A pneumatic driven ratchet wrench comprises: a wrench housing; a pneumatic motor; a ratchet wheel unit; two gear members; an urging member for biasing the gear members to engage the ratchet wheel; a transmission unit connected to the gear members and driven by the pneumatic motor; and a gear-selecting unit including an operating knob, a switching member and two pushing members. The operating knob is mounted on the wrench housing and is disposed distal from a head section of the wrench housing for driving movement of the pushing members. Each of the pushing members pushes a respective one of the gear members to move away from the ratchet wheel unit when moved from a releasing position to a pushing position.

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a pneumatic driven ratchet wrench, more particularly to a pneumatic driven ratchet wrench including a wrench housing with a head section and an operating knob disposed at a position distal from the head section for switching rotational directions of a ratchet wheel.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional pneumatic driven ratchet wrench 1 that includes a wrench housing 11 with a head section 111 and a handgrip section (not shown), a ratchet wheel 12 mounted in the head section 111, two gear members 13, each of which is selectively engageable with the ratchet wheel 12, a swingable driving link 14, a shaft 15 with an eccentrically disposed head 151 connected to the swingable driving link 14, a cylindrical pneumatic rotor (not shown) connected to the shaft 15 and powered by a compressed air so as to co-rotate with the shaft 15, and a direction-switching unit 16 including a pinion 161 and two racks 162 disposed at two opposite sides of the pinion 161 and engaging the pinion 161. An operating knob (not shown) is connected to the pinion 161, and extends therefrom through the head section 111 of the wrench housing 11 for a user to operate in selecting a desired rotational direction of the ratchet wheel 12. In operation, when the ratchet wheel 12 is to be set to a selected rotational direction, the operating knob is rotated in a corresponding direction to drive the racks 162 to move in opposite directions such that a corresponding one of the racks 162 is moved to engage the ratchet wheel 12 and the other is moved to disengage the ratchet wheel 12.
The conventional pneumatic driven ratchet wrench 1 is disadvantageous in that since the operating knob protrudes outwardly from the head section 111 of the wrench housing 11, the overall profile of the head section 111 is considerably increased, which renders the ratchet wrench 1 unsuitable or difficult for tightening or loosening screws in a narrow space. In addition, since the operating knob is disposed at the head section 111 and since the handgrip section is disposed at a position distal from the head section 111, operation of the operating knob cannot be reached by fingers of the hand that holds the handgrip section.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,051,746 discloses a pneumatic driven ratchet wrench that is powered by a compressed air and that includes a wrench housing having a head section for accommodating a direction selector, a gear set, a yoke, a pawl engageable with the yoke, and a drive body coupled to the direction selector. A collar is mounted to the head section and engages the gear set through a right angle gear so as to cause the ratchet wrench to switch between clockwise and counterclockwise rotations. The ratchet wrench disclosed in the patent has the aforementioned drawbacks.


An example Smart Candle Platform is configured to includes a candle fixture that comprises an outer shell having an opening, a mid-frame, and a base, and a fuel bottle configured to hold a fuel material and is removably coupled to the candle fixture. The fuel bottle is positioned at least partially within a hollow interior of the mid-frame of the candle fixture and accommodated by the base. The fuel bottle further comprises a wick that extends through an opening of the outer shell, and the candle fixture includes an ignitor configured to ignite the fuel material via the wick to produce a living flame. The candle fixture further includes an inner cover having one or more reinforcement ribs configured to provide structural support for the one or more ignitors.

As disclosed, the Smart Candle Platform and System is a lighting device and system using natural fuel such as oil or wax providing a structure for an improved lighting experience. In at least one embodiment, the interiorly positioned candle assembly allows for a replaceable outer shell and offers improvements in safety via the spring-loaded bottom feed of the candle assembly. In others embodiments, ignition, control and communication systems may be added to the Smart Candle Platform and System for electrical or electronic control for enhanced safety and enjoyment during operation. Candle light is desirable and consumers enjoy it as a "romantic" or "natural" light source. However, traditional candles and their operation are generally less than desirable because of operating and safety concerns.
The Smart Candle Platform and System as disclosed overcomes many common operating and safety issues of using a living flame "candle", subject to a particular configuration. As is well known, lit candles are a common cause of fires, particularly from accidents involving tipping or falling. For example, when something falls on top of or is too close to the candle flame it can cause a fire. Also, for example, if a candle is not assembled properly then an incidental fire can result and/or accumulation and spillage of hot wax resulting in a mess and annoyance. As is well known, typical candles are manually operated and require direct user contact wherein the user has to go to each candle and light/extinguish it manually and individually. This also limits candle placement options.

This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.


An improved drive apparatus for use with linear pick-and-place assembly devices is disclosed, which drive apparatus includes a movable carriage having an improved guide track assembly. The guide track assembly comprises a series of V-rollers and mating V-tracks to provide the vertical and horizontal translational movements for a linear pick-and-place assembly device's output member. The guide track assembly includes V-roller elements which can be eccentrically adjusted to create a tight, pre-loaded sliding engagement with the mating V-tracks, all so as to substantially eliminate any undesired end play movement within the movable carriage.

Cam-driven, automated assembly apparatus are becoming more prevalent in industrial assembly applications. One type of automated assembly device is the so-called linear pick-and-place device. Its output is pre-designed, via specific cam design selection, to provide both vertical and horizontal movements to its output, and any associated end effector member, e.g., a pick-up device or robot hand. The resultant output is both in and out, as well as up and down, thereby allowing various types of motion sequences for assembly applications, dependant upon what cam design is used. For example, with such a linear pick-and-place device, a part can be picked up at one location, moved vertically, horizontally transferred over to another location, and then dropped vertically in place, such as in an associated tooling station or die set, whereafter the sequence is repeated for the next part.
The known linear pick-and-place devices of the prior art typically use a movable carriage device, driven by associated cam members, which carriage typically has two hardened and grounded output shafts which slide upon and within multiple bearing assemblies carried by the carriage. Such ground multiple output shaft arrangements are known in the industry as Thompson (Trademark) shafts. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,881,362, which typifies this type of linear pick-and-place device.
The movable carriage units for such known linear pick-and-place devices are cumbersome and costly. Also, all the known designs of prior art linear pick-and-place devices suffer the disadvantage of having their output member aligned off-center from the unit's input shaft. This is due to interference of the multiple shaft carriage unit with the cam members if the former is placed in centered alignment with the latter. Inherently, such designs are relatively wide. Therefore, in many applications, such as where multiple linear pick-and-place devices need to be aligned in side-by-side parallel fashion for a given assembly application, they are often unusable.
The present invention overcomes these difficulties by utilizing, in the drive of a linear pick-and-place apparatus, a unique guide track assembly for the movable carriage. A series of V-rollers and mating V-tracks are used for both the vertical and horizontal (i.e., translation) movements of the apparatus' output member. Further, the V-track assembly utilizes V-roller elements which can be eccentrically adjusted to affect a tight, i.e., pre-loaded,. sliding engagement with the mating V-tracks. Thereby, substantially all undesired end play movement within the movable carriage is eliminated, in both the vertical and horizontal directions.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved drive for a linear pick-and-place device which utilizes a V-track and V-roller assembly to result in a stiffer design resulting in greater accuracy in picking and placing of parts and which permits centerline alignment of the device's input and output members.
It is another object of the present invention to utilize a V-roller and V-track carriage assembly for a linear pick-and-place device which substantially eliminates all end play during vertical and horizontal translation movements of the device's output member.

Drive for linear pick-and-place assembly apparatus


The present invention provides a high-voltage measuring device capable of providing sufficient electric isolation between resistors and between resistors and a voltage measurement circuit without necessity of enlarging a size of a substrate for carry thereon the circuit. A high-voltage measuring device mounted on a substrate, including a high-voltage input terminal pair, a measuring terminal pair, a voltage measuring circuit having input terminals connected to the measuring terminal pair, and two resistive parts. One of the resistive parts electrically connects one of high-voltage input terminal pair and one of measuring terminal pair. The other of resistive parts electrically connects between the other of high-voltage input terminal pair and the other of measuring terminal pair. Each of the resistive parts includes a series circuit of at least one high resistance resistor and at least one low resistance resistor, and a distance between the high resistance resistors in each of the resistive parts is larger than that between the low resistance resistors.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a high-voltage measuring device for detecting a high-voltage.
2. Description of the Related Art
On an accumulator such as a storage battery in an electronic car, a high-voltage measuring device for detecting a high-voltage is provided to protect against the electric overcharge or over-discharge.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional high-voltage measuring device is, for example, provided with two resistors 3 and 4 and a voltage measuring circuit 4 which are mounted on a substrate 1, for example, in the form of a printed circuit. Positive and negative terminals of a high-voltage battery 5 are electrically connected to one ends of the resistors 2 and 3, respectively. The other ends of the resistors 2 and 3 are electrically connected to input terminals of the voltage measuring circuit 4, respectively. The resistors 2 and 3 are used for dividing a high-voltage supplied from the high-voltage battery 5, and the voltage measuring circuit detects an electric potential difference between the resistors 2 and 3 which corresponds to the high-voltage.
It is to be understood that large-sized resistors have been used for the resistors 2 and 3 in the conventional device. Those resistors must have high resistances and high-voltage-proof properties since they are used into division voltage.
In addition, there arises another problem of high cost that the size of the substrate 1 must be large enough to make sure that the resistances 2 and 3 and the voltage measuring device 4 are separated from each other for electric isolation even under such high electric potential differences between the resistors and between the resistors and the voltage measuring device.


The invention relates to a method for the input and display of information, data and/or input elements in drop-down menus of graphical user interfaces, the drop-down menus or layered menu levels having a number of menu items of any type, the number of menu items comprising at least a number of menu items which may be selected and deselected in any combination in the form of a check box list and/or mutually exclusive and thus merely switchable menu items in the form of a radio button list, the menu item in the form of a check box list and the menu item in the form of a radio button list respectively comprising its own significant status recognition describing the character of the menu item in the drop-down menu and in the layered menu.

Graphical user interfaces are used for the interaction between the user and computer and as a communications interface therebetween. They represent a virtual control- and display panel which consists of individual control- and display objects and via which the user transmits commands or information to the computer, the computer in turn signaling back the receipt of these commands and information and/or the response thereto. In an attempt to design the operation of even more complex processes as intuitively as possible and thus to allow rapid navigation through the program, certain standardization procedures have become accepted. These standardization procedures essentially consist in the use of the same or similar control- and display objects, such as for example text boxes, drop-down menus, selection lists, buttons, icons, etc.
Almost all software programs have graphical control windows, software programs being in this sense software applications which run on the operating system of the computer, which require a higher level of interaction between the user and computer and which therefore require a more extensive graphical user interface. The software applications themselves generally run in such control windows, the program windows.

Menu entries for drop-down menus of graphic user interfaces


A digital broadcasting system and method, where the digital broadcasting system includes: a transmission stream generator multiplexing a normal stream and a turbo stream to generate a dual transmission stream; a transmitter inserting an supplementary reference signal (SRS) into the dual transmission stream, processing the turbo stream to reconstitute the dual transmission stream, and outputting the reconstituted dual transmission stream; and a receiver receiving the reconstituted dual transmission stream, separately turbo decoding the turbo stream, inserting the turbo decode turbo stream into the dual transmission stream, and decoding the dual transmission stream into which the turbo decoded turbo stream has been inserted, to restore normal stream data and turbo stream data. Thus, reception sensitivity of a digital broadcasting signal can be efficiently improved.

1. Field of the Invention
An aspect of the present invention relates to a digital broadcasting system and method using a dual transmission stream including a normal stream and a turbo stream for digital broadcasting, and more particularly, to a digital broadcasting system and method for generating and transmitting a dual transmission stream including a normal stream and a turbo stream to be robustly processed to improve reception sensitivity of an Advanced Television Systems Committee Vestigial Sideband (ATSC VSB) way in a United States terrestrial digital television (DTV) system so as to improve a digital broadcasting performance.
2. Description of the Related Art
An Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) Vestigial Side Band (VSB) system, that is an American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system, is a signal carrier type broadcasting system, and uses a field sync signal in the unit of 312 segments. Accordingly, its reception performance is not good in an inferior channel, and particularly, in a Doppler fading channel.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the construction of a transmitter/receiver of an ATSC DTV standard in a general American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system. The digital broadcast transmitter of FIG. 1 is an enhanced VSB (EVSB) system proposed by Philips, which forms and transmits a dual stream produced by adding robust data to normal data of the basic ATSC VSB system.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the digital broadcast transmitter includes a randomizer 11 randomizing a dual stream, a Reed-Solomon (RS) encoder 12 in the form of a concatenated coder that adds parity bytes to the transport stream in order to correct errors that occur, due to the channel characteristic, in a transport process, an interleaver 13 interleaving the RS-encoded data according to a specified pattern, and a ⅔-rate trellis encoder 14 mapping the interleaved data onto 8-level symbols by performing a ⅔-rate trellis encoding of the interleaved data. The digital broadcast transmitter performs an error correction coding of the dual stream.
The digital broadcast transmitter further includes a multiplexer 15 inserting a field sync signal and a segment sync signal into the error-correction-coded data as illustrated in FIG. 2, and a modulator 16 inserting a pilot tone into the data symbols, into which the segment sync signal and the field sync signal have been inserted by adding a specified DC value to the data symbols, performing a VSB modulation of the data symbols by pulse-shaping the data symbols, and up-converting the modulated data symbols into an RF channel band signal to transmit the RF channel band signal.
In the digital broadcast transmitter, the normal data and the robust data are multiplexed (not illustrated) according to a dual stream system and the normal data and the robust data are transmitted through one channel, and the multiplexed data is inputted to the randomizer 11. The input data is randomized through the randomizer 11, outer-encoded through the RS encoder 12 that is an outer encoder, and then distributed through the interleaver 13.
Also, the interleaved data is inner-encoded in the unit of 12 symbols through the trellis encoder 14, and then mapped onto the 8-level symbols. After the field sync signal and the segment sync signal are inserted into the coded data, the data is VSB-modulated by inserting a pilot tone into the data, and converted into an RF signal.
On the other hand, the digital broadcast receiver of FIG. 1 includes a tuner (not illustrated) converting an RF signal received through a channel into a baseband signal, a demodulator 21 performing a sync detection and demodulation of the converted baseband signal, an equalizer 22 compensating for a channel distortion of the demodulated signal occurring due to a multi-path, a Viterbi decoder 23 correcting errors of the equalized signal and decoding the error-corrected signal to symbol data, a deinterleaver 24 rearranging the data distributed by the interleaver 13 of the digital broadcast transmitter, an RS decoder 25 correcting errors, and a derandomizer 26 derandomizing the data corrected through the RS decoder 25 and outputting an MPEG-2 transport stream.
Accordingly, the digital broadcast receiver of FIG. 1 down-converts the RF signal into the baseband signal, demodulates and equalizes the converted signal, and then channel-decodes the demodulated signal to restore the original signal.
FIG. 2 illustrates a VSB data frame for use in the American type digital broadcasting (8-VSB) system, into which a segment sync signal and a field sync signal are inserted. As shown in FIG. 2, one frame is composed of two fields, and each field is composed of one field sync segment, that is the first segment, and 312 data segments. Also, one segment in the VSB data frame corresponds to one MPEG-2 packet, and is composed of a segment sync signal of four symbols and 828 data symbols.
In FIG. 2, the segment sync signal and the field sync signal are used for the synchronization and equalization in the digital broadcast receiver. That is, the field sync signal and the segment sync signal refer to known data between the digital broadcast transmitter and receiver, which is used as a reference signal when the equalization is performed in the receiver side.
The American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system as illustrated in FIG. 1 is a system that can form and transmit a dual stream produced by adding the robust data to the normal data of the existing ATSC VSB system. This system transmits the robust data together with the existing normal data.
However, the American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system of FIG. 1 has almost no effect in improving the inferior reception performance in a multipath channel due to the transmission of the existing normal data, although the American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system transmits the dual stream produced by adding the robust data to the normal data.
That is, the American type digital terrestrial broadcasting system has almost no effect in improving the reception performance according to the improvement of the normal stream. Also, even with respect to a turbo stream, it does not have a great effect in improving the reception performance in a multipath environment.
In addition, according to the conventional digital broadcasting system, it is impossible to confirm the channel state between a transmitter side and a receiver side.


Provided is a system and method for performing an auto scroll. The system for performing the auto scroll may include an auto scroll determination unit to determine whether to perform the auto scroll on a page, an auto scroll performing unit to perform the auto scroll on the page so that a main text of the page may be obtained with focus, and a page providing unit to output the auto scrolled page. According to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, even though a user does not manually scroll to data of the page to be viewed, the data of the page may automatically be scrolled so that the data may be obtained with focus.

1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a system and method for providing auto scroll, and more particularly, to a system and method for providing auto scroll capable of focusing a main text of a page.
2. Description of the Background
When accessing a website, a main text of a web page including a document is often required to be pushed down because of images incorporated with the web page, typically located on a top portion of the web page of the website. Consequently, a user may need to scroll down the web page using an input device such as a mouse to view the main text of the web page.
Since it is inconvenient to move down the page to verify the main text every time the user accesses the web page, this inconvenience is challenging to the user for accessing the page to visit text messages.
Accordingly, when the main text is pushed down because of the image on the page, a method for directly verifying the main text without being moved to a lower portion of the page by the user is desired.

System and method for performing auto scroll


A method and system for use in combination with a crystal growing apparatus for growing a monocrystalline ingot according to a Czochralski process. The crystal growing apparatus has a heated crucible including a semiconductor melt from which the ingot is pulled. The ingot is grown on a seed crystal pulled from the melt. A time varying external magnetic field is imposed on the melt during pulling of the ingot. The magnetic field is selectively adjusted to produce pumping forces in the melt to control a melt flow velocity while the ingot is being pulled from the melt.

Single crystal silicon, which is the starting material in most processes for fabricating semiconductor electronic components, is commonly prepared according to the so-called Czochralski process. In this process, polycrystalline silicon, or polysilicon, is charged to a crucible and melted, a seed crystal is brought into contact with the molten silicon, and a single crystal ingot is grown by relatively slow extraction. After formation of a neck is complete, decreasing the pulling rate and/or the melt temperature enlarges the diameter of the crystal until a desired or target diameter is reached. The generally cylindrical main body of the crystal, which has an approximately constant diameter, is then grown by controlling the pull rate and the melt temperature while compensating for the decreasing melt level. Near the end of the growth process but before the crucible is emptied of molten silicon, the crystal diameter is gradually reduced to form an end-cone. Typically, increasing the crystal pull rate and heat supplied to the crucible forms the end-cone. When the diameter becomes small enough, the crystal is then separated from the melt.
As in known in the art, molten silicon (at about 1420 degrees Celsius (° C.)) will dissolve the surface of a silica (SiO2) crucible containing the melt. Some of the dissolved silica evaporates from the surface of the melt as SiO (silicon monoxide) while some of the dissolved silica becomes incorporated into the growing crystal. The remainder of the dissolved silica remains in the melt. In this manner, the crucible containing the silicon melt acts as a source of oxygen that is found in silicon crystals grown by the conventional Czochralski technique.
Oxygen in the silicon crystal may have both favorable and unfavorable effects. In the various heat treatment processes during the manufacture of various electrical devices, the oxygen in the crystal may cause crystal defects such as precipitates, dislocation loops, and stacking faults or it may cause electrically active defects resulting in devices with inferior performance characteristics. The solid solution of oxygen in the crystal, however, increases the mechanical strength of silicon wafers, and the crystal defects may improve the yield of conforming products by entrapping contaminants of heavy metals. Accordingly, oxygen content of the silicon crystal is an important factor for product quality that should be carefully controlled in accordance with the ultimate application for the silicon wafers.
The oxygen concentration in a conventional silicon crystal grown under Czochralski conditions prevalent in the industry varies along the length of the crystal. For example, the concentration is typically higher at the seed end than in the middle and/or at the bottom or tang end of the crystal. In addition, oxygen concentration typically varies along the radius of a cross-sectional slice of the crystal.
To address this oxygen control problem, attention has been given to the use of magnetic fields to stabilize convective flows in metal and semiconductor melts for controlling oxygen concentration and radial distribution to remove dopant striation, etc. For example, Lorentz forces, which can be generated in a conductive melt as a function of an induced current and an applied magnetic field may be used to dampen natural convective flow and turbulence. Convective flow or convection refers to the process of heat transfer in a liquid by the movement of the liquid itself.
In general, there are two types of convection: natural convention and forced convection. Natural convection occurs when the movement of the melt is due, for example, to density gradients arising from the presence of heaters. Forced convection occurs when the movement of the melt is due to an external agent such as rotation of the crucible and/or crystal. In the normal Cz process, the melt flow is controlled by the motion of the crucible and the crystal being grown, and by the heat flow in the system. Because the melt is at a high temperature (>1412 C) and there can be large heat fluxes, the temperature gradients in the melt can be large, so thermal convection plays a large role in determining the melt flow, Melt flow in an axisymmetric crystal puller can be described using the components of cylindrical coordinate system (e.g., r, θ, z). For example, forced convection resulting from rotating a crucible 3 generally produces movement of the melt azimuthally in the θ direction (see FIG. 1A), and natural convection generally produces a global thermal convective roll in which melt moves radially in the r direction and vertically in the z direction (see FIG. 1B). As known in the art, and as described in more detail below, the direction of movement of the conductive liquid (i.e., melt) and the shape of the magnetic field being applied to the melt determine the direction of an electric field and/or electric current that will be induced in the melt. When an electric charge (e.g., current) moves in a magnetic field a force will act on that moving charge (i.e., Lenz's Law). In view of these principles, various magnetic field configurations have been used to generate forces in a silicon melt to stabilize convective flows, control oxygen concentration, and to remove dopant striation, etc during a crystal growing process.
There are three conventional types of magnetic field configurations used to stabilize convective flows in conductive melts, namely, axial, horizontal, and cusped.
The axial (or vertical) magnetic field configuration (e.g., see FIG. 2A) has a magnetic field parallel to the crystal-growth direction. In this configuration, movement of the melt in the θ direction induces an electric field in the r direction, but minimal if any current can flow in the melt. However, movement of the melt in the r-z plane as illustrated in FIG. 1B induces currents in the θ direction that flow counterclockwise near the top of the melt and clockwise near the bottom of the melt (e.g., see FIG. 2B). Please note that an "X" appearing on the right side of crucible and a corresponding "." appearing on the left side indicates a counter clockwise direction as viewed from the top of crucible, and an "X" appearing on the left side of crucible and a corresponding "." appearing on the right side indicates a clockwise direction as viewed from the top of the crucible. Since minimal current is induced as a result of movement of the melt in the θ direction, there are minimal, if any, forces produced in the melt to retard melt flow in the θ direction. However, the current induced in the melt as a result of convective flow in the r-z plane produces forces in the melt that retard the melt flow which produced it.
In the horizontal (or transverse) magnetic field configuration (see FIG. 3), two magnetic poles (not shown) are placed in opposition to generate a magnetic field perpendicular to the crystal-growth direction. The horizontal configuration has the advantage of efficiency in damping a convective flow at the melt surface. But its non-uniformity both axially and radially and the complex and bulky setup introduce additional design consideration when applying the horizontal magnetic field configuration in large diameter Czochralski growth processes. In this configuration, the retarding forces are not axisymmetric, so the azimuthal symmetry of the system will be lost.
The cusped magnetic field configuration (e.g., see FIG. 4A) provides some advantages over of the axial and horizontal magnetic field configurations. A pair of coils (not shown) placed coaxially above and below a melt-solid interface and operated in an opposed current mode generates a magnetic field that has a purely radial field component near the melt surface and a purely axial field component near the center of the melt. In this manner, the cusped magnetic field configuration attempts to preserve the azimuthal symmetry at the interface between the melt and the crystal. As used herein, azimuthal symmetry refers to a property having the same values independent of azimuthal position, while having different values at different radial positions. In this configuration, movement of the melt in the θ direction induces an electric field that causes current to flow downward at the edge of the melt and upward in the center (see FIG. 4B), and movement of the melt in the r-z plane as illustrated in FIG. 1B induces currents in the θ direction that flow in counterclockwise direction near the top of the melt and a clockwise direction near the bottom of the melt (see FIG. 4C). The currents induced in the melt as a result of melt flow in the θ direction and r-z plane each produce forces in the melt. The forces produced by the induced electrical currents retard the melt flow which produced the respective currents.
As these conventional magnetic fields are generally limited to retarding melt flow, an improved control of the crystal growth process is desired to address the inability of these conventional magnetic field configurations to selectively generate forces in the melt to accelerate melt flow.

Electromagnetic pumping of liquid silicon in a crystal growing process


A method for producing a luminescence diode chip, in which provision is made of a semiconductor body is provided having an epitaxially grown semiconductor layer sequence having an active zone and a radiation coupling-out area, the active zone emitting an electromagnetic radiation during operation of the luminescence diode, a large part of said electromagnetic radiation being coupled out via the radiation coupling-out area. A luminescence conversion material is arranged downstream of the radiation coupling-out area in an emission direction of the semiconductor body. A radiation-transmissive covering body having a first main area, a second main area opposite to the first main area, and also side areas connecting the first and second main areas. The covering body is applied to the radiation coupling-out area of the semiconductor layer sequence in such a way that the first main area faces the radiation coupling-out area. The application of the covering body is preceded by the application of a first conversion layer, having a luminescence conversion material, to the first main area of the covering body.

A luminescence conversion material is a material having constituents by means of which an electromagnetic radiation emitted by the semiconductor layer sequence during operation of the luminescence diode chip can be converted into a radiation having an altered wavelength.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/204,576 describes a method for producing a light-emitting semiconductor component with a luminescence conversion element. In the case of this method, firstly a semiconductor body is produced, mounted onto a carrier element, and also electrically connected to component terminals. Afterward, a luminescence conversion material is applied directly to at least one surface of the semiconductor body or to an adhesion layer situated there.
If the surface of the semiconductor layer sequence is at least partly uneven, for example roughened, a luminescence conversion material can be applied uniformly directly to said surface only to a limited extent.

Method for producing a luminescence diode chip


A steroid compound of the Formula (1):

Prodrug steroid compounds which themselves do not have steroid-like activities but are converted to active compounds at the site of inflammation have been reported (Non-patent Literature 1, Patent Literature 1). However, although the compounds described in Non-patent Literature 1 and Patent Literature 1 have reduced side effects of steroid compounds, the reduction of side effects is insufficient. In view of this, a compound wherein hydroxyl groups of a simple sugar in a sugar-steroid compound are modified with bulky protective groups was synthesized, and release of steroid was suppressed at other than the site of inflammation, thereby attempting to reduce side effects (Technical Literature 2). Thereafter, compounds whose main effects are better separated from side effects by using as the steroid a metabolizable steroid was discovered (Patent Literature 3, Patent Literature 4).

Abstract: A steroid compound of the Formula (1):

Abstract: [wherein R1 represents a group selected from the group consisting of H, CH3, C2H5, C3H7 and CH (CH3)2, R2 represents a group selected from NH2, NHAc and OCOR1, R3 represents a group selected from the group consisting of CH3, COOCH3 and CH2OCOR1.]


The invention disclosed relates to the end to end system, the methods and apparatuses for delivering message content from publishers to recipients, such recipients being comprised of subscribers and non subscribers, based on the geospatial location of the recipients using a plurality of devices, stationary and mobile, to deliver geospatial location relevant message content to the recipients with dynamic display devices and a means to provide publishers with data and statistics related to recipient observation of message content.

Recipients of publisher message content are inundated with publisher message content from a number of means. The postal service delivers bulk mail at a discount postage rate to allow advertisers, both local and nationwide, to send publisher message content to recipients for their products and services. Radio and television delivers publisher message content, both public and private, to recipients. Telemarketers and political organizations use both land line telephones and cellular phones to deliver message content to recipients as well as gather demographic data. The most recent method to deliver message content is the use of a recipient's email account and even a recipient's business or work email account.
Marketing and advertising is constantly searching for ways and means to deliver publisher message content in a more focused manner in order to optimize results for monies spent on marketing and advertising. For example, marketing and advertising rates for radio and television vary with the time of day and the programming event on radio or television. Stationary signage rates vary with geospatial location, usually based on the traffic flow of people that have visual contact with the signage. These techniques are still based on mass numbers of recipients yielding a very small percentage of results. To better focus on types of recipients, advertising will apply product and service advertisements based on the audience of a radio or television programming event, especially sports programming. This works well for large advertisers but is too expensive for small local businesses that offer sports products and services that would also be applicable to the viewing audience.
As technology evolves, especially in wireless technology, advances in miniaturization, lower power consumption and display technology provides technology enablers that allow for multiple modes of message content as well as delivery methods. Today the modes of message delivery range from simple text messaging to streaming audio and streaming video in the palm of a recipient's hand. The delivery methods range from traditional stationary and mobile static signage to wireless portable devices.
All of the traditional methods to deliver message content deliver results based on the volume of message content delivered to a volume of recipients. These methods are usually not focused on either the recipient's need for the message content or the geospatial location of the recipient which would more easily permit the recipient to take immediate action on the publisher's message content.
Recipients also have a need to find products and services and these needs change with geospatial location and time. This is especially relevant when the recipient is traveling or is at a geospatial location where the recipient does not have familiarity with the local retail infrastructure, surface streets or businesses. In addition, events that occur regarding the recipient also create a recipient's dynamic need for products and services not needed prior to the event.
Publishers spend monies on message content, some of which is seasonal, some of which is market driven, some of which is event driven. For example seasonal items such as clothing, need to purge end of season stock in order to make room for the next season's stock. An example of market driven items, such as a new movie, may only appear at certain theatres. An example of event driven items, such as a gas fired electric generator, may be caused by power outages resulting from a severe storm.
Today recipients are inundated with irrelevant message content yet still have a need for specific message content based on the current needs of the recipient and the recipient's geospatial location. The challenge is how to deliver message content that the recipient needs and allows the recipient to acquire the product or service needed in a timely manner.
The product or service for the recipient can also be provided from the public sector. Emergency information, such as evacuation routes, can be broadcast to both stationary and mobile dynamic display devices. Today Amber Alerts generated by law enforcement on public dynamic display devices could be delivered on private stationary and mobile dynamic display devices dramatically increasing the coverage for public service message delivery.
Existing technology and its components and methods are described hereinafter. The existing state of the art and its components and methods can be seen in the following art.
U.S. Pat. App. 2003/0055725 A1 (hereinafter referred to as the '725 patent application) discloses an end to end system that uses the Internet and wireless portable devices with subscribers. This invention discloses pushing lists of advertisements, converted from advertiser inputs via an advertiser input screen, stored in a database, converted to a format supported by the subscriber's wireless display device from which the subscriber selects advertisements of interest to be further converted and pushed to wireless subscribers.
U.S. Pat. App. 2002/0120518 A1 (hereinafter referred to as the '518 patent application) discloses a system and method for using public display devices in conjunction with kiosks to gather demographic information about the people that would see the display. The kiosks would dispense shopping bags or offer some other form of compensation for viewers entering demographic information. Once demographic information is entered the data base server would display advertisements specific to the demographic data entered at the kiosk. Another embodiment would be using cameras to gather demographic information on gender, race and age to determine what advertisements to display.
U.S. Pat. App. 2002/0087401 A1 (hereinafter referred to as the '401 patent application) discloses a method and system to "broadcast advertising to a mobile communication device". The '401 patent application provides a mobile device driving directions to the advertising sources. FIG. 1 of the 401 patent application also discloses a plurality of "advertising broadcast systems" and not a central system as disclosed by this invention. FIG. 3 of the 401 patent application discloses GPS used as a locating means for display booths and the mobile device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,848,397 (hereinafter referred to as the '397 patent) discloses a method and apparatus for displaying advertising content on a client's computer system using email delivery. The '397 patent discloses a client submitting a profile that determines advertising content scheduled for the client.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,228,341 (hereinafter referred to as the '341 patent) discloses a method whereby there are five different scheduling algorithms for scheduling the play back of audio or video. The content is scheduled on a plurality of media player units each controlled by a player controller. The '341 patent relates to the scheduling methods for content on "media players." The invention allows publishers to determine the start date, start time, end date, end time, interval, duration and geospatial location of the stationary or mobile dynamic display devices for message content to recipients.
U.S. Pat. App. 2003/0080999 (hereinafter referred to as the '999 patent application) discloses a method and apparatus for the delivery of advertising content to a plurality of "media outlets" including all traditional forms of advertising, printed and electronic. The '999 patent application has the concept of a "seller interface" and a "buyer interface" and resembles an E-commerce system whereby sellers create advertisements, manage inventory and process electronic orders from buyers.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,009,409 (hereinafter referred to as the '409 patent) discloses "A system and method for scheduling and controlling delivery of advertising in a communications network and a communications network and remote computer program employing the system or the method." The '409 patent discloses in FIGS. 1-3 a method if displaying advertising content on a region of the screen of a computer monitor.
U.S. Pat. App. 2001/0003846 (hereinafter referred to as the '846 patent application) discloses using a Web server to distribute streaming media to home computers and being able to originate content from a home computer notated as "Home Based Processing Unit." There is no disclosure in the '846 patent application related to geospatial location based message.
U.S. Pat. App. 2002/0178445 A1 (hereinafter referred to as the '445 patent application) discloses in FIG. 1 the subscriber receiving advertisements on their home television or home computer and there is no illustration or disclosure of the subscriber receiving advertisement by portable wireless display devices or public dynamic display devices, stationary or mobile. The '445 patent discloses and claims a method for displaying advertising to subscribers based on either displaying an advertising guide menu or receiving a subscriber request for an advertisement to be stored for display when available.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,286,029 (hereinafter referred to as the '029 patent) discloses an intermediate server between kiosk computers and advertisers. According to the '029 patent this allows the kiosks to passively obtain content from multiple advertisers allowing the kiosk to be a more simple computer. In addition the intermediate server isolates the kiosks from direct access to the Internet allowing only appropriate content being displayed on the kiosk.
The enabling technology components and methods are described next. Dynamic digital display technology for outdoor use has several technology challenges: 1) Outdoor conditions have a wide dynamic range of ambient lighting conditions from darkness to full sunlight which challenges illuminated signage to be seen by the human eye, especially full sunlight. Large outdoor dynamic digital displays have typically been so expensive that they have only been used for special locations such as stadiums and casinos; 2) Outdoor dynamic digital displays must be ruggedized to survive the ambient conditions of outdoor temperatures and humidity; 3) Outdoor dynamic digital displays for billboard applications must be able to be manufactured in large form factors, be flexible to conform to uneven surfaces and be serviceable.
U.S. Pat. App. 2009/0146919 A1 (Hereinafter referred to as the '919 patent application) discloses a large scale LED display invention that solves the problems with dynamic digital displays described above. The '919 patent application also discloses "For example, where the center-to-center spacing between adjacent LED modules is 50 mm or greater, one or more red, one or more blue and one or more green LEDs can provide a light output for the display of 5,000 nits or greater depending upon the flux density of the LEDs so that the display 10 is suitable for use outdoors in sunlight."
Locating portable wireless communication devices indoors, particularly in reinforced buildings and subterranean structures, currently relies on wireless triangulation and/or Time Distance Of Arrival (TDOC) cellular techniques. The accuracy is poor and is directly proportional to tower density and the affects of multipath, caused by distortion effects on wireless signals. Inertial Navigation Systems (INS) would normally be used as a means of dead reckoning, but are typically large and very expensive and have poor performance at low acceleration rates such as walking/jogging/running. INS systems also consume a lot of power which is not desirable for portable devices. Accelerometers alone only provide linear rates of acceleration. To obtain rotational changes, such as a change in direction, gyroscopes must be used, again suffering from the same problems as accelerometers. Compass devices have been used to substitute compass heading changes as a means for determining a change in direction, but indoors, especially in reinforced buildings, the metal distorts magnetic fields and the compass solution has a high error factor.
U.S. Pat. App. 2009/0326851 (hereinafter referred to as the '851 patent application) discloses Micro Electronic Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology applied to accelerometers and gyroscopes that has a small form factor, high accuracy that can dead reckon a person walking and consumes low power.
U.S. Pat. App. 2002/0194914 (hereinafter referred to as the '914 patent application) discloses "Inertial trackers have been successfully applied to a wide range of head mounted display (HMD) applications including virtual environment training, VR gaming and even fixed-base vehicle simulation, in which they have gained widespread acceptance due to their superior resolution and low latency."
A commercial example of this miniature INS technology can be found in a product named NavChip™. The NavChip™ product sheet states: "At roughly the size of a penny, the NavChip™ employs ground breaking MEMS technology to provide unprecedented low noise and stability. As the industry's first commercial IMU chip, the NavChip represents a 12-fold improvement in angular random walk and a 6-fold improvement in bias in-run stability compared to previous commercial-grade MEMS IMUs. This device claims less than 1% linear drift over distance traveled resulting in an accuracy of 10 meters for every Km traveled. The power consumption is 120 mW. Therefore the size, power consumption and error rate make it capable of accurately dead reckoning a portable wireless display device indoors. With a rotational error of 0.5%, accurate headings are also available.
U.S. Pat. App. 2008/0144264 (hereinafter referred to as the '264 patent application) discloses an invention that relates to a three part housing a wireless communication device that can be head worn with a multimedia display that flips up to provide a visor.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,454,290 (hereinafter referred to as the '290 patent) discloses a combined GPS (Global Positioning System) and INS (Inertial Navigation System) to determine the attitude (location, elevation & orientation) of a vehicle. The 290 patent in the "SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION" states: "This invention provides a low cost and robust GPS-INS attitude system for vehicles."
U.S. Pat. No. 6,031,454 (Hereinafter referred to as the '454 patent) discloses a UHF antenna based system that describes a radar responsive tag that utilizes very low power, has better azimuth and range precision that cellular CDMA methods, better penetration into subterranean and reinforced buildings, is less influenced by multipath errors and has a very small faun factor.
Recognition of images, as opposed to character (text) recognition such as OCR (Optical Character Recognition), as is known in the art, is not commonplace, especially for 3 dimensional aspects. An advertiser that desires confirmation that advertising content has been acknowledged by a viewer has few means to obtain this information electronically.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,639,881 (hereinafter referred to as the '881 patent) discloses a method for performing visual recognition tasks for image recognition in two dimensions. The 881 patent states: "The subject invention relates generally to recognition, and more particularly to systems and methods that employ grammatical parsing to facilitate in visual recognition tasks." The invention disclosed herein uses visual recognition as a resident application on portable wireless display devices both hand held and head mounted.
Clearly, there is a need for an improved end to end system for message content delivery based on the current geospatial location of the recipient for both private and public publishers of message content that improves the current state of the art. Additionally, there is a need to provide this new capability to small businesses and individuals as well as traditional advertising companies and large businesses.


Disclosed is a transgenic knockout mouse whose genome has a homozygous disruption in its endogenous Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes, wherein the disruptions result in a decrease in GPX activity in the transgenic mice when compared to non transgenic mice of the same type. Methods for production of the mouse are presented. Also disclosed are cells derived from the transgenic knockout mouse. The invention further provides a mouse model for the disorders of ileitis, colitis,inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and myeloleukemia. The mouse can be used in a method for identifying therapeutic agents for the treatment of an individual diagnosed with one or more of said disorders.

The present invention is directed towards specific double knockout(DKO) animals and their use as animal models. More specifically, the double knockout animals contain a disruption in the genes encoding GPX-1 and GPX-GI. Corresponding cells which are amenable to tissue culture are also part of the invention, as are methods of using such cells, including their use as a tool for identifying therapeutic agents. In addition, the invention is directed towards a mouse model of cancer of the small bowel.
Selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidases (GPXs) are a family of enzymes that are most efficient in the reduction of hydroperoxides. At the present time there are four known selenoproteins with GPX activity. These include the classical ubiquitous GPX-1, GPX-GI, the secreted GPX-P, and PHGPX (Ursini, F., Heim, S., Kiess, M., Maiorino, M., Roveri, A., Wissing, J. and Flohe, L. (1999) Science 285, 1393-6). These GPX isozymes are encoded by four distinct genes, the Gpx1 gene for GPX-1, the Gpx2 gene for GPX-GI, the Gpx3 gene for GPX-P, and the Gpx4 gene for PHGPX (Chu, F. F. (1994) Cytogenet Cell Genet 66, 96-8). The GPX-1 and GPX-GI isozymes have very similar properties including substrate specificity and cytosolic localization (Chu, F. F., Doroshow, J. H. and Esworthy, R. S. (1993) J. Biol Chem 268, 2571-6; Esworthy, R. S., Swiderek, K. M., Ho, Y. S. and Chu, F. F. (1998) Biochim Biophys Acta 1381,213-26). The unique feature of GPX-GI is its high levels of expression in the epithelium of the GI-tract. GPX-P is found in body fluids such as plasma, lung and GI-tract (Tham, D. M., Whitin, J. C., Kim, K. K., Zhu, S. X. and Cohen, H. J. (1998) Am J Physiol 275, G1463-71; Kim, K. K., Whitin, J. C., Sukhova, N. M. and Cohen, H. J. (1999) Pediatr Res 46, 715-21). PHGPX is present at a high level in testis and is implicated in sperm maturation (1, Roveri, A., Casasco, A., Maiorino, M., Dalan, P., Cafligaro, A. and Ursini, F. (1992) J Biol Chem 267, 6142-6). PHGPX is present in low level in the GI-tract (Chu, F. F. and Esworthy, R. S. (1995) Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 323, 288-94). Both GPX-P and PHGPX can reduce phospholipid and cholesterol hydroperoxides, while the latter is a more efficient enzyme at reducing these substrates (Thomas, J. P., Maiorino, M., Ursini, F. and Girotti, A. W. (1990) J. Biol. Chem. 265, 454-6 1; Esworthy, R. S., Chu, F. F., Geiger, P., Girotti, A. W. and Doroshow, J. H. (1993) Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 307, 29-34).
It is known that knockout (KO) mice homozygous for disruption of single Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes (i.e., Gpx1-KO and Gpx2-KO mice) display little pathology without additional stress (Ho, Y. S., Magnenat, J. L., Bronson, R. T., Cao, J., Gargano, M., Sugawara, M. and Funk, C. D. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272, 16644-51; Esposito, L. A., Kokoszka, J. E., Waymire, K. G., Cottrell, B., MacGregor, G. R. and Wallace, D.C. (2000) Free Radic. Biol. Med. 28, 754-66; Esworthy, R. S., Mann, J. R., Sam, M. and Chu, F. (2000) Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 279, G426-G436.). However, aged Gpx1-KO mice display spontaneous weight loss (Esposito, L. A., Kokoszka, J. E., Waymire, K. G., Cottrell, B., MacGregor, G. R. and Wallace, D.C. (2000) Free Radic. Biol. Med. 28, 754-66). For example, the Gpx1 gene is expressed ubiquitously and is highly expressed in the erythrocyte, liver, and kidney. The antioxidant function of GPX-1 is revealed in Gpx1-KO mice especially after treatment with prooxidant chemicals. An increased level of H2O2 is produced from liver mitochondria in older (5-6 month) Gpx1-KO mice compared with that from wildtype mice without any treatment. GPX-1 can prevent lipid peroxidation induced by paraquat herbicide or measured in liver and lung and protect cortical neurons against H2O2 (Cheng, W. H., Ho, Y. S., Valentine, B. A., Ross, D. A., Combs, G. F., Jr. and Lei, X. G. (1998) J. Nutr. 128,1070-6; de Haan, J. B., Bladier, C., Griffiths, P., Kelner, M., O""Shea, R. D., Cheung, N. S., Bronson, R. T., Silvestro, M. J., Wild, S., Zheng, S. S., Beart, P. M., Hertzog, P. J. and Kola, 1. (1998) J. Biol. Chem. 273, 22528-36). The Gpx1-KO mice are more susceptible to neurotoxic agents as malonate, 3-nitropropionic acid, and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,5,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) in the brain (Klivenyi, P., Andreassen, O. A., Ferrante, R. J., Dedeoglu, A., Mueller, G., Lancelot, E., Bogdanov, M., Andersen, J. K., Jiang, D. and Beal, M. F. (2000) J. Neurosci. 20, 1-7). Malonate induces hydroxyl radical generation while MPP+, the active metabolite of MPTP, inhibits mitochondrial complex I activity (Tipton, K. F. and Singer, T. P. (1993) J Neurochem 61, 1191-206). Since these neurotoxins produce oxidative stress and impair energy production, GPX-1 is implicated in protection against oxidative damage.
Depending on the type of insult, lack of GPX activity can also be beneficial under certain circumstances. Mice overexpressing GPX-1 and GPX-P have low levels of peroxides and prostaglandins and are more sensitive to hyperthermia (Mirochnitchenko, O., Palnitkar, U., Philbert, M. and Inouye, M. (1995) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92, 8120-4). We have found that the jejunum crypt of Gpx1-KO mice regenerates better than that in the wildtype after exposure to high dose xcex3-irradiation (Esworthy, R. S., Mann, J. R., Sam, M. and Chu, F. (2000) Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol 279, G426). Perhaps the higher level of GPX-GI in the Gpx1-KO mouse intestine are directly responsible for crypt regeneration. Furthermore, the lack of GPX activity in the Gpx1-KO mouse can be protective against kainic acid-induced limbic seizures and neurodegeneration (Jiang, D., Akopian, G., Ho, Y. S., Walsh, J. P. and Andersen, J. K. (2000) Exp. Neurol. 164, 257-68). This appears to result from decreased receptor function for N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), since kainic acid induces NMDA-dependent seizure. Increased GPX activity in mice overexpressing the Gpx1 gene may have enhanced carcinogenic response in skin treated with 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene and 2-0-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (Lu, Y. P., Lou, Y. R., Yen, P., Newmark, H. L., Nfirochnitchenko, 0. I., Inouye, M. and Huang, M. T. (1997) Cancer Res. 57, 1468-74). The mechanism of the pro-carcinogenic activity is not known but it is apparent that elevated antioxidant activity can be debilitating, depending on the type of insult.
GPX activity is also implicated in protection against infectious agents. For example, Jaeschke et al. have found that Gpx1-KO mice are more susceptible to neutrophil-mediated parenchymal cell injury during endotoxemia (Jaeschke, H., Ho, Y. S., Fisher, M. A., Lawson, J. A. and Farhood, A. (1999) Hepatology 29,443-50). The galactosamine/endotoxin induced acute liver failure involves neutrophils and GPX protects hepatocytes against peroxides generated by infiltrated neutrophils in the liver. It has also previously been shown that Gpx1-KO mice are more susceptible to coxsackievirus-induced myocarditis (Beck, M. A., Esworthy, R. S., Ho, Y. S. and Chu, F. F. (1998) Faseb J. 12,1143-9). Viral antibody titers in the Gpx1-KO mice are less than 20% of those found in the wildtype mice, suggesting that cellular immune response is impaired in the Gpx1-KO mice.
Gpx2-KO mice have also recently been generated and these mice appear to be normal (Esworthy et al., Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 279, G426-G436). Unlike the Gpx1 gene, which is expressed ubiquitously, the Gpx2 gene is expressed specifically in epithelium. The Gpx2 gene is highly expressed in the gastrointestinal tract, and is also present in the breast, lung, and human liver (Chu, F. F., Doroshow, J. H. and Esworthy, R. S. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 2571-6; Chu, F. F., Esworthy, R. S., Lee, L. and Wilczynski, S. (1999) J. Nutr. 129, 1846-1854). In the GI-epithelium, GPX-1 and GPX-GI contribute to most of GPX activity (Esworthy, R. S., Swiderek, K. M., Ho, Y. S. and Chu, F. F. (1998) Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 1381,213-26.). The lack of pathology in Gpx2-KO mice is not unexpected, since the Gpx2 gene has limited tissue expression, the Gpx1 gene is co-expressed in tissues expressing the Gpx2 gene, and GPX-1 and GPX-GI have similar biochemical and cellular properties.
Reactive oxidative species are implicated to play an important role in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which is caused, at least in part, by bacterial infection (Panwala, C. M., Jones, J. C. and Viney, J. L. (1998) J Immunol 161, 5733-44; Madsen, K. L., Doyle, J. S., Tavemini, M. M., Jewell, L. D., Rennie, R. P. and Fedorak, R. N. (2000) Gastroenterology 118, 1094-105; Sands, B. E. (2000) Gastroenterology 118, S68-82). IBD consists of two disorders that have similar symptoms, i.e., ulcerative colitis and Crohn""s disease. Although elevated H2O2 is detected in IBD (Simmonds, N. J., Allen, R. E., Stevens, T. R., Van Someren, R. N., Blake, D. R. and Rampton, U. S. (1992) Gastroenterology 103, 186-96; Keshavarzian, A., Sedghi, S., Kanofsky, J., List, T., Robinson, C., Ibrahim, C. and Winship, D. (1992) Gastroenterology 103,177-85)., the protective effect of GPX against IBD has not yet been established. Elevated GPX activity in red blood cells and/or plasma found in IBD patients is implicated against the protective role of GPX in IBD (Thomas, A. G., Miller, V., Shenkin, A., Fell, G. S. and Taylor, F. (1994) J. Pediatr. Gastroenterot. Nutr. 19, 213-9; Offenberg, E. I., Deutsch, J., Smith, S. and Sokol, R. J. (1997) Am J Clin Nutr 65, 1482-8. 31. Rannem, T., Ladefoged, K., Hylander, E., Hegnhoj, J. and Jarnum, S. (1992) Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 56, 933-7). Although selenium-deficiency is commonly present in those patients with severe gastrointestinal disorders (31; Rannem, T., Ladefoged, K., Hylander, E., Hegnhoj, J. and Staun, M. (1998) Scand J Gastroenterol 33, 1057-61), this is believed to result from IBD rather than contributing to IBD.
The evaluation of chemical compounds for potential efficacy as human therapeutics necessitates data and information of a compound""s efficacy in vivo. Ideally, the in vivo system would be human but ethical and pragmatic reasons prevent such data from being accumulated. As an alternative, many laboratory animals provide satisfactory systems for screening potential therapeutics for treating human physiological disorders. Recent advances in recombinant DNA technology have enabled researchers to genetically manipulate the genomes of animals to enhance such animal model systems. For example, the technique of transgenic generation have been utilized to produce knockout mice that do not express a particular endogenous gene.
There presently exists a need for animal models which can be utilized to study the physiological function of GPX activity in the GI-tract. One approach to generate a useful model for such studies would be double knockout (double-KO) mice with a combined disruption of both alleles of each of the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes.
In accordance with the present invention, an animal model is provided for studying the significance of GPX-1 and GPX-GI, in particular with regard to how these two gene products interact in animal physiology.
In one aspect, the invention provides a transgenic animal deficient in both GPX-1 and GPX-GI activity. In a preferred embodiment, the animal is a mouse. The deficiency is a result of a homozygous double knockout of the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes in said transgenic mouse.
In another aspect, the invention provides an animal model for the study of pathophysiological function of GPX activity in the ileum and colon in mammals. We have found that the homozygous double-KO mice of the present invention can exhibit symptoms associated with ileitis, colitis, growth retardation, hypothermia, wasting syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer in the lower GI-tract and leukemia.
In one aspect, the invention provides an animal model for the study of the degree of functional redundancy of GPX-1 and GPX-GI in the ileum and colon in mammals.
In one embodiment, the invention provides transgenic mice which have a homozygous knockout of the Gpx1 gene in said transgenic mice, together with a heterozygous knockout of one allele of the Gpx2 gene. The invention thus provides an animal model for the study of the degree of functional redundancy of GPX-1 and GPX-GI in the ileum and colon.
In another embodiment, the invention provides transgenic mice which have a homozygous knockout of the Gpx2 gene, together with a heterozygous knockout of one allele of the Gpx1 gene in said transgenic mice. The invention thus provides another animal model for the study of the degree of functional redundancy of GPX-1 and GPX-GI in the ileum and colon.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a transgenic double knockout mouse whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of the endogenous Gpx1 gene and a homozygous disruption of the endogenous Gpx2 gene (a transgenic double knockout Gpx1/Gpx2 mouse), wherein each disruption comprises the insertion of a transgene, and wherein the combined disruptions result in a decreased level of GPX-1 and GPX-GI production and decreased number of cells producing GPX-I and GPX-GI in the transgenic mouse as compared to a nontransgenic mouse.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a transgenic double knockout Gpx1/Gpx2 mouse which exhibits a physiological disease, symptom or symptoms selected from the group consisting of ileitis, colitis, hypothermia, decreased rate of weight gain, perianal ulceration, diarrhea, wasting syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer of the ileum and myeloleukemia.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a cell or cells isolated from any of the following: a double knockout Gpx1/Gpx2 transgenic mouse, a transgenic mouse having a heterozygous knockout of the Bpx1 gene and a heterozygous knockout of the Gpx2 gene, a transgenic mouse having a homozygous knockout of the Gpx1 gene and a heterozygous knockout of one allele of the Gpx2 gene and a transgenic mouse having a homozygous knockout of the Gpx2 gene and a heterozygous knockout of one allele of the Gpx1.
In one embodiment, the invention provides a transgenic double knockout Gpx1/Gpx2 mouse which further comprises a mouse which is germ free.
In another embodiment, the invention provides the double knockout of the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes in mice having different genetic backgrounds. The invention thus provides means to identify other genes that affect the severity of ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease symptoms and progression to cancer.
In another embodiment, the invention provides the double knockout of the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes in a genetic background of a B6 mouse.
In another aspect, the invention provides a method of selecting an agent for treating a metabolic disorder selected from the group consisting of: ileitis, colitis, hypothermia, decreased rate of weight gain, perianal ulceration, diarrhea, wasting syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and myeloleukemia comprising:
(a) measuring a symptom in a knockout mouse whose genome is manipulated to comprise a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes, wherein the disruption of both the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes results in said knockout mouse exhibiting one of said disease, symptom or symptoms;
(b) administering an agent to said mouse;
(c) measuring one or more of said symptoms in the mouse after administering the agent; and
(d) comparing at least one of said symptoms in the mouse before and after administering the agent, wherein a decrease in said disease, symptom or symptoms after administering the agent indicates the agent is an agent for treating said disease, symptom or symptoms associated with a metabolic disorder.
In another embodiment, the method of observing the effects of treatment of a disease, symptom or symptoms in double-KO Gpx1 and Gpx2 transgenic mice by administering an agent is observed and compared in double-KO Gpx1 and Gpx2 mice having different genetic backgrounds. The method comprises:
(a) measuring a symptom in a first double knockout mouse having a first genetic background, whose genome is manipulated to comprise a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes, wherein the disruption of both the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes results in said knockout mouse exhibiting a disease, symptom or symptoms selected from the group consisting of: ileitis, colitis, hypothermia, decreased rate of weight gain, perianal ulceration, diarrhea, wasting syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and myeloleukemia;
(b) measuring said symptom in a second double knockout mouse having a second genetic background, whose genome is manipulated to comprise a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes, wherein the disruption of both the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes results in said knockout mouse exhibiting at least one of said disease, symptom or symptoms;
(c) administering an agent to said first and second mouse;
(d) measuring one or more of said symptoms in the first and second mouse after administering the agent; and
(e) comparing at least one of said symptoms in said first and second mouse before and after administering the agent, wherein a decrease in said disease, symptom or symptoms after administering the agent indicates the agent is an agent for treating said disease, symptom or symptoms associated with a metabolic disorder.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a method of observing the effects of treatment of a disease, symptom or symptoms in single and Gpx 1/Gpx 2 double knockout transgenic mice in mice with a B6 genetic background or in hybrid mice having a xc2xd B6, xc2xc 129 SvJ and xc2xc 129S3 genetic background.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a method of selecting an agent that modulates GPX enzyme activity comprising:
(a) administering an agent to a first group of isolated mouse intestinal epithelial cells and not to a second group of mouse intestinal epithelial cells, wherein the genome of both the first and second isolated mouse cell groups has been manipulated to comprise a homozygous disruption of both alleles of the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes, and wherein the homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes prevents expression of functional GPX proteins; and
(b) determining the amount of GPX enzyme activity of the first and second cell groups, wherein a difference in the amount of proliferation of the first cell group as compared to the second cell group indicates that the agent modulates GPX enzyme activity. In another embodiment the isolated cells can be observed for a change in level of expression of a marker associated with cancer.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a transgenic animal whose genome contains a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes, wherein said animal develops cancer.
In another embodiment, the invention provides an animal model for the development of ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia. The model comprises a transgenic animal whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of the endogenous Gpx1 gene and a homozygous disruption of the endogenous Gpx2 gene, wherein disruption of the Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes is sufficient to effect one or more signs or symptoms in the animal associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia.
The invention further provides a method to screen for potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia. The method comprises the steps of: a) administering a potential therapeutic agent to a first transgenic animal whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes; b) maintaining the animal for a time sufficient to permit the detection of a change in one or more signs or symptoms in the animal associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the transgenic animal; c) observing the animal for a change in at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, wherein a second transgenic animal having the same genetic background as the first transgenic animal and whose genome also comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes has been maintained under the same conditions as the first animal but has not received the potential therapeutic agent; and d) determining whether one or more signs or symptoms associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia is present in the second transgenic animal but not in the first transgenic animal; wherein a potential therapeutic agent will be one that causes a lower incidence of at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first transgenic animal.
The invention further provides a method to screen for potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia. The method comprises the steps of: a) administering a potential therapeutic agent to an isolated first cell from a first transgenic animal whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes; b) maintaining the cell for a time sufficient to permit the detection of a change in one or more signs or symptoms in the first cell associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first cell; c) observing the first cell for a change in at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, wherein a second cell from a second transgenic animal having the same genetic background as the first transgenic animal and whose genome also comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes has been maintained under the same conditions as the first cell but has not been exposed to the potential therapeutic agent; and d) determining whether one or more signs or symptoms associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia is present in the second transgenic cell but not in the first transgenic cell; wherein a potential therapeutic agent will be one that causes a lower incidence of at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first transgenic cell.
The invention further provides a method for assessing the therapeutic effect of a heterologous gene of interest on the development of ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, which comprises the steps of: expressing a heterologous gene of interest in a first transgenic animal whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes; maintaining the first transgenic animal for a time sufficient to permit the detection of one or more signs or symptoms in the first transgenic animal associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first transgenic animal; observing the first transgenic animal for a change in at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, wherein a second transgenic animal comprising a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes does not express the gene of interest, wherein the second transgenic animal has been maintained under the same conditions as the first transgenic animal; and determining whether one or more signs or symptoms associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia is present in the second animal, wherein a gene of interest which reduces the sign or symptom will be one that causes a lower incidence of at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first animal.
The invention further provides a method of identifying one or more marker genes or proteins associated with ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, which comprises the steps of: expressing the marker gene or protein in a first transgenic animal whose genome comprises a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes; maintaining the first transgenic animal for a time sufficient to permit the detection a change in one or more signs or symptoms in the first transgenic animal associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first transgenic animal; observing the first transgenic animal for a change in at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia, wherein a second transgenic animal comprising a homozygous disruption of both the endogenous Gpx1 gene and Gpx2 genes does not express the marker gene or protein, wherein the second transgenic animal has been maintained under the same conditions as the first transgenic animal; and determining whether one or more signs or symptoms associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia is present in the first transgenic animal, wherein a marker gene or protein associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia will be one that causes a higher incidence of at least one sign or symptom associated with ileitis, colitis, inflammatory bowel disease, ileal cancer and or myeloleukemia in the first animal.
In particularly preferred embodiments, the first and second transgenic animals utilized in the methods of the invention are mice.

Mice with combined disruption of Gpx1 and Gpx2 genes have growth retardation, hypothermia, and colitis and provide a mouse model for cancer


Disclosed is a polymeric orthopaedic bearing material for use as an implant material or part thereof comprising one or more crosslinked regions and one or more non-crosslinked or substantially non-crosslinked regions at the surface. The bearing material can be prepared from a crosslinkable polymer, e.g., ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene. The orthopaedic bearing material has an advantageous combination of at least one wear property and at least one mechanical property. Also disclosed are processes for producing orthopaedic bearing materials, for example, by irradiating a raw material in consolidated form through a radiation mask having a perforated pattern for crosslinking selected regions of the raw material, and optionally shaping the raw material into a bearing material. Alternatively, a pulsed radiation beam can be used for crosslinking.

The invention relates in general to a polymeric orthopaedic bearing material for use as an implant or an implant part, and in particular to an orthopaedic bearing material made of ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). The bearing material has an advantageous combination of wear or abrasion resistance and toughness.
Implants have been used to replace parts of the human body, e.g., the hip, the knee, and the extremity joints. In an implant, the bearing material having a bearing surface is paired with an opposing metal or ceramic component. Polymeric materials, for example, UHMWPE, have been used for producing bearing materials. The high molecular weight of the polymer imparts certain desirable characteristics such as high impact strength and abrasion resistance. However, the bearing material, even when made of UHMWPE, wears due to use over time and, as a result, introduces debris, e.g., microscopic wear particles, into the surrounding tissues. The body's reactions to the debris can involve inflammation and deterioration of the affected tissues. In particular, the bone to which the prosthesis or implant is anchored can deteriorate and become inflamed. Eventually, the prosthesis may become painfully loose in which case it must be replaced. It is generally accepted by orthopaedic surgeons and biomaterials scientists that the reaction of the affected tissue to wear debris is one of the major causes of long-term failure of such prostheses.
Crosslinking of the polymer, e.g., by the use of ionizing radiation such as gamma radiation or e-beam or of plasma gases, has been proposed for improving the wear resistance of implants. While crosslinking improves the wear resistance, it also tends to lower one or more of the desirable mechanical properties. In particular, crosslinking tends to lower the toughness of the bearing material resulting in a greater susceptibility to mechanical failure of the implant. Crosslinking, for example, by irradiation, can also change the color of the bearing material. It is believed that the change in color and/or mechanical properties may be due to oxidation of the polymer chains leading to a decrease in polymer molecular weight. The ionizing radiation breaks molecular bonds, resulting in polymer chain scission, and creates free radicals that are highly reactive species. With the passage of time, the severed chains can recombine, crosslink with adjacent chains, or combine with other species such as oxygen. In the presence of oxygen, the severed chain is also likely to form an oxygenated species which is then not able to form crosslinks or recombine, resulting in a reduction of molecular weight. It is believed that the reduction in molecular weight causes a reduction in one or more mechanical properties, e.g., toughness, impact strength, or tensile strength, and can in severe cases cause embrittlement.
Further, some of the free radicals formed during irradiation are not capable of reacting in a short time frame due to their remote location within the polymer structure and thus can exist as isolated free radicals for long periods of time. These isolated free radicals are therefore difficult to neutralize during the manufacture of the bearing material. However, even these free radicals eventually react as a result of migration of oxygen or other reactive species to such remote locations over time, which can also lead to time-dependent degradation of the properties.
Approaches have been pursued to stabilize or neutralize the free radicals. For example, in one approach, the use of vitamin E has been proposed to stabilize the free radicals. Thus, a vitamin E-treated UHMWPE bearing material is irradiated to obtain a crosslinked bearing material. A disadvantage of this approach is that the entire bearing material, i.e., the surface and the body, is irradiated. As a result, some of the mechanical properties of the bearing material are compromised. In addition, the presence of vitamin E in an irradiated polymer can impart a strong yellow-brown color to the material which is aesthetically undesirable.
In another approach, it has been proposed to crosslink the entire articular surface of the bearing material. Since the crosslinked surface layer has reduced impact strength, a disadvantage of this approach is that the crosslinked surface layer could be damaged or worn through relatively easily, thereby exposing the underlying polymer which has a poor wear resistance. In addition, the surface layer can act as an initiation point for other mechanical failures.
In yet another approach, UHMWPE powder is irradiated to obtain a crosslinked powder, which is then blended with non-crosslinked UHMWPE powder, and the resulting blend is molded into a bearing material. This approach produces a bearing material, which contains throughout its thickness, discrete crosslinked polymer domains or particles surrounded by a non-crosslinked matrix. A disadvantage of this approach is that it can be difficult to obtain good adhesion between the crosslinked particles or domains and the non-crosslinked particles or matrix. If the proportion of the crosslinked powder is increased to obtain improvement in wear resistance, some of the mechanical properties of the resulting bearing material could become poor.
The foregoing shows that there exists a need for bearing materials having an advantageous combination of at least one wear property and at least one mechanical property. The invention provides such a bearing material.


Described herein are in vitro-transcribed (IVT) RNA molecules comprising, a 5′ cap structure, a coding region encoding an antigen polypeptide, an immunostimulatory RNA sequence, and a poly(A) tail.

Vertebrate immunity is divided into two arms: the adaptive immune system and the innate immune system, which work synergistically to mount an effective and sustained defense against pathogens. While the adaptive immune system takes days to produce a custom antibody response, the innate immune system initiates an immediate response that is more nonspecific in comparison and mounted in the first minutes and hours after pathogen exposure (Iwasaki and Medzhitov, 2015). A set of cellular sensors, known as "pattern-recognition receptors" (PRRs) are a major component of the innate immune system. PRRs are localized to a variety of subcellular compartments and can detect specific pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) that are unique to pathogens and not found in the host. For example, members of the toll-like receptor family (TLRs) are localized to endosomal compartments, and each TLR subtype recognizes a distinct PAMP, such as single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) (recognized by TLR7/8) or double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) (recognized by TLR3), among others (Chow et al., 2015). Another family of PRRs, the RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs), are localized to the cytosol and detect dsRNA.

Enhanced immunogenicity of mRNA with co-encoded adjuvant sequences

President and Fellows of Harvard College


A vehicle crash barrier for decelerating a vehicle that has left a roadway includes an elongated frame having a number of sections including a front section and at least one additional section arranged end to end along an axial direction. The frame is configured to collapse when axially struck on the front section by a vehicle. A wire cable extends generally parallel to the frame and has a forward end portion anchored independently of the frame and a rearward end portion. Friction brakes are mounted to the front section for engaging the wire cable to generate a retarding force to decelerate a vehicle as the brake moves along the wire cable during collapse of the frame following impact of the vehicle against the front section. Each section includes a pair of side panels, and axially adjacent side panels are connected by a flexible tension strap by fasteners. The tension strap operates to peel the fasteners out of the side panels during axial collapse. The front section is releasably secured to a ground anchor by a directionally sensitive breakaway assembly.

This invention relates to an improved vehicle crash barrier for decelerating a vehicle that has left a roadway.
Crash barriers are commonly employed alongside roadways to stop a vehicle that has left the roadway in a controlled manner, so as to limit the maximum deceleration to which the occupants of the vehicle are subjected. Additionally, such crash barriers can be struck from the side in a lateral impact, and it is important that the crash barrier have sufficient strength to redirect a laterally impacting vehicle.
A number of prior art approaches have been suggested for such crash barriers employing an axially collapsible frame having compression resistant elements disposed one behind the other in the frame. Young U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,115, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, provides an early example of one such system. This system includes a frame made up of an axially oriented array of segments, each having a diaphragm extending transverse to the axial direction and a pair of side panels positioned to extend rearwardly from the diaphragm. Energy absorbing elements (in this example water filled flexible cylindrical elements) are mounted between the diaphragms. During an axial impact the diaphragms deform the energy absorbing elements, thereby causing water to be accelerated to absorb the kinetic energy of the impacting vehicle. Axially oriented cables are positioned on each side of the diaphragms to maintain the diaphragms in axial alignment during an impact.
Other examples of such crash barriers are shown in Walker U.S. Pat. No. 3,944,187 and Walker U.S. Pat. No. 3,982,734, both assigned to the assignee of this invention. These systems also include a collapsible frame made up of an axially oriented array of diaphragms with side panels mounted to the diaphragms to slide over one another during an axial collapse. The barriers of these patents use a cast or molded body of vermiculite or similar material or alternately loosely associated vermiculite particles to perform the energy absorption function. Obliquely oriented cables are provided between the diaphragms and ground anchors to maintain the diaphragms in axial alignment during a lateral impact.
Gertz U.S. Pat. No. 4,352,484, also assigned to the assignee of the present invention, discloses an improved crash barrier that utilizes an energy absorbing cartridge made up of foam filled hexagonal lattices arranged to shear into one another in response to the compression forces applied to the energy absorbing cartridge by an impacting vehicle.
Stevens U.S. Pat. No. 4,452,431, also assigned to the assignee of the present invention, shows yet another collapsible crash barrier employing diaphragms and side panels generally similar to those described above. This system also uses axially oriented cables to maintain the diaphragms in axial alignment, as well as breakaway cables secured between the front diaphragm and the ground anchor. These breakaway cables are provided with shear pins designed to fail during an axial impact to allow the frame to collapse. The disclosed crash barrier is used with various types of liquid containing and dry energy absorbing elements.
VanSchie U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,980 discloses another similar crash barrier which employs cylindrical tubes oriented axially between adjacent diaphragms. The energy required to deform these tubes during an axial collapse provides a force tending to decelerate the impacting vehicle. Cross-braces are used to stiffen the frame against lateral impacts, and a guide is provided for the front of the frame to prevent the front of the frame from moving laterally when the frame is struck in a glancing impact by an impacting vehicle.
All of these prior art systems are designed to absorb the kinetic energy of the impacting vehicle by compressively deforming an energy absorbing structure. Because of the potential instability of compressive deformation, these systems use structural members to resist side forces that develop from compression loading. Furthermore, all use sliding side panels designed to telescope past one another during an impact. Because such sliding side panels must slide past one another during an axial impact, they have a limited strength in compression. This can be a disadvantage in some applications.
Another prior art system known as the Dragnet System places a net or other restraining structure transversely across a roadway to be blocked. The two ends of the net are connected to respective metal ribbons, and these metal ribbons pass through rollers that bend the ribbons as they pay out through the rollers during a vehicle impact. The energy required to deform these ribbons results in a kinetic energy dissipating force which decelerates the impacting vehicle. The general principle of operation of the metal deforming rollers is shown for example in Jackson U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,211,620 and 3,377,044 as well as Vanzelm U.S. Pat. No. 3,307,832. The Dragnet System utilizes the metal ribbons in tension, but it is not well suited for use alongside a roadway because metal bending systems are positioned on both sides of the roadway, and the net or other obstruction extends completely across the roadway.
Krage U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,515, assigned to the assignee of this invention, describes a collapsible guard rail end terminal that utilizes a wire cable extending through grommets in legs of the end terminal. The side panels of the end terminal are mounted to slide over one another when struck axially. When the end terminal collapses during an impact, the legs may be rotated such that the grommets work the cable and create a frictional force on the cable. However, the magnitude of the resulting retarding forces is highly variable, due to the variable and unpredictable rotational positions of the legs during the collapse.
Thus, a need presently exists for an improved highway crash barrier that provides predictable decelerating forces to an axially impacting vehicle, that is low in cost, that is simple to install, that utilizes a minimum of cross-bracing of the type required in the past to resist lateral impacts, and that efficiently redirects laterally impacting vehicles.


A multi-functional ornamental lighting equipment is set forth. This equipment comprises an ornamental lighting load connected to form a plurality of branch circuits; a function controller formed of a variety of electric and electronic components operable for various prescribed functions, and having a power supply input terminal and an output terminal to the multi-branched circuit; a connecting junction composed by a male connector and a female connector, there is a plurality of electric wires installed inside the connecting junction, one end of said electric wires is connected to said ornamental lighting load, while the other end is connected to a plug, and a space is provided inside the connecting junction for installation of function controller.

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to multi-functional ornamental lighting equipment, and more particularly to an ornamental lighting equipment which includes a function controller installed in a connecting junction so as to provide the ornamental lighting load with a function to perform a variety of light changing states.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The ornamental lighting equipment which creates a joyful atmosphere is usually composed of strings of incandescent lamps or LEDs as a light source with its one end connected to a power source and resting the assembly on a supporting frame such as a Christmas tree, or a picturesquely styled stand.
In order to enhance the light variation, a function controller is provided between the power source and the lighting equipment to control the flashing fashion of the lighting equipment. In the prior arts, there were many analogous ornamental lighting equipment disclosed or put into practice such as U.S. Pat. No. 6,653,757 "Apparatus and Method for Providing Synchronized Lights", U.S. Pat. No. 6,559,605 "Synchronous Multiple Serial Lamp Sets", U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,964 "Ornamental Lighting Device with a flexibly Separable Light Emitting Tube Capable of Portraying User's Designed Signs in a Flickering Manner", U.S. Pat. No. 5,834,901 "Flashing Light String Assembly with a Pair of Sub-light Strings per Plug", and U.S. Pat. No. 5,150,964 "Joy Light Structure" etc.
All the aforesaid cited cases provided their individual features in the interconnection scheme of the ornamental lamps, but there is a significant shortcoming of disorganization in the fastening and assembling manners especially when the number of the electric conductors and lumped lamps is increased.
In view of such a defect inherent to the prior art, an improvement is seriously required.
The inventor has dedicated great efforts for years to studying and improving this defect and come up with a novel multi-functional ornamental lighting equipment as provided in this invention whose structure is sure to eliminate the defect mentioned above.

Multi-functional ornamental lighting equipment