The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for forming a thin film using the ALD process. Prior to the ALD process where each of a plurality of source gasses is supplied one by one, plural times, a pretreatment process is performed in which the source gasses are simultaneously supplied to shorten an incubation period and improve throughput.

As semiconductor integrated circuits become more microscopic and more integrated, insulating films, metal films and other films formed on a substrate (such as a semiconductor substrate) are desired to have less thickness, better coverage for complex shapes, macroscopic uniformity over the whole wafer and microscopic smoothness at the nanometer level. However, the conventional CVD process cannot satisfy at least a portion of the above desires.
At present attention is paid to the ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) process as a film forming process that can satisfy the above desires. In the ALD process, each of different source gasses is supplied one by one, supplied source gasses are absorbed by a reactive surface and form a film at an atomic layer or molecular layer level, and get a thin film having a desired thickness by repeating the above process.
In more detail, a first source gas is supplied to the substrate to form its absorption layer on the substrate. Then, a second source gas is supplied to the substrate to cause them to react. In this process, the first source gas reacts with the second source gas after being absorbed, and therefore the temperature of the formed film can be lowered.
When forming a film at a hole, the ALD process can avoid coverage degradation problems resulting from the source gas reaction above the hole, which problem cannot be solved by the conventional CVD process.
The thickness of the absorption layer is generally a single layer, or at most two or three layers, of atoms and molecules, and is determined by its temperature and pressure. The absorption layer has self-controllability in which more than the necessary source gas for forming the absorption layer is exhausted out, and therefore the ALD process is suitable for controlling a very thin film. And each time the film forming process is performed at the atomic or molecular level, the reaction is easy to progress, and almost no impurity is left in the film, and therefore the ALD process is preferable.
However, the ALD process has a problem in that the total time required for forming a film becomes long because each time the film forming process is performed at the atomic or molecular level.
The ALD process has an incubation period in the first several cycles, during which no film is formed, that has seriously lowered throughput.

Thin film forming method and thin film forming device


This invention is a digital television receiver receiving alternative broadcasts. Separate tuners receive separate broadcast signals, such as 12-segment HDTV and 1-segment QVGA. A multiplexer selects one tuner based upon receiver status of a first tuner. The selected signal is decoded and resized for a display. The decoder uses a frame buffer of images in the resized size. In the preferred embodiment the input signals are a 12-segment HDTV broadcast and a 1-segment QVGA broadcast and the resized size is VGA.

The decoder system of digital TV broadcast receiver used on a movable platform, such as a car navigation system, requires a tuner and Motion Picture Expert's Group (MPEG) decoder pair for each bitstream of HDTV (12-segment) and QVGA (1-segment), independently. This requirement remains even though only one of inputs is selected as source of displayed images. Providing two such tuner/MPEG decoder pairs consumes a disadvantageous amount of electric power and makes the decoder system large.
It is feasible in the current art to watch digital TV broadcast programs on movable platforms such as commercial car navigation systems, mobile PCs or mobile phones. In car navigation systems watching HDTV (12-segment) broadcasting of VGA sized display is feasible. While watching TV on such a car navigation system, motion of the car changes the received TV signal. Sometimes the TV receiver can no longer receive the TV signal correctly. For example, the receiver may not be able to receive the TV signal correctly near mountains or within tunnels.
In such case, the receiver stops decoding the HDTV (12-segment) broadcast and switches to decoding the QVGA (1-segment) broadcast. Contents of both transmissions are the same. However, the mass of information (such as image size, sound quality, frame rate and etc) are much differently coded.
FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of this prior art receiver 100. First antenna 111 receives the 12-segment HDTV broadcast and supplies the received signal to tuner 112. Tuner 112 detects the HDTV broadcast signal and supplies a bitstream to first MPEG decoder 113. Tuner 112 also produces a receiver status signal 114. Receiver status signal 114 is a digital signal indicating the receiver status as good or bad. MPEG decoder 113 employs a number of frame buffers 115. These are preferably stored in synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM). As known in the art MPEG decoding often includes differential coding from a prior frame or a following frame requiring storing data for decoding. MPEG decoder 113 generates decoded HDTV images supplied to a first input of multiplexer 120. These HDTV images are used as references for other decoding. FIG. 1 illustrates a connection from the decoded image output of MPEG decoder 113 to frame buffers 115. This provides a path for decoded HDTV images to be stored in frame buffers 115. MPEG decoder 113 uses the image data stored in frame buffers 115 in decoding. Note that frame buffers 115 store HDTV size images.
Second antenna 131 receives the 1-segment QVGA broadcast and supplies the received signal to tuner 132. Tuner 132 detects the QVGA broadcast signal and supplies a bitstream to second MPEG decoder 113. MPEG decoder 133 employs a number of frame buffers 134. These are preferably stored in SDRAM. MPEG decoder 133 generates decoded QVGA images supplied to a second input of multiplexer 120. FIG. 1 illustrates a connection from the decoded image output of MPEG decoder 133 to frame buffers 134. This provides a path for decoded QVGA images to be stored in frame buffers 134. MPEG decoder 133 uses the image data stored in frame buffers 134 in decoding. Note that frame buffers 134 store QVGA sized images.
Multiplexer 120 selects between the decoded HDTV image signal from MPEG decoder 113 and the decoded QVGA image signal from MPEG decoder 133 based upon receiver status signal 114. If receiver status signal 114 indicates that the HDTV receiver status is good, then multiplexer 120 selects the HDTV image signal. If receiver status signal 114 indicates that the HDTV receiver status is bad, then multiplexer 120 selects the QVGA image signal. The signal selected by multiplexer 120 supplies resize circuit 121. Resize circuit 121 resizes the received signal to an appropriate size for display 122. Note the impute image may be a HDTV image or a QVGA image according to the selection of multiplexer 120. In the preferred embodiment the resized signal is a VGA signal (800 horizontal dots in 480 lines) and display 122 is a VGA display.
This system requires two pairs of tuner/decoder pairs of circuits. These are: first pair tuner 112 and MPEG decoder 113; and second pair tuner 133 and MPEG decoder 133. Each tuner/decoder pair work concurrently and continuously during period when the DTV decoder system is activated. This is required even though only one pair is selected by multiplexer 120 to produce the displayed image and other pair is not used. Employing two such tuner/MPEG decoder pairs consumes a disadvantageous amount of electric power and makes the decoder system large.

Video decoder system for movable application


There is provided a microparticle sorting device that automatically optimizes a fluid stream.

There is known a microparticle sorting device (a flow cytometer, for example) that optically, electrically, or magnetically detects the properties of microparticles such as cells, and separates and collects only microparticles having a designated property.
Cell separation with a flow cytometer involves producing a fluid stream (a flow of droplets) by breaking a cell-containing sample liquid and a sheath liquid into droplets, which are ejected from an orifice formed on a flow cell or a microchip. The breaking of the sample liquid and the sheath liquid into droplets is performed by applying vibration at a designated frequency to the orifice with a vibratory element. The cell-containing droplets are imparted with an electric charge and ejected. By electrically controlling the direction of movement of each droplet, target cells having a desired property, and all other non-target cells, are collected in separate collecting receptacles.
For example, PTL 1 discloses, as a microchip-type flow cytometer, a "device for sorting particles provided with a microchip in which a flow channel through which liquid containing particles is flown and an orifice for discharging the liquid flowing through the flow channel to a space outside the chip are provided, a vibratory element for making and ejecting a droplet of the liquid at the orifice, a charging means for giving charge to the ejected droplet, an optical detecting means for detecting an optical characteristic of the particles flowing through the flow channel, paired electrodes arranged along the direction of movement of the ejected droplet and opposed with the moving droplet therebetween, and two or more vessels for collecting the droplet passing between the paired electrodes."

Microparticle sorting device and method of optimizing fluid stream therein

Abstract: There is provided a microparticle sorting device that includes a voltage supply unit that supplies a driving voltage to a vibratory element that applies vibration to an orifice that produces a fluid stream, a charge unit that imparts charge to at least some droplets ejected from the orifice, deflecting plates, arranged opposing each other with the fluid stream S therebetween, that vary a travel direction of the droplets, and a first image sensor that acquires an image of the droplets passing between the deflecting plates. The microparticle sorting device is equipped with a controller that detects the droplets in the image, sets a standard band corresponding to a width of the droplets before imparting the charge, and controls the driving voltage of the voltage supply unit so as to further decrease a quantity of the droplets detected in areas within a designated number of pixels from the standard band from among the droplets after imparting the charge.


A process for the production of allyl chloride, which comprises introducing propylene and chlorine into a reactor having at least one propylene-injection opening and at least one chlorine-injection opening, these openings being independent of each other, through the respective injection openings, and reacting them in a vapor phase, wherein propylene and chlorine are introduced into the reactor by injecting them in almost the same direction from the propylene-injection opening and the chlorine-injection opening which is closest to said propylene-injection opening, with a linear velocity in the propylene-injection opening, calculated as a value of at 300.degree. C. and 1 kg/cm.sup.2.G, of 100 m/sec or higher and a linear velocity of the chlorine-injection opening, calculated as a value of at 100.degree. C. and 1 kg/cm.sup.2.G, of 70 m/sec or higher, and the propylene-injection opening and the chlorine-injection opening are situated to meet the following expression (1), EQU 0.5.ltoreq.L/(dp+dc).ltoreq.20 (1). wherein dp is a diameter of the propylene-injection opening, dc is a diameter of the chlorine-injection opening which is closest to said propylene-injection opening, and L is a distance between centers of these two injection openings.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process and a device for the production of allyl chloride by reacting propylene with chlorine in a vapor phase.
2. Prior Art
A process for the production of allyl chloride by reacting propylene with chlorine in a vapor phase has been well known. For example, Japanese Patent Publication Sho 47-13,006 (13,006/1972) discloses a process in which injection openings for propylene and chlorine are alternately situated circumferentially in an inside surface of a reactor whose horizontally sectional shape is almost circular, and propylene and chlorine are injected in a tangential direction of the circle for reaction.
This process can produce allyl chloride with relatively high selectivity without operational troubles such as clogging of a reactor owing to formation of carbon as a by-product, etc., and is, therefore, an excellent process. In this process, however, the formation of carbon cannot completely be suppressed, with a result that the obtained allyl chloride turns black due to carbon formed. Accordingly, clear allyl chloride cannot be provided without purification.

Process and device for production of allyl chloride


An absorbent article that includes a backsheet, a wetness indicator composition having good stability, and an absorbent core. The wetness indicator composition includes a stabilizer, a colorant, and a matrix. The colorant has first and second color states associated with first and second wetness indicator states. The wetness indicator exhibits no color change after 10 days when measured according to the CTH Stability Test.

Absorbent articles that include a wetness indicator are known. In some instances, the wetness indicator may include a colorant adapted to change in appearance, i.e., appear, disappear, change color, etc., upon contact with liquids such as, urine, runny bowel movements, menses, etc., in the article. Wetness indicators may be of the substantially insoluble type (i.e, they are designed to generally remains in the same location of the article before and after being wetted with liquid). Some wetness indicator compositions may be designed to simply disappear into the core of the diaper after being wetted (e.g., wetted with urine). Wetness indicator compositions typically function to serve at least one of the following: 1) the wetness indicator composition should effectively adhere, but not substantially bleed through, to the substrate on which it is applied (e.g., the backsheet) and should possess an optimum balance of cohesive strength and flexibility to remain intact during storage, as well as upon and after being wetted, 2) the initial color of the wetness indicator composition should not prematurely change color such that it confuses the caregiver or wearer as to whether a wetness event has occurred, 3) the color change of the wetness indicator composition should occur as quickly as possible after the wetness event, 4) the contrast in colors between the dry and wetted states of the wetness indicator composition should be great enough to signal the occurrence of the wetness event, 5) the color signaling the wetness event should remain visible for a long period of time after the wetness event and should not migrate to other regions of the diaper such that the signal denoting the wetness event becomes difficult or impossible to interpret, 6) the wetness indicators of the present invention should adhere, but not substantially bleed through, to the substrate that it comes in direct contact with (e.g., the nonwoven dusting layer) or that it is in close proximity to (e.g., the core cover) to provide for adequate wicking of fluid (e.g., urine), 7) the wetness indicator composition should remain stable (i.e., not change color prior to a wetness event) when placed in close proximity (if not direct contact) with higher (versus the colorant of the wetness indicator composition) pH absorbent article components, and 8) the wetness indicator composition should be easily made, easily processed for application onto the wearable article, be safe, and of economical cost.
While problems realized in the past (including high humidity and temperature environments) remain, there are additional challenges associated with new diaper designs, particularly including diaper designs comprising absorbent cores that are substantially cellulose free. These core designs comprise increased levels of absorbent polymer material (sometimes referred to as superabsorbent polymer or absorbent gelling material), adhesives (including, thermoplastic adhesive materials), and surfactants. Each of these comprise chemical compositions that can alter the pH of the wetness indicator composition and thus cause a color change prior to a wetness event. Particularly, alkaline surfactants containing amine, amide, or quaternary functionalities are especially problematic for wetness indicators comprising colorants that change color as the pH rises; but even lower pH moieties like carboxylates can also pose challenges and prematurely activate certain colorants within such wetness indicator compositions.
One color changing colorant active used in at least some wetness indicators is a pH indicator such as bromocresol green or the like, which changes color from yellow to blue in the pH range of 3.8 to 5.4. To maintain the yellow color of bromocresol green in a dry state, the wetness indicator composition may need to be relatively acidic. A wetness indicator that contains the bromocresol green pH indicator colorant typically remains yellow until it is contacted with a fluid such as urine. Upon contact with a liquid such as urine, the bromocresol green pH indicator colorant indicator will turn blue to indicate the presence of the liquid, due to the higher pH of the urine. In wetness indicator compositions that include a pH activated colorant, it may be desirable to incorporate acids (as well as other chemical components discussed in more detail below) in the wetness indicator composition to stabilize the wetness indicator (i.e., prevent an undesired color change of the pH indicators prior to a wetness event).
Placing the wetness indicator composition in close proximity to the absorbent core of a diaper, which is substantially cellulose free or includes a relatively high level of surfactant, may cause a premature color change in the colorant. This may be especially true when the diaper design utilizes lower basis weight and more breathable substrates (e.g., backsheets, dusting layers, and core covers) because these substrates may allow pH altering chemicals to come in closer proximity with the wetness indicator composition. Thus, it may be desirable to optimize the acid content of the wetness indicator composition relative to any other materials present in the composition to aid in preventing premature color change. But, while the acid content is optimized for stability, it may also be desirable to optimize the wetness indicator composition for proper functioning of the other properties (e.g., kinetics, dye retention, stability, adhesion). If too much acid or too strong of an acid mixture is incorporated, the pH can remain suppressed even after the wetness event such that the yellow color of the bromocresol green, for instance, persists and no blue color (signaling a wetness event) results even when a wetness event has occurred. If too little acid or too weak of an acid mixture is incorporated, the wetness indicator composition can prematurely change color. Thus, the acid content should be optimized so the wetness indicator composition remains stable under various storage scenarios, as well as within new absorbent article designs.
Beyond these stability issues, it may be desirable to configure the wetness indicator composition so that it contacts or even adheres to an inner adjacent layer of substrate (e.g., the dusting layer if the wetness indicator is disposed on the backsheet) to facilitate wicking of fluid (e.g., urine) to the wetness indicator composition after a wetness event occurs. That is, when a gap exists between the wetness indicator composition and the inner adjacent substrate (e.g., the dusting layer), fluid may not travel from the absorbent core to the wetness indicator within the desired time to signal a wetness event. It may additionally be desired that there is substantial contact/adherence of the wetness indicator to an inner adjacent substrate to ensure that the wetness indicator composition is evenly (top to bottom and side to side) wetted and thus provides the full signal intended. This can be accomplished by providing a wetness indicator composition that has an optimized "open time" during its incorporation into an absorbent article (e.g., the wetness indicator may be applied as a hot melt adhesive that is in a molten state long enough to adhere to the substrate, but not so long that it bleeds through the substrate or to other materials that could negatively impact the stability of the colorant). An ideal open time is long enough to allow efficient coating of the backsheet film but short enough so fast solidification of the wetness indicator prevents bleeding into regions that could negatively impact the stability of the colorant.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a wetness indicator that is stable in the absorbent core of a disposable absorbent article. It would also be desirable to provide a wetness indicator that has a suitable open time for use in absorbent articles comprising lower basis weight and breathable films and nonwovens. It would further be desirable to provide a wetness indicator that has suitable color change kinetics.

Absorbent articles comprising wetness indicators


A hinge apparatus connects a first member and a second member to each other so that the first and second members are mutually foldable, and is usable with a computing apparatus. The hinge apparatus includes first and second main gears which are disposed on the first and the second members, respectively, a plurality of idle gears which are disposed between the first and the second main gears so that the first and the second main gears are interlocked with each other, and a pressure member which reinforces a mesh force between the first and the second main gears and the plurality of idle gears.

1. Field of the Invention
Methods and apparatuses consistent with exemplary embodiments relate to a hinge apparatus and a computing apparatus having the same, and more particularly, to a hinge apparatus which connects two members to each other using a hinge so that the two members are foldable from 0° to 360°, and a computing apparatus having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a laptop personal computer (PC), a computing unit, which includes a printed circuit board (PCB) and a keypad, and a display unit are generally connected to each other by a hinge so that the computing unit and the display unit are mutually foldable. Therefore, if such a laptop PC is used, the display unit which is connected to the computing unit by the hinge (in this case, an angle between the computing unit and the display unit is 0°) is rotated at a desired angle according to a user's position (for instance, is rotated about the computing unit at about 90° to about 120°).
As described above, a related-art hinge apparatus includes a single rotary shaft and generally limits the angle between the computing unit and the display unit to 0° to 180°.
A hinge apparatus having two rotary shafts to rotate the computing unit and the display unit greater than 180° has been developed. Such a hinge apparatus includes two shafts which are connected to the computing unit and the display unit, respectively, and two gears which are connected to the shafts, respectively, and are tooth-engaged with each other.
However, the hinge apparatus employing such gears has a gap between the gears due to various factors such as a manufacture tolerance of the gear and a tolerance between the gears and the gear shafts, and thus causes a back lash phenomenon.
Therefore, if a user uses the laptop PC while riding in a car, the display unit may move in a rotation direction due to an external shock or vibration exerted to the laptop PC. Thus, there is a problem that user's eyes easily get tired when the user uses the laptop PC while seeing the moving display unit.

Hinge apparatus and computing apparatus having the same


A solvent composition is taught which comprises chlorofluorocarbons, ethanol, nitroalkane and phosphoric esters. This composition is suited to clean printed circuits at room temperature.

The printed circuits utilized in the electronic industry consist of a plastic laminate optionally reinforced with electrically resistant glass fibers. Connectors are placed on one side or both sides of such laminate. The connectors are made of flat strips of a conductive metal, usually copper. They serve to connect with one another the electronic components arranged on one side of the printed circuit.
The connection between the above connectors and the electronic components is obtained by welding or soldering.
Welding or soldering of the printed circuits is effected after having coated the whole circuit with a flux consisting of a resin containing activating additives such as, for example, amine hydrochlorides.
The flux prevents or removes the corrosion of the conductive material by promoting welding adhesion.
After the welding process, which causes a thermal degradation of part of the flux, the flux residues are removed using organic solvents.
The chlorofluorocarbons, due to their low toxicity and inflammability, prove to be the most suitable solvents for such utilization.
On the other hand, however, these solvents do not exhibit an adequate capability of dissolving the flux.
To enhance the dissolving power of the chlorofluorocarbons towards the flux residues, a mixture with more active solvents, such as e.g. alcohols with a low number of carbon atoms, has been proposed.
In particular, because the mixture is utilized at boiling, the alcohols are present in the solvent mixture in such concentration as to form an azeotrope with the chlorofluorcarbon.
However, with this solvent composition, because the printed circuit cleaning occurs in hot conditions, while the solubility of the flux in the solvent increases, the alcohol contained in the mixture gives rise, at the same time, to corrosion of Al, Sn and Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni and Fe metal surfaces.
By consequence, low nitromethane concentrations have been added to the above azeotropic compositions.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,903,009, hereby incorporated by reference, describes an azeotropic minimum composition containing 95.3% by weight of 1,1,2-trichloro-1,2,2-trofluoroethane, 3.6% by weight of ethanol and 1.1% by weight of nitromethane. This composition is useful to clean printed circuits.
However, this composition exhibits several drawbacks.
After application of the composition, white residues, due to the flux corrosion, remain on the printed circuit.
On the other hand, this solvent mixture must be used in hot conditions. From an industrial viewpoint, that requires more complicated cleaning apparatus equipped with heaters, and therefore higher energy consumptions.
Furthermore, although such mixtures are inflammable, they can decompose when coming into contact with hot surfaces. This generates toxic and corrosive vapors, which are dangerous for plant operators. At the same time, because it is practically impossible to separate the generated decomposed vapors from the ones of the fluxing mixture, this results in corrosion of the metal surfaces.
Therefore, it is a necessity to find mixtures for defluxing the printed circuits, which mixtures are capable of securing a thorough removal of the flux and which, at the same time, do not give rise to the mentioned drawbacks.

Solvent composition for defluxing printed circuits


The present application discloses a construction method for pouring concrete in a karst cave. Concrete streaming is pumped into a hollow passage of a drill stem, then opens the one-way openable sealing cover with a pre-tensioned spring on a reaming drill bit and enters the karst cave to complete pouring of the concrete. When the karst cave is relatively low, low-slump plain concrete mixed with quick-setting agents is injected through a drilling rig and the hollow drill stem to form a concrete pier; when the karst cave is relatively high, the hollow drill stem is sleeved into a thin-walled steel shell, and the thin-walled steel shell is synchronously sunk into the drilled hole while drilling, enters the karst cave and is socketed into a stable rock stratum, then concrete is pumped into the thin-walled steel shell from the bottom of the pile, and finally, a reinforcement cage is inserted to form a cast-in-place pile. Compared with the existing karst cave treatment methods, the construction method according to the present application can greatly reduce the consumption of materials, improve the mechanization of construction, simplify the construction process, shorten the construction period and reduce the engineering cost, and the cast-in-place pile with thin-walled steel shell, formed when the karst cave is relatively high, can further improve the bearing capacity of the foundation.

Karst caves are underground spaces formed by karstification in soluble rocks. The formation of karst caves is the result of long-term corrosion of groundwater in limestone regions. China is a country with many karst caves, which account for about ¼ of the total area of karst in the subtropics of the world.
Construction on karst cave geology often requires necessary treatment to ensure that the foundation of a building has sufficient bearing capacity. At present, the main treatment method is to fill holes after drilling to reduce the risk of collapse caused by unstable hole structures, but this often results in waste of a lot of materials. At the same time, the existing construction method needs to fill a karst cave with sand, gravel and cement, then hammer the cave repeatedly, drill a hole again and pour concrete to form a pile with a large filling coefficient, so the cost is high, the construction procedures are excessive, and the construction period is long.

Construction method for pouring concrete in karst cave

GUANGZHOU INSTITUTE OF BUILDING SCIENCE CO., LTD.

GUANGZHOU CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING CO., LTD


Disclosed herein is a method and system for separating carbon dioxide (CO2) from a CO2 containing gas stream containing water vapor and additional impurities, for example, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and mercury. The CO2 is captured by subjecting the CO2 gas feed stream to a temperature swing adsorption step. The temperature swing adsorption step comprises an adsorption step for producing a substantially dry carbon dioxide-depleted stream, and an adsorbent regeneration step comprising heating the adsorbent bed to produce a substantially water vapor-free carbon dioxide stream. Moisture from the gas stream containing CO2 is optionally removed by pressure swing adsorption, temperature swing adsorption, membrane separation, or absorption prior to CO2 capture.

The method and system disclosed herein relates to capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) from combustion sources such as flue gas of a power plant and making the CO2 available for sequestration or other uses.
Emissions of greenhouse gases such as CO2, if left unchecked, may potentially affect climatic conditions. Conversion of fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas to energy is a source of greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions of the greenhouse gases can be reduced by various means such as increase in efficiency of the combustion process and use of renewable energy such as wind and solar but the reduction in the emission of the greenhouse gases required to stabilize the greenhouse gas levels cannot be achieved without capturing a substantial part of the greenhouse gases at the source of the greenhouse gas emissions during either the pre-combustion process or the post-combustion process. Post-combustion capture of CO2 from the flue gas of a power plant or other streams such as the flue gas from a refinery involves use of a solvent, typically an amine, which is regenerated using a part of the steam generated during the combustion process. Pre-combustion capture of CO2 involves chemical reaction of the fuel with air or oxygen and then with steam to produce a mixture of carbon dioxide and hydrogen. The carbon dioxide is removed from this stream through a CO2 capture process and hydrogen may be used as a fuel for power generation. If oxygen is used for combustion, a flue gas containing mainly carbon dioxide is produced which can be easily separated for sequestration.
The post-combustion capture of CO2 results in 9%-11% reduction in absolute efficiency for power generation and about 28-30% reduction in relative efficiency for a pulverized coal power plant as discussed by Ciferno (Ciferno, J., "A Feasibility Study of Carbon Dioxide Capture from an Existing Coal-Fired Power Plant," paper presented at the Sixth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, Pa., May 2007.). A May 2007 NETL report (Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan—2007, U.S. DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), May 2007.) shows a 60-100% increase in cost of power generation for existing power plants taking into account capital and operating costs for CO2 separation and sequestration. Net power output from the power plant is also decreased by 30% or more. Means to significantly decrease the power and capital penalty associated with the post-combustion CO2 capture are sought. For the post-combustion capture, the Department Of Energy (DOE) has a goal of less than 35% increase in power cost for 90% CO2 capture.
Most studies dealing with the post-combustion CO2 capture use amine or ammonia-based absorption processes for the removal of carbon dioxide from the flue gas. The absorption-based processes have drawbacks such as the significant capital requirements. The best amine based absorbents such as the hindered amines and amine blends have an energy requirement in the range of 750-900 Kcal/kg (1,350-1,620 Btu/lb) of the CO2 captured. Furthermore, amine-based processes require the use of specialty steel equipment and the associated capital investment because of the corrosive nature of amine and ammonia solutions in the presence of acidic gases and oxygen. This equipment represents a significant capital cost.
In contrast to the amine-based systems, the heats of adsorption of CO2 on various zeolite and carbon based adsorbents range between 140-240 kcal/kg or 252-432 Btu/lb (Valenzuela, D. P. and A. L Myers, "Adsorption Equilibrium Data Handbook," Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1989.) which is about a fifth of the heat of absorption for the amine-based systems. There is an unmet need for practical adsorption systems that can take advantage of low heats of adsorption while providing high carbon dioxide yield and high recovery.
Temperature swing adsorption systems have been used extensively for applications such as air drying, natural gas drying, and water and CO2 removal prior to cryogenic distillation of air. These systems typically remove less than 2% of impurities and the regeneration outlet stream containing the impurities is not of high purity. Also the typical temperature swing adsorption processes have adsorption times of the order of 4-12 hours. For feed CO2 concentrations between 10-12% in the flue gas, these adsorption times would require extremely large adsorption beds. For example, assuming a working capacity of 12 weight % (difference in capacity between the adsorption and the regeneration steps), an adsorbent density of about 660 kgs/m3 and an adsorption time of 4 hours, a plant processing 1000 tons/day of CO2 in the feed would require about 8,000 m3 (5.3 million kilograms) of the adsorbent, a size that makes the systems not practical for capturing carbon dioxide from combustion sources.
The method and system disclosed herein provides a solution for the efficient capture of CO2 using a process based on a temperature and pressure swing adsorption cycles.


An axle for a heavy-duty vehicle extends transversely across the vehicle and includes a central portion. Each one of a pail of relatively short and lightweight axle spindles is connected to and extends outboardly from a respective end of the axle central portion. A wheel end assembly is rotatably mounted on each axle spindle. Each wheel end assembly includes spaced-apart inboard and outboard beatings that are immovably mounted on a respective axle spindle, and the bearings preferably ate standard heavy-duty vehicle stock-type bearings that have respective inner diameters that are generally the same size. The assembly optionally includes a bearing spacer having improved length tolerance. A relatively short and lightweight wheel hub is rotatably mounted on the bearings so that the wheel end assembly selectively accommodates a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration and a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration, including a two-inch offset wheel.

1. Technical Field
The invention relates to vehicle axles and wheel end assemblies, and in particular to axles and wheel end assemblies for heavy-duty vehicles, such as tractor-trailers. More particularly, the invention is directed to a heavy-duty axle spindle and wheel end assembly that are capable of selectively accommodating a conventional dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration and a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration in a robust, yet economical and lightweight manner.
2. Background Art
For many year's, the heavy-duty vehicle industry has utilized wheel end assemblies which typically are mounted on each end of one or more non-drive axles. Each wheel end assembly typically includes a hub rotatably mounted on a bearing assembly that in turn is immovably mounted on the outboard end of the axle, commonly known as an axle spindle. As is well known to those skilled in the art, for normal operation of the wheel end assembly to occur, the bearing assembly and surrounding components must be lubricated with grease or oil. Therefore, the wheel end assembly must be sealed to prevent leakage of the lubricant, and also to prevent contaminants from entering the assembly, both of which could be detrimental to its performance. More specifically, a hubcap is mounted on an outboard end of the wheel hub, and a main seal is rotatably mounted on an inboard end of the hub and the bearing assembly in abutment with the axle spindle, resulting in a closed or sealed wheel end assembly.
While most wheel end assemblies include these general features, the design and arrangement of the hub, bearing assembly, hubcap, main seal, and other components, as well as the axle spindle, vary according to the specific vehicle design and its anticipated uses. For example, some heavy-duty vehicles include axle spindles and wheel end assemblies designed for a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration in which two wheels, each having a respective tire mounted thereon, are mounted on a single hub.
In a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration, the focus of the load forces acting on the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly during operation of the vehicle, typically referred to in the art as the load line, acts on a plane that extends generally vertically through the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly at a point between the two wheels. Such a load line is located further inboard than load lines of other wheel configurations, to be discussed below, thus creating a shorter moment arm than that created by other wheel configurations. A shorter moment arm in turn creates less loading on the components of the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly than a wheel configuration that has a load line which is further outboard and thus a longer moment aim. As a result, the hub, bearing assembly and axle spindle for a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration typically are of a comparatively less robust construction than the hub, bearing assembly and axle spindle used with types of wheel configurations that have a load line which is further outboard. This less robust construction enables the axle spindle and wheel end assembly to be comparatively lightweight and economical for dual-wheel, standard-tire configurations, which is desirable in the heavy-duty vehicle industry.
Due to common wheel attachment interfaces, such a less robust axle spindle and wheel end assembly construction may also selectively accommodate a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration, in which one wheel with a single wide tire mounted thereon is in turn mounted on the hub. This single wide tire is a high weight capacity and high speed capacity tire that is intended to replace a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration. However, the less robust construction of the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly limits the range of single-wheel, wide-tire types to ones having only a zero offset or a near-zero offset, such as an 0.56-inch offset, to keep the load line in a location that is similar to that of the above-described dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration. Any other type of single-wheel, wide-tire configuration moves the load line further outboard, and thus places an increased load on the outboard beating of the bearing assembly, which causes that beating to experience increased fatigue loading and significantly reduces its useful life.
More particularly, a zero-offset wheel is one in which the vertical centerline of the wheel is generally aligned with the mounting surface of the hub or brake drum, which reduces the operational load forces on the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly, and on the outboard beating in particular. However, a single-wheel, wide-tire with a zero offset has a narrower wheel base than a dual-wheel, wide tire configuration, which creates certain disadvantages when it is desired to change from one type of wheel configuration to another on a heavy-duty vehicle, such as a semi-trailer. For example, if it is desired to change from a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration to a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration and maintain roll stability of the vehicle, the frame, subframe, axle and/or suspension assemblies of the semi-trailer must be modified to move the wheels further apart and widen the wheel base. In addition, if it is desired to return to a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration after such modifications for a zero-offset, single-wheel, wide-tire configuration, additional modifications must be performed to move the wheels closer together, so the tires do not extend outboardly past the body of the vehicle and exceed legal restrictions on the width of a heavy-duty vehicle. The time and expense for such modifications associated with roll stability thereby reduce the desirability of a zero-offset single-wheel, wide-tire configuration for a less robust axle spindle and wheel end assembly.
In contrast, axle spindles and wheel end assemblies that are of a more robust construction are able to selectively accommodate a wider range of single-wheel, wide-tire configurations, including wheels having a two-inch offset, as well as a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration. A two-inch offset wheel is one in which the vertical centerline of the wheel is located about two inches outboard of the mounting surface of the hub or brake drum, which creates increased operational load forces. That is, the load line acts on a vertical plane that is further outboard than the load line associated with a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration or a zero-offset, single-wheel configuration. Since the load line of the two-inch offset wheel configuration is further outboard, a greater moment arm is created, leading to increased loading on the components of the axle spindle and the wheel end assembly. Such increased loading creates the need for the more robust construction of the wheel end assembly, including the hub and bearing assembly, especially the outboard bearing of the bearing assembly, as well as the axle spindle, to obtain acceptable bearing and spindle life.
As mentioned above, the axle spindles and wheel end assemblies of more robust construction also are able to accommodate a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration. To this end, when a heavy-duty vehicle such as a semi-trailer uses a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration, the advantage of the two-inch offset wheel is that such wheels generally include a relatively wide wheel base that is roll stable. As a result, modifications of the frame, subframe, axle and/or suspension assemblies are not necessary when it is desired to change from a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration to a single-wheel, wide-tire configuration, or back to a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration. However, the disadvantage of such more robust axle spindles and wheel end assemblies is that they are typically relatively heavy and/or expensive, and are not optimized for the different load line conditions of a dual-wheel, standard tire configuration and a single-wheel, wide tire configuration, which are undesirable characteristics.
The capability of certain heavy-duty vehicles to selectively accommodate a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration and a single-wheel, two-inch offset wide-tire configuration is becoming increasingly important in the heavy-duty vehicle industry. For example, it is becoming more common for the owner of a fleet of heavy-duty vehicles to use a single-wheel, two-inch offset wide-tire configuration on his/her vehicles, since such a wheel configuration is associated in the industry with high performance, lower weight, and fuel savings. However, when the owner sells the vehicles, the owner will convert them to a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration to make them more attractive in the used vehicle market. In order to obtain the legal maximum axle rating for a single-wheel, two-inch offset wide-tire configuration, which by way of example is 20,000 pounds, and for a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration, which by way of example is 23,000 pounds, an axle spindle and wheel end assembly of more robust construction must be used, as described above. However, the increased weight and/or cost associated with the more robust axle spindle and wheel end assembly are undesirable.
Moreover, the bearing assembly of a prior art wheel end assembly typically includes an inboard bearing and an outboard bearing. In certain wheel end assembly configurations, a bearing spacer extends between the inboard and outboard bearings. Many bearing spacers have a relatively significant length, which may be due to various factors, such as the length of the axle spindle. Such a significant length for a bearing spacer can increase the difficulty of maintaining a precise, repeatable length-related tolerance during manufacture, thereby possibly undesirably reducing the life of the main seal and/or the fatigue life of the bearings. More particularly, the bearing spacer sets a specific gap between the bearings, so that a specific preload of the bearing cones and bearing spacer is achieved once the wheel end assembly is property assembled on the axle spindle. When the bearing spacer is relatively long it has a greater variance in its length than a shorter bearing spacer, since the length-related dimensional tolerance of a spacer generally increases as the desired length of the spacer increases. Thus, for a long bearing spacer, it is difficult to maintain a precise, repeatable length-related tolerance.
When a precise, repeatable length-related tolerance is not maintained, the bearing spacer may be longer than a desired length, which may allow excessive axial end play of the wheel end assembly relative to the axle spindle, which in turn may allow excessive movement of the main seal, possibly reducing the life of the main seal. Alternatively, the bearing spacer may be shorter than a desired length, which may create an overloading of the bearings when the wheel end assembly is assembled on the axle spindle, which in turn may reduce the fatigue life of the bearings.
These disadvantages of prior art axle spindles and wheel end assemblies make it desirable to develop an axle spindle and a wheel end assembly that are capable of selectively accommodating a dual-wheel, standard-tire configuration and a single-wheel, two-inch offset wide-tire configuration in a relatively economical and lightweight manner, and which facilitate the optional use of a bearing spacer that provides an improved repeatable length-related tolerance. The present invention satisfies these needs.


A method and apparatus which maintain a plurality of counters to synchronize a plurality of requests for a lock independent of interlocks. The plurality of counters include a lock counter and an unlock counter. The requests wait in a wait queue maintained separately from the counters without direct access between the counters and the wait queue. The lock counter indicates a cumulative number of lock requests to acquire the lock. The unlock counter indicates a cumulative number of unlock requests to release the lock acquired. One or more requests waiting for the lock are selected according to the counters to be granted with the lock when the lock is released. A request corresponds to a task performing synchronized operations when granted with the lock.

Modern operating systems for computing devices typically support parallel programming to enable concurrent execution of a plurality of applications running different tasks to increase device throughput or speed up interface responses. Usually, concurrent execution require synchronization to coordinate asynchronous activities among different tasks. Most operating systems provide synchronization primitives to facilitate synchronization for programming concurrent tasks. However, depending on how such primitives are implemented, the overhead incurred to allow multiple tasks to execute in parallel may differ from one operating system to another.
For example, multiple threads or processes may be synchronized via synchronization primitive (or synchronizer) such as mutex (a thread may be the minimum scheduling entity of a process for an application). Typical implementation for a mutex may include an interlock in user-space memory that may require continuously polling the contents of the memory by each thread or process trying to participate in the use of the mutex (via a primitive, lock, unlock, try, etc.). As a result, valuable processing resources are wasted when a thread or process interacts with that mutex.
Additionally, an interlock based synchronization primitive may degrade responsiveness of real-time threads or processes. For example, a preemptive task scheduler, as commonly adopted in most operating systems, may force a thread or a process associated with an interlock to be removed from a processor with a preemptive event. An interlock implemented in user-space memory may be associated with the thread or process without kernel interactions. As a result, the scheduler does no know that the interlock is held by the particular thread or process when it is preempted. A subsequent real-time thread or process that attempts to interact with the same interlock may have to (e.g. at least temporarily) relinquish its real-time characteristics in order to allow the thread or process that was preempted to release the interlock. It must do so without the scheduler knowing which thread or process needs to be scheduled to release the contended interlock. This is known as an unbounded priority inversion—something that must be avoided in real-time systems.
A typical solution is to move the complete implementation of the synchronizer into the kernel, so the scheduler always knows which thread or process holds the interlock and can prevent preemption for the duration. Although such a solution does not introduce unbounded priority inversions, it adds latency to each synchronization operation in order to make the transition to the appropriate kernel interface.
Therefore, traditional implementations of synchronization primitives for computing devices fail to support real-time characteristics of modern multitasking applications without incurring a latency penalty.

Synchronization mechanisms based on counters


The present disclosure concerns an airflow baffle system and sealing system which effectively seals an articulating hood, such as for a wheel loader, for more efficient routing of cooling air and exhaust air. The articulating hood may have multiple hinges connecting the hood to the motor vehicle. For example, a rear hinge or set of hinges may allow upward and rearward rotation of the entire hood, while a second set of hinges atop the hood may allow for upward and forward rotation of only a portion of the hood when quicker access to only a portion of the engine compartment is required.

Internal combustion engines operate in a variety of environments. No matter what the environment, however, these engines require considerable cooling to remove excess heat generated during operation. Accordingly, most such engines include a cooling package, such as a radiator and a fan, to circulate at least air to cool the engine. Such engines typically use the fan and radiator in combination with a cooling pump that circulates a cooling solution, such as water or a water/antifreeze solution, to internal channels within the engine for cooling. The engines may be mounted in mobile machines, such as highway trucks, off-highway trucks, excavators, tractors, motor graders, wheel loaders, scrapers and the like, operating in environments that include airborne dust and debris.
Because of these challenging situations, in addition to normal maintenance, access is required to the compartment housing the engines and the cooling package. In order to provide convenient access, some compartments now include not merely a single hood, but an articulating hood that allows a user to conveniently and quickly access only a needed portion of the hood without mechanical assistance. Such hoods are described in co-owned U.S. Pat. No. 7,992,665, entitled, "Hood Assembly For a Machine and a Method of Use Thereof." In many cases it may be desirable to provide a seal between the hood compartments.
There are, of course, many ways to seal hoods for an engine compartment. One way is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,866,426, issued to Hideya Umemoto et al. In this disclosure, elastic seals are mounted to the sides and top of a radiator. When the hood is closed, the top and side seals press between the top of the hood and the sides of the hood to prevent air flow and heat from diffusing from the engine to the radiator. However, the seals are elastic, and being attached directly to the engine, may likely degrade over time and provide less sealing than desired. In addition, the top seals and the side seals do not seal in a continuous plane or continuous sealing surface. Thus, while there will be some sealing of the engine area from the radiator area, it is highly likely that this design will include leaks from the outset, with performance becoming worse as the elastic seals degrade over time.
The present disclosure is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.

Airflow baffle system for articulating hood with multiple hinge locations


A color filter to increase the low light sensitivity of an image sensor. The color filter has two narrow band color filters and one wide band filter. Also disclosed is a unique way of processing a tri-stimulus signal to dynamically adjust color contrast depending on the illumination conditions.

Image sensors are sensitive to light in the visible spectrum. Naturally, however, the image sensors used in digital imaging are essentially black and white (light and dark) images. To capture color images, multiple band-pass color filters are imposed in front of the image sensor cells over the photosensitive areas of the cells. Color filters are typically pigmented or dyed material that will only pass a narrow band of visible light, e.g., red, blue, or green. For most low cost CMOS or CCD image sensors, the color filters are integrated with the sensor cells. A common example of a color filter pattern is the tiled color filter array illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,065, and commonly referred to as "the Bayer pattern" color filter. The color filters allow what would otherwise be black and white image sensors to produce color images.
As shown in FIG. 1, the Bayer pattern 15 is an array of repeating red (R), green (G), and blue (B) filters. Half of the filters in the Bayer pattern 15 are green, while one quarter are red and the other quarter are blue. As shown, the pattern 15 repeats a row of alternating red and green color filters followed by a row of alternating blue and green filters. The Bayer patterned filters may be deposited on top of an array 20 of pixel sensor cells 22 in the manner shown in FIG. 2. Specifically, an array 20 of pixel sensor cells 22 is formed in a semiconductor substrate 10. Each of the pixel sensor cells 22 has a photosensitive element 12, which may be any photon-to-charge converting device, such as a photogate, photoconductor or photodiode. The color filter array 25 is typically formed over a metal layer 18 in the array 20, separated from the photosensor 12 by insulating layers like an interlevel dielectric layer (ILD) 14 and a passivation layer 16. The metal layer 18 may be opaque and used to shield the area of the pixels that is not light sensitive. Convex lenses 21 are formed over the color filters 25. Tin operation, incident light is focused by the lenses through the filters 25 to the photosensitive element 12.
The first step in color processing, when a conventional Bayer patterned color filter 15 is utilized, is typically called an interpolation. Since each pixel sensor cell is only producing a signal indicative of one color, interpolation from the neighboring pixel signals is used to produce a value for the other two colors for that pixel. For example, with reference to FIG. 1, the pixel sensor cell corresponding to the green filter 3, produces only a signal representing green light. In order to obtain an approximation of the amount of red and blue light for this pixel sensor cell, a value is interpolated from the neighboring red pixel cells (left and right) and the neighboring blue pixel cells (above and below), respectively. Further processing is then performed on the signals to correct the signals to make the produced image closer to the observed image as seen by the human eye.
As long as the color in the image that is being captured changes slowly relative to the filter pattern, color interpolation works well. However, for the edges of observed objects, or for very fine details, color may be interpolated incorrectly and artifacts can result. For example, a small white dot in a scene might illuminate only a single blue pixel. The white dot might come out blue if it is surrounded by black or some other color, depending on what comes out of the interpolation. This effect is called aliasing. One way to reduce aliasing is to use a blurring (or "anti-aliasing") filter, which deliberately discards fine details. Defocussing the camera lens does almost the same thing. However, these are not always desirable alternatives.
As image sensors become increasingly smaller due to desired scaling, low light sensitivity becomes a very challenging problem. The conventional Bayer color filters are all narrow band-pass in nature, as none of them capture the whole visible spectrum. In low light conditions, this deficiency is even more apparent. One approach to increasing the sensitivity of a pixel sensor cell is to increase its photosensitive area. As customer demands increasingly require smaller devices, this approach is undesirable.
Accordingly, there is a need for a color filter array for use with image sensors that increases the low light sensitivity of the image sensor without increasing the sensing area of the image sensor. There is also a need for a method of processing the improved signals from such a filtered sensor.

Two narrow band and one wide band color filter for increasing color image sensor sensitivity


The present invention is directed to polymeric materials including a copolymer of at least a first and second monomer that have desirable electrical and optical properties, such as a low band gap and near infrared (NIR) absorption, respectively. More specifically, the present invention is directed to polymeric materials with charge neutrality that display increased solubility in aqueous media while retaining their electrical and optical properties. The polymeric materials in accordance with the present invention can be modified with any desired functional group to tailor the polymer materials for a specific application. Also described are methods of making the polymeric materials in accordance with the present invention.

In this specification where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of common general knowledge, or otherwise constitutes prior art under the applicable statutory provisions; or is known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which this specification is concerned.
Near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent dyes have received attention in recent years. However, despite the advantages of polymers and their use in the NIR range, the currently available NIR dyes are all small molecules with a single reactive site. NIR polymers, especially water-soluble NIR polymers with multiple reactive sites and low band gaps are still lacking. Water solubility is a beneficial property for dyes to be used in many applications. The use of NIR polymers for such applications has been hampered by lack of water solubility.
A conventional method of making molecules water-soluble is to introduce charges to their molecular structures. Introduction of charges significantly enhances water solubility of molecules, like all the commercially available water-soluble dyes which are charged molecules. However, the presence of charges in molecules could cause potential interfering responses due to non-specific electrostatic interactions in complicated biological samples.
Thus, there is a need in the art for NIR polymers with low band gaps that demonstrate overall charge neutrality, water solubility and functionality.
While certain aspects of conventional technologies have been discussed to facilitate disclosure of the invention, Applicants in no way disclaim these technical aspects, and it is contemplated that the claimed invention may encompass or include one or more of the conventional technical aspects discussed herein.

Water soluble near infrared sensing polymers with low band gaps


Systems and methods for generating and displaying heat maps are provided. A heat map generation computing device includes a memory and a processor. The processor is programmed to receive trap data for a plurality of pest traps in a geographic location, the trap data including current and historical pest pressure values at each of the plurality of pest traps, receive weather data for the geographic location, receive image data for the geographic location, apply a machine learning algorithm to generate predicted future pest pressure values at each of the plurality of pest traps, generate a first heat map for a first point in time and a second heat map for a second point in time, and transmit the first and second heat maps to a mobile computing device to cause a user interface on the mobile computing device to display a time lapse heat map.

The present application relates generally to a technology that may be used to assist in monitoring pest pressure, and more particularly, to network-based systems and methods for generating and display pest pressure heat maps.
Due to the world's increasing population and decreasing amount of arable land, there is a desire for methods and systems to increase the productivity of agricultural crops. At least one factor that impacts the productivity of agricultural crops is pest pressure.
Accordingly, systems and methods have been developed to monitor and analyze pest pressure. For example, in at least some known systems, a plurality of insect traps are placed in a field of interest. To monitor the pest pressure in the field of interest, the traps are inspected regularly to count the number of pests in each trap. Based on the number of pests in each trap, a pest pressure level for the field of interest can be determined.
The number of pests monitored in each trap may also be used to predict future pest pressures. However, pest pressure is a relatively complex phenomenon that is governed by several factors. Thus, accurately predicting future pest pressures based primarily on trap counts may be relatively inaccurate. Further, at least some known systems for pest pressure monitoring are focused at an individual farm level, resulting in limited visualizations and significant time lag in data collections. In addition, at least some known systems for predicting future pest pressure rely on static logic (e.g., fixed phenology models and/or decision trees), and are accordingly limited in their ability to accurately predict future pest pressure.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a system that captures and intelligently analyzes a plurality of different types of information to quickly and accurately predict future pest pressures. Further, it would be desirable to present predicted future pest pressures to assist users in performing the technical task of monitoring pest pressure, and optionally controlling a pest trap system and/or a pest treatment system.

Systems and methods for pest pressure heat maps


An inflatable cushion (100,100a) includes a first panel (22a) and a second panel (22b) attached together along a peripheral joint. The joint (30) is subjected to a shearing or peeling load upon inflation of the cushion tending to separate the panels. Each of the first and second panels includes a first layer (24) of flexible structural material and a second (26) bondable layer. A reinforcement (50) is provided to prevent the joint (30) from separating. The reinforcement includes first (52a) and second (52b) strips of material, each having a structural layer (24a) and a bondable layer (26a). The first and second strips are sewn together at a seam (56a) to retard separation of the strips. The seam (56a) separates each of the strips into two portions. The structural layers of the strips face each other and the bondable layers of the strips face outwardly abutting a corresponding bondable layer of one of the first and second panels. The bondable layers of the first and second strips are joined on one or both sides of the seam to a corresponding bondable layer of the first and second panels.

The invention generally relates to inflatable cushions such as air bags and other inflatable products. The present invention is also related to a method of creating a reinforced joint or seal connecting two pieces of laminated or coated material used to form the cushion.
The present invention is useful with various products comprising two joined, sealed, bonded or laminated fabrics where the seam or seal is subject to high and/or sudden pressure loads.
Numerous products, such as inflatable air bags, cushions and mattresses, are made of bonded, coated or laminated material. Adjacent pieces of material are attached at a joint, seam or seal by welding, gluing or otherwise bonding the material together.
The primary embodiment of the invention is as an inflatable air bag using laminated or coated fabrics having low or zero permeability to enable the bag to retain its pressure for a relatively long period of time. This type of bag is useful in providing occupant protection during a vehicle rollover or multiple impact accident or an event that requires the cushion to be inflated for a long duration. To retain the bag pressure, the various panels of material forming the bag are coated with a polyurethane or other bondable coating. These panels are then joined together. As is known in the art, the panels can be sewn together, however, the resulting needle holes will create leak paths for the inflation gas. Alternatively, the panels can be glued or welded together such as by using sonic, RF (radio frequency) or other heat welding techniques. This type of construction (gluing or welding) eliminates the needle holes of the sewn construction, however, the resulting welded or glued joints can be pulled apart relatively easily. The present invention provides a method and apparatus for reinforcing these bonded (glued or welded) joints. The efficiency of manufacture is also an important aspect of any product. As will be apparent from the description below, an air bag (generically a cushion) can be assembled on a flat work surface with a minimal amount of manipulation of the various parts of the air bag.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cushion with an improved joint for strength and ease of manufacturing.
Accordingly the invention comprises: an inflatable cushion comprising: a first panel and a second panel attached together generally along a peripheral joint to form the inflatable cushion. The joint is subjected to a peeling load upon inflation of the cushion which tends to separate the joint. Each of the first and second panels includes a first layer comprised of a flexible, structural material and a second, bondable layer. The bondable layer is formed of material that is joinable to an adjacent, facing bondable layer to form the joint. Reinforcement means are provided for preventing the joint from separating. The reinforcement means includes a first strip of material having a structural layer and a bondable layer, and a second strip of material having a structural layer and a bondable layer. The first and second strips are overlaid and sewn together at a seam to retard separation of the strips. The seam separates each of the strips into two portions, wherein the structural layers face each other and the bondable layers face outwardly facing a corresponding bondable layer of the first and second panel. The bondable layers of the first and second strips are joined on one side or both sides of the seam to a corresponding bondable layer of one or the other panel.
Many other objects and purposes of the invention will be clear from the following detailed description of the drawings.

Cushion with increased seam strength and method of assembly


Described are dimethoxyphenyl inhibitors of VMAT2, pharmaceutical compositions thereof, and methods of use thereof.

Bevantolol ((±)-bevantolol; DL-bevantolol; NSC 132348; 1-[[2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)ethyl]amino]-3-(3-methylphenoxy)-2-propanol; CAS #59170-23-9) is a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) inhibitor. Bevantolol has shown promise in treating chronic hyperkinetic movement disorders, Tourette's syndrome, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, Huntington's chorea, Sydenham's chorea, tardive dyskinesia/dystonia, Parkinson's disease levodopa-induced dyskinesia, levodopa-induced dyskinesia, ataxia, corticobasal degeneration, dyskinesias (paroxysmal), dystonia (general, segmental, focal) including blepharospasm, spasmodic torticollis (cervical dystonia), writer's cramp (limb dystonia), laryngeal dystonia (spasmodic dysphonia), and oromandibular dystonia, essential tremor, hereditary spastic paraplegia, multiple system atrophy (Shy Drager Syndrome), myoclonus, progressive supranuclear palsy, restless legs syndrome, Rett Syndrome, spasticity due to stroke, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord or brain injury, tics, Wilson's Disease, oppositional defiant disorder, Huntington's disease like diseases (HDL1, HDL2 and HDL3), benign hereditary chorea, neuroacanthocytosis, neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA), athetosis, Friedreich ataxia, spinocerebellar ataxia, multiple system atrophy, dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy, ataxia with oculomotor apraxia (types 1 and 2), ataxia telangiectasia, focal dystonias, idiopathic dystonias such as Oppenheim dystonia and torticollis, dystonia-plus syndromes, secondary dystonias, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and Down syndrome. WO 2014202646.
Bevantolol is also known as a beta-1 adrenoreceptor antagonist (Vaughan Williams, "Bevantolol: a beta-1 adrenoreceptor antagonist with unique additional actions", J. Clin. Pharmacol. 1987, 27, 450-460) and calcium channel blocker (T. Omura, T. Kobayashi, K. Nishioka, N. Miyake, N. Akaike, "Ca(2+)-antagonistic action of bevantolol on hypothalamic neurons in vitro: its comparison with those of other beta-adrenoreceptor antagonists, a local anesthetic and a Ca(2+)-antagonist", Brain Res. 1996, 706, 289-292). By virtue of these actions bevantolol is useful for the treatment of hypertension and angina pectoris. (W. H. Fishman, R. J. Goldberg, P. Benfield, "Bevantolol. A preliminary review of its pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetic properties, and therapeutic efficacy in hypertension and angina pectoris", Drugs, 1988, 35, 1-21; H. Kaplan, "Pharmacology of bevantolol hydrochloride", Am. J. Cardiol. 1986, 58, E3-E7.) It is approved for example in the US, Great Britain, France and Japan for the treatment of hypertension and angina pectoris from coronary heart disease.

Bevantolol is subject to extensive CYP450-mediated oxidative metabolism, including hydroxylation of the methyl-bearing phenyl ring, hydroxylation of the aromatic methyl group, followed by further oxidation to the carboxylic acid, and oxidative demethylation of the methoxy groups. Kaplan et al., New Drugs Annual: Cardiovascular Drugs, 1985, Vol. 3. Latts, J. R., Clinical Pharmacokinetics and Metabolism of Bevantolol, Angiology—Journal of Vascular Diseases, March 1986, p. 221-225.
Deuterium Isotope Effect
In order to eliminate foreign substances such as therapeutic agents, the animal body expresses various enzymes, such as the cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs), esterases, proteases, reductases, dehydrogenases, and monoamine oxidases, to react with and convert these foreign substances to more polar intermediates or metabolites for renal excretion. Such metabolic reactions frequently involve the oxidation of a carbon-hydrogen (C—H) bond to either a carbon-oxygen (C—O) or a carbon-carbon (C—C) □-bond. The resultant metabolites may be stable or unstable under physiological conditions, and can have substantially different pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, and acute and long-term toxicity profiles relative to the parent compounds. For most drugs, such oxidations are generally rapid and ultimately lead to administration of multiple or high daily doses.
The relationship between the activation energy and the rate of reaction may be quantified by the Arrhenius equation, k=Ae−Eact/RT. The Arrhenius equation states that, at a given temperature, the rate of a chemical reaction depends exponentially on the activation energy (Eact).
The transition state in a reaction is a short lived state along the reaction pathway during which the original bonds have stretched to their limit. By definition, the activation energy Eact for a reaction is the energy required to reach the transition state of that reaction. Once the transition state is reached, the molecules can either revert to the original reactants, or form new bonds giving rise to reaction products. A catalyst facilitates a reaction process by lowering the activation energy leading to a transition state. Enzymes are examples of biological catalysts.
Carbon-hydrogen bond strength is directly proportional to the absolute value of the ground-state vibrational energy of the bond. This vibrational energy depends on the mass of the atoms that form the bond, and increases as the mass of one or both of the atoms making the bond increases. Since deuterium (D) has twice the mass of protium (1H), a C-D bond is stronger than the corresponding C—1H bond. If a C—1H bond is broken during a rate-determining step in a chemical reaction (i.e. the step with the highest transition state energy), then substituting a deuterium for that protium will cause a decrease in the reaction rate. This phenomenon is known as the Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect (DKIE). The magnitude of the DKIE can be expressed as the ratio between the rates of a given reaction in which a C—1H bond is broken, and the same reaction where deuterium is substituted for protium. The DKIE can range from about 1 (no isotope effect) to very large numbers, such as 50 or more. Substitution of tritium for hydrogen results in yet a stronger bond than deuterium and gives numerically larger isotope effects.
Deuterium (2H or D) is a stable and non-radioactive isotope of hydrogen which has approximately twice the mass of protium (1H), the most common isotope of hydrogen. Deuterium oxide (D2O or "heavy water") looks and tastes like H2O, but has different physical properties.
When pure D2O is given to rodents, it is readily absorbed. The quantity of deuterium required to induce toxicity is extremely high. When about 0-15% of the body water has been replaced by D2O, animals are healthy but are unable to gain weight as fast as the control (untreated) group. When about 15-20% of the body water has been replaced with D2O, the animals become excitable. When about 20-25% of the body water has been replaced with D2O, the animals become so excitable that they go into frequent convulsions when stimulated. Skin lesions, ulcers on the paws and muzzles, and necrosis of the tails appear. The animals also become very aggressive. When about 30% of the body water has been replaced with D2O, the animals refuse to eat and become comatose. Their body weight drops sharply and their metabolic rates drop far below normal, with death occurring at about 30 to about 35% replacement with D2O. The effects are reversible unless more than thirty percent of the previous body weight has been lost due to D2O. Studies have also shown that the use of D2O can delay the growth of cancer cells and enhance the cytotoxicity of certain antineoplastic agents.
Deuteration of pharmaceuticals to improve pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), and toxicity profiles has been demonstrated previously with some classes of drugs. For example, the DKIE was used to decrease the hepatotoxicity of halothane, presumably by limiting the production of reactive species such as trifluoroacetyl chloride. However, this method may not be applicable to all drug classes. For example, deuterium incorporation can lead to metabolic switching. Metabolic switching occurs when xenogens, sequestered by Phase I enzymes, bind transiently and re-bind in a variety of conformations prior to the chemical reaction (e.g., oxidation). Metabolic switching is enabled by the relatively vast size of binding pockets in many Phase I enzymes and the promiscuous nature of many metabolic reactions. Metabolic switching can lead to different proportions of known metabolites as well as altogether new metabolites. This new metabolic profile may impart more or less toxicity. Such pitfalls are non-obvious and are not predictable a priori for any drug class.
Bevantolol is a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) inhibitor. The carbon-hydrogen bonds of bevantolol contain a naturally occurring distribution of hydrogen isotopes, namely 1H or protium (about 99.9844%), 2H or deuterium (about 0.0156%), and 3H or tritium (in the range between about 0.5 and 67 tritium atoms per 1018 protium atoms). Increased levels of deuterium incorporation may produce a detectable Deuterium Kinetic Isotope Effect (DKIE) that could affect the pharmacokinetic, pharmacologic and/or toxicologic profiles of such bevantolol in comparison with the compound having naturally occurring levels of deuterium.
Based on discoveries made in our laboratory, as well as considering the literature, bevantolol is likely metabolized in humans at the aromatic methyl and methoxy groups, the methyl-bearing phenyl ring, the benzylic methylene group, the N-methylene groups, the O-methylene group, and the O-methine group. The current approach has the potential to prevent metabolism at these sites. Other sites on the molecule may also undergo transformations leading to metabolites with as-yet-unknown pharmacology/toxicology. Limiting the production of these metabolites has the potential to decrease the danger of the administration of such drugs and may even allow increased dosage and/or increased efficacy. All of these transformations can occur through polymorphically-expressed enzymes, exacerbating interpatient variability. Further, some disorders are best treated when the subject is medicated around the clock or for an extended period of time. For all of the foregoing reasons, a medicine with a longer half-life may result in greater efficacy and cost savings. Various deuteration patterns can be used to (a) reduce or eliminate unwanted metabolites, (b) increase the half-life of the parent drug, (c) decrease the number of doses needed to achieve a desired effect, (d) decrease the amount of a dose needed to achieve a desired effect, (e) increase the formation of active metabolites, if any are formed, (f) decrease the production of deleterious metabolites in specific tissues, and/or (g) create a more effective drug and/or a safer drug for polypharmacy, whether the polypharmacy be intentional or not. The deuteration approach has the strong potential to slow the metabolism of bevantolol and attenuate interpatient variability.
Novel compounds and pharmaceutical compositions, certain of which have been found to block calcium channel or beta adrenoreceptor activity, and/or to inhibit VMAT2 have been discovered, together with methods of synthesizing and using the compounds, including methods for the treatment of disorders in a patient by administering the compounds.

Dimethoxyphenyl inhibitors of vesicular monoamine transporter 2


An indication that a virtual machine is starting is received. Requested data blocks associated with the virtual machine are identified. Based on identifiers of the requested data blocks, a trained learning model is used to predict one or more subsequent data blocks likely to be requested while the virtual machine is starting. The one or more subsequent data blocks are caused to be preloaded in a cache storage.

A virtual machine may be started in response to a start command. The virtual machine has an associated boot sequence. Executing the boot sequence will result in accessing a sequence of data blocks. The data blocks of the boot sequence are interdependent on each other. The boot sequence is comprised of a plurality of data blocks. The boot sequence has an associated order in which the plurality of data blocks are used to start the virtual machine. The plurality of data blocks may be fetched from a filesystem in the associated order to start the virtual machine.
A filesystem may separately request from the disk storage each of the data blocks required by the boot sequence. The disk may spin up, locate the requested data block, and provide the requested data block to the filesystem. The filesystem may process the data block and then request the next data block included in the boot sequence. It may take a long time to start a virtual machine based on the amount of data included in the virtual machine boot sequence.


A cutting device for a plastic pipe or the like includes a gun-like body having a forward fixed jaw member and a rear movable member carrying a cutting element preferably of a triangular shape and having two converging cutting edges. The movable member can be moved forward by operating a handle. In operation, the cutting element penetrates the object and then cut the object efficiently.

This invention relates to a cutting device used for cutting plastic pipe or the like, and particularly to a cutting device which has a front fixed jaw member and a rear movable member to carry and move a cutting element towards the front fixed jaw member.
A typical cutting device to cut a plastic pipe is shown in FIG. 1, having a handle 1 with a cutting jaw formed integrally therewith, a second cutting jaw 3 pivoted to the handle 1 and connected to a handle 2 through a linkage mechanism 4 and a torsion spring 5. The pipe placed between the jaws 1 and 3 can be cut by depressing and releasing the handles 1 and 2 alternatively. Such a device has a drawback in that the cutting jaws are liable to move laterally when subjected to the radial resisting forces which occur during the cutting operation so that the pieces cannot be cut neatly.


A nitride semiconductor product including an n-type layer, a light-emitting layer, and a p-type layer which are formed of a nitride semiconductor and sequentially stacked on a substrate in the above order, the light-emitting layer having a quantum well structure in which a well layer is sandwiched by barrier layers having band gaps wider than the band gap of the well layer. Each barrier layer includes a barrier sublayer C which has been grown at a temperature higher than a growth temperature of the well layer, and a barrier sublayer E which has been grown at a temperature lower than a growth temperature of the barrier sublayer C. The barrier sublayer C is disposed closer to the substrate with respect to the barrier sublayer E.

In recent years, nitride semiconductor materials have become of interest as materials for producing a semiconductor light-emitting device which emits light of short wavelength. Generally, a nitride semiconductor is grown on a substrate (e.g., oxide crystals such as a sapphire single crystal or Group III-V compound semiconductor crystals) through a method such as metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE), or hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE), thereby forming an n-type layer, a light-emitting layer, and a p-type layer, which are stacked on the substrate.
At present, among these methods, metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) is most widely employed in the industry as a method for growing compound semiconductor crystals. In MOCVD, an organometallic compound serving as a Group III source gas is fed, along with a Group V source gas into a reactor tube in which a substrate such as sapphire, SiC, GaN, or AlN is placed, and crystal growth is performed at about 700° C. to about 1,200° C., to thereby form an n-type layer, a light-emitting layer, and a p-type layer.
After completion of growth of these semiconductor layers, a negative electrode is formed on the substrate or the n-type layer, and a positive electrode is formed on the p-type layer, whereby a light-emitting device is provided.
Conventionally, the light-emitting layer employs InGaN having a composition regulated for emitting light of a desired wavelength. When the InGaN layer is sandwiched by layers having wider band gaps, a light-emitting layer of a double-heterojunction structure is produced. Alternatively, a light-emitting layer of a multiple quantum well structure is produced from the InGaN layer on the basis of a quantum well effect.
Conventionally known multiple quantum well structures include a quantum well structure of InGaN—GaN included in a Group III-V (GaN-based) light-emitting device (F. Scholz et al., "Investigation on Structural Properties of GaInN—GaN Multi Quantum Well Structures," Phys. Stat. Sol. (a), Vol. 180, (2000), p. 315). The process for growing the quantum well structure includes maintaining a substrate at 1,000° C., forming a barrier layer at high temperature, lowering the substrate temperature, maintaining the substrate at the lowered temperature, and forming an InGaN well layer.
Alternating formation of the barrier layer and the well layer is repeated, to thereby form a light-emitting layer.
In a known variation of the aforementioned technique, the barrier layers are grown with elevating temperature, the barrier layers are stacked at high speed, and nitrogen serving as a carrier gas is replaced by hydrogen (Japanese Patent Application laid-Open (kokai) No. 2002-43618). The technique suitably attains enhancement of emission efficiency, reduction of production cost by shortening the time of forming the light-emitting layer, prevention of sublimation of In through growth with temperature elevation, and other effects.
The light-emitting devices fabricated through stacking of the layers based on any of the aforementioned methods have the problem that reverse withstand voltage (i.e., the absolute value of the voltage required for inducing flow of a 10 μA current in the reverse direction in a light-emitting device having a P—N junction) is deteriorated as time elapses in an aging process.
Specifically, a current of 30 mA is caused to flow in the forward direction in each light-emitting device, and reverse withstand voltage of the light-emitting device is measured before and after the device is allowed to stand for a predetermined period of time. In the experiments described in the Examples of the present specification, the reverse withstand voltage is measured after maintenance of 0 hour, 20 hours, and 40 hours.
The light-emitting devices fabricated through stacking layers on the basis of the above-disclosed conventional techniques fail to attain a desired emission strength. Thus, there is a demand for further enhancement of emission efficiency.

Nitride semiconductor; light-emitting device, light-emitting diode, laser device and lamp using the semiconductor; and production methods thereof


The invention relates to a method and device for performing coordinate transformation for navigation-guided procedures using an imaging diagnostic tool, especially an X-ray diagnostic tool, and a position-determining system. In the vicinity of the image receiver, the diagnostic tool has one or more three-dimensional reference structure that can be touched with a pointer of a position-determining system. From the known geometry of the three-dimensional reference structure and the coordinates of the touched points determined by the position-determining system, a coordinate transformation is created between the coordinate system of the diagnostic tool and the coordinate system of the position-determining system. Navigation for an instrument captured by the position-determining system can be performed in reconstructed images of the diagnostic tool after the registration procedure.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to methods and systems for performing coordinate transformation, and in particular, relates to a method and system for performing coordinate transformation for navigation-guided procedures utilizing an imaging tool and a position-determining system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Navigation assistance is increasingly being used in performing medical procedures on living objects. This is typically understood to involve guidance of a medical instrument's movement relative to an area of tissue of the object to be treated. Navigation of the instrument is usually supported by means of a position-determining system. Of special interest is navigation of the instrument in areas that preclude visual monitoring by the surgeon, such as when the instrument is inserted into the interior of the patient. For this purpose, the guidance of the instrument, such as a catheter, is usually performed in a virtual 3D volume generated by means of an imaging method before or during the operation. One common method is to generate a series of 2D projections of a known geometry with the help of an X-ray diagnostic tool and to construct from these 2D images a set of 3D volume data. The set of volume data is transmitted to a navigation system, which provides a position-determining system with markers that can be detected by the system. To realize highly accurate navigation, the coordinate system of the position-determining system is typically aligned with the coordinate system of the 3D set of volume data using a process called "registration." In one example, the registration process uses a phantom, which contains X-ray-positive markers and markers that can be detected by the position-determining system in a fixed spatial relationship relative to each other.
German Patent DE10202091A1 discloses a device and method for determining a coordinate transformation using a phantom, on which X-ray-positive markers and markers that can be detected by a position-determining system are arranged in a fixed spatial relationship relative to each other. During a scan for generating a series of 2D X-ray projections, the coordinates of the X-ray-positive markers are determined in reconstructed 3D volumes and transmitted to the position-determining system and navigation system for alignment.
German OS DE10360025A1 discloses a method of performing coordinate transformation in which markers that can be detected by a position-determining system are arranged on an imaging device, such as an X-ray radiation receiver. One of the disadvantages of this method is that when the image-capturing device is covered by a sterile cover film, the film is interposed between the markers and the position-determining system, which can be disruptive to the position-determining process. In addition, a series of markers in alignment with the device relative to the patient and the position-determining system cannot consistently be detected, which limits the accuracy of a referencing process. Moreover, the X-ray diagnostic tool cannot operate with other types of position-determining system through the markers arranged on the X-ray radiation receiver without mechanical modifications.
German Patent DE19917867B4 discloses a method and device for performing coordinate transformation for an X-ray diagnostic tool wherein a reference structure that can be detected by a position-determining system is connected detachably to the X-ray radiation receiver. After successful registration, the reference structure is removed from the X-ray radiation receiver. One of the disadvantages of this system is that when used in the application of C-arm imaging systems, the distribution of mass in the X-ray diagnostic tool is different in the area of an adjustable C-arm for the registration and diagnostic imaging processes. As such, the kinematics of the X-ray diagnostic tool in terms of the effect of the added mass on the torsion of the C-arm must be taken into account.
Accordingly, one of the objectives of the present invention is to provide an intra-operative procedure and simple and cost-effective means to determine with high accuracy the coordinate transformation between the coordinate system of the position-determining system and the coordinate system of the imaging diagnostic tool, in which the kinematics of the means necessary for image generation are described for navigation-guided procedures using an imaging diagnostic tool that can be adjusted in multiple ways and an arbitrary position-determining system of sufficient accuracy. Here, the terms "image generation" and "imaging" are also understood to include those methods that allow an image to be reconstructed from a series of measured values.

Method and system for performing coordinate transformation for navigation-guided procedures utilizing an imaging tool and a position-determining system


The present invention relates to isolated nucleic acid molecules and their corresponding encoded polypeptides. The present invention further relates to the uses of these nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides. For example, the nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides could be used in making enzymes or used to make plants, plant cells, plant materials or seeds of a plant having such modulated growth or phenotype characteristics that are altered with respect to wild type plants grown under similar conditions.

Zea mays (corn) is a graminoid, monoecious, annual plant that was domesticated in Mexico over 7,000 years ago. It was bred from wild corn and/or teosinte to become a staple food in many regions of the world, including the United States. Corn is by far the largest component of global coarse-grain trade, accounting for about three-quarters of total volume in recent years (coarse grains make up a common trade category that includes corn, sorghum, barley, oats, and rye). Because corn is sensitive to cold, in the temperate zones, corn is typically planted in the spring. As a C4 plant, corn is a typically more water-efficient than C3 plants like the small grains, alfalfa and soybeans. Nevertheless, corn is dependent on soil moisture because of its shallow root system. The importance of soil moisture is apparent in many parts of Africa, where periodic drought regularly causes corn crop to fail. Corn is most sensitive to drought at the time of silk emergence, when the flowers are ready for pollination. Once established, corn can grow well over ten feet in height, capturing a significant amount of solar energy in the form of cellulose.
Corn can be used in a variety of ways. Corn can be used as forage, silage or feed for livestock. Feed corn is used to generate heat by burning corn in stoves (similar to wood stoves). Sugars in corn are exploited to produce syrups, particularly high fructose corn syrup, and can be fermented and distilled to produce grain alcohol. It is processed into a multitude of food and industrial products including starch, corn oil, and fuel ethanol. Increasingly, corn is being used to produce ethanol as a way to reduce fuel costs. More efficient methods of converting cellulose into ethanol are being developed.
Despite the many advantages afforded by corn, there is a vital need to create better plants if we are to meet the ever increasing demand for energy and nutrition around the globe. Crop plants that will increase hardiness and yield, reduce need for nitrogen and other chemical fertilizers, and allow propagation under a wide variety of growing conditions can help alleviate the problem.
Crop plants with improved characteristics can be obtained through breeding. Breeding programs can be designed to modify plant characteristics suited to particular growing conditions. Breeding programs are greatly aided by molecular markers that may be associated with specific traits of interest. Alternatively, molecular genetics approaches also allow production of plants tailored to grow more efficiently and produce more product in unique geographic and/or climatic environments. To this end, there is an ongoing need for genetic sequences and materials to advantageously manipulate plant characteristics such as architecture, biomass, development, composition, conversion efficiency, energy output, confinement, nitrogen use, nutrient uptake, phosphate use, photosynthetic capacity, shade avoidance, cold tolerance, drought tolerance, water use efficiency, stress tolerance, vigor, flowering time and yield to maximize the benefits of energy crops and other economically important crops depending on the benefit sought and the particular environment in which the crop must grow. Such advantageous manipulation of plants can be achieved with molecules from corn as described herein, which may simply be expressed or expressed at a higher or lower level in corn or other species.

Plant nucleotide sequences and corresponding polypeptides