1. A connector comprising:
a guide tube having a width and disposed adjacent a joint between adjacent blocks of building materials;
a dowel that passes between and transfers vertical shear between the adjacent blocks of building materials and having a width, a first end, and a second end, the second end of the dowel being received by the guide tube so as to allow longitudinal movement of the dowel in the guide tube;
a sleeve that receives the guide tube and allows for lateral and rotational movement of the dowel, the sleeve having a lateral sleeve width in excess of the width of the guide tube;
a fixing chamber coupled to the sleeve and comprising:
an open end that receives fixing means that restricts motion of the dowel within the guide tube; and
an orifice that receives the second end of the dowel.
2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the first end is adapted to be retained in a fixed relationship with one of the adjacent blocks and the second end is provided with the guide tube and the fixing chamber.
3. The connector according to claim 2, wherein the first end is provided with a fixing formation adapted to be retained directly within one of the adjacent blocks.
4. The connector according to claim 2, wherein:
the first end is adapted to be retained within the one of the adjacent blocks by a second guide tube;
the connector comprises a second fixing chamber;
the second guide tube is arranged to receive the first end so as to allow longitudinal movement of the dowel in the second guide tube, the second fixing chamber being arranged to receive fixing means, the fixing means being arranged to restrict the motion of the dowel within the second guide tube when received in the second fixing chamber.
5. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber is formed integrally with the guide tube.
6. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber extends perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the guide tube.
7. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the dowel passes through the guide tube and into a section of the sleeve.
8. The connector according to claim 7, wherein the dowel passes through the section of the sleeve and into the fixing chamber.
9. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber comprises a box formation having the open end.
10. The connector according to claim 9, wherein the fixing chamber comprises a tube arranged to engage an opening of the box formation.
11. The connector according to claim 9, wherein the fixing chamber comprises a cap arranged to releasably seal the open end of the fixing chamber.
12. The connector according to claim 9, wherein the orifice is remote from the open end.
13. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber is removable from the connector.
14. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber comprises a plastics material.
15. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the dowel comprises a keyed section comprising a keying formation arranged to pass into the fixing chamber.
16. The connector according to claim 15, wherein the keyed section is arranged to engage with the fixing means.
17. The connector according to claim 15, wherein the keyed section is located at the second end of the dowel.
18. The connector according to claim 15, wherein the keyed section includes a keying formation comprising at least one of the following:
groove, step, channel, saw-tooth, waisted section, frustoconical section, frustoconical keying, screw-thread and nut arrangement.
19. The connector according to claim 18, wherein the keying formation extends laterally about the second end of the dowel.
20. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing means comprises a fixing member selectively engageable with the dowel in the fixing chamber.
21. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing chamber comprises a locking device.
22. The connector according to claim 21, wherein the locking device engages a keying formation.
23. The connector according to claim 21, wherein the locking device comprises a plate.
24. The connector according to claim 23, wherein the plate is arcuate.
25. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the fixing means comprises a fixing medium.
26. The connector according to claim 25, wherein the fixing medium comprises a hardenable fluid.
27. The connector according to claim 25, wherein the fixing medium comprises a grout or a resin.
28. The connector according to claim 27, wherein the grout or resin is pourable prior to setting.
29. A method of locking a dowel of a connector comprising the steps of:
providing a connector according to claim 1 so as to allow at least longitudinal movement of the dowel in a guide tube;
introducing a fixing means into the fixing chamber; and
fixing the fixing means to restrict the motion of the dowel within the guide tube.
30. The method of claim 29, wherein the fixing means comprises a fixing member selectively engageable with the dowel in the fixing chamber and the fixing the fixing means comprises engaging the fixing member with the dowel.
31. The method of claim 29, wherein the fixing means comprises:
a hardenable fixing medium and the fixing the fixing means comprises substantially filling the fixing chamber with the fixing medium; and
allowing the fixing medium to harden.
32. A kit of parts comprising:
the connector according to claim 1;
the connector comprising the dowel;
the guide tube; and
the fixing chamber.
33. A kit for retrofitting a fixing chamber to a known connector comprising:
the connector according to claim 1; and
the fixing chamber.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. An image processing method comprising:
a holding step for holding an original database in which a correction condition corresponding to a reproducing property of an output unit is stored;
a forming step for writing a correction condition formed by calibration processing in said original database to create a new database; and
a correction processing step for effecting correction processing regarding input data by using the created new database,
wherein the calibration processing not only creates said new database but also forms a management file based on head identification information of a head used in said output unit.
2. An image processing method according to claim 1, wherein said management file is held in a file different from a file for holding said new database.
3. An image processing method according to claim 1, wherein when said output unit uses a plurality of heads, the database file is managed on the basis of a combination of the head identification informations of said heads.
4. An image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the number of databases created by the calibration on the basis of said management file, and, when the number of databases becomes greater than a predetermined value, other created database is deleted.
5. An image processing method according to claim 1, wherein upon uninstallation of a printer driver, all of the created database file and the management file are deleted.
6. An image processing method according to claim 1, further comprising an input step for inputting model information of said output unit and the head identification information of said head used in said output unit, and wherein
said forming step reads not said original database corresponding to the model information and creates said management file corresponding to the created database on the basis of the head identification information, and
said correction processing step reads out the management file corresponding to the head identification information and reads out the created database corresponding to the head identification information on the basis of said management file.
7. An image processing apparatus comprising:
holding means for holding an original database in which a correction condition corresponding to a reproducing property of an output unit is stored;
forming means for writing a correction condition formed by calibration processing in the original database to create a new database; and
correction processing means for effecting correction processing regarding input data by using the created new database,
wherein the calibration processing not only creates said new database but also forms a management file based on head discriminating information of a head used in said output unit.
8. An image processing program comprising:
a holding step for holding an original database in which a correction condition corresponding to a reproducing property of an output unit is stored;
a forming step for writing a correction condition formed by calibration processing in the original database to create a new database; and
a correction processing step for effecting correction processing regarding input data by using the created new database,
wherein the calibration processing not only creates said new database but also forms a management file based on head identification information of a head used in said output portion.
9. An image processing method comprising:
a holding step for holding an original database in which a correction condition corresponding to a reproducing property of an output unit is stored;
a forming step for writing a correction condition formed by calibration processing in said original database to create a new database; and
a correction processing step for effecting correction processing regarding input data by using the created new database,
wherein the calibration processing not only creates said new database but also forms a management file on the basis of head identification informations of heads used in said output unit, and
said management file is held in a file different from a file for holding said new database.