A method and apparatus for minimally invasive total joint replacement. The method involves sculpting the articular surface of a second bone that normally articulates with a first bone by attaching a bone sculpting tool directly or indirectly to the first bone with the tool in bone sculpting engagement with the articular surface of the second bone, and then sculpting the articular surface of the second bone with the joint reduced and moving one bone with respect to the other. An implant is placed to replace the articular surface of the second bone using an impaction device directly or indirectly attached to the first bone, wherein the force to place the implant is reacted by the second bone and the first bone.

A joint generally consists of two relatively rigid bony structures that maintain a relationship with each other. Soft tissue structures spanning the bony structures hold the bony structures together and aid in defining the motion of one bony structure relative to the other. In the knee, for example, the bony structures are the tibia and the femur. Soft tissue such as ligaments, tendons, menisci, and capsule provide support to the tibia and femur. A smooth and resilient surface consisting of articular cartilage covers the bony structures. The articular surfaces of the bony structures work in concert with the soft tissue structures to form a mechanism that defines the envelop of motion between the structures. When fully articulated, the motion defines a total envelop of motion between the bony structures. Within a typical envelop of motion, the bony structures move in a predetermined pattern with respect to one another. In the example of the hip joint, the joint is a ball in socket joint that is inherently stable. The capsule and ligaments spanning the hip joint provide stability while the muscles provide motion.
The articular surfaces of the bony structure became damaged by a variety of diseases, accidents, and other causes. A common disorder of joints is degenerative arthritis. Degenerative arthritis causes progressive pain, swelling, and stiffness of the joints. As the arthritis progresses the joint surfaces wear away, resulting in contractures of the surrounding soft tissues that provide stability to the joint. Moreover, progression of the disease process increases pain and reduces mobility.
Treatment of the afflicted articular bone surfaces depends, among other things, upon the severity of the damage to the articular surface and the age and general physical robustness of the patient. Commonly, for advanced arthritis, joint replacement surgery is necessary wherein the articulating elements of the joint are replaced with artificial elements commonly consisting of a part made of metal articulating with a part made of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE).
A relatively young patient with moderate to severe degeneration of the hip joint is often treated with drug therapies. While drug therapies may temporarily provide relief of pain, progression of the disease, with resulting deformity and reduced function, ultimately necessitates surgery. Alternative treatments such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and cortisone injections similarly provide only temporary relief of symptoms.
In severe situations, the entire articular surface of a bone may be replaced with an artificial surface, as, for example, when the acetabular socket and femoral head are replaced with a prosthetic device including an UHMWPE bearing to resurface the acetabulum and a polished metal or ceramic femoral head mounted to a stem extending into the medullary canal of the proximal femur to replace the femoral head. Joint replacement surgery has become a proven and efficacious method of alleviating pain and restoring function of the joint.
Current methods of preparing the rigid elements of a joint to receive components as in joint replacement surgery involve extensive surgical exposure. The exposure must be sufficient to permit the introduction of drills, reamers, broaches and other instruments for cutting or removing cartilage and bone that subsequently is replaced with artificial surfaces. For total hip replacement, the acetabular articular surface and subchondral bone is removed by spherical reamers, the femoral head is resected with an oscillating saw, and the proximal medullary canal is shaped with broaches. A difficulty with total hip replacement is that the invasiveness of the procedure causes significant interoperative blood loss and extensive rehabilitation because muscles and tendons must be released from the proximal femur to mobilize the femur and gain exposure of and access to the acetabular fossa.
Invasiveness. Conventional total hip arthroplasty is indicated for painful arthritis of the hip joint. The procedure involves exposing the hip joint through a large incision to provide the surgeon full visualization of the hip joint and the acetabular region and to provide access for surgical power instruments. In order to appropriately prepare the bony structures of the hip joint, the major muscles spanning the joint are commonly disrupted to gain adequate exposure of the joint. Steps of the procedure include removing the femoral head followed by reaming and broaching the proximal femoral canal to prepare a bony surface to support a hip stem. The stem is implanted and may be cemented in place, or press fit for bony ingrowth. The acetabulum is typically prepared using a hemispherical reamer to remove cartilage down to bleeding bone. Once the acetabulum is prepared, an acetabular component is implanted, either by cementing in place or press fitting for bony ingrowth. Surgical exposure is necessary to accommodate the bulk and geometry of the components as well as the instruments for bone preparation. The surgical exposure, which may be between six and twelve inches in length, may result in extensive trauma to the soft tissues surrounding the hip joint along with the release of muscles that insert into the proximal femur. The surgical exposure increases bleeding, pain, and muscle inhibition; all of which contribute to a longer hospitalization and rehabilitation before the patient can be safely discharged to home or to an intermediate care facility.
The prepared bony surfaces are technically referred to as the acetabular fossa, femoral canal and metaphyseal region of the femur. Prior to placing the final implants into the prepared spaces, a femoral trial, which may be the broach in some systems, is placed in the proximal femur along with a trial femoral head and neck, and an acetabular trial is placed into the acetabulum to facilitate trial range of motion and evaluation of hip stability prior to placement of the final total hip implants.
For patients who require hip replacement it is desirable to provide surgical methods and apparatuses that may be employed to gain surgical access to articulating joint surfaces, to appropriately prepare the bony structures, to provide artificial, e.g., metal or plastic, articular bearing surfaces, and to close the surgical site, all without substantial damage or trauma to associated muscles, ligaments or tendons. To attain this goal, a system and method is needed to enable articulating surfaces of the joints to be appropriately sculpted using minimally invasive apparatuses and procedures.
A system to enable minimally invasive total hip arthroplasty that will minimize soft tissue trauma and accelerate postoperative rehabilitation is needed. Further, because minimally invasive techniques inherently limit observation of the surgical site, compromising visualization of the prepared bony surfaces, a device is also needed for inspection of the prepared bony surfaces. During a surgical procedure, bone debris and blood will gather in the surgical site and require removal from time to time to visualize the acetabulum. After preparation of the acetabulum, an acetabular component is implanted. A variety of acetabular components such as cemented UHMWPE cups, cemented or press fit metal shells with UHMWPE, metal, or ceramic bearing liners are presently used. Typically, placement of a press fit shell requires an impaction force to fully seat the implant into support bone. However, the size and location of the minimally invasive incision may not be optimal for proper orientation and application of force to adequately seat and stabilize an acetabular implant. Thus, an impaction device is needed that allows for impaction of the acetabular component with the hip reduced or articulated for use with a minimally invasive exposure for total hip arthroplasty. It may also be desirable to use a surgical navigation system to position the acetabular implant.
The present invention provides a system and method for total joint replacement that involves minimally invasive surgical procedures. The instruments disclosed accomplish accurate bone preparation, implant orientation and implant fixation through a limited surgical exposure.
Thus, in one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of appropriately sculpting the articular surface of a second bone that normally articulates with a first bone. The method involves attaching a bone sculpting tool directly or indirectly to the first bone with the tool in bone sculpting engagement with the articular surface of the second bone, and then sculpting the articular surface of the second bone with the joint reduced and moving one bone with respect to the other. Optionally, the bone sculpting tool may be attached to a mount that is attached directly or indirectly to the first bone. In some situations, it may be desirable to distract the second bone from the first bone during surgery.
In a further embodiment, the invention provides a method of appropriately preparing the articular surface of a second bone that normally articulates with a first bone and implanting a prosthetic device. The method involves attaching a bone sculpting tool directly or indirectly to the first bone with the tool in bone sculpting engagement with the articular surface of the second bone, and then sculpting the articular surface by articulating one of the bones with respect to the other while bone preparation is performed. The bone sculpting tool may be attached to a bone mount that is directly or indirectly attached to or integral with a stem, trial, reamer or broach implanted in the medullary canal of a bone.
Specifically, for example, the invention may be used for replacing the surfaces of a femur and acetabulum through a minimal incision and with minimal disruption of musculotendinous structures about the hip. A typical incision for a minimally invasive total hip procedure is between two and four inches in length. It is noted that there may be some variation in incision length due to patient physiology, surgeon preferences, and/or other factors; the stated range is illustrative, not limiting. In addition to a small incision, care is taken to approach the joint capsule by separating tissues between muscle groups, rather than sectioning specific muscles. The invention includes; in various embodiments:
1. A Minimally Invasive Acetabular Reamer System (MIAR)
The MIAR is either a modular or non-modular construct that, for hip applications, comprises a femoral trial, a drive mechanism (either integral or separate) and a hemispherical reamer or similar device for removing cartilage and bone from the acetabular fossa. The reaming system enables placement of the components through a small incision and minimizes the number of components in the instrument set.
2. A Device to Illuminate and Visualize the Acetabulum
A fiber optic system is provided including a light source, fiber optic cable, imaging base and an imaging device and monitoring system to ensure proper preparation of the acetabulum.
3. An Apparatus to Flush and Remove Bone Debris and Blood from the Surgical Site
An irrigation system and a suction system are provided. The irrigation and suction systems may be integral to the imaging base, or separate instruments available for use as needed during the procedure.
4. A Minimally Invasive Acetabular Impaction System (MIAI)
An acetabular component, such as a press fit shell, is implanted following preparation of the acetabulum. An impaction device is provided that allows for impaction of the acetabular component with the hip reduced or articulated in order to fully seat a press fit acetabular component into support bone of the acetabulum. The MIAI may not be needed with some acetabular components. A surgical navigation system for positioning the acetabular component may be used with the MIAI.
In the minimally invasive procedure, the hip is accessed through an incision adequate to expose the trochanteric fossa and allow resection of the femoral neck and removal of the femoral head and neck segment. The femoral canal is accessed through the trochanteric fossa and trochanteric region. Reamers, rasps and other devices as are known to those skilled in the art are used to prepare the proximal femur to receive a femoral implant by a sequence of reaming and broaching steps. Once prepared, the intramedullary canal and retained area of the femoral neck and trochanteric region are used to support the MIAR system to prepare the acetabulum.

Apparatus and method for minimally invasive total joint replacement


A superconductive filter includes a superconductive filter substrate having a dielectric substrate and a plurality of resonator patterns formed on a surface of the dielectric substrate, the plurality of resonator patterns including a superconductive material; a package accommodating the superconductive filter substrate; and an intermediate substrate disposed between an inner surface of the package and the superconductive filter substrate, and thermally coupling the package and the superconductive filter substrate wherein a difference between a degree of contraction of the intermediate substrate and the degree of contraction of the dielectric substrate is smaller than a difference between the degree of contraction of the dielectric substrate and the degree of contraction of the package, when the package, the intermediate substrate, and the dielectric substrate are cooled from room temperature to a critical temperature of the resonator patterns.

A high-speed and large-capacity transmission technique is necessary with the recent rapid increase in the demand for wireless communication. In order to realize size reduction and high performance of a filter, expectations have been raised due to the practical use of a microstrip line superconductor filter using a high-temperature superconductor as a wiring material. A superconductor has an extremely small surface electric resistance even in a high frequency region, such as microwave, as compared to a normal electrically good conductor. Therefore, when the superconductor is used in a filter with a plurality of resonator patterns arranged on a dielectric substrate, the increase in the transmission loss can be suppressed. In the filter arranged with the resonators, the greater the number of the resonators, the better the frequency cutoff characteristics, and frequency resources can be utilized effectively.
As the resonator, various patterns have been used, such as a hair-pin type, a disk type, and a ring type. In those resonator patterns, since the disk type resonator pattern and the ring type resonator pattern can suppress the localization of current as compared to the hair-pin type resonator pattern, they are advantageously highly resistant to voltage. However, when these patterns are stacked in many stages, the filter area is larger than that of the hair-pin type.
When the disk-type resonator pattern is used, a portion of the resonator pattern is cut to be resonated in a dual-mode, whereby the frequency cutoff characteristics per one stack of the resonator pattern can be further improved.
In addition, a method where a dielectric substrate (second dielectric substrate) is overlapped and disposed on the disk-type resonator pattern (resonator pattern formed on the surface of a first dielectric substrate), whereby current concentration can be reduced has been known. Further, a stress dispersing member and a pressure plate are disposed on the second dielectric substrate, and the second dielectric substrate and the resonator pattern are pressurized through the pressure plate, whereby the contact between the second dielectric substrate and the resonator pattern can be made uniform.

Superconductive filter with plurality of resonator patterns formed on surface of dielectric substrate


A rotary casing of a satellite antenna having an angle adjustable display screen includes a supporting arm, a hollow casing, a rotating means and an adjusting and controlling assembly. The casing has a panel provided with two keys and a top surface provided with a window. The rotating means is provided in the casing and controlled by the keys to drive the rotation of the supporting arm. The adjusting and controlling assembly is provided in the casing and includes a control unit and a display unit. The two keys are electrically connected to the control unit to drive the supporting arm. By this arrangement, the control unit receives an adjustment instruction inputted by the keys and transmits the instruction to the rotating means to generate a corresponding amount of rotation, while the control unit converts the instruction into a numerical value to be displayed on the display unit.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a satellite antenna, in particular to a rotary casing of a satellite antenna having an angle adjustable display screen.
2. Description of Prior Art
Since current satellites have an increasing capacity for transmitting signals, the angle of the satellite antenna has to be more precise. Thus, the angle of the satellite antenna is required to be adjusted more precisely and accurately.
The casing of the conventional satellite antenna is provided with an angle adjusting means having graduations. When the casing rotates, the angle of rotation can be determined by calculating the difference of graduations before and after the rotation. Because the graduations are provided on the positions at which a user cannot see the graduations easily and clearly, it is inconvenient for the user to adjust the angle of the satellite antenna.
In view of the above, the present Inventor proposes a novel and reasonable structure to solve the above-mentioned problems based on his researches and expert knowledge.

Rotary casing of satellite antena having an angle adjustable display screen


A method of synthesizing intermediate views of a light field includes selecting a configuration of specific input views of a light field collected by a light field acquiring device, specifying coordinates of intermediate views to be synthesized and inputting the specified coordinates to a neural network, and synthesizing intermediate views based on a scene disparity, a selected configuration of the specific input views, and the specified coordinates of the intermediate views, using a neural network.

A four-dimensional light field image generated by acquiring the amount of light traveling in various directions in space additionally includes information about light traveling directions compared to the existing two-dimensional image. Thus, the light field technology may perform various image processing such as refocusing image, three-dimensional depth information estimation, and the like, using the information.
Recently, the light field technology, that is, a technology for producing a set of images created from different views, has been widely spread and used for cameras and three-dimensional displays. Currently, a light field synthetic technology has been developed that increases the spatial-angle resolution of a light field and enables effective compression of the light field.
Modern devices that support the light field technology include special purpose light field generation cameras (also known as "plenoptic cameras") or 3D displays using light fields. These devices have several disadvantages that are difficult for general users to use. First, the plenoptic cameras are expensive, and are specialized to capture only an array of light field views. Second, the plenoptic cameras have a trade-off between a spatial resolution and an angular resolution. In other words, while the angular resolution is increased by creating more light field views with the plenoptic cameras, the spatial resolution for each individual view is decreased. Third, as a light field includes a huge amount of information, the light field needs to be effectively compressed to store the light field in a reproduction apparatus. Accordingly, an intermediate light field view synthesis system capable of performing high-quality and high-resolution imaging from a small number of input images of the light field is required. The light field view synthesis system may be applied to mobile devices such as smartphones, augmented and virtual reality devices, and high-productivity devices such as 3D displays or PCs.

Method for synthesizing intermediate view of light field, system for synthesizing intermediate view of light field, and method for compressing light field


Proposed by the invention is a device for the bidirectional transfer of audio and/or video signals, in particular in the context of sound and/or image reports, with:

The invention concerns a device for bidirectional transferring of audio and/or video signals, in particular in the context of sound and/or image reports.
Devices of the above-mentioned type are known. One known device displays means for providing an audio input signal. The means is connected to a transmission and/or reception device for transmitting the audio signal and/or receiving a audio reception signal. In the known device the transmission and/or reception equipment is designed as ISDN equipment. The application possibilities of the known device are limited to the extent that the operator is dependent on the presence of an ISDN line in the fixed network. If need be, the report to be transferred must be intermediately stored on a storage medium. The storage medium, with the report stored on it, is brought to a device that is connected to an ISDN line. The report is transferred from the storage medium to the device and transmitted via the ISDN line.
In another known device, the transmission and/or reception equipment is designed as a device for connection to a GSM telephone. The connection to the GSM telephone is complicated. In order to transmit with high sound quality, the report must first be intermediately stored on a storage medium. This is due to the fact that when transferring the report via a GSM telephone the transfer rate is low and thus the transferring of the report can be of longer duration than the report itself.
The object forming the basis of the invention is to further develop the known device for bidirectional transferring of audio and/or video signals in such a way that the application possibilities are greatly expanded relative to the prior art.
This object is achieved through a device for bidirectional transferring of audio and/or video signals, in particular in the context of sound and/or image reports, preferably for a real-time transfer, with the following features:
at least one means for providing an audio input signal
a first mixing device that is connected to the means for providing an audio input signal and is intended for output of a mixed audio transmission signal
a transmission and/or reception device coupled to the first mixing device for transmitting the mixed audio transmission signal and/or receiving an audio reception signal
a control device coupled to the first mixing device for controlling the first mixing device
a second mixing device (30)
a compression and/or decompression device for compressing the mixed audio transmission signal or decompression of the audio reception signal, which device is coupled to the first mixing device for taking up the mixed audio transmission signal or, as the case may be, to at least one second mixing device for delivery of a decompressed audio reception signal, and to the transmission and/or reception device for delivery of a compressed audio transmission signal or, as the case may be, for taking up the audio reception signal
at least one means connected to the second mixing device for reproducing an audio output signal, which in particular presents the decompressed audio reception signal
in this device, as a transfer channel provision is made for at least one mobile radio and/or mobile telephone network channel
With the invention, one obtains a device for bidirectional transferring of audio and/or video signals, which device""s application possibilities, in particular in the context of sound and/or image reports, are quite manifold. The device according to the invention is especially simple to operate. Through the mobile radio or mobile telephone channel, the transfer can take place independently of a fixed network. Thus, the device makes possible an application that is to a great degree untied to location. By means of the device, the report can be transferred in real time at a high level of quality. Beyond this, the device makes possible, during the reproduction of the report, an interactive inclusion of the receiver of the report.
The transmission and/or reception device is intended forxe2x80x94preferably independentxe2x80x94transmitting and/or receiving of the compressed audio transmission signal or audio reception signal on several transfer channels, which preferably have the same importance. If necessary, by means of the device video signals and/or other signals relevant to a report can also be transferred, transmitted, and/or received. An advantage of this form of embodiment of the invention is the fact that a rate of transfer that amounts to many times that of a single transfer channel becomes possible. In the case of a form of embodiment that is to be preferred, according to which the transfer can take place on the transfer channels independently of each other, an especially high degree of stability of the transfer is ensured, even if, during the transfer, a (temporary) loss of one or more of the transfer channels should occur. Depending on the compressed audio transmission signal to be transmitted and the audio reception signal to be received, the number and/or type of the transfer channels intended for the transfer differ from the number and/or type of the transfer channels intended for the reception. In this form of embodiment, by means of an adapting of the number and/or type of the transfer channels to the present requirements, the transfer channels are optimally used to capacity, in particular in order to make possible a transfer in real time while using the lowest possible number of transfer channels.
Preferably, the device displays a first channel-control device for selecting one or several transfer channels. If need be, the first channel-control device puts the data of the compressed audio transmission signal into packets. The first channel-control device then distributes the data packets over the transfer channels. The first channel-control device is placed between the compression device and the transmission device. In this form of embodiment of the invention, the first channel-control device ensures an especially simple transfer, even when the data of the audio signal is transmitted in packeted and/or compressed form. Preferably, a second channel-control device is placed between the receiving device and the decompression device and is intended to reconstruct the audio reception signal when the possibly data-packed audio reception signal is received on more than one transfer channel.
The transmission and/or reception device is designed for connection to an antenna, by means of which the compressed audio transmission signal and/or the audio reception signal are transmitted or received, respectively, on the transfer channel or channels. Preferably, the device itself is equipped with the antenna, in order to ensure an especially high degree of independence of the transmission and/or reception operation.
Preferably, the device displays an A/D converter, which at a minimum is placed between the first means for obtaining the audio input signal and the first mixing device. The device according to the invention further displays a D/A converter, which is placed between the second mixing device and the means for reproducing the audio output signal. The A/D converter is intended for providing a digital audio input signal, and the D/A converter for providing an analog audio output signal. The device displays an output port for a digital outputting of the audio signals. Especially preferred is a form of embodiment according to which the output port has a sampling-rate converter for converting the bit rate of the audio signals. A still further improved form of embodiment displays means for dynamically adapting the bit rate of the audio signals, that is to say the data rate. With the dynamic adapting, an especially high degree of flexibility is achieved with respect to the connection of a digital reproduction apparatus to the output port.
In another form of embodiment of the invention, the device displays signal-level limiting device for controlling the level of the audio input signal, which limiting device is placed between the means for obtaining the audio input signal and the first mixing device. The signal-level limiting device serves in particular to avoid an overmodulation of an obtained audio input signal. The device further displays a volume-control device for controlling the level of the audio output signal, which control device is placed between the mixing device and the means for reproducing the audio output signal. The volume-control device makes possible a control of the volume of the audio output signal.
The control device for controlling the first mixing device displays a program and/or data memory, an image-viewing apparatus, an input device, and preferably an interface to a computer and/or a computer network. In this form of embodiment of the invention, there exists the possibility of integrating the device completely into an interactive computer-media network. Preferably, the device also displays a mass storage for storing away the audio signals. The mass storage is controllable by the control device. In a further form of embodiment of the invention, the control device indicates on the image-viewing apparatus the signal level of the audio signal. In one form of embodiment of the invention, the control device is intended to control the second mixing device.
Especially preferred is a form of embodiment in which the entire device or at least a part of the device is sealed against water spray and/or is designed to be received in a small case. In this form of embodiment, the device according to the invention is transportable and is impervious to influences of weather such as rain, humidity, or strong solar radiation.
The mobile device, in an especially compact form of embodiment, is mountable on a camera or is firmly attached to the camera. This mobile device is suitable for transferring image data that is captured by the camera.
In an especially preferred form of embodiment, the mobile device is integrated into an acoustic monitoring system and programmed in such a manner that the device automatically establishes contact with a base station when the monitoring system registers a predetermined event. When the contact with the base station is set up, the mobile device transfers audio signals picked up in its surrounding area. The mobile device is also suited to reproducing and transferring audio signals that were picked up, for example, immediately prior to the occurrence of the predetermined event and whose associated audio data were stored in the mass storage.
Both and mobile elements and the base stations have individual telephone numbers and are thus accessible straightforwardly and selectively from any telephone line whatever. This is especially advantageous in the context of software updates. The carrying out of the latter can take place from a central location, for example directly from the producer, according to the wishes of the operator. Considering all of the devices in operation, this will lead to the fact that in the course of time uniform software standards will no longer be present and in use. In particular upon changes in the audio-compression processes, this can lead to incompatibilities, since in principle each mobile element must be able to work together with each base station, no matter where the latter is located.
According to the invention, this problem can be solved by the fact that provision is made for a data bank for storing of audio-compression algorithms and for a selection device, coupled to the compression and/or decompression device, for selecting a compression or decompression algorithm suitable for the transmitting of an audio transmission signal and/or the receiving of and audio reception signal. With this embodiment, which incidentally also forms an independent inventive concept, the possible audio-compression algorithms are accordingly pre-loaded in the base stations and/or the mobile elements in the form of a data bank. Then, when contact is established, the devices involved settle on the best commonly available process.
The GSM standard, like other mobile phone standards, allows no monitoring of the field strength while the data are being transferred. For this reason, no information is available concerning how secure the transfer actually is.
Thus, in a further preferred embodiment, which alternatively also forms an independent inventive concept, provision is made for monitoring the field strength of the transmitted audio transmission signal and/or the received audio reception signal.
In a further development of this embodiment, a specific quality criterion is created on the basis of the continuous data stream by having the error-monitoring device on the transmitter end provide the audio transmission signal with additional information, and on the receiver end evaluate the errors occurring in the transfer of this information and draw up corresponding error information. In this way, an evaluation of the number of errors occurring is possible on the receiver end. To achieve the purpose, the data stream should be provided with additional information that enables an evaluation on the receiver end of the number of bit-errors occurring. Possibilities here are, for example, methods such as checksum formation, Reed-Solomon coding, or the like.
As was already touched upon above, advantageously several transfer channels should be used in order to have a sufficient channel capacity available; in this, preferably all of the channels have the same importance. However, it has been shown that, even when the antennas of the transmitter and/or receiver device are arranged so that they neighbor each other relatively closely, a clear difference with respect to the security of the transfer can be observed in the transfer channels. Beyond this, the quality over time in all of the transfer channels fluctuates independently of each other, in particular when the mobile element concerned is in motion. One transfer channel whose transfer quality was just now still quite good, suddenly goes bad, and the transfer quality of another channel suddenly becomes dearly better. In extreme cases, contact can even be completely broken, which causes a collapse of the entire transfer.
In order to solve or at least mitigate this problem, it is proposed that the compression and/or decompression device compress the audio transmission signal by means of an audio-compression algorithm that consists of a basic layer and at least one enhancement layer, which layers are transferred in at least one transfer channel; in this, the first channel-control device appropriately assigns to each transfer channel the data of one layer, so that in each case the data of the layer are transferred in one transfer channel. Accordingly, in this embodiment, which incidentally also represents an independent inventive concept, an audio-compression algorithm is first selected, which algorithm consists of a so-called base layer and at least one additional so-called xe2x80x9cenhancement layerxe2x80x9d. These algorithms are formed by a suitable combination of physio-acoustic and predictive coding strategies, such as, for example, CELP and AAC processes. In this, the data streams of the respective layers are, as mentioned, to be chosen so that they can be transferred in a single mobile-radio channel. On the receiver end, the base layer is always necessary in order to decode an audio reception signal. The more enhancement layers are transferred, the better the audio quality of the decoded audio reception signal is.
In a further development of the embodiment described above, the first channel-control device, depending on the error information obtained from the error-monitoring device, selects the transfer channels in such a manner that the base layer is transferred on the transfer channel with the best quality, and preferably, in the case of several enhancement layers, the first enhancement layer is transferred on the transfer channel with the second-best quality, while the remaining enhancement layers are transferred according to their order on a transfer channel with the next-best quality in each case. Accordingly, with this further development a prioritization of the channels on the basis of quality can be carried out, which is obviously only possible when the error information is sent back from the error-monitoring device to the transmitter. Thus, over the best channel the base layer is transferred, over the second-best the first enhancement layer, and so on. Such a measure is especially advantageous when the assignation of the layers to the transfer channels is changed or adapted depending on the momentary situation. On the receiver end one is then able, even in the case of large errors, and particularly at high bit-error rates or when some of the channels have dropped out completely, to at least carry out a decoding of the audio signal via the base layer. The quality changes with the number of data channels available, but in general, with this embodiment even in very unfavorable transfer conditions it is still possible to establish contact.
At this point, for the sake of completeness it should be mentioned that the term xe2x80x9caudio signalxe2x80x9d used here also stands for data signals of all types, thus for signals that, in addition to an audio portion, also contain other data or if necessary can also consist exclusively of other types of data.

Device for bi-directional transmission of audio and/or video signals

Abstract: at least one means (6) for providing an audio input signal;

Abstract: a first mixing device (10), which is connected to the means (6) for providing the audio input signal and which is designed to output a mixed audio transmission signal;

Abstract: a transmission and/or reception device coupled to the first mixing device (10) for transmitting the mixed audio transmission signal and/or receiving an audio reception signal;

Abstract: a control device (22) coupled to the first mixing device (10) for controlling the first mixing device (10);

Abstract: a compression and/or decompression device (12, 32) for compression of the mixed audio transmission signal or, as the case may be, for decompression of the audio reception signal,

Abstract: which compression and/or decompression device is connected to the first mixing device (10) for taking up the mixed audio transmission signal or, as the case may be, to at least the second mixing device (30) for delivering a decompressed audio reception signal,

Abstract: and connected to the transmission and/or reception device for delivering a compressed audio transmission signal or, as the case may be, for taking up the audio reception signal; and

Abstract: at least one means (26), connected to the second mixing device (30), for reproducing an audio output signal, which in particular contains the decompressed audio reception signal;

Abstract: in which device provision is made for at least one mobile-radio and/or mobile-telephone-network channel as a transfer channel.


A floating gearbox includes an outer housing with first and second side walls opposite and spaced apart from each other and an inner gear assembly received within the outer housing. The inner gear assembly comprises an inner housing, a first gear member rotatably received within the inner housing, and a second gear member having an output shaft rotatably supported on the inner housing. A slider plate received within the outer housing has first and second pairs of axially aligned elongate openings, wherein the first and second pairs of elongate openings align with a first axis and a second axis, respectively. Pins on the first sidewall are received in the first pair of elongate openings to allow relative sliding movement between the outer housing and the slider plate along the first axis. The inner housing includes pins received in the second pair of elongate openings, allowing relative sliding movement between the inner housing and the slider plate along the second axis.

The present disclosure relates to a floating gearbox apparatus and method. The present development will be described primarily by way of reference to a gearbox for use in a fluid flow control system such as an intravenous (IV) pump. However, it will be recognized that the present gearbox will find utility in all manner of applications wherein it is desired to couple the output shaft of a gear transmission system to a shaft to be driven.
Flexible couplings for joining drive shafts exist; however, they only accommodate slight axial and angular misalignment. It would, therefore, be desirable to provide a gear transmission system that can accommodate a large tolerance loop between the location of the output shaft and the location of the driven shaft.
Additionally, the standard flexible couplings are primarily designed to couple two permanently fixed shafts. It would also be desirable to provide a gear transmission system that couples an output shaft to a snap in driven shaft.
One disadvantage of flexible shaft couplings is that they induce a torsional flexibility into the system, which can result in an error if the position of the driven shaft is being read by an encoder. It would, therefore, also be desirable to provide a gear transmission system that does not induce torsional flexibility into the system.
Accordingly, the present disclosure contemplates a floating gearbox that overcomes the above problems and others. The present disclosure also contemplates a fluid control system and method employing the same.


A detection system of the present disclosure stores positions and the amount of game tokens that a game participant places on a game table based on a measurement result by a bet chip measuring device in the same persons for each game participant or player positions of the game table. A management control device compares an actual winning rate and a total return amount with figures obtained by a probability statistic calculation at the time of an end of the number of games to determine whether there is a significant difference therebetween and specifies any one of the game participant or the player position, the game table, or a room having the game table where the significant difference is occurring.

Attempts are being made to prevent various fraudulent acts in a game hall such as a casino. The game hall has surveillance cameras for monitoring fraudulent acts and prevents fraudulence by determining fraudulence during a game and fraudulence by collection or repayment of chips different from a win or lose result using images obtained from the surveillance cameras. Meanwhile, it is suggested to grasp an amount of chips by attaching an IC tag to each chip in order to grasp the number of betted chips and a total amount of betted chips.
PCT/JP 2015/000171 discloses a card game monitoring system which determines whether chips placed on a game table are collected or repaid as a win or lose result by performing an image analysis on a movement of chips and monitors a fraudulent act.
In the game hall such as the casino, the game table is recorded by the surveillance camera, and when the amount of money won at a time by a game participant is large, the recorded VTR is played to confirm whether or not there is a fraudulent act. However, there is a problem that fraudulence such as sophisticated fraudulence acts in a game table and continuous winning of a small amount of money cannot be found by simply detecting that the game participant wins the large amount of money. In addition, the related art does not sufficiently prevent a fraudulence act by collusion of a dealer and a player.
An object of the present disclosure is to prevent damage due to a fraudulent act by continuously monitoring an amount betted by a game participant and win or lose of a game, comparing data of a probability statistic calculation or past statistical data, and detecting a suspicious pattern suspected of being fraudulent.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.

Fraudulence monitoring system of table game and fraudulence monitoring program of table game


A spring lock type connector has a male connector (M) with a front receptacle (52). A female connector (F) is fit on an outer peripheral side of the front receptacle (52) and has a terminal accommodating portion (12) to be fit into the front receptacle (52). A spring (40) is mounted onto the female connector (F) and deforms to spread as the female connector (F) is connected to the male connector (M). The connectors are locked in a properly connected state by a spring force of the spring. Engaging recesses (54) are provided on the outer surface of the male connector (M) and engage with the spring (40). The recesses (54) are recessed inwardly of the outer surface of the front receptacle (52) and are more backward than a connecting bottom surface (53) on a back end of the inner surface of the front receptacle (52).

1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a spring lock connector in which a spring locks male and female connectors in a properly connected state.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 7,588,454 discloses a spring lock type connector assembly. The connector assembly has a male connector with a receptacle, a female connector with a terminal accommodating portion to be fit into the receptacle, and a spring for locking the male and female connectors in a properly connected state. The female connector further includes an outer tube surrounding an outer peripheral side of the terminal accommodating portion. The spring is substantially U-shaped and is fit on the outer peripheral surface of the outer tube. An engaging portion of the spring penetrates through the outer tube and enters the terminal accommodating portion. On the other hand, an engaging projection is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the receptacle of the male connector and is engageable with the engaging portion. The male and female connectors are locked in the properly connected state by the engagement of the engaging portion and the engaging projection.
However, the above-described engaging projection is formed as a projection that projects from the outer peripheral surface of the receptacle. The male connector may be fixed to a body by fitting a hexagon wrench on the outer periphery of the receptacle and tightening a bolt. However, the hexagon wrench and the engaging portion may interfere with each other. An engaging recess may be provided on the outer peripheral surface of the receptacle so as not to project from the outer peripheral surface and the engaging portion engages the engaging recess. However, a part of the receptacle where the engaging recess is formed becomes thinner and strength is reduced.
The invention was completed in view of the above situation and aims to provide an engaging recess engageable with a spring while ensuring the strength of a receptacle.


Methods and systems are provided for cleaning a water-cooled charge-air cooler. In one example, a method may include condensing water present in the supplied charge-air and exhaust gas which may exist in gaseous and droplet form, and purging the condensate along with the exhaust gas. A system for carrying out the above mentioned method is also provided.

As a result of compression of the combustion air in a turbocharger of a motor vehicle, the air is heated. Hot air requires a larger volume within a container relative to cold air and in order to provide the greatest possible air mass for combustion in an internal combustion engine, an thus to increase the power and efficiency of said internal combustion engine, the temperature of the supplied air may be reduced further by way of charge-air coolers. Charge-air coolers may typically be arranged within an intake tract of an engine between a turbocharger and an inlet valve. In a case where water-cooled charge-air coolers (WCAC), are used, the heat may be released into a dedicated water-cooling circuit. In this case, a cooling circuit comprises not only the WCAC, but also a cooling radiator 2 and a pump 3 for the cooling fluid, water.
The charge air may then be mixed with the exhaust gas of an internal combustion engine by way of an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) arrangement. This may serve primarily for reducing the emissions of nitrogen Oxides (NOx). Furthermore, in a case of Otto-cycle engines, exhaust-gas recirculation may be conductive to reducing charge-exchange losses, and thereby may also reduce fuel consumption. In a case of low-pressure EGR, an exhaust gas may be discharged downstream of an exhaust-gas after-treatment arrangement, and may be introduced upstream of a turbo compressor. Some of the exhaust gas may then flow from a turbo compressor into the internal combustion engine through a charge-air cooler.
However, the inventors herein have recognized potential issues with such systems. As one example, one potential drawback presented by charge-air coolers is that condensation water may form within the coolers. A feature of the present disclosure provides that water which may be contained in gaseous and droplet liquid form within inducted combustion air and/or within recirculated exhaust gas may be condensed.
The exhaust gas in particular, may also comprise other substances that may react with the condensation water in a way that produces acid products. In instances such as this, it may for example, be possible for sulfur compounds within an exhaust gas to react in a way that produces sulfuric acid, wherein the pH value may be between 1.5 and 2. This may lead to corrosion of the metal constituents of the charge-air cooler (cooling ribs, cooling hoses, and other parts comprising aluminum or steel), whereby the durability thereof may be jeopardized. It may also be possible, for example, for constituent parts comprised of brazing materials used during the production of the charge-air cooler to become detached and to cause punctiform corrosion. It is thus important for condensation water to be substantially removed from the charge-air cooler in order to limit the risk of corrosion damage. Furthermore, in a rest state of an engine, condensation water may pass from the charge-air cooler to a point upstream of the swept volume of the internal combustion engine, and here, may result in starting problems and serious potential engine damage.
In one example, the issues described above may be addressed by a method for an internal combustion engine with an exhaust-gas recirculation arrangement, wherein a cooler device which may be connected via a coolant circuit to a charge-air cooler imparts a cooling effect through maximum cooling of a charge-air cooler. In this way, the water that may be present in a gaseous state or in droplet liquid form within a charge-air cooler may be condensed and furthermore, with the condensate that may be present, as it runs off under the action of the force of gravity into a lower region of a charge-air cooler, condensation water may be purged from a charge-air cooler, and in the process, substances with a potentially corrosive action may be washed out.
It will be appreciated that in the present disclosure, the term "condensate" may be used synonymously with condensed water and the terms may be used interchangeably.
As one example, the method described herein, may be further desirable in part because the removal of condensate in the shut-down state of a motor vehicle, may provide that no condensation water may pass from a charge-air cooler to provided inlet valves and may not result in drawbacks such as difficulty starting the engine and/or engine damage.
It should be understood that the summary above is provided to introduce in simplified form a selection of concepts that are further described in the detailed description. It is not meant to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, the scope of which is defined uniquely by the claims that follow the detailed description. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any disadvantages noted above or in any part of this disclosure.

Cleaning of a charge-air cooler in a system with exhaust gas recirculation arrangement


A furnace blower assembly includes a blower housing a blower and a motor. The blower is positioned within the housing and is adapted to rotate relative to the housing. The motor is coupled to the blower. The housing defines an outlet having an external periphery and an internal periphery. The external periphery or the internal periphery of the outlet is adapted to be fitted to a portion of the external periphery or the internal periphery of the duct. The outlet defines a longitudinal axis. The outlet has a peripheral edge and a protrusion extending outwardly from the external periphery or the internal periphery of the outlet. The protrusion is spaced from the peripheral edge of the outlet and is adapted to abut the peripheral edge of the duct.

The field of the invention relates generally to furnace blower assemblies.
A furnace blower assembly typically includes a blower, a motor to propel the blower, and a housing for supporting the motor and for direction the flow of air from the blower. The housing includes an outlet to which a furnace duct is connected to transmit the airflow out of the furnace.
Attempts to connect and seal a furnace blower outlet to a furnace duct may not be effective and may be expensive. Inexpensive and reliable connecting and sealing of a furnace blower outlet to a furnace duct is desirable in the design and manufacture of blower assemblies for furnaces.
The present invention is directed to alleviate at least some of these problems with the prior art.

Furnace subassembly, furnace blower and associated method


A wireless communication system beamforms an uplink from an airborne transceiver to a terrestrial transceiver. The airborne transceiver comprises antennas that have an antenna type an aperture beamwidth. The airborne transceiver transfers a transceiver ID to the terrestrial transceiver. The terrestrial transceiver initiates aerial uplink beamforming for the antenna type and the aperture beamwidth based on the airborne transceiver ID. The terrestrial transceiver determines uplink beamforming metrics and altitude for the airborne transmitter. The terrestrial transceiver generates an uplink beamforming instruction and an uplink power instruction for the antenna type and the aperture beamwidth of the airborne transceiver based on the uplink beamforming metrics and altitude. The terrestrial transceiver transfers the uplink beamforming instruction and the uplink power instruction to the airborne transceiver. The airborne transceiver beamforms, amplifies, and transmits an uplink wireless signal to the terrestrial transceiver per the uplink beamforming instruction and the uplink power instruction.

Wireless communication networks provide wireless data services to wireless user devices. The wireless data services include internet-access, media-streaming, machine communications, and the like. Exemplary wireless user devices comprise phones, computers, wearable transceivers, vehicles, robots, and sensors. The wireless communication networks have wireless access nodes that exchange wireless signals with the wireless user devices over radio frequencies using wireless network protocols. Exemplary wireless network protocols include Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Fifth Generation New Radio (5GNR).
The wireless user devices are being mounted on airborne devices like drones and airplanes. These aerial wireless devices distribute their interference differently than ground wireless devices. The ground wireless devices propagate signals up toward an elevated access node and the signal interference is localized at the serving access node and the neighbor access nodes. In contrast, the aerial wireless user devices propagate signals from high altitudes down to a serving access node, but the signal interference geographically spreads from the high altitudes to access nodes well beyond the serving access node and the neighbor access nodes. The signal interference from the aerial wireless devices is not localized like the signal interference from the ground wireless devices.
To overcome the increased interference from the aerial wireless devices, the wireless access nodes increase the transmit power of the ground wireless user devices which creates more interference. In some scenarios, several aerial wireless user devices can spread enough interference across a large metropolitan area to force runaway increases in transmit power and interference. The interference from the aerial wireless devices can bring down or seriously degrade a wireless communication network.
To mitigate some interference, the wireless access nodes use downlink beamforming to focus their beams on the individual wireless user devices. The downlink beamforming uses physical wave guides like cans, horns, and reflectors to generate the downlink beams. In some implementations, downlink beamforming uses phase shifting to generate downlink beams from multiple radiators. The downlink beamforming uses null signals that cancel unwanted signal energy that emanates from the desired beam pattern. The receiving wireless user devices provide beamforming feedback to the transmitting wireless access nodes to assist in subsequent downlink beamforming. Exemplary beamforming feedback comprises Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), Rank Index (RI), and Precoding Matrix Indicator (PMI).
Unfortunately, the wireless communication networks do not effectively and efficiently beamform uplinks from the aerial wireless communication devices to the terrestrial wireless access nodes to mitigate the excessive interference.

Uplink beamforming between an airborne transceiver and a terrestrial transceiver


There is disclosed a substrate unit comprising a light emitting element attachment surface for attaching a light emitting element which emits laser light substantially in parallel to the attachment surface, a light reflecting surface for changing the direction of the light axis of the laser light emitted from the light emitting element by a predetermined angle by reflection, and a light detecting element attachment surface, formed on the same two-dimensional plane as a plane of the light emitting element attachment surface, for attaching a light detecting element which receives light incident from the outside.

The present invention relates to an optical head apparatus for recording or reproducing information in a disc drive for driving optical discs such as a digital video disc (DVD) and a compact disc (CD), particularly to a substrate unit for an optical head preferably applied to a so-called integrated optical unit (hereinafter referred to as IOU) in which a laser diode (hereinafter referred to as LD), a photodiode (hereinafter referred to as PD), a holographic optical element (hereinafter referred to as HOE), and the like are integrated, and to a manufacturing method of the substrate unit.
As well known, either an LD or PD for use in an optical head apparatus has heretofore been prepared by a manufacturing method similar to a method of forming an element pattern of a semiconductor on a silicon (Si) substrate or a gallium arsenic (GaAs) substrate.
In this case, an LD is constituted to be irradiated with a laser light substantially in parallel to the surface of the substrate with the LD to be formed thereon. Moreover, the PD is constituted so as to receive light vertically incident upon the surface of the substrate with the PD to be formed thereon.
Therefore, in the conventional optical head apparatus, an optical disc is irradiated with the laser light from the LD, and the reflected light is received by the PD. This constitution needs to have a three-dimensional structure in which the LD and PD are disposed adjacent to each other, and the substrate surface with the PD formed thereon is disposed substantially at right angles to the substrate surface with the LD formed thereon.
Additionally, a concrete constitution example of the optical head apparatus having a structure in which LD and PD are arranged in a three-dimensional positional relation in this manner is disclosed, for example, in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 110796/1999.
Additionally, in order to perform high-reliability recording/reproducing with respect to the optical disc, it is important to accurately drive respective servo systems such as tracking and focus, and it is necessary to set the position relation between the LD and PD with a high precision of 10 xcexcm or less.
Moreover, the substrate with the LD formed thereon is electrically connected to the substrate with the PD formed thereon by wire bonding. In this case, three-dimensional wire bonding needs to be performed.
However, when the LD and PD are subjected to mutual position adjustment, wire bonding, and the like in three dimensions with such high precision, the operation becomes very difficult and intricate. This causes a problem that operation efficiency is deteriorated.
To solve the problem, the present invention has been developed in consideration with the circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a substrate unit for an optical head apparatus, in which the LD and PD can be disposed on the same two-dimensional plane, thereby an operation for positioning the LD and PD is facilitated, and an operation efficiency of wire bonding can also be enhanced.
Moreover, an object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method of the substrate unit for the optical head apparatus, in which the substrate unit for the optical head apparatus can be manufactured with high precision and satisfactory mass productivity.
According to the present invention, there is provided a substrate unit for an optical head apparatus, comprising:
a light emitting element attachment surface for attaching a light emitting element which emits a laser light substantially in parallel to the surface with the element to be attached thereto;
a light reflecting surface for changing a direction of a light axis of the laser light emitted from the light emitting element attached to the light emitting element attachment surface by a predetermined angle by reflection; and
a light detecting element attachment surface, formed on the same two-dimensional plane as a plane of the light emitting element attachment surface, for attaching a light detecting element which receives a light incident from the outside.
According to the aforementioned constitution, since the light emitting element and light detecting element can be disposed on the same two-dimensional plane, an operation for positioning the light emitting element and light detecting element can be facilitated, and an operation efficiency of wire bonding can also be enhanced.
Moreover, according to the present invention, there is provided a manufacturing method of a substrate unit for an optical head apparatus, comprising:
a step of forming a plurality of light reflecting surfaces on one plane of a first member to be processed formed substantially in a rectangular parallelepiped shape;
a step of attaching one plane of a second member to be processed formed substantially in the rectangular parallelepiped shape to the plane of the first member to be processed with the plurality of light reflecting surfaces formed thereon in the forming step, disposing an adhesive medium in a portion other than the light reflecting surface, and forming a bonded block in which the first and second members to be processed are connected to each other;
a step of cutting the bonded block formed in the forming step at a predetermined angle with respect to the light reflecting surface, and dividing the bonded block into a plurality of blocks so that one light reflecting surface is included in each block; and
a step of disposing a cut surface of the block obtained in the forming step as a reference surface of a processing, and forming the substrate unit from the block, comprising a light emitting element attachment surface for attaching a light emitting element which emits a laser light to the light reflecting surface, and a light detecting element attachment surface for attaching a light detecting element, formed on the same two-dimensional plane as the light emitting element attachment surface, for receiving light incident from the outside.
According to the manufacturing method, the bonded block formed by connecting the second member to be processed to the first member to be processed with the plurality of light reflecting surfaces formed thereon is cut at the predetermined angle with respect to the light reflecting surface and divided into the plurality of blocks. When the cut surface of the block is disposed as the reference surface of the processing, the substrate unit including the light emitting element attachment surface and light detecting element attachment surface is formed from the block. Therefore, the substrate unit for the optical head apparatus can be manufactured with the high precision and satisfactory mass productivity.

Substrate unit for optical head and method for manufacturing the same


This invention relates to a method for detecting the presence of or likelihood of a patient of developing occult pancreatic beta cell dysfunction, and a method for detecting the presence of or likelihood of a patient of developing clinically significant post-prandial hyperglycemia. The methods involve (a) measuring a level of alpha-hydroxybutyrate (AHB) in a single fasting baseline biological sample of the patient; (b) comparing the level of AHB in the single fasting baseline biological sample to a reference AHB level; and (c) determining the presence of or likelihood of developing the disorder in the patient based on the comparison in step (b). An increased AHB level at fasting baseline indicates that a normoglycemic, normo-insulinemic and/or non-dyslipidemic patient has developed or has an increased likelihood of developing occult pancreatic beta cell dysfunction. An increased AHB level at fasting baseline and an elevated glucose level of at least about 155 mg/dL at 30 minutes and/or 1 hour indicates that a normoglycemic, normo-insulinemic and/or non-dyslipidemic patient has developed or has an increased likelihood of developing clinically significant post-prandial hyperglycemia.

Currently a number of tests exist that can diagnose patients as diabetic or pre-diabetic, including pre-diabetic conditions, such as occult pancreatic beta cell dysfunction or post-prandial hyperglycemia. Such tests include glucose, insulin, pro-insulin, c-peptide, HbA1c, fructosamine, glycation gap, 1,5-anhydroglucitol (1,5-AG), OGTT, CLIX scoring, HOMA IR scoring, and IRI scores based on combinations of AHB, L-GPC, and Oleic Acid weighted by insulin or BMI. Used alone or in combination some of these tests can detect the presence of Type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes (metabolic syndrome) and early insulin resistance. Additionally there are tests that may detect some cases of Type 1 Diabetes (T1DM, sometimes referred to as childhood-onset or early-onset) such as anti-GAD antibody and other auto-antibodies to pancreatic islet cells, as Type 1 diabetes usually involves development of auto-antibodies.
The best current predictors of fasting normoglycemic patients who are actually at risk of developing diabetes are OGTTs and CLIX scoring of OGTTs. Both of these techniques involve testing multiple analytes at multiple time-points, requiring the patient to have a blood sample drawn at baseline (fasting), drink a beverage containing a known quantity of glucose, and subsequently contacting patient blood samples and measuring the levels of various analytes (e.g. glucose, insulin, pro-insulin, c-peptide, creatinine, etc. . . . ) at fasting baseline, and then at various time point intervals after dosing with the glucose load. Most OGTTs and CLIX scoring require a patient to remain in the doctor's office for 2 hours post dose, and most clinicians only test baseline samples and the 2 hour time point, and not the labor-intensive 3-5 additional times blood draws during the 2-hour period necessary for CLIX scoring, due to labor and cost constraints. Additionally, complicated and laborious mathematical calculations need to be performed in order to optimize detection of at-risk individuals with these techniques, and kidney function (approximated by blood creatinine levels/eGFR) needs to be accounted for, causing an additional step. In standard OGTTs, 1-hour time points are rarely obtained and tested for determination of early insulin resistance and/or beta cell dysfunction, even though it is known from the literature that impaired first-phase insulin secretion response to glucose load at the 1 hour time point is a predictor of risk of development of diabetes and resulting cardio-diabetic complications such as atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, diabetic retinopathy, etc.
There therefore exists a need in the art for a better method for detecting the presence of likelihood of developing occult pancreatic beta cell dysfunction and post-prandial hyperglycemia.

Method of treating a patient determined to be at risk of developing occult pancreatic beta-cell dysfunction


Structures for a waveguide bend and methods of fabricating a structure for a waveguide bend. A first waveguide core has a first section, a second section, and a first waveguide bend connecting the first section with the second section. The first waveguide core has a first side surface extending about an outer radius of the first waveguide bend. A second waveguide core also has a first section, a second section, and a second waveguide bend connecting the first section with the second section. The second waveguide core has a second side surface extending about an outer radius of the second waveguide bend. The first waveguide bend is spaced from the second waveguide bend in a first non-contacting relationship with a gap between the first side surface and the second side surface. The gap has a perpendicular distance selected to permit optical signal transfer between the first and second waveguide bends.

The present invention relates to photonics chips and, more specifically, to structures for a waveguide crossing and methods of fabricating a structure for a waveguide crossing.
Photonics chips are used in many applications and systems including, but not limited to, data communication systems and data computation systems. A photonics chip integrates optical components, such as waveguides, optical switches, directional couplers, and bends, and electronic components, such as field-effect transistors, into a unified platform. Among other factors, layout area, cost, and operational overhead may be reduced by the integration of both types of components on the same chip.
A waveguide crossing is building block used in photonics chips to provide paths for propagating optical signals. A waveguide crossing is an optical element in which two waveguide cores in a single layer intersect and directly cross. An ideal waveguide crossing may be designed with measures (e.g., shaping) to provide high transmission in each straight path and low crosstalk to the corresponding crossing path. However, despite these measures, directly-crossing waveguide cores may unwantedly exhibit scattering, crosstalk, and multi-mode excitation. In addition, directly-crossing waveguide crossings possess large footprints that may hamper dense integration in a photonics chip.
Improved structures for a waveguide crossing and methods of fabricating a structure for a waveguide crossing are needed.

Waveguide crossings with a non-contacting arrangement


A thermal protection circuit for high output power supplies. A power supply circuit includes a switching control circuit coupled to a switching regulator circuit. The switching control circuit is configured to generate a plurality of switching control signals for controlling the switching regulator circuit. The power supply circuit also includes a temperature sensitive circuit which includes a thermistor. The temperature sensitive circuit is configured to provide a variable voltage level output to the phase control circuit. The switching control circuit is also configured to suspend operation of the switching regulator circuit upon detecting a predetermined voltage level at the output.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to power supplies and, more particularly, to the protection of microprocessor power supplies.
2. Description of the Related Art
Power supplies are used in various types of devices. There are many specialized types of power supply circuits with various advantages and disadvantages. Microprocessors in computers may require a power supply circuit that regulates a high level of current while maintaining a high level of efficiency.
One such type of specialized power supply circuit is a switching regulator. Switching regulator circuits typically provide a lower voltage output than the unregulated input while at the same time providing a higher current than the current drawn from the unregulated supply. This is accomplished using a transistor that is constantly switching between a saturation mode and a non-conducting mode. Typically a transistor that is optimized for power applications, such as a power field effect transistor, is used. Because the transistor is either in saturation or not conducting, there is very low power dissipation. A switching regulator therefore can regulate a high amount of current at a high efficiency rate.
Since these power supply circuits regulate a high level of current during normal operation, they may also generate a significant amount of heat while operating. Under normal operating conditions the heat may not cause problems. However, under less than ideal conditions such as, for example, short circuits, improper power supply operation and unacceptable environmental conditions, the heat may become excessive. Excessive heat may cause damage to various computer system components including the motherboard, the microprocessor, or the power supply itself.
The heat generated by the switching regulator may be controlled by methods such as directed airflow and the use of heat sinks. These methods may be effective in some cases, but in order to accommodate the worst case operating conditions, those methods may be expensive. Additionally, it may be impossible to anticipate the worst possible conditions.
Various embodiments of a power supply circuit including a thermal protection circuit are disclosed. In one embodiment, the power supply circuit includes a switching control circuit coupled to a switching regulator circuit. The switching control circuit is configured to generate a plurality of switching control signals for controlling the switching regulator circuit. The power supply circuit also includes a temperature sensitive circuit including a thermistor. The temperature sensitive circuit is configured to provide a variable voltage level output to the phase control circuit. The switching control circuit is also configured to suspend operation of the switching regulator circuit upon detecting a predetermined voltage level at the output.
In another embodiment, the power supply circuit includes a phase control circuit coupled to a first switching regulator circuit and to a second switching regulator circuit. The phase control circuit is configured to generate a plurality of switching control signals for controlling switching of the first and second switching regulator circuits. The phase control circuit is also configured to selectively suspend operation of the second switching regulator circuit in response to receiving a signal indicative of a low power mode of operation. The power supply circuit also includes a temperature sensitive circuit which includes a thermistor. The temperature sensitive circuit is configured to provide a variable voltage level output to the phase control circuit. The phase control circuit is further configured to suspend operation of the first and second switching regulator circuits upon detecting a predetermined voltage level at the output.
In various other embodiments, the thermistor is configured to detect an elevation in temperature of the first switching regulator circuit or the second switching regulator circuit and to change a resistance value internal to the thermistor. Furthermore, the thermistor is configured to decrease the internal resistance value in response to detecting the elevation in temperature. The temperature sensitive circuit develops the predetermined voltage level in response to the thermistor decreasing the internal resistance value.

System for suspending operation of a switching regulator circuit in a power supply if the temperature of the switching regulator is too high


A method of calibrating magnification of optical devices includes providing a mask with a predetermined pattern, projecting radiation through the mask so as to form a pattern image, and comparing a pattern of the image with a pattern of the mask to determine deviations of the image of the projected image from the image of the mask.

The present invention relates to a method of calibration of magnification of optical devices.
More particularly, it relates to a method of calibration of such optical devices as steppers for forming patterns on silicon wafers, for calibration of scanning electron microscopes, etc.
During the manufacture of ICs on silicon wafers, the steppers are utilized to produce devices on a wafer. If the stepper is not properly operating, the physical features of the device produced of silicon wafers can have non uniform dimensions and therefore they will not operate in the intended manner.
Methods for calibration of magnification of steppers for this application are not known, and it is believed that it is therefore advisable to provide such calibration. As for scanning electron microscopes, methods of calibration of magnification are as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,902,703; 4,618,938; and 5,825,043; however, they are not precise.
Accordingly, it is an object of present invention to provide a method of calibration of magnification of optical devices, which is a further improvement of the existing methods.
In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent hereinafter, one feature of present invention resides, briefly stated, in a method of calibration of magnification of an optical device which includes providing a mask with a predetermined pattern; projecting radiation through the mask so as to form a pattern image; and comparing image of the pattern with a pattern on the mask to determine deviations of the image of the projected image from the patterns on the mask.
Where the method is designed in accordance with the present invention it eliminates the disadvantages of the prior art and provides for the highly advantageous results.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes comparing a size of the projected image with the size of the image on the mask.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention comparing the mask includes providing a mask which has at least two fields which having a plurality of features spaced from one another in one direction so that the directions of spacing of the features in said two fields are transverse to one another.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the features in each of said field are evenly spaced from one another. In accordance with a further feature of present invention the features in each of said fields are parallel to one another.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes arranging the mask so that the features of at least one of said fields are aligned with a principal axis of the optical device.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the features are arranged so that a spacing between the features of one of the fields is different from the spacing of the features of the other of said fields.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes moving an article on which the image is projected relative to the optical device so as to produce a plurality of images with a plurality of patterns, and the comparing includes comparing the plurality of patterns of the plurality of images with the pattern of the mask.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes projecting the pattern through the mask on the substrate, and obtaining the projected image on the substrate.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes passing the radiation through the mask to form patterns on a silicon wafer and obtaining an electronic image with a pattern, and comparing includes comparing the pattern of the electronic image from the silicon wafer with the pattern of the mask.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the comparing includes comparing a deviation of a magnification of the pattern of the image relative to the pattern of the mask from a standard deviation.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes forming a mask by an optical source, and producing an interference pattern corresponding to the desired pattern of the mask.
In accordance with a further feature of present invention the method includes producing the mask by an optical source which generates an interference pattern and acts on a chemical substance causes etching of corresponding area of the mask so as to produce the desired pattern of the mask.
The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the present invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Method of calibration of magnification of optical devices