An arrangement for transporting air, with the aid of an ion-wind, includes a corona electrode (K) at least one target electrode (M) located at a distance from the corona electrode, and a d.c. voltage source (4) connected between the corona electrode and target electrode. The arrangement includes a housing (1, 5) with an inlet opening (2) in which the corona electrode (K) is disposed centrally, and an air-flow path extending from the inlet opening and containing the target electrode (M). The target electrode is located spaced form and symmetrical with the center line through the inlet opening. The housing is configured so that the air-flow path downstream of the inlet opening (2) and the corona electrode (K) branches outwardly towards the target electrode (M), thereby forcing air entering through the inlelt opening (2) out towards the target electrode (M) and preventing at least the major part of this air-flow from continuing straight forwards along the extension of the center line.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an arrangement for transporting air with the aid of a so-called electric ion or corona wind, and preferably cleansing the air at the same time.
2. The Prior Art
It is known that air can be transported with the aid of a so-called electric ion wind or corona wind. In principle, such an arrangement comprises a corona electrode and a target electrode which are mutually spaced apart and each of which is connected to a respective terminal of a d.c. voltage source, the configuration of the corona electrode and the potential difference and also the distance between the corona electrode and the target electrode being such as to generate at the corona electrode a corona discharge which produces air ions. These air ions migrate rapidly to the target electrode, under the influence of the electric field between the corona electrode and target electrode, and give their electric charge to the target electrode. During their movement towards the target electrode, the ions collide with electrically neutral air molecules, thereby also transferring the electrostatic forces to these latter molecules, so that they are also entrained towards the target electrode, thereby establishing air transportation in the form of a so-called ion or corona wind. Air transporting arrangements of this kind are found described, for instance, in international patent application PCT/SE85/00538.
When the air contains contaminant aerosols, i.e. suspended solid particles or liquid droplets, these contaminants will be charged electrically by the air ions generated by the corona discharge, and hence the contaminants, or impurities, can be precipitated electrostatically on the target electrode, provided that the electrode is suitably configured, or in a capacitor separator located downstream of the target electrode. Thus, it is possible in principle to provide an air cleansing arrangement with which air can be transported through the arrangement and contaminant aerosols extracted from the air with the aid of the air ions produced by a corona discharge.
The ability to produce in practice such an arrangement which will satisfy the requirements desired thereof, such as large volumetric air throughflows, high cleansing ability, small dimensions, reasonable potential difference between corona electrode and target electrode, and therewith reasonable high voltage levels, and a corona current which has an acceptable value with regard to the harmful gases generated by the corona discharge, particularly ozone and oxides of nitrogen, has been found to be associated, however, with several not-readily solved and closely related problems. Consequently, an arrangement of this kind which can be used in practice is not yet available commercially.
As disclosed in the aforesaid international patent application, it is possible to achieve both significant air-flow speeds and considerable volumetric air through-flows with the aid of a corona current which is acceptable with regard to the generation of ozone and other harmful gases, when the corona electrode and target electrode are located at a considerable distance apart and the corona electrode is screened effectively, so that the product of ion current and ion-migration distance in an upstream direction away from the corona electrode is negligibly small. An increase in the distance between corona electrode and target electrode, however, requires an increase in the potential difference between corona electrode and target electrode, in order to ignite the corona electrode effectively. The consequence hereof is an increase in high voltage levels of the corona electrode and/or target electrode, which in turn results in insulating and spark-over problems. In addition hereto, the need to prevent unintentional touching of the high-voltage electrodes is also increased. When the corona electrode and target electrode are spaced axially from one another in a straight air flow duct or passageway, which is primarily the most natural arrangement, it has been found that the air flow has a marked tendency to concentrate in the central part of the duct. This applies even when the target electrode is located as close to the walls of the duct as possible. Therefore, the requirement for a large volumetric air throughflow requires a flow duct of wide area, and consequently the arrangement must be given large dimensions. Furthermore, when the target electrode is placed adjacent the duct walls it is necessary to insulate the inner surfaces of the walls electrically. It has been found, however, that when the arrangement is in operation the electrically insulated wall surfaces obtain an electrostatic charge which disturbs the corona discharge and the corona electrode in a troublesome manner, preventing the electrode from igniting in the manner intended. Furthermore, positioning of the target electrodes adjacent the duct walls means, in conjunction with the essentially laminar flow of the air in the air flow duct, that the path along which the electrically charged aerosol contaminants have to migrate to the target electrode surfaces becomes relatively long, and hence the extent to which the air is cleansed is relatively low. In principle, it is possible to obtain an improvement in this regard by increasing the axial lengths of the target electrode surfaces, or primarily by using either a large number of mutually parallel and less widely spaced target electrode surfaces with intermediate electrode surfaces of opposite polarity, or a conventional capacitor separator downstream of the target electrode in the air-flow channel. All of these solutions, however, require a substantial increase in the total dimensions of the arrangement and, from the aspect of achieving the most effective cleansing effect, the two last mentioned solutions also result in a substantial increase in flow resistance in the duct. This increased flow resistance must, in turn, be compensated for by increasing the corona current and/or the distance between corona electrode and target electrode, an increase in corona current resulting in an increase in the amount of ozone and other harmful gases generated, and both solutions also requiring a greater potential difference between the electrodes. Consequently, it has been found very difficult to provide with an arrangement of this kind a satisfactory air transporting apparatus which will simultaneously cleanse the air transported, when air transportation is effected with the aid of an electric corona-wind or ion wind.
The object of the present invention is therefore to provide to this end an arrangement which is not encumbered with the aforementioned problems, or with which these problems are at least greatly reduced, and to provide an arrangement which will fulfill the aforesaid requirements in a satisfactory manner.
It has surprisingly been found that this object is achieved by means of an arrangement constructed in accordance with the following claims.


A personal emergency device is provided to individuals to allow the individuals to request emergency assistances. The device communicates with a base receiver to indicate the individual has requested assistances. The base receiver then communicates with an emergency system such as e-911 emergency services or a remote care system. The base receiver or the remote care system may forward information to the emergency services to provide first responders with additional information regarding the individual. The information may include personal information such as age and name, and the information may include medical information such as a recent blood pressure, weight, and blood glucose level.

When an individual encounters an emergency, the individual dials an emergency service such as 911, and the emergency service arranges for assistance to be provided to the individual. However, conditions may arise under which the individual is unable to reach a phone to dial 911. For example, when an individual suffers from a medical condition such as a heart attack, the individual may be unable to reach a telephone. In another example, when an individual falls and breaks a bone, the individual may be unable to reach a telephone. These situations are more likely to occur when individuals are alone, because no one else is available to assist the individual.
Additionally, even when the individual is able to reach a telephone to dial 911 emergency services, the individual may be unable to communicate with the 911 operator. For example, if the individual suffers a heart attack, as described above, the individual may be unable to speak. The 911 operator may have access to a limited amount of information from which to assess the individual and decide on an appropriate response by the emergency services.


A method for detecting a PN (Pseudo Noise) pattern for a remote loopback test in a communication system includes the following first through fifth steps. The first step receives a first n-bit pattern (n is an arbitrary number) which is a part of the PN pattern. The second step leftwardly shifts n bits of the first n-bit pattern by a first number of bits, so that a second n-bit pattern is generated. The third step executes an exclusive-OR operation on the n bits of the first n-bit pattern and n bits of the second n-bit pattern, so that a third n-bit pattern is generated. The fourth step rightwardly shifts n bits of the third n-bit pattern by a second number of bits, so that a fourth n-bit pattern is generated. The fifth step executes an exclusive-OR operation on the n bits of the third n-bit patterns and n bits of the fourth n-bit patterns, so that a fifth n-bit pattern is generated. The fifth n-bit pattern is a sixth n-bit pattern which is received after the first n-bit pattern. The first through fifth are repeatedly carried out each time n bits of the first n-bit pattern are received at the first step until a pattern detection signal is generated to activate the loopback test procedure when the fifth n-bit pattern and the sixth n-bit pattern become identical for a number of times.

(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a method and apparatus for detecting a pseudo noise pattern for a remote loopback test, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for detecting a pseudo noise pattern used for a remote loopback test in which a data circuit-terminating equipment connected to one end of a data transmission line activates another circuit-terminating equipment coupled to the other end thereof.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
A data terminal equipment for use in data communication is coupled to a data transmission line via a data circuit-terminating equipment. When two data terminal equipments located on both sides of the transmission line communicate with each other, data is transferred between the data circuit-terminating equipments provided for the respective data terminal equipments.
In order to test and maintain such data circuit-terminating equipments, a remote loopback test has been recommended by the CCITT Recommendation V.54, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. In the recommended remote loopback test, one of the two data circuit-terminating equipments opposite to each other via a data transmission line (normally including an exchange) instructs the other data circuit-terminating equipment to start the remote loopback test. In the above remote loopback test, it is desired that a particular pattern (pseudo noise pattern) be efficiently detected by each of the activated data circuit-terminating equipments located on both sides of the data transmission line.
FIG. 1A shows a data communication system in which the recommended remote loopback test is used, FIG. 1B shows a data circuit-terminating equipment, and FIG. 1C shows how the recommended remote loopback test is activated and carried out. The data communication system shown in FIG. 1A is composed of data terminal equipments (DTE-A and DTE-B) 1, two data circuit-terminating equipments (DCE-A and DCE-B) 2, and a data transmission line 3 composed of a transmit line and a receive line. The data circuit-terminating equipments DTE-A and DTE-B are located on both sides of the data communication line 3, and are coupled with each other. The data circuit-terminating equipments DTE-A and DTE-B simultaneously send and receive data in the two directions at a bit rate equal to, for example, 64K bps (bit per second). Data transmitted via the data transmission line 3 is, for example, an AMI (Alternate Mark Inversion) code, which is a bipolar code. By using the AMI code, it is possible to transmit data at a higher speed than that obtained with a modem (modulator/demodulator) used.
In the past time, the data circuit-terminating equipment 2 was formed of a specific hardware configuration or an (Large Scale Integrated circuit). However, recently, the data circuit-terminating equipment 2 has been configured, as shown in FIG. 1B. The data circuit-terminating equipment 2 shown in FIG. 1B is composed of a data circuit-terminating block 2-1, a microprocessor 2-2, and a data terminal interface block 2-3 connected to terminal 50. It is possible to meet various requirements for the data circuit-terminating equipment 2 by changing firmware formed in the microprocessor 2-2. The functions in common to the various requirements are implemented by hardware or LSIs which form the data circuit-terminating block 2-1 and the data terminal interface block 2-3.
The remote loopback test is carried out in such a case where new data terminal equipment and data circuit-terminating equipment are installed or a fault such as data error occurs. Referring to FIG. 1C, when the data terminal equipment DTE-A receives an instruction to execute the remote loopback test, the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A sends a signal showing the activation of the remote loopback test to the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-B via the data transmission line.
The procedure on the remote loopback test is recommended by the CCITT Recommendation V.54. The recommended procedure will be described below. At the first step of the remote loopback test procedure, the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A sends 16 127-bit PN (Pseudo Noise) patterns to the data transmission line. The 127-bit PN pattern (also referred to as a 2.sup.7 PN pattern) is obtained by scrambling binary zeros (0) by a generating polynomial 1+X.sup.-4 +X.sup.-7 (X is a variable), and has 127 bits within one period. The 16 127-bit patterns (16 periods) function as a loopback activating signal. The bit rate at which the PN pattern is sent is set to a normal bit rate of the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A. The criterion for detecting the PN pattern by the other data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-B is not specified.
At the second step of the remote loopback test procedure, when the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-B detects the PN pattern, it sends to the data transmission line 16 127-bit PN patterns (2048 bits), each being generated by scrambling binary ones (1) by the generating polynomial 1+X.sup.-4 +X.sup.-7. The bit rate at which the PN pattern is sent is set to a normal bit rate of the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-B. The criterion for detecting the PN pattern by the other data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A is not specified. The 16 127-bit PN patterns function as a confirmation signal. After sending the confirmation signal to the data transmission line, the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-B forms a loopback path. The data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A detects the confirmation signal, and enters into a test state (mode) after a time amounting to 2048 bits has elapsed.
At the third step of the remote loopback test procedure, the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A sends to the data transmission line 64 127-bit PN patterns (64 periods), each being obtained by scrambling binary ones by the generating polynomial 1+X.sup.-4 +X.sup.-7. Subsequently, the data circuit-terminating equipment DCE-A sends 64 consecutive binary ones to the data transmission line. The 64 127-bit PN patterns and 64 consecutive binary ones form a completion signal.
It can be seen from the above description that it is necessary to provide each of the data circuit-terminating equipments DCE-A and DCE-B with a means for detecting the 127-bit PN pattern. Conventionally, the detection of the loopback activating signal, the confirmation signal or the completion signal uses firmware which has a program in which a ROM table having all 127-bit PN patterns generated by the generating polynomial 1+X.sup.-4 +X.sup.-7 is formed. Each 127-bit PN pattern is compared with the PN patterns in the ROM table. Theoretically, there are no identical 7-bit patterns in the 127-bit PN pattern. Thus, it is possible to detect the PN pattern by comparing seven consecutive bits received with seven consecutive bits at a position in the 127 bits in the ROM table.
However, data is received in serial form without having frame information (provided for use in synchronization), and thus there is a possibility that the seven received bits are not the same as the seven bits read out from the ROM table.
Taking into account such a possibility, a procedure shown FIG. 2 is carried out when the PN pattern detection is started. The seven consecutive bits received are compared with six different patterns, in which there is a one-bit phase difference between the adjacent patterns. Each time seven consecutive bits are received, the comparing procedure shown in FIG. 2 is carried out in accordance with flowcharts shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. The flowcharts shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, which are executed by the microprocessor 2-2 shown in FIG. 1B, are a procedure executed at the beginning of the PN pattern detection and an in-detection procedure executed after the procedure shown in FIG. 3A, respectively.
At step 70 where the data circuit-terminating equipment 2 is in a loopback activating signal hunting state, the microprocessor 2-2 receives seven consecutive bits via the data line terminating block 2-1. At subsequent step 71, the microprocessor 2-2 compares the seven consecutive bits received with six patterns as shown in FIG. 2. When it is determined, at step 71, that the seven consecutive pattern is the same as one of the six patterns, the microprocessor 2-2 switches to an in-detection state at step 72. On the other hand, when the seven consecutive bits are not the same as any of the six patterns, the data circuit-terminating equipment 2 returns to the hunting state 70 at step 73.
During the in-detection state at step 74 subsequent to step 72, the microprocessor 2-2 increments the address of the ROM table by +1, so that an updated address of the ROM table indicating the next seven-bit pattern at step 75. At step 76, the microprocessor 2-2 compares the next seven consecutive bits received with the seven-bit pattern indicated by the updated address. When it is determined, at step 76, that the both the 7-bit patterns are the same as each other, the value in a register which stores the number of times that the pattern coincidence is detected is incremented by +1 at step 77. When the value in the register becomes equal to a predetermined value (which corresponds to the number of bits defined by the CCITT Recommendation V.54), the detection procedure ends. On the other hand, when it is determined, at step 76, that both the seven-bit patterns are not the same as each other, the microprocessor 2-2 returns to the hunting state 70 at step 78. At the same time, the above-mentioned register is reset.
However, the above-mentioned prior art has the following disadvantages. First, it is necessary to use two different firmware structures which respectively correspond to the procedures shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. This needs a large amount of complex software. Second, during the procedure shown in FIG. 3A, the microprocessor 2-2 on the receive side waits for the received seven bits which are the same as the seven bits at a certain position of the 127-bit pattern. Thus, in the worst case, the seven bits are hunted and the PN pattern detection procedure shown in FIG. 3B starts after the data circuit-terminating equipment on the transmitter side has sent 127 consecutive bits (one period). Thus, it takes a long time to start the detection procedure shown in FIG. 3B.

Method and apparatus for detecting pseudo noise pattern for remote loopback test


The invention relates to a drawer comprising a bottom surface (11), two opposing side walls (12,13) and a top surface (14). The side walls are each provided at the top with a recess (15) that extends over the entire side wall, is open towards the outside of the drawer and is delimited from above by a support body (16). Viewed in the vertical direction, the recesses are a recess distance (x) away from the top surface. Viewed in the horizontal direction, the outsides of the support bodies have an external support body spacing (v). The sidewalls are each provided with a supporting foot (17) that extends along the entire sidewall. Viewed in the vertical direction, the supporting foot extends to a supporting foot depth (y) below the bottom surface. Viewed horizontally, the insides of the supporting feet have an internal supporting foot spacing (w). The internal supporting foot spacing (w) is greater than the external support body spacing (v) and the supporting foot depth (y) is greater than the recess distance (x). The invention furthermore relates to a combination comprising at least one drawer according to the invention as well as a drawer cabinet. Furthermore, the invention relates to an aircraft provided with a combination according to the invention.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a drawer comprising a bottom surface, two opposing side walls parallel to one another and a horizontal top surface defining the top of the drawer,
wherein said side walls are each provided at the top with an uppermost recess that extends over the entire side wall, is open towards the outside of the drawer and is delimited from above by an uppermost support body, wherein the uppermost recesses, viewed in the vertical direction, are a recess distance X away from the top surface and wherein the outsides of the uppermost support bodies, viewed in the horizontal direction, have an external support body spacing V.
2. Background
A drawer of this type is known, inter alia, as a drawer from an aircraft trolley of the KSSU type or of the ATLAS type.
In commercial aviation it is customary to provide the passengers with snacks, meals, etc. during the flight. These are wheeled through the cabin past the passengers in turn by means of so-called trolleys. In practice, trolleys of two different types are used; those of the KSSU type and those of the ATLAS type. These are defined trolleys produced in accordance with strict specifications that have been agreed with airlines. Trolleys of the KSSU type as well as trolleys of the ATLAS type are thus both standardised products. Both types of trolleys are provided along facing internal side walls with rail systems with horizontal rails parallel to one another. The rails are separated by a certain spacing in the vertical direction. In the case of trolleys of the KSSU type the spacing is a standard 30 mm and in the case of trolleys of the ATLAS type the spacing is a standard 60 mm. It will be clear that as a result of the smaller spacing, the KSSU trolleys can be provided with more drawers than the ATLAS trolleys for, apart from that, the same height of the trolleys. In the case of trolleys of the KSSU type, it is, moreover, possible as a result of the shorter spacing to achieve a higher degree of loading when using drawers that are shallow in the vertical direction than with an ATLAS trolley. If a shallow drawer, also termed a tray, with a height of approximately 5 mm is slid into an ATLAS trolley, approximately 55 mm of empty space, or at least space not occupied by a drawer, then remains above said tray in the trolley. In the case of a trolley of the KSSU type this distance will be approximately 25 mm.
In the case of trolleys of the KSSU type the drawers are provided at the sides, close to the bottom, with a supporting lip that makes bearing contact with a rail. In order to provide an anti-tip safety feature, the KSSU drawers are provided along a top edge with a similar lip, which, however, will not make contact with a rail, except as soon as tipping occurs. Furthermore, with the KSSU system trays are also provided which are a sort of shallow trays with a bearing edge along the top edge for bearing on a rail.
In the ATLAS system trays are provided that bear along the side edges of their base on rails in the drawer cabinet. Furthermore, with the ATLAS system drawers are provided which have a standard height of approximately 115 mm. The drawers of the ATLAS system are each provided along their side walls with a recess into which the rails of the drawer cabinet can extend, such that the top of the recess bears on the rails and the drawer is thus completely supported by the top of said recess bearing on the rails.
The ATLAS system is the system that is most widely used. Overall, the KSSU system is used for approximately 10% of aircraft trolleys, whilst the ATLAS system is used for 80 to 90% of aircraft trolleys.
The aim of the present invention is to provide a drawer with which the flexibility of known drawer cabinets for aircraft trolleys can be appreciably increased with regard to drawers of varying height to be used therein, and in particular, but not exclusively, for drawer cabinets of the ATLAS system. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that it will also be possible to employ the same principle with drawer cabinets of the KSSU type.

Drawer combination of drawer cabinet and drawer as well as aircraft or train provided with such a combination


A twist push light focusing system for a flashlight includes a focus member movable in a longitudinal direction of the flashlight; a light source; a focus lens; and a rotational-to-longitudinal movement translation mechanism operably coupled to the focus member and at least one of the light source and the focus lens to translate longitudinal movement of the focus member into rotational movement in the rotational-to-longitudinal movement translation mechanism and relative longitudinal movement between the light source and the focus lens to achieve focus.

Some flashlights that use light-emitting diode (LED) light sources are configured with light-focusing mechanisms. However, these flashlights have drawbacks due to their focusing mechanisms that weaken the overall flashlight. For example, exemplary prior art light focusing flashlights include a head or head part that is moved relative to the main flashlight body by a twisting motion, which requires the use of two hands to perform the focus change, which makes the flashlight cumbersome and inconvenient. Furthermore, the movement of the head part or similar results in a flashlight which is more vulnerable to physical wear and tear and which is less resistant to rain, dust, saltwater and other elements than an ordinary flashlight. This is due to the fact that it is a main part of the flashlight housing which forms the actuating part in the focusing mechanisms, and hereby the focusing mechanism and flashlight as whole may potentially not be sealed sufficiently to eliminate the effect of such elements which may cause unsatisfactory long term issues.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a flashlight with a focusing mechanism that allows for the change of focus of the light without jeopardizing the durability of the structure and the resistance of the flashlight to moisture, dust, saltwater, mud, and other caustic or otherwise harmful elements.
In a push-focus flashlight, a user holds the flashlight by the handle with one hand and focuses it by pushing the head forward and backward to achieve focus. This can be an efficient way to focus a light, but has a number of drawbacks, some of which include: since the focusing system is metal to metal and situated outside of the light, within a short period of time, dirt, grime, dust and other particulate matter gets between the head and body of the light causing it to become more and more difficult to move the head forwards or backwards, and the general metal to metal activity over time creates small imperfections in the metals causing this issue to become worse and worse; the focusing system does not allow for the flashlights to be highly water resistant or waterproof; and the head must be twisted to lock the flashlight.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a flashlight with a focusing mechanism that overcomes the above problems and allows for the change of focus of the light without jeopardizing the durability of the structure and the resistance of the flashlight to moisture, dust, saltwater, mud, and other caustic or otherwise harmful elements.


A power tool comprises a crank pin that is eccentrically rotatable by a motor about a rotational axis. A non-rotatable first slider is linearly reciprocated by the crank pin so as to linearly reciprocate a tool. An eccentric pin is disposed substantially diametrically opposite of the crank pin relative to the rotational axis and is eccentrically rotatable by the motor about the rotational axis. A non-rotatable second slider is linearly reciprocated by the eccentric pin in a substantially opposite phase from the first slider so that the second slider acts as a counterweight to the first slider in order to reduce vibrations at least in the direction of linear reciprocation. A rotatable component is rotatably driven by the motor about the rotational axis and has a center of gravity displaced from its rotational axis towards the eccentric pin so as to supplement the vibration reducing function of the counterweight.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power tool, such as a reciprocating saw, and e.g., to a technique for reducing vibrations while performing a power tool operation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-9632 discloses a reciprocating saw that includes a motion converting mechanism for causing a slider to linearly reciprocate in response to rotational movement of the motor. A tool bit is mounted on the end of the slider. Further, the motion converting mechanism includes a counter weight. When the slider reciprocates, the counter weight reciprocates in a direction opposite to the reciprocating direction of the slider, i.e. with a 180° phase shift relative to the slider. As a result, vibrations generated by the reciprocating movement of the slider can be reduced as much as possible, so that power tool vibration can be reduced.
By using such a counter weight that reciprocates with a 180° phase shift relative to the reciprocating movement of the slider, the momentum, mainly the inertial force, can be reduced between the slider and the counter weight in the axial direction of the slider. Thus, effective vibration reduction can be realized. However, the weight of the power tool itself is increased by the weight of the counter weight because the counter weight is additionally provided in the motion converting mechanism. Therefore, further improvement is desired in this respect.

Power tool with vibration reducing mechanism


Disclosed is an image forming apparatus that makes it possible to suppress the scale enlargement of the electric circuit, so as to make the apparatus highly flexible. The apparatus forms an image based on image data acquired by applying a rendering operation to depiction commands and includes: a converting section to convert input data to the depiction commands; a first rendering section to apply the rendering operation to a first depiction command; a second rendering section to apply the rendering operation to a second depiction command; a reading section to read out first information from the storage section; a determining section to determine whether the first rendering section or the second rendering section should apply the rendering operation to each of the depiction commands; and a control, section to make either the first rendering section or the second rendering section apply the rendering operation to each of the depiction commands.

There has been well-known an MFP (Multi-Functional Peripheral) that is provided with various kinds of functions, including a printing function, a copy function, a facsimile function, etc. The MFP is coupled to a plurality of computers through a network. Each of the users, who currently uses each of the computers, transmits data (Page Description Language), representing a document or the like created by using the computer concerned, to the MFP through the network. Receiving the Page Description Language, the MFP parses the Page Description Language concerned so as to create a depiction command, and then, conducts rendering (image depiction processing) based on the depiction command above-created, so as to output a printed paper sheet onto which a formed image is fixed.
Rendering can be implemented by processing hardware and/or processing software, both provided in the MFP concerned. For instance, conventionally well-known is such a printing apparatus that is provided with a plurality of image depicting sections, each of which performs an image depicting operation by using the processing hardware, and another plurality of image depicting sections, each of which performs an image depicting operation by using the processing software, and that makes the both kinds of image depicting sections implement the image depiction processing in parallel so as to improve the processing velocity faster than ever (for instance, set forth in Patent Document 1).
The printing apparatus, set forth in Patent Document 1, sorts the processing into the processing hardware and the processing software, while detecting the loading status of the processing software. On an occasion of sorting the processing, the printing apparatus gives a priority to the processing hardware so as to make the high-speed depiction processing possible. Accordingly, it becomes possible to shorten the process time to be consumed before the printing operation is actually started, resulting in an improvement of the printing velocity.
Further, still conventionally well-known is such a print controlling apparatus that is provided with a rendering section, which performs rendering by using the processing hardware, and another rendering section, which performs rendering by using the processing software, and that categorizes the depiction commands into those to be processed by the processing hardware and others to be processed by the processing software, so as to implement the processing of each of the depiction commands, corresponding to the level of the depiction command concerned (for instance, set forth in Patent Document 2).
In the print controlling apparatus set forth in Patent Document 2, a high-quality rendering operation is performed by the processing hardware, and accordingly, the processing software, serving as a subsidiary function of the processing hardware, does not perform such a high-quality rendering operation that is equivalent to that to be performed by the processing hardware.

Image forming apparatus, accelerator and image forming method


Preferred indexes for a relational database are identified. Queries from users are received and a sample of user queries are analysed to identify candidate indexes. Index permutations are identified by processing the candidate indexes in combinations identified from the sample of user queries. A preferred index set is identified by comparing the performance of the index permutations.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to specifying indexes in a database in response to an analysis of received enquiries.
2. Description of the Related Art
Data processing environments are known in which executable instructions are arranged to generate a data set derived from data contained within a database in response to a data enquiry. Data may be accessed directly from data tables, where it is necessary to search the entries within a table in order to obtain the information required. As an alternative, indexes may be used, thereby avoiding the need for a time-consuming search, but increasing the amount of processing required whenever data is modified. Indexes also require additional data storage capacity.
Designing index structures for large and heavily used databases is presently an extremely difficult task and highly susceptible to the introduction of errors. This problem exists because the technical demands and constraints are such that it is not possible for a database administrator to simultaneously perceive the indexing requirements for hundreds or thousands of different structured query language (SQL) statements, that run against the database on a day-to-day basis. These requirements must then be converted into a preferred set of indexes defined over the whole database. A poorly specified set of indexes will result in SQL statements that consume far too much of the processor facility, that run for far longer than is theoretically necessary and result in a data processing environment that is heavily overloaded.
For a long time, there has been a requirement for procedures that globally specify index structures defined over a given database design, for a typical SQL workload, which may be referred to as a target workload. However, this technical problem has persisted given the inherent difficulties of realising a technical solution.
An earlier proposal of the present inventor is described in international patent publication number WO 97/22939, describing a procedure for specifying an index set by analysing a sample of SQL statements applied to the database. In this proposal, indexes are identified that could assist in the execution of the analysed statements and levels of improved operation are evaluated for each of the indexes. The evaluated levels are processed to specify an index set for inclusion in the database and storage is allocated, within an index being selected, on a prioritised basis.
A problem with the proposal identified in said earlier publication is that the size of the set of candidate indexes that must be evaluated to arrive at a preferred index set for the target workload becomes relatively large. In addition, the cost of developing a set of preferred indexes for each table using a genetic algorithm is also large. In combination, these problems result in a significant processor overhead requirement. Thus, the elapsed time taken to arrive at a preferred index set is prohibitively long, because there are so many candidate indexes. Furthermore, because of the genetic algorithm used in the earlier proposal, at least several hundred generations are required in order to arrive at a suitable set of preferred indexes for a particular table.
The present invention provides a method of identifying preferred indexes for a database, wherein the database has received queries from users. A sample of user queries are analysed to identify candidate indexes. Index permutations are identified by processing candidate indexes in combinations identified from the sample of user queries. A preferred index set is then identified by comparing the performance of the index permutations.
Preferably, preferred indexes are identified for a database in a way such that earlier permutations of chosen indexes progressively guide and restrict the search path of the process. This in turn reduces processing time by many orders of magnitude when compared to known systems, without compromising the set of indexes identified.
The current invention uses techniques that dramatically reduce the search space for candidate indexes that need to be evaluated. In doing so, it also builds a set of preferred indexes for each table as part of its candidate index evaluation processing. This means that devising a set of preferred indexes for each table can complete many orders of magnitude faster than previously known systems. The current invention also by its nature builds a set of preferred indexes for each table as processing progresses, thus avoiding the expensive time and resource consuming need for known systems, such as the use of genetic algorithms, to devise a preferred index set for each table.
The invention also provides for apparatus for identifying preferred indexes, exploiting the aforesaid method and for a computer readable medium having computer readable instructions executable by a computer so as to exploit the aforesaid method.

Identifying preferred indexes for databases


Techniques and examples pertaining to controlling power consumption of a mobile terminal are described. First information regarding at least one aspect of a mobile terminal, as sensed by the at least one sensor, may be received. Second information related to the first information may be transmitted to a remote terminal. Third information may be received from the remote terminal. The third information may be determined by the remote terminal based at least in part on the second information, information about data to be transmitted to or from the mobile terminal, one or more wireless communication variables, or a combination thereof. At least one operational parameter of a wireless transceiver of the mobile terminal may be controlled based on the third information.

Unless otherwise indicated herein, approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims listed below and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Mobile communication terminals (herein interchangeably referred to as "mobile terminals") such as mobile phones, smartphones, personal data assistants, and the like are generally powered by an internal power supply, such as an internal battery or battery pack. The internal power supply typically has a predetermined capacity. The capacity of the internal power supply should provide a sufficient operating time for a given mobile terminal to operate under a variety of conditions, including handling comparatively greater power requirements encountered when transmitting and receiving wireless signals which carry broadband data. Prolonging the operating time of the mobile terminal generally improves user experience and increases the availability of the mobile terminal for public safety services.
In order to adhere to the requirements of prolonging the operating time of the mobile terminal having higher receive and transmit data rates by increasing the capacity of the internal power supply, the size and weight of the battery need to increase. However, this contradicts with the requirements of decreasing the overall size, weight and cost of the mobile terminal itself.

Method, system and apparatus for controlling power consumption of a mobile terminal


A system and method of geophysical exploration is described whereby composition logs of the minerals comprising the formations surrounding a wellbore can be obtained. Samples of the formations surrounding a wellbore are obtained at selected intervals along the length of the wellbore. Each of the core samples is irradiated with electromagnetic radiation and a spectral response signal, representative of the electromagnetic response of each sample to the electromagnetic radiation is recorded. Peaks in the spectral response signals are located and correlated with minerals exhibiting similar electromagnetic characteristic response peaks. Since the samples were obtained from known depths within the wellbore, a composition log of the minerals comprising the formations surrounding the wellbore can be prepared displaying the minerals identified as a function of depth in the wellbore.

The present invention relates generally to a method and system of geophysical exploration and more particularly to a method and system for obtaining a composition log of the minerals comprising the earth's subterranean formations surrounding a wellbore.
In the continuing search for oil and gas, explorationists have developed a wide array of geophysical exploration methods for imaging the earth's subterranean formation structures and displaying those images as well as providing estimates of selected formation characteristics such as lithology, porosity, density, and velocity of propagation of seismic energy in the earth's formations. Exemplary of such geophysical exploration methods are seismic surveys, gravity surveys, magnetic surveys, acoustic logging, resistivity logging and neutron logging.
Occasionally, core samples are obtained from regions of interest within a limited portion of the wellbore for transport to a central laboratory so that properties of the formations adjacent the borehole, such as fluid content of the sample, (U.S. Pat. No. 2,458,093), oil content of the sample (U.S. Pat. No. 2,531,083), and resistivity of the sample (U.S. Pat. No. 2,613,250) can be obtained. Additionally, analyses of such core samples to determine mineralogy have been undertaken at remote laboratory facilities. Unfortunately, such core samples generally represent only a small fraction of the formation lithologies traversed by the wellbore along its length and as such the measured properties represent only a small fraction of the earth's formations surrounding the wellbore.
During the drilling process, chips which have broken away from the subsurface formations can be captured from the drilling fluid at the surface for analysis. Typically, explorationists have identified the lithologies of the subsurface formations from such chips. However, determining the exact depth in the wellbore from which the chips originated is generally not possible due to the very nature of their transport to the surface. Consequently, core samples and chip samples fail to provide either a regular sampling of borehole formation lithologies along the length of the wellbore or fail to accurately determine the depth of origin of such samples so that logs of formation characteristics, as a function of depth over generally the entire wellbore length, cannot be produced. Moreover, the very nature of the chip samples can often times preclude measuring certain formation characteristics (for example, measurement of seismic velocity or compressive strength).
In view of such difficulties, the present invention provides a novel method of geophysical exploration whereby a composition log of the minerals comprising the formations surrounding a wellbore can be obtained. With such composition logs, explorationists can better evaluate the results of geophysical surveys and thus better evaluate the oil- and gas-bearing potential of such formations.

Method an system of geophysical exploration


A junction for transporting sample racks in an analytical system having one or more work cells for processing samples and a method thereof are disclosed. In one embodiment, the junction may include multiple main transport lines, a turntable and one or more bypass transport lines. The multiple main transport lines can transport first sample racks and second sample racks having different sizes. The rotatable transport line can alternately connect to one or more of the main transport lines. Each of the one or more bypass transport lines can interconnect two of the main transport lines and bypass the turntable. Each of the bypass transport lines can be curved such that transport of the second sample racks through each of the bypass transport lines is enabled and transport of the first sample racks through each of the bypass transport lines is disabled.

Automated instruments can be used for analyzing samples with respect to various clinical-chemical and immunochemical analysis items. The instruments may include more than one work cell for performing processing steps. Each of the processing steps can be related to various kinds of analytical methods, and pre-analytical and/or post-analytical processing steps for preparing sample analysis and storing the samples (e.g., for further processing at a later stage).
In the course of automated sample processing, samples or aliquots thereof can be transported from one work cell to another so that individual portions can be withdrawn and/or various fluids such as, for example, reagents, diluents and buffers can be added to the samples. In automated instruments, vessels containing the samples can be transported via sample racks holding the vessels. Specifically, one rack can hold one vessel (single holder) or a plurality of vessels (multiple holders) serially arranged with respect to each other. In automated instruments, a dedicated transporting device can be used for transporting the sample racks between the various work cells. Examples of such transporting devices are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,829 B1 and European Patent Application No. 1460431 A2.
The use of a single rack format (rack size) in the analytical instrument may be limited because different work cells may require different rack formats. Different rack formats may require time consuming and expensive reformatting operations in advance to their use.
Accordingly, alternative devices for transporting sample racks of different formats between various work cells in an analytical instrument may be desired.

Junction, device and process for transporting sample racks


A method and system for detecting the alignment of print heads relative to one another in an ink jet printer having a plurality of print heads arranged side-by-side in a first direction (Y) on a carriage, each print head having a conductive nozzle plate which defines an edge that extends in said first direction (Y), wherein a sensor is used for determining the position of a reference mark formed on the print head, the sensor being used to measure the capacitance between the nozzle plate, serving as the reference mark, and the sensor, said alignment detection including the steps of moving the carriage) relative to the sensor in said first direction (Y) into a first position (“b”) where said sensor) extends across the edge of one print head and a second position (“d”) where the sensor extends across the edge) of another print head, measuring the capacitances in said first and second positions, and comparing the measured capacitances, thereby determining the relative position of said print heads in a second direction (X) orthogonal to said first direction (Y).

The present invention relates to a method of detecting the alignment of printheads relative to one another in an ink jet printer having a plurality of printheads arranged side-by-side in a first direction on a carriage, each print head having a conductive nozzle plate which defines an edge that extends in said first direction, wherein a sensor is used for determining the position of a reference mark formed on the print head. The present invention also relates to a printer for applying the present method.
A printer, e.g., an ink jet printer, comprises one or more print heads each of which carries an array of print elements, e.g., nozzles, for printing pixels on a sheet of a print substrate that is moved along a predetermined path relative to the print head. Typically, the print heads are mounted on a carriage that is moved across the path of the substrate in a main scanning direction Y, whereas the substrate is advanced in a sub-scanning direction X. The print elements or nozzles typically form a linear array that extends in X-direction.
In order to obtain a high quality of the printed image, the nozzles on the print heads must be positioned or positionable with high accuracy relative to the substrate. For example, in the typical set-up described above, the linear array of nozzles should form a specified angle with the main scanning direction Y, typically an angle of exactly 90°. Moreover, when a plurality of print heads are employed, for example, print heads for different colours, the print heads must be precisely aligned relative to one another in at least one direction, typically the sub-scanning direction X. In the other direction Y, it is at least required that the relative positions of the print heads and hence the nozzles are known with high accuracy, so that the individual print elements can be energised at correct timings in accordance with the image information.
A conventional method of detecting the alignment of the print heads consist of printing a test pattern which may then be inspected visually.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,371,591 B1 and 6,508,530 B1 disclose automatic detection methods of the type indicated above, utilising opto-electronic sensors.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,405 discloses a capacitive measurement of the position of the carriage in the main scanning direction, for controlling the timings at which the print elements are filed.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,498,685 discloses a capacitive system for detecting the two-dimensional alignment of a printhead (an optical exposure system) in a lithography system. Here, the individual printheads are aligned relative to the wafer which corresponds to the print substrate. The capacitive detection method relies upon a periodic pattern formed on the wafer.
US-A-2003 0 0085 938 discloses a capacitive measurement system for measuring an alignment of two substrates which, together, form the printhead. This system is used only when the printhead is assembled.

Method of detecting the alignment of printheads in a printer


Performing data processing more effectively for camera shake correction is desirable. Movement of an image-capturing device is compensated on the basis of displacement velocity of the image-capturing device detected by a displacement velocity detector and position regarding a focus adjustment member of the image-capturing device detected by a position detector. An input data format converter converts the displacement velocity detected at the displacement velocity detector from fixed-point format to floating-point format and converts the detected position of the focus member to floating-point data. Furthermore, a gyro filter uses data processing in floating-point format to calculate displacement data for a required amount the image-capturing device is to be displaced and a Hall filter uses data processing in floating-point format to generate drive data for the focus adjustment member. Then, the drive data in floating-point format from the Hall filter is converted to drive data in fixed-point format.

1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a control circuit for an image-capturing device for calculating drive data for a focus adjustment member to compensate for movement of the image-capturing device on the basis of displacement velocity of the image-capturing device detected by a displacement velocity detector and position regarding the focus adjustment member of the image-capturing device detected by a position detector.
2. Background Art
Image-capturing devices, such as digital cameras or cameras mounted in cellular telephones, are increasingly equipped with a camera shake correction function to prevent a reduction in image quality due to camera shake. Various types of camera shake correction methods exist. In one method, an optical part, such as a correction lens or the like forming a focusing mechanism for image capture, or an image-capturing element, such as a CCD image sensor or the like, is displaced on the basis of vibration (angular velocity of the optical axis of the focusing mechanism) of the image-capturing device detected by a gyro sensor or the like. For position control of the focusing mechanism, it is necessary to detect the position of the member to be displaced, and for this position detection a Hall sensor or the like is employed.
To displace the correction lens or the like, an integration process of an angular velocity signal output from a gyro sensor is performed and conversion from angular velocity to an amount of displacement corresponding to angle is performed. This signal processing utilizes common digital data processing and the processing, such as integration, is performed after digital data conversion by an A/D converter (ADC: Analog-to-Digital Converter) of the signal from the sensor. Furthermore, to obtain a signal for controlling the actual drive of the correction lens or the like, a position detection signal from a Hall sensor is also necessary and the output of the Hall sensor is also subjected to A/D conversion, and then processed as digital data.
Then, drive data for the correction lens or the like obtained in this manner is converted to an analog signal by a D/A converter (DAC: Digital-to-Analog Converter) and supplied to an actuator for driving the correction lens. Furthermore, when the actuator is to be controlled using pulse-width modulation (PWM), digital data is supplied to a PWM modulation circuit and the actuator is controlled using PWM by this PWM circuit.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Control circuit for image-capturing device

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC.


A disk drive device includes: a hub on which a recording disk is to be mounted; a base configured to rotatably support the hub via a bearing; a core that is fixed to the base and includes a circular portion and S salient poles (where S is a natural number greater than or equal to 3) extending from the circular portion in the diameter direction; a three-phase coil that is formed by being wound around each of the S salient poles; and a magnet that is fixed to the hub and faces the S salient poles in the diameter direction, and that is provided with P driving magnetic poles in the circumferential direction (where P is a natural number greater than or equal to 2). In the disk drive device, the fundamental frequency component of the cogging torque based on the LCM (Least Common Multiple) of S and P (where S is the number of the salient poles of the core and P is the number of the driving magnetic poles of the magnet), is smaller than the second frequency component of the cogging torque, the frequency of which is twice the fundamental frequency.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a disk drive device that drives a recording disk.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, disk drive devices such as HDDs have been drastically improved in their performance by being provided with a fluid dynamic bearing. With this improvement, the disk drive devices have been required to be operable at a higher speed. For example, the rotational speed of a disk drive device that magnetically records data has been conventionally 3600/min; however, the speed has been increased to 5400/min and is further being increased to 7200/min.
Herein, the torque ripple and the cogging torque generated by a drive unit that rotationally drives a recording disk may cause the vibration of the disk drive device. For example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-312448 discloses an electric motor in which the occurrence of the cogging phenomenon is suppressed.
The torque ripple and the cogging torque include many harmonic components, which are generally increased in proportion to the increased rotational speed. As the harmonic components in the torque ripple and the cogging torque are increased, the vibration of the recording disk is increased.
Large vibration of the recording disk disturbs the tracing of the recording tracks by the magnetic head, causing a failure in reading/writing data, that is, deteriorating the so-called error rate. Accordingly, the rotational speed of the recording disk cannot be increased, and thereby the disk drive device is hampered in being operable at a higher speed.

Disk drive device rotationally driving recording disk


Methods and apparatus are provided for automatically loading drivers on computers for devices coupled to a communication medium such as an IEEE 1394 serial bus. Operating systems running on the computers detect when a device is connected to the communication medium. The operating systems then determine whether one of the drivers stored in memory on the device will enable the computers to utilize the device. The operating systems will then load the appropriate drivers for their respective computers and allow access to the device. If none of the drivers on the memory are suitable for a particular computer, then its operating system will prompt a user to manually insert a computer-readable medium containing the appropriate drivers. Thus, the present invention provides methods and apparatus for automatically loading device drivers.

A device driver is a program routine that links a peripheral device to an operating system running on a computer. It is written by programmers who understand the detailed knowledge of the device's command language and characteristics and contains the precise machine language necessary to perform the functions requested by the application. Every peripheral device requires a driver. The drivers provide the detailed instructions necessary to activate and control the device.
When a new hardware device is added to the computer, such as a display adapter, sound card or CD-ROM drive, its driver must be installed in order to run it. Similarly, when a new peripheral device is connected to one or more computers through a communication medium such as a serial bus, a driver for the peripheral device must be installed for each operating system on each computer. In either case, the operating system calls the driver, and the driver "drives" the device.
Unfortunately, manufacturers generally provide drivers for peripheral devices on floppy disks or CD-ROMs. Thus, whenever a new device is to be installed on a computer, the operating system prompts the user to insert the computer-readable medium containing the appropriate driver. This is especially problematic when the peripheral device is coupled to a serial bus such as an IEEE 1394 (aka FireWire™, I.LINK™) bus, where multiple computers may need to simultaneously or sequentially load drivers for the device.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide methods and apparatus for automatically loading drivers for devices coupled to a communication medium such as an IEEE 1394 serial bus.


In one aspect, the present invention is directed to an apparatus and method for treating congestive heart failure that restores kidney renal functions by artificial perfusion of at least one kidney. In one aspect, a catheter inserted into the aorta of the patient has an outlet port that supplies the patient's blood obtained from a patient's aorta into an adjoining renal artery of the patient to perfuse the kidney. The catheter comprises a rotor housed inside a portion of the catheter to supply the blood to the kidney at a desired pressure. The restoration of kidney function assists the heart by removing excess fluid, urine and toxin from the patient, and by normalizing the patient's renin-angiotensin system and other neurohormonal substances.

Heart failure is a growing and dominant public health problem in the United States. Literally, millions of patients in this country suffer from heart failure and more than half a million patients are newly diagnosed with heart failure every year. The heart failure patient pool is continuing to grow at an increasing rate partly because of early recognition and better treatment coupled with "salvage" of patients with acute myocardial infarctions earlier in life. Heart failure is the most common Medicare DRG group and more Medicare dollars are spent for the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure than for any other diagnosis. The costs of heart failure treatment can be dramatically reduced by decreasing hospital stay alone.
The patho-physiology of heart failure involves changes in cardiac function, neuro-humoral status, blood volumes, and systemic vascular resistance. A primary change in cardiac function precipitates changes in neuro-humoral status, blood volume and vascular resistance. These changes can neutralize cardiac dysfunction up to certain limits. Therefore, some of the most effective conventional treatments for chronic heart failure involve modulating non-cardiac factors such as modifying renal and vascular function.
In regard to cardiac changes, systolic dysfunction, diastolic dysfunction, or combination of both can result in decline in stroke volume. Ischemic cardiomyopathy is the most common cause of chronic heart failure. For neuro-humeral changes, arterial and venous vasoconstriction and increases in blood volume, as a result of sympathetic activation and renin-angiotensin system, increased anti-diuretic hormone/vasopressin, and atrial-natriuretic peptide, try to compensate for the decline in cardiac output. However, this paradoxically affects cardiac function further by increasing both ventricular afterload and preload. Factors such as nitric oxide and endothelin, both of which are increased in heart failure, may play a role in the pathogenesis of heart failure. GFR becomes dependent on afferent arteriolar flow in the most severe heart failure, despite stimulation of hormonal and homodynamic pathways, which would normally increase efferent arteriolar tone.
Arterial and venous constriction as a result of sympathetic activation is also enhanced by humoral activation via, for example, the renin-angiotensin system and antidiuretic hormones, such as, for example, vasopressin. Further, a compensatory increase in blood volume serves to increase ventricular preload and thereby enhance stroke volume by the Frank-Starling mechanism.
One will appreciate that blood volume can be augmented by a number of mechanisms. For example, reduction of renal blood flow results in decreased urine output and retention of fluid. Furthermore, a combination of reduced renal perfusion and sympathetic activation of the kidneys activates the renin-angiotensin system, which, in turn, enhances aldosterone secretion. Still further, increases in circulating arginine vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone) contributes to renal retention of water. As a result, final outcome of humoral activation is an increase in renal reabsorption of sodium and water. The resultant increase in blood volume helps to maintain cardiac output; however, this increase can be deleterious because it raises venous pressures, which can lead to pulmonary and systemic edema. FIG. 6 summarizes the compensatory mechanisms described above.
As noted above, it is well known that cardiac dysfunction induces a series of events that ultimately contribute to congestive heart failure. Reductions in renal blood flow due to reduced cardiac output can, in turn, result in the retention of excess fluid in the patient's body, leading for example, to pulmonary and cardiac edema. The vicious cycle of fluid and electrolytes retention increases the work of the compromised heart.
In a healthy adult, kidneys are perfused by about 20 to 22% of cardiac output, which typically results in around 60,000 cc of blood circulating through kidneys per hour. Chapter 62 of Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine, (E. Braunwald, ed., 5th ed. 1996), published by Saunders, Philadelphia, Pa., reports that for patients with congestive heart failure, the fall in effective renal blood flow is proportional to the reduction in cardiac output. Renal blood flow in normal patients in an age range of 20-80 years averages 600 to 660 ml/min/m2, corresponding to about 14 to 20% of simultaneously measured cardiac output. Within a wide spectrum of CHF severity, renal blood flow is depressed to an average range of 250 to 450 ml/min/m2.
Thus, in acute decompensation, it is beneficial to improve renal perfusion. In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to increase renal profusion by positioning a catheter below the renal artery. This would beneficially result in an increase in laminar flow in the aorta and a decrease in the serum levels of vasoconstrictors. Thus, improvements in renal circulation as well as laminar flow in the aorta can be achieved.
It further would be desirable to provide methods and apparatus for treating and managing heart failure without administering high doses of drugs or dehydrating the patient. It further would be desirable to provide methods and apparatus for treating and managing heart failure by improving blood flow to the kidneys, thereby enhancing renal function. It also would be desirable to provide methods and apparatus for treating and managing heart failure that permit the administration of low doses of drugs, in a localized manner, to improve renal function.

Method and apparatus for treatment of congestive heart disease


A conductor assembly and methods for mechanically and electrically coupling a small diameter conductor to a lead component having a relatively larger sized conductor bore is provided. The assembly includes a sizing member sized to fit securely around a relatively small diameter conductor and to further fit within a conductor bore so that temporary compression (e.g., crimping, crushing, or staking) of a discrete portion of the conductor bore mechanically couples, and establishes electrical communication between, the conductor and the lead component. Alternately, a conductive sleeve member having a relatively large diameter conductor bore is adapted to receive a sizing unit to downsize one side of the sleeve member in a manner similar to the foregoing. In this case, a relatively smaller diameter one of a pair of different diameter elongated conductors is firmly mechanically coupled and in electrical communication with a relatively larger diameter conductor.

Implantable cardiac leads for sensing cardiac signals or delivering pacing or defibrillation impulses to the heart are typically connected to an implantable or external medical device such as a monitor, pacemaker, or cardioverter defibrillator. Cardiac leads may be for temporary or chronic use and provide an electrical pathway between the heart and an associated device. Electrodes located generally at or near the distal end of a lead are coupled to an associated conductor that extends the length of the lead to a connector assembly at the proximal end of the lead that is connected to the associated device.
Conductors commonly used in cardiac leads include a single wire, a mono- or multi-filar coil, drawn brazed, stranded conductors or cabled conductors. Conductors are typically formed from a single conductive metal or alloy material, such as MP35N alloy, or a composite conductive material, such as a silver core wire clad with MP35N alloy. Conductors may be arranged within multiple lumens of a lead body or arranged concentrically within a common lumen.
Conductors are generally joined to lead components, such as an electrode or connector assembly component, by a mechanical joint to form reliable electrical coupling between the conductor and a component. Welding may not be a practical method for joining conductors to lead components due to dissimilar materials that may be present in the conductor. Therefore, a mechanical joint, such as a crimp or a stake is generally preferred. Lead components are often provided with a conductor bore for receiving a conductor. The outer diameter of the bore may then be crimped or staked to cause the inner diameter to be deformed against the conductor and thereby mechanically retain the conductor within the bore and at the same time provide electrical coupling between the conductor and lead component.
Many considerations are taken into account when optimizing the design of a lead. For example, minimizing lead size is important since a smaller lead body is more readily implanted within the cardiac structures or coronary veins of a patient. It is desirable to minimize the lead body diameter by reducing the diameter of conductors carried by the lead. A reduced diameter conductor must be securely connected, both mechanically and electrically, to an electrode or other lead component to ensure proper lead function. Cardiac leads can undergo considerable stresses due to repetitive flexing caused by the motion of the beating heart and forces applied to the lead during an implantation or repositioning procedure. Mechanical joints must reliably withstand these stresses such that breaks in the electrical pathway between the heart and an implanted device do not occur.
Lead components may be provided in standard sizes. For example, lead connector assemblies are generally manufactured according to industry set standards, such as the IS-1 standard, so that leads are compatible with different types of implantable devices. Therefore, a downsized lead body may be fitted with a relatively larger, standard-sized connector assembly. A conductor bore provided on standard-sized components may be too large to be crimped or staked securely around a small diameter conductor. Depending on the machining methods used, the minimum inner diameter of a conductor bore may be limited resulting in a bore that is too large to be effectively crimped around a small diameter conductor.
What is needed therefore, is a conductor assembly and method for mechanically joining a relatively small diameter conductor to a relatively larger-sized conductor bore provided on an associated lead component, which may be a standard sized component. The conductor assembly and method should provide reliable electrical and mechanical coupling of the conductor to an associated component. Furthermore, the assembly and method should allow standard-sized or modular components to be compatible with non-standard or downsized conductors.

Methods and apparatus for joining small diameter conductors within medical electrical leads


A brachytherapy apparatus includes a distal support member and a proximal support member movable relative to the distal support member. The apparatus includes a plurality of elongate treatment members having distal first locations coupled to the distal support member, proximal second locations coupled to the proximal support member, and pathways between the proximal second locations and the distal first locations adapted to receive one or more radiation sources. Each of the treatment members is movable between a generally straight configuration and a curvilinear configuration. An expandable member encloses and provides a spatial volume for the plurality of the treatment members and is adjustable between a contracted configuration and an expanded configuration.

This invention relates in general to radiation therapy and in particular to apparatuses and methods for providing brachytherapy to a human or other mammalian body.
Brachytherapy is a type of radiation therapy that involves placing radioactive materials directly into or immediately adjacent to a target, which may be a tumor or tissue surrounding a cavity that contains cancerous cells. Brachytherapy has been used in treatment of a large number of malignancies including cancer in the uterus, uterine cervix, vagina, prostate, rectum, lung, and breast. One major advantage of brachytherapy is that very high doses of radiation can be delivered locally to the target in a relatively short time, while relatively low doses are delivered in the surrounding tissue. This adheres to the premise in radiation therapy that tumoricidal doses must be deposited in the tumor while sparing as much normal tissue and/or critical organs as possible. The use of brachytherapy in cancer treatment is increasing, partly due to the increasing desire for organ preservation and acceptable cosmetic results.
Significant achievements in brachytherapy have been made, however challenges remain. For example, conventional brachytherapy techniques generally lack the ability to adjust the pathways of radioactive materials in a target site, resulting in less desirable treatment dosimetry. Another issue with conventional brachytherapy techniques is that they require structures often made of metal or plastic for passing radioactive materials right next to the body tissue. The bare metal structures may cause unpleasant effect on patients, prohibits CT/MR scanning of the anatomy to be treated because of excessive artifacts, and create non-uniform dose distributions or overexposure of doses to adjacent healthy tissue.

Expanding multi-lumen applicator operating within a balloon


The invention described herein pertains to four series of aza-A-ring indenoisoquinolines, which are inhibitors of topoisomerase IB (Top1), and the processes for preparing said aza-A-ring indenoisoquinolines. Also described are methods for treating cancer in mammals using the described aza-A-ring indenoisoquinoline compounds or pharmaceutical formulations thereof.

This section introduces aspects that may help facilitate a better understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, these statements are to be read in this light and are not to be understood as admissions about what is or is not prior art.
DNA relaxation catalyzed by topoisomerase IB (Top1) is essential for replication and transcription in vertebrate cells. During this enzyme-mediated process, covalent Top1-DNA cleavage complexes are produced. Normally, cleavage complexes reverse rapidly and are undetectable in cells. However, DNA damage and certain cancer chemotherapeutic agents known as Top1 poisons can stabilize the cleavage complexes by preventing their reversal. As a result of the extended lifetimes of the cleavage complexes, advancing replication forks can collide with the DNA cleavage sites and produce DNA double-strand breaks. The DNA damage eventually causes the cell to enter apoptosis (Pommier, Y. DNA Topoisomerase I Inhibitors: Chemistry, Biology, and Interfacial Inhibition. Chem. Rev. 2009, 109, 2894-2902).
Several distinct Top poison chemotypes have been developed since the discovery of the natural product camptothecin (1, Scheme 1) and its unique mechanism of action (Oberlies, N. H., et al., J. Nat. Prod. 2004, 67, 129-135). Two derivatives of camptothecin are FDA-approved drugs used for the treatment of solid tumors, and several analogues are being investigated for the treatment of various cancers (Pommier, Y., et al., Chem. Biol. 2010, 17, 421-433). The potent anticancer activities of the members of this class are counterbalanced by problems with physicochemical properties, drug resistance, and patient tolerability. The shortcomings of the camptothecins include: (1) poor water solubility; (2) instability of the E-ring lactone at physiological pH, which hydrolyzes to a hydroxyacid that binds to plasma proteins; (3) rapid diffusion from their binding site in the Top1-DNA cleavage complexes, which may necessitate longer drug infusion times in order to maintain adequate concentrations of the ternary cleavage complexes; (4) dose-limiting toxicities including bone marrow suppression and severe dose-limiting diarrhea; (5) susceptibility to drug resistance by several Top1 point mutations; and (6) efficient removal from cancer cells by drug efflux pumps that results in drug resistance. There are still unmet clinical needs for better treatment options.
These limitations have resulted in the discovery of improved Top1 poisons. Two compounds, the indenoisoquinolines indotecan (LMP400, 2) and indimitecan (LMP776, 3), have been promoted to Phase I clinical trials at the National Cancer Institute (S. Kummar, et al., Cancer Chemother Pharmacol (2016) 78:73-81).
A third, structurally related indenoisoquinoline known as MJ-III-65 (LMP744, 4) has shown promising preclinical activity (Antony, S. et al., Mol. Pharmacol. 2005, 67, 523-530). The indenoisoquinolines overcome many of the drawbacks associated with the camptothecins (Pommier, Y. Nat. Rev. Cancer 2006, 6, 789-802).
Tyrosyl DNA phosphodiesterases 1 and 2 (TDP1 and TDP2) are DNA repair enzymes that process Top1- and Top2-mediated DNA lesions, respectively. TDP1 catalyzes the hydrolysis of the 3′-phosphotyrosyl-DNA linkages that result from degradation of Top1-DNA cleavage complexes. Bis(indenoisoquinoline) 5 displays potent Top1 inhibitory activity and its IC50 values versus purified and whole cell extract-containing TDP1 are each approximately 1 μM. TDP2 catalyzes the hydrolysis of the 5′-phosphotyrosyl-DNA linkages that result from degradation of Top2-DNA cleavage complexes and it also displays weak activity against 3′-phosphotyrosyl-DNA linkages. There are currently no promising TDP2 inhibitor series. A series of deazaflavins (e.g. 6) with low nanomolar TDP2 inhibitory potencies was recently reported. However, the authors remarked that the chemical series is marred by poor cellular permeability. TDP1 and TDP2 can serve as mutual backups for the repair of stalled Top1-DNA cleavage complexes, which would make dual TDP1 and TDP2 inhibition a significant advancement.

Aza-A-ring indenoisoquinoline topoisomerase I poisons

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


An apparatus and method for aiding in debugging and optimizing software is presented, in particular for instrumenting software to trace function calls. Source code is compiled with placeholder memory ranges. While executing the compiled binary object, a call-trace profiling function is inserted into at least certain of the placeholder memory ranges to log call-trace profiling data. Then, the compiled binary object is restored to its original state by removing the call-trace profiling function(s). A NOP function can be inserted in each placeholder memory range during compilation.

Development of reliable, efficient software is aided by tools designed to aid in debugging and optimizing the software. Modern software products range from smaller applications that might run on a single computer to larger, more complex applications that operate across multiple computers connected by local area networks (LANs) or wide area networks (WANs) such as the Internet. Software developers use a variety of tools to assist in the development process, from pre-processors that analyze source code for potential issues and compilers that optimize code and organize symbolic information to runtime debuggers that use the symbolic information to assist developers in verifying the correct operation of the software.

Low-overhead method and apparatus for collecting function call trace data


Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) oligomers are conjugated to a ligand which is capable of binding to a cell surface receptor. The ligand facilitates cellular uptake of the PNA oligomer. Where the ligand is a peptide, the conjugate may be produced as a unitary molecule by first synthesizing the peptide ligand by solid phase or solution peptide synthesis, followed by synthesis of the PNA oligomer as an extension of the peptide ligand. The PNA oligomer base sequence is selected to hybridize to a target polynucleotide sequence by either triplex (dsDNA) or duplex (ssDNA; RNA) formation.

DNA therapeutics show great potential for gene-specific, nontoxic therapy of a wide variety of disease. The deoxyribose phosphate backbone of DNA has been modified in a number of ways to improve nuclease stability and cell membrane permeability (Knorre et al. (1994) Design and Targeted reactions of Oligonucleotide Derivatives, CRC Press, Boc a Raton, Fla.). Recently, a new class of compound, peptide nucleic acids (PNA) has shown potential as an antisense agent (Nielsen et al Science, 254, 1497-1500, 1991). PNAs comprise nucleic acid mimics in which the sugar-phosphate backbone is replaced with a backbone based on amino acids. PNAs generally exhibit sequence-specific binding to DNA and RNA with higher affinities and specificities than unmodified DNA. They are resistant to nuclease and protease attack. Melting temperatures of their duplexes with DNA or RNA are much higher than any of the known DNA compounds, both modified and unmodified. Recently, the solution structure of PNAs has also been determined by nuclear magnetic resonance (Brown et al., Science 265, 777-780, 1994).
The PNAs may be synthesized inexpensively on a large scale. PNAs may be synthesized by either solution phase or solid phase methods adapted from peptide synthesis. For example, PNAs can be synthesized from four protected monomers containing thymidine, cytosine, adenine and guanine via solid-phase peptide synthesis, by a modification of the Merrifield method (Merrifield, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 85, 2149-2154, 1963; Merrifield, Science 232, 341-347, 1986) employing, for example, BOC-Z protected monomers (Christensen et al., J. Peptide Science 3, 175-183, 1995).
PNAs recognize DNA and RNA in a sequence specific manner and form complexes which can be characterized by biophysical methods. The binding motif is context dependent; homopyrimidine PNAs combine with complementary polypurine targets to form stoichiometric 2:1 complexes, whereas PNAs containing both purine and pyrimidine bases afford a 1:1 heteroduplex with mis-match sensitivity comparable to that found in double-stranded (ds)DNA. The 2:1 complexes are formed when a second strand of the PNA binds the major groove of a PNA-DNA duplex through Hoogsteen base pairing. Thus, the triplex is comprised of a PNA/DNA duplex (formed by Watson-Crick hydrogen bonds) with a second PNA strand lying in the major grove of the duplex (held by Hoogsteen hydrogen bonds). These triplex complexes are so stable that "strand invasion" of dsDNA is possible. Binding of the PNA results in formation of a D-loop in the dsDNA. This characteristic is believed useful to manipulate gene expression at the transcriptional level. These 2:1 and 1:1 complexes mediate the antigene and antisense effects of PNAs via the steric blockade of enzyme complexes responsible for DNA transcription, cDNA synthesis, and RNA translation (Noble et al., Drug Development Research 34:184-195, 1995). PNAs may be used as antisense or antigene drugs, exploiting the sequence-dependent binding of the PNA portion to single stranded nucleic acids, particularly mRNA, or double-stranded dsDNA, respectively.
Although the biophysical data are very much in favor of the PNAs becoming very successful as nucleic acid binding agents, they suffer from a vital limitation in that they are taken up by cells very poorly.


A multi-fiber reel and adapter assembly includes a base, a cable reel mounted to the base, and a plurality of adapters fixedly mounted to the base. The cable reel is configured to rotate relative to the base and the adapters, and each of the adapters is configured to couple a fiber optic cable from the cable reel with a fiber optic drop cable that is configured to run from the respective adapter to a location of an end user that is remote from the assembly.

As demand for data and connectivity increases, network planners and installers are seeking more efficient and cost-effective deployment options for their fiber to the X (FTTX) rollouts. FTTX comprises the many variants of fiber optic access infrastructure. These include fiber to the home (FTTH), fiber to the premise (FTTP), fiber to the building (FTTB), fiber to the node (FTTN), and fiber to the curb or cabinet (FTTC). The optical FTTP or FTTH network is an optical access network that supplies broadband or ultra-broadband communication services to a number of end users (e.g., services that require data transmission speeds measuring several hundred Mbit/s or even higher).
An optical FTTP or FTTH network typically includes a fiber distribution hub (FDH), which is typically located in the basement or vault of a multi-dwelling unit building in which the end users reside. A multi-fiber distribution cable typically leads out of the distribution hub to a fiber connection point that is typically located remote from the distribution hub. At the distribution hub, the distribution cable can be connected optically to one or more drop cables. As used herein, a "drop cable" is an optical fiber cable that typically runs towards an apartment or office of an end user. To connect the distribution cable to the drop cables, a number of optical fibers are broken out of the distribution cable and into a same number of single-fiber cables that are each terminated with an optical fiber connector. Each drop cable is then typically terminated in a termination box located in the proximity of or inside an apartment or office of an end user. A building may include a single FDH for the entire building, or one FDH per floor, or any combination in between, depending on the fiber connection needs and capacity of the building.
When installing an FDH, it is difficult for a technician to determine the length of input fiber cable needed to connect the FDH to a fiber connection point, which is usually outdoors where the connections to the larger fiber networks (e.g., a city wide fiber network) are made. In some installations, the fiber connection point could also be within the same building, perhaps on another floor or in the basement of the building. Regardless of the location of the fiber connection point, it is typically necessary to physically locate the FDH before the required length of input fiber cable between the FDT and the fiber connection point is known. As a result, the technician needs to approximate the length of input fiber cable to the fiber connection point and prepare that length of the input fiber cable before installing the FDH.
If the approximated length is too short, the technician must then splice the approximated length of input fiber cable with another length of input fiber cable. On the other hand, if the approximated length is too long, the excess slack of the input fiber cable must be stored somewhere along the length of fiber cable. If not properly stored, unwanted bends and thus unwanted bend loss can be introduced into the fiber cable path.
Although it is convenient for a technician to secure the FDH to its permanent location before connecting the input fiber cable to the fiber connection point, conventional FDHs include an adapter plate mounted to the spool of fiber cable such that the adapter plate will rotate with the spool when the input fiber cable is deployed from the spool to the fiber connection point. Thus, although the terminated breakout cables can be connected to the adapter plate before the input fiber cable is deployed from the spool to the fiber connection point, the drop cables that run from the FDH to an apartment or office of an end user cannot be connected until after the input fiber cable is deployed from the spool to the fiber connection point because the adapter plate rotates with the spool and would damage the drop cables.
Therefore, it may be desirable to provide a multi-fiber reel and adapter assembly that permits a technician to connect drop cables to the adapters in advance of the multi-fiber cable being deployed or paid out from the reel to a remote fiber connection of a FTTX application and keep the drop cables connected to the adapters while the reel is being rotated to deploy or pay out the multi-fiber cable to the remote fiber connection. It may also be desirable to provide a multi-fiber reel and adapter assembly that includes a reel that holds the multiple connectors of breakout cables that are broken out from the multi-fiber cable while the reel is being rotated to deploy or pay out the multi-fiber cable to the remote fiber connection.


A mounting station for automatically assembling a razor that includes a shaving cartridge and a razor handle. The mounting station includes providing a razor handle and a shaving cartridge, automatically connecting a first rearwardly protruding connector of the shaving cartridge to the free end of the first handle connector of the razor handle, and then automatically connecting the second rearwardly protruding connector of the shaving cartridge to the free end of the second handle connector of the razor handle to form a razor.

In particular, the embodiments of the present invention are related to a method for automatically assembling a razor that includes a shaving cartridge and a razor handle, the shaving cartridge having first and second rearwardly protruding connectors and the razor handle having first and second handle connectors which have free ends adapted to be connected respectively to the rearwardly protruding connectors and to a mounting station for automatically assembling such a razor.
Generally, the wet shaving razors are manufactured in assembling a razor handle and a shaving cartridge together on an assembly line, especially in case of disposable razor for which the sold razor comprises a razor handle already attached on a shaving cartridge.
To connect a razor handle on such a shaving cartridge, the first and second rearwardly protruding connectors of the shaving cartridge are usually simultaneously connected to the free ends of the first and second handle connectors of the razor handle.
Therefore, a high stress is applied to each of these rearwardly protruding connectors and to the free ends to allow, generally by snap-fitting or snap-pressing, meaning by elastic deformation of the element, during the connection.
This high stress can lead to the creation of burrs on the protruding connectors reducing or eliminating the pivoting motion of shaving cartridge. This high stress can also lead to the breakage of the rearwardly protruding connectors and/or of the free ends, leading to the scrapping of the razor before shipping or more annoying to the breakage of the razor when used by the consumer.

Mounting station and method for automatically assembling a razor


Compositions comprising dihydroavenanthramide D and climbazole; and, cosmetics or pharmaceutical end products comprising the compositions, useful for treating skin and/or hair.

The present invention relates to mixtures of anthranilic acid amides and antidandruff agents which can be used especially as cosmetic and pharmaceutical compositions for alleviating itching.
WO 2004/047833, on which the present invention is based, discloses that certain anthranilic acid amides (of Formula 1) inhibit the substance P-induced release of histamines from mast cells and thus are suitable as cosmetic and pharmaceutical compositions for alleviating itching. The compounds of Formula 1 indicated in WO 2004/047833 are also particularly preferred for use within the framework of the present invention.
WO 2004/047833 discloses that the use concentration of a particular compound of Formula 1 is up to 10 percent by weight, based on the total weight of a ready-to-use cosmetic or pharmaceutical end product. In some cases, however, such high use concentrations seem to be problematic for cosmetic and/or pharmaceutical reasons relating e.g. to formulation technology.

Compositions comprising dihydroavenanthramide D and climbazole as cosmetic and pharmaceutical compositions for alleviating itching


The invention relates to a wavelength division multiplex transmission system; for one channel, the spectral interval between adjacent channels on one side is different from the spectral interval between adjacent channels on the other side. A demultiplexing filter is used which attenuates more strongly the spectrum of the channel on the side on which the spectral interval between adjacent channels is smaller. The invention improves spectral efficiency and retains frequencies chosen from a grid of regularly spaced frequencies.

The present invention relates to fiber optic transmission systems and more precisely to high bit rate wavelength division multiplex fiber optic transmission systems. In the present context the expression xe2x80x9chigh bit ratexe2x80x9d means a bit rate per channel greater than or equal to 10 Gbit/s.
ITU-T Recommendation G.692, xe2x80x9cOptical interfaces for multichannel systems with optical amplifiersxe2x80x9d, 10/98, appendix II proposes a regular frequency step of 50 GHz. It would be beneficial to be able to conform to this recommendation for high bit rate transmission systems as well; however, a problem that arises in this case is that of coherent crosstalk between adjacent channels. Appendix V of the recommendation proposes spectral intervals that are varied in a pseudo-random manner to reduce four-wave mixing. There is an explicit suggestion to choose unequal spectral intervals for the channel frequencies so that no new optical power generated by four-wave mixing lies in any optical signal channel (see Section V.1.1).
Y. Yano et al., xe2x80x9c2.6 Terabit/s WDM transmission experiment using optical duobinary codingxe2x80x9d, ECOC""96, ThB3.1, pages 5.3 to 5.6, is representative of the best results that can currently be obtained in transmission systems and proposes using duobinary coding for transmission on channels separated by 33.3 GHz. The paper refers to duobinary coding as a technique for reducing bandwidth to achieve good spectral efficiency.
The invention proposes to improve the spectral efficiency in wavelength division multiplex transmission systems and to retain a spectral position of the channels that conforms to the ITU recommendation mentioned above.
To be more precise, the invention proposes a wavelength division multiplex transmission system which has at least one channel for which the spectral interval between adjacent channels on one side is different from the spectral interval between adjacent channels on the other side and which includes a demultiplexing filter attenuating more strongly on the side of the channel in which the spectral interval between adjacent channels is smaller.
For a channel having different spectral intervals between adjacent channels, the higher spectral interval is preferably at least 20% greater than the lower spectral interval.
In a preferred embodiment, the wavelengths of the channels are chosen from a set of wavelengths and the difference between two wavelengths of said set is a multiple of a minimum difference between two wavelengths of said set.
The wavelengths of the channels can also be chosen by eliminating one wavelength in three from a set of regularly spaced wavelengths.
The difference of attenuation by the filter at a frequency offset by half the modulation frequency on either side of the center frequency of the channel is advantageously greater than 5 dB.
The filter can have a symmetrical transfer function with the center frequency of the filter offset relative to the center frequency of the channel. A filter which has an asymmetrical transfer function can also be chosen.

Wavelength division multiplex transmission system using asymmetrical filtering