Author: claimsbot

1. An optical fiber connector plug, comprising:
a housing through which extends a cable containing at least one optical fiber;
a ferrule supported by said housing for receiving said at least one optical fiber, said ferrule having a mating facet and an opposing rear facet located in said housing, said ferrule having at least one guide pin thru-hole and at least one optical fiber thru-hole extending between the mating facet and the opposing rear facet, said guide pin thru-hole having an opening portion extending inward from the mating facet, said opening portion being tapered outward to meet the mating facet in an oblique manner such that said opening portion has a diameter in the mating facet that is greater than a diameter of a remainder of the guide pin thru-hole.
2. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said tapered opening portion is defined by curved sidewalls.
3. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said tapered opening portion is defined by flat sidewalls.
4. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 3 wherein the flat sidewalls form a 45\xb0 angle with respect to the mating facet.
5. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said at least one guide pin thru-hole comprises a plurality of guide pin thru-holes.
6. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said at least one optical fiber thru-hole comprises a plurality of optical fiber thru-holes.
7. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 5 wherein said at least one optical fiber thru-hole comprises a plurality of optical fiber thru-holes.
8. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said mating facet of the ferrule defines an oblique surface with respect to a longitudinal axis of said thru-holes.
9. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said connector plug is an MT-type connector.
10. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said connector plug is of a type selected from the group consisting of MPX MPO, MTP, HBMT, SMC and OGI type connectors.
11. The optical fiber connector plug of claim 1 wherein said ferrule is formed from glass-filled epoxy.
12. A multifiber optical fiber connector, comprising:
a first connector plug that includes:
a first housing through which extends a cable containing at least one optical fiber;
a first ferrule supported by said first housing for receiving said at least one optical fiber, said ferrule having a mating facet and an opposing rear facet located in said first housing, said first ferrule having at least one guide pin thru-hole and at least one optical fiber thru-hole extending between the mating facet and the opposing rear facet, said guide pin thru-hole having an opening portion extending inward from the mating facet, said opening portion being tapered to meet the mating facet in an oblique manner such that said opening portion has a diameter in the mating facet that is greater than a diameter of a remainder of the guide pin thru-hole;

a second connector plug for mating with the first connector plug, said second connector plug including:
a second housing through which extends a cable containing at least one optical fiber;
a second ferrule supported by said second housing for receiving a second plurality of optical fibers, said ferule having a mating facet and an opposing rear facet located in said second housing, said ferrule having at least one guide pin receptacle and at least one optical fiber thru-hole extending between the mating facet and the opposing rear facet;
a guide pin secured in said guide pin receptacle.
13. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said guide pin has an end portion distal from the second ferrule, said end portion having a frustoconical shape.
14. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said guide pin has an end portion distal from the second ferrule, said end portion being smoothly tapered.
15. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said tapered opening portion of the guide pin thru-hole is defined by curved sidewalls.
16. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said tapered opening portion of the guide pin thru-hole is defined by flat sidewalls.
17. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 16 wherein the flat sidewalls form a 45\xb0 angle with respect to the mating facet.
18. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said at least one guide pin thru-hole comprises a plurality of guide pin thru-holes and said at least one optical fiber thru-hole in each of the first and second ferrules comprises a plurality of optical fiber thru-holes.
19. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said mating facets of the first and second ferrules define an oblique surface with respect to a longitudinal axis of their respective thru-holes.
20. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 further comprising a guide pin holding member for supporting said guide pin in said guide pin receptacle.
21. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 further comprising an engagement member for connecting said first and second housings together so that said guide pin extending from the second ferrule is secured in the guide pin thru-hole in the first ferrule.
22. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said first and second connector plugs are MT-type connectors.
23. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said first and second connector plugs are of a type selected from the group consisting of MPX, MPO, MTP, HBMT, SMC and OGI type connectors.
24. The multifiber optical fiber connector of claim 12 wherein said first and second ferrules are formed from glass-filled epoxy.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

We claim:

1. A gear drive assembly for driving a vehicle wheel comprising:
a drive gear defining a drive gear centerline;
an idler gear assembly in meshing engagement with said drive gear and defining an idler gear centerline that is different then said drive gear centerline; and
a driven gear in meshing engagement with said idler gears to drive a vehicle wheel.
2. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein said idler gear assembly includes a pair of idler gears interposed between said drive and driven gears with said idler gear centerline extending from the center of one of said idler gears to the center of the other of said idler gears.
3. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein said driven gear defines a first driven gear centerline that is perpendicular to said idler gear centerline and which extends from the center of said driven gear to the center of said drive gear.
4. An assembly according to claim 3 wherein said driven gear defines a second driven gear centerline that is perpendicular to said first driven gear centerline and spaced apart from said idler gear centerline.
5. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein the center of said drive gear is spaced further apart from the center of said driven gear than the centers of said idler gears.
6. An assembly according to claim 5 including a floating ring gear in meshing engagement with said drive and driven gears.
7. An assembly according to claim 6 wherein said ring gear is supported by at least one bearing for rotation about a ring gear axis of rotation.
8. An assembly according to claim 6 wherein said drive gear defines a drive gear axis of rotation and said driven gear defines a driven gear axis of rotation, said drive and driven gear axes of rotation being different than said ring gear axis of rotation.
9. An assembly according to claim 6 wherein ring gear defines a ring gear centerline with the center of said driven gear on one side of said ring gear centerline and the center of said idler gear assembly and the center of said drive gear positioned on an opposite side of the said ring gear centerline.
10. An assembly according to claim 6 wherein said drive and driven gears run on the pitch line of said ring gear and idler gear assembly to equally distribute loading.
11. A gear drive assembly for driving a vehicle wheel comprising:
a gear housing;
a ring gear rotatably supported on at least one bearing for rotation relative to said gear housing about a ring gear axis of rotation;
an input gear in meshing engagement with said ring gear;
an output gear in meshing engagement with said ring gear to provide driving output to a vehicle wheel; and
an idler gear assembly interposed between said input and output gear to transfer load from said input gear to said output gear.
12. An assembly according to claim 11 wherein said idler gear assembly includes a pair of idler gears rotatably mounted with respect to said gear housing and defining a common idler gear centerline extending from the center of one of said idler gears to the center of the other of said idler gears.
13. An assembly according to claim 12 wherein said input gear defines an input gear centerline that is different than said idler gear centerline.
14. An assembly according to claim 13 wherein said output gear defines an output gear centerline that is parallel to said idler gear centerline and parallel to said input gear centerline with said input gear centerline line being spaced farther apart from said output gear centerline by a first distance and said idler gear centerline being spaced apart from said output gear center line by a second distance less than said first distance.
15. An assembly according to claim 12 wherein said input and output gears define a common inputoutput centerline that is perpendicular to said common idler gear centerline.
16. An assembly according to claim 11 wherein said output gear is greater in size than said input gear to provide gear reduction.
17. A drive axle assembly comprising:
a center axle housing;
a first wheel end assembly mounted at first end of said axle housing;
a second wheel end assembly mounted at a second end of said axle housing opposite end from said first end;
a input gear assembly positioned at said first end of said axle housing for providing driving input to said first and second wheel end assemblies;
a first axle shaft coupled to said input gear assembly for driving said first wheel end assembly;
a second axle shaft coupled to said input gear assembly for driving said second wheel end assembly wherein said second axle shaft is longer than said first axle shaft;
a first gear reduction assembly receiving input from said first axle shaft and providing output to drive said first wheel end assembly; and
a second gear reduction assembly receiving input from said second axle shaft and providing output to drive said second wheel end assembly wherein said first and second gear reduction assemblies each include a ring gear rotatably supported within a gear housing, a drive gear in meshing engagement with said ring gear, a driven gear in meshing engagement with said ring gear, and an idler gear assembly in meshing engagement with said drive and driven gears such that input is transferred from said input gear assembly to said driven gear via said drive and idler gear assembly.
18. An assembly according to claim 17 wherein said drive gear defines a drive gear centerline and wherein each of said idler gear assemblies includes a pair of idler gears defining a common idler gear centerline extending from the center of one of said idler gears to the center of the other of said idler gears with said idler gear centerline being spaced apart from and parallel to said drive gear centerline.

1. A method for modeling construction risk comprising:
providing a statistical model for each of a plurality of location-based tasks of a construction project model;
randomly selecting a model parameter for each of the plurality of statistical models to generate a statistically-based duration for each of the location-based tasks;
calculating a schedule duration based on the statistically-based durations of the location-based tasks; and
repeating the steps of providing, randomly selecting, and calculating until a statistical distribution for the construction project model is generated.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises setting a start date for a location-based task equal to the maximum of the group comprising a start date distribution and an earliest start date defined by preceding activities.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises determining a duration for a task by determining when a time integral of a total productivity function equals an amount of work required to complete the task.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises adding a delay to a start time for a task if a resource has left a job site associated with the task.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises adding a delay to a finish time for a task based on weather data.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises adding a delay to a finish time for a task based on modification of resources required for the task.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises adding a delay to a finish time for a task based on modification of productivity rates for workers performing the task.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein calculating a schedule duration comprises adding a delay to a finish time for a task based on rework required due to poor quality of workmanship for the task.
9. A system for modeling construction risk comprising:
a construction task modeling system storing a model having one or more parameters for each of a plurality of interrelated location-based tasks;
a production risk system storing one or more risk models for generating a value for each of the one or more parameters based on an input; and
a Monte Carlo simulation system generating a random value of the input for each of the one or more parameters, wherein the system generates a schedule duration upon receiving the input for each of the one or more parameters.
10. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a weather risk modeling system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of weather on the parameter.
11. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a prerequisite risk modeling system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of a prerequisite on the parameter.
12. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a resource modification risk system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of a modification of one or more resource on the parameter.
13. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a productivity rate risk system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of a productivity rate on the parameter.
14. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a material availability risk system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of an availability of a material on the parameter.
15. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a resource availability risk system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of an availability of a resource on the parameter.
16. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a location risk modeling system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of a location in which a task is performed on the parameter.
17. The system of claim 9 wherein the production risk system includes a quality risk modeling system generating a value for one or more parameters based on an affect of a quality of work for a task on the parameter.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A cutting element for use in drilling subterranean formations, comprising:
a substantially cylindrical substrate;
a volume of superabrasive material mounted to an end of the substrate and including:
a cutting face configured for use on a drag bit, the cutting face comprising at least one planar portion extending in two dimensions generally transverse to a longitudinal axis of the cutting element;
a rear boundary adjacent the substrate;
only one or more grooves in the cutting face, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face extending along at least a portion of a diameter of the cutting face and having substantially parallel sidewalls, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face beginning at a lateral periphery of the cutting face and extending across the at least one planar portion of the cutting face at least as far as a geometric center point of the cutting face; and
wherein there are no grooves in the cutting face that do not extend across the at least one planar portion at least as far as the geometric center point of the cutting face.
2. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves comprise a plurality of grooves, wherein all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face intersect proximate the geometric center point of the cutting face.
3. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping toward the geometric center of the cutting face at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element, a maximum depth at the geometric center point of the cutting face and a lesser depth at the lateral periphery of the cutting face.
4. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves comprise a groove having a floor sloping at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element and a maximum depth at approximately an opposite side of the lateral periphery of the cutting face greater than a depth at the beginning of the at least one groove.
5. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping toward the geometric center point of the cutting face at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element, a maximum depth between opposing sides of the lateral periphery of the cutting face and greater than a depth at the opposing sides of the lateral periphery of the cutting face.
6. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves include at least one groove extending completely across a diameter of the cutting face.
7. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves comprise a plurality of grooves, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face located on and extending completely across a diameter of the cutting face.
8. The cutting element of claim 1, wherein the one or more grooves include a plurality of grooves, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face located on a diameter of the cutting face beginning at the periphery of the cutting face, and further including a rib raised above or inset into the cutting face and extending parallel to and along at least one longitudinal side wall of at least a portion of at least one groove of the plurality of grooves.
9. The cutting element of claim 8, wherein the rib comprises material selected from the group consisting of diamond material, polycrystalline diamond material, tungsten carbide material, cubic boron nitride material, leached polycrystalline diamond material, cobalt, and any combinations thereof.
10. A cutting element for use on a bit for drilling subterranean formations, comprising:
a substrate;
a volume of diamond material mounted to an end of the substrate and including:
a cutting face configured for use on a drag bit, the cutting face comprising at least one planar portion extending in two dimensions generally transverse to a longitudinal axis of the cutting element, the cutting face having at least another portion located at a non-perpendicular angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element;
a rear boundary adjacent the substrate;
only one or more grooves in the cutting face, all of the one and more grooves in the cutting face extending along at least a portion of a diameter of the cutting face and having substantially parallel side walls, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face extending from a cutting edge at a lateral periphery of the cutting face and extending across the at least one planar portion and the at least another portion of the cutting face at least as far as a geometric center point of the cutting face; and
wherein there are no grooves in the cutting face that do not extend across the at least one planar portion at least as far as the geometric center point of the cutting face.
11. The cutting element of claim 10, wherein the one or more grooves in the cutting face comprise a plurality of grooves, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face located on diameters of the cutting face.
12. The cutting element of claim 10, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element and a maximum depth at one of approximately a geometric center point of the cutting face, approximately opposite of the cutting edge at a lateral periphery of the cutting face, and intermediate of the lateral periphery of the cutting face and the geometric center point of the cutting face and a lesser depth at other portions of the at least one groove.
13. The cutting element of claim 10, wherein the one or more grooves include a plurality of grooves, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face located on a diameter of the cutting face beginning at the lateral periphery of the cutting face, and further including a rib raised above or inset into the cutting face and extending parallel to and along at least one longitudinal side wall of at least a portion of at least one groove of the plurality of grooves.
14. The cutting element of claim 13, wherein the rib comprises material selected from the group consisting of diamond material, polycrystalline diamond material, tungsten carbide material, cubic boron nitride material, leached polycrystalline diamond material, cobalt, and any combinations thereof.
15. A drilling apparatus, comprising:
a body having structure for connection to a drill string;
cutting elements fixedly mounted to the body at an end thereof opposite the structure, at least one cutting element comprising:
a substrate;
a volume of superabrasive material mounted to an end of the substrate and including:
a cutting face comprising at least one planar portion extending in two dimensions generally transverse to a longitudinal axis of the at least one cutting element;
a rear boundary adjacent the substrate;
only one or more grooves in the cutting face, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face extending along at least a portion of a diameter of the cutting face and having substantially parallel side walls, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face beginning at a lateral periphery of the cutting face and extending across the at least one planar portion of the cutting face at least as far as a geometric center point of the cutting face; and
wherein there are no grooves in the cutting face that do not extend across the at least one planar portion at least as far as the geometric center point of the cutting face.
16. The drilling apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping toward the geometric center point of the cutting face at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element, a maximum depth at approximately a geometric center point of the cutting face and a lesser depth at the lateral periphery of the cutting face.
17. The drilling apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element, a maximum depth at approximately a side of the lateral periphery of the cutting face greater than a depth at the beginning of the at least one groove.
18. The drilling apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more grooves comprise at least one groove having a floor comprising at least one portion sloping toward the geometric center point of the cutting face at a non-perpendicular angle to the longitudinal axis of the cutting element, a maximum depth between opposing sides of the lateral periphery of the cutting face and a lesser depth at the opposing sides of the lateral periphery of the cutting face.
19. The drilling apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more grooves include a groove extending across an entire diameter of the cutting face.
20. The drilling apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more grooves include a plurality of grooves, all of the one or more grooves in the cutting face located on a diameter of the cutting face beginning at the lateral periphery of the cutting face, and further including a rib raised above or inset into the cutting face and extending parallel to and along at least one longitudinal side wall of at least a portion of at least one groove of the plurality of grooves.
21. The drilling apparatus of claim 20, wherein the rib comprises material selected from the group consisting of diamond material, polycrystalline diamond material, tungsten carbide material, cubic boron nitride material, leached polycrystalline diamond material, cobalt, and any combinations thereof.