Abstract: Methods and apparatus for using a predetermined portion of main memory as extended disk buffer memory that is used as disk buffer memory for a disk drive. A controller causes data, such as prefetched data, to flow between disk electronics and the extended disk buffer memory. Data is stored in the extended disk buffer memory along with the logical block address associated with that data and with validation information. Valid data recalled from the extended disk buffer memory can be used directly by the processor without going to the disk drive. In some embodiments the extended disk buffer memory can provide all of the disk buffer memory, while in other embodiments the extended disk buffer memory is augmented by disk drive buffer memory.

Abstract: The invention provides an apparatus and method for detecting overlapped mail pieces when sorting batches of flat mail pieces as the pieces are conveyed on their narrow sides, whereby the sorted mail pieces are moved successively standing on their narrow sides in a longitudinal direction along a bed or path. Positioned below the path is an electronic line camera arranged with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to the feed direction of the sorted mail pieces that scans the lower narrow edges of the mail pieces through a gap in the bed. In one aspect, two sources of light, such as light emitting diodes, are positioned laterally from the line camera diagonally illuminate the mail pieces from below as the mail pieces pass over a window in the path so that the edges of the scanned narrow sides are emphasized by shadowing.

Abstract: A device for feeding sheets to a sheet-processing machine includes a feeding table. Front lays are disposed at a front end of the feeding table, as viewed in a sheet-conveying direction. A first guide device is disposed immediately upstream from the front lays, as viewed in the sheet-conveying direction, and above the feeding table, and is adjustable vertically with respect to the feeding table. A second guide device is disposed upstream from the vertically adjustable first guide device, as viewed in the sheet-conveying direction. The second guide device is disposed in a position oriented parallel to the first guide device. A method of operating the sheet-feeding device is also provided.

Abstract: A paper feed cassette having a size detection function has a paper stage formed integrally with a rear end restricting plate for restricting the rear end of paper sheets. On the bottom of the paper stage, a plurality of rib-like detection targets are arranged in the paper feed direction. The detection targets are detected by a plurality of detection switches arranged in the paper feed direction in a paper feed portion inside the main body of an image forming apparatus. A discriminator receives the detection signals from the detection switches and thereby recognizes the paper size and the presence/absence of the paper feed cassette.

Abstract: A system and method for providing a vending machine with the ability to accept both coins and paper currency. The system includes a housing that is mounted to the side of a vending machine. The housing defines an enclosed interior area that is adjacent the vending machine. A door is provided on the housing for selectively accessing the enclosed interior area. At least two access openings are present in the door. A paper currency validation mechanism is mounted in one of the access openings in the door. A coin currency validation mechanism is mounted in a second access opening in the door. Since both the paper currency validation mechanism and the coin currency validation mechanism are mounted to the door of the housing, both mechanisms are removed from the housing when the door of the housing is opened or removed.

Abstract: Disclosed is a multimode optical fiber having a structure to reduce scattering loss which includes a core divided into a central region having the optimal refractive index according to an optimal core shape index minimizing the scattering loss of the multimode optical fiber, and a peripheral region having the refractive index lower than that of the central region; and a cladding enclosing the core and having the refractive index lower than the lowest refractive index of the core.

Abstract: A storage apparatus has a card-accommodating, vertically upright stack-storage cassette (1) and a card-input, -reading and control unit (3) arranged adjacent to the top cassette-border region (4). The stack-storage cassette (1) has a vertically running storage opening (5) arranged in a cassette side. The storage apparatus also has a lift unit (7) which can be displaced vertically in said opening (5) and has a lift housing (19a, 19b). The lift unit (7), for its part, has a depositing plate (9) for the cards, which comes to rest in the store interior (10). The lift unit can be removed in the lowermost region of the cassette (1), to be inserted into the cassette (1) at the top and, acting on the opening borders, to be displaced vertically, i.e. lowered, in each case preferably by the distance of a height over which a group of cards is deposited, in order for the cards to be deposited satisfactorily.

Abstract: A support assembly for supporting a retractable device includes a frame, at least one arm movably mounted on the frame for carrying the device between a retracted position for stowing the device, and an extended position for presenting the device, and a reactionator couple operatively connected to the arm for resisting, in part, against the arm when it is moved from the extended position to the retracted position, thereby slowing the rate at which the device is retracted.

Abstract: A copying machine is disclosed which is capable of copying an original document having a page number by preliminarily erasing or correcting the page number portion of the image and by changing the order of the output images according to their respective page numbers or by changing the path for delivering the sheet of paper to be copied. A document page image read-in by a charge coupled device sensor is converted into digital signals which are corrected for shading and then binarized and stored in an image memory. This image data is transferred to a working memory wherein the page number shown on the document is read by a page number recognizing unit. The control unit checks the page number and allocates a binding margin on a suitable portion of the document's image. On the basis of the recognition of the page number on the document's image, it also decides to copy the document on one side of the sheet of paper and to deliver it out, or to copy the next document onto the other side of the sheet of paper.

Abstract: A 3D printer that has a chemical processor in-line with the printer. The preferred printer is a single-stage printer that uses two video cameras with different magnification powers for acquiring images from 2D negatives for editing and key subject alignment. One video camera takes full view image for key subject selection and picture cropping, the other video camera which is used for acquiring image data for key subject alignment sees only an enlarged section of the image around the key subject. The single-stage printer uses an automated image matching algorithm to find the relative location of the key subject in each negative frame. The single-stage printer also includes a chemical processor so that photo processing can be part of an in-line printing process.

Abstract: An apparatus designed to direct daylight through an aperture toward a target area in a building or other structure is disclosed. A housing provides a base attachable to the building and a support structure for supporting a reflector above the aperture. According to one embodiment of the invention the reflector is in the shape of an inverted cone. A light diffusing lens structure is disposed in the optical path between the reflector and the target area. In use, light is transmitted through the support structure, reflected from the surface of the reflector, and dispersed about the target area by the light diffusing lens structure.

Abstract: A transparency to be reproduced is positioned in register with copy material having respective sensitivity maxima in the blue, green and red wavelength ranges of the spectrum. An illuminating unit for exposing the copy material includes an array of cells such as an LCD. The density of each cell can be varied individually to thereby change the illumination intensity, and the densities are adjustable in such a manner that, in the spectral ranges corresponding to the neighborhoods of the sensitivity maxima, the density of each cell changes by approximately the same factor.

Abstract: This invention involves an optical system in which optical radiation containing a wavelength .lambda. is directed onto a patterned mask, in order to form an image feature on a photoresist layer located on the image plane of the system. The patterned mask has a main object feature, which has the form of the image feature. The object feature has a portion whose width is everywhere less than (1.5).lambda./NA, where NA is the numerical aperture of the image side of the system. An assist feature whose width is everywhere less than (0.5).lambda./NA is located on the mask in a neighborhood of the portion of the main object feature. Advantageously, the optical radiation is directed through an annular aperture ("off-axis illumination") in an opaque screen and through a collimating lens onto the mask. In one exemplary situation, the assist feature is located outside the main object feature and has a distance of closest approach to the main object feature that is everywhere equal to less than .lambda./NA.

Abstract: A screen assembly that includes a screen material which is bonded to a thin metal substrate. The substrate is typically a solid 1/16 inch thick sheet of aluminum that is both light weight and strong. The bonded screen/substrate subassembly is mounted to an flip panel frame which is pivotally connected to an outer frame. To increase the rigidity of the substrate, the edges of the screen subassembly are located within a channel of the flip panel frame and held in place by a flexible foam cord that is pressed between the subassembly and the frame. The outer frame is pivotally connected to a stationary frame that is mounted to a structure, such as the wall of an aircraft passenger compartment. To display images on the screen, the outer frame is rotated away from the wall and the flip panel frame is flipped around to expose the screen to the passenger compartment.

Abstract: A projection apparatus is disclosed that can be used for projection TV and related applications. The apparatus comprises a light source, a projection optical system, a DMD with multiple micromirrors, and a controller for individually controlling the tilt of the micromirrors. The projection optical system comprises, in order from the DMD side, a first lens group, an aperture stop, and a second lens group. An illumination stop is situated between the first and second lens groups. Light from the light source passes through the illumination stop and the first lens group to impinge on the DMD. The controller coordinatedly controls the tilt of the micromirrors in the DMD so that the impinging light is selectively reflected to one or the other of the aperture stop and the illumination stop, thereby eliminating ghost-forming reflections of light not projected onto a screen.

Abstract: In a camera with a finder device which is capable of diopter adjustment, a visual axis detection unit detects the visual axis direction and the fundus imaging state of an observer, a multi-distance measurement unit measures distances to a plurality of points in a photographing frame, a diopter driving unit adjusts the imaging position, and a diopter controller drives the diopter driving unit in accordance with the outputs from the visual axis detection unit and the multi-distance measurement unit. Therefore, since diopter correction is attained based on distance measurement information corresponding to visual axis information, a finder image in which an object at an observation position of an observer is always in focus can be realized.

Abstract: A projection exposure apparatus is constituted by a first focusing optical system for focusing light from a mercury-vapor lamp as a light source, a uniforming optical system for uniforming the focused light, a second focusing optical system for focusing the uniformed light and radiating the light onto a reticle mask, and a projection optical system for projecting the light, transmitted through the reticle, onto a wafer. A special stop is arranged as a secondary source for uniformly illuminating the mask. The special stop serves to set an intensity distribution within the exit plane of the secondary source so that intensities of both peripheral and central portions are larger than an intensity of an intermediate portion. In addition, the apparatus includes a halftone mask which allows an amplitude transmittance T of the translucent film and an amplitude transmittance T0 of the light-transmitting substrate to satisfy 0.01.times.TO<or=T<or=0.30.times.TO.

Abstract: A projection exposure apparatus is constituted by a first focusing optical system for focusing light from a mercury-vapor lamp as a light source, a uniforming optical system for uniforming the focused light, a second focusing optical system for focusing the uniformed light and radiating the light onto a reticle mask, and a projection optical system for projecting the light, transmitted through the reticle, onto a wafer. The apparatus is designed to project/expose a predetermined mask pattern, formed on the mask, onto the wafer through the projection optical system. A special stop (i.e., a four-eye filter) is arranged as a secondary source for uniformly illuminating the mask. The special stop serves to set an intensity distribution within the exit plane of the secondary source such that intensities in four regions quadruple-symmetrical about the optical axis of the secondary source and decentered therefrom are higher than intensities in other regions.

Abstract: An active range-finding device includes a light-projecting section for successively projecting range-finding light beams toward an object in a plurality of directions, a plurality of light-receiving sections for receiving light beams reflected from the object, a distance data calculating section for calculating a distance to the object on the basis of a plurality of outputs from the light-receiving sections, and a speed calculating section for calculating the movement speed of the object in two directions perpendicular to each other which include at least the direction of the optical axis of a photographing lens. The position of the photographing lens at the time of film exposure is corrected on the basis of the movement speed of the object output from the calculating section.

Abstract: A display device including a display not enabled condition of a measured value if the measured value is outside the scale range of the display equipment is disclosed. A pointer is driven according to the operation of an operation device during a setting value display mode, while the pointer is driven to a measured value during a measured value display mode. If the measured value is outside the scale range during the measured value display mode, the pointer 65 is driven to the scale position indicating the display not enabled condition.