Abstract: A disc cartridge includes: a disc storage portion; first and second shutters provided on the bottom of the disc storage portion; and a rotational member interlocked with the shutters and having a disc supporting portion to support the disc thereon while the shutters are closed and a notch to be located inside a head opening while the shutters are opened. The shutters include disc holders for holding the disc thereon with the center of the disc offset from that of the disc storage portion such that an outer side surface of the disc contacts with the sidewall of the disc storage portion at a position where the notch is located while the shutters are closed. The inner circumference of a region, where the disc supporting portion contacts with the second side of the disc, defines a circle that has its center offset from the center of the disc storage portion.

Abstract: A toy play set for use in a vehicle having a beverage cup holder includes a generally elongated body. At least a first longitudinal end is sized and shaped to fit at least partially into the cup holder sufficiently for the cup holder to support the body in a generally upright orientation when the body has in a closed configuration. The body has an open configuration in which a hollow interior is at least partially accessible through at least one opening in a side wall. A plurality of movable components is stored in storage positions within the hollow interior in the closed configuration of the body. At least two of the plurality of movable components are removable from the storage position and are repositionable in the open configuration of the body into at least one play position different from the storage position of the at least two movable components.

Abstract: A method for carrying out analyses of a gas comprising one or more species Si, Sj, . . . , Sn by using of ion mobility spectrometry includes in carrying out two subsequent analyses in different conditions and comparing the results of these two analyses. The different conditions in the two analyses are such as to modify either the residence time of the ions corresponding to the species in the reaction zone or in the drift zone of the ion mobility spectrometer, or, selectively, the concentration of at least one of these ions.

Abstract: A method is provided for calibrating measurement signals obtained with optical fibers, wherein a reference material having a known reference temperature is arranged at one end of an optical fiber, the reference material is heated up to at least its reference temperature, the signal received by the fiber when the reference temperature is reached is supplied as a calibration signal to a measurement device and is compared there with the theoretical value for the reference temperature, and the difference is used for calibration. In addition, a corresponding device is provided for using the above method for calibration or determination of the attenuation of an optical fiber.

Abstract: An optical disk comprises a track groove on which positional information indicating a physical location on the track groove is represented by a wobble shape of the track groove. The optical disk includes a plurality of positional information units that are arranged on the track groove. Each said positional information unit includes: a positional information section that represents the positional information by a combination of wobble patterns selected from multiple types of wobble patterns that have been defined so as to correspond to respective signal waveforms that rise and fall mutually differently; a sync mark section having a wobble pattern in a shape distinguishable from the wobble patterns of the positional information section; and a precision positioning mark section ahead of each said positional information section.

Abstract: A toy vehicle slot track is disclosed with at least a pair of toy racing vehicles and at least a pair of guide slots, each guide slot in turn having a pair of exposed power supply rails. The toy vehicles are guided about the track by guide pins affixed to the toy vehicles, the guide pins running within the guide slots. In a first portion of the track, the guide slots are spaced apart at a distance greater than the maximum width of the toy vehicles. In a second portion of the track, the guide slots are spaced apart at a distance less than the maximum width of the toy vehicles. The power supply rails run parallel to and at a uniform spacing from the guide slots in both portions of the track, providing power in both track portions to electric motors contained in the toy vehicles.

Abstract: A compressed air foam system for use in extinguishing fire includes a conduit, a water flow sensor, a foam proportioning apparatus, an air conduit, an air flow sensor, an air flow control valve and a system controller. The water flow sensor is configured to sense a water flow rate through the conduit. The air flow sensor is configured to sense an air flow rate through the air conduit. The system controller has a user adjustable ratio input. The system controller is configured to receive the sensed water flow rate, to receive the sensed air flow rate, to output a first control signal to the air flow control valve and to output a second control signal to the foam proportioning apparatus. The system controller automatically adjusts the first and second control signals to maintain a ratio of air flow to foam flow based upon the user adjustable ratio input.

Abstract: Arbitration of multiple transponders, such as RFID tags, occurs in an interrogation field. The arbitration process is custom-tailored for individual applications, under software control, by the transponder reader or tag reader. Different wake-up slots are calculated for each tag during successive transmission cycles based upon the tag ID and the transmission cycle number. The tag reader may send a special fast read command to the tag which includes a read request and communications control parameters including the number of time slots for transponder communications, the number of transmissions that an individual transponder is allowed to issue, and the data rate at which the reader communicates to the transponder. The tag reader may also send a special command to a tag to read its data and cause the tag to become decoupled from the environment.

Abstract: A water cooling device of a vertical multi-cylinder engine includes a cylinder block (1) one side wall of which is provided with a side water passage (3) running along a longitudinal direction of the cylinder block (1). The cylinder block (1) has an interior area provided with a cylinder jacket (4). Cooling water from a radiator is introduced into the cylinder jacket (4) through the side water passage (3). The side water passage (3) has an outlet (5) toward a lower portion of the cylinder jacket (4).

Abstract: Broadband switching including the implementation of and control over a massive sub-microsecond switching fabric. To effect the attributes of the switching fabric, conditionally nonblocking components are used a building-blocks in an interconnection network which is recursively constructed. The properties of the interconnection network are preserved during each recursion to thereby configure the massive switching fabric from scalable circuitry.

Abstract: An LED lamp includes at least one LED chip and a wavelength converting portion including a phosphor for transforming the emission of the LED chip into light having a longer wavelength than that of the emission. The LED lamp further includes filtering member. The filtering member is designed such that the spectral transmittance thereof becomes lower in at least a portion of the wavelength range of 550 nm to 605 nm than in the remaining visible radiation range.

Abstract: A touch pad scoring apparatus for a dart game includes a touch pad mounted on a housing. The touch pad is has a plurality of segments. Each touch pad segment has a pressure-sensitive sensor operatively connected to a controller. A user applies pressure, for example with a stylus or a finger, to at least one segment corresponding to the dart board segment impacted by a thrown dart. The scoring apparatus has a memory and displays which allow the apparatus to track and display the scores of multiple players though the course of the dart game.

Abstract: A schedule recording section (4) records a user's schedule. A SOC (state-of-charge) optimization planning section (5) plans the SOC of a rechargeable battery (21) based on the user's schedule. The planned control target SOC is optimized through a comparison between the continuous charging characteristic of the rechargeable battery (21) and the length of an operable period or the amount of electric power to be secured at the time of battery-powered operation. For example, a control target SOC is set at a full charge in the proximity of the period during which a battery-powered operation time is expected to be long. A control target SOC is set lower enough than a full charge in the period during which a connection to an external power supply (A) by the AC adapter (11) is expected to continue for a long time. A power-supply control section (3) controls the charge and discharge of the rechargeable battery (21) according to a plan for the optimization of the SOC.

Abstract: A compound ultrasound imaging method includes the steps of acquiring component frames with different scanline properties, such as different angles, scanline durations, control voltages, etc., and compounding them in real-time.

Abstract: An infrared emitter element includes: at last one emitter tube made of silica glass, which has two ends; at least one electrical conductor arranged in the emitter tube as a radiation source; a cooling tube made of silica glass, which surrounds the at least one emitter tube spaced therefrom and which is connected to the at least one emitter tube directly at its ends, such that in the region of the electrical conductor at least one flow-supporting channel is formed between the at least one emitter tube and the cooling tube; and a metallic reflector. The cooling tube is completely covered with the reflector on its side facing away from the emitter tube. The infrared emitter element may be used as a flow-through heater, such as a heat exchanger, especially for high-purity fluids.

Abstract: A disc cartridge includes: a cartridge body including a disc storage portion storing a disc, having first and second sides, therein so that the disc is rotatable there and that the first side is exposed and chucking and head opening formed on the bottom of the storage portion so as to get the disc chucked externally and allow a read/write head to access the second side, respectively; a shutter supported, and movable with respect to the cartridge body, between the second side of the disc and the bottom of the disc storage portion so as to expose or cover the chucking and head openings and defining a hole under a center hole of the disc while the shutter is closed; and a disc holder provided for the shutter and pressing the disc against the shutter and holding it thereon while the chucking and head openings are covered with the shutter.

Abstract: A magnetically actuated coupling and uncoupling system for model railroads comprised of a drawbar pivotally-mounted to one end of a railroad car, wherein the drawbar contains an integral leaf spring extending from the first end of the coupler to tend to center the drawbar, a coupler body with cantilever springs secured to the second end of the drawbar, a magnetically-actuated post pivotally-secured to the drawbar extending downward from the drawbar, and a pivotally-mounted coupler knuckle secured to the post and pivotally secured to the drawbar such that the pivotally-mounted coupler knuckle will interact with the cantilever spring.