Abstract: A programmable vapor generator forms a volatilized liquid by supplying a material in liquid form to a flow passage and heating the flow passage, such that the material volatilizes and expands out of an outlet of the channel. The volatilized material, if desired, mixes with ambient air such that volatilized material condenses to form the aerosol. An apparatus and method for generating such a volatilized liquid, as well as the control and methods of heating, are disclosed as an analytical tool useful for experimental use, a tool useful for production of commercial products or an inhaler device.

Abstract: A wire harness design aiding apparatus for designing a wire harness includes: a display unit for three dimensionally displaying an object on which the wire harness is to be arranged and the wire harness on a CAD display in a state that two points of the wire harness is constrained; a guide line setting unit for setting, based on a constraining direction of the wire harness with respect to the object, guide lines which are intersection points of a guide plane which is parallel to the wiring jig plate and extends passing the axial line of the main line and an outer surface of the main line, and displaying the guide line on the CAD display; and a branch line setting unit for branching out the branch line from a position on the main line in a direction along the guide plane.

Abstract: A process monitoring system (100) for monitoring a plasma processing system. The process monitoring system (100) includes a plurality of processing subsystems (120), and a control system (110) coupled to the processing subsystems (120). The control system (110) is configured to receive monitor data from the processing subsystems (120) and send control data to the processing subsystems (120). The process monitoring system (100) also includes an external interface (140) coupled to the control system (110), where the external interface (140) includes a paging system. The process monitoring system further includes a man-machine interface (MMI) coupled to the control system (110). The MMI is configured to display the monitor data, display the control data, and access the paging system.

Abstract: A process control method for producing acceptable product within a range of acceptable specifications and unacceptable product that are not within the range of acceptable specifications to optimize profit and utilization of resources, the process having at least one input and at least one output that is affected by variation in at least one input, the method including varying the input about a mean of at least one acceptable specification so that the output is optimized to where the revenue from producing one more acceptable unit of product is substantially equal to the cost of producing one more unacceptable unit of product. In another embodiment, a method is provided that includes optimizing a process having inputs and outputs by measuring the inputs and outputs; determining variation of the mean (uof) and variation about the mean (uabt); determining causes of uof; and controlling uof to match uabt data values.

Abstract: Manufacturing tools having a base and a working surface, such as trim steels, flange steels and die inserts, are formed by fabricating or casting a substrate out of a relatively ductile, low wear-resistant metal and forming the working surfaces such as cutting edges, flanging surfaces, die surfaces and die inserts by depositing layers of relatively hard, wear-resistant materials to the substrate by closed-loop direct-metal deposition or laser cladding. A multi-axis numerically controlled robot may be used to position and move a beam and deposition material over large substrates in forming such tooling.

Abstract: A structured product coding system that reflects both the components as are used to fabricate a given product but component manipulators as are used to execute part-mating operations to combine the components and intermediate structures as are assembled during the fabrication process can be used to generate a generic assembly/disassembly tree that corresponds to that product.

Abstract: A method and system for identifying active and standby states of plural routers within a virtual router in a network is provided. The health of a virtual router represents whether the routers of the virtual router are configured for their appropriate active and standby states. For example, first information from a first and second router of a virtual router is obtained. The first information is used to determine the active and standby states within the virtual router. A topology of the network is produced identifying the active and standby states.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided characterizing the shape of a surface such as a bearing surface on a slider and for processing the shape. The shape is characterized by fitting a curve having a desired shape to measurement data and then determining residual deviations from the desired shape within localized regions. The surface is processed by selecting a material stress pattern to be applied to a working surface of the slider based on measured and desired contour shape parameters in a plurality of localized areas on the bearing surface. The measured contour shape parameter within a first of the plurality of localized areas is weighted more heavily than those within the other localized areas.

Abstract: A modeling apparatus includes a platform and a substrate, which are adapted to be releasably locked together to provide a surface for building up models in an additive-process three-dimensional modeling machine. The substrate comprises a substantially rigid, non-dusting tray providing a modeling surface. Male connectors extending from the tray are seated in female connectors in the platform, to engage the substrate to the platform. The engaged substrate is locked to the platform, maintaining accurate positioning of the substrate while a model is built. After modeling is complete, the substrate is released from the platform, the model is removed, and the substrate may be reused.

Abstract: There are provided a control device, a control method, a control unit, and an engine control unit, which are capable of controlling a controlled object with relatively large phase delay and dead time, while attaining elimination of lag in control timing between the input and output of the controlled object and improvement of control accuracy at the same time. A state predictor calculates a deviation (output deviation) between an output from an oxygen concentration sensor and a predetermined target value at a predetermined deviation calculation period. Then, a DSM controller calculates a target air-fuel ratio for converging the output from the oxygen concentration sensor to the predetermined target value, according to the calculated deviation, based on any one of a ? modulation algorithm, a ?? modulation algorithm, and a ?? modulation algorithm at a predetermined calculation period shorter than the predetermined deviation calculation period.

Abstract: An arrangement, storage medium, and method are provided for accessing monitoring data from a storage arrangement of a processing system using a Web Service, in which the monitoring data is associated with a field device. For example, the monitoring data may be in an Extensible Markup Language (“XML”) format, and a Simple Object Access Protocol can be used to access a particular portion of the monitoring data from the database. Moreover, based on the monitoring data, the field device can be replaced before problems arise therewith.

Abstract: A numerical control apparatus for machine tool, including: an NC program storage portion; an electronic cam data transformation unit which transforms an NC program into electronic cam data; a constant circumferential velocity control command detection unit which detects whether a command for executing constant circumferential velocity control is present or not in the NC program; a reference axis pitch setting unit which sets the pitch for generating data; a main shaft rotational velocity calculation unit which calculates the rotational velocity of a main shaft on the basis of parameters corresponding to the position of a cutting edge of a tool; an axial feed velocity calculation unit which calculates axial feed velocity on the basis of the calculated rotational velocity of the main shaft; and an axial position data computing unit which calculates axial position on the basis of the axial feed velocity obtained at intervals of the set pitch.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for determining a shading and ventilation position of a a roller blind. The method including steps of identifying the final slat position in which the bottom slat is at the limit of contact with the bottom end stop of the blind, assigning to this final slat position a data defining the position, and calculating a shading and ventilation position data defining the shading and ventilation position from the data of the final slat position. The method also includes steps of storing the shading and ventilation position data in a shading and ventilation position memory. The method enabling storing of the best shading and ventilation position without necessitating the storage in memory at the site of manufacture.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a portable computing device, involves the steps of (1) maintaining a table comprising stimulus/response data for possible hardware components that may be interfaced in the computing device; (2) performing one manufacturing step in the manufacture of the portable computing device by interfacing one of the possible hardware components with one other component of the computing device; and (3) performing one other manufacturing step in the manufacture by: (i) applying a stimulus to the interfaced hardware component, and reading a response from the interfaced hardware component in response to the applied stimulus; (ii) identifying the interfaced hardware component from a correlation of the response with the stimulus/response data; and (iii) saving the identification as configuration data in the computing device.

Abstract: A method of processing barcoded tickets in a document processing device including receiving a stack of barcoded tickets in an input receptacle of a document processing device. Each barcoded ticket includes a document-identifier or ticket number that identifies the barcoded ticket. At least one specific document-identifier is inputted by the operator to search for a specific document in a stack of documents. Each of the documents are transported, one at a time, past a detector, which detects the document-identifier of each ticket. A determination is made whether a detected document-identifier matches the specific document-identifier requested by the operator, and if so, the ticket in question is directed to a pre-programmed or user-specified output receptacle.

Abstract: The production of semiconductor devices manufactured through a plurality of manufacturing sites is unitarily managed and an appropriate production plan is instructed. A computer projects a production plan of an entire company based on various information. The production plan is provided to each manufacturing site as a production instruction and provided to each business person or customer as a storing reply or an order accepting period reply. If the projected production plan (possible production volume) does not coincide with a production plan (necessary production volume), parameters obtained by correcting production allocation, production capability, lead time, yield and the like are re-input from a parameter input terminal. Based on the corrected parameters, the computer re-projects the production plan and projects an optimum production plan.

Abstract: A tool joint part has a PIC incorporated therein for storing data which can be used to identify the tool to which the joint part is interconnected. PICs are incorporated into tool conditioning circuits. An intermediate circuit operates to match the identity stored digitally in a first PIC with the identity stored digitally in another PIC and thereby connect the tool to the appropriate tool conditioning circuit.

Abstract: A computerized system is provided for scheduling a plurality of work orders in a manufacturing process. Each work order to be scheduled specifies a set of operations to be performed using a plurality of resources and materials. Data including resource availability information for each resource used in the manufacturing process, material availability information for each material used in the manufacturing process, and work order information is received and stored in a computer. The work order information includes a release date for the work order, a want date for the work order, operations information, and material requirements information. The operations information includes the identity and sequence of operations to be performed for the work order, the identity of the resources needed to perform each operation, a minimum resource capacity needed to perform each operation, and the time needed to perform the operation.

Abstract: A pressure sensor, a pressure control apparatus, and a flow rate control apparatus are provided to automatically correct temperature drift of the pressure sensor and accurately detect pressure despite changes in temperature. An embodiment includes an upstream side pressure sensor between an orifice and a control valve, to control flow rate through the orifice by a regulating control valve, while calculating the flow from the upstream side pressure. With a temperature sensor, a memory means, and a temperature drift correcting means which calculates drift of the upstream side pressure sensor from data in the memory means when the temperature of the fluid changes and offsets the output drift of the upstream side pressure sensor with the calculated amount of the output drift, temperature drift of the pressure sensor is automatically corrected, enabling accurate control of flow rate.

Abstract: A computer based method for controlling an industrial process that includes at least two unit processes, including the steps of directly controlling the process by a control model including one or more algorithms, and automatic diagnosis of the validity of the process data retrieved from the process for the purpose of preventing irrelevant process data from being used as an input in the control model.