A truck assembly is configured to travel along a track having rails. The truck assembly includes a bolster that includes a first flange, a second flange, and a web connecting the first flange to the second flange. The first flange, the second flange, and the web form an I-beam.

Rail vehicles travel along railways, which have tracks that include rails. A rail vehicle includes one or more truck assemblies that support one or more car bodies. Each truck assembly includes two side frames and a bolster. Friction shoes are disposed between the bolster and the side frames. The friction shoes are configured to provide damping for suspension.
Typically, the side frames are formed having a hollow box or tubular construction. Risers, runners, and other such structures are used during the manufacturing process to form the side frames. Further, the side frames are supported with rigging during the manufacturing process. In general, the process of forming the side frames is time- and labor-intensive, as well as costly.
Further, a typical bolster has a box section including various internal ribs and webs. The bolster is formed of cast steel, which is manufactured through a sand molding process. The sand molding process to form a bolster with internal ribs and webs is also time- and labor-intensive, as well as costly. Exterior features of the bolster are imprinted in top and bottom exterior molds. An internal space of the box section of the bolster typically requires internal sand cores to provide an internal void in relation to box-shaped walls. The internal ribs and webs also typically require sand cores to form a void. The sand cores generally require spacers, referred to as rigging, to properly hold them in place during the casting process. Once the casting is completed, the sand cores and remainder of the rigging are removed. Moreover, the forming process includes grinding the cast bolster to remove flashing and any remaining rigging.
Certain side frames have been formed with a tapering I-beam construction. Such side frames are rigid in the vertical direction, but are susceptible to twisting when a transverse load is exerted therein.
An I-shaped cross section is an efficient form for carrying both bending and shear loads in a plane of a web. However, the cross-section also has a reduced capacity in the transverse direction, and, as noted, is inefficient in relation transverse loads. As vertical force is exerted, a traditional I-beam deflects in a vertical plane. However, with the addition of transverse force, the traditional I-beam may bend out of the vertical plane, and cause the traditional I-beam to buckle and/or twist.
Accordingly, side frames and bolsters of railway truck assemblies are typically formed as hollow box or tubes, in contrast to I-beams. As noted, however, the process of forming hollow box or tubular side frames and bolsters is time- and labor-intensive, as well as costly.

Railway truck assembly having coreless I-beam bolster


An electrode in a battery, e.g., a lithium-ion battery, has an electrically conductive carrier foil including (i) a terminal region for connection to an electrical circuit and (ii) at least one electrically conductive structure element configured to reduce the electrical resistance between the terminal region and a point on the carrier foil in order to improve electrical collection via the terminal region.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to improved collection structures for collecting electrical energy in batteries, e.g., a lithium-ion battery, and relates in particular to an electrode which has an electrically conductive carrier foil having a terminal region for connection to an electrical circuit, and in which, in order to improve electrical collection via the terminal region, the carrier foil has at least one electrically conductive structure element by way of which the electrical resistance between the terminal region and a point on the carrier foil is decreased.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to manufacture batteries such as, for example, lithium-ion batteries, an active layer is applied onto an electrically conductive collector. For example, graphite-containing pastes or nanocrystalline amorphous silicon having lithium inclusions, or also lithium mixed oxides such as Li4Ti-5O12, LiCoO2, LiNiO2, LiMn2O4, lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4), or tin dioxide (SnO2) can be applied as an active layer onto a carrier foil serving as a collector. Copper foil or aluminum foils can be used, for example, as carrier foils. It is also known to use networks or foams made of, for example, nickel as carrier foils. Coated carrier foils of this kind are assembled as an anode and/or cathode to form a battery, and incorporated into a package, a separator being provided between the anode and cathode. The package can be embodied as a pouch, layer being placed upon layer in sandwich fashion (e.g. anode-separator-cathode) and a usually square packet being constituted. Alternatively, an anode-separator-cathode unit can be rolled up, thus yielding the cells known, for example, from the laptop computer sector.
The packages thereby obtained are filled with an electrolyte. Suitable electrolytes are, for example, salts such as LiPF6 or LiBF4 in anhydrous aprotic solvents such as, for example, ethylene carbonate or diethylene carbonate, etc. Also suitable are polymers made up of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) or polyvinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropene (PVDF-HFP), as well as Li3PO4N (lithium phosphate nitride). These can be present and introduced both in liquid form and as a gel or solid.
A cell of this kind can be electrically contacted via an electrically conductive collector, which must have a cross section sufficient for the current intensity that needs to be handled.
As a rule, multiple small cells are connected together, with a high degree of wiring complexity, for a high-performance overall system. An alternative possibility, in order to avoid such wiring complexity, is to produce correspondingly large-area electrodes.
The difficulty then exists, during the charging and discharging of such a battery, that the current generated incrementally in the surface area of the electrode flows out of all regions of the electrode toward the collector. The result is that the current density in the electrode rises continuously in the direction of the collector.
Electrical conduction is often associated with losses, which become evident as local heating of the battery. Defects in the ideal disposition, for example an irregular coating, excessively large particles in the layer, inhomogeneous compression of the electrodes, or the like, result additionally in an inhomogeneous current flow in the electrode. Local or zonal overheating of the battery can therefore occur; this can result in premature aging, capacity loss, or even thermal damage to the battery.


According to one embodiment, a method can include dry etching an interlayer insulating layer provided on a foundation layer by using a mask having a plurality of first openings and a plurality of second openings arranged more closely than the first openings to form simultaneously a first hole reaching the foundation layer under each of the first openings and a second hole reaching the foundation layer under the second openings. The first hole reaches the foundation layer without contacting any other first holes. After starting of the dry etching, a plurality of holes are formed under each of the plurality of second openings, and with the progress of the dry etching, the plurality of holes are connected with each other at least at their upper parts including their open ends to form the second hole having an opening area larger than an opening area of the first hole.

In simultaneously forming a plurality of contact holes to connect an upper layer and a lower layer in a semiconductor device by dry etching, the holes having a relatively smaller opening area are likely to relatively lower etching rate, which easily causes insufficient etching. This may lead to the increase in contact resistance. In contrast, the holes having a relatively larger opening area are likely to relatively increase etching rate, which easily causes overetching. This may cause an element (e.g., a substrate) lower than the layer which is a target to be connected with the upper layer to be short-circuited with the upper layer.

Method for manufacturing semiconductor device and semiconductor device


Radiosurgical techniques and systems treat behavioral disorders (such as depression, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (“OCD”), addiction, hyperphagia, and the like) by directing radiation from outside the patient toward a target tissue within the patient's brain, typically without imposing surgical trauma. The target will often be included in a neural circuit associated with the behavioral disorder. A cellularly sub-lethal dose of the radiation may be applied and the radiation can mitigate the behavioral disorder, obesity, or the like, by modulating the level of neural activity within the target and in associated tissues. Hypersensitive and/or hyperactive neuronal tissue may be targeted, with the radiation downwardly modulating hyperactive neuronal activity. By down-regulating the activity of a target that normally exerts negative feedback or a limiting effect on a relevant neural circuit, the activity of the circuit may be increased.

The present invention is generally directed to medical (and in many cases, more specifically to neurological) treatment devices, systems, and methods. In exemplary embodiments, the invention provides radiosurgical treatment methods and systems for directing ionizing radiation toward a target tissue within a brain of a patient so as to treat psychiatric conditions, and particularly to treat behavioral disorders (such as depression, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder ("OCD"), addiction, hyperphagia, and the like), and/or to treat obesity. The dose of radiation will often be sub-lethal so that the tissue within the target need not undergo frank cell death, with efficacy often instead being provided via radiomodulation of neural activity.
Behavioral disorders are neurologic and psychiatric conditions that stem from defective regulation of certain brain regions. Patients that suffer from behavioral disorders often exhibit abnormal neural activity along a particular neural circuit within the brain. Typically, areas within the neural circuits of the brain of a behavioral disorder patient are either over-active or under-active, even though the cells of the tissue appear normal. This class of pathology contrasts with structural disorders, in which there is something morphologically or identifiably and physically abnormal with a tissue, such as an injury or a cancerous tumor. Nonetheless, the impact of behavioral disorders, including depression, OCD, addiction, and the like, can be devastating on the lives of patients and their families.
In neurology and psychiatry, behavioral disorders are most often treated with medications. Unfortunately, these medications can often be non-specific as to where they exert effects within the body. Hence, medications for treatment of behavioral disorders often produce undesirable side effects.
Attempts are being made to treat behavioral disorders by surgical implantation of treatment devices. These surgical implants typically include stimulating electrodes driven by a pacemaker-like pulse generator unit. For example, abnormal neuronal activity associated with intractable depression may be inhibited by continuously applying localized electrical current using a process called deep brain stimulation. Unfortunately, deep brain stimulation generally involves the invasive placement of electrodes into deep brain structures, along with the subcutaneous implantation of an electrical generator with batteries. Such approaches, however, are expensive, and are generally accompanied by risks associated with the surgery, particularly with the risks associated with surgically accessing tissues of the brain for implantation of the electrodes such as bleeding and infection. These approaches can also suffer from device-related risks, including device failure, battery-life limits, and the like.
A variety of both historical and modern techniques seek to treat patients by effectively killing cells within selected areas of the brain. Surgical techniques have been developed that intentionally kill or ablate specific regions of the brain using a variety of devices and energy forms. For example, radiation is a widely used method for inducing cell death and effectively destroying tissue within the brain. Radiation is primarily applied to tissues of the brain to treat benign and malignant tumors. The clinical practice of irradiation to produce selective cell death in tumors generally makes use of computerized systems that seek to minimize injury to adjacent normal anatomy. The biologic effects of radiation are largely ascribed to lethal chromosomal injury which results in disruption of the normal cell cycle. Non-chromosomal, i.e. epigenetic, pathways of cell injury are also believed to play a role in cellular death under some circumstances.
While inducing necrosis of selected tissues of the brain can be well worthwhile to halt growth of a malignant tumor or the like, there can be significant and even debilitating side effects, particularly when the tissues targeted for treatment are associated with higher cognitive functions. For example, targeting of apparently healthy tissues of the hyperactive or hypersensitive neural circuits associated with depression, addiction, OCD, or other behavioral disorders for cellularly lethal doses of radiation might effectively treat the disorder, but may significantly degrade cognitive abilities, induce neurological side-effects, and impact quality of life of the patient.
In addition to currently recognized neural circuits associated with behavioral disorders, there is an increasing awareness that abnormal neural activity within the neural circuits of the brain may be associated with a variety of deleterious behavior patterns. For example, while obesity is not uniformly recognized as a class of psychiatric behavioral disorder, there is increasing understanding that hyperphagia (excessive appetite and consumption of food) can be associated with excessive activity in an associated neural circuit. Similar deleterious behavior patterns and their associated anatomical structures within the brain are likely to be identified in the future.
In light of the above, it would generally be desirable to provide improved medical systems, devices, and methods, particularly for treatment of behavioral disorders, obesity, and the like. It would further be desirable if these improved treatment techniques could help mitigate the debilitating effects of behavioral disorders without imposing excessive surgical trauma on the patient, and without having to damage or kill neural tissues throughout an area that might result in loss of significant cognitive, emotional, or physical functionality to the patient. It would be particularly desirable if these benefits could be provided at reasonable costs by modifying existing treatment infrastructure and technologies.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Radiosurgical neuromodulation devices, systems, and methods for treatment of behavioral disorders by external application of ionizing radiation


A housing opening structure is disclosed, which has a pivoting board pivoted on a housing, a sliding board slidably mounted on the pivoting board, and a top cover fixed on the sliding board. When a technician wants to detach the top cover, due to sliding between the sliding board and the pivoting board, the top cover slides a predetermined distance and rotates to a predetermined angle relative to the housing by the pivoting board, and a stopping member stops a stop section of the pivoting board so that the top cover is stopped instead of falling. When the technician wants to close the top cover, an operating part of the stopping member can be pushed to make the stopping member slide from the back face of the housing to the front face, so the stopping end of the stopping member leaves the stop section of the pivoting board and the pivoting board starts to rotate closed.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a housing opening structure and, more particularly, to a case opening structure for a computer device.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, a typical computer device, such as a personal computer, has a housing composed of a case and a top cover. A technician wishing to service the computer must open the cover.
However, a prior art top cover is removed by pulling backward on the top cover, or by sliding the top cover forward. Consequently, the entire top cover is separated from the housing. Therefore, a servicing space needed to remove the top cover comprises a fixed space of the housing, and a movement space required for the top cover to be attached or detached, the total of which is a larger working space than the total space of the top cover and the housing. Furthermore, the detachment or attachment process of the prior top cover is a waste of time waste during servicing of the computer device.
The objective of the present invention is to provide a housing opening structure that can reduce the working space needed for the top cover during the detachment or attachment process.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a housing opening structure that can reduce overall servicing times.
To achieve these objectives, the housing opening structure of the present invention includes a housing, a pivoting board, a sliding board, a top cover, and at least one stopping member. The housing has a front face, a back face and two opposite side faces. Two first coaxial pivots are disposed on the two side faces, and a first slide structure and a first fastening end are attached to at least one of two side faces. Furthermore, the pivoting board has a front edge, a back edge and at least one second guiding structure extending from the front edge to the back edge. Two curved sections of the pivoting board are each respectively disposed adjacent to two opposite sides of the back edge. Two second coaxial pivots are disposed on the two curved sections and respectively pivoted to the two first coaxial pivots so that the pivoting board is able to rotate relative to the housing, and a stop section is disposed on the curved section corresponding to the side face having the first slide structure and the first fastening end. The sliding board has at least one first guiding structure placed corresponding to at least one second guiding structure, and so is capable of moving a predetermined distance relative to the pivoting board. The top cover is fixed on the sliding board and covers the housing. Moreover, at least one stopping member of the present invention is mounted on the side face having the first slide structure and the first fastening end of the housing, and the stopping member further has a second slide structure, a stopping end, a second fastening end, a spring, and an operating part, wherein the second slide structure slid corresponding with the first slide structure, the spring is fastened on the second fastening end and the first fastening end to apply a predetermine slide force on the stopping member biasing from the front face towards the back face of the housing so as to stop the pivoting board at the stop section with the stopping end of the stopping member, and the operating part is used for pushing the stopping member from the back face to the front face to separate the stopping end from the stop section of the pivoting board.
When a technician wishes detach the top cover, due to a relative sliding motion between the sliding board and the pivoting board, the top cover slides a predetermined distance, and then the top cover is rotated to a predetermined angle by the pivoting board relative to the housing, and the stopping member slides on the housing by the force from the spring to stop the stop section of the pivoting board so that the top cover is stopped instead of falling. The technician can perform a fabrication or maintenance process. When the technician wants to close the top cover, the operating part of the stopping member can be pushed to make the stopping member slide from the back face of the housing to the front face, and so the stopping end of the stopping member leaves the stop section of the pivoting board and the pivoting board starts to rotate closed. The top cover follows the rotation of the pivoting board to close on the housing. Afterward, the technician pushes the top cover to slide and close with the housing by way of the sliding movement of the sliding board relative to the pivoting board.
The opening or detachment process of the top cover utilizes a smaller top space of the housing, and so a working space required for the opening or detachment process of the top cover is reduced. Furthermore, the housing opening structure of the present invention is easy to operate, save time during fabrication or maintenance processes.
Other objectives, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.


A communication system processing element comprises a processor coupled to a memory and implements at least a portion of a distributed expert system. The distributed expert system is arranged in at least two hierarchical levels, including an upper level comprising a central controller, and a lower level comprising a plurality of local agents each associated with one or more communication devices of the system.

In conventional practice, certain communication devices may be configured to generate alarms and to report any such alarms directly to a centralized expert system for trouble ticket generation, problem analysis, testing, and eventual resolution of device problems. Resolution of a particular device problem using this approach generally requires the centralized expert system to be connected directly to the affected device, in order to perform tests and to clear the problem. Unfortunately, this is typically not an optimal solution for most communication device users as it may compromise their network security. Also, human intervention is frequently required in order to provide a satisfactory resolution to the problem. Thus, the time and resources required to resolve a problem using this approach can often be excessive, leading to increased costs for both the device user and the service provider.
Another drawback is that the conventional approach is not readily scalable. This is because the centralized expert system, which is typically accessed for any problem to be resolved, presents a significant processing bottleneck. Of course, the severity of the bottleneck increases with the number of communication devices to be supported.
Accordingly, a need exists for an improved approach to resolving communication device problems, that does not suffer from the drawbacks associated with the conventional requirement of direct interaction between a given device and a centralized expert system in order to provide a satisfactory resolution to a device problem.

Distributed expert system for automated problem resolution in a communication system


An image forming apparatus includes: a first toner consumption amount calculation section which calculates a toner consumption amount based on a toner replenishment operation; a coefficient calculation section which calculates a coefficient by dividing the toner consumption amount calculated by the first toner consumption amount calculation section by a number of pixels; a second toner consumption amount calculation section which calculates the toner consumption amount by multiplying the number of pixels by the coefficient calculated by the coefficient calculation section; and a near depletion detector which detects near depletion when a total toner consumption amount exceeds a near depletion threshold value. When a difference between a coefficient reference value and the coefficient calculated by the coefficient calculation section is at most an allowable value, the near depletion detector changes the near depletion threshold value to a changed near depletion threshold value which is smaller than the near depletion threshold value.

The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus which accepts attachment and detachment of a toner container housing toner to be supplied to a development device of the image forming apparatus.
A technique is proposed for an image forming apparatus including a toner container. Through the technique, a toner consumption amount is calculated based on operation of a toner conveyance section which conveys toner from the toner container and a number of pixels in image data to be printed. By detecting the toner consumption amount, a state in which the toner is nearly depleted (referred to in the following as near depletion) is detected before toner depletion is detected, and time for a user to prepare a replacement toner container is ensured.

Image forming apparatus that detects near depletion of toner and method for detecting near depletion of toner


The present disclosure provides engineered transaminase polypeptides for the production of amines, polynucleotides encoding the engineered transaminases, host cells capable of expressing the engineered transaminases, and methods of using the engineered transaminases to prepare compounds useful in the production of active pharmaceutical agents. The present disclosure provides engineered polypeptides having transaminase activity, polynucleotides encoding the polypeptides, methods of the making the polypeptides, and methods of using the polypeptides for the biocatalytic conversion of ketone substrates to amine products. The present enzymes have been engineered to have one or more residue differences as compared to the amino acid sequence of the naturally occurring transaminase of Vibrio fluvialis. In particular, the transaminases of the present disclosure have been engineered for efficient formation of chiral tryptamine derivatives from its corresponding prochiral ketone substrates.

Tryptamine class of compounds have the general core structure

Derivatives of tryptamine and tryptamine analogs, such as homotryptamine, can have substitutions on the amine, the α-carbon, the β-carbon and the indole ring. Because such derivatives are structurally similar to neurotransmitters serotonin and melatonin, many have psychoactive properties. For example, 5-hydroxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, N,N-dimethyltryptamine, 4-hydroxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, 5-methoxy-α-methyltryptamine, α-methyltryptamine, and α-ethyltryptamine have psychedelic properties and are regulated in the United States as Schedule 1 Controlled Substances. Tryptamine, tryptamine analogs and their derivatives also form the backbone of many drug compounds, for example hallucinogen lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), antiplasmodial spiroindolones (Yeung et al., 2010, J Med Chem. 53:5155-5164), noniceptive spirocyclic cyclohexane derivatives (US patent publication No. 20100240897), and farnesoid X receptor antagonist azepinoindole derivatives (US patent publication No. 20100173824).
Tryptamine derivatives with substitutions at the α-carbon, for example α-methyltryptamine or and α-ethyltryptamine, result in a chiral center, and these enantiomers have been shown to display different bioactivity. For example, S-isomer of α-methyltryptamine shows greater potency than the R-isomer (see, e.g., D. B. Repke et al., 1976, J Heterocycl Chem. 13:775). Different isomers of the antiplasmodial spiroindolones, which have chiral α-methyltryptamine or α-methylhomotryptamine components, also show differing potencies, e.g., the (1R,3S) isomers display higher antiplasmodial activity than the (1R,3R) isomers (see Yeung, supra; WO2009/132921):

Preparing chiral α-carbon substituted tryptamine and tryptamine analogs, such as α-methyltryptamine and α-methylhomotryptamine, can employ separation/isolation of the desired isomer or use chemical synthetic routes that employ chiral starting compounds for asymmetric synthesis. An illustration of the latter is synthesis of the antimalarial spiroindolines, which can use D-tryptophanol as the starting compound for synthesis of chiral intermediate S-α-methyltryptamine (Yeung et al., supra).
Other general approaches for preparing chiral compounds include reactions with successive achiral reagents that retain chirality, using reagents or the catalyst incorporated with an enantiopure chiral center to convert the enantiomers into diastereomers having different reactivity, use of chemical chiral catalysts, and chiral auxiliary compounds.
Separating and isolating enantiomers can be time consuming while chemical asymmetric synthetic strategies can be restricted by the possible reactions the molecule can undergo, the need for harsh reaction conditions and/or complex synthetic routes. An example is the availability of D-tryptophanol in the synthesis of spiroindolines, which is limiting due the complex synthetic steps required for its synthesis. Thus, it is desirable to develop synthetic methods for preparing α-substituted tryptamines and structurally related analogs that use mild conditions, result in high enantiomeric excess of the desired chiral compound, have high conversion of starting material to desired product, and are cost effective.

Biocatalysts and methods for synthesizing derivatives of tryptamine and tryptamine analogs


A sample of blood containing CTCs, or other cells of interest, is stained with fluorescent markers for image analysis and scanned to identify the presence and location within the cartridge of target cells or subcellular elements. A sample containing desired target cells or subcellular elements is then further processed, in part by photobleaching the sample, so that those same targets may be re-analyzed with additional biomarkers conjugated to the same or different fluorochromes using the same imaging criteria that were used for the initial analysis. The present invention has applications with targets such as circulating epithelial, cells, circulating tumor cells, circulating endothelial cells, leukocytes, lymphocyte subsets, cells containing an organelle or receptor of interest, cellular debris, disrupted cells and their debris, or any other formed element that might be captured and imaged. The invention provides a means to further interrogate individual targets of interest, especially when coupled with genetic analysis such as FISH.

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the fields of oncology and diagnostic testing. The invention is useful for screening, staging, treatment responses, recurrence or the like in diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular disorders. More specifically, the present invention provides methods which facilitate analysis and enumeration of circulating rare cells isolated from biological samples.
2. Background
Methods for the characterization of not only tumor cells, but also rare cells, or other biological entities from biological samples have been previously described (U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,362). This two stage method requires efficient enrichment to ensure acquisition of target cells while eliminating a substantial amount of debris and other interfering substances prior to analysis, allowing for cellular examination by imaging techniques. The method combines elements of immunomagnetic enrichment with multi-parameter flow cytometry, microscopy and immunocytochemical analysis in a uniquely automated way. The combination method is used to enrich and enumerate epithelial cells in blood samples, thus providing a tool for measuring cancer.
The two stage method has applications in cancer prognosis and survival for patients with metastatic cancer (WO 04076643). Based on the presence of morphologically intact circulating cancer cells in blood, this method is able to correlate the presence of circulating cancer cells of metastatic breast cancer patients with time to disease progression and survival. More specifically, the presence of five (5) or more circulating tumor cells per 7.5 milliliters provides a predictive value at the first follow-up, thus providing an early prognostic indicator of patient survival.
The specificity of the assay described above increases with the number of cells detected and is not sufficient in cases were only few (generally less than 5 circulating tumor cells) are detected. One solution to this problem is to provide detailed genetic information about suspected cancer cells. Accordingly, a method that would incorporate enrichment of a blood sample with multi-parametric image cytometry and multi-parametric genetic analysis on an individual suspect cancer cell would provide a complete profile and confirmatory mechanism to significantly improve current procedures for patient screening, assessing recurrence of disease, or overall survival. A confirmatory assay in the analysis of rare circulating cells by combining phenotypic and genotypic multiparametic analysis of an individually isolated target cell has been described (see pending U.S. application Ser. No. 12/067,532). Confirmation provides for a clinically significant level of sensitivity and, therefore, assurance to the clinician of any quantitative information acquired. Relevant disease states are assessed using extremely small (1, 2, 3, or 4) numbers of circulating tumor cells (CTC's) and provide a confirmation for early disease detection.
There are no other technologies available that can perform multiple high sensitivity assays on the same sample with the same marker and do it on rare events. Multiparameter flow cytometry is commonly done, but it requires hundreds or thousands of target cells or events to get accurate information. However if a patient only has 6 CTCs in 7.5 mLs of blood there are too few events to even detect reliably, to say nothing of performing multiparameter analysis.
The present invention extends the enrichment and analysis protocol described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,365,362 and utilized in Celltracks® Autoprep® System and Celltracks® Analyzer II System (Immunicon Corporation, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.) by providing a means to allow for the interrogation of rare circulating cells with multiple fluorescent biomarkers

High sensitivity multiparameter method for rare event analysis in a biological sample


A system performs production optimization for oilfields using a mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) model. The system uses an offline-online approach to model a network of interdependent wells in an online network simulator while modeling multiple interdependent variables that control performance as an offline MINLP problem. The offline model is based on production profiles established by assuming decoupled wells in the actual network of wells. In one example, an amount of lift-gas to inject and settings for subsurface chokes are optimized. An offline solver optimizes variables through the MINLP model. Offline results are used to prime the online network simulator. Iteration between the offline and online models results in a convergence, at which point values for the interdependent variables are communicated to the real-world oilfield to optimize hydrocarbon production.

As a producing oil field matures, the declining reservoir pressures from continued hydrocarbon extraction make oil production from existing and new wells harder. To alleviate this problem in part, natural gas is often injected at high pressure from the casing into the open wellbore of an oil well's string of tubes. This method of artificial lift is known as "gas-lift." As it is relatively inexpensive, easy to implement, and applicable over a broad range of conditions, it is a favored method of lift in many operating fields. Some or all of the gas produced by a field can be used as the source of lift-gas.
When natural gas is injected at high pressure into the wellbore near the bottom of the well, it mixes with the produced fluids from the reservoir, reducing the density of the fluid column and effectively lowering the bottom-hole pressure. The increased pressure differential induced across the sandface (the connection point between the reservoir and the well) allows more fluid to flow to the surface. However, too much lift-gas increases the frictional pressure drop and reduces the fluid production. Hence, although each well has a desirable lift-gas quantity, when the entire gathering network is considered, an optimal distribution must be made to account for the backpressure effects imposed by interconnected wells. This gives rise to a nonlinear gas-lift optimization problem. Even more broadly, the production also depends on the activation state of wells and the control of subsurface chokes that control flow, among other network elements.
To optimize production, a model of the oilfield must simultaneously optimize values for these different types of control variables. For large-scale network problems, this can be a difficult task when using conventional methods.

Production optimization for oilfields using a mixed-integer nonlinear programming model


A solar cell includes a photoactive, semiconductive absorber layer configured to generate excess charge carriers of opposed polarity by light incident on a front of the absorber layer during operation. The absorber layer is configured to separate and move, via at least one electric field formed in the absorber layer, the photogenerated excess charge carriers of opposed polarity over a minimal effective diffusion length Leff,min. The absorber layer has a thickness Lx of 0<Lx≦Leff,min. First contact elements are configured to remove the excess charge carriers of a first polarity on a rear of the absorber layer. Second contact elements are configured remove the excess charge carriers of a second polarity on the rear of the absorber layer. At least one undoped, electrically insulating second passivation region is disposed in an alternating, neighboring arrangement with a first passivation region on the rear of the absorber layer.

A solar cell having a pn junction and two-sided contacting is described in DE 196 02 313 A1. The solar cell is equipped with an externally controllable field electrode to suppress the charge carrier recombination at the point of contact on the rear, which is turned away from the light. This field electrode is arranged between the contact fingers on an insulation layer on the absorber layer and is connected to an external voltage source. The field electrode at a negative potential generates an electric field in the semiconductor-insulator interface, which electric field forces the minority charge carriers diffusing into this region back towards the pn junction and, by contrast, accelerates the majority charge carriers towards rear-face contact. In order to reduce the recombination rate on the front of the solar cell, an externally controllable field electrode of opposed polarisation may also be provided there, the field effect of said field electrode forcing the majority charge carriers towards rear contact and forcing the minority charge carriers towards front contact. However, charge carrier separation takes place exclusively at the pn junction.
A solar cell contacted on the rear is described in WO 2007/022955 A1, in which the electric fields are produced for charge carrier separation in a doped absorber via alternately neighboring emitter regions (doped oppositely to the absorber) and BSF regions (highly doped identically to the absorber). However, the emitter and BSF regions are electrically conductive semiconductor regions with doping. Corresponding doping and structuring measures are necessary during production.
It is described in DE 44 12 297 A1 to passivate the recombination rate on the surface of a semiconductor element, for example p-conductive silicon, by applying a layer of an electric insulator, for example oxides or nitrides, to the surface of the semiconductor element, and then to apply electrical charges to the surface of the insulator layer. Positive or negative charges can be applied. The density of the charge carriers is thus reduced at the points of high density of states at trapping or recombination centres. An electric field is produced inside the semiconductor element by applying the charges, as a result of which electric field the freely movable minority charge carriers located in the conduction band (electrons with a p-doped semiconductor, holes in an n-doped semiconductor) are drawn from the near-surface region into the semiconductor element. The charges applied externally (for example by corona remove) may, for example, be fixed by a subsequently thermally grown cover layer. Insulation layers with charges may also be applied to both surfaces of the semiconductor element, but in this case charges of identical polarity are applied so as to measure the life span of the charge carriers.
The use of passivation layers made of aluminium oxide and silicon nitride with their different surface charges (AlO, negative, and SiN, positive) for solar cells to reduce the surface recombination rate is described in DE 35 36 299 A1. Solar cells with MIS contact over the entire surface, MIS inversion layer solar cells and solar cells with a conventional pn junction for charge carrier separation are described.
The application of Al2O3 as a passivation layer for a diffused (p+) emitter is also described in a publication by Jan Benick et al., "Surface passivation of boron diffused emitters for high efficiency solar cells" (Proceedings PVSEC-33, San Diego, May 2008). A solar cell Al2O3/cSi(p+, front emitter, planar, diffused)/c-Si(m, absorber, wafer)/SiO2 with c-Si(n+, BSF, rear-face point contacts, diffused) was processed with an efficacy of 23.2%. The structure of a processed solar cell with 20.6% efficacy (silicon nitride/cSi(n+, front emitter, planar, diffused)/c-Si(p, absorber, wafer)/Al2O3 with c-Si(p+, BSF, rear point contacts, diffused) is described in a publication by Jan Schmidt et al., "Atomic-layer-deposited aluminium oxide for the surface passivation of high efficiency silicon solar cells" (Proceedings PVSEC-33, San Diego, May 2008). In both publications there are the (diffused) (p+) and (n+) emitters and BSF regions which (via the formation of a "conventional" p+/pn or n+/p emitter contact at the emitter-absorber interface or via the formation of a p-F/p or a n+/n BSF contact at the BSF-absorber interface) enable the selective "conventional" charge carrier separation.
The publication by Jan Schmidt et al. describes a solar cell of the generic type. It is a solar cell with a photoactive, semiconductive absorber layer, in which excess positive and negative charge carriers are generated by light incident on the front of the absorber layer during operation. In order to separate the positive and negative charge carriers, an electric field is generated in the absorber layer by the formation of a pn junction between the contact, over the entire surface, of a front emitter layer and a p-doped silicon wafer (see FIG. 3 of the publication by Jan Schmidt et al.). The separated charge carriers (minority charge carriers) can move over a minimal effective diffusion length Leff,min in the absorber layer before they recombine. Further, point contacts are provided as first contact elements on the rear of the absorber layer, which is turned away from the light during operation, in order to remove the positive charge carriers. To remove the negative charge carriers, contact strips are provided as second contact elements on the front of the absorber layer, which faces the light during operation. The solar cell is thus contacted on both sides. A planar Al2O3 layer is also located on the rear of the absorber layer as an electrically insulating first passivation region with a high negative surface charge for concentration of positive charge carriers in the absorber layer in the contact region. A planar silicon nitride layer is also located on the front of the solar cell on the emitter layer as an electrically insulating second passivation region with a high positive surface charge for concentration of negative charge carriers in the absorber layer in the contact region. However, in the solar cell the charge carrier separation takes place conventionally by means of a selective pn junction between the emitter and absorber.

Solar cell comprising neighboring electrically insulating passivation regions having high surface charges of opposing polarities and production method

Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie GmbH


Complimentary crossovers that reduce phase distortion in loudspeaker systems, typically pairs, are described. In the fundamental embodiment, each loudspeaker possesses two drivers, a woofer and a tweeter. The “effective third-order” crossover on the right-hand loudspeaker remains “symmetric,” but the “effective third-order” crossover on the left-hand loudspeaker is rendered “asymmetric,” as described. Other embodiments apply this principle to other crossover orders and/or greater numbers of drivers. This technology can be combined with other circuits like a Zobel, typically used for impedance correction. Some configurations of “phase-unified” loudspeakers require that a Zobel is applied to all drivers except the tweeter. Accordingly a rule combining effective crossover order and handedness is established.

Previous approaches to loudspeaker design failed to consider the prospective interference effects between the two loudspeakers, one on the left and the other on the right, comprising stereo sound reproduction. These two combine to form a "loudspeaker system," which also includes, but is not limited to, a quadraphonic or stereo system. Since the output of these two loudspeakers combine to produce a stereo image, interference is likely; they operate in parallel. To demonstrate this concept simply, two-way loudspeakers will be used in the stereo loudspeaker system. In addition to the interference and phase effects between the woofer and tweeter in either loudspeaker for the right or left channels, interference and phase effects are possible between the right tweeter and the left woofer as well as between the left tweeter and the right woofer. These concepts can be extended to sound reproduction in more than two channels like quadraphonic reproduction or home theater. Although the discussion of phase and interference in loudspeaker design can seem abstruse, these effects are quite audible.
Loudspeakers capable of reproduction approximating the entire audio band have been developed using various crossover circuitry and configurations. To extend the frequency response and power handling of a loudspeaker, multiple drivers are employed with each driver predominating in a specific portion of the frequency spectrum. Thus a loudspeaker can have woofers, tweeters and midranges, with tweeters reproducing higher frequencies, woofers reproducing lower frequencies and midranges reproducing the frequencies in between. A woofer, midwoofer, midrange, upper midrange or tweeter is called a "driver". The typical two-way loudspeaker has a woofer or tweeter for drivers. Accordingly a 2.5-way loudspeaker is a modern design with a woofer, midwoofer and tweeter. Modern designs can use a midwoofer and a tweeter, but for the sake of simplicity, this will also be referred to as a woofer and a tweeter henceforward unless otherwise noted. A three-way loudspeaker has a woofer, midrange and tweeter. Each of the drivers is selected to perform best in a specific portion of the frequency spectrum, and a crossover circuit is applied to tailor driver response in this portion. The crossover network accomplishes this typically by attenuating driver response where undesired. The overwhelming majority of crossover networks connect the drivers in parallel and subsequent references to crossover networks refer to parallel circuits unless otherwise stated. The applicant will define the nouns "crossover network," "crossover circuit," or "crossover," as referring to the network apportioning the different frequency bands of the input signal to the different drivers for the entire loudspeaker. The noun "filter" refers to the smaller network apportioning the given frequency band of the input signal to a single driver in the entire loudspeaker.
The frequency at which an audio crossover network delivers signals to two drivers operating in adjacent frequency ranges is called the crossover frequency. A crossover attenuates the response of a driver at the crossover frequency at a rate called the crossover slope. Crossover slopes are calculated in dB of attenuation per octave, with steeper slopes displaying more attenuation. The steepness of a crossover's slope is primarily determined by the number of capacitors and inductors used. For instance, passive crossovers in two-way loudspeakers having crossover slopes of 6 dB/octave generally have one inductor L or capacitor C for each filter in the crossover. These filters together form a 1st order electrical crossover. Crossover slopes of 12 dB/octave in two-way loudspeakers generally have one L and one C for each filter in the crossover, to total two inductors and two capacitors in the crossover. These two filters together form a 2nd order electrical, or half-section, crossover network. Analogously 4th order electrical crossover circuits are called full-section crossovers. These crossovers possess crossover slopes of 24 dB/octave and in two-way loudspeakers, generally have two inductors and two capacitors for each filter in the crossover, to total four inductors and four capacitors.
Loudspeaker drivers nonetheless reproduce waves and simultaneous reproduction from more than one driver at a given frequency produces interference effects. When two drivers of different size and shape are mounted on a conventional planar baffle, the depths of these drivers differ so that the fronts of these drivers' voice coils lie in different planes. For instance, a tweeter is typically smaller than a woofer and a tweeter cone is typically significantly shallower than a woofer cone. Accordingly when a tweeter and woofer reproduce the same frequency, the distances of the corresponding sound waves to the listener's ear differ, inducing interference. A crossover reduces these interference effects, but introduces its own interference effects. A crossover circuit between a woofer and a tweeter rolls the woofer response off at the crossover frequency, but gradually increases the tweeter response as the crossover frequency is approached. The woofer and tweeter responses at the crossover frequency are therefore out-of-phase to some extent. The crossed-over woofer and tweeter responses overlap substantially at some frequencies, where these responses are also out-of-phase to some extent.
Interference effects sound unpleasant. The original crossovers described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,457,370 to Boner were 2nd order electrical and accordingly introduced anomalies in frequency response whether the drivers were connected in-phase or out-of-phase, a deficiency characteristic of even-order electrical crossovers. Many listeners feel out-of-phase 2nd order electrical crossovers reproduce the human voice with a nasal quality. Accordingly he introduced impedance-correction networks into these crossovers.
Many other techniques have been proposed to improve the frequency response and phase behavior of loudspeakers. The interference effects between multiple drivers can be conveyed as a pair of drivers operating in-phase or out-of-phase. The more drivers there are in a given loudspeaker, the more possible driver pairs exist and consequently the more out-of-phase responses are possible. An example of a loudspeaker configuration diminishing undesirable phase effects is the d'Appolito configuration in which a specific driver configuration on the mounting baffle combined with a specific crossover type are applied. Polar response figures reveal the benefits of the popular d'Appolito configuration. There is nevertheless some variety among driver and crossover configurations yielding the characteristic d'Appolito phase behavior. Alternatively a loudspeaker can be configured with a stepped baffle so that the drivers are time-aligned. This configuration often reproduces more three-dimensional stereo images than conventional configurations.
Another approach to decrease loudspeaker interference effects in theory is to augment a loudspeaker with at least one auxiliary driver to improve the transfer function of the loudspeaker. The transfer functions of a woofer and a tweeter for a given crossover order differ so that the loudspeaker transfer function lacks fidelity with respect to the input for all but 1st order electrical crossovers. When an auxiliary driver is added with the appropriate crossover slopes, the fidelity of the loudspeaker transfer function is restored. Higher crossover orders entail more auxiliary drivers and more sophisticated selection of crossover slopes. At least one auxiliary driver is required for every crossover frequency, which divulges the problems generated with this approach. First the auxiliary driver will interfere with both the woofer and the tweeter in a two-way loudspeaker, which already interfere with each other in an unaugmented two-way loudspeaker. A crossover network tailors this interference, but does not eliminate it entirely. More drivers in an unaugmented loudspeaker simply produce more possible interference effects. Augmenting these loudspeakers with auxiliary drivers in the recommended approach simply compounds the possible interference effects. Moreover this approach corrects the transfer functions of the crossover network rather than those of the network plus the drivers. Drivers without a filter applied nevertheless roll off frequencies with characteristic slopes. The typical woofer rolls off high frequencies at approximately 12 dB/octave and the typical tweeter reaches full output at approximately 6 dB/octave from resonance. These characteristics are used in the determination of "effective" crossover orders, which refer to the slope of the roll off in frequency response that a driver filtered by a crossover actually displays. This is distinguished from the slope of the electrical filter in a crossover. Effective crossover orders complicate the recommended approach to loudspeaker design and provide transfer functions corresponding to the woofer and tweeter in a two-way system that differ even more. Thus design of the appropriate filter for the auxiliary driver is made more difficult, often enjoining the use of active crossover networks. Active crossovers can be used to optimize transfer functions, but like the approach using auxiliary drivers, are developed in the absence of actual drivers and their impedances, which depend on frequency.
Approximately infinite crossover slopes also render the auxiliary approach more difficult. These crossovers typically apply many sequential crossover sections to each driver in a loudspeaker. Accordingly many auxiliary drivers would be demanded for each pair of drivers consecutive in frequency. However some consider designing loudspeakers with approximately infinite crossover slopes sufficient improvement. Interference between a pair of drivers consecutive in frequency is reduced because there is little overlap in their frequency response. These loudspeakers can be enhanced by coupling adjacent inductors to increase slopes at diminished cost though the sheer number of crossover elements in these systems can be considered expensive. Furthermore active crossovers can be used, but at even greater expense.
The aforementioned loudspeaker designs connect the drivers in parallel. Drivers in a loudspeaker can be connected in series to minimize some interference and phase effects. Possible deficiencies of loudspeakers with series crossovers are limited selection in crossover slope, reduced efficiency and fewer possible designs. Loudspeakers with series crossovers often demand drivers with similar impedances. A transformer can be incorporated into series crossover networks to increase slopes to at least 2nd order. Recently 2nd, 3rd and 4th order series topologies have been developed using traditional crossover elements.
Most, if not all, the aforementioned crossover circuits and approaches can include impedance-compensation networks to smooth impedance and improve phase behavior. These networks can be applied across individual drivers as appropriate or across an entire loudspeaker.
The present art reduces phase and interference effects in sound reproduction and moderates lobing error between the loudspeakers comprising a loudspeaker system. The vertical polar response of a loudspeaker reveals lobe structure. Loudspeakers reproduce a spectrum of frequencies and lobe structure strongly depends on frequency. An increase in crossover order decreases driver overlap and thus lobing error, henceforth abbreviated as "lobing". Lobing nonetheless remains at high crossover orders. Moreover the lobe structures of the loudspeakers comprising a loudspeaker system interact.
The art of the present invention applies to the prior art of paired loudspeakers using crossover circuits. It is an object of the present invention to reduce phase distortion and reduce interference effects compared to prior art crossovers, including the popular 1st order electrical crossover.
Another object of the present invention is to incorporate the concept of symmetry complemented by asymmetry for effective crossover orders in a pair of stereo loudspeakers to reduce phase distortion without significantly increasing cost.
A further object of the present invention is to incorporate the concept of handedness to distinguish effective odd-numbered crossover orders from effective even-numbered crossover orders and from prior art. This concept is also used in conjunction with specified polarity.

Phase-unified loudspeakers: parallel crossovers


An end closure for a container, such as a beverage or food can, includes a transverse central body panel and a surrounding outer margin joined to the longitudinal side wall of the container body. The margin portion has a support section, and a plurality of spaced rib structures are located on the margin and have portions that extend longitudinally along the support section to reinforce the margin. The end closure can be a lid or an integrally formed bottom for a can body. The margin can have a U-shaped profile with the rib structures located on either the inner or outer wall portion thereof. The rib structures may be flutes defining tear-dropped shaped depressions. The invention contemplates a can body with the end closure forming the bottom thereof. A method is described for forming such end closures and containers.

The present invention broadly relates to the manufacture of containers, especially drawn and ironed containers made of steel or aluminum, such as those used in the food and beverage industry. More particularly, the present invention concerns the formation of a margin profile for an end closure that includes reinforcing rib structures the invention concerns both container lids and can bodies including integral domed end closures.
The need for packaging of food and beverage products for storage and sale has increased with the increase in human populations and as urbanization has intensified. In addition, the demand for convenient, ready-to-eat products have added to the demand for suitable packaging. A long standing technique for packaging certain foods and beverages is metal cans. Such cans take a variety of geometric shapes and are often produced out of drawn and ironed steel or aluminum. Typically, these containers are either circular, oval, or rectangular (including square) in cross-section and are used to package a wide variety of liquid beverages, fruit and vegetables, meat products, dehydrated foods, etc.
The rising demand for steel and aluminum containers, though, carries certain concerns about production costs and the quantity of material used in the fabrication process. Accordingly, there have been intensified efforts to reduce the wall diameter of steel and aluminum cans in order to reduce the weight and mass of raw material used to create a can of given volume. This saves in the costs of production in two ways. By reducing the quantity of material, lower raw material costs result. Moreover, the energy required to refine or recycle the material is reduced. Another advantage is a reduction in the need for virgin raw materials that must be extracted from the natural resource base. Indeed, due to the volume of cans, such as aluminum cans for example, even a very minor reduction in wall thickness can result in literally tens of millions of dollars in savings on an annualized base. This is additionally true if there can be a reduction in thickness of an aluminum lid that is typically seamed onto an aluminum can body since the seamed lid is substantially thicker than the can body.
Nonetheless, the reduction in wall thickness of containers is not without its problems. While a reduced wall thickness is highly desirable from a material standpoint, structural integrity of the container must be maintained. Since the reduced wall thickness of a container diminishes its inherent strength, improved geometries have been developed to give added strength of the design. An example of such a geometry in the beverage industry, is the formation of a concaved depression in the bottom of an aluminum can with this concaved depression being commonly referred to as a xe2x80x9cdomexe2x80x9d.
Providing the bottom of a container with an axial, internally extending dome has several advantages. The margin of the dome provides a U-shaped profile that increases the structural rigidity of the container, especially where the internal contents of the container are pressurized. The provision of a dome on such a container has allowed manufacturers to maintain adequate side wall and end wall strengths while reducing the thickness of the can blank material.
This is of particular importance to the beverage industry where carbonated beverages are packaged in the container for storage and sale. Here, the dome structure greatly increases the resistance of the container to expansion or xe2x80x9cbloatingxe2x80x9d so as to maintain integrity of the container while at the same time maintaining the contents of the container at the desired pressurized state. The lids that are seamed upon such can bodies also have a U-shaped margin that provides structural rigidity to the can.
In the typical production of a beverage can, a can blank is produced by stamping a cup-shaped blank out of sheet material. This cup-shaped blank has a bottom wall and side wall thickness that is greater than the thickness of the can to be produced, but the physical dimensions of the cup-shaped can blank are smaller than the can to be produced. The production blank is placed in an ironing device wherein a punch advances the can blank through drawing and ironing dies which configure the can blank into the final dimensions of the desired container. This is accomplished by stretching or xe2x80x9cironingxe2x80x9d the metal side walls of the can blank to increase its axial dimension while thinning the wall thickness to compensate for the increase in height. This device is commonly referred to as a xe2x80x9cbody makerxe2x80x9d. After the can body is created, a dome is configured in the integrally formed body end closure by a xe2x80x9cdomerxe2x80x9d. The domer can be associated with the body maker or can be a separate device. Where associated with the body maker, the bottom dome structure is formed at the end of the draw and iron cycle. Alternatively, the can body may be placed in a separate doming machine. In either case, a punch strikes the bottom end closure against a die structure that is configured to match the dome shape of the punch thereby to stamp the bottom profile in the container.
Even though significant advances have occurred in the formation of container structures, there needs to be continued advancement in this art in an effort to achieve the accommodates noted above. There is a continuing need for end closures, can bodies, containers and methods which allow the further reduction in material consumption without otherwise significantly compromising the integrity of the container system. The present invention is directed to these issues.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and useful end closure for a container where the amount of material used in construction is reduced yet where the structural integrity of the container is maintained.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a container with end closures, either in the form of a lid or an integrally formed bottom wall, that have improved strength.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a can body with a domed end closure of improved configuration for strength that may then be used to form a container.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a new and useful method of forming an end closure for a surrounding side wall of a container as well as a method for forming a canned body for such a container.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide for the possible reduction of materials used to form container, can bodies and end closures for such containers.
According to the present invention, then, an improvement is provided for a container that has a surrounding side wall forming a container body with a central axis and first and second end closures that define an interior. The improvement broadly includes at least one end closure for the container. The end closure has a central body panel oriented transversely to the central axis and an outer surrounding margin portion joined to the side wall. The margin portion includes a support section thereof that is oriented longitudinally relative to the container body. A plurality of rib structures are disposed on the margin and have longitudinally extending components located on the support section and positioned and spaced-apart relation therearound.
The rib structures are corrugated in nature and may be formed as flutes in the support section. Thus, the rib structures have trough regions separated by ridge portions. The trough regions, in one embodiment, are formed as tear-dropped shaped depressions in the support section. In another embodiment, the rib structures include a radial rib component disposed on the central body panel.
The margin portion of the enclosure may have a U-shaped profile to include an inner wall portion and an outer wall portion. The rib structures may be disposed either on the outer wall portion or on the inner wall portion. Where the end closure is an integrally formed bottom for the container body, formed as a one-piece construction with a side wall, the rib structures, for example, may be disposed on the inner wall portion. The rib structures may be equidistantly spaced from one another.
The support section on the margin portion of the central body panel may be a shell formed as a truncated geometric shape. This geometric shape may be cone or a pyramid having a polygonal base of xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d sides where xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d is an integer greater than two. As noted, the enclosure may be formed integrally with these side walls or, alternatively, may be a lid that is joined to the container body by a mechanical joint. The container body likewise may have a cross-section that is selected from a group consisting of circles, ovals and n-sided polygons where xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d is an integer greater than two. The central body panel can have a geometrical shape that is geometrically similar to the cross-section of the container body.
The present invention is also directed to a can body adapted to receive contents for packaging. The can body has a surrounding side wall portion having a central axis and a bottom closure joined to the side wall portion to enclose an end of the can body. The bottom closure includes a central body panel oriented transversely to the central axis and an outer surrounding margin portion joined to the side wall. This margin portion has a support section oriented longitudinally relative to the surrounding side wall body. A plurality of rib structures are then disposed in the margin and have longitudinally extending first rib components. These first rib components are located on the support section and are positioned in spaced-apart relation about the support section.
Here, again, the margin portion can have a U-shaped profile including an inner wall portion and an outer wall portion. The first rib component may be then disposed on the inner wall portion. Moreover, the inner wall portion may be formed as a truncated geometric shape, as described above. The first rib components can be flutes, such as tear-dropped shaped depressions in the support section. The other structures discussed above, can apply to this can body, as well. Where the can body is cylindrical, the rib components may be equiangularly spaced from one another. The invention also includes a container having a second end closure joined thereto that is opposite the first end closure.
The present invention also concerns a method of forming an end closure for a surrounding side wall of a container having a central axis. This method includes all of the steps inherent in the containers and can body noted above. The method can include a step of forming a central body panel oriented transversely to the central axis and an outer surrounding margin portion joined to the side wall with the margin portion having a support section oriented longitudinally relative to the side wall. The method can include the step of corrugating a portion of the margin to provide rib structures. At least some of the rib structures have longitudinally extending first rib components located on a support section. The method can also include the step of forming the support section as a truncated geometric shape, and this geometric shape may be a cone, or a pyramid having a polyigamol base of xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d sides where an xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d is an integer greater than two. The method can also include the configuring of the outer margin portion in a U-shaped profile to include an inner wall portion and an outer wall portion. The step of corrugating can be accomplished by forming the rib structures on the outer wall portion. Alternatively, the step of corrugating can be accomplished by forming the rib structures on the inner wall portion. The step of corrugating may be accomplished by forming flutes in the support section with these flutes, in one embodiment, being tear-dropped shaped depressions in the support section. The method can also include the formation of radial second rib components that are disposed on the central body panel.
The present invention is also directed to a method of forming a can body out of a cup-shaped can blank. Here, the method includes the step of ironing the can blank to form a surrounding side wall portion having a central axis and doming a bottom portion of the can blank. The doming of the bottom portion can be done to create a central body panel oriented transversely to the central axis and an outer surrounding margin portion joined to the side wall portion. The margin portion has a support section oriented longitudinally relative to the surrounding side wall body. The method can include the step of corrugating a portion of the margin to provide a rib structure having longitudinally extending first rib components located on the support section. This method can include the additional steps described, above, with respect to the formation of an enclosure.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more readily appreciated and understood from a consideration of the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention when taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

End closure structure and method and container having reinforcing rib structures


The pose of the model at an evaluation time is determined by interpolating pose attributes of the unconstrained pose degrees of freedom from previously defined poses. A neutral value of an attractor function at the evaluation time is based at least on the pose attributes of the unconstrained pose degrees of freedom. Because of this, the attractor function is time coherent. Similarly, pose constraints are determined by interpolating from previously defined pose constraints. Inverse kinematics or error minimization techniques modify the pose attributes of the unconstrained pose degrees of freedom to minimize the difference between the attractor function value for the pose attributes and the neutral value of the attractor function. The final pose of the model at the evaluation time is specified by the pose attributes corresponding with this minimization.

The present invention relates to the field of computer graphics, and in particular to methods and apparatus for interpolating model poses of computer graphics objects. Many computer graphic images are created by mathematically modeling the interaction of light with a three dimensional scene from a given viewpoint. This process, called rendering, generates a two-dimensional image of the scene from the given viewpoint, and is analogous to taking a photograph of a real-world scene. Animated sequences can be created by rendering a sequence of images of a scene as the scene is gradually changed over time. A great deal of effort has been devoted to making realistic looking rendered images and animations.
In computer-generated animation, an object's appearance is defined by a three-dimensional computer model. To appear realistic, the computer model of an object is often extremely complex, having millions of surfaces and tens of thousands of attributes. A pose is the realized geometry of a model. Animators often specify poses of models at one or more discrete moments of time, referred to as keyframes. Animation software tools then determine the poses of models at any intermediate moments of time, referred to as in-between or intermediate frames.
Due to the complexity involved with animating models, particularly character models with hundreds or thousands of degrees of freedom, animation tools often rely on animation variables to define the animation of objects. Animators typically define animation variable values, such as joint angles and joint positions, at specific frames or discrete moments of time. The value of an animation variable along with its associated time is referred to as a control knot. Animation tools often interpolate animation variable values between control knots to determine the poses of models at other frames or moments of time. The values of animation variables in any given frame define the pose or realized geometry of a model, which may include the position, orientation, surface and/or volume deformation, and potentially other properties of the character model.
The pose of some types of models may be defined using complex hierarchies of joints. For example, a character model can include a shoulder joint connected between a torso model and an upper arm model, an elbow joint connected between the upper arm model and a lower arm model, a wrist joint connected between the lower arm model and a hand model, and several finger joints connected between the hand model and finger models. The pose or position and orientation of all of these portions of the character model's arm is specified at least in part by the joint rotation angles and/or joint positions of the shoulder joint, the elbow joint, the wrist joint, and the finger joints.
Animators can specify the joint rotation angles of joints or other parameters or properties of a model directly to define a pose of a character model. This is referred to as forward kinematics. However, this is often time consuming and unintuitive, especially for limbs and other objects composed of numerous joints or complex parameters.
Inverse kinematics allows animators to specify all or a portion of a pose in terms of desired joint positions for a portion of the joints or other desired characteristics of all or a portion of a model. The animation tools then determine the specific joint rotation angles, joint positions, and other parameters, such as scaling or shearing, for the other joints required to achieve this pose. For example, an animator may specify that the hand of character model should contact another object in a scene. The animation tools then calculate the joint rotation angles for the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints necessary for the hand to contact the object as specified. Animation tools often take into account constraints, such as limits on the range of joint rotations, to ensure that the final pose of the model appears realistic. For example, an elbow joint may be constrained to a range of 150 degrees of rotation to prevent the animation tools from setting this joint's rotation angles outside of the range of motion possible in human anatomy.
Although inverse kinematics often makes posing character models easier, animation can be a problem with inverse kinematics. A user may typically specify the poses of a model in two or more keyframes. The animation tools then determine the pose of the model for one or more intermediate frames to produce animation. Interpolation is one technique for determining the pose of a model in an intermediate frame. Inverse kinematics may be used to determine all or a portion of the poses in keyframes. Linear or non-linear interpolation is then used to determine pose attributes such as joint angles at the intermediate frames. For the keyframes, inverse kinematics ensures that all the joint constraints are satisfied. However, typical linear or non-linear interpolation techniques do not satisfy these constraints at intermediate frames. Thus, even if the starting and ending positions of a model in the keyframes appear normal and satisfy the constraints, typical interpolation techniques often produce awkward and unrealistic poses in the intermediate frames, often with many temporal discontinuities or sudden "popping" between different poses.
Another animation technique applies an inverse kinematic techniques simulation over time to determine the poses of a model in intermediate frames. In this approach, the animation tool applies inverse kinematics techniques to consider the joint constraints in each intermediate frame. Although this approach produces fluid and realistic looking animations, this approach requires animation tools to start its calculations at the first frame of animated sequence and incrementally determine the pose at every subsequent frame up to the desired intermediate frame. If anything in the animation sequence in changed, the entire sequence of calculations must be repeated from the beginning. Because animators often make incremental adjustments to fine-tune their animations, simulating inverse kinematics over time makes the process of fine-tuning animation difficult and time-consuming for animators.
There is also an unmet need for a system and method to animate models using inverse kinematics in a realistic and time-coherent manner without requiring computationally expensive incremental simulations of long sequences of animation frames.

Interpolation between model poses using inverse kinematics


Compositions comprising chelating agents, metal ion salts, gelling agents or a buffer, antimicrobials, antibiofilm agents and a pH adjuster or a buffer for the prevention and treatment of wound infections and food-borne diseases involving bacterial biofilms are disclosed. The anti-infective properties of a composition include reduction or killing of anaerobic/aerobic/facultative gram-negative and gram-positive wound infection associated bacteria occurring in polymicrobial biofilms. The composition may be in the form of lotion, cream, ointment, dressing, bandage, rinse, soak, gel, spray, or other suitable forms, including certain devices. Additionally, the invention offers an efficient method of delivering the formulated composition containing one or two chelating agents or chelating agents alone or in combination with a metal ion salt using either a nanoparticle or other efficient delivery systems.

From a microbiological perspective, the primary function of normal, intact human and animal skin is to control microbial populations that live on the skin surface and to prevent underlying tissue from becoming colonized and invaded by potential pathogens. Exposure of subcutaneous tissue (i.e. a wound) provides a moist, warm and nutritious environment that is conducive to microbial colonization and proliferation.
Since wound colonization is mostly polymicrobial, involving numerous microorganisms that are potentially pathogenic, any wound is at some risk of becoming infected. In the event of an infection a wound fails to heal, the patient suffers increased trauma as well as increased treatment costs. General wound management practices become more resource demanding. Over 2% of the U.S. population suffers from such chronic, non-healing wounds and it costs the U.S. health care system $20 billion a year. Wounds are an enormous problem worldwide in humans as well as in animals.
Thus, concern among health care practitioners regarding the risk of wound infection is justifiable not only in terms of increased trauma to the patient but also in view of its burden on financial resources and the increasing requirement for cost-effective management within the health care system. Most wound infections are caused by Staphylococcus aureus (20%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (14%), Enterococci spp. (12%), Escherichia coli (8%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (8%), Enterobacter spp. (7%), Proteus spp. (3%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (3%), Streptococci (3%) and Candida albicans (3%).
Wounds often have multiple barriers to healing. Wound healing and infection is influenced by the relationship between the ability of bacteria to create a stable, prosperous community within a wound environment and the ability of the host to control the bacterial community. Since bacteria are rapidly able to form their own protective microenvironment (biofilm) following their attachment to a surface, the ability of the host to control these organisms is likely to decrease as the biofilm community matures. Within a stable biofilm community, interactions between aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are likely to increase their net pathogenic effect, enhancing their potential to cause infection and delay healing. Over the last few years, some have linked biofilm to chronic wounds. Microscopic evaluation or chronic wounds showed well organized biofilm with extracellular polymeric substance adhered around colony bacteria in at least 60% of the chronic wounds.
In recent years, there have been numerous efforts to use antibiotics and antimicrobials for the treatment of non-healing, clinically infected wounds in humans as well as in animals. These antimicrobial agents are of varying chemical compositions and can include peptides, antiseptics (U.S. Pat. No. 6,700,032), antibiotics, silver ions/compounds (US patent appl. pub. no. 2005/0035327), chitosan (US patent appl. pub. no. 2006/0210613; U.S. Pat. No. 6,998,509), nitrofurazone, bismuth thiols, and xylitol (WO 2005/058381).
There have been various attempts by others to create wound care devices such as dressings or bandages, gels and ointments comprising antimicrobial agents. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,000 discloses the use of a silver zinc allantoinate cream for killing. From a microbiological perspective, the primary function of normal, intact human and animal skin is to control microbial populations that live on the skin surface and to prevent underlying tissue from becoming colonized and invaded by potential pathogens. Exposure of subcutaneous tissue (i.e. a wound) provides a moist, warm and nutritious environment that is conducive to microbial colonization and proliferation.
Historically, it has been presumed that the properties of bacteria that cause chronic infections were similar to those of bacteria grown suspended in liquid growth media. However, research over the past 20 years has indicated that many chronic infections are the result of the biofilm mode of microbial growth. Bacteria in biofilms can be 100 to 1000 times more resistant to antibiotics/antimicrobials compared to their planktonic counterparts. Recent studies have demonstrated biofilm as a potential reason why chronic wounds do not heal (Singh and Barbul, Wound Rep Reg. 16: 1, 2008). In addition, James et al. (Wound Rep Reg. 16: 37-44, 2008) has recently demonstrated biofilms in over 60% of bacterial infections associated with chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers, venous leg ulcers and pressure ulcers.
The chronic wound infections are typically persistent infections that develop slowly, seem to be rarely resolved by immune defenses, and respond transiently to antimicrobial therapy. Thus, there is an unmet clinical need for developing wound care products with both the antibiofilm and antimicrobial activity for prevention and treatment of acute as well as chronic wounds that involve biofilms. A composition with both the antibiofilm and antimicrobial activity kills biofilm bacteria that are highly resistant to antibiotics/antimicrobials and to body's immune system by inhibiting biofilm formation and/or by disrupting preformed biofilms. Furthermore, there is also a need for a non-antibiotic wound care or disinfectant composition comprising generally recognized as safe (GRAS).
In an abattoir or meat processing plant, there is a problem of contamination of meat and apparatuses (e.g. mincing machine, cutters, slicers, mixers, fillers, or the like) with food poisoning microbials. In a conventional meat processing plant, sodium hypochlorite is used as an anti-microbial during a sterilizing process of meat. Meat such as carcasses is immersed in a solution of sodium hypochlorite for a certain time. However, there is a problem of safety for a human body of reaction products of sodium hypochlorite adhering to meat.
Thus, there is a need for an anti-microbial for sterilization of meat, with a high degree of safety for humans, and long lasting anti-microbial power. Such an anti-microbial will keep meat fresher longer and decrease or prevent degradation of products.

Antimicrobial-antibiofilm compositions and methods of use thereof


A reference voltage generation circuit of the disclosure includes a first amplifier circuit and a second amplifier circuit. The first amplifier circuit includes a first input stage including two npn transistors or two NMOS transistors having base terminals or gate terminals to which a variable voltage and a predetermined lower limit voltage are inputted. A first output stage includes a pnp transistor or a PMOS transistor having an emitter terminal or a source terminal connected to an output terminal of a reference voltage. A first amplifier stage controls the first output stage for equalizing the higher one of the variable voltage and the lower limit voltage with the reference voltage. The second amplifier circuit includes a second input stage including two npn transistors or two NMOS transistors having base terminals or gate terminals to which the reference voltage and a predetermined higher limit voltage are inputted, a second output stage includes a pnp transistor or a PMOS transistor having an emitter terminal or a source terminal connected to an output terminal for the reference voltage, and a second amplifier stage to control the second output stage for equalizing the reference voltage with the higher limit voltage.

1. Field of the Invention
The disclosure relates to a reference voltage generation circuit to generate a reference voltage (i.e., an input variable voltage to which a higher limit value and a lower limit value are set) in response to receiving a variable voltage, and a power source device and a liquid crystal display device using the circuit.
2. Description of Related Art
FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a first conventional example of a reference voltage generation circuit. A reference voltage generation circuit 70 of the first conventional example receives a temperature detection voltage VT (i.e., a voltage signal, the voltage value of which fluctuates according to temperature fluctuation) from a temperature sensor 60, and generates a reference voltage VREF by setting a higher limit voltage VH and a lower limit voltage VL to the temperature detection voltage VT (in reference to FIG. 3).
As a technique to realize the operation described above by using an analog signal, the reference voltage generation circuit 70 in accordance with the first conventional example includes a first amplifier circuit X which preferentially outputs a higher voltage between the temperature detection voltage VT and the lower limit voltage VL, and a second amplifier circuit Y which preferentially outputs a lower voltage as a reference voltage VREF between the output voltage VX provided from the first amplifier circuit X and the higher limit voltage VH.
As an input stage, the first amplifier circuit X is a construction which includes npn bipolar transistors X1 and X2, to each base terminal of which the temperature detection voltage VT and the lower limit voltage VL are inputted (i.e., the first amplifier circuit X is kind of a npn-input-type amplifier). As an input stage, the second amplifier circuit Y is a construction which includes pnp bipolar transistors Y1 and Y2, to each base terminal of which the output voltage VX and the higher limit voltage VH are inputted (i.e., the second amplifier circuit Y is kind of a pnp-input-type amplifier).
In addition, as an example of a technique related to the aforementioned conventional technique, Japanese patent publication No. 2009-232550 can be listed.
However, because the second amplifier circuit Y of pnp-input-type is used for the reference voltage generation circuit 70 of the first conventional example, at least a voltage value corresponding to the sum of the three voltage is required as a power source voltage to drive the input stage of the second amplifier circuit Y: the higher limit voltage VH applied to a base terminal of the transistor Y2, an ON threshold voltage Vf of the transistor Y2, and a drop voltage Vsat of the current source Y5 (i.e., VH+Vf+Vsat≈VH+1V). Therefore, with respect to the reference voltage generation circuit 70 of the first conventional example, a problem arises because a minimum operation voltage (i.e., a lowest value of the power source voltage required to maintain a normal operation) cannot be lowered adequately.
As shown in FIG. 5, as a technique to generate the reference voltage VREF (i.e., the temperature detection voltage VT to which the higher limit voltage VH and a lower limit voltage VL are set), a combination of buffers 91 to 93, comparators 94 to 95, a logic circuit 96 and a selector 97 which operates by digital signal, can be proposed. However, such a combination can result in an increase in circuit size or cost, as well as noise occurring during switching of the selector, deterioration of transient characteristics remains problems in addition to the aforementioned problems.

Reference voltage generation circuit, power source device, liquid crystal display device


A pair of rakes are pivotally interconnected to gather and transport leaf material. Blades are provided on the lower ends of the rakes which are identical in shape but facing in opposite directions. Sleeves for the handles are offset from the vertical centerline of the blades allowing for the adjacent blade ends to be coplanar. The teeth may abut against each other at their lower ends in the closed position or intermesh in registering relationship.

Lawn rakes of the spring teeth type are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,397 and 3,688,484 wherein a pair of rakes are pivotally interconnected. The rake heads are curved along their lower edges such that leaves carried between the rakes cannot fall easily from either opposite end as they will catch on the right angle teeth end portions. The spring teeth are easily deformed out of the plane of the rake head and thus interfere with removal of raked material.
In the '397 patent the handle of one rake extends through the center of the handle of the other rake to maintain the heads in alignment. In the '484 patent the handles have flattened surfaces where they are pivotally interconnected to help position the heads as closely as possible in alignment.
A leaf caddy and pickup tool is needed that is easily manufactured by molding from plastic utilizing a common head for each rake but allowing for the rake heads to be aligned.


A converter configured to supply an energy consuming element during an operating phase and may charge a capacitor during a pre-charging phase prior to the operating phase. The converter may have a power factor correction circuit having the capacitor and thyristors. The converter may also have a control system configured to control the pre-charging phase. The control system may have a control unit configured to, during the operating phase, detect the state of charge of the capacitor, and generate a control signal configured to control the thyristors as a function of the state of charge of the capacitor.

In a known manner, an electric charger of an electric vehicle (EV) or hybrid vehicle comprises a converter comprising a power factor correction (PFC) circuit. Several topologies of PFC circuits implemented in converters exist, in particular for vehicle electric chargers.
Among these known topologies, the interleaved totem pole bridgeless PFC circuit is considered as an attractive PFC topology compared to other known PFC topologies because it enables a converter not only to comprise fewer electronic components, but also to exhibit fewer losses. Said interleaved totem pole bridgeless PFC circuit is often associated with a DC-link capacitor. Before carrying out a transfer of energy for supplying an energy consuming element, the DC-link capacitor needs to be charged beforehand, in order to avoid an inrush current during operation of the converter. Two switching circuits 2a and 2b, known for their applications for pre-charging a capacitor, are respectively described in FIGS. 1 and 2.
FIG. 1 illustrates a topology of PFC circuit used for a converter 1a connected to an alternating voltage source V1 and to an energy consuming element M1. The converter 1a comprises a PFC circuit and a switching circuit 2a. The switching circuit 2a is configured to control a current circulating between the alternating voltage source V1 and the converter 1a, either during a pre-charging phase during which a capacitor C1 of the converter 1a is charged, or during an operating phase during which the energy consuming element M1 consumes electrical energy supplied by the alternating voltage source V1.
Said PFC circuit is an interleaved totem pole bridgeless PFC circuit comprising a plurality of switches Q1 to Q4, at least a diode D5 and D6, a transformer, and the capacitor C1. The switches Q1 to Q4 are MOSFETs (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistors). The switches Q1 and Q2 are connected in series and thus form a first arm. The switches Q3 and Q4 are connected in series and form a second arm. The transformer comprises two inductances L1 and L2 of which each comprises, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a terminal connected to a node J1 or J2 corresponding to a mid-point of said first arm or said second arm.
The diodes D5 and D6 are respectively connected to the capacitor C1, to the switches Q1 to Q4 and to the alternating voltage source V1. The diodes D5 and D6, connected in series, are configured to form rectifiers which make it possible to transform the alternating current generated by the alternating voltage source V1 into unidirectional current. The diodes D5 and D6 are conventional diodes or those made of silicon carbide (SiC). In addition, a node J3 corresponding to a connection point between the two diodes D5 and D6, is connected to a negative terminal of the alternating voltage source V1.
The circuit in series composed of the diodes D5 and D6, said first arm, said second arm, the capacitor C1 and the energy consuming element M1 are connected in parallel.
The switching circuit 2a, connected to the alternating voltage source V1 and to said PFC circuit, comprises a transfer relay S1 and a pre-charging circuit. The pre-charging circuit comprises a pre-charging relay S2 and a limiting resistor RL which are connected in series. The limiting resistor RL may be replaced by a thermistor. Said pre-charging circuit is connected in parallel with the transfer relay S1. The transfer relay S1 and the pre-charging relay S2 are alternating current relays. The limiting resistor RL may be replaced by a thermistor.
During a pre-charging phase of the converter 1a, the pre-charging relay S2 is closed whereas the transfer relay S1 is open. The pre-charging relay S2 is configured to disconnect the limiting resistor RL once the pre-charging of the capacitor C1 is finished. During an operating phase of the converter 1a, the transfer relay S1 is closed whereas the pre-charging relay S2 is open. The transfer relay S1 of the switching circuit 2a is then configured to allow or to cut the current transferred between the constant current source V1 and the converter 1a.
FIG. 2 illustrates another configuration of a switching circuit 2b comprised in a converter 1b. The switching circuit 2b also comprises a transfer relay S1 and a pre-charging circuit. The only difference between the two circuits illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 resides in the configuration of the switching circuit 2b. The pre-charging circuit of the switching circuit 2b comprises a pre-charging relay S2 and a limiting resistor RL which are connected in parallel. In the switching circuit 2b, the pre-charging circuit and the transfer relay S1 are connected in series. In FIG. 2, during a pre-charging phase of the converter 1b, the pre-charging relay S2 is open and the transfer relay S1 is closed. The pre-charging relay S2 is configured to short-circuit the limiting resistor RL once the pre-charging of the capacitor C1 is finished. During an operating phase of the converter 1b, the transfer relay S1 remains closed as well as the pre-charging relay S2. The transfer relay S1 of the switching circuit 2b is then configured to allow or to cut the current transferred between the constant current source V1 and the converter 1a.
However, alternating current relays S1 and S2 for automobile applications are rare, and the switching circuit 2a or 2b comprising in particular the limiting resistor RL is expensive.
To overcome the aforesaid drawbacks, the present invention targets a less costly solution which makes it possible to carry out pre-charging of the capacitor without use of the typical switching circuit as described previously.

Converter and current control system thereof