A video transcoder for converting a compressed input video bit-stream having one spatial resolution into a compressed output video bit-stream having a different spatial resolution in a manner that enables the transcoder to dynamically change the amount of computational resources allocated to the conversion process. In one embodiment, the video transcoder has a plurality of configurable processing paths whose configuration determines the amount of allocated computational resources. Exemplary processing-path configuration changes may include, but are not limited to engaging or disengaging a processing path, redirecting a data flow from flowing through one processing path to flowing through another processing path, and attaching or detaching one or more processing modules to an engaged processing path. The capability to make these and other configuration changes enables the video transcoder to adjust the computational complexity and picture quality on the fly, without interrupting the video sequence in the output video bit-stream.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to video transcoding and, more specifically but not exclusively, to management of spatial resolution in compressed video bit-streams.
2. Description of the Related Art
This section introduces aspects that may help facilitate a better understanding of the invention(s). Accordingly, the statements of this section are to be read in this light and are not to be understood as admissions about what is in the prior art or what is not in the prior art.
Video transcoding is a process of converting a previously compressed video bit-stream into another compressed video bit-stream, e.g., with a different bit rate, a different frame rate, a different display format, and/or a different coding method. For example, video transcoding can be used to convert a video bit-stream encoded in one standard into a video bit-stream encoded in a different standard, with the initial and final standards selected from a set consisting of the H.26x and MPEG-z families of standards, where x=1, 3, 4 and z=1, 2, 4. Another important example of video transcoding is conversion of a compressed video bit-stream having one spatial resolution into a compressed video bit-stream having a different (typically lower) spatial resolution, without changing the standard. Other video-transcoding operations may include adding enhanced error resilience, inserting logos and watermarks, adjusting temporal resolution, etc. Video transcoding advantageously enables multimedia devices of diverse formats and capabilities to exchange video content on heterogeneous transport-network platforms, such as the Internet.
A video transcoder can be physically placed at a transmitter, a receiver, or an intermediate node in the network. In realizing a video transcoder, the computational complexity and picture quality are usually the two most-important concerns. Another important concern is the ability to provide video transcoding on the fly, e.g., with real-time speed and without video-flow interruptions. However, accommodating these and other pertinent concerns can be a significant challenge, e.g., due to relatively large and fast variability of the network-traffic load and available transmission bandwidths.

Video transcoder with flexible quality and complexity management


A method of breast reconstruction utilizes a breast prosthesis having a plurality of chambers or compartments distributed through a body member or shell in the form of a breast. The chambers are disposed along the superior, lateral and inferior surfaces, as well as in the interior, of the body member. The chambers are differentially pressurized or filled in order to control the shape of the prosthesis upon implantation thereof. Valves are provided for regulating the flow of fluid into and from the chambers. The prosthesis and the fill levels of the respective chambers may be selected by computer.

This invention relates to a method for reshaping a portion of an organism through implantation of an expandable prosthesis. This invention also relates to the prosthesis. The invention is particularly suitable for providing a female breast with a desired shape.
It is not uncommon for women afflicted with breast cancer to have a breast removed in an attempt to prevent spread of a malignancy. Mastectomies are not just physically traumatic but also psychologically scarring. At the very least, women who have suffered mastectomies may lose their self confidence.
A number of methods for breast implants have been developed, but more often than not, the resulting breast has an unnatural appearance. When an implant alone is used, a silicone sack filled with saline is disposed beneath the pectoral muscle. Although this bag is usually shaped in the form of a breast, the saline acts in accordance with the laws of fluids and distributes itself in the shape of least resistance so that the middle of the bag assumes a spherical shape. The lateral aspect of this prosthetic breast, where breast tissue is supposed to exist, is now empty. The resulting unnatural appearance is that of a ball placed beneath the skin rather than the tear-drop shape of a natural breast, with the sloping of the superior part of the breast, the even tapering distribution laterally and the droop on the inferior side.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and/or an associated prosthetic device for reconstructing and shaping a body part.
A more specific object of the present invention is to provide such a method and/or device for reconstructing and shaping a breast.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a method and/or device which facilitates the fashioning of a natural breast shape.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a method and/or device which includes computer aided design.
These and other objects of the present invention will be apparent from the drawings and descriptions hereof. It is to be noted that every embodiment of the invention is expected to achieve one of more of these objects. However, no embodiment is expected to achieve all objects of the invention.
The present invention is directed in part to a method of breast reconstruction utilizing a breast prosthesis having a plurality of chambers or compartments distributed through a body member or shell in the form of a breast. The chambers are disposed along the superior, lateral and inferior surfaces, as well as in the interior, of the body member. The chambers are differentially pressurized in order to control the shape of the prosthesis upon implantation thereof. Chambers on the superior side of the body member are underpressurized or underfilled to result in a desired sloping aspect, whereas chambers on the inferior side are filled to a greater degree to provide a rounded full aspect. Chambers on the outer lateral side of the body member of the prosthesis are filled to intermediate levels to provide a gently rounded aspect, while chambers on the inner lateral side of the body member may be filled to a lower intermediate fill ratio to provide a more tapering aspect to that side of the reconfigured breast.
The present invention contemplates that the compartments or chambers of the prosthesis have shapes, sizes, and relative positions which facilitate the formation, after differential filling or pressurization of the chambers, of a reconstructed breast of a desired shape. The chamber configuration may vary among a number of different breast prostheses designed for generating breasts of different sizes and shapes.
Generally, a prosthesis in accordance with the present invention comprises a body member made of biocompatible material and having a plurality of inflatable chambers. Fluid guide elements are operatively connected to respective chambers for enabling a differential pressurization of the chambers with a fluid. The fluid is typically a saline solution but may take the form of any biocompatible fluid.
The guide elements may include a plurality of one-way valves each disposed between two adjacent chambers for enabling a transfer of fluid from one of the adjacent chambers to another upon an application of an external compressive force to the one adjacent chambers. Thus, the valves enable a reshaping of the breast merely through manipulation. Alternatively, non-invasive sculpting of the breast may be achieved by remote control where a signal receiver is embedded on or attached to the prosthesis, together with actuators for automatically opening and closing the valves in accordance with instructions received via the signal receiver. The signal receiver may be a wireless receiver which picks up radio-frequency electromagnetic signals or ultrasonic pressure wave signals.
The fluid guide elements may alternatively include a plurality of conduits connected to and communicating with respective ones of the chambers. The conduits may be provided with one-way valves for regulating the flow of fluid through the conduits. In that case, each chamber may be provided with a pair of conduits for alternatively delivering and removing fluid from the chamber.
In accordance with another feature of the present invention, the conduits may be connected also to at least one terminal connector or holder mounted to the body member. The terminal connector may be provided with indicators for identifying which chambers are connected to which conduit terminals. The indicators may consist of color coding or other marking scheme. Thus, by a simple visual inspection, a physician or other medical practitioner can easily locate a terminal for delivery of fluid to (or removal of fluid from) a desired chamber of the prosthesis.
In a particular configuration of the body member of the prosthesis, the valves are located at the ends of the conduits, in or proximate to the terminal connector on the body member of the prosthesis. The valves may then be operated manually.
In another mode of filling the chambers, an actuator mechanism is releasably coupled to the conduits and valves via the connector. In that case, the valves may be automatically operated by the actuator mechanism under the control of a computer to introduce fluid into the different chambers of the prosthesis in predetermined amounts. The amounts of fluid may be established by selecting one of a plurality of predetermined breast shapes, the fluid amounts being previously stored in a memory of the computer. Alternatively, the amounts of fluid may be calculated by the computer upon selecting of a breast shape.
A breast shape may be selected by several methods. For instance, where shapes are stored as electronic templates in a library of the computer""s memory, selection occurs upon viewing the different stored shapes on a computer monitor. For providing a better idea of the possible overall results, the various shapes from the library may be paired with an image (e.g., body-type silhouette or digitized photograph) of the woman undergoing breast reconstruction. Alternatively, a scanner may be used to digitally record the shape of her actual breast prior to removal thereof during surgery. The computer may then analyze the digitized shape and select a suitable prosthesis configuration and a set of fluid levels for the various chambers of the selected prosthesis, to most closely reproduce the recorded breast shape and size. The computer may be programmed to select or fine-tune the fluid levels in the different chambers of a selected prosthesis in order to most closely approximate the size and shape of the breast prior to surgery. Where a breast has already been removed by surgery, the other breast of the woman may serve as a template for selecting a prosthesis and pressure or fluid levels.
In accordance with another feature of the present invention, the guide elements of the prosthesis include a plurality of radio-opaque markers (e.g., rings) disposed on the body member adjacent to respective chambers for facilitating a selection of needle insertion points for the respective chambers. The markers thus serve to guide the hand of the physician, for instance, plastic surgeon or cosmetologist, during a fluid injection phase of a breast reconstruction procedure. It is well known that breast reconstruction requires several temporally spaced steps of incrementally increasing the amount of fluid in an implanted prosthesis, thus enabling a gradual stretching of the pectoral muscle. For this reason, the guide elements are helpful for facilitating repeated introduction of fluid to periodically elevate the fill levels in the compartments or chambers.
A method for reshaping a portion of an organism utilizes, in accordance with the present invention, a body member made of biocompatible material, the body member having a plurality of inflatable chambers. The method comprises implanting the body member into a patient in a pre-established location, selecting a desired shape of the portion of the organism, and differentially expanding the chambers with a fluid to respective fill levels to at least approximate the desired shape.
As discussed above, the selecting of the desired shape may include scanning a part of the organism to generate a digitized representation of the desired shape and loading the digitized representation into an electronic memory. The fill levels for the respective chamber are selected to generate the desired shape, this selection process including automatically analyzing the digitized representation to compute the fill levels.
Scanning of the body part may be achieved by any suitable technique, particularly by devices which generate digital representations of two- or three-dimensional forms. Useful scanning technologies include flying spot scanning, optical imaging by digital cameras, ultrasonic scanning, laser scanning, and mechanical sensing. In addition, cameras sensitive to electromagnetic wavelengths other than optical may be useful, for instance, those operating on infrared frequencies. Laser scanning takes surface slices of an object, based on distance from the laser. These slices are then reconstructed into a three-dimensional surface. This technique has been used in the film industry to scan an actor""s body into an electronic database for purposes of generating a three-dimensional animated image.
Where a human breast is to be reconstructed, for instance, following a mastectomy, the scanned body part is either the breast to be removed or, alternatively, the other breast of the patient. In the former case, the breast with the cancer or other degenerative disease has not substantially lost its original healthy shape at the time the decision is made to resect the breast. In the latter case, the mastectomy may have already occurred or the breast may have otherwise been altered from its natural form. The electronic three-dimensional image of the healthy breast is processed to undergo a mirror-image conversion to produce an electronic facsimile of the removed or diseased breast.
It is to be noted that all of the above-mentioned scanning techniques may be used either directly on the body part being scanned or indirectly, for instance, on a casting of the body part. More specifically, a mold may be made of the body part. The mold may be fabricated by placing plaster-soaked fabric on the body part, with the plaster being permitted to harden to form a mold. In any event, the electronic surface or contour data may be generated by scanning the inner surface of the mold or by scanning an exterior surface of a casting made via the mold.
As further discussed above, the selecting of the desired shape alternatively includes storing a library of possible shapes of the portion of the organism in an electronic memory, selecting a plurality of the possible shapes, generating on an image reproduction device a plurality of images each corresponding to a respective one of the selected possible shapes, and thereafter selecting one of the plurality of the possible shapes as the desired shape. In addition, a plurality of target fill levels for respective chambers of a prosthesis may be stored in the memory, for each of the possible shapes. Then, the selecting of the fill levels for the respective chambers includes automatically selecting the target fill levels corresponding to or associated with the desired shape in the memory.
Where the body member is provided with a plurality of conduits extending to respective chambers from a terminal connector on the body member, the differential expanding of the chambers may include coupling an inflation or fluid delivery connector to the terminal connector.
Where the body member is provided with a plurality of markers disposed adjacent to respective chambers, the expanding of the chambers includes scanning the patient to detect the markers, inserting a hollow needle into the chambers at respective locations indicated by the markers, and introducing a pressurization fluid into the chambers through the inserted needle.

Device for providing a portion of an organism with a desired shape


A technique for reducing the number of events that are transmitted by a server to a client/server application programming interface (API). At the server host, each of different event messages is associated with at least one event category in a hierarchy of event categories. Each client host sends a registration request to the server host in order to inform the host server host that the client wants to receive event messages associated with a specified event category. The server host associates the specified event category with each client host and communicates the event messages that are descendants of the specified event category, wherein the event messages may be descendants of more than one specified event category.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of computer systems and, more specifically, to a technique for reducing the number of events that are transmitted by a server host, e.g., in a client/server application programming interface (API).
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer systems include host computers that communicate with one another via a network to run network applications. Typically, software is distributed and run on two or more hosts to realize the applications. The network applications have application-layer protocols that define the format and order of the messages that are exchanged between the hosts, and what actions to take when a message is transmitted or received. In particular, a network application typically includes a client side and a server side. In this case, the application may be referred to as a client/server application. A client side on one host may communicate with a server side on another host. The client is usually the host that initiates a communication or session with another host.
Moreover, in a client/server application programming interface (API), the server generates events and transmits them over a network to the client. The API includes a portion run on the server and a corresponding portion run on the client. An event generally refers to an occurrence of significance to a task, such as the opening of a window or the completion of an asynchronous operation. An event may involve any significant change in the state of a system resource, network resource, or network application. An event can be generated, e.g., for a problem, for the resolution of a problem, or for the successful completion of a task. Examples of events include the normal starting and stopping of a process, the abnormal termination of a process, and the malfunctioning of a server. For instance, a storage system such as a storage server may run software that generates and communicates such events to clients that store data on the server. The IBM® Enterprise Storage Server (ESS) is an example of such a storage system.
However, performance can be reduced when many events are transmitted due to the use of processing, storage and transmission resources.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Hierarchical event filtering for multiple parent event types

International Business Machines Corporation


A method of calibrating data slicer-latches in a receiver to remove offset errors in the slicer-latches. A known voltage is applied to all but one of the inputs of the slicer-latch. The remaining input receives an offset cancelation voltage from a DAC is stepped upward from a minimum voltage until the slicer-latch output transitions by incrementing a codeword to the DAC and the codeword that resulted the transition is saved. Then the offset cancelation voltage is swept downward in steps from a maximum voltage until the slicer-latch output transitions and the codeword that caused the transition is averaged with the stored codeword. The average of the codewords is applied to the DAC to generate the offset cancelation voltage used during normal operation of the receiver.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to receivers generally and, more specifically, to calibration of the slicers in the receiver to remove offset errors therein.
2. Description of the Related Art
Communication receivers that recover digital signals must sample an analog waveform and then reliably detect the sampled data. Signals arriving at a receiver are typically corrupted by intersymbol interference (ISI), crosstalk, echo, and other noise. As data rates increase, the receiver must both equalize the channel, to compensate for such corruptions, and detect the encoded signals at increasingly higher clock rates. Decision-feedback equalization (DFE) is a widely used technique for removing intersymbol interference and other noise at high data rates.
Generally, decision-feedback equalization utilizes a nonlinear equalizer to equalize the channel using a feedback loop based on previously detected (or decided) data. In one typical DFE-based receiver implementation, a received analog signal is sliced to generate digital data for further processing. In some high-speed (multi-gigabit) applications, so called "double-rate" receivers with an unrolled digital DFE might be used. However, these receivers are sensitive to offset-induced slicing errors where the slicing threshold determines whether received signal is a one or a zero. Because of circuit imperfections, the slicing threshold may be off by tens of millivolts from a desired value, e.g., zero volts. Because the amplitude of the received signals is around one hundred millivolts, an offset-induced slicing voltage error of tens of millivolts is a relatively large percentage of the signal amplitude and can seriously degrade performance of the overall receiver. It is desirable to quickly and accurately calibrate the slicers to remove or compensate for the offset voltage of the slicer.

Method of calibrating a slicer in a receiver or the like

AVAGO TECHNOLOGIES GENERAL IP (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD.


A clock pulse generator comprises N stages 1, 2, where N is greater than 3. Each ith stage comprises a transmission gate M3, M4; M9, M10 which is controlled by a control signal from the (i-1)th stage for passing a clock pulse from the clock input CK to the output Nn, Pp of the stage. A control signal generating circuits M5, M6; M11, M12 supplies a control signal to the (i+1)th stage and is inhibited from supplying further control signals in response to a control signal from the (i+2)th stage, where 1<i<(N-1).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clock pulse generator. Such a generator may be used in high speed low power controller circuits, for instance in complex very large scale integrated (VLSI) designs including digital signal processing (DSP). The clock pulse generator may advantageously be used in addressing for driver circuits of spatial light modulators and displays, for example of the pixelated matrix type in which a sequence of well-defined pulses must be supplied to circuits which sample high speed video data.
2. Description of the Related Art
A known type of clock pulse generator is based on a shift register. The shift register comprises a cascaded chain of D-type flip-flops which respond to clock pulses to pass a single stored logic state from one flip-flop to the next in the chain. For a typical clock pulse generation application, all but one of the states of the flip-flops are initialised to a logic low (0) state whereas the remaining flip-flop is initialised to a logic high (1) state. The shift register is clocked at a known frequency and the circulating one state within the shift register is used to generate sequential pulses at the outputs of the flip-flops. This well-known technique is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,301 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,659. An improvement to this technique is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,297. In this case, the "master" and "slave" outputs of each of the flip-flops are used in conjunction with combinational logic gates, such as AND or NAND gates, to reduce the clocking speed of the shift register for a given number of output pulses.
It is also well-known to form clock pulse generating circuits from chained D-type latch circuits. FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings illustrates part of a typical CMOS circuit comprising latches 1 and 2. The construction and operation of such an arrangement is well-known and will not be described in detail. Consecutive latches such as 1 and 2 are transparent on opposite clock phases of a two phase clock represented by CK and CK-. The input and output of each latch are "NANDed" together in order to produce the clock pulses Nn and Np as illustrated in FIG. 2 of the accompanying drawings. FIG. 2 also illustrates the two phase clock waveforms, the D input to the first latch 1, the output M of the first latch 1 which is also the input of the second latch 2, and the output Q of the second latch 2.
This arrangement has several disadvantages. In particular, a two phase clock is required to drive the shift register. Also, each clock line drives two transistor gates in each of the latches 1,2. This presents a relatively high capacitive loading to each clock phase and limits the maximum frequency of operation. Further, the output pulses Nn and Np cannot be guaranteed to be non-overlapping. This can cause problems in certain applications, for example when the output pulses are used for sampling video data in pixel matrix display drivers.
Various techniques have been disclosed for reducing the capacitive loading of the clock line or lines so as to increase the maximum frequency of operation and reduce clock power consumption. For example, state-controlled clocking techniques have been suggested for use in clock pulse generating circuits. An example of this is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,746,915, in which the shift register is divided into several sub-registers of flip-flops or latches and another shift register operating at a lower frequency is used selectively to apply the clock signal to each sub-register.
For applications in which the requirement is for a single circulating 1 state, only those flip-flops or latches containing a 1 state or having a 1 state at their input require clocking. As shown in FIG. 3, for such applications, the signal generated by "ORing" the input and output of each flip-flop can be used to gate the clock signals supplied to the clock input of the flip-flop. Such an arrangement is disclosed in T. Maekawa et al, "A 1.35-in.-diagonal wide-aspect-ratio poly-Si TFT LCD with 513 k pixels" Journal of the Society or Information Display, pp 415-417, 1994. However, such an arrangement requires a full flip-flop and several further transistors per stage. Also, the flip-flop outputs have to drive a relatively large load and this limits the maximum speed of operation.

Clock pulse generator, spatial light modulator and display


An intraocular lens insertion tool is presented. An introductory part in an insertion cylinder is provided, at a widthwise central portion of a bottom surface, with a central protrusion which extends in an axial direction of a tool body and protrudes toward an upper surface to get in contact with a center portion of a rear surface of an optical zone of an intraocular lens. The upper surface is provided, at its both widthwise ends, with a pair of lateral protrusions, which extend in the axial direction of the tool body and protrude toward the bottom surface to get in contact with both ends of a front surface of the optical zone of the intraocular lens. A lens pressing face of a plunging member is formed with a dimension spanning from the bottom surface to the upper surface at a tip end section of the insertion cylinder.

Conventionally, in cataract surgery and other operations, a method has been adopted wherein a crystalline lens is extracted and removed from the capsule through an incision made on ocular tissues such as the cornea (sclera) and anterior lens capsule, and thereafter, an intraocular lens is inserted into the eye via the above incision to be set in the capsule in lieu of the removed lens.
In such operations using an intraocular lens, insertion tools for intraocular lenses such as those described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are commonly used. In general, these insertion tools for intraocular lenses are used to place an intraocular lens within the lens capsule by means of inserting the tip opening of an insertion cylinder located at the tip of the tool body through an incision and pushing out the intraocular lens in a compactly deformed condition from the tip opening of the insertion cylinder, which unfolds out within the lens capsule with its own restoring force. Using this type of insertion tool allows us not only to minimize the incision and save time and effort for operations, but also to reduce the risk of post-operative astigmatism and infections.
Meanwhile, the intraocular lenses often have different shapes between their front and back sides such as those, for example, with the haptic tilting toward the front surface of the lens (cornea side) in order to suppress secondary cataract by pushing the optical zone against the rear interior (vitreous side) of the lens capsule. For this reason, the intraocular lens requires its front and back sides placed correctly in the capsule.
However, conventional insertion tools for intraocular lens had a problem that the front and back sides of the intraocular lens tend to be flipped within the capsule. Therefore, the operator needed to displace the insertion tool in the rotational direction by an amount that assumes a counterturn before inserting it into the eye in order to avoid difficult work of reversing the turn of the intraocular lens in the right direction within the capsule after the operation, or to turn the insertion tool as soon as the intraocular lens unfolds inside the capsule after being pushed out of the insertion tool. However, such a manipulation is not easy, requiring skilled hands. Especially, the operator was hard-pressed to work carefully not to cause any damage to the incision and the like in turning the insertion tool.    Patent Document 1: JP-A-2003-70829    Patent Document 2: JP-A-2004-351196


A double break disconnect switch with a novel drive mechanism that swings the blade open and closed in a conventional manner but the rotation with respect to its longitudinal axis is unique. This mechanism uses a unique cam to rotate the blade about a hinge axis. The blade bearings are of very small diameter to reduce friction and are offset from the blade center of gravity so as to use the blade's weight to keep the blade in disengagement with the break jaw contacts when the switch is opened. The blade bearings are not around the diameter of the blade, the friction does not increase as current rating increases. A camming mechanism is profiled to give maximum rotational torque to the blade as it compresses the contact fingers as the switch closes to its final position.

The invention relates generally to a double break disconnect switch for high voltage applications and, more particularly, to a double break disconnect switch having fixed jaws and a switch blade assembly having a macro swinging movement relative to the jaws and arranged for a rotational movement with respect to its longitudinal axis upon contact with the fixed jaws to effect closing and opening of the switch.
High voltage switches of this type customarily employ round tubular blades which rotate on their long center axis to achieve the contact pressure developing or relieving for opening or closing of the switch. Because of restrictions to movement that may develop because of causes such as ice build up between the fixed jaws and the switch blade assembly or debris large forces are often necessary to initially open or finally close the switch.
Many such switches on the market today, employ arrangements such as a beveled gear approach for rotational movement of the switch blade assembly with respect to its longitudinal axis. Such an arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,810,799 issued to Robert D. Carmichael, et al. on Oct. 22, 1957. The Carmichael device uses cooperating gear teeth for rotation of the switch blade about its longitudinal axis. Another switch using a different arrangement for rotation of the switch blade assembly with respect to its longitudinal axis is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,134,865 issued to Joseph Bernatt on May 26, 1964. The Bernatt device discloses a switch using a pressure member to engage a V-shaped cam which includes circular detents to lock the blade assembly in desired position. And still another such switch arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,162 issued to John L. Turner on Mar. 7, 1978. The Turner switch utilizes a blade lock that uses a pivotally mounted latch on a remote terminal at the switch jaw which includes a hook-like portion spring biased downwardly into latching position with respect to the end portion of the blade and is rotatable out of latching position by engagement with the latch of an arm carried by the blade when the contact lug is rotated out of engagement with the remote terminal and is formed with an extension engageable with the blade mounted latch operating arm for opening the latch as the blade approaches closed position. Yet another such switch arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,695,868 issued to Joseph Stolz on Dec. 18, 1928. The Stolz switch uses an operating mechanism which includes a pair of upright perforated lugs with an inclined face formed on a plate carried by a rotating insulator which engages lugs on a sleeve that surrounds the blade to cause rotation of the blade about its longitudinal axis.
Although the foregoing arrangements are functional there still exists a need and it is therefore an object of this invention to provide an optimized arrangement for rotational movement of the switch blade assembly with respect to its longitudinal axis.


Electronic devices, such as photovoltaic, transistor or doped light-emitting devices, can be manufactured with an air-based manufacturing process and device structure that encapsulates the device with air-stable electrodes and active layers that are reasonably stable in their unexcited state. A sheet of flexible material may act as a substrate and a second sheet of material acts as a cover. Getter materials are included in the encapsulated device, with the getter latent or unreactive during the manufacturing process.

Encapsulation of electronic devices is a very significant part of modern semiconductor technology, including inorganic and organic active material devices. Recently, organic semiconductor-based devices have been under development for display, lighting, energy conversion, energy storage, switching and logic applications. Degradation or parameter change of these devices due to the impact of species from the external environment has been a significant concern for many of these applications. In particular, in devices where high excitation densities, or less stable chemical or electronic states are formed during operation or as a result of their operation, inherent processing or materials composition, there is a risk of accelerated interaction with species such as O2, H2O, or H2. These substances can be present in the atmosphere in which the device is manufactured or operated. In some cases, such as metal-insulator-metal type organic light-emitting diode devices, the devices contain materials unstable to reaction with H2O and O2 even in their non-operating states. This would include device materials such as Ca, Ba, Li and related compounds that are used to facilitate charge injection into semiconducting active materials with low carrier densities. Common techniques to fabricate devices based on these types of materials include fabricating the active device on glass in an inert environment, then covering the top of the device by attaching a metal can or a second glass plate with adhesive, also in an inert atmosphere. An example of the basic configuration is shown in FIG. 1, with a device 11 mounted on bottom glass substrate 12 and metal can or top glass cover 14 secured with an adhesive layer 16. The glass and metal of this typical design provides a near hermetic seal. To extend storage and product lifetime in these types of devices, small solid, relatively thick and rigid patches of getters or desiccants 17 are placed within the free volume 18 within the encapsulation. The term "getter" is used in this specification to include materials with gettering, desiccating or scavenging functions. In this case, the high diffusive mobility of gaseous species leaking into the package and the very strong affinity and high sticking coefficient of these species on the getter patch lead to effective removal of potentially detrimental species from throughout the entire volume within the packaged device. Examples of suppliers and materials for this include SAES Dryflex, Dynic, Sud Chemie and others. Typical getter or desiccant patches are 80 microns thick to 3000 microns or more thick. A problem with this conventional encapsulation structure and technique is that the finished display is rigid, heavy, bulky, fragile and can be relatively expensive. For semiconductor devices made on plastic substrates, new technologies have been developed to create transparent, flexible barriers. One example is a series of alternating thin layers of polymer and inorganic materials to create a thin, transparent oxygen and moisture barrier layer that can be applied directly to the device or on to any plastic substrate. Several examples of these polymer-inorganic layered LEP devices can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,268,695; 6,146,225; 5,734,225; and 6,635,989. Again, application of these encapsulation layers is conducted in some inert environment. Metal foil type encapsulation layers can also be effective, in certain implementations, for device encapsulation. However, due to the environmental sensitivity of some conventional device materials, encapsulation needs to take place in a controlled environment in conventional approaches.
Electrochemical devices, including light emitting electrochemical devices, can be formed without the use of reactive and low work function metals or with reduced activity or amounts of low work function materials. However, in operation these materials can still be somewhat sensitive to excess moisture, oxygen and hydrogen. For the formation of devices at low manufacturing cost, reduction of oxygen is of particular interest. Manufacturing in air is advantageous for reducing manufacturing line complexity and cost as well as increasing throughput. In some cases, it is possible to dry and remove moisture, as well as hydrogen, solvents or other impurities, from the air in the proximity of the manufacturing line. However, the removal of oxygen precludes direct human access to those parts of the equipment. It is therefore advantageous in a device manufacturing process to allow the presence of oxygen. However, oxygen sealed in the device after manufacture can shift operation parameters and cause accelerated degradation.

Encapsulation process and structure for electronic devices


Provided herein are methods for identifying a subject with cancer for treatment with a Psap peptides. The subject is identified based on a level of CD36. Also provided herein are compositions and methods for treatment of a subject with cancer based on a level of CD36.

Cancer remains a major public health priority. For example, an estimated 7.6 million deaths from cancer occurred in 2008. Treatments for cancer are constantly improving as technology and science progresses. Unfortunately, it has become apparent that many cancer therapeutics are effective only in subsets of cancer patients, even subsets of patients having the same type of cancer. As a result, it is becoming increasingly important to find ways to identify patients that are likely to respond to treatment.

Use of CD36 to identify cancer subjects for treatment


An anti-slip device for use with footwear such as running shoes, snowshoes, boots and the like, is described. The anti-slip device is adjustable to fit to different sizes of footwear and is especially suitable for use on snow and ice covered surfaces. The anti-slip device includes a heel portion, a toe portion and one or more traction plates attached to the underside of the heel portion. The heel portion includes a tongue portion which provides additional traction and stability to the anti-slip device. The toe portion is adjustable in relation to the heel portion through the use of a plurality of mating serrations and alignable apertures. A fastening means is attached to the heel portion and the toe portion to provide for attachment of the anti-slip device to footwear. If desired, the traction plate utilized with the anti-slip device can be hingedly connected to a snowshoe frame. Additionally described is a footwarmer/protector utilizable with the anti-slip device of the invention or with conventionally known snowshoe bindings or traction devices.

Anti-slip devices for use with existing footwear are desirable especially in the winter to provide safety and mobility on snow, ice or other slippery surfaces. It is particularly desirable to provide anti-slip devices which can be readily attached to conventional running shoes, boots and the like, in particular, which are not restricted by the size of the footwear. This allows for the use of footwear with which a user is familiar and comfortable. Such is further an advantageous feature in regard to snowshoes. Snowshoes not requiring specialized footwear are less expensive and more readily available for use by different users.
One known device for providing traction to footwear is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,525,939. Additionally, snowshoes having a cleated footplate are known in the art which can be used without a specialized boot due to the use of bindings on the snowshoes, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,802,100. Further, adjustable shoe receiving devices are known in the art for use in relation to skis. Such devices, however, are not shown to be useful as a traction device and are used with support across the entire underside of the device.
The structure of the prior art traction devices, therefor, are controlled by the type of use to which the traction device is put and do not provide interchangability with various uses. Further, to the extent the prior art traction devices are adjustable to fit different sizes of footwear, the structures required are specialized resulting in a more complex and, therefore more costly, manufacturing processes. Additionally, traction for climbing inclines is lacking due to the absence of a traction means on the forward end of the footwear. Further, no means of providing added warmth or protection to the footwear used with such prior art devices is described for use with such devices.


A hybrid car includes an engine, a first motor, a second motor, a planetary gear, a disconnecting mechanism, and an electronic control unit. The electronic control unit is configured to control the engine and the first motor such that the first motor gives the engine a damping torque of the same phase as a pulsating component of a torque of the engine and the first motor starts the engine by cranking the engine when the engine is started with the shift position being the position for traveling. The electronic control unit is configured to control the engine and the first motor such that the first motor starts the engine by cranking the engine without the first motor giving the engine the damping torque of the same phase when the engine is started with the shift position being the position for non-traveling.

1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a hybrid car.
2. Description of Related Art
As a hybrid car, a hybrid car in which an engine, a motor generator, and a driving wheel and an electric motor are configured to be connected to three shafts of a power split mechanism and a braking force is given to a vehicle wheel by a braking device when the engine is started in a case where a shift position is a non-traveling position while the hybrid car is stopped is disclosed (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-230255). In this hybrid car, a vibration of the vehicle during the start of the engine is suppressed by the control described above.


The present invention is directed to an analog, oligomer-based method for determining a mathematical result of carrying out an operation of matrix algebra on input data. The method comprises representing at least one m-component vector V=xcexa3iViei by a set of single-stranded oligomers Ei and Ei which are in 1:1 correspondence with the basis vectors ei, i=1, 2, . . . , m in an abstract m-dimensional vector space. A composition comprising at least one set of oligomers Ei and Ei representing the components of a vector is obtained as input date and is subjected to at least one physical or chemical treatment having an effect on the oligomers that is an analog representation of an operation of matrix algebra. The method can be used to represent the operations of a neural network; for example, to produce a content-addressable memory, or a multilayer perceptron.

This invention provides methods for DNA analog representation of vector operations, including vector addition, determination of inner and outer products of vectors, and of the product of a matrix and a vector, using negative as well as non-negative numbers. The methods of the present invention utilize the spectrum of biochemical activities and operations which DNA molecules are capable of undergoing, including base-specific Watson-Crick hybridization, ligation, polymerase extension, site-specific strand cleavage via restriction enzymes, melting of duplex DNA, cleavage of DNA by site-specific endonucleases, and degradation of DNA by exonucleases of broad sequence specificity.
Watson-Crick hybridization of complementary DNA oligomers makes possible a DNA analog representation of highly parallel operations [1, 2]. The present invention develops this potential and provides methods whereby DNA analog representation of the operations of vector algebra is used to produce a DNA-based neural network [3] which may be used in an associative or content addressable memory [4-6] and a DNA multilayer perceptron [7, 8].
All publications and patent applications referred to herein are incorporated by reference fully as though each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.
Various strategies for finding solutions to mathematical problems have been devised which use sets of DNA oligonucleotides having selected length and sequence properties. For example, there are methods that use DNA oligomers of defined nucleotide sequence to solve a Hamiltonian path problem [1], a xe2x80x9csatisfactionxe2x80x9d problem [2] and for performing addition [9] and matrix multiplication [10] of non-negative numbers. Baum [11] has proposed using DNA operations akin to those described by Adleman [1] and Lipton [2] to produce an associative DNA memory of enormous capacity. Prior to the development of the methods of the present invention, methods for using DNA oligomers in analog representation of matrix multiplication that include use of negative numbers as well as non-negative numbers were not disclosed or taught.
Adleman [1] first pointed out that Watson-Crick hybridization of complementary DNA strands makes possible a representation of highly parallel selective operations that could be a basis for molecular computation. In practice, small departures from the ideal selectivity of DNA hybridization can lead to undesired pairings of strands that create significant difficulties in implementing schemes using interactions of DNA oligomers to represent large scale Boolean functions. Recently, however, Deaton et al. [12] showed that it should be possible to find a large enough set of mutually non-hybridizing DNA strands to allow digital molecular computation of high complexity with tolerable error rates.
A neural network is a physical system that models a simple biological neuronal system, in that it comprises a large number of interconnected processing elements, called neurons. The activity of a given neuron is determined by the weighted sum of all of the signals that the neuron receives from the neurons to which it is connected. In most neural network models, the total activity of the ith neuron, called a xe2x80x9cperceptron,xe2x80x9d is
ai=wi0+xcexa3wijxj
where xj is the signal received from the jth neuron that is weighted by an amount Wij. wi0 is a bias weight, and is usually negative. The ith neuron responds to incoming signals by itself sending a signal y=F(ai). The function F(ai) is a saturating function; a common choice is the non-linear logistic or sigmoid function,
F(a)=(1+exp(xe2x88x92a))xe2x88x921
which restricts the output to be between 0 and 1, and gives an approximately linear response for small levels of activity. Thus, the activity of the ith perceptron is positive when the sum of the incoming weighted signals is larger than the negative bias weight; and when the incoming signal is sufficiently large, the output of the ith perceptron is approximately 1 (see, for example, W. Penny et al., page 386-387, in [8]). From the parallel operations and interactions of the neurons emerge collective properties that include production of a content-addressable memory which correctly yields an entire memory from any subpart of sufficient size [3]. Neural networks do not need the high precision associated with digital computing [3]. Because they are fault tolerant, such neural networks can be represented by DNA with the massive parallelism first envisioned by Adleman [1].
The present invention provides a method for DNA-based analog representation of the operations of vector addition and vector and matrix algebra, using negative as well as non-negative numbers, wherein a subset of all single-stranded DNA n-mers is in 1:1 correspondence with the basis vectors ei, i=1,2, . . . , m, in an abstract m-dimensional vector space; an m-component vector V in a space with basis vectors ei, i=1 through m, is represented by the equation V=xcexa3iViei, and its analog representation is a DNA sample containing strands Ei or their complement Ej, for each i=1 through m, where the presence of Ei or Ei is determined by the sign of the amplitude Vi of the ith component of the vector, and the concentration of each Ei or Ei is proportional to the magnitude of the amplitude Vi.
The present invention further provides a method for implementing an analog neural network, wherein the data of the processing units, or neurons, is in the form of m-component vectors V=xcexa3iViei, each of which is represented by a set of the oligomers as described above. The interconnections and the transmission of signals between the neuronal units are represented by biochemical processes and reactions involving the oligomers Ei and Ei; such processes and reactions include diffusion, molecular recognition, and specific hybridization of complementary oligomers, and nucleotide sequence-specific reactions of nucleic acid-modifying enzymes acting on the oligomers, as occur in analog operations of vector addition and vector and matrix algebra. Application of a saturating function to a signal from one or more neuronal units to produce an output is represented by hybridization of a set of oligomers selected by said set of biochemical reactions to a complete, sub-stoichiometric set of single-stranded Ei and Ei oligomers, and an output of the neural network is represented by a set of oligomers that specifically hybridize to said sub-stoichiometric set of Ei and Ei oligomers.
In a specific embodiment, an analog content addressable memory is produced by representing elements of memory as m-component vectors V=xcexa3iViei; wherein items of experience, a set of vectors Via, are stored in memory by forming the outer product over all the experience vectors for ixe2x89xa0j:
Tij=xcexa3aViaVja;
wherein recall of a particular experience Vib imperfectly represented as Uib is effected by the algorithm:
Vi=S(xcexa3TijVj+Uib);
where the function S(x) is a saturating function such as
gxc2x7tan h(x),
with g being the small-signal gain; and wherein the saturating function S(Xi) is implemented by letting DNA strands representing the vector Xi hybridize to a hybridization oligonucleotide array, and the collection of DNA strands representing the saturated Xs, S(Xi), is obtained by selectively denaturing the duplex molecules in the array containing the S(Xi) strands and collecting the desired set of DNA oligomers.

Analog computation using hybridization-capable oligomers


A hand-held disposable combination surgical nerve evaluator and locator is provided. The device includes a housing that serves as a handpiece and that accommodates a printed circuit board, a DC voltage source and a compressed gas source. Two pre-programmed settings are provided by way of a nerve evaluation switch and a nerve location switch. By choosing a nerve evaluation switch, a pulsed current is sent down one electrical lead that extends outward from the housing. A return electrical lead is provided that also extends outward from the housing in a parallel, but spaced-apart relationship from the other electrical lead. Compressed gas is delivered to the distal ends of the first and second electrical leads by a cannula that is connected to the compressed gas source. It will also be noted that the return or the second electrical lead can also serve as a cannula for the delivery of compressed gas. A fiber optic light guide may also be provided to illuminate the area around the distal ends of the two electrical leads. In a nerve evaluation mode, when the nerve evaluation switch has been activated, a pulsed current is delivered to the first electrical lead. Similarly, in a nerve location mode, a pulsed current is also delivered to the first electrical lead. However, the frequency of the pulsed current in the nerve evaluation mode is less than the frequency of the current in the nerve location mode, the pulse duration in the nerve evaluation mode is less than the pulse duration in the nerve location mode and the amplitude of the current in the nerve evaluation mode is less than the amplitude of the current in the nerve location mode.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,766 discloses a nerve locator and evaluator which is used in surgical procedures. An AC energizing current is transmitted through an electrical lead to the patient. High and low settings are available and the device is equipped with an auditory signal to alert the surgeon when current is flowing through the patient's body.
However, despite the progress provided by the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,766, the device has been found to be unsatisfactory for a number of reasons. First, the device is mono-polar and is equipped with a single electrode at the evaluation tip. As a result, the device requires a secondary ground wire that exits the back end of the handpiece. The ground wire attaches the patient's body with a conductive patch or needle electrode. This arrangement is problematic because the needle can fall out or the patch can peel off during the procedure. Further, the ground wire can extend across the surgical area and become entangled with other instruments during the surgical procedure. Consequently, the ground wire can become dislodged and the device temporarily inoperable during surgery. As a result, there is a need for an improved nerve locator and evaluator which does not require the employment of a ground wire or lead.
Still further, the tip of the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,766 is applied directly to the patient. Because it is employed during a surgical procedure, excessive amounts of blood and fluid are typically present. The blood and fluid makes it difficult for the surgeon to see the exact area where the distal tip of the device is being applied. Consequently, it can be difficult for the surgeon to make visual contact with the nerve that is being located or stimulated because of the presence of the blood and fluid. In addition to enhancing the surgeon's visualization of the nerve under investigation, removal of blood and fluid would also be important to electrically isolate the nerve prior to location or evaluation and further to prevent any electrical shunting of current applied to the nerve. As a result, there is a need for an improved nerve locator and evaluator which has a built-in mechanism for removing excess blood and fluid from an area under observation or investigation.
Similarly, the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,766 is not equipped with any sort of a light source to assist the surgeon in viewing the distal end of the instrument tip. As a result, there is a need for an improved nerve locator and evaluator that is equipped with a built-in illumination means.
Finally, while the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,766 has high and low current settings, the device does not incorporate preset evaluation parameters which allow for locating and evaluation. As a result, there is a need for an improved nerve locator and evaluator with predetermined settings for frequency, evaluation pulse duration and amplitude for the separate operations of nerve evaluation and nerve location.

Bipolar handheld nerve locator and evaluator


In one embodiment, a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) apparatus includes: an RF coil configured to perform A/D conversion on a magnetic resonance (MR) signal received from an object and wirelessly transmit the MR signal; a main body configured to wirelessly receive the MR signal and generate a system clock; first communication circuitry configured to transmit the system clock by surface electric field communication using electric field propagation along a body surface of the object; and second communication circuitry provided in the RF coil and configured to receive the system clock transmitted by the surface electric field communication, wherein the RF coil is configured to operate based on the received system clock.

An MRI apparatus is an imaging apparatus that magnetically excites nuclear spin of an object placed in a static magnetic field by applying a radio frequency (RF) pulse having the Larmor frequency and reconstructs an image on the basis of magnetic resonance (MR) signals emitted from the object due to the excitation.
In the MRI apparatus, the RF pulse is transmitted from a whole-body (WB) coil toward the object. The MR signal emitted from the object in response to the transmission is received by the WB coil or an RF coil. The RF coil receives the MR signal emitted from the object at a position close to the object. Depending on the anatomical imaging part of the object, there are various RF coils such as for the head, for the chest, for the spine, and for the lower limbs. The RF coil is also referred to as a local coil or a surface coil.
Conventionally, a wired RF coil has been widely used. The wired RF coil is configured to transmit an MR signal, which is received from the object, to the main body of the MRI apparatus by wire. On the other hand, a wireless RF coil has also been developed, which converts the received MR signal from an analog signal to a digital signal by using an A/D converter and wirelessly transmits the digitized MR signal to the main body of the MRI apparatus. The "main body of the MRI apparatus" may be hereinafter simply referred to as the "main body".
When using the wired RF coil, the main body performs A/D conversion on the MR signal transmitted as an analog signal from the wired RF coil to the main body by using an AD clock generated from the system clock in the main body. On the other hand, when using the wireless RF coil, an AD clock for performing A/D conversion on the MR signal is required on the RF coil side, and a system clock for generating the AD clock is also required on the RF coil side.
The digitized MR signal is transmitted to the main body, and various types of digital processing is performed on the digitized MR signal by using a system clock which is generated in the main body. Thus, it is required that the system clock used on the RF coil side and the system clock generated in the main body are synchronized with each other.
In order to synchronize both system clocks, it may be conceivable to wirelessly transmit the system clock in the main body to the RF coil. However, in a conventional remote wireless communication system, there may occur a situation in which stable transmission of the system clock becomes difficult due to the effects of fading occurring in the wireless propagation path.
Apart from the situation about the transmission of the system clock described above, there is a strong demand to readily obtain biological information such as heartbeat and respiration of the object without imposing a burden on the object.

MRI apparatus and its communication method


An acoustic configuration (1) for acoustic insulation, with the configuration includes a floor covering (5) attached to a floating floor with elastic skates (4) resting on a substrate (3) (10), the floating floor including skates (4) that are substantially elastic. The floating floor consists of a modular assembly of prefabricated rigid panels (2) with a density of 0.5 to 6, positioned edge to edge with an element of position adjustment that is either male or female, with the skates being homogeneous one-piece elements attached inside the panel, and with the total seat surface ratio Sta of the skates on the substrate on the total surface area Stp of the panel, Sta/Stp being 0.03 to 0.08. In one variant, shims are interposed between the skates and the panel. In the implementation method, a layer of fibrous insulation can be interposed between the substrate and the floating floor.

Nowadays, the impact noise insulation between flats is made by a floating screed, typically made of reinforced concrete, laid on a resilient acoustic sub-layer, the whole thickness being about 60 mm. The present solution meets the New Acoustic Regulation (NRA, "Nouvelle Réglementation Acoustique" in French) dated January 1996, but has the following implementation drawbacks: long drying time; heavier floor in collective dwellings; tricky implementation due to the phonic bridge between stacked flats (the resilient sub-layer at the periphery of the screed not raised).
Floor systems intended to attenuate the acoustic transmission are also known by the following documents: U.S. Pat. No. 5,369,927; U.S. Pat. No. 6,055,785; JP-6146543; U.S. Pat. No. 5,682,724; U.S. Pat. No. 4,879,857.

Modular acoustic configuration for creating a floor with improved acoustic insulation performances, and method for implementing same


An image measurement system and method for obtaining measurement data on objects by processing images of the objects is provided. The image measurement system includes an image obtaining device (101) for obtaining a first image of an object to be measured and a second image of a standard object, and a plurality of measurement computers (103) linked to the image obtaining device via a communication network (102). The measurement computers are used for processing the first image and the second image to obtain measurement data on the object. Each of the measurement computers comprises an image obtaining module (210), an image processing module (220), and an image measuring module (230).

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for measuring objects, and particularly to a system and method for obtaining measurement data on objects by processing images thereof.
2. Background of the Invention
Measurement technology has been developing for quite a long time. Humankind has devised various measurement devices to meet new demands for measurement as they arose. The rapid development of science and technology in recent history has driven scientists and engineers to develop even more advanced measurement technology. Inventors and technicians are continuously enhancing measurement devices, and increasingly incorporating manipulation of light, sound and electronics into measurement apparatus. To acquire measurement data on certain objects, complicated measurement apparatus are often needed.
An example of recent measurement technology is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,066, which discloses a system and method for measuring computer system time intervals. The system employs a circuit that can be implemented in a computer system for measuring a maximum and a minimum time interval for system elements to respond to a request for data or information. Another example is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,015,867, which discloses apparatus and methods for measuring the diameter of a moving elongated material. The apparatus and methods use lasers and charged coupled devices to detect diffraction and interference patterns produced when electromagnetic radiation emitted from at least one laser is partially obscured by edges of the moving elongated material. Thus a variation in a diameter of the material is measured.
There are numerous other measurement apparatus and methods disclosed in the prior art. Even so, few if any of them disclose a system and method for obtaining measurement data on an object efficiently. Obtaining measurement data by processing images of the object is much more effective. However, conventional methods for obtaining images of objects by using purpose-built machines have limited application. At present, many methods are provided for obtaining electronic images of objects. One of the most popular methods is implemented using digital cameras. Nevertheless, the current technology does not provide any system or method for obtaining measurement data on objects by processing images of any format.

System and method for measuring an object

Hong Fu Jin Precision Ind.(Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.


A method for encoding ATS-QSIG standard-based content for transmission over a 56 kb/s clear channel. The method encodes each of the three 16 kb/s ATS-QSIG voice sub-channels on to corresponding 16 kb/s voice sub-channels in the 56 kb/s clear channel. The method encodes the 16 kb/s ATS-QSIG data sub-channel on to a 8 kb/s data sub-channel in the 56 kb/s clear channel. Using the method, the ATS-QSIG standard can be used in a network such as, for example, the North American PSTN that utilizes 56 kb/s clear channels. In addition, a system for adapting ATS-QSIG standard-based content transmitted on a 64 kb/s clear channel for transmission on a 56 kb/s clear channel and a system for adapting ATS-QSIG standard-based content transmitted on a 56 kb/s clear channel for transmission on a 64 kb/s clear channel. The systems can be used, for example, as gateways to permit ATS-QSIG standard-based communications between 56 kb/s and 64 kb/s based networks.

Air Traffic Services (ATS) have traditionally used dedicated point to point communications circuits to carry voice communications associated with the control of aircraft. In order to reduce leasing costs, the European ATS service providers (as represented, for example, by Eurocontrol) have defined a networking standard for ATS voice circuits which has been formalized in the Ecma International-European Association For Standardizing Information And Communication Systems' Standard ECMA-312 (Second Edition, June 2001) and subsequently adopted by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) as Standard EN 301 846. This ATS standard was also recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as a standard suitable for international use. This is addressed in ICAO Doc. 9084 AN/762, Manual on ATS Ground-Ground Voice Switching and Signaling (First Edition, 2002).
The ECMA-312 standard is based on the Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) PSS1 standard (also known as QSIG) and is adapted for use in Air Traffic Services. In the ATS environment, the ECMA-312 standard is known as ATS-QSIG. The physical interface defined in ECMA-312 is International Telecommunication Union —Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) Recommendation G.703 Co-Directional Interface (CDI).
ATS-QSIG as defined in ECMA-312 requires the use of a 64 kb/s clear channel with octet integrity (D64U) as per ETSI specification ETS 300 290 (e.g. an E1 carrier channel). The ATS-QSIG 64 k/bs channel is mapped into four sub-channels of 16 kb/s each according to the mapping function ECMA-253 (ISO/IEC17310). Three of these sub-channels carry three voice signals encoded according to ITU-T Rec.G.728 at 16 kb/s. The fourth sub-channel, which also has an aggregate data rate of 16 kb/s, carries packet mode signaling information.
In general, 64 kb/s clear channels are not widely available in North America where 56 kb/s clear channels (e.g. a T1-carrier channel) are typically used. Where a 64 kb/s clear channel is available in North America, it carries a price premium and certain operational restrictions. This makes the use of ATS-QSIG unattractive for North American ATS providers. A similar situation exists in Japan where 56 kb/s clear channels are also typically used invention relates generally to.

Apparatus and method for air traffic services voice signaling


An image formation device changes the rotational rate of a polygon motor, i.e. the main-scanning rate, and selects one of pulse width conversion tables when an image formation is performed multiple times on a single sheet of transfer paper. The changing of the main-scanning rate is for preventing inconsistent sizes between a first recorded image and a second recorded image caused by shrinkage of transfer paper. The pulse width conversion tables allow the pulse widths to be modulated.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electro-photographic image formation methods and devices such as digital copiers and laser beam printers, and particularly, to an image formation method and device which generates a pulse signal based on image data so as to form an electrostatic latent image on a photosensitive element.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a typical image formation device using an electro-photographic technique, a transferred toner image is fixed onto a sheet of transfer paper in order to form a permanent image on the paper. The toner image is usually fixed onto the transfer paper using thermal fixing. Various types of thermal-fixing techniques include hot air fixing, oven fixing, and more recently, heating roller fixing. In the heating-roller technique, a heating roller and a pressure roller are disposed in parallel to each other in the conveying path of the transfer paper, and the transfer paper is conveyed through the two rollers while being nipped therebetween. The heating roller fuses the toner, and at the same time, the pressure roller presses the fused toner against the transfer paper so as to fix the toner on the transfer paper. As an alternative to such a structure, a pressure pad or a pressure belt is provided in place of the pressure roller.
However, when using such a thermal-fixing technique to fix the toner image on the transfer paper, the heat causes the moisture in the transfer paper to evaporate and thus causes the transfer paper to shrink. The degree of shrinkage may vary depending on, for example, the material of the transfer paper or the thickness of the paper. Furthermore, it is generally known from experience that it normally takes about 15 to 20 minutes for the shrunken transfer paper to recover its original size.
To perform double-sided recording on the transfer paper, a thermal-fixing unit provided in the image formation device fixes a first toner image onto a first side of the transfer paper, and then the transfer paper is turned over so that a second toner image can be transferred to a second side of the transfer paper. Subsequently, the thermal-fixing unit fixes the second toner image on the second side of the transfer paper. On the other hand, to combine two images on a single side of the transfer paper, the thermal-fixing unit fixes a first toner image onto one side of the transfer paper, and then, without turning over the transfer paper, a second toner image is transferred to the same side of the paper. Subsequently, the thermal-fixing unit fixes the second toner image onto the paper.
In both cases, the first formed image and the second formed image are different in size because the transfer paper becomes smaller due to shrinkage after the first image is formed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-288560, for example, discloses a technique for solving such a problem. Specifically, an optical sensor is disposed upstream of a position where the transferring process is performed in a conveying path of the transfer paper so as to detect the longitudinal size and the lateral size of the transfer paper. Moreover, another optical sensor is disposed downstream of a thermal-fixing unit so as to similarly detect the longitudinal size and the lateral size of the transfer paper. Based on these detections, the shrinkage or expansion proportion (i.e., change or ratio of the size before thermal fixing relative to the size after thermal fixing) of the transfer paper in both the longitudinal and lateral directions is determined. Based on the determined shrinkage or expansion proportion, the scanning rate of an optical scanner is controlled.
Japanese Laid-Open No. 10-149057 discloses a technique for reducing the workload required in the above-mentioned technique. Specifically, an optical sensor is disposed upstream of a position where the transferring process is performed in the conveying path of the transfer paper so as to detect the longitudinal size of a first sheet of transfer paper before or after the fixing process is performed. Based on the detection, the shrinkage or expansion proportion in the longitudinal direction of the first sheet of transfer paper is determined. Accordingly, the scanning rate of an optical scanner is controlled for the second sheet of transfer paper onward using the shrinkage or expansion proportion of the first sheet of transfer paper.
Image forming devices also use known modulation techniques to record images based on multiple-value image data for each pixel. One modulation technique is known as Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). In PWM, the width of a pulse representing the light-emission time of a laser beam is modulated for each pixel, while maintaining the intensity of the laser beam. Another one is a technique in which the intensity of a laser beam is modulated while maintaining the light-emission time for each pixel. PWM is more commonly used since it provides a simpler control operation and more stable recording.
To prevent different sizes of formed images due to shrinkage of the transfer paper, an image formation device that uses PWM not only changes the scanning rate of the optical scanner based on the shrinkage or expansion proportion of the transfer paper, but also changes the main-scanning rate (i.e. the rotational rate of a polygon motor) of a laser beam and the sub-scanning rate (i.e. the rotational rate of a photosensitive element) of a laser beam with respect to the photosensitive element.
However, when the main-scanning rate of the laser beam is changed, the density level of each electrostatic latent image segment formed on the photosensitive element also changes. This is because the light-emission time is modulated for each pixel without changing the intensity of the emitted laser beam in the PWM technique, and therefore, when the main-scanning rate is changed, the amount of incident laser beam per unit area on the photosensitive element changes even if the recording processes are performed based on the same image data having the same density levels.
For example, when forming electrostatic latent image segments based on image data items having the same density level at a regular interval, if the main-scanning rate of the laser beam is lowered, the interval of the electrostatic latent image segments becomes small, thus causing the area of each latent image segment to become smaller. In such a case, if the pulse signal, i.e. pulse width, is not changed, the light-emission time of the laser beam, namely, the amount of incident laser beam, remains the same, meaning that the same amount of laser beam is emitted to the smaller area of each latent image segment, and therefore, the amount of incident laser beam per unit area on the entire latent image is increased. As a result, the density level of the entire electrostatic latent image is increased.


A foldably constructed pallet includes a top member forming a top surface and includes a top perimeter edge and a plurality of upper edge supports extending from the top perimeter edge and perpendicular to the top surface. The foldably constructed pallet further includes a bottom member forming a bottom surface. The bottom member includes a bottom perimeter edge and a plurality of lower edge supports extending from the bottom perimeter edge and perpendicular to the bottom surface. The foldably constructed pallet further includes a plurality of structural inserts received between the top and bottom members and positioned adjacent to the plurality of upper edge supports and the plurality of lower edge supports.

Pallets are primarily used to accommodate the bulk handling and transport of products and materials. Typically, a pallet comprises a flat, elevated top surface for supporting a load, such as goods, containers, or packages, a sufficient distance above the ground or floor so that the fork of a forklift can be inserted under the top surface in order to move the pallet with the entire load thereon from place to place. Traditionally, most pallets have been made from pieces of wood, specifically soft wood, assembled with metal fasteners such as nails or screws. However, a number of problems face present day users of conventional wooden pallets. The rising cost of making and repairing wooden pallets has detracted from the overall cost effectiveness of palletized shipments. Wooden pallets are heavy, bulky and cumbersome, and empty wooden pallets require substantial storage space. It is especially costly to transport empty wooden pallets by rail or truck for reuse. Pallets and the containers they support are typically sourced separately and are not generally suitable to be shipped in a collapsed form together. Typical solutions increase storage space and costs.
Accordingly, a pallet constructed from a readily recyclable material, such as corrugated paperboard, is especially desirable. In warehouses and retail stores, separate receptacles are commonly provided for collecting, compacting and/or storing recyclable materials, such as paperboard and plastics. The recyclable materials can then be retrieved, and oftentimes sold, and recycled into new materials and/or products. However, conventional recyclable materials are typically less rigid than wood and pallets made of these materials may have reduced load capacity as compared to conventional wood pallets.
Current recyclable pallets require intricate fold lines and tabs and therefore are assembled by hand. However, the assembly process can be time consuming and labor intensive, increasing the cost of recyclable pallets. Therefore, there is a need for a recyclable pallet that not only has increased structural strength, but also can be assembled through an automated process.


A treatment for xerostomia, employing a composition having the active ingredient of carbamide peroxide. The carbamide peroxide compound contains urea and hydrogen peroxide. The hydrogen peroxide remains stable until the carbamide peroxide is applied to the mouth and contacts the water inherent therein. On contact, the hydrogen peroxide is freed from the urea, allowing the hydrogen peroxide to react within the mouth. The resulting chemical and mechanical reaction stimulates saliva within the mouth and thereby relieves the symptoms of xerostomia.

The invention relates to the use of hydrogen peroxide for the treatment of xerostomia (a medical condition commonly known as "dry mouth"). More specifically, the invention relates to the use of carbamide peroxide, a stable compound of hydrogen peroxide and urea, for relieving the symptoms and side-effects of xerostomia.
Saliva is a complex mixture of fluids, proteins, enzymes, and electrolytes that are produced by the salivary glands which surround the oral cavity, and is secreted into the mouth following appropriate stimulation of oral tissues. Secretion of saliva is regulated by the body's autonomic nervous system which permits involuntary secretion following an appropriate stimulus such as tasting or chewing food, smelling or thinking of food, or having any object within the mouth which stimulates the oral mucosa.
Xerostomia occurs when inadequate amounts of saliva are secreted into the mouth, preventing adequate lubrication of the oral cavity and resulting in an uncomfortable oral sensation and difficulty with speaking and swallowing. Severe cracking of the tongue can also result. In addition to the primary role of lubricating the oral cavity during conversation and eating, saliva also limits growth of bacteria that can cause tooth decay and oral infections, promotes digestion of food, and acts as a protective barrier against demineralization of tooth enamel.
Xerostomia can result from either decreased production of saliva within the glands and/or diminished secretion of saliva from the glands following autonomic stimulation. It is most commonly caused as an unwanted side effect of many classes of prescription medications including anticholinergics, antispasmodics, antihypertensives, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, pain killers, anti-rejection drugs, and antipsychotics, as well as over-the-counter decongestants and antihistamines. These classes of drugs either directly inhibit saliva production within the glands or inhibit its secretion into the mouth by inhibiting the autonomic nervous system.
Xerostomia can also occur during states of elevated stress, anxiety, depression, with certain endocrine diseases such as hypothyroidism, during chemotheraphy, and with auto-immune disorders such as Sjogren's syndrome. Additionally, people who have had radiation therapy to the neck, traumatic injury to the neck, or neck surgery may also develop xerostomia due to destruction of the glands by the therapeutic radiation dose, or direct injury of the gland and its controlling autonomic nerves. Xerostomia is increasingly common among people of advancing age.
Typical treatment considerations for xerostomia have involved supportive and replacement therapies to restore oral moisture, as well as pharmacologic agents to stimulate the body's own saliva production.
Supportive therapy incorporates behavior and dietary modifications to keep the mouth moist throughout the day to minimize discomfort. Such strategies include frequent drinks of water, avoiding liquids with caffeine or sugar, avoiding alcohol and tobacco products, avoiding spicy or acidic foods, and following a regular daily dental hygiene program.
Replacement therapy incorporates oral administration of exogenous saliva-like compounds in order to replenish lost moisture, fluids and enzymes in the oral cavity, while introducing an appropriately viscous compound that aids in the mechanics of speaking and swallowing. Reference to current medical literature reveals several saliva replacement products.
BIOTENE, produced by Laclede Inc., is a salivary enzyme replacement system in a toothpaste form that contains the active ingredient found in toothpaste (sodium monofluorophosphate) and the major enzymes found in saliva (lactoperoxidase, thiocyanate and glucoseoxidase). BIOTENE primarily functions to prevent the damage caused by harmful bacteria that can accumulate in the mouth when inadequate amounts of saliva are present. In toothpaste form it is less effective at long-term relief of the classic symptoms of dry mouth but is also available in mouthwash, chewing gum, and oral gel (ORALBALANCE) preparations which include oral moisturizing agents that are more effective in longer duration of symptom relief.
SALIX, produced by Reach4Life Enterprises, is available in tablet form and contains sorbitol, polyethylene glycol, malic acid, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, sodium citrate, dicalcium phosphate, citric acid, silicon dioxide, and carboxy methylcellulose. It acts as a temporary semi-viscous saliva substitute to improve the mechanics of speaking and swallowing but does little to inhibit oral bacteria responsible for tooth decay.
SALAGEN, commonly known as pilocarpine hydrochloride, produced by MGI Pharma, Inc., is a pharmacologic agent that is indicated and approved for treatment of xerostomia in persons who have undergone radiation therapy to the neck and in persons with Sjogren's syndrome. Available in tablet form, SALAGEN is a cholinergic agent that is effective in pharmacologically increasing secretions from the salivary glands thereby improving the symptoms of xerostomia. Salagen.TM. however acts on all exocrine glands in the body and also increases secretions from the skin, eyes, pancreas, intestines, and lungs with unwanted and sometimes deleterious side-effects. Additionally, pilocarpine can cause decreased visual acuity and cardiovascular collapse with serious and possibly life-threatening consequences.
It is evident that current supportive and replacement therapies for treating xerostomia (BIOTENE and SALIX) are temporary and do little to directly stimulate the body to produce and secrete more natural saliva. Current pharmacologic therapies (SALAGEN) which do increase the body's natural saliva production also cause unwanted increased secretions in other organs and can have serious side-effects. The current invention describes a compound that relieves the symptoms of xerostomia by causing the salivary glands to produce and secrete natural saliva into the oral cavity without the serious and lifestyle-limiting side effects of current pharmacologic agents.
While the previously discussed therapies are suitable for their particular purposes, they are not suitable for the purposes of the current invention which employs an over-the-counter drug compound to increase natural saliva production and secretion in persons with xerostomia without the serious side-effects associated with currently available prescription medication.

Treatment for dry mouth employing carbamide peroxide


Systems and methods are provided for conducting inventories using an electronic device. For example, the systems and methods herein may facilitate conducting inventories, e.g., for inventorying food products and/or other supplies for a restaurant. Such systems and methods may involve using an electronic device, such as a wireless and/or mobile devices, e.g., a smart cellular telephone, a tablet computer, and the like. In addition, the electronic device may be included in a system that records inventories, deliveries, and the like, and compares them to previous inventories, sales, and the like, e.g. to project future orders for supplies, to identify losses, such as waste or theft, and the like.

Generally, businesses periodically complete inventories of their supplies. For example, a restaurant may conduct an inventory on a weekly basis of the food products and/or other supplies on hand at the restaurant. Such inventories are generally completed by personnel manually counting packages and/or items individually, which may require weighing or otherwise estimating partial packages or containers of supplies. The quantities and items may be registered manually on paper and then subsequently added up to obtain totals, which may increase the risk of errors.
Further, another complication with such inventorying is that similar products may be stored in multiple locations within the restaurant and/or may be stored in various sized packages, partial packages, and/or containers. Thus, there is risk that personnel conducting the inventory may register a package or container of a particular item incorrectly, i.e., as a different size package or container than the actual package or container on hand or associate an entry with the incorrect item. Such mistakes will introduce errors in the totals, which may not match totals expected, e.g., based on previous inventories, sales, deliveries, and the like. Such errors may then require recounting and/or otherwise duplicating efforts to identify and/or correct the errors.
Accordingly, systems and methods that facilitate conducting inventories would be useful.

Systems and methods for conducting inventories


An additive manufacturing device for manufacturing a mould. The additive manufacturing device includes a container for providing at least one mould material, a build platform having a build surface for holding and/or supporting at least one mould being or having been manufactured by an additive manufacturing process, a source for providing energy to selectively activate and subsequently solidify the at least one mould material in or from the container to enable additive manufacturing of the mould, and an electronic controller adapted to selectively control the source to manufacture the mould as a one-piece sacrificial mould according to a predetermined design producing a one-piece additively manufactured mould.

Additive manufacturing—also called 3D printing—has become an important tool, not only for product development but also for actual production of products or components of products but currently mostly customized products or components, or very low volume production.
Rapid prototyping, iterative design, and concept validation are three disciplines that are considerably facilitated by 3D printers. Several different 3D printing platforms are commercially available in the market today, and each of these platforms have important characteristics and advantages that a product developer may exploit to create design models, demonstrators, functional prototypes, and small batches of components for product validation.
In relation to production, 3D printing have been used to create moulds where the aim is to create a volume that may subsequently be fully or partially filled with a desired material to create a given component or product. 3D printing has e.g. been used to print ear-moulds for hearing aids or to print moulds for injection or blow moulding.
In the creation of moulds using 3D printers, mainly three paradigms exist.
One relates to creation of a sacrificial single-use mould that is filled with a suitable building material and that is then removed by suitable means once the building material has cured. The 3D printing method of choice for the creation of the mould is often stereolithography and this paradigm is frequently used for the manufacture of silicone moulds for hearing aids. A main limitation is that the post-processing (cleaning, filling, and removal of the moulds) after printing, that is required to create an object, is a manual operation for various reasons, which is time and resource consuming, and which is strongly dependent on the individual skill of the operator. Another limitation is that the selection of liquid or powderized building material is limited, which in turn limits the overall applicability of the method. A third limitation is that mechanical removal of the moulds (e.g. by cracking, breaking, etc.) is presently the only methods of removal, which prevents automation and leads to increased scrap rates.
Another paradigm relates to creation of plastic injection mould inserts that are mounted in an injection moulding machine and used for limited production runs (typically less than 50 units). For these applications, the choice of building materials is much wider and encompasses all the standard thermoplastic resins available for injection moulding. The 3D printing method of choice for mould insert creation is often material jetting or binder jetting. However, a main limitation is the comparatively weak wear resistance of the plastics, which means that fine mould details and mould precision quickly will degrade. This is especially the case for Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) applications and Ceramic Injection Moulding (CIM) applications, where the addition of abrasive metal and/or ceramic powder to the thermoplastic resin will substantially increase wear on the plastic injection mould.
For these reasons, the use of 3D printed plastic injection mould inserts is limited to objects that do not contain abrasives—such as metal or ceramic powders—and components with coarse geometries that do not require very fine tolerances and reproducibility.
A third paradigm relates to creation of metal injection moulds or metal injection mould inserts that are mounted in the injection moulding machine and used for continuous production. For these applications, the choice of building materials is wider and encompasses all the standard thermoplastic resins available for injection moulding, and also the thermoplastic binders and resins used for Metal Injection Moulding and Ceramic Injection Moulding. The additive manufacturing method of choice is often direct metal laser sintering and a main limitation is the expense and time associated with the run-in, manufacturing, and post-processing of the components before they can be used. In addition, the selection of mould insert building materials is still comparatively limited. The need for parting lines in the injection mould constrain design flexibility, and tolerance chains become longer when two-part injection moulds are used, which impacts the final precision of the component.
Patent application US 2011/0068502 discloses a method of forming custom shaped injection moulded parts from elastomeric materials using a rapid prototyping system to create a rigid hollow mould where the mould has a relatively thin breakable side wall that can be broken to extract an elastomeric part from the mould after curing. No disclosure is given on ways to fill the polymer mould using an injection moulding tool, nor on ways to automate and integrate the moulding process to increase productivity.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,609,043 discloses a method for constructing a structural foam part that comprises three steps. Step one uses a rapid prototyping process, such as stereolithography, to create a polymer mould. Step two requires filling the polymer mould with a material. The last step calls for heating the polymer mould and the material to heat set the material and to remove the polymer mould thereby forming the structural foam part. No disclosure is given on ways to fill the polymer mould using an injection moulding tool, nor on ways to automate and integrate the moulding process to increase productivity
Patent application US 2015/0375419 discloses a method for producing casting moulded parts where a water-soluble casting mould is produced in a first step using a layering method and in particular using a powder bed-based layering method. In a second step, the surface of the casting mould is sealed with the aid of a material after which a casting of the moulded part is then formed by filling the casting mould with a free-flowing hardenable material, in particular a hydraulically setting material. After the casting has solidified, the casting mould is dissolved with the aid of an aqueous solution and in particular a heated aqueous solution. No disclosure is given about injection moulding moulds, nor on ways to automate and integrate the moulding process to increase productivity.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,782,286 discloses a method of casting hollow bone prosthesis with tailored flexibility, where the metal used for the casting is poured directly into a refractory (ceramic) sacrificial mould and solidifies in the mould prior to sacrificial. No disclosure is given about injection moulding moulds, nor on ways to automate and integrate the moulding process to increase productivity.
Patent specification GB 2515772 discloses a method of making a conduit and/or mould suitable for use in a casting process that uses an additive layer manufacturing process.

Additive manufacturing device and system for manufacturing a sacrificial mould for creating an object