located within the catalyst bed , was 475 ° c . after 15 minutes on - stream , the product stream was sampled and then analyzed by gas chromatography . after another 15 minutes on - stream , the propylene and ammonia flows were shut off . the catalyst was regenerated by allowing the air flow to continue for 30 minutes . propylene and ammonia flows were then resumed to begin the next on - stream period . this procedure was repeated for five or six cycles . thus propylene , air and ammonia were reacted at atmospheric pressure in a 1 . 0 : 13 : 1 . 2 molar ratio at a contact time of 0 . 28 to 0 . 29 second . average values are reported in table i for percent conversion , percent selectivity , percent yield , and relative activity . these are defined as : ## equ1 ## where x is the mole fraction of propylene converted . table i__________________________________________________________________________ per centcatalyst grams mol per cent selectivityfrom stoichiometry of propylene to acrylonitrile relativerun no . example u sb ti zr catalyst converted acrylonitrile yield activity__________________________________________________________________________1 i 1 . 0 4 . 6 0 0 0 . 431 16 . 0 82 . 1 13 . 1 1 . 12 ii 1 . 0 3 . 0 0 0 0 . 495 16 . 3 80 . 3 13 . 1 1 . 03 iii 1 . 0 2 . 4 0 . 6 0 0 . 638 61 . 3 90 . 6 55 . 5 4 . 14 iv 1 . 0 2 . 0 1 . 0 0 0 . 838 88 . 7 89 . 0 78 . 9 7 . 25 v 1 . 0 1 . 5 1 . 5 0 0 . 466 92 . 8 77 . 4 71 . 8 15 . 76 vi 1 . 0 1 . 0 2 . 0 0 0 . 710 50 . 8 46 . 3 23 . 5 2 . 87 vii 1 . 0 0 . 5 2 . 5 0 0 . 678 25 . 3 26 . 7 6 . 8 1 . 28 viii 1 . 0 0 3 . 0 0 0 . 570 17 . 5 27 . 2 4 . 8 0 . 99 ix 1 . 0 4 . 0 0 . 9 0 0 . 563 33 . 7 58 . 4 19 . 7 2 . 010 x 1 . 0 4 . 0 0 . 9 0 0 . 656 45 . 7 84 . 5 38 . 6 2 . 611 xi 1 . 0 2 . 0 0 1 . 0 0 . 652 92 . 8 79 . 4 73 . 7 11 . 212 xii 1 . 0 4 . 6 0 1 . 0 0 . 585 32 . 2 82 . 6 26 . 6 1 . 5__________________________________________________________________________ the data in table i amply emphasize the uniqueness of the novel composition defined herein in the preparation of acrylonitrile . note that when the novel composition of examples iii , iv , v and xi were used in runs nos . 3 , 4 , 5 and 11 , respectively , to convert propylene , air and ammonia to acrylonitrile exceedingly high yields were obtained within the exceedingly short period of 0 . 3 second . the remaining catalysts , which did not fall within the scope of the novel catalysts herein , resulted in exceedingly poor yields of acrylonitrile when used in the same process . an additional series of runs was carried out , this time using the catalyst prepared in example iv to show the effect of temperature of the novel catalysts herein in the ammoxidation reaction defined above . in all of the runs summarized below in table ii except run no . 18 , the molar ratio of propylene to air to ammonia was 1 . 0 : 11 . 0 : 1 . 1 ; in the latter run the corresponding ratio was 1 . 0 : 10 . 0 : 1 . 0 table ii__________________________________________________________________________run no . 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20__________________________________________________________________________temperature , ° c . 401 426 455 475 475 475 486 495contact time , seconds 0 . 73 0 . 71 0 . 68 0 . 41 0 . 65 0 . 72 0 . 40 0 . 40mol per cent propyleneconverted 34 . 9 70 . 4 87 . 7 93 . 1 97 . 6 98 . 9 97 . 0 97 . 9selectivity toacrylonitrile 78 . 6 83 . 8 86 . 9 87 . 7 86 . 5 84 . 1 87 . 8 83 . 0acrylonitrile yield 27 . 5 59 . 0 76 . 4 81 . 7 84 . 4 83 . 2 85 . 2 81 . 2__________________________________________________________________________ the data in the above table show that the novel catalyst is effective over a wide temperature range in the preparation of acrylonitrile . although yields were somewhat low in run no . 13 this is due to the relatively low conversions of propylene . an increase in contact time would result in higher propylene conversion and accordingly increased acrylonitrile yield . in general , however , while a relatively low temperature , as low as 401 ° c ., or even less , can be used , it can be seen that best results are obtained when the novel catalysts herein are used in the ammoxidation reaction in a temperature range of about 450 ° to about 495 ° c . an additional series of runs was made , using catalysts containing varying amounts of uranium , antimony and zirconium , in the preparation of acrylonitrile from propylene , air and ammonia . the catalysts were prepared by first dissolving uo 2 ( no 3 ) 2 · 6h 2 o , sbcl 3 and zro ( c 2 h 3 o 2 ) 2 in hydrochloric acid . to this solution there was then added ammonium hydroxide until the ph thereof reached 8 . 0 , at which point precipitates of the hydrous metallic oxides were obtained . the precipitate was recovered by filtration , washed twice with water , dried overnight at 120 ° c . and then calcined at 910 ° c . for 16 hours . the product obtained in each was used to convert propylene , air and ammonia to acrylonitrile following the procedure of runs nos . 1 to 12 . the data obtained are summarized below in table iii . table iii__________________________________________________________________________stoichiometry per centbased on mol per cent selectivitystarting materials grams of propylene to acrylonitrile relativerun no . u sb zr catalyst converted acrylonitrile yield activity__________________________________________________________________________21 1 . 0 2 . 0 1 . 50 0 . 922 49 . 6 82 . 9 41 . 1 2 . 122 1 . 0 2 . 5 0 . 75 0 . 418 61 . 0 87 . 8 53 . 6 6 . 323 1 . 0 3 . 0 2 . 24 0 . 954 42 . 9 86 . 4 37 . 1 1 . 624 1 . 0 0 4 . 50 1 . 085 19 . 6 7 . 8 15 . 3 0 . 625 1 . 0 5 . 0 0 . 75 0 . 532 19 . 5 89 . 1 17 . 4 1 . 126 1 . 0 2 . 0 1 . 00 0 . 496 82 . 0 83 . 5 68 . 4 9 . 627 1 . 0 2 . 5 0 . 5 0 . 472 69 . 7 88 . 6 61 . 8 7 . 028 1 . 0 1 . 5 1 . 5 1 . 087 70 . 6 63 . 4 44 . 8 3 . 1__________________________________________________________________________ the above data further show in runs nos . 22 , 26 , 27 and 28 that when the novel catalyst herein is used to convert propylene to acrylonitrile , the novel catalyst possesses an excellent activity and excellent acrylonitrile yields are obtained . the novel catalyst of this invention can be combined with a binder or support , such as silica , in any conventional manner to make the catalyst attrition resistant so that it can be used in a fluidized bed reactor . the preparation and use of such catalyst is exemplified by the following run . one liter of concentrated hydrochloric acid was added to a solution containing 114 . 05 grams of sbcl 3 and 125 . 53 grams of uo 2 ( no 3 )· 6h 2 o . to this solution there was added a solution containing 100 . 54 grams of titanium sulfate and 2500 cc . of water . when three liters of concentrated ammonium hydroxide was added to the resulting solution a yellow precipitate was formed . the precipitate was recovered by filtration and then washed with 25 liters of water . the filter cake , amounting to 24 . 8 weight percent solids , was combined with 549 . 33 grams of ludox as ( an ammonia - stabilized silica sol made and sold by dupont , wilmington , del .). to make a 10 weight percent solids solution 1942 grams of water was added to the mixture of filter cake and ludox as . the resultant mixture was sieved through a 30 - mesh screen and spray dried . the bottoms and overhead were then mixed and oven dried overnight and then calcined at 910 ° c . for 16 hours to obtain a product containing 50 weight percent usb 2 tio 10 and 50 weight percent sio 2 . a small portion of this catalyst , amounting to about two grams , was pressed into a pellet and subsequently crushed and sieved to obtain 20 to 40 mesh particles for testing in a one cc . fixed bed microreactor . one milliliter of this catalyst , amounting to 0 . 696 gram , was placed in the reactor and propylene was converted to acrylonitrile as in runs nos . 1 to 12 over a period of 0 . 57 second , with a propylene conversion of 80 . 7 percent , acrylonitrile selectivity of 87 . 2 percent and acrylonitrile yield of 70 . 4 percent . although the novel catalyst herein has been shown to be very effective in the ammoxidation of propylene to acrylonitrile , the catalyst can also be used advantageously in other ammoxidation reactions such as the ammoxidation of isobutylene to methacrylonitrile , and in oxidation reactions , such as oxidation reactions converting propylene to acrolein , isobutylene to methacrolein , butene - 1 or butene - 2 to 1 , 3 - butadiene , and isoamylenes to isoprene . obviously , many modifications and variations of the invention , as hereinabove set forth , can be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof , and , therefore , only such limitations should be imposed as are indicated in the appended claims .

US-71528176-A

disclosed is a decorative panel having a composite structure bonded by an elastomeric cementitious coating . the cementitious coating bonds together a foam core and glass fiber mesh to form a highly durable and lightweight decorative panel . the panel can further include a finish coat of a substantially maintenance free pigmented coating . the panel may be attachment to the exterior surface of barriers and bridges . the lightweight construction of the panel adds little weight to the structure it adorns while matching or exceeding the wear characteristics of the attached structure .

disclosed is a lightweight decorative panel having a composite structure bonded together by an elastomeric cementitious coating . the composite panel includes a foam core substantially surrounded by glass fiber mesh and a cementitious coating binding composite structure together . additionally , the visual appeal of the panel may be enhanced by adding bump - outs to the surface of the panel . furthermore , a substantially maintenance free pigmented finish coat may be added to the panel . the durable panel may be attachment to such structures as barriers and bridges as a decorative enhancement . turning now to the drawings where like numbers represent like items . fig1 depicts an embodiment of the decorative panel 2 having at least one foam core 4 bonded together in an elastomeric cementitious coating 14 . figure illustrates the panel 2 having a bump - out 12 formed on the surface of the panel 2 . fig3 depicts a further embodiment of the panel having two foamed cores 4 surrounded by glass fiber mesh and bonded together in an elastomeric cementitious coating 14 . the foamed core 4 or cores may be comprised of a polystyrene . in one instance , the polystyrene foam may be extruded , however it is not intended that the present panel 2 be limited to the method of formation of the core 4 such that the core 4 may be a molded polystyrene . additionally , it is contemplated that other foams may be used to form the core 4 . by way of example and not limitation , the core 4 may be formed from polyurethane and polyisocyanurate foams . while closed - cell foams have been specifically listed , the present panel 2 is not intended to be limited solely to cores 4 formed from closed - cell foams such that other foams including open - cell foams may be utilized . furthermore , the foamed core 4 may be formed from a foam having a specific density . for example , the foamed core 4 may have a density between about 1 to about 5 lbs per cubic foot . in a further embodiment the foamed core 4 may have a density between about 2 to about 4 lbs per cubic foot . an additional embodiment includes the foamed core 4 having a density of about 3 lbs per cubic foot . the decorative panel 2 may have one or more different types of glass fiber mesh , including those of varying weights and shapes . a fist type of glass fiber mesh includes the binding mesh or first glass fiber mesh 6 which imparts a structural integrity to the panel 2 . the binding mesh 6 may be a coated glass fiber mesh 6 capable of imparting an impact resistance to the panel 2 . an example of such a mesh would be sto xx armor mat available from sto corp . of atlanta , ga . the binding glass fiber mesh 6 may have a weight from between about 15 to about 25 ounces per square yard . in a further embodiment the binding glass fiber mesh 6 may have a weight from between about 18 to about 22 ounces per square yard . an additional embodiment includes the binding glass fiber mesh 6 having a weight of about 20 ounces per square yard . a second type of glass fiber mesh includes the corner mesh 8 or the second glass fiber mesh 8 . the corner mesh 8 can be utilized to impart and define an edge to the panel 2 and may be coated . the corner mesh 8 may be a mesh manufactured to have a pre - crease that defines an edge . an example of such a mesh is sto corner mat available from sto corp . of atlanta , ga . the corner mesh 8 may have a weight from between about 6 to about 9 ounces per square yard . in a further embodiment the corner mesh 8 may have a weight from between about 7 to about 8 ounces per square yard . an additional embodiment includes the corner mesh 8 having a weight of about 7 . 5 ounces per square yard . a third type of glass fiber mesh that may be incorporated into the present panel 2 is a bump - out mesh 10 or the third glass fiber mesh 10 . the bum - out mesh 10 may be coated and is a flexible mesh capable of conforming to the shape of a bump - out 12 formed on the panel 2 as illustrated in fig2 . an example bump - out mesh 10 is sto repair mesh available from sto corp . of atlanta , ga . the bump - out mesh 10 may have a weight from between about 7 to about 12 ounces per square yard . in a further embodiment the bump - out mesh 10 may have a weight from between about 8 to about 11 ounces per square yard . an additional embodiment includes the bump - out mesh having a weight of about 10 ounces per square yard . the panel 2 is bound together using an elastomeric cementitious coating 14 . the elastomeric characteristics of the coating 14 imparts , among other advantages , an impact resistance to the panel 2 . the cementitious nature of the coating 14 imparts a durability to the panel 2 . by way of example and not limitation the coating may be formed from a cured cementitious acrylic emulsion . an example of such an acrylic emulsion is sto watertight coat ® available from sto corp . of atlanta , ga . the coating 14 forms a bond between all the components of the present panel 2 . for example , the coating 14 resides between the two opposed cores 4 and the binding mesh 6 positioned in between the opposed cores . additionally , the coating 14 binds the glass meshes to the cores 4 and each other . the coating 14 may be applied and the panel 2 formed using any known method in the art . a further embodiment of the present panel 2 includes the formation of bump - outs 12 defined on the surface of the panel 2 . the bump - outs 12 form an additional decorative effect to the decorative panel 2 . bump - outs 12 can be formed in a similar manner to the present panel 2 , except that the bump - out mesh 10 is used to define the bump - out 12 around a secondary foam core 16 . the bump - out 12 is bound and attached to the face of the panel using the bump - out mesh 10 and elastomeric coating 14 . the decorative panel may further comprise a finish coat 18 applied to the out surfaces of the panel 2 by most any means known in the art . the finish coat 16 may include a decorative pigmented coat . additionally , the finish coat 16 may be a flexible coating . by way of example and not limitation , one example of a flexible coating are those that are siliconized . an example of such a coating is sto powerflex silco ® available from sto corp of atlanta , ga . while applicants have set forth embodiments as illustrated and described above , it is recognized that variations may be made with respect to disclosed embodiments . therefore , while the invention has been disclosed in various forms only , it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many additions , deletions and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention , and no undue limits should be imposed except as set forth in the following claims .

US-53713106-A

a building element which inhibits the change of the interior temperature of a building beyond prescribed limits approximating room temperature . a rigid porous matrix structure is provided in thermal communication with the building interior . a store of phase change material impregnates the matrix structure . the phase change material has a melting point within the temperature limits so that the material melts when the interior temperature of the building exceeds the temperature limits . melting of the material absorbs heat and reduces the interior temperature of the building , until the material is entirely melted . conversely , the material freezes when the interior temperature of the building falls below the temperature limits to release heat and increase the interior temperature until the stored material is entirely frozen . the store of phase change material is sealed within the matrix structure so that the material undergoes repeated changes in phase between liquid and solid . accordingly , by absorbing heat when too much heat is present , and releasing heat when too little heat is present , the building element maintains the interior temperature of the building within the prescribed limits .

&# 34 ; architectural &# 34 ; is used to refer to compositions , elements and systems useful in the construction of a building , including both structural and non - structural features or elements of the building . &# 34 ; non - structural &# 34 ; means not having load bearing strength ; or not used for load bearing purposes within a building . &# 34 ; package &# 34 ; means to enclose or contain melted phase change material within a given element ; or an element within which melted phase change material is enclosed or contained . &# 34 ; phase change material &# 34 ; means a substance which may be repeatedly converted between solid and liquid phases ; which utilizes the latent heat of fusion of that substance to absorb , store and release heat or cool during such phase conversion ; and , which does not expand appreciably upon freezing ( water being perhaps the only liquid which expands appreciably upon freezing ). &# 34 ; suspension medium &# 34 ; means a substance which is useful in reducing or eliminating phase separation problems during phase conversions of phase change materials by maintaining a large surface area between the phases so that thermodynamic equilibrium is materially enhanced or prevails . &# 34 ; load bearing &# 34 ; refers to materials and elements having compressive strength in excess of about 50 psi . &# 34 ; non load bearing &# 34 ; refers to materials and elements having compressive strength not in excess of about 50 psi . &# 34 ; structural hydrate &# 34 ; means a material which , when finely divided , mixed with water , and cured , forms one or more hydrates which have compressive strengths of greater than 50 psi . the present invention is primarily concerned with compositions embodying phase change materials which have structural properties suitable for use in the building trades . the preferred composition is comprised of a phase change material sealed in a rigid suspension matrix . the essential components of the composition are the phase change material , the matrix material , and the sealing material . appropriate substances to serve as the above materials are selected according to criteria set forth below and , in addition , for their ability to coexist in the composition in different stages of cure and different phases without reacting chemically with one another , except as may occur in some instances where the sealing material is bonded to the matrix surfaces , as is customary with many sealants . in operation of the composition , ( e . g . during melting and freezing of the pcm ), the aforesaid essential elements of the composition interact solely in a physical ( non - chemical ) fashion . some compositions of the present invention require , in addition to the foregoing essential elements , a nucleating agent to prevent supercooling of the moltent pcm . in such compositions the nucleating agent serves as a site for initiation ( nucleation ) of crystal growth . in other compositions of the present invention , the matrix material itself serves the function of a nucleating agent . selection of an appropriate nucleating agent , in addition to criteria set forth below , depends upon its ability to avoid chemical interaction with the pcm , matrix , and sealing materials except to the extent that the initiation of crystal growth of the pcm may be characterized as a chemical reaction . some compositions of the present invention require , in addition to the foregoing materials , the presence of a pressure control fluid to prevent destruction or deterioration of sealing material through expansion of the pcm during melting . in operation , the pressure control fluid merely changes from a liquid to a gas without chemically interacting with any of the other components . suitable phase change materials for architectural applications typically must have low cost , appropriate melting points ( i . e ., having a melting point between the source temperature and the use temperature of the architectural system involved ), high heat of fusion ( i . e ., greater than about 60 btu / lb . ), fairly high thermal conductivity ( i . e ., greater than about 3 × 10 4 calories / sec cm ° c . ), non - flammability , non - toxicity , and non - corrosiveness to the suspension medium and sealant . the melting point of the pcm is selected to be between the source and use temperature of the system in order to maintain the thermal gradient that is necessary to drive heat in and out of storage . in most applications , the use temperature is actually a temperature range of several degrees and ; consequently , a single pcm can be suitable for both heating and cooling . in architectural applications , the use temperature is usually room temperature ( 65 °- 85 ° f . ), and the source temperature usually lies within the liquid range of water ( 32 °- 212 ° f .). although systems with source temperatures outside this range could be used , the efficiency of such systems is significantly reduced by heat losses from the pcm storage unit and heat source . three categories of chemicals fulfill most of these requirements : hydrated salts , waxes , and the clathrates . of these three categories , hydrated salts are generally most preferable . all waxes , natural and synthetic , can be used in the composition because they do not require the presence of a nucleating agent or a suspension medium to undergo repeated freeze - thaw cycles . nevertheless , waxes are not preferred , since they are flammable and if they are fractionated to a high enough degree to have a well defined melting point , are relatively expensive . additionally , the thermal conductivity of waxes is relatively low which means that a large surface area is required to transport heat into and out of them . some clathrates are useful in the composition . clathrates have the advantage of an unusually high heat of fusion per lb . and some can cycle indefinitely without nucleating agents or suspension media . suitable clathrates include those which consist of either a noble gas or a non - polar fluorocarbon which forms hydrates in as little as 10 % concentration . the noble gases , however , must be under several atmosphere pressure to hydrate and separate out as gases when the clathrate melts . the fluorocarbon clathrates are water soluble but tend to be relatively expensive and are , therefore , not preferred . nearly all hydrated salts can be employed , with various degree of suitability , as pcm . the only such materials which are wholly unsuitable are those which decompose , rather than melt . marginally suitable hydrated salts are those which melt incongruously , those with low heats of fusion , and those with melting points which lie outside ( generally far above ) desired temperature ranges . nevertheless , there are a wide variety of meltable hydrated salts with high heat of fusion and useable melting points ; and many of these satisfy the stringent cost requirements of the building trade . the preferred hydrated salts are those which are formed primarily from the combination of positive ions of sodium , potassium , calcium , ammonium and iron with negative ions of silicate , chloride , nitrate , mono , di , and tri basic phosphate , mono and di basic carbonate and mono and di basic sulphate . other ions may be added to the above combinations in small quantities , ( although they are more expensive ) in order to adjust melting point or to obtain other desired properties . virtually all such combinations will function in the desired manner ; and most have melting points in the useful range , for example : fe 2 o 3 . 4so 3 . 9h 2 o , nanh 4 so 4 . 2h 2 o , nanh 4 hpo 4 . 4h 2 o , fecl 3 . 2h 2 o , na 3 po 4 . 12h 2 o , na 2 sio 3 . sh 2 o , ca ( no 3 ) 2 . 3h 2 o , k 2 hpo 4 , 3h 2 o , na 2 sio 3 . 9h 2 o , fe ( no 3 ) 3 . 9h 2 o , k 3 po 4 . 7h 2 o , nahpo 4 . 12h 2 o , and cacl 2 . 6h 2 o . the specific melting point desired is obtained by varying the degree of hydration and by alloying it to form binary or trinary eutectics . the rigid matrix can be of structural hydrates or thermosetting polymers . concrete is generally the preferred rigid matrix ; however , other satisfactory rigid matrices include plaster , silica gel and polyester resin , as described in greater detail below . first , salt solutions do not ordinarily form a hydrate upon cooling unless a nucleating agent is present . by using cured cement as the rigid matrix , the need for a separate nucleating agent is eliminated . cured hydraulic cements have a crystal structure which is irregular and sufficiently varied to nucleate crystal growth and prevent supercooling . second , pcm &# 39 ; s frequently encounter phase separation which results in departure from equilibrium conditions so that the full heat of fusion is not realized . this difficulty arises because highly hydrated salts always have corresponding salts with lower degrees of hydration . when heat is withdrawn and crystals are growing , there is competition between salts having different degrees of hydration . the resulting material is a mixture of the desired salt , together with salts having lower hydration , and water . to withdraw additional heat from the mixture , it is necessary to complete the hydration of those salts having lower hydration and to use up all of the remaining water in the mixture . in repeated cycling of the phase - change material , the more readily formed precipitates interfere with completion of the reaction . however , if the phase - change material is suspended in the microscopic pores of a light - weight cement or the like , the phases do not separate since a very large surface area is maintained between the various phases . as a result , the system rapidly reaches equilibrium , allowing the full heat of fusion to be realized . thirdly , the rigid matrix provides physical strength whereby the composition may be incorporated into the structural portions of a building , or otherwise used in a load - bearing capacity . lastly , the rigid matrix , in combination with a sealing agent , serves as a package for the phase - change material , thereby , containing the phase - change material while in its liquid phase . satisfactory structural hydrates are those which are durable in architectural installations , and insoluble in molten pcm ; and , the preferred structural hydrates are those which , in addition , are the least expensive , e . g ., hydraulic cements , such as portland cement , high alumina cement , pozzolana cement , magnesium oxychloride cement , blast furnace cement and concretes formed with any of such cements ; gypsum plasters , such as plaster of paris and casting plaster ; silica gels , such as gelled sodium silicate , the gelled sodium aluminum silicates ; and silicic acid . of the foregoing , concrete formed with portland cement is generally the most satisfactory because it is inexpensive , strong , easily worked , and readily available . satisfactory thermosetting polymers are those which are durable and insoluble in molten pcm , e . g ., polyester resins such as polyethylene terephthalate , polyethylene diallyl phthalate ; polystyrene ; and epoxy resins . the polyester resins and polystyrene are preferred for their low cost . while some pcm &# 39 ; s , such as nearly all waxes and a few salts ( e . g ., zinc nitrate hexahydrate , and ammonium bromide urea eutectic ) do not require a nucleating agent to cycle , other pcm &# 39 ; s require the presence of a nucleating agent to serve as a site for the initiation of crystal growth if cycling is to occur . when the rigid matrix material is concrete , the concrete itself usually obviates the need for any further material to serve as a nucleating agent . a few other rigid matrix materials serve as nucleating agents for specific pcms . for example , silica gel formed in the presence of crystals of calcium chloride hexahydrate ( the pcm ) acts as a nucleating agent for that particular pcm . silica gel prepared in the above manner with most salts , i . e . in the presence of crystals of a particular salt , will serve as the nucleating agent for such salt when used as a pcm . on the other hand , polyester resins will not serve as nucleating agents for pcms and , therefore , require the addition of a further ingredient . likewise , silica gels which are not matched to specific pcms , plasters , and other rigid matrix materials which do not themselves provide sites for initiation of crystal growth , require the addition of further ingredients to serve as nucleating agents . such further ingredients will be selected for their ability to avoid chemical interaction with the other ingredients and for their ability to initiate crystal growth in accordance with principles known in the art . various types of sealing material are suitable for compositions in materials of the present invention . the phase - change material is sealed in a rigid matrix in one of two ways : the rigid matrix may be surrounded by a material which is impermeable to the melted phase - change material ; or , a plastic emulsion or the like is added to a mixture of uncured cement and pcm which , when the mixture is cured , becomes distributed throughout the composition and , in effect , makes the entire composition waterproof . suitable sealing materials for external coating include emulsions of polyvinylidene chloride , sand - filled polyester resin , and bitumen solutions . in one embodiment , a block containing phase - change material is first coated with a waterglass ( sodium silicate ) solution , which serves as a coupling agent , which is dried and then followed by a further coating of polyvinylidene chloride . in another embodiment , the polyvinylidene chloride is used to formulate a waterproof coating of thin cement mortar . as a general rule , dipcoating is the preferred technique for applying external coating of sealing material . in the alternative embodiment , where the sealing agent is incorporated into the composition , suitable sealing agents include emulsions of polyvinylidene chloride , styrene - butadiene , polyvinyl chloride , polyvinylacetate and bitumen . specific examples of compositions according to the present invention which incorporate the various phase - change materials , rigid matrix materials , and sealing materials referred to above are selected according to the particular application for which the composition is intended . specific compositions are provided by way of example throughout the remainder of this specification . the foregoing compositions of the present invention may be incorporated into structural architectural elements such as building blocks and other preformed structural building elements , or they may be poured - on - site as required . alternatively , such composition may be employed in non - structural applications such as for ceiling tile or drywall - like sheet material . perhaps the most universal application of compositions according to the present invention is in the formulation and manufacture of conventional building blocks for uses similar to commercial cinder blocks and the like . the building blocks may , for example , be employed to construct the load - bearing walls of a building . examples of building blocks according to the present invention are illustrated in fig1 a and 1b of the drawings . in fig1 the building block 10 consists of a block - shaped member 11 provided with two large parallel passages 12 extending wholly therethrough . fig1 a and 1b depict alternate configurations 10a and 10b , respectively , consisting of block shaped members 11a and 11b , respectively , provided with passages 12a and 12b , respectively , which extend wholly through the blocks . passage 12a is a small single , central , cylindrical conduit ; and passages 12b are a 3 × 3 matrix of nine parallel small cylindrical conducts . one way to produce blocks of this type is to first fill a mold with a mixture of cement , sand and phase - change material . the components are either premixed or sprayed simultaneously into the mold . preferably , to avoid having the phase - change material interfere with curing of the cement , it is introduced into the mixture in the form of wax coated crystals . a preferred compound is as follows : one part portland cement , three parts sand , and eight parts wax covered calcium chloride crystals . the filled mold is placed in a conventional steam curing oven for approximately one hour , thereby partially curing the mixture to the point where it is strong enough to remove from the mold . the thus - formed block is then allowed to cure outside of the mold for a few days , at which point it gains approximately one - half of its full strength . the half - cured block is then precoated with sodium silicate solution , which is dried and then dipped in an emulsion of polyvinylidene chloride . in a still further method of contructing building blocks according to the present invention , a conventional cinder block having approximately 40 % or more interconnected pores ( blocks having up to 70 % interconnected pores are available commercially and are preferred ) is immersed in a solution of molten phase change material and placed in a vacuum . when the vacuum is released , liquid phase change material fills the pores of the cement . the block is then removed and an exterior coating of sealing material , such as a mortar containing a polyvinylidene chloride emulsion , is applied . alternatively , the block can first be coated on all surfaces , but for a small area through which the pcm is absorbed into the block under vacuum and then sealed . suitable porous cement blocks are formed , either by using a large amount of low density aggregate such as pumice , or by adding a foaming agent such as aluminum powder to the mixture , or by air entrainment with a surfactant . the air entrainment technique is preferred , since the use of porous , low density aggregates generally produces concrete with a relatively low degree of porosity ; most but not all of the pores are interconnected ; and , the strength of the block is not as great as other types of block having interconnected pores . cement produced with a foaming agent produces a very strong low density concrete ; however , the pores are not well connected and the structure is closed - celled to a large degree , thereby minimizing the amount of phase - change material that can be absorbed therein . in the production of preferred matrices of foamed concrete by air entrainment , cement and fine sand or fly ash are mixed together with water in a standard cement mixer to produce a slurry . a surfactant such as sodium lauryl sulfate is then added , followed by high speed mixing in a foam generator . this produces a wide range of solid foams which are then steam cured in the usual manner . it is generally preferred to use autoclaved air entrained concrete since it has been found that the main cementing agent therein is well crystalized tobermorite , 3cao . 2sio 2 . 3h 2 o , which is present in a regular crystalline pattern . air cured air entrained concrete , on the other hand , contains mainly badly crystalized tobermorite gel and is in consequence much weaker and susceptable to dehydration and hydration . blocks of many different sizes , shapes and configurations may be formed simply by selecting an appropriate mold . such blocks typically have a compressive strength of about 300 psi and a modulous elasticity of about 250 psi , both of which are satisfactory since blocks of this strength are conventionally used for floors and walls in the building trade . particular installations of the foregoing building blocks in systems and processes according to the present invention are described hereinafter . the laminate building materials of the present invention are analogous to sheet rock or a drywall commonly used in a conventional wood frame construction . as shown in fig2 the laminate building material 20 of the present invention can be constructed of multiple layers arranged in the following order : a first layer of heavy kraft paper 21 , plastic film moisture barrier 22 , thermal storage composition 23 according to the present invention , further plastic film 24 , and a further layer of kraft paper 25 . the laminate building material 20 thus consists of paper tensile elements surrounding a layer of phase - change material sealed in a rigid matrix . the physical properties of the laminate 20 are comparable to conventional sheet rock , except that it is slightly heavier since the thermal storage layer 23 is slightly more dense than plaster . the pcm thermal storage material layer 23 can be formed in several different ways . for example , in one embodiment , the rigid matrix is air entrained porous concrete having in excess of 40 % interconnected pores ; and such pores are filled with a suitable phase - change material such as calcium chloride . the filled matrix is coated with a sodium silicate solution which forms a hard glassy continuous film on the matrix surface which is both chemically and mechanically adherent thereto . the chemical reaction proceeds as follows : the naoh leaches out and the sio 2 reacts with the free lime in the cement as follows : to form an outer film which is impermeable to water and has a well defined crystal structure . the same effect can be achieved by using a solution of either zinc or magnesium silico - fluoride which reacts as follows : znsif 6 + ca ( oh ) 2 → casif 6 + zno + h 2 o . the casif 6 forms a firm and impermeable coating which covers the surface of the concrete and fills its surface capillaries . alternatively , silicon fluoride gas can be used , which follows the reaction : the so - prepaed pcm thermal storage material is formed in layers , preferably between one - quarter and one inch thick . the plastic film 22 , 24 retains moisture in the core 23 and the two kraft paper skins 25 and 21 provide structural integrity . the chemical reactions described above for treating the core 23 ( i . e . with sodium silicate solution , zinc or magnesium silicofluoride , or silicon fluoride gas ) provide the sealant films 24 and 22 and also act to insure a good bond to the kraft paper 21 , 25 . if additional protection beyond the plastic films described above is required , a polyvinylidene plastic water barrier can be added as an extra protective layer between the coating 22 , 24 and the kraft paper 21 , 25 . this construction is shown in fig2 a wherein the laminate 20a is comprised of a pcm thermal storage material core 23 covered with an inorganic coating 22 , 24 of the type described above in connection with fig2 polyvinylidene chloride layers 26 and 27 , and kraft paper layers 21 , 25 . the glassy inorganic coating 22 , 24 is coated with an acrylic pressure sensitive adhesive in solution form which has 5 % polyvinylmethyl ether added to insure a good bond in the presence of water . the kraft paper is laminated by heat and pressure with a 2 mil polyvinylidene chloride film . this film forms the actual moisture barrier . the laminated kraft paper 21 , 25 is bonded to both sides of the adhesive treated member in a press . moisture is prevented from escaping the edges of the panels 20 , 20a by taping them with a waterproof tape 28 before the kraft paper 21 , 25 is applied . in an alternate embodiment , the laminate building material of the present invention , as shown in fig2 and 2a can be manufactured with a structural pcm thermal storage material 23 which is formed , not by filling a porous precured slab of rigid matrix material with pcm , but by admixing , cement , sand and phase - change material in a fashion similar to that described in connection with manufacturing the building block of fig1 . in particular , the kraft paper 21 , 25 is laminated with polyvinylidene chloride , which is then coated with acrylic adhesive and then with a sodium silicate solution which has been thickened with flumed silica . a layer of uncured liquid pcm thermal storage material is coated to the required thickness on top of the sodium silicate coating . preferably , the uncured pcm thermal storage material consists of one part portland cement , three parts sand , and eight parts wax encapsulated calcium chloride crystals . on top of the uncured pcm thermal storage material , another layer of kraft paper is applied which has been given the same adhesive treatment as the previously applied layer of kraft paper . preferably , the cure rate of the pcm thermal storage material 23 is enhanced by either adding 2 % calcium chloride to the mixture or by not adding calcium sulfate and calcium oxide to the cement when it is formulated . cure is effected by heat and / or air and , once cured , the laminate is sealed with tape 28 around its edges . laminate building materials of the type shown in fig2 and 2a are glued to the studs or other supporting member , rather than nailed , to prevent puncture of the moisture barrier . fig3 depicts an acoustic tile 30 , suitable for ceilings and / or walls , which is a laminate comprised of an inner layer of structural pcm thermal storage material according to the present invention 31 , and outer layers of tensile facing material 32 . the tile 30 further includes an acoustic layer 33 distributed on one face i . e . applied to one of the layers of kraft paper 32 . the main portion of the tile 30 may be constructed in the same manner as the laminate building material described in connection with fig2 and 2a above . in fig3 the inner layer 31 consists of a central core 34 of calcium chloride in a porous slab of conrete . moisture is retained in the core 34 by plastic film 35 applied to the core faces , and tape 36 applied to the core ends . fig3 a illustrates an alternate form of tile 30a wherein the acoustic tile 30 of fig3 is modified by applying a thermal insulating layer 37 to the face of the tile 30a opposite the acoustic layer 33 . in the embodiments of fig3 and 3a , the acoustic layer 33 faces the room interior . tiles 30 , 30a may be installed in a conventional manner for ceiling tile e . g . with a thixiotropic adhesive dispensed from a cartridge gun . the thermal insulation layer 37 is preferably a sheet of plastic foam from one to two inches thick . urethane and styrene foams are satisfactory from a thermal standpoint , but are flammable and rapidly evolve flammable and poisonous gases when exposed to heat . accordingly , in building construction , urea - phenolic foams are preferred . nevertheless , the pcm thermal storage material 34 resembles the cement cladding used to protect building structural membes from loss of function during fires and , as a result , polystyrene foam may prove acceptable in building installations . the plastic foam is preferably adhered to the kraft paper surface 32 with water - based rubber latex contact adhesives conventionally used for polystyrene foam . the acoustic layer 33 must have a good thermal conductivity and , therefore , thick porous wood fiber composites which are currently popular for acoustic absorbing and scattering surfaces in conventional acoustic tile are not preferred . however , comparable acoustical performance can be obtained with a material consisting of a semi - solid slurry of wood fibers , a starch binder , and a borax fire retardent which is spray applied directly onto the kraft paper 32 in a thin layer , on the order of approximately 1 / 4 inch . after spraying , the coating 33 is dried with slightly elevated temperatures and forced air , whereupon it may be sprayed with a whitewash - type paint to provide a light reflective surface , such as a matte white finish . when the acoustic tile is installed in a room with the light reflective surface facing the room interior , it assists in minimizing energy consumption for lighting . the acoustic material should have a thermal conductivity in excess of about 0 . 5 btu / ft . 2 ° f . hr . while the foregoing embodiments have been factory preformed , the present invention also relates to applications where the pcm thermal storage material is poured or molded on - site . in its simplest form , the cement mix and the pcm are either mixed together in a conventional cement mixer prior to molding , or they are simultaneously sprayed from separate nozzles into an on - site mold . applications for poured - on - site pcm storage material are manifold . for example , the modular thermal storage unit discussed hereinafter could be poured - on - site in a reusable mold . the material could also be used to pour floor pads for buildings with integral plastic pipes for hot water or ducts for hot air , thus providing a radiant heating floor with integral thermostatic thermal storage and integral thermal transfer properties . the material could also be used to form poured walls for use in integrated solar collector storage systems as discussed hereinafter , or in multi - story buildings utilizing conventional heating systems where it would be awkward and costly to support a second - story floor of pcm thermal storage material . also as mentioned to previously , poured pcm thermal storage material is utilized in one technique for factory fabrication of blocks of the type discussed in connection with fig1 - 1b and in fabrication of the laminates of fig2 - 3a . pouring the material eliminates the relatively costly process of first filling cured blocks or slabs with a pcm and then coating them for water retention . existing production facilities could be employed ; for example , conventional cinder block factories could produce the block of fig1 - 1b with little or no investment in new equipment . the preferred process for producing a poured material according to the present invention involves admixing cement , sand , sealing material and phase - change material ; shaping such material in a mold ; and curing the shaped material . if admixture occurs above the melting point of the phase - change material , it is useful to add a surfactant whereupon the pcm liquid tends to form a dispersion in the cement slurry so that the slurry is the continuous phase . when cured , the phase - change material is suspended and sealed in a concrete matrix . in this process , there is a tendancy for the pcm to inhibit curing of the cement . this problem can be allevated in several ways . first , the pcm used can be a wax . thus , small particles of solid wax , in the range of 1 / 16 to 1 / 4 inch in diameter , may be substituted for calcium chloride and other pcm &# 39 ; s previously disclosed herein . wax has several drawbacks including that , in order to get a well - defined melting point , suitable waxes are expensive ; there is a formability problem ; and the cured member must be coated to prevent the leakage of melted wax . while the latter two problems can be dealt with , the lack of a well - defined melting point at a low cost eliminates the thermostatic function of the material and restricts its application to the modular storage units discussed hereinafter . alternatively , an aqueous , inorganic phase - change material can be used , such material having the advantages of a well - defined melting point , low cost and nonflammability . in this embodiment , the rigid matrix can be a thermosetting polymer to prevent cure inhibition by the pcm . the particular polymer selected should have low cost , moderate physical strength and impermeability , and chemical resistance to the pcm . polyethylene terephthalate is one such suitable material . because of cost , these resins are preferably cut with a filler such as ash and / or wood fibers . the polyester - filler slurry is mixed with graded crystals of pcm , poured into a mold , and cured . in this instance , a nucleating agent must be incorporated in the phase - change material , since the thermosetting polymer itself will not nucleate crystal growth . if sodium sulfate decahydrate is the pcm , then borax is a preferred nucleating agent ; if calcium chloride hexahydrate is the pcm , then barium hydroxide is a preferred nucleating agent . both of these pcm - nucleating agent combinations are suitable for use in rigid matrix material of polyethylene terephthalate . alternately , wood pulp or blocks of wood could be used as the suspension medium . blocks of wood would be employed in essentially the same manner as porous cement , being filled with liquid pcm under vacuum , and then coated with waterproof sealer . in a further embodiment , pcm cure inhibition can be alleviated by making the cement itself impermeable by the addition of an aqueous emulsion of an organic substance such as polyvinylidene chloride or bitumen . in a further embodiment , the pcm is in the form of individual graded crystals , on the order of 1 / 4 inch in diameter , which are provided with an impermeable coating before adding to the cement mix . the coating can be a wax , bitumen or plastic film that is deposited on the pcm from an organic solution or by a surface reaction , as in conventional microencapsulation processes . since such coatings are quite fragile , the coated crystals and the cement can be co - sprayed to prevent abrasion of the coating that would occur in a cement mixer . alternately , the pcm can be sealed in small ( for example , 1 / 2 inch diameter ) plastic pouches that are mixed in with the cement . as illustrated in fig4 and 4a , the present invention relates to a modified building block 40 useful in the construction of solar heating walls . blocks 40 of this type integrate wall structure , solar energy collection , thermal storage , thermal regulation , and thermal distribution . these functions are combined in a single modular element 40 , or they may be achieved with specially constructed walls embodying laminate materials of the type discussed in connection with fig2 in combination with special solar energy adaptors discussed in greater detail herein . in particular , fig4 illustrates a modular building element comprising a building block 41 of the type discussed in connection with fig1 . in particular , the block 41 is constructed of a phase - change material sealed in a rigid matrix of concrete or the like and is provided with a pair of passages 42 parallel to one another and separated by a divider portion 43 . a solar energy adaptor 44 is mounted on one face 45 of the block 41 , with such face disposed parallel to the passages 42 . the adaptor 44 consists of a sheet of transparent weather - resistent material 47 ( preferably transparent glass reinforced acrylic plastic ) disposed parallel to and in spaced relation to the block face 45 . a layer of transparent insulation 46 is disposed between the weather - resistant layer 47 and the face 45 , lying parallel to and spaced from each 47 , 45 . the transparent insulation 46 is preferably of the type developed by suntek corporation , disclosed in pending u . s . patent application ser . no . 680 , 262 , consisting of four spaced layers of a special plastic film having thermal conductance of 0 . 19 btu / ft . 2 hr .° f . and solar energy transmission of about 83 %. alternately , the transparent insulation can consist of a plastic film with a drude mirror on one or both sides . a drude or heat mirror transmits solar radiation but reflects thermal radiation . the surface 45 is preferably dark in color so as to absorb on the order of approximately 90 % of incident solar radiation . the weather skin 47 and transparent insulation 46 are held in spaced parallel relation to the block face 45 by a frame 48 which may be of plywood or the like . the transparent insulation 46 should have a thermal conductance of less than about 40 btu / ft . 2 hr .° f . and a solar energy transmission in excess of about 70 %. modules 40 constructed to these specifications will absorb at least about 75 % of the solar energy reaching the surface 45 of block 41 through the transparent layers 46 and 47 . the module 40 functions as follows : solar energy passes through the weather skin 47 and transparent insulation 46 and is absorbed on the dark surface 45 of the block 41 . at this surface 45 , the solar energy turns to heat which melts the phase - change material in the block 41 , thereby storing heat in the module . stored heat may be released directly into adjacent areas , or it may be used to heat air or other fluids carried through the passages 42 and transported to remote regions for remote heating . specific applications for the module 40 of fig4 and 4a are discussed hereinafter in greater detail . 4 . systems embodying pcm thermal storage architectural elements and building materials . according to the present invention , blocks of the type described in connection with fig1 a and 1b are useful in novel thermal storage modules for buldings as shown for example , in fig5 a , 5b , and 5c of the drawings . referring to the system of fig5 a fuel - fired heater is thermally connected to a room or other region to be heated by means of hot and cold air ducts 51 and 52 , respectively . gates 54 and 55 are fully open ( position c ), the system operates in a conventional manner i . e . air heated by the heater 50 flows to the room through hot air duct 51 ; and cool air from the room is returned to the heater 50 by means of cool air duct 52 . the foregoing conventional system is modified according to the present invention by the addition of a thermal storage module installation 56 which includes of a pile of pcm thermal storage blocks 10b of the type shown in fig1 b . the blocks 10b are arranged with passages 11b aligned in communication so that air flows therethrough in passing between gates 54 and 55 . a thermally insulated closure member 57 with first and second ducts 58 and 59 which lead to the gates 54 and 55 , respectively , from opposite ends of the closure 57 . control gates 54 and 55 are each movable among positions a , b and c . at positions a , the room is in thermal contact with the pile of thermal storage blocks 10b . at position b , the fuel - fired heater 50 is in thermal contact with the pile of thermal storage blocks 10b ; and at position c , the fuel - fired heater 50 is in thermal contact with the room . when the control gates 54 and 55 are at position c , it may be desirable to provide further gates or other means to disconnect the pile of block 10b from the fuel - fired heater 50 and the room . in operation , the heater 50 heats the room when gates 54 and 55 are at position c . once the room has been heated to the desired temperature , a thermostat or other sensing means activates a switch 62 which moves gates 54 and 55 to position b , whereupon the heater 50 continues to fire but now heats the blocks 10b and not the room , thereby storing heat in the blocks 10b . the heater stops when the blocks are fully charged , that is , when the pcm in the blocks has melted completely . when temperature in the room 60 drops below a pre - selected temperature , the sensor 61 actuates the switch 62 to switch the gates 54 and 55 to position a . heat leaves the blocks 10b passing out through duct 59 , through duct 51 into the room 60 ; and cooled air in the room 60 passes through duct 52 into duct 58 and circulates through the blocks 10b . when the blocks 10b have been cooled below their melting point , sensor 61 activates switch 62 to switch gates 54 and 55 to position b ; and , also , activates switch 63 to reactivate the heater 50 . in this fashion , the length of the firing time of the heater 50 is extended and the number of firings is greatly reduced , thereby greatly increasing the efficiency of the heater . in the foregoing system , the source temperature ( i . e ., the temperature of the fluid leaving the heater 50 ) is often 70 ° c . or more above the use temperature ( i . e ., the temperature of the room ). thus , an appropriate pcm for this architectural system will have a melting point anywhere between the source and use temperature , minus or plus a few degrees ( 5 °- 10 ° c . ), respectively , to provide a thermal gradient for driving heat in and out of the phase change material . an alternate embodiment is illustrated in fig5 a where the thermal storage module installation 56 is incorporated into an air conditioning system comprised of an air conditioner 50a with cool air duct 51a and warm air return duct 52a . otherwise , construction of the thermal storage module installation 56 is the same as the installation of fig5 . like parts are denominated by like reference numerals . operation of the system of fig5 a corresponds to operation of the system of fig5 except that the air conditioner 50 pumps cool air into the room 60 when the gates 54 and 55 are at position c ; and into the thermal storage module 56 when the gates 54 and 55 are at position b . when gates 54 and 55 are at position a , cool air is released from the blocks 10b and enters room 60 through duct 59 . in contrast to the heating system of fig5 the cooling system of fig5 a , employs phase change material with a melting point below the use ( room ) temperature . it will be appreciated that the laminate building materials of fig2 a , 3 and 3a may be employed in the construction of thermal storage modules for use in air circulation systems of the type discussed in connection with fig5 a and 5c . in such embodiments , a plurality of laminate sheets may be stacked with wood or other means spacing the sheets to create air passages . such stacks of lamina replace the stack of blocks 10b in fig5 and 5a . the systems of fig5 and 5a are forced air systems . the same effect can be achieved in water or other fluid circulation systems as indicated in fig5 b . construction and operation of a water circulation system of the type shown in fig5 b , for heating and cooling systems , is comparable to the heating and cooling systems of fig5 and 5a respectively , where like parts are denominated by like reference numerals . modifications from the forced air system include the use of delivery and return pipes 51b , respectively , and valves 54b and 55b replacing gates 54 and 55 . likewise , water from delivery and return pipes 51b and 52b are routed through the thermal storage module 56 by means of pipe 58b and 59b . the pcm thermal storage blocks 10a are preferably the type illustrated in fig1 a , having a single central passage 12a to accommodate the pipe 58b , 59b . fluid from the system is in thermal contact with the room 60 by means of a radiator 65 or the like . operation of the air conditioning system of fig5 b corresponds to operation of the air conditioning system of fig5 a ; whereas operation of the heater system of fig5 b corresponds to operation of the heater system of fig5 . installation of the systems of fig5 a and 5b may be by way of new construction , or they may be retrofitted to existing buildings . to minimize new duct work in forced air systems and plumbing and water systems , the thermal storage units 56 should be located near the heating and cooling units 50 , 50a and 50b . the systems of fig5 a and 5b have greatest utility for use in connection with fuel fired heaters and air conditioners since the economic advantage of such installations 56 involves lengthening the duty cycle of fuel fired units . a comparable , but less useful installation would be for electric heating and air conditioning systems whereby the electrical energy necessary to operate the heating or cooling unit would be minimized by operating the heater or air conditioner at off - peak hours to store heat or cool in the thermal storage module 56 for subsequent use during daytime or peak electrical usage hours . similar applications involve installation of thermal storage units 56 in solar heated buildings to store heat from sunny periods for use during cloudy periods . a variation of the systems depicted and described in connection with fig5 a and 5b is illustrated by fig5 c wherein components corresponding to the components of systems 5 , 5a and 5b are depicted by like reference numerals . the system of fig5 c differs from the prior systems primarily in that heat and / or cool from the outdoors 74 ( as opposed to heat or cool from a heater or air conditioner ) is stored in the pcm blocks 10b of a thermal storage module installation 56 for use in cooling a room 60 . the heating and cooling systems 50 , 50a and 50b of previously described systems are , thus , substituted by the ambient atmosphere . the system of fig5 c brings air into the system from the atmosphere through duct 51c and air exists from the system from return duct 52c . gates 70 and 71 open ducts 51c and 52c , respectively , when switch 63 switches gate 70 , 71 to position d ; whereas , gates 70 , 71 close when switched to position e . in heating operation , in climates where daytime temperatures exceed the comfort zone temperature , but where nighttime temperatures drop below the comfort zone , during daytime hours 72 , gates 54 and 55 locate at position b , thereby placing the thermal storage blocks 10b in thermal contact with the out - of - doors 74 . at nighttime gates 54 and 55 move to position a , thereby disconnecting the thermal storage module 56 from the out - of - doors 74 and connecting it with the room 60 ; whereupon heat stored in the blocks 10b is released into the room 60 during the night 73 . the foregoing system is likewise applicable to store cool from the nighttime 73 for cooling the room 60 during the daytime 72 . in such applications , gates 54 and 55 are positioned at b during the nighttime and at a during the daytime , during which time heat is drawn out of the room 60 and stored in the blocks 10b , thereby cooling the room 60 , literally using &# 34 ; stored cool &# 34 ;. in the system of fig5 c , where the pcm has been selected to have a melting point at or about room temperature , the thermal storage module 56 can be used to store both heat and cool . we sometimes refer to the foregoing technique , whereby the most favorable ambient temperature is brought into the sustained in the living area , as the &# 34 ; ratchet effect &# 34 ;. it is apparent that the ratchet effect may be used in conjunction with the systems discussed in connection with fig5 a and 5b . for example , a heater and / or air conditioner might be used in conjunction with heating and / or cooling from the out - of - doors , by having the duct work 51 and 52 branch leading to the out - of - doors 74 , and a heater 50 , 50b , and / or air conditioner 50a , b . likewise , it is a simple matter to utilize a heater and an air conditioner in the same system , requiring only conventional switching and duct work as is customary in the combined installatiion of heaters and air conditioners in conventional hvac installations . it should be noted that thermal access to the outdoors 74 by the heat and cool storage module 57 results in greatly reduced heating and cooling energy comsumption during certain seasons and climates . the thermal storage modules 56 illustrated in connection with the embodiments of fig5 a , 5b and 5c are typically compact and easy - to - install , provide good thermal installation , are non - flammable and have a long life . to store a day &# 39 ; s worth of heat in a typical single family residence during the month of january in a climate similar to washington , d . c ., requires approximately 2 . 5 × 10 5 btu . with an energy density of 90 btu / lb . and a density of 110 lb / ft 3 , and assuming that 30 percent of the volume is used for air passages , the overall volume of blocks 10a , 10b required to storage 2 . 5 × 10 5 btu is 40 ft 3 . thus , including insulation , the storage module 56 can be fitted in a cube 3 - 1 / 2 feet on a side . the storage module 56 is thus compact and , if the blocks are constructed to weigh no more than 30 pounds to comply with labor requirements of the construction trade , only 30 blocks would be required . no mortar is needed , since the blocks can be merely stacked . the walls of insulation box 57 surrounding the blocks 10a , 10b , including the inlet and outlet ducts 58 and 59 , are preferably of 1 inch thick phenolic foam sheets with an aluminum foil facing . these sheets can be assembled with aluminum foil adhesive tape following standard havc practice . the blocks 10 , 10a and 10b must remain completely waterproof during the fairly rough handling that they are likely to receive from the building trades . the blocks should also be strong enough to support their own weight , and should have a cycle life comparable to the intended life of the structure . thus , in a climate where the system cycles 100 times during an entire heating season , the required cycle life of the block 10 in a building having an intended life of 50 years is 5 , 000 cycles . the pcm thermal storage material and elements described in connection with fig1 a , 1b , 2 , 2a , 3 and , to some extent , fig4 are suitable for use in distributed systems , i . e ., systems in which the pcm thermal storage material or element forms the walls , partitions , and / or floors of buildings . in this manner , integral heat storage in the structure of the building itself would be provided . in such systems , heat present during relatively warm periods is stored in the pcm thermal storage material for release and heating during relatively cool periods . conversely , cool from relatively cool periods is stored in the pcm thermal storage material for release during relatively warm periods . systems of this sort are desirable , not only for their thermal storage advantages , but also because they provide thermostatic qualities enabling the room to maintain a given desired temperature despite fluctuations in the ambient temperature or on - off operation of furnaces , air conditioners or the like . since the heat is stored in a phase change material as the latent heat of fusion rather than as sensible heat , it is possible to have a relatively high energy density without temperature excursions outside the comfort zone . all of the heat stored in a change of phase can be utilized because the phase change material is in immediate thermal contact with the use area . in other words , since the wall and / or floor are storing the heat , only a few degrees temperature gradient are necessary to drive the heat from the storage to the use area . by comparison , the systems disclosed and described in connection with fig5 - 5c , require that the heat be transported by a medium such as air or water into the use area . because of the smaller heat transfer areas involved and the physical separation of storage and use areas , heat ( or cool ) must generally be stored several degrees above ( or below ) its use temperature . since a similar thermal gradient is not required in distributed storage systems , both heat and cool can be stored at the same temperature . for example , if the phase change material melts in the middle of the comfort zone , the two or three degrees excursion on either side of its melting point that is necessary to drive heat or cool from storage into the room does not let the room &# 39 ; s temperature depart from the comfort zone . as a result , as stated above , the distributed thermal storage material of the present invention is intrinsically thermostatic and serves to hold room temperature within a fairly narrow range until the phase change material is either all melted or all frozen . since the pcm thermal storage materials of the present invention are suitable for use as structural materials , the foregoing advantages may be accomplished by simply substituting conventional structural material such as building block , drywall and the like with similar configurations constructed with the compositions of the present invention . for example , fig6 a and 6b depict a system wherein the walls 80 and / or floor 81 of a house 82 are constructed of pcm thermal storage material building blocks 10 of the type shown in fig1 . the blocks 10 have a pair of large parallel passages 12 and are installed with those passages aligned to permit circulation of air through the walls and the floors as indicated in fig6 a . referring to fig6 the structural walls and flooring are covered with an exterior shell of conventional thermal insulation 83 . heat or cool from the air heater and / or air conditioner 84 is pumped into the interior block passages 12 , rather than into the room itself , so that the room is thus immersed in a &# 34 ; thermostatic bath &# 34 ; of constant temperature walls and floors . thus , in the system of fig6 the heat or cool radiating areas controlling temperature in the living area are larger than conventional radiant wall or floor heaters providing a highly uniform method of space heating with superior comfort . as depicted in fig6 a , the passages 12 of blocks 10 are arranged to create continuous loops 85 of circulation from the heater or cooler 84 . these loops surround the building with the necessary thermal input so that the heat flows from the heater / cooler 84 to the outside only through the insulation 83 . by comparison , with a non - distributed heating system , heat flows from the heater to the outside through the living area , creating thermal gradients within the living area , and consequent discomfort for the occupants . fig7 illustrates a solar wall heating system employing the solar heating building blocks 40 previously described in connection with fig4 and 4a . in fig7 the south wall 90 of a building 91 is constructed of solar building blocks 40 which have a transparent weather resistant skin 47 and a transparent insulated panel 46 arranged outwardly of the pcm thermal storage material block 41 . blocks 40 also have aligned internal passages which provide passages 42 in the wall for circulation of air currents 92 . the vertical passages 42 lead to a ceiling passage 94 which distributes air 92 leaving the solar heating wall to remote portions of the building . it required , a fan 93 may be provided to assist circulation . a vent 95 leads between the passage 94 and the ambient atmosphere . the vent 95 is openable and closeable by means of control member 96 . in operation , solar energy impinging upon the south wall 90 of the building 91 passes through the weather skin 47 and thermal insulator 46 , being absorbed by the thermal storage block 40 whereupon it turns to heat and heats the air 92 located in the passage 42 . the heated air 92 rises in the passage 42 into the manifold 94 where it is distributed into the various rooms . as the air 92 gives up its heat , it sinks to the bottom of the building and returns to an opening 97 at the bottom end of the solar wall passage 42 . solar heat stored in the blocks 40 is released into the building interior by both radiation and convection . accordingly , preferably , those rooms adjoining the radiating wall 90 would require less convective heating and therefore would receive relatively small amounts of circulating air 92 from the manifold 94 . an alternate embodiment is depicted in fig8 wherein the south wall 100 of a building 101 is fitted with a plurality of thermal storage blocks 40 of the type depicted in fig4 . the embodiment of fig8 differs primarily from the embodiment of fig7 in that the south wall 100 has windows 102 . the windows 102 are formed by horizontally aligned openings 103 in the structural material 41 . transparent insulation 46 and transparent weather skin 47 cover the entire surface of the south wall 100 , but do not obstruct vision through the windows 102 . air 104 circulates through the passage 42 and / or the internal passages in structural wall 41 . air which becomes heated in the passage 42 is vented into the room through the window apertures 102 ; whereas , cold air 104 returns from the room to the passage 42 via a vent 105 at the base of the wall . the passage 42 is vented to the ambient atmosphere by means of vent 106 which is controllable for opening and closing by control member 107 . the principal distinction between solar walls of fig7 and 8 is that the wall of fig8 can be retrofitted to any building which has an exposed south wall and a few windows in that wall . this wall is constructed in the following manner : first a cement pad is poured ; next , a wall of blocks 40 is stacked up using conventional cinder block construction techniques . where windows exist in the building &# 39 ; s south wall , openings are provided in the module 41 so that light from the out - of - doors only need pass through the weatherskin 47 and transparent insulation 46 ( which is optional ). in retrofit installations , the wall of the existing building cannot be used to transfer heat if it is insulated ; so , instead , head is transferred from the passage 42 through the windows 102 . this occurs naturally through convection . in order to augment this chimney effect , a phase change material is used with a higher melting point than is used in new construction installations described previously . this does not cause discomfort in the living area from overheating because the thermal storage blocks 41 are separated from the living area by the existing insulated wall and the windows 102 can be closed . in the systems of fig7 and 8 , the controllable vents 95 and 106 are useful in the summer to vent heat collected from diffuse radiation to ventilate the entire building and thereby provide cooling . summer overheating can also be prevented by using appropriate overhangs or the like which shade the wall when the sun is high in the sky . suitable overhangs and the like are depicted in fig9 a , b and c . in fig9 a , the solar wall 110 consists of phase change thermal storage material 111 and transparent insulation 112 . an overhang 113 is mounted at an angle θ relative to the horizon on the outer surface of the wall 110 . during the winter , winter sun 114 is low on the horizon and shines on the wall 110 without interference from the overhang 113 . during the summer , when summer sun 115 is high , overhang 113 shades the wall 110 . the overhang , when mounted on the wall 110 , is provided with one or more openings 116 at the junction between the wall 110 and overhang 113 to permit drainage of snow , rain and other precipitate matter which would otherwise collect there . in fig9 b , the solar wall 110 of fig9 a is provided with a plurality of small , vertically spaced , horizontal overhangs or louvers 117 mounted on the exterior surface of the solar wall 110 and disposed at an angle θ , which is selected to be in the range of from 0 degrees to 45 degrees , depending upon the latitude of the installation . the transparent weather skin 124 may be placed outside the louvers 117 . in fig9 c , the solar wall 120 consists of structural phase change thermal storage blocks 121 , a layer of optical shuttering material 122 , a layer of transparent insulation 123 and a transparent weather skin 124 which protects the wall 120 from the elements . the optical shutter material 122 is a layer which turns specularly or diffusely reflective above a certain predetermined temperature . such temperature is preferably selected so that the optical shutter 122 turns reflective at temperatures typically about 5 degrees centigrade above the melting point of the phase change material . suitable optical shuttering films are disclosed in u . s . patent application ser . no . 680 , 262 filed apr . 26 , 1976 by john brookes and day chahroudi . the overhang 113 of fig9 a , the slats 117 of fig9 b , and the optical shutter 122 of fig9 c could be employed with other constructions of solar wall and / or building block , such as are disclosed and described in connection with fig4 a , 7 and 8 . the systems discussed above in section 4 are , in many instances , suitable for use with architectural elements and building materials constructed differently from those previously described . fig1 a , b and 11 depict alternate styles of novel phase change material elements generally useful in building and in the systems described in section 4 . fig1 a depicts a building block according to the present invention which consists of a container or support member 131 of concrete or other structural material . the block is generally rectangular in cross - section with an air passage 132 in one side separated by a divider portion 133 from a cavity 134 in the opposite side of the block 130 . the cavity 134 is provided with a lid 135 and its interior surfaces are coated with a sealing material 136 . the cavity 134 is filled with nonrigid pcm thermal storage material 137 . unlike previous embodiments , the suspension medium for the pcm thermal storage material 137 is non - structural and may consist of wood pulp , starch , silica , or other suitable similar materials . a typical formulation , by weight , is as follows : the cap 135 is sealed in place with a waterproof cement or plastic material . the sealant coating 136 may be silica , polyester and sand , bitumen , polyester , or other material which is impervious to the phase change material in both solid and liquid form . passage 132 is provided for air currents 138 for conveying heat to and from the phase change material 137 in systems of the type described previously ( such as in the system of fig6 a ), or otherwise . fig1 b depicts a ceiling tile 140 which consists of a plastic tray portion 141 having a central container cavity 142 , a lid 143 for closing the cavity 142 and nonrigid pcm thermal storage material 144 in the cavity 142 . the material 144 may be of the same type described in connection with the embodiment of fig1 a . the lid 143 is sealed to the tray 141 with adhesive materials . the lid 143 is preferably flexible to accommodate expansion and contraction during melting and freezing of the phase change material . the plastic tray 141 may be of vacuum formed polyvinylchloride . the bottom ( room facing ) surface of the tile 140 may be covered with acoustic material if desired . with minor modifications in appearance , rigidity , and size , the tile of fig1 b may be modified for use as a wall tile . fig1 c illustrates a further embodiment of building blocks wherein the blocks 150 consist of a rectangular walled container portion 151 of concrete or the like with an open top and a central container cavity 152 . nonrigid pcm thermal storage material 143 is sealed in a flexible plastic pouch 154 and located in the container cavity 152 . blocks 150 of this type may be stacked in constructing walls and thermal storage modules of the types previously described . fig1 depicts a thermal storage control element 160 consisting of a tube of flexible plastic material 161 filled with nonrigid pcm thermal storage material 162 and tied at intervals 163 to provide a sausage - like member . the phase change materials 162 , 153 of this embodiment and of the embodiment of fig1 c may both be of the nonrigid type discussed in connection with fig1 a above . the sausage - like thermal storage control member 160 of fig1 may be installed in or behind existing or newly constructed walls , attics , beneath floors , etc . to provide phase change material thermal storage advantages of the type described . when a pcm goes from solid to liquid phase , it expands ; and , when pcm goes from liquid to solid , it contracts . when the phase change material is sealed in a rigid suspension medium or otherwise , enormous pressures and / or vacuums result unless the package is expansible with pressure or contracts when a vacuum occurs . typically the rigid matrix material itself is not injured by the expanding pcm because such expansion occurs ( unlike water ) when the pcm goes from solid to liquid phase and is free to flow as it expands ; however , such forces tend to be destructive of the sealant . a solution to this difficulty involves admixing , along with the molten phase - change material , a fraction of a percent of a liquid which boils at the melting point of the pcm , and which is chemically inert in the presence of the other ingredients . we refer to such liquids as &# 34 ; pressure control liquids &# 34 ;. suitable pressure control liquids include ( for melting points at room temperature ) hydrocarbons such as pentave , butane , and methylene diamine ; and halocarbons such as perfluorobutane and methylene dibromide . the admixture is sealed in the package when the phase change material is in liquid phase . when the phase change material contracts on freezing , pressure on the pressure control liquid is relieved and it expands accordingly . as the phase change material melts , its increased pressure condenses the pressure control liquid . most materials suitable for use as pressure control liquids ( and , in fact , most liquids ) expand several hundred times their liquid volume upon boiling ; whereas the freon typically expands by approximately 500 times its liquid volume when boiled ; whereas most phase change materials only expand by 5 to 15 percent in passing from the solid to liquid phase . as a result , only small quantities of freon are necessary . the precise ratios depend upon the precise properties of the materials selected . however , an excess of the pressure control liquid will not increase the pressure in the system when the pcm is melted . for improved distribution of the pressure control liquid , a liquid such as ammonia which is soluble in the molten phase change material should be selected . of course , the pressure control liquid and sealant must be selected so the pressure control liquid does not attack or pass through the sealant . in a typical formulation , the pcm is cacl 2 . 6h 2 o ( 70 % by volume of the bulk ); the suspension medium is air entrained concrete ( 29 %); the pressure control liquid is c 4 f 10 ( 1 %); and , the sealing material is a 30 % polyester , 70 % sand mixture . in climates where ice forms on the surfaces of sidewalks , streets , highways , bridges , and other structural objects normally formed of concrete or other conventional structural materials , the compositions of the present invention can be advantageously employed to provide suitable pre - formed elements ( such as tiles ) or poured - on - site installations ( such as roadways ) which will store and release heat to retard or prevent surface ice formation . in such applications , the melting point of the phase change material is selected to be a few ( preferably 2 °- 3 ° c .) degrees above the freezing point of water ( 32 ° f .). when the average daily temperature of the atmosphere is higher than the melting point of the pcm , ice will never form on the surface of the composition . if the average daily temperature drops below the melting point of the pcm , then surface ice can form , but it will tend to form later and melt sooner than if conventional materials had been used . sidewalk tiles can be constructed , for example , of pcm thermal storage material formed in the same fashion as the building blocks described herein at section 3 ( a ) and of the same materials . thus , sidewalk tiles can be formed by admixing all components together in the mold , or by vacuum filling a porous tile and sealing it with a waterproof coating . tiles of different sizes , shapes and combinations are formed by simply using different molds . alternately , the tiles can be poured on site , as described in section 3 ( d ) hereof , with the same material . roads , pathways and roadbeds designed for vehicles can also be constructed of the materials of the present invention . preferably cement , aggregate , pcm , and sealing material are poured on site . where , as in highways , and streets , the abrasive qualities of vehicle tires or wheels may be injurious to the composition , a layer of conventional road material can be laid down atop the composition . such conventional materials should be selected to provide good thermal contact between the pcm composition and the road surface , so relatively conductive materials are generally preferable , as are materials which can be laid down in relatively thin layers . conventional concrete meets these requirements adequately . road and highway applications of the present invention have particular utility on bridges where freezing usually occurs most readily .

US-96236678-A

a hand brake actuator for a rail car has a rotary input connected to a rotary output by a transmission including a clutch and a ratchet wheel and pawl , a declutching mechanism for disengaging the clutch in a declutched position of the declutching mechanism , and a release handle with a first cam which drives the declutching mechanism to the declutched position when the release handle is moved from an apply position to a release position . a second cam is biased in a first direction to engage and retain the declutching mechanism in a declutched position after the release handle is removed from the release position . a follower is connected to the second cam and is responsive to the rotation of the input in an apply direction to rotate the second cam in a second direction opposite the first direction to release the declutching mechanism and allow the clutch to reengage .

since the illustrative hand brake mechanism represents an improvement on the above - identified u . s . pat . no . 4 , 291 , 793 , and it includes various elements which are the same as or similar to the elements of the patent structure , such elements have been identified in the drawings by like reference numerals , for convenience of reference . referring to the drawings in detail and in particular to fig1 - 5 a hand brake mechanism in accordance with the invention is mounted in a two - piece housing 10 , which includes a rear base member 12 , and a front cover member 143 . these members are adapted to be secured together by rivets 16 or other fastening devices . the base member 12 of the housing 10 is a generally flat plate , while the cover member 14 is of cup shape configuration and embodies an outwardly extending flange 18 through which the rivets 16 extend . bolt holes 20 are provided in the corner portions of the housing 10 , in order that the entire assembly may be bolted to an end wall of a railway car in the usual manner . a conventional hand wheel 30 is affixed by a nut 32 to the front end of a horizontal rotatable hand wheel or drive shaft 34 . the shaft 34 extends through an opening in the cover member 14 and is provided on the rear portion thereof with an enlarged hub 36 . a radial circular clutch reaction flange 38 extends from the hub 36 intermediate its ends . the hub 36 is journalled in an antifriction ball bearing assembly 40 which is nested within a recess 42 on the inside of a front wall plate 44 seated in an opening in the cover member 14 . the rear end of the hub 36 is formed with a relatively deep central cylindrical socket 46 ( see fig5 ) which has a threaded section 48 near its rim portion . referring to fig5 , a horizontal axially shiftable clutch shaft 50 is disposed within the housing 10 in coaxial relationship to the hand wheel shaft 34 and includes at its front end a reduced threaded pilot stem 52 which is threadedly received in the threaded section 48 of the socket 46 . the rear end region of the clutch shaft 50 is cylindrical , and a retainer pin opening 53 extends there through . a cylindrical pinion retainer sleeve 54 having a retainer pin opening 55 there through is mounted on the end region of the shaft 50 by a retainer pin 57 , which extends through the registering retainer pin openings 53 and 55 . the retainer sleeve 54 is journalled in a cylindrical bushing 56 , where the outer surface of the sleeve serves as a bearing surface for rotatably supporting the clutch shaft 50 . the bushing 56 is fixedly mounted in a seat 58 in the upper portion of the base member 12 . an enlarged integral medial drive member or slide section 60 is formed on the clutch shaft 50 . the drive member 60 includes four radial splines 62 , which extend in the axial direction or longitudinally of the shaft 50 . the splines 62 cooperate with a jaw - clutch collar 64 , as described hereinafter . immediately forwardly of the drive member 60 and integrally therewith , a circular radial friction - clutch reaction flange 66 is integrally formed on the clutch shaft 50 and is provided with a forwardly facing clutch face 68 . a stop pin 70 is threadedly received in an internally - threaded socket in the latter flange 66 , cooperates with an abutment boss 72 on the rim of the hub socket 46 , and limits the extent of relative turning movement of the two shafts 34 and 50 . the rear end of the hub 36 of the hand wheel shaft 34 serves to support rotatably thereon a ratchet wheel 80 having teeth 82 . a pivoted pawl 84 and biasing spring 85 ( see fig3 - 5 ) are mounted on a horizontal cylindrical pin 86 . the pin 86 is supported on the cover member 14 and a bracket 83 ( see fig3 and 4 ). a friction disk 90 is slidably mounted on the rear end of the hub 36 and interposed between the forwardly facing clutch face 68 of the reaction flange 66 and the rear face of the ratchet wheel 80 . a similar friction disk 92 is slidably mounted on the rear end of the hub 36 and interposed between the rearwardly facing clutch face 94 of the reaction flange 38 and the front face of the ratchet wheel 80 . the two friction disks 90 , 92 and the ratchet wheel 80 are capable of limited axial movement on the hub 36 . consequently , when the hand wheel 30 is manually rotated - in a clockwise direction as viewed in fig3 and 4 and from the right hand side of fig1 and 2 , the two friction disks 90 , 92 and the interposed ratchet wheel 80 will be compressed as a unit between the clutch faces 68 and 94 . the entire friction clutch assembly including the handwheel shaft 34 and the clutch shaft 50 then becomes locked up and consequently rotates as a unit for application of the car brakes . as best illustrated in fig5 , the jaw - clutch collar 64 is capable of limited sliding movement on the drive member 60 on the clutch shaft 50 . the clutch collar 64 includes a body 96 , which defines a central opening 98 slidably receiving the drive member 60 and providing four keyways for the four splines 62 of the drive member . a radial flange 100 circumscribes the body 96 and provides engagement means by which the collar 64 may be shifted bodily in opposite directions along the axis of the clutch shaft 50 , by a pivoted yoke assembly or declutching 102 . the clutch collar 64 also is formed with an annular series of spaced apart clutch teeth 104 , which project rearwardly from the body 96 . in the foregoing manner , the jaw - clutch collar 64 is mounted on the drive member 60 for releasable clutching engagement with a combined pinion , and clutch wheel 108 . the pinion and clutch wheel 108 includes a clutch wheel 107 having an annular series of forwardly projecting spaced - apart clutch teeth 106 , and a pinion 110 integral with the clutch wheel . the pinion and clutch wheel 108 is mounted for free rotation on the clutch shaft 50 , between the pinion retainer sleeve 54 and the drive member 60 , which serve to restrain the wheel 108 from rearward or forward longitudinal sliding movement on the shaft . the clutch teeth 104 on the clutch collar 64 and the clutch teeth 106 on the clutch wheel 107 are constructed and spaced apart for inter - fitting with or inter - engaging each other , to place the clutch collar 64 and the clutch wheel 107 in clutching engagement . normally , the clutching engagement is maintained by a helical compression spring 109 which surrounds the clutch shaft 50 and is interposed between the circular reaction flange 66 on such shaft and the body 96 of the clutch collar 64 . the rear end of the spring 109 seats within an annular groove 111 ( fig1 ) which is formed in the front face of the clutch collar 64 , while the front end of the spring bears against a frustoconical seating surface 113 on the rear face of the reaction flange 66 . the spring 109 thus is centered about the clutch shaft 50 in coaxial relationship . the pinion 110 of the combined pinion and clutch wheel 108 meshes with a main winding spur gear 112 of relatively large diameter . the main winding gear 112 is mounted on and rotatable with a drum member 114 which , in turn , is mounted on a horizontal drum shaft 116 supported at its ends in the lower regions of the base member 12 and the cover member 14 of the housing . the drum member 114 is provided with an integral radially extending bifurcated crank arm 118 which carries at its distal end a horizontal crank pin 120 . the latter passes through the uppermost link of a brake chain 122 and is secured in place by a cotter pin 123 . the brake chain 122 is connected to the brake shoe mechanism ( not shown ), for application of the car brakes by tensioning the chain . from the above description , it will be apparent that when the jaw - clutch collar 64 is maintained in its normally clutched engagement with the combined pinion and clutch wheel 108 , the hand brake mechanism functions in the manner of a conventional non - spin brake mechanism . namely , the application of the car brakes or release of braking tension in the chain 122 is in small increments and without the application of spinning torque to the hand wheel 30 . when fully released , the brake chain 122 is unwound from the drum member 114 and , therefore , is slack . the friction clutch assembly , including the ratchet wheel 80 and the friction clutch disks 90 and 92 , may be disengaged , and the clutch shaft 50 backed off , so to speak , on the internally - threaded section 48 of the socket 46 . when it is desired to apply the car brakes , the handwheel 30 is rotated manually in a clockwise direction as viewed in fig3 and 4 and from the right hand side of fig1 and 2 . as the hand wheel 30 and the hand wheel shaft 34 are turned in such clockwise direction , the clutch shaft 50 , being in threaded engagement with the hand wheel shaft , is caused to move forwardly . this results from the rotational movement of the pinion 110 being restricted by the inertia of the spur gear 112 , the drum member 114 and the brake chain 122 , as well as by the gravitational and tensional drag on the chain by members connecting the same to the car brakes . ultimately , the reaction flange 66 on the clutch shaft 50 and the opposing reaction flange 38 on the hand wheel shaft 34 function to lock up the entire friction clutch mechanism . the clutch shaft 50 then rotates in unison with the hand wheel 30 and the hand wheel shaft 34 , and establishes a rigid power train or transmission leading to the brake chain 122 . the drum member 114 rotates upon continued rotation of the hand wheel 30 , causing the crank pin 120 to move upwardly and the chain 122 to commence winding upon the drum member , thus gradually applying the car brakes . at such time as the car brakes become set , the counter - torque on the pinion 110 has a tendency to impart reverse rotation to the pinion . such a tendency is effective to thread the forward end of the clutch shaft 50 into the socket 46 in the hand wheel shaft 34 and maintain the friction clutch assembly locked up . consequently , the pawl 84 will be effective against the entire clutch assembly and not merely against the ratchet wheel 80 , and the brakes will not be released even though the hand wheel 30 be released by the operator . in order to gradually release of the car brakes , the hand wheel 30 is turned in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in fig3 and 4 , as viewed from the right - hand side of fig1 and 2 , through any desired small increment of rotation . the counterclockwise rotation of the hand wheel 30 causes the mating threads on the shafts 34 and 50 to be turned relative to each other . this backs off the clutch shaft 50 and thereby relieving the pressure of the friction disks 90 and 92 , to disengage the friction clutch assembly . the clutch shaft 50 is permitted to rotate , and the pinion 110 rotates therewith , to partially release the tension in the brake chain 122 . such partial release will take place only during such time as counterclockwise turning force or torque is applied to the hand wheel 30 . immediately upon cessation of such turning force , the countertorque which is applied through the power train and leading from the brake chain 122 to the clutch shaft 50 will automatically re - engage the friction clutch parts , to prevent further relative rotation of the parts and release of chain tension . in order to effect quick release of the car brakes , the jaw - clutch collar 64 is shifted from its drive position , illustrated in fig1 and 3 , to its brake - release position , illustrated in fig2 and 4 . in the drive position , the collar 64 engages the splines 62 , and the clutch teeth 104 on the collar intermesh with the clutch teeth 106 on the clutch wheel 107 , to drivingly interconnect the drive member 60 and the pinion 110 for application of the car brakes . in the brake - release position , the clutch teeth 104 and 106 are separated , thereby breaking the connection between the drive member 60 and the pinion 110 , so that the pinion is freely rotatable on the clutch shaft 50 . under the latter conditions , any tension in the brake chain 122 is released , thereby releasing the car brakes . the control mechanism for shifting the clutch collar 64 between its position of clutched engagement with the clutch wheel 107 and its position of disengagement includes a quick - release handle or lever 130 . the lever 130 operates through a horizontal cam shaft 132 to control the rocking movements of the pivoted yoke assembly 102 . the latter , in turn , operates as a dual shift lever or fork to engage the radial flange 100 of the clutch collar 64 and shift the same bodily into and out of clutching engagement with the combined pinion and clutch wheel 108 . referring especially to fig3 - 5 , the yoke assembly or declutching mechanism 102 is comprised of two shift levers or forks 136 and 138 which are rigidly connected together by a connecting rod 140 . each lever , in effect , is a bell crank lever having a generally horizontally extending rocker arm 142 and a depending collar - engagement arm 144 . the levers are pivoted to the opposite side walls 14 a and 14 b of the cover member 14 of the housing 10 , near the junctures between the arms 142 and 144 . the pivotal mounting is provided by cradle supports 146 on the side walls 14 a , 14 b , and trunnions 148 on the levers 136 , 138 . each support 146 includes a bearing 147 , a key 149 which interfits with the bearing 147 , and a cotter pin 150 which extends through registering holes in the bearing and key , to secure them together . each trunnion 48 is journalled in the bearing 147 of one of the supports 146 . the connecting rod 140 extends between and has its ends fixed to the outer ends of the rocker arms 142 . the lower end of each collar - engagement arm 144 carries two collar - engaging members in the form of spaced , opposed lugs 152 and 153 . the lugs project inwardly and straddle the peripheral flange 100 of the jaw - clutch collar 64 , for imparting longitudinal shifting motion to the clutch collar 64 when the pivoted yoke assembly 102 is swung about the axis of its trunnions 148 . an integral upstanding lug arm 173 forms a part of one lever 138 at the junction of its remaining arms 142 and 144 . a locking lug 175 is integral with the outer end of the lug arm 173 and projects laterally inwardly there from . the locking lug 175 and the collar - engaging lugs 152 , 153 are disposed on opposite sides of the transverse axis through the trunnions 148 , about which the yoke assembly 102 and the levers 136 , 138 thereof pivot . consequently , the respective lugs 152 , 153 and 175 move in opposite directions between the rear base member 12 and the front cover member when the yoke assembly 102 is rocked about such axis . the cam shaft 132 is disposed in the upper portion of the housing 10 , above the level of the trunnions 148 and in parallel relation to the hand wheel 30 and clutch shafts 34 and 50 . the ends of the cam shaft 132 are journalled for rotation on the base and cover members 12 and 14 of the housing . the rear end of the cam shaft 132 is mounted in the seat 157 in the base section 12 , while the front end of the cam shaft 132 projects through the front wall 14 c of the cover member 14 . the cam shaft 132 has an integral radial flange 158 , a cylindrical journal 159 , a squared portion 162 , and a threaded portion 161 adjacent to its front end . the cam shaft is mounted in the front wall 14 c with its flange 158 engaging the inside of the wall , and its journal 159 rotating in a circular bearing portion 163 in the wall . an abutment sleeve 160 is mounted on the squared portion 162 and adjacent to the outside of the front wall 14 c . the sleeve 160 is secured by a nut 164 and washer 165 on the threaded portion 161 . a circular opening 167 is provided in the proximal end of the handle 130 , which opening receives a cylindrical portion 166 of the abutment sleeve 160 , to mount the handle thereon . a pair of angularly spaced stop lugs 168 and 170 on the abutment sleeve 160 and a pair of spaced abutment shoulders 172 and 174 on the inner end of the handle cooperate to provide a lost - motion connection between the sleeve and the handle . this enables the handle to swing in idle fashion and without function between engagement of respective lugs and shoulders . during the idle motion of the handle 130 , rocking movement of the cam shaft 132 is not effected . however , when the lower abutment shoulder 172 on the handle 130 engages the stop lug 168 on the abutment sleeve 160 , counterclockwise ( as seen in fig3 and 4 ) or downward movement of the handle will impart counterclockwise rocking motion to the cam shaft 132 . when the upper shoulder 174 on the handle 130 engages the stop lug 170 on the sleeve 160 , clockwise or upward movement of the handle will impart clockwise rocking motion to the cam shaft 132 . in an , alternative embodiment , not illustrated , the abutment sleeve 160 is omitted , and a quick - release handle having a square opening in its proximal end is mounted directly on the squared portion 162 on the cam shaft . in such embodiment , rotation of the handle in either direction causes the cam shaft 132 to rotate therewith , and there is no lost motion connection . a first reaction or locking member 176 , a second reaction or locking member 177 , and a brake - release or hold - down cam 178 are mounted on the cam shaft 132 integrally therewith , in angularly offset relation to each other and disposed rearwardly of the flange 158 . the first reaction member 176 is a lug - like member extending laterally outwardly from the cam shaft 132 . the first reaction member 176 includes a cam surface 176 a , which lies substantially in a plane oblique or inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the cam shaft 132 . the first reaction member 176 includes a stop surface 176 b in a plane extending transverse to the cam shaft axis and extending at an obtuse angle or obliquely to the cam surface 176 a . the first reaction member 176 includes a seating surface 176 c in a plane parallel to the cam shaft axis and substantially perpendicular to the stop surface 176 b . a substantially right - angled recess is formed in the reaction member , and it is bounded by the stop surface 176 b , the seating surface 176 c , and the cam shaft 132 , on respective sides thereof . the brake - release cam 178 is an elongated block - like member extending laterally outwardly from the cam shaft 132 , and its undersurface 178 a constitutes a cam surface . the brake - release cam 178 is arranged for direct engagement of its cam surface 178 a with one shift lever 138 of the yoke assembly 102 , and the yoke assembly in turn directly engages the jaw - clutch collar 64 , by the members 152 and 153 . the first reaction member 176 also is arranged for direct engagement with the one shift lever 138 . the second reaction member 177 , on the other hand , is arranged for direct engagement with the collar 64 . when the brake - release cam 178 is in its said engagement , the first and second reaction members 176 and 177 are disengaged from elements of the yoke assembly or the clutch , and vice versa . the brake - release cam 178 cooperates with the distal end of the rocker arm 142 of one yoke assembly shift lever 138 , i . e ., the lever which bears the locking lug 175 . the quick - release handle 130 is pulled upwardly from the apply position shown in fig6 to the quick release position shown in fig7 , thereby rotating the cam shaft 132 in the counterclockwise direction . the brake cam 178 engages the rocker arm 142 of the lever 138 during such rotation . as a result , both of the rocker arms 142 move downwardly , whereby the shift levers 136 and 138 move pivotally about the axis of the trunnions 148 . the engagement arms 144 of the levers 136 and 138 thereby are caused to rock forwardly . at this time , the rear collar - engaging members 152 on the engagement arms engage the flange 100 of the jaw - clutch collar 64 , to shift the collar forwardly , while compressing the clutch spring 109 . this action shifts the collar 64 from its drive or engaged position is to its brake - release or disengaged position , thereby to release the car brakes . during the engagement of the brake - release cam 178 with the cam - actuated lever 138 , the reaction members 176 and 177 are in out - of - the - way positions ; wherein they do not interfere with the movements of 20 the yoke assembly 102 and the collar 64 . the description so far is substantially the same as that in u . s . pat . no . 4 , 291 , 793 . the modification to produce a prolonged or sustained release follows and have reference numbers in the 200s the improvement in the hand brake actual for includes providing a prolonged release mechanism which retains the declutching mechanism in a de - clutch position after the release handle 130 is moved from the release position . the mechanism assures a prolonged release even though the operator has removed their hand from the quick release handle 130 . this mechanism must be reset in response to the rotation of the input or hand wheel 30 in an applied direction so as to release the de - clutching mechanism 120 and allow the clutch to re - engage . the prolonged release mechanism 200 is best illustrated in fig5 . it includes a bore 202 to be received on the pawl pin 86 , which is larger than the previous pawl pin 86 . the prolonged release mechanism 200 is retained on the pawl pin 86 by a snap ring 204 received in a groove 206 at the end of the pawl pin 86 . a spring 208 biases the prolonged release mechanism 200 in a first direction towards engagement with the clutch mechanism and to retain the clutch mechanism in a de - clutch position . the bracket 83 for the pawl pin 86 acts as a stop for the leg portion 226 of the follower 220 to limit its rotation in the release direction . the prolonged release mechanism 200 includes a cam portion 210 and a follower portion 220 . the cam 210 includes a camming surface 212 which engages the connecting rod 140 of the de - clutching mechanism 120 in the prolonged release position of fig8 . a surface 214 of the cam 210 engages the connecting rod 140 in the apply position of fig6 . the cam 210 is shaped to be over center when it engages the connecting rod 140 . this causes it to remain engaged with the rod 140 until disengaged by the follower 220 . as shown in fig7 and 8 , the length of the cam 210 is shorter than the release position of the de - clutching mechanism 120 adjacent to the cam 210 , when the declutching mechanism 120 is in the release position produced by the first cam 178 connected to the quick release handle 130 . as shown in fig6 the quick release handle 130 is in its apply position . the cam surface 214 engages the bar 140 and cam surface 212 does not . also , the brake release or hold - down cam 178 does not engage lever 138 of the de - clutching mechanism 120 in this position . when the quick release handle 130 is raised to its quick release position as illustrated in fig7 , cam 178 engages lever 138 of the de - clutching mechanism 210 to move it to the release position , which disengages the clutch elements 104 and 106 . at this time , the spring 208 rotates the cam 210 to the position illustrated in fig7 opposite but displaced from the connecting rod 140 . as long as the operator holds the handle 130 in the release position the clutch is disengaged . when the operator releases the handle 130 , the cam 178 rotates up off the lever 138 and the rod 140 comes into engagement with cams surface 212 of cam 210 . the handle 130 has been rotated from its release position in fig7 to its initial or apply position of fig8 , because of the lost motion of elements 168 - 174 . the over - center cam 210 stays in that position until reset . the applied brake position of fig6 is also illustrated in fig3 . the release position of fig7 is illustrated in fig4 . the resetting of the prolonged release cam 210 is produced by the follower 220 sensing rotation of the input or hand wheel 30 in the applied direction . there are at least three specific embodiments of this resetting mechanism illustrated in fig9 through 11 . the follower 220 includes a lower horizontal portion 222 connected to an upper horizontal portion 224 by a vertical portion 226 . in the first embodiment of fig9 , at least one pin 230 has been added to the ratchet wheel 80 . in the illustrated embodiment there are four pins 230 . the prolonged release mechanism 220 is shown in its prolonged release position . the end 222 of the follower 220 is in the path of the pins 230 . as the ratchet wheel 80 is rotated in the applied direction , pin 230 will come into contact with the end 222 of the follower 220 and rotates it clockwise against the tension of spring 208 . this will cause the cam surface 212 to become disengaged from rod 140 and subsequently causing surface 214 to rest on the rod 140 . this allows the declutching mechanism to permit the clutch to re - engage . the second embodiment of the reset mechanism is illustrated in fig1 . the end 222 of the follower 220 is in the path of the teeth 82 of the ratchet wheel 80 . the motion of the teeth 82 rotated in the apply direction on the end 222 is sufficient to rotate the camming surface 212 out of engagement with rod 140 . since the end 222 is down at the same plane with the pawl and the ratchet wheel 82 , in this embodiment , the second reaction member 177 may be included . in a third embodiment of the reset mechanism illustrated in fig1 , the lower end 222 of the follower 220 is adjacent to the pawl 84 . as the ratchet wheel 80 is rotated in its applied direction , the paw 84 rotates clockwise engaging end 222 and rotates the cam 212 out of engagement with rod 140 . as in the previous embodiment , in that the element 222 of the follower is below the top surface of the ratchet wheel 80 , the second reaction member 177 may be included . the first embodiment of the prolonged release mechanism 200 shows the cam portion 210 and the follower portion 220 as a single unitary structure in fig5 - 11 . the second embodiment of the prolonged release mechanism 200 shows the cam portion 210 and the follower portion 220 as a two piece structure in fig1 - 15 . as shown in fig1 , the cam 210 includes a shoulder 216 having a recess 218 . the end walls of the recess 218 for stops 217 and 219 . a shaft 215 of the cam 210 is received in a bore 225 of the follower 220 . a tab 228 on the follower rides in the recess 218 between the two stops 217 and 219 as a lost motion mechanism . the spring 208 , shown in fig5 , biases the cam 210 towards its release position . in the apply position of fig1 , the cam 210 is offset from the follower 220 . the cam 210 is restrained by the rod 140 , not show , while the follower is free to move relative to the cam 210 . in the position shown , gravity , for example , has moved the tab 228 against stop 217 . in the release position of fig1 , the spring 208 has driven the cam 210 down and in alignment with the follower 220 . the tab 228 abuts the stop 218 . in the apply position of fig1 , the rotation of ratchet wheel 80 causes pin 230 to drive the follower 220 and with it cam 210 to its apply position . after the ratchet wheel 80 stops rotating , the follower may assume the final apply position of fig1 . for more complete operation of the elements with respect to applying and releasing the brake reference should be made to u . s . pat . no . 4 , 291 , 793 . although the prolonged release mechanism 200 is shown mounted to pin 86 , it may be mounted to its own shaft or even the cam shaft 132 . although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail , it is to be clearly understood that this is done by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation . the scope of the present invention is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims .

US-36254209-A

a drip shield includes cover members that define a protective canopy over sample receptacles to prevent unwanted material from being deposited into the receptacles . the cover members cooperate to define at least one access hole through the drip shield to permit access to a sample receptacle by a pipette tip through the access hole . one of the cover members is moveable with respect to another cover member between a closed stated defining the access hole and an open state permitting a pipette tip extending through the access hole to be laterally conveyed relative to the drip shield and out of the access hole . in a preferred embodiment , a system control feature automatically determines if a pipette tip might have been left in a sample receptacle and extending through the access hole of the drip shield and thereby cause the sample receptacle and pipette tip to be conveyed laterally relative to the drip shield while the one cover member moves from the closed to the open state to permit the pipette tip to be conveyed out of the access hole .

while the present invention may be embodied in a variety of forms , the following description and accompanying drawings are merely intended to disclose some of those forms as specific examples of the present invention . accordingly , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the forms or embodiments so described and illustrated . instead , the full scope of the present invention is set forth in the appended claims . as shown in fig1 , a sample carrier 10 is provided to carry a plurality of receptacles , such as sample tubes 300 , and may be adapted for use with a sample carrier conveying means , such as a sample carousel for rotating a plurality of sample carriers within an automated sampling system . one such sample carousel 400 is disclosed by ammann et al . in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 335 , 166 and is illustrated in fig1 . this particular sample carousel 400 is formed of milled , unhardened aluminum and includes an annular trough 401 about the periphery of a ring 402 and a plurality of raised , radially extending dividers 403 . the dividers 403 divide the trough 401 into nine arcuate sample carrier receiving wells 404 which can be configured to accommodate the sample carriers 10 . the individual sample carrier receiving wells 404 are dimensioned to maintain the sample carriers 10 in an upright position as sample tubes 300 held by the sample carriers 10 are indexed under a substance transfer mechanism , such as a robotic pipettor ( not shown ), for retrieving sample material for analysis . an example of a robotic pipettor for use with the present invention is the robotic sample processor , model no . rsp 9000 , available from cavro scientific instruments , inc . of sunnyvale , calif . those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that , as an alternative to the carousel 400 shown in fig1 , a sample carrier conveying means may comprise a linear transport conveyor or a transport conveyor of some other configuration . the sample carriers 10 can be used in combination with a device for protecting sample tubes 300 during sampling to limit opportunities for cross - contamination . such a device is provided by a novel drip shield 200 depicted in fig1 - 19 for preventing unwanted materials from being deposited into the sample tubes 300 . ( reference herein to “ drip shield 200 ” is a general reference to any of the illustrated drip shields 200 a - c .) drip shield 200 a shown in fig1 is an assembly which includes a first cover member , for example in the form of a cover plate 201 a , and a second cover member , for example in the form of a shutter 240 a , which are dimensioned and cooperate to form a canopy over a sample carrier 10 positioned thereunder . ( reference herein to “ cover plate 201 ” and to “ shutter 240 ” are general references to any of the illustrated cover plates 201 a - c and shutters 240 a - c , respectively .) thus , in the illustrated embodiment , the drip shield 200 has an arcuate shape corresponding to the preferred arcuate shape of the sample carrier 10 , as shown in fig1 . that is , the general shape and configuration of the drip shield can be selected to conform to the shape and configuration of the sample carrier and associated conveying means . for example , a drip shield implemented in combination with a linear conveying means would have a linear shape . two access holes , identified in fig1 as a first , or inner , access hole 202 a and a second , or outer , access hole 203 a , extend through the drip shield 200 and provide access to sample tubes 300 centered below the access holes . ( reference herein to “ access hole 202 ” or “ access hole 203 ” is a general reference to any of the illustrated access holes 202 a - c and 203 a - c .) the access holes 202 , 203 are dimensioned to permit non - interfering passage therethrough by pipette tips carried by a robotic pipettor , but are small enough so that a top surface 204 of the drip shield 200 can function to catch hanging droplets which are dislodged from the pipette tips during sample transfer procedures . therefore , the diameters of the first and second access holes 202 , 203 , respectively , are preferably about the same as or less than the smallest diameter of any cap 310 of a sample tube 300 to be carried by a sample carrier 10 , as shown in fig2 . cap 310 may be a penetrable closure device having one or more frangible seals and , optionally , a filter means ( e . g ., as described in kacian , et al ., u . s . pat . no . 6 , 893 , 612 ) which are pierceable by the pipette tip . other closure devices that can be pierced by a pipette tip include those disclosed by anderson et al ., “ penetrable cap ,” u . s . pat . no . 6 , 716 , 396 . the sample tubes 300 may also contain a specimen retrieval device configured to enable a practitioner to collect an amount of specimen material and deposit the material , along with the specimen retrieval device , into a sample tube 300 . an exemplary specimen retrieval device is the cell collection swab described in pestes , et al ., u . s . pat . no . 5 , 623 , 942 . the access holes 202 , 203 are arranged on the drip shield 200 so that the first access hole 202 is positioned above a first or inner row of longitudinally or arcuately aligned sample tubes 300 and the second access hole 203 is aligned above a second or outer row of longitudinally or arcuately aligned sample tubes 300 . as the sample carrier 10 is indexed clockwise or counterclockwise under the drip shield 200 by the sample carousel 400 , the next sample tube 300 in each row of tubes can be presented under one of the access holes 202 , 203 for access by a robotic pipettor . the access holes 202 , 203 are preferably angularly offset on the drip shield 200 to further minimize opportunities for contamination resulting from released hanging droplets of sample material . in a preferred mode , the access holes 202 , 203 are arranged on the drip shield 200 , as shown in fig1 , so that the third sample tube in the second or outer row of aligned tubes is positioned beneath the second access hole 203 as the first sample tube in the first or inner row of aligned tubes is positioned beneath the first access hole 202 when the sample carrier 10 is conveyed in a counterclockwise direction . the shutter 240 is disposed over a portion of the cover plate 201 , and at least a portion of the shutter 240 is movable relative to the cover plate 201 . as shown in fig4 , the cover plate 201 a may include a series of three longitudinally or arcuately extending runners 208 which are spaced apart from each other and depend from a bottom surface 209 of the cover plate 201 a so as to define a first channel 220 and a second channel 221 . ( the reference number “ 208 ” refers generally to all three runners shown in the figures , whereas the reference number “ 208 a ” refers to the center runner and the reference number “ 208 b ” refers to the two edge runners .) channels 220 and 221 provide clearance under the drip shield 200 to accommodate taller sample tubes ( possibly taller sample tubes without caps ). the runners 208 a , 208 b preferably include tapered ends 211 , 212 , respectively , as shown in fig4 . the tapered ends 211 , 212 of the runners 208 a , 208 b are provided to facilitate proper seating of sample carriers 10 which have not been fully inserted into sample carousel receiving wells 404 prior to rotation , whether the sample carousel 400 is being rotated clockwise or counterclockwise . it should be understood that the runners 208 and channels 220 , 221 are optional and are not required for the effective operation of the invention . the sample carrier 10 shown in fig1 and 2 includes tabs 223 , 224 ( see fig2 ) extending laterally from a lower end of the carrier 10 . the sample carrier shown is described in knight et al ., “ sample tube holder ,” u . s . pat . application publication no . us 2006 - 0266719 a1 . other exemplary sample carriers are described in : dale et al ., “ sample carrier and drip shield for use therewith ,” u . s . patent application publication no . us 2003 - 0017084 a1 ; sevigny et al ., “ sample carrier having sample tube blocking means and drip shield for use therewith ,” u . s . patent application publication no . us 2003 - 0215365 a1 ; and aviles et al ., “ sample carrier having releasable locking mechanism ,” u . s . pat . no . 7 , 132 , 082 . when the sample carrier 10 is in a sample transfer location ( i . e ., under the drip shield 200 a ) tabs 223 and 224 engage blocking elements which prevent the sample carrier 10 from being lifted out of the receiving well 404 of the sample carousel 400 . more specifically , tab 223 extends into a gap 225 defined between the top of the sample carousel 400 and the bottom of a block element 226 mounted in a fixed position with respect to a stationary surface 216 . similarly , tab 224 extends into a gap 227 defined between the top of the sample carousel 400 and the bottom of block element 228 mounted in a fixed position with respect to the stationary surface 216 . thus , tabs 223 and 224 prevent the carrier from being lifted out of the receiving well 404 . preferably , the distance between the bottom of the drip shield 200 and the top of a sample tube cap 310 is about 0 . 36 inches ( 9 . 14 mm ). the drip shield 200 can be maintained in fixed relationship over sample carriers 10 being indexed on the sample carousel 400 therebelow by means of mounting posts 215 fixed to the stationary surface 216 of the automated sampling system , as illustrated in fig1 and 2 and more fully described by ammann et al . in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 335 , 166 . the drip shield 200 can be secured to these mounting posts 215 using screws , bolts or like mechanical fasteners . preferred are screws 217 mated with threaded holes ( not shown ) in the mounting posts 215 and inserted through three counter - bored through - holes 218 located on the periphery of the cover plate 201 a , as shown in fig3 . the holes 218 may be countersunk in the top surface 204 of the cover plate 201 a . this is especially necessary with respect to the screw 217 that is adjacent to the shutter 240 a so that the screw head does not interfere with movement of the shutter 240 a relative to the cover plate 201 a . cover plate 201 a also includes three bored openings 219 aligned with the through - holes 218 ( see fig4 ) which receive the top ends of the mounting posts 215 . components of the drip shield 200 of the present invention are preferably made of a substantially non - conductive plastic , such as acrylonitrile - butadiene - styrene ( abs ), which can be obtained from ge plastics of pittsfield , mass . as cycolac ® mg47 . the materials used should be selected to resist corrosion by chemicals and reagents that the sample carrier 10 and drip shield 200 may be exposed to during use . abs is readily available , durable and easily machined . referring to fig3 and 4 , the cover plate 201 a includes an outer slot 230 and an inner slot 232 that is somewhat shorter in length than the outer slot 230 . slots 230 and 232 are preferably arcuate in shape having a curvature generally corresponding to the curvature of the arrangement of sample tubes 300 in a sample carrier 10 , which is also the curvature of the path of movement of a sample tube 300 on the sample carousel 400 . outer slot 230 has a rounded closed end 231 , and inner slot 232 has a rounded closed end 233 , both ends 231 , 233 being located in a portion of the cover plate 201 a that is interior to the outer perimeter of the cover plate . the slots 230 , 232 extend from their respective ends 231 , 233 to open ends at a peripheral edge of the cover plate 201 a . a shutter bracket 234 a projects outwardly from an edge of the cover plate 201 a and is provided for attaching the shutter 240 a thereto . the shutter bracket 234 a includes mounting holes 235 and perimeter ledge 236 which extends beyond a side wall 238 of the shutter bracket 234 a . referring to fig5 and 6 , the shutter 240 a includes a cover portion 241 with a flexible arm 250 and a mounting bracket 251 a . the cover portion includes a sloped end 242 , a inner edge 249 and an undulating edge 243 . undulating edge 243 is generally defined by a first rounded fillet 244 , a first straight portion 245 , a curved transition 246 , a second rounded fillet 247 , and a second straight portion 248 which terminates at inner edge 249 . the flexible arm 250 is in the form of a curved flexible strap arranged transversely to the plane of the cover portion 241 and extends from a peripheral edge of the cover portion 241 . the mounting bracket 251 a includes a flat portion 252 with mounting holes 253 formed therein and a raised edge 254 extending along one side of the flat portion 252 until it merges with the edge of the flexible arm 250 . the shutter 240 a is installed onto the cover plate 201 a by placing the cover portion 241 of the shutter 240 a on the top surface 204 of the cover plate 201 a and engaging the flat portion 252 of the mounting bracket 251 a of the shutter 240 a with the bottom surface 239 of the shutter bracket 234 a of the cover plate 201 a . suitable fasteners , such as screws , rivets , or bolts , extend through the mounting holes 253 of the mounting bracket 251 a into the mounting holes 235 , which may be threaded , of the shutter bracket 234 a . the raised edge 254 of the mounting bracket 251 a preferably has a thickness corresponding to the width of the perimeter ledge 236 of the shutter bracket 234 a so that the raised edge 254 will seat below the perimeter ledge 236 , and the edge of the flexible arm 250 will seat below a ledge 239 extending along a portion of the cover plate 201 a to present a clean , flush appearance . the cover plate 201 and the shutter 240 of are preferably machined from abs due to the intricacy of the various features of the respective parts . edges of the cover plate 201 and the shutter 240 are preferably rounded or chamfered so as to remove sharp edges . this is especially important in areas where the shutter and cover plate are to move relative to each other , so as to prevent one part from getting caught on the edge of the other . persons of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that it may be possible , especially with embodiments including fewer intricate features , to form the cover plate and / or the shutter by injection molding . furthermore , while the embodiments of the drip shield 200 shown in the drawings comprise assemblies of two or more pieces , it is contemplated that drip shields that are functionally equivalent to those shown in the drawings may be formed as a single , integrated structure . as best shown in fig7 - 11 , portions of the cover plate 201 a and the shutter 240 a cooperate to define the inner access hole 202 a and outer access hole 203 a . more specifically , shutter 240 a covers all but a portion of the outer slot 230 so that the first fillet 244 of the shutter 240 a and the rounded end 231 of the outer slot 230 form the perimeter of the outer access hole 203 a ( see fig1 ). similarly , shutter 240 a covers all but a portion of the inner slot 232 so that the second fillet 247 of the shutter 240 a and the rounded end 233 of the inner slot 232 cooperate to form the perimeter of the inner access hole 202 a . fig7 - 11 show a sequence which demonstrates how a drip shield embodying aspects of the invention permits a pipette tip extending out of a sample tube and through one of the access holes 202 a or 203 a can be conveyed laterally relative to the drip shield . as shown in fig7 , a pipette tip 350 is disposed within and extends through the outer access hole 203 a of the drip shield 200 a . the drip shield 200 a shown in fig7 is in a closed state , as the shutter 240 a is in a position with respect to the cover plate 201 a to define the access holes 202 a and 203 a . to convey the pipette tip laterally relative to the drip shield 200 a , the transport carousel 400 is moved in a counterclockwise direction , as illustrated by arrow a in fig8 - 11 . as the transport carousel 400 continues to move in direction a , the pipette tip 350 engages the undulating edge 243 of the shutter 240 a . initially , the pipette tip 350 slides along the first straight portion 245 , preferably having a slight forward inclination relative to the counterclockwise movement of the tip 350 so that the tip 350 does not get caught behind any back angled features of the edge of the shutter . the tip 350 then slides along the curved transition 246 of the shutter 240 a as the carousel 400 continues to rotate . the lateral , counterclockwise movement of the pipette tip 350 and the engagement of the pipette tip 350 along the first straight portion 245 and curved transition 246 causes the shutter 240 a to move laterally in the direction indicated by arrow b as the flexible arm 250 begins to flex outwardly , as shown in fig8 . as shown in fig9 , continued counterclockwise movement of the sample carousel 400 in the direction a causes the pipette tip 350 to continue to slide along the undulating edge 243 of the shutter 240 a past the second straight portion 248 , which preferably has a slight forward inclination relative to the direction of movement of the pipette 350 , and then along the inner edge 249 . the continued movement of the pipette tip 350 along the undulating edge 243 of the shutter 240 a during the lateral , counterclockwise movement of the pipette tip 350 causes the shutter 240 a to further deflect laterally in the direction b , thereby permitting the pipette tip 350 to move laterally relative to the drip shield 200 a within the outer slot 230 of the cover plate 201 a . the drip shield 200 a shown in fig9 is in an open state , as the shutter 240 a has now been moved with respect to the cover plate 201 a so as to open the access holes 202 a and 203 a and permit the pipette tip 350 to be conveyed laterally with respect to the drip shield 200 a . as shown in fig1 , continued counterclockwise rotation of the transport carousel 400 in the direction a has now moved the pipette tip 350 beyond the outer slot 230 of the cover plate 201 a . the shutter 240 a , urged by the elasticity of the flexible arm 250 , now begins to move in the direction indicated by arrow c back toward its undeflected position ( i . e ., toward the closed state ). as the shutter 240 a moves back toward its undeflected position , the pipette tip 350 slides along the edge 242 of the shutter 240 a , which is preferably sloped as shown so that the pipette tip 350 remains in contact with the shutter for a longer period , allowing for a more gentle return of the shutter 240 a to its undeflected position . the estimated force required to deflect the shutter and permit the pipette tip to be moved laterally away from the drip shield is 1 - 2 pounds force . ideally , the amount of force required to deflect the shutter is as low as possible , while still permitting smooth , consistent shutter return . as will be appreciated by persons of ordinary skill in the art , the deflection force of the shutter 240 a of the embodiment shown in fig1 - 11 will depend on the material stiffness , the length of the arm 250 , and the cross - section of the arm 250 . finally , in fig1 the tip 350 has moved completely away from the drip shield 200 a , and the shutter 240 a has now moved back to its undeflected position relative to the cover plate 201 a . the sample carrier 10 can now be moved to a location where an operator can access and remove the dislodged pipette tip 350 . a second embodiment of a drip shield according to the invention is indicated by reference number 200 b in fig1 - 16 . this drip shield 200 b , shown in fig1 , is an assembly which includes a cover plate 201 b and a shutter 240 b which are dimensioned and cooperate to form a canopy over a sample carrier positioned thereunder . as shown in fig1 , cover plate 201 b , like cover plate 201 a , includes slot 230 with rounded closed end 231 and slot 232 with rounded closed end 233 . cover plate 201 b further includes a shutter bracket 234 b that is provided for attaching the shutter 240 b thereto and projects outwardly from an edge of the cover plate 201 b . a first spring element 260 is mounted on the shutter bracket 234 b . spring element 260 may comprise a torsional spring element , such as stock no . to - 5085ls , available from century spring corp . of los angeles , calif . referring to fig1 and 15 , the shutter 240 b includes a cover portion 241 and a mounting bracket 251 b . the cover portion 241 includes a sloped end 242 , a inner edge 249 and an undulating edge 243 . undulating edge 243 is generally defined by a first rounded fillet 244 , a first straight portion 245 , a curved transition 246 , a second rounded fillet 247 , and a second straight portion 248 which terminates at inner edge 249 . the mounting bracket 251 b includes a spring element 262 . the shutter 240 b is installed onto the cover plate 201 b so that the shutter 240 b can pivot with respect to the cover plate 201 b . the spring elements 260 , 262 cooperate to bias the shutter 240 b in the undeflected position ( see fig1 ) with respect to the cover plate 201 b . as best shown in fig1 , portions of the cover plate 201 b and the shutter 240 b cooperate to define the inner access hole 202 b and outer access hole 203 b . more specifically , the first fillet 244 of the shutter 240 b and the rounded end 231 of the outer slot 230 form the perimeter of the outer access hole 203 b . similarly , the second fillet 247 of the shutter 240 b and the rounded end 233 of the inner slot 232 cooperate to form the perimeter of the inner access hole 202 b . the drip shield 200 b works in much the same way as the drip shield 200 a described above . when a pipette tip ( such as pipette tip 350 shown in fig2 and 7 - 11 ) is dislodged from a pipette tip mounting shaft of a robotic pipettor and extends through one of the access holes 202 b or 203 b of the drip shield 200 b , the pipette tip can be conveyed laterally by means of a sample transport mechanism ( e . g . sample carousel 400 ). the pipette tip engages the undulating edge 243 of the shutter 240 b , thereby pivotally deflecting the shutter 240 b against the force of the spring elements 260 , 262 ( see fig1 ). deflection of the shutter 240 b permits the pipette tip 350 to be conveyed laterally out of slot 230 or 232 and away from the drip shield 200 b . after the pipette tip 350 has been moved laterally away from the drip shield 200 b , the spring elements 260 , 262 bias the shutter 240 b back to its undeflected position , as shown in fig1 . a third embodiment of a drip shield according to the invention is indicated by reference number 200 c in fig1 . the drip shield 200 c shown in fig1 is an assembly which includes a cover plate 201 c and a shutter 240 c which are dimensioned and cooperate to form a canopy over a sample carrier positioned thereunder . as shown in fig1 , cover plate 201 c , like cover plates 201 a and 201 b , includes slot 230 with rounded closed end 231 and slot 232 with rounded closed end 233 . cover plate 201 c further includes mounting holes 266 for attaching the shutter 240 c to the cover plate 201 c as described below . referring to fig1 , the shutter 240 c includes two cover portions 271 , 275 , each with a flexible arm 272 , 276 , respectively , and a mounting bracket 251 c connecting the two cover portions . cover portion 271 includes a sloped end 274 , a inner edge 280 and an actuating edge 273 . similarly , cover portion 275 includes a sloped end 278 , a inner edge 281 and an actuating edge 277 . the mounting bracket 251 c includes fastener holes 268 . shutter 240 c is installed onto the cover plate 201 c by means of suitable mechanical fasteners ( such as screws 270 ) inserted through fastener holes 268 into mating holes 266 ( which may be threaded ) formed in cover plate 201 c . as best shown in fig1 , portions of the cover plate 201 c and the shutter 240 c cooperate to define the inner access hole 202 c and outer access hole 203 c . more specifically , the actuating edge 273 of cover portion 271 and the rounded end 231 of the outer slot 230 form the perimeter of the outer access hole 203 c . similarly , the actuating edge 277 of the coverportion 275 and the rounded end 233 of the inner slot 232 cooperate to form the perimeter of the inner access hole 202 c . note that cover portion 275 is shorter than cover portion 271 , just as inner slot 232 is shorter than outer slot 230 . when a pipette tip ( such as pipette tip 350 shown in fig7 - 11 ) is dislodged from a pipette tip mounting shaft and extends through one of the access holes 202 c or 203 c of the drip shield 200 c , the pipette tip may bemoved laterally by means of a sample transport mechanism ( e . g . sample carousel 400 ). the pipette tip engages the actuating edge 273 or 277 of the shutter 240 c , thereby deflecting the corresponding cover portion 271 or 275 against the resilience of the corresponding flexible arm 272 or 276 . with a cover portion 271 or 275 of the shutter 240 c deflected , the pipette tip can be moved laterally out of the slot 230 or 232 and away from the drip shield 200 c , the pipette tip sliding along edge 280 or 281 as it continues to move laterally relative to the drip shield 200 c . after the pipette tip has been moved laterally away from the drip shield 200 c , the flexible arm 272 or 276 biases the corresponding cover portion 271 or 275 back to its undeflected position , as shown in fig1 . the rounded end 274 or 278 of the cover portion 271 or 275 permits a gentle return of the cover portion 274 or 275 to its undeflected position as the pipette tip disengages from the cover portion . still further alternative drip shield configurations include flexible rubber or foam flaps ( as opposed to a rigid shutter ) disposed over slots formed in the cover plate . the flaps cover all but a portion of the slots so as to define access holes permitting access to sample tubes beneath the drip shield , but flex out of the way of a pipette tip being conveyed laterally through the slot . an apparatus incorporating a drip shield according to the present invention may include sensors and automated control ( e . g ., a programmed microprocessor ) to provide automated warnings and appropriate sample carrier movement when a pipette tip is dislodged from an automated sampler device and is left in the sample tube , extending through the drip shield . as described in , e . g ., ammann et al ., u . s . pat . no . 6 , 335 , 166 , under normal sampling procedures , a disposable pipette tip is placed onto the end of a pipette tip mounting shaft of a robotic pipetting device prior to transferring sample from a particular sample tube 300 . when sample transfer from that sample tube is complete , the disposable pipette tip is discarded , typically into a waste container . in the apparatus shown in fig1 , the robotic pipetting device moves the transfer pipette tip into a pipette tip chute 500 , moving the disposable pipette tip through a slot 501 formed in the side of the chute 500 , where the disposable pipette tip is stripped off the robotic pipetting device and directed into a waste container ( not shown ) by the pipette tip chute 500 . as sensor is provided ( e . g ., an optical sensor , not shown ) to confirm that a pipette tip is in fact on the pipette tip mounting shaft prior to the stripping procedure . the procedure for determining if a dislodged pipette tip extends through the drip shield is illustrated in the flow chart of fig2 . step 320 represents the automated sampling procedure whereby sample is transferred from a sample tube . the sample tube may be provided with a penetrable cap having one or more frangible seals and , optionally , a filter means ( e . g ., as described in kacian , et al ., u . s . patent no . 6 , 893 , 612 ), and the automated sampling procedure 320 may include piercing the seal ( s ) and filter means of the penetrable cap with the pipette tip to access the contents of the sample tube . in step 322 , the pipetting device is moved to an operative position with respect to a tip sensor to determine if the disposable pipette tip is still secured on the pipette tip mounting shaft . if the pipette tip is present ( step 324 ), the pipette tip is ejected and normal operation continues ( step 328 ). if the pipette tip is not present ( step 326 ), an error warning ( e . g ., an alarm and / or a visual warning , such as a light or a warning icon on a graphical user interface ) is provided , and the sample transport ( e . g ., carousel 400 ) moves the sample tube away from the drip shield to a place where the sample tube can be accessed by the operator to determine if a pipette tip is stuck in the sample tube ( step 330 ). if there is no pipette tip in the sample tube ( step 334 ) the operator is instructed to terminate the run ( step 338 ). if a pipette tip is stuck in a sample tube ( step 332 ), the operator removes the pipette tip and restarts the apparatus to continue operation ( step 336 ). all disclosures referred to herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties . no disclosure referred to herein is admitted to be prior art to the claimed invention . while the present invention has been described and shown in considerable detail with disclosure to certain preferred embodiments , those skilled in the art will readily appreciate other embodiments of the present invention . accordingly , the present invention is deemed to include all modifications and variations encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following appended claims .

US-67390307-A

semiconductor devices and methods of fabrication . a device includes a semiconductor substrate , a gate electrode insulated from the semiconductor substrate by a gate insulation layer , ldd - type source / drain regions formed at both sides of the gate electrode , an interlayer insulation layer formed over the gate electrode and the substrate , and a shared contact piercing the interlayer insulation layer and contacting the gate electrode and one of the ldd - type source / drain regions including at least a part of a lightly doped drain region . multiple - layer spacers are formed on both sides of the gate structure and used as a mask in forming the ldd - type regions . at least one layer of the spacer is removed in the contact opening to widen the opening to receive a contact plug .

as has been mentioned , the invention provides a semiconductor device with shared contacts , as seen in fig1 . the invention also provides methods of manufacturing the same . the present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings , in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown . referring to fig5 a starting point is shown for manufacturing a device according to the invention . a gate pattern 108 spaced from a semiconductor substrate 10 by a gate insulation layer 103 is formed . in forming the gate pattern 108 , the gate insulation layer 103 of the substrate 10 may be removed at the sides of the gate pattern . the gate pattern 108 is composed of a dual layer formed by stacking a polysilicon layer 105 and a metal silicide layer 107 . through annealing to cure etch damage , a thin oxide layer ( not illustrated ) may be formed at the substrate 10 and the surface of the gate pattern 108 . using the gate pattern as an etch mask , impurity ions are implanted yielding a low - concentration source / drain region 109 ′. a sample implantation might be performed , for example , in a dose amount of 1 × 10 12 to 1 × 10 14 atoms / cm 2 by applying low energy of 10 kev . as the concentration of the implanted impurity ions decreases , the depth of the source / drain region in the substrate decreases . referring to fig6 a first spacer layer 106 of silicon nitride is formed over the substrate 10 , covering the gate pattern 108 and the low - concentration source / drain region 109 ′. next , a second spacer layer of silicon oxide is formed over the first spacer layer 106 and anisotropically etched to form a second spacer 111 . referring to fig6 and 7 , areas of the first spacer layer 106 , exposed at the top surface of the gate pattern 108 and on the substrate 10 where the second spacer 111 is formed , are removed by an isotropic etching process using phosphoric acid , leaving a first spacer 106 ′ only between the second spacer 111 and the sidewall of the gate pattern 108 . through the isotropic etching , the first spacer layer 106 between the second spacer 111 and the substrate is mostly removed . by using the gate pattern 108 and entire spacer 112 , composed of the first and second spacers 106 and 111 , as ion - implantation masks , impurity - ions are implanted . a sample implant might be performed , for example , in a high dose amount of 1 × 10 5 to 5 × 10 5 atoms / cm 2 and by applying energy of 40 kev . this creates high - concentration source / drain regions 113 on the both sides of the gate pattern 108 , thereby forming ldd - type source / drain regions 115 . regions 113 are spaced laterally from the gate pattern 108 a distance determined by the combined lateral thickness of spacers 112 ; i . e ., a distance greater than the lateral thickness of spacer 106 alone . referring to fig7 and 8 , an interlayer insulation layer 119 of silicon oxide , such as an undoped silicate glass ( usg ), is stacked over the gate pattern 108 where the entire spacers 112 are formed . additionally , the interlayer insulation layer 119 is patterned to form a shared contact hole 139 exposing the top surface of the gate pattern 108 and a part of the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 in the substrate 10 adjacent the gate pattern . the interlayer insulation layer 119 and the second spacer 111 are formed of silicon oxide , so that the second spacer 111 is removed and the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 are exposed on the side of the first spacer 106 when the contact hole 139 of the shared contact is formed . therefore , the contact surface at which the contact plug and the source / drain region are contacted with each other is widened in comparison to techniques in the prior art . a conductive layer ( not shown ) fills the contact hole to form a contact plug . it will be observed that spacer 111 is not removed in the prior art . fig8 displays a partial cross - section of the semiconductor device of the present invention . the remaining spacer 106 ′ has a lateral thickness ( width ) less than the lateral spacing of adjoining highly doped drain region 113 and the width of lightly doped drain region 109 . referring to fig9 an etch - stopping layer 207 of silicon nitride is formed on the substrate 10 including over the gate pattern 108 and the low - concentration source / drain region 109 . a spacer layer of silicon oxide is deposited over layer 207 and anisotropically etched to form a spacer 211 . impurity ions are implanted by using the spacer 211 and the gate pattern 108 as ion - implantation masks . a sample implant might be performed , for example , in a high dose amount of 1 × 10 15 to 5 × 10 5 atoms / cm 2 , by applying energy of approximately 60 kev . this creates ldd - type source / drain regions 115 including a high - concentration source / drain region 113 , on both sides of the gate pattern 108 . regions 113 are spaced laterally from the gate pattern 108 a distance determined by the combined lateral thickness of etch - stopping layer 207 and spacer 211 ; i . e ., a distance greater than the lateral thickness of etch - stopping layer 207 alone . referring to fig9 and 10 , an interlayer insulation layer 119 of silicon oxide is deposited over the gate pattern 108 and the spacer 211 . the interlayer insulation layer 119 is patterned and etched to form a shared contact hole 239 exposing parts of the gate pattern 108 and the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 of the neighboring substrate . because the spacer 211 is formed of silicon oxide like the interlayer insulation layer 119 , the spacer 211 is removed when the contact hole 239 is formed at the contact region . even when a part of the contact region extends over the trench - type isolation layer 2 due to misalignment of the contact hole 239 , the isolation layer 2 is not damaged since the etch - stopping layer 207 covers on the trench - type isolation layer 2 . referring to fig1 and 11 , after the contact hole 239 is formed at the interlayer insulation layer 119 , the etch - stopping layer 207 exposed in the contact region is removed by wet - etching . this exposes the top and side surfaces of the gate pattern 108 and containing the neighboring substrate the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 . a barrier layer 241 of titanium / titanium nitride is shallowly deposited over the surfaces of contact hole 239 , and the contact hole is filled with cvd tungsten . a planarization - etching process such as cmp is performed to leave a contact plug 243 in the contact hole . the contact plug 243 largely contacts the gate pattern 108 and the adjoining ldd - type source / drain region 115 of the substrate 10 , reducing the contact resistance in comparison to existing techniques wherein the spacer remains . fig1 illustrates a partial cross - section of the semiconductor device according to this embodiment of the present invention . referring to fig1 , an etch - stopping layer 117 of silicon nitride or silicon oxinitride ( sion ) is formed . an interlayer insulation layer 119 of silicon oxide is deposited over the etch - stopping layer 117 . the etch - stopping layer 117 is formed thinly at the top of the gate pattern 108 but thickly at the low part between the gate patterns 108 by employing a method such as hdp cvd . the interlayer insulation layer 119 and the etch - stopping layer 117 are patterned to form a shared contact hole 339 exposing part of the top surface of the gate pattern and the neighboring source / drain region . it is preferable to perform an anisotropic etching process which has a common etch selectivity with respect to the interlayer insulation layer 119 and the second spacer 111 , a low etch selectivity with respect to the etch - stopping layer 117 , and a tiny etch selectivity with respect to the metal silicide layer 107 of the top layer of the gate pattern 108 . this removes the etch - stopping layer 117 , the second spacer 111 and the interlayer insulation layer 119 at the contact region . the remnant etch - stopping layer 117 is then isotropically etched to expose the top surface of the gate pattern 108 and the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 at the contact region . during the anisotropic etching process , the first spacer 106 of silicon nitride may be removed according to the characteristic of an etchant . when a conductive layer fills the contact hole 339 to form a contact plug the contact surface at which the contact plug contacts the ldd - type source / drain regions 115 is widened in comparison to existing techniques wherein the second spacer 111 is not removed . after forming ldd - type source / drain regions , when a shared contact is formed at a part of the gate electrode and a neighboring source / drain region , the spacer is removed for formation of the lightly doped drain region , thereby increasing a process margin . thus , it is possible to avoid instances where a source / drain region of a shared contact is not opened or is narrowly constricted by a spacer . a person skilled in the art will be able to practice the present invention in view of the description present in this document , which is to be taken as a whole . numerous details have been set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the invention . in other instances , well - known features have not been described in detail in order not to obscure unnecessarily the invention . in addition , in the attached figures , the thickness of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity . moreover , when it is mentioned that a layer is on another layer or on a substrate , the layer in question may be formed directly on another layer or on the substrate , or a third layer may be interposed there between . while the invention has been disclosed in its preferred form , the specific embodiments as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense . indeed , it should be readily apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the present description that the invention may be modified in numerous ways . the inventor regards the subject matter of the invention to include all combinations and subcombinations of the various elements , features , functions and / or properties disclosed herein . the following claims define certain combinations and subcombinations , which are regarded as novel and non - obvious . additional claims for other combinations and subcombinations of features , functions , elements and / or properties may be presented in this or a related document .

US-11241302-A

a stroller carseat apparatus is set forth wherein a carseat includes a scissor - like underlying framework including a pivotally mounted wheel proximate each corner of the framework securable in a first locked upper position to a second lowered extended position . an electrical circuit is included within the framework wherein an illumination source proximate the uppermost portion of the seat is illuminated upon completion of a circuit effected by the locking of the wheels in the second lowered position .

with reference now to the drawings , and in particular to fig1 to 6 thereof , a new and improved infant seat stroller apparatus embodying the principles and concepts of the present invention and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be described . more specifically , it will be noted that the infant seat stroller apparatus 10 essentially comprises a conventional infant seat 11 formed with a pivoted foot rest 12 each mounted to a first rectangular framework 13 . the first bottom framework 13 is reciprocatably mounted to a second rectangular bottom framework 15 spaced underlying the first bottom framework by a scissor frame 14 formed with a latch 14a for reciprocatably mounting the second bottom framework 15 relative to the first bottom framework 13 . four wheels 16 are mounted adjacent each corner of the second bottom framework 15 and are formed with a wheel 17 including a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped axle 18 including a first leg positioned through the center of each wheel 17 and a second overlying leg integrally secured to a rotatable tubular mount 19 rotatably mounted about the second bottom framework 15 . the tubular mount is formed with a first aperture of a first diameter and a second aperture 21 spaced from the first aperture 20 of a second diameter wherein the diameter of second aperture 21 is greater than that of the diameter of aperture 20 . a rear framework 22 is mounted to the rear of the seat 11 and is telescopingly secured within a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped handle 23 . the rear framework 22 is formed with a plurality of spaced frame apertures 24 oriented to be selectively aligned with a handle aperture 25 with a resiliently biased latch button 26 mounted to the latch plate 26a to secure and maintain the frame aperture 24 in alignment with the handle aperture 25 . upon depressing of the latch button 26 , the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped handle 23 may be forced downwardly to telescopingly receive the rear framework 22 , as indicated by the arrow in fig1 and 2 . a first spring 27 normally biases the latch plate 26a and the latch button 26 outwardly . a modified latch button arrangement is utilized to secure the tubular mount 19 in a respective first position to maintain the respective wheels in a retracted orientation , or generally aligned with the framework 15 or extended to a second lowered position , as illustrated in fig1 wherein the wheels are positioned below the second bottom framework 15 . a second spring 29 is positioned beneath a latch button plate 28a to project a wheel latch button 28 outwardly through respective first and second apertures 20 and 21 . the wheel latch button 28 is of a stepped configuration with the uppermost portion of the latch button formed of a diameter approximately equal to the diameter of the first aperture 20 with the lowermost diameter of the wheel latch button 28 formed of a second diameter adjacent the latch button plate substantially equal to the diameter of the second aperture 21 . in this manner , the latch button 28 may project upwardly only a portion of its length as the uppermost portion of latch button 28 is received within the first aperture 20 wherein the latch button plate 28a is spaced from a pair of contacts 31 within a circuit , but upon rotation of each respective wheel 16 downwardly , the latch button 28 may project outwardly its entire length as the lowermost portion of the latch button 28 and its enlarged diameter is received within the enlarged and complementary diameter of the second aperture 21 . in this manner ( with reference to fig4 ) as each wheel unit 16 is rotated to its respective second lowered and extended position , each wheel latch button plate 28a acts as a switch to complete a circuit to illuminate an associated illumination member 34 . the illumination member 34 is positioned within a cross member of the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped handle 23 with a battery cover 32 overlying a battery compartment to receive a plurality of batteries 33 . it should be noted that the contacts 31 are positioned upon insulative material to enable only the wheel latch button plate 28a to provide a complete circuit across the respective contacts 31 . accordingly upon each of the wheel units 16 being rotated downwardly to a second extended position , the illumination member 34 , which may comprise a light emitting diode or conventional light bulb , will be illuminated for indication of a ready mode of the apparatus to accept an infant . the manner of usage and operation of the instant invention therefore should be apparent from the above description , and accordingly no further discussion relative to the manner of usage and operation of the instant invention shall be provided . with respect to the above description then , it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention , to include variations in size , materials , shape , form , function and manner of operation , assembly and use , are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art , and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to , falling within the scope of the invention .

US-29513289-A

an electrochemical cell having a cell package made of a metallic material to allow the cell package to be sealed by welding , even when contaminated . the electrochemical cell further includes an electrode cell stack and a metallic cell package having a base portion and a lid portion which are welded to each other to define an enclosure . the cell package includes a first section for receiving the cell stack and a second section having an inlet port and a degassing port which communicate with the first section . the lid portion is welded to the base portion to form a weld seam located between the first and second sections to seal off the first section from the second section . the weld seam extends from the peripheral seam on a first side of the cell package to the peripheral seam on a second side of the cell package .

referring to fig1 and 2 , the electrochemical cell 8 includes a cell package 10 having the shape of an envelope which is formed of a metallic sheet or sheets 12 so as to define an opening 14 therein for receiving a cell stack 16 . the package is preferably formed of two metallic sheets 12 that are welded along the edge to form weld seam 18 . the welding process can be , but is not limited to , ultrasonic welding . one of the two sheets is a base 19 that has a cell stack cup 20 in which the cell stack 16 is placed . the other sheet is a lid 21 . alternatively , the package 10 can be formed from a single metallic sheet that is folded in half leaving only three edges to be welded . according to the preferred embodiment , the metal sheet is made from aluminum or copper , although the invention is not to be limited to these materials . for example , other suitable materials include stainless steel and nickel . as is conventional , the cell stack 16 includes a first tab 22 ( of a first polarity ) and a second tab 24 ( of a second polarity ). since the cell package 10 is made of a metallic material which is conductive , according to the invention , the first tab 22 of the cell stack 16 is electrically connected directly to the cell package at weld 23 . on the other hand , the second tab 24 is connected to a pass - through terminal assembly 26 ( shown schematically in fig1 and 2 ) which is provided in one of the sheets of the cell package to allow external connection to the second tab 24 of the cell stack . as discussed below , the polarity of the first and second tabs is dependent on the material of the cell package . referring to fig1 the cell package also includes an electrolyte introducing portion 28 and degassing portion 30 which communicate with the inside of the package . each of these portions includes a washer 29 which is welded to the inside surface of the cell package material , as shown in fig2 and 8 . as discussed in greater detail below , the electrolyte introducing portion 28 has an electrolyte port 31 therein . the port 31 can be formed before or after the cell package is formed . on the other hand , as discussed below , the degassing portion 30 is punctured after the cell stack formation process to form degassing port 33 therein . the electrolyte port 31 is used to introduce the electrolyte into the cell package 10 to activate the cell stack 16 and the degassing port 33 is used to degas the cell package 10 after formation . the material of the washer 29 must be compatible with that of the cell package . if the cell package 10 is made of copper , it is preferable that the washer 29 be nickel plated iron ; if the cell package 10 is made of aluminum , it is preferable that the washer be aluminum . the following is a description of the design of the pass through terminal assembly 26 . there are two alternative designs respectively illustrated in detail in fig3 and 4 . with reference to fig3 according to a first of these designs , the pass - through terminal assembly 26 includes an eyelet 32 , an insulator 34 and a terminal post 36 . the eyelet 32 and insulator 34 are tubular members . the insulator 34 is located inside the eyelet 32 and the terminal post 36 is located inside the insulator 34 . the cell package 10 has a hole 38 therein through which the terminal post 36 protrudes . the eyelet 32 is located on the inside of the cell package 10 with the back surface 40 of the eyelet welded to the inside surface 42 of the cell package . a plastic washer 44 is adhered to the outside surface 46 of the cell package . referring also to fig1 the second tab 24 is electrically connected to the terminal post 36 of the terminal assembly 26 via a lead 48 which is welded at one end to the second tab 24 and at the other end to the terminal post 36 . thus , with this arrangement , the second tab 24 is electrically connected to the terminal post 36 , which protrudes to the exterior of the cell package 10 , while being insulated from the metallic cell package by the insulator 34 . hence , when connecting the cell to the external equipment , one terminal ( not shown ) of the equipment is simply placed in contact with the metallic cell package 10 to which the first tab 22 of the cell stack is connected , and the other terminal ( not shown ) of the external equipment is electrically connected to the terminal post 36 , to which the second tab 24 of the cell stack is electrically connected via lead 48 . the lead 48 and the accessible parts of the stack 16 , with the opposite polarity of the metallic packaging 10 , should be insulated using internal insulators 80 and 81 , as shown in fig5 and 6 . as noted above , according to the preferred embodiment of the invention , the cell package can be made of either aluminum or copper . while nickel is also an option , it is relatively expensive and , hence , not preferred . when the cell package is made of copper , the first tab 22 of the cell stack 16 has a negative polarity and the second tab 24 of the cell stack 16 has a positive polarity . therefore , in this case the cell package 10 , to which the first tab 22 is directly connected , has a negative polarity and the terminal post 36 of the terminal assembly 26 has a positive polarity . also , it has been discovered that for best results , for a cell package made of a copper material , the eyelet 32 should be made of nickel plated iron , the insulator 34 should be made of a glass ( e . g ., sandia tr 23 ™) and the terminal post should be made of molybdenum . on the other hand , when the cell package 10 is made of aluminum , the first tab 22 of the cell stack 16 has a positive polarity and the second tab 24 of the cell stack 16 has a negative polarity . therefore , in this case the cell package 10 , to which the first tab 22 is directly connected , has a positive polarity and the terminal post 36 of the terminal assembly 26 has a negative polarity . it is preferable that the eyelet 32 be made of aluminum , the insulator 34 be made of a ceramic ( e . g ., al 2 o 3 ) and the terminal post be made of copper . an alternative design of the pass - through terminal assembly 26 is illustrated in fig4 . this design is preferred when using a cell package made of aluminum . according to this embodiment , the terminal assembly 26 includes a rivet 50 , an internal washer 52 , insulators 54 and an external washer 56 . according to a preferred embodiment , the rivet 50 is made of copper , the internal washer 52 is made of aluminum , the insulators 54 are made of polyethermide ( e . g ., ultem ™ made by general electric ) and the external washer 56 is made of nickel . as shown in fig4 the rivet 50 extends through the holes provided in the cell package 10 , the insulators 54 , and the internal and external washers 52 and 56 so that it protrudes from the cell package . with the head 58 of the rivet located on the inside of the cell package 10 , the opposite end 59 of the rivet 50 is flared outwardly until it contacts the nickel washer 56 . the insulators 54 prevent the rivet 50 and the external nickel washer 56 from contacting the aluminum cell package 10 to prevent shorting of the cell stack 16 . the outside face 60 of the internal washer 52 is welded to the inside surface 42 of the aluminum cell package such that the terminal assembly 26 is securely retained to the cell package . the purpose of the external nickel washer 56 is to make electrical contact with the negative terminal of the external equipment . as with the embodiment of fig2 the second tab 24 of the cell stack 16 is electrically connected to the rivet via the lead 48 . since the cell package in this embodiment is aluminum , the polarity of the second tab 44 is negative so that the polarity of the rivet 50 is likewise negative . naturally , the lead 40 must be insulated to some degree so that it will not contact the cell package which has the opposite polarity . a description of the method of activating the cell stack will now be provided with reference to the figures . as noted above , fig1 and 2 show the cell stack 16 located inside the cup 20 of the cell package 10 . after the cell stack has been placed in the cup 20 , the lid 21 is welded to the base 19 around the periphery of the cell package 10 as indicated by the weld seam 18 . after the cell package has been welded , a vacuum is applied to the electrolyte port 31 after which electrolyte is introduced through the electrolyte port into the cell package 10 . after the filling of the electrolyte , the cell package is welded along weld seam 62 , as shown in fig5 and 6 . the electrochemical cell is then partially charged ( i . e ., formation ) generating gases inside the cell package 10 . as shown in fig7 and 8 , after formation , the degassing portion 30 is then punctured to form the degassing port 33 in the cell packaging material and a vacuum is then applied to withdraw the formation gases from the inside of the cell package 10 . the cell package is then welded along weld seam 64 shown in fig7 . referring also to fig9 and 10 , the excess material 66 of the cell package is then trimmed leaving only the lower portion 68 where the cell stack 16 is located resulting in the electrochemical cell 8 . having described the invention with particular reference to the preferred embodiments , it will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains after understanding the invention , that various modifications and changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims appended hereto .

US-12233202-A

a mail processing system has an envelope - separating apparatus with a moistening apparatus for moistening and discharging an envelope in an open state . a franking device is disposed downstream of the envelope - separating apparatus and is optionally provided with weighing scales . in the franking device a moistened glued edge of the envelope flap is pressed against the envelope pocket by pressure - exerting elements also serving for transporting the envelope . a closing module is disposed downstream of the franking device and has a closing - roller pair that is configured in a manner adapted for mixed - mail operation . because the entire sequence in the franking device takes place between the stages where the glued edge is moistened and the envelope is closed , sufficient time is gained , even at high transporting speeds , in order for the glue to begin to dissolve sufficiently and for the envelope to be reliably closed .

in all the figures of the drawing , sub - features and integral parts that correspond to one another bear the same reference symbol in each case . referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail and first , particularly , to fig2 thereof , there are shown envelopes 1 that are disposed as a stack , standing with an edge of an envelope flap 11 on a bottom guide plate 22 , between a pressure - exerting bracket 27 and a rear guide plate 21 in a force - fitting manner of an envelope / letter separating apparatus 2 . in this case , the envelope flap 11 is directed upward . the envelopes 1 are transported away from the stack laterally and , in the process , butt against the slightly inclined rear guide plate 21 . in a movement path of the envelopes 1 , there is disposed in a resiliently adjustable manner a guide unit 23 which is intended for the envelope flap 11 and , on an outlet side , has a device 234 for moistening the glued edge . provided on the outlet side is an ejecting - roller pair 28 which is made up of an input - driven , stationary ejecting roller 281 and an output - driven , resiliently adjustable ejecting roller 282 . the output - driven ejecting roller 282 is shorter than the input - driven ejecting roller 281 by more than the maximum flap height of the envelopes , and is disposed flush at the top with the latter . in this way , the envelopes leave the envelope - separating apparatus 2 with the glued edge moistened but still in an open state ( i . e . the envelope is not glued shut ). also known is an apparatus for printing a printing substrate standing on one edge , in particular the envelope 1 in a franking and / or addressing machine 3 , the printing substrate 1 being guided in a supported manner on an edge during the transporting operation and the printing operation , see published , european patent application ep 0 788 073 a2 and fig3 . in fig3 the franking machine 3 has a guide plate 31 , which is inclined in relation to the vertical and is intended for a slidable abutment of the envelope 1 , and a circulating transporting belt 32 for applying an advancement force to the envelope 1 for advancement along the guide plate 31 . fastened on the transporting belt 32 are pressure - exerting elements 33 for pressing the envelope 1 onto the guide plate 31 . the pressure - exerting elements 33 are disposed such that they can be moved toward the guide plate 31 and away from the same , such that , during the transportation and the printing operations , the envelope 1 is gripped in a force - fitting manner by the pressure - exerting elements 33 on a side of the envelope that is directed away from the guide plate 31 . finally , a configuration in which it is possible to deposit envelopes for the above - mentioned franking machine 3 and in the case of which the envelopes are deposited in a stackwise manner one above the other in an adjusted box is also known , see german patent de 197 05 089 c1 and fig1 . according to fig1 the configuration contains an insert 5 and a box 6 . these two form the termination of a mail - processing system , which also contains the letter / envelop - separating apparatus 2 and the franking machine 3 . the insert 5 is connected releasably to the franking machine 3 , which , adjoining the guide surface for a bottom edge of the envelope 1 in the franking machine 3 , has a channel 531 , which slopes down in the transporting direction , and a pivotable , resilient rocker si parallel to a front edge of the insert 5 . at the same time , in the left - hand rear corner region of the box 6 , the insert 5 is placed at a small distance from the same , the two being adapted to one another . as a supplement to the above - mentioned depositing apparatus , the prior art as shown in fig4 has also been found to include a solution in which the angled insert 5 is attached to the franking machine 3 by way of its side wall 54 , and has the downwardly sloping channel 531 formed in its front wall 53 , and the open angled box 6 is guided adjustably by way of its front wall 61 . the channel 531 adjoins the guide plane for the bottom edge of the letter / envelop in the franking machine 3 . the side wall 62 of the box 6 is configured as a resilient deflecting wall and is disposed at an adjustable distance downstream of the channel 531 and orthogonally to the transporting direction . the distance between the side wall 62 and the outlet of the franking machine 3 is adjusted to be somewhat greater than the largest letter format which is to be processed . optionally , the franking device 3 shown in fig4 has a weighing scale 100 for weighing the envelope 1 for determining the postage . with a mail - processing system which is made up of the four last - mentioned devices ( fig1 - 4 )— it being possible to chose one of two optional depositing apparatuses — the envelopes 1 will be closed more or less appropriately on account of the weight of the stack , in which the envelopes are located one above the other . in this device it is possible to avoid the situation where at least the envelopes 1 at the top of the stack have to be closed by hand . in mail - processing systems with throughput figures of 5000 envelopes and above , this situation is not satisfactory . in fig5 a closing module 4 is added in between the franking machine 3 and the insert 5 with the depositing box 6 . the essential constituent part of the closing module 4 is a closing - roller pair 42 containing an input - driven closing roller 421 and an output - driven closing roller 422 ( see fig6 ). the closing module 4 is attached to the franking machine 3 such that its guide plate 41 forms a continuation of the guide plate 31 of the franking machine 3 , which in turn constitutes a continuation of the guide plate 21 of the letter / envelope - separating apparatus 2 . in other words , all three guide plates 21 , 31 and 41 are in alignment . the envelopes 1 pass into the franking machine 3 from the separating apparatus 2 in the open state , but with the moistened envelope flap 11 disposed in front of an envelope pocket 12 . the envelope flaps 1 are gripped in a force - fitting manner , in the franking machine 3 , by the pressure - exerting elements 33 for transportation in the franking machine 3 ( see fig3 ), and are partially closed in the process , and , following the franking , are transferred to the closing module 4 and are fully closed in the latter by the closing - roller pair 42 . for this purpose , the pressure - exerting elements 33 extend up to such a height , and the closing rollers 421 , 422 are of such a length , that the envelope flaps 11 are gripped fully over a maximum height of the envelope flaps 11 . in the closing module 4 , the letter - transporting speed is adjusted to be somewhat higher — up to 13 %— than in the printing region of the franking machine 3 . the adjoining insert 5 with the depositing box 6 is accordingly adapted and optimized . the maximum stacking depth in the envelope - separating apparatus 2 and a height of the transporting plane in the same , and accordingly also in the franking machine 3 , are coordinated with one another such that , when the largest possible stack of letters is being processed from the separating apparatus 2 , the maximum possible stacking height in the depositing box 6 that corresponds more or less to the top edge of the channel 531 — is not exceeded . it can be seen in fig6 how the closing module 4 , the insert 5 and the depositing box 6 are connected to one another and the envelopes / letters run through within these structural units . the envelope 1 passes from the franking machine 3 into the closing module 4 and is guided by a wedge - shaped narrowing to the two closing rollers 421 , 422 . the wedge - shaped narrowing is formed , toward a front side , by a toothed belt 48 and , at the rear , by the guide plate 41 , see also fig8 . the envelope 1 passes first of all into a region of a resiliently mounted , runner - like pressure - exerting lever 44 . a free end of the pressure - exerting lever 44 is spaced apart from the guide plate 41 by a small distance — about 5 mm with the result that thin envelopes can pass through the pressure - exerting lever 44 without obstruction . in the case of thick envelopes 1 , the pressure - exerting lever 44 butts against the same right from the beginning , with the result that the envelope flap 11 is positioned against the pocket 12 of the envelope 1 . following passage through the pressure - exerting lever 44 , the envelopes 1 pass onto the toothed belt 48 . via the toothed belt 48 , the envelope 1 is directed to the guide plate 41 and then , between the closing rollers 421 , 422 , is pushed with contact pressure onto the channel 531 in the insert 5 in order to tip from the channel 531 , via rear guide slopes 5313 , into the depositing box 6 . the channel 531 runs horizontally in adaptation to the plane on which the envelopes 1 stand in the franking machine 3 and the horizontal guidance of the envelopes in the closing module 4 . on account of the inclination of the guide plate 41 and of the parallel configuration of the closing rollers 421 , 422 in relation to the guide plate 41 , the envelopes 1 have a clearly predetermined orientation , this ensuring that they are deposited in the direction of the depositing box 6 . the envelopes 1 are stacked one above the other on a base of the depositing box 6 . the right - hand side wall 62 prevents the envelopes 1 from moving out laterally . a front wall 61 of the depositing box 6 is guided in a slit 532 ( se e also fig9 a and 9 b ) of the front wall 53 of the insert 5 such that it can be adjusted in accordance with the largest letter / envelope format which is to be processed in each case . the closing module 4 is attached by way of its left - hand side wall 46 , in the region of the guide plate 41 , to the right - hand side wall of the franking machine 3 . the closing module 4 has , in a front region , a front covering 40 for the closing - roller pair 42 and a reinforcing angle 401 for inner support . in an inlet region for the envelopes 1 , the side wall 46 is provided with an angled lug 460 for guiding the envelopes 1 at the bottom . furthermore , the side wall 46 is configured as a retaining angle for the pressure - exerting lever 44 and its spindle 441 and for a carrying lever 45 and its spindle 451 , and is provided with correspondingly angled lugs 461 to 464 . the spindle 441 for the runner - like pressure - exerting lever 44 is fastened in the parallel lugs 462 and 463 . the pressure - exerting lever 44 is disposed , a small distance from the guide plate 41 , such that it can be rotated against a spring 442 likewise pushed onto the spindle 441 . the spring 442 is supported , at one end , on the pressure - exerting lever 44 and , by its other end , on the lug 464 of the side wall 46 . the distance from the guide plate 41 may be dispensed with if the spring force is of correspondingly small dimension in an entry region . the carrying lever 45 for the input - driven closing roller 421 is mounted in a resiliently rotatable manner on the spindle 451 which is fastened in the two parallel lugs 461 and 463 . the carrying lever 45 is angled at top and bottom ends for the purpose of receiving the spindles 451 and 4211 . a spring 454 is likewise pushed onto the spindle 451 . the spring 454 is supported , by one end , on the carrying lever 45 and , by its other end , on the lug 461 . moreover , a gear wheel 452 is fastened at a bottom end of the spindle 451 and a pinion 453 is fastened at a top end of the spindle 451 , see fig7 . the spindle 4211 , with the closing roller 421 fastened on it , is mounted rotatably in an outer pivot region of the carrying lever 45 . a gear wheel 4212 is also fastened at a top end of the spindle 4211 . the gear wheel 4212 is coupled kinematically to a pinion 453 on the spindle 451 by the toothed belt 48 . the output - driven closing roller 422 is disposed behind the guide plate 41 , in an opening 411 of the same , such that the closing roller 422 is flush on the outside with a front plane — which , as is known , is the abutment plane for the envelope 1 — of the guide plate 41 , see also fig8 . as can be seen in fig7 the gear wheel 452 is coupled kinematically to a pinion 431 by a toothed belt 47 . the pinion 431 is fastened on a spindle 430 of a motor 43 , which is connected , via a power - supply line 432 , to the same power source , and consequently also to the same control devices in the franking machine 3 , which serves for driving the transporting belt 32 , see also fig3 . in other words , when the transporting belt 32 operates , the closing rollers 421 , 422 also rotate , to be precise such that the transportation in the closing module 4 is synchronous with , but somewhat quicker — more or less up to 13 %— than , the transportation in the franking machine 3 . this prevents any jamming . the motor 43 is flanged onto a lug 466 of the side wall 46 . a spindle 4221 of the output - driven closing roller 422 is fastened in the parallel lugs 46 s and 466 . the closing roller 422 is disposed rotatably on the spindle 4221 . in the case illustrated , that is to say as seen from beneath , when the motor 43 is operating the pinion 431 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction and the movement is transmitted to the gear wheel 452 via the toothed belt 47 . since the gear wheel 452 is fixed on the spindle 451 and the latter can be rotated , the rotary movement of the gear wheel 452 is transmitted to the pinion 453 via the spindle 451 , the pinion 453 likewise being fixed on the spindle 451 . the pinion 453 drives the gear wheel 4212 via the toothed belt 48 , the gear wheel 4212 , together with the closing roller 421 , being fixed on the rotatable spindle 4211 . in this way , the closing roller 421 is then driven by the gear wheel 4212 via the spindle 4211 . the rotary movement of the input - driven closing roller 421 is transmitted to the other closing roller 422 in a force - fitting manner by friction via the envelope 1 or directly . in order to have favorable static friction , the input - driven closing roller 421 , or the closing roller 421 which drives the envelope , has a grooved outer covering 4210 , see also fig8 . in this case , the grooves run parallel to the spindle 4211 and have a shark - tooth - shaped contour . the elastic positioning of the teeth achieves both highly elastic adaptation to unevennesses in envelopes and an increase in the carry - along surface area and thus good adherence properties . the effect is increased further if a suitable silicone rubber is used . for the outer covering 4220 for the output - driven closing roller 422 , use is made of a flexible , highly absorbent foam rubber or open - microcell foamed polyurethane . in this way , the closing roller 422 acts as a blotting roller for pressure points which are still moist ; smearing is thus avoided . fig8 shows the positions of the input - driven closing roller 421 and the output - driven closing roller 422 in relation to one another . in the rest state , the two closing rollers 421 , 422 butt against one another in an axis - parallel manner on a line which is orthogonal — chain - dotted — to the front side of the guide plate 41 and / or to the abutment plane for the envelope 1 . this state is also largely maintained for thin letters and envelopes . as the envelope thickness increases , the carrying lever 45 for the closing roller 421 is rotated resiliently to the front side , in the forward direction , about its spindle 451 . in this case , the spindle 4211 moves along over a circular path — dashed lines — with the result that the input - driven closing roller 421 comes to be located downstream of the output - driven closing roller 422 , as seen in the transporting direction of the envelope 1 . on the one hand , this results in the envelope 1 being bent slightly around the closing roller 422 by the closing roller 421 , while , on the other hand , the runner - like pressure - exerting lever 44 acts as abutment . this enforced curvature of the envelope 1 achieves the situation where the envelope flap 11 is already positioned closely against the pocket 12 of the envelope 1 even before it passes through the closing - roller pair 42 . the output - driven closing roller 422 is somewhat longer than the input - driven closing roller 421 and is disposed such that the bottom edge is located at least at as low a level as the bottom edge of the envelope . the input - driven closing roller 421 is disposed such that its bottom edge is located at a somewhat higher level — more or less 5 mm — than the bottom edge of the letter . this achieves the situation where all the contact pressure acts , in the region of the glued edge , on the flap 11 of the envelope 1 and uneven or bumpy envelope contents do not have a disadvantageous influence on the gluing process . in order to assist a successful closing operation further , the two closing rollers 421 , 422 and their spindles 4211 , 4221 are inclined slightly — that is to say less than 3 °, preferably 1 . 7 °— in the envelope - transporting direction . this avoids creases and folds from being formed in particular . this problem is difficult to solve particularly in the case of thick and partly irregularly filled envelopes . the positive effect is assisted further by the specific configuration of the outer covering 4210 of the input - driven closing roller 421 . the closing operation can also be adversely affected by the way in which envelopes are deposited . in particular when thickly filled envelopes 1 drop forcibly onto the edge or , worst still , onto a corner , there is the risk of the closure splitting open again . the insert 5 is configured appropriately in order to avoid this effect , and this is described here - in - below . fig9 a and 9 b illustrate in more detail the construction of the insert 5 and the movement sequence of the envelopes 1 as they are deposited from the insert 5 into the depositing box 6 . the configuration of the channel 531 and of the rear side 532 of the front wall 53 have particular influence here . as has already been mentioned above , the channel 531 runs horizontally overall , but sloping slightly rearwardly , in the transporting direction behind the front plane of the guide plate 41 . at the entry , the channel 531 has a nose 5310 ( fig6 ) which projects beyond the side wall 54 of the insert 5 into the closing module 4 . the nose 5310 is configured as a slanting plane which slopes down in the outward direction , in order to prevent the envelopes 1 from catching during transfer to the channel 531 . the channel 531 also has at the entry , in a rear region , a supporting plate 5314 which is adapted to the inclination of the guide plate 41 in the closing module 4 . the supporting plate 5314 prevents thin , lightweight envelopes 1 from fluttering about and , as a result , not being deposited correctly , see also fig6 . the channel 531 has a front top guide slope 5311 , a front bottom guide slope 5312 and a rear guide slope 5313 . this gives , in transverse profile , a wedge - shaped depression that is bent on one side . an envelope 1 running into the channel 531 slides down to the base of the guide slopes 5311 , 5312 , 5313 to the extent permitted by the thickness of the envelope edge which is being placed in position . a rear side 533 of the front wall 53 undercuts the channel 531 and / or the rear guide slope 5313 . when the entire envelope 1 has left the closing module 4 , it tips via the rear guide slope 5313 first of all , in order then , by way of the edge which is located opposite the envelope flap 11 , to come into contact , at an oblique angle , with the base 63 of the depositing box 6 or the previously deposited envelope 1 . the envelope 1 then slides downward with the edge of the envelope flap 12 on the rear side 533 of the front wall 53 . in this way , the envelope 1 slides into the depositing box 6 and impact loading is thus avoided .

US-47788800-A

a method for chlorinating the surface of a layered lattice silicate to produce a reactive chloride intermediate . the layered lattice silicate is reacted in substantially dry particulate form with a reactant system capable of forming bound chloride moieties at its surface , to form the said chloride thereof , the reaction being conducted at temperatures below that which would otherwise substantially alter the starting composition .

the invention will now be illustrated by a series of examples , which , however , are to be considered as merely exemplary of practice of the invention , and not as delimitive thereof . in this example , the starting material was an air classified kaolin , having approximately 60 % by weight of the particles thereof , less than 2 micrometers equivalent spherical diameter ( e . s . d .). a 400 gram sample of this material was initially dried for 1 . 5 hours in an oven at temperatures of about 150 ° c . to produce a substantially dry material . the said sample was placed in a laboratory fluidized bed reactor and the system was equilibrated at 120 ° c ., at which time a mixture of co / cl 2 ( 2 . 9 : 1 molar ratio ), at 120 ° c ., was passed through the fluidized bed . the gas mixture was flowed at the rate of about 0 . 7 standard cubic feet per minute ( scfm ), and served to sustain the fluidized bed . the chlorinated kaolin was cooled to room temperature in a stream of dry nitrogen gas . the product was removed from the reactor and stored in a dry atmosphere . an elemental analysis of this product showed an increase of 0 . 24 % chlorine , which approximates 320 atoms of chlorine per one square nanometer . the chlorine was not removed from the kaolin when 5 grams of the treated kaolin was washed with 50 ml of dry acetone , but 90 % could be removed when 5 grams was washed with 50 ml of distilled water . this establishes that the chlorine surface bond is easily hydrolyzable , and may indicate a partially ionic bound species . a 300 gram sample of a calcined kaolin ( the alphatex ® product of anglo - american clays corporation of atlanta , ga ), was dried for 11 / 2 hours at 150 ° c . it was placed in a laboratory fluidized bed reactor and the temperature of the system was equilibrated to 150 ° c . at this time , a mixture of co / cl 2 ( 1 : 1 molar ratio ) was passed through the system at a flow rate of 0 . 70 standard cubic feet per minute for 5 minutes . the gas mixture was passed through a heat exchanger at 389 ° c . prior to passing through the fluidized bed reactor . the sample was flushed with heated n 2 gas for three minutes . 1 , 3 - butadiene gas was then passed over the hot chlorine treated sample for 1 minute . the sample was again flushed with n 2 gas and cooled in an unheated stream of nitrogen . the sample was removed from the reactor and analyzed for carbon and chlorine content . the final product showed an increase in percentage chlorine from 21 parts per million to 0 . 25 %. the carbon content due to 1 , 3 - butadiene showed an increase from 0 . 03 % to 0 . 49 %. the surface modified calcined kaolin displayed hydrophobic character . when a 0 . 1 gram sample was slurried in ccl 4 , a solution of br 2 / ccl 4 was decolorized by the kaolin , indicating the presence of active double bond carbon character on the clay surface . the carbon was not removed from the surface modified calcined by repeated washings with distilled water . a 200 gram sample of a sodium bentonite was dried at 150 ° c . for 1 . 5 hours . it was placed in a laboratory fluidized bed reactor . the temperature of the system was equilibrated to 135 ° c . the sample was then exposed to co / cl 2 for 10 minutes as described in example ii . the sample was cooled to 80 ° c . in a stream of dry nitrogen , at which time it was exposed to 1 , 3 - butadiene gas for one minute . the sample was then cooled to room temperature and removed from the reactor . the surface modified bentonite was analyzed for chlorine and carbon . it showed an increase in chlorine of 0 . 58 % and carbon of 0 . 48 %. this organic was not removed by vacuum evacuation for 24 hours at 10 - 3 tor , nor by washing the sample repeatedly with water . a 400 gram sample of an air classified kaolin ( 90 % by weight less than 2 micrometers e . s . d .) was dried at 150 ° c . for 1 . 5 hours . it was immediately transferred to a laboratory fluidized bed reactor , the temperature equilibrated to 135 ° c ., and the sample chlorinated for 2 . 5 minutes as described in example i . the temperature of the clay was 200 ° c . at the end of the reaction . the system was flushed with nitrogen for 5 minutes and then treated with 1 , 3 - butadiene gas as in example ii for 3 minutes ( the clay temperature was approximately 195 ° c . when butadiene was exposed to the kaolin surface ). the resulting surface treated clay showed an increase in chlorine of 0 . 22 % and in carbon of 1 . 19 %. this surface treated kaolin was used as a filler in a resin matrix binder . specifically , it was added to polypropylene at the 30 % filler level , and injection molded at 176 ° c . the physical properties of the unfilled and filled systems are given in table i . it can be seen from this data that there is a substantial increase in flex modulus for the polypropylene system filled with the surface modified kaolin , with no drop in impact strength , tensile strength and / or flex yield . table i______________________________________physical properties of filled and unfilled injection moldedpolypropylene tensile impact flex modulus flex yield strength strengthsample mpa * mpa * mpa * - 20 ° c ./ 20 ° c . ______________________________________unfilled 952 45 . 2 42 . 7 0 . 092 / 0 . 297filled 1322 52 . 3 41 . 6 0 . 112 / 0 . 279______________________________________ * mega pascals footlbs / inch ( astm procedure d 256a ) while the present invention has been particularly set forth in terms of specific embodiments thereof , it will be understood in view of the instant disclosure , that numerous variations upon the invention are now enabled to those skilled in the art , which variations yet reside within the scope of the present teaching . accordingly , the invention is to be broadly construed , and limited only by the scope and spirit of the claims now appended hereto .

US-73105685-A

the present specification relates to a method for allocating an uplink resource in a wireless communication system which supports low latency service . the method performed by a terminal comprises the steps of : transmitting , to a base station , a first message comprising an uplink resource request information element to request uplink resource allocation ; receiving , from a base station , a second message comprising a response to the ul resource request ie ; receiving allocation of the uplink resource from the base station on the basis of the received response ; and transmitting a third message to the base station by using the allocated uplink resource .

in table 2 , when a value of the result field is “ 0 ”, it indicates rejection for the ul resource grant request of the ue . when a value of the result field is “ 1 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated at the point of time when the ue requested the ul resource grant . that is , when the ue receives the ul resource response ie , including the result field defined as in table 2 , from the enb , it can be aware of a result of the ul resource grant that has been requested from the enb . furthermore , when a value of the result field is “ accept ”, the ue monitors a pdcch through which the ul grant is transmitted at the point of time (= ul grant offset_ue ) at which the ul resource grant is requested . table 3 shows an example of the ul grant offset_bs field indicative of a point of time at which the ul resources are capable of being allocated . in table 3 , when a value of the ul grant offset_bs field is “ 00 ”, ‘ 01 ” or ‘ 10 ”, it indicates acceptance the ul resource grant request of the ue . when a value of the ul grant offset_bs field value is “ 11 ”, it indicates rejection for the ul resource grant request of the ue . specifically , when a value of the ul grant offset_bs field is “ 00 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated at the point of time requested by the ue . when a value of the ul grant offset_bs field is “ 01 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated at a point of time after 2 ms ( 2 subframes ) from the point of time requested by the ue . when a value of the ul grant offset_bs field is “ 10 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated at a point of time after 4 ms ( 4 subframes ) from the point of time requested by the ue . likewise , when the ue receives an ul resource response ie , including the ul grant offset_bs field defined as in table 3 , from the enb , it can be aware of a result of the ul resource grant that has been requested from the enb . that is , if a value of the ul grant offset_bs field value excludes “ reject ”, the ue monitors a pdcch through which the ul grant is transmitted at a point of time (= ul grant offset_ue + α , α = 0 , 2 , 4 ms depending on a value of the ul grant offset_bs ) indicated in a value of the ul grant offset_bs field . table 4 shows an example of the ul grant interval_bs field indicative of the interval during which the ul resources are capable of being allocated . in table 4 , when a value of the ul grant interval_bs field is “ 00 ”, ‘ 01 ” or ‘ 10 ”, it indicates acceptance for the ul resource grant request of the ue . when a value of the ul grant interval_bs field is “ 11 ”, it indicates rejection for the ul resource grant request of the ue . specifically , when a value of the ul grant interval_bs field is “ 00 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated at the point of time requested by the ue . when a value of the ul grant interval_bs field is “ 01 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated between the point of time requested by the ue and the point of time requested by the ue + 2 ms ( 2 subframes ) ( or an interval ). when a value of the ul grant interval_bs field is “ 10 ”, it indicates that the ul resources are allocated between the point of time requested by the ue and the point of time requested by the ue + 4 ms ( 4 subframes ). when the ue receives an ul resource response ie , including the ul grant interval_bs field defined as in table 4 , from the enb , it can be aware of a result of the ul resource grant that has been requested from the enb . that is , if a value of the ul grant interval_bs field excludes “ reject ”, the ue monitors a pdcch through which the ul grant is transmitted in the interval indicated in a value of the ul grant interval_bs (= ul grant offset_ue ˜ ul grant offset_ue + α , α = 0 , 2 , 4 ms depending on a value of the ul grant interval_bs ). if the ue receives an ul resource response ie , including a value indicative of rejection for the ul resource grant request , from the enb , it requests an ul resource grant using a conventional method , that is , an sr and / or a bsr ( i . e ., a fall - back mode ). fig2 is a diagram showing an ul resource grant method proposed by this specification and a reduction of corresponding transmission latency . it may be seen from fig2 that if one of the ul resource grant methods of fig1 to 19 is used , transmission latency of ul data ( or an rrc message ) can be significantly reduced because the time taken for a ue to transmit a generated rrc connection setup complete message to an enb after generating the rrc connection setup complete message is reduced to a minimum of 4 ms . that is , latency attributable to the transmission of the rrc connection setup complete message from the ue to the enb can be reduced because the ul grant is allocated to the ue through a pdcch after a specific point of time ( i . e ., an ul grant offset ) without transmitting an sr and / or a bsr after the rrc connection setup message is transmitted from the enb to the ue . a method of using the ul resource grant method , described with reference to fig1 to 19 , in other procedures ( e . g ., an rrc connection reestablishment procedure ) other than an rrc connection establishment procedure is described below . that is , the ul resource grant request and the response method of an enb according to the ul resource grant request which have been described with reference to fig1 to 19 may also be applied to a resource allocation method for the transmission of a response message ( e . g ., rrc connection reconfiguration complete , rrc connection reestablishment complete or security mode command complete ) for other rrc messages ( e . g ., rrc connection reconfiguration , rrc connection reestablishment and a security mode command ) related to an rrc connection . fig2 is a diagram illustrating another example of an ul resource grant method proposed by this specification . that is , fig2 shows an example in which the ul resource grant method of fig1 to 19 has been applied to an rrc connection reestablishment procedure . an rrc connection reestablishment procedure may be generated in a situation , such as the detection of a link failure attributable to deteriorated radio quality , a handover failure of a ue , or a failure of an integrity and radio connection environment configuration . referring to fig2 , a ue transmits an rrc connection reestablishment request message to a target enb after performing a cell selection procedure ( s 2101 ). the rrc connection reestablishment request message includes a c - rnti , a physcellid , a cause field and so on . thereafter , the target enb requests information related to the ue from a source enb to which the ue was connected right before using a received ue id ( e . g ., a c - rnti or a physical cell id ) ( s 2102 ). that is , the target enb transmits a ue context request to the source enb . thereafter , the source enb transmits a ue context response , including a ue capability ie related to the capability information of the ue , to the target enb ( s 2103 ). the ue capability ie includes at least one of a ue capability type indicative of the capability of the ue owned by the source enb , an ul grant offset_ue field indicative of a point of time at which the ue requests ul resources , and an urgent indicator indicating whether a low delay service is provided or not between the source enb and the ue . thereafter , the target enb notifies the ue of an ul resource grant method by transmitting an rrc connection reestablishment message , including an ul resource ie related to an ul resource grant , to the ue using the ue capability ie received from the source enb ( s 2104 ). the ul resource ie may be the same as the aforementioned ul resource response ie or may be defined as the same form , such as that of table 5 and table 6 . table 5 shows an example of the ul grant offset_bs field , and table 6 shows an example of the ul grant interval_bs field . in this case , when the ue receives the ul resource ie , including the ul grant offset_bs field defined as in table 5 , from the enb , it monitors a pdcch through which the ul grant is transmitted at a point of time (= ul grant offset_ue + α , α = 0 , 2 , 4 , 6 ms according to a value of the ul grant offset_bs ) indicated in the ul grant offset_bs field . in this case , when the ue receives the ul resource ie , including the ul grant interval_bs field defined as in table 6 , from the enb , it monitors a pdcch through which the ul grant is transmitted in an interval (= ul grant offset_ue ˜ ul grant offset_ue + α , α = 0 , 2 , 4 , 6 ms according to a value of the ul grant interval_bs ) indicated in the ul grant interval_bs field . likewise , if the ul resource ie indicates “ reject ” for the ul resource grant although the ul resource ie is not included or the ul resource ie is included in the rrc connection reestablishment message , the ue requests an ul resource grant using a conventional method ( e . g ., a scheduling request ) ( i . e ., a fall - back mode ). thereafter , the target enb allocates the ul grant to the ue through a pdcch at a specific point of time or in a specific interval ( e . g ., a point of time from a point of time at which the rrc connection reestablishment message was transmitted by an ul grant offset ) ( s 2105 ). if the ue does not receive the ul resources allocated by the enb at the specific point of time or in the specific interval ( including a reception failure ), it requests the ul resource grant using a conventional method ( e . g ., a scheduling request ). thereafter , the ue transmits an rrc connection reestablishment complete message to the target enb through the allocated ul resources ( s 2106 ). the ul resource grant method proposed by this specification described above and the conventional ul resource grant method may be compared and summarized as in table 7 below . as shown in table 7 , if the ul resource grant method proposed by this specification is used , it can be seen that transmission latency of ul data is significantly reduced . in this case , it is assumed that tti = 1 ms and enb scheduling delay = 0 . fig2 is an internal block diagram showing a wireless apparatus in which the methods proposed by this specification may be implemented . in this case , the wireless apparatus may be an enb and a ue , and the enb includes both a macro enb and a small enb . as shown in fig2 , the enb 2210 and the ue 2220 include communication units ( or transmission / reception units or rf units 2213 and 2223 ), processors 2211 and 2221 and memory 2212 and 2222 , respectively . the enb and the ue may further include input units and output units . the communication unit 2213 , 2223 , the processor 2211 , 2221 , the input unit , the output unit , and the memory 2212 , 2222 are functionally connected in order to perform the method proposed by this specification . when the communication unit ( or transmission / reception unit or rf unit 2213 , 2223 ) receives information generated by the physical layer ( phy ) protocol , it moves the received information to a radio - frequency ( rf ) spectrum , performs filtering and amplification on the information , and transmits the results to an antenna . furthermore , the communication unit functions to move a radio frequency ( rf ) signal , received from the antenna , to a band capable of being processed in the phy protocol and to filter the signal . furthermore , the communication unit may have a switch function for switching such a transmission and reception function . the processor 2211 , 2221 implements the functions , processes and / or methods proposed by this specification . the layers of a radio interface protocol may be implemented by the processor . the processor may also be expressed as a control unit , a controller , a control unit or a computer . the memory 2212 , 2222 is connected to the processor and stores a protocol or parameter for performing the ul resource grant method . the processor 2211 , 2221 may include application - specific integrated circuits ( asics ), other chipsets , logic circuits and / or data processors . the memory may include read - only memory ( rom ), random access memory ( ram ), flash memory , a memory card , a storage medium and / or other storage devices . the communication unit may include a baseband circuit for processing a radio signal . when an embodiment is implemented in software , the aforementioned scheme may be implemented as a module ( or process or function ) for performing the aforementioned function . the module is stored in the memory and may be executed by the processor . the memory may be located inside or outside the processor and coupled to the processor by various well - known means . an output unit ( or display unit ) is controlled by the processor , and outputs information output by the processor along with a key input signal generated by a key input unit and various information signals from the processor . furthermore , the drawings have been divided and described for convenience of description , but a new embodiment may be designed so that it is implemented by merging the embodiments described with reference to the drawings . furthermore , the scope of the present invention also includes designing a computer - readable recording medium in which a program for executing the aforementioned embodiments has been written according to the needs of those skilled in the art . the ul resource grant method according to this specification is not limited and applied to the configurations and methods of the aforemtioned embodiments , but some or all of the embodiments may be selectively combined and configured so that the embodiments are modified in various ways . the ul resource grant method of this specification may be implemented in a processor - readable recording medium included in a network device , in the form of code readable by a processor . the processor - readable recording medium includes all types of recording devices in which data readable by a processor is stored . the recording medium may include rom , ram , cd - rom , magnetic tapes , floppy disks , and optical data storages , for example . furthermore , the processor - readable recording medium may be implemented in the form of carrier waves , such as transmission through the internet . furthermore , the processor - readable recording medium may be distributed to computer systems connected over a network , and the processor - readable code may be stored and executed in a distributed manner . meanwhile , the scheme for the transmission of ul data in a wireless communication system according to the embodiments of the present invention has been illustrated as being applied to 3gpp lte / lte - a systems , but may be applied to various wireless communication systems in addition to the 3gpp lte / lte - a systems .

US-201515551175-A

a punch for making a decorative buckle design on a sheet medium . the punch includes a body formed with a fissure for receiving the sheet media , a cutter axially movable within the body and a die secured in said body configured to engage with the cutter . the cutter cuts out at least two flaps in the sheet medium , each flap is connected to a central supporting column .

please refer to fig1 to 5 . the punch device of the present invention includes a seat body 10 formed with a horizontal fissure 11 at one end and a vertical chamber 12 . the bottom of the chamber 12 is formed with an opening 121 communicated with the fissure 11 . an insertion cavity 13 is disposed on seat body 10 in front of opening 121 . the bottom of the seat body 10 is formed with a female die 14 communicated with the fissure 11 opposite to the opening 121 . a cutting block 20 is disposed on the seat body 10 . one face of the cutting block 20 facing the fissure 11 is disposed with a solid cutter 21 in the shape of an outline of a geometric or other symmetrical shape . the other face of the cutting block 20 is disposed with a channel passing through the cutting block 20 , forming walls 22 and 23 . the cutting block 20 is disposed with a projection 23 corresponding to the extension 122 to be fitted therein . a recess 221 is created on the underside of each of the protrusions of walls 22 and 23 for the purpose of engaging with resilient member 40 , as described below . a pressing lever 30 is disposed in the cutting block 20 . one end of the pressing lever 30 is disposed with a pivot shaft 31 for rotatably inserting in the insertion cavity 13 of the seat body 10 , whereby the pressing lever 30 is pivotally disposed on the seat body 10 . the other end of the pressing lever 30 is disposed with an upward bent pressing section 32 . in addition , the pressing lever 30 is formed with a protuberance 33 extending in a direction reverse to that of the pressing section 32 for fitting in the recesses 221 of the cutting block 20 . at least one resilient member 40 is fitted into recess 221 . as illustrated in fig1 preferably two resilient members 40 where at least one resilient member 40 comprises first and second oppositely disposed springs adjacent to said die . the first resilient member 40 is disposed along a second axis and the second resilient member 40 disposed along a third axis , the third axis spaced apart from the first solid cutter 21 axis and the second resilient member 40 axis . a housing 50 covers the seat body 10 and is formed with a window 51 , whereby the pressing section 32 of the pressing lever 30 can extends through the window 51 out of the housing 50 . as illustrated in fig1 and 2 , housing 50 preferably maintains an indication 53 corresponding to the shape of cutter 21 . in use , a paper or a sheet 60 is horizontally placed in the fissure 11 of the seat body 10 and pushed inward to a true position . fissure 11 is maintained perpendicular to the movement axis of cutter 21 . then the pressing section 32 of the pressing lever 30 is pivotally depressed about the pivot shaft 31 , whereby the protuberance 33 of the pressing lever 30 is moved downward to exert a force onto the cutting block 20 . accordingly , the cutting block 20 is forced downward with the cutter 21 passing through the opening 121 of the chamber 12 to punch the paper or the sheet placed in the fissure 11 through the correspondingly shaped die 14 . thus , a perforation is created in the sheet medium as defined by the periphery of the cutter 21 which engages with the female die 14 as shown in fig5 . the resilient member 40 serves to restore the cutting block 20 to its home position . at this time , the pressing section 32 of the pressing lever 30 is moved upward along with the cutting block 20 to its home position . the above operation can be repeatedly performed to create the same partial cutout . as shown in fig6 , cutter 21 is ideally a sharpened tapered metal blade , shaped as a three dimensional projection of the outline to be created . in one embodiment of the present invention , cutter 21 is tapered such that its highest ( deepest cutting ) points 77 a are furthest away from the horizontal , or width axis of the cutter at points closest to and furthest from the pressing section 32 of the center of cutter 21 along the long or length axis ( in line with lever 30 ). in an alternate embodiment , the edge on cutter 21 can be serrated . both approaches are designed to make the perforations for the cutouts as cleanly as possible , without any wrinkling or warping in the sheet medium 60 . cutter 21 may also be surrounded by a rubber or plastic insert 26 , which is inserted into a recess in the center of the underside of cutting block 20 . insert 26 is used to make the perforations as cleanly as possible , without any wrinkling or warping of the sheet medium . in fig7 , die 14 is designed to engage with cutter 21 and is shaped as a female version of cutter 21 . die 14 is also equipped with a series of holes 41 corresponding to cutter 21 , through which the portions of the sheet medium which form holes 81 may be punched . a rubber or similar insert 42 may be placed into a recesses of die 14 around the cutter receiving portion to block all but the deepest portions of cutter 21 from entering die 14 . this ensures that the perforations are made as precisely as possible . in another embodiment of the present invention , fig8 and 9 depict an alternate arrangement for cutter 21 and die 14 respectively , where cutter 21 maintains an additional center cutter 21 a and die 14 maintains an additional center cutter receiving hole 41 a . turning now to the cutting of sheet media 60 by way of punch device 10 , in one embodiment of the present invention , fig1 illustrates a punched sheet media according to a die 14 and cutter 21 arrangement from fig6 and 7 . here flaps 80 are formed in sheet medium 60 by cutting along a portion of an outline , leaving flaps 80 attached to a central support column 82 . in each of flaps 80 , a hole 81 has been created by punching a portion of the paper with cutter 21 through holes in die 14 . both the flaps and the holes may be in any shape , but for the purposes of illustration fig1 simply shows smooth curved edges for flaps 80 and centralo support column . in another embodiment of the present invention , fig1 depicts an alternate sheet media 60 punched according to the die 14 and cutter 21 arrangement from fig8 and 9 in which support column 92 contains an extra hole 91 in addition to the holes in flaps 90 . extra hole 91 is formed from the punching of central cutter portion 21 a moving through center hole 41 a in die 14 . in one embodiment of the present invention , fig1 depicts the invention in which ribbon medium 100 is threaded through holes 81 as formed by die 14 and cutter 21 arrangement from fig6 and 7 , thereby attaching to sheet medium 60 . while ribbon medium 100 need only be thread through at least one hole , ideally all holes 81 should be used to for the most secure attachment . ribbon medium 100 can be constructed of any material , such as paper , ribbon , fabric , foil , plastic , or any like material with the same dimensions . sheet medium 60 can similarly be made of paper , fabric , plastic , foil , or the like . in another embodiment of the present invention as illustrated in fig1 ribbon medium 100 is threaded through holes 91 as formed by die 14 and cutter 21 arrangement from fig8 and 9 , thereby attaching to sheet medium 60 . again , while ribbon medium 100 need only be thread through at least one hole , ideally all holes 91 should be used to for the most secure attachment . additionally in either of these arrangements ribbon 100 may be threaded over flaps 80 / 90 and under central column 82 / 92 as shown in fig1 , or under flaps 80 / 90 and over central column 82 / 92 as shown in fig1 . it is to be understood that the above description and drawings are only used for illustrating one embodiment of the present invention , not intended to limit the scope thereof . any variation and derivation from the above description and drawings should be included in the scope of the present invention .

US-51921106-A

a coordinates input device comprises vibration means for generating vibration , a pin having an end to which the vibration generated by said vibration means is transmitted , and a vibration transmission plate having a roughened surface or resin coating on a pen abutment surface thereof , for transmitting the vibration .

the present invention is now explained with reference to an embodiment illustrated in the drawings . fig1 shows a configuration of the coordinates input device in accordance with the present invention . in the information input / output device of fig1 coordinates are input by a vibration pen 3 on an input tablet which may be a vibration transmission plate 8 , and an input image is displayed on a display 11 &# 39 ; which may be a crt on which the input tablet is overlaid , in accordance with the input coordinates information . numeral 8 denotes the vibration transmission plate which may be made of acrylic plate or glass plate and which transmits vibration from the vibration pen 3 to vibration sensors 6 arranged at three corners . in the present embodiment , transmission time of ultrasonic vibration transmitted from the vibration pen 3 to the vibration sensors 6 through the vibration transmission plate 8 is measured to detect the coordinates of the vibration pen 3 on the vibration transmission plate 8 . the periphery of the transmission plate 8 is supported by an anti - reflection member 7 such as silicone rubber in order to prevent the vibration transmitted from the vibration pen 3 from being reflected at the periphery back to a center area . the vibration transmission plate 8 is arranged on a dot - display device 11 &# 39 ; such as crt or liquid crystal display so that dots are displayed along lines drawn by the vibration pen 3 . namely , dots are displayed at those positions on the display 11 &# 39 ; which correspond to the detected coordinates of the vibration pen 3 . the image consisting of points or lines input by the vibration pen 3 is displayed to follow loci of the vibration pen as if it were drawn on a sheet . in this system , it is possible to display a menu on the display 11 &# 39 ; and select a menu item by the vibration pen , or display a prompt and contact the vibration pen 3 to a predetermined position . the vibration pen 3 which transmits the ultrasonic vibration to the vibration transmission plate 8 has a vibrator 4 made of a piezoelectric element . the ultrasonic vibration generated by the vibrator 4 is transmitted to the vibration transmission plate 8 through a horn 5 having a pointed end . fig2 shows a structure of the vibration pen 3 . the vibration 4 in the vibration pen 3 is driven by a vibrator driver 2 . a drive signal for the vibrator 4 is supplied from the operation controller of fig1 as a low level pulse signal . it is amplified by the vibrator driver 2 which can drive at a low impedance and has a predetermined gain , and the amplified signal is applied to the vibrator 4 . the electrical drive signal is converted to a mechanical ultrasonic vibration by the vibrator 4 , and it is transmitted to the vibration plate 8 through the horn 5 . the vibration frequency of the vibrator 4 is selected such that a plane wave can be generated in the vibration trransmission plate 8 such as acrylic plate or glass plate . when the vibrator is driven , a vibration mode is selected such that the vibrator 4 principally vibrates vertically in fig2 to the vibration transmission plate 8 . the vibration frequency of the vibrator 4 may be set to a resonance frequency of the vibrator 4 to attain vibration transformation at a high efficiency . the elastic wave transmitted to the vibration transmission plate in this manner is a plane wave which is less affected by the crack or obstacle on the suface of the vibration transmission plate 8 than a surface wave . turning back to fig1 the vibration sensors 6 arranged at the corners of the vibration transmission plate 8 are mechanical - electrical transducers such as piezoelectric elements . the output signals from the three vibration sensors 6 are applied to the waveform detector 9 where they are converted to signal forms which can be processed by the operation controller 1 , which measures the vibration transmission time to detect the coordinates of the vibration pen 3 on the vibration transmission plate 8 . the detected coordinates information of the vibration pen 3 is processed by the operation controller 1 in accordance with the output scheme of the display 11 &# 39 ;. the operation controller 1 controls the output operation of the display 11 &# 39 ; through a display driver 10 in accordance with the input coordinates information . fig3 shows a configuration of the operation controller 1 of fig1 . it primarily shows a drive circuit for the vibration pen 3 and a vibration detection circuit by the vibration sensors 6 . a microcomputer 11 has an internal counter , a rom and a ram . a drive signal generation 12 generates a drive pulse at a predetermined frequency for the vibrator driver 2 of fig1 . it is started by the microcomputer 11 in synchronism with the coordinates operation circuit . a count of a counter 13 is latched in a latch 14 by the microcomputer 11 . on the other hand , the waveform detector 9 produces , based on the output of the vibration sensor 6 , timing information of the detection signal for measuring the vibration transmission time for the coordinates detection , and signal level information for the pen pressure detection . the timing and level information are applied to input ports 15 and discrimination 16 , respectively . the timing signal supplied from the waveform detector 9 is applied to the input port 15 , compared with the count of the latch 14 by the discriminator 16 , and the result is informed to the microcomputer 11 . the vibration transmission time is expressed by the latched data of the counter 13 , and the coordinates are calculated based on the vibration transmission time . the output operation of the display 11 &# 39 ; is controlled through an input / output port 17 . fig4 shows waveforms applied to the waveform detector 9 of fig1 and illustrates measurement of the vibration transmission time . numeral 41 denotes a drive signal pulse applied to the vibration pen 3 . the ultrasonic vibration transmitted to the vibration transmission plate 8 from the vibration pen 3 driven by the pulse 41 propagates through the vibration transmission plate 8 and is detected by the vibration sensors 6 . the vibration propagate through the vibration transmission plate 8 in a time tg representing a distance to the vibration sensor 6 and it reaches the vibration sensor 6 . numeral 42 denotes a signal waveform detected by the vibration sensor 6 . the plane wave used in the present embodiment is a dispersive wave . accordingly , a relationship between an envelope 421 and a phase 422 of the detected waveform relative to a propagation distance in the vibration transmission plate 8 changes with the transmission distance during the transmission of the vibration . the envelope has a group velocity vg and a phase velocity vp . the distance between the vibration pen 3 and the vibration sensor 6 is detected based on a difference between the group velocity and the phase velocity . the envelope 421 is considered first . it has the velocity vg . when a particular point on the waveform such as a peak is detected as shown by 43 in fig4 the distance d between the vibration pen 3 and the vibration sensor 6 is given by where tg is the vibration transmission time . the formula ( 1 ) relates to one of the vibration sensors 6 . the distances between the vibration pen 3 and two other sensors 6 are given by the same formula . in order to determine more accurate coordinates , the process based on the detection of the phase signal is effected . the distance between the vibration sensor and the vibration pen is given by where tp is a time of a particular detection point on the phase waveform 422 of fig4 for example , from the application of vibration to a zero - crossing point after the peak , λp is a wavelength of the elastic wave and n is an integer . from the formulas ( 1 ) and ( 2 ), the integer n is given by where n is a real number other than 0 . for example , when n = 2 , n may be determined if within ± 1 / 2 wavelength . in this manner , n is determined . the n thus determined is substituted in the formula ( 2 ) so that the distance between the vibration pen 3 and the vibration sensor 6 can be precisely measured . the vibration transmission times tg and tp shown in fig4 are measured by the waveform detector 9 of fig1 . the waveform detector 9 is configured as shown in fig5 . the waveform detector of fig5 also processes the level information of the output waveform of the vibration sensor 6 to detect the pen pressure . in fig5 the output signal of the vibration sensor 6 is amplified to a predetermined level by a pre - amplifier 51 . the amplifed signal is supplied to an envelope detector 52 which extracts only an envelope of the detected signal . a timing of a peak of the extracted envelope is detected by an envelope peak detector 53 . the peak detector signal is applied to a signal detector 54 which may be a monostable multivibrator and produces an envelope delay time detection signal tg , which is supplied to the operation controller 1 . a phase delay time detection signal tp is produced by a comparator detector 58 based on the signal tg and an original signal delayed by a delay time adjuster 57 , and it is supplied to the operation controller 1 . the circuit shown above is for one of the vibration sensors 6 . the same circuit is provided for each of the rest . where there are h sensors , the h envelope delay time detection signals tg1 - tgh and the h phase delay time detection signals tp1 - tph are supplied to the operation controller 1 . the operation controller of fig3 receives the signals tg1 - tgh and tp1 - tph from the input port 15 and latches the count of the counter 13 at the timing of those signals . since the counter 13 is started in synchronism with the drive of the vibration pen as described above , the latch 14 latches data which represent both the delay times of the envelope and the phase . when the three vibration sensors 6 are arranged at the corners s1 - s3 of the vibration transmission plate 8 as shown in fig6 it is possible to determine distances d1 - d3 from the position p of the vibration pen 3 to the positions of the vibration sensors 6 as explained above in connection with fig4 . the operation controller 1 determines the coordinates ( x , y ) of the position p of the vibration pen 3 based on the distances d1 - d3 in accordance with the theorem of three squares ( pythagoream theorem ). where x and y are distances along x - axis and y - axis between the vibration sensors 6 at s2 and s3 and the sensor at the origin point ( s1 ). in this manner , the position coordinates of the vibration pen 3 are detected real time . in the above arrangement , since the ultrasonic vibration is transmitted to the vibration transmission plate 8 as the plane wave of the elastic wave , the disturbance by the crack or obstacle on the vibration transmission plate 8 is reduced and high precision coordinates detection is attained . in the present embodiment , a fine uneven surface is provided on the vibration transmission plate 8 , as shown in fig7 . numeral 71 denotes a bottom of a body of the vibration pen 3 . the horn 5 is coupled to the end of the bottom 71 by a threaded portion 76 . the vibration transmission plate 8 has the fine uneven surface to roughen the surface . the roughness is no less than # 2000 of the mesh number . with such a roughness , the transparency of the vibration transmission plate 8 is not reduced and the visibility of the underlying display is not lowered . the external light is diffusedly reflected by the surface roughness so that the visibility of the display is enhanced . the writing touch of the vibration pen 3 is also enhanced . the roughening may be effected not only on the front surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 but also on the back surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 to control the transparency of the vibration transmission plate 8 and the scattering of the external light and display light . the vibration detection characteristic is also improved by roughening the surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 . fig8 and 9 show vibration detection waveforms produced by the vibration sensor 6 located at the corner of the vibration transmission plate 8 , without and with the roughening , respectively . without the roughening , as shown in fig8 the surface wave input to the vibration transmission plate 8 by the inclination of the vibration pen 3 is combined with the transmitted vibration so that a peak wh appears . depending on a detection threshold , the peak by the surface wave component may be misdetected by the peak detection and an error is caused in the vibration transmission time or the coordinates detection precision . when the vibration transmission plate 8 is roughened , the surface wave component is attenuated by the uneven surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 and no peak due to the surface wave component appears as shown in fig9 . accordingly , high precision coordinates detection is attained . in the present embodiment , a resin layer 75 is provided on the surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 , as shown in fig1 , numeral 71 denotes a bottom of the body of the vibration pen 3 , and the horn 5 is coupled to the end thereof by a threaded portion 76 . a resin layer 75 is coated on the surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 . the resin layer 75 is made of appropriate material to attain a desired attenuation for the surface wave . the experiment showed that fluorine resin , silicone resin and high molecular polyethylene are suitable for the surface wave vibration , any other material which meets the vibration absorption requirement may be used . by properly selecting the material and thickness of the resin layer 75 , it is possible to prevent the transparency of the vibration transmission plate 8 from being lowered and the visibility of the underlying display from being lowered . by the provision of the resin layer 75 , the external light may be diffusedly reflected to improve the visibility of the display . the writing touch of the vibration pen 3 is also enhanced . the resin layer 75 may be coated not only on the front surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 but also on the back surface thereof to control the transparency of the vibration transmission plate 8 or the scattering of the external light or display light . by the provision of the resin layer 75 on the surface of the vibration transmission plate 8 , the vibration detection characteristic may be enhanced . fig1 and 12 show the vibration detection waveforms produced by the vibration sensor 6 located at the corner of the vibration transmission plate 8 without and with the resin layer 75 , respectively . without the resin layer 75 , as shown in fig1 , the surface wave input to the vibration transmission plate 8 by the inclination of the vibration pen 3 is combined with the transmitted vibration so that a peak wh is produced . depending on a detection threshold , the peak of the surface wave component is misdetected by the peak wh and error is created in the vibration transmission time and the coordinate detection precision . on the other hand , when the resin layer 75 is formed on the vibration transmission plate 8 , the surface wave component is attenuated by the resin layer 75 of the vibration transmission plate 8 and the peak due to the surface wave component is not produced as shown in fig1 . accordingly , high precision coordinates detection is attained .

US-17174788-A

improved manhole cover locks are disclosed that fit into existing access recesses in the covers and engage the rim of the manhole cover housing at one end thereof and latchingly engage the underside of the manhole cover thereof . a tamper proof bolt provides adjustability to the latch from the top of the lock .

referring to fig1 , a standardized manhole cover and rim or housing assembly , generally indicated at 10 , includes an annular rim , generally indicated at 11 , on which a circular manhole cover , generally indicated at 12 , is matingly mounted . typically , they are made of cast iron . the circumferential edge 13 of the manhole cover 12 matingly engages a hollow l - shaped rim 14 at the top of housing 11 . a first embodiment of a manhole cover lock assembly constructed in accordance with the invention , generally indicated at 15 , fits in a u - shape recess 16 , about 2½ inches by 2½ inches adjacent the circumferential edge of the manhole cover and fits between that recess 16 and the l - shape rim 14 of the housing 11 . approximately 180 degrees around the circumference 13 of manhole cover 12 is positioned an s - shape foot , generally indicated at 17 , that is preferably bolted and also bonded to the underside of the manhole cover 12 with a resin / catalyst type adhesive 18 . the manhole cover may be drilled and threaded at 17 a from the bottom of the cover upward to provide a mounting for threaded bolt 17 . the distal end of foot 17 provides securement of the distal end of foot 17 around the lip 14 of the housing 11 . referring to fig1 and 3 - 5 , the latch portion of the manhole cover lock 15 includes a substantially flat thin top 20 made of hardened or spring steel and having a beveled edge 21 therearound to prevent prying . subjacent the generally flat top is a body portion , generally indicated at 22 , the top segment of which is shaped similarly to the u - shape recess 16 adjacent the perimeter of the manhole cover 12 with its outermost edge generally matingly engaging the rim 13 immediately outwardly adjacent the u - shape recess 16 . while the body 22 of the lock assembly 15 may be made of differing hard materials suitable for locks , we have found that , in operation , a very tough molded part may be made of polytetrafluoroethylene ( ptfe ). while the top portion 23 of body 22 includes a generally rectangular cutout 24 is defined by top surface 25 vertical flat surface 26 and beveled lip 27 that fits around the bottom portion of the l - shape rim 14 as shown most clearly in fig3 and 4 . the body portion , generally indicated at 22 , includes a pair of vertical bores 30 and 31 therethrough that are aligned with apertures 19 a - 19 b in the top plate 20 such that ⅜ inch rivets 32 and 33 securely affix the top beveled plate 20 to the body 22 . a small recess 37 in the beveled foot 28 provides access for an installer to spread the end of the rivet . semicircular recess 30 forms a part and portion of a larger recess 40 opposite the lower portion of body 24 from the generally rectangular recess defined by sides 25 , 26 and 27 . the recess 40 provides a swivelable home for latch 42 that is threadedly engaged on hardened bolt 43 . a third vertical bore 44 in the upper portion of body 22 ( fig1 ) provides a rotatable mounting for bolt 43 with the top or head 43 a thereof maintained at the top of body 22 subjacent the third bore 19 c in top cover 20 . elongate latch 42 includes a threaded bore 42 a therethrough in which bolt 43 is threaded . the bottom 43 b of bolt 43 has its threads interrupted such that latch 42 may not be removed from its threaded mounting in bolt 43 . also , the interrupted threads at the bottom 43 b of bolt 43 assure that the latch will turn when desired by rotating the head 43 a of bolt 43 . with the latch in its retracted position within the outline of recess 40 , the body 22 of the manhole cover lock 15 may be moved downwardly through the u - shaped recess 16 adjacent the perimeter of manhole cover 12 and through the hole therebelow such that the foot 28 of the recess 24 a in lower body portion 24 may be positioned around the foot of the l - shape rim 14 . with the top plate flat on top of the manhole cover , the latch 42 may then be rotated outwardly of its recess 40 to engage the bottom side of manhole cover 12 to fully engage the latch thereunder and lock the lock 15 to prevent removal of the manhole cover 12 from its housing 11 on both sides of the housing . once the latch is moved outwardly , its position is restricted by the vertical wall of recess 40 as the latch 42 is drawn upwardly until it meets the top wall 40 a of recess 40 which should approximate the thickness of the manhole cover 12 to engage the distal end of lock 42 against the bottom of manhole cover 12 . thereafter , the aperture 19 c of top plate 20 may be potted with a hardenable material to prevent access to the head 43 a of bolt 43 . also , the head 43 a may have a proprietary or non - standard recess therein that would prevent turning the bolt by unauthorized personnel even if the potted material were removed from recess 19 c . referring to fig3 a and 3 b , top views of the head 43 a of bolt 43 is shown as having three equally spaced semicircular recesses 43 b , 43 c , 43 d . fig3 b shows the top of a wrench 45 suitable for tightening and loosening the bolt 43 . a round metal bar having the outer circumference 45 which is a slip fit into aperture 19 c or aperture 64 is drilled for positioning smaller bars 46 , 47 , 48 respectively , in the holes drilled therein so as to extend from the top thereof approximately the depth of recesses 43 c , 43 d and 43 e . the combination is then turned , in this embodiment , in a lathe so as to remove the outer portions of smaller bars 46 , 47 and 48 until the diameter of the tool is that shown at 49 , which is substantially identical to the outer circumference 43 b of bolt head 43 . as so constructed , with any type of handle on the opposite end of wrench 45 , the wrench may be utilized to tighten , loosen , or turn the bolts 43 and 61 as shown in the present preferred embodiments . in another aspect of the present invention , the location of the recesses 43 c , 43 d and 43 e may be moved around the periphery of the bolt head 43 b to provide a plurality of unique bolts for each government entities , with each entity having one of the multiple combinations of recess placements . likewise , the smaller rods 46 , 47 and 48 may be positioned at differing positions around the wrench head 45 to match the configuration of the recesses in bolt head 43 b . also , the number of recesses may be diminished to one or two and may be increased to 4 , 5 , 6 etc . with these combinations , and with changing the bolt head size from that of ¼ inch , 5 / 16 , ⅜ etc . or 10 mm , 12 mm , etc ., a myriad of municipality or utility specific bolts may be utilized in a secure fashion . referring to fig2 and 6 - 9 , a second embodiment of the sewer cover lock of the present invention , generally indicated at 50 , is used on what is referred to as “ concealed pickhole ” manhole covers and their housings . such a manhole cover is shown , generally at 51 and its housing at 52 in fig2 . on some such covers , a second identical recess ( not shown ) may be positioned 180 degrees from the recess shown . a u - shape recess 53 inwardly adjacent the circumference of manhole cover 51 approximates 1⅞ × 1¾ inches . the radial depth of the recess 53 is smaller than the radial length of the inner ledge 54 of housing 52 such that when one looks at the recess 53 one does not see the recess goes completely through the manhole cover and the housing . however , such recesses include an additional internal pocket , shown at 55 which can facilitate the use the curved end of a pry bar ( not shown ) to lift the manhole cover 51 from its housing 52 . this inner pocket 55 forms at one end thereof a diagonal surface which applicant &# 39 ; s manhole cover lock 50 utilizes to its benefit . referring to fig6 - 9 , the second embodiment of the manhole cover lock of the invention , generally indicated at 50 includes a body 56 which , in this preferred embodiment , is a generally rectangular metal block wherein two of what would be its side surfaces form a single convex side 57 , to be discussed in more detail below . on top of the body 56 is positioned an enlarged flat cover plate 58 made of hardened or spring steel similar to the cover plate 20 of the first embodiment , with the exception that one end of same is bent downwardly along edge 59 to provide a vertical wall 60 . a pivot bolt 61 is positioned generally centrally through the body 56 and may be fixedly or threadedly attached to l - shape latch 63 positioned below the bottom of body 56 . the head 62 of bolt 61 may be turned through aperture 64 in top plate 58 . the height of side plate 60 approximates the height of the combination of body 53 and the height of latch 63 positioned below the body 53 . as shown most clearly in fig2 , when the second embodiment of the manhole cover lock 50 of the invention is positioned in recess 53 , the extended foot 63 a of l - shape latch 63 extends at right angles from the body of latch 63 and may have a curved outer surface . when latch 63 is turned 90 degrees the body is shaped to further turning . a threaded latch bolt , if utilized , will then draw the latch upward to more tightly engage the recess surface 55 of the manhole cover . in operation , as shown in fig2 , the second embodiment of the invention 50 is positioned as shown in fig7 with its l - shaped latch 63 positioned parallel to end plate 60 . as such , the lock is positioned in the recess 53 in the “ concealed pickhole ” manhole cover 51 so that the bottom of the plate 58 rests on the cover and the end plate 60 rests against the inside and bottom of the rim on housing 52 . next , a wrench is inserted in aperture 64 so as to drivingly engage the bolt head 62 . with the bolt head turned 90 degrees from fig7 , as shown in fig8 and 9 , the upper distal end of the face 63 a of the foot portion of latch 63 will preferably engage the slanted face 55 of the pocket portion of recess 53 . the latch is then turned so as to tightly engage the pocket surface whereupon the upper corner of face 63 a will push the lock radially outwardly against the inside edge of the rim of housing 52 . the lock works with radial force against both the cover and the housing . with a pair of such locks in 180 degrees opposing relation on the manhole cover 51 , the cover is securely maintained on the rim . also , any slack between the rim and manhole cover may be taken up by wedge shape shims , as they are known in the trade , sized about 2 inches by 1 inch , wedged in thickness from about 1 / 16 to ⅛ inch , both before or after the second embodiment 50 of the lock of the invention is latched into securement . while two embodiments of the present invention has been shown and described , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention . for example , the computer screen may be utilized for presenting advertising to the customer while waiting for certain of the method steps to be completed . it is the intent of the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention .

US-48356409-A

this invention relates to a windshield wiping system and method which utilizes a rain sensor having a housing defining a first mounting area for mounting directly onto a mirror mount which is adhered to a windshield . the rain sensor housing also defines a second mounting area that defines a generally trapezoidally - shaped mount for receiving a mirror bracket in order to support a mirror . the rain sensor housing is an integral one - piece construction that automatically registers at least one sensor in operative relationship with the windshield and in a predetermined position and orientation relative to the windshield when the rain sensor is mounted on the mirror bracket .

referring now to the fig1 a windshield wiping system 10 is shown comprising a plurality of windshield wipers 12 and 14 having a first wiper blade 12a and second wiper blade 14a , respectively , for wiping a windshield 15 of a vehicle ( not shown ). the wiper blades 12 and 14 are coupled to a wiper motor 16 which , in turn , is coupled to a wiper motor controller 18 which controls the operation of the windshield wiping system 10 . the windshield wiping system 10 may also comprise a washer motor 20 which is coupled and responsive to controller 18 for pumping windshield washer fluid ( not shown ) onto a windshield surface 16a . the windshield wiping system 10 may also comprise a wiper function switch 22 coupled to controller 18 for permitting an operator to turn the wiper system 10 on or off in a manner conventionally known . the windshield wiping system 10 further comprises a rain sensor 24 which is removably mounted on a mirror mount 26 in a manner described later herein . the mirror mount 26 is mounted on an inner surface 15b of windshield 15 using a suitable adhesive 28 ( fig3 ). as best illustrated in fig2 - 4 , the rain sensor 24 comprises a rain sensor housing 30 that may be manufactured from any rigid plastic material or may be a metallic casting . the rain sensor housing 30 comprises a first side 31 having a first angled wall 30a ( fig4 ) which defines a first mounting area 32 for receiving the mirror mount 26 situated on the windshield 15 . the rain sensor housing 30 further comprises a second side 33 defining a second angled wall 30b which defines a second mounting area 34 for receivably supporting a base 36a of a mirror 36 . as best illustrated in fig4 the rain sensor housing 30 comprises a sensor circuit board 38 comprising at least one sensor 40 mounted directly onto the rain sensor housing 30 using suitable screws or fasteners 37 . in the embodiment being described , the at least one sensor 24 comprises a plurality of optical sensors 40 . in the embodiment being described , the optical sensors 40 comprises infrared sender , as labeled by part number 40a in fig2 and at least one infrared receiver 40b ( fig2 ). the infrared sender 40a and receiver 40b operate in a spectrum of about 400 - 950 nanometers . one suitable circuit board 38 and rain sensor 24 has been found to be the part numbers 181 . 886 and 679 . 264 , available from itt automotive electrical systems , inc . of dayton , ohio , now known as valeo . in the embodiment being described , the sensors 40 comprise a focal length from zero to about 20 inches toward the windshield surface and the sensors 40 sense the presence or absence of debris on the surface of windshield 15 . the circuit board 38 is coupled to wiper motor controller 18 using connector 38a ( fig2 ) is using a conventional wire connector 19 . the circuit board and sensors 24 are sufficiently designed to minimize wire count to the sensor 24 . as best illustrated in fig3 and 4 , the sensors 40 lie in an imaginary plane 42 . a feature of the present invention is that after rain sensor housing 30 is mounted on mirror mount 26 , the plane 42 becomes registered in a generally parallel relationship to windshield 15 , as best illustrated in fig3 . this facilitates causing sensors 40 to be situated in a predetermined position such that the sensors 40 arts situated a predetermined distance x ( fig3 ). in this embodiment , the distance x depends upon the design of sensor 40 and windshield area sensed , including consideration of the focal length mentioned earlier . this further facilitates ensuring that the sensors 40 are situated in a generally parallel relationship with respect to windshield 15 , regardless of the rake or slant angle associated with the windshield 15 , unless an unusual angle is required to sense a larger area . although not shown , it is envisioned that the sensor 24 may be position to sense across the windshield 15 ( from left to right or right to left as viewed in fig1 ) to obtain a larger sensed area which may improve the accuracy of the sensing . moreover , it is also envisioned that a ccd camera may be provided as the sensor 24 and secured to the sensor housing 30 to facilitate sensing debris . as best illustrated in fig1 and 2 , the rain sensor housing 30 defines a generally l - shape so that when the rain sensor housing 30 is situated on the mirror mount 26 , at least one of the sensors 40 become registered within a windshield wipe area 50 while facilitating keeping the housing 30 and sensor 24 out of the vehicle operators direct line of sight . the method of installation and operation of the windshield wiping system 10 will now be described . after the mirror mount 26 is secured to windshield 15 using adhesive 28 , the rain sensor housing 30 is mounted onto mirror mount 26 . in this regard , sensor housing 30 may comprise a set screw 51 ( fig4 ) for securing the rain sensor housing 30 to be mirror mount 26 . after the rain sensor 24 is secured to the mirror mount 26 , the mirror 36 may be secured to the second mounting area 30 defined by second mounting wall 30b . in this regard , the mounting base 36a of mirror 36 comprises an inner wall 36b which defines a shape which compliments the to be shape of the second mounting area 30 . the mounting base 36a may also be provided with a set screw ( not shown ) for securely fastening mirror 36 to mount 30 . after rain sensor 24 is mounted to mirror mount 26 , the controller 18 may be coupled to circuit board 38 and sensors 40 via connector 38a and connector wire 19 ( fig1 ). notice in fig3 and 4 , the mounting area 30 and mounting area 32 define a generally trapezoidal or dove tail shape as shown to facilitate fastening the rain sensor 24 on the windshield 15 and the mirror 36 on the rain sensor 24 . the operator may choose to actuate the wiper function switch 22 which causes controller 18 to energize wiper motor or 16 , thereby driving the wiper arms 12 and 14 and wiper blades 12a and 14a , respectively , to wipe surface 15a of windshield 15 . alternatively , rain sensor 24 may sense the presence of debris , such as rain , snow , ice , leaves or other debris when at least one of the sensors 40 of rain sensor 24 senses the debris and generates a sensing signal ( not shown ) which is received by controller 18 . in response thereto , controller 18 causes wiper motor 16 to drive wiper arms 12 and 14 , thereby driving wiper blades 12a and 14a , respectively . controller 18 may include an algorithm that automatically stops wiper motor 16 if the sensors 40 failed to detect debris for a predetermined time interval that in the embodiment being described is controlled or selected by the driver . in this embodiment , the driver controls the sensitivity to debris . in this regard sensor 24 may be provided with a selector ( not shown ) which may be position either on the sensor 24 or associated with a steering column ( not shown ) in a manner conventionally known . thus , it should be appreciated that the windshield wiper system 10 provides means for automatically energizing wiper motor or 16 to wipe area 50 . advantageously , this wiping system and method eliminates the need for an adhesive to mount rain sensor 24 in operative relationship with the windshield 15 . the rain sensor 24 may be utilized with existing interior rear view mirror designs and mountings . utilizing a traditional mirror mount has been found to provide a stable , consistent , strong and rigid method of mounting the rain sensor 24 in operative relationship with the windshield 15 . moreover , registration and placement of the rain sensor 24 onto windshield 15 becomes error proof and facilitates reducing or eliminating altogether traditional problems associated with mounting a rain sensor or on a windshield . situating the rain sensor 24 in the manner described herein further facilitates providing a consistent placement of sensors 40 relative to windshield 15 and accommodates providing a consistent focal length of said sensors 40 relative to an outer surface 15 a . of windshield 15 . if the windshield 15 should break or crack , the rain sensor 24 will not be damaged because it is not adhered directly to windshield 15 . service to the rain sensor 24 is also greatly simplified in that the mirror 36 may be easily dismounted from rain sensor housing 30 and rain sensor 24 disconnected from controller 18 and dismounted from mirror mount 26 for easy maintenance , without having to pry the rain sensor 24 from the windshield 15 . also , when storing and inventorying replacement rain sensors one needs to no longer be concerned with shelf life of the adhesive or of excessive storage temperatures affecting adhesive properties . the rain sensor 24 can be retrofitted onto existing vehicles having a traditional mirror mount and such retrofitting has been simplified over systems of the past . while the method herein described , and the form of apparatus for carrying this method into effect , constitute preferred embodiments of the invention , it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise method and form of apparatus , and that changes may be made in either without departing from the scope of the invention , which is defined in the appended claims .

US-16597298-A

an embodiment of a method of suspending a graphene membrane across a gap in a support structure includes attaching graphene to a substrate . a pre - fabricated support structure having the gap is attached to the graphene . the graphene and the pre - fabricated support structure are then separated from the substrate which leaves the graphene membrane suspended across the gap in the pre - fabricated support structure . an embodiment of a method of depositing material includes placing a support structure having a graphene membrane suspended across a gap under vacuum . a precursor is adsorbed to a surface of the graphene membrane . a portion of the graphene membrane is exposed to a focused electron beam which deposits a material from the precursor onto the graphene membrane . an embodiment of a graphene - based structure includes a support structure having a gap , a graphene membrane suspended across the gap , and a material deposited in a pattern on the graphene membrane .

before the present invention is described , it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to particular embodiments described , as such may , of course , vary . it is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only , and is not intended to be limiting , since the scope of the present invention will be limited only by the appended claims . where a range of values is provided , it is understood that each intervening value , to the tenth of the unit of the lower limit unless the context clearly dictates otherwise , between the upper and lower limits of that range is also specifically disclosed . each smaller range between any stated value or intervening value in a stated range and any other stated or intervening value in that stated range is encompassed within the invention . the upper and lower limits of these smaller ranges may independently be included or excluded in the range , and each range where either , neither or both limits are included in the smaller ranges is also encompassed within the invention , subject to any specifically excluded limit in the stated range . where the stated range includes one or both of the limits , ranges excluding either or both of those included limits are also included in the invention . unless defined otherwise , all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs . although any methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention , the preferred methods and materials are now described . all publications mentioned herein are incorporated herein by reference to disclose and describe the methods and / or materials in connection with which the publications are cited . it must be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims , the singular forms “ a ”, “ and ”, and “ the ” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise . thus , for example , reference to “ a membrane ” includes a plurality of such membranes , and so forth . these and other objects , advantages , and features of the invention will become apparent to those persons skilled in the art upon reading the details of the invention as more fully described below . the invention provides a method of preparing a suspended graphene membrane . the method is compatible with various processing methods , and transmission electron microscopy ( tem ). graphene is first provided on a silicon substrate with a silicon dioxide layer . then a grid material , such as a quantifoil ™ electron microscopy grid , is placed on the graphene and immersed in a solvent . as the solvent evaporates , the grid is pulled into close contact with the substrate and the graphene membrane . the contact between the quantifoil ™ grid and the graphene membrane can be further improved by heating the sample . the present invention also provides a graphene - based structure comprising a graphene membrane and a material in a pattern , where the pattern may have a resolution of less than about 2 . 5 nm on said graphene . in some embodiments , the resolution is 2 . 0 nm or les , 1 . 5 nm or less , or 1 . 0 nm or less . the deposited material can be amorphous carbon . the deposited material can be produced using any suitable means , such as using a focused electron beam . a focused electron beam can be scanned across the graphene and causes the deposition of amorphous carbon . this effect is known as electron - beam induced deposition ( ebid ). in contrast to amorphous thin films , graphene has interesting electronic properties that can be significantly altered directly by doping , shaping or defect generation . by using graphene membranes , one skilled in the art can directly pattern the material for next generation of electronic devices . doping patterns can be deposited ion order to define electronic circuits by a suitable choice of precursor for ebid . also , the arbitrary design of local perturbations with nanometer precision allows for the scattering and diffraction of relativistic quasiparticles , since the electron wavelength in graphene is comparable to the spacing of the dots . this leads to novel electronic and thermal devices with direct applications in the electronics . in some embodiments , a simple periodic superlattice leads to a gap in the density of states . more elaborate patterns can be designed as waveguides or to obtain localized states . local changes in the electronic properties around or within a controlled pattern of defects can be explored by scanning electron microscopy or scanning tunneling microscopy . in addition , the deposited carbon on the graphene membrane can serve as an etch mask or for data storage . the present invention provides for a direct - write deposition method for arbitrary patterns on suspended graphene membranes with a resolution ( half - pitch ) of 2 . 5 nm or less . these patterns can serve as an etch mask , or to create a doping pattern . in addition , the arbitrary design of local perturbations with nanometer precision can allow a wide range of experiments that explore the scattering and diffraction of relativistic quasiparticles . the invention provides for a novel , simple and efficient process to obtain a free - standing graphene membrane , and for a method to facilitate the high - resolution patterning of such a free - standing graphene membrane . the resolution restrictions of ebl from profile broadening on a bulk substrate have been explored previously by electron - beam induced deposition ( ebid ) on ultra - thin substrates . in particular , electron - beam induced deposition with small feature sizes has been previously demonstrated on amorphous carbon films and silicon nitride membranes with a thickness of 10 nm and 30 nm , respectively . it has also been demonstrated that a range of materials other than amorphous carbon can be deposited by careful control of the precursor . in fact , calculations show that high resolution should be possible by ebid on any thickness of substrate ; however , the tails of deposited spots ( deposited material outside of the beam ) is suppressed on ultra - thin membranes . the membranes of the present invention are another one to two orders of magnitude thinner than previously studied membranes , thereby reducing the effects of secondary and scattered electrons even further . indeed , the minimum feature size of the membranes of the present invention corresponds to the diameter of the focused electron beam , and no deposition is observed outside the deposited structures . an important difference between using an amorphous film substrate , and graphene , for patterning is that graphene has remarkable electronic properties that can be significantly altered directly by doping , shaping or defect generation . a graphene membrane can be directly patterned using the deposition method of the present invention to produce a host of next generation electronic devices . the present invention provides for a method of suspending a graphene membrane from a support structure . the method comprises first providing graphene , such as a graphene flake made by the well - known “ scotch tape ” method . the graphene is transferred to a substrate or solid support comprising one or more holes , openings or perforations , such as an electron microscopy grid . a suitable electron microscopy grid is a commercially available electron microscopy grid , such as a quantifoil ™ 200 mesh gold grids with 1 . 3 μm holes in the carbon film . in some embodiments of the method , the graphene provided is a graphene flake on a silicon substrate with a 300 nm thick silicon dioxide layer . the graphene flake can be identified by optical microscopy . a quantifoil ™ grid is placed on the flake . a small drop of a suitable solvent , such as an organic solvent as isopropanol , is added to the flake and allowed to completely evaporate . the surface tension of the solvent during evaporation pulls the perforated carbon film into contact with the substrate ( or solid support ) and the graphene flake . the adhesion of the flake to the substrate or solid support can be improved by heating the flake , such as to a temperature of about 200 ° c . for 5 minutes . heating can be by any suitable means , such as a hot plate . the flake is then allowed to cool . after cooling , the substrate with the now well - sticking tem grid into a 30 % solution of semiconductor grade potassium hydroxide at room temperature . the silicon dioxide layer is slowly etched by the potassium hydroxide , and the tem grid along with the graphene sheets falls off after a time ranging from a few minutes to a few hours . it is then transferred , without drying , into a water bath , and subsequently to isopropanol . finally , the sample is carefully dried in air . the single - and few - layer graphene sheets remain suspended across the holes of the quantifoil ™ grid . in other embodiments of the method , the graphene flakes prepared on a silicon substrate with a 300 nm thick silicon dioxide layer and a 10 - 30 nm layer of a suitable acrylate , such as polymethylmetacrylate ( pmma ). a quantifoil ™ tem grid is placed onto the flakes and pulled into contact with the surface by evaporation of a suitable solvent , such as an organic solvent , such as isopropanol . contact between the flake and the grid can be improved by heating on a hot plate . the top layer of the substrate is then dissolved in a bath of another suitable solvent , such as an organic solvent , such as acetone or methylpyrrolidone . the tem grid with the graphene flake is then separated from the substrate . it is can then be transferred to isopropanol again before drying . these methods avoid the use of any acid or base ( such as potassium hydroxide ). just before insertion into a tem , the graphene membrane samples are again heated on a hot plate to reduce the amount of adsorbates that are present on the sample surface due to the wet preparation and due to air exposure . for the results shown here , samples were heated for 10 minutes at 200 ° c . this treatment reduces the rate of carbon deposition in ebid , which makes it easier to control at the expense of a longer writing time . method of depositing carbon on the graphene having a resolution of 2 . 5 nm or less a jeol 2010 advanced high performance tem operated at 100 kv to write patterns on a graphene membrane . a small beam is formed in the convergent - beam diffraction mode of the illumination system , with a fwhm of 2 . 5 nm and a total current of approximately ipa ( fig2 , panel f ). the advantage of using a tem for this process is that the shape and size of the beam can be observed directly ; however , we note that a nanometer - sized beam can be generated with any high quality scanning electron microscopy and lithography system as well . by employing a computer controlled movement of the electron beam , arbitrary patterns are created . in contrast to the “ digital ” nature of resist based lithography , we have here a continuous , “ grayscale ” control of the deposited amount of material . fig2 , panels a and b show the same graphene membrane before and after writing a periodic dot array . fig2 , panel c shows a different membrane with a non - periodic pattern , the logo of the lawrence berkeley national laboratory . the windows of the clock tower on the right - most part of the pattern are spaced only 10 nm apart ( fig2 , panel e ). a carbon pattern obtained in this way is a dot array with a spacing of 5 nm ( i . e . a half pitch of 2 . 5 nm ), as shown in fig2 , panel d . here , the dwell time at each point was one second . the precursors in the ebid process are hydrocarbons adsorbed on the sample surface , as evidenced by the fact that the amount and time of heating the sample before insertion into the tem strongly affects the deposition rate . the heating reduces the ebid rate ( increases write time ) but makes it more controllable for smallest structures . the present invention also provides for method of detecting structures on a graphene membrane . this method is a tremendous advance in microscopy methods and can be used to detect and observe individual atoms , such as hydrogen atoms and carbon atoms , and individual small molecules , including their real - time dynamics , in a transmission electron microscope ( tem ). this method is derived not from building a better tem , but rather by exploiting a new material configuration , a clean single - layer of a suspended graphene membrane , as a sample support membrane that , in effect , is invisible in the tem . adatoms and other adsorbates on this single - atom - thick membrane can be seen as if they were suspended in free space . even hydrogen , the lightest element , is now easily imaged using only a modest - resolution tem . the method can be reproduced in any basic microscopy laboratory in the world — no complex lithographic sample preparation is needed . this method can be applied in all areas of research and technology development where very small particles and individual molecules are to be structurally identified , including nanomaterials , complex chemicals , or biological structures . this method also makes possible a study of real - time dynamics of such objects , with implications for examination of atomic interactions , chemical reactions , and defect formation and healing . the above results demonstrate a means to create arbitrary shapes on single - and few - layer graphene membranes with a resolution of 2 . 5 nanometers with continuous control over the amount of deposited material . this is a resolution that , by extrapolating from the international technology roadmap for semiconductors ( itrs ), will be the dram half pitch in the year 2034 . indeed , if we consider the dots in fig2 , panel d as bits for data storage , we have an extremely high information density per volume due to the ultrathin substrate : if the entire english wikipedia ( 1 gb of text ) were written onto graphene , the sheet could be folded or rolled into a cube with an edge length of only 5 micrometers ( taking into account a height of the dots of 5 nm ). unlike patterns written by scanning tunneling microscopy atomic manipulation techniques which exist only at cryogenic temperatures , these graphene information patterns are stable at room temperature with an expected lifetime of many thousands of years . given the high sensitivity of graphene &# 39 ; s electronic properties to small - scale perturbations , our deposited material will have a significant effect on the local electronic structure of the graphene membrane . an individual deposited dot will thus act as a spatially controlled scattering center . it is then easy to conceive of waveguide and optics analogies , e . g ., a diffraction grating , for the charge carrier waves . indeed , the dimensions of our structures are well matched to the wavelength of the electrons in graphene of ca . 4 . 26 nm . we anticipate that the ability to create also non - periodic , arbitrary shapes will lead to a wide range of interesting experiments . as previously mentioned , it has also been demonstrated that , by a suitable choice of the precursor , a wide range of materials other than carbon can be deposited by ebid . in this way , it should be possible to create specific doping patterns on graphene . in addition , ebid - deposited amorphous carbon can be used as an etch mask , pointing to a way to “ cut out ” a pre - selected structure from a graphene sheet . the suspended graphene membrane of the present invention is useful for numerous applications . such applications include , but are not limited to , high - volume commercial products and specialized research tools , such as electron microscopy support and further investigation into the properties of graphene . the graphene membrane of the present invention can be used as a support in tem imaging . also , the present invention provides for a direct visualization of individualized carbon adatoms , vacancies , carbon chains and monolayer adsorbates and their dynamics on graphene membranes by tem . using a single - layer graphene membrane , there is no background signal at all from the support membrane and adsorbates can be seen as if they were suspended in free space . one can study the dynamics of individual adatoms , vacancies , larger adsorbates as well as the formation of nanometer - sized holes in the electron beam . graphene membranes provide a means to study the dynamics of chemical reactions or identify the structure of unknown adsorbates with potentially atomic resolution . in addition , the study of atomic scale defects and edges in graphene layers may provide insights on how to alter their electronic properties . the suspended graphene membranes is particularly useful for nanoelectromechanical systems ( nems ) applications . the suspended graphene membranes can serve as sensitive chemical detectors , as part of a tuned electromechanical circuit and filter , as a basis for nanoelectronics or nanothermal devices , or the like . the electron - beam induced deposition on graphene of the present invention can be used to create nanometer - scale doping patterns , diffraction gratings , or etch masks in this novel electronic material . the invention having been described , the following examples are offered to illustrate the subject invention by way of illustration , not by way of limitation . our experimental procedure begins with graphene flakes made by the established “ scotch tape ” method . in order to suspend graphene membranes , we have developed transfer processes of the graphene flakes to commercially available electron microscopy grids ( quantifoil 200 mesh gold grids with 1 . 3 μm holes in the carbon film ). in the first method , we start with graphene flakes on a silicon substrate with a 300 nm silicon dioxide layer . we identify graphene flakes by optical microscopy ( fig1 , panel a ), and place the quantifoil grid onto the flake . a small drop of isopropanol is added ( fig1 , panel b ) and left to evaporate . the surface tension of this solvent during evaporation pulls the perforated carbon film into contact with the substrate and graphene flakes ( fig1 , panel c ). to improve the adhesion , we now heat the sample on a hot plate at 200 ° c . for 5 minutes . after cooling , we place the substrate with the now well - sticking tem grid into a 30 % solution of semiconductor grade potassium hydroxide at room temperature . the silicon dioxide layer is slowly etched by the potassium hydroxide , and the tem grid along with the graphene sheets falls off after a time ranging from a few minutes to a few hours . it is then transferred , without drying , into a water bath , and subsequently to isopropanol . finally , the sample is carefully dried in air . the single - and few - layer graphene membranes remain suspended across the holes of the quantifoil grid . in another method , we begin with graphene flakes prepared on silicon substrates with a 300 nm silicon dioxide layer and a 10 - 30 nm layer of polymethylmetacrylate ( pmma ). again , the quantifoil tem grid is placed onto the flakes and pulled into contact with the surface by evaporation of a solvent ( isopropanol ). contact is improved by heating on a hot plate . the top layer of the substrate is now dissolved in a bath of acetone or methylpyrrolidone . after separating the tem grid with the graphene flakes from the substrate , it is again transferred to isopropanol before drying . this second method avoids the use of acids or bases ( such as potassium hydroxide ). just before insertion into the tem , the graphene membrane samples are again heated on a hot plate to reduce the amount of adsorbates that are present on the sample surface due to the wet preparation and due to air exposure . for the results shown here , samples were heated for 10 minutes at 200 ° c . we clearly observe that this treatment reduces the rate of carbon deposition in ebid , which makes it easier to control at the expense of a longer writing time . we use a jeol 2010 tem operated at 100 kv to write the patterns . a small beam is formed in the convergent - beam diffraction mode of the illumination system , with a fwhm of 2 . 5 nm and a total current of approximately 1 pa ( fig2 , panel f ). the advantage of using a tem for this process is that the shape and size of the beam can be observed directly ; however , we note that a nanometer - sized beam can be generated with any high quality scanning electron microscopy and lithography system as well . by employing a computer controlled movement of the electron beam , arbitrary patterns are created . in contrast to the “ digital ” nature of resist based lithography , we have here a continuous , “ grayscale ” control of the deposited amount of material . fig2 , panels a and b show the same graphene membrane before and after writing a periodic dot array . fig2 , panel c shows a different membrane with a non - periodic pattern , the logo of the lawrence berkeley national laboratory . the windows of the clock tower on the right - most part of the pattern are spaced only 10 nm apart ( fig2 , panel e ). the smallest carbon pattern we obtained in this way is a dot array with a spacing of 5 nm ( i . e . a half pitch of 2 . 5 nm ), as shown in fig2 , panel d . here , the dwell time at each point was one second . the precursors in the ebid process are hydrocarbons adsorbed on the sample surface , as evidenced by the fact that the amount and time of heating the sample before insertion into the tem strongly affects the deposition rate . the heating reduces the ebid rate ( increases write time ) but makes it more controllable for smallest structures . the above results demonstrate a means to create arbitrary shapes on single - and few - layer graphene membranes with a resolution of 2 . 5 nanometers with continuous control over the amount of deposited material . observing the individual building blocks of matter is one of the primary goals of microscopy . the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope revolutionized experimental surface science in that atomic - scale features on a solid - state surface could finally be readily imaged . however , scanning tunneling microscopy has limited applicability due to restrictions , for example , in sample conductivity , cleanliness , and data acquisition rate . an older microscopy technique , that of transmission electron microscopy ( tem ) has benefited tremendously in recent years from subtle instrumentation advances , and individual heavy ( high atomic number ) atoms can now be detected by tem even when embedded within a semiconductor material . however , detecting an individual low atomic number atom , for example carbon or even hydrogen , is still extremely challenging , if not impossible , via conventional tem due to the very low contrast of light elements . here we demonstrate a means to observe , by conventional transmission electron microscopy , even the smallest atoms and molecules : on a clean single - layer graphene membrane , adsorbates such as atomic hydrogen and carbon can be seen as if they were suspended in free space . we directly image such individual adatoms , along with carbon chains and vacancies , and investigate their dynamics in real time . these techniques open a way to reveal dynamics of more complex chemical reactions or identify the atomic - scale structure of unknown adsorbates . in addition , the study of atomic scale defects in graphene may provide insights for nanoelectronic applications of this interesting material . the atomic - scale resolution of tem comes at the price of requiring that the transmitted electron beam reach the imaging lenses and detector , and therefore tem works only for ultra thin , electron transparent samples . in high - resolution transmission electron microscopy ( hrtem ) and all related techniques such as electron diffraction , scanning transmission electron microscopy ( stem ), electron energy loss spectroscopy , or elemental mapping , any support film or membrane provides a background signal that is most significant for the smallest objects under investigation . individual nanoscale particles or molecules usually need to be supported by a continuous membrane , as only tubular or rod - shaped nanoparticles ( such as carbon nanotubes ) can be suspended across holes in the membrane . indeed , single - walled carbon nanotubes ( swnts ) have been utilized for low - background tem studies of encapsulated molecules or defects in the cylinder - shaped graphene sheets . however , the limited space , harsh filling procedures , and strongly curved shape of the sheet limit the applicability and complicate the analysis . as we demonstrate below , a graphene membrane provides the ultimate sample support for electron microscopy : with a thickness of only one atom , it is the thinnest possible continuous material . this , together with the low atomic number of its constituent atoms , results in a minimum in inelastic scattering contributions . due to its crystalline nature , a graphene support membrane is either completely invisible or , if the graphene lattice is resolved by a very - high - resolution microscope , its contribution to the imaging signal can be easily subtracted . graphene is also a good electrical conductor and therefore displays minimal charging effects from the electron beam . remarkably , we find that a graphene membrane enables single adatom sensitivity even when using a common tem that does not resolve a graphitic lattice . preparation of our free - standing graphene support membranes is described in the supplementary information . in order to observe adsorbates at the single - atom level , the graphene support membrane must be exceptionally clean . in contrast to an earlier graphene preparation method , taught in meyer , j . c ., et al ., the structure of suspended graphene sheets , nature , 446 , 60 - 63 and in the supplementary information to this publication ( doi : 10 . 1038 / nature05545 ), our approach does not rely on electron beam lithography and is simple enough to be reproducible in any basic microscopy laboratory . in brief , we start with graphene cleaved onto a substrate using an adhesive tape . graphene pieces are identified by optical microscopy , and subsequently transferred to quantifoil ™ tem grids . we use electron diffraction analysis as described in meyer et al . to verify the presence of a single layer . fig4 a shows a low magnification view of a graphene sheet suspended across the 1 . 3 μm holes of the perforated carbon foil , with a close - up shown in fig4 b . more than 50 % of the area on these graphene membranes appears exceptionally clean , with no dramatic contrast in high - resolution tem images ( fig4 b ). as we now demonstrate , however , these “ clean ” regions contain individual adatoms that are readily observable by tem . although individual exposures can reveal useful data , a dramatic improvement in the signal - to - noise ratio is achieved by summing multiple subsequent frames ( corrected for sample drift ), which effectively increases the exposure time beyond the dynamic range of the tem ccd detector . summing as few as 5 frames yields striking visual improvement with atomic - scale features ( including individual atoms ) becoming readily apparent , and summing 100 frames reduces the noise to below 0 . 12 % ( standard deviation in a relatively featureless region of the graphene membrane ). fig5 a shows a tem image in which an individual carbon atom , attached to the graphene membrane , is identified by an arrow . we recorded eight consecutive , essentially identical images to that of fig5 a ( each a summation of 20 frames on the ccd ), demonstrating that the carbon atom did not adsorb or desorb during the time of exposure . to identify the adatom , image simulations were carried out using the electron atomic scattering factors of doyle , p . a ., et al ., relativistic hartree - fock x - ray and electron scattering factors , acta cryst . a , 24 , 390 ( 1968 ) and peng , l . m ., electron atomic scattering factors and scattering potentials of crystals . micron , 30 , 625 ( 1999 ) for carbon , as shown in fig5 b . the good agreement between the tem data and image simulation confirms the carbon atom identification . closer inspection of fig5 a indicates not only additional similar carbon adatoms , but also faint atomic - scale structure distinctly different from carbon adatoms . to highlight these faint features , we show in fig5 d a summation of 100 consecutive tem frames for the same physical region . in this representation the carbon adatoms display sharp contrast at the saturation of the gray level scale . fig5 d reveals a moderate density of additional dark features ( dark gray points , a selection of which are identified with red arrows ) with identical intensity profiles , all with a central dip reduction near 0 . 6 % of the mean bright - field intensity ( fig5 e ). by comparing the tem image data for these additional features to adatom simulations , we rule out any adatom heavier than helium , as well as a substitution of carbon atoms in the graphene membrane by other elements . however , a hydrogen adatom , based on the electron scattering factors of peng ( referenced above ), results in precisely the correct 0 . 6 % dip in the bright - field intensity , shown by the red curve in fig5 e . the large number of essentially identical adatom profiles , along with the excellent agreement with the simulated contrast , provides convincing evidence that we have , for the first time , detected individual hydrogen atoms by transmission electron microscopy . in addition to individual adatoms , we observe by the same tem imaging methods the generation ( by the electron beam ) and dynamics of defects ( vacancies ) in the graphene membrane , as well as the dynamics of a variety of molecular - scale adsorbates . the formation of vacancies due to knock - on damage by the electron beam is shown in fig6 a - c . we also observe vacancies that disappear by interaction with mobile adsorbates . larger adsorbates ( small molecules ) become trapped preferentially at defects , and can be observed at one position for typically one to five minutes . frequently , we see that the vacancy disappears along with the trapped adsorbate ( fig6 d - f ), and the missing carbon atom has obviously been resubstituted from the adsorbate . further , we can directly observe linear molecules on graphene membranes ( fig7 ) that resemble an individual alkane or alkene carbon chain . these molecules are found to spontaneously appear in the field of view , presumably adsorbed onto the graphene membrane from the vacuum contamination . we can follow their dynamics for a few minutes until they decompose in the electron beam , as shown in fig7 b - d . the remarkable tem imaging capability afforded by a suspended , single graphene membrane warrants further discussion . for an ideal graphene sheet , there are no components in the structure with a period larger than 2 . 1 å , which is beyond the information limit of approximately 2 . 9 å for the microscope used in the present studies ( jeol 2010 operated at 100 kv ). therefore , although the ideal graphene membrane cannot be resolved under these conditions , any perturbation to the crystalline structure can be detected as long as a sufficient number of electrons can be recorded for statistical significance . indeed , our graphene membranes are highly stable in the electron beam at 100 kv , allowing long data collection times on one region . for example , all images in fig5 - 7 are recorded from graphene membranes after between one and three hours of irradiation ( at ca . 7a / cm2 ). moreover , the summation of 100 consecutive ccd frames corresponds to an exposure time of 20 minutes , and distortions in the membrane during this time are below the resolution limit . this combination of a crystalline , atomically thin membrane along with the high beam stability and the absence of an amorphous background signal on the nominally clean membrane enable this unprecedented single - light - atom sensitivity in tem . in comparison , single - walled carbon nanotubes ( swnts ) show strong deformations under the same dose and energy of electron irradiation , probably because the cylindrical geometry allows beam - induced defects to relax via local deformations more easily . the observation of stable and well - localized hydrogen adatoms on graphene , in spite of the irradiation and room temperature conditions , imply that these are chemisorbed rather than physisorbed atoms . strong bonding of hydrogen to graphite is possible if the nearest carbon atom changes its bonds from sp2 to sp3 configuration , with the carbon atom displaced from the plane by about 0 . 36 å ( fig5 f ). moreover , it was found that hydrogen cannot bind to graphene if the carbon is confined to a plane ( e . g . by strong bonding to a substrate ), while an isolated membrane can deform easily to accommodate different types of bonds . from the observed density of hydrogen adatoms , we conclude that only about 0 . 3 % of the carbon atoms in the graphene membrane are in an sp3 configuration with a hydrogen adatom . our real - time observation of molecular dynamics has important implications for chemical diffusion and reaction dynamics studies . as demonstrated above , a variety of molecular scale adsorbates become trapped on the membrane , and often detach again or decompose after a few minutes . we can observe individual alkane - type molecules and we can even follow their migration . observing this kind of molecule in the tem has important implications because it represents an essential ingredient of organic chemistry . it therefore appears likely that other , more complex , molecules can be observed after deposition on graphene membranes . we find that the carbon chains are sufficiently stable and localized for characterization even at room temperature , and note that these adsorbates were only trapped on the membrane after a moderate density of defects had been created by irradiation . in conclusion , we have demonstrated that graphene membranes enable a tem visualization of ultra - low contrast objects . the imaging of individual hydrogen and carbon adatoms and carbon chains demonstrates a new level of sensitivity that is relevant for organic materials . a key strength of the tem is its ability to image individual entities rather than averaging over an ensemble , and direct imaging promises insights ranging from the characterization of complex chemicals and nanomaterials to biological molecules . the extremely high sensitivity that a graphene membrane in the transmission electron microscope provides with respect to adsorbates has allowed us to detect even hydrogen , demonstrating the ultimate in tem atomic sensitivity . while the study of defects , vacancies and edges of the graphene sheet itself will provide insights for potential electronic modifications of this new material , the placement of objects on graphene membranes will enable unprecedented analysis by tem , including electron spectroscopic analysis , and the study of molecular dynamics . while the present invention has been described with reference to the specific embodiments thereof , it should be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention . in addition , many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation , material , composition of matter , process , process step or steps , to the objective , spirit and scope of the present invention . all such modifications are intended to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto .

US-40993809-A

a method of achieving radial alignment between an active device subassembly and an optical fiber subassembly of an optical package is disclosed . the method relies on the use of mating sections with essentially identical outer diameters . the subassemblies are brought into contact and are first joined at the two points where the edges of the piece parts coincide . it has been determined that by continuing the attachment process at symmetric locations about one of the flush points , minimal disturbance of throughput efficiency will be maintained . the optical throughput is continually monitored to determined at which particular flush point the attachment process should proceed . in particular , as soon as the throughput efficiency drops below a predetermined value , the attachment process is rotated to continue at the opposite flush point .

fig1 shows a completed package 10 with a laser 12 mounted on a stud 14 and an optical fiber 16 feeding through a ferrule 18 and aligned with laser 12 . the package can be considered as comprising two separate subassemblies ; a laser subassembly 20 and a fiber subassembly 22 . the focus of this invention is primarily related to the radial ( x , y ) alignment of these two subassemblies , since the alignment of the two is often critical to the reliability of the final package . fig2 illustrates in detail an exemplary laser subassembly 20 . laser 12 is attached to a mount 24 which is part of stud 14 . since the output from a laser is a divergent beam with a divergent angle in the range of , for example , 10 ° to 50 °, a collimating lens 26 is positioned near the exit port of laser 12 . as shown in fig2 lens 26 is placed in an opening in a platform 28 using a retaining spring 29 . lens 26 is then positioned in the x - direction ( indicated in the figure ) until the required spacing s betweeen laser 12 and lens 26 is achieved . in most cases , this spacing should be in the range of 10 - 20 μm . active alignment is then performed to position the axis of lens 26 relative to the output from laser 12 . in one active alignment procedure , a video system is used where the optical axis of the lens is first aligned with a fiduciary on a video screen . laser 12 is then activated and the emission through lens 26 is viewed on the screen at a relatively far distance (& gt ; 150 mm ). the position of platform 28 is then adjusted until the emission aligns with the fiducial marking . once alignment is achieved , platform 28 is attached to mount section 24 of stud 14 . in order to achieve high reliability and insure that the relative positions of laser 12 and lens 26 remain constant , a series of laser welds are used to attach platform 28 to mount 24 . three such laser welds are illustrated in fig2 . a similar set of welds are used to attach the opposite side of platform 28 to mount 24 ( not shown ). referring back to fig1 the remainder of laser subassembly 20 and fiber subassembly 22 will be described . included in laser subassembly 20 is a first graded - index ( grin ) lens 32 positioned in front of lens 26 and used to focus the output from laser 12 to a small spot size . first grin lens 32 is held in a first retainer 34 which mates with the housing surrounding laser 12 . a second grin lens 36 is positioned at the rear of laser 12 , and is used to focus the output from the rear face of laser 12 , where this light output is used to monitor the operation of laser 12 . a second retainer 38 is used to hold grin lens 36 in place . referring to exemplary fiber subassembly 22 , a ferrule 18 holds fiber 16 and is surrounded by a z - direction adjustment sleeve 40 . fiber ferrule 18 may be axially moved within sleeve 40 to achieve the optimum axial alignment . a complete description of the use of this arrangement to perform the axial alignment is described in our copending patent application ser . no . 62 , 026 , filed on even date with this application . at the completion of the axial alignment procedure , the radial , or x , y - direction alignment of sleeve 40 to retainer 34 may proceed . in most cases , these two pieces may be formed to comprise the same , or nearly the same , outer diameter . this situation is necessary to achieve a reliable radial alignment . although faces 44 and 42 of retainer 34 and sleeve 40 , respectively , may be perfectly aligned in the x , y - direction at the completion of the axial alignment process , this is highly unlikely . thus , some type of radial alignment will be required . in the prior art , a straightforward active alignment was utilized , involving the movement of pieces 38 and 40 in the x and y directions until the light output was optimized . an improved x , y alignment process has been developed for use with this laser package , and can in general be used to provide the x , y alignment of any two cylindrical pieces having similar outer diameters . fig3 illustrates , in a side view , the portions of retainer 38 and sleeve 40 which are to be radially aligned . the offset between the pieces at the end of the z - lock process is shown illustratively as points 50 and 52 in fig3 . fig4 is a view taken along line 4 -- 4 of fig3 and clearly shows the pair of flush points fp1 and fp2 associated with the mating of retainer 38 and sleeve 40 . the x , y alignment process of the present invention , as stated above , is initiated by welding the pieces together at these flush points . we have discovered that by welding the flush points first and applying the remaining welds symmetrically about these flush points , the motion between retainer 38 and sleeve 40 can be controlled . during this welding procedure , the output through fiber 16 is continuously monitored . based upon any changes in this output during the welding operation , the process of the present invention will prioritize the weld location about the more favorable flush point . this prioritization of weld location is an important feature of the inventive process . as mentioned above , an advantage of the inventive radial alignment and attachment process is that it may be automated . fig5 is a flowchart which illustrates in detail the radial attachment process of the present invention , where this flowchart may serve as the basis for an automated alignment operation . as shown , the process begins at step 100 by measuring the initial coupling power between retainer 34 and sleeve 40 ( any other measure of throughput efficiency may also be employed ) and noting such as cp ( 0 ). a portion of this power , referred to as a threshold value th , is then determined by the relation the purpose of threshold value th will be discussed later in association with a subsequent step in the process . proceeding along the flowchart , step 102 relates to identifying the two flush points , designated fp1 and fp2 . at step 104 , a laser weld is performed at fp1 and the coupling power ( or any other measure of throughput efficiency ) is recorded and noted as cp ( 1 ). a laser weld is then performed at fp2 and the coupling power recorded as cp ( 2 ), as noted at step 106 . proceeding along to step 108 , a number of initialization operations are next performed . in particular , a pointer associated with fp1 , designated pt1 , and a pointer associated with fp2 , designated pt2 , are initialized at a &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; value . a weld counter wc is initialized at a value of 2 , referring to the pair of weld which have already been performed at fp1 and fp2 during steps 104 and 106 , respectively . in association with the prioritizing feature of the inventive process , decision step 110 compares the value of cp ( 1 ) with the quantity cp ( 2 )- th . threshold value th , determined in this example to be 1 % of the initial coupling power , is substracted from cp ( 2 ) to compensate for the nominal fluctuations in laser output . it is to be understood that value other than 1 %, for example , 0 . 5 % or 2 %, may be used in equation ( 1 ) to determine the appropriate threshold value . returning to decision step 110 , as long as cp ( 1 ) is greater than or equal to the quantity cp ( 2 )- th , the welding process will continue at fp1 . on the other hand , if cp ( 1 ) is less than this quantity , the welding process will proceed at fp2 . in general , the welding process will continue around the flush point where the coupling is greater . assuming that the value of cp ( 1 ) is greater , the process will continue down the left - hand branch of the flowchart , designated with the letter a , beginning the welding sequence at fp1 , as noted by step 112 . in particular , a pair of welds are then made at positions on either side of fp1 , as indicated by step 114 . the relative distance between these weld sites ( pos ) being defined by separation in degrees . for example , a series of welds 10 degrees apart may be made around the complete circumferential seam between retainer 34 and sleeve 40 . thus , a total wc of 36 will be required to complete the operation . referring to step 114 , it is seen that the weld site positions are determined by the relation where fp1 is measured in degrees . therefore , since the pointer pt1 has been initialized to a value of &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; in step 108 , the first two welds will be made at positions ± 10 ° from fp1 . for example , if fp1 is located at 45 °, the two welds will be made at 55 ° and 35 °. it is to be understood that in the alternative , a series of welds 5 degrees apart may be used , for a wc total of 72 . the total number of welds is merely a matter of choice and convenience to the user . for the purposes of the present discussion , it will be assumed that a total of 36 welds , 10 degrees apart , are being used . after the first pair of welds is completed , the various counters are incremented in step 116 . in particular , pointer pt1 is incremented by the value &# 34 ; 1 &# 34 ; so that the position of the next set of welds will be located 20 ° from fp1 , as derived from equation ( 2 ). the weld counter wc is incremented by the value &# 34 ; 2 &# 34 ;, since two more welds have been completed . the process is then checked by decision step 118 to ascertain if all of the welds have been made . if weld counter wc were equal to 36 , the process would end , as indicated by step 120 . at this moment , the wc in our example has a value of &# 34 ; 4 &# 34 ;, so the process continues to step 122 , which measures the present coupling power of the arrangement , denoted as cp ( wc ). as described above , the coupling power is measured at the end of each welding operation of check for any drop in coupling power . as shown in decision step 124 , the current value of cp ( wc ) is compared to the quantity pc ( wc - 2 )- th . as long as the current coupling power is at least equal to the previously recorded value minus the fluctuation threshold , the process will loop back to step 114 and continue to make pairs of welds , following the steps outlined above . referring back to decision step 124 , if the current value of cp ( wc ) drops below the defined quantity , the welding operation is rotated to the remaining flush point fp2 in order to minimize any movement between the parts during this radial alignment and attachment process . this movement to prioritize welding locations is vital to the practice of the method of the invention . this movement is indicated in the flowchart at step 126 , which redirects the welding operation to branch b , associated with the welding operation at fp2 . the welding operation at this flush point is identified at step 128 . the first pair of welds around fp2 is then made at step 130 , where the positions of these welds is determined in the same manner as associated with step 114 , using the same equation ( 2 ), substituting pt2 for pt1 and fp2 for fp1 . the counters are then incremented at step 132 and the total weld count wc , which keeps a running sum regardless of which branch in the flowchart is being followed , is then evaluated at decision step 134 . again , if wc is equal to 36 , the process ends at step 120 . otherwise , the process continues at step 136 by measuring the current coupling power cp ( wc ). the subsequent decision step 138 then compares this value to the quantity cp ( wc - 2 )- th . as long as the current value is at least equal to this quantity , the welding process will loop back to step 130 and continue to perform welds around flush point fp2 . once the output drops , the process , as controlled by decision step 138 , movest to step 140 , which redirects the welding operation back to fp1 . it is obvious that , in accordance with the prioritization aspect of the inventive method , the welding operation may rotate any number of times between fp1 and fp2 to maintain the optimum coupling efficiency between retainer 38 and sleeve 40 . alternatively , if the coupling efficiency is nearly optimum to begin with , the entire welding operation may be accomplished by applying symmetric welds about only one flush point . fig6 is a chart of the values associated with an exemplary radial alignment and attachment operation performed in accordance with the present invention . the left - hand column , denoted &# 34 ; weld sequence &# 34 ; records the incrementing values of counter wc . the next column specifies the actual location of the welds , measured in degrees . the related value of coupling power cp ( wc ) is listed in the right - hand column . as noted above , prior to beginning the inventive radial alignment process , the coupling power is measured , denoted wc ( 0 ). the next two welds , numbered 1 and 2 , are made at fp1 and fp2 , respectively . proceeding down the chart , the next three pairs of welds ( wc 3 - 8 ) were made surrounding fp1 ( 175 °) at locations ± 10 °, ± 20 °, and ± 30 °, respectively . the coupling power measured after the third pair of welds is seen to have dropped off significantly . therefore , in accordance with our inventive method , the alignment and attachment operation shifted to fp2 ( 355 °). in this example , four pairs of welds were made before the power dropped . the process then reverted to applying symmetric welds about fp1 . as seen by reference to fig6 the coupling power stabilized after aproximately two - thirds of the total number of welds had been made . it is to be understood that minor variations in this process sequence are well within the scope of the present invention . as mentioned above , the actual number of welds performed is a matter of choice . additionally , various steps within each loop of branches a and b may be interchanged without affecting the process . for example , step 122 related to measuring current coupling efficiency may be moved ahead of step 116 ( counter incrementing step ). in fact , the coupling may be measured after each separate weld is completed . additionally , the coupling efficiency comparison decision step 124 may be moved ahead of the weld count decision step 118 . however , this results in performing a computation which may be unnecessary if the total wc has already been attained . however , these and other modifications in the process sequence will have no affect on the over - all inventive process , related to the formation of symmetric welds about known flush points and the monitoring of coupling power to prioritize subsequent weld locations .

US-6162987-A

a mobile radio telecommunication system and method provide battery - saving receiving of mobile stations . the mobile station autonomously changes the period of intermittence according to the frequency of paging in order to reduce the power consumption of the mobile station . when there has not been paging processing for a fixed time , the mobile station autonomously prolongs the period of intermittence and reregisters a new period of intermittence . in case there has been paging processing , the mobile station shortens the period of intermittence . if blocking has occurred for paging from the cell site , the cell site incorporates blocking information into a broadcast signal , informs the mobile station of occurrence of blocking , and registers a new period of intermittence .

outline of battery saving in a mobile station based upon the present invention will now be described by referring to fig1 a , 1b and 1c . fig1 a shows the case where there is not originating and paging processing for a long time . in this case , the mobile station lengthens the period of intermittence ( period of receiving power - on / off ) gradually . when the originating and paging frequency is low , therefore , on - time of receiving power of the mobile station is autonomously shortened and off - time is lengthened . in the long run , the period of intermittence is maximized to have a constant interval . fig1 b shows the case where there has been originating and paging processing . for each of originating and paging events , the period of intermittence is shortened . in the long run , the period of intermittence is minimized to have a constant interval . fig1 c shows the case where blocking is caused due to a long period of intermittence in the mobile station even if paging is sent from the cell site . at this time , the cell site incorporates blocking information into a broadcast signal and sends the broadcast signal to the mobile station . by referring to this information in the broadcast signal , the mobile station shortens the period of intermittence in the same way as the originating and paging processing to prepare for the next paging . fig2 and 3 show flow charts of an embodiment of the present invention . fig2 is a flow chart showing an example of battery saving receiving method of a mobile station . at step 201 in fig2 each mobile station recognizes a current period of intermittence from its own memory at the time of power - on and sets a period of intermittence . then at step 202 , the mobile station itself determines whether the timing is one of intermittent - on or one of intermittent - off on the basis of a timer and a flag set by itself . on the basis of this determination , the mobile station turns off the receiving power for the intermittent - off timing and turns on the receiving power for the intermittent - on timing . at step 203 , the mobile station determines whether it has received a signal from the cell site . if a signal has not been received , transition to step 204 is made . if the received signal is a paging signal , paging traffic is accepted and transition to paging processing is made . if a broadcast signal has been received , information indispensable to the radio telecommunication system contained in the broadcast signal is taken out and registered , and thereafter transition to step 204 is made . if a signal has not been received yet or a broadcast signal has been received at the time of rise of the mobile station , ( originating or ) paging traffic is checked at step 204 to determine whether there has been ( originating or ) paging in a fixed time .. if there has been originating or paging , transition to step 202 is made . if there has not been originating or paging for a fixed time and the current period is not the maximum value , processing advances to step 205 where the period of intermittence is prolonged and registered on the memory of the mobile station . and the cell site is informed of the period of intermittence thus changed at step 206 . if clearing processing has been conducted after processing of paging connection processing , the period of intermittence is shortened at step 207 and transition to step 206 is made . at step 206 , the cell site is informed of the period of intermittence thus changed . by the configuration heretofore described , the period of intermittence is decreased in the shortening direction when paging traffic is heavy whereas the period of intermittence is increased in the prolonging direction when paging traffic is light . therefore , the mobile station is capable of autonomously changing the period . in case there has not been paging traffic for a long time and the period of intermittence has been prolonged , the probability that a paging request made by a receiver is blocked becomes higher . at this time , the mobile station is informed of occurrence of blocking in the cell site , and the period of intermittence is shortened by the mobile station . flow of this operation is shown in fig3 . in fig3 the cell site first determines at step 301 whether a paging request has been made by a caller . if there is no request , the cell site continues to wait for a paging request while remaining in the stable state . if there is a request , transition to step 302 is made . although the cell site has sensed the paging request , the cell site cannot send immediately a paging signal because battery saving is being performed between the cell site and the pertinent mobile station . more specifically , a superframe is used which is formed of a set of tdma frames shown in fig6 a described later . at a leading portion of the superframe the cell site synchronizes with the mobile station to enable transfer of signals such as a control signal therebetween . when the cell site performs a signal reception processing to the mobile station , a waiting processing is effected until a timing or time slot of a frame which is predetermined in the superframe comes . the battery saving is performed for such a waiting period . now , the superframe format is known from rcr std - 28 established by the research and development center for radio system , japan . therefore , it is necessary to recognize the timing of rise of the pertinent mobile station at the step 302 . in parallel with the recognition of the rise , it is also determined at step 303 whether the caller has canceled the paging request . the flow is divided into the case where paging processing is conducted before the paging request from the caller is canceled at the above described step 303 and the case where the paging request is canceled before the mobile station rises and blocking is thus caused . in case the paging connection has been completed , processing passes through the flow path located under the step 302 and transition to step 304 is made after clearing . in case blocking has been caused , processing passes through the flow path located under the step 303 and the pertinent mobile station is informed of the broadcast signal including blocking information at the timing of rise of the pertinent mobile station and thereafter transition to the step 304 is made . in case paging connection has been performed , the mobile station considers that the paging traffic has increased at the timing of succeeding clearing , sets a shorter period of intermittence , and informs the cell site of the period of intermittence . also in case blocking has occurred , the mobile station sets a shorter period of intermittence according to the blocking information contained in the broadcast signal and informs the cell site of the period of intermittence . on the side of the cell site , therefore , arrival of a period of intermittence which is expected to become shorter from the mobile station is waited for . once the period of intermittence changed from the mobile station has been registered , processing advances to step 305 where the cell site knows and stores the period of intermittence of the mobile station and transition to step 301 is made . even in case blocking has occurred , the mobile station is thus informed of a broadcast signal inclusive of blocking information and hence battery saving receiving adapted to paging traffic can be conducted . fig4 shows an example of a block configuration diagram of a cell site . the cell site includes an internal timer 101 ; a memory 102 for storing a mobile station id 103 periodically transmitted from a mobile station , battery - saving receiving period information 104 , and battery - saving receiving time 105 in association with each other ; and a control unit 100 for storing blocking information 106 indicating that blocking has occurred , in case a paging signal is sent to a pertinent mobile station in response to a paging request made by a pbx or a public switched telephone network control unit and an answer is not returned from the mobile station in response to the paging signal , in the memory so as to be associated with a mobile station id on the memory and for informing the mobile station of the blocking information according to the information on the memory . fig5 shows an example of a block configuration diagram of a mobile station . the mobile station includes an internal timer 111 , a memory 115 for storing battery - saving receiving period information to intermittently exercise on / off control over a receiving unit , and a control unit 110 for periodically transmitting the battery - saving receiving period information to a cell site and increasing decreasing the battery - saving receiving period information on the memory according to presence / absence of blocking information fed from the cell site to control the battery - saving receiving period . fig6 a , 6b and 6c show the schematic configuration of a tdma ( time division multiple access ) frame used for communication between a cell site and a mobile station . while taking 5 msec as a period as shown in fig6 a , a tdma frame is assigned to time slots transmitted from the cell site to the mobile station and time slots transmitted from the mobile station to the cell site . the paging signal , broadcast signal , and the like from the cell site are transmitted by using a control slot 140 . the battery - saving receiving period information , location registration information , and the like from the mobile station are transmitted by using a control slot 141 . for attaining synchronization of the mobile station , the cell site always transmits down time slots at fixed periods . the mobile station determines timing of up time slots on the basis of the down time slots in the receiving - on interval and transmits necessary information . in case a plurality of cell sites are adjacent , the down control slot is further divided in the initial state under the control of control units such as pbxs connected to respective cell sites and respective cell sites successively transmit the cell site ids by using slots of their own sites included in slots resulting from division . further , the mobile station determines the nearest cell site on the basis of electric field strength and the like and performs location registration inclusive of the cell site id and its own mobile station id by using an up control slot . the protocol of them is used in a typical radio telecommunication system and detailed description thereof will be omitted . in accordance with the present invention , the mobile station informs the cell site of the battery - saving receiving period at the time of the location registration or at the time of succeeding battery - saving receiving - on state . thereby , the nearest cell site successively stores the id of the mobile station , battery - saving receiving period , and time when the cell site was informed of battery - saving receiving period in its internal memory . thereby , it becomes possible to exercise autonomously control over the battery - saving receiving period of the mobile station in accordance with teachings of the present invention . because the cell site is capable of knowing the receiving - on interval of each mobile station and hence it is possible to incorporate the id of a mobile station , in which blocking has occurred , into a broadcast signal in a sure receiving - on interval and order the mobile station to shorten the battery - saving receiving period of the mobile station . as described above , the mobile station can determine whether blocking has occurred on the basis of the broadcast signal fed from the cell site . when blocking has occurred , therefore , the mobile station shortens the battery - saving receiving period so long as it is not the minimum period ( 60 seconds in case of fig5 ). after the mobile station has informed the cell site of the battery - saving receiving period thus shortened , the mobile station prepares for paging . in case the battery - saving receiving period has been shortened , the blocking information on the memory 118 is cleared . if it is also determined that blocking has occurred on the basis of the broadcast signal when receiving is turned on at the next timing , the battery - saving receiving period is further shortened . in accordance with the present invention , control is so exercised that the battery - saving receiving period may be lengthened when the paging traffic is light whereas the battery - saving receiving period may be shortened when the paging traffic is heavy as heretofore described in detail . therefore , flexible period setting according to the paging traffic quantity of the mobile station becomes possible , which has not been possible when using conventional fixed battery - saving receiving period setting according to time zone . furthermore , even for blocking of paging caused when a long battery - saving receiving period is set , the cell site has means for storing it and making a recovery . therefore , there is assured relief means for reducing probability of blocking of the next repaging without leaving blocking as it is even if the battery - saving receiving period is prolonged . thus the present invention brings about many advantages .

US-99615092-A

the smart lock - in circuits basically include a sensor , two stacked pmos transistors , two stacked nmos transistors , and a feedback line . if the sensing voltage does not reach the expected voltage compared to the midpoint voltage of the sensor , the output voltage of the sensor turns on the corresponding transistor , which provides a current to its output until the voltage at feedback reaches the midpoint voltage . the time to reach the midpoint voltage at a filter is simply equal to the charge stored at the filter divided by the current , which can be scaled by a device aspect ratio of the transistor . consequently , all smart lock - in circuits provide an initial loop condition closer to the expected loop condition according to schedule .

in the following detailed description of the present invention , five types of the smart lock - in circuits , numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a through understanding of the present invention . however , it will be obvious to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details . in other instances , well known methods , procedures , cmos digital gates , components , and metal - oxide - semiconductor field - effect transistor ( mosfet ) device physics have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the present invention . fig2 illustrates a block diagram of two types of the smart lock - in circuits for phase - locked loops in accordance with the present invention . one type of the smart lock - in circuit is applied for phase - locked loops including a filter 216 connected between v c and ground , as seen in the phase - locked loop 210 shown in fig2 . the other type of the smart lock - in circuit called “ p - type smart lock - in circuit ” is applied for phase - locked loops including a filter 226 connected between v dd and v c , as seen in the phase - locked loop 220 shown in fig2 . to reduce the difference between the initial loop condition and the locked condition , the outputs of the smart lock - in circuit 214 and the p - type smart lock - in circuit 224 are coupled to the outputs of the filter 216 and the filter 226 , respectively , as shown in fig2 . the phase - locked loop 210 excluding the smart lock - in circuit 214 represents all types of phase - locked loops including a filter 216 connected between v c and ground without regard to the types of phase - locked loops because the applications of the smart lock - in circuit 214 is independent of architectures and types of phase - locked loops . the phase - locked loop 220 excluding the p - type smart lock - in circuit 224 represents all types of phase - locked loops including a filter 226 connected between v dd and v c without regard to the types of phase - locked loops because the applications of the p - type smart lock - in circuit 224 is independent of architectures and types of phase - locked loops . the filters 216 and 226 are low - pass filters . if these filters are multiple - order low - pass filters , then they will be approximated to the first - order filter with neglecting resistor in the filter for simplicity . fig3 illustrates a basic smart lock - in circuit according to the present invention . this basic smart lock - in circuit 300 does not have power - down mode in order to show the fundamental concept of the invention clearly . the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 is a feedback circuit that consists of lower - voltage sensing inverters 302 and 312 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ), higher - voltage sensing inverters 304 and 324 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ), two stacked pmos transistors 306 and 308 , two stacked nmos transistors 326 and 328 , and a feedback line 310 . the gate terminal of a pmos transistor 308 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or ground ( e . g ., “ 0 ”, low , etc .). the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 326 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or power supply voltage ( e . g ., v dd , “ 1 ”, high , etc .). it is assumed that the output of the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 is at ground . since the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 302 initially senses a voltage less than the lower midpoint voltage of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 302 , the output voltage of the second lower - voltage sensing inverter 312 is low enough to turn on the pmos transistor 306 . at the same time , the output voltage of the second higher - voltage sensing inverter 324 is low enough to turn off the nmos transistor 328 . thus , the pmos transistor 306 provides a current ( i . e ., i p ) to the output until the output voltage ( i . e ., v c ) goes up to the lower midpoint voltage of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 302 . the time to reach the lower midpoint voltage at the filter connected between v c and ground is as follows : where v m is the lower midpoint voltage determined by the device aspect ratios of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 302 and c p is the value of the capacitor in the filter . thus , the lock - in time of the phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and ground is approximately given by ( ω in - ω m ) 2 ω 0 3 + v m ⁢ c p i p where ω in is the input signal frequency , ω m is the voltage - controlled oscillator &# 39 ; s frequency for v c = v m , and ω 0 is the loop bandwidth . this lock - in time is varied by the current i p depending on the size of the pmos transistor 306 . it is assumed that the output of the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 is at power supply . since the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 304 initially senses a voltage greater than the higher midpoint voltage of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 304 , the output voltage of the second higher - voltage sensing inverter 324 is high enough to turn on the nmos transistor 328 . at the same time , the output voltage of the second lower - voltage sensing inverter 312 is high enough to turn off the pmos transistor 306 . thus , the nmos transistor 328 provides a current ( i . e ., i n ) to the output until the output voltage ( i . e ., v c ) goes down to the higher midpoint voltage of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 304 . the time to reach the higher midpoint voltage at the filter connected between v c and power supply is as follows : δ ⁢ ⁢ t = ( v dd - v m ⁡ ( h ) ) ⁢ ⁢ c p i n where v m ( h ) is the higher midpoint voltage determined by the device aspect ratios of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 304 and c p is the value of the capacitor in the filter . thus , the lock - in time of the phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and power supply is approximately given by ( ω in - ω m ⁡ ( h ) ) 2 ω 0 3 + ( v dd - v m ⁡ ( h ) ) ⁢ c p i n where ω in is the input signal frequency , ω m ( h ) is the voltage - controlled oscillator &# 39 ; s frequency for v c = v m ( h ) , and ω 0 is the loop bandwidth . this lock - in time is varied by the current i n depending on the size of the nmos transistor 328 . the midpoint voltage is a voltage where the input voltage and the output voltage of the inverter are equal in the voltage transfer characteristic . at the midpoint voltage , the transistors of the inverter operate in the saturation mode . this midpoint voltage of inverter is expressed as in design of the basic smart lock - in circuit of fig3 , it is also desirable to use a value for the lower midpoint voltage , v m , less than v c ′ and a value for the higher midpoint voltage , v m ( h ) , greater than v c ′. v c ′ is the voltage that makes the frequency of the voltage - controlled oscillator equal to the input signal &# 39 ; s frequency . fig4 illustrates a smart lock - in circuit 400 according to the present invention . a power - down input voltage , v pd , is defined as the input voltage for power - down mode . the power - down enable system is in power - down mode when v pd is v dd and it is in normal mode when v pd is zero . the smart lock - in circuit 400 is a feedback circuit that consists of lower - voltage sensing inverters 402 and 412 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ), two stacked pmos transistors 406 and 408 , two stacked nmos transistors 426 and 428 , a feedback line 410 , and a power - down nmos transistor 442 . in addition , the gate terminal of a pmos transistor 408 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or ground ( e . g ., “ 0 ”, low , etc .). the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 426 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or power supply voltage ( e . g ., v dd , “ 1 ”, high , etc .). furthermore , the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 428 is shorted and thus no current flows into the drains of the nmos transistors 426 and 428 . the circuit mode changes from power - down mode to normal mode in fig4 . since the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 402 initially senses a voltage less than the lower midpoint voltage of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 402 , the output voltage of the second lower - voltage sensing inverter 412 is low enough to turn on the pmos transistor 406 . the pmos transistor 406 generates a current ( i . e ., i p ) to the output until the output voltage ( i . e ., v c ) goes up to the lower midpoint voltage of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 402 . furthermore , the lock - in time of the phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and ground is approximately given by ( ω in - ω m ) 2 ω 0 3 + v m ⁢ c p i p where ω in is the input signal frequency , ω m is the voltage - controlled oscillator &# 39 ; s frequency for v c = v m , and ω 0 is the loop bandwidth . also , v m is the lower midpoint voltage determined by the device aspect ratios of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 402 and c p is the value of the capacitor in the filter . the lock - in time is varied by the current i p depending on the size of the pmos transistor 406 . in design of the smart lock - in circuit of fig4 , it is also desirable to use a value for the lower midpoint voltage , v m , less than v c ′. v c ′ is the voltage that makes the frequency of the voltage - controlled oscillator equal to the input signal &# 39 ; s frequency . the smart lock - in circuit 400 is used for all types of phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and ground . since the power - down nmos transistor 442 is on during power - down mode , it provides an output pull - down path to ground . thus , v c of the smart lock - in circuit 400 is zero so that no current flows into the circuits during power - down mode . fig5 illustrates a dual smart lock - in circuit 500 in accordance with the present invention . the dual smart lock - in circuit 500 is a modification of the circuit described in fig4 . the gate terminal of a pmos transistor 508 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or ground ( e . g ., “ 0 ”, low , etc .). the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 526 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or power supply voltage ( e . g ., v dd , “ 1 ”, high , etc .). furthermore , compared to fig4 , the first difference to note is that the higher - voltage sensing inverters 504 and 524 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ) are added into fig5 in order to provide the higher - voltage sensing function . the second difference to note is that the output of the second higher - voltage sensing inverter 524 is connected to the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 528 . therefore , the dual smart lock - in circuit 500 is able to sense the lower - voltage as well as the higher - voltage while the smart lock - in circuit 400 is able to sense only the lower - voltage . no current flows into the drains of the nmos transistors 526 and 528 assuming v c & lt ; v m ( h ) where v m ( h ) is the higher midpoint voltage decided by the device aspect ratios of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 504 . if v c is greater than v m ( h ) , the gate voltage of the nmos transistor 528 is v dd . as a result , a current flows into the drains of the nmos transistors 526 and 528 until v c goes down to v m ( h ) . in design of the dual smart lock - in circuit of fig5 , it is also desirable to use a value for the midpoint voltage , v m , less than v c and a value for the higher midpoint voltage , v m ( h ) , greater than v ′ c . v ′ c is the voltage that makes the frequency of the voltage - controlled oscillator equal to the input signal &# 39 ; s frequency . v m is the midpoint voltage decided by the device aspect ratios of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 502 . the dual smart lock - in circuit 500 is used for all types of phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and ground . zero dc volt at v c ensures that no current flows into the circuits during power - down mode . fig6 illustrates a p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 according to the present invention . the power - down input voltage , v pd , is defined as the input voltage for the p - type power - down mode as well as for the power - down mode . the p - type power - down enable system is in power - down mode when v pd is v dd and it is in normal mode when v pd is zero . the p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 is a feedback circuit that consists of a higher - voltage sensing inverters 604 and 624 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ), two stacked pmos transistors 606 and 608 , two stacked nmos transistors 626 and 628 , a feedback line 610 , a power - down inverter 614 , and a power - down pmos transistor 642 . in addition , the gate terminal of a pmos transistor 608 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or ground ( e . g ., “ 0 ”, low , etc .). the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 626 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or power supply voltage ( e . g ., v dd , “ 1 ”, high , etc .). furthermore , since the pmos transistor 606 is turned off , no current flows out of the drains of the pmos transistors 606 and 608 . also , v m ( h ) is the higher midpoint voltage decided by the device aspect ratios of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 604 . the circuit mode changes from p - type power - down mode to normal mode in fig6 . since the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 604 initially senses a voltage greater than v m ( h ) , the output voltage of the second higher - voltage sensing inverter 624 is high enough to turn on the nmos transistor 628 . the nmos transistor 628 generates a current ( i . e ., i n ) to the output until the output voltage , v c , goes down to v m ( h ) . thus , the lock - in time of the phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and power supply is approximately given by ( ω in - ω m ⁡ ( h ) ) 2 ω 0 3 + ( v dd - v m ⁡ ( h ) ) ⁢ ⁢ c p i n where ω in is the input signal frequency , ω m ( h ) is the voltage - controlled oscillator &# 39 ; s frequency for v c = v m ( h ) , and ω 0 is the loop bandwidth . also , c p is the value of the capacitor in the filter and v m ( h ) is the higher midpoint voltage determined by the device aspect ratios of the first higher - voltage sensing inverter 604 . the lock - in time is varied by the current i n depending on the size of the nmos transistor 628 . in design of the p - type smart lock - in circuit of fig6 , it is also desirable to use a value for the higher midpoint voltage , v m ( h ) , greater than v c ′. v c ′ is the voltage that makes the frequency of the voltage - controlled oscillator equal to the input signal &# 39 ; s frequency . the p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 is used for all types of phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and power supply . the output voltage of the power - down inverter 614 , v pdb , is zero during power - down mode . as a result , the power - down pmos transistor 642 is turned on and thus provides an output pull - up path to v dd . therefore , v c of the p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 is v dd so that no current flows into the circuits during power - down mode . on the contrary , it was stated earlier that v c must be zero when power - down mode occurs in fig4 and fig5 . fig7 illustrates a p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 in accordance with the present invention . the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 is a modification of the circuit described in fig6 . the gate terminal of a pmos transistor 708 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or ground ( e . g ., “ 0 ”, low , etc .). the gate terminal of a nmos transistor 726 is connected to a proper fixed - bias voltage ( not shown ) or power supply voltage ( e . g ., v dd , “ 1 ”, high , etc .). compared to fig6 , the first difference to note here is that the lower - voltage sensing inverters 702 and 712 ( i . e ., an even number of inverters ) are added into fig7 in order to sense the lower - voltage . the second difference to note here is that the output of the second lower - voltage sensing inverter 712 is connected to the gate terminal of the pmos transistor 706 . the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 is able to sense the lower - voltage as well as the higher voltage while the p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 is able to sense only the higher voltage . no current flows out of the drains of the pmos transistors 706 and 708 if v c is greater than v m . v m is the lower midpoint voltage decided by the device aspect ratios of the first lower - voltage sensing inverter 702 . if v c is less than v m , the pmos transistor 706 is turned on until v c goes up to v m . in design of the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit of fig7 , it is also desirable to use a value for the higher midpoint voltage , v m ( h ) , greater than v ′ c and a value for the lower midpoint voltage , v m , less than v ′ c . v ′ c is the voltage that makes the frequency of the voltage - controlled oscillator equal to the input signal &# 39 ; s frequency . the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 is used for all types of phase - locked loops including the filter connected between v c and power supply . v c = v dd in the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 ensures that no current flows into the circuits during power - down mode . in summary , the five smart lock - in circuits of the present invention simply control how fast the phase - locked loops become locked from an initial condition . also , they provide a solution for harmonic locking problem . furthermore , three smart lock - in circuits 300 , 500 , and 700 are highly effective for lc oscillator which has a very narrow tuning range . the balance between pmos output resistance and nmos output resistance is important to obtain high output resistance . furthermore , the cmos process variations usually must be considered so that the proper value of the midpoint voltage is chosen for all the smart lock - in circuits 300 , 400 , 500 , 600 , and 700 . each bulk of two stacked pmos transistors can be connected to its own n - well to obtain better immunity from substrate noise in all smart lock - in circuits 300 , 400 , 500 , 600 , and 700 . the smart lock - in circuit 214 shown in fig2 represents the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 , the smart lock - in circuit 400 , and the dual smart lock - in circuit 500 , as shown in fig3 , fig4 , and fig5 , respectively . also , the p - type smart lock - in circuit 224 shown in fig2 represents the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 , the p - type smart lock - in circuit 600 and the p - type dual smart lock - in circuit 700 , as shown in fig3 , fig6 , and fig7 , respectively . it is noted that spice is used for the simulation of phase - locked loops . the conventional phase - locked loop 110 and the phase - locked loop 210 including the basic smart lock - in circuit 300 of the invention are simulated using the same components . as a result , the total simulation time of the conventional phase - locked loop 110 is 20 hours and that of the phase - locked loop 210 is 1 . 9 hours . this improvement can be accomplished by simply inserting a proper one of the five smart lock - in circuits into any conventional phase - locked loop , and the simulation time can be reduced by a factor of 10 . so far , it should be noted that the same time step has been used for the spice simulation in order to accurately measure and compare the simulation time of all circuits . all the smart lock - in circuits of the present invention are very efficient to implement in system - on - chip ( soc ) or integrated circuit ( ic ). the present invention provides five different embodiments which achieve a drastic improvement in a very fast lock - in time , lock - in time controllability , performance , time - to - market , power consumption , stand - by time , cost , chip area , and design time . while the present invention has been described in particular embodiments , it should be appreciated that the present invention should not be construed as being limited by such embodiments , but rather construed according to the claims below .

US-3683705-A

a recreational vehicle safety system includes two independently operable automatic shutoff valve assemblies . one valve assembly is attached directly to the recreational vehicle &# 39 ; s appliance high - pressure fuel tank in such a manner as to be operable in all conceivable crash situations , and the other is connected downstream from the appliance fuel line &# 39 ; s high - pressure regulator and is designed to close off the fuel flow when a fuel line breaks or small gas leaks are present , such as when an appliance pilot light goes out . provided also with these valve assemblies are a gas sensor and warning light and audible alarms located about the recreational vehicle to alert campers to potentially dangerous malfunctions . electrical and manual resets are provided for the safety system , so that the recreational vehicle &# 39 ; s appliances can be made operable again if a malfunction occurs in the wilderness , remote from needed tools and expert mechanical assistance .

the following description is provided to enable any person of ordinary skill in the field of recreational vehicles to install and use the described recreational vehicle safety system as it is set forth herein . the embodiment of the invention disclosed herein is the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying his invention into practice . various modifications , however , will remain readily apparent to those skilled in the above art since the generic principles of the present invention can be applied to provide other forms of the applicable safety system . referring to fig1 a schematic of the recreational vehicle safety system of the present invention is disclosed to assist in understanding the advantage of the present invention . it should be fully realized the schematic is not drawn to scale and the various component parts making up the schematic can be positioned both on the exterior and on the interior of the recreational vehicle . for example , the propane fuel tank 140 that is generally utilized in recreational vehicles is usually mounted on the exterior of the vehicle and in the case of a towed vehicle is frequently mounted above the towing bar in the front of the towed camper . the smoke and gas detector or sensors 82 would be mounted within the interior of the recreational vehicle along with the appliances 160 . lights or visual indicators 90 can be mounted both on the exterior and the interior of the recreational vehicle and additionally can be mounted in a cab compartment or in an independent vehicle that is towing the camper to warn the driver . referring to fig1 a tank 140 of a conventional design will usually be mounted on the exterior of the recreational vehicle . attached to and within the tank 140 will be a first automatic valve shutoff assembly 100 that will be subsequently described herein . connected in the fuel line downstream of the first shutoff valve assembly 100 is a conventional high - pressure regulator 150 which is set to maintain a desired constant downstream pressure level regardless of the amount of fuel , such as propane , in the tank 140 . the use of a high - pressure regulator is conventional and accordingly it is not necessary to describe the specific details herein . further , connected downstream from the high - pressure regulator 150 is the second automatic shutoff valve assembly 10 . this portion of the recreational vehicle safety system is capable of operating independently of the first automatic shutoff valve assembly 100 and thereby provides an important supplemental safety feature . the second automatic shutoff valve assembly 10 is operatively connected to a smoke and gas detector 82 and various visual and audio warning signals which will be described subsequently herein . an appropriate gas and fume sensor can be of the type sold by the pitco company model 212g , santa ana , calif ., and accordingly the specific constructional details need not be described herein . the sensor 82 has the capability of detecting butane , propane , carbon monoxide , natural gas , gasoline vapor and other oxidizable gases and of producing an audible alarm at a relatively low level of concentration substantially below the flash point . the sensor 82 can incorporate a hot filament surface barrier semiconductor device whose resistance will increase linearly with increasing gas concentration . a regulatory circuit insures that a constant direct current voltage is applied across the filament surface , thus isolating it from any vehicular battery voltage changes . the sensor 82 is capable of generating external signals indicating a gas concentration of at least 1000 ppm to drive any audio or visual alarm . finally , connected downstream from the second automatic shutoff valve 10 are the recreational vehicle appliances 160 . referring now to the cross - sectional view of fig2 the second automatic flow shutoff valve assembly 10 has a housing member which is comprised of a body member 12 upon which two end caps 14 and 16 are sealably attached . other configurations of the valve housing could be utilized . fuel enters the valve assembly 10 from the fuel line as shown by arrow 38 . the flow is into an axial passageway 18 of cap 14 . cap 14 itself will have various types of conventional means for coupling to fuel lines which need not be disclosed herein . fuel flows from this passageway 18 into passageway 36 located in the body member 12 and from there into passageway 20 located in cap 16 . cap 16 also has similar conventional means the same as cap 14 for coupling to fuel lines . fuel will then flow from the valve assembly 10 into the fuel line as indicated by arrow 40 . two explosion proof conventional solenoids 26 and 30 are mounted within the axial passageways of valve assembly 10 . the solenoids 26 and 30 can be of the type sold as mini - solenoid actuators which can be purchased from electro - mechanisms , inc ., p . o . box a , azusa , calif . 91702 . one of the solenoids 26 , is cantilever mounted within cap 14 by a mounting ring 23 , and is used to drive a valve plug member 42 against a conical valve seat 38 when any abnormal condition is detected by the safety system . solenoid 26 has a connector wire 28 extending through cap 14 in a nonconducting sheath 29 to act as one electrical lead to the solenoid 26 . the other lead 22 to the solenoid 26 is grounded to the valve assembly 10 . the second solenoid 30 is also cantilever mounted in cap 16 by a second mounting ring 25 . this solenoid 30 can drive the valve member 42 away from its valve seat 38 when an electrical reset 84 , as shown in fig1 is manually activated to reset the safety system . the solenoid 30 has a connector wire 32 extending through cap 16 in a nonconducting sheath 33 . this wire acts as one electrical lead to solenoid 30 . the other lead 24 is grounded to the valve assembly 10 . in order to understand how the automatic valve assembly 10 operates , reference is made to passageway 36 located in the body member 12 . this flow passageway has a circular cross section with a uniform diameter somewhat smaller than the diameter of the axial passageways 18 and 20 . its function is to act as a fluid conduit and guide for the valve plug member 42 . valve plug member 42 is of approximately the same diameter as passageway 36 and is also circular in cross section . preferably the valve plug 42 is formed of a plastic material that is inert to the fluid . since axial passageway 36 is of nearly the same diameter as valve plug member 42 , almost no fuel would flow through the central portion of the valve assembly 10 were it not for four louvers or channels 37 ( two of which are shown by arrow 37 ) arranged about passageway 36 and spaced 90 ° from each other . these louvers 37 are conical in shape and interface with passageway 18 in the preferred embodiment . they may be , however , semi - cylindrical in shape to point 45 in passageway 36 . these conical louvers 37 narrow in the downstream direction ; that is , the radial height from central axis of valve 10 decreases until they become flush with the surface of passageway 36 at a point shown by arrow 45 . thus , fuel can flow through the louvers 37 past valve member 42 and into passageway 36 at point 45 . alternatively , the axial passageway 36 can be enlarged and alignment extensions ( not shown ) be placed on the plug member 42 . valve plug member 42 is biased away from its valve seat 38 by a relatively small spring force spring 46 which is mounted at one end on an annular shoulder 47 in the axial passageway 36 and at the other end against an annular shoulder 49 located on valve plug 42 . by selecting a spring force of an appropriate value , the valve assembly 10 can be made to shut off when a sufficient predetermined abnormal pressure differential occurs between the upstream entrance 18 and downstream exit 20 to valve assembly 10 . it is the force of this abnormal pressure differential which drives the valve plug member 42 in the downstream direction toward its valve seat 38 against the resistance of spring 46 . referring to fig3 the valve plug member 42 is shown in contact with its valve seat 38 . this means an abnormal condition has been detected such as a break in the downstream fuel line to produce a sufficient pressure differential to drive valve plug member 42 against its valve seat 38 or a sensing of gas . in this configuration , solenoid 26 has been sequentially automatically activated by a short duration current pulse to further drive the valve plug member 42 against the seat 38 . the valve plug member 42 will remain firmly seated because of the pressure differential now existing between the upstream and downstream ends of valve assembly 10 and the friction of pin 72 to be discussed subsequently . if the high - pressure regulator 150 had malfunctioned , the pressure upstream of valve plug member 42 might be so great as to hold valve member 42 against its valve seat even against the force of return solenoid 30 and spring 46 . this means that the high - pressure regulator 150 would have to be repaired first before the safety system can be reset , which is an additional safety feature of the present invention . a valve plug detector 60 serves a dual purpose in that it not only activates close solenoid 26 but also activates the alarm indicators 90 when the valve plug member 42 is in a closed position . detector 60 will further turn on solenoid 26 when the valve member 42 is forced against the valve seat 38 as will hereinafter become more readily apparent in reference to fig9 . the detector 60 is located in the wall of body member 12 at a point in the valve assembly 10 , see fig2 where a detector pin 72 can extend a short distance into the axial passageway 36 just upstream from the valve seat 38 . referring to fig9 the detector 60 has a nonconducting cap 62 which screws into the wall of body member 12 and forces a metal sleeve 63 , against a resilient and flexible diaphragm 64 . the sleeve 63 clamps the flexible diaphragm 64 against the body member 12 so that the diaphragm hermetically seals the valve assembly 10 from any fuel leakage from passageway 36 into interior chamber 78 of detector 60 . this hermetic seal further prevents an explosive condition due to fuel leaking into the interior chamber 78 . the diaphragm 64 further exerts a downward spring force through pin 72 against the valve plug member 42 to help maintain its seated position . a radially adjustable conducting pin 66 is screwed into the center of cap 62 . by adjusting the pin 66 to different radial heights , the valve can be set to shut off at different fuel pressures within passageway 36 irrespective of any movement of valve plug member 42 because excess fuel pressure alone will tend to drive the diaphragm 64 upwards toward pin 66 . thus , a further safety feature is provided indicating an excessive pressure in the fluid line . for example , if the pressure regulator froze due to low temperature and moisture in the fluid , the sensed high pressure could close the automatic shutoff valve assembly 10 . pin 66 also acts as one electrode 66 for the valve detector 60 . the detector 60 and electrode 66 are shown schematically in fig1 as switch 60 and lead 66 . one end of the pin 66 , external to the detector 60 has a screw bit 68 for radial adjustment of the pin height . the other end of the detector 60 has a spring 70 attached to it so that pin 66 will contact the pin 72 in a flexible manner . spring 70 prevents the pin 66 from directly contacting with pin 72 . an inflexible direct contact could interfere with valve plug member 42 during its movement toward valve seat 38 . pin 72 is movably mounted in a shaft 74 located in a wall of housing body member 12 and is made of a nonconducting material such as plastic . the pin 72 projects through a hole 71 in the center of the diaphragm 64 . just below hole 71 , pin 72 has a flange 73 which is broader than shaft 74 , and which thereby prevents pin 72 from falling into the passageway 36 of the valve assembly 10 . above the pin flange 73 , a helical thread ( not shown ) is provided so that a metallic nut 77 can be fastened . when nut 77 is screwed down to the fullest extent , it forces the diaphragm 64 against flange 73 of pin 72 , thereby forming a hermetic seal to prevent fuel from leaking into the interior chamber 78 of the detector 60 , and causing an electric contact to be made with a surface metallic coating ( not shown ) located on the top of diaphragm 64 . the metallic coating extends to and contacts metal sleeve 63 which in turn is grounded to the valve assembly 10 . accordingly , nut 77 is in electrical contact with the valve assembly 10 . the metallic coating affixed to the interior surface of diaphragm 64 can be a copper print spray material sold by g . c . e . electronics , rockford , ill . as an alternative to the metallic coating , a thin , flexible conductive metal strip or wire extending from the nut 77 to the valve assembly 10 can be used . when diaphragm 64 is in its unflexed condition and when valve plug member 42 is in an open condition as shown in fig2 pin 72 will extend a short distance into axial passageway 36 and the metallic 77 nut on its other end will be out of contact with spring 70 . when the valve plug member 42 moves forward toward valve seat 38 , it contacts pin 72 and forces it radially outward . when the valve plug member 42 is fully seated as shown in fig3 the nut 77 on pin 72 contacts spring 70 and closes the electrical switch 60 by bringing the conducting pin 66 into electrical contact with the valve assembly 10 . when switch 60 is closed , the relay 81 is activated , which in turn , causes solenoid 26 to be activated . this will also cause warning lights 90 to be activated . fig1 shows the relay 81 in an open condition . since pin 72 is movably mounted in shaft 74 , fuel could leak up the shaft and into the detector chamber 78 were it not for the hermetic seal of diaphragm 64 . pin 72 is made of nonconducting material . therefore , no fuel is in contact with any spark that might cross from nut 77 to spring 70 to possibly set off an explosion . because fuel will enter shaft 74 , its pressure alone will tend to drive the diaphragm 64 upward . by adjusting pin 66 to different radial heights , the switch 60 can be designed to close at different fuel pressures within the valve assembly 10 irrespective of whether the valve plug member 42 is driven against the valve seat 38 . thus , even though there might not be sufficient pressure differential across the valve assembly 10 to cause valve member 42 to move , any preset excessive fuel pressure condition in the fuel line alone will cause the diaphragm 64 to flex upward so that nut 77 contacts spring 70 thereby closing switch 60 which , being in electrical series with solenoid 26 as shown in fig1 will thereby cause solenoid 26 to force the valve plug member 42 against the valve seat 38 . an electrical power source for the system will usually be the direct current storage battery 50 of the recreational vehicle , which usually has its negative side grounded and its positive side leading via a bus to the various devices and switches within the recreational vehicle . the bus and grounds themselves , are not shown as they are well known in the prior art . the electrical circuit disclosed herein is , therefore , only a functional representation of an actual electrical system . when switch 60 closes , the completed electrical circuit will light the warning lights 90 and operate the relay 81 ( which could be optionally time delayed if desired ) to activate the closing solenoid 26 . these warning lights 90 can be disposed about the recreational vehicle at strategic locations ; e . g ., one can be placed in the driving compartment to alert the driver , another can be placed on the rear door to alert people entering the recreational vehicle &# 39 ; s camper section , and still another might be placed in the camper section itself . the smoke and gas detector 82 , is an added safety feature of the safety system . when it detects smoke or gas fumes of the type mentioned above , i . e ., carbon monoxide , propane gas fumes , smoke from fire and other oxidizable gases , etc ., it generates a signal current pulse as shown by fig1 to activate solenoid 26 to drive the valve plug member 42 against its valve seat 38 which , in turn , will cause the detector 60 to engage the warning lights in the safety system . it also activates audible alarm 91 , which with the smoke and gas detector can be provided in one container represented by dotted lines 83 . the audible alarm 91 will continue to sound so long as the smoke and gas detector 82 continues to detect the presence of the abnormal gas condition which set it off . as mentioned earlier , the smoke and gas detector 82 is capable of generating an electrical output signal when a variation in a resistance across the sensor filament is detected . basically , a regulated voltage is applied in series with the sensor filament and a measuring resistor ( not shown ). the measuring resistor can limit the current through the sensor . variations in the sensor resistance due to the presence of a gas will cause a voltage variance at the junction of the sensor and the resistor . this voltage variation can be applied to a voltage follower to isolate the resistive measuring circuit . the output of the voltage follower is applied to a comparator circuit . a reference voltage can be developed across a series network consisting of a resistor and a potentiometer . when the signal voltage detected across the sensor exceeds the reference voltage , the comparator is driven high which , in turn can drive a transistor element to a conducting state to provide an output enabling signal . to prevent an erroneous activation , for example , upon an initial lighting of a gas stove or transient cooking smoke , a time delay function ( not shown ) can be provided . an rc network having a predetermined time constant ( dc ) of , for example , 60 seconds can provide a voltage which is provided to the inverting junction of a start comparator . a reference voltage developed by the bias network on the noninverting junction holds the comparator in the on condition until the signal voltage reaches this reference value , when the output will go low . the output of the comparator is fed to the trigger comparator inverting junction to inhibit the alarm during the first minute of operation . a simple timing circuit 87 , shown in fig1 can limit the duration of the enabling signal applied to closing solenoid 26 to a predetermined duration . thus , the actual duty cycle of the solenoid 26 , can be controlled to prevent the accumulation of heat and damage to the solenoid coil . switch 84 represents a push button switch which must be manually depressed in order for it to operate . when this switch 84 is closed , solenoid 30 is engaged to drive the valve plug member 42 away from the valve seat 38 as shown in fig2 . this allows the valve assembly 10 to be reset if there are no abnormal conditions present . however , if any of the initial abnormal conditions are still present , the automatic valve assembly 10 will immediately shut itself off again when switch 84 is released . as can be seen , the shaft of solenoid 26 acts as a return limit for positioning the valve plug member 42 at an initial operative position . more than one reset switch 84 can be provided in alternative embodiments of the present invention , for example , resets might be placed with each warning light 90 . one or more switches 86 are provided so that the entire electrical system can be turned off during storage of the vehicle to prevent battery drain . in a preferred embodiment , one on / off switch and an alarm light 90 is located in the drivers &# 39 ; compartment and another set at the vehicle entrance door . the smoke and gas detector 82 has been provided with a reactivation time delay of approximately one minute after having been deactivated by switch 86 . therefore , before entering the vehicle , a person entering can be cautioned by suitable signs at the door switch to turn on the electrical system and wait one minute . if any gas has built up in the vehicle due to slow line leakage or extinguished pilots , etc ., the alarm signal 91 and alarm lights 90 will come on while at the same time , the solenoid 26 will close the valve member 42 . this sequence of events will warn the operator not to enter until the source of the difficulties has been located and rectified . it will be understood that even with the electrical system inactive , the automatic shutoff valve assembly 10 is still in operation . the first automatic shutoff valve assembly 100 which is designed for attachment directly to the nozzle of the high - pressure fuel tank 140 before any connection to a downstream fuel line is shown in cross section in fig4 . by connecting this valve assembly 100 directly to the tank , an additional safety feature is realized . thus , in case of a crash , and the high - pressure tank 140 is torn from the recreational vehicle , the automatic shutoff valve assembly 100 will go with the tank and not stay attached to the recreational vehicle and can shut off the high - pressure fuel tank 140 so that it will not spray highly flammable gas into the air near the scene of an accident . fuel from the high - pressure tank 140 enters valve assembly 100 via inlet port 104 and through a valve member retainer 106 , which is more clearly shown in fig8 as a cross - sectional view plane 8 -- 8 . this retainer 106 occupies only a diagonal portion of the circular cross - sectional passageway 104 . referring again to fig4 fuel will then flow into an alignment conduit occupied by guide stem 122 and a pair of lateral alignment struts 124 and 109 . referring to fig7 which is a cross - sectional view from plane 7 -- 7 in fig4 the struts 124 can supplement thin wires or integral molded members extending out and contacting the walls of passageway 104 . the purpose of guide stem 122 and the struts are to align valve plug member 108 within passageway 104 as valve plug member 108 moves up and down in passageway 104 . valve plug member 108 is preferably made from a plastic , inert to the fuel , and is positioned in passageway 104 . alternatively , the valve plug member 108 can be a conventional metal member with a resilient o - ring . valve plug member 108 is biased away from a valve seat 118 by spring 120 . the valve plug member 108 includes a mounting stem or stud portion 108 that supports the spring 120 . the helical coil diameter of the spring 120 is dimensioned to prevent any interference with the proper seating of the valve plug member 108 . the spring force generated is sufficient to incur that the valve plug member 108 is positioned in an open condition during normal fuel flow through an operative pressure regulator 150 . any excessively abnormal flow will create a sufficient pressure differential to close valve plug member 108 . valve plug member 108 has a circular cross section as can be seen by referring to fig6 which is a cross - sectional view from plane 6 -- 6 . the valve plug member 108 occupies a central space in passageway 104 , and has four lateral extensions 109 which interface with the wall of passageway 104 . this arrangement allows fuel to flow pass the lower portion of valve member 108 in its open condition while still permitting the upper portion of valve plug member 108 to be guided and seated properly with its valve seat 118 as shown in fig5 . mounted adjacent the valve plug member 108 in a supplemental high - pressure relief valve 126 having unrestricted flow communication with the fuel in the tank 140 . the valve 126 is a conventional relief valve designed to open and allow fuel to escape when the pressure in the tank 140 becomes excessive . therefore , if the recreational vehicle catches on fire and the automatic valve assembly 100 has closed , the tank 140 still will not explode because of intermittent pressure relief by relief valve 126 . the relief valve 126 includes a valving member 200 and a spring 202 to bias it to a closed position . a mounting plug 204 can be adjustably mounted to seat the spring 202 and provide a variable closing force . fuel flows by the valve plug member 108 , past valve seat 118 , and into chamber 110 . from there fuel will flow into the recreation vehicle &# 39 ; s fuel line through port 102 which can have a conventional type of coupling to couple the valve assembly 100 to the recreation vehicle &# 39 ; s fuel line . when pressure downstream from port 102 suddenly drops , such as when the high - pressure tank 140 is torn from the recreation vehicle in a collision or when the fuel line ruptures or possibly even when the high - pressure regulator 150 malfunctions , a pressure differential will develop across the valve plug member 108 which will overcome the resistance of spring 120 to cause the valve plug member 108 to be forced against its valve seat 118 , thus closing the valve assembly 100 as shown in fig5 . the valve assembly 100 must be manually reset . after the malfunction has been dealt with , the automatic valve assembly 100 can easily be reset by closing valve member 114 , which can further function as an on / off valve for the high - pressure fuel tank 140 . reset is accomplished because the valve stem 128 can protrude into chamber 110 when valve plug member 108 is seated against its valve seat 118 as shown in fig5 . when handle 112 is turned to gradually lower valve member 114 into chamber 110 , valve member 114 will contact the stem extension 128 and will force valve plug member 108 away from its valve seat 118 . this will allow fuel to enter chamber 110 and from there flow into the fuel line . if the malfunction has been repaired , the fuel pressure in chamber 110 will quickly equalize with the fuel pressure in the tank 140 and spring 120 will force valve plug member 108 away from its valve seat 118 to effectively reset the automatic valve assembly 100 . thus , the high - pressure tank 140 is provided with an on / off valve 114 which can act as a reset for the automatic shutoff valve assembly 100 . an alternative arrangement ( not shown ) is to have the extension 128 appended downward from the lower portion of valve member 114 instead of upward on valve plug member 108 so that when valve member 114 is moved into chamber 110 , the stem extension 128 would drive valve plug member 108 away from its valve seat 118 as described above . an additional novel feature exists in having a pair of automatic shutoff valves in the recreational vehicle &# 39 ; s safety system as above described . the high - pressure automatic shutoff assembly valve 100 is generally adjusted to be relatively insensitive to occasional drops in pressure because it must be designed to permit fluctuations during the operation of the high - pressure regulator 150 . however , the second automatic valve assembly 10 located downstream from the high - pressure regulator 150 can be very sensitive to the high - pressure . the valve assembly 10 will close first if the high pressure regulator 150 ever malfunctions , even if the high - pressure automatic valve assembly 100 does not close . furthermore , when the second automatic valve assembly 10 has closed , it will activate the warning signals to indicate that the high - pressure regulator has malfunctioned . if only the first automatic valve assembly 100 were to close , no such warning signals would be given . also , if the high - pressure regulator 150 can be repaired without disconnecting it from the fuel line , the safety system can be simply reset by a mere press of the reset button 84 instead of having to hand crank the manual reset 112 on the first automatic valve assembly 100 . many modifications may be introduced into the preferred embodiment discussed above without the departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . therefore , it is to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described above .

US-84345577-A

a baby stroller for transporting a child is disclosed . this baby stroller has a folding mechanism to facilitate folding for easier stowing and transporting . the folding mechanism , a unique feature of the design is directed toward compactness , ease of use , reliability , and reduction in manufacturing costs .

as shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration , the present invention is embodied in an all - terrain baby stroller 10 , as shown in fig1 , having a foldable , tubular metal frame 12 and a transversely extending rear axle assembly 14 with a transverse , non - rotating tubular rear axle 15 . left and right side rear wheels 16 are rotatably mounted to the ends of the rear axle assembly 14 . the forward end of the frame 12 has a single front wheel 18 rotatably mounted thereto . the frame 12 has no base frame members extending rearwardly from the front wheel 18 to the rear axle assembly 14 as do most conventional all - terrain strollers . instead , the frame 12 includes left and right side , downwardly and forwardly sloping front wheels frame members or supports 20 , which each extend downward from a corresponding one of left and right side folding assemblies 22 in a converging configuration to the front wheel 18 . a forward free - end 20 a of each of the left and right side front wheel supports 20 has a plastic front wheel connector 20 b fixedly attached thereto and a corresponding one of the left and right ends of an axle 18 a of the front wheel 18 removably attached thereto to mount the front wheel to the stroller frame 12 . the front wheel supports 20 are interconnected by a foot rest 23 that spans between them toward but rearward of their forward free - ends 20 a and that is fixedly attached to each at a position rearward of the axle 18 a of the front wheel and extending partially over the front wheel 18 . as a result of the interconnection provided by the foot rest 23 , and also the front wheel 18 when attached to the left and right side front wheel connectors , the left and right side front wheel supports 20 form a stationary unit with respect to the left and right side folding assemblies 22 upon folding and unfolding of the stroller 10 , as will be described in greater detail below . the frame 12 also includes left and right side , upwardly and rearwardly sloping handle frame members or supports 24 , which each extend upward from the corresponding one of the left and right side folding assemblies 22 in a generally parallel configuration to a handle 26 extending between the left and right side handle supports . the handle 26 is covered by a foam grip . the handle supports 24 are interconnected by the handle 26 that spans between them at their rearwardmost and uppermost extension and that is fixedly attached to each . as a result of the interconnection provided by the handle 26 , the left and right side handle supports 24 move as a unit with respect to the left and right side folding assemblies 22 upon folding and unfolding of the stroller 10 , as will be described in greater detail below . it is noted that in lieu of the interconnecting handle 26 , the handle supports 24 may each be provided with a handle portion at the upper end thereof such as used with umbrella style strollers . in the illustrated embodiment of the invention the left and right side handle supports 24 and the handle 26 are formed as an integral unit by bending a single length of aluminum tube . the left and right side handle supports 24 are movable relative to the left and right side front wheel supports 20 for folding of the stroller 10 and do not together form an integrated rigid upper frame . the frame 12 also includes left and right side , downwardly and rearwardly sloping rear wheel frame members or supports 30 , which each extend downward from the corresponding one of the left and right side folding assemblies 22 in a generally parallel configuration to the rear axle assembly 14 . a rearward free - end 30 a of each of the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 is fixedly attached to the tubular rear axle 15 toward a corresponding one of the left and right ends of the tubular rear axle 15 . the rear wheel supports 30 are interconnected by the rear axle assembly 14 that spans between them at the rearward free - ends 30 a thereof . a cross - frame member 31 with a u - shape extends between the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 . as a result of the interconnection provided by the rear axle assembly 14 and the cross - frame member 31 , the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 move as a unit with respect to the left and right folding assemblies 22 for folding and unfolding of the stroller 10 , as will be described in greater detail below . the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 are also movable relative to the left and right side front wheel supports 20 and the left and right side handle supports 24 for folding of the stroller 10 . further , the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 and the rear axle assembly 14 connected thereto do not form a part of a base frame extending between the rear and front wheels 16 and 18 . much of the structural strength of the stroller 10 and the interconnection of the front wheel supports 20 , the handle supports 24 , and the rear wheel supports 30 are provided by the centrally positioned left and right side folding assemblies 22 , and not by a base frame . in the illustrated embodiment of the stroller 10 , the left and right side front wheel supports 20 , the left and right side handle supports 24 , and the left and right side rear wheel supports 30 are made from aluminum tube . suitable alternative materials may be used . the left and right outward ends of the tubular rear axle 15 are open and internally threaded to receive a threaded stub axle 32 forming a part of the corresponding one of the left and right rear wheels 16 . a lock nut ( not shown ) when tightened against the face of the stub axle 32 locks the stub axle against loosening during usage of the stroller 10 . alternative constructions may be used to fixedly or removably attach the rear wheels 16 to the tubular rear axle 15 , and any suitable alternative manner of mounting the rear wheels 16 to the real wheel supports 30 may be used . the frame 12 of the stroller 10 is shown in fig1 in the fully unfolded state with a fabric seat 33 a , and a fabric leg support and guard 33 b . the seat 33 a is suspended from the left and right side handle supports 24 , and the leg guard 33 b spans between and is supported by the left and right side front wheel supports 20 . for purposes of illustration , the frame 12 is shown in fig2 without the seat 33 a and the leg guard 33 b . for the depicted implementation , user operation of the left and right side folding assemblies 22 will now be described . the left and right side folding assemblies 22 have the same construction , with one being the mirror image of the other , and the description below , while in the singular , is applicable to both . each of the left and right rear wheel supports 30 supports an inwardly extending lever 34 , which has a predominantly vertical orientation , as shown in fig3 , when the frame 12 of the stroller 10 is locked in the fully unfolded position . to begin the procedure to fold the frame 12 , each of the levers 34 is pulled upward and inward as depicted by arrows r 1 to thereby put the left and right side folding assemblies 22 in an unlocked state as further explained below . a strap ( not shown ) may be connected by its ends to the levers 34 to facilitate movement of both levers at the same time . with each of the left and right folding assemblies 22 in an unlocked state , the left and right handle supports 24 , along with the handle 26 , and the left and right front wheel support 20 , along with the front wheel 18 , can be rotated about the left and right folding assemblies , respectively , toward the left and right rear wheel supports 30 , respectively , as depicted by arrows r 2 shown in fig4 . as shown , when the stroller 10 is folded , the folding assemblies 22 allow a greater rotation angle for the handle supports 24 ( greater than 90 °) than for the front wheel supports 20 ( less than 90 °). as explained further below , the front wheel supports 20 move in geared coordination with movement of the handle supports 24 . as the frame 12 is being folded , the front wheel supports 20 are rotated clockwise about the folding assemblies 22 as viewed in fig4 , while the handle supports 24 are also rotated counterclockwise about the folding assemblies as viewed in fig4 . the frame 12 is shown in a partially folded state in fig5 . in a fully folded state , both the front wheel supports 20 and the handle supports 24 have been rotated in geared coordination with each other about the folding assemblies 22 to be positioned in close proximity to the rear wheel supports 30 as shown in fig6 . to do so the front wheel 18 is removed . the right side folding assembly 22 is shown in exploded view in fig7 and includes a laterally outward positioned forward rotatable member 35 ′ and a laterally inward rearward rotatable member 35 ″, each with a flat face facing toward the other . the forward rotatable member 35 ′ has a plate or disk 36 ′ with a central plate portion having a central aperture 37 ′. the forward rotatable member 35 ′ also includes a notch 38 ′, a radially outward internal gear 39 ′ in an elongated aperture 41 ′, and an arm 40 ′. the rearward rotatable member 35 ″ has a plate or disk 36 ″ with a central plate portion having a central aperture 37 ″. the rearward rotatable member 35 ″ also includes a notch 38 ″, a radially inward internal gear 39 ″ in an elongated aperture 41 ″, and an arm 40 ″. for each of the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″, the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ and the arms 40 ′ and 40 ″ are depicted as being formed as part of a single flat plate piece ; however , in other implementations the disks and arms are individual pieces that are fixedly attached together . the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″, along with a corresponding one of the rear wheel supports 30 , are contained between inner and outer slotted halves of a housing 42 that allow the arms 40 ′ and 40 ″ to protrude outside of the housing . the inside wall of each half of the housing 42 has a recess 42 a sized and shaped such that when the two halves of the housing are positioned together , the recesses form a cavity to receive an upper free - end portion 30 b of the corresponding rear wheel support 30 therein and an upper free - end portion of the cross - frame member 31 . a bolt ( not shown ) extends through an aperture 42 f in each half of the housing 42 and through an aperture 30 c in the upper free - end portion 30 b of the rear wheel support 30 and an aperture of the upper free - end portion of the cross - frame member 31 to securely clamp the rear wheel support and the cross - frame member between the inner and outer halves of the housing . the central apertures 37 ′ and 37 ″ of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″, respectively , are sized to receive a bushing 43 therethrough having a length longer than the cumulative thickness of the two disks . the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ are rotatably mounted on the bushing for rotation within the housing 42 in parallel rotation planes about an axis of rotation transverse to the plane of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″. the end portions of the bushing extending beyond the central apertures 37 ′ and 37 ″ each have a circumferential groove 43 a to receive a c - clip 43 b to retain the bushing 43 in place . the bushing 43 also extends through a washer 43 d positioned between the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ of the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ to serve as a spacer and bearing surface for rotational movement of the rotatable members about the bushing 43 . each of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ has a flat face in face - to - face juxtaposition with the flat face of the other disk with the washer 43 d positioned therebetween . the end portions of the bushing 43 extending beyond the c - clip 43 b are each positioned in and retained by a retaining cup 42 b formed by the inside wall of a correspondingly positioned one of the inner and outer halves of the housing 42 . each of the inner and outer halves of the housing 42 has an aperture 42 c in communication with the corresponding retaining cups 42 b . the bushing 43 has a longitudinally extending central aperture 43 c aligned with apertures 43 b of inner and outer halves of the housing 42 , and sized to receive a bolt 45 therethrough that extends fully through the inner and outer halves of the housing . a nut 45 a is threaded onto a threaded end portion of the bolt 45 to clamp the inner and outer halves of the housing 42 of the folding assembly 22 securely together with the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ freely rotatable on the bushing 43 and being spaced apart by the washer 43 d , and with the arm 40 ′ extending forwardly through a forward portion of a slot 42 e in the housing and the arm 40 ″ extending rearwardly through a rearward portion of the housing slot . the arms 40 ′ and 40 ″ are flat elongated plates . as noted above , the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ of the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ have their flat faces in face - to - face juxtaposition . this provides laterally adjacent parallel plates with elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″, each having the gear teeth of a corresponding one of the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ formed along an edge portion of the corresponding one of the elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″. the gear teeth of the radially outward gear 39 ′ of the disk 36 ′ are formed along the radially outward edge of the elongated aperture 41 ′, and the gear teeth of the radially inward gear 39 ″ of the disk 36 ″ are formed along the radially inward edge of the elongated aperture 41 ″. the planar disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ are arranged in spaced apart parallel planes , and the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ are similarly arranged in spaced apart parallel planes and not in a common plane or in direct engagement with each other . the elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″ are positioned on the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ so as to be at least in part overlapping during the rotation of the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ between the folded and unfolded states of the stroller 10 . a pinion gear 44 is positioned within the elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″ in simultaneous geared engagement with both the radially outward gear 39 ′ of the forward rotatable member 35 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″ of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″. the pinion gear 44 is positioned to extend through and beyond each of the elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″ of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ at a position where the elongated apertures overlap during folding and unfolding of the stroller 10 , and span fully between the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ in simultaneous geared engagement with both of the gears . the pinion gear 44 transmits the driving rotational force between the front wheel supports 20 and the handle supports 24 which causes one to rotate in response to rotation of the other . the pinion gear 44 is rotatably mounted on a pin 44 a that has each of its end portions extending beyond the pinion gear 44 positioned in the aperture of a flat bushing 44 b and rotatably retained by the flat bushing . each of the flat bushings 44 b is positioned in and retained by a retaining cup 44 c formed by the inside wall of a correspondingly positioned one of the inner and outer halves of the housing 42 . as such , the pinion gear 44 is supported by the housing 42 , which is rigidly attached to the corresponding one of the rear wheel supports 30 for movement therewith , of course , being rotatable about the axis of the pin 44 a . with such arrangement , the pinion gear 44 is rotatable about an axis of rotation transverse to the plane of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″, and parallel to and spaced apart from the axis of rotation of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″. the pinion gear 44 engages both the radially outward gear 39 ′ of the forward rotatable member 35 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″ of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″. consequently , through the pinion gear 44 , the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″ are mutually drivingly engaged with each other so that if either is rotated , the rotational force is transmitted through the pinion gear to the other to cause the other to also rotate about the bushing 43 . as such , if the front wheel supports 20 or the handle supports 24 are rotated relative to the rear wheel supports 30 , the other of the front wheel supports and the handle supports is driven to rotate as well . the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ have the same pitch since the pinion gear 44 engages both , but each has a larger pitch diameter than the pinion gear . however , the radially inward gear 39 ″ have a smaller radius of curvature or pitch diameter than the radially outward gear 39 ′, thus the resulting rotational movement of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″ will be greater than the rotational movement of the forward rotatable member 35 ′. in other words , for any amount the pinion gear 44 is rotated , the rearward rotatable member 35 ″ and hence the handle support 24 attached thereto will rotate more than the forward rotatable member 35 ″ and hence the front wheel support 20 attached thereto . this is useful since as noted above , and as shown in fig4 , to fold the front wheel supports 20 and the handle supports 24 tightly about the rear wheel supports 30 requires a greater rotation angle for the handle supports ( in one embodiment about ) 108 ° than for the front wheel supports ( in that same embodiment about 72 °). in another embodiment the rotation angle for the handle supports and the front wheel supports is the same ( in the second embodiment about 90 ° for each ). the pitch diameter for each of the radially outward gear 39 ′ of the forward rotatable member 35 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″ of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″, and the pitch diameter of the pinion gear 44 , are selected to produce the desired ratio of rotational movement for the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ to fold the stroller 10 into a compact form with the handle supports 24 and the front wheel supports 20 nested tightly against the rear wheel supports 30 . however , while the ability to select different pitch diameters for the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ is helpful , even a greater degree of design flexibility may be desirable . in another embodiment of the folding assembly 22 shown in fig1 and 12 , a pinion gear 44 ′ is shown having first and second pinion gear portions 44 x and 44 y , with the first pinion gear portion having a first pitch , a first pitch diameter and a first number of gear teeth , and the second pinion gear portion having a different second pitch , a second pitch diameter and a different second number of gear teeth . the first and second pinion gear portions 44 x and 44 y are made as a single part and rotate together as a unit in coaxial arrangement on the pin 44 a , but are essentially two pinion gears , each with its own gear parameters . the first pinion gear portion 44 x is positioned to engage the radially outward gear 39 ′ and has a pitch corresponding thereto and five gear teeth , and the second pinion gear portion 44 y is positioned to engage the radially inward gear 39 ″ and has a pitch corresponding thereto and four gear teeth . the first and second pinion gear portions 44 x and 44 y may have the same or different pitch diameters . in such manner , the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ and the first and second pinion gear portions 44 x and 44 y that engage them , respectively , may be designed with gear parameters to produce a wider range of differing amounts of rotational movement of the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ when folding and unfolding the stroller 10 . in effect , there is more design freedom and flexibility permitted since the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the first pinion gear portion 44 x pair can be designed with first gear parameters to produce a first rotational movement of the forward rotatable member 35 ′, and the radially inward gear 39 ″ and the second pinion gear portion 44 y pair can be designed with different second gear parameters to produce a different second rotational movement of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″, with independence in the first and second gear parameters selected . as noted above , with the first embodiment described only the pitch diameters of the radially outward and inward gears 39 ′ and 39 ″ differed , but in the embodiment of fig1 and 12 , the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the first pinion gear portion 44 x pair and the radially inward gear 39 ″ and the second pinion gear portion 44 y pair can be designed essentially independent of the other to produce a desired result , such as a desired ratio of rotational movement of the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″, and hence the desired ratio of rotational movement of the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ when folding and unfolding the stroller 10 . for example , this permits design of the folding assemblies 22 with more control over the amount of movement of both the handle supports 24 and the front wheel supports 20 relative to the rear wheel supports 30 resulting during folding of the stroller 10 and hence allows folding into a compact form where the handle supports and the front wheel supports can be moved to nest tightly against the rear wheel supports . in yet another embodiment of the folding assembly 22 shown in fig1 and 13 , a pinion gear 44 ″ is shown having first and second pinion gears 44 xx and 44 yy made as separate parts but fixedly attached together for rotation together as a unit on the pin 44 a , such as by welding , an insertion pin or some other manner . alternatively , the first and second pinion gears 44 xx and 44 yy may be keyed to the pin 44 a so long as the pin is free to rotate . the first pinion gear 44 xx has a first pitch , a first pitch diameter and a first number of gear teeth ( shown as five in this embodiment ), and the second pinion gear 44 yy has a different second pitch , a second pitch diameter and a different second number of gear teeth ( shown as four in this embodiment ). the first pinion gear 44 xx is positioned to engage the radially outward gear 39 ′, and the second pinion gear 44 yy is positioned to engage the radially inward gear 39 ″. as above , the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the first pinion gear 44 xx pair and the radially inward gear 39 ″ and the second pinion gear 44 yy pair can be designed with gear parameters essentially independent of the other to providing greater flexibility in designing the folding assemblies 22 to produce a desired ratio of rotational movement of the radially outward gear 39 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″, and hence the desired ratio of rotational movement of the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ when folding and unfolding the stroller 10 . the length of the radially outward gear 39 ′ of the forward rotatable member 35 ′ and the radially inward gear 39 ″ of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″, and also the length of the elongated apertures 41 ′ and 41 ″ within which the pinion gear 44 is positioned , impact the amount of rotation possible for the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″. the range of movement is limited by stops 51 ′ and 51 ″ attached to the perimeter portion of the forward and rearward rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″, respectively . each of the stops 51 ′ and 51 ″ extends laterally toward the adjacent rotatable member and radially outward of the perimeter of the adjacent rotatable member . the stops 51 ′ and 51 ″ are attached to the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ at positions along the perimeter of the rotatable member to which attached such that when the rotatable members are rotated to place the folding assemblies 22 in the fully unfolded state , as shown in fig8 , the stops 51 ′ and 51 ″ are in engagement and prevent further rotational movement of the rotatable members in that rotational direction . in the depicted implementation , the stops 51 ′ and 51 ″ are positioned to allow a rotation angle for the handle supports 24 of about 108 ° and for the front wheel supports 20 of about 70 °. it should be understood that while in the depicted implementation the front wheel supports 20 and the handle supports 24 are attached to the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ of the left and right side folding assemblies 22 ( and the rear wheel supports 30 fixedly attached to the housing 42 ), other implementations may have the rear wheel supports 30 and the handle supports 24 attached to the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ of the folding assemblies 22 ( and the front wheel supports 20 fixedly attached to the housing 42 ) such that they rotate to fold about the front wheel supports . similarly , the rear wheel supports 30 and the front wheel supports 20 may be attached to the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ of the folding assemblies 22 ( and the handle supports 24 fixedly attached to the housing 42 ) such that they rotate to fold about the handle supports . to prevent the unintended folding of the stroller 10 when the folding assemblies 22 are in a fully unfolded state , as shown in fig8 , each folding assembly has a releasable locking mechanism with a slidably mounted head 50 having a locking lug 52 . a spring 54 applies a bias force to the head 50 to maintain the locking lug 52 in contact with a smooth , rounded perimeter portion of each of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ of the folding assembly as the rotatable members are rotated close to the stroller fully unfolded state . the notches 38 ′ and 38 ″ of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ are positioned along a reinforced perimeter portion of the disks in a location where when the stroller 10 reaches the fully unfolded state , the notches are in alignment and the spring 54 will drive the head 50 forward to position the locking lug 52 in both notches , and hence prevent rotation of the disks toward the folded state . the portion of the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ around the notches 38 ′ and 38 ″ has increased thickness for added strength . the head 50 is slidably mounted in the housing 42 at a position above the recess 42 a receiving the upper free - end portion 30 b of the rear wheel support 30 . the upper end of the spring 54 engages the head 50 and the lower end engages a spring support 56 positioned inside the upper free - end portion 30 b of the rear wheel support 30 . the lever 34 for the folding assembly 22 is pivotally mounted to the rear wheel support 30 and has a nose portion extending through an aperture in the head 50 and in engagement with a pin within the head so that when the lever 34 is pulled upward and inward as depicted by the arrows r 1 in fig3 , the head 50 is moved downward , away from the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″, thereby causing the locking lug 52 to be retracted from the notches 38 ′ and 38 ″ and permitting the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ to rotate toward the fully folded state shown in fig6 in a generally clam shell movement to position the handle supports 24 and the front wheel supports 20 nested tightly against the rear wheel supports 30 . the folding assembly 22 is shown in fig9 between the unfolded and folded states with the locking lug 52 of the head 50 retracted from the notch 38 ′ and 38 ″. while the spring 54 supplies enough force to the head 50 to keep the locking lug 52 in the notches 38 ′ and 38 ″ to lock the stroller 10 in the fully unfolded state , the force is not so great as to require undue force to be applied to the lever 34 by the user to retract locking lug from the notches when the folding assembly is to be folded . each of the left and right side folding assemblies 22 has the corresponding left or right front wheel support 20 bolted onto the arm 40 ′ of the forward rotatable member 35 ′ and the corresponding left or right handle support 24 bolted onto the arm 40 ″ of the rearward rotatable member 35 ″. it should be understood that while the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ were depicted as including the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″, in other implementations the rotatable members 35 ′ and 35 ″ may have other shapes . another embodiment of an all - terrain baby stroller 10 ′ is shown in fig1 . this embodiment has the basic same design as the stroller 10 , but is designed to carry two children is side by side arrangement . the frame 12 of the stroller 10 ′, in addition to having the left and right side frame supports 24 , has a center frame support 24 ′ which extends upward from a center folding assembly 22 ′ ( shown in fig1 ) of the same construction as the previously described folding assemblies 22 , except the center folding assembly 22 ′ has left and right side outwardly extending levers 34 . either of the levers for the center folding assembly 22 ′ may be pulled upward and outward to place the center folding assembly 22 ′ in an unlocked state . much as with the folding assembly 22 described above , each lever 34 for the center folding assembly 22 ′ is pivotally mounted to a rear wheel support 30 ′ and has a nose portion extending through an aperture in the head 50 of the center folding assembly 22 ′, although from opposite sides thereof . movement of either lever 34 when pulled upward and outward causes the head 50 of the center folding assembly 22 ′ to moved downward , away from the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ of the center folding assembly 22 ′, thereby causing the locking lug 52 to be retracted from the notches 38 ′ and 38 ″ and permitting the disks 36 ′ and 36 ″ to rotate toward the fully folded state . a strap ( not shown ) may be connected by its ends to the lever 34 of the left side folding assembly 22 and to the left side lever 34 of the center folding assembly 22 ′, and another strap ( not shown ) may be connected by its ends to the lever 34 of the right side folding assembly 22 and to the right side lever 34 of the center folding assembly 22 ′ to facilitate movement of both levers to which the strap is connected at the same time . from the foregoing it will be appreciated that , although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration , various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims .

US-201213645981-A

an integrated process of producing mtbe by the dehydrogenation of isobutane and the etherification of the resulting isobutene with methanol is simplified by directly charging the effluent of a dehydrogenation zone without prior separation to an etherification zone arranged to provide countercurrent contact of isobutene and the methanol reactants such that an mtbe product is recovered as a bottoms stream and a relatively isobutene - free overhead stream is recycled to the dehydrogenation zone . overall separation facilities are simplified by only separating c 3 hydrocarbons from the etherification zone product stream . this arrangement eliminates c 3 separation facilities ahead of the etherification zone and reduces the quantity of c 4 hydrocarbons that are received by the separation zone . the reaction zone may contain a series of beds arranged to further eliminate the carry over of isobutene to the separation facilities . this arrangement also allows a recovery of unreactive or unreacted c 4 hydrocarbons from the top of the etherification zone .

one component of this invention is a dehydrogenation zone for the production of olefins from dehydrogenation hydrocarbons . fig1 shows the dehydrogenation zone represented schematically by box 10 . line 17 carries the primary feed to the dehydrogenation zone . dehydrogenatable hydrocarbons for this invention are hydrocarbons having 4 carbon atoms per molecule and saturated carbon bonds which may be unsaturated by the dehydrogenation process . a substantial portion of the dehydrogenatable hydrocarbons will be isobutane and the dehydrogenation process will produce isobutene . suitable feed for the dehydrogenation zone will often contain light hydrocarbons ( i . e ., those having less than four carbon atoms ) which , for the purpose of this invention , serve as contaminants . along with the dehydrogenatable hydrocarbons , the feed to the dehydrogenation zone of the present invention comprises an h 2 rich stream , preferably containing at least 75 mole percent h 2 . the presence of h 2 within the dehydrogenation zone serves several purposes . first , the h 2 acts to suppress the formation of hydrocarbonaceous deposits on the surface of the catalyst , more typically known as coke . secondly , h 2 can act to suppress undesirable thermal cracking . because h 2 is generated in the dehydrogenation reaction and comprises a portion of the effluent , the h 2 rich stream introduced into the reaction zone generally comprises recycle h 2 derived from separation of the dehydrogenation zone effluent . alternately , the h 2 may be supplied from suitable sources other than the dehydrogenation zone effluent . in fig1 line 20 transfer h 2 and recycle dehydrogenatable hydrocarbons from a hereinafter described source to line 18 . the combined dehydrogenatable hydrocarbon and h 2 are introduced into dehydrogenation reaction zone 10 via line 18 . the dehydrogenation reaction zone of this invention preferably comprises at least one radial flow reactor through which the catalytic composite gravitates downwardly to allow a substantially continuous replacement of the catalyst with fresh and / or regenerated catalyst . a detailed description of the moving bed reactors herein contemplated may be obtained by reference to u . s . pat . no . 3 , 978 , 150 which relates to a reactor system for the dehydrogenation of paraffinic hydrocarbons and u . s . pat . no . 3 , 647 , 680 which illustrates a continuous catalyst regeneration system for use therewith . the dehydrogenation reaction is a highly endothermic reaction which is typically effected at low ( near atmospheric ) pressure conditions . the precise dehydrogenation temperature and pressure employed in the dehydrogenation reaction zone will depend on a variety of factors such as the composition of the paraffinic hydrocarbon feedstock , the activity of the selected catalyst , and the hydrocarbon conversion rate . in general , dehydrogenation conditions include a pressure of from about 0 to about 3500 kpag and a temperature of from about 480 ° c . to about 760 ° c . a suitable hydrocarbon feedstock is charged to the reaction zone and contacted with the catalyst contained therein at a liquid hourly space velocity of from about 1 to about 10 . hydrogen , principally recycle hydrogen , is suitably admixed with the hydrocarbon feedstock in a mole ratio of from about 0 . 1 to about 10 . preferred dehydrogenation conditions , particularly with respect to c 3 - c 5 paraffinic hydrocarbon feedstocks , include a pressure of from about 0 to about 2000 kpag and a temperature of from about 540 ° c . to about 705 ° c ., a liquid hourly space velocity of from about 1 to about 5 , and a hydrogen / hydrocarbon mole ratio of from about 0 . 5 to about 2 . the dehydrogenation zone of this invention may use any suitable dehydrogenation catalyst . generally , the preferred catalyst comprises a platinum group component , an alkali metal component , and a porous inorganic carrier material . the catalyst may also contain promoter metals which advantageously improve the performance of the catalyst . it is preferable that the porous carrier material of the dehydrogenation catalyst be an absorptive high surface area support having a surface area of about 25 to about 500 m 2 / g . the porous carrier material should be relatively refractory to the conditions utilized in the reaction zone and may be chosen from those carrier materials which have traditionally been utilized in dual function hydrocarbon conversion catalyst . a porous carrier material may , therefore , be chosen from an activated carbon , coke or charcoal , silica or silica gel , clays and silicates including those synthetically prepared and naturally occurring , which may or may not be acid - treated as , for example , attapulgus clay , diatomaceous earth , kieselguhr , bauxite ; refractory inorganic oxides such as alumina , titanium dioxide , zirconium dioxides , magnesia , silica alumina , alumina boria , etc . ; crystalline alumina silicates such as naturally occurring or synthetically prepared mordenite or a combination of one or more of these materials . the preferred porous carrier material is a refractory inorganic oxide , with the best results being obtained with an alumina carrier material . the aluminas , such as gamma alumina , give the best results in general . the preferred catalyst will have a gamma alumina carrier which is in the form of spherical particles having relatively small diameters on the order of about 1 / 10 inch . the preferred dehydrogenation catalyst also contains a plantinum group component . of the platinum group metals , which include palladium , rhodium , ruthenium , osmium and iridium , the use of platinum is preferred . the platinum group component may exist within the final catalyst composite as a compound such as an oxide , sulfide , halide , oxysulfide , etc ., or an elemental metal or in combination with one or more other ingredients of the catalyst . it is believed that the best results are obtained when substantially all the platinum group components exist in the elemental state . the platinum group component generally comprises from about 0 . 01 to about 2 wt . % of the final catalytic composite , calculated on an elemental basis . it is preferred that the platinum content of the catalyst be between about 0 . 1 and 1 wt . %. the preferred platinum group component is platinum , with palladium being the next preferred metal . the platinum group component may be incorporated into the catalyst composite in any suitable manner such as by coprecipitation or cogelation with the preferred carrier material , or by ion - exchange or impregnation of the carrier material . the preferred method of preparing the catalyst normally involves the utilization of a water - soluble , decomposable compound of a platinum group metal to impregnate the calcined carrier material . for example , the platinum group component may be added to the support by commingling the support with an aqueous solution of chloroplatinum or chloropalladic acid . an acid such as hydrogen chloride is generally added to the impregnation solution to aid in the distribution of the platinum group component throughout the carrier material . additionally , the preferred catalyst contains an alkali metal component chosen from cesium , rubidium , potassium , sodium , and lithium . the preferred alkali metal is normally either potassium or lithium , depending on the feed hydrocarbon . the concentration of the alkali metal may range from about 0 . 1 to 5 wt . %, but is preferably between 1 and about 4 wt . % calculated on an elemental basis . this component may be added to the catalyst by the methods described above as a separate step or simultaneously with the solution of another component . with some alkali metals , it may be necessary to limit the halogen content to less than 0 . 5 wt . % and preferably less than 0 . 1 wt . %, while others may have higher halogen content . as noted previously , the dehydrogenation catalyst may also contain promoter metal . one such preferred promoter metal is tin . the tin component should constitute about 0 . 01 to about 1 wt . % tin . it is preferred that the atomic ratio of tin to platinum be between 1 : 1 and about 6 : 1 . the tin component may be incorporated into the catalytic composite in any suitable manner known to effectively disperse this component in a very uniform manner throughout the carrier material . thus , the component may be added to the carrier by coprecipitation . a preferred method of incorporating the tin component involves coprecipitation during the preparation of the preferred carrier material . this method typically involves the addition of a suitable soluble tin compound , such as stannous or stannic chloride to an alumina hydrosol , mixing these ingredients to obtain a uniform distribution throughout the sol and then combining the hydrosol with a suitable gelling agent and dropping the resultant admixture into an oil bath . the tin component may also be added through the utilization of a soluble decomposable compound of tin to impregnate the calcined porous carrier material . a more detailed description of the preparation of the carrier material and the addition of the platinum component and the tin component to the carrier material may be obtained by reference to u . s . pat . no . 3 , 745 , 112 . referring then to fig1 a hydrocarbon input stream comprising isobutane is charged to line 17 . the feed stream is combined with the contents of line 20 which comprises a hereinafter described recycle stream containing hydrogen and mixed c 4 hydrocarbons to obtain a dehydrogenation feed stream which passes to dehydrogenation zone 10 via line 18 . in zone 10 , the dehydrogenation feed stream is heat exchanged , heated , and transported to a dehydrogenation reactor section at a temperature of about 500 °- 700 ° c . and at a pressure of about 300 - 500 kpag . preferably , dehydrogenation zone 10 includes multiple stacked or side by side reaction zones , and a combined stream of hydrogen and hydrocarbon feed is processed in series flow through said zones each of which contains a particulate catalyst disposed as an annular - form bed movable downwardly through said zones . the combined stream is then processed through said annular - form beds in a substantially radial flow and , since the dehydrogenation reaction is endothermic in nature , intermediate heating of the reactant stream between zones is the preferred practice . regardless of the actual reactor details , the hot effluent stream from the reaction zones is heat exchanged against the incoming feed for heat recovery purposes . after heat exchange , effluent from dehydrogenation zone 10 which consists of mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s having a high concentration of isobutene , light hydrocarbons , and hydrogen at a temperature of about 50 °- 150 ° c . and a pressure slightly above atmospheric is carried to a compressor section 22 via line 24 . heat exchange of the effluent against the incoming feed reduces the effluent temperature to a point where passage through a compressor section will put the effluent at the desired inlet temperature for the mtbe unit . the compressor section raises the pressure of the dehydrogenation zone effluent from slightly above atmospheric to 300 - 700 kpag . this pressure is substantially lower than that usually required when a separation of light hydrocarbons and hydrogen is performed on the effluent from the dehydrogenation zone . in the arrangement of this invention , the discharge pressure from the compressor section need only reach that necessary to recycle unreacted component from the etherification reactor 12 back to the dehydrogenation process as further described herein . the dehydrogenation zone effluent enters the etherification reactor 12 at the discharge point of a line 28 and at a temperature of 40 °- 80 ° c . at these conditions , the dehydrogenation zone effluent is in vapor phase when it enters the etherification zone . the etherification zone will contain one or more beds of an acidic catalyst that is maintained at etherification conditions . a wide range of materials are known to be effective as etherification catalysts for the reaction of isobutene and linear alkyl alcohols . these catalysts include mineral acids such as sulfuric acid , boron trifluoride phosphoric acid on kieselguhr , phosphorous - modified zeolites , heterol poly acids , and various sulfonated resins . the use of a sulfonated solid resin catalyst is preferred . these resin - type catalysts include the reaction products of phenolformaldehyde resins and sulfuric acid and sulfonated polystyrene resins including those crosslinked with divinylbenzene . further information on suitable etherification catalysts may be obtained by reference to u . s . pat . nos . 2 , 480 , 940 , 2 , 922 , 822 , and 4 , 270 , 929 . suitable etherification conditions include superatmospheric pressure generally below 2000 kpag and a temperature between about 30 ° c . and about 100 ° c . a preferred temperature range for the process is from 50 °- 100 ° c . the actual operating conditions in the etherification zone are selected such that a substantial amount of the effluent from the compression section will be in vapor phase as it enters . it is preferred that the operating conditions for the etherification zone be selected such that the entire effluent from the compressor section is in vapor phase as it enters . optionally , for the purposes of obtaining complete vaporization of the effluent , it will be brought to conditions of about 350 kpag and 60 ° c . when it enters the etherification zone . methanol feed may be added to the top of the etherification catalyst bed or when there is more than one bed it may also be added at intermediate points between catalyst beds . the catalyst beds may be cooled to remove exothermic heat of etherification reaction and prevent excessive temperatures in the catalyst bed which lead to vaporization and transport of mtbe products through the bed . in the process of fig1 a portion of the methanol reactant is added to the top of a bed 32 and descends countercurrently to the rising hydrogen and c 4 vapors . the methanol entering above bed 32 may consist of a fresh methanol stream or methanol recycled with mtbe product or a combination of the two . in the preferred embodiment of this invention , a portion of the product stream containing methanol and mtbe is recycled to the top of bed 32 . a substantial portion of the methanol entering above bed 32 will be in liquid phase . in simplest form , the etherification zone will contain one catalyst bed as previously described . fig1 shows a preferred arrangement for the etherification zone wherein the etherification catalyst is separated into three distinct beds comprising a lower bed 30 , an intermediate bed 32 , and an upper bed 34 . effluent from the compressor section enters the etherification reactor 12 between lower and intermediate beds 30 and 32 . vapors from line 28 rise into contact with the catalyst in bed 32 wherein isobutene reacts with methanol to form mtbe which drops from bed 32 and continues downward through bed 30 . an inter cooler tray 36 receives a portion of the mtbe product and downward flowing reactants from bed 32 . products and reactants are withdrawn by line 38 and passed through inter cooler 40 to remove heat produced by the exothermic reaction . line 38 returns cooled product and reactants to the reaction zone to maintain a temperature of between 50 °- 80 ° c . between beds 32 and 30 . the multiple catalyst bed arrangement promotes the complete reaction of isobutene in the reaction zone so that further separation of isobutene from the other c 4 hydrocarbons will not be necessary for the bottoms effluent from the reaction zone . lower catalyst bed 30 receives any unreacted isobutene that drops from catalyst bed 32 or is carried downward by the descending fluid from catalyst bed 32 . any isobutene that enters bed 30 reacts with methanol that is also present in the descending fluid , so that the product stream has an isobutene concentration that is at least below 5 mol . %. the product stream is recovered from the bottom of reaction zone 12 through line 42 for further recovery and / or recycle . c 4 vapors which may still contain trace amounts of isobutene rise from bed 32 into upper bed 34 where they are contacted countercurrently with a methanol - containing stream that enters the reaction zone at the top of bed 34 through line 45 . the methanol stream again may be either fresh methanol added to the process or a recycle stream containing methanol . regardless of its source , methanol added to the top of reactor 34 is in liquid phase . inter cooler tray 46 positioned below upper bed 34 collects a portion of the descending fluid which is taken by line 48 and passed through inter cooler 50 in order to maintain temperatures in bed 34 within a desired etherification range . rising c 4 and lighter hydrocarbons are collected overhead and returned by line 52 to hydrogenation zone 10 . the etherification zone yields an overhead that has very little isobutene . operation and arrangement of the etherification to consume essentially all of the isobutene in the production of mtbe keeps the concentration of isobutene in the overhead at very low levels . the overhead from line 52 provides the recycle of hydrogen and c 4 hydrocarbons to the dehydrogenation zone . a significant quantity of methanol on the order of 1 - 5 wt . % of the total stream may be carried over with the overhead stream . therefore , the stream is first passed through a methanol removal zone 54 . the particular method of methanol removal is not an important aspect of this invention . water wash and absorbent methods have proved satisfactory for methanol removal and either one may be employed . such methods are well known to those skilled in the art . recovered methanol is returned to reaction zone 12 . methanol from removal zone 54 may be added to the etherification zone at any convenient point and for the purposes of the preferred embodiment is shown being taken by line 26 , combined with fresh methanol feed from line 44 and taken by line 45 for return to the etherification zone at a point above bed 34 . the methanol - free effluent from zone 54 is taken by line 56 where at least a portion of the stream is returned by line 20 to the dehydrogenation zone 10 as the hereinbefore mentioned recycle . the remainder of the mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s hydrogen and any light hydrocarbons are recovered by line 56 as a net gas which may be further separated for additional uses . fig1 shows the preferred mode where this stream enters a separation zone 57 that separates at least a portion of the hydrogen and light hydrocarbons from c 4 hydrocarbons . the separated hydrogen and light hydrocarbons are removed from the process by line 59 while the remaining c 4 hydrocarbons , hydrogen , and light ends return to the process via line 20 . the ratio of total methanol entering the etherification zone is maintained in a ratio of alcohol to isobutane in a broad range of 1 : 1 to 2 : 1 . an excess of methanol above that required to achieve satisfactory conversion at good selectivity should be avoided as some decomposition of methanol to dimethyl ether may occur . as the isobutene containing stream rises through the catalyst bed , a majority of the isobutene is reacted with the methanol to form mtbe product . due to the exothermic nature of the reaction intercoolers may be provided between multiple catalyst beds to keep the reactants at the desired temperature . once formed the relatively heavier mtbe product drops from the catalyst bed and eventually to the bottom of the etherification zone where it is collected and transferred to a further separation zone . the mtbe reaction zone is maintained at conditions that will keep the methanol and mtbe product in liquid phase . the mtbe product that is collected from the bottom of the etherification zone also contains unreacted methanol and mixed c 4 hydrocarbons which are dissolved in the stream and deficient in isobutene . additional light gases that enter with the effluent from the compressor section may be absorbed in the downward moving stream of products and reactants as it passes through reaction zone 12 and recovered with the mtbe product stream . a portion of the mtbe product stream may be recycled to the top of the etherification catalyst bed either directly or after further separation . recycling of the product stream or product stream fraction provides the necessary liquid traffic for the vapor liquid content of the reaction zone and serves to maximize the etherification yield . such further separation may also include the recovery of a c 4 methanol azeotrope which is returned to the top of the etherification catalyst bed . the effluent from the bottom of reaction zone 12 enters further separation facilities for the recovery of the mtbe product , unreacted methanol , and recycle c 4 &# 39 ; s . in the preferred embodiment of this invention , a portion of the bottoms stream carried by line 42 is diverted through a line 58 . the diverted portion of the bottoms stream passes through a heat exchanger 60 that cools the diverted materials which are then returned to the top of intermediate bed 32 . the diverted materials may be first joined with a hereinafter described recycle stream of mtbe and methanol in a line 62 . in this manner , the temperature of the diverted materials may be adjusted such that the combined stream entering reaction zone 12 through line 62 will have a temperature in the range of from 40 °- 70 ° c . a relatively large circulation of mtbe and methanol through line 58 is preferable in order to maintain more than stoichiometric methanol at the bottom of bed 32 and provide better vapor - liquid contact on surface of the etherification catalyst . that portion of the bottoms stream from reactor 12 that is not diverted as reflux enters a separation zone for the recovery of the mtbe product . this separation zone may consist of one or more columns . fig1 shows the effluent from reactor 12 entering c 4 distillation column 14 for the removal of c 4 and lighter hydrocarbons . column 14 is a multi - tray fractionation column . c 4 &# 39 ; s and lighter hydrocarbons rise to the top of the column . c 4 &# 39 ; s are removed from the column via line 64 which is taken as a sidecut from an upper portion of the column . the mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s taken by line 64 are ultimately returned , at least in part , as recycle to the dehydrogenation zone 10 . some methanol may also be entrained with the c 4 sidecut which is returned to reaction zone 12 . an overhead stream consisting principally of c 3 and lighter hydrocarbons that were absorbed with the mtbe product stream is taken overhead via line 66 into a condenser section 68 . condenser section 68 returns a reflux of c 3 and any heavier hydrocarbons to column 14 through a line 70 . overhead vapors consisting of noncondensible c 3 and lighter hydrocarbons are recovered from a separator drum 72 by line 74 . where the quantities of c 3 and lighter hydrocarbons from the dehydrogenation are small , almost all of these materials will be recovered in the overhead from the condenser section . depending upon its composition , the c 3 stream from line 74 may be used as fuel gas or further separated for additional product recovery . a mixture of mtbe and methanol is recovered from the bottom of a c 4 removal column 14 by line 73 . in most cases , the concentration of methanol mixed with the product in line 73 will be high enough that mtbe and methanol will be transferred to an azeotrope column 16 for separation of methanol from the mtbe . column 16 separates the methanol and mtbe mixture into a methanol mtbe azeotrope that is recovered overhead by line 62 and a relatively methanolfree mtbe product that is recovered from the bottom of column 16 by line 75 . in the preferred embodiment depicted by fig1 the mtbe methanol azeotrope is combined with the diverted portion of the effluent from reactor 12 , as previously described , and introduced into reactor 12 above intermediate bed 32 . the mixed c 4 and methanol sidecut stream taken by line 64 can be recycled directly to a methanol removal zone for the recycle of mixed c 4 to dehydrogenation zone or , as shown in fig1 added to the top of reactor 12 for a further separation of methanol from the recycle c 4 hydrocarbons . as shown by the process in fig1 the mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s and methanol stream carried by line 64 passes through a heat exchanger 80 where it is cooled and then enters reactor 12 above upper bed 34 at the top of a series of fractionating trays 82 . trays 82 effect a further separation of methanol from the mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s as additional c 4 &# 39 ; s rise in countercurrent contact with the mixture of methanol and c 4 . in this manner , a substantial portion of the methanol that would otherwise be recovered by methanol removal zone 54 is separated in the top of reactor 12 . the relatively large quantity of hydrogen that enters the etherification zone with the dehydrogenation zone is primarily recovered overhead with the c 4 &# 39 ; s . in those cases where the methanol to isobutene ratio can be maintained at stoichiometric levels or at about 1 . 05 such that excess methanol and the mtbe product from reactor 12 can be kept at a minimum , an alternate flow scheme as shown in fig2 may be employed . in the flow scheme of fig2 the effluent from reactor 12 is transferred to a c 4 column in substantially the same manner as previously described . column 14 again recovers c 3 and lighter hydrocarbons from an overhead condenser section 68 and returns a c 3 reflux plus any heavier hydrocarbons to the top of the column 14 . c 4 hydrocarbons are recovered as a sidecut by line 64 . excess methanol that enters column 14 with the product stream from reactor 12 is also removed from the distillation column with the sidecut taken by line 64 . the low concentration of methanol entering the distillation column and its nearly complete removal by a sidecut 64 , allows the mtbe product to be recovered from the bottom of column 14 with a very low methanol concentration . the mtbe product recovered from the bottom of the column can be used directly as a high octane blending component . mtbe product is recovered by line 76 . with the elimination of the azeotrope column , the mtbe methanol stream that was recovered therefrom is no longer available for recycle to reactor 12 above bed 32 . in order to provide the necessary methanol addition at the top of bed 32 , a portion of the fresh methanol which enters the reactor through line 44 and recycle methanol which enters the process through line 26 is diverted through a line 78 and mixed with the recycled mtbe product stream from the bottom of reactor 12 . this invention will be further described in the context of an example for the production of mtbe . the description of this invention in the terms of this specific process example is not meant to limit this invention to the particular details disclosed therein . this example is based on engineering calculations and experience with the operation of similar process units . this example makes reference to the process configuration shown in fig1 which is only a schematic drawing for this type of operation . fig1 shows only those compressors , heat exchangers , coolers , and separators that are useful in the description of the process . the utilization of other miscellaneous hardware such as heaters , valves , reboilers , pumps , instrumentation , and controls have been omitted as not essential to a clear understanding of the process . the use of such hardware being well within the purview of one skilled in the art . the attached table lists the composition of materials in major process lines for the process , as practiced in the configuration of fig1 . starting then with the dehydrogenation zone 10 a feed mixture of c 4 hydrocarbons enters the process by line 17 and has the composition given in the table . the feed mixture is combined with a recycle stream to provide a dehydrogenation zone input stream having the composition given in the following table under line 18 . in zone 10 the dehydrogenation feed stream is heat exchanged and transported to a dehydrogenation reactor section at a temperature of about 500 °- 700 ° c . and at pressure about 300 - 500 kpag . the dehydrogenation zone includes multiple stacked reactors in which the feed is contacted with a dehydrogenation catalyst comprising platinum on an alumina carrier . line 24 recovers the effluent stream from the dehydrogenation zone after heat exchange at a temperature of 50 °- 150 ° c . and a pressure of slightly above atmospheric . the composition of the effluent is given in the table . the contents of line 26 enter an etherification zone 12 having the three bed arrangement as previously described . the catalyst beds and other internals of the etherification zone vary the pressure as well as the temperature throughout reaction zone 12 . vapor - liquid contacting trays 82 operate at about a pressure of 300 - 500 kpag and a temperature of 30 °- 80 ° c . catalyst bed 34 has an average temperature of 60 °- 70 ° c . the lower portion of bed 32 has a temperature of about 65 °- 80 ° c . the purpose of bed 30 is to prevent carry over of isobutene in the bottoms stream from the reactor section , therefore , the reaction releases little heat into the lower bed which has a temperature of about 70 °- 80 ° c . a bottoms stream is withdrawn by line 42 at a temperature of 60 °- 80 ° c . and a pressure of 300 - 500 kpag . at least 50 % of the contents of line 42 is taken by line 58 , cooled to approximately 40 °- 50 ° c ., and returned to reaction zone 12 via line 62 . the remainder of the contents from line 42 enter column 14 . in the upper portion of column 14 , a sidecut stream containing mixed c 4 &# 39 ; s and methanol is taken by line 64 . the contents of line 64 are recycled to the vapor - liquid contacting trays 82 of reactor zone 12 after cooling to a temperature of 40 °- 50 ° c . in heat exchanger 80 . additional overhead materials comprising c 4 &# 39 ; s and lighter hydrocarbons are taken overhead from column 14 into condenser section 68 . light hydrocarbons dissolved in the mtbe reactor effluent are withdrawn via line 74 from separator drum 72 with the remainder of the overhead being returned as reflux to the top of the column . a methanol mtbe bottoms stream is taken by line 73 from the bottom of column 14 and injected into azeotrope column 16 at approximately its midpoint . column 16 performs a further separation of methanol and mtbe such that a relatively pure mtbe product containing less than 100 ppm methanol is recovered from the bottom of the column via line 75 . the table shows the compositions of the contents of line 75 . an overhead stream , at least a portion of which includes mtbe and methanol as an azeotrope , is recovered from the top of column 16 by line 62 and recycled to mtbe reaction zone . ______________________________________compositions in mol % line 17 line 18 line 24 line 44 line 75______________________________________h . sub . 2 44 . 2 52 . 6c . sub . 1 6 . 7 8 . 3c . sub . 2 0 . 2 0 . 6c . sub . 3 1 1 / 7 2 . 5isobutane 98 46 . 3 18 . 6 trisobutene tr 16 . 6 trother c . sub . 4 &# 39 ; s 1 0 . 9 0 . 8 0 . 4c . sub . 5 & amp ; heavier trhydrocarbonsmeoh -- -- -- 99 . 9 0 . 1tba -- -- -- -- 0 . 1mtbe -- -- -- -- 99 . 4h . sub . 2 o -- -- -- 0 . 1 -- 100 100 100 100 100______________________________________ as can be seen from the table and the foregoing text , methanol is recycled to the reaction zone via lines 26 , 58 , and 62 . fresh methanol is added by line 44 at a location above that 34 . the methanol addition rate through line 44 is maintained such that the total input of methanol from recycle and line 44 will maintain a mole ratio of methanol to isobutene feed in the range of 1 : 1 to 1 . 1 : 1 . the example demonstrates that a high quality mtbe product is obtained by the method of this invention . charging the dehydrogenation zone effluent without prior separation to the etherification zone 12 greatly simplifies to flow scheme and allows the process to be carried out more economically without any detriment to the product obtained thereby . furthermore , the separation facilities that are used can be reduced in size due to the lower volume of material that enters the recycle recovery facilities downstream of the etherification zone and the recovery of recycled material in the etherification zone .

US-44550389-A

an integrated circuit package includes a processing core for operating on a set of instructions to carry out predefined processes . a flash memory stores instructions within the integrated circuit package . a plurality of registers stores data and the program instructions during execution of the program instructions . a jtag interface provides an interface with the integrated circuit package and enables interactions with the processing core and the plurality of registers . emulation logic enables manipulating and monitoring program flow through the jtag interface during execution of the program instructions .

the integrated circuit is a fully integrated mixed - signal system on a chip with a true 12 - bit multi - channel adc 10 with a programmable gain pre - amplifier 12 , two 12 - bit dacs 14 and 16 , two voltage comparators 18 and 20 , a voltage reference 22 , and an 8051 - compatible microcontroller core 24 with 32 kbytes of flash memory 26 . there are also i2c / smbus 28 , uart 30 , and spi 32 serial interfaces implemented in hardware ( not “ bit - banged ” in user software ) as well as a programmable counter / timer array ( pca ) 34 with five capture / compare modules . there are also 32 general purpose digital port i / o . with an on - board vdd monitor 36 , wdt , and clock oscillator 37 , the integrated circuit is a stand - alone system on a chip . the mcu effectively configures and manages the analog and digital peripherals . the flash memory 26 can be reprogrammed even in - circuit , providing non - volatile data storage , and also allowing field upgrades of the 8051 firmware . the mcu can also individually shut down any or all of the peripherals to conserve power . a jtag interface 38 allows the user to interface with the ic . on - board jtag emulation support allows non - intrusive ( uses no on - chip resources ), full speed , in - circuit emulation using the production integrated circuit installed in the final application . this emulation system supports inspection and modification of memory and registers , setting breakpoints , watchpoints , single stepping , run and halt commands . all analog and digital peripherals are fully functional when emulating using jtag . the integrated circuit utilizes a microcontroller core 40 . the microcontroller 40 is fully compatible with the mcs - 51 ™ instruction set . standard 803x / 805x assemblers and compilers can be used to develop software . the core has all the peripherals included with a standard 8052 , including three 16 - bit counter / timers , a full - duplex uart , 256 bytes of internal ram , 128 byte special function register ( sfr ) address space , and four byte - wide i / o ports . fig1 illustrates a block diagram of the integrated circuit of the present disclosure . the core is interfaced through and internal bus 50 to the various input / output blocks . a cross - bar switch 52 , which cross - bar switch 52 which will be described hereinbelow , provides an interface between the ir 30 , spi bus 32 , etc ., and the digital i / o output . this is a configurable interface . that can be associated with the vdd monitor 36 . the microcontroller 40 employs a pipelined architecture that greatly increases its instruction throughput over the standard 8051 architecture . in a standard 8051 , all instructions except for mul and div take 12 or 24 system clock cycles to execute with a maximum system clock of 12 mhz . by contrast , the microcontroller 40 core executes seventy percent ( 70 %) of its instructions in one or two system clock cycles , with only four instructions taking more than four system clock cycles . the microcontroller 40 has a total of 109 instructions . the number of instructions versus the system clock cycles to execute them is as follows : instructions 26 50 5 14 7 3 1 2 1 clocks to execute 1 2 2 / 3 3 3 / 4 4 4 / 5 5 8 with the microcontroller 40 &# 39 ; s maximum system clock at 20 mhz , it has a peak throughput of 20 mips . referring now to fig3 , there is illustrated a more detailed diagram of the clock and resent function . the integrated circuit has several features both inside and outside the microcontroller 40 core to improve its overall performance and ease of use in the end applications . an extended interrupt handler 100 provides 22 interrupt sources into the microcontroller 40 ( as opposed to 7 for the standard 8051 ), allowing the numerous analog and digital peripherals to interrupt the controller . an interrupt driven system requires less intervention by the mcu , giving it more effective throughput . the extra interrupt sources are very useful when building multi - tasking , real - time systems . there are up to seven reset sources for the system the on - board vdd monitor 36 , a watchdog timer ( wdt ), a missing clock detector 104 , a voltage level detection from a comparator 0 , a forced software reset on line 114 , and two external reset pins 109 . the / rst pin 54 is bi - directional , accommodating an external reset , or allowing the internally generated reset to be output on the / rst pin 54 . each reset source except for the v dd monitor and reset input pin may be disabled by the user in software . the wdt 102 may be permanently enabled in software after a power - on reset during mcu initialization . all of the sources are wired ored with or circuit 120 to provide a system reset on input 122 to microcontroller 40 . the system has an internal , stand alone clock generator 112 which is used by default as the system clock after any reset . if desired , the clock source may be switched on the fly to the external oscillator 37 , which can use a crystal , ceramic resonator , capacitor , rc , or external clock source to generate the system clock . this can be extremely useful in low power applications , allowing the system to run from a slow ( power saving ) external crystal source , while periodically switching to the fast ( up to 15 mhz ) internal oscillator as needed . the microcontroller 40 has a standard 8051 program and data address configuration . it includes 256 bytes of data ram , with the upper 128 bytes dual - mapped . indirect addressing accesses the upper 128 bytes of general purpose ram , and direct addressing accesses the 128 byte sfr address space . the lower 128 bytes of ram are accessible via direct and indirect addressing . the first 32 bytes are addressable as four banks of general purpose registers , and the next 16 bytes can be byte addressable or bit addressable . the integrated circuit program memory consists of 32 k + 128 bytes of flash in memory 26 . this memory 26 may be reprogrammed in - system in 512 byte sectors , and requires no special off - chip programming voltage . the 512 bytes from addresses 0x7e00 to 0x7fff are reserved for factory use . there is also a single 128 - byte sector at address 0x8000 to 0x807f , which may be useful as a small table for software constants or as additional program space . see 4 for the system memory map . referring now to fig5 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the jtag emulation . the integrated circuit has on - chip jtag and emulation logic that provide non - intrusive , full speed , in - circuit emulation using the production part installed in the end application using the four - pin jtag i / f . the jtag port is fully compliant to ieee 1149 . 1 , providing full boundary scan for test and manufacturing purposes . an emulation system is provided that supports inspection and modification of memory and registers , breakpoints , watchpoints , a stack monitor , and single stepping . no additional target ram , program memory , timers , or communications channels are required . all the digital and analog peripherals are functional and work correctly while emulating . all the peripherals ( except for the adc ) are stalled when the mcu is halted , during single stepping , or at a breakpoint in order to keep them in sync . a development software application 202 is provided with an emulation interface 200 to develop application code and perform in - circuit emulation with the integrated circuit . the software includes a developer &# 39 ; s studio and debugger , and an integrated 8051 assembler . a target application board 204 is provided with a integrated circuit installed and large prototyping area , plus an rs - 232 cable 208 and jtag cable 210 , and wall - mount power supply . the development kit requires a windows 95 / 98 or nt computer with one available rs - 232 serial port . a pc 214 is connected via the rs - 232 cable 208 to the emulation cartridge 200 . a six - inch ribbon cable connects the emulation cartridge 200 to the user &# 39 ; s application board 204 , picking up the four jtag pins and v dd and gnd . the emulation cartridge 200 takes its power from the application board . it requires roughly 20 ma at 2 . 7 - 3 . 6v . for applications where there is not sufficient power available from the target board 204 , the provided power supply can be connected directly to the emulation cartridge 200 . referring now to fig6 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the digital cross - bar 52 . the standard 8051 ports ( 0 , 1 , 2 , and 3 ) are available on the system . the port i / o behave like the standard 8051 with a few enhancements . each port i / o pin can be configured as either a push - pull or open - drain output . also , the “ weak pull - ups ” which are normally fixed on an 8051 can be globally disabled , providing additional power saving capabilities for low power applications . the digital crossbar 52 is essentially a large digital switching network that allows mapping of internal digital system resources to port i / o pins on p0 , p1 , and p2 . unlike microcontrollers with standard multiplexed digital i / o , all combinations of functions are supported . the on - board counter / timers , serial buses , hw interrupts , adc start of conversion input , comparator outputs , and other digital signals in the controller 52 can be configured to appear on the port i / o pins specified in crossbar control registers 402 . this allows the user to select the exact mix of general purpose port i / o and digital resources needed for his particular application . the digital cross - bar 52 has a priority decoder 402 that is associated therewith . the lowest priority group that can be interfaced with are the smbus 28 , spi 32 , uart 30 , pca 34 , the t0 , t1 and t2 block 406 and general miscellaneous computer outputs 410 . additionally , there are the port latches which are interfaced through lines 412 to the cross - bar 52 . the i / o side is interfaced to buses 414 , 416 and 418 , respectively , all networked for each of the cell 420 interfaces with eight external pins , such that there are three banks of pins . they range from the highest priority at port 0 associated with the cell one 420 to the lowest priority associated with the cell 424 . there is also provided a fourth port cell 426 , associated with a second set of eight outputs . these are directly interfaced to the port latches . the detailed description of digital cross - bar 52 is described in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 583 , 260 , filed may 31 , 2000 , entitled cross - bar matrix for connecting digital resources to i / o pins of an integrated circuit , which is incorporated herein by reference . referring now to fig7 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the on - board programmable counter / timer array ( pca ) 34 in addition to the four counter / timers included with the 8051 . the pca consists of a dedicated 16 - bit counter / timer time base with five programmable capture / compare modules 502 - 510 . the timebase receives its clock from one of four sources : the system clock divided by 12 through a divider 512 , the system clock divided by four through a timer 514 , timer 0 overflow , or an external clock input ( eci ) on line 516 . each capture / compare module 502 - 510 can be configured to operate in one of four modes : edge - triggered capture , software timer , high speed output , or pulse width modulator . the pca capture / compare module i / o and external clock input are routed to the integrated circuit port i / o via the digital crossbar . the integrated circuit , as described hereinabove , includes a full - duplex uart , spi bus , and i2c / smbus . each of the serial buses is fully implemented in hardware and makes extensive use of the microcontroller 40 &# 39 ; s interrupts , thus requiring very little intervention by the cpu . the serial buses do not “ share ” resources such as timers , interrupts , or port i / o , so any or all of the ports may be used together or separately with any other . referring now to fig8 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the adc integrated circuit which has an on - board 12 - bit sar adc 10 with a 9 - channel input multiplexer 550 and programmable gain amplifier 12 . with a maximum throughput of 100 ksps , the adc offers true 12 - bit accuracy with an inl of ± 1lsb . there is also an on - board 30 ppm voltage reference , which can be overridden externally . the adc 10 is under full control of the microcontroller 40 via the special function registers . one input channel is tied to an internal temperature sensor 552 , while the other eight channels are available externally through pins 556 . each pair of the eight external input channels can be configured as either two single - ended inputs or a single differential input . the system controller can also put the adc 10 into shutdown to save power . the programmable gain amplifier 12 follows the analog multiplexer 550 . the gain can be set in software from 0 . 5 to 16 in powers of 2 . the gain stage can be especially useful when different adc input channels have widely varied input voltage signals , or when it is necessary to “ zoom in ” on a signal with a large dc offset ( in differential mode , a dac could be used to provide the dc offset ). conversions can be started in four ways ; a software command , an overflow on timer 2 , an overflow on timer 3 , or an external signal input . this flexibility allows the start of conversion to be triggered by software events , external hw signals , or convert continuously . a completed conversion causes an interrupt , or a status bit can be polled in software to determine the end of conversion . the resulting 12 - bit data word is latched into two sfrs upon completion of a conversion . the data can be right or left justified in these registers under software control . compare registers for the adc data can be configured to interrupt the controller when adc data is within a specified window . the adc can monitor a key voltage continuously in background mode , but not interrupt the controller unless the converted data is within the specified window . the adc is described in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 595 , 959 , filed jun . 19 , 2000 , and entitled differential / single ended analog - to - digital converter ( atty . dkt no . cygl - 24 , 695 ), and in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 638 , 095 , filed aug . 11 , 2000 , entitled programmable gain adc , ( atty dkt . cygl - 25 , 367 ) and in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 637 , 493 , filed aug . 11 , 2000 , and entitled comparator - amplifier configuration in an adc ( atty . dkt . no . cygl - 25 , 368 ), and in u . s . patent ser . no . 09 / 419 , 148 , filed oct . 15 , 1999 , and entitled a / d converter with voltage / charge scaling ( atty . dkt . no . cygl - 24 , 686 ), all of which are incorporated herein by reference . referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the comparator / dac function . the integrated circuit has two 12 - bit dacs 14 and 16 and two comparators 18 and 20 on chip . the mcu data and control interface to each comparator and dac is via special function registers 600 . the mcu can place any dac or comparator in low power shutdown mode . the comparators have software programmable hysteresis . each comparator can generate an interrupt on its rising edge , falling edge , or both . the comparators &# 39 ; output state can also be polled in software . these interrupts are capable of waking up the mcu from sleep mode . the comparator outputs can be programmed to appear on the port i / o pins via the crossbar 52 . the dacs are voltage output mode and use the same voltage reference as the adc 10 . they are especially useful as references for the comparators or offsets for the differential inputs of the adc 10 . the operation of the dacs 14 and 16 is described in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 583 , 341 , filed may 31 , 2000 , and entitled segmented d / a converter with enhanced dynamic range ( atty . dkt no . cygl - 24 , 999 ), and in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 584 , 311 , filed may 31 , 2000 , and entitled d / a converter street effect compensation , ( atty . dkt no . cv6l - 24 , 154 ), all of which are incorporated herein by reference . pin definitions ‘ f000 ‘ f001 ‘ f002 64 - 48 - 32 - name pin pin pin type description v dd 31 , 23 , 18 , digital voltage supply . 40 , 32 20 62 dgnd 30 , 22 , 17 , digital ground . 41 , 33 , 21 61 27 , 19 av + 16 , 13 , 9 , positive analog voltage supply . 17 43 29 agnd 5 , 44 , 8 , analog ground . 15 12 30 tck 22 18 14 d in jtag test clock with internal pull - up . tms 21 17 13 d in jtag test - mode select with internal pull - up . tdi 28 20 15 d in jtag test data input with internal pull - up . tdi is latched on a rising edge of tck . tdo 29 21 16 d out jtag test data output . data is shifted out on tdo on the falling edge of tck . tdo output is a tri - state driver . xtal1 18 14 10 d in crystal input . this pin is the return for the internal oscillator circuit for a crystal or ceramic resonator . for a precision internal clock , connect a crystal or ceramic resonator from xtal1 to xtal2 . if overdriven by an external cmos clock , this becomes the system clock . xtal2 19 15 11 d out crystal output . this pin is the excitation driver for a crystal or ceramic resonator . / rst 20 16 12 d i / o chip reset . open - drain output of internal voltage supply monitor . is driven low when vdd is & lt ; 2 . 7 v . an external source can force a system reset by driving this pin low . vref 6 3 3 a i / o voltage reference . when configured as an input , this pin is the voltage reference for the mcu . otherwise , the internal reference drives this pin . cp0 + 4 2 2 a in comparator 0 non - inverting input . cp0 − 3 1 1 a in comparator 0 inverting input . cp1 + 2 45 a in comparator 1 non - inverting input . cp1 − 1 46 a in comparator 1 inverting input . dac0 64 48 32 a out digital to analog converter output 0 . the dac0 voltage output . ( see section _ref473612034 ˜ dac specification for complete description ). dac1 63 47 31 a out digital to analog converter output 1 . the dac1 voltage output . ( see section _ref473612034 ˜ dac specification for complete description ). ain0 7 4 4 a in analog mux channel input 0 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain1 8 5 5 a in analog mux channel input 1 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain2 9 6 6 a in analog mux channel input 2 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain3 10 7 7 a in analog mux channel input 3 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain4 11 8 a in analog mux channel input 4 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain5 12 9 a in analog mux channel input 5 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain6 13 10 a in analog mux channel input 6 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). ain7 14 11 a in analog mux channel input 7 . ( see section _ref483109445 ˜ adc specification for complete description ). p0 . 0 39 31 19 d i / o port0 bit0 . p0 . 1 42 34 22 d i / o port0 bit1 . p0 . 2 47 35 23 d i / o port0 bit2 . p0 . 3 48 36 24 d i / o port0 bit3 . p0 . 4 49 37 25 d i / o port0 bit4 . p0 . 5 50 38 26 d i / o port0 bit5 . p0 . 6 55 39 27 d i / o port0 bit6 . p0 . 7 56 40 28 d i / o port0 bit7 . p1 . 0 38 30 d i / o port1 bit0 . p1 . 1 37 29 d i / o port1 bit1 . p1 . 2 36 28 d i / o port1 bit2 . p1 . 3 35 26 d i / o port1 bit3 . p1 . 4 34 25 d i / o port1 bit4 . p1 . 5 32 24 d i / o port1 bit5 . p1 . 6 60 42 d i / o port1 bit6 . p1 . 7 59 41 d i / o port1 bit7 . p2 . 0 33 d i / o port2 bit0 . p2 . 1 27 d i / o port2 bit1 . p2 . 2 54 d i / o port2 bit2 . p2 . 3 53 d i / o port2 bit3 . p2 . 4 52 d i / o port2 bit4 . p2 . 5 51 d i / o port2 bit5 . p2 . 6 44 d i / o port2 bit6 . p2 . 7 43 d i / o port2 bit7 . p3 . 0 26 d i / o port3 bit0 . p3 . 1 25 d i / o port3 bit1 . p3 . 2 24 d i / o port3 bit2 . p3 . 3 23 d i / o port3 bit3 . p3 . 4 58 d i / o port3 bit4 . p3 . 5 57 d i / o port3 bit5 . p3 . 6 46 d i / o port3 bit6 . ( see the port i / o sub - system section for complete description ). p3 . 7 45 d i / o port3 bit7 . ( see the port i / o sub - system section for complete description ). referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a more detailed diagram of the adc 10 . the adc subsystem consists of the 9 - channel , configurable analog multiplexer ( amux ) 350 , the programmable gain amplifier ( pga ) 12 , and a 100 ksps , 12 - bit successive - approximation - register adc with integrated track - and - hold and programmable window detector . the amux , pga , data conversion modes , and window detector are all configurable under software control via the special function register &# 39 ; s 610 . the adc subsystem ( adc , track - and - hold and pga ) is enabled only when the adcen bit in the adc control register ( adc 0 cn ,) is set to 1 as illustrated in timing diagrams in fig1 a and 11b . the adc subsystem is in low power shutdown when this bit is 0 . eight of the amux channels are available for external measurements while the ninth channel is internally connected to an on - board temperature sensor 552 ( temperature transfer function is shown in fig1 a and 13b ). amux input pairs can be programmed to operate in either the differential or single - ended mode . this allows the user to select the best measurement technique for each input channel , and even accommodates mode changes “ on - the - fly ”. the amux defaults to all single - ended inputs upon reset . there are two registers associated with the amux : a channel selection register amx 0 sl 612 , and a configuration register amx 0 cf 614 . table 2 shows amux functionality by channel , for each possible configuration with table 3 illustrating the amx 0 cf functionality . the pga 12 amplifies the amux output signal by an amount determined by the states of the ampgn 2 - 0 bits in the adc configuration register , adc 0 cf , illustrated in table 4 . the pga can be software - programmed for gains of 0 . 5 , 2 , 4 , 8 or 16 . it defaults to unity gain on reset . the adc has a maximum conversion speed of 100 ksps . the adc conversion clock is derived from the system clock . conversion speed can be reduced by a factor of 2 , 4 , 8 or 16 via the adcsc bits in the adc 0 cf register 616 . this is useful to adjust conversion speed to accommodate different system clock speeds . a conversion can be initiated in one of four ways , depending on the programmed states of the adc start of conversion mode bits ( adstm 1 , adstm 0 ) in an adc 0 cn register 618 . conversions may be initiated by : writing a 1 to the adbusy bit of adc 0 cn ; a rising edge detected on the external adc convert start signal , cnvstr ; writing a 1 to adbusy provides software control of the adc whereby conversions are performed “ on - demand ”. during conversion , the adbusy bit is set to 1 and restored to 0 when conversion is complete . the falling edge of adbusy triggers an interrupt ( when enabled ) and sets the interrupt flag in adc 0 cn . converted data is available in the adc data word msb and lsb registers , adc 0 h , adc 0 l . converted data can be either left or right justified in the adc 0 h : adc 0 l register pair depending on the programmed state of the adljst bit in the adc0cn register . this is illustrated in table 5 . the adctm bit in register adc 0 cn 618 controls the adc track - and - hold mode . in its default state , the adc input is continuously tracked , except when a conversion is in progress . setting adctm to 1 allows one of four different low power track - and - hold modes to be specified by states of the adstm 1 - 0 bits ( also in adc 0 cn ): tracking begins with a write of 1 to adbusy and lasts for 3 sar clocks ; tracking starts with an overflow of timer 3 and lasts for 3 sar clocks ; tracking starts with an overflow of timer 2 and lasts for 3 sar clocks . modes 1 , 2 and 3 ( above ) are useful when the start of conversion is triggered in software command or when the adc is operated continuously . mode 4 is used when the start of conversion is triggered by external hardware . in this case , the track - and - hold is in its low power mode at times when the cnvstr input is high . tracking can also be disabled ( shutdown ) when the entire chip is in low power standby or sleep modes . the adc programmable window detector is very useful in many applications . it continuously compares the adc output to user - programmed limits and notifies the system when an out - of - band condition is detected . this is especially effective in an interrupt - driven system , saving code space and cpu bandwidth while delivering faster system response times . the window detector interrupt flag ( adwint in adc 0 cn ) can also be used in polled mode . the high and low bytes of the reference words are loaded into the adc greater - than and adc less - than registers ( adc 0 gth , adc 0 gtl , adc 0 lth , and adc 0 ltl ). fig1 a , 13b , 14 a and 14 b show example comparisons for reference . notice that the window detector flag can be asserted when the measured data is inside or outside the user - programmed limits , depending on the programming of the adc 0 gtx and adc 0 ltx registers . referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a clock diagram of the dac section . the mcu has two 12 - bit voltage - mode digital to analog converters 14 and 16 . each dac has an output swing of 0 v to vref - 1 lsb for a corresponding input code range of 0x000 to 0xfff . using dac 0 14 as an example , the 12 - bit data word is written to the low byte ( dac 0 l ) and high byte ( dac 0 h ) data registers 650 and 652 . data is latched into dac 0 after a write to the corresponding dac 0 h register , so the write sequence should be dac 0 l followed by dac 0 h if the full 12 - bit resolution is required . the dac can be used in 8 - bit mode by initializing dac 0 l to the desired value ( typically 0x00 ), and writing data to only dac 0 h . dac 0 control register ( dac 0 cn ) 654 provides for enabling / disabling dac 0 and to modify its input data formatting . the dac 0 enable / disable function is controlled by the dac 0 en bit ( dac 0 cn . 7 ). writing a 1 to dac 0 en enables dac 0 while writing a 0 to dac 0 en disables dac 0 with switch 656 . while disabled , the output of dac 0 is maintained in a high - impedance state , and the dac 0 supply current falls to 1 ua or less . in some instances , input data should be shifted prior to a dac 0 write operation to properly justify data within the dac input registers . this action would typically require one or more load and shift operations , adding software overhead and slowing dac throughput . to alleviate this problem , the data - formatting feature provides a means for the user to program the orientation of the dac 0 data word within data registers dac 0 h and dac 0 l . the three dac 0 df bits ( dac 0 cn . [ 2 : 0 ]) allow the user to specify one of five data word orientations as shown in the dac 0 cn register definition . dac 1 is functionally the same as dac 0 described above . dac 1 is functionally the same as dac 0 described above in tables 8 - 13 . referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the comparator section . the mcu has two on - board voltage comparators 18 and 20 . the inputs of each comparator are available at the package pins . the output of each comparator is optionally available at the package pins via the i / o crossbar 52 . when assigned to package pins , each comparator output can be programmed to operate in open drain or push - pull modes . the hysteresis of each comparator is software - programmable via its respective comparator control register ( cpt 0 cn 660 , cpt 1 cn 662 ). the user can program both the amount of hysteresis voltage ( referred to the input voltage ) and the positive and negative - going symmetry of this hysteresis around the threshold voltage . the output of the comparator can be polled in software , or can be used as an interrupt source . each comparator can be individually enabled or disabled ( shutdown ). when disabled , the comparator output ( if assigned to a port i / o pin via the crossbar ) defaults to the logic low state , its interrupt capability is suspended and its supply current falls to less than 1 ua . comparator 0 inputs can be externally driven from − 0 . 25v to ( av +)+ 0 . 25v without damage or upset . the comparator 0 hysteresis is programmed using bits 3 - 0 in the comparator 0 control register cpt 0 cn ( shown in table 11 ). the amount of negative hysteresis voltage is determined by the settings of the cp 0 hyn bits . as shown in fig1 , settings of 20 , 10 or 5 mv of negative hysteresis can be programmed , or negative hysteresis can be disabled . in a similar way , the amount of positive hysteresis is determined by the setting the cp 0 hyp bits . comparator interrupts can be generated on both rising - edge and falling - edge output transitions . ( for interrupt enable and priority control , see section _ref472925230 ˜). the cp 0 fif flag is set upon a comparator 0 falling - edge interrupt , and the cp 0 rif flag is set upon the comparator 0 rising - edge interrupt . once set , these bits remain set until cleared by the cpu . the output state of comparator 0 can be obtained at any time by reading the cp 0 out bit . comparator 0 is enabled by setting the cp 0 en bit , and is disabled by clearing this bit . comparator 0 can also be programmed as a reset source . the operation of comparator 1 is identical to that of comparator 0 , except the comparator 1 is controlled by the cpt 1 cn register as set forth in table 12 . also , comparator 1 can not be programmed as a reset source . referring now to fig1 , the voltage reference circuit consists of a 1 . 2v , 30 ppm /° c . ( typical ) bandgap voltage reference generator and a gain - of - two output buffer amplifier . the reference voltage on vref can be connected to external devices in the system , as long as the maximum load seen by the vref pin is less than 10 ua to agnd . if a different reference voltage is required , an external reference 672 can be connected to the vref pin and the internal bandgap and buffer amplifier disabled in software . the external reference voltage must still be less than av +− 0 . 3v . a reference control register 676 , ref 0 cn ( defined in table 13 ), provides for enabling or disabling the bandgap and buffer amplifier 670 . the biase bit in ref 0 cn enables the on - board bandgap reference while the refbe bit enables the buffer amplifier 670 which drives the vref pin . when disabled , the supply current drawn by the bandgap and buffer amplifier falls to less than 1 ua ( typical ) and the output of the buffer amplifier 670 enters a high impedance state . if the internal bandgap is used as the reference voltage generator , biase and refbe must both be set to 1 . if an external reference 674 is used , refbe must be set to 0 and biase must be set to 1 . if neither the adc nor the dac are being used , both of these bits can be set to 0 to conserve power . the temperature sensor connects to the highest order input of the a / d converter &# 39 ; s input multiplexer . the tempe bit within ref 0 cn enables and disables the temperature sensor . while disabled , the temperature sensor defaults to a high impedance state and any a / d measurements performed on the sensor while disabled result in meaningless data . referring now to fig1 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the microcontroller 40 . the mcu &# 39 ; s system controller core is the microcontroller 40 . the microcontroller 40 is fully compatible with the mcs - 51 ™ instruction set . standard 803x / 805x assemblers and compilers can be used to develop software . the mcu has a superset of all the peripherals included with a standard 8051 . included are four 16 - bit counter / timers , a full - duplex uart , 256 bytes of internal ram 680 , 128 byte special function register ( sfr ) address space , and four byte - wide i / o ports . the microcontroller 40 also includes on - chip emulation hardware , and interfaces directly with the mcu &# 39 ; s analog and digital subsystems providing a complete data acquisition or control - system solution in a single integrated circuit . the microcontroller 40 core implements the standard 8051 organization and peripherals as well as additional custom peripherals and functions to extend its capability . the microcontroller 40 includes the following features : fully compatible with mcs - 51 instruction set 20 mips peak throughput with 20 mhz clock 0 to 20 mhz clock frequency 256 bytes of internal ram 32 k byte flash program memory four byte - wide i / o ports extended interrupt handler reset input power management modes on - chip emulation logic program and data memory security the microcontroller 40 employs a pipelined architecture that greatly increases its instruction throughput over the standard 8051 architecture . in a standard 8051 , all instructions except for mul and div take 12 or 24 system clock cycles to execute , and usually have a maximum system clock of 12 mhz . by contrast , the microcontroller 40 core executes seventy percent ( 70 %) of its instructions in one or two system clock cycles , with no instructions taking more than eight system clock cycles . with the microcontroller 40 &# 39 ; s maximum system clock at 20 mhz , it has a peak throughput of 20 mips . the microcontroller 40 has a total of 109 instructions . the number of instructions versus the system clock cycles required to execute them is as follows : instructions 26 50 5 14 7 3 1 2 1 clocks to execute 1 2 2 / 3 3 3 / 4 4 4 / 5 5 8 a jtag - based serial interface is provided for in - system programming of the flash program memory and communication with on - chip emulation support logic . the reprogrammable flash can also be read and changed a single byte at a time by the application software using the movc and movx instructions . this feature allows program memory to be used for non - volatile data storage as well as updating program code under software control . the on - chip emulation support logic facilitates full speed in - circuit debugging , allowing the setting of hardware breakpoints and watch points , starting , stopping and single stepping through program execution ( including interrupt service routines ), examination of the program &# 39 ; s call stack , and reading / writing the contents of registers and memory . this method of on - chip emulation is completely non - intrusive and non - evasive , requiring no ram , stack , timers , or other on - chip resources . the instruction set of the microcontroller 40 system controller is fully compatible with the standard mcs - 51 ™ instruction set . standard 8051 development tools can be used to develop software for the microcontroller 40 . all microcontroller 40 instructions are the binary and functional equivalent of their mcs - 51 ™ counterparts , including opcodes , addressing modes and effect on psw flags . however , instruction timing is different than that of the standard 8051 . in many 8051 implementations , a distinction is made between machine cycles and clock cycles , with machine cycles varying from 2 to 12 clock cycles in length . however , the microcontroller 40 implementation is based solely on clock cycle timing . all instruction timings are specified in terms of clock cycles . due to the pipelined architecture of the microcontroller 40 , most instructions execute in the same number of clock cycles as there are program bytes in the instruction . conditional branch instructions take one less clock cycle to complete when the branch is not taken as opposed to when the branch is taken . table 14 illustrates the instruction set summary for the microcontroller 40 , which includes the mnemonic , number of bytes , and number of clock cycles for each instruction . the movx instruction is typically used to access external data memory . the microcontroller 40 does not support external data or program memory . in the microcontroller 40 , the movx instruction accesses the on - chip program memory space implemented as re - programmable flash memory . this feature provides a mechanism for the microcontroller 40 to update program code and use the program memory space for non - volatile data storage . referring now to fig2 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the memory map for the memory . the memory organization of the microcontroller 40 system controller is similar to that of a standard 8051 . there are two separate memory spaces : program memory 690 and data memory 692 . program and data memory share the same address space but are accessed via different instruction types . there are 256 bytes of internal data memory and 64k bytes of internal program memory address space implemented within the microcontroller 40 . the microcontroller 40 has a 64k - byte program memory space . the mcu implements 32896 bytes of this program memory space as in - system , reprogrammable flash memory , organized in a contiguous block from addresses 0x0000 to 0x807f . note : 512 bytes ( 0x7e00 - 0x7fff ) of this memory are reserved for factory use and are not available for user program storage . program memory is normally assumed to be read - only . however , the microcontroller 40 can write to program memory by setting the program store write enable bit ( psctl . 7 ) and using the movx instruction . this feature provides a mechanism for the microcontroller 40 to update program code and use the program memory space for non - volatile data storage . the microcontroller 40 implements 256 bytes of internal ram mapped into the data memory space from 0x00 through 0xff . the lower 128 bytes of data memory are used for general purpose registers and scratch pad memory . either direct or indirect addressing may be used to access the lower 128 bytes of data memory . locations 0x00 through 0x1f are addressable as four banks of general purpose registers 694 , each bank consisting of eight byte - wide registers . the next 16 bytes , locations 0x20 through 0x2f , may either be addressed as bytes or as 128 bit locations accessible with the direct addressing mode . the upper 128 bytes of data memory are accessible only by indirect addressing . this region occupies the same address space as the special function registers ( sfr ) but is physically separate from the sfr space . the addressing mode used by an instruction when accessing locations above 0x7f determines whether the cpu accesses the upper 128 bytes of data memory space or the sfrs . instructions that use direct addressing will access the sfr space . instructions using indirect addressing above 0x7f access the upper 128 bytes of data memory . the lower 32 bytes of data memory , locations 0x00 through 0x1f , may be addressed as four banks of general - purpose registers . each bank consists of eight byte - wide registers designated r 0 through r 7 . only one of these banks may be enabled at a time . two bits in the program status word , rs 0 ( psw . 3 ) and rs 1 ( psw . 4 ), select the active register bank ( see description of the psw in table 15 ). this allows fast context switching when entering subroutines and interrupt service routines . indirect addressing modes use registers r 0 and r 1 as index registers . in addition to direct access to data memory organized as bytes , the sixteen data memory locations at 0x20 through 0x2f are also accessible as 128 individually addressable bits . each bit has a bit address from 0x00 to 0x7f . bit 0 of the byte at 0x20 has bit address 0x00 while bit 7 of the byte at 0x20 has bit address 0x07 . bit 7 of the byte at 0x2f has bit address 0x7f . a bit access is distinguished from a full byte access by the type of instruction used ( bit source or destination operands as opposed to a byte source or destination ). the mcs - 51 ™ assembly language allows an alternate notation for bit addressing of the form xx . b where xx is the byte address and b is the bit position within the byte . for example , the instruction : moves the boolean value at 0x13 ( bit 3 of the byte at location 0x22 ) into the user carry flag . a programmer &# 39 ; s stack can be located anywhere in the 256 - byte data memory . the stack area is designated using the stack pointer ( sp , 0x81 ) sfr . the sp will point to the last location used . the next value pushed on the stack is placed at sp + 1 and then sp is incremented . a reset initializes the stack pointer to location 0x07 . therefore , the first value pushed on the stack is placed at location 0x08 , which is also the first register ( r 0 ) of register bank 1 . thus , if more than one register bank is to be used , the sp should be initialized to a location in the data memory not being used for data storage . the stack depth can extend up to 256 bytes . the mcu also has built - in hardware for a stack record . the stack record is a 32 - bit shift register , where each push or increment sp pushes one record bit onto the register , and each call pushes two record bits onto the register . ( a pop or decrement sp pops one record bit , and a return pops two record bits , also .) the stack record circuitry can also detect an overflow or underflow on the 32 - bit shift register , and can notify the emulator software even with the mcu running full - speed emulation . the direct - access data memory locations from 0x80 to 0xff constitute the special function registers ( sfrs ). the sfrs provide control and data exchange with the microcontroller 40 &# 39 ; s resources and peripherals . the microcontroller 40 duplicates the sfrs found in a typical 8051 implementation as well as implementing additional sfrs used to configure and access the sub - systems unique to the mcu . this allows the addition of new functionality while retaining compatibility with the mcs - 51 ™ instruction set . table 16 lists the sfrs implemented in the microcontroller 40 system controller . registers unique to the microcontroller 40 are shown in bold type . the sfr registers are accessed anytime the direct addressing mode is used to access memory locations from 0x80 to 0xff . sfrs with addresses ending in 0x0 or 0x8 ( e . g . p0 , tcon , p1 , scon , ie , etc .) are bit - addressable as well as byte - addressable . all other sfrs are byte - addressable only . unoccupied addresses in the sfr space are reserved for future use . accessing these areas will have an indeterminate effect and should be avoided . table 17 describes the operation of each register . table 17 special function registers sfrs listed in alphabetical order . address register description 0xe0 acc accumulator 0xbc adc0cf adc configuration 0xe8 adc0cn adc control 0xc5 adc0gth adc greater - than data word ( high byte ) 0xc4 adc0gtl adc greater - than data word ( low byte ) 0xbf adc0h adc data word ( high byte ) 0xbe adc0l adc data word ( low byte ) 0xc7 adc0lth adc less - than data word ( high byte ) 0xc6 adc0ltl adc less - than data word ( low byte ) 0xba amx0cf adc mux configuration 0xbb amx0sl adc mux channel selection 0xf0 b b register 0x8e ckcon clock control 0x9e cpt0cn comparator 0 control 0x9f cpt1cn comparator 1 control 0xd4 dac0cn dac 0 control 0xd3 dac0h dac 0 data word ( high byte ) 0xd2 dac0l dac 0 data word ( low byte ) 0xd7 dac1cn dac 1 control 0xd6 dac1h dac 1 data word ( high byte ) 0xd5 dac1l dac 1 data word ( low byte ) 0x83 dph data pointer ( high byte ) 0x82 dpl data pointer ( low byte ) 0x97 dsrflg dsr flags *** not documented 0xb4 dsrh dsr data word ( high byte ) *** not documented 0xb3 dsrl dsr data word ( low byte ) *** not documented 0xce dsrop dsr options 0xe6 eie1 extended interrupt enable 1 0xe7 eie2 extended interrupt enable 2 0xf6 eip1 external interrupt priority 1 0xf7 eip2 external interrupt priority 2 0xb7 flacl flash memory read limit 0xb6 flscl flash memory timing prescaler 0xa8 ie interrupt enable 0xb8 ip interrupt priority control 0xb2 oscicn internal oscillator control 0xb1 oscxcn external oscillator control 0x80 p0 port 0 latch 0x90 p1 port 1 latch 0xa0 p2 port 2 latch 0xb0 p3 port 3 latch 0xd8 pca0cn programmable counter array 0 control 0xfa pca0cph0 pca capture module 0 data word ( high byte ) 0xfb pca0cph1 pca capture module 1 data word ( high byte ) 0xfc pca0cph2 pca capture module 2 data word ( high byte ) 0xfd pca0cph3 pca capture module 3 data word ( high byte ) 0xfe pca0cph4 pca capture module 4 data word ( high byte ) 0xea pca0cpl0 pca capture module 0 data word ( low byte ) 0xeb pca0cpl1 pca capture module 1 data word ( low byte ) 0xec pca0cpl2 pca capture module 2 data word ( low byte ) 0xed pca0cpl3 pca capture module 3 data word ( low byte ) 0xee pca0cpl4 pca capture module 4 data word ( low byte ) 0xda pca0cpm0 programmable counter array 0 capture / compare 0 0xdb pca0cpm1 programmable counter array 0 capture / compare 1 0xdc pca0cpm2 programmable counter array 0 capture / compare 2 0xdd pca0cpm3 programmable counter array 0 capture / compare 3 0xde pca0cpm4 programmable counter array 0 capture / compare 4 0xf9 pca0h pca counter / timer data word ( high byte ) 0xe9 pca0l pca counter / timer data word ( low byte ) 0xd9 pca0md programmable counter array 0 mode 0x87 pcon power control 0xa4 prt0cf port 0 configuration 0xa5 prt1cf port 1 configuration 0xad prt1if port 1 interrupt flags 0xa6 prt2cf port 2 configuration 0xa7 prt3cf port 3 configuration 0x8f psctl program store rw control 0xd0 psw program status word 0xcb rcap2h counter / timer 2 capture ( high byte ) 0xca rcap2l counter / timer 2 capture ( low byte ) 0xd1 ref0cn voltage reference control register 0x99 sbuf serial data buffer ( uart ) 0x98 scon serial port control ( uart ) 0xc3 smb0adr smbus 0 address 0xc0 smb0cn smbus 0 control 0xcf smb0cr smbus 0 clock rate 0xc2 smb0dat smbus 0 data 0xc1 smb0sta smbus 0 status 0x81 sp stack pointer 0x9a spi0cfg serial peripheral interface configuration 0x9d spi0ckr spi clock rate 0xf8 spi0cn spi bus control 0x9b spi0dat spi port 1data 0xc8 t2con counter / timer 2 control 0x88 tcon counter / timer control 0x8c th0 counter / timer 0 data word ( high byte ) 0x8d th1 counter / timer 1 data word ( high byte ) 0xcd th2 counter / timer 2 data word ( high byte ) 0x8a tl0 counter / timer 0 data word ( low byte ) 0x8b tl1 counter / timer 1 data word ( low byte ) 0xcc tl2 counter / timer 2 data word ( low byte ) 0x89 tmod counter / timer mode 0x91 tmr3cn timer 3 control 0x95 tmr3h timer 3 high 0x94 tmr3l timer 3 low 0x93 tmr3rlh timer 3 reload high 0x92 tmr3rll timer 3 reload low 0xff wdtcn watchdog timer control 0xe1 xbr0 port i / o crossbar configuration 1 0xe2 xbr1 port i / o crossbar configuration 2 0xe3 xbr2 port i / o crossbar configuration 3 0x84 - 86 , 0x96 , 0x9c , reserved 0xa1 - a3 , 0xa9 - ac , 0xae - af , 0xb5 , 0xb9 , 0xbd , 0xc9 , 0xdf , 0xe4 - e5 , 0xef , 0xf1 - f5 in tables 16 - 20 are descriptions of sfrs related to the operation of the microcontroller 40 system controllers reserved bits should not be set to logic 1 . the system may use these bits to implement additional features in which case the reset value of the bit will be logic 0 , selecting the feature &# 39 ; s default states detailed descriptions of the remaining sfrs are included hereinbelow . the microcontroller 40 includes an extended interrupt system supporting a total of 22 interrupt sources with two priority levels . the allocation of interrupt sources between on - chip peripherals and external inputs pins varies according to the specific version of the devices . each interrupt source has one or more associated interrupt - pending flag ( s ) located in an sfr . when a peripheral or external source meets a valid interrupt condition , the associated interrupt - pending flag is set to logic 1 . if interrupts are enabled for the source , an interrupt request is generated when the interrupt - pending flag is set . as soon as execution of the current instruction is complete , the cpu generates an lcall to a predetermined address to begin execution of an interrupt service routine ( isr ). each isr must end with an reti instruction , which returns program execution to the next instruction that would have been executed if the interrupt request had not occurred . if interrupts are not enabled , the interrupt - pending flag is ignored by the hardware and program execution continues as normal . ( the interrupt - pending flag is set to logic 1 regardless of the interrupt &# 39 ; s enable / disable state .) each interrupt source can be individually enabled or disabled through the use of an associated interrupt enable bit in an sfr ( ie - eie 2 ). however , interrupts must first be globally enabled by setting the ea bit ( ie . 7 ) to logic 1 before the individual interrupt enables are recognized . setting the ea bit to logic 0 disables all interrupt sources regardless of the individual interrupt - enable settings . some interrupt - pending flags are automatically cleared by the hardware when the cpu vectors to the isr . however , most are not cleared by the hardware and must be cleared by software before returning from the isr . if an interrupt - pending flag remains set after the cpu completes the return - from - interrupt ( reti ) instruction , a new interrupt request will be generated immediately and the cpu will re - enter the isr after the completion of the next instruction . the mcu allocates 12 interrupt sources to on - chip peripherals . up to 10 additional external interrupt sources are available depending on the i / o pin configuration of the device . software can simulate an interrupt by setting any interrupt - pending flag to logic 1 . if interrupts are enabled for the flag , an interrupt request will be generated and the cpu will vector to the isr address associated with the interrupt - pending flag . the mcu interrupt sources , associated vector addresses , priority order and control bits are summarized in _ref474829042 ˜. refer to the datasheet section associated with a particular on - chip peripheral for information regarding valid interrupt conditions for the peripheral and the behavior of its interrupt - pending flag ( s ). two of the external interrupt sources (/ int 0 and / int 1 ) are configurable as active - low level - sensitive or active - low edge - sensitive inputs depending on the setting of it 0 ( tcon . 0 ) and it 1 ( tcon . 2 ). ie 0 ( tcon . 1 ) and ie 1 ( tcon . 3 ) serve as the interrupt - pending flag for the / int 0 and / int 1 external interrupts , respectively . if an / int 0 or / int 1 external interrupt is configured as edge - sensitive , the corresponding interrupt - pending flag is automatically cleared by the hardware when the cpu vectors to the isr . when configured as level sensitive , the interrupt - pending flag follows the state of the external interrupt &# 39 ; s input pin . the external interrupt source must hold the input active until the interrupt request is recognized . it must then deactivate the interrupt request before execution of the isr completes or another interrupt request will be generated . the remaining four external interrupts ( external interrupts 4 - 7 ) are active - low , edge - sensitive inputs . the interrupt - pending flags for these interrupts are in the port 1 interrupt flag register shown in table 21 . each interrupt source can be individually programmed to one of two priority levels : low or high . a low priority interrupt service routine can be preempted by a high priority interrupt . a high priority interrupt cannot be preempted . each interrupt has an associated interrupt priority bit in an sfr ( ip - eip2 ) used to configure its priority level . low priority is the default . if two interrupts are recognized simultaneously , the interrupt with the higher priority is serviced first . if both interrupts have the same priority level , a fixed priority order is used to arbitrate . interrupt response time depends on the state of the cpu when the interrupt occurs . pending interrupts are sampled and priority decoded each system clock cycle . therefore , the fastest possible response time is 5 system clock cycles : 1 clock cycle to detect the interrupt and 4 clock cycles to complete the lcall to the isr . if an interrupt is pending when a reti is executed , a single instruction is executed before an lcall is made to service the pending interrupt . therefore , the maximum response time for an interrupt ( when no other interrupt is currently being serviced or the new interrupt is of greater priority ) occurs when the cpu is performing an reti instruction followed by a div as the next instruction . in this case , the response time is 18 system clock cycles : 1 clock cycle to detect the interrupt , 5 clock cycles to execute the reti , 8 clock cycles to complete the div instruction and 4 clock cycles to execute the lcall to the isr . if the cpu is executing an isr for an interrupt with equal or higher priority , the new interrupt will not be serviced until the current isr completes , including the reti and following instruction . the sfrs used to enable the interrupt sources and set their priority level are described herein in tables 22 - 27 below . the microcontroller 40 core has two software programmable power management modes : idle and stop . idle mode halts the cpu while leaving the external peripherals and internal clocks active . in stop mode , the cpu is halted , all interrupts and timers ( except the missing clock detector ) are inactive , and the system clock is stopped . since clocks are running in idle mode , power consumption is dependent upon the system clock frequency and the number of peripherals left in active mode before entering idle . stop mode consumes the least power . table 28 describes the power control register ( pcon ) used to control the microcontroller 40 &# 39 ; s power management modes . although the microcontroller 40 has idle and stop modes built in ( as with any standard 8051 architecture ), power management of the entire mcu is better accomplished by enabling / disabling individual peripherals as needed . each analog peripheral can be disabled when not in use and put into low power mode . digital peripherals , such as timers or serial buses , draw little power whenever they are not in use . turning off the flash memory saves power , similar to entering idle mode . turning off the oscillator saves even more power , but requires a reset to restart the mcu . setting the idle mode select bit ( pcon . 0 ) causes the microcontroller 40 to halt the cpu and enter idle mode as soon as the instruction that sets the bit completes . all internal registers and memory maintain their original data . all analog and digital peripherals can remain active during idle mode . idle mode is terminated when an enabled interrupt or / rst is asserted . the assertion of an enabled interrupt will cause the idle mode selection bit ( pcon . 0 ) to be cleared and the cpu will resume operation . the pending interrupt will be serviced and the next instruction to be executed after the return from interrupt ( reti ) will be the instruction immediately following the one that set the idle mode select bit . if idle mode is terminated by an internal or external reset , the microcontroller 40 performs a normal reset sequence and begins program execution at address 0x0000 . if enabled , the wdt will eventually cause an internal watchdog reset and thereby terminate the idle mode . this feature protects the system from an unintended permanent shutdown in the event of an inadvertent write to the pcon register . if this behavior is not desired , the wdt may be disabled by software prior to entering the idle mode if the wdt was initially configured to allow this operation . this provides the opportunity for additional power savings , allowing the system to remain in the idle mode indefinitely , waiting for an external stimulus to wake up the system . setting the stop mode select bit ( pcon . 1 ) ( table 28 ) causes the microcontroller 40 to enter stop mode as soon as the instruction that sets the bit completes . in stop mode , the cpu and oscillators are stopped , effectively shutting down all digital peripherals . each analog peripheral must be shut down individually prior to entering stop mode . stop mode can only be terminated by an internal or external reset . on reset , the microcontroller 40 performs the normal reset sequence and begins program execution at address 0x0000 . if enabled , the missing clock detector will cause an internal reset and thereby terminate the stop mode . the missing clock detector should be disabled if the cpu is to be put to sleep for longer than the mcd timeout of 100 usec . referring now to fig2 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the flash memory . this mcu includes 32 k + 128 bytes of on - chip , reprogrammable flash memory for program code and non - volatile data storage . the flash memory can be programmed in - system , a single byte at a time , through the jtag interface or by software using the movx instruction . once cleared to 0 , a flash bit must be erased to set it back to 1 . the bytes would typically be erased ( set to 0xff ) before being reprogrammed . the write and erase operations are automatically timed by hardware for proper execution . data polling to determine the end of the write / erase operation is not required . the flash memory is designed to withstand at least 10 , 000 write / erase cycles . the simplest technique of programming the flash memory is through the jtag interface using programming tools provided by manufacturer or a third party vendor . this is the only means for programming a non - initialized device . for details on the jtag commands to program flash memory . the flash memory can be programmed by software using the movx instruction with the address and data byte to be programmed provided as normal operands . before writing to flash memory using movx , write operations must be enabled by setting the pswe program store write enable bit ( psctl . 0 ) to logic 1 . writing to flash remains enabled until the pswe bit is cleared by software . writes to flash memory can clear bits but cannot set them . only an erase operation can set bits in flash . therefore , the byte location to be programmed must be erased before a new value can be written . the 32 kbyte flash memory is organized in 512 - byte sectors . the erase operation applies to an entire sector ( setting all bytes in the sector to 0xff ). setting the psee program store erase enable bit ( psctl . 1 ) to logic 1 and then using the movx command to write a data byte to any byte location within the sector will erase an entire 512 - byte sector . the data byte written can be of any value because it is not actually written to the flash . flash erasure remains enabled until the psee bit is cleared by software . the following sequence illustrates the algorithm for programming the flash memory by software : 1 . enable flash memory write / erase in flscl register using flascl bits . 2 . set psee ( psctl . 1 ) to enable flash sector erase . 4 . use movx to write a data byte to any location within the 512 - byte sector to be erased . 6 . use movx to write a data byte to the desired byte location within the erased 512 - byte sector . repeat until finished . ( any number of bytes can be written from a single byte to and entire sector .) write / erase timing is automatically controlled by hardware based on the prescaler value held in the flash memory timing prescaler register ( flscl ). the 4 - bit prescaler value flascl determines the time interval for write / erase operations . the flascl value required for a given system clock is shown in table 30 , along with the formula used to derive the flascl values . when flascl is set to 1111b , the write / erase operations are disabled . note that code execution in the 8051 is stalled while the flash is being programmed or erased . the flash memory can be used for non - volatile data storage as well as program code . this allows data such as calibration coefficients to be calculated and stored at run time . data is written using the movx instruction and read using the movc instruction . the mcu incorporates an additional 128 - byte sector of flash memory located at 0x8000 − 0x807f . this sector can be used for program code or data storage . however , its smaller sector size makes it particularly well suited as general purpose , non - volatile scratchpad memory . even though flash memory can be written a single byte at a time , an entire sector must be erased first . in order to change a single byte of a multi - byte data set , the data must be moved to temporary storage . next , the sector is erased , the data set updated and the data set returned to the original sector . the 128 - byte sector - size facilitates updating data without wasting program memory space by allowing the use of internal data ram for temporary storage . ( a normal 512 - byte sector is too large to be stored in the 256 - byte internal data memory .) the microcontroller 40 provides security options to protect the flash memory from inadvertent modification by software as well as prevent the viewing of proprietary program code and constants . the program store write enable ( psctl . 0 ) ( table 29 ) and the program store erase enable ( psctl . 1 ) bits protect the flash memory from accidental modification by software . these bits must be explicitly set to logic 1 before software can modify the flash memory . additional security features prevent proprietary program code and data constants from being read or altered across the jtag interface or by software running on the system controller . tables 30 and 31 illustrate these features . a set of security lock bytes stored at 0x7dfe and 0x7dff protect the flash program memory from being read or altered across the jtag interface . each bit in a security lock - byte protects one 4 kbyte block of memory . clearing a bit to logic 0 in a read lock byte prevents the corresponding block of flash memory from being read across the jtag interface . clearing a bit in the write / erase lock byte protects the block from jtag erasures and / or writes . the read lock byte is at location 0x7dff . the write / erase lock byte is located at 0x7dfe . fig2 shows the location and bit definitions of the security bytes . the sector containing the lock byte cannot be erased by software . the lock bits can always be read and cleared to logic 0 regardless of the security setting applied to the block containing the security bytes . this allows additional blocks to be protected after the block containing the security bytes has been locked . however , the only means of removing a lock once set is to erase the entire program memory space by performing a jtag erase operation . it is noted that erasing the flash memory block containing the security bytes will automatically initiate erasure of the entire program memory space ( except for the reserved area ). this erasure can only be performed via the jtag . the flash access limit security feature protects proprietary program code and data from being read by software running on the microcontroller 40 . this feature provides support for oems that wish to program the mcu with proprietary value - added firmware before distribution . the value - added firmware can be protected while allowing additional code to be programmed in remaining program memory space later . the software read limit ( srl ) is a 16 - bit address that establishes two logical partitions in the program memory space . the first is an upper partition consisting of all the program memory locations at or above the srl address , and the second is a lower partition consisting of all the program memory locations starting at 0x0000 up to ( but excluding ) the srl address . software in the upper partition can execute code in the lower partition , but is prohibited from reading locations in the lower partition using the movc instruction . ( executing a movc instruction from the upper partition with a source address in the lower partition will always return a data value of 0x00 .) software running in the lower partition can access locations in both the upper and lower partition without restrictions . the value - added firmware should be placed in the lower partition . on reset , control is passed to the value - added firmware via the reset vector . once the value - added firmware completes its initial execution , it branches to a predetermined location in the upper partition . if entry points are published , software running in the upper partition may execute program code in the lower partition , but it cannot read the contents of the lower partition . parameters may be passed to the program code running in the lower partition either through the typical method of placing them on the stack or in registers before the call or by placing them in prescribed memory locations in the upper partition . the srl address is specified using the contents of the flash access register . the 16 - bit srl address is calculated as 0xnn00 , where nn is the contents of the srl security register . thus , the srl can be located on 256 - byte boundaries anywhere in program memory space . however , the 512 - byte erase sector size essentially requires that a 512 boundary be used . the contents of a non - initialized srl security byte is 0x00 , thereby setting the srl address to 0x0000 and allowing read access to all locations in program memory space by default . referring back to fig3 , the reset circuitry of the mcu allows the controller to be easily placed in a predefined default condition . on entry to this reset state , the microcontroller 40 halts program execution , forces the external port pins to a known state and initializes the sfrs to their defined reset values . interrupts and timers are disabled . on exit , the program counter ( pc ) is reset , and program execution starts at location 0x0000 . all of the sfrs are reset to predefined values . the reset values of the sfr bits are defined in the sfr detailed descriptions . the contents of internal data memory are not changed during a reset and any previously stored data is preserved . however , since the stack pointer sfr is reset , the stack is effectively lost even though the data on the stack are not altered . the i / o port latches are reset to 0xff ( all logic ones ), activating internal weak pull - ups which take the external i / o pins to a high state . the external i / o pins do not go high immediately , but will go high within 4 system clock cycles after entering the reset state . if the source of reset is from the vdd monitor , the / rst pin is driven low until the end of the vdd reset timeout . on exit from the reset state , the core 40 uses the internal oscillator running at 1 . 9 mhz as the system clock by default . the watchdog timer 102 is enabled using its longest timeout interval . once the system clock source is stable , program execution begins at location 0x0000 . there are seven sources for putting the mcu into the reset state : power - on / power - fail , external / rst pin , external cnvstr signal , software commanded , comparator 0 , missing clock detector , and watchdog timer . each reset source is described below : the microcontroller 40 incorporates a power supply monitor that holds the mcu in the reset state until vdd rises above the v rst level during power - up . the / rst pin is asserted ( low ) until the end of the 100 msec vdd monitor timeout in order to allow the vdd supply to become stable . on exit from a power - on reset , the porsf flag ( rstsrc . 1 ) is set by hardware to logic 1 . all of the other reset flags in the rstsrc register are indeterminate . it is cleared by all other resets . since all resets cause program execution to begin at the same location ( 0x0000 ) software can read the porsf flag to determine if a power - up was the cause of reset . the content of internal data memory should be assumed to be undefined after a power - on reset . when a power - down transition or power irregularity causes v dd to drop below v rst , the power supply monitor will drive the / rst pin low and return the microcontroller 40 to the reset state ( see fig2 ). when v dd returns to a level above v rst , the microcontroller 40 will leave the reset state in the same manner as that for the power - on reset . note that even though internal data memory contents are not altered by the power - fail reset , it is impossible to determine if vdd dropped below the level required for data retention . if the porsf flag is set , the data may no longer be valid . the external / rst pin provides a means for external circuitry to force the microcontroller 40 into a reset state . asserting an active - low signal on the / rst pin will cause the microcontroller 40 to enter the reset state . it may be desirable to provide an external pull - up and / or decoupling of the / rst pin to avoid erroneous noise - induced resets . the microcontroller 40 will remain in reset until at least 12 clock cycles after the active - low / rst signal is removed . the pinrsf flag ( rstsrc . 0 ) is set on exit from an external reset . the missing clock detector is essentially a one - shot circuit that is triggered by the mcu system clock . if the system clock goes away for more than 100 usec , the one - shot will time out and generate a reset . after a missing clock detector reset , the mcdrsf flag ( rstsrc . 2 ) will be set , signifying the msd as the reset source ; otherwise , this bit reads 0 . the state of the / rst pin is unaffected by this reset . setting the msclke bit in the oscicn register enables the missing clock detector . comparator 0 can be configured as a reset input by writing a 1 to the c0rsef flag ( rstsrc . 5 ). comparator 0 should be enabled using cpt 0 cn . 7 ( see table 11 ) prior to writing to c 0 rsef to prevent any turn - on chatter on the output from generating an unwanted reset . when configured as a reset , if the non - inverting input voltage ( on cp 0 +) is less than the inverting input voltage ( on cp 0 −), the mcu is put into the reset state . after a comparator 0 reset , the c 0 rsef flag ( rstsrc . 5 ) will read 1 signifying comparator 0 as the reset source ; otherwise , this bit reads 0 . the state of the / rst pin is unaffected by this reset . the external cnvstr signal can be configured as a reset input by writing a 1 to the cnvrsef flag ( rstsrc . 6 ). the cnvstr signal can appear on any of the p 0 , p 1 , or p 2 i / o pins . ( note that the crossbar 52 must be configured for the cnvstr signal to be routed to the appropriate port i / o .) the crossbar 52 should be configured and enabled before the cnvrsef is set to configure cnvstr as a reset source . when configured as a reset , cnvstr is active - low and level sensitive . after a cnvstr reset , the cnvrsef flag ( rstsrc . 6 ) will read 1 signifying cnvstr as the reset source ; otherwise , this bit reads 0 . the state of the / rst pin is unaffected by this reset . the mcu includes a programmable watchdog timer ( wdt ) running off the system clock . the wdt will force the mcu into the reset state when the watchdog timer overflows . to prevent the reset , the wdt must be restarted by application software before overflow . if the system experiences a software / hardware malfunction preventing the software from restarting the wdt , the wdt will overflow and cause a reset . this should prevent the system from running out of control . the wdt is automatically enabled and started with the default maximum time interval on exit from all resets . if desired the wdt can be disabled by system software or locked on to prevent accidental disabling . once locked , the wdt cannot be disabled until the next system reset . the state of the / rst pin is unaffected by this reset . the wdt consists of a 21 - bit timer running from the programmed system clock . the timer measures the period between specific writes to its control register . if this period exceeds the programmed limit , a wdt reset is generated . the wdt can be enabled and disabled as needed in software , or can be permanently enabled if desired . watchdog features are controlled via the watchdog timer control register ( wdtcn ) shown in table 32 . the watchdog timer is both enabled and reset by writing 0xa5 to the wdtcn register . the user &# 39 ; s application software should include periodic writes of 0xa5 to wdtcn as needed to prevent a watchdog timer overflow . the wdt is enabled and reset as a result of any system reset . writing 0xde followed by 0xad to the wdtcn register disables the wdt . the following code segment illustrates disabling the wdt . the writes of 0xde and 0xad must occur within 4 clock cycles of each other , or the disable operation is ignored . interrupts should be disabled during this procedure to avoid delay between the two writes . writing 0xff to wdtcn locks out the disable feature . once locked out , the disable operation is ignored until the next system reset . writing 0xff does not enable or reset the watchdog timer . applications always intending to use the watchdog should write 0xff to wdtcn in their initialization code . wdtcn . [ 2 : 0 ] control the watchdog timeout interval . the interval is given by the following equation : 4 3 + wdtcn [ 2 : 0 ] × t sysclk , ( where t sysclk is the system clock period ). for a 1 . 9 mhz system clock , this provides an interval range of 0 . 0337 msec to 552 msec . wdtcn . 7 must be a 0 when setting this interval . reading wdtcn returns the programmed interval . wdtcn . [ 2 : 0 ] is 111b after a system reset . referring now to fig2 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the internal oscillator 112 and an external oscillator drive circuit 37 , either of which can generate the system clock . the mcu boots from the internal oscillator after any reset . this internal oscillator 112 can be enabled / disabled and its frequency can be set using an internal oscillator control register ( oscicn ) as shown in [ table ]. both oscillators are disabled when the / rst pin is held low . the mcu can run from the internal oscillator 112 permanently , or it can switch to the external oscillator 37 if desired using clksl bit in the oscicn register 750 ( table 36 ). the external oscillator requires an external resonator , crystal , capacitor , or rc network connected to the xtal1 / xtal2 pins ( see _ref476033593 ˜). the oscillator circuit must be configured for one of these sources in the oscxcn register 752 ( table 37 ). an external cmos clock can also provide the system clock via overdriving the xtal1 pin . if a crystal were used to generate the system clock for the mcu , the circuit would be as shown in fig2 , option 1 . for an ecs - 110 . 5 - 20 - 4 crystal , the resonate frequency is 11 . 0592 mhz , the intrinsic capacitance is 7 pf , and the esr is 60 w . the compensation capacitors should be 33 pf each , and the pwb parasitic capacitance is estimated to be 2 pf . to find the appropriate external oscillator frequency control value ( xfcn ) in the oscxcn register 752 , the power factor must be calculated . first , find the equivalent load capacitance as follows : c l = co +[( c 1 * c 2 )/( c 1 + c 2 )]+ cp / 2 from the crystal column in table 37 , the first pf value which is greater than 22 ( 10 6 ) is 6 . 6 ( 10 6 ), so the xfcn value to use is 110 . if an external rc network were used to generate the system clock for the mcu , the circuit would be as shown in fig2 , option 2 . the capacitor must be no greater than 100 pf , but using a very small capacitor will increase the frequency drift due to the pwb parasitic capacitance . to determine the required external oscillator frequency control value ( xfcn ) in the oscxcn register 752 , first select the rc network value to produce the desired frequency of oscillation . if the frequency desired is 100 khz , let r = 246 kw and c = 50 pf : if an external capacitor were used to generate the system clock for the mcu , the circuit would be as shown in fig2 , option 3 . the capacitor must be no greater than 100 pf , but using a very small capacitor will increase the frequency drift due to the pwb parasitic capacitance . to determine the required external oscillator frequency control value ( xfcn ) in the oscxcn register 752 , select the capacitor to be used and find the frequency of oscillation from the equations below . assume av += 3 . 0v and c = 50 pf : if a frequency of roughly 400 khz is desired , select the k factor from the table in _ref472223418 ˜ as kf = 60 . 8 : therefore , the xfcn value to use in this example is 011 . referring back to fig6 , there is illustrated a diagram of the port i 10 functionality . the mcu has a wide array of digital resources , which are available through four digital i / o ports , p 0 , p 1 , p 2 and p 3 . each port pin can be defined as its corresponding port i / o or it can have one of the internal digital resources . the designer has complete control over which functions are assigned , limited only by the number of physical i / o pins available on the selected package . this is achieved through the use of the priority crossbar decoder 404 . ( note that the state of a port i / o pin can always be read in the corresponding port latch regardless of the crossbar settings ). the crossbar 52 assigns the selected internal digital resources to the i / o pins based on the priority decode table 38 . the registers xbr 0 , xbr 1 , and xbr 2 , defined in tables 39 , 40 and 41 are used to select an internal digital function or let an i / o pin default to being a port i / o . all port i / os are 5v tolerant ( fig2 illustrates a cell block diagram .) the port i / o cells are configured as either push - pull or open - drain in the port configuration registers ( prt 0 cf , prt 1 cf , prt 2 cf , prt 3 cf ). the priority crossbar decode 404 assigns a priority to each i / o function , starting at the top with the smbus . when selected , its two signals will be assigned to pin 0 and 1 of i / o port 0 . the decoder always fills i / o bits from lsb to msb starting with port 0 , then port 1 , finishing if necessary with port 2 . if the designer chooses not to use a resource , the next function will fill the priority slot . in this way , it is possible to choose only the functions required by the design making full use of the available i / o pins . also , any extra port i / o are grouped together for more convenient use in application code . registers xbr 0 , xbr 1 and xbr 2 are used to assign the digital i / o resources to the physical i / o port pins . when the smbus , spi bus , or uart is selected , the crossbar 52 assigns all pins associated with the selected bus . it would be impossible for instance to assign the rx pin from the uart function without also assigning the tx function . standard port i / os appear contiguously after the prioritized functions have been assigned . for example , if you choose functions that take the first 14 port i / o ( p 0 . [ 7 : 0 ], p 1 . [ 5 : 0 ]), you would have 18 port i / o left over ( p 1 . [ 7 : 6 ], p 2 and p 3 ). the crossbar circuit is described in u . s . patent application ser . no . 09 / 583 , 260 , filed may 31 , 2000 , entitled “ cross - bar matrix for connecting digital resources to i10 pairs of an integrated circuit ,” ( atty . dkt . cygl - 25 , 155 ), which is incorporated herein by reference . port i / o initialization is straightforward . registers xbr 0 , xbr 1 and xbr 2 must be loaded with the appropriate values to select the digital i / o functions required by the design . setting xbr2 . 7 to 1 enables the crossbar 52 . until the crossbar 52 is enabled , the external pins remain as standard ports in input mode regardless of the xbrn register settings . for given xbrn register settings , one can determine the i / o pin - out using the priority decode table ; as an alternative , the configuration code generator function of the ide software will determine the port i / o pin - assignments based on the xbrn register settings . the output driver characteristics of the i / o pins are defined using the port configuration registers prt 0 cf , prt 1 cf , prt 2 cf and prt 3 cf ( see tables 43 , 45 , 48 and 50 ). each port output driver can be configured as either open drain or push - pull . this is required even for the digital resources selected in the xbrn registers and is not automatic . the only exception to this is the smbus ( sda , scl ) and uart receive ( rx ) pins which are open - drain regardless of the prtncf settings . the third and final step is to initialize the individual resources selected using the appropriate setup registers . initialization procedures for the various digital resources may be found in the detailed explanation of each available function . the reset state of each register is shown in tables 42 - 50 that describe each individual register . in the priority decode table 38 , a dot (•) is used to show the external port i / o pin ( column ) to which each signal ( row ) can be assigned by the user application code via programming registers xbr 2 , xbr 1 , and xbr 0 . the mcu has four byte - wide , bi - directional parallel ports that can be used general purpose i / o . each port is accessed through a corresponding special function register ( sfr ) that is both byte addressable and bit addressable . when writing to a port , the value written to the sfr is latched to maintain the output data value at each pin . when reading , the logic levels of the port &# 39 ; s input pins are returned regardless of the xbrn settings ( i . e . even when the pin is assigned to another signal by the crossbar , the port register can always still read its corresponding port i / o pin ). the exception to this is the execution of the read - modify - write instructions . the read - modify - write instructions when operating on a port sfr are the following : anl , orl , xrl , jbc , cpl , inc , dec , djnz and mov , clr or set , when the destination is an individual bit in a port sfr . for these instructions , the value of the register ( not the pin ) is read , modified , and written back to the sfr . referring now to fig2 a and 25b , there is illustrated a block diagram of the smbus . the smbus serial i / o interface is compliant with the system management bus specification , version 1 . 1 . it is a two - wire , bi - directional serial bus , which is also compatible with the i 2 c serial bus . reads and writes to the interface by the system controller are byte oriented with the smbus interface autonomously controlling the serial transfer of the data . data can be transferred at up to ⅛ th of the system clock if desired ( this can be faster than allowed by the smbus specification , depending on the system clock used ). a method of extending the clock - low duration is used to accommodate devices with different speed capabilities on the same bus . two types of data transfers are possible : data transfers from a master transmitter to an addressed slave receiver , and data transfers from an addressed slave transmitter to a master receiver . the master device initiates both types of data transfers and provides the serial clock pulses . the smbus interface may operate as a master or a slave . multiple master devices on the same bus are also supported . if two or more masters attempt to initiate a data transfer simultaneously , an arbitration scheme is employed with a single master always winning the arbitration . fig2 shows a typical smbus configuration . the smbus interface will work at any voltage between 3 . 0v and 5 . 0v and different devices on the bus may operate at different voltage levels . the scl ( serial clock ) on line 780 and sda ( serial data ) on line 782 are bi - directional . they must be connected to a positive power supply voltage through a pull - up resistor or similar circuit 784 . when the bus is free , both lines are pulled high . every device connected to the bus must have an open - drain or open - collector output for both the scl and sda lines . the maximum number of devices on the bus is limited only by the requirement that the rise and fall times on the bus will not exceed 300 ns and 1000 ns , respectively . a typical smbus transaction consists of a start condition , followed by an address byte , one or more bytes of data , and a stop condition . the address byte and each of the data bytes are followed by an acknowledge bit from the receiver . the address byte consists of a 7 - bit address plus a direction bit . the direction bit ( r / w ) occupies the least - significant bit position of the address . the direction bit is set to logic 1 to indicate a “ read ” operation and cleared to logic 0 to indicate a “ write ” operation . a general call address ( 0x00 + r / w ) is recognized by all slave devices allowing a master to address multiple slave devices simultaneously . all transactions are initiated by the master with one or more addressed slave devices as the target . the master generates the start condition and then transmits the address and direction bit . if the transaction is a write operation from the master to the slave , the master transmits the data a byte at a time waiting for an acknowledge from the slave at the end of each byte . if it is a read operation , the slave transmits the data waiting for an acknowledge from the master at the end of each byte . at the end of the data transfer , the master generates a stop condition to terminate the transaction and free the bus . fig2 illustrates a typical smbus transaction . the smbus interface may be configured to operate as either a master or a slave . at any particular time , it will be operating in one of the following four modes : serial data is transmitted on sda while the serial clock is output on scl . the first byte transmitted contains the address of the target slave device and the data direction bit . in this case the data direction bit ( r / w ) will be logic 0 to indicate a “ write ” operation . the master then transmits one or more bytes of serial data . after each byte is transmitted , an acknowledge bit is generated by the slave . start and stop conditions are output by the master device to indicate the beginning and the end of the serial transfer . serial data is received on sda while the serial clock is output on scl . the first byte is transmitted by the master and contains the address of the target slave and the data direction bit . in this case the data direction bit ( r / w ) will be logic 1 to indicate a “ read ” operation . serial data is then received from the slave on sda while the master outputs the serial clock . one or more bytes of serial data are transmitted by the slave . after each byte is received , an acknowledge bit is transmitted by the master . start and stop conditions are output by the master to indicate the beginning and end of the serial transfer . serial data is transmitted on sda while the serial clock is received on scl . first , a byte is received that contains an address and data direction bit . in this case the data direction bit ( r / w ) will be logic 1 to indicate a “ read ” operation . if the received address matches the slave &# 39 ; s assigned address ( or a general call address is received ) one or more bytes of serial data are transmitted to the master . after each byte is received , an acknowledge bit is transmitted by the master . the master outputs start and stop conditions to indicate the beginning and end of the serial transfer . serial data is received on sda while the serial clock is received on scl . first , a byte is received that contains an address and data direction bit . in this case the data direction bit ( r / w ) will be logic 0 to indicate a “ write ” operation . if the received address matches the slave &# 39 ; s assigned address ( or a general call address is received ) one or more bytes of serial data are received from the master . after each byte is received , an acknowledge bit is transmitted by the slave . start and stop conditions are output by the master to indicate the beginning and end of the serial transfer . a master may start a transfer only if the bus is free . the bus is free after a stop condition or after the scl and sda lines remains high for a specified time . two or more master devices may attempt to generate a start condition at the same time . since the devices that generated the start condition may not be aware that other masters are contending for the bus , an arbitration scheme is employed . the master devices continue to transmit until one of the masters transmits a high level , while the other ( s ) master transmits a low level on sda . the first master ( s ) transmitting the high level on sda looses the arbitration and is required to give up the bus . smbus provides a clock synchronization mechanism , similar to i2c , which allows devices with different speed capabilities to coexist on the bus . a clock - low extension is used during a transfer in order to allow slower slave devices to communicate with faster masters . the slave can hold the scl line low to extend the clock low period , effectively decreasing the serial clock frequency . if the scl line is held low by a slave device on the bus , no further communication is possible . furthermore , the master cannot force the scl line high to correct the error condition . to solve this problem , the smbus protocol specifies that devices participating in a transfer must detect any clock cycle held low longer than 25 ms as a “ timeout ” condition . devices that have detected the timeout condition must reset the communication no later than 10 ms after detecting the timeout condition . one of the mcu &# 39 ; s general - purpose timers , operating in 16 - bit auto - reload mode , can be used to monitor the scl line for this timeout condition . timer 3 is specifically designed for this purpose . the smbus specification stipulates that if a device holds the scl and sda lines high for more that 50 usec , the bus is designated as free . the smb 0 cr register is used to detect this condition when the fte bit in smb 0 cn is set , thereby setting the si bit in smb 0 cn if this event is detected . the smbus serial interface is accessed and controlled through five sfrs : smb 0 cn control register , smb 0 cr clock rate register , smb 0 adr address register , smb 0 dat data register and smb 0 sta status register . the system device may have one or more smbus serial interfaces implemented . the five special function registers related to the operation of the smbus interface are described in the following section . the smbus control register smb 0 cn ( table 51 ) is used to configure and control the smbus interface . all of the bits in the register can be read or written by software . two of the control bits are also affected by the smbus hardware . the serial interrupt flag ( si , smb 0 cn . 3 ) is set to logic 1 by the hardware when a valid serial interrupt condition occurs . it can only be cleared by software . the stop flag ( sto , smb 0 cn . 4 ) is cleared to logic 0 by hardware when a stop condition is present on the bus . setting the ensms flag to logic 1 enables the smbus interface . clearing the ensmb flag to logic 0 disables the smbus interface and removes it from the bus . momentarily clearing the ensmb flag and then resetting it to logic 1 will reset a smbus communication . however , ensmb should not be used to temporarily remove a device from the bus since the bus state information will be lost . instead , the assert acknowledge ( aa ) flag should be used to temporarily remove the device from the bus ( see description of aa flag below ). setting the start flag ( sta , smb 0 cn . 5 ) to logic 1 will put the smbus in a master mode . if the bus is free , the smbus hardware will generate a start condition . if the bus is not free , the smbus hardware waits for a stop condition to free the bus and then generates a start condition after a 5 us delay per the smb0cr value . ( in accordance with the smbus protocol , the smbus interface also considers the bus free if the bus is idle for 50 us and no stop condition was recognized .) if sta is set to logic 1 while the smbus is in master mode and one or more bytes have been transferred , a repeated start condition will be generated . when the stop flag ( sto , smb 0 cn . 4 ) is set to logic 1 while the smbus interface is in master mode , the hardware generates a stop condition on the smbus . in a slave mode , the sto flag may be used to recover from an error condition . in this case , a stop condition is not generated on the smbus , but the smbus hardware behaves as if a stop condition has been received and enters the “ not addressed ” slave receiver mode . the smbus hardware automatically clears the sto flag to logic 0 when a stop condition is detected on the bus . the serial interrupt flag ( si , smb 0 cn . 3 ) is set to logic 1 by hardware when the smbus interface enters one of 27 possible states . if interrupts are enabled for the smbus interface , an interrupt request is generated when the si flag is set . the si flag must be cleared by software . if si is set to logic 1 while the scl line is low , the clock - low period of the serial clock will be stretched and the serial transfer is suspended . a high level on scl is not affected by the setting of the si flag . the assert acknowledge flag ( aa , smb 0 cn . 2 ) is used to set the level of the sda line during the acknowledge clock cycle on the scl line . setting the aa flag to logic 1 will cause an acknowledge ( low level on sda ) to be sent during the acknowledge cycle if the device has been addressed . setting the aa flag to logic 0 will cause a not acknowledge ( high level on sda ) to be sent during acknowledge cycle . after the transmission of a byte in slave mode , the slave can be temporarily removed from the bus by clearing the aa flag . the slave &# 39 ; s own address and general call address will be ignored . to resume operation on the bus , the aa flag must be reset to logic 1 to allow the slave &# 39 ; s address to be recognized . setting the smbus free timer enable bit ( fte , smb 0 cn . 1 ) to logic 1 enables the timer in smb 0 cr . when scl goes high , the timer in smb 0 cr counts up . if it overflows , the bus will be freed from being be driven by the master . the bus free period should be less than 50 usec ( see table 52 , smbus clock rate register ). setting the smbus timeout enable bit to logic 1 enables timer 3 to count up when the scl line is high and timer 3 is enabled . if timer 3 overflows , a timer 3 interrupt will be generated , which will alert the cpu that a smbus scl low timeout has occurred . the smbus data register smb 0 dat ( table 53 ) holds a byte of serial data to be transmitted or one that has just been received . software can read or write to this register while the si flag is set to logic 1 . data remains stable in the register as long as si is set to logic 1 . software can safely read or write to the data register when the si flag is set . software should not attempt to access the smb 0 dat register when the smbus is enabled and the si flag is cleared to logic 0 since the hardware may be in the process of shifting a byte of data in or out of the register . data in smb 0 dat is always shifted out msb first . after a byte has been received , the first bit of received data is located at the msb of smb 0 dat . while data is being shifted out , data on the bus is simultaneously being shifted in . therefore , smb 0 dat always contains the last data byte present on the bus . thus , in the event of lost arbitration , the transition from master transmitter to slave receiver is made with the correct data in smb 0 dat . the smb 0 adr address register ( table 54 ) holds the slave address for the smbus interface . in slave mode , the seven most - significant bits hold the 7 - bit slave address . the least significant bit , bit 0 , is used to enable the recognition of the general call address ( 0x00 ). if bit 0 is set to logic 1 , the general call address will be recognized . otherwise , the general call address is ignored . the contents of this register are ignored when the smbus hardware is operating in master mode . the smb0sta status register ( table 55 ) holds an 8 - bit status code indicating the current state of the smbus . there are 28 possible smbus states , each with a corresponding unique status code . the five most significant bits of the status code vary while the three least - significant bits of a valid status code are fixed at zero when si = 1 . therefore , all possible status codes are multiples of eight . this facilitates the use of status codes in software as an index used to branch to appropriate service routines ( allowing 8 bytes of code to service the state or jump to a more extensive service routine ). for the purposes of user software , the contents of the smb0sta register is only defined when the si flag is logic 1 . software should never write to the smb 0 sta register . doing so will yield indeterminate results . the 28 smbus states , along with their corresponding status codes , are given in table 56 . referring now to fig2 , there is illustrated a block diagram of the spi . the serial peripheral interface ( spi ) provides access to a four - wire , full - duplex , serial bus . spi supports the connection of multiple slave devices to a master device on the same bus . a separate slave - select signal ( nss ) is used to select a slave device and enable a data transfer between the master and the selected slave . multiple masters on the same bus are also supported . collision detection is provided when two or more masters attempt a data transfer at the same time . the spi can operate as either a master or a slave , as illustrated in the interconnection scheme of fig2 . data may be transferred at up to a maximum bit rate of one - eighth the system clock frequency . the four signals used by the spi on lines 800 ( mosi , miso , sck , nss ) are described below . the master - out , slave - in ( mosi ) signal is an output from a master device and an input to slave devices . it is used to serially transfer data from the master to the slave . data is transferred most - significant bit first . the master - in , slave - out ( miso ) signal is an output from a slave device and an input to the master device . it is used to serially transfer data from the slave to the master . data is transferred most - significant bit first . a spi slave places the miso pin in a high - impedance state when the slave is not selected . the serial clock ( sck ) signal is an output from the master device and an input to slave devices . it is used to synchronize the transfer of data between the master and slave on the mosi and miso lines . the slave select ( nss ) signal is an input used to select the spi module when in slave mode by a master , or to disable the spi module when in master mode . when in slave mode , it is pulled low to initiate a data transfer and remains low for the duration of the transfer . only a spi master device can initiate a data transfer . the spi is placed in master mode by setting the master enable flag ( msten , spi 0 cn . 1 ). writing a byte of data to the spi data register ( spi 0 dat ) 800 ( table 60 ) when in master mode starts a data transfer . the spi master immediately shifts out the data serially on the mosi line while providing the serial clock on sck . the spif ( spi 0 cn . 7 ) flag from register 804 ( table 58 ) is set to logic 1 at the end of the transfer . if interrupts are enabled , an interrupt request is generated when the spif flag is set . the spi master can be configured to shift in / out from one to eight bits in a transfer operation in order to accommodate slave devices with different word lengths . the spifrs bits in an spi configuration register 806 ( table 57 ) ( spi 0 cfg [ 2 : 0 ]) are used to select the number of bits to shift in / out in a transfer operation . while the spi master transfers data to a slave on the mosi line , the addressed spi slave device simultaneously transfers the contents of its shift register to the spi master on the miso line in a full - duplex operation . the data byte received from the slave replaces the data in the master &# 39 ; s data register . therefore , the spif flag serves as both a transmit - complete and receive - data - ready flag . the data transfer in both directions is synchronized with the serial clock generated by the master . fig3 illustrates the full - duplex operation of an spi master and an addressed slave . the spi data register is double buffered on reads , but not on a write . if a write to spiodat 802 is attempted during a data transfer , the wcol flag ( spi 0 cn . 6 ) will be set to logic 1 and the write is ignored . the current data transfer will continue uninterrupted . a read of the spi data register by the system controller actually reads the receive buffer . if the receive buffer still holds unread data from a previous transfer when the last bit of the current transfer is shifted into the spi shift register , a receive overrun occurs and the rxovrn flag ( spi 0 cn . 4 ) is set to logic 1 . the new data is not transferred to the receive buffer , allowing the previously received data byte to be read . the data byte causing the overrun is lost . when the spi is enabled and not configured as a master , it will operate as an spi slave . another spi device acting as a master will initiate a transfer by driving the nss signal low . the master then shifts data out of the shift register on the miso pin using the serial clock . the spif flag is set to logic 1 at the end of a data transfer ( when the nss signal goes high ). the slave can load its shift register for the next data transfer by writing to the spi data register . the slave must make the write to the data register at least one spi serial clock cycle before the master starts the next transmission . otherwise , the byte of data already in the slave &# 39 ; s shift register will be transferred . multiple masters may reside on the same bus . a mode fault flag ( modf , spi 0 cn . 5 ) is set to logic 1 when the spi is configured as a master ( msten = 1 ) and its slave select signal nss is pulled low . in a multiple - master environment , the system controller should check the state of the slvsel flag ( spi 0 cn . 2 ) to ensure the bus is free before setting the msten bit and initiating a data transfer . as shown in fig3 , four combinations of serial clock phase and polarity can be selected using the clock control bits in the spi configuration register ( spi 0 cfg ) 806 . the ckpha bit ( spi 0 cfg . 7 ) selects one of two clock phases ( edge used to latch the data ). the ckpol bit ( spi 0 cfg . 6 ) selects between an active - high or active - low clock . both master and slave devices must be configured to use the same clock phase and polarity . note : the spi should be disabled ( by clearing the spien bit , spi 0 cn . 0 ) while changing the clock phase and polarity . the spi clock rate register ( spi 0 ckr ) 810 ( table 59 ) controls the master mode serial clock frequency . this register is ignored when operating in slave mode . the spi is accessed and controlled through four special function registers in the system controller : spi 0 cn control register 800 , spi 0 dat data register 802 , spi 0 cfg configuration register 806 , and spi 0 ckr clock rate register 810 . referring now to fig3 a and 32b , there is illustrated a block diagram of the uart , which is capable of asynchronous transmission . the uart can function in full duplex mode . in all modes , receive data is buffered in a holding register . this allows the uart to start reception of a second incoming data byte before software has finished reading the previous data byte . the uart has an associated serial control register ( scon ) 820 ( table 62 ) and a serial data buffer ( sbuf ) 822 in the sfrs . the single sbuf 822 location provides access to both transmit and receive registers . reads access the receive register and writes access the transmit register automatically . the uart is capable of generating interrupts if enabled . the uart has two sources of interrupts : a transmit interrupt flag , ti ( scon . 1 ) set when transmission of a data byte is complete , and a receive interrupt flag , ri ( scon . 0 ) set when reception of a data byte is complete . the uart interrupt flags are not cleared by hardware when the cpu vectors to the interrupt service routine . they must be cleared manually by software . this allows software to determine the cause of the uart interrupt ( transmit complete or receive complete ). the uart provides four operating modes ( one synchronous and three asynchronous ) selected by setting configuration bits in the scon register . these four modes offer different baud rates and communication protocols . the four modes are summarized in table 15 . 1 below . mode synchronization baud clock data bits start / stop bits 0 sync sysclk or ½ 1 async t1 on 72 over 2 async sysclk / 32 or 164 3 async mode 0 provides synchronous , half - duplex communication . serial data is transmitted and received on the rx pin . the tx pin provides the shift clock for both transmit and receive . the mcu must be the master since it generates the shift clock for transmission in both directions ( fig3 illustrates this .) eight data bits are transmitted / received , lsb first ( fig3 illustrates this timing diagram .) data transmission begins when an instruction writes a data byte to the sbuf register 822 . the ti transmit interrupt flag ( scon . 1 ) is set at the end of the eighth bit time . data reception begins when the ren receive enable bit ( scon . 4 ) is set to logic 1 and the ri receive interrupt flag ( scon . 0 ) is cleared . one cycle after the eighth bit is shifted in , the fi flag is set and reception stops until software clears the ri bit . an interrupt will occur if enabled when either ti or ri are set . mode 1 provides standard asynchronous , full duplex communication using a total of 10 bits per data byte : one start bit , eight data bits ( lsb first ), and one stop bit ; the timing diagram illustrated in fig3 . data are transmitted from the tx pin and received at the rx pin . on receive , the eight data bits are stored in sbuf and the stop bit goes into rb 8 ( scon . 2 ). data transmission begins when an instruction writes a data byte to the sbuf register . the ti transmit interrupt flag ( scon . 1 ) is set at the end of the transmission ( the beginning of the stop - bit time ). data reception can begin any time after the ren receive enable bit ( scon . 4 ) is set to logic 1 . after the stop bit is received , the data byte will be loaded into the sbuf receive register if the following conditions are met : ri must be logic 0 , and if sm 2 is logic 1 , the stop bit must be logic 1 . if these conditions are met , the eight bits of data is stored in sbuf , the stop bit is stored in rb 8 and the ri flag is set . if these conditions are not met , sbuf and rb 8 will not be loaded and the ri flag will not be set . an interrupt will occur if enabled when either ti or ri are set . the baud rate generated in mode 1 is a function of timer overflow . the uart can use either timer 1 or timer 2 operating in auto - reload mode to generate the baud rate . on each timer overflow event ( a rollover from all ones — 0xff for timer 1 , 0xffff for timer 2 — to zero ) a clock is sent to the baud rate circuit . this clock is divided by 16 to generate the baud rate . timer 1 should be configured for 8 - bit counter / timer with auto - reload mode and its interrupt disabled when used as a baud rate generator . the combination of system clock frequency and the reload value stored in th1 determine the baud rate as follows : mode 1 baud rate =( 2 smod / 32 )*( sysclk * 12 ( tim − 1 ) /( 256 − th 1 )) the smod bit ( pcon . 7 ) selects whether or not to divide the timer 1 overflow rate by two . on reset , the smod bit is logic 0 , thus selecting the lower speed baud rate by default . selecting the timebase used by timer 1 allows further control of baud rate generation . using the system clock divided by one ( setting t1m in ckcon ) changes the twelve in the denominator of the equation above to a one . to use timer 2 for baud rate generation , configure the timer baud rate generator mode and set rclk and / or tclk to logic 1 . setting rclk and / or tclk automatically disables timer 2 interrupts and configures timer 2 to use the system clock divided by two as its timebase . if a different timebase is required , setting the c / t2 bit to logic 1 will allow the timebase to be derived from a clock supplied to the external input pin t 2 . the combination of clock frequency and the reload value stored in capture registers determine the baud rate as follows : mode 1 baud rate = sysclk /[ 32 *( 65536 − [ rcap 2 h : rcap 2 l ])], mode 2 provides asynchronous , full - duplex communication using a total of eleven bits per data byte : a start bit , 8 data bits ( lsb first ), a programmable ninth data bit , and a stop bit , the timing diagram therefor illustrated in fig3 . on transmit , the ninth data bit is determined by the value in tb 8 ( scon . 3 ). it can be assigned the value of the parity flag p in the psw or used in multiprocessor communications . on receive , the ninth data bit goes into rb 8 ( scon . 2 ) and the stop bit is ignored . data transmission begins when an instruction writes a data byte to the sbuf register . the ti transmit interrupt flag ( scon . 1 ) is set at the end of the transmission ( the beginning of the stop - bit time ). data reception can begin any time after the ren receive enable bit ( scon . 4 ) is set to logic 1 . after the stop bit is received , the data byte will be loaded into the sbuf receive register if the following conditions are met : ri must be logic 0 , and if sm2 is logic 1 , the 9 th bit must be logic 1 . if these conditions are met , the eight bits of data is stored in sbuf , the ninth bit is stored in rb 8 and the ri flag is set . if these conditions are not met , sbuf and rb8 will not be loaded and the ri flag will not be set . an interrupt will occur if enabled when either ti or ri are set . the baud rate in mode 2 is a direct function of the system clock frequency as follows : the smod bit ( pcon . 7 ) selects whether to divide sysclk by 32 or 64 . in the formula , 2 is raised to the power smod , resulting in a baud rate of either 1 / 32 or 1 / 64 of the system clock frequency . on reset , the smod bit is logic 0 , thus selecting the lower speed baud rate by default . mode 3 is the same as mode 2 in all respects except the baud rate is variable . the baud rate is determined in the same manner as for mode 1 . mode 3 operation transmits 11 bits : a start bit , 8 data bits ( lsb first ), a programmable ninth data bit , and a stop bit . timer 1 or timer 2 overflows generate the baud rate just as with mode 1 . in summary , mode 3 transmits using the same protocol as mode 2 but with mode 1 baud rate generation . the timer mode register ( t 2 con ) 824 is illustrated in table 64 . modes 2 and 3 support multiprocessor communication between a master processor and one or more slave processors by special use of the ninth data bit , as illustrated in fig3 . when a master processor wants to transmit to one or more slaves , it first sends an address byte to select the target ( s ). an address byte differs from a data byte in that its ninth bit is logic 1 ; in a data byte , the ninth bit is always set to logic 0 . setting the sm 2 bit ( scon . 5 ) of a slave processor configures its uart such that when a stop bit is received , the uart will generate an interrupt only if the ninth bit is logic one ( rb 8 = 1 ) signifying an address byte has been received . in the uart &# 39 ; s interrupt handler , software will compare the received address with the slave &# 39 ; s own assigned 8 - bit address . if the addresses match , the slave will clear its sm 2 bit to enable interrupts on the reception of the following data byte ( s ). slaves that weren &# 39 ; t addressed leave their sm 2 bits set and do not generate interrupts on the reception of the following data bytes , thereby ignoring the data . once the entire message is received , the addressed slave resets its sm2 bit to ignore all transmissions until it receives the next address byte . multiple addresses can be assigned to a single slave and / or a single address can be assigned to multiple slaves , thereby enabling “ broadcast ” transmissions to more than one slave simultaneously . the master processor can be configured to receive all transmissions or a protocol can be implemented such that the master / slave role is temporarily reversed to enable half - duplex transmission between the original master and slave ( s ). the microcontroller 40 implements four counter / timers : three are 16 - bit counter / timers compatible with those found in the standard 8051 , and one is a 16 - bit timer for use with the adc , smbus , or for general purpose use . these can be used to measure time intervals , count external events and generate periodic interrupt requests . timer 0 and timer 1 are nearly identical and have four primary modes of operation . timer 2 offers additional capabilities not available in timers 0 and 1 . timer 3 is similar to timer 2 , but without the capture or baud rate generator modes . table 65 illustrates the timers . when functioning as a timer , the counter / timer registers are incremented on each clock tick . clock ticks are derived from the system clock divided by either one or twelve as specified by the timer clock select bits ( t 2 m - t 0 m ) in ckcon . the twelve - clocks - per - tick option provides compatibility with the older generation of the 8051 family . applications that require a faster timer can use the one - clock - per - tick option . when functioning as a counter , a counter / timer register is incremented on each high - to - low transition at the selected input pin . events with a frequency of up to one - fourth the system clock &# 39 ; s frequency can be counted . the input signal need not be periodic , but it should be held at a given level for at least two full system clock cycles to ensure the level is sampled . timer 0 and timer 1 are accessed and controlled through sfrs . each counter / timer is implemented as a 16 - bit register accessed as two separate bytes : a low byte ( tl 0 or tl 1 ) and a high byte ( th 0 or th 1 ). the counter / timer control ( tcon ) register 830 ( table 66 ) is used to enable timer 0 and timer 1 as well as indicate their status . both counter / timers operate in one of four primary modes selected by setting the mode select bits m 1 - m 0 in the counter / timer mode ( tmod ) register . each timer can be configured independently . following is a detailed description of each operating mode . timer 0 and timer 1 operate as a 13 - bit counter / timer in mode 0 . the following describes the configuration and operation of timer 0 , illustrated in fig3 . however , both timers operate identically and timer 1 is configured in the same manner as described for timer 0 . the th 0 register holds the eight msbs of the 13 - bit counter / timer . tl 0 holds the five lsbs in bit positions tl 0 . 4 - tl 0 . 0 . the three upper bits of tl 0 ( tl 0 . 7 - tl 0 . 5 ) are indeterminate and should be masked out or ignored when reading . as the 13 - bit timer register increments and overflows from 0x1fff ( all ones ) to 0x0000 , the timer overflow flag tf 0 ( tcon . 5 ) is set and an interrupt will occur if enabled . the c / t 0 bit ( tmod . 2 ) selects the counter / timer &# 39 ; s clock source . clearing c / t selects the system clock as the input for the timer . when c / t0 is set to logic 1 , high - to - low transitions at the selected input pin increment the timer register . ( refer to port i / o section _ref472922989 ˜ for information on selecting and configuring external i / o pins .) setting the tr0 bit ( tcon . 4 ) enables the timer when either gate 0 ( tmod . 3 ) is 0 or the input signal / int 0 is logic - level one . setting gate0 to logic 1 allows the timer to be controlled by the external input signal / int 0 , facilitating pulse width measurements . table 67 illustrates the tro bit / gate lists . tl1 and th1 form the 13 - bit register for timer 1 in the same manner as described above for tl0 and th0 . timer 1 is configured and controlled using the relevant tcon and tmod bits just as with timer 0 . mode 1 operation is the same as mode 0 , except that the counter / timer registers use all 16 bits . the counter / timers are enabled and configured in mode 1 in the same manner as for mode 0 . mode 2 configures timer 0 and timer 1 to operate as 8 - bit counter / timers with automatic reload of the start value , and is illustrated in fig4 . the tl 0 holds the count and th 0 holds the reload value . when the counter in tl 0 overflows from all ones to 0x00 , the timer overflow flag tf 0 ( tcon . 5 ) is set and the counter in tl 0 is reloaded from th 0 . if enabled , an interrupt will occur when the tf 0 flag is set . the reload value in th 0 is not changed . tl 0 must be initialized to the desired value before enabling the timer for the first count to be correct . when in mode 2 , timer 1 operates identically to timer 0 . both counter / timers are enabled and configured in mode 2 in the same manner as mode 0 . timer 0 and timer 1 behave differently in mode 3 . timer 0 is configured as two separate 8 - bit counter / timers held in tl 0 and th 0 , and is illustrated in fig4 . the counter / timer in tl 0 is controlled using the timer 0 control / status bits in tcon and tmod : tr 0 , c / t 0 , gate 0 and tf 0 . it can use either the system clock or an external input signal as its timebase . the th 0 register is restricted to a timer function sourced by the system clock . th 0 is enabled using the timer 1 run control bit tr 1 . th 0 sets the timer 1 overflow flag tf 1 on overflow and thus controls the timer 1 interrupt . timer 1 is inactive in mode 3 , so with timer 0 in mode 3 , timer 1 can be turned off and on by switching it into and out of its mode 3 . when timer 0 is in mode 3 , timer 1 can be operated in modes 0 , 1 or 2 , but cannot be clocked by external signals nor set the tf 1 flag and generate an interrupt . however , the timer 1 overflow can be used for baud rate generation . the timer 0 and timer 1 operations are illustrated in tables 70 - 73 . timer 2 is a 16 - bit counter / timer formed by the two 8 - bit sfrs : tl 2 ( low byte ) and th 2 ( high byte ). as with timers 0 and 1 , timer 2 can use either the system clock or transitions on an external input pin as its clock source . the counter / timer select bit c / t 2 bit ( t 2 con . 1 ) selects the clock source for timer 2 . clearing c / t 2 selects the system clock as the input for the timer ( divided by either one or twelve as specified by the timer clock select bit t 2 m in ckcon ). when c / t 2 is set to 1 , high - to - low transitions at the t 2 input pin increment the counter / timer register . ( refer to section _ref473447873 ˜ for information on selecting and configuring external i / o pins .) timer 2 can also be used to start an adc data conversion ( see section _ref473448409 ˜). timer 2 offers capabilities not found in timer 0 and timer 1 . it operates in one of three modes : 16 - bit counter / timer with capture , 16 - bit counter / timer with auto - reload or baud rate generator mode . timer 2 &# 39 ; s operating mode is selected by setting configuration bits in the timer 2 control ( t 2 con ) register ( table 74 ). below is a summary of the timer 2 operating modes and the t 2 con bits used to configure the counter / timer . detailed descriptions of each mode follow in table 68 . in this mode , illustrated in fig4 , timer 2 operates as a 16 - bit counter / timer with capture facility . a high - to - low transition on the t2ex input pin would cause the 16 - bit value in timer 2 ( th 2 838 , tl 2 838 ) to be loaded into the capture registers ( rcap 2 h 840 , rcap 2 l 842 ). timer 2 can use either sysclk , sysclk divided by 12 , or high - to - low transitions on the t 2 input pin as its clock source when operating in counter / timer with capture mode . clearing the c / t 2 bit ( t 2 con . 1 ) selects the system clock as the input for the timer ( divided by one or twelve as specified by the timer clock select bit t 2 m in ckcon 844 ( table 69 )). when c / t 2 is set to logic 1 , a high - to - low transition at the t2 input pin increments the counter / timer register . as the 16 - bit counter / timer register increments and overflows from 0xffff to 0x0000 , the tf2 timer overflow flag ( t 2 con . 7 ) is set and an interrupt will occur if the interrupt is enabled . counter / timer with capture mode is selected by setting the capture / reload select bit cp / rl 2 ( t 2 con . 0 ) and the timer 2 run control bit tr 2 ( t 2 con . 2 ) to logic 1 . the timer 2 external enable exen 2 ( t 2 con . 3 ) must also be set to logic 1 to enable a capture . if exen 2 is cleared , transitions on t 2 ex will be ignored . the counter / timer with auto - reload mode sets the tf2 timer overflow flag when the counter / timer register overflows from 0xffff to 0x0000 , illustrated in fig4 . an interrupt is generated if enabled . on overflow , the 16 - bit value held in the two capture registers ( rcap 2 h , rcap 2 l ) is automatically loaded into the counter / timer register and the timer is restarted . counter / timer with auto - reload mode is selected by clearing the cp / rl2 bit . setting tr 2 to logic 1 enables and starts the timer . timer 2 can use either the system clock or transitions on an external input pin as its clock source , as specified by the c / t2 bit . if exen 2 is set to logic 1 , a high - to - low transition on t 2 ex will also cause timer 2 to be reloaded . if exen 2 is cleared , transitions on t 2 ex will be ignored . timer 2 can be used as a baud rate generator for the serial port ( uart ) when the uart is operated in modes 1 or 3 , illustrated in fig4 . in baud rate generator mode , timer 2 works similarly to the auto - reload mode . on overflow , the 16 bit value held in the two capture registers ( rcap 2 h , rcap 2 l ) is automatically loaded into the counter / timer register . however , the tf 2 overflow flag is not set and no interrupt is generated . instead , the overflow event is used as the input to the uart &# 39 ; s shift clock . timer 2 overflows can be used to generate baud rates for transmit and / or receive independently . the baud rate generator mode is selected by setting rclk ( t 2 con . 5 ) and / or tclk ( t 2 con . 4 ) to logic one . when rclk or tclk is set to logic 1 , timer 2 operates in the auto - reload mode regardless of the state of the cp / rl 2 bit . the baud rate for the uart , when operating in mode 1 or 3 , is determined by the timer 2 overflow rate : note , in all other modes , the timebase for the timer is the system clock divided by one or twelve as selected by the t 2 m bit in ckcon . however , in baud rate generator mode , the timebase is the system clock divided by two . no other divisor selection is possible . if a different time base is required , setting the c / t 2 bit to logic 1 will allow the timebase to be derived from the external input pin t 2 . in this case , the baud rate for the uart is calculated as : where fclk is the frequency of the signal ( tclk ) supplied to t 2 and [ rcap2h : rcap2l ] is the 16 - bit value held in the capture registers . as explained above , in baud rate generator mode , timer 2 does not set the tf 2 overflow flag and therefore cannot generate an interrupt . however , if exen 2 is set to logic 1 , a high - to - low transition on the t 2 ex input pin will set the exf 2 flag and a timer 2 interrupt will occur if enabled . therefore , the t 2 ex input may be used as an additional external interrupt source . the timer 2 capture registers are illustrated in tables 75 - 78 . the programmable counter array ( pca ) provides enhanced timer functionality while requiring less cpu intervention than the standard 8051 counter / timers . the pca consists of a dedicated 16 - bit counter / timer and five 16 - bit capture / compare modules . each capture / compare module has its own associated i / o line ( cexn ) which is routed through the crossbar to port i / o when enabled ( referring back to fig7 ). the counter / timer is driven by a configurable timebase that can select between four inputs as its source : system clock divided by twelve , system clock divided by four , timer 0 overflow , or an external clock signal on the eci line . the pca is configured and controlled through the system controller &# 39 ; s special function registers . each module can be configured to operate independently in one of four operation modes : edge - triggered capture , software timer , high speed output , or pulse width modulator . each module has special function registers ( sfrs ) associated with it in the microcontroller 40 system controller . these registers are used to exchange data with a module and configure the module &# 39 ; s mode of operation . table 80 summarizes the bit settings in the pca 0 cpmn registers used to place the pca capture / compare modules into different operating modes . setting the eccfn bit in a pca 0 cpmn register enables the module &# 39 ; s ccfn interrupt . note : pca 0 interrupts must be globally enabled before individual ccfn interrupts are recognized . pca 0 interrupts are globally enabled by setting the ea bit ( ie . 7 ) and the epca 0 bit ( eie 1 . 3 ) to logic 1 . fig4 illustrates the pca interrupt configuration . in this mode , illustrated in fig4 a valid transition on the cexn pin causes the pca to capture the value of the pca counter / timer and load it into the corresponding module &# 39 ; s 16 - bit capture / compare register ( pca 0 cpln 850 and pca 0 cphn 852 ). the cappn and capnn bits in the pca0cpmn register 854 are used to select the type of transition that triggers the capture : low - to - high transition ( positive edge ), high - to - low transition ( negative edge ), or either transition ( positive or negative edge ). when a capture occurs , the capture / compare flag ( ccfn ) in pca 0 cn 856 is set to logic 1 and an interrupt request is generated if ccf interrupts are enabled . the ccfn bit is not automatically cleared by hardware when the cpu vectors to the interrupt service routine , and must be cleared by software . in software timer mode , illustrated in fig4 , the pca counter / timer is compared to the module &# 39 ; s 16 - bit capture / compare register ( pca 0 cphn and pca 0 cpln ). when a match occurs , the capture / compare flag ( ccfn ) in pca 0 cn is set to logic 1 and an interrupt request is generated if ccf interrupts are enabled . the ccfn bit is not automatically cleared by hardware when the cpu vectors to the interrupt service routine , and must be cleared by software . setting the ecomn and matn bits in the pca0cpmn register 854 enables software timer mode . in this mode , illustrated in fig4 , each time a match occurs between the pca timer counter and a module &# 39 ; s 16 - bit capture / compare register ( pca 0 cphn 850 and pca 0 cpln 852 ) the logic level on the module &# 39 ; s associated cexn pin will toggle . setting the togn , matn , and ecomn bits in the pca 0 cpmn register enables the high - speed output mode . all of the modules can be used independently to generate pulse width modulated ( pwm ) outputs on their respective cexn pin . the pwm mode is illustrated in fig5 . the frequency of the output is dependent on the timebase for the pca counter / timer . the duty cycle of the pwm output signal is varied using the module &# 39 ; s pca0cpln capture / compare register . when the value in the low byte of the pca counter / timer ( pca 0 l 858 ) is equal to the value in pca 0 cpln , the output on the cexn pin will be set . when the count value in pca 0 l overflows , the cexn output will be reset . also , when the counter / timer low byte ( pca 0 l ) 858 overflows from 0xff to 0x00 , pca 0 cpln is reloaded automatically with the value stored in the counter / timer &# 39 ; s high byte ( pca 0 h ) 860 without software intervention . setting the ecomn and pwmn bits in the pca 0 cpmn register enables pulse width modulator mode . the 16 - bit pca counter / timer , illustrated in fig5 consists of two 8 - bit sfrs : pca 0 l 862 and pca 0 h 864 . pca 0 h is the high byte ( msb ) of the 16 - bit counter / timer and pca 0 l is the low byte ( lsb ). reading pca 0 l automatically latches the value of pca 0 h at the same time . by reading the pca 0 l register first , this allows the pca 0 h value to be held ( at the time pca 0 l was read ) until the user reads the pca 0 h register . reading pca 0 h or pca 0 l does not disturb the counter operation . the cps 1 and cps 0 bits in the pca 0 md register 866 select the timebase for the counter / timer . when the counter / timer overflows from 0xffff to 0x0000 , the counter overflow flag ( cf ) in pca 0 md 866 is set to logic 1 and an interrupt request is generated if cf interrupts are enabled . setting the ecf bit in pca0md to logic 1 enables the cf flag to generate an interrupt request . the cf bit is not automatically cleared by hardware when the cpu vectors to the interrupt service routine , and must be cleared by software . ( note : pca 0 interrupts must be globally enabled before cf interrupts are recognized . pca 0 interrupts are globally enabled by setting the ea bit ( ie . 7 ) and the epca 0 bit in eie 1 to logic 1 .) clearing the cidl bit in the pca 0 md register allows the pca to continue normal operation while the microcontroller core is in idle mode . the control register ( pca ) cn ) settings are set forth in table 80 with the pcaomd mode register settings illustrated in table 81 . cps1 cps0 timebase 0 0 system clock divided by 12 0 1 system clock divided by 4 1 0 timer 0 overflow 1 1 high - to - low transitions on eci ( max rate = system clock divided by 4 ) the mcu has an on - chip jtag interface and logic to support boundary scan for production and in - system testing , flash read / write operations , and non - intrusive in - circuit emulation . the jtag interface is fully compliant with the ieee 1149 . 1 specification . access of the jtag instruction register ( ir ) and data registers ( dr ) are as described in the test access port and operation of the ieee 1149 . 1 specification . the jtag interface is via four dedicated pins on the mcu , which are tck , tms , tdi , and tdo . the pcaocpmn pca capture / compare registers are illustrated in table 82 , with the pca counter operation illustrated in tables 83 - 86 . through the 16 - bit jtag instruction register ( ir ), any of the eight instructions shown in table 87 can be commanded . there are three dr &# 39 ; s associated with jtag boundary - scan , and four associated with flash read / write operations on the mcu . the dr in the boundary scan path is an 87 - bit shift register . the boundary dr provides control and observability of all the device pins as well as the sfr bus and weak pullup feature via the extest and sample commands . the extest instruction is accessed via the ir . the boundary dr provides control and observability of all the device pins as well as the sfr bus and weak pullup feature . all on - chip latches are set to one . the sample instruction is accessed via the ir . the boundary dr provides observability and presetting of the scan - path latches . the bypass instruction is accessed via the ir . it provides access to the standard jtag bypass data register . the idcode instruction is accessed via the ir . it provides access to the 32 - bit device id register . the flash memory can be programmed directly over the jtag interface using the flash control , flash data , flash address , and flash scale registers . these data registers are accessed via the jtag instruction register . the mcu has on - chip jtag and emulation logic that provide non - intrusive , full speed , in - circuit emulation using the production part installed in the end application using the four pin jtag i / f . the emulation system supports inspection and modification of memory and registers , breakpoints , and single stepping . no additional target ram , program memory , or communications channels are required . all the digital and analog peripherals are functional and work correctly ( remain in sync ) while emulating . the wdt is disabled when the mcu is halted during single stepping or at a breakpoint . although the preferred embodiment has been described in detail , it should be understood that various changes , substitutions and alterations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims .

US-69461007-A

this invention is a dispenser for a transfer adhesive . the dispenser is less expensive to manufacture than comparable dispensers of the prior art , because it uses a single reel to perform the functions previously performed by two separate elements . a supply reel feeds a transfer adhesive tape to a take - up reel , which also acts as an applicator roller . the supply and take - up reels are connected together such that rotation of one causes rotation of the other . the user holds the dispenser so that the take - up reel presses firmly against the surface onto which the adhesive is to be applied . as the dispenser is moved along that surface , the take - up reel rotates due to friction , depositing adhesive and causing the supply reel to deliver more tape . the take - up and supply reels can be connected by gears or by a friction drive . if gears are used , they can be of a modified form which allows the take - up reel to drive the supply reel in only one direction . in another embodiment , a pinion gear or a one - way pin allow the supply reel to rotate in only one direction . thus , if the user accidentally moves the take - up reel in the wrong direction , the supply reel will not create unwanted slack in the tape . in all embodiments , it is preferred to use a slip clutch to compensate for the differences in speeds of rotation of the take - up and supply reels .

fig1 , and 3 show one embodiment of the two - reel tape dispenser of the present invention . in order to make more of the interior components visible , the perspective view of fig1 shows dispenser 1 without tape . the plan view of fig2 shows these components in greater detail . supply reel 3 and take - up reel 5 are connected together , by gears 29 and 31 , so that rotation of one reel causes rotation of the other . transfer adhesive tape 7 is unwound from the supply reel and wound onto the take - up reel , as shown . the transfer tape preferably includes a backing material to which a transfer adhesive is attached . the adhesive and backing are not separately illustrated . the tape is wound around core 19 . slots 8 in take - up reel 5 facilitate the attachment of tape 7 to the take - up reel . a loop of tape is fastened around the slots , as shown . as the take - up reel rotates , a plurality of layers of spent backing are deposited onto the reel . in the illustrations of fig1 - 3 , the take - up reel has gear teeth across its entire width . thus , the tape backing will be wound around most of the width of these teeth , the remainder of the width being used for geared engagement with the supply reel . however , it is also possible to construct the take - up reel so that the gear teeth extend across only a portion of its width , the remainder of the periphery of the reel being flat . in the latter case , the tape is wound around the flat portion of the take - up reel . both of these variations are within the scope of the invention . the take - up reel and supply reel are mounted within a housing which includes top and bottom portions 9 and 11 . as shown most clearly in fig3 bottom portion 11 defines bearing 13 for the supply reel . supply reel 3 also includes a plurality of resilient teeth 15 having heads 17 . the teeth and heads are disposed at an angle such that the heads abut the interior surface of core 19 of the roll of tape . because of the angle of inclination of the teeth and their heads , the heads continually press firmly against the interior surface of the core , and oppose , by friction , the relative rotation of the supply reel and the roll of tape . however , because the roll of tape and the supply reel are engaged by friction only , relative rotation is possible , when the tape is unwound from the supply reel sufficiently rapidly . the teeth thus comprise a slip clutch for the supply reel and core . the slip clutch holds the roll of tape stationary with respect to the supply reel , except when the take - up reel is demanding additional tape . bottom portion 11 of the housing also defines bearing 21 around which take - up reel 5 can rotate . top portion 9 of the housing includes plugs 23 , which fit within bearings 13 and 21 . retaining ring 33 prevents the core from slipping away from the supply reel , especially when the core is rotating relative to the reel . in operating the dispenser , the user grasps the housing of the dispenser , and holds it so that the take - up roller presses firmly against the surface to which adhesive is to be transferred . if the dispenser shown in fig2 is moved downward , in the plane of the paper , the take - up reel will rotate in the direction indicated by arrow 25 , causing the supply reel to rotate in the direction given by arrow 27 . the rotating take - up reel also acts as an applicator roller , depositing the transfer adhesive onto the surface . because the diameter of gear 29 is much greater than that of gear 31 , the take - up reel will rotate more rapidly than the supply reel . core 19 is therefore pulled around the supply reel , overcoming the friction of heads 17 of teeth 15 . whenever the dispenser is used , the tape is always being pulled by the take - up reel , and there will be no slack in the tape . fig4 and 5 illustrate another means by which the take - up reel and supply reel can be engaged for rotation . in this embodiment , the gear drive and the slip clutch are replaced by one element , namely an o - ring or gasket 48 . the dispenser includes supply reel 42 and take - up reel 44 , with tape 46 being unwound from the supply reel and onto the take - up reel . o - ring 48 is disposed tightly around the supply reel , and is positioned to contact side portion 76 of the take - up reel . the o - ring is fastened around the supply reel with sufficient tightness such that rotation of the o - ring , due to friction with the take - up reel , causes rotation of the supply reel . when the take - up reel rotates in the direction indicated by arrow 54 , the supply reel rotates in the direction of arrow 56 . the embodiment of fig4 and 5 includes means for preventing any slippage between core 58 and supply reel 42 . the supply reel has a plurality of projections 60 which mate with indentations 62 in the core . note that , in the embodiment shown , there are nine indentations in the core , but only four projections on the supply reel . in general , the number of projections and indentations need not be the same , provided that there is at least one projection which mates with a corresponding indentation . fig4 and 5 thus illustrate a case where not all of the indentations have a corresponding projection . the supply reel may have a full complement of projections , or it may have a smaller number , so as to accommodate different styles of cores . the structure of the embodiment of fig4 and 5 is otherwise similar to that of the first - described embodiment . take - up reel 44 includes slot 64 through which tape 46 can be threaded . the dispenser is disposed in a housing which includes top portion 66 and bottom portion 68 . bottom portion 68 defines bearing 70 around which supply reel 42 rotates , and bearing 72 , around which take - up reel 44 rotates . top portion 66 includes plugs 74 which fit into the bearings . the o - ring 48 engages side portion 76 of take - up reel 44 . the tape is not wound around this side portion . from the point of view of the user , the dispenser of fig4 and 5 operates in a manner similar to the dispenser shown in fig1 - 3 . that is , the dispenser is held such that the take - up reel presses firmly against the working surface , and the dispenser is moved along that surface . the take - up reel rotates , depositing the transfer adhesive onto the surface , and pulling additional tape from the supply reel . due to the difference between the diameter of ring 50 of the supply reel , and that of the take - up reel , the take - up reel tends to pull tape from the supply reel , without developing slack in the tape . to the extent that the take - up reel requires more tape than is allowed by the normal rotation of the supply reel , the two reels slide relative to each other , overcoming the frictional resistance of the o - ring . the above - described embodiments thus have the advantage of using only two reels instead of three . the take - up reels and applicator rollers of the dispensers of the prior art have been combined into one element . yet the operation of the dispenser remains automatic , in the sense that the spent tape backing is continuously wound onto the take - up reel , without developing slack . fig6 shows an alternative embodiment of the invention , wherein the supply reel 90 and take - up reel 92 are connected through a modified gear drive . the modified gear drive allows take - up reel 92 to drive supply reel 90 in one direction only . when the take - up reel rotates in the direction of arrow 94 , the supply reel rotates in the direction of arrow 96 . but if one attempts to rotate the take - up reel in the direction opposite to that of arrow 94 , the reels will lock , and the supply reel does not move by any significant amount . fig7 a and 7b illustrate the construction of the modified gear drive in more detail . gear 98 is connected to take - up reel 92 , and gear 100 is connected to supply reel 90 . the teeth of gear 98 are modified as will be described below . the teeth of gear 100 are not modified , and preferably have the shape of a standard involute curve . the sides of the teeth of gear 98 originally have the same shape as those of the teeth of gear 100 , i . e . the shape of an involute curve . every other tooth of gear 98 is partially cut away to form a step , such as step 102 . the corresponding sides of the remaining teeth , i . e . the unstepped teeth , are cut away in their entireties . the fact that the entire side of tooth 104 has been cut away is apparent from a visual comparison of tooth 104 of gear 98 with tooth 106 of gear 100 . tooth 106 is wider than tooth 104 . each step 102 is formed by cutting the tooth along a line which begins at the midpoint of the uncut top land 108 of the tooth , and which line continues along a path generally parallel to the side of the uncut tooth . thus , the line of cutting has the shape of an involute curve . the position of the step is chosen such that the ratio of the radial distance between the step and the top land , to the entire depth of the tooth ( i . e . the radial distance between the top lands 108 and bottom lands 110 ), is in the range of about 0 . 33 - 0 . 75 . the fraction 0 . 667 ( two - thirds ) has been found to work especially well , and is what is shown in the drawings . the teeth which are not formed with steps are cut away along a line of cutting which also begins at the midpoint of the uncut top land , and which continues along a path which is generally parallel to the side of the uncut tooth , until the tooth is cut virtually down to the bottom land 110 between the teeth . the cutting is done on the side which corresponds to the side on which steps are formed on the other teeth . thus , for example , on tooth 104 , it is side 112 which has been cut away . again , since the cutting is done along a line generally parallel to the uncut side of the tooth , side 112 still has the shape of an involute curve . when gear 98 rotates in the direction of arrow 114 , gear 98 drives gear 100 in the usual manner , and gear 100 rotates in the direction of arrow 116 . the steps and cut - away portions of the teeth of gear 98 have no effect when the gears rotate in this direction because the points of engagement of the gear teeth are on the unmodified sides of the teeth . when one attempts to rotate gear 98 in the opposite direction , given by arrow 118 in fig7 b , the gears will lock . the reason for this locking is that step 120 , of tooth 122 of gear 98 , becomes stuck on top land 124 of tooth 126 of gear 100 . the locking is also a consequence of the fact that the unstepped teeth of gear 98 have been cut away . for example , because the side of tooth 130 has been cut away , side 128 engages tooth 132 somewhat later than would be the case if the side of tooth 130 had not been cut away . this delayed engagement causes step 120 to become stuck on the top land of the opposite tooth . thus it is necessary not only that every other tooth of gear 98 have a step , but that all the remaining teeth have a means for delaying engagement with the teeth on the opposite gear . cutting away of the sides of the teeth is the preferable means of causing this delayed engagement . it has been shown that gear 98 will drive gear 100 in one direction only . it is also apparent , from fig7 a and 7b , that gear 100 can drive gear 98 in either direction . it can also be shown that if gear 100 were modified in the same manner as gear 98 , gear 100 would be able to drive gear 98 in only one direction . however , as used in the tape dispenser described herein , gear 100 is not the driving gear , so it is unnecessary to modify gear 100 . in fig6 the gear teeth of take - up reel 92 are located only at the rear end of the reel , and do not extend across the entire width of the reel . this structure contrasts with that of fig1 - 3 , where the gear teeth extend across the entire width of the reel . however , this difference in structure is not significant . either embodiment can be constructed in either way , and the design choices shown in the drawings should not be interpreted to limit the invention . due to the modified gear structure shown in fig6 and 7 , the take - up reel can rotate the supply reel in only one direction . thus , if the user accidentally tries to move the take - up reel in the wrong direction , the reels will lock , and neither reel will move by any significant amount . thus , the invention reduces the likelihood that the tape will unwind and form unwanted loops . fig8 - 10 show two more embodiments having means for preventing movement of the reels in the undesired direction . in fig8 take - up reel 152 drives supply reel 150 through o - ring 154 . one - way pin 156 is held within wedge - shaped restriction 158 . the restriction is connected to supply reel 150 and mounted to rotate around spindle 160 . when take - up reel 152 rotates in the direction of arrow 162 , supply reel 150 rotates in the direction of arrow 164 . the one - way pin does not impede this rotation ; restriction 158 simply carries the pin with it . however , when one attempts to rotate the take - up reel in the opposite direction , thereby tending to cause the supply reel to rotate in the direction opposite to arrow 164 , the pin becomes caught in the narrow portion of the restriction . due to the friction lock created by the restriction , the supply reel can no longer rotate . thus , the structure of fig8 effectively prevents the user from rotating the take - up reel in the wrong direction , and prevents undesired unwinding of the tape . in fig9 and 10 , there is shown a similar structure for use with gear - driven reels . take - up reel 170 drives supply reel 172 through a gear drive . this gear drive can be of the type shown in fig1 - 3 , or the modified type of fig6 and 7 . pinion gear 174 engages the gear of supply reel 172 , and is held within restriction 176 . restriction 176 is wedge - shaped , like restriction 158 . retaining protrusion 178 prevents the pinion gear from falling out of restriction 176 . when take - up reel 170 rotates in the direction of arrow 180 , supply reel 172 rotates in the direction of arrow 182 . the pinion gear does not impede the rotation of the supply reel . but when one attempts to rotate the take - up reel in the other direction , the pinion gear moves towards the narrow portion of restriction 176 and becomes stuck within the restriction . thus , the pinion gear effectively prevents supply reel 172 from moving in the wrong direction . while the invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments , it is understood that the dispenser may be modified further , without departing from the general concept of the invention . the structure of the gaskets or gears can be modified , as can the exact location of those items . the gasket in fig4 and 5 could be located on the take - up reel instead of the supply reel . the slip clutch can be replaced with a clutch of a different structure . the pinion gear or the one - way pin can be connected to the take - up reel , instead of the supply reel , although the embodiment shown is preferred . the one - way pin , instead of the pinion gear , could be used in the embodiment in which the reels are engaged by gears . the modification of the gear teeth of the take - up reel , shown in fig7 a and 7b , can also be included on the teeth of the supply reel , though , as stated above , such modification is not necessary . the two - piece housing could be replaced with a single - piece housing . these and other similar changes should be deemed within the spirit and scope of the following claims .

US-25311888-A

a portable complex power supply apparatus includes a portable case in which a hand generator , a power input connection member , a power control circuit element , a power storage unit , and an output connector are disposed or contained . thus , the portable complex power supply apparatus is capable of supplying electric power everywhere by manpower or a power generator connected therewith , storing the electric power , and outputting the electric power to an electrical device with varies kinds of power specifications , so as to provide convenience in supplying electric power .

please refer to fig1 - 3 . fig1 is a perspective view of a portable complex power supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention ; fig2 is another perspective view of the portable complex power supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention ; and fig3 is a block diagram of the portable complex power supply apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention . as shown in fig1 - 3 , a portable complex power supply apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention mainly includes a portable case 1 , a hand generator 2 , a plurality of power input connection members , a power control circuit element 4 , a power storage unit 5 , and an output connector 61 . the portable case 1 in this embodiment is a box in which the members described above are disposed or contained . preferably , the portable case 1 is provided with a handle part 11 for the purpose of convenient for carrying . the hand generator 2 is provided with a shaking member 21 provided on an outer portion of the portable case 1 and has a hand power output terminal 22 . the hand generator 2 in this embodiment is a generator that generates an electric power vh by winding the shaking member 21 , and the electric power vh is output from the shaking member 21 to the power control circuit element 4 . the power input connection members in this embodiment include a wind power input connection member 31 , a solar power input connection member 32 , and a household power input connection member 33 , which are respectively used for connecting with a wind power generator , a solar power generator , and a household power source , so as to transmit the electric power from the generators and the power source to the power control circuit element 4 . however , the power input connection members are not limited to this , only one type of the power input connection member may be given , such as , a wind power input connection member . also , the number of the wind power input connection member is not limited , one or more power input connection members may be given . through the hand generator 2 and the power input connection members , electric power can be obtained anywhere . for example , in a place having a household power source , the electric power can be obtained by connecting the household power input connection member 33 to the household power source . and , even in a place having no household power source , the electric power can be obtained by a generator through the wind power input connection member 31 or the solar power input connection member 32 . besides that , the electric power can be obtained from the hand generator 2 by manpower . the electric power vh generated from the hand generator 2 , the electric power vw input from the wind power input connection member 31 , the electric power vs input from the solar power input connection member 32 , and the electric power va input from the household power input connection member 33 are all transmitted to the power control circuit element 4 . the power control circuit element 4 includes an input regulating circuit 41 , a monitoring / switching circuit 42 , and an output control circuit 43 . in this embodiment , those circuits are formed integrally on one circuit board to reduce the volume thereof for the purpose of being disposed within the portable case 1 and being carried by user in such a manner . the input regulating circuit 41 is electrically connected with the hand power output terminal 22 of the hand generator 2 , the wind power input connection member 31 , the solar power input connection member 32 , and the household power input connection member 33 for regulating the received electric power . in detail , the input regulating circuit 41 may include a rectifier circuit 410 , a rectifier circuit 411 , a regulator circuit 412 , and a rectifier circuit 413 . the electric power vh generated from the hand generator 2 is rectified , by the rectifier circuit 410 , from the ac power form to the dc power form ; the electric power vw input from the wind power input connection member 31 is rectified , by the rectifier circuit 411 , from the ac power form to the dc power form ; the dc electric power vs input from the solar power input connection member 32 is regulated , by the regulator circuit 412 , to be steady and stable ; and the household power va input from the household power input connection member 33 is rectified , by the rectifier circuit 413 , from the ac power form to the dc power form . and then , above input power will be transmitted to the monitoring / switching circuit 42 . the monitoring / switching circuit 42 , also called a watchdog circuit , is electrically connected with the input regulating circuit 41 . the monitoring / switching circuit 42 monitors the voltage and / or the current value of the input power vin ( e . g ., power vh , vw , va , and vs ), so as to determine to conduct or isolate the input power vin from the input regulating circuit 41 . in this embodiment , the monitoring / switching circuit 42 includes a comparison circuit 421 , a reference circuit 422 , and a switch circuit 423 . in the comparison circuit 421 , the input power vin is compared with a reference value vref given by the reference circuit 422 . if the comparison result between the input power vin and the reference value vref is false ( for example , the input power vin is too high , too low , or the like ), the input power vin will be isolated by opening the switch circuit 423 . on the contrary , if the comparison result between the input power vin and the reference value vref is true , the input power vin will be conducted by keeping the switch circuit 423 being a closed circuit . the reference value vref is set depending on the withstand voltage or the available electric capacity of the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 , or the like . in such a manner , it will be powered off by the monitoring / switching circuit 42 when having enough stored power , so as to avoid the circuits thereof being overloaded or damaged . note that each power vh , vw , ws , and va can be transmit to the input regulating circuit 41 or the monitoring / switching circuit 42 synchronous or asynchronous . that is , the input power vin at a time may contain one or more of the power vh , vw , ws , and va . and , the monitoring / switching circuit 42 can monitor the total input power vin and / or the individual power vh , vw , ws , and va . the power storage unit 5 is electrically connected between the monitoring / switching circuit 42 and the output control circuit 43 of the power control circuit element 4 . in this embodiment , the power storage unit 5 is a lithium - iron battery , which has the characteristics of large electric capacity , high discharge rate , high charge speed , high cycle life , and high stability . the power storage unit 5 is used for storing the input power vin from the monitoring / switching circuit 42 and discharging the electric power stored therein . preferably , the power storage unit 5 has individual charging circuit and discharging circuit , so that power charge and power discharge can be performed synchronously or asynchronously . in addition , the power storage unit 5 is further electrically connected with a storage monitoring / switching circuit 51 . the storage monitoring / switching circuit 51 , which functions as the monitoring / switching circuit 42 , conducts or isolates the input power vin from the monitoring / switching circuit 42 depending on the amount of the electric power stored in the power storage unit 5 , so as to avoid exceeding the electric capacity of the power storage unit 5 . the power storage unit 5 can discharge the electric power to the output control circuit 43 , and the output control circuit 43 regulates the input power vin into an output power vout having a dc or ac power form and adjusts the output power vout to have a predetermined voltage and current value . in this embodiment , the output control circuit 43 includes an output control unit 431 and a voltage regulating circuit 432 , and is electrically connected with an inverter 433 . the voltage regulating circuit 432 , which includes a voltage boosting circuit and a bucking circuit , is used for adjusting the voltage value of the output power vout under the control of the output control unit 431 . the inverter 433 is used for transforming the dc power into the ac power . the output power vout of the output control circuit 43 is transmitted to an electrical device ( not shown ) via an output connector 61 electrically connected with the output control circuit 43 . the output connector 61 , which may have a receptacle configuration , is used for connecting with an electrical device . preferably , in order to be interchangeably connected with different type terminals of electrical devices , the output connector 61 may have a special configuration by forming integrally different type receptacle jacks , as shown in fig1 and 2 . the output control circuit 43 can synchronously or asynchronously transmit the electric power to a light lamp 62 which uses ac power , a led light 63 which uses dc power , and the like beside the output connector 61 . in this embodiment , the light lamp 62 and the led light 63 are disposed on the portable case 1 for the purpose of convenient for carrying . the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 further includes an external operating unit 7 . the external operating unit 7 is provided on the portable case 1 and is electrically connected with the power control circuit element 4 . through the external operating unit 7 , the power control circuit element 4 can be manually operated by user , so as to set the reference value vref , determine the power form and the voltage and current value of the output power vout , or turn on / off the circuits of the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 . in this embodiment , the external operating unit 7 having a power button 71 , a light button 72 , and a transform button 73 . the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 can be turned on / off by triggering the power button 71 ; the light lamp 62 can be turned on / off by triggering the light button 72 ; and the output power vout of the output connector 61 can be transformed into a dc power form or a ac power form by triggering the transform button 73 . of course the number and functions of the buttons of the external operating unit 7 can be changed as appropriately . referring to fig4 , which is a schematic diagram of a portable wind power generator and a portable solar power generator according to an embodiment of the present invention . the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 may further include a portable wind power generator 8 and a portable solar power generator 9 . the portable wind power generator 8 includes a foldable stand 81 , a wind fan means 82 , a wind turbine means 83 , a generator unit 84 , and a wind power output member 85 . in this embodiment , the foldable stand 81 includes : a frame body 811 , which is foldable by a hinge thereon ; a telescopic pole stand 812 , whose length can be adjusted for changing the position of the wind fan means 82 and the wind turbine means 83 ; and a base 813 , which may be provided with lock bores for locking to floor , is used for setting on the floor . the wind fan means 82 and the wind turbine means 83 , which are rotatable by wind , are both disposed on the foldable stand 81 . when they rotate , the electric power is generated by the generator unit 84 and is output from the wind power output member 85 electrically connected with the generator unit 84 . the wind power output member 85 in this embodiment is a connecting terminal as shown in fig4 , which is used for connecting to the wind power input connection member 31 to transmit the wind power vw generated from the generator unit 84 to the power control circuit element 4 . the portable solar power generator 9 includes a solar panel 91 , a joint member 92 , a fixing member 93 , and a solar power output member 94 . the solar panel 91 is used for generating the electric power by means of converting the energy light . the joint member 92 provided with an end thereof connected to the solar panel 91 and the other end thereof having one or more degrees of freedom related to the end that connected to the solar panel 91 . by that , a light absorption angle of the solar panel 91 can be adjusted by moving the joint member 92 . the fixing member 93 is connected to the other end of the joint member 92 for fixing on an object . the solar power output member 94 , which is electrically connected with the solar panel 91 , is used for connecting to the solar power input connection member 32 to transmit the solar power vs generated from the solar panel 91 to the power control circuit element 4 . referring to fig5 , which is a schematic diagram of a portable wind power generator and a portable solar power generator according to another embodiment of the present invention . a portable wind power generator 8 a and the portable solar power generator 9 in this embodiment are similar to those in the embodiment of fig4 . the same elements in this embodiment are labeled with the same reference numbers as in the embodiment of fig4 . the difference therebetween is that the portable wind power generator 8 a includes a wind wheel means 86 being rotatable by wind . the wind wheel means 86 is constructed by combining the wind fan means 82 with the wind turbine means 83 , so as to get high generation as the wind fan means 82 and stable generation capability as the wind turbine means 83 . the portable solar power generator 9 is the same as that in the embodiment of fig4 , the detail description thereof is omitted here as appropriate . because the portable wind power generator 8 and 8 a and the portable solar power generator 9 have a minimized and fordable structure and the circuits for handling the electric power are disposed on the power control circuit element 4 , the volume of the power generators are reduced in such a manner to prevent influence on carrying with the portable case 1 . therefore , the portable complex power supply apparatus 100 including the portable wind power generator 8 or 8 a and the portable solar power generator 9 can be carried by manpower without the use of any vehicles . as can be appreciated from the above embodiments , the spraying device of the present invention has industry worth which meets the requirement for a patent . the above description should be considered as only the discussion of the preferred embodiments of the present invention . however , a person having ordinary skill in the art may make various modifications to the present invention . those modifications still fall within the spirit and scope defined by the appended claims .

US-201213345053-A

a method of producing a folded item having printed information thereon to provide information to the user of a product is disclosed . the method comprises folding the sheet by making a first fold in the sheet in a direction parallel to a first direction ; folding the sheet by making a second fold in the sheet in a direction parallel to the first direction to form a first folded article having a first end and a second end opposite the first end ; making a plurality of transverse folds in the first folded article in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction to form a second folded article having a first end , a second end , a first portion adjacent the first end of the second folded article , and a second portion adjacent the second end of the second folded article ; folding the second folded article by making an additional fold in a direction parallel to the second direction to produce a third folded article having a first end , a second end , and a plurality of intermediate portions disposed between the first and second ends of the third folded article ; depositing an adhesive on a portion of the third folded article ; and making a final fold in the third folded article in a direction parallel to the second direction to form the folded item so that a portion of the third folded article is wrapped around the intermediate portions of the third folded article .

[ 0020 ] fig2 a is a perspective view of a universal , nonjamming , multi - ply outsert 20 having multiple folds , which is manufactured from an integral sheet of stock . fig2 b - 1 through 2 b - 5 illustrate the method of forming the outsert 20 depicted in fig2 a . referring to fig2 a and 2b , the method starts with web stock that is directly fed to an in - line cutter , where the stock is cut into separate individual sheets ( or , alternatively , starting with individual sheet stock which is automatically stacked and fed ). the size of the individual sheet stock is variable . for example , it has been demonstrated that starting with a commercial grade sheet stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 8 . 375 inches , and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 4 . 125 inches , an outsert can be manufactured having a total of four folds , twelve total ply thickness , and an overall size of approximately 2 . 438 inches wide , approximately 1 . 5 inches high , and approximately 0 . 125 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the individual sheet stock used ). to manufacture the outsert depicted in fig2 a , starting at fig2 b - 1 , and with the individual sheet stock 21 traveling in a predetermined first direction , an initial fold 22 is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig2 b - 2 ). this initial fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). this initial fold results in the sheet stock having a top panel ( w 1 ) and an adjoining bottom panel ( w 2 ). if the initial fold is an even fold , the resulting width will be ½ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = ½ w ). following completion of this initial fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of two plies . at fig2 b - 3 , and following the re - orientation of the individual sheet stock 21 to a different predetermined second direction ( i . e ., re - oriented substantially 90 degrees from the first direction ), a second fold 24 is then made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this second fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of the sheet stock ). this second fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ). if the second fold is an even fold , the resulting length will be ½ of the initial length ( i . e ., l 1 = l 2 = ½ l ). following completion of this second fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of four plies . also , after completion of this second fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , one end being a folded closed - end , and the other end being an open - edge end , not having any fold . at fig2 b - 4 , a third fold 26 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the third fold being located at the open - edge end of the folded sheet stock . this third fold is equal to approximately ⅓ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅓ l and l 2 = ⅔ l ). following completion of this third fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of eight plies for the resulting top panel length , and four plies for the resulting bottom panel length . following the third fold ( see fig2 b - 4 ), at a designated location on the resulting top panel length , a single glue spot 25 ( or glue spots ) is made thereon , with a suitable adhesive . if desired , the gluing step may be omitted . at fig2 b - 5 , a fourth fold 28 is made to complete the outsert . the fourth fold is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the fourth fold being located at the closed - end of the folded sheet stock . this fourth fold is equal to approximately ½ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ½ l and l 2 = ½ l ). this fourth fold is made in a manner whereby the adhesive will maintain the outsert in a more or less fixed and compact relationship with respect to the top and bottom panel lengths of the folded sheet stock . following completion of this final fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of twelve plies . [ 0027 ] fig3 a is a perspective view of a universal , non - jamming , multi - ply outsert 30 having multiple folds , which is manufactured from an integral sheet of stock . fig3 b - 1 through 3 b - 6 illustrate the method of forming the outsert 30 depicted in fig3 a . referring to fig3 a and 3b , the method starts with web stock that is fed to an in - line cutter , where the stock is cut into separate individual sheets ( or , alternatively , starting with individual sheet stock which is automatically stacked and fed ). the size of the individual sheet stock is variable . for example , it has been demonstrated that starting with a commercial grade sheet stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 12 inches , and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 11 inches , an outsert can be manufactured having a total of eight folds , forty total ply thickness , and an overall size of approximately 2 . 25 inches wide , approximately 1 . 5 inches high , and approximately 0 . 3125 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the individual sheet stock used ). to manufacture the outsert depicted in fig3 a , starting at fig3 b - 1 , and with the individual sheet stock 31 traveling in a predetermined first direction , an initial fold 32 , which consists of a number of substantially parallel folds ( consisting of a series of tandem folds 32 ( a ), 32 ( b ), 32 ( c ) and 32 ( d ) comprising a four - fold accordion fold ), is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig3 b - 2 a through 3 b - 2 d ). this initial fold 32 may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). if the initial fold 32 is an even fold , the resulting width will be ⅕ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = w 3 = w 4 = w 5 = ⅕ w ). this initial fold is a four - fold tandem accordion fold and , assuming the initial fold has equal panels , each panel will consist of the four - fold tandem accordion fold that is equal to ⅕ the original width ( i . e ., w 1 = ⅕ w ). this initial fold results in the sheet stock having a tandem series of substantially equally - sized adjoining panels , with accordion folds ( running length - wise ) being positioned between adjacent panels . following completion of this initial fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of five plies . at fig3 b - 3 , and following the re - orientation of the individual sheet stock 31 to a different predetermined second direction ( i . e ., re - oriented substantially 90 degrees from the first direction ), a second fold 33 is then made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this second fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of the sheet stock ). this second fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ). if the second fold is an even fold , the resulting length will be ½ of the initial length ( i . e ., l 1 = l 2 = ½ l ). following completion of this second fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of ten plies . also , after completion of this second fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , one end being a folded closed - end , and the other end being an open - edge end , not having any fold . at fig3 b - 4 , a third fold 34 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the third fold being located at the open - edge end of the folded sheet stock . this third fold is equal to approximately ¼ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ¼ l and l 2 = ¾ l ). following completion of this third fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of twenty plies for the resulting top panel length , and ten plies for the resulting bottom panel length . at fig3 b - 5 , a fourth fold 35 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the fourth fold being located at the section of folded sheet stock that is adjacent to the open - edge end portion of the folded sheet stock . this fourth fold is equal to approximately ⅓ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅓ l and l 2 = ⅔ l ). following completion of this fourth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of thirty plies for the resulting top panel length , and ten plies for the resulting bottom panel length . at fig3 b - 5 , following the fourth fold , at a designated location on the resulting bottom panel length , a single glue spot 36 ( or glue spots ) is made thereon , with a suitable adhesive . if desired , the gluing step may be omitted . at fig3 b - 6 , a fifth fold 37 is made to complete the outsert . the fifth fold is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the fifth fold being located at the section of folded sheet stock that is next to the adjacent section previously discussed ( i . e ., the adjacent section being next to the open - edge end portion of the folded sheet stock ). this fifth fold is equal to approximately ½ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ½ l and l 2 = ½ l ). this fifth fold is made in a manner whereby the adhesive will maintain the outsert in a more or less fixed and compact relationship with respect to the top and bottom panel lengths of the folded sheet stock . following completion of this final fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of forty plies . [ 0036 ] fig4 a is a perspective view of a universal , nonjamming , multi - ply outsert 50 having multiple folds , which is manufactured from an integral sheet of stock . fig4 b - 1 through 4 b - 7 illustrate the method of forming the outsert 50 depicted in fig4 a . referring to fig4 a and 4b , the method starts with web stock that is fed to an in - line cutter , where the stock is cut into separate individual sheets ( or , alternatively , starting with individual sheet stock which is automatically stacked and fed ). the size of the individual sheet stock is variable . for example , it has been demonstrated that starting with a commercial grade sheet stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 18 inches , and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 12 inches , an outsert can be manufactured having a total of eight folds , a sixty - four total ply thickness , and an overall size of approximately 2 . 25 inches wide , approximately 1 . 5 inches high , and approximately 0 . 25 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the individual sheet stock used ). to manufacture the outsert depicted in fig4 a , starting at fig4 b - 1 , and with the individual sheet stock 51 traveling in a predetermined first direction , an initial fold 52 is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig4 b - 2 ). this initial fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). this initial fold results in the sheet stock having a top section ( w 1 ) and an adjoining bottom section ( w 2 ). if the initial fold is an even fold , the resulting width will be ½ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = ½ w ). following completion of this initial fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of two plies . at fig4 b - 3 a through 4 b - 3 c , a second fold 53 , which consists of a number of substantially parallel folds ( consisting of a series of tandem folds comprising a three - fold accordion fold 54 ( a ), 54 ( b ) and 54 ( c )), is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this second fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). if the second fold is an even fold , the resulting width will be ¼ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = w 3 = w 4 = ¼ w ). this second fold is a three - fold tandem accordion fold , and assuming the second fold has four equal panels , each panel will consist of the three - fold tandem accordion fold that is equal to ¼ the original width ( i . e ., w 1 = ¼ w ). this second fold results in the sheet stock having a tandem series of substantially equally - sized adjoining panels , with accordion folds ( running length - wise ) being positioned between adjacent panels . following completion of this fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of eight plies . at fig4 b - 4 , and following the re - orientation of the individual sheet stock 51 to a different predetermined second direction ( i . e ., re - oriented substantially 90 degrees from the first direction ), a third fold 55 is then made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this third fold is an uneven fold ( i . e ., a short fold ); this third fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) having open edges and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) having no open edges ( but having one end with open edges ). the third fold will create a top panel having open edges that is equal to ⅜ of the initial length ( l 1 = ⅜ l ) and an adjoining bottom panel ( l 2 = ⅝ l ). following completion of this third fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of sixteen plies . also , after completion of this third fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , one end longer than the other end . at fig4 b - 5 , a fourth fold 56 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin at a location on the short panel lengths . this fourth fold is an uneven fold ( i . e ., a short fold ) and is located at the shorter top panel end having open - edges of the folded sheet stock . this fourth fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) having no open peripheral edges and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) having no open peripheral edges . the fourth fold will create a top panel that is equal to ⅖ of the initial length ( l 1 = ⅖ l ) and an adjoining bottom panel that is equal to ⅗ of the initial length ( l 2 = ⅗ l ). following completion of this fourth fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of twenty - four plies ( and sixteen plies at the other portion of the outsert ). also , after completion of this fourth fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , each end having no open edges . at fig4 b - 6 , a fifth fold 57 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the fifth fold being located at the section of folded sheet stock that is adjacent to the open - edge end portion of the folded sheet stock on the panel having the longer panel length . this fifth fold is equal to approximately ⅓ of the total panel length and will result in the outsert now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅓ l and l 2 = ⅔ l ). each of the resulting adjoining bottom and top panels will now have closed ends ( i . e ., no open edges ). following completion of this fifth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of forty plies for the resulting bottom panel length , and twenty - four plies for the resulting top panel length . at fig4 b - 6 , following the fifth fold , at a designated location on the resulting top panel length , a single glue spot 58 ( or glue spots ) is made thereon , with a suitable adhesive . if desired , the gluing step may be omitted . at fig4 b - 7 , a sixth fold 59 is made to complete the outsert . the sixth fold is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin . this sixth fold is equal to approximately ½ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ½ l and l 2 = ½ l ). this sixth fold is made and folded over the second end of the resulting panel length and is made in a manner whereby the adhesive will maintain the outsert in a more or less fixed and compact relationship with respect to the top and bottom panel lengths of the folded sheet stock . following completion of this final fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of sixty - four plies . [ 0046 ] fig5 is a perspective view of an outsert 60 applied to the outside of a container 62 for a pharmaceutical product . [ 0047 ] fig6 a is a perspective view of a universal , nonjamming , multi - ply , multi - fold , reduced - size outsert 130 having increased copyspace , which is manufactured from an integral sheet of stock . fig6 b - 1 through 6 b - 10 illustrate the method of forming the outsert 130 depicted in fig6 a . referring to fig6 a and 6b , the method starts with web stock that is directly fed to an in - line cutter , where the stock is cut into separate individual sheets ( or , alternatively , starting with individual sheet stock which is automatically stacked and fed ). the size and weight of the individual sheet stock are variable . for example , it has been demonstrated that starting with a commercial grade sheet stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 11 inches , and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 6 . 625 inches , an outsert can be manufactured having nine folds , a total thickness of sixty plies , and an overall size of approximately 1 . 125 inches long , approximately 1 . 125 inches wide , and approximately 0 . 188 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the sheet stock utilized ). to manufacture the outsert depicted in fig6 a , starting at fig6 b - 1 , and with the individual sheet stock 131 traveling in a predetermined first direction , an initial accordion fold is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig6 b - 2 ). this initial fold consists of a number of substantially parallel folds ( consisting of a series of tandem folds 132 , 133 , 134 , 135 and 136 , comprising a five - fold accordion fold ), and is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig6 b - 2 through 6 b - 6 ). this initial fold is a five - fold tandem accordion fold and results in the sheet stock having a tandem series of substantially equally - sized adjoining panels , with accordion folds ( running length - wise ) being positioned between adjacent panels . the initial fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). assuming the initial fold has equal panels ( e . g ., the initial fold is an even fold ), each panel will consist of the five - fold tandem accordion fold that is equal to ⅙ the original width ( i . e ., w 1 = ⅙ w ) and the resulting width of each panel will be ⅙ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = w 3 = w 4 = w 5 = w 6 = ⅙ w ). following completion of this initial fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of six plies . at fig6 b - 7 , and following the re - orientation of the individual sheet stock 131 to a different predetermined second direction ( i . e ., re - oriented substantially 90 degrees from the first direction ), a sixth fold 137 is then made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this sixth fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of the sheet stock ). this sixth fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ). if the sixth fold is an even fold , the resulting panel length will be ½ of the initial length ( i . e ., l 1 = l 2 = ½ l ). following completion of this sixth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of twelve plies . also , after completion of this sixth fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , one end being a folded closed - end , and the other end being an open - edge end , not having any fold . at fig6 b - 8 , a seventh fold 138 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the seventh fold being located at the open - edge end of the folded sheet stock . this seventh fold is equal to approximately ⅖ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅖ l and l 2 = ⅗ l ). following completion of this seventh fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of twenty - four plies ( e . g ., resulting in twelve ply thickness at one end of the outsert and resulting in twenty - four ply thickness at the opposite end of the outsert ). at fig6 b - 9 , an eighth fold 139 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin . this eighth fold is equal to approximately ⅓ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅓ l and l 2 = ⅔ l ). following completion of this eighth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of forty - eight plies ( e . g ., resulting in twelve ply thickness at one end of the outsert and resulting in forty - eight ply thickness at the opposite end of the outsert ). at fig6 b - 10 , following the eighth fold , at a designated location on the outsert , a single glue spot 140 ( or glue spots ) is made thereon , with a suitable adhesive . if desired , the gluing step may be omitted . at fig6 b - 10 , a ninth fold 141 is made to complete the outsert . the ninth fold is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin . this ninth fold is equal to approximately ½ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ½ l and l 2 = ½ l ). this ninth fold is made in a manner whereby the adhesive will maintain the outsert in a more or less fixed and compact relationship with respect to the top and bottom panel lengths of the folded sheet stock . following completion of this final fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of sixty plies . the method of forming the outsert 130 depicted in fig6 a may be modified slightly to form an outsert having a slightly different structure . in particular , the method of forming the outsert 130 may be modified in the following respects : 1 ) the modified method utilizes a sheet of stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 18 inches and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 10 inches ; 2 ) in the modified method , an accordion fold having eight tandem folds ( to produce nine equal - length panels ) is initially made ( instead of an accordion fold with five tandem folds as shown in fig6 b - 6 ); 3 ) in the modified method , the accordion fold is made in the direction parallel to the width of the sheet stock ( instead of parallel to the length of the sheet stock as shown in fig6 b - 1 through 6 b - 6 ); and 4 ) two spots of glue may be used ( instead of the single spot 140 shown in fig6 b - 10 ). this modified method will form an outsert having twelve folds , a total thickness of ninety plies , and an overall size of approximately 2 inches long , approximately 1 inch wide , and approximately 0 . 25 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the sheet stock used ). [ 0057 ] fig7 a is a perspective view of a universal , nonjamming , multi - ply , multi - fold , reduced - size outsert 170 having increased copyspace , which is manufactured from an integral sheet of stock . fig7 b - 1 through 7 b - 10 illustrate the method of forming the outsert 170 depicted in fig7 a . referring to fig7 a and 7b , the method starts with web stock that is fed to an in - line cutter , where the stock is cut into separate individual sheets ( or , alternatively , starting with individual sheet stock which is automatically stacked and fed ). the size and weight of the individual sheet stock are variable . for example , it has been demonstrated that starting with a commercial grade sheet stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 10 inches , and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 7 . 5 inches , an outsert can be manufactured having a total of nine folds , a total thickness of forty - eight plies , and an overall size of approximately 1 . 375 inches long , approximately 1 . 375 inches wide , and approximately 0 . 188 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the individual sheet stock utilized ). to manufacture the outsert depicted in fig7 a , starting at fig7 b - 1 , and with the individual sheet stock 171 traveling in a predetermined first direction , an initial accordion fold is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig7 b - 2 )). this initial fold consists of a number of substantially parallel folds ( consisting of a series of tandem folds 172 , 173 , 174 , 175 and 176 , comprising a five - fold accordion fold ), and is made across the entire length of the sheet stock and is at a right angle from the point of origin ( see fig7 b - 2 through 7 b - 6 ). this initial fold is a five - fold tandem accordion fold and results in the sheet stock having a tandem series of substantially equally - sized adjoining panels , with accordion folds ( running length - wise ) being positioned between adjacent panels . the initial fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of sheet stock ). assuming the initial fold has equal panels ( e . g ., the initial fold is an even fold ), each panel will consist of the five - fold tandem accordion fold that is equal to ⅙ the original width ( i . e ., w 1 = ⅙ w ) and the resulting width of each panel will be ⅙ of the initial width ( i . e ., w 1 = w 2 = w 3 = w 4 = w 5 = w 6 = ⅙ w ). following completion of this initial fold , the sheet stock will have an overall thickness of six plies . at fig7 b - 7 , and following the re - orientation of the individual sheet stock 171 to a different predetermined second direction ( i . e ., re - oriented substantially 90 degrees from the first direction ), a sixth fold 177 is then made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a designated location and is at a right angle from the point of origin . this sixth fold may be an even fold or an uneven fold ( i . e ., may be folded over to less than all of the adjoining section of the sheet stock ). this sixth fold will result in the sheet stock having a top panel length ( l 1 ) and an adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ). if the sixth fold is an even fold , the resulting panel length will be ½ of the initial length ( i . e ., l 1 = l 2 = ½ l ). following completion of this sixth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of twelve plies . also , after completion of this sixth fold , the resulting folded sheet stock will have two ends of orientation , one end being a folded closed end , and the other end being an open - edge end , not having any fold . at fig7 b - 8 , a seventh fold 178 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin , the seventh fold being located at the open - edge end of the folded sheet stock . this seventh fold is equal to approximately ⅕ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ⅕ l and l 2 = ⅘ l ). following completion of this seventh fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of twenty - four plies ( e . g ., resulting in twelve ply thickness at one end of the outsert and resulting in twenty - four ply thickness at the opposite end of the outsert ). at fig7 b - 9 , an eighth fold 179 is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin . this eighth fold is equal to approximately ⅓ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 − ⅓ l and l 2 − ⅔ l ). following completion of this eighth fold , the sheet stock will have an overall maximum thickness of thirty - six plies ( e . g ., resulting in twelve ply thickness at one end of the outsert and resulting in thirty - six ply thickness at the opposite end of the outsert ). at fig7 b - 10 , following the eighth fold , at a designated location on the outsert , a single glue spot 180 ( or glue spots ) is made thereon , with a suitable adhesive . if desired , the gluing step may be omitted . at fig7 b - 10 , a ninth fold 181 is made to complete the outsert . the ninth fold is made across the entire width of the sheet stock at a right angle from the point of origin . this ninth fold is equal to approximately ½ of the total panel length and will result in the sheet stock now having a resulting top panel length ( l 1 ) and a resulting adjoining bottom panel length ( l 2 ) ( i . e ., l 1 = ½ l and l 2 = ½ l ). this ninth fold is made in a manner whereby the adhesive will maintain the outsert in a more or less fixed and compact relationship with respect to the top and bottom panels lengths of the folded sheet stock . following completion of this final fold , the outsert will have an overall thickness of forty - eight plies . the method of forming the outsert 170 depicted in fig7 a may be modified slightly to form an outsert having a slightly different structure . in particular , the method of forming the outsert 170 may be modified in the following respects : 1 ) the modified method utilizes a sheet of stock having an overall length ( l ) of approximately 24 inches and an overall width ( w ) of approximately 10 inches ; 2 ) in the modified method , an accordion fold having seven tandem folds ( to produce eight equal - length panels ) is initially made ( instead of an accordion fold with five tandem folds as shown in fig7 b - 6 ); 3 ) in the modified method , the accordion fold is made in the direction parallel to the width of the sheet stock ( instead of parallel to the length of the sheet stock as shown in fig7 b - 1 through 7 b - 6 ); and 4 ) two spots of glue may be used ( instead of the single spot 180 shown in fig7 b - 10 ). this modified method will form an outsert having eleven folds , a total thickness of sixty - four plies , and an overall size of approximately 1 . 25 inches long , approximately 3 inches wide , and approximately 0 . 188 inches thick ( depending on the thickness of the sheet stock used ). [ 0067 ] fig8 is a perspective view of an outsert 210 applied to the top of a container 212 for a pharmaceutical product . each of the outserts described above may optionally be imperceptibly scored at various positions intrinsic to the outsert ( indicating that the outsert is folded in a particular direction along the score line ), to assist in the folding of the outsert , and , accordingly , each score line is part and parcel of each outsert . the methods of folding described above in connection with fig2 b - 4 b and 6 b - 7 b eliminate all unfolded exterior edges which lie in a direction parallel to the final fold direction , resulting in outserts having a more compact three - dimensional physical envelope . inasmuch as the outserts depicted in fig2 a - 4 a and 6 a - 7 a are manufactured from a single sheet of stock , the outserts do not require any trimming step to be performed to achieve a certain size . the final size of the outserts is achieved by selecting a particular respective size of initial sheet stock to be utilized . although specific dimensions have been disclosed herein for the sheet stock from which outserts are formed and for the final outserts themselves , those particular dimensions are not considered important to the invention , and outserts having different dimensions may be formed from sheet stock having different dimensions . numerous additional modifications and alternative embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the foregoing description . this description is to be construed as illustrative only , and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention . the details of the structure and method may be varied substantially without departing from the spirit of the invention , and the exclusive use of all modifications which come within the scope of the appended claims is reserved .

US-6200302-A

polyfunctional reagents are disclosed that are capable of reversibly binding to target substances , for example nucleic acid , proteins , polypeptides , cells , cell components , microorganisms or viruses , for use in purifying or otherwise manipulating them . the reagents comprise a tagging group for manipulating and / or detecting the target substance when bound to the polyfunctional reagent . the polyfunctional reagents work by binding the target substance at a first ph and then releasing it at a second ph , usually higher than the first . examples of tagging groups include tagging group members of a specific binding pair which is capable of binding to a specific binding partner and / or a label .

charge switch materials are described in wo 99 / 29703 and wo 02 / 48164 and many of these materials , in particular the water soluble polymers and biological buffers , can be adapted to include tagging groups so that they can be used in accordance with the present invention . charge switch materials can be used for binding nucleic acid present in a sample by contacting the sample with the charge switch material at a first ph at which the charge switch material has a positive charge and will bind negatively charged nucleic acid , and then releasing the nucleic acid at a second , higher ph at which the charge switch material possesses a neutral , negative or less positive charge than at the first ph . in alternative embodiments , charge switch materials can also be used to bind positively charged target substances , in this case binding them at a first ph and then releasing the substances at a second , lower ph at which the charge switch material is neutral , positive or less negative than the first ph . generally the charge switch material will possess an overall positive charge , that is the sum of all positive and negative charges on the charge switch material as a whole is positive . it is possible ( though not preferred ), however , that the charge switch material as a whole could be negatively charged , but have areas of predominantly positive charge to which the nucleic acid can bind . the change in the charge of the material is referred to herein as “ charge switching ” and is accomplished by the use of a “ charge switch material ”. the charge switch material comprises an ionisable group , which changes charge to according to the ambient conditions . the charge switch material is chosen so that the pka of the ionisable group is appropriate to the conditions at which it is desired to bind nucleic acid to and release nucleic acid from the charge switch material . generally , nucleic acid will be bound to the charge switch material at a ph below or roughly equal to the pka , when the charge switch material is positively charged , and will be released at a higher ph ( usually above the pka ), when the charge switch material is less positively charged , neutral , or negatively charged . similarly , in referring to positively and negatively charged target substances , the present invention generally means the net overall charge of the target substance , although in some circumstances , a target substance may have charged regions of an opposite charge to the net charge that can be bound by an appropriate polyfunctional reagent . the present invention is more particularly directed to the use of charge switch materials which allow binding and / or releasing ( especially releasing ) of the nucleic acid to occur under mild conditions of temperature and / or ph and / or ionic strength . generally the charge switch material will change charge because of a change in charge on a positively ionisable group from positive to less positive or neutral , as the ph is increased in a range spanning or close to the pka of the positively ionisable group . this may also be combined with a change of charge on a negatively ionisable group from neutral or less negative to more negative . the charge switch material may comprise an ionisable group having a pka between about 3 and 9 . for positively ionisable groups , the pka is more preferably at least about 4 . 5 , 5 . 0 , 5 . 5 , 6 . 0 or 6 . 5 and / or at most about 8 . 5 , 8 . 0 , 7 . 5 or 7 . 0 . a particularly preferred pka for a positively ionisable group is between about 5 and 8 ; even more preferred is a pka between about 6 . 0 and 7 . 0 , more preferably between about 6 . 5 and 7 . 0 . the pka for negatively ionisable groups is preferably between about 3 ( 3 . 0 ) and 7 ( 7 . 0 ), still more preferably between about 4 and 6 , further preferably approximately at the ph at which it is desired to bind nucleic acid . materials having more than one pka value ( e . g . having different ionisable groups ), or combinations of materials having different pka values , may also be suitable for use as charge switch materials in accordance with the invention , provided that at a first ( lower ) ph the material ( s ) possess ( es ) a positive charge and that at a higher ph the charge is less positive , neutral or negative . generally a charge switch will be achieved by changing the ph from a value below to a value above the pka of the or an ionisable group . however , it will be appreciated that when the ph is the same as the pka value of a particular ionisable group , 50 % of the individual ionisable groups will be charged and 50 % neutral . therefore , charge switch effects can also be achieved by changing the ph in a range close to , but not spanning , the pka of an ionisable group . for example , at the pka of a negatively ionisable group , such as a carboxy group ( pka typically around 4 ), 50 % of such groups will be in the ionised form ( e . g . coo − ) and 50 % in the neutral form ( e . g . cooh ). as the ph increases , an increasing proportion of the groups will be in the negative form . preferably the binding step is carried out at a ph of below the pka of the ionisable group , or ( though this is not preferred ) within about 1 ph unit above the pka . generally the releasing step is carried out at a ph above the pka of the ionisable group , preferably at a ph between 1 and 3 ph units above the pka . the use of strong bases , or weak bases in combination with heating , again as in ep 0 707 077 a , can also lead to degradation of rna ( especially at ph values of 10 or above ), and denaturation of double stranded dna ( i . e . irreversible conversion of dna from the double stranded form at least partially into the single stranded form ), which can lead to a lack of specific binding in pcr . the appropriate choice of pka value ( s ) in accordance with the invention allows the step of releasing dna from the solid phase to be performed under mild conditions , unlike in the prior art . as used herein , the term “ mild conditions ” generally means conditions under which nucleic acid is not denatured and / or not degraded and / or not depurinated , and / or conditions which are substantially physiological . preferably the releasing step is performed at a ph of no greater than about ph 10 . 5 , more preferably no greater than about ph 10 . 0 , 9 . 8 , 9 . 6 , 9 . 4 , 9 . 2 , 9 . 0 , 8 . 9 , 8 . 8 , 8 . 7 , 8 . 6 or 8 . 5 . depending on the pka ( s ) of the charge switch material , the releasing step may even be performed at lower ph values , such as 8 . 0 , 7 . 5 or 7 . 0 . preferably the releasing step is carried out in the substantial absence of naoh , preferably also the substantial absence of other alkali metal hydroxides , more preferably the substantial absence of strong mineral bases . substantial absence may mean that the concentration is less than 25 mm , preferably less than 20 mm , more preferably less than 15 mm or 10 mm . the desired change in ph can be achieved by altering the ionic strength of the solution and / or the temperature , since ph is dependent on both these factors . however , neither high temperature nor high ionic strength are generally compatible with the desired mild conditions , and accordingly , the change in ph is preferably not achieved by large changes in ionic strength or temperature . moreover , increasing ionic strength increases competition of charged species with the nucleic acid for binding to the charge switch material , so can assist in releasing the nucleic acid . small changes of ionic strength are therefore acceptable and may be used in conjunction with the change in ph to release the nucleic acid , preferably within the limits and ranges given below . preferably the temperature at which the releasing step performed is no greater than about 70 ° c ., more preferably no greater than about 65 ° c ., 60 ° c ., 55 ° c ., 50 ° c ., 45 ° c . or 40 ° c . more preferably , such temperatures apply to the entire process . the releasing step , or the entire process , may even be performed at lower temperatures , such as 35 ° c ., 30 ° c . or 25 ° c . furthermore , the releasing step preferably occurs under conditions of low ionic strength , suitably less than 1m or 500 mm , preferably less than 400 mm , 300 mm , 200 mm , 100 mm , 75 mm , 50 mm , 40 mm , 30 mm , 25 mm , 20 mm or 15 mm . it may even be below 10 mm . the ionic strength may be at least about 5 mm , more preferably at least about 10 mm . more preferably , these ionic strengths also apply to the binding step . pcr is sensitive to ph and the presence of charged contaminants . in particularly preferred embodiments , the releasing step is performed using reagents suitable for storing nucleic acid ( such as a commercially available storage buffer , e . g . 10 mm tris . hcl , ph8 . 0 - 8 . 5 , optionally in the presence of 1 mm edta ), or using reagents suitable for use in a procedure to which the nucleic acid is to be subjected ( such as a pcr buffer , e . g . 10 mm tris . hcl , 50 mm kcl , ph 8 . 5 ). common previously known nucleic acid extraction processes require a step of diluting the elution product containing nucleic acid , to make the solution suitable for e . g . pcr . preferably the present invention substantially avoids diluting the released nucleic acid . preferably the step of binding dna occurs under mild conditions , suitably at a ph of no less than 3 . 0 , preferably no less than 3 . 5 , 4 . 0 , 4 . 5 or 5 . 0 . previous methods have used high concentrations of chaotropic agents , such as 8m guanidine . such conditions may not be necessary in the practice of the present invention , in which the binding step preferably occurs in solution having a total concentration of 1m or less . more preferred temperatures and ionic strengths are as detailed above for the releasing step . the use of such mild conditions for the release of nucleic acid is especially useful for extracting small quantities of nucleic acid , as the extracted dna or rna can be added directly to a reaction or storage tube without further purification steps ( e . g . steps necessitated by the use of high ion concentrations in prior art methods ), and without the need to dilute high ionic strength ( as is the case with prior art methods using high ionic strength to elute the nucleic acid ). therefore loss of nucleic acid through changing the container , imperfect recovery during purification steps , degradation , or denaturation , and dilution of small amounts of nucleic acid can be avoided . this is particularly advantageous when a nucleic acid of interest is present in a sample ( or is expected to be present ) at a low copy number , such as in certain detection and / or amplification methods . broadly speaking , preferred chemical species for use as charge switch materials in accordance with the invention comprise a positively ionisable nitrogen atom , and at least one , but preferably more than one , electronegative group ( such as a hydroxy , carboxy , carbonyl , phosphate or sulphonic acid group ) or double bond ( e . g . c ═ c double bond ), which is sufficiently close to the nitrogen atom to lower its pka . it has been found that such molecules tend to have suitable pka values for the extraction of nucleic acid under mild conditions according to the present invention . preferably at least one ( but more preferably more than one ) electronegative group is separated from the ionisable nitrogen by no more than two atoms ( usually carbon atoms ). hydroxyl groups are particularly preferred electronegative groups ( particularly when several hydroxyl groups are present , e . g . in polyhydroxylamines , such as tris ( c ( ch 2 oh ) 3 — nh 2 ) or bis - tris ( see below )), as they ( 1 ) lower the pka of the nitrogen atom ( e . g . amine group , e . g . from about 10 or 11 ) to a suitable value around neutral ( i . e . pka of about 7 ), ( 2 ) allow the species to remain soluble / hydrophilic above the pka , when the nitrogen atom of the amine group loses its positive charge , ( 3 ) provide a site for covalent linkage to a tagging groups and / or solid substrates , e . g . a polycarboxylated polymer ( such as polyacrylic acid ), and ( 4 ) are uncharged at ph values suitable for the releasing step and at which procedures such as pcr are performed ( typically ph 8 . 5 ); the presence of charged species can interfere with pcr especially . especially preferred are chemical species having an ionisable nitrogen atom and at least 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 or 6 hydroxyl groups . further examples of polyhydroxylated amines are dialcohol amine reagents such as diethanol amine . in one embodiment , silane reagents based on these compounds can be used to attach [ ho —( ch 2 ) n ] 2 — n —( ch 2 ) m — moieties , where n and m are selected from 1 to 10 , to tagging groups . many standard , weakly basic , buffers are ideal chemical species to provide the ionisable groups of charge switch materials , as they have pka values close to neutral ( i . e . 7 ). the polyfunctional reagents of the present invention can be captured on a solid phase using the interaction of a specific binding pair as disclosed herein . one member of the specific binding pair is provided as the tagging group of the polyfunctional reagent and its binding partner can be immobilised on a solid phase so that the solid phase is then capable of binding to the polyfunctional reagent . solid phases that can be derivatised in this way include beads , particles , tubes , wells , probes , dipsticks , pipette tips , slides , fibers , membranes , papers , celluloses , agaroses , glass or plastics ) in a monomeric or polymeric form via adsorption , ionic or covalent interactions , or by covalent attachment of the binding partner to a polymer backbone which is in turn immobilised onto the solid support . solid phase materials , especially beads and particles , may be magnetisable , magnetic or paramagnetic . this can aid removal of the solid phase from a solution containing the released nucleic acid , prior to further processing or storage of the nucleic acid . preferably the weakly basic buffers are biological buffers , i . e . buffers from the class of buffers commonly used in biological buffer solutions . examples of biological buffers may be found in commercial chemical catalogues , such as the sigma catalogue . leaching ( i . e . transfer from the solid phase into solution in the liquid phase ) of chemical species used to provide ionisable groups in ion exchange resins is a virtually inevitable phenomenon to some extent , especially when the species are immobilised on the solid phase by the interaction of the specific binding pair . such leaching typically causes impurity in the resultant product , which can lead to significant problems , particularly if the resultant product is intended to be used in pcr ( and especially when the species are charged ). the use of biological buffers to provide the ionisable groups in charge switch materials can avoid this problem , since leaching of such buffers into the liquid phase will generally not significantly affect the nucleic acid , nor any downstream processes such as pcr to which it might be subjected . indeed , many biological buffers are routinely used in pcr buffers , storage buffers and other buffer solutions . in a particularly preferred embodiment , the releasing step takes place in a buffer solution containing the same biological buffer that is used in , as or on the charge switch material portion of the polyfunctional reagent . examples of suitable biological buffers for use in charge switch materials in accordance with the invention , and their pka values , are as follows : n - 2 - acetamido - 2 - aminoethanesulfonic acid ‡‡ ( aces ), pka 6 . 8 ; n - 2 - acetamido - 2 - iminodiacetic acid ‡‡ ( ada ), pka 6 . 6 ; amino methyl propanediol † ( amp ), pka 8 . 8 ; 3 - 1 , 1 - dimethyl - 2 - hydroxyethylamino - 2 - hydroxy propanesulfonic acid † ( ampso ), pka 9 . 0 ; n , n - bis - 2 - hydroxyethyl - 2 - aminoethanesulfonic acid †† ( bes ), pka 7 . 1 ; n , n - bis - 2 - hydroxyethylglycine † ( bicine ), pka 8 . 3 ; bis - 2 - hydroxyethyliminotrishydroxymethylmethane ‡‡ ( bis - tris ), pka 6 . 5 ; 1 , 3 - bistrishydroxymethylmethylaminopropane ‡‡ ( bis - tris propane ), pka 6 . 8 ; 4 - cyclohexylamino - 1 - butane sulfonic acid ( cabs ), pka 10 . 7 ; 3 - cyclohexylamino - 1 - propane sulfonic acid ( caps ), pka 10 . 4 ; 3 - cyclohexylamino - 2 - hydroxy - 1 - propane sulfonic acid ( capso ), pka 9 . 6 ; 2 - n - cyclohexylaminoethanesulfonic acid ( ches ) pka 9 . 6 ; 3 - n , n - bis - 2 - hydroxyethylamino - 2 - hydroxypropanesulfonic acid †† ( dipso ), pka 7 . 6 ; n - 2 - hydroxyethylpiperazine - n - 3 - propanesulfonic acid †† ( epps or hepps ), pka 8 . 0 ; n - 2 - hydroxyethylpiperazine - n - 4 - butanesulfonic acid † ( hepbs ), pka 8 . 3 ; n - 2 - hydroxyethylpiperazine - n - 2 - ethanesulfonic acid †† ( hepes ), pka 7 . 5 ; n - 2 - hydroxyethylpiperazine - n - 2 - propanesulfonic acid †† ( heppso ), pka 7 . 8 ; 2 - n - morpholinoethanesulfonic acid ‡ ( mes ), pka 6 . 1 ; 4 - n - morpholinobutanesulfonic acid †† ( mobs ), pka 7 . 6 ; 3 - n - morpholinopropanesulfonic acid †† ( mops ), pka 7 . 2 ; 3 - n - morpholino - 2 - hydroxypropanesulfonic acid ‡‡ ( mopso ), pka 6 . 9 ; piperazine - n - n - bis - 2 - ethanesulfonic acid ‡‡ ( pipes ), pka 6 . 8 ; piperazine - n - n - bis - 2 - hydroxypropanesulfonic acid †† ( popso ), pka 7 . 8 ; n - trishydroxymethyl - methyl - 4 - aminobutanesulfonic acid † ( tabs ), pka 8 . 9 ; n - trishydroxymethyl - methyl - 3 - aminopropanesulfonic acid †† ( taps ), pka 8 . 4 ; 3 - n - trishydroxymethyl - methylamino - 2 - hydroxypropanesulfonic acid †† ( tapso ), pka 7 . 4 ; n - trishydroxymethyl - methyl - 2 - aminoethanesulfonic acid †† ( tes ), pka 7 . 4 ; n - trishydroxymethylmethylglycine † ( tricine ), pka 8 . 1 ; and trishydroxymethylaminomethane † ( tris ), pka 8 . 1 ; histidine *, pka 6 . 0 , and polyhistidine ‡‡; imidazole *, pka 6 . 9 , and derivatives * thereof ( i . e . imidazoles ), especially derivatives containing hydroxyl groups **; triethanolamine dimers **, oligomers ** and polymers **; and di / tri / oligo amino acids **, for example gly - gly , pka 8 . 2 ; and ser - ser , gly - gly - gly , and ser - gly , the latter three having pka values in the range 7 - 9 . in a preferred embodiment , the buffers marked above with an asterisk (*) are not considered to be biological buffers for the purposes of the invention ( whether or not they are designated as such in any chemical catalogue ). in a more preferred embodiment , those marked with two asterisks (**) are also not considered to be biological buffers . preferred biological buffers are marked with a dagger (†), more preferred buffers are marked with two daggers (††), still more preferred buffers are marked with a double dagger (‡) and most preferred buffers are marked with two double daggers (‡‡). these and other chemical species comprising ionisable groups are typically employed as polymers , preferably following condensation polymerisation ). biological buffers and other chemical species comprising positively ionisable groups may be used in conjunction with a chemical species containing a negatively ionisable group which has a suitable pka , preferably in the ranges described above . for example a biological buffer ( having one or more positively ionisable nitrogen atoms ) may be attached to a polymer or other solid phase material which has exposed carboxy groups even after attachment of the biological buffer . such a material may bind nucleic acids at a low ph when few of the carboxy groups are negatively charged ( i . e . few are in the coo — form , most being in the cooh form ) and most of the ionisable nitrogen atoms are positively charged . at higher ph the negative charge is stronger ( i . e . a greater proportion of carboxy groups are in the coo — form ) and / or the positive charge is weaker , and the nucleic acid is repelled from the solid phase . chemical species containing ionisable groups ( such as the biological buffers listed above ) can be attached to a polymer backbone using known chemistries . for example a chemical species containing a hydroxyl group can be attached using carbodiimide chemistry to a carboxylated polymer backbones . other chemistries include can be employed by someone skilled in the art using other polymer backbones ( e . g . based on polyethylene glycol ( peg ) or carbohydrate ) using a range of standard coupling chemistries ( see e . g . immobilised affinity ligand techniques , greg t . hermanson , a . krishna mallia and paul k . smith , academic press , inc ., san diego , calif ., 1992 , isbn 0123423309 , which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety .) alternatively , the chemical species containing ionisable groups can be polymerised without a backbone polymer , using cross - linking agents , for example reagents that couple via a hydroxy group ( e . g . carbonyldiimidazole , butanediol diglycidyl ether , dialdehydes , diisothiocyanates ). polymers may also be formed by simple condensation chemistries to generate polymeric amino acids with the appropriate pka e . g . gly - gly . preferably such immobilisation , attachment and / or polymerisation of the chemical species containing the ionisable group does not affect the pka of the ionisable group , or leaves it in the desired ranges given above . for example it is generally preferred not to couple or polymerise the chemical species via a positively ionisable nitrogen atom ( in contrast for example to wo97 / 2982 ). in the practice of the invention , it is especially preferred to immobilise , attach and / or polymerise the chemical species via an hydroxyl group . a preferred polymeric material is a dimer or oligomer of bis - tris or tris , or a material formed by attaching a plurality of bis - tris or tris molecules to a polyacrylic acid backbone , e . g . by reacting bis - tris or tris monomer with polyacrylic acid using i - ethyl - 3 - dimethylaminopropyl carbodiimide ( edc ). the polymer can then be easily separated from the reactants using dialysis against a suitable reagent or water . preferably the polyacrylic acid has molecular weight of between about 500 and 5 million or more . more preferably it has a molecular weight of between 100 , 000 and 500 , 000 . the nature of the resultant bis - tris or tris / polyacrylic acid molecule will depend on the ratio of the coupled components , since the polymer will have different properties depending on the proportion of the acrylic acid groups that are modified with bis - tris or tris , for example it is desirable for some carboxy groups to remain unmodified , as the presence of these will not prevent the bis - tris or tris from binding nucleic acid at low ph ( especially if the bis - tris or tris is in excess ), but their negative charge at higher phs will assist with release of the nucleic acid . for use in the present invention , the molar ratio of bis - tris or tris : carboxy groups ( before attachment ) is preferably between 5 : 1 and 1 : 5 , more preferably between 3 : 1 and 1 : 3 , still more preferably between 2 : 1 and 1 : 2 , further preferably between 1 . 5 : 1 and 1 : 1 . 5 , and most preferably about 1 : 1 . the presence of high residual charge ( i . e . charged species present in solution along with the extracted nucleic acid ) may adversely affect the analysis of nucleic acids by pcr , or interfere with the binding of primers , dntps or polymerase to the nucleic acid , or to the sequestration of mg 2 + ions , which are essential to pcr . it is particularly preferable to avoid residual positive charge . preferred materials for use in the invention , such as the biological buffers described above , possess minimal residual positive charge ( preferably minimal residual charge ) at the ph at which the nucleic acid is released , and / or at phs 8 - 8 . 5 , making interference with or inhibition of downstream processes unlikely . further examples of charge switching molecules for nucleic acid purification are based on detergents or surfactants that have a hydrophobic portion and a hydrophilic portion which comprises a positively ionisable group with a suitable pka , e . g . decyl methyl imidazole or dodecyl - bis - tris . these detergents / surfactants can be adsorbed onto surfaces e . g . plastic via their hydrophobic portions and the hydrophilic ( ionisable ) portions can be used to capture nucleic acid . another family of suitable materials for capture and easy release of nucleic acids are carbohydrates e . g . glucosamine , polyglucosamine ( including chitosans ), kanamycins and their derivatives , i . e . sugar ring based structures containing one or more nitrogen atoms surrounded by hydroxyl groups which may also contain other groups such as acetate or sulphate groups to provide a suitable pka for binding and release of nucleic acids . another group of materials with suitable pka values are nucleic acid bases , e . g . cytidine ( pka 4 . 2 ). these can be immobilised via hydroxy groups to a polymer or solid phase carboxy group using carbodiimides . a still further group of materials having members with suitable pka values are heterocyclic nitrogen - containing compounds . such compounds may be aromatic or aliphatic and may be monomers , oligomers or polymers , such as morpholine -, pyrrole -, pyrrolidine -, pyridine -, pyridinol -, pyridone -, pyrroline -, pyrazole -, pyridazine -, pyrazine -, piperidone -, piperidine -, or piperazine - containing compounds , e . g . polyvinylpyridine . such compounds may be substituted with electronegative groups to bring the pka value ( s ) of the ionisable nitrogen atom ( s ) into an acceptable range , e . g . as defined above . however , in some compounds this may not be necessary , the pka already being in such a range . a still further group of charge switch materials for binding nucleic acid have surface amine groups , and in particular amine groups which are not polyamines . these monoamine groups can be represented by the formula — nr 1 r 2 , where r 1 and r 2 are hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted alkyl . although these materials typically have pka values which at higher than those of materials used in preferred embodiments of the invention , they can be employed in the extracting of nucleic acid , optionally employing them with negatively charged species as described herein to modify the overall pka of the charge switch material . a further group are materials that provide ionisable groups capable of acting as charge switch materials and binding nucleic acid are dyes , and in particular biological dyes having pkas between 5 and 8 . preferred materials for use in accordance with the invention are hydrophilic , for example comprising charge switch materials which are ( or which comprise chemical species which before immobilisation or polymerisation are ) water soluble . once a suitable charge switch material has been prepared , repeated capture and release of nucleic acids can be performed by adjusting the ph up or down . thus sequential reactions or analysis can be performed on the nucleic acids using the same charge switch material . for example , dna can be isolated from a biological sample using a pcr tube comprising a charge switch material . then , following pcr , the amplified dna product may be isolated from the buffer constituents or primers by adjusting the ph in the same tube . the compositions and methods of the present invention can be used to separate single stranded rna or dna from double stranded dna , because of the different charge densities on single and double stranded molecules , by appropriate manipulation of the ph or salt concentration . typically , single stranded molecules will be released from binding to the charge switch material at a lower ph than double stranded molecules . in some circumstances , for example for the construction of gene chips , and for the preparation of probes , it may be desirable to produce single stranded dna . manipulation of ph and / or ionic strength can assist in purification and release of single stranded nucleic acid . the method of the invention may comprise a prior step of converting double stranded nucleic acid in the sample to single stranded nucleic acid ( preferably using a strong base , e . g . 100 mm naoh , or a weak base at high temperature , e . g . 60 - 100 ° c .). the charge switch is preferably then added simultaneously with a buffer which changes the ph of the sample to the ph for binding single stranded nucleic acid ( typically a ph of 4 - 7 ). in an alternative embodiment , ssdna could be obtained by binding dsdna to the polyfunctional reagent , immobilising the reagent on a solid phase though the interaction of a specific binding pair and then using heat to denature the dsdna to form ssdna . this approach would be particularly useful to provide ssdna for use in an assay for infectious disease . the methods of the invention preferably include one or more washing steps between the binding and releasing steps . such ( a ) washing step ( s ) will generally be carried out at said first ph , or a ph above said first ph but lower then said second ph , such that the nucleic acid is substantially not released during the washing step ( s ). as has been indicated previously , the methods of the invention are particularly suitable for extracting nucleic acid which is then stored or further processed ( e . g . by pcr ), particularly when the charge switch material is in the form of e . g . a tube or well in which such storage and / or processing can occur . for the avoidance of doubt , however , it is emphasized that the releasing step and any subsequent storage or processing need not be carried out as discrete steps , but can coincide , when said storage or processing occurs at a ph at which release of the nucleic acid occurs . for example , the method of the invention includes binding nucleic acid to a charge switch material coated on or otherwise provided by a pcr tube , washing the bound nucleic acid , and then without a separate releasing step commencing the pcr reaction using a pcr buffer which causes release of the nucleic acid . in a further aspect , the present invention provides novel charge switch materials for use in the methods of the receding aspects . it further comprises the use of such charge switch materials in such methods . all preferred features of the charge switch materials described in above in the context of the methods apply equally and independently to the present aspect of the invention ( i . e . preferred combinations of features may be different in relation to this aspect from the preferred combinations in relation to the method aspects ). a mouse monoclonal antibody raised against fluorescein isothiocyanate ( fitc ) was coated onto 300 ul wells of a polystyrene microtitre plate using 0 . 1m nahco3 at an antibody concentration of 4 . 6 ug / ml . after washing in 0 . 15m nacl , the plates were ready to use . to each row of wells dna was added in a 50 mm potassium acetate buffer at ph4 . wells a - d contained dna at 20 ug / ml , wells e - h contained dna at 100 ug / ml . uncoated wells were used as a control to detect non - specific binding . to every well , doubling dilutions of poly tris coupled to fitc were added and incubated for 1 hour at ambient . the poly tris polymer was prepared according to dri patent applications u . s . ser . no . 09 / 586 , 009 or wo 02 / 48164 then coupled to fitc in a 0 . 1m nahco 3 buffer by mixing fitc with the poly tris at a ratio of approximately 1 . 25 mg to 5 mg respectively . following dialysis , the conjugated polymer ( pt - fitc ) was ready to use . in certain rows , the polytris - fitc conjugate was omitted to estimate non - specific binding of the dna . having captured the dna at ph4 and washing the wells with water , the dna could be recovered by adjusting the ph to 8 . 5 with 10 ul 10 mm tris hcl . the gel pictures ( fig1 ) and picogreen quantitation results ( table 1 ) indicate specific - binding of dna from the liquid . this example employed biotin labelled poly bis - tris and streptavidin coated plates . biotin labelled poly bis - tris was prepared by mixing biotin with edc and an excess of poly bis - tris . for example , 1 gram of poly bis - tris was mixed with 200 mg of biotin , 160 mg of edc in 45 ml of 0 . 1m imidazole buffer ph6 . 5 to give approximate % wt ratios of biotin to pbt of 20 %. following an overnight incubation and exhaustive dialysis , the polymer was ready for use . the streptavidin coated plates were prepared by adding 300 ul of streptavidin at about 75 ug / ml in 0 . 1m nahco3 with 0 . 1 % glutaldehyde to each well of a black polystyrene microtitre plate . after an overnight incubation , the plate was washed thoroughly with a saline solution and air dried . to a series of wells , dilutions of the biotin - pbt was added in 10 mm tris hcl ph8 . 5 and incubated for 3 hours . the plates washed in the same buffer and then treated with a dna solution . a solution of calf thymus dna was made up to 17 ug / ml in 16 mm potassium acetate ph4 and 200 ul added to each well . after incubating for 3 h at rt , the wells were washed with water and a solution of picogreen added directly to each well . the results show the presence of the biotin - pbt has increased the binding capacity for dna over the non - treated wells and that the streptavidin coated on the plates is capable of binding to the biotinylated portion of the nucleic acid binding reagent . the method is also effective when the dna from the sample bound to the polyfunctional reagent prior to contact with the solid phase . this example used biotin labelled poly bis - tris and streptavidin coated tip plugs . a 30 um pore sintered plastic plug was coated with streptavidin as described above by soaking the plugs for 2 days and then washing away any unbound material . the plug was then washed in a solution of 20 % biotin - pbt in 10 mm tris - hcl ph85 by inserting the plug into a 1 ml pipette tip and pumping repeatedly . the unbound polymer was then washed away using the same buffer and the tip plug was ready for use . to test the coated plug , 10 ug of lambda dna was added to 100 ul of serum with 1 ml of dri lysis buffer ( dri part no . co33 ) and 10 ul of proteinase k at 20 mg / ml . after an incubation period of 15 minutes with mixing , 100 ul of 1 . 6m potassium acetate and potassium chloride buffer ph4 was added and mixed . this solution was then pumped across the tip plug several times to bind the dna . the plug was then washed with water and the dna eluted with 200 ul of 10 mm tris - hcl ph8 . 5 by pumping several times . the eluted dna was analysed by uv and gel electrophoresis . these results show that the biotin - poly bis - tris selectively binds the dna from biological samples . the low 260 / 280 ratio of the eluted material from the control indicates that little or no dna is present and this was confirmed by gel electrophoresis . the method is also effective when the dna from the sample bound to the polyfunctional reagent prior to contact with the solid phase .

US-5685808-A

synthetic fuels are produced from synthesis gas in a four - stage reactor system with a single recycle loop providing the requisite thermal capacity to moderate the high heat release of the reactions and to provide the reactants and reaction environments for the efficient operation of the process . the first reactor converts a portion of the synthesis gas to methanol ; the second reactor converts the methanol to dimethylether ; the third reactor converts the methanol and dimethylether to fuel ; and the fourth reactor converts the high melting point component , durene , and other low volatility aromatic components such as tri - and tetra - methylbenzenes to high octane branched paraffins . a large part of the gas stream of the fourth reactor is recycled to the inlet of the first stage and mixed with the fresh synthesis gas stream . alternatively , the fresh synthetic gas stream is mixed with the product of the second stage .

the invention will be readily understood from the figures . referring to fig1 , synthesis gas enters the process through conduit 19 at low pressure , and preferably is compressed by compressor 7 to 20 to 100 atmospheres , preferably 50 atmospheres , and is passed to the first reactor 1 via conduits 17 and 18 . the first reactor 1 ( r - 1 ) converts synthesis gas to principally methanol and some water . the product from the first reactor 1 , a vapor mixture of essentially methanol , water and unreacted synthesis gas , flows through conduit 10 to a second reactor 2 ( r - 2 ). the second reactor 2 converts a portion of the methanol to dimethylether . the product from second reactor 2 , which essentially contains methanol , dimethylether , water and unreacted synthesis gas , flows via conduit 11 to a third reactor 3 ( r - 3 ). the third reactor 3 converts methanol and dimethylether to fuel product ( gasoline , jet fuel and / or diesel ) and heavy gasoline . the product from the third reactor 3 contains essentially fuel product ( c4 - c8 hydrocarbons , toluene , and xylene ), heavy gasoline (≧ c8 aromatics ) and water , with minor amounts of unreacted methanol and dimethylether and unreacted synthesis gas . this product flows via conduit 12 to a fourth reactor 4 ( r - 4 ) to convert the heavy gasoline to fuel product . the product from the fourth reactor 4 contains essentially fuel product with low heavy gasoline content , water , minor amounts of unreacted methanol and dimethylether and unreacted synthesis gas , which pass via conduit 13 to a separator 5 . the separator 5 separates the flow 13 into three streams : ( a ) conduit 22 carries out essentially water with some impurities for cleaning and reuse to make steam for the synthesis gas generating step not shown in the diagram ; ( b ) conduit 20 carries out essentially fuel product that can be commercially marketed after addition of proper additives as required by commerce ; and ( c ) conduit 14 carrying essentially light gases ( including light paraffins below c4 ) and unreacted synthesis gas . the flow in conduit 14 is split into two streams : ( a ) flow through conduit 21 directed to further processing to recover lpg and excess gas for use as fuel for process heating needs ; and ( b ) flow through conduit 15 is directed to a recycle compressor 6 . the recycle compressor steps up the pressure of the recycle gas from losses through flow from conduit 18 to conduit 15 to match the inlet pressure of r - 1 so that it can be mixed with the synthesis gas feed stream from conduit 17 . the flow in conduits 15 and 16 is the greater part of the flow from conduit 14 , being about 5 to 20 times larger than the flow in conduit 17 , preferably 9 times larger . reactors 1 through 4 are preferably fixed bed reactors containing catalysts for effecting the desired reaction in each of the reactors . due to the exothermicity of the reactions occurring in each stage , the reactors stages maybe sectioned with intermediate heat transfer to remove excess heat or the temperatures may be controlled via “ cold - shot ” side streams of cooled recycle gas for each stage or a combination of these two methods of temperature control may be used . fig2 and 3 show examples of these renditions , which are familiar to those skilled in the art . these examples do not limit the variations possible in the detailed design of this process . fig2 is a schematic of a further embodiment of the present process where the first reactor 1 contains four inter - cooled reactors ( 1 a , 1 b , 1 c , and 1 d ) with heat exchangers ( 21 a , 21 b , 21 c , and 21 d ) cooling the outlets of each of the reactors ( 1 a , 1 b , 1 c , or 1 d ), respectively . additionally , heat exchangers 22 and 23 are used to moderate the temperature of the exit flows of the second reactor 2 and the third reactor 3 , respectively . an extra heat exchanger 24 is mounted between the fourth reactor 4 and the gas - liquid separator 5 , to cool the outlet from the fourth reactor 4 . the output from gas - liquid separator 5 is further divided into two parts : ( 1 ) the unreacted gas stream which will be fed into a control valve 40 to further separate into the recycled and the bleeding gas ; and ( 2 ) the condensed liquid stream which can be fed into a fuel - water separator . due to the difference in density between water and synfuel , the water accumulates at the bottom of the separator and can be drained out periodically . fig3 is a schematic of a further embodiment of the present process wherein the synthesis gas feed is introduced into the loop ahead of the third reactor 3 ( r - 3 ). synthesis gas enters the process through conduit 19 at low pressure and is compressed by a compressor 7 to match the pressure of the flow passing out of the second reactor 2 ( r - 2 ) in conduit 11 . the compressed synthesis gas in conduit 17 is mixed into the flow in conduit 11 to produce the flow in conduit 9 which is led into r - 3 . the flow in conduit 11 is the product from the second reactor 2 ( r - 2 ), which contains essentially methanol , dimethylether , water , and unreacted synthesis gas . r - 3 converts the synthesis gas and olefins and other hydrocarbon contaminants in the synthesis gas feed passing in conduit 9 to a product which is essentially fuel product ( principally c4 - c8 hydrocarbons , toluene , and xylene ), heavy gasoline (≧ c8 aromatics ) and water , with minor amounts of unreacted methanol and dimethylether and unreacted synthesis gas . the r - 3 effluent passes through conduit 12 to the fourth reactor 4 ( r - 4 ) which converts the heavy gasoline to fuel product . the effluent from r - 4 , which is essentially fuel product with low durene content , water , minor amounts of unreacted methanol and dimethylether and unreacted synthesis gas , passes via conduit 13 to the separator 5 . the separator 5 separates the flow 13 into three streams : ( a ) conduit 22 carries essentially water with some impurities for reuse , such as to make steam for the synthesis gas generating step not shown in the diagram ; ( b ) conduit 20 carries essentially a fuel product which can be sold on the market after proper additives are added as required by commerce ; and ( c ) conduit 14 carries essentially light gases and unreacted synthesis gas . the flow in conduit 14 is split into two streams with ( a ) flow through conduit 21 directed to further processing to recover lpg and excess gas for use as fuel for process heating needs ; and ( b ) flow through conduit 15 directed to a recycle compressor 6 . the recycle compressor steps up the pressure of the recycle gas from losses through flow from conduit 16 to conduit 15 to match the inlet pressure of r - 3 . the flow in conduits 15 and 16 is the greater part of the flow from conduit 14 , being about 5 to 20 times larger than the flow in conduit 17 , preferably 9 times or larger . in fig3 , the feed synthesis gas is introduced and mixed into the recycle loop in the line between r 2 and r 3 instead of in the line to r 1 , as shown in fig1 . the principal advantage of this alternative over introducing the feed synthesis into r - 1 is obtained in the case in which the synthesis gas contains alkane and / or olefin hydrocarbons molecules with two or more carbon atoms and / or larger cyclic and aromatic molecules . although some olefin species may be in trace amounts , the catalysts residing in r - 3 and r - 4 convert the olefins directly into fuel product thus increasing the yield , prior to the reactions in r - 1 and r - 2 . an additional advantage is that if this type of feed were to be fed into r - 1 , it would have to be first purified by a process , such as for example , extraction or steam reforming , to render the feed devoid of potential catalyst poisons for the r 1 catalyst , such as olefins and aromatic molecules . in effect , in this rendition of the invention , third and fourth reactors 3 and 4 ( r 3 and r 4 ) act as purifiers of the fresh feed synthesis gas for r - 1 , as it receives synthesis gas via the recycle loop . without further description , it is believed that one of ordinary skill in the art can , using the preceding description and the following illustrative examples , make and utilize the compounds of the present invention and practice the claimed methods . the following examples are given to illustrate the present invention . it should be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific conditions or details described in the examples . the invention can be best described by giving examples from laboratory tests of the concept . a once - through pilot plant utilizing three “ berty - design ” ( berty ) internally recycled autoclave reactors were used in series for r - 1 ( the first reactor ), r - 2 ( the second reactor ), and r - 3 ( the third reactor ) followed by an upflow 1 . 5 ″× 12 ″ long fixed bed reactor for r - 4 ( the fourth reactor ). each of these reactors simulates a reaction stage and it is clear to those familiar with the art that this process concept extends to the use of fixed bed reactors instead of one or more of the internally recycled reactors . the catalysts in the berty reactors were loaded into a catalyst basket and the temperature of the bed was measured by a thermocouple inserted into the catalyst in each basket . the catalyst in r - 4 was loaded in two layers separated by a metal screen support and alumina beads . the temperature was measured between the two beds . a by - pass system around r - 4 permitted introducing or removing r - 4 from the flow from r - 3 to the product separator to demonstrate the beneficial effects of the fourth reaction stage . the tubing connections between reactors were heated with heating tape to prevent condensation of liquid intermediate and final products . the synthesis gas feed was supplied to r - 1 as a mixture of co , h 2 and an ar tracer supplied in pressurized cylinders , metered using mass flow meters to give the desired composition . the pressure of the system was held constant by a backpressure regulator . the depressured gas was cooled by a water cooled condenser and a jorgensen glass tube was used as a separator to separate the product liquid hydrocarbon , water and the synthesis gas containing light hydrocarbon gases not collected in the separator . the collected hydrocarbon liquid was analyzed by ir and gc - ms and the total hot gases after each reactor were sampled and analyzed using a gc - ms . material balance was achieved by using the ar tracer and a massflow meter . the density of the collected liquid hydrocarbon was measured . the temperature inside each reactor was controlled via outer heater elements to temperatures set and measured in the inside of the catalyst beds . a micro syringe with a fixed volume of 1 μl was used to inject the liquid fuel into the gc - ms system ( hp7890 ). the reproducibility of the syringe is reasonably accurate and the volume fluctuation cannot exceed an uncertainty of more than 10 %. therefore , if a significant variation is observed for a specific species in the mass count from the gc - ms signal , the sampling fluctuation caused by the syringe sampling cannot account for such signal change . the signal variation must then come from compositional differences between the samples . thus traces and quantitative mass counts or abundance of quadrupole detection can be used to compare process performance . being that the pilot plant was once - through and contained no recycle , the synthesis gas flow was set to represent the recycle case by restricting the conversion in r - 1 to that calculated for a recycle case . thus , for a once - through case of 10 % conversion of synthesis gas to methanol in r - 1 , the once - through system would be simulating a 10 : 1 recycle rate for 100 % conversion . in this example , r - 1 , r - 2 and r - 3 were used in - line with r - 4 off - line to provide a base case for comparison to the beneficial effect of r - 4 hydrotreating . r - 1 contained 400 g of copper / zinc oxide / alumina ( katalco 51 - 9 ) catalyst , r - 2 contained 200 g of gamma - alumina ( sas 250 ) and r - 3 contained 200 g of the zeolite zsm - 5 . the synthesis gas was composed of the following flows : 6130 scm 3 h 2 . 2200 scm 3 co , and 500 scm 3 ar . temperatures were as follows : r - 1 , 280 ° c . ; r - 2 , 385 ° c . ; and r - 3 , 410 ° c . the pressure was 50 atmospheres at the outlet with minor pressure drop through the reactors . liquid was collected in the separator at the rate of 6 - 7 g / h hydrocarbon together with by - product water . the hydrocarbon was analyzed by ir and gc - ms . the ir was used to confirm the identity of the components in the sample . the gc - ms results are shown in fig4 . in this example , r - 1 , r - 2 , r - 3 line up , flows , temperatures and pressure were the same as in example 1 and r - 4 was added containing 50 g of catalyst - a ( criterion kl6515 , a 60 % ni on alumina catalyst ) held at 130 ° c . liquid was collected in the separator at the rate of 7 . 04 g / h hydrocarbon and by - product water . the hydrocarbon was analyzed by ir and gc - ms . the gc - ms results in fig5 ( a ) show that the durene content was significantly reduced compared to example 1 , which did not utilize r - 4 . in this example the reactor line - up and pressure were the same as in example 2 , however , the catalyst in r - 4 was 50 g of catalyst - b ( alfa aesar 45579 , a cobalt molybdate on alumina ) held at 140 ° c . liquid was collected in the separator at the rate of 7 . 24 g / h hydrocarbon and by - product water . the hydrocarbon was analyzed by ir and gc - ms . the gc - ms results in fig5 ( b ) show that the durene content was significantly reduced compared to example 1 , which did not utilize r - 4 . in this example , the gc - ms traces from example 1 and example 3 are superimposed for comparison and shown in fig6 and quantified in table 1 . table 1 lists the data of integrated area of all major bands for the liquid fuel samples with and without r - 4 . the catalyst used in r - 4 is either cat - a ( cri - critetrion kl6515 ) or cat - b ( alfa aesar 45579 ). the retention times of individual band ( in minutes ) and the percentage changes derived from differences in band areas are also listed in table 1 for comparison . it is interesting to note that all but the n - c 7 aliphatic portions , including c 4 , c 5 , c 6 and i - c 7 , significantly increased for the fuels after r - 4 hydrotreatment . all changes are significant , much more than 100 % of the original values . also , dimethylcyclopentane , dimethylcyclohexane , and other alkyl - substituted cyclic components increased . on the other hand , the areas under the curve for tri - and tetra - methylbenzene as well as toluene and xylenes are lower for the r - 4 product , suggesting conversion from heavy aromatics to paraffins , naphthenes and less substituted aromatics . we can simplify the data by grouping them with similar molecular size . for example , i - c 4 and c 4 can be grouped as c 4 total . the grouped data are listed in table 2 . as we group the data following molecular sizes , the increase using cat - a is 236 % for c 4 , 152 % for c 5 , 118 % for c 6 and 103 % for c 7 ; with larger increases for the smaller molecules , but on the basis of smaller amounts in the feed to r - 4 . the increase of cyclic components is relatively lower . for example , the increase for dimethylcyclohexane is 86 % for cat - a and 46 . 5 % for cat - b . all the substituted aromatics decreased across r - 4 and most significantly because of their larger amount , trimethylbenzene and durene . the beneficial effect of the hydrotreatment is evident in that all desirable fuel components increased at the expense of significant decreases of the undesirable trimethylbenzenes and durene . further test were carried out at various r - 4 temperatures and we found surprisingly that an optimum temperatures for r - 4 exist to produce the highest rate of hydrocarbons . these results are shown in table 3 . it is clear that catalyst - b exhibits a maximum fuel production rate at about 140 ° c ., whereas catalyst - a would appear to have an optimal temperature of about 130 ° c . the measurements suggest that the beneficial reactions that reduce the trimethyl - and tetramethybenzene including durene require a certain minimum temperature but as the temperature is further increased cracking reactions reduce the fuel yield . the product from r - 4 has significantly improved in viscometric properties over that obtained from r - 3 . the freezing point of the fuel was decreased and the viscosity was decreased . the fuel color is also changed from yellow to colorless . however the density of the fuel was not significantly changed indicating that the aromatic content was not changed significantly . the fuel density at room temperature from r - 3 was 0 . 83 g / ml and from r - 4 , 0 . 82 g / ml . this example compares the fuel product rate with and without r - 4 as given in examples 1 , without r - 4 and example 5 with r - 4 . table 4 below shows the comparison : although certain presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been specifically described herein , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains that variations and modifications of the various embodiments shown and described herein may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , it is intended that the invention be limited only to the extent required by the appended claims and the applicable rules of law .

US-201414156154-A

in a bipolar surgical shears , pivoted cutting members serve as a first electrode , and separate conductors , mounted on the cutting members and insulated therefrom , serve as second and third electrodes . one of the second and third electrodes is connected to a terminal on the opposite cutting member through a pivot pin comprising an insulating tube , so that all power supply connections are mounted on one of the pivoted cutting members . a power supply can be switched selectably to a selected one , or both , of the second and third electrodes .

referring to fig1 a pair of surgical shears , generally designated 10 , in accordance with the present invention is illustrated . the shears are made up of relatively conventional first and second shear members 12 and 14 rotatably connected together by connection means 16 permitting relative rotation of members 12 an 14 in scissors - like action . shear members are composed of blade portions 12a and 14a which continue into the connection regions 12b and 14b respectively . part of the shear members provide lever arms 12c and 14c which terminate in thumb or finger rings 12d and 14d . shear members 12 and 14 are typically one piece forged steel members of a formulation that facilitates forging and produces blades which may be sharpened like conventional shears or scissors and preferably retain a sharp edge capable of an extended period of use . the steel should also be capable of carrying high frequency electric currents at essentially constant relatively low voltage . the structure of the surgical shears is intended to be conventional except or the pivotal connection of the shear memers . just as surgical shears may take a varying form for specialized purposes , shears to which the present invention applies may take any of the varying forms of surgical shears presently in use or any new forms which surgical shears may take in the future . they preferably depart from the conventional in appropriate instances to provide recessed channels or groves conforming to the electrode and conductor members supported on the respective shear members in many embodiments of the present invention . in such event , for example , when the electrodes and conductors are fixed in place and the final insulating coating applied , the overall appearance of the shears remains essentially like shears of the prior art on which electrodes and conductors have not been used . as seen in fig4 blades 12a and 14a provide opposed shearing surfaces 18a and 18b . the shearing surfaces are essentially flat and in rubbing contact with one another to facilitate cutting of tissue at the cutting edges at the shearing surfaces where they intersect with the respective faces 20a and 20b as portions of those edges pass each other in the process of cutting tissue with the shears . in fig1 only the shearing surface 18a is visible . shearing surface 18b is the underside of blade 12a in that view . to assure that the shearing surfaces 18a and 18b in fig4 are self - cleaning , the surfaces shown separated for clarity , are actually in rubbing contact . the rubbing uninsulated surfaces continue to the region of connection 12b and 14b , which are also left uncoated to provide for better action with less friction as the shears are opened and closed about pivoted connection 16 . preferably and advantageously all the rest of the exposed surfaces of both shear members 12 and 14 are coated with an insulating coating such as phenolic resin or other insulating material tending to reject collection of blood , coagulants and tissue . this insulating coating 22 covers the opposite sides of the blade from its connection into the extension region of each shear member 12 and 14 . sheet metal electrodes 24a and 24b respectively , may be adhered by the adhesiveness of the coating . however , in most cases it is preferable to allow the insulating coating 22 to dry before applying an epoxy or other suitable adhesive over the insulating coating and on the electrode surfaces facing the blades and positioning the respective electrodes 24a and 24b on the blades . the insulation should also be selected with suitable dielectric strength to avoid breaking down under the relatively small electrical potentials to be applied between the electrodes and the shearing surfaces . each of the electrodes and the conductors extending from them back to a terminal may be formed in whole , or in part , of titanium sheet metal which conforms to the surface to which it is adhered . as suggested above , the shear means surface may have been specially configured during forging to accept the electrodes and conductors . for example , electrode 24a may be formed integrally with conductor 26 . as seen in fig3 conductor 26 , in turn , is preferably terminated in an integral tab 26a bent to fit down into a tubular threaded insulating insert 28 . the cylindrical outer surface of the tubular insert 28 may also be threaded to conform to threads in a receiving bore of arm 12c in shear member 12 . a rod terminal 30 is preferably threaded at one end to engage threads on the interior surface of insert 28 . upon being screwed into place the threads on terminal 30 deform tab 26a and make good electrical contact , thus providing a terminal 30 for electrode 24a insulated from the base metal of the handle 12c of shear member 12 . titanium sheet metal electrode 24b also is connected to a conductor , preferably an integral sheet titanium piece 32 terminating in a ring portion 32a , as seen in fig2 coaxial with the holes 14c and 12c through the shear members 12 and 14 , through which the connecting member 16 passes . aligned cylindrical bores 14e and 12e of the same diameter pass through shearing members 14 and 12 . at the outside surfaces of connecting portions 14b and 12b coaxial counterbore portions 14f and 12f have wider diameters to form planer shoulders 14g and 12g , respectively , between the bore diameters . interfitting cylindrical bushings 34 and 36 of delrin , or other suitable moldable resinous insulation material , in turn , fit within the bores . shoulders 14a and 12a support radially extending flanges 34a and 34b of the bushings 34 and 36 in position . the insulating flange 34a supports the ring 32a terminating titanium sheet conductor 32 . the flange 36a supports a similar terminating ring 38a of titanium sheet conductor 38 on the opposite side of the connection structure 16 . conductor 38 is supported on insulation 22 covering the blade of shear member 12 , preferably in a preformed groove . a conductive screw 40 provides the connective conductive connection thorough the interfitting bushings 34 and 36 and extending between and beyond the respective terminating rings . the head 40a of the screw 40 enables good electrical contact with the ring 38a of the conductor 38 by engaging ring 38a between them as the flange 34a seat against the bushing 34 . as conductive nut 42 is tightened on screw 40 it makes good electrical contact with terminal ring 32a of the conductor 34 and seats against the flange 34a . of course , the nut and screw hold the shear members 12 and 14 together through the insulating members and enable relative rotatable action between the shear members . finally as seen in fig3 conductor 38 has an integral tab 38a which is bent to extend inwardly within bushing 44 . bushing 44 , like bushing 28 , is held in a bore through base metal of the shear member at handle 12c . insulating bushing 44 may be threaded on it &# 39 ; s outside to engage threads in the bore , or is otherwise secured in place . internal threads in bushing engage threads of the conductive rod terminal 46 . as rod 46 is screwed in place its threads engage and deform tab 38 of conductor 38 , thus completing a good electrical connection from terminal 46 to electrode 24a through the screw 40 and conductor 32 . it is not only for aesthetic reasons that a further conductive layer 48 needs to be applied over the conductors to provide a smooth surface , but the proper selection of insulating material inhibits collection of biological waste material that otherwise would clutter and obscure the view of the surgeon . the electrodes need not be embeddeed to function , but in accordance with the invention , all but the effective edge proximate to a cooperating shearing surface is preferably coated . the area left exposed at optimum is only that area which is needed to support current at an effective level through the tissue . designers of individual instruments may determine the required minimum area from the parameters of their particular generator and the properties of the electrodes and conductive materials used . in the case of the electrodes 24a and 24b , the part of the electrode exposed parallels the shearing surface since only part of the exposed part of the electrode is effective at any time as the shears open and close . in accordance with the invention , the area of the electrode surface exposed is consistent with what is the minimum needed to produce reliable current flow through the tissue . that area can be determined experimentally or calculated . minimizing the area is desirable because by keeping the actual exposed area as small as possible , accumulation of tissue , fluids and coagulants is minimized . in fact , it is an important discovery that by keeping an electrode surface small and embedding the electrode except for a minimum area near the other cutting area , it is possible to minimize the accumulations as previously stated . finally , a base metal terminal 50 similar to the others is threaded into a bore into base metal of handle portion 12c . terminal 50 is located between the terminals 30 and 46 but it will be understood that the relative positions of the terminal is not critical . however , using rod terminals , which may be formed as plug prongs , placing the terminals close together in some form of pattern allows the terminals to be engaged by a plug ( not shown ) connecting the terminals to separate conductors in a cable , in turn , connecting the separate electrodes back to the power source . it will also be observed that after all of the terminals are in position , additional insulating coating 48 needs to be applied around each terminal as well as on the conductors and electrodes on the shear members . such added coating embeds the electrode except for its exposed effective area . it will be understood by those skilled in the art , as diagramed in fig1 that high frequency in a range on the order of 250 kilohertz to 2 megahertz , for example , at constant voltage may be provided by a standard commercially available electrosurgical generator 52 . such an electrosurgical generator such as force 2 can be procured off the shelf from pfiger , valley lab , and other suppliers . in a preferred arrangement conductor 54 connects one terminal of the power supply 52 to shear member base metal terminal 50 , thus applying one potential level to the shearing surface 18b . uncoated shearing surface 18b , in turn , by its conductive contact to the other shearing surface 18a places both shearing surfaces at the potential applied to terminal 50 . the potential difference across the terminals of the generator 52 may be selectively supplied to terminals 30 and 46 by switch means . conductor 56 is connected from the other pole of the power supply to one pole of each of the switches 58 and 60 , here shown in open , nonconducting position . the other sides of the switches are connected , respectively , to terminals 30 and 46 by conductors 62 and 64 . closing switch 58 puts potential on terminal 30 and hence on electrode 24a . closing switch 60 puts the same potential on terminal 46 and hence electrode 24b . in the embodiment shown in fig4 the potential is applied between the cutting edge of each blade 20a or 20b as well as shearing surfaces 18b and 18a and the respective electrodes 24b and 24a . thus , by selectively operating the switches the surgeon can have one blade effectively cauterizing on the side where it is needed without the other side being so much affected by the hemostasis . the reverse side is made more effective by selecting the other electrode combination . alternatively both electrodes may be used simultaneously as the surgeon wishes . of course , neither may be used if the surgeon does not wish to produce hemostasis . it will be understood by those skilled in the art the many variations on the structures shown and described will occur to those skilled in the art . all such variations within the scope and spirit of claims are intended to be within the scope of the present invention .

US-95820297-A

a valve has a solenoid part and a valve part connected to the solenoid part . the valve part has a housing provided with connecting bores for a pressure medium , including a pressure connector and working connectors . the valve part has a piston and the solenoid part acts on the piston to alternatingly connect the working connectors to the pressure connector . the valve part has at least one groove extending alongside the valve part . at least one of the connecting bores is positioned in the at least one groove .

in the illustrated embodiment , the valve is a proportional solenoid valve comprising a valve part 1 and a solenoid part 2 . the valve part 1 , as is known in the art , comprises a piston ( not illustrated ) that can be moved by means of a plunger ( not illustrated ) of the solenoid part 2 against a counter force . in this way , the working connectors a and b can be brought alternatingly into communication with the pressure connector p . the valve is inserted with its valve part 1 into a receiving block 3 ( fig1 ); the receiving block can be an engine block of an internal combustion engine . at the transition from the valve part 1 into the solenoid part 2 , the valve is provided with a mounting flange 4 that projects radially past the valve part 1 and / or the solenoid part 2 and rests against the receiving block 3 in the mounted position . the mounting flange 4 has openings 5 , 6 ( fig5 ) for screws with which the valve can be fastened on the receiving block 3 . at the end of the solenoid part 2 facing away from the valve part 1 , an electrical connector 7 is provided . the valve part 1 has a valve housing 8 which is provided in the illustrated embodiment with axially extending oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 . at the bottom of the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 , a bore ( 23 to 25 ) is provided , respectively . by means of these grooves 9 to 11 and bores 23 to 25 , the hydraulic oil is supplied to the connecting bores a , b , and p . the connecting bores a and b form working connectors , the connecting bore p the pressure connector , and the connecting bore t the tank connector . the receiving block 3 is provided with oil channels . fig1 shows the oil channels 12 and 13 . in the valves according to the prior art , these oil channels must be aligned exactly with the connecting bores or annular grooves in the valve part 1 when the valve is in the mounted position . this requires a very precise manufacture of the oil channels in the receiving block 3 as well as of the arrangement of the connecting bores in the valve part 1 . in the valve of the present invention , this precise positional alignment is no longer necessary . when mounting the valve , it must only be ensured that the oil channels 12 , 13 of the receiving block 3 open into the corresponding oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 of the valve part 1 . within the oil guiding grooves the oil can flow to the corresponding connecting bores in any case . on the other hand , the oil reliably returns from the valve part 1 into the respective oil channels 12 , 13 . as a result of the axial extension of the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 , the oil channels 12 , 13 in the receiving block 3 can extend at different angles or slants without this impairing the reliable supply of the oil . the solid lines indicate the oil channels 12 , 13 in an extreme slanted position in which they open into the lower end of the oil guiding grooves 9 , 10 . by means of the dashed lines , the other extreme slanted position of these oil channels is illustrated in which they open into the upper end of the oil guiding groove 9 , 10 , respectively . accordingly , the oil channels 12 , 13 in the receiving block 3 can be positioned at different slants varying within the indicated angle ∀ without this impairing the supply or return of the oil . because of the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 , a high positional precision or accuracy of the oil channels 12 , 13 to be drilled into the receiving block 3 is no longer required . the slant of the oil channels 12 , 13 can vary by the angle ∀. because of the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 , the variability of the mounting position of the valve in the receiving block 3 is significantly increased . moreover , the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 widen the tolerance range for the angular position of the oil channels 12 , 13 . in the illustrated embodiment , the different oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 extend axially , respectively . however , it is possible easily to provide the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 also slanted at an angle relative to the valve housing 8 . in this case , a high positional precision of the oil channels 12 , 13 in the receiving block 3 is also not required . [ 0029 ] fig6 through 8 show an embodiment of a valve in which the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 are provided in a bushing ( sleeve ) 14 that is pushed onto a valve member 15 . the valve member 15 has annular grooves 16 to 18 that are delimited by annular webs 19 to 22 . the different connectors a , b , p of the valve open into the annual grooves 16 to 18 . the webs 19 to 22 are positioned on the inner wall of the sleeve or bushing 14 so that the oil cannot flow across the annular webs into the neighboring oil grooves 16 - 18 . at the bottom of the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 , a bore 23 to 25 is provided , respectively , through which the oil can reach the respective annular groove 16 - 18 . the bores 23 to 25 of neighboring oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 are axially staggered relative to one another . the bushing 14 is pushed onto the valve member 15 to such an extent that it rests with its end face against the fastening flange 4 . the bushing 14 forms a distributor sleeve with which valves can be retrofitted in order to also obtain the advantage of a variable mounting position of the valve in the receiving block 3 . in deviation from the illustrated embodiment , the oil guiding grooves 9 to 11 in the bushing 14 can be positioned inclined at an angle in other respects , the valve according to fig6 to 8 is identical to the preceding embodiment . while specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail to illustrate the inventive principles , it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles .

US-70833404-A

a system and method of achieving both convective and diffusive transport of plasma across a membrane accompanied by the selective removal of plasma components using sorbents followed by reinfusion of the purified plasma in a blood circulation system is achieved by pumping blood through a filter comprising a bundle of &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped hollow fibers immersed in a closed plasma chamber containing sorbents in an electrolyte solution . as blood flows through the entry arm , due to positive transmembrane pressure difference , plasma filtration into the plasma chamber occurs . the entering plasma causes an increase in the chamber pressure but does not exceed the pressure in the entry arm . the increase in chamber pressure exceeds the pressure in the exit arm of filter where the transmembrane pressure difference is negative and the direction of filtration reverses causing reverse filtration / reinfusion of plasma from the chamber into the blood in the exit arm . the phenomena of positive and reverse filtration from the hollow fiber filter establishes the circulation of plasma fluid in the plasma chamber . the plasma filtering through the entry arm , which corresponds to the arterial end of the system , passes through the plasma chamber solution containing the sorbents where plasma components get selectively depleted . the sorbents may be in any usable form which are not permeable to the filter . the purified plasma reenters the filter along the exit arm corresponding to the venous end where negative transmembrane pressure exists .

there is illustrated in fig1 the basic principle of plasma pheresis or plasma separation as utilized in the present invention . the hollow fiber membrane 10 , actually a bundle of hollow fiber membranes which make up a filter , has a central lumen 11 through which the whole blood passes from the inlet to the outlet . the membrane 10 is porous having a series of pores or openings 12 through which plasma and plasma components , toxins , drugs or other solutes having diameters smaller than the pores can pass into a surrounding plasma chamber solution 13 containing a sorbent 14 . the red blood cells 15 , white blood cells 16 , platelets 17 are of a size that they cannot pass through pores 12 and remain in the lumen 11 of the fiber 10 . the plasma may contain various sugars , proteins , hormones , antibodies , fats , bile salts , toxins , electrolytes and the like as well as other substances which may have been administered for various purposes . heparin , for example , is added to extracorporeal circulation circuits for its anticoagulant properties but is desirably removed and / or deactivated before leaving the extracorporeal loop and entering back into the in vivo blood circulation . in fig1 there is shown particles representing heparin 18 , and other plasma containing constituents 19 , 20 and 21 . when the heparin and other particles exit through pores 12 by diffusion or convection they enter into a plasma chamber solution 13 containing sorbent particles 14 which have a specificity for binding heparin 18 or other particles as desired . the heparin sorbent interaction will be explained in greater detail below . fig2 schematically diagrams a single hollow fiber membrane 10 in the form of a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; positioned in a closed plasma chamber ( not shown ) so as to be immersed in a plasma chamber solution . thus , fig2 illustrates the specific mass transport effects by which the exchange of heparin [ or other components to be removed from the plasma ] is able to be transported from the blood side , ( i . e ., using either in vivo or stored blood ), of a fiber membrane along the inlet arm 25 of the fiber to a plasma phase by diffusion and convection where heparin [ or other permeable components as desired ] are removed by binding to a sorbent in the plasma chamber solution and the unbound plasma components are transported back across the membrane along the outlet arm 26 of the fiber to the blood side of the fiber membrane by convection . blood flows through the lumen of the hollow fiber membrane in the path shown by the directional arrows 27 and 28 . the plasma chamber is initially filled with an electrolyte solution mixed with enzymes , sorbents , living tissue , cells or fragments of tissue , immobilized enzymes or immobilized antibodies . for purposes of simplification , all of the binding agents which can be utilized to removed targeted plasma components in the plasma chamber are collectively referred to as &# 34 ; sorbents &# 34 ;. in the preferred embodiment shown , the plasma chamber solution contains a sorbent which will bind heparin as will be more fully detailed below . for purposes of illustration it is assumed that there is complete mixing of components with the sorbent in the plasma chamber solution . this could be accomplished by use of mechanical agitation such as stirring or caused by magnetic or sonic techniques . further , maximum mixing could be caused by improving convective aspects or internal circulation inside the plasma chamber by design . for example , a vortex could be created through reconfiguration of the hollow fibers within the plasma chamber or reconfiguration of the sorbents in the form of fibers , films , etc . could maximize mixing . the blood coming into the entry arm 25 of the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; fiber is at the pressure designated as pb1 and the concentration of solutes in the blood in the inlet arm 25 is designated as cb1 . both the blood pressure ( pb ) and solute concentration ( cb ) in the lumen of the filter will vary along the filter as pb1 changes to pb2 and as cb1 changes to cb2 , i . e . between the entry and outlet areas respectively . in other words , pb1 and pb2 [ both being representations of pb ] are variable along the length of the filter with pb1 being greatest at the entrance 27 to inlet arm 25 and least at the point 29 where pb1 equals pd ( dialysate phase or plasma chamber solution pressure ). therefore , along the entry arm 25 the pb ( shown as pb1 in that area ), while variable , is greater than at any other part of the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; filter loop . the mass transfer of solutes in the blood from the entry arm 25 of the fiber to the plasma chamber occurs by both convection and diffusion . the mass transport by diffusion across the membrane for solutes in this area is concentration dependent , and it may be defined as ω ( cb1 - cd ) where is the diffusive permeability ( cm / sec ) of the membrane for the solute and cb1 is the solute concentration in the blood in entry arm area 25 of the hollow fiber and cd is the solute concentration in the plasma chamber . this is shown in fig2 by a set of directional arrows along the entry arm 25 . the velocity &# 34 ; v &# 34 ; of convection of fluid permeating through the pores of the membrane , and which will vary along the length of the membrane as blood pressure ( pb ) decreases from pb1 to pb2 , depends upon the transmembrane membrane difference stated as pb - pd where pb is the blood pressure at any given reference area along the hollow fiber and pd is the pressure in the plasma or filtrate chamber which is almost constant throughout the chamber . when pb1 & gt ; pd , the mass transfer of solutes from inside the lumen of the hollow fiber into the plasma chamber may be defined as v . cb1 . therefore , as long as pb & gt ; pd ( i . e . when pb is pb1 ) there will be mass transfer ( mt ) of solutes from within the lumen of the fiber to the plasma chamber solution by both convection and diffusion , i . e . mt = ω ( cb1 - cd )+ v . cb1 . at some position 29 along the fiber as pb ( blood pressure ) decreases [ shown in fig2 as the bottom of the filter loop ] pb and pd will equalize ( pb ≡ pd ) and there will be no transmembrane pressure difference and hence no driving force for the mass transfer of solutes by convection . at this area of the filter , the mass transport will therefore be present only by diffusion ω ( cb - cd ) as indicated by the directional arrows in area 29 and this will be minimal if the concentration of solutes in the blood cb is the same as the concentration of solutes in the plasma chamber solution cd . as stated above , there is an incremental decrease in pb in the filter loop along inlet arm 25 as pb1 decreases to pd and pb then becomes pb2 . when pb & lt ; pd , ( i . e . when pb is pb2 ) shown in fig2 as being along the exit arm 26 of the filter loop , the mass transfer of solutes from the filter to the plasma chamber solution continues by diffusion as represented by ω ( cb2 - cd ) and shown by directional arrows along exit arm 26 . however , there is also a reverse mass transfer of solutes , which have not been selectively bound by the sorbent , from the plasma chamber solution back into the filter lumen by convection as represented by v . cd as also shown . the significance of the mass transport in fig2 shows that plasma solutes ca be filtered through a hollow porous fiber membrane into a plasma chamber where unwanted components can be removed by sorptive binding techniques and plasma and unbound solutes then reenter the hollow fiber based on mass transfer by diffusion and convection without the need for extraneous means such as oscillating blood flow conditions , plasma pumps or transmembrane pressure controls . the overall system is represented in plan view in fig3 . a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped filter 30 is placed in a container 31 which is filled with plasma chamber solution 32 containing sorbents 33 for binding the desired solute , e . g . heparin . the container is closed by stoppers 34 and 35 . an inlet line 36 connects with the entry end 37 of the filter loop in the vicinity of stopper 34 . at the other side an outlet line 38 connects with the exit end of the filter in the vicinity of stopper 35 . either the ends of the lines 36 or 38 or the ends 37 and 39 of the filter pass through the stoppers in order to enable connections between the lines and the filter loop . preferably lines 36 and 38 are shunt lines used in conjunction with an extracorporeal circuit . as an example only and without intending to limit the invention , in the case of cardiopulmonary bypass surgery , the heparinized blood will pass through the device , after the bypass is completed in order to remove the heparin and avoid the requirement of administering protamine . in this regard lines 36 and 38 represent a dual flow cannula which could actually be a dual lumen single barrel cannula that could be inserted into the venous uptake incision of the cardiopulmonary bypass procedure . one tip of the dual flow cannula ( line 36 ) would insert retrograde into the inferior vena cava and take up heparinized blood from the patient to the filter 30 . a roller pump ( not shown ) would move blood under positive pressure to the plasma filter . deheparinized blood is then returned to the patient via the dual flow cannula ( line 38 ) and directed towards the right atrial inflow . the hollow fiber membrane filter can be made of any blood compatible material having suitable pore size to allow passage of desired solute materials into the plasma chamber , even those of high molecular weight , and yet retain the blood cells and platelets in the lumen of the hollow fiber . pore sizes in the membrane are relatively large with sizes ranging between about 0 . 01μ to 1 . 0μ being suitable with pore sizes of about 0 . 1μ to 0 . 8 μ being preferable . exemplary of suitable fiber materials are polypropylene , cellulose diacetate , polycarbonate , polyvinylchloride , polyvinylalcohol , polymethylmethacrylate , polyethylene , polyethylenevinylalcohol and the like . the hollow fiber filter dimensions ( hollow fiber lumen diameter , length of each hollow fiber and the number of fibers ) and the blood flow rate through the fiber have to be optimized based on the art of membrane plasma separation and enzyme engineering . it is well known in the art of membrane plasma separation that the plasma separation rate is directly proportional to the blood shear rate and the transmembrane pressure . however , damage to the blood cells may occur if the transmembrane pressure is increased beyond a particular limit . also , blood cells are susceptible to high shear rate . for a given blood flow rate and total membrane surface area , transmembrane pressure increases : ( i ) with the increase in hollow fiber length and ( ii ) with the decrease in lumen size . shear rate also increases with the decrease in lumen size . the above factors may be considered in arriving at the optimum size of the hollow fiber filter . the weight of adsorbent or enzymes to be taken in the plasma chamber may be determined based on the well known art of enzyme engineering . the removal rates of solutes from the blood depends upon the plasma separation rate , and the amount [ weight , surface area , etc .] and affinity of sorbents . hollow fibers of the filter having inside diameters of between about 150μ and 500μ and wall thicknesses of between about 50μ to 400μ are typical . the internal surface area of a typical filter may be between about 0 . 1 and 5 . 0 m 2 and the volume of the plasma chamber may be between about 50 and 1000 mls . the length of the filter from the inlet port to the exit port should be between about 10 and 100 cm with lengths of about 20 to 25 cm being preferred . flow rates of blood through the filter may vary from about 50 to 3000 ml / min . the plasma chamber 31 should be sized to hold an adequate amount of sorbent materials to bind the unwanted plasma solutes such as heparin . this may vary depending on the surgical procedure for which an extracorporeal system is being used and the amount of heparin or other material to be removed and nature of sorbent material . a commercial filter bundle mounted in a plasma chamber is available as a unit from organon teknika n . v . under the curesis plasma separator tradename . this unit is a disposable hollow fiber membrane - type plasma separator consisting of a microporous polypropylene hollow fiber bundle mounted in polyurethane exit ports and plastic housing made of polystyrene . blood enters the fiber bundle through the blood inlet port , passes through the hollow fiber lumens in which a positive transmembrane pressure allows plasma to pass through the porous hollow fiber membrane along its entire length into the plastic housing where it exits through the plasma port . the plasma lean blood exits the blood outlet port . this unit can be modified for use in the present invention by prefilling the plasma chamber with plasma chamber solution containing sufficient sorbent particles to bind the plasma component to be separated and closing the plasma exit port . the unit as thus modified is then suitable for use as a simultaneous plasma purification and reinfusion system having the above described advantages . the removal of heparin from an extracorporeal circuit is a primary objective of the invention . the binding of heparin to a solid substrate by affinity adsorption techniques is documented in the art . the prior art cited above gives several examples . also , mohammad et al , &# 34 ; quantitative removal of heparin from plasma and other aqueous solutions by affinity adsorption on poly ( l ) lysinesepharose 4b &# 34 ;, thrombosis research 20 : 599 - 609 ( 1980 ) is illustrative of the activity of poly ( l ) lysine agarose beads as one form of preferred sorbents . the invention is applicable to any plasma sorbent system where separation , interaction and recombination takes place . thus any system where plasma is separated from whole blood , plasma components are interacted with sorbent and the plasma ( minus the interacted components ) are recombined with the blood is within the scope of the invention . typical surgical procedures where blood is heparinized include cardiopulmonary bypass , hemodialysis , angioplastic procedures , plasmapheresis , autotransfusion and hemoconcentration . exemplary of other potential applications of the system are : ( 1 ) the removal of autoantibodies using sorbents such as immobilized protein - a ; ( 2 ) removal of circulating toxins and tumor antigens using sorbents such as immobilized monoclonal antibodies and specific immobilized ligands ; ( 3 ) removal of protein bound toxins and drugs ( e . g ., in the case of drug overdose ); ( 4 ) procedures using live cells in the plasma chamber in the place of sorbents such as islet cells or liver tissue fragments for the treatment of diabetes , hepatocytes for the treatment of hepatic failure and the like ; ( 5 ) selective removal of plasma components using immobilized enzymes as sorbents and ( 6 ) removal of cholesterol ( low density lipoproteins , ldl ) using sorbents specific to ldl . the following examples demonstrate the preferred embodiment of removing heparin from aqueous solutions and / or plasma using poly ( l ) lysine sepharose cl - 4b as the sorbent . in each example the filter device used was a commercial curesis plasma separator modified to close the plasma chamber . the chamber contained 200 mls of a plasma chamber solution in which was suspended sorbent beads as described in each example . the filter device dimensions were 120 × 110 × 56 mm . the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; filter consisted of a bundle made up of polypropylene microporous hollow fibers having an internal diameter of 330 μm , a wall thickness of 150 μm , a maximum pore size of 0 . 65 μm and having an effective surface area of 0 . 12 m 2 . the priming volume of the fiber lumens , i . e . &# 34 ; blood compartment &# 34 ; was 14 ml . the inlet of the filter was connected by plastic tubing to a &# 34 ; source &# 34 ;, i . e . simulated blood solution or extracorporeally to a test animal , and fed via roller pump at the flow rate shown in each example . using a simple in vitro system and simulated &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ;, this example demonstrates variation in inlet blood pressure ( pb1 ), outlet blood pressure ( pb2 ) and plasma pressure ( pd ) obtained by circulating a physiological buffer solution containing a known amount of heparin , as a &# 34 ; blood solution &# 34 ;, through the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped hollow fiber filter device described above . the plasma chamber contained 200 mls of a buffer solution consisting of phosphate buffered saline ( p . b . s .) containing 8 . 52 gm . sodium phosphate , 5 . 44 gm . potassium phosphate and 2 . 20 gm sodium chloride in 1 liter of water . the ph is adjusted to ph of 7 . 4 by drop - wise titration with 7 m naoh . the outlet pressure ( pb2 ) was maintained at a constant value ( atmospheric pressure ). table 1______________________________________flow rate pressure ( mm / hg )( mm / min ) pb1 pd pb2______________________________________100 0 0 0150 5 0 0200 15 0 0250 20 0 0280 35 0 0300 47 8 0350 65 20 0400 75 30 0450 90 40 0500 105 50 0550 130 65 0______________________________________ the above data show that the inlet blood pressure ( pb1 ) increases with the increase in blood flow rate through the filter lumen . the pressure in the plasma phase ( pd ) also increases proportionately , while the outlet blood pressure ( pb2 ) is maintained at a constant value . as shown in table 1 , pd remains equal to pb2 ( zero ) until pb1 exceeds pb2 by about 35 mm hg . this occurs at a flow rate corresponding to a typical in vivo blood flow rate of about 280 / min . the difference between pb1 and pd is a direct measure of the driving force for the filtration rate of fluid from the blood phase in the inlet arm of the filter into the plasma phase . this driving force ( pb1 - pd ) is seen to be increasing with the increase in the blood flow rate . as shown , the driving force increased from 45 mm hg to 65 mm hg as the &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ; flow rate was changed from 400 ml / min to 550 ml / min . this test demonstrates that , as pd increases with the increase in pb1 for flow rates greater than 280 ml / min , two different regions of mass transfer are created . in the inlet arm of the filter where pb & gt ; pd , there is a positive convection of mass transfer across the membrane through its pores (= v . cb ) into the plasma chamber solution . however , in the outlet arm of the filter where pb & lt ; pd this causes a negative or reverse convective mass transfer across the membrane through its pores (= v . cd ) from the plasma chamber solution into the lumen . using the same system as used in example 1 this example is designed to demonstrate variations in heparin concentrations &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ; in the inlet ( cb1 ) and outlet ( cb2 ) portions of the &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; filter and also in the plasma chamber solution phase ( cd ) as a function of time . the &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ; was 5 liters of heparin containing phosphate buffered saline ( pbs ) and flowed through the filter at a rate of 300 ml / min . the &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ; solution was recirculated through the filter over a 65 minute period of time . at 50 minutes the flow was reversed by switching the inflow and outflow ports . the heparin concentration was assayed with azure ii dye . this is accomplished by mixing 5 mg of azure ii dye ( sigma # a 2507 ) with 250 mls of deionized water to provide a final concentration of 0 . 02 mg / ml . a 0 . 5 ml sample to be assayed is added to 4 . 5 mls of the azure ii solution and allowed to incubate for 60 second . absorbance is measured in a spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 500 nanometers and compared against a known calibration standard curve to determine heparin concentration . the plasma chamber solution was a buffer solution containing 30 . 1 grams of poly - l - lysine derivatized agarose [ pharmacia , sepharose 4b - cl ] beads having a diameter of between about 30 - 140 microns and a total minimum heparin binding capacity of about 25 , 000 units . there was no agitation of the sorbent in the plasma chamber solution during the test . the heparin concentration ( in units ) monitored at the inlet ( cb1 ), outlet ( cb2 ) and plasma chamber solution ( cd ) as a function of time are given in table 2 . table 2______________________________________ heparin concentration ( u / ml ) time ( min ) cb1 cd cb2______________________________________ 1 4 . 20 0 . 10 3 . 20 2 4 . 25 0 . 80 3 . 25 3 3 . 75 1 . 10 2 . 90 4 4 . 05 1 . 90 3 . 10 5 4 . 10 2 . 35 3 . 10 7 4 . 00 2 . 50 3 . 4010 3 . 80 3 . 00 2 . 7015 3 . 70 3 . 60 2 . 8020 3 . 60 3 . 50 2 . 9025 3 . 45 3 . 40 2 . 8030 3 . 25 3 . 45 2 . 8040 3 . 10 3 . 20 2 . 7550 2 . 85 2 . 85 2 . 5055 2 . 75 0 . 70 2 . 2060 2 . 70 0 . 75 2 . 1565 2 . 40 0 . 85 1 . 95______________________________________ as can be seen from table 2 , the heparin level cb1 ) in the recirculating &# 34 ; blood &# 34 ; flowing in at the inlet of the filter decreased from 4 . 2 u / ml to 2 . 7 u / ml over a period of 60 minutes recirculation . the heparin level in the plasma chamber solution phase ( cd ) increased to almost the same level as cb1 after 15 minutes and cb1 and cd remained substantially equal from 15 to 50 minutes when agitation was created in the plasma chamber solution phase by switching the inflow and outflow ports . during the 15 to 50 minute time period , the mass transfer by diffusion [= ω ( cb - cd )] was almost zero because cb ( heparin concentration in the inlet arm of the filter ) was almost equal to cd ( heparin concentration in the plasma chamber solution ). however , the convective mass transfer (= v . cb ) of heparin from the inlet arm of the filter into the plasma chamber solution phase was not zero during this period as seen by the continued decline in cb1 and cb2 . due to the convective flow of fluid in the plasma chamber from the inlet region of the filter to the outlet region , sorbent beads moved away from the inlet region and accumulated adjacent the filter at the outlet region . this caused a nonuniform distribution of sorbents in the plasma chamber . this phenomena decreased the adsorption rate of heparin by the sorbents in the plasma chamber . in actual use the sorbents would be more evenly distributed by a stirring mechanism or other means of agitation in of the plasma chamber solution . when the inlet and outlet ports were switched at the 50 minute time period , the sorbents were redistributed due to the change of direction of convective flow of plasma in the plasma chamber whereupon the heparin ( cd ) in the plasma chamber solution was more rapidly bound to the sorbents causing a significant drop in cd . this example shows the effect of mechanical agitation of the sorbent beads in an identical procedure to that described in example 2 . table 2a shows the results of heparin concentration cb1 , cd and cb2 when agitated at different time intervals as indicated . table 2a______________________________________ heparin concentration ( u / ml ) time ( min ) cb1 cd cb2______________________________________ 0 4 . 06 0 . 00 0 . 00 1 3 . 99 0 . 80 2 . 92 3 3 . 57 1 . 99 3 . 28 5 3 . 57 2 . 98 3 . 10 7 3 . 57 1 . 86 2 . 8610 3 . 51 0 . 74 2 . 7515 3 . 10 0 . 92 2 . 7520 3 . 22 0 . 98 2 . 6325 3 . 16 1 . 21 2 . 63 28 * 3 . 16 1 . 09 2 . 5130 2 . 80 0 . 00 2 . 2140 2 . 67 0 . 15 1 . 92 50 * 2 . 21 0 . 86 1 . 8655 1 . 92 0 . 00 1 . 57______________________________________ * mechanical agitation as can be seen from table 2 , the mechanical agitation of the filter causes a resuspension of the sorbent beads within the dialysate chamber creating a more uniform distribution of the sorbent and resulting in a marked decrease in heparin concentration in the dialysate chamber and a subsequent decrease in the outflow heparin concentration thereby improving the overall heparin removal rate when utilizing the device . techniques other than mechanical agitation can be effectively utilized to improve the uniformity of distribution of sorbent beads within the chamber to take advantage of convective flow of plasma such as reconfiguring the hollow fiber arrangement from a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shape to a closed loop or loops as in a coil . as used herein , the term &# 34 ; u &# 34 ; shaped filter , hollow fiber and the like is meant to encompass any functional hollow fiber or hollow fiber bundle configuration , such as a &# 34 ; u &# 34 ;, coil , loop , or any other configuration having inlet and outlet areas and through which blood may circulate provided plasma components may exit the hollow fiber lumens into a plasma chamber solution and then reenter back into the hollow fibers in the manner described herein . reconfiguration of the plasma chamber , mechanical perturbation of beads within the plasma chamber either by internal or external means and / or modification of sorbent bead density and / or size which would enhance suspension of the sorbent in the plasma preventing it from packing or settling out of suspension . additional methods might also include reconfiguration of the sorbent material itself such as macroporus (≧ 1 mm ) trabeculated substrates , membranous fibers (≧ 0 . 5 micron ) or fibrous strands or filaments (≧ 0 . 5 microns ) which would all have the same surface structure and chemical structure and properties that the bead material has . the purpose would be to create a surface area for the poly - l - lysine coupled surface to be uniformly distributed in such a manner to allow intimate and unrestricted flow of plasma in the dialysate chamber thereby allowing maximum binding of heparin or other desired solutes to the substrate and return of plasma back through the hollow fiber outflow to recombine with the whole blood . the following examples show results of an animal study using the filter device described above forming an extracorporeal circuit in a carotid - jugular bypass shunt of a sheep . in example 3 plain sepharose cl - 4b beads were used as the sorbent in the plasma chamber . example 4 shows the same arrangement used in example 3 with the exception that poly ( l ) lysine derivatized cl - 4b sepharose beads were utilized in the plasma chamber . example 5 is similar to example 4 except that a dual lumen single barrel catheter was used to form beginning and end of the extracorporeal loop . the following parameters are applicable to all three examples . the sheep weighed approximately 72 kgs . and received an initial heparin dose of 350 units / kg . i . e . 25 , 300 units of heparin at - 10 minutes of beginning the bypass . the heparin is administered via bolus intravenous injection into the jugular vein . at - 8 minutes the first blood sample was taken to determine heparin concentration . the extracorporeal circuit was made up of 0 . 25 &# 34 ;× 0 . 375 &# 34 ; pvc tubing with the venous uptake cannula being inserted into the inferior vena cava and the return cannula directing the flow to the right atrium . the total extracorporeal blood circuit volume was about 130 ml . with the filter per se having a volume of abut 14 ml . the plasma chamber on the plasma chamber solution side of the filter had a volume of about 220 mls . the blood circulation through the filter device was controlled by a roller pump upstream of the filter device and was maintained at 300 ml / min . the results of each study are given individually in the examples which follow . the plasma chamber contained a phosphate buffered saline ( p . b . s .) as in example 1 holding approximately 75 grams of plain sepharose cl - 4b beads having a diameter of between about 60 and 140 microns . the bypass through the extracorporeal circuit was maintained for 60 minutes with blood samples being taken at the inlet ( cb1 ) and the outlet ( cb2 ) of the filter at periodic intervals to determine heparin concentration as follows in table 3 . table 3______________________________________ heparin concentration ( u / ml ) time ( min ) cb1 cb2______________________________________ - 20 4 . 5 -- 1 4 . 3 4 . 6 5 4 . 0 3 . 610 3 . 9 3 . 915 4 . 0 4 . 220 3 . 7 4 . 530 4 . 1 4 . 145 4 . 2 4 . 260 4 . 3 -- ______________________________________ this device showed no decrease in heparin concentration after 60 minutes of bypass and upon conducting blood coagulation assays showed no presence of fibrin clots . the plasma chamber contained the same plasma chamber solution as in example 3 except that approximately 80 grams of poly ( l ) lysine derivatized sepharose cl - 4b beads having a diameter between about 60 and 140 microns were utilized in the place of plain sepharose . the bypass through the extracorporeal circuit was maintained for only 25 minutes with blood samples being taken at the both the inlet and outlet ports of the filter at periodic intervals to determine heparin concentration as follows in table 4 . table 4______________________________________ heparin concentration ( u / ml ) time ( min ) cb1 cb2______________________________________ - 5 4 . 0 -- 1 3 . 6 3 . 5 5 3 . 2 2 . 610 2 . 6 2 . 415 2 . 8 2 . 220 2 . 2 1 . 925 1 . 9 1 . 7______________________________________ using the standard curve generated during the control study of example 3 , the heparin concentration in this example was reduced by over 75 % within the first 25 minutes and the heparin concentration on the inflow side ( representing systemic plasma concentration of the animal ) of the device went to 2 . 0 μ / ml at about 20 minutes as well . blood coagulation assays completed upon conclusion of the bypass revealed the presence of fibrin clots indicating the positive effects of heparin removal . as indicated above . this example is essentially the same as example 4 with the exception of the tubing used to form the extracorporeal loop . this test was actually a continuation of the bypass operation started in example 4 . the bypass in example 4 was terminated after 25 minutes . the new device was surgically attached to the junction of the superior vena cava and the inferior vena cava near the right atrium via a dual lumen cannula which allowed uptake of systemically heparinized blood from the inferior vena cave and delivered it to the heparin removal device , returning blood back through to the return lumen of the cannula delivering deheparinized blood to the right atrium while an additional 16 , 800 units of heparin was administered 90 minutes after the initial 25 , 200 unit dose . the bypass through the extracorporeal circuit was maintained for 45 minutes with blood samples being taken at the both the inlet and outlet ports of the filter at periodic intervals to determine heparin concentration as follows in table 5 . table 5______________________________________ heparin concentration ( u / ml ) time ( min ) cb1 cb2______________________________________ - 2 7 . 5 -- 2 7 . 4 4 . 8 5 6 . 5 4 . 810 5 . 6 4 . 015 5 . 2 -- 20 4 . 5 3 . 430 3 . 4 2 . 545 2 . 0 -- 60 1 . 9 -- ______________________________________ using the standard curve generated during the control study of example 3 , the heparin concentration in this example was back to baseline on the outflow side of the filter device within 30 minutes and the heparin concentration on the inflow side of the device went below 0 . 5 u / ml at about 40 minutes . blood chemistry assays completed upon conclusion of the bypass revealed the presence of fibrin clots again indicating the positive effects of heparin removal . while the preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described , it should be understood that variations , whether or not apparent to those skilled in the art , may be made and still be within the scope of the invention . one embodiment not specifically illustrated but contemplated is to intimately combine the fiber and sorbent material into a single composite substrate instead of having the sorbent contained in the plasma chamber solution . the sorbent could be an integral part of or attached to the fiber materials . accordingly , the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments as shown herein but are to be determined by reference to the appended claims and the functional equivalents thereof .

US-73640591-A

a punch and die tooling apparatus commonly used by metal fabricators for creating holes , passages and cavities in metal plate , the die having a unique internal bore which relieves the problem of slug pulling to ensure that a slug punched out of a metal sheet is not retained on the punch face to interfere with further operation of the apparatus . the die is provided with a substantially horizontal ridge and a corresponding horizontal land and relief space formed within the bore to facilitate tipping of the slug relative to the punch and thereby break any attachment between the slug and the punch face which causes slug pulling .

a punch and die machine , as well known in the art , is provided with a punch and a die for forming holes in metal plate . observing fig1 , a punch 1 is shown positioned above , and relatively spaced above a die 3 and metal plate 7 . the punch 1 is provided with a point 5 extending downward to define a longitudinal axis a along which the punch 1 generally travels in a substantially vertical , or up and down motion . the point 5 has a diameter which is substantially the same size as a hole to be formed in the metal plate 7 , and at a free end of the point 5 a substantially flat , horizontally aligned and relatively flat face 9 is formed to directly contact and cut the metal plate 7 . the die 3 is positioned generally below the punch 1 , and the die bore 11 is provided with a diameter which is at least slightly larger than the point 5 of the punch 1 to permit the face 9 and point 5 to penetrate into the die bore 11 along the longitudinal axis a . as is well understood by those in the art , the depth to which the punch 1 is permitted to penetrate the die bore 11 can be controlled by mechanisms on the punch and die apparatus and , therefore , may be set to any desired depth often dependent upon the thickness of the steel plate being cut . the metal plate 7 has a particular thickness t and is positioned between the punch 1 and the die 3 and generally perpendicular to the axis a along which the punch 1 and die 3 are aligned . the plate 7 is positioned on a top surface 13 of the die 3 which defines a top cutting edge 15 formed where the die bore 11 intersects the top surface 13 . turning to fig2 , a slug 17 , having been cut by the punch 1 ( not shown here ), is shown passing through the die bore 11 . in order to eliminate the slug pulling and slug retention as discussed in the background of the invention , the die bore 11 is formed in a unique manner to cause the slug 17 , during cycling of the punch 1 through the metal plate 7 , to tip relative to the horizontal face 9 of the punch 1 , thus breaking any bond between the slug 17 and the face 9 of the punch 1 . to accomplish this relative tipping of the slug 17 , a further discussion of which will be provided below , a substantially horizontal ridge 19 or ledge is created in a wall of the die bore 11 . the ridge 19 forms a substantially horizontal , upwardly facing ridge surface 21 aligned - perpendicular to the longitudinal axis a and relative vertical path of the slug 17 through the die bore 11 . substantially opposite to the ridge surface 21 in the die bore 11 , in other words on the opposite side of the die bore wall , approximately 180 degrees from the ridge 19 , a relief 23 is partially circumferentially formed in the die wall . the relief 23 is defined by a substantially horizontally and downward facing relief surface 25 relative to the downward path of the slug 17 . observing fig3 a – b and 4 a – b , the relief surface 25 also is usually provided with a longer radial length l ′ than a radial length l ″ of the ridge surface 21 as seen in fig3 a , and is also longitudinally , i . e ., axially spaced from the top surface 13 and cutting edge 15 of the die 3 a distance h ′ as seen in fig4 a . in addition , as shown in fig4 a , the relief surface 25 is generally formed higher on the wall of the die bore 11 than the ridge 19 and ridge surface 21 , in other words , the downward facing relief surface 25 is longitudinally or axially positioned between the cutting edge 15 of the die 3 , and the slug tipping ridge surface 21 to permit the top edge portion 33 of the slug 17 to tip from the horizontal and not jam against the inner wall of the die bore 11 . the ridge 19 is longitudinally spaced from the top surface 13 and cutting edge 15 of the die 3 a distance h ″ and extends partially around the circumference of the wall of the die bore 11 . another way of defining the die bore 11 of the present invention is that the die bore 11 itself is composed of a top bore 27 and an offset bottom bore 29 . the top bore 27 extends down from the top surface 13 of the die 3 the distance h ″, and the bottom bore 29 extends upwards from the bottom surface 14 of the die 3 to the distance h ′ from the top surface 27 . as can be seen in fig4 a – b , this results in a degree of overlap o of the top bore 27 and bottom bore 29 . it is to be appreciated that this overlap o in combination with an offset o ′ as defined by the offset center axis x of bottom bore 29 , to be discussed in further detail below , produce the ridge surface 21 and relief surface 25 discussed above . in addition to the radial length l ′ of the downward facing relief surface 25 being longer than the radial length l ″ of the ridge surface 21 , as seen in fig3 a – b , the area of the downward facing relief surface 25 may be larger than the area of the upwardly facing ridge surface 21 . this is an important aspect of the present invention as the relief surface 25 , its radial length l ′ and the longitudinal spacing of the relief surface 25 from the opposing ridge surface 21 must define a relief area 23 in the die bore 11 which will permit the tipping of the slug 17 in the die bore 11 relative to the horizontal point face 9 and the longitudinal axes a , x when a bottom portion of the slug 17 encounters the ridge surface 21 causing the slug 17 to tip . because the slug 17 is essentially cut to the same diameter as the top bore 27 , the relief area 23 provides room for the slug 17 to be tipped relative to the longitudinal axes a , x within the die bore 11 . this aspect of the present invention may be better achieved by the difference in respective diameters between the top bore 27 and bottom bore 29 . turning to fig5 a – d , a description of the above discussed features of the present invention in conjunction with a downward cycle of the punch 1 and the forming of a hole in the steel plate 7 is provided . a metal plate 7 is positioned on the top surface 13 of the die and the punch 1 is driven downward along the axis a . in fig5 b , the punch face 9 has been brought downwards into contact with the metal plate 7 , as shown by the arrow and , with the aid of the opposing cutting edge 15 on the top surface 13 of the die 3 , cuts a slug 17 from the metal plate 7 . the punch face 9 , still being in contact with the slug 17 , begins pushing the slug 17 into the die bore 11 . fig5 c shows the punch point 5 and face 9 having pushed the slug 17 clear of a bottom surface 14 of the metal plate 7 and the punch face 9 having passed through the thickness t of the metal plate 7 to force a lower edge portion 31 of the slug 17 into contact with the ridge surface 21 in the die bore 11 . the contact between the lower edge portion of the slug 31 and the upwardly facing ridge surface 21 causes a relative tipping of the slug 17 with respect to the axis a and the face of the punch 9 . as can be seen in fig5 c , the top surface of the slug 13 and the face 9 of the punch point 5 are caused to separate by the tipping action of the slug 17 . in order to facilitate the tipping of the slug 17 , and to ensure that the tipping of the slug 17 does not cause the slug 17 to become jammed in the die bore 11 , the relief surface 25 and relief area 23 permit the top edge portion 33 of the slug 17 to pass under the relief surface 25 and rotate radially outward relative to the upper top bore 27 . thus , in view of the relief surface 25 and relief area 23 defined thereby , the slug 17 is permitted to tip freely relative to the horizontal nature of the point face 9 as it is cut from the metal plate 7 . the relief area 23 permits the slug 17 to be tipped downwards by providing a larger wall clearance in a lower portion 29 of the die bore 11 . fig5 d details the continued movement of the punch point 5 penetrating into the die 3 and pushing the slug 17 past the ridge 19 and relief surfaces 25 and out of the die 3 . it is to be appreciated that as the top surface of the slug 13 is now tipped or angled with respect to the face 9 of the punch 1 . with such separation , no seal or attachment of the slug 17 to the punch face 9 can occur from the relative viscosity of lubricant oils , nor should any type of molecular , magnetic or other bonding between the punch face 9 and the slug 17 also occur . the slug 17 then falls freely downward through the die 3 and away from the punch point 5 as the punch point 5 is returned to the initial starting position above the metal plate 7 and die 3 . thus the forced separation between the punch face 9 and the metal slug 17 substantially eliminates the possibility of slug pulling and thus the punch 1 can be cycled back to an initial raised position above the metal plate 7 and die 3 without a slug attached thereto . it is to be appreciated that as the punch 1 comes down , i . e . is applied to the metal plate with the desired amount of tonnage necessary to cut the plate , a significant vacuum / suction or bond is often created between the slug 17 and the punch face 9 . the initial contact with the ridge surface 21 as the bottom edge portion 31 of the slug 17 encounters the ridge surface 21 in the die bore 11 impedes the lower edge portion 31 of the slug causing , in most instances , the suction or bond to break and the slug 17 to tip . however , even if the bond or attachment is not completely broken , the slug 17 is forced radially over to the relief 23 or clearance side of the bottom die bore 29 upon hitting the ridge 19 and cannot be pulled back up because of the taper of the slug 17 as well as the fact that upon withdrawal of the punch point 5 from the die bore 11 , the top edge portion 33 the slug 17 will encounter the downward facing relief surface 25 as it is pulled up , and thus the bond will be broken as the slug 17 is essentially shaved off the withdrawing punch face 9 as the punch 1 is cycled upwards out of the die bore 11 . turning to fig6 , a method for forming the ridge 19 and the relief 23 in the die 3 , as shown here in perspective view , is now provided . the above discussed features may be formed in any number of ways or method as are known in the art . an example of a preferred method by which the ridge surface 21 and relief surface 25 may be formed in the die bore 11 is as follows . provided with a blank die , i . e ., merely a solid metal block having no hole or bore therethrough , the top bore center line , or longitudinal axis a determined by any method as well known in the art . with the center line a known and marked on the top surface 13 and bottom surface of the die blank , a second offset die bore axis x is determined at a desired offset o from the top bore centerline a , i . e ., radially spaced therefrom . with the offset die bore axis x marked on the bottom surface 14 of the die 3 , the offset bottom bore 29 is first formed along the die bore axis x , by machining or drilling as known in the art , from the bottom surface 14 of the die 3 partially through the die to a distance h ′ from the top surface of the die 13 . the top portion 27 of the die bore 11 is then formed along the axis a , by machining or drilling usually , from the top surface 13 of the die 3 along the center line a of the top bore 27 . the top bore 27 of the die bore 11 is machined from the top surface 13 of the die blank through to connect with and meet the bottom bore 29 . furthermore , the top bore 27 is machined a distance h ″ to overlap a distance o with the bottom bore 29 . because the top bore 27 is centered along the axis a at the center point of the die blank and overlaps the bottom bore 29 , a first portion of the top bore 27 at the intersection with the lower bore 29 thus creates the overhang , or downwardly facing relief surface 25 on the wall of the die bore 11 . a second portion of the top bore 27 does not intersect the lower die bore 29 , but continues cutting through the die 3 opposite to the relief surface 25 to a desired depth even after the intersection of the top and bottom bores 27 , 29 , respectively , this continued cutting of the die 3 creates the upwardly facing ridge 19 surface at the depth h ″ where the top bore 27 essentially ends . the top bore 27 is machined to a desired depth h ″ overlapping to a desired extent with the bottom bore 29 so that a complete passageway is formed through the die 3 . due to the offset nature of the top and bottom bore 27 , 29 , and the overlapping nature of the top and bottom bores 27 , 29 , as can be seen in fig6 , the upwardly facing ridge surface 19 is formed essentially where the top bore 27 machining process is stopped . the ridge 19 having an upward facing substantially horizontal surface 21 relative to the longitudinal axis a along which the punch 1 will operate . because of the overlapping nature of the top and bottom bores 27 , 29 the ridge surface 21 and the relief surface 25 are also longitudinally spaced apart , with the relief area 23 being formed substantially at the end of the bottom bore 29 , and the ridge area 23 being formed at the upper end of the top bore 27 and the ridge area being formed at the lower end of the top bore 27 and radially opposite from the relief surface 25 . as is known in the art , the top die bore 11 can be any desired size depending on the holes to be formed in the metal plate 7 . in particular , the top bore 27 is machined to be substantially the same size as the hole to be formed in the metal plate 7 and slightly larger than the diameter of the die punch face 9 and point 5 in order to accommodate the penetration of the punch 1 into the die 3 . the diameter of the point 5 and face 9 of the punch 1 is also formed substantially the same size as the hole which is to be formed in the metal plate 7 , but slightly smaller than the diameter of the top bore 27 so as to fit therein . as the bore 11 and punch point 5 diameters may vary in particular with any desired size of hole to be formed in a metal plate 7 as is well known in the art no further discussion is provided herein . however , it is to appreciated that the relative diameters of the top bore 27 and bottom bore 29 forming the complete die bore 11 , can be substantially the same as seen in fig7 a , or can be slightly different in size as shown in fig7 b . for example , an offset o of the same size , i . e ., same radius r , of the top and bottom bores 27 , 29 will produce equal areas of ridge surface 21 and relief surface 25 . however , it is also to be appreciated that a larger bottom bore 29 having a radius r relative to the top bore 27 having a smaller radius r , will create a difference in area between the ridge surface 21 and the opposing relief surface 25 . where a larger radius r bottom bore 29 is used , a larger relief surface 25 area is formed relative to the ridge surface area 21 . such an arrangement ensures sufficient clearance and relief within the die bore 11 to accommodate the tipping slug 17 , whereas only a slight ridge area is generally necessary to actually initiate the tipping of the slug 17 relative to the die punch face 9 . a more specific ratio range of relative size of the offset bottom bore 29 , where the top bore 27 size is known for purposes of cutting the slug and hole , may be in the range of about 1 to 1 . 5 , and more preferably in the range of 1 . 01 to 1 . 2 and even more preferably about 1 . 02 to 1 . 1 . since certain changes may be made in the above described improved tooling die , without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention herein involved , it is intended that all of the subject matter of the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted merely as examples illustrating the inventive concept herein and shall not be construed as limiting the invention .

US-75599904-A

a web - up system is provided for a web - fed printing press , the web fed printing press having a plurality of components including a slitter mechanism . the web - up system includes either or both a web - up device and a ribbon winder . the web - up device is located adjacent to an output of a first component of the web - fed printing press , the first component located upstream from the slitter mechanism . the web - up device includes a splicing mechanism and a secondary web roll rotatably mounted on a shaft . the splicing mechanism receives a first web of material from the first component , receives a second web of material from the secondary web roll , splices the first web of material to the second web of material , and outputs a spliced web of material to the next downstream component of the press , e . g ., the slitter mechanism . the ribbon winder is coupled to an output of the slitter mechanism . the slitter mechanism slits the web of material into at least a first and second ribbon . the ribbon winder includes a roller for receiving the second ribbon . the roller maintains a substantially constant tension in the second ribbon by winding said second ribbon around an outer surface of the roller .

fig1 shows a conventional web - offset lithographic printing press 2 , including a roll stand 10 , an infeed 20 , a first printing unit 41 , a second printing unit 42 , a third printing unit 43 , a fourth printing unit 44 , a dryer 60 , a chill unit 70 , a slitter mechanism 80 , and a folder 105 including an angle bar section 90 , a cutting / folding cylinder section 110 , a fan blade section 95 and stacking mechanism 100 . at web - up , a web of paper 1 is pulled off of a web roll 5 by two technicians positioned at location 3 . 1 and is manually fed into an infeed 20 . then , the two technicians move sequentially through locations 3 . 2 , 3 . 3 , 3 . 4 , and 3 . 5 to manually feed the web 1 though each of the printing units 41 - 44 . after this task is complete , the technicians must move to location 3 . 6 to manually feed the web 1 through the dryer 60 , and then to location 3 . 7 to manually feed the web 1 through the chill roll stand 70 , and then to location 3 . 8 to manually feed the web 1 through the slitter mechanism 80 . the slitter mechanism 80 cuts the web 1 into a plurality of ribbons 7 . each ribbon 7 must be fed through the angle bar section via a separate path . for example , ribbon 7 . 1 may need to be fed through roller 91 . 1 , ribbon 7 . 2 through roller 91 . 2 , and ribbon 7 . 3 through roller 91 . 3 . as a result , a total of 4 technicians are needed simultaneously at location 3 . 9 in order to handle the three ribbons 7 . 1 - 7 . 3 ; two technicians to take up the slack in the first two ribbons , and two technicians to web the remaining ribbon through the folder 105 . in accordance with the present invention , the time required for web - up of a printing press is greatly reduced by allowing web up to proceed at several points in the printing press simultaneously . fig2 shows a web - up system 8 according to an illustrative embodiment of the present invention including a web up mechanism 4 and a ribbon winder 6 . the web - up mechanism 4 includes a secondary web roll 200 , which is spliced with an incoming web 1 from an upstream device at a splicing mechanism 300 . the web - up mechanism 4 can be mounted in various locations in the printing press ; for example , at position 3 . 9 before the slitter mechanism 80 , at position 3 . 6 before the dryer 60 , and / or at position 3 . 7 before the chill unit 70 . in fig2 the web - up mechanism is shown mounted just prior to the slitter mechanism 80 . by mounting the web - up mechanism 4 in one or more locations in the printing press 2 , web - up time is greatly reduced because web - up can proceed in parallel . for example , if the web up mechanism 4 is mounted just prior to the slitter 80 , a first team of two technicians can feed the web 1 from web roll 5 through the infeed 20 , printing units 41 - 44 , dryer 60 , and chill unit 70 , while a second set of two technicians simultaneously feed the web 1 &# 39 ; from the replacement roll 200 through the slitter mechanism 80 , the angle bar section 90 , and into the folder cylinder section 110 . when the web 1 exits the chill unit 70 , it is fed through the splicing section 300 and adhered to the web 1 &# 39 ; with an adhesive . then , the web 1 &# 39 ; is cut by the splicing section 300 completing the splice and creating a single continuous web from the roll stand 10 through the folder 105 . web - up time can be further reduced by providing additional web - up mechanisms 4 at other points in the printing press , thereby allowing three or four sets of technicians to work in parallel . the web up mechanism 4 of fig2 will now be described in more detail . the web roll 200 is held in chucks 210 which are mounted on bearings 220 on a dead shaft 230 with a tensioning 240 and brake mount 250 . the tensioning 240 and brake mount 250 prevents the roll 200 from coasting . if the roll 200 were to coast , this could cause slack to develop in the web 1 &# 39 ;. a slack web 1 &# 39 ;, in turn , could drift toward the frame of the printing press and tear . at web - up , the web 1 &# 39 ; is fed through a splice adhesive applicator 295 and a roll severer 280 before being fed into a nip between guide roller 290 and pressure roller 270 . the web 1 &# 39 ; is then fed into the slitter mechanism 80 . referring to fig2 the slitter mechanism 80 is , for simplicity , illustrated as slitter blades 285 ( only one shown ) and slitter exit nip 286 . when the incoming web 1 is received from the chill unit 70 , the pressure roller 270 is displaced downward , and the incoming web 1 is wrapped around guide roller 290 . the pressure roller 270 is then returned to its original position . then , as the nip between the rolls 270 , 290 drive the webs 1 , 1 &# 39 ;, the splice adhesive activator 295 is activated and an adhesive is applied to the web 1 &# 39 ;. as the web 1 &# 39 ; is pressed against the web 1 at the nip between rollers 270 , 290 , the web 1 &# 39 ; is adhered to the web 1 . at a predetermined time ( or web length ) after activation of the splice adhesive activator 295 , the roll severer 280 is activated , the web 1 &# 39 ; is cut , and the splice of web 1 to web 1 &# 39 ; is complete . once the spliced portion of the web has made its way through the remainder of the press , it is discarded , and web - up is complete . lead - in devices ( not shown ), such as belts or chains , can be provided to lead the web 1 into the nip 270 , 290 , and / or to lead the web 1 &# 39 ; to the slitter mechanism 80 ( or other downstream component ). alternatively , the webs 1 , 1 &# 39 ; can be manually lead into the nip 270 , 290 and / or to the slitter mechanism 80 ( or other downstream component ) as shown in fig2 . referring to fig2 the ribbon winder 6 according to the present invention is mounted just after the slitter mechanism 80 ( illustrated as components 285 , 286 ). the ribbon winder 6 includes a live shaft 400 . the live shaft 400 is driven independently of the press 2 by a constant torque device 410 . ribbon rollers 420 , 421 are mounted on the live shaft 400 via a torque - limiting ( or controlled slip ) coupling . as one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate , such a coupling allows the rollers 420 and 421 to rotate at different angular rates . the live shaft 400 is mounted to an adjacent machine frame ( e . g ., the frame for the slitter ) in bearing 450 on a pivot mounting 440 so that the free end 441 of the live shaft 400 may be moved clear of the machine frames of the press 2 for mounting and removal of the rollers 420 , 421 and for removal of excess ribbon . the free end 441 of the live shaft 400 is mounted in a quick release bearing 430 . during make - ready , as the ribbons 7 exit the slitter mechanism 80 , each of the ribbons 7 is fed through a separate roller path through the rest of the press . typically , there is a driven roll with an opposing nip just downstream ( rollers 286 ) of the slitter blades 285 that keep the web sufficiently tensioned for slitting . if the ribbons downstream of the nip 286 are allowed to go slack , there is a tendency for the ribbons 7 to wrap around the driven roll 286 . 1 resulting in additional delay . as a result , without the ribbon winder 6 according to the present invention , there is a need for at least one additional person per ribbon ; i . e . two people web - up the first ribbon through the rest of the press while at least one additional person is needed for each of the other webs in order to take up the slack in these other webs to prevent wrapping . in the illustration of fig1 in which there are 3 ribbons , two technicians would be needed to web - up ribbon 7 . 3 , and two additional technicians would be needed to manually take up the slack in ribbons 7 . 1 and 7 . 2 . in accordance with the ribbon winder of the present invention , the need for additional personnel in eliminated . as the ribbons 7 exit the slitter mechanism 80 and the nip 286 , ribbons 7 . 1 and 7 . 2 are attached to rolls 420 and 421 and the constant torque drive 410 is activated . then , as the web 1 is advanced in order to allow the technicians to feed the ribbon 7 . 3 through the rest of the press , via for example , roller 500 , the constant torque drive 410 maintains a constant tension in ribbons 7 . 1 , 7 . 2 by winding the ribbons around the rolls 420 , 421 . after ribbon 7 . 3 has been fed through the rest of the press , ribbon 7 . 2 is cut . then the technicians feed ribbon 7 . 2 through the rest of the press while the constant torque drive continues to wrap ribbon 7 . 1 around the roller 421 . after ribbon 7 . 2 has been fed through the rest of the press , ribbon 7 . 1 is cut and fed through the rest of the press . once ribbon 7 . 1 has been cut , the quick release bearing 430 is opened and the rollers 420 , 421 , which hold the excess ribbon , are removed . the axial position of the rollers 420 , 421 can be adjusted along the length of the live shaft 400 to accommodate different ribbon arrangements . moreover , additional rollers can be added to accommodate additional ribbons . the use of the web - up mechanism and ribbon winder of the present invention , alone or in combination , simplifies the web - up process considerably . as an illustration , assume a web break has occurred in the printing press 2 during high speed operation and all of the paper is lost from the infeed 20 to the folder 105 . moreover , scraps of paper have been found in an inker roll of one of the printing units 41 - 44 . therefore , it will take some time to clean out the printing unit before it can be re - webbed . in accordance with the present invention , rather than waiting for the printing unit to be cleaned out , two people , using a web up mechanism 4 according to the present invention located just prior to the slitter mechanism 80 at location 3 . 8 , can begin to web - up the rest of the components 80 and 105 downstream . specifically , while a first set of technicians are cleaning out the printing unit , a second set of technicians feed the web 1 &# 39 ; through the splicing section 300 into the slitter mechanism 80 ( components 285 , 286 ). ribbons 7 . 1 and 7 . 2 are attached to rollers 420 , 421 of the ribbon winder 6 , and the constant torque drive 410 is activated . then , the ribbon 7 . 3 is fed through the angle bar section 90 and through the rest of the folder 105 . once ribbon 7 . 3 has been webbed , ribbon 7 . 2 is cut , and fed through the angle bar section 90 and through the rest of the folder 105 . the same process is then repeated for ribbon 7 . 1 . once the first set of technicians has webbed the web 1 through the chill unit 70 , the web 1 is wrapped around the nip 270 , 290 , the splice adhesive applicator 295 is activated , and the web 1 &# 39 ; is bonded to the web 1 as they pass through the nip 270 , 290 . once web 1 has been bonded to web 1 &# 39 ;, the web severer 280 cuts the web 1 &# 39 ; and the splice is complete , i . e ., a single web has been formed throughout the press 2 . in this manner , web - up proceeds on two different portions of the press simultaneously , and , in addition , the need for additional personnel to process multiple ribbons is eliminated . another illustrative situation in which the present invention will significantly reduce web - up time is during a make - ready in which the paging format of the press is going to be changed from one format to the other . in such a situation , the web will generally have to be slit into a different number of ribbons than in the prior format . therefore , the slitter mechanism 80 will have to be reconfigured , and , in the folder 105 , the angle bars in the angle bar section 90 will need to be moved , and the ribbon cut - off compensator rolls in the ribbon deck ( not shown ) will need to be reconfigured . to accomplish this , the ribbon must be removed from the slitter mechanism 80 and the folder 105 , and these components must be re - webbed . in addition , in order to change the page format of the press , the printing plates in the printing units 41 - 44 would have to be replaced , thereby necessitating the removal of the web 1 from the printing units 41 - 44 . in accordance with the present invention , rather than waiting for the printing plates to be changed and the web to be fed though the printing units 41 - 44 , the dryer 60 , and chill unit 70 prior to webbing up the slitter mechanism 80 and the folder 105 , web up of the slitter 80 and folder 105 can proceed concurrently with the web - up of the printing units 41 - 44 . while the embodiment shown in fig2 shows an automatic splice applicator 295 applying splice tape to the web 1 &# 39 ;, it should be understood that any method of splicing can be used . for example , the adhesive could be manually applied to the web 1 &# 39 ; by a technician . similarly , while the embodiment of fig2 shows the splice being applied while the web 1 &# 39 ; is moving , the present invention applies equally to manual or automatic splicing techniques in which the web 1 &# 39 ; is stopped during the splice .

US-42701895-A

a method for assembling a slider suspension assembly for use in a disk drive is disclosed . a ceramic slider with an attached recording head is placed on a suspension and is held in alignment by soldering the electrical connections while the epoxy placed between the slider and the suspension hardens . the method results in a much more economical process which does not require the number of expensive tools needed to carry out the conventional process .

in all of the embodiments of the invention the slider is a conventional ceramic material upon which the recording head assembly is constructed . the slider material is commonly , but not limited to , alumina - tic . the recording head structure is constructed on the trailing surface of the slider . this trailing surface also has metallic pads which are connected to the elements of the recording head . recording heads typically have a separate read and write element and thus require four separate metallic pads on the trailing surface for electrical connection . one of the surfaces of the slider is designed to be flown in close proximity to the disk and accordingly has an air bearing surface . this side of the slider accordingly has a first surface which has features or rails which will be in close proximity to the disk and a second surface , recessed from the first surface , which delineate the features of the air bearing . the slider recording head assembly is then mounted on a suspension using an epoxy adhesive for the mechanical connection of the slider to the suspension and solder for the electrical connection from the head elements to the wires or traces on the suspension . one preferred embodiment of this invention is illustrated in fig1 . fig1 a shows the slider 101 with an air bearing surface 108 before it is mounted on the suspension 105 . also shown is solder 103 which has been deposited on the metallic pads 102 of the head assembly and also on the ends of the wires or traces 104 . the epoxy 106 is generally placed on the suspension before the slider 101 is positioned . fig1 b shows the slider 101 as it has been positioned on the suspension 105 using a precision alignment device such as a fixture . one view of a typical fixture is shown in fig7 . in fig1 b the two depositions of solder have not yet been joined or connected . fig1 c shows the process of adding heat to the solder in order to cause solder reflow . the solder connection can be produced by various methods such as solder screening and reflow , solder wire ball bumping with or without reflow , and solder plating with or with reflow . the result is that the two bumps of solder merge into one and form an electrical connection . the solder connection is made by only heating the solder without heating the entire slider . one method of making the solder connection is to apply heat using a laser . even though the epoxy adhesive has not yet hardened , the strength from the solder connection allows the slider suspension assembly to be removed from the precision alignment device and set aside until the epoxy has hardened . this allows the alignment device to be immediately used to assemble another slider suspension assembly in the manufacturing environment . for purposes of this invention a precision alignment device can be either a fixture or a precision robot apparatus . an example of a precision fixture is shown in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 959 , 827 which is incorporated by reference herein . in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 959 , 827 the precision alignment fixture is referred to as a tool block . fig8 shows a view of a robotic apparatus . a robotic tool 800 which has a central suction tube 802 and a flexible suction cup 804 precisely positions the slider 801 with respect to the suspension 805 . a heating means 806 then makes the solder connection 808 . a second preferred embodiment is shown in fig2 . fig2 a shows a slider before positioning onto the suspension 205 . the adhesive epoxy 206 is also shown . there is no initial solder place on the electrical leads 204 . however the amount of solder 203 placed on the head pads 202 is larger than was the case for the first embodiment illustrated in fig1 . this solder 203 subsequently makes electrical connection to the electrical leads 204 . the remainder of the process is similar to that illustrated in fig1 . the slider is positioned onto the suspension as shown in fig1 b . the heating step is shown in fig1 c . suitable heating methods include using a laser , or an appropriate light source delivered with a fiber optics bundle . the result is a solder connection 207 between the pads and the electrical connection on the suspension . after the soldering step , the slider suspension is then removed from the precise device or fixturing allowing the fixturing to be immediately used for another iteration of the manufacturing process . a third preferred embodiment is illustrated in fig3 . fig3 a shows a slider 301 with attached head pads 302 before positioning onto the suspension 305 which has the adhesive epoxy 306 and the ends of the electrical leads 304 . in this case the solder has not yet been applied to either the pads 302 or the electrical leads 304 . fig3 b shows the slider 301 positioned on the suspension 305 . fig3 c shows the addition of a solder ball 303 at the junction of the head pads 302 and the electrical leads 304 . fig3 d shows the solder after heating and making contact with the head pads 302 and the leads on the suspension 304 . after the soldering step , the slider suspension is then removed from the fixturing allowing the fixturing to be immediately used for another iteration of the manufacturing process . a fourth embodiment of the invention is illustrated in fig4 . in fig4 a the slider 401 is shown before placement on the suspension 405 . the adhesive epoxy 406 is shown . in this case the end of the electrical leads 404 on the suspension is lifted away from the plane of the slider suspension interface . fig4 b shows the assembly after positioning the slider but before application of the solder . the bent leads can be more conducive for holding the solder ball 403 ( fig4 c ) in place . fig4 d shows the completed assembly after heating in which the solder 407 makes electrical contact with the head pads 402 and the bent leads 404 . after the soldering step , the slider suspension is then removed from the precision alignment device allowing the device to be immediately used for another iteration of the manufacturing process . a common and critical aspect of all of the preferred embodiments is that after the electrical connection is made , the slider suspension assembly may be immediately removed from the alignment device prior to hardening of the epoxy in order to increase throughput on this expensive equipment . a completed slider suspension assembly 500 is shown in fig5 . the slider 501 is attached to the suspension 505 . the electrical leads 508 usually extend along the length of the suspension 505 and provide electrical connection to be made to the recording head 509 through the solder connection to the head pads 502 . in some cases these electrical leads are fabricated as part of the suspension . in other cases the leads are attached to the suspension after being fabricated separately . a flow diagram which illustrates the invented process is shown in fig6 . the suspension is placed on a precision fixture 601 . epoxy is then added to the suspension 602 . the slider is then positioned onto the suspension 603 . a solder connection is made between the electrical leads on the suspension and the head pads by using any of the preferred embodiments 604 . the slider suspension assembly is then removed from the fixture 605 which releases the fixture to be recycled in the process 606 . the assembly is then set aside and the epoxy is allowed to harden 607 . a single fixture for slider suspension assembly can cost well over a thousand dollars . a manufacturing process which might require 100 fixtures for a conventional process would require approximately 10 fixtures using the invented process . this results in a ten fold reduction of cost and an increase in efficiency in the invented process . while the invention has been shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in form and detail may be made in these embodiments without departing from the scope and teaching of the invention . accordingly , the method herein disclosed is to be considered merely as illustrative , and the invention is to be limited only as specified in the claims .

US-81456701-A

electronics mounted on a printed circuit board are housed within a high conductivity case with connecting pins extending therethrough . the case is filled with thermally conductive potting material to provide thermal conduction from the printed circuit board to the case . the case may be a conduit having open ends through which the printed circuit board is inserted or it may comprise a cover mounted to a base plate .

new methods for the design of a hi - rel mechanical package and the subsequent assembly of the circuit within it have been developed . the methods provide lower cost and are easier to produce using standard , high volume production methods and equipment . fig4 shows an exploded view of one embodiment of the new construction / assembly . the basic principles of this method are as follows . the substrate is made from a printed circuit board 401 ( pcb ) fabricated from layers of fiberglass and copper foil . pcb assemblies are inherently more mechanically robust than ceramic substrate assemblies . the pcb enables the use of pure metal , multiple layers ( 8 - 12 typical ), and metal thicknesses up to 6 times those of typical thick film conductions . the conductor layers are made from copper foil , and provide higher conductivity resulting in significantly lower interconnection resistance and a resulting increase in efficiency of conversion . planar windings can be made as part of the pcb fabrication and used for the magnetic devices 402 ( transformers and inductors ), further improving efficiency while reducing fabrication and assembly costs . the pcb is also able to have components mounted on both of its sides , improving component density and enabling more functionality and performance . the multiple layers of the pcb and the use of vias connecting various layers simplify interconnection . the components are assembled and soldered to either side of the pcb using standard surface mount technology equipment and do not require clean room environments or handling . there need be no delicate wire bonds in this construction . the i / o pins 403 are soldered directly to the pcb using semi - circular attachment sites 404 . the latter are formed as part of the pcb fabrication process . a plastic / insulating header 405 at each end of the pcb provides accurate positioning of the i / o pins within the package and provides mechanical strain relief for the i / o pins . locating features on the pcb and header are used for alignment of the i / o pins to the pcb during soldering . the pcb / header / pin subassembly can optionally be conformal - coated with various material systems ( e . g . parylene c ) for enhanced chemical resistance and electrical isolation . the base plate , ring frame , and cover from the prior art are all replaced by a single extruded case 409 ( typically made from aluminum ). this case is machined to provide the required mounting features 410 . the aluminum case is lighter and less expensive to produce than the prior system elements . the case is finished ( e . g . hard anodized or zinc chromated , a . k . a . alodine ) in order to provide corrosion resistance . the pcb / header / pin subassembly slides into an opening at either end of the case . the case has case locating holes 406 that align with the pcb / header locating holes 407 in the pcb and headers . locking pins 408 ( typically made from stainless steel ) are press fit into the locating holes on the case and lock the sub assembly in place . the locking pins have features that press fit into the pcb as well , providing connection from the case to the pcb , and subsequently to a ‘ case pin ’ for electrical grounding and shielding purposes . the features may be edges that cut into the case and pcb to provide a swage fit and enhance electrical contact to the pcb and case . the locking pins also have heads 412 on them so that they cannot vibrate loose outwardly . the locking pins are inserted from the bottom of the unit , with their heads set in recesses in the case , so that they are entrapped when the unit is mounted to a heat removal plate in the end application and thus cannot vibrate loose in the other ( inward ) direction . as shown in fig7 , the case 409 also has a hole 711 in the bottom into which a thermal potting compound is injected from an injector 713 . the thermal compound ( typically made from a mixture of rtv silicone elastomer and aluminum oxide powder ) provides a thermal path for heat transfer from the electronic components and pcb to the case for transfer to the external cooling medium . the thermal compound is elastic and provides attenuation for vibration and shock excitation without placing stress on the electronic components , enhancing the mechanical reliability of the package . this construction enables a significant improvement in the ability of the new package to withstand shock and vibration conditions that far exceed those that could be handled by the prior art . it should be noted that while the package itself and the points at which the leads exit the package have been demonstrated to be capable of withstanding vibration levels exceeding those of the prior art , care must still be taken to ensure that the electrical connections to the package are made in a manner consistent with survival under extreme shock and vibration conditions . another assembly with a different form factor has also been developed . fig5 shows an exploded view of another method for packaging pcb based converters , filters , or other types of hi - rel circuitry . the pcb assembly 501 has i / o pins 502 that are inserted into it during smt assembly and protrude from the bottom side . these i / o pins slip or press fit into insulating bushings 503 that have previously been press - fit into an anodized aluminum base plate 504 . the base plate can be fabricated by a variety of conventional metal forming processes such as casting , extrusion and / or machining processes . the bushings , which can be made using processes such as injection molding or machining , provide electrical isolation between individual i / o pins and the case . a case ground connection is achieved by press fitting the pin directly into an appropriately sized hole in the base plate . a cover 505 is installed onto the base plate to provide a complete enclosure . overlapping seams are used to minimize openings for radiated electromagnetic interference ( emi ). the cover is affixed to the base plate using built in features such as a snap fit , screws , epoxy or a combination of such methods . as illustrated , tangs 512 on uprights 514 snap into openings 510 in the cover to retain the cover on the base plate . the interior region is then filled with a thermally conductive material via a hole located on one of the six external surfaces . locking pins may also be added in the same manner as described above to provide case grounding . the fully assembled product 601 is shown in fig6 a and 6b . the resulting mechanical packages made using the above methods are lighter and less expensive to produce than the prior art and can easily be assembled using simple , standard , cost effective techniques . this new packaging method has been tested under shock , vibration and other stringent environmental conditions as described in mil - std - 810 and mil - sts - 883 , and it meets or exceeds the applicable requirements . while this invention has been particularly shown and described with references to preferred embodiments thereof , it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention encompassed by the appended claims

US-83805110-A

fastening apparatus comprises a frame having a pair of spaced arms supporting respective cooperable fastening members , loading of the frame during a fastening operation tends to spread the arms and cause variation of a desired predetermined relationship between the fastening members . one of the members is mounted on one arm of the frame by a holder constructed to deform elastically and thereby to provide at least partial compensation for the variation .

the present invention addresses problems that occur when a frame is elastically deformed due to loading of the frame in an operation in which fastening members supported on respective arms of the frame engage opposite sides of juxtaposed workpieces . the fastening members may be cooperable tools such as a punch supported on one arm of the frame and a die supported in opposition to the punch on another arm of the frame . the invention is applicable to , but not limited to , riveting , self - piercing riveting , and clinching , for forming joints in sheet metal parts that fasten the parts to one another . by way of example , the invention will be described in its application to self - piercing riveting . as shown in fig1 , in one embodiment , apparatus of the invention comprises a c - shaped frame 1 , which typically is attached to an industrial robot that can move the apparatus into a desired working position . attached to an arm 2 of the frame 1 ( the top arm in fig1 ) is a holder 3 which carries in a receiving bore a drive 4 for a punch 5 moveable in a longitudinal axis direction by the drive . the punch 5 , located inside a housing of the drive 4 , has , perpendicular to its longitudinal axis 6 , an end face which acts on a self - piercing rivet to be set on a workpiece . a loader 8 loads self - piercing rivets , individually fed by a feeder tube 9 , into a sleeve 10 , where each rivet is held beneath the front face of the punch 5 for the next riveting operation . arranged on another arm 7 of the frame 1 , opposite to the drive 4 , is a tool holder 12 , which carries at its free end a tool 13 ( e . g ., a die ) on which workpieces are supported during the riveting operation . the tool holder 12 ensures , by means of its axial length , that the tool 13 is located a distance from the arm 7 , thereby making it possible to fasten workpieces having a point of contact for the tool 13 in a recessed location . the tool 13 has a longitudinal axis 14 which coincides with the longitudinal axis 6 of the punch 5 when the frame is not loaded . the surface of the tool 13 that comes into contact with a workpiece during fastening is usually embodied as a surface of rotation about the longitudinal axis 14 . as is typical of self - piercing riveting apparatus , the punch drives a self - piercing rivet into one workpiece and into a juxtaposed workpiece , where the legs of the rivet are bent so as to fasten the workpieces to one another and form a joint . fig1 shows , with great exaggeration for the purposed of illustration , deformation of the frame 1 under heavy load during a final phase of a joint - forming operation , with accompanying misalignment of the punch 5 and the die 13 , due to loading of the frame . more particularly , the deformation of the frame can involve spreading of the arms so as to vary the spacing of the arms and the position at which a joint is formed . in fig1 the dash lines show the positions of the arms 2 and 7 initially , before a joint - forming operation , and the solid lines show the positions of the arms when the frame 1 is deformed during a joint - forming operation . as shown , due to deformation of the frame 1 the longitudinal axes 6 and 14 , which initially were aligned , now diverge from one another to form an angle α which corresponds to the sum of the angular deviations of the two longitudinal axes from their initial positions . at the same time , an angle α is formed by the end faces of the punch 5 and the die 13 under load conditions . this angle is called the spread angle , since it specifies the degree to which the end faces of the punch and die are spread apart from one another . during a joint - forming operation , this spreading affects the workpieces and leads to uneven formation of the joint , degrading its quality or durability . it is desirable to keep the spreading , and thus the angular deviation of the longitudinal axes of the punch and die , as small as possible . the size and weight of the apparatus present limiting factors , however . as a general rule , minimal spreading and maximum angular deviation on the order of less than 1 degree can be tolerated . in order to be able to reduce the spread angle to such a value without costly changes in the frame , a tool holder of the invention is constructed such that , as a result of the loading during fastening , it undergoes an elastic deformation that at least partially compensates for the spreading of the arms of the frame . this can be accomplished by providing a middle portion of the tool holder with a narrowed region of reduced thickness that is designed in such a manner that the tool holder deforms under load with a type of buckling that accomplishes a reduction in the spreading of the end faces of the punch and the tool . it is further evident in fig1 that the elastic deformation of the frame 1 due to loading during a joint - forming operation causes an offset of a joint transverse to the direction of the joining force . in fig1 the offset x accompanies the angular deviation between the longitudinal axes of the punch and the die . it is desirable that the offset , like the angular deviation , be limited to a small maximum amount , e . g . 1 mm . in accordance with the invention , as a result of a design of a tool holder &# 39 ; s elastic deformation properties under loads , the offset can be limited to an advantageously small value as well . succinctly stated , the present invention provides a mechanism by which the effects of elastic frame deformation under loading are at least partially compensated . such compensation is achieved by controlling the construction of at least one tool holder , as by selecting an appropriate structural configuration and / or material properties of the tool holder . fig2 and 3 show an embodiment of a tool holder that is constructed to bend under loads in a manner that moves a held tool in a direction that minimizes undesired angular deviations and offset . the tool holder 20 is formed of a material ( e . g ., steel ) that has suitable elastic deformation behavior . it has a plate - like base 21 with a flat bottom surface 22 by which the tool holder is supported on an arm of the frame ( e . g ., arm 7 in fig1 ). in the form shown , the tool holder 20 has a curved upper section 25 and a flatter lower section 23 with a mounting hole 24 for receiving a retaining pin ( not shown ). the upper section 25 bears a larger head 26 and transitions continuously into the lower section 23 . located between the upper section 25 and the head 26 is a necked - in ( notched ) middle section 27 , which is a configured such that the head 26 inclines slightly toward the front of the lower section 23 . under loading , the inclination of the head 26 increases elastically to reduce the angular deviation caused by spreading of the frame 1 . the tool holder 20 has a bore 28 that passes through the head 26 , the middle section 27 , the upper section 25 , and the lower section 23 , perpendicular to the bottom surface 22 . the hole 28 accommodates a retaining pin of a tool ( e . g ., a die ) placed on the head . the part of the hole 28 located in the base 21 accommodates a centering pin with which the tool holder 20 is centered in axial alignment with the punch on an opposite arm of the frame . a lateral threaded hole 29 in the head 26 accommodates a locking screw with which the pin of the tool is clamped in place in the bore 28 . an angled hole 30 that opens into the bore 28 provides access to the pin in the bore for loosening the tool from the holder . fig4 shows a tool holder 40 that is of medium length in comparison with the tool holder 20 and the tool holder 50 shown in fig5 . tool holder 40 has a base 41 and a head 46 . the shape and size of the base 41 match the base 21 , and the shape and size of the head 46 match the head 26 . a greater axial length of the tool holder 40 is due solely to the length of a cylindrical section 47 that connects the head 46 to the base 41 . the stiffness of the section 47 is made commensurate with the axial length of the tool holder 40 , such that under loading that acts on the tool holder 40 in a fastening operation , the section 47 bends and the head 46 undergoes a change of position that at least partially compensates for the angular deviation and offset caused by spreading of the frame . this can be accomplished by providing a necked - in ( notched ) region ( not shown ) or by other techniques described later . the tool holder 50 in fig5 has a base 51 and a head 56 matching the corresponding base and head of the tool holders 20 and 40 . section 57 is approximately twice as long as section 47 of the tool holder 40 , and its deformation behavior under load is matched to a requirement resulting from the length of the tool holder . again , the stiffness of the section 57 is made commensurate with the axial length of the tool holder 50 , such that under loading that acts on the tool holder 50 in the fastening operation , section 57 bends and the head 56 undergoes a change of position that at least partially compensates for the angular deviation and offset caused by spreading of the frame . the stiffness of the section 57 can be controlled in the same manner as the stiffness of the tool holders 20 and 40 . by selective variation of the resistance to deformation , in particular the bending strength , the various tool holders can be adapted to particular load situations involving their length , in such a manner that essentially the same maximum angular deviations and offset result during joint forming for each tool holder , assuming identical operational conditions . in accordance with the invention , the tendency of a relatively long tool holder to buckle can be promoted by appropriate weakening of its cross - section . the invention benefits from a design in which various tool holders have a uniform base and a uniform head and in which the head and the base are joined by a narrowed central section whose deformation under load is optimized for maintaining a predefined angular deviation . the narrowed central region may have the shape of a circular cylinder . however , other shapes , including parts that are conical , elliptical , or polygonal , for example , may be useful . in addition to influencing the deformation behavior under load through the geometric design of the tool holders , measures for changing the strength properties of the material of the central section can be utilized . desired deformation can be achieved through zonal alternation of the material properties of the central section , as by work - hardening , tempering , or annealing of steel , for example . more particularly , a frontal zone of the central section can have its material properties altered so that it is weakened to promote bending in the desired direction . a similar effect might be achieved by altering the material properties of a rear zone of the central section to increase its stiffness relative to a frontal zone . together , the tool holders 20 , 40 , 50 constitute a tool holder set designed for use in a particular apparatus of the invention . the design is executed in this regard in such a manner that under identical loading in the fastening device all three tool holders 20 , 40 , 50 produce the same angular deviation between the longitudinal axes of the punch and the opposed tool . the use of such a tool holder set will be briefly described as illustrated in fig6 - 8 , all of which show the of frame 1 in an un - loaded state . in fig6 , the short tool holder 20 is attached to the arm 7 of the frame 1 . the punch holder 3 , which is attached to the arm 2 provides a distance l 1 between the head of the tool holder 20 and the holder 3 . in fig7 , the tool holder 20 is replaced by the tool holder 40 , reducing the distance between the respective tool holders to a smaller distance l 2 . fig8 shows an arrangement in which the tool holder 3 is installed on its arm reversed from the installation arrangement shown in fig6 and 7 , so that its punch - receiving section has a greater distance from the arm 7 of the frame 1 . attached to the arm 7 is the long tool holder 50 . its greater length compensates for greater separation from the tool holder 3 , so that the separation between the head of the tool holder 50 and the holder 3 is again equal to l 2 . the three tool holders 20 , 40 , 50 in combination with the two installation positions of the holder 3 provide six different permutations . by virtue of the invention , it is possible in all six different permutations to bring the spread angle to a small value that changes only to a small degree from permutation to permutation . while preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described , it will be apparent that changes can be made without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention , the scope of which is defined in the accompanying claims . for example , although the invention has been described in connection with fastening or joint - forming operations , it will be apparent that the invention can be used in other applications , such as applications in which cooperable tools emboss a workpiece .

US-51727506-A

embodiments pertain to simulator circuitry , particularly to simulator circuitry configured to simulate an electric vehicle and test an electric vehicle charger . a test unit is configured to simulate a gfi current via modulator and to simulate electric vehicle loads via switched and combined resistor loads . the test unit provides for reprogramming of the electric vehicle charger via a pilot line . the test unit self - confirms its usability via associating received codes .

electric vehicles ( evs ) and plug - in hybrid electric vehicles ( phevs ) are being offered in the market and require an ac electric supply in order to charge the vehicle batteries . the device that supplies the ac electricity to the electric vehicle is known as electric vehicle supply equipment ( evse ). if an electric vehicle is not present there is generally no way to test the function of the evse . embodiments , may include an automated circuit to simulate the actions of a j 1772 based charger pilot signal . an automated circuit to simulate the actions of a sae - j 1772 based charger pilot signal and the supporting electric vehicle supply equipment ( evse ) functions , particularly an evse service tool for verifying the installation , debugging and troubleshooting the operational issues in the field . some embodiments may operate as an evse service tool for verifying the installations and debugging and troubleshooting the operation issues in the field . embodiments enable the evse to be tested and serviced with or without an ev or phev connected , and thereby reduce potential damage to the ev or phev that may be caused by a faulty evse . fig1 is an exemplary embodiment of an electric vehicle supply equipment ( evse ) charging an electric vehicles ( ev ), or plug - in hybrid electric vehicles ( phev ). an evse 110 is depicted as connected via a breaker 120 to a utility power source 130 . the evse 110 is depicted as having a microcontroller 111 , a status panel 113 , and means of interfacing 112 such as wireless , ethernet , and other means as a universal serial bus ( usb ). the evse 110 is depicted as connectable to an electric vehicle 140 having a receiving port 141 via a cable 150 having a connector 151 such as a j 1772 ( type ii ) connector 151 . an evse service tool ( evsa ) may be used to simulate an ev and thereby support the testing of the functionality of the evse . fig2 depicts , a top - level system block diagram of an evse 110 to evsa embodiment where the evse service tool ( evsa ) 210 has a port 211 for receiving the charge plug 151 , and having a user interface depicted as a panel 220 for display and control input . fig3 depicts a top - level block diagram of an evse 110 installation with evse service tool ( evsa ) 210 where power line 1 ( l 1 ) 321 , power line 2 ( l 2 ) 322 , a pilot line 323 , and a ground line 324 are depicted as engaging the service tool 210 . the power line 1 ( l 1 ) 321 and power line 2 ( l 2 ) 322 are depicted as provided to ac power test circuits and gfi test circuits 331 . the pilot line 323 is depicted as provided to the automated pilot test and control circuitry 332 , and the ground line 324 is depicted as provided to the automated pilot test and control circuitry 332 , and to a proximity tester 333 . with an evse connected to ac power , the evse output j 1772 connector may be attached to a j 1772 receptacle on the device . following a proper sequence as outlined in j 1772 , the evsa will then typically drop the initial evse voltage of 12v to a voltage of 9v which indicates “ connected ” between the evse and the evse service tool , i . e ., the simulated ev . the automatic sequencer of the evse service tool ( evsa ) may then initiate a pilot voltage drop to 6v as a “ charging ” indication ( or 3v for a ‘ vent required ” charge ) to confirm that the evsa is ready to accept energy . the evsa may read the pulse width of the pilot signal from the evse in order to determine the maximal current draw from the evse , and display the reading to the servicing person . the evse may then close the contactor , and provide ac voltage to the evsa . the evsa may comprise load steps that the service personnel can apply in steps . the evsa may dissipate energy through the load device verifying that the evse is capable of providing current to an ev . the evsa may also generate a ground fault interruption ( gfi ) current to test the ground fault circuit in the evse . the voltage monitor circuit in the evsa may provide over / under voltage indication , for example . the voltage monitor may also determine the system impedance of the evse in conjunction with the load capability . various controls in the evsa may also allow the servicing person to test other functions such as , but not limited to , “ loss of pilot ,” “ loss of ground ,” and “ incorrect pilot voltage level .” standard fused meter connectors may be provided to allow the servicing person safe access to the system voltages and signals for monitoring purposes . fig4 is a top - level evse service tool ( evsa ) functional block diagram depicting a microcontroller 410 of the service tool 210 in communication with ac power controls 411 , signal monitoring circuitry 412 , ac augmented battery power supply circuitry 413 , communication circuitry 414 , ac load circuitry 415 , a user interface 220 , a proximity tester 333 , and gfi testing circuitry 416 . fig5 is a functional block diagram of a portion of the evse service tool ( evsa ) 210 , or test unit , where the service tool is depicted as having a microprocessor 410 running an operating system 520 that supports an application 521 executing steps of data gathering , data associating , and preparing associated data for transmission . the microprocessor 410 is depicted as in communication via a data bus 540 with a memory store 530 where the microprocessor 410 may store the data . the microprocessor 410 is also depicted as being in communication with a user interface 220 , a device interface 551 that may engage an optional multimeter 560 or multimeter circuitry or digital input such as the output of a barcode scanner or barcode input module . the microprocessor 410 is also depicted as being in communication with another device interface 552 that may be a usb port configured to engage an optional flash drive 570 having a usb interface . the microprocessor 410 is also depicted as being in communication with a pilot line interface 553 that may receive input from the pilot line 323 of the ev charging unit 110 . the microprocessor 410 is also depicted as being in communication with power line l 1 321 and power line l 2 322 of the ev charging unit 110 via a power source interface 554 . fig6 is an exemplary evse service tool ( evsa ) enclosure 610 where a control circuitry layer 611 may be separate from a layer of banks of resistors 612 . a first heat sink layer 613 is depicted as abutting the layer of banks of resistors 612 , and comprising airflow ducting 614 . a second heat sink layer 615 is depicted as abutting the first heat sink layer 613 . the user interface 220 ( fig2 ) for the evse service tool 210 may be in various arrangements . an exemplary evse service tool ( evsa ) control panel is depicted in fig7 . fig7 depicts the exemplary control panel as having a line voltage readout 710 , an array of status light 720 , an array of binary switches 730 , and an array of system voltage check lights 740 . fig8 is an exemplary depiction of another exemplary evse service tool ( evsa ) control panel where there is a four line , 20 character display window 810 , an array of status lights 820 , a pair of discrete on / off buttons 830 , and a five - key interface 840 for interacting with the display 810 fig9 is an exemplary system block diagram of the electrical system of an evsa where the system control may be embodied via printed circuit board assembly ( pcba ) 910 . the system block diagram depicts a j 1772 connection 921 in communication with the pcba 910 , in communication with a solid state load switch 922 which is in turn in communication with a resistive load bank 923 . fig9 depicts a thermal switch 924 in communication with the pcba 910 and in communication with the solid state load switch 922 . the j 1772 connection 921 may invoke a fan circuit 925 . the pcba is depicted as connected to a battery 930 . the system control pcba 910 may receive input from one or more test clips 941 , a bar code wand 942 or external memory 943 via a usb , evse digital communication , e . g ., via rs 232 , rs - 485 , and via the pilot line 944 , one or more control panel keys 945 , and optionally a control panel touch screen 946 . the system control pcba 910 may provide signals and / or data to the bar code wand 942 or external memory 943 via a usb , and / or digital communication rs 232 / rs - 485 to the evse via the pilot line 944 , one or more control panel lcds 945 , and control panel characters of an lcd and / or led display 946 . fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram for a printed circuit board assembly of an evsa where the system microcontroller 1010 is in communication with a revenue grade meter 1020 . the test clip signals 1030 are depicting as originating from four main contactor terminals and ground . the j 1772 connector signals 1040 are depicted as comprising the ac line 1 voltage , the ac line 2 voltage , the ac current , the ground , the pilot , and the proximity readings . the pilot signal conditioning 1050 is depicted as including signal condition for one or more amplitude measurements , for one or more frequency measurements , and for one or more duty cycle measurements . the pilot signal loading 1060 is depicted as setting a valid load for all expected j 1772 conditions , and to test for non - valid loading . the proximity signal measurement circuitry 1070 is depicted as measuring the latch button press resistance and the connection resistance . the ac power detection circuitry 1080 is depicted as checking for ac power independent of the microcontroller , and may be configured to operate the led directly . fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram for a printed circuit board assembly of an evsa where the system microcontroller 1010 is depicted as receiving ambient temperature measurements 1110 , real time clock input 1120 , and a precision voltage reference 1130 . the system microcontroller 1010 is depicted as providing command signals to a load switch drive 1140 that in turn provides drive signal for various switch types , e . g ., three switch types . the system microcontroller 1010 is depicted as providing data for the display interface 1150 , and providing a beeper signal for an audible alarm 1160 . the system microcontroller 1010 is depicted as exchanging data with : ( a ) the control panel interface 1171 to interface with a membrane key switch ( fig8 ) and led drivers ; ( b ) flash memory or micro sd memory 1172 to record operational activity and to store program instructions update code ; ( c ) a usb interface 1173 to enable a usb connection for a bar code reader and / or a usb connection for a memory device ; ( d ) the evse via evse data communication 1174 , i . e ., via rs - 232 , rs - 485 , and the pilot signal ; and ( e ) debug and program interfaces 1175 , e . g ., rs - 232 , jtag , and / or usb boot loader . fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram for a printed circuit board assembly of an evsa where the system microcontroller 1010 interfaces with a battery management system 1210 by providing an auto shut off command and / or a low battery shut off command . the battery management system 1210 is depicted as receiving from the control panel 230 the affect of manually effected on and off switches . the control panel off switch may function to request that the microcontroller 1010 save to memory and then shut off . the control panel off switch may override the auto off switch of the microcontroller 1010 , if after a time delay the microcontroller does not responds with a memory save and then shut off . the battery management system 1210 is depicted as receiving power from an off - board battery 1220 , e . g ., six 1 . 5v cells . the battery management system 1210 is depicted as being configured to provide main 5v dc - dc power supply 1230 , main 3 . 3 v dc - dc power supply 1240 , and isolated plus or minus 5v supply 1250 fig1 is an exemplary flowchart 1300 for a method of permitting use of the evsa , a method that may be executed by the evsa where a test unit for evaluating an electric vehicle charging device , i . e ., an evse , comprises a barcode reader input , and the microprocessor is configured by loading instructions from a memory store to : ( a ) receive a code , e . g ., a read barcode of the electric vehicle charging device 1310 ; ( b ) receive a code , e . g ., a read barcode of a work order 1320 ; and ( c ) receive a code , e . g ., a read barcode of a badge of a person requesting to address the work order 1330 . the configured microprocessor may grant permission 1340 for use of the test unit , i . e ., the evse service tool ( evsa ) with the electric vehicle charging device ( evse ) based on a confirmation of at least two of : ( i ) the code of the electric vehicle charging device ; ( ii ) the code of a work order ; and ( iii ) the code of the badge of the requesting person . a charger cable may comprise ac line 1 , ac line 2 , a ground line , and a pilot line . of the lines , the pilot line may provide for two - way communication . fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram depicting communication between the evsa 210 and the evse 110 via the pilot line 323 of a charger cable 150 . the pilot line 323 may be used to upload revised instructions for storage and execution by the microcontroller 111 of evse 110 where the evse may store such instructions in reprogrammable nonvolatile memory , e . g . flash memory . the evse service tool ( evsa ) may also simulate the pilot signal circuitry of an electric vehicle . fig1 is an exemplary schematic depicting the simulation of the pilot line of an ev by the evsa . fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram depicting the simulation by the evsa of a ground fault for testing the gfi circuit of the evse . that is , fig1 is an exemplary functional block diagram of a pulsed dc circuit 1600 that produces a gfi current for test of the ac line 1601 . the ac line 1601 is directed to a full - wave bridge rectifier 1610 . the output of the full - wave bridge rectifier 1610 is an input signal 1611 that is directed to a modulating subsystem 1620 that produces an amplitude - adjusted version of the input voltage signal 1611 via pulse width modulation ( pwm ). an exemplary modulating subsystem 1620 is depicted as comprising a microprocessor 1621 external to the bridge , that may be in communication with a modulator inside the bridge via a digital signal isolator ( not shown ), a series of resistors 1622 , and a high frequency switch , or modulator , such as an n - channel mosfet 1623 , for generating a pwm based on the pwm signal received from the microprocessor . the output , i . e ., the modulated input voltage signal 1624 , is directed to a voltage - to - current converter subsystem 1630 that is depicted as comprising : ( a ) an analog filter 1631 , to reduce the pwm modulating chopping effect on the modulated input voltage signal 1624 ; ( b ) an npn transistor 1632 ; and ( c ) a series of resistors 1633 , to reduce the stress on the transistor 1632 . the analog filter output 1634 has a voltage affected by the pwm duty cycle , and in turn affects the base voltage of the transistor 1632 . a current - to - voltage subsystem is depicted by 1660 where the resistor 1661 between the full - wave bridge rectifier x 10 and ground allows for an analog filter 1662 to measure the gfi current , and convert the measured gfi current into a voltage . the voltage signal may then be converted to a digital signal for use by a microprocessor for feedback control of the gfi current . fig1 is an exemplary schematic depicting the simulation by the evsa of a ground fault for testing the gfi circuit of the evse , e . g ., a gfi 20 ma test . that is , fig1 is an exemplary schematic embodiment of the preceding functional block diagram where a full - wave bridge rectifier 1710 provides rectified ac as the input voltage signal to a power supply 1720 . a voltage divider 1750 may produce an output signal proportional to the input voltage signal . a digital signal isolator 1730 is depicted as taking in a gfi pwm modulation signal 1731 at pin 2 , and outputs as pin 6 a gfi pwm signal 1732 . a voltage divider 1750 may produce an output signal proportional to the input voltage signal . a modulator 1760 is depicted as an n - channel mosfet that may provide linear adjustments to the voltage divider ratio as a function of the duty cycle of the gfi pwm signal 1732 . a low pass filter 1782 attenuates the chopping signal of the modulator 1760 . a voltage - to - current converter 1780 may produce the gfi current 1781 as a function of the input voltage signal from the modulator 1760 . a current - to - voltage converter 1740 is depicted as configured to measure the gfi current and convert 1741 the measurement to a voltage . the voltage signal may then be converted 1770 , via an analog - to - digital convert ( adc ) 1770 to a digital signal 1771 for use by a microcontroller ( not shown ) for feedback control of the gfi current x 81 . fig1 is a functional block diagram depicting the load switching circuitry of the evsa . that is , fig1 depicts a switchable load embodiment 1800 of a test unit where a microcontroller 1810 controls a plurality of switches , e . g ., a first switch 1821 , sw_ 1 , and a second switch 1822 , sw_ 2 . a first resistor bank 1830 comprises two resistors , each sized to draw five amps at 240 volts , e . g ., 48 ohms . a second resistor bank 1840 comprises four resistors , each sized to draw five amperes of current at 240 volts , i . e ., 48 ohms . the microcontroller 1810 may close the first switch 1821 , sw_ 1 , where the input voltage is 240v . accordingly , the first resistor bank 1830 may draw 10 amps and provide a load of 2 . 4 kva , about 2 . 4 kilowatts for a power factor less than unity . the microcontroller 1810 may leave open the first switch 1821 , sw_ 1 , and close the second switch 1822 , sw_ 2 . the second resistor bank 1840 may draw 20 amperes and provide a load of 4 . 8 kva , i . e ., about 4 . 8 kw . the microcontroller 1810 may close both the first switch 1821 , sw_ 1 and the second switch 1822 , sw_ 2 . the combined first resistor bank 1830 and second resistor bank 1840 may draw 30 amperes and provide a load of 7 . 2 kva , i . e ., about 7 . 2 kw . accordingly , embodiments of a test unit may simulate the load of one of three electric vehicle levels while using two resistor banks that is , by microcontroller effected switches , banks of resistors may be used in combination to reduce the number of total resistors required for a desired range of loads , e . g ., 2 . 2 kw , 4 . 4 , kw , and 6 . 6 kw for available evs . it is contemplated that various combinations and / or sub - combinations of the specific features and aspects of the above embodiments may be made and still fall within the scope of the invention . accordingly , it should be understood that various features and aspects of the disclosed embodiments may be combined with or substituted for one another in order to form varying modes of the disclosed invention . further it is intended that the scope of the present invention herein disclosed by way of examples should not be limited by the particular disclosed embodiments described above .

US-201013145785-A

disclosed are method and apparatus for implementing power distribution unit with a hybrid switching module . the apparatus comprises multiple outlets coupled to a hybrid switching module that switches on or off the plurality of outlets . the apparatus further comprises a single ssr for the hybrid switching module and two emrs for an outlet and a controller that communicates with the hybrid switching module via digital line to control power distribution . the apparatus comprises a display for displaying information related to the power outlets , two current detection circuitries for monitoring the total input current and an individual outlet , and a voltage detection circuitry for sensing voltages . the number of outlets may be scaled by using one or more hybrid switching module that share the single ssr . the apparatus further comprises a web server running thereon to interface with remote users to process the user &# 39 ; s requests for the apparatus .

turning now descriptively to the drawings , in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views . the attached figures illustrate a reliable low - cost smart switched power distribution system , which comprises a hybrid switching module 34 with a pair of emrs for each outlet and a ssr with zero - crossing detection capability for each emr switching module , a current sensor for measuring rms current , a voltage detector for measuring rms , voltage , an embedded processor / microcontroller module with current and voltage sensing front - ends , a lcd panel for displaying vital information , and a dual output power supply module with + 12v for emr switching module and + 5v for logic part of all modules in some embodiments . the emr switching module 30 has pair of emrs for each outlet connected in series as in fig3 . one module may have 8 such pairs and corresponding relay drivers . more than one such emr switching module may be used to scale up number of outlets . solid state relay includes a stand - alone high current , optically isolated , zero crossing semiconductor relay with low dc trigger voltage ( e . g ., as low as 3v ) in some embodiments . this pdu includes two rms ( root mean square ) current sensors — one for the total current ( inlet sensor ), and another for individual outlet load current ( outlet sensor ). the current sensor may comprise inductive sensors ( current transformer or rogowski coil ) or resistive sensors ( shunt ) based at least in part on the application . voltage detector comprise an ac voltage divider with a resistance sufficient to drive controller module &# 39 ; s analog input . this controller module includes a micro - controller or an embedded processor . it additionally includes a dc converter for converting , for example , 5v to 3 . 3v , an ethernet driver , an eeprom , an rtc ( real - time clock ), a dsp , and one or more current and voltage sensing circuitries . lcd panel comprises a two - row 16 character display mounted on the front panel of the power distribution system to show vital in formations . the power supply module provides two separate outputs , one with + 5 v for all logics , and the other with + 12 v for relay drivers . the emr switching module 30 has pair of emrs for each outlet . one module has eight such pairs of high current emrs connected in series with the ac live wire of each outlets as shown in fig3 . for example , emr 33 a is in series with emr 33 b , similarly emr 34 a is in series with 34 b , and so on . to make switching module modular , the number of emr pairs per module may be limited to eight in some embodiments . for example , if twenty four outlets are needed then three such modules may be used in these embodiments . note that the emr 33 a is normally on and emr 33 b is normally off to maximize the power saving when all outlets are on in some embodiments . the three dots 37 in the fig3 shows that there are more relays connected in similar fashion . the switching module has two octal relay drivers 31 to drive all emrs using + 12 v dc . these emrs with an ssr form a hybrid relay . emr switching module may optionally have two octal latches with an enable bit connected between the driver 30 and the micro controller module 20 to prevent any misfiring of emrs during the reset of micro - controller . another variation could be to have this switching module as an integrated package combined with an ssr and provide a serial interface for communication . for example , eight pairs of emrs , latches , drivers , and an ssr along with a serial interface , all integrated into one package which may be used in stand - alone applications using external processor ( s ) or pc ( s ) ( personal computer ( s )) to control these individual components . solid state relay 40 comprises a stand - alone high current , optically isolated , zero crossing semiconductor relay with low dc trigger voltage as low as , for example , + 3 v in some embodiments . it is capable of handling 120 % of maximum rated current of the pdu system for safety and reliability reasons in some embodiments . the switching is optically isolated from the load . the ssr used here switches at zero voltage crossing of the power to reduce electro - magnetic interference ( emi ) in some embodiments . because an ssr is used temporarily in some embodiments , only while making switching transition to emr , there is no need for heat sinks in the power distribution system in some embodiments . solid state relay may also be integrated into the switching module , but it limits the sharing of the ssr to one module only in some embodiments . for example , twenty four outlets version of the system need three ssrs in these embodiments . the combination of emrs and the ssr may be called a switching module 34 in some embodiments . this pdu comprises two rms ( root mean square ) current sensors — one for the total current ( inlet sensor ) and another for individual outlet load current ( outlet sensor ). the current sensor may be inductive ( current transformer ( ct ) or rogowski coil ) or resistive ( shunt ), based at least in part on the application . the inlet current sensor 23 a and outlet 23 b shown in fig3 comprise current transformers in some embodiments . the live wire may be run through the toroidal core of the inlet current transformer . similarly , the live wire may be run through the core of outlet transformer to the ssr and finally to outlets for measuring individual outlet current . the current transformer &# 39 ; s secondary , which produces voltage proportional to the current flowing on the live wire , is connected to the dsp &# 39 ; s 22 analog frontend , which includes an adc ( analog to digital converter ). if the pdu comprises two circuits ( e . g ., two inlets ) then each of the two circuits may require a separate sensor and an ssr . also , a shunt resistor may be a low cost alternative to a current transformer in some embodiments . voltage detector comprises an ac voltage divider with sufficient resistance to drive controller module &# 39 ; s analog input in some embodiments . the voltage detector comprises a resistive voltage divider used to measure rms voltage in some embodiments . this measurement may be used in calculation of average power . this controller module includes a micro - controller or an embedded processor . it additionally includes a dc converter for converting , for example , + 5v to + 3 . 3v , an ethernet driver , an eeprom , an rtc ( real - time clock ), and / or a dsp with current and voltage sensing circuits . the microcontroller unit is an 8 bit controller — pic ( programmable integrated circuit ) 18 with a built - in ethernet interface . the controller module 20 may use a dc / dc converter 27 to down convert , for example , + 5v to + 3 . 3v . the rtc 25 may be used for scheduling measurements and keep track of power consumption for days and months . the eeprom 26 may be used to store configuration information and web pages which provide web interface for the power distribution system . the microcontroller runs a firmware which allows the micro - controller to control and monitor relays and sensors in some embodiments . the firmware supports tcp / ip , snmp , dhcp , dns , http , ssl , ssh , syslog and telnet protocols over ethernet interface to support remote management and control of the power distribution system in some embodiments . embedded processor such as arm is another option for controller module . lcd panel 50 includes a two row sixteen character display mounted on the front panel of the power distribution system in some embodiments . lcd panel may be connected to the controller module and may be used for display vital information which are useful during deployment and maintenance . the lcd provides a scrolling display that doesn &# 39 ; t require any human invention to read the display . the vital information such as each outlet &# 39 ; s status including , for example , overload status , current / power consumption , ip address , and hostname , is displayed in a predetermined sequence for few seconds , and then it scrolls to display next piece of information , and so on . the contrast of lcd may be adjusted to a predefined value with a fixed resistor on controller module in some embodiments . another variation of the lcd is to have buttons to scroll and read the information in some other embodiments . the power supply module provides two separate outputs , for example , one with + 5 v for all logics and the other with + 12 v for relay drivers in some embodiments . this dual output smps ( switching mode power supply ) 10 provides overload protection and automatic recovery once overload condition is removed in some embodiments . the 3 . 3 v power may also provide directly by this power supply which would eliminate the need for a dc / dc converter in the controller module in some embodiments . the micro - controller 21 communicates with switching module 30 , dsp 22 , lcd 50 , rtc 25 , and ssr 40 through its digital i / o lines . when the user 90 initiates a request from remote to switch on particular outlet through the web interface client 90 , the request comes to hitp server running on micro - controller in some embodiments . then the server makes appropriate i / o routine ( s ) which enables particular digital io line to switch on the appropriate emrs and ssr in particular sequence which is explained later in detail . the dsp &# 39 ; s 22 analog frontend reads analog input from current and voltage sensors and converts that to digital . the monitoring of current / power consumption through web interface is done in real time using java ® and xml over http . when the web client 90 initiates a request for snap shot of current ( s ), the micro - controller reads the desired info from dsp and sends it to the web client 90 . the micro - controller may also keep records of old snap shots by doing polling periodically that may be queried at any given time to generate reports like daily or monthly kilowatt - hour usage report . the micro - controller 21 also sends snmp traps and / or syslog messages when there is critical conditions such as overload ssr need not be a stand - alone unit . it may comprise a discrete circuit part of the switching module in some embodiments as mentioned above or may comprise a discrete circuit as a part of the controller module in some other embodiments . this pdu shares both ssr and current sensors for individual outlet switching and monitoring respectively but there could be another variation where sharing of ssr may be needed but the sharing of sensor may not be preferred in some embodiments because of different accuracy requirements . in such cases , the individual shunt resistors may be used in series with the loads of each outlet in some embodiments . another variation is to have this for dc power distribution systems and three - phase power distribution systems by changing current sensors accordingly . for dc distribution systems the shunt may be used and for three - phase current transformers are best . some embodiments of this invention include a pair of electromechanical relays for each outlet and one shared solid state relay for all outlets . for the purpose of explanation and illustration , these pairs of electro - mechanical relays are denoted as the primary relay and the secondary relay in some embodiments . for example , emr 33 a , 34 a , 35 a , etc . may be denoted as primary relays , and emr 33 b , 34 b , 35 b , etc . may be denoted as secondary relays . the primary relay is where load is mostly connected to but the secondary relay and ssr 40 are used only temporarily when switching outlet from on to off and vice versa in some embodiments . the primary relays are normally closed in some embodiments , which means by default all the outlets are on to save power consumed by each relay . the secondary relays are by default kept off in some embodiments . the micro - controller which controls these relays uses a suitable delay period ( e . g ., a few tens of milliseconds ) between switching electro - mechanical relays ( the primary relay or the secondary relay ) and the solid state relay to allow for contact settling and thereby preventing arcing in various embodiments . the switching operation may be better explained with the aid of fig4 and 5 . fig4 a , 4 b and 4 c correspond to switching off an outlet , and fig5 a , 5 b and 5 c are related to switching on the outlet . fig6 shows the flow chart or switching operation . the following explanation focuses on one pair of emrs 33 a , 33 b that corresponds to the first outlet for simplicity of explanations . the operations of other outlets may be identical . when the pdu system is started , all outlets will be in on state . the current flows 71 from live wire of ac input through emr 33 a as shown in fig3 . when there is an off request for outlet - 1 from the user 90 ( e . g ., through web interface or snmp ) or system ( e . g ., through overload protection mechanism event ), the firmware of micro - controller first enables secondary emr 33 b and waits until tile contact bounce of emr 33 b is over then enable ssr 40 . now the current path 72 is established as shown in fig4 a . the ssr 40 now operates in parallel with emr 33 a and in series with emr 33 b . next , the controller switches off primary emr 33 a breaking the current path 71 as shown in fig4 b . once the primary emr 33 a bounce settles down , the ssr 40 is switched off followed by secondary emr 33 b breaking current path 72 as shown in fig4 c . this completes the cycle of off sequence . the switching on sequence is reverse of the off sequence . when the user or system event request micro - controller to switch off an outlet , it first switches on the secondary emr 33 b and wait until the contact bounce is over . then controller switches on ssr 40 to establish the current path 81 as shown in fig5 a . next the micro - controller measures load current using outlet current sensor 23 b as shown in fig6 flow chart for outlet - 1 and checks for any overload status or conditions . if there isn &# 39 ; t an overload , next it switches on primary emr 33 a and waits for its contact to settle and establishes the current path 82 as shown in fig5 . the ssr 40 now operates in parallel with emr 33 a and in series with emr 33 b . next , it switches off primary emr 33 b breaking the current path 81 as shown in fig5 c . this completes the cycle of on sequence . as described above the controller module has two current sensors one for inlet 23 a and one for outlet 23 b . the outlet sensor 23 b is the shared among all outlets by enabling particular secondary emr in series with the ssr as described in the switching operation above . the inlet current may be monitored continuously , but the individual outlet monitoring is done at the lime of switching of particular outlet ( fig6 ) or by comparing periodically the inlet current sensor reading to sum of all individual outlet current sensors reading as shown in fig7 b and 7a . this flow chart also shows how overload situation is detected at inlet — fig7 b and individual outlets — fig7 a . if the difference between the inlet sensor reading and sum of all outlet sensor readings exceeds certain thresholds ( which may be configurable ) it triggers the monitoring of current at each individual outlet . as a result , the accuracy of the individual outlet monitoring depends at least in part on the tolerance threshold setting which includes basically a percentage of total current variation at any given time in some embodiments . because the total current from inlet sensor is monitored continuously , the accuracy of inlet monitoring may be determined just by the accuracy of the sensor and associated sensing circuitry — which is higher than the individual outlet &# 39 ; s accuracy . even though the above illustrates the application of the invention in ac ( alternating current ) switched power distribution systems in some embodiments , it may also be used in dc ( direct current ) switched power distribution systems as well with a shunt resister as current sensor instead of rms current sensor in some other embodiments . as to a further discussion of the manner of usage and operation of various embodiments of the invention , the same may be apparent from the above description . accordingly , no further discuss ion relating to the manner of usage and operation will be provided . with respect to the description , it is to be realized that the optimal dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention , to include variations in size , materials , shape , form , function and manner of operation , assembly and use , are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art , and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by various embodiments of the invention . therefore , the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention . further , since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in ( he an , it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construct ion and operation shown and described , and accordingly , all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted 10 , falling within the scope of the invention .

US-201113111750-A

a relief valve for a liquid container , the valve comprising a substantially conical body extending into the container , and tapering inwardly away from an external wall of the container , at least one air inlet passage through the substantially conical body ; and a flexible diaphragm extending over the conical body , being attached at its outer periphery around the substantially conical body and having a central opening surrounding the substantially conical body above the air inlet passage so as to seal the air inlet passage until the pressure within the container falls below a predetermined level .

the dispenser is a hands - free dispenser which is generally suitable for domestic use . the dispenser is primarily intended to dispense liquid soap , but may also be used to dispense other liquid or semi - liquid products ( ideally with a viscosity greater than water ), such as hand cream , body lotion , moisturiser , face cream , shampoo , shower gel , foaming hand wash , shaving cream , washing up liquid , toothpaste or a sanitising agent such as alcohol gel . the dispenser comprises two main parts , namely a refill 1 and a base unit 2 . the refill 1 provides a reservoir of liquid to be dispensed and is fitted to the base unit 2 as set out below . the base has an interface 3 into which liquid is dispensed from the refill unit . the interface 3 is in fluid communication with a dispensing tube 4 . a pump 5 is selectively operable to pump a metered dose of the liquid along dispensing tube 4 and out of dispensing head 6 . the base has an infrared transmitter 7 a which transmits an infrared beam through a window 8 to a receiver 7 b to sense the presence of a user &# 39 ; s hands in the vicinity of the dispenser . control circuitry reacts to a signal from the proximity sensor to activate the pump . the illustrated sensor is a break beam sensor , but may also be a reflective sensor . although an infrared sensor is shown , any known proximity sensor such as a capacitive sensor may be used . the device may be mains powered or battery powered . alternatively , it may be a manually operated pump device in which a user pushes a lever to displace the product . the interface between the refill 1 and base unit 2 will now be described in greater detail with reference to fig2 to 10 . the base unit 2 comprises a cowling 10 which forms a cup - shaped housing surrounding a significant portion of the refill to protect and support it . a spigot 11 projects through the base of the cowling 10 and is sealed to the cowling 10 by an o - ring seal 12 . the spigot has a plurality of castellations 13 in its top surface . a second o - ring seal 14 surrounds the spigot 11 beneath the castellations 13 . the refill 1 comprises a bottle 20 to which a cap 21 is fixed . the bottle 20 has a neck 22 which fits over and seals with an annular flange 23 within the cap 21 . the cap 21 has an upwardly depending skirt 24 ( when in the inverted orientation shown in the drawings ) which forms the outer surface of the cap . working inwardly from the skirt 24 , the next feature of the cap is an outer annular wall 25 which is generally co - axial with the skirt 24 . this is shown in detail in fig5 to 10 . the outer annular wall 25 consists of a pair of retaining members 26 and a pair of support members 27 which alternate with one another and each extend for approximately a quarter of the circle as shown in fig5 , 6 , 8 and 10 . the profile of the support members 27 is as shown in fig2 . these members extend directly up from the lower wall of the cap , are parallel sided and have an inclined upper surface 28 . the profile of the retaining members 26 is shown in fig7 and 9 . unlike the support members 27 , these are not fixed to the wall of the cap . instead , they are fixed at either end to the support members 27 by frangible members 29 as best shown in fig6 and 8 . the retaining members 26 are parallel sided and have an inclined upper surface 35 as shown in fig7 and 9 . as shown in fig7 and 9 , the neck 22 of the bottle has an inclined outer surface 36 which is complimentary to the inclined surfaces 28 and 35 of the annular wall 25 . behind the inclined outer surface 36 is a shoulder 37 which faces the main body of the bottle 20 . this inclined outer surface 36 and shoulder 37 is only present in the vicinity of the retaining members 26 and not in the vicinity of the support members 27 . adjacent to the support members 27 , the neck 22 has a parallel sided configuration as shown in fig2 . in order to insert the bottle 20 into the cap 21 , the bottle 20 is pushed down with its neck fitting over the annular flange 23 . the inclined outer surface 36 of the bottle co - operates with the inclined surfaces 28 , 35 to displace the retaining members 26 radially outwardly until the shoulder 37 snaps into place behind the retaining members 26 as shown in fig7 . when the bottle 20 is pulled off of the cap 21 , the shoulders 37 bear against the retaining members 26 , thereby breaking frangible members 29 so that the retaining members 26 become detached from the cap 21 as shown in fig9 and 10 . once this has happened , it is no longer possible to retain the cap on a bottle , thereby preventing subsequent use of the refill 1 . it should be noted that it is not necessary for both of the retaining members 26 to become fully detached from the lid . it is possible that only one of these becomes detached , or that one or both are simply displaced to a location at which they can no longer engage with the neck of the bottle . returning now to fig2 to 4 , the liquid outlet and associated valve will now be described . the liquid outlet from the reservoir is provided by an annular wall 30 surrounding a central opening 31 . at the top of the annular wall 30 is an inclined surface 32 ( see fig4 ) which provides a valve seat for outlet valve element 33 . this is shown in the form of a u - shape cup - like member , but may equally be a solid member or a hollow ball - like member . the outlet valve element 33 is biased into its closed position by a plurality of biasing elements 34 . these are attached at their upper end towards the top of the valve element 33 and are attached at their lower ends at a location radially outward of the annular wall 30 and below the top of the annular wall 30 . they are preferably formed integrally with the valve element 33 . as shown in fig2 to 4 , when the refill 1 is lowered into the base unit 2 , the spigot 11 engages with the lower surface of the valve element 33 as shown in fig3 . further downward movement of the refill causes the valve element 33 to be lifted from its seat , and also brings the o - ring 14 into sealing engagement with the annular wall 30 . the valve element 33 is lifted to the position shown in fig4 . in this position , liquid in the bottle 20 can flow around the biasing elements 34 , and enter the spigot via the castellations 13 and hence flow into the base unit 2 . liquid is prevented from escaping between the spigot 11 and annular wall 30 by the o - ring seal 14 . this arrangement offers a simple and mess - free way for a consumer to insert a refill regardless of the fill level of the refill . in order to remove a refill , the consumer lifts it out of the base whereupon the biasing elements 34 cause the valve element 33 to return to the seat 32 . during this movement , the seal between the spigot 11 and annular wall 30 is maintained by the o - ring seal 14 . a spent refill is then replaced by a new one following the above procedure . the cap is provided with a pair of pressure relief valves 40 . each is formed by an annular boss 41 integral with the cap 21 . a pressure relief valve element 42 is seated on the top of the annular boss 41 and is biased in place by a pair of biasing elements 43 ( as shown , for example , in fig5 ). the biasing force is such that , under normal conditions , the pressure relief valve element 42 forms an air tight seal on the boss 41 . however , when the pressure within the bottle 20 drops below a certain level , the pressure differential across the relief valve element 42 is sufficient to overcome the force exerted by biasing elements 43 and to allow air into the bottle 20 . this reduces the pressure differential thereby restoring the air tight seal without leakage of fluid . each pressure relief valve 40 is surrounded by an annular barrier 44 which extends axially to a level axially above the level of the top of the annular wall 30 . thus , when the valve element 33 is open , any air entering the relief valve 40 will not become entrained in the outgoing liquid stream . in practice , this means that the relief valve can be placed closer to the outlet , thereby resulting in a more compact cap . although two relief valves are shown , a single valve , or more than two valves could be provided if necessary . the manner in which the cap is assembled is illustrated in fig5 and 6 . the assembly is a three - part structure consisting of the cap 21 , a valve plate 45 and a fixing plate 46 . the cap has a number of moulded features including the annular flange 23 , annular wall 25 and annular bosses 41 . in addition , the cap 21 has a plurality of fixing posts 47 . the valve plate 45 is an elastomeric material and is integrally formed with the valve element 33 , biasing elements 34 , relief valve element 42 and biasing elements 43 . the valve plate has a plurality of locating holes 48 which correspond to the fixing posts 47 . the fixing plate 46 is made of a rigid plastics material and is integrally formed with the annular barrier 44 . as with the valve plate 45 , the fixing plate 46 is also provided with a plurality of locating holes 49 which correspond to the fixing posts 47 . to assemble the cap , the three components are placed on top of one another as shown in fig6 with the fixing posts entering the locating holes to ensure that the components are correctly aligned . heat or adhesive is then applied to the top of the fixing posts 47 to secure the fixing posts to the fixing plate 46 . the elastomeric valve plate 45 is thereby sandwiched between the cap 21 and fixing plate 46 which holds the valve elements 33 and 42 in position . a second example of a cap for a refill unit will now be described with reference to fig1 to 14 . the structure of the outlet valve element 33 in the second example is essentially the same as the first example , and will not be described again in relation to the second example . as can be seen from fig1 , the cap 21 is integrally molded with a number of features , such as the annular walls 25 and 30 and a conical part 50 of the pressure relief valve which will be described below . a resilient lip 53 ( described in more detail below ) for the pressure relief valve is provided integrally molded with the valve plate 45 . the fixing plate 46 is also provided with a shield 57 for the relief valve . this is equivalent to the barrier 44 in fig2 , but only extends around the side of the relief valve facing the outlet valve element 33 . the barrier 44 and shield 57 could be used interchangeably in the two examples . the cap assembly is assembled in the same manner as in the first example . the pressure relief valve 60 is illustrated in fig1 and 14 . the valve has the conical part 50 which is an integral part of the cap 21 as mentioned above . at the top of the conical part 50 is a cylindrical post 61 . the resilient lip 53 is effectively a hollow frustoconical extension of the valve plate 52 of resilient material which extends along the conical part 50 from which it diverges slightly and is a tight fit against the post 61 . at least one air inlet 62 ( also shown in fig1 ) passes through the wall of the conical part 50 and is normally covered by the resilient lip 53 as shown in fig1 . when the pressure in the bottle 20 falls as liquid is emptied the pressure differential across the resilient lip 53 will eventually become sufficient to displace the lip 53 to a sufficient degree to allow air a into the bottle 20 as shown by the arrows in fig8 . it should be noted that the degree to which the resilient lip 53 lifts from the conical element 50 has been exaggerated in fig8 and that , in practice , this will be almost imperceptible . instead of sealing against the post , the resilient lip 53 may seal against the conical part 50 . in this case , the lip will not diverge from the conical part as shown . instead , it would actually have an angle of incline less than the angle of the conical part 50 so as to be naturally biased onto the conical part .

US-200913129165-A

a pll synthesizer circuit is disclosed having a programmable divider circuit driven by a controller for selecting a desired output frequency of the pll synthesizer circuit . an operating mode selector circuit optionally drives a receive operating mode and at least one further operating mode of the pll synthesizer circuit . the pll synthesizer circuit has a smaller settling time constant in the frequency change operating mode . the change into the frequency change operating mode is initiated by a detection of the drive of the programmable divider by means of a changed drive value . the change from the frequency change operating mode into the receive operating mode is caused whenever the phase difference , that is to say the output signal of the phase detector falls below a predetermined threshold value .

with reference to fig1 the aim is first to explain the pll synthesizer circuit according to the invention . a local oscillator frequency f lo is fed to a reference divider 2 from a quartz crystal 1 . reference divider 2 is a programmable divider , it being possible , for example , to perform the programming via a bus 13 starting from a microprocessor 14 . the divided output frequency f ref of the reference divider 2 is fed to the phase detector 3 . the output signal of the phase detector 3 is fed to a charge pump 4 . the charge pump ( current source / sink ) gives an output signal to a low - pass loop filter unit which has at least two different loop filters 6 , 7 . a switching unit 5 , which is likewise driven by means of the bus 13 , can be used to select whether the loop filter 6 with the smaller time constant τ 1 , or the loop filter 7 with the larger time constant τ 2 is to be connected . a resistor 8 is connected on the input side between the loop filters 6 , 7 for the purpose of equipotential bonding and of avoiding audible clicking noises during the changeover operation . also provided is a loop amplifier 9 which is necessary , inter alia , to convert the voltage range of , for example , 0 . 5 to 4 . 5 v of the charge pump 4 to the higher voltage range of , for example , 0 to 7 v , which is required , for example , by a vco 10 for vhf applications . the current through the charge pump 4 , and the current with which the loop amplifier 9 is operated , can likewise be selected by means of the bus 13 , in a fashion controlled , for example , by the microprocessor 14 . the signal with the frequency f vco produced by the vco 10 as a function of the tuning voltage v t is , if necessary , amplified again by an amplifier 11 and then fed to a programmable divider 12 . the signal divided by the programmable divider 12 is fed to the phase detector 3 , which compares the phase of this signal with the phase of the signal from the reference divider 2 . the divider value of the reference divider 2 , and the divider value of the loop divider 12 can likewise be selected by means of the bus 13 , for example in a fashion driven by the microprocessor 14 . the microprocessor 14 uses the bus 13 to drive the divider circuits 2 and 12 , for example in the case of a frequency change . as set forth previously , an aim of the present invention is to reduce the settling time constant of the pll synthesizer circuit for the case of a frequency change which is initiated by the microprocessor 14 . various measures , which are explained later , can be taken for this purpose . we now set forth how the frequency change mode with a reduced settling time is initiated in accordance with the present invention . as already mentioned , for the purpose of a frequency change the microprocessor 14 uses the bus 13 to drive the loop divider 12 with a new driver value . this changed drive value is detected by a trigger 17 which in the case of this detection of a new drive value for the loop divider 12 gives a start signal to a mode changeover switch 15 . the mode changeover switch 15 , which can therefore switch to and fro between the frequency change operating mode and the receive operating mode , then outputs appropriate changeover signals via the bus 13 to various components of the pll synthesizer circuit . for the purpose of changing back from the frequency change operating mode into the receive operating mode , an interlocking detector 16 detects the phase difference which is output by the phase detector 3 . as soon as this phase difference has fallen below a prescribed threshold value again , and the pll synthesizer circuit as a whole has resettled , the interlocking detector 16 gives a stop signal to the trigger 17 , which gives a corresponding output signal , that is to say an interlocking detection signal , to the mode switch 15 which can then use the bus 13 to change over the various components of the pll synthesizer circuit once again to parameters for the receive operating mode . there are a number of advantages in triggering the change into the frequency change mode by detecting a changed drive of the loop divider 12 . on the one hand , a changed drive of the loop divider 12 is an unambiguous indication of a desired frequency change . moreover , the change into the frequency change mode becomes independent of phase errors , occurring from malfunctions , for example , at the output of the phase detector 3 , the system as a whole thereby becoming more stable . the operating mode switch 15 can also use the bus 13 to change the parameters of various components of the synthesizer circuit as a whole or only partly , thus also enabling various frequency change modes ( fast modes ) in addition to the receive ( standard ) mode . the following parameter changes in the pll synthesizer circuit are possible in principle for changing into the frequency change mode ( fast mode ): as already set forth , the switching unit 5 can perform a changeover from the loop filter 7 with a large time constant τ 2 to the loop filter 6 with a small time constant τ 1 . although there is a simultaneous worsening of the signal - to - noise ratio , this plays no role during the frequency change mode . furthermore , in the frequency change mode the current used to operate the loop amplifier 9 can be increased . again , the current through the charge pump 4 can also be increased . finally , the divider circuits 2 and 12 can be driven towards a smaller divider value ( triggered by the mode switch 15 ), with the result that signals with higher frequencies are fed to the phase detector 3 . fig2 shows a section of a pll synthesizer circuit in accordance with a further exemplary embodiment of the invention . this exemplary embodiment has differences from the exemplary embodiment of fig1 in the region of the loop filters . as may be seen in fig2 one loop filter 19 , 20 is always active in accordance with this exemplary embodiment . only this loop filter 19 , 20 is active in the frequency change mode . in the case of the receive mode , the switching unit 5 is triggered by a signal from the bus 13 to connect a resistor 18 in parallel with the loop filter 19 , 20 , with the result that the damping , and thus also the time constant , of the loop filter are increased overall . the signal - to - noise ratio is thereby also improved with the acceptance of a loss in speed , and this is , of course , desired in the receive state . just as is illustrated by the resistor in accordance with the exemplary embodiment of fig1 the exemplary embodiment of fig2 illustrates that the potential respectively applied between the two branches of the loop filter is transmitted , and therefore balanced . this permits changeover without interference . of course , by appropriate provision of loop filters two or more time constants can be connected in a fashion capable of changeover to a single charge pump and to the same output of the loop amplifier . this yields a minimum external outlay on circuitry . the operating state ( receive state ) in which a maximum signal - to - noise ratio is required , and the settling time in the case of the frequency change mode can be optimized separately from one another and independently . the optimum conditions at the output of the charge pump ( preferably v dd / 2 ) are maintained when the loop amplifier current is changed over for the purpose of shortening the settling time . the integrated loop amplifier can optionally be set via the controllable current source ( charge pump ) such that in combination with the currents of the charge pump and a selected loop filter a maximum signal - to - noise ratio and a minimum settling time of the pll synthesizer circuit are achieved . the two states can be optimized individually in each case . fields of application for the pll synthesizer circuit of the present invention include at least automotive radios , tv sets and mobile radio applications . the german priority application no . 19930225 . 1 is relied upon and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety . various preferred embodiments of the invention have now been described . while these embodiments have been set forth by way of example , various other embodiments and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , it should be understood that the invention is not limited to such embodiments , but encompasses all that which is described in the following claims .

US-60652900-A

provided is a method for preparing 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid , wherein p - xylene is mixed with paraformaldehyde and concentrated hydrochloric acid in a solvent of ion liquid to obtain 2 , 5 - dimethyl benzyl chloride by the chloromethylation reaction . then , 2 , 5 - dimethyl benzyl chloride is introduced into a reactor with an acid binding agent and a solvent , the carbonylation and hydrolysis reaction is conducted in the presence of a catalyst to obtain 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid . the present process has new route , less synthesis steps , simple operation , lower cost , increased yield , and is friendly to the environment . therefore , the method is suitable for industrial production .

therefore , in order to solve the problems of expensive raw materials , long synthetic route and complicated reaction types in the said processes for preparing 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid , the present invention provides a novel , convenient , high - yield and environmental friendly method wherein the raw materials are cheap and it is suitable for the industrial production . the present invention provides a method for preparing 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid , which comprises the following steps : a . chloromethylation reaction : the temperature is raised after the raw material p - xylene , the solvent ionic liquid are mixed with paraformaldehyde and concentrated hydrochloric acid , the chloromethylation reaction proceeds when the gas of hydrogen chloride is inflated , the temperature is kept for 0 . 5 h after the reaction is completed , the reaction solution is cooled and stands for layering , the organic layer is rectified under vacuum to give 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride ; wherein the mole ratio of the said p - xylene , paraformaldehyde and ionic liquid is 1 : 1 . 1 - 5 : 0 . 01 - 1 , the preferred mole ratio of p - xylene , paraformaldehyde and ionic liquid is 1 : 1 . 1 - 2 . 0 : 0 . 01 - 0 . 5 . in the said chloromethylation reaction , the solvent is substituted imidazole ionic liquid in which the cation is imidazole ion and the anion is halogen ion , trifluoromethanesulfonate ion , tetrafluoroborate ion or hexafluorophosphate ion ; including 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium chloride , 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium bromide , 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate , 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate , 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate , 1 - ethyl - 3 - methylimi - dazolium tetrafluoroborate , 1 - ethyl - 3 - methylimidazolium hexafluoro - phosphate , 1 - hexyl - 3 - methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate , 1 - hexyl - 3 - methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate , 1 - octyl - 3 - methylimidazolium chloride , 1 - octyl - 3 - methylimidazolium bromide , 1 - octyl - 3 - methylimi - dazolium tetrafluoroborate or 1 - octyl - 3 - methylimidazolium hexafluoro phosphate . furthermore , the ionic liquid gained by dehydrating the water layer under vacuum which ( the water layer ) is provided by standing for layering the reaction solution of the completed chloromethylation reaction may be recycled and reused . b . the temperature is raised after the said 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , acid binding agent and solvent are put into the reactor with the presence of catalyst , the carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions proceed when the gas of carbon monoxide is inflated , after the reaction is completed , the reaction solution is cooled , then liquid caustic soda is added under the protection of nitrogen , the reaction solution is stirred for 1 h , standing and layering , 36 % hydrochloric acid is added , into the water layer until ph = 1 , then it is kept warm for 1 h , filtered and dried to provide 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid . in the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions , the catalyst is palladium compound catalyst . the said palladium compound catalyst is selected from palladium chloride , palladium acetate , palladium sulfate , palladium nitrate , palladium oxide , dichlorodiamminepalladium , tetraammine dichloropalladium ( ii ), tetrakis ( triphenylphosphine ) palladium ( 0 ), palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenylphosphine ) diacetate , palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenyl - phosphine ) dichloride or palladium hydroxide . in the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions , the palladium compound catalyst is preferably selected from tetfakis ( triphenylphosphine ) palladium ( 0 ), palladium ( ii ) bis -( triphenyl - phosphine ) diacetate or palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenylphosphine ) dichloride . in the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions , the acid binding agent is organic base or inorganic base . the organic base is selected from one out of pyridine , triethylamine , alkali alcoholate , lithium alkylide or lithium amide compound . the inorganic base is selected from alkali hydroxide , alkali carbonate or bicarbonate , acetate . the said alkali alcoholate is selected from one out of sodium methoxide , potassium ethoxide or potassium t - butoxide . the lithium alkylide is selected from butyllithium or phenyl lithium . the said lithium amide is selected from lithium diisopropylamide ( lda ) or lithium hexamethyldisilazide ( lihmds ). the said alkali hydroxide is selected from sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide . the alkali carbonate and bicarbonate are selected from sodium carbonate , potassium carbonate , sodium bicarbonate or potassium bicarbonate . the said acetate is selected from sodium acetate or potassium acetate . the said acid binding agent is preferably selected from pyridine or triethylamide . the solvent of the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions is selected from ester , ether , alcohol , arenes or nitrile , or the mixture of several of them . the said ester is selected from one out of methyl acetate , ethyl acetate or butyl acetate . the said ether is selected from one out of ethyl ether , methyl t - butyl ether , tetrahydrofuran or p - dioxane . the said alcohol is selected from one out of methanol , ethanol , isopropyl alcohol or tert - pentanol . the said arenes is selected from benzene , toluene or chlorobenzene . the said nitrile is selected from acetonitrile or propionitrile . in the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions , the solvent is preferably selected from isopropyl alcohol or tert - pentanol . in the said carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions , the catalyst gained from refiltering after small amount of heavy metal capture agent and flocculant are added to the filtrate may be recycled and reused . in the reaction formula of the present invention ( fig1 ), paraformaldehyde and concentrated hydrochloric acid are mixed with the solvent a which is substituted imidazole ionic liquid and the raw material p - xylene , to give 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride after the chloromethylation reaction . then 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , acid binding agent and solvent are added into the reactor in the presence of catalyst and 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid is provided by undergoing carbonylation and hydrolyzation reactions . thereby , the method of the present invention has a novel route , reasonable process conditions , short synthetic route , easy operations , high - yield , low cost and less pollution , which has high implementation value and social economic benefits . the following examples are illustrative for the present invention , but shouldn &# 39 ; t be considered to limit the present invention in any way . 48 g paraformaldehyde , 106 g p - xylene , 10 g 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimidazolium bromide and 3 . 2 g concentrated hydrochloric acid whose concentration is 36 % are added into a 500 ml four - neck flask and the temperature is raised to 80 ˜ 85 ° c . after well stirring . and the reaction solution is kept warm for 0 . 5 h after the gas of hydrochloride is inflated , and then cooled to the room temperature , standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer while the lower layer is water layer . the water layer is dehydrated under vacuum and the gained ionic liquid can be recycled and reused . the organic layer is transferred into a 500 ml four - neck flask and is rectified under vacuum . after desolventizing , 139 . 3 g 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride is finally provided ( 90 . 1 % yield ). to a 1000 ml autoclave , 70 . 0 g the said rectified 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , 137 . 5 g triethylamine , 0 . 3 g palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenylphosphine ) dichloride , 81 g water and 168 . 0 g tert - pentanol are added . nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times and the temperature is raised to 70 ° c . at 70 ° c .˜ 75 ° c ., carbon monoxide is inflated until the pressure is not decreasing . after the reaction has finished , it is cooled to 40 ° c ., then the pressure is relieved , and nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times again , the reaction solution is transferred into a 1000 ml four - neck flask and then 120 . 0 g 30 % liquid caustic soda is added under the protection of nitrogen , which is stirred for 1 h at 60 ° c ., then standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer and the lower layer is water layer . 57 . 6 g 36 % hydrochloric acid is added dropwise into the water layer until ph = 1 . the solution is kept warm for 1 h and filtered , dried under vacuum to give 64 . 4 g 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid ( 87 . 2 % yield ). finally , small amount of heavy metal capture agent and flocculant can be added into the filtrate and filtered again to give the catalyst . the gained catalyst after filtering can be recycled and reused . 24 g paraformaldehyde . 53 g p - xylene , 4 . 9 g 1 - ethyl - 3 - methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate and 1 . 6 g concentrated hydrochloric acid whose concentration is 36 % are added into a 500 ml four - neck flask and the temperature is raised to 80 ˜ 85 ° c . after well stirring . and the reaction solution is kept warm tor 0 . 5 h after the gas of hydrochloride is inflated , and then cooled to the room temperature , standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer while the lower layer is water layer . the water layer is dehydrated trader vacuum and the gained ionic liquid can be recycled and reused . the organic layer is transferred into a 500 ml four - neck flask and is rectified under vacuum . alter desolventizing . 70 . 6 g 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride is finally provided ( 91 . 3 %) yield ). to a 1000 ml autoclave , 105 . 0 g the said rectified 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , 206 . 4 g triethylamine , 0 . 5 g palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenylphosphine ) diacetate , 122 g water and 262 . 5 g isopropyl alcohol are added . nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times and the temperature is raised to 70 ° c . at 70 ° c .˜ 75 ° c ., carbon monoxide is inflated until the pressure is not decreasing . after the reaction has finished , it is cooled to 40 ° c ., then the pressure is relieved , and nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times again , the reaction solution is transferred into a 2000 ml four - neck flask and then 180 . 8 g 30 % liquid caustic soda is added under the protection of nitrogen , which is stirred for 1 h at 60 ° c ., then standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer and the lower layer is water layer . 86 . 0 g 36 % hydrochloric acid is added dropwise into the water layer until ph = 1 . the solution is kept , warm for 1 h and filtered , dried under vacuum to give 95 . 7 g 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid ( 85 . 7 % yield ). finally , small amount of heavy metal capture agent and flocculant can be added into the filtrate and filtered again to give the catalyst . the gained catalyst after filtering can be recycled and reused . 36 . 0 g paraformaldehyde , 84 . 8 g p - xylene , 14 . 0 g 1 - butyl - 3 - methylimi - dazolium chloride and 2 . 4 g concentrated hydrochloric acid whose concentration is 36 % are added into a 250 ml four - neck flask and the temperature is raised to 80 ˜ 85 ° c . after well stirring . and the reaction solution is kept warm for 0 . 5 h after the gas of hydrochloride is inflated , and then cooled to the room temperature , standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer while the lower layer is water layer . the water layer is dehydrated under vacuum and the gained ionic liquid can be recycled and reused . the organic layer is transferred into a 250 ml four - neck flask and is rectified under vacuum . after desolventizing , 113 . 4 g 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride is finally provided ( 91 . 7 % yield ). to a 1000 ml autoclave , 92 . 8 g the said rectified 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , 142 . 4 g pyridine , 0 . 5 g palladium ( ii ) bis ( triphenylphosphine ) diacetate , 108 g water and 222 . 7 g tert - pentanol are added . nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times and the temperature is raised to 70 ° c . at 70 ° c .˜ 75 ° c ., carbon monoxide is inflated until the pressure is not decreasing . after the reaction has finished , it is cooled to 40 ° c ., then the pressure is relieved , and nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times again , the reaction solution is transferred into a 1000 ml four - neck flask and then 160 g 30 % liquid caustic soda is added under the protection of nitrogen , which is stirred for 1 h at 60 ° c ., then standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer and the lower layer is water layer . 76 . 0 g 36 % hydrochloric acid is added dropwise into the water layer until ph = 1 . the solution is kept warm for 1 h and filtered , dried under vacuum to give 85 . 1 g 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid ( 86 . 4 % yield ). finally , small amount of heavy metal capture agent and flocculant can be added into the filtrate and filtered again to give the catalyst . the gained catalyst after filtering can be recycled and reused . 42 g paraformaldehyde , 106 g p - xylene , 3 . 5 g 1 - octyl - 3 - methylimidazolium chloride and 3 . 3 g concentrated hydrochloric acid whose concentration is 36 % are added into a 500 ml four - neck flask and the temperature is raised to 80 ˜ 85 ° c . after well stirring . and the reaction solution is kept warm for 0 . 5 h after the gas of hydrochloride is inflated , and then cooled to the room temperature , standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer while the lower layer is water layer . the water layer is dehydrated under vacuum and the gained ionic liquid can be recycled and used . the organic layer is transferred into a 500 ml four - neck flask and is rectified under vacuum . after desolventizing , 142 . 4 g 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride is finally provided ( 92 . 1 % yield ). to a 1000 ml autoclave , 77 . 3 g the said rectified 2 , 5 - dimethylbenzyl chloride , 118 . 7 g pyridine , 0 . 6 g tetrakis ( triphenylphosphine ) palladium ( 0 ); 90 g water and 193 . 3 g isopropyl alcohol are added . nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times and the temperature is raised to 70 ° c . at 70 ° c .˜ 75 ° c ., carbon monoxide is inflated until the pressure is not decreasing . after the reaction has finished , it is cooled to 40 ° c ., then the pressure is relieved , and nitrogen is inflated to replace the air for three times again , the reaction solution is transferred into a 1000 ml four - neck flask and then 133 . 3 g 30 % liquid caustic soda is added under the protection of nitrogen , which is stirred for 1 h at 60 ° c ., then standing for layering . the upper layer is organic layer and the lower layer is water layer . 63 . 4 g 36 % hydrochloric acid is added dropwise into the water layer until ph = 1 . the solution is kept warm for 1 h and filtered , dried under vacuum to give 71 . 3 g 2 , 5 - dimethylphenylacetic acid ( 86 . 8 % yield ). finally , small amount of heavy metal capture agent and flocculant can be added into the filtrate and filtered again to give the catalyst . the filtered catalyst can be recycled and reused .

US-201113642808-A

a process for obtaining a starch and a protein or both from grain flour , the process steps comprising : providing grain flour ; mixing the grain flour with processed or fresh water to form a slurry ; separating the slurry into it at least two fractions , the at least two fractions including two or more of a heavy a - starch fraction , a protein and b - starch fraction , and a pentosan fraction ; and generating a biogas from at least one of the fractions from the separating step , the biogas being used for generating energy .

analogous to fig6 , the processing of the grain and of the resulting flour respectively in steps 100 to 102 , 201 to 205 and 301 to 306 can take place in the manner shown in fig6 or in the above - described process steps . however , in contrast to fig6 , according to illustrative embodiments of the process of fig2 to 5 , when the process is carried out , the b - starch is not obtained directly as a product but brought together with the substance flows from the 3 - phase separation of : step 102 , the pentosans ; the fiber sifting of step 302 and possibly step 401 as shown in , for example , fig1 - 5 ; the excess process water of step 501 ; the bran from the grinding of step 100 ; and , as a mixture , is subjected to a liquefaction at step 505 . as illustrated , as an example , in fig1 , different substance flows from the process are brought together in the liquefaction at step 505 . these are the pentosan fraction from step 102 and the excess of process water , such as from step 402 and starch recovery , as well as possibly additional process water excess from other process steps . in the liquefaction at step 505 , the substances contained in the flows fed into the liquefaction are subjected to an enzymatic as well as to a thermal treatment in order to split the remaining macromolecular carbon compounds , such as starch , celluloses , and hemicelluloses , into smaller units and to coagulate and precipitate the remaining protein . for the splitting of the macromolecular carbohydrates and the subsequent saccharification , various enzymes , such as cellulases , for example , genencor 220 and spezyme fred , for example , genencor , are added which become effective at different temperature ranges . the temperature ranges may be , for example , i : 40 ° c .- 60 ° c ., or 45 ° c .- 55 ° c ., or 50 ° c ., and ii : 80 ° c .- 95 ° c ., or 85 ° c .- 95 ° c ., or , 90 ° c . during this step - by - step temperature treatment , the proteins are denatured in a parallel manner and precipitate together with the fine fibers and phospholipoproteins as a so - called protein coagulate . together with this coagulate , phosphorus , sulfur and nitrogen compounds are also precipitated , which microbiologically can be reduced only with difficulty and over an extended period of time . the separation of these substances is advantageous for a good efficiency of the biogas system , as well as for the splitting of poly - and oligosaccharides into low - molecular compounds . another advantage , according to the process of present disclosure , is the possibility of a good processing of the remaining waste water from the methane reactor to process water in a membrane filtration system because the danger of clogging the membranes is rather low . in the subsequent process step of the phase separation , for example , at step 506 using , for example , a decanter , self - cleaning separator or 3 - phase separator , the thus precipitated solid constituents will then be separated from the liquid phase . in such a case , the solids are the residual solid constituents which could not be influenced by the enzymes and heat , as well as the coagulated proteins and phospholipoproteins , such as protein coagulate . this dehydrated mass can be further utilized as a feed product , a fertilizer or a combustion material , as suggested at step 507 . simultaneously , the content of p -, n - and s - compounds is thereby considerably reduced in the saccharified solution , which , advantageously , significantly improves a later anaerobic treatment . the dissolved low - molecular sugars from the mechanical separation are moved into an acidification reactor in which they are microbiologically metabolized to different carbon acids and alcohols . the implementation of this process takes place , for example , by fermentative microorganisms of the pseudomonas , clostridium , lactobacillus and bacteroides species . in an illustrative embodiment according to the present disclosure , the dwell time in such a process step , for example , at step 601 , may be assumed to be approximately 2 days . the metabolic products from the acidification step occurring in the acidogenesis are subsequently , in a second reactor , the so - called methane reactor , also microbiologically transformed to ethanoic acid , the syntrophomonas wolfei microorganism , for example , participating in step 602 , representing , methanogenesis . the obtained ethanoic acid will then be anaerobically metabolized by methane - forming agents , such as methanobacterium bryantii , to methane and carbon dioxide . the duration of this process step or the dwell time amounts to approximately 10 days , the reactor having to handle a cod load of approximately 15 - 25 kg 3 . the thus obtained gas mixture , or biogas , is collected and , in an engine - based cogeneration system , at , for example , step 603 , engine - based cogeneration system bhkw , and step 604 energy generation converted to energy , such as to thermal and electric energy , for example , by means of a gas turbine or a gas engine . during the anaerobic fermentation of the substrates in the methane reactor , a few residual substances and a little liquid still remain which have to be removed again from the reactor . in order to make the remaining water from the fermentation usable again , it is processed in a membrane system , for example , at step 701 . this system may be composed of one or more , for example , two or three steps . it could therefore be possible , according to the present disclosure , to use only a single membrane step , or reverse osmosis . when two membrane steps are used , for example , particles which have a diameter of & gt ; 1 μm can be separated first in a first step , or micro -/ ultrafiltration . the thus obtained permeate will then be largely demineralized in the 2 nd step by reverse osmosis , so that it can be used again as process water . when three membrane steps are used , for example , particles which have a diameter of & gt ; 1 μm can be separated first in a first step , or micro -/ ultrafiltration . in view of the permeate of the first step , a low - pressure reverse osmosis step would be conceivable , according to the present disclosure , with the advantage of a rather low energy consumption , and a high - pressure reverse osmosis would be conceivable , according to the present disclosure , as a third step . because of the enriched mineral and nutrient contents , the remaining residues at , for example , step 702 from the purification steps may possibly be sold as fertilizer . the permeate can again be used as process water and can be returned , for example , into the process water treatment or collection system . fig2 to 5 show different illustrative embodiments , according to the present disclosure , for carrying out the process for obtaining the energy carriers , the byproduct utilization , such as feed products , modified starch , as well as an added obtaining of process water . fig2 illustrates an implementation of the process in which the system part of step 401 for the b - starch fiber sifting is removed from the process because the fibers are returned again to this product flow in the later process . this approach has the result that the recovered starch from the recovery separator , at step 402 , has to be conducted back in front of the fiber sifting of step 302 of the a - starch so that the a - starch can be separated again from the fibers . fig3 describes an alternative use of the feed product obtained from variant b at step 507 . instead of using these residual constituents as feed products , the possibility exists , according to the present disclosure , of fermenting these substances , such as proteins , or residual fibers , etc ., also in a separate biogas system in the “ acidogenesis ” at step 601 ′ and acetogenesis at step 602 ′ which steps may be parallel to steps 601 and 602 , to obtain methane in order to increase the energy efficiency . fig4 illustrates another illustrative embodiment according to the present disclosure . in order to increase the effectiveness as a result of the specificity of the enzymes , the pentosans and the bran are moved into a separate liquefaction , at , for example , step 505 ′, where special pentanases and cellulases are used . the fine - grain starch and fine fibers from the recovery separator , the fiber sifting and the process water treatment are also moved into their own liquefaction , such as at step 505 . the flows from the separated liquefaction steps 505 and 505 ′ are brought together again before the mechanical separation of step 506 . furthermore , the process variant of fig5 should be indicated as an additional alternative . when implementing the process of this illustrative embodiment , a portion of the energy generation is not carried out for the benefit of a further product . in contrast to the preceding illustrative embodiments , the b - starch occurring in the course of the process is not used as an energy carrier in the gas fermentation but as a valuable product such as modified starch . in the following , the energy balance of the illustrative process or processes , according to the present disclosure are considered as an example . the following reaction equation is used as a starting or simplified basis for the theoretical analysis of the gas yield and the energy that can be obtained therefrom : 2 c 6 h 12 o 6 → 6 ch 4 + 6 co 2 approximately 0 . 2667 kg methane is therefore obtained from 1 kilogram starch . this amount of methane has an energy value of 13 . 4 mj . an energy quantity of 13 . 4 gj can therefore be obtained per one ton of starch . a medium - sized wheat starch facility processes approximately 10 tons of flour per hour , which corresponds to a grain quantity of approximately 12 . 5 t / h . for obtaining energy , approximately 2 , 900 kg usable carbohydrates are obtained from the above . a facility of this processing capacity can therefore theoretically produce approximately 10 . 8 mwh of energy in one hour . the estimated energy demand of such a facility , without b - starch drying , fiber drying and evaporating system , amounts to approximately 307 . 5 kwh / t of flour electrically and 2 . 2 gj / t of flour thermally , that is , steam . when a realistic efficiency of η = 0 . 3 is assumed for converting methane gas to electric energy , 326 kwh of electric energy per ton of flour can be obtained from the gas obtained from the starch . furthermore , when it is assumed that , by means of a coupling of power and heat , the lost energy during the generating of current can be converted to heat and finally steam , 2 . 74 gj / t of flour as energy are still available for producing steam . with an efficiency of η = 0 . 88 , an energy quantity of 2 . 4 gj is therefore obtained , which can influence the generating of steam . it is illustrated that the required energy for the operation of the facility is covered from the obtained energy of the biogas production , and the latter could therefore be operated self - sufficiently with respect to energy . for the purpose of comparison , the following values for the gas yield from biogas facilities can be found in literature : from 290 kg carbohydrates / t of flour , an energy quantity of approximately 1 , 145 . 5 kwh / t of flour can therefore be obtained , at facility capacity of 10 t / h corresponding to 11 . 45 mwh . although the present disclosure has been described and illustrated in detail , it is to be clearly understood that this is done by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation . the scope of the present disclosure is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims .

US-52591908-A

a method for selectively heating a reducing agent line of an scr device during operation of an exhaust gas purification system of an internal combustion engine and a device for exhaust gas purification , include a supply tank for a reducing agent for scr applications , a device for introducing the reducing agent into an exhaust line of an internal combustion engine and at least one reducing agent line for fluidically connecting the supply tank to the device .

referring now in detail to the figures of the drawing for explaining the invention and the technical field in more detail by showing particularly preferred structural variants to which the invention is not restricted , and first , particularly , to fig1 thereof , there is seen a diagrammatic illustration of a motor vehicle 18 having an internal combustion engine 7 , an exhaust gas line 6 , a device 5 for introducing a reducing agent 4 at a point along the exhaust gas line 6 , and an exhaust gas purification or emission control system 20 having a device 1 for exhaust gas purification or emission control in the vehicle 18 . the device 5 is connected in this case through a reducing agent line 8 to a supply tank 2 in which a sufficient quantity of the reducing agent 4 is held . the reducing agent line 8 can be divided in this case , over parts of its extent , into a plurality of zones 21 in which a conduction away of heat or heat removal 10 can be measured and / or calculated . at the same time , identical zones 21 or other zones 21 are provided , in which heating energy , for example in the form of a heater 3 , can be fed to the reducing agent line 8 . significant influencing factors on the conduction away of heat 10 from the reducing agent line 8 are the velocity 23 of the motor vehicle 18 and / or ambient temperature 22 . in particular , heat - emitting components 24 of the vehicle , for example the internal combustion engine 7 and exhaust gas line 6 , are significant influencing factors on the supply of heating energy . fig2 is a diagrammatic view of a motor vehicle 18 with an internal combustion engine 7 and an exhaust gas line 6 , wherein a device 5 for introducing a reducing agent 4 , in particular a reducing agent 4 for reducing the nitrogen oxides in an exhaust gas , is provided at a point along the exhaust gas line 6 . the device 5 is connected in this case through a reducing agent line 8 to a supply tank 2 in which a sufficient quantity of the reducing agent 4 , in particular a reducing agent precursor , is held . the reducing agent line 8 is laid in this case in wind - protected regions of the motor vehicle 18 along parts of its extent , in particular it benefits at points near to the engine from the dissipated heat generated there so that additional lining or insulation of the reducing agent line 8 does not necessarily have to be provided in these sections . however , in other parts of the reducing agent line 8 , the latter is subjected to a gas 11 , in particular an air stream , which is caused , for example , by the velocity 23 of the motor vehicle 18 . the gas 11 would increase the conduction away of heat or heat removal 10 of the reducing agent line 8 in this region . therefore , in these regions , a wind protection element 9 is provided which can at least reduce the conduction away of heat 10 by the gas 11 flowing past , in particular the dynamic wind . the wind protection element 9 is disposed in this case at a distance 12 from the reducing agent line 8 . fig3 is a diagrammatic , perspective view of an exposed section of the reducing agent line 8 which is covered against or with respect to a gas 11 flowing past , in particular a dynamic wind , by a wind protection element 9 over a certain circumferential region . it is illustrated therein that the wind protection element 9 is connected to the reducing agent line 8 at least in a region by a connection 15 . the connection 15 has an insulation device 16 which is intended to prevent additional conduction away of heat or heat removal 10 from the reducing agent line 8 to the mass of the wind protection element 9 . the wind protection element 9 is disposed at a distance 12 from the reducing agent line 8 . this distance 12 is defined as a distance between the surfaces of the wind protection element 9 and of the reducing agent line 8 which face one another . the wind protection element 9 is , in particular , embodied with a round shape and covers the line 8 over a circumference 13 of its surface in the region of at least one cross section 14 . in this context , the reducing agent line 8 is covered over an angular range 17 , starting from the center point of the reducing agent line 8 , so that conduction away of ambient air of the reducing agent line 8 near to the surface as a result of a gas 11 flowing past is avoided . the shape of the wind protection element 9 can also be adapted , in particular , to the position of the reducing agent line 8 , and can have at least partially reinforcing structures 19 which increase the dimensional stability of the wind protection element 9 .

US-201113026436-A

ims apparatus has an inlet with a preconcentrator opening into a reaction region where analyte molecules are ionized and passed via a shutter to a drift region for collection and analysis . a pump and filter arrangement supplies a flushing flow of clean gas to the housing in opposition to ion flow . a pressure pulser connects with the housing and is momentarily switched to cause a short drop in pressure , in the housing to draw in a bolus of analyte sample from the preconcentrator . just prior to admitting a bolus of sample , the pump is turned off so that the flushing flow drops substantially to zero , thereby prolonging the time the analyte molecules spend in the reaction region .

with reference first to fig1 , the apparatus takes the form of an ion mobility spectrometer (“ ims ”) having a generally tubular housing 1 with an analysis or drift region 2 towards its right - hand end ( as shown in fig1 ) and an ionization or reaction region 3 towards its opposite left - hand end ( as shown in fig1 ). an inlet conduit 4 opens at one end 5 to air or another source of gas or vapor to be sampled and analyzed . air or gas is drawn through the conduit 4 by means of a pump 6 connected at the opposite end of the inlet conduit 4 . at some point along the conduit a capillary passage 7 communicates between the conduit 4 and the interior of the reaction region 3 so that molecules of interest can pass from the conduit 4 into the reaction region 3 . there are various other conventional arrangements by which substances can be admitted to the apparatus , such as utilizing a pin - hole , a membrane , or other similar apparatus . a pressure pulser 8 , which may be an electromagnetic transducer similar to a loudspeaker , is connected to the housing 1 in the manner described in u . s . pat . no . 6 , 073 , 498 , to taylor et al ., which is hereby incorporated herein by reference . the pressure pulser is operated intermittently , momentarily to reduce pressure in the housing 1 and hence draw sample vapor or gas into the reaction region 3 as a bolus . a preconcentrator 9 may be included in the inlet conduit 4 or in the capillary passage 7 into the apparatus itself . the reaction region 3 contains apparatus to ionize molecules of the analyte substance , such as a corona discharge point 10 , at a high potential . the reaction region 3 and the drift region 2 are both at atmospheric pressure or just slightly below atmospheric pressure . the reaction region 3 and the drift region 2 may be separated from one another by an optional , conventional , electrostatic shutter 11 such as a bradbury nielson gate by which the flow of ions into the drift region 2 may be controlled . the drift region 2 has a series of pairs of electrodes 12 on opposite sides thereof which are longitudinally spaced from one another along the length of the drift region 2 . a voltage supply 13 applies a voltage to each electrode pair 12 , which voltage increases from the left to the right along the length of the drift region ( as shown in fig1 ) so that ions passed by the electrostatic shutter 11 are subject to a voltage gradient , which draws them along the length of the drift region 2 . a collector plate 14 mounted at the far , right - hand end of the drift region 2 ( as shown in fig1 ) collects ions after passage along the drift region 2 . the charge produced by each ion when it impacts the collector plate 14 is supplied as an electrical signal to a processor unit 15 . the processor unit 15 analyzes the signals to produce spectra representative of the mobility of the different ions detected and supplies these to a display or other utilization apparatus 16 . as in a conventional ims apparatus , a gas flow system 20 provides a flow of clean dry air along the inside of the housing 1 against the flow of the ions . the gas flow system includes a pump 21 with molecular sieve inlet and outlet filters 22 and 23 respectively located at its inlet and outlet . the inlet filter 22 connects with an inlet pipe 24 , which opens into the housing 1 towards the inlet end of the reaction region 3 ( shown on the left end in fig1 ). the outlet filter 23 connects with an outlet pipe 25 , which opens into the housing 1 towards the downstream end of the drift region 2 ( shown on the right end in fig1 ). the pump 21 operates to draw gas from the reaction region 3 so that it flows through the first filter 22 , the pump 21 , and the second filter 23 before flowing back into the housing 1 at the right - most end of the drift region 2 ( as shown in fig1 ). the apparatus differs from conventional ims apparatus . the apparatus of the present invention is arranged so that initially the gas flow system 20 supplies clean dry gas to the housing 1 before a sample gas or vapor is admitted . just prior to triggering the pressure pulser 8 to introduce a bolus of the sample gas or vapor , the gas flow to the housing 1 , and in particular to the reaction region 3 , is reduced to zero or near zero by turning off the pump 21 . the pressure pulser 8 is then triggered momentarily to inject a sample of analyte gas or vapor into the reaction region 3 . alternatively , the pressure pulser 8 could be dispensed with and sample gas or vapor just allowed to diffuse into the reaction region 3 . ions are produced continuously by the corona discharge point 10 from what is a substantially stationary sample cloud , which has a considerably increased residence time compared with conventional apparatus having a continuous gas flow . this enables the processor unit 15 to produce continuous ion mobility spectra . the ionization process does not significantly deplete the sample gas or vapor so a much longer average of ion mobility spectra can be acquired . this increases the signal - to - noise ratio . just before the next analysis is required , the pump 21 is restarted to drive clean dry air through the apparatus and flush out the previous sample in the reaction region 3 . it is not essential to stop gas flow through the entire housing 1 ; rather , it is only necessary to stop or substantially reduce gas flow through the reaction region 3 in order to increase the residence time during which the sample gas or vapor is subject to ionization . some ims apparatus have separate gas flow paths in the drift region and the reaction region . an ims apparatus of this kind that is adapted to the present invention is shown in fig2 , where equivalent items to those in fig1 are given the same reference numerals with the addition of 100 . it can be seen that the inlet pipe 124 that is connected with a first filter 122 is located towards the right - most , downstream end of the reaction region 103 close to the electrostatic shutter 111 . a spur pipe 126 forms a part of a secondary circuit and connects between the outlet of the pump 121 and a second filter 123 . the spur pipe 126 extends to the inlet of a third molecular sieve filter 127 . the outlet of the third filter 127 connects to a secondary outlet pipe 128 , which opens into the housing 101 via a valve 129 , with the opening of the secondary outlet pipe 128 into the housing 101 being located toward the left - hand end of the reaction region 103 ( as shown in fig2 ). the valve 129 is controlled electrically by the processor unit 115 via a cable 130 . in this arrangement , the pump 121 operates continuously so that clean air flows in at the collector end of the drift region 102 and flows out close to the electrostatic shutter 111 at the downstream end of the reaction region 103 . when the processor 115 opens the valve 129 , gas will also flow via the spur pipe 126 , the third filter 127 , and the secondary outlet pipe 128 into the reaction region 103 . this gas will flow to the right and will pass out of the region 103 via the outlet pipe 124 . when a sample is to be admitted , the processor 115 closes the valve 129 to prevent gas entering the reaction region 103 via the pipe 128 . some gas will still flow through the reaction region 103 from the drift region 102 , since this part of the gas flow is still operating , but this will be through a smaller portion of the reaction region 103 so the residence time for which the sample is exposed to the ionization effect will still be increased . the present invention is particularly suited to detection arrangements where the sample is administered to the apparatus in the form of a bolus , such as by means of a preconcentrator inlet system . the invention is not necessarily confined to ims apparatus , but may also be applicable to other detection apparatus . although the foregoing description of the present invention has been shown and described with reference to particular embodiments and applications thereof , it has been presented for purposes of illustration and description and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the particular embodiments and applications disclosed . it will be apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art that a number of changes , modifications , variations , or alterations to the invention as described herein may be made , none of which depart from the spirit or scope of the present invention . the particular embodiments and applications were chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated . all such changes , modifications , variations , and alterations should therefore be seen as being within the scope of the present invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly , legally , and equitably entitled . while the current application recites particular combinations of features in the claims appended hereto , various embodiments of the invention relate to any combination of any of the features described herein whether or not such combination is currently claimed , and any such combination of features may be claimed in this or future applications . any of the features , elements , or components of any of the exemplary embodiments discussed above may be claimed alone or in combination with any of the features , elements , or components of any of the other embodiments discussed above .

US-201314082827-A

techniques for managing access to a file allocation table in an external storage device are disclosed . according to one aspect of the techniques , an accelerated apparatus , as an interface , is provided between an external storage and a device . the accelerated apparatus comprises a center controlling unit , a fat storage sector calculating unit , a fat storage sector accessing unit , a buffer and a result storing unit and configured to manage the access to the fat so that the host process is freed up to perform other tasks .

the detailed description of the present invention is presented largely in terms of procedures , steps , logic blocks , processing , or other symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble the operations of devices or systems contemplated in the present invention . these descriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled in the art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art . reference herein to “ one embodiment ” or “ an embodiment ” means that a particular feature , structure , or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the invention . the appearances of the phrase “ in one embodiment ” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment , nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments . further , the order of blocks in process flowcharts or diagrams or the use of sequence numbers representing one or more embodiments of the invention do not inherently indicate any particular order nor imply any limitations in the invention . in the prior art , a host processor provided in a device , such as a personal computer , a notebook computer or some consumer electronic products , accesses directly a fat stored in an external storage device , such as a hard disk , a floppy disk and a memory card , thus occupying some resources of the host processor . different from the prior art , the present invention provides apparatus and method for accessing the fat with minimum impact on the host processor . according to one aspect of the present invention , a host processor is freed up while a fat in an external storage device is accessed . referring to fig3 , there shows a functional block diagram of an exemplary accelerated apparatus 300 . depending on implementation , the accelerated apparatus 300 might be embedded into an external storage device , integrated with a processor , into a chip or a standalone device . in one embodiment as shown in fig3 , the accelerated apparatus 300 comprises a center controlling unit ( ccu ) 301 , a fat storage sector calculating unit ( fat storage sector cu ) 302 , a fat storage sector accessing unit ( fat storage sector au ) 303 , a buffer 304 , a data pre - access unit 305 , and a result saving unit 306 . an external storage device 310 shown in fig3 is provided for storing the fat and other files . a result storing unit 307 is a random access memory which a host processor ( not shown ) can directly access . in one embodiment , the result storing unit 307 may be integrated with the accelerated apparatus 300 , such as being combined with the result saving unit 306 as one unit . optionally , the result saving unit 306 can be configured to function as the result storing unit 307 in another embodiment . the buffer 304 typically has the volume of 512 bytes but may have any predefined capacity , such as 1024 bytes or 2048 bytes etc . the ccu 301 comprises a reading subunit 3011 , a new creating subunit 3012 , a revising subunit 3013 and a deleting subunit 3014 . the accelerated apparatus 300 is able to directly access the fat in the external storage device 310 in response to an accessing command of the host processor . according to the subunits of the ccu 301 , the accelerated apparatus 300 performs reading accessing , deleting accessing , revising accessing , new creating accessing functions . it is understood to those skilled in the art that not all subunits must be implemented in the ccu 301 . the detailed explanation about the accessing operation , including reading access , new creating access , deleting access and revising access , is described below . to facilitate the understanding of the present invention , the operation procedure of reading access to the fat in an external storage is described first . when a host processor makes a reading access request to read an object file stored in the external storage device 310 , a starting cluster number which is contained in a root directory of the external storage device 310 and assigned to the object file is sent to the accelerated apparatus 300 . as shown in fig6 which may be understood in conjunction with fig3 , at 601 , the ccu 301 obtains the starting cluster number of the object file and sends it to the fat storage sector cu 302 . at 602 , the fat storage sector cu 302 calculates the number of the fat storage sector in which the starting cluster number is stored and sends the calculating result to the fat storage sector au 303 . in the illustrated embodiment , the calculation of the fat storage sector cu 302 refers to the following formula : l ⁢ ⁢ b ⁢ ⁢ a = fat start + index × len unit 2 × size sector ⁢ ⁢ len unit = { 3 , fat ⁢ ⁢ 12 4 , fat ⁢ ⁢ 16 8 , fat ⁢ ⁢ 32 ( 1 ) where lba represents the number of the fat storage sector in which a part of the fat is stored , fat start represents the starting number of the fat storage sector , index represents the cluster index number and the starting cluster number serves as the first cluster index number ; size sector represents the volume of each fat storage sector , such as 512 byte , 1024 byte , 2048 byte , 4096 byte , and len unit represents the volume occupied by each cluster number . each cluster number in fat 12 , fat 16 and fat 32 occupies 3 , 4 , 8 bytes , respectively . at 603 , the fat storage sector au 303 reads out a part of fat stored in the fat storage sector determined at 602 and sends the part of fat to the buffer 304 . at 604 , the pre - accessing unit 305 reads out the content contained in the starting cluster number which is regarded as the first cluster index number . at 605 , the reading subunit 3011 of ccu 301 reads the content contained in the starting cluster number and stores it into the result saving unit 306 . at 606 , the reading subunit 3011 of ccu 301 sends the content contained in the starting cluster number to the fat storage sector cu 303 as the next cluster index number to repeat above processes until an ending cluster mark , determined by the reading subunit 3011 , is encountered . if this calculating result of the fat storage sector cu 302 , according to the next cluster index number , is equal to the last calculating result , the procedure is taken to 604 and continues the circle ; otherwise , the procedure is taken to 603 and continues the circle . when an ending cluster mark is encountered at 606 , the entity linked list of clusters assigned to the object file is collected into the result saving unit 306 , the reading access procedure of the accelerated apparatus 300 to the fat exists . lastly , the host processor is able to directly access the linked list of clusters assigned to the object file . generally , there are a lot of contiguous ranges of clusters allocated to a file . for example , referring to fig4 a , the number of the clusters allocated to a file is a , a + 1 , a + 2 , a + 3 , b , b + 1 , b + 2 , b + 3 , c + 1 , c + 2 , c + 3 , c + 4 , d . . . , respectively , where a , b , c , d represent different natural numbers , respectively . hence , the fat will contain the repeated content because each cluster number contains a pointer pointing to a contiguous cluster number . in order to further reduce the volume of the linked list of the clusters and speed up to access the fat , in a preferred embodiment , a packed method for compressing the fat is employed . referring now to fig5 , at 501 , the fat is obtained from an external storage device and a linked list of clusters assigned to a file is distilled from the fat . the apparatus 300 shown in fig3 may be used to fulfill the distilling at 501 . fig5 shows a flowchart or process of how to obtain the fat from the external storage device and distill the linked list of clusters of the file , where the linked list of clusters may be initially stored in the result saving unit 306 . in one embodiment , a conventional method to obtain the fat and distill the linked list of clusters may also be adapted at 501 of the packed method for compressing the fat . as an example , the linked list of the clusters assigned to a file shown in fig4 a is a , a + 1 , a + 2 , a + 3 , b , b + 1 , b + 2 , b + 3 , c + 1 , c + 2 , c + 3 , c + 4 , d . . . . at 502 , a contiguous range of clusters of the linked list of clusters is compressed into a pack record including location information which represents the cluster number in the illustrated embodiment , the first cluster and length information of the contiguous range of clusters . an example is illustrated in fig4 b , a first contiguous range of clusters is illustrated as a , a + 1 , a + 2 , a + 3 , so the first packed record includes a as the location information of the first cluster , and 4 as the length information . at 502 , the other contiguous ranges of clusters can be compressed . at 503 , the packed records , instead of the linked list of clusters , are stored in a random access memory in order which the contiguous ranges of clusters are located at the linked list of the clusters . in one embodiment , the pack records are stored in the result storing unit 307 which the host processor can directly access . at 504 , the file is accessed by the host processor according to the packed records , instead of the linked list of clusters . in one embodiment , the packed format of the linked list of clusters takes advantage of characteristic of contiguous range of clusters to further reduce volume of the linked list of clusters and speed up to access the fat . when the host processor makes a new create accessing request , referring now to fig7 that is to be understood in conjunction with fig3 , at 701 , ccu 301 obtains a cluster number from the host processor or a random cluster number , and subsequently sends it to the fat storage sector cu 302 as the first cluster index number . at 702 , the fat storage sector cu 302 calculates the number of the fat storage sector in which the cluster index number is stored and sends the calculating result to the fat storage sector au 303 , where the calculation of the fat storage sector cu 302 refers to the formula ( 1 ) mentioned above . at 703 , the fat storage sector au 303 read out a part of fat stored in the fat storage sector determined in at 702 and sends the part of fat to the buffer 304 . at 704 , the pre - accessing unit 305 reads out the content contained in the first cluster index number . at 705 , the new creating subunit 3012 of ccu 301 determines if the cluster of this cluster index number is free according to the content thereof . if yes , the new creating subunit 3012 stores the cluster index number into the result storing unit 307 by the result saving unit 306 . at 706 , the new creating subunit 3012 sends the cluster index number + n ( n represents the natural number greater than zero , such as 1 ) to the fat storage sector cu 303 as the next cluster index number to repeat the above steps until sufficient free clusters are collected , determined by the new creating subunit 3012 . if this calculating result of the next cluster index number is equal to the last , the procedure is taken to 704 and continues the circle ; otherwise , the procedure is taken to 703 and continues the circle . when there are sufficient free clusters collected into the result storing unit 307 , a new link list of free cluster is created in the fat , the new creating access procedure of the accelerated apparatus 300 to the fat exists . when there are no sufficient free spaces on the external storage device , an error message is fed back to the host processor and exits the procedure . eventually , the host processor writes data according to the linked list of the free clusters . when the host processor makes a revise accessing request and sends a new linked list of the clusters to the ccu 301 , referring now to fig8 that may be understood in conjunction with fig3 , at 801 , ccu 301 obtains the first cluster number from the host processor and subsequently sends the first cluster index number to the fat storage sector cu 302 as a first cluster index number . at 802 , the fat storage sector cu 302 calculates the number of the fat storage sector according to the above formula ( 1 ) and sends the calculating result to the fat storage sector au 303 . at 803 , the fat storage sector au 303 reads out a part of fat stored in the fat storage sector determined at 802 and sends the part of fat to the buffer 304 . at 804 , the revising subunit 3013 revises the content contained in the first cluster index number in buffer 304 according to the new linked list of the clusters via the pre - accessing unit 305 . at 805 , the fat storage sector au 303 writes the revised result back to the fat storage sector controlled by the revising subunit 3013 . at 806 , the ccu 301 obtains the next cluster number according the new linked list of clusters of the host processor and sends it to the fat storage sector cu 302 as the next cluster index number to repeat the above steps until a last cluster of the new link list of the host processor is encountered . when the host processor makes a delete accessing request and sends a first cluster number to the ccu 301 , referring now to fig9 which is to be understood in conjunction with fig3 , at 901 , ccu 301 obtains the first cluster number from the host processor and subsequently sends it to the fat storage sector cu 302 as a first cluster index number . at 902 , the fat storage sector cu 302 calculates the number of the fat storage sector according to the formula ( 1 ) and sends the calculating result to the fat storage sector au 303 . at 903 , the fat storage sector au 303 reads out a part of fat stored in the fat storage sector determined at 902 and sends the part of fat to the buffer 304 . at 904 , the pre - accessing unit 305 reads out the content contained in the first cluster index number . at 905 , the deleting subunit 3014 of ccu 301 receives the content of the first cluster number and revises the content in the first cluster index number into a free cluster mark and controls the fat storage sector au 303 to write the revised result back to the fat storage sector . at 906 , the deleting subunit 3014 sends the content , which is contained in the first cluster before revised , to the fat storage sector cu 303 as the next cluster index number until an ending cluster mark is encountered . one of the important features in the present invention is that a host processor is not sent the entire fat before an access request is made , instead the fat is managed by an accelerated apparatus so that the host processor is freed up to perform other tasks . other features , benefits and advantages may be appreciated from the above detailed description of the present invention . while the present invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments , the description is illustrative of the invention and is not to be construed as limiting the invention . various modifications to the present invention can be made to the preferred embodiments by those skilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims .

US-22661805-A

a self - closing door hinge arrangement including two hinges with the structure which enables the hinges to be bolted together so as to rotate about a common axis , thereby allowing the door to swing in a balanced and smooth manner .

fig2 and 5 show one hinge leaf 11 with a 90 ° bent out from an embracer - liked holder having two outer sockets 14 and , another hinge leaf 12 with a 90 ° bent out from a cylinder - like middle socket ( barrel ) 15 . there are two axially aligned holes 142 respective hollowed through each of the outer sockets 14 and in same size with the center hole 152 of the middle socket 15 so that one axle ( pintle ) 4 may be bolted through these holes when the socket part 15 of the hinge leaf 12 is placed between two outer sockets 14 of the other hinge leaf 11 . bolting axle 4 has a section inside the middle socket 15 with at least one undulating circular groove 46 ( two grooves shown in fig3 ), this groove each groove appearing as cycles of an sinusoidal wave with flattened peaks and valleys ; relative to a circle about the axle as is shown on fig4 . the three peaks ( highs ) and three troughs ( lows ) of each groove each subtending equal 60 ° arcs of the circle . when axle 4 bolts together the outer sockets 14 and the socket 15 one pair of fixing pins 41 crossly screw into two horizontal cross - holes 141 in outer sockets 14 and closely secure the axle 4 respectively on two horizontal cross - grooves 41 &# 39 ; of the axle 4 . for each groove , there are three screw receiver elements 151 each of which receive at their ends half of one steel ball 151 &# 39 ;. the three elements 151 for each groove 46 screw into three circle holes 153 of the socket 15 and press three corresponding balls the balls 151 &# 39 ; half - residing into the middle of three troughs ( valleys ) of the corresponding groove 46 while the door is closed . each groove 46 includes horizontal arc portion and climbs at each end thereof to connect to the peak . thus balls 151 &# 39 ; may roll inside the horizontal arc of the trough of the groove to enable the door to completely leave the door frame restriction without moving upward the balls then rolling up to the peak of the groove as shown on fig6 - a & amp ; 6 - b . by the time a person has opened the door sufficiently to pass through , the door will certainly be lifted up , and the door will be automatically closed by the gravity of the door forcing the socket down together with the balls 151 &# 39 ; rolling down on the same groove route back to the troughs . three steel balls 151 &# 39 ; equivalently positioned around the socket circle loading on each symmetrical wave groove 46 of the axle 4 thus balancingly supports the axle 4 in a balanced manner and causes little friction in turning the door . the distances from the peaks of each groove 46 to each neighboring cross grooves 41 &# 39 ; ( also the cross - holes 141 of the outer sockets ) are the same irrespective of the relative orientations of the hinge to the axle 4 and the hinge will therefore function in the same manner . when reversing each single hinge of the hinge - pair to the axle , this hinge - pair can be secured onto the other side of the door as fig6 - a & amp ; 6 - b show . thus the present invention will also be available for bilateral swinging purpose . axle 4 has one threaded end , other than that for bolting into the sockets part , joined by a jointer 49 . when joining two axles by screwing their threaded ends with the jointer 49 as shown on fig3 the two axles will form one common axle applied to two previously independent hinges . the resulting structure with the common axle has a common turning axis and therefore assures a perfectly swinging door . bolting axle 4 has a vertical hole 42 , having inner threads for receiving a screw cap 43 , and a latch bolt 45 may therefore be inserted through vertical hole 44 of the cap 43 into hollow 42 of the axle 4 . while latch 45 is normally placed in this way , it can if necessary be inserted through the hole 131 of the connecting part 13 of the hinge leaf 11 and the hole 161 of the connecting part 16 of another hinge leaf 12 while the door is closed to ensure that the door cannot be opened . inside the cap 43 &# 39 ;, there is certain magnetic material 47 sealed for keeping the latch bolt 45 &# 39 ; from dropping down where the lower hinge of the hinge - pair provides a vertical hole 42 , as fig5 shows . there might also be provided a rubber ring filled inside the bottom of the axle hollow 42 for further ensuring this effect .

US-3187879-A

a method for manufacturing camera modules for use in portable electronic devices , such as mobile phones , is provided . more specifically , in camera modules utilizing lens motion type auto focus actuation , permanent magnets associated with voice coil motors utilized in the auto focus system , generate magnetic flux that can interfere with the process of bonding image sensors to camera modules if the permanent magnets of different voice coil motors are positioned too closely . incorporating a magnetic shield into the manufacturing process to restrain or control the magnetic flux generated by the permanent magnets permits voice coil motors camera modules to be positioned closer together during the manufacturing process . this increases manufacturing throughput and reduces cost .

while the embodiments disclosed herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms , specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail . it should be understood , however , that it is not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed , but rather , the invention is to cover all modifications , equivalents , and alternatives of embodiments of the invention as defined by the claims . the disclosure is described with reference to the drawings , wherein like reference numbers denote substantially similar elements . fig4 a - 4 c are exploded views of a vcm - based camera module 10 . in general terms , the camera module 10 includes an axially - movable lens 12 , a frame member 14 , a voice coil motor top spring 16 , an electromagnetic interference ( emi ) shield 18 , a yoke 20 , a base 22 , and an image sensor 34 . the voice coil motor ( formed by the frame 14 , spring 16 , emi shield 18 , yoke 20 , and base 22 ) serves to adjust the position of the lens 12 . in general terms , and with respect to adjustment of the lens 12 position , the voice coil motor of the camera module 10 includes one or more permanent magnets 24 fixed to the yoke 20 and a wire coil associated with the lens housing 28 . the coil comprises a number of turns of wire and is positioned radially inwardly from the permanent magnet 24 . by driving current through the coil , an electromagnetic field is created which interacts with the magnetic field of the permanent magnet 24 to move the lens 12 and drive the lens 12 outwardly or inwardly along its optical axis 30 . changing direction of the current flowing in the coil causes the lens to move in opposite directions . moving the lens along its optical axis 30 , towards or away from the image sensor 34 , to focus a target image on the image sensor 34 . one or more springs 16 are utilized to assist in maintaining the orientation of the lens 12 within the camera module 10 and relative to the image sensor 34 and to provide a known resistive or opposing force to the movement imparted by the voice coil motor on the lens 12 . the permanent magnet 24 is generally in the form of a ring or cylinder or may comprise a plurality of arc - shaped magnets which are arranged around the perimeter of the inner wall of the yoke 20 . the permanent magnet ( s ) or magnets generates or creates a magnetic flux field that is always present . in contrast , the coil in combination with the yoke also creates a flux field when current flows through the coil . this latter flux field creates what is known as electromagnetic interference ( emi ), which may adversely affect nearby or adjacent electrical circuits . the emi shield 18 is designed to reduce the adverse effects of emi on surrounding electronics once the vcm is installed in an electronic device and is in operation with current flowing through the coil . however , during manufacture , the magnetic flux field created by the permanent magnet adversely affects the manufacturing process and , potentially , the acceptable production yield of camera modules . more specifically , the repelling force or magnetic interference from the permanent magnet ( s ) inside vcms in adjacent or proximally located camera modules can cause the camera modules to physically shift or move . this is particularly problematic during the manufacturing step of adhering the vcms to image sensors 34 on a printed circuit board or substrate where an adhesive is used to bond these two components to a printed circuit board to create camera modules . alignment of the vcm relative to the image sensor 34 is a critical step in achieving a camera module that outputs acceptable images . if the image sensor 34 and vcm are not properly aligned , the resulting image quality is adversely affected and the camera module formed with the misaligned vcm and image sensor 34 will not pass quality testing and will not be assembled into an electronic device . thus care must be taken to separate vcms and associated image sensors 34 a sufficient distance apart from adjacent or proximately positioned vcms and associated image sensors 34 such that , during the time period before the bonding adhesive fully cures , the repelling force or magnetic interference of nearby permanent magnets does not cause the position of a voice coil motor to shift relative to its associated image sensor 34 . because of the need for adequate spacing between adjacent or proximate vcms and associated image sensors 34 , the maximum number of vcms and associated image sensors 34 that can be processed at one time in any particular manufacturing process is physically limited . moreover , the existing emi shields 18 are not designed to resolve this problem , but are designed solely to restrict electromagnetic flux created by the coil and yoke when current is flowing in the coil . fig5 includes a schematic view of an array of image sensors 34 , such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor ( cmos ) image sensors or charge coupled device ( ccd ) image sensors . the image sensors 34 may be already attached to a single substrate , each attached to a separate substrate , each attached together ( e . g ., as part of a wafer ), or otherwise arranged . also arranged are a plurality of vcms ready for attachment to the image sensors and a plurality of magnetic shield caps 50 ready for attachment thereto . an optical axis 38 is shown for a representative one of the image sensors 34 and an optical axis 30 for a representative one of the lenses . as is shown in fig6 , an epoxy or other adhesive 36 is positioned around the outside of the active area of each of the sensors 34 . as part of the manufacturing process , the magnetic shield caps 50 are each placed over a corresponding one of the vcms . as shown in fig7 , the vcms ( with the magnetic shield caps thereon ) are next affixed to the image sensors 34 via the adhesive associated with each individual image sensor 34 . this may be accomplished with robotics , such as a pick and place machine , or manually . the entire array of assembled camera modules ( with magnetic shield caps thereon ) may then be positioned within an oven to cause curing of the adhesive 36 such that the vcm camera module and image sensor 34 are effectively bonded together to form a camera module . as part of the positioning and curing steps , the optical axis 30 of the lens 12 can be kept in alignment with the optical axis 38 of the image sensor 34 , since the magnetic shield caps 50 help to prevent the magnetic flux from the permanent magnets in the vcms from affecting the relative positioning of adjacent vcms . note that while the adhesive is described as having been applied to the top surface of the image sensor 34 , it may alternatively be applied to a substrate to which the image sensor 34 is applied . alternatively , some other means of connection of the vcms to the image sensors may be achieved . following curing the adhesive , the assembled camera modules may be separated or singulated resulting in individual camera modules , depending on whether the image sensors were still part of a wafer or otherwise arranged . as was illustrated in fig2 , without the magnetic shield caps , the image sensors 34 were arranged in four 4 × 4 arrays of image sensors . in this embodiment , the illustrated area is approximately 62 millimeters by 237 millimeters , and the individual image sensors are 8 . 5 millimeters by 8 . 5 millimeters and separated by a distance “ d .” to avoid or substantially reduce the repelling action of the permanent magnets in adjacent vcms , the distance “ d ” in the array shown in fig2 is approximately 4 . 5 millimeters . with this orientation and layout , the image sensors cover approximately 32 % of the surface area of the illustrated area , and 64 camera modules may be assembled in this space without magnetic interference causing undesired movement of adjacent vcms . as disclosed herein , the repelling force of the permanent magnets can be substantially constrained or controlled by adding one of the magnetic shield caps 50 on top of each vcm . an illustration of four of the magnetic shield caps is shown in fig5 . as discussed above , the magnetic shield cap 50 is positioned over the vcm before it is positioned on the adhesive 36 on the image sensor 34 . the magnetic shield cap 50 constrains and controls the flux generated by the permanent magnets . as shown , the shield cap 50 includes four side wall panels 46 that generally match the size of the side walls 48 of the vcm . the upper panel 51 is shown with an opening 52 such that it does not interfere with the optical functioning of the lens 12 . an example of material used for the magnetic shield cap 50 is a co - netic ® foil product , model aa6f006 - 4 , made by magnetic shield corporation of bensenville , ill ., having a thickness of 0 . 15 millimeters . in one embodiment , foil ranging in thickness from approximately 0 . 05 millimeters to 0 . 25 millimeters can provide effective shielding with minimum tooling costs , although other thicknesses may also suffice . as should be appreciated , many alternative versions of this material will work , with thicker shielding providing a higher shielding effect . further , while the caps have been shown as having an opening corresponding with the lens , but that may not be necessary in instances where the cap will be removed prior to operation . set forth below in table 1 is a comparison of repelling distance in millimeters of two adjacent vcms of the same construction . fifteen tests were performed involving 30 vcms of the same construction . in the first test , the repelling distance was determined without a magnetic shield cap 50 in place . in the second test , the repelling distance was determined with a magnetic shield cap 50 in place . for purposes of this test , the foregoing identified co - netic foil aa6f006 - 4 having a thickness of 0 . 15 millimeters . as can be seen , without a magnetic shield cap 50 in place , the average repelling distance was slightly under 5 millimeters , specifically 4 . 9866 millimeters . in comparison , with a magnetic shield cap 50 in place , the average repelling distance was reduced by a factor of 33 to 0 . 1518 millimeters . the resulting effect is that by using magnetic shield caps 50 during the adhesive curing stage of the manufacturing process , adjacent vcms may be positioned closer together to increase the through - put of the manufacturing process and reduce costs without sacrificing quality or yield . as shown in fig9 , using a magnetic shield , the same illustrated area as depicted in fig7 may comfortably hold 100 camera modules 10 during the curing process with the distance “ d ” separating the vcm camera assemblies modules approximately 1 . 75 millimeters . as a result , the number of camera modules 10 increases by more than 50 % using a substrate of the same size . the data in table 1 shows that the vcms may be positioned even closer together utilizing a magnetic shield cap 50 . however , the limiting factor is the ability for other tooling to cut the substrate and singulate the individual camera modules from each other . smaller or more precise tooling may allow even more camera assemblies modules to be utilized within the same area . in one embodiment the magnetic shield caps 50 are removed from the camera modules 10 following curing of the adhesive , either prior to or following singulation . the removed magnetic shield caps 50 may then be reused during the curing process of a subsequent batch of camera modules , thereby achieving further savings from re - use of the magnetic shield caps 50 . alternatively , it should be appreciated that the magnetic shield caps 50 may remain in place and be included into the final camera module . in such circumstances , the electromagnetic interference shield 18 may be completely removed from the vcm and replaced by the magnetic shield cap 50 . the magnetic shield cap 50 will control both the magnetic flux generated by the permanent magnets during the manufacturing process and also the emi shielding needed to control the electromagnetic flux generated by the electromagnetics sufficient to meet applicable standards . in another embodiment , not illustrated , multiple magnetic shield caps may be formed in a single integral piece . such a structure may reduce the manufacturing through put time and increase efficiencies in the manufacturing process . as previously alluded to , for static or slowly varying magnetic fields ( below about 100 khz ) the faraday shielding of the emi shield described above is ineffective . in these cases , shields made of high magnetic permeability metal alloys can be used , such as sheets of permalloy and mu - metal or with nanocrystalline grain structure ferromagnetic metal coatings . these materials do not block the magnetic field , as with electric shielding , but rather draw the field into the material , providing a path for the magnetic field lines around the shielded volume . one optimal shape for magnetic shields is thus a closed container surrounding the shielded volume . the effectiveness of this type of shielding depends on the material &# 39 ; s permeability , which generally drops off at both very low magnetic field strengths , and also at high field strengths where the material becomes saturated . so to achieve low residual fields , magnetic shields often include several enclosures , one inside the other , each of which successively reduces the field inside it . while the embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description , such illustration and description are to be considered as examples and not restrictive in character . for example , certain embodiments described hereinabove may be combinable with other described embodiments and / or arranged in other ways ( e . g ., process elements may be performed in other sequences ). accordingly , it should be understood that only example embodiments and variants thereof have been shown and described .

US-201313780032-A

the invention relates to a damascene chalcogenide memory cell structure . the damascene chalcogenide memory cell structure is fabricated under conditions that simplify previous process flows . the damascene chalcogenide memory cell structure also prevents volatilization of the chalcogenide memory material .

the invention generally relates to an apparatus used , in one aspect , as a memory structure . in one embodiment , the apparatus includes a volume of memory material between a pair of spacedly disposed conductors or signal lines . the apparatus also includes an electrode coupled to a volume of memory material and disposed between the volume of memory material and one conductor or signal line . the upper electrode is disposed in a damascene structure that simplifies process flow and solves processing problems that existed previously . the invention also relates to a method , including a method of forming a memory element . in one aspect , the method includes , between contacts formed on a substrate , introducing an upper electrode material into a damascene structure under process conditions that lead to higher product yield and lower field failures . the following description includes terms , such as upper , lower , first , second , etc . that are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as limiting . the embodiments of an apparatus or article of the present invention described herein can be manufactured , used , or shipped in a number of positions and orientation . reference will now be made to the drawings wherein like structures will be provided with like reference designations . in order to show the structures of the present invention most clearly , the drawings included herein are diagrammatic representations of integrated circuit structures . thus , the actual appearance of the fabricated structures , for example in a photomicrograph , may appear different while still incorporating the essential structures of the present invention . moreover , the drawings show only the structures necessary to understand the present invention . additional structures known in the art have not been included to maintain the clarity of the drawings . fig1 shows a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a memory array comprised of a plurality of memory elements presented and formed in the context of the invention . in this example , the circuit of memory array 5 includes an array with memory element 30 electrically interconnected in series with isolation device 25 on a portion of a chip . address lines 10 ( e . g ., columns ) and 20 ( e . g ., rows ) are connected , in one embodiment , to external addressing circuitry in a manner known to those skilled in the art . one purpose of the array of memory elements in combination with isolation devices is to enable each discrete memory element to be read and written without interfering with the information stored in adjacent or remote memory elements of the array . a memory array such as memory array 5 may be formed in a portion , including the entire portion , of a substrate . a typical substrate includes a semiconductor substrate such as a silicon substrate . other substrates including , but not limited to , substrates that contain ceramic material , organic material , or glass material as part of the infrastructure are also suitable . in the case of a silicon semiconductor substrate , memory array 5 may be fabricated over an area of the substrate at the wafer level and then the wafer may be reduced through singulation into discrete die or chips , some or all of the die or chips having a memory array formed thereon . additional addressing circuitry such as sense amplifiers , decoders , etc . may be formed in a similar fashion as known to those of skill in the art . fig2 - 15 illustrate the fabrication of representative memory element 15 of fig1 . fig2 shows a portion of substrate 100 that is , for example , a semiconductor substrate . in this example , a p - type dopant such as boron is introduced in a deep portion 110 . in one example , a suitable concentration of p - type dopant is on the order of above 5 × 10 19 - 1 × 10 20 atoms per cubic centimeters ( atoms / cm 3 ) rendering deep portion 110 of substrate 100 representatively p ++ . overlying deep portion 110 of substrate 100 , in this example , is an epitaxial portion 120 of p - type epitaxial silicon . in one example , the dopant concentration in epitaxial portion 120 is on the order of about 10 16 - 10 17 atoms / cm 3 . the introduction and formation of epitaxial portion 120 as p - type , and deep portion 110 may follow techniques known to those of skill in the art . fig2 also shows first shallow trench isolation ( sti ) structures 130 formed in epitaxial portion 120 of substrate 100 . as will become apparent in the subsequent discussion , sti structures 130 serve , in one aspect , to define the z - direction thickness of a memory element cell , with at this point only the z - direction thickness of a memory element cell defined . in another aspect , sti structures 130 serve to isolate individual memory elements from one another as well as associated circuit elements such as transistor devices formed in and on substrate 100 . sti structures 130 are formed according to techniques known to those skilled in the art . fig3 shows the structure of fig2 after a further fabrication operation in memory cell regions 135 a and 135 b . in one embodiment , memory cell regions 135 a and 135 b are introduced as strips with the x - direction dimension greater than the z - direction dimension . overlying epitaxial portion 120 of substrate 100 is first conductor or signal line material 140 . in one example , first conductor or signal line material 140 is n - type doped polysilicon formed by the introduction of , for example , phosphorous or arsenic to a concentration on the order of about 10 18 - 10 19 atoms / cm 3 such as n + silicon . in this example , first conductor or signal line material 140 serves as an address line , a row line such as row line 20 of fig1 . overlying first conductor or signal line material 140 is an isolation device such as isolation device 25 of fig1 . in one example , isolation device 25 is a pn diode formed of n - type silicon portion 150 that may have a dopant concentration on the order of about 10 17 - 10 18 atoms / cm 3 and p - type silicon portion 160 that may have a dopant concentration on the order of about 10 19 - 10 20 atoms / cm 3 . although a pn diode is shown , it is to be appreciated that other isolation structures are similarly suitable . such isolation devices include , but are not limited to , mos devices . referring to fig3 overlying isolation device 25 in memory cell regions 135 a and 135 b is a reducer material 170 of , in this example , a refractory metal silicide such as cobalt silicide ( cosi 2 ). reducer material 170 , in one aspect , serves as a low resistance material in the fabrication of peripheral circuitry such as addressing circuitry of the circuit structure on the chip . thus , reducer material 170 may not be required in terms of forming a memory element as described . nevertheless , because of its low resistance property , its inclusion as part of the memory cell structure between isolation device 25 and memory element 30 is utilized in this embodiment . fig4 shows the structure of fig3 after the introduction of a masking material 180 . as will become clear later , masking material 180 serves , in one sense , as an etch stop for a subsequent etch operation . fig5 schematically shows memory cell regions 135 a and 135 b in an xz plane . overlying the memory cell is masking material 180 . fig6 shows a cross - sectional side view of memory cell region 135 a through line b - b ′ of fig5 in an xy perspective . in one embodiment , a suitable material for masking material 180 is a dielectric material such as silicon nitride ( si 3 n 4 ) although other material may be used such as an organic resist . fig7 shows the structure of fig6 from an xy perspective after patterning of the x - direction thickness of the memory cell material to form a trench 190 . fig7 shows two memory cells 145 a and 145 b patterned from memory cell region 135 a depicted in fig5 . the patterning may be accomplished using conventional techniques for etching , in this example , refractory metal silicide and silicon material to the exclusion of masking material 180 . the definition of the x - direction thickness involves , in one embodiment , an etch to conductive material 150 ( n - type silicon in this embodiment ) of the memory line stack to define memory cells 145 a and 145 b of memory cell region 135 a . in the case of an etch , the etch proceeds through the memory line stack to , in this example , a portion of a conductor or signal line that is in this case conductive material 150 . a timed etch may be utilized to stop an etch at this point . following the patterning , n - type dopant is introduced at the base of each trench 190 to form pockets 200 having a dopant concentration on the order of about 10 18 - 10 20 atoms / cm 3 to form an n + region between memory cells 145 a and 145 b . pockets 200 serve , in one sense , to maintain continuity of a row line . dielectric material 210 of , for example , silicon dioxide material is then introduced over the structure to a thickness on the order of 100 å to 50 , 000 å . fig8 shows the structure of fig7 after the formation of trenches 220 through dielectric materials 210 and masking material 180 to reducer material 170 . the formation of trenches 220 may be accomplished using etch patterning with an etchant ( s ) for etching dielectric material 210 and masking material 180 and selective to reducer material 170 such that reducer 170 may serve as an etch stop . fig9 shows the structure of fig8 after the conformal introduction of electrode material 230 . in one example , electrode material 230 is polycrystalline semiconductor material such as polycrystalline silicon . in another embodiment , the electrode material 230 is a metal compound film that is made from a refractory metal and at least one of nitrogen and silicon . the introduction is conformal in the sense that electrode material 230 is introduced along the side walls and base of trench 220 such that electrode material 230 is in contact with reducer material 170 . the conformal introduction of electrode material 230 that is a deposition process , may follow conventional introduction techniques known to those skilled in the art including chemical vapor deposition ( cvd ) techniques and physical vapor deposition ( pvd ) techniques . for simplicity , electrode material 230 is presumed to be deposited and treated , if necessary , such that the inventive process may continue . fig1 is an illustration of substrate 100 after introducing a second dielectric 250 into recess 280 , and after planarization processing such as chemical mechanical planarization ( cmp ) to form a lower electrode upper surface 240 . after cmp , an optional adhesion layer 260 is formed over lower electrode upper surface 240 . adhesion layer 260 may be selected from ti , zr , and the like . adhesion layer 260 may also be selected from w and the like . adhesion layer 260 may also be selected from , tin , zrn , wn , and the like . adhesion layer 260 may also be selected from tisin , zrsin , wsin , and the like . fig1 shows the structure of fig1 after further processing . after the formation of optional adhesion layer 260 , an ild layer 270 is formed over lower electrode upper surface 240 that will serve as a portion of the damascene structure of the present invention . ild layer 270 may be referred to as a dielectric layer 270 . fig1 illustrates substrate 100 after further processing . a recess 280 is formed in dielectric layer 270 . recess 280 exposes lower electrode upper surface 240 . it may also be understood that exposing lower electrode upper surface 240 may actually be exposing adhesion layer 260 that may be in direct contact with lower electrode upper surface 240 . in any event , a phase - change material 290 , also referred to as a memory material is formed in recess 280 that is in contact with lower electrode upper surface 240 . where adhesion layer 260 is present , it is understood that phase - change material 290 is in contact with lower electrode upper surface 240 through the medium of adhesion layer 260 . fig1 a is a detail section taken along the line 13 — 13 from fig1 . fig1 a illustrates a portion of substrate 100 after further processing . in fig1 a , lower electrode 230 is depicted disposed in dielectric material 210 , and lower electrode upper surface 240 is disposed adjacent the optional adhesion layer 260 . recess 280 in dielectric layer 270 has been filled with an electrically conductive material 315 that will become a select line such as a row select or a column select . optionally , recess 270 is first prepared with at least one barrier layer . in fig1 a , a first barrier layer 300 is conformally deposited in the recess over lower electrode upper surface 240 . alternatively , a second barrier layer 310 is formed over first barrier layer 300 . the process of forming first barrier layer 300 and alternatively second barrier layer 310 may be carried out by cvd or pvd . where the select line electrode that will be primarily made from electrically conductive material 315 is aluminum , first barrier layer 300 is preferably titanium , a titanium alloy , or the like . second barrier layer 310 may be titanium nitride t x n y and may be formed in either stoichiometric or other solid solution ratios . second barrier layer 310 may be formed by pvd or cvd , or it may be thermally formed from a portion of first barrier layer 300 . in another embodiment , where the select line electrode that will be primarily made from electrically conductive material 315 is copper , a copper alloy , or the like , first barrier layer 300 is preferably tantalum , a tantalum alloy , or the like . second barrier layer 310 may be tantalum nitride ta x n y and may be formed in either stoichiometric or other solid solution ratios . second barrier layer 310 may be formed by pvd or cvd , or it may be thermally formed from a portion of first barrier layer 300 . in another embodiment of the present invention , dielectric layer 270 is made of a first dielectric layer 272 and a second dielectric layer 274 as illustrated in fig1 b . first dielectric layer 272 and second dielectric layer 274 are made of differing materials such that an etch to form recess 280 will leave a first breach in first dielectric layer 272 with a first width 282 and a second breach in second dielectric layer 272 with a second width 284 . it is illustrated in fig1 b that first width 282 is greater than second width 284 . as the phase - change material 292 is formed in recess 280 of fig1 c , second width 284 acts to cause phase - change material 292 to have a width that may reflect the dimension thereof . by this method , phase - change material 292 has less likelihood of contact to the wall 276 of recess 280 . following the formation of phase - change material 292 first barrier layer 300 and second barrier layer 310 may be formed as illustrated in fig1 c . because first barrier layer 300 has better adhesion to the wall 276 of recess 280 than phase - change material 292 that is chalcogenide or the like , the use of second dielectric layer 274 therefore facilitates better retention of phase - change material 292 within recess 280 because of a deposition shadow that it casts in the direction of lower electrode 230 , either upon adhesion layer 260 , or if adhesion layer 260 is not present , upon second dielectric 250 . in any event , adhesion of first barrier layer 300 to wall 276 of recess 280 acts as a retainer or “ clamp ” to hold in , either phase - change material 290 as depicted in fig1 a or phase - change material 292 as depicted in fig1 c . because of the preference to avoid contact of phase - change material 292 with wall 276 of recess 280 , pvd is preferably used to thereby create a shadow deposition of phase - change material 292 , wherein the shadow is created by second width 284 of second dielectric layer 274 . in one embodiment , collimated deposition of phase - change material is used to resist deposition of the memory material upon wall 276 . adhesion strength of first barrier layer 300 is preferably on the order of about 1 kpsi to about 10 kpsi , preferably above about 7 kpsi . fig1 shows the structure of fig1 after the introduction of a volume of memory material 290 ( represented as memory element 30 in fig1 ) after deposition of conductive material 315 , and after a cmp process or the like to establish an upper electrode upper surface 317 . in one example , memory material 290 is a phase change material . in a more specific example , memory material 290 includes a chalcogenide element ( s ). examples of phase change memory material 290 include , but are not limited to , compositions of the class of tellerium - germanium - antimony ( te x ge y sb z ) material . the volume of memory material 290 , in one example according to current technology , is introduced and patterned with a thickness in a range from about 100 å to about 1 , 200 å , preferably from about 300 å to about 900 å , and most preferably on the order of about 600 å . overlying the volume of memory material 290 in the structure of fig1 , are the barrier materials 300 and 310 of , for example , titanium ( ti ) and titanium nitride ( tin ), respectively . the barrier materials serve , in one aspect , to inhibit diffusion between the volume of memory material 290 and the second conductor or signal line material 315 overlying the volume of memory material 290 ( e . g ., second electrode 10 as depicted in fig1 ). overlying barrier materials 300 and 310 is second conductor or signal line material 315 . in this example , second conductor or signal line material 315 serves as an address line , a column line ( e . g ., column line 10 of fig1 ). second conductor or signal line material 315 is patterned to be , in one embodiment , generally orthogonal to first conductor or signal line material 140 ( column lines are orthogonal to row lines ). second conductor or signal line material 315 is , for example , an aluminum material , such as an aluminum alloy , or a copper material such a copper alloy , or the like . fig1 shows the structure of fig1 after the introduction of an upper dielectric layer 320 over upper surface 317 of second conductor or signal line material 315 . upper dielectric layer 320 is , for example , sio 2 or other suitable material that overlies both the dielectric layer 270 , the second conductor or signal line material 315 , and the memory material 290 to electronically isolate such structure . following introduction , upper dielectric layer 320 is planarized and a via 330 is formed in a portion of the structure through upper dielectric layer 320 , dielectric layer 270 , dielectric layer 210 , and masking material 180 to reducer material 170 . the via 330 may be etched in a two - etch process etch . the first etch process may be a fast oxide etch that stops on masking material 180 . the second etch process may be a slow nitride etch ( if masking material 180 is a nitride ) that stops on silicon or silicide . the via 330 is filled with conductive material 340 such as tungsten ( w ) and barrier material 350 such as a combination of titanium ( ti ) and titanium nitride ( tin ). techniques for introducing upper dielectric layer 320 , forming and filling conductive vias , and planarizing are known to those skilled in the art . the structure shown in fig1 also shows additional conductor or signal line material 360 introduced and patterned to mirror that of first conductor or signal line material 140 ( e . g ., row line ) formed on substrate 100 . mirror conductor line material 360 , if present , mirrors first conductor or signal line material 140 and is coupled to first conductor or signal line material 140 through a conductive via . by mirroring a doped semiconductor such as n - type silicon , mirror conductor line material 360 serves , in one aspect , to reduce the resistance of conductor or signal line material 140 in a memory array , such as memory array 5 illustrated in fig1 . a suitable material for mirror conductor line material 360 includes an aluminum material , such as an aluminum alloy , or a copper material such as a copper alloy . in the above description of forming a memory element such as memory element 15 in fig1 an electrode is described between a memory material and conductors or signal lines ( e . g ., row lines and column lines ) that has improved electrical characteristics . in a first embodiment , the resistivity of the electrode is modified by fabricating an electrode of a first material ( polycrystalline silicon ) having a first resistivity and a second material ( e . g ., sic / poly or sio 2 / poly ) of a second higher resistivity . the higher resistivity material is located adjacent , either proximally or directly , the volume of memory material . in this manner , a supplied voltage from second conductor or signal line material 320 or first conductor or signal line material 140 to the memory material may be near the volume of memory material and dissipation of energy to cause a phase change may be minimized . in a second embodiment , the resistivity of the electrode is established by formation a metal compound film such as a refractory metal . the device uses a lower electrode material that is a high resistivity metal compound . the high resistivity metal compound may be a refractory metal compound such as tan , tin , wn , tasin , tisin , wsin , tasi , tisi , and wsi . the discussion detailed the formation of one memory element 30 of memory array 5 . other memory elements of memory array 5 may be fabricated in the same manner . it is to be appreciated that many , and possibly all , memory elements of memory array 5 , along with other integrated circuit circuitry , may be fabricated simultaneously . fig1 presents a graphical representation of the setting and resetting of a volume of phase change memory material . referring to fig1 setting and resetting memory element 15 ( addressed by column line 10 a and row line 20 a ) involves , in one example , supplying a voltage to column line 10 a to introduce a current into the volume of memory material 30 . the current causes a temperature increase at the volume of memory material 30 . referring to fig1 , to amorphize a volume of memory material , the volume of memory material is heated to a temperature beyond the amorphisizing temperature , t m . once a temperature beyond t m is reached , the volume of memory material is quenched or cooled rapidly ( by removing the current flow ). the quenching is accomplished at a rate , t 1 , that is faster than the rate at which the volume of memory material 30 can crystallize so that the volume of memory material 30 retains its amorphous state . to crystallize a volume of memory material 30 , the temperature is raised by current flow to the crystallization temperature for the material and retained at that temperature for a sufficient time to crystallize the material . after such time , the volume of memory material is quenched ( by removing the current flow ). in each of these examples of resetting and setting a volume of memory material 30 , the importance of concentrating the temperature delivery at the volume of memory material 30 is illustrated . one way this is accomplished is modifying a portion of the electrode as described above . another way is to use a metal compound film as described above . the inset of fig1 shows memory cell 15 having an electrode with modified portion 35 ( illustrated as a resistor ) to concentrate heat ( current ) at the volume of memory material 30 . in the preceding example , the volume of memory material 30 was heated to a high temperature to amorphize the material and reset the memory element ( e . g ., program 0 ). heating the volume of memory material to a lower crystallization temperature crystallizes the material and sets the memory element ( e . g ., program 1 ). it is to be appreciated that the association of reset and set with amorphous and crystalline material , respectively , is a convention and that at least an opposite convention may be adopted . it is also to be appreciated from this example that the volume of memory material 30 need not be partially set or reset by varying the current flow and duration through the volume of memory material . in one embodiment of the present invention , better wall adhesion of first barrier layer 300 is achieved , in the place of phase - change material 292 . in other words , phase - change material 292 is clamped in place by the presence of first barrier layer 300 . in another embodiment , better wall adhesion of first barrier layer 300 is achieved , in the place of phase - change material 290 . in other words , phase - change material 290 is clamped in place by the presence of first barrier layer 300 . where phase - change material 290 is a chalcogenide material or the like , it is very sensitive to both wet and elevated temperature processing . chalcogenide material is very reactive to standard wet chemistries that are used in semiconductor fabrication ; they are difficult to protect during wet processing . chalcogenide material is also relatively volatile during elevated temperature processing such as the formation of an ild layer . during processing of the prior state of the art , the elevated thermal processing to form an ild layer over the metal stack in a level that is the same or similar to the location of dielectric layer 270 would cause a significant portion of phase - change material to volatilize by sublimation . by the present invention , dielectric layer 270 is formed before the introduction of phase - change material 290 , and before the next elevated temperature process , phase - change material 290 has been substantially trapped beneath at least one sealing layer such as first barrier layer 300 or such as electrically conductive material 315 . it will be readily understood to those skilled in the art that various other changes in the details , material , and arrangements of the parts and method stages which have been described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of this invention may be made without departing from the principles and scope of the invention as expressed in the subjoined claims .

US-74583500-A

novel structures and methods for forming useful high temperature superconducting devices , most particularly resonators , are provided . structures resulting in reduced peak current densities relative to known structures achieve numerous desirable benefits , especially including the reduced intermodulation effects of earlier resonators . in one aspect of this invention , a spiral in , spiral out resonator is provided , characterized in that it has an odd number of long runs , at least equal to five long runs , where the long runs are connected by turns , and wherein there are at least two sequential turns of the same handedness , followed by at least two turns of the opposite handedness . in yet another aspect of this invention , it has been discovered that reducing the size of the input and output pads of hts resonators increases the relative inductance compared to the capacitance . yet another resonator structure is a spiral snake resonator having a terminal end disposed within the resonator . a wide in the middle structure and wide at peak current density resonator structures utilize enlarged width portions of the resonator in those areas where current density is largest . in yet another aspect of this invention , operation of resonators in high modes , above the fundamental mode , reduce peak current densities . resonators operated in modes in which current in adjacent long runs are in the same direction further serve to reduce current densities , and intermodulation effects . symmetric current structures and modes of operation are particularly advantageous where far field effects are compensated for .

fig1 shows a plan view of a quasi - lumped element resonator ( qle ) having enlarged input and output pads . an input pad 10 ( the designation of input and output being arbitrary , and reversible ) and an output pad 16 are disposed on opposite sides of a serpentine or zig - zag resonator region 18 . generally parallel long runs 12 are disposed substantially parallel to the longer edge of the input pad 10 and output pad 16 . a first long run 12 adjacent to the input pad 10 is connected to a first turn 14 which electrically couples the input pad 10 to the first long run 12 . adjacent long runs 12 are then coupled to their nearest neighbor long runs 12 by corresponding turns 14 . the input pads 10 and output pad 16 serve to increase the equivalent capacitance to ground relative to a structure having no or smaller input and output pads . preferably , the amount of equivalent capacitance to ground is selected in accordance with the electrical requirements of the circuit . as shown in fig1 , the total area occupied by the input pad 10 and output pad 16 exceeds that area occupied by the zig - zag resonator region 18 . the center frequency f c of such a resonator is wherein l is the inductance and c is the capacitance of the resonator . a condition of resonance is that the energy stored in the magnetic field w 1 and the energy stored in the electric field w c must be equal to : wherein v is the voltage and i is the current , and w is the energy stored at resonance . when the unloaded q is much larger than the loaded q , as is often the case for superconducting filters , then the stored energy at resonance , w , is determined by the loaded q . thus , if the frequency and loaded q are fixed , it is clear that in order to decrease the circulating current we must increase l , while simultaneously decreasing c to preserve the resonant frequency . fig2 shows the current and voltage distributions of a ½ wavelength ( λ / 2 ) resonator at its fundamental resonance frequency . a microstrip format may be utilized to implement a ½ wavelength transmission line . such structures generally have inductance and capacitance which form the resonator distributed along the line 20 . the current distribution in such a structure at resonance is of the form sin ( πx / 1 ) having a maximum in the center of the resonator . the voltage distribution is of the form cos ( πx / 1 ) with maxima at the ends of the resonator . fig3 shows a plan view of a zig - zag or serpentine snake resonator 30 . a first long run 31 is connected to a nearest neighbor long run 32 by a turn 36 . in similar fashion , the third long run 33 is connected to the nearest neighbor long run 32 by turn 37 . this pattern is repeated until reaching a last long run 39 . fig3 differs from fig1 principally in that the input pad 10 and output pad 16 of fig1 are eliminated or significantly reduced in size . by reducing the size of the capacitor pads 10 , 16 , the effective inductance of the quasi - lumped resonator is increased in fig3 relative to fig1 . for a fixed frequency and loaded q , this implies that the current density in the resonator can significantly be reduced by removal of the large capacitor pads . this has the effect of making the resonators behave more like folded distributed ( ½ wavelength ) resonators . as an added current density reducing benefit , the linewidth of these resonators is usually higher than the linewidth at the highest current point in their qle counterparts . to a first approximation , the unloaded q of an hts resonator is q = wl / r s where w is the resonant frequency and r s is the surface resistance at that frequency . thus , we see an additional advantage of these resonators over their qle counterparts in terms of their higher unloaded qs . using these structures , small area resonators can reliably be constructed which have the following desirable properties . resonator resonant imd ( input area frequency unloaded q loaded q power : − 20 dbm ) & lt ; 1 cm 2 850 mhz & gt ; 50 , 000 ˜ 1000 & lt ;− 80 dbc fig4 shows a plan view of a spiral in , spiral out snake resonator . a first long run 41 is connected to a second long run 48 by a first turn 51 . the first turn 51 has a preselected handedness , here taken to be left - handed , though the designation of left and right - handed is arbitrary and therefore reversible . the second long run 48 is then connected by second turn 52 , which is of the same handedness as is the first turn 51 . the second turn 52 is connected to the third long run 43 , which is then connected to turn 53 which is again of the same handedness of first turn 51 and second turn 52 . the third turn 52 is connected to fourth long run 46 , which is then connected to fourth turn 54 , which is again of the same handedness of the preseating turns 51 , 52 and 53 . a fifth long run 45 is connected to the fourth turn 54 . the fifth long run 45 , being the center long run , namely , the line of symmetry for the resonator , then connects to a first turn of opposite handedness 61 which in turn connects to a sixth long run 44 . the run 44 connects to a second turn of opposite handedness 62 , which has the same handedness as the first turn of opposite handedness 61 , which is opposite to the handedness of the first turn 51 . the second turn of opposite handedness 62 connects to the seventh long run 47 , which connects to the third turn of opposite handedness 63 which connects to the seventh long run 42 , which connects to the fourth turn of opposite handedness 64 which connects to the ninth or last long run 49 . the spiral in , spiral out structure of fig4 may be implemented with varying number of long runs and turns . generally , the following criteria describe the topology of the spiral in , spiral out structure . the spiral in , spiral out structure includes an odd number of long runs , identified to be n , where n is ≧ 5 . numbering the long runs sequentially from 1 to n , the first long run is connected to the n - first long run by a turn of a first handedness . long run n − 1 is connected to long run 3 by a second turn of first handedness . this sequence is repeated until a turn of the first handedness connects to long run ( n + 1 )/ 2 . long run ( n + 1 )/ 2 is connected to long run ( n + 3 )/ 2 by a turn of opposite handedness . long run ( n + 3 )/ 2 is connected by a second turn of opposite handedness to a long run ( n − 3 )/ 2 . this process is repeated until the last long run ( n ) is reached . fig5 shows a plan view of a lumped element spiral in , spiral out resonator having enlarged input and output pads . in comparison to fig4 where nine long runs 40 , 41 . . . 49 are utilized , fig5 has seven long runs 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 . the first long run 71 has an enlarged width relative to other runs , serving to have increased capacitance . the first long run 71 is connected to first turn of first handedness 81 to the sixth long run 76 . the long run 76 is connected by the second turn of first handedness 82 to the third long run 73 , which is in turn connected by the third turn of first handedness 83 to the center long run 74 . the center long run 74 is connected in turn to first turn of opposite handedness 84 , which is connected to the fifth long run 75 , which is connected to second turn of second handedness 85 to the second long run 72 , which is in turn connected to the third turn of second handedness 86 to the last long run or output capacitor pad 77 . the output capacitor pad 77 has a width which is enlarged relative to the other interior long runs , and is shown having the same width as the first input capacitor pad or long run 71 . fig6 shows a plan view of a spiral snake resonator 90 . a first long run 91 is connected to a second long run 92 by a first turn 101 . the second long run 92 is connected to a third long run 93 which is disposed between the first long run 91 and the second long run 92 , by a second turn 102 . second turn 102 has the same handedness as first turn 101 . third long run 93 is connected to a fourth long run 94 which is disposed between the second long run 92 and the third long run 93 . the third turn 103 has the same handedness as the first turn 101 and second turn 102 . this structure is repeated starting at a fourth turn 104 connected to the fourth long run 94 until terminating in a last long run 95 which is centrally disposed between the first long run 91 and second long run 92 . fig7 shows a spiral snake resonator with the turn portions ( corresponding to 101 , 102 , 103 and 104 of fig6 ) physically displaced from the long runs ( 91 , 92 . . . 95 of fig6 ) for clarity . in operation , these portions would be connected as shown in fig6 . fig7 differs from fig6 in that it includes seven long runs , as opposed to nine long runs for fig6 . adopting the same number scheme as for fig6 , fig7 shows that the even numbered turns 102 , 104 , dispose collectively at one end of the long runs , are concentric with each other around a point 110 . turns 101 , 103 disposed on the right hand side of the long runs are concentric with each other around a point 112 . the center of radius 112 is disposed on the end of the last long run 95 . in contrast , the center of curvature 110 is disposed at the end of and between the last long run 95 and the preceding last long run . if there are n long runs , and the numbering convention is to sequentially number the long runs beginning with the outermost long run , the center point 110 is disposed between long runs n and n − 1 . fig8 shows a plan view of a spiral in , spiral out resonator having a wide portion in the middle region . the spiral in , spiral out aspects of fig8 are as previously described in connection with fig4 . in contrast , fig8 includes a center long run 120 ( compared to the center long run 45 in fig4 ) which is relatively wider than other long runs 122 . the structure of fig8 generally comprises a quasi - lumped element resonator structure particularly useful for bandpass and band reject filters . in the fundamental resonant mode , the peak circulating currents lie in the center of the resonator . broadening the center conductor 120 increases the cross - sectional area of the transmission line , which allows for greater current transport . generally , it is believed that this technique serves to alleviate the stress of large peak currents . the width of the center conductor 120 in fig8 is six times as wide as the remaining conductor 122 . however , resonators in which the width of the center long run 120 is at least twice as wide as the remaining long runs would utilize the concept of this invention . fig9 shows the intermodulation product ( p imd , out ) as a function of input power ( p in ) for the structure of fig5 ( labeled lesiso for lumped spiral in , spiral out ) and the structure of fig8 ( labeled wimsiso for wide in middle spiral in , spiral out ). as can be seen , for a given power input , the wide in middle spiral in , spiral out resonator of the type shown in fig8 has lower intermodulation compared to the lumped element spiral in , spiral out structure of fig5 . fig1 , 11 , 12 and 13 relate to graduated line width structures . fig1 shows a zig - zag or serpentine resonator structure , but where the width of the conductors vary as a function of position within the resonator . external long runs 120 are relatively thinner than adjacent long runs 122 , which are in turn thinner than next adjacent long runs 124 , which are yet in turn relatively thinner than adjacent long runs 126 . the center long run 128 is preferably larger than the remaining long runs . broadly , the technique disclosed herein is for increasing the line width of a folded hts resonator as a function of current density . considering a structure such as fig3 with uniform width long runs 32 and uniform gaps between adjacent long runs , e . g ., long run 32 and long run 34 , if straightened out , would resemble a half wave resonator , assuming the fundamental mode . in this situation , the current distribution along the length of the resonator would be sin ( qπx / λ ). fig1 shows a technique for simulating the resonator of the form shown in fig1 . if the resonator is considered to comprise long parallel runs , each having the same length , without consideration of the turns , the currents in the individual lines i i in terms of the maximum or minimum current ( i max , i min ) in a segment is as follows : i i i / i max i i / i min adjacent leg ratio 1 0 . 158384338 1 — 2 0 . 459649276 2 . 902113197 2 . 902113197 3 0 . 715920617 4 . 520147809 1 . 557536699 4 0 . 902112776 5 . 695719602 1 . 26007375 5 1 6 . 31375561 1 . 108508854 6 0 . 902112776 5 . 695719602 1 . 26007375 7 0 . 715920617 4 . 520147809 1 . 557536699 8 0 . 459649276 2 . 902113197 2 . 902113197 9 0 . 158384338 1 — ideally , the structure of the graduated resonators would be smooth lines , such as shown in the smooth lines of fig1 . in certain applications ( such as a linear , non - folded structure ) it may be desirable to have the shape follow some power of the current distribution . however , when folding the resonators into the various disclosed shapes , e . g ., spiral in , spiral out , zig - zag or snake , modified spiral , utilizing continuous change in the line width generally results in lines which are not parallel . by utilizing the generally parallel structures disclosed as the preferred embodiments herein , where the spacing between adjacent long runs may be made constant , modeling of such systems is made easier . however , devices utilizing the concepts of these inventions may be implemented where line widths vary continuously at some or all of the portions of the resonator . preferably , the ratio of widths from outside of long runs 120 at the ends of the resonator to adjacent segments is 1 : 3 . however , under certain circumstances , this can create an impedance mismatch which becomes significant , and for practical size requirements utilizing current processing technology makes the width of the long runs too small or fine . fig1 shows a modeling of a structure of fig1 where the ratio between adjacent long runs 120 , 122 is 2 : 3 . thus , to build a equivalent 9 long run zig - zag resonator with 0 . 3 millimeter lines and gaps , the total width is distributed over the lines as follows , numbers 6 - 9 mirroring 4 - 1 : i ideal realization width ( mm ) gap ( mm ) 1 1 2 . 146 . 1825 2 3 3 . 219 . 27375 3 4 . 5 4 . 5 . 3285 . 365 4 5 . 5 5 . 5 . 4015 . 41975 5 6 6 . 438 alternatively , the circuit may be modified in other ways . for example , if the circuit were split into three segments , as opposed to the nine segments described previously , the values would be approximately as follows : i ideal realization width ( mm ) gap ( mm ) 1 1 1 . 243 . 243 2 1 1 . 243 . 243 3 1 1 . 243 . 3645 4 2 2 . 486 . 486 5 2 2 . 486 fig1 shows a modeling where the width of the long runs is varied as a function of a higher power of the current density . under certain conditions , this arrangement may increase impedance mismatch at the ends of the resonator without any appreciable effect in the central region of the resonator where the currents are largest . fig1 shows a graph of the intermodulation performance p imd , out as a function of input power for a zig - zag or serpentine resonator as shown for example in fig3 and a resonator having varying thickness long runs as shown for example in fig1 . the resonators have substantially equal resonator area , that is , they occupy substantially the same amount of overall area on a hts film . fig1 shows the structure of fig1 ( labeled “ fat ” zig - zag snake ) has a reduction of up to 5 db in intermodulation product as compared to the structure of fig3 ( labeled uniform zig - zag snake ). fig1 shows four resonators 130 , 132 , 134 and 136 . shown above those resonators is a graphic indicating the current as a function of position within the resonator . for ½ wavelength resonator 130 , for a given resonant frequency and stored energy , the current distribution along the resonator is shown by line 130 ′. similarly , clearly , for resonator 132 , when in the next mode number ( mode 1 where mode 0 is the lowest order mode ) is shown by line 132 ′. similarly , for resonator 134 , when in the next mode number ( mode 3 ), the current distribution along the resonator is shown by line 134 ′. finally , for resonator 136 , when in the next mode number ( mode 4 ), the current distribution along the resonator is shown by line 136 ′. for a given resonant frequency and stored energy , the peak energy density is inversely proportional to the mode number . utilizing higher modes serves to reduce the stress placed upon the resonator , and reduces intermodulation products . this discovery may be utilized in connection with any of the ½ wavelength resonators described herein . fig1 shows a plot of the intermodulation product p imd , out as a function of input power for the fundamental and first harmonic of a spiral in , spiral out resonator ( see e . g ., fig4 and 5 ). as can be seen , the first harmonic has lower intermodulation product as compared to the fundamental harmonic . fig1 b shows a zig - zag or snake resonator operable at a first harmonic , where fig3 in comparison would show a zig - zag or snake resonator at the fundamental frequency . if it is desired to preserve the circuit area , but to use the first harmonic as in fig1 b as compared to the fundamental in fig3 , the width of the long runs is reduced , preferably halved , in order to double the electrical length of the resonator . fig1 b shows a resonator operable at a first harmonic and utilizing the wide at peak structure described in conjunction with fig1 and 16 , above . thus , the structure of 17 b when operated at the first harmonic has two regions corresponding to the relatively wider regions of the long runs at which the current density is reduced . this wide at peaks resonator structure advantageously improves the intermodulation performance . the principals of the wide at peaks technique may also be applied to spiral in , spiral out snake resonators . in such resonators , due to the nature of the spiral in , spiral out folding , the odd harmonics of the resonator are closer to that of a spiral resonator in its fundamental mode . fig1 a and 18 b show the magnitude and phase , respectively , on a modeled system of a spiral in , spiral out resonator . the modeled structure is based upon a resonator of the structure shown in fig4 and described above . as shown , the system is modeled as having ‘ single turns ’ which are linear and substantially parallel to adjacent ‘ turns ’. while this structure is advantageously utilized for modeling , it may also be utilized in physical implementations of the structures . indeed , the structures described herein may be utilized with round or rounded turns , squared turns , mitred turns , or any turn serving as an interconnection between the long runs which does not materially negatively impact the achieving the goals or objects of these inventions . one source for modeling software is sonnet software , incs ., suite of planar 3dem tools ( referred to either as “ sonnet ” or “ em ”) and is available from sonnet software , inc ., 10207 north street , suite 210 , liverpool , n . y . 13088 . the magnitude shown in fig1 a increases from the ends of the resonators to a maximum value in the middle of the center line . the frequency of modeling is 0 . 71742 ghz . the phase shows that segments in the odd numbered long runs ( 40 , 43 , 45 , 47 , and 49 in fig4 ) have a phase substantially 180 ° opposite to that of the even numbered long runs ( 40 , 42 , 44 , 46 and 48 in fig4 ). fig1 c and 18 d show the magnitude and phase respectively for the simulation of the same spiral in , spiral out resonator but at the first harmonic . the magnitude shows that the magnitude rises from the ends of the resonator to two peaks situation roughly at ¼ and ¾ of the length of the line , with the magnitude decreasing from the peaks to the center of the resonator . the phase shown in fig1 d shows that the resonator in substantially the upper half is of one phase , whereas the resonator in substantially the bottom half is of 180 ° phase difference . the phase change is at substantially the center of the middle long run ( long run 45 in fig4 ). it has been discovered that the use of a symmetric mode , that is , one in which currents flow in the same direction in adjacent legs of the resonator , such as is shown in fig1 b , provide superior results . specifically , the use of the symmetric mode serves to reduce current densities relative to the asymmetric mode . one of the direct beneficial results of reduction in current density is the reduction in intermodulation effects . while the asymmetric mode , that is , one in which currents flow in opposite directions in adjacent legs of the resonator , are beneficial respecting far field shielding , if the far field effects can be pushed sufficiently away the symmetric mode has the benefit described previously . the following table provides data regarding spiral resonators , and spiral in , spiral out snake resonators of the size and area identified . topology spiral spiral siso snake siso snake siso snake siso snake length [ mm ] 10 . 41 10 . 41 8 . 8175 8 . 8175 16 . 25 16 . 37 width [ mm ] 4 4 6 . 4 6 . 4 3 . 6009 7 . 0025 area [ cm 2 ] 0 . 4164 0 . 4164 0 . 56432 0 . 56432 0 . 58514625 1 . 14630925 linewidth [ mm ] 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 0 . 4 1 gap [ mm ] 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 . 2 0 . 4 0 . 5 frequency [ mhz ] 829 . 285 829 . 5 849 . 291 849 . 19 865 . 866 869 . 206 unloaded q 39800 37700 27200 37000 53500 65300 loaded q 4130 4000 4130 4610 3570 3440 imd @- 20 dbm [ dbc ] − 55 . 5 − 76 − 62 . 5 − 58 . 5 − 66 − 69 imd @- 20 dbm [ dbc ] − 80 . 1 − 100 . 1 − 87 . 1 − 85 . 0 − 88 . 1 − 90 . 5 ( ql ˜ 1000 ) fig1 a , 19 b , 19 c , 19 d show sonnet cross - sections for zig - zag , spiral in , spiral out , spiral and higher mode ( alf ) spiral in , spiral out resonators . specifically , fig1 c and 19 d show quantitative results for a resonator if cut in a vertical direction such as labeled on cut 19 in fig1 a and fig1 b . thus , for the spiral in , spiral out structure in the fundamental mode ( fig1 a and 18 c and lower left figure in fig1 c labeled siso ) the current can be seen to alternate in direction from adjacent long runs . thus , in fig1 c siso , the external most long runs correspond to values 141 , 149 , the adjacent long runs corresponding to values 142 , 148 , and so on to the value 145 of the center resonator . as can be seen , the current is opposite directions for adjacent lines ( compare the positive value of 141 with the negative value of 142 ). in the higher mode spiral in , spiral out resonator ( fig1 b and 18 d and lower right graph in fig1 d labeled alf siso ), again utilizing the same number convention , shows that adjacent resonators corresponding to signals 151 , 152 , 153 and 154 are all negative , indicating current flow in the same direction . in contrast , current in long runs corresponding to signals 156 , 157 , 158 and 159 run in the same direction , that direction being opposite to the direction of current in the long runs corresponding to signals 151 , 152 , 153 and 154 . as shown , the signal 155 corresponding to the center resonator is shown substantially at 0 . as can be seen in the graphics of fig1 d , the current shows divergences at the edges of the long runs of the resonator . further , while the alf siso of fig1 d is at a higher frequency ( then a harmonic ) as compared to the fundamental frequency such as used in the siso of fig1 c , the alf siso shows a lower envelope , corresponding to lower current density as compared to the other structures shown . fig2 shows a plan view of a hairpin resonator 160 . the hairpin resonator 160 is characterized in having a first long run 162 having a length l and a width w , and a second long run 164 , also having a length l and width w , the first long run 162 and second long run 164 being substantially parallel to each other , and separated by a gap g . the long runs 162 , 164 are connected to turn 166 . the hairpin resonator 160 is spaced a distance s from conductor 168 , and is generally parallel to the long runs 162 , 164 . it has been discovered that the particularly geometry affects both the losses and intermodulation in these resonators . the first harmonic mode gives less intermodulation relative to the fundamental mode , though the first harmonic mode has relatively higher losses relative to the fundamental mode , believed to be due to the more extended fields of that mode . in operation , microwave energy may be coupled to these resonators in a band reject fashion via the transmission line 168 . the spacing s between the transmission line 168 and the resonator 160 determines the strength of the coupling and thus the energy stored in the resonator , which may be characterized in terms of the loaded quality factor q l of the device . the response of the band reject resonator may be characterized in terms of three quantities , the resonance frequency , f 0 , and the loaded and unloaded quality factors , q l and q u , respectively . f 0 and q l are determined by the geometry of the resonator 160 and substrate . for the actual experiments performed , the width of the runs 162 , 164 was fixed at 0 . 4 mm , with l , g and s being adjustable parameters . the resonance frequency of 7 . 4 ghz was chosen . fig2 a shows a graph of the unloaded quality factor ( q u ) of the gap g for a series of hairpin resonators . the experimental results for the symmetric resonators ( second mode , represented by circles ), the antisymmetric resonators ( first mode , represented by squares ) and the straight resonator ( represented by triangles ) are compared with numerical calculations ( solid , long - dashed , and short - dashed line , respectively ). the dotted line accounts for the losses in the lid for the symmetric resonators . fig2 b shows a graph of the intermodulation power p imd measured in decibels as a function of gap g for a series of hairpin resonators . the experimental results for the symmetric resonators ( second mode , represented by circles ), the antisymmetric resonators ( first mode , represented by squares ) and the straight resonator ( represented by triangles ) are compared with numerical calculations ( solid , long - dashed , and short - dashed line , respectively ). the open symbols represent the raw data as measured before correction to q = 1700 . the intermodulation power is measured in decibels referenced to 1 mw . fig2 shows a graph of the intermodulation power p imd for a hairpin resonator as a function of the input power p in of the fundamental signals . both powers are measured in decibels referenced to 1 mw . inset : p imd as a function of { tilde over ( q )}= q l ( 1 − q l / q u ). the data are consistent with the theoretical expected p imd ∝{ tilde over ( q )} 4 . fig2 a shows a graph of the current in the hairpin resonator of fig2 in the fundamental mode . the current can be seen to flow in opposite directions in adjacent legs of the hairpin resonator 160 . fig2 b shows the current distribution in the hairpin resonator 160 in the harmonic mode . the current can be seen to run in the same direction in adjacent long runs 162 , 164 , thus operating in the symmetric mode . 1 . for gap widths of g = 0 . 4 , 0 . 2 , 0 . 1 and 0 . 05 mm l ( long run length ) and s ( spacing from conductor ) were adjusted so that the first resonance was at f 0 = 7 . 4 ghz with q l = 2000 , resulting in l ˜ 4 mm and s ˜ 1 mm . as the microwave currents flow in opposite directions in the two legs of the resonator these will also be referred to as anti - symmetric resonators . 2 . for gap widths of g = 0 . 4 , 0 . 2 , 0 . 1 and 0 . 05 mm l and s were adjusted so that the second resonance was at f 0 = 7 . 4 ghz with q l = 2000 , resulting in l ˜ 7 mm and s ˜ 2 mm . since the currents flow in the same direction in the two legs of the resonator these will be referred to as symmetric resonators . 3 . for a gap width of g = 0 . 4 mm l and s were adjusted so that the second resonance remained at f 0 = 7 . 4 ghz but the coupling strength varied at q l = 2000 , 1000 , 500 , 200 . 4 . a straight resonator ( g →) was designed so that its first resonance was at f 0 = 7 . 4 ghz with q l = 2000 , resulting in l ˜ 7 . 7 mm and s ˜ 2 mm . the circuits were clipped into gold plated test fixtures using indium foil below the circuit to ensure proper thermal and electrical contact . the microwave circuit was then completed by wire bonds at both ends of the 50 ω thru line . note that the electrical ground plane seen by the resonator is , for the most part , provided by the unpatterned film on the back side of the substrate . the microwave transmissions , s 21 , was measured using hp 8720b vector network analyzer in order to determine f 0 , q u and q l which characterize the linear response of the circuit at low microwave powers . the qs are obtained from direct measurements of the fractional bandwidths at − 3 db , δf − 2 db , the insertion loss , s 21 ( f 0 ), and the width of the resonance 3 db above the minimum , δf + 3 db . in all cases the input power to the resonators was held fixed in p in =− 20 dbm . the measured and calculated qs are presented in fig2 a . in the calculations a surface resistance of r s = 210 μω at 7 . 4 ghz and a penetration depth of λ ( 77k )= 0 . 3 μm were used . for the antisymmetric resonators the calculations are in good agreement with the measurements . for smaller gap sizes q u is degraded . this can be understood from the antiparallel currents running in the gap region . therefore , high current densities have to flow at the inner edges of the legs to screen out this field from the superconducting films . these high current densities lead to increased losses and to higher intermodulations . in contrast , for the symmetric mode the parallel currents lead to fields that cancel within the gap and no such degradation is expected . for this mode we find almost exactly double what is measured ( the dotted line shows half of the calculated values ), using the same surface impedances used to evaluate the anti - symmetric mode qs . the circuits were tested with and without an aluminum lid placed 0 . 150 inches above the circuit . for the first set of resonators the effect of removing the lid was only a slight shift in the resonant frequency with no detectable change in q u or q l . for the resonators which made use of the first harmonic ( sets 2 and 3 ), the effect was far more severe ; there q u dropped close to an order of magnitude as the lid was removed . this is an indication that the microwave fields associated with the resonator are far more extended for the symmetric modes than for the anti - symmetric ones . the two microwave signals required to produce intermodulation products were symmetrically placed 15 khz above and below f 0 , for a signal separation of 30 khz . continuous wave ( cw ) signals were produced using hp 8341b and hp 83640a synthesized sweepers , and the signals detected using a tektronix 3784 spectrum analyzer . the output power of the two sources was measured using an hp 437b power meter , and adjusted so that the two signals arrived at the sample with the same magnitude . the absolute magnitude of third order intermodulation products . p imd , as a function of input power provided to the device , p in was measured . for the 30 khz signal separation we are using here these signals are generated at f 0 ± 45 khz . as can be seen in fig2 , p imd has a slope much closer to 2 : 1 ( dotted line ) than the 3 : 1 ( dashed line ) expected from a pure third order nonlinearity . p imd at a fixed input power of p in +− 20 dbm is presented as a function of gap width for the first two sets of resonators and the straight one in fig2 b . p imd was set to q = 1700 using the intermodulation value as proportional to the fourth power of q . the open symbols denote the raw data while the full ones denote the adjusted values . fig2 shows the frequency response of the s - parameter for the fundamental resonance of a spiral snake resonator shown in an inset . the substrate thickness was 0 . 020 ″. the dimensions of the resonance thus realized are 3 . 3 mm by 6 . 7 mm , which is shown in the inset . the measured unloaded quality factor was 101450 at 845 . 318 mhz at a temperature of 77k . fig2 a shows a spiral in , spiral out snake resonator . when realized with ybco films deposited on 0 . 015 ″ thick mgo substrates the resonator was 5 . 2 mm by 10 . 4 mm in area . the average unloaded quality factor of these resonators was measured to be 110 , 000 at a resonance frequency 845 mhz and a temperature of 77k . fig2 b shows the measured frequency response of the s - parameters for a quasi elliptic band reject filter realized using six of the resonators in fig2 a . fig2 c shows a simulation of the filter in 25 b taking the average measured unloaded quality factor into account . the unloaded quality factor is apparent in the depth of the nulls as well as the sharpness in the corners of the filter . fig2 shows an spiral - in - spiral - out resonator with moderately enlarged capacitor pads . when realized using tbcco films deposited on 0 . 020 ″ laalo 3 the resonator is 7 . 7 mm by 10 . 4 mm in area . when operated in the “ alf ” mode , the resonant frequency of this resonator is 846 . 477 mhz , and the resonator had a measured unloaded quality factor of 150 , 050 at a temperature of 77k . fig2 shows a plan view of a filter structure having a plurality of spiral in , spiral out structures 170 , with side coupling therebetween . an input 172 and an output 174 provide signal coupling to the filter structure . although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for purposes of clarity and understanding , it may be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the teachings of this invention that certain changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims .

US-1848804-A

a method of manufacturing a circuit board is described herein . the method may include adding a resin , forming first and second fiberglass fibers , and forming first and second signal line traces capable of transmitting electrical signals . in some examples , a ratio between fiberglass and resin material near the first signal line trace is similar to a ratio between fiberglass and resin material near the second signal line trace . in some examples , the first and second fiberglass fibers diagonally cross near the first and second signal line traces . in some examples , the first and second fiberglass fibers cross near the first and second signal line traces in a zig - zag pattern .

referring to fig1 , a representation of a portion of an fr4 board with a pair of signal traces is shown . the circuit board 10 includes vertical and horizontal fiberglass fibers 11 a , 11 b , respectively . though one rectangular lattice structure is shown , multiple such lattice structures may be provided in the circuit board 10 . the circuit board 10 also includes a resin 12 , such as an epoxy resin , which is disposed throughout the rectangular lattice structure of the fiberglass fibers 11 a - b . in the board of fig1 , a pair of signal line traces 13 a , 13 b are provided . in this example , the signal lines are generally parallel to the horizontal fiberglass fibers 11 b . these signal traces may be embedded into the resin , disposed on top of the resin of the circuit board , etc . as seen in fig1 , the first signal line 13 a is generally disposed between adjacent horizontal fibers 11 b . in this example each signal line trace has a width of approximately 5 mils ( i . e ., 5 milli - inches or 0 . 005 inches ). the second signal line 13 b , however , is generally disposed over one of the horizontal fibers 11 b . the spacing between the traces is 5 mils in this example . when using the first and second signal line traces for differential signaling , it is desirable to have these traces be equivalent in terms of characteristic impedance and propagation constant . with low signal frequencies , the effect of the non - homogeneous material of the fr4 circuit board is negligible on these features of the signal traces . as signal frequency increases , however , differences in the material composition near the signal traces has a considerable effect on these features . at high signal frequencies , these features will have an effect on the magnitude and phase of the signals transmitted by the trace . if the circuit board material affects the characteristic impedance and / or propagation constant in these traces differently , then determining the difference between the signals in these traces becomes more difficult and could result in loss of the data desired to be transmitted . in the example of fig1 , the board material near the second trace 13 b has a relatively high ratio of fiberglass - to - resin material , while the board material near the first trace 13 a is made up of a much lower ratio of fiberglass - to - resin material . at a signal frequency of 604 mhz ( i . e ., 604 million hertz or 604 million cycles - per - second ), a 5 mil wide trace of an fr4 circuit board has a dielectric constant e r that varies between 3 . 32 and 3 . 50 . with two signal line traces having a width of 5 mils and a spacing of 5 mils , it is estimated that total mode conversion of differential to common mode ( i . e ., complete signal loss ) will occur at 3 . 5 ghz for 30 - inch trace lengths due to the accumulated phase shift between the pair . according to an embodiment of the present invention , a circuit board is fabricated using the same types of materials contemplated for fr4 circuit boards . a representation of this embodiment is shown in fig2 . referring to fig2 , in the portion of the circuit board 20 shown , first and second fiberglass fiber sets 21 a , 21 b overlap each other . these sets form a zig - zag or herringbone design in this embodiment . in other words , each fiberglass set is characterized by straight line segments connected by vertices ( e . g ., as in a periodic , triangular wave - form ). though two sets of fiberglass fibers are shown , one or more such sets may be provided . as in the fr4 circuit board , a resin is added to form the circuit board structure . as with the fr4 circuit boards known in the art , there will be areas where the ratio of resin material to fiberglass material will be relatively high ( e . g ., at area 25 ) and areas where this ratio will be relatively low ( e . g ., at area 27 ). again , two signal line traces 23 a , 23 b are disposed in or on the circuit board 20 . as seen in fig2 , the circuit board material residing near the signal line traces 23 a , 23 b is a mixture of different ratios between the resin and fiberglass materials . the effect , in this embodiment , is that the material near the first signal line trace 23 a will be similar , overall , in content compared to the material near the second signal line trace 23 b . since the materials near first and second signal line traces 23 a , 23 b are similar , overall , there is less differential to common mode conversion when using these traces for differential mode signaling . in the embodiment of fig2 , the fiberglass material is formed in a zig - zag or herringbone design . the spacing between adjacent fibers may be similar to that of the fiberglass lattice of fig1 — approximately 5 mils . as signal frequencies increase and signal trace width decreases , the density ( i . e ., thickness and spacing ) of the fiberglass material lattice may be adjusted so as to reduce differential to common mode conversion in signal line pairs . the rectangular lattice for the fiberglass cloth used in the circuit board 10 of fig1 is made in a conventional manner . the cloth is made by taking fiberglass fibers and weaving them together or interleaving horizontal fibers and vertical fibers . to make the zig - zag or herringbone design of fig2 may be implemented by modifying systems that currently manufacture fiberglass cloth . for example , in creating the first set 21 a of fiberglass fibers , the apparatus emitting the fiberglass fibers can be moved side - to - side as the fibers are laid down onto a surface . alternatively , the surface upon which the fibers are laid can be moved side - to - as the fibers are laid down . once the zig - zag or herringbone fiberglass fiber is made , it can be adhered to a copper substrate with an epoxy resin as with standard fr4 manufacturing methods . accordingly , signal line traces 23 a , 23 b may be formed by removing unwanted copper from the circuit board in a conventional manner . the embodiment of the present invention shown in fig2 may be made at a low - cost similar to conventional fr4 circuit boards that are currently available . the manufacture of the board of fig2 may use much of the same equipment as is used in the manufacture of conventional fr4 circuit boards . another embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig3 . in fig3 , an fr4 circuit board is made in a conventional manner . in other words , a fiberglass cloth of horizontal and vertical fiberglass fibers 31 a , 31 b are provided in an epoxy resin 33 . after the fiberglass fibers and resin are formed together the entire apparatus is rotated and then cut to size . for example , in fig3 , the fiberglass lattice is rotated 45 ° ( i . e ., either the horizontal fiberglass fibers or the vertical fibers form a non - right angle of 45 ° with cut line ). when placing two conductive traces 35 a , 35 b onto the circuit board 37 , it can be readily seen that both conductors pass by areas of higher fiberglass - to - resin material and lower fiberglass - to - resin material , thus assisting in reducing differential to common mode conversion between signals in the two conductive traces . other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention . furthermore , certain terminology has been used for the purposes of descriptive clarity , and not to limit the present invention . the embodiments and preferred features described above should be considered exemplary , with the invention being defined by the appended claims . for example , one or more conventional fr4 boards may be rotated ( e . g ., by 45 °) and sliced into a number of squares . the individual squares from the board ( s ) can then be rotated again to desired orientations and reformed together . an example of this is shown in fig4 a - c . in fig4 a , an fr4 board is rotated 30 ° and sliced into a number of sections or squares 41 . in fig4 b , a second fr4 board is rotated 45 ° and sliced into a number of squares 42 . the individual squares can then be rotated if desired , and then reformed together to form a new fr4 board with conductors 43 a , 43 b . though the embodiment of fig4 a - c is shown with rectilinear shapes , other shapes may be used . also , as shown in fig4 a - c , the density of the fiberglass fibers need not be the same between the sections used to create the new fr4 board .

US-201313859421-A

a process is provided for the precipitation of phosphates from phosphate - comprising waters which utilizes iron hydroxide of the formula fe 2 o 3 . nh 2 o wherein n = 0 . 5 - 3 . 0 . the iron hydroxide is prepared from natural or technical muds comprising iron in a process which involves dissolving with mineral acid and precipitation with a base . other metal hydroxides are used together with the iron hydroxide .

one object of the present invention is , therefore , to overcome these disadvantages and to obtain the desired amount of the residual content of & lt ; 0 . 5 mg phosphorus / liter after the precipitation . this object is obtained according to the invention by using iron hydroxide with the formula fe 2 o 3 . nh 2 o as precipitating agent , in which n = 0 . 5 - 3 . 0 , which is obtained using the processes described in european patent specification no . 0 072 885 b1 ( issued on apr . 30 , 1986 ) and european patent application no . 0 377 766 a1 ( made available to the public on jul . 18 , 1990 ), according to which the iron hydroxide is prepared by dissolving metals from an iron - comprising starting material by means of mineral acids , preferably hydrochloric acid , at ph 0 . 5 - 2 . 5 , isolating the solids from the dissolved metal salts , optionally treating the dissolved metal salts with an oxidizing agent and re - precipitating the iron in the form of hydroxide at ph 3 . 5 - 4 . 5 , preferably 4 . 0 . it has , surprisingly , been found that iron hydroxide is non - aging and can be used as a precipitating agent for phosphates when it has been prepared according to the processes as described in european patent specification nos . 0 072 885 and 0 377 766 . in the present specification the term &# 34 ; metals &# 34 ; covers not only light and heavy metals but also metalloids . the oxidation can be performed by any oxidizing agent . preferred oxidizing agents are air and hydrogen peroxide . the oxidation is preferably performed by passing air for 5 to 20 minutes or by the addition of 0 . 01 % of hydrogen peroxide . the re - precipitation of iron is performed by alkalis , preferably by means of a sodium hydroxide solution or milk of lime . iron hydroxide is not stable in divalent form , and nor does the trivalent iron hydroxide correspond to the formulae fe ( oh ) 3 . it exists in different steps as iron oxide - hydrate of the formula fe 2 o 3 . nh 2 o in which n = 0 . 5 to 3 ( n = 1 corresponds to feo ( oh ); n = 3 corresponds to fe ( oh ) 3 ). the most often occurring form is the form in which n = 1 , that means feo ( oh ), which can crystallize in three different forms . for the sake of convenience iron oxide - hydrate will , in the present specification , be designated as &# 34 ; iron hydroxide &# 34 ;. another , practically free raw material source for iron hydroxide is heavy metal contaminated mud dug up from rivers and harbors , sewage sludge , soil , fly dust , filter dust or residues from combustions and pyrolysis or scrap . the major part of heavy metals in products like that is still always iron . the availability is universal . in one aspect of the invention the iron hydroxide used for the precipitation can also comprise other metal hydroxides . other hydroxides are preferably calcium , magnesium , aluminum and / or silicon hydroxide in which the proportion of iron makes up more than 50 % of the total metal content . these other metals have an advantageous influence on the age - stability of the iron hydroxides relevant for the precipitation , and especially silicon hydroxide of the formula sio 2 . n &# 39 ; h 2 o can be very advantageous for the aging - stability ( n &# 39 ;= 1 - 330 ). the above - mentioned hydroxide mixture can for example be prepared by the above - described precipitation of iron salt comprising solutions at ph 3 . 5 - 4 . 5 by means of bases . as the ( toxic ) heavy metals will remain dissolved at these phs , about 2 / 3 of the dissolved aluminum salts , if any , about half of the silicon present , about 15 % of the dissolved calcium salts and about 5 % of the dissolved magnesium salts will be precipitated together with the iron as hydroxides . these metals are themselves also precipitating agents for phosphates which means that their presence does not have any harmful influence on the precipitation , but assists therein . phosphorus will be almost quantitatively eliminated by such iron hydroxides and only minimal residual amounts of & lt ; 0 . 5 mgp / liter will remain . the interfering co - precipitation of iron metals can be controlled by oxidizing the metal salt comprising solutions and controlling the ph . if , for instance , air is passed through the metal salt solution before the precipitation for 10 minutes in order to bring about oxidation , the precipitation of the major amount of optionally present lead or chromium will only take place at ph 5 . furthermore , it has been shown that the aging resistance of the iron hydroxide according to the invention , especially of the iron hydroxide essentially freed from other metal hydroxides , can be improved considerably by means of protecting colloids . the crystallization is prevented or at least delayed considerably . the amounts to be added depend on the specific characteristics of the protecting colloids and is relative to the total volume of the hydroxide slurry ( most often 0 . 5 - 2 . 0 %) or of the total content of iron and other hydroxides present in the hydroxide slurry ( most often 10 - 35 %). if the protecting colloids are not active any longer in the acidic range , the iron and the other hydroxides can be washed until neutral . as protecting colloids practically all substances known for these properties can be used , such as cellulose ether ( e . g . methylcellulose , ethylcellulose ); for technical reasons cellulose ethers with a medium degree of polymerization of less than 1000 are preferred ; the advantages of the processes according to the invention compared with the usual precipitations using iron or aluminum salt solutions are as follows : it is possible to use solid iron hydroxide in the form of an aqueous suspension for the precipitation in contrast to the until now used iron salt solutions . there will be no secondary challenge of the water caused by chloride or sulfate . complete precipitation of the phosphate caused by the double salt formation and absorption . double salts of the type fe ( oh ) 3 . fepo 4 are less water soluble than fepo 4 alone . the double salts of iron are superior to analogous compounds of aluminum because iron hydroxide is considerably less soluble in water than aluminum hydroxide . the adsorption of phosphate on the surface of iron hydroxide can also have considerable influence on the rapidity and the completeness of the precipitation . iron hydroxide has a surface area of 600 m 2 / g with greater adsorption power . in comparison to aluminum hydroxide with a surface area of only 125 m 2 / g , iron hydroxide is also considerably superior . the absorption capacity , and in this manner also the precipitating capacity of iron hydroxide , is improved by the presence of silicon which is precipitated in the form of polymeric silicic acid and hydratized silicon dioxide . these compounds have an extraordinarily high adsorption ability . the adsorption ability of iron hydroxides provide for a lowering of the csb ( chemical oxygen demand ) value of 10 - 30 %. iron hydroxide has no influence on the biological nitrification which proceeds optimally at a ph of 7 . 5 - 8 . 0 . iron halides on the other hand have acidic reaction and can have a detrimental influence on the nitrification -- at least locally . the iron hydroxides according to the invention maintain their full activity also in alkaline ph ranges . similar to iron salt solutions iron hydroxide suspensions will also bind hydrogen sulfide as insoluble iron sulfide . the fermentation gas will be free from hydrogen sulfide . similar to iron salt solutions , iron hydroxide suspensions can also be used as conditioning agents for sewage sludge in a filter press . used together with hydrolyzed lime it will improve the draining . the invention can be more fully understood by reference to the following non - limiting examples . chemically pure iron nitrate solution is adjusted to ph 4 . 0 by means of hydraulic lime ca ( oh ) 2 . iron is precipitated in an amount of more than 99 . 5 % as iron hydroxide . a solution of trisodiumphosphate was added and the content of phosphorus was adjusted to 10 . 0 mg phosphorus / liter . to 100 ml of this phosphate solution with ph 7 . 5 3 ml of the iron hydroxide suspension were added at 23 ° c ., stirred for 15 minutes and membrane filtrated ( pore size 0 . 2 μm ). the precipitation as described above of the phosphate took place , calculated after the preparation of the iron hydroxide suspension , after 24 hours and after aging of the suspension during 45 days and during 60 days . the photometrically measured residual content of phosphorus in the filtrate corresponded to 0 . 11 , 0 . 36 and 1 . 85 mgp / liter . mud from the middle of the river neckar was treated at room temperature at ph 0 . 5 with hydrochloric acid during stirring and air injection for 1 hour . thereafter the mud was filtered off and rinsed with distilled water . the filtrated hydrochloric acid extract was adjusted to ph 4 . 0 by means of sodium hydroxide solution and was stirred by room temperature for 15 minutes . the precipitated iron hydroxide precipitate consisted of : samples of each 4 ml of this slurry were thereafter added to the ortho phosphate solution as described in example 1 and subjected to further treatment . the addition was performed after 1 day and after an aging of the suspension for 45 days and for 60 days . the residual phosphorus content in the filtrate was corresponding to 0 . 25 , 0 . 40 and 0 . 38 mgp / liter . the procedure as described in example 2 was repeated and 0 . 55 g of methylcellulose was stirred into 100 ml of the slurry . samples of each 4 ml of this slurry were thereafter stirred into the ortho phosphate solution as in example 1 after 1 day , after 45 days and after 60 days . the residual phosphorus content was corresponding to 0 . 23 , 0 . 26 and 0 . 29 mgp / liter .

US-93946892-A

the present disclosure provides a method for preparing an amino acid composition using an animal byproduct , particularly a method for obtaining an amino acid composition of high quality using an animal byproduct more effectively in short time . because an amino acid composition can be obtained from an animal byproduct more effectively and quickly using the method of the present disclosure , utilization of livestock waste , etc . can be enhanced and application as various products can be expected .

in the present disclosure , an “ amino acid composition ” refers to a composition which comprises a single or various kinds of amino acid ( s ) and , optionally , other ingredients . in the present disclosure , a “ nanobubble generator ” refers to a bubble - generating apparatus for transferring a gas to a liquid by artificially injecting fine bubbles into the liquid . more specifically , it refers to an apparatus which generates a liquid in which nanosized nanobubbles are mixed via a process of sucking and then spouting the liquid . in an aspect , the present disclosure relates to a method for preparing an amino acid composition using an animal byproduct . in an aspect , the present disclosure relates to a method for preparing an amino acid composition using an animal byproduct , which comprises : ( 1 ) a step of disrupting the cell membrane of an animal byproduct ; ( 2 ) a step of obtaining a fermentation product by fermenting the byproduct with the cell membrane disrupted ; and in an aspect of the present disclosure , the animal byproduct in the step ( 1 ) comprises the skin , muscle , blood and guts of livestock . in another aspect , the animal may comprise fish and the guts may comprise the placenta . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the step ( 1 ) of disrupting the cell membrane may comprise one or more selected from a group consisting of a process of crushing , a process of adding purified water , a process of adding purified water comprising an alkaline substance and a process of adding lye prepared from wood ash . in another aspect of the present disclosure , the alkaline substance may be either a strong base or a weak base . specifically , it may be naoh or koh . a mixing ratio of the strong base or the weak base is not limited . specifically , when naoh or koh is used , it may be used in an amount of 10 % wt based on 1 kg of the purified water . the lye prepared from wood ash is not specifically limited , but may be a solution obtained by adding 10 % wt of ash powder prepared by burning a deciduous or coniferous tree based on 1 kg of purified water and extracting for 10 days . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the step of disrupting the cell membrane may further comprise , after or during one or more selected from a group consisting of a process of crushing , a process of adding purified water , a process of adding purified water comprising an alkaline substance and a process of adding lye prepared from wood ash , a process of controlling ph . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the step of disrupting the cell membrane may further comprise , after or during one or more selected from a group consisting of a process of crushing , a process of adding purified water , a process of adding purified water comprising an alkaline substance and a process of adding lye prepared from wood ash , a process of controlling temperature . in an aspect of the present disclosure , there may be no limitation in the order of the process of controlling ph and the process of controlling temperature . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the crushing process may comprise a process of using a homogenizer , a process of using stirring and rotation , a process of explosion , a process of sonication , a process of using a nanobubble generator , a process of cooling , etc . specifically , it may comprise a process of using a nanobubble generator . in an aspect of the present disclosure , an amount of the purified water , the purified water comprising an alkaline substance or the lye prepared from wood ash may be 5 - 15 wt % based on the total weight of the byproduct . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the amount of the purified water , the purified water comprising an alkaline substance or the lye prepared from wood ash may be 1 wt % or more , 2 wt % or more , 3 wt % or more , 4 wt % or more , 5 wt % or more , 6 wt % or more , 7 wt % or more , 8 wt % or more , 9 wt % or more , 10 wt % or more , 11 wt % or more , 12 wt % or more , 13 wt % or more , 14 wt % or more , 15 wt % or more , 16 wt % or more , 17 wt % or more , 18 wt % or more , 19 wt % or more , 20 wt % or more , 25 wt % or more , 30 wt % or more , 35 wt % or more , 40 wt % or more , 50 wt % or more , 60 wt % or more or 70 wt % or more or 1 wt % or less , 2 wt % or less , 3 wt % or less , 4 wt % or less , 5 wt % or less , 6 wt % or less , 7 wt % or less , 8 wt % or less , 9 wt % or less , 10 wt % or less , 11 wt % or less , 12 wt % or less , 13 wt % or less , 14 wt % or less , 15 wt % or less , 16 wt % or less , 17 wt % or less , 18 wt % or less , 19 wt % or less , 20 wt % or less , 25 wt % or less , 30 wt % or less , 35 wt % or less , 40 wt % or less , 50 wt % or less , 60 wt % or less or 70 wt % or less , specifically 3 - 18 wt %, more specifically 5 - 15 wt %, further more specifically 10 wt %, based on the total weight of the byproduct . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the ph may be controlled to be maintained at 5 - 7 . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the ph may be controlled to be maintained at 1 or higher , 2 or higher , 3 or higher , 4 or higher , 5 or higher , 5 . 5 or higher , 5 . 6 or higher , 5 . 7 or higher , 5 . 8 or higher , 5 . 9 or higher , 6 or higher , 6 . 1 or higher , 6 . 2 or higher , 6 . 3 or higher , 6 . 4 or higher , 6 . 5 or higher , 7 or higher , 8 or higher , 9 or higher , 10 or higher , 11 or higher , or 12 or higher or 1 or lower , 2 or lower , 3 or lower , 4 or lower , 5 or lower , 5 . 5 or lower , 5 . 6 or lower , 5 . 7 or lower , 5 . 8 or lower , 5 . 9 or lower , 6 or lower , 6 . 1 or lower , 6 . 2 or lower , 6 . 3 or lower , 6 . 4 or lower , 6 . 5 or lower , 7 or lower , 8 or lower , 9 or lower , 10 or lower , 11 or lower , 12 or lower or 13 or lower , specifically 5 - 7 , more specifically 5 . 7 - 6 . 1 , further more specifically 5 . 9 . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the temperature may be controlled to be 52 - 65 ° c . in an aspect of the present disclosure , temperature may be controlled to be 30 ° c . or higher , 35 ° c . or higher , 40 ° c . or higher , 45 ° c . or higher , 47 ° c . or higher , 49 ° c . or higher , 50 ° c . or higher , 51 ° c . or higher , 52 ° c . or higher , 53 ° c . or higher , 54 ° c . or higher , 55 ° c . or higher , 57 ° c . or higher , 60 ° c . or higher , 62 ° c . or higher , 65 ° c . or higher , 67 ° c . or higher , 70 ° c . or higher or 75 ° c . or higher or 30 ° c . or lower , 35 ° c . or lower , 40 ° c . or lower , 45 ° c . or lower , 47 ° c . or lower , 49 ° c . or lower , 50 ° c . or lower , 51 ° c . or lower , 52 ° c . or lower , 53 ° c . or lower , 54 ° c . or lower , 55 ° c . or lower , 57 ° c . or lower , 60 ° c . or lower , 62 ° c . or lower , 65 ° c . or lower , 67 ° c . or lower , 70 ° c . or lower or 75 ° c . or lower , specifically 52 - 65 ° c . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the fermentation in the step ( 2 ) may comprise being performed by mixing with an enzyme . the enzyme refers to a substance such as a protein , etc . involved in chemical reactions in vivo . during the reaction , the enzyme is temporarily bound to a substrate to form an enzyme - substrate complex and acts as a catalyst . the produced reaction product is separated from the enzyme . the enzyme exhibits enzymatic specificity of permitting only a specific substrate molecule with unique three - dimensional amino acid structure and electrochemical properties corresponding to its active site . the rate of an enzymatic reaction is proportional to the concentration of the substrate and reaches the maximum rate when all the active sites on the enzyme surface are completely filled with the substrate . the enzymatic action is inhibited by competitive inhibition , non - competitive inhibition , etc . the non - competitive inhibition also comprises allosteric inhibition . the inventors of the present disclosure have investigated many enzymes for maximizing the rate of enzymatic reaction in consideration of the characteristics of the enzymes as well as the crushing , acidity and freshness of the substrate . as a result , they have prepared single enzymes or mixtures of enzymes that allow fermentation in short time . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the enzyme may comprise one or more selected from a group consisting of proteinase , protease , pepsin , rennin , trypsin , chymotrypsin , erepsin , aminopeptidase , prolinase , prolidase , enterokinase , peptidase , carboxypeptidase , dipeptidase , papain , bromelain , ficin , actinidain , elastase , subtilisin , pancreatin , nattokinase , arazyme , collagenase , keratinase , gelatinase , savinase , alkaline protease , subclasses thereof , an enzyme usually used in food processing , an enzyme usually used in preparation of fertilizers , an enzyme usually used in preparation of food additives , a commercially available common protein hydrolase and an enzyme usually used in preparation of feed . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the enzyme may be a mixture of several enzymes that can be used in fertilizers , food , food additives , etc . and can ferment or degrade proteins , fats , carbohydrates , etc . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the enzyme or enzyme mixture may be mixed in an amount of 1 wt % or more , 1 . 5 wt % or more , 2 wt % or more , 2 . 5 wt % or more , 3 wt % or more , 3 . 5 wt % or more , 4 wt % or more , 4 . 5 wt % or more , 5 wt % or more , 5 . 5 wt % or more , 6 wt % or more , 6 . 5 wt % or more , 7 wt % or more , 8 wt % or more , 9 wt % or more , 10 wt % or more , 11 wt % or more , 12 wt % or more , 13 wt % or more , 14 wt % or more , 15 wt % or more , 16 wt % or more , 17 wt % or more , 18 wt % or more , 19 wt % or more , 20 wt % or more or 30 wt % or more or 1 wt % or less , 1 . 5 wt % or less , 2 wt % or less , 2 . 5 wt % or less , 3 wt % or less , 3 . 5 wt % or less , 4 wt % or less , 4 . 5 wt % or less , 5 wt % or less , 5 . 5 wt % or less , 6 wt % or less , 6 . 5 wt % or less , 7 wt % or less , 8 wt % or less , 9 wt % or less , 10 wt % or less , 11 wt % or less , 12 wt % or less , 13 wt % or less , 14 wt % or less , 15 wt % or less , 16 wt % or less , 17 wt % or less , 18 wt % or less , 19 wt % or less , 20 wt % or less or 30 wt % or less , specifically 2 . 5 - 4 . 5 wt %, more specifically 3 . 5 wt %, based on the total weight of the byproduct to which the purified water , the purified water comprising an alkaline substance or the lye prepared from wood ash has been added . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the mixing may be performed under a condition where the temperature of the byproduct which has passed the step ( 1 ) is 0 - 30 ° c . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the mixing with the enzyme may be performed when the temperature of the byproduct which has passed the step ( 1 ) is − 25 ° c . or higher , − 20 ° c . or higher , − 15 ° c . or higher , − 10 ° c . or higher , − 6 ° c . or higher , − 3 ° c . or higher , − 1 ° c . or higher , 0 ° c . or higher , 3 ° c . or higher , 4 ° c . or higher , 5 ° c . or higher , 6 ° c . or higher , 7 ° c . or higher , 8 ° c . or higher , 9 ° c . or higher , 10 ° c . or higher , 11 ° c . or higher , 12 ° c . or higher , 15 ° c . or higher , 18 ° c . or higher , 20 ° c . or higher , 21 ° c . or higher , 24 ° c . or higher , 28 ° c . or higher , 32 ° c . or higher or 35 ° c . or higher or − 25 ° c . or lower , − 20 ° c . or lower , − 15 ° c . or lower , − 10 ° c . or lower , − 6 ° c . or lower , − 3 ° c . or lower , − 1 ° c . or lower , 0 ° c . or lower , 3 ° c . or lower , 4 ° c . or lower , 5 ° c . or lower , 6 ° c . or lower , 7 ° c . or lower , 8 ° c . or lower , 9 ° c . or lower , 10 ° c . or lower , 11 ° c . or lower , 12 ° c . or lower , 15 ° c . or lower , 18 ° c . or lower , 20 ° c . or lower , 21 ° c . or lower , 24 ° c . or lower , 28 ° c . or lower , 32 ° c . or lower or 35 ° c . or lower , specifically 5 - 25 ° c ., more specifically 15 - 25 ° c . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the method may further comprise , after the mixing with the enzyme , a process of controlling the temperature of the byproduct to which the enzyme has been added . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the temperature may be controlled to be 30 ° c . or higher , 35 ° c . or higher , 40 ° c . or higher , 45 ° c . or higher , 47 ° c . or higher , 49 ° c . or higher , 50 ° c . or higher , 51 ° c . or higher , 52 ° c . or higher , 53 ° c . or higher , 54 ° c . or higher , 55 ° c . or higher , 57 ° c . or higher , 60 ° c . or higher , 61 ° c . or higher , 62 ° c . or higher , 63 ° c . or higher , 64 ° c . or higher , 65 ° c . or higher , 66 ° c . or higher , 67 ° c . or higher , 68 ° c . or higher , 70 ° c . or higher or 75 ° c . or higher or 30 ° c . or lower , 35 ° c . or lower , 40 ° c . or lower , 45 ° c . or lower , 47 ° c . or lower , 49 ° c . or lower , 50 ° c . or lower , 51 ° c . or lower , 52 ° c . or lower , 53 ° c . or lower , 54 ° c . or lower , 55 ° c . or lower , 57 ° c . or lower , 60 ° c . or lower , 61 ° c . or lower , 62 ° c . or lower , 63 ° c . or lower , 64 ° c . or lower , 65 ° c . or lower , 66 ° c . or lower , 67 ° c . or lower , 68 ° c . or lower , 70 ° c . or lower or 75 ° c . or lower , specifically 52 - 65 ° c . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the step ( 2 ) of obtaining the fermentation product may comprise a stirring step . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the stirring may be performed at 20 rpm or higher , 25 rpm or higher , 30 rpm or higher , 35 rpm or higher , 40 rpm or higher , 45 rpm or higher , 50 rpm or higher , 55 rpm or higher , 60 rpm or higher , 65 rpm or higher , 70 rpm or higher , 75 rpm or higher , 80 rpm or higher , 85 rpm or higher , 90 rpm or higher , 95 rpm or higher , 100 rpm or higher , 110 rpm or higher or 120 rpm or higher or 20 rpm or lower , 25 rpm or lower , 30 rpm or lower , 35 rpm or lower , 40 rpm or lower , 45 rpm or lower , 50 rpm or lower , 55 rpm or lower , 60 rpm or lower , 65 rpm or lower , 70 rpm or lower , 75 rpm or lower , 80 rpm or lower , 85 rpm or lower , 90 rpm or lower , 95 rpm or lower , 100 rpm or lower , 110 rpm or lower or 120 rpm or lower , specifically 50 - 70 rpm , more specifically 60 rpm . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the sterilizing in the step ( 3 ) may comprise sterilizing with ozone , although not being limited thereto . a commonly used existing sterilizing method may also be used . for example , a pasteurization method of heating at 70 ° c . for 30 minutes and then cooling slowly , a uv sterilization method of exposing to uv for a predetermined time , etc . may be used . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the method may further comprise , after the step ( 3 ), a step of adding a preservative . in an aspect of the present disclosure , an extract of a plant comprising natural preservative ingredient may be used as the preservative . specifically , it may comprise mugwort , plantain , aloe , peony , grapefruit and wood vinegar ( prepared by condensing steam generated during carbonization of wood ; easily commercially available ), although not being limited thereto . specifically , the preservative may be one obtained by mixing a solution prepared by adding 2 % of mugwort , plantain , aloe , peony or grapefruit to purified water based on the weight of the purified water and extracting the same by heating and wood vinegar at a ratio of 1 : 1 . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the preservative may be added in an amount of 1 - 10 wt % based on the total weight of the byproduct to which the purified water , the purified water comprising an alkaline substance or the lye prepared from wood ash has been added . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the preservative may be added in an amount of 1 wt % or more , 2 wt % or more , 3 wt % or more , 4 wt % or more , 5 wt % or more , 6 wt % or more , 7 wt % or more , 8 wt % or more , 9 wt % or more , 10 wt % or more , 11 wt % or more , 12 wt % or more , 13 wt % or more , 14 wt % or more , 15 wt % or more , 18 wt % or more , 20 wt % or more , 25 wt % or more or 30 wt % or more or 1 wt % or less , 2 wt % or less , 3 wt % or less , 4 wt % or less , 5 wt % or less , 6 wt % or less , 7 wt % or less , 8 wt % or less , 9 wt % or less , 10 wt % or less , 11 wt % or less , 12 wt % or less , 13 wt % or less , 14 wt % or less , 15 wt % or less , 18 wt % or less , 20 wt % or less , 25 wt % or less or 30 wt % or less , specifically 3 - 7 wt % or 4 - 6 wt %, more specifically 5 wt % or 5 . 1 wt %, based on the total weight of the byproduct to which the purified water , the purified water comprising an alkaline substance or the lye prepared from wood ash has been added . in an aspect , the present disclosure may relate to a product comprising an animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition , which comprises 15 - 25 wt % of animal byproduct - derived total free amino acids , 1 - 4 wt % of animal byproduct - derived aspartic acid , 1 - 4 wt % of animal byproduct - derived glutamic acid , 1 - 4 wt % of animal byproduct - derived alanine , 1 - 4 wt % of animal byproduct - derived leucine and 1 - 4 wt % of animal byproduct - derived lysine based on the total weight of the animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition . in another aspect of the present disclosure , the animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition may comprise the total free amino acids in an amount of 10 wt % or more , 12 wt % or more , 14 wt % or more , 15 wt % or more , 16 wt % or more , 17 wt % or more , 18 wt % or more , 19 wt % or more , 20 wt % or more , 21 wt % or more , 22 wt % or more , 23 wt % or more , 24 wt % or more , 25 wt % or more , 27 wt % or more , 30 wt % or more or 35 wt % or more or 35 wt % or less , 27 wt % or less , 25 wt % or less , 24 wt % or less , 23 wt % or less , 22 wt % or less , 21 wt % or less , 20 wt % or less , 19 wt % or less , 18 wt % or less , 17 wt % or less , 16 wt % or less , 15 wt % or less , 14 wt % or less , 12 wt % or less or 10 wt % or less , specifically 15 - 25 wt %, more specifically 20 . 84 wt %, based on the total weight of the composition . in another aspect of the present disclosure , the animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition may comprise each of aspartic acid , glutamic acid , alanine , leucine and lysine in an amount of 0 . 1 wt % or more , 0 . 3 wt % or more , 0 . 5 wt % or more , 0 . 7 wt % or more , 0 . 9 wt % or more , 1 wt % or more , 2 wt % or more , 3 wt % or more , 4 wt % or more , 5 wt % or more , 6 wt % or more , 7 wt % or more or 10 wt % or more or 10 wt % or less , 9 wt % or less , 8 wt % or less , 7 wt % or less , 6 wt % or less , 5 wt % or less , 4 wt % or less , 3 wt % or less , 2 wt % or less , 1 wt % or less , 0 . 9 wt % or less , 0 . 7 wt % or less , 0 . 5 wt % or less , 0 . 3 wt % or less or 0 . 1 wt % or less , based on the total weight of the composition . specifically , it may comprise 1 . 5 - 3 . 5 wt % of aspartic acid , 1 - 3 wt % of glutamic acid , 0 . 5 - 3 wt % of alanine , 2 - 4 wt % of leucine and 1 - 3 wt % lysine , more specifically 2 . 47 wt % of aspartic acid , 1 . 92 wt % of glutamic acid , 1 . 71 wt % of alanine , 2 . 81 wt % of leucine and 2 . 15 wt % of lysine . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition may be an animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition which further comprises 0 . 01 - 5 wt % of each of animal byproduct - derived threonine , animal byproduct - derived serine , animal byproduct - derived glycine , animal byproduct - derived valine , animal byproduct - derived isoleucine , animal byproduct - derived tyrosine , animal byproduct - derived phenylalanine , animal byproduct - derived histidine , animal byproduct - derived arginine , animal byproduct - derived proline , animal byproduct - derived methionine and animal byproduct - derived cysteine based on the total weight of the composition . in another aspect of the present disclosure , the animal byproduct - derived amino acid composition may comprise each of threonine , serine , glycine , valine , isoleucine , tyrosine , phenylalanine , histidine , arginine , proline , methionine and cysteine in an amount of 0 . 01 wt % or more , 0 . 05 wt % or more , 0 . 1 wt % or more , 0 . 5 wt % or more , 1 wt % or more , 1 . 5 wt % or more , 2 . 0 wt % or more , 2 . 5 wt % or more , 3 . 0 wt % or more , 3 . 5 wt % or more , 4 wt % or more , 4 . 5 wt % or more , 5 wt % or more or 10 wt % or more or 10 wt % or less , 5 wt % or less , 4 . 5 wt % or less , 3 . 5 wt % or less , 4 wt % or less , 3 . 5 wt % or less , 3 wt % or less , 2 . 5 wt % or less , 2 wt % or less , 1 . 5 wt % or less , 1 wt % or less , 0 . 5 wt % or less , 0 . 1 wt % or less , 0 . 05 wt % or less or 0 . 01 wt % or less based on the total weight of the composition . specifically , it may comprise each of threonine , serine , glycine , valine , isoleucine , tyrosine , phenylalanine , histidine , arginine , proline , methionine and cysteine in an amount of 0 . 1 - 2 wt %. more specifically , it may comprise 0 . 85 wt % of threonine , 1 . 01 wt % of serine , 0 . 98 wt % of glycine , 1 . 32 wt % of valine , 0 . 12 wt % of isoleucine , 0 . 58 wt % of tyrosine , 1 . 4 wt % of phenylalanine , 1 . 35 wt % of histidine , 0 . 83 wt % of arginine , 0 . 92 wt % of proline , 0 . 16 wt % of methionine and 0 . 26 wt % of cysteine . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the product may comprise one or more of a fertilizer , a feed additive and a food additive . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the product may be in the form of one or more of a liquid , a powder and a pellet , although not being limited thereto . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the feed that can be prepared by applying the present disclosure is not limited in type . it may be applied to any type of feed that can be supplied to animals , including livestock , pets and aquacultured fish . and , the feed additive may further comprise an acceptable carrier . in the present disclosure , the feed additive may be used as it is or after adding a known carrier , stabilizer , etc . if necessary , various nutrients such as vitamins , amino acids , minerals , etc . and other additives such as an antioxidant , an antibiotic , an antibacterial agent , etc . may be used . the feed additive may be in a suitable form such as a liquid , a powder , a granule , a pellet , a suspension , etc . the feed additive of the present disclosure may be supplied either alone or as mixed with a feed . the addition amount of the amino acid composition of the present disclosure in a feed is not specially limited . in an aspect of the present disclosure , when the composition is in the form of a liquid , it may be added in an amount of 0 . 01 wt % or more , 0 . 03 wt % or more , 0 . 08 wt % or more , 0 . 1 wt % or more , 0 . 2 wt % or more , 0 . 3 wt % or more , 0 . 4 wt % or more , 0 . 5 wt % or more , 0 . 6 wt % or more , 0 . 7 wt % or more , 0 . 8 wt % or more , 0 . 9 wt % or more , 1 . 0 wt % or more , 1 . 5 wt % or more , 2 . 0 wt % or more , 2 . 5 wt % or more , 3 . 0 wt % or more , 5 . 0 wt % or more , 7 . 0 wt % or more , 10 wt % or more , 13 wt % or more or 15 wt % or more or 0 . 01 wt % or less , 0 . 03 wt % or less , 0 . 08 wt % or less , 0 . 1 wt % or less , 0 . 2 wt % or less , 0 . 3 wt % or less , 0 . 4 wt % or less , 0 . 5 wt % or less , 0 . 6 wt % or less , 0 . 7 wt % or less , 0 . 8 wt % or less , 0 . 9 wt % or less , 1 . 0 wt % or less , 1 . 5 wt % or less , 2 . 0 wt % or less , 2 . 5 wt % or less , 3 . 0 wt % or less , 5 . 0 wt % or less , 7 . 0 wt % or less , 10 wt % or less , 13 wt % or less or 15 wt % or less , specifically 0 . 1 - 0 . 3 wt %, based on the total weight of the feed . and , when the amino acid composition of the present disclosure is in the form of a powder , it may be added in an amount of 0 . 01 wt % or more , 0 . 015 wt % or more , 0 . 1 wt % or more , 0 . 15 wt % or more , 0 . 2 wt % or more , 0 . 25 wt % or more , 0 . 3 wt % or more , 0 . 35 wt % or more , 0 . 4 wt % or more , 0 . 45 wt % or more , 0 . 5 wt % or more , 0 . 55 wt % or more , 0 . 6 wt % or more , 0 . 7 wt % or more , 0 . 8 wt % or more , 0 . 9 wt % or more , 1 . 0 wt % or more , 3 . 0 wt % or more , 5 . 0 wt % or more , 8 . 0 wt % or more or 10 . 0 wt % or more or 0 . 01 wt % or less , 0 . 015 wt % or less , 0 . 1 wt % or less , 0 . 15 wt % or less , 0 . 2 wt % or less , 0 . 25 wt % or less , 0 . 3 wt % or less , 0 . 35 wt % or less , 0 . 4 wt % or less , 0 . 45 wt % or less , 0 . 5 wt % or less , 0 . 55 wt % or less , 0 . 6 wt % or less , 0 . 7 wt % or less , 0 . 8 wt % or less , 0 . 9 wt % or less , 1 . 0 wt % or less , 3 . 0 wt % or less , 5 . 0 wt % or less , 8 . 0 wt % or less or 10 . 0 wt % or less , specifically 0 . 2 - 0 . 5 wt %, based on the total weight of the feed . in an aspect of the present disclosure , there is no limitation in the food . examples of the food to which the amino acid composition of the present disclosure can be added comprise drinks , meat , sausage , bread , biscuit , rice cake , chocolate , candy , snack , confectionery , pizza , instant noodle , other noodles , gums , dairy products including ice cream , soups , beverages , alcoholic beverages , vitamin mixtures , etc . various indulgence foods , health foods , food supplements , health functional foods and food additives in common sense are comprised . the amino acid composition of the present disclosure may be comprised in a food in an amount of 0 . 1 wt % or more , 0 . 2 wt % or more , 0 . 3 wt % or more , 0 . 4 wt % or more , 0 . 5 wt % or more , 0 . 6 wt % or more , 0 . 7 wt % or more , 0 . 8 wt % or more , 0 . 9 wt % or more , 1 . 0 wt % or more , 2 . 0 wt % or more , 3 . 0 wt % or more , 5 . 0 wt % or more , 1 . 0 wt % or more , 5 . 0 wt % or more , 10 wt % or more , 15 wt % or more , 20 wt % or more or 30 wt % or more or 0 . 1 wt % or less , 0 . 2 wt % or less , 0 . 3 wt % or less , 0 . 4 wt % or less , 0 . 5 wt % or less , 0 . 6 wt % or less , 0 . 7 wt % or less , 0 . 8 wt % or less , 0 . 9 wt % or less , 1 . 0 wt % or less , 2 . 0 wt % or less , 3 . 0 wt % or less , 5 . 0 wt % or less , 1 . 0 wt % or less , 5 . 0 wt % or less , 10 wt % or less , 15 wt % or less , 20 wt % or less or 30 wt % or less , specifically 0 . 5 - 1 . 0 wt %, based on the total weight of the food . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the food additive comprising the amino acid composition may comprise other ingredients within a range not negatively affecting the effect desired by the present disclosure . for example , it may further comprise additives for improving physical properties , such as a flavor , a pigment , a sterilizer , an antioxidant , an antiseptic , a humectant , a thickener , a mineral , an emulsifier , a synthetic polymer , etc . in addition , it may further comprise auxiliary ingredients such as a water - soluble vitamin , an oil - soluble vitamin , a polypeptide , a polysaccharide , a seaweed extract , etc . these ingredients may be selected by those skilled in the art without difficulty depending on the particular formulation or purpose of use and the addition amount may be selected within a range not negatively affecting the purpose and effect of the present disclosure . for example , the addition amount of the ingredients may be 0 . 001 - 10 wt %, more specifically 0 . 001 - 5 wt %, based on the total weight of the composition . in an aspect of the present disclosure , the formulation of the food additive comprising the amino acid composition is not specially limited . for example , it may be prepared into various forms such as a gum , a chewing gum , a solid , a semisolid , a tablet , a granule , a pellet , a powder , a liquid such as a drink , an emulsion , a viscous mixture , a caramel , a gel , a bar , etc . each formulation may comprise , in addition to the active ingredient , ingredients commonly used in the art that may be selected by those skilled in the art without difficulty depending on the particular formulation or purpose of use . in this case , a synergic effect may be achieved . in addition , the food additive according to an aspect of the present disclosure may comprise various nutrients , vitamins , minerals ( electrolytes ), flavors such as synthetic and natural flavors , colorants , extenders , pectic acid and salts thereof , alginic acid and salts thereof , organic acids , protective colloidal thickeners , ph control agents , stabilizers , antiseptics , glycerin , alcohols , carbonating agents used in carbonated drinks , etc . in addition , the food additive of the present disclosure may comprise pulp for preparing natural fruit juice , fruit juice drink and vegetable drink . these ingredients may be used either independently or in combination . in general , the addition amount of these additional ingredients is about 0 - 80 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the food additive of the present disclosure although it is of no significant importance . hereinafter , the present disclosure will be described in detail through examples , a comparative example and preparation examples . however , the following examples are for illustrative purposes only and it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited by them . in order to maximize the contact surface area between an enzyme and a substrate , maintain a weakly acidic condition under which the enzyme can function properly and maintain an optimum temperature condition under which proteins can be more easily degraded into amino acids , cell membrane was removed from the substrate as follows . a blood sample was crushed to maximize the contact surface area between an enzyme and a substrate , thereby achieving the maximum effect of the enzyme . specifically , cow blood was acquired from a slaughterhouse as a byproduct . before crushing , some of the blood was kept at 5 - 7 ° c . and some was kept at − 20 ° c . or lower . then , 350 g of the blood was added to a nanobubble generator and crushed for a predetermined time ( 0 . 5 - 1 hour ). the nanobubble generator was an apparatus which can move a liquid from a lower pressure to a higher pressure . the apparatus can comprise a motor which generates driving force using electricity , an impeller which rotates by the driving force of the motor and moves a liquid and a coupler which connects a shaft of the motor to the impeller . when a plurality of impellers are used to provide a stronger pressure , an apparatus with a vertical multi - stage structure may be used . the nanobubble generator used in this example ( diameter : 32 - 125 mm , maximum capacity : 250 m 2 / h , maximum allowable pressure : 30 bar , power : 0 . 75 - 100 kw , bubble size : average diameter ≦ 1 μm ) was an apparatus with a vertical multi - stage structure which is commercially available . it is schematically shown in fig2 and fig3 . in the present disclosure , the nanobubble generator described above or an apparatus with a better specification may be used . fig2 shows the external appearance of the nanobubble generator and the fig3 shows the cross - sectional view of the portion where circular impellers that generate nanobubbles are provided in multiple stages . the nanobubble generator is an important apparatus for crushing blood by generating nanobubbles and may be equipped with circular impellers with a vertical multi - stage structure . the circular impeller may have projections for generating turbulence , cavitation , air bubbling etc . of the circular impellers of different types shown in fig4 ( perspective views , plan views and side views of circular impellers of three types ), type 3 was found to provide the highest fermentation efficiency . therefore , type 3 was used in this example . fig4 shows circular impellers of different types that may be used in a nanobubble generator according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure . when the time required for fermentation using the nanobubble generator was measured , it was found out that the fermentation time was remarkably decreased to 3 . 5 hours or shorter whereas it took longer than 9 hours under the same fermentation condition when the existing mechanical crushing apparatus ( a mechanical crushing apparatus equipped with a stainless steel ( sts304 ) rotary propeller ) was used . details are given in tables 2 and 3 . then , the cell membrane was removed based on the principle of osmosis by adding water . the efficiency was the highest when the amount of the water was about 10 % of the sample amount . in this example , 35 g of water was added to 350 g of the sample . the water was not purified water but purified water to which an alkaline substance has been added ( prepared by adding 10 % of naoh or koh based on the weight of purified water ) or lye prepared using wood ash ( ash powder of deciduous or coniferous tree ) ( prepared by adding 10 wt % of ash powder based on the weight of purified water and extracting for about 10 days ). when lye prepared from wood ash is used , the function and effect of the final product are improved due to the mineral ingredients extracted from the ash powder . the optimum ph and temperature conditions under which the cell membrane can be effectively removed from the sample and the enzyme can function properly were determined . specifically , it was found out that it is desired that ph be maintained around 5 . 9 to prevent the denaturation of amino acids and to effectively remove the cell membrane . also , measures to weaken protein binding and easily convert the same to amino acids were investigated . in order to weaken protein binding , ( 1 ) heating , ( 2 ) high - frequency treatment , ( 3 ) electrolysis , ( 4 ) addition of an acid and ( 5 ) freezing were considered . the high - frequency treatment was not so effective because the effect was exerted only up to the shallow depth of the protein . the electrolysis and addition of an acid were problematic in that conversion efficiency to amino acids was very low due to denaturation of protein . as a consequence , it was found out that ( 1 ) heating and ( 5 ) freezing are suitable methods to weaken protein binding without denaturation of amino acids . because an enzyme is used for fermentation , the temperature at which the enzyme exerts the optimum effect was considered . it was found out that the optimum temperature for the enzyme used in an aspect of the present disclosure was 52 - 65 ° c . and the maximum effect was exerted at 65 ° c . it was important that maintaining the temperature at 65 ° c . it was also found out that , at temperatures above 65 ° c ., the blood is hardened due to denaturation of amino acids and stirring and fermentation are impossible . the sample obtained in & lt ; 1 - 1 & gt ; of example 1 was fermented by adding 13 . 5 g of an enzyme . because different enzymes can be used depending on the substrate ph and it was found out that the substrate comprising proteins ( blood , guts , etc .) has initially an acidic ph , it was confirmed that it is effective to make a weakly acidic condition by mixing with the alkaline substance or lye as in & lt ; 1 - 1 & gt ; in order to ensure effective removal of the cell membrane and aid in enzymatic action . that is to say , it was confirmed that amino acid extraction can be achieved in short time by preparing a weakly acidic condition of ph 5 - 7 . 5 and then adding a mixture of enzymes that act effectively in this ph range . it was confirmed that , at low temperature ( 20 - 30 ° c . ), addition of the enzymes ( 3 ) and ( 4 ) ( weight ratio = 1 : 1 ) is effective and the enzymes can be used regardless of the freshness of the sample . at high temperature ( 52 - 65 ° c . ), it was confirmed that fermentation can be performed effectively by using a mixture of the enzymes ( 1 ), ( 5 ) and ( 7 ) ( weight ratio = 1 : 1 : 1 ) when the sample was maintained fresh within one day after slaughter . when moderate freshness was maintained ( 2 - 3 days after slaughter ), it was confirmed that fermentation can be performed effectively by using a mixture of the enzymes ( 1 ), ( 2 ) and ( 6 ) ( weight ratio = 1 : 1 : 1 ). after 4 days , when fermentation was not performed effectively by using a mixture of the enzymes ( 1 ), ( 2 ) and ( 6 ) ( weight ratio = 1 : 1 : 1 ), it was confirmed that fermentation can be performed effectively by using a mixture of the enzymes ( 1 ), ( 5 ) and ( 7 ) ( weight ratio = 1 : 1 : 1 , 3 . 5 % based on total weight ). in the mixtures , the enzymes were added with the same weight , with a constant ratio based on the total weight of the sample , as shown in table 2 and table 3 . in order to enhance fermentation efficiency , the resulting mixture was stirred at a constant rate after the addition of the enzymes . the result is shown in table 3 . after the fermentation was completed , the activity of the enzymes was inhibited through sterilization . if the enzymes remain activated after the fermentation is completed , offensive odor may be generated as ammonia is produced from the reaction between the amino group (— nh 2 ) and hydrogen . therefore , it is desired to inhibit the enzymatic activity to avoid such a reaction . heating may be performed to inhibit the enzymatic activity . the enzymatic activity may be inhibited by heating at 70 - 80 ° c . for 1 minute . alternatively , the enzymatic activity may be inhibited through sterilization . in this example , the enzymatic activity was inhibited through strong sterilization by hydroxyl ( oh ) groups by mixing with ozone . in addition , for long - term preservation of the fermented sample , 19 . 3 g of a preservative solution prepared by mixing a solution of 2 % of mugwort , plantain , aloe , peony and grapefruit based on the weight of purified water extracted by heating with wood vinegar ( prepared by condensing steam generated during carbonization of wood ; easily commercially available ) at a weight ratio of 1 : 1 was added . & lt ; comparative example 1 & gt ; fermentation time depending on enzyme addition time , heating time , stirring rate , etc . the time until fermentation was completed was measured while varying the sample temperature before the addition of enzymes , the time when enzyme was added , the time when temperature reached 65 ° c ., and the stirring rate . the result is shown in table 3 . from table 3 , it can be seen that , as compared to when the sample was crushed by the existing mechanical crushing method and fermentation was performed using 1 . 93 g or 0 . 5 wt % of the enzyme based on 385 g of the sample ( 350 g of blood + 35 g of alkaline substance - comprising purified water or lye ) by stirring at a rate of 45 rpm ( ex . 1 ), the fermentation time was decreased from 7 hours to 6 hours when 3 . 5 % ( 13 . 5 g ) of the enzyme was used based on the total weight ( 385 g ) of the sample to which the alkaline substance - comprising purified water or lye was added and fermentation was conducted at a stirring rate of 60 rpm ( ex . 1 - 1 ). the completion of fermentation can be ascertained by precipitation . if , when the fermented sample is boiled and purified water is added , the sample is dissolved homogeneously in the purified water without precipitation , it means that the fermentation has been completed . if the fermentation has not been completed , the sample is not dissolved homogeneously in the purified water and precipitation occurs or powder remains on the surface of the sample . also , it can be seen from table 3 that the fermentation time was decreased from 6 hours to 5 hours and 5 minutes when the time for heating the sample to 65 ° c . was 30 minutes ( ex . 1 - 2 ) as compared to when it was 1 hour ( ex . 1 - 1 ). it can also be seen that the fermentation time can be remarkably decreased by crushing the sample using a nanobubble generator , adding the enzyme and then raising the temperature to 65 ° c . ( ex . 2 , ex . 3 - 1 and ex . 3 - 2 ) as compared to when the sample was crushed by mechanical crushing and the enzyme was added after raising the temperature to 65 ° c . ( ex . 1 , ex . 1 - 1 and ex . 1 - 2 ). in this case , the fermentation time could be further decreased when the stirring rate was 60 rpm as compared to when it was 90 rpm ( ex . 3 - 1 and ex . 3 - 2 ). when the sample was frozen at − 25 ° c . for 5 hours without adding the alkaline substance - comprising purified water or lye and fermented after crushing ( ex . 4 ), the fermentation time was slightly increased . 2 kg of commercially available pig liver was crushed finely with a blender and then mixed with 2 kg of water . sample a and sample b were prepared respectively by adding 1 . 5 kg of the mixture with 1 . 5 kg of water . sample c was prepared by mixing 600 g of the mixture with 600 g of purified water to which the alkaline substance of & lt ; 1 - 1 & gt ; was added . samples a , b and c were fermented in the same manner as in the examples and comparative example . for sample a , an enzyme was added as soon as the sample was prepared as described above . for sample b and sample c , the enzyme was added when the temperature reached 58 ° c . then , fermentation was conducted while maintaining the temperature at 58 ° c . it was confirmed that fermentation was completed for sample c only . details are given in the following table . 2 . 2 kg of commercially available pig heart was crushed finely with a blender and then mixed with 4 kg of water . after filtering off impurities , 2 . 5 l of the resulting mixture was mixed with 1 l of water . sample a and sample b were prepared in this manner and the two samples were fermented in the same manner as in the examples and comparative example . an enzyme was added as soon as the samples were prepared . for sample b , 5 wt % of purified water to which the alkaline substance of & lt ; 1 - 1 & gt ; was added was added . during the stirring of sample a , a significant amount of lumpy substance such as tendon was formed , which was removed . the temperature of sample b was raised to 64 ° c . and maintained at 68 ° c . the two samples were filtered through a 200 - mesh filter and stored at 5 ° c . the enzyme was added at 13 : 44 and the fermentation was completed at 09 : 00 on the next day . 11 . 2 kg of commercially available cow liver and 8 . 9 kg of commercially available pig liver were crushed finely with a blender and water was added . 22 . 4 kg of a sample was prepared for the cow liver and 17 . 8 kg of a sample was prepared for the pig liver , which were crushed again with a nanobubble generator . after removing 2 kg from each sample , the two samples were mixed . the mixed 36 . 2 kg sample was fermented by adding an enzyme and stirring . the result is shown in the following table . 6 kg of commercially available cow liver and 2 kg of commercially available pig liver were crushed finely with a blender and a 12 kg sample was prepared for the cow liver and a 4 kg sample was prepared for the pig liver by adding 6 kg and 2 kg of water , respectively . the samples were crushed again with a nanobubble generator . 1 . 5 l of each sample was fermented by adding an enzyme and stirring . the result is shown in the following table . 1 . 5 kg of commercially available cow liver and 1 . 5 kg of commercially available pig liver were crushed finely with a blender and 1 . 65 kg samples were prepared respectively by adding 0 . 15 kg of water . after adding 20 wt % of the alkaline substance - comprising purified water of & lt ; 1 - 1 & gt ; to each sample , the sample was crushed again with a blender . the samples were fermented by adding an enzyme and stirring . the result is shown in the following table . proteins are applicable as various products after being converted to amino acids . they can be used for fertilizers , feeds and food additives and can be prepared into liquid , powder or pellet form . various liquid fertilizer products can be produced by adding various nutrients to amino acids produced from the amino acid compositions according to the examples and comparative example . the products can be used for soil fertilization or foliar feeding by mixing with water . category 4 compound fertilizers were prepared by adding water - soluble nitrogen ( n ), phosphorus ( p ), potassium ( k ), copper ( cu ), boron ( b ), etc . to the amino acid compositions according to the examples and comparative example . concentrated fertilizers were prepared by increasing the amino acid content of the basic liquid fertilizers . specialized products for root crops , roots , flowers , dwarf trees , sod , etc . can also be produced by adding minerals and trace elements such as potassium ( k ), calcium ( ca ), silicon ( si ), etc . high - quality liquid fertilizers were prepared by adding minerals and functional ingredients resistant to harmful insects to the basic liquid fertilizers . the functional ingredient may be , for example , a loess - sulfur mixture . the loess - sulfur mixture may be prepared by dissolving 10 wt % of sulfur , 10 wt % of salt , 10 wt % of loess and 10 wt % of caustic soda based on the total weight of the mixture in water to make a final volume 64 l and then further adding 36 l of water 2 - 3 days later . a pellet - type fertilizer which can be sprayed directly to soil was prepared by impregnating the liquid product in a vehicle . the vehicle may be one or more selected from rice bran , corn , barley , wheat and rice . a pellet - type fertilizer was also prepared by absorbing the liquid amino acid composition into wood and preparing the wood into a pellet shape using tar which acts as an adhesive . the pellet - type fertilizer is variously applicable to roadside trees , landscaping trees , dwarf trees , etc . because it is absorbed slowly when sprayed onto soil . a liquid feed adjuvant or feed additive that can be provided to animals was prepared by mixing 0 . 1 - 0 . 3 wt % of the amino acid composition according to the examples or comparative example with a feed ( corn , compound feed , etc .) based on the total weight of the feed . after preparing the amino acid composition according to the examples or comparative example into powder by low - temperature vacuum drying , freeze - drying , hot air drying , etc ., a powder - or pellet - type feed adjuvant or feed additive was prepared by mixing 0 . 2 - 0 . 5 wt % of the powder based on the total weight of a feed . the feed adjuvant or feed additive can be further processed to satisfy legal requirements or standards . because hot air drying is associated with the concern that the active ingredient may be damaged due to oxidation , low - temperature vacuum drying is more desirable to prepare a powder - or pellet - type product in that the active ingredient can be preserved with little damage and production cost is low . 0 . 5 - 1 . 0 wt % of the amino acid composition according to the examples or comparative example may be added to food to effectively improve nutrition . in this case , the composition of the food can be controlled or the food can be further processed to satisfy the requirements or standards of the food sanitation act and the korean food code . the amino acid composition according to the examples or comparative example may be prepared into powder by low - temperature vacuum drying , freeze - drying , hot air drying , etc . to be added to food . because hot air drying is associated with the concern that the active ingredient may be damaged due to oxidation , low - temperature vacuum drying is more desirable to prepare a powder - type product in that the active ingredient can be preserved with little damage and production cost is low . 0 . 5 - 1 . 0 wt % of the amino acid composition according to the examples or comparative example may be added to rice bran , barley , wheat , rice , corn , etc . to supply essential amino acids necessary for human .

US-201615158021-A

a quick connect and disconnect mechanism for releasably engaging a cyclist &# 39 ; s shoe with a bike pedal having a slotted retainer secured to the pedal and an insert secured to the sole of the cyclist &# 39 ; s shoe . the insert or key is insertably introduced through an open end of the slot to engage the retainer . a wedge and dove - tail arrangement prevents separation of the insert or key from the retainer in a direction normal to the pedal . a resilient detent construction yieldably or releasably holds the insert or key in the slot of the retainer and permits only lateral separation . a guide or alignment arrangement is employed to conduct the insert or key into the slot via the open end thereof .

referring to fig1 - 6 inclusive , the novel quick disconnect and connect arrangement is illustrated in the general direction of arrow 9 for releasably engaging a shoe of a bike rider with a pedal 15 . the shoe is identified by numeral 12 with the sole thereof indicated by numeral 11 . the quick connect and disconnect arrangement 9 includes an insert , clip or key 10 secured to the underside or sole 11 of the shoe 12 . the insert is rounded at its leading end 13 and includes a base 14 fixly secured to the sole 11 . [ 0022 ] fig3 and 5 disclose the pedal 15 attached to a sprocket crank ( not shown ) by a threaded stud 16 . a slotted retainer , receiver or keyway 17 is secured to the pedal and includes an open - ended slot 18 for insertably receiving the insert , clip or key 10 . the opening to the slot is from the side away from the threaded stud 16 and the opening is rounded and enlarged so that a tapered side is established for ease of insertion of the insert , clip or key alignment with the slot . fig5 illustrates the insert , clip or key 10 occupying the slot and illustrates conformity and mating of the dove - tail shape of the sidewalls of both the insert , clip or key and the defining sidewalls for the slot 18 . the sides of the insert , clip or key are undercut to provide guidance in assembly and for alignment . therefore , it can be seen that the insertion of the clip or key 10 into the slot 18 is transverse or lateral from the side of the pedal . the direction of insertion is normal to the vertical axis of the pedal 15 . the direction is substantially horizontal with respect to the upper surface of the pedal 15 . referring now in detail to fig7 and 8 , another version or embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the general direction of arrow 20 wherein it can be seen that a pedal 21 is cantilevered outwardly from a connection fixture 22 which is attached to the bicycle crank ( not shown ). the pedal 21 includes a base surface 23 on which is mounted a fixed member 24 and a movable member 25 . the members 24 and 25 are spaced apart from one another so as to define a slot 26 between their opposing surfaces for insertably receiving a clip , insert or key 27 secured to the sole 11 of a shoe . an alignment or guidance means is provided wherein the surface 23 is provided with a recess 28 so that when the rounded end 30 of the insert 27 is introduced to the slot 23 , the insert will not be hung - up or impact against the end of the pedal . in a sense , the alignment of the insert with the slot is self - centering because of the slope provided on the recess 28 . also , it is to be noted that the ends 31 and 32 on the members 25 and 24 respectively are rounded so that the inserts 27 will self - align and be automatically be directed into the slot 26 . an important feature of the version 20 resides in providing the member 31 with a pivoting action about a fastener 33 so that the slot may be expanded as the insert enters through the entrance defined by the opening between ends 31 and 32 . the insert will proceed through the slot until a nub 34 drops into a indentation 35 in the insert 27 . the nub 34 and indentation 35 form a detent for releasably and yieldably holding the insert into position between the members 24 and 25 in the slot 26 . the member 25 will slightly pivot outwardly as the thickness of the insert is forced through the opening into the slot 26 ; however , once the insert has reached the end of the slot , the nub 34 will fall into the indentation 35 to releasably retain the insert in place . the remainder of the shoe sole 11 will press against bars 36 and 37 respectively located on opposite sides of the pedal 21 . the insert 27 may be fastened or secured to the sole of the shoe by means of screws or other fasteners which pass through openings such as opening 39 . in fig8 it can be seen that the movable member 25 includes a hidden leaf - spring 40 which is fastened about the fastener 33 so that one end of the spring is restrained while the opposite end of the member is free to pivot in the direction of the arrow 41 . the end of the member is directed or biased toward the slot 26 when the insert 27 is absent from the slot or when the nub 34 is fully received within the indentation 35 of the insert . the expanded or pivoted position of member 25 is shown in broken lines . the end of member 25 further includes a pin 42 that projects into an arcuate slot 44 and serves as a stabilizing means for the member 25 as its positions between its outer position in broken lines and its inner position against the insert 27 . referring now in detail to fig9 it can be seen that the insert 27 is carried on a base 45 and that the insert , clip or key downwardly depends from the base 45 and the sole 11 . the insert terminates in an outwardly flared portion 48 which includes side surfaces which are tapered to provide a dove - tail alignment and engagement with the shaped sidewalls of the slot 26 . the sidewall of each member defining the slot is tapered to match the dove - tail taper of the flared portion 48 of the insert . referring now in detail to fig1 and 11 , it can be seen that the novel quick connect and disconnect arrangement is illustrated in another embodiment by numeral 50 and that a pedal 51 includes a surface 52 on which is mounted a fixed member 53 and a movable member 54 . the movable member is biased toward the fixed member 53 by means of a pair of spaced - part coiled springs 56 and 57 respectively . the springs operate to normally biased member 54 toward member 53 but the movement is limited so as to define a central elongated slot 58 . a clip insert or key 60 is rounded at end 61 and is inserted into the plot 58 via the rounded and enlarged entrance leading into the slot 58 by the ends 62 and 63 of the respective members 53 and 54 . the movement of the insert 60 into slot 58 is limited by means of stop 64 which is at the extreme end of the slot between the members 53 and 54 . therefore , it can be seen that the member 54 moves forward and backwards to increase or decrease the distance between the members 53 and 54 and the width of slot 58 . also , it can be seen that the rounded ends 62 and 63 of the members provide a guide or an alignment means in combination with the recess 65 for receiving the rounded end of insert 60 . it is also to be noted that the stop 64 includes an undercut shoulder 66 which covers the end of the insert 60 when it engages against the stop . also , bars 67 and 68 provide surfaces against which the sole of the biker &# 39 ; s shoe is placed once the insert 60 is in the slot 58 and retained therein . referring now in detail to fig1 , it can be seen that the helical springs 56 and 57 are in fixed , spaced - apart relationship with one end of each spring bearing against bar 68 while the opposite end of the spring bears against the opposite end of the movable member 54 . also , in combination with fig1 , it can be seen that a similar or identical dove - tail relationship between the sides of the insert and the opposing sidewalls of the members 53 and 54 are the same as previously shown and described with respect to fig9 . the expanding pressure of the springs 56 and 57 maintain the insert 60 captured between the two members while the biker is pedaling . however , should there be an event where the rider or biker falls from the bike and his foot moves away from the pedal , the expansion pressure of the spring is overcome and the member 54 moves toward bar 68 to release the insert 60 . it view of the foregoing , it can be seen that the quick connect and disconnect arrangement of the present invention provides a safety means for a bike rider to not only permit engagement to increase the operating parameters for the cyclist but also provides a safety feature for automatically releasing the foot and shoe from the pedal should an accident occur requiring such disengagement . when a cyclist falls or collides , their body weight and twisting action causes the pivot arm or member to open the slot , thus ejecting the key or clip and the rider from the pedal . the cyclist &# 39 ; s foot can turn in either direction to activate the pedal opening . the pedal base includes plate holes and member or arm undercut so that dirt and mud may fall through and accumulation is avoided . the sidebars are removable and the bars are raised for shoe support . while particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described , it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspects and , therefore , the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention . [ 0033 ] fig6 is a front elevational view of the insert , clip or retainer illustrating the chamfered or tapered side thereof matable with the sidewall of the retainer on the pedal that defines the receiving slot ; [ 0034 ] fig7 and 8 are perspective and top plan views illustrating another embodiment of a quick disconnect arrangement incorporating the present invention wherein the retainer includes a spring biased member yieldably holding the insert in securement ; [ 0035 ] fig9 is an enlarged sectional view of the releasable retaining means as taken in the direction of arrows 9 - 9 of fig8 ; [ 0036 ] fig1 and 11 are views similar to the views of fig8 and 9 illustrating still another version of the present invention having a dual spring arrangement for yieldably biasing a leg member into connection with the insert carried on the shoe ; and [ 0037 ] fig1 is a transverse cross - sectional view of the inserted insert , clip or key in the receiving slot of the retainer as illustrated in the direction of arrows 12 - 12 of fig1 .

US-82537201-A

a file input / output control system has first computers each having disks and connected to a network ; and at least one second computer connected to the network for accessing the disks connected to the plurality of first computers , the second computer having : a retriever for retrieving first data access requests issued from a plurality of processes of an application and comparing the first data access requests with correspondence relation defining information to thereby confirm that the first data access requests are accesses to disks , the correspondence relation defining information being entered by a user in advance and indicating a correspondence relation between the disks and each of regions in a file stored in disks of the first computers ; and a scheduler for creating second data access requests to the disks from first data access requests confirmed to be accesses to disks , in accordance with the correspondence relation defining information between the disks and each of the regions in a file stored in the disks of the first computers , and transmitting the second access requests to the network , wherein the first computers access the disks in accordance with the second data access requests received via the network . each of the first computers has a rearranger for rearranging second data access requests for each of the disks in the order of block numbers in each of the disks . each of the first computers has a merger for merging , upon detection of that the second data access requests to each of the disks contain data access requests to a continuous disk field , the disk access requests to one disk access request . although two - dimensional array data distributively stored in the first computers is defined in a row direction , in response to an access command for referring to the two - dimensional array data in a column direction , the network driver reads data containing unnecessary data from the disks , transmits the data containing unnecessary data to each of the second computers , and each of the second computers filters the data containing unnecessary data to discard the unnecessary data and obtain necessary data for the second computer .

an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings . [ 0051 ] fig1 shows the structure of a high speed file system according to the invention . computers 1 to 6 , and 8 are interconnected via a network 9 . the computers have file servers ( fs ) 11 to 13 , 15 , 16 , and 19 . the computers 1 to 4 and 8 connect the network 9 and a network 25 as their input / output ( i / o ) devices . the computers 1 and 5 connect a network 10 in addition to the network 9 . the computers 5 and 6 connect disk devices 20 to 23 in addition to the networks 9 and 10 , as their i / o devices . the disk devices 20 to 23 are discriminated by their device numbers “ 1 ”, “ 3 ”, “ 2 ” and “ 4 ”, respectively . the computer 8 functions as a gateway to the network 25 . another computer 7 is connected to the network 25 , and connects a disk device 24 . in order to access a file in the disk devices 20 to 24 , a user application program 17 installed on the computer 1 instructs a file server 18 of the computer 1 to define a file structure ( to be later described ) and issue a file i / o request . if the application programs of the computers 2 to 4 are executed in parallel with the application program of the computer 1 , the file servers 11 to 13 of the computers 2 to 4 operate in a similar manner to the file server 18 of the computer 1 . the file servers 15 , 16 , and 19 on the computers 5 and 6 connecting the disk devices 20 to 23 and on the computer 8 connecting the external network 25 , receive requests from the file servers of the other computers 1 to 4 and perform actual disk i / o processes to transmit the results back to the requesting computers 1 to 4 . in the following description , although the application program 17 on the computer 1 will be detailed , the operations of the application programs on the other computers 2 to 4 running in parallel with the computer 1 are similar to that of the application program 17 . the sequence of the file i / o process will be described next . as shown in fig2 the file i / o process as observed from a user is generally constituted of steps including a file creation step , a file structure definition step ( to be described later ), a step of issuing a file i / o system call , a step of completing the file i / o process . the outline of the process at each step to be executed by the file server will be described hereinunder . in creating a file requested by the application program , the file server allocates on main storage a management block of information for the requested file and a file discripter which is an internal file id corresponding to the file name . at the file structure definition step , the file structure definition script supplied from the user is interpreted and the results are stored in a table 60 . the contents in the table 60 are transmitted to the computer 5 or 6 to be stored in its memory or disk device . when a file i / o system call is issued , the file is read / written in accordance with the file structure definition . at the file i / o completing step , unnecessary management data on the main storage is released and other necessary processes are performed . the file server is a file management program which executes the above - described steps . next , the file structure definition step 100 will be detailed . at this step , a user defines a file structure in the application program , and assigns each region of the file with the defined structure with attributes ( a disk device to which a file region is allocated , an access path to the disk device , a protocol to be used for accessing ). with this step , a file access can be requested to the file server , while maintaining improved performance and reliability . only one structure definition is set by the application program even if a plurality of processes are necessary to run the application program . fig3 shows an example of a file structure definition script . the words struct , distribute , set path are key words , and a delimiter between statements is a semicolon . the first statement defines a logical structure of a file which indicates that the defined file is constituted of four regions a , b , c and d . “ type_p ” and the like under the “ struct ” statement indicating that the file is constituted of the four regions a to d are a type designator for designating a data type and a region size . the type designator is , for example , an array of fixed length bytes and a fixed length character string . the “ distribute ” statement designates a physical device as an attribute . in the example shown in fig3 each of the regions a , b and c is allocated with a plurality of i / o devices . for example , the first “ distribute ” statement indicates that the region a is equally divided and distributed to the disk devices 20 and 21 ( refer to fig1 the disk device numbers on the file structure table 60 are “ 1 ” and “ 2 ”). the “ set path ” statement designates an access path from the region to its disk device as an attribute . in the example shown in fig3 the disk devices 20 and 21 having the region c are connected to the computer 5 . between this computer 5 and the computer 1 running on the application program , there are two paths , as shown in fig1 a path p 1 using the network 9 and a path p 2 using the network 10 . the first “ set path ” statement means that the paths p 1 and p 2 are used for the computer 1 to access the region c . it becomes therefore possible that data transfer can be performed with a large communication bandwidth using the two paths , and that the region c can be accessed with high performance . if one application program has a plurality of processes to be executed by a plurality of computers , use of the two paths is applied only to the application program of the computer 1 . the second “ set path ” statement designates the access path from the region d to its corresponding device and indicates that a file server uses an nfs protocol to access the region d ( refer to fig5 ). therefore , an access to the region d is performed via the gateway computer 8 . since the nfs protocol is designated , the application programs running on the computers 1 to 4 transparently see the disk device 24 as if it is connected to the gateway computer 8 . upon reception of the file structure definition script , the file server interprets it to form the file structure table 60 . fig4 shows the file structure defined at the file structure defining step . in this structure , portions 602 , 603 and 604 will be later described . in the structure , an upper row 600 indicates the names of the regions defined by the script , and a lower row 601 indicates that each region is distributed to what disk device . for example , the front half of the region a is assigned to the disk device 20 , whereas the back half thereof is assigned to the disk device 22 . therefore , an access to the front half of the region a is performed by always accessing the disk device 20 . fig5 shows the file structure table 60 . the table is constituted of , sequentially from the left column , the name of each region , a start offset 61 of each portion of the region , a length ( byte number ) 62 of each portion , a device number 63 of an allocated disk device , and other attributes 64 . the start offset of the first portion of region a is expressed by a relative byte address ( rba ) as referenced to the start address “ 0 ” of this file . for the region a , it is designated that the region a is distributively stored in the disk devices 20 and 22 . however , since the amount to be distributed is not explicitly described , the file server equally divides the region a and stores the divided subregions into both the disk devices . therefore , the offset and length of each of the two sub - regions of the region a can be determined relative to the whole of the file . for the region a , data of l 1 bytes from the start of the file is stored in the disk device 20 , and data of l 2 bytes from oft 1 (= l 1 ) is stored in the disk device 22 . for the region c , since two access paths p 1 and p 2 are designated , these access paths are written in the other attribute column . for the region d , since this region is accessed via the other network n 1 25 by using the nfs protocol , this protocol name is written in the other attribute column . the file server 18 stores information of the file structure table 60 formed at the file structure definition step , in some disk devices such as the disk devices 20 and 21 . referring to the disk device numbers 63 , the disk device 20 is allocated to the region a and thereafter to the region c , so that data of the length l 1 and data of the length l 5 form a continuous storage field in the physical device 20 . with the file structure definition function of this invention , a user can set the file structure matching an optimum access pattern which allows the file parallel access effect to be enhanced . for example , as shown in fig1 , if a user defines a file structure 702 for access patterns 700 of an application program , each application can access the disk devices d 1 to d 4 independently from each other so that the file parallel access effect can be retained . next , the details of an actual i / o operation using the above example will be given . as shown in fig1 the file i / o process is constituted of a retrieval step 200 , a scheduling step 300 , an i / o execution step 400 , and a filtering step 500 . it is assumed as shown in fig4 that the application program 17 accesses portions 602 , 603 and 604 of the file . the portion 602 is an access area only within the region a and has a range from the offset oft 1 to oft 2 . the portion 603 is an access area ranging over both the regions b and c , and the portion 604 is an access area only within the region d . when the application program issues an access request , it passes an access request list such as shown in fig6 to the file server 18 . elements 620 , 621 and 622 of the access request list correspond to access requests to the portions 602 , 603 and 604 . each element stores an offset and length of an area to be accessed , a process id of an application program issuing access request , a buffer area for data reception / transmission , and an access type . in this example , the three areas are accessed in parallel by processes of an application program . the element 620 corresponds to a request of reading data of an len 1 - byte length from the offset oft 1 into a buffer b 1 ( not shown ) in the computer 1 . file server 18 provides with an application program interface ( ap 2 ) which can enable an application program 17 to issue a plurality of access requests simultaneously by specifying a list of access requests . as the application program 17 issues an i / o request , the file server 18 receives it and performs the retrieval step ( 200 in fig7 ). at this retrieval step 200 , the offset and length of each element are derived from the request list , and the file structure table 60 is searched to identify which region the request corresponds to . these operations correspond to an identification of the region ( 201 ). for the request to the portion 602 , the table 60 ( fig5 ) is searched to confirm that the request start offset oft 1 is between 0 to p2 (= offset 0 + l 1 + l 2 ) and the request end offset oft 2 (= oft 1 + len 1 ) is between 0 to p2 , and that the request to the portion 602 is a request of only the region a ( refer to fig8 ). for the request to the portion 603 , it is confirmed that the offset oft 3 is between p2 and p4 and that the request end offset oft 4 (= oft 3 + len 2 ) is between p4 and p4 to thereby confirm that the request is a request to both the regions b and c . such a request to two or more regions is divided into requests to respective regions , such as requests to portions 606 and 607 . for the request to the portion 604 , it is confirmed that the request is a request of only the region d , similar to the request to the portion 602 . next , a step ( 202 ) of identifying a portion within each region is performed . with this step , the request to each region generated by the above steps is further divided into requests to respective disk devices ( refer to fig8 ). for the request to the portion 602 , the file structure table 60 ( fig5 ) is checked to confirm that the request ranges over both the disk devices 20 and 22 . the request to the portion 602 is divided into a request 608 to the disk device 20 and a request 609 to the disk device 22 . for the request to the portion 606 , since this access request is a request only to the disk device 23 , the request is not changed at this step . for the request to the portion 607 , the file structure table 60 is checked to confirm that the request ranges over both the disk devices 20 and 21 , and the request is divided into a request 611 to the disk device 20 and a request 612 to the disk device 21 . for the request to the portion 604 , since the requested physical device is the same throughout the request range , the request is not changed at this step . in the above manner , a request is arranged in the unit of physical device ( 203 ). next , the file server 18 executes the scheduling step 300 shown in fig9 . this scheduling step has two parts , one part being executed by the file server 18 on the computer 1 where the application program 17 issued the file i / o request , and the other part being executed by the file server on the computer which received the access request to the disk device connected to the computer . the former file server 18 is called a local file server , and the latter file server is called a remote file server , although the function of each file server is the same . in the scheduling step a local file server receives the requests 608 , 609 , 606 , 611 , 612 and 604 ( refer to fig8 ) divided in the retrieval step . first at step 301 , received requests for each destination file server are collected . since the computer 5 running the file server 15 is connected to the disk devices 20 and 21 , the requests 608 , 611 and 612 whose target devices are disk devices 20 and 21 are collected . since the computer 6 running the file server 16 is connected to the disk devices 22 and 23 , the requests 609 and 606 are collected . since the request 604 is required to access the other network via the gateway , this request is assigned as a request to the file server 19 of the gateway computer 8 . next at step 302 , the collected requests are issued at the same time to each requested file server ( remote file server ). each request contains a file name , a disk device number , an access type , the start and end offsets of an access area , and network identifier if there are two or more access paths . the succeeding steps are executed by each remote server . however , the request to the region d is processed slightly different from the operation by the remote server to be described hereinunder . the remote file server classifies the requests received at step 303 into a group of requests for each disk device , and rearranges the grouped requests in the order of the logical block number . the logical block number is a relative logical block number whose file start is logical block number “ 0 ”, and is converted from the offset value . a physical block number is a physical address of a disk device , and is converted from the logical block number . a length of a logical block is equal to a length of a physical block , and the order of logical block numbers is the same as the order of physical block numbers . the file server 15 classifies the received requests into a group of requests 608 and 611 for the disk device 20 and a group of request 612 for the disk device 21 . the file server 16 classifies the received requests into a group of request 609 for the disk device 22 and a group of request 606 for the disk device 23 . the file server issues an access request to each disk device driver by using a disk logical block number . prior to issuing the access request to each disk device driver , the file server rearranges the logical blocks of requested data in the order of logical block numbers . the physical blocks corresponding to the logical blocks are initialized when the disk device is formatted , so that a motion of the head results only in one direction when accessing a file in ascending order of logical block numbers . specifically , the logical blocks are arranged so that a seek motion of the head results only in one direction throughout a disk access in the order of logical block number , assuming that the sequence of logical block number is lb ( 1 ), lb ( 2 ), . . . , lb ( n ) where each block number satisfies the following in equation ; lb ( 1 )≦ lb ( 2 )≦, . . . , ≦ lb ( n ). with this arrangement , an access in the order of logical block numbers confirms one - direction head seek , preventing a performance degradation by head seek . at step 304 b , if a plurality of access requests is continuous in terms of physical block number , these requests are merged to one request . for example , the request 608 shown in fig8 to the portion having a length l 1 from the offset oft 1 of the region a shown in fig5 and the request 611 shown in fig8 to the portion having a length l 5 from the offset oft 4 of the region c shown in fig5 can be merged to one request . at step 305 it is judged whether filtering is performed . whether the filtering is performed depends upon whether the requested region of the file has an unnecessary area or gap . if a gap is not contained , the filtering is not performed . since the portions 602 and 603 each are a continuous area for each access request , a gap is contained in none of them . it is therefore judged that the filtering is not necessary . an example of filtering will be later described . as shown in a lowest box in fig9 for the portion 604 in the region d , the file server 19 received the request at step 306 instructs an nfs protocol execution program as an access method to access the data , because the access request is directed to the disk device 24 via the nfs protocol ( step 307 ). next , the process may enter the i / o execution step . [ 0065 ] fig1 illustrates a read operation to be executed by the file server 15 of the computer 5 . the file server 15 sets up the device driver of the disk device and sends the access requests 70 arranged in the order of logical block numbers to the disk device driver . the disk device driver manages free buffers and reads data of the requested block from the disk device 20 to one of free buffers . the disk device driver and network device driver are connected together , and the data read in the buffer is not sent to the file server but directly supplied to the network device driver together with control information . data transfer from the disk device driver to the network device driver is performed in the unit of disk block . this data transfer is performed in a pipe line manner . as compared to a conventional method in which control is passed from the disk device driver to the file server , an overhead can be reduced and high performance data transfer is possible . a common control information storage area 73 is provided for the network driver and disk device driver . the control information includes an identifier and a receive address of the file server which requested to read data . with reference to the control information , the network driver registers the read data in a queue 71 whose entry corresponds to each file server . in this example , since the requesting server is only one , the read data is registered in the queue of the computer 1 . if there are a plurality of requesting servers , the read data is registered in a corresponding queue . each time the data read request is issued , the disk device driver writes an anticipated interrupt time in the area 73 . with reference to the anticipated interrupt time , the network driver determines a timing so that the network processing interrupt does not overlap the data read completion interrupt of the disk device having a slower access speed , and at this determined timing , transfers the read data to the requesting file server via the networks 9 and 10 . the disk data transfer completion interrupt occurs at the end of the disk data transfer of one request . an interrupt by the network occurs at the end of the transmission of one or a plurality of packets . the computer 5 is connected also to the disk device 21 . the data read request to the disk device 21 is executed , in a similar manner as above , in parallel with the data read request to the disk device 20 . since there are two access paths to the region c , the network driver uses both the networks 9 and 10 to realize high speed data transfer . although the access requests 608 and 611 to the portions 602 and 603 includes access to the same disk device 20 , they are merged to one access request and the portions 602 and 603 are continuously accessed on the disk device . therefore , an access contention of the disk device which lowers the file parallel access effect , will not occur . [ 0067 ] fig1 shows a flow of read data in the requesting file server 18 . read data in the requested computer where remote file server resides is transferred to the computer 1 and received by a network hardware 75 in the computer 1 . the network hardware 75 has a function of translating an address by referring to a conversion table 76 . the conversion table 76 stores therein a correspondence between a virtual address in a virtual space and a physical address of a real main memory , the correspondence being preset by the file server . with reference to this table 76 , the network hardware transfers the received data to the main memory at the area corresponding to a buffer area in the virtual space of the requested application program 17 , without copying the received data between file server 18 and application program 17 . the data read from the computer 5 is stored in the buffers corresponding to the requests 608 , 611 and 612 to the disk devices 20 and 21 . these buffers are specified by application program 17 . data in the region d is transferred , from the disk device 24 connected to the computer 7 on the other network 25 via an access unit 78 in the computer 7 and an access unit 77 of the gate way 9 , to the file server 18 of the computer 1 via the network 9 . as the access unit for the region d , nfs is designated in the file structure definition . therefore , data transfer between the gateway 8 and computer 7 is processed by the nfs protocol . the processing to be executed by the file server 18 are the same as those for the other regions a , b and c . data read steps of the remote file servers 15 , 16 and 19 can be executed together in parallel . next , data write will be described . fig1 shows a flow of data at data write step . the file server 18 transmits a data write request to , for example , the file server 15 . the data write request contains the file name , disk device number , access type , and start and end offsets of the access area . in response to this data write request , the file server 15 allocates a buffer area at step 401 . it is generally impossible to allocate buffer areas for all the write data because of limited resources . therefore , a buffer area for storing a portion of whole write data is allocated . next at step 402 , a write data transfer request 410 is sent to the file server 18 of the data write requesting computer 1 . the write data transfer request contains a transfer destination address of the file server 15 , a buffer length and a transfer speed . the transfer speed is an effective transfer speed of a packet . a packet transfer time interval for preventing an overflow of the buffer can be calculated from the network transmission time and the specified transfer speed . the transfer speed specified by the file server 15 is approximately equal to an effective transfer speed of the disk device when the write data transfer request is issued . upon reception of the write data transfer request , at step 403 the filer server 18 sends the write data in the buffer to a network driver and the write data is transmitted to the computer 5 . in this case , the file server 18 issues the write data transfer request to the network driver by block in the write data transfer request . the network driver transfers the requested write data in the form of packet ( step 404 ). this write data is directly transferred to the buffer of the file server 15 . the network driver of the file server 15 directly passes the received write data to the disk device driver without using the file server 15 ( step 405 ). the disk device driver sequentially writes the received data in the disk device ( step 406 ). as described earlier , the remote file server cannot prepare a write buffer capable of storing all the write data . therefore , the write data transfer request is issued as many times as necessary ( the number of blocks divided by the number of blocks capable of being prepared at one request ). when the write data is transmitted at step 404 from the network driver in computer 1 , the network driver in computer 5 can control the time interval of transmitting packets in accordance with the transfer speed designated by each write data transfer request . therefore , a data can be prevented from being lost by an overflow at the file server 15 . the write data for the region d is transferred to the gateway 8 and passed to the file server 19 . the file server 19 transfers the write data to the computer 7 connected to the disk device 24 to which the write data is written , by using the nfs protocol as the access method . in the above example , the data is not filtered so that a filtering step 500 is not executed . in the following . the filtering step will be described in which data in a file is stored in a stripe manner in a plurality of disk devices . fig1 a shows a file structure script 88 for dividing a file in a stripe manner . fig1 b is a diagram showing a logical data array 80 with its data reference being made along a row direction , a data array 81 embedded in a file , a logical data array 85 with its data reference being made along a column direction , and a data array 81 ′ embedded in a file . data has a two - dimensional array having 100 × 100 elements . the application program consisting of four processes on the computers 1 to 4 accesses a file having this data structure in parallel . the first “ struct ” statement defines an array constituted of 100 × 100 elements . the next “ distribute ” statement indicates that each row of the array is distributed by four blocks in four disk devices in a stripe pattern . it is assumed that the block length corresponds to 25 elements of type_p data type . therefore , each row has four blocks . a division state as viewed from a user is indicated at 80 . this division assumes a data array which is divided in a row - major way ( in a row direction ). the data array 81 in the file is in the order of rows starting from the first row of the data array . the data array 82 indicates the physical disk device number which corresponds to the data array 81 in the file . the first row a [ 1 , *] indicates that all blocks are assigned to the disk device 20 . the disk device 20 are also assigned a [ 5 , *], a [ 9 , *] and so on . the computer number where application programs process uses the corresponding row of the data array , is indicated at 83 . for example , the row a [ 1 , * ] is referred to by the application program 17 of the computer 1 . with this file structure definition script , the process of the application program of each computer accesses the disk device independently from the other process of the application programs . when the application program accesses the data array in the row direction as described above , the filtering operation does not occur . in order to schedule all the requests by application programs , one of the application programs or processes , for example , the application program 17 or process of the computer 1 , is selected as the only one requester issuing all request as shown in fig1 . this application program or process makes the list of the requests by the other application programs or processes , and issues an access request to the file server 18 . the file server 18 receives the access request consisting of the list of the requests by the other application programs or processes . the application program 17 of the computer 1 issues the access requests on behalf of the other application programs of the computers 2 to 4 by using the application program interface ( list interface ). the file server 18 performs the retrieval step 200 and scheduling step 300 for all access requests in the manner described previously . the i / o execution step 400 is executed on the computer which is designated by the requester . in reading data , the read data is transferred not to the computer 1 , but to the computer which originally issues the read request . by passing a list of access requests by the other application program to the file server , it becomes possible to perform a global scheduling of all application programs running in parallel . this scheduling is very effective when data is accessed in the column direction of the array as will be described hereinunder . data access by each application program in the column direction of the data array having the structure described above will be described . the array of logical data accessed along a reference direction by the application program is indicated at 85 . the row a [*, 1 ] indicates the first column of the array a . irrespective of access optimization of the file in the row direction , application programs access each element on different device alternately as indicated at 82 ′ and 84 , when the data is accessed in the column direction . for example , the application program 17 running on the computer 1 accesses each element in a white block . if each computer independently accesses the data in such a manner , the i / o performance is degraded considerably . in such a case , i . e ., if data to be accessed by the application program contains unnecessary data , it is judged that the data is to be filtered at the filtering step 500 . the application program 17 issues the access request having the access pattern described above to the file server 18 , by linking the access request by the other application program . the file server 18 filters the data at the filtering step 500 . this filtering is performed , as shown in fig1 , by the computer ( filter 510 ) connected to the disk device or by the access requesting computer ( filter 511 , 512 ). fig1 shows a flow of data when each application program reads the data in the disk device 20 . data 85 read from the disk device 20 contains unnecessary data for each application program as shown at 84 in fig1 b . it is therefore judged at the scheduling step 305 ( fig9 ) that the unnecessary data is to be filtered at the filtering step . if the communications control hardware for controlling the network 9 has a function of scatter / gather , the filter 510 prepares for scatter / gather and transfers the necessary data to the corresponding computer . for example , only the data in the white block 84 is collected and transferred to the computer 1 . in this case , with the global scheduling function , the file server of the computer 5 judges that blocks 85 other than the white block requested by the computer 1 is necessary so that the data requested by each of the other computers 2 to 4 is also collected and transferred to each computer . if the communications control hardware does not have the function of scatter / gather , the data 85 read from the disk device 20 is broadcast to all the computers 1 to 4 . each computer performs the filtering process by the filter 511 , 512 and only the necessary data is passed to the application program . for example , the computer 1 derives only the data in the white block 513 from the received data by the filtering process , whereas the computer 4 derives only the data in a block 514 having densest hatching . with this filtering process , an access unit of the disk device can be made large so that the number of disk access can be reduced and the data can be accessed in the above - described access pattern without lowering the data access performance . as described above , a user sets a file structure definition by anticipating an optimum access pattern . if a file is accessed by another access pattern ( a pattern not optimum ), an access request list matching the optimum access pattern is designated without changing the file structure definition . the parallel file access effect of the file system can therefore be maintained with the filtering and global scheduling functions . the system structure shown in fig1 is only illustrative and various modified systems can be configured . the present invention does not limit the hardware structures , such as the number of computers , a presence of networks , a computer connected to a disk device , a computer installed with an application program , and a computer installed with a file server . the feature of the invention reside in that data is transferred in parallel between a plurality of processes executing application programs and physical devices allocated with regions of files . the system structure satisfying this feature is intended to enter the scope of the invention . the system structure is particularly preferable which can eliminate the bottle necks of a network data transfer speed and a data transfer speed between a disk device and a main memory . next , the definitions and operations of other attributes 64 will be described . fig1 shows a file structure definition script to be used when a cache presence / absence , a reliability , and an association with other files are designated as the attributes . since the struct and distribute statements are the same as that described previously , the last six “ set ” statements will be described . the first “ set ” statement means that data to be accessed to the region a is cached . the next “ set ” statement means that an access to the region b is read - only . the third “ set ” statement means that data to be accessed to the region b is cached . the next two “ set ” statements mean that the region c is associated with files “ k ” and “ l ”. the last “ set ” statement means that data in the region d is mirrored . in this example , it is assumed that all regions in a file are accessed . the file server has an interface which allows a region of a file to be opened , by designating the name of the region when the file structure definition is set . this region can be accessed thereafter by using the same primitive interfaces as an ordinary file . fig1 illustrates opening the region c by designating the region name “ c ” by using a primitive open_sub . next , the operation of accessing each region will be described . the region a is designated with a cache attribute . upon reception of a data read request , if the data is in the cache of the computer , a cache control unit of the computer reads the data in the cache without accessing the disk device . when data is written , the write data is left in the cache , and the write data is written asynchronously . if the region a is accessed by a plurality of application programs , the cache control unit 650 shown in fig1 confirms at a consistency step 651 whether each cache is consistent in different computer and whether it is consistent between caches and file data . in the example shown in fig1 , since the read access request to the region a and the write access request to the region a are issued at the same time , the cache control unit 650 determines the order of requests at the consistency step to ensure the consistency between the cache and a file . although the region b is designated with the cache attribute , the read - only attribute is also designated as the access pattern . therefore , the cache control unit 650 does not execute the consistency step 651 . in this file system , the cache control is automatically changed by the attributes . it is assumed that the region c is a hyper text . this hyper text has the linked files “ k ” and “ l ”. in this case , at the same time when the read request to the file c is issued , the read request is also issued to the files “ k ” and “ l ” and the data in the files is stored in the buffer . it is possible to thereafter read the data in the files “ k ” and “ l ” from the cache so that the files can be accessed at high speed . the region d is designated with the mirroring to the disk devices 20 and 22 . therefore , upon reception of a write request to the region d , at the i / o execution step 400 the write data is transferred at the same time to the computers 5 and 6 connected to the disk devices 20 and 22 . the computers 5 and 6 perform a write operation in parallel . in the example described above , although the write data of each computer is different , in the case of mirroring the same data is written by the computers 5 and 6 . if a failure is detected at one of the disk devices 20 and 22 and when the region d is accessed , the file server executes the i / o operation by using only well - functioned disk device .

US-5608202-A

a method for supporting one or more fixtures on a membrane - covered roof comprises steps of forming one or more brackets coated each on at least one surface with a material compatible for heat welding to roofing membrane , cutting a piece of roofing membrane , separate from the membrane of the membrane - covered roof , the cut piece of roofing membrane having a length and width substantially greater than dimensions of the one or more brackets , joining the one or more brackets by heat welding to the cut piece of roofing membrane , leaving substantial overhanging projection of the cut piece of roofing membrane from the one or more bracket in every direction from the one or more brackets , and heat welding the cut piece of roofing membrane to the membrane of the membrane - covered roof , thereby securing the one or more brackets to the membrane - covered roof .

in various embodiments described in enabling detail herein , the inventor provides a unique apparatus and methods for supporting fixtures and utilities on a membrane roof system . the present invention is described using the following examples , which may describe more than one relevant embodiment falling within the scope of the invention . it will also be apparent to the skilled person that the arrangement of elements and functionality for the invention is described in different embodiments in which each is exemplary of an implementation of the invention . these exemplary descriptions do not preclude other implementations and use cases not described in detail . the elements and functions may vary , as there are a variety of ways the hardware may be implemented within the scope of the invention . the invention is limited only by the breadth of the claims below . fig1 is an overhead view of a membrane roof system 100 supporting fixture installation according to an embodiment of the present invention . roof system 100 may be formed of one of polyvinyl chloride ( pvc ), ketone ethylene ester ( kee ), chloro - sulfonated polyethylene ( cspe ), ethylene propylene diene monomer ( epdm ) or thermoplastic polyolefin ( tpo ) without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention , or any other membrane material known in the art . roof system 100 is laid over an unfinished roof surface using precut flexible roofing sheets 101 . the term membrane roughly refers to a flexible resilient roof made with a mixture of rubber and thermoplastic polymers . such materials may be heat welded together to fuse the roofing sheets together presenting a leak proof covering . an important material in membrane roofing is thermoplastic polyolefin ( tpo ) in this example , however the present invention does not strictly depend on tpo for successful application . therefore , other flexible or membrane type roofing materials may also be considered for heat weld such as polyvinyl chloride ( pvc ), ketone ethylene ester ( kee ), chloro - sulfonated polyethylene ( cspe ), or ethylene propylene diene monomer ( epdm ). roofing sheets 101 are rolled out lengthwise and fastened ( one edge ) to the roof surface with subsequent sheets laid over the previous sheets to cover the fastening lines . the overlapping area of a sheet of membrane is heat welded over the fastening line ( 102 ) on the previous sheet installed to ensure watertight seal . in this example roof system 100 has a horizontal surface ( floor ) and four vertical surfaces ( walls ). typically , wall or vertical covering is performed with the same material as the horizontal covering and wall sheets have adjacent edges overlapping and heat welded over the fastening lines of the edge panels or sheets on the horizontal surface or floor of the roof . roof system 100 in this example includes a number of fixtures that are installed and supported on both the horizontal roof surface and on at least two of the vertical surfaces . it is noted that a roof construction that may accept a membrane roof system may incorporate hips and valleys , sloped surfaces and non - flat surfaces , and other features without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . the apparatus may support fixtures installed on any of the surfaces of the roof . in this example a fixture 107 is depicted on the horizontal roof surface after finishing ( covering ). fixture 107 may be a heating / air conditioning unit for example . a fixture 106 is also depicted on the horizontal roof surface . fixture 106 might be a solar system for providing electricity or for heating a pool , etc . a fixture 109 is depicted herein as a vent or flue . a fixture 108 is depicted as mounted on a vertical roof surface and might represent a fire extinguisher , an alarm , or some other utility . the opposing vertical roof surface supports fixture 118 . fixture 118 may be conduit , plumbing , cabling , etc . there are a great variety of such fixtures that may be necessary on a roof . the fixtures in this example are held in place by one or more brackets . brackets may be manufactured of galvanized steel ( sheet metal ) or other durable metals or suitable materials . such brackets may be custom built for the type of fixture being mounted . in one example a support apparatus includes more than one bracket . it may be desired to determine and mark areas on the roof where fixtures will be installed before laying out the membrane roofing materials over the unfinished roof . in this case it may be desired to provide extra support for some fixtures that are particularly heavy or may need extra support , such as on a vertical or sloped roof surface . in one embodiment such areas are marked and one or more pieces of roofing material are cut and fastened to the unfinished roof to provide underlying enhancement of adhesion to a roof before laying out the roofing sheets 101 . in this example a cut piece of roofing membrane material 119 is provided and stapled or otherwise secured directly to unfinished roof beneath where an a / c system ( 107 ) will later be installed . sheets 101 are heat welded ( overlapping bottom surfaces ) to support piece 119 ( top surface ) as the membrane roof is installed . locations 116 are locations for unique bracket assemblies that are fastened to the membrane roof as described in more detail below . in this example there is another fixture 106 depicted as supported on roof system 100 . fixture 106 may be a solar power panel used to provide extra electricity or for heating pool water for example . underneath roofing sheets 101 there is a cut piece of support membrane 114 . as discussed above , this piece is directly attached to the unfinished roof with screw fastener or other fastening techniques in a marked location . roofing sheets 101 are heat welded over the support pad ( 114 ) and overlapping areas of the sheets are heat welded together . screw fastener may not be used in areas where the roofing sheet overlays a precut piece of membrane used as a base or pad . instead the sheeting may be heat welded to the support piece so there are no penetrations to the exposed materials . areas 115 are positions for unique brackets described below in another embodiment of the invention . fixture 106 has a conduit or pipe 118 connected to it . this conduit represents a water pipe , electrical conduit , or any other required tethering for successful operation of the fixture . conduit 118 is supported partly on a vertical side of roofing system 100 . in this case pre - assembled pieces 121 and 111 are attached to the unfinished roof surface as previously described . then roofing sheets ( vertical 104 ) are overlaid and heat welded to pieces 121 and 111 . bracket supporting strips 110 represent precut membrane strips that may host an array of brackets heat welded at strategic locations along the strip , as described in further detail below . in this case brackets 112 are vertically mounted conduit hangars of the appropriate dimension to support the diameter of the supported conduit 118 . fixture 108 is also vertically mounted , the apparatus including fixture 108 installed on brackets 117 that are heat welded to membrane support piece 120 . in this case there is no underlying support piece attached to the roof surface . strip 117 with brackets 117 previously heat welded on to it is subsequently heat welded to the finished roof membrane surface after the roof is covered . in this case the fixture may be installed anywhere , as there was no pre - determined location on the unfinished roof marked to denote a location for the fixture . similarly , vent fixture 109 may be coated on an interfacing flange and then heat welded to a support ring that is then heat welded to the top surface of the finished roof . if additional support is needed another support piece may be stapled or otherwise attached to the unfinished roof at the location or the vent . the overlying material is then heat welded to the support piece while the flange piece welded to the top support piece is then welded to the finished surface . in this way all of the fixtures that need to be installed on a membrane roofing system may be secured without leaving any penetrations through the finished membrane roof . the exact cut sizes of support pieces and whether additional support pieces ( underlying and surface ) are required depend upon the fixture type , location of the fixture ( horizontally or vertically mounted ), the weight of the fixture , and the composition of the membrane materials used as support pieces . the mixture of the composite relative to the percentages of rubber , plastic , binders , and other materials may contribute to less or more resiliency and flexibility of the roofing material . for larger fixtures like utilities that have more weight , additional support membrane pieces may be provided and fixture location on the roof may be pre - designed . for lightweight fixtures such as conduit fixtures , light fixtures , etc ., only a single support membrane piece might be required . in this case the fixture brackets are heat welded to the support piece , which is in turn heat welded over the finished roof surface . fig2 is a perspective view of a fixture bracket 200 with a heat - weldable coating on an interfacing surface . bracket 200 may be a standard sheet metal bracket such as a galvanized steel bracket sheared and bent to design for the type of fixture to be held in place . in this example , bracket 200 is a u - shaped bracket having a side 201 , a side 202 , and a side 203 , and sized to fit standard 4 × 4 lumber . other brackets may be made for other standard sizes of lumber , or other pieces of support structure . the thickness of bracket 200 might vary , however one sixteenth of an inch to one eight of an inch may be sufficient thickness for such brackets . bracket 200 has a coating 204 covering an outside surface of wall 203 . an interfacing surface refers to the surface that will interface and be heat welded to a support piece of roof material . it is important to note that the requirement of heat welding is that the coating is thick enough to be heat welded to the surface of the support piece wherein the materials fuse to form a contiguous bond . coating 204 may be relatively thin compared to the thickness of a support piece of roof material . the exact thickness of the bracket coating may vary depending upon the thickness of the roofing material . also , it is noted that the two materials ( sheeting ) and ( coating ) must be compatible for a contiguous heat weld application . in one embodiment both the coating and the roofing material is thermoplastic olefin ( tpo ). in embodiments of the invention brackets are formed from commercially - available galvanized sheets already coated on one side with tpo or one of the other formulations mentioned above , depending on the formulation of the membrane used for the roof on which the brackets may be attached . fig3 a is a perspective view of bracket 200 of fig2 heat welded to a piece of membrane material 301 . support piece 301 may be precut from roofing sheet material . in this configuration there is only a single bracket welded to a precut piece of roofing material . in other embodiments there may be an array of brackets heat welded to a single piece of membrane material . the length a and width b of piece 301 may vary according to fixture and bracket number requirements . bracket 200 is shown heat welded to membrane piece 301 along side 203 , but may as well be heat welded along side 201 , facing open upward to receive a 4 × 4 beam , as shown in fig3 b . fig3 c illustrates the bracket welded as in fig3 b and having a wooden element 303 in place . one piece of membrane material may support more than one and different types of brackets in a same assembly . the thickness c of piece 301 may be the same as or different from the thickness of the roofing membrane sheeting without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . in a typical application support pieces may be cut from the same roofing materials used to cover the roof . also , the length a and width b of piece 301 are sufficiently greater that the footprint of the bracket to allow for a lifting edges to be able to heat the underside of piece 301 and the membrane roofing to which it is being heat welded . fig4 is a perspective view of a fixture bracket 400 , which is a low profile bracket that designed for holding a rail that may be slid in underneath two or more brackets in an array . such rails are , for example , support for solar panels in some circumstances . brackets 400 are in those example made from pre - treated galvanized sheets as described above . in this example , bracket 400 has two parallel tabs or wings ( 401 , 402 ) lying in the same plane and a raised middle section 403 . bracket 400 with a number of similar brackets may be heat welded in an array to a long piece of membrane material , as shown , that may then be heat welded to the finished roof covering as depicted in fig5 of this specification . fig5 is a perspective view of an assembly 500 hosting an array of fixture brackets 400 heat welded to one long piece of membrane material 501 . assembly 500 comprises an array of low profile brackets 400 heat - welded in an array to membrane material 501 . in this configuration , the brackets are designed to enclose a rail foot ( not illustrated ) of a solar panel apparatus or other roof top equipment . sufficient membrane material 501 is used such that the assembly is flexible , and may be manipulated to efficiently heat weld to a membrane roof . support piece 501 may be cut from the roofing sheet and may be longer and considerably wider than the profile of the bracket array to allow for more heat weld surface . in an implementation such as this one , a user may slip a rail underneath the heat - welded brackets and then bolt the utility to the rail . there can be more than one of these support pieces , such as for a utility having two or more rails for example . brackets may be provided in various differing configurations without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . in general implementation where more than one support piece of membrane material may be used , an installer may outline one or more footprint areas on an unfinished roof surface where fixtures are to be installed on the finished roof . the demarcations may be part of a drawing or blueprint with dimensions so they may again be located after the roofing material is laid out . at the outlined locations , the installer may fasten , such as by roof stapling , one or more than one precut membrane pieces to the unfinished roof prior to laying out the strips or rolls of membrane to form the membrane roof . the installer may then position and secure the roofing sheets over the unfinished roof and the added support pieces . the installer may use fasteners and heat welding to secure the membrane roof system over the unfinished roof . it may be assumed that in one implementation the fixture brackets are formed from commercially - available metal sheets pre - coated with the membrane material . the installer may arrange the brackets and heat weld them to additional precut pieces of membrane . these support pieces may be heat welded to the finished roof at demarked support locations where underlying support pieces exist or at any location desired if an underlying support is not required for the type of and weight of the fixture . the installer then fastens the fixtures to the brackets . reasons for adding underlying support may vary according to the angle of roof surface and the type and weight of the supported fixture or utility . for example , something heavy on a horizontal surface or vertical surface may need extra support . very lightweight fixtures such as conduit hangars for example might be installed anywhere on the finished roof as needed . in one implementation certain lightweight fixtures may be packaged with brackets already heat welded to cut membrane pieces that are compatible with ( can be heat welded to ) the standard roofing materials . in this case users may add aftermarket fixtures to upgrade lighting or other features on the roof . the heat welding process itself is known in the art and available for use in fusing the materials together in a secure and leak proof fashion . fig6 is an expanded view of a vertically mountable conduit support structure 600 according to an embodiment of the present invention . structure 600 has a number of conduit support hangars ( brackets ) 603 that are designed to hold conduit on a vertical surface . brackets 603 are formed , as described before , from commercially - available metal sheet pre - coated with compatible membrane material . several brackets 603 are depicted as heat welded to a piece of precut membrane material 602 . the support apparatus ( brackets heat welded to material ) is heat welded to a finished vertical roof surface . piece 602 may be as long as is required to span the length of the conduit to be mounted on the roof surface . in some implementation such as one depicted in the illustration of fig1 , two or more standard length support pieces ( each hosting several conduit hangars ) might be used collectively to hang the conduit . many other fixture types may be installed to the finished membrane roof using the method of the present invention . fig7 is a process flow chart 700 depicting steps for preparing a membrane roof system according to aspects of the present invention . in act 701 requirements are identified before roofing is applied to an unfinished roof . in this step the types of fixtures are identified and whether they need to be installed in certain areas on the roof , etc . at step 702 it is determined if there are any pre - finish requirements relative to any of the fixtures identified in step 701 . if there are pre - finish requirements at step 701 then the installer may precut pieces of the membrane sheeting material as required in step 703 to make the underlying membrane support areas . any underlying pieces may be stapled or otherwise fastened to the unfinished roof at step 704 . underlying membrane support pieces may be installed on any angle of surface from horizontal to vertical . if it is determined that there are no pre - finish requirements at step 702 , the process may skip over to step 705 where the roof installation takes place . likewise , conventional fasteners may be used to fasten one side of a roof sheet to the roof . adjacent roofing sheets or panels are heat welded to the installed panels so only one side of a roofing sheet has to be fastened to the unfinished roof . an unfastened edge of a membrane roofing sheet is heat welded over a fastened edge of the previously installed sheet . the opposite edge of the heat - welded sheet may then be fastened to the unfinished roof . at step 706 it is determined if there were support pieces attached to the roof as per step 704 . if it is determined that there are pre - finish membrane support pieces on the roof the installer heat welds the roofing sheets to those support pieces wherever they occur in step 707 . from either step 707 or step 706 in case of “ no ”, it is determined whether there are any post - finish requirements ( fixtures not requiring pre - finish support pieces ) for attaching fixtures . if it is determined that there are no post - finish requirements at step 708 , then the process may end at step 711 . if it is determined that there are post - finish requirements at step 708 the installer may lay out precut support pieces with the appropriate brackets heat - welded to those pieces at step 709 . it may be assumed that the brackets are already heat - welded to the precut membrane pieces in the correct orientation to mount or otherwise connect the fixtures to the brackets . if this is not the case , additional steps for orientating the brackets and heat welding them to the pre - cut membrane support pieces may be required . for pieces containing multiple brackets , jigs or fixtures might be provided to help orientate those brackets for heat welding . at step 710 the installer heat - welds the support pieces with the brackets attached to the finished roof at the pre - planned or desired locations . fixture attachment to the brackets may also be performed at step 711 after the support pieces are finished and attached to the finished roof . the process may then end at step 712 . it will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the system of the invention may be provided using some or all of the mentioned features and components without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention . it will also be apparent to the skilled artisan that the embodiments described above are specific examples of a single broader invention that may have greater scope than any of the singular descriptions taught . there may be many alterations made in the descriptions without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention .

US-201514974266-A

handle device for operating doors , windows and the like , comprising a first element , which is rotatable about an axis of rotation , a second element , and a coupling device which is connected to the first and the second element and is designed to selectively allow or prevent relative rotation about the axis of rotation between the first and the second element , the coupling device comprising an outer coupling member and an inner coupling member , which is concentrically accommodated , rotatable about the axis of rotation , in the outer coupling member . the handle device comprises at least one engaging member , which is radially displaceable in the inner coupling member , and an activating member which is accommodated in the inner coupling member and axially displaceable therein , parallel to the axis of rotation . the engaging member and the activating member have interacting contact surfaces in order , during axial displacement of the activating member , to press the engaging member into a radially projecting position for simultaneous engagement with the inner and outer coupling member .

fig1 , 2 , 3 , 4 a , 4 b , 8 a and 8 b show a handle device according to a first embodiment of the invention . this handle device is designed to allow selective disengagement and coupling between the handle grip and a fixed part . in the disengaged position , rotation of the handle grip is therefore allowed and in the coupled position the handle grip is prevented from being turned . the handle device comprises a handle grip 1 , a handle neck 2 , a handle escutcheon 3 or plate and a swivel pin or handle spindle 4 in the form of a square shank . the handle escutcheon 3 comprises fixing holes for receiving screws or the like , by means of which it can be fixed to a door , a window , a gate , a hatch ( not shown ) or a similar element . the handle escutcheon 3 further comprises a central through - hole 7 , the central axis of which defines an axis of rotation for the handle grip . two opposing grooves 7 a are made in the central hole 7 of the handle escutcheon 3 . the grooves 7 a are formed as axially running , radial , outwardly curved recesses in the circumferential surface of the central hole 7 . a boss 5 is received in the handle neck 2 . in the embodiment shown in fig1 - 4 b and 8 a - b the boss 5 consists of an inner coupling member for achieving a selective disengagement and coupling of the handle grip 1 in relation to the handle escutcheon 3 . for fitting the boss 5 in the handle neck 2 , the handle grip 1 comprises two separable parts 1 a , 1 b . detaching the part 1 b from the part 1 a gives access to the internal cavity in the handle neck 2 , so that the boss 5 can be threaded into the neck from the side of the handle grip 1 remote from the handle escutcheon 3 . the boss 5 has a part 6 projecting from the handle neck and extending through the hole passing through the handle escutcheon 3 . the boss 5 comprises a radially projecting pin 8 , which is received in a corresponding inner groove 9 in the internal cavity of the handle neck 2 . the engagement of the pin 8 in the groove 9 prevents relative rotation between the boss and the handle neck 2 . in the part of the boss 5 projecting from the handle neck 2 is an axial square hole , in which the handle spindle 4 is received . the longitudinal axis of the handle spindle 4 defines an axis of rotation , about which the handle grip 1 is rotatable relative to the handle escutcheon 3 . the boss 5 furthermore has two opposing radial , cylindrical through - holes 10 . each of these holes 10 receives an engaging member in form of a ball 20 . an axially displaceable activating member 11 is arranged inside the boss 5 . the activating member is rotationally symmetrical and has a front cylindrical section 12 a with a smaller diameter , a rear cylindrical section 12 b with a larger diameter and an intermediate conical section 12 c . in the embodiment shown the conical section has a cone angle of 45 °. the conical section 12 c forms an outer curved surface which is inclined in the axial direction of movement of the activating member 11 . for driving the activating member 11 , an electrically powered solenoid 13 is arranged in the handle grip 1 . the solenoid comprises a fixed part 13 a and a part 13 b axially moveable in relation to the fixed part . the moveable part 13 b is fixed to the activating member 11 . delivering a current pulse to the fixed part of the solenoid enables the moveable part 13 b to be moved axially in either direction . in the position shown in fig4 a and 8 a , the moveable part 13 b of the solenoid and hence the activating member 11 are in a retracted position . the front cylindrical section 12 a of the activating member 11 is situated directly in front of the balls 20 . the distance between the outer surface of the cylindrical section 12 a and the outer surface of the boss 5 around the hole 10 is substantially equal to the diameter of the balls 20 . in this position , therefore , the balls are allowed to assume a position in which they do not protrude from the boss 5 . the boss 5 is therefore allowed to rotate inside the handle escutcheon 3 , so that the handle grip is released and can be freely turned in relation to the handle escutcheon 3 . in this position the handle grip can therefore be used normally in order to transmit a rotational movement to a tumbler , an espagnolette bolt or some other member via the handle spindle 4 in the usual way . when the handle grip 1 is to be locked , it is first turned into a position in which the two balls 20 align with the two opposing grooves 7 a in the handle escutcheon 3 . it will be appreciated that the handle grip can therefore be locked in two rotational positions with an 180 ° offset . the solenoid 13 is then supplied with a current pulse , thereby displacing the moveable part 13 b thereof axially outwards from the fixed part 13 a . the activating member 11 is thereby also displaced to the position shown in fig4 b and 8 b . in the course of this axial displacement movement , the conical surface 12 c of the activating member in contact with the balls 20 will press these radially outwards , so that they are received in and engage with the grooves 7 a in the handle escutcheon 3 , which in this exemplary embodiment constitutes an outer coupling member . when the engaging member 11 has assumed the full axially projecting position shown in fig4 b and 8 b , the balls 20 will be supported against and held in the radially projecting position by the cylindrical surface 12 of the activating member having a larger diameter . the balls 20 hereby engage simultaneously in the holes 10 and the grooves 7 a , thereby preventing rotation of the boss 5 and hence the handle neck 2 and the handle grip 1 . when the handle grip is to be disengaged again , the solenoid 13 is supplied with a current pulse , which causes the moveable part 13 b and thereby the activating member 11 to be displaced to the retracted position shown in fig4 a and 8 a . the part 12 a of the activating member 11 with a smaller diameter will thereby come to lie directly in front of the holes 10 , so that the balls 20 are allowed to assume the retracted position not protruding from the activating member 11 . this retracting movement of the balls can be achieved entirely without the action of any spring device or the like . instead , the balls are brought into their seated position in the holes 10 not protruding from the activating member in that the spherical surface of the balls 20 interacts with the radially curved surface of the grooves 7 a , since the handle grip is being turned when the balls are not locked by the part 12 b of the activating member having a larger diameter . as can be seen from fig1 , the handle grip 1 is provided with a keypad . in the handle grip 1 there is also an electronic control circuit ( not shown ) and a battery ( not shown ) for powering the control circuit and the solenoid 13 . the electronic control circuit is designed to emit a current pulse adjusting the state of the solenoid only if a correct authorization code has first been entered via the keypad . in this way the handle device shown in fig1 - 4 b and 8 a - b can be used as a lock for the door or the window in which it is arranged . fig5 , 6 , 7 a - b and 9 a - b show a second embodiment of the handle device according to the invention . in the further description , the parts corresponding to those in the embodiment described above will be given the same reference numerals as above . with this second embodiment it is possible to achieve selective disengagement and coupling between the handle grip 1 and a rotatably moveable part . in the example shown this rotatably moveable part consists of handle spindle 30 . the handle spindle 30 is capable of transmitting a rotational movement to a tumbler , an espagnolette bolt ( not shown ) or some other member in the usual way . among other things , this embodiment differs from that described above in that the handle spindle 30 comprises a circular cylindrical end section 31 , which is firmly connected to a square shank 32 . the end section 31 is rotatably accommodated in a boss 50 , which is in turn received in the handle neck 2 ′. as in the embodiment described above , the boss 50 can be introduced into the handle neck 2 ′ when a part 1 ′ b of the handle grip 1 ′ is released from another part 1 ′ a of the handle grip . the boss 50 comprises a radially projecting pin 51 , which is received in a corresponding groove 9 in the handle neck 2 ′. the boss 50 is therefore prevented from turning in relation to the handle neck 2 ′ and the handle grip 1 ′. the boss 50 has a central axial through - bore , in the circumferential surface of which a radial , outwardly curved groove 52 is arranged , extending axially parallel to the bore . according to this embodiment the boss 50 constitutes an outer coupling member . the circular cylindrical end section 31 of the handle spindle is concentrically received in the axial bore of the boss 50 and constitutes an inner coupling member . the end section 31 has a radially extending circular cylindrical hole 33 , in which a ball 20 is displaceably seated . the end section 31 also has a central circular cylindrical recess , in which an axially displaceable activating member 60 is located . the activating member 60 comprises two sections 61 having a larger diameter and a waist section 62 of smaller diameter located between them . conical sections 63 having a cone angle of 45 ° are located between the waist section 62 and the two sections 61 . the activating member 60 is firmly connected to a moveable part 13 b of a solenoid 13 , which also comprises a fixed part 13 a . in the position shown in fig7 a and 9 a the moveable part 13 b of the solenoid and hence the activating member 60 are in a projecting position in relation to the fixed part 13 a of the solenoid . the activating member 60 is here situated in a position in which the waist section 62 is directly in front of the hole 33 in the end section 31 of the handle spindle . the distance between the surface of the waist section 62 and the outer surface of the end section 31 around the hole 33 is substantially equal to the diameter of the ball , so that the ball 20 , which rests against the waist section , is situated in a position not projecting radially from the end section 31 . under the rotation of the handle grip 1 ′, the handle neck 2 ′ and the boss 50 also turn . on the other hand , the rotational movement is not transmitted to the handle spindle 30 in this position of the activating member 60 and the ball 20 . the handle grip 1 ′ is therefore disengaged from the handle spindle 30 and in this position is therefore allowed to turn freely in relation to the handle spindle 30 , thereby affording a so - called free - swivelling function . in this position it is therefore not possible , by means of the handle grip 1 ′, to operate a tumbler , an espagnolette bolt or any other device to which the square shank 32 of the handle spindle 30 may be coupled . in order to couple the handle grip 1 ′ to the handle spindle 30 , the handle grip is first turned to a position in which the groove 52 is aligned with the hole 33 . it will be appreciated that this relative position between the boss 50 and the handle spindle 30 can be assumed regardless of which rotational position these two parts occupy in relation to the handle escutcheon 40 . as in the embodiment described above , the solenoid 13 is then supplied with a current pulse , which causes the moveable part 13 b to be displaced towards the fixed part 13 a . the activating member 60 is thereby displaced towards the solenoid 13 , so that the upper conical surface 62 in fig7 a , in contact with the ball 20 , presses the ball radially outwards in the hole 33 until it comes into engagement with the groove 52 in the boss 50 . the ball 20 is then in simultaneous engagement with the boss 50 and with the end section 31 of the handle spindle 30 , so that a rotational movement which is imparted to the handle grip 1 ′ is transmitted to the handle spindle 30 , via the boss 50 with its pin 51 and its groove 52 , the ball 20 and the end section 31 of the handle spindle 30 with its hole 33 . in this way the handle grip 1 ′, in the position shown in fig7 b and 9 b , is coupled to the handle spindle 30 and can therefore be used to operate a tumbler , an espagnolette bolt or some other member or device to which the handle spindle 30 is coupled . as in the embodiment demonstrated with reference to fig1 - 4 , no spring or the like is needed in order to return the ball 20 to its retracted position not projecting radially from the end section 31 . such a return movement of the ball is instead achieved through the interaction between the spherical surface of the balls 20 and the outwardly curved surface of the groove 52 . in the embodiment shown in fig5 - 7 and 9 the solenoid 13 can also be controlled by an electric control circuit ( not shown ), to which a keypad ( not shown ) and a battery ( not shown ) may be connected . all of these parts can be accommodated in the handle grip . an advantage of the handle device according to the invention is that it requires only a very slight force in order to produce the axial movement of the activating member , the axial movement bringing the engaging member in the form of a ball into or out of engagement in order to achieve coupling or disengagement . a further advantage is that the activating member only requires a very small stroke length . in an embodiment in which the ball has a diameter of 4 mm , and the inclined or conical surface of the activating member that comes to bear against the ball in transmitting movement has an angle of 45 ° to the direction of movement of the activating member , a stroke length of 2 . 1 mm is sufficient to displace the ball between its respective coupled and disengaged positions . both of these advantages mean that the drive and control members can be made very compact , so that they can in this way be accommodated in a handle grip of conventional dimensions . exemplary embodiments of the invention have been described above . it will be appreciated , however , that the invention is not limited to these embodiments but can be modified without departing from the scope of the following patent claims . for example , the axially displaceable activating member , instead of being powered by an electrical solenoid , may be coupled to a mechanical pushbutton or some other mechanical member for manually operating the activating member . such a mechanical member is advantageously arranged in the handle grip , preferably axially in line with the direction of movement of the activating member . the solenoid forming part of the embodiments described above may comprise a permanent magnet ( not shown ), which is designed to draw the moveable part into the retracted position shown in fig4 a and 7 b . the solenoid may also be provided with a spring ( not shown ), which is designed to displace the moveable part to the projecting position shown in fig4 b and 7 a . such a magnet and spring provide a bistable solenoid , in which the moveable part maintains an assumed retracted or projecting position without the need for a continuous supply of current to the solenoid . in such an embodiment it is therefore sufficient to supply a brief current pulse to the solenoid when it is to switch between its two possible positions . this affords a very energy - saving device , which in turn helps in allowing the use of a small battery , which can advantageously be accommodated in the handle grip . instead of using a solenoid to electrically bring about axial movement of the activating member , it is also possible to use an electric motor , a piezo - electric member or some other device capable of electrically powering an axial movement . instead of an authorization - verifying keypad , which is connected to the control circuit for controlling the movement of the activating member , other equipment may be used in order to verify a user &# 39 ; s authorization . examples of such equipment are so - called rfid equipment , which by radio transmission can read off a coded identification card or a coded identification badge or the like , which a user holds up close to an rfid reader that may preferably be located in the handle grip . it is naturally also possible to use a system with a so - called “ i - button ”, in which the rfid reader is activated only when the identification badge is brought into physical contact with a contact surface which is connected to the rfid reader . such an arrangement draws current only when the rfid reader is activated for reading and is therefore well suited to fitting in the handle grip where the limited space places a limit on the size of the current source that can be used . it is also possible for the control circuit to comprise an rf receiver for remote operation from a remote station , which communicates with the control circuit of the handle device via long - range radio waves . in the embodiments described above the solenoid for powering the activating member is located in the handle grip , which is to have the facility for disengagement from and coupling to another part of the device . since the activating member moves axially , however , it is easy to control the activating member with an electrical or mechanical device which is arranged , for example , in a handle grip , a knob or some other element which is fixed to the opposite side of the door on which the handle device is arranged . the axial activation movement means that it is easy , by means of an axially displaceable through - member , such as bar or a shank that is centrally received in the handle spindle , to operate the activating member from either side of the door . in an embodiment not shown , one or more engaging members , instead of being designed as balls , may consist of an elongate pin , which is arranged parallel to the direction of movement of the activating member and which preferably has a radial , outwardly curved surface and conically tapering ends . one or more such pins may be located in corresponding recesses in the inner coupling member and like the ball may be acted upon by an axially moveable activating member , which is accommodated in the inner coupling member .

US-74764008-A

a handheld tool device to facilitate maintenance and installation of hollow through - hole audio input jacks on electrical guitars and other electronic musical devices . the tool has an expandable tip that can be placed inside the hollow opening of the through - hole audio input jack , and then be expanded by the operator . the device enables the operator to hold the audio input jack in a fixed position while a nut or other jack fastening device is tightened . other applications for the device include stabilizing a large variety of different through - hole connectors , embedded in a wide variety of different surfaces .

at the most general level , the invention is a hand - held stabilizer device designed to grip a hollow through - hole connector by the internal surface of the through - hole connector &# 39 ; s hollow opening . the device holds the hollow through - hole connector in a fixed position while force or torque is applied to a fixture ( such as a nut ) that holds the hollow through - hole connector to an opening in essentially any type of through - hole surface . in one embodiment , the device has as its heart , a rod with a first rod diameter , and having a distal end and a proximal end . usually the length of the rod is selected based on the considerations not unlike those often used to determine screwdriver lengths — that is , the rod or overall device length should be large enough to be easily picked up and used by a human operator , and small enough that it does not overwhelm the human operator . some of these considerations are discussed in further detail later in this disclosure . the device will normally have a tip mounted at the distal end of the rod , and fixed into position so that the tip will not normally detach from the rod while the device is in use . often the rod will have a helical screw thread ( e . g . a screw thread rod ). in this case , the tip may contain a hollow portion with an internal screw - thread that is complementary to the screw thread of the rod , such that the tip may be screwed onto the rod . in this case , the fixed tip will contain an internal diameter that is approximately the same as the diameter of the screw thread . alternatively , the fixed tip may not contain such an internal opening , and instead be affixed to the rod by other means such as welding , adhesive , or even may comprise the same structure of as the rod — that is , the rod may simply have a larger diameter at its distal end as a tip . in either event , the fixed tip will normally have a second tip diameter that is larger than the rod &# 39 ; s nominal first diameter . this is done so that a deformable hollow sleeve may be placed onto the rod proximal to the fixed tip , and so that the deformable hollow sleeve may be prevented from exiting the rod by the fixed tip at the distal end of the rod . in order for the deformable hollow sleeve ( often a deformable hollow cylindrical sleeve ) to be prevented from exiting the rod at the distal end by the fixed tip , the deformable sleeve will normally have an internal sleeve diameter that is slightly larger than the first diameter of the rod , but will also have an external sleeve diameter that is smaller than the second tip diameter of the fixed tip . this way , the hollow deformable sleeve will be blocked from exiting the rod on the distal end by the larger diameter of the fixed tip . the second diameter of the fixed tip , and the external sleeve diameter of the deformable hollow sleeve , will normally be selected as to both be smaller than the internal diameter of the hollow through - hole connector . this way at least the fixed tip and the deformable hollow sleeve may be easily positioned inside the hollow opening of the through - hole connector by a human operator . the material of the deformable hollow sleeve is selected so that if the hollow sleeve is compressed , as the height of the hollow sleeve starts to shrink , the diameter of the hollow sleeve will start to expand . in particular , the relative dimensions of the hollow sleeve relative to the internal diameter of the through - hole connector , and the hollow sleeve material , are selected so that with sufficient compression , the diameter of the hollow sleeve will first match , and then start to exceed , the internal diameter of the through - hole connector . as a result , with sufficient pressure , the hollow sleeve will start to contact the inner surface of the through - hole connector with increasing force , eventually obtaining a relatively firm grip on the interior of the through - hole connector . at the same time , the compressive force on the hollow sleeve will also cause the hollow sleeve to form a firm grip on the rod , the fixed tip , and any other device , such as a hollow spool ( to be discussed shortly ) and optional handle attached to the rod . the net effect is that when the deformable hollow sleeve is sufficiently compressed , it grips both the interior surface of the hollow through - hole connector , and the device itself , thus allowing the various types of forces exerted on the through hole connector to be connected to a human operator , or indeed any mass connected to the rod , and resisted by an opposing force . this opposing force can be inertia ( i . e . the mass of the handle ) but more usually it will be an opposing force exerted by the muscles of a human operator who is gripping the rod or handle . thus the hollow through - hole connector ( e . g . guitar jack ) can be held in a relatively constant position while various forces are applied to the through - hole connector . these various forces can be torque ( often applied by accident if a nut is used to attach the through - hole connector to a surface ), or other type of force , such as the force accidentally exerted if an alternative type of fixture , such as a snap connector , adhesive , or other means is used to attach the through - hole connector to the surface . various means may be used to apply compressive force to the deformable hollow sleeve . one convenient method is to mount a hollow spool on the rod in a position that is proximal to the hollow sleeve . this hollow spool may be of various shapes and configurations , but often will consist of a cylindrical shape , such as two joined cylinders , with a first cylindrical shape being configured to be conveniently manipulated by the fingers and / or hand of a human user , and a second smaller diameter configured to conveniently apply pressure to the deformable hollow sleeve . this pressure may be applied by various means . if the rod has a screw thread , then one convenient way to do this is to use a hollow spool with an internal opening that has a complementary screw thread , in which case torque applied to the hollow spool by a human user will cause the hollow spool to advance along the rod towards the distal end of the rod , eventually putting pressure on the deformable hollow sleeve . however alternative methods of putting pressure ( i . e . a compressive force ) upon the deformable hollow sleeve may also be used . the hollow spool need not be cylindrical . in alternative embodiments , the hollow spool may be have a rectangular , square , pentagonal , etc . cross section , and it should be clear that such alternative shapes will generally also function adequately . the following figures and discussion focuses on some specific embodiments of the invention . here these specific embodiments are designed to stabilize one - quarter inch female through - hole audio connector jacks , attached by a nut to a hole in the surface of a musical instrument , such as an electrical guitar or base . in these examples , the rod has a helical screw thread , and the fixed tip may or may not have an internal screw thread and diameter complementary to that of the rod . in this embodiment , the deformable hollow sleeve is cylindrical and made out of an elastic polymeric material . the hollow spool has an internal diameter and screw thread complementary to that of the rod . here also , the hollow spool is has a structure composed of a large cylinder at one end , designed for easy adjustment by a human operator &# 39 ; s hand and fingers , and a small cylinder at the other end , designed to apply pressure to the deformable hollow sleeve . in these embodiments , the device also has a handle , designed for easy gripping by a human operator , on the extreme proximal end of the rod . fig1 shows an exploded diagram of one embodiment of the device ( 100 ). in this embodiment , the device consists of a handle ( 102 ), a screw - thread ( threaded ) rod ( 104 ), a hollow spool ( 106 ) ( often containing an internal thread complementary to the thread of the threaded rod ), a deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ), and a fixed tip ( 110 ), often with an internal thread that matches the thread of the threaded rod ( 104 ). the handle ( 102 ) itself may either contain an internal thread complementary to the thread of the threaded rod . alternatively the threaded rod ( 104 ) may be glued or mounted into the handle by other means . the entire device ( 100 ) is intended to be small enough to be held in one hand , and when assembled is roughly the size of a standard screwdriver — e . g . often about 3 to 7 inches long , and about 1 ″ in diameter at the handle . of course the size may vary considerably outside these rough ranges , and still be within the scope of the invention . fig2 ( 220 ) shows a diagram of the device ( 100 ) interacting with a through - hole female ( hollow ) guitar jack ( 200 ) embedded in a hole in the surface ( 202 ) of a guitar , or other instrument . here the guitar jack is shown in a simplified manner as consisting of the main body of the jack ( 206 ), normally below the surface of the guitar ( 202 ). a hollow cylindrical guitar jack shaft ( 208 ), designed to accommodate a male input jack ( not shown ), normally will protrude outside of the guitar . this hollow cylindrical guitar jack shaft will often have screw threads , and the guitar jack is secured into position by nut ( 210 ) and washer arrangement . here only the nut ( which has internal screw threads ) is shown . normally several electrodes ( 212 ) will protrude out from the body of the guitar jack , and these electrodes are connected ( usually soldered ) to wires ( 214 ) that lead to the guitar pickups , and other internal guitar wiring . if the jack ( 200 ) rotates , the connections between the wires ( 214 ) and the electrodes ( 212 ) can become damaged , leading to the failure of the instrument . in this example , a ¼ ″ female electrical guitar jack input is shown . in this diagram , there is a gap between the nut ( 210 ) and the surface ( 202 ), causing the guitar jack ( 200 ) ( 206 ) to be somewhat loose . application of torque to the nut ( 210 ), however , will cause the body of the guitar jack ( 206 ) to rotate , causing the electrodes to move ( 212 ), and damaging the connection between the electrodes ( 212 ) and the wires ( 214 ). to tighten the nut ( 210 ) without causing the body of the jack ( 206 ) to rotate , the operator has positioned the tip of the device ( 110 ) above the hollow jack shaft ( 208 ). in this first configuration , the threaded hollow spool ( 106 ) on the expandable device is retracted , and thus does not put any pressure on the deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ). as a result , the deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ) is in a relaxed , small diameter configuration , and is able to easily enter into the hollow shaft ( 208 ) of the guitar input jack . this is shown in ( 230 ). note that in ( 230 ) and ( 240 ), the guitar jack ( 200 ), ( 208 ), ( 206 ) is shown as being semi - transparent in order to facilitate visualization of the events taking place inside the internal hollow shaft of the guitar jack ( 208 ). the operator will normally hold the handle of the device in the palm of his or her hand , and advance or retract ( 232 ) the internally threaded hollow spool along the threaded rod with one or more fingers ( not shown ), often by applying torque to the spool ( 234 ). as is shown in ( 240 ), as the operator advances the spool ( 232 ), ( 234 ), the spool starts to exert pressure on the deformable hollow sleeve on one side , and on the other side , the rubber sleeve meets the tip of the device ( which may also be threaded and screwed into the threaded rod , or alternatively be permanently affixed by glue , solder , other means . as a result , as the spool is advanced , the rubber sleeve is compressed , and it starts to expand in diameter ( 242 ). eventually , the deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ) expands to the point where it applies pressure upon the inner wall of the hollow cylindrical shaft of the guitar jack ( 208 ). when this happens , torque applied to the guitar jack during attempts to tighten the nut ( 244 ) may be resisted by the operator holding the handle ( 102 ) of the device . fig4 shows one way in which the device may be constructed . in the first step ( 400 ), the tip ( 110 ), which may be composed of aluminum , steel , rigid plastic , or other material , is attached to the threaded rod ( 104 ). in the second step ( 402 ), the deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ) is mounted on the rod . in the third step , the hollow spool ( 106 ) is threaded onto the rod , and in the fourth step , the handle ( 408 ) is attached to the rod . in this specification , the tip ( 110 ) side of the device is the distal side , and the handle ( 408 ) side of the device is the proximal side . in ( 408 ), the effect of torque or force on the hollow spool is shown . the hollow spool ( 106 ) is pressing against the deformable hollow sleeve ( 108 ), causing the sleeve to compress , and expand its diameter to the point ( 410 ) where it now is larger than the diameter of the tip ( 110 ). fig5 shows one particular embodiment of the hollow spool ( 106 ). in this embodiment , the height of the spool ( 500 ) is one inch , and the diameter of the face of the spool facing the deformable hollow sleeve ( sleeve face 502 ) is 0 . 25 inches . here this sleeve face is a cylindrical sleeve face . there is an 8 / 32 threaded hole ( about 0 . 1650 inches in diameter ) ( 504 ) extending through the spool designed to accommodate an 8 / 32 threaded rod ( not shown ). at the wide end , the spool has a base diameter of about 0 . 70 inches ( 17 . 75 mm ) ( 506 ). this wider portion of the spool extends up in height about 0 . 30 inches ( 7 . 5 mm ) ( 508 ). the side view of the hollow spool is shown as ( 510 ), and the top view of the hollow spool is shown as ( 512 ). although the example of a hollow ( female ) audio electrical jack for an electrical musical device , such as electronic musical instruments ( e . g . electronic guitars , electronic basses , electronic pianos ), and electronic support devices for these electronic instruments ( e . g . amplifiers , recorders , sound processors ) will be used throughout this specification as a specific example of one type of application and embodiment for the device , these specific examples are not intended to be limiting . as previously discussed , in principle , the device disclosed herein may be used to help manage a broad number of different hollow through - hole connectors , attached to a variety of different through - hole surfaces , and held into position by a variety of different fixtures , including one or more nuts and washers , but also by other different fixtures such as snap - on fixtures , or even adhesives such as glues . the general problem that is being solved is the problem of how a human user can use a hand - held device to facilitate holding a through - hole connector in a relatively steady manner while the through - hole connector is being attached or bonded to a through - hole surface by a nut or some alternative type of snap - on fixture , adhesive , or other mechanism . this general type of attachment scheme will be termed a “ fixture ”. similarly , although many specific embodiments of the disclosed device utilize a rod with a proximal and distal end , typically between 1 ″ to 12 ″ in length , and often between 2 ″ to 8 ″ in length , and even more conveniently between about 3 ″ to 6 ″ in length as one embodiment , in principle rods with greater or shorter length may also be used . often such rods will have a helical screw thread so that other components , such as tips with internal screw thread openings , hollow spools with internal screw thread openings , and handles with internal screw thread openings can be conveniently threaded onto the rod . however other embodiments are also within the spirit of the invention . for example , in one alternative embodiment , the rod need not have screw threads , and the operator may instead apply downward force to a hollow spool by squeezing a handle that , when squeezed , exerts downward force . thus in a screw threaded rod embodiment , the operator will often operate the device by applying rotary force ( torque ) to a hollow spool with an internal thread , and the interaction between the screw threads on the rod and the screw threads on the interior of the hollow spool will cause the hollow spool to move and exert a downward deforming force on a deformable hollow sleeve . by contrast , in a non - screw threaded rod embodiment , the non - rotary force of the operator is converted to a downward motion of the hollow spool without rotary motion . note that in this non - screw threaded embodiment , the hollow spool may be part of the handle of the device . thus although in many embodiments , the hollow spool will often be different from the handle of the device , this is not always the case . in such alternative embodiments , the distal tip and / or the handle may be affixed to the rod by alternative means , such as a by distinctive bent or larger diameter proximal or distal end of the rod that acts to trap the tip and / or handle , as well as adhesives , welding , or other material bonding process . the rod itself will often be made of a relatively durable metal or metal alloy , similar to the metals normally used for screws and durable rods , such as various aluminum , steel , copper , bronze or other metallic alloys . alternatively durable plastics may also be used . the deformable hollow sleeve will frequently be made of an organic ( carbon based ) or inorganic ( e . g . silicon based ) polymer , often elastic in nature . in general the hollow sleeve will comprise a material , such as a deformable polymer , that is substantially solid but flexible under normal room temperature operating conditions . examples of suitable materials include various natural or synthetic rubbers ( e . g . organic polymers , silicon based polymers ), polyurethane , and the like . similarly , although in many embodiments , the deformable hollow sleeve may be cylindrical , this need not always be the case . this is because a deformable hollow sleeve in other cross sectional shapes , such as a triangle , rectangle , pentagon , etc . will frequently also deform and grip the interior hollow surface of a connector in an adequate manner . similarly the handle of the device need not always be present . however a handle is generally preferable because it allows the operator to maintain a good grip on the device . if present , the handle will usually be made of a durable material . here again , metals or metal alloys such as aluminum , steel , or other metallic alloys may be used . durable plastics may also be used , as well as materials traditionally used in handles such as wood , bone , ivory , rock or other material .

US-57297309-A

the invention relates to a copper alloy , composed of : 51 . 8 to 84 . 0 % cu , 15 . 5 to 36 . 0 % zn , 0 . 35 to 3 . 0 % sn , 0 . 12 to 1 . 5 % fe , 0 . 02 to 1 . 0 % p , optionally also 0 . 1 to 2 . 0 % al , optionally also 0 . 05 to 0 . 7 % si , optionally also 0 . 05 to 2 . 0 % ni , optionally also respectively 0 . 1 to 1 . 0 % mn , co , optionally also respectively 0 . 01 to 1 . 0 % as , sb , and unavoidable contaminants , wherein more than 95 % of the structure consist of α - mixed crystal , in which at least iron phosphides and / or iron are embedded as deposition particles , which can be used for metallic articles in breeding organisms living in seawater .

the invention proceeds from the consideration that the cultivation relates in particular to fish and also crustaceans and mussels . so - called aquaculture is performed for this purpose , using which controlled cultivation of aquatic organisms in the ocean is pursued . it is mostly based on net cages in the ocean , in which , for example , salmon or other food fish are raised . the zinc content between 15 . 5 and 32 . 0 % in the alloy is selected in particular according to the criterion that an easily formable , single - phase alloy is obtained . the single - phase base microstructure consists of alpha phase . the base microstructure must also be suitable for absorbing the finest possible precipitants of other elements . for zinc contents between 32 . 0 % and 36 . 0 %, up to a certain degree , a further β - phase can also occur , which can be reduced by a temperature treatment , however . the zinc content is not to exceed 36 . 0 %, since otherwise a less favorable phase composition results in the alloy . in particular , in the case of zinc contents exceeding the specified value , the brittle gamma phase occurs , which is undesirable in this context . on the other hand , extensive experimental results of an alloy variant having well over 30 . 0 % zinc show that the desired properties are still ensured . one important property of the alloy is its resistance against corrosion attack and good processing ability . on the other hand , economic aspects are also to be mentioned in the solution according to the invention . thus , the element zinc can currently still be acquired on the market at a reasonable price and is available in sufficient amounts , to thus produce alloys which are less expensive in the metal price , the properties of which at least extend to those of heretofore known alloys . thus , the alloys according to the invention have a lower metal value than conventional copper - nickel alloys or silicon bronzes . the material properties are also to be oriented to these alloys . a higher tin content in the alloy according to the invention has effects on the strength and corrosion resistance from a technical aspect . on the other hand , the tin content is not to exceed 3 . 0 %, since the bending ability is negatively influenced thereby . in principle , the tin concentration is to be kept as low as possible , however , no substantial influence on the alloy properties can still be expected at a proportion less than 0 . 3 %. by adding suitable proportions of fe and p , phosphides in the form of precipitation particles can be formed in cu — zn — sn alloys . these are either iron phosphides or mixed phosphides in this case , for example , phosphides containing manganese , nickel , or cobalt . copper phosphides can also be provided . in addition , iron particles can also precipitate in the alloy matrix . iron is responsible for the formation of precipitation particles and therefore for an improvement of the strength properties in comparison to typical admiralty brasses . the precipitation formation can be controlled and optimized during the manufacturing process . in particular , precipitants form in this alloy during a hot forming step and the following cooling . the tempering mechanisms which are active in the alloy are primarily borne by the element iron . the ferrous particles present in the alloy matrix preferably form in the submicrometer range . to ensure the dezincification resistance of the alloy , it is significant not to select the ratio of the phosphorus content to the iron content to be excessively low , since otherwise all of the phosphorus dissolved in the α - mixed crystal , which acts as a dezincification inhibitor , is bound in the form of iron phosphides . its dezincification inhibiting effect is no longer provided in this form . it has been shown that in the testing for dezincification resistance , alloys have proven to be resistant in which , for the ratio p / fe : [ p ]/[ fe ]& gt ; 0 . 25 . the elements as and sb , which have a dezincification inhibiting effect , are also suitable as selected elements . furthermore , it is envisaged that as and sb also form compounds with fe , which can be used for the particle tempering of a cu - zn - based alloy having an α - mixed crystal structure . furthermore , it is envisaged that co , mn , and ni can form such compounds with p , as , and sb . a certain proportion of al , mn , ni , and si can also increase the corrosion resistance of the cu - based alloys in seawater . in the case of the alloy according to the invention , particular weight is laid on the microstructure thereof , which is based on a suitable combination of different rolling , pressing , or also drawing processes . such forming steps can be , on the one hand , hot forming processes in conjunction with further cold forming steps and intermediate annealing steps . the implementation of the alloy according to the invention must be adapted with regard to process technology precisely to the formation of the finely distributed ferrous particles in conjunction with the respective degrees of forming . the optimum of the expected property combinations can only thus be achieved . a special advantage of the solution according to the invention results from a significant improvement in relation to the previously existing solutions , wherein multiple requirements for the material are fulfilled simultaneously : corrosion resistance in seawater , brackish water , or freshwater ; resistance to fouling under water ( biofouling ); high tensile strength , to bear the intrinsic weight of the meshes or gratings and to be able to fend off attacks of marine predators ; fatigue resistance against the cyclic stress by waves or currents ; high wear resistance , if meshes are used in which a relative movement between the individual wires is possible . as a result of the particles , the alloy has a higher strength due to precipitation annealing in conjunction with grain refinement , with similar seawater resistance . therefore , wires and metal strips made of this alloy can be used as a starting material for the use for producing cages for employment in aquacultures , which have a higher strength than conventional admiralty brasses . the possibility results therefrom of producing cages of greater stability and longer service life , or alternatively of reducing the wire diameter or the strip thickness , to save material . in particular , the increased strength is already provided in the soft - annealed state , which is particularly favorable for processing steps , for example , for mesh production . the hard phosphide particles additionally increase the wear resistance of the alloy . the content of iron can advantageously be from 0 . 55 to 1 . 5 %. in a further preferred embodiment of the invention , the content of tin can be 0 . 7 to 1 . 5 % and that of iron can be 0 . 55 to 0 . 7 %. a lower tin content in the specified boundaries is therefore particularly advantageous , because in this way the bending ability of the alloy is primarily improved further . the specified iron content is selected such that particularly fine ferrous particles can form in the alloy matrix . however , these particles still have the size to substantially improve the mechanical properties . the zinc content can advantageously be between 21 . 5 and 36 . 0 %. in particular , in this range it is still ensured that the desired alloy , predominantly consisting of alpha phase , can be produced . such alloys are formable more easily and are still suitable for fine precipitation distribution of the ferrous particles . furthermore , the zinc content can advantageously be between 26 . 5 and 35 . 0 %. for a use according to the invention , in addition to the broader specification of the alloy composition , in particular the copper - zinc alloy cuzn28sn1fe0 . 25p0 . 2 , or also cuzn34sn1fe0 . 25p0 . 2 , have proven to be particularly suitable as the selected alloy . this primarily relates to strip , wire , or tubular material having the main components copper , zinc , tin , iron , and phosphorus . advantageously , for the ratio of the content of p , as , sb and the content of fe , ni , mn , co , the following can apply : [ p + as + sb ]/[ fe + ni + mn + co ]& gt ; 0 . 25 . the further elements optionally contained in the alloy can also cause , with regard to the process control , a further property improvement of the alloy or can also display its effect during the production process in the molten phase . in particular the dezincification resistance is ensured by maintaining the specified ratio . a further key property is the bending ability in strips and wires , which improves in particular at higher zinc contents . the experimental results have shown that approximately equally good corrosion resistance of the alloy is present both for low zinc contents and also for high zinc contents . it is essential that in the alloy according to the invention , the tensile strength is significantly improved in relation to the typical brasses . the mean grain size of the alloy matrix can advantageously be less than 20 μm . by way of the combination of the grain size of the alloy matrix in conjunction with the size of the finely distributed ferrous particles and the distribution thereof , an optimum of the alloy properties may be achieved with regard to the mechanical carrying capacity and bending ability thereof . in a preferred embodiment , a use for nets , fabric , meshes , and gratings can be envisaged , which are produced from wires or from metal strips . in a further preferred embodiment , rods , profiles , or profile tubes can be used for fastening or stabilization . tubes or hollow profiles can advantageously be used , which are used as fastening elements , floats , or supply lines and disposal lines . the properties of samples made of these alloys are described hereafter ( table 1 ). the samples were produced by melting the alloy components in a graphite crucible according to the tammann method and subsequent casting in cuboid steel ingot molds . the blocks obtained were milled to 22 mm and hot rolled to 12 mm . subsequently , strip material of the final thickness 1 . 0 mm was produced by cold rolling , optionally with intermediate annealing . the produced samples were subjected to various tests , which are to prove the particular suitability of the alloy according to the invention . table 2 shows the mechanical properties of the particle - annealed alloy according to example 1 in comparison to the particle - free alloy according to comparative example 1 ( alloy c44500 , prior art ). both samples were provided in 100 % recrystallized state , which was implemented by an annealing treatment at a temperature of 500 ° c . for the duration of 3 hours after the last cold rolling step . this state is particularly favorable for the production of woven network structures , since the forming ability of metals in the completely recrystallized state is particularly great . it can be seen that the particle - annealed alloy according to example 1 has a significantly higher yield strength ( rp 0 . 2 ) and a significantly higher tensile strength ( rm ) in comparison to comparative example 1 ( alloy c44500 , prior art ). a wire produced from this alloy or another structure produced from this alloy therefore has a significantly greater resistance to plastic deformation and failure by fracture . in spite of the high strength values , the particle - annealed alloy according to example 1 is nonetheless distinguished by a satisfactory elongation at fracture of 40 - 50 %, whereby a sufficiently high forming ability is provided for the production of wire meshes . as a result of the particles intercalated in the matrix , the grain growth is restricted during the recrystallization of the particle - annealed alloy according to example 1 . the grain size of this alloy in the recrystallized state is thus significantly less than that of the comparative alloy according to comparative example 1 ( alloy c44500 ), see table 2 . this causes a homogeneous forming behavior and prevents the formation of surface irregularities in strongly plastically deformed regions (“ orange peel effect ”). in addition , in particular in the case of structures having small dimensions in one or two dimensions ( strip , plate , or wire ), a small grain size is desirable to keep the mean number of the grains between two surfaces as large as possible . this increases the general resistance ability of the structures produced from the alloy . as a result of the high content of chloride ions in seawater , an alloy having the main elements cu and zn is to be dezincification - resistant for use in maritime aquacultures . a rapid test is described in the norm iso 6509 testing for dezincification resistance . this test was performed on the described samples according to table 1 . the results are shown in table 3 . it is shown that the particle - annealed variants , which contain both fe and p , have a particularly low dezincification depth comparable with a particle - free alloy according to comparative example 1 ( alloy c44500 ), if the ratio between p content and fe content is greater than or equal to 0 . 3 ( examples 1 and 2 ). in the case of comparative example 2 , in which the ratio between p content and fe content is only 0 . 03 , in contrast , the dezincification depth is at a comparatively high level . to test the seawater resistance , sample plates of the particle - reinforced alloy according to example 1 and the particle - free alloy according to comparative example 1 ( alloy c44500 ) were subjected to artificial seawater according to din 50907 in a test stand for 15 weeks . in this case , beakers were used , which were each filled with 1 liter of the artificial seawater . a flow speed of the artificial seawater of 0 . 2 m / s was set by magnetic stirrers . in each case , 4 sample plates of the dimensions of 45 mm × 45 mm × 1 mm were fastened under the water surface , at the waterline , and above the water surface . the artificial seawater was changed every seven days . from the weight loss of the samples during the experiment , a mean ablation rate was determined , wherein only the sample surface which was located under the water surface was considered . before the weight determination after the end of the experiment , the layer made of corrosion products which was located on the samples was dissolved using citric acid , since this layer does not contribute to the strength of the material and therefore should not be considered with respect to the remaining load - bearing cross - sectional area . the result of the test is shown in table 4 and indicates that the metal ablation rate of the particle - reinforced alloy according to example 1 is surprisingly even lower than that of the particle - free alloy according to comparative example 1 ( c44500 ). in a subsequent judgment of the sample plates from the various positions with respect to the water surface in metallographic micrographs , no selective corrosion attack , for example , dezincification or inter - crystalline corrosion , was established in the particle - reinforced alloy according to example 1 or in the particle - free alloy according to comparative example 1 .

US-201214234840-A

an illumination obscurement device for controlling the obscurement of illumination from a light source which is optimized for use with a rectangular , arrayed , selective reflection device . in a preferred embodiment , a rotatable shutter with three positions is placed between a light source and a dmd . the first position of the shutter is a mask , preferably an out of focus circle . this out of focus circle creates a circular mask and changes any unwanted dim reflection to a circular shape . the second position of the shutter is completely open , allowing substantially all the light to pass . the third position of the shutter is completely closed , blocking substantially all the light from passing . by controlling the penumbra illumination surrounding the desired illumination , dmds can be used in illumination devices without creating undesirable rectangular penumbras .

the structure and operational parameters of preferred embodiments will be explained below making reference to the drawings . the present system uses two different operations to minimize the viewable effect of the unintentional illumination , or penumbra , discussed previously . a first operation forms the optics of the system in a way which prevents certain light from being focused on the dmd and hence prevents that light from being reflected . by appropriately masking the incoming light to the dmd , certain edge portions of the penumbra can be masked . a second part of the system uses a special illumination shutter to provide different shaped penumbras when desired . the overall optical system is shown in fig4 . the bulb assembly 200 includes a high wattage bulb , here an msr 1200 sa xenon bulb 202 and retroreflectors 204 which capture some of the output from that bulb . the output of the bulb is coupled to a dichroic or “ cold ” mirror 206 which reflects the visible light while passing certain portions of the infrared . the first focus of the reflector is at point 208 . a dmd mask is located at that point . the dmd mask is preferably rectangular , and substantially precisely the shape of the inner area 418 of the dmd . the image of the mask is also focused onto the dmd : such that if one were looking at the mask from the position of the dmd , one would see the mask clearly and in focus . a first color system includes an rgb system 210 and a parametric color system 212 . the light passes through all of these elements and is then further processed by an illumination relay lens 214 and then by an imaging relay lens 216 . the image relay lens 216 has an aperture of 35 millimeters by 48 millimeters . the output is focused through a field lens 216 to the dmd 400 . the off pixels are coupled to heat sink 220 , and the on pixels are coupled via path 222 back through the imaging relay 216 folded in the further optics 224 and finally coupled to zoom elements 230 . the zoom elements control the amount of zoom of the light beam . the light is colored by a designer color wheel 232 and finally focused by a final focus element 235 . the way in which the outer penumbra is removed will be explained with reference to fig3 a and 4b . fig3 b shows the front surface of the dmd . this includes a relatively small inner active portion 350 which includes the movable mirrors . active portion 350 is surrounded by a white inactive portion 352 which is surrounded by packaging portion 354 , a gold package 356 , and a ceramic package 358 . light is input at a 20 ° angle from the perpendicular . the reason why becomes apparent when one considers fig3 c . the mirrors in the dmd tip by 10 °. fig3 c shows two exemplary mirrors , one mirror 360 being on , and the other mirror 362 being off . input light 362 is input at a 20 ° angle . hence , light from the on mirror emerges from the dmd perpendicular to its front surface shown as 364 . however , the same light 362 impinging on an off mirror emerges at a different angle shown as 366 . the difference between those two angles forms the difference between undesired light and desired light . however , note in fig3 c what happens when the incoming light 362 hits a flat surface . note the outgoing beam 368 is at a different angle than either the off position or the on position . the hypothetical beam 366 from an off mirror is also shown . the inventors recognize , therefore , that a lot of this information falls within an undesired cone of light . all light which is input ( e . g . 362 rays can be filtered by removing the undesired cone . this is done according to the present disclosure by stopping down the cone of light to about 18 ° on each side . the final result is shown in fig3 d . the incoming light is stopped down to a cone of 18 ° by an fig2 lens . the incoming light is coupled to the surface of the dmd 400 , and the outgoing light is also stopped to a cone of 18 °. these cones in the optical systems are identified such that the exit cone does not overlap with the undesired cone 367 shown in fig3 c . this operation is made possible by appropriate two - dimensional selection of the incoming light to the digital mirror . fig3 e shows the active portion 350 of the digital mirror . each pixel is a rectangular mirror 370 , hinged on axis 372 . in order to allow use of this mirror and its hinge , the light needs to be input at a 45 ° angle to the mirror , shown as incident light ray 374 . the inventors recognized , however , that light can be anywhere on the plane defined by the line 374 and perpendicular to the plane of the paper in fig3 e . hence , the light of this embodiment is input at the 45 ° angle shown in fig3 e and also at a 20 ° angle shown in fig3 f which represents a cross section along the line 3 f - 3 f . this complex angle enables using a plane of light which has no interference from the undesired portions of the light . hence , by using the specific desired lenses , reflections of random scattered illumination is bouncing off the other parts is removed . this masking carried out by at least one of the dmd mask 208 and the dmd lens 216 . by appropriate selection of the input light , the output light has a profile as shown in fig3 g . 350 represents the dmd active area , 356 represents the border , and 358 represents the mount . the light output is only from the dmd active area and is stopped and focused by appropriate lenses as shown in fig3 g . fig5 shows a planar view of a shutter 500 according to a preferred embodiment of the invention . the preferred configuration of the shutter 500 is a disk divided into three sections . each section represents one position to which the shutter 500 may be set . the shutter 500 is preferably rotated about the center point 502 of the shutter . the gate of the light is off center , to allow it to interact with one of the three sections . rotation is preferred because rotation allows efficient transition between positions . alternately , the shutter 500 may slide vertically or horizontally to change from one position to another . a round shape is preferred because of efficiency in material and space use . alternately , the shutter 500 may be rectangular or some other polygonal shape . three positions are preferred because each position is rotatably equidistant from the other positions . however , a shutter 500 with three positions provides more positions than a shutter 500 with only two positions . in a preferred embodiment , a first position is a mask position 504 . the mask position 504 includes an open or transparent aperture 506 and an opaque mask portion 508 which is not permeable to light . preferably , material is removed from the shutter 500 leaving a shaped aperture 506 and a mask portion 508 . the second position is an open position 510 . the open position 510 includes an opening 512 . preferably the opening 512 is formed by removing substantially all material from the shutter 500 in the section of the open position 510 . the third position is a closed position 514 . the closed position 514 includes a opaque barrier portion 516 . preferably , the barrier portion 516 is just a solid block of material . fig6 a shows a preferred embodiment of an illumination system . a shutter 500 of the type shown in fig5 is rotatably mounted between a light source 602 / dmd 604 such that substantially all the light from the light source 602 strikes only one section of the shutter 500 at a time . the shutter 500 is rotatably positioned to the mask position 504 . thus , when the light source 602 is activated , light from the light source 602 reflected by dmd 604 strikes only the mask position 504 of the shutter 500 . using digital control signals , the dmd 604 is set so that an active portion 612 of the individual mirrors are turned “ on ” and an inactive portion 614 of the individual mirrors are turned “ off ” ( see fig4 a ). the shape of the active portion 612 is set to conform to the desired shape of the bright portion of the illumination reflected by the dmd 604 shown in fig6 b , described below . fig6 b shows an illumination pattern 620 generated by the illumination device 600 configured as shown in fig6 a . returning to fig4 a and 4b , when the shutter 500 is not interposed between the dmd 400 and the stage . all portions of the dmd 400 reflect the light and create the undesirable illumination pattern 410 shown in fig4 b . in particular , the bright circular area 414 is surrounded by an undesirable dim rectangular penumbra 418 and slightly brighter frame 422 . as described above , the illumination pattern 614 shown in fig6 b does not include a dim rectangular penumbra 418 and a slightly brighter frame 422 . these undesirable projections are substantially eliminated by using the shutter 500 and the aperture 506 . a dim penumbra illumination 628 is generated by light reflecting from the inactive portion 614 of the dmd 604 . this dim circular penumbra illumination 628 is more desirable than the dim rectangular penumbra 418 and slightly brighter frame 422 of fig4 b because the shape of the dim penumbra illumination 628 is controlled by the shape of the aperture 506 . accordingly , the dim penumbra illumination 628 can be conformed to a desirable shape . fig7 shows an alternate embodiment for an iris shutter 900 . preferably , a series of opaque plates 902 are arranged inside a ring 904 to form an iris diaphragm . by turning the ring 904 the plates 902 move so that an iris aperture 906 in the center of the iris shutter 900 varies in diameter . the iris aperture 906 preferably varies from closed to a desired maximum open diameter . preferably the iris shutter 900 can transition from closed to a maximum diameter ( or the reverse ) in 0 . 1 seconds or less . fig8 a shows an illumination device 1000 including an iris shutter 900 as shown . the iris shutter 900 is positioned between a dmd 1002 and a stage 1004 . in fig8 a , the iris shutter 900 is partially open such that the iris aperture 906 allows part of the light 1006 , 1008 from the light source 1002 to pass through , similar to the mask position 504 of the three position shutter 500 shown in fig6 a . one difference between the mask position 504 and the iris shutter 900 is that the iris aperture 906 is variable in diameter while the aperture 506 of the mask position 504 is fixed . the remainder of the light 1010 from the light source 1002 is blocked by the plates 902 of the iris shutter 900 . the light 1006 , 1008 which passes through the iris aperture 906 strikes the dmd 1004 in a pattern 1012 which is the same shape as the shape of the iris aperture 906 . through digital control signals , some of the individual mirrors of the dmd 1004 are turned “ on ” to form an active portion 1014 , and some of the individual mirrors are turned “ off ” to form an inactive region 1016 . preferably , the pattern 1012 is at least as large as the active portion 1014 of the dmd . fig8 b shows an illumination pattern 1018 generated by the illumination device 1000 shown in fig8 a . similar to fig6 a and 6b , a bright illumination 1020 is generated by light 1022 reflected from the active portion 1014 of the dmd 1004 . a dim penumbra illumination 1024 is generated by light 1026 reflected from the inactive portion 1016 of the dmd 1004 . by varying the diameter of the iris aperture 906 , the size of the pattern 1012 on the dmd 1004 changes . as the pattern 1012 changes the amount of the inactive portion 1016 of the dmd 1004 which is struck by light 1008 from the light source 1002 changes and so the dim penumbra 1024 changes as well . fig9 shows an alternate embodiment of a shutter 1100 which combines features of a three position shutter 500 with an iris shutter 900 . the overall configuration of this shutter 1100 is that of the three position shutter 500 . however , instead of the mask portion 504 as shown in fig5 and fig6 a , one of the positions is an iris portion 1102 . the iris portion 1102 has an iris diaphragm 1104 inserted into the material of the shutter 1100 . similar to the iris shutter 900 of fig9 the iris diaphragm 1104 is made from a series of opaque plates 1106 arranged inside a ring 1108 . by turning the ring 1108 the plates 1106 move so that an iris aperture 1110 in the center of the iris diaphragm 1104 varies in diameter . this configuration operates in most respects similarly to the three position shutter 500 as shown in fig5 and fig6 a . because of the iris diaphragm 1104 , the amount of light blocked by the iris portion 1102 is variable . fig1 shows an alternate embodiment of an illumination device 1200 which includes a second reflective surface 1202 . a light source 1204 projects light onto a dmd 1206 which has an active portion 1208 and an inactive portion 1210 . light reflects off the dmd 1206 and strikes the second reflective surface 1202 . the second reflective surface 1202 acts to reduce the dim penumbra and frame created by the inactive portion 1210 and edge 1212 of the dmd 1206 ( recall fig4 a and 4 b ). in the embodiment shown in fig1 , the second reflective surface 1222 is a light sensitive surface such as an array of light trigger cells . only light of a certain brightness is reflected . if the light striking a cell is insufficiently bright , substantially no light is reflected by that cell . alternately , the second reflective surface 1202 may be made of a polymer material that only reflects or passes light of sufficient brightness . light 1214 reflected from the active portion 1208 of the dmd 1206 is preferably bright enough to be reflected from the second reflective surface 1202 . light 1216 , 1218 reflected from the inactive portion 1210 and the edge 1212 of the dmd 1206 is preferably not bright enough to be reflected from the second reflective surface 1202 . thus , only light 1214 from the active portion 1208 of the dmd 1206 will be reflected from the second reflective surface 1202 . as described above , the undesirable dim rectangular penumbra 418 and slightly brighter frame 422 ( recall fig4 b ) would be created by light 1216 , 1218 reflected from the inactive portion 1210 and edge 1212 of the dmd 1206 . the second reflective surface 1202 does not reflect this dim light 1216 , 1218 and so wholly eliminates the dim penumbra and frame from the resulting illumination . a number of embodiments of the present invention have been described which provide controlled obscurement of illumination . nevertheless , it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . for example , filters or lenses might be introduced to the illumination device 600 shown in fig6 a between the shutter 500 and the dmd 604 . alternately , the light source might be a video projection device or a laser . while this disclosure describes blocking the light before impinging on the dmd , it should be understood that this same device could be used anywhere in the optical train , including downstream of the dmd . preferably the blocking is at an out of focus location to soften the edge of the penumbra , but could be in - focus . the light reflecting device could be any such device , including a dmd , a grating light valve (“ glv ”), or any other arrayed reflecting device which has a non - circular shape . all such modifications are intended to be encompassed in the following claims .

US-10826398-A

methods and apparatus are disclosed for relatively positioning coils within winding coil groups for a magnetic core to facilitate insertion of the coil group into axially extending slots of the magnetic core of a stator assembly . one method that is disclosed involves intercepting the end turn portion of a first relatively large coil having a lateral position outward relative to the end turn portion of a second relatively smaller coil with yieldable means as the coils are moved toward a magnetic core for subsequent insertion of the first and second coils into respective axially extending slots of the magnetic core . the arrangement of the first coil end turns inside of the second coil reduces the interengagement pressure between the first coil and the second coil normally occurring during the insertion of the coils into their respective slots of the magnetic core . apparatus is illustrated for inserting one or more windings into a magnetic core of a stator assembly . the apparatus includes yieldable means that intercept end turn portions of one coil of a winding coil group as the winding is moved toward the magnetic core for subsequent insertion . the intercepted end turn portions are displaced by the yieldable means to a position inside end turn segments of a second coil of the winding . prior to interception , the end turns of the first coil are laterally outside of the end turns of the second coil .

fig1 illustrates an apparatus 10 for practicing the present invention in one form thereof . a dynamoelectric machine stator assembly 12 , including a slotted magnetic core 14 , having spaced apart end faces 16 and 18 and an axially extending core 20 , is positioned and supported in a coil receiving position within the apparatus 10 by a supporting means illustrated as cradle 22 . the apparatus 10 is of a type substantially the same as the winding and inserting machine , hereinafter to be referred to as a coil transfer winder , illustrated and described in the heretofore mentioned mason u . s . pat . no . 2 , 934 , 099 . in general , a predetermined number of coils , which are to be subsequently inserted into selected slots of the stator assembly 12 , are wound on a split stair step type cylindrical member of the coil transfer winder located axially along the apparatus 10 in the area generally denoted by the reference numeral 24 . after the coils have been wound , a portion of the cylindrical member is retracted releasing end portions of the wound coils while other end portions of the wound coils remain engaged with a non - retractable portion of the cylindrical member which acts as a coil insertion device . the coil insertion device then moves the coil in an axial direction ( illustrated by reference lines 26 in fig1 ) towards the magnetic core 14 for subsequent into and along axially extending slots of the magnetic core 14 . as will be explained in more detail , a pivotal means 28 is positioned on the cradle base 22 at a predetermined position to intercept a predetermined coil of the plurality of wound coils prior to the insertion of the coils into the axially extending slots of the magnetic core . pivotal means 28 , shown most clearly in fig3 is mainly comprised of arms 30 and 32 , a spring 34 , and a finger 38 . arm 30 has one of its ends attached to the cradle 22 at a position 33 via a screw or other suitable means for affixing the arm 30 to the cradle 22 . the other end of arm 30 is attached to arm 32 via an adjustable coupler 31 . coupler 31 has a typical diameter of 19 . 0 mm ( 0 . 75 in ) and is formed of a rigid material such as cold drawn steel . coupler 31 has a hole of a sufficient diameter to allow a portion of the arm 32 to be inserted through the hole . a screw 133 or other suitable means is positioned through a top portion of coupler 31 , to affix the inserted portion of arm 32 within the opening of coupler 31 . a bottom portion ( not shown ) of coupler 31 is positioned onto a top portion of arm 30 . the top portion of arm 32 is milled or ground down to provide a flat surface for mating with the bottom portion of coupler 31 . the bottom portion of coupler 31 is connected via a screw or other suitable means , to the flattened top portion of arm 30 . the top portion of arm 30 may typically have a plurality of spaced apart openings 37 , 39 and 41 into which the bottom portion of coupler 31 mates . it should be noted that when the coupler 31 is positioned on arm 30 as shown in fig2 - 6 , it is mounted in an opening , similar to openings 37 , 39 , and 41 , that it is hidden from view by the coupler 31 itself . arm 30 , having the flattened top portion , is formed of any suitable material , such as 0 . 75 inch diameter ( 19 mm ) cold drawn steel . similarly , arm 32 is a solid rod having a typical diameter of 9 . 5 mm ( 0 . 375 in .) and formed of a rigid material such as cold drawn steel . arm 32 , shown most clearly in fig7 is interconnected with finger 38 . from fig7 it can be seen that the spring 34 is connected at one end to the arm 32 via a suitable screw 36 inserted into an opening 90 of arm 32 and the other end of spring 34 is positioned through an opening 35 of finger 38 . finger 38 is typically formed of a rigid material such as cold drawn steel and is inserted into a slot 42 of arm 32 . slot 42 is provided for by a spacing between side portions 86 and 88 shown in fig8 . finger 38 is held within slot 42 by a pin 40 which is affixed to arm 32 . pin 40 serves as a fulcrum about which finger 38 pivots . two positions of finger 38 are shown in fig7 ( 1 ) a &# 34 ; normal &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; passive &# 34 ; position as represented by solid lines , and ( 2 ) a &# 34 ; biased &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; active &# 34 ; position shown in phantom . the degree of freedom with which finger 38 pivots is determined by the characteristics of spring 34 . spring 34 may typically be formed of spring steel and has an outer diameter of 4 . 75 mm ( 0 . 1875 in . ), a wire diameter of 0 . 6 mm ( 0 . 025 in .) with 16 coils to the centimeter . reference is now made back to fig2 to describe the positioning of the pivotal means 28 relative to the plurality of coils of a winding that is insertable into the slots of magnetic core 14 . a winding coil group for the magnetic core 14 may typically comprise a plurality of coils with each coil comprising a number of turns . shown in fig2 is a winding coil group comprises of five coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 and 74 which have been previously wound on the aforementioned cylindrical member of the coil transfer winder . coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 and 74 each have two end turn portions 52 - 54 , 58 - 60 , 64 - 66 , 70 - 72 , and 76 - 78 respectively . end turn portions 54 , 60 , 66 , 72 and 78 are shown as dashed lines and are engaged within the previously mentioned non - retractable portion of the split stair - step cylindrical member 80 shown in fig2 . end turn portions 52 , 58 , 64 , 70 and 76 have been previously wound on and released from the previously mentioned non - retractable portion of the split - stair - step cylindrical member . member 80 , which in effect comprises a coil transfer device carries coil end turn portions 54 , 60 , 66 , 72 and 78 thereon , and moves the coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 and 74 towards the magnetic core 14 for subsequent insertion of each of the coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 and 74 into and along their respective axially extending slots of the magnetic core 14 . pivotal means 28 is positioned to intercept one of the coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 or 74 prior to the insertion of the coils 50 , 56 , 62 , 68 and 74 into their respective slots of the magnetic core 14 . the interception position of the finger 38 of pivotal means 28 is determined , in part , by the length of arm 30 extending from coupler 31 , the length of finger 38 extending from slot 42 of arm 32 , the position of the coupler 31 attached to arm 30 , and the position 33 of pivotal means 28 attached to the cradle 22 . the interception position of finger 38 is further determined by the relative angle between arms 30 and 32 and the relative angle between finger 38 and arm 32 . the relative angle between arms 30 and 32 is determined by inserting a portion of arm 32 into the hole of coupler 31 , affixing the portion of arm 32 to coupler 31 by tightening screw 133 of coupler 31 , positioning the outer portion of arm 32 relative to arm 30 to establish the relative angle between the arms 30 and 32 and then affixing coupler 31 to arm 30 by tightening the screw located on the bottom portion of arm 30 . the relative angle between finger 38 and arm 32 is determined by an internal channel 92 shown as dashed lines in fig7 of arm 32 . channel 92 is located between bifurcated side portions 88 and 86 , as best revealed in fig8 . with continued reference to fig7 channel 92 has two ends 94 and 96 which determines the extent of movement of finger 38 . end 94 determines the maximum extent of the pivotable movement ( shown in phantom ) of finger 38 . end 96 determines the maximum extent at which the finger 38 , represented by solid lines , recesses into the slot 42 . the action of finger 38 of pivotal means 28 intercepting the end turn portion 76 of the coil 74 will be described with reference to fig2 - 6 . the outer portion of finger 38 is positioned at a location to intercept a first conductor turn of the end turn portion 76 of coil 74 after the end turn portion 52 of coil 50 has contacted a curved baffle 44 mounted to cradle 22 via a suitable fastener 46 . baffle 44 is not essential to the practice of this invention , but it serves as a desirable means for guiding end turn portions 52 , 58 , 64 , 70 and 76 towards their respective slots of magnetic core 14 for subsequent insertion . the guiding is accomplished by radially converging the end turns portions 52 , 58 , 64 , 70 and 76 towards their respective slots of the supported magnetic core 14 . from fig2 it can be seen that finger 38 is positioned so that it will intercept one or more conductor turns of end turn portion 76 as end turn portion 76 is moved toward magnetic core 14 . the interception position of end turn portion 76 by finger 38 is shown in fig3 . finger 38 intercepts one or more conductor turns of end turn portion 76 and the force of end turn portion 76 contacting finger 38 causes finger 38 to pivot about pin 40 . from fig4 it can be seen that finger 38 serves as a wedge or deflector increasing the separation between end turn portions 70 and 76 due to its pivoting action caused by the force of end turn portion 76 contacting finger 38 . also , from fig4 it can be seen that the arrangement 84 of coils 50 , 56 , 62 and 68 is folded back in a direction toward coil 74 . the folding action occurs due to the force of end turn portion 52 of coil 50 contacting baffle 44 . the folding action of end turn portion 70 in a direction back towards end turn portion 76 in conjunction with the increase of separation between the end turn portions 70 and 76 by finger 38 , allows end turn portion 76 to be slipped inside of end turn portion 70 as the end turn portions 70 and 76 are moved towards the magnetic core 14 . an intermediate position of end turn portion 76 slipping inside of end turn portion 70 is shown in fig5 . finger 38 intercepting end turn portions 76 first causes a transition of the path of the leading conductor turns of end turn portion 76 from a position laterally outside of end turn portion 70 to a position laterally inside of end turn portion 70 ( as best appreciated by comparing fig4 , and 6 ). as remaining portions of the conductor turns of end turn portion 76 disengage from finger 38 , finger 38 positions these remaining portions of end turn 76 inside of the end turn 70 . upon completion of the movment of end turn portion 76 past finger 38 , as shown in fig6 end turn portion 76 is located inside of end turn portion 70 . from fig6 it can also be seen that finger 38 has become disengaged from end turn portion 76 and has been returned to its initial or non - pivoting position . the finger 38 is returned to its initial position by the action of spring 34 . it should now be appreciated that by positioning pivotal means 28 to intercept an end turn portion of a first coil that is not engaged by a coil transfer device and having a lateral position outside an end turn portion of a second coil that is also not engaged by the coil transfer device , the first coil may be positioned inside the second coil by a coil deflecting means prior to the insertion of the first and second coils into their respective axially extending slots of a magnetic core . the arrangement of the first coil positioned inside of the second coil prior to the insertion of the two coils into their respective slots of a magnetic core reduces an interengagement pressure between these two coils as the coils are inserted into and axially along their respective slots of the magnetic core . as discussed in the &# 34 ; background &# 34 ; section of this patent application , the interengagement pressure between coils , such as the coil 74 which has a length longer than the coil 68 , hinders the desired axial spacing of these coils axially along the magnetic core . reference is now made to fig9 and 10 to describe two separate relative locations of coils within the stator assembly . a first relative positioning , shown in fig9 occurs when the coils are not prearranged prior to their insertion into slots of the magnetic core 114 . a second relative positioning , shown in fig1 , occurs when the coils are prearranged prior to or during their insertion into slots of the magnetic core 14 . from fig9 it can be seen that an end turn portion 176 inserted into the magnetic core 114 is draped over an end turn portion 170 . this draping or overlapping of end turns 170 and 176 occurs because the end turn 170 of coil 168 is shorter than end turn portion 176 of coil 174 , which causes coil 168 to pull against coil 174 as coil 168 is inserted into its respective slots of magnetic core 114 . from fig1 it can be seen that the end turn portion 76 , having been prearranged to be inside of end turn portion 70 , lays inside of end turn 70 . also , it can be seen from fig1 that there is a separation 82 between the end turns 76 and 70 at the location where the end turns 76 and 70 exit from the magnetic core 14 . a comparison between the relative positions of the coils shown in fig9 and fig1 reveals that the end turn portions 54 , 60 , 68 , 72 and 78 shown in fig1 exit from the magnetic core 14 a greater distance than an exit distance of end turn portions 154 , 160 , 168 , 172 , and 178 from magnetic core 114 shown in fig9 . in addition , it should be observed that the spacing of all the end turn portions 52 - 78 shown in fig1 is more evenly spaced axially along the magnetic core 14 than the axial spacing shown in fig9 of all the end turn portions 152 - 178 along magnetic core 114 . in a still further comparison between the relative coil positions shown in fig9 and 10 , it should be recognized that the relative coil positions shown in fig1 allow the coils to be subsequently folded downward against the end faces of the stator core in a more even manner than is allowable by the distribution of the coils shown in fig9 . finally , it should be recognized from observing fig1 that because of the substantial non - contact of end turn portions 76 and 78 these coils are permitted to be inserted further into stator slots and thereby allows for a longer slot separator wedge to be used . the longer slot separator wedge eliminates a manual action in which an operator normally replaces a relatively short slot separator wedge with a relatively longer slot separator wedge after the coils have been inserted into their stator slots . it should now be appreciated that the invention that has thus been described provides for an improved axial spacing of the coils inserted into the stator core . furthermore , the practice of this invention eliminates the need of an operator replacing a relative short slot separator wedge with a relatively longer slot separator after the coils have been inserted into the stator core . although the invention has been described for use with a device on which conductor turns for windings are wound for subsequent insertion , it should be recognized that a person skilled in the art will understand that the invention described herein may be utilized with inserting and or winding and inserting devices of types other than the specific type that has been discussed herein . examples of such other types are shown for example in u . s . pat . nos . 3 , 324 , 536 ( d . e . hill ), 3 , 831 , 225 ( d . f . smith et al . ), 3 , 698 , 063 ( d . f . smith ), and 3 , 829 , 953 ( r . e . lauer et al .) to name but a few , and the disclosures of all of which are incorporated herein by reference .

US-8679479-A

in the ups and communication power supply system , the output voltage of the pfc circuit is relativly high . the phenomenon of reverse recovery is also relativly serious for the use of a high voltage diode . a simple l - d snubber , which is suitable for pfc circuit of every kind of power system is provided for suppressing the phenomenon of reverse recovery of the diode so as to reduce all kinds of switch loss caused by the phenomenon and improve the efficiency of power system .

the present invention will now be described more specifically with reference to the following embodiments . the l - d ( inductor - diode ) snubber of the present invention includes an inductor and a diode , and it is derived from the conventional rld ( resistor - inductor - diode ) snubber . the inductor confines the change rate of the reverse recovery electric current in the pfc circuit , and therefore all kinds of switch loss caused by the phenomenon of reverse recovery are reduced . the diode of the snubber provides an energy flow path for the recovery of the inductor of the snubber . by omitting the resistor of the conventional rld snubber , the l - d snubber becomes simpler in its structure and it can be applied to all kinds of pfc circuits . according to the experiment , the pfc circuit employing the l - d snubber can also achieve a better efficiency . please refer to fig3 which illustrates a boost pfc circuit with an l - d snubber . in the drawing , the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the main switch element q in series . ls represents the inductor of the snubber and ds represents the diode of the snubber . as l - d snubber is applied to the pfc circuit , there may exist another kind of circuit structure , i . e . an l - d snubber is electrically connected to the freewheeling diode d , as shown in fig4 . in the drawing , l and c are respectively represent the inductor and the capacitor of the boost pfc circuit . there are only one main switch element q and one freewheeling diode d in the conventional boost pfc circuit . therefore , no matter what the l - d snubber is electrically connected to , only one l - d snubber is required . however , in a three - level pfc circuit , there are two freewheeling diodes . if the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the freewheeling diodes , two l - d snubbers are required . under the consideration of low cost and device simplification , it is apparent that the l - d snubber should be electrically connected to the main switch element q in series . please refer to fig5 which illustrates a time chart of the switch while the main switch element q is electrically connected to an l - d snubber in series . in the drawing , v q is the driving impulse signal of the main switch element q ; i l , i q , and i d respectively represent the electric current flowing through the inductor l , the main switch element q , and the freewheeling diode d ; i ls and i ds respectively represent the electric current flowing through the inductor l s and the diode d s of the snubber circuit . the working principle is described as follows : at t 0 , the main switch element q starts to conduct electricity , the freewheeling diode d bears the reverse pressure and the phenomenon of reverse recovery occurs . the electrical current in the pfc inductor l and the electrical current of reverse recovery in the freewheeling diode d simultaneously flow through the main switch element q and the l - d snubber . since the inductor l s of the snubber confines the rate of the electrical current changes of the main switch element q and the freewheeling diode d , the repression of the reverse recovery is achieved to some extent . during this period , the inductor l s bears the voltage up as positive and down as negative , and the diode d s of the snubber bears the reverse pressure to maintain turn - off . till t 1 , the electrical current of reverse recovery of the freewheeling diode d reaches the maximum value . after t 1 , the reverse - recovery electrical current of the freewheeling diode d starts to diminish , which results the decreasing trend of the electrical current of the inductor l s of the snubber . therefore , the inductor l s of the snubber bears the voltage up as negative and down as positive . the diode d s of the snubber bears positive pressure to conduct electricity ; the reverse recovery energy stored in the inductor l s of the snubber is released via the loop of l s and d s . during this period , i ls is eaqual to i ds plus i q , ( i ls = i ds + i q ), and the electrical current i ls is basically in a linearly decreasing trend . in addition , the drop slope is v ds / l s , wherein v ds is the saturated conducting drop voltage of the diode d s of the snubber . till t 2 , i ls is eaqual to i q , ( i ls = i q ), and the diode d s of the snubber is turn - off at zero electrical current . after t 2 , as the electrical current flows through the power source v in , inductor l , inductor l s of the snubber , and the main switch element q , most energy provided by the power supply is stored in the pfc inductor l . moreover , a small amount of energy is stored in the inductor l s of the snubber . during this period , i l is eaqual to i q and further eaqual to i ls ( i l = i q = i ls ). at t 3 , the main switch element q is turn - off , and the electrical current in the pfc inductor l flows through the freewheeling diode d . at the same time , the current in the inductor l s of the snubber is in a decreasing trend so that the inductor l s of the snubber bears the voltage up as negative and down as positive . moreover , the diode d s of the snubber bears positive voltage and keeps conducting and further provides an energy flow path for the recovery of the inductor l s of the snubber . during this period , i l is eaqual to i d ( i l = i d ); i ls is eaqual to i ds ( i ds = i ls ). in addition , the electrical current is basically in a linearly decreasing trend and the drop slope is v ds / l s . at t 4 , all the energy stored in the inductor l s of the snubber has been released . the diode d s of the snubber is turn - off at zero electrical circuit and , i ls is eaqual to zero ( i ls = i ds = 0 ). at t 5 , a new switch cycle starts and the working principles are repeated . from the above - mentioned principles , it is an ideal situation that the inductor l s of the snubber can recover completely . however , if the parameter of the snubber is not ideal enough , i . e . the inductor value of the snubber is excessively high or the saturated drop voltage of the diode d s of the snubber is excessively low , the inductor l s of the snubber cannot recover during the turn - off period of the main switch element q . in other words , the electricity in the diode d s of the snubber cannot be decreased to zero . accordingly , as a new pulse arrives and the main switch element q conducts electricity , the diode d s of the snubber bears reverse pressure to act as reverse recovery and to cause loss of the switch . even though the electric current is not very high , the efficiency of the system is affected and thus the practical effect of the l - d snubber is confined . when using an l - d snubber to suppress the reverse recovery of the freewheeling diode d , the inductor l s of the snubber with a low value and the diode d s of the snubber with a high conducting drop voltage are preferable so as to enhance the recovery of the inductor l s of the snubber . the present invention with the characteristics of device simplification and practical effects can conveniently be applied to all kinds of pfc circuits . the preferred embodiments are listed as follows : [ 0042 ] fig3 is a preferred embodiment according to the present invention showing a boost pfc main circuit . the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the main switch element in series . [ 0043 ] fig4 is another preferred embodiment according to the present invention showing a boost pfc main circuit . the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the freewheeling diode in series . fig6 ( a ) and 6 ( b ) are preferred embodiments according to the present invention showing three - level pfc main circuits . the l - d snubber is electrically connected either to the main switch element ( fig6 ( a )) in series or to the freewheeling diode ( fig6 ( b )) in series . it is preferable that the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the main switch element ( fig6 ( a )) in series , because it only needs one l - d snubber . being suitable for a dual boost pfc circuit , the l - d snubber is electrically connected either to the main switch element in series or to the freewheeling diode in series . it is preferred that the l - d snubber is electrically connected to the output unit in series , as shown in fig7 because it only needs one l - d snubber . being suitable for a buck pfc circuit , the l - d snubber is electrically connected either to the main switch element in series or to the freewheeling diode in series . moreover , the l - d snubber is also suitable for all kinds of boost , buck , and dc - dc ( direct current ) converters . the l - d snubber is electrically connected either to the main switch element in series or to the freewheeling diode in series . in view of the aforesaid description , the l - d snubber provided in the present invention can be applied to all kinds of pfc circuits . the inductor of the snubber confines the changing rate of the reverse recovery electric current , and thus reduces all kinds of switch loss caused by the phenomenon of reverse recovery . the diode of the snubber provides an energy flow path for the recovery of the inductor of the snubber . the present invention with the characteristic of device simplification is suitable for all kinds of pfc circuit . according to the experiment result , a better efficiency of the pfc circuit is also achieved . thus , the present invention can effectively overcome the defects in the prior arts . consequently , the present invention conforms to the demand of the industry and has industrial utility . while the invention has been described in terms of what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosed embodiment . on the contrary , it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims , which are to be accorded with the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures .

US-84828704-A

a nuclear fuel core in a pressurized - water reactor including fuel assemblies , each of which comprise a top tie plate ; a bottom tie plate , the top tie plate and the bottom tie plate having through - openings for passing coolant flowing from beneath upwards through each of the fuel assemblies ; elongated elements , arranged between the top tie plate and the bottom tie plate ; a mixing cross section having a mixing center , the mixing cross section extending through four orthogonally arranged fuel assemblies and having a size corresponding to at least that of two fuel assemblies ; and a plurality of spacers for retaining and mutually fixing the elongated elements , the plurality of spacers having flow control members for controlling coolant flow around the mixing center . a nuclear fuel core in a boiling water reactor is also disclosed .

fig1 shows a boiling water reactor ( bwr ) fuel assembly 1 which comprises an elongated tubular container , of rectangular cross section , referred to as fuel channel 2 . the fuel channel 2 is open at both ends so as to form a continuous flow passage through which the coolant of the reactor flows from the bottom to the top . the fuel assembly 1 comprises a large number of equally elongated tubular fuel rods 3 , arranged in parallel in a bundle , in which pellets 4 of a nuclear fuel are arranged . the fuel rods 3 are retained at the top by a top tie plate 5 and at the bottom by a bottom tie plate 6 . the fuel rods 3 are kept spaced from each other by means of spacers 7 and are prevented from bending or vibrating when the reactor is in operation . fig2 shows a pressurized - water reactor ( pwr ) fuel assembly 1 which comprises a number of elongated tubular fuel rods 3 and control rod guide tubes 8 arranged in parallel . the fuel rods 3 contain pellets 4 of a nuclear fuel . the control rod guide tubes 8 are retained at the top by a top nozzle 5 and at the bottom by a bottom nozzle 6 . the fuel rods 3 are kept spaced from each other by means of spacers 7 . fig3 shows a mixing cross section comprising four orthogonally arranged sub - regions wherein each sub - region comprises a fuel assembly 1 . flow arrows f in fig3 show how the coolant flow flows in the mixing cross section . mixing of the coolant flow and temperature equalization thereof within the mixing cross section are achieved by diverting the coolant flow within a sub - region 1 such that the direction of the coolant flow into the sub - region 1 differs substantially 90 ° from its direction of flow out of this sub - region 1 . the subregions 1 are designed with equal spacers 7 , but the spacers 7 are arranged rotated through 90 ° in relation to each other and positioned such that the direction of flow f becomes one and the same within the mixing cross section . fig4 shows a mixing cross section in a boiling water reactor fuel assembly 1 comprising four sub - regions wherein each sub - region comprises a sub - assembly 1a . for illustrative reasons , only one of the sub - assemblies 1a is shown with a spacer 7a . further , the fuel assembly 1 comprises a centrally arranged vertical channel 1b which extends through the whole fuel assembly and which is fixedly connected to each of the walls of the tubular container 2 by means of elongated vertical plates 9 such that the sub - regions la are delimited from each other . the vertical plates 9 extend along the whole fuel assembly 1 and have openings 10 which permit the passage of coolant between the sub - regions 1a . flow arrows f show the direction of the coolant flow in the mixing cross section which is of the same type as that shown in fig3 . fig5 a shows a mixing cross section in a boiling water reactor fuel assembly 1 . in the spacer 7 there is shown a cell 7b , the size of which corresponds to nine spacer cells . the cell 7b is intended to surround a water tube . the fuel assembly 1 is divided into four conceived , substantially equally large sub - regions 1c . the cell 7b for the water tube may be arranged at different positions depending on the type of fuel assembly 1 , for example centrally in the fuel assembly 1 . the cell 7b may also be designed for receiving a circular water tube . flow arrows f in fig5 a show the direction of the coolant flow in the mixing cross section . mixing in a mixing cross section comprising a fuel assembly 1 for a pressurized - water reactor is divided in a corresponding way into sub - regions 1c and has a corresponding coolant control . fig5 b shows the same as fig5 a but the sub - regions 1c are defined to comprise only whole fuel rod positions . the spacers 7 , 7a according to fig4 a , 5b are of a so - called egg - crate structure , that is , they comprise strip elements arranged crosswise and standing on edge which form square cells through which elongated elements extend , for example control rod guide tubes 8 or fuel rods 3 . the spacer cells in fig4 are provided with fixed supports 7d . the fixed supports 7d are oriented such that an elongated element 3 , 8 , extending through the cell , is pressed against at least one of the fixed supports 7d in the cell because of the flow of the coolant . fig6 shows an alternative embodiment of a spacer 7a for a sub - assembly 1a , a so - called sleeve spacer comprising a plurality of sleeves 7f assembled into a grid in which each sleeve 7f surrounds an elongated element , for example a fuel rod 3 . ( such a spacer is described in swedish patent application 9303583 - 0 ). this type of sleeve spacer 7a is used in the same design also in fuel assemblies for pressurized - water reactors . further , fig6 shows a flow controlling structure 11 comprising strip elements a , b , arranged crosswise and standing on edge and forming a structure 11 corresponding to a spacer 7 , 7a of so - called egg - crate structure . the flow controlling structure 11 is arranged at the downstream edge of the spacer 7a . at its downstream edge , the flow controlling structure 11 is provided with flow control members 12 for control of the flow in the way indicated in fig3 and 4 , that is , a substantially 90 ° diversion of the flow within the sub - region 1 , 1a . further , it is clear from fig6 that the flow controlling structure 11 and the spacer 7a comprise a frame 13 , the upstream edge of which is provided with guiding studs 14 to facilitate insertion of sub - assemblies la into the fuel channel 2 . in assembled state , the spacer 7a is arranged inside the frame 13 with its upper edge at the dashed line . fig7 shows a top view of a spacer 7 with control members 12 arranged for controlling the coolant flow in the way indicated in fig3 that is , a 90 ° diversion of the flow f within the sub - region 1 . the flow - controlling members 12 may , for example , be arranged at the downstream edge of a spacer 7 of egg - crate structure . the spacer 7 is divided into two parts by a conceived diagonal 7g in the horizontal plane of the spacer 7 . the control members 12 direct the coolant flow f differently on each side of the conceived diagonal 7g . at the diagonal , the main 90 ° diversion of the coolant flow f takes place . in fig7 the coolant flow f flows into the sub - region 1 in a direction parallel to the strip elements b . the control members 12 extend upwardly from the strip element a in the spacer cell and in a direction parallel to the strip elements b for controlling the flow flowing into the sub - region up to the conceived diagonal 7g . on the other side of the conceived diagonal 7g , the control members 12 are instead arranged so as to extend upwardly from the strip element b in the spacer cell and in a direction parallel to the strip elements a for controlling the flow out of the sub - region 1 and into an adjacent sub - region 1 . existing flow - controlling members 12 for local mixing of the coolant flow f between fuel rods 3 may be redirected such that the local mixing in the sub - region 1 is superimposed on a global mixing between the sub - regions 1 . only a small number of fuel rods 3 are symbolically shown in fig7 . the control members 12 are preferably provided with a smaller angle in relation to a conceived horizontal plane the further away from the corners of the spacer 7 in the mixing center they are arranged , to reinforce the diversion . fig8 schematically shows a perspective view of part of a spacer 7 with control members 12 according to fig4 or 7 . fig9 shows part of a core in a pressurized - water reactor with four orthogonally arranged mixing cross sections , the respective mixing centers of which are designated m1 . this way of mixing coolant between sub - regions 1 is based on cross - flow therethrough . mixing within a fuel assembly group comprising four fuel assemblies 1 is based on four substantially identical sub - regions 1 being arranged orthogonally and rotated through 90 ° in relation to each other in such a way that the coolant flow f is passed right across a subregion 1 and then , when being transferred to an adjacent assembly 1 , makes a 90 ° change of direction to be passed across this assembly and so on . the individual cross - flows f result in a flow pattern in one and the same direction in the mixing cross section , indicated clockwise by m1 . where the mixing cross section comprises four orthogonally arranged fuel assemblies 1 for a pressurized - water reactor , between four orthogonally arranged mixing cross sections a flow direction opposite to the flow direction in the respective mixing cross section will arise . this is indicated by m2 . fig1 shows part of a flow controlling structure 11 showing an alternative embodiment for achieving cross - flow . in this embodiment , the upper part of the strip elements b are bent to control the flow f across a sub - region 1 , 1a , 1c . fig1 a shows a sub - region 1 in an axial direction where the spacers 7 are arranged alternately in order to control , at one spacer level , the coolant flow f across the sub - region 1 in a first direction and , at the next spacer level , to control the coolant flow f in a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction . fig1 b shows in a section a -- a for the respective spacer level how the flow is adapted to flow at the different spacer levels . with this embodiment , on average a flow pattern corresponding to that shown in fig3 is achieved . fig1 shows a section of part of a core comprising a plurality of sub - regions 1 . the section comprises schematically marked spacers 7 . mixing and temperature equalization between sub - regions 1 in a group of four fuel assemblies 1 are accomplished by controlling the coolant substantially diagonally through individual fuel assemblies 1 . in this case the mixing cross section comprises a cross section area 1d which in a horizontal plane through a fuel assembly 1 is arranged on one side of a conceived diagonal 15 together with three corresponding and adjacently located cross - section areas 1d . the spacers 7 direct the coolant flow f substantially diagonally through the individual sub - region 1 and a 90 ° diversion of the flow occurs substantially when this flow is transferred from one sub - region 1 to another . the subregions 1 are identical but inserted into the core rotated 90 ° in relation to each other and in such a way that the coolant flow f within the mixing cross section is one and the same . the mixing cross section according to fig3 and 9 is thus larger than the mixing cross section according to fig1 . fig1 shows a small section of a spacer 7 or a flow controlling structure 11 , showing examples of control members 12 for controlling the coolant flow f diagonally through a subregion 1 . the diagonal direction of flow is achieved by arranging control members in the form of two tabs 12 in one corner of a cell which surrounds an elongated element 3 . one of the tabs is bent around the strip element a and directed into a centers axis conceived in the space cell , and the other tab is bent around the strip element b in the same way as the first tab . the direction of the coolant flow f causes the elongated elements 3 , 8 to be pressed against the fixed supports 7d . fig1 also indicates resilient supports 7e , the purpose of which is to press the fuel rod 3 against the fixed supports 7d . fig1 shows a small section of a flow controlling structure 11 in which each cell surrounds four elongated elements 3 . the strip elements a and b , respectively , are arranged inclined towards each other , achieving a diagonal flow . the upper edges of the strip elements a , b , are wave - formed to avoid contact with the elongated elements 3 , 8 . fig1 shows a small part of a spacer 7 or a flow controlling structure 11 , the cells of which at one corner are provided with control members 12 . the control members 12 are formed as tabs folded around the strip element a , b at which they are arranged . the control members 12 are adapted to direct the flow f alternately parallel to the strip elements a , b and diagonally through the spacer 7 or the flow controlling structure 11 . it is also possible to retrim existing mixing vanes for local mixing between adjacent fuel rods 3 such that this mixing is superimposed on a global mixing between the sub - regions 1 , 1a , 1c . the principles of flow of the coolant , that is , a substantially 90 ° diversion within a sub - region 1 , 1a , 1b , cross - flow and diagonal flow are applicable to mixing cross sections comprising all types of sub - regions 1 , 1a or 1b . for illustrative reasons , however , some of the flow principles are shown only in one type of sub - regions 1 , 1a or 1c .

US-75058796-A

the chromate free corrosion resistant coating for a fastener contains corrosion inhibiting inorganic constituents , or a combination of inorganic and organic corrosion inhibiting constituents , suspended in a phenol - formaldehyde thermosetting resin . the coating material possesses high abrasion resistance , and provides good lubricity and relatively low friction , rendering it especially suited for use with interference - fit fasteners .

corrosion of fastener assemblies in aircraft due to galvanic action has typically been combated by plating of the fasteners with a corrosion resistant material such as cadmium or aluminum , coating the fasteners with organic or inorganic coatings including phosphates , molybdates , silicates and chromates as corrosion inhibitors , which are typically expensive and often fail to provide complete protection , and adequate toughness and adherence . while chromates have been used as an industry standard as corrosion inhibitors in corrosion inhibiting coatings , such chromates can be toxic , and it is desirable to discontinue the use of chromate based corrosion inhibiting coatings . as is illustrated in the drawings , the invention is embodied in a fastener of the type commonly used in an aircraft frame , such as typical rivet type , for example , having an exterior coating of a corrosion resistant material . referring to fig1 and 2 , the fastener comprises a shank 10 and a head 11 , all of a solid metal , which may be of a type referred to above , and the entire surface of the rivet is coated by a protective , corrosion resistant coating 12 provided according to this invention . the rivet is typically of the interference type so that the diameter of the exterior surface at the coating 12 at the shank is slightly greater than the diameter of the hole of the sheet or other structural material into which it is to be forced , such as by pressing or hammering . this forcing of the rivet into the hole produces great frictional stress on the coating . the corrosion resistant coating should therefore also provide a lubricating effect , so as to counteract this abrasive stress . in a first embodiment , coating mixtures according to this invention useful for the coating of such fasteners contain a corrosion resistant composition consisting essentially of approximately 8 % by weight of a salt of inorganic constituents , and approximately 8 % by weight of 1 -( benzothiazol - 2 - ylthio ) succinic acid ( bttsa ), the chemical formula of which is illustrated in fig3 . the inorganic salt component is formed from cations selected from the group consisting of zinc and calcium , and anions selected from the group consisting of silicates , phosphates , carbonates and oxides , and is available from wayne pigment corporation , milwaukee , wis ., under the trade name wayncor 204 , for example . the bttsa component is available from ciba under the trade name irgacor 153 . these components are suspended in a phenol - formaldehyde thermosetting resin which forms the remainder of the corrosion resistant composition , which may also include other ingredients . the remainder may , for example , further include a pigment such as molybdenum disulfide , aluminum , polypropylene , or combinations thereof . the corrosion resistant composition typically is dissolved or dispersed in a volatile solvent carrier , giving the mixture a liquid consistency but providing fast drying after application . in another embodiment , the invention provides for a fastener coated with a coating material containing a corrosion resistant composition consisting essentially of approximately 4 % by weight of a salt of inorganic constituents formed from cations selected from the group consisting of zinc and calcium , and anions selected from the group consisting of silicates , phosphates , carbonates and oxides , and is available from wayne pigment corporation , milwaukee , wis ., such as under the trade name wayncor 204 , for example , as noted above ; approximately 4 % by weight of 1 -( benzothiazol - 2 - ylthio ) succinic acid , ( bttsa ), available from ciba under the trade name irgacor 252 , as noted above ; and approximately 4 % by weight of ( 2 - benzothiazolylthio ) succinic acid ( bttsa ) amine complex , the chemical formula of which is illustrated in fig4 , available from ciba under the trade name irgacor 153 . these components are suspended in a phenol - formaldehyde thermosetting resin which forms the remainder of the corrosion resistant composition , and which may include other ingredients . the remainder may , for example , further include a pigment such as molybdenum disulfide , aluminum , polypropylene , or combinations thereof . the corrosion resistant composition typically is dissolved in a volatile solvent carrier , as noted above . the inorganic constituents should have a particle size of 10 microns or less where coating thicknesses must be controlled to less than 0 . 0001 inch , as in the case of many fasteners . the pigments should be milled into the coating material according to standard milling techniques . in each of the foregoing embodiments , the corrosion inhibiting constituents are suspended in a phenol - formaldehyde thermosetting resin , which is dissolved in a volatile solvent carrier giving the mixture a liquid consistency but providing fast drying after application . the mixture should be mixed thoroughly and uniformly according to standard paint mixing techniques . the solvent may be a lower alkyl alcohol such as methyl , ethyl , propyl or isopropyl alcohol or a similar solvent such as methyl , ethyl ketone or a petroleum distillate in the volatile solvent range such as xylene or toluene , or mixtures of two or more of these solvents . for many applications polytetrafluoroethylene , which is available under the trademark teflon from dupont , may also be included in the coating material . for special applications , a cation - type wetting agent such as fatty amido diamine , may be included . the ratio of the corrosion inhibiting constituents to the mixture of resin and solvent can range from about 3 to 15 percent by weight . where polytetrafluoroethylene is used it can range from about 1 to 40 percent by weight of the mixture of the resin and solvent . the amount of solvent carrier used should be sufficient to provide a desired degree of liquidity , depending somewhat on whether it is to be applied by spraying , dipping or brushing , or the like . where the coating is to be applied to steel or alloy steel parts it will usually be desirable to use a cation - type wetting agent such as fatty amido diamine in the mixture , as the introduction of fatty amido diamine results in a coating which exhibits superior corrosion resistance particularly in the presence of salt spray . this coating can be applied to high - temperature tool steels and alloy steels and will afford such steels superior corrosion protection . a preferred manner for applying the coating material is by spraying , although either dipping or brushing can be used instead . because of the volatility of the carrier solvent , it dries and solidifies quickly . the coating is baked after application to a fastener . it has been found that in the application of the coating material to a fastener the thickness of the solidified coating on the fastener can be held to between 0 . 0002 and 0 . 0005 inch . this thickness control is important and desirable particularly in the case of threaded fasteners to insure proper thread fit and in the case of aircraft quality interference or non - interference type fasteners . interference - fit fasteners are commonly made by making their diameters slightly greater than that of the hole through the structural member to which it is to be fastened . forcing such a fastener through a hole for the fastener typically causes abrasion of the coated surface of the fastener . it has been found that the corrosion resistant coating applied according to this invention is sometimes capable of lubricating the fastener to resist the abrasion and assist in maintaining adherence of the coating to the fastener . various corrosion resistant coatings were formulated with a basic carrier formulation of a phenolic resin , used in a solution of ethyl alcohol , and rendered less brittle by addition of polyvinyl butyral and di - octyl phthalate ( dop ), to which the different corrosion inhibitors and pigments were added . various other additives were used , such as polytetrafluoroethylene to serve as a lubricant , and powdered aluminum to serve as a pigment . the corrosion resistant coatings were used to coat titanium fasteners , which were inserted in an aluminum block to form an assembly . each assembly was subjected to alternate immersion cycles in a 3 . 5 % sodium chloride aqueous solution for 1 , 000 hours . each cycle consisted of immersing the assembly in the sodium chloride salt solution for 10 minutes , removing the assembly , and subjecting the assembly to forced air drying for 50 minutes . the testing was run at an ambient temperature of 75 ° fahrenheit . the results of the alternate immersion screening tests are shown in the table below . the results are given on a numerical scale of from 0 to 10 , where 0 is no protection at all , corresponding to an uncoated fastener , and 10 is a level of nearly complete protection , as is found with a coating containing hexavalent chromium compounds . although the coatings described herein have been described with particular reference to use as coatings for fasteners , the coatings are not limited to fasteners but may be applied generally to other surfaces requiring corrosion protection and lubrication , such as high - temperature tool steel or other parts made of alloy steel . likewise it is not always necessary to apply coatings as thin as those which will ordinarily be applied to fasteners , and thicker coatings may be used for other applications . it will be apparent from the foregoing that while particular forms of the invention have been illustrated and described , various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . accordingly , it is not intended that the invention be limited , except as by the appended claims .

US-75713704-A

a novel collapsible aeration system is retrofitted into a grain bin with a discharge opening in the bottom . this grain bin may have a sloped or conical hopper or a flat bottom . the aeration system is formed from a set of connected duct sections that define a round or multi - sided duct having a minimum of three sides or faces . the sides may be flat , curved or corrugated . the collapsible aeration system is folded , inserted into the bin via a hole , and then unfolded inside the bin . an air duct is connected to the aeration system to enable the aeration system to dry the grain in the grain bin . this technology enables existing grain bins to be retrofitted with a dryer in an easy and efficient manner .

the present invention is directed to a novel collapsible aeration system or grain dryer for retrofitting an existing grain bin that lacks an aeration system ( dryer ). this collapsible or foldable aeration system ( dryer ) may be folded for inserting through an opening in the bin . once inside the hopper , the aeration system can be easily unfolded for use in drying the grain inside the grain bin . embodiments of this invention will now be described with reference to the appended figures . fig1 is a front cross - sectional view of a collapsible aeration system , which is generally designated by reference numeral 10 , in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . this collapsible aeration system 10 is installed within a hopper 20 of a grain bin . the hopper is supported by a plurality of struts or legs 22 . a fan 30 is connected to the aeration system 10 by an air duct 32 . fig2 is a perspective view of the collapsible aeration system 10 introduced in fig1 . in this particular embodiment , the outer surfaces of the duct sections 12 are corrugated . as will be appreciated , other duct shapes such as curved or rounded may be employed . the duct sections 12 are capped by an air manifold 14 for circulating the air through the duct sections . a plurality of legs 40 support the collapsible aeration system above the discharge chute 24 ( through which the grain exits from the hopper 20 ). the legs 40 may include , as shown by way of example in this figure , pivotally connected feet for resting on the sloped inner surface of the hopper 20 . fig3 is a perspective view of the collapsible aeration system 10 having flat ( non - corrugated ) outer surfaces or panels in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention . the duct sections 12 ( also referred to herein as ducts or channels ) have multiple surfaces ( sides ) that together define an internal airspace . these may be , for example , trapezoidal duct sections with the outer and inner faces being parallel . in such an embodiment , the outer surface is wider than the inner surface . the two side surfaces slope at the same angle in the exemplary embodiments shown in this application . as will be explained in greater detail below , the ducts are pivotally connected or hinged alternately at the inner and outer edges so that the entire structure can be folded ( collapsed ) into a very compact configuration that can be inserted through a manhole or other access hole in the hopper . folding the structure enables it to be inserted through a small hole through which it would otherwise not fit . fig4 is a perspective view of the partially folded collapsible aeration system 10 of fig3 . the collapsible aeration system can be folded and unfolded easily and quickly because it is not use any threaded fasteners to hold it together . fig5 is a perspective view of the fully folded collapsible aeration system 10 of fig3 . the fully folded aeration system 10 is compact enough to be fitted through a manhole or other access hole in the hopper . fig6 is a partial cutaway view depicting how the folded collapsible aeration system 10 is easily inserted through a manhole 21 or other access hole in the hopper 20 for subsequent unfolding and installation inside the hopper . inserting the collapsible aeration system 10 the manhole is much easier , quicker and safer than attempting to lower an aeration system from the top of the grain bin , as has been done conventionally . grain bins typically have a wall height of over 10 feet ( 3 m ) which requires a hoist or winch system to raise and lower the retrofit aeration system into the grain bin . fig7 is a partial cutaway perspective view of the collapsible aeration system 10 installed inside the hopper 20 after it has been inserted through the manhole 21 . above the hopper is a grain bin 25 . the arrangement of the hopper and grain bin is well known in the art and thus will not be described . fig7 shows by way of example how the feet 42 of the supporting legs 40 pivot to rest on the sloped inner surface of the hopper 20 . fig8 is a top plan view of a six - sided collapsible aeration system 10 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention . the aeration system 10 has six ducts ( or duct sections ) 12 . the outer surfaces of the duct sections may be corrugated 12 a or flat 12 b . in the embodiment where the duct sections are corrugated , the duct sections form trapezoidal ducts or channels . in this particular embodiment , there are three legs and three feet 42 for supporting the aeration system in the hopper . one of the duct sections has , or is adapted to receive , an air duct 32 , as shown by way of example in this figure . fig9 a is a top plan view of the six - sided collapsible aeration system , depicting exemplary angles , dimensions and hinge axes . in this particular exemplary embodiment , the outer surfaces of adjacent duct sections form 60 - degree angles as shown in the figure . in this particular example , the outer surfaces are 1 ′- 6 ″ ( 45 . 7 cm ) wide and the inner surfaces are 1 ′- 3 ″ ( 38 . 1 cm ) wide . these dimensions are solely presented by way of example and it will be understood the dimensions may be varied without departing from the inventive concept . with these example dimensions , the outer diameter ( major diameter ) is 3 ′ ( 91 . 4 cm ). this would be too large to fit into an ordinary manhole on most conventional hoppers . however , the novel collapsible aeration system may be folded into a folded configuration such as the one depicted by way of example in fig9 b which is a side view of the fully folded six - section collapsible aeration system of fig9 a . when folded , the diameter of the particular embodiment of the aeration system shown in fig9 b is only 1 ′- 6 ″ ( 45 . 7 cm ), which then fits through a conventional 19 ″ ( 48 . 3 cm ) manhole found on most grain bins . it bears emphasizing that these dimensions are only presented for the purposes of illustration . as will be appreciated , these dimensions may be varied without departing from the inventive concept . fig9 a and fig9 b also depict the hinge points or pivot axes of the aerations system &# 39 ; s articulated structure . in this example , there are six duct sections 12 and five hinges 13 ( i . e . articulating edges or pivotal connections linking the adjoining sections 12 ). as will be observed , the hinges ( articulating edges ) alternate between an outer edge and an inner edge . in other words , as depicted in fig9 a and fig9 b , an edge 13 a - b of the outer surface of a first duct ( a ) is pivotally connected to the common edge 13 a - b of the outer surface of a second duct ( b ). an edge 13 b - c of the inner surface of the second duct ( b ) is pivotally connected to the common edge 13 b - c of the inner surface of a third duct ( c ). an edge 13 c - d of the outer surface of the third duct ( c ) is pivotally connected to the common edge 13 c - d of the outer surface of a fourth duct ( d ). an edge 13 d - e of the inner surface of the fourth duct ( d ) is pivotally connected to the common edge 13 d - e of the inner surface of a fifth duct ( e ). an edge 13 e - f of the outer surface of the fifth duct ( e ) is pivotally connected to the common edge 13 e - f of the outer surface of a sixth duct ( f ). fig9 b shows how the edges alternate between inner and outer edges when the aeration system is folded ( collapsed ) into a stacked configuration . in this example , edges 13 a - b , 13 c - d and 13 e - f are inner edges ( because the common edge is along two inner surfaces ) whereas edges 13 b - c and 13 d - e are outer edges ( because the common edge is along two outer surfaces ). fig1 a , fig1 b and fig1 c depict the unfolding of the articulated structure of the collapsible aeration system 10 . the unfolding process commences at fig1 a which shows the stacked ( fully folded ) six - duct collapsible aeration system 10 . fig1 b depicts how the collapsible aeration system is unfolded , i . e . how each duct section pivots relative to its adjoining neighbour . the duct sections pivot about each of the edges 13 ( which act as hinges or pivots ). once completely unfolded , the collapsible aeration system takes on a hexagonal structure as shown in fig1 c in a top plan view . the articulated structure may be folded by reversing this steps , i . e . by pivoting the duct sections 12 about the edges 13 such that the sections are stacked as shown in fig1 a . fig1 a is a top plan view of a five - section collapsible aeration system 10 in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention . as shown by way of example in fig1 a , the unfolded ( operative ) configuration of the collapsible aeration system 10 is a pentagon ( i . e . an articulated structure with five sides ). this five - sided aeration system operates analogously to the six - sided version . in other words , it also folds into a stacked configuration shown for example in fig1 b . some dimensions are presented solely by way of example . for example , in the particular embodiment shown in fig1 a , the outer surfaces are 1 ′- 6 ″ ( 45 . 7 cm ) wide . when folded ( stacked ), as shown by way of example in fig1 b , the width of the stacked structure is only 1 ′- 6 ″ ( 45 . 7 cm ) which thus fits through most conventional manholes in typical grain bins . for this five - sided aeration system ( five - ducted dryer ), there are four pivots ( edges 13 ). as was the case with the six - sided version , the edges 13 alternate between outer and inner edges . this is apparent from the location of the edges 13 in fig1 b . fig1 is a top plan view of a four - sided collapsible aeration system 10 in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention . in this particular embodiment , there are four ducts 12 that form a square as shown by way of example in fig1 . the angled surfaces are at 45 - degrees . again , the articulated structure may be folded into a compact stacked configuration for insertion through a manhole of a grain bin . another aspect of the invention is a novel method for retrofitting a hopper of a grain bin with an aeration system . this method entails folding a collapsible aeration system into a compact configuration , e . g . a stacked configuration . the compact configuration is small enough to fit through a manhole or other access hole in the hopper or grain bin . once the aeration system has been folded , it is inserted in a folded condition into the hopper via a hole in the hopper . once the aeration system is inside the hopper , the aeration system is unfolded inside the hopper . in main embodiments , the articulated duct sections of the aeration system are unfolded until angled surfaces of one duct abut the angled surfaces of an adjoining duct . the method may then include a step of connecting an air duct to the collapsible aeration system . from the foregoing , it will be appreciated that a multi - sided structure having flat duct surfaces can be folded in a space - efficient manner for insertion through an opening in a grain bin or equivalent storage structure . depending on the number of duct sections , when unfolded , these structures may be square , hexagonal , octagonal , etc . in cross - section . the aeration system may also be constructed of multiple curved ( rounded ) duct sections . while the aeration system is primarily intended to be folded or collapsed for insertion through a small hole , it should be appreciated that in other embodiments , the aeration system may be inserted as two or more folded subassemblies . for unusually small holes , it may be necessary to insert the duct sections individually and to assemble the system from its constituent duct sections inside the bin or hopper . assembly of the duct sections may be accomplished using pin connectors , hinges , fasteners , e . g . screws or bolts , or other suitable mechanical connectors . while the duct sections may be permanent connected to one another by riveting , welding , soldering , glue , adhesive , bonding agents , etc ., the use of non - permanent fasteners is preferred since this permits the system to be disassembled and removed for servicing , maintenance , overhaul or replacement . while the above description and accompanying figures disclose how the embodiments of the invention may be used in a hopper or other conically shaped structure , it should be appreciated that the embodiments of the invention may also be used in a flat - bottomed bin or silo . in other words , it should be understood that this invention may be used in any other structure that has a small opening and that requires retrofitting . although this invention is primarily intended for retrofitting a grain bin , it should be understood that the same collapsible aeration system can be installed when the grain bin is first manufactured , i . e . a new grain bin can be built with this novel collapsible dryer . after a period of usage , if the collapsible aeration system requires maintenance , repair or replacement , it can easily be folded ( collapsed ) and removed from the bin ( by extricating the folded aeration system through an opening in the bin ). after maintenance or repair , the aeration system is re - inserted into the grain bin . similarly , if a new system is required because the existing one is broken or defective , the old system is simply folded and removed and the new system , in its collapsed state , is inserted into the bin , unfolded and installed . the embodiments of the invention described above are intended to be exemplary only . as will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art , to whom this specification is addressed , many obvious variations , modifications , and refinements can be made to the embodiments presented herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention . the scope of the exclusive right sought by the applicant ( s ) is therefore intended to be limited solely by the appended claims .

US-201414334124-A

this invention relates to a process for producing an organic fertilizer , and an organic fertilizer containing organic carbon carriers . according to an embodiment of the invention , the organic fertilizer is produced by mixing organic matter with water adding an organic acid or acids such as edta , amino acids , fuivic acid or propionic acid , preferably propionic acid ; or a base such as koh or naoh1 preferably koh to the mixture ; and decomposing organic matter with the acid / s or base in order to extract organic carbon solution having a carbon content of 10 to 20 . the invention also relates to an organic fertilizer containing macro or micro nutrientfe and an organic carrier bound to or complexed with an organic carbon carrier .

a first aspect of the invention relates to a process for producing a liquid organic fertilizer and to an organic liquid fertilizer containing organic carbon carriers . the process is commenced by preparing an extract of organic carbon from natural organic material . the organic material used in the process is natural organic materials such as peat , coal or animal droppings such as sea bird guano , chicken , or kraal manure . the preference is to use peat or coal . a blend of peat and coal can also be used to increase the organic carbon content of the final organic carbon liquid . ± 400 kg organic material is mixed with 2500 - 5000 liters of water in a container . thereafter 25 - 50 kg koh or preferably 20 - 100 litres organic acid such as edta or propionic acid , most preferably propionic acid ( 25 %) is added and the mixture is stirred for 12 to 24 hours until the organic materials have decomposed until liquid carbon ex treated has a carbon content of 16 % carbon ( measured using a ph and an ec meter ). the liquid is then left in order for the undissolved solids to settle at the bottom of the container . a supernatant liquid containing organic carbon is then pumped into a second container . the liquid will have a ph of from about 11 to 12 in the case of koh and from about 3 to 4 in the case of organic acid . this organic liquid fertilizer which contains organic carbon is now utilized to prepare organic carbon fertilizers containing plant nutrients : potassium sulphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 30 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic potassium fertilizer containing 12 . 6 % organic potassium and 7 . 2 % organic sulphur . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 6 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . potassium chloride is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 30 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic potassium fertilizer containing 15 % organic potassium . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . potassium nitrate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 30 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic potassium fertilizer containing 12 . 4 % organic potassium and 3 . 9 % nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . calcium propionate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 40 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic calcium fertilizer containing 9 . 2 % organic calcium . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . calcium nitrate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic calcium fertilizer containing 10 . 5 % organic calcium and 6 . 5 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . calcium acetate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 50 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic calcium fertilizer containing 10 . 5 % organic calcium . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . magnesium sulphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic magnesium fertilizer containing 4 . 75 % organic magnesium and 6 % organic sulphur . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . magnesium nitrate is dissolved in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic magnesiumfertilizer containing 4 . 75 % organic magnesium and 6 . 5 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic , acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . mono potassium phosphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 30 grams per 100 ml , adding 6 - 10 ml of propionic acid or edta , and agitated until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic potassium fertilizer containing % organic potassium phosphate . the remaining solids are then left to settle down and the phosphate containing the liquid are then pumped out from the top . the liquid phosphates are then blended with organic carbon . the ph is then tested and should it be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . should it be above 7 , either of the organic acids are then added until the required ph is reached . di potassium phosphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 30 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic potassium fertilizer containing 12 % organic potassium and 12 % organic phosphate . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . mono ammonium phosphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 35 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic phosphate fertilizer containing 9 . 2 % organic phosphate and 4 . 3 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . di ammonium phosphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 40 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic phosphate fertilizer containing 20 % organic phosphate and 9 . 2 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . ammonium nitrate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic nitrogen fertilizer containing 16 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . ammonium sulphate is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 80 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic nitrogen and organic sulphur fertilizer containing 8 . 4 % organic nitrogen and 9 . 6 % organic sulphur . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . urea is dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide an organic nitrogen fertilizer containing 23 % organic nitrogen . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 , should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . micro nutrients in chelate form are dissovled in the liquid organic carbon at a ratio of 100 grams per 100 ml of the organic liquid and agitating the liquid until the solids are completely dissolved , to provide organic micro nutrient complex fertilizer according to crop requirements . the ph of the solution is tested and organic acids preferably propionic acids , or edta , are added to the dissolved fertilizer to bring it to a ph of 6 . 5 - 7 . should the ph be below 6 , koh or ammonium nitrogen is added until the required ph had been reached . the organic carbon liquid nutrients manufactured as single products as described above may be blended into different ratios , depending on the requirements of the crop ( plants need different ratios depending on the stage of its growth ). once the different nutrients are bound or blended into the organic carbon carrier it becomes a fully organic nutrient and can now be utilised for the production of organically grown fruit , vegetables and other edible plants , suitable for human or animal consumption . the nutrients in the fertilizer that are now in an organic carbon carrier are far less subject to leaching into the soil solution and pollution of ground water be excess nutrients is greatly restricted . all the macro and micro nutrients in the organic carbon carrier are either chelated or clustered . in addition the cations are chelated and the anions are clustered . the organic carbon nutrients can also be applied as foliar feeds to rectify nutrient deficiencies during the growth cycle of plant . another aspect of the invention relates to a liquid composition containing calcium and propionic acid , such as the calcium propionate organic carbon fertilizer ( 4 ) described above . apart from being a nutrient to improve the cell structure in plants , this product is a wide spectrum biocide and covers the following diseases : citrus , avos , macadamias and all other tree crops susceptible to phytophtera as well as potatoes and tomatoes or late blight which is also a phytophtera species . 2 . dawny mildew on all susceptible plants 3 . powdery mildew on all susceptible plants 4 . fusarium spp 5 . pithium 6 . dollar spot on golf courses 7 . brown spot on golf courses 8 . black spot on citrus 9 . anthracnosis on various crops 10 . bitterpit on apples 11 . internal rot on avos 12 . streptomysis scabbies ( known as brown scab on potatoes ) 13 . resectoniasolani on potatoes 14 . blossom end rot on watermelons , tomatoes , peppers and other cucurbits 16 . black stem on tobacco , cauliflower , broccoli , and all cabbage crops 17 . fuzy on apples and other pom fruits 18 . moulds and ropes on stored fruit and vegetables 19 . suppression of bacteria wits on various crops 20 . bacterial cancer 21 . bacterial spot on various crops 22 . suppression of nematodes and other parasitic microorganisms . another aspect of the invention is a process for manufacturing a dry organic fertilizer using peat as the organic carbon carrier . dry organic matter such as peat ( i . e . peat with a moisture content of about 12 %) is sifted through a 2 mm fine mesh to remove all the insoluble fibres . an organic acid , preferably propionic acid , is added in a ratio of between 500 ml and 1 liter to between 400 and 600 kg of sifted peat , dependant on the volume of the nutrient to be added to the sifted peat . water is then added until the moisture content of the peat reaches approximately 20 %. a dry nutrient , for example potassium sulphate or potassium chloride or a combination of the potassium salts are added to the peat until the total weight is 950 kg . the materials are then thoroughly mixed to form a mixture . the salts dissolve in the water and are bound to or complexed with organic carbon carriers in the mixture . as soon as the salts and the propionic acid are completely dissolved in the wet peat , 50 kg of either magnesium or calcium oxide is added to the mixture , to absorb all free moisture . these products absorb the free moisture and leave the organic potassium dry and ready to be bagged . all nutrients and micro nutrients follow the same process and are blended according to crop requirements . the same processes are applicable to all nutrients blended into or onto the organic carrier in different concentrations depending on the solubility of each nutrient . the propionic acid assists in dissolving the nutrients that are usually insoluble , for instance calcium phosphates — mono calcium , di calcium and tri calcium phosphates . because the peat is high in organic carbon content , it increases the organic carbon content of the soil and serves as a nutrient source for micro organisms in the soil thus improving soil fertility . nutrients bound onto or into the organic carbon carrier , are control - released into the soil solution and thus not dependant on the cation exchange capacity of the soil , rendering the nutrients more readily available to the plant . consequently , far less applied nutrients are necessary and therefore pollution of the soil and soil water is greatly diminished .

US-15863206-A

a method of fabricating a load compressor scroll housing includes the steps of forging near net shape parts that are machined and subsequently welded together . the forged portions are machined to define specific features of the scroll housing along with the mating surfaces . an interface between top and bottom portions is defined within the volute chamber . the weld joint at the interface provides a finished surface within the volute chamber such that airflow is not adversely affected and additional machine process are not required within the volute chamber after formation of the weld joint .

referring to fig1 and 2 , an example auxiliary power unit 10 includes a gas turbine engine 12 that drives a load compressor 14 and an accessory drive unit 16 . the load compressor 14 generates compressed air that is driven through ducts 18 . the gas turbine 12 includes an inlet that draws air into a compressor 42 . the compressor 42 is an impeller that is mounted onto a shaft 40 that is driven by turbine 44 . air drawn in by the compressor 42 is driven to combustor 46 where gasses are mixed with the compressed air and ignited . the ignited gasses produce a gas stream that is driven against the turbine 44 to drive the compressor 42 . also mounted on the shaft 40 is an impeller 38 for the load compressor 14 . accordingly , the load compressor 14 is driven by the turbine 44 on the common shaft 40 . referring to fig3 , with continued reference to fig2 , the load compressor 14 includes a scroll housing 20 that defines a volute chamber 22 . passage 24 provides for airflow from the impeller 38 into the volute chamber 22 . from the volute chamber 22 the compressed air is driven through the ducts 18 to various units and accessories that utilize the compressed air . as appreciated , compressed air is utilized for aircraft environmental control systems and also to aid in the starting of a main aircraft engine . moreover , the terms scroll or volute are also used by those skilled in the art to describe the example scroll housing 20 and other structures that gather flow from a diffuser discharge annulus and deliver that flow to a downstream pipe . the example scroll housing 20 is fabricated from a top portion 50 and a bottom portion 52 . the top and bottom portions 50 , 52 of the scroll housing 20 define both the volute chamber 22 and the annular passages 24 . scroll housing 20 is fabricated by welding the top portion 50 to the bottom portion 52 . it is desired to provide a smooth surface finish within the volute chamber 22 such that airflow is not adversely affected by any inconsistencies within the surface finish . accordingly , an interface 58 between mating surfaces defined on the top and bottom portions of the scroll housing 20 provides little interruption of the desired interior surface finish of the volute chamber 22 . an outer wall 28 of the volute chamber 22 includes the inner surface 30 and an outer surface 32 . the inner surface and the outer surface 32 are defined by the outer wall 28 . a boss 34 is disposed at the location of mating surfaces between the top and bottom portions 50 , 52 of the scroll housing 20 . the boss 34 provides additional material for the welded joint interface 58 . referring to fig4 , with continued reference to fig3 , the scroll housing 20 includes inner annular passage 24 open to an inner periphery of the inner cavity 36 that defines the space within which the impeller 38 rotates . referring to fig5 and 6 , the top portion 50 and the bottom portion 52 of the scroll housing 20 are formed from a forging operation . an aluminum alloy material is utilized to fabricate the example top and bottom portions 50 , 52 of the example scroll housing 20 . some aluminum alloys are not compatible with lost mold casting procedures . in such non - compatible alloys , differences in the melting temperature of the alloy components cannot provide for homogenous distribution of elements in a lost wax molding process and therefore result in undesirable manufacturing inefficiencies . the example scroll housing 20 is fabricated utilizing an extruded aluminum material . the aluminum material is extruded as a billet and shaped to a near complete configuration by a forging operation . after the forging operation is complete , various features are machined into each of the top and bottom portions 50 , 52 . mating surfaces 54 and 56 are formed after forging to define the weld joint and mating interface 58 between the top and bottom portions 50 , 52 of the scroll housing 20 . other surfaces are also machined to provide the desired configuration of the completed scroll housing 20 and include openings for a shaft bearing and also the inner cavity 36 within which the impeller 38 rotates . once the desired machining operations are complete and provide the machine surfaces within desired tolerances the top and bottom portions are held together with the mating surfaces 54 and 56 in a desired alignment . referring to fig7 , the now aligned top and bottom portions 50 , 52 of the scroll housing 20 are welded utilizing an energy beam welding method . in this example , an electron beam 62 is utilized for forming the desired weld joint between the top and bottom portions 50 , 52 . in this example , an electron beam welding machine 64 generates an electron beam 62 that is directed through the passage 24 against the outer wall 28 . the electron beam 62 is guided or directed through the passage 24 against an inner surface 30 of the outer wall 28 . the specific location that the electron beam 62 is directed is the interface 58 between the mating surfaces 54 and 56 . the directed energy beam provides a weld joint 60 that creates a substantially finished surface that does not affect the desired airflow properties through the volute chamber 22 . the weld beam 62 is applied in a continuous manner about the circumference of the volute chamber 22 . this is accomplished by either rotating the electron beam 62 such that it is directed through the passage 24 or by rotating the assembled top and bottom portions of the scroll housing 20 . the electron beam 62 provides a weld joint 60 through the entire thickness of the outer wall 28 to form the desired joint . on an outer surface of the outer wall 28 , a boss 34 is provided to further accommodate the weld joint 60 . once the desired weld joint is completed , the scroll compressor is finish machined to complete fabrication of the scroll housing 20 . as appreciated , although an electron beam welding process is disclosed other beam welding processes could also be utilized such as for example laser welding . referring to fig8 , completed scroll housing 20 as illustrated and includes all the features of a one piece housing without the inefficiencies caused by the lost wax molding manufacturing processes . accordingly , the example scroll housing for a load compressor provides a desired surface finish within the volute chambers without sacrificing manufacturing inefficiencies . moreover , the electron beam welding method allows for the precision application of a weld joint within the volute chamber without modification of the part configuration . although an example embodiment has been disclosed , a worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this disclosure . for that reason , the following claims should be studied to determine the scope and content of this invention .

US-201113189691-A

the present application discloses methods and systems for configuring and managing class - based condensation . one aspect thereof includes an automated mechanism to receive a user request for a document , retrieve the document from a content server , and compare the document to a base file of a document class . if a delta - difference between the requested document and the base file is less than a predetermined threshold value , create a condensed document by abbreviating redundancy in the requested document relative to the base file of the associated document class , associate the document with the document class , and transmit the condensed document to the user . the documents within a document class possess similar layouts .

fig1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary computer system within which the present invention may operate . for convenience , the invention will be described herein with respect to “ documents ” ( or , equivalently , “ files ”) which should be understood to include any content - bearing items transmitted in a network environment , including without limitation , text , data , or graphic files ( or combinations thereof ), images , objects , programs , scripts , and other kinds of documents . the system contemplates a network of computers and software running thereon , including a user &# 39 ; s computer 110 , a condenser 120 , and a content server 130 . the condenser 120 further includes a class tracking module / document database 122 that contains various data structures and databases for configuring and managing class - based condensation . the user &# 39 ; s computer further includes a content browser 112 and an assembly module 114 . the assembly module 114 may be implemented in many ways . in an exemplary embodiment , the condenser 120 ships the assembly module 114 as a self - unwrapping javascript program to the user &# 39 ; s computer 110 during an initial interaction between the condenser 120 and the user &# 39 ; s computer 110 . in alternate embodiments , the assembly module 114 may be implemented , without limitation , as preinstalled programs or “ browser plug - ins ,” or with platform independent languages such as java or scripting languages such as javascript that are downloaded and executed on the fly . in this exemplary embodiment , the network is deployed over the internet , although those skilled in the art will recognize that any public or private communication network including , without limitation , extranets , intranets , wireless networks and other telephonic or radio communications networks could also be used . similarly , as used herein , the term computer refers to any device that processes information with an integrated circuit chip , including without limitation , mainframe computers , work stations , servers , desktop computers , portable computers , embedded computers , and hand - held computers . in an exemplary embodiment of the invention , the condenser 120 may be operated by the same content provider that operates the content server or by a third party . the condenser 120 is configured transparently , as if it were a router so that all content to a content server 130 is directed through the condenser 120 . such a transparent configuration does not require manual configuration of the content browser 112 to direct traffic to the condenser 120 . those skilled in the art will recognize that nontransparent configurations , where manual configuration of the content browser 112 is used , may also be implemented in alternate embodiments . additionally , this exemplary embodiment implements the condenser 120 as software running on a computer separate from any cache ( or other content server ) in the network . an exemplary embodiment situates the condenser 120 near content servers that may dynamically generate content such that network traffic between the condenser 120 and the user is minimized over a maximum length of network . such a condenser 120 can serve multiple users by maintaining historic information about the pages most frequently requested by each user . however , those skilled in the art will recognize that the condenser 120 may be integrated into any cache ( or other content server ) in the network . those skilled in the art will also recognize that the condenser 120 may be also be implemented as various combination of software and / or hardware and integrated into lower level network connectivity devices , such as routers or switches . as noted earlier , the class tracking module / database 122 of the condenser 120 maintains an efficient data structure that holds information about the current classes stored in the condenser , including information user to access the class base files . for an exemplary embodiment of the invention that is utilized in the world wide web (“ web ”) context , the data structure is organized according to the structure and contents of uniform resource locators (“ url ”), in order to take advantage of the way content is typically organized within a web site . referring to fig2 , the data structure in an exemplary embodiment may be visualized as having , at the top of the structure , server objects 210 for each content server that has been accessed by the condenser . each server object 210 may contain a set of path objects 220 corresponding to requested paths within the server . furthermore , a server object 210 may also contain a classes object 225 that provides access to all the classes corresponding to that particular server . each path object may contain a set of class objects 230 corresponding to classes created by the condenser . as illustrated in fig2 , it is possible for a class 300 to be associated with more than one path object 220 in a server object 210 . as illustrated in further detail in fig3 , class 300 is an exemplary class in the web context containing a class identification number 310 and a count 320 of the number of its “ members ” ( i . e . matching requests ). optionally , the class 300 may also contain a set of requests 330 for the members of the class . in fig4 , an exemplary embodiment of a request 400 received by the condenser 120 in a web context may include a unique identifier , such as a cookie 410 , that binds the request to the user , and a url 420 that possibly includes a server 422 , path 424 , and url arguments 426 portion . together , the url 420 and the cookie 410 may be used to define the request ( and requested document ) as a unique member of a class . while the data structure 200 , class 300 , and request 400 are structured to take advantage of the typical organization of content on the web , those skilled in the art will recognize that in other contexts , and even with web sites that employ atypical content organization , these elements may be organized according to a different structure . in accordance with fig5 , once the condenser receives a request 400 at step 510 , it retrieves the requested document from the content server at step 520 . it then determines whether the requested document is a member of a current class in the data structure 200 . to make this determination , an exemplary embodiment of the condenser may maintain a data structure in the form of a 1 - to - 1 mapping between every request received and grouped by the condenser and its class identification number . at step 530 , if the request is already associated with a class then there is no need to make a further determination . for example , a request may be already associated with a class when it is a subsequent request for a document from a user , such that the a prior request for the document by the same user had been associated with the class . when a request is already associated with a class , the class base file is extracted using the class identification number , a condensed document is created through delta - encoding , and the condensed document is sent to the user , who reconstructs the full requested document using a locally stored class base file . otherwise , at step 540 , if there are no classes in the data structure 200 that are defined in part by the server 422 , then the condenser will create a new class corresponding to the requested document ( and associated request ) at step 590 . at step 550 if there are no classes defined in part by the path 424 , then at step 560 the condenser checks for a match against classes that are defined in part by the server 422 ( but perhaps having different paths and arguments ). however , if there are classes defined by both the server 422 and the path 424 , then at step 570 , the condenser checks for a match against classes that are defined by both the server 422 and path 424 ( but perhaps having different arguments ). if , at step 580 , a match is not found from steps 560 or 570 , then a new class is created at step 590 corresponding to the requested document ( and associated request ). whether a matching class or new class is determined , the condenser then sends a condensed document along with the corresponding class base file to the user . however , if a class base file has not yet been created , or the foregoing steps are performed offline , then the condenser may send the full requested document to the user instead . fig6 a and 6b illustrate exemplary methods to check for a match against a set of classes , as occurs in step 560 or 570 of fig5 . a match between a requested document and a class occurs when the delta - difference between the requested document and the class base file is less than a given threshold value , t . indeed , in addition to normal delta - encoding techniques , other lighter and quicker techniques to determine delta - differences can be used since it is unnecessary to produce a condensed document as is required for normal delta - encoding purposes . for example , those skilled in the art will recognize that known lossy algorithms , as opposed to lossless algorithms , may also be used to determine delta - differences . similarly , other known optimization techniques can be used to increase the efficiency of computing delta - differences . if the set of classes for which a requested document needs to be checked against is too large , then an exhaustive search would clearly be impracticable . therefore , one exemplary embodiment establishes a threshold number n of classes that are checked within a set . such checking of most popular classes has the effect of substantially optimizing a combination of criteria including the effort / time of computation by the condenser , the size of the condensed document , and the time of reconstruction by the user , with each criteria being optimized to a varying degree depending on the relative importance thereof to the operator of the condenser . in the foregoing , the condenser checks for a match against the an most popular classes in the set , where a is a number less than 1 . popular classes are those classes which have the greatest number of members ( i . e . most matches ). if no matches are found , then the condenser checks for a match against ( a − 1 ) n other classes , selected randomly from within the set . since a match is determined by a threshold value , t , it is clear that a requested document can match more than one class . multiple approaches once a match is found in an exemplary embodiment of the invention . referring to fig6 a , in a first approach , once a first match is found , the condenser stops checking and simply selects the matched class . this approach places relatively higher emphasis on substantially optimizing the time / effort to create the condensed document . thus at step 600 a , the condenser selects the most popular unchecked class . if , at step 610 a , the delta - difference between the class base file and the requested document is less than the threshold value , t , then a match has been found . if not , then at step 620 a , if less than an of the most popular classes have not been checked , step 600 a is repeated . if an of the most popular classes have been checked , then at step 630 a , a randomly selected unchecked class is tested for a match . again , at step 640 a , if the delta - difference between the class base file and the requested document is less than the threshold value , t , then a match has been found . otherwise , at step 650 a , if less than n classes have been checked , step 630 a is repeated . if n classes have been checked and no match has been found , then at step 660 a , a new class is created for the requested document ( note that step 660 a is the same as step 590 in fig5 ). in contrast , all n classes are checked in a second approach , regardless of the number of matches found , and the best matching class , defined as having the smallest delta - difference , is selected . this approach places relatively higher emphasis on substantially optimizing the size of the condensed document and the time of transmission to the user . referring to fig6 b , at step 600 b , the condenser selects the most popular unchecked class . if , at step 610 b , the delta - difference between the class base file and the requested document is less than the threshold value , t , then a match has been found and the matching class is stored in set m for later analysis at step 615 b . at step 620 b , if less than an classes have been checked , then step 600 b is repeated . if an of the most popular classes have been checked , then at step 630 b , a randomly selected unchecked class is tested for a match . again , at step 640 b , if the delta - difference between the class base file and the requested document is less than the threshold value , t , then a match has been found and the matching class is stored in set m for later analysis at step 645 b . at step 650 b , if less than n classes have been checked , step 630 b is repeated . if n classes have been checked and no matches have been found at step 660 b , a new class is created for the requested document at step 670 b ( note that step 670 b is the same as step 590 in fig5 ). however , if matches have been found at step 660 b , then the best matching class , defined as having the smallest delta - difference , is selected from set m as the final match at step 680 b . those skilled in the art will recognize that still other embodiments may be implemented which lie between the first and second approaches as described above . for example , alternative embodiments may select a best match from a number of matching classes less than n , as in the second approach , but greater than one , as in the first approach . the creation of classes or matching of requested documents can either occur online or offline . online creation and matching have the advantage that the resulting class base file can be transmitted to the requester as soon as possible ( i . e . once a match is found or once a class base file is created ). however , such online computations can incur a delay in responding to the request . if offline creation and matching is implemented so as not to incur any delay , a full requested document must be sent back to the client rather than a condensed document and a class base file . then , a subsequent request from the user will result in the transmission of a condensed document and class base file to be stored locally . thereafter , only condensed documents need to be transmitted upon requests , until the class base file is updated during a “ rebasing .” thus , offline creation or matching increases performance for future requests but not for the current request . it is beneficial to select an efficient class base file for each class since the performance of the delta - encoding and the quality of the resulting condensed document will depend upon how similar the class base file is to the requested documents . an exemplary embodiment of the present invention contemplates at least two different methods for selecting and updating an efficient class base file . in the first method , for each class maintained at the condenser , k random samples of prior requested documents from that class may be stored in memory . along with those k samples , a data structure is maintained which keeps track of the delta - differences between the samples as well as the sum of the delta - differences with regard to each sample . as shown in fig7 , an exemplary embodiment of this data structure 700 can simply be a two - dimensional array that maintains the delta - difference , d ij , between each document i and j where i = 1 . . . k and j = 1 . . . k . additionally , as can be seen , the data structure 700 also maintains the sum of all delta - differences for each document i . the class base file for the class is then the sample document that has the minimum sum of delta - differences amongst the samples , as reflected in the data structure 700 . this data structure 700 is continually updated to keep the requested documents current in order to maintain an efficient class base file . periodically , a class base file will be updated in order to maintain efficient performance ( known as “ rebasing ”). this is illustrated in fig8 . at step 800 , the condenser receives a requested document determined to be a member of a class . at step 810 , with a probability p , the requested document is selected to be used as a sample in the class . if , the requested document is selected at step 820 , then if there are already k samples in the class at step 830 , the worst sample ( i . e . the one with the maximum sum of delta - differences ) is evicted at step 835 and the requested document replaces it as a new sample at step 840 . evicting the worst sample may result in clustering where the k samples are very similar to each other , but not necessarily similar to most of the other requested documents in the class . thus , periodically , a random sample is evicted instead of the worst to prevent such clustering . at step 850 , the delta - differences are calculated between the new sample and remaining old samples . using the data structure 700 , this simply means removing the delta - differences that corresponded to the evicted sample the array and adding the new delta - differences corresponding to the new sample to the array . similarly , at step 860 , the sums of all the delta - differences for each sample is updated reflecting the changes from the new sample . at step 870 , the best sample ( i . e . the one with the minimum sum of delta - differences ) is identified . clearly , this method performs well because it tends to keep relatively good class base file candidates as samples ( and then uses the best of those samples ). however , in the extreme cases , the best sample may change every time a new sample is selected . to control the frequency of rebasing , a rebase will occur only if ( 1 ) a better base candidate exists , and ( 2 ) a rebase timer , rt , running since the previous rebase , has expired . thus , at step 875 , if the rebase timer rt , has expired , a rebase occurs at step 880 and the rt time is reset at step 890 . additionally , rebasing may also be triggered when the performance of the system is poor . the performance can be poor when the computations for delta - differences are frequently aborted due to a significant difference between the requested document and the class base file , or because many calculated delta - differences are relatively large . when rebasing occurs in this context , all k samples for the class are flushed and the sampling starts anew . in the second method , a class base file is created by selecting and aggregating document components that appear most frequently in requested documents pertaining to the class . a requested document can be decomposed into components which are then added and organized in a data structure such as a table . in an exemplary embodiment , components of a requested document may be groups of consecutive bytes within the document . for example , as shown in fig9 a , each component 910 a of a document 900 a may be a series of eight consecutive bytes , where each subsequent component in the document is offset from the prior component by one byte . when a component of a requested document is added to the table 900 b , it is associated with a table entry 910 b that includes at least ( 1 ) a counter 920 b to keep track of the number of times the component has been encountered in various requested documents and ( 2 ) a bit 930 b to indicate whether the component is active or inactive . the class base file is created by selecting those components in the table that are most popular . an exemplary embodiment of the table may utilize hashing of components ( i . e . a hash table ) to increase the efficiency in accessing table entries . furthermore , those skilled in the art will recognize that the foregoing method of decomposition is merely an example and that there are a multiplicity of ways in which components may be defined within the invention . as illustrated in fig1 , at step 1000 , the condenser receives a requested document determined to be a member of a class . at step 1010 , with a probability p , the requested document is selected to be decomposed into components . if , at step 1020 , it is selected , then at step 1030 , the requested document is decomposed into components and at step 1040 , the components are added to the table 900 . at step 1050 , if adding a component results in a new table entry , then the entry is set as inactive and its count is set to zero . if a table entry for an added component already exists , then the count for that entry is simply incremented in step 1060 . finally , at step 1070 , upon every r requests , rebasing may occur in which the most popular hash table entries are activated and the other entries are deactivated . the new class base file is then the aggregation of the components associated with the most popular activated hash table entries . in both the first and second methods , steps 850 to 890 and steps 1030 to 1070 , respectively , can be performed offline to improve the performance of future requests , but not the current request . offline performance of the steps prevents delays due to computation in responding to the current request . thus , if the steps are performed offline , in response to the current online request , the condenser may transmit to the user either ( 1 ) a condensed document based on the current class base file ( rather than an updated class base file ) that is also stored locally by the user , ( 2 ) a condensed document based on the current class base file along with the current class base file itself , or ( 3 ) the full requested document , if a new class has been created . in contrast , if the steps are performed online , then in response to the current online request , the condenser may transmit to the user ( 1 ) the updated class base file and ( 2 ) a condensed document based on this updated class base file . however , as noted earlier , online performance of updating may result in greater delays in responding to the current request . despite solving scalability issues , class - based condensation also raises security and privacy concerns since different users will share the same class base files and store these files locally on their own machines . thus another exemplary aspect of the present invention also addresses the need to secure private information that might be contained in personalized dynamic documents . such private information may include , but is not limited to , credit cards , charge cards , debit cards , id numbers , email addresses , phone numbers , home address , personal records , personal preferences , and other private information . in order to secure the privacy of users , a data structure may be used to keep track of document components , as in fig9 a . indeed , if the method of fig1 is used to select and update class base files , then the table 900 a can be simultaneously used to implement the security mechanism . as fig1 , illustrates , at step 1100 , the condenser decomposes the class base file into components and adds them into a hash table . as noted , if the method of fig1 is used to select and update class base files , then this step has already been performed . otherwise , the hash table is initialized such that all entry counts are zero . at step 1110 , the condenser receives a requested document determined to be a member of the class . if , at step 1120 , the requested document has the same origin ( i . e . same user transmitted the request ) as a previously analyzed document , then the requested document is discarded for security purposes , and step 1110 is repeated . otherwise , at step 1130 , the requested document is decomposed into components . at step 1140 , if a component of the requested document matches a component of the class base file , then the count of the associated entry in the hash table is incremented . the process repeats , as shown in step 1150 until n distinct requests with different origins have been analyzed . finally , in step 1160 , all components in the class base file with a hash table entry whose count equals zero is removed from the class base file . comparing the class base file components with components from requested documents of distinct users ensures that those components in the class base file that do contain private information will have a count equal to zero in their hash table entry . thus by removing such components , the class base file is secure . until the class base file is properly secured , responses to user requests may be limited to full requested documents rather than condensed documents . that is , distribution of the secured class base file may be delayed until after private information has been removed . of course , in the case that an end user already has a current secured class base file and a rebase is triggered , the old secured class base file can be used until the updated class base file is properly secured . one point to note is that the same end user may be falsely regarded by the condenser as a different user upon subsequent requests . this may occur , for example , if the user utilizes the netscape navigator ® to send a first request and microsoft ® internet explorer to send a second request . since the two web browsers do not share cookies , the condenser will interpret the two requests from the same end user as originating from different users . thus , if both requests contain the same private information , the above security mechanism may not exclude the private information . in order to protect private data from such rare scenarios , a second parameter m , greater than zero but less than or equal to n , can be utilized in the security mechanism . that is , at step 1160 , components whose hash table entry is less than m , rather than zero , are removed . thus , m becomes an indication of the security level of the system . for example , if m = 0 , there is no security and if m = 1 corresponds to the basic security scheme described earlier . thus , as m increases , the stronger the security of the system becomes . however , to avoid reducing the size of the class base file and thus compromising performance , an exemplary embodiment of the present invention would keep n at least two as large as m . furthermore , this security mechanism can be executed simultaneously with the basing mechanisms for fig8 and 10 . that is , while the delta - differences are being computed , the counts in the hash table can also be updated . thus , whenever the basing mechanisms identify an new class base file , the securing mechanism is ready to remove private information from the file . the various embodiments described above should be considered as merely illustrative of the present invention . those skilled in the art will realize that the present invention is applicable regardless of whether the user is a person at a computer , or a network device such as a cache or a proxy agent . those skilled in the art will realize that the present invention is also applicable to the full range of data forms transmitted on the internet , including but not limited to text , images , video and audio . the various embodiments described above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the forms disclosed . those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that still other variations and modifications may be practiced without departing from the general spirit of the invention set forth herein . therefore , it is intended that the present invention be defined by the claims that follow .

US-81680201-A

the present invention relates to a current collector for an electrochemical cell . the current collector has a unique grid structure comprised of a frame supporting a plurality of radial strands as conductors radiating outwardly from a focal point on a connector tab . the frame and radial conductors are maintained in a fan - like orientation with respect to each other by two groups of concentric conductor strands , one located adjacent to the tab , the other spaced a substantial distance therefrom . the radiating conductors provide a more direct path to the connector tab for electron flow . this results in the current collector having reduced internal resistance in comparison to conventional current collector designs .

referring now to the drawings , fig1 shows an enlarged view of one embodiment of a current collector 10 according to the present invention while fig2 shows another embodiment of the present current collector 12 having a double wing configuration . fig3 is of an exemplary electrochemical cell 100 of a multi - plate configuration comprising one of the present current collectors . whether the current collector of the cell 100 is of the single wing configuration 10 or of the double wing type 12 is not necessarily important . as shown in the enlarged view of fig1 the current collector 10 generally comprises wire or bar - shaped conductor strands in the shape of a frame 14 surrounding a grid 16 and supporting a tab 18 . the conductors and tab are of a conductive material such as nickel , aluminum , copper , stainless steel , tantalum , cobalt and titanium , and alloys thereof . as shown in this figure , the frame 14 has spaced apart upper and lower strands 20 and 22 extending to and meeting with left and right strands 24 and 26 . upper frame strand 20 meets left frame strand 24 at curved corner 28 , left frame strand 24 meets lower frame strand 22 at curved corner 30 and lower frame strand 22 meets right frame strand 26 at curved corner 32 . tab 18 is a generally solid planar member and extends outwardly from the junction of the upper frame strand 20 and the right frame strand 26 . in that respect , tab 18 includes upper and lower sides 34 and 36 extending to and meeting with an intermediate edge 38 . the tab sides 34 and 36 are parallel to each other and are generally parallel to the upper and lower frame strands 20 , 22 . however , the upper tab side 34 is spaced somewhat below the upper frame strand 20 to provide a curved junction 40 where the upper strand 20 transitions into the upper tab side 34 . the lower tab side 36 meets the right frame strand 26 at a perpendicular angle . the grid 16 is interior of and supported by the frame 14 and comprises a fan - shaped configuration of radial strands as conductors in the form of wires or elongate bars . the radial conductor strands are of two general types . conductors 42 , 44 and 46 begin at the tab 18 and radiate outwardly to terminate at either the left frame strand 24 ( conductor 42 ) or the lower frame strand 22 ( conductors 44 and 46 ). the other type of radial conductor begins at a position spaced from the tab 18 and radiates outwardly to terminate at either the left frame strand 24 or the lower frame strand 22 . regardless , both types of radial conductors have their terminus aimed at an imaginary focal point 48 , indicated by the area outlined by the dashed lines , and residing on the tab 18 . the grid structure further comprises a first and a second group of curved or concentric strands as conductors in the form of wires or elongated bars . the first group includes conductors 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 and 58 , which are at progressively greater distances from the focal point 48 and concentric therewith . each of the first group of concentric conductors extends from the upper frame strand 20 to the right frame strand 26 and intersects with each of the radial conductors 42 , 44 and 46 emanating from the focal point 48 of tab 18 . other of the radial conductors do not begin at the tab 18 , but radiate outwardly from various ones of the first group of concentric conductors . in that respect , radial conductors 60 and 62 both begin at concentric conductor 58 while radial conductor 64 , intermediate conductors 60 and 62 , begins at concentric conductor 50 . conductors 60 , 62 and 64 terminate at the left frame strand 24 . radial conductor 66 begins at concentric conductor 54 and terminates in the vicinity of the curved corner 30 between the left frame strand 24 and the bottom frame strand 22 . the remaining radial conductors 68 , 70 , 72 , 74 , 76 , 78 , 80 , 82 and 84 begin at various ones of the first group of concentric conductors , but terminate at the lower frame strand 22 . in that respect , radial conductor 68 begins at concentric conductor 58 . moving downwardly and towards the right frame strand 26 in fig1 conductor 70 , which is adjacent to focal point radial conductor 44 , begins at concentric conductor 58 . radial conductors 72 and 74 begin at concentric conductors 54 and 58 , respectively . radial conductor 76 begins at concentric conductor 50 , and radial conductor 78 begins at concentric conductor 54 . finally , conductors 80 , 82 and 84 begin at concentric conductor 54 and terminate at the lower frame strand 22 . focal point radial conductor 46 is directly adjacent to radial conductors 78 and 80 . the grid 16 is completed by the second group of curved strands comprising conductors 86 , 88 and 90 . as is the case with the first group of concentric conductors , these , too , are concentric with the focal point 48 . however , they are spaced a substantial distance from the first group of concentric conductors 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 and 58 . the first group of concentric conductors 86 , 88 and 90 extend from the upper frame strand 20 to the lower frame strand 22 . as shown in fig1 the substantial distance from the first group of concentric conductors to the second group is defined as a factor of “ x ”. the distance x is defined as being from the focal point 48 to the outer most radial conductor 58 of the first group . then , the distance from radial conductor 58 to the first one of the second group of radial conductors 86 is n ( x ) with n ranging from about 1 to about 10 , and fractions thereof . in the current collector 10 shown , the substantial distance between the two groups of radial conductors is measured along upper frame stand 20 . however , it is contemplated by the scope of the present invention that the current collector need not necessarily have the generally rectangular frame shape shown . instead , the frame can be squared , circular , or some other irregular shaped dictated by the design requirements of a specific cell construction . no matter what the specific shape of the current collector , according to the present invention , it has a series of radial conductors fanning out from a focal point and supported by spaced apart first and second groups of concentric conductors with the distance between the two groups of concentric conductors being at least “ x ”, as measured is some direction from the focal point . a single concentric conductor is sufficient to constitute a group for the purpose of this invention . also , a concentric conductor need not necessarily connect to the spaced apart portions of the frame . it is within the scope of the present invention that any one of the first group of concentric conductors 50 , 52 , 54 , 56 and 58 and of the second group of concentric conductors 86 , 88 and 90 can terminate at one of the radiating conductors 42 , 44 , 46 , 60 , 62 , 64 , 66 , 68 , 70 , 72 , 74 , 76 , 78 , 80 , 82 and 84 and , in that respect , not terminate at the frame . for example , in fig1 a the opposed ends of concentric conductor 58 terminate at radial conductors 42 and 84 instead of upper frame strand 20 and right frame strand 26 , respectively . similarly , the opposed ends of centric conductor 84 terminate at radial conductors 42 and 68 instead of upper frame strand 20 and lower frame strand 22 , respectively . the double wing current collector 12 of fig2 is essentially comprised of two current collector portions 12 a and 12 b , each similar to current collector 10 of fig1 as mirror images of each other . the mirror image current collectors 12 a , 12 b are positioned side - by - side connected together at a tab 18 a . [ 0027 ] fig3 shows the exemplary electrochemical cell 100 useful with either one of the current collectors 10 , 12 . for sake of clarity , the single wing collector 10 is shown . the cell includes a casing 102 having spaced apart front and back side walls ( not shown ) joined by side walls 104 and 106 and a planar bottom wall 108 . the junctions between the various side walls and bottom wall are curved . the open top of the casing 102 is closed by a lid 110 . lid 110 has an opening 112 that serves as a port for filling an electrolyte ( not shown ) into the casing after the cell internal components have been assembled therein and lid 110 has been sealed to the side walls . in the final and fully assembled condition , a sealing plug , such as a ball 114 , is hermetically sealed in the electrolyte fill opening 112 to close the cell in a gas tight manner . the casing 102 , lid 110 and sealing ball 114 are preferably of a conductive material . suitable materials include nickel , aluminum , stainless steel , mild steel , nickel plated mild steel and titanium . preferably , the casing , lid and sealing ball are of the same material . a terminal lead 116 for one of the anode electrode and the cathode electrode is electrically insulated from the lid 110 and the casing 102 by a glass - to - metal seal 118 . in a case - negative cell configuration , the lead 116 serves as the cathode terminal and the lid 110 and casing 102 serve as the negative or anode terminal , as is well known to those skilled in the art . a case - positive cell configuration has the positive electrode or cathode contacted to the casing 102 with the anode supported on the current collector 10 connected to the lead 116 . in either case , the exemplary cell 100 shown in fig3 includes a central electrode 120 comprising the current collector 10 of the present invention supporting at least one of the opposite polarity active materials . for the sake of clarity , the active materials are not shown supported on the current collector 10 . however , in a case - negative cell configuration , current collector 10 supports opposed layers of cathode active material contacting the opposite major sides thereof locked together through its many open areas . the tab 18 is then connected to the terminal lead 116 such as by welding . in a case - positive cell configuration , anode active material is locked together supported on the opposite major sides of the current collector . the central electrode 120 of cell 100 is sealed in a separator envelope 122 to prevent direct contact with the opposite polarity electrode . while not shown in fig3 in a case - negative design the opposite polarity electrode is the anode comprised of anode active material contacted to the inner major sides of the current collector 12 shown in fig2 . the wing portions 12 a and 12 b of collector 12 , joined by the intermediate tab 18 a , are folded downwardly toward each other with respect to tab 18 a and into electrical association with the opposed major sides of the intermediate cathode . in a case - positive cell configuration , the opposed cathode plates are carried by the wing portions 12 a , 12 b and folded down toward each other and with respect to tab 18 a into electrical association with the opposed major sides of the central anode . a more thorough and complete discussion of a cell construction having a current collector comprising wing - like portions which are folded into electrical assistance with a central electrode of an opposite polarity is shown in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 312 , 458 to muffoletto et al . this patent is assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein by reference . the following example describes the manner and process of a current collector according to the present invention , and it sets forth the best mode contemplated by the inventors of carrying out the invention , but it is not to be construed as limiting . voltage measurements related to rdc for a current collector 10 according to the present invention ( fig1 ) and for current collector 150 ( fig4 ) according to the prior art were recorded using a multimeter and constant current power source . the prior art current collector 150 was made of a similar conductive material as the present invention collector 10 and had a similar area , as shown in the plan views of fig1 and 4 . current collector 150 is comprised wire or bar - shaped conductor strands in the shape of a frame 152 surrounding a grid 154 and supporting a tab 156 . the frame 152 has spaced apart upper and lower strands 158 and 160 extending to and meeting with left and right strands 162 and 164 . upper frame strand 158 meets left frame strand 162 at curved corner 166 , left frame strand 162 meets lower frame strand 160 at curved corner 168 and lower frame strand 160 meets right frame strand 164 at curved corner 170 . the grid 154 is comprised of a plurality of intersecting wire or bar - shaped conductor strands 172 and 174 . conductors 172 are parallel to each other as are conductors 174 . conductors 172 extend from the upper frame strand 158 to either the lower frame strand 160 or the left frame strand 162 while conductors 174 extend from the upper frame strand 158 to either the lower frame strand 160 or the right frame strand 164 . this provides the grid 154 having a plurality of diamond shaped openings 176 , and portions thereof , formed between the intersecting conductors 172 , 174 . to perform the comparative rdc test , a power source 178 having positive and negative leads 180 and 182 ( fig5 ) was set at a current of 0 . 182 amperes , which is equal to the current for one electrode plate in a typical battery powering an implantable medical device . test nodes a , b , c , d , e , f , g , h , i , j , k and l , as indicated in fig1 and 4 , were set up on the respective current collectors 10 , 150 . the positive lead 180 was placed on node c which corresponds to the focal point 48 of tab 18 of collector 10 and on the tab 156 of current collector 150 . the negative lead 182 was then placed on the other nodes a , b and d to l . the voltage drop between these node points was measured using a multimeter 184 having positive and negative leads 186 and 188 by placing the positive multimeter lead on node c and the negative multimeter lead 188 on the node on which the negative power supply lead 182 was contacted . [ 0037 ] fig6 is a graph of rdc as a function of measured nodal point location for two of each of the current collectors 10 , 150 . since a constant current power source was used , the resistance can be computed by , where , v is the voltage drop and i is the current . since r is a factor of the total rdc of the cell , the rdc of one current collector plate is equal to r as computed above . the rdc measurements for two current collectors of each of the present invention and the prior art are set forth below in table 1 and in the graph of fig6 . this data clearly illustrate that the novel current collectors 10 , 12 of the present invention have significantly lower rdc than the prior art current collector 150 described in fig4 . this , in turn , lowers total battery rdc to improve overall battery and device performance . since the theory of this invention has been proven using the mathematical relations described herein , it can be applied to any battery construction technique , namely , the multiple plate and wound cell stack described above . it is appreciated that various modifications to the present inventive concepts described herein may be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the herein appended claims .

US-7436902-A

the present invention relates to a surface mount package for a silicon condenser microphone and methods for manufacturing the surface mount package . the surface mount package uses a limited number of components which simplifies manufacturing and lowers costs , and features a substrate that performs functions for which multiple components were traditionally required , including providing an interior surface on which the silicon condenser die is mechanically attached , providing an interior surface for making electrical connections between the silicon condenser die and the package , and providing an exterior surface for surface mounting the package to a device &# 39 ; s printed circuit board and for making electrical connections between package and the device &# 39 ; s printed circuit board .

while the invention is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms , there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail several possible embodiments of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated . the present invention is directed to microphone packages . the benefits of the microphone packages disclosed herein over microphone packaging utilizing plastic body / lead frames include the ability to process packages in panel form allowing more units to be formed per operation and at much lower cost . the typical lead frame for a similarly functioning package would contain between 40 and 100 devices connected together . the present disclosure would have approximately 14 , 000 devices connected together ( as a panel ). also , the embodiments disclosed herein require minimal “ hard - tooling ” this allows the process to adjust to custom layout requirements without having to redesign mold , lead frame , and trim / form tooling . moreover , many of the described embodiments have a better match of thermal coefficients of expansion with the end user &# 39 ; s pcb , typically made of fr - 4 , since the microphone package is also made primarily of fr - 4 . these embodiments of the invention may also eliminate the need for wire bonding that is required in plastic body / lead frame packages . the footprint is typically smaller than that would be required for a plastic body / lead frame design since the leads may be formed by plating a through - hole in a circuit board to form the pathway to the solder pad . in a typical plastic body / lead frame design , a ( gull wing configuration would be used in which the leads widen the overall foot print . now , referring to fig1 - 3 , three embodiments of a silicon condenser microphone package 10 of the present invention are illustrated . included within silicon microphone package 10 is a transducer 12 , e . g . a silicon condenser microphone as disclosed in u . s . pat . no . 5 , 870 , 482 which is hereby incorporated by reference and an amplifier 16 . the package itself includes a substrate 14 , a back volume or air cavity 18 , which provides a pressure reference for the transducer 12 , and a cover 20 . the substrate 14 may be formed of fr - 4 material allowing processing in circuit board panel form , thus taking advantage of economies of scale in manufacturing . fig6 is a plan view of the substrate 14 showing the back volume 18 surrounded a plurality of terminal pads . the back volume 18 may be formed by a number of methods , including controlled depth drilling of an upper surface 19 of the substrate 14 to form a recess over which the transducer 12 is mounted ( fig1 ); drilling and routing of several individual sheets of fr - 4 and laminating the individual sheets to form the back volume 18 , which may or may not have internal support posts ( fig2 ); or drilling completely through the substrate 14 and providing a sealing ring 22 on the bottom of the device that will seal the back volume 18 during surface mounting to a user &# 39 ; s “ board ” 28 ( fig3 - 5 ). in this example , the combination of the substrate and the user &# 39 ; s board 28 creates the back volume 18 . the back volume 18 is covered by the transducer 12 ( e . g ., a mems device ) which may be “ bumpbonded ” and mounted face down . the boundary is sealed such that the back volume 18 is operably “ air - tight .” the cover 20 is attached for protection and processability . the cover 20 contains an aperture 24 which may contain a sintered metal insert 26 to prevent water , particles and / or light from entering the package and damaging the internal components inside ; i . e . semiconductor chips . the aperture 24 is adapted for allowing sound waves to reach the transducer 12 . the sintered metal insert 26 will also have certain acoustic properties , e . g . acoustic damping or resistance . the sintered metal insert 26 may therefore be selected such that its acoustic properties enhance the functional capability of the transducer 12 and / or the overall performance of the silicon microphone 10 . referring to fig4 and 5 the final form of the product is a silicon condenser microphone package 10 which would most likely be attached to an end user &# 39 ; s pcb 28 via a solder reflow process . fig5 illustrates a method of enlarging the back volume 18 by including a chamber 32 within the end user &# 39 ; s circuit board 28 . another embodiment of a silicon condenser microphone package 40 of the present invention is illustrated in fig7 - 10 . in this embodiment , a housing 42 is formed from layers of materials , such as those used in providing circuit boards . accordingly , the housing 42 generally comprises alternating layers of conductive and non - conductive materials 44 , 46 . the non - conductive layers 46 are typically fr - 4 board . the conductive layers 44 are typically copper . this multi - layer housing construction advantageously permits the inclusion of circuitry , power and ground planes , solder pads , ground pads , capacitance layers and plated through holes pads within the structure of the housing itself . the conductive layers provide emi shielding while also allowing configuration as capacitors and / or inductors to filter input / output signals and / or the input power supply . in the embodiment illustrated , the housing 42 includes a top portion 48 and a bottom portion 50 spaced by a side portion 52 . the housing 42 further includes an aperture or acoustic port 54 for receiving an acoustic signal and an inner chamber 56 which is adapted for housing a transducer unit 58 , typically a silicon die microphone or a ball grid array package ( bga ). the top , bottom , and side portions 48 , 50 , 52 are electrically connected , for example with a conductive adhesive 60 . the conductive adhesive may be provided conveniently in the form of suitably configured sheets of dry adhesive disposed between the top , bottom and side portions 48 , 50 and 52 . the sheet of dry adhesive may be activated by pressure , heat or other suitable means after the portions are brought together during assembly . each portion may comprise alternating conductive and non - conductive layers of 44 , 46 . the chamber 56 may include an inner lining 61 . the inner lining 61 is primarily formed by conductive material . it should be understood that the inner lining may include portions of non - conductive material , as the conductive material may not fully cover the non - conductive material . the inner lining 61 protects the transducer 58 against electromagnetic interference and the like , much like a faraday cage . the inner lining 61 may also be provided by suitable electrically coupling together of the various conductive layers within the top , bottom and side portions 48 , 50 and 52 of the housing . in the various embodiments illustrated in fig7 - 10 and 23 - 26 , the portions of the housing 42 that include the aperture or acoustic port 54 further include a layer of material that forms an environmental barrier 62 over or within the aperture 54 . this environmental barrier 62 is typically a polymeric material formed to a film , such as a polytetrafluoroethylene ( ptfe ) or a sintered metal . the environmental barrier 62 is supplied for protecting the chamber 56 of the housing 42 , and , consequently , the transducer unit 58 within the housing 42 , from environmental elements such as sunlight , moisture , oil , dirt , and / or dust . the environmental barrier 62 will also have inherent acoustic properties , e . g . acoustic damping / resistance . therefore the environmental barrier 62 is chosen such that its acoustic properties cooperate with the transducer unit 58 to enhance the performance of the microphone . this is particularly true in connection with the embodiments illustrated in fig2 and 25 , which may be configured to operate as directional microphones . the environmental barrier layer 62 is generally sealed between layers of the portion , top 48 or bottom 50 in which the acoustic port 54 is formed . for example , the environmental barrier may be secured between layers of conductive material 44 thereby permitting the layers of conductive material 44 to act as a capacitor ( with electrodes defined by the metal ) that can be used to filter input and output signals or the input power . the environmental barrier layer 62 may further serve as a dielectric protective layer when in contact with the conductive layers 44 in the event that the conductive layers also contain thin film passive devices such as resistors and capacitors . in addition to protecting the chamber 56 from environmental elements , the barrier layer 62 allows subsequent wet processing , board washing of the external portions of the housing 42 , and electrical connection to ground from the walls via thru hole plating . the environmental barrier layer 62 also allows the order of manufacturing steps in the fabrication of the printed circuit board - based package to be modified . this advantage can be used to accommodate different termination styles . for example , a double sided package can be fabricated having a pair of apertures 54 ( see fig2 ), both including an environmental barrier layer 62 . the package would look and act the same whether it is mounted face up or face down , or the package could be mounted to provide directional microphone characteristics . moreover , the environmental barrier layer 62 may also be selected so that its acoustic properties enhance the directional performance of the microphone . referring to fig7 , 8 , and 11 - 13 the transducer unit 58 is generally not mounted to the top portion 48 of the housing . this definition is independent of the final mounting orientation to an end user &# 39 ; s circuit board . it is possible for the top portion 48 to be mounted face down depending on the orientation of the transducer 58 as well as the choice for the bottom portion 50 . the conductive layers 44 of the top portion 48 may be patterned to form circuitry , ground planes , solder pads , ground pads , capacitors and plated through hole pads . referring to fig1 - 13 there may be additional alternating conductive layers 44 , non - conductive layers 46 , and environmental protective membranes 62 as the package requires . alternatively , some layers may be deliberately excluded as well . the first non - conductive layer 46 may be patterned so as to selectively expose certain features on the first conductive layer 44 . fig1 illustrates an alternative top portion 48 for a microphone package . in this embodiment , a connection between the layers can be formed to provide a conduit to ground . the top portion of fig1 includes ground planes and / or pattern circuitry 64 and the environmental barrier 62 . the ground planes and or pattern circuitry 64 are connected by pins 65 . fig1 illustrates another embodiment of a top portion 48 . in addition to the connection between layers , ground planes / pattern circuitry 64 , and the environmental barrier 62 , this embodiment includes conductive bumps 66 ( e . g . pb / sn or ni / au ) patterned on the bottom side to allow secondary electrical contact to the transducer 58 . here , conductive circuitry would be patterned such that electrical connection between the bumps 66 and a plated through hole termination is made . fig1 illustrates yet another embodiment of the top portion 48 . in this embodiment , the top portion 48 does not include an aperture or acoustic port 54 . referring to fig7 , 8 and 14 - 18 , the bottom portion 50 is the component of the package to which the transducer 58 is primarily mounted . this definition is independent of the final mounting orientation to the end user &# 39 ; s circuit board . it is possible for the bottom portion 50 to be mounted facing upwardly depending on the mounting orientation of the transducer 58 as well as the choice for the top portion 48 construction . like the top portion 48 , the conductive layers 44 of the bottom portion 50 may be patterned to form circuitry , ground planes , solder pads , ground pads , capacitors and plated through hole pads . as shown in fig1 - 18 , there may be additional alternating conductive layers 44 , non - conductive layers 46 , and environmental protective membranes 62 as the package requires . alternatively , some layers may be deliberately excluded as well . the first non - conductive layer 46 may be patterned so as to selectively expose certain features on the first conductive layer 44 . referring to fig1 a through 14 d , the bottom portion 50 comprises a laminated , multi - layered board including layers of conductive material 44 deposited on layers of non - conductive material 46 . referring to fig1 b , the first layer of conductive material is used to attach wire bonds or flip chip bonds . this layer includes etched portions to define lead pads , bond pads , and ground pads . the pads would have holes drilled through them to allow the formation of plated through - holes . as shown in fig1 c , a dry film 68 of non - conductive material covers the conductive material . this illustration shows the exposed bonding pads as well as an exposed ground pad . the exposed ground pad would come in electrical contact with the conductive epoxy and form the connection to ground of the side portion 52 and the base portion 50 . referring to fig1 d , ground layers can be embedded within the base portion 50 . the hatched area represents a typical ground plane 64 . the ground planes do not overlap the power or output pads , but will overlap the transducer 58 . referring to fig1 , an embodiment of the bottom portion 50 is illustrated . the bottom portion 50 of this embodiment includes a solder mask layer 68 and alternating layers of conductive and non - conductive material 44 , 46 . the bottom portion further comprises solder pads 70 for electrical connection to an end user &# 39 ; s board . fig1 and 17 illustrate embodiments of the bottom portion 50 with enlarged back volumes 18 . these embodiments illustrate formation of the back volume 18 using the conductive / non - conductive layering . fig1 shows yet another embodiment of the bottom portion 50 . in this embodiment , the back portion 50 includes the acoustic port 54 and the environmental barrier 62 . referring to fig7 - 10 and 19 - 22 , the side portion 52 is the component of the package that joins the bottom portion 50 and the top portion 48 . the side portion 52 may include a single layer of a non - conductive material 46 sandwiched between two layers of conductive material 44 . the side portion 52 forms the internal height of the chamber 56 that houses the transducer 58 . the side portion 52 is generally formed by one or more layers of circuit board material , each having a routed window 72 ( see fig1 ). referring to fig1 - 22 , the side portion 52 includes inner sidewalls 74 . the inner sidewalls 74 are generally plated with a conductive material , typically copper , as shown in fig2 and 21 . the sidewalls 74 are formed by the outer perimeter of the routed window 72 and coated / metallized with a conductive material . alternatively , the sidewalls 74 may be formed by may alternating layers of non - conductive material 46 and conductive material 44 , each having a routed window 72 ( see fig1 ). in this case , the outer perimeter of the window 72 may not require coverage with a conductive material because the layers of conductive material 44 would provide effective shielding . fig2 - 26 illustrate various embodiments of the microphone package 40 . these embodiments utilize top , bottom , and side portions 48 , 50 , and 52 which are described above . it is contemplated that each of the top , bottom , and side portion 48 , 50 , 52 embodiments described above can be utilized in any combination without departing from the invention disclosed and described herein . in fig2 , connection to an end user &# 39 ; s board is made through the bottom portion 50 . the package mounting orientation is bottom portion 50 down . connection from the transducer 58 to the plated through holes is be made by wire bonding . the transducer back volume 18 is formed by the back hole ( mounted down ) of the silicon microphone only . bond pads , wire bonds and traces to the terminals are not shown . a person of ordinary skilled in the art of pcb design will understand that the traces reside on the first conductor layer 44 . the wire bonds from the transducer 58 are be connected to exposed pads . the pads are connected to the solder pads via plated through holes and traces on the surface . in fig2 , connection to the end user &# 39 ; s board is also made through the bottom portion 50 . again , the package mounting orientation is bottom portion 50 . connection from the transducer 58 to the plated through holes are made by wire bonding . the back volume is formed by a combination of the back hole of the transducer 58 ( mounted down ) and the bottom portion 50 . in fig2 , connection to the end user &# 39 ; s board is also made through the bottom portion 50 . again , the package mounting orientation is bottom portion 50 . connection from the transducer 58 to the plated through holes are made by wire bonding . with acoustic ports 54 on both sides of the package , there is no back volume . this method is suitable to a directional microphone . in fig2 , connection to the end user &# 39 ; s board is made through the top portion 48 or the bottom portion 53 . the package mounting orientation is either top portion 48 down or bottom portion 50 down . connection from the transducer 58 to the plated through holes is made by flip chipping or wire bonding and trace routing . the back volume 18 is formed by using the air cavity created by laminating the bottom portion 50 and the top portion 48 together . some portion of the package fabrication is performed after the transducer 58 has been attached . in particular , the through hole formation , plating , and solder pad definition would be done after the transducer 58 is attached . the protective membrane 62 is hydrophobic and prevents corrosive plating chemistry from entering the chamber 56 . referring to fig2 - 29 , the portion to which the transducer unit 58 is mounted may include a retaining ring 84 . the retaining ring 84 prevents wicking of an epoxy 86 into the transducer 58 and from flowing into the acoustic port or aperture 54 . accordingly , the shape of the retaining ring 84 will typically match the shape of the transducer 58 foot print . the retaining ring 84 comprises a conductive material ( e . g ., 3 mil . thick copper ) imaged on a non - conductive layer material . referring to fig2 , the retaining ring 84 is imaged onto a non - conductive layer . an epoxy is applied outside the perimeter of the retaining ring 84 , and the transducer 58 is added so that it overlaps the epoxy 86 and the retaining ring 84 . this reduces epoxy 86 wicking up the sides of the transducer &# 39 ; s 58 etched port ( in the case of a silicon die microphone ). alternatively , referring to fig2 , the retaining ring 84 can be located so that the transducer 58 does not contact the retaining ring 84 . in this embodiment , the retaining ring 84 is slightly smaller than the foot print of the transducer 58 so that the epoxy 86 has a restricted path and is , thus , less likely to wick . in fig2 , the retaining ring 84 is fabricated so that it contacts the etched port of the transducer 58 . the following tables provide an illustrative example of a typical circuit board processing technique for fabrication of the housing of this embodiment . table 5 describes the formation of the side portion 52 . this process involves routing a matrix of openings in fr - 4 board . however , punching is thought to be the cost effective method for manufacturing . the punching may done by punching through the entire core , or , alternatively , punching several layers of no - flow pre - preg and thin core c - stage which are then laminated to form the wall of proper thickness . after routing the matrix , the board will have to be electroless or dm plated . finally , the boards will have to be routed to match the bottom portion . this step can be done first or last . it may make the piece more workable to perform the final routing as a first step . table 6 describes the processing of the top portion . the formation of the top portion 48 involves imaging a dry film cover lay or liquid solder mask on the bottom ( i . e . conductive layer forming the inner layer . the exposed layer of the top portion 48 will not have a copper coating . it can be processed this way through etching or purchased this way as a one sided laminate . a matrix of holes is drilled into the lid board . drilling may occur after the imaging step . if so , then a suitable solder mask must be chosen that can survive the drilling process . fig3 is a plan view illustrating a panel 90 for forming a plurality of microphone packages 92 . the microphone packages 92 are distributed on the panel 90 in a 14 × 24 array , or 336 microphone packages total . fewer or more microphone packages may be disposed on the panel 90 , or on smaller or larger panels . as described herein in connection with the various embodiments of the invention , the microphone packages include a number of layers , such as top , bottom and side portions of the housing , environmental barriers , adhesive layers for joining the portions , and the like . to assure alignment of the portions as they are brought together , each portion may be formed to include a plurality of alignment apertures 94 . to simultaneously manufacture several hundred or even several thousand microphones , a bottom layer , such as described herein , is provided . a transducer , amplifier and components are secured at appropriate locations on the bottom layer corresponding to each of the microphones to be manufactured . an adhesive layer , such as a sheet of dry adhesive is positioned over the bottom layer , and a sidewall portion layer is positioned over the adhesive layer . an additional dry adhesive layer is positioned , followed by an environmental barrier layer , another dry adhesive layer and the top layer . the dry adhesive layers are activated , such as by the application of heat and / or pressure . the panel is then separated into individual microphone assemblies using known panel cutting and separating techniques . the microphone , microphone package and method of assembly herein described further allow the manufacture of multiple microphone assembly , such as microphone pairs . in the simplest form , during separation two microphones may be left joined together , such as the microphone pair 96 shown in fig3 . each microphone 98 and 100 of the microphone pair 96 is thus a separate , individually operable microphone in a single package sharing a common sidewall 102 . alternatively , as described herein , conductive traces may be formed in the various layers of either the top or bottom portion thus allowing multiple microphones to be electrically coupled . while specific embodiments have been illustrated and described , numerous modifications come to mind without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention , and the scope of protection is only limited by the scope of the accompanying claims .

US-201213732120-A

the present invention provides a laminate printed board having a novel structure that is able to ensure alignment accuracy of the interboard terminals soldered to one printed board and that is also able to achieve a simplification of the process of soldering the interboard terminals . through - hole lines in which a plurality of through - holes extend in lines are formed on a first printed board . additionally , a press - fitting fastener hole is formed within the through - hole lines and a first end of an interboard terminal is press - fitted and fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole . additionally , first ends of others of the interboard terminals are inserted through and flow soldered to through - holes on the first printed board .

the particulars shown herein are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the present invention . in this regard , no attempt is made to show structural details of the present invention in more detail than is necessary for the fundamental understanding of the present invention , the description is taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the forms of the present invention may be embodied in practice . hereafter , an embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to the figures . first , fig1 illustrates a laminate printed board 10 for the embodiment of the present invention . the laminate printed board 10 is accommodated within a case of an electrical connection box not shown in the drawings , and configures an internal circuit of the electrical connection box . the laminate printed board 10 is configured by a first printed board 12 and a second printed board 14 being disposed in a laminate state opposing each other , spaced apart , and mutually connected by a plurality of interboard terminals 16 . fig2 illustrates the first printed board 12 . the first printed board 12 according to the present embodiment is produced by forming a plurality ( four in fig2 ) of first printed boards 12 in a connected state on one board 17 and cutting out each one . the first printed board 12 has a substantially longitudinal rectangular shape . in an outer peripheral portion of the first printed board 12 , on one long side portion and a pair of short side portions , through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c are respectively formed , in which a plurality of through - holes 18 a are formed in lines along the outer peripheral edges of the first printed board 12 . each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c has a substantially similar configuration to one another , and thus the through - hole line 20 a will be described below as an example . in the through - hole line 20 a , a plurality of through - holes 18 a are formed in one line . as shown in fig3 , the through - holes 18 a , as conventionally known , are formed of a circular through - hole passing through the first printed board 12 . at the through - holes 18 a , a land 24 is formed on a circumferential edge of an opening on a surface 22 on the first printed board 12 facing the second printed board 14 and , in addition , an inner peripheral surface is plated . also , each of the through - holes 18 a is connected to a printed wiring 26 formed on the first printed board 12 . further , on the first printed board 12 , one press - fitting fastener hole 28 is formed at a central portion in each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c . the press - fitting fastener hole 28 has a circular through - hole shape passing through the first printed board 12 . the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is made smaller compared to the inner diameter measurement φ ′ of the through - holes 18 a , and the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is set to a size so that the interboard terminal 16 inserted therethrough is press - fitted to contact the inner circumferential surface of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 . the press - fitting fastener hole 28 in the present embodiment in particular , similar to the rest of the plurality of through - holes 18 a formed in the through - hole line 20 a , is formed of a through - hole electrically connecting the second printed board 14 with the first printed board 12 via the interboard terminal 16 . therefore , in the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , the land 24 is formed on the circumferential edge of the opening on the surface 22 . in addition , the inner peripheral surface is plated , and the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is connected to the printed wiring 26 formed on the first printed board 12 . moreover , the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is made smaller than the inner diameter measurement φ ′ of the other through - holes 18 a ; however , the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 may also have an inner diameter measurement made smaller by making a diameter of a bore - hole from a drill or the like when piercing the through - holes 18 a in the first printed board 12 smaller than the through - holes 18 a , for example . alternatively , as in the present embodiment , in a case where the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is also used as a through - hole , the diameter of the bore hole is made equal to the through - holes 18 a and a thickness measurement of the plating deposited on the inner circumferential surface is made thicker than the through - holes 18 a . thereby , the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 can also be made smaller , or the like , than the inner diameter measurement φ ′ of the through - holes 18 a . when done in this way , the press - fitting fastener hole 28 can also be bored with the same drill as the through - holes 18 a without requiring changing of the drill . in addition , plating thickness is ensured and thus a risk of the plating peeling during press - fitting of the interboard terminal 16 can also be reduced . meanwhile , the second printed board 14 is conventionally known , and has a longitudinal rectangular shape larger than the first printed board 12 . though a detailed illustration is omitted , through - holes 18 b are respectively pierced in the second printed board 14 in positions corresponding to each of the through - holes 18 a , which include the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , on the first printed board 12 . the first printed board 12 and the second printed board 14 are mutually connected by the plurality of interboard terminals 16 . a chain terminal 32 is favorably used as the interboard terminals 16 , as shown in fig4 , in which the plurality of interboard terminals 16 are connected in parallel by a belt - like carrier 30 . each of the interboard terminals 16 has a straight shape formed by a metallic wire rod having a substantially square shape in cross - section and being cut at a predetermined length . a pair of nub - like abutments 34 projecting to both outward sides are formed at both end portions in a length direction of the interboard terminal 16 by crushing or the like . the plurality of such interboard terminals 16 are connected by the carrier 30 in a parallel state extending in parallel to one another . the carrier 30 is formed from a thin metallic plate and is successively formed with a plurality of unit portions 36 . in addition , the carrier 30 is made to be easily severable between each of the unit portions 36 . as shown in fig5 , latching portions 38 rising up perpendicularly are formed curving at both terminal edges of each unit portion 36 . the interboard terminal 16 is made so as to fit into and be held within cutaways 40 formed on the latching portions 38 . further , between the latching portions 38 on each of the unit portions 36 , a fastener clip 42 having substantially an l - shape in cross - section is formed by being cut away , and the interboard terminal 16 is fastened and held with the fastener clip 42 . moreover , the fastener clip 42 partially overlaps with the interboard terminal 16 and , by pulling the carrier 30 away downward in fig5 , a latched state between the interboard terminal 16 and the fastener clip 42 can be easily released and thus the interboard terminal 16 is made easily separable from the carrier 30 . in addition , the chain terminal 32 , in which the plurality of interboard terminals 16 are connected in parallel by the carrier 30 , is configured by the interboard terminals 16 being held by each of the unit portions 36 . furthermore , in a state connected to the carrier 30 , a placement interval pc for each of the interboard terminals 16 is made to equal a placement interval pt of the through - holes 18 a and 18 b , including the press - fitting fastener holes 28 , on the first printed board 12 and the second printed board 14 ( see fig3 ). in addition , in a state connected to the carrier 30 , the interboard terminals 16 can be cut away to the same number as the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , in the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c on the first printed board 12 by the carrier 30 in this type of chain terminal 32 being severed . the first ends of each of the interboard terminals 16 are then inserted through the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , in each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c . furthermore , the amount of insertion of the interboard terminals 16 into the through - holes 18 a is regulated by the abutments 34 touching the first printed board 12 . as shown in fig6 , the interboard terminal 16 inserted through the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is fastened in a state projecting from the first printed board 12 by being press - fitted into the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , without requiring soldering . furthermore , in the present embodiment , the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is made smaller than the inner diameter measurement φ ′ of the through - holes 18 a by increasing the thickness of the plating on the inner circumferential surface . in addition , the inner diameter measurement φ of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is made smaller than a maximum outer shape measurement of an axially - perpendicular cross - section at the end portion of the interboard terminal 16 inserted through the press - fitting fastener hole 28 . thereby , the interboard terminal 16 inserted through the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is press - fitted and fastened while scraping away the plating on the inner circumferential surface of the press - fitting fastener hole 28 . in addition , the first ends of the other interboard terminals 16 are held in position in a state inserted through each through - hole 18 a without requiring any particular press - fitting force due to being connected by the carrier 30 to the interboard terminal 16 press - fitted and fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 . under these conditions , by being reflow soldered in the state inserted through each of the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , each of the interboard terminals 16 is electrically connected to each of the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , and is provided projecting from the first printed board 12 . in addition , due to the overlap of the first printed board 12 , on which the interboard terminals 16 are projectingly provided , with the second printed board 14 , the second ends of the interboard terminals 16 projecting from the first printed board 12 are inserted through each of the through - holes 18 b on the second printed board 14 . furthermore , the amount of insertion of the interboard terminals 16 into the through - holes 18 b is regulated by the abutments 34 touching the second printed board 14 . further , on the second printed board 14 , a plurality of connector terminals 44 , relays 46 , and the like connected to fuses , connectors , and the like are inserted through through - holes not shown in the drawings . the end portions of the interboard terminals 16 inserted through the through - holes 18 b are flow soldered along with the connector terminals 44 and the relays 46 . thereby , the laminate printed board 10 is configured in which the first printed board 12 and the second printed board 14 are mutually connected by the plurality of interboard terminals 16 . furthermore , the laminate printed board 10 of this type is favorably manufactured as below , for example . first , the first printed board 12 and the second printed board 14 are prepared . using a conventionally known procedure , the first printed board 12 is formed with the plurality of through - holes 18 a in a line , thereby forming the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c . further , as described above , the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is formed within each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c , for example by making the bore - hole diameter of a drill smaller than the through - holes 18 a , or by making the thickness measurement of the plating larger than the through - holes 18 a . in addition , the chain terminal 32 is prepared and , by severing the carrier 30 in the chain terminal 32 , the interboard terminals 16 are prepared by being cut away in a state where connection to the carrier 30 is maintained , to the same number as the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , in the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c on the first printed board 12 . next , as shown in fig7 , first ends of each of the interboard terminals 16 are inserted through each of the through - holes 18 a , including the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , in the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c on the first printed board 12 . furthermore , although omitted from the drawings , a cream solder in a paste form for reflow soldering is printed on the first printed board 12 . further , surface - mounted components such as an lsi are disposed on the surface 22 of the first printed board 12 , as necessary . moreover , in fig7 , by inserting each of the interboard terminals 16 through each of the through - holes 18 a on four of the first printed boards 12 prior to cutting away from the board 17 , soldering of the interboard terminals 16 to four of the first printed boards 12 is performed simultaneously . during this insertion , the interboard terminal 16 inserted through the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is fastened in a press - fitted state to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 . accordingly , the other interboard terminals 16 are connected by the carrier 30 to the interboard terminal 16 press - fitted and fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 and are held in a state inserted through each of the through - holes 18 a . in addition , by dropping the first printed board 12 , in which the interboard terminals 16 have been inserted through the through - holes 18 a , into a reflow kiln and by melting the solder , each of the interboard terminals 16 is reflow soldered to the first printed board 12 , along with the surface - mounted components . as described above , in the present embodiment , reflow soldering of four of the first printed boards 12 is performed simultaneously and , after reflow soldering of the interboard terminals 16 is completed , each of the first printed boards 12 is individually cut away from the board 17 . next , as shown in fig1 , in addition to inserting the connector terminals 44 and the relays 46 through the through - holes ( not shown in the drawing ) of the second printed board 14 , the first printed board 12 obtained previously is overlapped on the second printed board 14 , and the second ends of the interboard terminals 16 projecting from the first printed board 12 are respectively inserted through the corresponding through - holes 18 b of the second printed board 14 . moreover , in this state , each of the interboard terminals 16 is preferably maintained in a state connected to the carrier 30 . also , by immersing the reverse surface of the second printed board 14 in a soldering pot filled with liquid solder , the interboard terminals 16 are flow soldered to the second printed board 14 along with the connector terminals 44 , the relays 46 , and the like . thereafter , by peeling away the carrier 30 connecting the interboard terminals 16 , the laminate printed board 10 can be obtained . according to the laminate printed board 10 having such a configuration , the press - fitting fastener hole 28 capable of press - fitting and fastening the interboard terminal 16 is formed in each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c on the first printed board 12 . thereby , in a state where the plurality of interboard terminals 16 are connected to the carrier 30 , by press - fitting and fastening one of the interboard terminals 16 to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , the other interboard terminals 16 can be held via the carrier 30 in a state inserted through each of the through - holes 18 a . as a result , the plurality of interboard terminals 16 can be held in a state inserted through the through - holes 18 a without requiring a special component such as a base . in addition , the plurality of interboard terminals 16 are reflow soldered to the first printed board 12 in a state inserted through the through - holes 18 a . thereby , as in a case where the interboard terminals 16 are flow soldered to both the first printed board 12 and the second printed board 14 , for example , the time and effort of immersing in the soldering pot the reverse surface of the first printed board 12 on which the first ends of the interboard terminals 16 project , and then once again immersing in the soldering pot the reverse surface of the second printed board 14 on which the second ends project becomes unnecessary , and a simplification of the soldering process can be achieved . in particular , in a case where the surface - mounted components are provided on the surface 22 of the first printed board 12 , the interboard terminals 16 can be soldered to the first printed board 12 in the reflow soldering process of the surface - mounted components , and further efficiency of the manufacturing process can be achieved . in particular , in the present embodiment , the land 24 is formed on the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , and the interboard terminal 16 press - fitted and fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is also fastened by soldering to the land 24 . thereby , the interboard terminal 16 can be fastened more securely to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , and the risk can be reduced that the interboard terminal 16 inserted through the press - fitting fastener hole 28 may slip free and become a foreign body with respect to manufacturing apparatuses , and thus impart a negative effect . further , by connecting the press - fitting fastener hole 28 to the printed wiring 26 as well , the press - fitting fastener hole 28 can also be used as a through - hole configuring an electrically conductive path , and further efficient use of the first printed board 12 can be achieved . the press - fitting fastener hole 28 is formed in a central portion of each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c . thereby , by fastening the central portion of the plurality of the interboard terminals 16 connected by the carrier 30 to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , the plurality of interboard terminals 16 on both sides of the interboard terminal 16 fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole 28 can be supported with good balance . moreover , only one press - fitting fastener hole 28 is formed in each of the through - hole lines 20 a , 20 b , and 20 c . when the plurality of interboard terminals 16 are inserted through the through - holes 18 a , only one of the interboard terminals 16 is press - fitted into the press - fitting fastener hole 28 , and thus the first printed board 12 can be easily assembled , without requiring an excessive press - fitting force . an embodiment of the present invention was described above ; however , the present invention is not limited to this specific description . for example , a press - fitting fastener hole is not required to be a through - hole configuring a conductive path , and may be a simple through - hole passing through the first printed board . when made in such a way , even where there is a risk of damaging the press - fitting fastener hole during press - fitting of the interboard terminal , there is no need to weigh a reduction in reliability of the electrical connection . further , the land formed on the press - fitting fastener hole is not strictly required , either . however , the land alone may be formed , without being connected to the printed wiring . when made in such a way , the interboard terminal press - fitted and fastened to the press - fitting fastener hole is soldered to the land and can ensure a stronger fastening force . further , the shape of the opening of the press - fitting fastener hole is not limited to a specific shape , so long as the inserted interboard terminal can be press - fitted and fastened thereto . therefore , in a case where the interboard terminal has a flattened shape in cross - section or the like , for example , the press - fitting fastener hole may have a long hole shape , or the like . moreover , a plurality of the press - fitting fastener holes may be formed in the through - hole lines , and are not limited necessarily to being formed in the central portion of the through - hole lines . therefore , for example , two of the press - fitting fastener holes may be formed at both end portions of the through - hole lines , or the like . it is noted that the foregoing examples have been provided merely for the purpose of explanation and are in no way to be construed as limiting of the present invention . while the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments , it is understood that the words which have been used herein are words of description and illustration , rather than words of limitation . changes may be made , within the purview of the appended claims , as presently stated and as amended , without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention in its aspects . although the present invention has been described herein with reference to particular structures , materials and embodiments , the present invention is not intended to be limited to the particulars disclosed herein ; rather , the present invention extends to all functionally equivalent structures , methods and uses , such as are within the scope of the appended claims . the present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments , and various variations and modifications may be possible without departing from the scope of the present invention .

US-201213550883-A

in the interest of ease of manufacture , hybrid lasers of distributed - bragg - reflector type are preferred for use as light sources in optical communications . such lasers are made to operate away from mode instabilities by adjusting a laser parameter such as , e . g ., laser temperature , thereby assuring highly error - free transmission . alternatively , by suitable design of the bragg reflector it is possible to render mode instability of negligible influence on error rate .

fig1 shows substrate 11 supporting laser active layer 12 , such substrate typically including a buffer layer . fig1 further shows upper cladding layer 13 , and contact layers 14 and 15 with soldered electrical wire connections . contact layer 15 also is in physical contact with submount 10 which , in turn , is attached to thermoelectric cooler 30 . shown further is a bragg reflector comprising substrate 21 , cladding layers 22 and 24 , and waveguide layer 23 ; the free surface of cladding layer 24 is shown bearing a diffraction grating which , during laser operation , serves as a bragg - reflection element . alternatively , a diffraction grating may be present , e . g ., at the interface of layers 23 and 24 , or at the interface of layers 23 and 22 . other buried - grating arrangements are not precluded . the bragg reflector and the laser - active portion are shown having respective facets 29 and 19 in a facing relationship . substrate 21 is attached to submount 20 which in turn is attached to submount 10 . cooler ( or heater ) 30 serves to control laser temperature , thereby influencing the laser operating point ; influence is the stronger the more diverse the materials of the laser active component and the bragg - reflector component of a hybrid assembly . excellent control is obtained , e . g ., when group iii - v materials are used for the former , and silicon - based dielectric materials for the latter . as an alternative to temperature control of an entire laser assembly , heating or cooling may be applied selectively , e . g ., to the laser - active portion alone , or to the bragg - reflector portion alone . preferably , in the interest of minimizing fabry - perot modes and interface reflections , an anti - reflection coating is applied to facet 19 of the laser - active portion . such a coating may be applied also to facet 29 of the bragg - reflector portion . typical material compositions are n - doped indium phosphide for substrate 11 , n - doped indium gallium arsenide phosphide for the active layer 12 , and p - doped indium gallium arsenide phosphide for the upper cladding layer 13 . conveniently , the reflector substrate 21 is made of silicon , and the cladding layer 22 of oxidized silicon . preferred thickness of layer 22 is sufficient to essentially prevent leakage of the optical field into the silicon substrate ; a thickness of approximately 6 micrometers is adequate in this respect . typical materials for the reflector waveguide layer 23 are silicon nitride or phosphosilicate glass , and silica glass for the cladding layer 24 . the submounts 10 and 20 are made of a material having high thermal conductivity . particularly suitable in this respect are silicon and beryllium oxide . fig2 shows layers 21 , 22 , 23 , and 24 as described above in connection with fig1 . waveguide layer 23 is shown as having rib structure . typical waveguide layer thickness is approximately 120 nanometers as measured under the rib , and approximately 110 nanometers to both sides of the rib . the width of the rib may be approximately 3 micrometers . ( such rib structure is conveniently made by deposition of a 120 - nanometer layer , followed by etching of a mesa in the presence of a photodefined mask covering the rib .) layer 22 may have a thickness of approximately 5 micrometers , and layer 24 a thickness of 0 . 3 to 0 . 8 micrometer . fig3 and 4 show a distributed - bragg - reflector laser having a reflector portion and a laser - active portion as described above in connection with fig1 and 2 . however , now the laser - active portion is attached to silicon substrate 21 which , via solder 25 , and due to its high thermal conductivity , also serves as a heat sink . an optical fiber having a core portion 41 and a cladding portion 42 is shown aligned with the bragg - reflector portion , alignment between the fiber and the laser being facilitated by placement of the fiber in a selectively etched v - groove in the substrate . selective surface etching also facilitates alignment of the laser - active portion with the reflector portion ; here , matching is between rails 211 and 212 on substrate 21 , and grooves 111 and 112 in the laser substrate 11 . as shown , both vertical and lateral alignment is achieved by selectively etched rail and groove surface features , and the remaining degree of freedom can be used for butting the laser - active portion against the bragg - reflector portion . for a survey of applicable silicon etching technology see , e . g ., k . e . petersen , &# 34 ; silicon as a mechanical material &# 34 ;, proceedings of the ieee , vol . 70 ( 1982 ), pp . 420 - 457 . alignment resulting from matched , selectively etched features is applicable also when a laser - active portion first is attached to a silicon submount , followed by positioning of such submount relative to a bragg - reflector portion . this approach may be used with laser - active portions mounted &# 34 ; junction - down &# 34 ;; in this respect see , e . g ., y . seiwa et al ., &# 34 ; high power cw operation over 400 mw on five - stripe phase - locked laser arrays assembled by new junction down mounting &# 34 ;, journal of applied physics , vol . 61 ( 1987 ), pp . 440 - 442 . waveguide 23 is shown having an optionally tapered portion extending beyond the reflector grating ; such tapered portion can serve to broaden an optical mode for ready coupling into the optical fiber . further in the interest of good coupling and minimized reflection at the laser - fiber interface , the gap between reflector facet 28 and fiber facet 48 preferably is filled with an index - matching medium 50 such as , e . g ., an epoxy whose refractive index is closely matched to the refractive indices of the laser and fiber waveguide materials . use of such a medium is particularly advantageous for minimizing the optical effects of unavoidable surface roughness at the etched reflector surface 28 . since efficacy of such a medium depends on a close match between the refractive indices of laser waveguide material and , typically , silica fiber material , choice of silicon - based dielectric materials for bragg reflectors is particularly advantageous . fig5 shows alignment of a laser - active portion 51 by means of a v - groove surface feature of silicon substrate 52 , with solder 53 used for contact . this represents an alternative to the grooves - and - rails approach of fig4 also providing for lateral as well as vertical alignment . fig6 shows distributed - bragg - reflector - laser active portion 61 , reflector portion 62 , and electronic unit 63 connected to laser active portion 61 , representing a transmitter in accordance with the invention . as shown , lasers of the invention are particularly suited for direct electrical modulation ; however , use of an optical modulator external to the laser is not precluded . coupling to an optical fiber 64 may be at the laser - active portion as shown , or else at the reflector portion as shown in fig3 . fig7 shows transmitters 701 , 702 , and 703 for operation at respective wavelengths λ 1 , λ 2 , and λ 3 . optical fibers 711 , 712 , and 713 connect transmitters 701 , 702 , and 703 to multiplexer 72 to which optical transmission line 73 is connected . transmission line 73 is connected also to demultiplexer 74 which , under operating conditions , separates signals at wavelengths λ 1 , λ 2 , and λ 3 for further transmission over optical fibers 741 , 752 , and 753 to respective receivers 761 , 762 , and 763 . since hybrid distributed - bragg - reflector lasers are readily manufactured to small wavelength tolerances , such lasers are particularly suited for use in wavelength - multiplexed systems where closely - spaced channels at specified wavelengths are called for . fig8 shows a curve 81 corresponding to gain - equals - loss in a first preferred embodiment of the invention . ( the pronounced dip in curve 81 is caused by the presence of a bragg reflector , in whose absence the curve would be flat . the bragg width δλ b is directly related to the coupling strength of the grating .) also shown are phase curves 82 , 83 , and 84 corresponding to round trip phase of 2πn , 2π ( n + 1 ), and 2π ( n + 2 ), where n denotes an integer . ( the longer the laser - active region , the closer the spacing of these curves .) since , in a hybrid laser under consideration , the refractive index of a laser - active medium typically has greater temperature dependence than the refractive index of the reflector medium , temperature changes lead to changes in the position of curves 82 , 83 , and 84 relative to curve 81 , resulting in a change of operating point . if temperature changes by a sufficient amount ( in the case of the laser of examples 1 and 2 below by approximately 14 degrees c . ), the laser operating point jumps from one of the curves 82 , 83 , and 84 to another , and mode instability is observed . the operating point is also influenced by changes in mechanical alignment of laser components , and there may be other influences in long - term operation . in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the invention , the bragg width δλ b is less than the mode spacing δλ m of the laser - active portion , and a laser operating parameter is chosen , once or repeatedly , so as to result in a preferred laser operating point 85 away from the point 86 corresponding to mode instability . preferably in this case , mode spacing is less than 90 percent of the bragg width . fig9 shows a curve 91 corresponding to gain - equals - loss in a second preferred embodiment of the invention , as well as phase curves 92 , 93 , and 94 corresponding to round trip phase of 2πn , 2π ( n + 1 ), and 2π ( n + 2 ). in accordance with this embodiment of the invention , the bragg width δλ b is greater than the mode spacing δλ m , and mode transitions do not result in significant gain changes . preferred bragg width is at least 1 . 1 , and preferably at least 2 times ( but not more than 4 times ) mode spacing . this second preferred embodiment of the invention is of interest especially for communications applications where narrow linewidth and frequency stability are less critical . low transmission error rate is obtained even though laser operation involves mode instability , provided the bragg - reflector grating is made to have a broad reflection spectrum . fig1 illustrates determination of a preferred laser temperature in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the invention on the basis of measurement of threshold current as a function of temperature . the curve of fig1 can be seen to have cusps -- which were found to correspond to points of mode instability . based on such curve , a laser operating temperature can be selected away from instabilities , e . g ., at or near the midpoint between cusps . ( alternatively , mode instabilities can be determined by spectral analysis of laser output .) instead of controlling laser - temperature over - all , it is also possible to control the temperature of selected laser portions such as , e . g ., the laser - active medium or the bragg - reflector waveguide . a similar curve can be obtained , e . g ., when the independent variable is a voltage which influences the refractive index of a liquid - crystal material in contact with the bragg - reflector grating or , possibly , of an electro - optic material . the operating point of a laser can be affected also by the distance between the laser - active portion and the bragg - reflector portion . further of interest in this respect is a bragg - reflector element including a semiconductor material whose refractive index depends on carrier density as influenced by current injection . as shown in fig1 , control of a laser operating parameter may involve temperature control of an auxiliary medium in contact with the bragg - reflector grating . the cross - sectional structure shown in fig1 is similar to that of fig2 except that the material of layer 24 is chosen to exhibit strong changes in refractive index as a function of temperature . chromium heater strips 26 are included to control the temperature of medium 24 , thereby affecting the operating point of the laser . transparent silicone rubber such as , e . g ., dow - corning 684 represents a particularly effective material choice for layer 24 . as an alternative to the arrangement shown in fig1 , a heater can be mounted on a separate substrate and placed separate from layer 23 , with the space between the heater and layer 23 filled with material 24 . furthermore , a material 24 , may be chosen such that , in combination with the material of waveguide layer 23 , the optical properties of the bragg - reflector grating and the wavelength of the bragg resonance are rendered essentially temperature - insensitive , so that temperature changes do not lead to changes in laser operating point . this aspect may be of particular advantage in coherent communications systems . while methods for determining a laser parameter such as , e . g ., laser temperature as described above in connection with fig1 are best suited for use prior to laser installation , it is also possible to control a laser parameter in the course of actual laser operation . this may involve continuous or periodic monitoring and may involve the use of optical taps for measuring the power of radiation entering into and transmitted by a bragg reflector . such taps are shown in fig1 where waveguides 123 and 124 with reflecting regions 127 and 128 couple light from a bragg - reflector waveguide 23 into detectors 125 and 126 . by controlling a laser operating parameter so as to keep the power ration essentially constant , a laser may be operated free of mode instabilities . monitoring may be applied also to power reflected by a bragg reflector . on account of narrow linewidth and low chirp , single - mode lasers obtained by choice of operating point away from mode instabilities as described above are particularly suited for transmission over dispersive waveguides and for coherent systems . a bragg reflector was made on a silicon chip by standard chemical - vapor - deposition ( cvd ) processing and photodefined etching of a rib waveguide , such bragg reflector being as shown in fig1 and 2 . the length of the reflector was approximately 5 mm . a reflector grating , having a period of approximately 0 . 5 micrometer for first - order bragg reflection , was formed by holographic lithography and etched into the silica glass cladding layer . the spectral properties of the silicon - chip bragg reflector were measured by transmission of white light and by reflection and transmission of tunable f - center laser light ; a typical transmission - and - reflection spectrum is shown in fig1 . the bragg line was found to be approximately 6 angstroms wide and to be centered at 15182 angstroms . a standard channeled - substrate buried - heterostructure laser as described by d . p . wilt et al ., &# 34 ; channelled - substrate buried - heterostructure ingaasp / inp laser with semi - insulating omvpe base structure and lpe regrowth &# 34 ;, electronics letters , vol . 22 , pp . 869 - 870 was butt - coupled to the silicon - chip bragg reflector ; no anti - reflection coating was applied . threshold current of the laser was found to be approximately 21 ma . ( without external feedback , threshold current was approximately 25 ma , and it is estimated that power coupling efficiency between the laser and the reflector waveguide was approximately 20 percent .) a continuous - wave spectrum of the laser was recorded at a laser current of approximately 100 ma , and the mode - suppression ratio was found to be greater than 5000 to 1 . the wavelength chirping characteristics of the laser were investigated with and without the external feedback . for this purpose , spectra were recorded as the laser drive current was increased in steps of 5 ma ; see fig1 , bottom portion for spectra obtained with external feedback , and top portion without external feedback . as can be seen from fig1 , top portion , the lasing wavelength of each of the lasing modes shifts approximately 0 . 05 angstrom / ma or 0 . 65 gigahertz / ma . by contrast , as can be seen from fig1 , bottom portion , this shift is less than 0 . 03 gigahertz / ma in the presence of external feedback . 1 - ghz chip of the laser when modulated with a 45 - ma peak - to - peak signal is shown in fig1 . it can be seen that dynamic linewidth is reduced from approximately 0 . 75 angstrom ( top portion of fig1 ) to less than approximately 0 . 2 angstrom ( bottom portion of fig1 ) upon attachment of the external reflector . to verify stable , single - longitudinal - mode operation and low - chirp performance of the laser , a transmission experiment was carried out at a bit rate of 1 . 7 gbit / s lengths of 10 m and of 82 . 5 km of optical fiber . a receiver consisting of an ingaas avalanche photodiode was used , coupled directly to the 50 - ohm input of a commercial high - speed amplifier . the laser was modulated with a 45 - ma peak - to peak non - return - to - zero 2 15 - 1 pseudo - random data signal . as shown in fig1 , a received power of approximately - 25 . 2 dbm was required to realize a bit - error rate no exceeding 10 - 9 in the case of transmission over 82 . 5 km . with the laser under the same modulation conditions , but with only 10 m of fiber , a power of approximately - 25 . 6 dbm was required for the same bit - error rate ; this indicates a dispersion penalty of not more than approximately 0 . 4 db . a laser was made as described above , except that reflector breadth was approximately 25 angstroms as contrasted with 6 angstroms in example 1 . laser operation over a wide temperature range was normally single - mode , and occasionally dual - mode . laser amplitude was observed to vary smoothly through transitions between single - and dual - mode operation , with at most 10 percent amplitude variation during transitions . error rate experiments were performed , and the power penalty during mode transition was found not to exceed approximately 0 . 5 db .

US-35846889-A

a process is disclosed for producing extremely fine polyamide / polystyrene fibers which include the steps of forming a molten blend consisting of from about 35 weight percent up to about 45 weight percent of a polyamide , preferably polycaprolactam and , correspondingly , from about 65 weight percent down to about 55 weight percent of a polystyrene , forcing this molten blend through an extrusion die to form a structure such as a strand , monofilament , sheet or film , melt drawing the extruded structure at a draw ratio of at least 4 : 1 to orient the same and thereby obtain a fibrillatable structure , and thereafter mechanically fibrillating the oriented , fibrillatable structure by cold drawing whereby the structure spontaneously and completely breaks up into extremely fine polyamide / polystyrene fibers . the blend may optionally additionally contain up to about 15 weight percent of an ethylene / acrylic acid copolymer containing about 20 weight percent acrylic acid .

the improved process of the invention and the extremely fine fibers obtained thereby are illustrated with greater particularity by the inclusion of the following specific examples . these examples are intended to be illustrative of the invention only and are not intended to limit the same in any way . this example illustrates the process of the invention and the extremely fine fibers produced thereby from the composition employed in the process . a starting blend of 55 weight percent polystyrene and 45 weight percent polyamide was prepared by placing 55 parts of polystyrene ( dow styron 666 , a commercial polystyrene having a molecular weight of about 150 , 000 ) and 45 parts of polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 , a polycaprolactam having a molecular weight of about 25 , 000 ) in a brabender sigma mixer head heated to 250 ° c . the composition was then melted and mixed until the melt appeared homogeneous , which point was reached after a period of approximately 10 minutes . this blend was then removed from the mixer and after cooling was ground . a monofilament was then prepared from this blend by extrusion of the same at 235 ° c . through a die having a circular cross section and an orifice diameter of approximately 0 . 083 inches . the monofilament as extruded was passed through a pair of draw - down rolls and then to take - up roll . the draw - down rolls were operated at a rate such that the molten strand emerging from the die was stretched until the diameter of the finished monofilament was approximately 1 / 4 that of the die orifice ; equivalent to a draw ratio of about 16 : 1 . after the monofilament was cooled , it was placed under tensile stress at ambient temperatures for further orientation . when this monofilament was thus stretched at ambient temperatures , it broke up spontaneously and completely into extremely fine fibers of a diameter of approximately 3 microns . in this example , extremely fine fibers were produced from an extruded monofilament as in example 1 with one exception . the exception in this example was that the blend consisted of 60 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 40 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ). upon drawing of the cooled monofilament at room temperature , the same broke up completely to yield extremely fine fibers as in example 1 . in an additional experiment , substantially identical to that set forth above in this example , with the exception that the 60 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) was replaced with 60 weight percent of a higher molecular weight polystyrene ( dow styron 690 , a commercial polystyrene having a molecular weight of about 180 , 000 ), identical results were obtained in that extremely fine fibers were obtained upon cold drawing of the monofilament produced from the polystyrene / polyamide blend . in yet another experiment , substantially identical to the above example 2 , with the exception that the 40 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) was replaced with a higher molecular weight polyamide ( basf ultramide b - 4 , a commercial polycaprolactam having a molecular weight of about 37 , 000 ), similar results were obtained in that the monofilament produced from the polystyrene / polyamide blend broke up completely into extremely fine fibers upon cold drawing . in this example , a monofilament was produced from a blend of 65 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 35 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) in a manner identical to that set forth in example 1 . the resultant monofilament after hot drawing and cooling as in example 1 was subjected to further drawing or tensile stress at ambient temperatures . when the cooled monofilament was thus stretched , it broke up completely to yield extremely fine fibers . this example illustrates the use of a blend containing a lower amount of the polystyrene which is not satisfactory in the process of the invention . a blend containing 50 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 50 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) was prepared as in example 1 . a monofilament was then produced from this blend and hot drawn as described in example 1 . after the monofilament was cooled , further orientation was attempted at room temperatures . the monofilament would stretch until a breaking occurred but the monofilament could not be completely converted into extremely fine fibers as were obtained in the previous examples 1 through 3 , inclusive . there were , however , many fine fibers at the point of break of the monofilament . in a second experiment similar to that set forth in the above example 4 but employing a blend containing 40 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 60 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ), similar results were obtained in that the monofilament would break but could not be converted into fine fibers as were obtained in examples 1 through 3 , inclusive . again , though , there were fine fibers at the point of break in the monofilament , but in this second experiment , there was a smaller number of these fine fibers at the point of break than in the previous experiment of example 4 . this example illustrates the use of a blend containing a higher level of polystyrene which is not satisfactory in the process of the invention . a blend containing 70 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 30 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) was prepared as in example 1 . a monofilament was produced from this blend and hot drawn as in example 1 . after cooling , additional drawing of the monofilament to produce further orientation was attempted . it was found that the monofilament was too brittle for further good orientation with the result that it could not be satisfactorily converted into extremely fine fibrils as obtained in examples 1 through 3 , inclusive . this example is similar to example 1 with the exception that the blend was prepared in an extruder rather than in a mixing head . a blend consisting of 55 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 45 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) was prepared by mixing 55 parts by weight of the polystyrene pellets and 45 parts by weight of the polyamide pellets and then extruding the mixed pellets through a twin screw extruder . the extruded strand was passed through a water cooling trough to cool the same and was then chopped and dried . a monofilament was then prepared from this blend as in example 1 with hot drawing . after cooling and further drawing of the monofilament to produce additional orientation therein , the monofilament broke up spontaneously and completely into extremely fine fibers having a diameter of about 3 microns as in example 1 . this example is included to illustrate the fact that monofilaments of the blended composition within the range of the invention may also be converted to fibers by means other than by cold drawing and further orientation of the monofilament . one of these other means illustrated by this example is a mechanical beating action . a blend of 55 weight percent polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ) and 45 weight percent polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) was prepared by extruding a mixture of the two through a 1 inch killion laboratory extruder . the following temperatures and conditions were employed in the extruder when the blended strand was extruded therefrom : zone 1 , 210 ° c . ; zone 2 , 265 ° c . ; die , 222 ° c . ; screw speed , 20 . 5 rpm . the resultant blended strand having a diameter of 0 . 075 inch was then cut or chopped into 1 / 4 inch lengths . the chopped pellets from the blended strand were suspended in isopropanol and were then reduced to fiber by beating for approximately 10 minutes in a waring blender which was cooled to prevent overheating . one of the utilities or uses of the extremely fine polyamide / polystyrene fibers obtained by the process of this invention is in the making or preparation of paper or other nonwoven sheet - like structures or materials on paper - making machinery , which may be manaufactured by known paper - making processes . therefore , a paper handsheet was prepared from the fibers obtained in this example on a noble and wood sheet - forming machine . to obtain the paper handsheet , the above - obtained fibers were slurried and this slurry of polyamide / polystyrene fibers was poured into the head box of the noble and wood sheet - forming machine . a paper handsheet was then formed thereon by the usual and normal methods employed in the use of this sheet - forming machine . fibers were obtained in this example similar to those obtained in example 7 with the exception that the blend was extruded in sheet form rather than in the form of a strand . the blend as set forth in example 7 was extruded through a 1 inch killion laboratory extruder under the conditions set forth in that example with the exception that the circular die was replaced with a sheet die . as the molten blend exited the die in sheet or web form , it was picked up and run over a chilled roll which was run at a rate such that the same orientation was produced in the molten web as was produced in the strand of example 7 . the resultant extruded sheet , after cooling , was cut into pieces of 1 / 4 inch length in the machine or extrusion direction , which were then reduced to fiber by being suspended in isopropanol and beating in a waring blender . these fibers were then converted into paper handsheets on the noble and wood sheet - forming machine as set forth in example 7 . the fibers produced in this example were more uniform and the paper handsheets fabricated therefrom were of equal or better quality than those obtained in example 7 . it has also been found that a fiber of improved quality and paper handsheets of improved properties may be obtained if a small amount of a low molecular weight ethylene / acrylic acid copolymer is added to the polyamide / polystyrene blend prior to extrusion thereof . a mixture and then a blended strand was prepared in this example as in example 7 with the exception that the starting mixture or composition consisted of 55 parts polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ), 45 parts polyamide ( gulf nylon nx 3013 ) and 10 parts of an ethylene / acrylic acid copolymer ( union carbide eaa 9300 , a copolymer having a melt index of 50 and containing 80 weight percent ethylene and 20 weight percent acrylic acid ). the strand extruded from the blend was chopped into 1 / 4 inch length pellets and reduced to fibers as in example 7 . the fibers obtained in both examples 7 and 9 were submitted to a microscopic examination and comparison from which it was determined that the fibers obtained in this example 9 were of an improved quality , this being concluded from the fact that the pulp of example 9 was finer , more uniform and contained much less coarse material . a paper handsheet was prepared on the noble and wood sheet - forming machine from the fibers obtained in this example by the method employed in example 7 . a paper sheet so produced also showed some improvement , which was evident from the fact that the sheet was of greater strength and the surface thereof was both softer and smoother . this example illustrates the fact that when the polystyrene level within the polyamide / polystyrene blend drops from 55 weight percent to 50 weight percent , the fibers obtained from the blend are coarser and much less useful than the fibers obtained from blends wherein the polystyrene is present in an amount of from about 55 weight percent up to about 65 weight percent as , for example , illustrated in example 9 . a blend was prepared from a mixture consisting of 50 parts polystyrene ( dow styron 666 ), 50 parts polyamide ( gulg nylon nx 3013 ) and 10 parts of an ethylene / acrylic acid copolymer ( union carbide eaa 9300 , a copolymer having a melt index of 50 and containing 80 weight percent ethylene and 20 weight percent acrylic acid ). the mixture was converted to a blended strand by extrusion through a 1 inch killion laboratory extruder under the conditions set forth in example 7 and then chopped into 1 / 4 inch pellets . the chopped pellets were reduced to fibers by suspension in isopropanol and beating for approximately 10 minutes in a waring blender which was cooled to prevent overheating . the resultant fibers were coarser and much less useful than those obtained in either example 7 or example 9 . we have found that further improvements in the properties of the paper sheets produced from the fibrils obtained by this invention may be brought about by the addition of binders as are used and as is commonly the practice in the production of nonwoven fabrics . the binders which may be used are those typically used in nonwovens , e . g ., acrylic latexes , vinyl acetate latexes or styrenebutadiene latexes . the binders may be added by conventional methods used in nonwoven technology . this example illustrates the use of a binder in the preparation of a paper sheet made from the fibrils obtained by the invention . a fiber slurry was prepared from the fibrils obtained in example 9 and fed to the head box of the noble and wood sheet - forming machine , after which sheet formation thereon was carried out by the usual and normal methods employed in the use of this sheet - forming machine . however , while the wet sheet was still on the wire screen portion of this sheet - forming machine , it was saturated with an acrylic latex binder ( union carbide ucar 865 , diluted with water to contain 15 weight percent solids ). this saturated sheet was then removed from the screen , pressed to remove excess binder and dried on a drum at 90 ° c . the resultant dried sheet exhibited greatly improved strength . similar results were obtained when other acrylic latexes were used as binders , e . g ., ucar 891 , rhoplex b - 5 and rhoplex k - 3 ( rohm & amp ; haas ). while only certain preferred embodiments of this invention have been described and illustrated by way of example , many modifications within the true spirit and scope of this invention and within the following claims will occur to those skilled in the art . 1 what is claimed as new and what it is desired to secure by letters patent of the united states is :

US-22048272-A

this invention directs itself to a subgingival toothbrush for insertion of first and second sets of bristles below the gum line of a user . first and second sets of bristles are adapted to be oscillated and abrasively contact a tooth surface below the gum line to disrupt bacteria adhering to the tooth surface . the first and second sets of bristles are encapsulated by an encapsulating pair of sleeve members to provide stabilization of the first and second sets of bristles when in operational use . in this manner , first and second sets of bristles can optimally be inserted beneath the gum line of a user for abrasive action against the tooth surface and aid in controlling periodontal disease .

referring now to fig1 - 6 , there is shown subgingival toothbrush 10 particularly adapted to be inserted between teeth 12 of user 14 for use within gum pockets 16 depicted in fig6 . in general , subgingival toothbrush 10 is adapted for insertion between teeth 12 of user 14 and for positional placement under the user &# 39 ; s gum 18 . once inserted below gum line 22 , as will be seen in following paragraphs , subgingival toothbrush 10 is contiguously interfaced with tooth surface 20 beneath gum line 22 to provide an abrasive interface when displaced in an oscillating manner to disrupt bacteria and other waste materials contained on tooth surface 20 . in this manner , subgingival toothbrush 10 provides for a cleansing of tooth surface 20 below gum line 22 wherein bacterial ecosystems growing on tooth surface 20 may be dislodged from tooth surface 20 and removed from root or tooth surface 20 to minimize periodontal disease progression . destructive periodontal disease is directly related to subgingival overgrowth of specific genera of oral bacteria . subgingival toothbrush 10 has been found to be effective in disrupting and removing various bacterial species that are associated with periodontitis including but not limited to black - pigmented bacteroides and porphyromonas species . such organisms are found in the general population however such species generally increase with the onset of periodontal diseases . the overgrowth of destructive bacterial species is a response to the subgingival environment , which is a reflection of the specific host defenses in combination with local artatomic variations such as complex root contours or tilting of the teeth 12 . referring now to fig1 - 4 and 6 , there is shown subgingival toothbrush 10 having handle member 24 extending generally in a longitudinal direction defined by longitudinal direction arrow 26 shown in fig2 . handle member 24 includes both gripping section 30 and base section 32 as shown . gripping section 30 is used for gripping of subgingival toothbrush 10 by user 14 . additionally , in the embodiment shown in fig1 - 4 , intermediate handle section 34 joins gripping section 30 and base section 32 wherein base section 32 and gripping section 30 are non - planar . in this manner there is provided a contoured subgingival toothbrush 10 which in some cases may provide for ease of entrance into gum pockets 16 by subgingival toothbrush 10 . handle member 24 may be formed of a plastic composition not important to the invention concept as herein described with the exception that such plastic composition have sufficient structural integrity to accept the force loading applied by user 14 when subgingival toothbrush 10 is operationally activated . handle member 24 may be formed of a standard thermoplastic material composition and formed in one piece formation whether handle member 24 is substantially planar as shown in fig5 or multi - planar as shown in fig1 - 4 . in some cases , the angular relation and coupling of intermediate handle section 34 on opposing ends respectively to base section 32 and gripping section 30 of handle member 24 provides user 14 with a somewhat easier positional entrance motion for certain tooth interfaces of user 14 however , in other areas of the mouth of user 14 the embodiment shown in fig5 having a planar handle member 24 is of sufficiently optimized contouring to provide substantially the same disruption of bacteria as that of the embodiment shown in fig1 - 4 . subgingival toothbrush 10 includes first set of bristles 36 extending substantially in a vertical direction as depicted by vertical direction arrow 28 in fig2 . first set of bristles 36 may be formed of nylon which is a generally commercially accepted standard nylon bristle used in prior art toothbrushes . the diameter of each bristle is approximately 0 . 008 inches in diameter . first set of bristles 36 is fixedly secured to base section 32 of handle member 24 in a standard manner such as molding or some other type of fixed securement not important to the inventive concept as herein described . first set of bristles 36 extends in vertical direction 28 and includes a total extension approximating 16 mm in vertical direction 28 above base section 32 of handle member 24 . additionally , second set of bristles 38 formed of substantially the same material as first set of bristles 36 is fixedly secured to base section 32 as is shown in fig2 - 5 . second set of bristles 38 extend in vertical direction 28 to a vertical length substantially identical to the vertical length of first set of bristles 36 . thus , second set of bristles 38 extend above an upper surface of base section 32 to a predetermined length approximating 16 mm . the extended vertical length of both first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 is important to the overall concept of subgingival toothbrush 10 . ordinary toothbrushes provide bristles which have an extended length substantially less than 16 mm as provided in subgingival toothbrush 10 herein described . it is to be understood that subgingival toothbrush 10 of the subject invention is to be inserted beneath gum line 22 for abrasive or other contiguous interface contact with tooth surface 20 within gum pockets 16 . it has been found that gum pockets 16 may be of an extended length and depth approximating in some cases 8 - 12 mm beneath gum line 22 . thus , in order to allow insertion of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 , the overall extended length of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 must be significantly greater than that known in standard toothbrush prior art systems . however , the extended length of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 provides for a cantilever support with respect to handle member 24 . it must be remembered that bristle sets 36 and 38 are resilient in compositional quality and thus are subject to deflection upon interface with tooth surface 20 beneath gum line 22 . as the extension of bristle sets 36 and 38 is lengthened , the deflection and spreading out of the end portions of bristle sets 36 and 38 increases and may not provide for sufficient abrasive force to be applied to tooth surface 20 for disruption of adhered bacteria . in order to provide stabilization for first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 there is provided first and second bristle encapsulation mechanisms 40 and 42 shown clearly in fig2 and 5 . first and second bristle encapsulation mechanisms 40 and 42 extend in vertical direction 28 and are secured to base section 32 of handle member 24 as shown . first and second bristle encapsulation mechanisms 40 and 42 may be sleeve members extending throughout a predetermined vertical length direction and continuously surround first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 respectively to provide a support for each set of bristles 36 and 38 during operational use . sleeve members 40 and 42 may be formed of a plastic composition material similar to that forming handle member 24 . each of sleeve members 40 and 42 extend approximately 8 . 0 mm above the upper surface of base section 32 . in this manner , sleeve members 40 and 42 extend approximately one half the total elongated vertical extension of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 above base section 32 . first and second bristle encapsulation mechanisms or sleeve members 40 and 42 may be formed in one piece formation with handle member 24 through molding or some like technique or otherwise fixedly secured to base section 32 . the overall functionality of sleeve members 40 and 42 is to provide an insert capability of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 within and throughout the extended vertical direction of sleeve members 40 and 42 to provide a stabilizing support force interacting system when subgingival toothbrush 10 is operationally used on tooth surface 20 . as can be clearly seen in fig3 first and second sleeve members 40 and 42 are substantially longitudinally aligned each with respect to the other . the sleeve members 40 and 42 are positionally located in longitudinal alignment and are adjacently positioned each with respect to the other . as can be seen , first and second sleeve members 40 and 42 are displaced each from the other by a distance which is small enough to allow insertion of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 between teeth 12 . the displacement distance may be as great as 1 . 0 mm and in some cases , sleeve members 40 and 42 may be positionally aligned in a manner such that their outer surfaces are substantially in contiguous contact . as seen in fig2 the end sections of each of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 define first and second bristle inclined envelopes 44 and 46 respectively . envelopes 44 and 46 define apex 48 centrally located between first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 . the particular height of apex 48 is a function of the longitudinal displacement of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 and when such bristles are adjacent and contiguous each to the other , apex 48 defines an uppermost position or point of the end bristles for each of sets 36 and 38 . the inclined envelopes 44 and 46 are important in that such provides for a larger surface area for abrasive contact when bristles 36 or 38 are forcibly inserted against tooth surface 20 . in this manner , larger areas of bacteria may be disrupted from tooth surface 20 below gum line 22 when subgingival toothbrush 10 is in operation . additionally , the inclined geometry as provided by envelopes 44 and 46 allows insert of bristle sets 36 and 38 in a simpler manner when a narrow pocket 16 is provided between the gum and tooth 12 . the tips of bristle sets 36 and 38 initially will displace the edge of the user &# 39 ; s gum and allow the remaining portion of bristle sets 36 and 38 to be inserted in a simpler and easier manner when taken with respect to a brush having bristles with a blunt area which impinge all at the same time on the edge of the opening of a thin pocket 16 . thus , the inclined envelopes 44 and 46 provide for ease of insert within pocket 16 against surface 20 of teeth 12 which is generally not an important criteria for standard toothbrushes not used for subgingival operation . the extended length of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 allows insertion and abrasive disruption of adhered bacteria to tooth surface 20 . it is to be understood that first and second sleeve members 40 and 42 are formed of a thin - walled plastic perhaps having a thickness approximating 0 . 1 mm in thickness which allows for deeper insertion of first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 within pocket 16 . it is to be understood that first and second sleeve members 40 and 42 may be inserted to gum line 22 or perhaps where deep pockets 16 exist , to an additional distance within pocket 16 . in use , subgingival toothbrush 10 is grasped by a user &# 39 ; s hand ( not shown ) through handle member and in particular in gripping section 30 . first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 are inclined with respect to tooth 12 and are inserted at substantially a 45 degree angle between consecutively located teeth 12 . bristles 36 and 38 enter pocket 16 and may be moved to gum attachment line 50 where there is the attachment of the gum to the root surface of tooth 12 . first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 are oscillated against surface 20 to disrupt bacteria . in this manner , dislodgement of bacteria provides for an efficient periodontal disease procedure easily done by the user in the privacy of his or her home . the particular inclining of envelopes 44 and 46 as shown in fig2 allows for the user to insert first and second sets of bristles 36 and 38 between adjacently located teeth 12 and apply an abrasive oscillatory motion to respective surfaces 20 of adjacent teeth 12 during one oscillatory operation . in this manner , the overall disruption and cleansing process is optimized . although this invention has been described in connection with specific forms and embodiments thereof , it will be appreciated that various modifications other than those discussed above may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention . for example , equivalent elements may be substituted for those specifically shown and described , certain features may be used independently of other features , and in certain cases , particular locations of elements may be reversed or interposed , all without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims .

US-85558492-A

a trailer hitch coupling anti - theft lock is formed by a platen underlying the ball socket recess of a hitch coupling and having an elongated lock pin projecting vertically through the platen and secured at its innermost end with a flange for impinging a component of the hitch coupling between the flange and the platen . a hollow housing surrounding a shackle - type padlock is provided with an aperture in its wall for slidably receiving the outwardly projecting end portion of the lockpin and biasing the housing wall forming the aperture into an annular groove in the lockpin adjacent the outer surface of the platen in response to inward movement of the lock body relative to its shackle .

like characters of reference designate like parts in those figures of the drawings in which they occur . referring more particularly to fig1 - 4 , the reference numeral 10 indicates a locking device for securing a trailer hitch coupling 12 when disconnected from a trailer hitch ball , not shown . the coupling 12 , at its forward end , forms a downwardly open socket 14 for receiving the ball of a trailer hitch assembly . the coupling 12 includes a toggle link shoe 16 having a partially concave forward edge surface normally engaging a trailer hitch ball when disposed in the socket 14 . the shoe is raised and lowered by the stem of a toggle link normally biased downwardly by a spring 20 and connected at its upper end with a toggle lever 22 which raises and lowers the forward end of the toggle link shoe 16 by pivoting its rearward end portion about a pin 24 extending transversely between the side walls of the coupler 12 . a toggle latch 26 engages a friction plate 28 interposed between the lever 22 and the housing of the coupler 12 to secure the toggle lever in locked position when the shoe 16 is engaged with a hitch ball . the above description is conventional with many trailer hitch couplers and is set forth to show the combination with which the embodiment 10 may be used . the locking device 10 principally comprises a base member 30 for closing the opening of the socket 14 , a lockpin 32 for securing the base to the hitch coupler 12 and a lock housing 34 for shielding the outwardly projecting end portion of the lockpin . the base 30 comprises a platen 36 having forward and rearward ends 38 and 40 dimensioned to underlie the coupler flange surface 42 at its forward end and extend rearwardly to a point beyond the position of the toggle shoe 16 . transversely , the platen underlies the flange surfaces 44 at respective sides of the coupler , thus , closing the socket 14 . the platen 36 is provided with a rearward upstanding leg 46 having a height substantially equal to the vertical inside dimension of the coupler . the forward inner end portion surface of the leg 46 is provided with a forwardly facing transverse groove 48 which nests the rearward end portion 50 of the toggle shoe to prevent downward movement of the platen 36 , as by an unauthorized person trying to gain access to the coupler socket . the lockpin 32 has a threaded exterior cooperatively received by a threaded aperture , not shown , in the platen 36 . the inward end of the lockpin 32 is axially connected with a flange member 52 which may be conical in shape ( fig2 and 3 ). a washer - like disk 54 is interposed between the flange 52 and the adjacent surface of the platen 36 and is secured to the latter around the lockpin 32 . the lockpin is further provided with an annular recess or groove 56 intermediate its ends for the purpose which will now be explained . the lock housing 34 comprises a rectangular hollow box - like frame having an aperture 58 in one of its walls 59 which slidably receives the outward or depending end portion of the lockpin , as viewed in fig3 . the housing wall 60 , normal to the wall 59 , is provided with an aperture 61 which slidable receives the body 62 of a conventional padlock . the inner surface of a wall 64 , opposite the wall 60 , is rigidly secured to the bight portion of the lock u - shaped shackle 66 . the opening defined by the shackle 66 and the lock body inner end 68 cooperatively surrounds the depending end portion of the lockpin when inserted into the housing aperture 58 . the lock body is locked with its shackle by manually moving the lock body 62 into the housing 34 . this locking action of the lock body with its shackle moves the inward end surface 68 of the lock body toward and into abutting relation with the lockpin 32 which moves the housing wall surface , forming its aperture 58 , to an eccentric position with respect to the lockpin annular groove 56 , thus , locking the housing 34 on the lockpin and preventing removal of the lock assembly from the hitch coupling 12 . the base member 30 is further provided with a pair of depending parallel walls 70 extending rearwardly from its forward end substantially one - half the length of the platen 36 and spaced apart a distance closely receiving the side walls of the lock housing 34 as a protective shield for preventing removal of the lock housing 34 as by the use of a sledge hammer or the like . the lock housing 34 is similarly provided , on its depending surface opposite the position of the aperture 58 , with walls forming a wrench socket 72 cooperatively receiving wrench flats 57 formed on the depending end of the lockpin 32 for the purpose presently explained . in operation of the embodiment of fig1 - 4 , the toggle link lever 32 is raised from its locked position of fig1 to its released position of fig3 . the base member and lockpin assembly 30 is positioned by manually tilting the platen 36 , so that the flange member 52 may be inserted into the coupling at the depending limit of its ball receiving socket 14 to substantially the position shown by fig3 wherein the platen upper surface abuts the depending inwardly converging inner flange surfaces 42 and 44 of the coupling . while holding the base assembly 30 in this position , the lock housing 34 is inverted from its position in fig3 so that its wrench socket 72 may engage the wrench flats 57 . by angularly rotating the lockpin 32 , to move the flange member 52 downwardly as viewed in fig3 the periphery of the flange engages the forward surface of the toggle shoe 16 and an inner adjacent surface of the coupling wall forming the ball socket 14 and anchors flange 52 in the socket 14 and disposes the lockpin groove below the lower surface plane of the platen 36 . the lock and housing assembly 34 is then engaged with the lockpin as described hereinabove . the washer - like member 54 is diametrically substantially equal with the spacing between the inner wall surfaces of the coupling member to preclude lateral movement of the plate relative to the coupling . the trailer owner easily gains access to the ball socket 14 by reversing the above described assembly procedure wherein the padlock key releases the lock for removal of the lock housing 34 from the lockpin 32 . referring now more particularly to fig5 - 8 , the reference numeral 110 indicates another embodiment of the trailer hitch coupling locking mechanism . some trailers , commonly referred to as goose - neck trailers , feature a hitch coupling 112 which comprises a vertically disposed sleeve 111 having its depending end rigidly secured to a centrally apertured plate 113 having a ball receiving socket 114 within the sleeve . the plate 113 is pivotally connected to a similar centrally apertured plate 115 by a pin 117 . the central apertures of the plates 119 and 121 are mated and mismated by horizontal movement of the lower plate 115 about the axis of the pin 117 for securing or releasing a hitch ball , not shown , when disposed in the ball socket 114 . opposite the pin 117 , the plates 113 and 115 are respectively provided with smaller diameter mating and mismating apertures 123 and 125 , which are mated when the plate central apertures 119 and 121 , are mismated . a pin 127 , slidably supported by the sleeve 111 is released to enter the mated openings 123 and 125 and secure the hitch ball in the socket 114 . the above description of the hitch coupling 112 is substantially conventional and is set forth to show the combination with which the locking mechanism 110 is used . the locking mechanism 110 similarly comprises a base member 130 , the lockpin 32 and padlock surrounding housing 34 . the base member 130 comprises a generally rectangular platen 136 having longitudinal and transverse dimensions substantially coextensive with the major portion of the depending surface of the pivoting plate 115 . one end portion of the platen 136 is provided with an upstanding pin 131 diametrically dimensioned for entering the pin apertures 123 and 125 , when mated , and having a length substantially equal to the combined thickness dimension of the hitch coupling plates 113 and 115 for the reasons presently explained . the lockpin 32 is similarly axially connected at one end with a dish or flange 152 for engaging and gripping the hitch plate 113 as presently explained . the flange end portion of the lockpin 32 is threadedly engaged with the platen 136 and a ring - like spacer 154 overlying the platen . in the operation of the embodiment 112 , the coupler plate 115 is manually positioned relative to the plate 113 so that the apertures 119 , 121 are in coaxial alignment . the platen 136 is manually positioned against the depending surface of the coupling plate 115 to dispose the flange 152 and spacer 154 within the mated apertures 119 , 121 and the flange 152 spaced above the spacer 154 a selected distance . the coupler plate 115 is manually moved laterally in a direction to align the pin openings or apertures 123 and 125 to receive the pin 131 . this positions the flange 152 eccentrically with respect to the plate 115 aperture 121 . the lock housing 34 is inverted to engage its wrench slot 72 with the lockpin flats 57 and threadedly advance the lockpin 32 in a downward direction , as viewed in fig7 until the depending surface of the flange 152 is tightly engaged with the overlapped surface of the coupling plate 115 , thus , impinging the plate 115 between the lockpin flange 152 and the platen 136 . the spacer 154 coaxially disposed in the aperture 121 prevents lateral movement of the lockpin and its flange relative to the axis of the coupler 112 . the depending surface of the platen 136 is similarly provided with depending lock housing guide walls 170 for nesting opposing sides of the lock housing 34 when its aperture 58 cooperatively receives and locks with the depending end portion of the lockpin . referring now to fig9 the reference numeral 210 indicates another embodiment of the lockpin 32 and lock housing assembly 34 for locking two members moveable relative to each other . in this embodiment the numeral 212 indicates a fragment of a horizontally swinging gate including a gatepost 214 having a horizontal arm or brace 216 connected therewith . the gate 212 being closed when its post 214 is disposed adjacent a fence post 218 . a lockpin bracket 220 secures a horizontal open end sleeve 222 to the gate 212 for horizontal sliding movement of the lockpin 32 in the sleeve . a flange 252 is connected to one end of the lockpin for frictionally engaging brace 216 for sliding movement of the lockpin toward and away from a position adjacent the fence post 218 . when the lockpin is in its solid line position , of fig9 the gate cannot be moved in the opening direction of the arrow 224 until the lockpin is moved to its dotted line position . with the lockpin 32 in its solid line position , the lock housing assembly 34 may be engaged with the lockpin annular recess 56 by manually moving the lock housing 34 toward the lockpin , so that its aperture 58 slidably receives the protruding end of the lockpin . the lock body 62 is similarly locked with its shackle by manually sliding the lock body into the housing 34 . release of the gate is accomplished by inserting a padlock key into the padlock body 62 key opening to release the shackle and move the lock housing off the end of the lockpin to be manually retracted to its dotted line position . obviously the invention is susceptible to changes or alterations without defeating its practicability . therefore , i do not wish to be confined to the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings and described herein .

US-14256693-A

a perforated carton for displaying products is disclosed . the carton is a multi - sided square or rectangular structure including side panels , a top panel , and a bottom panel . when the carton is torn or separated along pre - cut perforations , a display portion of the carton is provided for display of products nested within the display portion of the carton . the cartons are stackable , and may be arranged in a cluster on a pallet in a configuration that is ready for shipment to a retailer to facilitate display of the pallet or cartons in a shopping area with minimal modification or reconfiguration of the cartons at a retail store site .

reference now will be made to the embodiments of the invention , one or more examples of which are set forth below . each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention , not as a limitation of the invention . in fact , it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in this invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention . for instance , features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used on another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment . thus , it is intended that the present invention cover such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents . other objects , features and aspects of the present invention are disclosed in or are obvious from the following detailed description . it is to be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present discussion is a description of exemplary embodiments only , and is not intended as limiting the broader aspects of the present invention , which broader aspects are embodied in the exemplary constructions . a die cut perforated carton is provided which offers significant advantages and benefits over cartons of the prior art . the invention is provided in several embodiments , but generally offers a method and apparatus for displaying finished consumer products in a perforated carton without requiring the consumer products to first be manually removed from manufacturing cartons and placed in separate display cartons . thus , the perforated carton is capable of serving as a normal production and shipping carton for goods which will not be displayed using cartons at all ( i . e . goods that will be stocked on shelves ). further , the perforated carton can be easily modified , without removing the goods therein , to display the goods , if desired , by a re - packer , manufacturer , or retailer . further , the carton may be modified and combined with other cartons to prepare a ready - to - display pallet for a floor display . turning now to fig1 a perforated carton 10 is shown with side panels 11 a and 11 b . side panels 11 c and 11 d are hidden from view and therefore not shown in fig1 . a top panel 12 is shown near the top of the fig1 . a bottom panel 15 is not shown in fig1 but may be seen in fig7 . perforations are provided in a continuous line around the carton as seen by example with perforations 13 a , 13 b , and 13 c . perforations can be placed at any location on the panels that provides a convenient separation point for the carton . advertising insignia 14 may be placed on the exterior of the carton to draw consumer attention to the products displayed in the carton . the perforated carton 10 may be torn ( and thereby divided ) as seen in fig2 into a discardable portion 16 and a display portion 17 . the division is preferably accomplished by separating the carton material at the perforated seams , such as along perforations 13 a , 13 b , and 13 c . a flap 18 a may be lifted upwards , while other flaps 18 b and 18 c are raised vertically and separated from their respective side panels . one preferred embodiment utilizes cardboard as the carton material , but other materials could be used as well . generally , any material capable of sustaining perforations which are separable can be used as the carton material . marketing insignia 19 a and 19 b provide product logo or identifying information which can be viewed when the carton is in the undivided mode of operation as in fig1 . further , boxed products 20 can be seen by consumers when the carton is in the display mode , that is , when the carton has been separated as shown in fig2 . any goods may be utilized in the practice of the invention , and it is not required that the goods be rectangular or square in shape . in fact , the goods need not be symmetrical at all , and fig2 illustrates merely one example of goods which may be employed . in fig2 the products shown are boxes of facial tissues , but almost any conceivable product that is capable of shipment in cartons could be employed in the practice of the invention . corners 21 a - 21 h are provided at the edges of the carton where three planes meet ( i . e . two side panels and a top panel , or two side panels and a bottom panel ). corner 21 f cannot be seen in fig2 . corner posts are formed when the carton is in the display mode , as shown by the four corner posts ( 22 a , 22 b , 22 c and 22 d ) of display portion 17 of the perforated carton shown in fig2 . the corner posts provide strong vertical support for carton placed in the display mode , and they allow for stacking of cartons that are in the display mode . in fig2 the carton is comprised of a display portion in which four corners ( i . e . 21 - d ) are provided in the plane of the top panel 12 which has been removed . fig3 shows one alternative embodiment of the invention of a pallet 125 that employs multiple perforated cartons 110 stacked three high in four stacks . a total of twelve perforated cartons are used in this particular display , although any combination or number could be used in the practice of the invention . products 20 can be seen by consumers since the perforated cartons are all in the display mode . the cartons reveal only the display portions because the discardable portion has been removed from each perforated carton . an advertising header card 126 having an advertising message 127 may be erected upon the pallet once it is placed on the floor for display by a retailer . the header card 126 may be shipped with the pallet under a cover ( seen in fig4 ), and then erected as seen in fig3 . corner posts 128 a - c provide strong vertical support for the cartons , while the cartons are in the display configuration . wooden support 134 provides a platform for the cartons , and may be engaged by a forklift or other lifting device to facilitate easy transport of the display . in most cases , each carton is capable of supporting at least two additional cartons on its top panel ( upper surface ), even when in the display ( torn ) mode . fig4 shows a wrapped pallet 130 readied for shipping to a store , such as a large discount store . the wrapped pallet is suitable for placing on an aisle using a forklift or other lifting means . perforated cartons are placed in the display mode by removing discardable portions of the cartons . the cartons 135 are stacked , and disposable posts 133 a - 133 d are provided to steady and contain the perforated cartons on their edge ( 133 d is not seen in fig4 ). the posts 133 a - d are temporary , for shipping purposes , and are held in place by clear stretchwrap material 131 which is placed around the circumference of the wrapped pallet . cover 132 is placed on top of the perforated cartons , and also serves to hold in place the posts 133 a - 133 d at each corner of the pallet . this pallet allows cartons from the manufacturing line to be torn at their respective perforations , the discardable portions thrown away , and the products readied for display , all performed at the manufacturing or packaging site . thus , it requires very little effort from the stock clerks at the retail store to ready the pallet for consumer display . once the wrapped pallet is placed on the floor , and the cover 132 and wrapping material 131 is removed , then the advertising header card 126 is erected as shown in fig3 . wooden support 134 serves as a platform for the perforated carton display . in fig5 a configuration is shown which comprises an alternative stacked configuration 300 that uses perforated cartons 310 , 311 and 312 stacked in a single column , as might be used in a pharmacy or small retail store . in this embodiment , the stock clerk would provide the carton on top of the stack , i . e . carton 310 , in a display mode using only the display portion of the carton 310 . this would be done by tearing away the discardable portion of carton 310 . then , the cartons 311 and 312 could be torn into the display mode at a later time when the top carton 310 was emptied . while the carton 310 is not yet empty , the cartons 311 and 312 serve as effective advertising by having in place their discardable portions which are not torn , but still intact . the cartons 311 and 312 typically would have advertising messages printed on their exterior . the average width or size of the configuration in fig5 typically would be about 1 - 2 feet on each side , and would easily fit in an aisle of a small convenience store . however , this invention is not limited by any particular linear dimension of the cartons . in the configuration shown in fig5 the perforated cartons would most likely be shipped to the convenience store using the carton configuration as seen in fig1 . fig6 shows an alternate configuration in which a stacked configuration 400 employs cartons 410 , 411 , and 412 . this configuration may be used in a retail store with a relatively high volume , i . e . for example , when a carton could be emptied by consumers in less than the time interval in which stock clerks re - configure their stock . thus , the cartons could all be separated into display portions and stacked for display , and no stock clerk assistance would be necessary for the product to be sold completely to consumers without further intervention by a stock clerk . in this configuration , the products themselves serve as an advertising medium , since the boxes of product are visible to consumers along the height of the display . fig7 shows a two dimensional layout of the perforated carton of fig1 . in fig7 the perforation line can be seen as 13 a , 13 b and 13 c . handle 51 optionally provides a means to begin the perforation separation step using fingers or by inserting a device into the carton . side panel 11 b is adjacent to top panel 12 . bottom panel 15 and side panel 11 a also are shown adjacent to top panel 12 . the top panel is split , and appears at both sides of fig7 at opposite ends of the flat carton of fig7 . the top panel 12 is joined along glue lines 46 and 47 when the carton is assembled . it is understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present discussion is a description of exemplary embodiments only , and is not intended as limiting the broader aspects of the present invention , which broader aspects are embodied in the exemplary constructions . the invention is shown by example in the appended claims .

US-57042200-A